• Record Label: RCA
  • Release Date: Jun 8, 2004
Metascore
65

Generally favorable reviews - based on 14 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 14
  2. Negative: 0 out of 14
  1. Mojo
    80
    A perpetual guilty pleasure. [Jun 2004, p.107]
  2. It is a rare, fine thing: the sound of the perfect A&R sales pitch turning into a real band.
  3. Q Magazine
    80
    Astonishingly good. [Jul 2004, p.127]
  4. "Contraband" is "Appetite For Destruction" for grown-ups.
  5. Mostly, it sounds like no more and a little less than one might expect (or hope for) from such a union: Scott Weiland singing over some relatively crunchy Slash guitar templates.
  6. Entertainment Weekly
    67
    Even at its sharpest, Contraband feels secondhand, and much of it is also hobbled by a disconnect between singer and band. [4 June 2004, p.79]
  7. Contraband is a pretty good record of unpretentious rock and roll that suffers from inevitable comparison with the best efforts of its parent bands.
  8. Blender
    60
    A showcase for Weiland's vocals. [#27, p.148]
  9. With Contraband, Velvet Revolver has pulled off something tidy, fashioning music that manages both hedonism and maturity.
  10. Now there was nothing wrong with Stone Temple Pilots, but anyone who’d hoped for Guns‘n’Roses mark II (or III) will be very seriously disappointed. Weiland’s dry, powerful voice cancels out the music, like light cancels out dark, or Owen Wilson cancels out Ben Stiller.
  11. In a time when The Darkness is successfully parodying cock-rock, members of Velvet Revolver are still earnestly carrying the torch. Whether you think that’s noble or laughable will probably determine your opinion of this album.
  12. Velvet Revolver sounds like a hungover bar band playing catch-up, wading through tired blues licks and meaningless grunge imagery.
  13. Spin
    42
    This is a troubling record. There are some stellar moments, but it's mostly just troubling. [Jul 2004, p.105]
  14. New Musical Express (NME)
    40
    A bit like playing Russian roulette in reverse: you spin the disc and pray in vain for something to stick in your brain. [19 Jun 2004, p.56]
User Score
8.0

Generally favorable reviews- based on 113 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 91 out of 113
  2. Negative: 13 out of 113
  1. May 26, 2012
    8
    I really like this album simply because of how much energy it has, and how many memorable guitar riffs/solos there are on this album. ThisI really like this album simply because of how much energy it has, and how many memorable guitar riffs/solos there are on this album. This album is not as good as either the best GN'R album, nor the best STP album, but a lot of fun to listen to. Full Review »
  2. SlashH.
    Jun 29, 2007
    9
    Great Rock n Roll record!
  3. rockfan
    Jun 26, 2007
    10
    These guys (along with The Villains) will save real rock and roll from posers like those pop-punk babies.