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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed albums.

The Sunlandic Twins
by Of Montreal


9.0

based on 25 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 43 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album

Official Artist Site

Kevin Barnes' eighth Of Montreal disc finds the Georgian heading into more electronic territory, enlisting his laptop to assist in the recording process. Music on a laptop--who knew?

LABEL:	Polyvinyl
RELEASE DATE:	12 April 2005
DISCS:	1 disc
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...

Stylus Magazine

Barnes has created some utterly brilliant compositions, captured a perfect blend of melodic energy and sincerity while never sacrificing catchiness, and has used both achievements to create one of this year’s most cathartically fun albums.

Delusions of Adequacy

The Sunlandic Twins is a dizzying, exhilarating, and almost endlessly fun ride, breezy almost to a fault, romantic and lighthearted.

Splendid

The relentless sweetness may be off-putting to some... but it'll be difficult for all but the most jaded listeners to avoid being charmed by Of Montreal's appealing melodies and whimsical innocence-recaptured lyrics.

Village Voice

Part of what makes Of Montreal notable is the quantity of things Barnes does impeccably.

Lost At Sea

On the whole, The Sunlandic Twins makes almost everything else today seem diluted and stale.

Dusted Magazine

Occasionally masterful, frequently evocative, and consistently lovely.

Filter

Imagine if !!! were to trim down the intense jams and adopt light vocal harmonies a la the Shins. [#15, p.95]

cokemachineglow

Though not perfect, it's unlikely 2005 will see many records eclipsing The Sunlandic Twins.

Urb

Terse bass and faux-African rhythms that recall [the Talking Heads]. [May 2005, p.93]

All Music Guide

Sunlandic Twins is an album to leave playing while you're going about your daily business. Then see how quickly you discover its 13 tracks burrowing so deeply into your skull that it's as though you'd lived with its jerking, burbling, and never less than transcendental swirlings for ever.

Under The Radar

If Brian Wilson made a dance-pop album, it would sound like this. [#9]

Alternative Press

The Sunlandic Twins feels like a surprise party that could make a broken-hearted birthday boy smile. [May 2005, p.124]

New Musical Express

An elegiac, neo-psychedelic collection of labyrinthine naive melodies that's the schizophrenic lovechild of Four Tet and The Magnetic Fields. [4 Jun 2005, p.58]

Prefix Magazine

For all its delectable dance tracks, infused with Barnes’ latest influences of Afrobeat, disco and electronic music, The Sunlandic Twins still offers thoughtful lyrics and emotionally heady songs.

Austin Chronicle

Some might write off this album as a collection of novelty work à la Ween, but there's more going on here than being goofy for goofiness' sake.

ShakingThrough.net

The second half lacks the spirited kick of the first.

Mojo

[A] dazzling selection of pop songs. [Aug 2005, p.96]

No Ripcord

Barnes seems to draw from a bottomless well of creativity, and is capable of the most sublimely unexpected melodic phrasing. At the same time, he can come off as a little too intellectual for his own good.

Tiny Mix Tapes

While the second half of the album is a miscue -- eschewing the sunny innocence that makes his music so likeable -- I know what'll be in my CD player all spring.

Billboard

Barnes' bright-eyed, bushy-tailed vocals are at times trying, but there is substance and craft behind the unrelentingly catchy ditties.

Q Magazine

A trip worth taking. [Jun 2005, p.116]

Entertainment Weekly

Most of Twins seems too keenly fascinated by its own intelligence. [15 Apr 2005, p.77]

Pitchfork

Missing Satanic Panic's multidimensionality, the album feels like the hollowed-out shell of something great.

Blender

When it works, his songs are intoxicating pop nuggets... But meandering instrumental interludes and clunky song titles are low on wink, high on wank. [May 2005, p.122]

Uncut

For all this sonic broad-mindedness, the Twins' ideas are piled on a lightweight core, and good luck making sense of the lyrics. [Jul 2005, p.104]

The average user rating for this album is 9.0 (out of 10) based on 43 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Edgar H gave it a10:
Awesome!

Frank D gave it a10:
Another solid effort by Kevin Barnes and Company. Great, great album.

Slay G gave it a10:
One of the better albums to come out in 05.

Mike D gave it a10:
Terrific album! Smart, upbeat, catchy, weird, beautiful and original. Not quite as good as "Satanic Panic In The Attic" (which is my favorite album ever) but who cares this is still very rock solid from beginning to end. The more I listen to this band, the more I realize how great they are. Of Montreal gets my vote for the underrated band in the last 20 years. Not only do I recommend this album but also there whole entire Discography because every single album of theirs has gotten at least a 8 or better from me. Kevin Barnes you are one of the best song writers of all-time.

D J gave it a10:
A joy to listen to. This is one of those albums you can't stop listening to, no matter how you try. And I mean that in a good way.

Meat Bag gave it a10:
Lovely & Weird. That pretty much sums up this album.

A C gave it a10:
I love this album. No one does it quite like Kevin Barnes when it comes to created fun, upbeat music, clearly this man is a genuis. Tracks like (I Was Never Young, I Was a Landscape in Your Dream, Requiem for O.M.M.2, The Party's Crashing Us, Everyday Feels Like Sunday, The Repudiated Immortals, & many more) will definitely keep you hooked for days, weeks & months.

The Sunlandic Twins by Of Montreal

The Sunlandic Twins
by Of Montreal