Reviews (page 6 of 7)
Nothing stood out
starts promising but it turns out to be just another r'n'b album
2.5
Not my typa music
Man I really don't like this type of music. Some of the songs were interesting enough. Lyrics were a weird mix of explicit and vague, often back to back. Don't get me wrong, slap this on low in the background when you're trying to do the damn thing. But I didn't really need to listen to this.
It's almost impressive how the music industry has refined modern r&b. Every song, album and artist are pretty much indistinguishable from each other.
it definitely started off strong and I was vibing with the beat, and then it just kinda got mid. It had potential and I was definitely enjoying however the lyrics and a lot of it just sounded bleh.
I think artists sometimes get tunnel blindness in studios, when everything sounds great over the speakers, and they're laying down vocals and playing around with the bleeps and bloops and that goes on for months and they're sure it's a masterpiece, and they've just lost sight of the fact that they're making a really dull album.
Just not my jam.
Just didn’t grab me. Very ambiance and it was okay but I couldn’t get into it.
2.4 - Just didn't do anything for me to be honest. Not much substance
As heard in: Aeropostale, American Eagle and anywhere teens and their parents shop together.
Another “I don’t get it album”. With all the mighty giants in this list and somehow this album makes it on there to? I will say, it wasn’t unbearable, not even close. It was just blah though. Every song sounds the same. The vocals are good. I sort of wish that Kelley got the Lauryn Hill treatment instead of Lauryn Hill because well, she’s a bitch. Anywho This is bland, blah, boring. Not terrible but not a top album of all time
This is music you can play in the background because it doesn’t sound very interesting or harsh. It’s not bad but just nothing special.
too atmospheric, listend on commute - probably not my jam. Bit FKA twigsy?
This album is not for me... I have never really cared for R&B, it is just too slow and lacks anything that makes me excited about music. The production and singing here is fine (the autotune or whatever vocal effect is a little too much though), but overall everything just seems really boring to me. All the songs feel too long as well which makes the album feel bloated. I was completely zoned out and ready for this to end around track 7. Not a bad album, and I understand why someone would like this, but this did nothing for me. Mid 2.
Je sais pas si c'est moi ou si j'ai pogné une grappe d'album qui m'allume pas depuis deux semaines, dans tout les cas c'est surtout pas Kelela qui va casser le streak
Didn't move the needle for me. She has a decent voice but this is typical R&B material of let's have sex, oh we're fighting now, baby please come back stuff that's so typical. Sigh.
R and B - can't even judge. This genere has its stereotype sound
I wanst realy on the vibe for this RnB when I listened to it, nothing stood out I guess
Frontline LMK
This album came with a ton of hype from critics and publications like Pitchfork, but I think it was more praised for the idea of what it was supposed to be and the fact that it was released on Warp Records than for the actual music. I get the cool concept and the appeal of being on Warp, but when you strip all that away, the album is mostly just boring. Some of the production had its moments, but it wasn’t as innovative or futuristic as it aimed to be. Plus, her vocals didn’t do it for me. The tracks with strong production would have been better without her, and honestly, the whole album might’ve been better without her vocals altogether.
This album is….fine. For the life of me I can’t figure out why it’s on this list, there doesn’t seem to be anything remarkable or innovative about it at all.
I perhaps listened to this at the wrong time, but there was a lot of ballads and that's not normally my thing. Often why I struggle with modern R&B albums. (21 known/39 new)
Pleasant background music. Otherwise generic.
Run of the mill r&b.
It was okay, but not my fave. 2 stars
This was so insanely boring to me. I'll admit that R&B is almost never my thing, but on top of that, the lyrics were mind-numbing. I get tired of listening to people speak the words she is singing; adding music doesn't magically make the words interesting.
If I was just sweet 16, putting my makeup on and playing some cool tunes in the background I'd probably enjoy this. Alas, I'm just a middle aged dude putting my makeup on, hence I enjoyed it less. To be fair, it's ok for what it is, it's just, well stereotypically predictable.
You can see that a lot of time was spent on the production of this album, so a bonus star for that
Not my jam
Muzak for cool shops and bars that make me feel old. Not offensive but not for me, leave it for the kids
This is a good example of the modern R&B sound. Singer has a nice voice; songs sound good. Not sure why it’s an album i needed to listen to before i died, but now I have.
Fine background music I guess. Some cool production. Is this really a top 50 album of the 2010s (there are 44 from that decade on the list right now)? Not even close.
Never heard of her. It's pretty enough, but I have no clue why it would end up on a list.
2.5, good rnb album. Not my thang
I had never heard of Kelela before. She is a great singer for modern R&B. I appreciated the ethereal vibe of her music which blended with her silky voice. I appreciate too that she sounds different from the other pop princesses out there like Arianna, Demi and Selena Gomez. Key songs were LMK and the opener Frontline. Unfortunately her music was so smooth that I started zoning after a while. It is a good album, just not my personal preference.
Eh, whatever. Not the fusion of genres and elevation I was hoping for; fairly straight-forward. A couple of te songs were catchy enough (blue light and onanon) but nothing show-stopping. 1.5/5 stars.
Happy to have the odd one of these in my playlist now and again.
Honestly surprised this album is one of the 1001 albums to hear before you die. I thought it was fine, but pretty generic R&B that could have been replicated by any genre release of the last 20 years. Didn't really connect with it, but a fine enough listen. Very musically challenging in some spots, and not in a good way. Top tracks: Waitin, LMK
It was a'ight. Great production. The lyrics didn't really stand out to me. I'm not big on the whole "production by committee" thing. If it had been more of a focused individual effort, I would be evaluating it completely differently.
