NOW Magazine's Scores

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For 2,812 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 43% higher than the average critic
  • 2% same as the average critic
  • 55% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 6.9 points lower than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Music review score: 66
Highest review score: 100 Miss Anthropocene
Lowest review score: 20 Testify
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,287 out of 2812
  2. Mixed: 1,452 out of 2812
  3. Negative: 73 out of 2812
2812 music reviews
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    • 70 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Tonight: Franz Ferdinand
    Rather than risk experimenting with anything radically new, they’ve cautiously tried tweaking their tempos and varying instrumental textures here and there in hopes that listeners won’t notice that they’ve written the same song about romantic frustration in 12 slightly different ways.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    This Is All Yours
    The departure of founding member guitarist/bassist Gwil Sainsbury hasn’t left them uninspired.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Another Eternity
    Three years later, Purity Ring's sophomore effort lives up to the anticipation.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    I'm Not Dead
    Surprisingly impressive.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Go! Pop! Bang!
    At times it feels like she's stuck in one gear, but her energy refreshingly and irresistibly recalls the un-cynical era of old-school breakbeat and hip-house.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    House on the Hill
    Many of Morby's tunes sacrifice his twangy, down-home warmth. Luckily, both still write simple, timeless hooks.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Ride Your Heart
    Hard-hitting drum rolls, reverb and hooky guitar refrains are all over the album, so it’s a shame that it still grows stale by the end.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    The Pinkprint
    Had The Pinkprint included 12 songs rather than the extended version's 22, it could have been a classic.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Berlin: Live At St. Ann's Warehouse [Live]
    Even though he’s become a much more expressive musician, the updated Berlin is no more powerful or gripping than the original commercial flop. It is, however, much more consumer-friendly.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    The Air Conditioned Nightmare
    Air Conditioned Nightmare has fewer traces of the experimental Montreal loft party scene Doldrums originally emerged from, but it's not quite accessible enough for big festival stages either.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Long Player Late Bloomer
    To Rock's credit, his touches don't actually get in the way of the songs, and hopefully his tweaks are just what Sexsmith needs to garner the support he deserves.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Thin Mind
    If Cry Cry Cry had the feel of a band shaking off the cobwebs and getting used to each other’s company once again, Thin Mind leaves no doubt about Wolf Parade’s continued vitality. You instantly feel that renewed vigour in the storming first seconds of the opening Under Glass.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Saturdays=Youth
    Surprisingly, the least pop-based tracks stand out most.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Widow City
    As usual, this record will leave many scratching their heads, but for fans who like their music a little more complicated, this is easily one of the more interesting records out there.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Phosphene Dream
    Everything from the production to the songwriting seems aimed to evoke the 60s, and the album would probably sound killer on a good turntable.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Record Collection
    Ronson approaches pop almost like a hip-hop producer. He's assembled a cavalcade of guest collaborators too numerous to name, but for the most part his focus keeps Record Collection from feeling overcooked.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Rad Times Xpress IV
    It's garish and gross but undeniably fun, an audacious train wreck of an album that's hard not to enjoy.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    FutureSex / LoveSounds
    The Sexyback single makes wise use of filtered vocals to artificially deepen his tone and support his macho pose, but only so much can be done with studio gimmicry. He's soon back to tweeting his game in a prepubescent chirp; the more suggestive his come-ons, the funnier it gets.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Off With Their Heads
    Ronson lowers Ricky Wilson’s maddeningly limited vocals and amps the bass, but the disc still fails to come alive.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Fish Outta Water
    Now, two years after the barbershoppy crew’s breakup, the Justin Timberlake of J5 delivers his solo debut, with predictably solid results.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Six
    Though its overall sound is depressing industrial indie rock with nods to Leonard Cohen, Marilyn Manson and Tool, Six’s varied instrumentation, catchy songs and emotional impact make for an interesting listen.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Noctunes
    There's little sonic variation, but that approach puts the focus where it should be: on the raw emotion of his singing.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Valhalla Dancehall
    The biggest flaw: the band attempts to cram too many ideas into a song (Cleaning Out The Rooms), particularly in the album's second half.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    The North
    This batch of 80s-pop-inspired tunes is packed with earworms and remarkably filler-free.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Monuments to an Elegy
    While some songs veer too far into slick pop territory, most are balanced.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    B'Day
    Too bad only the icily sardonic Irreplaceable has any real weight or relevance.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Knowle West Boy
    Butler might consider himself lucky he got out when he did, as Tricky’s ideas are scattered all over the place and Knowle West Boy is mostly a mess.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Sugar at the Gate
    As on their previous two records, the rewards here are in the refinement, the well-wrought voices and the sublimely subtle performances.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    The Orchard
    The follow-up to Ra Ra Riot's well-received debut album opens with a slow-moving reminder that this romantic indie-styled Syracuse sextet love their violins and cellos.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Within and Without
    The album drowns in atmospherics to the point where it could be entirely instrumental. Greene casts an enjoyably suggestive spell but it wafts right through you.
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