Darklands

19 year old me's top 10 album to walk the dog and smoke a cigarette to

Music writers fall over themselves to overpraise Joy Division and New Order, yet rarely do I find anything to reassess the Jesus and Mary Chain (although Sofia Coppola using "Just Like Honey" came close to igniting a Jesus and Mary Chain Renaissance). This album fulfills all the promises those overrated bands suggested. It sounds like the first time you ever fell in love. Of course, I'm a sucker for harmonies and power pop so I'm probably just as guilty of hyperbole as those New Order backers. This is one of those albums that can vary between a 4 and a 5 rating for me. The title track alone is a piece of pure bubble gum pop perfection.

didoodidoodoo DOOOO

With my last review, I found myself tackling dream pop via the Cocteau Twins' Heaven or Las Vegas. Now, who should turn up at the front door but the cousin of dream pop, noise pop? The distinction between the two isn't exact: both tend towards bubblegum melodies and walls of sound, with dream pop emphasising texture more and noise pop focusing on noise (funny that). So, more feedback and distortion, but both could open an Adam Curtis documentary on how the Biafran War directly led to TikTok. I expressed a mild guardedness for dream pop, as its style could slip into gimmickry with diminishing returns over the course of an album. Noise pop makes me similarly wary for similar reasons. It's nice to have a clear style, but a style is not a philosophy, and overexposure can reveal a scantiness to the substance. That said, I tend to prefer noise pop to dream pop: dreams are meaningless, noise is not. Darklands is the Jesus and Mary Chain's second album, and their second most acclaimed. Their debut album, Psychocandy, is now seen as one of the definitive albums of the eighties, especially in British indie circles. However, the two brothers behind the band, William and Jim Reid, had grown resentful of the rabid image the press had painted of them (the tabloids called them the new Sex Pistols due to the violence that tended to erupt at their gigs). Along with this, their drummer Bobby Gillespie left to pursue his own band Primal Scream, with the Jesus and Mary Chain employing a drum machine for this album. So, Darklands features much less of the guitar squeal of Psychocandy and, let me commit heresy, better-structured songs. I prefer the best songs on Darklands to the best songs on Psychocandy. You could argue that Psychocandy is meant to be treated as an album rather than a collection of songs, but I will point to my earlier criticism that an album of one noise can swiftly become wearying. Also, Darklands is less overtly record-collection rock, meaning you don't spend the entire album just ticking off references to the Velvet Underground (although you do spend some of it on that unimpressive activity). But anyway, whilst there are fantastic songs on Darklands, I wonder if it's momentous enough. Darklands is a fine album, but it just misses by a pubewidth in making me truly giddy. I don't feel my heart bursting when I listen to it, and that's surely the effect one desires. Maybe further listens will induce that full sense of bliss, but I have other things to do as well. Such as your mum.

Do you remember the JAMC? Yes, yes I do.

This is one of those bands that sounds really cool and interesting on their own, but starts to become really significant when you think about all the other bands that employed a similar sound after them. You can hear so many other songs on this album, and yet I can't think of many examples of hearing similar sounds that came before this album. It's a truly iconic album that doesn't often get the respect that it deserves 5/5

A wonderful album. I love the sensitive nature running through the songs, masked by the macho rock 'n' roll posturing. It's the songs that win through, all delicate and in danger of breaking into tears at any moment. The black leather hides the emotions well.

The Jesus and Mary Chain feel like a real musical blind spot for me. I did a pretty deep dive into various Scottish indie bands in my late teens/early twenties (The Vaselines, Teenage Fanclub, Eugenius, Arab Strap, The Delgados, Belle and Sebastian, Mogwai, Prolapse, Magoo, Telstar Ponies etc. etc.) Somehow J.A.M.C. got missed off my list and now I feel like a fool. Loved this album and given it was released in 1987 I can see how they influenced a load of my favourite bands. Really liked it. Will now be digging into their back catalogue properly (and probably pretending I always liked them).

