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Neumu.net

The Life Pursuit is an immaculate album; Belle & Sebastian craft pure pop perfection better than just about anybody.

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The Onion (A.V. Club)

The band sounds reinvigorated even when returning to well-trodden turf, and even livelier when moving away from it.

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Entertainment Weekly

A work more elastic and ebullient than their '90s releases. [10 Feb 2006, p.134]

Slant Magazine

The melodic hooks are huge, but what makes The Life Pursuit a legitimately great album is that Murdoch's lyrics are at turns witty, insightful, assertive, and sardonic.

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Drowned In Sound

Sounding somehow perfectly modern yet refreshingly and celebratory retro, The Life Pursuit is Belle And Sebastian at their freest, delightfully spilling over with great ideas and perfect pop know-how.

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musicOMH.com

Absolutely essential listening.

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Prefix Magazine

There's still plenty about the group to satisfy long-time fans, and there's a wealth of quality and innovation to win them some new ones.

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Austin Chronicle

The Life Pursuit is certainly nothing new in the pop lexicon, but Murdoch's keen observational eye gives these songs vivid life.

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Pitchfork

The band's latest extends their newfound confidence to content as well as delivery, and stands as the finest full-length by Stuart Murdoch and his shifting collaborators since [If You're Feeling Sinister].

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Stylus Magazine

It's not as much a progress as DCW, but it's easily its equal.

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cokemachineglow

The Life Pursuit is unquestionably even more upbeat than its predecessor, but contains newfound degrees of confidence and swagger that elevate it over DCW in nearly every respect, resulting in the finest Belle and Sebastian record top to bottom since Sinister.

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Paste Magazine

A broader sonic palette--including more overt silliness--gives Murdoch a chance to explore more moods, including some that are deceptively light. [Feb/Mar 2006, p.102]

Mojo

Pleasing as Trevor Horn's simpatico production on 2003's Dear Catastrophe Waitress was, Tony Hoffer has picked up the baton and ran with it, capitalising on the band's increased musical confidence while preserving vital hints of indie scuzz. [Feb 2006, p.92]

All Music Guide

It's not a radical departure for Belle & Sebastian -- there are several intimate, folky numbers that would comfortably fit on their previous records. But having these tunes surrounded by songs that successfully stretch the group's sound gives The Life Pursuit an unexpected, wholly welcome vitality.

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Uncut

A career milestone. [Mar 2006, p.91]

Dot Music

Hence we get an album which, musically at least, veers all over the place, from chamber pop to glam to, God help them, hotel lobby jazz. In other hands, this would be a terrible mess, but in each instance you feel like the group are inching ever closer to that perfect pop moment.

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Playlouder

A gloriously accomplished and very rewarding listen.

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New Musical Express

But while 'Dear Catastrophe Waitress' delivered an aural punch above B&S's usual weight, it wasn't quite the return to form many claimed. That return is delivered here, on 'The Life Pursuit', Belle And Sebastian's seventh album and their best since '...Sinister'.

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BBC collective

Possibly their best and certainly most joyously eclectic album yet.

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Billboard

"The Life Pursuit" continues B&S' growth into more of a timeless pop act, its wry eye toward U.K. life refocused into tighter, swifter arrangements. [11 Feb 2006]

Filter

There's no mistaking the band's sunnier and, well, manlier sound. [#19, p.89]

E! Online

The Life Pursuit is all swaying tempos and vintage summer-sad melodies that sound like a postcard from home.

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Spin

Hoffer preserves [Trevor] Horn's professional sheen but not his swinging charm, leaving us with all bathwater and no baby. [Feb 2006, p.86]

ShakingThrough.net

The Life Pursuit isn't so much a conflicted Belle & Sebastian as it is the sound of a band continuing to evolve its sound without sacrificing its core identity. It's certainly not the best place for a newcomer to start, but it's an interesting (if not wholly satisfying) addition to the band's body of work.

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Tiny Mix Tapes

They certainly have a grasp on what they're creating, but it hurts a little bit to think that the mysterious band-that-could from ten years back cares less for innovation than simply having a fleeting good time.

