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God Said No

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God Said No
Omar sitting partially bare-chested, wearing a furry jacket and a cross necklace, looking ahead at the camera in front of a blue background.
Studio album by
Omar Apollo
ReleasedJune 28, 2024 (2024-06-28)
StudioAbbey Road, London, UK
Length45:12
Language
  • English
  • Spanish
LabelWarner
Producer
Omar Apollo chronology
Live for Me
(2023) 		God Said No
(2024)
Singles from God Said No
  1. "Spite"
    Released: April 5, 2024
  2. "Dispose of Me"
    Released: May 16, 2024
  3. "Less of You"
    Released: June 7, 2024

God Said No is the second studio album by American singer Omar Apollo, released on June 28, 2024, through Warner Records. It includes contributions from Mustafa and actor Pedro Pascal, and was preceded by the singles "Spite", "Dispose of Me" and "Less of You".[1]

Background and recording

[edit]

God Said No was partially recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London, and produced alongside Teo Halm, Carter Lang and Blake Slatkin.[2]

Apollo stated that the album is a "reflection of [his] life for the past 2 years" and "doesn't feel like it's a bunch of songs put together", calling it "a sequence that is made to be listened to front to back".[3] It was called a "survey of the emotional wreckage that followed the end of a torrid love affair" in a press release.[4] Apollo titled the album after a remark of his own when the relationship ended, which is also intended as a play on the Spanish phrase "lo que será, será" (English for "whatever will be, will be").[3]

Critical reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic82/100[5]
Review scores
SourceRating
Clash8/10[6]
DIY[7]
Dork[8]
NME[9]
Pitchfork7.4/10[10]
Rolling Stone[11]

God Said No was met with critical acclaim upon release, receiving a score of 82 out of 100 on review aggregator Metacritic.[5] Larisha Paul of Rolling Stone praised the album as being "an emotionally harrowing look inside the psyche of a musician wringing every drop of meaning from the old adage that great art comes from great pain".[11]

NME reviewer Laura Molloy described the album as "Apollo's most atmospheric offering to date" and praised the "eclectic, expansive sonic palette that constantly drifts between genres yet is anchored in his diaristic musings on finite romance".[9] In The New York Times, God Said No was selected as a NYT Critic's Pick. Reviewer Jon Pareles praised the "enduring break-up songs". He noted that the lo-fi tone of the album "suggests troubled thoughts and uncomfortable conversations, small-scale and introspective—seemingly private, not overtly theatrical".[12]

Accolades

[edit]
Critics' rankings for Ivory
Publication Accolade Rank Ref.
Out The top 10 albums released by LGBTQ+ artists in 2024
10
[13]
Rolling Stone The 100 Best Albums of 2024
59
[14]
Variety The Best Albums of 2024 Unranked
[15]
Vogue The 36 Best Albums of 2024 Unranked
[16]

Tour

[edit]

The album will be supported by the God Said No World Tour, which includes dates in the United States, Canada, Japan, Indonesia and Australia. The tour began in Melbourne, Australia at the Festival Hall on July 15, 2024, and will conclude in San Diego, California at the Rady Shell at Jacobs Park on October 11, 2024.[17]

Commercial performance

[edit]

God Said No debuted at number 56 on the US Billboard 200 and number 14 on the Top Rock & Alternative Albums chart with 10,000 pure album sales.[18]

