Church of Scars is the debut studio album by English singer Bishop Briggs. The album was released on 20 April 2018 through Island Records.
Critical reception
In a rave review, Jenna Mohammed, writing for Exclaim! called McLaughlin's voice "immensely powerful". Mohammed described the album as "high-energy from start to finish", and that her "style and essence is very reminiscent of Florence + the Machine and Banks, but she sets herself apart through intense beat drops and her gospel choir roots". In a more mixed review, Sal Cinquemani, writing for Slant Magazine described the album as "largely joyless", saying that "across 10 tracks, though, Briggs's formula ultimately reveals itself to be one-note."
Track listing
Notes signifies a vocal producer. signifies a remixer.
Personnel Musicians Sarah McLaughlin – lead vocals (all tracks), background vocals (tracks 1, 2, 6, 7, 10) Mark Jackson – background vocals (tracks 1–4, 6, 7, 9, 10), electric guitar (1–3, 6, 7, 9), drum programming (1, 3, 4, 7, 9), keyboards (1, 3, 7), acoustic guitar (1, 3, 9), bass guitar (2, 6, 9, 10); drums, programming (2, 6, 10); percussion (2, 6), acoustic guitar (4), glockenspiel (9) Ian Scott – background vocals (tracks 1–4, 6, 7, 9, 10), keyboards (1–3, 6, 7, 9, 10), drum programming (1, 3, 4, 7, 9), organ (1, 7), glockenspiel (1); drums, programming (2, 6, 10); percussion (2, 6), piano (3), acoustic guitar (4), bass guitar (6) Dave Bassett – background vocals, drum programming (tracks 1, 4); bass guitar, electric guitar (1); piano (4) Dan Reynolds – background vocals (track 3) Sean Douglas – background vocals (track 8) Stephen Wrabel – background vocals (track 8) John Hill – guitar (track 8) Dave Palmer – keyboards (track 8)
Technical Stuart Hawkes – mastering Neal Avron – mixing (track 1) Mark Jackson – mixing (tracks 2, 3, 6, 7, 9, 10), engineering (1–7, 9, 10) Ian Scott – mixing (tracks 2, 3, 6, 7, 9, 10), engineering (1–7, 9, 10) Mark "Spike" Stent – mixing (tracks 4, 5) Dave Bassett – engineering (track 4) John Sinclair – engineering (track 5) Rob Cohen – engineering (track 8) Michael Freeman – mixing assistance (tracks 4, 5) Brian Brundage – engineering assistance (track 5)
'Visuals Ryan Rogers – art direction, design Jabari Jacobs – photography
Charts + Chart performance for Church of Scars Chart (2018) Peakposition Australian Albums (ARIA) 91
References