One By One
by Foo Fighters
  • Record Label: RCA
  • Release Date: Oct 22, 2002
User Score
8.3

Universal acclaim- based on 80 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 70 out of 80
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 80
  3. Negative: 1 out of 80

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  1. SteveBackMeta
    Nov 9, 2013
    4
    Sorry I don't mind the Foo Fighters but I found this to be a very sterile and uninspired album. For a band of this type hard-rocking crowd-pleasers these songs try their best to tear town walls but just sound stilted thanks to the smooth, slippery-slick production and formulaic songwriting. Even "One By One" doesn't do as much as penetrate the eardrum. These melodies just don't amplify.Sorry I don't mind the Foo Fighters but I found this to be a very sterile and uninspired album. For a band of this type hard-rocking crowd-pleasers these songs try their best to tear town walls but just sound stilted thanks to the smooth, slippery-slick production and formulaic songwriting. Even "One By One" doesn't do as much as penetrate the eardrum. These melodies just don't amplify. "Low" in particular is just horrible.

    Ironically, it's where the Foos sit back and run on autopilot that the best track on this album comes about. "Time Like These" is by far the catchiest song on here and doesn't actually TRY to shatter the room. It is just a well-constructed power-ballad that hits the mark. The rest, though, is so polished you can't keep hold of it.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

44
#44 Most Discussed Album of 2002
51
#51 Most Shared Album of 2002

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
75

Generally favorable reviews - based on 19 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 19
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 19
  3. Negative: 0 out of 19
  1. The A.V. Club
    60
    One By One is mostly middling, sticking to slick, pounding, functional rock that doesn't dig much deeper than the usual spleen-venting and loud-quiet brooding-to-bluster formula.
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  2. Stylus Magazine
    80
    There is no denying the power of this album.
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  3. Billboard
    80
    One by One, in all its thunderous angst and desperate expressions of hope, represents a full-on exploration of the Foos '70s influences.
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