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- By date
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Amid the many features and incredible dynamism that mark every UNKLE full-length, there are no songs to grab onto and little of real essence.
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BlenderA turgid modern, progressive rock with superficial hip-hop sheen. [August 2007, p.119]
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Every track on this record grows into some such perfectly orchestrated climax, surging as a function of the production alone and with nary a hook or clever turn of phrase or structural complication in sight.
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The overall atmosphere is grey, too blah and insular to be colorful.
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It falls flat, offering little hope for the listener; after a few disappointing rounds of thinking that the next track simply HAS to be solid, the album exits as if it were never really there. Without a doubt, War Stories is the weakest and most disappointing UNKLE release to date.
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Unfortunately, on the rest of War Stories, Lavelle plays it safe by sticking close to poppy electro-dance tunes.
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There are enough excellent moments on War Stories to judge it a success, but there's another sense of missed opportunity hanging over the album.
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It's solid enough, but given the imagination they once possessed, it sounds like UNKLE are trying too hard.
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War Stories is the most unadventurous, most typically rock UNKLE release to date.
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The album as a whole is something of a grab-bag. One track can be great, the next stunningly mediocre.
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SpinWar Stories feels more like a random compilation than a fresh exploration. [Aug 2007, p. 110]
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While the results aren't entirely successful, "Twilight," especially, by Massive Attack's 3D, proves that Lavelle can reimagine 'soul' like no one else.
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Under The RadarA whole album featuring Astbury or Clark would be spectacular, but the remainder of War Stories sounds like paint-by-numbers remixes. [Summer 2007, p.85]
User score distribution:
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Positive: 38 out of 43
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Mixed: 2 out of 43
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Negative: 3 out of 43
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Nov 9, 2010
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PatrickH.Mar 6, 2008So good it hurts. Great workout music. And you should hear them perform it live.
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JimmyH.Jan 6, 2008