''Bitter Tea'' is the fifth full-length album by

The Fiery Furnaces The Fiery Furnaces are an American indie rock band, formed in 2000 in Brooklyn, New York.. - ''In 2000 they moved Brooklyn... and began playing as the Fiery Furnaces late in the year''. - Allmusic The band's primary members are Matthew and Eleanor ...

, released on April 18, 2006, via

Fat Possum In nutrition, biology, and chemistry, fat usually means any ester of fatty acids, or a mixture of such compounds, most commonly those that occur in living beings or in food. The term often refers specifically to triglycerides (triple e ...

in the U.S and Rough Trade in the UK. After it leaked onto the internet on February 22, the band immediately started selling the CD on tour. The band envisioned ''Bitter Tea'' as a loose companion piece to their previous album ''

Rehearsing My Choir ''Rehearsing My Choir'' is the fourth full-length album by The Fiery Furnaces and was released in 2005. It is a concept album featuring Olga Sarantos, grandmother of the band's Matthew and Eleanor Friedberger, narrating stories relating to her l ...

'', which had released just five months prior.

Critical response

''Bitter Tea'' received generally positive reviews that were less polarized than their previous two proper albums, ''

Blueberry Boat ''Blueberry Boat'' is the second album by American indie rock band The Fiery Furnaces. It was released on July 13, 2004, just over ten months following their debut album, '' Gallowsbird's Bark''. ''Blueberry Boat'' polarized music critics due to ...

'' and ''

''. At ''

Pitchfork Media ''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music publication (currently owned by Condé Nast) that was launched in 1995 by writer Ryan Schreiber as an independent music blog. Schreiber started Pitchfork while working ...

'', Mark Richardson praised the "sweet, undeniable melody" of "Teach Me Sweetheart" and the poppy likeability of "Benton Harbor Blues." Heather Phares at

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

criticized the album for being too long and "oddly diluted," but admitted that "even if all the songs aren't uniformly great, there's something interesting about each of them."

Track listing

# "In My Little Thatched Hut" – 4:13 # "I'm in No Mood" – 3:39 # "Black-Hearted Boy" – 5:11 # "Bitter Tea" – 5:45 # "Teach Me Sweetheart" – 5:56 # "I'm Waiting to Know You" – 4:01 # "The Vietnamese Telephone Ministry" – 5:44 # "Oh Sweet Woods" – 5:25 # "Borneo" – 4:17 # "Police Sweater Blood Vow" – 2:53 # "Nevers" – 5:02 # "Benton Harbor Blues" – 7:23 # "Whistle Rhapsody" – 4:20 # "Nevers (Reprise)" (unlisted) – 5:14 # "Benton Harbor Blues (Reprise)" (unlisted) – 3:13

Backmasking

The album contains several instances of

backmasking Backmasking is a recording technique in which a message is recorded backward onto a track that is meant to be played forward. It is a deliberate process, whereas a message found through phonetic reversal may be unintentional. Artists have s ...

throughout.

References

2006 albums The Fiery Furnaces albums Rough Trade Records albums Fat Possum Records albums {{2000s-indie-rock-album-stub