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Hard Islands - Nathan Fake
Metascore
67 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 11 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 11
  3. Negative: 0 out of 11
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  1. musicOMH.com
    80
    Impressively, then, Nathan Fake has shown he is very much more than a one trick pony, with a bold second album statement that gets more impressive with every listen. We should watch his every move closely.
  2. Observer Music Monthly
    80
    The result is writ large on this brilliant second album, which welds his drifting soundscapes to fractious, rapturous techno.
  3. PopMatters
    80
    Hard Islands is the nasty business that grabs a hold of your short and curlies and never lets go until your rocks are off.
  4. Pitchfork
    62
    With only six songs on offer--one of which is a 75-second interlude called 'The Curlew'--it's hard to feel like this is the assertive, confident statement Fake has it in him to make. As a strategic move out from the ghetto of nostalgic IDM Nowheresville, though, it'll suit just fine.
  5. New Musical Express (NME)
    60
    Ultimately, it lacks the variety or the startling sonic leaps that would make it essential. Interesting, but no cigar.
  6. Drowned In Sound
    60
    There's no doubting that sensory sensations offered here can hold the listener, but most likely they'll be enjoyed a helluva lot more while chemically-enhanced; essentially this is not a record designed for home listening.
  7. cokemachineglow
    60
    Hard Islands is hardly a wash, just frustratingly short of the sound statement Fake wanted to make.
  8. Mojo
    60
    Hard Islands is evolution. But some will hanker for Fake's fluffier vintage. [Jun 2009, p.102]
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  9. Uncut
    60
    His tunes have taken a tougher, more urban tone, with stand-outs 'The Turtle' and 'Basic Mountain' building to hard edged concrete peaks, drenched in acid Rephlex bleeps. [Jun 2009, p.85]
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  10. Q Magazine
    60
    This impressive follow-up finds him lacing hard-edged techno beats with quirky shifts on tone and texture. [Jun 2009, p.121]
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  11. PopMatters
    60
    A few of the Hard productions are among Fake's finest to date, but this release--its short running time aside--works primarily on a collection basis, as if it were two separate EPs gathered for one release and nothing more than that.
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