Reviews (page 7 of 8)
Gear: Grado Hemp Artwork: ‼️👔‼️ Production: 🎧🛠️🤔 Music: 🧾📚👎 Rating: ⁉️(⁉️)/5
Harder older rock. Like more intense Beach Boys. Not my favorite.
The classic rock sound of the 60’s with a little attitude, as its being recorded in the first ever recording device available in modern history tho
The original songs I liked, Witch and Psycho. The rest were a bunch of mediocre covers
Wooaaaooow!*screams* Innerhalb dieser 60s-PopRockBobBands mal eine schöne Abwechslung. Cover sind vergessbar, aber sowas wie "The Witch" fällt auf wenn man das Produktionsjahr beachtet. Für mehr als 2 reicht's dennoch leider nicht.
Not very exciting or original - especially when compared to The Beatles or other big acts of this time. Just not memorable!
After giving this a listen, I understand why I’d never heard of them. It’s kind of like the Beatles’ first record, except the playing is sloppier, the recording quality is horrible, the original songs are unmemorable, the lyrics are mumbled, and the covers are all WAY worse than the original artists’ versions. I’m struggling to find anything to like about this.
2.
Il aime bien crier…
this probably slapped real hard in 1965 but it's a little annoying for me today
I didn't like this album, I'm not saying that is a bad album is just not my vibe
It's a good album, and I'm pretty sure that this must have been pretty influential when published. However, I'm not really excited. In particular, I don't think the covers are particularly interesting (neither the selection, nor the performance).
Favourite Songs: The Witch Have Love Will Travel
I can see why the Brits dominated the mid 60s when this was their competition It’s not awful per se but I honestly don’t think I prefer any of the covers to the originals, and their originals aren’t particularly good. Definitely catchy, I did find myself enjoying the beat for a bunch of them. For its time it does a decent job of feeling like something newish but I just don’t think his vocals are quite it. I do gotta give them credit, any time an albums under 40 minutes on this list I breathe a sigh of relief since the artist actually respects our time. Innovative for its time but I think out of all the bands in the early/mid 60s these guys got left behind for a reason
The songs in this album are actually pretty catchy and I would have enjoyed it a lot if it wasn't for the awful sound quality. And on top of that the lead singer would not stop screaming in each song and it was making me more annoyed the more it went on.
Das Debütalbum der US-amerikanischen Band The Sonics wurde 1964 im Audio Recording Studio in Seattle (Washington) aufgenommen und 1965 auf dem lokalen Label Etiquette veröffentlicht. Die Gruppe aus Tacoma gehört zu den frühen Vertretern des Garage Rock mit deutlichen Bezügen zu Rock ’n’ Roll und einem rauen Klang, der später oft als Vorläufer des Punk beschrieben wurde. Viele Stücke sind kurz, direkt und mit stark verzerrtem Sound eingespielt. Besonders bekannt wurden Songs wie „The Witch“, „Psycho“, „Strychnine“ und „Boss Hoss“, die mit Orgel, Saxophon und einer bewusst übersteuerten Produktion arbeiten. Daneben stehen energiereiche Coverversionen klassischer Rhythm-and-Blues- und Rock-’n’-Roll-Titel wie „Have Love Will Travel“ oder „Money“. Die Aufnahme wirkt roh und nahezu live, was dem Album eine unmittelbare Dynamik gibt. Gerade diese Unmittelbarkeit macht den Reiz der Platte aus.
Another mediocre band. Idk what they do in this list. Normally I would give this a 3 because it's like mediocre Rock'n Roll which i generally like. But this album mostly consists of cover songs, which is pretty sad. Also very sad that the cover album seems to be the best they've got, otherwise another album would be in the list instead.
Not for me
Some '50/60s standards mixed with a few originals. A kind of shouty and aggressive garage rock, unusual for that time period. But overall, nothing really outstanding or groundbreaking that I absolutely had to listen to before I die.
A bunch of standards carried out with enthusiasm, but ultimately below par for me.
A punk-y take, before punk existed, on a bunch of standard songs. Clearly influential, but not that fun to listen to now.
2.2
the constant screeching makes this album so insufferable
eh, jein. covers ok, rest eher mässig - tonqualität noch mässiger.
Lots of noise at least.
Listened but did not enjoy. Sound quality was poor (there are better productions from the same timeframe), lead vocal felt like I was being screamed at. No nuance on the covers. Why so many covers? I guess this is so early punk/garage, they had little writing talent developed yet? Stop screaming at me.
So much screaming and wailing, so distracting from the band and lyrics.
It's ok at its best and shit at its worst. Also slightly haunted by that version of the song that's used in the LV adverts. Also their ability to make 2 minute songs feel like they last an hour needs to be studied.
1.5
torn on this. It really didn't do anything for me, few nice ideas and clearly an impressive exploration of Garage Rock before the genre existed, but it was just kind of dull to listen to in 2026? Wish there was more original tracks too, but I suppose filling a record with covers was the norm at the time
I really felt like there wasn't much going on in this album even with 12 tracks in under 30 minutes. I liked the instrumental aspects and punky sound but other than that it felt bland and colorless listening to it. Favorite Song: Boss Hoss. 4.5/10
60s music funnelled through garage rock is a strange experience and generally feels like listening to a pub band. There are a few tracks where it works and sounds timeless like have love will travel but overall the style and the songs seem somewhat disjointed
Not really into the hooting and hollering 60s style
Never a fan of being screamed at, even when the screams are in the form of "wah"s and "wow"s. Plus the sound quality was a bit shaky. Pretty fun music and I understand the "punkness" was ahead of it's time but it sounds pretty old to me. Favourite song: Do You Love Me Least: Dirty Robber
28 minutes of nothing to write home about. There are some old albums that really show you why they influenced and paved the way for what came after. This is not one of them. 2/5
not my vibe
Never heard of The Sonics until now. Reading about them, I was excited to hear new garage rock music from my home state. It was kind of a letdown hearing a bunch of covers on this album, as I was hoping for a bit more creativity. I don’t hate it, but the way they executed these songs felt very… meh. I’m sure for the time, this band was really great and had some amazing live shows. But uh… I don’t know if this really hit the mark for me.
