Violence
by Editors
  • Record Label: PIAS
  • Release Date: Mar 9, 2018
Metascore
72

Generally favorable reviews - based on 13 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 13
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 13
  3. Negative: 0 out of 13
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  1. AllMusic
    Mar 9, 2018
    90
    With Violence, the Editors have crafted a big pop album on their own terms, rife with grand, operatic gestures and heat-seeking hooks that cut deep, just as they put salve on your wounds.
  2. Q Magazine
    Mar 13, 2018
    80
    The results okays to their strengths. ... There's a lightness of touch here lost since An End Has A Start a decade ago. [May 2018, p.108]
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  3. New Musical Express (NME)
    Mar 7, 2018
    80
    While the title track and ‘Belong’ also simmer with a caustic but expansive electro pulse, it’s not all dark and mechanical--there’s equally as much humanity and light. ‘Cold’ is a U2-worthy triumph, begging for fields of swaying arms and lighters aloft, while ‘Darkness At The Door’ is the closest Editors have and probably will ever come to an ‘80s power ballad--and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that.
  5. PopMatters
    Mar 23, 2018
    70
    The album altogether is enjoyable but risks too much as a method of visualizing its distinction from the band's preceding albums.
  6. Drowned In Sound
    Mar 7, 2018
    70
    It’s clear with Violence that Editors are working to build upon their new sound instead of re-inventing and re-producing, and though their efforts of combining dark indie disco pop with more morose lyrics and guitar undertones, it is a refreshing new direction.
  7. musicOMH.com
    Mar 7, 2018
    70
    It may not be an easy listening experience at times, but Violence is ultimately an album that deserves your patience.
  8. No Ripcord
    Mar 21, 2018
    60
    Violence may make you roll your eyes as much as tap your feet, but when everything comes together, Editors manage to sound like a genuinely exciting prospect for the first time in years.
  9. The Skinny
    Mar 12, 2018
    60
    At times, however, Violence is uninspiring; it lacks consistency on the whole, but their ferocious new direction results in Editors sounding the best they have in years. And when they get it right, such as on lead single Magazine, they're up there with the best.
  10. DIY Magazine
    Mar 9, 2018
    60
    There are fleeting moments to enjoy. But while aiming for something epic in scope, the five-piece have again delivered an album that will keep wheels turning for another few years.
  11. The Guardian
    Mar 9, 2018
    60
    Apocalyptic ballads No Sound But the Wind and Belong still sound like wading through ​molten Tarmac, and some experimentation doesn’t land, but for the most part, Violence is a thoroughly unexpected ​career peak.
  12. Under The Radar
    Mar 9, 2018
    60
    While the shift to a kinder and gentler sound doesn't live up to the spectacular music of past efforts, you can't fault the band for trying something new to broaden their appeal. And even with a few shortcomings, Violence still has enough alluring music to make it a worthwhile endeavor.
  13. Mojo
    Mar 7, 2018
    60
    There's nothing here inviting enough to really convince floating voters, but Editors continue to thrive in their own dark universe. [Apr 2018, p.90]
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  14. Clash Music
    Mar 8, 2018
    50
    Rather than a coherent and recognisable new sound, it seems as though all manner of ideas are being thrown at the wall to see what sticks.

User Reviews

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User Score
7.4

Generally favorable reviews- based on 40 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 33 out of 40
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 40
  3. Negative: 4 out of 40
  1. Noiseblock
    Mar 9, 2018
    8
    Editors have been a strange band to keep track of. Wandering from a genuinely great debut wearing post-punk-influences on its sleeve toEditors have been a strange band to keep track of. Wandering from a genuinely great debut wearing post-punk-influences on its sleeve to brooding synth-anthems to stadium-rock back to synth-anthems, the band has been uneven, yet never boring. "Backroom" is still tremendously popular and has proven quite the obstacle to overcome for the band. The overall good, yet definitely weaker successor "An End Has A Start" closely followed Backroom, yet the drastic turn to synth-driven dark-wave on ITLAOTE completely turned around what the band "Editors" meant.

    With the album being equally reviled and embraced by audiences, Editors had seemingly been stuck in a strange place, trying to determine what they want to do up to 2015. After middling reviews for album four, the uneven stadium/pop-rock-driven TWOYL, Editors came back with a punch on the fifth one, "In Dream", by doubling down on the synths of the controversial ITLAOTE. "In Dream" finally cemented them as a dark-wave/synth-pop band. Now on the appropriately titled "Violence", they are back with a vengeance, erasing the last shred of doubt that synth-pop/dark-wave is not the way to go for them. I can understand everyone disappointed by this last nail in the coffin for the "Backroom"-sound of Editors, but overall, the signs for this direction have been there most of the time since 2009.

