This Is All Yours
by Alt-J
  • Record Label: Atlantic
  • Release Date: Sep 22, 2014
Metascore
70

Generally favorable reviews - based on 26 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 20 out of 26
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 26
  3. Negative: 1 out of 26
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  1. Under The Radar
    Sep 4, 2014
    85
    Alt-J taking their distinct sound but adding and subtracting those small building blocks to make something familiar yet beautifully innovative. [Sep/Oct 2014, p.72]
  2. The Telegraph (UK)
    Sep 25, 2014
    80
    It is as self-indulgent as Seventies progressive rock, albeit filtered through a 21st-century indie-rock sensibility that keeps things taut and edgy, with virtuoso posturing at a minimum.
  3. Rolling Stone
    Sep 23, 2014
    80
    Some of the most enjoyable music on This Is All Yours is the simplest, kindest and funniest.
  5. AllMusic
    Sep 22, 2014
    80
    That penchant for edgy refinement, along with frontman Joe Newman's impossibly fluid voice, remains the band's most effective weapon, but it's hard to pinpoint where and when that magic occurs, as it's so effortlessly woven into the group's sound.
  6. The Guardian
    Sep 18, 2014
    80
    Hunger of the Pine and Warm Foothills are stunningly pretty, although This Is All Yours is a more a collection of sublime hooks and textures rather than conventional songwriting.
  7. NOW Magazine
    Sep 18, 2014
    80
    The departure of founding member guitarist/bassist Gwil Sainsbury hasn’t left them uninspired.
  8. The 405
    Sep 18, 2014
    80
    For the time being their concoctions remain a successful blend of sardonic and mystical, and will most likely win them a stream of new fans.
  9. DIY Magazine
    Sep 15, 2014
    80
    Beyond the flute solos and mind-blowing euphemisms, there’s rich invention behind This Is All Yours.
  10. New Musical Express (NME)
    Sep 15, 2014
    80
    This Is All Yours engulfs you like a deep forest. Alt-J Mk II, then: an impressive expansion, with hugely improved connectivity.
  11. Mojo
    Sep 12, 2014
    80
    There's lyrical playfulness throughout. [Oct 2014, p.89]
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  12. Q Magazine
    Sep 4, 2014
    80
    This sumptuous riddle of a record is a celebration of everything but normality. [Oct 2014, p.100]
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  13. Paste Magazine
    Sep 23, 2014
    79
    There is a deeply embedded sense of travel in that certain melodies or musical sounds will never repeat, thus the arrangements feel exploratory or impulsive.
  14. American Songwriter
    Sep 30, 2014
    70
    They’ve created the rare sort of album that manages to be both familiar and disorienting at the same time, an expansively cinematic experience that remains unpretentiously grounded.
  15. Slant Magazine
    Sep 24, 2014
    70
    The band achieves a surprising degree of poignancy by consistently handling these potentially outrageous moments without the slightest trace of irony.
  16. PopMatters
    Sep 22, 2014
    70
    The band’s best and weirdest moments arrive in the second half of This Is All Yours.
  17. musicOMH.com
    Sep 18, 2014
    70
    There are still several moments of brilliance--including the mesmerising and cinematic Bloodflow Pt II, which revisits their debut--but it is also found lacking when it comes to the overall end product. That said, it remains a worthy and accomplished follow-up from Alt-J.
  18. Drowned In Sound
    Sep 16, 2014
    70
    Overall, then, This Is All Yours is a respectable follow-up to an acclaimed debut that raised the bar for alternative music.
  19. Austin Chronicle
    Nov 6, 2014
    67
    Alt-J could come off as pretentiously obfuscating but for the overt playfulness within the experimental.
  20. Entertainment Weekly
    Sep 29, 2014
    67
    The plethora of headphones-friendly tones frequently overshadow melodies that feel less than fully developed. [3 Oct 2014, p.69]
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  21. Consequence
    Sep 26, 2014
    67
    On their second album, This Is All Yours, they compensate for their own quirks by granting access points both for the radio-only audience and for the Internet music fans.
  22. Clash Music
    Sep 8, 2014
    60
    With more attention paid to plucked triads and syncopation than packing any sort of resolute punch, This Is All Yours just can’t see the wood for the trees.
  23. Pretty Much Amazing
    Sep 23, 2014
    58
    Alt-J remain impossible to put a pin in, which makes This Is All Yours almost as frustrating as it is absorbing.
  24. The Line of Best Fit
    Sep 23, 2014
    55
    At their best, when not wandering along in a gilded fog--much of This Is All Yours is akin to meandering in a pretty, if tiring, gloam.
  25. Uncut
    Sep 4, 2014
    50
    It lacks the debut's punchiness, and a compelling thread to bind those disparate elements. [Oct 2014, p.67]
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  26. Pitchfork
    Sep 23, 2014
    40
    Mallet percussion, multilingual lyrics, chesty vocal huffs, fumbled acoustics, roundabout vocal harmonies, tentative EDM dipping, Asian monasticism, "Rule Britannia", American gothic: they all get sucked into the vacuum of This Is All Yours without leaving an impression.
  27. Alternative Press
    Sep 4, 2014
    30
    The larger flaw of This Is All Yours is the excessive studio ornamentation attached to songs like "Choice Kingdom" and "Hunger Of The Pine" that fails to cover up unbalanced, disjointed writing. [Oct 2014, p.96]
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Awards & Rankings

47
#47 Most Discussed Album of 2014
61
#61 Most Shared Album of 2014

User Reviews

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User Score
7.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 156 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 118 out of 156
  2. Mixed: 24 out of 156
  3. Negative: 14 out of 156
  1. Quacke
    Sep 22, 2014
    9
    This album is really great though it has some weak spots. What you can say about the first Alt-J's albums is that it's building it's climateThis album is really great though it has some weak spots. What you can say about the first Alt-J's albums is that it's building it's climate really well. This Is All yours does it even better than it's predecessor. It starts slowly with the intro, and Arrival in Nara. Then there is a huge hit within Nara. Every Other Freckle (which is one of my favs on the album) continues the happier part and then comes the Left Hand Free that is one of the earlier mentioned weak spots. Not that the song is bad. It's good as a song and gives fun, but it doesn't fit into the album, or the Alt-J's style generally. It's too typical, and feels not solid with the rest. The Interlude with it's flute theme is... just strange... Then again comes the slower part from Choice Kingdom untill the Pusher. Those songs can be less memorable at first, but really stuck in your head after couple of listens. Hunger of the Pine is however standing out a bit. Despite Miley Cyrus it is still pretty chilly. Another hit comes with the BloodFlood pt II, my second favourite. It somehow reconstructs the first BloodFlood and does it really well.9 out of 10 for this album.… Full Review »
  2. Vanbiguous
    Sep 23, 2014
    9
    This album is stellar. 72 seems criminally low for the artistic beauty and varying shades of brilliance that Alt-J has pulled off here. TheyThis album is stellar. 72 seems criminally low for the artistic beauty and varying shades of brilliance that Alt-J has pulled off here. They clearly are studied musicians that have carved out a sound and niche that is unmistakable. There are 5 or 6 tracks here that constitute instant classics, and everything else present lends to a distinct sonic vision from opener to finish… Full Review »
  3. The_Immigrant
    Sep 23, 2014
    9
    Complex, creative and building on their awesome debut Alt-J define their place in the current music scene with their distinctive style.Complex, creative and building on their awesome debut Alt-J define their place in the current music scene with their distinctive style. Highlights include "Left Hand Free", "Hunger In The Pine", "The Gospel of John Hurt" and "Warm Foothills".… Full Review »
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