the instruments used in this one are interesting choices in terms of how the music is shaped throughout the album, i overall think it was quite generic and not many songs stood out to me despite the overall atmosphere of the album being quite unique. i liked the rock and roll aspect of it all, but the rest is just not necessarily my vibe. I liked the production on „witch” and i enjoyed „do you love me”
Even if the music really dont hit the spot for me, it's always refreshing to have the wikipedia page available to get more enlighten on the history and impact the band has made. Eventually having a more positive impact on the listening experience.
Not my thing, soz
These honkies are absolutely rocking and rolling! I thank god every day that recording and mixing technology advanced past sounding like a gramophone. While it has it's charm sometimes, it isn't charming here.
This honestly just sounds so dated. And a bunch of covers. Beatles did it better.
These guys seem to be a lot more fun than they promise on the cover. In the end they just seem to be an okay, but pretty amateurish cover band with very few songs of their own, though.
Great album
"roll over beethoven" is an iconic song name. voice a little more raspy than i would have loved.
Just another Rock'n'Roll Cover Band in the early 60ties with a strong northern westcoast touch.
Maybe this is an historically important album, but its a lot of covers of rock n roll standards, recorded in pretty horrible quality. I can't really give it more than 2. 2/5
Great Rock n Roll! The screaming (in my headphones) bumped it from 3 down to 2. Jarring and unpleasant peaking.
5/10 - I liked the overall garage sound and imagine it was influential for other bands at the time, but a majority of the songs were covers that didn’t really need a garage version.
Fun to see the origins of garage rock but it's not something I would go back to often. I like their originals more than the covers. 5/10
i didn’t like this album and even tho it’s only 30 minutes long i was waiting for it to be over kinda. the frequent screaming wasn’t something i enjoyed and the fast tempo with the instruments is a bit too intense for me. also thought all the songs kinda blended into one. wasn’t the worst 30 minutes of music but definitely wasn’t the best -favourite track: DO YOU LOVE ME
Hard for it not to sound so dated and simple. Not bad and worth being on the list for the history part. Good debut album.
So many cover songs just done in a rebellious way. Often a good formula for selling a bunch of records to the youth. Doesn't feel like required listening before you die.
Eh
historically notable, but woefully uninteresting to me. the aspects of this album that made it novel to audiences in the 60s are so trite in the modern era that it's hard for me to find any appreciation for this. it's quintessential early garage rock. it is exact what you think it is, nothing more and nothing less, for 30 minutes.
Album Review 046 Here Are The Sonics by The Sonics (1965) Rating 2/5 Here Are The Sonics is an album that’s not shy in showing it’s influences; it’s 12 tracks of Little Richard riffs (and covers) played on overdriven amps, with Little Richard-type howls every 15-seconds or so. The Sonics and this, their debut album, are clearly an important stop-off point in the evolution of Rock’n’Roll and many bands who followed owe them dues (Stooges, MC5, etc.), but Here Are The Sonics isn’t as good as what came before or what followed, and Gerry Roslie’s WHAAAA-OOOOOOHH’s before every verse/chorus/guitar solo get tiresome quickly.
Although I suppose I should be more supportive of a 60s Pacific Northwest band that definitely seems to have put the "garage" in "garage band", this album didn't really do much for me. I guess I can see how this has become characterized as a sort of proto-punk band and album, but poor production quality, poor musicianship and fairly unimaginative covers make for a tedious listen, although I can imagine they put on a good live show. I *was* thankful, though, it clocks in under 30 minutes.
typical american garage rock if i wanted to listen to beach boys i’d of played the beatles. lots of songs from adverts
For mange coverlåta, sjøl om eg sette pris på litt Roll over Beethoven i blant
I'm not so unreasonable to doubt that they influenced plenty but I just cant dig it.
The band chose the perfect name for their relentless rock. They pack a lot of energy into 29 minutes, but basically only one emotion - “let’s party”. The poor recording (bad equipment or just engineers who didn’t know how to capture their loud sound?) is a bit hard to listen to and would put me off listening to this album frequently, but the fact that they were making punk 10 years too early means I’ll have to give this at least 2.5 stars.
I swear this is the 2nd time I've listened to this. It's a bunch of 60's white kids doing cover songs. How does this make the list? They're all good covers but aren't as good as the originals. The lead singer is average at best, the music is missing a certain punch (see "Roll Over Beethoven") compared to the original artist's rendition. This one's another head scratcher. In reading up on them it appears they were known for their "roaring guitars, pounding drums, and the fevered howls". Ok, so I guess they turned it up a little compared to other rock from 1965, low bar. "Have Love Will Travel" must have influenced the Black Keys decades later, their version is very similar. It's the best song on the album I think. 2 stars because it's good, but is it a Must Hear? Nope.
Not really my thing
I appreciate the historical influence. With all the Jack White I've heard already on this journey, no I really see it. It's a really moved, "aggressive" rock and roll. It's fun, it's electric, it's low budget and low fidelity so it's also influencing that iconic raw sound. It also feels like the appropriation of black culture so it can be found digestible by a narrow minded population. It doesn't sound fun enough to make that feel any better. There ~is~ a handful of tracks written by their lead, Gerry Roslie, but let's be honest here, the covers are the tracks that have stood the test of time. My rating for this one is a battle between a fun classic sound and cringe. 2.4/5
Sounds like way too much of the same from that era. How about writing some of your own songs??
