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8701 - Usher
  • Band Name: Usher
  • Record Label: Arista
  • Release Date: Aug 7, 2001
Metascore
67 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 11 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 11
  3. Negative: 0 out of 11
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  1. New Musical Express (NME)
    Jan 3, 2011
    80
    Versatility is the key here: staccato beats with mellifluous melody, rich slow-jams and edgy harmonies - but woven through with Usher's own perspective. A winner.
  2. Sonicnet
    80
    A strong, expressive singer, Usher is particularly adroit at seductive, late-night ballads.
  3. Blender
    80
    It does what it's supposed to, giving Usher a grown-up R&B sound without reducing his boyish charm. [Aug/Sep 2001, p.131]
    All this publication's reviews
  4. Billboard
    80
    A disc that flows with soulful vocals showcased in clean, back-to-the-real production settings
  5. Entertainment Weekly
    67
    Usher has settled into his voice nicely, but there's little beyond the buttery "U Remind Me" to inspire a listener chant of "four more years." [10 Aug 2001, p.74]
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  6. E! Online
    67
    But even a busload of heavyweight producers and guests (P. Diddy, Jermaine Dupri, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, the Neptunes and more) can't help this Babyface prodigy from playing it too same-y here.
  7. Vibe
    Feb 4, 2011
    60
    Usher's back at ya with a consistent third album that has a good chance of staying afloat in a marketplace overflowing with crooning R&B clones. [Sep 2001, p.235]
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  8. Slant Magazine
    Jan 7, 2011
    60
    Acoustic guitar work, live drums by Stokley of Mint Condition (remember them?), and a cameo by the law-brushing P. Diddy ("If making hits is a crime, I plead guilty") also lend a surprising amount of variety to what could have been an otherwise homogenized set.
  9. All Music Guide
    Jan 3, 2011
    60
    8701 is more mood music than anything else, and while it does work fairly well on that level, it's not memorable outside of that mood.
  10. Rolling Stone
    Jan 3, 2011
    60
    If the album has a fault, it's that Usher never surrenders his meticulously groomed veneer - don't hold your breath for a genuine rawboned holler or hint of reckless spontaneity among these calculated compositions. Still, despite Usher's radio-safe reserve, 8701's wispy slow jams and booming club cuts strike a sweet nerve.
  11. Q Magazine
    40
    Not quite the step forward he needed. [Sep 2001, p.122]
    All this publication's reviews
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