Human the Death Dance

Human the Death Dance
Studio album by
Sage Francis
ReleasedMay 8, 2007 (2007-05-08)
GenreHip hop
Length54:42
LabelEpitaph Records
ProducerOdd Nosdam, Mr. Cooper, Buck 65, Mark Isham, Alias, Sixtoo, Ant, Big Cats!, Kurtis SP, Miles Bonny, Reanimator
Sage Francis chronology
A Healthy Distrust
(2005) 		Human the Death Dance
(2007) 		Li(f)e
(2010)

Human the Death Dance is the third solo studio album by American rapper Sage Francis.[1] It was released on Epitaph Records on May 8, 2007.[2] It peaked at number 97 on the Billboard 200 chart.[3]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic77/100[4]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[5]
Billboardfavorable[6]
Christgau's Consumer Guide(2-star Honorable Mention)(2-star Honorable Mention)[7]
Drowned in Sound7/10[1]
Pitchfork7.9/10[8]
PopMatters[2]
The Skinny[9]
Spin[10]
Tiny Mix Tapes[11]
XLR8Rfavorable[12]

At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 77, based on 16 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[4]

David Jeffries of AllMusic gave the album 4 stars out of 5, saying, "Human the Death Dance may be his most personal effort, but it's also an incredibly well-built full-length -- even when it borrows from a handful of genres -- and it's arguably his best lyrical effort, undoubtedly his best production-wise."[5] Roque Strew of Pitchfork gave the album a 7.9 out of 10, saying, "'Going Back to Rehab' weaves allusions to the greats, Nas and Biggie, into a six-minute tapestry that encompasses everything great about Sage Francis's strongest album to date: Its neon rainbow of tones and moods, the almost telepathic harmony between producer and rapper, the riveting fault-line tiptoe between memoir and manifesto."[8]

Track listing

No.TitleProducer(s)Length
1."Growing Pains Intro" 0:37
2."Underground for Dummies"Odd Nosdam4:13
3."Civil Obedience"Mr. Cooper4:19
4."Got Up This Morning"Buck 653:11
5."Good Fashion"Mark Isham1:34
6."Clickety Clack"Alias3:59
7."Midgets and Giants"Alias3:54
8."Broccilude"Sixtoo1:14
9."High Step"Ant1:53
10."Keep Moving"Alias4:36
11."Waterline"Mark Isham2:02
12."Black Out on White Night"Big Cats!4:36
13."Hell of a Year"Kurtis SP4:11
14."Call Me Francois"Miles Bonny3:11
15."Hoofprints in the Sand"Reanimator5:01
16."Going Back to Rehab" 6:11

Personnel

Credits adapted from liner notes.

  • Sage Francis – vocals, arrangement, executive production
  • Odd Nosdam – production (2)
  • Mr. Cooper – production (3)
  • Buck 65 – production (4)
  • Mark Isham – production (5, 11)
  • Alias – production (6, 7, 10)
  • Sixtoo – production (8)
  • Ant – production (9)
  • Big Cats! – production (12)
  • Kurtis SP – production (13)
  • Miles Bonny – production (14)
  • Reanimator – production (15), turntables (3, 15, 16)
  • Jolie Holland – fiddle (4), vocals (4, 12)
  • Nathan Harrop – harmonica (4)
  • Eaters – vocals (6)
  • Christopher Sneddon – synthesizer (6)
  • B. Dolan – vocals (9)
  • Buddy Wakefield – vocals (10, 13)
  • Roughneck Jihad – vocals (14)
  • DJ Orator – turntables (14)
  • Bryan Lewis Saunders – vocals (16)
  • Tom Inhaler – guitar (16), bass guitar (16), piano (16)
  • Laura Escudé – violin (16)
  • Scott Begin – drums (16)
  • Gene Grimaldi – mastering

Charts

Chart (2007) Peak
position
US Billboard 200[3] 97
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[13] 8
US Top Tastemaker Albums (Billboard)[14] 7

References

  1. ^ a b Diver, Mike (June 6, 2007). "Sage Francis - Human The Death Dance". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on May 6, 2016. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
  2. ^ a b Schiller, Mike (May 9, 2007). "Sage Francis: Human the Death Dance". PopMatters. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
  3. ^ a b "Sage Francis Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved March 18, 2019.
  4. ^ a b "Human The Death Dance by Sage Francis". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved March 6, 2015.
  5. ^ a b Jeffries, David. "Human the Death Dance - Sage Francis". AllMusic. Retrieved March 6, 2015.
  6. ^ Martens, Todd (May 12, 2007). "Reviews". Billboard. pp. 37–38.
  7. ^ Christgau, Robert. "Sage Francis". Christgau's Consumer Guide. Retrieved January 28, 2018.
  8. ^ a b Strew, Roque (May 11, 2007). "Sage Francis: Human the Death Dance". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
  9. ^ Maloney, Ali (June 10, 2007). "Sage Francis - Human the Death Dance". The Skinny. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
  10. ^ Matos, Michaelangelo (June 2007). "Reviews". Spin: 93.
  11. ^ Ranta, Alan (February 2, 2007). "Sage Francis - Human The Death Dance". Tiny Mix Tapes. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
  12. ^ Siwek, Daniel (January 22, 2007). "Sage Francis Human the Death Dance". XLR8R. Retrieved April 8, 2016.
  13. ^ "Sage Francis Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 18, 2019.
  14. ^ "Sage Francis Chart History (Top Tastemaker Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 18, 2019.