Not really sure why this album is necessary for us trying to expand our musical mind. It came out the same year the Beatles released Rubber Soul but has the same production of a mid 50s rock album.
One of the worst 60s cover bands you're ever likely to hear. What these guys ARE from the 60s?!?
*1965. *two huge songs on here: Roll over Beethoven and good golly miss Molly *Pretty much every song sounded like those two… RATING - 6/10
Meh
idk man in one ear out the other
Rock, Beat, 1965 -> 2
2.5
So, basically, it's a cover album, because 8 of 12 songs are covers. I rarely admit that covers are better than originals and this album is no exception. Only "Have Love Will Travel" I find more interesting than the original, so I like it and it's basically the most popular song of the album. Psycho, which is an original song, is also very good. 2/5 —————————————— Liked: — Have Love Will Travel — Psycho
An album of covers played at increased speed with a rough vocals
very old sounding album
Heard their cover of Have Love Will Travel before. And I do like it but honestly it's just a covers album. I know album making used to look a bit different in the 60s but write your own damn music 2/5
As someone who has been in not one but two bad cover bands I feel like I need to defend these guys. And, let's be clear, these guys are way better than any band I have ever been in. I imagine their live shows were a lot of fun. That said, yesterday after listening to Neil Young's One The Beach I really appreciated this project and how it exposed me to new music. I have no such feelings today.
This is a head scratcher. Not a particularly good album. No noteworthy original songs. And all of the covers that are on it are done better or are more well known by other bands.
Its an album. It's mostly covers. The arrangements are basically the same as the originals except for worse musicianship. And the recording is terrible. It sounds like any random high school band learning to play and recording with an cassette recorder
Do you ever listen to an album and think: I don’t get it? That’s what happened here. I like the songs and am a fan of the original versions of all eight covers. But I think that was one of my problems too. Most of this album sounded like a garage band with bad production doing covers. Again, not bad but walk into any band room in America and you can hear the same thing. From a historical perspective I get the influences punk and Grunge. At one point I even commented that it sounded like Ziggy Pop was fronting Nirvana. However, this feels like a retrospective “had-to-be-there” album. 4-Star on history; 2-star on relevance. Enjoyed the album for a listen. Respect them for what they did. …and I’m leaving it there.
Interesting choice to be on this list, but they rocked the fuck out with Gerry Roslie’s singing and yelling over guitars, pianos, saxes, drums, etc… very pleased hearing the saxophone throughout. Lots of high energy and raw music. My gripes are the low quality, only four original songs, short songs that remind me of 50s dance music, and I can’t help but feel they’re doing Little Richard or Chuck Berry impressions. Overall not bad, but the quality makes it unlikely to be replayed.
On this album the Sonics deliver a lively, raw form of garage rock packaged in a small but energetic record. The key songs are aggressive, unfiltered and full of energy, making for a fun listen, albeit one that is let down slightly by some basic & repetitive song writing. The albums main issue though is the awful production quality. You could give them the benefit of the doubt given it was recorded in the early 60s, but the sound quality of the guitars and vocals are simply awful and do impact the experience of listening to it. Also, if this guy screams WOOWWWAAH one more time…..
This album sounds as if it were recorded with a straw. I've heard better garage rock songs from that era. Some of the rock 'n roll covers remind me of early Status Quo. "Here Come the Sonics" could be an ok record to dance to in a '50s diner. A good thing about this album is that it's short. 2 stars for "Here Are the Sonics".
I think that having early garage rock is important for a list like this. However, this album isn’t it. The fact that it’s a majority of covers that aren’t even as good as the originals almost feels insulting. I also have found through this project that I have a tolerance level for the number of times an album has some wail loud enough into the mix that it clips. It’s not unlistenable, but I’m sure there are original bands more deserving of the slot.
Became very repetitive
I don't hate it. Probably a lot of kids in the 60s liked it. I'll never listen to it again. I appreciate that they paved the way for David Draiman to choke on the same hairball on every Disturbed song. WAAAAHHHHHHHHHH
Never heard of this band before. The first song surprised me because it wasn't what I was expecting it sound. I did enjoy it but it quickly faded. Songs didn't feel original and I guess it's because they're covers or have been covered numerous times. Wasn't all bad but won't listen to again.
They literally just scream so much. It fits their time frame so well and I’m sure this is great to go sip your milkshake at the drive in but not so much for me.
A couple of decent tracks padded out with covers. Nothing special.
Mid 60s distortion heavy rock that makes me think about Johnny B Goode. Several songs are near copies of themselves. It’s not offensive but does wear thin after a while. 2/5
So forgettable.
...meanwhile at the production meeting: "So how about you, playing some songs that are already famous?! But maybe we add something new to it..like screaming?" Fav: The Witch
Groupe inconnu. L'album est constitué de reprises bien énervées de standards rock, et de quelques compos (une minorité). Rien d'original donc, mais pas désagréable à écouter ... une fois. =>2/5
Familiar tunes but prefer listening to the original artists mostly.
[Paragraph of 60s slang] [WAAAAA!!] [Instrumental] I enjoy this more as a piece of history than music
Probably a small step towards the rawness of garage rock/proto-punk etc, but it's still very much at the '50s rock 'n' roll' end of the scale (as evidenced by all the covers), so it doesn't seem like an especially significant album to me.
Some classic song covers on here but it didn't do my headache much good.
It’d be a 1 if it wasn’t of the 60s
not my thing
So many covers..
I'll concede the point about this being influential blah blah blah but at the end of the day i just don't find it enjoyable to listen to
Out of 12 songs, only 4 are original?
Я зрозумів що гаражний рок 60х це точно не моя музика.
it's like if the beatles were alternative and i feel exceedingly neutral about both of them. u can definitely see the #influence they've had on music but like... can't music be more than that?????
