Isn't Anything

Fairly standard laye 80s alt rock. Did nothing for me

Couldn’t get this one on my streaming service. I know some of their later stuff, but not this album.

3.5

Boring, can't remember anything about it the next day.

There are elements I like more than Loveless here but think that one is just a smoother ride from start to finish. If you like this album enough to buy, highly recommend as it has some of my favorite packaging of all time. Belinda Butcher is my love Rating: 4.4

shoegaze music is not for me i’ll be honest 2/5

I love their album Loveless. This is not that. I suppose this was sort of "historical" since it's their debut album, but they had EPs before this, so it's not like they exploded onto the scene with this.

This is so fucking bad, man. Not as bad as their other album on this list that I had to listen to, but it's completely insane that they have at least two albums on here. 1.5 stars

noisy shoegaze with buried vocals - not terrible

Couldn’t access the album on Spotify

Almost 1100 albums and I get this shit band two days in a row. Horrible.

Right up my alley - shimmering, haunting, ethereal. Almost a 5, but it slipped a bit toward the end. Lose My Breath, You’re Still In A Dream, No More Sorry 4.5

A truly enjoyable listen. Most of the album ended up in my likes. It is definitely not quite the music I reagularly listen to, but very adjacent. The opening track definitely entered with a bit of a slap, and I was quite sure I was in for another unenjoyable listen. The vocals were, for the lack of a better word, weird, and almost comical, and when paired with the droning electronic noise throughout I was a bit pained. I thought "oh boy, this is gonna be a long one", but by the end of that song it was in my likes and I was a fan, and the rest of the album flowed on with great pleasure. I listened to it a few times through in total and even dipped my toes in some of their other music, from Loveless, and i'm excited to hear more. I really enjoyed the moody, spooky and ethereal sounds of this album and the strong guitar presence. I had heard of MBV before this, but I would've guessed they were a punk or rock group from the 90s/00s, so it's nice to fill yet another hole in my musical knowledge.

I'm gonna be honest...it's the biggest piece of dogshit

If white noise decided it was time to produce an overly edgy, poorly mixed, shoegaze-if-heard-from-two-houses-down album that was so bad it’s no longer on spotify.

1,5

Second half of the album was great, kind of like if the cure took more drugs - shame that the first half of the album had about 3 reverbs on the master channel

Sounds a little modern but isn't. Cool soundscape.

Not that easy to listen to. Found it hard to persevere.

Can't get into this

A lot of noise. One song was not though.

Borderline unlistenable. Even annoying as background music.

“I Can See It” my favorite track. Always liked that one, and have recently warmed a bit to Loveless as well. I still don’t love it, nor do I love this album, mostly because I really, really don’t enjoy Butcher as a vocalist. Stalling at 3 stars for now, but the strength of the badass guitar work could elevate it one day. 3/5

There's a certain ominous weight to Lose My Breath that's appealing. Much of the rest is vaguely unsettling, if you're into that. The guitar tone is good and the vocals are cold and monotone. You can hear the beginnings of what's to come next, but the band needs time to mature in the songwriting department.

The beginning of something special with the kings of shoe gaze rising to start a revolution.

If the combination of depression and desperation had an album, it would be this one. And that's not a compliment. I played this for a homeless and he said "here's 5 bucks pal, you need more than me."

This was really good. I wasn't sure after the first song, but I loved the wall of fuzzy guitars and the feel of the sound. I'm definitely going to listen to more of this band.

Second album de MBV proposé par le générateur après 'Loveless" que j'avais noté 2/5, en particulier à cause de son mixage qui le rendais inécoutable. Le mixage est moins catastrophique sur cet album, mais ... je n'accroche pas vraiment. Certains morceaux sont assez originaux (Lose my breath, son harmonie particulière, et ses guitares non saturées), mais le son reste un problème pour moi sur pas mal de pistes (mur de bruit peu audible). Je n'y reviendrais pas. =>2/5

Boring. That about sums it up. Not bad. Just boring. I guess this is an influence on emo stuff? I will say I have a hankering to listen to some my chemical romance now.

I did not enjoy this!

A singular, stubborn weirdo

En trea, lite för mycket oljud. Men behöver egentligen lyssna mer

Wild hearing the birth of shoegaze emo like this

Very much of it's time, where it should remain.

Rock that leans havily into noise. I had enough after song 2. 2/5

Schwankt zwischen Krach und was, das Potential hätte, nervt dann aber doch auf Dauer.

I think I like this one better than “loveless”, there’s at least somewhat of a coherent song structure but still not a big fan

1.5 I really thought I would like this bad more than I do. Appreciate the guitar work, but I don't really connect with anything else

2.5

A classic (obviously not THE classic) from one of my favorite bands. When I first heard this, after 20 or so obsessive listens to loveless, I felt disappointed by the difference between the two albums. On revisit, though, it stands on its own as a truly great album.

Some interesting songs, but mostly not my jam.

Lose my breath is so far my fav. Ahead of its time.

Maybe I'm getting old but I didn't really like this one very much. It just seems noisy and annoying.

Not as bad as I thought it would be

Despite my being a pretty big MBV fan, this was my first time listening to the debut all the way through. Definitely not as good as Loveless but still solid end to end. 4/5

Un peu bordélique, un peu bruyant, un peu sympa.

This stinks

Bit emo

So so.

I can appreciate the weirdness here. Some ups and downs and a variety of music on this.

this was super boring imo

Based on the opening track, I thought this would be my first one-star review, but I did quite like a couple of the other songs. That's kind of disappointing, as I feel like this album was meant to be something you either love or hate, not something you give two stars out of five.

