Reviews (page 6 of 8)
Some interesting stuff, but it soon descended into an ugly mess of headache inducing nonsense!
Honestly, utter dog shit.
In a nutshell: abstract, bizarre avant-garage Sounds like Fear of Music era Talking Heads, Public Image Limited and Captain Beefheart smooshed together. Cherry picks post-punk, krautrock, avant-garde and garage rock into a package John Peel would’ve frothed over. The surf guitar in (Pa) Ubu Dance Party was cool. I don’t think two Pere Ubu albums on the list is necessary. Overall: 3/10
Just bad. Could not finish.
I am not sure where I am at with this one. It started okay (kind of liked Caligari's Mirror) but then it just got weird and borderline painful to listen to. I didn't hate the content and meaning, just too much of everything. Maybe I am getting old but half the time I couldn't even understand him.
It seems like post-punk is an entire genre of musicians making purposefully bad music. While this is not the WORST post-punk I've heard... it's still not that great.
A couple of the earlier tracks were tolerable, and this wasn’t awful overall. It had some interesting variety and creativity, but it’s not my thing.
I don't think I'm qualified to rate this album. Bizarre as hell, but I had fun. 3/5
Definitely something wonderful and admirable about the approach to making music. It feels Like Pop avant- jazz but it is not beautiful enough for me to want to listen again. I do like later Ubu albums.
Smartschoolboy9 core Reminds me of The Residents, except The Residents are both weird and listenable
I miss when this album generated real music
Let me preface this by saying I like to think I have a pretty high tolerance for “weird” media, but this one crossed a line for me when there was like two minutes of what sounded like an angry badger in a garbage can (the song I’m referring to here is Thriller!). Not to mention that the singer sounded like he was *trying* to sound bad. If this is some kind of weird avant garde art genre, I don’t get it. The Vibe: You accidentally tuned your radio to an alternate reality where music is made by people who haven’t actually *listened* to music before but they read a book about it once and decided to give it a shot.
Not entirely sure why I needed to hear this.
i liked the modern dance but no thanks
strikes the perfect balance bw weird and groovy; chaotic neurtral weaponized dissonance...puts the post in post-punk 10/10
Music is great. Vocals, not so much.
honestly, would be super fire for a halloween party one day. Title track is the only one i fully remember adding to my playlist though.
Listened to this in full on a trip round the M25. I suspect it will be a challenging listen for some, but I didn’t feel the need to skip. Followed it up with Schlagenheim by black midi.
Obviously intentionally discordant and weird, which I'm fine with. But the grating off-key vocals are really off-putting, so whilst it's not necessarily unlistenable, it's not a record that gave me any pleasure or enjoyment to listen to.
Noise noise wonderful noise brings me tears brings me joys.
Kind of Talking Heads-esque but a bit more out there, neither of which is a bad thing
There were definitely several moments of, "Wait, What is this?" As the music changed from banal post punk screeching over guitar to something more lucid or interesting. The singer could do one, but the rest of the band had their moments. Not enough to make it good, or even worth the listen, but there was something there that they could've worked on.
I like the artwork. The album itself is a bit bonkers, in a good way, I guess. I'm sure I'll revisit some time.
Extremely weird, disorienting music. I wasn't fond of it.
So three days ago I had the adverts, and I described it as generic 80s alternative music. Was meant to sound edgy & punky but just sounded like many other bands. This on the other hand, from the same period, was clearly pushing the envelope. Innovative but still fun, noisy but nice. Would I listen to it again. No probably not.
interesting album. very quirky, rough around the edges, noisy in a way that tickles my brain. i did enjoy my time with this one, although i felt a little bit less impressed with it than their debut album, which i loved. still, i enjoyed moments like 'caligari's mirror' and the weird, but fun, '(pa) ubu dance party.' i definitely suspect this is not going to be everyone's bag, but i find pere ubu's music to be challenging enough while not being completely obtuse, which is a nice middle ground for me.
I respect it but I don't enjoy it.
The glorious, thrilling midpoint of Devo, Talking Heads (if they were cool) and the gibbering monkey brain of the human id. There's a jet black sense of humour at play, and hell, you can even dance - or lurch around - to some of this. The deconstruction of western music in real time - I love it.
Passou rápido, mas o vocal deixou alguma irritação.
when i was a teenager i admired everything weird, off kilter, noisy, or absurd, now that i’m older i find most of it facile and annoying
Not worth the time to listen to. Slightly better than the other album. 2.2
🙂↔️
I liked it better than the other one but not by much
Ouf, c’est pas jolie pour les oreilles, mais en même temps j’y entrevoit une certaine qualité
erm…what the sigma
I don't know what to say about this album. I was thinking of giving this a 2-star rating because I was thinking that the singing absolutely ruins everything that is happening, but then I realised that the instrumental is mostly not that great either - everything is a complete mess. I don't know what purpose this music serves because usually when an album is relatively bad, it is still decent for background listening. This is annoying playing in the background even, but the good thing is that there are only 10 songs and the whole length of the album is 35 minutes. I wish we could have skipped this album in the first place, but now we were blessed with this "wonderful" 1-star experience.
Creative, but just absolute trash. Was curious if this is some sort of outside art/music.
Meaningless noise.
Tykkäsin aika paljon tästä mukavaa musiikkia kerrassaan
Had hier niet echt zin in, klinkt hier een daar wel interessant. Eens goed opnieuw luisteren
It's different. Some parts are ok, but other parts are unbearable. I could see how someone would enjoy this though. Overall, average for me. I like some of what's going on.
Weird. Incredibly weird. I respect the artist for going all in. But it's often hard to listen to.
