Kurt Cobain Yells at Cloud.
I am a huge fan of Nirvana’s previous album, Nevermind’s raw energy, screaming rage, and harsh abrasiveness. These qualities gave it a real biting and separating edge from their Grunge contemporaries who were more interested in talking the talk while sonically sticking around other, more consumable alternative acts from that time. Many others agree, the success of this project brought Nirvana and especially Kurt Cobain unwanted attention and scrutiny over all small actions. The industry also wanted them to strike while the iron was hot, it didn’t matter how it happened, but only if it happened soon and was successful.
It’s with this pressure in mind that In Utero begins with Kurt's saying “Teenage angst has paid off well, now I’m bored and old.” This grumpiness permeates throughout the project and while most of it is undeniably executed artistically well, there’s enough vitriol in the themes and decisions that it’s hard to be completely on Kurts side.
This can be seen in Rape Me which rubs me the wrong given its recontextualization of the riff from Smells Like Teen Spirit plus the context that Kurt is tired of his fame in this project. It really feels like Kurt is hiding hard behind the plausible deniability of the words “I’m not the only one” and the backstory this being a more explicit response for people who didn’t get Polly making Rape Me an anti-rape anthem. The potential implication that Rape Me uses the serious issue of rape to also be a sarcastic fuck you to people who expect him to artistically conform to their standards and the people in the industry who did him wrong (“My Favorite Inside Source”) sticks too hard out as a possibility for me to fully enjoy it.
All Apologies, the frontside to Rape Me, may be the most critically acclaimed song Nirvana has released given the given its position as the final Nirvana song. The surrounding sadness of Kurts suicide adding extra weight. There’s immense beauty in the narrative of it being his ultimate acceptance and peace in what others do with his newfound fame while also being dedicated directly to Courtney Love. It’s written so sloppily though and surrounded by the sour mood of the album that makes it feels more like a resentful giving up than a peaceful surrender.
Smaller things like the Awkwardness of the Leonard Cohen afterlife line in Pennyroyal Tea, Kurt’s unintelligible vocals on Tourette’s, and the underwriting on Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge on Seattle also slightly sour my enjoyment.
I’m gripping over these details because a lot of this album is great and would be far beyond amazing if fixed. Enough people have sung praises that any burden of proof is on me to have to explain why I rate it significantly lower than the standard, even if it’s very positive.
That being said, I’ll get to what I like. Heart Shaped Box is my favorite Nirvana Song off this project from the way it paints a beautiful warped picture of the doubts and worries of a relationship so pleasing to your feelings, you can only surrender yourself into.
Steve Albini’s production is a step down from the glorious work on Nevermind but the sharper and noisier sound works well with some of the heavier cuts on the album like Scentless Apprentice, Very Ape, Milk It, and Radio Friendly Unit Shifter. Dumb is also a perfect ballad in its simplicity and its place in the sequence works well as a calm way to end side A.
The principles are strongly in place on In Utero but it feels like Nirvana spent too much time rebelling and fighting their expectations while being too frustrated to care about details. With the extremely limited time there was to get this project out, not enough time or effort could really be put into ironing out the inconsistencies or issues caused by this. I feel like I really have to fully consider every bit of context and pass on any doubts to alternative possibilities to enjoy this album. That’s too much to ask for an album that doesn’t match that consideration put into it.
I understand the details, beauty, and arguments for this album being amazing. I just have too many issues with the overall presentation and the issues that compound off of eachother to do anything more than really like it. I can’t suspend enough disbelief or give leeway to the conditions the album was going through but I can very much appreciate the greatness of what is there and what can be.
Kurt Cobain yelled at a cloud. We know now that the cloud was blocking the invitingly gorgeous view of the stars, among which he would inevitably come to reside.
Low 7/10
This album and The Low End Theory only had 17 months of time in between their releases. It’s a weird point to make when the focus is what came before. With the amount of evolution, improvements and changes made, to realize it was done in that little time is absolutely mind-boggling. Not to say that People’s Instinctive Travels and Paths of Rhythm isn’t bad by any means. It’s a wonderful foundation that led to the absolute classics that came after. It’s just having listened plenty to the other Tribe classics plenty of times before exploring this album really magnifies what they left out to improve their future works.
First off, Q-Tip is on rap duty for almost all of this project. While Phife’s presence on later albums either gives a solid breather or makes you just appreciate Q-Tip being able to hold a project down even better. This project already runs long at over an hour and the lack of change can get a bit exhausting as some of the more stilted flows start to feel repetitive. It’s also weird how little Phife is involved given how often he is mentioned early on. (Side note, I think Phife isn’t absolutely corny. I also enjoy I Left My Wallet in El Segundo and think it’s a good litmus test as to whether you will enjoy Phife or not.)
