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8.0
68882
8.0 |
The Independent
An engaging collection that refuses to be hidebound by the strictures of indie-rock
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8.0
68885
8.0 |
Q
An album full of hooks, loose grooves and nimble percussive thrusts. Print edition only
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7.5
69610
7.5 |
Beardfood
This fourth lp might be a little less expressive, it’s still fresh and lively
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7.0
69332
7.0 |
All Music
The more familiar sounds are paired with the sturdiest songwriting but what gathers attention here are the tracks furthest afield from the Kooks' traditional pop
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7.0
68879
7.0 |
musicOMH
New drummer Alexis Nunez adds a percussive edge, but much credit must go to hip-hop co-producer Inflo for this fresh lease of life
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6.0
68880
6.0 |
The Irish Times
They’ve regained their stride, and it’s a combination of Jagger swagger, Jackson moonwalk and pimp roll
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6.0
68883
6.0 |
The Guardian
It's a fun listen, with shades of Ram-era Paul McCartney, the Stones and Shuggie Otis, full of eccentric funk and boogie captured on vintage instruments
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6.0
69013
6.0 |
Earbuddy
The Kooks are not Kanye. Inflo is not Mark Ronson. Listen is not Random Access Memories
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5.0
69069
5.0 |
No Ripcord
With a diverse range of influences, it’s inevitable that the collection slightly struggles to gel cohesively and the band’s oldest fans are likely to loathe the new direction
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5.0
69119
5.0 |
NME
Only lovelorn strum 'Dreams' is recognisable, but 'Naive' seems a distant memory now
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5.0
69152
5.0 |
Digital Spy
You can commend The Kooks somewhat for trying to make sense again nearly a decade after their heyday, but we'd wager that Listen might not necessarily be the way to do it
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5.0
68884
5.0 |
Uncut
Turning band who started s Libertines-lite into a pallid Brit Maroon 5. Print edition only
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4.0
68881
4.0 |
The Observer
Listen exudes desperation, its shortcomings underlined by It Was London, a graceless stab at social commentary
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4.0
69328
4.0 |
Time Out
More misguided than outright bad, it’s an incoherent ten-track scramble for singles rather than a cohesive album
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4.0
68886
4.0 |
Mojo
Listen throws a helluva lot at the wall, and not a lot of it is sticking. Print edition only
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2.0
68933
2.0 |
Drowned In Sound
It is, quite possibly, the worst thing you’ll hear all year – my only retort to the imperative contained in that cocky title is 'don’t bother
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