Music
All-Time High (And Low) Scores
Best Of 2009
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
Upcoming &
Recent Releases
70
AFI
65
Air
71
Alice In Chains
77
Amerie
85
The Antlers
75
Arctic Monkeys
68
As Tall As Lions
82
Atlas Sound
75
The Avett Brothers
67
Backstreet Boys
56
Bad Lieutenant
68
Devendra Banhart
72
Lou Barlow
88
Baroness
69
Basement Jaxx
81
David Bazan
72
Brendan Benson
72
The Big Pink
96
Big Star
46
Billy Talent
75
The Black Crowes
51
Black Mold
68
Blitzen Trapper
75
BLK JKS
77
A.A. Bondy
73
The Bottle Rockets
63
Box Elders
65
Boys Like Girls
76
Brand New
73
Tyondai Braxton
87
Brother Ali
70
Ian Brown
75
Michael Buble
78
Built To Spill
61
Colbie Caillat
79
Califone
68
Mariah Carey
84
Brandi Carlile
73
Julian Casablancas
83
Rosanne Cash
69
Castanets
65
The Cave Singers
84
Nick Cave & Warren Ellis
79
Vic Chesnutt
75
Choir Of Young Believers
81
Circulatory System
68
The Clean
84
The Clientele
71
Cobra Starship
85
Converge
71
Eric Copeland
80
Cymbals Eat Guitars
71
Datarock
59
Dead By Sunrise
76
Dead Man's Bones
88
Destroyer
63
The Dodos
77
Drive-By Truckers
66
Bob Dylan
44
The Entrance Band
67
Esser
69
Fanfarlo
63
Felix Da Housecat
68
Fink
78
The Flaming Lips
66
Flight Of The Conchords
79
Florence And The Machine
67
John Fogerty
83
Fuck Buttons
71
Nelly Furtado
47
Gary Go
68
Ghostface Killah
79
Girls
69
Gossip
62
David Gray
66
David Guetta
79
Richard Hawley
74
Mayer Hawthorne
66
Headlights
79
HEALTH
77
Joe Henry
66
Hockey
69
Whitney Houston
68
Imogen Heap
59
Jack Ingram
79
Islands
73
Jessie James
74
Jamie T
65
Jay-Z
51
Jet
69
Daniel Johnston
76
Karen O And The Kids
72
Toby Keith
69
Kid Cudi
65
Kings Of Convenience
62
Sean Kingston
64
KISS
76
Kris Kristofferson
68
KRS-One & Buckshot
76
La Roux
84
Miranda Lambert
72
Ledisi
75
Sondre Lerche
56
Juliette Lewis
82
Lightning Bolt
73
Little Dragon
44
Pixie Lott
73
Lyle Lovett
66
Lovvers
75
Baaba Maal
77
Madness
84
Madonna
85
Manic Street Preachers
62
Maps
55
Massive Attack
57
Matisyahu
67
Reba McEntire
66
Tim McGraw
65
Brian McKnight
79
Mew
77
Malcolm Middleton
77
Mika
68
Amy Millan
76
Mission Of Burma
76
Molina And Johnson
80
Monsters Of Folk
62
Morrissey
85
Mount Eerie
78
The Mountain Goats
62
Múm
72
Muse
66
Willie Nelson
78
Nirvana
97
Nirvana
72
Nisennenmondai
80
No Age
71
Noah And The Whale
75
Noisettes
79
Nudge
47
Dolores O'Riordan
74
Os Mutantes
73
Osso
81
Owen
76
Paramore
76
Pastels And Tenniscoats
51
Sean Paul
80
Pearl Jam
66
Jemina Pearl
72
Jack Penate
65
Phish
82
Pissed Jeans
61
Pitbull
79
A Place To Bury Strangers
66
Robert Pollard
79
Polvo
72
Porcupine Tree
80
Q-Tip
80
R.E.M.
89
Raekwon
69
Rain Machine
70
Ramona Falls
75
Dizzee Rascal
75
The Raveonettes
76
Jay Reatard
82
Reigning Sound
81
Rodrigo Y Gabriela
79
Russian Circles
69
Buffy Sainte-Marie
73
Hope Sandoval & The Warm Inventions
61
Sally Shapiro
78
Shudder To Think
70
Simian Mobile Disco
58
Simple Minds
72
Six Organs Of Admittance
69
Slaughterhouse
80
Slayer
61
The Slits
62
Mindy Smith
78
Soulsavers
77
Speech Debelle
58
Spiral Stairs
58
Squarepusher
55
Steel Panther
73
Sufjan Stevens
52
Rod Stewart
65
Joss Stone
75
George Strait
83
Barbra Streisand
76
A Sunny Day In Glasgow
74
Susanna And The Magical Orchestra
78
The Swell Season
76
David Sylvian
83
Taken By Trees
78
Tegan And Sara
68
The Temper Trap
72
Themselves
82
They Might Be Giants
67
Third Eye Blind
66
J Tillman
69
Times New Viking
57
Tokio Hotel
67
Trey Songz
71
The Twilight Sad
58
Carrie Underwood
56
The Used
68
Various Artists
70
Various Artists
74
Various Artists
77
The Very Best
71
Kurt Vile
67
Vivian Girls
71
Volcano Choir
76
Rufus Wainwright
59
Weezer
80
White Denim
76
Why?
83
Wild Beasts
80
Wildbirds & Peacedrums
59
Andrew W.K.
71
Patrick Wolf
67
Wolfmother
84
The xx
79
Yo La Tengo
83
Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band
51
Pete Yorn & Scarlett Johansson
59
Zero 7
Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed albums.
