Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
Details
LP / Format
Tags
Sign In to rate and review
CRITIC REVIEWS
100
Surely the high point of this band’s decade-long career.
10y
100
Laced throughout all of it are generous, wide-eyed melodies of a kind that makes for swooning sighs and curious feelings of instant nostalgia.
12y
91
Though the album trips lightly from slinky roller-skate jams (”Fences”) to near Brit-rocky rave-ups (”Lasso”), the underlying vibe is both retro and somehow outside of time — like a memory made sweeter than the real thing it recalls.
90
Phoenix make adjustments on the polarizing characteristics of their second and third albums ... with some of the most direct and enjoyable songs they've made to date.
12y
90
Whilst Wolfgang Amadeus... is clunker-free, with high points from start to finish, allow me to abandon my critical faculties and gush about 'Love Like a Sunset Part 1', as this instrumental is by far the most incredible moment of the album and also quite possibly the best thing they've ever done.
12y
88
It's not going to blow any minds, but for some it wont have to work very hard to stay on play rotation until the next Phoenix record, packed with uplifting sunny-day soundtracks as it is.
85
Nearly 10 years into its career, the underrated French band has honed its sleek and increasingly effective bursts of pop to a fine point.
12y
84
It’s an approximation of what [perfection] might mean, which is: precise, lean, deliberate. There’s not a wasted moment here, and not one moment overstays it’s welcome, which from a bunch of aristocrats (I get) is pretty frickin’ rich.
80
It’s immaculately polished, melodic and often too funky, much like the band’s previous albums — but that’s what makes it all exciting.
12y
80
The 10 songs are sleek and clean, as if the Strokes had kept pushing a little longer and maybe bought some old disco records.
80
Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix is an absolute blast, rich in ringing guitar and euphoric synths but thankfully light on fromage and staid rehashes.
Print Only
2mo
80
With Wolfgang, they’ve finally come into their own, releasing the strongest disc of their career without compromising a thing.
12y
80
Phoenix are by no means a new act, but Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix offers them the highest internet buzz and recognition they’ve received in their decade-long career, and with good reason.
12y
80
Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix is a slender, fat-free affair, all Gallic swerve and subtle swagger. This may well be the album to broaden their fan-base wider then the fashionable glitterati.
12y
80
Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix showcases a band that has only gotten better with each album.
80
These Varsailles dwellers make records that initially seem like delicately generic powerpop, but gradually emerge as vivid, bittersweet epiphanies.
Print Only
2mo
80
It may be oversimplifying to invoke the spirit of Radiohead, but this could be Phoenix's "Ok Computer" and "Kid A" rolled into one.
Print Only
11mo
80
The real star of the show isn’t the often-bloodless figure of Thomas Mars, it’s the brilliantly detailed production, centred around the dovetailing drum and guitar chops, best heard via headphones for the full stroboscopic effect.
12y
78
The album's lyrics don’t always make sense, but then again, English isn’t their first language, and words aren’t the point here, the danceable beats and moody ambience are.
12y
70
These arch Frenchmen make precision-tooled pop that somehow retains a sense of urgency and playfulness — an impressive balancing act consistently slam-dunked by effortlessly ingratiating choruses.
12y
70
Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix is a fine example of a band preserving everything that made them good in the first place, while also expanding their sound and striking out in a new direction. Bravo.
60
It's a wide-ranging, covers-all-its-bases album and, like their last release, it's arrived just in time for summer.
Print Only
2mo
60
This is sexier than it should be by rights.
60
Everything sounds precise and almost wilfully sterile, as if the whole thing were played by someone wearing rubber gloves.
60
That Wolfgang positions Phoenix as a slightly hipper alternative to the Killers may finally break the band to a wide international audience, but it ultimately draws attention to how quickly trends shift in contemporary rock and how difficult it can be for even the most progressive bands to sustain their relevance.
I WAS RECENTLY TAKING A TOUR OF ALL THE STUFF I USED TO LISTEN TO FROM 2011-2014 AND THIS IS PROBABLY THE ONLY ALBUM THAT I STILL LIKE JUST AS MUCH.
AMERICAN IDIOT - EEEHHHHHH
DOOKIE - ACTUALLY STILL KICKS ASS BUT IT'S NOT QUITE LITERALLY JESUS
A FEVER YOU CAN'T SWEAT OUT - SHIT
SAVE ROCK AND ROLL - SHIT
ENCORE AND RECOVERY - FUCK OFF
THIS ALBUM - STILL FUCKING RIPS
[RETURN TO MY PAST ~ EPISODE 11:]
"Follow, misguide, stand still
Disgust, discourage
On this precious weekend ending
This love's for gentlemen only"
Oh album, I am so sorry for ever forgetting about you.
Y'all have no clue how much of a clown I feel like for not listening to this in like 3 fucking years. It opens with two of the best pop songs of the 2000's, impressive synth work (which is not something a lot of popular bands had in 2009), and pays a lot of surprisingly wholesome ... read more
Pleasurable indie pop/indie rock record with songs you really want to come back to.
"Lisztomania" , "1901" and "Fences" are one of the most fun songs I've heard in recent memory.
Other songs are pretty decent too.
It's an awesome indie pop album with some really great songs and the instruments are just amazing, I discovered this album by playing lasso on guitar hero and since then I've been hearing it
indie pop perfection, wow this is so good i love it !!!
fav tracks: Lisztomania, 1901, Fences, Love Like a Sunset pt. 2, Rome
Purchasing Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix from Amazon helps support Album of the Year. Or consider a donation?
Contributions By
patton, HonzaH, thisisabtlgrnd, philthy, Alejandro González, JediMark, erik, MarkC, OPENblindsBecome a Donor
Donor badge, no ads + more benefits.
Donor badge, no ads + more benefits.
Advertisement
Track List
| 1 | Lisztomania 4:01 | 93 |
| 2 | 1901 3:13 | 94 |
| 3 | Fences 3:44 | 88 |
| 4 | Love Like a Sunset, Pt. 1 5:38 | 76 |
| 5 | Love Like a Sunset, Pt. 2 1:56 | 77 |
| 6 | Lasso 2:47 | 88 |
| 7 | Rome 4:38 | 85 |
| 8 | Countdown 3:57 | 81 |
| 9 | Girlfriend 3:24 | 85 |
| 10 | Armistice 3:05 | 87 |
Total Length: 36 minutes
Year End Lists
| #1 | / | A.V. Club |
| #1 | / | Drowned in Sound |
| #2 | / | Cokemachineglow |
| #3 | / | Amazon |
| #3 | / | Beats Per Minute |
| #3 | / | NPR |
| #3 | / | Pretty Much Amazing |
| #3 | / | Rolling Stone |
| #3 | / | Spin |
| #3 | / | Treble |
More Lists
Please stay on topic. To go off topic, head to the General Chat.
Sign in to comment
