Scissor Sisters

I'm sure that there are people reading these reviews who simply don't know how awful music was in the early 2000s. It's difficult for those of us who suffered through that time to express quire how atrociously awful just everything was. We'd had some fun with Britpop in the 1990s, trip-hop had fallen by the wayside. Rock, metal and hip-hop had got it on and spawned the lightly-fried turd that was numetal, and literally the only fun that could ever be found after about 2002 was Mr Scruff. For literally years, the music industry pumped out dismal dirges and post-britpop fart noises. The happiest music one could find was Coldplay - and literally nobody needs that. And then, along came Scissor Sisters. They took a look at the desperate, desolate wasteland of the early 2000s music scene and said "Balls to that, let's DANCE, motherfucker!" and released this joyous masterwork. Back in the day, I loved it. Sure, there's a couple of bum tracks. Incredibly, when it was released I thought that their cover version of Comfortably Numb was an abomination. Listening to it again today, it's actually pretty good. Filthy/Gorgeous is underrated, eclipsed but not outdone by Take Your Mama. Scissor Sisters, along with Alison Goldfrapp and Franz Ferdinand started music back towards fun. For that, they have to get 5 stars.

I bloody love this album, loved it in 2004 when it came out (no pun intended), love it now. Just full of fun, joy and party. A slight shame that at the time they were characterised as 'that gay band' (which I don't think would be the case in 2023) as there is something for all stripes here. A slight shame that one of the most horrible sounds I have ever heard precedes the bonus tracks, but it's so banging I can forgive that.

A lot of this record sounds like what would happen if Phish decided to make a disco record, and we should all be horrified by the prospect of that unholy alliance.

Plastic and fake. Sounds like music for people who were scared of all the new genres popping up in the early 2000s (ooo numetal so scary) so they clung to the one band that sounds like it crawled out of the 80s, complete with a (horrible) cover of Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb". The future is now, old man. My Chemical Romance Halo 2 Nacho chip, motherfucker.

9/10 crazy fun pop album certified bangers throughout

Brilliant synthy scene music. Shears falsetto evokes British gay icons like the Communards or Elton John and always reminds me of similar bands during my twelfth year (The Darkness, Franz Ferdinand, Electric Six). The music is tight, zippy, funky, cocksure and enjoyable. Plus, from memory, the mamas loved it. Stronger than I remember if a touch poppy for me

I thought this was pretty meh. Not offensive, but it was like listening to neo-Elton John euro fanfic. 2/5

So this was definitely a strange one that I couldn't decide how to rate. Basically, I was stuck anywhere between 2 and 5 for the first few tracks - the cover of Comfortably Numb, the original of which I absolutely love, was actually painful to listen to the first time. Given these mixed feelings, I gave it a second spin the day after. This second spin let me enjoy the most enjoyable parts more and see the other parts in the context of the whole - important for such a strange album. It's actually some sort of wild pastiche, somewhere inbetween Elton John, Appollo 440, Dire Straits and Depeche Mode. All artists I enjoy, but vastly different from each other. It took time to get into Scissor Sisters. But after the second spin, I'm convinced.

Before listening: I love the Scissor Sisters, I saw them concert, I liked them before anyone else did. The first time I heard Take Your Mama I was blown away. Can't wait to re listen to this! After listening: I still love it! Singles are all amazing, album tracks are very very good. I seriously love this album!

This is one of the first albums I ever downloaded from Limewire. (I got so many viruses on my computer...) It's actually relieving to see something on the list that I've heard before. Of course, I haven't heard it in ten years, but it was a fun romp down memory lane. I remember putting this on a mix for an ex-girlfriend and thinking I was really cool. (I wasn't really cool.) Anyways. Great album. Perfect for driving. Kids dug it. Great vibes all around. Lots of attitude.

It had been a long time since I listened to this fun album

Fun as hell.

A blast from the recent past.. forgot about this album and band really, but their hits are instantly remembered and the album is actually really good. Deserves to be on this list.

Music is indeed the victim, in particular Pink Floyd. Did not enjoy. There was some nice bass playing to groove to, but not much else floated my boat.

Sure, it's fun and contains some disco-stompers. And was very much a breath of fresh air on release. But the cover of "Comfortably Numb" remains a travesty and not convinced its inclusion stands the test of time.