I realize this is another one of those bands that were probably very influential in music history, but it's just not for me.
uskomaton ksoneptuaalinen eksperimentaalinen albumi vwau wau todella kiinnostaavaa keksperimentaclick... yrittää omaa tekee omaa musiikkia vaan... jättäkää meidät rauhaan tänne tehdään omaa juttuaamme.. omia juttuja täällä ei ole pakko mutta jos heh kyllä arvostaisin jos kävisit täällä nurkassa katsomassa kyllä silti ei älä rauhaan jätä kokonaan kyllä voi kuunnella heh tykkäätkö :) tykkäätkö musiikisitamme heh ollaan täällä omilla kulmilla seikkailemassa musiikin ääripäissä mitä on mahdollista tehdä heh ollaan tämmösellä retkellä ei ole pakko piitata mutta heh tykkäätkö :) (en) on the surface
Honestly I can’t even say I liked most of it, but man, they sound like they are having so much fun! “Avant-garage” is a great way to describe the sound. It feels like, “What if Talking Heads, but David Byrne had a stroke and no one told him?” 2.5⭐️ (rounded up to 3 for rating)
If Jim Morrison had lived, The Doors could have been this band. The lead singer sounds like the guy from the New Zealand band OMC that did How Bizarre. The saxophone is weirdly overrepresented in so many of these experimental bands songs. It's like they all went to a conference and decided to add jazz sax to everything. Talking Heads does this kind of music much better. Why do all these "experimental" bands insist on using strange singing voices? More found sound! I just found Black Francis' favorite band, validated by the fact that apparently The Pixies and Pere Ubu went on tour together. Again, post punk can mean a lot of things because the music has similarities to the Pretenders even if it's light years away from them stylistically, both post punk bands though. The talking through the background on so many albums is distracting.
I guess I can appreciate most of what they’re doing here.Don’t think I’ll be coming back to it though.
Wat een troep
this sucks
"Dub Housing" is the second album by American rock band Pere Ubu. It is labeled as one of the most important post-punk recordings. The album title is allusion to the visual echoes of blocks of identical row houses in Baltimore reminiscent of the echoes and reverberation that characterize dub music. Dub is also a reference to Jehovah's Witnesses of which lead singer David Thomas was a member of. Other band members included Tom Herman (bass, guitar, organ), Tony Maimone (bass, guitar, piano), Allen Ravenstine (synthesizers, saxophone) and Scott Krauss (drums). Guitar strumming opens "Navvy." Thomas comes in with his high pitch vocals. This is very bass forward which drives the sound. The song builds. Very busy at the end. "I've got these arms & legs that flip-flop. I have desire." The synth and drums are pushed to the forefront of "On the Surface." It's driving and danceable. This sounds like a mixture of the Doors, Talking Heads and Modest Mouse. That's not bad. The band takes the traditional English sea shanty "Caligan's Mirror" on a ride. The song goes slow and fast. An eerie guitar. An groovy 60's sounding organ. The band sounds like they're having a lot of fun in "(Pa) Ubu Dance Party." Bluesy guitar. More of the driving rhythm section. Wave sounds in the background. The whole band singing it seems. I think Ween must have been in the room during the recording. Now, this is an experimental album to like. Thomas' vocals are frantic, screaming, talking and operatic. There's also a minimalism to the lyrics which are pretty much abstract. Expert musicianship throughout especially the bass and drums. I love that particular aspect of post-punk music. The music is very experimental but there's a feeling of humanity and joy as opposed to being cold and distant. This album gets better with repeated listens. If you're willing to risk to get a reward, this is good album to listen to.
Bunch of anxty Brits yelling
Not my cup of tea
Combine Talking Heads with Devo, and you begin to come close to Pere Ubu, but without the talent. Quirky and annoying - I just don't like the lead singer's voice.
Very good electronic album. Took me by surprise.
Be warned, this list includes not one but at least TWO Pere Ubu albums. That fact alone is almost as outrageous as this album, and for that, I applaud the curator and his atrocious gall.
You can totally hear the influence this had. Pixies, TV on the Radio, King Missile, just to skim the surface. It’s experimental punk, but well played. Never proggy. Reminds me a bit of Captain Beefheart. Certainly an acquired taste. Very interesting. Definitely different. Don’t love, but don’t hate. It’s kinda fun. 3/5
A strong Pere Ubu album - I can see why this is in the list, but did not find it as impressive as its predecessor "The Modern Dance" or their earlier singles (all 10/10). vote: 8/10.
Interesting punk rock album. Quite inaccessible at first, with lots of dissonance and weird sounds, but gets better with repeat listening.
Wow, this is intriguing music, it definitely grabs me although the vocals are at times a bit hard to digest.
Points for originality and experimentation. Points for being unique and not caring what anyone thinks of them. I think they’re difficult to listen to. 2/5
This is one of those records that is important for its influence but not something you'd be throwing on all the time.
I listened to this album as the brunt of a tropical storm was passing over my house. So maybe it helped to be listening to 70's post punk while, outside my home office, rain poured down in buckets and the wind bent the trees nearly sideways.
It's certainly something. Probably nothing to seek out on your own, but living the experience while you're already in is worth a try.
Pretty sure I hated this
Both creative and very, very bad
不是很喜欢……
Great music. Lots of fun.
