Keep It Like A Secret - Built To Spill
Keep It Like A Secret Image
Metascore

Generally favorable reviews - based on 17 Critics What's this?

User Score

Universal acclaim- based on 21 Ratings

  • Summary: This second major-label release from Doug Martsch and company (following 'Perfect From Now On') features shorter, cleaner-sounding songs than that previous release.
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 17
  2. Negative: 0 out of 17
  1. The last album's title ['Perfect From Now On'] was a promise; this one makes good on it.
  2. 100
    Beautiful pop symphonies that hit like a Louisville Slugger.
  3. It's sort of a cross between the epic masterpieces of Perfect From Now On and the shorter, more pop songs of There's Nothing Wrong With Love. Basically, it's another winner from the group.
  4. Built To Spill have made a concise, pop-smart record.

See all 17 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 8
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 8
  3. Negative: 0 out of 8
  1. [Anonymous]
    10
    best cd and yet it didn't receive a high rating. o well i dont want them to go mainstream and sell out so its ok that ppl dont like them.
  2. TomB
    10
    My favorite album of all time. I've listened to atleast a track off this album about once a week for the past 4 years. It's good to pop into your car stereo or put on headphones and pick apart song layers--like eating a layer cake: sometimes you want to eat some frosting, sometimes you want to eat some strawberry filling, and sometimes you just want to eat hunks of forkfulls of it all. Each layer of each song goes down so smoothly and is so dumbfoundingly incredible. It's so beautiful , thought- provoking, timeless, earnest, genius... It's basically the album I use to tell if people have an ear for good music or not. Ranks up with the great artworks of this millenium. Perfect. Expand
  3. jimh
    10
    The low rating of this album is proof of how jaded and cynical critics can be. This is one of the most quintessential rock albums of the 90's.
  4. Dave
    10
    Truly an outstanding, fully realized, elegant recording. Perhaps the best ever "indie-pop-rock" album. The lower meta score is a bit perplexing. I notice that White Stripes' Elephant and TV's Return to Cookie Mountain have very high scores; I have and enjoy both of those records and do not really understand why this BTS record was not as widely acclaimed. Perhaps critics prefer the edgy punk-metal sound of Elephant or the unusual new sound of Cookie Mountain. Keep It Like A Secret is no less creative, complex, brilliant and moving than those two records, or anything else out there for that matter. Highly recommended! Expand

See all 8 User Reviews