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CRITIC REVIEWS
100
Ultimately, this is an album in which a troubled spirit seeks the relief of music to mesmerising and charged effect. And that is timeless.
8mo
100
This is an exceptionally compelling, absorbing, rich, and genuinely human piece of work.
8mo
100
As well as being his most reflective album, it’s also Kiwanuka’s most hopeful.
8mo
100
The soulful singer’s third LP is timeless and contemporary at the same time, with shades of everything from What’s Going On to Screamadelica.
8mo
100
This is both urgent and immediate for the moment, but timelessly classic at the same time—it is triumphant.
5mo
90
Kiwanuka is therapeutic for all parties involved. It's honest, psychedelic, enlightening and recalls blackness defined by acoustic folk and the organic soul of past artists like Gil Scott-Heron, Bobby Womack and Otis Redding.
8mo
90
Blending a range of influences, sounds and themes to ensure a creative and compelling end result, this is one of the very finest recent R&B records, blending the personal, political, and pure to dazzling effect.
8mo
90
Kiwanuka is loaded with memorable songs, but the best way to experience them is by listening to the album from start to finish.
8mo
90
You will be inspired by his respectful, authentic and memorable nod to his old soul idols (from Gil Scott-Heron to Bobby Womack) but most importantly you are likely to be inspired to follow his new found courage on self-belief.
8mo
90
KIWANUKA doesn’t waste a single one of its 51 minutes, and seems destined to receive the same sort of acclaim as its predecessor.
8mo
90
Michael Kiwanuka has undoubtedly created a timeless album, one made with impressive confidence.
8mo
85
KIWANUKA is a breathtaking retro-futuristic hybrid of funk, soul, rock and folk that somehow exists in all of the past 50 years at once. It’s a tumultuous record, at once confessional and restive, and shot through with a quiet anguish.
8mo
85
The album even manages to feel shorter than it is, as Kiwanuka efficiently communicates a complex emotional arc with ease and assurance, reflecting the statement of fact and headlong gaze present on Kiwanuka’s cover.
5mo
80
Packed with vibrating soul and lush textures, it’s a recipe everyone will be looking to copy but no-one will be able to master like the man himself.
8mo
80
This isn’t as immediately powerful or riveting as Love & Hate. But the multifaceted material, along with the pioneering, organic and often offbeat production, grows on you.
8mo
80
The record is an introspective mix of psychey soul, blues, rock and funk, which skips and strolls and swaggers through its 13 tracks – but it is not simply an exercise in nostalgia.
8mo
80
As fine as Love & Hate was -- worthy of all its accolades -- Kiwanuka stands head and shoulders above it as a complex, communicative, poetic, and sometimes even profound collection that wears its heart on its sleeve and its sophistication in its grooves.
8mo
80
Kiwanuka could very well be one of the best albums of 2019. But Kiwanuka is also a beautiful, deep place that feels like it will be worth visiting, not just in the last month of this year, but throughout a listener's lifetime.
8mo
80
At times, it doesn’t all come together quite as well as we would hope, but Kiwanuka continues to push the boundaries of the retro-soul sound and the strong moments on Kiwanuka hit hard.
7mo
75
The London singer-songwriter's Danger Mouse and Inflo-produced latest feels like an easy listen at first, but eventually reveals its mournful and even despairing heart.
8mo
75
Evidently, the singer/songwriter's abilities have matured at an incredible pace since his first and second efforts.
8mo
75
What it lacks in immediacy, Kiwanuka more than makes up for in sheer declarative artistry.
8mo
70
His third offering is his most fully-formed work, a meditative, expansive collection of synth-psych, blues-rock, stately folk that amounts to an early-career opus for the 32 year-old singer-songwriter.
8mo
70
Head-scratching interludes notwithstanding, Michael Kiwanuka's latest album is his boldest yet.
8mo
60
Kiwanuka is equal to the challenge, combining Kiwanuka’s Stateside-facing retro soul with broader, occasionally more Afrocentric influences.
8mo
"Final days on the planet
Here we are, on the ground
Every day, automatic
Here we are, goin’ ’round and ’round and ‘round"
It is perhaps the most awaited album of the end of the year, the record of the Englishman Michael Kiwanuka, often compared to Marvin Gaye or Curtis Mayfield, who perfectly combines velvet voice, modern soul and demanding message. A real star in the making, with a disarming modesty.
