Goat Girl - On All Fours
Critic Score
Based on 29 reviews
2021 Ratings: #189 / 753
User Score
Based on 392 ratings
2021 Rank: #651
Liked by 36 people
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CRITIC REVIEWS

100
Dork

Second effort ‘On All Fours’ instantly feels like a stronger brew. More expressive and never playing safe.

100
DIY

The band sound more unified than ever, able to spin strange sonic tales all the better as a result. A triumph.

90
Gigwise

It’s a well ripened sequel to a discerning debut, packed out with a careering unpredictability that demands to be heard when it would be easier not to listen.

90
Northern Transmissions

On All Fours proves Goat Girl can easily transcend any pigeonholing that may be thrust upon them. It’s an assured outing and one that will prove to be one of the more special records we will hear this year.

90
Crack Magazine

This is Goat Girl doing what they do best – emphasising, experimenting and expanding their musical horizons. Consider those expectations fulfilled.

88
Still Listening

Though On All Fours is a little less rough around the edges than their previous feat, it demonstrates the exploratory and high-spirited nature of the band’s essence.

80
Under the Radar

On All Fours is the sound of a young band willing to take risks and expand their sonic palette and whilst it sounds less confrontational than their debut it’s every bit as innovative and compelling.

80
XS Noize

The brilliance of On All Fours is how multifaceted it is musically.

80
The Forty-Five

‘On All Fours’ doesn’t totally rewrite the book, but there’s a new concision to Goat Girl’s sound, an urgency that stems from personal as well as global upheaval.

80
Record Collector

It seems appropriate to start 2021 with a record that captures the anxious energy of not knowing exactly what’s coming next.

80
Upset

While it may not be as immediate and in-your-face as the debut, 'On All Fours' is a record that hits harder and holds infinitely more weight behind it.

80
PopMatters

What we have on Goat Girl's On All Fours are some hazy but deeply unsettling observations, carried along effortlessly on a bed of delirious voices, sailing over music quieter, slicker, and tighter than that on their debut.

80
AllMusic

Both nervier and more confident than their debut, On All Fours is a huge step forward from a band that's well-equipped to bring post-punk's legacy into the future.

80
The Independent

On All Fours is undoubtedly an intense listen, with its blistering harmonies and Pendlebury’s low murmur.

80
NME

Though its title suggests burning out and giving up entirely, ‘On All Fours’ winds up channeling this helplessness into something vaguely hopeful and more experimental.

80
Mojo

On All Fours exists in a queasy, half- awake state that feels like it could slip into a nightmare at any moment.

80
Uncut

Taken as a whole, On All Fours is an impressive balancing act, creating something fresh from the group’s diverse influences, and managing to remain subversive even while it embraces Technicolor production techniques.

80
Clash

This is proper modern pop music: fierce and intelligent in its explorations, defiant and cool in its tone. Wondrous.

80
Paste

Londoners have kept the spirit of their previous lyrics, concentrating on issues like climate change and mental health, but On All Fours proves more challenging and, ultimately, rewarding than the immediacy of songs on their debut.

77
Spectrum Culture

Three years after their self-titled debut, London four-piece Goat Girl come back from illness and political upheaval and replace their easy-going vibe with a fearlessness to let their music and muses take them, and us, wherever they want.

71
Pitchfork
Equipped with whirlpooling guitars and a newfound supply of silvery electronics, the South London band chronicles anxiety and ennui in songs full of spine-tingling dissonance.
70
musicOMH

This is a good, and sometimes great album, that feels like it’s a few tracks short of being a masterpiece.

70
Loud and Quiet

On All Fours feels like a transitional record, but in the best sense of that term. This band’s possibilities remain wide open.

70
Rolling Stone

Goat Girl’s second album evokes the dreamier side of post-punk ... Listening to On All Fours is like wandering in a cool thrift shop.

70
No Ripcord

On All Fours is by turns more sinister but with a more danceable melodic sensibility outside the edges.

60
God Is in the TV

Given how good over half of On All Fours is, it is nuts that so much of the backend of the album was even published.  Despite this, it has a higher proportion of highs than lows.

60
The Observer

Some of this magnificently sullen band’s edges have been filed down; their strides into left field could have been more decisive.

40
The Arts Desk

Goat Girl remain a band who are interesting idea but who seem to be incapable of actually bringing that idea to an attention-grabbing and exciting fruition.

Houdanny
59

The psychedelic post-punk sound on display here leads to some great moments, but as a cohesive project it does leave a lot to be desired, as there are a lot of disjointed aspects to this album sadly.

Standout: Sad Cowboy

favs: Bang, Badibaba, P.t.s.Tea, Jazz(In the supermarket)
Least fav: The Crack

Music_Nerds
78

Upon my first couple of listens I found this a little soupy and muddled even for psychedelia and couldn’t get a good read on things, I’m glad that I remained patient.

The grunge-like approach at the start ‘Pest’ sets you up for the expectation of something more like ‘Porridge Radio’, but underneath some edm flurries around with synth textures buried another layer below that, and while ‘Sorry’ may have overreached on their ambitious latest EP ... read more

Cordavision
70

Starts off in a sprint, but kinda slows down by the end. This feels like one leg was cut off of this animal. Still good album, though.

kaimasonnn
77

nice, goes off a bit but the bulk is good

66

Nice

th_initiator
63

▲ = Pest, Sad Cowboy, The Crack, They Bite on You
▬ = Badibaba, Jazz, Once Again, P.T.S.Tea, Closing In, Anxiety Feels, Bang, Where Do We Go, A-Men
▼ =

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Track List

1Pest
4:02
66
2Badibaba
4:11
71
3Jazz (In the Supermarket)
4:34
64
4Once Again
4:16
68
5P.T.S.Tea
3:43
59
6Sad Cowboy
5:17
76
7The Crack
3:12
65
8Closing In
3:35
67
9Anxiety Feels
3:39
66
10They Bite on You
3:43
68
11Bang
4:27
68
12Where Do We Go?
4:14
73
13A-Men
5:33
76
Total Length: 54 minutes
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Added on: September 30, 2020