Peeping Tom
by Peeping Tom
  • Record Label: Ipecac
  • Release Date: May 30, 2006
Metascore
64

Generally favorable reviews - based on 22 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 22
  3. Negative: 3 out of 22
  1. Playlouder
    90
    Put 'Peeping Tom' on the stereo and it's as slickly dark and eminently devourable as Hip-Hop with R&B overtones can be, though whack it on the headphones and you're introduced to something infinitely superior.
  2. Los Angeles Times
    88
    It works equally as a setting for his quieter moments (the tropical "Caipirinha") and for the melodic vocal rages that defined Faith No More's hits. [4 Jun 2006]
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  3. AllMusic
    80
    It's quite possibly Patton's most accessible album since his Faith No More days.
  5. Alternative Press
    80
    There's hardly a stinker in the bunch. [Jul 2006, p.206]
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  6. Urb
    80
    The most palatable Mike Patton project to date. [Jun 2006, p.113]
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  7. Uncut
    80
    While poppier and more accessible than his albums fronting Fantomas, it's worth the wait. [Jul 2006, p.104]
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  8. Billboard
    70
    Patton is either a musical genius or one lucky mad scientist. [3 Jun 2006]
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  9. PopMatters
    70
    Peeping Tom succeeds (and wildly so, I might add) in the songs where Patton allows himself to succumb, if ever so slightly, to his more experimental tendencies.
  10. Tiny Mix Tapes
    70
    While I would put this work near the bottom among Patton's opus, there are still some definitely enjoyable songs.
  11. Pitchfork
    62
    For all the great ideas and fantastic moments sprinkled throughout Peeping Tom, it turns out that Mike Patton's idea of pop is as uncompromising as his other musical notions. In this case, what's great in theory doesn't work so well in practice.

User Reviews

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User Score
8.5

Universal acclaim- based on 32 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 28 out of 32
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 32
  3. Negative: 2 out of 32
  1. JoshC
    Sep 16, 2007
    0
    Few musicians since Frank Zappa have confused "performance" with "self-indulgence" quite like former Faith No More frontman Mike Patton. The Few musicians since Frank Zappa have confused "performance" with "self-indulgence" quite like former Faith No More frontman Mike Patton. The noisy freakouts of Fantomas and Tomahawk are daring but all too often unbearably dissonant. The Beach-Boys-by-way-of-Black-Sabbath collage Mr. Bungle could be a delight, but was also a bit too goofy to be adored. As Patton's weirdo excursions are the very paradigm of "great in small doses," he works best as a collaborator adding growls and shrieks to tracks by Björk, Dan The Automator, Massive Attack, and others. So hopes for the highly collaborative Peeping Tom project are high: the guest spots are numerous and impressive (Amon Tobin! Kool Keith!), or at the very least, intriguing (Norah Jones!), and the record has been billed as Mike Patton's most accessible album since the days of Faith No More. Could this be Patton's Apostrophe or Cruising With Ruben And The Jets to make up for his years of Lumpy Gravy-esque weirdness? Nope. Instead, Patton's "pop" album is a collection of infantile, forgettable stripper anthems. After years of the vocal acrobatics of Fantomas, I wonder if Mike Patton remembers what rock singers are supposed to do exactly. Schizo opener "Five Seconds" shimmies like Ween imitating Prince before spazzing out into a slam-dance chorus counting the one, two, three, four, "five seconds to live." If only the listener were so lucky. "Five Seconds" is supposed to sound bad-ass, but it just sounds hokey… Full Review »
  2. IllmaticNaS
    Aug 17, 2006
    10
    An awesome, experimental album. But then again, it's Mike Patton, so that's a given. And great guests, too. Kool Keith and Dan the An awesome, experimental album. But then again, it's Mike Patton, so that's a given. And great guests, too. Kool Keith and Dan the Automator. Awesome. This who album completely blows away anything in rock, trip hop, or punk released lately. I mean, just listen to the reheated, rehashed bull that's been coming out lately. Mike is refreshing burst of originality, as usual. And screw Entertainment!! LINKIN PARK? Are you serious? Has that critic even heard a Linkin Park album? Mike Patton never has and never will sound like Linkin Park, and this album is no different. The fact that you would even compare the two artist is ridiculous and offensive. Linkin Park rehashes the same old nu-metal. Mike doesn't.… Full Review »
  3. Marie-PierreP
    Aug 11, 2006
    10
    EXCELLENT!!!! Very original...very Mike Patton!
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