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CRITIC REVIEWS
90
After an eight year sabbatical, Darkside have crafted another towering, electronically-infused psychedelic masterpiece. It's a wet dream for mood music aficionados, providing a lavish backdrop for moments of deep thought, somber reflection, or even romantic inclination.
90
Spiral is a soothing balm to nourish and recalibrate all the trauma since the last party ended. More simply, it's a campfire jam session for the apocalypse.
90
That’s exactly what Spiral is: an alchemical concoction of beats, textures, sonic flourishes, and melodies that sound like they were recorded in a world that had no precedent.
90
Harrington and Jaar’s shared longing to propel DARKSIDE forward via more absorbable vocal lines and tantalizing bass grooves is what makes Spiral so admirable. The two could have easily made Psychic 2.0 for a new decade. Instead, they embodied a freeing abandon that birthed an organic, refreshing slow burner of an album, heavy on progressive groove and light on nostalgia.
86
Breaking it down into its composite parts is missing the point – Spiral is an album to experience as a whole, to be swallowed in and transported by.
82
On Spiral, DARKSIDE push their limits while honing the distinctive sound that made the project so singular to begin with.
80
‘Spiral’ is a gorgeous, often filmic listen that rewards with each spin. Most importantly, Jaar’s enhanced vocal role gives a new voice to troubling themes previously suggested in the stirring moods of Darkside’s music. Eight years was worth the wait.
80
What Spiral achieves is no small feat; too much modern psychedelic rock crumbles into disposable pastiche under scrutiny. Jaar and Harrington have made an album that, despite its familiar foundation, is guided by their desire for invention and exploration.
80
Nicolas Jaar and Dave Harrington’s leftfield electronic duo returns with a tremendous LP of varied, complex, yet ultimately soothing psychedelia.
80
There’s a hallucinatory, almost shamanic energy to Spiral, whether on the choral harmonies of opener Narrow Road, the twang of the sitar on I’m The Echo or the chime of the bell in third single Lawmaker.
80
The creatively uninhibited nature of the project meant growth was inevitable between Darkside's debut and their second album, but Spiral's patient approach and controlled subtleties make the album remarkably easy to digest for how much is going on at any given point.
80
Nicolás Jaar and Dave Harrington present a masterclass in the art of precision and withholding with their second Darkside album.
80
Whatever shape Spiral takes, the result is sublime.
80
Spiral is similarly free-standing, forging together Jaar’s trademark austere minimalism and penchant for avant garde abstractions with 70s prog, folk and blues guitar. Yet Spiral is significantly more digestible than its predecessor.
80
Despite the loose, in-the-moment approach, Spiral flows incredibly well. Darkside perform the high-wire act of making everything feel spontaneous and meticulously planned at the same time.
80
A mellow and laidback album which gives off similar vibes as Air and John Martyn might, if they’d ever gone into the studio together.
70
Though not everything here works, Spiral remains consistently intriguing throughout.
70
Despite striving for variety and subtleties within their arsenal of writing, something here still doesn’t quite click. The vexing issue being that as a whole, Spiral feels tiresome, fractured – even unfocused at times.
70
Nicolas Jaar and Dave Harrington break their hiatus with a sound that's a bit more rockin'.
68
Nicolás Jaar and Dave Harrington return with a meticulous work of unexpected and even unprecedented familiarity—less a portal than a kiosk existing entirely within the boundaries set by their 2013 debut.
60
While Nicolas Jaar and Dave Harrington assemble an array of mesmerizing sounds on Darkside’s Spiral, a larger vision eludes them.
60
The elements of Spiral are provocative, exhilarating, and tasteful. However, they don’t consistently cohere to form cogent gestalts or, again, diverge to the point of achieving a process akin to free improvisation.
Pink Floyd had a makeover and got a new singer... and it's good
Really though, this is a pretty solid record. I don't think it's as absolutely mind blowing as it sets out to be, but I still enjoy it a lot. The production is superb, with the guitar adding a ton of punch when it comes in. The vocals are pretty nice, and the writing is definitely interesting. Only Young is a great closer with the flow of the track moving very well. Liberty Bell is also another standout, along with Lawmaker and ... read more
Every day I get more jealous of how talented Nicolas Jaar is, like how did he not only make two of my fav electronic albums under A.A.L, but also some of my fav ambient pieces under his own name, and also now discovering this more neo-psychedelic influenced side project? That’s also really good???
Tracklist:
Favourite: The Limit
Worst: Spiral
1. Narrow Road - 8
2. The Limit - 10
3. The Question Is To See It All - 8
4. Lawmaker - 9.5
5. I'm the Echo - 9
6. Spiral - 6
7. Liberty Bell - 10
8. Inside Is Out There - 8
9. Only Young - 8
Average: 8.5
Quick Comment: Quite a unique sound produced, a complex one that felt like it produced so many emotions through the instrumental but also the vocals had a big part. Definitely recommend listening to it!
definitely interesting musically, but doesn't always do much for me. some great songs, along with long passages of very little, which means it can't keep my interest. pleasant background music, i guess.
best track: "the limit"
The production is very angelic and warm, really melts into the background and does what it should. Despite this they very often bring random obscuring or abrasive elements to their sound which mixes things up and makes each track more then just background ambience. Throw it on when you're studying or somethin playboy.
Contributions By
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Track List
| 1 | Narrow Road 6:15 | 78 |
| 2 | The Limit 5:21 | 88 |
| 3 | The Question Is To See It All 5:08 | 76 |
| 4 | Lawmaker 5:49 | 84 |
| 5 | I'm the Echo 5:08 | 82 |
| 6 | Spiral 4:58 | 74 |
| 7 | Liberty Bell 4:02 | 86 |
| 8 | Inside Is Out There 8:36 | 77 |
| 9 | Only Young 6:30 | 81 |
Total Length: 51 minutes
Year End Lists
| #6 | / | Passion of the Weiss |
| #14 | / | KCRW |
| #21 | / | Piccadilly Records |
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1y
HOW the hell is this krautrock and art rock??????????? this if anything sounds electronic asf idk genres i guess lmfaooo but the krautrock tag almost sold me off it
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Added on: December 21, 2020