Reviews (page 2 of 8)
Id never heard of these before. Listened to it a few times. Loved it
Quite an enjoyable listen. Loved the folk country and alt folk side of this. Smooth and easy.
I'm amazed, as a fan of the Levellers, Waterboys and Wonder Stuff, that I'd never come across the Mekons before. I think this will bear a repeat listen - the vocals are a bit off-putting on first impression but I'm interested.
Reminded me a bit of the Pogues but more punkish.
I liked it, then I didn’t, then I liked it again. Uneven but interesting.
Applaud the concept, like the genre’s its blending and love what it influenced, alt. Country. Sure the vocals are a little ropey on occasion , but rather view for the naive quality. The application is a bit hit and miss and the clash leanings is my least favourite part. But got to go with the effort, hadn’t heard before and glad I have, gonna give it strong 3 Stars for effort.
I wanted to like this but just couldn’t
(3.2) Not for me.
Not for me-kons
photography by John Ingledew but the band designed the sleeve themselves. Fits the music perfectly. Just awful. Are there so few albums of quality that this is considered good?
I kind of like it. Reminds me of the Clash of they had decided to dabble in country western music, but not quite as good. I like it overall but am not blown away. 3/5 but closer to a 3.5
The songs and ideas are good on this, but wow I hate the drums half of the time, (often) awful choice of sound in my opinion. And the vocal is kinda awful. Love the noisy guitars, the violin is fantastic. Psycho Cupid is an awesome track tho, Flitcraft is great too and the cover of Lost Highway as well 5.5/10
This didn't grab me, though there are some interesting pieces, like mixing 80s alternative rock with celtic-sounding fiddles.
Enjoyed this a lot. What a fun hidden gem!
How albums like this make the list has to be a psy-op. MI6 you win again!
Punk country? That’s a weird combo… that I kinda liked a lot. It’s just a bit inconsistent. The best songs are awesome, but the mediocre songs are BORING. But overall, I really liked it. It’s like a 3.5, but it’s giving some extreme “I’ll like this more with time” vibes, so I’ll curve up to a 4.
Harmless. Kind of boring. Seems like an unfinished idea.
Me parece que la decisión sonora que tomaron era muy interesante en la teoría, pero puesta en práctica les costó que se escuchara bien. No es completamente malo, pero no destaco mucho.
There was a variety of styles on this, ranging from interesting and experimental, so downright boring. It was fine.
Not what I was expecting, in a good way. I can see it getting a little stale after a while, but I like this album as it is. A lot of ambient noise, but not overwhelming or jarring. Maybe that’s what makes it feel a little too safe?
Tässä on jotain sellasta fiilistä mistä tykkään!
different - a mixed bag of sounds and instruments
I had no preconceptions having not really heard of these guys. Quite enjoyed the opening track, and feel that the rest might grow on me. Would like to give it a 3.5, but not possible.
Good indiesh rock album (i would call it this).
The instruments, the mixing, and the variation between the songs were really good for the most part. But the singing... I can't handle the singing when its out of sync with the music or when they do strange sounds mixed in with the lyrics and this have plenty of both.
Real fun, but it kinda lost its lustre halfway through the album.
solid album, lots of interesting instrumentation for what is purportedly a punk album, but i guess that’s pretty punk
I can't name one person that thinks "auxiliary instrument that would fit well in a Post-Punk band lineup" and has "fiddle" pop into their head immediately, but that's what makes this album great, along with the genre as a whole. Post-Punk as a movement is so ridiculously broad that people can do just about anything they want and still call it Post-Punk. If you want to hear a Post-Punk band consisting of complete nerds destroy tapes and make the strangest sounds possible on homemade instruments, you can listen to This Heat. If you want to hear two balding suicidal guys sing their hearts out about balding and suicide while maintaining the smallest budget they can possibly think of to make an album, then Have a Nice Life is right there. If you think that Post-Punk is missing a guy going moderately apeshit on a fiddle, then The Mekons are right there, and it's great. I'd love to see it go one step further. Why not make a full-on Bluegrass Post-Punk band? Ditch the drumset entirely and give him a washboard, or give the bassist a standup bass. We're already here, the possibilities are endless.
You know, I dug this -- different, slow, interesting. Not going to be returning to it in any regular way, but glad to have given it a spin.
Another entry in the “why” category. This was fine. There is nothing remotely special or interesting about it. It oozes mediocrity with just the right amount of pretension to make it insufferable.
As a great admirer of Gang of Four's Entertainment, I've long been Mekons-curious, since they often get mentioned in the next breath after G of F. I'm surprised that their Before You Die album would be this late, rather than from the late 70s or maybe, like 82 at the latest. Hmmm ... Never did get around to listening to this band (or Wire). Thank you, ridiculous book and this generator! Given that the Mekons are known as a post-punk group that emerged from the same university scene as Gang of Four, I was not prepared to be reminded so much of Robyn Hitchcock and the Pogues. The Mekons are also known as an eclectic outfit (Wikipedia says they were described as "a more chaotic version of Gang of Four"), so perhaps that is the ascendant aspect of the band here. Pretty good little album. I don't see how it stands out from many, many albums in the world that are ... pretty good. There isn't a lot of top notch songwriting, or of developing the material into something exceptional. It's all right. 1001 Albums That Are All Right was taken, so they went with the other thing about mortality? Wikipedia notes of this album that "Rock critic Robert Christgau described it as 'a sort of concept album sort of about life during wartime', " which is just funny. Sort of.
