''Inside the Rose'' is the fourth studio album by

art rock Art rock is a subgenre of rock music that generally reflects a challenging or avant-garde approach to rock, or which makes use of modernist, experimental, or unconventional elements. Art rock aspires to elevate rock from entertainment to an art ...

band

These New Puritans These New Puritans are an English music group/band from Southend-on-Sea, England. It consists mainly of Jack Barnett (principal songwriter, vocalist, producer, multi-instrumentalist) and his twin brother George Barnett (drums, electronics, prod ...

. It was described as "another creative reinvention" and "a visionary record". The Quietus named it the fifth best album of 2019.

Track listing

Background and recording

Following

Field of Reeds ''Field of Reeds'' is the third studio album by British art rock band These New Puritans, released on 10 June 2013 on Infectious Music. Produced by Jack Barnett and Graham Sutton, the album features prominent contributions from over thirty-eigh ...

, TNP moved to

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

and set up in a dilapidated

GDR East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

broadcasting studio in the industrial suburbs. The album was recorded in

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and Berlin, and mixed in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. It was their first to be entirely self-produced, and was described as "another creative reinvention". The rhythm tracks were recorded with frequent collaborator Graham Sutton, of

Bark Psychosis Bark Psychosis are an English post-rock band/musical project from east London formed in 1986. They were one of the bands that Simon Reynolds cited when coining "post-rock" as a musical style in 1994, and are thus considered one of the key ban ...

. Prior to the recording of the album, founder-member Thomas Hein left TNP to pursue work in computational neuroscience. Sonically Jack Barnett said that he "wanted all extremes of our sound... to exist simultaneously". The results have been described as sounding like "dance innovator

Jlin Jerrilynn Patton (born July 30, 1987), known as Jlin, is an electronic musician. She began producing music in 2008 and received early attention for her 2011 track "Erotic Heat". Jlin's debut album, ''Dark Energy'', was released in 2015 to criti ...

deconstructing a

Depeche Mode Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in Basildon, Essex, in 1980. The band currently consists of Dave Gahan (lead vocals and co-songwriting) and Martin Gore (keyboards, guitar, co-lead vocals and main songwriting). Depeche ...

anthem scored by

Steve Reich Stephen Michael Reich ( ; born October 3, 1936) is an American composer known for his contribution to the development of minimal music in the mid to late 1960s. Reich's work is marked by its use of repetitive figures, slow harmonic rhythm, a ...

". The album features vocal appearances by David Tibet of Current 93, Taiwanese singer Scintii and Elisa Rodrigues. Chino Moreno was reportedly asked to sing on the album, but due to touring commitments, this never happened. Much of the album was written in

Westcliff-on-Sea Westcliff-on-Sea (often abbreviated to Westcliff) is an inner city area of the city of Southend-on-Sea, in the City of Southend-on-Sea, in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. It is on the north shore of the lower Thames Estuary, about 34 m ...

. Jack said he found the strange characters he encountered in the town inspiring. TNP have said that while ''Field of Reeds'' was akin to a solo album for Jack, ''Inside The Rose'' has more of George's imprint on the sound; it is the first album for which he contributed lyrics. The song "Where The Trees Are On Fire" reportedly came to Jack in a dream; he dreamed the melody and most of the words, before adding the chords the next morning. The song was performed live at the

Barbican Centre The Barbican Centre is a performing arts centre in the Barbican Estate of the City of London and the largest of its kind in Europe. The centre hosts classical and contemporary music concerts, theatre performances, film screenings and art exhi ...

in 2014. The band have said that during the making of the album, they took inspiration from their idols such as

Captain Beefheart Don Van Vliet (; born Don Glen Vliet; January 15, 1941 – December 17, 2010) was an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and visual artist best known by the stage name Captain Beefheart. Conducting a rotating ensemble known as Th ...

