New Decade
| New Decade | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 22 October 2021 | |||
| Recorded | 2020–2021[1] | |||
| Studio | Studio P[1] | |||
| Genre | Electronic[2] | |||
| Length | 34:10 | |||
| Label | Mute | |||
| Phew chronology | ||||
| ||||
New Decade is a studio album by Japanese musician Hiromi Moritani under the pseudonym Phew. It was released on 22 October 2021 through Mute Records. It received generally favorable reviews from critics.[3]
Background
[edit]Hiromi Moritani, better known as Phew, is a Japanese musician from Osaka.[4] She started her career in the 1970s.[5] She was a member of the band Aunt Sally.[6]
New Decade is her first release on Mute Records since Our Likeness (1992).[7] She recorded the album in her home studio in Kawasaki, Kanagawa, during the COVID-19 pandemic.[6] The album consists of six tracks.[7] As for the album's title, she stated, "Personally speaking, I've stopped being able to see a future that extends from the present."[7]
Music videos were released for "Into the Stream"[8] and "Days Nights".[9] The album was released on 22 October 2021 through Mute Records.[10]
Critical reception
[edit]| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 77/100[3] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [11] |
| Beats Per Minute | 79%[5] |
| PopMatters | 7/10[12] |
According to the review aggregator Metacritic, New Decade received "generally favorable reviews" based on a weighted average score of 77 out of 100 from 4 critic scores.[3]
Heather Phares of AllMusic stated, "With vocals that range from whispers to wails and almost tangible electronics, noise, and guitar, the album's pieces frequently do sound unshackled from the temporal."[11] Miranda Remington of Beats Per Minute wrote, "New Decade comes across as bleak, but it's deliberately restrained; its meditations cut through the real sentiments of our confusing years with the sincerity of a haiku."[5] She added, "Especially amidst isolation and the uncertainties of modernity, we are reminded of the power of self-expression."[5]
Accolades
[edit]| Publication | List | Rank | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| AllMusic | Favorite Electronic Albums | — |
|
| The Wire | Releases of the Year (2021 Rewind) | 10 |
Track listing
[edit]Personnel
[edit]Credits adapted from liner notes.[1]
- Phew – vocals, synthesizer, guitar, rhythm box, recording
- Hiroyuki Nagashima – rhythm (3), synthesizer, mixing
- Seiichi Yamamoto – guitar (6)
- Pete Norman – mastering
- Masayuki Shioda – photography
- Satoshi Suzuki – design
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 Phew (2021). New Decade (CD liner notes). Mute Records.
- 1 2 "Favorite Electronic Albums | AllMusic 2021 in Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
- 1 2 3 "New Decade by Phew". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 21 May 2022. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
- ↑ Phares, Heather. "Phew". AllMusic. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
- 1 2 3 4 Remington, Miranda (26 October 2021). "Album Review: Phew – New Decade". Beats Per Minute. Archived from the original on 22 March 2023. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
- 1 2 Margasak, Peter (26 October 2021). "A Guide to the Music of Musical Experimentalist Phew". Bandcamp Daily. Archived from the original on 28 May 2022. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
- 1 2 3 Eede, Christian (15 July 2021). "Phew Returns To Mute For New Album, 'New Decade'". The Quietus. Archived from the original on 11 August 2025. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
- ↑ Mute (14 July 2021). "Phew - Into the Stream (Official Video)". YouTube. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
- ↑ Mute (15 September 2021). "Phew - Days Nights (Official Video)". YouTube. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
- ↑ Minsker, Evan (14 July 2021). "Phew Announces New Decade Album, Shares Song: Listen". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 13 April 2022. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
- 1 2 Phares, Heather. "Phew: New Decade". AllMusic. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
- ↑ Miller, Bruce (1 November 2021). "Experimentalist Phew Pushes Forward by Crawling Deep Inside on 'New Decade'". PopMatters. Archived from the original on 28 May 2022. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
- ↑ "Releases of the Year". The Wire. No. 455. January 2022. pp. 30–35.
- ↑ "New Decade | Phew". Bandcamp. Archived from the original on 23 September 2025. Retrieved 5 September 2026.
External links
[edit]- New Decade at Discogs (list of releases)