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Sep 28, 2012I Bet on Sky is the sound of a great, influential band that, yes, picked up where they left off, but instead of luxuriating in the sentimental hue of the moment, got back to work and kept moving forward.
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Sep 17, 2012Despite displaying their love of hardcore through certain parts of the album, Dinosaur Jr have created the most accessible heavy album of this year, with every track being suitable for any radio station or soundtrack.
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Sep 19, 2012Their 10th album, I Bet on Sky, offers a shortcut through their solid, sonic history.
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Sep 18, 2012The disc may be act three of Dinosaur Jr.'s resurrection, but it hardly seems like it'll be its last.
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Oct 1, 2012The way all the pieces fit on I Bet on Sky gives you the idea that they're doing more than just letting bygones be bygones, but actually learning to appreciate one another in a way that allows them to play off each others' strengths.
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Sep 26, 2012The group's strongest, most challenging and most cohesive offering in years.
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Sep 19, 2012It's everything to be expected: Dinosaur Jr. sounds relaxed, takes a laid-back approach and still manages to make an album that stands up next to everything else that the band has released since its resurrection.
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Sep 18, 2012Be it maturity, empathy, professionalism, or what have you, whatever Dinosaur Jr.'s doing is working.
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Sep 17, 2012As always with Dinosaur Jr., underneath all that sound lie some sturdy bones, songs constructed with expert, unassuming craftsmanship and a sly wit, but it's the variety and adventure that makes I Bet On Sky something more than another excellent Dinosaur record.
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Sep 10, 2012Some listeners may lament this retreat from the hefty barrage of sound that was 2009's Farm, but it is crucial that a band such as this progresses and varies itself, and it is somewhat adorable that J is loosely retreading the road that his group took beforehand, only this time he is doing it the right way, with his pals Lou and Murph along for the ride.
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Sep 5, 2012Loud, weighty but oddly civilised.
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MagnetSep 5, 2012Peel back the layers, and you're confronted with a wealth of oft-unexpected sonic exploration. [#90, p.60]
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Sep 21, 2012All in all this is a kinder, gentler Dinosaur-- you won't have another "Severed Lips", sorry--making a very solid album, one that finds the band gelling with half the fuzz.
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Sep 24, 2012Even if the highs aren't as high, like the rest of the reunited lineup's work, there really aren't any noticeable lows.
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Sep 18, 2012It's Mascis plodding on, warbling apathetically and then suddenly breaking into his shimmering birdsong. What motivates the consummate slacker band to continue is beyond all of us. But is anyone complaining?
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Sep 20, 2012Unfortunately, instead of being an ambitious failure, and despite all of the fantastic moments, I Bet On Sky makes the potentially more damaging fault of being "just alright."
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Sep 12, 2012[A] terrific, visceral album.
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Dec 21, 2012There's no doubt that I Bet on Sky is a very good record. But at this point, the second honeymoon is over, and there's a barely perceptible distance growing.
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The WireDec 7, 2012Their third post-reunion effort is less immediately engaging than its predecessor--perhaps due to a slightly uneven mix--but it remains true to the Dinosaur spirit while asserting a textual adventurousness that's often overlooked. [Nov 2012, p.70]
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Sep 26, 2012For all [the album's] obvious flaws, none of it seems to matter. When you hear that guitar soar, those rhythms pulse, and that voice cry out, you want to keep listening, for all 47 minutes. And when they're over, you want to do it again.
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Sep 18, 2012I Bet on Sky isn't the immediate winner that Farm was, but it's emphasis on tunefulness versus smack-you-in-the-face noise makes for a surprising winner and a pleasant late career left turn that gets better with each listen.
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Sep 17, 2012The band's formula is nowhere near broke, and while this tenth album might not necessarily expand on that greatly, it doesn't mean that anything about the band's music is in need of fixing.
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UncutSep 14, 2012"Don't Pretend You Didn't Know" is a one-off messing with their recipe, still as compelling a mix of hardcore, jangle-pop, country and speed-metal as it was 25 years ago. [Oct 2012, p.77]
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Sep 13, 2012There's certainly a harder edge to the sound, yet the songwriting is the key, with a set of tunes commercial enough to sucker you in, yet complex enough to maintain interest.
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Sep 11, 2012[I Bet On Sky] is arguably the equal of their 80s heyday.
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Sep 5, 2012This isn't a reinvention of Dinosaur Jr. so much as a sideways glance; a new angle to help us appreciate their wonder in a new light.
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Under The RadarSep 5, 2012I Bet on Sky fits nicely within the band's catalog, former and present. [Aug/Sep 2012, p.109]
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MojoSep 19, 2012Though lacking the infernal dynamics of 2009's Farm, there remains sufficient compensation to delight Dino devotees. [Oct 2012, p.88]
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Sep 17, 2012Their third post-reunion album is another assured collection, with J Mascis's dazzling guitar work as ever taking centre stage.
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Sep 14, 2012I Bet on Sky offers no variations on the grand theme, but pleasures in the detail.
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Sep 10, 2012Any sense of experimentation and freedom is impossible to find. Are Dinosaur Jr trying too hard to be Dinosaur Jr? It's the way it seems.
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Alternative PressSep 6, 2012I Bet On Sky can feel a bit sleepy--although noise-cracked solos and psychedelic-quicksand riffs ultimately keep things lively. [Oct 2012, p.88]
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Q MagazineSep 6, 2012The mid-paced mellowness is too omnipresent and stifling. [Oct 2012, p.97]
User score distribution:
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Positive: 18 out of 21
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Mixed: 1 out of 21
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Negative: 2 out of 21
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Sep 24, 2012
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Oct 4, 2012