Fun album full of good compositions, some great covers, top vocals and good instrumentation. Lacks the depth, variety and greatness of other/later Beatles releases. All tracks are good though but doesn’t have the replay-ability of other Beatles albums such as Abbey Road, which is to be expected considering the type of album it is and at what stage of the Beatles career it was released.
All tracks are decent-good and none are skips. Includes some classic early Beatles highlights - “It won’t be long”, “Please mister postman”, “Roll over Beethoven”, “You really got a hold on me” & “Money (that’s all I want)”.
Overall, whilst this doesn’t showcase how brilliant the Beatles would become it is still a very fun album, essential early Beatles and a very enjoyable listen.
4/5.
Classic Bob Dylan album. Possibly the most important to him as an artist and one of the most influential albums of the 60’s. Dylan going electric is just iconic.
“Subterranean homesick blues” is one of the best Dylan songs in my opinion and an electrifying way to open the album. Brilliant folk-rock infused with an almost rap energy with some of Dylan’s catchiest lyrics.
The electric side of the album continues to deliver with some of Dylan’s best blues tracks including “she belongs to me”, “outlaw blues” and the best of the bunch “maggies farm”. The latter being a brilliant electric blues track with a simple but great structure and almost punk lyrics. Found amongst these is “love minus zero” which is a good love song.
“On the road again” and “Bob Dylan’s 115th dream” close out the electric side. Both are pretty good, but the latter is the highlight for me with its interestingly surreal lyrics and the start being interrupted by laughter before going into the song is a nice touch.
Side two begins with “Mr tambourine man” and not much needs to be said about this song - it’s one of Dylan’s best, most iconic tracks ever and one of the best of the 60’s. The surreal nature of the songs continues with the great “gates of Eden” before going into “it’s alright ma (I’m only bleeding)”. A masterpiece from Dylan and one of his best songs, with some of his best lyrics. Most notably “He not busy being born is busy dying”. The album closes with a nice acoustic track “It’s all over now, baby blue”.
Whilst this album is probably my least favourite from Bob Dylan’s rock trilogy, it’s still an incredible listen. There are no skips here, and some of Dylan’s best ever songs, lyrics and a great transition into electric songs. Side one is probably better overall for me, although side two has the best individual songs with “mr tambourine man” and “it’s alright ma (I’m only bleeding)”.
At first, I thought of rating this album as a 4/5 as it didn’t stand out to me as much as “highway 61 revisited” and “blonde on blonde” but after re-listens my appreciation has grown for the album. Paired with the fact that it is essentially one of the most essential and influential rock albums ever made, there is no reason to give this fantastic record anything other than 5/5.
5/5.
Very well produced and varied bluesy inspired rock album, with some jazz, folk & experimental influences.
Opening stretch of the album is the best part full of highlights, mostly great bluesy rock tracks. Songs such as “You can all join in” and “Pearly Queen” help the album start with great energy. The biggest hit & catchiest song from the album “Feelin’ Alright?” ends the opening part of the album on a good run.
The middle third of the album calms things down a bit and is generally hit and miss, with some standout tracks like “vagabond virgin”, “cryin to be heard” and “means to an end” but placed with weaker tracks like “…40.000 headman” which is probably the weakest track on the album.
The final stretch on the album is similar in quality, but the album ends well with the infectious “medicated goo” which injects a nice bit of energy before ending on the decent but unremarkable “Shanghai noodle factory”.
Overall, this was a decent listen. The production was great throughout and there were some really nice blues tracks. I can’t help but feel that the album could’ve benefited from being cut down to 10/11 tracks rather than the 15 song album that it is, but I respect the variety on the album. There is some great musicianship and vocal displays but it’s missing *something* to be considered an all time great album for me. Still, a good listen.
3/5.
Abattoir Blues / The Lyre of Orpheus is a brilliant double album, pulling inspirations from rock, pop, art rock, blues & folk to create a fairly experimental but easily accessible and expansive album.