Just generic r&b
Once again 'it's ok' but nothing special. I quite like it but there were no sounds or themes above a million other artists or albums in this genre.
I kept waiting for the special sauce on this album, seeing as how it was included on this list, but it never fully separated itself form the majority of mid 2010s R&B records.
Really didn’t do anything for me. Not my usual style. When I get these I try to really critically listen to see if I can grab onto the music, the lyrics or the flow. Possibly if I knew more about the history of this style I might see why this was included on the list. But as is it sounded just like a lot of other stuff.
Good voice but seemed very overproduced
Repetitive and kind of boring. Her voice is pretty though
boring 2/5
2.5
Very smooth. Maybe too smooth. It reminds me of the thousands of bottles of babyoil from Diddy.
Ver buiten mijn comfortzone qua muziek, dus niet direct iets wat ik zelf zou opzetten, maar bon, daarom zijn we hier he. Heb ik het uitgeluisterd: ja Heb ik nummers geskipt: ja Heb ik nummers opgeslagen: neen Dit moest er dus niet op, imo. Er zijn andere R&B albums die ik hierop zou zetten. 2.1
2.5 Nice enough, didn’t hate myself while listening to this. A couple good songs and she has a pleasant voice. Just not sure what was special enough about this album to necessitate inclusion on this list.
There are some interesting production choices on here, particularly on "Blue Light" and "Onanon", but ultimately this is a genre I just don't like very much and the close to an hour runtime is too much for me here. 2.5 stars
mega mega nöd miis, sie singt super d produktion isch oft seeehr kreativ aber d songs sind würklich nüt bsunders. altadena hani am beste gfunde worschinli. chan nöd es 1 geh weg dem song glaub aber es isch würklich nöd es album wo mues uf dere liste sii. kartoffelsalat.
hmm find d atmosphäre wo bi frontline ufbaut wird rig cool, aber de refrain isch iwie unbefriedigend? und die pop-layers bide vocals hani iwie nöd soo gern die "aaah's erinneret mich mega ad ariana grande hahaha wieder find de bsat eig no cool und so lowkey, doch leider isch wieder de refrain zu lowkey? jo das zieht sich sochli durre, iwie schono spannendi muskalischi sphärene wo gschaffe werdet aber halt würkli packe tuts mi nöd und jo die art vo singe stresstmi amigs recht leider POAAAH DA FEHLT DOCH EIFACH CHLI DE OOMPF AAAAA truth or dare hani echt langwilig gfunde jooo es isch z lang finds leider echt recht langwilig das doch einigi lieder 4:30 oder länger sind, het für mich bis jz au wenig sinn gmacht, iwie wird nüt speziell gaddet dur das? bö ja herts 2 sicher keis 1, ich verstah scho au de reiz aber mier hets leider eecht wenig geh
Boring.
Songs i knew: 0 Songs i liked: 0 Didnt like any of these songs, also didn't dislike any. Just a bit of a nothing album, another inoffensive one that I'm failing to see how it made the list. Low 2.
Nicht so mein Stil. Hat mich auch während dem Hören leider nie irgendwie gepackt. Aber grundsätzlich sicher solid in dem, was es sein soll.
Not unpleasant but I failed to engage; instant background music. Insufficient variation between the tracks to interest me. I'm going to give it 2/5.
Didn't do much for me. Sits a bit closer to R&B than electronic than I'd like.
Eu gostei geral, mas nenhuma música se destacou para mim. Mas pretendo ouvir futuramente de novo.
Don't know exactly why this is here. Sounds like I have just played a default Spotify playlist. Nothing worthy of remark.
Smooth
I don’t even remember listening to this and it was yesterday. 2 stars because it wasn’t annoying, just boring.
The production was good on a few tracks but the album was way too long and not very memorable otherwise. I'm really starting to doubt the quality of anything on this list that was released after 2010
Just not for me.
It’s meh club music. Pass.
Lots of songs. But nothing really remarkable to me. For a soul record it didn’t seem to be to have a lot of soul.
Not music that I enjoy.