This is the kind of spazzy art-punk stuff I can get behind. Lots of frantic tension throughout, echoing the dystopian claustrophobia of the album cover's project living quarters. They really effectively infuse their paranoia and sense of societal vertigo into their approach, whether through slide guitar-playing, buzzy background effects, mumbly & chanty vocals that you have to second-guess if you heard in the first place... the list goes on. Altogether really good grooves here combining art-punk, funk, and early ideas of hardcore. These guys aren't caving to anyone else's ideas of who they should be and I love that. They took the lemons of their anxiety and made gems like "Drinking Wine Spodyody" and "(Pa) Ubu Dance Party" (epic 2 track run on side 2). Genre-wise they touch on post-punk way ahead of their time, ambient experimental, krautrock, and hardcore ahead of it's time as well. This may not be everyone's cup of tea but these guys are on one. The first exposure I had to them was on "URGH! A Music War" doing the track "Birdies", which was a memorable trip. I'm happy to hear how much more facets there are to their catalogue.
scuffed
Pere Ubu's "Dub Housing" is often praised as an avant-garde post-punk work, but for many, it’s an incoherent and alienating experience. The album's dissonant sounds and obscure lyrics create a cacophony that fails to engage.Tracks like "Navvy" and "Dub Housing" emphasize atmosphere over melody, resulting in experimental soundscapes that lack structure. David Thomas' grating vocal style and the murky production further detract from the listening experience.While there are occasional interesting riffs, they’re buried under the album's overall inaccessibility. "Dub Housing" is more frustrating than rewarding, earning it a 1 out of 5. Post-punk fans would do well to seek more accessible alternatives.
this album sucked fucking balls
It was painful for me to listen to this album. Found it depressing!
True freaks making post-punk before punk was even codified. This direct sonic lineage between this and like... Circus Lupus is undeniable
Su puta madre. No he llegado a sufrirlo tanto como la gente por aquí y me ha gustado mucho (esperable por las comparativas con Talking Heads), pero las últimas canciones del disco me hacen que caiga esto de un 5 estrellas a unas 4 muy altas. Sin duda merece oírse mínimo una vez antes de morir (y mucho antes que los cientos de álbumes de rock cuasi iguales que hay en esta lista).
Maybe a front runner for Talking Heads? I don’t like Talking Heads so logically I don’t enjoy this either. It’s one of those styles of music where you claim to like it to be cool in a contrarian sort of way.
Some of it’s a bit wishy washy but for the most part it’s decent experimental/alternative rock with a vague feel of Talking Heads
Self-indulgent
Too weird. 1/5
Another one of those albums that is a collection of sounds.
я ничего не запомнила (классика), но хватило меня на полдня
this is pretty bad
STANDOUTS: ABSOLUTELY NONE OVERALL: 1/5; truly a contender for worst album so far
Very odd little album. It felt like a bit of a love letter to many different artists. I’m not entirely sure what to make of it but I think that’s the point.
Yikes, that title track. Speaking of the title, very misleading.
Ended up having more fun with the second half of it. I enjoy the experimental nature and when it works it's a lot of fun. Tough one to rate after one listen. Most of these songs though didn't land for me. Rating: 3.2
Ouvir esse álbum inteiro foi uma experiência sofrível. A voz irritante me deu dor de cabeça e fez a experiência parecer ser 3 vezes mais longa do que deveria. Também tenho uma crítica à lista: não sei se foi uma grande coincidência com os álbuns que vieram até agora, mas tenho a impressão que a quantidade de álbuns post-punk é muito maior do que deveria ser.
唱腔有点古怪，歌还行
Very great, I didn't think Captain-Beefheart-circa-1969-meets-new-wave sounds good!
weird fuckin voice ruined this.
Noise.
Reminded me of Mclusky, so I went and listened to Mclusky instead.
My second and hopefully last Pere Ubu album
Eh. Not for me
Hard to get into
Experimentelles Gejaule von einem Zufallsgenerator. Dieses Gewimmer als PostPunk zu bezeichnen ist eine Beleidigung anlle Punker. Jeder mit einem Hauch von Musikverastand wird sich die Sinnfrage stellen - warum musste ich das Album zu Lebzeiten hören und warum gibt es Kritiker die das Album als eins der besten ihrer Zeit empfinden - Es ist gequirlter Shit.
I wish I had discovered these guys when I was younger. Thomas has something to say, but he shouts and barks it. How do you critique something that is almost wholly unique and stands outside of the mainstream so fully that it doesn't even acknowledge your rules? Not may favorite Pere Abu album, but it's a really good one. It's the kind of weird that I fully approve of.
Couldn't take the lyrics and sampling noises
Not my speed.
This shit was weird
Some wacky shit, but I dig it. I feel like I can hear a lot of ideas that influenced bands that I love.
This album is full of skips. Grating vocals.
Fragmented and ominous and I loved it.
Punk rock dos dinossauros antes de 80. Meio esquisito
I can hear the influences this album would eventually create. Doesn't mean it's good, or worth listening to itself. 1.5/5
From what I read this is an influential band but I do not enjoy listening. Very dissonant and warbly vocals which I can get past if the music grabs me somehow but it just didn't.
Didn't know this as well as The Modern Dance, but damn, it's just as good. 4.5🌟
i can definitely appreciate it, but phew it was a tougher listen than i was anticipating. the vocals were a little too much for me.
One of the most hated albums on this list. Why I can understand. The music is somewhat avant garde rock and the singer sounds like a dying pig. It is an acquired taste, but also an adventurous album with lots of ideas and great guitar riffs. We are in the 21 century now and I would like to think people would not find an album from 1978 still that shocking.
Really couldn’t connect to anything in this album.
This was a hard listen for me. There were juuuust enough quirky yet disjointed melodies to grab my attention for moments, but then the spell would be shattered by either some new weird rhythmic passage and/or the wailing singing. Only the song “Dub Housing” clicked (barely) for me.
35 minutes of jamming with instruments they found in a cupboard
Musically it's actually kind of interesting but the singing is truly awful.
