A classic. Fave B-Cuts: Think For Yourself, What Goes On. Not cool: Run For Your Life.
1st album I hadn't heard of before except the track Life's a Bitch "Life's a Bitch and then you die, that's why we get high, 'cause you never know when you're gonna go" – apparently landmark album in East Coast hip hop, nicely produced, eingängige getaktete flows.
Fave: the world is yours (lowkey self-esteem anthem). the rest: a blur tbh.
See listening notes to this. Current fave: la vie à 2.
Never heard of it before. Not here for "still in love with you" (ugh "please come back I'm feeling ~lonely~" from a man, can we not?) Other than that, GREAT old-school heavy metal! 1970s Irish band, some mellow influences.
Good "best of album".
Traffic … decent. Funky. Not sure it truly stands the test of time, but as a disclaimer: I'm not a HUGE fan of prog psychedelic jazz rock. If you liked this, listen to Can's album "Ege Bamyasi" if you haven't already. It's deffo more of a delight to the senses, the vocalists also struggle but they do it with the required gusto for me to be able to take it seriously.
Best Songs: "Stranger to Himself", lyrically the most interesting "…his hands are torn and bloodied from the scratching at his soul"; "Every Mother's Son", musically the most short-lived despite being the longest.
Worst song: it's a tight run between Freedom Rider and Empty Pages, but Empty Pages wins for being shining horror material: "…found someone who can comfort me, but there are always exceptions" – sis, please. Imagine being born in an era where some (or most) male singer-songwriters wrote about their love interests like they do their mother-carers? My condolences. It's songs like these that make me remain thankful I can open a bank account without the signature of a man.
[Off topic, I'm new to this site, so behold the review I wrote for Manu Chao, which I REFUSE to lose and forgot to enter: a classic protest pop phenomenon for the anti-hipster and hipster alike, refreshingly anti-capitalist and anti-us imperialist. a global mix of spanish, english and french. south american and european, humanist, lost and searching, full of hope but with both eyes open. classics: bongo bong, je ne t'aime plus and la vie à 2 and the run between: luna y sol, por el suelo, welcome to tijuana.]
Somehow missed this band and opted to spend my short attention span in the 2000s on The Strokes as THE American indie, pop rock Ersatz instead. What's there to say? This album is danceable. It's nostalgic. It's fun. It's sad. There's all the emotions in an album. But there's a reason I hadn't heard it before, and it's because it's missing the je ne sais quoi. Is Karon O's vocal ability too smooth? Is the musicality of it all too bland? What's compelling me to care?
Fave tracks: Zero, Faces. Finish and start with a bang!
Aged well, surprisingly! Not an album I'll listen to again, but it has definitely influenced rap I listen to.
A classic, albeit not that funk.
What a voice. The production on this album is amazing. Nevertheless it's an album made of a 25-year-old who, at the cusp of adulthood, thinks they know everything there is to know about life (I did too!). Heartbreak suited her better.
Zürich is stained is interesting just for the title alone. Other than that the singing is drowned out and that's quite annoying, it's your typical 90s indie rock. I get it, the boys are sad and disillusioned. I keep just hearing Daisy and the Scout's "Sad Boys": You stand in the middle of the avenue just waiting; I can’t be the one to always push you back to pavement.
Production 1/5
Fun 0.5/5
Nostalgia 2/5
Musicality 2/5
Singing 2/5
A pastiche pop album, it's fun, it's got nice surprises. Your Sister can't Twist (but she can rock'n'roll) and Bennie and the Jets as songs are very catchy.
Production 2/5
Fun 4/5
Nostalgia 1/5
Musicality 2.5/5
Singing 4/5
[Best Song for my album nr. 10; Pavement Slanted and Enchanted is Two States]
Very enjoyable, haven't heard of them before, but enough pop hooks in the noise landscape to keep me entertained. A few surprises, a few good crescendos, a few lingering questions, the most pressing one: why does Dracula Mountain sound like Shellac's squirrels are chasing me?
Too noise: 30'000 Monkies; Best Song: Crown of Storms; Fun Song: Dracula Mountain; worth a mention: Duel in the Deep.
Production 4/5
Songwriting 2/5
Musicality 3.5/5
Fun Factor 5/5
Nostalgia 5/5 (reminds me of Dÿse)
The jingles are a solid concept and the production is probably about as good as an album from the 60's could allow. Great singing. Still, not the best The Who album there is.
Production 3/5
Songwriting 5/5
Musicality 4/5
Fun Factor 2.5/5
Nostalgia 0/5
The production on this album is absolutely amazing. AMAZING; nevertheless the overall vibe reminds me too much of what elevator music wishes to be. Ultimately, with such good musicians the album should be more interesting than it ends up being but it's very clean lounge music.
Best song: Home At Last. Most helpful song: Aja – I would've pronounced it Adshcha and sounded like a fool so thanks I guess.
Finally, an album I hadn't listened to and sounds like a must hear! Part I was sublime. Great jazz album.
Pretty good punk album! I listened to the 2022 re-release with two added tracks, but the original EP would be even more tight. Easy listening due to different rhythms and melodies which make each track different, clean instruments, short hook-heavy songs. Stand-out tracks: Bored Teenagers, New Church, Gary Gilmore's Eyes, No Time to Be 21.
Not sung by Phil Collins, so not an album I have known before (oops). Catchy prog-rock tunes, good songs, would definitely re-listen and good "car music" for a small car cruising in hilly places. Personal stand-outs: In The Cage, Back in NYC, Lilywhite Lilith (such classic prog rock) & Supernatural Anesthesist. Best Song Transition: Chamber of 32 Doors over to Lilywhite Lilith.
I definitely see the inspiration for pop musicians I enjoy listening to today. First Album listen for George Micheal, very political ballads, lovely voice and a pastiche of funk, gospel, pop and well, late 80s pop. Stand-Out Tracks: Freedom '90, Mother's Pride.
What a classic album!
Top fave tracks: Maxwell's Silver Hammer, Octopus' Garden and Mean Mr Mustard… Come Together is a great opener.
Decently boring to my modern ears, which means pretty experimental for an album that's 59 years old. I liked the tracks I Had Too Much to Dream (Last Night), Are You Lovin' Me More, Luvin' and Try Me on for Size – other than that run of the mill "fun" psych rock. (Also I'm not one to rag on about recording quality, but I'd definitely rate this higher if it was remastered.)
"Yes, me and the hedgehog we bursting the tyres all day, as we roll down the highway towards the setting sun." Not at all what I'd call easy listening but Little Red Riding Hood Hit The Road II made this art rock album finally "click" for me. I wasn't a fan of the call and answer of Alifib/Alifie, but I do enjoy the British folkness underneath the atonal jazz bits. Sea Song, Little Red Riding Hood Hit The Road I and II are a hoot to sing along to.