Funny that this came up, I was just thinking yesterday that I want to try more shoegaze and MBV are a band I've not really tried The production is quite cold if that makes sense, 'icy' was what came to mind, especially regarding the guitars. It can be quite dense as well, which isn't surprising since this is an early form of shoegaze, there are plenty of those ethereal, hazy and dreamlike moments that the genre has become known for, but there are some cool, noisy and driving sounds like on Nothing Much To Lose. Feed Me With Your Kiss was immediately my favourite, the loud, dirty bass won me over I thought they were using a drum machine, at least in the first track and the really fast snare hits on Nothing Much To Lose. I thought they gave quite a mechanical, post punky sort of sound. Sueisfine was also like that, with the very driving bass The vocals might be my least favourite part of the album, they don't sound very strong or confident. Suppose it doesn't really matter when they frequently blend into the deluge of the instrumentation but I kept thinking they seemed kind of weak compared to the powerful guitars Highlights: Feed Me With Your Kiss, Nothing Much To Lose

Not for me, this one.

For some reason I thought my bloody valentine was an emo band.

I have had an irrational aversion to MBV. This album helped change that.

No thanks

First part of the album is ok. The rest isn’t. 2 stars.

The noisy style of the band turned out to be unrewarding throughout the album. All tracks sounding more or less the same, it felt more like a mess than a thoroughly crafted record. A one-time listen.

Didn’t know this sort of thing existed in 1988! I can see it being very influential at the time but it’s all a little bit of a noise to me…

A truly terrible album, with a terrible production.

Holy shit, I think they misspelled ears. My bloody ears. Please make it stop. It's clear this band has talent, but it feels like they're intentionally trying to be contrarian or something. Almost as if they're too cool for hits.

Very much not my cup of tea. I somewhat thought the instrumentals were interesting but the vocal work was too much for me. This was so tough, I ended up looking at other reviews. It's a wonder this did so well on release. I have to wonder why/how.

Good album

Guitar feedback... So original

-I like what I have heard from MBV’s album Loveless. I guess I went into this expecting it to be more like that, which threw me for a loop -idk I don’t really think it’s for me… not a huge shoegaze guy anyway but some of the tracks on here felt especially grating. had some moments I liked but. idk -Favorites are All I Need and Feed Me with Your Kiss

There's a lot to like here. I didn't grow up with this one, but I frequented their later albums, as well as similar bands like Cocteau and Slowdive. I can see how it could be annoying/boring/droning for some folks. Probably how a lot of techno/electronica is that way for me. But the wall of sound moments, the fullness of real instruments in this way, hits more like classical music almost. Maybe not to the extent of like Japanese noise, but Isn't Anything is like just enough melody and feeling to keep me fully enveloped. And I appreciate the sloppiness of this early stuff too, haha. There's a one-take energy that brings its own authenticity. 4.5

OK this is the 3rd album I have to listen to by mbv. It starts as bad as the other two. This is the first of my almost 500 albums so far that I'll quit before listening to the whole album and I managed through the 196 minutes of "The Gershwin Song Book" in one sitting.

1/5

Noise and unbearable lyrics. After the album was over a song from the follow up album came on which sounded similar, but more polished and way better. Why is this album on the list?

Interesting record. A little less dreamy than their obvious classic but still has some of the interesting textures/soundscapes they would later become known for. More straightforward songwriting/mixing as well. All the tracks are interesting at least in their sound styles even if the song is not something I'd return too.

This album makes me think of that time I was at the Foxfire Room on Magnolia Blvd. with Mr. Wombat. There were only about 10-12 people there, it was dark and quiet. If you've seen the film Magnolia it's the bar that Adult Quiz Kid Donny Smith falls in love with the bartender. Anyway, in the corner booth was Greg Edwards with some girl. Mr. Wombat went over to say hello. "The guy from Autolux ... " he said. So, my point is that in general terms I like MBV, but I'd rather be listening to any Autolux album than this one.

If it "Isn't Anything," then is it nothing? I'm pretty sure it was something, because I just listened to it. Or is mbv saying that it is a very specific thing, and not just some random infinite anything? It actually was a specific thing - it was 37 minutes of mediocre shoegaze. It's not nothing, but it isn't anything I would return to.

Some of the songs are aggressively annoying and for different reasons. Tracks 2-4 are good and I enjoy the lo-fi sound but the rest of the album is all over the place. Pick a lane.

The vocals are so buried it feels like I’m listening to the music through my noise cancelling headphones and the singer is in the next room whispering. The music is disjointingly annoying too.

I already know I like this album because I've owned a copy for a long time now. It's maybe not as good as Loveless or mbv, but that's okay. It's still better than lots of other bands can manage. It's dissonant and pretty and flows nicely from start to finish, plus you can feel the emotions contained within. It ticks most of my boxes, so really the only thing keeping me from rating it any higher is, as I mentioned, I think they have better albums. It's an excellent start though.

yeah these guys rock

Now this is what I call Shoegazing.....

I do really like this. Not as much as their other albums but this is a great vibe. I just think as of now it doesn’t totally stick with me

MBV continues to be a band that I respect and want to like more than I actually like. This album has my favourite sound of all their works but still feels pretty minor.

historically been my fav mbv album which i am kinda questioning in this moment lol... seems like a bit of a contrarian take lmaooo .... anyways it is really good and really different than loveless or m b v (which i feel like i would probably like the most on a re-listen). Anyways - not one of my fav bands but they are really amazing, and I do like their music quite a bit...

beh

Bloody awful.

Go, shoegaze!

2/5

Decent albeit slightly uneven. It never elevates itself but it doesn't lower itself either. Definitely influential.

