Reviews (page 7 of 9)
This one didn't do much for me
HL: “The Concept”, “Is This Music”, “Star Sign”, “Alcoholiday” May 27, 2023 3.5 Not really sure what’s keeping me from just throwing a 4 at it. Listening to it while eating some Vietnamese rice was a pleasant experience; there were a few times about midway thru the record where I didn’t realize one song had ended & and another started. It’s good, I’m not head over heels for it, will gladly keep some songs to listen for later
Baby like woo
Started off pretty compelling with "The Concept" but didn't really hold my attention. It seemed to encapsulate an early indie sound, I was surprised it was released in 1991. Can definitely hear the influence on subsequent bands (according to Wikipedia Death Cab for Cutie was heavily influenced by it, and yeah, that tracks). Overall happy I listened to it before I die.
Cute little album. Reminded me of a bunch of different bands like Weezer or Pavement. Although I can't say I agree with Spin magazine on this being better than Nirvana's Nevermind, but to each their own.
Loved it. A power pop classic with strong echoes of Big Star. Hooky, melodic and charming, with a nice bit of burn to keep it from getting too pretty. Not perfect, but the magic is in the quirks and imperfections. I was leaning toward giving this a 4, but it's just so infectiously good. Fave Songs (All songs, from most to least favorite): The Concept, What You Do to Me, Is This Music?, Metal Baby, December, Star Sign, Sidewinder, Alcoholiday, Guiding Star, I Don't Know, Pet Rock, Satan
First album and it's already off to a great start. I feel like this band has been on the periphery of my music landscape for ages but somehow they've never crossed that threshold. If I would have discovered this 20 years ago it would have been in regular rotation and it probably will be now.
Masterpiece!!! Such a brilliant album, heavily inspired by Big Star but they do their own thing and write some damn incredible songs. “The concept” and “alcoholiday” are the best but the whole thing is a blast all the way through. Definitely 5 stars.
Very mid album. No bad songs, but no great ones. Just average
I had never heard of this band or album before. It's not bad, though the vocals are a little mellow and laid back for my taste. There were some decent tracks like Metal Baby. The last track "Is This Music?" was interesting, it had a different sound than the rest of the album. I kinda wish it had lyrics though. The album artwork is atrocious, which should go without saying.
Not actively bad, but not actively good, either. I guess I'll be nice and give this a 3.
Not really interesting to me. Before I knew it it was over and nothing caught my attention.
Straightforward 90s sound. Enjoyed it mostly, but not moving mountains for me either. Favorite track: Alcoholiday
Solid 90s grunge, though nothing too special. Also, what the actual HELL is that album cover.
It's OK. Very typical 90's grunge sound though.
This one was completely new. Had not heard it before today. Not as bad as I initially thought it was, but not for me. Favorite songs: Alcoholiday, Is This Music? 3-3.5/5
It was kinda cool. Still fresh after 32 years.
This album just sounds like the 90s. I enjoyed listening to it. Favorite track: Alcoholiday
Is This Music fragen die „Künstler“ im letzten Stück, als ob sie selbstunsicher eine Bestätigung der bestenfallsen Mediokrität ihres Machwerks einholen wollten. Man möchte antworten: möglicherweise ja, aber keine ganz besondere. Den Autoren des Buches möchte man hingegen bei dem Gedanken, dass jemand von ihren ausgerechnet diese Aufnahmen als so besonders wertvoll erachtet hat, dass man sie vor dem Ableben gehört haben sollte, eine ganz besonders schlichte, zur Bewertung von Musik nicht sonderlich geeignete Hirnleistung unterstellen. Ein Ärgernis.
Sounds like a 90’s garage rock band but with 60’s vocal harmonies and melody.
Pretty bad, did not enjoy this at all. 1.3
Is this music? Yes. Do I absolutely hate it? Also yes.
Ride ripoff
I’m metal baby
Review express: Tal y como se esperaría por el nombre de la banda, es extremadamente adolescente, si es que eso tiene sentido. Algo que critiqué de Daydream Nation es que era extremadamente disonante, pero, escuchando esto, no estoy seguro de si eso es malo, o de si es tan único que lo hace bueno. Me gusta en su mayoría, pero hay que aceptar que es demasiado "normal"
Very decent album. Favourite track is “The Concept” 7/10
Fun mellow
pure greatness
Enjoyed
ONE OF MY FAVOUIRTIRE ALVUSMASUS EVVERERER
You know what, I was a fan. Sounds like the precursor to the Lemonheads with a smidgen of Flaming Lips in parts, but that's cool with me. Like a dairy milk you forgot you had - a simple delight.
I think this music is boring but I like it. Sot The concept What you do to me Star sign Is this music 3.5/5
Not too bad
okay...I got tired of it after a while.
3.5 Jangle pop meets fuzzed noise. A bit too much on the pop side for my liking overall though.
This kind of melodic scuzz should be up my street but I didn’t warm to it at first; it sounded a bit samey and a bit wishy-washy. But on further listening I can confirm it provides a nice, breezy soundtrack to a sunny day’s walk.
Anodyne pop. Sounds like Gin Blossoms. I know this was supposed to be a big deal record, but it still hits the same today as it did when I first listened to it in the 90s. What am I missing?
Scottish band with this album sounding as your average boring American group. More a sleeping pill than music, in my opinion. This was rated by 'Spin magazine' as album of the year, above e.g. Nirvana's Nevermind (Wiki)? For me a moderate compromise between shoegaze like Slowdive, grunge like Nirvana and guitar music like e.g. Husker Du or Sonic Youth. Those are all brilliant and this is far from it.
