Reviews (page 2 of 7)
Only 1 playable song which was ok
Who’s up Doctorin’ their Tardis right now.
Weird.
Had not heard of this group before… but it was a bop - especially since it came out in the early 90s. Worth the trip to YouTube to listen. 3.4
Didn’t get a particularly close listen, but I remember thinking it was interesting! Just not sticking in my brain. 6/10 Pretty Good
This was a very pleasurable listen to an album n group that I never heard of. The vocals are A+ and the music creates sounds capes of a dreamlike quality but grounded it it's rhythm n beats. Reminiscent of early 60s pop soul (Motown) Cooke/Redding with a modern electronica style with African n Cribbean influences
This album was a banger. The story behind the band is incredible in its own right. Some really interesting synth and pop here, though maybe a bit too self referential. Still, absolute banger.
Not available on Spotify as they deleted all their recorded works and given some research they sound like wankers.
THESE GUYS! Look up their story. They are the epitome of what Punk was pretending to be and they were playing House music. They also wrote a book on how to make hit singles.
i love 90s electronica but i will be the first to admit it can get cheesy as hell
Could not get into it / slog of a listen … the techno beats weren’t fantastic and the singing was painful. 2
I don't usually enjoy electronic music but this wasn't bad.
It’s just OK so many of the sounds don’t really seem to be coherently mixed
They're justified, and they're ancient. Glad I listened to them.
Can't get it on Spotify...not a good sign. This already feels like a long listen and I'm 90 seconds in. I remember 3 A.M. Eternal. This is the soundtrack to a movie The KLF wrote and starred in...shocked it wasn't ever released. King Boy D and Rockman Rock, these dudes are dorks. They had a song about Dr. Who, they unironically refer to themselves as the Justified Ancients of Mu Mu. If you told me this was British Jock Jams, I'd believe it. The Mu Mu thing is so stupid and they really just went headfirst into it on pretty much every song. And they close with the full length Justified and Ancient...but not the one with Tammy Wynette.
Repetitive and cringy, not least because of the over-the-top name drops. Sounds like cheap plastic for the most part. Justified and Ancient is the one redeeming track.
Slide guitar showing up on an electronica album is certainly a new one for me. That was probably the most interesting thing about The White Room. There’s a weird combination of house, rock, soul, and ambient music going on that makes it sound a little different from the other early 90s electronic albums I’ve heard. “No More Tears” was probably my favorite. The reggae influence was pretty cool, and the vocals throughout the album reminded me of what Massive Attack and Portishead would be doing a few years later. There’s that same dark, detached sound floating over electronic beats. I liked the experimentation more than I liked the actual songs. There were some cool ideas and sounds here, but most of it was still just decent electronic music to me.
Looking at the reviews and I was initially surprised at how low this was. That said, in going to listen to it on Apple Music, it takes you to the 2021 version of The White Room which is completely different than the original 1991 version of this record which the authors included in this series. In fact, the current Apple Music version doesn’t even have 3AM Eternal on it, which was by far their biggest hit stateside. To listen to the true original record, you have to piece this together track by track. Let's start with the hits. 3AM Eternal is awesome, a great electronica track. Loved it when it was out in the early 90s and it still bangs today. If you missed this when listening to Apple Music's White Room album, go find this song, it's worth your time. Justified and Ancient was the other hit stateside and if you listen to it back-to-back with 3AM Eternal, you realize pretty quickly that it is very derivative (or vice versa) of their biggest hit, albeit a less hard-hitting version of that track. There's a decent amount of the same elements, especially in the lyrics, whether it is justified and ancient, ancients of Mu Mu, etc. It’s just not as great a song, though it is not bad. What Time Is Love? is a cool track. It drives well and has an urgency to it which I really dig. One of the other highlights of the original record. Make It Rain has some cool samples and blends a series of different elements well. It's not my favorite track on here, but it's solid. Church of the KLF gives me Silent Running by Mike and the Mechanics vibes, which is a song I totally love. This track just wasn't long enough though to be great. Last Train to Trancentral has a very futuristic sound to it. It's a track I would expect to hear in a move set 100+ years in the future. It would have been fun to hear in a club with a DJ spinning it. Build a Fire is somewhat ironically named, as it does anything but. It's a sleepy song that just drifts along, never building to anything. One of the worst tracks on the album. The title track is much better. A syncopated beat. The voices hitting on different sides of your headphones. And a clarinet for no particular reason! It's just super interesting to me, though I would understand if others don't like it. Finally, No More Tears is a decent song, though it trails on too long. A series of interesting elements though. Summed up, is it a touch of a mixed bag? Yeah, it is. That said, it is a very interesting album with an absolute banger in 3am Eternal, serving up more than enough diversity to put it towards the top of the heap of electronica records.
Innocuous enough
=================== 200 Albums Summary =================== This is now the 200th album I have reviewed as part of this project. I thought this would be a good point to take a snapshot of this journey so far. ------- DAYS ------- It took me 231 days to get through 200 albums – as I occasionally had to pause if I got too busy or was on vacation etc. But that means I have actually listened to and reviewed an album on 87% of the days since I started – pretty good. It’s fun and something I generally look forward to each day. --------------------- ALBUM RATINGS --------------------- Album count by Rating #: 1 – 56, 28% 2 – 43, 22% 3 – 46, 23% 4 – 28, 14% 5 – 27, 14% I am a tough grader apparently. 50% of the albums were rated 1 or 2. In retrospect this ratings pattern doesn’t surprise me, because in any era, I’ve always felt there was some really good music and also lots of not so good stuff. I wasn’t trying to get this kind of ratings distribution, but this makes intuitive sense to me. ----------- SONGS ----------- My whole goal for this project was to discover new artists and albums BUT the primary goal for me has been adding new songs to my collection. This has definitely achieved that goal. Even when I have rated the album a 1 or a 2, I have still usually added some new songs to my Spotify library and I still enjoy those as much as any other song. Just because I rated an album low, doesn’t mean there isn’t some good stuff on it. Total Songs listened to: 2,297 songs, 157.3 hours of music Total Songs Liked: 981 songs, 72 hours of music Total Liked Songs that I already had "liked": 256 songs, 18.9 hours of music Total Liked Songs that are NEW to Me: 725 songs, 53.1 hours of music It’s great that I’ve been able to add this many “NEW to ME” songs through this activity. Using this run rate, I estimate that I will end up adding ~3,950 NEW to ME songs to my collection by the time I’ve made it through all 1,089 albums. It will most likely be higher because they keep adding new albums and then there are all of the user submitted albums too. I started this project with a little over 5,500 songs on Spotify, so this is pretty cool. -------------------------------------- BIGGEST SURPRISES SO FAR -------------------------------------- For most of these artists listed below, I was either totally unfamiliar with and a couple I was slightly familiar with – but they all got a 5 star album that I was not expecting at all … Television Marquee Moon, CAN Future Days, Joy Division Closer, UB 40 Signing Off, Herbie Hancock Headhunters, Michael Kiwanuka, Beta Band Hot Shots II, Fairport Convention Liege and Lief, Chemical Brothers Exit Planet Dust. I was also surprised by some 4 star albums … A couple of these were non-English speaking albums: Songhoy Blues Music in Exhile, and Suba Sao Paulo Confessions. 2 Joni Mitchell albums got 4 stars unexpectedly. Django Django – I had never heard of them. Also 1 rap album - Ice Cube The Predator. Some stuff that I just don’t seem to like … Most heavy metal (like Metallica, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Ministry), Most pop stuff (like Britney Spears, Taylor Swift, ABBA, Destiny’s Child, Everything But The Girl), Morrissey / The Smiths. Anyway – on to today’s review. =================================== TODAY'S REVIEW =================================== This album isn't on Spotify except for 1 song and I don't have time to track this down. The one song on Spotify is "Build a Fire" which isn't good enough to want to listen to it again. It's mostly just a guy speaking about something in a Scottish accent with some hazy music in the background. I'll rate this s a 1 since I didn't like the only song I had available to me.
