Reviews (page 10 of 14)
This album has been called “frat-style hip-hop” and it’s also one of the first albums to turn sampling into an art of its own. But I feel like many of the songs blended together with a couple songs that stood out on their own
There’s some funny samples but none of the big hits like Licensed To Ill. Everything kinda blurred together.
I liked this quite a bit more than License To Ill - felt less juvenile, and the samples were more fun (imo). Still not sure Beastie Boys are my cup o' tea, but this was probably like a 3.5 for me.
These Boys seem like they're having fun, I like that they all take turns with the verses. Didn't like it as much as Ill Communication, but still a solid hip hop album. The sampling was really well done, and an unexpected treat.
I can appreciate the Beastie Boys and their contribution to the world of hip hop but their music isn't really for me. Something about it just doesn't capture my interest or keep me all that engaged. I also don't like their whiney/shouty vocal style. Some nuance would be appreciated and, I think, would add to many of their songs. That said, many of the samplings on this album were super interesting. The use of The Beatles on "The Sounds of Science" caught me totally by suprise.
The Beastie Boys is a group I find fun in small dozes. Fear this might be a bit of an exhausting listen, as I feel their energy can add up to be too much over an album's length of time. I expect to hear some clever wordplay, and some great energetic performances with a lot of synergy between the members. Will give it an honest shot. To All The Girls A smooth instrumental sample. The content of the song is presented in a manner that comes across as a bit silly. A worship of all different types of women. A bit cheesy. Intro/5 Shake Your Rump Really like the beat on this. Interesting sample work. Can take it or leave it with the DJ Scratches. The lyrical content serves as a reintroduction to the Beastie Boys and the people they're working with on the album. As juvenile and dumb some of the bars are, the wordplay is at times pretty clever. I find the over the top performances to be mostly charming though they're walking a fine line where they risk falling into obnoxious territory. Decent. 3.5/5 Johhny Ryall Again the sample work is really impressive. Really like the guitar sample. Really goes with the content of the lyrics. Tells a pretty concise story. The performances are a little more eccentric here. The energy here is really engaging, found myself bopping along to the beat of the track. Decent. 3.5/5 Egg Man Cheeky and mischiveous lyrics. A song about throwing eggs at people, can't say I've ever heard anything like it. Many of the literary references seem a bit obvious, but they do their job decently. Can't say I'm too crazy about this one, the beat is fine, and the lyrical content is fun, but it grows stale throughout the course of the song. The "egg man" sample also gets a bit ridiculous. Fine. 3/5 High Plains Drifter Sounds a bit messy, the sample in the background is pretty horrible. The lyrics are pretty clever at times, but the concept is pretty uninteresting. I hate the flows, they're really annoying. Some of the vocal inflections are really obnoxious. Don't find it charming at all. Slightly irritating. 2/5 The Sound of Science Really strange choice of beat, the bass sample isn't exactly what I'd expect from a Beastie Boys song. I like the nerdy lyrics, fun parody. The beat switch really hits. Love the subversion after the first part of the track. Good setup, great punchline. Good. 4/5 3-Minute Rule A lot of the references and the language used on the track goes completely over my head. The beat is pretty good. The second verse is definitely weaker than the first, there's just not much of interest there, feels a bit filler. The final verse has a lot of references I actually get, which is a breath of fresh air. Sounds like they're having fun on the beat creating a decent vibe, though the track itself isn't spectacular. Fine. 3/5 Hey Ladies Love the funk instrumental. I find their synergy on top of the beat pretty immaculate. The lyrics are pretty juvenile and dumb, but they're presented in a pretty fun and entertaining way. The obnoxious hook is pretty good. Interesting sampling. Fun song. 4/5 5-Piece Chicken Dinner Yep that exists. Interlude/5 Looking Down The Barrel Of A Gun The hard rock instrumental is fantastic. Their punk roots really show in their performances here. Really like the hook. A track like this shows that they have range outside of just writing witty bars about girls and parties. Has a lot more edge to it, not just instrumentally but also lyrically. I enjoy the aggression present in both the performance and lyrics, even though it's pretty simple conceptually. Great. 4.5/5 Car Thief Excuisite choice of sample. The flows seem a bit more varied on this track. Has some of that same punk energy to it from the previous track. Rebellious fuck the system kind of attitude. Does a good job of staying varied and spaced out while still remaining concise and on theme. Good. 4/5 What Comes Around Pretty obnoxious performances. The sample is again stellar. Don't really like the hook. I get what they're going for but for me it doesn't really work that well. Slightly irritating track. Wouldn't really put it on outside the album. Did not like. 2/5 Shadrach Love the vocal sample on top of the funky bass instrumental. The biblical references are represented in a fun way. Love the vocal sample on the hook. Immaculate vibe. I find the lyrics fairly clever and charming. Really fun song. Great. 4.5/5 Ask For Janice. It's an interlude. Interlude/5 B-Boy Boullabaisse A series of experimental short tracks that forever reason didn't turn into full tracks of their own. Seems a bit of a scattered collection. Don't really have much to add, most of them are fine, but not exceptional. They show a lot of creativity and fun spirit. Really appreciate the inclusion as it shows a lot of decent ideas that would otherwise be left in the writer's room. Feels like they're messing around and having fun. I would like to shout out the final track as a pretty fun closer giving appreciation to the people they've worked with on the album. Decent. 3.5/5 Really really like the production on this. The sample work is just fantastic, and I really like the mix of funk, rock and soul music for the instrumentation resulting in some really creative and eclectic beats for the Beastie Boys to rap over. They bring a lot of energy to the tracks which is at times really infectious and leaves you with a smile on your face. Other times you can really see their punk rock roots, reflecting in some heavier tracks where their attitudes shift from playful to more hard and rebellious. I think lyrically the album is in a bit of a strange place for me. It seems that they write lyrics they themselves have fun with, but they're not always saying anything interesting. A lot of the references go over my head, as their relevance might have faded over time, and a lot of the language used requires knowledge of the slang of the NYC area during the time, which I simply don't have. In the end I found some tracks to be draining, and others to be a great time. Wouldn't say the album is inconsistent though as I do feel the intention is always there, though I cannot say I'm always in love with how it's being executed. A decent listen though not entirely for me. 3.5/5 leaning closer to a 3.
