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Feb 8, 2019Old, but new at the same time, the seemingly limited palette of Buoys is single minded and direct. A stunning, if hushed, indirect hit.
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Feb 5, 2019Buoys requires repeat listens to appreciate fully, but those willing to dive deep enough will surely be rewarded.
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Q MagazineFeb 4, 2019Even when the centre spins out, Lennox's naive melodies make his indulgence sound strangely inviting. [Mar 2019, p.116]
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Feb 4, 2019Buoys may not mark a major departure in Panda Bear’s sound, but it bristles with the creative energy of an artist confronting his deepest, most destructive demons.
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Feb 12, 2019Buoys is a sad and wistful album, though in a non-specific way.
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The WireMar 7, 2019A modest effort of just over half an hour. [Mar 2019, p.62]
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Feb 13, 2019They are certainly light enough to float, and, if you will forgive one last crass metaphor, they may just provide a navigational guide to safety for anyone stranded in dangerous waters.
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Feb 7, 2019The relatively empty arrangements take a few listens to latch on, but their openness showcases Lennox's gifts for honest, fearless songwriting. Try as he may to embrace external influences, Panda Bear remains inescapably himself.
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Feb 4, 2019A fruitful addition to Lennox's one-of-a-kind audial metamorphism.
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UncutFeb 4, 2019It's a new direction, one stretched fairly thin across nine similar tracks, but at least he's escaped that old echo chamber. [Mar 2019, p.32]
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Feb 4, 2019Lennox updates that balance struck between squelchy abstraction and clarity, which is--in the main--an immersive experience.
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Feb 4, 2019For a moment of respite, a calming breath against the rush of modern life, Buoys is a fine balm in spite of its shortcomings.
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Feb 8, 2019The melodies have their usual childlike playfulness, but not the haunting quality that's lent them so much mystery and depth in the past.
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Mar 6, 2019This is a nine-song collection of modest ambition, but ‘Buoys’ undoubtedly succeeds on its own terms, that consistently understated sonic template interspersed with surprising moments – the bassy thud of electronic drums that interrupts ‘Crescendo’, the hip-hop style piano riff that marches through ‘Master’ – that makes it a rewarding repeat listen.
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Feb 8, 2019The relatively trim Buoys winds up feeling as minor as 2018’s A Day With the Homies EP, despite being twice as long and bearing far higher expectations.
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Feb 8, 2019A spiritual successor to the joyful rush of My Girls, but otherwise Buoys offers a sort of deconstructed R&B that focuses on repetition and restraint.
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MojoFeb 4, 2019Lennox has created a record that mixes the hum of his adopted city [Lisbon] with the serenity of its oceanside setting. [Mar 2019, p.97]
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Feb 11, 2019The aquatic theme of the album is appropriate and in line with the atmosphere Lennox’s quirky, gentle guitar-plucking consistently evokes. But this, nor the occasional flashes of beauty throughout the album, are enough to recommend Buoys’ unremarkable lonely beach music.
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Feb 8, 2019Mostly unlistenable. ... What has previously been a steady but inoffensive deterioration in Lennox’s music has now slid to (what one can only hope is) the bottom of the trough. No track here could be accused of attempting to engage with either the audience or work with recent exciting stylistic developments in alternative music.
User score distribution:
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Positive: 18 out of 40
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Mixed: 17 out of 40
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Negative: 5 out of 40
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Sep 5, 2022This review contains spoilers, click full review link to view.
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Aug 28, 2020I find myself constantly coming back to this album, its rhythm carries you and it's sincerity holds up over time.
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Feb 22, 2019