What the hell. I was looking forward to this as I have memories of hearing the Mekons on WFNX and liking them. But I really disliked this record. The lead singer is terrible and that might work with other genres but with country, even alt-country, it's really hard to sit through. True confession, I could not sit through most of these tracks. Maybe if I'd listened to this as a teen I would be laughing and enjoying some of these songs. The energy level is high and I could see shouting along with them at a club or something. But trying to sit down and actually listen to the tracks was rough. My living room on a quiet evening is not the right environment for this record.
I usually have some patience for bands mixing punk with folk and country, but this one got old pretty quickly. “Psycho Cupid (Danceband on the Edge of Time)” was just cringy. It felt like the kind of song that thinks being obnoxious automatically makes it clever. “Lost Highway” was pretty terrible too. I know the rough, drunken pub-band sound is part of the appeal here, but most of the album sounded less like controlled chaos and more like a band making a racket after too many drinks. There were flashes where the punk and folk combination made sense, just nowhere near enough of them. I finished it, so it clears the very low bar separating a 2 from a 1 on my scale.
Who doesn’t love Mekons!? I’m currently in the middle of Rob Miller’s book about the founding of Bloodshot Records and this band (who released an album on Bloodshot more than 30 years after this one) gets name dropped a lot. Formative for the underground scene. I’m rounding up to 4 stars.
Like a Pogues album, but country instead of Celtic.. but the overlap is not surprising to those in the know.
A blatant Brit bias returns after a brief respite. Not the worst, but it's not even average
The phrase, “most influential rock group of all time” gets thrown out a lot on this list. This is clearly another example of misusing the platitude. Just because you put a harmonica over the most generic rock music doesn’t make you an “innovator”.
It's not for me
Listened to this about 10 times today and not got bored/irritated. One I'll come back to.
Sometimes you hear something and can't categorize it. This album is listed as 'alternative country' on Wikipedia. I think 'alternative' is just shorthand for "we got no clue...it's ummm, somewhat like this other thing". And it has a violin (excuse me, 'fiddle') so that makes it 'country'... I guess, if you say so. Even if it does sound like the judge from The Wall screaming over top of the whines and warbles of Portishead while a violin (excuse me, 'fiddle') saws in between. I guess my question is this (and it has been the question for the duration of this exercise): what determines 'genre'? Subsequent to that, why do we care? Categorization can be a helpful tool, but at some point the tool becomes dogma. I can't abide dogma. What I can abide is those who tilt at dogma. And this, whatever it is, definitely tilts at dogma. +2 "There's got to be one breath after which does not come another" O_o oh wow, ok.
nope
This album is really interesting. It sounds like what people who don’t care about punk think punk sounds like. Slightly aggressive atonal nothingness. It’s done wonders for my empathy and I’ll forget about it by the end of the week.
Kind of goofy and not really for me, but there are some decent moments that grabbed me. I appreciate the stylistic blend of 80s although rock and country, but again the music itself leaves a fair amount to be desired. At least it's not terribly long? Top tracks: Darkness and Doubt, Last Dance
I really admire the attempt to do something different. I still can't tell if I like it or if it's awful. It's like post punk country music with a pogues influence
Kind of a new, intriguing sound for me. Proto-something :)
It's just not for me.
the low voices at the beginning... don't piss me off!! vibey but also mid? standouts: N/A
Quite a mediocre album.
was alright
Вот обложка красивая, а так не очень
I've only ever liked the first couple singles the Mekons put out. I've tried repeatedly with many of their albums over the decades, but nothing else sticks for me.
Not sure if the country vibe fits with this type of Rock n Roll sound. At least the writing’s good
Spøjs folk-rock-blanding. Ikke lyttet ordentligt.
An amazing journey through a huge array of genres, styles, and song structures. And all of them are absolutely awful.
some good tunes on this, sounded different from everything else i’ve heard on this, good stuff
I didn’t particularly enjoy it, but I’m glad it exists and is on this list. Better than all the boring nonsense I’ve been made to listen to.
sux
No, sry!
I didn't hate it. But I can't see myself ever listening to it again.
Enjoyed it
It’s alright.
lite fokigt meh.
not my style
Teilweise bisschen Crazy aber eigentlich ganz cool
Keine Ahnung, fand ich verwirrend
There's probably a reason I've never heard of this. Pretty sure it's a good one.
Love this album, love Mekons
This album really has pulled me in. Kind of feels like a fairytale at time, moving. But then some feels like some students making an album. Okay maybe I just liked the first two songs.
Generic 80's rock
County punk. Or punk country. I get why it has a good reputation.
4/10 Medio aburrido, no me ternino de convencer en ningún momento. No es malo malo, pero no me llama nada
Started out not too bad but went straight downhill after the first song.
