Hey What (stylized in all uppercase) is the thirteenth and final studio album by Minnesota-based duo Low, released on September 10, 2021, through Sub Pop. It is their third recording in a row produced by BJ Burton,[8] building on the distorted sound of the band's previous album Double Negative (2018).[3] Burton and Hey What were nominated in the Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical category at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards.[9] It is their only album as a duo of Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker, all earlier Low albums being recorded as a trio.
Hey What | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | September 10, 2021 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 46:08 | |||
Label | Sub Pop | |||
Producer | BJ Burton | |||
Low chronology | ||||
| ||||
Singles from Hey What | ||||
Critical reception
editAggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AnyDecentMusic? | 8.1/10[10] |
Metacritic | 84/100[11] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [12] |
Beats Per Minute | 91%[13] |
Clash | 9/10[14] |
The Guardian | [15] |
Exclaim! | 8/10[16] |
Loud and Quiet | 7/10[17] |
Mojo | [18] |
Paste | 8.6/10[19] |
Pitchfork | 8.4/10[20] |
PopMatters | 7/10[3] |
Uncut | 9/10[21] |
Hey What was met with widespread critical acclaim upon its release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from professional publications, the album received an average score of 84, based on 22 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[11]
Following Mimi Parker's death in 2022, Hey What, Low's de facto last album, has been called "a tribute to Mimi Parker— and a masterpiece at the end of the line".[22]
Accolades
editPublication | List | Rank | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|
The Guardian | The 50 Best Albums of 2021 | 31
|
|
Les Inrockuptibles | Adrien Durand's Top 10 Albums of 2021 | 1
|
|
Arnaud Ducome's Top 10 Albums of 2021 | 1
| ||
Rémi Boiteux's Top 10 Albums of 2021 | 10
| ||
Valentin Gény's Top 10 Albums of 2021 | 3
| ||
NPR | NPR Music's 50 Best Albums of 2021 | 21
|
|
Paste | The 50 Best Albums of 2021 | 12
|
|
Pitchfork | The 50 Best Albums of 2021 | 5
|
|
The 31 Best Rock Albums of 2021 | — |
Track listing
editAll tracks are written by Low
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "White Horses" | 5:03 |
2. | "I Can Wait" | 4:02 |
3. | "All Night" | 5:14 |
4. | "Disappearing" | 3:32 |
5. | "Hey" | 7:41 |
6. | "Days Like These" | 5:20 |
7. | "There's a Comma After Still" | 1:51 |
8. | "Don't Walk Away" | 4:07 |
9. | "More" | 2:10 |
10. | "The Price You Pay (It Must Be Wearing Off)" | 7:08 |
Total length: | 46:08 |
Personnel
editLow
- Mimi Parker – vocals, percussion
- Alan Sparhawk – guitar, vocals
Technical
Charts
editChart (2021) | Peak position |
---|---|
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[29] | 75 |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[30] | 11 |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[31] | 60 |
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[32] | 27 |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[33] | 32 |
Irish Albums (OCC)[34] | 44 |
Italian Albums (FIMI)[35] | 89 |
Portuguese Albums (AFP)[36] | 41 |
Scottish Albums (OCC)[37] | 10 |
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[38] | 37 |
UK Albums (OCC)[39] | 23 |
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[40] | 7 |
References
edit- ^ Quick, RaeAnn (October 2, 2021). "Album Review: Low – Hey What". MXDWN. Archived from the original on November 10, 2022.
- ^ Willems, Jasper (September 10, 2021). "Low on HEY WHAT: Hope in Unfamiliar Sound". Under the Radar. Archived from the original on September 10, 2021.
- ^ a b c Britt, Thomas (September 8, 2021). "Low's HEY WHAT Could Use Some Drums". PopMatters. Archived from the original on September 8, 2021.
- ^ Fischer, Reed (September 13, 2021). "Album of the Week: Low, Hey What". The Current. Minnesota Public Radio. Archived from the original on September 21, 2021.
- ^ Sodomsky, Sam (June 22, 2021). "Low: 'Days Like These' Track Review". Pitchfork. Condé Nast. Archived from the original on June 22, 2021.