I don't know! 2? 5? It sounds like they had a lot of fun with it
Reminds me of my roller skating days
I was only about to find the 2021 Director's Cut version of this. It was more mellow than I remember their songs being. It was OK.
Um…. Is this British? ✔️ Does it belong on the list? ❌ How do I feel about it? 🤷♀️ 3 Boolean: False
my favorite Megaman stage music album. Seriously its more electronica but manages to be funky enough to be distinct from their peers. Get to your nearest warehouse rave if this is pumping.
Normally this kind of music isn’t my jam but it’s the KLF. How can you not love these self righteous douchebags?!?
As an album, not sure if it works, but as individual tracks, it's incredible.
An aborted soundtrack from 1989 that was released by the biggest selling singles act of 1991, then abruptly retired and their catalogue deleted (I made a playlist to hear this album!). Bill Drummond was the penultimate figure from the early 80s new Merseybeat to become a success (Ian Broudie's Lightning seeds completed the equation) but few could have predicted that he'd be THIS successful and confrontational. The music was the 80s/90s crossover in a nutshell - late 80s dance music with mid 90s alternative rock. To have Glenn Hughes and Tammy Wynette as lead vocalists was quite a coup. Listening back it's bonkers but tuneful and full of hooks and varied beats. Their enigma remains.......
This was a hair better than most of the electronica we get. That’s not saying much though.
After listening the that album all i I know is… KLF is gonna rock ya!! Quite the throwback and I didn’t recognize the band name before the track hit so it was an excellent surprise. This isn’t my favorite genre of music, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy this.
Tech-nope.
I don't hate this, which is shocking since it's electronic music. There is a dumb goofy element that makes it a bit endearing. I strongly dislike it, but this wasn't terrible.
nice electronic music. it's unique i think in it's style compared to other records here, but nothing remarkable tbh
Meh
*stares at own hands in front of face as if they're the most amazing things in the world*
I think I would probably have to be off my face on ecstasy to find this anything more than tolerable. Naff and tinny, repetitive and unmusical. Maybe if I was at a sweaty rave in 1991 the atmosphere would be different but 35 year removed and sober, this is nothing to write home about, but it's certainly an iconic sound, although the final track Justified and Ancient is so bad it is jeopardising the already generous two stars I am giving this album.
Honestly, I'm really starting to question if these are really albums I must hear before I die... Not that this is egregiously bad or anything, but I'm just getting a little annoyed by this streak of less interesting albums. This also annoyed me because half way through group's other stuff because I'd vaguely heard of them and I found out they made the album that coined the genre name of chillout, and it's way better rated. Anyway, this album itself. Very annoyingly repetitive, often pretty irritating vocals/vocal samples, and a lack of much energy, at least to me. It especially annoys me with all the vocals saying things like "To the bridge now!", or "Bring the beat back!" (before not bringing the beat back and just adding one short temporary noise), which just feels like a very cheesy and unnecessary 4th wall break. It's just boring. I was excited because I've never listened to anything like this but I probably won't be listening to any more acid house soon after how disappointing it was, especially considering the name of the genre (this doesn't sound anything like other "acid" music)
Gear: INAWAKEN Twilight-DS Artwork: ️🇹🔊🚧 Production (Random Spotify Playlist Edition): 🥁🔪💩 Music: 👥🎛️👀 Rating: ❔(❔)/5
I took Jazzercise classes in 1991 and 3am Eternal was used for the "cool down". The album sounds like late 80s early 90s. I can see how it would be bland to someone not around back then, but to me, it's not so bad. If The KLF would have stuck around a little longer, they'd probably be featured on Pure Moods or something.
I enjoyed this, it was unique and kind of fun.
This sucks.
I… I guess I expected this would be here so I don’t have much to say.
I know the KLF from somewhere, but where?? Oh that’s right, those are the fuckers that burnt a million quid. I enjoyed “Build a Fire” and “No More Tears” but the rest was pretty unlistenable for me.
Album 278. The White Room — The KLF (1991) Aaagh, almost all tracks are unavailable in Spotify again or in some other versions. Dull electronica 2/5 No liked songs
sometimes you're listening to something a bit out of your wheelhouse, trying to be charitable and objective, and a single moment can snap you out of your logic-delirium to impress upon you, unequivocally, hey - this actually is shit! for me, it was the motherfucker going "squing-a-bobby-bohby-bobby-boo blinnamorningbwinnamorningskinnymorning" just Constantly over No More Tears, a song which already features what sounds like the Ghost Rider bassline and a digitized oompah band. i am neutral-to-positive on the subject of drugs but i think they should never be a requirement to enjoy art; i can never, in a million years, imagine being genuinely moved by much of this unless made completely stupid and undiscerning by MDMA. i am finishing this record and wanting to write about being impressed by the scale of it, the towering acid-synths, the fact that i can never give 1 star to anything the bites Angelo Badalamenti, but then some asshole comes simpering over the track singing about "the rock-man's only made of bricks" man shut the fuck up! no one should've sung on this record. it makes the music so stupid and bad. there are moments where the stupidity seems kind of divinely inspired, which i'm heavily into, but if you think while listening to this (and not even about the record) it just starts to suck insanely hard
I remember this album, and I think this is close to the definitive sound of eurodance in the 90s and 2000s. Supprisingly raw in places, but overall a very nice time.
The full album is not readily available on Spotify. Dove into some of their other stuff though and not for me unfortunately
Absolute banging Euro-trash. Love it. I do appreciate the use of melody and chordal complexity typically absent from most dance music.
A lovely surprise. Missed it at the time, but liked it now.
This was pretty fun, vibey dance club hits
3.5 stars, it had some really interesting tracks and some really dated tracks
I'm not a great fan of house or electronic music, but this has great vibes 4.2
This is definitely an album of its time, but, as someone that didn't listen to this music at that time and was not involved in rave culture or in the UK, it still had some value and was a fun listening experience to me. It felt like an exploration into another culture, but there are also a lot of elements that can easily be identified as leading to other electronic music later in the 90's. I'd give it a 3.5 to 4 stars for still being good to very good and then also the influence.
Interesting electro pop? I think?
The klf were one of the most audacious artistic bands there ever was. Their biggest hit was a dance single about a drug fucked mythology of a group of people moving to Mu Mu land. Sung by the Queen of country music Tammy Wynette. Because of course it was. It’s a brilliant single. They wrote a book called how to write a hit single. Which was both a how to guide and an excoriation of the industry. They burned one million pounds in cash to demonstrate that cash in itself wasn’t the issue. As they pointed out - no body was any worse off. And no one would have complained if they’d spent it on cars or cocaine. This leads us to this. Listen to it. I prefer the later stuff but this shows the audacity and the thought under the shock.
Listened to immediately after Tangerine dream. A welcome antidote. I feel like I'm in a 1980s night club in the south of France. Black carpet. Euro pop. Fun. But so repetitive. Sounds so dated. A reminder of how night club music has moved on. Its not so boring now. Not a listening album. I also think its the wrong album to feature - not their most successful .
An interesting listen. Art for art's sake perhaps? The two of htem were having a hell of a time creating this stuff. not sure if it holds up, but respect.
Franklin Soults in the 2004 Rolling Stone Album Guide writes that, on The White Room, "the KLF became what they'd mocked with this enduring embrace of Euro-trash club culture. They knew their exit cue." The KLF wrote the literal book on mass-producing big pop singles in the late 80s (see The Manual) and followed their own advice for this album. But The KLF seem to be more of a cultural art project than a musical act of enduring value. I am sure the Stadium Rave singles sounded absolutely awesome on the floor of a rave in 1991, especially if the listener was chemically enhanced. Those songs were bangers -- The Manual methodology worked. But overall, I get more interest from reading The Manual and watching the 'Who Killed The KLF?' documentary than listening to the record. Some very interesting ideas about the commercialization of art, but they were right to delete their catalogue, leaving just the ideas to remain like ghosts in the cultural aether.