Like… watching… paint… dry. Which may also be what the lads are doing on the cover. I’m trying real hard (and judging by the results, a lot harder than The Jesus And Mary Chain seemingly worked on 'Darklands') to find the right adjective here. ‘Dispassionate’ doesn’t work, for that implies strong emotion. ‘Disinterested,’ ‘impassive’ seems to work better. I read a book years ago written by Kathleen Norris in which she identified a condition called ‘acedia’ meaning a kind of spiritual or emotional sloth, apathy. I believe the Reid brothers, Jim and William, might be suffering from acedia. I mean, for God’s sake, they barely utilize a drum machine for much else than one droning beat, the only instrumental break was the very last song with a guitar solo that was literally four notes, and they sing with little or no fervor. Pat Boone comes across as Roger Daltrey in comparison. And if the music leads you to draw a bath of warm water, then the lyrics make you grab the razor blade and start your descent: ‘As sure as life means nothing and all things end in nothing… I want to go.’ ‘I have nothing left to give for you to take… there is nothing left of me.’ Here’s a particularly cheery one: ‘Everyone’s falling on me and I’m as dead as a Christmas tree.’ I take it he’s referring not to the beautifully adorned and twinkling lit ones in December, but the really super dead ones that are drug out to the curb with the rest of the trash in January. The best song on the entire LP was the last one, both because there was the tiniest glimmer of positivity in the lyrics, but mostly because it was the shortest one of the bunch. And boys, your LP must have infected me with a bit of your acedia, because I’m not even feeling any of the shock you desired when you named your band, The Jesus And Mary Chain.

Part of me wonders why people are so quick to hype up Psychocandy as a total masterpiece when this follow-up is actually stronger in some areas. Less abrasive and groundbreaking, sure, but the production and song writing, especially on highlights like the title track, "April Skies," and "Only Happy When It Rains," are leagues above most of its predecessor.

Just oozes with cool!!!

Darklands is packed full of big pop guitar hooks, and some familiar sounding melodies from Psycho Candy. The band relies less on the wall of sound from the previous album, but much more on what sounds like a drum machine here, sometimes to great effect. It's a very enjoyable listen, and interesting to hear where the Jesus and Mary Chain went after the reverb heavy Psycho Candy. Fav Tracks: Happy When It Rains, About You, April Skies Rating: 3.5/5

Not as good as their first album but I'm a big fan of this too

Awesome album, I can't believe I waited so long before listening to it

Really love this kind of sound. Great guitar work. Almost a mix between jangly and droning that somehow works? My only issue is that it’s a bit samey, but it’s a minor issue. Just barely holding it back from a 5.

[Editorial note: Having tested positive for covid this morning, it may not have been the best idea to try and objectively review an album today] I don’t know man, i’d rather listen to “Vehicle” by The Clean. Maybe it’s the covid talking but these records feel similar, with the Clean being more upbeat and less “everything’s a bit shit, innit?” (Is that a Peep Show or The Thick of It reference? I can’t remember. Either way, it’s a show that Jesse Armstrong wrote on and I’m pretty sure it’s not Succession. This feels like an Ollie line from The Thick of It, like maybe he’s mocking Robin or Terri or something. That’s what I’ll do with some of my covid down time, rewatch the The Thick of It and then maybe Peep Show…but Peep Show’s like 9 seasons, I don’t think I can plow through that entire show while fighting off covid. I mean that would take a while and I’m hoping this is done within a few days.) Holy fuck, does my head hurt.

# Playlist track - Darklands # Notes - A pretty cool surprise. I knew nothing about them. - Got hooked pretty much straight away. - What's with this album and rain? - Definitely worth the listen, and I look forward to getting to know others too.

