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As wonderfully crafted an album as Reconstruction Site is, some listeners will be put off by its perceived highbrow attitude; it's too scholarly for the masses, too pop-smart for the avant garde set.
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It's an outstanding piece of work -- literate, catchy, and emotional.
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Musically, Reconstruction Site has more in common with literate indie types like Clem Snide or even the mature, clear-eyed work of Michael Penn.
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MagnetA catchy rock record steeped in intelligent social and personal commentary that incorporates pedal and lap steel with great cowpunk results. [#60, p.119]
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An album that's smart at every level.
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John K. Samsons vocal and lyrical talent is the most immediate thing and, ultimately, what sets the band above the two-a-penny similar rock acts the world over.
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Incorporating the best moments of the band's previous two releases, Reconstruction Site offers a clear blueprint for future efforts, built on Samson's instinctual mingling of liberal-arts smarts, poignant sketches of perceptive reflection, and a melodic infrastructure of pop and rock gestures.
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This would be an easy record to (dis)miss; aside from the intellectual reaching... it glides by fairly effortlessly on initial listenings. But textures -- Stephen Carroll's lap/pedal steel guitar, Sarah Harmer's cozy backing vocals that make the band sound like a more laid-back New Pornographers, Jason Tait's tight, emotional drumming and the warmth of vibes and glockenspiel -- reveal themselves long after the lyricism ceases to delight.
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Q MagazineThere's a thin line between quirky powerpop and being They Might Be Giants. [Feb 2004, p.106]
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Throughout it's fourteen tracks, there's no doubting The Weakerthans are smart guys who keep up with literature and politics, but over the course of an entire album the band's ambitious literary posturing drowns in the bland songwriting and lack of captivating hooks.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 20 out of 22
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Mixed: 0 out of 22
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Negative: 2 out of 22
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PatWOct 27, 2006This band is the best thing Canada has ever done.
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Jan 30, 2011I hate Winnipeg.
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Oct 15, 2010