Scary Fragile
Encyclopedia
Scary Fragile is the second album
by Australia
n singer–songwriter
Butterfly Boucher
.
for Sarah McLachlan
's Afterglow tour, Boucher was called to the studio by her record label
Geffen Records
in 2004 to record the follow-up to her album Flutterby
. Spending over a year deciding on producer David Kahne
and waiting for him to become available, Boucher did most of the pre-production for the album at her home studio, doing the guitar
, bass guitar
, electronic keyboard
, lead vocal
s and backing vocal
s Production for the album began on October 24, 2005. Although Boucher had intended to record the album with a live band, the idea was abandoned after Kahne listened to the demos Boucher had produced, and liked her playing all the instruments herself.
Scary Fragile was originally completed in January 2006. Claiming to not "want to be too deep" about her album titles, Boucher states the title was chosen because "it didn't mean anything", and "can mean whatever you want as well." The other title considered for the album was Just Because.
Not knowing how to market the album, Geffen stalled on releasing Scary Fragile before offering Boucher to affiliate Polydor Records
to release the album in the United Kingdom
first. After the album was found to be too "American-sounding" for the UK, Boucher re-recorded the album for the UK market with a Swedish producer. In February 2007, the album track "A Bitter Song" was used on the hit American television series Grey's Anatomy
during a pivotal season arch, after which it was released as a single on iTunes. The re-recorded album was completed in June 2007, at which point Boucher began previewing one-off album tracks at irregular intervals on her MySpace
page, on what she referred to as "Oops Days".
Although Polydor had set a release date for the album in autumn 2007, Geffen blocked the album' release, agreeing to allow the UK label to release the album only on the condition that the UK affiliate bought Boucher out of her debt to Interscope-Geffen-A&M
for over US
$1 million. Polydor refused, and after negotiations through 2008, Boucher was released from her record contract, and gained the master recording
rights for both versions of Scary Fragile. Boucher released the album with the original recordings on June 2, 2009 digitally via her own imprint Situation Operation. The single "Gun for a Tongue" was released digitally on May 12, 2009. The album was released on Compact Disc
in stores worldwide on September 15, 2009 via Nettwerk Records
.
Further tracks hosted on Butterfly's MySpace page during "Oops Days" that are off-cuts and do not feature on Scary Fragile:
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
by Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n singer–songwriter
Singer–songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
Butterfly Boucher
Butterfly Boucher
Butterfly Boucher is an Australian singer-songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. She has released two albums, Flutterby and Scary Fragile .-Biography:...
.
History
After touring as an opening actOpening act
An opening act or warm-up act is an entertainer or entertainment act that performs at a concert before the featured entertainer...
for Sarah McLachlan
Sarah McLachlan
Sarah Ann McLachlan, OC, OBC is a Canadian musician, singer and songwriter. Known for her emotional ballads and mezzo-soprano vocal range, as of 2006, she has sold over 40 million albums worldwide. McLachlan's best-selling album to date is Surfacing, for which she won two Grammy Awards and four...
's Afterglow tour, Boucher was called to the studio by her record label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
Geffen Records
Geffen Records
Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:...
in 2004 to record the follow-up to her album Flutterby
Flutterby
Flutterby is the debut album by Australian singer/songwriter Butterfly Boucher, first released in 2003.-Track listing:*All songs written by Butterfly Boucher, except where noted.#"Life Is Short" – 3:06#"Can You See the Lights?" – 3:07...
. Spending over a year deciding on producer David Kahne
David Kahne
David Kahne is an American record producer. Kahne started his musical career as a working musician and then became notable for his role as in-house producer and engineer at 415 Records, the first American new wave music label, and for his subsequent roles as Vice President of A&R at Columbia...
and waiting for him to become available, Boucher did most of the pre-production for the album at her home studio, doing the guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, bass guitar
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, electronic keyboard
Electronic keyboard
An electronic keyboard is an electronic or digital keyboard instrument.The major components of a typical modern electronic keyboard are:...
