Based on 12 reviews from outlets we track. Scores run 40 to 81.
By the numbers: Morrissey's best-reviewed album here since Vauxhall and I (1994). Scores ran from 40 (Uncut) to 81 (Pitchfork).
| The gist | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pitchfork via Wikipediaby Tom Ewing | 8.1/10 | 81 | 2009 | “Morrissey and his Tormentors continue their 21st century winning streak with a record that, while offering no new twists or surprises, finds the former Smiths co-leader in strong voice– both…” |
| Spin via Wikipediaby Joe Gross | 4/5 | 80 | 2009 | “Pop music doesn't allow for many third bites at the apple, but here's Stephen Patrick Morrissey chomping away. It's the Dr. Dre career path: Both led” |
| NME via Wikipediaby Anthony Thornton | 8/10 | 80 | 2009 | “Facts about this album: Noel Gallagher thinks that Morrissey is the greatest lyricist ever As a child, Morrissey was obsessed with ’60s girl groups and female singers such as Dusty…” |
| AllMusic via Wikipediaby Stephen Thomas Erlewine | 4/5 | 80 | ||
| musicOMH | 4/5 | 80 | “Manchester. Los Angeles. Rome. And now, according to one track on Morrissey's ninth solo album, you can add the French capital to that list of cities that” | |
| Slant | 4/5 | 80 | “As the album proceeds, Morrissey simply sounds like a superior version of the singer he’s always been.” | |
| Rolling Stone via Wikipediaby Will Hermes | 3.5/5 | 70 | 2009 | “Check out our album review of Artist's Years of Refusal on Rolling Stone.com.” |
| PopMatters | 7/10 | 70 | “Morrissey has always attempted to portray himself as the outsider's outsider. His career and his iconic status have affirmed that it's been an overwhelmingly” | |
| Mojo via Wikipedia | 3/5 | 60 | 2008 | |
| Q via Wikipedia | 3/5 | 60 | 2008 | |
| The Guardian via Wikipediaby Alexis Petridis | 3/5 | 60 | 2009 | “Not only is Morrissey miserable again, he's also lost his lyrical touch. What a shame, says Alexis Petridis” |
| Uncut | 4/10 | 40 | “Middle-aged Moz on throbbing, souped-up form” |
More from Morrissey
More Indie & Alternative from around 2009
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How the Breakdown works
Every outlet’s score is converted to 0–100 (2/5 is 40, 5.9/10 is 59, a B+ is 88) and averaged. Grades follow the B-Side scale: A is 90–100, B 80–89, C 70–79, D 60–69, F below 60. Approval is the share of critics who scored it 75 or higher; the Breakdown shows green at 75 and up, red below. Divisiveness asks a different question: not how many critics liked it, but how close their scores are to each other. Five critics who all give it 50 are Unanimous, even though none of them liked it. The labels run Unanimous, Broad agreement, Some debate, Divided, and Contentious. Replay rate comes from listeners, not critics: yes counts fully, a few tracks counts half, no counts zero. The gist quotes each outlet’s own summary of its review. Published is the date on the review itself, read from the outlet’s page, so you can see whether an album’s reputation came at release or years later. Scores marked est. come from reviews that publish no number. Scores marked via Wikipedia are archive ratings, mostly for older albums, taken from the “Professional ratings” box on the album’s Wikipedia page (published openly through Wikidata); each links to the original review when we can find it online, and to that Wikipedia entry when we can’t. When an outlet reviewed an album twice, years apart (often for a reissue), both scores count, each labeled with its year.
A-Side marks the critics’ top tier. An album earns it automatically, from its numbers alone: a Breakdown of 90 or higher, from at least 5 reviews, with at least 75% approval. Nobody hands it out and nobody can buy it; if new reviews pull an album below the line, it loses the badge.
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