Next is the extended outros and one-off skits. While they can be a relic of golden era sampling, in this project they add a lot of negative space and bloat to the project for something unmemorable. That is unless they horribly transition into each other during the sequence. This is something not found in TLET and Midnight Marauders as the edits are much more smooth, purposeful, and cohesive.
Lastly is Q-Tips' sometimes completely moodless performance. While a good portion of the project is played cool by Q-Tip to make the more stilted flows work in his favor, he doesn’t quite yet have the skill to perform as enthralling as he does on future releases. His chill vibe becomes almost too calculated and expressionless on tracks like Youthful Expression, Footprints, and Rhythm (Devoted to the Art of Moving Butts). These are the main things that separate People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm from being great but there’s still a lot from it to be enjoyed.
For me, the lyrics are a highlight and that’s definitely a personal preference because I can tolerate absolutely corny stuff if it doesn’t interfere with the performance. Aside from a few disappointing sexuality insulting bars, mostly everything is kept clean, chill, and cerebral but not too brainy. Inner rhyming can be a bit forced at times but it doesn’t derail the flow.
The production for the most part is also very solid, especially on the first half of the album. The percussion choices and record scratches really pair well with the cool jazzy samples and I really like the vocal effects added on the MC transitions. I was also listening to the 25th anniversary remaster (with the original track list only) and the mix on that is absolutely splendid.
This album has a few classic tracks that can’t be ignored. Can I Kick It is obviously the one everyone cites first but Luck of Lucien, Bonita Applebum, Mr. Muhhamed, and for me (and maybe some others), I Left My Wallet in El Segundo are Tribe Tracks that I will gladly go out of my way to play beyond this album.
While it’s the first album that suffered from all of the growing pains. People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm still holds up in its own ways. While I think there may be a bit too much overwhelming praise and recognition. Given the act that’s responsible for it and what they would go on to do after this, I’m not too far behind in saying this can share a spot with the classics.
High 7/10
Despite the smashing underground success and legacy defining release of Funhouse, Iggy Pop had some frustrations with his lack of mainstream fame. This as well as Dave Alexander losing the battle with his alcoholism meant the Stooges had to go back to the drawing board for the third time hoping to charm. Unable to function through the disarray, the Stooges broke up. Following an intervention from David Bowie and some time, The Stooges were now Iggy and the Stooges. With the frustration of things not working out guiding the sound, Raw Power is the resulting project, and the adequate description for its aura.
This album in its form at release lies in conflict with itself. Iggy wanted everything to be turned to 11 and completely bombastic. David Bowie knew that a mainstream audience the size of Iggy’s wants wouldn’t be completely ready for that. As a result, sacrifices were made by dampening parts of the mix to be more palatable but the result just ends up drowning key parts to the sound. The vocals on Search and Destroy, the keys on Penetration, and the Guitar on the title track are mainly what come to mind for me. We fortunately have the ideal vision in the form of the Iggy Mix which allows everything to have the space that is needed for the sound to really bleed effectively through its sheer volume and compression. It’s nice to be able to compare the two mixes.
The strength of this album comes from Iggy’s performance and the wonderful songwriting. The Stooges lyricism has always taken a backseat to their sound and Iggy’s performance but the retooling of their sound allows Iggy to be more front and center and their lyrics to shine their well crafted moments. Iggy also keeps things entertaining and enthralling with his energetic yowls and wonderful bluesy voice. He really brings a bravado that helps you buy into the powerful unstoppable energy that surrounds him.
The shuffling of the lineup ends up making this album musically weaker than Fun House. Having James Williamson at lead guitar over Ron Asheton who is sidelined at bass is an undeniable downgrade. The replacement of the Tenor Sax with keys doesn’t really fill in the gaps as well, especially when everything is supposed to be turned up to 11. The arrangements themselves also feel more amateur compared to the wonderful tight grooves the band was able to pull off on their previous release. This doesn’t affect the enjoyability of the project too much as it does highlight Iggy’s strengths more but it’s not like those strengths were absent on previous releases.
There are a lot of standout tracks on Raw Power. Penetration, Raw Power, Death Trip, and Search and Destroy are my favorites. The rest of the album doesn’t have anything outright bad. Ultimately Funhouse is too much of a defining album for what the Stooges can be at their best that stripping down the fidelity and the loss of band members will always make this stage of the Stooges feel like an imitation that could never stand up matter how well executed, experimental or true to the identity it could be. The Stooges music is like pizza though. Impossible to mess up and the worst of it will always come in the clutch. That is unless pizza is just outright not your thing or you can’t have it.
