July

July is Marissa Nadler's sixth full-length studio album, released in the UK on February 10, 2014, on Bella Union and in North America on Sacred Bones Records. The album was recorded at Seattle's Avast Studios and produced by Randall Dunn. Meeting with a largely positive reception, it debuted at No. 16 on the Billboard Folk Albums chart and No. 14 on the Billboard Top Heatseekers Albums chart. PopMatters called the album a "triumph" and "one of 2014's best albums so far", while Spin called it a "masterfully composed release". Noisey wrote that "the darkly lit July is a moody trip through heat spells and night drives... Nadler's quiet songwriting and ethereal sound give July a sound that's, at times, almost sinister." Production and release Like Nadler's previous work, the album is acoustic and blends genres such as indie folk and dream pop, with Nadler writing the songs, singing and playing guitar. According to Nadler, the ideal situations for listening to the album might be "driving on a Nebraska highway" or "some lonely, drunken New York City evening by candlelight." Beyond Nadler, the album also featured a number of guest artists who recorded instrumentals at Avast Studios in 2013. Phil Wandscher also played guitar, with Jason Kardong on pedal steel guitar. Eyvind Kang contributed strings and string arrangements, while Steve Moore of the band Earth contributed keyboards. The first single from the album, "Dead City Emily", was released in November 2013. Reception