Not a fan
1.5 - This... I dwelled on for a while. I probably should've just relistened to it, but man did I not want to listen to it again. I really dislike the vocals on here. His voice is upsetting, which is probably the point, given what their music sounds like, but it's not my thing. It just constantly sounds like he's off key. Gahhh! But yeah, my cat was not very happy that I was listening to this. I could definitely see this being something I grow fonder of as time goes on and I get used to it, but for now, I'm scared of it :)
Whoever did the mixing had the chance to make this an actually good album by just turning the volume on the vocal tracks all the way down.
I can't deal with dissonant sounds and that voice doesn't help. It's not the worst thing I've ever heard but it's unpleasant enough to give it a 1.
I can't really say that I have anything positive to say about this one. You can kind of see how it inspired some later bands, but to actually listen to this is pretty painful. High 1.
Vocals make this nearly unlistenable they might be doing something interesting sonically, but I can't even tell.
This sounds like a ragtag group people in a garage trying their best to "jam", despite they have absolutely zero musical or performing experience, all the while the lead singer is trying to muster through performing while being tased. Nothing remotely coherent for 90% of the run time; instrumentally, vocally, or otherwise. The only thing even remotely interesting is the manic energy. But it's the type of "interesting" similar to when you walk onto a New York City subway, and there's an in-progress fight of two naked people smacking each other with flutes. Mildly entertaining, but mostly just bewilderment how it got this far.
What a silly one! Reminded me a lot of Talking Heads but even more off-the-wall. A handful of really good tunes that are definitely worth a listen, but the other 5/6 are just not doing much for me, including the two rather long 4-5 minutes instrumental interludes. 5/10
That singer is already a struggle to listen to and then they do stuff like "Thriller!", "Blow Daddy-O" and "Codex". Those really ruined their chance to stay above 1 star.
delightfully freakish
2-
The more avant-garde tracks like "Thriller!" and "Drinking Wine Spodyody" I could sort of do without due to how grading they can get to the ears, but there's some great artsy punk to be found here. The vocals will definitely be something you either hate or like.
Honestly I have no idea what to say even . It's ust not good.
Just a bunch of noise. 1/5
I would not have liked this when I started this challenge but today I really liked it. I was thoroughly entertained at every moment. Delightful strangeness Torn between 4 and 5 but I’m just gonna give a 5 since I was entertained the whole time
It might be band's goal to dislike the album. Ugh. My head hurts.
Not exactly pleasant but it had me hooked
This album has some ideas. But I don't get all of them. Dub Housing among most of the albums on 1001 is like abstract painting among those with more traditional content. It may be important for the development of music. But it doesn't change the fact that I don't like it.
How have I not heard this album before; or even heard of this band? Enjoyed on first listen, and on second found it even more interesting.
Wow this is awful but I kind of like it. 2.2 average.
I was really not looking forward to this one since I frequently see it mentioned as being one of the worst albums on this list, but it was actually not terrible. Yes it’s noisy and chaotic but it’s not anything crazy.
Thriller was like massaging my brain with that weird rubber squish.
Pretty bad. The songs started out well but then they started singing. Sounded a bit like IceJJFish.
I really did not like Thriller! Probably because I am such an MJ fan and you can’t be using a good name for bad music. The rest of the album wasn’t really great either. However being on the road drowned out some of the noise so I don’t think It was quite as bad as it should have been , 5/10 ca->pa rating #6
This was so bad wtf. Especially Thriller!. There were a few moments where it started to sound like real music but they usually ended pretty fast. 3/10 Also, I’d like to petition Lucas to bring back scores out of 10. I know it gives some false precision but I think it’s fun to see exactly what you’re thinking at the time, even if it changes
2/10 - The first song is absolutely terrible. The second song is better but still pretty bad. The singing is terrible but the rest is pretty good. "whaaat do you dooo with a drunken sailor" bro this album is awful. I would keep making fun of the songs or saying they are bad but it would just get old quickly. It is kind of crazy to me how many times I have written that my favorite parts of this album is when they do not sing. Except for Blow Daddy-O there is no singing but its still awful.
Talking heads if they had no idea how to make music? Not a big fan but points for creativity I guess
You can totally hear the influence this had. Pixies, TV on the Radio, King Missile, just to skim the surface. It’s experimental punk, but well played. Never proggy. Reminds me a bit of Captain Beefheart. Certainly an acquired taste. Very interesting. Definitely different. Don’t love, but don’t hate. It’s kinda fun.
I was a little apprehensive when I read "Dub" in the title as I hate DubStep, but then I saw the date the album was made and started feeling better. Then I listened to the album and felt great! I don't recall ever hearing about Pere Ubu. After listening to the album, as much as I enjoyed it, I can understand why it stayed underground and why I had not heard of Pere Ubu.
Most of this was decent proto-new wave. Cool to see some of the beginnings of that movement. But man Thriller! sucked
I don't know if enjoyed is the right word, but there were standout parts of this and it definitely wasn't like anything else I've heard. Kind of like proto-Bloc Party with some elements of noise electrnoica
Annoying Nope.
This album frustrates me. There are so many pieces of good songs here, but then they take weird turns in random places and become strange, but not in a good way. I really wanted to like this, and there are parts I did, but it’s a big mess overall. I am surprised this is one of the worst rated albums on this entire list, though. I can guarantee there are so many worse albums than this.
Probably important and groundbreaking for creating post-punk but too abrasive and eccentric for me. Some irony in that the town the album was recorded in is called Painesville, though that might be a bit harsh.
This is an interesting one. I can't say I *enjoyed* listening to it, but it was certainly *interesting* to listen to these tracks. I also wouldn't say it is bad music- everything feels intentional and correct, even when it makes my eardrums uncomfortable. 2/5 for enjoyment, but I am glad to listen to something so different.