5 Due to travel and some time spent at home with the fam, this is probably the longest I’ve sat on a review since starting this list, but I’m kind of glad how that worked out, as it gave me the time to really dive into this album. I mean, I knew this was going to be something special even upon my first listen, but having this stuck as my current album enabled me to keep putting it on, at first just to keep it fresh on the mind, but ultimately because it’s just damn good. With every subsequent listen, I felt myself becoming more and more drawn to its sound and aura, and sitting here now, I have got to say, what started as a strong 4 for me is now slowly crawling into the territory of all-time favorites. The first thing noticeable upon listening to this album is how different this is from Psychocandy. The boys' songwriting abilities have grown quite a bit in just the two years, and with it, their sound went through a major glow-up. Now, normally I’m the epitome of the “their older stuff is better” music snob and hate when bands try to polish their defining sound, but I was totally sold on what they did with it here - rather than feeling sterilized, it genuinely feels more fleshed out, and what it lacks in flashiness, it makes up for with an immersive, moody atmosphere that’s as compelling as it is brooding. As much as I appreciated the feedback-driven sound of Psychocandy (especially on tracks like Just Like Honey - still probably their best song), I never really found myself missing it here. This album really succeeds in establishing its own identity while retaining every ounce of pop sensibility and edgy, “cool factor” as its predecessor. No track ever feels out of place or unwelcome, though I have to point to Darklands, Happy When It Rains, and April Skies as highlights and probably among the best of JAMC’s catalog. I’ve listened to this probably 10+ times now, and I don’t see myself stopping anytime soon. The vibe here is unlike anything I’ve heard anywhere else and manages to keep hitting harder and harder as I continue to listen. I’m not going to endorse any kind of substance abuse here, but if you’re going to do it anyway, this is the exact kind of thing to put on once you’ve found the perfect buzz - whatever your vice of choice may be.

There are no fillers here, just 10 shimmery, beautiful, danceable shoegaze pop songs. Perfection.

Really loved this. I don’t think I’ve ever listened to the band. This kind of pointers in new directions is what I am here for. First album I know I will return to a lot. Clearly inspired other stuff I like.

Like SHARPE leading his men in to battle.

epic

really good, definitely easier to listen to than Psychocandy but I really love both I really enjoyed the fuckin shit out of this album - 10/10

In which the JAMC showed that under the pyros they had a sturdy songwriting chassis and (squabbling aside) were in it for the long haul. Flawless collection different from the amazing debut.

I pretty much like everything this band has done, I bounce between this and Honey's Dead as my favorite.

Love it. Boundary pushing indie pop; jaded romance.

This is not how I remember JAMC. The Beach Boys influences are easy to hear, and they've updated them incredibly.

Awesome!!

J&MC: 🎶 Me: This is pretty good. Sounds like a bunch of other early 90s indie though J&MC: 🎶 Me: What do you mean this came out in the mid 80s? Nice tunes. 4/5

I think this is a very good album, but it's impact is really more in how influential it was and helped establish a genre of music that would continue thereafter. I was surprised to hear a lot of similarities in this album and bands like The Psychedelic Furs. Overall, I really like The Jesus and Mary Chain, but this album mostly passes by. I much prefer "Honey," one of their later albums. I'd probably give "Darklands" 3.5 stars, but I am going to round up, because I do think they are a great band and very influential.

Time for another band that I've vaguely heard of! I knew practically nothing about the Jesus and Mary Chain until today, so I didn't have any specific expectations. I've gotta say. This is some great music right here. I like this. The sound is pretty cool. It's pretty chill. It's somewhat fun, but there's also some noise there. Fortunately, it's the kind of noise that doesn't hurt to listen to, which I think works very well in an album like this. The singing is pretty interesting. I think it works very well with the feedback to create a unique vibe that I really like. The writing is pretty good too. Songs like "April Skies" are just wonderful in many regards. My biggest complaint is that there's just not enough of it! This album is only 36 minutes long, so I feel that I really didn't get to appreciate it as much. Fortunately, the Jesus and Mary Chain's debut album, Psychocandy, is also on this list. Apparently that album is even better than this one, so it must be pretty great. Still, Darklands is a really good album. 4/5.

This is way less abrasive than their first album but also somewhat less distinctive. Still good solid, chill post-punk.