RATING: 6.5/10 HIGHLIGHT: Hard to Be Human Again LOWLIGHT: Chivalry
Oh, God. British "punk" bands (probably new wave) trying to mix their sound with Celtic folk isn't exactly the best thing for a leisurely Sunday listen. It was a generic and often horrible new wave album that tried too hard to be weird but didn't get weird enough. There is no decent songwriting here to speak of, with songs not being weird enough to be interesting in an avant-garde way but not hooky enough to work as pop songs. Therefore, it settles in the no-man's-land between those extremes, aided by a poor vocal performance that sounds like every whiny British guy ever. Yup, sounds about right for this list. Shitty British new wave that has the occasional fiddle to make it sound more folky. Why must the list continually throw these albums at us poor listeners? This album is ranked #15 of 16 1985 albums. Other 1985 albums rated by me: Brothers in Arms(2/16)-5 Hounds of Love(3/16)-4 Low-Life(5/16)-3 Rum, Sodomy, and the Lash(6/16)-3 Hunting High and Low(8/16)-3 Steve McQueen(10/16)-3 Picture Book(13/16)-2
뭐라 쓰지
Ok
*All over the place with genres but nothing bad about the musicianship
Hey guys! This is not an album you need to listen before you die! Best Song: Trouble Down South Rating: 2/10 Stars: 1
Still not 100% sure how I feel about this one but I gave it a few listens and found it growing on me. Really interesting low-fi stuff.
This did nothing for me.
More meh from a group I've never heard of. Starting to feel more like "1001 Albums you should have listened to when they came out, before the paled into obscurity"
This is like a bad Dexy's. And Dexy's were shite! So what dirt does the "singer" have on the rest of the band? Because he would be the first one up against the wall. Maybe he owns the van?
Well it has the decency to be short anyway
07/08 Boring and bland
HAHAHA DIT IS GWN FUNNY wat ik tegen savo zei: de muziek is echt prima en toen hij begon te zingen ik moest lachen het verdient lowkey 5 sterren wat is deze muziek ik neem het terug de muziek breekt alle muziek regels wrm is alles uit ritme
deze bro kan NIET ZINGEN??? de muziek compenseert wel ervoor
Trouble Down South Darkness and Doubt Abernant 1984/5
Chivalry Country Last Dance
01) Chivalry - 6,0 02) Trouble Down South - 5,0 03) Hard to Be Human Again - 5,5 04) Darkness and Doubt - 5,0 05) Psycho Cupid (Danceband on the Edge of Time) - 5,0 06) Flitcraft - 5,5 07) Country - 5,5 08) Abernant 1984/5 - 5,0 09) Last Dance - 5,5 10) Lost Highway - 5,5 TOTAL: 5,35 (54/100) Current ranking: 861/966
I like folk punk. My favorite band AJJ is a folk punk band. I don't like this. It doesn't knows what it is and I don't know either.
I really - really! - thought that I'd stumbled on some awesome lost UK pop gem as Chivalry started. But then, after a mere 17 seconds, some weird ambiant reverb-heavy vocals appeared low in the mix, only to be wiped out by pitchy vocals high in the mix. The rest of the album seemed half-baked. Another selection randomly chosen because of its UK origin, perhaps? Only one of these tunes has broken 300k streams on Spotify. I can't imagine why.
The Mekons are first listen for me. An interesting mix of punk and country with some nice lyrics.
Every day i log onto this fucking website, and i am one of the last active people in my group because i am a real music fan, and I am rewarded with some British BULLSHIT like this. “Happy Day 55 it’s time to listen to The Crumpets and their album that wasn’t even critically acclaimed at the time.” Surely this is one of the greatest 1000 contributions to music ever. Out of ALL POSSIBLE MUSIC this made the list. Further proof the British do not deserve to live. I don’t care if the violins sounding off is intentional they sound like shit. I appreciate the energy i guess but these guys are ass.
6/10
The first track sounds like it could be a lesser song from Strongbad Sings. It was all downhill from there. Seemed like every song was less enjoyable than the last.
Now this is important. There’s a type of a partying that is high-value. I’m not talking about having fun at auntie’s birthday party. I’m talking about a hard hard hard type of partying. Drugs in plentiful forms. An unfamiliar venue. Lots of strangers seasoned with several people you know: very few to zero close trusted confidantes or friends. I’m talking about a kind of partying that is extremely intense. One that transcends the basic concept of good or bad. Part social, part internal. Flavoured with danger and uncertainty, seasoned with new elements you've never encountered before, but all within your grasp to manage. The type of partying that imprints on your memory for life in spite of the drugs, and perhaps adjusts your trajectory going onwards. Like a concentrated dose of living packed into a single wild evening. It is pretty much impossible to plan, but when encountered I advise you ride the experience to the max. While trying to chase this type of thing regularly is not advisable, and will almost certainly ruin your life forever, including a handful over the course of a lifetime is a special ingredient if you want to have a GREAT life. Now I don’t know this album. It really meant nothing to me at all. I didn’t even think it was that good. Except...for some reason I can’t explain, it reminded me of hard hard hard partying. And that? That I like.
I listened to this twice. The first time was while cooking beef short rib on the day of said beef’s expiry date. Should I use this? I thought. It does smell kinda bad? But how bad does it need to be to kill me and my whole family? I hummed and haaaed over this dilemma for about four hours while the beef was slowly cooking. I was vaguely aware of some disturbing country music playing in the background. Should I just toss it out? On the one hand, that would be a waste of food and effort, on the other, my children could get sick and die. What to do? Eventually, I pulled it out of the oven, broke it apart with a fork, and I could still smell a very faint unpleasantness. The smell was barely detectable, but still, it triggered a primal aversion in me. One should listen to these internal alarms occasionally, I thought. So I threw the beef in the bin and ordered Indian takeaway. To my knowledge, no one in my family got diarrhoea. The second time I listened to this was with headphones in an office after reading my project partner’s review of the album. He essentially related it to the musical equivalent of a party that transcends fun and becomes quite nasty. As the occasional dangerous bender enjoyer, this is a correct take. I left work early.