It was pretty good. I hadn't heard of this album before as I was more familiar with the albums both before and after this one.
Humorous and complex. Great interplay and beats.
An alright album, I liked Egg Man the most.
Landmark hip hip record for it's production and use of samples but can't help but feel it's not dated well
Shake your rump incredible but the rest got a little...claggy?
Some funky moments, but it doesn't hit all the way through for me. Generally the Beastie Boys flow wears thin pretty quick, relying on the instrumentals to carry it through. That Car Thief bass line 😍 It's wild how much sampling you could get away with back in the day.
Rap album. Nice production for the time. What would you expect when technical meets rap.
Normal disclaimer, rap-hiphop not my thing. That said, it was an interesting collaborative effort between group members to tell the story.
3.5
ok sound but not in the mood 3/5
For the most part, I find the Beastie Boys annoying (mainly the voice of the main guy) but there are still some songs that I've enjoyed. I was pleasantly surprised with the album and found there were some instrumentation sections that were really cool and well done. It suffers under the same problem (at least with me) with most hip-hop albums which is repetitiveness. I enjoyed the first half, and then the second half, while vibing, I was done with the album when it wrapped up.
3.5 Fun but repetitive. Fav. Looking down a barrel of a gun
No idea what this guy’s rapping about but the beats and tunes are cool. Decent background music for the bus. His voice gets repetitive after a while tho
This one was pretty polarizing imo, and I’ll start w the bad. I can’t stand the beastie boys’ delivery, I’m not a fan of yell-rapping, especially when it’s all they do. I’d be able to stand it more if they changed up their flow at all. Lyrically, it was pretty ok, some really clever lines in there from time to time which are a plus. The only thing that kept this from being a 2 was the production. It’s crazy they were able to use that many samples in an album back then, and it was really cool to hear samples layered from so many different genres. 3/5 Fav song: Lookin down the barrel of a gun
The production is really good, lots of interesting and creative samples used across a range of genres. However the lyricism is middling, lacking depth or subject matter, which is not a killing blow by itself, but the ridiculously homogeneous delivery saps all the interest out of most lyrics on most songs. At a glance, and at it's worst, it's hard to tell where one song ends and another begins.
This is certainly more enjoyable AND more interesting than Licensed to Ill. The instrumentals are a big deal; you can hear their influence echoing over the next decade. I still mostly find the Beastie Boys themselves obnoxious. Their voices are not pleasant. The lyrics can be funny and clever sometimes, though.
Not my favorite Beastie Boys album, but still solid.
This was made in the 80s?!!!! Jokes aside the sound design on this album is insanely good. As a thousand people have commented before the sampling and production on this is fantastic and ground breaking for the genre. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this album with its in your face attitude, catchy bars and some funny jokes. However for me the rapping style wore a bit thin by the end and the album dragged a tiny bit. Still an incredibly important and impressive album from the group. A lot of these tracks are in my playlists, just not sure how often I’d listen to the whole album in one go again. 3.5/5
solid Beastie Boys album, have a few notable tracks off this and for it being after Licensed to Ill it's interesting how they were able to keep influence without sacrificing style.
Pretty goofy, best songs are the bouillabaisse
если бы все треки были как первый было бы 4. хороший продакшн для того времени (возможно заслуга ремастера, за счет чего хорошо так звучит). не люблю подобный олдовый рэп, не резонирует с чувствами почти никак.
The sampling is cool, but i probably wouldn't choose to listen to this again.
I’m in a 80/20 split with not liking the beastie boys. You decide
Fun album. Often had me being amused at the lyrics.
beastie boys nunca foi mto minha praia, mas não é ruim não
Objectively I think this is a really cool record. Beastie Boys are a generational talent and pioneers. Favorites: 3 Minute Rule, Looking Down The Barrel Of A Gun, Car Thief
Classique Garçons Bestiaux, pas mauvais mais un peu pogné entre leurs deux meilleurs albums
Definitely didn't age great
Decent but not for me.
I didn't get them back in the day when my friends liked this band, and still it's just drums beats as men take turns yelling words into mics. Every now and then there is a riff. I didn't hate it but no tracks really make me want to listen to anything more from them.
Ehh, it sounds good most of the time, but generally I don’t care too much. It’s okay
Look I like the Beastie Boys as much as the next but surely 3 albums out of 1001 is too many?
Classic. Maybe not my fave but I get it.
Not my favorite of theirs
Рэпчик чисто старенький. Бит прикольный, но сейчас уже не о чëм. Слушал и по лучше вещи
Did not put its hooks into me and my sense of nostalgia like License to Ill did. I didn't particularly dislike anything about it, but didn't love anything about it either.
Jumpy
I ended up making a nyc playlist.
I can respect how good and important this album is but it is not something I would seek out again. I did recognize quite a few samples which was cool but I would rather hear the original of every one I recognized.
I was never a huge Beastie Boys fan, but some of my friends who do like often say that Paul's Boutique is their favorite album. I think the grooves are solid. I don't tend to pay attention to lyrics so I'm probably missing a key part of the album.
I can't say I dislike the Beastie Boys, but my god is a whole album of this unbearable. Every song sounds exactly the same.
Not their best but not their worst.
An excellent album, but one that I'm not fond of. Sorry.
Yea pretty good. Some nice background beats. More than just yell rapping.
I just think that Licenced to Ill is much better and this is okay but not great 3/5
I heard one song from this once and forgot to listen to whole thing but liked it more than I thought I would
Love Beastie Boys. But unfortunately not this album as much as I wanted to. Solid beats and did enjoy listening to it but to me Ill Communication just blows them all away. So raw and so good. I listened to almost all the songs and only skipped a couple. But overall I did not feel that this album should be ranked as high as a lot of others.
I love the Beastie Boys, but this album like a white male, average. I really enjoyed the first few songs into the album and I really enjoyed the flow into each next song. This album is what I imagine it would sound like if Pauly Shore was able to implement all of his internal voices that keep him up at night into music. I still vibed to the album and I did feel like a young kid in the 90’s wanting to make it in New York, but it still wasn’t my favorite compared to their others. Heard before: None Favorite: Shake Your Rump Least Favorite: To All the Girls Sleeper: 5-Piece Chicken Dinner
I'm a bit concerned that the Beastie Boys are actually quite annoying. They're definitely good, but it's terribly abrasive. For the second album running (and for the next few), I listened to it on a sun lounger, and really I just wish they'd have some dim sum and a bottle of Singha and chill out a bit.
