Rock Bottom

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Wed Dec 15 2021

4

4.4 - I was initially turned off by the vocals that struggle to keep in tune with a rather complex melody on "Sea Song." Aptly named, that song floats on a sea of sound that seems to envelope and immerse you in a strange and delightful soundscape reminiscent of "Kid A." In fact, so many sounds seem to directly inform "Kid A" that Thom Yorke could well be accused of ripping it off. There's the riot of woodwinds on "Little Red Riding..." that's reminiscent of "National Anthem" and then there's "Alifib" whose garbled vocals bring to mind "Everything In Its Right Place." Wow, as I'm writing all this, my esteem for this record just keeps rising. Then there are the moments of spoken word, especially on the final track, that add so much atmosphere. And let's not forget the backstory! Yeah, this one's a trip. I'll come back to this.

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Thu Apr 01 2021

1

Dog shite

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Thu Oct 07 2021

5

This is simply wonderful - probably my favorite discovery from this list so far. I found this much more accessible than your average prog. The whole thing sounds like a dream, both the instruments and the vocals. I could get lost in this album... Fave track - "Sea Song", but really this album demands to be listened to straight through...

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Wed Mar 16 2022

5

Obviously this isn't going to be everyone's cup of tea, and honestly I can see why this is hardly anyone's cup of tea, but goddamn I have to stick up for Robert Wyatt. First of all, the fact that he became paralyzed while in the middle of making this record, and that he then carried on to complete it and continue his music career, is nothing short of miraculous. I have always found his music both haunting and comforting, particularly his voice, but if you listen to this album through the lens of what he was going through at the time, this album takes on a whole new depth and dimension. Yes, this album is challenging, but to be the cathartic, soul searching record that it is, it has to be challenging. If you have an immediate negative reaction to this album, I get it, feel free to move on. But if you find yourself not quite sure how to feel about it, give it another spin. I promise you it becomes more rewarding with repeated listens (particularly on a good pair of headphones at night).

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Tue May 03 2022

5

I almost turned the album off after the first two tracks, but told myself, “you only have to listen to the album once and never again…” so I kept listening and I’m very glad I did. It’s beauty hit me despite my reluctance and disinterest.

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Wed Apr 27 2022

1

I don't blame Robert Wyatt for making this album full of noodling nonsense; I blame the listmaker for pretending as though there were anything of merit here.

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Wed Apr 28 2021

4

This is something I could sink into. First listen of Robert Wyatt. No possible way to digest it all in the first listen. My favorite kind of music. Sounds ahead of its time.

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Sun Mar 06 2022

4

An expansive and unusual album. The beginning is rather dirgelike before taking off into a horn filled modal jazz like middle section. This album is tinged with pastoral British folk passages undergirded by experimental lyrics and instrumentation. It’s honestly rather brilliant.

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Thu Apr 29 2021

3

i feel too dumb to enjoy this

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Thu Nov 11 2021

1

Rock Bottom by Robert Wyatt (1974) When Robert Wyatt so self-assertingly identified (then, anyway) as a Communist (not the ‘Eurocommunist’ variety, but the hard core unreconstructed Stalinist ‘Tanky’ type), he invited an assessment of what’s beneath the apparent nonsense on this record. When confronted with innovation, a serious listener will seek to understand. This involves, at minimum, a look into the artist’s cultural context. Now, this is not a political album. It presents itself as experimental, psychedelic ‘rock’. And to be fair, I discerned two moments of beauty in the midst of all the failed experiments on this record. But what kind of over-compartmentalized mind produces these remaining sonic doodles? The listener must set aside the (totally justifiable) pity for the artist’s personal circumstances and assess why is there all this disorder? Why must simple scales be punctuated with seemingly arbitrary and certainly inconsistent atonality? (This ain’t Arnold Schoenberg or Alban Berg.) As an analogy, the same question might be posed upon viewing a Jackson Pollock painting in 1955 or Vincent Van Gogh in 1890. It’s not that it is necessarily bad art. It’s that the ‘why’ of the art is yet to be discerned. A turn to the poetry of Osip Mandelstam is instructive, on the flip side of the Stalin phenomenon. Nonsense can indeed have sublimely potent meaning. But I’m not seeing or hearing it at Rock Bottom. Why, I would ask Mr. Wyatt, is there all this chaos, all this disregard for conventional (at least) conceptions of what is good, true, and beautiful? Surely it’s not merely a Bolshevik revolutionary desire to destroy classic liberal notions of art. Surely it’s not merely Capitalist avarice. Surely it’s not a neo-Gnostic triumph of undefined spirit over matter. Surely it’s not a Socialist grab at the affirmative action brass ring. Critics are at a loss to explain this (I am not alone; and, in the interest of full disclosure, I, too, was a Communist. When I was 11. I grew out of it). One is left scratching one’s head. I really want to know. You got my attention, but briefly. Was that the point all along? 1/5

