Music
All-Time High (And Low) Scores
Best of 2009
Best of 2008
Best of 2007
Best of 2006
Best of 2005
Best of 2004
Best of 2003
Best of 2002
Best of 2001
Best of 2000
Best of the Decade
Upcoming &
Recent Releases
78
2562
55
30 Seconds to Mars
62
50 Cent
70
AC/DC
70
AFI
80
Matias Aguayo
65
Air
70
Alice In Chains
52
Kris Allen
78
Amerie
70
Tori Amos
86
Animal Collective![]()
78
Annie
76
Anti-Pop Consortium
64
Asobi Seksu
82
Atlas Sound![]()
77
The Avett Brothers
67
Backstreet Boys
59
Bad Lieutenant
68
Devendra Banhart
71
Lou Barlow
88
Baroness![]()
69
Basement Jaxx
75
Beak>
64
Between The Buried And Me
65
Justin Bieber
84
Biffy Clyro![]()
72
The Big Pink
46
Billy Talent
72
The Black Heart Procession
78
Blakroc
74
Mary J. Blige
51
Bon Jovi
57
Susan Boyle
74
Brakes [aka brakesbrakesbrakes]
76
Brand New
55
The Bravery
74
Broadcast And The Focus Group
83
Brother Ali![]()
38
Chris Brown
72
Ian Brown
75
Michael Buble
77
Built To Spill
78
Califone
69
Mariah Carey
81
Brandi Carlile![]()
72
Julian Casablancas
83
Rosanne Cash![]()
71
Castanets
82
Nick Cave & Warren Ellis![]()
66
Exene Cervenka
79
Vic Chesnutt
78
Guy Clark
84
The Clientele![]()
69
Clipse
70
Cold Cave
85
Converge![]()
76
The Cribs
80
Cymbals Eat Guitars
63
Dashboard Confessional
80
Dave Rawlings Machine
59
Dead By Sunrise
76
Dead Man's Bones
73
Del The Funky Homosapien & Tame One
73
Do Make Say Think
65
DOOM
67
Bob Dylan
59
Echo & The Bunnymen
80
El Perro del Mar
61
Electric Six
80
Engineers
71
Espers
53
Paloma Faith
69
Fanfarlo
65
Jay Farrar And Benjamin Gibbard
79
Felt
66
Orenda Fink
79
The Flaming Lips
66
Flight Of The Conchords
79
Florence And The Machine
69
Flyleaf
67
frYars
83
Fuck Buttons![]()
68
Ghostface Killah
78
Bebel Gilberto
79
Girls
69
Joe Goddard
69
Gossip
62
David Gray
75
Gucci Mane
48
Har Mar Superstar
65
Calvin Harris
79
Richard Hawley
76
Liam Hayes And Plush
66
Headlights
74
Heavy Trash
60
Gary Higgins
67
Hockey
80
Hudson Mohawke
65
Allison Iraheta
79
Islands
74
Jamie T
68
Daniel Johnston
73
Norah Jones
78
Rickie Lee Jones
77
Karen O And The Kids
72
Toby Keith
63
R. Kelly
71
Alicia Keys
68
Kid Sister
77
The King Khan & BBQ Show
66
Kings Of Convenience
62
Sean Kingston
64
KISS
73
Kris Kristofferson
76
La Roux
74
Lady GaGa
85
Miranda Lambert![]()
71
Adam Lambert
70
Le Loup
62
Lethal Bizzle
61
Leona Lewis
82
Lightning Bolt![]()
74
Little Dragon
83
Patty Loveless![]()
73
Lyle Lovett
79
Lucero
77
Madness
84
Madonna![]()
61
Maps
73
Mario
55
Massive Attack
61
John Mayer
69
Paul McCartney
66
Tim McGraw
65
Brian McKnight
75
Mika
67
Amy Millan
76
Mission Of Burma
75
Molina And Johnson
80
Monsters Of Folk
67
Morrissey
76
The Mountain Goats
64
Mr. Hudson
62
Múm
72
Mumford & Sons
72
Music Go Music
94
Me'Shell NdegéOcello![]()
83
Nirvana![]()
93
Nirvana![]()
80
No Age
71
Noah And The Whale
75
Noisettes
72
Ola Podrida
72
Om
61
OneRepublic
78
Osso
67
Alec Ounsworth
81
Owen![]()
73
Paramore
93
Dolly Parton![]()
78
Pastels And Tenniscoats
79
Pearl Jam
69
Jemina Pearl
80
Pelican
73
Elvis Perkins
94
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers![]()
79
A Place To Bury Strangers
72
Port O'Brien
79
R.E.M.
