A Son (album)
| A Son | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | November 8, 2019 | |||
| Length | 40:12 | |||
| Label | Kranky | |||
| Producer | Mark K. Nelson | |||
| Pan American chronology | ||||
| ||||
A Son is a studio album by Pan American, a solo project of American musician Mark Nelson of Labradford.[1] It was released on November 8, 2019, through Kranky. It received generally favorable reviews from critics.[2]
Background
A Son is Pan American's first studio album since Cloud Room, Glass Room (2013).[3] It was written and recorded in Mark Nelson's home in Evanston, Illinois, and honed during a tour in Europe.[3] For the album, Nelson took inspiration from June Tabor, the Carter Family, Suicide, and Jimmy Reed.[3] He sings and plays guitar and hammered dulcimer on the album.[4]
The album closes with an instrumental rendition of the traditional folk song "Shenandoah".[5] Nelson began playing the song in the days after the Charlottesville car attack, where Heather Heyer was killed while protesting against a white supremacist/neo-nazi rally on August 12, 2017.[6] He said, "It is intended as a tribute to the hero she was and a requiem for the person she was not permitted to become."[6]
Critical reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 77/100[2] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [4] |
| Exclaim! | 9/10[5] |
| Mojo | [7] |
| PopMatters | [8] |
According to the review aggregator Metacritic, A Son received "generally favorable reviews" based on a weighted average score of 77 out of 100 from 5 critic scores.[2]
David Sheppard of Mojo commented that "A Son finds Mark Nelson recalibrating his long-standing Pan American alias, dialling down the gauzy electronics of yore in favour of an uncluttered, semi-acoustic signature, with prominent use of languid, spiralling guitar melodies and liminal, semi-spoken vocals that recall his contributions to '90s post-rock outliers Labradford."[7] Paul Simpson of AllMusic stated, "Stepping back from the shimmering dub-techno and static-filled glitch of the project's earlier releases, A Son takes a sideways glance at country and folk traditions."[4] He added, "A Son may be a return to Nelson's roots, but it still fits snugly within his catalog of spacious meditations."[4]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Mark K. Nelson, except for "Shenandoah".
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Ivory Joe Hunter, Little Walter" | 1:45 |
| 2. | "Memphis Helena" | 7:34 |
| 3. | "Sleepwalk Guitars" | 3:38 |
| 4. | "Brewthru" | 3:32 |
| 5. | "Dark Birds, Empty Fields" | 2:54 |
| 6. | "Drunk Father" | 6:53 |
| 7. | "Muriel Spark" | 4:55 |
| 8. | "Kept Quiet" | 2:30 |
| 9. | "Shenandoah" | 6:31 |
| Total length: | 40:12 | |
Personnel
Credits adapted from liner notes.[9]
- Mark K. Nelson – guitar, hammered dulcimer, vocals, production
References
- ^ Simpson, Paul. "Pan•American". AllMusic. Retrieved July 19, 2025.
- ^ a b c "A Son by Pan•American". Metacritic. Retrieved July 19, 2025.
- ^ a b c Rodriguez, Krystal (September 12, 2019). "Pan American to release new album, A Son". Fact. Retrieved July 19, 2025.
- ^ a b c d Simpson, Paul. "A Son - Pan•American". AllMusic. Retrieved July 19, 2025.
- ^ a b Hill, Eric (November 7, 2019). "Pan*American". Exclaim!. Retrieved July 19, 2025.
- ^ a b Tucker, Simon (October 4, 2019). "Pan•American Share New Single "Shenandoah" Ahead Of Album Release". Louder Than War. Retrieved August 1, 2025.
- ^ a b Sheppard, David (December 2019). "Mojo Filter". Mojo: 92.
- ^ Bromfield, Daniel (December 5, 2019). "Pan American Expresse Powerful Emotions Through Guitar Instrumentals on 'A Son'". PopMatters. Archived from the original on December 25, 2019. Retrieved July 19, 2025.
- ^ Pan American (2019). A Son (CD booklet). Kranky.