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Winter Women / Holy Ghost Language School
by Matthew Friedberger


9.6

based on 18 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 5 votes
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MUSIC:

Official Fiery Furnaces Site

This double album marks the first solo release for the "brother" half of the brother-sister duo Fiery Furnaces. While the 'Holy Ghost' disc is as bizarre and experimental as recent Furnaces releases, 'Winter Women' marks a detour into more accessible pop.

LABEL:	859
RELEASE DATE:	08 August 2006
DISCS:	2 discs
GENRE(S):	Indie, Rock

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

The chaos that ensues is catchier than you might expect. [11 Aug 2006, p.67]

All Music Guide

As a whole, Winter Women/Holy Ghost Language School is a lot to process at once, but untangling the mysteries of Friedberger's music feels like more fun than it has in a while.

Paste Magazine

They're both excellent, similarly imaginative, fully realized efforts. [Sep 2006, p.75]

Spin

Holy Ghost is something of a wash... Winter Women, though, boasts some of [his] best material. [Sep 2006, p.111]

NOW Magazine

Bizarre lyrics, wooze-inducing dissonance and overly elaborate embellishments maintain Friedberger's genius-of-pretension title.

PopMatters

As charming as Friedberger can be, he’s at least as often a little too precocious for his own good, and it makes the overall listening experience simultaneously cloying and fascinating.

Rolling Stone

Both albums could have been trimmed... but there's enough good stuff to recommend to Furnaces fans. [24 Aug 2006, p.95]

Under The Radar

All in all, the two albums prove that even Friedberger’s secondary musical thoughts are worthy of attention. [Summer 2006]

Prefix Magazine

Here, Friedberger has once again proven his capabilities. At times they impress, but too often they confound, and it's beginning to seem as if he's too comfortable in his distance.

Urb

It's clear that we have a gifted songwriter on our hands. [Jul/Aug 2006, p.117]

Slant Magazine

A bracing, willfully odd delight that rewards the patient and frustrates the short-fused.

The Onion (A.V. Club)

Holy Ghost Language School is something of an endurance test... Winter Women is more rewarding by design; it only suffers from excessive length and Friedberger's continued insistence on slathering songs with random waves of noise and self-conscious dissonance.

cokemachineglow

This is as fully realized an example of the Friedberger vision that exists, which is why it’s so frustrating that Winter Women never really gets off the ground, or that Holy Ghost wallows in its creator’s own pique.

Blender

Matt's solo joints continue to advance his kooky, obscurantist aesthetic, though they miss the distracted smolder of his comely foil. [Sep 2006, p.140]

Village Voice

Without Sis, Matthew still does just fine, but let's be honest: You know the style by now.

Pitchfork

One might suppose that solo album(s) from the chief Furnaces songwriter Matthew Friedberger would magnify his flaws/assets, and in the case of Winter Women and Holy Ghost Language School, one would be correct.

Tiny Mix Tapes

No matter how you want to face it, the secret is out: pop isn't Friedberger's bag.

Stylus Magazine

Give Friedberger credit for diversity, craftsmanship, and the unprecedented ability to release a double album that actually feels composed of two separate entities. The rest of it? Too much, too fast.

The average user rating for this album is 9.6 (out of 10) based on 5 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

spencer m. gave it a10:
Really great stuff... 'Winter Women' is up to the brim with beautiful melodies, witty lyrics, and great instrumentation, while 'Holy Ghost Language School' sounds like a drum-machine nightmare!! Brilliant!!

muckraker 11 gave it a10:
the critics went hilarious over this one. this is one of the most talented individuals in music right now. please give BOTH of these discs a chance. They are incredibly different and both incredible.

Carl M gave it an8:
Winter Women is the better half.

Malark I gave it a10:
Why the critics aren't "getting" this (and why they didn't "get" Rehearsing My Choir, I'll never know....It makes me wonder if they really enjoyed Blueberry Boat at all.

dugan gave it a10:
i can certainly see how this could be unappealing for most people. but if you loved rehearsing my choir and the vietnamese telephone ministry, holy ghost language school is perfect for you. and winter women is only slightly weirder (and perhaps even more catchy) than bitter tea and blueberry boat. and if you love matt for his lyrics, there's a veritable windfall of treasures in these two discs. great, great, great stuff.

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Winter Women / Holy Ghost Language School by Matthew Friedberger

Winter Women / Holy Ghost Language School
by Matthew Friedberger