Reviews (page 5 of 7)
it was okay but not my style
Felt rather mid to me. I mean, it’s good but nothing extraordinary.
No es un album insoportable pero no se merece más de unaescucha circunstancial.
Curious album with the switch in instruments and changing to more folk. The singing was a real put-off too.
Mostly annoying.
Just such a nothing album. Not bad, not good, not interesting, not fun.
Very nice al principio. Desesperante al final.
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.
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
The two best parts of this list. UK aaand Country together. What can go wrong?
Nah
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
Earnest and boring, sorry to say.
5/10 - inoffensive and an easy listen
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.
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
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.
Langdradig en soms ronduit lelijk.
Never heard of these guys or anything off this album, and I think the jury is still out on what to make of it. I enjoy the energy but the vocals are tiresome. Not sure if I'll be coming back to this one or not.
I don't know... Wanted to like this more than I did. Has some interesting moments, but kind of dull throughout otherwise. 2/5.
is the most interesting thing about this album the presence of fiddle?
Under normal circumstances I am all in when it comes to crossing different styles over. But this here is just plain boring. Not a fan Country Music, and the way it is finalised on this Album is just…meh.
Quite fun, but not that good
Strange
Not a memorable record.
ele tenta ser algo diferente, mas é só um rock meio country batido, bem qualquer coisa.
An odd country infused rock album. The Lost Highway song at the end really brings it together well but a lot of the other songs don’t do it for me.
Has the feeling of an 80s pop-celtic bar band. Some decent tunes on here, but nothing I need to revisit. Highlights: "Hard to Be Human Again" and "Last Dance"
Tone-deaf, sad cowboy noises
Did this REALLY need to be on the list…
decent. not very memorable
its ok
A few songs I enjoyed. 2.5
Yeah, this isn't good. If The Smiths decided they want to try their hand at country. With a worse singer than Morrissey (Somehow, but at least sometimes Morrissey can be a halfway decent singer). And the music in general is not good enough to make up for that either. I'll give them some credit for being one of the first bands to make alternative country and being influential in that regard, and that's spawned some good stuff (REM and Radiohead delved a little bit into that sound, and then you got other great stuff like the Silver Jews), but this album is just not good. I have very few 1* albums so far out of 415 (Only 6). I don't think this is quite bad enough to be introduced to that list, but holy shit is this damn close. If the music was just a tad worse, it'd easily make that list. As it stands, the music is just good and competent enough of the time (Last Dance is actually a pretty decent song overall, singing is fine in that one) to avoid that.
I could be wrong... But I'm pretty sure this band either read the book; "The 7 and a half steps to making a mediocre album", or "How to create a mediocre album for dummies". Either way they didn't pay attention and didn't even create something that good.
Some good listenable stuff on here, and its clear these guys were pioneers and influential, but theres a bit too much experimental weird stuff that makes me zone out.
Ik vond het niet zo boeiend helaas
☑️
Biweekly midrange Britpop obligation
Neither here nor there
This felt more like a manifesto of which I was not interested
Eh...it's almost ok sometimes. Not something I found myself getting particularly excited over.
The premise was much better than the actual result. Favorite track: Country
Country punk. Good variation in style and songwriting but just underwhelming.
just weird
I liked the first track, but (maybe I am influnced by the title) the rest sounded like the recordings of a drunk group of friends in a roadside pub.
Just ok
It sounds like other people
Well it's unique, I guess. The singing sounds like a open mic towards the end of a pub crawl and the whole thing did give me a migraine. Gotta admit I don't really hear the "post punk" unless they mean post-punk as in that the production is shit and the singing is off key. The country elements in here really clash against everything else in an off putting way that doesn't quite work and the talk-over songs like "psycho cupid" just straight up suck. The idea of a country infused post-punk alt rock album is not inherently a bad one, but the issue is everything else in execution. I liked Flitcraft and Last Dance I think? I am glad I listened to this album before I died, but that doesn't make it a good album. I am giving this the most generous 2 in the world for being interesting and actually picking up towards the end.
A bit manky this one. I like whiskey but I don’t like fear so much and there was just too much fear along with a bundle of other pongy scabby elements. 2 stars out of 5. You’re twisting my Mekons, man!
Ei
Lähtökohtaisesti hommat menee persiilleen jos countrya ruvetaan laumaan brittimongerruksella. Jos olisi ollut pelkkää instrumentaalina niin olisin tykännyt enemmän. ⭐️⭐️
Lähtökohdista olisi voinut saada jotain siistiä mutta ei tämä kyhäelmä kyllä juuri miellyttänyt.
Just a really strange album, and not in a good way. There were a couple songs I didn't hate.
