25
| Adele
25
25 is the third studio album by English singer Adele, released on 20 November 2015 by XL Recordings and Columbia Records. Issued nearly five years after her previous album, the internationally successful 21 (2011), the album is titled as a reflection of her life and frame of mind at 25 years old and is termed a "make-up record". Wikipedia.
Critic Reviews
Show All-
Pitchfork
Almost every song addresses heartache in one form or another and her instincts as a singer remain unmatched.
-
Rolling Stone
The pop superstar makes a case for greatness on her most self-assured LP yet.
-
The Guardian
As it is, 25’s big issue is that, in every sense, it dwells a little too heavily on the past.
-
NPR
Adele has described 25 as a "make-up album," and though the heartbreak that dominated previous albums lingers, the new album radiates absolute confidence.
-
Billboard
Adele powers through a lifetime of regret & weariness on '25'.
-
Consequence of Sound
25 doesn’t necessarily meet the fire of its predecessor, but it meets its mark — a whole different undertaking when tasked from the top.
-
Vanity Fair
Adele’s 25 is the confessional blockbuster you wanted it to be and it’s going to make the record industry very happy.
-
The Telegraph
There’s real joy in her vocal, even when she is grappling with private pain. She loves to sing, and the world loves to hear her.
-
The New York Times
Adele holds firm on ‘25,’ even as pop shifts
-
NME
With Adele’s sophisticated, emotive vocals unsurprisingly front and centre of all 11 tracks, we sashay from moody balladeering to smoky jazz bar grooves by way of West End worthy showtunes.
-
Vox
Adele’s 25 is her least interesting album yet. Too much comfort food, too little creativity.
-
The National (AE)
Is 25 better than 21? It’s more mature, for sure – but it was always Adele’s post-adolescent damaged fragility which seduced listeners by the million in the first place.
-
The Atlantic
It’s too unsure, too slow, too introspective. But it will surely help a lot of people through hard times.
-
Digital Spy
- a record that feels like a window into her soul, but one that we can all relate to in our own way.
-
Slant
25 is essentially a series of apologias that finds Adele taking responsibility for at least some aspects of her tattered love life, an exercise everyone should try at least once.
-
Vulture
Adele’s aged gracefully, if predictably, from 21 to 25.
-
The A.V. Club
Adele returns to a much better place on 25.
-
The Quietus (UK)
The rest of 21 veered off into Ballad Central quickly, but there was something else before that, something spiky to hang your hat on.
-
Independent (UK)
Is she addicted to romantic failure, or something?
-
Crack
If you’re willing to indulge the sheer scale of Adele’s all-conquering status, then 25 is an enjoyable listen.
-
Idolator
25 is about your next life rushing in to fill the void of your damaged past life, and how that’s thrilling, comforting and terrifying in equal measure.
-
Harvard Political Review
The result, though not without its flaws, is a victory.
-
Entertainment Weekly
There’s only one artist whose return, after a nearly five-year absence, is powerful enough to tilt pop culture on its axis like this—which can make it hard to bring the expectations for her new third album, 25, back down to human scale.
-
Breathe Heavy
Pick any song off 25, and you’re engulfed in some aspect of love from Adele’s future, present or past life.
-
Herald (NZ)
Adele sticks with mostly conventional ballads of heartbreak on her third album, but still creates songs of lasting appeal.
-
Financial Times
‘Luxuriously engineered’
-
The Line of Best Fit (UK)
Adele’s 25 gives us the Adele we know and love and have dearly missed.
-
Refinery 29
You make mistakes, you fall in love, you make bigger mistakes, you regret, you revel, you reflect, and then, after winning Grammys and an Oscar, you move on.
-
ABC News
This album also has some incredibly dense, musically sophisticated passages.
-
Neon Tommy
Adele, congratulations, you’ve done it again.
-
Huffington Post (UK)
Unsurprisingly, '25' is a highly polished set of songs, mixing big, bold production with stripped back moments.
-
SPIN
By no means is 25 a perfect album, nor is it even particularly great; but its ambition is grand and broader than Adele’s previous two albums. That and that alone is reason enough to justify its inevitable place in history.
-
Daily Review
Her songs seem to unite people in a way which few others seem capable of doing – teenagers, parents and the elderly alike fall under the spell of the hypnotic power of her heartbroken ballads.
