The Audience's Listening is the debut studio album by Cut Chemist, released on Warner Bros. Records on July 11, 2006.[13] It features guest appearances from Hymnal, Edan, Mr. Lif, and Thes One.[3]
| The Audience's Listening | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | July 11, 2006[1] | |||
| Genre | Hip hop | |||
| Length | 43:25 | |||
| Label | Warner Bros. Records | |||
| Producer | Cut Chemist | |||
| Cut Chemist chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from The Audience's Listening | ||||
| ||||
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 79/100[2] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [3] |
| Alternative Press | [4] |
| The A.V. Club | A−[5] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B[6] |
| The Guardian | [7] |
| Mojo | [8] |
| PopMatters | 7/10[9] |
| Stylus Magazine | B[10] |
| URB | [11] |
| Uncut | [12] |
Production
editAfter leaving Jurassic 5 in 2004, Cut Chemist spent 18 months working exclusively on the album, which he had already been working on for 2 years.[14] He spent almost a year clearing samples.[13]
Critical reception
editAt Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 79% based on 15 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[2]
David Jeffries of AllMusic gave the album 3.5 stars out of 5 and described it as "a well-crafted, highly enjoyable effort that overcomes the 'all samples cleared' challenge all big-label turntablist albums must face."[3] Jeff Vrabel of PopMatters gave the album 7 stars out of 10, saying, "It's DJ music for the casual fan, something you don't need to be a knob-twiddler or connoisseur of the break beat to appreciate or enjoy."[9]
In 2015, Vice named it the 49th greatest dance album of all time.[15]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Motivational Speaker" | 1:48 |
| 2. | "(My 1st) Big Break" | 4:30 |
| 3. | "The Lift" | 1:25 |
| 4. | "The Garden" | 6:16 |
| 5. | "Spat" | 2:21 |
| 6. | "What's the Altitude" (featuring Hymnal) | 4:23 |
| 7. | "Metrorail Thru Space" | 3:56 |
| 8. | "Storm" (featuring Edan and Mr. Lif) | 3:28 |
| 9. | "2266 Cambridge" (featuring Thes One) | 2:34 |
| 10. | "Spoon" | 5:31 |
| 11. | "A Peak in Time" | 4:52 |
| 12. | "The Audience Is Listening Theme Song" | 2:20 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 13. | "Beats Thru Space" | 3:18 |
Charts
edit| Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Dance Albums (OCC)[16] | 20 |
| US Top Dance/Electronic Albums (Billboard)[17] | 7 |
| US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[18] | 16 |
References
edit- ↑ "Record Shopping with Cut Chemist!". Spin. July 7, 2006. Archived from the original on February 9, 2020. Retrieved May 22, 2017.
- 1 2 "The Audience's Listening - Cut Chemist". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on August 11, 2016. Retrieved August 20, 2014.
- 1 2 3 Jeffries, David. "The Audience's Listening - Cut Chemist". AllMusic. Archived from the original on August 13, 2014. Retrieved August 20, 2014.
- ↑ Each of the dozen tracks on his debut is a fully realized vignette that makes a particular locale startlingly vivid. [Sep 2006, p.230]
- ↑ Rabin, Nathan (August 2, 2006). "Music in Brief". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on January 16, 2025. Retrieved March 3, 2025.
- ↑ Cut Chemist makes frisky, gleeful funk that touches on Brazilian samba, surf rock, and even polka, without losing the beat. [21 Jul 2006, p.70]
- ↑ Sullivan, Caroline (June 30, 2006). "Cut Chemist, The Audience's Listening". The Guardian. Retrieved August 20, 2014.
- ↑ Chemist eschews masturbatory scratch showcases in favour of artfully constructed, utterly oddball 'songs'. [Aug 2006, p.103]
- 1 2 Vrabel, Jeff (July 11, 2006). "Cut Chemist: The Audience's Listening". PopMatters. Retrieved August 20, 2014.
- ↑ Rosenberg, Tal (July 17, 2006). "Cut Chemist - The Audience's Listening". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on June 29, 2013. Retrieved August 20, 2014.
- ↑ Apparently channeling Stereolab, Dilated Peoples and the ghost of Esquivel, Cut Chemist finds that everything is fair game if you are witty and skilled enough to connect the dots. [Jun 2006, p.108]
- ↑ This is more than mere virtuoso performance. [Aug 2006, p.90]
- 1 2 "Cut Chemist Finds New 'Audience' On Solo Debut". BIllboard. May 10, 2006. Archived from the original on July 8, 2014. Retrieved August 20, 2014.
- ↑ Patch, Nick (July 2006). "Cut Chemist Works Backwards". Exclaim!. Archived from the original on October 23, 2012. Retrieved August 20, 2014.
- ↑ "The 99 Greatest Dance Albums of All Time". Vice. July 14, 2015. Archived from the original on July 23, 2015. Retrieved May 22, 2017.
- ↑ "Official Dance Albums Chart Top 40: 16 July 2006 - 22 July 2006". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on March 12, 2018. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
- ↑ "Cut Chemist - Chart history - Top Dance/Electronic Albums". Billboard. Archived from the original on January 29, 2023. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
- ↑ "Cut Chemist - Chart history - Heatseekers Albums". Billboard. Archived from the original on December 18, 2024. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
External links
edit- The Audience's Listening at Discogs (list of releases)