    Still, commitment to a sound alone does not make a good album. Thankfully, Violence turned out to not only be good, but great. After having received the album one day earlier than expected, I´ve been listening to it on repeat as it has completely drawn me in with its soundscapes, diverse arrangements, engaging hooks and absorbing song-writing. It creates its own brand of dance-able darkness, retaining a throbbing heart right in the center of it all. Editors have never felt this willing to lean into a heavily anthemic sound while still staying true to the gloomy topics they have mostly been writing about. Unrequited love, passage of time, the search for silver linings; never has any of it felt this accessible yet this desolate in the band´s songwriting.

    "Cold" immediately shows the listener what´s to come; an admirably dedicated performance by Tom Smith mixed with synths serving as the backbone of the song. It´s enjoyably poppy while not overstaying its welcome. No gadgets, just a genuinely enjoyable song with post-punky guitars coming in at a great spot to give it some weight.

    "Hallelujah" builds on the good first impression of "Cold". Featuring a surprisingly industrial sound with crunching guitars, the song throws a wall of palpable energy towards you and expects you to run with it. It succeeds.

    However, the first highlight of the album and quite possibly its best tracks follows immediately after; the title-track "Violence". Forming a moody atmosphere with its reduced use of instruments, backed up by desperate yet alluring vocals by Tom Smith, the song manages to create a pull to rival the best in the dark-wave genre. It oozes atmosphere and releases the tension it builds perfectly.

    Unfortunately, after the high-point of "Violence", the weakest song of the album follows. "Darkness at the Door" does not manage to uphold the power of the first two songs, nor can it create the atmosphere of "Violence"; it simply sounds too tame and un-ambitious in comparison to the songs before it. It´s not terrible, it´s just weirdly forgettable and the only song on the album worthy of skipping.

    Thankfully, "Nothingness" brings the dark-wave gloom right back on track. Streamlined and just sparsely enough instrumented to let the electronic beat and Tom Smith shine, it delivers another stunner.

    The following "Magazine" may be the most dance-able out of all the songs on the album. Powerful and anthemic, carried by bass and synthesizer, it relentlessly pushes the listener onto the dancefloor while remaining scathing and ironic to its core. Great stuff.

    Subsequent, another type of powerful anthem emerges with "No Sound but the Wind", finally being released in a definitive studio-version. In this version, it´s still grandiose drama while being somewhat over-indulgent, yet it´s so heartfelt that it ultimately just grabs the listener and does not let go.

    "Counting Spooks" is another triumph on the album and closely resembles “Violence” in song-structure. Heavily dance-able all while being gloomy and morose with cold synths, an engaging hook and a sublime performance by Tom Smith, the atmosphere it creates is just phenomenal.

    Ultimately, "Belong" serves as a worthy conclusion to this great album. Its eerie and sweeping soundscape paired with Smith´s angry/emotional outburst of a chorus round out the album to a fitting whole, drawing a close thematic connection to opener “Cold”.

    “Violence” delivers a great experience that´s thematically Editors to the core; it´s dark yet welcoming, poppy, yet never dull or uninspired. Hit me right here, Editors.    … Full Review »
  2. ParttimeRobot
    Mar 10, 2018
    9
    First little review here, I will keep it short. Basically, this is more like a "subjective impressions" than a review but frankly, I do notFirst little review here, I will keep it short. Basically, this is more like a "subjective impressions" than a review but frankly, I do not need to say too much about this album anyways, except that it is so far definitely in my top three of this year. Some context; I have been following Editors through the years, but I would have never considered myself a "fan" so far, even though I loved In this light and on this evening and liked the first one, Backroom. An End has a start felt way too cheesy for me even though I liked their guitar-driven sound, I have only listened to the Weight of your love sporadically and In Dream was nice, yet it also failed to amaze me most of the time. I loved Life is a Fear and The Law though and hoped they would go further down this route and marry the heavy electronic style of in this light with the great Depeche Mode-sounding New Wave stuff I liked on In Dream. Alas, they did exactly that on Violence. This album is powerful, varied, beautifully produced and most of all, a breeze to listen to. My favorite tracks: Violence (wow), Belong, Cold, Nothingness, Counting Spooks. The only songs I do not really consider to be great are Darkness at the Door and Magazine. The first one of these is just a bit boring in my eyes and Magazine just irks me a bit with the way the vocals are performed in this strange pitch. Still, both of them are far from what I would consider bad, they just keep this album from being all-around superb from start to finish. Nearly perfect with two minor hickups is a 9 out of 10 in my book.… Full Review »
  3. hijosdelsiglo20
    Mar 11, 2018
    9
    Perfect production, the band is trying not to get stuck in a sound and the result is superb. Tom Smith is one of the best singers in thisPerfect production, the band is trying not to get stuck in a sound and the result is superb. Tom Smith is one of the best singers in this moment, the new version of No sound but the wind is a clear example.… Full Review »
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