Aesthethica - Liturgy
Metascore
72 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 13 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 13
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 13
  3. Negative: 1 out of 13
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  1. The A.V. Club
    May 17, 2011
    91
    Stacked against its predecessor, Aesthethica feels less like metal-black, post-, or otherwise--and more like Liturgy. And in this case, that's a great thing.
  2. No Ripcord
    Jun 16, 2011
    90
    It's black metal for prog fans or math rockers, Liturgy's attention to arrangement and speed the sort of maddeningly precise output nerds like that eat up.
  3. Tiny Mix Tapes
    May 16, 2011
    90
    The band's aching for that contradictory limit can be felt quivering in every inch of Aesthetica. It is to their credit that one feels at peace through the record's most violent and cataclysmic moments.
  4. Pitchfork
    May 16, 2011
    83
    Aesthethica is inventive, alive, and shrieking with more ideas than many bands explore over an entire career.

User Reviews

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User Score
8.5 out of 10

Universal acclaim- based on 4 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 3
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 3
  3. Negative: 0 out of 3
  1. mrcseattle
    9
    A truly singular record. First, the speed and intensity of the musicianship grabs your attention. Second, the elements of their sound: Blast beats, screamed vocals consisting of short lyrical phrases, upper-register dueling guitars, and a fuzz-bass anchor, begin to coalesce into an original, expressive aesthetic. Third, you realize that beneath it all, half of the tracks are actually great SONGS. "Generation", "Tragic Laurel", and my personal favorite, "Glory Bronze", make up the top tier of the cuts here. Aesthethica rips open a hole to a new violent world, then forces you to remain there until the internal logic of the place begins to sink in. By then, though, you don't want to leave.
    P.S. Greg Fox, PLEASE rejoin the band so you guys can someday play "The Colbert Report".    … Full Review »
  2. jackchanning
    9
    Aesthethica seems to be a huge issue to metal-goers, claiming it "hipster metal".. and mostly because of the way the band dresses. but while they seem to be "hipsters", their music is anything but. it's a force to be reckoned with, paving way for a new subgenre they dub 'transcendental black metal': all the wails and blast beats of black metal merged with a mathcore sensibility and the act of transcendence itself.… Full Review »
  3. enjoyablyC
    8
    A good album, but will have trouble finding an audience. The black metal posers will undoubtely dub it "hipster black metal" and the hipsters well...hipsters don't like black metal.… Full Review »
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