The first song was 4 min of what should have been a 20 second intro.
The second song is also crap. I guess this is music, but I can't understand any lyrics and it sounds like something AI would create as a backing. If the rest of the album is like this, wow.
Third song at least brought some horns in to make it interesting. But its still some sort of dreamy, wandering, unintelligible noise for the most part. Do people really like this?
Fourth song. I looked up the title to make sure I was where I thought I was. Interestingly, this is the song that I would apply to the album so far. Could I make it disappear completely?
Fifth song. More dreamy shizz to start. I thought they had guitars in Radiohead.
Sixth song. Yes! Finally a song that I can enjoy. Best on the album so far.
Seventh song. I think he's saying something about living in a fantasy. Which is really the theme of this crappy attempt at music. There might be a point to this that goes beyond my feeble attempt. I just like stuff that sounds good to me. And this does not.
Eighth song. I'm clearly not a Radiohead fan, but I thought this was a band. I really think this is just the main dude and a bunch of computers. God I need this to end soon. This one is really noisy.
Ninth song. There was a part in this song that sounded ok to my ears. The rest no. I think he fired his band.
Tenth song. More dreamy nonsense. Again, I might not like Radiohead. Unless they got way, way better. And different. How is this particular album in the top 1000 albums that have ever been made?
Eleventh song. Second best because it ended quickly.
In summary, I will never, ever listen to this album again. It may also lead me to never, ever listen to Radiohead again. It may become catalogued as auto-skip. This was really, really terrible.
First song. Guitar! After yesterday's mess, this is a pleasant surprise. I'm no musical historian, but the style of this song reminds me of some newer (than 1965) stuff - that INXS song from the 80s.
Song 2. [nod to Blur]. Guitar and singing. This is stuff I can get on board with. I do have a little experience with Dylan, so this isn't unfamiliar territory, but I haven't previously listened to this album front to back. Harmonica is nice too.
Third song. He does not seem to like Maggie or her family. I like the driving beat, like a train. Similar to Cash. Plus harmonica. Fuck Maggie.
Fourth song. I'm enjoying this album so far. Pleasant song.
Fifth song. I think I might prefer these driving songs to the more passive ones. But I've enjoyed every song up to this point. Historically, I don't know where this rates in his catalogue, but so far so good on this one. Maybe this one's a little racist-y. But I suppose things were different in the 60s.
Sixth song. More harmonica. Lovin it. Might be my favorite so far.
Seventh song. Odd start. But then back to it. Still digging the driving beat. This is definitely the longest song so far. I'm afraid I don't pick up all the stories with just one listen. But I'm still interested so far.
Eighth song. I think this is the only one that I had heard previously, or at least recognize that I've heard it before. Plus I knew the Byrds version better. My mom probably had that record. No Dylan in the house tho.
Ninth song. Noting here that no drums or driving beat on this one or the previous. Seems to be just Bob (say it like Kevin Kline did in French Kiss) and his guitar.
Tenth song. Again, just guitar. I may just have to Google this. I will say that I liked the earlier stuff on the album better. This isn't bad, but just not as good.
Eleventh song. This acoustic set song lengths are much longer than the earlier songs. Definitely feeling meh about this stuff. I'll get set to googling a bit once this song is over.
~~
Some review: apparently this album was controversial as it was a departure from his traditional folk approach. The record (!) had rock approach on side 1 and folk approach on side 2. Many did not like it.
~~
In summary, I was the opposite of those who were put off by Bob's departure from his normal. I welcomed our new rock overlords on side 1. Those songs had the advantage of being a little shorter and tighter than the acoustic side 2 "ramblings". Maybe my short attention span couldn't hang. Or maybe it just sucked more than the rock. Either way, I would listen to this album again, especially side 1. Just not today.
Before I hit play, I should disclose that I know (and love) several of these songs. But I have not listened to the entire album.
I also figured out that you can hit the Reviews link above to learn more about the album. I'm not going to check it before my listen, but just accidentally hit it yesterday after I had finished Bob's album. Now here we goes...
First song. Sounds like Van Morrison to me.
Second song. Maybe my favorite VM song. I think maybe Buble did a version somewhat recently.
Third song. Another great one. Short and sweet. Definitely the kind of song that makes you remember what you were doing when you heard it.
Fourth song. Reviews are shorter on these. Just enjoying the songs.
Fifth song. Love.
Sixth song. I don't know this one. A little different than the previous with a nice little catchy baseline and beat.
Seventh song. Also a little catchier I think. With saxamaphone! This album is really a great listen so far.
Eighth song. Another one I knew previously. A nice listen, good piano. Pretty classic of his style on this album.
Ninth song. You know who likes this one? Everyone. Everyone. Everyone. Everyone.
Tenth song. More catchy stuff. I dig it.
