Classic 12 bar blues rock
Most tracks sound kind of alike
Some tracks are a bit more reggae, some a bit more 60s rock with solos
Political lyrics (about being black in US etc.)
Some singing as well as rapping
Quite aggressive, uncomfortable to listen to for a long time
Nice subdued instrumentation
Probably a 2, doesn't really speak to me
Very much about the issues of a black woman in the US
Nice relaxing acoustic instrumentation
A tad repetitive - the lyrics in a song are often repeated, and the music rarely evolves much dynamically
Conclusion: It's nice music, if slightly repetitive, and the lyrics certainly seem heartfelt and well-written. But the lyrical themes just doesn't speak to me as as a white European male, and the music is too static to really hold my interest. I would enjoy this music if it was put on at a friend's house, but I wouldn't listen to it myself. It's a 3.
Archetypal screaming gangster rap. There is some political content about racism, but it's delivered with the subtlety of a power drill. The rest is repetitive and irritating self-praise and threats of violence, mostly against the police, women. There's not much interesting going in the instrumentation either - just a lot of heavy 808 kick drum and some scratching, gun sounds, police sirens etc. I normally listen to all albums all the way through even if I don't like them, but the first four tracks are enough to tell me this is my first 1 on this site.
Great album! The songs are varied, but still form a cohesive whole where I barely notice the transitions. No songs feel weak. The instrumentation is there and hits hard when it needs to, but doesn't overwhelm the soundscape either.
E.g. songs 1 and 2 are very different (1 sounds like naive 60s/70s John Lennon stuff, 2 is a lot rougher and very masculine, even with a bit of Led Zeppelin in the vocal as well as the guitar)
A lot is going on, and I'm sure this has its merits, but it's not really something I want to listen to right now, so I think it's a 3
I'm sure this is great reggae, but reggae just isn't my thing. I find it boring, repetitive and going nowhere. I don't really like the way Bob Marley sings either.
I like the lyrical themes, and kind of like the overall sound as well, but I just find the playing and singing style a bit boring and repetitive for my taste. I like more variation within the form of a song. A few songs, like Highway 5, do have a bit more going on instrumentally, if not in form.
I was going to give this a 3, but I liked the last few songs, and I have a feeling it might grow on me and work well if I'm in a bit more of a laidback, meditative mood, so I'll bump it up to a 4.
Very electronic and weird instruments, but still somehow feels acoustic?
A weird mix of genres that just works
At least a 4 - I kind of want to give it a 5, but I don't know if I see enough of an overall artistic vision for that
Mostly psychedelic rock/pop, with one song of 12 bar blues/early rock (Student Demonstration Time) and some slightly weird experimental stuff (A Day in the Life of a Tree)
Close to a 4, but I don't really feel an emotional connection or really captivated by anything, so it's going to be a 3.
There is no forgetting this is a live recording. Cooke is constantly interacting with the audience, asking them to sing part of the songs and dance, and it feels weird to listen to as an album. This kind of polished soul without challenging lyrical or musical content isn't really my thing. It's fine music for its genre, but neither live recordings nor pop soul are really my thing, so we're landing on a 2.
Some songs have interesting stuff going on (the vocal style in Sleep to Dream, the groove in The First Taste, the strings and piano in Never is a Promise, the strings in Carrion), but there's also a lot of generic pop with uninspired breakup-themed lyrics that doesn't really speak to me at all. The vocal and style is quite mature, though the lyrics aren't for the most part. It's a bit poppy for my taste, I would like some more experimentation, and the lyrics aren't great, but I like the arrangements, so I think I'll give it a 3 - close to a 4.
It's good for its genre, but it's real 60's country - from a time and genre when men were supposed to be really macho and not show any real emotions on a record. Sure, the lyrics are all about love, good and bad, but none of it seems heartfelt, and there is no vulnerability. I'd enjoy this as a soundtrack to some comedy movie, but I don't really listen to music that doesn't impact me emotionally at all. Between a 2 and a 3.
