Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 11 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 11
  2. Negative: 0 out of 11
  1. Easily the blissful equal of jj or Memory Tapes, A Sunny Day In Glasgow are diffuse enough to avoid easy classification, and Ashes Grammar is easier to enjoy than it is to write about.
  2. Ashes is A Sunny Day’s stripes, their first truly great album of scope.
  3. Ashes Grammar draws you in by offering outstanding moments in strange contexts; you'll re-listen to hear specific pieces even though you're unable to remember exactly when and how they occur.
  4. Those who power through this album, though, will be richly rewarded by ASDIG's diaphanous, highly intelligent take on noise pop.
  5. Schizophrenic, surreal and fantastic--that’s Ashes Grammar.
  6. Even if Ashes Grammar drifts quite nicely as a whole--best listened to it with eyes closed in a meditative position--it seems most appropriate for the short attention span generation.
  7. Under The Radar
    80
    ASDIG never traffics in straight-ahead pop music, but when those impulses shine through such gorgeously layered production, it's all the more thrilling for it. [Falll 2009, p.61]
  8. Ashes Grammar takes what they accomplished on SMCJ and attenuates it, stretching it into new shapes and sizes, avoiding a retread of their debut album by avoiding the traditions of the album form altogether.
  9. The 22 tracks on this album range freely in length from 11 seconds to six and a half minutes and a rare few would stand on their own, as the musical shifts between them can be so slight.
  10. While there are many indisputable highlights to be found on Ashes Grammar, it can be a chore to find them.
  11. Not quite Animal Collective or Stereolab, but at times sounding like an Ibiza chill-out album, there are hot flushes of brilliance here but they are few and far between.
User Score
8.5

Universal acclaim- based on 13 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 11 out of 13
  2. Negative: 1 out of 13
  1. Jan 25, 2014
    9
    Incredibly unique and ridiculously creative Shoegaze/Dream-Pop. Recommended for anyone who likes open-minded music in general. Only a smallIncredibly unique and ridiculously creative Shoegaze/Dream-Pop. Recommended for anyone who likes open-minded music in general. Only a small amount of filler keeps this from being a 10 for me. Full Review »