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...

100

Magnet

A masterpiece that flows brilliantly. [#75, p.97]

Entertainment Weekly

The band runs through intricately nuanced compositions with the fervor of an inspired jam session.

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The Onion (A.V. Club)

It's easy to get lost in the strange balance between delicacy and muscle.

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Filter

Yet another firework-filled post-modern work of true art. [#24, p.89]

Delusions of Adequacy

This is quite possibly Explosions in the Sky's finest moment. Buy this album now and be ready to have your life changed.

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The Phoenix

If there are a few dull moments, that’s all part of recording an album that functions like one extended, magnificent achievement of a song.

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Prefix Magazine

The type of searing instrumental rock Explosions in the Sky has helped put on the map is the modern-day heir of the aural expressionism of Debussy and Wagner.

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Lost At Sea

All Of A Sudden I Miss Everyone is an intensely atmospheric album, and stands as one of the band's stronger releases.

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Tiny Mix Tapes

All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone isn’t the band reinventing themselves. Instead, you’ll have to settle for Explosions in the Sky perfecting their craft, which is nice to hear regardless of genre.

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musicOMH.com

Well, in many ways it follows the same tried and trusted formula of their previous three albums - dramatic, emotive and melodic, with guitars very much the centre of attention. Yet this time around the band have progressed to produce a more varied collection of tracks.

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Alternative Press

More cohesive and less frantic. [Apr 2007, p.180]

The Guardian

Explosions in the Sky are staking their claim to Mogwai's dark kingdom with an album that, despite being only six songs long, takes prisoner of your head and your heart.

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Under The Radar

Honestly, it's been worth the wait. [#16, p.91]

Urb

Every song ends like a firework finale and fragile chords explain more about the human condition than words ever could. [Jan/Feb 2006, p.78]

Village Voice

Whether it inspires bosom-heaving, jersey-rending, or chopper-flagging, Explosions in the Sky will have true believers again faint with praise.

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Drowned In Sound

I’m perfectly happy settling for an upgrade rather than a complete overhaul.

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Observer Music Monthly

Trouble is, save for the soft bits being softer and the hard bits being harder, it's practically a replica of its predecessors.

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All Music Guide

Ultimately, there is real growth here, subtle and unpretentious as it is.

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Hartford Courant

The emotional outpouring on display dwarfs what most vocal "emo" bands do.

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Spin

Let's just put it this way: Throw All of a Sudden on while playing GameCube, and you'll have the most dramatic LEGO Star Wars experience imaginable. [Mar 2007, p.94]

Boston Globe

Call it emo for adults.

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Rolling Stone

Explosions in the Sky... are like the Kronos Quartet with big amps and John Bonham in the back, exploring the composed details in their music before blowing 'em up.

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Dusted Magazine

For a band whose promise has often outdone their execution, All of a Sudden is their most complex, accomplished and well thought out record.

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Mojo

Explosions In The Sky are true masters of their craft. [Apr 2007, p.102]

Austin Chronicle

Transcendental codification.

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ShakingThrough.net

All Of A Sudden I Miss Everyone is not that perfect album that reinvents the genre, but it is a primer on everything good about it.

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Almost Cool

It pays off big time in places while feeling a bit hesitant in others.

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New Musical Express

Each winding soundscape sounds like it was made for those big budget nature documentaries with David Attenborough.

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Sputnikmusic

While clearly it is their best work to date, the purposefully epic moments of the music just don’t hold the same candle to the ones that were found on their earlier records.

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Billboard

As each quiet-loud-quiet song cycles through its emotional peaks and valleys, the band considerately adds, subtracts and multiplies conflicting elements and melodies to complete the picture. [24 Feb 2007]

Q Magazine

Think Mogwai at their loudest or a less willfully awkward Godspeed You! Black Emperor. [Apr 2007, p.118]

PopMatters

For most bands, a nearly great album would be a victory. But these guys aren’t most bands.

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Pitchfork

All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone is the musical equivalent of a late Woody Allen film (possibly a good or bad thing, depending on your temperament): The action unfolds predictably, but the dramatic effect can also be increased by your fondness for and familiarity with the idiom.

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Uncut

All Of A Sudden... rather falls under the shadow of Mogwai and Godspeed You! Black Emperor, but there's ample majesty in its climactic moments to recommend it. [Mar 2007, p.79]

Dot Music

Intense, grown-up and pretty it may be, but this record does nothing to move the whole cathartic/cinematic genre a millimetre further than where it was a decade ago.

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Paste Magazine

This album rocks harder than 2003's The Earth Is Not A Cold Dead Place, and it's more sinister, too. [Mar 2007, p.67]

cokemachineglow

If this is EitS attempting to summarize and compact their three previous albums into one easily consumable package, the results merely drag the listener along through series of “catastrophic” cues that tell them what they should be feeling.

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Stylus Magazine

Their music though—and probably the reason they’re used to such great effect in “Friday Night Lights”—actually feels more compelling as an accompaniment to visual drama, in part because the internal drama of the songs themselves are really specific and their presentation is a little tired.

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Hot Press

Despite their reputation as torch-bearers of the new post-rock prog, it lacks the outrageousness of the ‘70s version of the genre and there’s an earnest sameness to these pieces that render much of it tedious beyond belief.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this album is 8.3 (out of 10) based on 65 User Votes

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

David L. gave it a10:
Their best work - without a doubt among the best the genre has offered.

Jordan gave it a9:
Another superb album from the instrumental gurus. This is an album that grows on you, unlike their previous albums which hit you immediately and hit you hard. A more mature, precise, and varied sound may seem good, but to fans of the band's earlier work, these songs are often overlooked, despite their independent beauty. Overall, it is quite the record, with a powerful punch in some songs, and a calming melody in others.

Ryan M. gave it a10:
Emotion with no words. Simply beautiful.

Hollis G. gave it a9:
How can people possibly say this album is boring and praise the new Arcade Fire (good, but infinitely more boring)? This is truly passionate, exciting music by a band that has broken away from convention and created their own style, their own "voice". They don't just begin the album with the burst in "The Birth and Death of the Day", but carry that energy throughout the album in a variety of intricate and beautiful passages, whether the dynamic be soft or loud. Quit holding and opinion and looking for something and just enjoy the music. It will find you.

JaddyP gave it a4:
There is nothing like a winning formula for a band and that is what EITS had for a long time. There guitar heavy post rock was leading for a while in a genre that is essencially past its peak. However on this album it sounds dated and over used and the band would be much better off forcing their musical minds in different directions to keep things a little fresh instead of stale as this sound has become!! Lets hope they do this on the next outing!!

Devin lakjjsdf; gave it a9:
I agree this album is amazing. if you listen to the first song and how it explodes into a beautiful song into a galloping like fun jam. This band has so much talent that isnt relized by much people. this album is one of their best and shouldnt be rated low at all.

[Anonymous] gave it a10:
I cannot believe the low scores this is receiving from old fans and new fans alike. This is their best record and the buildups carry more tenderness than you think. It's not all the same, and especially "What Do You Go Home To?" The remixes are excellent too, a nice Sunday morning listen (at a lower volume I might add). For the naysayers.....listen again and again and your review score will rise!

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All Of A Sudden I Miss Everyone

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