R.Y.C.
Studio album by
Released17 January 2020 (2020-01-17)
Length37:50
Label
ProducerMura Masa
Mura Masa chronology
Mura Masa
(2017)
R.Y.C.
(2020)
Demon Time
(2022)
Singles from R.Y.C.
  1. "I Don’t Think I Can Do This Again"
    Released: 21 August 2019
  2. "No Hope Generation"
    Released: 25 October 2019
  3. "Deal Wiv It"
    Released: 7 November 2019
  4. "Teenage Headache Dreams"
    Released: 7 January 2020

R.Y.C. is the second studio album by Guernsey-born music producer Alex Crossan, under his alias Mura Masa. It was released on 17 January 2020 by Polydor Records and Anchor Point Records. The album has guest features by Clairo, Slowthai, Tirzah and Ellie Rowsell.[1][2]

The first single "No Hope Generation" was released 25 October 2019.[3]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?6.6/10[4]
Metacritic65/100[5]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[6]
Clash6/10[7]
DIY[8]
The Guardian[9]
MusicOMH[10]
Mojo[11]
NME[12]
Pitchfork6.7/10[13]
Q[14]

R.Y.C. was met with generally favourable reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, it received an average score of 65, based on 12 reviews.[5]

Track listing

R.Y.C. track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Raw Youth Collage"Alexander Crossan3:38
2."No Hope Generation"Crossan3:54
3."I Don't Think I Can Do This Again" (with Clairo)3:42
4."A Meeting at an Oak Tree" (with Ned Green)
  • Crossan
  • Ned Green
1:29
5."Deal Wiv It" (with Slowthai)2:57
6."Vicarious Living Anthem"2:05
7."In My Mind"Crossan5:31
8."Today" (featuring Tirzah)3:20
9."Live Like We're Dancing" (with Georgia)4:10
10."Teenage Headache Dreams" (with Ellie Rowsell)4:43
11."Nocturne for Strings and a Conversation"Crossan2:21
Total length:37:50

Notes

  • "A Meeting at an Oak Tree" and "Vicarious Living Anthem" are stylized in all lowercase.
  • "Nocturne for Strings and a Conversation" is stylized "(nocturne for strings and a conversation)"

Personnel

Musicians

  • Mura Masa – vocals (1, 2, 5–7, 9, 10), bass guitar (1–5, 10, 11), bass programming (1, 2, 4, 6–10), drum programming (1, 2, 4–10), guitar (1–8, 10), synthesizer programming (1, 2, 4–10), additional vocals (3, 8), programming (3, 11); drums, synthesizer (3); piano (8, 9); spoken word, strings (11)
  • Kai Campos – programming, synthesizer (1)
  • Clairo – vocals (3)
  • Ned Green – spoken word (4)
  • Slowthai – vocals (5)
  • Tirzah – vocals (8)
  • Georgia – vocals (9)
  • Ellie Rowsell – vocals (10)

Technical

Artwork

  • Mura Masa – art direction, design
  • Matt de Jong – art direction, design
  • Darcy Haylor – photography

Charts

Chart performance for R.Y.C.
Chart (2020) Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[15] 187
Scottish Albums (OCC)[16] 89
UK Albums (OCC)[17] 23
UK Dance Albums (OCC)[18] 7

References

  1. ^ Moore, Sam (25 October 2019). "Mura Masa announces new album 'R.Y.C'". NME. Archived from the original on 15 January 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  2. ^ Middleton, Ryan (28 October 2019). "Mura Masa Details New Album". Magnetic Magazine. Archived from the original on 6 October 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  3. ^ Yoo, Noah (25 October 2019). "Mura Masa Details New Album R.Y.C (Raw Youth Collage), Shares New Song". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  4. ^ "AnyDecentMusic? Review". AnyDecentMusic?. Archived from the original on 26 January 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  5. ^ a b "Metacritic Review". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 12 August 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  6. ^ Simpson, Paul. "AllMusic Review". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 7 July 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  7. ^ Hale, Joe (22 January 2020). "Clash Magazine Review". Clash. Archived from the original on 25 March 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  8. ^ Kerwick, Sean. "DIY Magazine Review". DIY. Archived from the original on 25 June 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  9. ^ Beaumont-Thomas, Ben (10 January 2020). "Mura Masa: RYC review – so mediocre, it's not even entertainingly bad". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 1 March 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  10. ^ Devlin, Ben (18 January 2020). "MusicOMH Review". MusicOMH. Archived from the original on 6 October 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  11. ^ "Mojo Review". Mojo. February 2020. p. 86.
  12. ^ Smith, Thomas (16 January 2020). "NME Review". NME. Archived from the original on 3 April 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  13. ^ Buerger, Megan (22 January 2020). "Pitchfork Review". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 4 March 2020. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  14. ^ "Q Review". Q. February 2020. p. 115.
  15. ^ "Ultratop.be – Mura Masa – R.Y.C" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  16. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  17. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  18. ^ "Official Dance Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 5 May 2020.