Bitter Rivals is the third studio album by American noise pop duo Sleigh Bells. It was released on October 4, 2013, by Mom + Pop Music. The title track was released as the album's lead single on September 3, 2013, with a music video released the day before. The album was made exclusively available for streaming on Rolling Stones website on October 1, 2013. It was partially inspired by Janet Jackson, with the song "Tiger Kit" referencing Jackson's "Rhythm Nation".
Composition
Music and lyrics Philip Cosores of Consequence of Sound described Alexis Kraus' vocals on the record as leaning "heavily" on the "hip-hop cadence" of Sleigh Bells' previous albums "to go along with [Kraus'] inked-up bubblegum melodies". Cosores also described the album's musical styles as nostalgic, featuring "nu metal serving as a warning for pop punk, and freestyle, and whatever else might next resurface".
Critical reception
At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 70 based on 27 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews".
Philip Cosores of Consequence of Sound compared the album to nu metal bands such as Korn, Limp Bizkit, and Staind, who all had "a similar pattern of three albums into the spotlight, [with] their third being a success in terms of attention, but also a signifier of the end of people caring in quite the same way". Cosores also felt that the album played to Sleigh Bells' strength, but mostly felt "stuck in the weaker aspects of their previous albums, busying up the mercifully brief tracks with unnecessary filler".
Track listing
Personnel Credits adapted from the liner notes of Bitter Rivals.
Sleigh Bells Alexis Krauss – vocals Derek E. Miller – all instruments
Additional musicians Kevin Osborne – whistling on "To Hell With You"
Production and recording Chris Athens – mastering Andrew Dawson – mixing, additional production on "Young Legends" Will Hubbard – executive producer Derek E. Miller – production Shane Stoneback – engineering, recording, additional production
Artwork and design Steve Attardo – design, layout Derek Miller – art direction, original photography
Charts
Chart (2013)PeakpositionUK Indie Albums Chart36US Billboard 20049US Alternative Albums15US Independent Albums9US Rock Albums16
Release history Region Date Format Label Germany October 4, 2013 Digital download Lucky Number Music Ireland CD France October 7, 2013 Digital download Ireland United Kingdom United States
October 8, 2013 Mom + Pop Australia* October 11, 2013 Liberator United Kingdom October 14, 2013 LP Lucky Number Music Germany October 18, 2013 France October 21, 2013 CD Japan November 27, 2013 Hostess
References