69
Rain Machine
53
Rakim
75
Dizzee Rascal
74
The Raveonettes
77
Real Estate
76
Rihanna
65
Omar Rodriguez-Lopez
81
The Rolling Stones![]()
76
Russian Circles
70
Hope Sandoval & The Warm Inventions
76
Say Anything
71
Shakira
57
Carly Simon
58
Simple Minds
80
Slayer
61
The Slits
64
Snoop Dogg
62
Snow Patrol
59
Spiral Stairs
55
Steel Panther
54
Stereophonics
76
Sufjan Stevens
52
Rod Stewart
45
Sting
67
Joss Stone
83
Barbra Streisand![]()
79
The Swell Season
74
Switchfoot
62
Swollen Members
80
Tegan And Sara
68
The Temper Trap
78
The Dutchess & The Duke
71
The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart
75
Them Crooked Vultures
72
Themselves
49
Timbaland
69
Times New Viking
57
Tokio Hotel
78
tUnE-YaRDs
67
Turbo Fruits
71
The Twilight Sad
54
Carrie Underwood
61
Various Artists
70
Various Artists
77
The Very Best
70
Kurt Vile
79
Vitalic
71
Volcano Choir
73
Rufus Wainwright
81
Tom Waits![]()
78
Wale
57
Weezer
81
White Denim![]()
72
White Rainbow
76
Why?
64
Robbie Williams
65
Wolfmother
84
The xx![]()
83
Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band![]()
69
Neil Young
80
Richard Youngs
59
Zero 7
Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed albums.
Fox Confessor Brings The Flood

Universal acclaim
Based on 28 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 53 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album >
Album Info
Label: Anti
Release Date: 07 March 2006
Discs: 1 disc
Genre(s): Indie, Rock, Alt-Country
Summary
Members of Calexico and Giant Sand help provide the music for the singer's first studio album in four years.
Also By This Artist: Blacklisted Middle Cyclone The Tigers Have Spoken
Also On Metacritic
MUSIC: The New Pornographers: Electric Version The New Pornographers: Mass Romantic The New Pornographers: Twin Cinema
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...
Alternative Press
An astonishing collection... that should leave Case's peers eating a cloud of Nashville dust. [Apr 2006, p.204]
The Onion (A.V. Club)
There's a confidence here that carried over from Case's remarkable 2004 live album The Tigers Have Spoken.
Read Full Review >Entertainment Weekly
Moving futher away from her early alt-country sound has sharpened Case's songwriting instincts. [10 Mar 2006, p.68]
Billboard
Case has never sounded as vital as she does on "Fox Confessor Brings the Flood."
Read Full Review >All Music Guide
Fox Confessor Brings The Flood is a rich, mature and deeply satisfying piece of music that deserves and demands attention -- if this isn't Album of the Year material, it's hard to say what is.
Read Full Review >Amazon.com
Her uncanny, often eccentric lyrics have always been delivered with an inherent passion behind the impulse, but rarely have they approached the boldness of these dozen.
Read Full Review >Prefix Magazine
Case's genius as a writer, evident from track to track, stems from her ability to write lyrics that conjure up amazingly clear images but that still leave the songs as a whole up to interpretation.
