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- Critic score
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- By date
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Mar 5, 2012Delicate duets, bluegrass string strumming and some of the most genuinely emotive lyrics you'll hear all year combine to produce an album of rare and beautiful quality.
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MojoApr 25, 2012Two gorgeously restless, swarthy voices destined to be together. [May 2012, p.92]
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Mar 30, 2012A timeless, anachronistic record, Barton Hollow could be from 30 years ago, or it could be from 30 years hence.
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Mar 13, 2012It's a subtle collection of tracks that is surprisingly both intimate and ambitious at the same time.
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Mar 5, 2012It is a glossy thing that entwines her Californian folky yin around his Southern gothic yang.
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Mar 5, 2012Nashville-based duo Joy Williams and John Paul White have crafted a bewitching debut album of sparse, spectral Americana.
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Mar 1, 2012It's a deliciously understated album, acoustic and largely percussionless.
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Dec 20, 2011Those who don't like rootsy ballads are in for some slim pickings, since Barton Hollow shines its brightest whenever the tempos slow, the lights dim, and the voices rise up.
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Mar 21, 2011Sure, Barton Hollow's love-swept core and well-worn conventions might make it a tad limited, but for what it sets outs to accomplish, it succeeds with pitch-perfect elegance.
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Jan 31, 2011Barton Hollow may be a fictional location, but The Civil Wars' music gives it a voice and identity-one of mystery, mystique and beauty. War has never been so pleasant.
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UncutMar 13, 2012There's a passion and naturalism to these songs that make them worthy of the hubbub. [Apr 2012, p.75]
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Oct 27, 2011Sustained by romantic tension, they walk a strange line between being mesmerizing and washing over you like sonic wallpaper.
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May 10, 2011Williams and White seem born to sing together. Their natural vocal chemistry makes Barton Hollow a satisfying listen straight through. That said, the album is heavy on made-for-TV dramatic balladry, the sort of thing that features so well on Grey's Anatomy.
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Mar 17, 2011The Civil Wars display some moments of real promise, though not enough to warrant the crush of attention paid their debut, Barton Hollow.
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Q MagazineApr 13, 2012Deeply unengaging. [May 2012, p.94]
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 26 out of 28
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Mixed: 1 out of 28
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Negative: 1 out of 28
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Feb 2, 2014
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Nov 19, 2013
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Nov 17, 2012One of the best debuts in years, The Civil Wars are branded as country, but that