- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
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Reality is easily one of his most emotionally transparent albums.
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It's a little artier than Heathen, but similar in its feel and just as satisfying.
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While it might not push the experimental envelope as forcefully as some critics or fans would like, it nonetheless sounds as vital and vibrant as any pop-rock record released this year.
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UncutWhile it's very much a rock album... it kicks in a very 'now' way (this ain't Tin Machine). [Oct 2003, p.112]
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Neither a calculated trip to Bowie's past nor a wagon-hitching ride to current pop trends, the album has an energy all its own.
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Q MagazineBowie's best music since Scary Monsters. [Oct 2003, p.101]
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MojoBowie's best album for 20 years. [Oct 2003, p.104]
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MagnetBy keeping it simple, Bowie has avoided the stupid, said more with less and made the clearest record of his career. [#61, p.88]
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This is as close as Bowie has ever come to simply "pretty good" in his storied career.
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It's the sound of a man who's worked out how to be good again, who finally understands his own strengths and limitations.
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BlenderLucid, enjoyable and occasionally full-on rockin'. [Oct 2003, p.115]
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Bowie toughens up his sound, sawing at the edges of Jonathan Richman's "Pablo Picasso" and, on "New Killer Star," reclaiming the insinuating guitar propulsion he'd loaned to Lou Reed when he produced Transformer.
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So, his best album since 'Scary Monsters' (ARRRRGGGHHHH!!!).
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The album quickly reveals itself to be a muddled effort of overproduction and drab lyrics.
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SpinA relaxed, even graceful affair. [Dec 2003, p.123]
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Entertainment WeeklyReality's core flaw is the same on e that has marred Bowie's work since 1993's Black Tie White Noise: studio-slick production that drowns even the best musical ideas in digitally processed canola oil. [19 Sep 2003, p.85]
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It’s solid, but it has no power over me.
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While Reality isn't a failure by anyone's standards, there's precious few moments that you can recall, much less hum, an hour after listening to it.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 59 out of 63
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Mixed: 2 out of 63
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Negative: 2 out of 63
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May 11, 2016
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Apr 4, 2016
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Apr 4, 2016