Slow Focus
by Fuck Buttons
Metascore
80

Generally favorable reviews - based on 40 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 32 out of 40
  2. Mixed: 8 out of 40
  3. Negative: 0 out of 40
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  1. Rolling Stone
    Oct 1, 2013
    60
    Fuck Buttons’ third album--a synthesis of noise, hip-hop, drone and shoegaze--is basically avant-garde weightlifting music, forgoing heart and brains in hopes that brute force alone will elevate it to heaven. Occasionally, it does.
  2. NOW Magazine
    Aug 1, 2013
    60
    Unfortunately, it often veers dangerously close to a corny dystopian sci-fi movie soundtrack, which becomes a little less cute with each listen.
  3. Record Collector
    Jul 25, 2013
    60
    The symphonies Fuck Buttons make remain as miasmic as ever: odd and unusual to hear for the first minute or so, before fully entrancing the listener. Beguiling stuff.
  5. Tiny Mix Tapes
    Jul 25, 2013
    40
    Fuck Buttons have created an aural ibuprofen, an auditory Novocaine.
  6. The Wire
    Jul 24, 2013
    40
    Songs like "Brainfreeze" and "The Red Wing" plod more than march, piling on so many competing keyboard layers that the melody blots itself out. Others seem oddly unfinished. Only the two closing ten minute tracks evoke the classic Fuck Buttons widescreen neon pomp. [Jul 2013, p.56]
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  7. The Observer (UK)
    Jul 22, 2013
    60
    Variations within repetition is what distinguishes the best drone music, and Slow Focus soundtracks some unnamed disaster with time-lapse photography for the ears.
  8. The Line of Best Fit
    Jul 22, 2013
    60
    Here, finally, is some of the ebb and flow, some of the emotion that’s been lacking on the album up to this point. What a shame that it comes so close to Slow Focus’ end.
  9. Mojo
    Jul 12, 2013
    60
    Slow Focus isn't without merit but you yearn for more. [Aug 2013, p.91]
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User Reviews

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User Score
8.3

Universal acclaim- based on 41 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 38 out of 41
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 41
  3. Negative: 2 out of 41
  1. MusicIsCool
    Jul 30, 2013
    9
    Slow Focus is a dense album for newcomers to the group, however for people looking for a challenging but ultimately satisfying electro album,Slow Focus is a dense album for newcomers to the group, however for people looking for a challenging but ultimately satisfying electro album, it can't be beat.… Full Review »
  2. MusiclyMade
    Jul 24, 2013
    8
    One big factor of the success of this album is that Buttons are now beginning to experiment with how they can build their compositions intoOne big factor of the success of this album is that Buttons are now beginning to experiment with how they can build their compositions into the monsters they become by removing drum patterns for certain segments and removing synth progressions for lengths of time to improve their already brilliant control of dynamics. They were always criticised for having that one trick of building and building, no matter how effective that trick was, but it seems that they've either listened to that criticism and taken it on board or woken up to the problem themselves.

    Prince's Prize is perhaps the only disappointing track on the entire album; it wouldn't feel part of any Buttons release that I can remember because of how unusually clean and (yep) amateur the introduction sounds. But that's only one poor moment on another solid release from the both of them. Tarot Sport was near impossible to follow up, and even though Slow Focus perhaps doesn't quite capture the galactic wonder their previous two had in abundance because of its slightly smaller sound, it's more than enough to see them around the top of a few year-end lists.    … Full Review »
  3. All_ButTrU4
    Dec 20, 2021
    7
    a grisly journey into the unknown, but an exhilarating one--if you’re willing to take it .a dense thrilling compositional stunner worth youra grisly journey into the unknown, but an exhilarating one--if you’re willing to take it .a dense thrilling compositional stunner worth your time by a group who's discography is a minefield of gems… Full Review »
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