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List Price: $18.98 | | Label: Rhino Records
Salesrank: 23293
Released: August 31, 2009 |
| Our Price: $14.31 |
| Used Price: $15.43 |
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| Media: Vinyl |
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Break Up Track Listing:
1. Relator
2. Wear And Tear
3. I Don't Know What To Do
4. Search Your Heart
5. Blackie's Dead
6. I Am The Cosmos
7. Shampoo
8. Clean
9. Someday
Editorial Review:
Born out of the deep sleep that can only follow weeks of insomnia, Pete Yorn awoke to find BREAK UP, and its concept of two lovers vocalizing their relationship, fully formed in his head. Taking inspiration from Serge Gainsbourg's collaborations with Brigitte Bardot, Yorn and Scarlett Johansson headed to the studio, with Sunny Levine in the production booth and Yorn and Max Goldblatt serving as executive producers. The album also features contributions from guitarist Robert Francis, bassist Giuseppe Patane, violinist Amir Yaghmai, with Goldblatt on banjo, synth bass and backing vocals, and Levine handling programming and mixing. Comprised of eight songs written and arranged by Yorn and one cover, BREAK UP embarks on a musical journey that covers all bases from lovers lost in gravelly exit song "Someday" to lovers scorned in the questioning "Search Your Heart." Johansson's raspy voice lends a retro feel to the poppy opening track "Relator," playfully complementing Yorn's choruses and setting the tone for the rest of the album's side-by-side vocals. Standout tracks include banjo-driven "Wear And Tear," reminiscent of Pete's early solo efforts, the big band-esque "I Don't Know What To Do," and a shimmering interpretation of the art-rock class "I Am The Cosmos" by the late Chris Bell, co-founder of quintessential cult band Big Star.
Break Up Reviews:
Fantastic! 
2009-11-18 - This is a great CD! I have not been able to stop listening to it repeatedly! If you like Pete Yorn or the SHe & Him kindof sound you will love this CD
Surprisingly Awesome.
2009-11-14 - This CD was the 'CD deal of the day' awhile back, so I got it. And I wasn't really expecting much. But then I listened to the album and it just blew me away. It's surprisingly very good. It's not super long. Both of the artists voices work very well together. I really enjoy it. Definitely one of my most listened to CDs right now. Totally worth buying. A couple of my favorite tracks are Relator, Wear and Tear, and I Don't Know What To Do.
Addicting 
2009-10-21 - When i first heard "Relator" on TV, i was automatically hooked so buying the cd was a great idea. Do it!
Freaking Awesome!
2009-10-19 - Ok, admittedly this music is very mellow and is stuff you might put on a playlist with a name like "Alone in the Dark," "Struck Out at the Bar Last Night" or "Just Got Dumped." For the kind of music it is I think this CD (or whatever you call a group of songs these days) is great. The only songs I don't really like too much are the "Blackie's Dead" songs since they don't quite seem to fit with the rest of the music for some reason. Song like "I am the Cosmos" are awesome though.
When I originally bought this I had some trepidation about Scarlett Johansen and her vocals on these tracks but they blend very well with the type of music it is. Her voice is much better than I expected but she still doesn't show that she has a very powerful voice like a Broadway singer or anything but, the cool thing, is that she didn't need to on any of these songs and for what she needed to do her voice worked very well.
Check out the songs and grab it you feel like you need some new kind of mellow music and don't be afraid of an actress trying to sing in this case.
3.5 stars... Short and quirky
2009-10-03 - 2009 is proving to be a busy year for Pete Yorn, with the release of not one but two CDs in a matter of months: "Back and Fourth" was his 4th proper solo album, and now comes this duet album with none other than Scarlett Johansson. First things first: this album was recorded in 2006, yes, three years ago. No explanation has been offered why this has been sitting on the shelves for three solid years.
As to the album itself, "Break Up" (9 tracks; 29 min.) brings a collection of musical collages supposedly depicting a break up. Not that you can really pick that up from simply listening to the album. The opener "Relator" is the most mainstream-sounding song on here, with an easy upbeat rythm to it, and Pete and Scarlett truly dueting. After that charming opener, the tone of the album becomes much more introverted and reflective. I find the tracks that work best are the ones where Pete and Scarlett truly are collaborating, as opposed to the ones where you can bearly hear Scarlett (such as "Wear and Tear" and the closer "Someday"). On the other hand "I Don't Know What To Do" is a great little gem. My favorite track on this collection is "Shampoo", the perfect mix and interplay between Pete and Scarlett.
But at a mere 29 min., there is simply not enough material here to call this album fully fleshed-out. After repeated listening to the album, it simply feels like a fleeting moment, or an incomplete symphony. Much was made last year about Scarlett's singing capabilities when she released her frist solo album (recorded much later than this albu, incidentally). As then, I really find no fault with her singing. In all, for some reason I had huge expectations for this album, and I can't say theu were entirely met. There are nice enough moments on here, but just not enough of them. And did I mention that this collection lasts all of 29 minutes?