Pretty good, fun album. 7/10 i liked A.W.O.L and ask for janice and shake your rump.
Interesting that I haven’t listened to this album. Definitely early sounds with a lot of samples. Good and funky, but doesn’t sound like a cohesive album.
Beastie boys are always a sign of quality. But it's hip hop so meh
pretty good but i didn't like their voices idk ? fav song - a year and a day
Culturaly important. Would not listen again.
Garage album - grunge vibes but not really at the same time.
Catchy rhythms which I enjoyed but probably not ideal in the work environment!!
3, мега криво звучене, но очудващо готини за слушане
I expected to like this more. Cool beats and production but the songs didn’t really jump out and grab me.
Petition to ban Wiggers from making music
It's alright. It drags on and feels too long. I respect how much this pushed the limits of sampling at the time but it also feels too gimmicky for me to get all that into and I will probably never listen to it again
Okay not terrible. Fun sampling, but still kind of annoying. And that’s the Beastie Boys, moving on!
The music is really interesting, but the vocals are way too much for a full album. Especially because I don't have nostalgia to balance them out in this case. 3.
I thought the sampling was very interesting, but the vocals blurred together after a few songs. Personal enjoyment: 3/5 Relevance to this list: 3/5
I like the Beastie Boys. They were fresh and funky, blending humorous and irreverent lyrics with a fusion of rap, rock, punk, and funk elements. So much better than the gritty, angry, crime-focused gangsta/hip-hop rap of so many others. It's still not my overall preferred style of music, but it's a high 3 for me.
++: To All the Girls, Egg Man, The Sounds of Science, 3-Minute Rule, 5-Piece Chicken Dinner, Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun, Car Thief, What Comes Around, Shadrach, B-Boy Bouillabaisse: A Year and a Day, B-Boy Bouillabaisse: A.W.O.L +: Shake Your Rump, Johnny Ryall, Hey Ladies, Ask for Janice, B-Boy Bouillabaisse: 59 Chrystie Street, B-Boy Bouillabaisse: Get on the Mic, B-Boy Bouillabaisse: Stop That Train, B-Boy Bouillabaisse: Hello Brooklyn, B-Boy Bouillabaisse: Dropping Names, B-Boy Bouillabaisse: Lay It on Me, B-Boy Bouillabaisse: Mike on the Mic +-: High Plains Drifter 7,7/10
I’m no fan of hip-hop, and this is nothing more than fine. It’s very shouty and very brash, but it’s not terrible, and rhythmically it is really good. Still, I’m not likely to head back.
Some cool beats and funk but If I wanted to be yelled at for 45 minutes I’d talk to my mom
The last few songs saved this for me
This is alright. The Beastie Boys aren’t the best rappers and are pretty one note with their flow, but damn the production on here is immaculate and really kinda makes the album. It keeps it fresh and interesting even when the flows can’t.
A patchwork of sounds and samples, it feels like a wild collage. The energy is loose and unpredictable, but it never fully settles. It's an experiment you appreciate more than love.
Not my genre, not my sound, but something about the Beastie Boys is just plain fun.
I confused the Beastie Boys with the Beach Boys so this was a surprise. The album didn't make a strong impression on me. I listened to it while playing League.
3.5
cool
Gear: Meze 109 PRO Artwork: 👔👕👖👗👘🥻👙👚 Production (2009 Remaster): 😐🙂👌 Music: 👟🕶️📣 Rating: 📣📣📣/5
I've heard Licensed to Ill before but not this one. Similar to that one, I can't decide if the Beastie Boys are great or terrible. There's parts of this that are really, really good but it does get very grating at other times.
I don't tend to like rap. Somehow the old school ridiculousness of the Beastie Boys works for me *in small doses*
Not at all into rap or hip hop, but don't mind this at all. Quite inventive and like the rock undertow to some of the tracks. That said, will probably never listen to this again
Hip-Hop, good but Hip-Hop
Good overall, got some bangers, just held back by too much filler.
Just when I thought I'd never hear an album that samples both "The Ballroom Blitz" and "Folsom Prison Blues"
First listen. Not a fan of hip-hop. Better than expected. Sounds like they were having fun. Doubt I would listen to it again.
it was super fun to listen to but thats it for me
funny album but hard to tag along. lot of funny noises but also it feels a bit messy. i mean i know it’s supposed to be, but if you don’t pay 100% attention all songs feel the same. suddenly there’s a cartoon noise and you’re back to paying attention
I love hip-hop and what the Beastie Boys did for it. The album features excellent production, innovative sampling, and solid lyrics, but suffers from a lack of variety in the flows.
I get that it's influential and all, but really not my thing, in retrospect. A little abrasive on the ears with all the shouting and random mixed-in bits.
Legendary! Sophomore release, a tough act to follow after the success of their debut. Not my favorite BB album but the good stuff is GOOD STUFF! This is a great blend of hip hop, party music & innovation, and this is the album that forced the industry to take them seriously. Less frat boy party driven than their debut but it includes classics "Hey Ladies", "Shake Your Rump", "Looking Down The Barrel Of A Gun", "Shadrach" & "Johnny Ryall". I blew a speaker back in the day cranking "Shake Your Rump"! The percussion, bass line, samples & in-your-face delivery. "I'm like Sam the butcher bringing Alice the meat", "Like Fred Flintstone driving around with both feet", so many good lines in one song! The only truly weak song is "3-Minute Rule, otherwise it's a fun romp. I've read about the sampling and the fact that no record before (or since?) has ever had as many samples from other artists woven in. Innovation and influence, plus all the fun songs. Solid album!
Mid. Catchy but mid.
