NEW LP
New sealed copy. Indie record store exclusive on opaque red coloured vinyl.
Critical Thinking is the fifteenth studio album by Welsh alternative rock band Manic Street Preachers, released on February 14, 2025, by Columbia Records.
The album was preceded by four singles, including "Decline and Fall," and received universal acclaim from critics. It features three tracks with bassist Nicky Wire on lead vocals, including the title track and "Hiding in Plain Sight," the band's first single with Wire as lead singer. Frontman James Dean Bradfield contributed lyrics to three songs, the most he has written for a Manic Street Preachers album.
The album earned consistent four-star reviews. NME praised its energy and defiance, while The Irish Times described it as "a scream into the void" and a testament to the band's distinctive style. The Guardian highlighted its reflective and thought-provoking nature, and Far Out called it "an embrace into familiar territory" with "unrelenting energy." Mojo labeled it a "songs-first concoction steeped in nostalgia," and MusicOMH noted its sharp social commentary. The Quietus also gave a positive review, calling it a "barnstorming" album that remains true to the band's signature sound.
TRACKLIST:
A1 Critical Thinking
A2 Decline & Fall
A3 Brushstrokes Of Reunion
A4 Hiding In Plain Sight
A5 People Ruin Paintings
A6 Dear Stephen
B7 Being Baptised
B8 My Brave Friend
B9 Out Of Time Revival
B10 Deleted Scenes
B11 Late Day Peaks
B12 Onemanmilitia
