Megalithic Symphony
2011 studio album by Awolnation
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Megalithic Symphony is the debut studio album by American rock band Awolnation, released on March 15, 2011, through Red Bull Records. The album is the band's first full-length release, following the release of the extended play Back From Earth (2010). Megalithic Symphony has since peaked at number 84 on the United States Billboard 200 and at number 57 on the Austrian Albums Chart. As of March 2015, the album sold 581,000 copies in the United States.[9] The deluxe edition of the album was released on November 19, 2013.
- 52:52 (standard edition)
- 2:08:21 (deluxe edition)
| Megalithic Symphony | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | March 15, 2011 | |||
| Studios | Red Bull Studios, AWOLSTUDIO, Avatar Studios, Main and Market, Gymnasium, Fireside Sound Studio | |||
| Genres | ||||
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| Label | Red Bull | |||
| Producers |
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| Awolnation chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Megalithic Symphony | ||||
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| Review scores | |
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| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [5] |
| Alternative Press | [6] |
| Classic Rock | [7] |
| Rock Sound | 9/10[8] |
On February 29, 2016, the RIAA certified Megalithic Symphony platinum.
In 2021, for the album's 10th anniversary, a special edition of it was released, including three unreleased songs and live performances of some older songs, for a total of 27 bonus tracks.[10]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Aaron Bruno, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Megalithic Symphony" | 0:58 |
| 2. | "Some Sort of Creature" | 0:27 |
| 3. | "Soul Wars" (Bruno, Eric Stenman) | 3:37 |
| 4. | "People" (Bruno, Stenman) | 3:58 |
| 5. | "Jump on My Shoulders" | 4:08 |
| 6. | "Burn It Down" (Bruno, Jimmy Messer) | 2:45 |
| 7. | "Guilty Filthy Soul" (Bruno, Messer) | 3:34 |
| 8. | "Kill Your Heroes" (Bruno, Brian West) | 2:59 |
| 9. | "My Nightmare's Dream" | 0:27 |
| 10. | "Sail" | 4:19 |
| 11. | "Wake Up" | 3:02 |
| 12. | "Not Your Fault" | 4:02 |
| 13. | "All I Need" (Bruno, Messer) | 3:37 |
| 14. | "Knights of Shame" (Bruno, Cameron Duddy) (fades out at 11:50, untitled hidden track starts at 13:51) | 14:58 |
| Total length: | 52:52 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 15. | "Shoestrings" | 3:09 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 15. | "I've Been Dreaming" | 2:58 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 15. | "Swinging from the Castles" | 3:04 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "THISKIDSNOTALRIGHT" (From Injustice: Gods Among Us : The Album) | 2:42 |
| 2. | "Some Kind of Joke" (From Iron Man 3: Heroes Fall Soundtrack) | 4:52 |
| 3. | "Everybody's Got a Secret" (From Frankenweenie Unleashed! Compilation) | 3:43 |
| 4. | "Soul Wars" (Live in Salzburg, Austria) | 4:23 |
| 5. | "MF" | 3:17 |
| 6. | "Swinging from the Castles" | 3:04 |
| 7. | "I've Been Dreaming" | 2:58 |
| 8. | "Shoestrings" | 3:09 |
| 9. | "Not Your Fault" (Robert DeLong Remix) | 5:52 |
| 10. | "People" (Thomas from Ghostland Observatory Remix) | 5:41 |
| 11. | "Burn It Down" (Innerpartysystem Remix) | 4:56 |
| 12. | "Guilty Filthy Soul" (Samantha Ronson Remix featuring Wale) | 4:18 |
| 13. | "Jump on My Shoulders" (Thomas from Ghostland Observatory Remix) | 4:06 |
| 14. | "Sail" (Borgore Pop The Sweating I'm Sailing Remix) | 4:38 |
| 15. | "Sail" (Dan The Automator Remix) | 4:34 |
| 16. | "Sail" (Feed Me Remix) | 3:29 |
| 17. | "Sail" (TDE Remix featuring Kendrick Lamar and Ab-Soul) | 4:00 |
| 18. | "Sail" (Unlimited Gravity Remix) | 5:49 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 15. | "Cannibals" | 2:28 |
| 16. | "I'm No Good" | 3:13 |
| 17. | "Wichita Panama" | 3:52 |
Lyrical content
Some Sort of Creature
In a live Facebook Q&A session, Aaron Bruno described "Some Sort of Creature" as something he truly experienced. "What you hear on that track, a sort of segue track, is really what actually happened! And that's really all I can describe; it's me speaking to myself, because I didn’t want to forget this thing I saw. And it's all right there in the song."[11]
Reception
Megalithic Symphony received critical acclaim. The album was praised in a 2011 review for Bruno's ability to combine electronic and organic songwriting with soulful, rough and melodic vocals.[12] A reviewer for Louder Sound praised the eclectic sound and described the 14-minute Knights of Shame as sounding like Muse if they gave a toss about playlists.[13]
However, a reviewer on Sputnik Music called it "hit-or-miss" and noted that the album "has a ton of ideas, but doesn't know what to do with them."[14]
Personnel
Sourced from the original album liner notes.
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Charts
Weekly charts
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Year-end charts
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Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Canada (Music Canada)[34] | 2× Platinum | 160,000‡ |
| New Zealand (RMNZ)[35] | Platinum | 15,000‡ |
| United States (RIAA)[36] | Platinum | 1,000,000‡ |
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‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
Release history
| Region | Date | Format | Label | Catalog no. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | March 15, 2011[37] | Digital download | Red Bull | n/a |
| March 29, 2011[38] | CD | RBR1086 | ||
| Belgium | July 1, 2011[39] | Digital download | n/a | |
| France | ||||
| Germany | ||||
| Netherlands | ||||
| Spain | ||||
| United Kingdom | ||||
| Belgium | July 4, 2011[40] | CD | RBR1108 | |
| France | ||||
| Germany | ||||
| Netherlands | ||||
| Spain | ||||
| United Kingdom | ||||
| United States | December 9, 2011[41] | 2xLP | RBR1134 | |
| Australia | April 13, 2012 | Digital download | n/a | |
| New Zealand | ||||
| Australia | May 25, 2012[42] | CD | Unknown | |
| New Zealand | May 28, 2012[43] | Unknown | ||
| Deluxe Edition (First Issue) | ||||
| Belgium | January 25, 2013[44] | Digital download | Red Bull | n/a |
| France | ||||
| Germany | ||||
| Netherlands | ||||
| Spain | ||||
| United Kingdom | ||||
| Deluxe Edition (Second Issue) | ||||
| Australia | November 15, 2013[45] | Digital download | Red Bull | n/a |
| United States | November 19, 2013[46] | |||
| United Kingdom | November 25, 2013[47] | |||
| 10th Anniversary Edition | ||||
| Worldwide | March 15, 2021[48] | Digital download | Red Bull | n/a |