The Woods
by Sleater-Kinney
  • Record Label: Sub Pop
  • Release Date: May 24, 2005
User Score
8.4

Universal acclaim- based on 183 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 151 out of 183
  2. Mixed: 12 out of 183
  3. Negative: 20 out of 183

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  1. MichaelE
    Jun 2, 2005
    3
    Why everybody's going so crazy of this I just can't understand. It seemed to me what S-K had going for them was the clever interaction between the two voices, which is all but gone on this middling effort. Never liked them that much to begin with, mind you.
  2. GregA
    Jun 2, 2005
    5
    Why does this band automatically get great reviews everytime they put out another complicated sounding, yet completely boring album? i can have my computer put out random noises and it will sound complex but that doesnt mean its great music. just listen to the first track, that gives you pretty much the idea of what they are going for. honestly I dont think this band has had a hit since Why does this band automatically get great reviews everytime they put out another complicated sounding, yet completely boring album? i can have my computer put out random noises and it will sound complex but that doesnt mean its great music. just listen to the first track, that gives you pretty much the idea of what they are going for. honestly I dont think this band has had a hit since The Hot Rock, so if you really want to hear some good music spend your money on that. but then again most of the people who review/buy/download this sub-par release are scenesters who just need the latest music so they can namedrop to their scenester clones. oh well.… Expand
  3. Matt
    Jun 1, 2005
    9
    It is not a boring album at all - it is ferocious!
  4. JoeyB
    Jun 1, 2005
    10
    Veering uncontrollably through the ten tracks that populate this, their seventh proper LP, Sleater-Kinney harness a sound that is both brutally uncompromising and terrifically beautiful. Light years from their early riot grrl sound, "The Woods" scatters its leaves across a snarling, fertile landscape of sound, replacing the angular chords and yelps of yore with solid musicianship. Truly Veering uncontrollably through the ten tracks that populate this, their seventh proper LP, Sleater-Kinney harness a sound that is both brutally uncompromising and terrifically beautiful. Light years from their early riot grrl sound, "The Woods" scatters its leaves across a snarling, fertile landscape of sound, replacing the angular chords and yelps of yore with solid musicianship. Truly their most ferocious and thrilling album. A must for any record collection.… Expand
  5. jeff--
    May 31, 2005
    5
    I'm a huge sk fan, so i'm really disappointed in what has to be one of the most boring records ever recorded by a great band.. The only salvation for me is the middle section from jumpers to rollercoaster which actually allows us to hear corin, carrie and janet apart and together - the in the red production is a joke that apparently attempts to make up for the lack of energy and I'm a huge sk fan, so i'm really disappointed in what has to be one of the most boring records ever recorded by a great band.. The only salvation for me is the middle section from jumpers to rollercoaster which actually allows us to hear corin, carrie and janet apart and together - the in the red production is a joke that apparently attempts to make up for the lack of energy and urgency and most of all fun lacking in the material here. just so boring.… Expand
  6. ToddinPDX
    May 30, 2005
    10
    Wow. After their last excellent release, I really thought these chicks were done (where else could they take their sound?). Instead, they come back w/ an absolute rock masterpiece. This is a record that not only turns the most jaded music cynic young again, but shows you just how mediocre the rest of the "indie" rock releases are.
  7. BaronL
    May 30, 2005
    9
    Furious and layered.
  8. john
    May 29, 2005
    9
    i want to marry all three sleater-kinney girls now
  9. D
    May 29, 2005
    10
    Outstanding, the record they've always had in them but were just too timid to make. Too bad the negative reviews buy into the sexism that keeps bands like Sleater-Kinney off the Billboard charts.
  10. WillR
    May 28, 2005
    10
    If I had a stereo loud enough, this album would destroy the earth, shatter it into a million pieces. S-K has always been one band to make you feel in your heart the transformative power of rock-n-roll, and this album truly astounds.
  11. Daved
    May 28, 2005
    10
    Sleater-Kinney's crowning achievement. Multiple listens reveal every track to be a towering aural delight, though "Jumpers" deserves to be the track that breaks them into the mainstream. Just keep a slightly open mind of what S-K should be and it won't disappoint. Simply do not miss this record.
  12. frankd
    May 27, 2005
    10
    i swear, you can see jesus playing air guitar to the best album of recent memory. this is a classic-rock masterpiece!!!!
  13. GregM.
    May 26, 2005
    10
    Not quite "Janis Meets Jimi", nor really "Raw Daydream Nation Power", nor even "Never Mind the Nevermind." More like all of them at the same time. Oh, and also "My Favorite Things At Leeds." I only wish Lester Bangs had lived to hear it. This is what he was talking about all those years ago.
  14. JoeR
    May 26, 2005
    10
    Like rock-climbing at night: Not sure what the nsxt track will bring, but exhilirated by the experience.
  15. [Anonymous]
    May 26, 2005
    10
    Spectacular!
  16. ramiror
    May 26, 2005
    10
    Our former riot grrls are all grown up. They've matured as musians and songwriters and rock harder than ever.
  17. ChadB
    May 25, 2005
    9
    The best afvice I have for anyone who ever had reservations about Sleater-Kinney in the past is to listen to "Jumpers". It embodies all of the S-K elements that have been built up over the last decate and incorporates them into a wall of unbridled sound. Four seconds.....
  18. jessica
    May 25, 2005
    10
