Up From Below - Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros
User Score
7.8 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 36 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 31 out of 36
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 36
  3. Negative: 3 out of 36

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  1. EricC
    Aug 31, 2009
    3
    Way too selfconciously cutesy and quirky to swallow without gagging. Harsh? Probably. But this is the kind of boring, formulaic indie rock that led to the derogatory term "hipster". The talent is definitely there, but when the aesthetic is this irritating, it's just impossible to enjoy this album. How the hype machine got going for these guys is beyond me. So many other bands are doing this, and doing it better. And that's it.… Expand

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
66 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 11 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 11
  3. Negative: 0 out of 11
  1. All Music Guide
    60
    Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros have crafted a love letter to Laurel Canyon and all of its quasi-mystic juju that is as infuriatingly contrived and retro as it is forward-thinking and majestic.
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  2. Drowned In Sound
    70
    Following a good few listens, Up From Below's ebb and flow is replaced with definite peaks and troughs, leaving such highlights dulled down.
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  3. Rolling Stone
    60
    The group's attempts to evoke Age of Aquarius utopianism are suffocated by self-consciousness; the record feels like an art-college thesis.
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