Buy Now
| Buy on |
|
- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
-
Jun 4, 2013Understated is an absolute triumph, matching any of the high-water marks of his past career.
-
May 23, 2013It's a celebration of life by a craftsman intelligent enough to know how to pitch it perfectly.
-
Apr 10, 2013It is a joyous, emboldened return to form and one that reminds us of what a treasure Edwyn Collins is.
-
Mar 28, 2013Some of Collins' finest work can be found here.
-
Mar 26, 2013Compelling back-story aside, Understated--Collins’ eighth solo album--is a magnificent set of songs.
-
Mar 26, 2013A big, gorgeous old hug of an album.
-
Mar 25, 2013[The cover of Rod McKuen's "Love's Been Good to Me" is] a weak ending to an otherwise wonderful album that shows that Collins is truly back in command of his art.
-
Mar 22, 2013Thirty-odd years after singing about ripping it up, then, Collins is calling on the past to help him through. It’s working brilliantly.
-
Mar 21, 2013[An] unlikely, lovely and often inspiring triumph.
-
MojoMar 21, 2013A clear-voiced statement of pop intent. [Apr 2013, p.97]
-
Q MagazineMar 21, 2013Understated is a great album, but that's what we've come to expect from Edwyn Collins. [Apr 2013, p.97]
-
May 28, 2013Being able to grasp a second chance has provided Collins with real impetus, and we as listeners can only sit back and reap the rewards we can from the resulting output.
-
Mar 26, 2013Time and circumstance have not blunted his abilities, and Understated is lyrically empathetic, musically emphatic.
-
Mar 25, 2013Granted, even now it's difficult to assess his work wholly objectively given his recent, well-documented struggles, but strip away any unnecessary contextualisation and the record stands up proudly and defiantly on its own two feet.
-
UncutMar 21, 2013Musically, it is business as usual--out-on-the-floor, stack-heeled indie stompers all the way--but if 2010's stark Losing Sleep was a little on the abrupt side, this is more concise still. [Apr 2013, p.75]
-
Mar 27, 2013Orange Juice's debut You Can’t Hide Your Love Forever is beautiful because of its innocence, whereas Understated is bruised by the many experiences that came afterward. It's no lesser record for it, just one that feels like a part in the purging process rather than a place where Collins feels fully at ease.