"Not" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by Big Thief | ||||
from the album Two Hands | ||||
Released | August 13, 2019 | |||
Length | 6:07 | |||
Label | 4AD | |||
Songwriter(s) | Adrianne Lenker | |||
Producer(s) | Andrew Sarlo | |||
Big Thief singles chronology | ||||
|
"Not" is a song by American indie rock band Big Thief, released as the first single from their fourth studio album Two Hands. It was released on August 13, 2019, by 4AD as a digital single alongside the album's announcement. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7]
The song was nominated for Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards.
"We found something between the four of us [...] It was like we were riding in the wind. I don't even remember at a certain point. We went somewhere."
The band debuted the song during a concert at Point Éphémère in Paris, France on March 28, 2018. [9] [10] Getting the recording of the song exactly right was important to the band, and they later re-recorded it at Sound City Studios in Van Nuys, California. [8]
Written by Adrianne Lenker, [11] the song's lyrics uses negation to describe something, [12] with Lenker repeating the use of "not" or "nor" at the beginning of each line. [13] Bob Boilen of NPR described the song's subject as "the inability to describe what that something is, only to be able to explain what it is not." [14]
The second half of the song is instrumental and features a guitar solo played by Lenker. [15]
"Not" was performed live by Big Thief on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on October 10, 2019. [16] Claire Shaffer of Rolling Stone described the performance as a " hard-rock spin" on the song with "distorted" guitars and "manic" drums, comparing Adrianne Lenker's "wailing" vocals to that of emo music. [17] Ben Kaye of Consequence of Sound called it "an impassioned performance that demonstrated why they're one of the most engaging groups to emerge from the folk scene in some time." [18]
The band performed "Not" as well as "Two Hands" and "Forgotten Eyes" on CBS This Morning on October 26, 2019, as part of the program's Saturday Sessions segment. [19] [20] [21]
The song was praised by Pitchfork, who named it Best New Track upon release and called it "a towering statement from a group constantly leapfrogging over themselves." [22] BBC Music compared Lenker's guitar solo to that of " Neil Young at his peak." [23]
The song was also cited as one of Barack Obama's favorite songs of 2019 in a Spotify playlist compiled by Obama at the end of the year. [24]
"Not" was nominated for Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards. [25]
"Not" appeared in several publications' year-end lists. NPR Music named it the best song of 2019 with Bob Boilen writing, "No song in 2019 felt more searing, more perfect, than 'Not'". [14]
Publication | List | Rank | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|
BBC Music | The 20 best songs of 2019 | 19
|
|
Billboard | The 100 Best Songs of 2019 | 56
|
|
Consequence of Sound | Top 50 Songs of 2019 | 24
|
|
Flood Magazine | The Best Songs of 2019 | 3
|
|
The Guardian | The 20 best songs of 2019 | 12
|
|
NPR Music | 25 Best Songs of 2019 | 1
|
|
Paste | The 50 Best Songs of 2019 | 7
|
|
Pitchfork | The 100 Best Songs of 2019 | 9
|
|
Uproxx | The Best Songs of 2019 | 10
|
|
Vice | The 100 Best Songs of 2019 | 20
|
In November 2019, "Not" was covered by Matt Berninger, vocalist and frontman of The National, during a solo live performance at the sixth annual Dream Serenade benefit concert in Toronto. [34] [35] [36]
In April 2020, a cover was released by former Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist Josh Klinghoffer under the pseudonym of Pluralone. [37] [38] [39]
On September 4, 2020, Hamilton Leithauser released the live album Live! at Café Carlyle, collecting 10 recordings made during his residency at the New York City Café Carlyle. It includes a cover of "Not". [40] [41]
Credits adapted from the liner notes of Two Hands. [11]
Chart (2019) | Peak position |
---|---|
Belgium ( Ultratip Bubbling Under Flanders) [42] | 30 |
{{
cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (
link)
"Not" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by Big Thief | ||||
from the album Two Hands | ||||
Released | August 13, 2019 | |||
Length | 6:07 | |||
Label | 4AD | |||
Songwriter(s) | Adrianne Lenker | |||
Producer(s) | Andrew Sarlo | |||
Big Thief singles chronology | ||||
|
"Not" is a song by American indie rock band Big Thief, released as the first single from their fourth studio album Two Hands. It was released on August 13, 2019, by 4AD as a digital single alongside the album's announcement. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7]
The song was nominated for Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards.