Early garage grunge! Barrel of fun
this was a mediocre shoegaze that i've already forgotten
three stars
Melodic and noisy Kinda like Sonic Youth, but more poppy upbeat and more pleasing vocals. Has a nice sentimental feel at times I wonder if my mom would like some of these songs
There is so much I love about this album. Such a new vibe. Good enough range. Very original. The singing is both soft and powerful. The instrumentation is beautiful and poignant. Chords and structure impressed me and the lyrics and also pretty good. 4/5
Wasn't a band that I was into at the time, but I know all the singles really well. Indie standards. I know there are those that really worship Teenage Fanclub and that great Scottish indie scene. This is a good album, one I am sure if I'd bought at the time I'd have played to death.
Pretty damn good
Good stuff. I really like the first couple tracks with the distorted sounding guitar riffs. They remind me of Sloan, with some garage/grunge influence. The layering of guitars on certain tracks really add to the garage/slacker vibes - it really fits the era of the early 90s. Fave tracks: The Concept, Satan, Star Sign, Metal Baby
This is my first time hearing of Teenage Fanclub, but it's interesting to read they were pretty big in their day, even beating Nirvana for Spin's record of the year. I liked this album a lot, they have a very laid-back sound that combined with simplistic yet thoughtful lyrics makes for a really enjoyable listen. The sound has a timeless quality to it that makes it feel like it could have just as easily been released as a new hip indie project last year, and it would not have been out of place. Fav Tracks: December, Star Sign, Alcoholiday
meh
This is the album that finally convinced me I'm living a lie. And I'm not even sure I even listened to it.
Power pop. Muy rollo. Un 2.
Don’t agree with this album beating out Nevermind, but it’s a fun alt rock album. Enjoyed the listen.
Really enjoyed this album. Enjoyed don't look back , December and Metal Baby.
3.5
Horrific if I could I would leave no star
I have to admit I've been a little busy/distracted tonight, but I did have it on. I just didn't get to pay too close attention. However, I didn't hear anything bad enough that made me want to go change the song (which was happened before lol). A few songs I didn't think were too bad. I'd give this one a go again sometime where I can listen more closely, but for now 6/10.
I actually enjoyed this a lot more than I expected. Nothing too special, but it was a fun listen while driving to work. There were a couple kind of annoying parts, but really not as bad as i was anticipating. Nothing saved, but I will be listening to the album again soon to dissect it a little more closely. 6/10
Weird and good, rocking fun.
Enjoyable guitar pop. Would my life be worse if I hadn’t heard it? Probably not.
Really enjoyable Rock album
Yuck
This album was kind of all over the place stylistically, with 90s alt rock music moments but 60s Beach Boys-esque singing/simple songs. Overall, a bit boring and forgettable
This sounded undeveloped and wasn't very entertaining. Not sure why this needed to be on the list.
This music could have been written, performed and produced by high school boys in a garage. This is not a compliment. The lyrics were incredibly juvenile.
Fun, messy, indie album with a few amazing songs on it. Up the Fannies!
A surprise for me. I had somehow never listened to this. But it was great. Hey seem to understand song length, and what each song needs. Not afraid to have a 2 minute song followed by a 7 minute song. Throw in horns, slightly different styles. I could see this moving to a 5.
4 stars dig it.
I love this album. Jangly early 90's guitar alternapop is right up my alley.
2/5. Nothing notable in here for me
Fine. Completely forgettable
A little known fact: if you play recent pressings of this album backwards, in amongst the howling feedback of "Satan" you can hear the collective sobbing of SPIN magazine's 1991 readership after "Bandwagonesque" was deemed Album of the Year above Nirvana's "Nevermind". It was a controversial decision, and a quick scroll through these very comments will tell you most Nirvana fans still aren't over it. I might be thirty years late to the debate, but I'm here to argue it was a sound decision. Teenage Fanclub land on a winning formula here, serving up literal DOLLOPS of crunchy guitar and noisy feedback alongside instantly familiar harmonies, picking up right where Big Star left off. They have much in common with their Creation Records labelmates The Jesus and Mary Chain, but land on a much stronger equilibrium between noise and pop. Vocals, mostly shared by Norman Blake and Gerard Love, are crystal clear and refreshingly laid back: they don't try too hard or reach too far, but they could harmonise in their sleep. The material might be simplistic and easygoing, but just try to listen to a song like "Star Sign" without grinning at the perfect alignment of it all. A lively drum beat, thunderous distortion from the rhythm guitar, a 60's throwback chord progression, unison bends on lead guitar kicking in at the second verse, all the while with gorgeous harmonised vocals. Much of the rest is in the same spirit: "The Concept" is a mini masterpiece, its tender and wistful verse giving way to a blissfully spaced-out guitar solo on clouds of falsetto "aaaaaahs". "What You Do To Me" repeats the same two lines for two minutes and never quite wears out its welcome. "Metal Baby" is Beatlesesque pop perfection. "Pet Rock" ends with a chaotic riff, horns slowly building up and saturating the signal. "Alcoholiday" and "Guiding Star" take a gorgeously melancholic turn: "there are things I want to do, but I don't know if they will be with you". Lovely. But the most striking cut of all is the closing instrumental, "Is This Music." Things switch gears here, hinting at a slightly more industrial direction with a more synthetic sound and a blaring, melodic guitar figure looped all the way into eternity. "Bandwagonesque" is candy-floss and broken glass, a marshmallow fire, forty-three spoonfuls of burnt sugar. It might not be perfect ("December" and "I Don't Know" haven't yet hooked me) but it's darn close. And yes, I like it more than "Nevermind".
