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Star Tribune- Eleven reasons to get excited about 2011

Romantica drops the big one: It's a sign of trouble any time a filmmaker needs to rework a movie, but it's usually a show of dedication when it comes to making a album. Local alt-country/folk-rock band Romantica is almost two years into recording the follow-up to its warmly received 2007 disc, "America," and it's not for lack of quality material. Meantime, they've knocked out two other albums, including frontman Ben Kyle's set with Texas twanger Carrie Rodriguez, "We Still Love Our Country," due Feb. 1. Count on the one that really counts by year end, maybe even summer.

 
PASTE Magazine "Best of 2007"
4 Stars**** Top Notch!  "One of the Best 100 Albums of 2007"  Romantica is here to save the day. Kyle, in songs and voice that sit comfortably between Jeff Tweedy and Ryan Adams,  dwells comfortably in the long shadows cast by his forefathers while leaving his own undeniable stamp on the proceedings.  Top notch!
 
Teenage Kicks "Best of 2007"
Miss the Jayhawks? Think Gram Parsons could do no wrong? Long for a touch of pre-migraine Wilco? Then belly up to the bar for a taste of Romantica. imagine Ryan Adams fronting Calexico for a lament of dashed dreams and hopeful schemes on “The National Side”.

 
The Onion "Best of 2007"
"Top 20 Albums of 2007"  Romantica's sweetly sad country-rock, awash in pedal steel, fiddle, and lovely Gram Parsons-esque melodies, is purely this side of the Atlantic.
 
Star Tribune "Best of 2007"
The music is Americana to the bone. Kyle's Irishness bleeds into his wounded-poet lyrics....This is the kind of CD I could recommend to anyone. In a perfect world, the soccer, er, football ditty "The National Side" would score on local FM stations. 
 
City Pages "Best of 2007"
Few albums released locally this year are capable of garnering such widespread appreciation as Romantica's America. With lush string arrangements and delicate vocal melodies, Romantica appeal just as much to the Cities 97 crowd as they do to alt-country aficionados and folk revivalists.
 
Village Voice NYC
You'll want to say you saw them now!
 
Miles of Music
It's A Cracker!! 100% Guaranteed!!
 
Minneapolis Star Tribune
This is the kind of record I can recommend to everyone. It's sweet and romantic, and the Irish-born Kyle is true to his roots with ample melancholy and poetic license.    -Chris Riemenschneider
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Songs:illinois
I've listened to the song a bunch and am no closer to gleaning it's meaning but each time I listen I like it more and more.
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City Pages
America...an album of lush, richly orchestrated pop-folk made rural by twangy pedal steel and keening fiddle parts    -Sarah Askari
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St. Paul Pioneer Press
Romantica debuts an excellent new album....Romantica specializes in delicate acoustic pop that's far more substantial than an initial listen might suggest.     -Ross Raihala
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The Phantom Tollbooth
I believe this is one of the strongest albums I have listened to this year.  The album deserves some serious attention as a work of musical art.     - Robert W Blake
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Metro Magazine
Nearly all of the group’s lyrical concerns are matters of the heart on the breezy yet memorable sophomore release, America.     -Rob Van Alstyne
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Rhythms of Redemption
Everything about the album is seemingly so effortless. I predict Album of the Year already!    -Steve Stockman
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