First BB album for me. Very impressed. Honestly expected gimmicks, but got meaty songs, sonic wormholes, and what felt like truly exuberant creations from people with a real zeal for musical forms. It held me the whole time, big 'single' type songs, great instrumental meditations, and the odd hardcore punk jam! Quite a feast.
Lovely vibe overall. Amazing, all time vocal and performer. Always loved the single, but would need more time with record itself however, to find its other standouts.
First timer. I was dreading this a bit because 1. Its a double album(where half the songs are just different mixes(?) of the same song. And 2. Because Ive never really *gulp* enjoy3d reggae. But about 3 songs in and I was really enjoying myself. I think the wide ranging textures and the beautiful sultry and playful basslines sucked me in. My favorite track besides all of the other standouts was 400 years. There was something so haunting to how it begins with that minor chord and the immediate slow down that just grabbed my attention. Great one. Will definetly throw this on again!
I used to do a cover of The Weight when I was but a 16 yr old boy. Somehow I never really went any farther with The Band. I mean I was aware of them, their lineage, being a big My Morning Jacket fan circa 2007-08, but alas... the years got away from me and theres so much other music I wanted to listen to. Well...its a great album, what can I say...? Im not really surprised...but I do hope to come back to this one again amd make up for lost time.
This Years Model is Mr. Costello's answer to the question "do you think you could fit two albums worth of ideas into one?" To which he appears to have answered intensely in the affirmative.
I would say my enjoyment begins here and ends here. Its an invigorating blast of rock and roll pastiche with a punkish flair that just rips. 14 songs in 42 minutes, and not a wasted note to be found. Even the more relaxed waltzy Little Triggers feels anxious, angsty, and frankly very horny!
I guess what Im saying is I really like everything Im hearing: Excellent melodic sense and vocal delivery, truly furious drumming, and plenty of musicality--But...and it's not a big one, but I just want a place for my ears to REST.
Am I old? Is this album too develish and spritely for my ailing bones?
I'm tempted to look up the inevitable 'reverbed and slowed' playlist on youtube to test my theory.
But I mean, final word? There really isnt a missed step or false start here...and for the amount of ground this sucker covers, that is REALLY impressive. Its certainly not wanting for guts!
Highest praise I can give is that I felt like I was there. You do, you feel like you really witnessed something. Cash can make everyone in the audience feel validated and acknowledged, and the truth is that kind of presence is a dance on the razors edge...especially in a prison that you are openly denigrating through song--twice! What an endearing performance that has the effect of making light where there probably is none. Excellent. Almost its own genre I would venture to say. Never heard anything quite like this.
A good country song can be...maybe even should be simple. Its about texture mostly. That being said, a good country song ought to have 1 or 2 interesting, clever, or innovative melodic ideas, lyrical ideas, rhythmic ideas, or some combination. I cant do it on elegance and prettiness alone. Alls that to say I didnt hate this one. But only two songs in the 35 min runtime are anything that I think fit that criteria. Ive heard other NG songs that I like...but they arent on this here record.
Faves: the title track and Fly By Night
Meh: the rest
Had to really hold my nose for this one. Ive never actively listened to a single kanye project...and at this point I kind of enjoy having that rare persepective. But Im not a zealot about it so I immediately pressed play.
Ill start with my praise. It reaaally feels like 2010. So much so that it was quite nostalgic. Now remember Ive not heard more than half of this album. The only song coukd pick out of a lineup was Monster, which I am only aware of due to the 'legendary' Minaj portion. So it is rather impressive to be thoroughly transported to a time 14 years ago by songs and a sound/style you only absorbed through cultural osmosis.
I kinda enjoyed So Apalled. It was my favorite track overall. Best features besides Monster , and I feel it delivered the most on the albums concept, without being annoying or obvious.
No the annoying and obvious was reserved for basically every other marquee track on here, with the exception of the opener, which is catchy, but practically bubblegum, which as we all know loses its flavor quickly, and the final two closing songs which roll into eachother nicely and might be worth a revisit.
The lowest point for me was Runaway, which is such a cliched sentiment in music(of all genres actually), along with the concept 'im so f'd gurl, no u dont understand, im a literal Monster' that I cant buy into the themes. Its just sooo overwrought and self congradulatory for the sake of spectacle. I will not be "toasting the scumbags". Im sorry I just wont. Like...we all can look back and see how this album reads in 2024. Its like Kanye devoting all his power toward letting himself off the hook for anything, and he had so much cultural sway not only did the media, core music culture, and corporate brands COMPLETELY FALL IN LINE, they all had to eat their words and show their asses when he went FULL NAZI MAGA DORK, and its like oops haha nvm not MY Kanye.
