25
by Adele
User Score
7.8

Generally favorable reviews- based on 1144 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 908 out of 1144
  2. Mixed: 88 out of 1144
  3. Negative: 148 out of 1144
Buy Now
Buy on

Review this album

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. BrushedRed
    Nov 22, 2015
    5
    It's not bad and not good. "Hello" sounded pretty samesy in comparison to her earlier work, and so my expectations were set to meh. This album has it's moments for sure, and as a whole it's ultimately pretty but dull, with many songs staying past their welcome. Her voice is beautiful, but there are only so many pop ballads a human can take.
  2. the_other_Lynch
    Nov 20, 2015
    6
    The album strength is within its single "Hello." Many of the b-sides on this album don't deliver that same punch that the song on 21 did. There are positives to pull out like the writing of Max Martin and Tobias Jesso Jr, but 25 sounds like its going along the same blueprint that 21 did before and it just comes of as bland.
  3. Anje
    Nov 22, 2015
    5
    Very overrated. Some beautiful music but lyrically many are repetitive and banal. Brilliant voice but that does not equate to much if the songs are blah. If not for 21, this would not be popular. She is incredibly likeable and talented but half the album is filler. She needs to release instrumentals.
  4. SadGirl
    Nov 20, 2015
    5
    After 21, which had great singles and nice album tracks and four year of expectation, Adele releases a very underwhelming album. Hello was good, not as good as 21 's singles but a solid track. Except Hello I can only point two more good tracks, Water Under The Bridge and I Miss You.
  5. lydyanah
    Dec 10, 2015
    6
    Adele follows making beautiful music, but the album isn't better than the previous album 21, doesn't bring great innovations. Send my love, River Lea and Water Under the Bridge are the highlights.
  6. joethealien
    Oct 6, 2017
    5
    so 21 was totally a quintessential breakup record. 19 was a solid debut filled with folksy and bluesy endeavours, Daydreamer and Melt My Heart to Stone being notable cuts. here, however, there's no progression.
    Adele is frequently compared to some of the greats, the late Amy Winehouse being one. Amy's musicality, lyricism and especially her voice grew into their own with the release of    so 21 was totally a quintessential breakup record. 19 was a solid debut filled with folksy and bluesy endeavours, Daydreamer and Melt My Heart to Stone being notable cuts. here, however, there's no progression.
    Adele is frequently compared to some of the greats, the late Amy Winehouse being one. Amy's musicality, lyricism and especially her voice grew into their own with the release of her timeless Back to Black record, leaving the United Kingdom eager to crank out a 60s-inspired soul revival. Adele's is undoubtedly one of the strongest voices of her mainstream pop generation, up there with Beyoncé's and Ariana's. Adele skyrocketed into the mainstream with her single "Rolling in the Deep," which is now rightfully placed on many a greatest songs of all time list. but nothing else in Adele's catalogue has anything even close to the robustness that RitD possesses.
    25 has a few standouts, such as the striking, sultry, Beyoncé 4-era slow jam I Miss You and the glittering, emotive ballad Remedy, which plays a lot like a better version of Adele's own Turning Tables.
    if Adele went into a more cinematic direction in the vein of the fierceness of I Miss You, maybe this record would stand out more in the current pop landscape. alas, the rest of this album gets gloopy and too over-sentimental. the blues edge of 19 is nowhere to be found and the soul power of 21 is quickly dulling. I know Adele has immense vocal talent, and some pretty good songwriting chops, but she is an artist who truly needs time to translate her strength into her lyrics, instead of rushing an entire era whose first two singles possess nearly identical structures and instrumentations. I hope her next album is more diverse and inventive, and I hope its far more meaningful.    … Expand
  7. Eran
    Nov 20, 2015
    6
    It must be very difficult to release a new album when your previous release was arguably the one of the most influential albums of the the decade. Part of 21's success was its ability to introduce mature, indie pop to a mainstream audience. 25 has a similar approach, but the result is more uneven. Hello was a mediocre first single; thankfully there are much stronger tracks like I Miss You,It must be very difficult to release a new album when your previous release was arguably the one of the most influential albums of the the decade. Part of 21's success was its ability to introduce mature, indie pop to a mainstream audience. 25 has a similar approach, but the result is more uneven. Hello was a mediocre first single; thankfully there are much stronger tracks like I Miss You, River Lea and Water Under the Bridge. There are also bold efforts that backfire, such as Send My Love which sounds more like a Fergie song from 2006. The rest are ballads that show Adele's vocal abilities, yet most sound very dated. 25 will most definitely be a big hit. Yet time will tell whether the album is considered to be a classic.… Expand
  8. condythug
    Nov 22, 2015
    6
    very average album which is a far cry from her previous albums. seems like Adele is going through the motions for most of the songs and few of the songs will be remembered after a week. the only semi-decent song was "Hello"; the rest of the album are just filler and not worth the money.

