Tongue N' Cheek
by Dizzee Rascal
Metascore
75

Generally favorable reviews - based on 14 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 14
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 14
  3. Negative: 0 out of 14
  1. RapReviews.com
    85
    All in all, Dizzee hasn't gone all out to make an artistic masterpiece, but it doesn't make the slightest bit of difference.
  2. Hot Press
    80
    Grime champ steps up to the mark with career-best record.
  3. musicOMH.com
    80
    There's a party to be had and Dizzee's in charge, but don't forget to engage your brain for at least some of it.
  5. Observer Music Monthly
    80
    It unquestionably adds up to a pop record sharp enough to be the bratty but irresistible younger brother of Lily Allen's "It's Not Me, It's You."
  6. The Guardian
    80
    If it's less wilfully uncommercial than his earlier oeuvre, which frequently made the listener feel like they were being mugged in the middle of an amusement arcade, its distorted synthesisers are still edgily thrilling.
  7. Q Magazine
    80
    It's been a long time coming, but Brit-rap's first genuinely huge album is here. [Oct 2009, p.104]
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  8. Mojo
    80
    Where Dizzee Rascal's deliberately diverse third album "Maths & English" found him flirting with more mainstream pop styles, this leaner, punchier fourth record comsummates that union to entirely gratisfying effect. [Oct 2009, p.96]
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  9. Pitchfork
    75
    He sounds damn good over trashy, flashy electro that manages to keep pace with cadences as hyperactive as his own, and, above all, he's way more fun than he's often given credit for.
  10. New Musical Express (NME)
    70
    The beats on Tongue N’ Cheek are still raw, clamorous and unpredictable, but in a springy, primary-coloured way.
  11. Slant Magazine
    70
    Tongue's paradox is that the more Dizzee and his collaborators don't work, the more the album does.
  12. Drowned In Sound
    60
    Tongue ‘N’ Cheek is a vacuous but fun party record, one that suspension of disbelief aids immeasurably.
  13. PopMatters
    60
    While Tongue ‘N Cheek is easily more instantly gratifying than Rascal’s previous albums, it lacks the unique perspective and replay value of his more nuanced work.
  14. Uncut
    60
    Inevitably, youthful anger has been replaced by pettier bourgeois concerns (traffic wardens, the congestion charge), but there’s a sensitivity and playfulness that’s still hugely endearing.
  15. Dot Music
    60
    It's all good sauce, one supposes, but as Mills wheels out of earshot, tongue and balls dangling in the warm night air, it's hard not to wonder where the thoughtful, sullen kid whose eyes cut like lasers through sink estate bull**it has got to these days.

User Reviews

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User Score
7.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 13 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 13
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 13
  3. Negative: 2 out of 13
  1. davim
    Apr 12, 2015
    8
    A solid combination of both the old school Dizzee Rascal and the Dizzee Rascal of the new generation. Dizzie's grime roots are still evident,A solid combination of both the old school Dizzee Rascal and the Dizzee Rascal of the new generation. Dizzie's grime roots are still evident, but working with producers such as Calvin Harris and Shy FX allows Dizze's style to be taken to new levels.… Full Review »
  2. MichaelD
    Dec 31, 2010
    9
    Brilliant album. He completely represents grime music in a brilliant way.
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