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Boy King
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Boy King Image
Metascore
78

Generally favorable reviews - based on 27 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
8.0

Generally favorable reviews- based on 36 Ratings

  • Summary: The fifth full-length release for the British indie rock band was produced by John Congleton.
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Top Track

Alpha Female
I ask a shaman, ask a priest I'm learning, I'm learning I'm learning that I know the least Alpha female Be it by faith, be it by chance We'll make... See the rest of the song lyrics
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Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 22 out of 27
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 27
  3. Negative: 0 out of 27
  1. The Line of Best Fit
    Aug 1, 2016
    100
    Boy King punches more like Nine Inch Nails when Trent Reznor was still sexy, synths strafing and drums pounding like the outro to “Closer” teased out for forty minutes.
  2. Uncut
    Aug 5, 2016
    80
    This is an album filled with earworms, with hooklines and stray phrases that burrow deep into your consciousness. [Sep 2016, p.72]
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  3. DIY Magazine
    Jul 29, 2016
    80
    A fifth album u-turn that few could pull off, Boy King is the sound of a band reborn. The core elements are all still there--that falsetto-baritone play-off between vocalists Hayden Thorpe and Tom Fleming as prominent as ever--but they’re glitched-up and garbled.
  4. No Ripcord
    Sep 13, 2016
    80
    Boy King lends further weight to the view that Wild Beasts are one of the best bands operating in Britain today, and it’s not shy in doing so.
  5. musicOMH.com
    Aug 5, 2016
    70
    After the crossroads moment that was Present Tense, Boy King is undoubtedly a powerful statement of intent from a talented, ambitious group of musicians clearly keen to explore new and bold territory. Yet by making this call, they have also sacrificed some of the crucial nuances that made Wild Beasts stand out from their peers in the first place.
  6. Clash Music
    Aug 11, 2016
    70
    Rock-hard and sloppy in equal measure, Boy King is a creature of base instinct from a band of high intellect more used to drawing their songs from their frontal lobes than their testes (even if their lyrics often suggest otherwise).
  7. Slant Magazine
    Jul 29, 2016
    50
    By blatantly exposing a core of raw sexuality, previously presented only indirectly in their music, the group ends up removing any possible release valve while stripping the songs of nuance.

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User Reviews

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Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 2
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 2
  3. Negative: 0 out of 2
  1. Noiseblock
    Aug 6, 2016
    10
    This album is completely different from everything the Wild Beasts have done so far in terms of thematic approaches. So far, Wild Beasts haveThis album is completely different from everything the Wild Beasts have done so far in terms of thematic approaches. So far, Wild Beasts have mostly been comfortably walking on a thin edge between romanticised versions of love in modern times and a underlying, more animalic side of sexuality. Smother was the first complete dive into the layers of these topics and created an intense, claustrophobic atmoshpere while Present Tense built on that premise, aptly balancing the two sides, relishing the possibilities this duality has to offer. This duality goes overboard on Boy King and strangely enough, it is just the righ thing to do on a album titled Boy King, implying the perspective of an empowered individual that is still stuck in the mindset, mannerisms and negative habits of a child. The album reflects this perfectly: differentiation gets tossed out for energy and tempo, living for the now, not caring about the consequences and being as hedonistic and selfish just as a Boy King would be. The album blasts away at an immense speed, trading subtle arrangements of other Wild Beasts-albums for thundering synths and rolling basslines and overall sounds like a mix of 80´s "let´s get to action"-allure synth-pop and modern dancefloor anthems, again stressing the gist of this record. I haven´t seen such a perfect arrangement between the concept of an album an the actual content for quite some time, both lyrics-wise and in terms of the actual music, which definitely leads me to give this album a perfect score as I can´t find a single weak song on this record or one that does not fulfill an important role in this all.… Expand
  2. brettrosey
    Aug 5, 2016
    4
    Smother is turning out to be a blessing and a curse of an album for WB. A blessing because it's one of the greatest records of thisSmother is turning out to be a blessing and a curse of an album for WB. A blessing because it's one of the greatest records of this generation, and a curse because nothing they ever do will live up to that. I went into this record with that understand, but still came out disappointed. Wild Beasts are one of my favorite bands, but this record falls short on numerous different levels. The songwriting feels uninspired, relying on the same opening percussion and layered, arpeggiated synths to close out many of the tracks. I'd give the repetitiveness a pass if it were a little bid more enticing from a melodic standpoint, but the truth is nearly none of these tracks resonate with me. Smother is an album that gives me chills to my core, Boy King is one that never strays beyond the surface. Pretty disappointing, overall.… Expand

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