Be Still Please
by Portastatic
  • Record Label: Merge
  • Release Date: Oct 10, 2006
Metascore
81

Universal acclaim - based on 10 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 10
  3. Negative: 0 out of 10
  1. AllMusic
    90
    Be Still Please is another hidden treasure from one of the truly important bands, and persons, in pop music today.
  2. Amazon.com
    70
    Unable to pen and record a clunker amidst his handsome ballads and cascading rockers, McCaughan coalesces sugar-coated melodies with personal, often uproarious lyrics that can make his 40-something voice sound half its age.
  3. Delusions of Adequacy
    90
    Be Still Please is the best work of McCaughan’s career.
  5. Dusted Magazine
    80
    With Be Still Please... McCaughan weaves threads from all past Portastatic incarnations into one happy-sad tapestry.
  6. Paste Magazine
    70
    A compelling collision of listenable and clever. [Dec 2006, p.97]
    All this publication's reviews
  7. Pitchfork
    76
    McCaughan's confidence, in his talents and his songs, is readily apparent throughout this album, and the result is his best non-Superchunk work to date.
  8. PopMatters
    70
    Throughout Be Still Please, no matter how much it conforms to overarching indie stereotypes, McCaughan draws fresh delights at every turn.
  9. Prefix Magazine
    60
    Be Still Please occasionally falls victim to over-orchestration. But McCaughan proves too much of an indie-rock veteran and pro to let that sink the entire album.
  10. Tiny Mix Tapes
    90
    Oddly familiar but strikingly different.
  11. Under The Radar
    70
    The extra focus on lyrics does seem to water down Portastatic’s traditionally instantaneous infectious hooks, sacrificing some style for substance and making the album a little more of a slow grower as opposed compared to those past. [#15]
    All this publication's reviews

Awards & Rankings

57
#57 Best Album of 2006

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
7.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 4 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 4
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 4
  3. Negative: 0 out of 4
  1. ReubenF
    Dec 18, 2006
    7
    Portastatic originally began as a side project for Superchunk's Mac McCaughan (which now includes other Superchunk member Jim Wilbur). Portastatic originally began as a side project for Superchunk's Mac McCaughan (which now includes other Superchunk member Jim Wilbur). Superchunk had a grungy sound and were most known for their song 'Slack Motherf..ker' (1990). Portastatic is very different, being a more sincere, mature and creative expression.… Full Review »
  2. mt
    Dec 12, 2006
    8
    i never would've thought portastatic would've grown so much in vitality ten years after the last classic superchunk record.
  3. JohnsonA
    Nov 9, 2006
    8
    Somewhere in between Bright Ideas and Summer of the Shark. The songs seem more fully realized than ever before. The suggestion of "a more Somewhere in between Bright Ideas and Summer of the Shark. The songs seem more fully realized than ever before. The suggestion of "a more polished production to be less indie sounding" is funny to me, because this is about the most polished production they have had. And it if this was any more polished, I'd probably really dislike it. All in all, Mac seems to be playing to his poppy, charming strengths… Full Review »
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