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Mon Mar 14 2022

5

One of the most beautiful sounding albums ever. It is very typical English art rock, and I always thought of it as The Hounds of Love of the 70s. It has quite a reputation, and for sure, Radiohead fans will like it. In short: a great album, 5 stars easily.

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Thu Jul 08 2021

1

WTF. this is one of the more unlistenable things we've come across. the jabberwocky lyrical content (i can't tell if they are lyrics or backward masked sounds most of the time), and the whole thing is psychedulic, dissonant mumbo jumbo.

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Fri Apr 09 2021

1

Another experimental one. Nothing here that I like at all

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Fri Mar 25 2022

5

I had never heard of Robert Wyatt but as I listened to “Sea Song” I was very intrigued and engaged at this truly unique and very odd love song. I stared at the cover of the album as I listened and felt myself drifting into its world. Do I love this song…? I think I do… “A Last Straw” meandered about and I felt myself drifting like a krill in a giant ocean as the music pushed me this way and that through its currents. It was strangely wonderful. I could live here. Midway through “Little Red Riding Hood Hits the Road” I realized the singing was backwards. I had to reference the lyrics to realize he was unsinging the lyrics from the first half of the song. I would have thought it was some musical joke but I found it strangely satisfying. The horns in this song are wonderful and there is an excitement with really lovely piano and a driving beat. “Alifib” has more of that drifting-along-in-the-sea vibe that I really am loving. The inscrutable lyrics sound almost like a prayer amidst the shifting currents of the song. Wonderful. “Alife” continues in a similar way, but becomes more frenetic as it advances until the kind of wild saxophone bellowing away at the end. The chant at the end is really odd and I am not sure what it all means, but I really liked the drama. “Little Red Robin Hood Hits the Road” then closes the album in a really perfect way. It is dramatic and cacophonous through its first have, then settles down with some quietly droning strings and a strange monotonal chant. A somewhat maniacal laugh closes the album. Wow! This is really surprising to me that it was created in 1974… it sounds more in line with Radiohead or Thom Yorke’s solo stuff. I had no idea that something like this existed 40 years ago to serve as such a unique source of inspiration. I love hitting ROCK BOTTOM with Robert Wyatt. The swirling sounds took me into a watery world in a way that was a true surprise. I connected to the stark and solitary world it creates and will happily return there again soon.

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Fri Mar 25 2022

5

This was the perfect listen at the perfect time. Why wouldn't someone sing backwards during my stay at The Great Northern Hotel from Twin Peaks? Will I ever want to listen again? Who knows. But it will remain a special memory forever.

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Sun Jan 02 2022

4

Probably the most enjoyable jazzy/proggy album we have had on this list, although that's a very low bar. I can definitely hear some echos of this in Radiohead and God Speed! You Black Emperor.

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Sun Jun 12 2022

4

It is albums like this that keep me doing this list. Having only know of Robert Wyatt through his song Shipbuilding I was expecting an album of folk ballads. That would have been OK but an album of wild sounding jazz fusion mixed with psychedelia was a 100 times better. I had to check I was still listening to the right album at one stage as some of the noises wouldn't have been out of place on some bands I like that came 10-20 years after this release. I had no idea about Robert Wyatt's accident and the struggle he had gone through in the lead up to this album. It makes what I heard on Rock Bottom even more meaningful. I need to explore more of his work now

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Thu Apr 01 2021

3

I only listened to it once, and to be honest I’ve no idea what was going on. He’s to listen to in parts but some really enjoyable aspects to it to. I didn’t hate it, and I’m going to go back and give it a bit more time so I guess that’s a (generous/benefit of the doubt) 3/5 in my book.