    this isnt an album sleater kinney has ever attempted. which only proves how much these ladies have grown in these past years. sleater kinney still stays true with there battling guitars, flawless beat, and intense vocals. by far one of the best rock and roll albums i've ever listened to. a masterpiece! for the first time the band has captured the live concert energy that they have this isnt an album sleater kinney has ever attempted. which only proves how much these ladies have grown in these past years. sleater kinney still stays true with there battling guitars, flawless beat, and intense vocals. by far one of the best rock and roll albums i've ever listened to. a masterpiece! for the first time the band has captured the live concert energy that they have been very well knowned for.… Expand
  19. JackR
    May 25, 2005
    10
    Not for the faint of heart, this is an experience that fully discloses itself only to those capable of enduring its initial sonic assault. From within the chaos, however, these three remarkable women harness and unleash what is without doubt some of the most immediate, most passionate and ulitmately transformatitve music I've ever heard. Awsome job S-K! And big kudos to Dave Not for the faint of heart, this is an experience that fully discloses itself only to those capable of enduring its initial sonic assault. From within the chaos, however, these three remarkable women harness and unleash what is without doubt some of the most immediate, most passionate and ulitmately transformatitve music I've ever heard. Awsome job S-K! And big kudos to Dave Fridmann's bold, daring production.… Expand
  20. JasonL
    May 25, 2005
    6
    hugely disappointing album that, for the most part, goes back on everything that made sleater-kinney great before - the fierce but tight post-hardcore guitar attack, vaguely reminiscent of the DC sound but ten times as clean and thought out, and endlessly catchy melodies and vocal counterpoint. carrie, for instance, can hardly be heard. volume does not equal power - just compare minor hugely disappointing album that, for the most part, goes back on everything that made sleater-kinney great before - the fierce but tight post-hardcore guitar attack, vaguely reminiscent of the DC sound but ten times as clean and thought out, and endlessly catchy melodies and vocal counterpoint. carrie, for instance, can hardly be heard. volume does not equal power - just compare minor threat to any number of other hardcore bands. still, it's sleater-kinney, and it's still an above average record. but certainly the worst thing they've done since their debut. a misguided experiment.… Expand
  21. TimW
    May 25, 2005
    10
    this album ROCKS so much! some of the best, loudest drums ever! put this cd on and turn your stereo up to full volume. SK again seems to get better with each album.
  22. AH
    May 24, 2005
    10
    Rarely do I get to listen to an album so few times (1.5x) before deciding that it is this incredible. My initial impression can be summed up w/ the word DRUMS. My only problem with this albums is I don't know that I'll ever be able to listen to it loud enough, due to the neighbors.
  23. GaryA
    May 24, 2005
    10
    I thought one beat was one hell of an act to follow-up...but they managed to not only one-up that record...they've ten-upped it... one of the truest quotes ever: "Fans may have to have The Woods surgically removed from their players. It's just that powerful, demanding to be heard."
  24. JonB
    May 24, 2005
    10
    One word: BRILLIANT! It's sleater-kinneys best album yet, and ultimately the best rock-album so far this decade!
  25. AdamK
    May 23, 2005
    10
    The most surprising and innovative band in America today. They only get better.
  26. ChrisP
    May 23, 2005
    10
    The time is right for Sleater-Kinney to release this album. Just when another great rock 'n' roll movement -- the garage revival -- is in danger of being coopted by a bunch of talentless pretenders -- Killers, Hot Hot Heat, Strokes, I'm talking to you -- these girls release an album packed with noise, fury, and righteous anger, that will stomp all those girly-men poseurs The time is right for Sleater-Kinney to release this album. Just when another great rock 'n' roll movement -- the garage revival -- is in danger of being coopted by a bunch of talentless pretenders -- Killers, Hot Hot Heat, Strokes, I'm talking to you -- these girls release an album packed with noise, fury, and righteous anger, that will stomp all those girly-men poseurs into the ground. God, I hope this is the album finally makes these girls huge. They've been the America's best live band for a decade, now they've got an album that showcases them in all their glory, and it's about time they got their due.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

6
#6 Best Album of 2005
24
#24 Most Discussed Album of 2005
64
#64 Most Shared Album of 2005

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
88

Universal acclaim - based on 35 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 32 out of 35
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 35
  3. Negative: 0 out of 35
  1. Village Voice
    90
    Previous albums have never quite captured those onstage moments when the power they generate seems to catch them unawares, but on The Woods you can hear not only the deliberation in Weiss's eyes as she ponders the exact placement of beat and crash, or Brownstein's bedroom-mirror rock-star poses, but also the stunned grin Tucker can never contain after emitting her most gravity-defiant shrieks.
    Read full review
  2. Alternative Press
    100
    [They] clearly sound alive with the possibility of redefining punk song structure by writing 11-minute flamboyant guitar dirges that have as much in common with My Bloody Valentine as they do with '70s arena rock. [May 2005, p.170]
  3. Amazon.com
    80
    A smoldering rock and roll record that rivals John Lennon’s Plastic Ono Band and Nirvana’s In Utero in terms of unexpectedness.
    Read full review
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