GAMES: GameSpot | GameFAQs | SportsGamer MUSIC: Last.fm | MP3.com MOVIES: Metacritic | Movietome TV: TV.com
Home | About Metacritic | About Metascores | What's New | Wireless Versions | Discussion Forums | Advertising Inquiries | Contact Us | RSS
Metacritic.com: We Deal With Criticism
     Help
> Switch to Advanced Search  
Film Video/DVD Music Games TV

Music

Upcoming Release Calendar
All-Time High (And Low) Scores
Best Of 2008
Best Of 2007
Best Of 2006
Best Of 2005
Best Of 2004
Best Of 2003
Best Of 2002
Best Of 2001
Best Of 2000
How Metascores Are Calculated
Discuss Music In Our Forums

 

Upcoming & Recent Releases

sort by name sort by score

74 Absentee
69 AC/DC
72 Ryan Adams
66 Trace Adkins
67 The Aliens
66 All That Remains
93 Amadou & Mariam
80 Amon Amarth
66 Anastacia
46 Brett Anderson
75 Theresa Andersson
66 Annuals
79 Antony And The Johnsons
76 Apollo Sunshine
58 David Archuleta
76 Aterciopelados
72 Attic Lights
75 Joan Baez
80 Belle & Sebastian
61 Beyonce
80 Blitzen Trapper
69 Bloc Party
83 Bound Stems
73 Brightblack Morning Light
64 The Broken West
64 The Bronx
74 Ane Brun
50 Buckcherry
77 Lindsey Buckingham
92 Buena Vista Social Club
78 Calexico
73 Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan
64 Castanets
69 Catfish Haven
66 Chairlift
63 Tracy Chapman
73 The Chemical Brothers
60 Kenny Chesney
66 Tony Christie
82 The Clash
66 Cold War Kids
69 Coldplay
67 David Cook
70 Nikka Costa
51 Cradle Of Filth
60 Crooked Fingers
78 Rodney Crowell
75 Crystal Stilts
77 Rivers Cuomo
70 The Cure
62 Kimya Dawson
72 Dead Confederate
72 The Dears
81 Deerhoof
81 Deerhunter
70 Brett Dennen
78 Department Of Eagles
73 Angela Desveaux
68 Devin The Dude
73 Dido
79 Ani DiFranco
58 DJ Khaled
82 DJ/rupture
66 The Donkeys
54 Dr. Dooom
61 Dragonette
79 Dungen
86 Bob Dylan
82 Eagles Of Death Metal
79 El Guincho
57 Electric Six
74 Brian Eno + David Byrne
64 Everlast
75 The Fireman
62 Ben Folds
69 Free Blood
74 Friendly Fires
84 Fucked Up
71 Fujiya & Miyagi
77 Gang Gang Dance
78 Morgan Geist
74 Giant Sand
81 Girl Talk
69 Girls Aloud
82 Glasvegas
67 Gojira
83 Grails
61 Growing
67 Guns N' Roses
67 Gym Class Heroes
76 Hauschka
65 Her Space Holiday
75 High Places
49 Hinder
71 Jolie Holland
79 David Holmes
81 Horse Feathers
64 Howling Hex
58 Jennifer Hudson
78 Hush Arbors
