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- Summary: Thom Monahan produced the Los Angeles-based country-rock band's first album in nearly 12 years and it features contributions from Ariel Pink; Neal Casal, Darran Rademaker of The Tyde, Dan Horne, and Jen Cohen.
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- Record Label: Sub Pop
- Genre(s): Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Alternative Pop/Rock
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Score distribution:
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Positive: 15 out of 22
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Mixed: 7 out of 22
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Negative: 0 out of 22
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Jun 26, 2012There's a sadness, a backwards-looking air to Tarnished Gold that's new. Once the Sparks' hallucinatory trippery signaled youth's endless possibilities. Now their songs, even the new ones, are filtered through a golden, dust-moted, late afternoon light.
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Jun 22, 2012Cosmically in tune and harmony-rich, they excel in presenting their colorful, kaleidoscopic view of the world.
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Jun 28, 2012While all the West Coast blue-skying might seem naive, the laid-back vibe makes you want to focus on the positive, at least for the album's duration.
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Jun 26, 2012The stories are brilliantly disconnected but often uninspired, evoking the stunning introspection inspired by sun and sand without ever quite accepting its challenge.
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Jun 27, 2012The new album jettisons any experimental pretensions to focus on fully inhabiting that good old country rock style. Almost all the songs on the album instantly sound familiar, showcasing the Sparks ability to write classic melodies that truly replicate the modes of the genre.
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Q MagazineOct 12, 2012Such a nuanced take on pop's paisley-coloured past won't be to everyone's taste, but devotees will be left dizzy. [Jul 2012, p.95]
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Jul 19, 2012On Tarnished Gold, the Beachwood Sparks' reunion drowns in a bog of bad production and lesser material. Even when the Seventies Laurel Canyon sound turns heavier psychedelic ("Sparks Fly Again") nothing catches fire under the LP's soggy sound.