''More Rain'' is the eighth studio album by American singer-songwriter

M. Ward Matthew Stephen Ward (born October 4, 1973) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist from Portland, Oregon. Ward's solo work is a mixture of folk and blues-inspired Americana analog recordings; he has released ten studio albums since 19 ...

. The album was released on March 4, 2016, on

Merge Records Merge Records is an independent record label based in Durham, North Carolina. It was founded in 1989 by Laura Ballance and Mac McCaughan. It began as an outlet for music from their band Superchunk and music created by friends, and has expande ...

and Bella Union. ''More Rain'' is Ward's first solo album since 2012's ''

A Wasteland Companion ''A Wasteland Companion'' is the seventh studio album from M. Ward, released in Australia and New Zealand on April 6, 2012; in the United Kingdom on April 9, 2012; and in the United States on April 10, 2012. ''A Wasteland Companion'' is the follo ...

'', having released '' Volume Three'' and ''

Classics Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...

'' with Zooey Deschanel as She & Him in the interim as well as recording and producing other artists.

Background

Ward began working on ''More Rain'' in 2012, initially experimenting with layering his own vocals to create a

doo-wop Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chica ...

record. After collaborating with other artists on the record like Peter Buck,

k.d. lang Kathryn Dawn Lang (born November 2, 1961), known by her stage name k.d. lang, is a Canadian pop (music), pop and country music, country singer-songwriter and occasional actress. Lang has won Juno Awards and Grammy Awards for her musical perfor ...

, and Neko Case, the sound of the album went in a different direction, described as “true gotta-stay-indoors, rainy-season record that looks upwards through the weather while reflecting on his past.”

Critical reception

''More Rain'' received a weighted average score of 72 out of 100, based on eleven critical reviews, by review aggregator

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...

, indicating "generally favorable reviews." A review in the April 2016 issue of ''

Uncut Uncut may refer to: * ''Uncut'' (film), a 1997 Canadian docudrama film by John Greyson about censorship * ''Uncut'' (magazine), a monthly British magazine with a focus on music, which began publishing in May 1997 * '' BET: Uncut'', a Black Enter ...

'' said, "The lack of ironic twists is both slightly unsettling and hugely refreshing," and David Harvey of ''

Record Collector ''Record Collector'' is a British monthly music magazine. It was founded in 1980 and distributes worldwide. History The early years The first standalone issue of ''Record Collector'' was published in March 1980, though its history stretches ba ...

'' called the album "a dreamy deluge." Andrew Gordon of '' The Skinny'' said the album is "decisively easygoing," after saying, "If you’re scanning these pages for a record your granny might be into, this is the one." Dean Van Nguyen of '' Consequence of Sound'' gave the album a D+, or a 33 out of 100 according to Metacritic, stating that, "All the expected points have been hit on ''More Rain'', but the record comes off as slack and slapdash."

Track listing

All songs written by M. Ward except "You're So Good to Me" written by

Brian Wilson Brian Douglas Wilson (born June 20, 1942) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer who co-founded the Beach Boys. Often called a genius for his novel approaches to pop composition, extraordinary musical aptitude, and m ...

Personnel

– vocals, guitar, mandolin, keyboards *

Mike Coykendall Mike Coykendall is a musician, audio engineer, and record producer. Born in Norwich, Kansas in 1963, Coykendall was a member of the Wichita-based Klyde Konnor, which performed and recorded frequently throughout the 1980s and early 1990s. He mov ...

– bass, guitar, percussion * Joey Spampinato – bass * Mark Powers – drums, percussion * Scott McPherson – drums, percussion * Mike Mogis – mandolin, pedal steel, Moog synthesizer * Nathaniel Walcott – flugelhorn * Paul Brainard – pedal steel, trumpet * Peter Buck – guitar, mandolin * Scott McCaughey – bass, guitar, organ * Susan Sanchez – backing vocals *

The Secret Sisters The Secret Sisters are an Americana singing and songwriting duo consisting of vocalists Laura Rogers and Lydia Slagle. The duo's music has been compared to artists like the Everly Brothers. History Beginnings Laura and Lydia Rogers are sisters ...

– backing vocals *

– backing vocals * Neko Case – backing vocals

Charts

References

External links

* M. Ward's official homepage
''More Rain'' on Merge Records
{{Authority control M. Ward albums 2016 albums