Nothing grabbed me at all

Low-key amazing debut album. Mixing glam rock with electronica. Awesome.

Lots of fun. Good get psyched music.

I own this album, but this is my first time listening to it from start to finish (I'm pretty sure I bought it just for their cover of "Comfortably Numb," but I eventually also fell in love with "Take Your Mama"). I'm so mad at myself for not having listened to all of this album sooner, because I really enjoyed it. Every song has so much going on lyrically, but every song is also really fun instrumentally. I'm a big fan of keyboards and synthesizers, and the keyboards here are fantastic, giving each song a familiarity of disco, while still managing to create a very unique sound. "Take Your Mama" is my favorite track on this album, and lyrically, it's just absolutely brilliant; the band does a great job of taking such a serious topic as coming out to a family member, but stripping away all of the anxiety, and just jumping in with both feet. Pure mastery as far as I'm concerned. "Filthy/Gorgeous," "Comfortably Numb," "Laura," and "It Can't Come Quickly Enough" are also fantastic tracks.

Rating: 8/10 Best songs: Laura, Take your mama, Mary, Filthy/gorgeous

Great album! It’s like 70s disco rock! Listen again: yes Purchase for my collection: possibly Favourite Song: Take Your Mama Out Worst Song:

Today's album is a pop rock/modern day disco record by Scissor Sisters. This is a very unique genre which I haven't really heard before. It sounds like it would be awful, but surprisingly it works. The band have hints of Bee Gees, ABBA, and Queen in their delivery, and are apparently staples of the LGBTQ community, having got their start in the "NYC Gay Nightlife" scene. Some of their music is quite comical, such as Tits on the Radio, which is loosely a song about beating off because you can't see tits on a radio. The only other band that I can think of who are close to this sound is Ultraviolet Sound. Overall, a surprisingly great album today. This music makes you want to get up and move. Especially Filthy/Gorgeous. I enjoyed the album so much today that I listened to it twice. Very different and interesting. Favourite songs: Filthy/Gorgeous, Take Your Mama, Tits on the Radio, The Skins, Music is the Victim, Laura Least favourite songs: Comfortably Numb 4/5

The cover of Comfortably Numb is both the most odd thing on this record and also the most compelling. The vocals are reminiscent of the Bee Gees which is truly bizarre. That said, this record strikes me as nothing revolutionary or evolutionary. It's fun in places, but that's about it. Note that this is yet another record that is in some editions of 1001 and dropped in later ones, which is usually a signal that the record isn't really all that essential. (Especially true for UK bands.)

This band would be soooo good if jack black wasn’t the singer. 3.5 stars

This is probably the single ugliest album cover of any album I’ve ever listened to myself. It’s almost so ugly looking it’s actually profoundly beautiful. Like a piece of collage art on acid. I’m also disappointed that this band is called Scissor Sisters and it’s mostly men playing. Seems pretty counterproductive considering the name. Everything about this group is confusing, if I’m being honest. I saw an interesting comment from another reviewer that said “I'm sure that there are people reading these reviews who simply don't know how awful music was in the early 2000s.” I’m not necessarily disagreeing with that statement, but I don’t know if this is exactly the best album to use for your argument. This did really well when it came out, to my upmost surprise, and has been named “the top gay album of all time”. Pretty accurate if you ask me. I can’t remember the last time I heard something that draws so heavily on the biggest and most influential LGBTQ music stars of the generations before it. I hear so much Elton John in the song Mary, and it kind of kicks ass. But I don’t know, maybe it’s because I wasn’t alive and conscious enough early on in the 2000s to witness the music scene and understand why this is important. It’s a pop glam rock album with electronic elements that fully embraces the gay life of New York City. And some of these songs actually pull moves that pique my interest and make me think it’s heading the right direction. But others are maybe just a little too schlocky for me. Like, I’m sorry, but there is absolutely no way their cover of Comfortably Numb is worth a Grammy nomination. Pink Floyd is a pretentious person kind of band, and I try not to be too pretentious myself about them. But all that their cover made me want to do is listen to the original, because it was so genuinely unenjoyable. This album left me feeling disoriented and potentially confused as to who I really was. That, combined with the music itself not being amazing, doesn’t make me want to revisit this ever. Rating: 5/10

I don't think I'm gay enough for this album

Not really for me. To parody-of-disco.

