The Bride (album)

While promoting her side project Sexwitch, which she formed with Dan Carey and the indie rock band Toy, Khan stated that she was working on a new album.{{cite web |last1=Monroe |first1=Jazz |last2=Snapes |first2=Laura |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/60902-bat-for-lashes-discusses-debut-sexwitch-album-shares-helelyos/ |title=Bat for Lashes Discusses Debut Sexwitch Album, Shares "Helelyos" |website=Pitchfork |date=24 August 2015 |accessdate=29 May 2016}} She stated that it was linked to a short film she had made about a woman going through a tragedy on her wedding day and that the album would be hopefully released in spring of 2016. Recording took six months at a rented house in Ohayo Mountain in late 2015.{{Cite web |date=21 April 2016 |title=Bat for Lashes: Wedding for One |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/interview/9881-bat-for-lashes-wedding-for-one/ |website=Pitchfork}} In February 2016, Khan started posting preview photos from her collaboration with photographer Neil Krug. On 19 February 2016, she released a promotional single titled "I Do" with cryptic artwork stating "Save the Date, 1st July 2016".{{cite web |last=Monroe |first=Jazz |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/63507-bat-for-lashes-returns-with-new-track-i-do/ |title=Bat for Lashes Returns With New Track "I Do" |website=Pitchfork |date=19 February 2016 |accessdate=21 April 2016}} The lead single from the album, "In God's House", debuted on Annie Mac's BBC Radio 1 show on 10 March,{{cite web |last=Gaca |first=Anna |url=https://www.spin.com/2016/03/bat-for-lashes-in-gods-house-the-bride-new-album-release-date-stream/ |title=Bat For Lashes Shares Funereal New Wedding Song 'In God's House' |work=Spin |date=10 March 2016 |accessdate=21 April 2016}} and was released digitally the following day.{{cite web |url=https://www.7digital.com/artist/bat-for-lashes/release/in-gods-house-5198811 |title=In God's House (2016) {{!}} Bat For Lashes |website=7digital |location=United Kingdom |accessdate=21 April 2016}}

According to The Bride{{'}}s press release, the work is a concept album that follows the story of a woman, whose fiancé dies in a car crash on the way to their wedding. The album follows her as she decides to go on the honeymoon alone and her emotions as she deals with the tragedy.{{cite web |last=Monroe |first=Jazz |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/61102-bat-for-lashes-announces-new-album-the-bride-shares-in-gods-house/ |title=Bat for Lashes Announces New Album The Bride, Shares "In God's House" |website=Pitchfork |date=10 March 2016 |accessdate=29 May 2016}} Khan commented that "the trauma and the grief from the death of Joe, the groom, ... [is] ... more of a metaphor and it allows me to explore the concept of love in general, which requires a death of sorts."{{cite web |last=Trendell |first=Andrew |url=http://www.gigwise.com/features/107448/bat-for-lashes-interview-on-new-album-the-bride-love-marriage-witch |title=Bat For Lashes: 'Being a human is f**king hard' |website=Gigwise |date=21 June 2016 |accessdate=1 July 2016}}

The album was created with past collaborators Simone Felice, Dan Carey, Head and Ben Christophers.{{cite magazine |last=Blistein |first=Jon |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/bat-for-lashes-unveil-the-bride-chilling-new-song-in-gods-house-20160310 |title=Bat for Lashes Unveil 'The Bride,' Chilling New Song 'In God's House' |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=10 March 2016 |accessdate=29 May 2016}} The release of the album was preceded by the singles "In God's House" and "Sunday Love", both with music videos directed by Khan herself and John DeMenil. To promote the album, Bat for Lashes embarked on a small tour which consisted of performing in a number of churches to match the wedding theme. Fans and attendees were asked to wear formal attire to the shows. The album's artwork was made in collaboration with photographer Neil Krug and was shot over the course of a year. The CD and vinyl feature a booklet and prints of the photos from this collaboration.

