Pre Pleasure is the third studio album by Australian singer-songwriter Julia Jacklin. It was released on 26 August 2022 under Polyvinyl Record Co. and Transgressive Records. At the 2022 ARIA Music Awards, the album earned Jacklin nominations for Best Solo Artist, Best Independent Release and Best Adult Contemporary Album.[1] The album was also nominated for several other awards, including the Australian Album of the Year at the 2022 J Awards,[2] the Australian Music Prize,[3] Independent Album of the Year at the AIR Awards of 2023,[4] and Best Album at the 2023 Music Victoria Awards.[5]
| Pre Pleasure | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 26 August 2022 | |||
| Studio |
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| Length | 37:59 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Producer | ||||
| Julia Jacklin chronology | ||||
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Critical reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 84/100[6] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [7] |
| Clash | 7/10[8] |
| Exclaim! | 9/10[9] |
| The Independent | [10] |
| The Line of Best Fit | 7/10[11] |
| Mojo | [12] |
| The Observer | [13] |
| Paste | 8.3/10[14] |
| Pitchfork | 7.4/10[15] |
| Uncut | 9/10[16] |
Pre Pleasure received critical acclaim from music critics upon its release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 84, based on 18 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". Kitty Empire of The Observer gave the album four out of five stars, describing it as "a record about the impossibility of communication, and never quite solving your problems".[13] Bella Fleming of The Line of Best Fit indicates that this is Julia's most punchy album so far, "a testament to Julia Jacklin’s ability to adapt and grow as a songwriter".[17] Ellie Robinson of NME wrote that "the material here is some of Jacklin’s most intense, never holding back with her gut-punching ruminations on religion, sex and trauma".[18]
Track listing
All songs are written by Julia Jacklin.
- "Lydia Wears a Cross" – 4:02
- "Love, Try Not to Let Go" – 3:44
- "Ignore Tenderness" – 3:09
- "I Was Neon" – 4:03
- "Too in Love to Die" – 3:36
- "Less of a Stranger" – 4:32
- "Moviegoer" – 3:47
- "Magic" – 2:59
- "Be Careful with Yourself" – 3:48
- "End of a Friendship" – 4:24
Personnel
Charts
| Chart (2022) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA)[19] | 2 |
| New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[20] | 11 |
| Scottish Albums (OCC)[21] | 11 |
| UK Albums (OCC)[22] | 56 |
| UK Independent Albums (OCC)[23] | 4 |