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As bummers go, West is a beautiful one — akin to Bob Dylan's Time Out of Mind.
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What makes Williams such an important country artist, besides the excellent songwriting and that sultry, scarred southern voice, is her skill at stretching the genre's boundaries while mining its essence.
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West may well be her best album. It is easily her most musically adventurous, and often her most lyrically inspired.
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West is flawless; it is actually destined to become a classic.
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Rolling StoneWilliams remains a premier artist. [22 Feb 2007, p.73]
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Fortunately, the alt-country singer-songwriter’s gifts of soul mining are so acute that the songs — inspired by her mother’s passing and a wrenching breakup — enrich as well as exhaust, and engender cautious optimism.
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West works because it juxtaposes a sense of vulnerability with a desire not to stay down for long, and is tinged with a sense of realism not always present in her rivals.
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Q MagazineIt's a long, hard haul, but this is an outstanding talent at the top of her game. [Mar 2007, p.116]
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MojoMost [tracks] are brilliant. [Apr 2007, p.97]
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Perhaps an unrefined but fiery bar band would have been better suited to accompany such nakedly raw material.
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When the group tries to explore the other, louder side of its sound, West sounds slapped-together.
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Often harrowing, although Williams's emotional odyssey finds resolution on the title track.
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SpinLet those [few sub-par] parts slide into the ocean and enjoy the remaining hour of perfectly golden brilliance. [Feb 2007, p.89]
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BillboardWillner's soulful production, elegant and layered, recalls Daniel Lanois' work with Emmylou Harris. [17 Feb 2007]
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For all its sorrowful beauty, "West" is often excruciating to hear as Williams mourns the death of her mother and a stormy relationship that ended badly.
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The tracks that don't work misfire spectacularly.
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For most of the album, [the music] remains resolutely deliberate and restrained, without her usual soaring and rocking release.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 32 out of 44
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Mixed: 9 out of 44
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Negative: 3 out of 44
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MikemusicguyFeb 7, 2009
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JaniceC.Dec 29, 2007This CD is ahead of its time; it has legs and you know it.
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VanceH.Nov 26, 2007