''Fantasies'' is the fourth studio album by Canadian

indie rock Indie rock is a subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the music they produc ...

band

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. It was released on April 7, 2009. In the United States. it debuted at No. 1 on ''Billboard'''s

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, and peaked at No. 76 on the ''Billboard'' 200. As of October 2009 it had sold 76,000 copies in the United States according to Nielsen SoundScan. In Canada it debuted at No. 13 on the Canadian Albums Chart and peaked at No. 6. In Australia, the album debuted at No. 48.

Background

The first single release from the album, " Help I'm Alive", was added to the

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on December 23, 2008 in Canada. The single is also available on 7" vinyl from their website, and was available on their "Jingle Bell Rock" tour in December 2008. On February 13, 2009, the album cover's image was added to the song "Help, I'm Alive" on their MySpace playlist. On February 28, 2009, the band added the song "Gimme Sympathy" to their MySpace playlist. The album was available through their website, in vinyl, deluxe hardcover, digital, or deluxe bundle packages. There was a Limited Edition Package available at first that was limited to 500 copies, which has now sold out. Metric opted to self-release the album. The subsequent mainstream success of the album led ''

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'' to use Metric as the central band in an article regarding the shrinking role of major labels in the music industry. The song "Front Row" was featured on an episode of ''

Grey's Anatomy ''Grey's Anatomy'' is an American medical drama television series that premiered on March 27, 2005, on ABC as a mid-season replacement. The series focuses on the lives of surgical interns, residents, and attendings as they develop into s ...

'', and released as a single on iTunes the same day. Frontwoman

Emily Haines Emily Savitri Haines (born 25 January 1974) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She is the lead singer, keyboardist and songwriter of the rock band Metric and a member of the musical collective Broken Social Scene. As a solo artist, she has pe ...

told Drowned in Sound that "Front Row" was inspired by the novel '' Great Jones Street'' by

Don DeLillo Donald Richard DeLillo (born November 20, 1936) is an American novelist, short story writer, playwright, screenwriter and essayist. His works have covered subjects as diverse as television, nuclear war, sports, the complexities of language, perf ...

. "

Gold Guns Girls "Gold Guns Girls" is the fourth single from Canadian rock group Metric (band), Metric's fourth studio album ''Fantasies (album), Fantasies''. The lyrics were inspired by the 1983 movie, ''Scarface (1983 film), Scarface''. The song was released i ...

" was featured in the movie ''

Zombieland ''Zombieland'' is a 2009 American post-apocalyptic zombie comedy film directed by Ruben Fleischer in his theatrical debut and written by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick. The film follows a geeky college student ( Jesse Eisenberg) making his wa ...

'' as well as in an episode of the TV show ''

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'', in the

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game ''

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'', as the intro and closing credits of '' Totally Spies: The Movie''. It was featured in the 2011 video game '' Test Drive Unlimited 2''. "Help I'm Alive" was featured in an episode of ''

The Vampire Diaries ''The Vampire Diaries'' is an American supernatural teen drama television series developed by Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec, based on the book series of the same name written by L. J. Smith. The series premiered on The CW on September 10, ...

'', and during the end credits of the 2009 movie ''

Defendor ''Defendor'' is a 2009 Canadian-American vigilante comedy-drama film written and directed by Peter Stebbings in his directorial debut. It stars Woody Harrelson as Arthur Poppington, a regular man who adopts a superhero persona named Defendor, wi ...

''. The album was leaked, causing Metric to push the release date of the album forward one week to April 7. The album was released on iTunes on March 31, 2009. The song "Black Sheep" was recorded for the album, but was ultimately left off because they felt that it 'too obviously reflected the band's sound'. It has since been released on the soundtrack for '' Scott Pilgrim vs. the World''.

Singles

* " Help, I'm Alive" (December 23, 2008) (No. 21 CAN) * "Front Row" (March 12, 2009) (No. 65 CAN) * "Gimme Sympathy" (Radio promo only) (No. 52 CAN) * "Sick Muse" (June 1, 2009) * "

" (Radio promo only) (December 2009) (No. 88 CAN) * "Stadium Love" (video released May 28, 2010)

Reception

Reception to the album has been highly positive. It currently holds a 77 rating on

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, from 29 reviews.

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listed ''Fantasies'' at eleventh in its "Best Albums of 2009" list. The single "Gimme Sympathy" has been popular among alternative rock radio stations. The album was a shortlisted nominee for the

2009 Polaris Music Prize The 2009 edition of the Canadian Polaris Music Prize was presented on September 21, 2009 in Toronto

, and also won two Casby Awards on October 22, 2009; the

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favourite new indie release award and favourite new album award. ''Fantasies'' ranked at number 26 on Stereogum's Best Album 2009. The album also reached platinum status in Canada selling over 80,000 copies. On April 18, 2010, the album won the

Juno Award for Alternative Album of the Year The Juno Award for Alternative Album of the Year is presented annually at Canada's Juno Awards to honour the best album of the year in the alternative rock and/or indie rock genres. The award was first presented in 1995 under the name Best Alternati ...

at the 2010 Awards, as well as the band winning

Group of the Year The Juno Award for Group of the Year has been awarded annually since 1970 in recognition of the best musical group or band in Canada. It is presented by the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS). The five nominees in the category ...

. As of 2012 it has sold 500,000 copies. The album's song "Stadium Love" was named the official song of the

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for 2013. As of the 2014-15 NHL season, it was also the goal song for the

Edmonton Oilers The Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton. The Oilers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. They play their home games at Rogers Place, which ...

Track listing

Personnel

– synthesizers, vocals * James Shaw – guitar, vocals * Joshua Winstead – bass guitar * Joules Scott-Key – drums The album was produced by Gavin Brown and James Shaw and mixed by John O'Mahony.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{Authority control 2009 albums Metric (band) albums Mom + Pop Music albums Juno Award for Alternative Album of the Year albums Albums produced by Gavin Brown (musician) Albums recorded at Electric Lady Studios Albums recorded at Metalworks Studios