Music for Men

Music for Men
Studio album by Gossip
Released	June 19, 2009
Recorded	Shangri La Studios, Malibu
Genre	Garage rock, Dance-punk
Length	43:27
Label	Columbia
Producer	Rick Rubin
Gossip chronology
Standing in the Way of Control (2006) Music for Men (2009)
Singles from Music for Men
"Heavy Cross" Released: April 28, 2009 (2009-04-28) "Love Long Distance" Released: September 13, 2009 (2009-09-13) "Pop Goes the World" Released: March 8, 2010 (2010-03-08) "Men in Love" Released: October 29, 2010 (2010-10-29) (Germany)[1]

Music for Men is the fourth studio album by the American band Gossip. It was released on June 19, 2009 in The Netherlands. It was released on June 22 in the United Kingdom and was released digitally on June 23 in the United States.^[2][3] The album was certified 3× Gold in Germany, indicating shipment of 300,000 copies,^[4] and 2× Platinum in France, indicating sales of 400,000.^[5]

Track listing

1. "Dimestore Diamond" – 3:16
2. "Heavy Cross" – 4:06
3. "8th Wonder" – 3:17
4. "Love Long Distance" – 4:26
5. "Pop Goes the World" – 3:27
6. "Vertical Rhythm" – 3:50
7. "Men in Love" – 3:41
8. "For Keeps" – 4:08
9. "2012" – 3:51
10. "Love and Let Love" – 3:32
11. "Four Letter Word" – 3:49
12. "Spare Me from the Mold" – 2:28

Deluxe edition

13. "Pop Goes the World" (James Ford version) 
14. "Heavy Cross" (Fred Falke remix) 

European edition

13. "The Breakdown" 
14. "Heavy Cross" (Fred Falke radio edit) 
15. "Heavy Cross" (Burns remix) 
16. "Love Long Distance" (Fake Blood remix) 

US/Zune Marketplace release

"The Breakdown" was included on the US and Zune Marketplace version of Music for Men, released on October 6, 2009.

German extended edition (released 22/10/2010)

CD

1. "Dimestore Diamond"
2. "Heavy Cross"
3. "8th Wonder"
4. "Love Long Distance"
5. "Pop Goes the World"
6. "Vertical Rhythm"
7. "Men in Love"
8. "For Keeps"
9. "2012"
10. "Love and Let Love"
11. "Four Letter Word"
12. "Spare Me from the Mold"
13. "The Breakdown" (bonus track)
14. "Heavy Cross" (NRJ session)
15. "Pop Goes the World" (NRJ session)
16. "Listen Up"
17. "2012" (NRJ session)
18. "Love Long Distance" (NRJ session)
19. "Men in Love" (NRJ session)
20. "Standing in the Way of Control" (NRJ session)

Bonus DVD

1. "Heavy Cross" (video)
2. "Love Long Distance" (video)
3. "Pop Goes the World" (video)
4. "Four Letter Word" (video)
5. "Heavy Cross" (Rock am Ring 2010 live performance)
6. "Love Long Distance" (Rock am Ring 2010 live performance)
7. "Pop Goes the World" (Rock am Ring 2010 live performance)
8. "Men in Love" (Rock am Ring 2010 live performance)

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	69[6]
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[7]
BBC	(favorable)[8]
Drowned in Sound	(5/10)[9]
The Guardian	[10]
The Independent	[11]
Pitchfork Media	(6.4/10)[12]
Planet Sound	(4/10)[13]
Spin	[14]
The Times	[15]
Uncut	[16]
This table needs to be expanded using prose. See the guideline for more information.

