Is All Over... The Map
by Giant Sand
Metascore
79

Generally favorable reviews - based on 16 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 16
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 16
  3. Negative: 0 out of 16
  1. Junkmedia
    100
    Gelb creates masterful songs for the ages.
  2. Splendid
    90
    As perfect a brew as this is, it's Gelb's voice and lyrics that push the music into otherworldly territories.
  3. Pitchfork
    83
    Some of the rowdiest Giant Sand music since the near-grunge of 1992's Center of the Universe.
  5. Mojo
    80
    A noble addition to the Giant Sand canon. [Sep 2004, p.96]
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  6. Billboard
    80
    His raspy, hushed voice is in fine form as ever.
  7. New Musical Express (NME)
    80
    One of the most cosmopolitan albums to carry the Giant seal of oddness. [11 Sep 2004, p.55]
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  8. Dusted Magazine
    80
    Much has been made of Gelb’s ability at cobbling together musical forms, but overlooked is his skill at entwining contradictory moods.
  9. Tiny Mix Tapes
    80
    For new listeners, this is the most accessible Sand album to date, but for veteran Sand nuts, this may be... well, just different.
  10. AllMusic
    80
    No one makes records that sound quite like this: a shambolic, atmospheric mixture of hushed tones, deadly distortion, tender poetry and rock and roll.
  11. Delusions of Adequacy
    80
    Although this is one of the most linear and easy-to-navigate Giant Sand records, some might be put off by the album's lapses in noisier and raucous dynamics.
  12. Filter
    76
    Gelb and the band make great strides in musicianship, shifting tempos, languages and sounding disjointed, elegiac and hallucinatory all at once. [#12, p.98]
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  13. PopMatters
    70
    Unlike earlier efforts, this album never detours into patience-trying exercises in noise, never dallies in self-indulgent improvisation.
  14. Q Magazine
    70
    Though head-spinning, this collision of ideas retains some cohesion thanks to Gelb's sun-scorched songwriting that sees his acoustic alt-country efforts, in particular, shine. [Oct 2004, p.123]
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  15. Stylus Magazine
    70
    It is music that sits at the crossroads of Neil Young and Captain Beefheart, a reverence for its rustic background balanced by a playful desire to fuck shit up.
  16. Rolling Stone
    60
    An uneven album... but it's a nice soundtrack for a lonesome drunken night. [14 Oct 2004, p.98]
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  17. The Guardian
    60
    Musically, the disc feels jerky and distracted, as if Gelb was plagued with fragments of ideas.

Awards & Rankings

93
#93 Best Album of 2004

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
7.8

Generally favorable reviews- based on 5 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 5
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 5
  3. Negative: 1 out of 5
  1. BTSDOMINATE
    Aug 29, 2020
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click full review link to view. Es un álbum muy completo que no se queda con los mismo estilos en sus canciones siempre busca nuevos ritmos y se esfuerzan tanto, todas sus canciones tiene definición de arte… Full Review »
  2. GregJ
    May 22, 2006
    10
    After so many albums with so many great, great songs, how did Gelb & Co. manage to pull this stellar album out from nowhere? Like After so many albums with so many great, great songs, how did Gelb & Co. manage to pull this stellar album out from nowhere? Like Calexico's 'Feast of Wire,' this is the absolute peak of their capabilities and finally does what they have been doing all along, only perfectly. Everybody needs to hear this.… Full Review »
  3. eirike
    Nov 26, 2005
    9
    another splendid album by howe gelb and giant sand - after more than 20 albums they still amaze and delivers yet another gem!
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