The album was supported with two accompanying singles; "Come Let Us", released on 7 February, and "Parkstone Melody II", released on 8 March. The Four Worlds received positive reviews, describing it as a continuation of the sound seen on Under the Sun.
Music
The Four Worlds has been described as electronic and ambient.[1][2] Critics noted how both its sound and art direction were a continuation of Pritchard's previous album, Under the Sun.[2][3][4] The album is largely beatless.[3]
"Glasspops" is an exception, being described as a gentle and thumping 11-minute opener.[3] The track was originally recorded in an air raid shelter in Hamburg, before being refined.[5] "Circle of Fear" is an ominous track with a softly circling melody.[1][3] "Come Let Us" is an eerie spoken word piece with vocals from Gregory Whitehead, built around a repeated quote from the Book of Genesis.[2][6] "The Arched Window" uses a harpsichord-like melody that "[envokes] a skyward sense of ecstasy".[3]
"S.O.S." is a "strangely hopeful" spoken word track, with vocals from The Space Lady and haunting chords.[1][3] "Parkstone Melody II" is a "graceful" and "ghostly" song that makes use of a musical saw.[1][6] "Mên-an-Tol" has sweeping strings, prominent use of organ and wordless choir vocals.[3] Closer "The Four Worlds" makes use of a waterphone and a sequence of decayed gong sounds.[1][2]
Release
The album was announced on 7 February, along with the release of the first single, "Come Let Us".[7] The second single, "Parkstone Melody II", was released on 8 March. The Four Worlds was released on 23 March 2018 through Warp.[7] The album's artwork was created by Jonathan Zawada, who had previously worked with Pritchard on the artwork for Under the Sun.[8] Zawada also created the album's music videos and a 13-minute short film in support of it.[9][5] On 12 July, a virtual reality experience themed around the album was hosted in New York.[10]
At Metacritic, which aggregates scores from mainstream critics, The Four Worlds has an average score of 74 based on 6 reviews, indicating a score of "generally favourable".[11] Writing for AllMusic, Andy Kellman called the album an extension of Under the Sun both graphically and musically and noted how each track created a "distinct scene".[2] Matt Mullen of Inverted Audio wrote how individual tracks lacked sense, but together "[cohered] into something weirdly beautifuil".[4] Philippe Renaud of Le Devoir wrote how the album focused more on atmospherics, calling it "enchanting".[12]
Writer Ben Cardew of Pitchfork said that "The Four Worlds is proof that restraint can sing louder than excess", and described how it left listeners wanting more.[1] Larry Fitzmaurice of Resident Advisor noted how the "dank ambience" of the album would surprise those who followed Pritchards career, although it would "drift into tedium" at times.[3] Bruce Tantum of XLR8R called it a "fully-formed album" that was "full of quiet passion".[6]
Dafydd Jenkins of Loud and Quiet gave a more negative review, calling it a "lacklustre chronicle" and calling the spoken word tracks "vague, Radiohead-shallow political "commentary"".[13]
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