Spin (9/99, p.154) - Ranked #69 in Spin Magazine's "90 Greatest Albums of the '90s."
Q (5/01, p.72) - "The sound of hardcore types like Big Black slowed down to a snail's pace....the architects of the quiet/loud/quiet dynamic..."
Uncut (p.126) - "[I]nnovation and an air of menace continue to make SPIDERLAND an authentically disconcerting listen."
Alternative Press (7/95, p.92) - Rated #61 in AP's list of the `Top 99 Of '85-'95' - "...zen scientists with a yen for synthesizing the best jazz and noise rock...reinvented rock-song structure and rejuvinated the concept of dynamics....No less an authority than Steve Albini called this album a landmark and that may be the truest statement he's ever uttered."
Magnet (p.114) - "[Featuring] the band's characteristic quiet/loud/quiet sonic conceit. As stylistic signifiers go...it's a nifty trick, one Slint deploys in ways that are hypnotic..."
NME (Magazine) (8/12/00, p.29) - Ranked #22 in The NME "Top 30 Heartbreak Albums" - "...A harrowing document of barely-imaginable remorse..."
Recorded from August to October 1990.
Beloved of critics, ignored by the record-buying public, Slint stretched six tracks over 40 minutes and left an indelible impression on almost everyone. The songs on SPIDERLAND evolve of their own accord, without reference to narrative structure. What at first glance appears meandering and prosaic ("For Dinner ...") becomes, on second and subsequent listenings, hypnotic, beatific and pan-dimensional. If Brian McMahon has a peer as alternative rock's most innovative guitarist it would have to be Steve Albini, who just happens to be the producer on SPIDERLAND. The back of the CD features the legend: "This recording is meant to be listened to on vinyl", as if to ram home its left-field credentials. Whatever format you choose, SPIDERLAND will not disappoint.