1001 Albums Journey

This was a great way to start off the list! Jones has very fine, detailed control over her voice; I really love how she’s able to demonstrate her range while not going overboard or getting too loud. She has a gentle, soothing voice that suits the material of her songs perfectly. It was entrancing; I like the light use of percussion, and how she wasn’t afraid to use a gentle touch when it came to the instruments to really let her voice shine through. Also, they were the perfect length. Overall, even though I usually don’t care for this type of music, I totally loved the album and will listen to this album and the rest of her music in the future.

I really didn't like it at first, but it did grow on me. I think it's a very catchy album, and I liked the instrumentation, but I'm not a fan of the type of singing. I recognize his talent, but it didn't feel harmonious or rhythmical to me, it just felt kind of like he was talking but with extra steps (I know that probably doesn't make sense). I didn't like how often some phrases and choruses were repeated, or how it seemed like they were really reaching for rhymes at certain points, either, since it made the lyrics feel childish and vapid at times despite them actually having a reasonably good amount of depth. Despite my complaints, I did enjoy listening to it, and tapped my feet along, so I can't really knock it below a 3, though it's more like a 2.6.

I like the moody and oppressive feel of the album a lot. However, I don’t really care for for the singer’s voice at all. In the end, most of the songs just kind of blended together and felt the same. Except for The Hanging Garden, that song is absolute flames.

It sounds like Spanish music. I really don't know how else to describe it. It's just an incredibly generic album, a solid hour straight of just thinking "Yep. This is what Spanish music sounds like." It's not bad, exactly. I enjoyed listening to some of it. But it’s just about the most bland thing since unbuttered white bread. I kept wondering if there'd ever be a single interesting thing, some song I could point back to and say "yeah, this was the highlight" or "I really liked what they did here". Nope. I forgot every single song within a minute of listening. If the scoring system here allowed it, I would give it a 50/100, because I think that's the only fitting rating for it, but I can’t, so just pretend that my 2 is actually a 2.5.

Timeless, passionate, groovy, funky, soulful, rockin', romantic, powerful, intriguing, classic, relatable, subversive, splendiferous, seamless, flowing, masterful, genius, classy, supreme, and I wanted to come up with more, but thinking of adjectives is really hard, so I'm just gonna leave it there and say this album is very very very good.

The singer has a pretty good voice, but awful enunciation. It constantly sounds like he’s slurring or mumbling the lyrics. Between that and the terrible mixing it was a struggle to understand a word he was saying, even when I relistened after reading the lyrics. A pretty definitive “meh” from me; it’s catchy in a generic sort of way, but the aforementioned issues with the vocals made it a chore to listen to otherwise.

Those retching, hissing, and farting sounds in the background of the last song are awfully on-the-nose.

Genuinely impressed by how boring it is.

Quite enjoyable. No individual track stood out to me, but it was a smooth and relaxing ride the whole way through. For me, at least, it's more the kind of music that's meant to be enjoyed in the background as you do something else, rather than something you listen to just for the pleasure of it; for that reason, I thought about giving it a 3, but I think it's juuuuuust good enough it can sneak its way in as a 4/5.