Beep boop *partial listen
The KLF are one of the greatest footnotes in the history of pop. An anarchic, high concept art project/prank that made a mockery of the music industry, the charts and award ceremonies. The funny thing was, they made this music better than most of the acts they were imitating. Does it sound a bit cheesy? Sure. But this is a smartly made cheese washed in layers of beer and brine.
7/10… 90s dance / electronic / *1991
I didn't actively dislike this, but it didn't excite me either.
This was a cool lp at the time and remains a good listen. I feel however, the songs work better as standalone pieces
01) What Time Is Love? - 10,0 02) Make It Rain - 8,5 03) 3 a.m. Eternal - 10,0 04) Church of the KLF - 9,0 05) Last Train to Trancentral - 10,0 06) Build a Fire - 9,0 07) The White Room - 9,0 08) No More Tears - 8,0 09) Justified and Ancient - 10 0 TOTAL: 9,28 (93/100) Current ranking: 36/983
Not too bad for electronica. Just not for me.
All bound for Mu Mu Land!
Background music to be turned on at low volume, nothing memorable.
A great find! I’m too old to have experienced rave culture (although I’m not dead yet so who knows), but the first half or so of this album is what I imagine the music would be like. Great dance music. Then there is a big switch to much more layered music on what I suppose was side B. Some really gorgeous tracks. I honestly enjoyed this start to finish 4.5 stars
It's not even good club music.
Only the Director’s Cut was available, which only had 7 of the original 10 songs.
yes
This was such a fun album I don’t understand why everybody was giving it so much hate. Loved how many vibes it tied into one. Hella elements used I couldn’t tell what genre it was for half of it. A few bangers too. Not bad. Highlights: 3AM Eternal, Build A Fire
Over the top, banging dance music, great hooks and melodies
My rating 2.7
Overhyped then and now. These guys lived off publicity stunts rather than letting the music do the talking
Short but sweet
If I had heard this album in my early 20s when I did a lot more club drugs this album probably would have hit hard. As it stands in my boring, more sober mid-30s it just comes across as generic and forgettable.
ale banger
Supposedly the soundtrack to a road movie called The White Room, this is certainly a record that makes its living off its momentum, i.e., it's good for driving, but it doesn't have much of a cinematic groove. That's fine, & I'm honestly happy I don't gotta make my way thru an electro-conceptual sort of thing. What you've got here is more hip-hop than I was expecting along w/ a healthy helping of house, gospel, soul, & pop. It's not 'about anything' - that's why I don't go for the soundtrack effect - but it's good for a party as well as contemplative moods. I like that flexibility. I also enjoy the fact that it's not egregiously British, e.g., 'Build a Fire' is gorgeously American. Released in '91, it must've been THE influence on Fatboy Slim, Moby, etc.
I don’t particularly engage with the electronic picks from this list. This record was fine at the beginning, but it started to decline as it went on. Nice songs with a 90s style, but boring and repetitive by the end.
Dans la vallée de la mort musicale que fut la transition entre la disco mourrante et l'électro naissante.
Pas fameux.
Ma première pensée: grosse cochonnerie électro brit. Ensuite, je lis sur le groupe et je vois leur K Foundation burns a million quid. Révulsé par cette entreprise, je réalise que je ne suis pas un anarchiste à tendance nihilisme passif. Ça a eu le bénéfice de me faire réfléchir au moins. Ils ont l'air d'avoir un sacré fan club si je regarde les commentaires sur Youtube. Je vais me réserver de jugement.
Cool electronic album, but not something I find myself coming back to
Back after a while. Gotta lock back in Groovy stuff this
Could I find this on streaming? No. Did I have a friend named Grant with a Mazda MX6 and a Sony discman with cassette adapter? Yes. Is this any good? I don't know, kinda? Nostalgia points for moo moo land fer sure. Is that Dolly Parton? Wtf
I dunno. This is just not for me
Really cool, I'm glad this list has exposed this to me
Very cool and different sounds for EDM, I would come back to a couple songs
Cool listen, really liked Build a fire
Reminds me of some old high energy playstation 1 soundtracks or arcade racing music. 3/5 Top tracks: What time is love, Last train to trancentral
A tough one. I don't love house or pure electronica all that often. Big Beat is an exception. Will this be? Honestly, it's not bad. But I still don't understand who sits around listening to club music. This does remind me a bit of Moby ('Madrugada Eterna' has samples with a distinct vibe of his Play, though the steel guitar is definitely different, if of a piece). It isn't unpleasant but it often sounds like a human being wasn't involved (note: I am aware that The KLF is comprised of two humans). On the one hand, this is an old criticism of electronic music -- it doesn't sound *human*. On the other hand, electronic musicians haven't been able to overcome that criticism in the decades since Kraftwerk started cranking out their beeps and boops. Electronica abstracts the essential act of sharing music as humans. It's focused on the product rather than the process -- or perhaps on the consumption of music rather than the collective experience of performance. In that last way, perhaps it's the most capitalist of all musical genres (probably not; it's actually quite accessible to make, if you don't get bogged down in sample licensing). Anyway, it's alright. My feelings are too mixed about this to give a high score but on a better day, it might've been a full point higher. 3/5
Woof... this is exactly the type of Electronic music that I absolutely cannot get on board with. Ok I actually kinda did enjoy Madrugada Eterna quite a bit, seems they used a Pink Floyd sample that worked quite well here. The recurring problem that arises on The White Room is when these two Scots decide that we need to hear them sing, we absolutely DO NOT need to hear their lame lyrics or terrible "singing voices". They also tagged in a generic ass robot lady to chime in with some equally lame vocals. So I'll give them Madrugada Eterna but otherwise this album aged like milk on a dock in July. 2 stars
Forgot what this sounded like. Cheers to these blokes
always really enjoyed these blokes and their antics... I am a big fan :)
Not even sure if I listened to the right album. But definitely not good. I had the urge to skip many songs
i mean, it was an early 90's electronic album...
Listened to this album while driving through the deserts of northern Utah and Nevada. Repetitive DnB is not good music for this type of drive, or really anywhere but a drug fueled club. Jenn’s Review: “Every song sounds the same. Turn it down, it’s starting to give me a headache.”
The most boring EDM album I've ever listened to.
4.5/5 stars. All the songs are super cohesive and make for a great album experience. My favourite song is the intro “What Time Is Love?”, which is a super energetic edm track.
Meh
It seems that you have to be of a certain age to understand what is happening here. I am fortunate enough to have a cd of the White Room purchased on release in the US. There was a lot of hype where I was around the album, but maybe it’s because it was a college town and we were open to new sounds and music. And wanted something to party to… KLF was something else. Was it good? It was certainly danceable and chill. I couldn’t find my cd version on any of the streaming sites, so my review is for the US cd release. I did listen to the YouTube album which appears to be the UK release, which includes a different mix of Last Train to Trancentral, which was my favorite track on the US release. 4 stars
This one feels like you really had to be there. Not my cuppa.
Interesting. I had to go to YouTube to listen to this album. Not bad.
at least enjoyable
а чо мені доступна тільки одна пісня
Chaotic. As a piece of club/dance music it works, but it’s hard to follow the strands of melody/musical elements listening to it cold not under the influence. It’s not terrible but other than for nostalgia or attempts to revive the 90s/early 00s club scene can’t imagine why anyone would listen back.
I don't really know what this is, but I guess house music. I think this is border line euro electronica at times (this is a bad thing) but probably avoids that title for the most part. That's the problem though any whiff of what many in the UK might call euro trash isn't an ideal connection, and these early 90s hippy beats just further push it into dated chaff territory. I can't find a benefit to this music or really enjoy it. The "Atmosphere" is repetitive and corny, so any potential dynamic is snuffed out.
Music made for undiscerning club goers. Would anyone's life be less rich if this was never made? I strongly doubt it. A waste of human effort.
electronica dance from the early 90's. not my thing
Solid euro electronica, if you pumped this real loud, added some bass and a handful of mushrooms it would be 5 stars.
