Reviews (page 8 of 14)
Not too bad, but nothing stood out and I didn't recognize any songs
It's fine, but not really something that I like. Too theatrical, but i do appreciate it.
This didn't grab me as much as i thought it would
I think I like the idea of Queen a lot more than I actually like listening to them. This, like A Night At The Opera, felt like the soundtrack for a movie that I haven't seen (and don't really have any intention of seeing). Maybe it's a matter of time and place, but - through no fault of Freddie and co. - the 6 train is definitely not that time nor that place. All of this works better for me as needle drops in real movies than as a cohesive work of music.
Solid but not there best.
Fun and definitely seems to point to future Queen music. I like Seven Seas of Rhye a lot. Pleasant but a ways to go until their later peak.
I'm a big fan of the later queen albums but for the most part this doesn't do much for me. I do adore Seven Seas of Rhye and the are 1 or 2 other moments that I found interesting but this is a weak 3 for me
i've always heard of queen. everyone has. but as someone young who grew up listening to weird kid music i never actually listened to them. i did have high expectations knowing their track record and they were actually met! and then they lost me and then they had me again towards the end. so i don't know really. even the tracks i liked aren't something i find myself returning to personally, but i did thoroughly enjoy them while i was listening by the way i wish groups pre-90s would stop getting their albums reprinted on digital with those "20whatever remaster" tags tacked onto the end of the track names because wow that is ugly fave track: father to son
Me resisto a creer que de toda la discografía de Queen, este álbum sea de lo más destacable. Es verdad que aquí ya son muy Queen, con ese barroquismo, esas capas de sonido sobrepuestas, esas armonías vocales, etc. Pero el disco en sí se me hace bola, y no creo que haya soportado muy bien el paso del tiempo. "Father To Son" es de lo más destacable por su épica y la consabida "Seven Seas Of Rhye", mi preferida. Esta última es una composición que parece inacabada, de apenas 2 minutos y medio en la cual, curiosamente, el estribillo no se repite ni una sola vez. Hubiese dado para más pero decidieron acabar ahí.
6/10
Epic and theatrical. Freddie on full display showing off what he does best with his voice and animated cadence. This is one of those bands that just had such wonderful chemistry when it came to recording. Always enjoyable listening to Queen.
High energy!
I'm actually disappointed on my listen to this. I do like Queen but I feel like I was expecting more
Sonically interesting and very fun. 3.5
Wasn't impressed, but not bad by any means.
Not bad, not sure I will re-listen, hope to get another queen album in the future. Was impressed with the Roger Taylor vocals on that one track, thought it was Robert Plant for a minute
Very glammy ecclectic album, they have much better stuff then this, but it does hold it's identity. Don't think it's quite my style of Queen music but I do appreciate it. 1. Father To Son 2. White Queen (As It Begins) 3. Seven Seas Of Rhye
Maybe I have been unfair to Queen all this time, Father To Son rocks. Mott the Hoople heard it and decided to make an album themselves. White Queen (As It Began) is a significant step back. This is the Queen I know and don't like very much. Up and down, I like the more glam songs. Few bands can thread the needle on fantasy themes and rock music...only Led Zeppelin nails it without question. The second side is not as good as the first.
Maybe I like Queen now idk
I liked this better than Night at the Opera. It’s refreshing to not had the weight of their big hits. Liked the epic fantasy elements, but it lost me towards the end.
Queen is legendary for a reason, but this album just feels overly complicated.
This clearly laid the groundwork for later Queen but it’s too all over the place for my liking. They were experimenting and I’m glad they did, but therefore the album misses cohesiveness.
Not the biggest fan of their albums, i think They’re more a greatest hits band, i do still really like them
Prog rock queen? Not bad.
65/100. A pretty decent record with a strong theatrical edge. Freddie Mercury really shows off his vocal talent here, hitting some impressive highs and carrying a lot of the album’s personality. That said, it’s not an essential listen for me.
It was interesting to hear a Queen album without any hits, but maybe that's for a reason - nothing on this album particularly stood out to me, except for Seven Seas of Rhye and mayyybe The March of the Black Queen. Still solid of course, because they're still great songwriters, just maybe not something I'd come back to much.
This was fine but the album probably did not deserve to be on the list. Queen remains a greatest hits band.
Nice of the book authors to let us hear Queen at their most normal; what they sound like when they're not writing basically the greatest hits of all time. Gotta get the necessary reps in before they can write Bohemian Rhapsody! That's over a year down the line from this album, though the band's signature sauce is already present here (if a lot more subdued than we're used to hearing). Fine album overall, a good experience for the culture but I don't expect to revisit often. Standouts: Ogre Battle • The Fairy Feller's Master-Stroke • Nevermore
I’ve never really been a fan of Queen and have never listened to anything beyond their hits, but damn, this is a lot heavier than I was expecting! I thought they were all super theatrical rock music, but there’s some really heavy riffing on this album. Ok, so the second half / Black Side of this album brings the Queen sound I was expecting. It looks like the White side was mostly written by Brian May, whereas the Black side was written by Freddie Mercury, so it makes sense there’s a bit of a tonal shift there. I prefer the first half of the album.
Niet zon queen fan
I've always known Queen as a singles band and not an album band, but there were some really interesting things going on here. The lyrics were a lot more creative than I thought they'd be. (This is the band that wrote Bicycle, after all.) Fun topics, unique intrumentation; it was surprisingly more fun than I expected.
I can see how people can like this album, but at the same time, I felt like it was missing something to it. I like the fantasy theme they had going on for it, except one song definitely did not follow the memo. I just felt like I knew there was better, or I could be biased against Queen, who knows.
It was good! But I expected a little bit better? 3.5
Queen TWO
nunca me gustó mucho Queen pero es verdad que tienen una estética y un estilo muy único y en este album lo mantienen muy bien.