One of the worst things about being so far into this project is that I keep getting the final album by a lot of artists, and today is no exception, with the final My Bloody Valentine album on this list. I wound up going in reverse chronological order with these folks, giving three stars to MBV, and five stars to Loveless (an album that I had a profound love for before starting this project). I’ve never listened to this album before, but I have really high hopes for it! Well, I was certainly underwhelmed by Isn’t Anything. I try to treat each album by an artist as its own entity, and not judge it by the artist’s other work, but I’m human and not a music critic, so it was really tough to do that on this album. While I listened to this, I found myself just yearning for Loveless, and its packed-to-the-gills sound. Don’t get me wrong, “Isn’t Anything” isn’t a bad album, and it’s definitely influential, but I couldn’t help but want more while listening to it. I thought it had a great atmosphere that permeated all of the songs, but there wasn’t really much about this album that stood out to me and grabbed me. I didn’t care for the vocals very much, and I thought their elevated presence on this album compared to Loveless did some disservice to the sound. As far as highlights go, “Lose My Breath,” “You’re Still in a Dream,” and “No More Sorry” were my favorite songs on the album, due to the guitar playing. Overall, this album is fine, and it wasn’t a bad experience, but I certainly… love it less… than the other My Bloody Valentine albums. I’ll see myself out.

You can tell they didn’t quite get a grip on their sound. Still enjoyable, but weaker than Loveless.

Enjoyable overall. Reminds me of Jesus and Mary Chain. A bit too pop at times.

After a few listens, realised that I like almost all the tracks but don't love any of them. Tails off a little at the end but that might be fatigue from the production. Good album as a whole, but looking forward to Loveless now. 3.5.

All sort of blended together as one

I caught: 'your wasted space is mine, too.' Ironically, MBV can't be said to waste space, instead filling every second w/ a sonic entirety. It's one that seems to be emptying, however, so minor and drowned out is the reality the album portrays. I'm not sure I'm in love with the aesthetics, but I know that I don't want to stop listening to it, which must count for something. I wish I knew what they were saying, it would be nice if it didn't drone as much as it does, but I also know that if it were any different it would be far less interesting, that it'd hardly be the creative statement that it is. I don't think I would throw this record on any chance I get, my mood normally not inclined to gaze or shoe, but I'm happy enuf to attend when it is on.

I never figured out what to do with this album. And I don't know what "shoegaze" is, unless it means they're staring at the floor mumbling?

A long, boring 38 minutes.

No. Not my thing. Noise was bad

I've never really understood the obsession with this band and I still don't after hearing this album but there were a few good songs in here. Lo fi isn't for me, and shoegaze and dream pop can boring enough with high production values that I especially don't understand the decision to do everything lo-fi on top.

Pretty middle of the road!

Didn't really hold my interest, but I didn't hate it.

Fuck. I mean it’s better than Loveless. But who cares

snythy beats, slightly out of tune sound. kinda of just noise tbh. 1/5

I was hoping to like it but found half of it unlistenable. 2 for the album, 5 for effort and sounding nothing like much else of the time .

Knew I wouldn't like it from the first note - just don't get it.

Not bad but nowhere near as good as Loveless.

Not as familiar with this as I am their other work. I loved it, and of course as I expected the mix on this recording is pretty low. Had to listen to a few times to let it seep in. Great record, which is not surprising.

i’ve seen these guys get praised so much and i honestly get why, but this just doesn’t appeal to me. it’s just noise. the guitars piss me off and so do the vocals. like i don’t get what they’re trying to do here. my bloody valentine? buddy, the only thing that’s bloody are my ears

the sound was rather confusing, at points it sounded like the vocals and track were completely different, nothing was accentuating anything and it felt very confusing, there were some points that sounded cohesive but in general the album felt very directionless now for my personal first two tracks sounded well enough to me, afterwards the general course of the album was moving rather negatively and i can’t really say this is something i necessarily like well enough for a 3 star, but i still decided to give it the 3 for kickstarting the shoegaze/dreampop genre that is even now still active, innovation is always great after all! x

Probably pioneering but today, a bit shit

This is like the auditory version of Bird Box, because I'm going to tell people it's so beautiful if only they would listen, but I expect they'd potentially just try to kill themselves. It truly feels like a pioneering effort to have all of the band members record their parts in isolation without ever deciding which song they were recording. It's up there with the greats like Wesley Willis. I wanna give it a five for the audacity, but I'll stick with four, because my friends would strangle me to death with my wired headphones.

So much unnecessary, overbearing NOISE on this album. I feel like if a lot of the obnoxious sounds going on in a lot of the songs were cut out, the album wouldn't be half bad. But alas, some of these songs were borderline unlistenable. I don't think it's one-star worthy because the unnecessary noises started tapering off toward the end, but holy hell, why is this on the list?

They got so experimental that they almost made music

I never actually listened to the whole album before. It's definitely easier to listen than Loveless but because of that, also way less intense. There are some absolutely brilliant tracks though, and just knowing where mbv went from there make me appreciate Isn't Anything A LOT.

I just don't get shoegaze

Dragging guitars and rhythm - I would classify it as a good garage sound. Can definitely be heard.

A little dif than loveless. You can feel the 80s

En 1988 esto era otra dimensión (Spacemen 3 a parte). Con Bilinda aportando unos coros que elevan el disco a terrenos siderales. Componiendo además temas como Cupid Come o No More Sorry, de lo mejor del lote. Estaban Kim Gordon, Kim Deal, y ella en la vanguardia del pelotón indie. La producción y estilo marcaban terreno allí donde habían transitado los Jesus and Mary Chain. Ellos lo llevaban más lejos. Sueisfine es una golosina, como Soft as Snow (But Warm Inside). Feed Me with Your Kiss, es otra cosa. Para mi gusto prefiero Loveless o MBV, pero esto no desmerece un ápice la enorme valía de este álbum. 5/5

A most intriguing effort – original, arty, edgy, intense and off-kilter (maybe a little uneven) From any other band, this would rate as extraordinary, but for MBV, not so much. The middle section of the record is strongest, with "All I Need" and "Nothing Much to Lose' one's personal highlights. Does seem rather a studio triumph that there are no guitars left, though the effect would get more powerful and spectral on future records. There's more than a hint (but not much more) of what was to come, really, but this simply isn't as fully reallized or richly layered or ambiently resonant or majestic or glorious or transcendent as Loveless. And one would even rate the very recently released album better, too. What's clear as they are the band that most effectively and lastingly transcended the shoegaze scene.

