Reviews (page 6 of 7)
I get what they were trying to do but it just didn't resonate with me. All the songs sounded too similar to make an impact
Instrumentally this was alright, possibly good. Vocal tune wise it was ok, the lines felt slow and the timing of them stressed the lyrics so much... Then there were the lyrics. No. They were so corny and naff. It felt like listening to someone who thought they were a poet but hadn't grasped any of the subtleties of the art form. When you take those words and write a vocal tune/rhythm that brings it all to the forefront I couldn't hack it.
Labcoaty.
The good news is this is on Spotify unlike previous reviews mentioned. That about ends the good news.
Didn't love, sounded like a beatles/animal collective crossover
Second XTC in less than a week. I just cannot with this "music in search of a musical" drivel.
Well that sucks this album isn't on spotify. Let's try youtube. Uhhh this is interesting...
A reach to call this a must-hear album
While I love their earlier stuff…..this is not it. There are a couple of decent songs….but overall not memorable.
I was into the start of this album, but then he started singing.
This was... a lot. Was it supposed to be serious? Funny? Whatever it was, it didn't work for me. By the time I got to "Greenman" I was pretty over the album. If the whole album was like "Your Dictionary" or "Fruit Nut" I might have enjoyed it more. The second half of the album seemed very unserious, which actually made me like it more. But whatever was going on with the first half really dragged it down. It seems like they couldn't decide if they wanted this to be a funny record or not, and if they had full on committed either way, I think it would have been better. Not much better, but somewhat better.
well...it barely registered as I was listening to this while working. So...perfectly fine background music? The parts I listened to more closely just weren't my cup of tea.
Innocuous enough but rather bland. Not memorable at all to my mind.
Budget Beatles. Even at 49 minutes, it's too long. 2/5
The Beatles exist. There's no need for this bloated, boring record. 2 stars.
Pound shop White Album. Nice cover.
this lays to rest any question about whether or not this list was actually randomized because this was the second day in a row i got an XTC album. the first one i talked about how boringly mediocre it was and i can’t say the same about this one! unfortunately that’s because this one is outwardly bad. it’s at least interesting which the other one wasn’t but aside from some cool, big cinematic moments i didn’t like very much of it at all. just not enjoyable to listen to most of the time.
While I like XTC, this one is not my thing.
My senses were NOT working overtime listening to this.
I was a fan of XTC going into this album. I love Making Plans For Nigel. I own their greatest hits on vinyl. And for the first half of this album, I was very open to the direction they were going in… but then the song Greenman hit and they lost me. In 30 seconds my opinion soured like 3 month old milk that had been left on the surface of the sun. That song then proceeded to play for 5 and a half more minutes, which felt like an eternity. Then the Dictionary song hit and that was another piece of shit, but at least it had the curtesy to be only 3 minutes long, so I guess it was an improvement. I’m not sure if the rest of the album was as bad as those 2 tracks, but mentally I had checked out after those 9 minutes of hell. Why was the Greenman song so bad? I will get to that. Why was the dictionary song so bad? I’ll give you some lyrics and you can decide for yourself: “H-A-T-E Is that how you spell love in your dictionary? K-I-C-K Pronounced as kind F-U-C-K Is that how you spell friend in your dictionary? Black on black A guidebook for the blind” And that’s only verse one. I rest my case. This album did have some promise though. And I did enjoy the first 5 tracks overall. In general, it has a really intriguing mix of time periods. This is an 80s new wave band writing songs that are a mix of Pet sounds-era Beach Boys and late Beatles McCartney (think Maxwell’s Silver Hammer or Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da or When I’m Sixty-Four) with a glossy 90s production style. I love all of those things, except for the production. I wouldn’t say any of the first 5 tracks were spectacular, but they were fun, weird, a little catchy. There was variety and some cinematic string work. I wasn’t mad at it. I was intrigued. I will say though the production style didn’t do even the best songs any favours. When you filter off-brand beach boys and the Beatles through that production, turns out you get something that borders on adult contemporary. I think a shaggier 60s/70s psychedelic rock production would do these songs a lot of good. So anyways I’m bopping along, having a good time, minding my own business and then fucking Greenman hits and my world was flipped turned upside down. It validated my Beatles comparison in the worst way. It feels like XTC are really into those Beatles songs with the Indian music influences, think Norwegian wood, Within you without you and tomorrow never knows. And they thought to themselves “we can totally pull that off in the late 90s” and boy were they wrong. What an ugly, never-ending, boring, cheesy mess of a track that’s borderline cultural appropriation. Sure you could argue the Beatles also appropriated Indian culture but at least they had the decency to turn it into great fucking songs. This track is an abomination. It’s embarrassing. Once it was over and the dictionary song was done, I sorta blacked out the rest of the album. I was done with it. I don’t know if it was good. And I didn’t give this album a second listen. And I likely never will. I’m gonna pretend XTC broke up at the end of the 80s and live in that version of reality… where this thing doesn’t exist.
..
1.73
great layers, great melodies, fun instrumentation.
I got an earlier XTC album sometime ago, but I probably couldn't recall anything from it if you asked me. This does NOT sound like it was released in 1999. Very whimsical and symphonic. Obvious inspirations taken from the Beatles and maybe Brian Wilson too from a production and conceptual standpoint. The comparisons should stop there, though. People in the YouTube comments (it's pretty difficult to find this album elsewhere, unfortunately) were saying that this record parallels works like Sgt. Pepper's and Pet Sounds, which is delusional quite frankly. Maybe from a production standpoint, but from a lyrical standpoint, not even close. Too cheesy to be taken seriously. I won't remember much of this after today.
What a slog. It's one thing to try and use the Beatles for inspiration, and another to just rip off their songwriting for the 90s. A few tracks in I started to wonder if I was actually listening to the right album because I could not understand anything that made this essential listening.
I will not be sticking around for Volume 2; too much of this bloated album is cloying at best, insufferable at worst.
if someone would like to explain why this is good I would be happy to hear, cause I couldnt figure it out on my own
Lo mejor es la carátula. Tuve que escucharlo en Youtube.
