Geogaddi received critical acclaim upon release, in addition to being acclaimed by several publications as one of the year's best albums. It was listed by music website Pitchfork as one of the best intelligent dance music albums of all time.
Background and composition
The album was recorded from 1999 to 2001 at Hexagon Sun, their Pentland Hills (pictured) studio.
Geogaddi is a psychedelicelectronic album that has been categorized as IDM, downtempo,[3] and hauntology, radically departing from the calmer and more subdued style of the duo's previous album, Music Has the Right to Children.[1][4] Compared with their previous releases, Boards of Canada aimed to record a project "with more facets, more detail and a kind of concentrated recipe of chaotic little melodies", as well as "more fuzzy and organic".[5] The duo recorded over 90 tracks for the project from 1999 to 2001 at Hexagon Sun, their Pentland Hills studio,[6][7] ultimately choosing 22 based on how well they fit the intended atmosphere of the album.[5] Michael Sandison, half of the duo, stated that the album features acoustic instrumentation that was significantly manipulated and processed, inspired by the traditional folk style of the British group the Incredible String Band[5] and the 1973 film The Wicker Man.[8]
Sandison described the album as "a record for some sort of trial-by-fire, a claustrophobic, twisting journey that takes you into some pretty dark experiences before you reach the open air again."[5] The September 11 attacks drastically influenced the tone of the album during its production in 2001, with the duo "glued to the TV for the whole day" and Sandison saying that they had subsequently been pushed "into making a darker record".[9] Mark Richardson of Pitchfork wrote that "the atmosphere on this album is a shade darker than on previous releases, and comparatively tense with a noticeable thread of paranoia."[4] The album has been noted for featuring esoteric references, samples and subliminal messages, including references to numerology, Wicca and the Branch Davidians.[a][10][1] Boards of Canada have claimed that the album's title is made up of several words with a specific meaning, but left it up to the listener to interpret it.[11]
Geogaddi received critical acclaim upon release. It currently holds a score of 84 out of 100 from review aggregate site Metacritic based on 21 critics' reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[15] John Bush of AllMusic drew comparisons between the album and Music Has the Right to Children, including both albums' cover art.[6] He also praised the use of samples, as he felt that it fit the tone of the album.[6] Critics at Q compared Geogaddi to the album Drukqs by Aphex Twin, saying that it was "satisfying in every way that Aphex Twin's Drukqs wasn't".[21][15]
Pat Blashill of Rolling Stone gave the album 3 stars out of 5, calling it "marvelously vague".[22] A later review of the album on the Rolling Stone Album Guide gave it 2 stars out of 5, writing, "the contrast of evil undertones and electronic lullabies simply wasn't as compelling."[23]Kitty Empire of NME named it "the electronic album of the year."[19] Mark Richardson of Pitchfork wrote: "While some will complain about Boards of Canada's failure to cover new territory, [...] the rest of us will delight in what we see as a very accomplished album packed with great music."[20]
Geogaddi was ranked on year-end lists of the best albums of 2002 by numerous publications, such as Mojo,[26]NME,[27]Uncut[28] and The Wire.[29] In 2017, Pitchfork placed Geogaddi at number five on its list of "The 50 Best IDM Albums of All Time".[30] It peaked at number 3 on the Billboard Top Dance/Electronic Albums chart.
^Breihan, Tom (11 February 2022). "Geogaddi Turns 20". Stereogum. Archived from the original on 18 February 2022. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
^ abPitchfork Staff (2 October 2009). "The 200 Best Albums of the 2000s". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved 29 April 2023. It is a black forest of a record, full of psychedelia and psychosis...
