Ultra is the fourth studio album by British electronic musician Zomby.[1] It was released via Hyperdub on 2 September 2016.[2] It features contributions from Banshee, Burial, Darkstar, and Rezzett.[3]

Ultra
Studio album by
Released2 September 2016 (2016-09-02)
GenreElectronic
Length52:14
LabelHyperdub
Zomby chronology
With Love
(2013)
Ultra
(2016)
Singles from Ultra
  1. "Sweetz"
    Released: 2016

Critical reception edit

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?6.4/10[4]
Metacritic71/100[5]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [6]
The Guardian     [7]
The Irish Times     [8]
Mixmag9/10[9]
Mojo     [10]
The Observer     [11]
Pitchfork7.9/10[12]
Q     [13]
Resident Advisor3.2/5[14]
Uncut8/10[15]

At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, Ultra received an average score of 71 out of 100 based on 18 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[5]

Andy Kellman of AllMusic gave the album 3 stars out of 5 and said, "Although it's not without some dazzling moments, this is the Zomby album with the lowest quantity of thrills."[6] KC Orcutt of Consequence of Sound gave the album a grade of C, saying, "On Ultra, it simply feels as though something is missing, and overall, makes more sense as an appetizer than the entrée."[16] Isa Jaward of The Observer gave the album 4 stars out of 5, calling it "an unapologetic pastiche of 90s rave culture and retro video games."[11]

It ranked at number 48 on The Wire's "Top 50 Releases of 2016" list.[17]

Track listing edit

No.TitleLength
1."Reflection"4:59
2."Burst"2:02
3."Fly 2" (with Banshee)5:28
4."E.S.P"2:59
5."I"2:02
6."Glass"4:29
7."Sweetz" (with Burial)6:58
8."Her"4:51
9."Quandary" (with Darkstar)4:20
10."Freeze"2:17
11."Yeti"2:18
12."S.D.Y.F" (with Rezzett)5:32
13."Thaw"3:56
Digital edition bonus track
No.TitleLength
14."Tenkyuu" (with HKE)3:38

Charts edit

Chart (2016) Peak
position
UK Dance Albums (OCC)[18] 25
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[19] 48
US Top Dance/Electronic Albums (Billboard)[20] 18

References edit

  1. ^ Song, Sandra (2 September 2016). "Elusive Producer Zomby Doesn't Really Care About Anything But The Music, TBH". Paper. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
  2. ^ Lozano, Kevin (30 June 2016). "Zomby Announces New Album Ultra, Featuring Burial Collaboration". Pitchfork. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
  3. ^ Murray, Robin (30 June 2016). "Zomby Announces New Album 'Ultra'". Clash. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
  4. ^ "Ultra by Zomby reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  5. ^ a b "Reviews for Ultra by Zomby". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
  6. ^ a b Kellman, Andy. "Ultra – Zomby". AllMusic. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
  7. ^ Jonze, Tim (1 September 2016). "Zomby: Ultra review – electronic moodscapes that sometimes cover familiar ground". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
  8. ^ Jones, Chris (1 September 2016). "Zomby – Ultra review: short on both inspiration and energy". The Irish Times. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
  9. ^ "Zomby 'Ultra' (Hyperdub)". Mixmag. 9 September 2016. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
  10. ^ Worthy, Stephen (October 2016). "Zomby: Ultra". Mojo (275): 99.
  11. ^ a b Jaward, Isa (4 September 2016). "Zomby: Ultra review – digital beats of the 90s". The Observer. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
  12. ^ Sherburne, Philip (6 September 2016). "Zomby: Ultra". Pitchfork. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
  13. ^ Yates, Steve (October 2016). "Zomby: Ultra". Q (364): 113.
  14. ^ Finlayson, Angus (5 September 2016). "Zomby – Ultra". Resident Advisor. Retrieved 7 March 2018.
  15. ^ Dale, Jon (October 2016). "Zomby: Ultra". Uncut (233): 40.
  16. ^ Orcutt, KC (30 August 2016). "Zomby – Ultra". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
  17. ^ "Listen to The Wire's Top 50 Releases of 2016". The Wire. December 2016. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
  18. ^ "Official Dance Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 7 December 2018.
  19. ^ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 10 August 2019.
  20. ^ "Zomby Chart History (Top Dance/Electronic Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 7 March 2017.

External links edit