Obsidian

Baths - Obsidian
Critic Score
Based on 26 reviews
2013 Ratings: #269 / 1115
User Score
Based on 289 ratings
2013 Rank: #167
Liked by 23 people
May 28, 2013 / Release Date
LP / Format
Anticon / Label
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CRITIC REVIEWS

90
Exclaim!

On his debut release, Will Wiesenfeld hadn't fully found himself, but on Obsidian, the L.A. musician delivers a much more cohesive vision.

90
AllMusic

Obsidian could have easily been too indulgent or morose, but instead it's soul-baring in ways that feel fresh.

90
FACT Magazine

By blending the conceptual drive of Post-Foetus and the organic songwriting of Baths, Wiesenfeld has delivered on the promise of Cerulean and found his place among contemporaneous pop experimenters like Grimes and Autre Ne Veut.

86
Pitchfork

While Obsidian maintains some aspects of Cerulean, namely, its lap-pop intimacy and Wiesenfeld's unsteady, quavering vocals, the shock is in hearing him make a complete heel turn, fearlessly operating like someone absolved of personal repercussion or culpability

85
The 405

Obsidian is the exactly the type of record a Baths fan should be excited for: something simultaneously original, brave, and exciting to listen to over and over again.

83
Pretty Much Amazing

Ultimately, your mood as a listener – and perhaps the weather – will dictate how often you’ll return to Obsidian‘s bleak and beautiful world.

80
Slant Magazine

The sense of sardonic, self-deprecating whimsy is what ultimately allows Obsidian to triumph, forming a kind of triangle with the album's two other mainstays: lachrymose piano/string combinations and morphing, spiny undercurrents of electronic percussion.

80
The Skinny
Complex, challenging and incredibly rewarding.
80
Sputnikmusic

There’s a leisurely swagger about Obsidian, leading to a massive change in feel for Baths. There are no bells and whistles this time around, just barren landscapes and lyrics, lyrics, lyrics.

80
Clash

Despite the density of the music, ‘Obsidian’ is a wholly immersive experience, setting Baths back on course.

80
Mojo
His spark remains undimmed.
80
The Irish Times
Beyond the deep palette of sounds and Wiesenfeld’s instantly gratifying falsetto, Baths should be singled out as a young talent worth watching.
70
Uncut
The fatalistic and darkening Gothic moods bring out some of the shiniest elements of his prodigious talent and imagination.
70
The Line of Best Fit

There’s no denying the technical ability and songcraft is there, and unpicking the layers is the most enjoyable part of listening, but it’s emotional tugging ultimately strikes as hollow, not through insincerity but in being too obfuscated or overbearing for me to really love these songs. 

70
DIY

Baths’ second album is dark and distressing but ultimately compelling. It’s clear that this is the work of a fascinatingly subversive mind.

70
Consequence of Sound

Obsidian is a brave and necessary record that builds on Baths’ glitchy poignance.

70
PopMatters

Obsidian is the dark record it was billed as because it starts to ask its own uncomfortable questions. Love becomes more illusory when it stops getting quoted.

70
Drowned in Sound

For all the dark, depthless beauty of Wiesenfeld’s immaculately constructed record, its solidity feels too opaque. 

60
The Needle Drop
On Baths' latest full-length, Will Wiesenfeld flexes his singer-songwriter muscles over a group of beats that have a much poppier feel.
60
musicOMH

An album with independent parts that are quite inspired on their own but only form a seemingly infinitely confused whole.

60
Q Magazine
[Wiesenfeld has an] uncommon ear for texture and rhythm, albeit one compromised by a weakness for self-consciously introspective lyrics and highfalutin sixth form poetry.
40
No Ripcord

It is not out of disappointment with this darker direction that I am dissatisfied with Obsidian, but its misguided execution.

saucetester
79

I was never a huge fan of the vocals on this project but still absolutely love the instrumentals and production. Beautiful but soul crushing.

Highlights: Worsening, Miasma Sky, Ossuary, Phaedra, No Past Lives

Jonked
100

Words cannot describe the emotions and sensations that Baths' Obsidian brings to the table.

Obsidian is a terrifically dark album, which doesn't surprise me considering the circumstances of this album's background. It paints a dreadful and depressing picture of a very bleak world, but at the same time there's always this tone of hope in Wiesenfeld's lyrics. It's like he's hanging by an extremely short thread, but he never wants to fall down. That same tone sort of makes it possible for the ... read more

CollinClark
72

Baths - Obsidian (2013)

Worsening - 78
Miasma Sky - 83 ☆
Ironworks - 77
Ossuary - 80
Incompatible - 61
No Eyes - 53
Phaedra - 68
No Past Lives - 72
Earth Death - 81 ☆
Inter - 70

Standouts: Miasma Sky, Earth Death, Ossuary

Kajecollins
82

This was one of my favorites in high school. I was (am) very depressed.

saucetester
79

I was never a huge fan of the vocals on this project but still absolutely love the instrumentals and production. Beautiful but soul crushing.

Highlights: Worsening, Miasma Sky, Ossuary, Phaedra, No Past Lives

Deckard
79

This was like, a severely unexpected change after Baths' first album, going from cute ambient music to his emo era, but honestly it's a super refreshing change, this thing sounds absolutely sick.
TOP 3 SONGS: Earth Death, Phaedra, Miasma Sky

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Track List

1Worsening
4:26
92
2Miasma Sky
4:34
97
3Ironworks
4:40
96
4Ossuary
3:52
90
5Incompatible
4:40
92
6No Eyes
4:14
89
7Phaedra
4:52
87
8No Past Lives
3:40
86
9Earth Death
4:34
94
10Inter
3:50
89
Total Length: 43 minutes
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Added on: March 6, 2013