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Thu Aug 25 2022

3

Going in totally blind on this one... "Your lunacy fits nicely with my own." That's a funny lyric. And that's a seriously strange outro (Sea Song). "Hey Robert, we're not going to be able to afford a trumpet player for 'A Last Straw.'" "No problem. I'll just sing the part. 'wah wah wah wah wah.' How was that?" "Fuckin' NAILED it!" "We're going to need a guitar solo." "No problem. Just record me tuning up." "Fuckin' BRILLIANT!" "I just binged 'Tomorrow Never Knows.' Hit record and let's play this song backwards." There is something strangely compelling about this. Can't exactly say I enjoyed it, it sounded like it were being composed as it was being recorded, but it seems like a peek into the very cluttered mind of a mad genius. This dude must be a trip to converse with. "Mr. Wyatt. Are you off your meds?" "I'm fighting for the crumbs from the little brown loaf. I want it. I want it. I want it. I want it." "So that's a 'yes'..." This is the first artist from this venture for whom I immediately listened to another album just to hear what the hell else this guy recorded. Pretty much a continuation of this album. I feel a little bad now knowing his story about the accident and his loss of the use of his legs just before recording this, but it seems to me that this artist would have recorded a similarly bizarre album regardless. I give it a tuna fish sandwich. A star rating just doesn't apply.

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Sun Feb 28 2021

1

The interpretive dance equivalent of music

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Wed Feb 03 2021

5

Like a folk David Bowie. Awesome

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Wed Aug 18 2021

5

Perfect melancholy.

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Fri May 06 2022

5

very good sound, quirky and interesting!

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Fri Aug 05 2022

5

Wave after wave, Robert Wyatt takes us on an astonishing and marvellous trip to the sea. His frail voice is the auditory equivalent of spindrifts: it has an automatic effect on you, and can even repel you at first given its somewhat flimsy grasp of pitch sometimes, but once you get used to it, it becomes close to a mischievous, evocative friend tickling your senses. Soon, you don't notice Robert's quaver is relatively vulnerable anymore, because you're already under the surface with it, bathing in the middle of strange and poetic sonic landscapes. Everything about this record is liquid--the voice, of course, but also the synth and organ layers, the oozy basslines, and the many jazzy brass flourishes. It would be a mistake to only address the sonic textures, though: repeated listens indeed soon reveal how the tracks are carefully constructed too, their different parts and intricate arrangements phasing in and out of the foreground, weaving their seaweed fabric as their tides ebb and flow all around your ears. Water is enticing, but it's also treacherous. Take the short intro of wonderful opener "Sea Song", for example. You might believe that those relatively by-the-number piano chords announce a somewhat mundane ballad, yet the emotional turmoil right after those first seconds sounds far more intense than what you could have expected at first, and this until the deliverance of the transcendant final part, filled with hope and longing. Wyatt is also unreliable in the ways that he sometimes winks at the audience, especially when he makes goofy non-sequiturs in his lyrics or uses a lower grotesque timbre to create unexpected lighter moments compared to the rest of the tortured proceedings. In that realm, see also the backwards-recorded voice in the middle of "Little Red Riding Hood Hit The Road", rewinding everything that was sung up to that point in the song, a playful move that suggests the sort of tricks a child could play on you. If the key word to "get" this record is catharsis, it's still one taken with a huge grain of salt, in keeping with the oceanic mood. Everything is nicely summed up in the last track, "Little Red *Robin Hood* Hit The Road": yes, its first part does amp up the intense longing to embrace an ocean of experience and emotions already diplayed in the rest of the album, supported by mellifluous electric guitar licks, unmistakably played by Mike Oldfield. Yet as grand as this first part sounds, the song (and album)'s conclusion returns to the quicksands of that surrealistic grotesque mode we talked about earlier, mocking transcendence through Wyatt's voice, here set once more to a gruffy, near-comical mode. This earthy coda suggests we finally returned to the shores of mankind, welcomed by a wrinkled mariner gently admonishing us through his inane and uncomprehensible babble. Our odyssey is over. The end. What a trip. What a strange voyage. Far less groovy and free-formed than Wyatt's original band Soft Machine, but far more poetic and evocative, *Rock Bottom* is a seventies prog-rock masterpiece which could not be further distanced from all the virtuosistic clichés of the genre. As such, it's bound to be discovered again and again by future fans of experimental music, undettered by the nonplussed reactions of shallower minds around them rejecting all this as utter nonsense. The tides, they come and go. Robert Wyatt knew it, and we can all be glad he went with the flow here. Number of albums left to review or just listen to: 838 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory: 89 (including this one) Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 39 Albums from the list I will certainly *not* include in mine (many others are more important): 33

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Fri May 21 2021

4

Solid. Solid Vocals and instrumentation. Liked it a lot.

