Crumbling (album)

Crumbling
Studio album by
Mid-Air Thief
ReleasedJuly 31, 2018 (2018-07-31)
GenreFolktronica[1]
Length44:04
Language
  • Korean
  • English
LabelSelf-released
ProducerMid-Air Thief
Mid-Air Thief chronology
Gongjoong Doduk
(2015) 		Crumbling
(2018) 		Flood Format
(2022)

Crumbling (Korean: 무너지기; RR: Muneojigi) is the second studio album by South Korean folktronica artist Mid-Air Thief. The album features vocals by South Korean indie singer-songwriter Summer Soul.[2] It was released on July 31, 2018. It was nominated at the Korean Music Awards in 2019 in the categories "Album of the Year" and "Best Dance & Electronic Album" and won the latter.[3][1]

Background

The album gained attention from online music communities such as Album of The Year and Rate Your Music,[4] where on the former, it is currently the 3rd highest-rated album of 2018 and on the latter, the 4th highest.[5][6]

Release

Crumbling was released independently in South Korea on July 31, 2018[7] and in United States on August 7, 2018.[8] It was released in Japan on December 4, 2018 by Botanical House.[9] The album was reissued on September 20, 2019 by Topshelf Records.[10]

Critical reception

Weiv described Crumbling as "the power of faint sounds."[11] Reggie MT of Tiny Mix Tapes declared that the album is "much like its spiritual predecessor, alternately chillaxed and maximalist, calming and rousing."[2] It ranked on Pretty Much Amazing's 2018: Year in Review list at number 22, while the writer stated that "at first listen, Mid-Air Thief sounds like a Grizzly Bear clone, but upon further listening, this is pacific island pop you didn't know you wanted."[12]

Track listing

All lyrics written by Mid-Air Thief and Summer Soul; all music written by Mid-Air Thief.

No.TitleLength
1."Why?" ("왜?")4:41
2."Ahhhh, These Chains!" ("쇠사슬")5:07
3."Gameun Deut" ("감은 듯")5:03
4."Curve and Light" ("곡선과 투과광")4:20
5."Crumbling Together" ("함께 무너지기")9:38
6."Protector" ("수호자")5:22
7."Dirt" ("흙")6:21
8."No Answer" ("무소식")3:32

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Crumbling.[13]

References

  1. ^ a b Enis, Eli (January 8, 2019). "Mid-Air Thief Made A Beloved, Award Winning Album And Still Hasn't Shown His Face". MTV. Archived from the original on August 2, 2019. Retrieved October 3, 2019.
  2. ^ a b Reggie MT (September 21, 2018). "공중도둑 (Mid-Air Thief) - 무너지기 | LISTEN". Tiny Mix Tapes. Retrieved July 19, 2019.
  3. ^ Kim, Su-jeong (February 27, 2019). "BTS, 한국대중음악상 '올해의 음악인' 수상… "상 의미 잘 안다"". No Cut News (in Korean). Retrieved September 26, 2019.
  4. ^ Ghosh, Sayan (October 21, 2018). "Sayan Ghosh: Mid-Air Thief accrues online following". The Michigan Daily. University of Michigan. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  5. ^ "Top Albums of 2018 - Rate Your Music". Rate Your Music. Sonemic, Inc. Archived from the original on December 29, 2021. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
  6. ^ "Best Albums of 2018 by User Score". Album of The Year.
  7. ^ "앨범 정보 > 공중도둑 – 무너지기". Melon. July 31, 2018. Retrieved December 28, 2018.
  8. ^ "무너지기 (Crumbling) | 공중도둑 (Mid-Air Thief)". Bandcamp. Mid-Air Thief. Retrieved July 19, 2019.
  9. ^ "Crumbling | Botanical House". Bandcamp. Retrieved July 23, 2019.
  10. ^ Topshelf Records. "Mid-Air Thief - Crumbling". Topshelf Records. Retrieved June 17, 2019.
  11. ^ 공중도둑 – 무너지기 (2018). Weiv (September 23, 2018). Retrieved December 28, 2018.
  12. ^ "Pretty Much Amazing's 2018: Year in Review | Albums of the Year". Pretty Much Amazing. January 4, 2019. Archived from the original on November 7, 2020. Retrieved September 25, 2019.
  13. ^ Crumbling (liner notes). Mid-Air Thief. 2018.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)