Reviews (page 6 of 7)
Not quite the Pixies but still very enjoyable.
Strange ride. The first couple songs were pretty fun. Then it settled into a bunch of songs that made me think he was trying to be Lou Reed -- but not very successfully. Then he was trying to be Lou Reed -- rather successfully! Finally he settled into some more poppy punk from 18-21 that was fun. Ultimately, I can't shake the impression that this is a too-long album made by a guy who's convinced everything he writes is great stuff. And he's right only part of the time.
Nothing special for me.
Overall OK
Pretty good, although too long. Some judicious editing of tracks would have created a tighter, more powerful album. That said, none of the tracks are bad, it's just that there are only a minority that are very good/excellent/essential.
This is such a fascinating collection of tracks. Some punk, some ballads, some arena rock. I genuinely didn't know what to expect when the next song started, and that went on for all of the record's TWENTY-TWO tracks! I didn't love everything that was here but it was all executed so effortlessly that it all fit together well. I'll need to revisit to pick out my favorites, this is my first Frank Black experience and it will definitely have me exploring more.
Pretty good in places
pretty damn punky. Abstract Pain sounds kinda familiar. Overall this sounds harder than Pixies.
Surprised by some of the tracks. Good for background
Ich bin positiv überrascht. Ihm fällt songschreiberisch und was die Arrangements angeht immer was ein.
Un album correct qui ne m’a rien insoire. Je l’ai trouve un peu long et repetitif. 3
Nastolatek roku chyba nie mogl gorzej trafic, bo bezposrednio po doorsach i nowhere od ride, bo w porownaniu do poprzednich albumow strasznie wynudzony material, nawet nie wynudzony, ale zbyt rozciagniety, teenager of the year to drugi album w solowej dyskografii franka blacka, ktory bardziej jest chyba znany jako frontmen pixies, wiec sam pan frank byl jednym z sztandarowych pionierow alternatywnego rocka, jego surrealistyczne teksty polaczone z jeszcze dziwniejszymi zachowaniami na wokalu byly jednymi z najwazniejszych rzeczy wyrozniajacych pixies, a co z tego zostalo na teenagerze, ktorego slysze pierwszy raz, z pewnoscia teksty tak niezrozumiale, ze jedynie z geniusem ma sens proba ich interpretacji, dziwne wokale rowniez zostaly jak byly, ale wydaje mi sie, ze tutaj jest o wiele wiecej spiewania lub prob spiewania, a u pixiesow to bylo raczej na zasadzie pan franciszko wyje morde, a pani kim robi za spiewaka bandy, tego aspektu mi tutaj najbardziej brakowalo, material nie jest az tak bardzo eksperymentalny jesli chodzi o wykorzystanie overdrivow czy przestrojen, a slychac bardziej indyjskie granie w ktorym slychac inspumenty i mozna powiedziec, tutaj jest elektryk, tam akustyk, tutaj jakis bongos, najwiekszym problemem jest tu jednak natlok trakow, bo na ponad godzinnym materiale jest ich 22, co nie daje zbyt duzego czasu na kompozycje, a daje okazje do stworzenia 22 kawalkow o wszystkim i niczym, ktorych wspolnym mianownikiem jest sci fi, moze do tego sie odnosi sie tytul albumu nastolatek roku, bo jednak fantastyka naukowa to jeden z najpopularniejszych gatunkow tej kategorii wiekowej wsrod czytaczy, a zeby pokazac jak plyta jest bardzo o wszystkim i niczym wystarczy spojrzec na pierwszy kawalek, ktory traktuje o pongu, czyli gierce w komputr z czasow starozytnych, lata 70, drugi utwor z listy trakowej thalassocracy czyli dyskus na temat morskich stworow, no i nastepny (I want to live on an) abstract plain, ktorego tytul juz wystarczajaco zdradza kontent liryczny, czwarty calistan, a wiec hymn poswiecony kalifornii, opowiadajacy o jej brudach i pieknosciach, fajowe slowotworstwo, jesli chodzi o tytul kawalka, jak na pana blacka przystalo, no i tak by mozna wymieniac do 22 traka, a nie bedzie kawalka takiego samego, tylko ze brakuje spojnosci, nie pomaga w tym z pewnoscia 15 osobowa grupa inzynierow i 3 leadowe gitarki na roznych trakach, czuje jakby jedynym elementem ktory gra wystarczajaco dobrze na kazdym traku sa klawisze, czasem dosc mocno snthowe, ale nie rozumiem o co chodzi z tym tlumem na produkcji, dobre kawalki z ktorych powstal sredni album, na plejke wrzuce juz opisanego calistana i headache za referencje do space oddity bowiego
In a decade where grunge and alternative rock dominated the scene, Frank Black keeps to his roots and delivers an album that is full on punk. Sure, it's got some dated sounds from the time, but it is full of energy, gnarly sounding guitars, and manic singing. Honestly, this was my first listen of a solo Frank Black album, and I'm not totally engrossed in The Pixies to know how this holds up, but I know I liked it. The production is pretty consistent, if sometimes bare, and it could have been trimmed up a little bit to make the track list a little more tight, but it's still a great hour of fun. Favorite Songs: Headache, Fiddle Riddle Least Favorite: Thalassocracy
Far more mainstream than Pixies. Listenable, but not as edgy or dark as Pixies.
Although not originally well-received, the record is now widely praised by both critics and fans.[15] This album is often cited as the high-point of Francis' post-Pixies catalogue,[15][11][1] and was named on Pitchfork's "Top 100 Albums of the 1990s".
this is like, so bad that it's so good. It's a grungy mess but so fun to listen to
Ok
Expected it to be like Pixies and it was but maybe subconsciously or not, can’t get away from it not being pixies. Some good tracks here nothing blew me away. The album cover is creepy as fuck.
I thought I would enjoy this more than I did. It was meh.