An alright album that reminded me of I want to say the Clash but not quite. It wasn't quite punk/rock but had a bit more distortion than standard pop. Not in a hurry to go back and listen to it but nothing too offensive.
Half the songs are covers, am I rating them or Chuck Berry, Barry Gordie? I like the fuzz, I love the un-produced sound of it. Good enough that if I heard this coming out of a local bar\pub I would stick around for a few.
I have no idea who The Sonics are. But 1965, I tend to like that era of rock. I find this album boring and the scream gets on my nerves. It starts to sound gimmicky because they overuse it. I’m assuming this was influential to garage rock. Lots of covers. Like the Beatles if they never left the bar in Liverpool. Not a favorite!
Nothing special here…
A little more scream-y than is generally my taste. Interesting covers.
Meh. Not into this old lo fi shit. And enough with the screaming on every track.
Is it early hard rock? Or is it Chuck Berry with bad microphones? The bad recording quality makes it hardly enjoyable. The songs are not original. All based on the same 3 chords. Why is this on this list? Trash. Edit: Ok Money & Walkin the dog were actually good. Upped from 1 to 2 stars
Don’t know why this is even in the list. Meh!!!
So a seminal garage rock/punk album that has a certain something as he yells over, mainly, a set of covers. I can understand the sound was influential but I’d be much more generous if it was originals.
Okay, 1965 covers? I can get behind the drums, but a lot of it borders on one-note tedium. I can imagine where they wanted to go with this, but I am not sure they got too far down the path.
Their renditions lacked soul
This didn't do much of anything for me. The murky production really distracted me. Mostly made me think about George Martin.
Dreary covers. Would have been good in the pub, back in the day, with many beers.
meh.
The amount of wwWWWOOOOoooOOOOwwWWWW really irritates me
I'm sure it's of some archeological interest to dig up these muscial bones to understand the evolution of music, but we already have plenty of fully reconstructed skeletons of the 𝘚𝘦𝘹𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘴 𝘎𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘤𝘬𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘴 and this adds nothing. A 3 for the music here, a weak 2 for its AYMHBYDness.
Not much to say about this one, mostly covers with a pretty slapdash recording sound. Decent performances, will give it a blanket 6/10
Liian rosoinen äänimaailma omaan makuun. Genrenä menee varmaan jo jonkinlaiseksi punkin esigenreksi eli "protopunkiksi"
Not awesome
The quality is really bad in the one I found and desperately needs a remaster. The Album Itself though is alright. It sounds like an old jukebox. It's just really hard to listen to with the quality it's at though, sadly, so I can't really enjoy it that much. 4/10
Me gusta el rockabilly, peroooooo siento que no es tanto lo mio, i mean los sonidos son como para ponerlo en una rocola, pero no me gustó tanto, ademas los gritos del inicio tienden a volverse repetitivos, creo que le daré dos estrellas y media, en su tiempo quizas esto era lo mejor, no es malo eso es seguro, pero no es tanto de mi gusto, como para ponerlo en una cafeteria en estados unidos en eel estado de texasa hahaaha
Obviously a very 60s sound. Some quite good covers but nothing that really grabbed me
They may be Sonic but they’re not SuperSonic
While I agree that Garage Rock deserves some spots on this list, there are tons of better representatives than this. How about something with less than 9 covers?
Co to w ogóle jest. Większość tej płyty to covery. Zero oryginalności. Cała płyta ma mniej niż 30 minut. Przyjemny to rock n roll, ale czy to jest coś więcej niż soundtrack do sprzątania mieszkania? Nie wydaje mi się. 4.5/10 i nie będę tym razem równać w górę, bo mnie to zirytowało.
It’s okay. Good energy and performance, but it’s about as 60s as you can get.
2+ Stars (6/15)
oldies
I hear the early punk in this, that’s cool. But there sure are a lot of covers on this album - too many, really, to include on this list. Maybe if they were definitively better than the originals? Or if the originals were obscure? But neither is true.
The Witch is like. Type O' Negative way before Type O' Negative was a thing. and for that only they get two stars
60s garage band doing mostly covers. Eh.
Wasn't sure what to make of this. A bunch of covers and because of that I wasn't sure what, if any, of these were originals. Did a bit research and I understand these guys have been thought to "lay the groundwork" for later punk. Okay...fine. But I just can't get into punk and while this may have ground breaking in 1965, I can't put myself in that time and now it just seems to be a whole lot of guttural "waaaaaaaaaaaaa" noises mixed in with some decent covers.
This isn't really a genre I'm a big fan of, and while I enjoy some of the original works they covered, I don't feel like their versions brought enough to the table to justify their existence. More than once I thought I was listening to the same track and the song had actually changed, so that's not ideal.
Кое-что неплохо, но в целом не зашло
Standard British invasion stuff, nothing very original or different - the best tracks are cover versions of blues and early rock standards also covered by other British artists of the time.
из наушников ещё как-то, но из колонок очень... назовём это блэк киз. громко и прижато и гитара эта что ли. нет, спасибо
WOAHHHHHHUGHHH *some blue chords* WOAAHHHHHHUGHHHYUUIIIKkolluwheudhek
Not my thing
The mid-60s saw a large upsurge in garage bands in the USA, largely inspired by the "British invasion", and mostly I guess by the the Stones and the Beatles. I don't really understand why this album makes it into this list as it's largely covers and pretty derivative stuff. What about The Standells, The Barbarians, The Chocolate Watchband, The Kingsmen and so on and so on. Yes, this is fun to play, but it's not an essential album to my ears, though I know garage bands like this had influence beyond their apparent musical abilities. I have a compilation by the Sonics that includes the tracks on this album, so it's not that I dislike it.
