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

Alternative Press

[Sheff's] uncompromisingly literate songs provide unusually rewarding payoffs. [May 2005, p.124]

100

Stylus Magazine

I've listened to this album more than anything else released this year, and I still don't feel like I've fully explored its depths.

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The New York Times

What's most exciting about ''Black Sheep Boy'' is that Okkervil River sounds more than ever like a band. [9 Apr 2005]

musicOMH.com

An unknown quantity to me before the first listen, by the third play I was already plotting which of my friends I would be lending it to and reprimanding myself for not having come across them sooner.

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Q Magazine

Brave and ambitious. [Jul 2005, p.122]

Lost At Sea

It's hard not to stare in open-mouthed amazement at the sheer brilliance of Black Sheep Boy, though you're trying to clinically dissect all the elements that make it so.

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PopMatters

Consistently excellent, Okkervil River's Black Sheep Boy is a record that stuns on first listen, then manages the elusive -- it sinks deep into your soul.

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Austin Chronicle

The force of Okkervil's last LP, '03's Down the River of Golden Dreams, is strengthened and stretched on Black Sheep Boy, bursting with the heaviness of heart.

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Pitchfork

Black Sheep Boy creates a roomy and natural showcase for Sheff's high-wire vocals, and as a result, it may be the band's best album.

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cokemachineglow

With Black Sheep Boy, Okkervil River have made the kind of minor classic that will inspire obsessive-compulsive love affairs with the lucky people who stumble upon it.

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Junkmedia

By album's end, two coming-of-age stories are complete: the boy has grown into a black sheep man, and the literate musicians have become a hell of a rock band.

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Magnet

What strike most are Sheff's strained, impassioned vocals and the joyful variety of instrumentation. [#67, p.110]

Tiny Mix Tapes

It is heavier on quality than most Bright Eyes albums I could name -- both musically and lyrically.

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The Guardian

It could be a recipe for pretentious folly, but Sheff harnesses his intricate arrangements and barbed, literate lyrics to cracking tunes.

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Mojo

Far from being a doomfest, the music is quite beautiful. [Oct 2005, p.114]

Neumu.net

It's like Bright Eyes -- urgent, personal, pent-up -- but better; less focused on the individual ego of the "creative genius," more about the group dynamics.

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Dusted Magazine

Sheff’s delivery, however, is the Black Sheep Boy’s biggest flaw.

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No Ripcord

These are essentially songs of innocence and experience tinctured by world-weariness simultaneously infused with an earnest lack of guile. A brief criticism would be: a little more sound and a little less fury, please Will.

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Uncut

Sheff's novelistic lyrics and the dextrous blend of country, folk and nervy indie-rock suggest a band approaching the peak of their powers. [Aug 2005, p.87]

Under The Radar

While Sheff occasionally wanders into coffee shop open mic territory, spouting overwrought poetry, he is often able to drag himself from the muck with a clever line or an inspired musical passage. [#9, p.108]

All Music Guide

Okkervil River continue to deliver the quality of Down the River of Golden Dreams, and though sonic evolution is barely existent from that recording, perhaps it doesn't need to be; certainly Sheff's songwriting still floats above that of his peers.

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ShakingThrough.net

Black Sheep Boy has bold ambitions, but Okkervil River hasn’t quite reached the point where polished execution equals or surpasses preliminary concept.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this album is 9.5 (out of 10) based on 69 User Votes

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

Rob T gave it a10:
Black Sheep Boy is a masterpiece on level with NMH's Aeroplane Over the Sea.

Tom P gave it an8:
Black is most likely the best song of 2005. Amazing. The rest is good too.

Paul gave it a10:
Amazing.

Casey M gave it a10:
The entire album and appendix is emotional, beautiful, and perfect. Some critique Sheff's vocals, but I think it adds to the rawness of the emotion he puts into the songs. Simply great!

Col B gave it a10:
One of the greatest albums of all-time.

Alessandro P gave it a10:
Simply awesome.

Mike M gave it a10:
Simply phenomenal. Okkervil River's crowing achievement, and a pure joy to listen to from start to finish. I cannot recommend this album enough.

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Black Sheep Boy

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