I tried, I really did, but it was bloody awful. They didn't sound very competent on their instruments at all, and vocally it was like someone mumbling through their sleeve.

I can’t. I think this might have been a mistake.

eh this one isn't for me.

Too noisy and monotonous, don't like the singers voice

Langsam, kein vibe

I feel like I should like this band more than I do. Just never really clicked for me. Follow up album is definitely better than this one

Shoegaze.

It’s like a more mild sonic youth but with less noise and more melody. I think this is the only album of theirs that’s really clicked for me though. Good stuff.

If Loveless is the sound of a destination reached, then Isn't Anything is the sound of wandering around looking for said destination. Normally I'd say it's a minor sin to be considering albums only as a "precursor" to what's to come, but here I'm tempted to give in, since the experimentation IS the point. Of course, I can't really blame anyone for wanting to skip the road and go straight for the finish line, but then again... where is your childlike sense of discovery? Plus, this is some pretty great guitar freakery regardless of any destination.

Meh.

The best song on the album is the first song, “Soft as Snow (But Warm Inside)”. The album struggles to recreate the dissonant magic it captures there. It instead devolves into big sound and vocal drones that fail to inspire.

On paper I feel like I should be appreciating this more than I do, but most of this is just fine. I've enjoyed what I've heard of Loveless, and I find it confusing when people rate these records equally, as Loveless is an obvious step forward and all-around is a huger revelation of a listen. The band sounds very green and uneasy in their debut, but with clear potential.

Pretty melancholy

Worst album I’ve listened to in a long time.

Ear snot

Wasn't sure at the start but got into it more as it went along

Based

Not great. Not horrible, but there are better shoegazing groups.

Never really been one to gaze at my shoes…

Geht so.

A great debut. I might prefer Loveless but this still has its merits!

better than I expected tbh 3-3.5

Isn’t anything impressing me on this album, but it’s not bad. Very middle of the road.

A bit too chaotically noisy for me, and yet not quite noisy enough. This may very well be the kind of album that requires more listenings to really unfold. Unfortunately due to the format of an album per day I don't have time to give it that kind of attention. Standouts - 2/5

I'd say it's an overall okay album. Not quite as dramatic as Loveless, but still can't really say it 'stripped-back'. I think these shoegaze records really require many listens to find the rifts and melodies in the chaos but I don't really have time for that... 6/10

Cool sound, like proto-Smashing Pumpkins like. I like it! 4 stars

Prefer more modern shoegaze but I see where the inspiration came from

Some solid rock, again, pretty advanced for its time. Not really in a music mood today so forgive me that this is dry. Solid 3/5.

This is from 1988?! Holy shit...

Pretty shoe gazey. This was okay but sort of monotonous.

Glad I had no goth phase...

Some songs the band is good. But the singer is crying on everything and has little to no energy. I’ll pass.

I enjoyed this one a lot, more than I liked Loveless on my first listen. But that was a long time ago, and my taste has grown; I've developed a liking for this period of alt/indie rock I need to re-listen to Loveless

Loveless er eftirminnilegri, en ég er alveg sucker fyrir þessari líka. Þið megið hlusta líka.

Gave up after a couple of tracks

01) Soft as Snow (But Warm Inside) - 6,5 02) Lose My Breath - 6,0 03) Cupid Come - 5,5 04) (When You Wake) You're Still in a Dream - 6,0 05) No More Sorry - 5,0 06) All I Need - 5,0 07) Feed Me with Your Kiss - 5,5 08) Sueisfine - 5,5 09) Several Girls Galore - 5,0 10) You Never Should - 5,5 11) Nothing Much to Lose - 5,5 12) I Can See It (But I Can't Feel It) - 6,0 TOTAL: 5,58 (56/100) Current ranking: 351/410

Not nearly as distinctively beautiful as Loveless. You can hear them laying down the groundwork but it is a bit weak on vocals second half of the album is where it gets interesting.

Today’s decision wasn’t the rating - this is top tier - but whether I agree with my skipper’s assertion this is the best MBV album, better than “Loveless”. This probably has the better songs; I appreciate “Lose My Breath” and its slippery, seductive regret in a way that I could not in my youth, and they’ve never rocked as hard as “Feed Me With Your Kiss”. I probably prefer how “Loveless” sounds though, overfed and sparkly. It’s a draw, at least until “Loveless” inevitably turns up here.

From the drum fill not five seconds in onwards, could this be anyone else? So distinctive, and yet so hit-and-miss. The first page of shoegaze, with unique guitar noise, ethereal majesty and a few weak songs to boot. It's Xmas so I'll give it a nostalgic, although probably deserved, 4.

Wanted to like this, not good will surely be rated low

What I really appreciate about this album is how MBV’s dreamy, disorienting sounds and noises take center stage. At the same time, I’ve always felt it carries a subtle punk edge, which adds another layer to its appeal.

Not as good as Loveless by MBV, but still great.

boring to be honest. but it's insane how modern this sounds.

I have tried to get into My Bloody Valentine through their greatest hits and just not been able to do it. Saying that, I had never tried to listen to one of their three albums. There are certainly really good moments on this album and I thought kicking the album off with Soft as Snow (But Warm Inside) was a really strong start. The rest of the album is also very good and probably should be heard. This is the first "real" shoegaze or what I call fuzzy-foggy rock album and certainly was incredibly influential. I'm excited to hear Loveless as I did enjoy the sound of this one. I would not say it is a revelation since I had heard songs on it before but it certainly was good to hear it.

There’s some stuff that’s very good, and other stuff that’s just too much noise. It has its merits. But it’s just alright for me.

This one had some interesting sounds. Not enough to bump it to a 4 but I’m interested in the next album, which is the bigger one and I assume on this list at some point.

