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Mar 11, 2026In under 30 minutes, Gordon makes the greatest use of our ever-diminishing attention spans by both frying our brains and nourishing them back to health.
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Mar 26, 2026At any given moment, Gordon’s sing-speak Sprechgesang of catchphrases, commands, Post-It note poetry and cultural keywords (“Bye Bye 25!”) comes off clipped, desperate, laconic, near-death, dominating, erotic, craven, jaded, resigned, empowered. Captivating.
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Mar 16, 2026If The Collective was punishing in its density, Play Me is its equal and opposite: leaner and more melodic without sacrificing invention. It's an album that reaffirms Gordon still knows how, and why, to push forward.
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UncutMar 5, 2026She takes on the Trump administration in "ByeBye25!", one landmark among many in her forward-thinking solo career. [Apr 2026, p.33]
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Mar 16, 2026The 12 tracks on Play Me unfurl as abstract sketches of real-time angst, collages wrapped in thorny roils and gritty yet entrancing textures. Play Me also includes some of Gordon’s most pop-leaning work.
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Mar 23, 2026At just under 30 minutes, PLAY ME has the spontaneity and rawness of a surprise-release mixtape, but the fully realised sound of an artist operating at the peak of her powers.
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Mar 13, 2026Play Me is an album that never stops subverting expectations.
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Mar 13, 2026Full of ire and desire. .... Gordon is no luddite. She’s incorporating sounds and techniques that – and apologies for bringing age into it – most other septuagenarians would recoil from.
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Mar 12, 2026For a 2026 experimental capitalist-critique, dedicate half an hour of your time to this album. You won’t regret it.
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Mar 12, 2026‘Play Me’ provides a left turn that has no place being this jarring yet pleasurable from any ‘rock’ artist, let alone at 72.
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Mar 11, 2026Here, Kim Gordon effectively reflects the absurdity of the times, without claiming to offer a solution.
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Mar 11, 2026The album's blipping between hip-hop, footwork and a clutch of other electronic styles does carry a prêt-à-porter element, but one that hangs well on Gordon's frame with every new fit.
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Mar 10, 2026With the release of PLAY ME, Kim Gordon has mastered a modern mixture of distorted guitar and intense trip-hop beats. Gordon’s lyricism throughout the album is more politically confrontational than her past two solo records.
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Mar 5, 2026It succeeds by drawing in the listener and urging them to do some interpretative work. [Mar 2026, p.103]
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Classic Rock MagazineMar 5, 2026At 72 Gordon is still smarter, more experimental and more inventive than just about anyone else in the art-rock sphere. [Apr 2026, p.78]
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MojoMar 5, 2026With [producer Justin] Raisen, she creates a powerhouse sound, one that twists so it can't be easily "curated", labeled, boiled down for vibes. [Apr 2026, p.87]
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Apr 9, 2026Kim Gordon picks up where she left off on her debut solo album, further expanding her sonic palette.
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Apr 3, 2026Gordon’s vocals remain strong, but Play Me is a jittery record. The brevity of the songs captures the nervous mood, flitting from one worry to another, staying sharply focused for a couple minutes before veering into the next disaster.
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Mar 12, 2026On every level, PLAY ME is the most populist and literalist music Gordon has ever made. There are fewer jagged ruptures than on her previous solo records, more clearly demarcated beats, hooks that resemble hooks. The loops recur and aren’t so violently flayed open.
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Mar 12, 2026Play Me is at its most interesting when removed from an easy genre.
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Mar 16, 2026While The Collective felt novel and boundary pushing, PLAY ME, though similarly adventurous, aims to reflect our daily anxieties with tired commentary that risks dating itself.
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The WireMar 5, 2026Although some of its best tracks are undeniable, PLAY ME's signs of the times are for established Gordon-heads only. [Mar 2026, p.50]
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