''Harm's Way'' is the second studio album by Canadian

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...

duo Ducks Ltd., released on February 9, 2024, through

Carpark Records Carpark Records is an independent record label based in Washington, D.C. History Carpark Records was established by Todd Hyman in 1999 in New York City. In 2005, the label relocated to Washington, D.C. Carpark has subsidiary labels. Acute Re ...

. The duo co-produced the album with Dave Vettraino. It received positive reviews from critics.

Critical reception

''Harm's Way'' received a score of 79 out of 100 on review aggregator

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

based on eight critics' reviews, indicating "generally favorable" reception. '' Uncut'' felt that the "mixes have the tracks – stacked guitars and vocals, bustling basslines, played and programmed drums – hurtling along as if crammed into a tunnel". Steve Horowitz of ''

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, ...

'' wrote that "the songs have an upbeat vibe because of the vitality of their playing and singing. There is a latent pop element to their sound. It's like that old trope about how the blues makes the artists and the audience happy. The need to vent provides an essential service for all." ''Glide Magazine''s Joey Willis stated that the album "takes listeners on a nostalgic journey through the jangle-pop scene of the 80s and 90s" as the duo "skillfully crafts electric guitar-based power pop that resonates with the fast, jittery riffs and propulsive percussion". The album was a longlisted nominee for the

2024 Polaris Music Prize The 2024 edition of the Canadian Polaris Music Prize was presented on September 17, 2024 at Massey Hall. The longlist was announced on June 11, and the shortlist was released July 12. The award was won by Jeremy Dutcher for his album '' Motewo ...

."2024 Polaris Music Prize long list: the Beaches, Tobi, Elisapie, Beverly Glenn-Copeland and more"

CBC Music CBC Music (formerly known as CBC FM, CBC Stereo and CBC Radio 2) is a Canadian FM radio network operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It used to concentrate on classical and jazz. In 2007 and 2008, the network transitioned towards a ...

, June 11, 2024.

Year-end lists

Track listing

Personnel

Ducks Ltd. * Evan Lewis – lead guitar, drum

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(all tracks); acoustic guitar (tracks 1–8), background vocals (4, 8), bass (5–7), creative direction * Tom Mcgreevy – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboards, production (all tracks); bass (tracks 1, 3, 4, 9), acoustic guitar (9) Additional musicians * Brian Darling –

cello The violoncello ( , ), commonly abbreviated as cello ( ), is a middle pitched bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), tuned i ...

(tracks 1, 2, 5, 7, 9) * Macie Stewart – violin (tracks 1, 2, 5, 7, 9) * Marcus Nuccio – drums (tracks 1, 3, 4, 7–9) * Julia Steiner – vocals (tracks 1, 4, 5, 7–9) * Margaret McCarthy – vocals (tracks 1, 4, 5, 7–9) *

Jason Balla Dehd is an American three-piece indie rock band from Chicago formed in 2015. The band consists of members Emily Kempf (bass guitar, vocals), Jason Balla (guitar, vocals), and Eric McGrady (drums). History The band formed in 2015 initially as a ...

– vocals (tracks 2, 3, 5, 8, 9) * Julia Wittman – bass (tracks 2, 5) * Jonathan Pappo – drums (tracks 2, 5) * Nathan O'Dell – vocals (track 2) * Rui De Magalhaes – vocals (track 5) * Linsey-Paige Mccloy – vocals (track 6) * Dave Vettraino – organ (track 4) Technical * Dave Vettraino – production, mixing, engineering * Greg Obis – mastering * Paul Elrichman – arrangements * Macie Stewart – arrangements * Jason Balla – additional vocal production * Jonathan Schenke – additional engineering (tracks 2, 5) * Julia Wittman – additional engineering (tracks 2, 5) Visuals * Lluis Tudela – album cover photo * Alec Moss – design

Charts

References

{{Authority control 2024 albums Carpark Records albums Ducks Ltd. albums