This is 100% my balls. Got excited about the opening feedback only to find myself instantly limp when the song actually started. Boring, no substance, “alternative rock” bullshit. Lets compare this low effort, soulless, pile of shit to releases from other bands that same year (1991): 1. Nirvana - Nevermind 2. R.E.M. - Out of Time 3. Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger 4. Pearl Jam - Ten 5. Dinosaur Jr - Green Mind 6. Red Hot Chili Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magik 7. Pixies - Trompe le Monde 8. The Smashing Pumpkins - Gish 9. Primus - Sailing the Seas of Cheese 10. Green Day - Kerplunk 11. Machines of Loving Grace - Machines of Loving Grace 12. NOFX - Ribbed Get the fuck out of here Teenage Fanclub, you don’t belong. I actually wish I’d died before listening to this. 0/10 would never listen again.
I was afraid I would like this after everyone said how bad it was, fortunately for me I agree! Every time I thought a song was going to get good it took a nose dive and got worse and sometimes even worse after that! The lyrics and the vocals were just very very bad. I also am confused about how this made it on this list and now I am questioning what we will see in the future.
Blep. Why was this on here? I didn’t listen to the whole thing but it basically sucked.
Do not liek. I found this album very…. bland. “Is This Music?” is, to me, the best song on the album. A little surprised this album ended up on this list…?
Zalige slacker-plaat. Toffe ontdekking
I’m going to give this a four star instead of a three just because I really think this is going to grow on me hard within time.
Quite liked, but didn't stick much. Needs more listens maybe.
Never heard of this band, but they jammed
Pas fan du genre Ça provoque absolument aucune émotion chez moi, mais c'est pas inaudible non plus
Sympa mais peu parlant
Un album parfaitement correct n'en déplaise à certains rageux PREFS : The Concept, Star Sign, Metal Baby, Pet Rock, Guiding Star, Is This Music? MOINS PREF : Satan
echte 90's vibe, leuk maar niet wauw
Is this music? Yes it is. Love that outro
This was a good listen the whole way through. A pleasant surprise from a band I hadn’t heard of, but was respected by other bands I have heard my whole life. If Nirvana and Oasis think their the ‘best band’, then they have some cred.
Awesome
I've never heard of Teenage Fanclub before, so this was a new experience for me. This was an enjoyable album to listen to, but I'm not sure I would have included it on this list. I really enjoyed the guitars and the drums, but lyrically and vocally, there wasn't a lot going on for me. "Satan," "Star Sign," "Metal Baby," "Guiding Star," and "Is This Music?" were the best tracks of the album in my opinion, but nothing else was really that noteworthy for me. I was hoping that this album would impress me, like The Charlatans did, but it just wasn't meant to be.
26th. First rainy day of the trip. Jenna is allowed to come to Shakeeb’s. Sunday.
Where was I when this came out? So much in common with everything I was listening to at the time that I can't believe Ive never heard of it. I do wish I could hear many of the albums from this time again, for the fist time, and Bandwagonesque was kind of like doing that. That said, either this one doesn't quite stack up against my favorites, or my interests are not really here anymore. Maybe some of both. I want to come back to this later. 1 - bad 2 - average 3 - good 4 - great 5 - outstanding
It’s ok.
⚠️ ne pas juger ce livre à sa couverture ⚠️
de bonne humeur je suis
I have big mixed feelings about this album. From the outset my initial reaction was "why is this on this list? it's generic alternative, surely there must be more than 1000 albums better than this." I still think that stands to some degree. But I also hear moments of greatness in this album, and wonder what might have happened if it had been pushed in a harder, less poppy direction. The multipart harmonies (which Wikipedia notes were encouraged by their producer because no contemporaries were doing it) are the biggest problem for me - the rest of the instrumentation is alternative with shades of shoegaze and indie rock elements, but then you get these tight, highly produced multipart harmonies that don't fit. Ultimately I'm sticking with a 2 here because so much of this album is just generic and blah... but also especially in the back half I feel like I hear potential just below the surface.
Meh
Not great. Kind of drab and Nathan-esque.
Classic jangly guitars from the fannies of Bellshill, a place close to my heart
That was an album alright. Had a few decent tracks here and there but overall not very memorable.
This is an album I still pull out and listen to start to finish. It takes me back and makes me smile.
I think they reminded me of FASTBALL. Gonna keep listening to this album but give it a mediocre rating because life ain't fair.
Not the very best album by TF but still terrific.
Is this music? Only decent track ironically. Never appealed back in the day, lazy vocal style over grunge backing doesn't appeal. Recognised many tracks, think gave this a fair crack but didn't hit the spot.
Nostalgia trip with lots of “that kind of sounds like…” moments. Both of its time and ahead of its time sounding.
It reminds me A LOT to The Unicorns or Crocodiles. I like it! I hope to listen it again in the future.
Exceptional 90's rock album that really pulls from the power pop classics. Influences from the Byrds and Big Star here are obvious but the album doesn't sound like a copycat since it really combines shredding alternative rock guitar. One of the 1991 an a definitive 90's rock classic. 9,5/10
Is This Music? Yes. Do I want to listen to it a bunch? Not really certain.
I hadn’t listened to them before, but really enjoyed this.
alt rock, i like, esp 'the concept', 'starsign', 'metal baby'
I knew the band by name, but had never stopped to listen to anything of theirs... very good, I liked it a lot, and now I will listen to more!