A good listen. Nothing earth shattering. Just a master at the helm enjoying his craft.
Surprisingly liked more than I thought
So I had pixies earlier this week. I didn't hate that album but didn't love it either. Exact same reaction to this. It's fine, highlight track is headache
Some standouts but…only some
Weird post punk. Strange but cool vocals.
Another album that doesn’t ping my buttons, some ‘good’ tunes but another one that isn’t gonna have me running around to buy. Bang average.
One of the early solo efforts from the lead singer of the Pixies. This album blends rock, punk, and singer-songwriter musings and angst.
A lot of good melodies and some upbeat boys. The song lengths felt a bit short and underdeveloped, but it was fun to listen to. Fav Song: Thalassocracy
Slowly grew on me but just way too many tracks and ultimately ends up feeling baggy. Best track: Fiddle Riddle
better than i expected, but there was far too much of it. if it was cut down to 10 songs this would have been a really very good album, but instead my ears got a bit deaf to it after a while and i couldn't be arsed to pay any attention to it. the very nature of a solo album from someone in a good band is more often than not a vanity project and it loses its way as they feel their self importance about how they have to explore their inner feelings goes into overdrive. with no creative assistance they shit out a load of substandard stuff that to them is important and it ends up being recorded because no one told them it was a bit bobbins and that their efforts would be better used refining the good stuff. shame, potentially this was really good but i'm a bit let down.
All very enjoyable but bloated and suffers for it - some tracks ahead of anything the pixies did
Ah, lead singer of The Pixies. Makes sense. Decent, don't hate it but don't LOVE it.
Quite nice, yet just a tad below excellence.
I like this fine. Sounds VERY 90s to me. I mean it is from the 90s, but the whole time I was listening it felt like I was being hit over the head with the 90s, if that makes sense.
I like the energy of this album. I knew the Pixies but not well enough to know the band members' names. 22 songs is a lot. Having guest lead guitarists on almost all of tracks 15 - 22 gives badly needed wild cards to make the length more manageable and makes the second half of the album more interesting musically. The lead work on Pie in the Sky is reminiscent of Earl Slick. I quite like this LP musically. I might have got to a four but on the few tracks I paid attention to the lyrics, the lyrics were shall we say juvenile.
Surprisingly pleasant
Stevige rock. Sommige nummers zijn wel goed maar er is ook veel chaotische muziek
Meh, nothing stands out really but its a decent sound throughout. Nothing too great nothing too bad. The lots of short tracks at least keeps it interesting
The album was too long and not as good as his albums with Pixies. It did have some good songs on it, though.
Is not bad but I don't have patience to listen to it carefully.
Frank sure knows how to crank out the songs! After the first two, I didn't know if I was going to be able to handle it, but then he started mixing things up, with a few that reminded me of the Pixies hits and I enjoyed. I like his song-writing, he keeps things within a defined parameter but the songs are catchy and diverse enough to make it interesting. He modifies his singing style too, so you can listen to him for 22 songs. I couldn't find my Monkey Gone to Heaven but this will get better with repeated listening.
Vocals are great, punchy songwriting. A pretty good record.
I'm getting a whole lot of Thurston Moore vibes here.
Decent, but it's no pixies. I can see why headache was the single.
This was pretty good. I will definitely listen again. Quite a bit a variety and some cool tunes along the way.
I had a review for this at one point but it got eaten up and deleted. Overall, just wasn't my vibe. A few good tunes, but nothing too special. My favorite part was the album cover and title, which made me expect some different sounds.
It definitely feels like a Pixies album, with all their surf-influenced punk sound to it. Whether that's a good thing or not will depend on your taste. To my ears, it's just fine and it's way too long.
Was ok, a lil boring - bit like the pixies
Nothing too outstanding!
This album was also surprisingly good. This list is killing it right now. I just don't know if I can give it a 4 though.
It's like They Might Be Giants went punk.
I’ll admit I didn’t get through the whole thing. I enjoyed some tracks more than others. I heard some Jeff Rosenstock-esque ska and punk on a couple songs. I wish it had been half as long, even though the songs were short. Generally enjoyable and I liked it more than I thought, given I didn’t know anything about it.
Very dull album, there's a lot of songs that didn't seem very interesting, pretty boring, however it starts to sounds good and it ends pretty good
p good
demasiadas canciones y casi todas iguales es un 2.8. con menos canciones tal vez un 3.5
Maximalist indie with a lot going on but I couldn't help feeling Frank's vocal was the weak link. Also despite everything, I didn't find much to latch on to
its a 2.5/5 sorry frank, sir rockaby is really good! Very few of the songs ended in a place where I felt much from them. There are a ton of moments that were great but they're scattered into songs that cherish them for far too short. I just dont think I get this album, sorry for yuckin yalls yum. It feels like a half-baked Ween album.
Overall I'd still rather listen to Surfer Rosa or Doolittle but by the end I didn't hate it I guess.
Had its moments, kinda meander-y
The cover to this album always bothered me. Today I learned Frank Black is the lead singer of the pixies, cool! This was pretty cool and definitely ahead of its time. There were some sounds in here I would have expected to hear in the late 90s, not in 94.
It’s still good, still Pixies-y, but holy, 22 songs is a lot. Solid record if the track list was cut in half.
ugh
This is an alternative album from the mid-90's. It's not terribly interesting. Pitchfork: n/a Rolling Stone: n/a
This album list changed how I felt about The Pixies, but I really didn’t like this as much as I’d hoped
Быт отвердевшего рокера. Изначальное описание - спокойный и трезвый мерелин Мэнсон научил Кобейна вокалу - показалось чересчур интересным моему другу, а данная рецензия должна описывать противоположное или хотя бы более сдержанное мнение. Назвать этот альбом скучным сложно в любом случае ростки драйва и движения есть, но ощущение что тучный человек хочет танцевать и устает после 3-4 движений. Весь альбом пропитан "инфантильными" семплами, ощущение плюшевости и может быть старых диснеевских мультиков не будет покидать на протяжении всего альбома. Это может понравится но не в таком исполнении и подаче. Мне не хватило как будто всего. Рецензия короткая получилась но зато точная и четкая,ровно так как я хотел описать данный альбом оценка 4,5/10.