Gahhh there’s some stuff I like here, but it’s just not doing it for me on the whole. 2.5/5
What a great record. Intense and insane. Just like I like my Post-punk.
weird but fun
This reminds me of my workplace. I work on a psych unit.
If this was an instrumental album it would kinda slap. I cannot do these vocals, man. I'm writing this after only a couple songs, this one is going to be tough to get through. Coming back later in the album: Only 3 of these songs have over 80k plays on spotify. Was this popular in the 70's? Reading another review that says ""Dub Housing sold next to nothing and signaled the beginning of the end of Ubu’s relationship with Chrysalis."" Why is it on this list, my ears can't do this. Coming back at the end of the album now: The last song... I was thinking ""ok this has some potential to be cool, the tension is kinda rising... maybe the last song has the potential to redeem the album a little bit" and then the vocals come in at 1:40 and just made me laugh out loud holy shit it's so BAD AHHAHAAHHAAHA Score is only as high as it is because the instrumentation was pretty decent.
Bad. Very bad. More like noise than music to me.
NO
Funny, but listening to this the the first time in a decade, I'd almost classify this as noisy ambient, it's almost non musically hard to listen to, but at the same time I find that radically brilliant. I love the unorthodox self belief that let's them get away with this. 5 stars.
This will not be for everyone - but I really enjoyed it. The singer gives some David Byrne sounding vibes but over a mishmash of post-punk noise.
They're having a lot of fun and creating a joyous racket. Will listen again and may regret not giving 5 stars. music: appreciated. (⌐■_■)
Sickos: Yes… ha ha ha… Yes!
This really feels like something I should like based on my other tastes, but I found it grating. A few good moments (the end of caligari’s mirror, ubu dance party) but mostly a drag.
Haha, ein Dub-Album erwartet und dafür einen krautrockigen David Byrne bekommen. Nice
ohio rizz sigma skibidi
Muy distinto a lo que suelo escuchar, me sirvió para tomar el tiempo de mi viaje al trabajo. Intrigante el absurdismo que proponen. 🤔
This is exactly why I continue to plow through this list. What a wild and wonderful album.
This album has its momemts - very short ones.
funky and upbeat- super short songs
The music started and I was like, "Ok... 😀" Then the vocals started and I was like, "Oh, ok... 😐"
I dunno about this one: take out the vocals, and this hits that good good post punk weirdness from this era. But it's hard to take seriously with all the warbling and boop boops etc. etc.
Its fun listening to these old experimental albums. Often you can find music that never got popular itself, but ended up influencing more accessible music that got popular and i think thats cool
I dig this insane shit.
More noise......
Ohio sucks balls. And so does this.
Incredibly annoying voice and the random placed noises are off-putting.
Fantastic album and clearly an influence on a wide range of genres and bands.
An attempt was made
You know, I was really hoping this album would be good. It's one of the lowest rated albums on the website, and despite that I hoped that I would be able to see the value in it that others couldn't. So what if it's an avant-garde post-punk album? I've enjoyed avant-garde albums and I've enjoyed post-punk albums. They're not for everyone, but I was at least hoping that Dub Housing by Pere Ubu is just one of those things that fits that bill as well. But no... Unfortunately, the people on this website were right. This album's terrible. I'll start with the positive. The sound at times is not bad. I think that the instrumentals on the first few tracks gave me hope that this could be somewhat tolerable. The instrumentals for most of the songs have that Talking Heads vibe I was hoping for this album to have. That's it. That's the positive. I don't like anything else. The vocals might just be my least favorite vocals ever. I can't stand them. They're so ear-grating that it's not even funny. At least the vocals on albums like Duck Stab by The Residents were comical in a way. This one just hurts. The writing makes zero sense whatsoever. It's fine to have confusing writing if there's still a goal in mind. I don't think there was a goal in mind. These guys just shat out what they thought was quirky and let it release in stores. Finally, I said that the instrumentals on SOME songs were good. However, there are a few tracks, mainly on the latter half of the album, that are painful to listen to. You'd think that the instrumentals would be good given the lack of the horrendous vocals. And yet somehow, the instrumental "Thriller!" is probably the worst track on this album! I tried justifying in my head a reason for this to get a 2, but I just couldn't. This is awful. 1/5. And I'd still rather re-listen to this than Haunted Dancehall!
Enjoyable weirdness. How does he even sing like that?!
It was fine.
It was technically music yeah. Not a big post punk kinda person
This was honestly so boring and weird and strange. I didn’t like it at all. Sometimes I like unique sounding albums however this did not pass that. This was awful in every way and just so blech.
Someone needs to fix this - lines got crossed and I got linked to the "1001 albums that will make you die" list instead. jesushchrist here's another beyond-shitty vocalist who immediately wrecks the entire vibe before there's even a vibe to wreck. or maybe that is the vibe. wow. Awful. 2/10 1 star
Although I admire the originality and creativity of this album, it’s simply just not for me.
A bit too exotic.
A new discovery on my radar for post-punk. At the edge of the 70s before new-wave but has that sprinkle anticipating the coming change. A wonderful new addition to anyone's collection.
Unique. Odd. Intentional. Occasionally groovy. Overall, meh.
Couldn't finish it
Bonkers Devoesque nonsense and I fully support it
I actually kind of liked this.
I can see why some people appreciate this band.
a truly unique sounding post-punk band. Singer David Thomas delivers his high pitched vocals sounding fairly deranged, and the music is right there with him. Bass playing is right out front and finds some solid grooves with the drums. The guitar, synths, and sax squeaks and squonks around the rhythm section to build the atmosphere. Quite out there overall. It can be grating or groovy depending on your preferences, those who really like it will find some of both and be pleased with the result.