There are some good tracks on here but some stuff that is the sort of conflict free alt rock that appeals to people who dont really like alt rock
Такое чувство, что я пропустил много талантливых школьников и нам решили показать их здесь. Очень школьно звучащая группа, где иногда гитарист самородок делает соляки. Такой закостеневший альт рок 90-х - 00х
С обложки я конечно поржал, цветовая гамма - жесть)) Ничего особенного здесь вообще нет. Прям совсем. Здесь можно найти отголоски разных групп: Nirvana, Beatles, возможно даже Metallica. Ну то есть, эту музыку тяжело именно выделить из потока и сказать: "Да, вот это мои любимки Teenage Fanclub". Но, как минимум, альбом не звучит противно. Это реально слушать, некоторые треки действительно нравятся, но в них нет ничего обычного. Всё такое... наивное. Это как самопальная школьная группа: вроде играть умеете, но не что-то сильно выделяющееся, всё обычное. Переслушать можно, мне кажется, это вполне себе саундтрек под домашнюю или общажную тусовку. Не перетягивает на себя внимание, не заставляет думать о глубоких текстах. Скорее создаёт тёплую атмосферу фильмов про школу. 3/5. Nothing special, но и не Smashing Pumpkins
Ну начало было бодреньким на 3, остальное фоном как-то прошло, так что 2+
Meh
This is a little gem. Maybe slightly dated but you can definitely hear the influence this band must have had on the bands that were to follow it later in the 90s. A decent effort
Songs all sound the same. No variation to the vocals. Discordant at times. Very bland really, nothing groundbreaking. Generic.
Unique find, no regrets after two listen-throughs. It is a bit of chill rock, with a bit of quirk, but it also has a feel of intention that gives the album a good feel. While nothing in particular stands out in the album, the performance is remarkably inviting, hinting that there could be more to it. There is some truth here that on the second listen, the enjoyability of this album really stood out, and in a way it plays differently. The album is a hidden gem, and it stokes curiosity as to why.
Cool and an interesting backstory. I liked the pop punk style vocals and the easy listening nature of the band’s sound. Made them sound more contemporary than Nirvana, but the album is definitely not better than Nevermind.
Unspectacular and quick forgotten Alt Rock album
Good - felt like beach boy indie early 90s grunge vibe. 10 things I hate about you soundtrack
Maybe I’ve heard too much of the indie bands that came after this and which were influenced by it, but I was surprisingly unmoved by this. Didn’t hate it. Didn’t love it. Not sure I could pick any of the songs out of it
Un album très intéressant dans lequel on suit un groupe de collégiennes faisant la queue pour le concert d'un boys band. Les textes parlent essentiellement d'appareils dentaires mais on s'y retrouve sans problème.
Absolument inintéressant, l'indie est décidement bien l'un des pires genres musicaux n'en déplaise à Robert qui pipe les dés afin de permettre à ce genre de bien trop figurer dans ce générateur.
Simple but very recognizable (almost iconic -- figuratively and literally) album art. The harmonies are no doubr Beach Boys-esque. Overall, it's a decent album with some solid alt rock tunes. It's a noisy album, but it's by no means a difficult listen. I can see the appeal to Bandwagonesque, as it is a precursor to 90s Britpop, but this album doesn't do much for me.
Alt Rock band from Scotland. This was their 3rd album and only album on the list of 1001 albums... Singles: Star Sign (#4 US Alt, #44 UK Singles) The Concept (#12 US Alt, #51 UK Singles) What You Do To Me (#19 US Alt Airplay, #31 UK Singles (OCC)) First Impression: Thumbs up. Standout Tracks: The Concept. What You Do to Me Others: December, Star Sign, Metal Baby, Sidewinder, Alcoholiday, Guiding Star. 3/5
Some early 90s alternative rock. It wasn't bad sounded a bit like Oasis.
3 Not too bad. I like instrumental solo part.
While it is fundamentally a rock album, and there were a few stand out tracks, I feel as if the entire album sounded as if the band were playing the same song over and over again. 3/5. Favorite Track: Is This Music?
I’d never heard of this band before, but I have to say I enjoyed what I heard. Wasn’t a slog to get through which is the case sometimes when listening to an album of a band you don’t know. While I’m a more direct rock ‘n’ roll type chick I liked this alt side to it.
Ystäväpiiristä löytyy soittajaporukkaa jotka olis jo 1991 tehnyt ihan yhtä hyvän levyn kuin nämä heput, huom. 8v vanhana...
Aika basic
Decent I guess
Some of the finest power pop ever recorded. I just love that clean, yet fuzzy guitar tone. 4 stars.
Well, the fact that the good people at Spin Magazine listened to both this album and Nevermind and somehow thought this album was better is a mystery that I would really like to see explained. This album is fine and groundbreaking in its own way, but it's not exactly an all time great. Historical mockery aside, this album is interesting, though mired by low quality production. I'm not sure if there is a good version of this album out there, but every copy I found on YouTube was muddy and indistinct. I think a better quality copy may have given me a more positive opinion of this album. As it is, it's an alternative rock album from the period right before that subgenre became the biggest thing on the planet. It's more of a poppy, indie type of album than the grunge rock that came out of Seattle. It's good, but the recording quality makes it hard to appreciate 3/5
This album artwork comes to you courtesy of a straight up MS Paint nightmare. Jesus Christ. Unfortunately the music isn’t much better than this abysmal cover. But it’s just okay enough to save it from 1 star.
The music has a rough, alt-rock edge in the production but underneath the songs are good-hearted power pop. I enjoyed the music but didn’t love the lead vocals, but I think that’s just a matter of taste. Awful album cover 😬 😂
I really find this MSPAINT-ish album cover to be interesting. It's so grotesquely intriguing. The music was OK and didn't really grab me too hard. I think i'll give it another listen but it's sitting just under a 3/5.
Hmmmm 4? That album cover is undoubtedly made in MS paint. 3 Uninteresting 2
It was alright, everything was the same 90s alt rock feel, nothing special
Kind of OK
Ça nous a fait penser parfois à Eels, parfois aux Foo Fighters. J’imagine que c’est un album fondateur pour plusieurs. Je préfère les chansons aux accents plus rock
A nice, easy, middle-of-the-road listen. It's good, but nothing of note to remember.
