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Ritual Image
Metascore
60

Mixed or average reviews - based on 24 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
7.0

Generally favorable reviews- based on 35 Ratings

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Top Track

Bigger Than Us
You took the tunnel route home, you've never taken that way with me before Did you feel the need for change? Apologies on your fingernails, love... See the rest of the song lyrics
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 24
  2. Negative: 2 out of 24
  1. Jan 20, 2011
    84
    In context, Ritual is the wrong title -- very little here feels repetitive or procedural. The album is a flight of fancy most listeners will want to take again and again.
  2. Jan 18, 2011
    80
    Despite being disabled with rotten cover art, Ritual is a sturdy affair, and one that should continue White Lies' steady ascent towards something serious and important.
  3. Alternative Press
    Jan 19, 2011
    70
    Taken individually, Ritual's songs can meander too much; as a whole, however, the album is a success. [Feb 2011, p.90]
  4. Jan 18, 2011
    60
    It's a decent set, but one whose pulse remains steady throughout.
  5. Jan 18, 2011
    50
    Ritual is so grandiose that it rarely has room to breathe.
  6. Jan 27, 2011
    40
    Most tracks here aim to be an anthem, but none has the requisite melodic clout. It's hard to see them entering the super league on this visit.
  7. Jan 20, 2011
    25
    Problem is, for the second straight album, they do so with the same exact set of tools as every other band in this sphere. So critiquing Ritual threatens to be a process of listing obvious influences that's just as dull as actually listening to the thing.

See all 24 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7 out of 9
  2. Negative: 1 out of 9
  1. Oct 26, 2011
    10
    Do not listen to the critics. There is a reason this band play sell out shows and this is it. Totally immense. The album starts strong and itDo not listen to the critics. There is a reason this band play sell out shows and this is it. Totally immense. The album starts strong and it ends strong, it just never lets up. A must have. Expand
  2. Mar 3, 2011
    9
    Strong, mature album. Most of the songs are single material, but there are also a couple of misses, unfortunately. Overall a great follow upStrong, mature album. Most of the songs are single material, but there are also a couple of misses, unfortunately. Overall a great follow up to the debut. Expand
  3. May 31, 2011
    9
    "Ritual" is a great second album for the trio from Shepherd's Bush known as White Lies. It continues to bring the anthemic, stadium sounding"Ritual" is a great second album for the trio from Shepherd's Bush known as White Lies. It continues to bring the anthemic, stadium sounding noise, combined with soul lifting rock, which makes for fantastic listening. This band are certainly on their way to greatness Expand
  4. Jan 22, 2011
    8
    Not as good as TLML but definitely not that bad!
    so track by track:
    Is love? - boring from the start but then it shows as one of the album's
    Not as good as TLML but definitely not that bad!
    so track by track:
    Is love? - boring from the start but then it shows as one of the album's highlights
    strangers - catchy but unoriginal and repetitive
    bigger than us - great choice for first single one of better songs
    Expand
  5. Aug 19, 2013
    7
    A reasonable album, but not as good as the first album, The album seems to be missing a really decent tune that To Lose My Life had withA reasonable album, but not as good as the first album, The album seems to be missing a really decent tune that To Lose My Life had with Death. Overall though it's not as bad as the critics say. Expand
  6. Aug 11, 2019
    7
    People know what to expect with White Lies. "Ritual" fits in nicely with the rest of their discography. Another solid and satisfying listen.People know what to expect with White Lies. "Ritual" fits in nicely with the rest of their discography. Another solid and satisfying listen. Not as many standout tracks as on other albums by them but overall this is a well put together and very well produced set of songs. Expand
  7. Aug 25, 2012
    0
    The ebola virus. Climate change. Thermonuclear warfare. Your grandmother in your wife's sexy lingerie. Islamofascism. The christianThe ebola virus. Climate change. Thermonuclear warfare. Your grandmother in your wife's sexy lingerie. Islamofascism. The christian Apocolypse. These are just a small selection of very bad things that are infinitely better for you than this album and the band that produced it. I say produced, but perhaps begat is more accurate. Extruded perhaps. What is the term for the explosion that occurs when you squeeze a puss filled pimple? Whatever it is, that is the word that describes the creation of this album. Its is terrible. Horrible. Abuse for the ears. Intelligence destroying filth. The sound is somewhere between a bad pub band covering Joy Division and your mum singing her favourite Duran Duran tracks while scrubbing the toilet. But its the lyrics that really define this abortion of an album. Think of every annoying 13 year old girl you have ever known, take all of their diaries, find all of the pages where they describe just how much they love their English teacher and how no-one understands the depth of their devotion, set it to the aforementioned bad pub band/joy division/your mum/Duran Duran sound track and you have some idea of of how utterly bad this steaming pile of crap is. It has no redeming features at all. It adds nothing to humanity, art, music, culture. It does howver steal minute from your life that you can never recover. For your sake and the sake of human kind, stay away from this album and its predecessor - maybe then this band will go away and we will all be safe Expand

See all 9 User Reviews