American Football (2016 album)

American Football released their debut self-titled album in September 1999 through Polyvinyl.[3] The band broke up due to the members no longer living in the same city[4] and their college courses coming to an end.[5] Vocalist/guitarist Mike Kinsella said that they "never had any ambitious goals. [...] we weren't kids who wanted to [...] tour all summer."[6] Kinsella and guitarist Steve Holmes both moved to Chicago and remained in contact at first.[5] Meanwhile, drummer Steve Lamos moved to Colorado, later becoming a professor.[5] Kinsella wanted to form a new group where he had full creative control, eventually creating the project Owen.[4]

In April 2014 American Football announced they were reuniting for live performances. Holmes said the group realized that "the time was ripe for three middle aged dudes to play some old songs about teenage feelings, and stand around tuning guitars for a long time."[7] American Football, with the addition of Kinsella's cousin Nate playing bass, played a surprise show in August in Chicago.[8] They then followed this up with playing a festival in September, then three shows in New York.[9] Further dates running into December were also played,[8] as well as the band's first UK shows the following May.[10]

The album's cover artwork depicts the interior of the American Football House, the same house featured on the cover of the band's 1999 debut album.[11]

The majority of the group's songs are created from Kinsella and Holmes' intertwining guitar parts.[12] Kinsella described "Give Me the Gun" as "just me checking in on a distressed loved one done in my best Bernard Sumner impersonation".[12]

The album was recorded in April 2016 at ARC Studios, located in Omaha, Nebraska, and SHIRK Studios, located in Chicago, Illinois.[13] Production duties were handled by the group and Jason Cupp.[14]

On August 23, 2016, the band's second self-titled album was announced for release. On the same day, "I've Been So Lost for So Long" was made available for streaming, and the album's cover art and track listing was revealed.[14] On September 7, "Give Me the Gun" was made available for streaming.[12] "Desire Gets in the Way" was released to radio on October 5.[15] American Football was released on October 21 through Polyvinyl in the U.S. and through Wichita in Europe.[14] The group will perform a series of release shows in Chicago, New York, Los Angeles and London.[13] The cover of the album was the interior of the same house as featured on their eponymous debut album or best known as "American Football house".

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
AnyDecentMusic?	7.4/10[16]
Metacritic	78/100[17]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[18]
Consequence of Sound	B+[19]
Pitchfork	7.7/10[1]
The Guardian	[20]

American Football received positive reviews from critics. Review aggregation website Metacritic assigned a normalized score of 78/100, indicating "generally favorable reviews", based on 19 critic reviews.[17]

Citations

Sources