Part 1: “Abattoir Blues” starts with a bang with the loud rocker “Get ready for love”. The gospel vocals against the heavy riffs work perfectly here, and gets the album off to a brilliant start, even if the song does drag on a little too long. “Cannibals hymn” calms things down, but is still just as interesting, with its dark lyrics and haunting instrumentation. “Hiding all away” marks a return to the rock energy of the opening track but does it even better with a great bluesy influence and an incredible build up in the verses to a loud release. Following this is “Messiah ward” which takes a more laid back approach with its lush instrumentation and nice vocals. It’s more basic than other tracks until this point, but still sounds great. “There she goes, my beautiful world” is the gospel backing vocals / heavy guitar and piano combination and it’s best and most catchy with brilliant melodies. The vocals here are passionate and the song is so energetic. “Nature boy” is a bit more laid back but is just as well made and another one of the catchiest points of the album so far. “Abattoir blues” is a good track where the drums standout as the most engaging part, and some nice backing vocals which stand alone in the outro. “Let the bells ring” sees a return to the great choruses on a relatively standard but very well executed track. Closing out side one of this double album is “Fable of the brown ape” which uses the quiet build up / loud release formula quite well but it’s not as effective as on other tracks on side 1.
Part 2: “The Lyre of Orpheus” opens up with its title track, a dark, gritty blues inspired track which opens up side 2 so well. “Breathless” which follows it, on the other hand, is a bright, emotional and pop inspired song which with a great vibe, amazing vocal performance and a catchy chorus and verses. “Babe, you turn me on” slows down the pace with a great romantic ballad and from lyrics to vocals to production is a lovely song all round. “Easy money” is a good, slightly dark, slow burning rock song kept interesting by some good vocals and lyrics. “Supernaturally” picks up the pace as an infectiously energetic rock song with one of the catchiest parts of the album coming in the chorus. “Spell” kicks off the final stretch of the album decently well with a passable but ultimately basic and unremarkable track. The next track “Carry me” does a similar style better with a nice gospel chorus and is just a more interesting track all round. The final track “O Children” is the perfect closer. An emotional build up with fantastic backing vocals which ultimately fades out to end the album on a good note.
Overall, this album is a fantastic listening experience. For a double album, it doesn’t drag and there are no real misses. The album could and maybe should have had some of the less interesting tracks removed, and the album could’ve done with some refining in terms of shortening a couple of tracks which go on a bit too long. Despite this, there are no real big low points and the album stays consistently engaging, with brilliant performances on all fronts including the vital gospel vocals that feature on so many tracks.
4/5.
Whilst I appreciate the ambition and experimentation behind the rock opera that is “S.F Sorrow” I don’t think that this is one of the better psychedelic rock albums of the 60’s.
The opening tracks on the album sit firmly in the sgt peppers era Beatles style, but just nowhere near as good and lacking the catchy sound or intricate songwriting. Other than “She says good morning” which is an early highlight, with a great sounding guitar and almost gritty sound. “Bracelets of fingers” is the worst offender of being a worse sounding Beatles track whilst the opener “S.F sorrow is born” is just okay. “Private sorrow” is passable but not very interesting. The next track “Balloon Burning” is much more interesting with a nice guitar sound and a good solo. The drums sound great and the track has a good fast-paced almost punk like energy. The vocals here also hit better. “Death” is a fairly boring song, where the instrumental just isn’t interesting enough to pull the track along. Thankfully, “Baron Saturday” is much better giving the experimental sound a more ‘accessible’ touch with a nice drum solo. “The Journey” and “I see you” also keep up a good run on the album full of really nice guitar parts whilst keeping the experimental elements. The latter fades into “Well of destiny” which is a forgettable instrumental track.