Initial critical response to Music for Men was positive. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album has received an average score of 69, based on 26 reviews.^[6] The production of Music for Men has been criticized due to the album's "loud" sound quality.^[17] Albums such as this have been mastered so loud that additional digital distortion is generated during the production of the CD. The trend, known as the Loudness war, has become very common on modern rock CDs. In 2010, Gossip was nominated for a GLAAD Media Award for "Outstanding Music Artist" for the album Music for Men during the 21st GLAAD Media Awards.^[18]

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts Chart (2009) Peak position Australian ARIA Albums Chart[citation needed] 13 Austria Top 75[citation needed] 7 Belgium Albums Chart (Flanders)[19] 3 Belgium Albums Chart (Wallonia)[20] 13 Croatian International Album Chart[21] 27 Dutch Albums Chart[22] 31 Finnish Albums Chart[23] 32 France Albums Chart[22] 5 German Albums Chart[citation needed] 10 Italian Albums Chart[citation needed] 29 New Zealand Albums Chart[citation needed] 28 Norwegian Albums Chart[22] 34 Spanish Albums Chart[22] 100 Swiss Albums Chart[22] 12 UK Albums Chart[citation needed] 18 U.S. Billboard 200[citation needed] 164

Year-end charts Chart (2010) Rank German Albums Chart[24] 24 Swiss Albums Chart[25] 55 Certifications Region Certification Sales/shipments Austria (IFPI Austria)[26] Platinum 20,000x Belgium (BEA)[27] Gold 15,000* France (SNEP)[5] 2× Platinum 200,000* Germany (BVMI)[4] 3× Gold 300,000^ Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[28] Platinum 30,000x *sales figures based on certification alone ^shipments figures based on certification alone xunspecified figures based on certification alone

Personnel

• Beth Ditto – vocalist, piano/synthesizer
• Brace Paine – guitar, bass
• Hannah Blilie – drums, vocal percussion
• Rick Rubin – sequencer, synthesizer

References

1. ^ http://www.amazon.de/Men-Love-Gossip/dp/B0044VNAK8/ref=sr_1_50?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1287451277&sr=1-50
2. ^ Amazon - Music For Men
3. ^ Gossip Official Website
4. ^ ^{a b} "German album certifications – Gossip – Music for Men" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. http://www.musikindustrie.de/gold_platin_datenbank/?action=suche&strTitel=Music+for+Men&strInterpret=Gossip&strTtArt=alben&strAwards=checked. 
5. ^ ^{a b} "French album certifications – Gossip – Music for Men" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. http://www.disqueenfrance.com/fr/pag-259165-CERTIFICATIONS.html?year=2010&type=13. 
6. ^ ^{a b} "Music For Men reviews at Metacritic.com". Metacritic. CNET Networks, Inc. http://www.metacritic.com/music/artists/gossip/musicformen. Retrieved September 7, 2010. 
7. ^ Music for Men at Allmusic
8. ^ BBC review
9. ^ Drowned in Sound review
10. ^ The Guardian review
11. ^ The Independent review
12. ^ Pitchfork Media review
13. ^ Planet Sound review
14. ^ Spin review
15. ^ The Times review
16. ^ Uncut review
17. ^ "Report: Lautheitswahn in der Musikproduktion" (in German). STEREO, Magazin für HiFi, High End & Musik. 2009-08-25. http://www.stereo.de/index.php?id=584. Retrieved 25 August 2009. 
18. ^ "21st Annual GLAAD Media Awards - English Language Nominees". Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation. 2010. http://www.glaad.org/mediaawards/21/nominees. Retrieved February 21, 2010. 
19. ^ [1]
20. ^ [2]
21. ^ [3]
22. ^ ^{a b c d e} [4]
23. ^ Suomen virallinen lista
24. ^ http://www.viva.tv/charts/viva-album-jahrescharts-2010-2010-211/
25. ^ "Swiss Year-End Charts 2009". Media Control. Hung Medien. http://swisscharts.com/year.asp?key=2009. Retrieved February 6, 2009. 
26. ^ "Austrian album certifications – Gossip – Music for Men" (in German). IFPI Austria. http://www.ifpi.at/?section=goldplatin.  Enter Gossip in the field Interpret. Enter Music for Men in the field Titel. Select album in the field Format. Click Suchen
27. ^ "Ultratop − Goud en Platina - 2009". Ultratop & Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. http://www.ultratop.be/nl/certifications.asp?year=2009. 
28. ^ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Gossip; 'Music for Men')". Hung Medien. http://www.swisscharts.com/search_certifications.asp?search=Gossip+Music+for+Men.