Singing Saw (album)

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
AnyDecentMusic?	8.1/10[2]
Metacritic	84/100[3]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[4]
Consequence of Sound	B[5]
Mojo	[6]
NME	4/5[7]
The Observer	[8]
Pitchfork	8.3/10[9]
PopMatters	8/10[10]
Q	[11]
Record Collector	[12]
Uncut	9/10[13]

Singing Saw received widespread critical acclaim from contemporary music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 84, based on 13 reviews, which indicates "universal acclaim ".[3]

Mark Richardson of Pitchfork praised the album, stating, "Singing Saw is his strongest album because it shows a process of refinement, and because Morby’s songwriting has become less referential and more grounded. The basic ingredients haven’t changed, but Morby is figuring out how to retain and amplify his strongest points—his weary and wise voice, his understanding of how the musical pieces fit together—and leave everything else behind. On his debut, Morby’s voice cracked in places, suggesting effort that transcended ability, but Singing Saw finds him cool and controlled at every turn, fully aware of his limitations but confident in what he can accomplish within them. His singing is simultaneously intimate and distant, part conversation and part stylized monologue. Single lines don’t really stand out, but Morby’s commitment to such elemental concerns has a cumulative effect, and the album’s lack of specificity becomes a strength."[9]

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Singing Saw.[21]

Main personnel

• Kevin Morby – guitar, vocals, piano
• Sam Cohen – guitar, bass, keyboards, drums
• Marco Benevento – piano (2, 3, 5, 8, 9), keyboards (2, 3, 5, 8, 9)
• John Andrews – singing saw (1, 3)
• Alec Spiegelman – saxophone (4, 7), flute (4, 7)
• Eliza Bagg – strings (1, 4, 7, 9)
• Oliver Hill – strings (1, 4, 7, 9)
• Cole Kamen-Green – trumpet (2, 5, 9)
• Justin Sullivan – drums (2-4), percussion (2-4)
• Nick Kinsey – drums (2, 5, 7–9), percussion (2, 5, 7–9)
• Alecia Chakour – backing vocals (2, 3, 5, 7–9)
• Hannah Cohen – backing vocals (2, 3, 5, 7–9)
• Lauren Balthrop – backing vocals (2, 3, 5, 7–9)

Additional personnel

• Sam Cohen – production, additional engineering
• Jeff Lipton – mastering
• D. James Goodwin – engineering, mixing
• John Thayer – assistant engineering
• Maria Rice – assistant mastering engineering
• Dusdin Condren – photography
• Miles Johnson – design