Crushing (album)

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
AnyDecentMusic?	8.1/10[8]
Metacritic	85/100[9]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[10]
Chicago Tribune	[11]
The Daily Telegraph	[12]
The Independent	[13]
Mojo	[14]
NME	[15]
The Observer	[16]
Pitchfork	7.7/10[17]
Q	[18]
Rolling Stone	[19]

At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 85, based on 24 reviews.[9] Helen Brown of The Independent gave the album a perfect score, calling it "Grunge-rinsed, feminist-flipped, upcycled Fifties guitar an' all: Crushing is a triumph".[13] Neil McCormick of The Daily Telegraph praised the album, giving it a perfect score and saying, "As a body of work, Crushing feels small, intimate and inward. But these are big songs, full of big ideas, from a big talent."[12] Jonathan Bernstein of Rolling Stone described it as a "subdued yet arresting LP that blends sweet indie-pop with folk introspection and delicate piano balladry, as Jacklin offers up concise self-realizations without fuss or fanfare."[19] Adriane Pontecorvo of PopMatters gave the album a positive review, saying, "Life, love, heartbreak: none of it is particularly novel as musical material, but on Crushing, Julia Jacklin lets us learn from her experiences with her heart on her sleeve. There is a valuable perspective here, and truly moving music."[20]

In a year-end essay for Slate, Ann Powers cited Crushing as one of her favorite albums from 2019 and proof that the format is not dead but rather undergoing a "metamorphosis". She added that concept albums had reemerged through the culturally-relevant autobiographical narratives of artists such as Jacklin, who "redefined the edges of intimacy within the singer-songwriter mode on Crushing, which considers how women set boundaries and constantly face the violation of them, not just in love but in every aspect of their lives".[21]

All tracks are written by Julia Jacklin.

Credits adapted from liner notes.[22]

• Julia Jacklin – vocals, guitar
• Georgia Mulligan – backing vocals (2, 5)
• Blain Cunneen – guitar
• Dominic Rizzo – piano, assistant engineer
• Clayton Allen – drums
• Harry Fuller – bass guitar
• Burke Reid – production, mixing, engineering
• Guy Davie – mastering
• Nick Mckk – photography
• Mel Baxter – layout