Bit apprehensive about this one, obviously I know, and very much like the famous three. But I'd heard somewhere that their usual stuff was a lot weirder. Now that can either be a very good thing or a very bad thing. This, was neither. It was to be honest uninteresting mush. Except for 2 tracks. Green Man was brilliant, and Your Dictionary was ok, but even those couldn't raise it above a
Whilst there are some nice arrangements and orchestration in places, the whole thing is underwhelming. Vocals drone on and on, and spoil any pleasure in the musicians. And I had to listen to it on YouTube which annoyed me. What’s that about? Do they think they’ve created such a masterpiece that it’s too good for music streaming services? Twats.
Groupe connu par son tube 'Making Plans for Nigel' (que j'apprécie toujours) dans les années 1980, et complètement perdu de vue depuis. XTC en 1999 ? Une grande déception. Le choix d'un accompagnement orchestral m'a rebuté dès le premier morceau, très répétitif. Et les morceaux acoustiques n'ont vraiment pas d’intérêt particulier. L'album évite la note minimale (il n'est pas désagréable à écouter en fond sonore), mais ... je suis vraiment déçu. =>2/5
Started well but tailed off
I felt like I was listening to a bunch of middle age guys doing covers of Beatles b sides. It was kinda bad but I couldn’t bring myself to hate it
Can't find this album. Gets a 2
Had to go all the way to youtube for this. “Your dictionary” is a silly gem, Olivia Rodrigo should cover it.
Every song starts off like it's going to sound great but ends up sucking.
I think that this was definitely different than what I am used to, but it still didn’t show me why it qualifies to be on this list. It was interesting but just not enough.
Never been able to get into XTC. There were a couple here I enjoyed but mostly meh
This is a moody album that just kinda drones on. It's good atmospheric music, but the vocals lack the early XTC that I enjoy and sound too Paul McCartney-esque
I thought it was interesting, very Beatles and Beach boy reminiscent. A lot of Baroque pop, strange that it came out in 1999. Not sure if it was anything that stood out for me, but I thought it was pretty decent. Two out of five seems fair for this list
XTC has always seemed to me an acquired taste, and I've simply never acquired the taste (due partly to Andy Partridge's voice). This album of lushly arranged chamber pop is clearly well done, yet like everything else I've heard from the band, I simply fail to connect with their very off-kilter British vibe. This album draws comparisons to Sgt. Pepper's and the Beach Boys' "Pet Sounds," and I can see why. But I don't see how this one really advances on their sonic or cultural accomplishments.
Kinda boring and 1-dimensional (sorry).
first time hearing xtc...it's okayish.
This is XTC's penultimate album. I have no idea how it got on this list. "Apple Venus" doesn't even remotely resemble XTC. I guess Nigel's parents cancelled their plans for him. At least the album's listenable. 2 stars for "Apple Venus Volume 1".
For the most of the album I thought it was pretty good. Your Dictionary is SO BAD though, good lord what a shit song! Tanked the album for me. Wow.
Liked the initial sound and got pretty tired of it by the end. Not adding any to my playlists
The orchestra was the only good part of this album and why this won't get one star but two stars instead. The singer was god-awful, and the lyrics for "Your Dictionary" are probably some of the dumbest I've heard in a while, and the other songs aren't much better in that regard either. This is for people that think they're cool and who think they "go against the grain" when it comes to their music taste, but just come off as elitist assholes that will listen to anything but actually good music to seem different.
Good melody, but weird lyrics.
The Beatles, but if they weren't as good.
30 seconds in, I thought, hmm, maybe I'll like this. I didn't.
Made it to the 20-minute mark before shutting it off. No thanks.
This is #day216 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge, and... my first time listening to XTC. I’ve seen one of their album covers with those letters on it before—Drums and Wires, I guess, yeah, that’s gotta be it. Now, Apple Venus Volume 1... There’s nothing harmful about it, but the album isn’t available on Spotify, and that's always annoying. I had to dig through YouTube Music, as it's not officially up there, and I ended up listening to a random track video from the channel SonyaTheSquirrel. As for the record itself, well, it’s orchestral pop... What else is there to say? Not something I feel like revisiting soon, if ever. This is a 2 out of 5. Looking forward to #day217.
Not great!
They lost me at “really high, really high like a really high thing”
It was ok. The songs sounded like the experimental songs that Beatles put out, the ones that didn't make much sense, but when an album is full of those, it starts making sense. I didn't enjoy it that much though. Also, hard to find.
Its...ok. More British soft rock, yay. River Of Orchids had a great intro, but then the singing started and it was just a random jumble. Easter Theater was kinda fun. Frivolous Tonight rolled along nicely. Greenman had a nice Indian beat with some good flute music. Your Dictionary was an interesting concept, and it had some nice music. The rest of the album kinda falls after that. There are a few good songs on here, but the album as a whole seems to be less than the sum of its parts. Not really something I'd listen to more of. Best song: Greenman
Definitely respect the artistic direction here. It didn't really pull me in, but I am impressed by the amount of work to create this.
This was nice (especially compared to all the not readily available albums on this list), but I'm not sure it's anything special. More anglocentric crap.
Not very exciting, but inoffensive and mellow. Not something I'd listen to again.
Did not vibe unfortunately
It was okay but nothing made me want to hit repeat.
🎧Here’s a portmanteau: “sucktastic”
meh..
all around meh
Thoughts before listening: I feel like XTC is one of those bands that I probably should be really into, but I know very little about. 80s power pop I think is their general sound. I'm excited to give them a listen. Review: Well I had the pop part right, but this is not power pop at all. The sound of this album is mainly orchestral pop ditties similar in vibe to something the Beatles might have done late in their career. I'm trying to like this, but I'm pretty bored. 2-stars
Trying to be the Beatles and Beach Boys. Be XTC!