Sounded a little rough
Actually know most of the songs on this album and they're decent. However the listening experience was violently hindered by the nuts scream every 2 seconds that made me what to blow my brains out
Aaaah super! Je me suis justement réveillé à matin avec l’envie profonde d’écouter des covers de grands classiques rock & roll mixé tout croche avec un gars qui crie “WOOOOOOOOOOOO” au 5 secondes dans le microphone le plus cheap du dollo! QUELLE COÏNCIDENCE!!!!!!! 🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯
Kinda good except screams
I like it... I do... but the quality just sounds like it was recorded through temu mics.
That's a LOT of high-pitched wows/waaaaahs and similar screams, and too loud in the mix. Well. "Mix", as if this had actually been mixed.
Meget gammel lyd - Egentlig ok musik, men kvaliteten er for dårlig
so.... much.... shouting
Here is Timon's review: S ängelhafte und s überpitchte geschreie vom Sonic het mi uf de heireis schön in Schlaf gwieget. Und wenn de Sonic ned persönlich i mis ohr gschräue het, denn ihres viel zluute saxophon oder welles Instrument das au gsii isch. Ufjedefall isch viel gschraue worde und es isch mer vorcho als wär das ihres konzept gsi s ganz Album zwei Stuufe z luut ufzneh das sich uf de Boxe oder uf de Chopfhörer au sicher alles überschlaht. Trotz weggedöse, !!!!!! GIBI DENE SIECHE NUR ZWEI PÜNKT, DEFÜR DIE LÜTISTE WO DER VORSTELLE CHASCH!!!!!! !!!
Herr is the neduzen. Ich glaub da wär vill potential ume gsi, eis zwei jahrzehnt später und chline tweaks vum stil. Zum bispel mit chli meh disco oder shoe gaziger. De rocknrolly gsehni, aber isch ez nöd würki mid unf guet. Times over. Herr goes the neduzen
Kinda cool production and noisiness and maybe quite influential idk but mostly I hated listening to it
Idk man
Deserves a spot on the 1001, clearly influential garage rock stuff. But not going to listen to it again.
Overall, I love the sound of the band. I don’t care for the sound of this album. And I don’t like the fact that it’s mostly covers. Give me an album full of originals and produced in better audio quality and I might love these guys.
Raw sound
Cover album
Not a massive fan of cover bands
While I do not understand the appeal of the lo-fi recording methods, to me it just sounds like the speakers albums like this are played on are damaged I don't hate this album. The musical talents of the band does still shine through. While I don't hate it I also don't love it, and do not understand how this album that contains a total of 4 original songs was ground breaking, or a must hear.
There are so many better bands from that era.
Very repetitive, but was probably a hoot when new
They bring nothing to these songs but insouciance. In a different age, they would have been football hooligans.
A stylized cover band. 12 songs in under 30 minutes. More like a good wedding band.
First band I straight up have never heard of. Neat! Awesome energy right off the bat and throughout. Some of these tracks sound like they could’ve been recorded decades later. Having just listened to The Beach Boys before this, the lack of harmonizing really stands out. Add more harmonies and you get something sounding like a lot of early Beatles tracks. Of course, since this came out in ‘65, the Beatles were already doing that. Lots of covers that I recognize too—makes me wonder how many covers I’m not recognizing and how many are actually original tracks. All in all glad these dudes are on my radar
Maybe I am a snob but I really dislike when albums are just full of covers. This singer sure likes screaming huh? Wonder if there was a guy in the studio who's only job was to drop an anvil on his foot every 30 seconds
Tsja, best grappig, maar weinig originele nummers. Vind het geen echte toevoeging.
Nah bruh
Super raw and lo-fi. If you're going to cover classics you need to add your own twist or improve it in some fashion. Not just do a worse version of it.
Didn’t love
I found this band to be completely relatable in the sense that I can’t play an instrument, either.
Pretty dull, but I guess the whole point of this album is just party music to do the 60s dances.
Nothing stands out here, it’s not a hard listen but not one I expect to visit often
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW this album sucks.
Terrible production, lots of covers of rock and roll songs, lots of screaming, most of it unnecessary. The screaming is probably what killed it for me, it made my throat feel sore, and the singer seemed to be suffering too, as he sounded a bit hoarse. I didn't loathe it, but it's not getting more than 2 stars.
Forgettable
Decent
Didn't mind the cover of Do You Love Me, but I'd argue the inclusion of this album is more for legacy than actual standard of the album - it isn't anything special and is mostly covers.
2.5
Meh, not my thing.
Of it's time
All covers
The Good: RnR The Bad: one too many WOAWWWW The Ugly: listening to this might cause confusion… I am trying to figure out what punk has to do with this? Most of the songs sounded like a bad impression of what Little Richard would do with a song. Guess that means that Little Richard is the grandfather of punk??!!?!??!??!! Reserving my stars for other albums… 2* because, though annoying, the album does not make you want to skip songs and at times even gives energy.
While I did like the lo-fi, garage band sound (and that you can hear the early punk influence), I didn’t like the fact that the album was mostly covers. I was on the fence between 2 and 3*, but I’m rounding down because of that.
So much shrieking
Seems pretty unnecessary compared to its contemporaries. The covers are pretty weak, but the original songs have something pretty cool to them.
Album full of covers that are worse than their original. I actuallt like their sounds-it is nice and raw- but the covers suck. Best thing about the album is its length.
No hate but why on list?
A cover band from 1965 with all the sonic clarity of a 1970 cassette recorder. On most songs I was thinking, "Ok, that's Motown", "Ok, that's the Beatles" or "That's the Beatles covering Motown." I read that they were influential in Seattle. Maybe so. I don't know.
Lots of shouting in the album 🤣 The cover of roll over beethoven was so bad that it single handedly got the rating down to 2. Favorite track: have love will travel other picks: psycho, money, strychnine
When I listened to this I thought this band was the source code for all these huge hits for others. But the opposite was true, this is an album of covers. Albeit somewhat punk sounding a decade before punk, but not good enough for this list.
