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MagnetOct 4, 2012This minor genius from Gothenburg hurdles over [the heartbreak record] as effortlessly and charmingly as his livelier material. [No.91 p.58]
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Sep 4, 2012I Know What Love Isn't is Lekman at his finest, transmitting real emotion and humor in songs that are impossible to stop humming for days.
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Sep 10, 2012I Know What Love Isn't is more than a great pop album – it's the most singularly rewarding statement from one of the more uniquely gifted songwriting voices of the past decade.
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Sep 4, 2012The record sounds crisp, expensive even, but it never sounds slick or soulless.
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Dec 21, 2012Maybe it lacks the frenetic energy of Night Falls Over Kortedala, but I Know What Love Isn't is a great record in its own right, a showcase of Lekman's prodigious storytelling gifts that also makes an effort to connect those stories, and that music, into an emotionally resonant whole that is greater than the sum of its parts.
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Oct 18, 2012While Lekman certainly knows how to use a sample, it is his songwriting talent, his storytelling ability, and above all his remarkable emotional honesty that make I Know What Love Isn't the finest achievement of his career.
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Oct 12, 2012I Know What Love Isn't is Lekman gracefully coming to terms with the breakup, and his lyrical and musical variations on this fixation keep the album compelling.
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Sep 10, 2012The album is the result of its own thought process, and ultimately becomes the most revealing thing Lekman has written, even if it is his most succinct record.
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Sep 7, 2012I Know What Love Isn't is an endearing and guileful extrication of the learning process.
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Sep 4, 2012I Know What Love Isn't is a classy break-up record rather than just a classic one.
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Aug 31, 2012As the title makes pretty clear, this is a break up record, weeping with Magnetic Fieldsy candid cynicism about love.
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Aug 31, 2012By taking his time and falling in and out of love he ended up with I Know What Love Isn't, an album worth waiting another five years for.
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Aug 31, 2012The album in a nutshell: a broken heart carried with poise, good humor and endless charm.
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Sep 6, 2012I Know What Love Isn't is a master class in, if not getting over it, then getting on with it.
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Sep 7, 2012Even when he focuses his unflagging talents within fixed bounds, Lekman's still one of the most distinct and observant writers in indie rock today.
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Sep 4, 2012He's produced a fine return to the public eye, one that doesn't enchant quite like his early material but resonates much deeper.
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UncutSep 14, 2012Snatches of flute, sax, and female vocal harmony vocals add sympathetic colour to these sad yet inquisitive songs. [Oct 2012, p.83]
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Sep 10, 2012Jens sticks to what he knows, combining his spry guitar playing and razor sharp pop sensibility.
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Sep 7, 2012I Know What Love Isn't turns out to be a graceful break-up album, one that eschews ugliness and rage.
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Sep 7, 2012Through it all, Lekman's wit remains intact.
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Sep 4, 2012Lekman has always had a neat turn of phrase, whether barbed, droll or plainly silly. Again, there's [sic] plenty of them here.
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Sep 4, 2012It's a tougher listen than usual, but it's still laden with lashings of classic Lekman pop hooks and a vocal that's sweeter than a Swedish cinnamon bun.
User score distribution:
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Positive: 13 out of 14
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Mixed: 0 out of 14
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Negative: 1 out of 14
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Sep 10, 2012
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Sep 7, 2012
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Sep 4, 2012