I had never heard of XTC before. Honestly I was positive it was 90s dance. It certainly is not that. What is it though? I don’t really know. I bet they have a cult following that will hate this…. Apple Venus Vol 1 sounds like The Beatles just fucking around. They even threw in sitar. 4.6/10
Talvez num outro momento eu fosse gostar mais da coisa orquestral, mas achei muito qualquer coisa
não fede nem cheira honestamente mas prefiro a fase new wave
My initial thoughts before the first song has ended is that this would be tight to see in person with an orchestra. Extremely layered it's almost like someone was able to use an orchestra like it's a synth. After having a go at some of the other songs...I kind of like the "Greenman," "Fruit Nut," "Your Dictionary" the most of the album. The vocalist reminds me of Paul McCartney in some ways. I don't think I will return to anything from this album however, although it's not a bad listen.
Það var snúið að finna þessa plötu. Þurfti að nota YouTube. Eflaust vegna höfundarréttarmála og það þýðir bara eitt. Að ég mun lækka hana í stjörnugjöf af þeirri ástæðu einni saman því ég er í mótþróakasti. Það er synd því þetta er virkilega góð plata. Þannig að ég fer ekki neðar en tvær stjörnur
Disappointed with this one. Drums and Wires should be in the book. Not this. Expected more. Was let down.
Pourquoi ce band est si important au point d'être mentionné deux fois dans cette liste. C'est tellement ordinaire. Il n'y a qu'une seule chanson qui m'a vraiment intéressé et tout le reste sonnait comme si cet album aurait du sortir 20 ans plus tôt. Considérant l'histoire derrière l'album, la production est surprenament bonne, mais j'ai aucune misère à croire que ce LP soit un "vanity project". 4/10
As far as brit pop goes, this honestly isn't that bad. It was fine for some background music, but I wish I had listened to the lyrics a bit more closely. That would probably bump this up a bit, but for now its gonna sit at a two.
I can’t explain it, but Greenman makes me feel like I’m listening to every theme song to every 90s and 2000s PBS kids tv show all at once. Quite catchy, but nothing groundbreaking or notable for me. One of those that you question how it made the list.
Another album that isn't bad, but isn't memorable. I'm starting to wonder if these middle of the road albums should be rated as a 3 like I have been, or a 2 because they are so mediocre.
XTC, dat is toch zo'n band uit de jaren 80? Juist. En dit is een plaat uit 1999, toen er een complete muziekrevolutie had plaatsgevonden. Maar XTC is niet echt met de tijd mee gegaan. Het is meer een band uit de jaren 80, die saaie 60s en 70s muziek maakt (en in die tijd werd er al spannender muziek gemaakt). Af en toe komt er een 80s synth voorbij, verder heb ik niet het idee dat ze ook maar iets van geluid uit de moderne tijd hebben toegevoegd. Nu hoeft dat ook niet altijd om goede muziek te maken, maar dit voegt mijns inziens echt helemaal niks toe aan de muziekgeschiedenis. Een album dat je absoluut NIET hoeft te luisteren voordat je een tuintje op je buik hebt. Omdat het nu ook weer niet per se enorm slecht is, wil ik er nog wel 2 sterren voor uitdelen. Maar wat is dit ongelooflijk overbodige muziek.
I do not understand why Dimery included _this_ XTC album on the list. I think it is a mixture of his love of over-produced chamber pop and reclaiming his lost youth in the late 70s early 80s when XTC where a viable and relevant pop band. But this admittedly finely crafted pop album is smart and cleverly arranged and produced, but it is, in the words of departing keyboard player Dave Gregory, "the vegetarian alternative". Well constructed and melodic, but without real visceral pop hooks. There just isn't a sense of a real band. Andy Partrdige admitted that XTC was now a "brand" covering his and Colin Mouldering's music. And it sounds like a brand instead of a band. Don't get me wrong; I love XTC's work from the first decade or so of their career. They wrote smart, catchy, energetic and enjoyable pop music that you didn't feel like an idiot for listening to. But this album has crossed the line into Steely Dan territory. As Robert Christgau noted "Studio rats being studio rats, the lyrics aren't as deep as Andy and Colin think they are, but at least irrelevant doesn't equal obscure, humorless, or lachrymose." They do verge into twee-ness and whimsy a lot, which is boring, and I hate 'Your Dictionary', which is as bitter and unpleasant a song as I have heard in a long time -- it's possibly even more bitter than a typical Steely Dan song. And I don't mean that in a good way. Listening all the way through, I am both bored and slightly nauseated. I admire the craftsmanship, but am left unmoved by the songs. Do not like, would not buy.
Favorite Track: Greenman
For some reason i thought XTC were a punk band - so I was a little surprised by this. Unfortunately it was not a pleasant surprise. I like the strings and the arrangements but unfortunately the lyrics are head bangingly awful: "Really high, really high like a really high thing" or rhyming festival with best of all. Could possibly forgive this if the songs were catchy - but sadly were highly forgettable.
Pareceu-me alguma derivação dos Beatles até que bem feita.
This was a really unorthodox listen. The songs are very intricate and layered with overlapping looped voices which is cool, but I feel like it turns into a gimmick by the third song. The album itself is unique, but the songs are all too similar which just makes for a mixed listen that veers into almost overwhelming and unappealing at worst, and kind of corny at best. Top tracks: River of Orchids, Greenman
Aburrido
Pretty eclectic sound. Spans an odd range of genres and does none of them justice.
Didn't like this one. It felt very genre-less; some songs had an orchestral Beatles wannabe sound while others had a random world vibe. There didn't seem to be cohesion throughout the album. This was hovering between a 1 or 2 star rating for me, but decided to round up.
Hmmm.
Not really my kinda thing. Some interesting sounds though.
Found it deeply uninteresting
Yeah definitely not for me.
Okay I wasn’t hating it as much as Emilia when I started listening, like it was a bit theatrical for me but not completely offensive. Then I got to “Your Dictionary” where he says “H A T E, is that how you spell love in your dictionary?” and I was like ohhh okay. ”F U C K, is that how you spell friend in your dictionary?” sounds like something you’d repost from a generic meme page on facebook in 2012 to subtweet your friend you were fighting with. The music isn’t completely awful, but this was very difficult to enjoy.
