Mirrored is the debut studio album by American experimental rock band Battles. It was released on May 14, 2007 in the United Kingdom, and on May 22, 2007 in the United States. Mirrored marked the first album in which the band incorporated prominent vocals and lyrics into their songs, as previous extended plays by the band had been completely instrumental, with the exception of occasional beatboxing and wordless vocals on certain tracks. The first single from the album, "Atlas", was released in the United Kingdom on April 2, 2007. Mirrored was released to wide critical acclaim and appeared on year-end best album lists from several publications, including Time, NME, The Guardian, and Pitchfork Media.

Mirrored
A music store shown near a black background
Studio album by
ReleasedMay 14, 2007 (2007-05-14)
Recorded2006
StudioMachines with Magnets, Pawtucket, RI
Genre
Length51:52
LabelWarp
ProducerBattles
Battles chronology
EP C/B EP
(2006)
Mirrored
(2007)
Tonto+
(2007)

Reception

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Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic86/100[1]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [2]
The A.V. ClubB[3]
Blender     [4]
The Guardian     [5]
MSN Music (Consumer Guide)B−[6]
NME8/10[7]
Pitchfork9.1/10[8]
Rolling Stone     [9]
Spin     [10]
Uncut     [11]

Mirrored was widely acclaimed upon release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 86, indicating "universal acclaim", based on 31 reviews.[1] The album placed ninth in The Wire's annual critics' poll.[12] Online music magazine Pitchfork later placed Mirrored at number 105 on their list of top 200 albums of the 2000s.[13] The single "Atlas" was ranked at number 42 on Pitchfork's top 500 tracks of the 2000s list.[14] In October 2011, NME placed "Atlas" at number 54 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years".[15]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by Battles

No.TitleLength
1."Race : In"4:50
2."Atlas"7:07
3."Ddiamondd"2:33
4."Tonto"7:43
5."Leyendecker"2:48
6."Rainbow"8:11
7."Bad Trails"5:18
8."Prismism"0:52
9."Snare Hangar"1:58
10."Tij"7:03
11."Race : Out"3:29
Japan bonus track
No.TitleLength
12."Katoman"2:08

Personnel

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Battles
Additional personnel
  • Keith Souza – recording engineer, mixing
  • Mike Viele – assistant engineering
  • Seth Manchester – assistant engineering
  • Jeff Lipton – mastering
  • Jessica Thompson – mastering
  • Dave Konopka – art direction and design
  • Timothy Saccenti – photography

References

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  1. ^ a b "Reviews for Mirrored by Battles". Metacritic. Archived from the original on February 26, 2021. Retrieved March 19, 2009.
  2. ^ Jurek, Thom. "Mirrored – Battles". AllMusic. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
  3. ^ Battaglia, Andy (May 22, 2007). "Battles: Mirrored". The A.V. Club. Retrieved May 15, 2022.
  4. ^ "Battles: Mirrored". Blender (59): 104. June 2007.
  5. ^ Hughes, Tom (May 10, 2007). "Battles, Mirrored". The Guardian. London. Retrieved September 16, 2015.
  6. ^ Christgau, Robert (September 2007). "Consumer Guide". MSN Music. Retrieved September 16, 2015.
  7. ^ Pattison, Louis (May 16, 2007). "Battles: Mirrored". NME. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved September 16, 2015.
  8. ^ Harvell, Jess (May 15, 2007). "Battles: Mirrored". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on July 16, 2021. Retrieved September 16, 2015.
  9. ^ Hoard, Christian (June 11, 2007). "Battles: Mirrored". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on June 16, 2007. Retrieved September 16, 2015.
  10. ^ Hogan, Marc (June 2007). "Battles: Mirrored". Spin. 23 (6): 90. Retrieved September 16, 2015.
  11. ^ "Battles: Mirrored". Uncut (121): 87. June 2007.
  12. ^ "2007 Rewind: Records of the Year Top Ten". The Wire. No. 287. London. January 2008. p. 37 – via Exact Editions. (subscription required)
  13. ^ Pitchfork staff (September 28, 2009). "The 200 Best Albums of the 2000s". Pitchfork. p. 5. Retrieved May 14, 2022.
  14. ^ Pitchfork staff (August 20, 2009). "The Top 500 Tracks of the 2000s: 50–21". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on May 17, 2013. Retrieved October 1, 2009.
  15. ^ "150 Best Tracks Of The Past 15 Years". NME. 6 October 2011. Retrieved February 10, 2016.
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