Jan 14 2021
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Paul's Boutique
Beastie Boys
I can easiliy speak in absolute terms for this one: It's the worst album I've ever heard!
Having said that I should probably add that I only listen to albums that I immediately like, so I never would have listened to this in the first place.
Although I don't like HipHop or Rap in the slightest, I have to at least give them some credit for the quality of some of their sounds (and I'm not talking about their singing).
My favorite part of the album is at 25:40 - that intermission at the halfway mark genuinely surprised me and made me laugh, giving me enough mental strength to listen to the rest of this "music".
2
Jan 15 2021
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Close To You
Carpenters
I frickin hate it when people sing just for the sake of singing!
But it's not that horrible in this one. The texts are pretty dull (borderline hippie stuff), but at least the singing is melodic and fits the music.
I listened to the album while reading on wikipedia article about the rather tragic career of the band and premature death of Karen. It was a good read, and with the background music I felt thoroughly entertained.
Then again, I still have to deduct two stars, because in the end it wasn't much more than pleasant background noise.
3
Jan 18 2021
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Transformer
Lou Reed
What a piece of trash! The awkwardness of the band trying to play a nice tune while the lead singer is raping the microphone is too much. At the start of each song he seems to pick a note and just sticks with that, barring half a note up and down once in a while. The Beastie Boys made horrible music, but at least they didn't claim they could sing - they just had a fun time recording. This dude is so much worse in that he had potential of producing nice music, if only he would shut the flip up and let his band play. Disliked, unsubscribed!
1
Jan 19 2021
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At Newport 1960
Muddy Waters
Blues.. Should be cross-linked in the dictionary under 'Repitition'. I get that he is doing a live performance and there are people listening, ready to throw stuff in case he sucks. But that doesn't make it more enjoyable. At first I thought he might be a bit slow in the head, or maybe that he's stuttering. But that just seems to be his way of singing? Really couldn't get into it. A few times he just stopped singing and apparently shook his head like a rabid animal making strange noises. And when he noticed the audience responded to one of his songs more than before, he just repeated it - that felt so cheap. But who am I to judge? The audience seemed to like it, so maybe the perception of music shifted over the decades. Two stars, didn't really care for it.
2
Jan 21 2021
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Liege And Lief
Fairport Convention
Hippie-dippie stuff. Not a fan. Not terrible.
3
Jan 22 2021
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Triangle
The Beau Brummels
I'll be damned! Not only did I not dislike this album, but I even liked most of the tracks. My only criticism is that the songs are too short (~2mins on avg) and sometimes are missing a proper outro.
4
Jan 25 2021
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Heroes
David Bowie
David Bowie! A name even I know. But fame doesn’t save him from an honest review. As much as I liked some of the instrumental tracks on the second half, I loathed everything else on the album. I‘ll give him three stars, because I can see the potential, if only he would refrain from singing.
3
Jan 26 2021
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Sweet Baby James
James Taylor
Huh! Well.. He can sing, for sure. And sometimes his music was even pleasant. But it was still boring the whole time. I also didn't like his texts, so all in all he doesn't have much going for him. Two stars. Maybe he got better?
2
Jan 27 2021
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The Sounds Of India
Ravi Shankar
I'm too much of a westerner. Not my kind of music. Like, at all. Maybe it got ruined by Bollywood? Probably not.. No Thanks.
1
Jan 28 2021
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E.V.O.L.
Sonic Youth
At first I was excited because it sounded like grunge, but it turned out to be pretty boring. It felt like they grabbed a random person from the streets and put her in the position of lead singer. No passion whatsoever. I read on wikipedia though that Sonic Youth influenced the development of grunge - so kudos for that. Two stars.
2
Jan 29 2021
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Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)
Eurythmics
Oh well, this is pure nostalgia for me! I basically grew up with this kind of music, being driven through foreign countries on the backseat, listening to this for hours on end because no one would switch the CD. I don't think I'd like it very much, if I listened to this today for the first time, so this review might be skewed by my past, but then again, the perception of music is always subjective. And what could be better than to remember the carefree times during childhood just by listening to a song?
4
Feb 01 2021
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Slanted And Enchanted
Pavement
As annoying as can be!
1
Feb 02 2021
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Pretzel Logic
Steely Dan
Not bad! They could work a bit more with the piano and focus more on their instrumental side in general. They do have some catchy songs in there though. I'll give this three stars because it's not really up my alley, but I'm willing to listen to more of their songs in the future.
3
Feb 03 2021
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Van Halen
Van Halen
I'm not a fan of live music, but I guess this is the kind of music where you have to be there to properly enjoy it. Or maybe even out on the road? On Wikipedia it says the guitar solo in the beginning is praised for being the best solo of all time, which I really disliked. So I guess I just wasn't feeling it. The singing was solid at times, but at some parts he just sounded like Elvis. Only three stars from me.
3
Feb 04 2021
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Make Yourself
Incubus
Never heard of them before. Almost every song sounds the same. ... And that's genius because I like everything on this album! The singer craftily merges his voice with the music so I have no idea what the songs are about - pure perfection. Even the part where the album is broken and spasms back and forth is melodic and deeply satisfying. Five stars from me, will definitely come back to this.
5
Feb 05 2021
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Here Come The Warm Jets
Brian Eno
Oh no! Master level trolling. Most of it I wouldn't really call music, but it has great entertainment value. And the instrumental tracks are spot on. I read that in his next albums he focused more on ambience music and I'm thrilled to hear more from him. Four stars, suck it Lou Reed!
4
Feb 08 2021
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Lady Soul
Aretha Franklin
She can definitely sing, but the songs aren't that interesting. But I expected as much from soul music.
2