Early 2000s British children show music core. To a normal persons ear, it’s off key, strangely composed with the singing style, but to a little British child from early 2000s this is like a lullaby. Too bad I am not an early 2000s British child. 4/10
Interesting and not what I'm used to from XTC. Much more orchestral and cinematic. Sort of a weird odd musical type of album.
I think you have to be British to appreciate XTC.
By their 13th album, XTC doesn’t seem to know what they want to be? That far in and still so all over the place? “Apple Venus vol. 1” alternates between terrible and tolerable. I don’t need to come back for volume 2.
They sing, "there are no words for me inside Your Dictionary", but sure there are, u-n-b-e-a-r-a-b-l-e for one.
My first album here that wasn't on Spotify. Started out good but quickly felt like a Bettles ripoff, and also a song where the singer talks about being a fruit nut, and threatening (?) to blow someone a Raspberry. IDK. 5/10
Idk what it is about XTC that this list loves so much, but I don't feel the same.
The weird thing about this record is there are some interesting musical things going on, but the lyrics were written by an untalented child.
This really wasn't worth going out of the way to find. Feels like a product of its time trying and failing to be experimental
River of orchids
This was from 1999? Damn. Felt like it was way past the due date. Your Dictionary has some of the stupidest lyrics I've heard. Also frustrating it's not on spotify.
I like XTC. I don't like this album. Sure there are a couple of decent tracks, but it's not enough for me, and it just has me hankering for their earlier, more punky stuff.
It's interesting. Not really my thing, though. Seemed a little bit like a musical, kind of talking-music
I’m not sure what I just listened to, so it’s hard for me to rate. For prog, it was better than average. As an essential album, less than that. It’s just odd, but not in a great way.
meh
I had to hunt this down on Youtube since it's not on Spotify (though the rest of the XTC albums are...). Pretty disappointing overall. Not sure what elevates this above other generic sounding pop rock.
Still not feeling this band---thanks to the reviewer who reminded me Squeeze exists tho. They are cool for cats.
Not available, not rly interested
Seemed... fine. I found myself cringing at the lyrics pretty often. "Really high really high like a really high thing, say a sunflower"... "F U * * is that how you spell friend in your dictionary"... and the entirety of I Can't Own Her stand out as eye-roll worthy. How am I supposed to take this album seriously when that's what XTC is offering. Album review focused on the avant garde approach to pop music. I take their point this isn't just cookie cutter radio pop, but it's nothing to write home about for me.
Weird hearing this right after Sparks because it’s kind of the same thing except obnoxious and lame. “Your Dictionary” is worth listening to just for the cringe. Some of the harmonic arrangements are nice though.
No creía en las reviews xq acá la gente es bastante hater, si es verdad. Un poco whimsical como los Beatles pero no hay nada resultante
There were a few ideas here that I liked. But overall I just didn't enjoy listening to most of it. The first song was really unpleasant and chaotic. A lot of the lyrics were cheesy.
Yeah but nah, it’s alright if you’re stuck in traffic and have absolutely nothing else to listen to
sat with this for a long while, but no, it's not doing anything for me. might give skylarking a spin, tho...
Unremarkable.
I just don't understand why people like this band?
If I go to jail for getting this off Soulseek I will be furious
Meh, couldn’t really get through it, but some of the songs were fine.
Look, this was perhaps the hardest album to get through on the entire list thus far. First off where the fuck did they even find this? I had trouble simply trying to locate this album to give it a listen. Secondly, once I found it and commenced to listening, I was subjected to the most amateur sounding music in every way shape and form. The production is nauseating, the vocals are obnoxious, and the instrumentation is somehow pretentious. Don’t get me started on the fucking lyrics. Thirdly, the genre of this album seems to change from track to track. I can’t keep up with it and it gives the album a derelict quality in that the project feels as though it has no place to call home. Therefore, subjecting the listener to a “world tour” of music in the worst, most exhausting way possible. Not all of the ideas on this were atrocious, though. I think if they had focused in on one style and used the whole album to expand on it, they could have had a more consistent album that wouldn’t be such a pain to get through. On the whole—deliriously below average. 2/5
Skylarking was one of my first albums on this list nearly three years ago and I remember that one being pretty forgettable too but at least it was on Spotify.
No on Amazon Music 😕
Not on streaming. Had to listen on YouTube. That in itself knocked it down a star. The music didn't do much for me either. One of those bands where I feel you had to be there at the time to get it.
Got off to an interesting start, got my hopes up - but failed to hold my attention all the way through.
I've never heard of XTC before, and I'm not sure this was the best place to start
Fairly uninteresting.
hard work listening on YouTube, not worth it
This is a weird album to have come out in 1999... it feels like it should've been from like 20 years prior, so I guess this band didn't really progress musically in all their time as a band. It wasnt awful, but I don't understand who this album is for, or why it's on the list.
Not bad, but the last couple of songs bored me. Enjoyable enough Zombies-ish pop.
Occasionally I'd find myself enjoying a moment or two, but overall the whole thing sounded incredibly derivative and pretentious, and the lyrics were often terrible (eg. My Dictionary)
A difficult to stream average album. If they put in the effort and lost it completely it might get another star.
cicatydidn't
Had to watch this album on YouTube as it is no longer streaming.... I'm not really finding anything about this album groundbreaking or mind blowing. Sounds like another pop-rock British band. Just not for me.
Not sure what hipstery subgenre they were going for but it didn't work. Can't really figure out who this is for. Not the most offensive thing I've ever heard, just a head scratcher
Andy Partridge's style is clearly rooted in McCartney sensibilities (which mostly can be a good thing) but for whatever reason to my ear there's always been something weird & unappealing about it. Especially on this album. That said & to be fair, there's some early XTC I like.
idk man. bizarre
bit weird, sadly
Reminds me of Laurie Anderson. I like Laurie Anderson way more, though. I know this band is classic and has a cult following but I couldn’t get into this album. There’s inspiration here but also a lot of stressful repetition.
The guy sounds like Weird Al sometimes - this is meh.