This album is a real shrieker
even for the standard of 1965 the mixing is terrible
I'm not sure how an album with only four original songs can be on the 1001 list. One extra star for the singer and jangly guitar player(s).
“Here are the sonics” the can leave
2.5
🥱
Now I will say I enjoy the erratic nature of the album but that enjoyment comes at the cost of replay value. You like at first but then it starts to get stale fast. There are some good songs on here but for most part it's just dated 60's track rock with some classic rock songs thrown into it. Best - The Witch, Have Love Will Travel, and Strychnine Worst - can't be bothered tbh 2.50/5
It wasn't bad, but I definitely would have net preferred not to listen to this album. Wasn't really my thing, felt a bit repetitive and non-imaginative.
Historical influence of some rock acts to come. By itself, meh. I like lo-fi garage band stuff. This isn't it for me, though.
Middling surf and garage rock. Doesn't reach the level of Dick Dale & His Del Tones, who were also performing during this era and changed how people viewed surf music and garage rock. Competent covers but nothing special. Sounds like your typical bar band from anywhere around the west coast at this time who were all trying to imitate The Beatles. If the album were mostly originals I could take it a bit more seriously. I honestly don't think this album belongs on the list.
The Witch starts this album off on a high note. Psychedelic sixties rock in full swing and heavy beat to get down to. All downhill from there. What follows are dated-feeling and unoriginal covers that have no business existing. Has the feeling of a debut and I don’t mean that in no nice way neither. Highly disappointed. 2/5
Seems like a random choice. I don't mind it but it doesn't super stand out, I can imagine they were influential but it feels more like something a lot of groups were doing at the time rather than them pioneering. One of the reviews said they just occasionally yell WHOAWWWWW and now it's the only thing I can focus on. Eventually quite grating. 2.5
Didn't care for this
Pre-punk covers of classics.
The thing about '60s music is that everybody did everybody else's songs and they all sound kinda the same. The quality of the recording I listened to was awful.
Don’t care for it. 2
That was the same song for 1 hour and no one can tell me otherwise. Fun mid 60s jam album but man get a different riff. D teir.
Not my style. 2*
a classic unique sound but too much clipping and random screaming
Quite enjoyed the covers, but by the end the incessant WAAAAAAAing was really getting on my nerves. Started as a 2.5, ended as a 1.5 and that’s only cos Roll Over Beethoven reminds me of my dad and made me smile.
Вокалист пугал меня почти всë время своими криками
The covers ran the gamut from pretty good to downright woeful ('Miss Molly'), but the originals weren't bad and overall I didn't mind the vibe and lo-fi aesthetic. But Jesus fucking Christ, the cumulative effect of the constant WOWWWWWWWW!!!!!s was just way too much. Each one hurt more than the last, and turned into the longest 28 minutes and 42 seconds of my life. Might have made a decent 45 or couple of tracks in a shuffle playlist, but as an album it became actively unpleasant to listen to.
It all kinda sounded the same
I'm not a fan of the Jerry Lee Lewis style of jitter bug and screaming. I wont be listening again unless I need a soundtrack for 60s themed party
Nobody: The Sonics lead singer: WAAAAAH!!!!
The witch was a very nice listen. Afterwards it just became rock n roll with a very abrasive sound. I can see how they were pioneers but musically there was absolutely no innovation to be found after the first track.
73/1001 🌕🌕🌗🌑🌑
If I’d liked them in the 60s that would have been better. But they’re just average and they’re doing songs that had already been done. Hearing them now for the first time isn’t winning me over.
Oldies, but not the good version of any
Kan fatta att man gillade detta 1965. Men idag håller det verkligen inte. Står ut eftersom jag är Dirty Dancing evigt trogen och Do You Love Me är med i filmens näst hetaste scen. Finns något rörande i att de vill kaxa med Beethoven. Får tyvärr lätt PTSD av alla OAAAAAA! WTF. Håll käft med det. En 2a eftersom det inte är lika tröttsamt som Elvis men väldigt nära. Och vrålen. Va fan!! Det är som att de också hatar sin musik och måste släppa ut lite ångest. Så grabbar. Ni som är kvar. Ta lite Stryknin och klipp håret. Tur albumet hållits kort. En svag 2a.
Skrev förut. Men ser att det inte sparats. Aja, det var ingen vidare lyssning. Jobbigt mest.
Det här måste vara den absoluta motsatsen till ”stort ljud”. Låter som att de spelat in skiten i en sardinburk. Rätt trist i övrigt också.
WAAAAAAAAAAAA
Hmm. I was pretty up for this - I like garage rock and thought this would be really interesting, but it let me down I'm afraid. It didn't have the oomph that I'd been expecting, and was surprisingly generic I thought.
Maybe it's because I couldn't sleep and so was cranky, but this was really annoying.
Rather poor recording, too many covers, and lots of yelling. The original songs were decent tho
A first class high school dance band in the 60’s. The artist radio on Tidal for this group is very good.
I like the garage sound. But if this album is consistent with their overall output, the Sonics are a cover band.
Not even the best "crappy garage band" sound, which is hard to pull off. 2 stars.
The original songs aren’t great and there are much better versions of all the covers
Wasn't terrible but not sure it needs to be on this list.
I have heard a lot of these songs sung better by other people
I liked the juxtaposition of the lyrics with the upbeat music
My ghat, what is that buzzing sound? The recording quality of this album is abysmal to the point where it's actually distracting. Is that why it's considered "garage rock"? Because this beach-y piano says otherwise. The originals are slightly better than the covers (also too many of those). I can see how people think this influenced early punk but I'd say more The Black Keys really. This sounded like it was from the 50's and was just ok. Service Announcement: You aren't punk if you button the top button on your collared shirt and please stand closer to the mic next time. Oooph, there won't be a next time.
