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Idlewild is certainly a spectacle, and an occasionally entertaining and enlightening one at that, but it translates into an elaborate diversion when compared to what this duo has done in the past.
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SpinIdlewild grasps for a distinctive sound, departing almost entirely from rap per se. [Sep 2006, p.99]
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OutKast have stretched rap's boundaries to the breaking point before, but this time their experiments come across as gimmicky or strained.
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It's an interesting failure, as OutKast are probably incapable of making boring music, but a failure nonetheless.
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Their well-honed flamboyance has finally given way to full-blown pretension, the lyrics that used to be an afterthought hidden behind a painfully contrived yet musically unimpressive ragtimey veneer of muted trumpets, shoo-bop, shoo-wahs and happily jingling vaudeville pianas.
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An awkward, uneven record that comes over like something they made in a week instead of something that was continually pushed back for more than a year.
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OutKast’s brains and playfulness sparkle throughout "Idlewild."... But despite the new, jazzy trappings "Idlewild" is more superficial than OutKast’s older albums.
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Film-specific songs like "Make No Sense at All" and "Call the Law" fall flat out of context.
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"Idlewild" leaves the ears longing for something. Coherence, basically. There's no sustaining mood, no clear message, only Benjamin and Patton's efforts to outdo whatever they came up with last.
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Idlewild fails in the same places as Speakerboxxx/The Love Below: both feature some stunningly flat crooning and poor pop revisions straight from the mind, body, and soul of Andre Benjamin.
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UrbThis duo can only be measured against themselves and for the first time, it don't measure up. [Sep 2006, p.139]
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The 'Idlewild' experience is mostly regrettable and one that will leave you feeling cheated.
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The most frustrating aspect of Idlewild is its lack of energy.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 74 out of 94
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Mixed: 15 out of 94
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Negative: 5 out of 94
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May 8, 2016
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May 2, 20157/10 .................................................................................................................................................
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Jan 1, 2012