Nothing against Frank it just wasn’t a vibe
Hadn’t heard of Frank before. Not sure I’ll be seeking out the rest of his work.
Never have been a great fan of The Pixies, and this hasn't altered my view.
The wrong side of the alternative line
it's like the Pixies but without the good bits
Started out promisingly enough with some jagged, chaotic energy to the playing for the first couple of tracks, however I quickly lost interest in what followed and it's far too long.
2 zvjezdice za ove 22 bezvezne pjesme, mislim da je fer. Ne razumijem poentu ni Pixies ni njega samog, možda mi treba vremena a možda je samo bezveze.
Por momentos insoportable, por momentos bien. 2/5
Sounds like a lot of alt rock form the era, nothing special.
Everything about this record is fine without being great. Right from the first few tracks I knew that this was going to be bang average, and it's left me baffled as to how it made the 1001 best albums of all time list. The music is completely lacking of any edge or intrigue, and as a result by the time you hit the second half of the album it becomes extremely boring. 4/10.
Never been a fan. Spending 1h on this was not nice. In all fairness, the music is not bad, it's just boring after a while. 2.5
A total slog. The enjoyable bits (few and far between) were drowned out by the sheer length of this album.
I bought this when it came out never warmed up to it.
Need a to listen to again, but moving swiftly on for now
Här finns några guldkorn som Headache, Abstract plain och Sir Rockaby. Alla med väldigt snygga melodier. Men här finns också mycket som bara pågår. Väldigt lång skiva. I alla fall räknat i antal låtar.
Ordinär college-rock. Jag tröttnar efter 10 låtar. På tok för långt. Svag tvåa.
I think I've heard a few tracks on this here and there, otherwise not too familiar with the solo career of Black Francis (or rather, Frank Black). Despite the fact that this album runs for over an hour and features some variety, there weren't many strong standouts. You do hear remnants of the Pixies which is nice at times, but still few and far inbetween. "Headache" was really the only highlight.
Not for me, too much whatever it is
Not for me this one
It's a shame the singer of this album is the singer of this album. I think this would be phenomenal with a different set of vocal chords. This feels very 90s era background music to alternative grunge coming of age movies.
This sounds very much like it was released in 1994. Crazy grunge harmonica?? "I'll play some pachinko, I play parcheezy" killed me I'm vibing but it's very much like I'm listening to whyte music "Two Reelers" gave me anxiety "Fiddle Riddle" felt like a hate crime Your favorite garage band can't nail a sub genre The longer the album goes on, I feel like I'm actually listening to a film soundtrack but I also don't know what that movie would be.
Blends a lot of genres without being overcomplicated. Very "90s". The lyrics are all over the place which is both good and bad. Just makes it weird. Can't rate this high because as an album it's not good. Too many forgettable songs and not enough memorable songs.
Totally fine
- I expected to be annoyed by this album based on the album cover, and I was! - very long and not very vibey - there were a few fun instrumentals - probably won’t listen again
I appreciate that some people enjoy this album but I am just not there. The instrumental work is shoved to the background so we can listen to fairly unpleasant melodies. Guitar is nice when they use it though Highlights: "Sir Rockaby", "Freedom Rock", "Olé Mulholland"
I was not in the mood for this.
Gear: Grado Hemp Artwork: 🤴🌹⬜ Production (2025 Remaster): 📈👂😖 Music: ⏳📏😐 Rating: 👑👑/5
Not very interesting
After The Pixies had officially split in 1991 after the band's fourth album Trompe le Monde and the permenant leave of bassist Kim Deal, Black Francis, or in this case Black Frank, wasted no time working on carving out a nice solo discography for himself. I am not going to say nothing notable ever came out of Frank's solo discography, but it isn't nearly on the same level as anything The Pixies ever did during their hayday. This project overloads anyone looking for more of that Black Frank writing with an album full of 22 different Alt Rock songs to feed upon. It sucks that for as much as this album has quantity, there really isn't a lot of quality here. A lot of the songs here feel very same-y and it doesn't help that Frank wants to stick in his specific lane and perfect the sound instead of experimenting more like he really should have. Even for a diehard Pixies fan like myself, this album was a lot to get through. I emplore any of you to not feel the burnout by the end of this project because I had to start and stop this thing multiple times to not get tired of it all. The runtime of 1 hour and 2 minutes isn't even necessarily that long but it feels so much longer due to the one-noted approach to this project. Maybe some of y'all will get a bigger kick out of Teenager of the Year than myself but I personality was expecting a lot more for the one solo Black Frank project that seems to get any sort of recognition.
Nope, Kinda feel like I'm playing Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2. But a cheap knockoff version.
Didn’t do tons for me. I mean, it’s no pixies. All and all can only go 2.3.
Didn’t finish it. Too loudy. I don’t like people screaming thinking they are cool.
During the first song, I googled “Can listening to Frank Black cause self harm”. During the second song, I also put, “Is causing self harm justified while listening to Frank Black.” Then, the third song was pretty good, so I calmed down a bit. This was the definition of an experimental, banger or buns album. Overall, I’d give it a 2.5/5! 😟
Doesn’t really come close to his work with Pixies. Forgettable 90s alt rock.
I don't get it
Lots of musical ideas all smashed together to see what sticks
Most of it was terrible, there were some songs that sounded like the black keys. Smooth and cool, but the rest? Chaotic brainrot
Half of the songs on here sounded like a comedy rock group's impression of Britpop before it ever came out, and the rest was so bland and generic it left absolutely no impression on me whatsoever. Average as fuck to the point of mediocrity.
