A lot of noise and lyrics are an afterthought.
I accept that this was probably an important album in the "white men appropriating blues" genre genre and who does not love that? However, it also feels like the album that launched a thousand jam bands so it can burn in hell.
The first time I listened to Leonard Cohen, better than two decades ago, was a transformative day for me and I can still remember the incense smell of the room the first time I put needle to wax and the sepia tones of the Seattle front yard that I sat in when I played it a second time immediately afterwards.
This is not that album and I only mention it as I may never get to write about that record and as a primer to say I may not be able to be objective about Leonard Cohen and these tracks. He is unassailable to me. His late in life gravel voice is simultaneously profoundly comforting while inducing heartache. He opens me up and strips away all my armor. I am never more open to my feelings then in the moments following a close LC listen.
The three albums that he put out over the seven years leading up to You Want It Darker laid the groundwork for this release. Cohen was a man who had lived an incredibly full life, who was ready to die, but still had so much to say and give to his fans. This album was released just a few week's before Cohen died and this record was his beautiful parting gift. He was a poet that remained in top form all the way to the end.
I recognize that I am the problem here and there is cause for this to be a required listen, but it is just not for me. I lack The necessary chill to be able to enjoy these tracks. I am no Kosmo Vinyl, but these songs are too damned long and languid. I need a narrative, not time to ruminate on how little is being said.
No to Yes.
I think it will come as no surprise that this album did nothing for me. The lack of concrete lyrics, the long stretches of instrumentation, the memories of being forced to listen to such works on the classic rock station 103.5 the Fox, where this shit was all the rage in the mid 90s, as I was driven to a baseball practice that I very much did not want to go to by a father who was insistent and may be too drunk to remember to pick me up in 90 minutes. So I have my biases.
I was pretty sure we would see Ok Computer on this list and I am so glad it came up this early.
This record came out when I was 14, I loved it then and it remains as great as I remember. The album is one of the first I remember sitting down and poring over the liner notes trying to decipher every one of the lyrics. It was profound to me and extremely rewarding.
This album spoke to a young me.
-Self loathing and contempt for everyone else!
-Aliens, robots and Blade Runner.
-The power of nihilism.
- Distrust and contempt for government.
-An understanding that our collective goal is just to find a quiet hole to die in.
Did I find an album that suited me perfectly or was I reborn as a manifestation of this record? Hard to say. What I can say for certain is it holds up and rocks as hard as anything this mopey possibly can.
Thank you 1001 albums generator for answering the question, "What is worse than listening to jazz?"
"Hold my beer, John Cage, I've got to compose the soundtrack to Fear and Loathing in Dystopian Web 1.0."
The spoken word stuff was alright, though.
This album was fine. I have a general indifference to the Rolling Stones and this record did nothing to move the needle in either direction. Like several of the albums we have listened to from decades past, there is a feel that it was ground breaking at the time, but the edge diminished with time. Machismo and drugs are standard fare and a bit played out today. The various musical styles do keep it interesting, though.
What I liked most about this album is hearing what later artists took liberally from. I hear horns The Hold Steady used and a lot of Adam Green's sound is basically these tracks with a bit more pop sensibility.
Hands down the most rewarding aspect of this listen was comparing it to the track for track response album that Liz Phair put out, Exile in Guyville. Hopefully that album, with much more soul and something to say, will pop up on this list.
I am glad that we were prompted to revisit this album. When it came out I was an angsty teen who had an axe to grind and perceived slights where there were none. I had a lot of, somewhat, unjustified notions about Courtney Love and immediately dismissed this album as selling out for its slick pop sound. Additionally, I had heard that she fucked over her long time drummer during the recording so I refused to give it anymore attention than the two hits on the radio constantly forced me to.
My feelings about Courtney Love as a human being have not changed at all and, perhaps, have calcified but, though often disingenuous, her lyrical abilities are undeniable and I have grown to like the sound.
I am not all that comfortable giving this 4 stars, but I am rating it after having already listened to the next days album and this is a hell of a lot more enjoyable than the Rolling Stones album which, spoiler, will be getting a 3.
I firmly believe that this record has no place on the list of 1001 albums anyone needs to listen to. If you are of a mind to be a part of this project, you have heard every track that is worth listening to from this record dozens of times and the rest are are forgettable filler.
This was also true of the last Rolling Stones album we had to review and I am fairly confident it will be the case for the other dozen I am afraid are going to come up over the next three years. Christ all mighty, please space out the rest better.
I tried to give this album my attention and absolutely could not. The sound was pleasant and I enjoyed the lyrics when I could focus on them but, without intense consentration, I would immediately drift off and be two more very similar sounding songs into the record. It is probably great and, if I get my hands on some adderall to keep me engaged, maybe someday I will fond out.
This album worked for me. I like the sound (especially the pedal steel guitar), I enjoyed the lyrics, and it was a lot of fun hearing the originals of some covers I did not realize were not originals.
This album reminds me of so much country from 1950 to 1980 that I adore and sent me down a Waylon, Willey, Lefty, Glen, Merle, Buck, Roger Miller rabbit hole.
Points docked for the song Juanita where the protagonist, for good cause based on the other songs on the records, is left by a woman. He is going to commit suicide, but instead starts a statutory rape relationship with a 17 year old. Cool.
This is not one of the Blur albums that I had previously listened to start to finish. I knew the singles and they hold up. I enjoyed the tracks that were new to me but, it was a week ago that I listened to this record, and I have already forgotten them all.
I enjoyed this slightly more than I expected to. The hits are bangers. Despite Kelsey trying to explain it to me, I still do not understand what a second hand emotion is. The covers definitely diminished the album as a whole. Turner has great pipes, but it just made me wish I were hearing the originals. Fun to hear where that Missy Elliot sample came from.
I like this album a lot. I believe this was my first full listen. Not their high water mark, but a solid record.