I think My Bloody Valentine is basically a definition of the band that marries some terrible sounds with an absolute genius ones. This debut album of their is the perfect example, it is sometimes visible in single songs. In general I'm a fan of a good shoegaze sound, but in a more rock/metal environment, whereas here MBV resembles a more experimenting The Cure. Still an okay album, but far from my favourite one.

Jangle and dissonance, the tools of alt alt rock

68/100. The album was okay but felt messy and unpolished. It’s not something I’d feel compelled to revisit.

It’s ok

I don't know why they picked this album instead of the classic.

I prefer Loveless, especially because of the vocals on this one.

Playing catch up so listening to all 3 MBV albums together. I'm partial to a bit of shoe gaze/ noise distortion and feedback. Gold standard for me is J&MC as they deliver the above along with great tunes and vocals that capture the emotion of the songs. Whilst MBV have some good tunes they are vocally pretty weak - with the vocals washed out and placed low in the mix and as a result I struggle to form connection with the songs. MBV is the worst offender and is by far the weakest of the 3 albums with no notable tracks so scores a 2. Isn't Anything the debut is bit more punkier/rougher and I think would have been fun to see live - scores a 3. Loveless is the best of the lot - with the most polished and accessible songs and strongest vocals.

I don't love it, but straight away it's kinda weird. Frontloading the least steady song was a good idea. I get the appeal of this more than the wall of guitar on Loveless. It's very possible that I've never turned MBV up loud enough to get it. At any volume it does sound like a band that means the whole world to that band, and I'm tempted to go up to 4 stars just for that.

First time listen for me, despite being a big fan of Loveless. Interesting to hear them with less time and budget. Same band, but a bit less effective. Really liked You Never Should. Like a pop punk song in structure and melody, but with the psycho drums of MBV.

Contextually, this is an important album. It's a transition from 80s British punk to 90s emo/grunge. You can hear how this influenced a lot of the great bands of the 90s. All that to say, I'm not sure I really like it. :)

MBV SIGNIFICA CREAR SHOEGAZE

I haven't thought positively about the slasher B movie from the early 80s since I caught it on cable as a kid. After hearing this band, the movie seems even better.

I really cannot stand listening to this band. They tease you with some actual musicality in their instruments, but it then quickly devolves into the least trance-like soundscapes you can possibly imagine. All of it paired with overly whiny singing voices.

This reminded me a lot of Radiohead, whose sound I mostly detest.

Yes yes yes :) genius

I must be the only shoegazer who just can't get into MBV at all.

Prefer loveless but still well ooft

Like ambient music but this is too harsh on the ears

Shoegaze always starts off interesting and different ... but by the third song, you want to actually hear the lyrics over the distortion.

Unmemorable unfortunately.

Not as good as the other one. It's got its own sound for sure, but just not good enough or exciting enough for the trouble.

I think there was one song I genuinely liked and everything else was not my thing. I can't give it one star because it had a good song, but if it wasn't for that song(which, I can't even identify because they're all indistinguishable), it might be a 1. The only thing that's 'bloody' about it is annoying.

Garbage.

Not terrible. Sometimes it was like the guitarist and singer were performing two different songs that didn’t fit.

mbv been on my listening list for so long now, i already know im gonna love this album. first few tracks kind of sucked but the rest was great. love shoegaze its a great genre, i wish more people could appreciate it

“We’re edgy! We’re different! Our band name is all lowercase!” Soft As Snow has to be one of the worst songs I’ve ever listened to, possibly ever made. Their ability to plumb new depths of awful music that only the most contemptible twats imaginable could possibly like is the only noteworthy thing about My Bloody Valentine! I think there’s a phenomenon where some people fool themselves into thinking that because something is difficult to listen to, they must be achieving something by doing so, that it must be worth doing, that it must make them a special little bean who is better than all the people who “just don’t get it”, otherwise what was the fucking point? They just can’t accept that it sounds shit because it is shit and they’ve wasted their time/money. Anyway, bands like My Bloody Valentine survive by feeding off morons like that.

I quite liked the previous one by this lot. But this one just didn’t grab me in the same way. Maybe I need to listen to the other one back just in case I was previously in a generous mood. Simpsons: Itchy and Scratchy episode named My Bloody Valentine, but it is also a film as well as a band.

I really enjoyed this.

You would think that the most amazing thing about this is that people actually bought it. However, even more astonishingly they remastered it. As they say, you can polish a shit, but it is still just shit

Some albums benefit from a good sound system. You can hear the highs coming through crisp and feel the lows in your bones. This album is not one of those. I first tried listening to this through mi decent headphones and thought they were broken, the noises coming through were less than pleasant. I then gave the album another go word my cheap running headband cum headphones and it was a much more pleasant experience.

As an earlier emo band I can see how people would be ride or die for this band, especially in 88. It has a little bit of that industrial kind of tone that is a bit harsh but is also kind of the point. Some of the melodies are pleasantly haunting and I feel like they both make music for others but also for themselves. I love a rhythm guitar that feels effortless, even if the riff is just hitting the same chord 16 times because even though it’s not perfect, it’s less wrong than the others, and you’re getting closer to what it is you feel. Overall it’s solid enough that I would go around again as an album. I wasn’t blown away really but enjoyed the ride.

This album, overall, didn't really do much for me. I think what really pulled it down was the vocals honestly. The guitar and pedal sounds were kinda cool, but it didn't feel cohesive with everything else going on. I had some high hopes for the shoegazing genre... but alas here we are. I'm aight with not having this in my cd player.

Just very generic rock sounds with muffled mumbling to replace singing. I can’t say in good conscience that this is better than some other albums I’ve given 1 star to. Maybe it’s more interesting live.

I came into this with a mindset of Bullet for my Valentine. Obviously just because the name is super similar. The album was weird/unique but didn’t really feel groundbreaking in any way except for one song. I actually think “No More Sorry” is sick. It’s hurt a bit by the mixing/production, but the mood and the build up is really nice. If you turned up the vocals and made it feel less mushy it would be more discernible, but I think that’s kinda the point too. The album was short and to me was worth listening to just for that song. Still can’t rate it above a 2.