Decent
I've heard more interesting sampling feats but I got to admit that the sampling here is quite a flex.
interesting good in the background
Well that was all very silly, wasn't it? Right off the bat, I'm going to say 3 stars is usually my "no strong feelings" category, but that's not the case here - but every time I was thinking this is rubbish, two stars, their flow and general enthusiasm (and a few oh so choice lyrics) brought it back up to three. And every time I was like, maybe this should be four? The sameyness of the songs and the themes dragged it back down... So a lot to like, just as much to hate, three stars. Bonus round - you can play a game of "how many other albums from this list can you hear sampled?" (I got at least eight!) Faves: Shadrach; Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun
Old school rap. Fun
1. "To All the Girls" 2,5 2. "Shake Your Rump" 3 3. "Johnny Ryall" 2,6 4. "Egg Man" 3 5. "High Plains Drifter" 3 6. "The Sounds of Science" 3,4 7. "3-Minute Rule" 3,1 8. "Hey Ladies" 3,2 9. "5-Piece Chicken Dinner" 3,4 10. "Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun" 3 11. "Car Thief" 3,3 12. "What Comes Around" 3,2 13. "Shadrach" 3 14. "Ask for Janice" 3 15. "B-Boy Bouillabaisse" 3,5 Average 3,08
Oh wow - a second Beastie Boys album in the span of 3 days? Wasn't expecting that. Luck of the draw, I guess. While I always enjoy listening to an artist's discography from start to finish to hear all the highs and lows of their body of work, and their evolution from the early days onwards - it can also be interesting to go from a slightly later album to an earlier project. In this case, two days ago I got the Beastie Boys’ brilliant ‘Ill Communication’, which presented a hip hop group that had their fleshed out sound all figured out. Their second LP ‘Paul’s Boutique’ sees them at a more primitive level. That’s not to say this album is bad. It shouldn’t be compared to a later album; but it’s hard not to do it. ‘Paul’s Boutique’ is a much more conservative effort; the band is hitting all of the braggadocious bravado they're known for, but it's missing the energy and anger that almost makes you want to punch the air while listening. And the production is missing the daring variety in musicality. The beats are fine and serviceable, and the musicianship is nice on the ears, but it's missing that wide experimentation. Simply put, 'Paul's Boutique' is the foundation for what was to come later on down the road. It's a fine hip hop album and it does stand out when you compare it to what was popular at the time it was released. However, there are just mere hints at what this group could do, rather than it being a full showcase. It's also a little too bloated for its own good. With the lack of variety it actually feels longer than 'Ill Communication' even though it's slightly shorter in length; and at times it felt like songs were kind of blending in to each other. Regardless, it's not a bad album. It's actually really enjoyable, and it feels like I am unfairly comparing it to stronger efforts that were released years later. But I also feel it's kind of fair to judge it based on the Beastie Boys' overall discography. And although it is a slight evolution from their debut 'Licensed To Ill', it is still very much a blueprint album that the group would later springboard from to create much more diverse and daring work. 3/5
Sampling is on-point here. The construction is quite coherent, varied, and interesting. The boys seem like hilarious people to hang out with, the lyrics falling dangerously close to parody. Enjoyable, but not something I'd really choose to listen to. The voices get pretty grating at times, like they're shouting at me the whole time.
Ok
I was never one for hip hop. But ok, credit for teh party vibe BB are creating here..
Highlights: Egg Man, Hey Ladies, Shadrach. In a nutshell: writers, poets, and geniuses. And they know it. Overall: 5/10
This started out great but wore a bit thin by the end. The energy is infectious though and I like this style of hip hop a lot more than some of the other stuff.
Fun to see the "finish each other's thoughts" thing a bit unpolished, before they perfected it on albums like Hello Nasty. Overall, it drags on for too long, but still fun.
* Cool use of the guitar sample of the Beatles "The End" (or whatever the track is before that haha) in the Sounds of Science track * The drum intro from Led Zepplin's "Moby Dick" on What Comes Around
Lots of cool samples
So many bangers
A ground breaking album, but not even the best beastie boys album.
GREAT music. AMAZING songs. OBNOXIOUS vocals. I'm impressed by the range of influences and genres they draw from. This is a sampling masterpiece. But the drunken teenage shouting every song is unbearable.
I’m partial to the Beastie Boys from the billboard hits I’ve heard, but going into this I expected to get annoyed after the ~20 minute mark. I did not get annoyed at all, in fact this album’s sound matches its packaging completely - the feel of walking around a New York City boutique and sampling an eclectic range of sounds. It’s just rhyming. But it’s some seriously creative rhyming at that, bolstered by some stunning sampling.
energetic and fun album. Not a big beastie boys fan, but they did their thing for sure.
Mum they’re shouting at me
Some great beats, but after a while the shouting and whining starts to grate.
Holds up really well after over 30 years
I love the beastie boys. Their style, their cool, their message, the sampling/scratching, their fashion, the guys are funny and talented, i watched the doc/talk from apple tv and cried. They have made some of the most amazing songs across 20 years of my youth. But ill be honest and say that ive never really loved their albums. When it works it works, but it can descend into slightly annoying audio collages that don't draw me in. A bit like donuts, i love the idea of them and the first 3 bites are heaven, but a full box is to much
En ollutkaan kuullut tätä Beastie Boysia ennen. Kyllähän tämänkin parissa ihan viihtyi! 3/5
According to all sources, this record is probably pretty clever and packed with endless wit, but the first listen left me cold and uncomfortable.
beastie boys is one of those bands were i love when one or two of their tracks come on but when i start to listen to them i realize that a bunch of shrill white boys being vaguely funny/absurb gets really fucking annoying after a while. good album, one of the artists where the best tracks are generally the ones with the most plays, but gets real grating after too long
Where beasties boys and where hear to say we had a horrible influence on music in a major way! This is my first front to back beastie. Boys and there's a lot to like. But God damn can these guys and only these guys get away with a flow like this and it's influence and widespread adoption in the mainstream has drilled a Hole in my skull with its usual shithouse execution that took multiple listens to even remotely allow me to appreciate it. Which I did end up doing. It's just a massive shame that the sampedelia production wasn't what was widely accepted and instead it was a flow that no-one else can effectively replicate and then ruins it for everyone. Understandable if you love this one, if it was an instrumental would would be an 8 or 9 Fav tracks - Shake Your Rump, Johnny Ryall, Egg Man, High Planes Drifter, The Sounds of Silence, Hey Ladies, Looking down the barrel of a gun, What comes around, Shadrach Least Fav - 3-Minute Rule
Oriental Girls. Look gotta be real I liked it but not for any deep reason, music is fun and the rap is not bad I think they have better albums. Short review on this one but I liked it. 3/5
Deze moest voor mij er niet per se in. Beastie Boys hebben twee goede albums gemaakt die wel eens tot de top 1001 beste albums zouden kunnen horen, maar deze is 'm niet. Niet per se slecht, maar gewoon, een 2.5. Erdoor is erdoor hè.
yes, it's the beastie boys. they're okay.