Track listing

[edit]
God Said No track listing
No.TitleLyricsMusicProducer(s)Length
1."Be Careful with Me"
  • Slatkin
  • Lang
  • Halm
3:16
2."Spite"Velasco
  • Velasco
  • Halm
  • Slatkin
  • Slatkin
  • Halm
2:39
3."Less of You"Velasco
  • Velasco
  • Halm
3:13
4."Done with You"Velasco
  • Velasco
  • Halm
  • Lang
  • Slatkin
  • Dylan Wiggins
  • Slatkin
  • Lang
  • Wiggins
  • Apollo
  • Halm
  • Scott Bridgeway[a]
2:38
5."Plane Trees" (featuring Mustafa)
  • Velasco
  • Halm
  • Apollo
  • Halm
3:31
6."Drifting"Velasco
  • Velasco
  • Halm
Halm4:23
7."Empty"Velasco
  • Velasco
  • Halm
  • Slatkin
  • Slatkin
  • Apollo
  • Halm
  • Mark Kraus[a]
3:17
8."Life's Unfair"Velasco
  • Velasco
  • Halm
2:58
9."Against Me"Velasco
  • Velasco
  • Halm
  • Mike Hector
  • Hector
  • Apollo
  • Halm
  • Adam Krevlin[a]
2:31
10."While U Can"Velasco
  • Velasco
  • Lang
  • Oscar Santander
  • Lang
  • Apollo
  • Santander
3:06
11."Dispose of Me"
  • Velasco
  • Walsh
  • Halm
  • Santander
  • Slatkin
  • Slatkin
  • Santander
  • Halm
3:37
12."How"Velasco
  • Velasco
  • Halm
  • Slatkin
  • Slatkin
  • Apollo
  • Halm
2:59
13."Pedro"
  • Velasco
  • Halm
  • Apollo
  • Halm
2:26
14."Glow"Velasco
  • Velasco
  • Halm
  • Apollo
  • Halm
4:38
Total length:45:12

Note

  • ^[a] signifies an additional producer

Personnel

[edit]
  • Omar Apollo – vocals (all tracks), Prophet synthesizer (track 9), celeste piano (13)
  • Teo Halm – background vocals (tracks 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 13), synthesizer (1, 3, 5, 6, 8), drum programming (1, 12), piano (1, 13), programming (2–4, 6, 8, 14), guitar (2, 4, 5, 14), bass (2, 4, 11, 14), drums (2, 4, 11), Juno synthesizer (2, 5, 12), percussion (2, 11); Oberheim synthesizer, Roland paraphonic keyboards (3); Mellotron (4), grand piano (5, 14), Prophet synthesizer (6, 9), Wurlitzer (7, 13), upright piano (7), synthesizer programming (12); celeste piano, horns, mixing (13); organ, Minimoog, string arrangement (14)
  • Carter Lang – bass, synthesizer (track 1); engineering (track 4); EMS synthesizer (10)
  • Blake Slatkin – guitar, programming (tracks 2, 4); synthesizer, Wurlitzer (2); drum programming, synthesizer programming (12); engineering (tracks 2, 4, 11, 12)
  • Jonah Abraham – Oberheim synthesizer (track 3)
  • Mike Sabath – synth bass (track 3)
  • Rob Moose – cello, viola, violin, string arrangement (tracks 4, 5, 7, 14); engineering (tracks 4, 7, 14)
  • Jake Hicks – background vocals (track 4)
  • Christos Stylianides – flugelhorn, lead trumpet (track 4)
  • Kenneth Brown II – flugelhorn, trumpet (track 4)
  • Scott Bridgeway – drum programming (track 4)
  • Dylan Wiggins – guitar (track 4)
  • John Mayer – guitar (track 4)
  • Michael Underwood – saxophone (track 4)
  • Mustafa – vocals, background vocals (track 5)
  • Mark Kraus – engineering (tracks 1, 3, 11, 13), engineering assistance (4, 6, 7, 10); synthesizer programming (track 7), synthesizer (8)
  • BlankFor.ms – loops and engineering (tracks 7, 14)
  • Adam Krevlin – Casio keyboards (track 9)
  • Mike Hector – drum programming (track 9)
  • Oscar Santander – guitar (tracks 10, 11), Minimoog (14)
  • Dylan Day – guitar, slide guitar (track 11)
  • Mason Stoops – guitar, slide guitar (track 11)
  • Sean Hurley – bass (track 11)
  • Pedro Pascal – vocals (track 13)
  • Dale Becker – mastering (tracks 1, 3–14)
  • Mike Bozzi – mastering (track 2)
  • Joe Visciano – mixing (tracks 1, 9, 10)
  • Serban Ghenea – mixing (tracks 2, 4)
  • Jon Castelli – mixing (tracks 3, 5–7, 11, 12, 14)
  • Manny Marroquin – mixing (track 8)
  • John Muller – engineering (tracks 1, 4–10, 14)
  • Darren Jones – engineering (tracks 2–5, 8, 13, 14)
  • Garry Purohit – engineering (tracks 8, 14)
  • Nathan Phillips – engineering (tracks 9, 10)
  • Paul Pritchard – engineering (track 13)
  • Bryce Bordone – mix engineering (tracks 2, 4)
  • Brad Lauchert – mix engineering (tracks 3, 5–7, 11, 12, 14)
  • Ben Parkka – engineering assistance (tracks 1, 4, 6, 7), sound design (7)
  • Jamie Sprosen – engineering assistance (tracks 2, 3, 5, 13, 14)
  • Claude Vause – engineering assistance (tracks 3, 4)
  • Stephanie DeAngelis – engineering assistance (track 3)
  • Dani Perez – engineering assistance (tracks 5, 14)
  • Annie Gasiorowski – engineering assistance (track 13)

