Are You Alone?
by Majical Cloudz
  • Record Label: Matador
  • Release Date: Oct 16, 2015
Metascore
80

Generally favorable reviews - based on 18 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 17 out of 18
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 18
  3. Negative: 0 out of 18
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  1. AllMusic
    Oct 16, 2015
    90
    It's an album of longing and disquiet. To call any of the songs wistful seems inadequate; they are engulfed in saudade.
  2. The 405
    Oct 14, 2015
    90
    The album is riddled with heart-rending affirmations of self-worth.
  3. Consequence
    Oct 14, 2015
    83
    Are You Alone?, as its title suggests, is an incredibly personal experience, one that benefits from conversing with Welsh as much as he is with you.
  5. Mojo
    Oct 27, 2015
    80
    The overriding tone recalls Lana Del Rey's gothic torch song elegies, albeit with far more economy and less overacting. [Dec 2015, p.93]
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  6. No Ripcord
    Oct 21, 2015
    80
    Are You Alone? only reveals itself more dependent upon the listeners’ own experiences, and since we’re dealing with heartbreak here, its potent message will never cease.
  7. DIY Magazine
    Oct 16, 2015
    80
    A listen that encourages looking inwards and coming to the kind of realisations Welsh himself has poured into the album, a record it’s impossible not to be swept up by.
  8. Pitchfork
    Oct 15, 2015
    80
    Alone is less stripped-down than Impersonator, but it feels less confrontational, too.
  9. The Guardian
    Oct 15, 2015
    80
    The overall effect is of a bow-tied cabaret crooner singing to no one: awkwardly intense but, if you steal a glance, completely beguiling.
  10. Exclaim
    Oct 15, 2015
    80
    On Are You Alone?, Majical Cloudz are at the height of their powers, opening themselves up fully and inviting the listener in. They sound obsessed, and "okay" be damned--it feels just right
  11. NOW Magazine
    Oct 14, 2015
    80
    Listening is like slowly sinking into a warm bath, then gradually adding rose petals, bubbles, arsenic. But Majical Cloudz never let you drown.
  12. Spin
    Oct 14, 2015
    80
    This album should be met on its own terms; it’s willing to do the same for you.
  13. The Line of Best Fit
    Oct 14, 2015
    80
    Majical Cloudz have created a series of crystalline pop songs, which are emotionally direct and powerful; and will surely create a whole new set of subjective responses.
  14. Under The Radar
    Oct 14, 2015
    80
    Are You Alone? extends some of the same sounds of Magical Cloudz's debut album, Impersonator, but the music seems stretched and more expansive.
  15. Drowned In Sound
    Oct 14, 2015
    80
    If you're not interested in music that makes you feel reflective then perhaps steer clear, otherwise this is a stark, brutally honest exploration of the human psyche that is indeed special.
  16. Billboard.com
    Oct 16, 2015
    70
    It’s evocative and vivid, recalling early Red House Painters, or even The Blue Nile.
  17. Rolling Stone
    Oct 15, 2015
    70
    Taking the voice-and-electronics minimalism of the group's 2013 breakthrough, Impersonator, and stripping it back even further, leaving the vocals alone for a more unmediated delivery. It's an improvement: Welsh has a potent voice.... Bandmate Matthew Otto's shimmering backdrops, meanwhile, have only become more tuneful and inviting.
  18. Pretty Much Amazing
    Oct 20, 2015
    67
    There are so many moments when the music seems on the verge of exploding, but never does, and that’s ultimately to the album’s detriment.
  19. Uncut
    Oct 27, 2015
    50
    Are You Alone? hints at a Blue Nile-like melancholy beauty; otherwise the album could be prescribed as a treatment for insomnia. [Dec 2015, p.74]
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Awards & Rankings

13
#13 Most Shared Album of 2015

User Reviews

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User Score
7.4

Generally favorable reviews- based on 27 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 22 out of 27
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 27
  3. Negative: 3 out of 27
  1. vapid
    Oct 18, 2015
    9
    An emotionally charged album that manages to balance somber introspection with an embracing sense of warmth. There is enough weight in theAn emotionally charged album that manages to balance somber introspection with an embracing sense of warmth. There is enough weight in the writing and wide sweeping synthetic instruments to avoid sounding airy or softening impact. Like their debut album, Majical Cloudz's minimalism is effective as a method, far beyond novelty or accident. Are You Alone? is a near-perfect refinement of a unique and genuine sound.… Full Review »
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