Out-Of-State Plates
by Fountains of Wayne
  • Record Label: Virgin
  • Release Date: Jun 28, 2005
Metascore
70

Generally favorable reviews - based on 14 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 14
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 14
  3. Negative: 0 out of 14
  1. AllMusic
    60
    Out-of-State Plates is a ragged collection of hits and misses that will satisfy FOW completists, while being of intermittent interest to recent converts or general power pop fans.
  2. Amazon.com
    80
    [The] consistent quality belies any notion of the extraneous.
  3. Billboard
    60
    A mixed bag of pure-pop lyricism and throwaway covers.
  5. Blender
    80
    The songs change, but the sensibility remains the same, more or less: plaintive to mopey, clever to smartass, and back again. [Jul 2005, p.118]
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  6. Entertainment Weekly
    83
    Essential listening, especially for those who only know "Stacy's Mom." [15 Jul 2005, p.73]
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  7. Lost At Sea
    60
    We know in their perfect pop moments, Fountains of Wayne can be inspiring, but Out-of-State Plates proves that in imperfection, they can wear even the most admiring fans out.
  8. Pitchfork
    59
    If Out-of-State Plates is about as revelatory as your typical garage sale, it's not because these are necessarily bad songs (except for their lamentable cover of "...Baby One More Time")-- it's just that most of them seem somehow defective, one element overpower-popping the others.
  9. PopMatters
    50
    Some of it is pretty good.
  10. Q Magazine
    70
    There's... plenty for the merely curious to enjoy. [Aug 2005, p.142]
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  11. Rolling Stone
    70
    Songwriters Adam Schlesinger and Chris Collingwood's fecund melodic gifts make even odds-and-sods piffle such as "I Want an Alien for Christmas" worth hearing more than once.
  12. ShakingThrough.net
    60
    Barring a few notable exceptions, these are the songs that either weren’t good enough or didn’t fit into any of the New Jersey-based group’s proper releases.
  13. Stylus Magazine
    83
    All of the bands calling cards are present—they’re just scribbled down on the back of a phone bill, rather than printed out professionally then laminated.
  14. Uncut
    70
    Many of FoW's reserves outclass others' first team. [Aug 2005, p.115]
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  15. Village Voice
    70
    Establishes both how hard it is to turn out material worthy of Utopia Parkway and Welcome Interstate Managers and how often Chris Collingwood and Adam Schlesinger come close.

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
8.3

Universal acclaim- based on 7 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7 out of 7
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 7
  3. Negative: 0 out of 7
  1. MickO
    Aug 18, 2005
    9
    This CD is certainly a mixed bag, compared to FoW's usual inspired standards of pop songwriting. But hey, that's expected on this This CD is certainly a mixed bag, compared to FoW's usual inspired standards of pop songwriting. But hey, that's expected on this sort of kooky collection of out-takes, B-sides and covers. Overall, the album shows that FoW continue to be masters of cheeky and fun guitar pop, while also having an ability to evoke heart-aching melancholy. The undoubted highlight for me is the new song 'The Girl I Can't Forget'. This song has got to be one of the most perfectly written, most joyous pop tunes I have heard for a very long time, and it alone is worth the price of the CD. It also earns the whole album a good rating from me !… Full Review »
  2. JoelE
    Jul 26, 2005
    8
    Girl I Can't Forget makes it onto my short list of perfect pop songs. The other new tunes are very good. The others are fairly hit and Girl I Can't Forget makes it onto my short list of perfect pop songs. The other new tunes are very good. The others are fairly hit and miss, but almost every one has SOMETHING that makes listening a pleasure.… Full Review »
  3. Gazcomsat
    Jul 12, 2005
    7
    I really like Foutains of Wayne. Welcome Interstate Managers was their best album to date in my opinion. With this in mind I was looking I really like Foutains of Wayne. Welcome Interstate Managers was their best album to date in my opinion. With this in mind I was looking forward to a new Cd by the band considering it must be a year since their previous release. Whilst I don't mind this new compilation Cd, I hope it's not been released instead of a new studio album. Sure, it's good value for money and has allowed me to obtain the one or two tracks I didn't have from the singles etc but ultimately, it's not a patch on the newer stuff. The new single "Maureen" is good as is the other new song "The girl I can't forget" but by the bands own admission, most of the other songs have been put onto Cd because they "All had to be put somewhere". All in all, good value for money but there's better FoW albums out there.… Full Review »
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