- ^ Clarke, Patrick (July 20, 2021). "Low share gorgeous new single 'Disappearing'". NME. NME Networks. Archived from the original on July 20, 2021.
- ^ Breathnach, Cillian (August 18, 2021). "Ahead of new album Hey What, Low release new single and video 'More'". Uncut. NME Networks. Archived from the original on August 18, 2021.
- ^ Sam Sodomsky (September 1, 2021). "Low Still Don't Sound Like Anyone Else". Pitchfork. Retrieved September 4, 2021.
- ^ Lawler, Christa (November 24, 2021). "Low's 'Hey What' gets Grammy nod | Duluth News Tribune". Archived from the original on November 24, 2021. Retrieved December 2, 2021.
- ^ "Hey What by Low reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved September 11, 2021.
- ^ a b "Critic Reviews for Hey What - Metacritic". Metacritic. Retrieved September 10, 2021.
- ^ Mark Deming. "Hey What - Low - Songs, Reviews, Credits - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved September 10, 2021.
- ^ Jasper Willems (September 10, 2021). "Album Review: Low - HEY WHAT". Beats Per Minute. Retrieved September 10, 2021.
- ^ Nick Roseblade (September 9, 2021). "Low - HEY WHAT". Clash Magazine. Retrieved September 10, 2021.
- ^ Alexis Petridis (September 9, 2021). "Low: Hey What review – a magnificent redefinition of rock music". The Guardian. Retrieved September 10, 2021.
- ^ Daniel Sylvester (September 9, 2021). "Low Remain at the Top of Their Creative Peak on 'HEY WHAT'". Exclaim!. Retrieved September 10, 2021.
- ^ Luke Cartledge (September 6, 2021). "Low - Hey What - Album Review - Loud and Quiet". Loud and Quiet. Retrieved September 6, 2021.
- ^ Keith Cameron. "Low – Hey What". Mojo. No. 335. p. 91. Archived from the original on August 18, 2021. Retrieved September 5, 2021. Alt URL
- ^ Max Freedman (September 8, 2021). "Low: 'Hey What' Album Review - Paste". Paste. Retrieved September 10, 2021.
- ^ Andy Cush (September 10, 2021). "Low: HEY WHAT Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved September 10, 2021.
- ^ Louis Pattison (September 10, 2021). "Low – Hey What". Uncut. No. 293. p. 18–19. Archived from the original on September 10, 2021. Retrieved September 5, 2021. Alt URL
- ^ Knapman, Chris (November 26, 2022). "HEY WHAT: a tribute to Mimi Parker— and a masterpiece at the end of the line". Medium. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
- ^ "The 50 best albums of 2021: 50-11". the Guardian. November 30, 2021. Retrieved December 5, 2021.
- ^ "Découvrez le top 10 des albums de 2021 par nos critiques musiques" [Discover the top 10 albums of 2021 by our music critics]. Les Inrockuptibles (in French). Paris. December 28, 2021. Archived from the original on December 29, 2021. Retrieved December 29, 2021.
- ^ "NPR Music's 50 Best Albums of 2021 (30-21)". NPR. December 1, 2021. Retrieved December 5, 2021.
- ^ "The 50 Best Albums of 2021". Paste. November 29, 2021. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
- ^ Sodomsky, Sam (December 7, 2021). "The 50 Best Albums of 2021". Pitchfork. Retrieved December 8, 2021.
- ^ Corcoran, Nina (December 8, 2021). "The 31 Best Rock Albums of 2021". Lists & Guides. Pitchfork Media. Retrieved June 16, 2023.
- ^ "Austriancharts.at – Low – Hey What" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved September 21, 2021.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – Low – Hey What" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – Low – Hey What" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Low – Hey What" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved September 17, 2021.
- ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Low – Hey What" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved September 17, 2021.
- ^ "Official Irish Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 17, 2021.
- ^ "Album – Classifica settimanale WK 37 (dal 10.9.2021 al 16.9.2021)" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved September 18, 2021.
- ^ "Portuguesecharts.com – Low – Hey What". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
- ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 18, 2021.
- ^ "Swisscharts.com – Low – Hey What". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 17, 2021.
- ^ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 18, 2021.