Through 13 tracks, Hive Mind rarely rises above a sultry slow-burn, each members’ contributions swirling in unison to create a collection of sublime funk-R&B flourishes most united by their sense of longing.
It’s soul music through the prism of 2018, infused with all the hot tension, wavering confidence, and constant uncertainty of our times.
From its first funky note, it’s clear we’re in for another soul-fueled journey.
They best the previous effort with full-bodied production and cleaner, more-focused writing.
Listening to Ego Death, this lineup’s last album, and Hive Mind, their new one, this Internet feels like a configuration where the jams flow intuitively.
"Hive Mind" solidifies The Internet's sound as a newly formed molecule, sharing skills and attributes like electrons in a covalent bond.
The Internet have delivered their most fully realized project to date.
Hive Mind is the Internet's most musically diverse and synergetic album to date.
Perhaps what’s most encouraging is that while Hive Mind elevates and updates their formulas, it’s still very clearly not the band’s final step.
Smooth, mellow and delightfully warm, Hive Mind is a much-needed feel-good album that is well worth the three-year wait.
Taking cues from Prince’s end of the world party 1999, dancing through the chaos is the clear through-line of Hive Mind. Squelching guitars and kinetic basslines are in ample supply and, like with Ego Death, romance is the album’s lifeblood.
Just as ‘Hive Mind’ indicates the collaborative spirit of The Internet, it’s clear to see that spending time away working on their individual projects has only strengthened the group’s sound. Each member gets a chance to shine.
For all of Hive Mind’s merits, it still has a tendency to get lost in its own grooves and retread some of the same territory, particularly in its slower, more intimate cuts. But this is still a step forward for this young, talented crew, housing nothing but scintillating performances from Syd and, in the rare moments when the group cuts loose, some seriously intoxicating funk.
The group do not always connect perfectly on this album but when they do, it’s magical. Hive Mind celebrates musical collectivism and succeeds when it is at its most collaborative.
Pretty much all the awkward kinks in The Internet's previous albums evaporate on Hive Mind.
Hive Mind, the group’s 4th LP, is its most polished, full of tranquil, yearning Quiet Storm and light-footed, live-band funk.
This is a record that really unites the individuals in the group and despite it's considerable length it proves to The Internet's most cohesive album yet.
The Internet's fourth album, their most focused if not their most compelling, is a distillation of everything that makes them so distinctively cool.
From the music to the singing, Hive Mind can get too comfortable for its own good.
Hive Mind is not a particularly bad album, but nor does it boast anything to make it a memorable one, either.
I think the best thing this album does is remove some of the purpleness and nakedness. really accentuates the charm
I don't write stuff on here usually but I felt like writing on this soooo
It's like they found a sound that worked and decided to do nothing but repeat it over and over again instead of expanding it and actually having a minimal amount of variety. I enjoyed the first couple tracks, but once I realized that all these songs were just clones of one another, it just boring and pointless.
does anyone want me to make a r/theinternet sub? pls reply
update: www.reddit.com/r/theinternetsub
such a cool fusion of genres and artists, and yet still such an original sound. big respect for this album.
very soulful & soothing rnb. it may be a safe album buts its nice to listen to, especially when u wanna relax.
1 | Come Together 3:40 | 87 |
2 | Roll (Burbank Funk) 3:11 | 86 |
3 | Come Over 5:21 | 91 |
4 | La Di Da 3:27 | 88 |
5 | Stay the Night 4:21 | 87 |
6 | Bravo 3:26 | 80 |
7 | Mood 3:18 | 81 |
8 | Next Time / Humble Pie 5:40 | 86 |
9 | It Gets Better (With Time) 5:26 | 90 |
10 | Look What U Started 4:30 | 80 |
11 | Wanna Be 4:27 | 82 |
12 | Beat Goes On 4:16 | 80 |
13 | Hold On 6:46 | 92 |
#5 | / | Slant Magazine |
#5 | / | Thrillist |
#9 | / | Gaffa (Sweden) |
#10 | / | Highsnobiety |
#11 | / | Clash |
#12 | / | Dazed |
#13 | / | Crack Magazine |
#13 | / | Spectrum Culture |
#13 | / | The Guardian |
#19 | / | Flavorwire |