Maybe you had to be there, or maybe you needed drugs. Either way, this was a struggle
Cool, The KLF. I listened to the director's cut of this album when it released in 2021 because I had heard that it was good. This will be my first time listening to the original mix of the album. I recall liking the style of this band, though obviously not enough to return to this album or explore their other releases. It's certainly kitschy and a little self-indulgent, though I remember being impressed by their deep sound and charming, early-90s dance stylings. Here's hoping I'll still like this album now that I'm more of a seasoned music listener. What differentiates the director's cut of this album from the original release is the exclusion of its major singles from the tracklist ("What Time Is Love" and "3 AM Eternal"). In their place is the "Go To Sleep" B-side (included as the album opener), a remix of "Madrugada Eterna" (a song from their previous album) and "The Lovers' Side" (an unreleased song intended for the original lineup of this album). I'm pretty sure the songs are different in the way that they're mixed as well. It's difficult to say as it's been forever since I last heard it, though I recall the director's cut having more of a focused, bassy, modern sound in comparison to the original release, which features a lot of production techniques and electronic embellishments that were common at the time. Honestly, it's difficult for me to say which version of this album I prefer. I really like Go To Sleep. It's an effective opener and is easily my favourite KLF song with how much it sticks out in my memory. The understated sound of the director's cut also makes this album more accessible, though I do like the arena/rave ambience which features on the original mix. It grounds this music in a time and place while also elevating the scope and scale of the album. It's been a good while since I last listened to a "big" album, and the size of this one is gargantuan. I can't help but imagine being beamed onto the planet-sized KLF space station and partaking in all of the futuristic thrills and pleasures while I listen to this music. It's time I buckle the fuck down and actually talk about this album. It's good! The world music influence comes through loud and clear, though the differing styles of this album are smashed together and played in such a way to where they honestly loop back to sounding original. Such a unique, intangible sound makes the new-age mystique of the band's image work despite how incredibly kitschy their music is. If I'm to single out individual moments of excellence, I favour the funky percussion, ambient synths, warm guitars, plucky saxes, female vocal segments and spaced-out compositions. Overall, I liked this. I think its appeal rests more in the aesthetics of this music over the actual substance, though the songs of this album are deliberate, tight and focused all the same Book time. The KLF were the best-selling British singles act of 1991. I remember hearing that when I listened to the director's cut of this album. It seems a lot more plausible to me now than it did then. The manager of The Bunnymen is one half of this band. Their sample-heavy debut album ("What the Fuck Is Going On?") was pulled from sale five days after release due to sampling ABBA. The band's early discography coined the trance and chill out monikers. The White Room was originally meant to be a film project, with this being the soundtrack. The book entry closes out by calling this album "The first truly consistent house music album." Yeah. I like this album and it has historical significance regardless of how you slice it. For those reasons, I gladly cosign this inclusion.
This review will be quick, because KLF - and especially “The White Room” - was constantly playing at parties in the very early ’90s. I didn’t like the music back then - and after giving it a quick listen, I can confirm that hasn’t changed. Admittedly, “Justified and Ancient” is pretty catchy - though in a children’s song kind of way, as was typical of the ’90s dance floor. At least KLF can boast that they helped shape that sound.
I didn’t hate it as much as I first thought when I headed the techno
Surprising how much I enjoyed this even if it's so dated it's painful. I think it boils down to the vision these guys have - it's not just plain boring house and dance music; they're going bigger and thinking bigger into the theatrical and performance territory. The KLF saw dance music as a means to art, and while that was ultimately their downfall it's still impressive that they pushed that way anyway.
Yeah, this wasn't too bad for electronic dance music.
There was so much better club music in the 90s. This feels like club music for boring people.
Not the revolutionary sonic bombardment that I expected based on their reputation. Quite straight, dancey music. Absolutely fine, but disappointingly inessential.
Okay this was a nice lil surprise :-)
I kno this is not what it’s about at all, but justified and ancient hit the same part of my brain that holds memories to puff the magic dragon and land before time. So somehow my neurons made me almost cry listening to this or whatever.
tried really hard at the time to like this, as i was neck deep in everything madchester/acid house, etc. but nah. still doesn't quite hit today either.
Pretty fun actually and better than expected. Hard to find.
I no emotional response to this whatsoever. I didn't hate it, I didn't like it, I didn't enjoy it, I wasn't moved, I wasn't made to dance. It was just nothing. A very odd sensation.
Eh. Not really my jam and I doubt the intention of the artists was for the music to be enjoyed whilst pottering around on Excel
Pretty boring.
I lost interest over the course of the album
This sounded AMAZING when I first heard it... in 1991. It still holds up pretty well, though. 3AM Eternal has lived in my head for the past 35+ years. It's a shame they never really got over in the US. I guess we just weren't ready for it. Their sound was far ahead of it's time... FOR the time. I wonder what ever happened to this band?
Super banger, hidden gem
I’ve heard this before and I owned it on tape (basically stole it from columbia house with one of those mail in ads) but never repurchased after getting rid of my tapes. I remembered it as forgettable early 90s techno, and there are some extremely 90s techno moments in here, but a lot of tracks are bangers. There are vocals on most of the tracks that make me think of c&c music factory (which is a little unfair), and there are still some forgettable tracks. The ones that stand out really stand out.
Why are there so many albums like this on this list? Massage parlor sounding shit
I know I listened to it, but I couldn't tell you a specific thing about it. Was fine I guess, I didn't shut it off.
Probably influential? Otherwise, not particularly noteworthy.
Best Tracks: 3AM Eternal, What Time is Love, Justified and Ancient, Last Train to Transcentral, Build a Fire ------------- Next Best: Church of the KLF, Make it Rain ---------- A great listen. Still after all these years it still makes me feel like I'm at the Disco in Holland again where I heard many of these songs. 4.5/5
Link to album: https://youtu.be/kjqb9_OEySY?si=Qb1cfe9JXnzOYXTv Some random raps and other moments ruin the momentum of this, but overall a fun album. Likes: Make it Rain; 3AM Eternal; Last Train to Trancentral; Justified and Ancient
I am 840 albums in, and a part of me is genuinely hatching the idea that the electronic music selections are a means to an end for some sort of musical psyop this list is trying to achieve. This album is equal parts bad, but also good, but sometimes dated, but sometimes ahead of its time? Whatever it is, there's no doubting that this is another viciously obscure electronic music pick that flies in the face of dozens of seminal, important electronic albums from the 90's specifically, and from every decade after too. All of this in mind, I think I like this after all??? The slide guitar on "Build A Fire" almost made this thing worth it. Such a fun addition into an otherwise repetitive record. Same with the ululating on "No More Tears". The more I think about it, the more The White Room is full of fascinating moments stuck in the middle of an odd, maybe ahead of it's time project. "Make It Rain" also has some hints of what would become the gated trance vocal effect. Speaking of which, "The Last Train To Trancentral" actually sounds like one of the first trains to the station, carving out that thumpy 4 to the floor kick, a bass that sits in the same register as a Reese Bass, and some appropriately airy chords floating in the back. Then there's some clunky, ancient-sounding choices like whatever the synth/key stab is on "3 AM Eternal". This whole track is an early 90's mess with it's MC work and heavy-handed crowd noise. "What Time Is Love has some dreadful lyrics and synths all over it as well, but I'm a bit more forgiving for the acidic 303 arp it rips towards the end. Psytrance can point to this song as though it was the first in it's genre's avatar state. The more I listen, the more I like this beautiful mess. Apparently there was a lot going on with the intent of the album and band wanting to make some ironic statements about trends and commercialism. I don't think that shines through this record at face value, but there is some subtle absurdity going on here. Upon reading all the wikipedia pages related to this album and band, I can confirm that there was much more going on under the hood than just "lets make a dance album." I am as confused about my feeling on this album as I am about this band and their history as a whole. Firm 3/5 but my brain feels like ✋︎ ♋︎❍︎ ♓︎■︎ ♋︎ ⬧︎⧫︎♋︎⧫︎♏︎ □︎♐︎ ❍︎♋︎🙰□︎❒︎ ♍︎□︎■︎♐︎◆︎⬧︎♓︎□︎■︎ right now
Кажется если мне тут что-то и понравилось, то это скорее баг, чем фича
Слушать музыку в ютубе не вайб, но что-то прикольное.