I didn't get the Mekons at the time and now, listening with a more mature ear, I still don't. Seems like The Emperor's New Clothes to me.
Okay
Had its moments at the start at end, wasn’t that into it overall. But a bit more listenable than other stuff in this kind of genre.
The violinist just came out for no reason, did you really think that was interesting?
cows have awful taste
Yeah wow I liked this! It did take 2-3 listen throughs but it’s been on repeat and I’m having a good time
this was not bad! I liked his accent when it shone through occasionally and found Psycho Cupid and Flitcraft both pretty interesting tracks. I feel like the Mekons have been completely forgotten and I had certainly never heard of them before. Probably wouldn’t necessarily go back but good to hear from someone completely new
I really liked this
Yeah...I don't know about this one.
slop
very fun so far. It is a really good country-punk album and quite English too. Rating: 4/5 GEMV (29.06.2026)
Yawn Fave track: Last Dance
Apparently forgot to review - all I remember is barely having an opinion on this one. Snooze. 2/5
Very forgettable
Come on, this is not Punk. Sure, they came around during the era, and yes, they’re weird and different. Punk? Nope. Waco Brother’s are far more my speed. And I’m a Punk. One for saying they’re Punk. One more for the Alt-Country spinoff.
Fear and whiskey? That’s just a Friday night at my place, baby! As soon as this album started I had a knee jerk, audible “oh no” reaction. Reminded me of Dexys Midnight Runners if they liked pop music more, which did not bode well for me. Like my experiences with the DMR albums, I really struggled with this, particularly with the lead vocal performance and the overproduced arrangements (the drums in particular sound awful). Much of it sounds weirdly out of sync to me, like their earpieces had a delay or something. Could they hear each other in the studio? Seems like it’s supposed to be apocalyptic and dark. I, too, was waiting for the world to end while this was on. Please stop shouting at me. Who do you think you are, Roger Waters? The violin work was cool. Wish it’d been on an album I could enjoy.
More garbage. Come on 1
Saturday, 27 June, 2026 This album is fine. Nothing wrong with it.
An interesting introduction but I don't like the vocals and the fiddle. favourite: "Last Dance" 1,5
I was expecting something pretty much like a British version of the Meat Puppets, but honestly this sounds more like the Pogues? There's a bit of Violent Femmes' Hallowed Ground in there too, but not enough to bring this album to the next level.
Good in parts, but not great.
My knowledge of Mekons was restricted to their early punk ramblings, characterised by basic musicianship and angry lyrics. Therefore this came as a suprise, venturing into pastures new. It didn't grab me, but two stars for the pivot.
Nothing bad nothing brilliant
Like a cross between the Pogues and the Skids with all the good bits taken out. 2*
Punk from the mid 80s.
It happened - it didn't do "it" for me, but was interesting music
Was just a meh album for me. Wasn't bad, just didn't have anything significant. Sounded like a stereotypical 80s band.
Had to just get through it
Not for me, and probably not for most people. A little too off the walls for my taste. I fear I will not re-visit this one again. :/
Eh, lowkey no. I have some beef with heavy British accents when singing especially when it's some punk guy. Had a few different spots where I was pretty turned off by the abrasiveness. Didn't find the craziness and blending appealing. I'll give some appreciation to the genre bending and innovation, but a lot of it just sounded too rough.
No se porque la voz me suena al grupo Indochine. Igual no me gustó el album
I hadn't heard of Mekons before. I liked this. It had a little "Smiths" kind of sound on some of the songs. 6.25.26
I thought I would like this more than I did. Not bad though.
Another album where my opinion begins and ends with "this is fine". Psycho Cupid - Danceband On the Edge of Time is unique, and I'd say both Flitcraft and Last Dance are solid songs, but the album ends with Lost Highway which is easily the worst on the album, and nothing really gets above "solid". Not a waste of time at least.
This is either intentionally awful or I'm missing something
Decent.
This sounds like what they listen to at clown school.
A great album by these guys. It has a strong punk element with a mixture of country. Especially the last song, Lost Highway which Hank Williams made popular.
This is great!!
Didnt do it for me
Just OK nothing I would ever revisit. A couple songs (Hard to be Human, Lost Highway) I liked pretty well and one (Psycho Cupid) I hated but mostly it was all a pretty bland affair. Maybe there just aren't 1001 albums that anyone needs to hear before they kick the bucket or maybe the 1001 Albums book is just a throwaway book that can't be taken seriously. A combo of both would be my guess.
Is this like country rock meets new wave? I really enjoyed how different this was from other things I’ve heard, and I was kind of surprised it was from the mid-80s as it actually sounded more modern. Did I love this? No. But I really liked how fresh and different this was from almost everything else on this list.
just sort of annoying honestly. parts that were fine
Pretty cool. Really fun blending of the punk and country elements. Some really cool, chill punky sounds and a fun relaxed songwriting voice. I'll go back to it
I'd heard of Mekons but hadn't listened until now. Probably not everyone's cup of tea but I enjoyed it a lot.
Didn't grab me, but enjoyable enough
I thought for a minute that my headphones were not working properly, turns out the songs are supposed to sound this way.
