Albums to watch

Phoenix

Pedro The Lion

Phoenix

Fifth album and first under the Pedro the Lion moniker since 2004 from creator David Bazan

ADM rating[?]

7.6

Label
Polyvinyl Records/Ada
UK Release date
18/01/2019
US Release date
18/01/2019
  1. 10.0 |   The Skinny

    A tender examination of the cyclical nature of our lives
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  2. 9.0 |   Punk News

    January might be a little too soon to name anything the best album of the year—especially with all the releases already announced—but whatever else comes out this year is going to have a heck of a time if it's going to try to top Phoenix
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  3. 8.0 |   Earbuddy

    A return to form for Bazan. But honestly, the man has been a roll as of late. Between this, his 2017 solo album Care, and Lo Tom, Phoenix is the best album out of the bunch
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  4. 8.0 |   NOW

    Phoenix stands as a complex, giving record backed by some of Pedro the Lion’s finest musical compositions
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  5. 8.0 |   The Line Of Best Fit

    David Bazan resurrects his Pedro The Lion project and sounds as vital as ever
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  6. 8.0 |   Uncut

    This is no desperate grab at nostalgia, then, rather a chronicle of important personal moments reexamined through the lens of time. Print edition only

  7. 8.0 |   Drowned In Sound

    Feels more like a reconstruction than a revival
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  8. 8.0 |   Under The Radar

    Phoenix is wondrous. Except its Bazan, with a band, the best kind of Bazan, so we shouldn't be surprised. Pedro the Lion is alive. And it is emotional. Like it always was at its best
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  9. 8.0 |   Paste Magazine

    There’s an appealing symmetry there: even if you can’t quite go home again, you can always come full circle
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  10. 8.0 |   PopMatters

    Phoenix begins a five-album journey through the cities Bazan has called home, as he searches for himself and for the companionship he'd missed in those solo years
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  11. 8.0 |   Spectrum Culture

    In place of innovation, though, we get an album that begs to be dissected, teeming with life and rich detail – one that sounds exactly like what the Pedro the Lion of 2019 should sound
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  12. 7.6 |   Pitchfork

    Assuming his old handle for the first time in 15 years, David Bazan digs into his desert childhood to make amends with the people he hurt—especially himself
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  13. 7.5 |   The 405

    When searching for home it will find its way to you, and finding Pedro The Lion again after 15 years is a comfort only home can bring
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  14. 7.0 |   All Music

    Older, wiser, and still passionate, Phoenix is a worthy continuation of Pedro the Lion's legacy with just enough spirit to set it apart from his 2010s solo work
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  15. 7.0 |   God Is In The TV

    With a troubled career and a turbulent history of line ups behind them, it’s an achievement that Pedro The Lion have managed to rise from the flames at all. Let’s hope, on this evidence anyway, that we won’t have to wait 15 years for the next one
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  16. 6.0 |   Mojo

    There's still a lot of soul-searching at mournful tempos, but reconnecting to his roots has made for a fine set of songs. Print edition only

  17. 5.0 |   No Ripcord

    Side-by-side with an "original" release, especially 2002's Control, a bit of life just seems to be missing in this resurrection
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