The Deep Field
by Joan as Police Woman
  • Record Label: PIAS
  • Release Date: Apr 12, 2011
Metascore
70

Generally favorable reviews - based on 15 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 15
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 15
  3. Negative: 0 out of 15
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  1. No Ripcord
    Mar 9, 2011
    80
    As much as The Deep Field concerns itself with Joan Wasser's considerable emotional needs, this is not a self-absorbed record. It's a big, open-hearted statement on the best way love in a world where "good living requires smiling at strangers."
  2. Q Magazine
    Mar 1, 2011
    80
    There is slick virtuosity to all the playing here but it is her warm, witty presence that shines through. [Feb 2011, p.118]
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  3. BBC Music
    Feb 25, 2011
    80
    As a whole, The Deep Field nails it. True, the songs are long, it is almost ceaselessly rich, and you're going to want to skip its first 30 seconds every time.
  5. Drowned In Sound
    Feb 25, 2011
    80
    Even if, as a whole, The Deep Field isn't quite as rewarding as Wasser's first two records, it's an altogether different, diverse and challenging experience. Thankfully, that voice remains intact: vulnerable but somehow powerful.
  6. musicOMH.com
    Feb 25, 2011
    80
    Fans of Joan Wasser's previous releases Real Life and To Survive will find plenty to fall in love with on this third album.
  7. PopMatters
    Feb 25, 2011
    80
    If The Deep Field is Joan As Police Woman's most texturally varied album, it may also be its best.
  8. The Independent (UK)
    Feb 25, 2011
    80
    It has everything the Adele album lacks: real emotional insight, couched in genuinely soulful arrangements bristling with imagination.
  9. AllMusic
    Apr 11, 2011
    70
    The Deep Field finds her alone but not lonely, still searching for something and finding beauty and even happiness, if not answers.
  10. Clash Music
    Feb 25, 2011
    70
    It's a solid and honourable return for a singer who has rarely disappointed.
  11. Under The Radar
    Jun 8, 2011
    60
    With The Deep Field, Wasser proves herself a compelling songwriter in American music whose ambition never eclipses her striking talents. [May 2011, p.85]
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  12. Consequence
    Apr 20, 2011
    60
    Like some of rock 'n' roll's most revered performers, Wasser likes to evoke a little bit of danger and grit.
  13. Mojo
    Apr 4, 2011
    60
    A pea souper of an album, beneath which there is some gold. [Feb 2011, p.104]
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  14. Uncut
    Feb 25, 2011
    60
    There is beauty aplenty in these 10 songs, but anyone yearning for the delicious ache of old will find it only fleetingly. [Feb 2011, p.92]
  15. The Guardian
    Feb 25, 2011
    60
    Unfortunately, while Wasser's featherlight voice suits the slower songs, it has a tendency to sound slightly one-dimensional on the over-fussy bigger numbers, and there are moments when it drifts too close to polite MOR.
  16. Pitchfork
    May 5, 2011
    45
    It's when Wasser puts her voice front and center that The Deep Field collapses in on itself.

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