Chivalry 3.5 Trouble Down South 3.3 Hard to Be Human Again 3 Darkness and Doubt 3.2 Psycho Cupid (Danceband on the Ede of Time) 3.2 Flitcraft 3 Country 3.3 Abernant 1984/5 3.4 Last Dance 3.4 Lost Highway 3.1 Score: 3.24
This may be the ideal musical form of WTF. How intellectually honest am I going to be here? I typically vote the weird stuff more highly. But the weird stuff also feels typically more cohesive than this. This feels more like a drunk weekend in a studio with a drum machine than a true commitment to your weird art. Obviously, I cannot judge intent. I do not know what darkness lurks in the hearts of men. There are some genuinely enjoyable parts, but I am lacking a sense of that ineffable quality that makes me feel like these artists were committed to the bit in a way that underlies true belief. For instance, compare this work to The Monks' Black Monk Time or Movies by Holger Czukay, both featured on this list, both *feel* fully committed to their art. This album doesn't land the same way for me, and I'm going to spend too much brain power for the rest of the day trying to reconcile
Okay despite seeing how many negative reviews there were for this album, I was afraid. Pleasantly surprised.
waaaas isch das hhaha. ok aso s het öpis mit drum machine und giige und sochli post punk vocals aber country text? sehr logisch isch das uf dere liste. britisches album wo kritik mega gern gha het und mega underground bliebe isch. trouble down south sehr athmosphärisch. hard to be human again isch wieder meh postpunk. bin bi darkness and doubt und check glaub langsam d richtig. finds etz weg dem nöd mega guet aber check was sie mached. weissssnöd ob das uf die liste mues emfall.
KRASSE TITEL tönt ja mal sehr funny hmm bis jz ghör ich de punk vor allem im gsang hahaha SHEFFIELD MENTIONED oke de schluss vo darkness and doubt findi no geil weiss nöd was es isch (vlt de grösser punk-ihfluss?) aber last dance gfalltmer recht, iwie ischs cute? s het öppis lebensbejahends???😭 chans nöd andersch beschriebe DOUBLETIME ahh es isch glaub en klassische fall vo "eis lied het mier gfalle und drum hets iwie klick gmacht und jz findi au d lieder, woni vorher nödso guet gfunde han iwie no cool" jaa also dezwüsche hets doch z vill lieder wommer chli egal sind aber d atmosphäre vom ganze gfalltmer eig no, es het so öppis ufgstellts hans jz 2 mal glost und es het sich nach last dance vomene klare 2 ufes guets 3 ufekämpft
You’d think this would *really* appeal to my alt-country-loving heart. But not so much. The vocals just don’t appeal to me significantly. The themes do, though.
Super fedt album, overrater måske lidt fordi jeg er på positivt overrasket jeg havde 0 forventninger
Grimy og fedt!
The sheer weird creative energy of this makes it all worth it. Post-punk, violin-based drunk folk, spoken work diatribes and celtic ballads all put in the blender to create something that feels rebellious and spontaneous at the same time.
aburrido
Good and fun music, the Mekons fell like they are one drink away from hanging it up and enrolling grad school for anything in the social sciences.
they walked so The Pogues could run. No, that's not it, they stumbled so The Pogues could run? This was reminiscent of better bands but wasn't the actual better bands.
- 3.5 for it's exploratory nature rounded down for it's crappy execution .... and, no, you get to excuse crap by calling it "punk". -
How did I not grow up with this album?
This sucks.
This guy can't carry a pitch much less find it playing cricket. Neither could Joe Strummer but one was enjoyable. For fiddling La Bottine. Punk? I'm suprised I've never heard of some bands on this list while others. Drum tracks sound like setting number 3 on your kid brother's toy casio, and every Québec pop tune from the 70s.
I mean, after 1st song it was bad, than it wasn't and then I was praying for it to end.
Not exactly sure what is happening here. I was thrown off a bit trying to categorize this as punk, it is not even close. In a way their sound is more mid-90s than mid-80s. I don't think I would go back for a re-listen, but it did not bore me to tears.
I listened to this three times to see if it was one of those albums that grows on you, and I can confidently say it does not. From start to finish it feels completely lost. The songs wander in every direction, the sounds are all over the place, and the vocals drag the whole thing down. I can appreciate that they were trying to blend different styles and do something unconventional, but for me it never comes together into anything enjoyable. Three listens was more than enough.
Сара 3 Марко 4
Æ hørte på den og i ettertid huske æ ingenting, men det va ikke fælt? Ganske ok, ikke så interessant.
Aburrido, el Country es un género que me da igual y no lo consumo, así que menos me interesa el Alt Country que funda este disco, es soso y poco interesante para la mezcla de géneros que propone.
Loved the vibes
Bit of a surprise this one, wasn’t expecting much, but I got right into it, some excellent tracks on here, mad mix up though with the country sounding songs
cowpunk is such a surreal genre and i fuckin love it
Not as good as the pogues or the waterboys, two bands from the same time and place also infusing their hectic rock with folk music.
This was painful at quite a lot of parts. Some of the guitar solos were a relief. The singer was like when music gets called experimental but they forgot it needs skill too, I could do that experiment. I guess this represents the northern english student band part of music history? And for that (specifically, yorkshire) it can have 3 stars instead of 2.
Что будет если смитс начнут играть кантри? Вопрос, который никто не задавал, но если вам интересно узнать на него ответ - то вот он перед вами. В принципе, неплохой альбом, по большей части довольно типичный пост-панк, но с блюзовыми-кантри мотивами. Интересный эксперимент, но не более того.
thought this was pretty cool and unexpected sound for 1985
okay? politically relevant to the times and I could hear that in the sound and lyrics but otherwise didn't hear anything that made me think this is iconic.
