Half-Light
by Rostam
  • Record Label: Nonesuch
  • Release Date: Sep 15, 2017
User Score
7.3

Generally favorable reviews- based on 26 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 18 out of 26
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 26
  3. Negative: 3 out of 26
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  1. DavidWasHere
    Sep 22, 2017
    6
    It's sad when one of the best songs on the album, Woods, was a single released back in 2011. As a Vampire Weekend fan, I wanted to like Rostam's solo debut. And I did enjoy it, but not as much as I wanted. The album is a weird mish-mash of Vampire Weekend and Panda Bear's solo work outside of Animal Collective. There is a lot of Person Pitch and Panda Bear Meets the Grim Reaper in there.It's sad when one of the best songs on the album, Woods, was a single released back in 2011. As a Vampire Weekend fan, I wanted to like Rostam's solo debut. And I did enjoy it, but not as much as I wanted. The album is a weird mish-mash of Vampire Weekend and Panda Bear's solo work outside of Animal Collective. There is a lot of Person Pitch and Panda Bear Meets the Grim Reaper in there. And unfortunately it all doesn't really pan out. The instrumentation and composition have some good ideas going, especially with the eclectic worldbeat ideas, but unfortunately is kneecapped by the terrible mixing and Rostam sounding drunk as he slurs his lines when he sings. Say what you will about Ezra's singing, at least he can pronounce his words and has some presence and charisma than someone just waking up from a nap after downing a bottle of cough syrup. This album comes off as boring mostly. There are some good tunes here, from the experimental piano ballad of the title cut, to the beautiful worldbeat of Woods, to the African drum beat and bleeping synths that actually sound pleasant of Don't Let It Get To You, and even pretty damn awful, like the autotune, trap, and gospel nightmare of Hold You. It's not really all that bad, but infuriating knowing that Rostam can do so much better than this!… Expand

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 15 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 15
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 15
  3. Negative: 0 out of 15
  1. musicOMH.com
    Oct 13, 2017
    60
    Half-Light is a good introduction to the solo sound of Rostam Batmanglij. It’s likely to remain more of a cult interest than establish Rostam as a star in his own right, but even when it becomes a bit unfocused it’s clear that Batmanglij remains a major talent.
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  2. AllMusic
    Sep 25, 2017
    80
    Half-Light is a sprawling, passionate musical memoir; as far as remembrances of things past go, this one is remarkably forward-sounding.
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  3. Exclaim
    Sep 22, 2017
    70
    All in all, Half-Light makes it apparent just how much of what was captivating about Vampire Weekend came from Batmanglij, solidifying the newly independent musician as a collaborator artists from multiple genres should--and do--want to work with.
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