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9.0
41183
9.0 |
musicOMH
Cosentino's voice comes into its own on this record without distortion, displaying gorgeous harmonies and swooping fluidity
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8.5
42258
8.5 |
The AU Review
All the tracks truly sound a lot tidier and fuller. This probably compliments the direction of the band, seemingly wanting to be taken a little more seriously
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8.0
41928
8.0 |
State
In a nutshell, this is an album of unease, sugar-coated with optimism
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8.0
41441
8.0 |
DIY
Best Coast will never win over the cynics who like their music to sport a more assured style of intelligence and invention, but for those who fell in love with the sunburnt stoner of old, there’s plenty more to revel in, here
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8.0
41218
8.0 |
The Line Of Best Fit
An appropriately laid-back triumph
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8.0
41087
8.0 |
BBC
Musically confident and lyrically unflinching
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8.0
41266
8.0 |
Rolling Stone
Those melodies ring out with a new clarity thanks to producer Jon Brion, the Bacharach disciple who helped Fiona Apple and Kanye West cut their sweetest-sounding records
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8.0
41369
8.0 |
Spin
This uncluttered landscape reveals Cosentino to be a deceptively skilled singer with a gift for marrying troubled lyrics to exuberant melodies
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7.8
41505
7.8 |
Paste Magazine
There is something timeless about Best Coast
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7.7
41425
7.7 |
Beats Per Minute
Best Coast clearly put far more strain and effort into this sequel. Maybe they’re simply better when they aren’t working so hard
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7.0
41746
7.0 |
NME
They're going through the motions. Print edition only
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7.0
41088
7.0 |
The Digital Fix
An unpretentious collection that turns a grey sky blue
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7.0
41149
7.0 |
Uncut
Indie pop infused with the melodrama of The Ronettes and The Shrangli-Las. Print edition only
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7.0
41169
7.0 |
Bowlegs
A confident and brash radio friendly chunk of guitar pop
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7.0
41242
7.0 |
AU Review
This second album sees them shaking off the lo-fi tag to emerge polished, confident and with a bright future
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6.7
41366
6.7 |
A.V. Club
The Only Place still feels like its predecessor. It’s a more sophisticated effort, but it doesn’t disown the rudimentary pleasures of Crazy For You
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6.5
42223
6.5 |
Tone Deaf
Despite the presence of somewhat unnecessary and obvious fillers, the record speaks quite simply but strongly, conveying a different take on the same recipe
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6.2
41415
6.2 |
Pitchfork
[There is] a grinding sense of marks being hit while inspiration is in short order
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6.0
41310
6.0 |
The Observer
There are still moments of magic but it sounds like the work of a band in transition, and not necessarily for the better
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6.0
41347
6.0 |
Rave Magazine
It was its hopeless teenage-ness that made Crazy For You so endearing the first time around, so it’s curious that Cosentino is so keen to depart from place
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6.0
41354
6.0 |
Consequence Of Sound
On the surface, they’re familiar Best Coast-sounding ditties, but there’s something so transparent about them, as if they’re trying too hard to insist upon this personal growth
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6.0
41234
6.0 |
The Irish Times
This is hardly pioneering stuff, but it’s hard not to fall under the spell of these wistful songs when they’re done so well
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6.0
41151
6.0 |
Mojo
All this block-printed indie-pop masks a desire to be taken seriously. Print edition only
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6.0
41153
6.0 |
Q
Ditches the distortion in favour of cleaner textures. Print edition only
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6.0
41092
6.0 |
The Arts Desk
Full of the things that have always made Best Coast great - short, simple songs packed with hooks, heartbreak and 60s girl group harmonies
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5.8
41376
5.8 |
Pretty Much Amazing
If their earlier music was like the heartbroken lament of a long-lost summer fling, this newest album is like that obnoxious friend that still hasn’t gotten over their last relationship
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5.0
41631
5.0 |
Entertainment.ie
It's by no means all bad, and the basic Best Coast formula remains strong - this may well be the half-baked sound of a band in transition
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5.0
41423
5.0 |
Slant Magazine
The band sounds like they're struggling to come up with a new template, a feeling that leaves The Only Place sounding shiftless and adrift
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5.0
41427
5.0 |
Tiny Mix Tapes
The clingiest and most needy record I’ve heard in a while
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5.0
48907
5.0 |
All Music
The album sounds great, full of catchy and well-crafted songs. Too bad it all falls apart so drastically when you factor in Cosentino's disastrous lyrics
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5.0
41360
5.0 |
PopMatters
Ends up highlighting Cosentino’s ceiling as a performer and songwriter
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5.0
41373
5.0 |
Prefix
It's a perfect summer record, a sunburst of bright hooks, but growing up and taking yourself too seriously aren't the same thing
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4.0
41356
4.0 |
No Ripcord
If anyone other than Bethany Cosentino were performing these songs, I’d have no patience for the album’s overall laziness
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4.0
41328
4.0 |
Under The Radar
While the newest wave of retro-inspired acts have passed them by, Best Coast seem content to lay about in the sand and soak up the rays
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2.0
41440
2.0 |
The Quietus
Even the offensively quirky cover art of a bear embracing a map of California looks like a fashionable meme for the future. Nonetheless, the illustration captures the album's content in visual perfection: sickly, beige and chintzy
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