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10.0
72258
10.0 |
NOW
The songcraft is high, balancing repetitive groove with dynamic surprises
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9.1
72390
9.1 |
Pretty Much Amazing
Like Deerhunter, No Age, and Women, Viet Cong’s music is also unusual in that it operates like and will be received as rock music, yet, when broken down into parts, looks nothing like conventional rock music
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9.0
72292
9.0 |
The Quietus
This first album, a self-titled, seven-track whirlwind, is full-on brilliant all the way through
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9.0
72353
9.0 |
Loud And Quiet
The Canadian four-piece appear borderline obsessed with futility – a mood matched by their mix of piercing guitars, industrial thunder drums, metallic sound collages and overall cold, cold sound
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9.0
72261
9.0 |
The 405
Their songs are always melodic and replete with enthralling hooks that could engross any ear, even with their avant-garde influences
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9.0
72403
9.0 |
Exclaim
Viet Cong maintains the same shadowy, droning tones that haunted Cassette, only taking them deeper into the abyss
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8.8
72442
8.8 |
Earbuddy
Viet Cong mashes all the greatest elements of post-punk into the tightest seven-song LP you’ll probably hear all year
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8.5
72455
8.5 |
Pitchfork
Viet Cong is filled with moments that tap into the primal impulses of true post-punk
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8.5
72458
8.5 |
The Line Of Best Fit
The best albums allow us to ruminate on life’s big questions, giving insight not only into the mind of the artist but reflecting the sentiments of the beholder, and Viet Cong does exactly that
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8.5
72268
8.5 |
Crack
An unerringly confident, extremely significant debut
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8.0
72270
8.0 |
Drowned In Sound
Viet Cong have a brilliance so unstable, even they can’t quite control it
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8.0
72281
8.0 |
DIY
The band are remoulding genre conventions and confirming that they’re not settling for anything other than pushing the boundaries
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8.0
72262
8.0 |
The Skinny
A solid, admirable distillation of early 90s US indie that dares to throw in some rewarding ideas of its own
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8.0
72260
8.0 |
State
Given their sparse, abrasive sound and retro inclinations, its difficult to place Viet Cong in a modern context, but what they’ve accomplished on this brief, yet unshakeable debut is certainly food for thought
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8.0
72395
8.0 |
All Music
Viet Cong were a group full of promise on their debut EP, Cassette, and with their harder, heavier, and more powerful debut album, they're making it clear they have the talent and smarts to become a major force in Canada's indie community
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8.0
72416
8.0 |
PopMatters
Viet Cong is an outstanding record specifically because the immaculate craftsmanship only enhances the emotionally rich experience
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8.0
72432
8.0 |
Spin
With its ambitious, desolate scope, maybe Viet Cong tried to write the last post-punk album — and it would be okay if that turned out to be the case
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8.0
72489
8.0 |
Tiny Mix Tapes
Even at its coldest, Viet Cong offers a suggestion of something — deep yearning or stifled swooning — which balances out the tiresome nihilism
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8.0
72376
8.0 |
No Ripcord
There’s a brittle vulnerability present in Viet Cong that triggers an innate sense of curiosity and optimism despite the downtrodden tone it adopts
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8.0
72721
8.0 |
The Guardian
An ambitious and rewarding debut
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7.0
72674
7.0 |
God Is In The TV
It’s perhaps a mixed blessing that it’s utterly conceivable that this record could have come out in 1979, but the ultimate thumbs-up is that it would be a challenging but rewarding listen in ’79 or 2015
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7.0
72374
7.0 |
musicOMH
Viet Cong have tapped into something exciting, something too big to be contained in a Canadian city most famous for winter sports, and something that could just be the tip of the iceberg for yet another intriguing Canadian act
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7.0
72470
7.0 |
Beardfood
The record mesmerizes but doesn't always please
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7.0
72259
7.0 |
Clash
These are songs bestowed with heavy production, each track swathed in a fog of gauzy effects and processing. The result is something that sounds mechanical and generally detached from emotion
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6.7
72257
6.7 |
Consequence Of Sound
This is an album as a whole, not a stapled together list of tracks. In the age of MP3s and careless streaming, their attentiveness to order elevates post-punk to art
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6.0
72563
6.0 |
Mojo
A thrilling burst of monochrome psych. Print edition only
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6.0
72618
6.0 |
Rolling Stone
These guys wear their goth-punk Purple Heart proudly
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