Charts

[edit]
Chart performance for God Said No
Chart (2024) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[19] 11
US Billboard 200[20] 56
US Top Rock & Alternative Albums (Billboard)[21] 14

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Hussain, Shahzaib (May 20, 2024). "Omar Apollo Announces New Album God Said No". Clash. Retrieved May 22, 2024.
  2. ^ Strauss, Matthew (May 16, 2024). "Omar Apollo Details Album, Shares Video for New Song: Watch". Pitchfork. Retrieved May 22, 2024.
  3. ^ a b Mier, Tomás (May 15, 2024). "Omar Apollo Announces Sophomore Album, God Said No". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 22, 2024.
  4. ^ Taylor, Sam (May 20, 2024). "Omar Apollo has announced his second album, God Said No". Dork. Retrieved May 22, 2024.
  5. ^ a b "God Said No by Omar Apollo Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved July 12, 2024.
  6. ^ Virdi, Amrit (June 28, 2024). "Omar Apollo – God Said No | Reviews". Clash. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  7. ^ Robinson, Otis (June 28, 2024). "OMAR APOLLO - GOD SAID NO". DIY. Retrieved July 16, 2024.
  8. ^ Young, Martyn. "Omar Apollo – God Said No". Dork. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  9. ^ a b Molloy, Laura (June 27, 2024). "Omar Apollo – God Said No review: finding peace in fate, family and friendship". NME. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  10. ^ Cliff, Aimee (July 10, 2024). "Omar Apollo: God Said No Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved July 12, 2024.
  11. ^ a b Paul, Larisha (June 24, 2024). "Omar Apollo Is the Sweet, Moody Pop Polymath We Need". Rolling Stone. Retrieved July 3, 2024.
  12. ^ Pareles, Jon (July 1, 2024). "Omar Apollo's Exquisite Heartache". The New York Times. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  13. ^ "Ranking the top 10 albums released by LGBTQ+ artists in 2024". Out. Out. Retrieved December 21, 2024.
  14. ^ Paul, Larisha. "The 100 Best Albums of 2024". Rolling Stone. Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved December 2, 2024.
  15. ^ "The Best Albums of 2024". Variety. Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved December 13, 2024.
  16. ^ "The 36 Best Albums of 2024". Vogue. Condé Nast. Retrieved December 22, 2024.
  17. ^ Lopez, Julyssa (June 6, 2024). "Omar Apollo Announces He'll Launch 'God Said No' Tour This Fall". Rolling Stone. Retrieved June 26, 2024.
  18. ^ Caulfield, Keith (July 9, 2024). "Imagine Dragons Score Sixth Top 10 on Album Sales Chart With 'Loom' Debut". Billboard. Retrieved July 22, 2024.
  19. ^ "ARIA Top 50 Albums Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. July 8, 2024. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  20. ^ "Omar Apollo Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved July 9, 2024.
  21. ^ "Omar Apollo Chart History: Top Rock & Alternative Albums". Billboard. Retrieved July 9, 2024.
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