Some of this is fine, but a lot of it sounds like an uninspired cover band. The vocals feel lazy and end up dragging down tracks that might’ve worked with stronger delivery. It also feels unnecessarily long—22 tracks stretching over an hour is a bit much, and it really starts to wear you down.
Very forgettable
Jeg sprang hurtigt over så kan ikke give det en ærlig rating - meget alternativ rock
Double albums are hard for me. Probably some good songs here, but a lot of it I found to be boringly competent mid tempo rock. Perhaps this is what wowie Zowie would sound like minus the weed. Could probably be a great single record, but I didn’t finish the back half.
It’s okay. No real standout songs but the playing is good. 2.5/5 Probably won’t listen again
This is a group of talented musicians having fun together. Every song is solid. I like that the styles vary and yet they all still blend well enough into a album. At the same time, none of them stick out to me as something I need to hear ever again.
Headache
I do not understand how this made it onto the list. Didn’t make my ears bleed but was just meh.
This album is CHAOTIC. I was surprised I didn't hate it considering it had involvement from Pere Ubu, who still made the worst album I've ever heard. This album didn't blow me away, but it was strong. It was long and was pretty repetitive, but solid. When isolated, his voice isn't the best. Actual rating...2.5 Liked Songs: "Whatever Happened to Pong?" , "(I Want to live on An) Abstract Plain" , "The Vanishing Spies" , "Speedy Marie" , "Freedom Rock" , "Fiddle Riddle" , "I Could Stay Here Forever" , "The Hostess with the Mostest" , "Pure Denizen of the Citizens Band" , "Bad, Wicked World" , "Pie in the Sky"
A bit chaotic, random mix of styles and structures. At least a quarter of the 22 (!) tracks sound like demos that add nothing to the album
Feels like he's searching for a new sound. Ends up sounding generic most of the time.
2.5
2.5 revisit
This album could've been an EP. Overall just kinda long and not my taste. Headache goes crazy though.
Rating: 5/10 Some songs are good, some are annoying, as a whole package it leads to a pretty alright geeky 90’s alt rock album and there’s many other options of artists similar to solo Frank Black that I would prefer to listen to. The length and track list weren’t too bloated considering it has 22 songs but only 63 minutes long, not the worst average double album that one has to sit through.
This was a hard one to score for me. There’s enough songs I enjoyed to give it three but on the flip side it dragged on way too long. I was genuinely bored by the end.
Not that good
Aside from Lyle Workman's guitar playing on some of the tracks (and I'm not going to listen to this again to remind myself which ones), this burbles below the crest of mediocrity.
ik ben best wel een pixies fan, maar solo is frank black toch echt een uitdaging
Starts with a bang. Exciting guitar and sounding like an alternative rock Weezer. However it starts to get bogged down and samey with less rock and more pop. Also it's way too long?? Could have been good.
There were a few songs I did like from this one, but I would’ve expected to like more from an album that’s an hour long with 22 songs. The singer reminds me of Lou Reed, and the style at times was a bit like The Kinks. I think I liked most things about the album except for the songs themselves. Some just went nowhere and others fell flat.
Pretty average rock imo. Mostly back ground noise for me. The teenager of the year looks a little old.
Meh
Nicht sher störend, aber ich werd's wohl nie wieder hören...
Has the same vibe as welcome to the black parade
What the hell? Seine Stimme ist spannend, aber ist gar nicht so meine Musikrichtung. Gibt mir 2000er Teeniefilm Malcome Mittendrin vibes. Viele Songs hörten sich ähnlich an.
Bloated and one note
A couple days ago I listened to 1.5 hours of https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=pKQp61e94VE, and it was magnitudes more enjoyable than this album's 3rd part. Rest of it was ok though
didn't love this, not my genre/era I suppose
Nothing offensive about this but nothing all that special either. Nothing that makes me want to come back to this with any urgency. 2.5
This album is often described as the high point of Frank Black’s post Pixies career. Sadly that bar isn’t very high.
Back to back yuck.
Avant gard jazz punk, not sure about this one
Boring
Meh, I don’t love it. Never was a big Pixies fan either so there you go.
Average as hell. There's some good slop on here, but ultimately I just feel like Black Francis needed to be pulled back by a full band at times. (Early) Pixies is great but I have never been into his solo work.
A very weird album
Weird, didn't like this.
I don't like him with this kind of early 90s rock.
Mostly not totally terrible, but I really don't understand starting an album with the to worst, and least representative songs on it.
More artists need someone to tell them "hey maybe 23 songs is too many for one album, maybe split it into 2 with separate release dates?" cause man this thing is bloated. Some good stuff here and there but nothing really memorable and I think the length has something to do with that. Split it into two and do a sort of release like SOAD did with Mezmerize and Hypnotize and I think you've got two decent albums instead of one that feels like a slog.
There’s a good album in there. If you cut 45%.
Day 107 Had never heard this album before despite Pixies albums being in regular rotation. Honestly didn’t find it anything special and could definitely have lost a good third of the tracks on here for a lot tighter album. 5/10 Highlights Calistan Headache
man, what a forgetful fucking album brother. idk who this fella is or if he's important but i can tell you he's good at making stuff that's "okay enough" to sit through before putting on something impactful. 2/5
Not terrible, but also not that good.
Not a Pixies fan and not keen on this. I just don't like Frank Blacks voice.
Surprisingly good
Liked the song Speedy Marie.
This album is too complicated to review in one listen. There is stuff I like. and there is stuff I probably don't like. And there is stuff that I don't like that i will probably like if I listen a couple of times.
Didn't know what to expect from the cover... it wasn't that. Why was it a double album, just noise, that was done much better before
Got boring
Not much to say about it, just felt very generic overall.
