Charmer
Studio album by
Aimee Mann
ReleasedSeptember 18, 2012
RecordedStampede Origin, Los Angeles
Genre
Length38:02
LabelSuperEgo
ProducerPaul Bryan
Aimee Mann chronology
@#%&*! Smilers
(2008)		 Charmer
(2012)		 Mental Illness
(2017)
Singles from Charmer
  1. "Charmer"
    Released: June 25, 2012
  2. "Labrador"
    Released: September 18, 2012
  3. "Soon Enough"
    Released: November 8, 2012

Charmer is the eighth studio album by singer-songwriter Aimee Mann, released by SuperEgo Records in the UK on September 17, 2012, and in the US on September 18.[1]

The album was produced by Mann's bassist, Paul Bryan, and features a guest appearance by The Shins frontman James Mercer, who duets with Mann on the track "Living a Lie." It debuted on the Billboard 200 at No. 33.

Laura Linney and John Hodgman star in the music video for the first single, "Charmer."[2]

The video for the second single, "Labrador," is a shot-for-shot remake of the video for "Voices Carry," the 1985 hit of Mann's former band, 'Til Tuesday, with the exception of Town Hall replacing Carnegie Hall.[3]

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic(73/100)[4]
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[5]
American Songwriter[6]
Blurt[7]
Consequence of Sound[8]
musicOMH[9]
No Ripcord[10]
PopMatters[1]
Rolling Stone[11]
Under the Radar[4]
Uncut(8/10)[4]

Charmer so far has a score of 73 out of 100 from Metacritic based on "generally favorable reviews".[4] Jody Rosen, in Rolling Stone magazine, criticized its lyrics and production concluding "[T]here's little new here, and even less charm".[11] Allmusic, however, was more positive, citing its hooks as "spiky and precise", and concluding that it was "an immediate, engaging pop record".[5]

Other reviews are positive: Filter gave the album a score of 84% and stated that "Thirty years in, Mann continues to charm, a hidden glint in her eye."[12] Mojo gave the album four stars out of five and called it "an Americana and power-pop confection with piano and tasteful guitars swaddled in the choicest vintage tones."[4] The Independent gave it a favorable review and called it "Another sweet viper's bite of post-Freudian dyspepsia from the singersongwriter who loves to mistrust."[13] Paste gave it a score of 7.8 out of ten and stated: "The simple fact that Aimee Mann continues writing songs around these distressing observations and putting them out on such achingly beautiful records seems proof that-despite all the twisted, cutting truths she's spied under the lens of her artistic microscope—she still somehow clings to the sable cloud's silver flash."[14] The A.V. Club gave it a B and said that Mann "is able to match her ideas to music with real kick."[15]

Other reviews are average or mixed: Q gave the album three stars out of five and called Mann "good and snarky".[4] The New York Times gave it an average review and said it "represents a sunny term for [Mann], at least in relative terms."[16] The Boston Globe, however, gave it a mixed review and stated: "Too many tracks flirt with flat inconsequentiality, and too often the lyrics slip by without the sting of Mann's normally incisive wordsmithery."[17]

Track listing

All songs written by Aimee Mann, except where noted.

  1. "Charmer" – 3:25
  2. "Disappeared" – 3:24
  3. "Labrador" – 3:49
  4. "Crazytown" – 3:21
  5. "Soon Enough" (Mann, Tim Heidecker) – 3:59
  6. "Living a Lie" (featuring James Mercer) (Mann, Paul Bryan) – 3:26
  7. "Slip and Roll" – 4:12
  8. "Gumby" – 2:53
  9. "Gamma Ray" – 3:00
  10. "Barfly" – 4:00
  11. "Red Flag Diver" – 2:29
  12. "Brother's Keeper" (Bonus Track) – 4:06[lower-alpha 1]
  13. "Mea Culpa" (Bonus Track) – 2:29[lower-alpha 2]
  14. "Swanee River" (Bonus Track)  - 4:08[lower-alpha 3][18]