Read Full Review >Spin
[Fox Confessor] shows that for all her versatility, she has a singular vision when it comes to her own music. And Lordy, it is dark. [Mar 2006, p.92]
Uncut
With Fox Confessor, she has defiantly come into her own. [Apr 2006, p.106]
New Musical Express
A mesmerising album. [11 Mar 2006, p.41]
Mojo
Feels as old as a cracked-leather Bible that's lasted generations and witnessed many secrets. [Apr 2006, p.98]
Magnet
Musically, Fox fulfills the wish list of fans who've waitied for new material since 2002's Blacklisted. [#71, p.89]
ShakingThrough.net
Fox Confessor is often striking, intermittently dazzling and occasionally puzzling.
Read Full Review >Playlouder
On 'Fox Confessor Brings The Flood' Neko's voice and sheer poetry of her song-writing make hyped also-rans like Jenny Lewis look like hot-pant wearing desperados, proving to her rivals and beyond that style and substance aren't mutually exclusive.
Read Full Review >Under The Radar
Twelve of the most lyrically and musically ambitious songs of her career. [#12, p.90]
PopMatters
The numerous hired hands provide a sumptuous, varied backdrop for Case’s vocals, making for her most musically rich album to date.
Read Full Review >NOW Magazine
Case's overzealous self-production means there are layers upon layers to every track, which sometimes works to her detriment.
Read Full Review >Pitchfork
What once again prevents Case from delivering a front-to-back classic is a perfectionist streak that accounts for Flood's mannered meticulousness.
Read Full Review >The New York Times
At first, the songs can seem remote and arty, but gradually they start to add up; they're filled with a sense of loss and a hope for transformation. [6 Mar 2006]
Q Magazine
Exhibits a grace and richness that is sometimes absent from Case's self-regarding live shows. [Apr 2006, p.112]
Blender
On this sublime set, Case's own sweeping, backwoods melodies and bloodstained Southern Gothic lyrics finally match the drama of her wails. [Apr 2006, p.111]
Paste Magazine
Case... still approximates a Northwestern Patsy Cline with a graduate degree, and while the stories she tells are mournful, her delivery remains buoyant. [Apr/May 2006, p.101]
Rolling Stone
From her luscious, aching croon, and her ensemble's solemn high-mesa twang and groove..., you'd never guess she wasn't covering Patsy Cline standards.
Read Full Review >Stylus Magazine
Unsurprisingly, everything on Fox Confessor Brings the Flood is sublimated beneath Case’s vocals: music, momentum, the need for tunes.
Read Full Review >What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this album is 9.2 (out of 10) based on 53 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Gernick K gave it a10:
played the record again this weekend after not having listened to it for a while, was again struck by the sheer gorgeousness of this album. possibly the best album of 2006 (though i struggle to think of an album that could match this in 2006) Catch her live if you can, it will be magic.
Desmond B gave it a10:
Fox Confessor is a modern classic. The songs that don't hit you at first will reveal, after repeated listens, the genius of Neko's songwriting.
Phil M gave it a10:
Beautiful.
C Le gave it a10:
Neko's voice is stunning. The way it glides reminds me of... snowboarding. I also love the abstract nature of her lyrics. It's a great contrast to the sometimes overly literal lyrics of pop country. One of the best albums of 2006.
Reuben F gave it a9:
'Hold On, Hold On' and 'Needle Has Landed' are among the most beautiful songs of 2006. She might not have quite the same cult appeal of some other alt.country female artists to have emerged in recent years, like Martha Wainright's (2005) 'Bloody Mother F..king Asshole' (my Finnish house-mate is a fan), or the more obscure Joanna Newsom. But Neko Case is producing some of the best music of the genre. Interesting to note that a fellow New Pornographers member Daniel Bejar also has a successful solo career with his band Destroyer - something I have only just discovered.
Rob C gave it an8:
1- Amazing voice. 2- Beautiful Music 3- Strange Cover
DRE From Charlotte gave it a10:
Neko Case has the clearest voice in 2006 music. 'Fox' is a lovely, sorta wacko, alt-country masterpiece. It's sort of like stepping back in time to heart Pasty Cline singing cutting-edge alt.
