Masterpiece Theatre (Marianas Trench album)
Masterpiece Theatre is the second studio album by Canadian rock group Marianas Trench. It was released on February 24, 2009 in Canada and on September 28, 2010 in the United States. The album was available for preview at MuchMusic's website before the release. The last song on the album, titled "Masterpiece Theatre III", is a collage of all the songs on the album including its five singles.
The album is a slight departure from Fix Me, containing more theatrical elements and instruments while still retaining the punk rock influence of its predecessor. Songs like Masterpiece Theater 1, 2, and 3, Beside You, and Good To You show some experimentation using pianos and strings and harmonies.
The album sold 5,000 copies in its first week of release debuting at No. 4 on the Canadian Albums Chart and since then it has reached Double Platinum status in Canada with sales of over 80,000 copies nationwide.
Reception
Critical reception
Masterpiece Theatre was received well by most critics. The Phoenix New Times praised lead singer Josh Ramsay and the lyrics saying "Singer Josh Ramsay pushed himself vocally on this album, and the lyrics were very heartfelt and meaningful – not your typical pop-punk music."Melodic.net said, "this album is one of the best, if not the best, discs i've heard in the past year or two." They also said "The harmonies, arrangements, and different styles experimented with throughout the spread of the CD are absolutely awe-inspiring."
Lost In the Sound gave the album a score of 80% out 100, saying that the album "is one of the best in its genre and proves that there is still good pop rock music out there."
Commercial performance
The album sold over 160,000 copies in Canada and was certified Double Platinum by Music Canada. Singles such as "All To Myself" and "Cross My Heart" peaked in the top 15 of the Canadian Hot 100. Other singles such as "Celebrity Status", "Good to You" and "Beside You" peaked in the top 40 of the Canadian Hot 100.Track listing
Personnel
Credits for Masterpiece Theatre adapted from Allmusic.Musicians
;Marianas Trench- Josh Ramsay – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, piano, keyboards, programming, drums, flugelhorn, production, bass engineering, guitar engineering, composer
- Matt Webb – lead guitar, piano, keyboards, programming, trombone, vocals
- Mike Ayley – bass guitar, trumpet, vocals
- Ian Casselman – drums, sousaphone, percussion, vocals
- Kate Voegele – vocals
- Jessica Lee – vocals
- Steve Marshall – vocals
- Sara Ramsay – vocals
- Corlynn Ramsay - vocals
- Miles Ramsay – vocals, string arrangements
- Gillian Mott -violin
- Joshua Belvedere – viola
- Doug Gorkoff – cello
- Elyse Jacobson – violin
- Rick Killburn – double bass
- Shane Wilson – drums
- John Stamos – guest appearance
- Shawn Smith – composer
Production
- Dave Genn – production, engineering
- Raine Maida – production, engineering
- Greig Nori – production, engineering
- Dave Ogilvie – production, mixing
- Ted Jensen – mastering
- Mike Fraser – mixing
- Scott Ternan – bass engineering, drum engineering, guitar engineering, piano engineering, string engineering
- Dean Maher – drum engineering, piano engineering
- Mark Maryanovich – cover art, photography
- Natalie Simon – stylist
- Jonathan Simkin – A&R
- Zack Blacktone – assistant
- Brendon Brown – assistant
- Mike Cashin – assistant
- Brock MacFarlane – assistant
- Eric Misher – assistant
- Jeremy Patch – assistant
- Dusty Schaller – assistant
- Rob Stefanson – assistant
Charts and certifications
Album charts
Certifications
Awards and nominations
Release history
Singles
Cross My Heart
"Cross My Heart" is the fourth single released by Marianas Trench and the first single released off of their second album Masterpiece Theatre.Music video
Shot in Vancouver, Canada, the music video starts off with Josh Ramsay singing to a woman that he is following throughout the course of the video. While going down the street, people start to hear the song, and follow along. From painters and construction workers, to teenagers from the streets, they all form a parade with the rest of the band playing on a float. In the end, the woman being followed takes out her headphones, and hears Josh singing to her. She turns around and sees the crowd cheering and applauding to her. She invites him in, the song ends and the crowd stops cheering.Chart positions
"Cross My Heart" debuted at No. 54 on the Canadian Hot 100 and then rose No. 41 the next week, but then fell off the chart two weeks later. On the issue of January 31 it made a re-entry on the chart at No. 42 and was the "Best Comeback" and climbed to No. 16, and was the "Sales Gainer" on the issue of February 14, since then it has peaked at #15.Chart | Peak position |
Canadian Hot 100 | 15 |
MuchMusic Countdown | 1 |
Chart | Position |
Canadian Hot 100 | 43 |
All to Myself
"All to Myself" is the fifth single released by Marianas Trench and the second single released off of their second album Masterpiece Theatre.Chart positions
It was the Greatest Gainer for the week of June 13, 2009 on the Canadian Hot 100.Chart | Peak position |
Canadian Hot 100 | 11 |
Chart | Position |
Canadian Hot 100 | 46 |
Beside You
"Beside You" is the third single of the Marianas Trench's second album, Masterpiece Theatre.It was released on September 2009 in Canada, and March 2011 in the U.S. The band went on tour with Carly Rae Jepsen, The New Cities, and The Mission District to promote the song.
Music video
The music video for "Beside You" was shot on September 29, 2009. The beginning shots of the beach and dock were filmed at Jericho Beach in Vancouver, British Columbia. The rest of the video was shot inside of the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts at the University of British Columbia. The orchestra and band members in the video are students from Lord Byng Secondary School."Beside You" premiered on Much Music's Much on Demand on October 30, 2009.
Charts
Chart | Position |
Canadian Hot 100 | 64 |
Celebrity Status
"Celebrity Status" is the fourth single off Marianas Trench's second studio album, Masterpiece Theatre. It was released to radio stations in February 2010, and was released digitally onto iTunes on April 6, 2010. The song was featured along with Pink's "Raise Your Glass" in the University of British Columbia's lipdub video released on April 8, 2011.Charts
Chart | Position |
Canadian Hot 100 | 69 |