Rolling Stone (5/13/99, p.79) - Included in Rolling Stone's "Essential Recordings of the 90's."
Rolling Stone (11/25/93, p.112) - 4 Stars - Excellent - "...[Is] there a more perfect marriage of pop sensibilities than the Pet Shop Boys covering a Village People hit?...there's more to these songs [on VERY] than sly wit and catchy choruses...the depth makes VERY worth hearing again and again..."
Rolling Stone (5/13/99, p.79) - Included in Rolling Stone's "Essential Recordings of the 90's."
Rolling Stone (11/25/93, p.112) - 4 Stars - Excellent - "...[Is] there a more perfect marriage of pop sensibilities than the Pet Shop Boys covering a Village People hit?...there's more to these songs [on VERY] than sly wit and catchy choruses...the depth makes VERY worth hearing again and again..."
Spin (11/93, p.130) - Highly Recommended - "...Nothing compares to the carnage of a cold fish [like the Pet Shop Boys] succumbing to emotional abandon; on VERY, the fridge door is swinging off its hinges..."
Spin (4/94, p.91) - "...Though compelling in experimental mode, the Pet Shop Boys are hardly inventive; at a time when most dance music can't even form full sentences, speech is still the special ingredient that sets them apart...."
Spin (11/93, p.130) - Highly Recommended - "...Nothing compares to the carnage of a cold fish [like the Pet Shop Boys] succumbing to emotional abandon; on VERY, the fridge door is swinging off its hinges..."
Entertainment Weekly (10/8/93, p.52) - "...very understated musically, with happy and sad love songs dryly set to the same propulsive beat. It's also very deeply felt..." - Rating: A-
Entertainment Weekly (10/8/93, p.52) - "...very understated musically, with happy and sad love songs dryly set to the same propulsive beat. It's also very deeply felt..." - Rating: A-
Q (6/00, p.61) - Ranked #91 in Q's "100 Greatest British Albums"
Q (11/93, p.131) - 4 Stars - Excellent - "...VERY is the album that confirmed a group so tightly focused on its strengths to the exclusion of any meaningful experiment..."
Q (6/00, p.61) - Ranked #91 in Q's "100 Greatest British Albums"
Q (11/93, p.131) - 4 Stars - Excellent - "...VERY is the album that confirmed a group so tightly focused on its strengths to the exclusion of any meaningful experiment..."
Melody Maker (1/1/94, p.77) - Ranked #37 in Melody Maker's list of the `Albums Of The Year' for 1993 - "...VERY plumbed hitherto uncharted depths of pop savvy with clinical efficiency...."
Melody Maker (9/25/93, p.33) - "...This is more like it...[VERY is] the purest, most intelligent and poppiest pop. [The Pet Shop Boys] write pop songs, play pop songs, are a godsend to those who love pop songs, from kids at school discos to middle-aged connoisseurs of a cracking tune..."
Melody Maker (1/1/94, p.77) - Ranked #37 in Melody Maker's list of the `Albums Of The Year' for 1993 - "...VERY plumbed hitherto uncharted depths of pop savvy with clinical efficiency...."
Melody Maker (9/25/93, p.33) - "...This is more like it...[VERY is] the purest, most intelligent and poppiest pop. [The Pet Shop Boys] write pop songs, play pop songs, are a godsend to those who love pop songs, from kids at school discos to middle-aged connoisseurs of a cracking tune..."
Village Voice (3/1/94, p.5) - Ranked #5 in the Village Voice's 1993 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll.
Village Voice (3/1/94, p.5) - Ranked #5 in the Village Voice's 1993 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll.
Stereo Review (12/93, p.118) - "...they've shown that songs of lasting substance can be created by knob twiddlers no less than string pickers...VERY is another good piece of enriched popcraft Pet Shop Boys...."
Stereo Review (12/93, p.118) - "...they've shown that songs of lasting substance can be created by knob twiddlers no less than string pickers...VERY is another good piece of enriched popcraft Pet Shop Boys...."
NME (Magazine) (9/25/93, p.36) - (9) - Excellent - "...[VERY] is brilliant from start to finish....Musically, things are `up' a
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