Soviet Kitsch
2003 studio album by Regina Spektor
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Soviet Kitsch is the major label debut and third album by American singer/songwriter Regina Spektor. It was originally released on Shoplifter Records on May 2, 2003, but was reissued on August 17, 2004, when Spektor signed with Sire Records. The title is drawn from Spektor being born in the Soviet Union, and Milan Kundera's expression for the vacuous aesthetics of Stalinist-style communism (a theme in his book The Unbearable Lightness of Being). One version of the album was released with a bonus DVD, which included a short promotional film titled The Survival Guide to Soviet Kitsch and the music video for the song "Us."
| Soviet Kitsch | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 2, 2003 | |||
| Studio | TMF (New York City) The Garden (London) | |||
| Genre | Art pop[1] | |||
| Length | 38:49 | |||
| Label | Sire | |||
| Producer |
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| Regina Spektor chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Soviet Kitsch | ||||
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Reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 72/100[2] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [3] |
| The A.V. Club | favorable[4] |
| Blender | [5] |
| Pitchfork | 6.8/10[6] |
| PopMatters | 7/10[7] |
| Prefix Magazine | 7/10[8] |
| Rolling Stone | [9] |
| Stylus | B−[10] |
"I became obsessed with Soviet Kitsch," said British singer Kate Nash. "The songs are so powerful and raw. There's a track called 'Chemo Limo' where she sings about having kids. I was utterly convinced she had children of her own, but it's all made-up. That's one of the great things about her: she has a way of making you believe in what she's singing about."[11]
In 2009, the album was included in NME's list of 100 greatest albums of the decade.[12]
Commercial performance
As of 2007 the album had sold 54,000 copies in the United States.[13]
Track listing
All songs written by Regina Spektor.[14]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Ode to Divorce" | 3:42 |
| 2. | "Poor Little Rich Boy" | 2:27 |
| 3. | "Carbon Monoxide" | 4:59 |
| 4. | "The Flowers" | 3:54 |
| 5. | "Us" | 4:52 |
| 6. | "Sailor Song" | 3:15 |
| 7. | "* * *" | 0:44 |
| 8. | "Your Honor" | 2:10 |
| 9. | "Ghost of Corporate Future" | 3:21 |
| 10. | "Chemo Limo" | 6:04 |
| 11. | "Somedays" | 3:21 |
| Total length: | 38:49 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Scarecrow and Fungus" | 2:29 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Scarecrow and Fungus" | 2:29 |
| 13. | "December" | 2:10 |
- Track 7 is titled "Whisper" on digital versions of the album. It is a brief spoken word piece in which Spektor and her brother, Barry "Bear" Spektor, discuss the following song ("Your Honor").
Personnel
- Regina Spektor - piano, voice, rhodes, drumstick, percussion, producer, songwriter
- Alan Bezozi - producer, drums, percussion, heartbeat
- Oren Bloedow - guitar
- Graham Maby - bass
- Gordon Raphael - percussion
- Bear Spektor - whispers ("***")
- The 4x4 String Quartet - strings ("Us" and "Somedays")
- Kill Kenada - backing punk band ("Your Honor")
- Eric Biondo - songwriter (one lyric and melody sampled in "Somedays")
Releases
| Year | Label | Format | Catalog no. | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Sire | CD | 48833 | US |
| CD/DVD | 48890 | US | ||
| Shoplifter | CD | 005 | UK | |
| 2005 | Sire | LP | 48953 | US |
| 2007 | WEA | CD | 9362493522 | UK |
| 2016 | Sire | Red LP | 549811-1 | US |
