Exclaim's Scores

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For 5,096 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 57% higher than the average critic
  • 5% same as the average critic
  • 38% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 2 points higher than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Music review score: 75
Highest review score: 100 Vol.II
Lowest review score: 10 California Son
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4,315 out of 5096
  2. Mixed: 753 out of 5096
  3. Negative: 28 out of 5096
5096 music reviews
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    • 79 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Ugly Season
    Ugly Season may lack the emotional resonance of Hadreas' best work as Perfume Genius, but it achieves a wildness that he's never quite accessed before, an alchemy between his bone-raw earlier records and the epic proportions of his later work. It's not the most essential Perfume Genius album, but it feels like an important one.
    • 67 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Let It Reign
    It's the slower, more "mature" tracks that disappoint here.... Still there's plenty to like on Let It Reign for Libertines fans missing that garage rock sound.
    • 78 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Your Hero Is Not Dead
    Your Hero Is Not Dead is an impressively contemplative debut album, filled with quiet music that packs a surprising emotional punch.
    • 77 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Moonbuilding 2703 AD
    On their latest full-length, the duo maintain their ambition, putting together four sonically challenging tracks that range between nine and 15 minutes in length.
    • 78 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Wild Dog
    If hippie songstresses, piercing sopranos and meandering song craftsmanship are your bag, this album is certainly for you.
    • 81 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Crush
    Though the sonic explorations undermine the album's overall cohesiveness, Crush remains a shining example of Shepherd's growth as an artist, and his willingness to push boundaries well into his career.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Ella Mai
    Nothing groundbreaking, but a good modern soul album that draws on specific touchpoints--late '90 to early '00s R&B filtered by way of trap-minded beats--curated to today's audience.
    • 66 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Magpie and the Dandelion
    The 11 tracks on Magpie and the Dandelion were recorded during the same Rick Rubin-produced sessions, and now stand as a well-timed response to those that found The Carpenter too weighty for its own good.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    All We Need
    While Raury makes no secret of his influences, that doesn't mean he lacks his own distinctive style.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Teaspoon To The Ocean
    Teaspoon To The Ocean's all-encompassing aura takes you through Craig's master class of dream exploration fairly quickly, but even in the midst of all the trippy goodness, his thoughtful testaments manage to shine through track to track, giving poignant, detailed expression to the anxiety that plagues his deepest thoughts.
    • 67 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Hexadic
    Hexadic is louder and more gnarly than anything else he's done under this moniker.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    This River
    As with earlier releases, This River is a seamless mix of Southern soul, rock, funk and blues.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Charmer
    There's casual grace in the band's winding and ultimately engrossing vibe and most of the earworms on the record stick like glue.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Spectre
    The Vancouver duo's captivating moments easily outnumber the few duller ones. On Lightning Dust's fourth studio album, Amber Webber's beautifully haunting voice brings hope to dark places, and following it feels like being guided to the light at the end of the tunnel.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Repentless
    This isn't going to be one of the classic Slayer albums, but there's still plenty of good thrash to be found on Repentless.
    • 77 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Will Happiness Find Me?
    Minerva (née Juur) takes a few steps closer to the blurry line that separates quirky, home-taped experiments and straight-up club cuts.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Something Shines
    Although much of the material has a familiar lustre to it, Something Shines nonetheless finds Laetitia Sadier at her most contented and focused.
    • 74 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Uncut Gems [Original Motion Picture Soundtrack]
    Utilizing a variety of different sound palettes, from glossy synths to pounding drums and chanting voices, Lopatin uses the Uncut Gems score to give the listener effective moments of tension, dreamlike airiness and triumph, all in equal measure, making the listening a journey all in itself.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Candela
    Though things work best when Pierce allows enough space amidst the music for the actual songs to flourish, even the jostling of the overcrowded bits is wonderful and energetic.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Tenderheart
    The accumulation of these sugary notes over the course of 45 minutes can feel somewhat sticky. This a good album, and everyone loves a bit of syrup--but you have to know when to draw the line.
    • 74 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    The Quickening
    Although Jim White and Marisa Anderson never seem to give themselves enough time or space to truly stretch out, The Quickening nonetheless captures two masters at their most free.
    • 78 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    English Oceans
    English Oceans, their 12th album in 17 years, confirms they've lost little of their potency, despite major personnel changes over the past decade.
    • 74 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    13 Degrees of Reality
    Though initially intimidating, 13 Degrees Of Reality's murky, dub-inspired sound and paranoid aura get under the skin after repeated listens.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Handfuls of Night
    There's nothing especially innovative or unique about Handfuls of Night, but what it does, it does very well and should find great resonance with fans and filmmakers seeking some palpable sonic gravitas to help sell an emotional scene.
    • 61 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Andy and His Grandmother
    In his quest for comedic and artistic transcendence, Kaufman's intense pursuit of the "real" was, at the very least, unwittingly timeless.
    • 82 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Short n' Sweet
    Though Short n' Sweet falls a few inches short of the masterful pop its singles suggested it could be, it's buoyed up by its incredibly high highs, and establishes Carpenter's identity in a pop landscape saturated with next-main-pop-girl hopefuls.
    • 80 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    For Those That Wish to Exist
    Other than a few lapses, the hooks, synths and classical instruments effectively recontextualize Architects' musicianship. For Those That Wish to Exist proves these guys can successfully diversify their sound.
    • 77 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Little Dark Age
    Its first half features some of the group's sweetest pop confections since those massive singles, while its second delves into the muggy Barrett-isms of their more recent work.
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