Darklands Less dark and oppressive than Psychocandy, there is a palpable lightness to the music on here, and whilst keeping to the same general template, there are some great little pop hooks and moments - the slowed down bubblegum surf pop melodies that were under the gloom of Psychocandy show themselves here, emerging without the dark and claustrophobic tone and mix of that album. There are still some punk riffs and still some of the same atmosphere, but there is definitely less shade and dark corners. There are some great little guitar hooks and moments, combining some overdrive with jangly pop and drones, which, as a consequence of the lighter feel, are more apparent than on Psychocandy. There do seem to be a lot of lifts from other songs, which I don’t particularly mind, Darklands pretty much lifts the melody from Love Vigilantes by New Order for the riff and the Oooh Ooohs on Nine Million Rainy Days are quite Sympathy for the Devil. I could also hear a touch of Sweet Dreams on Cherry Came Too. But that doesn’t really matter too much as they conjure up some very good songs, Darklands, Happy When it Rain, Nine Million Rainy Days, April Skies and it is nice and succinct at about 35 minutes. Even if some of the songs aren’t quite as good, they all work with the atmosphere and sound of the album. Like Psychocandy this does depend on whether you like their template and formula, and like Psychocandy, I am a fan. Although the template is similar, this does have that different end result, less moody and less aurally confrontational, subsequently it's a nice complement and partner to Psychocandy. I gave that 4 and I’ll do the same with this. ✝️✝️✝️✝️ Playlist submission: Nine Million Rainy Days

One has always enjoyed the melodious sweetness herein, which contrast with dense, sonically fuzzy backdrop not nearly as dark and certainly not as heavy or screechy as Psychocandy. The sincere non-morbid yearning is well articulated in the singalong chorus (“Du-du-DUHdu-du”) of the opener. The tension between the tunefulness and drone-y walls balance provides the energy. There's a likable simplicity here, too, as if basic, relatively innocent ‘50s songs were updated with a more metallic sonic palette and near-industrial-strength production effects, pushing coolness from white t-shirts, leather jackets and cigarettes to the post-new wavey angst of torn, all-black clothes, thick boots and harder drugs. In the end, a highly evocative and richly satisfying pop record thanks to sweet, solid hooks within pleasantly dark shadings.

The JAMC pop album - I think universally acknowledged as not as good as Psychocandy but still pretty great. There's some foreshadowing of JAMC-do-Billy Idol-'Head On' here. And more stuff that sounds a bit like Just Like Honey, rather than a drill boring directly into your soul. These are not necessarily bad things, there is a place for both, and how do you top the debut?

Pretty solid guitar rock/indie. Their choice of sound and instrumentation instills a certain sense of timelessness in the music - really only the use of an 80's drum machine here is what dates them.

Interesting album with links to to the shoegaze/dreampop scene. The bass is strong and the drums somewhat refrained. The singing does not go into big crescendos or spectacle, but rather forms an atmosphere. At points reminds me of My Bloody Valentine's "Isn't Anything" album, but with a lighter wall of sound, allowing more room for the melody. I have been curious about this band, but never had a chance to listen to one of their albums in full. I think this was a great introduction and at 36 minutes, is not a demanding listen. Genre: Rock, shoegaze, dreampop. Year: 1987 Track highlights: Darklands, On the Wall, Nine Million Rainy Days

