8 | ||||
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Studio album by Incubus | ||||
Released | April 21, 2017 | |||
Recorded | 2016-2017 | |||
Genre | Alternative rock, indie rock, electronic, pop | |||
Length | 40:12 | |||
Label | Island | |||
Producer | Incubus, Dave Sardy, Skrillex | |||
Incubus chronology | ||||
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Singles from 8 | ||||
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Professional ratings | |
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Aggregate scores | |
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 45/100 |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | |
The A.V. Club | C |
Cryptic Rock | |
Newsday | B+ |
Zumic |
8 is the eighth studio album by American rock band Incubus. It was released on April 21, 2017, through Island Records. The album takes its name from being the band's eighth LP. The release of 8 in 2017 saw the longest time between full length albums for Incubus. The album was produced by Dave Sardy, and later re-produced and mixed by Skrillex, a close friend of the band. The album's first single, "Nimble Bastard", peaked at number 4 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs chart in April 2017.
The writing for 8 began at the end of 2015, when the band was putting together Side B of their Trust Fall EP. However, with the amount of quality content they were producing, they decided to release an LP instead. Recording took place throughout 2016 and 2017, with production and remixing occurring throughout the cycle, including a few weeks before the final release. This was due to Skrillex's late involvement with the project.
8 received mixed reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has an average score of 45 based on 7 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews."
Many listeners praised the band's return to rock with tracks like "Throw Out the Map" and "No Fun", the overall quality of production, as well as Brandon Boyd's vocal range, while others criticized the lack of personality within the album.
8 debuted at number four on the Billboard 200, moving 52,000 album-equivalent units; it sold 49,000 copies in its first week, with the remainder of its unit total reflecting the album's streaming activity and track sales.. In the second week, the album dropped at No.127, but re-surfaced within the top 100 at No.53 in the third week.