Lastly I'll say that Chris Rock skit was unlistenable, and maybe he deserved THE SLAP, now that I was forced to hear it.
Bring on the next one, I know theres gonna be more Yeezy in this list.
A soup of sounds and vibes. Quite enjoyable. Likely will return to a couole of these for the mood. Some real cheesy moments, but such is the risk of being experimental.
This was basically pure joy. A bruatlizing fusion and a lasting testament to Metallica's dedication to their (witch)craft. Its camp, its gothic, its destruction.
Has something ever been so chill...that it makes you uncomfortable?
I own this one. Worth price of admission for watermelon man, the song that put me onto this record. The rest is all pretty great too. My only gripe is it peaks too early. But totally something you can just lose yourself in or enjoy as a backdrop to studying, or making art.
I do really enjoy the attitude and textures present here. I also really enjoy the somewhat schizophrenic jumping between not only Reed's sneering croon and Nico's poe-faced warbles, but the cheery pop lullaby-esque cuts (Sunday Morning, Femme Fatale, There She Goes Again, All Tomorrows Parties, and Ill Be Your Mirror) contrasted with the more fuzzed out, droning rockers.
(Waiting...The Man, Venus In Furs, Run Run Run, Heroin, Black Angel...Song)
So in terms of balancing tone and creating atmoaphere this record is brilliant.
But as a whole experience I have nevwr been able to completely get past my desire for some editing here and there. The monotonous drone stuff works on Heroin, Black Angel, and Venus in Furs. But Run, Waiting, and European Son kinda show all their cards in the forst 2:30 and I would be happy with a courteous fade out, frankly.
Its a minor quibble, but one I can't look past given this records stature.
Ultimately it is a very strange and affecting trip, but one that could be stronger with about 16-18 minutes cut out of it. Get it down to that nice 42 minute mark and it would be ALL killer.
Dont do dope kids.
I dont feel qualified to speak on exactly what this album is trying to do or how its trying to situate itself in the culture. 2002 was about a decade away from me ever listening to hip hop on purpose or with a critical ear. The bling era i believe it was called, i quite frankly despised. Predictably I really only have a few touchstones into hip hop, the first being Wu Tang and its spinoffs, and the second being Kendrick 2012 onward. So again, I almost feel bad passing judgement since I was not a part of this world.
That being said: excellent production. Maybe even too clean. But cant fault it because it never lacked energy or bite because of it.
I think the standout attribute of this artist and project is the 'jack of all trades' aspect. The rhymes, the flow... but also the r&b vocals. What drew me in ultimately was the latter, though the former was not weak, I just found myself more sucked into the world created in the more r&b styled tracks.
My one gripe that may again be unwarranted is exemplifoed by the albums title. Im not saying one way or the other that 'ignorant' rap or 'conscious rap' is superior. What I will say is that if an artist is really willing to show their whole selves, there will be some of both. I know that is a double edged comment 1, because the ignorant or at best party minded stuff does not get the scrutiny that overtly ambitious rap does, and 2, because that is doubly true for women artists in hip hop. That notwithstanding, there are a few too many 'preachy' song concepts on the first half of the record. I found those parts to feel a bit too posturing, whereas the vulnerability regarding giving up on a relationship when it isnt working in the songs Gotta Let You Know and All I Ever spoke more to me. If thw point of the albums concept was for Ms. Dynamite to prove to someone, critics, the culture...that they are above the industries regressiveness, or bragadocio...I personally am not convinced spending half your album scolding everyone else is the right way to prove your point. It is just a little too direct. I guess what I really mean is that there is a kind of talking down to the audience that I feel in these lyrics. Often she owns her feelings and thoughts, but a ot of it is "you fix you" which one one hand, good advice to avoid toxic relationships, on the other hand "who asked you?" sort of a sentiment.
Anyhow, they seem young on here, I think much of that tone will wear off with more maturity. There is a phase in a persons life where this kind of strictness of being is essential. So I wont knock it too hard, because I thought there was plenty of great moments of groove and energy here.
