- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
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Alternative PressA feel-good collection of (mostly) poppy songcraft. [Aug 2001, p.103]
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An LP full of nothing but compromises and dried-up creativity.
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Breathtaking and beautiful, as well as haunting and bleak...
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When he's left to his own devices, he appears to be on firing form, creating music that sits happily between the frenzied aggro mantras of his darkest days and the beautifully evocative wonder of his debut.
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The worst part of Tricky's comeback disc is, well, Tricky himself.
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Entertainment WeeklySellout, you say? Think again: Tricky provides just enough wicked topspin to give his pop a loopy bounce. [13 July 2001, p.86]
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Tricky's most upbeat and accessible album ever, occasionally hinting at his noirish trip hop masterpiece, Maxinquaye.
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MixerHis most refined sound to date. [Jul 2001, p.80]
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MojoHe's made the album he should've made right after Maxinquaye -- i.e., a listenable one. [Jul 2001, p.112]
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Where Maxinquaye was both engaging and coherent, working up to a kind of weird gestalt by way of good songs and dark sounds, Blowback is hit-and-miss.
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The first thing that strikes you about Tricky's sixth album is how, despite the size of the project - the collaborators, the much-trumpeted 'new directions', the very fact that this is the new Tricky album, fergawdsakes - it manages to sound so underwhelming.
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The album veers from dreamily childlike to furiously metallic, from bouncy dance-hall reggae to funked-up TV-theme fun. There's even a pop single or two.
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It's too lightweight and silly to appeal to those looking for musical innovation, and the songs aren't focused or fully developed enough to grab new fans. Mostly, it's just a really annoying album.
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SpinA blatant stab for radio... [Aug 2001, p.134]
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Remove "Girls" and "Wonder Woman" from Blowback and you'd have a solid album.
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The WireMuch of this fascinating, infuriating record is defined by his commingling of HipHop, Electro, dancehall, and, most problematically, stadium alt.rock... Some of it is just odd enough to work. [#209, p.62]
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 8 out of 10
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Mixed: 1 out of 10
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Negative: 1 out of 10
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Feb 20, 2012
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yeehaMay 16, 2006the worst album i've ever bought
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SarahCSep 23, 2005