Civilian (Boy Kill Boy album)

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Civilian
Black and white photo of a man in a suit, with different coloured lines coming from his neck where his head should be
Studio album by
Boy Kill Boy
Released22 May 2006
Recorded2005–2006
StudioSawmills
Genre
Length45:14
LabelVertigo
ProducerJohn Cornfield
Boy Kill Boy chronology
Civilian
(2006) 		Stars and the Sea
(2008)

Civilian is the debut album by Boy Kill Boy. It was released on 22 May 2006 and reached number 16 in the UK Album Chart.

Background and production[]

Vocalist and guitarist Chris Peck spent three years playing in a post-Britpop band with his schoolfriend drummer Shaz Mahmood. After a few months of downtime, the pair formed Boy Kill Boy in 2004.[1] The band, now with the addition of keyboardist Pete Carr, added bassist Kevin Chase to the line-up after meeting him at a house party. A month afterwards, the band were due to support another band in London; however, the show was cancelled, and was followed-up by another support slot, this time for Hard-Fi, the week after.[1] "Suzie", backed with "Last of the Great", was released as a single on 16 May 2005, through Fierce Panda Records.[2] Shortly after this, the band signed to Mercury Records, and toured throughout the rest of the year.[1] "Civil Sin" was released as a single on 19 September 2005.[3] Civilian was recorded Sawmills Studios with producer John Cornfield, who later mixed the recordings at Landsdowne Recording Studios.[4]

Composition[]

Musically, the sound of Civilian has been described as dance-punk,[5] indie rock,[6] and synth-rock,[7] with influences from new wave,[5] drawing comparison to the Killers,[8] and Interpol.[6] The opening punk rock track, "Back Again", sets the pace of the album, with an up-tempo guitar riff and synthesizers, and is followed by the synth-pop song "On and On".[8][9][10] "Suzie" recalled "Seaside" (2004) by the Ordinary Boys, and is followed by the indie pop song "Six Minutes".[11] "Ivy Parker" is a ballad that was reminiscent of "All These Things That I've Done" (2004) by the Killers.[9][11] The Smiths-indebted "Civil" has a chorus section in the style of Good Mourning (2003)-era Alkaline Trio, and the goth punk of My Chemical Romance.[6][12] "Friday – Friday" details violence in a small town, and features a pseudo-ska drum pattern.[8][11] "Shoot Me Down" is a ballad with a sparse arrangement, done in the vein of Morrissey and Simple Minds; the album ends with the folk-esque "Exit".[10][13][14]

Release[]

"Back Again" was released as a single on 13 February 2006; the CD version included "Cheaper".[15][16] Two versions were released on vinyl: The first included "Number One", while the second featured "In Disgrace".[17][18] In March 2006, the band performed at the entertainment conference South by Southwest in the United States.[19] Civilian was released on 22 May 2006.[20] "Suzie" was released as a single on 17 July 2006.[21] Two versions were released on CD: The first featured "It's Different for Girls" as an extra track, while the second featured "Orphan" and a live version of "Six Minutes" as extra tracks.[22][23] The vinyl version included "Last of the Great"; in Europe, "Suzie" was released as the EP Suzie EP, which also featured "It's Different for Girls", "Last of the Great", the Fallout recording of "Civil Sin", and the Fierce Panda version of "Suzie".[24][25]

Civilian was released in the US in on 25 July 2006.[5] "Civil Sin" was released as a single on 31 July 2006.[26] Two versions were released on CD: The first included "Look Away", while the other featured "See Saw" and "Catch".[27][28] "Shoot Me Down" was released as a single on 6 November 2006; the CD version included a live version of "Maneater".[29][30] Two versions were released on vinyl: The first included "Repair", while the other featured "Dukes of John Moon".[31][32]

Reception[]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic4/5 stars[33]
Drowned in Sound5/10[34]
Gigwise4/10 stars[9]
The Guardian2/5 stars[11]
IGN6.6/10[10]
Melodic3.5/5 stars[5]
NME6/10[35]
Pitchfork5.1/10[36]
PopMattersUnfavourable[12]
The Skinny3/5 stars[20]

Civilian was met with mixed reviews from music critics.