Very gay, not that there's anything wrong with that. It isn't very appealing to listen to though so that's where the problem lies.

Not my thing.

could be background music if the lyrics werent so... 2

One more of so many albums here that are just nothing special. Adding insult to injury is what the band did to Comfortably Numb, one of the most beautiful songs ever. Severe punishments have been handed for much less.

the worst possible cover of comfortably numb ever heard. I am just not the target audience.

pass

I hated this more than I would have expected to. I only knew them through I don't feel like dancing which is a certified bop. The songs on this album though are the opposite

Obviously fun. But not my kind of fun. Too disco-y. The male voice is annoying.

Music Is the Victim indeed. Overblown, bland disco rock. I can't really think of anything positive to say about this. Not my thing at all. I looked up the lyrics to Tits On The Radio as that seemed like it could be some interesting social commentary, but just seemed to fairly basic free word association. I didn't like this at the time, and it has not aged well.

Awful. The vocals instantly annoyed me at the beginning, and the monotonous beats didn't help. Their brand of dance-pop doesn't have the colorful charm of '70s disco, or the glam of '80s synth pop, or the electrifying energy of '90s rave. It's just some robotic beats with terrible vocals. There are some more danceable and less annoying stuff in the '00s. EDM. R&B pop. Not this terrible Bee-Gees impression over generic beats. Oh, and that "Comfortably Numb" cover? My God. I guess that's the 2000's version of hearing songs like Bohemian Rhapsody in Tiktok nightcore remix in the 2020's.

Bee Gees shite. Got bored after two tracks. Bailed after Comfortably Numb. One half of this description is how I was left feeling.

This is probably blasphemy but I like Scissor Sisters' cover of Comfortably Numb so much better than Pink Floyd's original. I'd never heard any song on this album except that one, and until today though that it was an old 70s disco cover of the song. This album is amazing. Every song is totally completely different than the others in most every way. They seem to pick a genre, do a song, pick a new genre, do a new song, and repeat through the album making great song after great song. At least, for those songs I could find to listen to. Some of them eluded me, though most were on YouTube.

Defined a sound and changed my life

Funky and weird and I wish there was more of it

Great album, have on vinyl. Take your momma out tonight

I think I'm going to bump this up from 4 to a 5 because it just has that goofy little charm that I really like.

OMG, I love this! I hear elements of Elton John in Take Your Mama and never expected to enjoy any version of Pink Floyd anything but Comfortably Numb absolutely slaps. Music is the Victim has a danceable, electronic beat but also real, live electric guitar! Scissor Sisters, welcome to my life.

Got some great tunes on there, such a great album from my childhood

Started it, forgot how many bangers are on it

Algjört bangerasafn, frábærlega grípandi og skemmtilegt og ein af bestu tónlistarminningum þrítugsaldursins. Svo finnst mér þessi útgáfa af Comfortably numb vera best.

The only band I've ever wanted to be in. They have better albums but I can't not give them 5 stars!

Five stars for the cover of "Comfortably Numb" alone, which is just a completely crazy mash-up of the original song, 70s funk, 80s electro, and 90s house. It really shouldn't work, but it's just so damn good. I think this album made me gay for a bit in 2004, as well; the soundtrack for my kiss-guys-on-molly phase. Which was a total blast, and this album being so unabashedly, joyfully out - and such a massive hit - felt like a defining moment.

This was way too much fun to give it anything but a 5.

A total joyride, in the best way.

I don't think I've given Scissor Sisters the room it deserves in my musical life. If they get a second album in this list, then I look forward to loving 'Ta Dah' as well.

Boy oh boy oh boy do I love me some Jake Shears and Scissor Sisters. I always thought they should be bigger and more well known outside of the gay-club culture. There I was in spring of 2004 alone at home with my newborn. One particularly rough day I was literally on the couch feeding Adler nonstop. Exhausted, sore, and depressed I was so worried about this new chapter of life. I didn't feel alive; I felt like a machine. Despondently watching Ellen (pretty sure it was that) on daytime TV, the Scissor Sisters came on and sang "Take Your Momma." It was the postpartum antidote I needed. My baby and I started dancing that day and I felt like I could get through all the hard stuff and recover from birth. I immediately ordered the CD. Music is some powerfully healing stuff. I love that they took the slow Comfortably Numb and put it on the NY dance floor. Highpoint of our wedding was when Filthy/Gorgeous came on our playlist and the patio turned into a disco. This album is just the whole package...great cover, band is totally grooving, excellent vocals, and it's got a beat you can dance to.

great album, unexpected gem. I loved the reworking of Comfortably Numb. very much a disco sound, enjoyed it a lot.