High 7/10
Hotel California is one of the best selling albums of all time, and there are many reasons it has that place.
Starting out with a legendary tracklist of rock classics like Hotel California, Life In The Fast Lane, Wasted Time, most of these are legendary songs I’ve come across multiple times across various classic rock stations growing up.
Don Henley’s vocals pair wonderfully with the elegant background vocals and beautifully powerful, simple production. Lyrics are simple and introspective with enough flavor to keep them from being absolutely dull.
Every rock trope that plays a part in dating it is executed so perfectly that it’s impossible not to love it. Cheesy Piano and strings sections during Wasted Time. The dedication to simple rhymes. The sequencing transferring from more energetic stuff to slower more sincere stuff. Cheesy love songs written to you.
There's a level of simpleness with enough care and attention put into the finer details to make this improve that I think this album gets underrated under a critical lens for remaining towards the surface in its material and more relatable side of things.
I personally love what Hotel California achieves and think it accomplishes a ton while remaining very mainstream and there’s a lot to be said about how impressive that is.
Low 10/10
Forms of media often have critical consensus albums that are used as the benchmark for the top of the top. It’s become the tired cliché for writers to lazily dub their top pick as the “Citizen Kane” of its format. If I were to do the same with an album as the example. To Pimp A Butterfly would be the project of my choice.
This album is the greatest album of all time according to users on RYM, AOTY, and many other sources. I’m coming out to the gate with no shame in saying that I strongly agree. To Pimp a Butterfly is the greatest album of all time, not by a complete longshot but if any album surplants its placement, it’s going to need to beat the sheer scale, influence, audience consensus, personal impact, and plethora of other factors that influence my placement.
First off, this album was the album that got me into taking Hip-Hop and rap as an art form as well as listening to albums seriously. I was young at the time I first heard TPAB. When I first heard the impressive flows, creative lyricism, powerful performances, and unique jazz production, I was hooked. It showed me that Hip-Hop could be both mind-blowingly cool, intelligent, and mainstream. It showed me how music could sequence well to tell impressive expansive stories and give wonderful extended experiences. I fell in love with just playing tracks off of it, but I slowly fell more into listening to albums, I saw how well it was acclaimed, I started searching for more rap, more music that people rated highly collectively. By 2020, I was writing short reviews on as many albums as I possibly could during covid as my main hobby that brought comfort and peace during Quarantine. I wouldn’t be doing this right now without Kendrick Lamar and To Pimp a Butterfly
As for the project itself, Kendrick Lamar took his colorful personal storytelling and internal introspection on good kid, m.A.A.d city and elevated it to a different intersectional level on To Pimp A Butterfly. The wonderful narrative device of a powerful yet memetic poem reveals itself track by track. The way it shows hardships and personal struggle caused by what should be a triumphant return to home as a hero who can do something about it only to find out he can’t. The wonderful things Kendrick Learns from it are taught through a multitude of excellently detailed musical elements.
The intense Jazz heavy boom-bap production is something that is so unique and astounding that no one even dared to attempt anything similar in the rap world or revisit it due to how extremely well the talented cast of guest musicians and featured producers crafted it. It’s a musical style that will stand out well beyond time. Kendricks flows showcase his musical excellence through tight unwavering control and dynamic showcase. Even his singing is produced well enough to be pleasing.
His lyricism is beyond another level, weaving tight layered references into mind blowing rhymes while constructing these impressive layered stories. There is an immense amount of depth to be uncovered from this project and it still keeps TPAB fresh every time I return to it. Tracklist and sequencing is extremely well done but it’s impossible to mess up when every song on this album is an arguable top five, maybe even best in his discography. It's easier for most people to pick a song they dislike from this project and say everything else is the best. Even decisions like throwing in a Live version of I and having the length of the project be decently overwhelming work well in its favor due to the quality of everything around it.
As much as it could be a part of me not wanting to let something personal go, every time I’ve had an album challenge TPAB for the top spot, I go back and I listen to it and it wins. I’m open to the idea that there may be an album or two I come across during this project that may have the chance and I’ll know if it wins but this project is undefeated vs what has to be over 3,000 others I’ve put a rating and ranking on and many more that I haven’t.
TPAB is the ultimate expression of love for everything that made Kendrick into the person he is despite everything in the world against him and especially the people around him who aren’t there, whether they are with him or not. It moves and motivates you through every challenge, difficulty, and challenge that seems to present itself through the artistic way Kendrick literally battles his demons. Not only did I get TPAB at the perfect time for myself but the world did for itself too. Kendick Lamar is the G.O.A.T. With the greatest album of all time A.K.A. To Pimp A Butterfly.
