Metascore
74

Generally favorable reviews - based on 20 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 20
  2. Negative: 0 out of 20
  1. Dec 9, 2011
    90
    There's a lot going on, but Hotel Shampoo never seems cluttered. It flows easily, so easily that it becomes an album to get lost in.
  2. Feb 10, 2011
    88
    Rhys is the ex-Britpopper making music that doesn't sound like dreary London fog - and as any New Englander reeling from a long hard winter's ass kick will tell you, that's an advantageous distinction.
  3. Jun 6, 2011
    80
    Rhys has weightier material in his body of work, but for sheer pop pleasure this album can't be beat.
  4. Mar 21, 2011
    80
    Hotel Shampoo is terrific, neatly channeling all of Rhys's wonderful eccentricities into an intelligent pop record.
  5. Q Magazine
    Mar 1, 2011
    80
    Super Furry Animal ditches band and experimentation for the simple life. [March 2011, p. 114]
  6. 80
    The simpler arrangements allow more room for Rhys's sleek harmonies to drive his whimsical wordplay: accordingly, the album has the lush, beguiling charm of a sun-kissed soft-rock album by The Beach Boys or The Young Rascals.
  7. Subjects resulting from such reveries include imperialism, the environment and the more familiar home turf of love and longing. Nobody does it better.
  8. Feb 14, 2011
    80
    Hotel Shampoo shows off a simpler, stripped back Rhys - whose lyrics are placed front and centre of beautifully arranged tracks, each imbued with an infectious energy.
  9. Feb 14, 2011
    80
    Super Furry Animals frontman's third solo LP captures his creative wanderlust.
  10. Feb 23, 2011
    76
    Hotel Shampoo manages to strike the right balance between Rhys' desire to indulge odd whims, lyrical humor, outright pop, and heartfelt sentiment. More importantly, he always makes it sound effortless.
  11. May 23, 2011
    73
    This is Rhys wholly in his wheelhouse: offering up a handful of standalone highlights and clever deep cuts, hitting pleasure centers along the way, and quietly adding to a catalogue as deceptively substantial as anyone currently working the pop circuit with fifteen years behind and at least another fifteen ahead.
  12. May 3, 2011
    70
    It's unexpected, beautiful, weird, and satisfying all at the same time.
  13. Apr 19, 2011
    70
    Whether driving a military tank through Glastonbury or recording a synth-pop tribute to playboy '80s auto mogul John Delorean, Super Furry Animals' frontman makes the gimmicky sublime.
  14. Feb 9, 2011
    70
    From start to finish, the melodies are sweeter than sugar, the music bright and sparkling, with Rhys' charming falsetto resting on top.
  15. Mojo
    Apr 6, 2011
    60
    Super Furry frontman's third solo venture, its title inspired by hair product freebies. [March 2011, p. 98]
  16. Feb 15, 2011
    60
    Little here really pushes the boat out for Rhys, and some of his eccentricities seem to have been toned down in favour of a casual and restrained atmosphere.
  17. Uncut
    Feb 15, 2011
    60
    Hotel Shampoo is a fragrant little side-project but it's a bit too sudsy to be the main event. [Mar 2010, p.96]
  18. 60
    Gruff's skills as a songwriter married up with his gentle, accommodating tones can, at their best, elicit the fuzzy feeling one gets listening to a Burt Bacharach classic, but this falls short of such lofty comparisons.
  19. May 3, 2011
    58
    The result of Rhys' soft-focus dabbling is, surprisingly, a samey batch of songs, Muzak for the psychedelic set.
  20. Mar 3, 2011
    50
    Hotel Shampoo is the sound of craft triumphing over inspiration.
User Score
7.8

Generally favorable reviews- based on 8 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7 out of 8
  2. Negative: 0 out of 8
  1. Oct 3, 2011
    4
    The frontman of highly creative Super Furry Animals and an enthusiast of the Welsh language in one invites you on a sunny holiday. CleanThe frontman of highly creative Super Furry Animals and an enthusiast of the Welsh language in one invites you on a sunny holiday. Clean beaches, exotic drinks, summer flirts included. Oh, and a bunch of sharks. The opener Shark Ridden Waters is a true psychedelic pop gem with a fantastic usage of recurring percussion. Sophie Softly invokes a memory of old video games through a cool electronic backing. However, Rhysâ Full Review »