Strangers to Ourselves

Pitchfork 6.4/10 Strangers to Ourselves is a pleasant album, and one that completes their transition from "inspired" to "sturdy".

A.V. Club B Strangers To Ourselves is anything but unrecognizable. Long break aside, Strangers wins on near-uniformly excellent songwriting rather than reinvention.

The Needle Drop 5/10 Indie rock vets Modest Mouse release their first album in 8 years.

The Line of Best Fit 7/10 This isn’t quite that fantastic album we wanted and we know ... Brock and company have in them; however, it’s enough to prompt the hope that the axles are greased well enough now to deliver it next time around.

NME 3.5/5 ‘Strangers…’ doesn’t pack the emotional punch of their classic albums, but there’s something laudable about its genre-hopping loopiness. Their Cinderella story just got a surreal new chapter.

Rolling Stone 3.5/5 The effect is a riot of craft that never coheres but rewards committed listening, thrilling in bolts and spurts like a good multiband compilation.

DIY 4/5 It’s bruised and brilliant, idiosyncratic and anthemic, sloppy and heartfelt. It’s an album only Modest Mouse could make.

All Music 3/5 Strangers to Ourselves is an album where the trees matter more than the forest: song for song, it demonstrates the exacting nature of Brock but put it all together, it sprawls.

The Skinny 3/5 Despite some plodding missteps, Modest Mouse’s welcome return manages to maintain an impressive stride.

Under The Radar 7.0/10 They never quite hit the peaks of their last two albums, but the result is ultimately a more even experience.

Clash 8/10 'Strangers To Ourselves' boasts a raft of furiously energetic tracks in which the cascading rhythms and uplifting instrumentation deliberately belie the dark themes explored

The Observer 3/5 It can be heavy going ... but this is a solid enough return.

Slant 2.5/5 Flashes of contingent weirdness appear throughout the album, and the lyrics remain reliably sardonic, but the band surrenders too often to a prefab pop-rock idiom that isn't entirely their own.

Pop Matters 6/10 It’s when Modest Mouse’s own signature approach provides a strong foundation for the new elements to add to that Strangers to Ourselves finds a happier medium between its own barbed rock aesthetic and a more pop-minded angle.

The Guardian 3/5 The lack of progression is a shame, as the album’s chief lyrical theme – mankind’s disregard for nature – is one that needs hearing.

Spectrum Culture 60% Excess is an ironic issue for a band that struggled to cobble together enough material for a proper release. But playing it safe has never worked for Modest Mouse.

Uncut 8/10 A (rap-free) triumph.

Hot Press 7.0/10 It’s not quite as inspired as Good News For People Who Like Bad News, but it’s a strong comeback from one of indie’s most inventive acts.