Lush and expansive electronic soundscapes serving as a backdrop for a leftfield R'n'B singer who is obviously skilled on a technical standpoint, yet also often devoid of any striking personality on an artistic one, quite unfortunately. Most of those gentle vocal lines are sensual for sure, but they are also so *generic*, for Pete's sake! "Critics" who went out of their way to compare Kelela to Björk are just tone-deaf, plain and simple! Sure, Kelela shares with the Icelandic arty diva a knack for collaborations with gifted contributors (Arca, Ariel Reichstadt...), along with a love for futuristic moods. But most of the time, she just can't pull off something truly memorable, contrary to FKA twigs in a very close genre. And if, instead of electronica, you take R'n'B as a reference point, let's say that I'd rather go to Beyoncé's whole discography instead of wasting too much time on this record. At least I would find way more highlights there. A lot of those songs just pass you by without leaving much of an impression or even have the time to build up to something conclusive. Interestingly, if you take out Kelela's vocal lines out of the picture in at least one half of those songs, you can even suspect that the music would actually sound better overall. There is something a little ridiculous in seeing Warp Records so desperate to become relevant for a new generation of listeners and yet partly failing at it. Just see those streaming numbers -- they reveal there is indeed a relatively niche audience for this artist, yet those numbers are probably not up to the level of popularity they had hoped for in the first place. Good for Kelela that she found a home to express herself artistically, and that she can make a living out of it. Yet if the future of Warp Records is to aim at soundtracks for H&M changing booths -- and actually only manage to have one song or two played there once in a while -- I can't help feeling it's a sad outcome for the historical electronica label. All considerations about the future of Warp records aside, I really tried to open my mind to what the record had to offer. As its first half played, I noticed that the impressive chord modulations at the end of the title track were nicely done, that the moody and twirling sci-fi cut "Enough" was a clear standout track thanks to Arca's daring producing chops, and that "LMK" has a nice bounce to it, explaining why it was chosen as a single. Once again, please note that Kelela's input is absolutely not decisive to make those tracks work. Her input becomes much more pivotal during the last leg of the album, though, thank the heavens! Her vocal performance acquires an intensity not witnessed up to that point on "Onanon", it's nicely attuned to the strings-enhanced twists and turns of "Turn To Dust", and it finally finds out how to create a sweet and memorable vocal hook and catchphrase at the *literal* last minute on closer "Altadena". It's too little and too late, but at least, it saves this album from a 1/5 grade for the purposes of this list. Better than nothing, I guess. 🤷 2/5 for the purposes of this list of essential albums. 7/10 for more general purposes (5 + 2) Number of albums left to review: 50 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 409 Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 238 Albums from the list I won't include in mine: 304 (including this one) As a reference point, here's my list of favourite albums for 2017, to me *all better* than *Take Me Apart*: Big Thief - Capacity Idles - Brutalism Protomartyr - Relatives In Descent Kendrick Lamar - Damn. King Krule - The Ooz Slowdive - Slowdive Aldous Harding - Party King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard - Polygondwanaland St Vincent - Masseduction Tyler The Creator - Flower Boy Pissed Jeans - Why Love Now King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard - Flying Microtonal Banana Mount Kimbie - Love What Survives Björk - Utopia OMNI - Multi-Task Broken Social Scene - Hug Of Thunder Godspeed You! Black Emperor - Luciferian Towers Thurston Moore - Rock'n Roll Consciousness Fleet Foxes - The Crack-Up Thee Oh Sees - Orc Metro Boomin / 21 Savage / Offset - Without Warning The Psychotic Monks - Silence Slowly And Madly Shines Chad VanGaalen - Light Information Lana Del Rey - Lust For Life Lorde - Melodrama Mogwai - Every Country's Sun Do Make Say Think - Stubborn Persistent Illusions Kamasi Washington - Harmony of Difference Mount Eerie - A Crow Looked At Me (Sandy) Alex G - Rocket Cloud Nothings - Life Without Sound Grizzly Bear - Painted Ruins Wolf Alice - Visions Of A Life LCD Soundsystem - American Dream William Basinski - A Shadow In Time Charli XCX - Pop 2 The xx - I See You Converge - The Dusk In Us Pile - A Hairshirt Of Purpose Jay Z - 4:44
Not my genre. Couldn‘t find my personal „something“ in it
One or two ideas stretched to its limit on a single album. It's almost impossible to distinguish one song from another. 2*
Very generic not my jàm
Super generic. Autotune is an automatic -1 for me. Outside of autotune, the album is not bad, but not memorable. Tracks that caught my ear in a good way: Frontline (had me hoping for a good album, but then it turned pretty generic), Better, LMK (decent, but again pretty generic). Track that caught my ear in a bad way: Blue Light - autotune must die. Next.
# Album Name: Take me apart # Artist: Kelela # Rating: 2/5 # Comments: I've never heard of the artist so was wondering what this would be like. The last 10 or so years of music hasnt been the best so i thought i would give it a chance before writing it off. I like the electronic feel of the album. But the sounds are so generic. It feels like its all done at home on your mac. There wasnt any standout tracks. These could easily be background noise in your local H&M store. The album doesnt bring anything new to the table imo - unless its due to the mix of electronic and hip hop?! I honestly cant see why this is on the list. Rating this was very tough. I didnt hate it. Definitely didnt like it. was it ok? At a strong push maybe. Overall id say underwhelming and forgettable, a 1.5-2 would be a fair rating for me. # Top Tunes: None. # Would I listen to it again? Nope.
*before listening* : oh, interesting. This is from 2017 and I hadn't heard of it or the artist *after listening* : oh, that's why.
# 317 : I don't love it, I don't hate it, Every track sounds exactly like the track before it. It's not bad, exactly. It's just like ... I already heard that. I don't need to hear it again, thank you.
girl 🤦♀️
Surface, shiny surface from someone really talented, which is more of a shame.
Look, this artist is totally new to me. Nice voice. The music is okay. The problem is she never gets out of first gear. So, subsequently, I got pretty bored waiting for something startling to happen. I played it through again. Nice background music, but nothing that I found at all thrilling.
The production is smooth but one song blends into the next. Boring to get through.
Pretty good chilled out music. I have never heard of her before today, not sure I would go out of my way to listen again but not bad. Probably good for background music while working or something like that.
Take Me Apart is massively overproduced, which detracts from Kelela's voice, and that's a poor decision. The whole thing is a bit too whimsical and dreamy to really grab me, it's a dull 2.
Yeah, this is underwhelming. There's too much synth and tuning, the vocals aren't forward in the production in the way they should be when you've got a voice this good, and the end result is a bit drab, there's nothing to grip on to and it doesn't work together to make anything more than pleasant enough music to have half an ear on. 2/5.
