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Memory
by
Memory Image
Metascore
81

Universal acclaim - based on 12 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
7.4

Generally favorable reviews- based on 5 Ratings

  • Summary: The fourth full-length release for the indie trio is its first since breaking up in 2014 and was produced with Rob Barbarto.
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Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 12
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 12
  3. Negative: 0 out of 12
  1. Punknews.org (Staff)
    Sep 23, 2019
    90
    Yes, the Vivian Girls were and are good, but we already knew that. However, more importantly, Memeroy cements that NO ONE can do what this trio does and, more than that, they’re doing it even better now then they were before.
  2. AllMusic
    Sep 20, 2019
    80
    Memory isn't just their best record, it makes good on all the promise they displayed early on and will hopefully shut their critics up once and for all.
  3. DIY Magazine
    Sep 20, 2019
    80
    The guitars are still awash in reverb, the percussion remains propulsive, and the deceptively complex vocal harmonisation is the axis around which everything else revolves. What’s new is a feeling of genuine exhilaration - on the freewheeling standout ‘Something to Do’, the infuriatingly catchy ‘I’m Far Away’, and on the gentle breeze of ‘At It Again’ especially. ‘Memory’, is music for the love of it, and unabashedly so.
  4. No Ripcord
    Sep 24, 2019
    80
    In many ways, Memory poignantly conveys how time has caught up with the Vivian Girls. It may look into the past, but the trio are not the same anymore both creatively and personally—and the time they took apart to explore other avenues works to their benefit. Armed with a deeper understanding of those trying times, and each other, the trio moves forward—and live in harmony with it.
  5. Los Angeles Times
    Sep 26, 2019
    80
    The 12 songs on “Memory” reveal musicians who have grown both as artists and technicians, even if their approach is as impatient as ever. ... They’ve dug deeper into their decade-long aesthetic, adding a more accomplished sound below while piling mounds of feathery stuff up top.
  6. Consequence
    Sep 20, 2019
    75
    Some reunions suck; others are a relief simply because they’re not embarrassing. Vivian Girls have defied the odds by reuniting for their best album yet.
  7. The Line of Best Fit
    Oct 2, 2019
    70
    It’s concise, it’s even, and it feels structured. Its main issue is that it’s nothing that new or inventive and on that basis alone is what essentially damns their efforts. But despite that gripe, Vivian Girls have always surrounded their LPs with charm.

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User Reviews

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Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 0 out of 1
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 1
  3. Negative: 0 out of 1
  1. ChuckAmok
    Oct 3, 2022
    6
    Not a record that makes a strong case for their needing to be a reunited VG. The strengths (= the sound) and the weaknesses (= the songs) areNot a record that makes a strong case for their needing to be a reunited VG. The strengths (= the sound) and the weaknesses (= the songs) are both represented roughly as much as previous records (as I recall), but not generously enough to make an argument for any further workouts of their formula.… Expand