Empezó interesante, al final no me gustó tanto
Hell yeah Queen (I probably would have picked a different album of theirs, but hopefully there’s more coming)
Didn’t mind the listen. Doesn’t have any of their hits so not the best I’ve heard them.
Had a great time, even if two things hold me back from really connecting with this: the lack of good choruses and its general goofiness. 3.5 stars, rounding down.
meh
So close to being a 4
I feel Queens heights exist in their singles and listening to their albums can be a... odd experience. Like most of the music has so much grandeur and pomp that I'd expect to like it more than I do. Unfortunately, to be perhaps a bit harsh on Queen for a moment, this sounds like Styx (derogatively). Very ordinary but bloated pop rock with a weird amount of pretense of depth. It's not terrible by any means, but none of the songs on here are what I think of when I think of Queen. I know for a fact I really like the following two albums so I think this specific era of Queen just doesn't do it for me. I mean despite that all it's still a 3, I just sound more negative then usual because I expect a bit more then just "pretty okay" from Queen.
Good album to drive a shitty car to when you’re 19 and blast it. Cool to hear some of queen I haven’t heard before
I’m not familiar with basically anything on this album and it’s a very different vibe from most of their hits, but this is definitely still a showcase of Queen’s gorgeous musicality. It’s interesting to hear a fairly delicate approach to the vocals compared to the bombastic belting that people usually associate with Freddie. His range and control were definitely exceptional. “Ogre Battle” is a lot more in line with their hits. Actually a lot of the latter half is. It gets pretty goofy.
I was unfamiliar with this album, but you’d be hard pressed to go wrong with any Queen. I’m not sure this would rival any of the Queen stuff I already love, but it was an enjoyable listen.
This is now the 3rd Queen album I've gotten and it's pretty clear this is a greatest hits band not an album band. There are a few gems in the midst of this where you begin to see their sound take shape but there's a bunch of crap you gotta wade through to get there. Still it's better than Night at the Opera.
No falla
Good, but not their best album.
No bangers, of which Queen has a few, but still I am able to hear that great Musicians are at work here.
Better than I thought I'd be, I've only really heard their big hits
One of the only queen albums where I look at the songs and realize I don’t know any of them. It was a good listen and the songs are pretty good while I’m filling out scholarships.
Een album. Minder diepe dalen dan het vorige Queen album dat we hadden, maar ook minder hoge pieken.
Van de bizzarre run van de eerste 5 Queen albums (in 4 jaar uitgebracht!), worden Queen I en Queen II wat mij betreft compleet omver gewalst door de drie opvolgers. Queen II is een soort voorbode voor wat A Night At The Opera zal zijn over iets meer dan een jaar later, maar de sauce ontbreekt net op de meeste nummers. Highlights vinden we later op de plaat, met The March Of The Black Queen en Seven Seas Of Rhye bewijst Queen voor het eerst dat ze iets speciaals hebben.
Why are them drums so crispy on Father to Son? I ain't complaining though. Beautiful classic progressive rock song, uh yeah. White Queen reminds me of those days when it's a Blue-ish-gray sky outside and dead willow trees line the road with deep green grass just below that patches up the damp and dark Vandyke brown ground. Some Day One Day has an excellent, wandering phaser on that jangly guitar! When I was listening to The Loser In The End I had coffee grinds stuck between my teeth because there was a hole in the coffee filter, I kept 'em there and chewed on the excess because it fitted with the sound of the song. What is that skipping drum beat!!! At the very tail end of the song that! Oh my how magnificent. Is Ogre Battle a Shrekrence? (Shrek Reference), and The Fairy Feller's Master-Stroke, Is it a Darude by Sandstorm? I fell in love with this song instantly. It's so Over the Garden Wall, and Smiling Friends; it changes on a whim, so creatively executed. Apparently it's inspired by a painter named Richard Dadd who made a painting that was the origin of the title, as well as the themes of human conditions and whimsy from what I take, I'll have to learn more about him soon. Nevermore is like a basic glass of crystal Pepsi, short but sweet in not the best way. Oh yeah, my dad played The March Of The Black Queen a few times (I think) when I was younger, thanks dad for inspiring my music taste, that or the college station, which might make more sense because of the popularity of this band among 'new-age hippies'. The acoustic on Funny How Love Is guitar is so airy and bright, almost overbearing. Boxy snare on Seven Seas Of Rhye got the whole room Irish tap dancing. This record has a very royal and rich sound with grand choirs paired with middle-heavy guitars that coexist for the sole reason to pounce on the senses and render them pleasantly weary. Or wait, maybe It's just because my coffee hasn't kicked in yet.
6/10 Fav Tracks - Father to Son, Seven Seas Of Rhye While only a couple songs made it to my playlist I'll never not enjoy some Queen.
I was not at all familiar with this album so decided to give it a whirl. After all, it's Queen. And Queen was awesome. Seemed like a band still figuring stuff out. Like "we're on our way to the amazing Bohemian Rhapsody but not." Most songs could have used more of the amazing vocals of Freddie Mercury. An average 3.
decent listen, lots of new to me songs
I surprisingly didn't really recognize any songs on this album. It is undeniably Queen and I think I could grow to love some of them.
Якось складно в мене з раннім квін. Наче й тут є фірмовий їхній стиль, більш рокерський, ніж він був далі, але я от якщо бути відвертим не можу сказати що мені ці пісні прям подобаються. Послухав і забув.
Not full-Voltron Queen but getting rhere. Building their power. Yes, you have to put up with a few clunkers on every Queen album, but the ones here are pretty forgivable. Nobody was making music like this in 1974.
Typical queen. Nothing that caught my ear.
I am team Black Side! I think it is the only side of this album I have played at home. White side is better than I remember, but the second side just hits!
