More Than Just a Dream
by Fitz & the Tantrums
  • Record Label: Elektra
  • Release Date: May 7, 2013
Metascore
64

Generally favorable reviews - based on 12 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7 out of 12
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 12
  3. Negative: 1 out of 12
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  1. Boston Globe
    May 7, 2013
    80
    The group wisely broadens the musical palette here and goes full-bore pop by adding bigger choruses, alluring sonic textures, and electronic rhythms.
  2. AllMusic
    May 7, 2013
    80
    Ultimately, with More Than Just a Dream, Fitz & the Tantrums have made an even more infectious, club-ready album than Pickin' Up the Pieces, while still retaining all of the band's organic soulfulness.
  3. Paste Magazine
    May 7, 2013
    78
    More than Just a Dream is poised for prime time, a diabetic coma of sugar-rush pop.
  5. Entertainment Weekly
    May 23, 2013
    75
    There's still a great band with a knack for jangly shout-along choruses somewhere in there. [17 May 2013, p.71]
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  6. The A.V. Club
    May 7, 2013
    67
    More Than Just A Dream is a leap for the band sonically, one that would deserve more credit if Fitz and company weren’t still taking so much from the past. Yet this Dream still manages to be entertaining.
  7. Magnet
    May 10, 2013
    65
    Michael "Fitz" Fitzpatrick still knows his way around a catchy hook, though, and there are more than a few memorable ones here. [No. 98, p.55]
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  8. Los Angeles Times
    May 14, 2013
    63
    There's a fine line between evolution and de-evolution, and which process Fitz and the Tantrums is experiencing on its sophomore effort, More Than Just a Dream, depends on what you liked about the L.A. band's breakout debut.
  9. PopMatters
    May 28, 2013
    60
    It’s an album that’s hard to love, yet easy to like.
  10. Rolling Stone
    May 7, 2013
    60
    The pleasures of the songcraft don't quite compensate for dopey lyrics, the bland vocals of Fitz and co-lead singer Noelle Scaggs, and the relentless spazzing-out.
  11. Blurt Magazine
    Jun 26, 2013
    40
    More Than Just a Dream is a perfectly ok record that can even boast one or two above-average songs, but ultimately the result is pretty underwhelming.
  12. Spin
    May 7, 2013
    40
    More Than Just a Dream steps backwards--where its predecessor was shockingly felt, this settles for something more distant, theatrical, grandiose.
  13. Alternative Press
    May 7, 2013
    30
    Nearly everything that made Fitz And The Tantrums interesting has been thrown out the window for More Than A Dream. Fitzpatrick has run out of anything interesting to say, instead relying on awful cliches. [Jun 2013, p.96]

User Reviews

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User Score
7.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 20 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 16 out of 20
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 20
  3. Negative: 1 out of 20
  1. MRAButterfly
    Mar 12, 2014
    8
    An interesting direction to go in for this second album. The first half of the album is filled with undeniably great pop hooks, and the secondAn interesting direction to go in for this second album. The first half of the album is filled with undeniably great pop hooks, and the second half brings back the soul vibe. For all the hate this album received, it is certainly worth listening to.… Full Review »
  2. kath001
    Oct 31, 2013
    10
    Awesome song by Fitz and The Tantrums with a kind of 'Men At Work/Pet Shop Boys' -good ol' days, kind of feel to it! Stumbled upon this songAwesome song by Fitz and The Tantrums with a kind of 'Men At Work/Pet Shop Boys' -good ol' days, kind of feel to it! Stumbled upon this song on the radio and had to find out the artist right away. Refreshing!… Full Review »
  3. ImNotRicky
    May 13, 2013
    7
    It's pretty good. Fitz and The Tantrums maintain the style they had in their previous album while still staying fresh. A good thing is thatIt's pretty good. Fitz and The Tantrums maintain the style they had in their previous album while still staying fresh. A good thing is that they ditched the organ from the last album and stuck to something more electronic; that's fine. The only thing I didn't enjoy from this were the few filler songs it had. Some of it sounded the same. Overall, it's a decent album I recommend for Fitz and The Tantrums fans.… Full Review »
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