Quite forgettable, to the point that I actually forgot I was listening to it. Most songs are quite repetitive, even if their groove is nice. No emotional impact. It's not something I've actively disliked listening to, which means it's not a 1, but I'm not giving more than a 2 to anything that has left no impact on me whatsoever.
Too aggressive and screamy for my taste. Not something I enjoy listening to at all. There is decent musical cohesion and okay instrumental performances, which almost make it a 2, but the lyrics seem almost like a parody of metal, and the rhytms are really quite simple and repetitive, making it feel tedious. So this ends up as a 1.
Something as unusual as a (mostly) a capella pop-ish studio album. A few tracks Where is The Line are quite bizzare, but also quite interesting. This is definitely not easy listening, but there's definitely depth and quality here, and I think there are more layers I want to uncover, so probably going to listen to this again soon-ish. Seems like a 4.
Basically elevator music. It doesn't create any emotions in me whatsoever. It's all right to listen to, but I can give no more than two stars for muzak.
I keep thinking of Civilization, but that's probably just because it's the main place I've been exposed to non-Western traditional music. It's difficult to rate, as it's from a completely different musical tradition that I'm used to. But I like it, and it's relaxing and different. I think I'd like to explore this kind of music further, and it seems a very good introduction to it, so I'll give it a 4.
An absorbing soundscape, with a band that really plays as a unit and never loses its vibe. There are a few songs, like Love is Here, with great lyrics that feel refreshingly different for such an old album. However, there are still parts of it which feel somewhat dated, and it does have this same-ish psychedelic rock vibe almost all the way through - there's not quite enough variation, layering and combination of different elements to warrant a 5 for me.
Funk generally isn't really my thing - I like my music to have direction and development, and funk is more of a stationary feeling. But there are times when I want something groovy in the background that doesn't take too much attention, and this is quite good for that. It's a 3, which is the highest I think I can give within this genre.
Nico's German accent is embarassingly strong, and it makes it a difficult to take the lyrics seriously - sometimes it sounds like a parody of a German singer. Perhaps she should have recorded the album in German or taken more English classes. The string arrangements are kind of cheesy, and the instrumentation and production in general feels weak and hollow, unwilling to take any chances. Nico is trying to do something experimental (as you can hear on "It Was A Pleasure Then", which somehow escaped the whims of the producer), but the producer has packed it in fluff that doesn't fit it at all. Overall, the album feels tedious and mismatched. It's not actively bad enough to warrant a 1, but I don't think I can give it more than a 2 either.
It's not ashamed to be pop, but also not be afraid to put it out there with a strong arrangement of drums, guitar and strings and a powerful vocal to match. The instrumentation is quite prominent and innovative for a pop album, e.g. on the last two songs. It's some of the best pop I've heard - I'm almost tempted to give it a 5, but it doesn't leave a deep impression the way the best rock albums do, so I think it has to be a 4.
Well, Arcade Fire is in my top 2 of all artists, and this album is the rawest and perhaps purest of all they've made, so it was pretty given this would be a 5. Every song feels emotionally true, the lytics are great ("We're just a million little gods causing rainstorms" is an amazing line), and the instrumentation communicates the feeling of each song perfectly.
Nice to hear some funky hip hop with rappers who aren't too far up themselves to put an effort into making actually good music that plays well with the instruments. This album does a lot of experimentation (most noticeably on *Acetate Prophets*), but it rarely feels out of place - all these things are integrated in a whole. This is one of the best hip hop albums I've heard, but it's not really a genre I like that much in general, so a 5 would be too much, but it can carry a 4.
Very well composed. There's not too much or too little of anything, there are some really cool solos, and the timing is spot on. Some of the music feels quite danceable for tango as well. I can't find any faults or something I'd change as such. However, it doesn't really leave any strong emotional impression, which I personally demand in a 5, so it'll be a 4.
On the first track, I had to play something else on my speaker to make sure the static sound wasn't because the speaker was broken before switching back. Later songs are not quite as noisy, but still a bit too much for my taste. There is something about ethereal music, but it's not really my thing - I like my music to have a bit more direction. Either it annoys me or I forget I'm listening to it - both mean a 2.