Co to w ogóle było? Za długie, miałkie i z kilkoma chwytliwymi kawałkami. Pozbawione sensu, polotu, wagi. Nie rozumiem co ta płyta robi na tej liście. Tak, da się ją słuchać i nawet uszy nie krwawią, ale sam bezsens tego tworu sprawia, że daję mu 4.5/10 równane w dół.
Nothing horrible, but really nothing that made me pay attention either, or anything that I would particularly want to pay attention to if I were to listen to this again. The combination of the album’s length and the short songs made the whole experience feel disjointed and unfinished to me.
A little bit too loud and chaotic
Ummm, vaguely interesting. There's probably something about it that I just didn't get; it seemed like kinda middling punk. Quality work, for sure, but doesn't seem super special.
Chiant à la longue
I didn't really find this interesting at all
sitting through two 1 stars where one was only noise and angry screams might make this sound way better than if i had heard this first. His voice can be a bit anoying at parts but for the most part it is well written but way too long i think
Way too long, more misses than hits.
Like the Pixies…some good stuff with a lot of mediocre.
I like Pixies, I do not like this nearly as much. Frank is much better in that band than he is here.
18/10/2025
Rather liked the snappy start but it settled into something pretty MOR for the alt rock world
Never been a fan of the Pixies, never likely to be, nor of Frank Black whose vocals do very little for me. The album itself is perfectly listenable 90s alt-rock and the first half of the album is decent enough. However, I struggle with unnecessarily long albums and at over an hour and 22 songs I found it tiresome. You need a good reason to go that long and if it's The Wall...fine, but Frank Black ain't Pink Floyd. Top Track = Speedy Marie
Appreciate the contributions to the genre.
Hmmmm. Hm hm hmmm. It oscillates between moments of imaginative creativity and moments of dull nothingness. “Abstract Plain” brings up the first instance of a recurring theme that Frank is really trying for a voice that sounds a bit like Tom Petty at times. “Sir Rockaby” was a much needed moment of more quiet instrumentation that I really enjoyed. “Freedom Rock” might be my pick on the album for an emotive vocal performance. “Two Reelers” flies off the handle and it’s quite a fun listen. Same can be said for “Ole Mullholland”. Every song not mentioned was just another passing rock song though, which got a bit hard to get through after a while. Unsure if this is a 2 star or 3 star album.
A lot of solid rock songs. For my ears not one uncomfortable sound. But the album doesn’t seem to be curated - he went all in. Less would be more here. Could be an interesting short album with a careful selection of songs and song fragments. Like this it’s nothing outstanding and never ending.
Ni puta idea de este señor. Es un sonido que no molesta, pero no es gran cosa. Suena débil para el estilo de la época.
Not my cup of tea back then, even less so nowadays, but still better than a lot of this grandiose list.
This album is... competent? But nothing outstanding. Probably would have loved it if I discovered it as a 10 YO. Instead, I found The Offspring.
I found this album very bland with nothing that really stood out. I listened to it again, and it grew on me somewhat, but not enough to recommend it.
No!, first track is awful, it gets better but not enough for me to listen twice
About halfway through and I think I got the point about 15 minutes ago.
Alright, but went on for too long
A bad day to have ears.
why would you ever listen to this instead of Weezer?
Looks like the sort of person who would name the album this.
I had no idea who this was before today. I will now forget this album.
"I'm not black like Barry White, no, I am white like Frank Black is" ~ Bloodhound Gang. I never knew who Frank Black was outside of hearing his name in that one random lyric. Now I do. The music is just there. It's nothing groundbreaking, and it doesn't try to be unique or get your attention in any substantial way. It just exists. It's not terrible music, but it's not good either. I think 2 stars is appropriate here. "Headache" will go on the playlist as the only viable song from this album to do so.
62 minutes? Who the fuck thought that was a good idea? Not very punk is it? Just because you have CD technology it doesn’t mean you have to use the full data does it? This is more or less OK. Sort of. It feels a little indulgent at times and doesn’t really hang together. I suspect that’s primarily the length: a producer who could make some decisions could probably trim this by 20 minutes and I suspect it would be a better album. Certainly tripe like Fiddle Riddle could be cut and the world would be a better place. The best thing I heard whilst playing this was the new Idlewild single. I forgot that I’d added it to the queue and was thinking “oh, this has picked up” when I realised it wasn’t actually what I was supposed to be listening to. This isn’t offensive, but there’s just too much of it and it isn’t interesting enough. And it’s a mess in places. Ultimately, this is only on this list because he used to be in Pixies. I was wondering about three stars, but it’s too boring for that and not bad enough for one.
Has more songs than London Calling, just to name one classic double album, yet very few songs on this would be worthy of being on that masterpiece.
Alternative Rock album, which leads by a good force of rock but only fragments of each song feel interesting.
FIddle Riddle als random reggae nummer? En daarvoor een soort punkrock nummer? Frank laat zich in elk geval niet in 1 hokje duwen. "Its not just a phase mom!!!!" Maar mijn god, wat een lange zit weer. Het hele album duur ff ruim een uur maar voelt veel langer door het veranderen van genre en het grote aantal nummers(22) En eerlijk? zo goed is Frank dan toch niet. Veel is een beetje mwah, en ik kan me niet helemaal duidelijk krijgen waarom dit een album is dat ik absoluut heb moeten luisteren voor ik dood ga. Misschien gezien de diversiteit? Oh wacht, het is de frontman van een bekende punkrock band. Aaaaaah, ja dan is dit natuurlijk automatisch een must listen... Nope, niet voor mij, het begon geinig, maar het heeft matige Reggae nummers en niet genoeg leuke poprock nummers om het naar een 3 te halen, dit is onder gemiddeld en zeker niet ruim een uur leuk. FAVO: Headache, Freedom Rock
I'm sure if I had listened to this at a certain point in my life that it might have gripped me but today it's just mostly bleh.