Campy, genuine mood-lifter. I loved nearly every track. Wavered between 4 and 5 stars but the sadder song "It Can't Come Quickly Enough" sent me into 5 stars.

When you grow up, living like a good boy ought to And your mama takes a shine to her best son Something different, all the girls, they seem to like you 'Cause you're handsome, like to talk, and a whole lot of fun But now your girl has gone a-missing and your house has got an empty bed The folks'll wonder 'bout the wedding, they won't listen to a word you said We're gonna take your mama out all night Yeah, we'll show her what it's all about We'll get her jacked up on some cheap champagne We'll let the good times all roll out And if the music ain't good, well, it's just too bad We're gonna sing along, no matter what Because the dancers don't mind at the New Orleans If you tip 'em and they make a cut Do it, take your mama out all night So, she'll have no doubt that we're doing all the best we can We're gonna do it, take your mama out all night You can stay up late, 'cause baby, you're a full-grown man I unironically love this album. 5/5

I was so happy to get this album I know and love today. It was the summer of '04, my last visit to France, and it was on the radio there constantly. I bought the CD there as I'd not yet heard them in the U.S. Gloriously disco-y fun, this takes you to a place where you dance in joy with your friends, leaving all the troubles of the world outside. It's joyful and fun and absolutely glamorous without ever being pretentious (I mean, your Continental's just been towed...)

🕺🏾🤸🏾‍♂️

being objective I know part of the 5 stars is because this was the soundtrack to a really pivotal time in my life. But I still love every single song on this album. In my top 10 for sure.

This really resonates with my memories and is in fact better than my recollection at the time. Some stand out tracks and the whole vibe is a tight. well produced album.

Disco is not dead. Ten out of ten.

That’s immediately a 5. It was just fun, you know? I’ve been waiting for something this goofy and bubbly and happy for a while. We keep getting moody stuff, or hard rock, or semi-pop with a bit of a noir feel (looking at you, Billy Joel). Even when we get stuff that is fun, it’s never this fun and loose and carefree, or at least it hasn’t been for a while. I’m sort of struggling to say exactly what I liked about the album, because I really did enjoy just about everything here. I think the instrumentation is fantastic, and deeply reminiscent of so many artists and genres that I already like, especially with how many songs feel ripped straight out of Elton John’s style. It Can’t Come Quickly Enough felt like it came straight out of a mid-90s George Michael cut, and the last track, Return to Oz, felt very Bowie inspired in its structure. I love paying homage to artists like this. Lyrically, I thought every song was great, and it always manages to take itself seriously enough when the time calls for it – there’s a deep dichotomy between the seriousness of “Mary” and the goofier take on coming out expressed on “Take Your Mama,” but they all fit together on this album as a great listening experience from start to finish without feeling weird or out of place. Vocals were great throughout as well. There’s really not a single complaint from me. Fabulous, fabulous album. Easy 5. I’m a moron for never having heard this before today.

I wanna summarize how much I enjoyed this album just by talking the weird-ass cover of "Comfortably Numb". 'Cuz its ass is **very** weird. I mean, if you didn't tell me this was a Pink Floyd cover, just from the arrangement alone I wouldn't be able to tell. Some kinda electroclash glam rock thing? Very strange! And the vocals—they sound like SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER Bee Gees, right down to "AH-HA-HA"s. Why did they even cover this song at all? What the heck even is this? I don't know about anyone else, but to me, what this is is **great**. I know I've described a lot of albums I haven't heard before as "fun listens," but this is the most I've meant it yet. It's largely thanks to how glam-y it is. I've always had a thing for glam rock, and the way it's done here—**good shit**. Combine that with how queer it is, and I kinda feel a little dumb for not checking out any of their albums sooner. Like, I can blame my mom and sister annoying me with "Let's Have A Kiki" all I want; at the end of the day, this is incredibly up my alley. I'll even choose "I got distracted by other things" as the reason why side two didn't do as much for me as the first and why I won't dock it a star for that. I don't think there's any other Scissor Sisters albums on this list, and as I'm writing this I don't feel like checking. So thank goodness we at least got this album. I can't say how "worthy" it is to be here, but it's an absolute blast regardless. (And seriously, my mom and sister were **all the damn time** with "Let's Have A Kiki" back when GLEE covered it. In retrospect, it's the biggest foreshadowing I can remember for how much they'd end up getting into stuff like RUPAUL'S DRAGRACE. And, y'know, better that than wherever they would've ended up if they got more into the "Turkey Lurkey" half of GLEE's cover.)

