REM - MURMUR - It grabs me with an immediacy and urgency. It is melodic, but not simplistic (e.g., there are occasional minor key turns that suggest a sense of menace). The album is pretty damn consistent too. The only dog is “West of the Fields”. The standout is “Radio Free Europe”, but (with the exception of Fields), the other songs are just about as good. While high quality and consistent, there isn’t much variety. The songs are not very distinct from one another. Nice clean sound - particularly love the guitar in “Pilgrimage”. The performances are very solid. They do nothing spectacular, but the songs don’t call for that.
This style of music is not typically in my taste-zone, but I really enjoyed this album. There is a nice variety, piano-oriented Pueblo Nuevo, balladeering and muted trumpets in Dos Gardenias, and folky acoustic guitar picking throughout. Some highlights - the vocal harmony in Y Tu Que (sometimes tripled with the trumpet).
Need to listen again, but it didn’t hold up for me as an album. Some all-time songs, but also some dogs. Does EWF have a complete album? I’ve wondered that before.
Loved it. Nice surprise - a band/album I’ve never heard of, but really enjoy. Not quite prog, but in that zip code. Sophisticated, but also very melodic. Sounds like a precursor to Muse, or even early Radiohead. Love the singer’s voice. Sounds a bit like Peter Gabriel.
Inarguable classic. The warmth of WN’s voice on this album is supernatural. His interpretations (reimaginings) are revelatory. Song selection is both obvious/inevitable and bold. Covering “Georgia” after Ray is ballsy, but he nails it with a version that IMO is the equal. The album is great from top to bottom. No misses. Nothing in the zip code of a miss. Love it.
Great album. I was so, very wrong about TH. When I was a youth, I found them to be pretentious and silly. I still think those things, but I accept them as a small price to pay for such thoughtful, sophisticated, and FUNKY music. “Our Love” is one of my favorites. It’s like three different songs, in one cohesive blast. Good shit.
Nice, easy to listen to. I’m not the biggest fan of Sinatra or of the crooner style of music. But this is a fine example of the form. It is melodic, but otherwise not very interesting musically.
Pretty good. I like the guitar work. Nothing flashy, but some cool, Edge-like textures and sounds. The intro to Rave On is one of my favorite moments on the album. That may be mostly due to the absence of vocals. I don’t care for the snotty, yelling/whining delivery of the vocalist. It’s not enough to alienate me from the album, but I don’t dig his shit.
I have to come back to this one. I wasn’t in the mood for it yesterday (or today) and I can’t give it a useful review. I can tell the musicians have technical talent. But none of the songs caught my ear. Unless I was missing something, there is no songwriting talent here.
Tainted Love is a tremendous song. I’ve heard it too many times, and it is easy to take for granted. But it is a hyper-melodic romp and still kicks major ass. For me, the other songs don’t nearly match up. They are fine, but unmemorable. There are good elements - the lyrics for “Frustration”, the clarinet in “Seedy Films”, etc. But no other complete songs “Sex Dwarf” sounds like a song that The Pet Shop Boys did - 5 years later and 100 times better.
I like this more than I expected to. I know the album and the hits, but never spent much time with CCR. TBH - I can’t tolerate Fogerty’s voice for very long in one sitting. On the plus, the guitar work is killer - sleazy/sludgy goodness. Good musicians all around. Nice bass line in “Bayou”. Needless to say, the songs are really, really hooky. Good shit.
I love this album. Oddball lyrics, aggressive guitar, off-kilter vocal harmonies, etc. It is hooky and lovably nutty. I am in between 4 and 5 stars, but I think rounding-down will be my general approach.
I listened to 2 ¼ songs and literally hated every minute of it. I decline to listen to the rest. This album makes me wish zero stars was an option.
Inspires total ambivalence. Wish I could give 2.5 stars.
I don’t get it
Nah. JM’s voice is cheesy. The organ is over used. No interest.