3.25 - I thought I would like it more than I did.
Wildly creative but I could not get into it. Felt a little indulgent after so many songs.
Quite nice hearing Queen stuff that hasn’t been massacred to death by radio and the mass market. Far more grown up album than the novelty shite they became famous for.
Not their best work. 6/10.
Good all around album. Feels like one of those, "If you have listened to queen, you have heard it" type things. Already a fan of Queen, so this was a good listen. White Queen, and Some Day One Day were two of my favorites. 7.3/10
Very Queen album. They are one of the best harmonizers ever to play. It is good, but I probably will not listen to it again after today. 6.5/10 Top songs The loser in the end The march of the black queen
Again, a fun listen, but not a favorite. I did LOVE the song Some Day, One Day. That was a great discovery.
Never been a huge fan of Queen, but always admired the big dramatic swings and the technical prowess.
budget pink floyd
*Grandiose with incredible guitar and vocal work, but Queen is just not for me more often than not
The way this album was stuck in snoozeville for the first 8 tracks before kicking it into high gear for the last 3. A perfectly cromulent listen.
A good record although not really one of my favorites of Queen.
Queen doing what they do best, making music I don’t really care for.
Liked this one quite a bit more that deep purple and iggy. Few songs from Queen I had not heard (Aside form seven seas of course.) Most of them where enjoyable but added seven seas and white queen to list.
Jesus- two in a row!!!!! This album is something that could never happen today. It has no definable singles or ‘classic’ hits (aside from Seven Seas and that’s a generous stretch) but in its entirety, as an album, it had as much to do with saving Rock and Roll as anything else from that decade. That said it’s never been my thing. I’d give it a 2.5 but I’m feeling generous
I was intrigued and a little taken aback that I knew none of the songs in the tracklist bc I grew up on Queen and the cover is iconic. But right away I knew I was gonna enjoy this! Its like peak dad-rock in the best way and felt very nostalgic to me. Procession locked me in because it rlly set this weird vibe that fit the rest of the albums dark mythical theme that felt like setting out for battle to defend your land lol Hold up...THE TRANSITIONS! There is nothing i love more than good transitions on an album! I want to have no idea where one song ends and the other starts. I think the main part of this album that wasn't clicking for me is as much as theres a shared feeling/vibe and like visceral theme of mysticism/royalty (plus the GREAT transitions), there was not like a coherent storyline throughout the album (that i follow at least). And thats fine because if theres a good collection of songs that fit together at the end of the day, I don't need a concept album. However, as unique as it was, it just wasn't distinct enough for me to want to return to it as a body of work and will most likely only revisit my favs. Top 3: 1)Some Day One Day 2) Ogre Battle 3)Nevermore (Funny How Love Is was close runner up)
Ich bib bei denen durch diese Challenge auf den Geschmack gekommen. Das Album hier ist stabil gut, mir hat es "A Night At The Opera" angetan.
alredy listened
3/5
Was almost going to write this off cause i felt the few intro tracks were on the boring side but it pulled through with a decent album. Very proggy type album and neat theme.
This is the best Queen album I never heard. There might even be a few tracks I go back to. But Queen was never high on my list.
Unfortunately I’m just not a huge Queen fan. This is still pretty decent though
The album cover is more iconic than the songs it contains. Although March Of The Black Queen is a wonderful surprise and a highly underrated Queen song
Pretty great but suffers from a serious lack of personality. See, I thought this was pretty great, especially the first side. However, as it went on, I just started to realize that this album really isn’t… great. See, every good album has something good about it, and that’s what this album really is, good! But every great album has something interesting about it, and this album lacks anything truly interesting that sets it apart from any other glam stuff from around that time. Some of the best glam had already come out by the time that this came out, just look at New York Dolls. Every great album has something interesting about it, and every interesting quality comes from personality. This just does not have that. 7.4/10
kween FAVS (top 3): white queen, the loser in the end, seven seas of rhye mençoes honrosas: nevermore, the march of the black queen é um album nota final: 3/5
Not the biggest fan but not terrible 🤷♀️ The loser in the end would sound good with some glorp bass guitar
I liked it, I didn't love it. An album of lesser-known Queen songs which I don't think I had ever heard before. But it's Queen, so I knew what to expect. An unessential album.
Crazy album. This is what happens when you’re so talented that you can do anything - sometimes you just can’t decide what to do and instead of doing one thing very well you do a few things good enough. This album is all over the place - sometimes led zepplin, sometimes ELO, sometimes Black sabbath, sometimes Broadway, sometimes 70s Canadian rock’n’roll (see the last song, titled like a zeppelin song, played like a prism song). It’s always cool to see where a band sorted out its sound, but I wouldn’t necessarily go ba k to listen to the evolutions of Queen
It was okay but for an album cover that grand I feel like most of the tracks were bland. 6/10
I appreciate this artist and the opportunity to explore this lesser known album (brand new to me). I enjoyed the theming but can’t say I had any standouts or was able to dig much deeper.
Second tier Queen. Could have been left off the list and just watched Highlander.
Strong 3
Difficult to categorise- the sound is pretty unique which is good, but for a Queen album i was surprised how unmemorable this was. Seven Seas of Rye is the only classic.
Underrated
Nothing toooooo special about this album. Still, it’s Queen, with their amazing, distinctive patterns and vocals. I just wouldn’t listen to this album on a daily basis.
Very operatic (obviously) early Queen from the early ‘70s. Some fun story-telling throughout—and certainly their trademark style—but just “alright” as a whole.
Very rock-opera-y. Good production, some fun riffs, great vocals. Some good deep cuts but no bangers until Seven Seas of Rhye (fucking banger)
pretty good but wouldn't listen to it everyday.
