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Zero 7
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We Started Nothing
Generally favorable reviews
Based on 19 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 55 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album >
Album Info
Label: Columbia/Red Ink
Release Date: 03 June 2008
Discs: 1 disc
Genre(s): Rock, Pop
Summary
The single "Shut Up and Let Me Go" from the debut album for the British duo was used in an Apple commercial.
Also On The Web: Official Artist Site
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...
Entertainment Weekly
We Started Nothing comes packed with a peppy parade of songs likewise steeped in electro beats and chant-along vocals.
Read Full Review >Mojo
The singles--'Fruit Machine,' 'Great DJ' amd the electro Krautrock of 'That's Not My Name'--are supported by the equally impressive 'Shut Up and Let Me Go' and closing title track, all bouncing beats, shiny samples and an invigorating knack for a pop tune. {june 2008, p.109]
Observer Music Monthly
The synth-punk shout-pop of this boy/girl duo was cobbled together in a Salford arts complex for a budget of zero pence. And--in a totally great way--it sounds like it.
Read Full Review >Dot Music
We Started Nothing sounds exuberant and chiefly concerned with pleasing itself. Which--as is always the way--only makes it more pleasing to others.
Read Full Review >Filter
Every song on this record pulsates with so many heart-thumping beats per minute, you'd think this was some newfangled cardiovascular exercise for ravers. [Spring 2008, p.99]
The New York Times
The Ting Tings are crafty, not naive, but they can fabricate elation.
Read Full Review >Rolling Stone
On their full-length debut, the Ting Tings craft peppy New Wave that's relentlessly catchy.
Read Full Review >The Onion (A.V. Club)
the album's inconsistency suggests that this heavily buzzing band--Nothing debuted at No. 1 in the UK--could've used a little extra time to finesse its spazzy sound into a more coherent pop treat.
Read Full Review >Prefix Magazine
As a four-track EP, this would have made for an indelibly catchy collection; as an album, it plays like four lone meatballs awash in a pot of bland noodles.
Read Full Review >Blender
A party band to the core, the Ting Tings can't leave the dance floor without stumbling. [July 2008, p.76]
Read Full Review >PopMatters
What the Ting Tings do is make sunny, punchy pop songs, and what’s more, that’s something that actually do pretty well. How much lifespan there is in the project, however, is another question entirely.
Read Full Review >Q Magazine
The creative tension between the two is their main strength. It's when one or the other gains the upper hand that things can go awry. [June 2008, p.143]
New Musical Express
De Martino and White are on an unashamed mission to make perfect pop, but seem to have treaded the path too literally.
Read Full Review >The Guardian
But after achieving a perfect strike rate on their singles, the Ting Tings' admirable quest for glossy, depthless pop perfection keeps coming up short.
Read Full Review >Drowned In Sound
These glimpses of something unexpected are few and far between, much of We Started Nothing tonally muddled into a weird new form of MOR: cool for five minutes amongst the fashionable crowd but unlikely to reach audiences beyond those fascinated with the hot and happening.
Read Full Review >All Music Guide
They're a singles band at heart, though, and they wear out their welcome all too quickly on We Started Nothing.
Read Full Review >Uncut
Sadly, though, nothing on The Ting Tings debut album quite lives up to that promise [of 'That's Not My Name']. [June 2008, p.94]
musicOMH.com
Snark aside, it's a shame that aside from a couple of notable exceptions, the album title is just about right.
Read Full Review >Pitchfork
Maybe once the Ting Tings stop trying so hard to convince everyone they're having a good time and start actually having a good time, these cute little ballads will no longer be their sole redeeming quality.
Read Full Review >What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this album is 7.6 (out of 10) based on 55 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Joe H gave it an8:
A good album let down bya couple of tracks. Odd that no one else can hear a little pixies, breeders in there. Must just be me
Cristobal G. gave it a9:
Really great, fun, with an incredible production...It's probably the only truly pop album I've listened to this year, and I simply loved it since the very first time I gave it a spin...there's something about this duo that makes them really special, it might sound subjective, but I'd say it's charisma. Anyway, get this one ASAP, but be careful, it won't leave your stereo as soon as you might think.
zach p. gave it an8:
This record is one of the most fun pop debuts in years. no, not every song is great. but it's so refreshing to hear a band not take themselves seriously. keep your head; shut up and let me go; that's not my name.
Julia A. gave it an8:
Not really original (We Walk somehow reminds me of Franz Ferdinand's Take Me out), but still fun to be heard. Maybe Katie got her voice slightly off on some tracks (like Keep Your Head and Be The One), but still this is an album you don't really feel guilty when decided to buy or try to give a spin.
J eJesus gave it a5:
Sounds like a band writing songs specifically to be used in iPod commercials. A couple of decent tracks, the rest are kinda throwaway. I give it a resounding "meh".
Bradley M gave it a9:
A breath of fresh air in the somewhat stale halls of indie pop misic. Catchy, fun and memorable
Felipe P gave it a0:
Don't Believe the Hype! This album is horrible, just 3 songs listenable. One more hit wonders.