"We found something between the four of us [...] It was like we were riding in the wind. I don't even remember at a certain point. We went somewhere."
The band debuted the song during a concert at Point Éphémère in Paris, France on March 28, 2018. [9] [10] Getting the recording of the song exactly right was important to the band, and they later re-recorded it at Sound City Studios in Van Nuys, California. [8]
Written by Adrianne Lenker, [11] the song's lyrics uses negation to describe something, [12] with Lenker repeating the use of "not" or "nor" at the beginning of each line. [13] Bob Boilen of NPR described the song's subject as "the inability to describe what that something is, only to be able to explain what it is not." [14]
The second half of the song is instrumental and features a guitar solo played by Lenker. [15]
"Not" was performed live by Big Thief on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on October 10, 2019. [16] Claire Shaffer of Rolling Stone described the performance as a " hard-rock spin" on the song with "distorted" guitars and "manic" drums, comparing Adrianne Lenker's "wailing" vocals to that of emo music. [17] Ben Kaye of Consequence of Sound called it "an impassioned performance that demonstrated why they're one of the most engaging groups to emerge from the folk scene in some time." [18]
The band performed "Not" as well as "Two Hands" and "Forgotten Eyes" on CBS This Morning on October 26, 2019, as part of the program's Saturday Sessions segment. [19] [20] [21]
The song was praised by Pitchfork, who named it Best New Track upon release and called it "a towering statement from a group constantly leapfrogging over themselves." [22] BBC Music compared Lenker's guitar solo to that of " Neil Young at his peak." [23]
The song was also cited as one of Barack Obama's favorite songs of 2019 in a Spotify playlist compiled by Obama at the end of the year. [24]
"Not" was nominated for Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards. [25]
"Not" appeared in several publications' year-end lists. NPR Music named it the best song of 2019 with Bob Boilen writing, "No song in 2019 felt more searing, more perfect, than 'Not'". [14]
Publication | List | Rank | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|
BBC Music | The 20 best songs of 2019 | 19
|
|
Billboard | The 100 Best Songs of 2019 | 56
|
|
Consequence of Sound | Top 50 Songs of 2019 | 24
|
|
Flood Magazine | The Best Songs of 2019 | 3
|
|
The Guardian | The 20 best songs of 2019 | 12
|
|
NPR Music | 25 Best Songs of 2019 | 1
|
|
Paste | The 50 Best Songs of 2019 | 7
|
|
Pitchfork | The 100 Best Songs of 2019 | 9
|
|
Uproxx | The Best Songs of 2019 | 10
|
|
Vice | The 100 Best Songs of 2019 | 20
|
In November 2019, "Not" was covered by Matt Berninger, vocalist and frontman of The National, during a solo live performance at the sixth annual Dream Serenade benefit concert in Toronto. [34] [35] [36]
In April 2020, a cover was released by former Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist Josh Klinghoffer under the pseudonym of Pluralone. [37] [38] [39]
On September 4, 2020, Hamilton Leithauser released the live album Live! at Café Carlyle, collecting 10 recordings made during his residency at the New York City Café Carlyle. It includes a cover of "Not". [40] [41]
Credits adapted from the liner notes of Two Hands. [11]
Chart (2019) | Peak position |
---|---|
Belgium ( Ultratip Bubbling Under Flanders) [42] | 30 |
{{
cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (
link)