мне было неинтересно
Vähä tylsähköä, ei oikein mitään koukkua sisältävää. Siinähän tuo meni taustamusana, mieleenjäämättömänä.
Ei jotenki lähteny ollenkaan tähän hetkeen. Tämmönen jumputes ysärisämpylöillä ja vokaaleilla ei jotenki koskaan oo kolahtanu vaikka jumputesta kuuntelenki jossain määrin. Eikai siinä suoranaisesti mitään vikaa, ei vaan toiminu ja kyllästyin kuuntelemiseen hyvinkin äkkiä.
Every time I thought I was getting into this, it took a cheesy turn.
This hasn't aged all that well.
surprisingly good for EDM
this is one of those things where you learn about it and youre like well that was a weird blind spot anyway, but then it keeps coming up everywhere for some reason? my understanding of this project is it's a prank on the music industry made with contempt for consumers. that it's itentionally low effort and bad, but apparenly enjoyable (?). i love the klf project conceptually but hated listening to this album so not sure where to rate.
베스트: Justified & Ancient(White Hoese ver.)
2.5/5. For the sake of clarification, I listened to the directors cut version of this album. It is very of-it’s-time, an album I can appreciate in a historical sense but don’t really care for musically all that much. There’s just a lot of 90’s electronic that I prefer over this KLF record.
Maybe good on the dancefloor for the retro minded. Musically, it's everything I dislike. I found it commercial crap when it came out and still do, except it's now also dated. I'll be generous because they wrote their own music (I think) and some songs are catchy.
Started off strong being a high 4 album then fell off bad towards the end
Dosta neobičan album, zapravo me čudi da nisam prije to čula obzirom da su 90s moj đir. Ne mogu reći ni da mi je dobar, ali ni da je smeće, na trenutke je imao moju pažnju. 2/5, 4/10
Decent early electronic music. Has the classic "really bad female vocalist" problem that so many of these groups suffered.
Oh!! shit
Enjoyable listen, very interesting late 80's electronica
I don't mind this, but I'd be hard pressed to think that I'm ever going to put it on. Early 90's euro dance.
Increíble album, la verdad se me paso volando el.tiempo escuchándolo, lastima que el album este completamente desaparecido de las plataformas, investigue un poco sobre ello y pues bueno, termine escuchándolo completo en YouTube
The link gave me only one song, but I have to admit I liked it more now that when they first came out.
Not for me. I know that this kind of production is a skill that requires a finely tuned ear. I just find the style wholly unappealing.
spotify was being weird so couldn't listen to much of it but vibes were good
Boooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooring!
Could not listen, unavailable. Courtesy 3.
The KLF has such a great story (and "Who Killed The KLF" documentary) that the actual music doesn't quite reach the same level. This is especially true for the "Director's Cut" which doesn't have two of the best songs on the original album.
nope... deze werd het niet en zal het ook nooit worden
didnt do much for me! early 90s club
Ruidos novedosos para el 89 Disfrutable
Fine? Kind of boring. Fairly monotonous but I can appreciate the British House vibe of it. Certainly no Fat Boy Slim but also I feel these two groups don't play the same game
2.5 - Meh
Not without merit, but I can’t hang. Still love Doctorin’ the Tardis, though.
I didn't like them in the 90s and I don't like them now. Justified and Ancient lifts them to 2 stars.
I dunno, it’s EDM (shoulders shrug)
7/10 Empezó muy bien y se fue normalizando pero no se pone malo
This album made me nostalgic for a time in my life that I’m not quite sure I actually lived through.
I mean what a crazy album and what a great little run of fun (minus Pink Floyd) albums that made me excited to be doing this project. songs with sirens are automatically great and there were some very good sirens on here. I used to religiously follow the british pop music blog Popjustice (RIP) which was quite influential in the 2000s and 2010s and the main guy was always going on about the KLF as one of the most important British artists and that time they set fire to their entire profits from music. Anyway just so cool! love the energy and so much fun. We need more things like this. (I did listen to what I thought was the right album before seeing em’s suggestion and saw the version I listened to was missing the main singles?? but anyway all versions were great)
I bet this would be really cool and really exciting if I was into the euro-house scene 30 years ago. Reading about these blokes, there's definitely something fascinating going on there. As for me, and this music, it's a deflated "meh." Maybe in theory I like this a little more than some other electronica on this list. But that's as generous as I can be. Fave tracks: - Madrugada Eterna - Last Train to Trancentral (da Force, Over & Out) - Build A Fire
Finally found a good clear copy on soundcloud - and I’m glad I did. What an incredible band they are.
From my research, 'Chill Out' would've been the obvious pick from these guys to include due to it being a pretty early example of electronic ambient music. But these KLF guys suck and don't have Chill Out on Apple Music so I'll have to steal it from somewhere. This album also seems to be pivotable to acid / rave / house, to such a high degree that I thought of it as 'generic' on first listen. After learning that these guys were performing this stuff live on goddamn Apple II's, they really do start to seem like The Beatles of dance electronic. Wish I could get a piece of the past to see the big picture, as well as their insanely cool sounding stunts at concerts.
It was the kind of album where each song threatens to get annoying, and then consistently makes good on its threat. I kind of liked the "choral" part in "Go to Sleep," but this rare joy failed to repeat itself for the remaining 41 minutes. I like the album cover though.
I mean it's fine. The beats were well constructed.
I have never heard a more 1991-sounding album in my life
"We deeper into tonight's session and keeping it cool but underground, underground and cool, it's like a speciality burger." - Hans Oberlander
80er Jahre Synthisound. Geht so.
Not for me
Maximalist electronic pop and house built from pounding dance beats, ambient textures, sampled voices, and detached vocals feels like speeding through a collapsing amusement park lit entirely by strobe lights—absurd, euphoric, and constantly on the verge of self-destruction. The album swings wildly between stadium-sized dance anthems, ambient drift, and deliberate nonsense without ever fully settling into coherence. Its chaos can feel either exhilarating or exhausting depending on how much patience one has for its provocations.
Not sure if i listened to the actual album or not. But I liked what I could find of them. Very 90s.
This electronic style does what it wants to do really well. But sometimes I can only listen to the same song remixed so many times. This wasn't bad. Just not my fave. Actual rating...2.5 Liked Songs: "What Time Is Love" , "3 A.M. Eternal" , "Last Train To Trancentral" , "The White Room" , "No More Tears" , "Justified & Ancient (All Bound For Mu Mu Land)" , "Justicied & Ancient (Stand By The JAMs)"
Such a weird band, seem to be trying so hard to be clever sometimes that they're outsmarting themselves. Yes it's dated, but the first half of this is superb and contains som classic bangers. Runs out of puff a bit by the end, but I still really enjoyed it.
I liked that the first song picked up where the last song ended, records that make a loop are definitely fun. Overall, probably the best electronic album I've listened to through this project. Every song felt unique.
As much criticism as I’ve given lately to electronic music, I enjoyed this one. The bass punched hard, grooves were catchy, wasn’t too repetitive where it was annoying for me. So yeah, it’s was okay.
6/10
Bad 90’s dance music or, to be fair, really bad 90’s dance music.
Just ain't my thang
Dated with a capital D, these beats and arrangements should never be played in any modern setting. I will never understand the neverending glut of bad electronica albums on this list. Is it really that popular or important a genre to justify all this? This album is nowhere near as bad as Deee-lite or The Shamen, but I still only liked one song; the rest of the tracks were a parade of awful late 80s techno beats and nonsensical lyrics. Very low 2/5
This started out really good, but as it went on I was disappointed. 2.5/5.
Disco/electronic like.
Link To Album:https://archive.org/details/the-white-room-the-klf-album
Adore KLF
For everyone complaining that it's not streaming or it's not easily available, what do you expect from a group of shit stirrers who came, saw, conquered; then subsequently deleted their catalog and burned a million quid. What we have here is an acid house concept album. I wish it had the Tammy Wynette version of Justified and Ancient and a proper recording of the version of 3am Eternal with Extreme Noise Terror.
