Dark Night Of The Soul
by Danger Mouse And Sparklehorse
  • Record Label: Capitol
  • Release Date: Jul 13, 2010
Metascore
73

Generally favorable reviews - based on 30 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 22 out of 30
  2. Mixed: 8 out of 30
  3. Negative: 0 out of 30
  1. The New York Times
    60
    Here were two artists, anxious and passionate, who knew how to talk to each other. That connection is missing from much of the rest of this collection, an exercise in Rolodex-flexing and loose oversight.
  2. Q Magazine
    60
    For all the celebrity firepower, however, Dark Night Of The Soul never quite adds up to more than a handful of great moments. [Aug 2009, p.111]
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  3. Uncut
    60
    Dark Night Of The Soul will probably be remembered more for the stunt with the blank CD-Rs than for the music intended to be burnt onto them.
  5. The Wire
    60
    The feeling of opiated depressive inertia that weighs it down is compounded by the sugary viscosity of Danger Mouse;s production. Yet it's these slower songs, shaped by Linkous's Country-inflected enervation and Danger Mouse's attention to sonic detail, that work best, while the more up tempo, rockier tracks come off as perfunctory. [Jul 2010, p.53]
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  6. American Songwriter
    60
    Dark Night mostly fits together as an accomplished piece of downbeat concept-rock. The mood can get--to quote Chesnutt's song--"grim," but the artfulness shines through.
  7. Dusted Magazine
    50
    It's a project with too many authors and not enough personality, too many ideas and not enough meaning.
  8. Chicago Tribune
    50
    Unfortunately, the ambitious concept proves too unwieldy to work as a consistent album.
  9. Under The Radar
    50
    Most of the songs play like invertebrate retreads of Flaming Lips and Grandaddy-styled pomp. [Summer 2009, p.65]
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Awards & Rankings

74
#74 Most Discussed Album of 2010

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
7.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 36 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 31 out of 36
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 36
  3. Negative: 1 out of 36
  1. Ricko
    Jan 3, 2014
    8
    Dark Night of the Soul is a collection of great songs with an all star cast of collaborators but in the end the result is less than the sum ofDark Night of the Soul is a collection of great songs with an all star cast of collaborators but in the end the result is less than the sum of the parts. I say this as I was expecting a total beast of a record but instead just found a really good one. The who's who of indie is present on a record that mixes excellent songwriting with sharp production and is well worth getting hold of. What goes against the record slightly is the number of different collaborations. This tends to take away for the continuity of the album. For example we get a trio of rock numbers in Little Girl, Angel's Harp and Pain in the middle of an otherwise very laid back and chilled out record. These songs kind of come out of nowhere and disappear again. I will say that I did come to the record expecting a little bit more but the record is nothing if not interesting and I'd recommend it to anyone into either Dangermouse or Sparklehorse.… Full Review »
  2. 9zep_peppers
    Dec 7, 2011
    9
    WOW WOW WOW WOW very awesome songs, nice work Danger Mouse and friends
  3. KhalilJAli
    Dec 27, 2010
    10
    I could have potentially written about this album last yearâ
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