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From the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

Heaven Or Las Vegas

Cocteau Twins

1990

Buy At Rough Trade
Heaven Or Las Vegas
Album Summary

Heaven or Las Vegas is the sixth studio album by Scottish alternative rock band Cocteau Twins, released on 17 September 1990 by 4AD. Despite 4AD president Ivo Watts-Russell proclaiming it one of the best-ever releases on his label, he released the group from their contract at the end of 1990 because his relationship with the band had soured. Heaven or Las Vegas peaked at number seven on the UK Albums Chart and number 99 on the US Billboard 200, becoming the band's most commercially successful release. It eventually sold 235,000 copies by 1996, according to Billboard. The album was included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die, and was voted number 218 in the third edition of Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums. In 2020, Rolling Stone listed it at No. 245 in its list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Wikipedia

Rating

3.29

Votes

11386
Genres
Rock
Indie
Shoegaze

Reviews

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Thu Feb 11 2021
5

I can't believe I get to listen to this album. The vibes are immaculate, just perfection. It's like floating along warm summer air. Everything feels so purposeful in it's placing, with every sound, word, and visual just lifting the album above levels I didn't know could exist. My only complaint is that it gets a little same-y here and there, but man I can forgive that with how beautiful it all is. Perfection.

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Tue May 04 2021
1

The mystery of the lost great Cocteau Twins album: What was it on the other side of the recording studio glass that so distracted them when they made this, and what would they have produced if they'd been paying attention? We may never know. I will never care.

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Mon Nov 02 2020
5

Oh my God. Who let this be such utter perfection? This was really really really good. Wow. The atmosphere. The vocals. 10/10.

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Wed May 12 2021
2

It's not exactly BAD but it sure is super boring. There's nothing–literally nothing–about this album that stands out except for the fact that the vocals are utterly indescipherable which takes the album from a "meh" 3 stars to a "nope" 2 stars.

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Fri Feb 05 2021
1

I can not tell what language this is

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Thu Jan 14 2021
4

Cool and dreamy - good drum machine work and the bass in quintessential 80s. Probably the lyrics and vocals are the most memorable. Got me on a shoegaze kick after and I listened to My Bloody Valentine for awhile.

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Wed Jan 27 2021
5

Beautiful ephemeral pop that I could listen to on loop forever.

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Mon Nov 01 2021
5

A truly unique dream pop album that doesn't have one lackluster song. Fraser's vocals are the highlight of this album, purring with energy and life. Some of her vocals are unintelligible, but that doesn't take away from the ethereal sound. The guitar work and drums are amazing as well, complementing the vocals perfectly and coalescing to provide the unique soundscape. The band complements each other so well yet you get the impression of improv. Not to say it isn't focused, which it is, with songwriting about childbirth and also death. Favorite tracks: Cherry-Coloured Funk, Iceblink Luck, Fifty-Fifty Clown, Frou-Frou Foxes in Midsummer Fires

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Mon Mar 15 2021
1

If there was a zero I would pick that

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Sat Jan 30 2021
1

What’s that you’re saying??? Sorry. Can’t hear your words. Is that French? I literally don’t know.

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Sat Apr 10 2021
5

Great atmospheric album. Definitely worth the listen.

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Sun Jan 09 2022
5

5.0 + It's hard to pinpoint why this album makes me feel like soaking in a hot bath. There's some kind of strange alchemy between the shimmery guitar and vocals that's mesmerizing. It's a gentle swirl of arpeggiated synth lines, thumping bass and soothing vocal wisps. At times, my mind gets lost in the background sounds and I'm put in a smiling trance.

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Mon Nov 01 2021
5

hypnotic, psychedelic, and poetic. complex rhythms and melodies paired with beautiful tones and reflective lyrics. fav songs = all

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Tue May 10 2022
5

Can you believe we wrote this beauty off as “their commercial album” when it cam out? Lush, sensual, prickly in spots and featuring some Elizabeth Fraser’s most aggressive, full-bodied singing and toothsome lyrics. Only the Twins could make this kind of music while “selling out”.

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Mon Apr 04 2022
4

I was most familiar with Elizabeth Fraser on vocals for Massive Attack’s Teardrop and discovered Cocteau Twins (and this album) from there.

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Wed Sep 20 2023
4

I really like this album. I listen to quite often as background, it's nearly perfect for writing or creating. The songs just drift together with those soft mumbled vocals. I think Treasure is a but better but happy to see this on the list.

