- Record Label: London-Sire / Modular / XL Recordings
- Release Date: Nov 6, 2001
- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
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Quite possibly the best sample record ever made.
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The Avalanches have managed to build a totally unique context for all these sounds, while still allowing each to retain its own distinct flavor. As a result, Since I Left You sounds like nothing else.
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A charming, witty pastiche of mashed up samples, beats, bangs, and bobs.... Truly a breakthrough in the world of dance music.
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There's little doubt to Since I Left You's status as one of the most intimate and emotional dance records that isn't vocal-based.
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'Since I Left You' is proof that while being a vinyl junkie might not make you a teen idol, crafting a joyous, kaleidoscopic masterpiece of sun-kissed disco-pop definitely will.... Cool? Sure, whatever. Brilliant? Undoubtedly.
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SpinSince I Left You is so madly glad, it's demented. [Oct 2001, p.126]
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That smile will have a difficult time leaving your face.
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It obviously has its high points and moments that drift a little more, but The Avalanches are definitely onto something with the release.
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ResonanceEverything sounds like it's been triggered by hand and mixed on the fly, practically improvised yet brilliant in scope. [#32, p.54]
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MojoSince I Left You fuses dozens of different styles -- and over 600 lovingly reconfigured samples -- into one riotously enthusiastic, awesomely seamless whole. [May 2001, p.116]
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It's a kaleidoscopic ode to the joy of music, and it's the most exciting debut album since Mos Def's Black on Both Sides.
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'Since I Left You' is nothing short of stunning.... There's more imagination in this hour-long odyssey than most sample-based artists manage in their entire career. Not since DJ Shadow's 'Endtroducing' has an album showed what you really can do with a bunch of old vinyl.
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Since I Left You is as much of a revelation now as Primal Scream's life-changing Screamadelica was a decade ago.
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Good luck trying to keep your head from spinning around like Linda Blair.
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Alternative PressOne of the most joyous and poignant party albums ever. [Feb 2002, p.74]
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A record that finally fulfils sampling's original promise of generating fabulous new sounds from skilfully lifted bits of existing tracks.
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MixerTheir sound is remarkably fresh, for the kaleidoscope of samples from as many eras as vinyl has existed not only add musical credibility, but also add a depth to this extremely fun album. [May 2001, p.80]
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Entertainment WeeklyWhen the technique works, the results are exhilarating. [9 Nov 2001, p.111]
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A record this layered and quirky is easier to make than it was when Prince Paul first started cutting up old 45s (case in point: the Wiseguys), but to do it well - keeping intact an aesthetic that threads together all these disparate sounds - is true talent.
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Spinning a zoo of samples redundantly, song after song, can only amuse the most blissed-out of stoners...
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Luckily, the album has an easy-going air that lifts it out of the realm of smart-guy assemblage and into sexy, summery territories.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 167 out of 186
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Mixed: 7 out of 186
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Negative: 12 out of 186
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MichaelBMar 17, 2009Deep, yet accessible due to its fun, melancholy nature. The best of its genre, with its sheer variation keeping you listening again and again.
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Nov 11, 2012
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Nov 29, 2011