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Dec 21, 2012While the rhythms may seem like invitations to dance--or at least sway--the lyrics are almost uniformly bleak, making Pale Fire a late contender for saddest album of the year.
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Dec 17, 2012One of the most beguiling and unique offerings of the Swedish pack.
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Q MagazineDec 11, 2012It's less direct than before, but still strangely, powerfully beautiful. [Jan 2013, p.103]
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Dec 3, 2012As she watches love drift into and, more often, out of reach, the songs find themselves dissolving too.
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Dec 3, 2012While a more focused production ethic might have made for a more consistent album, Pale Fire still goes places the last album never dreamed and hopefully opens doors for even more drastic developments to come.
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MojoNov 29, 2012The glossy, high-shine finish songs come with an air of post-club languor. [Dec 2012, p.96]
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Nov 26, 2012For someone skilled at making music both accessible and disarming--a talent she displays so seldom on Pale Fire--Assbring has sacrificed the ability to send such a message for the ultimately unrewarding spoils of electronic production.
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UncutNov 19, 2012Assbring has succumbed to the same fate as her country-woman Lykke Li, forsaking early charm for a vague sense of attitude that's largely devoid of presence. [Dec 2012, p.69]
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Nov 19, 2012Pale Fire doesn't command your attention so much as wait patiently until it drifts into your view and then goes away.
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Nov 16, 2012On her fifth album, she discovers a new direction--and sounds all the better for it.
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Nov 16, 2012Assbring dots the album's 10 tracks with sophisticated tonal variations.
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Nov 15, 2012Pale Fire is a pale beauty, and if you're seeking the chill-out Lykke Li (with whom she split a single in 2009) or an equivalent oasis of smouldering calm, Assbring will see you right.
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Nov 15, 2012Confusing, in a fun way.
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Nov 15, 2012In Pale Fire El Perro Del Mar distances herself from the confines of her solitary beginnings, opening up an entire world of possibility.
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Nov 15, 2012In essence, under the mantle of her most pretentious album title yet (in a catalog of pretty brilliant titles), lies an earnest dance-pop album.
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Nov 15, 2012All ten tracks evoke surreal circumstance, given a delivery that's atmospheric, amorphous and hypnotic.
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Nov 15, 2012Dark and light are persistent themes on Pale Fire; yet the color that bleeds through the most is an uninteresting shade of grey.
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Nov 15, 2012It's an unmistakable departure. But when her staid delivery and lyrics sink in, the artistry that draws listeners toward El Perro Del Mar comes to light.