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It is quietly passionate, graceful, elegant, utterly moving, and unequivocally beautiful in its honesty and sophistication. He's realized an ambition here that is artful and singular.
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Truelove's Gutter is yet another showcase for Hawley's subtle genius. Every sound on the album, from the notes to the vocals, is warming and rich with sensations.
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An album like this, filled with longing and a bit of resignation, may be an uneasy fit for today's mood of uncertainty and diminished opportunities. Hawley's mined a specific vein of emotion for years, and it's a testament to his skill that his hyper-local focus maintains such a broad appeal.
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Ghostly cries from the musical saw and ondes Martenot bring an element of eeriness and adventure--yet it's hard to escape a niggling feeling that Hawley is here polishing a formula, even falling back on cliche, in his continuing quest to make the local and homely sound lushly romantic.
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Truelove’s Gutter is a winner for his fans.
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As a whole it's a musically and lyrically a beautiful reflection on the less than smooth course life can take. But it is not recommended listening if you’re going through a rough break-up or are feeling generally sad, unless weeping yourself senseless is your aim.
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Q MagazineTruelove's Gutter is a beautiful album. [Oct 2009, p.113]
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With Truelove's Gutter, Hawley stands at the other side of his beloved city's bridge, leading the charge for the welcome return of pop that demands your full attention to get the best out of it.
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From what initially seemed like a limited palette, Richard Hawley has produced a masterpiece of tonal space that demands full concentration.
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FilterTruelove's Gutter ranks right up there with the rest of his vastly underrated catalog; it's as ambitious as it is simple, elegant as it is morose. [Fall 2009, p.92]
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MojoThe alien instrumentation here is systematic rather than fundamental--atmospheric colour that shows Hawley's current mindset rather than confirming some fundamental musical shift. [Oct 2009, p.94]
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Under The RadarHawley has masterfully crafted a sparse and darker affair that proves to be his most challenging set to date. [Fall 2009, p.62]
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Hawley has made an exceptionally perfect album with Truelove’s Gutter: it’s endearing, uplifting and absolutely beautiful, what else could you ask for?
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Truelove’s Gutter abandons the lush strings and complex production of previous work for a more straightforward style, and the results bring to mind the honest, plainspoken albums that Cash and Jones recorded in the mid-70s.
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The album is a crumbling beauty.
User score distribution:
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Positive: 14 out of 16
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Mixed: 1 out of 16
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Negative: 1 out of 16
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Apr 16, 2019
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Apr 24, 2012
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SigmarPOct 19, 2009His best. His classic.