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Thu Jan 14 2021
2

All the songs sound the same. Very winy (as most dream pop goes) and lyrics often abandon recognizable language

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Thu Feb 18 2021
1

terrible, absolutely terrible

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Sat Apr 10 2021
5

Lovely. No words. A new world.

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Sat Dec 31 2022
5

Один из самых красивых пост-панк альбомов, которых я когда-либо слушал. Волшебный и мелодичный вокал успокаивает и вводит в некое состояние сна, выходит за границы языкового барьера и передаёт сущность песен не через тексты, а через пение, ну и просто звучит замечательно. А гитары вписываются не менее гармонично - тонущие в тоннах реверба, они тоже создают некий колыбельный эффект, погружающий в умиротворённое состояние, из которого не хочется выходить никогда. (9 - 9.5)

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Sat Jan 07 2023
5

This is my go-to sleep album along with "Souvlaki" by Slowdive. It makes me feel like I'm levitating. Absolute ethereal perfection. Once the last part of "I Wear Your Ring" hits, I'm instantly teleported into the eighth dimension. Ten out of ten, you already know it.

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Sun Jan 15 2023
5

Ethereal but grounded. Incomprehensible but clear in their messages. The Cocteau Twins are one of the most antithetical bands I've come across, and this may just be their masterpiece. Elizabeth Fraser is such a unique talent.

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Tue Apr 18 2023
5

I'm not sure I'll ever fully understand people who do not love the Cocteau Twins. I'm sure there are some very nice people, we are just different on a fundamental level. This album is like an old jumper you have had forever that you put on when you get sick, a comfort blanket. The Cocteaus at the poppiest they got, and probably the most fully formed. One listen to Fotzepolitic and I could take on the world. Bliss.

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Tue Sep 19 2023
5

The dream pop group of all time, its not even my favorite album by them but good god is it good.

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Mon Sep 21 2020
4

Lush, gorgeous. Like a giant blanket. Seems like a great album to get high to. Reminds me of MBV. Favorite tracks are "Pitch the Baby" and "Frou frou Foxes in Midsumner Fires".

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Thu Mar 10 2022
4

This is the sound track to my dreams, the nice dreams though, not the dirty ones I wake up from erect.

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Thu Mar 17 2022
4

True to the mission of this project I am glad this record came up on my list. Although this may already belong to my own personal canon of soul-defining albums thankfully this might have been a backup contingency plan. This made an enormous impact on me decades ago. There was nothing else like it, the world was different after I first heard the Cocteau Twins, and still nothing else compares. This record felt like it was an opening and a big break into a wider audience. It also felt like further slipping from an ideal after Treasure that diluted down the drain awash with new age pathos and intelligible lyrics instead of a cosmic brain transplantation. I only wish I could find a giant poster again of the album cover to pin up on my wall as I improvise the lyrics to Pitch The Baby.

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Thu Jul 14 2022
4

Really good gothy dream pop. It lays on the 90s sound a little thick, which is probably because the group pioneered the sound to some extent. Still a bit dated in that regard.

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Thu Jul 14 2022
4

I love that dreamy sound, and this album absolutely drips with it. Hell, they practically invented it. I just wish there were a few more standout tracks, but overall a great album.

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Thu Aug 18 2022
4

Shimmering, dreamy musical confections. Gorgeous arrangements elevated by Elizabeth Fraser's ethereal vocals and expressionistic lyrical style. Listening to this album is the musical equivalent of floating on a cloud. At its best, this is some of the loveliest music you'll ever hear. The quality of the individual songs is a little uneven, but it's overall still a joy to listen to. Launches me straight back to my sophomore year in college. Fave Songs: Cherry-Coloured Funk, Iceblink Luck, Heaven or Las Vegas, Frou-Frou Foxes in Midsummer Fires, Pitch the Baby, Wolf in the Breast

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Sat Jun 12 2021
3

Pretty good. Kinda blends together like most Cocteau Twins albums. 7/10

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Thu Jul 15 2021
3

I was on the cusp of giving this a 4, Cherry-Coloured Funk has been a favourite for as long as I care to remember with its haunting synth and contrasting range of vocals, some of which are Kate-Bush-like in nature but ultimately all gel together brilliantly as a song that doesn't go on too long (unlike this sentence). And the rest of the album is, well, alright. But always found myself wishing I was listening to the first track again.

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Wed Mar 22 2023
3

Perfectly listenable but doesn't thrill me. Another "won't turn it off but won't turn it up" album.