Rating: 4/10 I like modern alt country but I found this to be a mediocre release that is most notable for being a niche sound at this time. Crazy that a British band tried to do this. And of course that means the arbiters of this book thought it meant that I should listen to it. The alt country sound really develops into the 90's, in the US, and those records are not ones with a punk edge. I will forget this one exists for sure
Weird and confusing but almost interesting and not that bad. Even though it's kind of pleasant, I'm glad fiddle rock didn't stick around in the mainstream 4.7/10
all a bit weird...an Irish country / something else-but not really punk- mash up. Would go down ok in the stereotypical Irish bars found everywhere. but top 1001 albums, really?
Side b: 3 stars, side a: 1 star
Bastante meh para tener cosas punk. Pensé iba a interesarme más. Fue medio decepcionante. Esa mezcla de country con punk queda pésima (al menos en ellos). Y en el resto, para ser un album del 85, no parece ofrecer nada demasiado nuevo. 3/10
This was really not good at all. That’s kind of all I have to say about this.
3/10… 80s alternative / cowpunk / *1985
This sounds just a little bit like The Pogues, but if they couldn't write decent songs, and the vocals were a lot worse. After a terrible opening track, it started to pick up a little, before devolving into boring punk/ country nothingness. Two stars.
Although it improved a bit along the way, in the first song the singer sounds like me in the shower (i cant sing)
The word ‘country’ filled me with trepidation but it wasn’t too bad, but not too good either. I can hear that it has been influential but I found it a little boring.
Dreadful
Discordant and half baked. Unpleasant, but doesn't feel like it's really challenging anything or trying to push boundaries. Most like an inferior attempt at Velvet Underground or Talking Heads.
This just felt cacophonous to me. Maybe I'd appreciate it more if I was sitting in a bar, completely wasted. Which is annoying, because seeing critics rate it so high makes me feel like I'm missing something? Maybe it's the difference between casual and active/professional listening.
I want to like this but it’s kind of annoying.
1.9
I like punk, I like country. I can't really say I like this.
2 - some was ok but what was with that horrible out of tune wailing on some songs
Meh. Its okay, but not memorable.
Bruh how do some of these albums get on this list
Huh. Kinda like light British punk? Not great though.
More punk and folk then country, with a more than striking resemblance to the Pogues, in musical style at least. Funny thing is, I like the Pogues, and on paper I should like ‘Fear And Whiskey’ too… except that I don’t, aside from ‘Last Dance’, which is a cracking track. Unfortunately, the rest of the album is largely forgettable in my opinion.
There is nothing I need less of in my life than "cowpunk". That's not to say I instantly hated the album, if anything the novelty of these two genres coming together was well-executed and sort of cool to hear. But what's up with punk singers always putting as little effort as possible to sing well? The lead guy here sounds straight sloshed the whole time. It's so frequent in these punk entries that it might as well be a staple for the genre, and the appeal totally eludes me. Yet another reason Mekons will not make it to my rotation anytime soon.
It sounds like dexys midnight runners but somehow even worse.
Una onda The Clash y Talking Heads No gustó mucho
This feels like an album we are told we should like by pompous critics because reasons, but I just couldn't get into it.
This is like if you took a punk band, gave them some violins and said pretend you’re from Ireland and make a folk album. Pretty bad.
Dreadful stuff. Album Art 3/5
At least it's only half an hour long.
I once bought a Mekons album in the early 90s, which was money wasted. 30yrs later this isn’t going to convince me to buy another one. I don’t mind the more spoken word stuff with melancholy folk backing, feels very proto post rock. The rest of the celtic/folk/country stuff really is never gonna my bag.
I genuinely don’t have any bad intend when I say this, but what the fuck did I just hear? Country punk?? How is that a thing that actually exists? And why don’t I hate it?
So I've come to learn this was a seminal album for the alt-country folks. I love alt-country, or at least I loved it, and that does not make a ton of sense to me. Mostly because this was not good. They seem like an admirable band full of admirable people but this is rock n roll baby.
Mekons usual mixture of punk, rockabilly, and atypical vocals. I was disappointed in this, it just wasn't that great except for a few of the more popular tracks. I don't think this warranted inclusion in the list, though I'm glad they are representing less popular artists.
Neinspirisana nasumično povezana gomila zvukova i stilova.
2.4 2x catch up 2/10
It was fine. Very British. Too much talking over music rather than singing though. Never heard of this band before.
Nej, det här tycker jag inte var någon höjdare, framförallt för att sångaren sjunger illa. Lyssnat flera gånger och det har inte hjälpt. I övrigt är det ju rätt experimentellt med några ljusglimtar här och där, men också mycket som fungerar mindre bra. Men sången som sagt, fy farao. Kan omöjligt bli mer än en tvåa och då är jag generös.
#801. I'm not entirely sure what they were going for with this album. This shis disjointed and weird in not a good way. 2/5: nah
Odd combination of punk music and country music. Glad I heard it probably won’t be a another lesson.
