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...

Amazon.com

It's what Sigur Ros might sound like if they came from Arizona, and it's truly excellent.

Read Full Review >

The Onion (A.V. Club)

"Cruel" sounds like a mini-symphony, as do the fragile, faintly psychedelic "Panic Open String" and the post-Beatles singer-songwriter ballad "Lucky Dime."

Read Full Review >

Entertainment Weekly

True, some distinctiveness has been lost along the way, but that is largely recompensed by the quality of such tracks as "Cruel," "All Systems Red," and the quite beautiful "Bisbee Blue." [26 May 2006, p.106]

Pitchfork

I'd never wanted Calexico to change, but the new direction suits them well, proving that even in the face of radical metamorphosis, they remain as stunning and distinctive as ever.

Read Full Review >

Uncut

Burns and Convertino prove they can play it relatively straight, without sacrificing Calexico's hard-earned status as a band that matters. [May 2006, p.104]

New Musical Express

There's always something heartwarming about a band discovering pop well into their career, especially when it sounds as good as this. [1 Apr 2006, p.43]

Mojo

Some of its finest moments are its most intimate and least arranged. [May 2006, p.99]

BBC collective

The best thing about Garden Ruin is the way they look beyond country borders to engage with the wider world, both culturally and musically.

Read Full Review >

Observer Music Monthly

There is a new-found ferocity at play.

Read Full Review >

The Guardian

These are the kind of songs that gnaw their way into your consciousness.

Read Full Review >

NOW Magazine

Many of the familiar signifiers are gone, yet their well crafted and characteristically tuneful compostions still have a recognizable Calexico feel.

Read Full Review >

All Music Guide

Ultimately, this album ends up being a more naturalistic take on Calexico's sound; just because it's less stylized doesn't mean it's less interesting -- it just takes a little more time for Garden Ruin's power to reveal itself.

Read Full Review >

Under The Radar

Their most accessible collection of songs to date. [#13, p.83]

Spin

Calexico have abandoned much of the jazzy, mariachi-infused Americana pulses that characterized their former sound.

Read Full Review >

Q Magazine

There's still enough trail dust on the seat of their experimental pants to delight country rock eggheads. [May 2006, p.123]

Slant Magazine

It's the band's die-hards who will have to put in a good deal more work with Garden Ruin, an album that seems destined to be regarded as a "transitional" record a few years out.

Read Full Review >

Lost At Sea

Garden Ruin is good, but there are a bazillion alt-country Coors rockers who could pull this off, and coming from an outfit with such a remarkable past body of work it is a disappointment.

Read Full Review >

Delusions of Adequacy

The lack of truly classic Calexico moments marks the album as a transitory step: too far for some, not enough for others.

Read Full Review >

Prefix Magazine

Despite the occasional moment when Garden Ruin sounds like a garden-variety alt-country-rock album, its moments of pure Calexico charm outweigh its missteps.

Read Full Review >

Magnet

There are moments when all this earnestness turns sickly and Burns gets too serious about his gifts... but the eclectic moments of bass, banjo and French vocals... manage to jerk things back into focus. [#71, p.88]

ShakingThrough.net

Garden Ruin’s arrangements simply don’t arrest the senses as forcefully as its intelligent and aggrieved wordplay merits.

Read Full Review >

Stylus Magazine

At its best, Calexico does expand, opening the range of sounds to provide for new colors of expression; when it doesn't work, that open sound means a turn toward the basic, allowing prettiness to get in the way of sonic content.

Read Full Review >

cokemachineglow

This time, the album’s a one-trick pony.

Read Full Review >

PopMatters

In the end, Garden Ruin feels like a transitional album that will bear greater fruit later on.

Read Full Review >

Urb

Painfully unexciting. [Mar 2006, p.122]

Billboard

This new set fills in the spaces with sweeter, fuller arrangements, but the songs are hit and miss.

Read Full Review >

Austin Chronicle

Fans of Calexico's darker, rougher, and more cinematic work will pine for just that, even though the band's clearly evolving on Garden Ruin.

Read Full Review >

What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this album is 7.7 (out of 10) based on 26 User Votes

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

Sotiris T gave it an8:
A very good album. Not what Calexico fans were expecting but this album marks the exploring of new music horizons by Calexico.

Jon gave it a9:
It's the songs, people. Try to get "Yours and Mine" or "Bisbee Blue" out of your head. And the arrangements: less "cinematic," more economical...the horn section in "Cruel" lifts the sadness and tension of the song with a welcome kiss. Solid, solid stuff.

adri c gave it a5:
boring

Kevin R gave it an8:
Another great effort by one of the best bands of today.

Chad S gave it a9:
Did The Judybats reunite? "Cruel", in particular, would feel right at home on "Down in the Shacks Where the Satellite Dishes Grow". Other obvious winners are "Bisbee Blue" and "Deep Down". "Garden Ruin" has the sort of cohesion that is rare in most contemporary albums that hit the marketplace. They don't sound anything like The Go-Betweens, but they satisfy me the same way. Calexico knows when to quit.

klass v gave it an8:
maybe not exactly as great as previous albums, but still a gem shining silently and majestically.

DDB gave it a3:
Really dull. I love the band, but this CD is not good. Do not understand all the positive reviews. It goes from boring to just plain annoying. A disappointment for many fans I would guess.

Music

Upcoming &Recent Releases

Garden Ruin

Album Info

Summary

Also On Metacritic

What The Critics Said

What Our Users Said

Upcoming &
Recent Releases