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Reprieve

Generally favorable reviews
Based on 12 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 10 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album >
Album Info
Label: Righteous Babe
Release Date: 08 August 2006
Discs: 1 disc
Genre(s): Rock, Singer-Songwriter
Summary
The latest studio outing from the prolific singer-songwriter features production by Mike Napolitano (along with DiFranco herself) and contributions from touring musician Todd Sickafoose.
Also By This Artist: Educated Guess Evolve Knuckle Down Red Letter Year Revelling/Reckoning
Also On The Web: Righteous Babe
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...
Entertainment Weekly
It's beautifully committed music--the kind that's as essential now as it has ever been. [11 Aug 2006, p.67]
Paste Magazine
Intimate and organic. [Sep 2006, p.74]
PopMatters
Reprieve may not court new members to the Church of Ani, but it may well be one of those albums that fans hold up as an underappreciated favorite in the years to come.
Read Full Review >Billboard
Musically, the album is more languid than earlier efforts without sacrificing the urgency of her patented guitar pluck-strum.
Read Full Review >Slant Magazine
Much of Reprieve sounds, appropriately enough, like DiFranco is taking a much-needed breather.
Read Full Review >Uncut
Reprieve is probably the easiest album to listen to that she's ever made. [Oct 2006, p.104]
All Music Guide
The downside of Reprieve is that it isn't as musically arresting as earlier albums like Out of Range, and DiFranco, on a song like "Millennium Theater," can be rather obvious.
Read Full Review >E! Online
An arresting mix of the singer's political and personal strife set to a jazzy backbeat.
Read Full Review >The New York Times
Subtle sounds -- acoustic instruments, electronic tones, environmental noises, distorted echoes -- well up around her, and they open up pockets of shadow around her usual pinpoint clarity. Now the atmosphere is as important as the words.
Read Full Review >NOW Magazine
Generally solid with more hits than misses, but my usual advice to DiFranco still applies: don't record everything you write – wait a few months and give us the best ones.
Read Full Review >Spin
Milky keyboard washes and found-sound accents... give the music a darker, dreamier depth. [Sep 2006, p.100]
What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this album is 8.3 (out of 10) based on 10 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Nace B gave it a10:
Sweet and Sad!!
Brandon S gave it a7:
This is a message for Nathaniel S and others like him: There's no need to call someone who expresses their opinion in this forum a "fool." Heaven forbid someone think differently from the great Nathaniel S. I read metacritic to get a variety of opinions and the reasoning behind them. Leave the classless insults out of it.
Ally E gave it an8:
Im glad to see that the music behind the voice is finally beginning to step out of the limelight. Her guitar playing, while consistently a joy to listen to, has lost some of the abrasiveness we've heard in some of her previous works. This lends to the soft and yet powerful feel that has become increasingly symbolic in her last few albums. Todd Sickafoose is a great musician of timing. Not once does he overpower the nature of ani's intention, and the two blend beautifully. A great addition to your CD collection, ani fan or not.
Jerrod L. gave it an8:
I've never been an Ani fan yet really like this album. All the songs are quiet and great to listen to while smoking a cigarette at midnight.
Me Myself gave it a10:
Outstanding collection.
corey p gave it a10:
its an amazing well thought out album. a must for any fan or politically charged listener
Daniel C gave it a9:
Very nice album... As allways!
