''Star Tiger Star Ariel'' is the fourth studio album by English

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

band

Delays Delays are an English indie band formed in Southampton, which consisted of brothers Greg Gilbert and Aaron Gilbert, Colin Fox and Rowly until Greg Gilbert's death in 2021. The band's sound combines guitar and synths and featured Greg Gilbert ...

. The album was released on 21 June 2010 through Lookout Mountain Records. Less than a year after the release of their third studio album '' Everything's the Rush'', the band left

Fiction Records Fiction Records is a British record label founded by Chris Parry in 1978, owned by Universal Music Group and based in the United Kingdom. It is best known for being the home of the Cure for over 20 years. It was originally a part of Polydor, ...

in early 2009. Around this time, they were demoing material for its follow-up. In September 2009, they recorded at

Rockfield Studios Rockfield Studios is a residential recording studio located in the Wye Valley just outside the village of Rockfield, Monmouthshire, Wales. It was founded in 1963 by brothers Kingsley and Charles Ward. Recording studios Rockfield is a two-stu ...

in Monmouth, Wales and NAM Studios in Holt, with Duncan Lewis,

Tom Dalgety Tom Dalgety is an English record producer and audio engineer. He is most noted for his work with Pixies, Ghost, and Royal Blood. He was nominated for Grammy Awards in 2019 for his production work on the Ghost album ''Prequelle'' ( Best Rock Alb ...

and the band acting as producers. ''Star Tiger Star Ariel'' received mixed reviews from

critics A critic is a person who communicates an assessment and an opinion of various forms of creative works such as art, literature, music, cinema, theater, fashion, architecture, and food. Critics may also take as their subject social or governme ...

, some commenting on the band's experimentation, others thought it was uninspiring. It features a stripped-down sound, compared to the band's previous albums. Preceding the album's release, the band went on a tour of the United Kingdom. "Unsung" was released as the album's

lead single A lead single (or first single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. A similar term, "debut ...

in June 2010; later in the year, they went on another UK tour.

Background

Delays released their third studio album '' Everything's the Rush'' in May 2008 through

Fiction Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying character (arts), individuals, events, or setting (narrative), places that are imagination, imaginary or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent ...

and

Polydor Records Polydor Limited, also known as Polydor Records, is a British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in ...

. The album, which peaked at number 26 on the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is the United Kingdom's industry-recognised national record chart for album, albums. Entries are ranked by sales and audio streaming. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the O ...

, was promoted with a tour and various festivals around the UK. In February 2009, the band announced left Fiction Records; they also said they were in the process of demoing material for their next album. "Rhapsody" and "Unsung" were made available on their

Myspace Myspace (formerly stylized as MySpace, currently myspace; and sometimes my␣, with an elongated Whitespace character#Substitute images, open box symbol) is a social networking service based in the United States. Launched on August 1, 2003, it w ...

profile. ''Star Tiger Star Ariel'' was recorded in September 2009 at

in Monmouth, Wales, while additional vocals for "Star Tiger, Star Ariel" were recorded at NAM Studios in Holt. Duncan Lewis,

and the band produced the proceedings; Aaron Gilbert did additional production at Cellar Door. Dalgety handled record, as well as mixing with the band, bar "Unsung", at Evansson Audio Media in Bath. "Unsung" was mixed by

Steve Power Steve Power (born in Liverpool) is an English record producer best known for his work with Robbie Williams. He has produced and mixed for a wide variety of artists over the years, including Blur, Busted, Andrea Bocelli, Feeder, Joe Cocker,Pe ...

at T.O.P. Studio in London. Kevin Metcalfe mastered the album at Soundmasters in London.

Composition

In the context of their other albums,

Greg Gilbert Gregory Scott Gilbert (born January 22, 1962) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player. Gilbert played 15 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the New York Islanders, Chicago Blackhawks, New York Rangers, and St. ...

said ''Star Tiger Star Ariel'' "sounds like roots beneath the city shaking the buildings at night. This record is about being lost, and the dream of being found". He said they intentionally wanted a stripped-down sound to counter the orchestra arrangements heard on ''Everything's the Rush''. The members felt inspired by driving around the

New Forest The New Forest is one of the largest remaining tracts of unenclosed pasture land, heathland and forest in Southern England, covering southwest Hampshire and southeast Wiltshire. It was proclaimed a royal forest by William the Conqueror, featu ...

national park. The album opens with the

Middle Eastern The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

-inspired

ambient Ambient or ambiance or ambience may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Ambiancé'', an unreleased experimental film * ''Ambient'' (novel), a novel by Jack Womack Music and sound * Ambience (sound recording), also known as atmospheres or backgr ...

song "Find a Home (New Forest Shaker)", which is followed by the

indie pop Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with a DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and s ...