-
All Music
Fittingly, 25 also plays better over the long haul, its march of slow songs steadily revealing subtle emotional or musical distinctions.
-
Noisey
Adele makes sturdy, warm-hearted songs to induce teary phone calls with your best friends or nostalgic walks around your hometown.
-
GQ
Ends on a high note - spiritually, technically and indeed literally.
-
Hollywood Life
Simple, soulful, & truly sensational
-
Redbrick
25 proves that she can still write a bloody good song or two, make a powerful statement and it feels as though she never truly went away.
-
Cleveland
Adele's third album is loaded with flawless production, stunning vocals and vivid lyrics.
-
Music Times
You can tell that Adele isn't making a record for others she makes it for herself and that's why she can take the time off that she wants because when she comes back, boy does she deliver.
-
Mashable
Gorgeously crafted pop that gives fans what they want
-
Parle
The signature voice is woven tightly within the melodies that make for a pleasing experience, despite the heartbreaking subject matter.
-
The Post
The world missed Adele during her hiatus, but 25 proves it was completely worth the wait.
-
Complex
Adele is quenching some serious thirst with '25'.
-
The Mission
Stunning.
-
Popfection
Every single sound sounds incredibly warm and true.
-
WZND
All together this album is exactly what every Adele fan wanted and needed in their lives.
-
Demo
25 is an emotional and beautiful journey. A masterpiece.
-
Talkhouse
A lot of 25 might be compared to those velvet pillows that magnificent gems rest upon.
-
The 405
25 is a saviour record for a quarter life crisis, a sing-a-long for one of life's most difficult stages.
-
The Daily Star (BD)
Although it speaks a little too much of the past and love and some more love and exes, 25 does not fail to score a 25 out of 25.
-
Atlanta Music Scene
It will restore your faith in music.
-
The News Record
She is back and bigger than ever, breaking the charts yet again.
-
The Verge
At its best, this album is personal, nourishing, and warm.
-
Stuff (NZ)
Listening to 25 is like when your best friend finally gets over their ex, and comes out the other side blossoming with so much new-found confidence that you just want to high-five them.
-
Music Industry Quarterly
Obviously, very special care went into this recording and you can hear it in virtually every molecule of her signature earthy, robust, preternaturally strong vocals.
-
WTOP
Adele makes valiant comeback on ’25’.
-
Mojo
Never one for youthful giddiness, her third album is strikingly authoritative, tending towards the imperious even when expressing vulnerability yet rarely coming over as soullessly efficient.
-
Nigerian Entertainment
Her lyrics are short, precise, easy to understand, and production on this album fits like a glove with the songs.
-
The Young Folks
25 is simultaneously strong and vulnerable, a journey through forgiveness, remembrance, new responsibilities with love weaved throughout each lyric and beat.
-
Sydney Morning Herald (AU)
A predictably perfect modern pop album - for better and worse.
-
L.A. Times
Even as it fulfills those expressive requirements, "25" expands the scope of Adele's music, taking up new themes and textures.
-
International Business Times (UK)
Beautifully crafted record that misses the wow-factor of masterpiece 21.
-
The Washington Post
This new Adele album, it’s a cashmere sweater. It’s warm, and comfy, and sumptuous in a way that disguises how ordinary it is.
-
BBC
-she sounds relaxed, conversational and inspired, on a set of songs that come straight from the heart.
-
Cryptic Rock
Ultimately, the power, tenderness and dripping emotion of her voice are the driving force of the album.
-
AU Review
25 won’t connect with everyone, and it won’t blow your mind, but this is Adele’s journey and we’re just watching from the sidelines.
-
The Scotsman
Adele’s latest album, 25, a “make up” album that plays it safe.
-
Culture Whisper (UK)
At its best, Adele's new album is a paragon of emotive songwriting.
-
USA Today
Where many contemporary pop stars are concerned with projecting attitude, Adele understands the value of unfettered emotion.
-
Popcrush
A NEW STORY, AN UNCOMPROMISING RECITATION.
-
Denver Post
It’s been years in the making, but Adele hasn’t missed a step with “25.”
-
US Weekly
Adele’s Much-Anticipated 25 Album Is a Four-Star “Triumph”
-
Contact Music
-Adele has masterfully created a narrative that allows each track to compliment each other here.
-
The Upcoming (UK)
25 is an album of personal significance, packed with raw and unrestrained emotion.
Rate This Album and Leave Your Comments