I was not sure what to expect, I honestly thought I would hate it, but the band has a cool vibe, very chill -- retro and I like it.
good one
"Is This Music?" rescues Bandwagonesque from a charge of sentimentality. But maybe I'm the one being sentimental. I can't hear the song without thinking about smashers by Hasselbank, Yeboah, Cantona, Bergkamp, Ginola, Ferdianand, Asprilla...God. I miss football.
One of the best albums of the 90s by far. Every track is superb, but ‘This is Music’ is just a perfect song.
Dunno either
pretty good
I just remember Teenage Fanclub from their collaboration with De La Soul on the 'Judgement Night' soundtrack which is phenomenal and if soundtracks were on the list it would have a slot there. Bandwagonesque is an easy listen to an alternative to what would become the Alternative sound of the 90s. 3.5/5.
A lot of it felt kind of generic, but I didn't dislike any of it either really it just kinda did nothing for me.
I really enjoyed this album, some really fresh 90s indie rock
9/10 some really, really good stuff here not enough for a full 10, but still definitely a great album
Very solid britpop / powerpop / UK indie / alt rock. Nothing too special, but a very enjoyable listen.
This is decent. Not something I would regularly go back to, but certainly nothing to object to.
The first time I listened to this, it just sort of melted out of my memory having made very little impact. It all sort of blended together in the same sound. Then I read it was picked by Spin as "Album of the Year" over Nirvana's Nevermind in 1991. Wait... what? And then more and more accolades! Listening again, I caught a little more of it. Okay, it's fine. Score goes up a notch. But what am I missing? What am I missing? It's still not great! Third time, I'm wondering why I'm trying so hard. This isn't worth it. Score goes back down a notch. Is there some sensory receptor I'm lacking? A piece of my soul?
This did not appeal to me. I found it boring at best, for most of the album. In fact, the first time I listened, I fell asleep the second track in. Okay, I was exhausted and not even trying to stay awake. On second listen, I kind of wished that I was asleep... In both cases, while asleep and while awake, the last track did catch my ear a bit.
Fine. I think I won't remember it at all.
I’ve never listened to Teenage Fanclub before. The harmonies are really nice, the music is great - I enjoyed the album!
Given the benefit of hindsight, this is a pretty ordinary album that doesn't belong on this list. [Hint hint nudge nudge to the curators here, things are not set in stone, you know!]
A few tracks worth remembering, and then a lot of generic 90's sound.
There's a reason why this band didn't make a bigger splash, or stayed in the collective memory of a generation. It's just not good. I don't care how influential (allegedly) they were, this was a lame album.
Every song sounds like it belongs in a 90's teen movie. 3.5
It is a pretty solid rock album, but I feel like there is nothing unique about it. Felt a little generic and boring to me.
Just another teenage dirtbag
Pretty good power pop, bass is really nice and forward in the mix 3.75
very 90s, kinda fun but not memorable
Meh
Plutôt ennuyant, faux et intintéressant.
Meilleur album de l’année 1991 selon Spin Magazine, devant Nevermind? Hahaha, non, je ne crois pas. Il y a beaucoup de sonorités des années 1990 dans cet album (notamment Weezer). Il a certainement eu une influence, mais personnellement, je n’ai pas tant accroché. Les autres bands influencés ont mieux fait.
An excellent record blending noise, pop and jangle in one accessible mix. Adding a shade of melancholy on top, and the inspirations from R.E.M. are obvious ('Guiding Star' for instance).
Spin’s Album of the Year 1991. That’s the same year Nirvana released Nevermind. Talk about setting a high bar! It’s no secret that I love me some jangle and noise - and Teenage Fanclub delivers a great blend of exactly that and fun song writing. The R.E.M. and Dinosaur Jr. influence shines through; and when “Is This Music?” ends of the album I’m left with nothing but a smile.
I’ve had a hard time making a strong connection with this record in the past. It is absolutely pleasant, and every time I return to give it another shot I think, “Oh yeah I like all of this!” But it just teeters on the wrong side of bland. Pretty, but not exactly distinct. It always seems to remind me of another band I can’t always think of the name of…sometimes it’s of Oasis, sometimes it’s of The Byrds or early Beatles, several times it’s of Big Star and The Replacements, sometimes of other Scottish rock bands like Orange Juice, The Proclaimers, and The Beta Band, sometimes it’s of labelmates My Bloody Valentine, other times of fellow UK shoegazers, Ride, sometimes it’s of Pavement and often of Yo La Tengo, sometimes it’s of Wilco, and once or twice it even reminds me of U2, but no matter, the point is it’s music that forces my mind to wander, for better or for worse. For certain, comparisons with any one of these bands would be high praise—and that’s besides the fact that this album predates many of these artists—but comparisons with all of them simultaneously is sort of mind-bending; it’s a web of sound perhaps cast too wide, too thinly, too generalized. For instance, I think it would be difficult to describe another band as sounding Teenage Fanclub-esque. Because that’s just saying it sounds like so many things all at once! But I digress… The harmonies are the stand out element. As are the meta commentaries on music fandom and identity present in these songs—“The Concept,” most notably—this album title, and this band’s name. I quite like all the instrumental work on this album as well. The guitar solo on “The Concept” and tone on “Is This Music?” come to mind. As does the bass work all over this album—I love how forward it is in the mix! And the drums and percussion is what really solidifies this as jangle pop I think. It ties the rythm together with a nice boppin’ bow that would make The Byrds and Big Star both proud. Indeed, this is music. Quite good music too! Huzzah. Being forced to really listen and review this album for the group has helped this album considerably for me! It’s really growing on me and I’m beginning to love it. I’m going 4/5.
