By The Time I Get To Phoenix
by Injury Reserve
  • Record Label: N/A
  • Release Date: Sep 15, 2021
Metascore
82

Universal acclaim - based on 9 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 9
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 9
  3. Negative: 0 out of 9
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  1. Sputnikmusic
    Sep 22, 2021
    100
    What these artists have pulled together in their last outing as a trio is something more than the sum of its parts, a paradoxical masterpiece that lies somewhere in the space between, blindingly bright and painfully incomprehensible.
  2. Clash Music
    Sep 17, 2021
    90
    Injury Reserve’s new album is a truly dystopian impression of despair, smashing together polar opposite genres to create something wholly new.
  3. Exclaim
    Sep 17, 2021
    90
    It is an abstract, melancholic and affecting body of work that is not only another incredible addition to a stellar discography, but a magnificent and moving tribute to a friend gone too soon.
  5. HipHopDX
    Nov 3, 2021
    80
    By the Time I Get to Phoenix has arrived, an album loaded with deep emotion and detailed texture that makes every track feel revelatory.
  6. The Quietus
    Sep 21, 2021
    80
    It joins the annals of desolate and broken works, like Skeleton Tree and Purple Mountains. It’s also an album whose rewards have to be worked for, and that makes it a challenging listen.
  7. Beats Per Minute
    Sep 17, 2021
    80
    They’ve released what is arguably their definitive record, they wouldn’t have any obligation to release anything else.
  8. Pitchfork
    Sep 23, 2021
    77
    On By the Time I Get to Phoenix, they reintroduce themselves as wide-eyed explorers, a rep that suits their fascination with rap’s mechanics, its margins, and its future.
  9. The Wire
    Dec 20, 2021
    70
    Much like Mantronix, Injury Reserve’s strengths lie in their overall freshness, and the way they play with and reinforce hiphop’s borders. Phoenix is full of post-genre dynamics. ... Phoenix is a punch-drunk affair that finds Injury Reserve hurtling forward with a determined anguish. [Oct 2021, p.49]
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  10. Under The Radar
    Sep 17, 2021
    55
    The album ends up feeling more like a patchwork of ideas than anything, resembling a puzzle with all of its pieces scattered. In a way, it’s the album’s greatest strength and its biggest downfall. Parker and Ritchie let us in to inspect their psychological state across 11 tracks, providing a sonic amalgam of their lives in these uncertain times, but the real question is whether or not the end result gives us enough room to truly explore.

Awards & Rankings

77
#77 Most Discussed Album of 2021

User Reviews

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User Score
8.2

Universal acclaim- based on 35 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 29 out of 35
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 35
  3. Negative: 4 out of 35
  1. hausoflilluis
    Oct 6, 2021
    8
    I'm working what I just heard. Hip-hop? Experimental? Alternative? Music? A regret? I don't know what the heck that was, but I'll just sayI'm working what I just heard. Hip-hop? Experimental? Alternative? Music? A regret? I don't know what the heck that was, but I'll just say that for mentioning "5G", this record got me. Hands down, Injury Reserve did what they did to commemorate their colleague and the world in the best way they know how to do it.

    fav tracks: "Superman That", "Knees", "Postpostpartum", "SS San Francisco" & "Top Picks for You"
    KEY-TRACK: "Wild Wild West"    … Full Review »
  2. Nicky9nore
    Sep 22, 2021
    9
    This is such a depressing and introspective album.

    It reminds me a lot of death grips industrial sound but it has that distinct injury    This is such a depressing and introspective album.

    It reminds me a lot of death grips industrial sound but it has that distinct injury reserve style to it. Thematically this album is more similar to NIN's the downward spiral. This sounds like an album from the future. While not every track works for me, I can respect the sound that each track goes for.

    This is one of my favourite hip-hop albums this year, and that's saying a lot (so many good ones so far).

    RIP Groggs    … Full Review »
  3. Daliqe
    Sep 22, 2021
    10
    This record is honestly amazing, this feels like a mix of something death grips would compose and something completely new.
    The composition    This record is honestly amazing, this feels like a mix of something death grips would compose and something completely new.
    The composition and overall feeling of the song "knees" is just incredible
    With that being said, stream this album, and support Injury Reserve!
    RIP Groggs

    Fav Tracks:
    Knees, Wild Wild West, Top Picks For You, PostPostPartum

    Least Fav Track:
    (idkkkk uhmmm, if i had to pick one, i'd say Outside, but only the intro)    … Full Review »
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