Hell yes

Remember this album from growing up and really enjoyed it then. After relistening to the full album again I found it to be brilliant all over. Great fun album all round.

Filthy ✅ Gorgeous ✅

That bass was great and the vocals

I was at least a decade late to the Scissor Sisters party, but I have been a fan of this album for quite a while now. Love it!

Personal Enjoyability (out of 40): 34 Consistency of Quality (out of 25): 18 Keeps Interest (out of 25): 21 Album Flow (out of 10): 8 Overall 81/100 ★★★★★ Quick Review: My first 5 star review, and I cannot believe it's the Scissor Sisters but I'm fine with it. The singles are bangers, the album tracks are all solid songs that I found myself dancing along to. Just as I thought the album was petering out slightly, the final two tracks change the tone entirely. Overall a fantastic album!

5/5 - really enjoyed this

Amazing album. Return to Oz slaps

Just perfect, fun and feelgood

An unashamed disco banger

Great fun. Completely gay in the very best way.

It's fast, it's fun, it's Dominion! Just kidding but this album was Fresh, funky and fun. Prior to listening to this album I knew of the Scissor Sisters but only through I Don't Feel Like Dancin'. This album almost felt like a modern disco album and you could hear the influence of the Bee Gees, Elton John, David Bowie and Pink Floyd. Every song was different and brought something new for the listener to enjoy. I will definitely be coming back to this album and plan to explore Scissor Sisters more going forward!

Loved it

If you gene spliced 10cc into Ween and then ran it through a studio with Beck helming the production, this would be the result. Glorious, beautiful, funtastic. I started this project hoping I would be introduced to a gem that I had know nothing about, that I had somehow missed and I have been rewarded.

Fav songs: take your mama, mary, return to oz

It's a banger.

Fun, gay-ass music!

I bought this album when it was released and it has been one of my favorites since. FABULOUS!

Lots of bangers, fun to dance or sing, would have liked to see this live!

Never heard this band or album. Pleasantly surprised.