I like it! I agree with the other reviews up here. This is an album full of well-played simple songs, but it gets a bit same-y after a while. It has a nice Oasis / Blur / proto-Real Estate kind of sound, and the album sort of blends together in the same way that a lot of the music from those other bands does for me. I never had an “Oh shit!” moment, but I don’t think that they were shooting for provocation. I really liked December, I’m not sure why that one’s not on Spotify. I also appreciated their use of bluesy major/minor interplay, and all of the diminished and augmented chords (NERD ALERT); all of these added a good amount of spice to the otherwise straightforward melodic main course. The kind of thrash-y electric guitar tones got pretty tiresome; I would have liked a bit more variety on the amps, recording techniques, processing etc. All in all pretty solid! Pleasant and inoffensive perhaps to a fault. 3 Stars.
Some nice jangly rock music to listen to while I made late night lemonade for my volunteer crew. The music is light and fun. It doesn’t challenge me or rock my world or stir up anything in me besides a slight head bop. Two favs are The Concept and December, the latter of which sounds like the beginning to that song in Shrek when they’re blowing up a frog into a balloon. 3.2/5
It was fun! I had a good time. Nothing super standout. Loved the Beatles-y sound and melody writing. As an album it’s a little empty in the middle, but I liked some of the cuter songs like Metal Baby.
Teenage Fanclub! This is my first time listening and I thoroughly enjoyed this album. It’s nothing to write home from camp about, but most songs were totally pleasant and some were good enough! Metal Baby is great but repetitive to a nauseating degree. 10 less “Metal Babies” and it would have been great. Sidewinder was pretty but the lyrics sounded AI-generated from 1001 other love songs. Is This Music? totally slammed. It feels like the standout song on the album, even with no vocals. As one reviewer in 1001 albums perfectly puts it: “It's funny to me that the last song is called "Is This Music" because that's probably the best on the album. Yes, guys, THAT is music. Give us more of that.” I would have thought I’d have been turned off by the the sometimes minute-long guitar jams before the singer comes in, but I didn’t mind. I thought the band was tight and it was fun to listen to. Great driving music. It’s a 3.5/5 for me.
Sounded very 90s with hints of Weezer and The Foo Fighters.
notes - listened to this album for the first time not too long ago - kinda oasis, kinda weezer - power pop/noisy/jangly - on creation records, a pivotal britpop/shoegaze label - kurt cobain, liam gallagher, and ben gibbard are all big fans - enjoyable listen but nothing really jumped out at me other than 2 or 3 songs fav alcoholiday least fav pet rock 3.5/5
Very much a forgettable album. Did nothing for me.
Brilliant band at greatest hits level.
Very Beatles influenced 90's alt. Not the most interesting music but not boring or bad either.
Pretty meh but I see the beginnings of a bunch of sounds that would evolve and become super successful on the radio during the mid to late 90s present on this album. Listenable but unremarkable. 3/5 cuz I can't give it 2.5/5
It's good I guess...
meh
I enjoyed this album. Difficult to choose between 3 and 4 stars for me. There were no stand out tracks for me but as a whole it was enjoyable.
Generic; every track screams "Here's the band that influenced this one!" Okay for teenagers at the time but definitely dated.
It was certainly an album
This record reminded me of how much I love My Bloody Valentine's Loveless.
Last two songs are great. Unfortunately it's a bunch of garbage in order to get there.
Great album. I don’t think it’s better than Nevermind like Spin did though. 4 Stars
kinda like a more tame pop version of velvet underground 20 years later 2.5
The layered sound and variety of songs made this interesting and not at all terrible.
I love Teenage Fanclub. Their updated version of Big Star appeals to me and I just think they're a great power pop band. That being said, this isn't my favorite album by them. Sure, it has The Concept which is a fabulous track, but the rest of the album isn't as strong as Grand Prix, in my opinion. Still a good album, I was glad to see it here.
Pretty standard pop punk stuff that used to plague the 90s, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.
Already forgot about this one, probably wont listen ever again.
This could be the most boring club I've ever been to. The first track is a little gem and there's a few other nice and catchy moments, but really a few... This material could not stand as a full album, it sounds like a rehearsal of ideas that have not been completed.
not for me ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Been a member of the fanclub for decades.
I liked it, on the line between whether it was actually interesting
Really mediocre album. Can't see how this is something I needed to hear before I died.
I found this album very boring and droning.
Not bad retro stuff.
Rock alternativo.
I really do not understand the appeal of this album. Almost everything feels so simple and dull and basic. The vocals are so low effort and the instrumentation is just boring for most of the songs. The last song is the only that stood out to me. 4/10
Guitar-forward brit rock, fun but nothing that stands out too much
Feels like 90's distilled to their core
I normally read the entire Wikipedia for an album, sometimes delving deeper into the band, when I'm listening to these 1001 albums. For this one, I wish I had waited until I had formed an opinion about it before I read that Spin put this as album of the year over Nirvana's Nevermind. Hindsight is 20/20 and it's easy to listen to Bandwagonesque and scratch your head as to how anyone could rate it over Nirvana. But, is that because of how great the Nirvana album is or more based on how iconic it's become or how clearly influential the album was? It was hard for me to separate these thoughts from my analysis of this album. The question kept remaining: is this an essential album? Is this an album everyone should listen to before they die? My overall consensus was that this is a good album. Some of the songs could even be called great. They open up with a long jammy "The Concept" before some much shorter, punchier tunes. I felt the album really hit a stride in the second half and finished strong with some of my favorite songs being "Alcoholiday" and "Is This Music?" I'll probably return to this album someday, but I'm in no rush to. It's just a good album, nothing great, nothing profoundly influential, nothing terrible deep, just fun indie rock. And there's nothing wrong with that, but is a must listen? Probably not.