I honestly hated this much as I respected it, didn't enjoy, but glad it was made
Talking Heads meet the Minutemen. Coming out in 78, it had to be on the forefront of the post punk movement and I am sure it was a huge influence on bands that came after. DIY and experimental, punk and weird. A fun listen.
Simultaneously bland and catchy. The vocals are more nonsensical than Electric Six. This sounds like bar/party music, but you don't know anyone there and you're having fun anyway. I think I was too sober for this album.
I’m glad I l heard this, though I’m not sure I can say that I enjoyed this. I take that back- I did enjoy this, and there were enough experimental and creative moments that it kept me engaged throughout. It felt like it was made with a proper punk ethos, which I respect, though this was genrefied as post-punk. Was punk already dead in ‘78?
3.75
Jännä kombo indiee ja garagee ja sit viel jotain etelärokkii. Ei tää nyt kuitenkaan kauheesti lähtenyt. 3/5
Tää on niitä levyjä, joiden hyvyyden kyllä kuulen ja pystyn arvostamaan, mutta en vaan keksi, miksi kuuntelisin itse. 2/5
Vähän Talking Headsia muistuttava, hieman nyrjähtänyt ja kiinnostava levy. 4/5.
I'd never heard of these guys before but I gotta say I really enjoyed this album. I honestly expected it to be dub like raggae dub. But then seeing the year 1978 I thought that was too early for dub. But I was pleasantly surprised to see that it was almost like experimental punk or something. Lots of Talking Heads vibes but what I liked most about it was the sinister vibe through out. I'll give this one 4 stars. Listening to this a second time actually lol only cause I was kind of distracted the first time through
At this point I’m convinced the artist put some of these nonsense insanely weird albums on this list as a troll job. There’s no way this is an album people need to hear. I do t even know what I was listening to half the time. A waste of time. 1.3/10
Props for trying something new for the times. Sorry I don't really like it, or appreciate it, or even "get" it.
Talking heads but worse It grew on me though Might like it more when I listen again
I think I’m just not ready for this band. It has its moments but the experimental moments drag a bit. I can see it being a five star later but I’m just not there yet.
Post punk album which sounds quite original and surprisingly, not dated at all (I had to double check if this was really released in the 1970s). Still, musically it was too bizarre to enjoy it, even if I often like far out, experimental music. It reminded me a lot of Talking Heads, especially the singing, but a worse version of them. I can't really give this more than a 2.
There is no way in hell I'm expected to listen to this singing voice on Navvy for the entire album, right? Update: apparently I was
Very random and quirky noisy post-punk type stuff. Pretty bizarre but I feel it warrants more than a 1 because it’s sort of innovative and original in a way and not boring. Can’t see myself coming back to it but it’s something learned that I’d never heard of, and I can see where it led to things like Pavement, Talking Heads and LCD Soundsystem.
I'll put it like this: the band was described itself as "avant-garage," and I dig the "garage" half more than I do the "avant-" half.
While having some bright spots here and there, this just ain't it, chief.
I feel like I got hypnotized. Seriously, I really don’t quite know what the fuck to make of that. There’s two ways to listen to this album: by sitting down and trying to actually give a sort of critique on the soundscape of everything, the mixing, etc., and go from there. There’s also the approach I took by “Thriller!” which was to just stand up, walk in place, and let the music simply drag me around. The latter worked for me; I don’t know why, but “Thriller!”, “Drinking Wine Spodyody,” and “Codex” were hypnotically pleasing despite being objectively terrible soundscapes, solely from just walking in place. That hypnotism made me realize this album feels like a Talking Heads album one might create in their sleep (with a really bad hangover). The first half of this album doesn’t work for me at all; I think it’s too noisy to be a walk in place sort of mood, but the back half works for me. I don’t think I can ever revisit this album except to experience that sort of hypnotic feeling again, because as far as an actual structured album, in the traditional sense, it’s absolutely a 2. However, in terms of just how I felt… I dunno, that feeling and the sort of otherworldly escape I felt seems 4-ish. I’ll split the difference and say a 3. What a strange, strange, almost alien album that doesn’t feel like anything else from 1978 whatsoever.
#52 No
Very interesting. Not something I would return to often, but it definitely is not boring
Very discordant. Think neo-Nazi kids banging their heads to this in their mom's basement.
Such a weird band, Pere Ubu. I love them as a concept, I enjoy their their music but I can never put a finger on what it is they're actually doing. I mean they aren't quite as weird as The Residents (although Thriller is approaching it), there's accessible stuff scattered throughout and every song sounds like it could be by a different band. And yeah the vocals are mental. There's surely no way to appreciate this fully off one listen, but do I want to come back for repeat listens? Boy, that sounds swell. Faves, Navvy, Ubu Dance Party, Blow Daddy-O
Not into it. Not that it’s bad, but I just don’t get it
Very close to pure noise.
1.5
I don’t like his voice. Some pleasant music
What a strange experience listening to this album was and I'm grateful for that. Never heard of Pere Ubu, not sure I'll listen again that often, but thoroughly enjoyed it (even the sometimes jarring vocals). All over the place and yet wonderfully cohesive as an album. An antidote to most of what's generally heard day to day.
eh
Experimental post-punk with some jazz flair. Sort of crazy lyrics that actually read as decent absurdist poetry. *Sigh* This album should be my jam, and I really wanted to like it more than I did. It's a little bit Public Image Ltd, a little bit Alex Harvey, a little bit Peter Gabriel. There are some funky grooves and a lot of weirdness. There are even some fun, catchy poppier songs (Caligari's Mirror). *However* Holy hell, is this dude's voice annoying. He sounds like Alex Harvey on helium. Actually, it's like listening to Andy Serkis performing this album as Smeagol. It gets very grating unless he's buffered by the music and other vocals (again, Caligari's Mirror). Thriller! is a weird "instrumental" pastiche of ambient sounds and excerpts of recordings that sounds like something you'd hear during the Haunted Mansion ride at Disney World. It's sort of interesting at first, but it just goes on way too long. I might give this one a few more listens to see if it grows on me more. It's not bad per se, I just can't get on board with the dude's voice. I'll probably stick with the Sensational Alex Harvey band if I'm looking for this style of album in the future. 3/5 — it would be a 4 if the dude's voice didn't make my ears bleed.
