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Zero 7
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One Plus One Is One
Mixed or average reviews
Based on 23 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 10 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album >
Album Info
Label: Twisted Nerve / Astralwerks
Release Date: 27 July 2004
Discs: 1 disc
Genre(s): Indie, Rock
Summary
Apart from demonstrating that his addition skills are as poor as Radiohead's, 'One Plus One' finds Damon Gough returning to the more low-key, lo-fi sound of his earlier work after the much glossier 'Have You Fed The Fish?' failed to win the British singer-songwriter new fans in 2002.
Also By This Artist: About A Boy [Soundtrack] Born In The U.K. Have You Fed the Fish? The Hour of Bewilderbeast
Also On The Web: Official Artist Site
What The Critics Said
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
ShakingThrough.net
One Plus One Is One may not sparkle with surprising brilliance, as Bewilderbeast did, but it is certainly the most thematically and musically grounded album Gough has yet created.
Read Full Review >Q Magazine
An album full of freshness and fun that's less sketchy than its predecessors. [Jul 2004, p.110]
The Guardian
On the one hand, it's a little hokey: if One Plus One Equals One tried any harder to charm you, it would turn up on your doorstep with a bottle of Fleurie and offer you a footrub. On the other, the songs are Gough's strongest in years.
Read Full Review >Filter
Sounds like something made by a gifted producer who has a great voice, an earnest way with words, a vast well of fantastic ideas, and a serious OCD complex. [#12, p.95]
Dot Music
This is much more than a retrenchment, and it certainly isn't a retreat.
Read Full Review >Splendid
It's all so beautifully simple, especially moody acoustic guitar/piano laments like "Fewer Words", that you almost miss how effective the arrangements are -- gorgeous, heartfelt melodies yield odes to a life that's consistently surprising and alive with optimism.
Read Full Review >Under The Radar
While One Plus One Is One fails to fully capture the charm of his debut, it comes close. [#7]
New Musical Express
A record which is closer in spirit to the rustic eccentricity of his '...Bewilderbeast' debut, while still moving things forward. [19 Jun 2004, p.57]
Rolling Stone
It's slow, beautiful and ponderously sincere. [19 Aug 2004, p.118]
All Music Guide
There are times when One Plus One Is One is simply too much, and the fresh spin that Gough brought to the British singer/songwriter tradition in his earlier work is missed, but he's still a fine addition to it.
Read Full Review >Blender
Get past the sometimes cloying pastoral arrangements and the often cornball sentiments and there are moments of ragged glory. [Sep 2004, p.132]
Entertainment Weekly
A snoozy muddle, dominated by underwritten, over-orchestrated ballads. [6 Aug 2004, p.80]
PopMatters
Despite some truly inspired songs, One Plus One doesn't have the same dizzying effect as the genre-hopscotching Bewilderbeast or the orchestrated beauty of confident follow-ups About a Boy and Have You Fed the Fish?.
Read Full Review >cokemachineglow
I have the distinct feeling I’ve heard most of the songs on this album before. Nothing here is particularly original, and nothing moves me in the way that Gough’s earlier work so did.
Read Full Review >Uncut
There are flashes of sublimity, but too often hideous flashbacks of Jethro Tull and ELO. [Jul 2004, p.102]
Billboard
While there's not necessarily a bad song to be found, Gough is capable of much more than the pretty yet bland compositions that dominate "One Plus One."
Read Full Review >Alternative Press
A decidedly hit-or-miss affair. [Nov 2004, p.148]
Pitchfork
With their staid textures, the songs tend to blend into one another, sounding at best like a spiritless hodgepodge of About a Boy's weaker moments.
Read Full Review >The Onion (A.V. Club)
At times, the album sounds like a lost collaboration between Nick Drake and Jethro Tull, and one that might have best stayed lost.
Read Full Review >Tiny Mix Tapes
One Plus One is One sounds like an attempt to make a more serious statement, but with little substance invested in it. The result is Badly Drawn Boy's first boring album.
Read Full Review >What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this album is 7.2 (out of 10) based on 10 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Alexis gave it a2:
I wanted to like this album, I really did. "Bewilderbeast" is one of my favorite albums, period; but, both compared to his previous work and on its own, "One Plus One" is nothing but a dud. The lyrics are so trite and cliche it's almost unbelievable that anyone could find them appealing - I find myself cringing as I listen to this. The songwriting is good at best, but more often uninspiring and derivative - and the awful lyrics ruin what might otherwise be the few decent songs. I have tried listening to this CD several times in the hope that it might get better, as some reviewers have suggested, but it just doesn't. Disappointing is right.
matt a gave it a7:
Not as strong as his previous outings but still, pretty inventive stuff. Plus, I'm a little biased because I saw him live and not only did he play 14 classics from previous albums, but then he came back out and played this entire album from start to finish. Who else does that? No one. That is why I love him, he is a genius, and Pitchfork are still a bunch of morons.
Vince H. gave it a 6:
mart k is on to something...no I don't think the album is as good as he does and I still think it's his weakest effort yet (altough how could anyone top "Have you Fed the Fish?"). He is right that it takes a few listens to get a hold of. The first time I listened to it all the way through I almost threw it out, that's how much I hated it. But the songs here are not the catchy, effervescent pop songs of his earlier records, these ones have more texture and are more about design and sound then they are about catchy, memorable hooks. It seems to me Gough needed to get this one out of his system, so I'll allow it. But next time, please go back to your usual style!
Jared SS gave it a 10:
Splendid! I had pretty high expectations for this CD (well before they dropped a notch bc of some lame critics regarding it as "boring") and it delivered through to its promise. This collection of songs totally hit the spot for me at the time I was listening to it, and it worked even better for me the following day. Rock on BDB, this was your best since "Bewilderbeast".
mart k gave it a 10:
First listen...crap...Second listen...crap...third listen....hey what's that bit about?....fourth listen....that one tune keeps playing in my head...fifth listen...this is starting to really grow on me....sixth listen...this man is a fucking genius....seventh...best album I have come across in years...god bless him.
angee right gave it a 0:
Really disappointing...shows the steady decline since his debut album has turned into a freefall. Songs for middle aged and cloth eared, not to mention pretentious , music critics.