Highly underwhelming
Great rock albums can shine so bright because there is a plethora of mediocricy throughout the genre. This album is a great example of the latter.
I think this is good but for some reason I was really annoyed it didn’t end sooner than it did
Proof that Pixies were not a one man band.
not bad, but mediocre picks: headache, abstract pain the picks sum up the album lol
Boring, generic rock. Didn’t finish the album. Wouldn’t listen again
This album started off way too punky for my taste, but it changed a bit in tone as it went on to my personal liking.
I don't think this guy is a teenager
Not something I’d listen to again, but it was ok
What you get if you take the most braindead hardcore music and then distill all the hardcore from it? First two songs The rest is unremarkable
It wasnt bad, but a bit all over the place. Sometimes punk, sometimes had a country twang.
I'll admit I went through a 'judged it by it's cover' thing here, and that's not to say I thought I'd hate it and I loved it, more that I thought it'd be worse than it was. The pleasure of that surprise had melted away by the end of the overly long run time.
Another ‘why is this on here album’ I guess
For being an hour long, it was surprisingly well paced.
In a nutshell: thoroughly unremarkable. This is more of a sidestep from Frank's work with the Pixies than a leap forward. Not a unique sound. The first word that came to mind was Morrissey for some reason. Points for short songs, but should have kept the album under 40 minutes. Overall: 3/10 Overall: 3/10
Not better than any Pixies album, none of the songs really stood out to me
There is a part of me that has flicker of nostalgia for loud, screamy, slightly obnoxious punk sounds. And this album sort of took me back to that feeling of walking into a shitty grange haul, garage rock blaring, with sweaty smelly boys flailing around. And for that reason I kind of get it. Would I listen to this now on the regular? Probably not. But I can see how, at that time, it may have captured a certain kind of messy youthful energy worthy of exploring…
Ultimately this record is just boring. Which. Well it shouldn't be.
This is #day327 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge, and… apparently, three Pixies albums on this list aren't enough. I mean, if I feel like listening to Pixies, I'll go ahead and put on some Pixies, not this. A couple of good tunes here and there, otherwise an inessential record. Crazily long to boot. I'm giving it a 2 out of 5. Looking forward to #day328.
Insanely long album of decent songs that largely sound indistinguishable from one another in their alt country sensibilities. Having said that, it was a nice left turn from his usual gig with The Pixies, but none of the songs appealed to me. The album cover seems like a joke about Hole's LIVE THROUGH THIS which had been released just 1 month earlier than TEENAGER OF THE YEAR.
Very mediocre music, but at least now I know who the Bloodhound Gang are referring to in the roof is on fire song
Not for me
I didn't care for this. It felt like dirty soCal inspired rebellious rock of the 90s that would have been considered as "counterculture" for its age. He didn't strike me as a particularly talented singer nor lyricist. The album as a whole felt difficult to follow conceptually, and I can understand why people thought of rock and roll music as "from the devil" because it was quite cacophonous at times.
I did kinda like this, but not saving anything from here, so 2. It's like a 2.4.
Ik ben het er niet altijd mee eens, maar in dit geval is dit album echt te lang om in één dag echt te hebben doorgrond, dus mijn mening kan zeker nog veranderen na verdere luisterbeurten. Anyways, het album klinkt een beetje als een wat cleanere versie van een Pixies album, ansich niks mis mee. Je ziet dit wel vaker bij bands binnen dit genre (Pavement, Dinosaur Jr.), wanneer de zanger van een band solo gaat (Malkmus, Mascis respectievelijk) en voor mij is het resultaat dan vaak hetzelfde; wellwritten songs met een goede zanger (dat Frank een goede stem heeft staat buiten kijf), maar ondertussen zou ik liever naar het betere werk van de bands luisteren. Ik denk dat ik dit album wel nog vaker ga aanzetten, omdat het af en toe best een ruig randje leek te hebben en het klonk wel lekker, maar (o.a. door de lengte & gelimiteerde tijd) ik zou niet direct een specifiek nummer kunnen noemen waar dat echt lekker naar voren komt. Het album komt op een lange lijst te staan met 'nog te luisteren, maar zonder urgentie' en als ik er dan weer een keer voor ga zitten, zal het me hoogstwaarschijnlijk positief verrassen. Voor nu vond ik het een beetje te langdradig met weinig meteen opvallende nummers.
Ik vond het wel een grappig albumpje voor een keertje luisteren, maar veeeeel te lang en ik had niet direct dat een aantal nummers echt bij zijn gebleven, vandaar ook deze korte review.
Hier en daar kwam er een nummer voorbij dat wat meer m'n aandacht pakte zoals Fazer Eyes, maar voor mij staat er echt veel te veel filler op dit album. Het is al niet helemaal mijn stijl maar als het een strak 10 nummer album was geweest had ik het misschien 3 ipv 2 sterren gegeven.
#608. Well, it's not the Pixies, it it? 2/5: meh
This was a weird one. It's kind of generic-sounding rock tracks with quirky lyrics. The vocals are kinda whiny. Not my favorite. There's some pretty solid guitar work throughout, but that's the only real positive I'm finding. It seems like an album full of self indulgent bullshit. The delivery of the lyrics was a real issue here. I just really don't like Black's vocal style. It's more talking at various speeds than singing. His pacing is weird and off-putting. I'd prefer to just hear the instrumental tracks without him to be honest. Standouts for me were "(I Want to Live on An) Abstract Plain," "The Vanishing Spies" "Fiddle Riddle" made me actively angry. I really didn't get this one. It meanders all over the place. It's far too long. It's spectacularly standard. The best parts were the times when Black isn't even singing. 2/5 stars. Not the absolute worst but a far cry from the best.