Not sure why an intro album with mostly covers (that aren't even that great) makes the list. I like the originals on here by the band. Maybe should have introduced them when they had a few more songs for a full album? Lead singer has a scream that may have set them apart at the time but not enough to cement them on a must listen list.
Early garage punk rock. A dozen rapid paced, 2-3 minute songs. Despite the lack of polish its pretty to easy to digest which might be part of its allure. This sounds like something that would have been unique and refreshing at the time of release. I kinda dug it. 2.35 stars
I was actually surprised by the ferocity of this record at first, with the opening track really feeling like the pinnacle of "proto-punk" and while it wasn't really my thing, I could respect it. However, that feeling was quickly subdued by the rest of the track listing just being rock 'n' roll standards performed with a blown out speaker. The energy is there, but there's no balance present on the record, going as fast as you could for 1965, but I feel it just causes the album to be dated and repetitive, as for most of the tracks all I can think is "Oh, the Beatles did this, but those are their worst tracks," and while I know that isn't fair to the Sonics, it doesn't help to know that this was basically made obsolete by the wave of rock coming in the late 1960s, and by the time punk was emerging, the Stooges seems like the more obvious influence. This just feels like Jerry Lee Lewis on steroids, and at the end of the day that's still boring rock 'n' roll, even if it is raw for 1965, it doesn't feel it holds much prevalence today. Its okay at points, but hardly feels essential, and that scream he does on every track can be grating very quickly. Check it out for punk origins or if you like simple rock 'n' roll classics, otherwise don't bother.
It's really almost all covers, and nothing special there. I guess they are influential, but that's really the end of it.
Meh
Oldie, but (only 50%) „Goldie“ For me it does not work anymore
Perfectly average 60's cover band.
Oh good. Another album from the 60s. There's a cover of "Do You Love Me" on here...it's fine but the original is way better. I might be a little biased since the original was on the Dirty Dancing soundtrack lol, but still. I'm sorry...I don't care for their sound. I feel like a broken record at this point because I've said that about almost every album from the 60s that I've listened to for this project. 2/5 I mean, it sounds like they were having fun, which is great. But I was not having that much fun.
“Here Are the Sonics” Live Reaction -This sounds like ass. -Why is this on here? -Oh, it was very influential for punk and garage rock genres? … -This sounds like ass.
Not unenjoyable, but honestly they just feel like a bunch of hacks making pale imitations of far better artists. Toddler's review: "Turn it off. Music all gone now"
Average 60s cover band
WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAOOOOOOH 3/10
12 songs; 189 “screams”. Precursor to Punk? Seems ironic since half of the songs on the album were hits written by R&B performers. Nothing anti-establishment about that. Again, not my style, I suppose.
Hm, een echt klassiek rock album. Ik weet niet zo goed wat ik hier van vind. Het klinkt flink gedateerd, en ik ben niet zo'n fan van de Rock n roll schreeuw die hier nog vaak in zit. Maar ik moet zeggen, gezien dit uit 1965 komt kan ik begrijpen waarom het in de lijst staat, ik vind het vooral gewoon echt niet heel erg goed. 2 sterren, uit respect. Als ik nog 1 keer WWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWW moet horen dan ga ik echt iets anders doen, schijtirritant. Het gebeurd in de soul van James Brown en Charles Bradley, maar daar gebeurd muzikaal weer een stuk meer en het is niet zo frequent als hier. blegh.
Decent covers album.
Serviceable, full of covers.
A couple songs are good but overall, pass.
There’s a rawness that I enjoyed about this. The original songs are good. I can see now this would evolve into the punk scene. But the covers, which is what most of this album is, range from underwhelming to terrible. 2/5
Kind of feels like cheating when the album is a greatest hits of other artists music!
Here goes my interest.
Oldies in LoFi ...
That description told me nothing. the opener gives me surfer rock vibes. A rough sound. The yelling reminds me so much of Paul McCartney, who made it more songy. Enjoyed: Do you love me (a cover) Some of the covers (Roll over Beethoven) are ROUGH, and not in a good way. 2* -- has a lot of elements of 60s music I like, but it's just rough. The same YOWWW, 12-bar blues progression gets old after a while. All these covers someone else did better (Money, ROB).
Bowgie wogie blue WAAAAAAAAH
I don't get it, it's just a bunch of Rock'N'Roll covers. The songs are good but why not just listen to the original artists? Is this just a case of old school racism or am I missing something? Sure "Have Love Will Travel" is a different version (I guess better) than it's rockabilly original but still...
It's fine, but nothing you'd come back to and you wouldn't miss it if you never knew. The few originals on this are OK but the covers were all done better by others. The band's write-up says they were influential. Recording quality is pretty poor too, which doesn't help
Initially sounds like blown out cow pussy production wise but it did come out in 65. No matter the time or reasoning its always weird to hear them singing little girl and probably meaning it too. Alright album sounds like Twist and Shout by the Beatles but made into an 12 song album.
Not bad for its time but I can't really get into this band as influential as they may be to garage rock
Would’ve gave it 3 but then read other reviews and learned basically all the songs are covers.. idk I didn’t hate it but… idk lol
They were probably good live. Lots of energy, but its a mostly covers album so...
Not a particularly special rock album for its era, with songs that have been all over the place. Production is also painfully dated and not redeemed by the average performances.
For mange coverlåta, sjøl om eg sette pris på litt Roll over Beethoven i blant
Their label seems to be trying really hard to make The Sonics happen, because it seems like there are multiple similar albums like "introducing The Sonics! here they are, The Sonics! come meet The Sonics!" so honestly, has there ever been a time without industry plants? It's amazing how, uh, boring and white they made Roll Over Beethoven. Some of this has the vibes of a wedding band being held at gunpoint to play an extra hour for the father of the groom who really likes Little Richard. I kind of liked The Witch but I assume that if I google it, it'll actually be another cover where the original is funkier and more fun. One of the descriptions I found for the band says they were "howling" pioneers of a garage rock scene but I absolutely cannot hear it here except for some occasional guitar and vocal tones.