Different but I like it
first ever full queen album !! the best part of every queen song, besides freddie's great vocals of course, is always the guitar. i could listen to the isolated guitar parts every day. the march of the black queen and the seven seas of rhye are both great songs, but otherwise, none of the other songs really stuck out as something i would revisit regularly. the album as a whole, however, is still solid. 3 / 5 stars
2/5/26 - Listened during work in the morning. Was fine. Nothing very memorable but sounded like Queen. Top Song - Father to Son
A $20 medium rare steak from The Keg on a Friday night with your business major friend.
Realising with the albums that I’m not massively into queen!
Was a bit disappointed to open to this one today, having been given some really cool and unusual things recently. It think I kind of expected there to be some of the 'Greatest Hits' on it, but... Opening track "Procession" does some really cool things in the guitar, and 'Father to Son' is a surprising thing, that of course sounds like Queen, but much darker/rockier musically than I expected. Shades of Led Zep, which is a band I like, so.. that's cool. I kind of hoped to continue to be surprised by the album, but zoned out a bit as it played on, wondering if that's because, whilst there is light and shade/listening interest in each of the tracks themselves, there isn't much variation across the album as a whole, and starts to feel like 'noise'. Maybe I'm being unfair. Listening again. [Edit: 'The Loser in The End' stands out as piquing my interest again, slower pace, kind of track I usually flag cos of the groove. - Sounds like it would be the last track on side 1 before the album shifts into prog rock mode]. You can certainly hear the influence of this album on charting rock/pop artists of the 2000's. It'll be a 3 from me today, as not feeling over generous. But interesting listen. Number tracks: 11 Fave track #: 1? Procession 2? Father and Son Others? The Loser in the end.
It’s strange how little of the music from this album I’d previously heard before, despite having listened to their anthologies Greatest Hits I to III on repeat growing up. Only ‘Seven Seas of Rhye’ was familiar to me. I guess this means this isn’t a ‘hits heavy’ record as such, but I still enjoyed it overall. Opened my eye to how much of their back catalogue I might not have heard yet!
Hard to resist Queen. Most of these I haven't heard, the mercury side is more fun, the nonsense songs. 3.5 rounded down Heard before? Some Owned: No 47/191 (24%) Will I get: Nah
Listens: 2 Standout Tracks: Orge Battle I simply cannot comprehend how there's a Queen album where I know literally none of the songs. Not a single one of these songs is on the... Like... Top 20 most popular queen songs. This album is, as the kids say, completely "mid". Actually on closer inspection, it turns out that I know very little of Queen's 15 album deep discography and am really only familiar with their greatest hits. Hmm. I don't really care for this too much. It's not bad, but it just doesn't occupy any space in my mind.
How is it that Queen are one of the most well-known bands of all time, yet I've never listened to an album in full from them? Felt less pop, and more rock from them. Being a second album they are probably still finding their feet and their direction. I enjoyed the guitar work and the vocal delivery, but I think I'm mainly just trying to break down what my perception of Queen is as a band first in order to enjoy this as much as I feel I should?
Queen were one of my first musical loves but I’m honestly not sure that I’ve ever heard this album as the only track I know from it is _Seven Seas of Rhye_ which appears on their classic best of. I’ve heard it said the Queen aren’t an albums band and whilst I think that’s a little harsh, I understand the reasoning. As far as albums go, this isn’t, in my opinion, one of their better ones and I’m surprised to see it in this list. _ Sheer Heart Attack_, released later in the same year is far superior! I’m not sure if I’d return to this over a few others.
A fascinating listen, even if it didn't completely rock my world. It’s impossible to ignore the ambition here—you can clearly hear the blueprints for the massive hits that were to come. 'The March of the Black Queen' is effectively the evil twin of 'Bohemian Rhapsody,' and there are moments of drama that point straight towards the Flash Gordon soundtrack. While the operatic density can be a bit overwhelming at times, as a piece of musical history showing the evolution of their sound, it is undeniable. Essential for understanding where they went next, even if it's not the first Queen album I'd reach for.
High energy, would be great in a live show, not sure sure I would listen to it over and over again. Flow was good in the album.
Good but also not as good as I hoped..
It's hard to listen to Queen today without assuming this is great. I think any other band coming out with this album would be more impressive.
1st half: pretty decent. 2nd half: songs about wizards and elves
Funny how love is everywhere, just look and see
A certainly okay effort from what I suppose is now considered one of the greatest bands of all time. They're always good but nothing on this album really stood out to me. Solid but maybe not good to listen to when you're angry.
7/10
I was never a Queen fan.
Classic Queen
It's not a bad album at all, definitely got better as it went on, and plenty of proof here that there's more to Queen than just the usual hits you've heard a million times.
Not sure how I feel about this / some good moments but prog rock with fantasy themes is just not my thing - I’m never going to turn on a song whose title of ogre battle sorry - that said I think this is a solid 3 for me - some moments are more like 2
Yes the Queen sound is there. Not a total fan.
It's a bit of a nerds album and I can see them playing Dungeons and Dragons afterwards, or maybe they've been to a Glastonbury gift shop and loved the vibe All the nonsense aside it's a solid album
The second half of the album was better than the first. As someone who claims to like Queen this was a sort of disappointing album. The sound is similar but nothing really stood out.
Honestly, disappointing. I was locked and loaded to give Queen an immediate 5-star, but this album left me wanting more. Feels like they hadn’t quite gelled as a band
Queen would go on to greatness but this was still their building period
Not the most iconic Queen record but it's Queen and that's not bad.
Warning: This is NOT the one with Bohemian Rhapsody!
Bit of a banger
An emo/glam album from Queen. I was expecting 80's rock Queen, not 70's glam Queen. It's good enough, the songs are masterfully done, but nothing made me want to listen again. My Rating; 3/5
This is perfectly fine. Queen has been one of those "like and respect but don't love" bands for me, this album didn't change that.