2.4/5. listened 2x - a few good tracks but i wouldn't go back to listen to this. (youtube music)
Я не знаю. С одной стороны это все мило и в целом сойдет, но с другой меня просто раздражали эти завывания под The Beach Boys. Лучшая песня - I Can't Own Her.
ganz ok
Best Song: Greenman. Ooh, fuck me Papa Greenman. Worst Song: Your Dictionary. Easy contender for corniest song on this entire list. Jesus. Overall: What if a Beatles cover band adopted 90s alt-rock sensibilities. I'm sure this really slapped for a single afternoon in 1999, but beyond that it really doesn't carry much weight.
The music is nice but lyrically it is just far too goofy for my taste. I mean, “Your Dictionary” sounds like a joke song from Documentary Now or something.
An album where they were no longer a band but a "brand". Orchestral whimsical songs that seem to make no real impact whatsoever. I know this album got a huge critical lovefest but I can't see it myself. Don't bother. Best Tracks: Frivolous Tonight; Greenman; Your Dictionary
Keep it in the 80s lads. Pleasant enough middle aged Beatles wannabes. Not really worth digging about YouTube for a definitely not deserving of a place on the list.
it’s not on spotify and i can’t be f#@ked to look for it anywhere else, knowing xtc is probably give it a 3 but i’m taking off a star for making me hunt for it
Not on Spotify- listened to Making Plans for Nigel and bounced
This was a pretty nice use of classical instruments in an album but overall it dragged on a bit and the styles varied so much it didn’t feel very cohesive. At first it sounded like a Beatles impression and as it went on it felt more new wave and sounded like the smiths. Overall it was okay, artistically pretty solid but entertainment wise there are just better options and this didn’t have too much revisit appeal. 5.5/10
First song, David Byrne (MicroMobility), second song, early Kinks Beatles offspring, third song pleasant enough Sgt, Pepper outtake. Fourth song, why am I listening to this drivel? Fifth song, We're all so frivolous tonight, indeed, the Mrs. says it's interesting but an album I must hear? Nah. Sixth song, you get the impression that every Brit has some history of fondly listening to folk albums of knights and shit and want to do their own version of one. Greenman is my favorite cut so far. 7. Ho hum 8. Couldn't end soon enough. 9.How did this album get on the list, it is mediocre at best. 10 Out of key. 11, At least it's over.
- Not available on Deezer and Shopify. Listened to some random youtube upload. - The opening track is atrocious, but it gets better. -1 star. - The rest of the album is... ok. - Not bad, but not good enough to make me go back for another listen.
In the mood?
No está en Spotify
In between filtering out all the YouTube ads it felt like there might be some ok stuff hidden away, but to be honest I wasn't that motivated to keep looking for it and it definitely tails off towards the end. I know and like some XTC stuff, but this isn't it.
It took a little while to track this one down, and it was a bit anticlimactic when I did manage to give it a listen. XTC are great and there are some really good songs on here (more than you’d usually find on any band’s ELEVENTH album) but this is by no means one of their best. Your Dictionary is the only song that I’d say is outright bad, but most of it just feels like lesser versions of their own catalogue and those of their contemporaries - and frankly, by 1999, I don’t think we needed another album that sounded like this
A reminder that some people REALLY love Paul McCartney.
Well, I ploughed through this album; sluggish with rare sparks is a fitting description.
Day101 - a strange xtc album to choose when there’s at least two better ones.
Not bad for what it is, going for a late career resurgence with a "mature and sophisticated" art pop sound, but it's also goofy at times. Your Dictionary is shameful. I don't know, seems overrated to me.
It has some good songs, but most of this record is forgettable elevator music. Reminds me of the Beatles, the Beach Boys, some of Sting's solo work and especially They Might Be Giants. But not as good. Favorite song: river of orchids.
I generally like XTC but this one did not strike my fancy. Not convinced it belongs on this list, either.
New Wave Prince. But boring. If you told me this was the Hives I’d believe you.
Not even on Spotify at the moment, hard to find and I couldn't fuck with the singer's voice. British music has been taking a big L on this app the last week.
Album was uploaded by an user called cheese man to YouTube and it’s cheesy alright. I kind of enjoyed it but it’s ridiculously long and not for any good reason. The songs stay the same for 6 minutes long. The recording is not bad
Did not enjoy, i dig skylarking and drums and wires but this stirred nothing in me.
bit of a struggle, a couple of moments but not something I'll return to
I was bracing myself given other reviews but my first impression wasn't a bad one. Sure, the droplet sound effect on 'River of Orchids' is a little quirky but the strings are alright and the singer gives a good Paul McCartney impression. Then the Beatles impression turns into borderline copying with 'Easter Theater' giving huge 'She's Leaving Home' vibes, pings huge 'For the Benefit of Mr Kite' with 'Frivolous Tonight', and makes me wish it was an 'Always Sunny' sketch with 'Greenman.' Someone owes Oasis an apology because no one copied the Beatles harder with less success than this supremely subpar album.
Not what I expected, not something I would listen to again. I kept thinking it was maybe going to get awesome, but it didn’t.
Det her musik er alt for artsy fartsy til mig. Ikke videre essentielt 🤷
Meh. Self indulgent brit navel gazing. Also not available on any US streaming service. 2/5
Goofy and unoriginal
Where's the half-a-star option? I like XTC, always have, and always will, so that pushes me towards a 3, but this isn't where I'd start if introducing anyone to them, so it forces a more honest 2. One or two highlights, but wouldn't make it into my 1001 albums 2.5 stars for being XTC
vad är det här
Not on spotify!!
If albums had a smell, this one would smell weird. I don't know how to describe it, but I would not like its smell. Alls to say, I did not really enjoy this. It sounds pretty dated, and it's just not that good.
I'm not 100% sure that I know what they were trying to accomplish. It almost sounded like a poor attempt at replicating the aura for Pet Sounds but without the hits...or the Beach Boy touch...or redeeming qualities.
As Wikipedia correctly identifies, this is an eccentric one. If it's a great one is a very different question. The biggest issue is a lack of impactful songwriting, followed by a lack of fullness of sound. Everything sounds kind of tinny and weak. Come to think of it, it's interesting how a band can utilize a full orchestra and yet sound so low-budget.
