The Third Hand
by RJD2
Metascore
60

Mixed or average reviews - based on 28 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 11 out of 28
  2. Mixed: 13 out of 28
  3. Negative: 4 out of 28
  1. Blender
    60
    An instrument-juggling, one-man-band approach that recalls the romantic, psychedelic pop of the Zombies and the textured electronics of Radiohead.
  2. Billboard
    60
    The melodies aren't always there, and the restrained production makes for an occasionally nagging sense of meandering. [3 Mar 2007]
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  3. musicOMH.com
    60
    One man's pop is another man's weirdness. And weird, The Third Hand certainly is.
  5. Stylus Magazine
    58
    RJD2 has made an record that simply doesn’t play to his strengths.
  6. ShakingThrough.net
    54
    For better or worse, RJD2’s talent is beat-making. While it’s easy to applaud him for following his dreams, we can’t give him extra marks for his output.
  7. Rolling Stone
    50
    Some sleepy stuff hurts his cause, but his best songs... combine vivid, polished tracks with solid tunes that pack a sneaky emotional weight.
  8. PopMatters
    50
    It’s more work to listen to than any previous Rjd2 album; listening is a constant quest for the remarkable within the unremarkable.
  9. Drowned In Sound
    50
    For all its comparative brave departures and originality, The Third Hand just isn’t particularly engaging.
  10. Tiny Mix Tapes
    50
    A disappointment, maybe, but that’s to be expected – and shouldn’t we prefer that he want to give us something new?
  11. BBC collective
    50
    This is the sound of a fighter punching below his weight.
  12. Spin
    50
    Longer on nuance than hook. [Mar 2007, p.98]
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  13. New Musical Express (NME)
    50
    [Rjd2] has moved away from sample-based instrumental hip-hop, throwing in gently psychedelic Beatles-y songcraft and live instruments to achieve a jack-of-all-trades sound that, while perfectly pleasant, is done better by Beck.
  14. Vibe
    40
    He sings with a quavering, unconvincing tremor, and his lyrics are often awkward and bland. [Apr 2007, p.130]
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User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
6.0

Mixed or average reviews- based on 22 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 11 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 22
  3. Negative: 7 out of 22
  1. GradyL
    Apr 23, 2007
    9
    Finally someone with enough balls to come out of the closet and finally produce a new sound. The beats are still RJD2's unequaled sounds Finally someone with enough balls to come out of the closet and finally produce a new sound. The beats are still RJD2's unequaled sounds but he does add pop to it. Yea he's new to this so the songwriting is lacking a lot. But if you like listening to each album for what it is, this is an album worth checking out. If you're looking for someone who sounds exactly the same each time go listen to something else.… Full Review »
  2. EricC
    Apr 9, 2007
    3
    pretty bad.
  3. YJ
    Mar 25, 2007
    4
    And yet another Brilliant underground Hip-hop star producer who decides that he has enough talent to become a pop songster, turning his back And yet another Brilliant underground Hip-hop star producer who decides that he has enough talent to become a pop songster, turning his back to his previous work: Results: Uninspired songwriting, bad singing, and terribly boring pop songs. It is amazing how sych a brilliant producer can be so deaf to his own shortcomings. Luckily, other brilliant artists like Amon Tobin and Aphex Twin haven't decided to go pop and still stick to what they do best.. let's keep our fingers crossed.… Full Review »
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