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Thu Nov 09 2023
3

Was this album in English? Maybe it was French. The lack of clarity of the vocals did add to the dreamy soundscapes of a kind of relaxing, warm fog. In my mind, this should create some sort of timeless feel, but it still sounds like the 90s. I don't know that if that is a good or a bad thing. It's just an observation. Good day.

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Fri Jan 22 2021
2

Erm... lovely shoegaze soundscape, but genuinely unintelligible lyrics. Enunciate, woman.

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Fri Apr 16 2021
2

Cool ideas, but very one note for every song. Hooks repeat constantly and there always feels like a lack of emotion. The song settle in on one vibe, but what that vibe means is utterly incomprehensible.

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Sat Jan 27 2024
2

#112. While listening to this album you might find yourself wondering who or what is this for. Well let me paint a picture for you. You have begrudgingly agreed to go to a dinner party at one of your wife's coworker's house. You know the one. The one with the combover and the crooked moustache. The one that always touches your arm when he talks to you. With the crack skinny wife in the wispy dress that doesn't speak loud enough to understand what she's saying ever. Every wall in their house is the same shade of off-white and every room has like one or two pieces of furniture, and maybe some stabby brutalist "art." You keep looking over at your wife to see if you can leave yet, because every minute being here is a minute closer to your insanity. And... this is the music that's playing in the background the whole time. Oh, and the brisket they served was dry. 2/5: please don't make me listen anymore

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Mon May 24 2021
1

Sucked. Can I give 0 stars? Guess we will see what happens. Turns out you cant give zero stars. You have to click at least one to activate the vote button. Consider yourselves lucky Cocteau Twins.

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Fri Oct 15 2021
1

So dreary and uninspiring. Tuneless lift muzak at best. Awful production, tinny with weak drums. With the music being so much of absolutely nothing, at least the lyrics could have been profound, interesting, etc., but no.. might as well be sung in Greek. The inability to pronounce English words correctly is apparently intentional, but just makes the songs frustrating and bizarre to listen to. If I never hear this album again before I die, I will die happy.

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Mon Jan 17 2022
1

Listened. Shite. Can't tell what she's saying.

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Mon Jan 25 2021

It's good, I just never loved Radiohead

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Mon Oct 26 2020
5

Headphones on. Sit down in a nice chair. Dream away. Absolutely brilliant and beautiful.

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Mon Jan 25 2021
5

Dreamy indie.... what’s not to love? Nothing!

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Mon Dec 28 2020
5

Fairly unique, might come back to it

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Wed Apr 28 2021
5

This sure as hell sent me to Heaven rather than Las Vegas.

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Mon Oct 26 2020
5

Now we're talking! Har lyssnat på albumet några gånger nu, så det säger allt. Känns som en korsning mellan typ The Cranberries, Highasakite, och lite annat smått o gott.

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Wed Jan 13 2021
5

Why haven't I listened to this before?

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Tue Jan 26 2021
5

First song was sampled on the morning by The Weeknd. Old rock easy listening

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Sun Jan 17 2021
5

The original vapourwave. Listened

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Thu Jan 14 2021
5

Good indie sound with a heavy 90s feel.

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Mon Jun 14 2021
5

i'm just a sucker for dreamy, ethereal guitars and vocals to match. this was great.

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Tue Mar 02 2021
5

Lovely album, very 80's synth pop feel but also beautifully arranged vocals and mixture of sounds. Very enjoyable album

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Sat Jan 30 2021
5

One of the best sounding records I’ve ever listened to

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Thu Feb 11 2021
5

I've already heard this album a few times before. It's lovely.

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Tue Mar 16 2021
5

I got introduced to this album about a year ago, and at first it was kind of hard for me to entirely grasp it. Still I fell in love with the first and last tracks so I gave it a couple of tries more and now I think it is just lovely.

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Sun Apr 25 2021
5

Uhh ich liebe die Produktion

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Sat Apr 24 2021
5

Cant understand wtf liz fraser is singing. 5 stars

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Sat Apr 24 2021
5

sehfjahfbeljdlhsdfjashkdf streeeet

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Fri May 07 2021
5

I liked this album a lot. It reminds me of MGMT and I’m glad to have found this.

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Fri May 14 2021
5

Heard this bad boy quite a few times Really really good!

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Fri Aug 27 2021
5

Gets better as it goes on...great last 2, 3 tracks

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Mon Sep 06 2021
5

Very ethereal and dreamy. Love it!

