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Shriek is the fourth studio album by indie band Wye Oak. It was released on April 29, 2014, by Merge Records in the United States and City Slang in Europe.[1][14]

Shriek
Studio album by Wye Oak
Released	April 29, 2014
Studio	Rare Book Room, Brooklyn, USA[1]
Genre	Indie pop[2]
Length	41:34
Language	English
Label	Merge (US) City Slang (EU)
Producer	Nicolas Vernhes
Wye Oak chronology
Civilian (2011) Shriek (2014) Tween (2016)
Singles from Shriek
"The Tower" Released: January 30, 2014 "Glory" Released: March 18, 2014

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	76/100[3]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[4]
The A.V. Club	A−[5]
Consequence of Sound	C+[6]
Drowned in Sound	7/10[7]
The Line of Best Fit	8.5/10[8]
MusicOMH	[9]
NME	[10]
Pitchfork	7.2/10[11]
Rolling Stone	[12]
Spin	7/10[13]

The album peaked at number 67 on the US Billboard 200.[15]

Production

The album was produced by French producer Nicolas Vernhes at the Rare Book Room Studios in Brooklyn.[1]

Release

On January 30, 2014, Wye Oak announced the release of their fourth studio album, along with the single, "The Tower".[16]

Singles

The first single from the album, "The Tower" was released on January 30, 2014. The single has been described as a "pretty melancholy track with Jenn Wasner’s smoky but downtrodden voice and the dark, pulsating synths."[17] In a review of the single, Chad Jewett of Half Cloth explained that it "offers a dub-like mélange of skittering drums and keyboard slabs. A rusted cello creaks in the background, dappling the already slightly ominous minor key burner with rustic gloom." Andy Stack, who has routinely pulled double-duty on drums and keyboard, offers a choppy back-and-fourth[sic] between the two, treating the song’s whorling organ with percussive menace, till it’s almost part of the kit.[18]

The second single "Glory" was released on March 18, 2014. Jamieson Cox from Pitchfork said the single "is nervy, charged music, buzzing like a brain in heat." While explaining Wasner had a "palpable uptick" in her voice and in the stickiness of its rhythmic hook."[19] Kyle McGovern from Spin explained the single has a "high-minded groove that benefits from Wasner’s heavenly vocals and a brief detour into itchy, electronic instrumentation."[20]

Music videos

The official music video for "The Tower" was released on April 3, 2014, and directed by American filmmaker Ben O'Brien.[21] The video features two dancing painters pirouetting through city streets and warehouses.[17]

On April 30, 2014, the music video for "Glory" was released, and directed by Michael Patrick O'Leary and Ashley North Compton.[22] The video has been described as "bizarre", as it features everyday items turning into "creepy pieces of symbolism".[23] Director Ashley North Compton explained the reason behind the "cryptic visuals": "The video explores an internal and external power struggle and a fear of loss of control—through the lens of youth, anxiety, ease, and tension. The narrative follows youth-oriented themes, colors, styles and struggles with jarring and uncomfortable characters and movements."[23]

Critical reception

Shriek was met with "generally favorable" reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, this release received an average score of 76 based on 24 reviews.[3] Aggregator Album of the Year gave the release a 74 out of 100 based on a critical consensus of 21 reviews.[2]

Tim Sendra of AllMusic said: "The album is built around swooning banks of synths, bleeping key-based melodies, Stack's choppy drum patterns and programs, and Wasner's bouncy basslines." While also noting, the vocals of Jenn Wasner are her "most powerful and varied yet".[4] Jon Hadusek said their album "feels like a natural progression for Wasner and Stack, with the synths handling the same rhythms and higher register melodies once reserved for the guitars. Shriek is a successful reinvention and hopefully a prelude of things to come as the band embarks on its new life."[6]

Accolades

Accolades for Shriek

Publication	Accolade	Rank
MusicOMH	MusicOMH's Top 100 Albums of 2014	70[24]
Stereogum	Stereogum's Top 50 Albums of 2014	4[25]
	Stereogum's Top 50 Albums of 2014 – Mid-Year	21[26]
Under the Radar	Under the Radar's Top 140 Albums of 2014	9[27]

Track listing

Personnel

Credits adapted from Tidal[30] and the album's liner notes.[31]

• Jenn Wasner – vocals, bass, keyboards, programming, production, engineering
• Andy Stack - drums, keyboards, upright bass, programming, guitar, production, engineering
• Nicolas Vernhes – engineering, mixing, production
• Joe Lambert – mastering
• Gabe Wax – engineering assistance
• Ashley North Compton – cover layout

Charts

Chart performance for Shriek

Chart (2014)	Peak position
US Billboard 200[15]	67
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[32]	21
US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard)[33]	12
US Top Album Sales (Billboard)[34]	67
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[35]	17
US Top Tastemaker Albums (Billboard)[36]	13
US Vinyl Albums (Billboard)[37]	2

References

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