Nurture (album)

Nurture is the second studio album by American electronic music producer Porter Robinson, released on April 23, 2021, on Mom + Pop Music.
Background.
From 2015 to 2017, the years following his debut album, Robinson stated that he struggled to create music that he was proud of due to suffering from bouts of depression.
In 2016, Robinson released "Shelter", a collaboration with friend and fellow electronic producer Madeon. In 2017, Robinson unveiled his Virtual Self project, a eurodance and trance inspired production alias in tandem with a five-track EP. He made it clear that he would not mix music between his name and his alias, and would not play his alias's music while performing under his name (and vice versa).
In January 2020, he announced the album and the first single, "Get Your Wish", from the album to be released the next day. The announcement was made along with a 52-second video that featured cryptic messages and hints, including an obscured Google Maps link, dates, and geographic coordinates. These messages and hints are a signature of Robinson, who frequently hides puzzles and clues in his promotional material, art, and music for his fans to decrypt.
"Nurture" was originally intended to be released in September 2020. However, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the release was pushed back, and Robinson replaced some songs and extended the length of the album from 11 to 14 songs.
On December 18, 2020, the album was submitted, with Robinson announcing that the album's release would be in "a few months". The release date was later announced to be April 23, 2021.
On April 12, 2021, Porter Robinson revealed the titles of all of the tracks on the "Nurture" album on Twitter.
Singles.
The album's lead single, "Get Your Wish", was released on January 29, 2020, for streaming and digital download. A 7" vinyl press of the song was also put on sale on Robinson's website. The song features vocals by Robinson, which are pitched up and effected to sound more feminine.
The album's second single, "Something Comforting", was released on March 10, 2020. The official music video was released on March 25, 2020. A 7" vinyl press of the song was again put on his website. The song featured both Robinson's pitched-up vocals and his chest vocal range.
The album's third single, "Mirror", was released on August 26, 2020. The official music video was released on September 9, 2020, featuring character designs of Porter Robinson with other effects. A 7" vinyl press of the song was again put on his website along with a limited run of "Mirror Capsule" merchandise.
The album's fourth single "Look at the Sky" was released on January 27, 2021. A 7" vinyl press of the song was again put on his website. Robinson played a sample of the song at the end of his set at his online festival event Secret Sky on May 9, 2020. The music video of the song was released on February 10, 2021.
The album's fifth single, "Musician", was released on March 3, 2021. The song was announced on Robinson's Twitter account on February 26, 2021, with an animated teaser video. The music video was released on March 17, 2021. A 7" vinyl press of the song was again put on his website.
The album's sixth and final single, "Unfold", was released on April 22, 2021, one day before the release of the album. The song is a collaboration between Robinson and Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs.
Live performances.
On April 14, 2021, Robinson announced that Secret Sky 2021, the digital version of his yearly festival Second Sky, would take place on April 24, the day after the release of "Nurture".
Later that week, Robinson announced the artist lineup for that year's festival, featuring himself, Baauer, Boys Noize, End of the World, Imanu B2B Buunshin, James Ivy, Kero Kero Bonito, Laxcity, Masakatsu Takagi, No Rome, Rezz, Salute, Serph, Swardy, Wave Racer, and Yvette Young.
At Secret Sky, Robinson premiered the live show of "Nurture".. The first in-person performance is set to be at his Second Sky Festival.
On May 10, 2021, Robinson announced the North American "Nurture" live tour, with support from Jai Wolf.
Critical reception.
Sophie Walker from "The Line of Best Fit" wrote, "While "Nurture" may feel disordered, it's a kind of chaos that can only come with passion – and that is a sound Porter Robinson has more than earned the right to explore", scoring it a 9/10.
Josh Crowe of "Clash" magazine, in his 8/10 review, wrote, "The lyrical frenzies, when coupled with competing instrumentation, at times feels perhaps too frantic, but you can't fault the producer's efforts to craft a body of work that carries more substance than clubby touchstones."
Ben Devlin of "musicOMH" gave the album 4 out of 5 stars, writing that ""Nurture" is not a perfect record – it's a bit too samey for an hour-long release" but also that Robinson "has developed a niche that is fun, vivid and enthralling."
In his review for "Spectrum Culture", Aaron Pasking wrote that ""Nurture" is honest, consistent and focused, an improvement on "Worlds" in almost every way. Like any great sophomore album, Nurture sees its creator develop a unique musical personality while holding onto the qualities that made them successful in the first place."
Track listing.
All tracks were revealed by Robinson via social media on April 12, 2021. The Japanese edition of the album features an additional 15th track featuring Wednesday Campanella.
Notes