    clearly Adele needs to settle down from raising her children and decide to focus fully on writing    very average album which is a far cry from her previous albums. seems like Adele is going through the motions for most of the songs and few of the songs will be remembered after a week. the only semi-decent song was "Hello"; the rest of the album are just filler and not worth the money.

    clearly Adele needs to settle down from raising her children and decide to focus fully on writing great songs if she don't want to be seen as a singer living on past glories. this album will burn off most of the goodwill from her previous albums and set records, but the album after this won't do as well anymore if she don't get her high standards back.    … Expand
  9. paulwilsonlogic
    May 6, 2016
    5
    In contrast what most people say, 25 is far away from what 21 was. After almost four years of absence, I was really expectant with Adele's third album. 21 changed my life and thanks to that record, I became a lover of soul music. I was so obsessed with that amazing golden soulful voice. But with a huge sadness in my heart, this is not what I was waiting for and I can guess why: Adele'sIn contrast what most people say, 25 is far away from what 21 was. After almost four years of absence, I was really expectant with Adele's third album. 21 changed my life and thanks to that record, I became a lover of soul music. I was so obsessed with that amazing golden soulful voice. But with a huge sadness in my heart, this is not what I was waiting for and I can guess why: Adele's lack of inspiration. 21 was a fruit of a an enormous break-up relationship and most of us could feel it in Adele's song lyrics. It seems that no song could overcome the inmortal "Someone Like You" and the raving amazing bluesy tone of "Rolling In The Deep". But the most regrettable thing is that Adele hid her soul in 25. Southern blues influence is not anymore. I can't even imagine that Adele's inspirations were Madonna and Taylor Swift for 25. Whaaat was that??. In conclusion, 25 is a simple forced-to-make pop record.… Expand
  10. Jiano74
    Jan 24, 2016
    5
    I am really torn on this album it isn't something I normally listen to but I didn't hate it but at the same time I don't think it quite lived up to all the hype it got. Sorry this review won't be much help all I can say is give it a listen and judge for yourself.
  11. longjetty7
    Jun 24, 2016
    5
    You'd think that Adele, after selling millions of albums and reaching superstardom, and taking 4 years to write her next album, would come up with something a little more interesting than this. It's all very safe, very dull, very forgettable, and ultimately, very disappointing. There are some good tracks on here (Hello, I Miss You, When We Were Young), but the album is heavily front-loadedYou'd think that Adele, after selling millions of albums and reaching superstardom, and taking 4 years to write her next album, would come up with something a little more interesting than this. It's all very safe, very dull, very forgettable, and ultimately, very disappointing. There are some good tracks on here (Hello, I Miss You, When We Were Young), but the album is heavily front-loaded and loses steam on the back half, which is essentially all ballads. Also, I know pretty much everyone thinks Adele is an amazing vocalist, and I don't necessarily disagree, but she has a tendency to wail, and hearing track after track of her just belting it out gets exhausting.… Expand
  12. spongeswift
    Nov 11, 2017
    6
    25 reminds us that you can't stick to the same sound and expect it to work. 25 is 21's younger more sloppy sister. It has a few good songs but it is just not her best record. It is average for a pop/soul album. A few slow songs that have meh lyrics that are masked with good long high notes and quicker songs that are more radio friendly. What I'm trying to say here is that Adele never lost25 reminds us that you can't stick to the same sound and expect it to work. 25 is 21's younger more sloppy sister. It has a few good songs but it is just not her best record. It is average for a pop/soul album. A few slow songs that have meh lyrics that are masked with good long high notes and quicker songs that are more radio friendly. What I'm trying to say here is that Adele never lost her magic though. She piggybacked off of the support from 21 and made an underwhelming sequel to it.… Expand
  13. wildheart
    Nov 27, 2015
    6