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Q Magazine

The presence of more filler than is comfortable does not detract from the creative health in evidence on the better songs. [Feb 2006, p.100]

PopMatters

It certainly takes another big step in a more assertive direction.

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Trouser Press

More of an expansion than a breakthrough.

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Urb

Shows exactly what a great, reliable pop entity they have become over the past decade. [Apr 2006, p.82]

Blender

Sits squarely in the middle of B&S's comfort zone: never bad but rarely inspiring. [Mar 2006, p.109]

Rolling Stone

When the experiments work... it's clear that band leader Stuart Murdoch still has plenty of major-league tunes left in the tank. [9 Feb 2006, p.64]

The Guardian

Literate, droll, moving and often very beautiful, The Life Pursuit certainly isn't a bad album, but it's a disappointment after Dear Catastrophe Waitress.

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Alternative Press

The Life Pursuit is less confused than the three albums that precede it, but it's also just as forgettable. [Mar 2006, p.124]

Dusted Magazine

Though these may succeed as pop songs, Belle & Sebastian ultimately subvert their appeal by contradicting precious, self-effacing sentiments with brash music.

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Magnet

There's a strange, practiced quality to the pop numbers that robs them of their buoyancy. [#71, p.87]

What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this album is 8.5 (out of 10) based on 101 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

J TR gave it a9:
It's always nice to be reminded why you love a band. This is such a solid album, so full of joy, wit, and inspiration.

R G gave it an8:
great b & s album, they have been on a downhill slump, dear catastrophee was ok ( loved i m a cuckoo) but this is looking back at a great age of pop and making great pop for today. they are very comfortable with themselves, and i think dear castrophee helped with that. def their best album since if you are feeling sinister

Guy gave it a10:
Best album of the year hands down.

Brendan D gave it a10:
Simply put, this is the best record of the year, and quite possibly it's the best pop record of the decade. Honestly, I know there are a lot of B&S fans out there, but I've never, ever been one of them. They were always to cute, to precious, too twee for me, which is kind of funny, considering I absolutely adore the Sea and Cake. So I turn on "The Life Pursuit," and I'm listening to the first track. Ho-hum. La-de-da. Then the chorus of "Act of the Apostle" comes in, replete with its ringing organ and Carol Kaye-esque bass line, and I get kind of happy. 'Okay,' I think, 'This might not be too bad.' And then, "Another Sunny Day" comes on and absolutely blows my mind. I remember distinctly that it was springtime here in Chicago. I remember that because it was nearing the end of my last year in college, the trees were coming back, the weather was warming up, and I wasn't sober a day. And Belle & Sebastian made it all the better. I'd walk down the street listening to "The Life Pursuit" on my now dearly-departed iPod, smiling irrepressible smiles because the music made my so freakin' happy, like the Beach Boys' "Sunflower" or any number of Polyphonic Spree live shows I've got. Art Brut's got the chops, the Secret Machines have the emotion; Grandaddy's got the sentiment, and Jenny Lewis has the beauty. But Belle & Sebastian get my vote -- easily -- for album of the year.

D gave it a9:
They made it!

Reuben F gave it a6:
My first musical love was The Smiths, and so predictably enough, I kinda like Belle & Sebastian as well. I know they don't like being described as 'Twee Pop', and most likely their fans wouldn't like that description either, but it seems to me quite apt. The website World Wide Words gives the definition as follows: "It means excessively or affectedly quaint, sentimental or mawkish, sometimes coupled with words like nauseatingly. It’s a strongly negative word, and a very useful one, that is in common British use. It appeared at the beginning of the twentieth century to mean something dainty or sweet, a girly and gushing word." Despite the aptness of the word Twee for describing their music, they have a bookish charm which is ok in small doses.

Arik K gave it a9:
The pop melodies are well crafted and well produced. The lyrics are amazing and fit extremely well, and the album as a whole flows together incredibly. Probably one of my favorite albums this year.

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