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CRITIC REVIEWS
90
‘PANG’ marks the beginning of a new chapter and confirms its position as one of the most singular, captivating records of the year.
90
With 2019's Pang, her first album released under her own name, Polachek further distills her approach with a collection of deeply emotive songs that showcase her delicate vocals and intricate pop sensibilities.
90
Pang is a remarkable debut album assured of its legitimacy and brilliance, one that should be celebrated for its shimmering beauty and the success of its authorial intent.
90
Polachek’s range, her penchant for leaving her gasps and deep breaths in her vocal tracks, her carefully thought-over phrasing — these tie Pang together into one very earwormy book of spells.
90
Whereas Arcadia and Drawing the Target felt like experiments, in theatrical pop and minimal synth, respectively, Pang has arrived fully-formed. It is sometimes symphonic and operatic, sometimes poppy and danceable, and wholly arresting.
80
She’s built a distinctively personal voice, unafraid to show vulnerability through a powerful and original sound.
1mo
80
More of these slinky, emotional outpourings please.
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4mo
80
Pang introduces itself a little too quietly to be completely satisfying. However, once you give the album some time and understand its singular rhythms, there are treasures to be found there.
80
The former Chairlift singer maintains her creative synth-based pop proclivities, but opens up her personal life in more gut-punching ways than we've heard from Polachek before.
80
It's hard to deny just how sweet, cleanly produced, and fantastical the bulk of Pang is.
80
An immense, nearly overwhelming spaciousness takes over Pang, which is intricately produced and layered with resplendent, crystalline trinkets of noise and sound unspooling around Polachek, whose vocals, immaculate and exacting, are amplified and crushed by reverb and vocoder.
80
Overall, Pang is a vivid and melodious portrait of a restless heart.
80
It is great to see Caroline Polachek giving a go at being an independent pop artist, and this album makes it feasible that she one day becomes a household name in the genre.
80
Bold and brazen – a yearning pang in sonic form – this album is a concentration of Polachek’s previous releases. She’s combined the joy of Chairlift, the atmospheric mastery of Ramona Lisa and the experimentalism of CEP. The result is a Caroline Polachek record in its most distilled and fully realised form.
73
The former Chairlift singer-songwriter centers her sweeping solo debut on her powerful voice, crafting love songs about the moment of surrender, the pain preceding it, and the euphoria after.
70
Best listened to sad and lonely in your bedroom, Pang is the perfect dance album for smart and sensitive boys and girls after their day’s journaling are done.
60
Polachek remains too much of a class act, a little too wedded to conventional beauty on songs like Look At Me Now, to really take her pop to the bleeding edge.
After finally giving this album the attention and time it deserves, I have concluded it to be my favorite album of 2019 this far. Not even close.
If PANG were a museum exhibit, it would be one large room with one central piece, Caroline's vocals. While the vocal centerpiece is impressive on its own, it's beauty is accentuated by the lush production throughout the album's runtime, which would act as the lighting for the exhibit, showing the piece's curves and imperfections, but ultimately ... read more
It all started with an iPod Nano advert. What was just a experimental pop group formed during her art school days in 2006, Caroline Polachek is built to become a pop star, or more. The front woman of now disbanded indie pop act Chairlift and side projects (Ramona Lisa and CEP), she finally came through a debut brimming with daring and defiant work of refreshing proportions with her distinctive vocal style and contemporary kind of pop experimentation that shines through the half hour run-time. ... read more
Caroline Polachek has a distinct fingerprint in the pop world. She is a presence that has always added to a project rather than distract. She knows her voice well and wields it like a master swordsman. On Pang, Polachek is exposed and vulnerable. She narrates her insecurities through songs that bend reality into new and fantastic shapes. She escapes her nightmares through bright melodies and delectable bops. As someone who allows insidious doubts to fill my head, Polachek's debut is a friendly ... read more
Compared to her most recent singles, most of these songs seem somewhat introverter and less spectacular. The production is crisp, but these are not the easiest songs to put in your playlists.
Favourites: So Hot, Door
This is a sweet album. The songs and hooks feel very creative to me, Each of them offers something fresh and different to the listening experience. All the songs seem to be so carefully produced, I love that.
The album starts pretty strong with the catchy "Pang", and that sort of afrobeat at the end of the song sounds amazing. "New Normal" was one of my favorites. I like how every verse has a different sound to it. The song "Hit Me Where It Hurts" is an amazing ... read more
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Track List
| 1 | The Gate 1:42 | 81 |
| 2 | Pang 3:33 | 88 |
| 3 | New Normal 2:34 | 81 |
| 4 | Hit Me Where It Hurts 3:04 | 91 |
| 5 | I Give Up 3:06 | 85 |
| 6 | Look At Me Now 3:03 | 87 |
| 7 | Insomnia 3:14 | 82 |
| 8 | Ocean of Tears 3:24 | 91 |
| 9 | Hey Big Eyes 3:54 | 84 |
| 10 | Go As a Dream 3:27 | 84 |
| 11 | Caroline Shut Up 3:32 | 86 |
| 12 | So Hot You're Hurting My Feelings 3:03 | 95 |
| 13 | Door 5:22 | 94 |
| 14 | Parachute 3:32 | 85 |
Total Length: 46 minutes
Year End Lists
| #1 | / | Dazed |
| #3 | / | PAPER |
| #11 | / | Good Morning America |
| #11 | / | The Guardian |
| #20 | / | Gorilla vs. Bear |
| #21 | / | Q Magazine |
| #22 | / | The Young Folks |
| #28 | / | Double J |
| #28 | / | The Needle Drop |
| #35 | / | The Independent |
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2mo
enjoying, but not feeling this as much as i thought i would
production is great, shes a pretty great singer but her voice lacks any super distinct charm for me
production is great, shes a pretty great singer but her voice lacks any super distinct charm for me
3mo
pitchfork better redeem itself by giving her the best new music she deserves when it drops
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Added on: July 24, 2019