Not a big Beastie Boys fan...but this wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be. 3/5
6/10…80‘s Beastie Boys Hip Hop
What comes around
Not their best work but still decent Favorite Track: 5 Piece Chicken Dinner
Interesting album, it went to so many different types of genres. Will likely listen again/check out their other stuff
I think there's a bit of a divide in the Beastie Boys output between this earlier stuff, which was puerile and misogynistic, and later work, where they even apologised for being dicks. They have to be one of the few bands that actually grew up. Not that this is bad, some of the arrangements here are mint, and I completely forgot about "Barrel of a Gun." But it's also hard to ignore its more sexist elements.
как-то быстро устала, много крика. буду слушать их по одной песне в час и заряжаться
Fine
Enjoyed the sampling
Nah
I liked this a lot at the time and still love the best Beastie Boys songs but no longer enjoy a whole album of them.
Beastie Boys never missed. Paul’s Boutique is my least favorite in their catalog, but it’s a great one. 105 samples was unheard of! Nobody was snarky and creative with their rhymes like the Beasties.
Not a big fan of the boutique.
Decent, most songs sounded very similar though. Maybe the fact that rap is fairly text based.
meh
Some sounds totally shouldn't be there. 3.4/5
This is a fun album, but it's really missing GREAT songs that carry an album. Hey Ladies is as good as it gets on here.
Over rated
Can be cool but gets to be annoying and boring. Feels more like they're trying to rhyme for the sake of rhyming instead of actually saying anything meaningful - same energy as people who complain that "ugh too much of rap is just about violence and drugs". Well, nerds, this is what you get when that isn't a topic in rap: a trio of jewish men screming in your ear for an hour straight.
It's the Beastie Boys
This isn't the most virtuosic CD I've ever heard. But it's just fun. They sound like they're having an awesome time. A lot of the best moments are the "skits" (for lack of a better term for them) - the first half of "Sounds of Science" and "5-Piece Chicken Dinner" (the latter of which caused me to laugh out loud), for example. It's also super-fast paced - they just launch into it and barely set the mic down for the rest of the CD. The beats are pretty good too - definitely a step up in quality vs. previously-reviewed "Ill Communication". I especially like what they do on "Egg Man", and of course it's impossible to object to what I think are two distinct Beatles samples on the 2nd half of "Sounds of Science". I have a really hard time giving a high grade to a piece of music where half of it, including all the melodic, harmonic and rhythmic elements, has been written and performed by someone else. But I liked this and would listen to it again.
Liked it more than I thought but still not really my thing.
i liked it.
Not really a rap listener, but this is one of the best rap bands I’ve heard.
I don’t think this album could be made now. So many samples through all the tracks the copyright lawyers would have had a field day. Very consistent.
what i imagine darty music was like in the 80s
Fun record!
Classic Beastie Boys. I feel like I've slept on the lyrics of a lot of their songs, mostly because their constant volley of bats can become somewhat disengaging for me. I like it with other bands like Run the Jewels, but sometimes with the Beasties it becomes too much. Beats are good.
The songs all sound the same. Despite the ad-libs and the different openings, once they really start, they sound the same. I like the Beastie Boys though. They’re not my favorite and I’d rather throw on something else if I wanted to listen to rap but you cannot deny they have some really good hits.
a bit too repetitive for me but it is cool
Non è che mi piacciano molto i Beastie Boys, e lo sapevo
another decent album but nothing truly remarkable IMO. the sampling was impressive and definitely my favorite part of this, though I only caught a few notable ones. I checked their whosampled and there were like 3,000 samples listed for them, which is the highest I've ever seen, so credit where credit is due. too bad I had to listen to three obnoxious white guys yelling over it for an hour, though. favorites: shake your rump, hey ladies
Album decente. Infelizmente rap tem um problema recorrente de fazer albuns muito compridos sem variação o suficiente dentro dele, deixando tudo enjoativo.
Classy.
Not for me but props for not being boring
Honestly, I've always found this band pretty annoying. Would rather listen to just the Dust Bros without the annoying shouting
3 It felt somehow repetetive, some songs had it charms, but mostly no
bursting with annoying 20 year old kid creativity
Surprising, I don't recognize any of these songs.
Ok
Hip hop has come a long way from 1989 and in that year the Beastie Boys had come a long way from their debut album with their second offering, Paul’s Boutique. Some of that evolution came from lyrics that were starting to move away from misogyny and homophobia and the whole frat boy rap sound they had on the first album, there’s still hints of it here but it’s still oceans away from where they were. The other major change was the involvement of the Dust Brothers as producers replacing Rick Rubin. This resulted in a more lush sound than the previous release. The funny thing is this was originally going to be a Dust Brothers instrumental album but the Beasties convinced them otherwise. This is was once the album containing the most samples ever, only to be eclipsed later by DJ Shadow’s Endtroducing and The Avalanches’ Since I Left You, both incredible albums that are pretty high on my all time favorites. I have a lot of memories attached to this album but it’s not my favorite Beasties album, that would probably go to one of the following 2 albums Check Your Head or Ill Communication. I would really like to hear Paul’s Boutique as an instrumental Dust Brothers release since the music is my favorite element. Otherwise a great moment in the constantly evolving world of Hip Hop.
Not my favorite album from them (Check Your Head is my favorite). It still has some of the fun, party style of Licensed to I'll, but this one is more mature. Shadrach is my favorite.
Pros: 1) The sampling, beats, and mixing is off the chain--kaleidescopic! 2) They "got more rhymes than Jamaica got mango." (Speaking of Jamaica, it's easy to see how much West Indian influence there is in early Hip Hop via this album.) 3) They are moving away from their bratty immature frat boy image that was so prevalent on Licensed to Ill. Cons: 1) The flow and delivery is, shall we say, of its time, reflecting the rap style of that era. But I feel like they kind of held on to that over the years and it's part of their signature. 2) Their voices can be a bit shrill and grating (okay, not Yauch). But it is what it is; they are young, Jewish Brooklynites. This also kind of became their signature. 3) They haven't quite moved away *enough* from their immature vibe. A lot of "cutie with a booty" "ya wife" "ya girl," etc. This is before they had Kathleen Hanna and Free Tibet come into their lives and it shows. But the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, and I feel like this album is that first step to where they would eventually go. All the awesome sampling and everything that's good about this album (all done pre-digitally!) overrides any flaws. 3.5
When hip hop was hip hop. I liked this one. It's my least listened to Beastie Boys album. It's a throw back in time to fun, innovation and just making crafty rhymes. I feel like this is a transitional album where you see what they are about to become. The big ones on here for me are 'Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun' and 'Egg Man'. This one made me realize that sampling seems to be a lost art in mainstream hip hop today.
