''Major Arcana'' is the debut full-length studio album from the indie rock group

Speedy Ortiz Speedy refers to something or someone moving at high speed. Speedy may refer to: Ships * HMS ''Speedy'', nine ships of the Royal Navy * ''Speedy''-class brig, a class of naval ship * ''Speedy'' (1779), a whaler and convict ship despatched i ...

. It was released on July 9, 2013, by

Carpark Records Carpark Records is an independent record label based in Washington, D.C. History Carpark Records was established by Todd Hyman in 1999 in New York City. In 2005, the label relocated to Washington, D.C. Carpark has subsidiary labels. Acute Re ...

Reception

''Major Arcana'' has received critical acclaim. The album has a score of 81 out of 100 on the review aggregate site

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...

, based on 16 reviews.Critic Reviews for Major Arcana

. Retrieved 4 January 2014.

Pitchfork Media ''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music publication (currently owned by Condé Nast) that was launched in 1995 by writer Ryan Schreiber as an independent music blog. Schreiber started Pitchfork while working ...

's Lindsay Zoladz gave the album a Best New Album designation, claiming that frontwoman Sadie Dupuis "writ slyrics that are actually worth poring over". David Brusie of

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...

also praised the album, writing "a markedly assured debut, one that makes Speedy Ortiz an act to watch".

Consequence of Sound ''Consequence'' (previously ''Consequence of Sound'') is an independently owned New York-based online magazine featuring news, editorials, and reviews of music, movies, and television. In addition, the website also features the Festival Outlook ...

's Katherine Flynn called the album "strong, punchy musical concentrate". Robin Smith of

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...

described "its angular, moody ‘90s feel conjures the image of an overgrown punk hanging around a playground at night, drinking, smoking, wasting".

ranked ''Major Arcana'' #48 on its list of the top 50 albums of 2013, writing: "Speedy Ortiz strains the strangled chords and corkscrew interplay of 90s guitar heroes ..into jaggedly axed anthem".The Top 50 Albums of 2013

. 18 December 2013. Retrieved 4 January 2014. The album was listed 31st on

Stereogum ''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine. ''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several award ...

's list of top 50 albums of 2013.The 50 Best Albums of 2013 - Stereogum

. 3 December 2013. Retrieved 4 January 2014. The song "No Below" was featured in the 2017 Square Enix/Deck Nine game '' Life Is Strange: Before the Storm''.

Reception

Track listing

Charts

References