Wabi Sabi
by Cross Record
User Score
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No user score yet- Awaiting 2 more ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 2
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 2
  3. Negative: 0 out of 2
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  1. Custom_Concerns
    Feb 5, 2016
    6
    I began listening to this record. I was struck very quickly by the dense production, the dream-pop vocals, the distorted, jangly guitars, the creative use of a lo-fi sound. Then Wabi-Sabi passed its halfway mark. Tracks 5-9 are still good songs, don't get me wrong, but it feels Cross Record placed all of their best, most memorable tracks on the front side of the album. Each track on theI began listening to this record. I was struck very quickly by the dense production, the dream-pop vocals, the distorted, jangly guitars, the creative use of a lo-fi sound. Then Wabi-Sabi passed its halfway mark. Tracks 5-9 are still good songs, don't get me wrong, but it feels Cross Record placed all of their best, most memorable tracks on the front side of the album. Each track on the back half is slow and contemplative, lacking in the bright instrumentation that made songs like Two Rings and High Rise stunning. Cross Record does the moody acoustic sound well, but not well enough to keep my attention fully. I would like these songs better if they simply switched the track listing to sustain a good mix of upbeat and downtrodden tracks throughout. Though Wabi-Sabi begins with a bang and contains a fair few of my favorite tracks of the year so far, it loses steam quickly in its back half.

    66/100    … Expand

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
78

Generally favorable reviews - based on 10 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 10
  3. Negative: 0 out of 10
  1. Blurt Magazine
    Mar 2, 2016
    60
    Repetition and simplicity balance the sadly beautiful sounds on Wabi-Sabi; an eccentric album that will find its home with those who seek something creatively different in their music on a mellow, rainy day.
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  2. Pitchfork
    Feb 5, 2016
    78
    Throughout Wabi-Sabi, Cross Record thread their way between graceful and sinister, unfiltered beauty with heavier and uglier sounds, and tap into a dark well of energy that has potential to grow more powerful the further they explore it.
    Read full review
  3. The Observer (UK)
    Feb 1, 2016
    80
    Menace and rapture are beautifully balanced in Cross’s minimalist alt rock.
    Read full review
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