It was okay
Good album overall. It had nice variation between songs. For rating I had trouble deciding between 3 and 4 but with the first listen I give it 3. Have to revisit this one and see if it gets bumped to 4. Best song was either Seven Seas of Rhye or Father to Son.
they have better albums but good nonetheless
I have always thought of Queen albums as like children, nice in small doses but I couldn't eat a whole one. This one was quite different. Not what I expected, but not totally unexpected either. Quite conceptual but didn't really follow it through. And the final track being the only well known one. Would I actually buy it, the jury is still out on that one, but worth a high 3.
I think that Queen hit the mother load with Night At the Opera and that this particular album is reflective of the overall good quality of the band across the spectrum of time. Not much would have occurred without the voice of Freddie Mercury who could have propelled any band to the stratosphere.
It's OK.
Was expecting more hits but was alright
Good transitions between songs, I like the ability for the band to have a slow song and then into a ripping song, enjoyable listen but not my favorite Queen album
Not my favorite queen.
Probably should give it a listen once more paying full attention to it BUT at the same time if I had considered it phenomenal from the get go it would be because the tracks were getting my attention. Solid album, doubt I'll change my opinion even if I listen to it multiple times, or perhaps it'll grow on me as the time goes by. I'd rate it as a 3.5/5 if I could
Wow Brian really did like his prog rock. This could have been a very different band.
A real rollercoaster taking you all over the place.
Cool album, very different from the "commercial" known sound of Queen.
This early Queen album sounds exactly like you’d expect and early album by Queen to Sound. That’s not a bad thing but they’ve done much better.
Usual queen vibes but didn’t hit hard
Bra instrument, vet inte om jag uppfattar texten riktigt men gillar variationen och 'viben'
It's alright. Not their best work, but still good.
another classic that i can’t believe i haven’t listened to all the way through. not 100% my type of music but i appreciate the art of it
Queen? Oh I love Queen. I’m sure this album will be full of songs I already know, plus some deep cuts you never hear on the radio. Wait. I don’t know any of these songs. And they are all kinda samey. Not terrible and great guitar but nothing that stands out. Guess I know to stick to the Greatest Hits.
I don't even have to listen to this, I already know it will be better than the majority of stuff on here, god do I hate this list. Not my favourite album from Queen, it was nice tho, but I can't say I'd come back to it often. As much as I'd like to rate this higher I just cannot.
Definitely old-school storytellers. While our audio playback today is comparatively lush, it was kinda fun to hear the channel separation of old.
Favorite: seas of rhye
This is the most 70's classic rock queen has sounded. This album reminds me of that entire decade. It's not their strongest but you can get the feeling of where they are planning on going. I would have picked other albums of theirs but it's a solid choice and a deeper dive into Queen. Not sure it needed to be on the list though.
Huh, so that’s why Queen is the goat.
This album is good, but it's not Queen's like super bangers. I'm noticing a trend in this list that it seems to bias towards early sounds which founded the bigger success later, which is cool, but I kind of rate on the class of the album itself not exactly in its precedence in time.
Growing up, I never “got” early queen and only really started to enjoy their output from Sheer Heart Attack onwards. It’s enlightening to listen to this again. Am surprised how I’ve grown towards this now. It’s almost prog at times and rocks hard when it gets going. Putting it into rotation. Heard enough to suggest that repeat listening will bear fruit…. 3 for now
I liked this a lot. Doesn’t have many of the classic queen songs on it, but it’s a band discovering their sound. I’ll always take an album where dorks sing about fairy tales.
While Freddy Mercury was cool and Queen are clearly incredible musicians, their grandiose theatrical style has never appealed to me. Singing nonsense doggerel about ogres and fairies doesn't help. Pompous, po-faced, showy and ridiculous.
Didn't recognize a single song on this one, but still has that definitive Queen sound.
This album consistently provides that original rock orchestra base flavour that laid the solid foundation for Queen but Freddie Mercury was just building up and had not yet found his wings to soar .
Never heard these before, but pretty nice overall.
This album was mostly unfamiliar to me, apart from Seven Seas of Rhye, which I absolutely loved as an 10, 11-year old. It brings strong memories of listening to the Queen Greatest Hits while playing a fantasy role player book called City of Thieves. The entire album seems to fit that genre for me.
pior que eh bem diferente dos HITS da banda né mas eh isso aí. hard rock + progzinho leve. bom pra quem gosta e não incomoda também. mas não eh mto minha pira!!
Sounded emptier than the other queen albums I've heard. Freddie was flexing with the vocals though, definitely an interesting listen.
I liked queen and was looking forward to finally getting one of their albums…. it was def fun but probably not my fav of theirs
Not a Queen album that I’m familiar with. But not really one that I think I’ll be spending too much time with, either. Perfectly fine.
not my favorite of theirs but still solid. Definitely a different sound/vibe
Pretty solid record, and the cover art would later inspire the video for Bohemian Rhapsody.
trochę rozczarowujący dla mnie ;( nie słucham queen tak w sumie, ale jest parę kawałków, które naprawdę lubię, a tutaj nie było wg mnie żadnego, który specjalnie by się wyróżniał jednocześnie jako do posłuchania w tle był w porządku, no i przez to, że jest to rock, to mimo wszystko to nie było to asłuchalne, chociaż liczyłxm na coś o wiele lepszego ale brian may delivered <3 chyba the march of the black queen mi się najbardziej spodobało? idk o i jeszcze white queen
It’s a good album. Not the best of them.
Good album, I see why people love Queen. Just not my genre
I am a Queen fan, and II is a fine album. Definitely an expansion of their sound and scope from their debut album, but none of the hits are on there, so personally I would not have included it on this list. Instead, I would replace it with A KIND OF MAGIC, which is a cultural touchstone that still delivers nearly 4 decades on.
