Alphabetical

• Artist: Phoenix
• Rating:
• Release Date: March 29, 2004
• Type: Lyrics are included with the album, Enhanced CD-ROM
• Genre: Rock

Review

Alphabetical is Phoenix's second album, trailing their debut by nearly four years. It's much less of a mishmash than its predecessor, basing itself around the group's soft, cunningly arranged pop that occasionally reaches beyond '70s AM and '80s sophisti-pop to slip in discreet traces of hip-hop. During their time away, Phoenix became much more proficient as synthesists; certain moments on 2000's United seemed to signal, "Here's where we declare our love of country music," or "Here's the song where we try to sound exactly like Todd Rundgren." This issue has been fixed; the seams that bind their inspirations are now less visible. They're also much better songwriters now, but the lack of variation -- in tempo and in sound -- nearly wipes out the positives by leaving the album with a sluggishness. It's particularly troublesome if you're not in a very specific mood (not simply laid-back, but a kind of laid-back) and want to stay there for the duration of the listen. The album would've benefited from a song or two with the vigor of United's "Too Young" and "If I Ever Feel Better" to break up the monotony; and tracks three through 11 are nowhere near the high level of tracks one and two, making the album drag all the more as it plays out. If not a qualified across-the-board improvement, Alphabetical is at least a good record by a group with plenty of unrealized potential. Perhaps they should stick to singles. ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
Everything Is Everything	Phoenix	Phoenix	(3:01)
Run Run Run	Phoenix	Phoenix	(3:50)
I'm an Actor	Phoenix	Phoenix	(2:33)
Love for Granted	Phoenix	Phoenix	(4:24)
Victim of the Crime	Phoenix	Phoenix	(4:02)
(You Can't Blame It On) Anybody	Phoenix	Phoenix	(3:33)
Congratulations	Phoenix	Phoenix	(1:12)
If It's Not With You	Phoenix	Phoenix	(3:57)
Holdin' on Together	Phoenix	Phoenix	(3:27)
Alphabetical	Phoenix	Phoenix	(10:04)
The Diary of Alphabetical [*][Multimedia Track]	Phoenix	Phoenix

Credits

Deck d'Arcy (Bass), Deck d'Arcy (Keyboards), Philippe Ascoli (A&R), Deck d'Arcy (Vocals (Background)), Laurent Brancowitz (Vocals (Background)), Ivan Beck (Guitar (Acoustic)), Laurent Brancowitz (Group Member), Alex Locascio (Percussion), Jim Mery (Keyboards), Kevin Dean (Assistant Engineer), Christian Mazzalai (Group Member), Alex Locascio (Drums), Christian Mazzalai (Guitar), Hedi Slimane (Artwork), Hedi Slimane (Photography), Jan Ghazi (A&R), Julien Delfaud (Assistant Engineer), Catharine David (Artwork), Deck d'Arcy (Group Member), Pino Palladino (Bass), Thomas Mars (Group Member), Laurent Brancowitz (Keyboards), Tony Hoffer (Mixing), Laurent Brancowitz (Guitar), Tony Hoffer (Producer), Thomas Mars (Vocals), Brian "Big Bass" Gardener (Mastering), Phoenix (Producer), Jean-Max Mery (Keyboards), Christian Mazzalai (Vocals (Background))

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alphabetical files