Wow. I knew who Scissor Sisters were -- I even ended up in their small rehearsal space one night when I was visiting NYC: an acquaintance of the band had the key to that place, located under a bar in the Lower East Side, where I was partying with a friend of mine (and no, there was no poppers or kinky sex involved in that small space if that's what you're thinking of! - It was all very respectable, just sipping a few beers there and having a nice chat, lol). But in spite of that personal experience, I had never properly listened to any Scissor Sisters record, and I have to say I'm *very* impressed by that one. It's got just the right mix of seventies and eighties references I love, from glam-rock (seventies Elton John, of course--whose shadow looms over half those brilliantly composed cuts--but also Bowie, Bolan, Mott The Hopple...) up to eighties synth-pop understood in its most elegant definition (that whole Human League and Heaven 17 connection--plus stuff I don't enjoy as much but that's certainly iconic for gay subcultures, like The Communards, Pet Shop Boys or George Michael). You also have groovy flourishes worthy of Stevie Wonder, and, obviously, the huge and mandatory disco influence that's found in the drag queen scene, where this project originated from. Yet there's still an unmistakable "rock" energy to the whole thing, which transcends the potential overload of cheese into a truly exhilarating experience. The incredible disco cover of Pink Floyd's *Comfortably Numb* in this debut nicely sums up all those assets, with its obvious winks to Frankie Goes To Hollywood (even if the word "relax" was already in the original lyrics written by Roger Waters), or with its hilarious rëenactment of the falsetto vocal hooks of Bee Gees circa "Saturday Night Fever". It's fun. It's fresh. It's witty. With a calling card like that, Scissor Sisters was sure to leave a favorable impression to early naught audiences looking for the next big thing. Too bad I missed that train at the time... Yet as cool and humourous as all those reference points are, they wouldn't amount to much if the band didn't have such a knack for infectious earworms. And it's not only "style", folks, it's also *substance*. There's not a single filler in this record, so I'm not gonna bother quoting a lot of songs from it. Seventies-era Elton John didn't merely influence Scissor Sisters in a "pastiche" or postmodern sense of the word, you see (even if "pastiche" and "camp" are unavoidable in gay / drag queen circles, for better of for worse). He also deeply influenced the band's chord progressions, the harmonies, the care for instrumental detail, the lyrical eye, and the overall "energy" of this thing. So much that if you placed some of those songs inside *Goodbye Yellow Brick Road*'s tracklisting, you wouldn't even blink an eye. And the same can be said for the other influences guiding the Sisters. Another track thus sums up those other sorts of assets Scissor Sisters had in 2004. It's the poignant closer "Return To Oz", in a way more faithful to "Comfortably Numb"'s original epic spirit than the cover of the same name found towards the start of the album, very ironically. Scissor Sisters come full circle with that intense closer, and it's only one piece of evidence among many showing how carefully constructed the internal callbacks and other 180-degree-turn of this eponymous debut are. It's the sort of thing that allows a record filled to the brim with various music genres to become personal, sincere, and, at times, very touching. Because, well, to put it as simply as I can, the songs are excellent. So excellent that you quickly forget their "pastiche" aspects and end up enjoying them without any sense of irony in mind. I've only browsed through the next three Scissor Sisters albums, but it seemed to me they are not as spectacular as this debut. The two last ones even sound overproduced, which only brings out their "camp" aspects to far less tolerable levels (the exact opposite of the many qualities I've just spotted in the band's debut). The first side of *Ta-dah* contains a string of immediate highlights, though, proving that Scissor Sisters still had those stellar skills you will always need if you want to create memorable earworms, catchy instrumentation, and witty lyrics. Yet if we're talking about "essential albums", the eponymous debut seems to be the *one*. Glad that this app made me know it. And glad that Scissor Sisters were there to open all those doors for a lot of people during the first decade of this century. Whether front doors or back doors I might risk adding. 🙃 5/5 if you round up. (9.5/10 on a scale of 10). Number of albums left to review: 325 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 302 Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 164 Albums from the list I won't include in mine (many other records are more important to me): 218

So *this* is what indoctrinated me to glam

Fantastic album! Enjoyed it in it's entirety.

Camp as Christmas, and a whole lot of fun. A couple of songs I thought I had forgotten, until I heard them again, and some all time classic power pop oddness. Another album where every track was on in the pubs and clubs of Glasgow, so it feels like an old friend. Whoever had the bright idea of a disco Pink Floyd cover needs their head checked, but it bloody works!

Impeccable pop filled with all the hits. I can't fault it.

Wow, what an interesting mix! Part Prince, part Beck, part Styx, part disco, part Pink Floyd (although the “Comfortably Numb” cover is a little out of place). Loved this one!

I kept going back to it all day. Really enjoyed it and found it unique. No tits on the radio!

How did I not experience them before?

being gay is a gift, and i want to dance!!

I'd totally forgotten how many hits the Scissor Sisters had, and they're all on this album.

So rad. I remember my mind being blown by this one and buying the CD.

9/10

Fuck yes. Loved this band since discovering them in 2007 through Doctor Who (yes Russell T. Davies knew what he was doing) and know every song backwards in forwards. Absolute bangers from an amazing band. I just wish they would reform (Jake Shears' solo album from 2023 definitely scratches the scissor sisters itch).

5/5

How great to listen to an album that has me grinning and laughing on my walk to work! On paper, I was nervous about the cover of Comfortably Numb but holy cow did that work. Absolutely stellar!

Never heard this before and I thought it was nearly perfect - steeped in the Spirit of the luminaries of Glam but cutting its own path. Interesting lyrics and largely flawless delivery. A real gem.

Unexpectedly loved it! Laura, back seat, final 2 tracks