2,5?
to the tune of under pressure: *OGRE BATTLE*
It was interesting if not exactly my style. Freddie had an amazing ability as a vocalist
It didn’t really sound like Queen. At least not that Queen that I know. It was strange but I kinda liked it too?
I love Queen. This album is one I’ve never listened to before. It has 11 songs and that’s 11 songs I’ve never heard, which I’m actually surprised by, I thought I was a decent Queen fan. The only thing I actually recognize is the album cover. The first half is very down to earth, some good songwriting, with a sound that is their own big rock sound but also simultaneously feels very intimate. ‘Father to Son’ particularly. The second half is big, fantastical and more along the lines of the Queen you know, bigger guitar, operatic singing, it’s good and even weird but I may prefer the first half more. There are some real good nuggets in this album.
A cool reminder that they were glam before they were huge. But I might not return to it.
So interesting -- Brian May and Freddie Mercury are both completely unhinged, but in very different ways. It looks like Freddie's instincts took over for their later work (resulting in the big hits) but it's fascinating to see what happens when you let each of them loose.
For as much Queen as I was exposed to growing up (my mom is a big fan) I don't think I've ever listened to any of the songs on this album. For their sophomore release, their sound is pretty well formed and consistent with later more popular releases. The songs themselves have a little less bite perhaps than their later work. But Brian May's guitar work shines throughout, as does Mercury's powerful and incredibly flexible vocal delivery. Favorites of mine were Father to Son and The Fairy Feller's Master. There are certainly worse ways to spend 40 minutes, but I doubt this is one I'll come back to quickly. Solid 3.
A lot proggier than I expected. Interesting to have 2 Queen albums and they are missing a lot of their hits. High 3 on this one for da energy. Really enjoyed it, but there just was something missing to get it to a 4.
No one has a guitar sound like Brian May... Never heard Father To Son before - excellent so many parts how tf has ogre battle never been used in shrek, it's also amazing. 3.5 Stars really, its great but idk how much i'll go back to it.
This must be a rock opera but I probably need to listen again as I'm not sure what the hell it's about. A Night at the Opera album was way better thats for sure
Not my favorite version of Queen.
This should be rated higher but I'm still learning to love progressive, arena, whatever this is rock. Had to break my first listen into 3 just to make it through this lol.
This album is just perfect nostalgia and will now be one of my go tos when I need to liven things up.
A good album that shares some of Queen's lesser know songs, yet still undeniably delivers top notch musicianship.
I feel this album is the genesis of all future Queens albums to come. Not an album full of singles but rather you can feel how the piano and synthesizers are evolving into a future influential hall of fame sound. 3.5.
Good stuff and always an experience involving the emotions.
What’s Queen before they became Queen if not a peasant! It was whatever.
It seems like Queen could have veered off into a different kinda of band than what they did. This album seems to be their fork in the road.
Good, not their best.
Good!
Really good stuff. Not a whole lot of major hits though.
70s rock took itself very seriously. This album fits right in to all the different sub-genres of 70s rock; and tries to cram all of them into each song. You can hear the roots of a mature Queen in there, but overall it seems they are trying to follow along with their contemporary crowd. I wonder if any of these old bands cringe at their lyrics 50 years later?
This was okay, but nothing stood out per se.
Not their best but still solid
Some good moments, but it feels like they focused too much on making the songs long and complicated, rather than making them good.
Not my favorite
Good but not a banger
Okay, my problem is not with the excellent musicianship or Freddy's multi-octave voice. My problem is the same problem I've had with Queen off and on. Many of their songs are forgettable and overblown. I can't believe this album was included on this website but not A Day At The Races, which to me is a much better album. In my opinion Queen didn't really become of age until A Night At The Opera. After having listened to it I cannot remember a single song.
I don't know how I can love Genesis and hate Queen, but here we are. This is probably their best.
Proggy Queen, before their ability to construct tight pop songs was fully developed. It is an interesting listen, with multiple tracks jamming tons of different ideas together which sometimes works and sometimes doesn’t. But the potential of the band is obvious, and its an interesting window into the development of a band even if the end product is a bit mixed.
also not really my type of Queen! i'm clearly not a fan and i've probably listened to this before but i don't remember it at all. vaguely tuneless background pop rock. no complaints but no compliments either.
I’m not a massive Queen fan but this was pretty good. Innovative and executed brilliantly. All the pretentiousness of 70s progressive rock. Solid.
Less theatrical and therefore better than I feared. Seems like they were only figuring out that style I really can't stand with this one.
A less over the top version of Queen. It was good, but they aren't for me.
I liked Seven Seas of Rhye since I'd heard it already, but the rest was fine.
I can totally see how some folks drool over this band. I don't, but it was a good listen.
Not my favorite from Queen tbh. The rock opera element was cool, but their later work is definitely stronger. Still a nice listen.
Although I am a Queen fan, I can’t say that I distinctly recall listening to any of these songs previously. You can tell they are still trying to figure things out and getting closer to achieving their distinct sound. I was surprised by some of the elements of hard rock or early metal sound in some of these songs. It was a fun listen but not sure if many of the songs would make it into any normal rotation of mine.
6 Never listens through a queen album before but their album music is way better than all of their hits I think
The feeling I have coming off this listen is "Meh". I won't ever seek this out again. 2.5/3 but I'll generously round up.
It's Queen, but minus a lot of the pop sensibilities which came later. I've never been a huge Queen fan, but without that flair it just sounds a little flat. Accomplished, but flat.
