It's a Bit Complicated | ||||
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Studio album by Art Brut | ||||
Released | 18 June 2007 | |||
Genre | Indie rock, garage punk, garage rock | |||
Length | 33:55 | |||
Label | Mute | |||
Producer | Dan Swift | |||
Art Brut chronology | ||||
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Singles from It's a Bit Complicated | ||||
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Professional ratings | |
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Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
Allmusic | |
Artrocker.com | |
Blender | |
NME | (8/10) |
PopMatters | (7/10) |
The Guardian | |
Pitchfork Media | (7.4/10) |
Rolling Stone | |
Yahoo! Music UK | (5/10) |
URB |
It's a Bit Complicated is the second album by British band Art Brut. It is the follow-up to their debut album Bang Bang Rock & Roll and was released on 19 June 2007. It debuted on the UK Albums Chart at #123.
It's A Bit Complicated was recorded at London’s Terminal Studios and was produced by Dan Swift (whose other work includes Futureheads, Franz Ferdinand and Snow Patrol), "a more like-minded producer" according to Argos. 'With the first album, we were all still at work and stuff, so we couldn't all be in the studio at the time' Argos says. 'We couldn't really gang up on the producer and do what we wanted'. This time round, the band had more input in the production, though. 'We'd all be there at once so we could gang up on him. We'd say "Do it like this!" You're just more comfortable when you're all there. So, that made it better. In fact, Ian [Catskillian] lived at the studio for a bit. We'd come in and find all these new backing vocals and things [that he had done overnight]. When someone is living in the studio, you sort of get into it'.
Explaining the songwriting process, Eddie says; 'I was trying to write the words to the music as they wrote the music, but that was bit stupid and a bit complicated, so I had to go home and write the words at home and I came in and added the words to the music afterwards'.
'We wanted this album to sound sort of bigger and polished' Argos says. 'We're working towards writing very honest pop music. And we mean it. We've been trying to do that. The last two songs I wrote for the first album were "Emily Kane" and "Rusted Guns of Milan." I love them. I like being that person who's so honest. So, this [album] happens to be more like that. And, I'm a bit complicated so, it's a bit complicated'.
Ellaborating on the album's title, Argos said; 'With the first one, Bang Bang Rock & Roll, it was just songs we had been playing live. It was already written when we recorded it. But this time we sort of sat down and tried to write songs… which was a bit complicated. Not too complicated. We got over it. So, the music is more complicated; we've got some trumpets and things like that'. 'That’s what we kept saying all the while we were recording the album;‘it’s a bit complicated’. It just made sense that that would be the title.'