Personnel

  • Aimee Mann – lead vocals, acoustic guitar
  • James Mercer – vocals on "Living a Lie"
  • J. J. Johnson – drums
  • Jay Bellerose – percussion
  • Chris Bruce – electric guitar
  • Paul Bryan – bass, Mellotron, background vocals
  • Jebin Bruni – piano, keyboards
  • Jamie Edwards – electric guitar, piano, keyboards, tubular bells

Notes

  1. ↑ Available on both the Australian and Japanese versions of Charmer, in the Australian iTunes store, or released as the A side on a 7" vinyl as a bonus for those who preordered Charmer on vinyl at select record stores
  2. ↑ Available on the Australian version of Charmer, in the Australian iTunes store, and released as the B side on a 7" vinyl as a bonus for those who preordered Charmer on vinyl at select record stores
  3. ↑ Alluded to in at least one interview with Aimee Mann, though this song does not appear in any typical version of the album.

References

  1. 1 2 Horowitz, Steve (September 19, 2012). "Aimee Mann: Charmers". PopMatters. Retrieved July 8, 2013.
  2. ↑ Aimee Mann gets a Laura Linney robot double in her new video for "Charmer". The A.V. Club (August 16, 2012). Retrieved on September 24, 2012.
  3. ↑ Aimee Mann remakes "Voices Carry" with help from Ted Leo, Jon Hamm, Tom Scharpling, and Jon Wurster. The A.V. Club (September 18, 2012). Retrieved on September 19, 2012.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Critic Reviews for Charmer". Metacritic. Retrieved July 8, 2013.
  5. 1 2 Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Charmer – Aimee Mann". Allmusic. Retrieved November 21, 2012.
  6. ↑ Wojtas, Michael (August 30, 2012). "Aimee Mann: Charmer". American Songwriter. Retrieved July 8, 2013.
  7. ↑ Pick, Steve (October 1, 2012). "Aimee Mann – Charmer". Blurt. Archived from the original on October 5, 2012. Retrieved July 8, 2013.
  8. ↑ Grant, Sarah H. (September 24, 2012). "Album Review: Aimee Mann – Charmer". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved July 8, 2013.
  9. ↑ Wright, Mic (September 17, 2012). "Aimee Mann – Charmer". musicOMH. Retrieved July 8, 2013.
  10. ↑ McKenna, James (October 15, 2012). "Aimee Mann: Charmer". No Ripcord. Retrieved July 8, 2013.
  11. 1 2 Rosen, Jody (October 11, 2012). "Charmer Aimee Mann". Rolling Stone. No. 1167. p. 68. Posted in "Charmer". Rolling Stone. September 21, 2012. Retrieved November 21, 2012.
  12. ↑ Pollock, Adam (September 19, 2012). "Reviews – Aimee Mann (Charmer)". Filter. Retrieved July 8, 2013.
  13. ↑ Coleman, Nick (September 16, 2012). "Album: Aimee Mann, Charmer (Super Ego/Proper)". The Independent. Retrieved July 8, 2013.
  14. ↑ Labate, Steve (September 19, 2012). "Aimee Mann: Charmer :: Music :: Reviews". Paste. Retrieved July 8, 2013.
  15. ↑ Murray, Noel (September 18, 2012). "Aimee Mann: Charmer". The A.V. Club. Retrieved July 8, 2013.
  16. ↑ Chinen, Nate (September 17, 2012). "Aimee Mann: "Charmer"". The New York Times. Retrieved July 8, 2013.
  17. ↑ Hirsh, Marc (September 18, 2012). "Aimee Mann, 'Charmer'". The Boston Globe. Retrieved July 8, 2013.
  18. ↑ Grandjean, Pat (January 20, 2012). "Q & A: Aimee Mann". Connecticut Magazine. Retrieved October 2, 2019.
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