אוונגארד לא משהו אבל עדיין שמיע
I don't think this even counts as music... awful
Weird. Very weird. And I was pretty into it, for parts. I think the weakest part of this album is the vocals. I just don't like them all that much. All that said, a couple songs here are really unique and piqued my interest several times on my listen. My favorites were On The Surface, Dub Housing, Drinking Wine Spodyody, and Codex. I didn't love this album, but I did have a surprisingly great time with it and I am glad I listened.
3.5
Might eventually merit more stars with more listens. There is something good in there. But in a format where you listen to and review an album a day, that ain’t happening. I think The Pixies and Throbbing Gristle might have been listening to these guys.
This was exhausting to listen to. The singer sucks and makes this unbearable.
I was expecting some relaxing dub sounds so this shouty man came as a bit of a shock
Guess you had to be there…..
Awful.
Could hardly make it through the whole thing. Nothing makes sense. No melody. Bad vocals. Weird wanna be psychedelic stuff but nothing works. It’s short but painful. Listen again: never Purchase for my collection: no Favourite Song: none
One that was missing from my musical knowledge banks.
Stressful. Very, very stressful. What's wrong with this guy's voice? It feels like one of the muppets is being forced to sing a punk song at gunpoint. The bass playing is absolutely stonking though, so that's something, and it wasn't David Gray or Norah Jones, so won on that front.
4/5
Very off the wall and experimental but I think it worked. I’m all for a reference to French theatre - just the right amount of pretension. I have heard of Père Ubu but for some reason I thought they were ‘World Music’ - a strange name for a genre. Anyway they’re not but I quite like the slightly aggressive screechy punk overtones. Surprising and refreshing.
I don’t like his voice
I'm a bit down the middle on this. I liked the compositions and the vibe, but deliberately bad singing is difficult to endure. And OK, "bad" is not a great descriptor. Non-musical? Creatively atonal? All over the fucking place? Whatever. I recognize the dude is wildly expressive, but I kept thinking, if I had walked into an audition when I was in my early 20s and the guy started singing like that, I would have picked up my sticks and headed for the door in three minutes. Like, how do you hear that and decide — Yes! That's the sound we were looking for? So, good on them for turning that into a "must-listen," but I stand by my decision to decline their offer to join the band.
I love this album. I had read about these guys for years and always wanted to check out their music, but their entire early catalog was out of print. Finally they re-released it in the early 2000s, but the only way to get it was to buy an expensive box set. I bought it on pure faith, hoping I'd dig it as much as the critics said I would. Thankfully, I did, and I did so from the very first note on this album. I know this music isn't for everyone, but it sure as shit is for me, and I'm glad it's on this list.
I would have been fine not listening to this in this lifetime.
This is wicked weird and will get extra stars for just being way out there. The recording quality is high and the songs barely hold together in the best way possible.
Not my thing at all...
This was a real gem. Glad I got to hear it.
Weird and not great with the exception of one song
quite intense & experimental. need to be in the right mood
Punk
Complete love/hate. Some good (4 points) and some argh (1 point). So I split the difference and lowered again. 2. Sorry.
very very unique sounds. could understand why someone thinks this is a music culture changing album
LOUD NOISES
The first half of the album was surprising and fresh. Really enjoyed the melding of punk and electronica elements. I feel like the last 2 tracks were superfluous. The last half of the album, I kept checking “how much more do I have to go before it’s over?”
Think this is the worst one i got yet. Standard "Wanna be deep", "wierd for the sake of being wierd". Skipped most due to the singers inability to sing.
Some of the songs are good. Others... no so much. What the heck is going on in Drink Wine Spodyody or Thriller? Touch call on this one...
A pretty challenging album. Though the vocal delivery is certainly a bit unusual and offputting, the album does get a decent vibe and execution for On the Surface and Dub Housing. Even Caligari's Mirror is mostly sane. But at some point, it does become a bit of an art project, and other than Ubu Dance Party, most of the rest is a bit noisy and sounds less focused. It is a bit interesting, but I really only found promise on a few songs.
Good, not great album for supposed big influence on indie/alternative rock scene. Meh.
Like Talking Heads, but weirder
I guess I don't like post-punk. It all just feels thrown together Most if the songs are just passable with yelped vocals.
Not my cup of tea, sorry
Bottom line: that was quite something. But my initial WTF pretty easily gave way to me liking this. Not exactly loving, though: the often edgelord vocals unnecessarily shot the whole thing in the foot and that Spodyody tune was ghastly, but... I had fun with this album. Wild, weird, unpredictable. loved how they used their synth(s), 46 years ago. Two songs went into my basket, glad I listened to this. Definitely an AYMHBYD.
Nop
Sorry, this album sucked.
It's alright
experimental garbage?
Not for me dawg
Painful. They would need practice and honing to become a subpar garage band.