70 I'm From Barcelona
68 Jack's Mannequin
72 Jake One
73 James
59 Japanese Motors
64 Jem
80 The Jesus And Mary Chain
81 Johann Johannsson
68 Grace Jones
60 Tom Jones
75 Damien Jurado
69 Kaiser Chiefs
64 Keane
76 Toby Keith
70 The Killers
63 Kings Of Leon
77 The Knux
78 Koushik
74 Lady GaGa
72 Ladyhawke
75 Lambchop
73 Ray LaMontagne
74 Land Of Talk
68 John Legend
75 Jenny Lewis
71 Little Joy
60 The Little Ones
57 LL Cool J
81 Los Campesinos!
76 Love Is All
81 Patty Loveless
73 Ludacris
79 Luomo
73 Madlib
65 Margot & The Nuclear So And So's
68 Mercury Rev
78 Metallica
70 Metronomy
57 Ingrid Michaelson
76 Mogwai
77 Juana Molina
67 Monkey
79 Mount Eerie
46 Mudvayne
73 Murs
61 Nelly
51 New Kids On The Block
77 The New Year
79 Ne-Yo
51 Nickelback
57 Nightmares On Wax
60 The Nightwatchman
62 Noah And The Whale
66 Oasis
68 O'Death
70 Of Montreal
79 Okkervil River
77 Old Crow Medicine Show
54 The Organ
65 Joan Osborne
77 Brad Paisley
82 Pale Young Gentlemen
78 Amanda Palmer
65 Parenthetical Girls
76 Parts & Labor
74 Passion Pit
67 Peter Bjorn And John
66 The Peth
51 Kellie Pickler
69 Pink
73 Benoît Pioulard
70 Pivot
54 Plain White T's
40 Daniel Powter
74 The Pretenders
51 Pussycat Dolls
84 Q-Tip
42 Queen + Paul Rodgers
71 Rafter
74 Raglani
57 Razorlight
69 Lou Reed
74 Religious Knives
62 Rex The Dog
65 Rise Against
76 Roots Manuva
74 The Rosebuds
66 Darius Rucker
83 Arthur Russell
82 Raphael Saadiq
60 Sam Champion
68 School of Seven Bells
75 The Sea And Cake
60 Seal
69 Seasick Steve
65 Secret Machines
81 Pete Seeger
71 Serena-Maneesh
68 The Shaky Hands
72 Blake Shelton
58 Jessica Simpson
89 The Smiths
72 Todd Snider
68 Snow Patrol
62 Spinto Band
68 Squarepusher
65 Starfucker
82 Marnie Stern
62 The Streets
73 The Subways
81 Taylor Swift
74 T.I.
66 Talkdemonic
64 James Taylor
66 Ten Kens
72 Robin Thicke
67 Thievery Corporation
79 Tindersticks
88 Shugo Tokumaru
75 Emiliana Torrini
70 T-Pain
65 Travis
70 Tricky
66 Trivium
88 TV On The Radio
92 Underoath
56 UNKLE
74 Chad VanGaalen
76 Vivian Girls
78 Volcano!
84 Butch Walker
57 Scott Weiland
74 Kanye West
73 White Denim
78 Wild Beasts
78 Wilderness
71 Hank Williams III
72 Lucinda Williams
67 Michelle Williams
70 Brian Wilson
73 Lee Ann Womack
75 Women
63 XX Teens
72 Rachael Yamagata
60 Yo Majesty
72 Young Jeezy

Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed albums.

 



Printer-Friendly Version Email This Page Discuss In Our Forums

Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?
by Of Montreal

Of Montreal reviews
Critic Score
Metascore: 80 Metascore out of 100
User Score  
8.7 out of 10
based on 36 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
based on 125 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album

Kevin Barnes injects atypically autobiographical subject matter into his danceable indie-pop tunes on his latest Of Montreal release.

LABEL: Polyvinyl
RELEASE DATE: 23 January 2007
DISCS: 1 disc
GENRE(S): Indie, Rock

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...

90
Alternative Press
With this completely progressive and mature effort, it's clear that Barnes is one of indie rock's most gifted songwriters. [Feb 2007, p.115]
90
PopMatters
This is a cohesive, serious album. It is distressing, depressed, isolated, alienating, and probably the best Of Montreal album to date.
Read Full Review
90
BBC collective
Much of Hissing Fauna… dances in the face of its depressing subject matter.
Read Full Review
90
Q Magazine
An extraordinary record. [Mar 2007, p.115]
90
Tiny Mix Tapes
What makes these songs so positively delicious, in the same way that going on a bender can be a welcome alternative to crying into a pillow, is that Barnes realizes how seductive misery can be.
Read Full Review
88
Los Angeles Times
It's this mix of little quirks and big beats that makes "Hissing Fauna" so much fun. But it's the way Barnes pushes himself, both to tell the truth and to try new things, that lends these songs a heavier, more compelling edge than most contemporary baroque-pop.
Read Full Review
88
Lost At Sea
If Of Montreal were previously a bit on the superficial side with their beatific pop, Hissing Fauna adds a welcome additional ingredient: a sense of gravity.
Read Full Review
87
Pitchfork
An astonishingly good late-period record from Of Montreal that's as uncomfortably savage in its depiction of breakup psychology as it is relentlessly catchy.
Read Full Review
83
Stylus Magazine
Hissing Fauna is severely front-loaded, not necessarily because the closing songs are duds, but more because the album’s first half is nearly flawless.
Read Full Review
83
Entertainment Weekly
The band's playful musicality is undeniable. [26 Jan 2007, p.71]
83
cokemachineglow
Hissing Fauna might be Barnes’ finest work yet, an opus built entirely of sugar.
Read Full Review
82
Filter
If last year's sublime Sunlandic Twins was Kevin Barnes' ode to "Oslo in the Summertime," Hissing Fauna recalls his Winter of Discontent.
Read Full Review
80
Urb
A wonderfully dance-ridden companion ot the intelli-disco carved out on 2005's The Sunlandic Twins. [Jan/Feb 2006, p.81]
80
Delusions of Adequacy
The album sounds amazing.
Read Full Review
80
Playlouder
The effect of the new bleak mood lurking beneath the glimmering pop is to pare away the occasional over-cutesiness that has marred Of Montreal's work in the past and enhance the freaky psychedelic sublime of Barne's best moments.
Read Full Review
80
No Ripcord
The lack of engaging realism has always been one of the major problems for Of Montreal and the new material goes a long way towards solving it.
Read Full Review
80
All Music Guide
It's a challenging yet ultimately rewarding album -- and one that definitely requires some thoughtful attention on the part of the listener.
Read Full Review
80
Paste Magazine
Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? is probably the most fun one can reasonably have while wrestling with somebody else’s demons.
Read Full Review
80
Drowned In Sound
If there is one thing in this world that can elevate even the weakest of lyrics from the trough of personal diary hell, it’s a catchy melody. Thankfully this record overflows with them.
Read Full Review
80
Prefix Magazine
Barnes's most personal and emotional album to date.
Read Full Review
80
Magnet
The emotional gravitas only lends heft to the group's exhilarating, ever-present sugar high. [#74, p.104]
75
The Onion (A.V. Club)
It's all darkly beautiful, because Barnes continues to emote more through the music than through his words.
Read Full Review
75
The Phoenix
For the most part an exercise in Prince-like electro-funk, full of squelchy keyboard fuzz and chicken-scratch guitar noise and absurdly complicated falsetto harmonies.
Read Full Review
70
Slant Magazine
An album of relatively accessible pop music that pulses with the pain of a life in pieces.
Read Full Review
70
Hartford Courant
It's by far his most personal album, but "Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?" keeps the self-absorption to a minimum, in favor of vivid descriptions and up-tempo music that's catchy and engaging regardless of whether you're invested in the difficult back story.
Read Full Review
70
Spin
Hissing Fauna might be an album of ego trips, but at least Barnes is on the good stuff. [Feb 2007, p.85]
70
Village Voice
Fauna's first half is cosmic pop turmoil of the highest degree, as only a master songwriter could create.
Read Full Review
70
Mojo
His gifts remain undiminished. [Mar 2007, p.99]
70
The New York Times
Manic pop and depressive revelations have rarely been so closely bonded. [22 Jan 2007]
Read Full Review
70
Dusted Magazine
Although non-fans will likely continue to dismiss the band as over-the-top pop marauders, Hissing Fauna proves that there’s plenty of depth to their delirium.
Read Full Review
70
New Musical Express
This Athens, Georgia collective have blossomed from winsome indie-pop virgins to frocked-up future pop stars, beaming their febrile college rock through a kaleidoscope of sleazy funk, electronica jitters, and 'Fear Of Music'-style Talking Heads ethno-beat.
Read Full Review
70
Uncut
At best, Hissing Fauna... posits its creator as the missing link between Hot Chip and Morrissey. [Mar 2007, p.88]
60
The Guardian
The second half is dominated by a seedy funk that feels at once self-indulgent and unappetising, despite the odd dazzling moment.
Read Full Review
60
Under The Radar
Everything's going just swell on Hissing Fauna--from moody to hyper hip shaking to stand-still hipster pose--until Barnes stops it all with the twelve minute "The Past is a Grotesque Animal." [#16, p.93]
60
Rolling Stone
An intermittently pleasurable record from a talented songwriter with an overstuffed brain. [8 Feb 2007, p.70]
40
NOW Magazine
Most of what Barnes throws together here doesn't get beyond annoying pastiche, and he still lacks the chops as a wordsmith to magically transform mediocre jams into memorable songs.
Read Full Review

