The Man Who Died in His Boat
by Grouper
  • Record Label: Kranky
  • Release Date: Feb 5, 2013
Metascore
81

Universal acclaim - based on 17 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 17 out of 17
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 17
  3. Negative: 0 out of 17
  1. Austin Chronicle
    May 30, 2013
    78
    Spanning glacial, lonely instrumentals ("Being Her Shadow") and muffled Americana ("Vital,"), this abyss proves worthwhile.
  2. PopMatters
    Mar 14, 2013
    70
    It’s enough for the compositions on The Man Who Died in His Boat to exist on their own terms, and it’s fascinating to see how exact a piece of music Dead Deer became in between takes.
  3. musicOMH.com
    Feb 21, 2013
    80
    It is apparent from the start that the album is a valuable piece of work in its own right however and its reclaimed origins should not bring any negative preconceptions.
  5. The Wire
    Feb 15, 2013
    70
    From the bottom of a spring-reverb well, Harris strums mournful, incoherent songs like "Vital" and "being Her Shadow," but intersperses them with creepy textural mood pieces. [Feb 2013, p.50]
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  6. Fact Magazine (UK)
    Feb 8, 2013
    70
    The Man Who Died In His Boat is, to put it simply, more of the same--and whether that’s a worthy thing for an album to be is largely down to your view on this period of Grouper’s output. For what it’s worth, it’s absolutely fine by me.
  7. No Ripcord
    Feb 8, 2013
    80
    The Man Who Died avoids the stigma of outtakes releases because it’s an ideal entry point into one of the most distinctive, fascinating musicians of our time.
  8. Tiny Mix Tapes
    Feb 8, 2013
    90
    There are gestures in her music that are so touching, or so beautiful, they leave me dumbstruck.
  9. XLR8r
    Feb 7, 2013
    80
    The record may not be Dragging A Dead Deer Up A Hill, but pieces like "Living Room" are the essence of Harris's singular oeuvre.
  10. Mojo
    Feb 6, 2013
    80
    [The album] is suitably haunted and becalmed. [Mar 2013, p.98]
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  11. Drowned In Sound
    Feb 5, 2013
    90
    This is music that challenges and provokes.
  12. Dusted Magazine
    Feb 5, 2013
    70
    On every LP, Harris creates an impression of something that is emerging but never quite there, and she’s done it again on The Man Who Died in His Boat.
  13. New Musical Express (NME)
    Feb 5, 2013
    70
    It envelopes you softly, despite being wholly inscrutable.
  14. Pitchfork
    Feb 5, 2013
    83
    When it really hits, as it often does here, the music of Grouper creates a feeling that can only be defined as awe, an uncanny mixture of wonder and dread that nobody does better.
  15. The Quietus
    Feb 5, 2013
    80
    These compositions are haunting because Grouper gives them space to breathe.
  16. AllMusic
    Feb 5, 2013
    80
    The Man Who Died in His Boat may be a smaller-scale album than either Dragging a Dead Deer Up a Hill or A I A, but it's no less lovely or moving because of that.
  17. Beats Per Minute
    Feb 5, 2013
    85
    Even without the context of her back catalog, these songs are strong in their own right.
  18. Consequence
    Feb 5, 2013
    80
    Rather than be pulled into the darkness, Harris boldly searches for meaning in this gorgeously reproduced world.

Awards & Rankings

99
#99 Best Album of 2013

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