Not much fear. Not much whiskey. Brit punk first wave than never really landed with me.
Date- 2/16/2025 Number- 344 Rating- 2 Top Tracks- Last Dance Listening Notes- Reminds me of an experimental, collective project with multiple instruments and a progressive punk ethos. I appreciate the use of violins and extra instrumentation, but it can also be distracting and discordant. Personally not a fan of the lead singer, or the multiple tracks with spoken word stylism. I don’t mind music that isn't straight forward melodies and harmonies, but it’s nice to occasionally feel like there’s an attempt. 1001 Albums calls Fear and Whiskey “country as played by English punks” seemed my biggest take away as well. While I won’t be listening to this album again, I was able to find a couple songs I will revisit. Happy to have tried something new, but would not be in my 1001 Must Listens.
Meh
One of my old friends lived in a house with some fields and every year they do a festival there, with all the old hippies getting up to play live. It's exactly the sort of thing you'd see there and be like 'oh this is fun' and enjoy them rocking out but EVEN THEN after 5 minutes turn to your friend and say.... shall we go and get a drink? And they'd immediately say yes and you'd hear it fade in to the background as you go to do anything else.
Never heard of this band before, unfortunately reading their bio was more interesting than this album. I was mildly interested in hearing some of their early stuff until I read their first single was “a sarcastic response to the Clash's White Riot”, which is borderline blasphemous, but I digress. I guess I’ll be generous once again and say this album rounds up to 2 stars (barely).
Wow - not what I expected. Not in a good way either. I’ll pass on the weird 80s production and oddly Pogues like instrumentation.
I wasn't really into it, I like the punk-country feel but I couldn't get into it
Tgoh
me: i want the pogues mom: we have the pogues at home the pogues at home:
Another mid British band Nice fiddle though
Honky tonk bar music (jk),, unlesszzz. Idk. I feel bleh. TWO!
At least the music was not intrusive to my currently rather stressful workload. Singing was not my cup of tea.
Wasn't as bad as I was expecting from some of the reviews on here
Meh
2/5
I didn't hate it, but I probably should have? 2.4.
Heel soms pakt dit wel, vooral als er meer sprake is van praten dan zingen. Maar voor het grootste gedeelte van dit album geldt: stel dat het wel goed uitgevoerd was, dan was er een vergeetbare 3 geleverd.
Je zou natuurlijk je gitaar kunnen stemmen. Je zou kunnen proberen in de maat te drummen. Je zou kunnen proberen zuiver te zingen. Je zou kunnen zorgen dat iedereen op dezelfde toonhoogte zit. Maar ja, je kan het ook niet doen. En als er dan 1 ding vals is, a la. Maar ze weten het te presteren om zowat alles tegelijk vals te laten klinken. Het zal ongetwijfeld wel semi-expres zijn, maar een fijne luisterervaring zit er dan niet meer in. Terwijl op zich de songs nog best ok zouden kunnen zijn. Maar ja, we weten het niet op deze manier. Puntje voor de lollige viool. En verder kunnen we de Mekons weer lekker vergeten.
Why is this album on this list?
Theres a lot happening in every song, but it ends up being kind of a mess. Did not enjoy the vocals either. Standout song: Darkness and Doubt
More 80's crap
I’ve never knowingly listened to Mekons before, although I know the name. On my second listen atm, and am on the fence. Really liked “Trouble Down South” but finding most of the tracks poor to mediocre so far. Yeah, the Mekons aren’t doing anything for me apart from that one track.
Meh. Indyish mutterings w few musical flourishes or melodic hooks to hold interest.
Fun but maybe a little weird in a way that didn't entirely work. Had an odd sort of country feel to it that I was wishy washy on and they weren't able to commit to. I got a kick out of some of it
On paper this sounded interesting: punk but bring in country/bluegrass instrumentation? Sure! In execution you get crappy singing, electronic-recoding-sounding instrumentals, all over the place. The more dissonant Beatles tracks put through a meat grinder.
Черговий британський альбом з 80х по квоті цього списку. Друга пісня прям сподобалась, але все інше - зовсім ні. Послухав і забув.
Listened Before? N It was okay. Not sure I needed to hear this but it didn't completely suck. Added to Library? N Songs added to playlist: Hard to Be Human Again
Meh
More of a last four songs you should hear before you die. First half is pretty unremarkably boring. Those last four songs I get it. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think they’re a masterpiece, but the last four make sense to the vision/hype of this album. Throwing out the first five songs entirely knocks this to a 3, I feel a 3 on the country songs.
one of the albums of all time
This is...something! Post punk meets country - I can appreciate the experimentation, but I'm just not convinced. Vocals are too punk and instrumental is severely country. They aren't really in dialogue with each other. The contrast is fun, but not something I'd play through again.
Bush league.
Needs a stronger accent to sound authentic.
Like the spirit of this record but the songs are lacking majorly
That’s a no from me dogg.
