Misery Is a Butterfly


Misery Is a Butterfly is the sixth studio album by American alternative rock band Blonde Redhead. The album was released on March 15, 2004, by 4AD. The album's lyrics and imagery reflect on a horseback accident Makino suffered in 2003, which required facial reconstructive surgery and months of rehabilitation, and caused her mental distress. The tracks "Elephant Woman" and "Equus" are more directly about the incident.
Continuing the sonic evolution that began with their previous album Melody of Certain Damaged Lemons, the album integrates lush string arrangements and clavichords, giving it a musical aesthetic that critics described as a cinematic, chamber-pop feel. The string arrangements were written and performed by Eyvind Kang and Jane Scarpantoni.

Critical reception

Misery is a Butterfly was well received by critics. Metacritic gave Misery is a Butterfly a score of 78/100, indicating generally favourable reviews. Pitchfork gave it a 4/5, saying: "Blonde Redhead have perfected their own unusual strain of perceived insincerity. They said it themselves, and it still rings true, fake can be just as good." Rolling Stone gave the album a 3/5, saying "Blonde Redhead have been slogging away as part of the Sonic Youth-led downtown New York rock axis since the mid-Nineties. After five fair-to-middling albums, the band has suddenly emerged, Flaming Lips-style, with one of the better indie-rock records of the year: Misery Is a Butterfly." CMJ ranked Misery Is a Butterfly as the 18th best album of 2004.

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.
Blonde Redhead
Additional musicians
Production
Design
  • Chris Bigg – artwork guidance
  • Blonde Redhead – art direction, design
  • Jun Koike – initial artwork assistance
  • Carlo Mollino – front cover photography
  • Keiko Uenishi – initial artwork assistance