Everyone Is Stunned By Beyonce's Surprise Album, Most Of All The Critics [Pictures]

Since she dropped the bomb on Thursday, Beyonce has occupied thousands of terabytes of data transfer with her new album. People are naturally baffled. Yes, we all know Beyonce is pretty much amazing, but even for her, it was an astounding feat. The woman, who opened 2013 by performing at the Inauguration, then went on to do the Super Bowl halftime show to end all halftime shows, went on a 123-show tour, took care of her little girl and still managed to record a 14-track album, film a video for each track and somehow keep the production team behind the entire escapade from breathing a word to anyone.

Color us impressed. Since this is Queen Bey, however, people have gotten their heads around the idea by now and music critics are just starting to recover from the shock and express some opinions on the album. Yes, the album is amazing… but is it any good?

Head on over to the next page to see more pictures and find out what the critics are saying.

USA Today is impressed with both the album and the visuals, which delve deeper into the private world of Mrs Carter than ever before. Featuring both Jay Z (on the emotionally overloaded track Drunk in Love) and Blue Ivy (in the videos for Blue and Heaven), the album presents Beyonce not as “a scantily clad, cold and removed pop star; she's a smiling, relaxed mother. Awash in soft light for scenes of her and Blue Ivy, the videos, as well as the songs themselves, stand in stark contrast with the harder tracks on the album.”

Andrew Hampp of Billboard’s lengthy, track-by-track review boils down to an extremely positive critique of Beyonce’s new effort. Much like the album’s unorthodox release strategy, the videos and most importantly musical qualities are original, experimental and they really do work. “But once the initial novelty and shock wears off of Beyoncé's impressive stealth-release feat, the brilliance and creative audacity of the album itself can sink in, Hampp says. “Though there are a few songs with traditional pop structures ("XO," "Blow" and "Drunk In Love" chief among them), many of the tracks are more experimental, half-rapped/half-sung songs with suites and interludes that pack more ideas (and more sexually explicit dialogue) than radio-friendly hooks at times.”

The LA Times’ extended piece on the album also heaps praise on Beyonce and her work – not just the massive project that she managed to pull off in complete secrecy, but also the bold move to “torch the veil” of her carefully crafted public image.

“Songs on the album jump and dive between genres and are woven together with everything from spoken word and trap raps to the coos of her daughter Blue Ivy and vintage Destiny’s Child footage,” Gerrick D. Kennedy writes. “It's a lot to consume, but a revelatory look at the singer who has tirelessly calculated what she chooses to share (and it's not always much).”

All in all, it’s a mind-blowing album in more ways than one. That’s probably why Bey wants her fans to hear it in its entirety – Beyonce is only available in full, as an iTunes exclusive complete with 14 tracks and 17 videos until December 20th, when singles will be made available for purchase.

Check out the promo for Drunk in Love below. ****