- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
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Entertainment Weekly[On disc 2] he finds a dormant penchant for vocal nuance. [29 Oct 2004, p.68]
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Those who really love Frank Black and Black Francis' songs, as opposed to just their sound, will enjoy eavesdropping on him playing around with his work.
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MojoFor scholarly inclined fans, the 1987 demo is a fascinating document. [Nov 2004, p.110]
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UncutIt's the inclusion of [Disc 2] that makes this essential. [Dec 2004, p.140]
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It’s an intriguing and refreshing listen.
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New Musical Express (NME)What it shows is that if you're going to do the hits, the thing to do is pin them down, fuck them up and HURT THEM. [average of scores of 90 for Disc 1 and 70 for Disc 2; 16 Oct 2004, p.48]
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The second disc is ultimately little more than a curiosity for most-- and will no doubt be complete anathema for some-- but given that the entire package retails for a single-disc price, that's hardly a reason for a die-hard to opt out.
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While the demos CD is guaranteed to please longtime devotees, the remakes will polarize many.
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The WireBlack's pleasure at rediscovering these old songs in new company is infectious and makes the exercise engaging and worthwhile. [#252, p.62]
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Overall, what could have been yet another cash-cow milker actually turns out to be a curious and compelling piece of therapy for Frank Black as a writer and performer.
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[Disc 1 is] a revealing, if not quite essential, portrait of the artist.... [Disc 2 is] an inventive, rewarding look at the Pixies esteemed catalogue.
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Unfortunately, disc two’s cache of amorphous, New Age-y, re-recorded Pixies standards falls flat.
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The one thing the demo and the remix have in common is they both put Francis' voice in a more prominent position than on the Pixies albums, and that is certainly not a bad thing.
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Under The RadarIt is fun to hear the songs re-imagined [on Disc 2], no doubt, but the first disc is sketches of invention with the seedlings of genius. [average of scores of 7 for Disc 1 and 5 for Disc 2; #8, p.108]
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SpinThese reimaginings... unlock some interesting textures suggested by [Black's] still-scratchy vocals. [Dec 2004, p.118]
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[Disc 1] is fantastic and worth the price of admission in and of itself.... Sadly, the results [on disc 2] sound more like the soundtrack to a bad '80s cop movie than appropriate or even interesting re-takes of some of the best pop songs ever penned.
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File under: very bad ideas.
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Q MagazineIf anything, [Disc 2] is the real rip-off, as unsuspecting buyers will be shellshocked by these FX-laden, space-ambient settings. [Dec 2004, p.135]
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BlenderHearing "Cactus" and "Subbacultcha" transformed into droning ambient jazz is upsetting, yet somehow perfect for this listen-once-and-destroy disc. [Dec 2004, p.134]
User score distribution:
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Positive: 3 out of 3
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Mixed: 0 out of 3
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Negative: 0 out of 3
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Jan 5, 2012
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MoneyBApr 21, 2005Great Album! I don't get the low ratings. A must buy for true pixies fans. Only song that was not so great - planet of sound on disc 2.