I stopped writing notes for my reviews a while back and decided to start doing this again... unfortunately, for this album. This was... uh... not fun.
Too Beatlesque
Not on Spotify
Detta leder omedelbart tankarna till Stravinskys L'Histoire du soldat. Den påminner mig om "Nothing but Flowers" av The Talking Heads. Påminner mig om Ani DiFrancos "You Had Time" Om du lyssnar noga är melodin "band that bind you will unwind" från Wheel and the Maypole invävd i den här låten ... Det som gör Andy och Colin fantastiska är deras genuina fäste vid sina hedniska rötter! knight in shining karma
Pastoral. Some charm but excellence somehow always just out of reach. Didn't really resonate
This is certainly one the albums of all time
I consider Drums and Wires and (especially) English Settlement to be some of my favourite music. I can hear some of those pastoral sounds taken to their ultimate limit in this album. But this has all the worst excesses of a lot of British '60s psychedelia. It's like they have a big red button marked TWEE!!!! It should be tapped gently....occasionally. This sounds like they kept bashing it. TOO MUCH, GENTLEMEN! Too much.
Weird pop that's hard to define within a genre. I didn't especially like it.
XTC - Apple Venus Volume 1 Apparently this is not available on streaming. I had to find it on YouTube which was ok, but commercials took me out of the listening of this album. It's a beautiful acoustic album. Reminiscent of the Beatles and other 60s artists. I won't be able to listen to this more than once (due to availability), so this was a first impression listen. 2/5
Unavailable
The dreaded album that isn't on a streaming service. I only know XTC for the Nigel song. Overall, pretty forgettable.
I really liked the first song and then it all went downhill from there.
The sort of weird I couldn’t tune out nor engage with. Still had some elements I enjoyed but few.
If you're really into prog-rock, you'll like this.
Interesting but very hard to find.
Gillar XTC från tidiga 80-talet men det här var ju inget kul. Någon ljusglimt kanske.
Meh
This was a weird one. Kinda like psychadelic dream pop with a backing orchestra. The orchestra gave the whole record a super ethereal quality to it. By times this sounded like Sgt Pepper era Beatles, by other times Pet Sounds era Beach Boys. It was ok, but isn't something I'd actively seek out. This is my second XTC album (The first being Skylarking). Similar to their first record I reviewed, this one fell flat about halfway through. Favourite songs: Greenman, Your Dictionary, River of Orchids Least favourite songs: Fruit Nut, I Can't Own Her, Harvest Festival, The Last Balloon 2/5
Bland and unremarkable. Not very good.
It's like if Brian Wilson's wax replica came to life and found a studio, and made music that fits in the same uncanny valley as its looks.
Tiresome to be honest
2.75
Premier League, corrupt as fuck
Interesting and quirky, I can see why it's on this list. Definitely original too, can't imagine many other bands have written a love song set at a harvest festival service. There's probably a reason for that, though. I probably won't listen again but I'll give it a extra star because at least I wasn't bored
This actually had some really interesting production and instrumentation, but the song writing didn't really do it for me. Meh.
Dan, it's funny that you mentioned Dirty Projectors the other day in your review of the Pentangle album because I hear their sound in this album too. Especially in the vocals and the layered production of the first track "River of Orchids." I like the line "The grass is always greener when it bursts up through concrete." I was just talking yesterday about this idea of taking a cliche phrase or saying and changing a part of it to freshen it up and make it new again. (There was a line in an Arctic Monkeys song that made me think of this concept: "I don't mean to rain on anybody's cabaret." What a fun writing trick!) The second track "I'd Like That" almost sounds like solo Paul McCartney. A lot of these songs sound influenced by the Beatles. I’m liking this less and less as it goes on. A lot of these songs are corny. The vocals frequently made me cringe. And aside from a good first impression, I don’t like the lyrics. “Your Dictionary” struck me as particularly clunky. This album started interesting but by the end, I was happy it was over.
XTC albums usually have a few catchy songs that carry the album for me. I didn't find the spark on this one. It didn't help that it wasn't on Spotify and I had to endure YouTubeMusic's commercials after every other song.
There’s no Nigel or Generals and Majors here, but Andy Partridge’s quirky voice is ever present. This one is for the die-hard XTC fans
It gives strong Beatles. A little more psychedelic, way more boring
What I really don't like about this album is that it's no fun at all. People can try to draw parallels to the Beatles or Beach Boys because there are some unique instrumentations and production choices, but this completely lacks the sense of humor and genuine soul of projects like Rubber Soul and Pet Sounds. It's not horrible in a vacuum but seeing it in this context made me like it a whole lot less than I otherwise would have. Your Dictionary is also utterly terrible. 4/10
It was the song where the frontman kept cheekily spelling out curse words in a hilariously unsubtle attempt to be cutting that reminded me of an episode earlier this year at the community radio station I volunteered at where a 30s-something man couldn't bring himself to say fuck, instead replacing every instance in the song title with a simple 'F.' It was a little sad, but mostly pathetic, an attempt to seem cool and hip well beyond one's prime or when they should have quit long ago. That sums up this album for me, an ending chapter for a band that had long since died an ungraceful death.
Your Dictionary might be the single worst song I've heard in my life. The rest of the album ranges from good to fine to bad, but Your Dictionary is horrific. Favorite track: Greenman
First song felt like something from yoshis island mixed with terraria, really repetitive, can't really understand what they are saying, lyric wise. First song is kinda strange, not my thing Second song has a nice intro, but the first words of the song being it's name just seems lazy for me, the songs are very mellow and calm, but repetitive I'm getting sleepy from hearing these songs, maybe if you like the beatles and those types of bands this one can bring some feeling of "something new" in regards to the calm rock style, but I just can't listen to it for an extended period of time.
Definitely not cool enough in 1999 for this one.
Yet another of way too many of the albums here that apply to the pretentious more than they do to the music lover.
Not even a hastily arranged orchestra could save this mid tier Beatles cover band of an album.
