Heroes & Thieves - Critical Reception

Critical Reception

Heroes & Thieves has become the most critically successful album of Carlton's career. In Metacritic, The album received a 79/100 score based on 8 critical reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Allmusic praised the album, stating "Given this sophomore slump, it's not entirely surprising that for her third album, 2007's Heroes & Thieves, she's elected for a compromise between the two extremes: embracing the soft pop that brought her fame without rejecting the confessionals that distinguished her second. Some of this is merely straightforward heartache -- after the 2004 release of Harmonium, Carlton parted ways with Stephan Jenkins, the Third Eye Blind leader who produced the album -- but there are other matters on her mind, as evidenced by the mother-daughter saga "Spring Street" and the line about losing her record deal on the album's opening song and single, "Nolita Fairytale." True, she's moved from A&M to the rap-identified The Inc., but this isn't as drastic a change as it seems: the two labels are within the Universal umbrella, and Carlton has hardly gone hip-hop here. Instead, Heroes & Thieves delivers the expected, even more so than her second album: sweeping gusts of piano, sounds that feel dramatic but not weighty. Like on Be Not Nobody, there's a sense of lightness to Carlton's writing—even if things get a little sad here, they're not gloomy—which not only makes her accessible, it means that it's as easy to take this as mood music as it is for introspection. That Carlton doesn't quite provide incentive to dig deeper could be called a flaw—her voice is too sweet and girlish to command, her melodies mellifluous but not grabbing—but Heroes & Thieves flows easily, and it's a nice return to the strengths of her debut."

PopMatters also praised the album, commenting "Heroes & Thieves isn’t a perfect album and sometimes gets too idiosyncratic and precious for its own good. It’s already spawned its share of detractors, specifically reviewers who question whether Carlton has the vocal goods to pull off some of the more complicated numbers. I think her imperfect singing keeps her sounding human and give her props for not messing with a pitch correction program. And if you feel the same, well, maybe you too should start thinking you might have a problem with ‘Nessa addiction. See you at the next ‘Nessaholics meeting." Slant Magazine gave the album a mixed review in their review, saying "Carlton's voice continues to mature (there's a gritty quality to her vocals on songs like "Fools Like Me," and the earthiness of guest Stevie Nicks's alto harmonies on the country-leaning "The One" tempers Carlton's more reedy lead vocal), but the material in general isn't exactly what you'd expect from an artist who left the nest in search of creative freedom and appreciation, making Heroes & Thieves somewhat less rewarding than her last album."

Entertainment Weekly praised the album, stating "With a youthful voice and a predilection for flowery lyrics, the 27-year-old still comes off as an angst-afflicted teenager adapting her diary into song — even though she's now rhapsodizing about adult stuff like rent-controlled apartments (Nolita Fairytale) and temp work (Hands on Me). This can be surprisingly touching and personal, as on the exuberant title track, or simply pretentious, as on Come Undone, where she muses, I'm a sycophantic courtier with an elegant repost. However precious her poetry can be, Carlton always pins it to melodies that morph and expand evocatively. Heroes climaxes grandly in the soaring ballad Home, followed by the choral volcano that is More Than This. As sappy as this combination is, the orchestral one-two punch is also inescapably moving. And it's the kind of thing Carlton does best — no matter what label she's on." The reviewer later awarded the album a "B" rating.