Machine Dreams
by Little Dragon
Metascore
74

Generally favorable reviews - based on 10 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 10
  3. Negative: 0 out of 10
  1. Dot Music
    70
    Overall, Machine Dreams is bristling with invention and teeming with variety, a fantasy world you won't wish to quickly wake from.
  2. Drowned In Sound
    60
    Tracks like ‘My Step’, ‘Feather’ and ‘Blinking Pigs’ have that unique ability to transcend seasonal musical folly, there's nothing 'now' or 'then' about them - you can listen to them any time, anywhere, any weather and still be pretty pleased.
  3. PopMatters
    70
    This is electronic pop music done right, free from hipster trimmings or overly vulnerable declarations of self-discovery, and a sure sign that Little Dragon have all the strength and memorability of a lucid dream.
  5. The Boston Phoenix
    63
    Of course, there are neat textures and chilled-out sounds. But by the end of the record, you have only a few tunes or hooks to serve as a souvenir of the 44-minute journey you've just taken.
  6. Uncut
    60
    Although nothing matches the sexy Prince-funk pastiche 'Test' that Yukimi Nagano and co delivered on their self-titled 2007 debut, there is more depth and variety on their secpnd album. [Oct 2009, p.101]
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  7. Mojo
    80
    Her jazzy instincts and surreal lyrics perfectly offset the music's mosaic minimalism. [Sep 2009, p.92]
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  8. AllMusic
    80
    There's no way around the fact that most of Machine Dreams is icy electro-pop, but it is not as if the truly singular Yukimi Nagano, an enamoring vocalist, has switched to drone mode, forsaking her grounding in R&B.
  9. Pitchfork
    77
    The album falters slightly when the music becomes more abstract and inscrutable, but on the whole it is not difficult to relate to Nagano or slip into the mood created by her bandmates.
  10. Spin
    70
    With nods to synth pop, electro, and funk, Sweden's Little Dragon fill their second album with bleeping keyboards and jazzy arpeggios, recalling both Howard Jones and Saint Etienne. But what sets Machine Dreams apart is frontwoman Yukimi Nagano's alternately yelping and cooing voice.
  11. PopMatters
    70
    Machine Dreams is an exercise in scoping out the frontiers of avant-garde electronic pop not seen since the early ‘80s.

User Reviews

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User Score
7.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 22 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 18 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 22
  3. Negative: 1 out of 22
  1. clem666
    May 25, 2021
    6
    In their second studio album, Little Dragon continue to explore their abilities in electrodance and ambiant music. It often remains shy andIn their second studio album, Little Dragon continue to explore their abilities in electrodance and ambiant music. It often remains shy and hovering rather than experimental, a bit more agressive and changing as it will be in 'Ritual Union' two years later. In 'Machine Dreams', the band manages to be satisfied with minimal crescendos, dreamy and distorted lyrics as well as constant and little evolving patterns. The ambiences and moods follow one after the other in a rather intriguing way, even if the tracks often reach their end before any musical construction has been noticed. It is undeniable that 'Machine Dreams' is an agreeable journey but there are just too few specific moments that will be identified as major turns in this musical fresco. The interesting movements as on "Swimming" seem to be phagocyted by the interminable tempos of the project.… Full Review »
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