Didn’t like this as much as Licensed to Ill and wasn’t familiar with any of the songs. Definitely sounds like the Beastie Boys! I think I would have been really into them if they had been popular when I was a teenager. 2.5 rounding up to 3.
Tuvo bueno pero sentí que escuche la misma canción como 15 veces, not my cup of tea. 5/10
Love this album, even with (or because of) all the sampling. Just a lot of fun.
Like the samples, fun to recognize a handful of them. Still not a huge BBoys guy though. Very song-dependent.
5/24/24. Big fan of the Beastie Boys, some standouts on this one. However I don’t think it’s among their best.
I listened to this literally the day before this for the first time because it was on apples top 100 💀 Surely the frat boys at the time ATE this up
01) To All the Girl - 7,5 02) Shake Your Rump - 7,5 03) Johnny Ryall - 7,5 04) Egg Man - 7,5 05) High Plains Drifter - 7,0 06) The Sounds of Science - 6,5 07) 3-Minute Rule - 7,0 08) Hey Ladies - 7,0 09) 5-Piece Chicken Dinner - / 10) Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun - 7,5 11) Car Thief - 7,0 12) What Comes Around - 7,0 13) Shadrach - 7,5 14) Ask for Janice - / 15) B-Boy Bouillabaisse a. 59 Chrystie Street - 6,5 b. Get on the Mic - 6,5 c. Stop That Train - 7,5 d. A Year and a Day - 7,0 e. Hello Brooklyn - 7,0 f. Dropping Names - 7,5 g. Lay It on Me - 6,5 h. Mike on the Mic - 6,5 i. A.W.O.L. - 6,5 TOTAL: 7,05 (71/100) Current ranking: 124/189 Not really my type of music but in any case they are better than gangsta rap. And they are waaaaay better than Drake :-P
Not bad, pretty classic hip hop
Not my bag but it is objectively good
I can acknowledge that the production is great and also feel like I just didn't enjoy listening to most of it. I think I like the Beastie Boys stupider than this!
I believe I know a couple songs off this album. Don't really remember too much of it. I do recall listening to this album a couple years back, listening to Beastie's discography.
I liked it. Apple Music had a great long spiel about how they were just ahead of their time and that’s why no one liked it. But we are now ahead of that time so I did like it.
Vocally I found it a bit much, awesome music
Enjoyed much. Just not a form of music I go for often.
Sampling: 5 Beats: 5 Production: 5 Performance and vocals: 1 Too much screaming!
tre politico perché queste due canzoni carine, ma decisamente troppo sbatti cercarmele tutte
I don’t quite understand the beastie boys. And this albums all over the fucking place. Some pretty entertaining songs though.
Ended up dragging on a bit too long. I think I just don’t really like the Beastie Boys, but I understand the relevance of this album
Different vibe to their other stuff
Absolute chaos with a superfly sample
Important if you like hip hop. I don’t.
Favorite track: Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun
Heaps of fun but at some point becomes too much of a good thing.
Nope
This is a lot of fun! It's not what I particularly want to get out of music, but I can see why a lot of people love the Beastie Boys. If I was being purely honest, I'd probably give this 2 stars. But that feels lame. Also, I feel like Pop Star: Never Stop Never Stopping would exist without the Beastie Boys, so this earns that bonus star. I'm a Style Boy for life!
pretty memeish funky music.. would be elite if it wasnt so american like his voice is annoying in a similar way to the hilltop hoods. lol they both white kinda cringy hiphop groups thats probs why. feels bad they dont get to say the n-word unlucky boys https://youtu.be/Kppx4bzfAaE?si=F-Nu7UZnq1zxKlfL big genre range… 5-piece chicken dinner is like hill billy music and the next song has metal guitar and like bongo drums!? opening song is saucy jazzy horny intro song i bet they just put in so they can make the crowd cheer during concerts
I can see the appeal, but BB isn't generally something I'd listen to much
Fun
Musically liked this. The backing tracks were great. The Beastie Boys' *whole thing* doesn't need more than 35 minutes, however. Took a break around that point. Went back to it begrudgingly, but ended up liking the back half.
The more Beastie Boys we listen to, the less I enjoy it. I did really like that multi-part song at the end though because I liked the variety. But I'm just sick of this group.
Fun! Beastie boys rock
Strongly agree with the all caps review
Seminal album from the Boyz. has a few real surprises. Glad I took a listen.
Not my kind of music but I was entertained. Songs had a good start but the songs droned on.
Not exactly my bag but I remember a lot if these from when I was a kid.
loved the samples
Hip hop yoo
Pretty fun album. Always felt most of the Beastie Boys material sounds like a parody of hip-hop so not my fave. Highlight here is the Dust Bros mixing/production. Mike D is kind of annoying and I think I would like this better without the BBoys. Major influence on 2 Skinnee J's
Solid album, was not really aware of this one before. Great sampling and beats, definitely ahead of its time.
I like the beastie boys but listening to an entire album of theirs is a bit much.
Pretty fun listen
lúðar
A great album to get dressed to after a night of poor sleep. Not so good when trying to meditate. I liked the first track best and would happily have listened to more like this. The rest I found a bit high-energy, but that's more a reflection on my current mood than the music of the Beastie Boys. I particularly enjoyed reading the lyrics whilst listening, wondering what would come next. Overall, not bad, will probably listen again some time.
Wanted to like this one a lot more than I did, but it wasn’t a bad experience at all!!! It feels like the kind of album that I would love to hear at a house party rather than something for dedicated listening. The music and the sampling are fantastic, and I know the lyrics are meant to be nonsense but… I’m past the point where I go out of my way to seek teenage shouting about made up gangster encounters and wild nights out. Put this stuff at a party though and you’ve got me hooked.
