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Jun 14, 2024Cale’s ability to do so many things so well is what makes him a true artist amongst amateurs, but it's also a clear disregard of the need to encourage people to like him that feels refreshing in an age where there seems to be a desperate stampede in the opposite direction.
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Jun 14, 2024This is a superb album, and a slightly better one than Mercy, which says a lot, but whether it joins the pantheon of Cale’s most legendary records remains to be seen. One would certainly hope so.
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UncutJun 12, 2024He returns in double-quick time with more selections from his 80-song lockdown splurge, but this time in a gentler, almost uplifting mood. .... Radical optimism rather suits him. [Jul 2024, p.31]
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Jun 26, 2024From the blocky organ chunks that lead “I’m Angry” to the fuzzed-out almost-boogie of “Shark-Shark,” the diversity of POPtical Illusion teases its way out after subsequent listens.
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Jun 14, 2024POPtical Illusion is another engaging set that rewards repeat plays on account of the inventive electronic textures and Cale's reflective, often politically tinged lyrics. [Jul 2024, p.104]
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Jun 14, 2024It may not be especially optimistic, but it's certainly powerful and inspiring, and we probably need that more from Cale than forced cheeriness, a skill he need not acquire this far into his career.
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Jun 14, 2024He brings his decades of experience and one of his strongest choruses to bear on the marvellous How We See the Light – a reflection on how the end of a relationship can bring new wisdom and the chance to try something else. It could be a metaphor for his brilliant career.
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Jun 13, 2024Another gem. .... POPtical Illusion is full of grim songs about a planet in flames, yet it’s full of playful energy, blending synths and guitars with electronic beats from an elder hip-hop fiend.
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The WireJun 12, 2024While admiring the album for its subtle intricacies, I keep coming back to its two most straightforward songs: the extremely fun chamber punk piece “Shark-Shark” and lead single “How We See The Light”, which manages to be both wise and wide-eyed with curiosity. [Jul 2024, p.46]
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MojoJun 12, 2024While the nebulous quality of Mercy was very much feature-not-bug, a cloudiness indicating the limits of memory, here Cale seems to have sharpened the edges of his songs, any mist or drift purely down to old fashioned meandering. [Jul 2024, p.86]
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Jun 17, 2024POPtical Illusion doesn’t sound quite as contemporary as Kim Gordon’s 2024 rage-rap album The Collective, but it’s still a thrill to hear John Cale continue to evolve, make big swings and, occasionally, knock it out of the park. Let’s hope he writes his Lulu next.
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Jun 12, 2024Poptical Illusion embodies his curiosity, drive, and desire to explore uncharted territory, while offering wisdom that can only be attributed to his age. Cale doesn’t seem to care about relevancy. He’s just looking to continue growing.
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Jun 20, 2024The subtle effects lurking in the background, although tastefully applied, aren’t enough to pull the rest of the modest pop tunes out of the doldrums, making POPtical Illusion difficult to return to as a whole, but at least it shows that Cale is happy to keep his ideas flowing and moving forward.
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