Enemy Chorus
by The Earlies
Metascore
67

Generally favorable reviews - based on 23 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 16 out of 23
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 23
  3. Negative: 2 out of 23
  1. AllMusic
    70
    The Enemy Chorus is a strangely formidable album, and in its own way, a daring one, too -- these songs of revenge, oppression, emptiness, and despair might puzzle some fans at first, but they certainly are impressive.
  2. Amazon.com
    70
    The 11 songs on their second album have their own separate identity, with a diversity of colors and influences putting the Earlies in the company of such contemporaries as Mercury Rev, the Polyphonic Spree, and even, occasionally, Beck.
  3. musicOMH.com
    80
    Not as endearingly obviously pop or as chilled out as their debut, The Enemy Chorus takes some getting used to before it unfurls it pleasures.
  5. Pitchfork
    67
    If their debut explored the space within, the Earlies' latest, The Enemy Chorus, peers into the void of the final frontier, with a similar kitchen-sink approach and more of the krautrock sprawl that characterized early singles like "Morning Wonder".
  6. PopMatters
    90
    It’s a rare album that is not only great on it’s first listen, but just as remarkable on it’s tenth.
  7. Stylus Magazine
    67
    So what if there are bits of Soft Bulletin and Dusk at Cubist Castle all over the record? At least they managed to choose the bits that fit together well.
  8. Under The Radar
    80
    The Enemy Chorus' depth increases upon each listen. [#16, p.91]
    All this publication's reviews
  9. Uncut
    80
    Like its predecessor, the most impressive aspect of The Enemy Chorus is not so much the breadth of its references as the tumescent, head-spinning harmonies. [Feb 2007, p.74]
    All this publication's reviews
  10. Playlouder
    80
    The music on the album sounds muscular, more confident than before.
  11. The A.V. Club
    67
    Sure, the horns and strings are nice, but they don't really add anything to the already too-busy song structures.
  12. Dot Music
    90
    A great lost album in the making.
  13. Hot Press
    85
    A quantum leap in thought and execution from 2004 debut, These Were The Earlies.
  14. New Musical Express (NME)
    80
    Where the songs were once floaty-light, 'The Enemy Chorus' is anchored in electronic menace and murky krautrock undercurrents that make it throb as much as shimmer. [20 Jan 2007, p.31]
    All this publication's reviews
  15. Observer Music Monthly
    70
    Sublime.
  16. Q Magazine
    80
    Imagine David Axelrod producing The Beatles, and you get an idea of The Earlies' ambition and musicality. [Mar 2007, p.111]
    All this publication's reviews
  17. Filter
    76
    Here, on their sophomore LP, these pen pals have dotted their Is and crossed their Ts flowing in and out of tracks that appropriately run the line of both personal and distant.

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
8.4

Universal acclaim- based on 9 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 9
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 9
  3. Negative: 1 out of 9
  1. EricC
    Mar 3, 2007
    9
    As the split reviews have shown, either you like the kitchen-sink, more-is-more approach of the Earlies, or you don't. I like it, thus I As the split reviews have shown, either you like the kitchen-sink, more-is-more approach of the Earlies, or you don't. I like it, thus I like this album. It's very dark, claustrophobic, and dense, but worth the effort you put into it. Whereas I'd recommend their first album to everyone, this one is more for the people who already dig this type of music. Plus they really pull it off live, which is also very cool for a band this huge with songs this overwhelming.… Full Review »
  2. bobc
    Feb 14, 2007
    9
    if I had just landed and wanted to know wot popular music was all about - this is one of the albums to which i would listen. an if I had just landed and wanted to know wot popular music was all about - this is one of the albums to which i would listen. an americano/anglo combo - more anglo, methinks, than americano, however it is an original piece of work - and like all really good albums, it is evolutionary, celebrating the past -welcoming the future. An electic mix of sounds - tracing, acknowledging, interpreting, contemporary music since the summer of love. Now there is a thin line between the eclectic and a dog's dinner - and this album falls on the right side. For some reason it has me digging out their previous work - and reaching for my beta band, gomez and i am kloot favs - some unknown reason. It's an album that's standing on the shoulders of giants. albiet short ones.… Full Review »
  3. IvanG
    Feb 9, 2007
    10
    an amazing album, like love at first sight!!
See all user reviews »