Overall, a great album. The interesting thing is that I didn't really know Van Morrison all that well until around 2005 or so. I had really gotten in to Brett Dennen, who is a modern similar folk singer (and great by the way). And as I explored his influences, I went back in time to Cat Stevens and VM. This is one of the great things about having a subscription service (or two!). I can follow this threads and leads and see what grows and flourishes and what withers and needs pruned. It is truly a great time to be alive and be able to discover things like this!
One of my favorites to start and then just OK. Sorry for the lack of full review. I'll reflect on my laziness.
I loved Kim Deal when I was in college. That was due to the Breeders and not the Pixies.
Song 1. Rock music. No words yet. And, done.
Song 2. Also rock music. (ed note: the name of this "song" is rock music). However, I now know why there was no singing in the first song. And that was probably for the best. The screaming on this one was absolutely horrible. Just the worst.
Song 3. Again more guitar and drums. So stuff I would typically like. And it has started with normal singing. But I remain skeptical that someone won't just start screeching. Hoping for the best tho. Ok that one wasn't bad.
Song 4. Guitar and drums again. And normal singing. Oooh I am guessing the name of the song is Alison (ed note: it is Allison). I'll have to pass this one on to Al. But I doubt she'll like it. But I did.
Song 5. It was ok. Just a song. Wasn't necessarily a fan, but I didn't want to be dead.
Song 6. This one is a little whispery on the lyrics and less driving than the others.
And then I kinda stopped paying attention because I was reading stuff. Nothing terrible like the second song. But nothing that really made me take note until Down to the Well (I asked Google what the name of the song was). It got a little yelly, but not bad. (Ed note: that was song 9).
Song 10. Kinda more of the same. Its not terrible. But nothing that was really impressing me. Kim Deal is hot.
Songs 11 and 12. I don't think I can get on board with all the changes in the way this fella makes his voice sound.
Song 13. I kinda liked this one. Not sure why. But this album has to be done soon I would think.
Song 14. Eh. Not terrible but not great. That should probably be my summary. And we're done.
Final thoughts. Album was released in 1990. And growing up in the middle of nowhere really meant that I wouldn't have had to access to this album and its potential place in the history of music. I know there were people listening to the Pixies when I went away to college a few years after (1993). But as I mentioned up front, I really didn't know them other than Kim Deal was in it. And no roommates or friends had any albums, so again, wasn't going to catch too much. And they disbanded when I started college when Deal started Breeders. So then nothing from the Pixies when I would have been in a college town and state of mind.
So in the end, they don't have any place with me. And it didn't impress me enough for me to go find more. Meh.
The world is indeed a vampire. Before I begin, I want to quickly reflect on this video game that my roommates and I played prior to the start of the 2nd semester of my freshman year. One of my roommates had a Sega and this game had to do with Jack the Ripper and vampires. We played it for 4 days straight to solve it. Our RA lived next door and played the whole time with us. And he was really in to SP. Played them all the time. So that was my first introduction to the band, in the context of vampires. Leading to their creation of this album 2 years later. Great times...
Also, I've listened to this one many times, so I don't know what kind of review I'll give here. Its a looong album.
I always loved how disc 1 opened. My roommate had a gigantic stereo, with a 100 disc changer. It was insane. And this album/song would get pumped. Nice growing sound getting into the album. And Tonight, Tonight was one of my favorites.
Lots of pumpkins songs played. I just listened. Some I like, and some are just ok. In general across Gish, Siamese Dream, and MCIS, I always liked the lighter songs (other than BWBW).
My fav on this one was always 1979, which for disc listening wasn't ideal, since I liked disc 2 overall much less than disc 1.
I went ahead and called time of death on the song after 1979 because I didn't want Billy yelling at me any more. I feel this is exactly the same behavior I had back in 1995.
And this was the last of the great SP albums I think. They had a pretty good run.
I know nothing of the Smiths, other than I know some people with that last name. 1987 was the year the Cards got beat by the Twins in the World Series.
Song 1. OK, Brits. Its pretty catchy. The little growl before he says 'rush' is neat. So far so good.
Song 2. Some electric guitar to start. Definitely something I am a fan of. This does sound like music from the 80s/90s. Maybe this album was suppose to be the start of something. I definitely didn't get the Smiths growing up in the middle of nowhere. Snuck some growling in. You know I like that.
Song 3. and some other songs. This hasn't been terrible. But nothing has grabbed me. Maybe I can't work during these listens. But I get going on something and then it just sort of hangs back there.
Aaaand done. It really did slip by me. Not a terrible listen, but not really a jam. And nothing that I'd put on any regular play.
Always loved this album, and have heard it many times. Meat Loaf was a great showman and I think this was his best-ever work.
OK, the album grew on me. A rough start, but pretty solid.
However, why is this on a list of albums I should listen to before I die?
I own at least 100 albums that are better than this one.
Nevertheless, she has a great voice. And it definitely fucks the Pixies pretty hard.
I've heard this one a few times. Wasn't my favorite "type" of rap music when I first heard it, and I like a few of the songs better now. Solid album but not my favorite.