Francis Bacon Francis Bacon, 1st Viscount St Alban (; 22 January 1561 – 9 April 1626), also known as Lord Verulam, was an English philosopher and statesman who served as Attorney General and Lord Chancellor of England. Bacon led the advancement of both ...

Igor Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential composers of the ...

and Leos Carax.

Release and reception

The album's release was marked with a "

happening A happening is a performance, event, or situation art, usually as performance art. The term was first used by Allan Kaprow during the 1950s to describe a range of art-related events. History Origins Allan Kaprow first coined the term "happen ...

" event at the

Institute of Contemporary Arts The Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) is an artistic and cultural centre on The Mall in London, just off Trafalgar Square. Located within Nash House, part of Carlton House Terrace, near the Duke of York Steps and Admiralty Arch, the ICA c ...

, involving a stage set constructed out of slashed

silk Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoons. The best-known silk is obtained from the coc ...

and scaffolding, designed by George Barnett and artist Freya Don. The support act was performance artist Soojin Chang. The album was released digitally and physically, with photography by Harley Weir and design by George Barnett. The physical formats were 12" record (with acidic multi-colour vinyl) and on CD with unorthodox artwork printed on a transparent plastic sleeve and a half-size booklet. Weir also collaborated with Barnett on a gender-blurring erotic video for lead-single "Inside The Rose". The album received a positive critical response. TNP's willingness to take risks and sense of musical adventure was praised, and the Guardian described it as part of a "painstaking musical quest that pays zero interest to commercial expectations". Q Magazine described the band as one of the most daring and ambitious of the decade, and said they continue to turn modern rock inside out. On the other hand,

DIY magazine ''DIY'' is a United Kingdom-based music publication, in print and online. Its free print edition is released monthly with a physical circulation of 40,000 in UK venues, clubs and shops. DIY Magazine ''DIY'' was launched in 2002 by then-editor ...

criticised the album as impenetrable and "too clever for its own good".

Themes

The album was described as "a visionary record, rich with fire, energy, elements, the sky, and invocations". Other themes running through the album include dreams, environmental destruction, oblivion and ecstasy.

Personnel

CD liner notes

These New Puritans

* Jack Barnett: pianos (acoustic, electric and prepared), basses (electric and upright), pitched percussion (vibraphone, crotales, gongs), sound design, synthesizer, singing * George Barnett: drum kits (acoustic and electric), percussion, metal, glass, electronics, singing

Additional musicians

Instrumentalists

* Thomas Hein: percussion, backing singing * Maria Chiara Argiró: piano *

Yazz Ahmed Yazz Ahmed (born 1983) is a British- Bahraini trumpeter, flugelhornist and composer. Her music mixes Arabic and Western influences. She has worked with Toshiko Akiyoshi, Rufus Reid, John Zorn, Ash Walker, the London Jazz Orchestra, and also re ...

: flugelhorn, trumpet * Noel Langley: flugelhorn * Azazello Satariel: pocket tuba

Voices

* David Tibet * Scintii * Elisa Rodrigues * Graham Sutton * Fred McPherson * Thomas Hein * Micaela Haslam * Michelle Daly

Stargaze ensemble

* Andre de Ridder: conductor * Mayah Kadish: violin I * Jeffrey Bruinsma: violin I * Daniella Strasfogel: violin I * Biliana Voutchkova: violin II * Emmanuelle Bernard: violin II * Mari Sawada: violin II * Thora Sveinsdóttir: viola * Ildiko Ludwig: viola * Yodfat Miron: viola * Anna Carew: cello * Andreas Voss: cello * Zoé Cartier: cello * Lisa de Boos: double bass * Caleb Salgado: double bass * Clara Gervais: double bass * Romain Bly: french horn * Samuel Stoll: french horn * Florian Menzel: trumpet * Damir Bacikin: trumpet * Florian Juncker: trombone * Till Krause: trombone

References

{{Authority control 2019 albums These New Puritans albums Infectious Music albums