Honestly, this is everything that turned me off of electronic music in the 90s. Cheesy vocals, glassy production, generic beats, honestly just nothing enjoyable..
I think I wish this were just an all instrumental album.
I was hoping for something with an electro -dance-hiphop vibe, but this ended up being a little too ambient-chill for my tastes
FINALLY! I don't even need to listen to this one. DO NOT LISTEN TO THE VERSION STREAMING IT IS SHIT. You want the original 1991 CD version. Go find it at the library, a thrift store, your cousin's CD collection, your neighbors attic, anywhere. Do not trust the platforms. Bonus if you can get the single of "Justified and Ancient" with Tammy Wynette! This is rave classics all in one album. "Justified and Ancient", "3AM Eternal", "Last Train to Transcentral", "Church of the KLF". ALL BANGERS. It kind of tapers off at the end, but it's all worth it. The highs are all there, and make the lows worth it. My rating: 5/5 ONLY for the original mix. The currently streaming version is hot garbage. All bound for Mu-Mu Land!
That was vintage. Sound and era completely intertwined.
Nice one
I’ve got another year of this project. I don’t know if I can make it. Lately, it has been one clunker after another. Maybe next time I’ll do the 1,001 “greatest” albums.
My project partner recently prompted an unsolicited memory of KLF/Timelords that seemed wonderous to me at the time, and that became a seed for me to greatly favour this album. The fact that KLF has burned so many bridges that I couldn’t even find a Canadian streaming source outside of YouTube only adds to the legend. All this circumstantial favour clashes with the fact that in 1991 there was no type of music I despised more than this type, and it still really bugs me. In the end it’s star-wise landing in the middle, but this is no “perfectly-fine” kind of three. This is a conflicted “I truly don’t know where to put it” kind of a 3.
The KLF present a reverse art vs artist problem: love the artist, the art only so-so. I have nothing but respect for their antics, chaos, and constant reinvention of themselves. But stadium house is not for me. Also as a footnote, the two year old’s favourite song is Doctorin’ the Tardis. She charges round the house signing “Dr Doooooo-oooo. Hey! Dr Doo.” She thinks Dr Do wrote Green Eggs and Ham.
wow
3.5
90s funky electronic jams.
Not a bad listen but I feel like I got nothing out of it.
Oh shit. This one brings me back. I was obsessed with 3 A.M. Eternal when it released. My tastes have changed greatly since then, and I expected this to not age well. I was pleasantly surprised and found I still somewhat enjoy this record.
Interesting. There are some songs with cool sounds and compositions. Early techno and disco. However, wouldn't go back to it
I'm surprised how much I enjoyed this album. smooth electronica, delicious vocals, lovely melodies. 4/5
I feel like I don't see enough people complaining about how much Goddamn 90s electronic and techno bullshit this list has. Time and time again I find myself sitting through something like this, with each one being more generic and still somehow just as annoying as the last. At least this one isn't absurdly long like majority of the others are, but that's not to say it's by any means good. Still just a completely indistinguishable and generic pile of rubbish. Just one that at least knows when to end.
It wasn't bad, just really boring and background music. Music I feel like would have been playing at Express back in the day. Thinking it was edgy and different but in retrospect just kind of there.
It's tragic that the director's cut version of this was the only thing I could find, which had the glaring omission of 3 AM Eternal. What the heck, I was excited to hear that one and it's certainly the only one on here I would've loved. Anyways. This was very average to me.
Most excellent!
Just listened "stand by the jams" cheto
No me gustó.
Justified and Ancient Had to listen on YT.
Heard Before? i went through a very brief KLF phase. Notes: - typically i avoid discussing the context of albums, but i should mention that i find the KLF's performance art antics far more interesting than any music they ever produced. - i have a low tolerance for certain types of irony, and here all the lyrics strike me as mockingly vapid, especially given the empty, anonymous vocal performances. not interesting. - drum programming and sample selection have decent variety. - songs are carefully structured, with great builds and interludes. - i could potentially groove to an instrumental version of several of these songs. Verdict: Sneakily snarky, deliberately blank, fan-trolling but thoroughly competent dance music. The KLF dares you to enjoy this so they can despise you. Listen Again? Not a chance. I don't even enjoy hating it.
o sea, hay un tema solo en el spotify😀 pero está bueno yqc jajssj
A little funky, some interesting genre mixes, largely instrumental, some fun beats
One of the best albums ever made about the militant wing of a sect of dancing druids.
Not an EDM guy, but I’d pick a vibe like this if my hand were forced. Will they be a top artist for me? No. Would I dance if it was on in a club? Yep.
This was ok, just kind of there dance style.
This isn't on Spotify so I had to go on YouTube for this and I can't get a clear answer about what the actual official track list is because Wikipedia has multiple and the YouTube playlist is confusing. Anyway, this album wasn't worth any of that research.
I’ve not found any early electronic music to be compelling (at all), but this album sounds much more developed than I would have expected for 1991. If anything ages this record, it's the brief bits of rapping sprinkled throughout. That discipline really developed through the 90s and makes it easier to date this album back to the late 80s or early 90s. Much to my own surprise, I think there's a world where I listen to this again and/or throw it on when I just want good vibes in the background; I didn't come in to this expecting that at all. It's unfortunate that it's so hard to find somewhere to stream it (the Director's Cut is not even close to the same record).
I expected to hate this but then disconcertingly, all of a sudden, I didn't.
Alright
favs: go to sleep madrugada eterna (club mix) build a fire no more tears rating 2/5
Stupid electronic music
I had the Justified and Ancient remix cassette single when I was 15 in 1991. That's the optimal way to listen to the KLF.
I forget this album already so I guess that tells you something
I remember the day this dropped and listening to it all these years later, I have similar feelings. Some really good high points, but quite a lot of slightly dull sections in between. Four stars.
bad
Highlights: 3 A.M. Eternal, Last Train to Trancentral, No More Tears, Justified and Ancient (album version) Very outdated collection of various cheap hip-hop infused rave beats. I don't understand the significance of this record. It's probably just nostalgia bait for British rave junkies. There are multiple versions with different track listings under the same name, so I guess that even the band themselves don't know what this record is. It's very messy. Prior to this listening I've only heard "Justified and Ancient" (specifically the single version, not the album) and I liked it so I had great expectations, but this was underwhelming. The version that the record ends with is so painfully underwhelming and dull compared to the single version. I mean it's ok on its own, but it didn't close the record in a satisfying way. I wasn't pleased with the record, but having read the rough outline of band's story, I have to admit that they are very interesting. It might be that their antics are what made them critical darlings. I however don't intend to pay respect to these jokers based exclusively on that. The marketing might have worked if you were there, but when all is said and done, the final product is kinda shit.
couldn’t find the right album to listen to anywhere
Listened to the “director’s cut” on spotify. It feels like the positive to Portishead’s negative.
Not my type of thing, but not bad I understand why people like this
Only one song available on Spotify. Not my vibe.
Ei ollut koko levyä Spotifyssä. Kuuntelin saman levyn Director’s Cut-version.
For subversiveness an undoubted 5, but overall the music doesn't quite live up to the lore, though the 'stadium house' singles of this era were great. There's multiple versions of the White Room on streaming, and the version I found first wasn't as good as the original album, there's a fair bit of filler across the board though.
The music sounds like the music-on-hold at those 1990's internet service providers that were trying to be "edgy" or perhaps the shitty soundtrack in a women's clothing store in the same time period. And oh those lyrics! "Go to sleep" loops while the music is jackhammering its way into your skull. More like "go fetch me my sledgehammer so I can dispatch this album into 1000 pieces" am I right? I'm a bit too old to have ever gone to a rave, so maybe I just don't get it. And I'm ok with that.
Class
Is it because the World Cup kicks off this week, or does every song on this album sound like 'World in Motion'!? The late 80's acid house vibe, the driving drums, the syths, the rap, the spoken word, sound-tracking the "dark underbelly" of English football culture (think Football Factory) in my head. This album makes me want to join a Firm, sink 10 pints of lager, a couple of grams, and thow a chair to throw across a piazza somewhere in mainland Europe (joking, obvs). World Cup fever is pushing me to give this a 4... can I be convinced? Course I can... it's coming home...
