Love Stuff is the debut studio album by American singer and songwriter Elle King, released in the United States on February 13, 2015, by RCA Records. The album peaked at number 26 on the Billboard 200, received platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and was generally praised by music critics. It was mastered in Hollywood, California at Stephen Marcussen's namesake recording studio.Album liner notes

The album was preceded by its lead single "Ex's & Oh's", which was released on September 23, 2014, peaked at number ten on the Billboard Hot 100, and received quadruple platinum certification by the RIAA. Additionally, the song peaked the Alternative Songs chart in September 2015, becoming only the second song by a female solo act to do so since 1996 after Lorde achieved the feat in 2013 with "Royals". It was also preceded by the promotional single "Under the Influence". The album's second single, "America's Sweetheart", peaked at number ten on Billboards Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart — becoming her second song to do so — and has since been certified platinum by Music Canada.

The album made history by being the first album to debut atop the UK Americana chart, which launched on 28 January 2016. It also was placed No. 2 on UK Biggest Americana Albums of 2016 and has since been certified platinum in the United States.

Composition Love Stuff intertwines blues, country and rock with elements of folk, gospel, R&B, and punk-pop.

Singles "Ex's & Oh's" was released on September 23, 2014, as the album's lead single. It first found success in the rock genre, where it became the second song by a solo female artist in the past twenty years to reach the top position of the Billboard Alternative Songs airplay chart and led the magazine's Hot Rock Songs chart for 10 consecutive weeks in mid-2015. The song later crossed over to a mainstream audience and became a number-one hit on the Adult Pop Songs chart in addition to spending one week in the top 10 of the all-genre Billboard Hot 100. "Ex's & Oh's" received two nominations at the 58th Grammy Awards: for Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Song.

The second rock single from the album is "Under the Influence", released to AAA radio on December 14, 2015 modern rock radio on December 15.

"America's Sweetheart" was released on February 8, 2016, as the second mainstream single and third overall released from Love Stuff; it impacted American hot adult contemporary radio on that date.

Critical reception

Marcus Floyd from Renowned for Sound was impressed by King's "sonically versatile qualities" in her vocal performance over the track listing and the lyrical content she co-wrote with her collaborators, saying that "it’s great to hear less clichéd written tracks, replaced by personal pieces that tell a story and relive an experience." He concluded that King's career was just beginning, saying that "with her debut album now under her belt, she seems capable of anything; we can’t wait to hear more from this girl." AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine was critical of King's vocals feeling exhaustive throughout the album as she keeps up her chosen image but gave praise to her performances on "Ex's & Oh's", "Under the Influence", "Last Damn Night" and "Jackson" for finding a balance between "rock crunch and soul testifying," concluding that "Such highlights suggests that when [Elle] King doesn't have to try so hard to prove her bona fides, she might wind up with a record that's hard to deny. For now, she merely has a promising debut on her hands."

Track listing

Personnel Adapted from AllMusic:

Vocals Lead vocals – Elle King, Jacknife Lee Background vocals – Zach Carothers, Scarlet Cherry, John Gourley, Martin Johnson, Tyler Sam Johnson, Elle King, Phillip Lawrence, Kyle O'Quin, Alisan Porter

Instruments

Banjo – Elle King Bass – Dave Bassett, Jacknife Lee, Brandon Paddock, Mark Ronson, Sebastian Steinberg Bouzouki – Blake Mills Drums, percussion, and beats – Dave Bassett, Sam Bell, Jeff Bhasker, Patrick Carney, Zach Carothers, James Gadson, John Gourley, John Hill, Martin Johnson, Patrick Keeler, Elle King, Jacknife Lee, Kyle O'Quin, Darren Weiss Guitars – Dave Bassett, Martin Johnson, Elle King, Jacknife Lee, Blake Mills, Hunter Perrin, Mark Ronson, Eg White Keyboards – Dave Bassett, Jeff Bhasker, John Hill, Jacknife Lee Organ – Jeff Bhasker, Jacknife Lee, Jamie Muhoberac, Kyle O'Quin Piano – Jeff Bhasker, Martin Johnson, Jacknife Lee, Jamie Muhoberac, Kyle O'Quin, Brandon Paddock Synthesizer – John Hill

Production

A&R – Peter Edge, David Wolter Assistant – Marcus Johnson, Kyle Moorman, Alex Salibian, Joe Visciano Digital editing – Chris Bernard, Matt Bishop Engineering – Dave Bassett, Sam Bell, Mark Bengtson, Matt Bishop, Doug Boehm, Tyler Sam Johnson, Jacknife Lee, Matt Ross, Alex Salibian, Pawel Sek, Laura Sisk, Eg White Mastering – Stephen Marcussen Mixing – Jeff Bhasker, Michael H. Brauer, Tom Elmhirst, Martin Johnson, Vance Powell, Alex Salibian, Eg White Mixing assistant – Mark Bengtson Producer – Dave Bassett, Jeff Bhasker, John Hill, Martin Johnson, Jacknife Lee, Eg White Production assistant – Ben Baptie, Tyler Sam Johnson, Brandon Paddock Programming – John Hill, Martin Johnson, Kyle Moorman, Brandon Paddock

Imagery Art direction – Erwin Gorostiza, Michelle Holme Design – Michelle Holme Photography – Dustin Cohen

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (2015–2016) Peak position UK Americana (OCC) 1

Year-end charts Chart (2015) Position US Billboard 200 121 US Top Rock Albums (Billboard) 25 Chart (2016) Position Australian Albums (ARIA) 90 UK Americana (OCC) 2 US Billboard 200 91 US Top Rock Albums (Billboard) 15

Certifications

References