What Our Users Said

Vote Now! The average user rating for this album is 8.7 (out of 10) based on 125 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Nelly gave it a10:
Outrageous... one of the best I've heard in a long time... we were born... unbelievable tune.

Tom P. gave it an8:
Okay, the first half of this album is excellent, near perfect for it's genre, but the fact is, if you have ever seen this Of Montreal or actually listened to the lyrics, Barnes is just too damn creepy/fruity and self indulgent for me to seriously get into this band. Sorry, eye-glitter and fishnets are where I get off...Though The Past Is a Grotesque Animal is still one of my favorite songs of 2007.

Drew gave it a10:
I didn't really care for it on first listen, afraid I hated his voice. A few days pass and I'm singing "let's do it together! let's go together!" etc. So I pop it back in and each track stood out and stuck on that second listen. Showmanship I haven't seen since Bowie and musical creativity mixed with great lyrics is hard to beat. I think a great album has to have great song after great song and have a fitting album closer, We Were Born Mutants is so perfect. I probably hear this album at least once a week and I've yet to get tired of a song on it. The weakest Labyrinthian Pomp is hardly weak enough to hold this set of songs down. Because songs like Sentence.. and Rejector give you at least a three or four song buffer to mess up the album, which they don't even bother touching. I have listened to a lot of albums with skippers in them and it's just so refreshing to lay down, let the album go and take part in near perfection to my ears. In short, I absolutely love so many things about this album that it is hard not to keep going back to it.

KarlRavage gave it a9:
Way to plug your favorite band in a negative way. Everything, Now! is the worst band ever! The Beatles revival is over. That is unless you're...freakin stoned!!? Wait...

Jon H. gave it a10:
My album of the year. Their best and deepest work to date. As much as I love their older albums, they seem a bit superficial compared to this one. Every song brings something great to the table. Go see them live.

Zonhin gave it a4:
I want to like this. I want to like this. I wish I could say that I love this even more then I Sunlandic Twins. As it is, I'm not angry. Just sad. The songs seem to go on forever, and I felt bored through the whole thing. The only two songs I found myself enjoying were Suffer for Fashion and Gronlandic Edit. The rest weren't sad. They weren't moving. Just boring.

Owen gave it a1:
Terrible music.... those who think otherwise should give their head a shake... a very hard shake.

Read more user comments...

Discuss this album in our forums

Return to top of page
Home | FILM | DVD/VIDEO | MUSIC | GAMES | TV | Forums | About Metacritic metacritic.com

Popular on CBS sites: MLB | Spore | iPhone 3G | Paris Hilton | Antivirus Software | GPS | Recipes | Shwayze | NFL

About CBS Interactive | Jobs | Advertise

© 2008 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. | Privacy Policy | Terms of Use