The Trouble with Fever

2022 studio album by Michelle Branch
The Trouble with Fever
Studio album by
Michelle Branch
ReleasedSeptember 16, 2022 (2022-09-16)
Length35:05
LabelNonesuch
ProducerPatrick Carney
Michelle Branch chronology
Hopeless Romantic
(2017) 		The Trouble with Fever
(2022)
Singles from The Trouble with Fever
  1. "I'm a Man"
    Released: June 15, 2022
  2. "Not My Lover"
    Released: September 16, 2022

The Trouble with Fever is the fourth studio album by American singer and songwriter Michelle Branch. It was co-produced by Patrick Carney of The Black Keys and written solely by Branch. The album was released on September 16, 2022, through Audio Eagle/Nonesuch Records and Warner Records. The album's lead single, "I'm a Man", was released on July 15, 2022.[1] In support of the album, Branch embarked on The Trouble With Fever Tour, which commenced on September 15, 2022, with special guest Bad Bad Hats and Katelyn Tarver.[2]

Background

During the 2020 pandemic lockdown, Branch found herself in the studio with Patrick Carney. In a press release she said "I didn’t realize I was making a record at first — it was more just for our own sanity, getting time together to play music and screw around in the studio."[3] Branch told Billboard Magazine that due to the pandemic the writing process was very different. It was the first time she has written by herself in a long time. "I love collaborating with people, and had gotten in the flow of doing that ever since my Nashville days with The Wreckers, being a part of a songwriting community. And this was the first time that I was like, "Okay, I’m writing songs by myself." And it was nice to use that muscle again, and force myself to finish things on my own."[4] During the writing process for the album Branch found inspiration in a lyric book by David Berman from the Silver Jews. She would sit there, flipping through the pages of that book. "Just the cadence, the way he writes, was really inspiring to me – the way that he’s just so direct."[5]

During an interview with Nylon in September 2021, Branch announced the title for the record for the first time. In the same interview, she mentions that The Trouble with Fever will have the same vein as Hopeless Romantic.[6] The title explores the consequences of lust in all of its various forms. "It's more about the fever of lust, wanting someone, that first foray where you're falling for someone."[7]

The cover art for the album is a photograph that was captured by James Carney in 1970 during his time at Cape Cod Beach. Branch found the photo while she was looking for ideas for an album cover. She explains in an Instagram post that "it was like this photograph had been plucked straight from my imagination. It was evocative and moody. You could feel the stifling summer heat radiating through it."[8]

Promotion and release

On July 12, 2022, Branch announced on social media that the first single from the upcoming album will be titled "I'm a Man" and that it would be released July 15.[9] The song is a protest song that started as an empathetic view towards men struggling to find a new way to navigate in a post-‘Me Too’ world of toxic masculinity.[10] A few hours prior to the release, she revealed the artwork for the album. A second single, "Not My Lover", was released on September 15, 2022.[11] She performed it live for the first time on the Tamron Hall Show.[12]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
The Guardian[13]
musicOMH[14]
Pitchfork5.1/10[15]

In a positive review from That Music Magazine, Noelle Simeon wrote that "Branch can go deep into her feelings. Having complete creative control, Fever is a labor of love, and she allows herself to capture the mood of each song." Closing out the review, "Michelle Branch is a true musician's musician, and The Trouble with Fever enraptures all of her talents beautifully."[16]

Pete Tosiello of Pitchfork was more critical, writing that "the album isn’t bold enough to commit in any one direction, offsetting whispery synth-pop with saccharine country ballads. Still, the most glaring structural defects are overarching. The dressed-up guitars range from staticky to syrupy; the arrangements meander into melodramatic bridges", continuing by calling the instrumentation "bewildering" and the record a "mishmash" overall.[15] Jenessa Williams, writing for The Guardian, commented that the album "shouldn’t be consumed as scandal. Instead, it should be taken for what it is: a solid country-pop record. It’s a celebration of endings: a fortifying, bridging album that guides its author towards, hopefully, happier times."[13] Ben Hogwood of musicOMH concurred, writing that The Trouble with Fever "plots a relatively safe musical course amid turbulent personal life events".[14]

Track listing

All tracks co-produced by Michelle Branch and Patrick Carney except where noted.

The Trouble with Fever track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Closest Thing to Heaven"3:29
2."You Got Me Where You Want Me"3:29
3."I'm a Man"3:01
4."Not My Lover"3:10
5."When That Somebody Is You"3:30
6."You"3:34
7."Zut Alors!"3:17
8."Fever Forever"3:26
9."Beating on the Outside"4:31
10."I’m Sorry"3:38
Total length:35:05
Japanese bonus track
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
11."One Night" (demo)Kuney; Branch, Pearson3:36

Charts

Chart (2022) Peak
position
US Top Album Sales (Billboard)[17] 61

References

  1. ^ Vulpo, Mike (July 15, 2022). "The MixtapE! Presents P!nk, Kelsea Ballerini, Demi Lovato and More New Music Musts". ET Online. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  2. ^ @michellebranch (September 2, 2022). "The other shows with @katelyntarver and the @badbadhats are still staying put, and I hope to see you along the way 🖤🎶🎤" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  3. ^ Sacher, Andrew (July 18, 2022). "Michelle Branch announces new album & tour, shares protest song & video, "I'm A Man"". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  4. ^ Lipshutz, Jason (6 September 2022). "Michelle Branch: 'I'm Looking Forward to Standing on My Own Two Feet'". Billboard Magazine.
  5. ^ "Michelle Branch Explains How David Berman Inspired Her New Album". Stereogum. 6 September 2022.
  6. ^ Kaplan, Ilana (September 8, 2021). "Michelle Branch On Influencing Taylor Swift & Re-Recording 'The Spirit Room'". Nylon.
  7. ^ Razzaq, Zane. "How a photo from a Cape Cod beach in the 70's became Michelle Branch's album art". Cape Cod Times.
  8. ^ "Michelle Branch on Instagram". Instagram. July 17, 2022. Retrieved August 12, 2022.
  9. ^ Branch, Michelle [@michellebranch] (July 12, 2022). "I'm beyond thrilled to announce my new single "I'm A Man" comes out this Friday 7/15!!" (Tweet). Retrieved July 12, 2022 – via Twitter.
  10. ^ "New Music Monday–July 18, 2022". Yard Sale of Thoughts. 19 July 2022.
  11. ^ Branch, Michelle [@michellebranch] (September 16, 2022). "The power of clip on bangs 🤪 Watch 'Not My Lover' out today! 🖤 https://youtu.be/cHInBqWCwS4" (Tweet). Retrieved September 19, 2022 – via Twitter.
  12. ^ Newsdesk, Laughing Place Disney (12 September 2022). ""Tamron Hall" Guest List: John Boyega, Michelle Branch and More to Appear Week of September 12th". LaughingPlace.com.
  13. ^ a b Williams, Jenessa (16 September 2022). "Michelle Branch: The Trouble With Fever review - solid country-pop, not notes on a scandal". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
  14. ^ a b Hogwood, Ben (20 September 2022). "Michelle Branch - The Trouble With Fever". MusicOMH. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
  15. ^ a b Tosiello, Pete (September 20, 2022). "Michelle Branch: The Trouble With Fever Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved September 20, 2022.
  16. ^ "That Music Magazine » Album Review: Michelle Branch "The Trouble With Fever"".
  17. ^ "Michelle Branch Chart History (Top Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved March 29, 2022.
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