No Ripcord's Scores

  • Music
Select another publication »
For 2,825 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 43% higher than the average critic
  • 3% same as the average critic
  • 54% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 2.8 points lower than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Music review score: 70
Highest review score: 100 Strawberry Jam
Lowest review score: 0 Scream
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,983 out of 2825
  2. Mixed: 765 out of 2825
  3. Negative: 77 out of 2825
2825 music reviews
view
per page
    • 73 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    God Help The Girl
    Save for a handful of forgettable excursions into tampering with a perfectly good formula, it’s a very well-written, cohesive collection of songs.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang
    Common problems and half-assed moneymaker tracks aside, Shaolin vs. Wu-Tang serves as another monument to the effortless style and cool of Rae, and establishes the Chef as the marquee member of the Clan.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Hardwired...To Self-Destruct
    It's too long, with too many tracks that go nowhere. But those songs that do work are some of their best in the last couple of decades.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Strange Weekend
    There is nothing abrasive about Strange Weekend, nothing risky, nothing unique; there is instead just a shortage of "Wow!"
    • 73 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Putrifiers II
    An exceptional piece of psychedelic garage rock that never stays in the same place yet manages to still feel consistent as a whole, making this album a true standout amongst Thee Oh Sees' vast discography.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    180
    While the better songs sound rough around the edges, their inferior material here sounds scrappy and juvenile.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Aufheben
    Newcombe has constructed his most level-headed and consistently engaging record since ...And This Is Our Music back in 2003.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Stay Home
    With Stay Home we not only get that genuine approach, but we get songwriting that's been notched up a bit. That alone is worth the cost of admission: The Beets are clearly good songwriters, even if they do happen to get their feet a bit muddy when they stray off the well-beaten path.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Roosevelt
    It is a solid and adept demonstration of his strengths as a dance producer and his ear for a hook. Roosevelt is intended to pacify the annual, somber, post-festival comedown. Every now and then, we just have to enjoy it simply for what it is, and not what it may lack.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    Tripper
    They're good but not excellent; they have brilliant songwriting over mediocre melodies and the old-newness becomes old again quickly. Five. Right smack dab in the middle of nothing and everything.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    W
    Scrape back the artistic pretensions and what's left may be one of 2011's most purely enjoyable, and boldest, records.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Volume Two
    Where Volume One was strongest was simply the quality of the songs (try getting Why Do You Let Me Stay Here? out of your head in a hurry), yet there’s something sadly lacking about Volume Two, and what previously sounded like finely-crafted homage is now often more like impotent pastiche.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Let's Rock
    The duo's closeness shows in their competent performances, and "Let's Rock" is faithful in intent and execution. But it can also come across as a cheat—it's easy to fool anyone that you've done something worthy when you undersell it.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Blue Lights On The Runway
    Bell X1 has found an absorbing but unshaven sound, set apart by ease and experimentation and yet inevitably spoiled by them.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Rolling Blackouts
    Rolling Blackouts is a Technicolor, kaleidoscopic riot of a record but, put in context, it can't fail to be tinged with a hint of disappointment. There's a real risk that The Go! Team may have painted themselves into a corner (albeit with various shades of eye-wateringly luminous paint); it will be intriguing to see where they go from here.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Cloud Nothings
    If you're looking for a catchy voice amidst the sea of bedroom outfits, Cloud Nothings is a strong contender for someone to continually keep an ear open for.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Ellipsis
    While there are highlights, the album often feels very safe.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Offers
    On Offers, NE-HI never really commit to a major departure. So while there are glimmers of a new, more refined sound, it’s the carefree, guitar pop that still stands out.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Unknown Mortal Orchestra
    Like wheedling out the spare remnants of a bygone era, UMO stands as a rather unique endeavor that packs plentiful guitar riffs and sample-based techniques befitting of the funk tag.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    WE
    There’s lots to love but WE can’t match the power of the band’s first four records. Still, Arcade Fire’s returned rejuvenated after time in a cynical wilderness, ready to sing and dance against apathy. This album is worth it for that fact alone.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Stuff Like That There
    With the zeal of archivists and a yen for experimentation, they have found strength in giving tribute to their influences, reaffirming the role of interpretation in contemporary music.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Rated O
    The triple LP effect doesn’t ruin the album, but it would have been stronger had they edited the whole thing down to the best songs that could fit on one disc.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Superorganism
    The album quickly loses itself into a tasteless, gimmicky wormhole of hideous sounds that grate the ears. Superorganism are onto something here, but as it stands, their erratically-paced scheme is a passable novelty.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Volcanic Sunlight
    When it's good, it's great; it's just a shame so many tracks fall short of his usually very high standards.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Innocence
    An occasional retread, Innocence remains difficult to dismiss.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    Book Of Churches
    Mackenzie-Barrow is clearly a talented songwriter and, taken individually, most of the material here is engaging. Taken sequentially, however, his sparse compositions blur together, emphasising his vocal limitations and rendering Book of Churches a somewhat dour affair.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Magic
    This may be his best rock record since "Born In The USA" (I think I prefer "Lucky Town"), but that’s not saying much. Frankly I suspect his heart is in the quiet acoustic stuff, but it’s still great to hear him pick up the old Esquire once in a while.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Somewhere
    While Years is pleasant enough, with Somewhere, there’s more of a palpable milieu to these songs that pushes it from good to great.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Weather Diaries
    Some of Weather Diaries sounds a bit thin, as the album's vibrant singles come off as outdated recreations of old songs with some unnecessary polish. It isn’t short of ideas, though.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Dark Night Of The Soul
    As it stands, there is a lot to like here and a lot to digest. One advantage to having so many vocalists is that each song can be separated and dealt with accordingly, giving the record the sort of film soundtrack feel I think the principle authors were aiming for. Other than that, this unburdens Sparklehorse fans slightly of the wait between albums by providing a mainly interesting and, at times, genuinely moving distraction.
Page: