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While Far is far from bad, it doesn't quite live up to expectations, either, based on all the talent involved in making it and how fully Spektor expressed herself on "Begin to Hope."
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Here she leaves behind the flaky-as-adorable posturing long enough to salvage Far from its role as capricious sideshow, and so, too, long enough for listeners to get a glimpse of the songwriting talent that lurks beneath the peculiarity.
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She's always interesting; for all the nonsense, Spektor is a writer with something to say.
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Unfortunately, all this talent behind the boards often feels like a waste because of Spektor's inability to let her songs stand on their own merits without the persistent interjection of vocal curlicues or verbal flights of fancy.
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Frankly it makes our blood run cold with images of Sunday supplement purgatory, Spektor trading soft-focus licks with Katie Meluah from out of suburban glove compartments for decades to come. Thankfully the reality is nowhere near as bad as that.
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No less than four producers--Mike Elizondo, David Kahne, Jeff Lynne and Garret “Jacknife” Lee--contributed to the album, and their collective efforts have resulted in a mid-tempo muddle of pseudo-lovely tracks plagued by a hovering cloud of meddling strings, slappy drums and perfunctory triangle chimes.
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Far goes some distance to halt a slide into mere radio-friendly pleasantness, though.
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'One More Time With Feeling's' dynamics shift and her lyrics are vague, but carry a heartfelt sentiment. Far has too little of this and winds up being a mixed bag.
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UncutThroughout, there's an ungainly combination of the leaden and the jaunty. [Aug 2009, p.102]
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 59 out of 73
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Mixed: 4 out of 73
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Negative: 10 out of 73
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JeremySep 16, 2009
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Nov 22, 2021Regina Spektor keeps her charm and witty lyrics present in this wonderful album
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Aug 22, 2018