Look, call it my problem if it makes you feel better, but I cannot appreciate most electronic music at all. It all sounds like laser-tag music. I cannot fathom sitting down to listen to this and enjoying it. You do you 1/5
Good stuff
Ok, but go read the Wiki on this duo. Bonkers. Respect. +1
I really fell head over heels inlove with this album. It’s so wildly creative, even for an electronic/rave album. My biggest complaint with that genre as a whole is it’s very very repetitive and formulaic at times. This album does not have those problems. There’s super fun and silly samples, the beats are just so original and endearing. There’s a funky country steel guitar song that rips called madrugada eterna, which isn’t anywhere near as grating as it sounds. There’s a song that has twin peaks opening theme vibes called “build a fire”. My favorite song on the album is either “church of the KLF” “last train to trancentral” “make it rain” “go to sleep” or “justified and ancient”. Honestly this album is everything I love about electronic/rave music, without having any of the problems those genres typically have. This album is the whole reason I’m committed to doing this full list. There’s so many hidden gems and this is one of them.
I have always liked the KLF. So this scores very highly on the nostalgia factor. The singles are bangers particularly Last Train to Trancentral which is particularly epic. I'm partial to Euro cheese especially when packaged with a super arch arthouse background story
The White Room I listened to both the Director’s Cut on streaming and the 1991 release, but not the Tunes from the White Room bootleg thingy. I’m reviewing the 1991 release. What Time is Love is an acid/rave banger, and I’ve always liked 3AM Eternal, ever since I had it on a Now that What I Call Music rip off double cassette compilation called ‘Awesome’. Last Train to Transcental is also great, riffing on the same style as What Time Is Love, and Justified and Ancient. In between those singles it's all very enjoyable, showing their knack for big hooks and memorable samples and interpolations, a bit of The Big Country and Twin Peaks on the excellent Build a Fire. I suppose Coldcut is an obvious comparison, and although I preferred that musically, conceptually and artistically, outside the music KLF are a more interesting proposition, I find the art school/pop art/situationist conceit of what they did very enjoyable and amusing (unless you are a sheep). It’s on the edge of 3 and 4, but I’ll go for a high 3, its a fun album, with a good backstory but I didn’t enjoy it as much as Coldcut. 🚹🚹🚹 Playlist submission: 3AM Eternal
The album is peppered with bangers. 'What Time is Love', '3AM Eternal' and 'Justified and Ancient' (with an excellent left field guest appearance) are all massive and genre defining - nay, era-defining. It was a carefree era of clubs, the pills were safe, everyone was in love, and bangers like this were perforating eardrums. And I know that cos I saw it on a Newsnight segment about the drug culture in 1994. 'Last Train to Trancentral' isn't far behind, huge beats, great vocal hook, sublime melodic break. This is like Kraftwerk for the 90s house scene (although I may think that just because train is mentioned). In amongst all this beat pumping, 'Build a Fire' is a genuinely excellent and ambient breather. Hawaii-tinged melancholic ruminations on life; and 'No More Tears' enjoyable dub-pop (if a little Aswad adjacent). There's not too many albums that reflect the time so well, can be played at the club, and happily on the home turntable. This achieves it.
A mix of camp, boring and shite. Not complaining about the campness but I do have a problem with being bored and subjecting my ears to shitty music.
This is one of the better electronic records I've had on this challenge so far. Most of the previous ones have been, in my opinion, far too repetitive with very little engaging going on. This was different and I felt the songs were actually better written, with more of a focus on vocals at times which I didn't expect. I was surprised to find myself very much enjoying most of the songs here and it deserves a solid 4 from me.
I had never heard any of these tracks and I wasn't sure what to expect but I really enjoyed this! I'll be coming back to this one for sure
It's a shame "The White Room" is out of print. I listened to the original UK 1991 version, not the current one. There are many groovy tracks on "The White Album"; "3 AM Eternal and "What Time is Love?" come to mind. The tracks, other than the two aforementioned songs and a couple more, are a tad dated. Also, why does the MC keep name-dropping the Ancients of Mu-Mu? (KLF) 4 stars for "The White Room".
Maybe it's called the White Room because of all the pretentious critics' spaff on the walls when they talk about this album. Crude jokes aside, this is perfectly fine. Is it an album that I -must- listen to before I die? I don't know, I don't think my life has improved marginally better. I still feel depressed. I still feel like I'm an imposter in a human skin. But at least it wasn't grating to the ears, eh? That's a good bar to reach.
I wasn't there at the time. I was not born. But there's plenty of other music I was born too late for. In my mind it's a millimeter away from confessing it's all smoke and mirrors for nostalgia for your youth.
SO good, especially Last Train to Trancentral; the undercurrent of it also reminded me of Aphex Twin. LOVE the eclectic mix of styles and moods. Love the wistful sound to the start of Build a Fire - reminds me of the theme to Twin Peaks also.
1. The Lover’s Side 2. The White Room 3. Make It Rain
Great listen while working out, I love the grooves. Lots of hiphop influence.
Fun and catchy. Can definitely see the roots of house music here.
I wish this album was on Spotify bc I would add so many songs to my Playlist
One of the most grating electronica albums I've ever heard. And that's before accounting for the poorly mixed vocal interjections that make the songs even less appealing. Zero redeeming qualities in this album unfortunately; at least it's not over an hour long?
In typical KLF fashion this album has various versions and was hard to find. And of course the version I listened to ended with Justified & Ancient but not the famous version with Tammy Wynette. But then this band was as much about an art concept as the music itself. Drummond & Cauty well ahead of their time, sample heavy euro trance dance beat done to perfection.
0.5
1.5
1.5
Actually like this a lot better than I thought I was going to. This is definitely not the kind of electronic music that just is basically something repeated over and over for 5 minutes and it calls it calls it a song. Nor is it a simple case of texture building. This actually reminds me a little bit more of what we used to call when I was in college around this time, house music. It had the electronic beats, but there was a lot of melodic stuff going on top of it. I think I like this kind of music a bit more, but it's still not my favorite stuff. I'm not really drawn to dance music for listening purposes. But I did like this quite a bit. Some of the songs reminded me of C+C Music Factory, which was big about the time. Still, this was actually recorded in 1989, before C+C was even a thing. 7.77 ★★★½
A lot of energy, and a few cool songs, but kot my style. 3 stars
I remember "3AM Eternal" getting some play on MTV back in the day. Overall, this wasn't for me. I thought "Church of the KLF" and "Build a Fire" were okay, but mostly it's really dated electronica. 2.5 stars.
If it’s not a white room with black curtains in the station then I’m not interested. Don’t give a frig even if it connects to Trancentral or wherever. KLF were a more imperious singles act at this stage and although there’s some cool eurodancey stuff here the actual album mixes themselves are often inferior to the singles versions (Justified & Ancient doesn’t even have Tammy Wynette sing on it and What Time Is Love does sound better mashed with Motörhead’s Ace Of Spades) and the overall album package is just a bit iffy and dated and doesn’t hold up that well. Ancient and unjustified for this list I’m afraid. 1990’s sheep-adorned Chill Out is a much better trip and a real spacey dream-like plunderphonic Floyd-tinged treat.
I forgot I listened to this. 2.8/5
Didn’t listen. Original not available on Spotify
It wasn't until I was reading the listener reviews here that I was made aware the album on Tidal is not the album on the list; it is a "director's cut," which is substantially different from the original. I had to acquire the album by other means, which means I wasted probably 30 minutes listening to something I thought was pretty mediocre only to start listening to a different mediocre version. So, I guess that's an hour wasted. I really don't miss the rapping of the early 90s. Ugh. I'm not seeing the appeal. Probably 2.49 rounded down to 2.
