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

Drowned In Sound

Whatever all this means, Dragonslayer is an album to get your teeth into. As on the final chorus, it's: "a bigger kind of kill". You need this.

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100

The Onion (A.V. Club)

It isn’t a song so much as a journey, and as with the rest of Dragonslayer, its epic ambitions are fulfilled.

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Delusions of Adequacy

It’s another astounding album from a great band and one that we should get much, much more music from for many years to come.

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PopMatters

Call it surprising/delightful, or call it thrilling/glorious. Either way, Dragonslayer‘s pretty great.

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cokemachineglow

Dragonslayer is a shockingly good record, but it’s no surprise that things ended up this way.

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Pitchfork

Dragonslayer is a lither, more athletic Sunset record--easier to like, easier to understand.

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Dusted Magazine

On Dragonslayer, perhaps more so than any of their previous albums, Sunset Rubdown is able to create memorable, multi-part songs that stay engaging throughout and that don’t meander aimlessly.

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NOW Magazine

His tendency to cram a million ideas into every song gets toned down, too, but fans of that aesthetic shouldn’t worry; the songs are as intricate and delightfully off-kilter as ever.

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All Music Guide

As carefully crafted as it is, this is the group's most accessible record yet. And it's a damn fine one at that.

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Tiny Mix Tapes

Whether Dragonslayer is as great as any other work is almost irrelevant; it is great and it is grand, and it is all too welcome.

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Spin

Krug clearly takes Sunset Rubdown every bit as seriously as his day job.

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Prefix Magazine

While Dragonslayer might not be the best album in Krug’s robust oeuvre, there’s still enough here to convince us that Krug is still the ascendant king of indie rock, and that he might have a magnum opus yet to come.

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Rolling Stone

Epic? Extremely. Awesome? Monstrously.

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Filter

Krug's songwriting can't help but put a smile on your face when you really try to let your guard down, and if you want the summer documented by epic eccentricity, this is your callling. [Sep 2009, p.94]

The Phoenix

This, their third album is as ambitious as its predecessors but mutes the joy in favor of a more serious tone and tighter focus--well, as tight as an album with a 10-minute number called 'Dragon's Lair' can be. The results are mixed.

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Paste Magazine

Dragonslayer eschews this cluttered approach, instead skittering through extended suites of build/release/build riff-rock that often leave Krug’s melody lines with no flint to start a fire.

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Uncut

Their grandiose Baron Muchhausen indie rock does tend to veer toward indulgent. [Jul 2009, p.101]

Under The Radar

By using fewer overdubs, Sunset Rubdown is actually undermining its strengths of expectation-defying structures and lavishly decorated arrangements. [Summer 2009, p.69]

Billboard

Nonsensical lyrics about butterflies and name-changing lovers on tracks like 'You Go On Ahead (Trumpet Trumpet II)' and 'Apollo And The Buffalo And Anna Anna Anna Oh!,' could serve as a distraction, but the songs are saved by beautifully frantic instrumentals.

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No Ripcord

Overall, these tracks feel more like the B sides of Random Spirit Lover, maybe the acoustic B sides, the tracks that didn't quite make the cut but would definitely be of interest to ardent fans.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this album is 9.2 (out of 10) based on 52 User Votes

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

Kurt C gave it a10:
Exceptional album. This one really surprised me and continues to give me goose bumps while I'll rock out to it. One of the only albums I own with a perfect rating of 100. A must-by and my #1 album of 2009; it also placed at #4 for the decade behind My Morning Jacket, Wilco, and Fleet Foxes to give you some reference for what I'm in to.

Blue Meanie gave it a9:
Wow, as an old school punker around snice the '70's, I go pale when somebody says "The New Bowie' or "neo-glam". However, this is the real thing! I'm amazed that this is a current band. The have the retro chops but simultaneously sound like they dropped in from the future just as Ziggy did. Every song is great. This is a classic. No bull. Classy & sleazy all at once which the best rock n' roll always is.

Rory C. gave it a10:
Best album I've heard this year. On par with Wolf Parade's (One of Krug's other bands) last album, but more accessible and hopeful of finding beauty in the world. Hopefully the album that will give Sunset Rubdown the recognition they deserve.

Stian S gave it a10:
This album is amazing and it's getting even better for each listening, even after two months!

Pas gave it a10:
Perfect!

E S gave it a10:
This album through and through is the best of 2009. You go on ahead (trumpet trumpet II) is undoubtedly my favorite song. At first i liked silver moons the most, but after a couple listens i realized just how epic it is. On par with Shut Up I am Dreaming.

sharp math gave it a9:
Well. I never thought I would vote on mc as a user. But I have to say. This album made me realize how amazing Spencer Krug, and more importantly even, Sunset Rubdown is. Before this it was all Spencer, and Spencer is amazing. But this album was the one that, while Spencer still brought it all together, everyone else got to give a bit. 'Silver Moons' is amazing, forget how it ties into the last song. 'Idiot Heart' was my fave song at first easy. And that "hope you die line" was on par with previous amazing SR lines. But I totally fell in love with "Apollo..." because of the lyrics and the music. But the thing this album did the most for me, is made me realize just how awesome everything is Spencer Krug has done with Sunset Rubdown. Every single song on this album is one of my favorite songs.

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Dragonslayer

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