Bad as Me
| Bad as Me | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
||||
| Studio album by Tom Waits | ||||
| Released | October 21, 2011 | |||
| Genre | Rock, experimental, blues | |||
| Length | 44:44 | |||
| Label | ANTI- | |||
| Producer | Tom Waits, Kathleen Brennan | |||
| Tom Waits chronology | ||||
|
||||
| Singles from Bad as Me | ||||
|
||||
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Aggregate scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 88/100 |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   |
| The A.V. Club | A− |
| Entertainment Weekly | A− |
| The Guardian | |
| The Independent | |
| MSN Music | A− |
| NME | 6/10 |
| Pitchfork Media | 8.1/10 |
| Rolling Stone | |
| Spin | 8/10 |
Bad as Me is the seventeenth studio album by American rock musician Tom Waits, released on October 21, 2011 by ANTI- Records. The album is known to have been recorded as early as February 2011 and was officially announced for release on August 23, 2011 on Waits' official web site and various social media networks. On the same day, the title track, "Bad as Me," was released as the album's first single on iTunes.
The album is Waits' first album consisting completely of new material in seven years since Real Gone (2004). Waits' label, ANTI-, had recently agreed on a distribution deal with Warner Music Group allowing them to release the album internationally. This marks Waits' first release through the Warner organization since Heartattack and Vine (1980). Upon its release, Bad as Me received widespread critical acclaim. The album was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album.
On August 16, 2011, amid the rise of many rumours concerning Bad as Me, Waits announced on his official web site and through various social media outlets that he would "set the rumors straight" on August 23. On this date, the title track was released as a digital single through iTunes, a video with previews of the album was released on YouTube, and was followed by a press release on his site and ANTI-'s blog, which read:
Bad As Me is Tom Waits' first studio album of all new music in seven years. This pivotal work refines the music that has come before and signals a new direction. Waits, in possibly the finest voice of his career, worked with a veteran team of gifted musicians and longtime co-writer/producer Kathleen Brennan. From the opening horn-fueled chug of "Chicago," to the closing barroom chorale of "New Year's Eve," Bad As Me displays the full career range of Waits' songwriting, from beautiful ballads like "Last Leaf," to the avant cinematic soundscape of "Hell Broke Luce," a battlefront dispatch. On tracks like "Talking at the Same Time," Waits shows off a supple falsetto, while on blues burners like "Raised Right Men" and the gospel tinged "Satisfied" he spits, stutters and howls. Like a good boxer, these songs are lean and mean, with strong hooks and tight running times. A pervasive sense of players delighting in each other's musical company brings a feeling of loose joy even to the album's saddest songs.
...
Wikipedia