Da hani chli z wenig nerve zum sottig Albe durezchaue. Ned min Teenager of the year. Zwei Fetti Teenie Pickel uf de Stirn
Great line- cigarette butt beach. My favorite parts were reminiscent of the Minutemen or the Velvet Underground, but they were mainly bits of songs. Headache and Space is Gonna Do Me Good stood out as enjoyable for the entire song.
Not particularly memorable for me. Had to think for a moment if I'd even actually listened to it, which isn't really the point of this list is it.
okay album, like un finished tracks of Doolittle. 2.5
- It's ok ..... I don't think it's a release we all need to hear before we die unless you need a good example of the struggles of following up an extremely successful project with a solo effort. The writing is just not there ... it sounds like he had some ideas but really should have "spent a bit more time in the woodshed" before committing to a release .... unless he just didn't care and wanted to get this behind him. A weak 2.5 ...... -
This certainly did occur.
There's some good songs but given all comments about it, it seems to be an album of it's time. Someone that was exposed to this in 94 should be much more excited than me. Like what happens when one listens to Hootie and the Blowfish at this day and age. Not for me. But not bad either.
This album is just way too long to be playing the same song over and over again. Early on in the listen I thought "This is OK. It fits right into the decade it was released in." As I continued to listen the songs began to meld together into one long irritating blur with the same high-pitched vocal and I definitely soured quickly. This is 150% a filler album for this list. It has no significance for anyone outside of a Pixies fan.
Tallentes dude, but not my favorite …prob needs another listen
Some ok songs b ut not my style.
Didnt care for it. Loud backround band
So so
I love the Pixies, but do not like Francis without them. Stupid side project. 2/5
Not for me. Thanks though
Not really my thing.
Meh.
From the Wikipedia, "Although not originally well-received, the record is now widely praised by both critics and fans." Personally, there are about 3 decent songs in there.
This is essentially a Pixies album by their lead singer, doing Pixies stuff: American alt-Rock by the numbers. Quite boring, really. And much too long at that. 2/5
90s pop punk, playful but also a bit boring
I quite like the music, but not fussed on the vocals. Wouldn't particularly want to listen to it again.
Not a big fan, but wasn’t the worst thing I’ve heard today. Sorta like a meal for the sake of eating…joyless but necessary.
2.5
Way too long and pretty boring
Thought this was gonna be punk, but it settled into a chill album. This album feels like an early 00's album even though it's from '94. I know that's not so far ahead of its time, but maybe it was a bit of an influence. Oh nvm it keeps going back to punk-adjacent. Too long for being so mid. I didn't enjoy this, but I don't think it was bad. High 2 I guess.
Dissapointingly bloated. I guess i miss the rest of the Pixies....
Я слушал этот альбом. Было дело, да.
Couldn’t get through this album. Liked about half the tracks I got through.
Loooong! Not as good as anything he did with the Pixies. Very of its time. Wouldn’t listen to it again.
..
Yeah, I had an inkling what this was going to be like going into it, and it did not surprise me. Just like the pixies, it's okay if it's on in the background as you're doing something else, but as soon as you pay attention it's not actually worth your time.
**An ok album, too much screaming, banging, and non verbal loud noise.
Nothing of note here. Just generic below-average 90's alternative with no character.
Not really my thing.
This is an album I didn't need to hear before I die. 2* as more boring than anything else.
Na een aantal fijne luisterplaten, komt de dag dat je wist dat die zou komen. De dag dat we weer amuzikale zang moeten verwerken. Ik heb de drie albums van de Pixies gemiddeld een 2 gegeven en nu dus een solo-album van de man die die troep heeft achtergelaten. Het is sowieso te veel. Ik vind normaal een best-of-album valsspelen. Maar ik zou er nu blij mee geweest zijn. Gewoon de muzikale vondsten die er bij Franks schijven ook elke keer bij zijn (eerlijk is eerlijk) op een rij. Alle ballast over boord.
Very long. Very very long. Frank needed Rick Rubin editing this one.
Inge vidare, men inte skitkass
aggressively mediocre and unfortunately 62 minutes
Meh.
Not as memorable as when it came out
Naked, vulnerably presented, eclectic, and weird, it's interesting, but I wouldn't pick this over Doolittle. Notably, there wasn't a single song on this long album that really jumped out to me.
Si hay algo que he notado haciendo este ejercicio de la lista es que hay géneros y bandas o artistas sobrerrepresentados. Y resulta que Frank Black y el rock en general son uno de esos casos.
01) Whatever Happened to Pong? - 5,5 02) Thalassocracy - 5,5 03) (I Want to Live on an) Abstract Plain - 6,0 04) Calistan - 6,0 05) The Vanishing Spies - 6,0 06) Speedy Marie - 6,5 07) Headache - 6,5 08) Sir Rockaby - 6,0 09) Freedom Rock - 5,5 10) Two Reelers - 5,5 11) Fiddle Riddle - 6,0 12) Olé Mulholland - 6,0 13) Fazer Eyes - 6,0 14) I Could Stay Here Forever - 6,5 15) The Hostess with the Mostest - 5,5 16) Superabound - 6,0 17) Big Red - 6,0 18) Space Is Gonna Do Me Good - 5,5 19) White Noise Maker - 5,5 20) Pure Denizen of the Citizens Band - 6,0 21) Bad, Wicked World - 6,0 22) Pie in the Sky - 6,0 TOTAL: 5,91 (59/100) Current ranking: 321/397
it was okaaay its like a 2.5
Solo album by The Pixies frontman. Sounds like The Pixies with the good parts replaced by louder parts, and went on way too long. Didn’t enjoy enough to listen again.
Intenté ponerle onda por qué me pareció super simpática la portada pero la verdad es que me pareció muy largo y monótono, con pocas cosas para destacar.