Uno de mis discos preferidos de uno de los más importantes grupos de la historia. KLF o cualquiera de sus múltiples denominaciones, son únicos, por las formas, por su trayectoria, por su éxito y por sus planteamientos. Pueden leerlo en sus libros, documentales o en cualquier reseña de medio pelo. Tienen un universo particular. Después de crear el Chill out arrasaron con el electro-rock de The white room. La película, la version negra del disco, su actuación en los Brit, la destrucción del millón de libras, su desaparición como banda... algo inédito en la historia de la música. Este es un disco plagado de éxitos como Last train to transcentral o 3AM Eternal. Stadium house o como quieras llamarlo, pero sobre todo, un disco tremendo, con ganas de bailar o moverte. Además tiene dub como Make It Rain o No More Tears y a la estrella country Tammy Wynetteen una (otra) nueva versión de Justified and Ancient. 5/5 A recordar su aparición en la ceremonia de Londres 2012.
One of my favorite techno albums.
It’s good but not my jam
Just an incredible piece of gesamtkunstwerk. Like an ogre, it's got layers, and the music itself is only a small part of the puzzle. For one, it's REMARKABLY dated. It's plastic as hell, ON PURPOSE, but it still works on its won and it has something for everyone. As someone ambivalent towards acid house at best, some of this stuff missed me but I still 'got' it, y'know? In a way that contrasts with how I didn't really get 808 State. But then we get into the rest of it. I gave Gorillaz debut a 5 because it's more than an album and oh my god is this more than an album. The stories about the antics these guys pulled in public appearances is hilarious. The fact that they released this album like ten goddamn times with different track lists that are sometimes good and sometimes suck is just funny. It's funny! I listened to the director's cut first, read the reviews, listened to a youtube version and the same fucking album is a different experience! That's incredible. And there's a movie, for some reason? Because of the Illuminati (probably drugs, actually)? What the hell? Then there's the sampling, the absolute ruthless piracy. Real punk hours here. There is no denying this shit is funny. It's fun. It's smart. It throws you for a loop. And if you're onboard, man, the whole thing is a party. I think I get raves now.
Decent electronically made album
Good.
Thoughts before listening: Euro dancey industrial I believe. I don't know much about the KLF. Review: Not industrial at all. Just basic run of the mill European dance music. I mean I'm sure it's fine for what it is, but it's not for me. 2-stars
I'm giving it 3 stars for the music alone. If I was rating the KLF as a project, I would be obligated to give them 5 stars. I mean, everyone at this point knows that they burned a million pounds of their own money, fired blanks into the crowd at the Brit Awards, and left a dead sheep at the afterparty. These two are men after my own heart. It's hard to separate this album from the lore surrounding the band. I honestly can't tell if it's all one massive joke and the cheesiness is intentional, or is it just straight-up decent house music? I'm inclined to believe it's the latter, but the strangeness of the KLF in general means that I'll never be 100% sure. What strange times we live in.
The KLF have one of the great mythology-to-music ratios in pop history — a duo who became one of the best-selling acts in the world, deleted their entire catalog, then burned a million pounds in cash on a Scottish island as an art statement. That story is genuinely fascinating. The record, at least in the version encountered here, is considerably less so. The White Room sits at the intersection of ambient music, rave culture, and cinematic pop, and the ambition is real. The production has a spaciousness that most dance records of the era didn’t attempt, and the gospel vocal influences give it more warmth than pure electronic albums typically manage. None of that is in dispute. The problem is simple fit. The textures don’t connect, the electronic production creates distance rather than momentum, and the wailing synth that runs through “No More Tears” crossed from atmospheric into actively wearing. When the honest reaction is a preference for the Ozzy Osbourne song with the same title, the record has lost the argument. Worth noting that the version listened to is missing the two tracks most likely to have shifted the experience — “3 A.M. Eternal” and the Tammy Wynette collaboration on “Justified and Ancient” appear on some releases but not this one. A record that requires its most famous moments to make its case is already working from a deficit.
Pretty basic disco/dance music. Not really my thing. No single track stood out to me but it was perfectly adequate background music while I cleaned my house.
This is one album that I'm glad I was introduced to by this list. I doubt I'll listen to it much more than this but it was enjoyable, overall, and is something that I wouldn't have encountered on my own.
Don't get this at all
Have been on a bit of an adventure of discovery in looking for a way to listen to 'The White Room', which has been fascinating. I remember some of the chart hits from KLF, and probably thought at the time it was a bit chewing gum pop, blasting out from speakers when on fast rides at the fair etc. But with my music taste becoming more varied, and being much more interested in the stories behind tracks, I come to this album with a more open ear and have enjoyed it. Definitely seek out a version of the LP on YouTube instead of constructed playlists on spotify, or the 'directors cut'. I'm with other reviewers who prefer the 'first side' than the second. Have also had fun with other 2021 releases, which I probably like more. Some of these tracks I really like, some not so much (still a bit cheesy), so on balance it's a 3.5. Number tracks - not entirely sure, 11? Fave track: 4 Last Train to Transcentral 14/04/26
Pretty boring, but there is only 1 song available on Spotify. Not sure whether I should be happy or sad about that.
30 seconds was enough (Okay, 10)
Enjoyed this way more than expected
uh hih
So, only the Director's Cut is available on Spotify, and that's what I listened to, but I think that's the intended listen experience, from what I saw? I don't think that this is good, though. I do wish that The KLF stayed together long enough to make The Black Room, that would have been, at minimum, a really interesting listen, I think. I will say that the instrument choices are kind of hilarious, and somehow work??? I wouldn't expect steel guitar to work so well with electronica/acid-house music, but it is probably my favorite part of the album. And I know I say this a lot, but there's only a specific kind of speaking that I like in music, and it's not what's going on in this album. Also, what the hell was that last song??? Is this album interesting? Yes. Is this album funny? Unexpected, but also yes. Is this album good? No, I don't really think so. Favorite Song(s): Build a Fire
ok
Tätä on joskus seiskaluokan keväällä jne tullut kuunneltua paljonkin. Mutta… tämähän on aivan hirveätä sontaa. Ei edes nostalgia-arvoa. Yksi huonoimpia ellei huonoin listalla tähän asti. 1/5
Couldn't find the original version of the album, and i'm all for house and electronic music, but this selection has quite annoying instrumentation, most songs were skips for me.
Was hard to track down the proper version, but I am glad I did. I still feel like I can't fully appreciate what this sounded like to 1991 ears, but in 2026 it's not bad at all.
Ford Timelord says: "We're all bound for Mu Mu Land, so make mine a 99!" Solid 5 Stars.
I’m at a 4. It’s a solid album; definitely a good blend of house / acid / trip-hop / electronica for the time, and the closest thing we have to a full early ‘90s DJ club set in the atmospheric sense. A lot of these tracks do feel like the type of obscure tracks you might stumble upon looking for deeper dives. They’re decently cohesive here, even if the glue is just faux crowd noise for most of the tracks. It’s pretty well paced too, until you get to “No More Tears” & the album’s momentum just freezes in place. That track is mostly the reason why I’m at a 4 – there are some repetitive spots, some lacking lyrics (namely on “The White Room”) & the last track doesn’t meaningfully divert from the first track too much, but “No More Tears” is… well, it’s just too damn long, really. If that had been trimmed down & paced a bit better, I might be closer to a 4.5, but it just stalls the album in a bad way. If 22% of your album is devoted to one track & it kinda flops, that kinda justifies any sort of bump downward. Even with one track of woe, I think my biggest point against this album is that it never really finds what it wants to do as a full project. Electronica albums can usually evoke a sense of adventure, in some kind of way; at the very least, they find an atmosphere to build on & make the brain really conjure up stuff. This album sort of starts that way with the crowd noise, but once it strays away, it’s just tracks that find a mood, but not a consistently engaging mood. I did enjoy this though; it’s well-produced for its time & most of the tracks here are good. It’s just not a strong top to bottom album experience; my appreciation for this genre has me at a 4, but I understand if people would go for a 3 or even lower. It’s an album made for people who already like the genre, and if you don’t, then you just don’t. I am glad it’s on the list though.
nahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh