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8.0
92835
8.0 |
PopMatters
Over seven studio albums and 20 years as a band later, Elbow hasn't lost an ounce of skill, charm, or joie de vivre
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8.0
92845
8.0 |
The Arts Desk
The songs are subtle and well constructed; a testament to the band's advanced sense of craftsmanship
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8.0
92861
8.0 |
Slant Magazine
Might be called the quietest of Elbow albums, as it's the tamest and most ballad-heavy. It might just as easily be christened their most intimate, their most casual, and their most soulful
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8.0
92867
8.0 |
NME
A 13-tog duvet of a record
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8.0
92871
8.0 |
The Irish Times
So Elbow return with a balm for the senses; maybe 2017 won’t be so dreadful after all
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8.0
92877
8.0 |
The Guardian
As fine an album as they have made
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8.0
92901
8.0 |
Drowned In Sound
An institution worthy of national heritage status. A dose of humanity in inhuman times
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8.0
92807
8.0 |
The Independent
The band allow for a sparseness in many of the songs compared to the grand, elaborate details featured in past albums; there’s a cyclical feel to this album that heralds a return to basics
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8.0
92808
8.0 |
Uncut
The sound of a band doing what it's always done, and doing it with style. Print edition only
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8.0
92809
8.0 |
Q
Out of disappointment and distress, Elbow have crafted another brilliant album. Print edition only
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8.0
92810
8.0 |
Mojo
The kind of vibrant imagery we've come to expect from Elbow. A band who can find a glimmer of light in the darkest of times. Print edition only
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8.0
92811
8.0 |
A.V. Club
Compositionally Elbow sounds more refreshed than they have since The Seldom Seen Kid, and hopefully Little Fictions is a signal of the beginning of a new creative phase
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8.0
92812
8.0 |
musicOMH
Elbow have created another record that comfortably matches up to anything they’ve released to date
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8.0
92973
8.0 |
The Observer
While this seventh album continues the band’s slow move away from the anthemic drama of The Seldom Seen Kid, there’s a richness of ideas here that rewards repeated listening
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8.0
93104
8.0 |
The Line Of Best Fit
Everything about Little Fictions’ gestation has conspired to create arguably the most taut and urgent album of Elbow’s career
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7.5
93054
7.5 |
Gig Soup
The change of drummer and Garvey's marriage seem to have reinvigorated the band. Not only are the lyrics more upbeat than ever, but there's a more percussion-driven approach which results in the most minimalist album Elbow have written thus far
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7.5
93002
7.5 |
Pretty Much Amazing
Little Fictions is another solid entry in the Elbow catalog that is destined to be mostly ignored. The band peaked almost a decade ago, but still churns out surprisingly deep, solid records every couple of years
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7.1
93062
7.1 |
Pitchfork
Elbow's latest deepens their formula—rich, sweeping rock songs about melancholy and love—with a dreamy sense of loss and time passing
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7.0
92986
7.0 |
Spectrum Culture
It may not be as solid as The Seldom Seem Kid, but it earns plenty of praise for harking back to that album and building off of its successes
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6.5
93043
6.5 |
Beardfood
Garvey’s voice ever been so integral, and this amplifies even a slight drop-off in quality
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6.0
93070
6.0 |
God Is In The TV
A return to form? A little
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6.0
93163
6.0 |
No Ripcord
Finding a way to change your sound can be like walking in a swamp
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6.0
93038
6.0 |
State
The instrumentals are superb, it’s a pleasure to listen to Garvey’s vocal tones – but acts of false authenticity, such as a perfect fade-out in ‘Kindling’ to the band discussing how the song sounded as if the microphone was accidentally left on undermine the band
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6.0
92975
6.0 |
Clash
‘Little Fictions’, in the end, though a welcome sign of elbow gently progressing with their formula, is a step forward feels too hesitant
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6.0
92813
6.0 |
The Music
'Little Fictions' is Elbow in cosy, cardigan mode
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6.0
92932
6.0 |
The FT
The album’s central message is made to seem all the more mawkish by the textured onrush of music framing it
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