Albums to watch

Smart Flesh

The Low Anthem

Smart Flesh

Fourth album of indie folk from the Rhode Island four-piece

ADM rating[?]

7.0

Label
Bella Union
UK Release date
21/02/2011
US Release date
22/02/2011
  1. 9.0 |   Clash

    The human condition set to music
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  2. 9.0 |   The Observer

    The album was recorded in an old factory with mics spaced out across the floor, giving the songs remarkable warmth
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  3. 8.0 |   The Scotsman

    Content to pastiche Dylan, Cohen and their alt-country forebears with elegiac elegance
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  4. 8.0 |   Rolling Stone

    There are few happy endings here, but the wounded have plenty of room to roam and waltz
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  5. 8.0 |   Uncut

    The sounds on Smart Flesh may be muted, but there is power and daring in its pursuit od stillness. Print edition only

  6. 8.0 |   Mojo

    For all its romance, this is a record at the sharp end of mortality. Print edition only

  7. 8.0 |   Q

    Throughout there is a willingness to genre-hop. Print edition only

  8. 8.0 |   State

    Sounding a (quiet) clarion call for a new golden age of folk
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  9. 8.0 |   The Independent

    Has the kind of stylistic and atmospheric unity that reminds one of what albums can offer that no other format can match
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  10. 8.0 |   The Irish Times

    Songs that brim with heart and nourishment
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  11. 8.0 |   Daily Telegraph

    These exquisitely voiced musings on love, healing and mortality really hit the spot
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  12. 8.0 |   AU Review

    Smart Flesh is an album that captures the finest aspects of modern American folk music
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  13. 7.7 |   Beats Per Minute

    This is a good record, but I can’t help thinking that The Low Anthem are on the verge of something great
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  14. 7.5 |   A.V. Club

    The formula works well enough, but if there’s a drawback to the album, it’s that there aren’t many signs of growth musically
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  15. 7.0 |   NME

    Sad and gorgeous, like a sexy undertaker. Print edition only

  16. 7.0 |   Consequence Of Sound

    Notes reverberate and gently die while voices float in the ether, creating a sense of reverence and calm for most of the album
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  17. 7.0 |   Blurt

    While the snooze factor is always on the verge of intruding, their seductive sensibilities manage to keep that threat at bay
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  18. 7.0 |   BBC

    A little too atonal to be described as a classic
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  19. 6.0 |   Drowned In Sound

    This record does look slightly dull next to the bright sparkle of their breakthrough
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  20. 6.0 |   The Line Of Best Fit

    It’s arguably not a very outgoing album, there’s a lack of spontaneity, but it is well made
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  21. 6.0 |   The Guardian

    As bewitching as it is chilling
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  22. 6.0 |   musicOMH

    Stately, slow, serious sounding music
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  23. 5.0 |   Slant Magazine

    An outright bore
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  24. 5.0 |   No Ripcord

    A largely hollow experience
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  25. 4.8 |   Pitchfork

    With minimal effort, you can find plenty of other acts putting their own idiosyncratic spin on the early 20th century canon, many of whom simply have better songs
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  26. 3.5 |   Bowlegs

    A talented band still searching for a voice of their own while revelling in sounds from the past
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The Low Anthem: Smart Flesh

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