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Fri Sep 24 2021

4

Well this was wild. Really cool experience. I should check this out again at some point.

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Thu Nov 18 2021

4

I don't usually listen to art rock, so I was not sure I would enjoy this album. But actually, most of it is very solid, though it gets a bit boring in the middle.

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Thu Jan 20 2022

4

This got pretty adventurous. Kind of like a folky/prog sound. Interesting.

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Tue Feb 01 2022

4

This is so weird and artsy I love it. The instrumentation is prog-y and orchestral, it sounds amazing.

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Thu Feb 03 2022

4

Well, what is this? - "Experimental jazz meets psychedelic pop" with a strong emphasis on "psychedelic". "Alife" even resembles Jean Michel Jarres Ethnicolor from the Zoolook album, even though it's and entierely different genre. I found it strangely difficult to fast forward or skip tracks. The whole album is very trippy, in a good way. This is far from my usual tastes, but I'll give this 3.5/5.

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Wed Mar 09 2022

4

Trippy, good background though

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Wed Mar 16 2022

4

The very few pages of Finnegan's Wake I've read come to mind, I'm sure because of the water.

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Wed Jun 15 2022

4

an insane and mournful fever dream. like a David Bowie-Radiohead AI-generated salad

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Thu Sep 15 2022

4

I wasn't in the mood the first time I listened but I enjoyed my second and third listen. It is weirdly beautiful with some very strange lyrics.

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Mon Jun 12 2023

4

I had to listen to this album a few more times after being highly intrigued at first listen. The surrealist but dark jazzy atmosphere of this 70's prog album really kept drawing me back in. Some of the soundscapes reminded me of Gabriel-era Genesis. I can understand this isn't for everyone, but I've really grown very fond of this album.

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Thu Jul 20 2023

4

I was sceptical of this at first, monologues over sine waves, you're not getting me to scratch my chin, mate. But it opens up, and by the third song I was comparing it to This Heat and late Talk Talk, both of which I adore. It's introspective, maddened, instrumentally expansive, but feels very personal. Ran out of time for the second listen again. A cagey 4.

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Thu May 13 2021

3

Pretty sick. Sort of King Crimson-y. Super psychadelic, a little jazzy, very progressive, but more chill/ambient than heavy rock and also a healthy dash of creepiness.

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Fri Feb 05 2021

3

Quite interesting.

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Wed May 12 2021

3

Intriguing. Art rock ain’t my thing, but this guy’s story is amazing.

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Thu Jul 29 2021

3

Had it on as background music but there was some freaky shit going on. It's AHRT ROCK man. Pretty amazing in the context of him becoming a paraplegic before writing/ recording.

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Sun Jan 02 2022

2

Another toothy danger

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Mon Jan 10 2022

2

Unlistenable! British art house nonsense for the sake of itself.

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Wed Mar 16 2022

2

People have described this as experimental. I'm more in the obnoxious camp, his voice never seems to sync up with the music and is all over the place

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Fri Feb 26 2021

1

It was shit

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Sun Mar 14 2021

1

Horrendous. Experimental hippie jazz.

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Thu Mar 04 2021

1

Absolute rock bottom

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Fri Feb 05 2021

1

this album sucks holy shit

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Thu Mar 04 2021

1

Possibly the worst yet. Deserves a 0/5.

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Sun Feb 06 2022

1

God awful noise

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Fri Feb 25 2022

1

Wanker music. Example of some of the egregiously self-indulgent pap produced during that time.