Not quite bad enough to be a 1/5 (more due to some of the albums that i have given a 1 to, but not far off)
ziemlich albern und naiv. Brauch ich nicht!
Did you know country punk is called cowpunk? That was the only thing I got from this. Favorite Tracks: Chivalry, Last Dance, Lost Highway
Ничего примечательного и, главное, почти полное отсутствие мелодичности и гармонии. Не моё в общем. 4,5 из 10.
Annoying avant garde experiment band with a lead singer doing a bad Robert Smith impression. One song had a kazoo as the primary instrument. It is saved from a 1 because the opening song wasn't bad, but it went downhill quickly from there. A low-end 2/5
Ok
Didn’t do much for me. No real standouts. Kinda whiney.
eh
Not for me. 2
It was alrighttt I think the lead singers voice isn’t agreeable to me like the tone of his voice makes the the songs like spoof like fake songs so idk
Another mid british band.
Dziwne. Trochę jakby pijani beatlesi coś tam gadali do mikrofonu. 2/5
I liked the music
Flimsy bar band nonsense. Presumably better after a few drinks?
sounds like a 80's garage band
Can’t overcome my underlying anglophobia on this one. Can’t accept anything near country rock from an English guy. Rolling Stones kinda got there a couple of times but that’s it.
There's a lot of cool ideas here, but the singer absolutely drags it down. Stick someone else on the top of this and you'd actually have something cool. It's not like it needs to be pitch perfect, but stick someone like Shane McGowan or Joe Strummer in and it'd actually be good.
I can always get behind some folksy violin, but this record had just a little too much disjointed nonsense for my liking. Best Track: Last Dance
The Mekons are a hit and miss band for me. They have some great stuff in their catalog but not all of it hits. I get that this was an influential album in its melding folk/country and punk but it’s just misses more than it hits for me. Some alright tracks but nothing worthy of another listen for me. 5/10
I guess it's got historical value maybe? Is it a good album though? Not really.
-it was ok - it did some interesting stuff - i really did not like the voice of the main guy - the drums were boring and uninspired and obviously synth -felt bland
Really wanted to like this but just couldn't. It has clearly influenced artists I enjoy but did not mesh multiple styles in an enjoyable way. 2/5
It's all just a little too British, innit?
I didn't get it
Won't be targeting that album again.
Die Mekons, eine britische Band mit Punk-Wurzeln, nahmen ihr Album Fear and Whiskey 1985 in Großbritannien auf. Es markierte eine deutliche stilistische Wende, da hier erstmals Country-Elemente wie Fiddle und Steel-Gitarre mit ihrem rohen Punk-Ansatz verbunden wurden. Das Ergebnis wirkt kantig und ungeschliffen, zugleich aber atmosphärisch dicht. Bekannte Stücke sind „Chivalry“, „Hard to Be Human Again“ und das Hank-Williams-Cover „Lost Highway“. Das Album gilt als frühes Beispiel für Alternative Country und zeigt, wie politische und persönliche Themen in einer rauen, direkten Klangsprache verarbeitet werden. Insgesamt ein Werk von besonderem Stellenwert, weil es Genregrenzen aufbricht und einen eigenständigen Ausdruck schafft.
Just couldn't connect. Decent musical moments but they didn't gel with each other or with the lyrics in a way that I would've liked.
No standouts, inoffensive
Not my thing. It’s like the worst stuff from the Clash and Dexy’s Midnight Runners
Op zich niet slecht, maar ook niets speciaals. Niets wist me echt te boeien.
If I wanted honkey tonk, I'd listen to Charley Crockett. This seems like post-punk, and I'm not a fan. The instrumentals are understated, and the brooding vocals are unappealing.
The off-kilter rhythms, post-punk instrumentation and intense Englishness of this record make it sound like a little like the output of The Fall, but with a much less interesting vocalist. It's track after track of warped country- and folk-based music that has some bizarre internal logic but which still remains inscrutable even after multiple listens.
A gruesome mish-mash styles that seemed limited. Mostly tuneless.
Toca hoy nuevamente una banda que desconozco por completo. Me llama la atención la reseña y los géneros con los que dialoga, así que encaramos la escucha desde ése lugar. Suena a post-punk más tranquilo y enriquecido con otros géneros, con la belleza de la tonada inglesa para cantar punk. El álbum tiene sus momentos, más no me volvió loco. Hasta mañana.
No me gustó. Una mezcla de folk y rock, no es mi estilo, tampoco me agradaron los vocales.
Album cover is giving Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas vibes. The music is giving all the guys dropped acid a la Hunter S. Thompson before recording vibes. I was reading through the global reviews and found this statement that resonated with my thoughts exactly: "Most sounds like a band failing to be interesting but succeeding at being annoying." So in that respect, I can't give this anything higher than a 2.