Navvy - 6.5/10 On The Surface - 7/10 Dub Housing - 7.5/10 Cagliari's Mirror - 6.5/10 Thriller! - 6/10 I, Will Wait - 7/10 Drinking Wine Spodyody - 7.5/10 Ubu Dance Party - 6/10 Blow Daddy-O - 7.5/10 Codex - 7.5/10 TOTAL - 69/100
Pixies' like wanking alt \"credentials\" blech.
Uff…
Weird album
The singers voice is really annoying, even for a punk band.
Utterly unique and bizarre. This is the kind of album that made growing up during post-punk such a weird journey of musical discovery.
I wanted to like it more really.
This a big no for me. My god the vocals are annoying and the guitar noises are just screeching and piercing .
Very unusual, experimental, and original while still being reminiscent of Talking Heads and Devo. I’m not sure if they were using actual words sometimes, but I liked the sound.
Volgens mij is dit niet eens bedoeld om naar te luisteren
Vreemde tonen hier en daar. Onprettige stem om naar te luisteren. Goofy ahhh
Redelijk onprettige stem wel en überhaupt niet echt leuk om naar te luisteren
Very chaotic, not necessarily my taste but very cool!
This album made me uncomfortable
Nothing exceptional here. Maybe weird for the time but there have always been artists that have an alternate vision. An eclectic mix with the better songs having none or muted vocals.
Different!
Þetta voru langar 35 mínútur, en slefar samt í tvær stjörnur því það eru þarna áhugaverðir sprettir.
Hmm this was a little annoying? It was interesting but I am not sure I will be drawn to ever listen to it again. I think I appreciate how annoying it was though lol
Different. Interesting. Not my thing.
What a wild record. Never heard of this group before, but I liked this. It's characterized as a post-punk record, which I can hear in lots of parts, but they also swing wildly to other styles, like in Caligari's Mirror where they go into an almost Buffalo Springfield style 60's rock sound.
Neat album, and I like what it's trying to do. However, I don't super see myself listening to it again. Maybe though. 3.25/5
Pretty decent, surprised I haven’t heard this before! Not really a fan of the vocals but I am otherwise on board. B-
Listing to this was a SLOG. I hope this raised a smile that this made the 1001 to those who like this kind of music and hates everything mainstream on here.
Loved the hell out of this.
Weird album. There’s definitely some DNA that leads to 80s post Rock here. But not my jam.
Not my thing
Eh I didn’t find it so great
Checking off the first box for Punk accreditation - 35 mins or shorter, Pete Abu's Dub Housing is a cacophony of noise translated into an art and music project. In what sounds like the soundtrack to a Contemporary Art installation in an abandoned warehouse at night you can smell the must of the exhibit and the urine on the floor through your headphones. And I like it. Pere Ubu take the Talking Heads and dial up the experimental art school house band schtick successfully. 4/5.
It has become obvious that "post-punk" is not for me
Surprised by the comparisons to The Talking Heads on this one. Quirky singer but the content isn't as good.
Der Gesang ist etwas gewöhnungsbedürftig, es ist aber dennoch ein cooles Album zwischen rockigem Post-Punk und experimentellen Elementen. Auf jeden Fall ziemlich fortschrittlich für 1978 und generell sehr individuell. Von daher völlig zurecht auf dieser Liste.
I recognized the name immediately as one of the albums from the worst ranked albums list. I’m always curious to see what brand of annoying these albums are going to possess. This isn’t the first time I’ve asked myself how on earth someone who can’t sing got a record deal and wound up on this list. This would have been a lot better with another singer. I enjoyed the keyboards and the instrumental songs but that was about it.
Not my thing
Worst album so far
Auch, wenn es nur 35 Minuten gewesen wären.. ich wollte nach den ersten 3 Songs nicht mehr. Hat mich ziemlich genervt.
- Mmh, ja das war mal wieder wild. - Teilweise fand ich das irgendwie ganz interessant. Vor Allem den Gesang - da fällt mir keine Referenz ein, die so klingt. - Leider war mir das insgesamt einfach zu wild und teilweise unhörbar. Rating: 1,5/5
- Na endlich wieder avantgarde. Aber dieses mal irgendwie ganz witzig. Im Gegensatz zu einigen Kandidaten vorher ist es noch etwas bekömmlicher und das Chaos läuft bei diesem Album gefühlt in geregelten Bahnen. - Songs wie Caligaris Mirrorund Navy fand ich ehrlichweise sogar ganz geil - Zum Ende wirds wirklich leider wieder etwas SEHR absurd. - Viele interessante Elemente, viele, bei denen man mit der Stirn runzelt. 2,5/5
Der erste Song "Navvy" löste in mir direkt ein wenig Unbehagen aus. Bei "On the Surface" ging dann allerdings wieder und meine Hoffnungen für ein cooles Album stiegen wieder. Weiter über "Dub Housing" zu "Caligari's Mirror", bei dem mich die Platte dann allerspätestens wieder verloren hat. Der Rest danach war dann eine absolute Härteprüfung für mich, zu der ich guten Gewissens sagen kann: Dub Housing: 1, Ich: 0. Ja, ich habe die letzten vier Songs nur noch ein wenig durchgeskippt, konnte dabei aber nichts Cooles mehr entdecken.
Now this is OUT THERE! I can see why this is among the most polarizing records on the list. It’s an all-out assault on the senses and a complete deconstruction of a movement that wasn’t even fully realized at the time this was realized. So wild, so cool, so weird, I’m a big fan. I’d highly recommend the tracks Final Solution and Heart Of Darkness by this band which I was turned on to by group legend Mack years ago, they’re a bit more digestible and I think help place the angle this record is going for. Not 5 stars because decent chunks stray a little too far into chaos and become difficult to listen to, but overall a great piece. Top tracks: Navvy, On The Surface, Dub Housing, I, Will Wait, (Pa) Ubu Dance Party