“Trust” picks things back up again as a fairly standard but nice tune. “Old man going” brings a raw rock energy with trippy sounds and unique vocals which make it a good & interesting track. “Loneliest person” is one of the more standard sounding songs on the album, but it does a decent job, and it’s appreciated for its simplicity. “Defecting grey” is a weird tune which changes between these slow hypnotic passages and into heavier rock sounds. Whilst I do like the sound of the rockier parts, the changes between the sounds is just too jarring and even though I appreciate the uniqueness of what they were going for the track just isn’t listenable for me. “Mr evasion” does a good job of the more simple rock sound and “Talkin’ about the good times” is a good psychedelic rock track. The album ends on a high with “Walking through my dreams” which is, in my opinion, the psychedelic Beatles-y sound done right.
Whilst I appreciate the ambition of what they were going for on this album, and I don’t deny the possible influence it had on albums going forward, I can’t see myself revisiting this one. It has some good psychedelic rock tracks which I like that come through with a raw energy and power, but as a full album has too many misses and bad executions. It pales in comparison to the albums that the likes of The Beatles, The Doors & Pink Floyd were making around the time in a similar style and instead of listening to this album you could just listen to those guys do it better.
2/5.
New gold dream is a really well made new wave album that sums up the popular sound of the 80’s with some great musical performances.
The album kicks off with someone somewhere (in summertime), a melodic, synth heavy track with echoing vocals and is quite catchy. The funky bass carries the next track “colours fly and Catherine wheel” which is an enjoyable track. The same can be said for “Promised you a miracle” but this track comes through with a much more infectious energy and just has more going on in general, with some underrated guitar work. “Big sleep” comes through more laid-back but a good track nonetheless, although it feels the track kept building to nothing. “Somebody up there likes you” ends the first half of the album with a nice instrumental.
The second half of the album opens with the title track “new gold dream” with comes in with a great synth rock energy. The same can be said about “glittering prize”. The final 2 tracks “Hunter and the hunted” and “King is white and in the crowd” have a darker vibe and end the album on a good night with, again, brilliant synth, guitar & bass work.
If you like the 80’s new wave sound, like I do, you will have a good time with this album. It is a batch of 10 really well made new wave pop / synth rock tracks with some great melodies, production value & musical performances. It is missing enough standout tracks to be one of the better albums of the era, but each song is at least good and does a good job of providing that new wave sound.
4/5.
This pre-disco Bee Gees record delivers a listenable but mostly bland collection of soft rock tracks that start to blend together by the end.
The album actually starts fairly well with the slow soft rock ballad “how can you mend a broken heart” which does a decent job even if I don’t feel as much emotion from the song as it is meant to have. The following track “Israel” is much in the same vein but does a better job in my opinion, with better vocals and much more interesting things going on instrumentally. “The greatest man in the world” is another soft rock ballad but has a better chorus than the other tracks. My criticism of this song is that the outro doesn’t feel nearly as grand or emotional as it should given the rest of the song. Following this is the more guitar-centric “It’s just the way” which is a pretty good pop rock tune which keeps things short, simple & sweet. We get back to the ballads with “Remembering” which is mostly a fine song but the vocals don’t do anything for me and doesn’t have anything over the couple of songs in the style that have already appeared on the album. “Somebody stop the music” is better though, as the vocals and instrumentation is superior and the song goes in a more interesting direction at least in the outro with some good bass work to add a bit of variety.
The second half of the album is marked by the Beatles-esque title track “Trafalgar” which, with its Lennon like vocals, is actually a pretty good track.
Back to the slow ballads with “Don’t wanna live inside myself” and whilst I appreciate the passionate vocals on this track more than most of the other vocal performances on the album, the emotional aspect is lost on me as I feel like I’ve heard this song already done 2 or 3 times on this album, following the same formula and the songs are starting to blend together. “When do I” doesn’t do much to help this and, in my opinion, is one of the more forgettable tracks on the album. The same can be said about “Dearest” which to me is a non-starter that suffers from blending in with a few of the other tracks here without any real defining qualities. “Lion in winter” is more interesting at least, because it has some good bass work and a more wild vocal performance, but the song itself is just as average as many on this record. Thankfully, the album ends on a better note with “Walking down to Waterloo” which is this almost tragic sounding anti-war track which creates a unique atmosphere compared to the rest of the tracks on the album.
