Sea When Absent
by A Sunny Day in Glasgow
Metascore
82

Universal acclaim - based on 15 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 15 out of 15
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 15
  3. Negative: 0 out of 15
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  1. New Musical Express (NME)
    Aug 11, 2014
    80
    Catchy and abstract in equal measure, Sea When Absent is the thrilling sound of shoegazing introverts coming out of their shells.
  2. Drowned In Sound
    Aug 5, 2014
    80
    Whilst so many hazy albums of this kind struggle to engage on a level beyond superficiality, Sea When Absent--if you’re willing to genuinely invest in it--throws up a plethora of fresh subtleties with every listen.
  3. DIY Magazine
    Aug 1, 2014
    80
    It’s no easy feat for a band to push themselves to the absolute limit, and with every shimmering strum of a guitar and shattering bassline of Sea When Absent, it’s clear ASDIG are giving it their all.
  5. The Guardian
    Aug 1, 2014
    80
    Listening to it is like standing in the middle of a festival with music coming from all directions.
  6. Under The Radar
    Jul 28, 2014
    80
    The result is their most comprehensive and complete album to date.
  7. PopMatters
    Jul 8, 2014
    70
    Even with the louder, harsher mix, ASDIG retain much of their dream-pop core, making for a rewarding listening experience.
  8. No Ripcord
    Jul 7, 2014
    80
    A Sunny Day in Glasgow have shown that no sea is big enough to slow unabashed creativity--in fact, the sea seems less absent and quite fruitful in their case.
  9. Consequence
    Jul 1, 2014
    67
    Sea When Absent, too, is full of bliss, even if it’s too often sabotaged by an excess of ideas scattered on the page without room to breathe.
  10. Tiny Mix Tapes
    Jun 30, 2014
    80
    This is one of those genre puzzles that are rewarding to anyone with an adventurous appetite, even if your bright eyes’ve never gazed anywhere but ahead.
  11. Pretty Much Amazing
    Jun 27, 2014
    75
    As it turns out, the Philly collective clean up quite nicely, and Sea When Absent is an involving, wonderfully creative mess.
  12. Pitchfork
    Jun 24, 2014
    85
    Sea When Absent has the quality of one of those spectacularly bright summer days when they color in everything seems a little over-saturated, and it induces the same dizzy, woozy feeling you get after staring directly at the sun.
  13. The Line of Best Fit
    Jun 23, 2014
    85
    A Sunny Day have just about mastered the pleasure principle of a certain kind of agreeably arty pop music.
  14. AllMusic
    Jun 23, 2014
    80
    Just as they did on their best album, Ashes Grammar, the band takes risks and makes leaps, and the results on Sea When Absent prove that they are one of the best, most interesting under-the-radar bands of their era.
  15. Exclaim
    Jun 23, 2014
    90
    Hopefully ASDIG will never give in completely to conventional songwriting, because it's the little idiosyncrasies that make their expansive music so breathtaking--which, incidentally, really is the best word to describe Sea When Absent.
  16. Slant Magazine
    Jun 23, 2014
    70
    A Sunny Day in Glasgow pulls it off, skirting the line between complete anarchy and overwrought tinkering well enough to deliver a compelling, if slightly discombobulated, rock pastiche.

Awards & Rankings

80
#80 Best Album of 2014

User Reviews

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User Score
8.2

Universal acclaim- based on 40 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 34 out of 40
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 40
  3. Negative: 3 out of 40
  1. Lodz
    Jun 27, 2014
    3
    Much ado about close to nothing. Melodic - yes, pleasant - yes. Shoegaze - very far from. Novel or innovative - absolutely not. I gave thisMuch ado about close to nothing. Melodic - yes, pleasant - yes. Shoegaze - very far from. Novel or innovative - absolutely not. I gave this album 3 chances to win my ears but it failed.… Full Review »
  2. seventhseal
    Nov 30, 2014
    9
    A sunny day in Glasgow is sadly a rare event, A Sunny Day In Glasgow is a wonderful experience and spellbindingly enjoyable listen. This albumA sunny day in Glasgow is sadly a rare event, A Sunny Day In Glasgow is a wonderful experience and spellbindingly enjoyable listen. This album is quality from the get-go, I especially like MTLOV (minor key) but would struggle to find a bad track on the entire album.

    Overall shoegazing near its modern best.    … Full Review »
  3. adhamhany
    Jul 19, 2014
    8
    This is unexpectedly great. There are a lot of good tracks in here. "Byebye, Big Ocean", "MTLOV", "Golden Waves", as well as plenty others.This is unexpectedly great. There are a lot of good tracks in here. "Byebye, Big Ocean", "MTLOV", "Golden Waves", as well as plenty others. Dreamy music; and to a large degree, psychedelic. If you like that's either, you should check this album.… Full Review »
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