, lead vocal
Lead vocalist
The lead vocalist is the member of a band who sings the main vocal portions of a song. They may also play one or more instruments. Lead vocalists are sometimes referred to as the frontman or frontwoman, and as such, are usually considered to be the "leader" of the groups they perform in, often the...
s and backing vocal
Backing vocalist
A backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists...
s Production for the album began on October 24, 2005. Although Boucher had intended to record the album with a live band, the idea was abandoned after Kahne listened to the demos Boucher had produced, and liked her playing all the instruments herself.
Scary Fragile was originally completed in January 2006. Claiming to not "want to be too deep" about her album titles, Boucher states the title was chosen because "it didn't mean anything", and "can mean whatever you want as well." The other title considered for the album was Just Because.
Not knowing how to market the album, Geffen stalled on releasing Scary Fragile before offering Boucher to affiliate Polydor Records
Polydor Records
Polydor is a record label owned by Universal Music Group, headquartered in the United Kingdom.-Beginnings:Polydor was originally an independent branch of the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft. Its name was first used as an export label in 1924, the British and German branches of the Gramophone...
to release the album in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
first. After the album was found to be too "American-sounding" for the UK, Boucher re-recorded the album for the UK market with a Swedish producer. In February 2007, the album track "A Bitter Song" was used on the hit American television series Grey's Anatomy
Grey's Anatomy
Grey's Anatomy is an American medical drama television series created by Shonda Rhimes. The series premiered on March 27, 2005 on ABC; since then, seven seasons have aired. The series follows the lives of interns, residents and their mentors in the fictional Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital in...
during a pivotal season arch, after which it was released as a single on iTunes. The re-recorded album was completed in June 2007, at which point Boucher began previewing one-off album tracks at irregular intervals on her MySpace
MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
page, on what she referred to as "Oops Days".
Although Polydor had set a release date for the album in autumn 2007, Geffen blocked the album' release, agreeing to allow the UK label to release the album only on the condition that the UK affiliate bought Boucher out of her debt to Interscope-Geffen-A&M
Interscope-Geffen-A&M
Interscope-Geffen-A&M is an umbrella label, owned by Universal Music Group. The company was formed in 1999, when Geffen Records and A&M Records were merged into Interscope Records—the flagship imprint of the operation....
for over US
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
$1 million. Polydor refused, and after negotiations through 2008, Boucher was released from her record contract, and gained the master recording
Master recording
A multitrack recording master tape, disk or computer files on which productions are developed for later mixing, is known as the multi-track master, while the tape, disk or computer files holding a mix is called a mixed master.It is standard practice to make a copy of a master recording, known as...
rights for both versions of Scary Fragile. Boucher released the album with the original recordings on June 2, 2009 digitally via her own imprint Situation Operation. The single "Gun for a Tongue" was released digitally on May 12, 2009. The album was released on Compact Disc
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
in stores worldwide on September 15, 2009 via Nettwerk Records
Nettwerk
The Nettwerk Music Group is the umbrella company for Nettwerk Management, Nettwerk Records, Nettwerk One Publishing, Nutone Records, and Artwerk. With over 150 employees, the Vancouver-based company has offices in New York, Los Angeles, London, Boston, Nashville, and Hamburg...
.
Track listing
- All songs written by Butterfly Boucher
- "I Found Out" – 3:07
- "For the Love of Love" – 3:21
- "Just One Tear" – 3:30
- "Gun for a Tongue" – 3:08
- "Scary Fragile" – 3:04
- "Bright Red" – 3:32
- "Keeper" – 3:06
- "They Say You Grow" – 3:48
- "Keeping Warm" – 3:00
- "To Feel Love" – 4:13
- "A Bitter Song" – 2:30
Further tracks hosted on Butterfly's MySpace page during "Oops Days" that are off-cuts and do not feature on Scary Fragile:
- "All of the Things"
- "Looking at Me"
- "Don't Look Now"
- "You'll See"