This album came with a ton of hype from critics and publications like Pitchfork, but I think it was more praised for the idea of what it was supposed to be and the fact that it was released on Warp Records than for the actual music. I get the cool concept and the appeal of being on Warp, but when you strip all that away, the album is mostly just boring. Some of the production had its moments, but it wasn’t as innovative or futuristic as it aimed to be. Plus, her vocals didn’t do it for me. The tracks with strong production would have been better without her, and honestly, the whole album might’ve been better without her vocals altogether.
uma vibe meio música de elevador, não é ruim, mas chama pouco a minha atenção de uma forma geral.
Barely gets out of 1 star territory. Just barely.
Add this to the never heard of this album / artist list. Talented enough to get an album deal. Good for her.
wasn't terrible but just not my style.
good voice, bad everything else
love her voice. probably wouldn’t listen again though
But blagh
Bland but inoffensive
Overall, I didn't find this very interesting nor reason to revisit. Singer does have a nice voice though.
Threw this on while making dinner. Early on I was down with what I was hearing. Unfortunately by the 5th song everything started to sound the same. I felt like I was hearing a the same song over and over. By the end of the album it was hard to care about it at all. I would have taken Kelela for a couple singles but I didn't need anywhere near an hour of this. Not sure this needs to be on the list for any reason. 1.85 stars
Someone has a case of the samesies.
This one does not need to be on the 1001 album list. The production is good but not mind-blowing for being from 2017. I tried to actively listen to the songs but it quickly dissolved to background ambiance. Her singing style is soothing and it's nearly impossible to focus on any lyrical content
noh olen alkanut hyväksymään tätä 2016 jälkeistä poppi r&b kuiskutusta joka kuulemma tarkoittaa hyvää laulamista?? noh ok... sielutonta ok artifisiaali intelligenssi kopioi tyyliä erittäin helposti on merkki siitä kuinka omalaatuista on heh... joka toisessa biisissä on jotain kiinnostavaa, lisä bassoa, lisäääbassoa!! onko vaikiata??? bassia lisään... eikä mitään fl studio add bass, vaan otetaan se kontrabasso niihin sieviin kätösiin ja näpytellään, ja sitten mööpelillä nostetaan napeilla 300% volyymi siihen... ei ole niin vaikeaa?? noh ihan hyvä albumi mutta unohtavahantata se on, en muista nytkään... mitää--- missä olen?? mitä vittua??? KUKA VITTU SÄ OLET???????? MITÄ,,, MITÄ VITTUA TAPAHTUU;,, SELITTÄKKÄÄ VÄLITTÖMÄSTI... take me apart
I'm vaugley familiar with her work. It's never really interested that much.
It's deep, it's dark, it's complicated, it's... over-produced. Kelela is listed as "Executive Produce" on the album, but is not referenced anywhere else findable at this time as a producer. Wikipedia lists her as a Singer. Every song on the album has an average of two additional writers and two separate producers and in such, takes away any sense of honesty in the album. As a whole, I'm interested to listen again. Whether to hear more of the lyrics or try to experience the more of the overall feeling that Kelela and company put forward, A big step for R&B towards the future, but loses some of what makes R&B great as a genre
She is no Janelle Monae....this was overly produced and very very OK at best. Nothing memorable.
Nothing to love Nothing to hate Nothing memorable at all
Production is stunning, her voice is beautiful, but the songs have no life in them. Feels like every one was just written to "be a hit," when really none of them are. I don't believe the songwriting, and I didn't need to listen to this.
Not my kind of thing so perhaps I'm not qualified to comment, but this seemed technically accomplished but joyless
I respect the fact that this is a genre, like with hip-hop and rap, that I just have no connection with or deeper understanding of. R&B has never been at the top of my list in terms of genres, and while I know of its impact on the people that care about it, it has never been my thing. That said, I can understand why this album is here. Kelela is an artist with a vision and that sound and vision are portrayed on this album well. And the production is absolutely top notch. But I’ll admit that, after a while, the songs kind of started to overlap in my head. I couldn’t tell one from the next, and that isn’t because they sometimes transition seamlessly from one to the next. It’s because the mood and tone are so consistent, perhaps too consistent. I’m not out here reviewing this as an expert music critic or a purveyor of R&B. Far from either. But I just didn’t connect with this hardly at all. Doesn’t mean it’s bad, just means it wasn’t made for me. And that’s fine. I give this 2 stars to represent my feeling of disconnectedness, not as a comment on the music itself. Standout tracks: Frontline, Take Me Apart, Jupiter, Better, Altadena
It started out with a good groove and then turned tiresome by the end. She has potential but needs stronger songwriting.
What’s with the random electronic music? It sounds like a jam is playing in the background while she is singing a different song. Kelela has a cool voice but it drones on much too long with little change in inflection. I didn’t get this one.
Didn't really care for most of it. Liked Frontline.
I didn't enjoy this album. All of the songs on the album have a very similar cadence, and each song just seems to be. No emotion, there's no tension and release in any of the songs. She has a great voice, but this music comp wasn't for me. 2/5.
Got about halfway thru. Not my thing.
It was fine. Not sure why it's on the list tho
Some interesting grooves and sounds but not enough. Clean up your language honey!
Interesting sounds but not many tunes
No me gustó mucho
I don't feel the love at all. Nondescript rnb...with a tight production but meh.
I thought this was a new album to me but apparently I have listened to it before. Kelela’s clearly immensely talented but this style of slow-jam R&B unfortunately doesn’t appeal to me much. It’s pleasant while I’m listening but doesn’t make enough of an impression that I retain much of it after listening. I do remember liking her 2023 album Raven slightly better.
Kinda boring 2
Solid voice but the music didn’t really grab me.
