The Man Who Died in His Boat

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The Man Who Died in His Boat
The Man Who Died in His Boat cover.png
Studio album by
Grouper
ReleasedFebruary 4, 2013
Recorded2007–2008
Genre
Length47:07
LabelKranky
ProducerLiz Harris
Grouper chronology
Violet Replacement
(2012) 		The Man Who Died in His Boat
(2013) 		Ruins
(2014)

The Man Who Died in His Boat is the ninth studio album by American musician Liz Harris under the stage name Grouper. It was released on February 4, 2013 on Kranky.

The album consists of outtakes from the previous several years, when she was in the process of recording Dragging a Dead Deer Up a Hill.[1] A photograph of Harris' mother is featured on the cover art.[2]

Recording[]

In a press release, Harris explained the title The Man Who Died in His Boat:

When I was a teenager the wreckage of a sailboat washed up on the shore of Agate Beach. The remains of the vessel weren't removed for several days. I walked down with my father to peer inside the boat cabin. Maps, coffee cups and clothing were strewn around inside. I remember looking only briefly, wilted by the feeling that I was violating some remnant of this man's presence by witnessing the evidence of its failure. Later I read a story about him in the paper. It was impossible to know what had happened.[3]

Speaking of the main protagonist implied in the title of the album, Drowned in Sound columnist Tim Peyton writes: "The mysterious pathos of this incident suits Grouper well. As Harris explains, 'the boat never crashed or capsized... (it) just slipped off somehow. And the boat, like a riderless horse, eventually came back home.' This haunting return of an unmanned vessel is spooky in a similar way to Harris's ethereal, multi tracked vocals."[2]

Critical reception[]

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.9/10[4]
Metacritic81/100[5]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic4/5 stars[6]
Consequence of Sound4/5 stars[7]
Drowned in Sound9/10[2]
Fact3.5/5[8]
Mojo4/5 stars[9]
MusicOMH4/5 stars[10]
NME7/10[11]
Pitchfork8.3/10[1]
PopMatters7/10[12]
XLR8R8/10[13]

The aggregate review site Metacritic assigns an average score of 81 out of 100 to The Man Who Died in His Boat based on 17 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[5]

The song "Vital" was chosen as "Best New Track" by Pitchfork on December 20, 2012,[14] and the site later placed it at number 88 on their list of the Top 100 Tracks of 2013.[15]

Track listing[]

All tracks are written by Liz Harris.

No.TitleLength
1."6"1:49
2."Vital"4:14
3."Cloud in Places"4:05
4."Being Her Shadow"4:45
5."Cover the Long Way"4:06
6."Difference (Voices)"5:48
7."Vanishing Point"3:32
8."The Man Who Died in His Boat"5:01
9."Towers"5:19
10."STS"6:06
11."Living Room"2:22
Total length:47:07

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b Richardson, Mark (February 1, 2013). "Grouper: The Man Who Died in His Boat". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 25, 2016.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b c Peyton, Tim (February 1, 2013). "Album Review: Grouper – The Man Who Died in His Boat". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on July 23, 2014. Retrieved September 9, 2014.
  3. ^ Minsker, Evan (December 12, 2012). "New Grouper Album Coming, Plus Reissue of Dragging a Dead Deer Up a Hill". Pitchfork. Retrieved March 25, 2016.
  4. ^ "The Man Who Died In His Boat by Grouper reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved January 24, 2020.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b "Reviews for The Man Who Died in His Boat by Grouper". Metacritic. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  6. ^ Phares, Heather. "The Man Who Died in His Boat – Grouper". AllMusic. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  7. ^ Kivel, Adam (February 4, 2013). "Album Review: Grouper – The Man Who Died In His Boat". Consequence of Sound. Archived from the original on September 21, 2013. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  8. ^ Finlayson, Angus (February 8, 2013). "The Man Who Died in his Boat". Fact. Archived from the original on June 14, 2018. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  9. ^ "Grouper: The Man Who Died in His Boat". Mojo (232): 98. March 2013.
  10. ^ Johnson, Steven (February 21, 2013). "Grouper – The Man Who Died In His Boat". MusicOMH. Retrieved April 3, 2018.
  11. ^ Gardner, Noel (January 31, 2013). "Grouper – 'The Man Who Died In His Boat'". NME. Archived from the original on October 29, 2014. Retrieved April 3, 2018.
  12. ^ Smith, Robin (March 13, 2013). "Grouper: The Man Who Died in His Boat". PopMatters. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  13. ^ Kerr, Steve (February 7, 2013). "Grouper: The Man Who Died In His Boat". XLR8R. Archived from the original on September 8, 2015. Retrieved April 3, 2018.
  14. ^ Hockley-Smith, Sam (December 20, 2012). "Grouper: "Vital"". Pitchfork. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
  15. ^ "The Top 100 Tracks of 2013". Pitchfork. December 16, 2013. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
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