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Tue Oct 19 2021
5

A classic dreampop album, for good reason.

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Mon Nov 29 2021
5

Stone cold classic album. You can hear the influence in so many other albums. I'm a huge sucker for dream pop and this is just one of the titans of the genre.

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Mon Dec 06 2021
5

This music just always makes me feel so dreamy. Her voice is perfect for dream pop . One of the best albums of this genre

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Mon Dec 06 2021
5

Its a 5 star from me! Loved this album for a while now. Its fun and different from anything else I know really.

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Fri Jan 28 2022
5

Truly genuine pop music with a distinctive sound.

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Mon Jan 31 2022
5

Goodness, this album is superb, so soothing and calm/

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Tue Mar 22 2022
5

The only "Dreampop" album that matters truly.

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Wed Mar 23 2022
5

I love this album, have always loved it, will always love it. Blast to listen to today!

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Tue Apr 05 2022
5

Frábær plata! Þarf að hlusta meira á þetta band.

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Fri Apr 22 2022
5

Amazing. Beautifully painted soundscapes all thought the album make it a true classic of the genre. Can't help but adore it.

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Sun May 01 2022
5

Vilkey galet sammanträffande att de bara e album som ja ha lyssna förr som förtjänar femmor!!!!

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Wed May 04 2022
5

Hi- Cherry-Coloured Funk, Fifty-Fifty Clown, I Wear Your Ring, Fotzepolitic, Wolf In The Breast Cocteau Twins have been at the forefront of the genre of lazy, sweeping and melodic guitars, the shrill, angelic voices, and the swirling, echoey tapestry of bright synth melodies of "Shoegaze" or "Dream Pop". Heaven or Las Vegas (both the album and the song) is the poster child of the genre, and if Cherry-Coloured Funk is your introduction to the style, it would probably leave you wanting more. I would say this album's peak is Fifty-Fifty Clown, A track that starts off and builds on a smooth and steady synthwave bass serves as the heartbeat for the entire track, and goes off the rails weaving bright synth and layers of Elizabeth Fraser's lilting soprano before returning to the heartbeat, a rush that's all too brief. The titular track neatly ties up the first act, but the show isn't over here, as the b-sides are just as delicious as the a-sides, each track is brilliant, unconstrained, but relaxed and never rushed. This album might be a showcase, but its followups (Four-Calendar Cafe & Milk & Kisses) are just as gorgeous and absolutely worthwhile, as are their contemporary acts such as Lush, Slowdive, Ivy, The Dandy Warhols, and even Venus Hum...It's a shame the wonder of Shoegaze/Dream Pop has fallen by the wayside in recent years, its charm is endlessly adorable and still holds up today.

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Tue May 31 2022
5

Loved this. It was full of ethereal sounding dream pop.

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Sun Jun 05 2022
5

Cherry-coloured funk is one of the most important songs in the history of dream pop and it feels like the final tunnel scene in the Perks of Being A Wallflower I really like Pitch the Baby A humongous fan of Iceblink Luck Not to mention how excellent the DRUMS AND GUITARS ARE I love the title track I am biased but my most listened-to songs have to be fotzepolitic I barely skip any of the songs on the album which is a key thing for me The essence of vertigo and not knowing where you are is what I love the most, I also really enjoy the fact that it's blurry and Elizabeth's vocals are not really easy to hear. Top 100 albums of all time for sure

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Tue Jun 14 2022
5

I needed that his morning. Cocteau Twins are such talented artist. Album is really interressing, I migth listen to it one more time just to feel the atmosphere.

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Tue Jun 14 2022
5

Wonderful, marvelous, magnificient, sensational, outstanding! Really had a great time with this one, I must listen to them more often!

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Sat Jul 02 2022
5

Ovaj album sam znao dosta slušati u zimi da me ugrije, jer su melodije bile takve, poput pokrivača. Iako je to već meme dosta godina, kurca ih razumijem, al taj glas u potpunosti nadopunjuje glazbu i to je taj pogodak. Ovaj album je must-listen dream pop album, iako ima šačicu shoegazea kako po kojoj pjesmi. Jače je od četvorke, pošto vamo ne mogu dati ono što želim kao i većinu puta, bit će ovaj puta ovako kako ga sad dadnem. Lijep pozdrav.

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Sat Jul 02 2022
5

Osjećam se glupo jer nisam nikad čula za njih i ovaj album. Ta prva pjesma mi je skoro dovoljna za peticu ali pomaže i to što je ostatak albuma jako dobar.

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