10.0: Indispensable, classic 9.5-9.9: Spectacular 9.0-9.4: Amazing 8.5-8.9: Exceptional; will likely rank among writer's top ten albums of the year 8.0-8.4: Very good 7.5-7.9: Above average; enjoyable 7.0-7.4: Not brilliant, but nice enough 6.0-6.9: Has its moments, but isn't strong 5.0-5.9: Mediocre; not good, but not awful 4.0-4.9: Just below average; bad outweighs good by just a little bit 3.0-3.9: Definitely below average, but a few redeeming qualities 2.0-2.9: Heard worse, but still pretty bad 1.0-1.9: Awful; not a single pleasant track 0.0-0.9: Breaks new ground for terrible
