''Soft Universe'' is the fourth studio album by Australian electronic act

Pnau Pnau ( ) is an Australian dance music trio originating from Sydney. The trio, a duo before 2016, consists of the musicians Nick Littlemore (vocals, production), Peter Mayes (guitar, production) and Sam Littlemore (production), with the latte ...

. The album was released in July 2011 by

Etcetc Etcetc Music is an independent record label based in Sydney, Australia. It is the label of alternative and electronic bands and artists Pnau, George Maple, Kilter, Paces, San Mei, Luke Million, CLYPSO, Luboku, and the Australian releases of Ja ...

and peaked at number 13 on the

ARIA Charts The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offic ...

; becoming the act's highest charting album to date. The album featured a new "rock-anthem" sound unlike the duo's straightforward electronic dance sound for which they were previously known. At the

ARIA Music Awards of 2011 The 25th Annual Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (generally known as ARIA Music Awards or simply The ARIAs) were a series of award ceremonies which included the 2011 ARIA Artisan Awards, ARIA Hall of Fame Awards, ARIA Fi ...

, the album was nominated for

ARIA Award for Best Dance Release The ARIA Music Award for Best Dance Release, is an award presented at the annual ARIA Music Awards, which recognises "the many achievements of Aussie artists across all music genres", since 1987. It is handed out by the Australian Recording Indu ...

Reception

The album received generally positive reviews, with some claiming the release to be a solid follow-up to not only ''

'', but also to

Empire of the Sun ''Empire of the Sun'' is a 1984 novel by English writer J. G. Ballard; it was awarded the James Tait Black Memorial Prize and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. Like Ballard's earlier short story "The Dead Time" (published in the anthology '' ...

's '' Walking on a Dream'' and

Groove Armada Groove Armada are an English electronic music duo, composed of Andy Cato and Tom Findlay. They achieved chart success with their singles " At the River", " I See You Baby" and " Superstylin'". The duo have released nine studio albums, four of ...

's ''

Black Light A blacklight, also called a UV-A light, Wood's lamp, or ultraviolet light, is a lamp that emits long-wave ( UV-A) ultraviolet light and very little visible light. One type of lamp has a violet filter material, either on the bulb or in a se ...

'', both of which featured heavy involvement from

Littlemore Littlemore is a district and civil parish in Oxford, England. The civil parish includes part of Rose Hill. It is about southeast of the city centre of Oxford, between Rose Hill, Blackbird Leys, Cowley, and Sandford-on-Thames. The 2011 Cens ...

. Many critics, however, expressed mixed feelings concerning the new sound and direction, mostly in comparison to the duo's "quirky" sound and themes of their 2007 release.

Track listing

#"Everybody" – 4:53 #"Solid Ground" – 4:00 #"Unite Us" – 4:33 #"Twist of Fate" – 4:01 #"The Truth" – 4:55 #"Glimpse" – 4:19 #"Epic Fail" – 4:10 #"Better Way" – 3:29 #"Something Special" – 3:52 #"Waiting for You" – 4:26 #"True to You" – 3:57

Charts

Release history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Soft universe 2011 albums Pnau albums