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Oct 4, 2013Sure, they're not very hip, but Portugal the Man are anything but slouches, and Evil Friends is proof that some bands get big for being good, nothing else.
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Jun 4, 2013Danger Mouse’s fingerprints are all over all of these songs, and it’s easy to see parallels with some of his other projects, but in many ways Evil Friends is the most quintessentially Portugal. The Man album the band has released. It’s also undoubtedly their best.
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Jun 20, 2013It is by far their most focused and polished album, and Danger Mouse makes sure that everything is sonically smooth (even if a few feel almost like Broken Bells b-sides).
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Jun 7, 2013Everything there was to like about Portugal. The Man before is present on Evil Friends and multiplied tenfold.
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Jun 7, 2013Portugal. The Man have created something special with Evil Friends. The core songwriting and performances are top notch, and Danger Mouse’s input adds a plethora of valuable modifications and ideas.
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Alternative PressJun 4, 2013The quartet gets a little glammy, turn in a fist pumping epic, and achieve Beatles-esque flights of fancy. [Jul 2013, p.104]
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Jun 4, 2013While the writing has a tight focus and singer John Baldwin Gourley sounds like he’s whispering his thoughts directly to you, the rest of the record bursts with all manner of sonic color.
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Jun 12, 2013It’s more streamlined than their past work, more ornate while simultaneously accessible and experimental, though that may be partially to their producer’s credit.
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Jun 4, 2013Where Broken Bells is pensive and slow, Evil Friends is hyper-caffeinated and energetic, and better for it.
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Jun 5, 2013Evil Friends kicks out the jams, heightens the hits, and rolls it all up in a trippy joint.
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Jun 4, 2013For creating something as fresh and strong as this at album number eight, Portugal. The Man deserve to be applauded.
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Jun 4, 2013Evil Friends offers ample evidence that the match between Portugal. The Man and Burton expanded the horizons of both parties and will likely heighten the band's profile considerably.
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Under The RadarJun 13, 2013The album boasts a fuller sound than previous albums as well as some strong moments, but does not boast anything as immediately memorable, as previous works have. [Jun-Jul 2013, p.89]
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Jul 23, 2013Evil Friends has a more colorful, toylike sound than 2011’s In the Mountain in the Cloud--an asset to pop-oriented tracks like “Creep in a T-Shirt” and “Purple Yellow Red and Blue” but a stumbling block to heavier ones like “Waves” and “Holy Roller (Hallelujah),” which come off like riots attempted from inside a snow globe.
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Jun 11, 2013The frequently overstuffed, occasionally scatterbrained album is far from perfect. But even when going for broke gets them into trouble, Portugal seem happy to get up there and overshoot the mark.
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Sep 12, 2013When an album’s quality level ranges from intolerable to merely tolerable, it’s not a positive sign. Middling.
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Sep 4, 2013The songs themselves don’t shine through the production.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 78 out of 85
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Mixed: 3 out of 85
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Negative: 4 out of 85
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Jun 7, 2013
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Jun 6, 2013
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Jun 4, 2013