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May 18, 2011It's best to purely take in the dissimilarity of this exceptional new album in contrast to Hospice--it's downright astonishing on its very own.
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May 10, 2011It isn't as conceptual as its predecessor, but Burst Apart is just as much of an event, one that comes with some cautious optimism in the end.
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May 9, 2011Burst Apart is full of wonderful little surprises like this, that add up to two big ones: that The Antlers didn't try to follow up Hospice by repeating themselves, and nevertheless, that they have delivered a more than worthy successor.
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Jun 14, 2011As an exercise in maintaining artistic form, it's an indisputable success.
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Jun 7, 2011Burst Apart deserves all the plaudits that can be thrown at it; albums are rarely as unashamedly, gut-wrenchingly, genuinely emotional as this.
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May 11, 2011Burst Apart retains all the band's compositional prowess and aural splendor, but it's also a record we can truly celebrate.
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Jun 6, 2011The Antlers maintain the poignancy that becomes them and the result is an album bursting with richness.
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May 12, 2011The Antlers won't hold your hand through Burst Apart, which will inevitably make it more of a grower, but stick around -- it's all the more affecting for how it allows you to pick your own stumbling, lonely path.
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Q MagazineJun 7, 2011The Brooklyn trio rein in the misery. [July 2011, p. 106]
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Jun 7, 2011A collection of mesmeric, epic stillness.
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May 26, 2011For the follow-up, however, the band have expanded their sound, swaddling typically despondent lyrics in gorgeous electronic textures (Rolled Together, Tiptoe) and Portisheadesque beats, as on the glistening Parenthesis.
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May 20, 2011As it turns out, Burst Apart finds the Antlers undergoing the best kind of reinvention, one in which a willingness to seek out newer sonic frontiers helps the band access a more nuanced emotional palette.
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May 12, 2011In fact, this is what makes Burst Apart so unnerving (which is one of the music's chief pleasures).
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May 12, 2011Burst Apart is clearly the work of the same songwriter, but it never sounds like a mere retread. The Antlers' belief in this material comes through loud and clear, and it will likely resonate with a new multitude of fans, as well.
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May 10, 2011Thanks to his varied songwriting, there's nary a weak link in Burst Apart. It might not benefit from the easy hooks of a concept album, but if you stick around till the end, it is every bit as rewarding as Hospice.
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May 9, 2011It's an album you appreciate not because you have to, but because you want to.
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May 9, 2011The Antlers magnify private sorrows to overwhelming scale, creating grand anthems and then smearing them with noise.
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May 6, 2011Burst Apart is smart and calculated without feeling as though you're being duped by artificial feelings.
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Sep 13, 2011In short, Burst Apart, as truly beautiful as its compositions are, is haunted by Hospice.
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Jul 5, 2011Burst Apart, while far from perfect, is sort of a special album.
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May 9, 2011As it stands Burst Apart is a record of big songs from a band that's good at generating big songs, and we should be relieved that The Antlers can be impressive without an overarching concept behind them.
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Jun 14, 2011A record that's every bit the sonic departure it had to be, it nevertheless recalls its forebear's themes, seeing matters of the heart from a more reflective stance.
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May 16, 2011Hospice may have been organic and fragile, but Burst Apart is sleek and self-assured, and the new image suits Silberman and the Antlers well.
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May 13, 2011At its best, Burst Apart is a delicate, varied work that hints that we've only begun to see what this group is capable of.
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UncutJun 17, 2011The Antlers, fronted by the sepulcral warble of Peter Silberman, manage to distinguish themselves slightly from these shuffling, mournful legions by bringing to bear a gently epic sensibility that verges on the orchestral. [Jul 2011, p.77]
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Jun 10, 2011With the striking falsetto of Peter Silberman dominating their songs, The Antlers may be America's equivalent of Wild Beasts.
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May 9, 2011The Antlers still summon widescreen, dramatic moments when their moody tangents cohere, but too many songs sacrifice substance for prettiness, gliding by forgettably.
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May 9, 2011Burst Apart is a passable follow-up to an incredible record, but that's all it is. Passable.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 71 out of 73
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Mixed: 1 out of 73
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Negative: 1 out of 73
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May 14, 2011
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May 21, 2011
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May 13, 2011