Love when Roger does an old blues rock man impression. Way more piano thab you associate with The Who's ouevre, but here it is, plonkin away. Some of these are not recognizable if it werent for Moon's bombastic and signiture drum sound. The ones that are, however, are all timers. Such a fun record!
Great analog 70s sound. Big production and a trove of rock influences all bangin around makes for a fun listen. Never really a dull moment. My only real quibble is that many of the influences and sounds are just so remeniscent of other bands or projects that for whatever reason I am more familiar with. There is a lot here that gives at turns Supertramp, Eagles, The Stones, Hendrix....basically a blues rock of the 70s jackson pollak, and if Im being honest, on forst listen I havent really found the beating heart of 'Spirit' beyond a really exciting flyby of 70s rock by a bamd of virtuosos. May be worth looking into more.
Mostly goofy fun from the overly slick fuckboi extraordinaire himself. Fave track was Lets Take A Ride. I found it to feel the most personal or coming from an artistic place as opposed to a 'what will get these birds out on the dancefloor' which, to no ones surprise, and most peoples delight, this album has in spades. Can't lie, heart of hearts, this isnt really my kinda jam, just a little 'light' lets call it. But I recognize good rhythm and strong performance.
Tiny Dancer is almost too good of an opener. The album doesnt really have anywhere else to go unfortunately.
Would listen again. Dont feel I gave it all enough time to sink in and percolate. Was hard to single out one arrangement or song that stood out becaise the production, accompaniment, and vocal techniques are all pretty uniformed across each tune...so without acclimating to it more, it somewhat runs together for me. Still very pleasant and supple tones and attitude.
Great production(oh, 1996... back when the overdigitalization of metal was a distant blip on the horizon...). Gotta be honest, not something I'm gonna return to. I got most of my metsl jimmies out in the early 2000s. But i can recognize vision and craft. Mostly it sounds like very well produced Slipknot core. But it came out 3 years before Slipknots debut. I dont know what that means. My favorite songs were the acoustic tracks jasco, itari, and ironically the most grindcore song on the album, Dictatorshit.
Struggle listen. Just kinda dated and goofy. Sorry folks.
Light. Airy. Spry. But not thin.
All killer. Sonically enveloping. Groovy as hell.
Loooove the instrumentals. Lovely. Buuuuut I cant just lie and say the vocals dont bother me. Its not his tone. I like Lee Hazlewood and Jonny Cash and Protomartyr's Joe Casey...other singers with a more gutteral talk-sing kind of style and range. But theres something about Calahan's, i think its two things: I tend not to connect with a singer when it sounds like they are improvising the melody. Its supposed to sound unlabored, i guess. But to me its clunky. Like I get the image of him reading through a diary and just shooting the melody from the hip. For some it might work...but even when Morrisey of the Smiths does it(Morrisey didnt write the instrumentals, only the lyrics and lyrical melodies) I find myself recoiling a bit. In a similar way, its like the writers prose are getting in the way of my immersion, as opposed to enhancing it. In other words, there is something self concious feeling about the vocals that borders on kiche, or a novelty thing. I think his delivery on the closer track is my favorite, at least the repeated line...its too bad it is underwritten and the second half isnt quite as polished sounding. The second track is a bit closer, but it gets stuck in my head, in a bad way. I really want to like this more than I do. Especially because the sound of the record, and the instrumentals are basically A+ for me. Sorry Bill. Fuck you Bill. Just kidding Bill.
Okay. QOTSA's debut: Insanely frontloaded. There is an amazing 8 track album here. 4/5 (because the standouts rock too hard)
Mixed on this. I enjoy the aggression and texture building throughout. The ethos of this music seems to be to bank on the dynamics more than the 'riffs'. Which is very cool when it works, and a little dull when it doesn't. It reminds me of very contemporary sounds, from NIN to Deftones and notably Dope Body and Chat Pile. It even harkens back to Velvet Underground at points. The difference for me between those bands at their best and this is a compelling vocal, and i feel this is held back by a less than captivating vocal style. Its so gravely it borders on whispery...which is a shame because it almost has a Lemmy from Motorhead timbre, but like, Lemmy when he has a cold. There were some shining moments, the most realized of which was the song 7 Seas. That one was kinda perfectly balanced dynamics wise and had such an obscured and haunting harmonic quality. I feel myself giving this one another go, and seeking out more from this and related bands. Its somewhere in that The Fall lineage of bands...so maybe I'll start there?