Not my cup of tea, bit off tune and not catchy
Based on the album title, I was ready for perhaps some southern rock or gritty country. Then I got hit in the face with what sounds kinda like new wave with alternating falsetto singing and off-tempo speaking backed by a drum machine on track 1. Ruh-roh. Then there were a few tracks of unintelligible talking over some noise. Cool. The autoplay when this finished was a song from the Pere Ubu album that I also hated, so that felt like a sign that I'm justified in giving this a 1. This is actively bad music. I really wish I liked this--the log line of "punk + country" sounds like something that should be right up my alley, but honestly I think this is really poorly executed. 1.4
I enjoyed parts of this quite a bit. I might even return to it here and there, and I'm glad I listened. 6/10
This album probably goes hard if you live in a pub
Aside from the last track (Lost Highway) which was far too country for me, I really enjoyed this. I like a punky vibe that’s not too hard core, and that’s what this delivered - but not in a predictable way.
Their fourth album. Post Punk / Alt Rock. Had absolutely no idea about who or what this was to be honest. Seems like some 80s, arty, attempt to be avant-garde. A band founded at university by art students. Makes sense. I find the album inauthentic and wanky. Middle class uni pish.
Alt-country sounds. Probably a 3.5. There’s a lot here to like but I feel like it’s just a little short of something. This album does draw my interest to this band. Worth a further exploration I think.
Interesting blend of Smiths, Clash, Talking Heads era punk/new wave with country elements. Like a more sophisticated Pogues. Not bad at all.
Som ett lite mer lyssningsbart the Levellers. Går inte att helt avfärda men ger inget vidare avtryck. Knapp tvåa
Tidigare helt ohört. Svårt att klassificera genre på den här, och det är kanske inget dåligt tecken. Börjar som någon form av postpunk/ new wave, och snuddar vid ett sämre Go-Betweens, men övergår till alternativ irländsk pubafton. Det finns något, men jag kan inte säga vad. Och jag tror aldrig jag kommer ta reda på det. Bästa spår: Psycho cupid. Som i sin tur inte låter som någon annan låt på skivan.
Helt okänt för mig. Efter en svag inledning låter från och med tredje spåret Hard to be a human again inte alls så tokigt. Får lite the Clash-vibbar. Gillar den gnisslande felan och det punkiga anslaget.
Enligt Wikipedia ska det här vara någon form av alternativ country. Jag tycker mer det låter som en blandning av Talking heads och Irländsk folkmusik. Låten med titeln Country påminner mig om the proclaimers. Det är inte dåligt men heller inget som fastnat för mig. Bäst är Psycho Cupid, men är inte representativt för albumet. Det blir en stark tvåa.
Bit too bizarre for me.
Big Audio Dynamite with a fiddle.
The opening track is absolutely amazing, and set the mood for a jangly fun album to come, only to be immediately ruined by the pretentious second track that completely clashes every expectation I had going in. As the album progresses, I hear peeps of beauty in between self sabotaging punk noise, that is just completely unnecessary. Fear and Whiskey has so much potential, and after teasing its ability on the opening track, it just makes for a disappointing listen. Making punk music is great, but pairing punk with nice sounding instruments to purposefully clash makes for an awful experience. Then the second half of the album does a 180 (maybe more like 90 it's not that good) and dials in more on the folky fiddle tracks. There's nothing crazy special here, and it gets a little boring after 3 or 4 tracks, but it's definitely an improvement that made the latter half of this record bearable.
REALLY annoying
Solid stuff.
Bad Bad, not Good
It’s not awful but it’s not memorable.
This was alright, but I was done by the end of the album. There was just too much going on, I think, and it sounded too much like Dexy's Midnight Runners, but without all of the heart and passion that they seem to have. Maybe I was just having an off day, I don't know, but I didn't love it. Two stars.
It was okay. Like the innovation country rock. Did end up listening to physical graffiti again
Interesting! Not bad, just different? Sort of folk punk? Somewhere between "Clash with fiddles" and "if the Pogues could sing instead of shouting and weren't entirely a novelty act (but for who's novelty?)"
Hmmm... I feel like this must've been amazing when it came out. I'll have to listen once more maybe? It's ok!
I like all the Mekons eras.
This sounds like pub karaoke jigs and anthems in detuned slow motion, and everyone is deep into their pints.
Did not really like it, not my style
Interesting album, I liked the weird violin.
This was just consistently terrible all the way through
The Clash er en ting, men det er like ofte Billy Joel og/eller irske pub-viser. Ønskte virkelig at dette var litt bedre enn det er. Jeg er svak for godt utført dårlig vokal og assortert instrumental, men de er kanskje ikke så gode på å skrive låter eller...?
Høres ganske tøft ut til tider med felepunk, andre ganger høres de bare ut som et dritings The Clash i øvingslokalet
Not for me
Mostly this dude can't sing.
Was fine, felt ahead of its time maybe but not really drawing me back
Truly peculiar at time but I think if I give this a couple of extra listens I’ll really like this There were several songs that I really vibed with off of the first listen 4
to chaotic
I sort of missed the Mekons. Even though they were sort of local to where I grew up, I was a bit too young. I've only heard bits and pieces, none of which were from this record. I enjoyed it.