I wouldn’t want to look anyone in the eye either if this was what I called music.

I'm not sure how this album is great or influential. It just drones on and on. I would much rather listen to MGK's My Bloody Valentine.

Highkey better than Loveless

I’ve listened to Loveless before and really liked it, but this just didn’t hit me. I don’t know what it is about the album, but it just feels lesser.

I actually like some shoegaze but this wasn't among the stuff I like. Low 2.

Noisy 80s indie rock. Not bad. Kind of like Sonic Youth.

love the concept, but ends up being boring

Went from rock to experimental in the blink of an eye. I liked No More Sorry, but not All I Need. Then right back to the regularly scheduled program of (garage?) rock songs.

Boring and forgettable.

Kind of a slower, more mellow variant of Sonic Youth. I liked what I heard from these guys but can't call it love.

Не совсем то Величие, которое ещё впереди, но уже здесь слышится эта большая нойз-поп революция. Для дебютного альбома - очень. Лучшая песня - You Never Should.

Hints of loveless but just does not quite reach those dizzy heights

Not great

my bloody valentine's tracks seem to always be there for your life's worst moments. if you're remotely moody in any way, mbv's pure auditory sludge rock will be a light in a pillar of darkness. with incredibly hazy and mindboggling tracks, this debut album from the group is a treat to listen to. some of the production techniques, and notably some of the tricks with the guitars make this album really stand out, especially for the time. good lord.

Before the went full vacuum cleaner. It sounds just like they took Loveless and dialed back the deep frying 50%. Pretty good tbh

My Bloody Valentine, I wouldn't say they are my favorite shoegaze band, but you gotta admit that they are creative and skillful. This album is not their best, not so melodic, not so well structured, more noisy and primitive. I like noise rock; it's a pleasure listening to this, and oh dear, it gets better. Personally? It would be nicer if there were fewer vocals to make more room for instrumentation, but anyway, it deserves a decent 4.5/5 (and higher when you are used to shoegaze).

5.5/10

Ei kauhean miellyttävää. Aika noisemaista rokkia. Tuntuu melkein pelleilyltä taas. Muutama ok kappale, muuten aika skeidaa. Parhaat: (When You Wake) Youre Still In A Dream, I Can See It (But I Cant Feel It)

Yea wow this is terrible. Sueisfine is the first song to actually interest me. The back half of the album is like listening to the foo fighters through a busted up CRT TV. God this was BS

Just isn't my kind of music - too "noisy".

I get it's influence, but nothing about this album was appealing. Usually that would slide me in a 2½★ direction but I really disliked the over all sound I couldn't give it any higher than a two. (4.3) ★★

I love shoegaze and this is one of the absolutely classic shoegaze records in my book. 4 stars

3.5/5

I think it's pretty good and it definitely influenced some things I like, but I don't really enjoy the songs as much as their contemporaries, like the Jesus and Mary Chain or Pixies or even Sonic Youth. "Lose My Breath" is probably the highlight for me here. 3.5

3.5

Great debut album that stands a little small now in the loom of Loveless. Music is coolly shambolic and is like a mix of Dinosaur Jr, Smiths, Velvet Underground, Jesus And Mary Chain and good Sonic Youth. (When You Wake) You’re Still In A Dream and Feed Me With Your Kiss have the best energy and are awesome rock-outs and riff fests but most these tracks are either super fun or bizarrely pretty and ethereal. The 1-2 of No More Sorry and All I Need are kind of sucky and astringent though. I Can See It (But I Can’t Feel It) right at the end is a seriously blissed dreampop nugget.

3.5 as an album, but 4 for this. Loveless is a huge step above this. Great debut though.

Oof, this album has some of the worst singing and drumming I’ve ever heard. Listening to the drummer trying and repeatedly failing to hit the cymbal on beat 2 in the song ‘Cupid Come’ is physically painful. The only coherent musical ideas were the tracks ‘Sueisfine’ and ‘Nothing Much To Lose’. Pretty much everything else is just incomprehensible noise.

Felt like a lot of screaming

Dreamy rock with great vocals

Just too mopey and moody for my liking.

It was horrible.

einfach nur mühsam

76% Best: Cupid Come; (When You Wake) You're Still in a Dream; Feed Me with Your Kiss; You Never Should; Nothing Much to Do Must-Hear? Not quite

Yeah nope, shoegaze is not for me. In fact, I can't stand it. My Bloody Valentine didn't create something that could reliably be called music. The songs meld together into an indistinguishable mess. The lead singer's voice drones on and on. The backing music, if you can call it music, drowned out the vocals, but upon reflection, maybe that was a blessing. An album that was a nightmare to get through.

THIS WAS WORSE THAN THE LAST MY BLOODY VALENTINE ALBUM. Speaking of which, why do we need more than one album from them on this project? This album was an absolute chore to get through. Shoegaze at its worst and noisiest.

It’s great but it’s not Loveless

Just sound

There’s no need for this when Loveless is already on the list. The sound is similar but they hadn’t peaked yet. High 3.

Please, no more of this stuff

Meh. Did not really make an impression on me.

I like some shoegaze. I don't really like this.

