Oblivion With Bells
by Underworld
Metascore
64

Generally favorable reviews - based on 24 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 24
  2. Mixed: 16 out of 24
  3. Negative: 0 out of 24
  1. Urb
    80
    Was it a signature-sound effort, or a further exploration of their film score work on "Breaking and Entering" or Danny Boyle’s 2007 sci-fi film "Sunshine?" These two worlds collide beautifully.
  2. Billboard
    80
    Oblivion simmers without boiling, and the tension is intoxicating.
  3. New Musical Express (NME)
    80
    Oblivion With Bells is less the comedown than the sound of the party still going 10 years on.
  5. Prefix Magazine
    75
    What is here, a mixture of jagged dance-punk numbers with pretty sound sketches (of the type Underworld has employed for recent soundtrack work), all succeeds.
  6. Amazon.com
    70
    The best tracks on Oblivion with Bells are also the most ambitious....But after that pair of opening tracks, you have to wait until the very last piece, a long, trancey bit of psychedelic drift called 'The Best Mamgu Ever,' to hear something more than unformed melodies and unstrung ideas.
  7. Alternative Press
    70
    Their eighth album, Oblivion With Bells, showcases a more refined approach. [Nov 2007, p.176]
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  8. Under The Radar
    70
    The band has been making good, emotive electronic music since 1992, and Oblivion is no exception. [Fall 2007, p.84]
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  9. Tiny Mix Tapes
    70
    While this release is ruminative in nature, the temperament isn’t far removed from the classic record with which this release shares a striking visual resemblance.

User Reviews

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User Score
7.2

Generally favorable reviews- based on 27 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 20 out of 27
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 27
  3. Negative: 3 out of 27
  1. MorganH.
    Jan 6, 2008
    9
    This is a new kind of Underworld, significantly better than the last new-kind-of-Underworld we saw on A Hundred Days Off. They smash together This is a new kind of Underworld, significantly better than the last new-kind-of-Underworld we saw on A Hundred Days Off. They smash together all of their sounds - combining the gritty dark beats of dubnobass with the bright, poppy synths of Beaucoup Fish and the weird, experimental work of their recent soundtracks and EPs. Is there a little Second Toughest in there as well? Holding The Moth (which attentive followers of UW will know as Globe) harks back to those days. Boy Boy Boy might be my favourite track, although it's hard to pick one; it's a kind of synthesis of previous sounds with something new, and it comes out rocking and thumping and everything you wanted. You were let down, perhaps, by A Hundred Days Off, and the four year gap that followed it. If, like me, you were thrilled to hear Crocodile for the first time, to hear that return to their original thumping beats and glorious harmonies, you're going to love this album.… Full Review »
  2. JamesJ.
    Dec 3, 2007
    3
    It's sad but underworld has fallen off. I almost wish I didn't even give it a listen but it still can't diminish their past It's sad but underworld has fallen off. I almost wish I didn't even give it a listen but it still can't diminish their past brilliant works.… Full Review »
  3. Rub
    Nov 29, 2007
    9
    I think this album is quite good. pleasantly surprised.
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