The Boston Phoenix's Scores
- Music
For 1,091 reviews, this publication has graded:
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63% higher than the average critic
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3% same as the average critic
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34% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 1.2 points higher than other critics.
(0-100 point scale)
Average Music review score: 74
Highest review score: | Pink | |
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Lowest review score: | Last of a Dyin' Breed |
Score distribution:
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Positive: 956 out of 1091
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Mixed: 88 out of 1091
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Negative: 47 out of 1091
1091
music
reviews
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- Critic Score
It takes a liner note and lyric look-along to absorb the full dose, but "Marvin" clicks immediately. Same goes for the thoughtfully morbid "Border Crossing" and "Kitchen Sink," on which Dolan throws everything from introspection to a wee bit of bounce.- The Boston Phoenix
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There's some obligatory Velvet Underground deference, like the jumpy "Hey Jane," but for the most part the new disc is more in line with the soaring sing-a-long brilliance of "So Long You Pretty Things" and the simplistic "Too Late."- The Boston Phoenix
- Posted Mar 28, 2012
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For the most part an exercise in Prince-like electro-funk, full of squelchy keyboard fuzz and chicken-scratch guitar noise and absurdly complicated falsetto harmonies.- The Boston Phoenix
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It's exactly the kind of album one imagines Bird could whip up on a lazy Sunday afternoon after a cat-nap.- The Boston Phoenix
- Posted Feb 28, 2012
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Ay Ay Ay, the second full-length effort from Chilean-born, German-raised Matias Aguayo (who now splits time between Buenos Aires and Paris) is, in source and spirit, one of the most human dance-pop records of the year.- The Boston Phoenix
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It's heartbreakingly gorgeous, and if it's sometimes easy to miss the club-kid joie de vivre Antony brought to last year's brilliant Hercules and Love Affair album, well, that disc didn't have this one's lush Nico Muhly string arrangements.- The Boston Phoenix
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Mirror Traffic is the first time he's tried to make a Jicks-as-band record digestible.- The Boston Phoenix
- Posted Aug 18, 2011
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After years of being the untrained savage in the china shop of modern metal, HOF may find themselves owning the store with this accomplished thrash platter.- The Boston Phoenix
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Johnny Jewel's trademark retro-futuro-electro production sound underpins this 16-track set with a dreamy, after-the-afterparty atmosphere that feels like it could go on all night long.- The Boston Phoenix
- Posted Apr 25, 2012
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Dye It Blonde slows down a tad, too often eschewing bright, spot-on hooks in favor of washed-out '60s texture. But when they get it, they really get it.- The Boston Phoenix
- Posted Jan 14, 2011
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Loaded with the sort of multi-tiered melodies you find in the early work of XTC.- The Boston Phoenix
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Fans of old-time music, that vague notion of a genre called Americana, and bedrock artists like Johnny Cash and Merle Haggard should find Dirt Farmer, Helm’s first solo disc in 25 years, appropriately haunting.- The Boston Phoenix
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It's all a lot to wrap your head around, and depending on your mindset, you could either follow the sound collage down the rabbit hole or simply ride the surface-level groove.- The Boston Phoenix
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At times, the album draws more from drum and bass than from UK funky or any other bass music du jour.- The Boston Phoenix
- Posted May 4, 2011
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Indeed, although she's best known for those late-'70s Hotel Chelsea/CBGB-era fringe-punk albums, Outside Society illuminates some of Smith's underrated pop-minded phases.- The Boston Phoenix
- Posted Aug 24, 2011
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Smith seems to struggle with whether he wants to write emotional pop songs or dark experimental soundscapes, but the push and pull between the two sentiments is ultimately gorgeous.- The Boston Phoenix
- Posted Jul 10, 2012
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All in all, not bad for the inevitably disappointing follow-up to the greatest rap disc ever made.- The Boston Phoenix
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Though the Random Axe effort is relatively high-profile, these three conjure one another's grimiest gusto.- The Boston Phoenix
- Posted Jul 12, 2011
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Almost dreamlike in his flow, Thundercat totes us along by way of his agile bass-neck work, sly Rhodes riffs, and vocals that sound filtered through daisies and sunshine.- The Boston Phoenix
- Posted Aug 30, 2011
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The songs justify further replay and analysis just because the group knows how to deliver consistently smart, compelling imagery.- The Boston Phoenix
- Posted Dec 7, 2011
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The lyrics resonate hard, though, felt most strongly when Rønnenfelt sings with broad expressive shouts.- The Boston Phoenix
- Posted Feb 12, 2013
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Praise & Blame casts away the extraneous baggage that has weighed down many of Jones's previous recordings and puts the focus squarely on the voice.- The Boston Phoenix
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Transference, the Austin band's seventh full-length, will serve as another whittling down of the singular aesthetic that has made them one of the most engaging American bands of the past decade.- The Boston Phoenix
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At its core, Earthly Delights is the sound of a band digging in so deep, they’ve struck something molten.- The Boston Phoenix
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Segall spent six months writing and recording Goodbye - his longest investment in a record yet. The time spent soaking in the classics has paid off.- The Boston Phoenix
- Posted Jun 29, 2011
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Always ambitious, occasionally experimental, and sometimes even radio-friendly.- The Boston Phoenix
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It's an effortless move to help firm up No Age's place as one of the most bi-polar party bands around.- The Boston Phoenix
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White Chalk is more chamber music, and a dark chamber at that. The only flickers of light come from Harvey’s voice: high, airy, and imperiled as she weaves her echo-coated and darkly soulful spell till the story’s bleak finale.- The Boston Phoenix
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It’s Dulli sounding like Dulli at his best. And Lanegan delivers some of his more devastating vocal performances.- The Boston Phoenix
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Although it doesn’t attain the career-defining cumulative power of 2005's "Gypsy Punks," it's a broader, more intricate disc.- The Boston Phoenix
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