Unorthodox Jukebox - Bruno Mars
User Score
7.6 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 86 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 69 out of 86
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 86
  3. Negative: 14 out of 86

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  1. seantimothy
    Dec 18, 2012
    3
    The music is mediocre and the lyrics suck. I wish they would have tried something new other than the same old ballads off the last album. Something less generic and more punchy. Too bad.
  2. star_gazing
    Dec 11, 2012
    0
    It's musically different; it's more focused on an organic style, and it does have have accompanying piano ballads that are okay. But here's the thing: the lyricism is the exact same thing as the last time, no show of development whatsoever. Same love ballads trying to appeal to crowds, same undeveloped character. Still emphasizing on what's become so mainstream. It's only good musically. If it was a bunch of instrumentals or unconventional crazy lyricism, it would have been better, but it's not. Poor choices. Poor choices. It isn't bad, but it's no good.… Collapse
  3. metalmouth
    Dec 31, 2012
    2
    Bruno Mars is a very clever man. He's written some brilliant tunes for himself and for his peers. He's featured on some cracking debuts and he penned F**k/Forget You, Cee Lo Green's solo masterpiece. And Mars debut Doo-Wops & Hooligans was surprisingly a very enjoyable, very well-written and well-recorded collection of catchy songs from a up-and-coming modern songwriter. Now, album two is out, Unorthodox Jukebox, and well, it's certainly something, however whether or not this 'something' is good, is up for questioning. Starting off with Young Girls, most of the album is penned the same, with the same topic in different ways..SEX. It's as if Bruno Mars is sex-hungry. We know from tracks like the Lazy Song that he's not a 'kids' singer but come on, all the iccle kids listen to him, but his whole album is the diary of a sex-ravaged singer with lots of sex, drugs and 'rock n roll'. The track Gorilla summarises the album, a seemingly cute metaphoric ballad that is in the end, again, all about sex. A bland chorus blares "Gorilla, uh uh yeah, you and me baby, making love like gorillas". Even the tracks later on on the album that you think may actually be like 'Just The Way You Are' tricks you by clever titles and is still, actually about sex. As much as i'm still a fan of Bruno Mars, I'll be listening to Doo-Wops far more than Jukebox.… Expand

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
70 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 16 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 16
  2. Mixed: 8 out of 16
  3. Negative: 0 out of 16
  1. The Guardian
    Jan 3, 2013
    60
    His second album is the same conventional mish-mash as his 6m-selling debut.
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  2. NOW Magazine
    Dec 21, 2012
    60
    Too many of the tracks seem more like very good imitations of song types than like actual songs.
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  3. The A.V. Club
    Dec 18, 2012
    58
    He's an undeniable talent, desperately searching for an identity to claim as his own.
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