Bartees Strange Horror
Bartees Strange's Horror arrives as a restless, genre-mashing statement that funnels nihilism and controlled chaos into brief, memorable bursts. Across the collection the record shifts between jagged bravado and fragile intimacy, and critics note that its most successful moments trade noise for emotional clarity.
Professional reviews paint a mixed picture: Horror earned a 60/100 consensus score from one professional review, with praise directed at standout tracks like “Loop Defenders” and “Baltimore” and frequent notes about uneven production. Reviewers consistently singled out “Loop Defenders” for its Prince-at-CBGB fury and kinetic guitar work, while “Baltimore” emerges as the album's quieter, tension-filled counterpoint where distorted solos meet vulnerable lyricism. Critics also flagged “Wants Needs” and “Sober” for flashes of guitar-driven invention, even as some songs never fully cohere.
The critical consensus emphasizes the record's quiet-loud dynamics and genre-hopping instincts as both its strength and its liability. Some passages feel thrillingly disruptive, others merely disordered, leaving the album uneven but intermittently rewarding. For listeners asking "is Horror good," the review suggests value in its high points rather than its whole; the collection offers standout songs worth seeking out and repeated listens rather than a fully convincing, unified statement.
Read on for detailed reviews and track-by-track notes that unpack where Horror hits and where its ambitions outpace its execution.
Critics' Top Tracks
The standout songs that made critics take notice
Loop Defenders
1 mention
"And the gloriously savage Prince-at-CBGB Loop Defenders is a treat."— The Observer (UK)
Baltimore
1 mention
"Baltimore is better, the tension between its pugnacious, distorted solo and Strange’s vulnerable introspection playing well."— The Observer (UK)
Wants Needs
1 mention
"on Wants Needs it hints at peak Thurston Moore"— The Observer (UK)
And the gloriously savage Prince-at-CBGB Loop Defenders is a treat.
Track Ratings
How critics rated each track, relative to this album (0-100). Only tracks that made critics feel something are rated.
Too Much
Hit It Quit It
Sober
Baltimore
Lie 95
Wants Needs
Lovers
Doomsday Buttercup
17
Loop Defenders
Norf Gun
Backseat Banton
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What Critics Are Saying
Deep insights from 7 critics who reviewed this album
Th
Critic's Take
Bartees Strange’s Horror is a restless record where the best tracks - “Loop Defenders” and “Baltimore” - trade jagged bravado for fragile intimacy, and those moments land hardest. The reviewer admires the Prince-at-CBGB fury of “Loop Defenders”, and the tension in “Baltimore” where distorted soloing meets vulnerable introspection. There is praise for guitar flashes on “Wants Needs” and frustration that many songs never quite cohere into compelling whole. Overall the album is uneven but contains treat-like highs that make it worth revisiting.
Key Points
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The best song is "Loop Defenders" because its gloriously savage energy and Prince-like fury stand out.
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The album’s core strengths are jagged, genre-mashing moments and striking tension between noise and vulnerability.
Themes