Loveless is better, but interesting ideas.

boring and shitty basically the whole time

Tuneless dirge

For such a big fan of "indie rock", and those building blocks which contribute to noise-rock or shoegaze, I've never quite been on the same wavelength as My Bloody Valentine. I was a little puzzled by what made "Loveless" such an inarguable classic of its genre. I was even more puzzled by what made "mbv" such a worthy comeback after twenty-three years. And now, I must confess to feeling equally puzzled as to what makes "Isn't Anything" such a promising debut. Soundscaper first and songwriter second, Kevin Shields famously spent many hours painstakingly crafting songs for the band, with tremolo bar and guitar manipulation galore. But those hallmarks of My Bloody Valentine's sound (and indeed, shoegaze in general) still need some refining here. The opening, "Soft as Snow (and Warm Inside)", has taken a long time to grow on me with its abrasive guitar riff, fiddly bass sequences and crisp titanic drums. Then, songs like "Cupid Come", "Sueisfine" and "You Never Should" feel much more like conventional rock songs than anything else I've heard by the band, while "Feed Me With Your Kiss" dials up the distortion into a frenzy for a barnstorming freak-out. My reservation with "Loveless" was the feeling that, without the gimmicks and innovation, the songs wouldn't really be able to stand up on their own. I feel the same is true of "Isn't Anything", perhaps to an even greater extent. The studio experimentation is burgeoning, but it isn't enough to totally obscure vocals or bury the listener in an avalanche of sound. While Bilinda Butcher's vocals in "Lose My Breath" are suitably mysterious and ethereal, Kevin Shields' are lacking for me throughout. The album holds some interesting ideas, and tracks I'd happily hear again include "Soft as Snow (But Warm Inside)", "Feed Me With Your Kiss", "Lose My Breath" and especially "You Never Should". But as an album experience, it misses the mark more than "Loveless" or "mbv" did.

Couldn't even get through the whole thing. Not my jam.

Early emo. Can see a lot how it develops. But not for me.

Luv shoegaze me Ngl I think I prefer the vocals more reverby bc they grated on me on some tracks sorry!!!! Loveless is one of my fav albums ever and this does not live up Favs: lose my breath, Cupid come, feed me with your kiss and you never should

I HATE dissonance, this album made me so anxious Standout tracks: - (When you wake) you're still in a dream (3/5)

Better than I thought it would be!

Unlike a lot of shoegaze I’ve listened to this is almost punk and almost avant garde. It is guttural and raw. Dig it.

Figures its situation out in the back half

Nada más empezar la sensación es de que ha envejecido fatal. Al final mejora bastante "Sueisfine" tiene ritmo y "You never should" y "Nothing much to lose" también interesantes, pero el resto es puro noise por no decir ruido (qué chistoso soy). Iba para dos estrellas, pero con la remontada final se va a ir a 3.

I honestly hated this album the first time I listened to it. I'm not sure if it was my mood, or what, but this second time listening through was SO much better.The dissonance just felt and sounded better the second time around. This isn't as good as Loveless, but I didn't hate it. Best Songs: Lose My Breath, You Never Should, I Can See It Worst Songs: Soft as Snow, No More Sorry,

funny i had liked one of their songs previously i can’t remember but this ain’t really doing it for me at all

Bleach and Nevermind have the same relationship for Nirvana that Isn’t Anything and Loveless do for MBV. The rawness of the Seattle grunge sound is the center point of Nirvana’s DIY debut, and that rough sound completely paves the way for the energetic, catchy songwriting that appears on the hugely successful Nevermind. The critical success of the bold Loveless was attributed to MBV’s innovative techniques in the studio, which began during the making of their debut, Isn’t Anything. However, while it’s unarguable how important Isn’t Anything was for MBV’s development, it’s no secret that it is vastly inferior to its successor. Yes it paved the way for Loveless to come, but that paving job was very messy and spotty. It did a good enough job to get MBV to the place where they could record an album as bold as Loveless, but where Bleach’s quality very much led into Nevermind’s, I wouldn’t say the same for Isn’t Anything to Loveless. Loveless improves on every single aspect of Isn’t Anything, right down to the last detail. I believe the most important aspect of MBV’s music is the balance in their mix. One thing that’s abundantly clear off the get go is how the album’s more lo-fi sound does it a huge disservice. The vocals on Loveless are one with the instrumentals; a wall of sound that INCLUDES the vocals, almost to the point where it’s hard to differentiate what are voices and what are instruments. Here, the vocals are awkwardly placed ON TOP of the instrumentals, and it makes for an album that comes across very amateurish and just not that pleasant to listen to. Not to mention, the songwriting just isn’t that good either. I will give the band credit tho, they experimented with some very bold styles and that surely contributed to the album’s extremely spotty quality, as well as the fact that, again, without it, we would have never gotten the MBV albums to follow. As it stands tho, Isn’t Anything is…well…isn’t anything special

I tried, I really did, but it was fucking awful. They didn't sound very competent on their instruments at all, and vocally it was like someone mumbling through their sleeve. I have a strong feeling this is entirely the sound they are going for - and if it is, they absolutely nailed it - but it's got no musical merit in my world.

Thank you for inventing shoegaze. Nice to listen in Oct.

Meh.

Really cool album. Sounds like it basically set the blueprint for Swervedriver to continue this sound. Very cool effects throughout it. I should definitely revisit

Really boring

Hmm... Ik haalde dit door elkaar met Bullet for my valentine wat een hardrock/metalband is. Had ik achteraf ook op gehoopt, want dit is echt ontzettend saai... Ik weet niet, de lyrics kan ik niet verstaan, het word muzikaal voor mij nogal snel 1 brei aan gitaren. Word hier gewoon niet echt wild van ofzo, dat ik denk dat dit echt een sterk album is. Ben wel weer toe aan een spannend album! FAVO: When you awake you're still in a dream

A dry run for the magnum opus and while I think I like much of it, especially the back half, it lacks an urgency in the vocals I enjoy and yeah I know that's the point.

Would love to give this a 5 because I love the band, but it's clear here that they aren't quite at their potential yet, but they're on their way. The jump up from this to Loveless in a few years is incredible, and there's still a handful of fantastic songs on here, but it's rough around the edges.

I just do not hear what other people hear in MBV And I especially do not hear it in this

bad

Low score for me. 2 stars

This is the second album I got from this band... at least this time, it wasn't all incomprehensible noise. There were a couple of passable tracks, but nothing worth noting. I just don't get why'd someone want to torture their ears with this constant background buzzing noise? It's so unpleasant. 2 stars

I'm the 90s I had a shitty strat, a Zoom 505 multi effects pedal and carpeted 10 inch practice amp. I would sit on the edge of my bed and wonder what it was like to be high while making noises just like this album.

