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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed albums.
The Violet Hour
Universal acclaim
Based on 19 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 13 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album >
Album Info
Label: Merge
Release Date: 08 July 2003
Discs: 1 disc
Genre(s): Indie, Rock
Summary
The London-based band follow their singles collection ('Suburban Light') with this, their first true studio LP, which continues their hazy, 60s-influenced sound developed in those earlier songs.
Also By This Artist: Bonfires On The Heath God Save The Clientele Strange Geometry
Also On The Web: Merge Records 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...
Nude As The News
As impressive as the early singles were, the material on The Violet Hour is often commensurate, sometimes superior.
Read Full Review >Stylus Magazine
Such are The Clientele’s gifts that its hard to believe The Violet Hour is only their debut album; few bands with more impressive vintages and prolific back-catalogues have managed to make records as touching, cohesive and deeply seeped in their own character as The Clientele have here.
Read Full Review >Flak Magazine
The understated instrumental, tempo and mood variations are what make The Violet Hour so great -- by the time you reach the closing track, you have not once been jarred out of the reverie induced by the opening title track.
Read Full Review >Splendid
It's rare that a band can recreate such a broad measure of emotions with such a soft palette.
Read Full Review >Uncut
This is surely one of the most magical pop albums of 2003. [Sep 2003, p.112]
Dusted Magazine
There probably won't be many albums in 2003 that will combine images, sounds and deepfelt emotions as well as The Violet Hour.
Read Full Review >Junkmedia
The group's cohesion is the cornerstone of the album; no one instrument stands out, while each contributes equally to the whole. And it's the trio's loose arrangements and subtle interplay that leave center stage to the thoughtful and provocative lyrics.
Read Full Review >Pitchfork
To what some chortle is a limited palette, the Clientele adds some new instrumentation-- steel and Spanish guitar, field recordings, violin, chimes-- to create a dense yet rich tapestry of hazy pop, like Felt at their most impressionistic.
Read Full Review >Entertainment Weekly
Was it worth the wait? Well, it is for those who favor the kind of retro-futurist pop that recalls the mood-drenched fog of Galaxie 500 decorated with Byrdsian guitar filigrees.
Read Full Review >New Musical Express (NME)
Every so often a record pops up that seems to exist in some alien world, unscathed by hipster fads and driven forward only by its own gorgeous mindset. With 'The Violet Hour', The Clientele have made a beautifully haunting album of music to take drugs to make music to take drugs to.
Read Full Review >The Onion (A.V. Club)
Suburban Light grew a little wearying because of a tonal similarity in songs recorded over a period of years, but The Violet Hour sounds deeper and more deliberate, enveloping its listeners like a fast-rolling fog.
Read Full Review >Delusions of Adequacy
The Clientele’s debut album offers consistently strong melodies, excellent playing, occasional surprise, and a taste for more.
Read Full Review >All Music Guide
The Violet Hour not only perfects the gorgeously hazy pop of their previous releases, it also adds a guileless freshness to it that is completely apt for their debut album.
Read Full Review >Village Voice
The more involved the songs get, the more ethereal they end up, and not always to the good.
Read Full Review >The Guardian
Though The House Always Wins unlocks a tidal wave of frustration with its nervy guitars, the change of pace can't prevent the numbness.
Read Full Review >PopMatters
Though the songs are altogether pleasant, they more often than not fail to make a unique impression, instead fading into the background like lovely, though unchanging, scenery.
Read Full Review >Billboard
The band too rarely steps out of its dream pop mode to actually move the listener.
Read Full Review >Mojo
Some may bemoan the lack of scope in these hushed meditations.... But more will find comfort in the warm surrender of The Clientele's aesthetic. [Sep 2003, p.113]
Alternative Press
They're so busy crafting the perfect pop song... that they've made a uniformly dull album. [Sep 2003, p.102]
What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this album is 9.0 (out of 10) based on 13 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
samuel r gave it a3:
Too caught up in creating a general sound than decent sounding songs
Jacques Derrida gave it an8:
A virtually perfect mood album. The hazy vocals and languid guitar combine for a sound that, while not overly inventive, is distinct in its own right. Think Belle and Sebastian with more distortion. Can't wait for their next offering.
otoniel gave it a10:
This is the perfect dream pop album to make love to.
Darryl D gave it a10:
The lusty gloom is not even alieviated by the elegance of diction.
Jon gave it a 10:
I can make a strong, persuasive case for other records of the past two years being more original or radical or artistically ambitious, but I have played "The Violet Hour" more than anything else in my collection over the last 2 years. Easily. It's shimmeringly, hauntingly brilliant, and I can't get enough.
spez mcd gave it a 9:
Great, summer music
marcus l gave it a 10:
Simply an excellent work... These guys have produced a beautiful album - evocative, melodic, powerful... Wish there were more bands with such talent.
