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7.5
52850
7.5 |
BBC
This is a country mile away from the most coherent album of all time, but you can only hope that The Ascent's title continues to apply to Wiley's deserved trajectory as a genuine genre game-changer
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7.0
52854
7.0 |
musicOMH
There may be a general lack of aggression or grit this time round, but this is more than countered by an impressive selection of songs
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7.0
53114
7.0 |
Uncut
A contrived pop product with its heart and mind intact. Print edition only
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6.2
52852
6.2 |
Pitchfork
The Ascent bows to the received wisdom of cramming as many guest artists, producers and stylistic tics as humanly possible into a 50 minute listen, presumably so as to exhaust listeners into submission
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6.0
52851
6.0 |
The Guardian
A calculated assault on the charts that has had time, money and talent lavished on it. The only problem is that, along the way, Wiley has lost what made him such a distinctive voice
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6.0
52861
6.0 |
Q
This isn't his masterpiece but it is the unexpected sound of the road of excess leading to the palace of wisdom. Print edition only
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6.0
53172
6.0 |
All Music
Part it out over a month of weekends for best results
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5.0
52865
5.0 |
NME
Despite the raw talent on display the dose is diluted and the sum total falls short
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4.0
52954
4.0 |
Drowned In Sound
Touch kicks all of what made Wiley so compelling – the idiosyncratic production, palpitating beats and self-effacing rhymes – in favour of manufactured chart fodder
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4.0
53055
4.0 |
The 405
Buried at the end of the album are some gentler introspective numbers that, shorn of gratuitous features and needless standardised choruses, remind you how compelling this guy can be when he isn't being suffocated by breakneck dance beats
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4.0
52853
4.0 |
The Skinny
Still a superb producer and rapper, Wiley's instincts are too frequently off base on The Ascent, making for a disappointing, unrewarding slog
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