Opener Chivalry is fine, but has a particular sound that I don't tend to love. The machine-gun electronic drums through the outro were an interesting touch. I think exactly one listen was enough for this one. I didn't hate it, but I also was glad for it to be done. So for that 2 / 5.
Psycho Cupid was an odd changeup to the whole vibe of the album. Maybe I was missing something in the lyrics prior to that song. Otherwise this didn't do much at all for me when normally I love the use of a violin in albums like this.
Sounds like a band that would play in the Rams Head parking lot for St. Patrick's day. Not spectacular at all to report here.
What is wrong with the brass section? This flute or whatever is always off-tune. Is it just something to be different ? 🥱
moments when this could be more than okay but never quite gets there, no stand outs and definitely not into the weird spoken word “songs”
That was just an odd experience. Alternative folk & country would probably be the best way to describe this, but a lot of it was really flat and inconsistent. I'm not sure who this is for, but I'd sure like to meet them to see what else they're into.
Is this a therapeutic album for the artists themselves? Doesn’t do much for me. Vocals are not produced. Tracks are not even synced well. But somehow I can imagine if someone covered this album and produced it well, it might not be too bad.
Was pretty excited going in based on the little wiki article but this was pretty lame. Didn’t like his voice.
Not sure where the country influences are that would allow this to fall into the genre, but I definitely hear the punk. Overall it’s just not for me, and definitely not something I’ll come back to.
Nope. Not a fan. "Last Dance" was ok, but that was about it.
1.5 Really bad. Didn’t enjoy this at all. A half hour of tuneless screeching.
on paper, this album sounds like it should be a five-star album for me in particular, what with all of the weird punk, new wave, concept album, and genre-bending shenanigans at play. in practice, it's a half-hearted mess that can't decide what it wants to be. instead of pulling together those disparate elements into something greater than the sum of its parts, this is--at its best and in certain moments of beautiful synchronicity--the sum of its parts. wow. still, points for trying i guess. favorites: trouble down south (quick sidebar, why does this song sound like a b-side from the musical come from away?), hard to be human again, last dance
This album had one idea.
Probably rowdy fun at the end of the night at a pub, but a bit underwhelming as a studio release
Weird for the sake of weird. Wouldn’t listen again but I get that they werre trying to be strange. I think they are better technical musicians then they sound like here.
This album felt like a mismatch, the instruments and singing etc just felt disjointed. Not my bottle of bleach
It's a step down from the previous album I reviewed (Black Sabbath). There's one song worth listening to, and that's "Hard to Be Human Again". The punk riffs outdo every other track on "Fear and Whiskey". I'd be praising this album all day if the whole album were like "Hard to Be Human Again". Instead, it's just 80s fare that should've been forgotten. 2 stars for "Fear and Whiskey".
They are okay. They remind me of PIL. I should play it for Mike. Reminds me of Irene. She put one of their songs on a mix tape. That was over over 30 years ago. I’m old.
4/10 - not very memorable
Just not good
Not exactly up my alley.
point7.
Another one from the 1001 albums only Robert Dimery has heard
Creí que era otra cosa más punk. Me han sonado a Pop estándar de Pub inglés para cantar con la pinta en alto.
A lot of music is pleasant without being interesting. The first 8 tracks of this are interesting, without being pleasant. They aren't unpleasant, mind; just not engaging. The last two tracks are great. Which is odd, because they are very much of a piece with the rest of the album. It struck me as so odd that I re-listened. Same thing happened. Two great tracks; so two stars.
What is this?
It was a fine album. UK rock/folk with a bit of a punk edge. Totally inoffensive but not super compelling.
Like a mellower version of the Pogues. Maybe this was influential as a lovechild of punk and trad Irish music, although with everything that has come after, it's hard to really get excited about. The vocals, in particular, weren't doin' it for me.
Cool cover. This does come close to being something special. Big swing that doesn't quite hit the mark. I'm not even sure this one would be necessary listening. I can picture them playing in a bar to 4 people and 2 of the 4 are the staff. Awkward silence broken by a phlegm filled cough.
Just miserably depressing. Dear mekons, Please stop whispering in my ear. Ferris.
Really struggling to get on board with this one. The vocals sound like they are taken from a different song, half of the time. And the music doesn't really have a lot of melody or anything to get into to. I don't get it
I grew up listening to American country music, and this album was an insult to actual country music. It sounded like a group of drunk lads in a noisy pub. 1.5 rounded up
Music isn't bad but the vocals are so bad it doesn't matter. 2 stars or D-.
hmm
This mix of punk/new wave and country was... interesting. Not surprisingly I was more drawn to the songs that leaned more into the punk than the country, but in the end it was a mish mash that just didn't work for me.
Did absolutely nothing for me
Not for me. 2.5
Didn't leave an impression
It’s doesn’t really do it for me.
