Hope Is Important
1998 album by Idlewild
Hope Is Important is the debut studio album by the Scottish rock band Idlewild, released 26 October 1998 by Food Records. After finalising their line-up and releasing two singles in 1997, the band released their mini album Captain in early 1998. Afterwards, the band signed with Food and recorded their debut album between February and June 1998 at Chapel Studios in Lincolnshire and Westland Studios in Dublin with producer Paul Tipler. Described as a grunge and punk rock album, Hope Is Important was compared to Bleach (1989) by Nirvana.
"A Film for the Future" and "Everyone Says You're So Fragile" were released as the album's first two singles on 27 April 1998 and 6 July 1998, respectively. They were followed with some festival performances and a tour with labelmates Blur. The album's third single, "I'm a Message", was released on 12 October 1998. Early in 1999, the band went on tour in the UK. On February 5, 1999, the band released the album's fourth single, "When I Argue I See Shapes."
Hope Is Important received generally favourable reviews from music critics, some of whom praised the songwriting and Idlewild's energy. The album charted at number 44 in Scotland, and number 53 in the UK; it was also certified silver in the UK. All of the songs appeared on the Scottish and UK Singles Charts, with "When I Argue I See Shapes" charting the highest at number 15 in Scotland, and number 19 in the UK. Hope Is Important appeared on a best-of-the-year album list by NME, as well as a best Scottish albums list by The Herald.
Background and production
Roddy Woomble lived in Greenville, South Carolina, USA, between the ages of 13 and 15, where his music taste assimilated various punk and alternative rock albums.
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Object files, edition statements, performance records and contemporary criticism preserve different stages of the work’s history. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 24, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q5899331. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1998, 1997, 1989 and 1999.
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