didn’t love
Ganska bland indie rock album.
catchy but samey and a little smug
Bra sing-along album, Alcoholiday o The Concept är 5 ★ och klassiker, slutsolon på the concept är som om Hotel California int va lame
Some songs were ok, didn't like it on the whole
Nothing I thought was groundbreaking or innovative on here, but I liked it and it went down fairly easily. 3.5/5
Teenage Fanclub is yet another band from this time period I have absolutely no familiarity with. Bold cover art, though I don't love it I do think it is appropriately striking and memorable. I also appreciate the title of the record in much the same way. Starting out I immediately like the harmonies and the simple progression of the opening song though it goes on a bit. Satan is pointless, December is lovely, overall most of these songs are pretty enjoyable. None really stick out as my favorite but I'd be willing to hear the album again sometime. 3.5 stars. Having now read the description of the band and the album I have to say I have heard of Nirvana and think they are an objectively better band than Teenage Fanclub. So there's that.
I knew the name Teenage Fanclub but can't say I'd ever really given them a proper chance before and I was very impressed. A little bit indie, a hint of grunge, a little britpop its equal parts Dinosaur Jr, Pavement and Oasis. Not dissimilar to Ash who were coming from Ireland around the same time. A perfect example of that wonderfully carefree 90's indie sound but with enough interest and edge to keep it engaging.
Alright album. Defenitely not something i Will listen to again but it was fine A little to "messy" for my taste. Even tho i enjoy similair artist it didnt really work for me
I was a Teenage Teenage Fanclub Fanclub member
College rock from what I heard.
Enjoyed this
Just seemed pretty average to me. It feels like I've gotten a lot of these perfectly fine but not special at all albums lately.
Great noisy guitar driven melodies.
Nice I liked the final track a lot
We've had a pretty fantastic run of classic British albums recently and this no exception. Bandwagonesque blends the angular indie of Husker Du, Pavement and similar American bands with a proto-Britpop catchiness that results in a hugely enjoyable record
Sounded. Good, quite relaxing but also pretty forgetable
flat?
Surprisingly good album. Niiiiice.
Sounds like what I'm listening to when I come home from the skate park and need a glass of water.
It's... fine I guess? There's nothing much here, to be honest. It comes off a little watered-down and kind fake. It's like it's not even really rock and roll. It's just rock-flavored music. I feel like Teenage Fanclub is the cheese pizza of rock music. If you like pizza, you're going to be okay with plain cheese pizza. But if someone starts telling you that their favorite pizza is plain cheese, you start questioning whether or not they have the palate of a child. Similarly, if someone told me that their favorite band was Teenage Fanclub, I'd start to question their taste in music.
Never knew this album
Good stuff
Bullshit
めちゃ可愛くてポップなアルバムでした。前向きになれる。
A lot of this sounds like something that would play over the end credits of Dawson's Creek or maybe during a Ross/Rachel breakup montage. Wild that they didn't have to give Lynyrd Skynyrd a songwriting credit for the opening track. Best track: Guiding Star
Top 3 Songs: 1 - Is This Music? (12) 2 - Star Sign (6) 3 - Pet Rock (8)
Thought this was a surprisingly good album. Haven’t heard of the band or album before. They have a solid alternative sound that came out in the early 90s prior to a lot of other good alternative bands. The guitars made a lot of songs enjoyable and brought a few songs to a higher level. None of the songs were that catchy but they were consistent and simple which in this case works. 7.2/10
Qui el vam viure al seu moment el vam veure com un altre signe que les coses estaven canviant, no només a USA (Nirvana, Pearl Jam, etc), sinó també a Europa. El seu primer vers, amb menció no gratuïta a Status Quo, és mític, i un bon senyal de per on anirà el disc al llarg del seu trajecte. Un dels millors discos d'aquells anys, que és molt dir, i una obra inspiracional per tots els que vam créixer escoltant-la
Pretty boring teenage rock.
rather boring, very few highlights
Its worthy of being in the rotation.
Good rock album
This is kind of, boring? Just sounds like generic rock. No great singing or instruments. 5/10.
Remember when Spin said this was better than Loveless and Nevermind? That sure aged well.
Two good songs on the album but otherwise a bit bland
ehh. very much ehh.
first listen boring
I somehow missed this album and band entirely despite its apparent success when released. I enjoyed some of the guitar leads but not much else. The entire thing felt sort of anemic to me and like so many other alternative rock albums from the 90s/2000s.
Decent musicians and vocalists, but the songs really didn't do much for me. How Spin Magazine voted this "Album of the Year" in 1991 over Nirvana's Nevermind is beyond me. Am I missing something?
It was alright.
It was ok. Some interesting moments. Not sure if I'll revisit it. I did really like the ending song for some reason.
Perfectly inoffensive. Pretty, even. But not a single track grabbed me or made me want to dig in more. I could never make something so nice myself, but “nice” doesn’t define this list of 1001+
Creation Records has its finest moment.
Pretty blah. Not a single memorable song.
Very chill, me gusta
Now we know which was the group Noel and Liam Gallagher took all their ideas from, including several suspiciously similar guitar riffs. Other than that, why most of the songs have a girl as a protagonist? Bit annoying really. Nonetheless, I loved the melodies and the voice of the main singer, and the harmonies too.
Had heard the band name but that was it and don't think I was expecting melodic indie. Apparently I like bands / albums with 'teen' in them.
Sounds like if you gave the Beatles from the “it’s been a hard days night” era and gave them an electric guitar and showed them Hendrix.
Fairly forgettable. Pleasant enough early 90s indie. The kind of thing I listened to at the time but I don't really remember much teenage fanclub. Maybe sparkys dream but that's not on this album. All in all a bit samey and not helped by a lack of nostalgia.