Well I'm always hyped to hear this! It's not my favourite MBV, but it's still brilliant isn't it. It doesn't have quite the same warmth and wandering feel to it, a bit more rocky- which is why it's not quite a 5 for me. Still enjoy it. Catchy

Yeah this was really good, varied and enjoyable.

my first experience with my bloody valentine and i can say i am definitely intruigued. there's a bit of noise on this one but the music was interesting and i enjoyed the songwriting here. i felt like i liked the more rock-ier songs here rather than the more noisy ballads. but definitely an album i could see myself listening to again.

Alright

I didn't become aware with MBV until a decade after this album dropped. It must have been crazy for the time. I like some of the music in the heavier songs, but those vocals are hard to ignore and just plain get in the way. I wish it all sounded like (When You Wake) You're Still in a Dream. Several Girls Galore is OK too. Not too big on the rest of the album myself though.

Cripes, I like this far more than loveless! It's really good, much more so when it's weird or mellow (or both). The rockier stuff is meh, but it's odd edges are lovely.

Shoegaze is not my fave. The lack of real words and lyrics is frustrating along with the distorted instrument play. Glad the album was pretty short.

It seemed a bit odd. I do enjoy some distortion but not as much as this album.

Such a stupid, stupid album. Can’t tell what the blithering idiot who’s singing is saying (and I really don’t care after all that anyways), the instruments sound like they’re all being played wrong and out of time, and the whole experience made me feel nothing but frustration and annoyance. Maybe there’s a reason nobody had never made music like this before, it’s cause it sucks, is boring, uninteresting, and vague. Stupid album that never should have been on the list and I never want to hear again.

shoegazing?? if this is a good example of it, then I'm not a fan. couldn't understand lyrics, and sounds are just weird. didn't get it at all-too much distortion & reverb

Why is this on here? Very bland

Ok

I swear I was paying attention. But there's not a single piece of the album I remember. I listened to it half an hour ago, and I couldn't hum any of it, or recite a lyric, or anything. This album went right through me.

How did I not know about that band? They're pretty original. The recording feels quite off yet quite right at the same time. 3.75

The songwriting is not as deft here as it would be on Loveless, but you can still hear the direction they were trying to go.

I’ve listened to Loveless many times and think it’s great, but I can’t recall ever listening to MBV’s debut. I also think it’s great, perhaps a little less explosive-ear-candy than Loveless, but it’s a fantastic sounding record that is probably best suited for listening on vinyl with great headphones or a killer sound system. Unfortunately I listened on Spotify; it still sounds great but left me wanting a high fidelity listening experience. I’ll be sure to make that happen in the future, and I did my best to rate it based on what I’d think if I had it ready to listen in high fidelity. The wall of guitars on Loveless is here as well, maybe in a more primitive state. The drums are high in the mix and are effective at punctuating the arrangements throughout. I can’t make out a single lyric, which bothers some people but to me it makes the music more ethereal and mysterious.

So many of my friends in college loved this post punk mid 80s late 80s raw sound. I guess I prefer a bit more refinement and still due to this day.

3.70 rym non il mio

very good, liked to first one of the list best, but still good!

I'm starting to think I'm not a good reviewer. Seeing how some people had so much to say about this album, and wrote lengthy paragraphs. Maybe it's winter where they are? Not sure what shoegazing is, but feel like Al Bundy probably did a lot of it. Very surprised this was released in 1988. Sounded newer for sure. Not a overly optimistic newer, just an observation. It was interesting from that perspective l, but didn't consider it an everyday listen. 2.4 & not worthy of rounding up to three.

I like this one. It’s weird, it’s loud, it’s not like anything on the radio but in familiar ways. Keep an open mind or do some drugs before this one.

Didn’t set my world on fire.

my first intro to shoegaze was ingeresting the layering and dream like atmosphere

Lots of noise, and I normally like noise.... One of those bands that you are supposed to like, but I'm not feeling the love...

It's fine. I found it very hard to listen to this album while driving on the highway -- all the white noise from the road blended with the white noise from the album. I had to have a quiet setting to listen to the noise :-) When I did, the music was OK but didn't really stand out.

I can see the elements that I enjoyed about Loveless, but they just don't coalese in the same way.

Just dissonant fuzz rock that I wasn't really in the mood for. There were maybe 1 or 2 decent enough songs on here, but the rest was barely listen-able.

Isn't Anything is the debut studio album by My Bloody Valentine, originally released in 1988. This is certainly a debut. It's unpolished and rough around the edges. But it's a start. You can see how their sound would come into fruition a few years later. They were definitely more influenced by Sonic Youth on this record. It also enters some drone territory at times which was pretty cool.

There were a couple of tracks I really enjoyed. But ultimately the album turned into something that was aurally uninteresting to me. 3/5

Boring, common, poorly mixed, and with weak singing.

I feel like I’ve heard My Bloody Valentine being regarded quite highly, but I must admit that I don’t quite understand why, at least not judging from this album. I think ‘(When you wake) You’re still in dream’ is quite a kickass song, but found it really hard to find anything else that could even be considered decent. I enjoy other shoegaze bands like Slowdive, but this didn't even come close to that. They have quite a lot of out of tune things and various noises in their tracks, and it doesn’t work that well in my opinion. The first track on the album is a good example of this, so is ‘No more sorry’ and ‘All I need’. I recognize that there is something there that has something, but I just think this isn’t for me at all. Strong 1.

With risk for sounding old: It's just noise. Didn't like this, tuneless, meandering fuzz.

Dynamic, eclectic, diverse, an excellent bridge between the alterna-80s and the shoegazey-90s. There are bands I have a greater emotional attachment to, but in terms of inventiveness and technical skill, these guys are way up there.

Not bad. But they’d go on to do better.