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10.0
30448
10.0 |
Daily Telegraph
A coherent and purposeful piece of work, a statement of what hip hop can mean, and where it can go
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9.1
30317
9.1 |
A.V. Club
The album has the flash to dazzle and the substance to last
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9.0
30473
9.0 |
The AU Review
An album which lives up to all the ridiculous hype
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8.5
30663
8.5 |
Prefix
The dark side of the American dream
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8.5
30353
8.5 |
Pitchfork
A stadium-sized event-rap spectacle that still sounds like two insanely talented guys' idiosyncratic vision
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8.3
30315
8.3 |
Pretty Much Amazing
Furthers the legacy of Jay-Z and Kanye West in an unexpected way, displaying the artists in a more laid-back setting than anticipated
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8.0
30385
8.0 |
Drowned In Sound
Haters are gonna hate given the artists in question – but to be disappointed with Watch the Throne is to be disappointed with the rap game in 2011
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8.0
30389
8.0 |
PopMatters
It should be considered a success without question by all who come across it
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8.0
30419
8.0 |
The Irish Times
A dynamic work from the leaders of the pack
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8.0
30441
8.0 |
Evening Standard
The richest-sounding record of 2011 and like an individual Jay-Z or Kanye West album, it reveals more with every listen. Here, the pleasure is doubled
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8.0
30381
8.0 |
The Guardian
Feels more like My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy than a Jay-Z album
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8.0
30637
8.0 |
Rave Magazine
The biggest surprise about Watch The Throne though is how often trying to equal each other, and their bloated reputations, brings out their best
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8.0
30888
8.0 |
Q
It's energised, adventurous and fiercely commercial. Print edition only
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8.0
30989
8.0 |
The Scotsman
This pair know exactly what they are about and the dynamism of Watch The Throne is like a regal gauntlet thrown down to the rest of the hip-hop fraternity
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8.0
30464
8.0 |
The Observer
With fantastically varied production, Watch the Throne marches hungrily forward, belying its genesis in a series of swanky hotel rooms
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8.0
30454
8.0 |
AU Review
Jay may have the flow but ’Ye has the excitement, ideas, unpredictability and, yep, swagger
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8.0
30458
8.0 |
State
This year’s hip-hop blockbuster isn’t a sequel to Twisted Fantasy, but Kanye’s magpie touch is all over it
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7.7
30397
7.7 |
Beats Per Minute
For the two most commercially viable rappers of the past decade to care this much about the quality of their art is something nobody could argue is a bad thing
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7.0
30453
7.0 |
Entertainment.ie
Because neither West nor Jay are really given sufficient time to lay their roots into the album it rarely hits the heights of either of their best solo material
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7.0
30391
7.0 |
Slant Magazine
While Watch the Throne is ultimately a minor entry in their canons, it's still a terrific snapshot of the friendship that has ended up defining mainstream rap
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7.0
30392
7.0 |
Rolling Stone
On a record this ambitious, this sonically bold, it's a shame two of music's greatest storytellers don't extend their gaze beyond their own luxe lives
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7.0
30536
7.0 |
The Line Of Best Fit
Watch the Throne, while definitely no classic, for the most part succeeds
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7.0
30720
7.0 |
Tiny Mix Tapes
It’s hard to deny the quality here
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6.2
30457
6.2 |
Paste Magazine
When two legends unite, you expect pure, unfiltered brilliance. Watch The Throne has moments of that
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6.0
30467
6.0 |
musicOMH
It's clear that Kanye West took creative control over this album - his footprint is on every single beat
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6.0
30459
6.0 |
Independent on Sunday
The overriding sensation is akin to reading one of those luxury-shopping magazines you get on planes while a mediocre hip-hop station plays over the headphones
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6.0
30456
6.0 |
Consequence Of Sound
While the mismatches outnumber the strengths on Watch the Throne, these songs are a clear indicator that they’ve worked together so often for a reason, and it’s a relationship made to last
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6.0
30316
6.0 |
BBC
A very noble attempt at cohesion, but its inconsistency ultimately stalls the project, resulting in an uneven recording that buckles under the weight of its own pressure
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6.0
30373
6.0 |
Spin
Throne can't help but be admired, even enjoyed. It sounds expensive; it pisses excellence, even as it pisses you off
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5.0
30382
5.0 |
The Quietus
Hype and arrogance created Watch the Throne and stifled the creative revelation it could have been
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4.0
30412
4.0 |
The Independent
Too often here their complacent, back-slapping laxity leaves tracks floundering, and most cuts rely on a single notable line or sentiment to pull them through
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