Ezra Furman Goodbye Small Head
Ezra Furman's Goodbye Small Head arrives as a bracing, theatrical chronicle of identity, fury and fragile hope — critics agree the record trades polish for visceral immediacy. Across three professional reviews the collection earned a 66.67/100 consensus score, with reviewers repeatedly pointing to moments where string arrangements and abrasive samples amplify themes of trans experience, dissociation and self-discovery. For those asking "is Goodbye Small Head good," the quick verdict from the critical consensus is that its highs are essential even if the whole is uneven.
Reviewers consistently name standout tracks that crystallize the album's emotional logic. “You Mustn’t Show Weakness”, “I Need the Angel” and “A World of Love and Care” are praised across reviews for pairing raw vocal grit with orchestral or sampled textures, while “Submission” and “Jump Out” also emerge as key moments of defiance and release. Critics note the record's strength lies in its combustible contrasts - moments of theatrical catharsis, string-laden tenderness, and pointed societal critique - even as some pieces feel deliberately chaotic rather than cohesively resolved.
Taken together, professional reviews frame Goodbye Small Head as a bold reinvention: a record where vulnerability and anger coexist, and where Furman's advocacy and identity work surface through inventive arrangements. Readers looking for the best songs on Goodbye Small Head will find the listed tracks repeatedly singled out; those seeking a full, consistently polished statement may find the album intentionally rough at the edges. Below follow the full reviews that shaped this critic consensus.
Critics' Top Tracks
The standout songs that made critics take notice
You Mustn't Show Weakness
3 mentions
"with its skittish drums, eulogic cello, and haunting vocals, ‘You Mustn’t Show Weakness’ is the potent pinnacle"— DIY Magazine
I Need the Angel
3 mentions
"Ultimately, it’s closer and Alex Walton cover ‘I Need An Angel’ that encapsulates this dichotomy best"— DIY Magazine
A World of Love and Care
3 mentions
""Human dignity was supposed to be a guarantee for all / Who gets left out of your dreams of a good society?""— DIY Magazine
with its skittish drums, eulogic cello, and haunting vocals, ‘You Mustn’t Show Weakness’ is the potent pinnacle
Track Ratings
How critics rated each track, relative to this album (0-100). Only tracks that made critics feel something are rated.
Grand Mal
Sudden Storm
Jump Out
Power of the Moon
You Mustn't Show Weakness
Submission
Veil Song
Slow Burn
You Hurt Me I Hate You
Strange Girl
A World of Love and Care
I Need the Angel
What Critics Are Saying
Deep insights from 4 critics who reviewed this album
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Critic's Take
Everything spills out of Ezra Furman on Goodbye Small Head, a record that finds liberation inside collapse and rewards recklessness. The best songs, like “Submission” and “Power of the Moon”, drive that mix of fury and wonder. Kelly Murphy writes in close, sensory sentences, reveling in images of snow and shattered control, and the triumphant, wounded rock finale that makes tracks such as “You Mustn’t Show Weakness” stick. The record’s standout moments land where raw vocal grit meets theatrical staging, so when “Submission” radiates authenticity it feels earned. Listeners asking "best tracks on Goodbye Small Head" will find this is an album of moments rather than uniform bliss, with those three songs best exemplifying its combustible charm.
Key Points
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‘Submission’ is the album’s best track because it radiates an authentic, glistening intensity and received the highest praise.
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Goodbye Small Head’s core strengths are its raw vocal urgency, theatrical moments, and defiant engagement with disorder and self-discovery.
Themes
Critic's Take
Ezra Furman’s Goodbye Small Head is, in Daisy Carter’s urgent phrasing, a record of unflinching honesty that makes its best songs hit like confessions. The review elevates “You Mustn’t Show Weakness” as the potent pinnacle, thanks to its skittish drums, eulogic cello and haunting vocals, while “I Need An Angel” is singled out as the aching, emphatic closer that encapsulates the album’s dichotomy. Carter frames other standout moments - the blood-stained white flag of “Submission” and the godforsaken resignation of “Slow Burn” - as lyrical high points that balance defiance with fragility. This framing answers the question of the best tracks on Goodbye Small Head by privileging emotional intensity and textural daring above all else.
Key Points
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The best song is “You Mustn’t Show Weakness” because it combines evocative strings, skittish drums and haunting vocals into the record's emotional apex.
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The album's core strengths are raw lyrical vulnerability and bold textural reinvention, mixing strings, sampling and ragged vocal intimacy.
Themes
Critic's Take
Ezra Furman's Goodbye Small Head feels intrinsically brave, and the best tracks - notably “Jump Out” and “Grand Mal” - show why those songs stand out. Lepore's prose leans on vivid, empathetic observation, praising Furman's soaring voice and string-laden arrangements that turn vulnerability into triumph. The review emphasises that the album's high points are those that pair aching subject matter with buoyant musical lifts, so listeners searching for the best songs on Goodbye Small Head will find “Jump Out” and “Grand Mal” especially essential. Ultimately the record is commended for turning rage and uncertainty into catharsis, making these standout tracks feel necessary rather than indulgent.
Key Points
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The best song is “Jump Out” for its buoyant strings, panicked vocal delivery, and immediate emotional impact.
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The album's core strengths are Furman's soaring voice, string-sample arrangements, and turning personal and political anguish into collective catharsis.