Not the best queen album, but still pretty good
No real complaints but the operatic Queen style still isn’t really my thing. This was fine but no reason to listen again
Dad rock
Okay
Definitely one of Queen's heavier albums, Queen II is a great listen for someone who is more familiar with their big hits. It gives a great look into Queen's transformation moving from a more rock-focused group to one that blends some aspects of metal and art-rock into something uniquely 'Queen.' It's not my favorite from them but certainly an enjoyable album I'm certain to revisit. 3/5
No really show stoppers on this
A theatrical fantasy. Interesting
Crazy how much this sounds like the Queen songs are massive hits, but not quite. It’s like this record didn’t sell and they decided, “well that didn’t work. let’s do it again.” It sounds like bizarro Queen.
kli an iblick in dia früahnera songs - sind aber ned dia wo miar am besta gfallend
Pretty solid 3 stars for me, not the Queen album I would choose to hear but it’s not bad either.
I really like this one - call it 3.5, but it's worth a listen and it's probably a good introduction to Queen for folks who only know Bohemian Rhapsody. Good reminder that it's a killer band backing Freddie.
This album was fine. It is certainly not VINTAGE Queen by any stretch of the imagination, did any of these songs make it onto any of their greatest hits albums. It is almost like this album has -all- the filler songs for most of their albums, still pretty good songs but not also not alot of standouts...
Some ‘mo queens it’s alright I suppose
Proto-Queen. It's a definite precursor of all that they would bring in the coming years. Nice to have had a peek into where they came from as I had not heard this album before.
I was erring towards a 2 star rating as it sounds like a myriad of other pretentious mid 70s rock albums, but tight at the death seven seas of rhye edged it into mediocre territory
As a Best Of band, Queen have a pretty phenomenal catalogue, but I wasn’t that impressed with this one. Maybe with a bit more time and familiarity, this might grow on me but for now…
Felt like sitting through a big production rock opera. I liked the concept of the dual themed sides, and the orchestration of everything is very impressive. But, much like sitting through a full rock opera, it gets a bit much after a while. Especially when it's lacking the payoff of the melodies of some of the songs on the later albums.
Not the most memorable Queen's album
Freddie voor de hits. Queen nog meer als glamrockers. Ik heb zelf weinig met die stijl, maar vond het verrassender dan gedacht.
Thé good queen period. After flash Gordon things went downhill
i appreciate queen, but i don’t love them
I enjoy everything Queen and have been a lifelong Queen fan, but I do agree with the assessment that this isn't their best project, but where they took a first huge leap with their iconic sound. I enjoyed spotting a lot of sonic motifs that first appear here and later develop in their further projects - for example, Brian May's simple-yet-beautiful repetition of vocal melodies over guitar, like how in "Bohemian Rhapsody" the same melodic lines first appear in vocals and then are echoed via guitar licks. My favorites were, "The Loser In the End," in which I really enjoyed Roger Taylor's vocals, and, of course, "Seven Seas of Rhye."
No need for this to be on the list. It's cool to hear them find their place, but with Sheer Heart Attack and Night at the Opera on here already and are the culmination of the different facets of Queen. Still, great record. 3
Seven Seas of Rhye, the unequivocal banger on the album. Been a while since I listened, I found a few overlooked ones like Nevermore, and Some Day One Day
No big hits on this one but high-quality R&R from 👸
pretty good
Wow, there's Sabbath meets Genesis with Freddy Mercury. Who knew? None of this is exactly my cup of tea, but I respect the effort.
I LOVE Queen. This is not my favorite album though lol.
Are they LARPers?
A couple bangers, but not the queen that I'm used to.
Good
Impressive. I hear where Muse gets their influence.
I'd never listened to this entire album before. The only track I was aware of is "Seven Seas of Rhye." My issue with Queen is that you basically already know all of their best songs. There aren't any hidden gems on their albums. So, given that this album doesn't really have many greatest hits, it's just kind of meh.
This is different look of what Queen is and what I know of Queen. Compared to the singles and the ones everyone knows, this is a nice different, to listen to for the first time. Like how the album flows nicely. All four as excellent as ever, defo see how their career shaped out after this album, never lost their roots. No particular bangers other than Seven Seas of Rhye but enjoyed and maybe open to listen to other of Queens lesser known music.
3.5
Seven Seas of Rhye is a bop. Not a whole lot else on this one though weirdly. Queen has a lot of bangers but all spread across their albums with a huge backlog of stuff nobody ever talks about.
Probably the worst Queen album I've gotten but still not bad by any means. Father to Son was my favourite track here.
Need to give it a couple more listens. Liked it but did not immediately stand out.
oh, it’s a good album, just gets boring a bit towards the end
I understand how important this band is. I understand how talented this band is. I understand how genius the arrangements are. I understand how different (and dangerous ?) this band was when they first arrived on the scene. But all I could think of while listening to this was “It’s nice that High School Show Choir got to make a rock album”. I’m definitely more of a hits fan with these guys, but at least it’s better than KISS’s 1998 suicidally bad album “Psycho Circus”. If KISS had hired Brian May, it might have saved the album. But also, Brian, turn the treble down on your amp a tad, bud!
Some glimpses of greatness, but overall pretty sloppy and forgettable. 3/5.
Another one for the “albums from the 70s that I have no strong feelings about” club.
Not familiar with this early Quen record. Very cool blend of hard rock influences and the baroque and lyrical stuff that Mercury already mastered! Very pleasing listening!
First time listening to this album.
This was not bad. Classic rock with a sort of operatic influence was interesting and new for the genre.