Meh. Not bad, not great. Kind of boring.
It alright
kinda good?
First couple songs sound like the music you'd find in a 90s teenage romcom. Pretty light rock. Slower, jangly guitars with a focus on vocal melody. A little too light rock for me, only saved 1 song to my Spotify
I am downgrading this album’s generous two-star rating by a star because the knuckleheads at Spin magazine decided that this album was the better 1991 album of the year than Nevermind.
The first song on this album, "The Concept" is one of the best songs of the 90s. It is an absolutely perfect track. In fact, "The Concept" is such a good song, it accidentally makes the rest of this album look worse, which is a shame because the rest of this album is consistently decent to great. Particular standouts include "What You Do To Me", "Metal Baby", and "Pet Rock". "Alcoholiday" is probably the second best song here, but again, nothing can really compare to "The Concept". best part(s): THE CONCEPT, Alcoholiday worst part(s): This album getting more hype than Grand Prix, the actual best Teenage Fanclub album.
First time listen! This has some absolute bops!
From memory, UK guitar bands just before Britpop took off: Madchester / Shoegaze / Wedding Present / St Etienne and ..Teenage Fanclub. Bandwagonesque might be the best album from a very solid band, who made a string of very decent albums. It is nice to see this album on the list, like that album from the La's, just short of 5 stars for me.
Very nineties, this. Never checked out this band at the time, but this sounded quite good.
Very easy listening rock
Meh. A time capsule of the early 90s.
It was fine, not great
I like the blissed out power pop Teenage Fanclub, but this isn't my favourite albums from them. It might be the most consistent but it lacks the hooks of some of their later albums.
As a Scottish person, I feel like I have to admire Teenage Fanclub arbitrarily, however underneath this exterior of seemingly out-of-tune harmonies and repetitive structures, there's a sense of real talent. I firmly believe that Teenage Fanclub are a bit of a piss-take, in that they write mindless songs purposefully, which kinda makes them secretly genius.
Indie que não despertou grande interesses.
so dreamy and sweet
Did nothing for me
I want to love this, but it's just missing something
Not what I expected of 90s music. Gave me pleasant vibes like 60s California easy rock
I've heard the name of Teenage Fanclub before, but I can't remember hearing any of their music. Bandwagonesque could be described as a power pop album. Various tracks reminded me of Weezer, the Eels, Sonic Youth, and above all the Replacements. There was definitely an early 90s feel to the album. "December", "I Don't Know", and "Is This Music?" were the tracks that I liked the most. The album was fine, but I'm not sure if I'll remember having heard it later on.
They sound like a local garage rock band that you might find entertaining 30 some odd college stoners in a run down bar on a Tuesday night. Which is an awesome and important role to have, but doesn't mean this poorly produced and entirely forgettable album belongs anywhere near a list like this.
Brilliant. I'm not sure why I didn't listen to them before, other than my disliking for jangle pop. An extra star for being Scottish as well means that it has to be 5 🌟
I was kind of expecting to like this but it didn't do much for me on the first listen and second go around I still wasn't able to get much into it. Maybe this album needs a time and a place. Fave: Metal Baby
Hmmmm, I didn't listen to this at the time so it's not getting a nostalgia bump. It seems kinda.... unremarkable? Not sure why it got so much acclaim, but maybe it pioneered some stuff that's become so commonplace I now just take it for granted? I can see my affection for it might grow with more listens... Fave track - "Sidewinder", perhaps, or "Metal Baby"...
For 1991 really ambitious. Worth listening. (7/10) FT: The Concept
Pop-rock con buena instrumentación, pero plano en muchos sentidos. No me ha supuesto ningún aliciente.
some of the best pure pop to come out of the 90's. it was a little before my time and i didn't even discover this album until college in the early 2000's. the hooks here are just to addicting and everything is so simple.
Oye, esto me gustó. Y pensar que es de 1991, su musica suena mucho mas moderna.
Enjoyable, especially the last track which I loved. 3
Really enjoyed it. Good drunk music. A relatively rare recent four.
Pixies meets Sonic Youth
I feel like younger me would have really enjoyed this.
I thought I was going to like this at first, but it's pretty lame. It's like Weezer, but somehow worse.
I really enjoyed the subtle tones of this album. It feels a lot like relaxing metal with punk influences. I would totally listen to this more.
If Michael Owen was a 90s brit-pop kinda band, he'd be Teenage Fanclub. This might be the most inoffensive record I've ever heard but the caveat to this is that it's just not very interesting, although 'The Concept', and 'Star Sign' provide brief but welcome distractions. It's better than Leonard Cohen, so there's that.
I did not know this band. Maybe it deserves a second change, but I did not like too much.
Fairly safe and stuck in its influences. This album is pretty and pleasant but doesn't really jump out to me much.
It's fine. I should say more and maybe mention that these guys were integral to the third wave power pop sound of the 90's, but I found this album too boring to find motivation for writing.
Tengo muy buenos recuerdos de este disco y tiene muy buenas canciones como "The Concept", "What You Do to Me" o "Is This Music?". Pero sobre todo es "Star Sign" mi favorita y que hace brillar todo el disco. Así que será un 4 estrellas ****.
I didn't know this band before already, I quite like this album! It's not just a 90s sound but also really pulls you back to a 90s feel. I do notttt like all the tracks particularly Satan is stressful for me haha straight outta hell.
I really enjoyed this - I knew a bit of TF already but found this fun!
This was okay, had some really nice guitar solos in it but overall it was a bit bland. Some dreary uninspiring lyrics and then a cool guitar solo.
Shoegaze indierock classic back in the day. In retrospect it sounds dated and gets boring after a few songs
Nice
Great