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Planetarium

Sufjan Stevens, Bryce Dessner, Nico Muhly, James McAlister

Planetarium

Collaboration between Stevens, Muhly, Dessner and McAlister is a song-cycle about the solar system

ADM rating[?]

7.1

Label
4AD
UK Release date
09/06/2017
US Release date
09/06/2017
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  1. 9.2 |   Gig Soup

    A release worthy to listen to on earth, and all over the galaxy
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  2. 9.1 |   Pretty Much Amazing

    Demands repeated listening, the passages and movements make individual songs stand out less as it is not completely obvious when one track is ending and another is beginning
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  3. 9.0 |   Exclaim

    Planetarium does the solar system justice with almost every conceivable sound — from metallic auto-tune to rippling organ, to angelic strings and forceful horns — from four powerful multi-instrumentalists at the top of their respective games
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  4. 8.0 |   Uncut

    We'll be lucky if the year yields another headphone album as sumptuous as this one
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  5. 8.0 |   The Irish Times

    Stevens’ affecting voice draws focus, distilling heart to all this wandering. It is most beautifully rendered on Mercury, which transmits an ache that works its way through the piano melody
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  6. 8.0 |   The 405

    If you like the sound of a big, camp, melodramatic slab of astrological sci-fi shot through with very earthly, twenty-first century hang-ups, Planetarium is a trip
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  7. 8.0 |   The Guardian

    Majestic celestial space opera
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  8. 8.0 |   The Independent

    Most of the tracks stretch to around seven minutes, save for “Earth”, a 15-minute sonic tableau slipping between passages of swelling horns, murmured recitation, guitar noises and beat tsunami
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  9. 8.0 |   The FT

    Subtle guitar work and deep electronic textures hang like constellations around sing-song melodies
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  10. 8.0 |   The Observer

    Grandeur meets digital mayhem on this heavenly suite of songs about our solar system, updated since its live debut five years ago
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  11. 8.0 |   Under The Radar

    In its entirety, the ambition and scope of the project is matched by the combined talent and imagination of four musical friends whose association seemed to just emerge from the ether
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  12. 8.0 |   Clash

    Dazzling ambient instrumentals, careening string sections and Sufjan’s warped vocals that bring harmony, hope and futurism to the cold, dense expanse of space
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  13. 7.5 |   Spectrum Culture

    Bounces from Top 40 pop, piano ballads, dubstep freak outs and terrifying ambient interludes
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  14. 7.5 |   Consequence Of Sound

    An ambitious project that, at its best, brings intimacy to the colossal weight of the universe
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  15. 7.2 |   Paste Magazine

    That it hangs together as well as it does is a testament to the considerable talents of the people who created it
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  16. 7.0 |   PopMatters

    Although overly padded and repetitious at times, Planetarium is a poignant, adventurous, and highly promising debut
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  17. 6.0 |   Pitchfork

    Features lush, lilting instrumentals unfurling from Stevens’ tightly-wound pop choruses, though its glut of sound and ideas becomes wearisome
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  18. 6.0 |   Evening Standard

    When it coheres it’s quite a trip
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  19. 6.0 |   Mojo

    The soundfield is appropriately spacious. Print edition only

  20. 6.0 |   All Music

    It's a sprawling effort with an over-70-minute running time, but also a haunting one, recommended for musically adventurous stargazers of all types
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  21. 6.0 |   DIY

    Its sheer scale can be as daunting as the vastness of what lies beyond the stratosphere
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  22. 6.0 |   Q

    Moments of spine-tingling transcendence outweigh those of aimless noodling. Print edition only

  23. 5.8 |   A.V. Club

    Maybe a 15-minute suite called “Earth” is your thing, or maybe you love Sufjan Stevens enough that his voice in any context is worth a spin. Anyone else might want to hold out for the next proper set
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  24. 5.0 |   Earbuddy

    This is a painful record to get through. Not painful in the sense that it evokes a somber or melancholy experience. Rather, it’s dreadfully boring
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  25. 5.0 |   musicOMH

    Planetarium is a boldly ambitious statement from a lavishly talented group of individuals, but ultimately it doesn’t quite scale the lofty, intergalactic heights it aspires to
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  26. 5.0 |   Loud And Quiet

    Somewhere within the theatrics and vast emptiness of ‘Planetarium’, there lies a rather lovely record
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  27. Back to main chart

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Sufjan Stevens, Bryce Dessner, Nico Muhly, James McAlister: Planetarium

  • Download full album for just £8.49
  • 1. Neptune £0.89
  • 2. Jupiter £0.89
  • 3. Halley's Comet £0.89
  • 4. Venus £0.89
  • 5. Uranus £0.89
  • 6. Mars £0.89
  • 7. Black Energy £0.89
  • 8. Sun £0.89
  • 9. Tides £0.89
  • 10. Moon £0.89
  • 11. Pluto £0.89
  • 12. Kuiper Belt £0.89
  • 13. Black Hole £0.89
  • 14. Saturn £0.89
  • 15. In The Beginning £0.89
  • 16. Earth £0.89
  • 17. Mercury £0.89
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