AllMusic's Scores

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For 18,325 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 63% higher than the average critic
  • 5% same as the average critic
  • 32% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 1.5 points higher than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Music review score: 74
Highest review score: 100 The Marshall Mathers LP
Lowest review score: 20 Graffiti
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 15,369 out of 18325
  2. Mixed: 2,930 out of 18325
  3. Negative: 26 out of 18325
18325 music reviews
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    • 80 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Beyond Belief
    Returning fans won't be disappointed, while newcomers with a taste for blissful journeys will likely be entranced.
    • 74 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Product
    Though these songs were released over the course of 18 months, Product holds together remarkably well as it captures SOPHIE's instantly addictive, ever-evolving reimagining of pop music.
    • 56 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Monastic Living [EP]
    It seems like Parquet Courts might be taking notes from labelmates Girl Band, producing some of their most uncompromising work to date. Monastic Living is a very curious move for the band.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    25
    Make no mistake, all 11 songs are of a piece -- they're shaded by melancholy, gaining most of their power through performance -- but that cohesive sound only accentuates how Adele has definitively claimed this arena of dignified heartbreak as her own.
    • 61 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Best Blues
    Suitable for backgrounds and times when you just want something pleasant as a diversion, but not much more.
    • 78 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Dark Sky Island
    While it would be unfair to call Dark Sky Island a throwback, it does manage to harness some of the power and creativity of Enya's early days and pairs it with both the confidence and shadows of age.
    • 86 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    The Complete Matrix Tapes [Box Set]
    The bulk and repetition of The Complete Matrix Tapes will scare away a few casual observers, but anyone who wants to know how this band sounded on-stage on two good nights will find this to be a revelation; it's the best and best-sounding VU live release to date.
    • 74 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Pure Mood
    There are plenty of bands doing roughly the same thing as Ringo Deathstarr, but there are few who do it as well as they do. Pure Mood is proof of that.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Bluenote Cafe [Live]
    As a two-disc set, Bluenote Café feels a bit overstuffed and drawn out, but these recordings confirm the Bluenotes hold up better than many of Young's creative left turns in the '80s, and this is a thorough and entertaining look at an often overlooked phase in Young's creative journey.
    • 60 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Make America Psycho Again
    Ironically, this hip-hop heavy revision has the net effect of straightening out a wild, wooly record.
    • 77 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Kill the One You Love
    A set of songs that build on the dreamy pop of the Medusa EP with a smoother, bigger sound.
    • 69 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Church in These Streets
    With only a few guest shots, plus a long track list, newcomers might find this big LP a tough go. Regardless, the ambitious Church in These Streets stands with the man's great Thug Motivation 101 while beating that album on artistic merit and meaningful lyrics.
    • 66 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Heartache City
    As always, the beauty of the duo's music makes these moments all the more haunting.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    The Incredible True Story
    This is the album where it all changed, as the one they call Young Sinatra comes into his own and proves his nearly perfect debut was no isolated fluke.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Metalmania
    Metalmania is a strong album, definitely full of promise and quite a few songs that wouldn't sound out of place on a playlist with classic Flying Nun tracks.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Free TC
    Numerous proven mixtapes help set Ty up for an easier introduction than most, but Free TC tops all expectations, as the man conquers the club, the bedroom, and the brain with this end-to-end stunner.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Mr. Misunderstood
    Where The Outsiders was designed to dazzle, Mr. Misunderstood is built for the long haul: it settles into the soul, its pleasures immediate but also sustained.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Tape Hiss
    This LP will no doubt please listeners with an ear for more astringent experimentations, but for the most part, it seems like Rats on Rafts have drifted a bit too far into their own ambitions at the expense of their songs.
    • 72 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Crosswords [EP]
    Crosswords is essentially outtakes from PBVSGR (with one cut left over from Tomboy), and while it's clearly more of the same, it's an enjoyable, compact dose of chilled, effervescent electro-psych-pop, and it functions as a handy reminder of how far Lennox has come as a songwriter.
    • 55 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Kylie Christmas
    Throughout the album, Kylie sounds very game, merry even, and there's enough holiday spirit on offer to help even the grinchiest customer make it through the season with the bare minimum of humbug.
    • 74 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Modern Dancing
    The joy TRAAMS have in pulling their songs taut and then letting them fly--an approach that shines particularly brightly on "Bite Mark"--is more palpable than ever on Modern Dancing, and the fun is infectious.
    • 81 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    AmERICa
    While he's inexplicably fond of a synthesized choral effect, for the most part this album sounds clear but homebrewed at the same time, with charm making less of a sacrifice on fidelity.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Songs in the Dark
    Most recordings of lullabies are long on charm and short on substance, but the Wainwright Sisters have made an album that will suit a thoughtful mom or dad as much as a restless youngster, and Songs in the Dark is something special from two remarkable talents.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Black Record
    If Thomas set out to prove that Rocket from the Tombs is his idea and he can reassemble the components at will and still make it work, Black Record does just that, and suggests this project has a livelier future than most anyone would have imagined.
    • 82 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Chorusgirl
    The rest of the album shows a knack for songcraft and dramatic arrangement that could only have come from learning from the past and forming it in her own very specific way.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Know It All
    Going by the level of potential shown here, it's evident that Cara will eventually need a lot less creative assistance.
    • 78 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Riot Boi
    Combined with schizophrenic production (Evian Christ, Boody, Balam Acab, Lunice) that leaps from horny trap to frantic electroclash, Riot Boi overwhelms with twists, turns, and surprises, all of which are exhilarating.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Paper Mâché Dream Balloon
    Paper Mâché Dream Balloon is about as straight as King Gizzard are ever likely to be, and it still totally works thanks to the high level of songcraft and their innate weirdness, which will always come out no matter how hard they may try to keep it under wraps.
    • 68 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Aquaria
    Nothing on Aquaria seems out of place, but each song brings something new to the party.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Garden of Delete
    As dense as R Plus Seven was cleanly sculpted, there's a lot to unpack within Garden of Delete, including its title: a phrase that suggests the meticulous task of editing music as well as the union of creation and destruction (and shortens to G.O.D.), it's the perfect mission statement for an album that combines past and present in surprising, and surprisingly organic ways.
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