Ancient Dreams In A Modern Land

MARINA - Ancient Dreams In A Modern Land
Critic Score
Based on 18 reviews
2021 Ratings: #315 / 753
User Score
2021 Rank: #464
Liked by 202 people
Sign In to rate and review

CRITIC REVIEWS

100
The Irish Times

It’s an outrageous album; preposterous, attitude-laden, camp, romantic, strident, gorgeous, gutsy, opulent, girl-powered, arch, hammy, ridiculously tuneful, vocally slipping between operatic soprano and belligerent sass-mouth, every song a killer.

100
The Arts Desk

She has clearly rediscovered her muse, resulting in this outrageously enjoyable album.

100
Gigwise

There are few stars like MARINA who find the balance between being unfiltered in their politics while also creating top-tier, intricate pop music.

100
Albumism

For eleven years, Diamandis has allowed her muse to guide her wherever it may lead. Having closed any sort of divide between the two sides of her creative mind with Ancient Dreams In A Modern Land, she is currently acting with a new level of control and confidence over her songcraft. 

80
PopMatters

Marina re-embraces her inner strength and quite possibly creates her magnum opus with Ancient Dreams in a Modern Land.

80
AllMusic

Ancient Dreams is a quick dose of what makes Marina great: heartfelt honesty from a fellow misfit consistently pushing the boundaries of pop.

80
NME
She was always too interesting to fit into a cookie-cutter hitmaker mould, and here Marina Diamandis settles nicely into her own idiosyncratic groove.
80
Under the Radar

The first half of the album is intoxicating—it is danceable and full of fun energy. The second half of the album is all heartbreak and slow piano-filled ballads carried by Marina’s whimsical and hollowing vocals.

80
The Line of Best Fit

The result reads more like a follow-up to the personal Froot (2015) than it does the collaborative Love + Fear, and finds MARINA emboldening her trademark theatrical glam with sharper edges.

80
Clash

A 10-track wonder that is a more mature and eclectic take on her gloriously femme and thundering electro-pop.

70
The Forty-Five
Her fifth album, ‘Ancient Dreams In A Modern Land’, reasserts some of the wide-eyed delight of early Marina: the British artist who gushed onto the scene in 2010 replete with diamonds and a glistening soprano.
66
Pitchfork

The unmistakably dramatic pop singer seeks the divine feminine, embracing a bold yet soft aesthetic that’s more effective than some of her lyrics.

65
Spectrum Culture

While Ancient Dreams succeeds musically, uneven and sometimes heavy-handed lyrics drag the effort down.

60
musicOMH

If there’s anything the album lacks ... it’s some of the knowing playfulness of her previous work. It seems to be missing a slight spark that made Marina such a fun breath of fresh pop air. Maybe that’s the point though. These aren’t fun times, and Marina is here to deliver harsh truths.

60
Dork

The difference between her new material and the ‘Electra Heart’ and ‘The Family Jewels’ albums it sonically references is that ‘Ancient Dreams’ takes itself too seriously.

60
The Observer

Anti-misogyny manifesto pop could easily become clumsy and overwrought, but the joy Marina invests into her mannered, quasi-operatic delivery makes sedition sound seductive.

60
The Needle Drop

It's admirable that Marina tackles a number of weighty subject matters on Ancient Dreams; unfortunately, there's often not enough follow-through on the musical end.

50
RIOT
There are some really great moments, for sure, but along with the album’s distinct lack of hooks and catchy choruses that MARINA is usually known for, everything feels pretty elementary.
Musicnerdd
70

She looks like if lana del rey was actually a nice person

Doublez
68

Ancient Dreams In a Modern Land is not only a return to form for Marina, but on top of that it has surprised itself positively on several occasions. If we don't necessarily find the prowess of the beginnings, on the other hand we quickly forget Love+Fear.

We feel the Welsh singer-songwriter Marina reinvigorated, as some important things that were cruelly missing on her previous and disappointing album Love + Fear. First of all, this hint of madness, as well as this contagious energy as ... read more

Maqtheus
70

O quinto álbum de Marina a põe na posição de uma artista confiante e destemida.

sekedeluza
100

perfection

Artificial
70

Some of her best songs are in the first half of this album, but it does drag on after that.

thz
73

When I heard the first four songs of this album, I was in heaven and thought we were in for an entire pop rock Marina album, at which point I was ready to dish out a 10, then the second part hit, and I was a bit disappointed. Though no song on there is bad, I just think the first four showed a style she could be so good in, that the letdown of it being dropped in favour of slower ballads leads me to be perhaps quite biased against it. Venus Fly Trap is a top 3 Marina song without a doubt, and ... read more

Purchasing Ancient Dreams In A Modern Land from Amazon helps support Album of the Year. Or consider a donation?
Become a Donor
Donor badge, no ads + more benefits.
Advertisement

Year End Lists

#28/Albumism
#50/Slant Magazine
#107/RIFF
Sign in to comment
4d
3mo
1y
2y


Added on: April 14, 2021