Fun early Beastie.
BBs walked so Lonely Island could run.
hmm... mixed bag. the songs themselves were kind of similar but i did enjoy the vibe. looking down the barrel of a gun especially good though. their voices are kinda of high pitched and annoying but ... i think I'll give bonus points cause i was kinda grooving 3/5
Love the sampling but too much shouting for my taste
Banger of an album. Interesting dichotomy between the late 80s rap feel of this album and Snoop's 'Doggystyle'
Decent album. There are some random sporadic elements to this that don’t always work and some of the songs are a little flat. But, enjoyed the delivery from the group and some of the songs are pretty good. 3/5 Might listen again
I felt like I was listening to the same song for the entire album
Beastie boys are a unique group and I can respect the influence they had on the genre (not at first) but there were only a handful of songs I enjoyed. Maybe if I listened again I would rate higher, but for now I give it a 3.
Without the Beastie Boys, there's no Slim Shady, RATM, Limp Bizkit
not bad
It's OK
Yeah it was interesting. A lot of it felt fun to listen to, but wasn't really big on it.
Disappointing how the songs don’t transition cleanly from one to the next. Funky grooves will keep you interested, but doesn’t blend well with their hip hop style.
I really wanted to give it a 4. It's so good and it's a classic for a reason.
Crude, brash, immature, and sometimes a lot of fun. More of my favorite Beastie Boys songs come from “Licensed to Ill” but there’s some wild stuff here. Loved the example of pioneering crate digging/sample work, and fun to learn that after producing this sample-heavy album, the Dust Brothers took what they learned, spun it in another direction, and produced Beck’s fantastically random “Odelay” album. I just can’t get over the raucously hedonistic nasal wail of Ad-Rock and how all three practically alternate words in a single sentence. This album is all over the place lyrically and musically, but ends up showing a crazed tapestry of early experimental hip hop and exploration of the sample genre. Misogynistic and sexist lyrics and jokes don’t sit well here or anywhere, and gratefully the Beastie Boys grew up a bit and publicly apologized for their attitudes later on. Fun but possibly not my favorite from the Beastie Boys, it was good to listen to this all the way through because it shows up on greatest lists all of the time. Three stars here.
I love the Beasties and this album is a classic, but I prefer the boys a little older and wiser. Starts really strong but begins to drag long before the 12 minute suite of leftovers that close the album.
Oh, mein Urteil scheint schwankt anscheinend: morgens fand ich gar nicht gut, nachmittags konnte ich es durchhören
Shake Your Rump still the best track. 3/5
Not my vibe at the moment at all. Good prods and original ambiance. Annoying voices. Probably interesting to have a look at why it is considered to be an important album and why it had a big impact.
I like some songs and I’ve owned this album in the past, but I can’t really see myself listening to it. I may listen a couple tracks, but even a low probability of that unless they come up on random. I know it’s a classic.
Det er sgu meget sjovt! Relativt rodet og ikke helt min stil.. Det bliver lidt meget af det samme for min smag.
Chilled out men gillar deras första mer
A classic? Undeniably. The beats? Amazing. To my ears, the vocal delivery of all 3 Beastie Boys? Still grating.
I wanted to like it and it wasn’t bad, but no song really grabbed me
My first time listening to a full beastie boys album and I didn't realize their style was so varied! This was fun, but no song blew me away.
Top top sampling, some super funky beats but just feels a little disjointed at times. Some songs will have some really excellent sections of beastie boys bars but feeling a little incongruent with the rest of the song. Excellent production, great sampling and some nice scratching but ultimately only 3 or so songs really did it for me.
Great beats! Wouldn't want to listen to a whole album ... Good in moderation. High energy.
3.5
3.5 it was pretty good. The songs that had more instruments than just drums were much better. The ones that didn’t felt very empty
It had nice flow, but overall it’s kinda not my thing
Good listen, a bit too much of a good thing at times. I enjoyed the out-of-the-box walls of samples but it felt a bit overstimulating and busy at times. The good stuff was very good though. Also, points to the boys for knowing so much about Japanese baseball. Top tracks: Shake Your Rump, Egg Man, Looking Down The Barrel Of A Gun, Car Thief, Shadrach
Again something that I can only appreciate in a historical context. Just not for me, sadly.
Ja, ich weiß, Beastie Boys sind Legenden, haben auch großartige Songs (hier zum Beispiel: "Looking down the barrel of a gun", geiles Riff) und ich habe beim Nebenbei hören immer wieder interessiert aufgehorcht. Aber es ist auf Dauer einfach nichts für mich. Wahrscheinlich brauche ich einfach mehr Melodien und/oder "richtigen" Gesang zum Glücklichsein 🤷🏼♀️ Allerdings musste ich bei einigen Liedern an The Office bzw. das Rapvideo von Michael Scott und Dwight denken, das hat schon gute Laune gemacht 😁
Their sampling is outstanding and I could listen to the instrumentals if they offered those on an album forever. I'm not a fan of their lyrics or their voices. They are a little grating and the lyrics sound cheesy.
I love their songs seperately, but listening to the entire album is A LOT
beastie boys sounded interesting
Scott-Stapp-Frat-Rap-Midwest-Boo-Bap. I won't ever say I don't like them, just didn't age great. White dudes yelling over really good samples.
Haven't heard much of the Beastie Boys before. It is easy to see how they influenced a lot of artists and groups that came after them. From the Rock/Hip-hop instrumentation, sampling or their flow patterns. The instrumentation on this album is varied and unique. Lots of cool bass lines and strange instrumentation. The lyrics are sometimes clever and sometimes dumb, but they are always performed with enthusiasm. I think I would have enjoyed this album a bit more if it was a little shorter, but even in saying that there is a lot to like here.
I have an ex that mostly ruined this album for me, along with License to Ill, by overplaying the hits from them when we were together. This one I tolerate more than License, but both Hey Ladies and Brass Monkey have some negative emotional attachment for me. I've come to enjoy the B. Boys later albums more than the early ones, so at least she didn't ruin them completely for me, but I'd much rather listen to Ill Communication or To the 5 Boroughs. These albums just sound so much more juvenile than their later work.
Awesome sampling work, but the vocals are hardly intelligible. Without the vocals to hold your attention, it starts to feel monotonous after a bit.