This album seemed to get better the further in I got. I'm determined to listen to each album all the way through at least once and by the end of this, I still just couldn't get into it. No idea what earlier albums sound like but this is apparently a departure from their earlier sound. It is what it is but not my kind of jam
Liked the punk influence but overall not great.
I tried to give it a chance but I wasn't able to find a way to enjoy it. Some of the instrumentals are funky and interesting, but the the singing annoyed the hell out of me. Wouldn't helped if the lyrics weren't boring and pretentious.
If you like this album that's great! But can you unbiased say that this album deservers the "Must listen before you die" tag. I had never heard of them, This album doesn't even seem to be a favourite among people who listen to the band according to spotify so why would a must hear album not be in peoples playlists?(don't say they use only CDs or vinyl's because that more or less proves the point further) So what makes this album that ground-breaking or culturally impactful that it NEEDS to be heard. I have given albums 5s that I my self wouldn't say is a must hear. This list really misses the point of what is a must hear album.
Did not blow me away
Kind of like the pogues but shittier
This was not good. "Last Dance" was maybe the most listenable because the instruments were in tune and everything was mostly in time but the rest was a real struggle to get through. The unimaginative chord progressions of alt rock/punk without any of the aggression, speed, or individual ingenuity that makes it good - all mixed through the lens of a terrible singing and a wobbly fiddle. I did not like this.
I don't know what they were thinking with this vocalist. The music isn't terribly interesting, maybe they thought a talking point would be how bad he is? eh
Unremarkable
Realmente no es mi estilo.
Weird, whiny, wacky.
Never heard of this band before so there’s a bit of intrigue there, but I’m struggling to get to grips with them. Given its rave contemporary reviews I suspect there may be *something* a bit unique about this album but at the moment all I’m getting is ‘Dexy’s Midnight Runners without the tunes’. Probably needs further listens, but I’m probably not going to make that investment. 2.5
This kinda sucks. It's not the worst thing ever but it's unnecessarily artsy.
I thought id enjoy this based on the description. But i did not. Seemed weirdly generic and dull
It's not unlistenable, but it certainly sounds like a relic from a time and place. Lyrics touching on topics of War and Labor during 1980s UK is standard fare for the time. I favored the back half of the album where the songs are shorter and much more catchy. I appreciate being exposed to this album, but I certainly never need to hear it again.
Not enjoyable.
Not sure what genre this falls into, but it’s terrible.
- Ending of Trouble Down South makes me think of that one part in 9/11 Footwerk - I thought Psycho Cupid (Danceband on the Edge of Time) would build up to something but it didn't lol - I don't know if it's just me not having a solid baseline for music/country at this time but I feel like I didn't enjoy listening to this, and I'm not hankering for a second listen.
This one just misses. There was potential hidden in there, but they dropped the ball.
If folky Irish sounding country bar bands are your jam - these guys kill it.
Just not that great.
Nice country aspects. The rest is fucking dreadful
I thought being a mid 80s album, it wouldn't be bad but the whole weird country vibe is off-putting. I did enjoy some of the songs but not enough to bump it up a star.
I don't mind this, and I get why it's influential. Not a lot grabs me, though.
Chivalry - 1/5 Trouble Down South - 3/5 Hard to Be Human Again - 2/5 Darkness and Doubt - 3/5 Psycho Cupid - 1/5 Flitcraft - 3/5 Country - 3/5 Abernant 1984/5 - 3/5 Last Dance - 4/5 Lost Highway - 3/5 Average score - 2.6/5 (rounding down) this was... interesting. i can't say for certain whether it's the good type of interesting or not. i've never heard anything like this within the post-punk genre before, and i'm conflicted with how to feel about it. it's a strange fusion of punk and country, especially with the use of fiddles throughout. in some tracks, i don't mind it, but it's a little nauseating in others i'm noticing a trend with the post-punk artists on this list where their vocalists are kinda dogshit at singing (The Fall being another example), and i absolutely cannot stand it. are these bands just recruiting the first drunkard they find at the pub for their singer or something? the album did pick up in quality tracks toward the last half, fortunately, but the first half was hard to sit through. maybe i'll come across another artist in this genre that does this sound justice in the future, but i won't hold my breath
Kinda sucks. It's like they're sorta talented, but are a little too drunk to sound as good as they might. 2.5*, rounding down.
I don't know how these albums are chosen...
Jangly and folky, I can see how this influenced various bands. It's giving Flogging Molly/Dropkick Murphys energy.
The instrumentals on the album were good, especially the guitar, but the vocals I didn’t think were that great, as well as the lyrics. This really held the album back from being good.
Completely bizarre album! Part post punk avant garde but then mixed together with a huge country influence. End result isn't really something I am into although I thought it did pick up towards the end..
Nicht komplett scheiße: die vorletzten beiden Lieder sind ganz schön und viele Lieder beginnen schön
I’m starting to hate English people.
