''Black the Sun'' is the debut studio album by the

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Au ...

singer–songwriter A singer-songwriter is a musician who writes, composes, and performs their own musical material, including lyrics and melodies. In the United States, the category is built on the folk-acoustic tradition, although this role has transmuted th ...

Alex Lloyd Alex Lloyd (born 19 November 1974) is an Australian singer-songwriter. Four of his albums, ''Black the Sun'', '' Watching Angels Mend'', '' Distant Light'' and ''Alex Lloyd'', released between 1999 and 2005, made the top ten on the ARIA charts ...

, released in July 1999 via

EMI Records EMI Records (formerly EMI Records Ltd.) is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British flagship label by the music company of the same name in 1972, and launched in January 1973 as the succ ...

. At the

ARIA Music Awards of 2000 The 14th Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (generally known as the ARIA Music Awards or simply The ARIAS) was held on 24 October 2000 at the Sydney Entertainment Centre. Presenters distributed 28 awards with the big win ...

, the album, won

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Critical reception

''Black the Sun'' received critical acclaim.

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listeners voting it their album of the year in 1999. Writing for ''

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'' in September 2000, John Aizlewood compared Lloyd's "eclectic approach" and "inspired turn of phrase" to that of

Beck Beck David Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his Experimental music, experimental and Lo-fi music, lo-fi style, and became ...

, and stated that the album "yields more with each play". He went on to draw comparison with the music of

Crowded House Crowded House are a rock band, formed in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, in 1985. Its founding members were New Zealander Neil Finn (vocalist, guitarist, primary songwriter) and Australians Paul Hester (drums) and Nick Seymour (bass). Later ban ...

, and singled out "Black the Sun", "What a Year" and "Backseat Clause" as the album's highlights, the latter, he noted, is a track which "closes the album in stark, lonesome fashion".

Track listing

All tracks written by A. Wasiliev, except where noted. # "Melting" # "Momo" # "Something Special" (A. Wasiliev/S. Miller) # "Desert" # "Snow" # "My Way Home" # "Black The Sun" # "Lucky Star" # "What A Year" (A. Wasiliev/B. Quinn) # "Faraway" # "Aliens" # "Gender" # "Backseat Clause"

Personnel

– co- producer,

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

, programming,

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

, bass ;Additional musicians * Louise Morgan –

spoken word Spoken word refers to an oral poetic performance art that is based mainly on the poem as well as the performer's aesthetic qualities. It is a late 20th century continuation of an ancient oral artistic tradition that focuses on the aesthetics of ...

* Trent Williamson – programming,

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica inclu ...

* Terapai Richmond – drums * Daniel Denholm – string arrangement, vocal arrangement *

Clayton Doley Clayton Doley (born 13 September 1974) is an Australian musician, singer, songwriter, television musical director, arranger, and record producer best known for his Hammond Organ virtuosity. Songwriter and producer As a songwriter Clayton has ha ...

–

organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

;Technical personnel *

Ed Buller Edmund Wilbur Hudson "Ed" Buller (born 9 August 1962 in Reigate, Surrey) is an English record producer and former musician. He has primarily worked with English bands including Suede, Pulp, The Raincoats and The Courteeners. Biography Buller fir ...

– co-producer, programming * Trent Williamson – co-producer

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certification

References

{{Authority control 1999 debut albums Alex Lloyd albums ARIA Award-winning albums