Oh You're So Silent Jens

Oh You're So Silent Jens
Compilation album by
Jens Lekman
Released8 June 2005 (2005-06-08)
GenreIndie pop
Length63:22
Label
ProducerJens Lekman
Jens Lekman chronology
When I Said I Wanted to Be Your Dog
(2004) 		Oh You're So Silent Jens
(2005) 		Night Falls Over Kortedala
(2007)

Oh You're So Silent Jens is a compilation album by Swedish indie pop musician Jens Lekman. It was first released on Service on 8 June 2005, and later re-released on 22 November 2005 on Secretly Canadian. The album is composed of previously released tracks taken from Maple Leaves (2003), Rocky Dennis in Heaven (2004), and Julie (2004), as well as "F-Word" (2003) from a CD distributed in the fanzine En Garde and "The Wrong Hands" (2004) from the Accelerator compilation.[1]

The album cover was designed by the Swedish musician Rasmus Hägg, one half of the duo Studio.

Withdrawal and relacement

Lekman's early music was often built on sampling, to which his label Secretly Canadian initially took a casual attitude, but according to co-founder Ben Swanson, "as his profile grew, it felt more and more untenable with each release."[2] Due to copyright claims from major labels, Lekman quietly withdrew Oh You're So Silent Jens from digital and physical circulation in 2011.[3]

More than a decade later, on April 27, 2022, Lekman digitally released an updated version of the album titled The Cherry Trees Are Still in Blossom,[4], with a physical release on June 3 via Secretly Canadian. This reissue includes re-recorded versions of songs that had previously used samples, as well as bonus tracks. Lekman's 2007 album Night Falls Over Kortedala was similarly replaced at the same time.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic79/100[5]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[6]
Entertainment WeeklyA−[7]
Pitchfork8.5/10[8]
PopMatters7/10[9]
Stylus MagazineA−[10]
Uncut[11]
ViceA−[12]

Oh You're So Silent Jens received widespread acclaim from contemporary music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 79, based on 13 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews".[5]

Amy Phillips of Pitchfork gave the album a very positive review, stating, "Oh You're So Silent Jens, his new collection of previously released singles and B-sides, is a marvel of pure songcraft. Clichés unravel, traditional structures break down and build back up again, unpretentious witticisms sparkle. And then there are the sonics of the thing: lo-fi Phil Spector room dividers of sound, unexpected samples, and Lekman's rich, cavernous monotone."[8]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Jens Lekman, except where noted.

No.TitleWriter(s)Originally fromLength
1."At the Dept. of Forgotten Songs" Untitled 2003 vinyl 7"1:32
2."Maple Leaves" (EP version)
Maple Leaves EP3:59
3."Sky Phenomenon" Maple Leaves EP4:34
4."Pocketful of Money" Maple Leaves EP4:20
5."Black Cab" Maple Leaves EP4:54
6."Someone to Share My Life With"TreacyMaple Leaves EP3:32
7."Rocky Dennis' Farewell Song" Rocky Dennis in Heaven EP5:22
8."Rocky Dennis in Heaven" Rocky Dennis in Heaven EP1:02
9."Jens Lekman's Farewell Song to Rocky Dennis" Rocky Dennis in Heaven EP3:55
10."Julie" (Remix) Julie EP3:02
11."I Saw Her in the Anti War Demonstration" Julie EP3:11
12."A Sweet Summer's Night on Hammer Hill" Julie EP3:27
13."A Man Walks into a Bar" Julie EP4:20
14."Another Sweet Summer's Night on Hammer Hill" Julie EP3:22
15."F-Word"
2003 En Garde fanzine CD-R4:36
16."The Wrong Hands" Accelerator 2004 (Startracks)4:21
17."Maple Leaves" (7" version)
  • Lekman
  • Treacy
Untitled 2003 vinyl 7"3:45
Total length:63:22

Credited samples

Personnel

Credits for Oh You're So Silent Jens adapted from liner notes.[13]

Additional personnel

References

  1. ^ "Collections". JensLekman.com. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  2. ^ Jack, Malcolm (27 April 2022). "Jens Lekman Pt. 1: The Cherry Trees Are Still In Blossom". Secretly Society (Podcast). Secretly Canadian. Event occurs at 25:40. Retrieved 18 August 2025.
  3. ^ Cheng, Alex (25 July 2022). "For Swedish musician Jens Lekman, recrafting old albums was a lesson in self-love". Morning Edition. NPR. Retrieved 18 August 2025.
  4. ^ Minsker, Evan (27 April 2022). "Jens Lekman Announces Partially Remade Versions of Oh You're So Silent Jens and Night Falls Over Kortedala". Pitchfork. Retrieved 18 August 2025.
  5. ^ a b "Reviews for Oh You're So Silent Jens by Jens Lekman". Metacritic. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  6. ^ Sendra, Tim. "Oh You're So Silent Jens – Jens Lekman". AllMusic. Retrieved 8 February 2012.
  7. ^ Dombal, Ryan (9 December 2005). "Jens Lekman: Oh You're So Silent Jens". Entertainment Weekly. p. 89.
  8. ^ a b Phillips, Amy (27 November 2005). "Jens Lekman: Oh You're So Silent Jens". Pitchfork. Retrieved 8 February 2012.
  9. ^ Begrand, Adrien (17 November 2005). "Jens Lekman: Oh You're So Silent Jens". PopMatters. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  10. ^ Mathers, Ian (3 December 2005). "Jens Lekman – Oh You're So Silent Jens – Review". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on 5 February 2006. Retrieved 8 February 2012.
  11. ^ "Jens Lekman: Oh You're So Silent Jens". Uncut (106): 85. March 2006.
  12. ^ Christgau, Robert (18 February 2017). "An Incorrigibly Courteous Liar's Last Act: Expert Witness with Robert Christgau". Vice. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
  13. ^ Oh You're So Silent Jens (liner notes). Lekman, Jens. Service. 2005. SERV020.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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