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Pig Lib

2003 studio album by Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks

Wikipedia contributorsAdapted for Fathomly · View authors
1 min read
Source updated December 25, 2025
Image credit is listed at the end of this article.

Pig Lib is the second studio album by Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks, released on March 18, 2003, by Matador Records. It peaked at No. 97 in the U.S. and No. 63 in the UK. The first pressing of the record came with a bonus disc containing five additional new songs. As of June 2004, the album has sold 49,000 copies in the U.S. according to Nielsen SoundScan.

01Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic80/100
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic
Blender
Entertainment WeeklyA−
The Guardian
Mojo
Pitchfork8.0/10
Q
Rolling Stone
SpinA
Uncut

Pig Lib received generally positive reviews from music critics. Christian Hoard, writing for Rolling Stone, described the album as "Malkmus' loosest set of songs ever, an elegantly meandering head trip underpinned by the kind of tuneful, world-wise romanticism that's won him the hearts of English majors everywhere".

02Track listing

  1. "Water and a Seat", 4:18
  2. "Ramp of Death", 2:37
  3. "(Do Not Feed the) Oyster", 4:49
  4. "Vanessa from Queens", 3:21
  5. "Sheets", 3:19
  6. "Animal Midnight", 5:11
  7. "Dark Wave", 2:26
  8. "Witch Mountain Bridge", 5:21
  9. "Craw Song", 2:41
  10. "1% of One", 9:11
  11. "Us", 4:16

Bonus disc

  1. "Dynamic Calories", 2:23
  2. "Fractions & Feelings", 3:28
  3. "Old Jerry", 6:18
  4. "The Poet and the Witch" (live), 2:05
  5. "Shake It Around" (live), 4:04

"The Poet and the Witch" is a Mellow Candle cover.

"Shake It Around" is an otherwise unreleased original.

Watch videos about Pig LibExplainers and documentaries on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Pig Lib”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

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