Varsin keskivertolevy. En pahemmin saanut otetta. 2/5
Green man jopa musikaalimainen kappale. Ylipäätään kyllä aika unohdettava levy vaikkakin ihan kiva. 2/5
Favorite Track[s]: Easter Theatre
The album was not that good. Unnoteworthy. I tolerated it.
Cant find on spoof :( 2
"Apple Venus Volume 1" by XTC is an album that marks a departure from the band's earlier work, moving toward a more orchestral and experimental sound. Released in 1999, it's a departure from the angular new wave and post-punk sound that defined much of their career. Tracks like "River of Orchids" and "Easter Theatre" showcase the band's ambition and desire to explore new musical territory. The album's production is lush and intricate, incorporating orchestral arrangements and intricate melodies. However, while "Apple Venus Volume 1" is a testament to the band's willingness to evolve, it may disappoint fans of their earlier, more guitar-driven sound. The album's complexity and departure from their signature style can make it a challenging listen for those seeking the XTC they knew and loved. In summary, "Apple Venus Volume 1" is a departure that might not resonate with fans of XTC's earlier work. While it showcases their artistic growth, its experimental nature may not appeal to a broader audience, warranting a 2/5 rating.
It's literally not available anywhere. I considered buying it, but the other couple of albums were very average, so I elected not to.
Heb wel eens betere XTC gehad... dit is echt slap spul, of misschien moet ik nog een 'halfje' nemen.
Ehm.... ik kan dit niet echt duiden. Maar ik neig er toch wel naar dat dit te zoetsappige muzak is.
XTC is very dramatic. Every line is like a declaration against some thing.
Different, not what I was expecting. Does that mean I liked it? No, not really. I thought it was pretty boring overall. Favorite track: I'd Like That
Couldn’t find it. Listened to Skylarking instead and GODDAMN it was bloody awful
Interesting, but no. There's just too much going on and I really don't like it.
I was a big fan of XTC's 1989 Oranges and Lemons. This didn't have the vibrancy of that album or the sense of originality. I became bored quite quickly.
Honestly only one decently good song on the whole album in "I'd Like That", which funny enough reminded me of the movie "Me, Myself, & Irene" since it's part of the soundtrack. Outside of that it wasn't very good and thought the lyrics sucked ass in a few spots but hey, at least it compliments the crappy singing. 4/10
Sounds like every song was made for a pretentious film
Ass
favs: greenman rating 0.4/5
Goofy ahh
I tried.
It’s like they listened to “piggys” off the white album and decided to make a whole band making C+ versions of that song. “Your Dictionary” might be the worst written song in all 1001 albums.
This was actually annoying.
Dribble…very disappointing
Can’t believe the shitty Beatles got to record 12 albums before this
Wow I hate this. Sounds like the soundtrack to a really shit, low budget musical and I don't even like good musicals
The rare occasion that I abandon an album midway.
Not mine sry
Completely forgettable. Cannot remember a single thing. Utter shit.
No.
Awful. Just because you can sing doesn't mean you should sing. The was one of those albums I almost couldn't finish, where a couple times I stopped what I was doing to look at the stereo and exclaim "WTF?!"
en algún momento lo sentí como música de fondo en un juego de role play de roblox
Liked the first song, wanted to like the rest. Just too tongue in cheek and goofy. I tried.
So intensely corny I can hardly take it
S-H-I-T is how I spell this band in my dictionary. The only good part was listening to the song 'Greenman' and imagining Charlie from It's Always Sunny doing an interpretive dance to it. XTC stinks.
S-H-I-T is how I spell XTC in my dictionary.
I don't know man, I think I could die just fine having not heard this. The compositions are beautiful I suppose, but feel so generic. And these are some of the worst lyrics I've heard. Not sure why this was chose over something like Skylarking. Or maybe it's also on the list, I don't know, but this is unnessesary. I liked The Last Balloon. And maybe Greenman. Maybe.
Favorite Song: None
Hey guys, let's try to make our own Sgt. Pepper's, but let's fail miserably at it! And so Apple Venus Volume 1 was born.
Every time a song ended, I was disappointed that another one started
In a nutshell: "orchoustic" Andy Patridge described the album as "orchoustic"- an acoustic and orchestral composition. Interesting idea on paper but it doesn't work here. If XTC had more money and time to record this album, we would have something so much better. 2/10
What the fuck was that??
This was a terrible album. Boring and trying so hard to be quirky.
This was fucking awful. This shouldn't be an album. It shouldn't have been released.
This is, without hyperbole, one of the top 5 worst pieces of audio ever recorded. I think it’s nestled somewhere in between the toolbox murder tapes and Born in the USA. “Greenman” into “Your Dictionary” is a double attack strong enough to double over any reviewer. The pain that was caused to me by that chorus and those lyrics back to back is something that will elicit a visceral response upon remembering. K-I-L-L is that how you spell love?? I’ve got one for you H-I-R-E A G-H-O-S-T W-R-I-T-E-R I too would like to remove myself from this review as my “creative differences” with the untalented theatre kid are too strong. I believe he might have a lacklustre orchestra trapped in his basement. At least let the contrabassoon man free. Zeeeeeeero stars. 0 HIGHLIGHTS: The green man emerged from the brine, billowing with the rotted dregs of the undertow. Luminous hatred emanates from the finger that cracks into a point at the end of his fetid hand. A voice from below bellows “AMPLE BOTUM GENES.” You are cast to hell.
Aging punk/ new wave rockers try to stay relevant by releasing their "sophisticated" orchestrated rock album. Instead, they make shit from a butt and some pretentious Brit who grew up in the golden age of bands like XTC tries to convince me their swan song albums from the late 90s are actually awesome and I can't die satisfied without hearing it. Trust me, bro, the oompah horns are actually so good, bro.
Got bored five tracks in and gave up. Getting serious bargain basement McCartney wannabe feelings from this . Sorry XTC, but not for me.
Cant believe they are still going. I suppose there are enougg people around to get their stuff. Noe me. This was difgicult to listen all the way thtough.
Really really cheesy. Not great.