{{Album ratings

| MC = 78/100

| rev1 = AllMusic

| rev1Score = {{Rating|3.5|5}}

| rev2 = The A.V. Club

| rev2Score = B+

| rev3 = The Daily Telegraph

| rev3Score = {{Rating|4|5}}

| rev4 = DIY

| rev4Score = {{Rating|4|5}}

| rev5 = The Guardian

| rev5Score = {{Rating|4|5}}

| rev6 = NME

| rev6Score = 4/5

| rev7 = Pitchfork

| rev7Score = 7.6/10

| rev8 = Q

| rev8Score = {{Rating|4|5}}

| rev9 = Rolling Stone

| rev9Score = {{Rating|3.5|5}}

| rev10 = Slant Magazine

| rev10Score = {{Rating|3.5|5}}

}}

The Bride received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 78, based on 30 reviews.{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/music/the-bride/bat-for-lashes |title=Reviews for The Bride by Bat for Lashes |website=Metacritic |accessdate=10 July 2016}} Neil McCormick of The Daily Telegraph hailed The Bride as "a beautiful, beguiling, disturbing and rewarding album of love, loss, grief and recovery from one of the most intriguing singer-songwriters currently active in British music, of either gender."{{cite web |last=McCormick |first=Neil |author-link=Neil McCormick |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/what-to-listen-to/bat-for-lashes-the-bride-review-a-marriage-of-heaven-and-hell/ |title=Bat for Lashes, The Bride, review: 'a marriage of heaven and hell' |work=The Daily Telegraph |date=30 June 2016 |accessdate=10 July 2016}} Rachel Aroesti of The Guardian described the album as "a collection of darkly intriguing dirges, a battle for dominance between Khan's intimate, exquisitely beautiful vocal and subtly unnerving sonic dissonance at its heart."{{cite web |last=Aroesti |first=Rachel |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/jun/30/bat-for-lashes-the-bride-review-beautiful-darkly-intriguing-torch-songs |title=Bat for Lashes: The Bride review – beautiful, darkly intriguing torch songs |work=The Guardian |date=30 June 2016 |accessdate=10 July 2016}} Larry Bartleet of NME viewed the album as Khan's "most ambitious yet" and remarked that she "refuses to yield crossover hits like 2009's 'Daniel' [...] opting instead for a slow style of storytelling that rewards the patient listener."{{cite web |last=Bartleet |first=Larry |url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/bat-for-lashes/16508 |title=Bat For Lashes – 'The Bride' Review |work=NME |date=29 June 2016 |accessdate=10 July 2016 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160630183121/http://www.nme.com/reviews/bat-for-lashes/16508 |archivedate=30 June 2016}} George Garner of Q dubbed it Khan's "boldest album yet" and wrote, "In the moving figure of The Bride, Khan has delivered her defining statement as an artist."{{cite magazine |last=Garner |first=George |title=The Wedding Singer |magazine=Q |issue=362 |page=109 |date=August 2016 |issn=0955-4955}} Nina Keen of DIY noted that "[t]here's a resistance [to] clichés on this record, and Khan gives a freshness and a sincerity to her otherwise ethereal music", calling the album "a beautiful, complex and often harrowing listening experience."{{cite web |last=Keen |first=Nina |url=https://diymag.com/2016/07/01/bat-for-lashes-the-bride-album-review |title=Bat For Lashes – The Bride |work=DIY |date=1 July 2016 |accessdate=10 July 2016}}

Pitchfork{{'}}s Cameron Cook stated the album "may be Bat for Lashes' most ambitious project yet" and commented, "Its few shortcomings aside, The Bride is further proof that Khan, unlike almost all of her contemporaries, understands how to wade into mystical realms and emerge with big, beguiling pop."{{cite web |last=Cook |first=Cameron |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/22067-the-bride/ |title=Bat For Lashes: The Bride |website=Pitchfork |date=5 July 2016 |accessdate=10 July 2016}} Kory Grow of Rolling Stone felt that although "the album lags when the story gets too heavy", "there are many songs on The Bride that transcend its thematic conceit and stand on their own as unique puzzle pieces in Kahn's steadfastly mystifying persona."{{cite magazine |last=Grow |first=Kory |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/bat-for-lashes-the-bride-20160701 |title=The Bride |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=1 July 2016 |accessdate=10 July 2016}} Heather Phares of AllMusic stated that the album "begins vividly", but was unimpressed with its "slower" second half, concluding that "The Bride is beautifully crafted, but not always thrilling."{{cite web |last=Phares |first=Heather |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-bride-mw0002927494 |title=The Bride – Bat for Lashes |website=AllMusic |accessdate=10 July 2016}} Katie Rife of The A.V. Club expressed that following "Never Forgive the Angels", "the power of The Bride{{'}}s narrative begins to fade in a series of piano-focused ballads that, while uniformly beautiful [...] aren't distinctive enough songwriting-wise to stand out from one another."{{cite web |last=Rife |first=Katie |url=https://www.avclub.com/bat-for-lashes-tries-to-keep-the-flame-alive-on-the-bri-1798188286 |title=Bat For Lashes tries to keep the flame alive on The Bride |work=The A.V. Club |date=1 July 2016 |access-date=26 September 2020}} Slant Magazine{{'}}s Sal Cinquemani wrote, "That The Bride works best as a song cycle rather than a collection of pop hooks is a testament to its cohesion and intrinsic intertexuality, but what's missing here is Khan's knack for grafting avant-art-rock concepts onto mainstream forms."{{cite web |last=Cinquemani |first=Sal |url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/bat-for-lashes-the-bride/ |title=Review: Bat for Lashes, The Bride |website=Slant Magazine |date=21 June 2016 |accessdate=26 September 2020}}

The Bride debuted at number nine on the UK Albums Chart with 8,242 copies sold in its first week, becoming Khan's third consecutive top-10 album.{{cite web |last=Jones |first=Alan |url=https://www.musicweek.com/analysis/read/official-charts-analysis-blink-182-claim-top-spot-with-first-uk-no-1/065293 |title=Official Charts Analysis: Blink-182 claim top spot with first UK No. 1 |work=Music Week |date=8 July 2016 |accessdate=11 July 2016 |url-access=subscription}}

