Era Vulgaris (album) - Reception

Reception

Reviews for the album were generally positive, earning a rating of 75 out of 100 on Metacritic, a decline from their previous two studio albums. Uncut and Allmusic's reviews were particularly glowing, with the latter noting how Era Vulgaris is "as different from Lullabies as that was to their dramatic widescreen breakthrough, Songs for the Deaf". The Observer also commented on the album's change in direction, commenting that the band had "turned its back on the mainstream" and that the album was "uneasy and brooding" and "Gripping stuff". Rolling Stone gave the album four stars for the first time since the band's self titled debut, commenting that "Era Vulgaris is Homme's fifth Queens album, and like the others, it's intricately crafted, meticulously polished and ruthlessly efficient in its pursuit of depraved rock thrills." New York Times critic Jon Pareles selected the album as the 10th best release of 2007.

A number of reviews were negative, however; Q magazine gave the album two stars out of five, while The Village Voice criticized Homme for lack of originality, describing the record's sound as "listless and drained of ideas". The Guardian slated the record as lyrically clichéd and lacking the input of former bassist Nick Oliveri, and Entertainment Weekly delivered the closing indictment that "there isn't a single song here that you'll remember, or want to return to, two summers hence."

Era Vulgaris had sold 198,000 copies in the US, and 521,000 copies worldwide before falling off the charts. Since it disappeared from the chart, it has sold 223,000 copies in the US, and 600,000 copies worldwide. The US sales are a decline from their previous album, as Lullabies to Paralyze, had sold 342,000 copies in the US by March 2007. Neither album achieved the commercial success of the band's 2002 release, Songs for the Deaf, which had sold 986,000 copies in the US alone as of June 2007.