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Eton Alive
by
Eton Alive Image
Metascore
84

Universal acclaim - based on 16 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
7.2

Generally favorable reviews- based on 24 Ratings

  • Summary: The fifth full-length studio release for the British duo of Jason Williamson and Andrew Fearn is the first album on their own label.
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Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 16 out of 16
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 16
  3. Negative: 0 out of 16
  1. PopMatters
    Mar 15, 2019
    90
    Brexit (let us look forward to the day when we no longer have to speak of this blight) may be this album's context and its backdrop but what we might be getting here is ultimately a form of contemporary elegiac lyricism rather than full-fledged social polemic. Perhaps that is a more useful and rewarding reference and access point for this remarkable piece of work.
  2. Dusted Magazine
    Feb 19, 2019
    80
    Razorwire-sharp and reflexive, Eton Alive sees Sleaford Mods knowingly take the existential dare once more, and mostly win.
  3. Exclaim
    Feb 19, 2019
    80
    Instrumentally, this record doesn't do anything revelatory that distinguishes it from their other releases. However, in maintaining their usual glitchy post-punk instrumentals with this clearer lyrical concept, the duo emphasize the emptiness of the automated economy.
  4. The Independent (UK)
    Feb 21, 2019
    80
    This is a record that expands the idea of what Sleaford Mods could be.
  5. The Observer (UK)
    Feb 25, 2019
    80
    Andrew Fearn’s soundscapes, meanwhile, improve with each album. Particularly potent is the ominous post-punk bassline he deploys on OBCT; even what sounds suspiciously like a kazoo solo towards the end can’t puncture its sense of menace.
  6. Record Collector
    Mar 6, 2019
    80
    The lyrics continue to take a few listens to fully digest (beyond the regular laugh-out-loud moments), as do Fearn’s often misleadingly direct grooves. His basslines sound particularly mighty here, and Williamson’s vitriol (which fills most of the record) continues to be very much needed in contemporary Britain.
  7. Under The Radar
    Mar 20, 2019
    70
    Certainly this is a vast step forward for Sleaford Mods, musically, tonally, and in terms of performance and the perfection of the biting couplet, but they appear to remain steadfast in their long-held belief that, as Williamson states on "Subtraction," "the only change I like is in my pocket."

See all 16 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

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Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 3
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 3
  3. Negative: 0 out of 3
  1. lovezero
    Mar 30, 2019
    10
    An album that grows on you with each listening. it's a sheer punk at heart in spite of its rap appearance.
  2. WellDun01
    Oct 25, 2020
    9
    Not a skibbable song. Once you get used to the voice, you get right into it. Really funny, every song is different from the last, no lulls,Not a skibbable song. Once you get used to the voice, you get right into it. Really funny, every song is different from the last, no lulls, and the production is phenominal. So much different to anything else around.… Expand
  4. TurkeyBoi
    Mar 2, 2019
    9
    This is my favourite Sleaford Mods record. The production is more dynamic and experimental than ever, Jason Williamson is at his prime, albumThis is my favourite Sleaford Mods record. The production is more dynamic and experimental than ever, Jason Williamson is at his prime, album of the year for me.

    FAV TRACKS: KEBAB SPIDER, POLICY CREAM, O.B.C.T, FLIPSIDE, SUBTRACTION, FIREWALL, BIG BURT, DISCOURSE, NEGATIVE SCRIPT

    LEAST FAV TRACKS: INTO THE PAYZONE, WHEN YOU COME UP TO ME    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

50
#50 Best Album of 2019

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