Area 52
by Rodrigo y Gabriela
  • Record Label: ATO
  • Release Date: Jan 24, 2012
Metascore
73

Generally favorable reviews - based on 19 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 19
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 19
  3. Negative: 0 out of 19
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  1. The Fly (UK)
    Feb 10, 2012
    60
    Mis-steps like the sticky Santana-worship on 'Hanuman' are far less palatable, but when the combinations match up, it proves exactly how impressive this band have become.
  2. Mojo
    Jan 31, 2012
    60
    They're still best when the basic Paco Pena influences surface. [Feb 2012, p.94]
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  3. No Ripcord
    Jan 30, 2012
    50
    The often overly-enthusiastic arrangements threaten to smother the qualities that made Rodrigo y Gabriela special in the first place with the quiet brutality of their guitar playing often lost in the extended jam-band style... structures.
  5. BBC Music
    Jan 26, 2012
    60
    Their sense of adventure seemingly knows no bounds, yet when, after six leisurely minutes of jazz-rock noodling, 11.11 suddenly segues into a passage of Cuban folk singing backed by a lone drummer, the strong whiff of pretension might hang rather too heavy in the air for some tastes.
  6. Sputnikmusic
    Jan 24, 2012
    50
    It's a nice project that might have been put to better use as a one night only concert, because it's certainly not the crucial next step in the continued evolution of this otherwise fascinating duo.
  7. Clash Music
    Jan 23, 2012
    60
    With clean production and virtuoisitic precision, imagine a Latin, metal, jazz inspired mellow mele, on acoustic instruments.
  8. The Observer (UK)
    Jan 23, 2012
    60
    It's a qualified success.
  9. Uncut
    Jan 20, 2012
    60
    There's a punch that saves them [from] drifting into coffee-table politesse. [Feb 2011, p.98]
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  10. Drowned In Sound
    Jan 20, 2012
    60
    This album will infuriate many but bewitch some.

User Reviews

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User Score
8.7

Universal acclaim- based on 6 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 6
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 6
  3. Negative: 0 out of 6
  1. jmenicucci
    Feb 10, 2013
    10
    I found this album on an airplane, of all places. I have a love of big, brassy Latin jazz ensemble work, so this seemed intriguing, evenI found this album on an airplane, of all places. I have a love of big, brassy Latin jazz ensemble work, so this seemed intriguing, even though I had no previous exposure to Rodrigo y Gabriela or C.U.B.A. I don't quite know how to describe the album, but I know that it works. The guitar work is virtuosic at times (Gabriela, I assume), but the brass band adds something to the mix that makes the whole greater than the sum of the parts. It is like melding two very different, albeit Latin, worlds. Because I did not listen to this album knowing what Rodrigo y Gabriela sounded like on their own, so I assumed, actually, that the two groups always recorded together. I guess that is a compliment, as they sound like they belong together to me.… Full Review »
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