Might be brilliant in its type of music, but never could stand this too slick music without any spice.
Not for me, kind of nothing music. 3/10
"LMK" and "Frontline" were OK, but the rest didn't hold my attention too well. The sound reminded me of some of The Weeknd's mixtapes, but the album turned to be more recent than that...
This is the music you hear in a clothing store that caters to teen girls with vanilla style. Boring with a side of meh. Quite a nice voice but dreary songs.
This is bullshit. It's not terrible, but it is utterly forgetable.
Inoffensive background or bedroom music. Nothing piqued my interest. One star for an album an you should listen to in your life, but compared to some absolute turds on this list I give it two stars
Slick. Too slick for me.
Stam
Meh.
Pretty voice
The production and overall sound is great, but it wears thin after even one song, making for a very boring album.
Deeply uninteresting
Good voice but the album just goes nowhere, if you like one track you'll like them all as there is a total lack of variation. It's a 3 star for her voice but 1 for the material.
This type of vocal centric smooth R&B is definitely not my typical genre. This album was decent background music, but didn't feel super original or interesting or groundbreaking. Very soulful.
Das kann ich nur bestätigen: Experimental enough to not be totally mainstream, but mainstream enough not to alienate people who might usually be put off by experimental music - the Radiohead paradox.
Pretty voice against some basic synths. Boring.
this really isn’t for me, but she does have a nice soothing voice.
This is exactly what would be playing in a chic women's clothing store while my wife shops for leggings. This is probably a good album if you like R&B Electronica fusion which, I don't.
Yawn. This sounds like every other song/album being made right now. Not my thing. Next!
Ejj... Det lyder godtnok ens.. Albummet har været en meget opdelt omgang for mig, men det var følelsen af at høre det sammen igen.
Lækker stemme men den fanger mig ikke ind - nogle små glimt af noget der kunne lugte af trip-hop. Dog uden kant og noget til at drage min interesse mod det. Jeg har svært ved at høre hvordan det adskiller sig fra alt det RnB der er kommet ud i metermål de sidste 30-40 år. Kedeligt og endte som noget det bare kørte i baggrunden.
It’s the same variation of a song again and again
Great sound, but it is like listening to a Janet Jackson album but then without any catchy songs.
Apart from a good sound there is not much to enjoy about this album.
Altedena was a refreshing track, the rest just isnt for me?
something i don't need
The overbearing production can't hide the mediocre, forgettable songs. 2/5
Didn’t like it
Eh kinda bland
Not really my thing. Kelela’s voice is beautiful. The music is only interesting a couple of times. Otherwise it’s just repetitive drum loops and I get bored. 2.5/5
A solid 2 mainly because of her voice. She can sing beautifully and the production elevates her vocal, the music plays second fiddle to her. I can’t imagine any situation where I’d play this album again, as it’s just not my thing, but I completely respect her talent. Just wish she’d sing something I’d like 🤣
Never heard of Kalela. Electronica R&B? It was 'alright', nothing particularly special. The standout track was 'LMK', it looks like she and her label must have thought that too. I'm sure with repeated plays and a careful study of the lyrics, it will bring out the subtleties of this record, and then one would appreciate its inclusion to the 1001 albums. However, I won't doing either any time soon. It gets a low 2.
Ikke lige mig.
Meh. Solid 2, not for me
She has a nice voice. Lyrics were a bit much and trashy. Most songs sound the same and very repetitive words in songs.
after you've heard the first few tracks, there's no real need to hear the rest. but you will hear them again & again since all the tracks sound the same. she gets a 2 star just because she has a decent voice.
Otho would like it, but not for me lol
OK. More on the R&B side than electronic
Not really a fan of this one. The beat choices are somewhat confusing and not at all a smooth listen.
"moderni" r&b ei toimi, ainakaan Kelelan versiona. Oli aika järkkyä kamaa..
Tosi basic. Kriitikot näköjään tietää paremmin, mut sen perusteella ei multa heru pisteitä
A recent album that Iv never actually heard of. Probably just isn’t my type of music but this really did nothing for me. Not sure why it’s on the list, I’d bet it’s removed in future versions of the book.
Nope. Not my thing.
Pleasant enough to listen to, but utterly unmemorable.
2/5 didn't really stick.
Decent voice. Not particularly my vibe but not terrible to listen to in the background. The album did seem to go on forever though because each song was extremely similar to the last. Well mixed though as the drums didn't overwhelm the songs too much.
ANOTHER electronica album? WTH! The author of this book is determined to make electronica happen in my life. : ( This was just more of the same with a different flavor, this time soul/R&B. It was a musically bland, empty, overly long, BORING slog where everything sounded the same. No thank you to this album or any more electronica.
This is an album I guess.
Altså da instrumentale e litt kult innimellom, men fortsatt kjedelig af
Who? Why? A little bit Sugababes A little bit TLC A little bit Eternal A little bit derivative A whole lot of dull I think I’ve had Enough right now
Vanilla/sterile/color by numbers Uninteresting
R&B isn’t my usual listening. Saying that, this album sounds like something I’ve heard a million times before with more polished production, probably due to the recent release date.
Kind of a mix between Bjork and black female soul. Definitely more interesting and "progressive", for lack of a better word, than most soul and R&B I hear. The actual music itself was unique. But that being said, it just wasn't for me. Something about the vocals just absolutely is not my style. The sounds were mildly interesting, but the music did not move me.
This sounds like the score to every late-night HBO movie. Her voice is fine, the music is fine. It's just fine.
Sounds like boring Grimes. It's fine I guess. Don't really know why it's on this list.