Fun and cute but not my thing
Great fun listening to tracks and picking out the samples. Got a shock when the opening drum fill from Moby Dick kicked in (it’s my phone’s ringtone).
a vlassik album
Not my style...
It was cute when they all rapped together Edit -- I watched a video of the samples that they used and it's quite impressive, but that didn't make it any more enjoyable to listen to again.
This one is hard to rate for me. Fantastic production, some of the best I’ve heard in a while, but I really dislike the way the beastie boys rap- the weird shout rapping just doesn’t do it for me. It ruins some of the songs that could be great if the rapping was at least bearable. 6.5/10
Great background music track.
Hadn't heard the whole album before, but knew some of the hits
Some pretty cool stuff going on. Also lots of shouting.
Time for another artist to join the "I've gotten 2 albums from them for this project" club. This time, the Beastie Boys are back with their second album, Paul's Boutique. This one's okay. The writing could be better, but it's not that bad and could've aged worse. The rapping itself is still something that I'm not huge on, but it's not ear-grating either and I can see why it has its fans. The album goes on for quite a bit, but it doesn't drag too much. However, this album is not on the list for its sheer quality or anything (at least I don't think it is). No, this album is on here, and deservedly so, for technical reasons. This album is just a master class in the power of sampling. Most of the instrumentals on this album is sampling. One could say that this album is unoriginal as a result. However, I see this album for the technical accomplishment that it is. The sampling all works quite well, and this album was a sort of pioneer in that regard. Overall, while I think I liked Ill Communication more, Paul's Boutique certainly isn't bad. High 3/5.
A classic. For me, it gets a bit tiring after a while though.
Listened to this for the /mu/ list a while back. It was fine, and definitely better than the first album. 3/5
I’ve never given them a fair listen past their classic radio hits. I love storytelling in music, but I still find them a bit of a one trick pony. I respect what they do like I do the Beatles. Still a solid album and a cool start.
Not my music
Everytime we get a beastie boys album im always gutted and then I listen and am pleasantly surprised. idk why i have this internalized beastie boys hate in me, THEYRE GOOD. Unfortunately, though on this album, the low lights are pretty low.
Not my favorite beastie album. Egg man was funny.
C'était bien, pas forcément ce que j'écoute. J'ai aimé, mais je vais surement pas y revenir.
Not quite as good as Licensed to Ill but they seem pretty comparable
The production is pretty expansive and creative, though a lot of the songs themselves feel like afterthoughts for the simple joy of snipping together beats. Still more or less enjoyed it. Best song: B-Boy Bouillabaisse medley
I was vibing to it, but after a while it all kind of sounded the same.
Listening to an entire Beastie Boys album is a bit exhausting because their singing/rapping all sounds very similar (like shouting). There is a good variety of samples/beats on the album, and most songs are enjoyable enough on their own but it gets old. Favorite track: Shake Your Rump
Its fine I guess, still not really the biggest fan of hip hop though
Still not
As much as I think I like the Beasties, this all sounds like the same stuff from track to track, album to album. Intergalactic is the only song that really stands out from the last 20 years or so. It's not bad, but I just get bored of it. I'm not the type of person that really listens to lyrics, especially when they're this fast.
Strong 3 I think!
J'ai envoyé deux casseurs de gueule à l'adresse d'eltrapeze pour qu'ils lui rendent une petite visite.
ça fait toujours plaisir de retrouver les Beasties Boys, mais passé les 10mn les Beastie Boys recommencent à nous gonfler.
No es muy mi estilo, me gustaron solo dos canciones
3.5 première écoute ça crie beaucoup quand même
ok
I'm learning that I might not like hip-hop. Don't get me wrong, this is very good. But I just don't think it's my preferred flavor of music.
Might be good, but I didn’t really have time to get into it.
Dang fun
Surprisingly meh for Beastie Boys.
This album felt pretty long. And I would say it was decent. I’m kinda torn between a three and a four for it. I like the Beastie Boys, but i found myself getting tired of their musical style pretty fast. Like good in small doses kind of thing. Too much of it was tiring. When I did pay attention to the lyrics I could usually appreciate the lyricism. Sometimes I thought they were kinda dumb but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Meh: the second time I have listened to the Beastie Boys and the shouty New York rap is getting a bit much at this point. They had some solid sampling and lyrics which flowed very well but it wasn't all to my taste. Just feel it's gotten a bit too familiar and almost boring. Nothing against the impact they've had but just not for me.
The samples are sick but the bars are meh. Lots of shouting. Gets aggravating after a whole.
empieza mal la segunda remonta muchísimo mola pero las letras 0
When listening to the beastie boys, I have to be in the right mood to be able to listen to this type of music. Some of the songs were OK, honestly, it’s still a great album, but it’s just not my style, I wish there were some slower songs on it.
Know some by Beastie Boys, cant say I was ever a huge fan. This album is definitely different though, I like it. Always have loved their raw approach to rap, this whole album sounds like they all chilling together rapping into the same mic live. Although they have this cool raw approach, their vocals can become tiresome and almost annoying at times. Also love their beats, they're all pretty dope. 5 piece chicken dinner is a funny addition to this album Personal Favorites: What Comes around, Egg man
my second beastie boys experience, and somehow i managed to get their first two albums in chronological order. i liked this one a bit better than their debut, i felt like it felt less like an obnoxious party and more refined. i thought the beats were better and more clever. their rapping still felt a bit... raucous, we'll say, but that's sort of the point there. but yeah, overall, i felt like i enjoyed my time with this one.
Not my favorite Beastie Boys
3.5/5
I'm much more into the backing tracks here than the vocals or the lyrics. The whole thing feels like a mixtape in a cool way, but so many of the songs have really juvenile or gross themes. Fun at times, but overall not all that memorable for me.
Day 7,614 without sex. I suppose it's one of those cases where my inability to comprehend English is a buff. This sounds completely fine to me.
it's a fun album but I like licensed to ill better and
A huge amount of energy, some really fun samples thrown into the mix, and the beats are chunky. Yet despite the 'feelgood' vibe that prevails, it's yet another rap album that slips from 'great' to 'fine' through a lack of variety. The Beastie Boys remain iconic but a whole album of their sing-song, see-saw delivery can be a little wearying.