Matt Berry Heard Noises

Critic's Take

In Classic Rock's frank, slightly bemused tone, this Super Deluxe of Heard Noises feels like a gift to collectors and remix obsessives, with the best tracks revealed in their reimagined skins. Matt Berry sees “Wedding Photo Stranger” repeatedly reinvented - Andy Votel turns it into a seedy psycho-thriller soundtrack while Tennis give it dream-pop lift - and those versions, alongside Moog Cookbook’s take on “To Live For What Once Was” and Midfield General’s stripped-back “Why On Fire?”, make for the clearest answers to the question of the best tracks on Heard Noises. The reviewer's voice stays conversational and slightly sardonic, praising the box's sonic adventurousness and its clear appeal to hardcore fans. Overall, it reads as enthusiastic about the remixes even while noting this is primarily a desirables package for collectors.

Key Points

• The best song moments come from remixes that radically reframe originals, especially “Wedding Photo Stranger” and “To Live For What Once Was”.
• The album’s core strength is adventurous reimagining and strong appeal to hardcore collectors and remix enthusiasts.

Themes

Critic's Take

Matt Berry's Heard Noises is presented as his most accessible record yet while still wearing its psychedelia proudly - the review keeps returning to the immediacy of tunes like “Why On Fire?” and “I Gotta Limit”. Paul W. writes in a conversational, slightly nostalgic tone, noting how opener “Why On Fire?” flips from Brit rock into trippy space rock and how “I Gotta Limit” channels Northern soul, which explains why listeners will ask about the best songs on Heard Noises. The reviewer praises catchy hooks such as those in “Silver Rings” and “Canada Dry”, but also highlights darker moments in “I Entered As I Came” and “There Are Monsters” to show the album's pleasing balance. Overall the voice is warm and admiring, recommending Heard Noises as a great entry point while insisting its blend of sweetness and spacey synth keeps it interesting.

Key Points

• The best song is the opener “Why On Fire?” because it marries catchy Brit-rock melody with unexpected spacey experimentation.
• The album's core strengths are its vintage analog synth colors and the balance between immediately catchy hooks and deeper psychedelic textures.

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Critic's Take

Austra's Chin Up Buttercup is a bruised but buoyant record that makes its best case with songs like “Math Equation” and “Good Riddance” - Katie Stelmanis layers richly textured vocals over ecstatic, Madonna-like electronica while skewering heartbreak with dry wit. The reviewer's voice lingers on the clever lines and punchy melodies, celebrating how the title track's sarcasm and the bittersweet calm of “Good Riddance” turn devastation into catharsis. Equally notable are the tender opener “Amnesia” and the ambient sweep of “The Hopefulness of the Dawn”, which together show the album's range from dance-floor anthems to floating, elegiac endings.

Key Points

• Good Riddance stands out as the cathartic, floaty finale that turns heartbreak into consoling release.
• The album's core strength is its fusion of upbeat electronica and mordant, witty lyrics that make heartbreak feel energizing.

Themes

Critic's Take

Matt Berry returns with Heard Noises, a unified, concise collection that stakes its claim among his best solo work, and the best songs on Heard Noises include “Why On Fire?” and “Sky High”. Robin Murray praises the zesty opener “Why On Fire?” and the ringing, Byrds-ian guitars of “Silver Rings”, while singling out “I Gotta Limit” as an ultra-groovy duet and “Sky High” as a phenomenal acid-soaked closer. The record is at its most thrilling when Berry cuts loose - from Nuggets-style grit on “There Are Monsters” to Baroque chording on “Stay On The Ground”, the best tracks balance invention with a palpable cinematic sheen. Playing almost all instruments, Berry makes these standout songs sound both immediate and lovingly vintage, which is why the best tracks on Heard Noises linger long after the needle lifts.

Key Points

• The best song(s) stand out for vivid production and memorable hooks, with “Sky High” singled out as a phenomenal closer.
• The album’s core strengths are vintage-tinged psychedelic songwriting, instrumental variety, and concise, unified sequencing.

Themes

Critic's Take

In his characteristically exuberant tone Daryl Easlea celebrates Matt Berry's Heard Noises as a mini-universe of strange delights, arguing the best songs - “Why On Fire?” and “Be Alarmed” - showcase Berry's instrumental prowess and cinematic imagination. Easlea names “Why On Fire?” as the Who-like opener that immediately sets the scene, and treats “Be Alarmed” as the album's centrepiece, filmic and wyrd. He also highlights closing romp “Sky High” for its melodic twists and jazz denouement, explaining why these tracks count among the best songs on Heard Noises.

Key Points

• Be Alarmed is the album's emotional and cinematic centrepiece, showcasing Berry's filmic songwriting.
• Heard Noises excels through instrumental craftsmanship, genre-hopping pastiche, and a consistent surreal atmosphere.

Themes

Critic's Take

Matt Berry’s Heard Noises is a glorious dive into retro psych where the best tracks - “Why On Fire?”, “Silver Rings” and “Sky High” - shine brightest for their catchy rhythms and grand statements. The record brims with Californian acid-tinged pop and space-rock flourishes, and “Why On Fire?” kicks things off with a cracking entrance that sets the tone. “Silver Rings” proves Berry can write late 60s pop classics, while the closer “Sky High” feels like a celebratory summation of the album’s pleasures. The listener searching for the best songs on Heard Noises will find them in those buoyant, melodic highlights that best capture Berry’s inventive nostalgia.

Key Points

• The best song is the opening “Why On Fire?” because it provides a cracking start with rich arrangements and choir that define the album.
• The album’s core strengths are its expert retro-psych songwriting, varied vintage instrumentation, and strong collaborative performances.

Themes

Critic's Take

Matt Berry remains gloriously his own man on Heard Noises, and the best songs - notably “There Are Monsters” and “Why On Fire?” - show why. The reviewer revels in Berry's sly psychedelia and prog-pop flourishes, praising “There Are Monsters” as an absolute belter and highlighting the eerie, retro-modern pull of “Why On Fire?”. Tracks like “I Gotta Limit” and “Stay On The Ground” underscore Berry's knack for soulful duets and uplifting hooks, making the best tracks on Heard Noises both immediate and strangely affecting. Overall the record is celebrated for its imaginative sequencing and joyful unpredictability, which explains why listeners searching for the best songs on Heard Noises should start with those standout cuts.

Key Points

• ‘There Are Monsters’ is the standout for its blend of 60s soul, 70s funk and psychedelic glory, described as an 'absolute belter'.
• The album's core strengths are imaginative genre-blending, strong sequencing, and Berry's multi-instrumental craftsmanship.

Themes

Critic's Take

Matt Berry's Heard Noises is stitched from hazy psych textures and melting sunshine-pop, and the record's best songs prove its emotional cores. The reviewer's eye lingers on “Stay On The Ground”, called out for its self-centring line and dark wit, while other standouts are woven through the album's liminal melodies. In the same voice that notes a mother as an unwitting ventriloquist, the critic argues these moments give Berry arguably his best album yet, balancing disarming beauty with discomfiting observation.

Key Points

• The best song, “Stay On The Ground”, crystallises the album's blend of self-centring lyrics and hazy psych-pop.
• Heard Noises' core strengths are its liminal atmospherics, melodic sunshine-pop hooks, and discomfiting lyrical observations.

Themes