Suddenly
by Caribou
  • Record Label: Merge
  • Release Date: Feb 28, 2020
User Score
8.0

Generally favorable reviews- based on 59 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 52 out of 59
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 59
  3. Negative: 2 out of 59
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  1. kauf7690
    Mar 2, 2020
    10
    Daniel Snaith has yet to make a bad album. Serves as both a sequel to his last album and a further progression of his lush yet richly layered compositions.
  2. TheEmirate
    Feb 28, 2020
    10
    Suddenly offers a ears worms interwoven into introspective melodies that carry you to new places.
  3. KeenMusicFan
    Feb 29, 2020
    10
    Caribou’s music is like a drug, it makes you feel high and leaves you wanting more. Suddenly is no exception and is worth the long wait.
  4. NormanAlee
    Jul 10, 2020
    0
    This album has criminally simple a brick like tracks with no imagery and creativity. Very repetitive monotonous straightforward constructions.
  5. Ricko
    Apr 30, 2020
    7
    A perplexing enough record. It has some captivating songs and then it has some stuff that bored me to tears. There is a huge range of styles on the album and often within indiviual tracks, all centred around electronica essentially. You can't fault it for sounding generic whatever else. The singles off it are really strong. The first half of the album is the stronger with the last quarterA perplexing enough record. It has some captivating songs and then it has some stuff that bored me to tears. There is a huge range of styles on the album and often within indiviual tracks, all centred around electronica essentially. You can't fault it for sounding generic whatever else. The singles off it are really strong. The first half of the album is the stronger with the last quarter really tapering off. It should stop at "Like I Loved You" because up to that point it is hard to fault. Too much of the dreaded filler to be a great album.… Expand
  6. caps
    Feb 29, 2020
    8
    I've lived with it for a week. It's ace. The two Daphniesque tunes, 'Never Nome Back' and 'Ravi' are weak points, but then Lime is sublime, except it ends when you want it to flourish. I'd pay good money for the 12" version. Magpie, Cloud Song and Like I Loved You are also classic Caribou, then it's mixed up with the likes of Home and New Jade. There's loads to love here.
  7. Cyrone
    Mar 3, 2020
    10
    What an instant classic! While the sound is a bit "different" compared to the 2010 and 2014 albums, it's fresher and more diverse, and really gets you jamming. It does take longer to grow on your compared to their previous albums as well but once it does, you know you're in for a keeper. Caribou doesn't release albums until their songwriting is on-point!
  8. lulabymusic
    May 6, 2020
    9
    ____ "Suddenly" is 12 dance tracks in which the tenderness of Snaith's vocals, soft percussions and melancholy sounds of analog synthesizers intertwine. The music is warm and melodic, woven from many pleasant chords and sound experiments.
  9. Jared175
    Mar 6, 2020
    10
    Manages to hold the genre title of experimental minimalism yet works well to fill the stereo field to its every inch. Sonically ... this albums a masterpiece for any aspiring producers / engineers.

Awards & Rankings

72
#72 Best Album of 2020

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
84

Universal acclaim - based on 24 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 21 out of 24
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 24
  3. Negative: 0 out of 24
  1. Record Collector
    Apr 7, 2020
    80
    Suddenly is at its best when blending head, heart and feet to make another smart party album – among Caribou’s best yet.
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  2. The Quietus
    Mar 27, 2020
    50
    The narrative and sonic stylings of these songs have the aesthetic qualities of intimate music, but Snaith’s anonymous intonations, sometimes bathed in layers of muddy distortion, hold the listener at a frustrating distance. Like the album’s artwork it advertises transparency, but delivers only more obscurity.
    Read full review
  3. Paste Magazine
    Mar 6, 2020
    85
    Coupled with some of the loosest, most pop-minded production of Snaith’s career, Suddenly becomes a glimmer of optimism, immaculate music for communal grief and celebration. In that, it’s the most vital album of his career.
    Read full review
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