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10.0
127053
10.0 |
Gigwise
A once-in-a-generation artist delivers a stunning second album
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10.0
127058
10.0 |
The Guardian
The North Shields songwriter replaces his former broad-brush politicking with rousing but arrestingly bleak, personal material that puts his indie-rock peers in the shade
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10.0
127082
10.0 |
Evening Standard
Seventeen Going Under is profoundly sad and also a euphoric singalong. It’s hard to know how to feel while listening to it, other than certain it’s a triumph
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10.0
127087
10.0 |
Dork
This is very special indeed
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9.0
127293
9.0 |
PopMatters
Sam Fender gives a stirring tour through the poverty and politics of middle England on his polished new album, Seventeen Going Under
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9.0
127774
9.0 |
musicOMH
Powerful, essential stuff, a coming of age album that speaks to the human experience in the here and now. Its creator is absolutely the real deal
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8.0
127056
8.0 |
The Independent
While he’s balked at comparisons to Bruce Springsteen, it’s easy to understand why they’re made: the 27-year-old has a similar, hollering vocal style, along with a penchant for wheeling sax solos. This hasn’t changed a jot here, but Fender has refined both his songwriting and his sound
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8.0
127084
8.0 |
The FT
Difficult themes such as depression and poverty are charged by full-throated performances in the Tyneside musician’s new album
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8.0
127038
8.0 |
The Line Of Best Fit
Despite not quite being as upbeat and full of instant hits like his debut, Seventeen Going Under sees Sam Fender take the listener on a new, personal, and emotional journey that centres around the backdrop of his adolescence and his own sense of morality
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8.0
127039
8.0 |
NME
Lockdown forced the Geordie hero to reckon with the impact of his formative years and the ties that bind, resulting in this bruising second album
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8.0
127046
8.0 |
Clash
Even in the albums more heightened and banging moments, there’s consideration and a message, lyrics worthy of a proper listen
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7.0
127059
7.0 |
All Music
Fender still makes room for soaring anthems like the skittering "Paradigms," driving "Get You Down," and the title track, a saxophone-bolstered chant-along that recalls suppressing anger as a teen
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6.6
127100
6.6 |
Pitchfork
With classic rock ambition and full-hearted sincerity, the 27-year-old British songwriter hits his stride when looking inward but fumbles when casting his gaze toward society at large
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6.0
127055
6.0 |
The Irish Times
Fender might tread on familiar ground, but he does so wearing steel toe-capped boots.
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6.0
127050
6.0 |
The Arts Desk
The more he escapes from the conspiracist-leaning sloganeering, ironically the more politically compelling he gets
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