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Zero 7
Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed albums.
A Blessing And A Curse
EMAILPRINTby Drive-By Truckers
Generally favorable reviews
Based on 24 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 18 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album >
Album Info
Label: New West
Release Date: 18 April 2006
Discs: 1 disc
Genre(s): Indie, Rock
Summary
The southern rockers have no overarching concept this time out, but they still boast three singers and guitarists in Patterson Hood, Mike Cooley and Jason Isbell.
Also By This Artist: Brighter Than Creation's Dark Decoration Day The Dirty South
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...
Entertainment Weekly
Finds [Drive-By Truckers] turing from the social concerns of 2004's Dirty South to the more personal with career-best results. [21 Apr 2006, p.75]
All Music Guide
If it isn't as ambitious as the three releases that preceded it, it still confirms that the Drive-By Truckers are still what they were before making this record: the best hard rock band in America today.
Read Full Review >Slant Magazine
As a whole, A Blessing And A Curse is the album that Drive-By Truckers have always threatened to make, a hard-rocking testament to the intelligence, sensitivity, and soul of a people often discredited for lacking all three.
Read Full Review >Magnet
Cement[s] the Truckers' status as one of the best rock 'n' roll bands going. [#71, p.93]
ShakingThrough.net
While there are unmistakable traces of that swampy, sweaty sound, particularly in the three-guitar sturm und twang of the title track, at other points the Truckers openly embrace their rock and punk roots, as if hoping to stomp that nettlesome Southern Rock label into the ground.
Read Full Review >E! Online
It's the kind of album that finds its own cozy place somewhere between Lynyrd Skynyrd and Leonard Cohen.
Read Full Review >PopMatters
For the Truckers... it’s an abnormally concise record that also happens to be their least sloppy.
Read Full Review >Uncut
A Blessing... is perhaps a more personal and introspective record than usual. But truly there's still a lot to marvel at. [Apr 2006, p.112]
Blender
The barn-burners are still grimy with brawling guitar, but more than ever shot through with delicate light... and the pithy ballads are crisp as cold beer. [May 2006, p.108]
Mojo
There's plenty of soul and swagger again here. [Apr 2006, p.94]
cokemachineglow
Taken for what it is, a straight up and down rock album, ABAAC is quite good.
Read Full Review >Spin
Musically, A Blessing and a Curse is the Truckers' least complicated album. [May 2006, p.93]
Rolling Stone
[A Blessing] isn't as detail-rich as 2004's The Dirty South, but it's another engaging variation on old-school Southern rock.
Read Full Review >Billboard
With its broader musical canvas, "Blessing" may seem like a left-turn to diehard Truckerheads, but it's likely a wise move toward growing the DBT fan base.
Read Full Review >Pitchfork
For the first time in the group's decade of existence, they've made an album that doesn't entirely live up to their reputation.
Read Full Review >Prefix Magazine
It showcases an artistic range that had been up to this point unexplored.
Read Full Review >Under The Radar
Keeping its ambitions manageable and its wheels on the rails, Blessing is a simpler pleasure and ultimately a lesser triumph. [#13, p.84]
Amazon.com
All in all, this is a calmer Truckers set, less ragged and more polished.
Read Full Review >The New York Times
This album feels smaller and more casual than some of its predecessors. [17 Apr 2006]
Stylus Magazine
A Blessing and a Curse easily qualifies as the Truckers’ most straightforward album.
Read Full Review >The Onion (A.V. Club)
The bulk of the album is made of slight, rote country-rockers, as sturdy and flat as a table.
Read Full Review >New Musical Express
Workmanlike. [18 Mar 2006, p.33]
What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this album is 8.7 (out of 10) based on 18 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Vincent H. gave it a7:
Another amazing album from probably the most consistent rock-band around today. DBT have never made a bad album...ever. They rarely even write weak songs, so despite the fact that this is easily their overall weakest album since Pizza Deliverance, I am comparing this album to three masterpieces in a row (SRO, DD, TDS), so it is still a solid album with more great hooks and musicianship than 90% of any other bands out there. There are three songs I usually skip cause they are kinda boring (Aftermath USA, Gravity's Gone, Space City), but the rest of the songs are all brilliant. Particularly "Feb 14" (contrinuing Patterson Hood's tradition of beautiful and poignant love songs) and "Daylight", two of the best songs DBT have ever recorded. Essentially I love all the Patterson Hood and Jason Isbell songs, but tend to skip the Cooley tracks (sorry Mike...you're still an amazing guitar player). Anyways, if you like DBT and own any of their previous album, you should buy this one and you will love it. I promise.
Lawrenxce P gave it an8:
Still the best and most solid honest country-rock band around..."world of hurt" is one of their very best and most heartbreaking tunes.
stetson k gave it a5:
After 10 years and 2 absolutely belting albums - in SRO and Dirty South - the Truckers were busting to burst into the mainstream with this record. Like one of the loser jocks populating their best tunes, they blew it. It almost feels deliberate.
Andrew D gave it a9:
Great album! Only reason I am not giving it a 10 is becasue I would reserve that rating for The Dirty South and Decoration Day. If you love the truckers, this album wont dissapoint.
Baron L gave it an8:
The Southern mythology may be replaced by personal struggles and desires but the sound is still as hot as Georgia asphalt.
Filazafer a gave it a10:
I am a fan, first of all. This record did not grab me right away like some of the others, but after a few listens I think it is as good as anything they have ever done. Everything they do is gold. I listen to a lot of different bands and I think the Truckers are the best band on the planet right now. See them live and you will be a beliver.
Bart W gave it a9:
I dig the sound, influenced by the stones and the replacements. Layin down the homage!!! This is a succinct and spontaneous album. Not as heavy, but that's alright!