I really dig the beats. Her vocal style is unique and interesting at times, but also ever-present, and too much at some point. Lyrics seem boring and cliché, or perhaps just unrelatable to me. The percentage of female R&B music focused on relationship problems that I enjoy is negligible. Maybe just 10% of this album and a little Alicia Keys. 2.257
Enjoyable modern RnB album. It suffers from the same issue that a lot of the recent additions to this list do - I just don't think there's been enough time to really codify this into the music canon. Time will tell.
Eigenlijk best aardig, maar moet het wat vaker horen om die 3e ster af te kunnen stoffen.
Nope, gewoon niet mijn ding.
2 - Was hoping to like this, but this wasn't anything special. It was way too slow for me and it felt like nothing was happening.
What I’m finding with the more modern picks is how cynical I’ve become towards music released in my lifetime. There are some interesting moments here and there on this LP, but it is so painfully obvious what has been put in with an eye for radio play and charting. There’s been a steady homogenization of popular music (indie included), and it’s just sad to see music as a product rather than an expressive art form. The year this released so many other kickass albums dropped that challenged what music could be and broke the mold - is this the best representative album we’ve got?
I just don’t like modern R&B very much. I’m not even sure just what it is, maybe the way the production swivels and the vocals slowness of the vocals. I think I will probably struggle to rate R&B albums fairly, but I’ll try. It’s music that feels sexy, but I don’t know how to listen to it when I’m just existing unsexily, which is my natural state. I don’t really feel like she’s saying anything interesting or original with these songs, even if it’s very competently performed and produced. I feel like it’s unfair to give it 2/5 given my own struggles with this genre, but I can’t rank it with some albums I actually like that I gave a 3 to.
R&B with an electronic twist. It's different, but the tracks began to sound a bit samey.
A decent and chill record that is just a bit forgettable. Onanon is a bop but too late in the tracklist to make much of an impact. Was very surprised to see Arca credited on a few tracks as the production is pretty restrained and safe throughout compared to her far more out-there and interesting work
not my jam but high quality
I think she has a great voice. I think the album started really well but for me and only me it is not my thing. For others I think it is a great variation of a theme that has saturated the market.
Um. Nope.
2.4 - seems to think that electronica is innovative. mixing it with basic rnb doesn't enhance either. Some interesting passages rather than songs throughout managed to keep my attention but by the time it starts going heavy with the autotune it's like every other generic modern rnb but with a bit of electronica thrown in.
I really enjoyed the subtle start to this album. I'm not the biggest fan of R&B but this album had a nice chill vibe about it, was just ok to listen too. No songs really stood out though, just felt like one big song as all the songs have the same sound to them. I did get a little bored towards the end of the album, when all the songs sound the same there's only so much you can listen to.
Wasn't the biggest fan of this album. It's okay, but I definitely don't like the R&B as much
It was fine but not my thing. Loses the 3rd star because I checked to see how much was left.
This felt very poppy and generic. Fine for what it is I guess but not sure why it's on this list.
This is the perfect definition of "not for me." I couldn't get far enough to see if there was any variation here and I'm not even sorry about it.
Over long, over produced.
ambient slow soul(?). Sounds nice. Well produced. Nothing really memorable.
Having never heard of Kelela, I went to old trusty Wikipedia to see if there was anything I should know about this album. It seems that the critics were absolutely frothing about this when it came out for being such a genre melder. Let’s listen and find out! Songs I already knew: none Favourites: Take Me Apart This is admittedly a genre that’s never really clicked for me, but I really don’t understand the fuss with this. To my ears, there wasn’t anything remarkably different to other R&B music that I’ve heard over the years. I don’t have a wealth of music to compare it to, but this certainly didn’t wow me. I will say though that it amused me to know end that the opening track is called Frontline - in the UK (and maybe other places) this is the name of a product that kills fleas.
I felt like I was listening to an ad the whole entire time. One long ad.
This album is fine, but I'm not sure if I see why it's one of the 1001 albums. It sounds pretty and all, but doesn't really have much else going for it. The album feels overly long and almost all the songs are boring and too long (apart from a couple of weird short ones, which were still boring). Kelela, who I'd never heard of before, has a nice soulful voice, but really poor enunciation. I couldn't understand what on Earth she is saying most of the time. I guess it's on the list because of the "experimental" production that wasn't even that original really. The last track took me completely by surprise, though. I was sitting there bored, tired and looking forward to finishing the album and going to bed, and then, suddenly, I'm hit over the head with these lyrics: Nothing to be sad about It's not just me, it's everyone Let me remind you, let me remind you Nothing to be sad about There's a place for everyone Let me remind you, let me remind you This was so exactly what I needed to hear that I got all choked up. I was almost in tears until, at the last chorus (after she's already sung the chorus a LOT), I suddenly realise that the lyric is actually "nothing to be said or done." I was getting all emotional over a misheard lyric. That realisation was quite a letdown. The actual lyric doesn't even make much sense. Oh well, it's still a decent song and the only song on this album I even slightly care about. Favourite track: Altadena
Another time, Kelela. Another time.
Meh. 2.5/5
2 This sucks
Not really my type of music, but was listenable.
I don’t really know when this album should be played to get the most out of it. It didn’t speak to me other than saying “next”.
Barely noticed it was on. Pleasant but a bit background. Would've been nice in a restaurant where you can take your time.
Being brutally honest... I got bored... I appreciate the effort, I hear the effort, but I don't hear the sounds, that could be treated like a groundbreaking/music-changing.
Beyoncé but without character.