Feels good to have absolutely no thoughts about an album for once. This is a solo album from the Pixies frontman, a band I like but have no strong feelings about. Unfortunately it seems like this solo album lacks the same conviction that makes Doolittle so iconic, opting for a grab-bag of alternative rock textures that don't result in anything interesting. I respect the attempt though. 5/10
As one half of Houmous & Chutney, I know what it feels like to be overrated so I feel sorry for Frank Black. Everything’s fine but in this day and age, that’s just not enough. A hard lesson to learn, but that’s the only way myself and Len have survived all this time. Keep evolving 2.2
This was okay. Probably could have been two albums
2/5
1. What in the blue fuck is this? No. Like, really, just...no 2. OK, this is actually music. Not good music, but recognizable as music 3. Not offensive. Not really enjoyable either though 4. Not offensive. Slightly more enjoyable than the previous track. This artist is showing me in this song he has the potential to be one I like 5. Pretty bland 6. Eh... 7. This was the single? 8. Inoffensive, I guess 9. I feel like I have the gist of the album at this point. I'm not listening to 22 tracks of this. 2.0
Not bad, like sonic youth
Did nothing for me. One and done.
Mostly sounds like a decent but boring Pixies album, and I'm not much of a Pixies fan. 2.3/5
Nope. I really struggle with his kind of music, not sure why but it just leaves me cold.
Very meh, thought I'd like this more
I thought it was going to be another weird one once it started, but it wasn't pushing it that much. It sounds like someone who is flailing a bit after the grunge movement, and then I looked up the album, and yeah, it's a member of the Pixies going solo in the early 90's. The first song is literally a guy baffled by the fact that art has *gasp* moved on. He made a perfect metaphor between himself and a game dev who doesn't understand that pixels have colors now. It's not bad, but why is it here? It's not that influential, considering where rock went in the following years (unless I'm missing something, I'm not an expert), it's not that popular, and it's not that relevant. I'm not calling it bad, but I just don't get the argument for it being on this list. This list has a lot of albums that I don't like, genres I'm not a fan of, popular albums I can't stand, weird stuff that pushed the limits of music, or underground works that influenced the mainstream. I can't really see why this is here.
wautsika wau! taas albumi joka on lisätty listalle syynä: soolohenkilö joka oli osana jossain bändissä joka oli kuuluisa... tämä on tarpeeksi syytä että PAKKO PAKKO KMSUT OLOISTNEM MUST LISTEN BEFORE DEATH ENNEN KUOLEMAA PAKKO PAKKO PAKKO KUUNNELA PAKKO KUNELA KUUNTELEEEE NENNEN KUN M= !==! ALBUMS BEFORE DEAYING.. in my time of dying... want nobody to mourn.. just listen to teenager of the year by frank black before death........................ 2.98-3.04 luottamusvälin sisällä oleminen tarkoittaa sitä, että albumi on luultavasti täyttä paskaa.. oikeasti artistina toivot mielummin rehtiä 2.5 tykitystä eikä vittu tätä keskikaarti kusemista freedom rock
I was bored
2.5/5. Generic-sounding rock from the 90s. I did not get much out this.
Noph ei ihan paskaa ole...
Meh, not really my jam.
Interesting concept. He pulls off some
Really not my favourite alternative rock aesthetic, and on top of it all more than an hour long. 2 stars
Love the Pixies but this album is very meh
I liked it more than I thought I would. Started listening to the self titled album. Actually liked that better than this
Danceable noise. Has nothing to say.
Pretty Meh. There are some interesting tracks, but the sound quality and lyrics are pretty forgettable.
Mumbles in punk. Favourite track: Superabound.
I was unsure at first, but I did enjoy it. Its been good to have in the background while working today. Does it really belong in the list though? I’m not sure. So many great albums in this era, this feels like it falls short, perhaps because it’s so long and almost bland. I will be scoring this low for this reason. But It was nice to listen to, not one I’ll go back to (at least often).
It’s been thirty years and that is enough time for us to acknowledge how altruistic and brave it was for Frank Black to break up Pixies and immediately release a double album proving how inessential his talents were to their success. Two stars.
Initially I wasn't sure what to think of this, but reading about Frank Black, this is probably a complex take on garage band punk which is too elaborate for me to appreciate or care much about. Also I found myself waiting for the album to be over, never a good sign.
It was okay.
The album doesn't feel like a 1001 contender to me. I like the sound just fine, but I can't point to one song I would specifically want to hear. It's more of a filler.
Interesting to see the increased propensity for lengthy albums in the early 90s as CDs became the dominant format. The above sentence might be telling as to how little I have to say about this album of pretty normal alternative rock. Unlike the random guy at Reading 2001, I don't feel particularly privileged to have heard Frank Black today. Rating: 2.5/5 Playlist track: Headache Date listened: 08/07/24
No primeiro toque já deixa claro a sua importância para o rock, mas também a sensação de ser bastante pretencioso.
I didnt really care about this.
Better than what I figured this vanity project would be, but seems all over the place. Indifferent at best.
Meh, punky, probably great but I’m not feeling it at this stage
With history on my side, the early 90s really over did it with album length. The change from limited record space to limitless cd space gave way to lots of filler. Other than having too much material to absorb, the music was fine. Pixies-esque for the obvious reason.
Vanilla
I find this to be a strange inclusion for this list. I am a lifetime Pixies fan. Frank Black solo is ok, but it's missing something. It's like listening to John Lennon... It's good, but it's not the Beatles. Like David Lee Roth is fun to hear, but it's not Van Halen. I miss the rest of the band and full disclosure, Kim Deal's voice gives me a hard on. I can't hear the relevance in this album. So Teenager of the Year... I do prefer Frank's eponymous debut. This one sounds good, but it's a bit long and not much really stands out to me. Actually I was getting tired of it when I noticed I was only halfway through. I'm not hearing what is legendary, influential, or important about this album.
2 stars
You chose Pong, I chose Kong