6/16/2022 - ALBUM #140 Today's Album: "Darklands" by The Jesus and Mary Chain - These album reviews are starting to take a bit longer due to my busy schedule (which will hopefully eventually clear up), but the worst part about it is when I get these really fantastically layered albums that take me so much time to properly unpack. The instrumentals, lyricism, storytelling, songwriting, and even mood and sonic landscape of this album are all so layered and the instruments in particular are incredibly impressive when considering they're using a drum machine throughout the entire album. The album really gains a lot of it's personality through it's blaring distorted guitars that create a really rich sounding background to some really great moody vocal performances. The lyricism, although a bit hard to decipher on first listen, actually tells a really great story of feeling a lot of anger and injustice in the world and projecting it onto a relationship and all of the heartache that comes with it. By the ending track, About You, they sing about feeling better about the world and feeling something warm in the rain, warm in everything, and finally warm about "you". The lyrics can be a little heavy handed and hard to understand at some times, but I also think it's totally possible to just tune them out and enjoy this project for the great soundscapes it creates. This album overall just strikes a really awesome balance sonically by having a really structured automatic beat, that honestly sounds convincing for a drum machine, and then having a lot of effects on the guitars, melodic basslines, and somewhat strained vocals to incorporate a really moody atmosphere. They then incorporate a lot of conventional song structure to make this sound really appealing. A lot of the stuff in this album has become very worn out in the alt-rock genre, but for 1987, this still holds up today and sounds so incredibly fresh. The mix is also pretty solid, putting the vocals in the background of these blasting guitar chords. The songs April Skies and On The Wall stand out to me as all of these ingredients combining to create something that ascends the rest of the tracks. I also think the sequencing of this album is really solid, with the few songs that weren't as good being sprinkled throughout the track list. Overall, this album deserves a listen with a really good pair of headphones because most of the greatness in this record comes from the soundscapes they create, but at the same time...I really love that shit. Give this one a listen if you like an album with a moody alt-rock tone to it or like an album that gives you some great sonic moments and experiences. Highlights: Darklands, Happy When It Rains, Down On Me, April Skies, Fall, Cherry Came Too, On The Wall Score: 8/10 Pretty fantastic and unique alt-rock experience

Not as revolutionary as their predecessor and noise pop masterpiece Psychocandy, but it's just as solid. Plenty of amazing tracks, including the bonus "Some Candy Talking" that I pretend is included, sounds inspired by Velvet Underground. Has a very 60s jangly psychedelic pop sound, with matching dreamy vocals and the familiar 80s alt rock / New Wave production. A lot clearer than Psychocandy, but many tracks are definitely fuzzy, doing what they do best. More accessible for sure, but I'd still recommend Psychocandy to people who want to see what makes them so mind blowing. Highlights in every track, with some cranking the speed ("Down on Me") while others contributing to a dark chasm of an atmosphere ("The Wall", "Nine Million Rainy Days").

Miserable Glaswegians sing about depressing things in a public toilet. It's an album smothered in rain clouds but occasionally poppy melodies break through like a bit of warm sunshine. Best Tracks: Darklands; Happy When It Rains; April Skies

4.3 - Perhaps it's a testament to the gripping power of "Psychocandy" but my first instinct when listening to this album for the first time is to understand it within the context of "Psychocandy." In actuality, to me this album is way more pleasant and approachable. Songs like "April Skies" are just pop delights. "Fall" has just hints of that fuzzy guitar sound that they'd blow out so completely on "Psychocandy." There's an expansive, shimmery and atmospheric sound - wish I had listened to this album before attempting to understand "Psychocandy." Though my path here feels somewhat circuitous, I'm really happy I finally got to this great record.

Legendario.

Not the impact of Psychocandy but still a very good album, nice to see it on the list!

Another band I know are supposed to be Very Important but that I have never taken much time to understand. I know Psychocandy is supposed to be great. Straight up, with Darklands, I like the song but detest the intensely 80's drum sound*. I like the Scots brogue of the vocals. Two tracks in, it feels like a lot of shoegaze. Inoffensive but not mind-blowing. Happy When it Rains is a step up. A genuinely good pop indie song with a grumpy streak. Then it turns out I know and like Down on Me from indie discos! And it's a tune! This alone has made today's album worth my time. Nine Million Rainy Days is also great - the middle of this album is very strong - like Atmosphere by Joy Division filtered through Heavenly Records. April Skies isn't quite as good, but this is still shaping up well. It continues in a fairly 'album track' vein to the end from here, until the very sweet closer, About You, which is a leap in quality again. A hard one to rate. The best tracks are 4s and 5s, the filler is solid 2s. Ideally I'd rate it 3.5, I suppose I'll see how I feel and rate it either 3 or 4! * Just found out this is because they replaced Bobby Gillespie (of Primal Scream) who was their drummer with a drum machine. I believe even Steps and Ed Sheeran benefit from lacking Bobby Gillespie, so I'm not marking them down for this!