    On "25", Adele keeps the sounds that made the success of "21" but adds to it a certain modernity. "Hello" is a perfect heartbreaking radio ballad, the Max Martin-produced track "Send My Love (To Your New Lover)" and "Water Under The Bridge" (prod by the always suprising Ariel Reichtshaid) are the uplifting pop songs of the album, while "River Lea" and "I Miss You" are the dark soulfulOn "25", Adele keeps the sounds that made the success of "21" but adds to it a certain modernity. "Hello" is a perfect heartbreaking radio ballad, the Max Martin-produced track "Send My Love (To Your New Lover)" and "Water Under The Bridge" (prod by the always suprising Ariel Reichtshaid) are the uplifting pop songs of the album, while "River Lea" and "I Miss You" are the dark soulful melodies you'd expect from Adele, with a more complex production than on "21".
    Adele isn't trying to make a departure from her old music on her third album but just offers what made us fall in love with her and her music in the first place : an endless honesty and an emotional record.    … Expand
  14. timeless99
    Jan 31, 2016
    6
    The great song on the album is Hello and many send my love to your lover. The rest of the album is mee ..21 was clearly her peak. She will sell a lot of 25 because 21 but not because 25 is great album,..I hope her next album is little bit more innovative than this.
  15. gabrielfobia
    Sep 10, 2016
    6
    I feel conflicted with this album, while it has some great different songs like River Lea and Send My Love (To Your New Lover), the rest is just that same-thing drama with the high notes.
  16. selinap
    Sep 4, 2016
    5
    The first Adele album I listened to was 21 and it was so good that I wanted to listen to all her other projects so I found 19. After listening to 19, I realized I like that much better than 21 because it just got to me in a way 21 could not. All that said, I was really looking forward to her new project and when 25 was announced I was so happy. Dont get me wrong, its a nice enough CD butThe first Adele album I listened to was 21 and it was so good that I wanted to listen to all her other projects so I found 19. After listening to 19, I realized I like that much better than 21 because it just got to me in a way 21 could not. All that said, I was really looking forward to her new project and when 25 was announced I was so happy. Dont get me wrong, its a nice enough CD but I feel like we are going backwards. 21 was way better than 25 and 19 was way better than 21. It should be the other way round but alas! its not.
    It could be because when she was 19, the story and heartbreak was still fresh so trying to tell the story twice more didnt have the same effect.    … Expand
  17. cloud47
    Feb 14, 2017
    5
    Disappointed, not better than average,Well it's not good enough,She is the most overrated singer in history, humiliated to other hard-working singers
  18. All_ButTrU4
    Feb 11, 2022
    5
    Not much a change from her discography but still just as entertaining. The huge nostalgic "hello" is a great lead single as it provides a great summation of the record's sound. It's adele's delivery that takes the cake this time. Every song sounds catchy from the infectious "water under tge bridge " or the mournful "when we were young " she adds a few more favourites in a discographyNot much a change from her discography but still just as entertaining. The huge nostalgic "hello" is a great lead single as it provides a great summation of the record's sound. It's adele's delivery that takes the cake this time. Every song sounds catchy from the infectious "water under tge bridge " or the mournful "when we were young " she adds a few more favourites in a discography filled with them. Her lack of experiments do bog the album into mirror performances if past Lp's. It's a subtle easy listening you can return to despite not being changed by the experience.… Expand

Awards & Rankings

7
#7 Most Discussed Album of 2015
9
#9 Most Shared Album of 2015

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
75

Generally favorable reviews - based on 35 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 23 out of 35
  2. Mixed: 12 out of 35
  3. Negative: 0 out of 35
  1. Exclaim
    Nov 18, 2016
    70
    Singles "Hello" and "When We Were Young" remain highlights on the record, but aforementioned tracks like "Send My Love (To Your New Lover)," "I Miss You" and "Water Under the Bridge," not to mention "River Lea," hear Adele taking a welcome detour from the orchestral piano-pop formula and moving towards more interesting, groove-driven patterns.
    Read full review
  2. Under The Radar
    Dec 7, 2015
    80
    Throughout these towering production flourishes, Adele's vocals cast an even vaster shadow: swooping, swerving, blaring brassily and cooing tenderly, a full orchestra unto itself that's theatrical, unpredictable, and dynamic.
    Read full review
  3. NOW Magazine
    Dec 2, 2015
    40
    The songs are not so much about love as the memory of love and, accordingly, there's a chasm between her aggressive vocal runs and the cautiously generalist lyrics, especially on the maudlin latter half.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »