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Slow Focus

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Slow Focus
Studio album by
Released22 July 2013 (2013-07-22)
Length52:05
LabelATP Recordings
ProducerFuck Buttons
Fuck Buttons chronology
Tarot Sport
(2009)
Slow Focus
(2013)
Singles from Slow Focus
  1. "Brainfreeze"
    Released: 2013
  2. "The Red Wing"
    Released: 2013

Slow Focus is the third and final studio album by Fuck Buttons, released on 22 July 2013. It peaked at number 36 on the UK Albums Chart.[1] It was the first album released by ATP Recordings to reach the top 40 of the UK Albums Chart.[2]

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.8/10[3]
Metacritic81/100[4]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[5]
The A.V. ClubB+[6]
The Guardian[7]
The Independent[8]
NME8/10[9]
Pitchfork8.7/10[10]
Q[11]
Rolling Stone[12]
Spin8/10[13]
Tiny Mix Tapes[14]
Uncut8/10[15]

Upon its release, Slow Focus received critical acclaim. At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews and ratings from mainstream critics, the album has received a score of 81, based on 39 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[4]

AllMusic reviewer Heather Phares noted that Fuck Buttons' self production work was a measure of "how much they've come into their own" and that "Slow Focus delivers some of their most masterful and seemingly effortless music yet."[5] Mike Madden, writing for Consequence of Sound, described it as "a seven-track ride at turns gloopy and glassy, invigorating and dark," noting that "all told, this is pretty epic stuff."[16] Drowned in Sound critic Andrzej Lukowski observed that Slow Focus displayed "a strange, alien detachment" with an "undercurrent of menace", but stated that the album "isn't alienating, it's other, and it's a pleasure to take a wander around its unfamiliar landscapes".[17] In his review for The Guardian where he commented that Slow Focus "seems slightly more commercial than its predecessor, although such things are obviously relative," Alexis Petridis concluded that "the only real response is to listen and gawp."[7] NME reviewer Noel Gardner opined that it was "all-consuming and consistently impressive from the off" and stated that the band "can be proud of what they continue to achieve."[9]

Year-End Rankings

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Publication List Rank Ref
The A.V. Club The 23 Best Albums of 2013[18] 12 [19]
Bleep Top Albums of the Year 2013 9 [20][21]
Clash Clash's Top Albums of 2013 19 [22]
Crack Magazine Top 100 Albums of 2013 44 [23]
musicOMH Top 100 Albums of 2013 36 [24]
NME NME's 50 Best Albums of 2013 40 [25]
Pitchfork Top 50 Best Albums of 2013 46 [26]
Rolling Stone 50 Best Albums of 2013 48 [27]
Slant Magazine The 25 Best Albums of 2013 19 [28]
Under the Radar Top 125 Albums of 2013 91 [29]

"N/A" indicates that the publication did not rank the works included in their year-end list.

Track Accolades

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Track Publication List Rank Ref
"Hidden Xs" Bleep Top 100 Tracks of 2013 N/A [30]

"N/A" indicates that the publication did not rank the works included in their year-end list.

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Fuck Buttons

No.TitleLength
1."Brainfreeze"8:33
2."Year of the Dog"4:38
3."The Red Wing"7:48
4."Sentients"6:24
5."Prince's Prize"4:22
6."Stalker"10:08
7."Hidden Xs"10:12

Personnel

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Credits adapted from liner notes.

  • Fuck Buttons – music, production, recording, mixing
  • Mat Rowlands – initial track recording
  • Nina Walsh – initial track recording
  • Jimmy Robertson – mix engineering
  • Bob Weston – mastering
  • Benjamin John Power – artwork
  • Alex de Mora – photography

Charts

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Chart Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[31] 48
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[32] 138
UK Albums (OCC)[1] 36

References

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  1. ^ a b "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  2. ^ Britton, Luke Morgan (29 July 2013). "Fuck Buttons 'Slow Focus' becomes ATP Recordings' first Top 40 album | The Line Of Best Fit". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 5 August 2013.
  3. ^ "Slow Focus by Fuck Buttons reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
  4. ^ a b "Reviews for Slow Focus by Fuck Buttons". Metacritic. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
  5. ^ a b Phares, Heather. "Slow Focus – Fuck Buttons". AllMusic. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
  6. ^ Kivel, Adam (23 July 2013). "Fuck Buttons: Slow Focus". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  7. ^ a b Petridis, Alexis (18 July 2013). "Fuck Buttons: Slow Focus – review". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
  8. ^ Price, Simon (20 July 2013). "Album: Fuck Buttons, Slow Focus (ATP Recordings)". The Independent. Archived from the original on 15 June 2015. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  9. ^ a b Gardner, Noel (19 July 2013). "Fuck Buttons – 'Slow Focus'". NME. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
  10. ^ Greene, Jayson (22 July 2013). "Fuck Buttons: Slow Focus". Pitchfork. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
  11. ^ "Fuck Buttons: Slow Focus". Q (325): 102. August 2013.
  12. ^ Powell, Mike (1 October 2013). "Slow Focus". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  13. ^ Sherburne, Philip (22 July 2013). "Fuck Buttons, 'Slow Focus' (ATP)". Spin. Retrieved 5 September 2013.
  14. ^ Elliott, EZRA. "Slow Focus – Fuck Buttons". Tiny Mix Tapes. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  15. ^ "Fuck Buttons: Slow Focus". Uncut (195): 71. August 2013.
  16. ^ Madden, Mike (22 July 2013). "Album Review: Fuck Buttons – Slow Focus". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
  17. ^ Lukowski, Andrzej (22 July 2013). "Album Review: Fuck Buttons – Slow Focus". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on 10 August 2013. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
  18. ^ "The 23 best albums of 2013". The A.V. Club. 3 December 2013. Retrieved 14 December 2013.
  19. ^ "The 23 best albums of 2013". Music. 5 December 2013. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  20. ^ Bleep. "Top 10 Albums of the Year 2013". Bleep. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  21. ^ "Bleep's 50 Best Albums of 2013". Album of The Year. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  22. ^ "Clash's Top Albums Of 2013: 20-11". Clash Magazine. 9 December 2013. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  23. ^ "ALBUMS OF THE YEAR: 10-1". Crack Magazine. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  24. ^ "musicOMH's Top 100 Albums Of 2013: Full List and Playlist | Lists". musicOMH. 9 December 2013. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  25. ^ "NME's 50 Best Albums Of 2013". NME. 26 November 2013. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
  26. ^ "The Top 50 Albums of 2013". Pitchfork. 18 December 2013. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  27. ^ "50 Best Albums of 2013". Rolling Stone. 2 December 2013. Retrieved 3 May 2019.
  28. ^ Staff (12 December 2013). "The 25 Best Albums of 2013". Slant Magazine. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  29. ^ "Under the Radar's Top 125 Albums of 2013 | Under The Radar Magazine". www.undertheradarmag.com. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  30. ^ Bleep. "The Top 100 Tracks of 2013". Bleep. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  31. ^ "Ultratop.be – Fuck Buttons – Slow Focus" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  32. ^ "Ultratop.be – Fuck Buttons – Slow Focus" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
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