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Some might wish this gift for fastidious arrangements would carry over to the lyrics, which feature a bevy of look-it-up references and descriptions that might stymie attempts at easy listening. It doesn't hurt to do a little research or, like, pay attention to lyrics worth a damn.
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John Vanderslice has not created a compelling first listen. Perhaps, and only time will tell, he has created a compelling lifelong listen.
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MojoLike a series of melancholy one act plays. [Jan 2006, p.131]
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Q MagazineMore often than not his approach feels too clinical to really engage. [Apr 2006, p.120]
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Under The RadarAn immaculately produced album, sonically and lyrically complex, but not necessarily engaging. [#10, p.107]
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Lacks both a unifying theme and any broad cohesiveness, houses a number of terrific, tough-to-forget songs, and stumbles hard when Vanderslice wets his toes in murky lyrical waters.
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SpinVanderslice is tortured and diffuse even by Death Cab standards. [Sep 2005, p.109]
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An uneven album that encapsulates much of what's gone flat in the scene he helped ferment, along with the few flourishes that make him a vital creative force.
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Entertainment WeeklyA relatively warm, easy-to-embrace effort. [2 Sep 2005, p.79]
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It fully merits high praise as both the best work of Vanderslice's career and easily one of the best albums of what has been a refreshingly strong year for music.
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Alternative PressVanderslice's detached delivery of this riveting material, combined with the somnolent string arrangements, makes Pixel Revolt feel like a chilled-out remix of a book-on-tape recording. [Sep 2005, p.158]
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Maybe it's the squeaky-cleanness of the sound and singing both that keeps me at a distance; a band like Okkervil River, both sonically and thematically similar to Vanderslice, succeed partially because they don't mind screaming and getting clumsy.
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MagnetIn some ways, shedding the epic storytelling has given Vanderslice a more universal appeal. [#69, p.111]
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Pixel Revolt simply and beautifully reminds us that no matter how great a rock producer is, songwriting talent is as essential as it’s always been.
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BlenderWhat keeps the songs interesting isn't his understated singing but his delectable arrangements. [Sep 2005, p.138]
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There’s just something about it --- I like Pixel Revolt, and I like it a lot.
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Pixel Revolt is the sound of a man trying to come to grips with the larger questions--the "why?" questions--and, if nothing else, the sheer attempt makes this an essential album for our troubled times.
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In the end, I am hesitant to say that this is Vanderslice's best album; however, it is undoubtedly his most rewarding. Just be prepared to spend a lot of time with it.
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UrbMuch like Sufjan Stevens (but without the history professor schtick) Vanderslice is a one-man orchestra of plucked and bowed strings, living-breathing organs and lullaby vocals that narrate his musical characters with explicit detail. [Sep 2005, p.114]
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Vanderslice's stories differ from those on earlier albums largely in setting, but Pixel Revolt's musical elements have taken an astonishing leap from their predecessors.
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It’s apparent that this album was made with particular care, as most of John Vanderslice’s works are, but there are many cases where a more mature display of music appreciation is taken; previously, when met with such dogged emotional complexity, Vandersilce would rely on experimentation. Here, he stares straight on.
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Pixel Revolt doesn’t reconcile the political and personal, and that may be the point. But it nonetheless makes for a frustratingly uneven listening experience.
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Pixel Revolt feels, at the end, like two EPs packaged together and passed off as a full-length. The justification could be made that the fierce, angry and frustrated responses to international armed conflict and girlfriends leaving are very much the same, though that would seem to be kind of a stretch.
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The production is crisp and idiosyncratic as usual, but many of the songs fade into the background.
User score distribution:
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Positive: 11 out of 14
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Mixed: 0 out of 14
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Negative: 3 out of 14
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alixsMar 12, 2007John Vanderslice is sassy.
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JustinJDec 22, 2005
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JohnV.Sep 7, 2005One of the best solo albums ive heard in a long time recommended