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Church Gone Wild / Chirpin Hard
by
Church Gone Wild / Chirpin Hard Image
Metascore
64

Generally favorable reviews - based on 12 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
8.4

Universal acclaim- based on 8 Ratings

  • Summary: The Sacramento, Calif. noise-rock duo of Spencer Seim and Zach Hill each claim a disc to themselves on this 2-CD third album.

Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 12
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 12
  3. Negative: 1 out of 12
  1. Tiny Mix Tapes
    90
    Church Gone Wild/Chirpin Hard may not be exactly groundbreaking or revolutionary, but it's the kind of idiosyncratic release that reminds experimentalism to laugh when something's funny.
  2. Urb
    80
    Combined, you have the best blotter soundtrack ever. [Jun 2005, p.78]
    All this publication's reviews
  3. Splendid
    80
    At nearly two hours long, Church Gone Wild/Chirpin Hard is anything but a precise masterstroke. It is, however, a flawed, majestic account of what can happen when a band splits down the middle to compose on their own terms, with no artistic differences and no coalescing of ideals.
  4. Alternative Press
    60
    Chirpin Hard makes you feel like you're getting chased by a swarm of giant mosquitoes in a scrolling Mega Man hellscape circa 1992, while Church Gone Wild is a nerve-shattering whirlwind of atonal chaos. [May 2005, p.168]
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  5. Dusted Magazine
    60
    Aside from Church Gone Wild’s best moments, there’s not much material here that can compare with the intelligence and distinctiveness of the duo’s best work.
  6. Stylus Magazine
    58
    It’s the sound of two very talented musicians getting their proverbial creative ya-ya’s out, temporarily sullying their good name to lay ground for something potentially even more exciting.
  7. PopMatters
    25
    The Hella boys have immeasurable talent, as proven by their past (and better) releases; unfortunately, Church Gone Wild/Chirpin Hard has nothing but complete disregard and contempt for talent.

See all 12 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

Write a Review
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 6
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 6
  3. Negative: 0 out of 6
  1. RandolphR.
    Sep 6, 2008
    10
    A true testament of the endless sea of talent that is Spencer Seim and Zach Hill.
  2. CatfishRivers
    Feb 14, 2006
    10
    Mindblowing...reminds me of late era don caballero, trans am, and the boredoms ... it even has a bit of My Bloody Valentine sloshing about in Mindblowing...reminds me of late era don caballero, trans am, and the boredoms ... it even has a bit of My Bloody Valentine sloshing about in there. Sometimes all the noise is just stacked so sublimely that it sounds like breaking through into some unknown mental space. I totally dig this.… Expand
  4. ChuckL
    Apr 3, 2005
    9
    great googly moogly muzak for the lower echelons of the upper stratosphere...enjoy the musings of greater beings who are lezzer than none.
  5. BrandonS.
    Jul 3, 2005
    9
    Holy shucks! Not their greatest. Hey just got Zach hill and the holy smokes cd/book thing, buy that! Buy this too AAAA!!
  6. jimbob
    Apr 16, 2005
    9
    Looooove it. It's understandably dividing critics and fans, because it's nothing like it's like they've ever done. But it Looooove it. It's understandably dividing critics and fans, because it's nothing like it's like they've ever done. But it feels so right. Sure, it's really repetetive and same sounding, but the energy is staggering and the production is huge. Hopefully this is a Hella album that fans will look back on in a few years and realize how brilliant it is. Or at least lay the ground for their masterwork. The sound quality is far superior to their past releases, and they've never sounded so intense. That being said, like all double albums, they probably could have combined the two and made a more cohesive and diverse effort, but I think the two albums stand really well on their own.… Expand
  7. AShinyG1ratina
    Jun 22, 2022
    6
    Zach's half is by far the best half to the point where the latter half seems pointless.