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9.0
47041
9.0 |
The Line Of Best Fit
A set of tunes written to accommodate a grand subject matter – and it is glorious
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9.0
47708
9.0 |
Sputnik Music (staff)
What you find in Transcendental Youth aren’t answers to any big questions, but instead questions to a bunch of answers that never meant anything before but now seem exceedingly important
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8.3
46953
8.3 |
A.V. Club
A surprisingly dark affair, populated by Darnielle’s usual cast of misfits, shut-ins, and lowlifes
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8.0
46954
8.0 |
God Is In The TV
The Mountain Goats of ‘Transcendental Youth’ are wide open with possibility – you’ve a feeling they can do as they please from this point of liberation
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8.0
46955
8.0 |
Prefix
As the songs keep coming from Darnielle, and his characters are starting to rise and emerge from the dark, he show no signs of bottoming out as a songwriter anytime soon, for the well he returns to is deep and the water keeps changing
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8.0
46956
8.0 |
All Music
His unique literary view into both the banal and the horrific mix with the most interesting and developed arrangement of any Mountain Goats album
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8.0
46958
8.0 |
Drowned In Sound
If Transcendental Youth is the best thing Darnielle’s ever done, it’s only because it’s about five per cent tighter and better-played
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8.0
47002
8.0 |
Uncut
At last, as good as everyone wanted them to be. Print edition only
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8.0
47039
8.0 |
PopMatters
An unlikely collection of absolute pop anthems, more so than most Mountain Goats albums
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8.0
47088
8.0 |
Consequence Of Sound
It’s perennially refreshing to hear the work of someone who so obviously does not care what critics think of him; Darnielle’s music reliably gives you the world from his eyes
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8.0
47146
8.0 |
Spin
No matter how full and warm the Mountain Goats sound grows, Darnielle himself still embodies the spirit of his earlier work
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8.0
48106
8.0 |
Blurt
A sense of quiet triumph pervades: this may be the prettiest Mountain Goats album yet
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8.0
47655
8.0 |
Tone Deaf
This is another strong release from the band, and marks an ideal entry point for newcomers to The Mountain Goats
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7.8
46950
7.8 |
Pitchfork
Transcendental Youth doesn't have the consistency of the Mountain Goats' strongest records
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7.7
47027
7.7 |
Beats Per Minute
With Transcendental Youth, the Mountain Goats have proven that they’re more than capable of engaging us with even without the unimpeachable witticisms of their frontman
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7.5
47219
7.5 |
Under The Radar
If there’s a downside to The Mountain Goats’ inexhaustibility—Transcendental Youth is the band’s fourth record in the past five years—it’s that the excellence is getting predictable
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7.2
46986
7.2 |
Paste Magazine
The album doesn’t match the group’s best output, but it’s a strong and occasionally stunning entry
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7.0
47144
7.0 |
Rolling Stone
An album full of characters struggling against dead-end jobs, drug addiction and depression doesn't exactly sound inviting, but in the hands of John Darnielle, it's magic
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7.0
46952
7.0 |
Slant Magazine
On the new album, Darnielle sings with his traditional wrist-slitting earnestness and a precious enunciation that makes James Mercer sound like Ronnie James Dio
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7.0
47290
7.0 |
NME
Slightly predictable, but the work of a master craftsmen
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7.0
47162
7.0 |
No Ripcord
There is plenty here for fans of The Mountain Goats to sink their teeth into
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6.7
47087
6.7 |
Bowlegs
While this is another decent offering from the group it doesn’t quite qualify as classic Mountain Goats
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6.0
46999
6.0 |
Q
The tales of love, loss, life and death on his 14th album are embellished with brass flourishes for the first time. Print edition only
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6.0
46951
6.0 |
The Quietus
Prime headphone bait, where Darnielle's voice and lyrics get the scrutiny they deserve
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5.0
47148
5.0 |
DIY
This may be a pleasant album to listen to, and has the potential for sing-alongs - as many Mountain Goats songs do - but it’s a bit of a damp squib
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