Wire Silver/Lead
Album stream , Mar 29, 2017

"The fact that they’ve been cranking out albums as good as this for nearly half a century is a legacy worth appreciating for a really long time."

89 % Paste Magazine

"As precise as ever yet oddly moving, Silver/Lead reaffirms that Wire are more like mercury, shape-shifting effortlessly while remaining true to the things that have always made them great."

80 % AllMusic

"Silver / Lead is a record with density but one that is also light on its feet."

80 % The Line of Best Fit

"Silver/Lead is an exhibition in restraint whose brilliant corners and burrowing phrases reward both the keen ear and repeated listen."

80 % The Quietus

"Silver/Lead is an accomplished record from a band who continue to challenge their audience."

80 % DIY Magazine

"It almost as if Wire set out to make a concept album without actually calling it a concept album, so consistent is the sound throughout, and with subtly recurring melodic themes."

80 % Blurt Magazine

"This is a slower, more melancholy Wire, one that finds them at their most melodic and enigmatic."

80 % The Guardian

"As ever, an unmistakable tension to the band, but maybe comfortable would be more accurate. Comfortable in their own skin and comfortably uncomfortable with the harrowing world outside."

80 % PopMatters

"There are a few spots on Silver/Lead where Wire succumbs to its own subtlety, as words empty and the tempos deflate toward flatness. But the group catches itself quickly, producing the album’s best track, “Sleep on the Wing.”"

71 % Pitchfork

"If the album’s second half falls off a bit due to the programming of consecutive slow burners, the orchestral layering we expect from the quartet is still there."

70 % Dusted Magazine

"The biggest problem with this album is its bloated mid-section, which drags down the commendable peaks of its opening and closing segments."

60 % The Skinny

"They do work up some magic every now and then."

58 % Pretty Much Amazing

"On these songs [“Playing Harp For The Fishes,” “Short Elevated Period,” and “Diamonds In Cups”], Silver/Lead strikes the perfect balance of moody intrigue and saw-toothed aggression. Unfortunately, the rest of the album isn’t calibrated quite as precisely, which makes for an uneven listening experience."

58 % The A.V. Club

"Unlike their past efforts, though, Silver/Lead is sluggish when it needs to be spry and dull when it ought to be meditative."

50 % Exclaim

"Nothing really stands out, and the songs that do--the catchy "Short Elevated Period," as well as the two musical highlights of the album, "This Time" and "Sleep on the Wing"--don't leave enough of an impression to be overly impressed by."

40 % Under The Radar