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
Studio album by
Released7 December 2009 (2009-12-07)
Studio
Genre
Length41:27
Label
ProducerBeck Hansen
Charlotte Gainsbourg chronology
5:55
(2006)
IRM
(2009)
Stage Whisper
(2011)
Singles from IRM
  1. "Heaven Can Wait"
    Released: 17 November 2009[1]
  2. "Time of the Assassins"
    Released: 12 April 2010[2][3]

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]

Reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.2/10[11]
Metacritic80/100[12]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [13]
The A.V. ClubB+[14]
The Daily Telegraph     [15]
Entertainment WeeklyB[16]
The Guardian     [17]
The Independent     [18]
Los Angeles Times    [19]
Pitchfork8.4/10[20]
Rolling Stone     [21]
Spin7/10[22]

The album currently has a Metacritic score of 80/100 based on 21 professional reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[12]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Beck Hansen, except where noted

IRM – Standard edition
No.TitleWriter(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
IRM – Version Deluxe
No.TitleLength
14."Looking Glass Blues"2:42
15."Heaven Can Wait" (Chris Taylor Remix)2:15
Total length:46:24

Note

  • ^[a] "La Collectionneuse" contains extracts from Guillaume Apollinaire's Alcools and Le Guetteur mélancolique poem collections.

Personnel

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Musicians

  • Charlotte Gainsbourg – vocals (all tracks), flute (track 10), piano (13)
  • Beck Hansen – guitar (1, 3, 5–7, 9–11), drum programming (1, 2), vocals (2, 3, 5, 6, 8–10, 13), bass guitar (2, 3, 5, 9, 10, 12), synthesizer (2, 3), percussion (3, 5, 6, 9, 10), piano (3, 5, 10), acoustic guitar (4, 8, 12); marimba, recorder (6); keyboards (12), keyboard bass (13)
  • David Campbell – string arrangements, conductor (1, 3, 4, 7, 8, 11–13)
  • Drew Brown – drum programming (1, 2), bass guitar (1), string arrangements (2), effects (12, 13); keyboards, strings (13)
  • Matt Mahaffey – banjo (1)
  • Justin Meldal-Johnsen – percussion (1)
  • Joey Waronker – drums (2, 3, 6, 8, 10–12), percussion (2, 3, 6, 10, 12)
  • Brian LeBarton – drums (2), celeste (4, 10), bass guitar (5, 10), percussion (5, 6, 12, 13), tambourine (5), marimba (6), synthesizer (8), drum machine (10), piano (11)
  • James Gadson – drums (2, 3, 13)
  • Matt Sherrod – drums (2, 5)
  • Alex Acuña – percussion (2, 12)
  • Bram Inscore – bass guitar (4, 7, 8, 11), celeste (4)
  • Jason Falkner – acoustic guitar (4), guitar (8)
  • David Ralicke – saxophone (5, 11)
  • Matt Demeritt – tenor saxophone (5, 11)
  • Chris Bautista – trumpet (5, 11)
  • Monique McGuffin – harp (7)
  • Alice Attal – voice (10)

Technical

Artwork

Charts

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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

Release history

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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

Sunset Sound EP

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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]

Promotional tour

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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]

References

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  1. ^ "Heaven Can Wait by Charlotte Gainsbourg on iTunes". Itunes.apple.com. Retrieved 2011-02-28.
  2. ^ "Time of the Assassins by Charlotte Gainsbourg on Amazon". Amazon.fr. Retrieved 2011-02-28.
  3. ^ Hughes, Josiah (2010-04-15). "Time of the Assassins single release". Exclaim.ca. Archived from the original on 2012-07-17. Retrieved 2011-02-28.
  4. ^ "IRM Songfacts". Songfacts.com. 2010-01-10. Retrieved 2011-02-28.
  5. ^ ""IRM" Charlotte Gainsbourg New Album produced by Beck". 9 October 2009. Archived from the original on 2012-07-07. Retrieved 12 October 2009.
  6. ^ "Charlotte Gainsbourg's Skull Sessions". February 2010. Archived from the original on 2010-10-26.
  7. ^ "Charlotte Gainsbourg - Heaven can wait". YouTube. 2010-01-22. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 2011-02-28.
  8. ^ "The 20 Best Videos of 2009". SPIN.com. 2009-12-14. Retrieved 2011-02-28.
  9. ^ E.W. (12 October 2017). "In "Rest", Charlotte Gainsbourg explores the sharp edges of grief". The Economist.
  10. ^ "Aktuelles VUT: VUT - Verband unabhängiger Musikunternehmer*innen e. V."
  11. ^ "IRM by Charlotte Gainsbourg reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved 19 January 2020.
  12. ^ a b "Reviews for IRM by Charlotte Gainsbourg". Metacritic. Retrieved 18 November 2017.
  13. ^ Phares, Heather. "IRM – Charlotte Gainsbourg". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 January 2020.
  14. ^ Williams, Christian (2 February 2010). "Charlotte Gainsbourg: IRM". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 28 February 2011.
  15. ^ McCormick, Neil (19 January 2010). "Charlotte Gainsbourg – IRM, review". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 22 January 2010. Retrieved 28 February 2011.
  16. ^ Maerz, Melissa (22 January 2010). "IRM". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 19 January 2020.
  17. ^ Costa, Maddy (21 January 2010). "Charlotte Gainsbourg: IRM". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 28 February 2011.
  18. ^ Gill, Andy (29 January 2010). "Album: Charlotte Gainsbourg, IRM (Because)". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 1 February 2010. Retrieved 19 January 2020.
  19. ^ Wappler, Margaret (25 January 2010). "Album review: Charlotte Gainsbourg's 'IRM'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 28 February 2011.
  20. ^ Dombal, Ryan (28 January 2010). "Charlotte Gainsbourg: IRM". Pitchfork. Retrieved 28 February 2011.
  21. ^ Sheffield, Rob (25 January 2010). "Charlotte Gainsbourg: IRM". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 10 April 2010. Retrieved 19 January 2020.
  22. ^ Young, Jon (14 January 2010). "Charlotte Gainsbourg, 'IRM' (Because Music/Elektra)". Spin. Archived from the original on 14 October 2012. Retrieved 28 February 2011.
  23. ^ Steffen Hung. "Charlotte Gainsbourg - IRM". lescharts.com. Retrieved 2011-02-28.
  24. ^ "Charlotte Gainsbourg - Irm". Musimundo.com. Archived from the original on 2011-07-22. Retrieved 2011-02-28.
  25. ^ Hughes, Josiah (2010-04-15). "XXXChange, Matthew Dear Remix Charlotte Gainsbourg on New EP". Exclaim.ca. Archived from the original on 2012-07-17. Retrieved 2011-02-28.
  26. ^ "Charlotte Gainsbourg Plays Her First-Ever Concert". SPIN.com. 2010-01-20. Retrieved 2011-02-28.
  27. ^ "/ Arts - Charlotte Gainsbourg, Hiro Ballroom, Maritime Hotel, New York". Ft.com. 2010-01-27. Retrieved 2011-02-28.
  28. ^ "ゲムカツ".
  29. ^ "Charlotte Gainsbourg Conquers Stage and Screen, But Still Gets the Jitters". Spinner. 2010-05-03. Archived from the original on 2012-03-20. Retrieved 2011-02-28.
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