Little Broken Hearts
- Norah Jones
- Band Name: Norah Jones
- Record Label: Blue Note
- Release Date: May 1, 2012
- Critic Score
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May 9, 201281Between the obvious hits and the Halcion fuzz however lays an interesting sound.
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May 1, 201280Little Broken Hearts is exciting because it explores the darkest corners of betrayal, bad love, and jealousy with enough vitality to propel Jones out of the bloodless purgatory of brunch music.
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May 1, 201280This Norah Jones is damaged, dangerous and vulnerable, and Burton's mastery of sound helps deepen the relationship between listener and song.
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May 1, 201280There is a lot at play here, both sonically and lyrically, and the album rewards repeated listens. Most importantly, Little Broken Hearts is an album that just works.
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Apr 30, 201280This is a striking changeup.
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Apr 27, 201280There's always an ingenious, often unexpected, connection linking the music to the mood of a specific song.
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Apr 27, 201280In the past decade, it seems Jones has made a sneaky transition from dinner party backdrop to David Lynch soundtrack.
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Apr 16, 201280She hasn't sounded quite so free and engaged as she does on these songs, where her vocal and lyrical mannerisms come through more forcefully and confidently.
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Jul 12, 201278Jones takes a gothic turn with "Miriam," a soaring, surreal account of a romantic rival's murder. Like so much of ... Little Broken Hearts, it kills.
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Apr 30, 201275Not everything works. The closing "All a Dream" is a six-minute drag back to sleepy-time Norah. But mostly, Jones plays her part in this career left-turn with chilled and sometimes chilling resolve.
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Apr 26, 201275With Brian Burton (a.k.a. Danger Mouse) producing, the heavy-lidded-vixen thing works for her here.
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May 7, 201274With Jones these days, you may not know exactly what you're getting, but you know it's going to be great.
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May 2, 201270By placing so much emphasis on the stylish ever-shifting surfaces of its production, Little Broken Hearts never quite sinks in emotionally. Norah Jones may be pouring her heart out but it's been given an elegantly detailed sculpture that camouflages her pain.
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May 1, 201270The entire album plays like a cohesive whole, somehow frayed and fragmented if not left intact.
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May 1, 201270Her fifth album is a brand-rejigging songwriting collab with Brian "Danger Mouse" Burton that both picks up her pace and pumps up her palette.
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Apr 30, 201270By revealing some carefully chosen, deeply personal details and by building elaborate façades for the sake of drama, Jones has crafted her headiest, most complex album to date.
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Apr 25, 201270This is a serious indie pop album. Jones and Burton have created something that should fit in the record collection of any Feist-loving indie kid just as easily as that of those soccer moms she won over years ago.
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Apr 20, 201270This is a bold and engaging revolution. [May 2012, p.75]
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Apr 19, 201270She keeps the mood fairly moderate amongst Burton's fluid soundtrack, setting the pace with a wry bravado that makes this album a dynamic listen.
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May 3, 201260Little Broken Hearts is held back by a lack of intimacy and the unemotional stiffness we associate with Jones. Still, it's almost a great album.
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May 1, 201260Little Broken Hearts finds an effective way to grab the listener by the lapels: with kid gloves.
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Apr 30, 201260Mostly, though, Little Broken Hearts finds an effective way to grab the listener by the lapels: with kid gloves.
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Apr 30, 201260It's exquisite, of course, but dull.
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Apr 20, 201260An intriguing partnership that fails to entirely live up to expectations. [May 2012, p.86]
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May 15, 201258Jones is good at what she does, but it never feels like something she burns to do.
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May 21, 201240Danger Mouse's presence-and underperformance-on Little Broken Hearts turns what might otherwise just be another safe but bullshit-free Norah Jones album into an especially underwhelming affair.
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Jun 20, 201220It's one boringly pedestrian plod after another. [Jun 2012, p.104]