Shoegaze before it had a name. Liked the harder albums more, a la The Hardest Walk, but a good album I never really listened to.

I've heard this sound before; that widescreen, reverb-heavy thing - often just two major chords alternating at medium pace. When successful it creates a cinematic and melancholic atmosphere. Did TJAMC pioneer this sound? Kudos if so, but I find it kinda samey when there's a whole album of it. Also, to let so much 'space' in, it seems you often have to sacrifice interesting songcraft. That said, I didn't get bored, as such. It was a nice enough half hour of music. 2.5 / 3

Nine Million Rainy Days // April Skies //

My first thought, when listening to this album, was that it was a pretty decent, run-of-the-mill rock album for the mid '90s. That I looked and saw that it was released in '87. Turns out, it's actually a pretty decent rock album that was ahead of it's time. I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. Solid 3 stars.

Mmm not for this listener!

Not good, lyrics are not really sensible or well thought-out and the music feels very repetitive very fast.

A good shoegaze album is still a snoregaze to listen to 😴

Completely forgettable. The only redeemable quality for this album is that it is not so offensive that I would turn it off immediately.

Приятный альтернативный рок. Очень удивительно, что музыка такого жанра была записана ещё в 80-ых годах. Опередили своё время, звучат близко к современным инди-проектам.

JAMC play such a massive part in my music discovery. Psychocandy was a massive influence and in my top 10 important albums. This is equally as important. To me its a 5 star album just because of nostalgia. I played this non stop and i can still listen to it today and enjoy every single song

Indie 90's tranquilo oscuro.

Really good, easy to listen to 90s rock

pixies, evil twins, blonde redhead?

Do do do do do.

Great

Yes yes yes kinda inaccessible and takes a few listens to unlock the majesty of this album! An absolute corker

This is a great way to channel montage moments even if you’re standing in your kitchen doing nothing!

Hell yeah I love the rain

The Jesus and Mary Chain was a band I overlooked in my youth. I was reintroduced, because of this list, with Psychocandy. Something clicked with that album, probably the heavy Lou Reed influence and I decided to take a deep dive into these guys. TJAMC are now one my favorite bands! This album is so refined compared to Psychocandy, but the different styles helps me appreciate these guys even more. Me and my wife will be seeing live in Detroit come October. Back to this album, I pretty much have most of this album downloaded and Happy When It Rains is right near the top of my favorites songs. These guys have a great sound, some wonderful lyrics that you could just put their entire library on and enjoy whatever you are doing. Beers on the porch in the summertime comes to mind! Not a bad song off the album and was really excited to see this on the list after a string of some mediocre albums. Looking forward to seeing live. 5

File this under bands I’ve heard of but didn’t know any of their music. Well that mistake has been rectified. This was great!

WTF älskar det här albumet!! Min mamma gillar gruppen sen innan men aldrig riktigt lyssnat. Men detta var ju alldeles underbart kommer lyssna mycket mer. Vet inte om det kan klassas som britpop, men ger mig samma magiska känslor som många band i den genren så jag är helsåld Favoritlåt: nine million rainy days, darklands

Love love love. A wonderfully weird mix of noise and melody, a precursor to shoegaze and dreampop, a front to back ethereal beautiful assault on the senses. Very much up my alley.

It took me a long time to fall in love with The Jesus and Mary Chain, and this album in particular. It's totally my era, but I don't recall knowing anyone who was in to the band back then. And I was listening to more prog rock style of music. So, no one to borrow the album from, so I didn't listen to it until I came across it via Spotify a ew years ago, And I love it. I don't know if I would have been open enough to it when I was 18 – it's the sort of thing I might have rejected as a teenager, because, frankly, teenagers know fuck all about what makes music great. I love the rock and roll style to this and have listened to it hundreds of times over the past few years. It's just got hooks to die for. One of my favourite albums.

