Muchacho

Studio album by Phosphorescent

Released

March 19, 2013

Recorded

Greenpoint, Brooklyn, New York

Genre

Indie rock, indie pop, indie folk, alternative country, psychedelic pop

Length

46:28

Phosphorescent chronology

Here's to Taking It Easy
(2010)

Muchacho
(2013)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic
American Songwriter
Clash	8/10
Consequence of Sound
The Independent
Mojo
musicOMH
Paste	9.3/10
Pitchfork	8.8/10
Q
Uncut	8/10
Under the Radar

Muchacho (Spanish for "boy") is the sixth studio album by American indie rock act Phosphorescent, released on March 19, 2013 on Dead Oceans. Self-produced by Matthew Houck, the album was preceded by the single, "Song for Zula".

Muchacho's lyrical content was inspired by the various events that followed his tour in support of previous studio album, Here's to Taking It Easy (2010).

Released to widespread critical acclaim, the album reached fifty-nine on the Billboard 200 and fifty-eight on the UK Albums Chart.

In 2012, Matthew Houck was forced, due to New York City re-zoning, to disassemble his studio in the Navy Yards area of Brooklyn, New York, and subsequently moved to Greenpoint, where he began work on Muchacho in his reassembled studio. Regarding his new recording space, Houck noted, "It's not so much a 'studio' as it is a junky practice space - no professionals would ever walk in there and be like, 'Whoa'."

The album was influenced by Houck's experiences on tour in support of his previous album, Here's to Taking It Easy (2010), and its aftermath, with Houck stating: "The last time I was on the road, I thought, 'Just a few more months, and then I’ll go home and tend to everything.' But when I got back, everything was too far gone to fix, so there was fallout. Losing my place [in the Navy Yards] was a big deal. It’s a big space, and over the years I acquired a decent amount of gear. New York is a beast, man, it’s hard to find a place to do music unless you’re going to soundproof it. Relationships are tough when you're on the road, too - my girlfriend would come on some of the tours, but it wasn't easy. Drugs and booze were involved. So I lost the place, lost the girl, and lost my mind."

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Wikipedia