"The Lost Estate". The

Britpop Britpop was a mid-1990s United Kingdom, British-based music culture movement that emphasised Britishness. Musically, Britpop produced bright, catchy alternative rock, with significant influences from British guitar pop of the 1960s and 1970s. B ...

aping of "May '45" is followed by "Hold Fire", which is a

minimalist In visual arts, music, and other media, minimalism is an art movement that began in the post-war era in western art. The movement is often interpreted as a reaction to abstract expressionism and modernism; it anticipated contemporary post-mi ...

piano-centric ballad. "In Brilliant Sunshine" stars Aaron Gilbert on lead vocals, and evokes the sound of

New Order New Order may refer to: Politics * ''L'Ordine Nuovo'' (''The New Order''), a socialist newspaper edited by Antonio Gramsci in the early 1920s * ''New Order in East Asia'', propaganda term for Japanese-dominated East Asia announced by Japanese ...

. "Moment Gone" and "Lakes Can Be Lethal" harken back to the band's earlier sound; the album concludes with the

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog) is a broad genre of rock music that primarily developed in the United Kingdom through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early-to-mid-1970s. Initially termed " progressive pop", the ...

number "Star Tiger, Star Ariel".

Release and reception

Promotion

In October 2009, Delays went on a tour of the UK, where they debuted material from their forthcoming album. On 21 April 2010, ''Star Tiger Star Ariel'' was announced for release in two months' time. Alongside this, the album's track listing was posted online, and "Find a Home (New Forest Shaker)" was made available as a free download from the band's website. In May and June 2010, they embarked on a second trek of the UK. "Unsung" was released as the album's

on 13 June 2010. They went on another tour of the UK in October 2010.

Critical reception

''Star Tiger Star Ariel'' was met with mixed reviews from

music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on ...

. At AnyDecentMusic?, which assigns a

normalized Normalization or normalisation refers to a process that makes something more normal or regular. Science * Normalization process theory, a sociological theory of the implementation of new technologies or innovations * Normalization model, used in ...

rating out of 10 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an

average In colloquial, ordinary language, an average is a single number or value that best represents a set of data. The type of average taken as most typically representative of a list of numbers is the arithmetic mean the sum of the numbers divided by ...

score of 5.7, based on ninereviews.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

reviewer Jon O'Brien saw it as a "much more urgent, rock-led affair than its predecessors", though "still offers glimpses of their previous distinctive style". ''

musicOMH ''MusicOMH'' (stylized as ''musicOMH'') is a London-based online music magazine which publishes independent reviews, features and interviews from across all genres including classical, metal, rock and R&B. History ''MusicOMH'' was founded an ...

'' Ben Hogwood said a number of the songs had "moments of pure beauty", with the band "delighting in exploring new sounds to go with Gilbert’s distinctive tones". Maria Schurr of ''

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, ...

'' wrote that there were "signs of definite progression from their lovely if innocuous debut, Faded Seaside Glamour", and if they could improve on their lyrics, "then they may have something worth swooning over". ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

'' contributor Ian Cohen noted that the band attempts to "reintroduc themselves with every album", and with ''Star Tiger Star Ariel'', the "strain to come on as strong as possible shows more than ever". He added that it felt "over-baked and impersonal" compared to their earlier releases. '' Drowned in Sound'' writer Simon Jay Catling said the album was "another disappointing reaffirmation that beyond their debut the group still haven’t really written a full record that stands up to sustained interest". Tom Edwards of ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' echoed a similar sentiment, stating that "between

the Killers The Killers are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Las Vegas, Nevada, in 2001 by Brandon Flowers (lead vocals, keyboards, bass) and Dave Keuning (lead guitar, backing vocals). After the band went through a number of short-term bas ...

-lite electro fluff and

shoegaze Shoegaze (originally called shoegazing and sometimes conflated with dream pop) is a subgenre of indie rock, indie and alternative rock characterized by its ethereal mixture of obscured vocals, guitar distortion (music), distortion and effects, a ...

flutterings lie a couple of pretty snazzy pop songs glimmering timidly in the murk". ''

Daily Express The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first ...

'' reviewer Martin Townsend felt for the majority of the album, the band "huff and puff like a glorified pub group".

Track listing

All songs written by Greg and Aaron Gilbert, except "Shanghaied", "Hold Fire" and "Lakes Can Be Lethal" by G. Gilbert. #"Find a Home (New Forest Shaker)" – 4:02 #"The Lost Estate" – 4:05 #"Shanghaied" – 2:59 #"Rhapsody" – 4:00 #"May '45" – 3:17 #"Hold Fire" – 5:07 #"Unsung" – 3:59 #"In Brilliant Sunshine" – 4:42 #"Moment Gone" – 4:27 #"Lakes Can Be Lethal" – 5:12 #"Star Tiger, Star Ariel" – 5:04

Personnel

Personnel per booklet. Delays *

– lead vocals, guitars, piano (track 6) * Aaron Gilbert – lead vocal (track 8), backing vocals, keyboards, programming * Colin Fox – bass, backing vocals * Rowly – drums, percussion Production and design * Duncan Lewis – producer *

– producer, recording, mixing (all except track 7) * Delays – producer, mixing (all except track 7) * Aaron Gilbert – additional production *

– mixing (track 7) * Gary Kelly – design * Steve Averill – design * Kevin Metcalfe – mastering

References

External links

''Star Tiger Star Ariel''
at

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(streamed copy where licensed) {{Authority control 2010 albums Delays albums