Phase Zero

Critic Score
Based on 13 reviews
2016 Ratings: #801 / 1030
User Score
Based on 53 ratings
August 26, 2016 / Release Date
LP / Format
Sub Pop / Label
Full Credits
Sign In to rate and review

Critic Reviews

80
AllMusic

A nice step forward from his already close to perfect debut and his sound is now filled with even more summer warmth and psychedelic wonder.

70
The 405

Morgan Delt's Phase Zero navigates that thin line between rêverie and acid trip, drawing an accepted state of temporary and discreet insanity.

70
Loud and Quiet

The intricacies from his previous efforts have not been lost altogether mind, and it might be the case that ‘Phase Zero’ is an album that grows on you over time and a number of listens.

68
Pitchfork

He’s jettisoned that strangeness, and in its place is a more well-realized psych-pop album, with perhaps better songwriting but less charm.

60
Drowned in Sound

Phase Zero really isn't bad, but in a year that's given us sterling releases from the likes of Amber Arcades, Fews, Money, Desert Mountain Tribe and Minor Victories among countless others, it just feels fairly run of the mill by comparison.

60
The Skinny

It’s not that Phase Zero is an exercise in pastiche or imitation; this is a record in which appeal pivots upon understatement.

liamanthony
92

Could see myself raising this rating again. This is everything I love about modern psychedelic music.

BARLOWH8SPOSERS
100

I've never given this a proper review but here we are. In my opinion, its one of the best and most slept on psychedelic records of the 2010s. Morgan Delt has this way of making you feel entranced with every track he offers up on this LP. He can take it slow and make you feel like you're actually melting, or pick up the pace and make you listen . Its become my comfort album over the years and I legit relisten to this every other week. Its fantastic and i implore you to give it a go!

100

While perhaps a bit uneven in terms of accessibility, this is truly one of the great psychedelic albums of the 2010s.

Take for example 'The System of 1000 Lies' Here Delt entertains the darker/paranoid side of psychedelia. The eastern tinged melodies impress upon the listener the alluring captivity of post-industrial capitalism, which markets wealth and freedom of choice at its subjects, with a slavish penalty.

'Another Person' captures another trademark quality of psychedelia: ... read more

More popular reviews
Purchasing Phase Zero from Amazon helps support Album of the Year. Or consider a donation?

April Playlist