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Thu Mar 10 2022

1

OMG. That voice. Perfectly named album: "Rock Bottom". Horrible album in every way. Rather listen to Yoko screaming. F

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Mon Jun 20 2022

1

Is this the rock bottom of the generator? Lets find out… The album opens with sea song the instrumentals are unique and interesting a true special delight worthy of an award for a top track but the vocals are horrible worse than John martyn and the guy from violet femmes combined. Still he’s very instrumentally appeasing though to be honest even if the noises he makes are migraine inducing. The last straw is a great slow piano track tainted by this man’s voice, he’s not even like Bob Dylan where it’s the lyrics that count as a good lot if the song is this guy singing “ wa wa wa wa” and the rest is this decent but not amazing verse. Little red riding hood hit the road has these great trumpet effects making an enjoyable and entertaining musical experience ( much better than instrumental only albums like tubular bells and the tortoise albums) there’s around 2:30 of bliss until this man tries to make ah sounds bringing in the fatal entrance of his villainous voice the thing is with a different vocalist all of these songs would be praised probably in the same level that bands like the Beatles and Radiohead get. Starting off the albums second half is Alifib it’s not the most interesting instrumentally ( being a bit more drab and slow) but it’s still cool the lyrics this time are to note too being hilariously dreadful but in a funny way and it’s funny though as he sounds so serious when trying to sing these words. Alfie is the part two of the song having more interesting natural sounding drums haunted synths. The lyrics are of the same quality but the singing is louder slower and deeper making him sound stupid, there’s no other nice way to say it. The chant at the end is so bad it’s hilarious. The album ends with little red robin hood hit the road it’s a shame the vocals are there from the start as a purely instrumental track could’ve saved this from a 1. It’s not exactly the worst on the generator but there’s no other possible score to give than a one. I would recommend to give it a listen but nothing else in an odd way it screams 1001 album’s you must hear before you die as it’s not necessary 1001 album’s you’ll like before you die.

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Mon Jun 26 2023

1

The notion that this is somehow enjoyable completely escapes me. I've read the Radiohead comps and that's perfect cause kid a and ok comp were also aimless pieces of shit

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Wed Jun 28 2023

1

When I saw this was prog that all the cool kids said was unlistenable garbage, I got real excited. Turns out it's just unlistenable garbage. Too bad.

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Sat Nov 27 2021

5

Очень нравится))

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Fri Dec 10 2021

5

Das ist mal wieder der Grund, warum diese Liste auch Spaß machen kann. Fast mehr Kunst als „nur“ Musik zieht Wyatt uns hinab in einen Wahnsinn, in dessen Zentrum alle Instrumente aufhören zu spielen und stattdessen anfangen zu singen. Eric Chenaux hat sicher mehr als nur eine Prise des zerstoßenen „Rock Bottoms“ in sein Gesamtwerk eingeknetet. Völlig faszinierte 4.5

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Thu Feb 03 2022

5

beautiful

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Thu Aug 11 2022

5

Strange but soothing, intoxicating, expansive, a waking dream. Like swimming underwater through an ocean of prog, free jazz, rock and Middle Eastern/Byzantine drone and melody. An incredibly beautiful album.

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Thu Sep 29 2022

5

Wow so this album is quite a journey. I'll admit during the opening strains of Sea Song I wasn't expecting to give this a very high rating but at some point it clicked what was going on. This strange proggy, folky beautiful mess of an album unfolds in front of you, constantly surprising but never sounding out of place in context of the rest of the record. Robert is a brilliant songwriter and incredibly cryptic lyricist and his delicate warbling, meandering delivery takes a while to get used to but seems to reflect exactly what he was trying to achieve. Not to mention he has recruited a hell of a team to play with him. This is the sound of a group of musicians who have got wild experimentation down to a fine art. I can see myself revisiting this many times in the future.

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Fri Oct 07 2022

5

Very lovely. Never heard this. Amusingly had a later Elvis Costello album yesterday so it's a before and after Shipbuilding here, which is fun. Absolutely love Little Red Riding Hood the first, and Alife. I'm obviously going to love this with my NEU! predilections. Drink it in. Also this has Ivor Cutler on it at the end. 5 big stars.

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Wed Jan 04 2023

5

I'm sorry Radiohead who??? This is one of the most moving, gorgeously crafted albums I've heard-- can't praise it enough! To think I might have never even heard it without this list!

