In Love With Oblivion
by Crystal Stilts
Metascore
78

Generally favorable reviews - based on 19 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 16 out of 19
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 19
  3. Negative: 0 out of 19
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  1. AllMusic
    Apr 11, 2011
    80
    Whatever the reason, it's a great-sounding record.
  2. Pitchfork
    Apr 14, 2011
    79
    If, like me, you're one of the admirers, then there's plenty to like here. If not, well, give it a shot anyway-- who knows, you might find something you like.
  3. Uncut
    Apr 12, 2011
    60
    It lacks many truly original hooks, but this is a nice updating of Count Five-style psych menace to file with fellow lo-fi '60s revivalists like King Khan and Dum Dum Girls. [May 2011, p.82]
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  5. PopMatters
    Jun 16, 2011
    80
    This may be one of the most depressing albums released all year, but it's also one of indie rock's most surprisingly melodic and historically aware.
  6. Q Magazine
    May 18, 2011
    80
    While they may have broken the slacker's code, the results are worth it. [May 2011, p.115]
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  7. New Musical Express (NME)
    Apr 8, 2011
    80
    Crystal Stilts, like The Cure or The Jesus And Mary Chain before them, understand that the beauty is in the balance.
  8. Under The Radar
    Jun 8, 2011
    70
    The album is a quantum leap for the band sonically, conjuring all the right ghosts of rock's past while infusing enough strut and swagger to compensate for their blatant cribbing. [May 2011, p.84]
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  9. Drowned In Sound
    Apr 26, 2011
    70
    For all its clever-clever effects and pose-throwing, In Love With Oblivion is a big fun record meant to be blasted through the loudest speakers possible.
  10. Consequence
    Apr 26, 2011
    70
    In Love With Oblivion stands as a solid second attempt for a group with a promising future.
  11. Slant Magazine
    Apr 14, 2011
    60
    Crystal Stilts differentiate themselves from the herd with scuzzy, garage-rock charm and dissonant cool.
  12. Dusted Magazine
    Apr 13, 2011
    60
    Maybe they've been listening to The Byrds and Love, but detecting those influences in a band that doesn't have any vocal melodies makes it hard to say for sure.
  13. Tiny Mix Tapes
    Apr 15, 2011
    80
    In Love With Oblivion is generic in the best sense of the term, a record that blasts a bright light through its otherwise dead sources.
  14. NOW Magazine
    Apr 7, 2011
    80
    Oblique by pop standards, the album's full of raw, tightly wound energy.
  15. No Ripcord
    Apr 19, 2011
    80
    In Love With Oblivion may only display grey intonations on first impression, but multiple spins begin to unfurl its ghoulish sense of atmosphere.
  16. The Wire
    May 3, 2011
    70
    In Love With Oblivion is best when it's tough, primitive and direct. [Apr 2011, p.67]
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  17. Filter
    May 23, 2011
    82
    Little has changed for Crystal Stilts since 2008's Alight of Night, though maybe the guitars cheered up a bit. That's A-OK; they come through with such a sort of oblivious, Suicide-meets-Spiritualized feel, you'll be in love, too.
  18. Beats Per Minute
    Apr 18, 2011
    82
    Crystal Stilts find a way to make you care, though, and that goes along way with music this raw and rapturous.
  19. The Boston Phoenix
    Apr 7, 2011
    88
    In Love with Oblivion finds the band more upbeat than ever, channeling Flying Nun–era sounds with melodic riffs, handclaps, and chugging bass.
  20. CMJ
    Apr 11, 2011
    70
    Crystal Stilts hasn't broken from what made it good in the first place -- but In Love With Oblivion proves that the group is coming into its own.

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