Different Days is the 13th studio album by British alternative rock band The Charlatans, released on 26 May 2017.
| Different Days | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 26 May 2017 | |||
| Recorded | 2016, Cheshire | |||
| Genre | Indie rock, alternative rock | |||
| Label | BMG | |||
| Producer | The Charlatans, Jim Spencer | |||
| The Charlatans chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Different Days | ||||
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The album features guest appearances from Paul Weller (who co-wrote "Spinning Out"), Gillian Gilbert and Stephen Morris (both from New Order), Johnny Marr, Peter Salisbury (The Verve), Donald Johnson (A Certain Ratio), Ian Rankin, and Sharon Horgan.[1]
Release
On 20 March 2017, Different Days was announced for release.[2] "Plastic Machinery" was made available for streaming on 4 April.[3] A music video was released for the track on 24 April; directed by Ewen Spencer, the clip was filmed in Barcelona, Spain.[4] A remix of the song was done by Sleaford Mods and was made available for streaming on 25 May.[5] Different Days was released on 26 May.[2] On the same day, "Plastic Machinery" was released as a single.[3] To promote the album's release, the band did two acoustic performances.[2] The album was released in Japan through Hostess Entertainment on 2 June and included remixes of "Plastic Machinery" as bonus tracks.[6] "Over Again" was released as a single on 13 October.[7] In November and December, the group went on a headlining UK tour.[8] On 8 December, a music video was released for "Over Again", directed by Ashley Shakibai.[9] An EP, Totally Eclipsing, was released alongside a two-CD edition of the album on 8 June 2018.[10] In September and October, the group went on a headlining North American tour.[11] The album cover photo was taken in Barcelona.
Reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AnyDecentMusic? | 6.8/10[12] |
| Metacritic | 74/100[13] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [14] |
| Clash | 7/10[15] |
| The Guardian | [16] |
| The Independent | [17] |
| The Irish Times | [18] |
| The Line of Best Fit | 7/10[19] |
| Pitchfork | 6/10[20] |
| PopMatters |   [21] |
| The Times | [22] |
| Under the Radar | [23] |
The album was described by David Barnett in The Independent as "possibly their most ambitious project yet".[1] Dave Simpson, for The Guardian, gave it four stars and called it "their best album in 20 years".[16] AllMusic writer Stephen Thomas Erlewine gave it three and a half stars, stating that the band "embrace the elastic possibilities of new avenues here, and the results are rewarding".[14] Pitchfork's Robert Ham gave it 6.0 out of 10, calling it "good but not great".[20] Richard Folland, for PopMatters, also gave it 6 out of 10, describing it as Modern Nature Part 2.[21]
Track listing
All tracks are written by The Charlatans unless stated otherwise
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Hey Sunrise" | 4:14 | |
| 2. | "Solutions" | 4:07 | |
| 3. | "Different Days" | 4:01 | |
| 4. | "Future Tense" | Ian Rankin | 0:50 |
| 5. | "Plastic Machinery" | 3:43 | |
| 6. | "The Forgotten One" | 0:41 | |
| 7. | "Not Forgotten" | 5:36 | |
| 8. | "There Will Be Chances" | 4:37 | |
| 9. | "Over Again" | 4:01 | |
| 10. | "The Same House" | 2:52 | |
| 11. | "Let’s Go Together" | 4:17 | |
| 12. | "The Setting Sun" | 1:38 | |
| 13. | "Spinning Out" | Paul Weller, The Charlatans | 4:36 |
Personnel
The Charlatans
- Tim Burgess – vocals
- Martin Blunt – bass guitar
- Mark Collins – guitar
- Tony Rogers – keyboards
Additional musicians
- Paul Weller – piano, percussion, vocals
- Gillian Gilbert – keyboards
- Stephen Morris – drums, programming
- Johnny Marr – guitar
- Anton Newcombe – guitar, percussion, keyboards
- Peter Salisbury – drums
- Ben Gordelier – drums
- Donald Johnson – percussion
- Derick Johnson – bass
- Ian Rankin – spoken word
- Kurt Wagner – spoken word
- Sharon Horgan – backing vocals
- Nik Void – backing vocals
- Shuri Endo – voice