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Fri Jan 13 2023

5

Rarely has solace been found when hitting rock bottom. It typically means one has approached the lowest ebb of life imaginable; a point where the point of no return has come upon them and seeks to immerse itself. That may have been the case for Robert Wyatt had he not seen the light that got him through the other side. Rock Bottom, for him, is the turning of a new leaf; a declaration of a new creative life that allows him to wander as freely as possible regardless of the physical limitations that defined his life, for better or worse. It could have been full of self-pitying misery, chock full of ruminations of a life left unrealized; instead it marked the beginning of a quest altogether new, exhilarating and thrilling.

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Fri Apr 07 2023

5

*Little Red Riding Hood Hit the Road

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Wed Jun 07 2023

5

PREFS : TOUT MOINS PREF : RIEN

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Fri Jun 09 2023

5

I listened to this back to back with “Graceland,” which was my album before this one. I found this album much more refreshing, endlessly delightful, calming, and also invigorating. I’ve listened to this album once before but the conditions under which I listened to it this time around — crafting in a sunlit room — were much more agreeable at illuminating the best of what Wyatt had to offer. Surprisingly for a psychedelic record, this one gets a 5.

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Fri Aug 04 2023

5

Bit strange

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Tue Aug 29 2023

5

This shouldn't work - Wyatt's voice is warbly, the music is crazed, and the weird Scottish poet is...well, weird. But somehow I find this album captivating. Sea Song is simply beautiful (I heard Tears for Fears' cover version before I heard the original). A Last Straw sounds like a lost early Pink Floyd song. The first Little Red Riding Hood track is insane (those trumpets, the drum beat, fantastic bass line, bizarre backwards singing). Alifib is transfixing and Alifie has an air of mystery (and man that crazy sax solo). Then the second Little Red Riding Hood - the guitars are amazing, the "can't you see them" part just blows me away - the music is so intense - and I even find the weird Ivor Cutler recitation sounds fascinating with the droning underneath. This album shouldn't work, but it does.

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Fri Sep 15 2023

5

Intense

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Thu Oct 05 2023

5

I suppose it only even comes down to taste and to be honest I find this more interesting and oddly engaging than many albums that are thrust my way for me to listen to. It's distant and whimsical and otherworldly. Art-rock yes but I find his voice really magnetic and fragile. This is a good find.

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Thu Oct 12 2023

5

I was kind of aware of Robert Wyatt because of his version of Shipbuilding, but I think I assumed he was just another folkie la-dee-dah troubadour. I really enjoyed this album though, and exploring his catalogue. I was in the sweet spot for listening to chilled soothing melodies and innovative choices of instrumentation. The story behind the able was so captivating and made me want to listen more carefully. Plus: Ivor Cutler! Anything featuring Ivor Cutler ticks my box. Robert seems to have moved in all the right circles in my mind. Ivor Cutler's children's books (yes please), born in Bristol (me too), his accident happened whilst he was in Venice with his wife who was editing Don't Look Now, which I keep meaning to watch (I think, maybe, Edgar Wright mentioned it as a great film to watch), staunch leftie during the Thatcher years (go on, my son!), working with Bjork, Brian Eno, John Peel, David Gilmour (what good taste).

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Thu Oct 12 2023

5

I always appreciate it when someone English sings with an English accent rather than the faux-American accent which most singers tend to emulate. Musically, this is superb, kaleidoscopic keyboards interweave to create a chilling, spooky atmosphere. Wyatt sings the poetic lyrics (sometimes wordless) and rich melodies in a lovely falsetto, and like a lot of "weird" music, at times it's almost childlike. Genuinely fascinating from start to finish.

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Thu Nov 02 2023

5

I am always bittersweet seeing Wyatt's name attached to a record. On one hand, I know it will be great, on the other, I am reminded of his paralysis. And nowhere does it feel more present than in this album.

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Thu Nov 02 2023

5

Contemplative, patient, tortured, and vulnerable. You can really feel the tragedy of his accident here, and him overcoming it in a headlong dive.

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Wed Nov 08 2023

5

What a beautiful piece of art.

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Fri Sep 24 2021

4

Занимательный арт-рок. Первый альбом Роберта Уайатта после несчастного случая.

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Fri Nov 19 2021

4

poetic and weird i kinda like it like if the beatles did too many drugs.

