Both Ways Open Jaws
by The Do
Metascore
75

Generally favorable reviews - based on 16 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 16
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 16
  3. Negative: 0 out of 16
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  1. Beats Per Minute
    Nov 28, 2011
    93
    Both Ways Open Jaws will strike you as both new sounding and classic, as both fresh and rooted in tradition. Most importantly, it will strike you as a treasure, and probably, as the best album you have heard in a long time.
  2. The Boston Phoenix
    Dec 14, 2011
    88
    Unavoidable comparisons to the Icelandic princess and her early years aside, Both Ways Open Jaws sounds familiar while breaking new ground.
  3. PopMatters
    Jan 20, 2012
    80
    In addition to the obvious musical proficiency that is displayed throughout this album, which in and of itself would make for engaging listening, the true strength of the Dø's uniquely blended sound is its sense of adventure and good old fashioned fun.
  5. Uncut
    Dec 1, 2011
    80
    This terrific sequel feels bigger and better. [Dec 2011, p.81]
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  6. BBC Music
    Nov 28, 2011
    80
    Truly impressive, The Dø gracefully pull off the kind of intriguing "oddness" the likes of Florence Welch strain and wheeze for, and with better tunes.
  7. The Quietus
    Nov 28, 2011
    80
    A record that ranges widely without ever feeling tacked-together. A real feat of production.
  8. The Guardian
    Nov 28, 2011
    80
    The string-soaked The Wicked & The Blind, in particular, illustrates the strange, impressive feat they've managed to pull off with this record, which is to sound sparse and rich at exactly the same time.
  9. The Independent on Sunday (UK)
    Nov 28, 2011
    80
    On the evidence of this [album] one can safely say that the Dø are the best French/Finnish duo in pop.
  10. New Musical Express (NME)
    Nov 28, 2011
    80
    "Both Ways Open Jaws" is tribal, prickly and wickedly playful.
  11. Consequence
    Nov 23, 2011
    80
    In an era where music comes from literally every corner of the globe right to our fingertips, The Dø makes an alluring sound that is more integrated and effective than the UN.
  12. Pitchfork
    Jan 4, 2012
    75
    More often than not, the contradictions between the band's knowing appropriations and its calls against jaded cynicism resolve themselves in the album's intricately rewarding attention to rich and unexpected sonic details.
  13. AllMusic
    Jan 19, 2012
    70
    Both Ways... fuses folk, indie rock, electronica, and avant-garde pop with unusual percussion including bottle tops, plants, and saucepans.
  14. musicOMH.com
    Nov 28, 2011
    70
    Both Ways Open Jaws is an album that is best when taken as a whole and wholly intriguing trip into that most treacherous and elusive of terrains: the happy marriage of eccentricity and pop song craft.
  15. Clash Music
    Nov 28, 2011
    70
    The second album from this mysterious French/Finnish indie-folk duo is every bit as eclectic and unexpected as the first.
  16. Mojo
    Jan 11, 2012
    40
    Clever-innocent, it's a bit Cerys Matthews, a bit Bow Wow Wow... minus the tunes and larger-than-life character to get stuck into. [Dec. 2011 pg. 94]
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  17. Q Magazine
    Dec 15, 2011
    40
    Both Ways Open jaws is just smug enough for you to wish it was wired shut. [Dec. 2001 p. 125]
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Awards & Rankings

100
#100 Most Shared Album of 2011

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