Last Night on Earth (Lee Ranaldo album)

Last Night on Earth is the tenth studio album by the American alternative rock musician Lee Ranaldo, released on October 7, 2013 on Matador Records.

Recorded over a nine-month period at Echo Canyon West in Hoboken, New Jersey, the album features Ranaldo's backing band The Dust which comprises former Sonic Youth bandmate Steve Shelley, guitarist Alan Licht and bassist Tim Lüntzel.

Last Night on Earth was announced for release on July 22, 2013 by Matador Records alongside upcoming tour dates in the United States and Canada.

[17] In a review for Cuepoint, Robert Christgau said the graceful and occasionally beautiful melodies Ranaldo composed for the album would have been subdued by Sonic Youth's noisy aesthetic, while his singing, still somewhat wordier "than even the alt-rock norm, has turned tender, elegiac, lyrical".

"[8] Paste reviewer Robert Ham was critical of certain compositional elements of the album but praised Alan Licht's guitar work and said "the loose, free spirit of Last Night is to be expected considering how quickly the songs were written and recorded ... and for the most part, it suits Ranaldo.

[14] Tiny Mix Tapes critic Jeff Milo took note of how the album's songs "spread, shift, transform, and soar—never too waywardly in a 'jammy' sense, but like a showcase of the splendors of each player's instrumental range and talent", adding it is "a highlight of his aptitude for rich and compelling lyrics".