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PopMatters

It never feels like those doing the picking had to lower the standards or tack things on to fill out a weak selection, and like a greatest hits album from any band worth its salt, the biggest criticism to be found here is the failure to include certain songs.

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Lost At Sea

Although the new parts of their "new" album aren't the best, the band certainly deserves some praise and attention for the marathon of 2006. The Broken String will be noticed by at least a few people.

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The Onion (A.V. Club)

It really is great, striding confidently from one high point to the next, with expansive yet homemade-sounding folk-rock songs.

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Paste Magazine

Bishop Allen has delivered an album worthy of its integrity-laden new home.

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Magnet

The Broken String easily takes its place alongside those classics [Wilco’s Being There and Ben Folds Five’s self-titled debut].

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Uncut

Just as the record threatens to flatten into artifice, they bust out their best Clash and Cheap Trick moves on 'Middle Management,' gleefully shattering the porcelain into smithereens. [Jan 2008, p.82]

Stylus Magazine

Perhaps the biggest draw of the album--its sheer fragility and unlikeliness, amidst throngs of over-arranged pseudo-chamber indie records.

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The Phoenix

The result bounces all over the place, from zippy new-wave rave-ups to tinkly twee-pop lullabies to handsome folk-rock jams with trippy guitar sounds.

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Prefix Magazine

While managing to side-step both preciousness and predictability, The Broken String pulls together the long-anticipated and full-fledged follow-up that fans deserve, at the same time aptly defining where Bishop Allen is now: all over the map.

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All Music Guide

The Broken String ups the ante considerably, reworking ten songs from the EP cycle and two new cuts into lustrous indie pop notable for its versatility, clever lyrics, and offbeat instrumentation.

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Dusted Magazine

The Broken String, fails to arouse--the sound is homey, the playing facile and the lyrics keen but not overly precious.

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Spin

The Broken String pares down the track list and polishes the best of the EPs. [Sep 2007, p.123]

cokemachineglow

The Broken String is a collection of mostly likeable songs, one dud, and one song-of-the-year-quality track.

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Pitchfork

While the record is far from a failure, Bishop Allen's studio revisionism also falls short of offering anything substantially new to much of the EP material.

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Tiny Mix Tapes

Longer listeners will be impressed with the band’s evolution but will inevitably be let down with the lack of charm in these new recordings as opposed to their looser demo cuts.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this album is 8.5 (out of 10) based on 8 User Votes

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

Paul F gave it a10:
I love this band. Great lyrics, catchy hooks not a filler track on the album.

christian P gave it a7:
The majority of this album is stunning and exciting. There are just a few too many lulls. Very promising. It seems to me that Bishop Allen and Voxtrot will be duking it out for years to come.

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The Broken String

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