Shattered
by Reigning Sound
  • Record Label: Merge
  • Release Date: Jul 15, 2014
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. AllMusic
    Jul 14, 2014
    80
    Some Reigning Sound fans might miss the harder-rocking side of the band, but if you're looking for ten new Greg Cartwright songs sung with real heart and soul, Shattered is just what you've been waiting for.
  2. Blurt Magazine
    Jul 15, 2014
    80
    Apparently Cartwright exorcised his punk rock demons with Desperation, as Shattered is the band’s most accessible record yet.
  3. Consequence
    Jul 17, 2014
    67
    Although his knack for delivering the “incredible hook” remains Cartwright’s strongest suit, there’s a weighty sense that all of this would mean nothing if not for his insatiable spirit.
  5. Dusted Magazine
    Aug 7, 2014
    80
    With Shattered, he isn’t just showing today’s garage-rock young guns he’s still got it. He’s showing them how it’s done.
  6. Mojo
    Jul 8, 2014
    80
    Their sixth also has a twinkly eye, and Cartwright's songwriting is never less than a joy. [Aug 2014, p.96]
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  7. Paste Magazine
    Jul 15, 2014
    90
    A boldly traditional, and fantastically well-rounded album of rock ‘n’ roll.
  8. Pitchfork
    Jul 14, 2014
    77
    In a humbler, warmer, more openhearted way, Reigning Sound have risen above themselves--as well as the garage-rock idiom that spawned them--while spiritually hewing true.
  9. PopMatters
    Jul 17, 2014
    80
    With this brilliant turn they take it a step further. They prove you don’t need to deconstruct genre to make it new. You just need to write great songs, know where they came from, and play the hell out of them.
  10. Q Magazine
    Aug 28, 2014
    80
    His world of heartbreak, damage and survival attains an out-of-time quality that admirers of superior barroom soundtracks will warm to. [Sep 2014, p.113]
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  11. The A.V. Club
    Jul 15, 2014
    83
    This is confident, uplifting music from a true-believing family man and sometimes electrician with no apparent desire to play stadiums or steep himself in mystique.
  12. The Guardian
    Jul 10, 2014
    80
    Shattered is a grown-up, repeat-listen rock record of rare quality, and a great addition to an already astoundingly good back catalogue.
  13. The Line of Best Fit
    Jul 8, 2014
    75
    Shattered is a deeply comfortable and comforting thirty minutes of expertly curated rock-and-soul.
  14. The Observer (UK)
    Jul 14, 2014
    80
    A decade on he treads a familiar path of homespun blues and rock'n'roll, happily unencumbered by musical fashion and with deeply satisfying results.
  15. Uncut
    Jul 8, 2014
    80
    [A] stunningly assured fifth studio album. [Aug 2014, p.80]
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  16. Under The Radar
    Jul 8, 2014
    70
    Recording in the Daptone's House of Soul studio in Brooklyn seems to have lent the proceedings a perfect patina of warm, mid-range goodness. [Jun-Jul 2014, p.87]

Awards & Rankings

64
#64 Best Album of 2014

User Reviews

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User Score
7.6

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. VictorGar
    Sep 3, 2015
    10
    Just great. One of the best discoveries that i have made in the last years. Seriously, this album is just like perfect. Soul, rock, its allJust great. One of the best discoveries that i have made in the last years. Seriously, this album is just like perfect. Soul, rock, its all just there. Just listen and you will fall in love with it… Full Review »
  2. srposs
    Jul 17, 2014
    10
    This new version of Greg Cartwright's Reigning Sound is undoubtedly the best lineup he has assembled to date, and this record should proveThis new version of Greg Cartwright's Reigning Sound is undoubtedly the best lineup he has assembled to date, and this record should prove that he really doesn't have many peers when it comes to songwriters today. Hopefully with the exposure that a label like Merge can get him, he will finally get the recognition he has deserved for so long.… Full Review »
  3. buzzlight
    Jul 16, 2014
    9
    This is a terrific album that crosses somewhere between the Squeeze, Bruce Springstein (My My) and the Black Keys (In My Dreams). Full ofThis is a terrific album that crosses somewhere between the Squeeze, Bruce Springstein (My My) and the Black Keys (In My Dreams). Full of melody, there are lots of catchy songs on this album. Hopefully it won't go overlooked, definitely one of the better albums so far in 2014.… Full Review »
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