Amidst the Chaos
Studio album by
Sara Bareilles
ReleasedApril 5, 2019 (2019-04-05)
Studio
Length49:46
LabelEpic
ProducerT Bone Burnett
Sara Bareilles chronology
What's Inside: Songs from Waitress
(2015) 		Amidst the Chaos
(2019) 		More Love: Songs from Little Voice Season One
(2020)
Singles from Amidst the Chaos
  1. "Armor"
    Released: October 26, 2018
  2. "Fire"
    Released: February 15, 2019
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]

Amidst the Chaos is the sixth studio album by American singer-songwriter Sara Bareilles, released on April 5, 2019, through Epic Records. The lead single from the album, "Armor", was released digitally on October 26, 2018.[2] The album debuted at number six on the US Billboard 200 selling 35,000 copies in its first week (29,000 of which were traditional album sales), making it Bareilles' sixth top 10 album.[3] "Saint Honesty" earned Bareilles a Grammy Award for Best American Roots Performance at the 2020 ceremony.

Background

In an interview with Forbes, Bareilles stated that the 2016 American Presidential Election was the catalyst for her beginning to write the album, with the title being a reference to the presidency of Donald Trump. The song "No Such Thing" was written as an ode to president Barack Obama,[4] while "Armor" was written in response to the #MeToo Movement and released early in light of the confirmation hearing of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.[5] The duet with John Legend, "A Safe Place to Land", was written about the immigrant family separation crisis along the US–Mexico border in 2018.[6]

Promotion

The lead single, "Armor", was released on October 28, 2018, with Bareilles performing the song on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on November 28, backed by an all-female band.[7] She announced the album on February 13, and said it would become available to pre-order on February 15. She also posted the cover art, a black-and-white shot of herself with "windblown hair".[8]

Prior to the album's release, Bareilles embarked upon the four-date A Little Chaos Tour, stopping in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago and New York City between March 17 and 22, 2019.[9] Bareilles performed several unreleased songs from the album, as well as its promotional singles. On April 6, 2019, Bareilles appeared as a musical guest on Saturday Night Live and performed "Fire" and "Saint Honesty".[10]

A November 2019 Hollywood Bowl performance was recorded and released in 2021 as Amidst the Chaos: Live from the Hollywood Bowl.

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Fire"Sara Bareilles3:50
2."No Such Thing"
3:57
3."Armor"Bareilles4:27
4."If I Can't Have You"
4:13
5."Eyes on You"Bareilles4:04
6."Miss Simone"
4:13
7."Wicked Love"Bareilles4:39
8."Orpheus"Bareilles4:13
9."Poetry by Dead Men"
  • Bareilles
  • Tranter
3:48
10."Someone Who Loves Me"Bareilles3:18
11."Saint Honesty"
  • Bareilles
  • McKenna
4:35
12."A Safe Place to Land" (featuring John Legend)
  • Bareilles
  • McKenna
4:29
Total length:49:46
Digital edition[11]
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
13."Shiny"
  • Bareilles
  • McKenna
2:53
Total length:52:39

Personnel

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.

Charts

Chart (2019) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[12] 25
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[13] 35
Scottish Albums (OCC)[14] 28
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[15] 69
UK Albums (OCC)[16] 82
US Billboard 200[17] 6

References

  1. ^ allmusic
  2. ^ Spencer, Tallie (February 13, 2019). "Sara Bareilles Announces New Album 'Amidst the Chaos'". Billboard. Retrieved February 15, 2019.
  3. ^ Caulfield, Keith (April 14, 2019). "Khalid's 'Free Spirit' Debuts at No. 1 on Billboard 200 Albums Chart". Billboard. Retrieved June 25, 2019.
  4. ^ Baltin, Steve. "Sara Bareilles On Her New Album, Broadway, The Obamas And More". Forbes. Retrieved April 5, 2019.
  5. ^ Hughes, Hilary (November 2018). "Sara Bareilles Reveals She Released Feminist Anthem 'Armor' Early Because of the Kavanaugh Hearings". Billboard. Retrieved April 5, 2019.
  6. ^ Wood, Mikael (3 April 2019). "Why Sara Bareilles, with a raw new album, is no longer 'terrified of upsetting anybody'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 5, 2019.
  7. ^ Bajgrowicz, Brooke (29 November 2018). "Sara Bareilles Puts on Her 'Armor' For Empowering 'Late Show' Performance: Watch". Billboard. Retrieved April 5, 2019.
  8. ^ "Sara Bareilles reveals new album will be titled 'Amidst the Chaos'". WIKY. February 13, 2019. Archived from the original on February 15, 2019. Retrieved February 15, 2019.
  9. ^ "SARA BAREILLES ANNOUNCES SPECIAL LIMITED RUN LIVE SHOWS". Artist Direct.
  10. ^ Iasimone, Ashley (7 April 2019). "Sara Bareilles Performs 'Fire' & 'Saint Honesty' on 'SNL'". Billboard. Retrieved April 9, 2019.
  11. ^ "Amidst the Chaos by Sara Bareilles". Spotify. 10 May 2019. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
  12. ^ "ARIA Australian Top 50 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association. April 15, 2019. Retrieved April 13, 2019.
  13. ^ "New Pup Album Makes A Big Splash, But Khalid Makes No. 1". FYIMusicNews. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  14. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 13, 2019.
  15. ^ "Top 100 Albumes – Semana 15: del 5.4.2019 al 11.4.2019" (in Spanish). Productores de Música de España. Retrieved April 16, 2019.
  16. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 13, 2019.
  17. ^ Caulfield, Keith (April 14, 2019). "Khalid's 'Free Spirit' Debuts at No. 1 on Billboard 200 Albums Chart". Billboard. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
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