Heartworms (album)
2017 album by the Shins
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Heartworms is the fifth studio album by American rock band the Shins, released by Columbia Records on March 10, 2017—the band's first studio album in five years.[5] It was produced by James Mercer,[6] with the exception of "So Now What", which was produced by former band member Richard Swift.[6] The album art is based on the Japanese Ukiyo-e triptych Takiyasha the Witch and the Skeleton Spectre.
| Heartworms | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | March 10, 2017 | |||
| Recorded | Nov–Dec 2013 ("So Now What"), June 2015 – June 2016 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 41:44 | |||
| Label | Columbia | |||
| Producer | James Mercer | |||
| The Shins chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Heartworms | ||||
Reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 73/100[7] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [8] |
| The A.V. Club | B[9] |
| Drowned In Sound | 8/10[1] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B+[2] |
| The Independent | [10] |
| MusicOMH | [11] |
| NME | [12] |
| Paste | 7.1/10[13] |
| Pitchfork | 7.6/10[14] |
| Rolling Stone | [15] |
Overall, Heartworms received positive reviews from critics. On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, it has an average score of 73, based on twenty reviews.[7]
Accolades
| Publication | Accolade | Year | Rank | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drowned in Sound | Favourite Albums of 2017 | 2017 |
77 |
Track listing
All tracks are written by James Mercer.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Name for You" | 3:09 |
| 2. | "Painting a Hole" | 4:44 |
| 3. | "Cherry Hearts" | 3:33 |
| 4. | "Fantasy Island" | 4:46 |
| 5. | "Mildenhall" | 3:19 |
| 6. | "Rubber Ballz" | 3:17 |
| 7. | "Half a Million" | 3:23 |
| 8. | "Dead Alive" | 3:34 |
| 9. | "Heartworms" | 2:56 |
| 10. | "So Now What" | 3:38 |
| 11. | "The Fear" | 5:25 |
Personnel
Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.[17]
The Shins
- James Mercer – vocals, guitar (all tracks); bass (1, 2, 7–9, 11), synthesizers (3, 4, 6, 7), percussion (5, 8), chord organ (5, 11), ukulele, harmonica (11)
- Joe Plummer – drums (1, 4, 6–10)
- Yuuki Matthews – synthesizers (1–9, 11), drums (3), percussion (3, 5, 6), bass (4, 6, 10)
- Mark Watrous – guitar (1, 4, 8), piano (1, 8, 9), strings (4, 11), kalimba (4), bass synth (5), castanets (6)
- Jon Sortland – drums (2)
- Richard Swift – synthesizers, Mellotron (4, 6, 10); drums (4), percussion (4, 10)
Additional musicians
- Chris Funk – guitar, dulcimer (2); baritone guitar (11)
- Steve Drizos – percussion (2)
Technical
- James Mercer – production (1–9, 11)
- Richard Swift – production (10)
- Yuuki Matthews – mixing
- Brian Lucey – mastering
- Jacob Escobedo – artwork, design
Charts
| Chart (2017) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA)[18] | 16 |
| Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[19] | 52 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[20] | 60 |
| Canadian Albums (Billboard)[21] | 36 |
| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[22] | 26 |
| French Albums (SNEP)[23] | 157 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[24] | 61 |
| Irish Albums (IRMA)[25] | 18 |
| New Zealand Heatseeker Albums (RMNZ)[26] | 2 |
| Portuguese Albums (AFP)[27] | 35 |
| Scottish Albums (OCC)[28] | 16 |
| Sweden Vinyl Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[29] | 10 |
| Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[30] | 44 |
| UK Albums (OCC)[31] | 19 |
| US Billboard 200[32] | 20 |
The Worm's Heart
| The Worm's Heart | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Remix album by | ||||
| Released | January 19, 2018 | |||
| Recorded | October 2016 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 41:26 | |||
| Label | Columbia | |||
| Producer | Yuuki Matthews, Jon Sortland, James Mercer | |||
| The Shins chronology | ||||
| ||||
In December 2017, the band announced that a "flipped" version of Heartworms would be released on January 19, 2018. Titled The Worm's Heart, the follow-up album contains the same songs as Heartworms, but reinterpreted and presented in reverse-order.[33] According to Mercer, slow songs were played faster, quiet songs louder, and vice versa.[33]
Track listing
All tracks are written by James Mercer.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "The Fear (Flipped)" | 4:41 |
| 2. | "So Now What (Flipped)" | 4:18 |
| 3. | "Heartworms (Flipped)" | 3:09 |
| 4. | "Dead Alive (Flipped)" | 4:34 |
| 5. | "Half a Million (Flipped)" | 3:27 |
| 6. | "Rubber Ballz (Flipped)" | 3:30 |
| 7. | "Mildenhall (Flipped)" | 4:17 |
| 8. | "Fantasy Island (Flipped)" | 3:27 |
| 9. | "Cherry Hearts (Flipped)" | 2:52 |
| 10. | "Painting a Hole (Flipped)" | 3:10 |
| 11. | "Name for You (Flipped)" | 4:01 |