I don’t like the guy’s waaaaah-ing and whatever that instrument that sounds like a kazoo is
Solid rock from the mid sixties. A good milestone but probably something I won't listen to again.
Lots of yelling. Some half decent cover versions but just a bit too garagey for me. A rough recording with a fair amount of distortion. I'll probably need to listen to this again and try to get what it's about. I can see why this album is perceived as being a ground breaker but.....I think my days of trying to be edgy are over!
I probably would have enjoyed this a lot more of the singer(s) weren't terrible
Not bad - the American sound/vocals almost reminds me of a neo-punk band. Prefer the original over the covers. Will not listen to again tho,,,
Always loud, never interesting. Thankfully short.
Covered (whitewashed) songs made by black people in the 50s and 60s. Proto-punk. Drums recorded on 1 mic made for very raw drum track - influenced Nirvana. Copied the singing/yell style of the Contours in Do You Love Me and dispersed it in their other covers. Saxophone sounds like a kazoo. More energetic, distortion, yelling Beach Boys. WWWWWWWWWWWWHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!
i'm convinced the sonics were just the mediocre-er beach boys. how did this make the 1001 list...? there's just nothing interesting going on here, save for MULTIPLE SAXOPHONE SOLOS favorites: money, strychnine
This is fine for a '60s garage band.
2.4 - OK so a bunch of white suburban kids in the 1960s formed a garage band, learned some R&B songs and the lead singer learned to yowl like Little Richard. So fucking what?
Boring version of early Beatles
# 69 : I thought it was very ordinary, a bit of fun, some rocking originals and covers and lots of screams. Nothing special. Boss Hoss
ei vittu vittu. Simple, unpretentious, unpretentious, unpretentious, unpretentious, mootä VITTUA=????????? UNPRENTENTIOUS ==== 5 STAAAAR ALBUUUUUUM. tämä albumi on aivan vitun tylsä, good thing its not pretentious ... the be a tles maininta the witch
Yeeeeeooooww. Yeah no its a bit stale, covers of good songs still sound alright.
Do You Love Me // Have Love Will Travel // 1.5-2/5
Probably not bad enough to only rate one star. Not really worth two. I don't get it. There are albums on this list that I really don't like, but can see why they deserve to be here - but this one? Early Beatles albums contain several covers but they are important because of the group and what they became. I cannot see anything in the Sonics to seperate them out from any number of 60s groups.
raucous soccer hooligans do honky-tonk rock and growl-yell a lot. extra demerits awarded for tinny production quality and a depressing ripoff of the Contours' "Do You Love Me"
Too much random yelling.
It's a really classic sound. of the 60s. doesn't translate so much anymore. like groovy and ya dig?
Maybe it was the wrong day for me to listen to this, but the singers hollering/squealing (ala jerry lee lewis, little richard, etc). is irritating. the 60's stripped down rock isn't necessarily bad, just the vocal delivery is a pretty big put off. pass.
The opening song was a lot of fun but that level of energy didn’t quite last unfortunately. It was mainly just covers of rock n roll songs that have been performed and mixed a hell of a lot better elsewhere
Maybe one of the worst album pictures I've seen. What are they all looking in different directions? The guy on the left looks like he's just come up on acid. Why is that guy's left hand so veiny? Also, they're trying to act natural but not once have I ever been with a group of mates and we all just stood like that. The album is just full of covers as well. Snell awards 2 points.
Have love will travel var meget god, men ellers ikke et vanvittigt album.
i’m j tired of hearing this exact same thing. like ur from the 60s man why are you making the most basic shit that’s been made for the past 2 decades
I kind of get it, but the original stuff is better than covers. What's the point of an album two thirds covers that are not markedly different or better.
Very 60's garage. These guys fly through Good Golly Miss Marley. I can see why they are as influential as they are. Sort of a band's band. but meh I could pass this as just another early garage band.
I really like these garage rock tunes, but the sound is just so muddy and distorted I can’t fully enjoy it. To think that The Beatles were releasing beautiful sounding albums at this time really makes me appreciate George Martin even more.
This just wasn’t enjoyable at all. None of the songs stood out and most had nearly the exact same progressions and vocal techniques (which was actually the best part but when it’s used 12 times it doesn’t seem interesting anymore) and nearly none of it was original either. It’s very of its time in a bad way and not something I would go back to at all.
If I was making a movie about a bunch of suburban, college aged white guys in the 60's starting a garage band, they would sound like this.
Hmmm as always rating on how much I enjoyed listening right now rather than any influence they may have had. First song was good and interesting. Does feel like the typical 60s middle American sweater band trying to do Chuck Berry or James Brown. Covers were passable rest of album nothing of note. Overall although has some punk sensibilities does feel like an attempt to sell Rock to white America
Fun and a bit raw coming from the mid 60s.
The Sonics are local legends in the Pacific Northwest. There are a few tracks on this record that transcend their early American garage rock context like The Witch, Psycho, Boss Hoss, and Strychnine. Unfortunately this record is also littered with rock 'n' roll standards like Do You Love Me, Roll Over Beethoven, Money, and Good Golly Miss Molly. For every stellar standout song, there's some generic cover whose rendition sounds too timid today. This is a record best received by someone into early rock 'n' roll or garage rock. While I have listening interests adjacent to all this, it's not enough to save the rating despite the fact that if it were an EP with just the four stellar tracks I'd rate it four stars. Taken as a whole, it's hard to enjoy.