- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
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Paste Magazine23's mannered downtown aura and etched elegance are sustained for its duration, marking it as one of the prolific band's finest to date. [Apr 2007, p.55]
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UrbIt's a beautiful collection of songs, cinematic and powerful, never pushy. [Apr 2007, p.100]
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23 is one of the more enjoyable musical experiences I have encountered this year.
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A delirious fever-dream of an album that continues to impress with each consecutive listen.
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Somewhere underneath all the high-gloss, ornamental swirlies and lacquered doilies are haphazardly camouflaged well-written songs.
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23 is mysterious and modern, with an artfully strange beauty that is more memorable than perfection.
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The squeaky-clean production of Misery Is a Butterfly has been smudged, sanded, and weathered.
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It's an enthralling listen, proving once and for all that they deserve the wide success of fellow travelers like Radiohead and Sonic Youth.
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This is the next record you have to buy. Absolutely. Unequivocally.
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23 has a lack of contrast, and that is really its only flaw.
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It's a testament to their talent that by their seventh album they're still continuing to develop and reinvent themselves.
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As with all Blonde Redhead albums, there is no real standout track to pinpoint. Instead, they've made a terrific progression from, and succeeded in the daunting task of following, 'Misery Is A Butterfly'.
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When the energy is present, 23 is a strong, pleasant album that connects a number of dots in a way that belongs almost exclusively to Blonde Redhead.
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23 is exactly what we've come to expect from this trio: a tension-filled exploration of the human psyche, blistering but still atmospheric.
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UncutThings grow richer and stranger as the album develops. [May 2007, p.87]
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"23" furthers the group's recent fascination with a sleeker presentation that favors sheen over squall.
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It’s mostly a collection of decent tunes, polished to a blinding sheen.
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The softer focus fits them exceptionally well.
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MojoThe sound might be spacier and more panoramic, but there's still some grit in the mix. [May 2007, p.110]
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It’s still style over substance in a lot of cases, but it manages to be so exciting while being so listenable that I think it demands repeated listens -- even if those are at cocktail parties.
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Q MagazineAn impressive set. [May 2007, p.123]
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23 is one of Blonde Redhead’s strongest efforts to date, containing far more in the way of memorable melodies and songwriting subtleties than the band has previously exhibited.
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A weirdly entrancing collection of polished electronics and acoustic-guitar riffs layered like fruit in a parfait glass.
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23 is fundamentally a more interesting album than 04's Misery Is A Butterfly, neither as cartoonishly bleak nor as sonically pristine.
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MagnetA sinister, slinky catwalk with sharper melodic angles and a propulsive, post-punk groove. [#75, p.99]
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The end result is a kind of low-flying elation that only these experienced noirists could deliver.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 65 out of 69
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Mixed: 1 out of 69
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Negative: 3 out of 69
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Jun 9, 2015
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Jul 10, 2013
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RicardoC.Aug 29, 2009Beautiful, such a soft melody. And her voice fits perfectly.