Track listing[]

All songs written by Boy Kill Boy.[4]

  1. "Back Again" – 3:06
  2. "On and On" – 3:48
  3. "Suzie" – 3:19
  4. "Six Minutes" – 4:17
  5. "On My Own" – 3:26
  6. "Ivy Parker" – 4:12
  7. "Civil Sin" – 3:55
  8. "Killer" – 3:11
  9. "Friday ��� Friday" – 2:03
  10. "Showdown" – 3:36
  11. "Shoot Me Down" – 10:16 (includes hidden track "Exit", which starts at 5:37)

Personnel[]

Personnel per booklet.[4]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Boy Kill Boy". Myspace. Archived from the original on 9 April 2006. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  2. ^ "Suzie/Last Of The Great - Boy Kill Boy | Release Info". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 23 April 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  3. ^ "Civil Sin - Boy Kill Boy | Release Info". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 23 April 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b c Civilian (booklet). Boy Kill Boy. Vertigo Records. 2006. 9877358.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b c d Roth, Kaj (24 July 2006). "Boy Kill Boy - Civilian". Melodic. Archived from the original on 17 February 2021. Retrieved 17 July 2017.
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b c Forstneger, Steve (26 July 2006). "Boy Kill Boy Reviewed". Illinois Entertainer. Archived from the original on 23 November 2020. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  7. ^ Greenblatt, Leah (31 May 2006). "Peeping Tom, AFI, more: New releases at a glance". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 4 December 2020. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  8. ^ Jump up to: a b c Zaleski, Annie (5 December 2006). "Boy Kill Boy Civilian". Alternative Press. Archived from the original on 23 April 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  9. ^ Jump up to: a b c Renshaw, David (22 May 2006). "Boy Kill Boy - 'Civilian' (Vertigo) Released 22/05/06". Gigwise. Archived from the original on 23 April 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  10. ^ Jump up to: a b c Grischow, Chad (25 July 2006). "Boy Kill Boy - Civilian". IGN. Archived from the original on 22 September 2006. Retrieved 21 July 2017.
  11. ^ Jump up to: a b c d Clarke, Betty (19 May 2006). "Boy Kill Boy, Civilian | Music". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 22 September 2014. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  12. ^ Jump up to: a b Raper, Dan (22 August 2006). "Boy Kill Boy: Civilian". PopMatters. Archived from the original on 23 April 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  13. ^ D’Arcy, Rhiannon (7 December 2006). "December Singles Reviews". LeftLion. Archived from the original on 23 April 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  14. ^ Churchill, Nick (26 May 2006). "Boy Kill Boy - Civilian (Vertigo)". Bournemouth Daily Echo. Archived from the original on 23 April 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  15. ^ "Back Again - Boy Kill Boy | Release Info". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 23 April 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  16. ^ "Back Again" (sleeve). Boy Kill Boy. Vertigo Records. 2006. 9876834/0-06024-9876834-1.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  17. ^ "Back Again" (sleeve). Boy Kill Boy. Vertigo Records. 2006. 987 683-5.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  18. ^ "Back Again" (sleeve). Boy Kill Boy. Vertigo Records. 2006. 9876836.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  19. ^ "Boy Kill Boy | Biography & History". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 20 September 2017. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  20. ^ Jump up to: a b Malky B (15 June 2006). "Boy Kill Boy - Civilian". The Skinny. Archived from the original on 5 August 2020. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  21. ^ "Suzie - Boy Kill Boy | Release Info". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 23 April 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  22. ^ "Suzie" (sleeve). Boy Kill Boy. Vertigo Records. 2006. 9856255/0-06024-9856255-0.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  23. ^ "Suzie" (sleeve). Boy Kill Boy. Vertigo Records. 2006. 985 625-6.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  24. ^ "Suzie" (sleeve). Boy Kill Boy. Vertigo Records. 2006. 9856257.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  25. ^ Suzie EP (sleeve). Boy Kill Boy. Vertigo Records. 2006. 170 030-9.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  26. ^ "Watch Boy Kill Boy's Civil Sin video". Manchester Evening News. 15 February 2007. Archived from the original on 23 April 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  27. ^ "Civil Sin" (sleeve). Boy Kill Boy. Vertigo Records. 2006. 170 223-8.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  28. ^ "Civil Sin" (sleeve). Boy Kill Boy. Vertigo Records. 2006. 170 223-9.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  29. ^ "Shoot Me Down - Boy Kill Boy | Release Info". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 23 April 2021. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  30. ^ "Shoot Me Down" (sleeve). Boy Kill Boy. Vertigo Records. 2006. 170 930-8.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  31. ^ "Shoot Me Down" (sleeve). Boy Kill Boy. Vertigo Records. 2006. 170 930-9.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  32. ^ "Shoot Me Down" (sleeve). Boy Kill Boy. Vertigo Records. 2006. 170 931-3.CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  33. ^ "Civilian - Boy Kill Boy | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 21 January 2018. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  34. ^ Gourlay, Dom (24 May 2006). "Album Review: Boy Kill Boy - Civilian / Releases". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on 3 November 2012. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  35. ^ Chester, Tim (19 May 2006). "Boy Kill Boy - Civilian". NME. Archived from the original on 2 July 2006. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
  36. ^ Khong, Rachel (10 July 2006). "Boy Kill Boy: Civilian Album Review". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 17 May 2016. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
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