Michael Kiwanuka, 30 years old, has already been heard ... read more
Here we are, on the ground
Every day, automatic
Here we are, goin’ ’round and ’round and ‘round"
It is perhaps the most awaited album of the end of the year, the record of the Englishman Michael Kiwanuka, often compared to Marvin Gaye or Curtis Mayfield, who perfectly combines velvet voice, modern soul and demanding message. A real star in the making, with a disarming modesty.
Michael Kiwanuka, 30 years old, has already been heard ... read more
"Kiwanuka" is a soulful little soul gem that souls the soul until your soul souls and you can't sell your soul. The production from Danger Mouse (whenever I see him credited I get hella horny) is beautiful and the instrumental pallet is simply immaculate. Meanwhile, Kiwanuka's vocals tenderly penetrate the ears and the lyrics, while slightly cliche, provide plenty of emotional depth.
Why is this review so aroused? Help me.
Fav Tracks: Piano Joint (This Kind Of Love), Solid Ground, ... read more
Why is this review so aroused? Help me.
Fav Tracks: Piano Joint (This Kind Of Love), Solid Ground, ... read more
Great
The latest from Michael Kiwanuka stretches time and space to tell the tales of a man trapped in his own head, only able to process his emotions through beautiful, soulful chord progressions and an earnest, yet gentle vocal performance.
Color: Orange
FAV TRACKS: Solid Ground, Light, I’ve Been Dazed, Hero, Piano Joint (This Kind of Love), Living In Denial, Final Days, You Ain’t the Problem, Rolling, Hero - Intro, Piano Joint (This Kind of Love) - Intro,
LEAST FAV: Interlude ... read more
The latest from Michael Kiwanuka stretches time and space to tell the tales of a man trapped in his own head, only able to process his emotions through beautiful, soulful chord progressions and an earnest, yet gentle vocal performance.
Color: Orange
FAV TRACKS: Solid Ground, Light, I’ve Been Dazed, Hero, Piano Joint (This Kind of Love), Living In Denial, Final Days, You Ain’t the Problem, Rolling, Hero - Intro, Piano Joint (This Kind of Love) - Intro,
LEAST FAV: Interlude ... read more
Pointless introduction: Michael Kiwanuka is one of my favourite artists, I stayed up for the midnight release. The title of the album is a jab at critics who think he should change his stage name to be easier to remember/pronounce.
Highlights include:
*Seamless transmission between 'Rolling' and 'I've Been Dazed'. IBD is a great song as well.
*Intro to 'Piano Joint'. I'm really into this sort of sound at the moment.
*Synthy bit in 'Another Human Being'
*How cool I feel listening to ... read more
Highlights include:
*Seamless transmission between 'Rolling' and 'I've Been Dazed'. IBD is a great song as well.
*Intro to 'Piano Joint'. I'm really into this sort of sound at the moment.
*Synthy bit in 'Another Human Being'
*How cool I feel listening to ... read more
Kiwanuka bring us another fine album and i’m not surprised with this level of quality because his old stuff is gold too. the lyrics are all about black excellence, vulnerability and the sonority is like... future psychedelic soul mixed with singer/songwriter?? the production here is clearly a standout and fit Kiwanuka's vocals really well. even if it’s my least favorite album he released, this is a solid soul record
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Year End Lists
| #1 | / | Magnet |
| #2 | / | God Is In The TV |
| #2 | / | Good Morning America |
| #2 | / | Q Magazine |
| #3 | / | BBC Radio 6 Music |
| #4 | / | Chicago Tribune: Greg Kot |
| #4 | / | musicOMH |
| #5 | / | Gigwise |
| #5 | / | OOR |
| #6 | / | Albumism |
More Lists
Track List
- You Ain't the Problem
- Rolling
- I've Been Dazed
- Piano Joint (This Kind of Love)
- Piano Joint (This Kind of Love)
- Another Human Being
- Living In Denial
- Hero
- Hero
- Hard to Say Goodbye
- Final Days
- Interlude (Loving the People)
- Solid Ground
- Light
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Added on: August 14, 2019