Daybreaker
by Beth Orton
Metascore
70

Generally favorable reviews - based on 22 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 8 out of 22
  3. Negative: 0 out of 22
  1. Billboard
    80
    Orton has a flair for penning languid, spacious songs whose forlorn characters seem as adrift as the music's fleeting acoustic guitar chords and absentminded piano tinkles.
  2. CDNow
    80
    Daybreaker's more conventional nature puts a greater and more intriguing challenge on Orton's vocal cords to be the album's main instrument; that voice, a breathless cry that falls somewhere between Natalie Merchant and Bjork, is more than equal to the task.
  3. E! Online
    83
    It's a downer, sure, but if you've got the patience, this disc's subtle meditations have a way of working themselves into your heart.
  5. Entertainment Weekly
    67
    This time, the arrangements that envelop Orton's ruminations on various ill-suited partners are too hazy and languid.
  6. Launch.com
    70
    Listen beyond the surface and you'll hear an old school folkie who could just as easily curl up with her acoustic guitar and sing you to heavenly sleep.
  7. Magnet
    80
    Daybreaker, though neither as arresting as her debut nor as cohesive as its follow-up, almost corrects the inconsistency issue. [#55, p.86]
    All this publication's reviews
  8. Mixer
    80
    Daybreaker is Orton's ultimate heartstring-pulling concoction. [Jul 2002, p.80]
    All this publication's reviews
  9. Mojo
    80
    This is her best to date, but she'll be better yet. [Sep 2002, p.102]
    All this publication's reviews
  10. Neumu.net
    90
    Daybreaker bears all the strengths and beauty of the earlier Orton CDs, but it also shows some growth.
  11. New Musical Express (NME)
    80
    The immaculately chiselled 'Daybreaker' is so beautiful and distant that it almost isn't there at all.
  12. Rolling Stone
    80
    Orton delivers some gooey pop complete with sticky tunes and honey-dipped ear candy - yet it's heavy, disturbing, recondite.
  13. Stylus Magazine
    80
    Yeah, she’s sticking with the formula that got her going six years ago, but when it actually works, why bother messing with it?
  14. Vibe
    70
    Daybreaker is no less gripping for its optimism. [Sep 2002, p.250]
    All this publication's reviews
  15. Village Voice
    70
    Like Trailer Park, her first full-length, the new Daybreaker is less about melody and being lovely than about instrumentation and experimentation with the elements--electronic, acoustic, and lyrical.

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
8.6

Universal acclaim- based on 8 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7 out of 8
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 8
  3. Negative: 0 out of 8
  1. Tinnitus
    Jul 21, 2013
    9
    Orton's strongest and most satisfying outing to date, Daybreaker achieves that rare balance of musical diversity and thematic cohesion. ChoiceOrton's strongest and most satisfying outing to date, Daybreaker achieves that rare balance of musical diversity and thematic cohesion. Choice collaborations with the likes of Ryan Adams, Emmy Lou Harris and Johnny Marr extend Orton's artistic range. But it's the production that elevates this record, with Victor Van Vugt, William Orbit, the Chemical Brothers, Ben Watt and Orton herself contributing to an overall intensity and warmth that eclipses 1999s Central Reservation. Listen to: "Mount Washington", a slow motion launch into a haze of sound that is Orton's folktronica tour-de-force.… Full Review »
  2. JonB
    Sep 12, 2007
    8
    this CD is a departure from her previous two. I probably would have rated it around a 3 or 4 when I first heard it. But I dusted it off this CD is a departure from her previous two. I probably would have rated it around a 3 or 4 when I first heard it. But I dusted it off recently and have come to enjoy it very much. I think the sound and mood of this CD is an acquired taste and may take repeated spins to fully appreciate it's moody quality.… Full Review »
  3. KeithY.
    Aug 11, 2002
    10
    Fantastic! Must buy!
See all user reviews »