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Dissolver Image
Metascore
70

Generally favorable reviews - based on 13 Critic Reviews What's this?

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  • Summary: TV On The Radio's Kyp Malone returns to his other band, Iran, to release its third album.
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 13
  2. Negative: 0 out of 13
  1. Dissolver is easily Iran’s most cohesive album-length statement, and it proves that there is more to the band than idle four-track trickery.
  2. Under The Radar
    80
    Dissolver is more than impressive; it's Aites' first true masterpiece. [Winter 2009, p.72]
  3. No longer hiding melodies behind so many drapes of hiss and scramble, Aites has opened things up. The songs feel roomier, the tones brighter, the dynamics more jarring.
  4. Dissolver sounds like an album made by folks who are mostly sick of challenging convention and just want to swim in something that reminds them of why they love rock music.
  5. Dissolver is a solidly catchy, guitar-driven jaunt, finding equal time for fuzzy rock progressions and slowly sketched, shimmering landscapes.
  6. 70
    Frontman Aaron Aites counters the otherworldly ambience with straightforward strains of classic indie rock (think Sebadoh and Pavement). That combination can be jarring, but mostly in pleasant ways.
  7. 50
    Dissolver is a serviceable pop-rock record that would have benefited from being subject to more of the band’s experimental tendencies, a missed opportunity for the trio to release a cutting-edge yet accessible set of music.

See all 13 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 1
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 1
  3. Negative: 0 out of 1
  1. EricC
    Mar 20, 2009
    8
    So Iran is following the same path as many avant rockers like Liars, Oneida, and TV on the Radio. They step away from the dense and edgy So Iran is following the same path as many avant rockers like Liars, Oneida, and TV on the Radio. They step away from the dense and edgy songwriting, unusual song structures, and gritty production to make a pretty straight forward rock album. Unlike with those previous bands I mentioned, I'm new to Iran, so I'm not positioned to be dissapointed. Even if I was, I know how to recognize a solid rock album when I hear one. Very little filler, just one impressive song after another. I'm sure they'll return to their art house style soon enough, but for now, this is a pretty awesome album. Expand