IRM is the third studio album by French electropop singer Charlotte Gainsbourg, with all songs written and produced by Beck except "Le Chat Du Café Des Artistes" (written by Jean-Pierre Ferland). The album title was inspired by the French initialism for an MRI scanner.[4] The title track was released as a free download on 9 October 2009.[5] The album was mostly recorded at Beck's home studio in Los Angeles, California.[6] The lead single is "Heaven Can Wait", a duet with Beck, and was released on 2 November. The music video for "Heaven Can Wait" was directed by Keith Schofield and was released on 19 November 2009.[7] The video for "Heaven Can Wait" was named one of the Top 20 best music videos of 2009 by Spin Magazine.[8] "Trick Pony" is featured in the football video game by EA Sports, FIFA 11.
IRM | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 7 December 2009 | |||
Studio |
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Genre | ||||
Length | 41:27 | |||
Label | ||||
Producer | Beck Hansen | |||
Charlotte Gainsbourg chronology | ||||
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Singles from IRM | ||||
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According to Gainsbourg, IRM "was Beck’s view of what I had gone through, and not mine."[9]
In 2012 it was awarded a diamond certification from the Independent Music Companies Association which indicated sales of at least 200,000 copies throughout Europe.[10]
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AnyDecentMusic? | 7.2/10[11] |
Metacritic | 80/100[12] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [13] |
The A.V. Club | B+[14] |
The Daily Telegraph | [15] |
Entertainment Weekly | B[16] |
The Guardian | [17] |
The Independent | [18] |
Los Angeles Times | [19] |
Pitchfork | 8.4/10[20] |
Rolling Stone | [21] |
Spin | 7/10[22] |
The album currently has a Metacritic score of 80/100 based on 21 professional reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[12]
All tracks are written by Beck Hansen, except where noted
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Master's Hands" | 2:49 | |
2. | "IRM" | 2:35 | |
3. | "Le Chat du Café des Artistes" | 4:03 | |
4. | "In the End" | 2:00 | |
5. | "Heaven Can Wait" | 2:41 | |
6. | "Me and Jane Doe" | 3:21 | |
7. | "Vanities" | 3:38 | |
8. | "Time of the Assassins" | 2:46 | |
9. | "Trick Pony" | 2:53 | |
10. | "Greenwich Mean Time" |
| 2:25 |
11. | "Dandelion" | 3:18 | |
12. | "Voyage" | 4:05 | |
13. | "La Collectionneuse" |
| 5:15 |
Total length: | 41:27 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
14. | "Looking Glass Blues" | 2:42 |
15. | "Heaven Can Wait" (Chris Taylor Remix) | 2:15 |
Total length: | 46:24 |
Note
Musicians
Technical
Artwork
Chart (2009) | Peak position[23] |
---|---|
Belgian Albums Chart (Wallonia) | 8 |
Belgian Albums Chart (Flanders) | 35 |
Canadian Albums Chart | 27 |
Danish Albums Chart | 39 |
French Albums Chart | 4 |
Greek Albums Chart | 13 |
Swedish Albums Chart | 46 |
Swiss Albums Chart | 28 |
UK Albums Chart | 62 |
US Billboard 200 | 69 |
US Billboard Top Rock Albums | 16 |
US Billboard Top Digital Albums | 25 |
US Billboard Top Modern Rock/Alternative Albums | 11 |
US Billboard European Albums Chart | 73 |
Region | Date | Label | Format | Catalogue |
---|---|---|---|---|
Belgium | 4 December 2009 | CD | ||
France | 7 December 2009 | Because Music | CD | |
Switzerland | 7 December 2009 | CD | ||
Canada | 8 December 2009 | Warner Music | CD | |
Germany | 11 December 2009 | CD | ||
Brazil | 22 January 2010 | CD | 825646842476 | |
United Kingdom | 25 January 2010 | Because Music | CD | BEC5772602 |
CD+DVD | BEC5772603 | |||
LP | BEC5772607 | |||
United States | 26 January 2010 | Elektra | CD | |
Argentina | 11 February 2010[24] | Warner Music | CD |
On 13 April 2010, Gainsbourg released a five-track EP called Sunset Sound EP, which contains four songs from IRM recorded live at Sunset Sound Recorders with Beck Hansen.[25]
To promote IRM, Gainsbourg embarked on her first live tour by performing at several venues, music festivals and television shows in North America, Europe and Asia.[26][27][28][29]