80’s feel. Not great
"in todays episode, Country Music goes to the U.K.! oh, behave!" Thats about as interesting that it gets. I'll give them points for an attempt at trying to work country western music into British rock , but some things just dont gel. I cant understand whats so amazing about this album, the vocals alone are grating at best. That being said, I wouldnt mind another musical crossover from someone better suited.
Kokeellista rokkia missä aika vahvat kantri vaikutteet. Menee vähän oman maun yli. Ei pahasti, mutta silti. Toki ilman sitä levy ei olisi niin erikoinen, mutta ite tykkäisin enemmän. Levyssä jotenkin "humalainen" fiilis. Parhaat: Last Dance, Abernant 1984/5
I cannot even begin to categorize this. It is all over the place and never good. Stand-out: Lost Highway
2.2 The fiddles and vocals were pretty grating. Lost highway was good cover (but there are betters). Didnt tighten my Bolo tie, that's for sure
I have bravely endured about 4 country albums in the last few days. This is the final boss, punk-country. Honestly, one more country album and my fursuit's claws shall know blood
Fear and Whiskey more like Very Shitty
It’s Hard to Be Human again after hearing this one. Hopefully this was their Last Dance.
While i was listening to this i kept thinking "this sounds like the kind of thing people say is revolutionary for reasons they won't expound on" and then the first thing in their about the artist blurb is "Lester Bangs once wrote, "The Mekons are the most revolutionary group in the history of rock 'n' roll," and although he wrote it tongue in cheek, that doesn't mean he was wrong." I'm not going to pretend I don't enjoy a lot of alt country, but I think this is accidentally alt country. It didn't inspire the rest of the genre that didn't show up anywhere else for another 10 years. It was fine if not grating at times.
Forgettable
With an extensive band lineup that likely influenced the dreaded Mumford & Sons and Arcade Fire, the Mekons seem to be trying to bridge Clash-like Punk with sloppy British drinking songs and American Country waltzes. I seem to remember Kurt Cobain referencing The Mekons as a strong musical influence. Maybe heroin makes this record sound amazing, but I'm not gonna be the one to test this theory.
Not a fan, out of tune singing and playing.
Going into this album and reading that it was going to be a punk/country fusion sound, I was looking forward to it. Boy, what a huge let down. I mean sure, there are SOME country aspects to it, but it's mostly a bunch of noisey crap with a dude who's trying to sing like Joe Strummer.
Sounds alright? Like cool, it's rock and there are some cool folk influences but nothing special. It's not a surprise that the first song on the track is the most played.
Don't really enjoy much about this at all - both the instrumentals and vocals were just kinda obnoxious to me. Definitely not my preferred genre/sound.
The Mekon was the arch-enemy of Dan Dare, The Mekons are the arch enemy of people with musical taste.
Nice moments largely not interesting though
meh
Not a single memorable song for me, but wasn't offensive
another alternative country album, and i'll be honest... i'm not really feeling this one too much. believe me when i say it has some interesting things going for it, blending typical country songwriting with drum machines and 1980s alternative mixing techniques, but this album just isn't for me. it's a strange collage of voices and sound... it's got neat foundations i suppose, but it practically put me to sleep.
tja... ware het niet van de vocals, zou het voor mij heel wat hoger kunnen scoren
A bit too twangy for my tastes. Good band, not a great album.
Pairs post-punk style aesthetics with Irish folk and Country sounds - a bit of fiddle and accordian, some lilting rhythms, some traditional melodies. It's an interesting idea in principle, and somebody was bound to do it (see also the Pogues) but in practice it ends up pretty put-on hokey and contrived. Favorites: Hard to Be Human, Lost Highway
Not sure why i don't like it. I somehow I don't like the songs. To chaotic, to unstructured. Punk - country is clearly not my thing
Not for me
Meh. Fine. Won’t need to listen to it again. 2/5
Pretty interesting as far as genre-blending albums go. This is one of the few albums to truly fall into that middle ground between two, three or however many music genres that this band intended to mesh together. I'm pretty confident in saying that I'll never hear another album quite like this one. However, did it stick the landing? Uhhhh...
Well...that was pretty weird. Sounded like some rowdy English blokes that have a cursory knowledge of country music getting plastered and trying it out for the first time without tuning anything. Certainly unique, not something I can take at all seriously.
Gear: Abyss DIANA MR Artwork: 🟪🌏🛣️ Production: 🎧😐🆗 Music: 🎻🧷🤠 Rating: 🛣️(🛣️)/5
Country punk? Cacophonous to be honest. But I wouldn't say actively bad. And blessedly short
I wanted to like this album but... didn't.
Just no.
I feel like a broken record saying the same things over and over again but I just don’t understand why it’s on this list. I try to refrain from reading anything about albums because I want to just base it selfishly on my own opinion, but this felt lacking of significance once again. It was okay, again.