I’m somewhat comforted by the fact that I like other XTC stuff. The beginning started off well with the orchestral accompaniments. But as this album progressed, it started triggering a deeply visceral feeling within me. They say art is supposed to evoke something within you and connect to your emotions, will this album did it in the form of irk, shock, horror, grimace. NO NO NO. If you were a musical theatre kid in school, into nerd rock, have an unhealthy relationship to Disney soundtracks, then maybe this is the perfect album to start your day with. For me, it felt like an audio khole that I am sure will haunt my nightmares for days to come.
Meh
Some of this was good. Too much of it felt off, though... almost more similar to children's music. Kind of like Talking Heads and the Beatles made a Kids Bop-esque album, all the while considering it sophisticated art. Just a weird product overall, and not really in a good way. It managed to get worse as it went, which unfortunately lasted 50 minutes. To repurpose some of the lyrics: s-h-i-t, is that how you spell Apple Venus? Ok, I wouldn't go that far. There's definitely worse on this list. But also not sure what would make this an essential listen. I won't be coming back to this one, or really remember it at all. Overall: 1.4/5
I don't even know what this is meant to be.
Sounds like Swindon
We don't need any "thirteenth studio album by..." in this household, thank you very much
Ehhh. “Greenman” was super exciting for the first bit and then the lyrics kicked in. I think this would be a fun album if I was blitzed out of my gourd. I am unfortunately not. “Your Dictionary” was… cringey. Only didn’t skip because I needed to know how bad it would get. Had to start skipping songs after that.
Pretentious rubbish. Nothing but a self congratulatory ego project. They made this for themselves, not for music fans. Boring and irritating.
Awful. An assault upon my ears,
This was the corniest thing on the list so far
"Your Dictionary" may be one of the worst songs I've ever heard
Just sounded like dads in a pub
not for me
Why is this on the list? Is there something about it I don't know? Lines like "high so high like a really high thing" make me think they are fucking with me. Ok so after listening I have decided they were trying for boring. There is no other reason they made this album. Technically it's fine, it's not like they made a bad album. It's just very boring.
Ogillade verkligen rösten och texterna. Jobbigt att lyssna på.
En sak jag gillar med det här lilla projektet är att mötas av band man aldrig hört men ändå har en bild av hur det ska låta. XTC är ett sådant band för mig, men det var verkligen inte såhär jag trodde XTC lät. Jag trodde det ändå skulle vara ganska bra, men det här föll mig verkligen inte i smaken. Enerverande musik.
Lite skamlös Beatles-kopia emellanåt va? Nä det här säger mig ingenting alls. Kommer aldrig lyssna på detta igen. Riktigt sjukt att den här smörjan finns med på listan.
Nö!
Pretty weird and off putting with some of the dumbest lyrics I’ve ever heard in my life. I never want to hear this again.
The first song was alright and I really like the second half of the last song. Apart from that it was complete ass
Sekasoppa joka on kovin viimeistelty ja täydellistä. On afrikkalaista U2 meininkiä ja liian täydellisen kuuloista jousta sekä pianoa.
🤮
Fucking terrible. I gave up at Dictionary. Just couldn't do it anymore. Listening to this album reminded me of Dewey Cox calling for "TEN THOUSAND DIDGERIDOOS!!!" while goats wander through a studio with 200 confused and exasperated musicians. This was an amateur hackjob piece of shit and has absolutely no place on a list of essential albums. On a positive note, I have some time that I won't be listening to this that is available for good music. So, thanks for that, I guess ⭐.5
Awful. Just not great Bob.
Boring. Hard to get past the third song.
Sounds like very boring Beatles
So far this sounds like Wings. Or a Paul McCartney side project. Easter Theater. Fuck it, I’m not correcting it. I fucking hate having fat fingers. has a dab of the Beach Boys sound. Oh look at that, there’s an autocorrect built into this thing. Cool. Temper at zero now. Fuck it again. This is not good. Boring I can’t believe these are the same people that put out Dear God. It should be Lord help us all after hearing this album.
Ehm no thanka
- You just, like, don’t get it man - K
Do you know the amazing thing about this album? It's a bigger load of shit than what I dropped in the dunny this morning.That was a giant load of crap, so much so I was impressed with myself, and this album out did that.
The lyrics were corny and not as deep as the singer thought they were. Music was fine, just nothing that really captivated me. First album that I was getting annoyed with while listening to.
Sorry for the upcoming violent thought, but more and more I want to beat the author of 1001 to a bloody pulp. This shit sucks donkey farts.
Local pub karaoke cooks harder. Pretty poor choice
Nigel has no plans to work his senses overtime on this.
"I'd smile so much my face would crack, then you could fix it with your kissing glue." This album is when a horny dad thinks he's McCartney and Wilson
This was actually just shit
This did absolutely nothing for me. Felt like experimenting for experimentation's sake, not like a cohesive or thought-out project.
+: I'd Like That, Frivolous Tonight, Fruit Nut, I Can't Own Her +-: River of Orchids, Knights in Shining Karma, Greenman, Your Dictionary, Harvest Festival, The Last Balloon -: Easter Theatre 3,3/10
Wow, what a horrible album, I hope there was never a volume 2. 0/5
XTC, man. I find their older stuff appealing, so why did this have to be in here? This, the penultimate album in their discography, came at a time where the band was not the same XTC most people know of. My question today is that out of all other albums, why was this put in the list for the 1001 albums you must hear before you kick the can? Is it because of the complete leap into orchestral and acoustic pop songs? Maybe it is. It's a big change from the angular guitar tunes of then. But for me, what makes an album get a low rating is if that album is a complete slog to get through. During the entirety of this project, I wondered what was the point. Almost none of the songs left an impression on me and lacked something to dig. There's parts that I think interested me; certain melodies and such. But as it went on, it felt like there was nothing spectacular about what I was getting myself into. An orchestra in music tells me that what I'm hearing is meant to be grandiose. There's supposed to be something climatic or wondrous about the song to have an additional arrangement attached to it. This wasn't that. What was the point today? (3/10, 1/5 on this scale) (Update: 2/10)