Crystal Castles - Crystal Castles
User Score
8.1 out of 10

Universal acclaim- based on 54 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 48 out of 54
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 54
  3. Negative: 5 out of 54

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  1. [Anonymous]
    Mar 31, 2008
    10
    Wow! This will definitely be one of the best albums of the year. The consistency of awesomeness throughout the album is incredible. It's practically impossible not to want to get up and dance when you hear "Black Panther." And tracks like "Love and Caring," with it's angry shouting and loud noise perfectly complement more relaxed but equally incredible tracks like "Magic Spells"
  2. ThomasM.
    May 6, 2008
    10
    Who cares if previously released stuff is compiled here and there is little new material? It's all friggin' awesome.
  3. Vampire25
    Sep 26, 2012
    10
    Took me awhile to discover this band, but it was completely worth the thrill of discovering them. I'm not the biggest fan of electronic music, but Crystal Castles are unlike any electro band I've ever heard. I was completely blown away from this LP.It's a little over 50 minutes but it breezes by so smoothly and lush that you don't realize it's ended already. It's indie electroclash at it's finest. I'll go so far to say that I loved each track, which is a little rare for me. Some tracks are very abrasive (Alice Practice) and some are very lush and beautiful (Magic Spells). All In All, probably the best electronic album I've heard since Discovery by Daft Punk. A… Expand
  4. AndrejS
    Jun 21, 2009
    9
    Simply amazing.
  5. TylerW
    Jun 7, 2009
    9
    A shame this album isn't rated higher, by critics or 'fans'. The sample argument is weak at best, seeing as only a couple tracks used them & even then doesn't deduce from the quality. Daft Punk, for example, used samples on some of their biggest hits, and they're far superior to the original. True, CC did deny some of the samples until proven true, but that doesn't mean the songs were bad. Stop rating an album on the action of the band. The CD in general is a great and unique addition to a genre that already has so much great music in it. Ethan Kath, also known for various remixes, has a very creative mind for music composition, while Alice Glass brings appeal with ear splitting vocals that have no business in electronic music, but increases the quality still yet. Musically, the album is tremendous. Nearly every track is something new and surprisingly addictive. Lyrically, it has a lot of rude truth to it, but truth nonetheless. Tracks like Air War, which is easily the best literary reading(the lyrics are taken from James Joyce's Ulysses) in any song I've ever heard, Alice Practice, XXZXCUZX Me and Black Panther make the album worth the buy. There are only a couple misses with the album.. Magic Spells is a little dragged out, both musically and lyrically(which was taken from the TV show V) and sometimes, while very crucial to the music, the distorted vocals can get a bit unnerving. At the end of the CD however, you come away knowing you've heard something new. Something that'll be in your head for a long time. Something that you'll compare future bands of the same genre to. Most importantly, you'll come back for another listen.… Expand
  6. jp_fal
    Feb 21, 2013
    9
    Still my favorite Crystal Castles album after two good follow up releases. Not as dark as the 2nd and 3rd albums, I'd go so far as to call it their pop record. Contains a good mix of their sound and by being more accessible it is the best place to start if checking out the band before getting into their darker sound. It contains the noise of Alice Practice, the synth-pop instrumentals of 1991 and Knights, the creepiness of Courtship Dating (which is further explored on later albums) and one of my favorites the delicate yet disturbing Tell me What to Swallow.… Expand

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
73 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 22 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 15 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 22
  3. Negative: 0 out of 22
  1. All Music Guide
    80
    It's clear that Kath and Glass are already looking for more ways to expand on this familiar-sounding, edgy, innocent, menacing, bold, nuanced, and altogether striking debut.
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  2. Alternative Press
    60
    Crystal Castles is gloriously danceable and hopelessly chic. But really, it's... hearing only...judging is... you know? [Apr 2008, p.162]
  3. Drowned In Sound
    80
    Glass’s voice, too, is the same that’s been luring lusty seamen onto the rocks for millennia, but the way it and the drums are textured--so that the machines they’re passed through sound like they’re melting away--brings Crystal Castles to the outer edges of greatness.
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