The Great Destroyer

The Great Destroyer
A painting of clouds with the album name offset
Studio album by
Low
ReleasedJanuary 25, 2005 (2005-01-25)
RecordedMay 3 – September 27, 2004
StudiosTarbox Road Studios, Cassadaga, New York, United States
GenreSlowcore
Length52:48
LabelSub Pop
Producers
Low chronology
Trust
(2002)		 The Great Destroyer
(2005)		 Drums and Guns
(2007)

The Great Destroyer is the seventh studio album by American indie rock band Low. It was released on January 25, 2005, as their first recording on Sub Pop Records.

"California", a song about Sparhawk's mother, was released as the album's first single, backed with a demo of "Cue the Strings". A remix EP of "Monkey", entitled "Tonight the Monkeys Die", soon followed. Music videos were created for both.

The title of the album (as well as the song "Silver Rider") is taken from the story within the album art. Sparhawk describes "Cue the Strings" as a "shout-out" to the artists Roy Orbison, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark and David Bowie.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic82/100
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusicStarStarStarStar
BlenderStarStarStarStar
Entertainment WeeklyA−
The GuardianStarStarStarStar
MojoStarStarStarStar
NME8/10
Pitchfork5.5/10
QStarStarStar
Rolling StoneStarStarStarHalf star
SpinA−

According to the review aggregator Metacritic, The Great Destroyer received "universal acclaim" based on a weighted average score of 82 out of 100 from 34 critic scores. The site named it the 46th-best reviewed album of 2005. The album was reviewed by publications and critics contributing to Metacritic's aggregated score.

Track listing

All songs written by Alan Sparhawk, Mimi Parker and Zak Sally.

No.TitleLength
1."Monkey"4:19
2."California"3:23
3."Everybody's Song"3:55
4."Silver Rider"5:03
5."Just Stand Back"3:04
6."On the Edge Of"3:49
7."Cue the Strings"3:30
8."Step"3:18
9."When I Go Deaf"4:41
10."Broadway (So Many People)"7:14
11."Pissing"5:08
12."Death of a Salesman"2:28
13."Walk into the Sea"2:56
Total length:52:48

Personnel

Low

Additional personnel

Songs covered

  1. "Monkey" – Robert Plant's Band of Joy – Released in 2010
  2. "Silver Rider" – Robert Plant's Band of Joy – Released in 2010
  3. "Everybody's Song" – Robert Plant with Suzi Dian's Saving Grace – Released in September 26, 2025

Charts

Chart (2005) Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)67
French Albums (SNEP)190
Irish Albums (IRMA)30
UK Albums (Official Charts)72
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)13
US Independent Albums (Billboard)19

References

  1. 1 2 Phares, Heather. "The Great Destroyer – Low". AllMusic. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
  2. 1 2 "Sub Pop Records : Low : California Single". Subpop.com. Retrieved January 25, 2025.
  3. 1 2 "Sub Pop Records : Low : Tonight The Monkeys Die". Subpop.com. Retrieved January 25, 2025.
  4. ↑ "RELEVANT Magazine - Low, The Great Destroyer". Archived from the original on March 22, 2012. Retrieved August 15, 2011.
  5. ↑ Heemskerk, Joris (January 21, 2005). "Low: Het Geluid van Ontwaken". KindaMuzik (in Dutch). Retrieved January 27, 2026.
  6. 1 2 "Reviews for The Great Destroyer by Low". Metacritic. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
  7. ↑ Wolk, Douglas (March 2005). "Low: The Great Destroyer". Blender (34): 141. Archived from the original on April 3, 2005. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
  8. ↑ Chen, Steven (January 21, 2005). "Low: The Great Destroyer". Entertainment Weekly. p. 88.
  9. ↑ Peschek, David (February 11, 2005). "Low, The Great Destroyer". The Guardian. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
  10. ↑ "Low: The Great Destroyer". Mojo (135): 94. February 2005.
  11. ↑ "Low: The Great Destroyer". NME: 59. January 29, 2005.
  12. ↑ Raposa, David (January 26, 2005). "Low: The Great Destroyer". Pitchfork. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
  13. ↑ "Low: The Great Destroyer". Q (224): 100. March 2005.
  14. ↑ Fricke, David (February 10, 2005). "Low: The Great Destroyer". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on December 14, 2007. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
  15. ↑ Scholtes, Peter S. (February 2005). "Low: The Great Destroyer". Spin. 21 (2): 91. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
  16. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Low – The Great Destroyer" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved August 25, 2011.
  17. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Low – The Great Destroyer". Hung Medien. Retrieved August 25, 2011.
  18. ↑ "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week 5, 2005". GfK Chart-Track. IRMA. Archived from the original. Retrieved August 25, 2011. [dead link]
  19. ↑ "Official Albums Chart on 5/2/2005 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 25, 2011.
  20. ↑ "Low Chart History (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved August 25, 2011.
  21. ↑ "Low Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved August 25, 2011.