{{Track listing

| all_writing = Natasha Khan, except where noted

| title1 = I Do

| length1 = 2:17

| title2 = Joe's Dream

| length2 = 5:25

| title3 = In God's House

| length3 = 3:32

| title4 = Honeymooning Alone

| length4 = 3:30

| title5 = Sunday Love

| writer5 = {{hlist|Khan|Dan Carey}}

| length5 = 4:13

| title6 = Never Forgive the Angels

| length6 = 4:25

| title7 = Close Encounters

| length7 = 4:10

| title8 = Widow's Peak

| writer8 = {{hlist|Khan|Simone Felice}}

| length8 = 3:47

| title9 = Land's End

| length9 = 3:10

| title10 = If I Knew

| length10 = 4:17

| title11 = I Will Love Again

| writer11 = {{hlist|Khan|Felice|Lou Rogai}}

| length11 = 5:14

| title12 = In Your Bed

| length12 = 3:32

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = Digital edition bonus track{{cite web |url=https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/the-bride/id1088692493 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160914073740/https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/the-bride/id1088692493 |url-status=dead |archive-date=14 September 2016 |title=The Bride by Bat for Lashes |website=iTunes Store |date=July 2016 |location=United Kingdom |accessdate=10 July 2016}}

| title13 = Clouds

| length13 = 5:23

}}

Credits adapted from the liner notes of The Bride.{{cite AV media notes |title=The Bride |type=liner notes |others=Bat for Lashes |publisher=Parlophone |year=2016 |id=0825646170340}}

{{Div col}}

• Natasha Khan – Omnichord {{small|(tracks 1, 3, 5)}}; vocals {{small|(all tracks)}}; drum programming {{small|(tracks 2, 3)}}; Rhodes, electric guitar, tambourine {{small|(track 2)}}; keys, mandolin, pocket piano {{small|(track 3)}}; synths {{small|(tracks 3, 5, 7, 12)}}; drums {{small|(tracks 4, 6)}}; harp {{small|(track 4)}}; Farfisa organ {{small|(track 5)}}; guitar {{small|(tracks 6, 9–11)}}; string arrangements {{small|(track 7)}}; celesta, vibraphone {{small|(track 8)}}; piano, bass synth {{small|(track 10)}}; drum machine {{small|(track 11)}}; claps {{small|(track 12)}}
• Ben Christophers – bowed guitar {{small|(track 1)}}; bass {{small|(tracks 1, 4, 6)}}; vocals, piano {{small|(track 6)}}
• David Baron – bass {{small|(track 1)}}; synths {{small|(tracks 1–3, 7)}}; Rhodes {{small|(track 2)}}; programming {{small|(tracks 2, 3, 7)}}; string arrangements {{small|(track 7)}}
• Jacknife Lee – synths, programming, sampler {{small|(track 2)}}
• Alex Reeves – timpani {{small|(tracks 2, 4, 8)}}; drums, percussion {{small|(track 8)}}
• Simone Felice – drums {{small|(track 3)}}
• Rachael Yamagata – backing vocals {{small|(tracks 4, 7)}}
• Sandy Bell – backing vocals {{small|(tracks 4, 7)}}
• Lou Rogai – guitars {{small|(tracks 4, 11, 12)}}; bass {{small|(tracks 11, 12)}}; backing vocals {{small|(track 11)}}
• Dan Carey – programming, synths {{small|(track 5)}}
• Leo Taylor – drums {{small|(track 5)}}
• Dawn Landes – guitar, backing vocals {{small|(track 8)}}
• Kevin Salem – guitar {{small|(track 8)}}
• Davide Rossi – strings {{small|(tracks 9, 12)}}; string arrangements {{small|(track 9)}}
• Matt Hales – drum programming, synths {{small|(track 12)}}

{{Div col end}}

{{Div col}}

• Natasha Khan – production {{small|(all tracks)}}
• Simone Felice – co-production {{small|(all tracks)}}; recording {{small|(tracks 1–4, 6–8, 10–12)}}
• David Baron – co-production, mixing {{small|(all tracks)}}; recording {{small|(track 3)}}; sound effects {{small|(track 8)}}
• Head – co-production, mixing {{small|(all tracks)}}; recording {{small|(tracks 1, 4, 6, 7)}}
• Ben Christophers – co-production {{small|(all tracks)}}; recording {{small|(tracks 1, 9)}}; sound effects {{small|(track 4)}}
• Jacknife Lee – co-production, recording {{small|(track 2)}}
• Dan Carey – co-production, recording {{small|(track 5)}}
• Matt Hales – co-production, recording {{small|(track 12)}}
• Pete Hanlon – engineering {{small|(all tracks)}}; recording {{small|(track 1)}}
• Tony Cousins – mastering {{small|(all tracks)}}
• Davide Rossi – string recording {{small|(track 9)}}

{{Div col end}}

• Natasha Khan – art direction, concept
• Neil Krug – photography
• Michael Whitham – commissioning
• Richard Welland – design

{{Reflist}}

{{Bat for Lashes}}

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Category:2016 albums

Category:Albums produced by Dan Carey (record producer)

Category:Bat for Lashes albums

Category:2010s concept albums

Category:Parlophone albums

Category:Warner Records albums