Not bad - but why is this here? There are hundreds of identikit female R&B albums over the years, this is just one more of the same
Never heard of this artist . Reminds me a little of FKA twigs, but not sure this album is on this list vs other artists who released work at the same time which is arguably better . Not bad but not significant
Honestly seemed fairly generic, could have been Sza or FKA twigs
More studio production and smooth sounds than heart and soul.
Great voice and music, just not my kinda sound.
An occasional dose of this won’t hurt
Kan nog nämna 1001 bättre plattor än den här.
Quite recent r&b album, released 6 years ago. What's the point of putting it on the list of greatest albums of all time? Not a style I like, vocal by Kelela is not my favourite as well. I think its a well made record, very solid concept visible throughout the tracks, but the atmosphere on it wasn't something I enjoy. Well, good effort, but lack of reception on my part.
Vähän tämmöinen dreamy kyllä, mutta laulusta en oikein pidä, liian kiemurtelevaa. Mutta ei tää ihan huono ole. Tylsähkö.
En oo r&b:n suuri diggari yleisestikään, mutta eipä tämä kuulostanut mun korvaan mitenkään super erikoiselta. Aika konevoittoista kamaa on mutta jää minulle hieman etäiseksi. 2/5
Very chill, but nothing really stood out to me.
Some interesting bits of production here and there aside, this really didn't do it for me - far too R&B for my tastes.
She has a lovely voice, but this style isn't my bag. I feel like it's overproduced and there are too many things that feel like asides that make it hard to get into the theme of the music.
No, not really
lindo pero zzz
honestly it’s just mid modern r&b. the singing is good, but most the songs sound the same n it gets boring. frontline is a certified banger but album gets worse as you go on
Highlights: "Enough" The album is very much piggybacking FKA Twigs and Badu via Little Dragon without developing or contributing much. She Drakifies these influences so they can be purposed for MoMA catwalks and CW breakup montages. The heavy reverb and 808s are selling these extremely weak and repetitive melodies that cling to the roots. It's all overture, moody impressions you immediately forget everything about the second they're over. This music is designed as window dressing for *something else*.
Cool sound, interesting timbres and textures, but her voice really is the same every single song and I felt like I got no respite from her voice.
R&B, with some little electronic influences. Nice voice, but overall a bit slow and broody
Meh
generic pop
This is good. But I have a lot of trouble listening to (and understanding) R&B.
nykyisin kaikenlaisia härpäkkeitä... myös... arkeaologia.. saataisko 1920-1910 luvuilta.. myös... albumeja,,,, AIVAN VARMASTI SAAATAISIIN...jos kaivauksissa käytäisiin,,,, jos nöyryyyttä vois osoittaa... ei ei ei ei ei ei ei ei ei ei.. omaa paskaansa näytettävä.... AINUT KUNNON KIRJA... classic book... julkastu hieman aikaisemmin.. kuin... heh... tämä albumi..... Siinä ero... Suutaan soitattava nainen huudahtelee.. kaikenlaisia kiekuroita...kiekaisenmpa minäkin sumuisessa aamusäässä.. pönttöön.... yön paskat.... heh.... kiek-kuok... narskuu... narskuu.. kun ei täällä ÖLJYÄ juoda.... kaupungissa vaseliini perseet ja muut........ Kun tältä artistilta biisejä kuuntelee.. background musiikkina nannaa... Albumina eräs paskimmista kokemuksista... Paskimmatko biisit valittu tähän luetteloon.. hengästystaukoa kun äänestä ei saa.. Spotifyn kun antaa soittaa artistin biisejä... 4 tähden kokemus.. vaikka kuinka luotaantyöntävä R%B with modern twist onkaan. Ehkä ongelma on kuuntelutilanne.. EI SOVI YHTÄÄN TYÖNTEKOON TÄMÄ MUSIIKKI... "This is not a breakup.. this is a brakedown.."
Good sounding record, but did not like it
Alku on oikein hyvä, sitten menee vain hitaaksi r'n'b-tunnelmoinniksi. Mutta ei huono, vain aika tylsä.
Miedosti kokeilevaa tunnelmointia, josta suuri osa skipattavaa, vaikkakaan ei kaikki. Alku lupaili enemmän.
Probably a decent album to have sex to. But that's a really specific context, and I'm not going to go through the effort to make sure.
Not favourite kind of music
Inoffensive laid back r&b that instantly fades into the background and does it's best to stay there. Production is solid, but Kelela's vocals are on the bland side.
Lyrical portion is pretty boring. Really good production. Pretty average modern r&b album.
Started well, but wasn't for me ultimately.
Lovely voice and the first song is pleasant enough, but all the songs blend together after awhile
didn't do too much for me, but is pleasant and gentle, about the R and B sound more than the lyrics for me
Bit dull
Most of these newer albums will not stand the test of time. Yes, it might be good, and popular. Is it good enough to be on an enduring list like this? Probably not. Just like all the other albums that have made appearances and left the 1001 list...this one will follow. There is nothing special here.
Not good
It's much better than I would have thought. Nothing really hooked me in per se, it's fine just not my thing.
This is not for me. I don't like slow R&B, just not something I'll ever choose to listen to, and this one didn't change my mind about it. I didn't feel the need to turn it off, just bored, mostly.
Altså da instrumentale e litt kult innimellom, men fortsatt kjedelig af
Boring RnB with some swear words.
I think this falls into the category of not my cup of tea, but to the right ears I could see this being well received.
Forgettable background music
Not much wrong with it but didn’t grab me
Boring basic bitch music. Very meh, very that.
