The Incredible Machine is the fifth studio album by American country music duo Sugarland. It was released on October 19, 2010, through Mercury Nashville Records. Byron Gallimore along with both members Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush teamed up for production of the album.
Upon its release, The Incredible Machine received mixed reviews from music critics. It debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling approximately 203,000 units in its first week and has since been certified Platinum by the RIAA. "Stuck Like Glue" served as the lead single, later peaking at number two on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.
Content
In many interviews leading up to its release, both Nettles and Bush described the new album as "steampunk movement", best described as a branch of science fiction that imagines a world where humans evolved intellectually, but technology remained set in Victorian times. Nettles described it (emotionally) "as bungee jumping and eating chocolate cake, It's terrifying and gratifying, all at the same time". This description led fans and critics to believe that the album would have "steam engine sounds", and would also be a sharp deviation from the uptempo country for which they're known. Nettles apologized about the confusion in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, saying "That's really our fault for the way that we explained it, to be honest. It has everything to do with the visual. We wanted another world on stage. We wanted something fun, a visual aesthetic to be inspired by. We chose that one. It has nothing to do with the music".
Blake Boldt of Engine 145 described the first single, "Stuck Like Glue", as "A catchy twang-pop package" and that is "a fun mixture of accordion and mandolin, is a hooky earworm that begins to zero in on Sugarland’s vision of the musical future". Entertainment Weekly described the track "Wide Open" as "a propulsive rocker", and "Stand Up" as "pure inspiration in two-part harmony".
Production and influences
During the recording of the album, Nettles and Bush had fun because they kept things loose in the studio and in the songwriting. "We had such a good time writing this record because we really allowed ourselves to play". Nettles continued saying, "As artists, we are always wanting to better ourselves and to develop our craft and to get better at not only reaching the human heart, but at . . . stretching ourselves to see who else we can bring into the country world and who else we can speak to. I'm always satisfied, but I don't know that I'll ever be complacent. There are different artists who musically end up following different paths. Some are more of the traditionalists, and I think that's great. We need that in every genre. And then some of us, like Kristian and myself, are more of the pioneers ... the explorers. We want to explore new territory and allow the genre to grow because, as we all know, if we don't grow we stagnate. So, especially now, it's a super fertile time in country music to allow it to grow".
Influences were drawn from English electronic group Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD), progressive rock musician Peter Gabriel, and the hair metal genre. AllMusic critic Thom Jurek felt that the album also borrowed from Joshua Tree-period U2, and post-New Gold Dream era Simple Minds.