By the Fire

By the Fire
Studio album by
Thurston Moore
ReleasedSeptember 25, 2020 (2020-09-25)
Studio
  • Total Refreshment Center (London)
  • The Church (London)
GenreRock[1][2]
Length82:14
LabelThe Daydream Library Series
ProducerEva Prinz
Thurston Moore chronology
Spirit Counsel
(2019) 		By the Fire
(2020) 		Screen Time
(2021)
Singles from By the Fire
  1. "Hashish"
    Released: June 20, 2020[3]
  2. "Siren"
    Released: September 2, 2020[4]

By the Fire is the thirteenth solo studio album by the American musician Thurston Moore, released on September 25, 2020, via The Daydream Library Series.

Recording

Most of the album was recorded by Kristian Craig Robinson at Total Refreshment Centre, London. Otherwise, "Breath" was recorded by Paul Epworth at The Church Studios (also in London), and both "Calligraphy" and "Dreamers Work" were recorded in Paris, France.[5]

Title

Moore claimed that the album's release was a political act, saying "Any time you put out a record, ... that's a political move. You're actually engaging in a social world. I called it By the Fire because of that. [It's] the idea of people sitting around a fire and dialoguing."[6]

Release

By the Fire was released on September 25, 2020, by The Daydream Library Series.[1] It subsequently peaked on the UK Independent and Scottish Albums Charts at no. 10 and no. 49, respectively.[7]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.6/10[8]
Metacritic83/100[9]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[10]
Beats Per Minute73%[11]
Exclaim!5/10[12]
The Line of Best Fit8/10[13]
Loud and Quiet7/10[14]
MusicOMH[15]
NME[1]
Pitchfork7.8/10[16]
Record Collector[17]
Uncut[18]

According to the review aggregator Metacritic, By the Fire received "universal acclaim" based on a weighted average score of 83 out of 100 from thirteen critic scores.[9] The review aggregator AnyDecentMusic? gave the album a weighted average score of 7.6 out of 10 from fourteen critic scores.[8]

Stuart Berman of Pitchfork praised the album and said of its almost ninety-minute length: "it's a record that justifies and even demands the extra space to explore."[16] Daniel Sylvester of Exclaim! was less effusive, calling the album "boring and tedious".[12]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Radieux Radio, except "Cantaloupe" and "Breath" (Thurston Moore).[5]

By the Fire track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Hashish"5:46
2."Cantaloupe"4:44
3."Breath"10:48
4."Siren"12:17
5."Calligraphy"5:20
6."Locomotives"16:48
7."Dreamers Work"4:57
8."They Believe in Love [When They Look at You]"7:50
9."Venus" (instrumental)13:44
Total length:82:14

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the CD liner notes.[5]

Musicians

Technical and design

Charts

Chart performance for By the Fire
Chart (2020) Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[19] 86
Scottish Albums (OCC)[7] 49
UK Albums Sales (OCC)[7] 40
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[7] 10

References

  1. ^ a b c Buchanan, Rhys (September 24, 2020). "Thurston Moore – 'By The Fire' review: love and healing from the Sonic Youth man". NME. Retrieved May 5, 2021.
  2. ^ Baechle, Alexander (September 23, 2020). "Album Review: Thurston Moore reaches new latitudes of inspiration 'By The Fire'". Riff. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  3. ^ Hussey, Allison (June 20, 2020). "Thurston Moore Announces New Album By the Fire, Shares New Song: Listen". Pitchfork. Retrieved October 16, 2025.
  4. ^ Turman, Katherine (September 2, 2020). "Thurston Moore Shares New 12-Minute Song 'Siren'". Spin. Retrieved October 23, 2025.
  5. ^ a b c Moore, Thurston (2020). By the Fire (CD liner notes). The Daydream Library Series. DLS10CD.
  6. ^ Hart, Ron (November 5, 2020). "Thurston Moore on New LP, 2020 Election, Meeting Our Publication's Founder". Spin. Archived from the original on November 5, 2020. Retrieved May 5, 2021.
  7. ^ a b c d "By the Fire by Thurston Moore: Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  8. ^ a b "Thurston Moore – By The Fire". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  9. ^ a b "By The Fire by Thurston Moore". Metacritic. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  10. ^ Thomas, Fred. By the Fire – Thurston Moore at AllMusic. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  11. ^ Wohlmacher, John (October 5, 2020). "Album Review: Thurston Moore – By The Fire". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  12. ^ a b Sylvester, Daniel (September 27, 2020). "Thurston Moore Is a Pale Imitation of His Former Self on 'By the Fire'". Exclaim!. Retrieved May 5, 2021.
  13. ^ Oinonen, Janne (September 23, 2020). "Thurston Moore – 'By The Fire'". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  14. ^ Kinney, Fergal (September 20, 2020). "Thurston Moore – By The Fire". Loud and Quiet. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  15. ^ Horton, Ross (September 25, 2020). "Thurston Moore – By The Fire". MusicOMH. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  16. ^ a b Berman, Stuart (September 29, 2020). "Thurston Moore: By the Fire". Pitchfork. Retrieved May 5, 2021.
  17. ^ Moores, JR (August 10, 2020). "By The Fire". Record Collector. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  18. ^ O'Connell, Sharon (October 9, 2020). "Thurston Moore – By The Fire". Uncut. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
  19. ^ "Ultratop.be – Thurston Moore – By the Fire" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved June 13, 2026.
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