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Cloak and Cipher Image
Metascore
71

Generally favorable reviews - based on 14 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
8.2

Universal acclaim- based on 5 Ratings

  • Summary: The second full-length album for the Canadian trio led by Elizabeth Powell was written while she was recovering from a hemorrhagic vocal polyp.
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Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 14
  2. Negative: 0 out of 14
  1. Aside from some quirky song titles, there's little about Land of Talk that's abnormal. In the end, they're just solid all the way around.
  2. Cloak and Cipher is unpretentious in every respect, escalating their previous subtleties with furious, transcendent melancholic moments. While many Canadian bands find themselves teetering on the edge after much premature praise, it comes as a pleasant surprise that Land of Talk keep getting better.
  3. Ultimately, you sense Powell pushing, giving and breaking through.
  4. Alternative Press
    70
    Lovely and bewitching, Cipher unfolds like an elegantly written novel. [Sep 2010, p.112]
  5. Although largely interchangeable with its predecessors, Cloak and Cipher still sounds fresh enough to please Land of Talk loyalists, and engaging enough to showcase their appeal to new listeners as well.
  6. Those great choruses? Still great, but not when songs are dragged out this long and the payoff arrives right on schedule, about four times a song. It's indulgent, but it's hard to make songs sound this big. Fortunately, it won't be enough to wring-out the magic found in a great many of these songs, and surely won't be able to stall Land of Talk who, with Cloak and Cipher, are progressing quite nicely.
  7. With an all-star cast like this, it's not surprising that Cloak and Cipher is beautifully played and layered. However, too often it feels like the album's overall sound comes at the price of distinctive songs.

See all 14 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 2
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 2
  3. Negative: 0 out of 2
  1. Nov 29, 2010
    9
    happy to see this album getting at least a little love. i've been a fan of land of talk since their first EP and have loved watching themhappy to see this album getting at least a little love. i've been a fan of land of talk since their first EP and have loved watching them continue to develop and gain sophistication. sure there aren't any singles per se, but this album will grow on you. seeing them live really made me commit to loving this album. hands down my favorite show of the year. Expand
  2. Nov 5, 2010
    8
    I wasn't too familiar with the band but decided to give this album a chance, it proved to be worth the purchase. The first song will get stuckI wasn't too familiar with the band but decided to give this album a chance, it proved to be worth the purchase. The first song will get stuck in your hand instantly, but don't think this is a one hit wonder, the whole album is pretty strong, although the end does taper off. It's worth checking out if you enjoy strong female vocals and good musicianship. Expand