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Sun Dec 12 2021

4

While preparing to record the album, the drunken Wyatt fell from a third-floor window and was paralysed from the waist down. Nevertheless, Wyatt made Rock Bottom one of the first known rock records recorded by an artist in a wheelchair. (8/10) FT: Sea Song

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Fri Jan 21 2022

4

Really enjoyed this. It has a rhythmic bouncy folky feel for a prog rock album. So much better than angry shredding rock nonsense.

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Wed Feb 16 2022

4

Incredible story behind this album. The songs are definitely a bit eclectic, but they are relaxing and enjoyable to listen to. Very creative

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Mon Jun 13 2022

4

Unusual, but I like the songwriting. I personally would prefer the production to be less electronic, I'm not sure how well it fits the rest of the style. I knew the first song from a folk cover, its a great track although I still prefer the cover

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Thu Sep 15 2022

4

A complex work that will reward many re listens

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Thu Sep 29 2022

4

maybe his best

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Thu Sep 29 2022

4

Me rn

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Fri Sep 30 2022

4

Nice Melodiesthis album was a lot of fun… sounds like a 70s version of Radiohead

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Sun Oct 09 2022

4

Rock créatif des débuts des 1970, presque iconoclaste. L’histoire humaine derrière les textes est émouvante. Me fait penser à Patrick Watson par sa créativité.

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Sun Oct 16 2022

4

Belle surprise, je ne connaissais pas du tout cet artiste. J'ai aimé tout le côté étrange, dissonant, expérimental. Je réécouterai certainement.

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Thu Nov 24 2022

4

pretty avant garde but still enjoyable, 4stars

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Sun Nov 27 2022

4

A mediocre album bookended by two stunning songs.

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Fri Dec 09 2022

4

More enjoyable than I expected. Reminds me of John McLaughlin and the Mahavishnu Orchestra. More experimental jazzy than pop/rock. 4/5.

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Sun Mar 05 2023

4

A very unique and interesting prog rock/psych rock album from the former Soft Machine drummer. I understand that the avantgarde weirdness isn't everyone's cup of tea but I love this. My fav is the last song.

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Mon Mar 06 2023

4

Good

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Wed Mar 22 2023

4

Whoa, this is a pretty neat piece of work that I'd never heard of. Produced by Nick Mason (who does indeed give this project echoes of early Floyd), this album was recorded in a van on a farm, shortly after Wyatt experienced an accident that rendered him paraplegic. One song sounded like psychedelic jazz sung backwards and then played forwards. The next sounded like a beautiful, trippy little guitar solo played on a wide-open beach, with breaths providing the only percussion. This album, for lack of better words, sounds like it's everywhere. It's beautiful.

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Wed Mar 29 2023

4

This was pretty inscrutable but impressive

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Fri Mar 31 2023

4

I particularly enjoy the instrumental on this album

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Fri Mar 31 2023

4

I love how the album cover looks like an ancient scroll, but besides that, this was a generally good listen. I love how slightly sorrowful yet captivating each song was. Fave track(s): Sea Song, A Last Straw

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Wed Apr 12 2023

4

Very cool I like the use of orchestration, each instrument knows its role and plays it very well I think this is the one album where I'm alm.ost sad that the songs weren't a bit longer and go further in depth, but oh well. It's aj octopus from me chief 🐙

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Fri Jun 02 2023

4

Experimental, weird and chaotic in the best way.

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Thu Jun 15 2023

4

First listen left me cold. Had no patience for experimental, sonically challenging music with a singer who seem to be improvising. It seemed rather ridiculous at first. But the lines between madness, genious and tounge in cheek nonsense are thin here. I gave it another shot in the evening, and then another. And this cacophony of madness really grew on me. It certainly isn’t something I will listen to often, and it’s not suited for regular playlists. But when in the mood for exploring more difficult sonic landscapes Rock Bottom really does the trick.

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Wed Jun 28 2023

4

It starts brilliantly - Sea Song is amazing. It never quite hits those peaks again, as it's often tempted into a noodly jam place, but it is almost all really great. Haunted, bruised, but open hearted and warm.

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Thu Jul 13 2023

4

i really liked this album! it was pretty "out there" and musically experimental compared to others on this list. the first three tracks were great, and the backstory of Robert Wyatt's life at the time adds another dimension to this work. this felt like a crossover between radiohead and the replacements (minus the super creepy/unnerving vibes). favorites: sea song, a last straw, little red riding hood hit the road

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