This one really didn’t do it for me. Don’t like the vocals. I usually appreciate bands that use the accordion, but this whole cacophony/whining background doesn’t do it for me. It picks up towards the end when they stop the spoken word stuff so I will round up, but personally it’s 1.5 stars from me.
What in the Country punk rock was that? No.
Yeah, no. This album does not work for me at all. Just all around bad, the music doesn’t really work, the vocals are terrible. 1/5
I wish this was weirder and noisier. I'm not opposed to this genre fusion in theory, but here the country sound heavily outweighs the punk/post-punk, and gets boring (grating, even) quickly. "Psycho Cupid" was the most interesting track by far, and I wanted more of it!
okay
This is a pretty good album for anyone seeking just the classic post-punk sound, it also brings along some country sounds, which sounds so magical. The baritone voice is top notch, the vocals are something you might hear from a band like The Human League. It has some arty moments like the spoken word sections in "Trouble Down South" and "Psycho Cupid." The album has a nice mix of different sounds, some are noisy lo-fi punk rock, and then the next song might be a tune that you would ride a horse down the highway and into town with. This album is quite good, I would recommend it. Highlight Song/s: Chivalry
I’ve never heard of them, but I found this alright
first listen some enjoyable, some meh
Interesting. I didn’t necessarily hear country, it sounded like it was more Irish folk, but still cool.
it was okay but not my style
Felt rather mid to me. I mean, it’s good but nothing extraordinary.
I'd heard of this band, but hadn't ever heard them.
No es un album insoportable pero no se merece más de unaescucha circunstancial.
pretty good actually
Wow. Just wow. Such a terrible start. And it gets worse.
A lot going on here but I didn't really mind it. Decent.
Jesus, what a painful listen. The punk is not punking, the country is not good and the vocalist is a disaster to sing in any genre he chooses from. . This is another band and album that I wonder why it's here: never heard about this band and the sound it's just awful. . This list ignores so many good albuns and then saya this is a must listen album. What a joke! 1/5
Curious album with the switch in instruments and changing to more folk. The singing was a real put-off too.
ok
Mostly annoying.
80s alt-rock. British alternative country, first of the genre. Pretty ok, good drinking music.
This album felt very medicore to me. I do think that most of the songs have some great parts to them, but they are almost always negated by some other weird vocal, production, or instrumental choice. I feel like each song starts solid but I just don't care for it by the end. The album is not bad, but nothing to write home about either.
Their style and sound was very similar to others of their time. But I kind of enjoyed it.
This is awesome and new to me. Early Alt-Country vibes
First alt country album, solid Flitcraft
This was a relaxing listen looking forward to listening to their others.
My most surprising 5 star album, but ai just really digged this. The sound was so unique, it was refreshing to hear something so different. I'm not a big country person, but if there is one thing I appreciate from the genre is the fiddle and this is basically a punk album with some fiddle. Favorite Track - Hard to be Human Again Least Favorite Track - Trouble Down South ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
An engaging mix of Britpop, Indie rock, an early alt country. I really enjoyed this record, gave it a few spins, and look forward to learning more about these guys. A nice discovery.
Just such a nothing album. Not bad, not good, not interesting, not fun.
Bracingly weird.
Very nice al principio. Desesperante al final.
What a great english rock album, felt very authentic and raw in a way that was very enjoyable to listen to
Second half picks up, but overall is nothing mindblowing, it's a bit like the Pogues and the Fall but I found it less enjoyable than both
One to file under ‘combinations that shouldn’t have been tried’. In this case it’s a strange mix of punk and country, which for the most part congeals into an unenjoyable sound paired with unimpressive vocals. It does pick up from the low bar set early on though, so it’s not 1* bad. Don’t fear if you get this album, but you could probably use some whiskey to get you through it.
This album redeemed itself towards the end. The middle part in particular wasn’t great, with the rather tuneless vocals we hear throughout really starting to grate when combined with slower paced tracks. I was about ready to give it a 2. But then ‘Abernant 1984/5’ and ‘Last Dance’ came along - two faster-paced tracks sufficiently good to warrant this album a generous 3.
A rare album that improved as it went on. The opener was bloody awful, and while the following few were better, there was far too much talking for my liking. ‘Hard to Be Human Again’ was probably the best of tracks 1-5, having a bit more energy, and for the same reason tracks 6-10 were much stronger. It was a frustrating album; the songs at their core were fairly decent and the punk-country sound/concept was interesting, but the vocals and production were often dreadful. Despite finishing strongly, the first half ensures it’s not quite good enough for 3 stars.
Oh, I don't know man. This started off as "lol what the fuck" and then turned boring with brief excursions back into wtf-land. I think the main problem is, they're trying to infuse country music into punk and/or post-punk, which would be fine but... the Brits don't exactly have a country music tradition. So this ends up sounding like a British idea of country music. Not unlike the time I had what was called quacamole in London. Maybe there was an avocado involved, maybe it was just green mayonnaise, either way it wasn't what you want. Likewise, by this point, American punk bands were already incorporating country and rockabilly elements into their music. X exists, you know? Anyway, swing and a miss. I actually put on some later albums, just to see, and they get better! Not great, but better.
not my cup of tea
I don't quite know why but it makes me want to run away from the sound of it. And the more of it i heard, the more I disliked it.
It was alright I guess. I barely remember it. But it was fine while I was listening.
The two best parts of this list. UK aaand Country together. What can go wrong?
Not really sure what that was. The fact that all 10 songs are so annoying is almost impressive. Vocals were awful. Not one redeeming feature to be found.