A little to proggy for the current me but I hear seeds of greatness
It my favourite Queen album, but a necessary step to get to a night at the opera. A little too progressive to be compared to my favourite Queen albums, they hadn’t quite honed that super catchy pop element yet.
legendärs cover han nöd cheggt, dass sie scho ufem 2. album ih die richtig gange sind! bis hz hetmi nüt als LIED umghaue aber so als gsamts ding isches sehr cool rhe loser in the end isch wieder ener "normale" rock und es singt de taylor! BIN READY FÜR DE OGRE BATTLE ich frög mich, öb das jz scho d fantasy side isch the march of black queen isch megaaaa cool! bohemian rhapsody chunnt nöd vo irgendwo her joo als gsamthafts album sehr cool zum lose und z ghöre, was sochli de "startschuss" vo "dem queen" gsi isch. doch die einzelne lieder hani jz nöd unglaublich gfunde (abgseh vo black queen). guets 3 oder 4
Didn't sound much like the Queen I'm familiar with, not a single song I recognized. What is this album? I'm kind of unsettled.
Oh look! A Queen album with none of their hits on it! What am I to expect?! Well, I had a very odd epiphany while listening to this. Very early Queen, and I swear for the first half of the album I felt as if they were wanting to emulate Led Zeppelin. Almost to the point of cover band at times. It wasn't until Ogre Battle did the more Queen vibe start to come out. Not an incredibly notable album (for me) but it was very interesting to get this glimpse of the band that's not constantly shoved down your throat.
Good throughout, a couple of their hits, but also some underrated gems
A subdued effort compared to the later albums
Rv
In a vacuum, this is a great album. However, in the context of Queen’s discography, this is average at best.
This is like watching your favorite track star figure out how to walk. All the elements that made Queen great are in this album, but they haven't figured out how to put them together just yet. Queen's incredible, but they hadn't nearly hit their stride with this album.
Brian May is my King
A bit too samey but the final song is great
Ihan ok, mutta tuskinpa tulee kuunneltua uudestaan. 2,5/5.
Loved Ogre Battle, the rest was fine.
Easy losbar aber nüd mega catchy. Queen gänd 2 ihne de neduzer spesst eine druf Macht nach mine berechnige e klassische 3er
Cover 5 Not my favorite of their albums but the generally a good listen.
Eefocyeag
Interesting in that it doesn’t really sound like Queen, but not really interesting enough to listen to again. I’ll go 2.5 rounded up.
Good mellow tunes sprinkled with some guitar and piano.
6/10
While I enjoy Queen's popular hits, this album blended in with the background for me. It was mindless background music that fit the nonsense conversations I was experiencing. This doesn't mean I dislike the album. I just didn't focus on the lyrics. The instrumentals were upbeat and fun, matching the conversations I held during the duration of the album.
Feels like a teaser of greater things to come. Ironically it'll come in the same year.
7/10
This one was interesting in terms of its place in Queen's discography but didn't feel that special to the wider musical environment. It is heavier than what you are used to with them so it is kind of a unique blend of genres. Still though I liked about half of the songs. Iconic artwork. Rating: 3.4
Rimango sempre dell'opinione che i queen abbiano un po' le palle. Però anche solo per il fatto che questo album sia relativamente meno mainstream me li ha fatti apprezzare un po' di più
Queen! Always delightful, I wasn’t familiar with it before but really enjoyed it.
Great but not their best
Clearly an iconic band, but this was probably their weakest effort.
The second Queen album I've had the pleasure of listening to as part of this challenge. For my money, this is perhaps a bit more consistent all the way through than Sheer Heart Attack, but the highs aren't quite as high. It's worth noting that both albums were released in the same year, and they were only one removed from A Night at the Opera, which is pretty mental to think about. The theatrical, triumphant bombast that everyone knows Queen for is present here nonetheless, particularly within the latter half of the album, although not to as potent an extent, which I actually think suits Queen II down to the ground. Are there as many jaw dropping moments on this one? No, but it still absolutely rocks the hell out, and it offers a more than viable alternative for when I'm fancying a bit of Queen, but perhaps want something a bit lower key from them.
Klasyk, ale raczej nie jeden z najlepszych, nie ogarnęłam kiedy się zapętliło l. RIP Freddie
3.75
I was never a huge fan of Queen. This album was fine but there were no big hits on it. Mercury has a great voice and the music is good but it just doesn’t do anything for me.
Theatrical and fun listen
A few strong tracks. Just sneaks a 3
Low 3, enjoyed the first side a lot but the fantasy stuff lost me a bit on side two.
'News of the World.' 'Jazz.' 'The Works.' These are just some of the Queen albums better than 'Queen II.' 'A Day at the Races.' 'The Game.' 'A Kind of Magic.' These are others. H*ck, even 'Queen' debut album is better than 'Queen II.' All of this isn't to say 'Queen II' isn't a bad album, but just there are better ones. This is the D&D concept album with only one certified amazeballs song, "Seven Seas of Rhye." It's still Queen, it's still worth listening to, but there are many better. Top tracks: "Seven Seas of Rhye," "Ogre Battle"
--Procession...okay --Father to Son...It's interesting in comparison to other six minute jams by this band. This "opera" doesn't have the maturity of their later work --White Queen (As It Began)...it's odd. Maybe I could like it after a few more listens? --Some Day One Day...May on vocals? Interesting. It's surprisingly good, but if you have Freddie Mercury available to sing you should probably use him --The Loser in the End...now we got Taylor as lead! Good voice. Still not Freddie --Ogre Battle...did every major 70s UK band read Tolkien and play DnD? --The Fairy Feller's Master-Stroke...the answer is yes --Nevermore...good ballad --The March of the Black Queen...preparing the world for Bohemian Rhapsody --Funny How Love Is...has a Beach Boys quality to it --Seven Seas of Rhye...not a total banger but does a good job of showing off Queen's many talents
Have never actually listened to Queen’s catalog other than the hits. This was fun, different sound than I expected. You can hear where their sound went, mixed with like… I don’t know, Zeppelin influence? That’s probably a naïve take, but it was new to me. Neat stuff.