Gold & Grey
by Baroness
User Score
7.4

Generally favorable reviews- based on 124 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 88 out of 124
  2. Mixed: 19 out of 124
  3. Negative: 17 out of 124
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  1. sammyanthony
    Jul 4, 2019
    6
    Gold & Grey. There's some golds and greys about this album. The golds are those instrumentals though it's like hearing alternative and electronic pieces. The greys are those plain metal songs. Interesting point here is that this album is a metal album, and those songs aren't even tethered. It's like you're hearing 2 albums (an instrumental and a metal one) in a shuffled playlist.
  2. ErnieCutlass
    Jun 19, 2019
    5
    A really great album that is completely undermined by a distractingly terrible mix. I am a huge Baroness fan, and think John Dyer Baizley is one of the most all around talented humans on the planet. The songwriting on this album is for me without question their best since Blue Album, and it pulls off the genre hopping they first really attempted on Yellow & Green much more effectively thanA really great album that is completely undermined by a distractingly terrible mix. I am a huge Baroness fan, and think John Dyer Baizley is one of the most all around talented humans on the planet. The songwriting on this album is for me without question their best since Blue Album, and it pulls off the genre hopping they first really attempted on Yellow & Green much more effectively than ever before. In the hands of a different production team, I think it could've been their masterpiece. But man oh man, it is so unsatisfying hearing every section that should be a triumph end up a thin, muddy, over-distorted mess. Every component of the louder tracks is compressed to the point that all of the life is sucked out of the recordings. Purple had the same issues, and I can only assume that Fridmann, who has produced a bunch of great stuff for other groups, is behind them. I understand the production style was an artistic choice he and the band agreed on, but to my ears it's an objectively bad one. Baizley has said this is the last of their color themed albums, and I can only hope that it's also the last record they'll choose to have Fridmann produce; the songs they're making deserve better than to be sabotaged by such confoundingly terrible mixing.… Expand
  3. rnodern
    Jul 5, 2019
    5
    I want to like it. I just can't get over the final mix and mastering. I understand that this was the sound that they were going for artistically, but this mix takes away from the harmony, subtlety, and finesse that the band clearly have. The songs are well written and diverse. Possibly better than some of their other albums. To my untrained ears, it sounds like the engineer allowedI want to like it. I just can't get over the final mix and mastering. I understand that this was the sound that they were going for artistically, but this mix takes away from the harmony, subtlety, and finesse that the band clearly have. The songs are well written and diverse. Possibly better than some of their other albums. To my untrained ears, it sounds like the engineer allowed everything (particularly the bass and drums) to clip, and then slammed it through a compressor. Completely lacks dynamics and range. Oversaturated and distorted sounding. It's hard to get the 'feels' of the songs, when sonically, it's just squashed and loud.… Expand
  4. Fawaz
    Jun 28, 2019
    5
    I love Baroness. IMO they are a breath of fresh air where Metal and Rock are concerned. I was really looking forward to Gold & Grey, but after several listens I just can't seem to get into it. Who knows maybe I need to take a break from the album and re-listen, or perhaps I may gain a new appreciation for the album after hearing it live, but for now its just a 5 out of 10. Still a fan though!

Awards & Rankings

4
#4 Best Album of 2019
47
#47 Most Discussed Album of 2019
59
#59 Most Shared Album of 2019

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
91

Universal acclaim - based on 14 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 14
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 14
  3. Negative: 0 out of 14
  1. No Ripcord
    Jul 22, 2019
    70
    While their more reflective and even pop-oriented moments keep the double album catchy and worth revisiting, this new avenue also affords a clearer view of Baroness' Achilles' heels, which are a propensity for predictable lyrics and an occasional Foo Fighter sappiness. But those flaws aren't terminal, and for the most part, Baroness takes us on a thunderous langskip ride through angry seas that is as addictive and thrilling as their past output.
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  2. Q Magazine
    Jul 2, 2019
    80
    Stellar fifth album is a determined attempt to push back the genre's long-established boundaries, folding in everything from glitchy electronica and lysergic Americana to gnarled pop into their full-frontal noise. [Aug 2019, p.108]
  3. The 405
    Jun 27, 2019
    90
    With Gold & Grey, Baizley and his cohorts have produced a monumental work of art that’s as dark and forbidding as it is bright and triumphant. It perfectly balances light and dark, revels in the creative possibilities of music-making, whilst plumbing emotional depths that might have you worrying a little for Baizley’s state of mind.
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