I'll Be Your Girl
by The Decemberists
  • Record Label: Capitol
  • Release Date: Mar 16, 2018
Metascore
69

Generally favorable reviews - based on 22 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 13 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 22
  3. Negative: 0 out of 22
Buy Now
Buy on
  1. Magnet
    Apr 17, 2018
    60
    What it's missing is haunting songs--calamity songs, the kind of songs that used to proliferate on Decemberists albums like soot-smudged Victorian orphans. [No. 150, p.49]
    All this publication's reviews
  2. The 405
    Mar 16, 2018
    60
    On I’ll Be Your Girl, The Decemberists do a few things well, a few things poorly, and most of them acceptably and nothing more. The fact that it never goes completely off the rails is almost as disappointing as the fact that it never finds its footing or seems interested in doing so.
  3. Rolling Stone
    Mar 16, 2018
    60
    The Decemberists do a very particular thing – darkly ornate, literary-minded, self-consciously verbose Anglophile prog-folk-rock--exceedingly well, so well that you can't blame 'em for wanting to do something else. They do just that on I'll Be Your Girl, at least in parts, the upshot being, well, a re-affirmation of that particular thing they do exceedingly well.
  5. The Independent (UK)
    Mar 15, 2018
    60
    It makes for some intriguing collisions of ancient and modern.
  6. PopMatters
    Mar 14, 2018
    60
    I'll Be Your Girl would stand as a fine but forgettable work on its own, yet when compared to the pedigree of its predecessors, it's quite disappointing in every way.
  7. The Skinny
    Mar 12, 2018
    60
    While half of the tracks here would make for decent singles, the hodgepodge of styles ultimately results in an unbalanced and disjointed album.
  8. The Line of Best Fit
    Mar 26, 2018
    55
    It falls into a very similar trap to the band’s last album, which started with a track that sounded promisingly fresh (“The Singer Addresses His Audience”) before immediately lapsing into Decemberists-by-numbers (“Cavalry Captain”).
  9. musicOMH.com
    Mar 19, 2018
    50
    The album is at its best when it explores glam influences: the campness and flamboyance nicely mirror the theatrical nature of The Decemberists’ established repertoire. But they would do well to learn that sticking some synthesiser parts behind a guitar band doesn’t automatically make them New Order.
  10. Slant Magazine
    Mar 5, 2018
    40
    The eight-minute, two-part “Rusalka, Rusalka/Wild Rushes” stands in stark contrast to the rest of the album in almost every way. ... By comparison, the rest of I'll Be Your Girl feels painfully half-baked.

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
6.2

Generally favorable reviews- based on 25 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 11 out of 25
  2. Mixed: 12 out of 25
  3. Negative: 2 out of 25
  1. ovoon7
    Mar 17, 2018
    6
    My favorite band, and their weakest record. Rusalka Rusalka is the obvious standout. I like Cutting Stone and Sucker's Prayer. But someMy favorite band, and their weakest record. Rusalka Rusalka is the obvious standout. I like Cutting Stone and Sucker's Prayer. But some songs are too simple or just bad. We All Die Young is just irritating, Your Ghost is almost interesting, until the terrible background singing kicks in. Starwatcher is sung at a high awkward key. Severed works fairly well. Once in My Life is great instrumentally but lyrically is terrible.

    The band still retains their technical quality, but the lyrics, songwriting and general scope of the whole album is really underwhelming.    … Full Review »
  2. JLuis_001
    Sep 6, 2018
    7
    Although they did not reinvent themselves and did not make a great evolutionary leap, the band took a new approach and it turned out prettyAlthough they did not reinvent themselves and did not make a great evolutionary leap, the band took a new approach and it turned out pretty well.
    Few bands can do so while retaining their identity and they did it.    … Full Review »
  3. Skydog
    May 19, 2018
    3
    First and foremost, props for including 80s syths into their music. There was a handful of songs I did enjoy on the album. I had never reallyFirst and foremost, props for including 80s syths into their music. There was a handful of songs I did enjoy on the album. I had never really listened to this band until I heard severed on our new indie station here. Then i listened to past records and the current one (the current one first of course)

    With that said I have to say this album was a huge letdown overall. It felt like they threw it together really quick without much thought. They had lots of filler on this to combat the bigger "hit" Severed. (although in today's day and age it's not really a "hit" unless it plays on the mixed genre stations or the pop stations)

    I was absolutely let down by this album.    … Full Review »
See all user reviews »