Diamond Mine
by Jon Hopkins
  • Record Label: Domino
  • Release Date: May 24, 2011
Metascore
78

Generally favorable reviews - based on 10 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 10
  3. Negative: 0 out of 10
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  1. musicOMH.com
    Apr 7, 2011
    100
    The final results are of such subtle beauty they take the breath clean away.
  2. AllMusic
    Dec 7, 2011
    80
    Languid, pastoral, and remarkably serene (each track segues into each other like ice melting on a spring pond), Diamond Mine is so unobtrusive that it barely registers.... A lovely collection of ambient folk songs.
  3. Dusted Magazine
    May 20, 2011
    80
    It's clear that none of these songs really require amplification, that they, in fact, drive the beauty of Diamond Mine. Still, Hopkins's deft touch somehow adds to, rather than subtracts from, their elemental simplicity
  5. Mojo
    May 18, 2011
    80
    The very subtlety of Hon Hoopkins' production may be why it sounds so unique. [May 2011, p.114]
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  6. Q Magazine
    May 18, 2011
    80
    The effect is evocative if nothing less than a 21st-century Caledonian Spirit Of Eden. [May 2011, p.119]
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  7. BBC Music
    Apr 7, 2011
    80
    This is a collaboration that makes sense. Both share a taste for a rather languid tempo, that of small-town life and the more tender, bittersweet emotions; and theirs is a pairing that's complementary.
  8. Drowned In Sound
    Apr 7, 2011
    80
    The two together make magic: the songs don't feel like they've been crafted, rather that they just floated, fully-formed, into existence. Like the people Diamond Mine talks about, the songs aren't any one thing: they just are.
  9. The Independent (UK)
    Apr 7, 2011
    60
    The pair have weaved Anderson's songs together with various ambient elements--traffic noise, birdsong, the tinkle of teacups on saucers--to create a song-cycle that illuminates the exceptional in the everyday.
  10. New Musical Express (NME)
    Apr 7, 2011
    60
    The eerie, mist-shrouded 'Running On Fumes' is the standout track, but really, Diamond Mine should be taken as a whole, at night, in the dark, with some Scotch and a blanket.
  11. The Guardian
    Apr 7, 2011
    60
    Though slight, it's worth 32 minutes of your time.

User Reviews

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User Score
8.3

Universal acclaim- based on 14 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 13 out of 14
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 14
  3. Negative: 1 out of 14
  1. thetoot
    May 27, 2011
    10
    A remarkable, fragile, beautiful album. There is a distinctly melancholy air to the whole thing, which reminds me slightly of Neutral MilkA remarkable, fragile, beautiful album. There is a distinctly melancholy air to the whole thing, which reminds me slightly of Neutral Milk Hotel or perhaps (a Scottish) Bon Iver. Whatever, it's a fantastic piece of work in it's own right. Highly recommended.… Full Review »
  2. samakka
    May 21, 2020
    10
    One of the most emotional albums I've ever listened to. Short and incredibly sweet.
  3. Hackskeptic
    Jun 12, 2011
    8
    What may appear to be an odd combination on paper, actually works surprisingly well, with Hopkins' field music experiments and occasionalWhat may appear to be an odd combination on paper, actually works surprisingly well, with Hopkins' field music experiments and occasional machine rhythms adding weighty atmospherics to Anderson's stripped tales of the rigours of small town life, many harbouring worried self doubt and romantic notions of a better place.The creative input is clearly defined, with Hopkins adding splashes of texture, filling the spaces and adding a greater depth to Anderson's weary musings. But the real revelation comes via the stunning simplicity of the intertwining dual vocal display from Anderson and Lisa Elle, who elevate much of this collection with a tender serenity that's hard to resist. Elle really deserves greater credit and one hopes that she joins the pair for further recordings. There's a fragile intensity to "Diamond Mine" as Anderson and Hopkins take us on a contemplative journey through the bittersweet reflections of an ordinary life with this unforced, unhurried but wholly intoxicating long player. http://hackskeptic.com… Full Review »
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