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CRITIC REVIEWS
100
After Bloom’s widescreen production almost pushed them into stadium territory, Victoria Legrand and Alex Scally have continued to amp up the melodies while retaining the band’s ASMR qualities, arguably culminating with Depression Cherry. While the latter wasn’t completely adored at a critical level, to me, it felt like they’d at least hit on the blueprint for a masterpiece. On 7, the Baltimore duo presents us with the completed architecture.
100
Always ones to shoot for the stars and then find out they were already living on one, Beach House’s new record 7, lives up to all the hype you can heap on it and more. 7 is massive and intimate, dense yet understandable, fresh yet classic.
91
7 is the band’s darkest, messiest, and most varied album to date.
90
Some artists hold the promise of a perfect album within them, one stroke of divinity that distils a lifetime’s output into something that could define their legacy. Beach House never felt like one of those bands to me, partly because they’d already soared so high, already peaked on a former glory. Nonetheless, the Baltimore duo have somehow gifted us their masterpiece, and though the rain outside has now stopped, new heavens have opened.
90
Throughout 7, Beach House feel more concerned with capturing moments fully rather than conforming to notions of what a cohesive album is. That these songs sound like they came from different albums is ultimately more refreshing than disorienting, and the excitement that courses through each track is palpable.
90
By taking familiar ideas and filtering them through new arrangements and effects, the band has taken their identity in their own hands and reshaped it into something intriguing again for their strongest album since Bloom.
90
With 7, Beach House has done nothing to disturb their status as one of indie rock’s most consistent bands. They’ve done a whole lot, though, to demonstrate a willingness to reimagine what it is that Beach House can be.
90
Track-by-track, each song has its merits, building upon the last to create a completely enticing whole. And yes, 7 is a triumph, a record that might go down as the masterpiece of an already beloved band.
89
Beach House remain masters of the indefinable and their seventh album is their heaviest and most immersive-sounding of their career.
85
Teen Dream and Bloom will likely always remain the pair’s canonical entries, but by some margin, this is their most accomplished record to date and the latest proof that Beach House will go down as the finest, boldest and most singular dream pop act since the Cocteau Twins.
85
Beach House is reaching for the moon once more on the beloved Baltimore duo's most stimulating aural experience to date.
85
It’s safe to say that fourteen years of being on the road with heart and soul on constant improvement, determination, good taste and a clear mission statement are key factors to success. 7, Beach House’s seventh album is definitely not their approach to the finish line, but a positive view on what’s yet to come.
83
By retooling their sound and shaking off any complacency that may have settled in, Beach House make their claim as one of the preeminent indie rock bands of the decade.
83
With its chemtrail vocals and dense layers of guitar haze, 7 is in no danger of derailing the band’s reputation as the reigning slow lorises of indie rock.
82
On their latest record, Beach House have gone above and beyond in reinventing themselves.
80
7 might have been a gamble for Beach House then, but they don’t appear to have lost anything.
80
Beach House remain such assured masters of their own domain that you wonder whether it'd be akin to turkeys voting for Christmas to hope for a wholesale reinvention; 7 suggests that, instead, we should let them pull up the stylistic bumper at precisely their own pace.
80
When you truly let an album like 7 sit with you for a while, it’s a reminder that, even if you’re not noticing the changes, there’s always something new to uncover. 7 might not be their greatest moment, but it is their most exciting.
80
Beach House continue to explore new crannies of their familiar dream pop sound, occasionally highlighting a new aspect of their style without ever changing it completely.
80
These wider influences are enough to incrementally develop the band’s immersive sound, with the listener becoming enveloped in its rolling waves of blissful melancholia.
80
Instead of limiting themselves, Beach House are finally embracing all of their creative moments, which have inevitably challenged them to become better artists.
80
These are big songs, full of wonder, and Beach House know it. Seven albums in, they're at the start of something new.
80
The sounds are glorious, and Beach House don’t need to tear up their own rulebook after each album.
70
Beach House bounces back with their most adventurous album since Teen Dream.
70
While the record is mostly hookless, gaseous in form, it doesn’t disarm them. The main takeaway is a feeling of rose-tinted catharsis, and whether or not it’s shared with the listener, a point remains, more obvious than ever: Beach House refuse to compromise their agency over their sound.
70
7 is a post-party album, a gentle, introspective comedown after a night of extroverted madness.
60
Seven albums in, and with a formula that’s kept its core elements largely the same, it’s largely Beach House by-numbers, but the pair have a gravitational pull that looks like it will never run dry.
60
While the fruits of their reinvention aren't always compelling here, 7 is still a solid first step heralding Beach House's next phase.
60
Undaunted and enduring, Beach House continue to finesse their sound on this, their seventh album, a record that finds the duo – accompanied by their live drummer, James Barone – expanding their cinematic bent.
55
It’s not terrible, it’s mostly pleasant to listen to, it’s beautifully produced and it’s easy to recognize the skill it takes to craft their saintly, synth-driven sound. But when you couple a critical reputation like theirs with the band’s own claim of making a big artistic jump, mostly pleasant to listen to shouldn’t cut it.
40
'7’ isn’t an awful album, but it is an incredibly average one. Fans of Beach House will find some tracks worth listening to, and everyone else will enjoy having it on in the background, but it’s hard to believe anyone will be genuinely excited to listen back once the last song is over.
This is the most emotionally connected I have been with a Beach House album, this instantly became my favourite album of theirs. As a long time fan, I believed Teen Dream would go down as their magnum opus, with Bloom being the only album to come close.
I’m unsure how this album will be precieved, but I can confidently say that I find more pleasure from the beauty that is 7. Each track is meticulously crafted with such a profound sense of care, their dreamy asthetic mixed with a newance ... read more
Thank you all so very much for 800 followers! It feels like the big 1,000 is just around the corner- which is something that would have never been imaginable for me just a few months ago. I absolutely love this website and all of its members, you have all helped me discover music and expand my musical knowledge so much, and for that I am very grateful. Before I discovered this website I knew practically nothing (and I still don't know very much) about music. Looking back at my old reviews it's ... read more
I mean this is obviously one of the best art/dream pop albums of the year. That’s a given. It keeps growing on me and I’m really enjoying most of every song on here
(analbumaday day 12) I forgot to do this earlier, but hello to the main face of dream pop. I had listened to a few beach house songs because they are dream pop and they had that one song that blew up on tiktok so I had high expectations and they were met. It was a nice album with tracks that flowed beautifully and dreamy vocals.
7 sees beach house lean more into the shoegaze aspect of their influences which culminates into what i consider my favourite or atleast top 3 beach house album
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Track List
| 1 | Dark Spring 3:24 | 91 |
| 2 | Pay No Mind 3:24 | 87 |
| 3 | Lemon Glow 4:04 | 95 |
| 4 | L'Inconnue 4:24 | 85 |
| 5 | Drunk In LA 3:59 | 93 |
| 6 | Dive 4:25 | 90 |
| 7 | Black Car 4:11 | 93 |
| 8 | Lose Your Smile 4:09 | 85 |
| 9 | Woo 4:14 | 85 |
| 10 | Girl Of The Year 3:51 | 87 |
| 11 | Last Ride 6:59 | 92 |
Total Length: 47 minutes
Year End Lists
| #1 | / | The A.V. Club |
| #2 | / | FLOOD |
| #3 | / | Treble |
| #4 | / | Northern Transmissions |
| #5 | / | Pretty Much Amazing |
| #5 | / | Stereogum |
| #6 | / | Under the Radar |
| #7 | / | BLARE |
| #9 | / | Flavorwire |
| #9 | / | The Music |
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Added on: March 7, 2018