Not really my bag. OK in places
Its OK but not really my thing
Never heard of her before. Seems ok, 2/5
It just sounds like a lot of other modern stuff, all ego, lacking soul. Sorry, not what I enjoy.
While it’s not bad, this album got pretty tiring by the end. Its basically just a love-making album and that’s fine but it gets old after an hour
Production -4 Stars Talent - Well, let’s just say that copious use of the word ‘Fuck’ usually indicates a limited contextual vocabulary. ‘Fuck’ is, of course, an important aspect of relationship life - the terrain of Ms Kelala’s album. But (surprise surprise) other things come into the mix too. Not that you’d know it from the patchy lyrics and lavish use of auto tune, pitch shifter and other audio black magic. Not worth the time or the fucking money. And yes, I know it cost me nothing to listen to this album. Still…
r and b i give it a b-
repetitive r&b
Generic-sounding. Uses the same shaking effects and jittery beats that one hears everywhere. Vocals are fine, her voice is here and there lovely but nothing to get excited about here, but one allows for the possibility that, not knowing the genre, one may be missing considerable subtlety.
Objectively this isn't bad at all, but it's just really not my jam.
Couldn't get into it, I tried... The songs are okay, but nothing that stands out as essential or memorable and really I had the urge to switch to something else as I lost interest about halfway through.
No me atrapó
I want to like this but it's just not pulling me in. Maybe it will grow on me.
It was fine
Smooth, slow and sultry RnB. Lovely to begin with but very samey and got boring quick.
I had no idea that this album existed. The album is best described as electronic R&B and was unremarkable. None of the songs really moved the dial and some were a little long. I have no desire to listen to this album again.
Moody yet wispy.
Nice sound but didn't engage
R&B just isn't quite my genre, although this is obviously very well produced.
This looks like it's gonna be r&b. Oh great it's also dance music, but kinda quiet dance? Either way yeah not my thing. Every song sounds the same. This was a chore. 2/5.
Eh
I wasn't too into this album when it initially dropped in 2017 - "i dunno about the hype here. Kelelda doesn't really do much different to my ears - maybe im just jaded with alt RnB as a whole now. Too many clichés here" - and I haven't really been swayed after listening again. Not sure why this is on the 1001 albums list over the dozens of other FANTASTIC contemporary RnB albums out there
1.5 - I found this album neither particularly enjoyable nor remarkable. I’m not sure why it was included in a collection like this. It struck me as rather basic, if somewhat overproduced r&b.
Cest original, mais tres loin d’etre mon style franchement, 2,75
It's probably good for people who enjoy this kind of music but it's not for me.
Not for me
didnt really enjoy the music production is nice, if i ever relisten to this is for reference best song: LMK
You're taking me apart, Kelela! I got tired of this after 15 minutes. They really jumped the gun on adding a 2017 album to the list. Nobody will be thinking about this one in 10 years. Best track: Better
Nice voice, chill or lounge
Her tone remains the same all the way through. Mellow enough, but so boring with no tonal shift. Disappointing after all the plaudits.
Nicht meins…
Electronica dubstep dance party Kelela yes, trad r'n'b Kelela no. Far too much of the latter on this.
Warp-style electronica plus R&B vocals. Meh.
this was NOT an album i needed to hear before i die
Clocking in at 53 minutes, this album is 53 minutes too long. Why?
not my stuff
Cicada slop
I agree with other reviewers that is better to wait a bit longer (15-20 years?) before adding an album to this kind of list. Not easy to listen. Sometimes there is something interesting in the production, but buried under too much north american pop. 1.5 / 5
This is like someone whispering in the corner of a bar. It creates a sense of slight anxiety, who or what are they talking about? But in itself, the actual sound is relaxing. It floats and seems to disappear into the ether.
I'm not exactly sure what genre you would call this? Closest I can think is RnB, which I don't get along with. I don't get this, doesn't appeal at all, most songs sound very similar. Don't like the auto tune. Makes me feel old and out of touch 1
Bland and forgettable.
Not that it sucks, but it bores me to death because it is really nothing remarkable on. Voice, sound, lyrics, production - all heard a thousand times before - and maybe even better. Skipped almost every track. 1,5
straight bs
I'm always worried about these new albums as they haven't been around long enough to know whether they are important or not. This one, from what I think, is not one of them. The description on Wikipedia made it sound much more exciting than it actually is. Bland R&B masquerading as interesting by including the odd glitchy beat. About as exciting as paint drying. This should not be in the book. Don't bother. Best Tracks: Frontline; LMK; Bluff
Hemskt
Rough listen for me. One song of this is fine but so repetitive and winding.
Boring it all sounded the same. It hadnt changed by halfway so off it went. Why is it on here?
not my bag. R&B with typical 2010s effects
This is the absolutely opposite of whatever my taste is. I hate it with fire.
Boring, sterile, safe, vacuous. -1/5 starts
Aivan sietämätöntä paskaa. Tässä on ihan kaikki kerätty yhteen pakettiin mitä inhoan nykymusiikissa. Löysällä munalla tietokoneelle läpsytelty biitti ja hönkimislaulamista jota yksitoista kymmenestä Idols-kisailijasta yrittää matkia ja tekee sen ihan samankuuloiseksi. Kuuntelisin mieluummin vuoden putkeen Hangmans Beautiful Daughteria, kun viisi sekuntia tätä paskaa. Huonoin levy tässä haasteessa, ja vaikea kuvitella että menisi enää tästä huonommaksi. Hyi vittu!
Boring