''Quicken the Heart'' is the third studio album by

Maxïmo Park Maxïmo Park are an English alternative rock band, formed in 2000 in Newcastle upon Tyne. The band consists of Paul Smith (vocals), Duncan Lloyd (guitar), and Tom English (drums). The band have released seven studio albums: '' A Certain Trigge ...

. It was released on 11 May 2009. It debuted at No. 6 on the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...

Album information

The album is available on vinyl, regular CD, special edition CD and DVD pack and digital download. A T-shirt was also made available with the album. The album was produced by

Nick Launay Nicolas Launay is an English record producer, composer and recording engineer. He is one of the most sought after record producers in the world due to his success with recent albums by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Anna Calvi, IDLES, Black Reb ...

, of

Yeah Yeah Yeahs The Yeah Yeah Yeahs are an American indie rock band formed in New York City in 2000. The group is composed of vocalist and pianist Karen O (born Karen Lee Orzolek), guitarist and keyboardist Nick Zinner, and drummer Brian Chase. They are complem ...

Nick Cave Nicholas Edward Cave (born 22 September 1957) is an Australian singer, songwriter, poet, lyricist, author, screenwriter, composer and occasional actor. Known for his baritone voice and for fronting the rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Ca ...

and

Talking Heads Talking Heads were an American rock band formed in 1975 in New York City and active until 1991.Talkin ...

production fame. The special edition contains the regular CD album along with a DVD titled ''Monument'', which features a 68-minute-long tour-film taken from the band's sold out show at Newcastle's

Metro Radio Arena The Utilita Arena Newcastle (formerly the Newcastle Arena, Telewest Arena and Metro Radio Arena) is a large indoor arena in the city of Newcastle upon Tyne, England. Owned and operated by ASM Global and sponsored by Utilita Energy, it hosts m ...

in December 2007, including live performances and exclusive backstage footage. The first 500 special editions purchased through the band's website were sent out signed by one of the band members. Prior to the album's release, Maxïmo Park released opening track "Wraithlike" as a free download and as a limited edition 7" vinyl single. The vinyl single was limited to 250 copies and was only available at the band's 24 March 2009 free concert in Newcastle. The first proper single from the album was " The Kids Are Sick Again", released 4 May 2009. The second single was " Questing, Not Coasting", released on 13 July 2009.

Reception

Critical reception for the album was generally mixed. Reviewing the album for ''Clash'' magazine, writer Steve Harris commented that "they haven't lost their knack for writing an infectious tune, and the album packs more punch than their previous long-player" and that Maxïmo Park could "become one of the summer's essential bands." Culturedeluxe also gave a largely positive review to the album. ''Q'' magazine awarded the album 3 out of 5 stars, and commented that "Once again, Smith's lyrical camera is in macro mode, scrutinising love's tiny details....Smith's eccentricities still elevate Maxïmo Park above the guitar-pop herd." Paul Smith told

Drowned in Sound ''Drowned in Sound'', sometimes abbreviated to ''DiS'', is a UK-based music webzine financed by artist management company Silentway. Founded by editor Sean Adams, the site features reviews, news, interviews, and discussion forums. History ''D ...

that "In Another World (You Would've Found Yourself by Now)" is "about feeling self-righteous even though we all have similar primal impulses."

Track listing

''Monument'' DVD

* Recorded live at

Newcastle Arena The Utilita Arena Newcastle (formerly the Newcastle Arena, Telewest Arena and Metro Radio Arena) is a large indoor arena in the city of Newcastle upon Tyne, England. Owned and operated by ASM Global and sponsored by Utilita Energy, it hosts m ...

, 15 December 2007 # " Girls Who Play Guitars" # "

Graffiti Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...

" # " Our Velocity" # "A Fortnight's Time" # "Parisian Skies" # " I Want You to Stay" # " Karaoke Plays" # "By the Monument" # "The Unshockable" # "Limassol" # " Books from Boxes" # "Acrobat" # "Going Missing"

Personnel

* Paul Smith – vocals *

Duncan Lloyd Duncan Lloyd is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist. He is the lead songwriter and backing vocalist for Maxïmo Park. He also works as a solo artist releasing albums on Warp Records (U.K.), Crash Symbols (U.S.) and is currently on Reve ...

– guitar, backing vocals, bass on track 6 *

Archis Tiku Archis may refer to: * Archi people * Archis, Armenia Archis ( hy, Արճիս) is a village in the Noyemberyan Municipality of the Tavush Province of Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked ...

– bass guitar *

Lukas Wooller Lukas is a form of the Latin name Lucas. Popularity In 2013 it was the ninth most popular name for boys in Australia. Meaning and different spellings * Amharic - Luqas (ሉቃስ) * Arabic - Luqa (لوقا) / Luqas (لوكاس) * Armenian - Ղո ...

– keyboard, organ * Tom English – drums

Charts

References

{{Authority control 2009 albums Maxïmo Park albums Warp (record label) albums Albums produced by Nick Launay