This is one of 1000s of bands that was influenced by the Clash, but poorly. That violin screeching was unbearable. This "groundbreaking" album would be much better at breaking glass than ground.
this album is shite.
Weird album. Half decent, half what?
A bit nothingy. Not my favourite, but listenable.
I listened to this three times and still can't remember a thing about it or half whistle a tune. There is nothing really wrong with this album (except some of the vocals) but I find it very bland. A mix of folky and punky elements, some songs are Pogues like (but not nearly as good). I'll give it a 2 because it is not bad per se, but not more than 2 because for me it just "exists" and I don't know why this is a "must hear" album.
Wasn’t expecting this one
Not my kind of music and the singer isn't that good. Pub rock.
Never heard before, was grand
Nothing about this kept my interest unfortunately.
Gosh. The Mekons. I've long been aware of them, but never really listened to them. I can't say as I understand why this particular album is on this list. I thought it a fun ramshackle romp, but not a great album.
Around the time I reached the legal age to drink, I had the brilliant idea that Coke can be mixed with any type of liqueur. With that logic, I decided to mix Coke with Bombay Sapphire Gin. When I tasted this unholy concoction, my reactions were all over the place. I was mostly disgusted, but tried to troop through it thinking it had to work. But the combination just didn’t work. Ultimately, I ended up dumping it. That’s exactly how I feel about Fear and Whiskey. The bizarre combination between punk and country isn’t the worst thing I ever heard and it feels like it almost works at times. But the mix of the harmonicas and electric guitars and punk vocals just never hit me right. Like the gin and Coke, it never clicked with me. I did finish the album, unlike the gin and coke. But I still can’t get the taste out of my mouth. Favorite track: Hard to be Human Again Other hits: Country, Darkness and Doubt, Abernant 1984/5
have you heard a song and not quite liked it wells that is how I felt about this album the room was filled with flashing lights they spoke in tongues I didn't think it was good because I didn't like the lyrics it didn't really fit the instruments in the background and the lyrics were bad because I really didn't understand the lyrics I think this song is bad and would not recommend listening to it
A British group that decides to defy expectations by laying fiddles, harmonicas, and country guitar hooks onto a punk-rock foundation should be praised and applauded when it is done as spectacularly as this. Although the war-time themes of the songs would expect you to have a brooding, dark tone, the songs are actually really fun and catchy. I never thought I would hear an album like this, it's an underrated gem.
Not a fan
Didn’t make an impression
I liked about half of these songs, and disliked the other half. I enjoyed the ones with a bit of a “country” flair more than the others. Won’t listen to it again.
While listening, I kept getting the visual image of that band that sings Come on Eileen. Anybody remember that video from MTV days? Band is barefoot, in overalls with no shirts, sitting on tubs playing triangles and violins, looking like they bathe about evert 7 to 8 days. That's my biggest take on this album. This was definitely weird and kept thinking they were close to making this a decent listen, but it never got there for me. It was OK. All, I got for this one. 2
2.5 Boy, and I thought Shaft threw me for a loop - I have no idea what to make of this. Punk meets violins? Though, I even have a hard time classifying this as punk - the singer definitely encapsulates that British hooligan energy with the vocals, but musically, it’s almost new wave-y? Once again, no idea what I’d call this, but for the most part though, it’s just pretty strange. As far as listenability goes, I really feel like it varies song to song - at best, there’s a couple decent tracks to be found, at worst, it’s annoying as all hell. At the same time, a lot of this also kind of blends together, so I’m having trouble pointing to specific highlights. I think Hard to Be Human Again and Last Dance were my favorites? I will say, the woman talking on Psycho Cupid helped the track stand out, but for the most part, something about it just took me back to a film class I took in college (Sans Soleil anyone?) And while I didn’t really care for the closer, Lost Highway, something about it kind of reminded me of Dirty Old Town by The Pogues (Interestingly, I think both are covers as well). I’m still not entirely sure how I feel about this one, but I think it nets out at an “okay” from me. While the state of the country definitely has me wanting to listen to some punk stuff right now, I don’t think this is what I’m looking for.
What am I missing here? This was not very good with the pitchy singing and off key violins or whatever. Listened to the whole thing though so gets a charitable 2
its a vibe just not my vibe
OK to start with but it just kinda annoyed me by the end and lost a star
Shite
Reasonably underwhelming. There was a quasi non-committal Irish ghost looming in the background….but no commitment to go full Leprechaun ☘️
British alt-rock with dashes of punk and a strong influence from folk music of the UK (and some American folk too). Reminds me slightly of The Pogues. Getting me to enjoy that style of music is already an uphill battle and I didn’t connect with any of the songs here. The band sounds solid and I don’t have anything against the album exactly but I have to file this under “not my cup of tea.” 2.5