Unique sound, king of post punk meets country with the violin. Grew on me the more I listened
Nah
Was this supposed to be a joke?
Ahh that kind of music again, that tries so hard to be annoying, meaningless and badly crafted. I don't see one single benefit for my life in this crap.
Sounds like the singer got a fire poker caught in his throat right before he got to the recording studio. I wish someone would have hit me over the head with one while I was listening to put me out of my misery. Just kidding. It wasn’t that bad. I would need a lot of whiskey before listening again.
Before starting this project, I had often declared that I didn’t like 80s music. One of the things I’ve learned after 880 albums (ironic) is that the 80s actually had some absolute bangers! This is not one of them. This album is straight ass. Shit like this is the exact nonsense that leads me to say that I don’t like 80s music.
Bootycheeks
I mean what even is this? Was hyped thinking I was going to get a country album and then the Brits ruined it…
Chaos
I...liked it? Totally schizo album but it was good.
jus finished and I don’t remember anything. It’s noise
Earnest and boring, sorry to say.
⭐⭐⭐ Melodisk, udda blandning av punk och folk. En bra beskrivning är kanske pubrock med krydda med post-punk där sång och attityd är punkish med violer, munspel blandat med elgitarr och distinkta trummor. Låtarna är melodiösa och med några lyssningar faktiskt ganska catchy och albumet växer med några lyssningar. Upplever att det är lite udda och kul men kanske inte något som lyfter till någon egentlig topp. Så landar i en tre, kanske kan återkomma till albumet men gissar att det troliga att det försvinner i mängden av album jag lyssnar på. Bäst är Hard to be human again, Flitcraft, Country, Abernant 1984/5
Bad reviews scared me but it ended up being surprisingly good. Vocalist wasn't that bad either!
5/10 - inoffensive and an easy listen
I am taken aback that this is hated by so many of you. This is probably one of my favorite discoveries so far. I understand that it's weird, but I found it to be a fun and easy listen.
It was fine
Feels like arcade fire. It’s political, women howling in the background, monotone vocals. It’s not my cup of tea but not worthy of a two. Maybe I am not using the 2 and 1 rating often enough. No I still think those getting a 1 are a certain kind of suck.
This is by far the worst album I've heard on this list so far. Read the reception it got on Wikipedia and can't believe it was so well regarded. I can get the themes are dark and interesting but the music is awful. Horrible screeching violins over some horrendous vocals. Couldn't listen to it again if you paid me and I only managed to get 4 songs in!
Just okay
Solid 80s synth sound
Prenez la country dans ce qu'elle a de pire, mettez là avec ce genre affreux qu'est le post-punk, et vous obtenez une merde infâme.
I didn’t expect to come across and Alt-Country album with Post-Punk flair from a British Band. Sounds like something that maybe won’t work but the Mekons pretty much nail it here. Trouble Down South is an early standout for me. The closer, Lost Highway seems to have the most twang to it and very well may be my favourite on the record. This surprised me, I’m glad it was included. 4 stars
This is cool. I like Alt-Country so it's fun to hear one of the proto examples. I can't say I love this. But I do definitely like it. Last Dance is probably my standout song from this.
It's not the worst thing on this list (by far) but it's... also not good. 2/5
Talk about generic 80s british rock.
enjoyed it but maybe one you had to be there for
nic szczegolnego
Quite the combination.
- i like the sound - kind of smiths x bo burnham? a little? - i like the synths - there's nothing i especially dislike here there's just nothing that especially grabs at me - favorites: flitcraft - rating: 2.5/5
well. that's 35 minutes i cannot get back 1/5
Some of these tracks have interesting things to say. I may listen again. But there’s something about the Irish pub band sound that makes lead singers yell & whoop a lot. It’s recognizable in Thin Lizzy, the Waterboys, Dexie’s Midnight Runners, etc. The style is grating after awhile. Within that sound, this is more interesting than most. A 3.
I don’t drink enough to make this sound good. 1/5
hand-crafted, rough around the edges, honest and true 4 stars
This album never really hit it's stride for me. It's okay, but not a stand out.
Saved? ❌ Would listen again? 🤔 Would recommend to anyone? ❌ Would buy on Vinyl? ❌
Kind of sucks
This is new to me. Country punk? As a country album its shit. As a punk album its great. As punk i like it a lot. Will revisit.
They try hard, but life is too short to listen to all 35 min of this 2.2
Quite good
Just a lot of the same and I didn’t like the style
It’s not bad, it’s just not my vibe. Not sure why it’s on this list, maybe it’s influential to other people. Two stars.
Mekons have successfully made Country enjoyable! This was a very interesting listen, doesn’t sound like anything else, and I do enjoy a concept album.
Interesting. Never heard of these guys. Interesting music. Not for me though. I respect it.
Interesting album, never listened this kind of music. I'm very interested, but also need a little time for these things to click. Album had really sad tones in words but the music was more bright and outgoing, I like that. Cool! PS. I don't like to put a star review of any art format, but I guess I'll do it in this site.
A strange album — the violins give it a kind of fairground atmosphere, even though it's supposedly post-punk. An album for when you've gotten tired of pure post-punk.
Langdradig en soms ronduit lelijk.
Wikipedia noemt het een grondlegger van alt country maar ik het vind meer een kruising van alt folk en indie. Semantics. Het klinkt als vanalles dat ik leuk vind