I don't know what it is about TJAMC, but they make me happy. Always have

While I think I prefer the noisier sound of their first album, you can definitely tell that they have improved as song writers on this album. The songs are more complex and more atmospheric. This isn't my favorite album ever, but I will relisten to it at some point. 4.5

love extended version etwas zu extended aber trotzdem

Just happened to get this on a rainy March morning. Fits the vibe just right.

I think I’ve heard of The Jesus And Mary Chain before but I’m not certain. I hope it’s not a bunch of nuns caterwauling because that would just be too much. I don’t think it is, but I’m really unsure if I’ve heard them before. Let’s listen! Songs I already knew: none Favourites: April Skies, Happy When It Rains I really am a sucker for vocalists who sound like they’re making no effort and don’t want to be there at all. This is exactly that, and it sounds delightful. This is 80’s alt, goth, something and it’s got all of the things you expect. Apathy is abound, yet the music is so tightly woven that they’re not fooling me. They cared about this and wanted it sounding great. And it does.

Great album.

Love this Album

Muito bom!!! Gostei bem mais do que esperava. Delicioso de ouvir!

Combine dark and light to create moody bliss - a dead simple but totally effective formula. A brooding reverby atmosphere pierced by bright melodic lead guitars playing simple major key melodies that soar over gloomy the distortion. Hit a big minor chord to kick off the bridge and release the tension back into a major by the end. The vocals seemingly straining their limits even in a pretty modest range make it somehow vulnerable and poignant. Contains one of only like 4 songs that get away with a 'do do do' chorus. A punk approach to loud stripped back musicianship combined with a pop melodic sensibility, an ear for richly layered guitar texture, unhurried songwriting and the patience to dwell in an atmospheric slow (maybe a bit too one-speed) zone make for a gem of gothy proto-shoegaze near perfection

Great album, not quite as good as Psychocandy but still great. No sure why they iliked to bang on about 'rain' so much.

Melodic romanticism with post-punk vibes? Now this is 80s music I can get behind!

ok, i like post-punk.

this album is a nice foray into well-worn melancholy, like pulling out your box of old sweaters from the attic on that first crisp autumn morning. It's brooding and dismal at times, but earnest enough that I think it avoids overtly angsty melodrama. I'm a big fan of The Jesus and Mary Chain but hadn't listened to this album all the way through before, and I really enjoyed it! Favorite songs: Darklands, April Skies, Fall

Good stuff, love the guitar tone. April skies is a classic.

Just the perfect noise for my ears.

Great record! I love the mood it gets me in

My kind of alt rock. And it spurred me to listen to a bunch of other music from the era. Pure nostalgia bliss.

A great example of simple, no frills, amazing and influential stuff. So good.

Like the cure but sadder

Perfect droney guitar pop.

Beautiful melancholic shoe gaze. It's raw & emotional. This band reminds me that guitar is my favorite instrument & they're masters of their work. I adore JAMC, but I've never seen them live despite having the chance last year...I have a regretful feeling I'm never going to see them. Excellent album & band.

listened to this on a 4 hour bus ride. perfect road trip album. makes me wanna stare out of a window and ponder shit.

Rain: The Album. Mint.

Better than I expected, but not really my kind of thing. Happy when it rains is a cracking tune, and they get a wee extra 🌟 just for being Scottish! 4 🌟 => 5 🌟

Mellow, jangly guitars and nice vocals

perfect album

About You is *such* a good ending to this album. This is, IMHO, *way* better than Psychocandy. This one has aged like fine wine... It doesn't reveal all of its character on first listen, it's a very layered album that I don't feel like I've plumbed the depth of more than 20 years and dozens of listens after hearing it for the first time. So much goodness packed into 36 minutes! One of my top 5 albums of the 80s, easy 5/5.

Mesmerising sound, a bit monotonous but still a great album.

Very very good

It's difficult to rate records or bands that you already like. That being said this is a great record.

This album is really very very good! All the songs are excellent!

Already listened.

Meistarastykki