Post-War
Universal acclaim
Based on 30 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 26 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album >
Album Info
Label: Merge
Release Date: 22 August 2006
Discs: 1 disc
Genre(s): Indie, Rock
Summary
The singer-songwriter's fifth release finds him backed for the first time by a full band, which includes Rachel Blumberg (The Decemberists) and Jordan Hudson (The Thermals). Neko Case and My Morning Jacket's Jim James guest.
Also By This Artist: Hold Time Transfiguration Of Vincent Transistor Radio
Also On The Web: M Ward @ Merge 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
Ward's talents have never been more persuasively showcased. [1 Sep 2006, p.77]
The Onion (A.V. Club)
Post-War is easily M. Ward's most accessible album to date, charged with a bouncy spirit.
Read Full Review >All Music Guide
Post-War is not only Ward's best effort yet, it's one of the best records of the year.
Read Full Review >Filter
An album confident enough in its substance to not force profound stylistic changes. [#21, p.100]
Pitchfork
Post-War isn't perfect, but it's all the more listenable for that fact.
Read Full Review >Delusions of Adequacy
Whereas his previous long-players were primarily personified by their hushed beauty, dusty experimentation, and nostalgic romanticism, Post-War pushes forward a more boisterous and band-orientated vision for Ward’s sturdy songwriting.
Read Full Review >Blender
Introducing some very welcome rock rhythms to his blend of folk and fingerpicked Delta blues, Ward’s disarmingly sweet fourth album squeezes big themes into modest but bewitching tunes.
Read Full Review >Neumu.net
There's more body here, more barroom spill and rollick. There's also a feeling Ward is pushing at the fabric of his music, trying to expand and progress. But the same cinematic mist hovers, the same old, old intimacy fans know well.
Read Full Review >Mojo
A rich, bright sounding record, albeit etched with Ward's lyrical ruefulness and voice of crumbling, lugubrious regret. [Oct 2006, p.111]
Uncut
Ward's sweet, carefree voice is at odds with the urgency of the music. [Oct 2006, p.133]
Magnet
The most mature and cohesive set of songs in Ward's catalog. [#73, p.109]
Dusted Magazine
There's a bit of Starbucks gloss to this record, a too-easy-to-like quality that may at first put off serious listeners and music heads. That evaporates pretty quickly, though, as you recognize that its lucid simplicity, its artful artlessness is not a trick, but achievement.
Read Full Review >Slant Magazine
It's an inventive, sharp delight of a record, and possibly one of the year's best.
Read Full Review >Under The Radar
On Post-War, Ward is firmly and thrillingly of the present day and thinking ahead both in the allusiveness of the album’s title and the eclectic range of production that makes him absolutely necessary to modern folk. [Summer 2006]
Billboard
While he still relies heavily on old-timey melodies and washes every instrument with classic delay, the set feels more alive than usual.
Read Full Review >Urb
Another impressive and complex recording. [Sep 2006, p.139]
BBC collective
Ward’s band kick back with a looser, rockier feel than previously, yet his dusty, wistful voice still inhabits an age all of its own.
Read Full Review >musicOMH.com
It's a rare thing to find an album that is a real, unexpected pleasure to listen to all the way through.
Read Full Review >cokemachineglow
He’s made a honed, handsome piece of work, never too arresting and never too fickle.
Read Full Review >Drowned In Sound
While some tracks don't exude the same kind of enticing mysticism Ward excels at, Post-War remains a warm, enjoyable listen.
Read Full Review >NOW Magazine
What's disappointing if you're a fan is that the man has his tropes -- both melodic and lyrical -- and stubbornly sticks to 'em.
Read Full Review >Spin
Brings a welcome grandeur to Ward's honeyed rasp and nimble guitar picking. [Sep 2006, p.114]
Rolling Stone
It all sounds familiar but strange, and beautiful enough to suck you in. [24 Aug 2006, p.94]
PopMatters
His singing has a presence to it that brings to mind jazz vocalists--someone as unearthly as Billie Holiday, even--but also the grittiness of a deep-South bluesmen. No one else sounds exactly like him.
Read Full Review >ShakingThrough.net
The material doesn’t resonate, however, and pales next to Ward’s prior effort, Transistor Radio.
Read Full Review >Playlouder
Whereas previously his songs felt carefully and beautifully crafted, here he seems content to merely plunder a whole host of archaic musical styles and immerse himself in self-congratulatory jams, and a result you end up with a less than satisfying hotchpotch of songs.
Read Full Review >Stylus Magazine
It’s abundantly clear that Ward is an indie-rock songwriter--a pretty good one sometimes--who doesn’t bring a whole lot else to the table.
Read Full Review >What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this album is 8.4 (out of 10) based on 26 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Stu D gave it a9:
Pleasantly surprised. A definite top 10 for '06.
Evan S gave it a9:
Lyrical and lovely - album of the year.
Dan from the bush gave it a3:
The first 3 songs were good....but the rest of the album sounds like Leonard Cohen on prozac.!
Romi V gave it a9:
A brilliant CD that at first seems strange and hard to absorb. But it then hits you with all it's brillaince and nuances after multiple listens and in every repeat a lyric or line will hit you and have you thinking.... wow what was that?. Immerse yourself in a another quality piece of work from M Ward
Andrew P gave it an8:
This Ward's best album yet. The songs are tighter, his backing band is strong. Really its an 8 1/2.
Kevin R gave it an8:
A good record, though some of the songs have a very unnecessary feel to them.
roman mc gave it an8:
Whoever called this "Starbucks Rock" is dead-on, but not everything piping through the speakers at Starbucks sucks. The lyrical ideas are nothing to spend more than a passing minute considering either. But...I'm a sucker for this kind of music. Kind of "Golden" era MMJ with more of an early twentieth century Hawaiian vibe. Immediately enjoyable. Hanging around the house kind of music.