I think I got what I expected from this pre-disco Bee Gees record. It’s mainly a collection of slow tempo soft rock ballads, most of which blend together into a listenable but relatively bland experience. Some tracks are better than others, and this album is pretty front heavy with all of the better tracks coming in the first half. There are a couple of highlights, but by the end the tracks became pretty boring to listen to. In saying that, the album is well made and the couple of tracks which add variety are appreciated. I wouldn’t even mind these soft rock ballads if one or two of them popped up but there are just so many that sound so similar that the emotion was completely lost on me. At least this album had some good bass work. Regardless, this seems like a weird choice for albums that you “must” listen to.
2/5.
“Songs from the big chair” is an essential 80’s synth pop / rock album and is an absolute must listen for its brilliant production, amazing songs & musical performances.
The album kicks off with the brilliant “Shout”, a chilling track with an immense build up and quality vocals. This transitions into “The working hour” an excellent jazz inspired track which evokes the same kind of feeling as “Shout”. This track also feels intense and I really like the lyrics on this one. Vocals once again are great. Following this is the iconic “Everybody wants to rule the world” which caps off an insane 3 track run to start the album. Not much needs to be said about this one - it’s one of the best and most iconic songs of the 80’s.
“Mother’s talk” has a great energy, the drums sound amazing and a catchy melody. “I believe” in comparison is much slower, with more contained instrumentation and beautiful vocals.
“Broken” is a great showcase of musicianship in a mostly instrumental track which is great to listen to. This directly pairs with the next track “Head over heels” I could talk about this one for hours. It’s a perfectly crafted piece of music and one of the best songs of the 80’s. A masterpiece is musicianship with great pop sensibilities. It borrows one of the guitar parts from “Broken” in its intro. Paired with beautiful keyboard work, heavy reverb on the drums, great synth lead in the interlude, great vocals and a chanting outro, which also borrows the lyrics from “Broken”. This song just sounds absolutely massive. Perfectly crafted.
“Listen” ends the album on a slow & extremely atmospheric note with chant-like vocals.
This album is one of the best produced albums ever. The actual sound of everything here is so great. There is some amazing performances on a variety of fronts - sax, guitar, drums, vocals, keyboard, synths & bass all sound brilliant. Some of the lyrics on these songs are extremely emotional & poetic. This album is an absolute essential for 80’s synth pop. At least 3 of the best rock / pop songs of the decade appear here, and the rest of the tracks are great too. There isn’t much I can fault this album for, the last track doesn’t hit as much for me but I still think it’s great. This is an absolutely essential listen.
5/5.
Led Zeppelin IV is an all time rock classic with brilliant musical performances in every imaginable way which creates an incredibly enjoyable, and varied, listen.
The opening track “Black dog” by introduces some of the great things you will experience on the record including catchy lyrics, brilliant guitar work from Jimmy Page & great vocals. This track has a great energy. “Rock and roll” comes through with much of the same greatness. Brilliant solos on both tracks.
The almost surreal “The battle of evermore” changes the pace of the album rather than adding another rock and roll track. And this is appreciated on the album. The iconic and profound “Stairway to heaven” is the centrepiece of the album and for good reason. It’s obviously one of the best rock songs ever written with one of the best solos ever, brilliant vocals & lyrics.
Side 2 opens with the fun & groovy “misty mountain hop” before going into the mesmerising “four sticks” which features brilliant drumming and vocals in what is a really unique track on the album.
“Going to California” is a fantastic acoustic track with a nice relaxing feel. The album ends on the slow burning blues rock banger that is “When the levee breaks”.
I feel I can’t speak too much on this album without repeating over and over how brilliant every single performance is. From guitar, vocals, lyrics, bass, drums and even mandolin and harmonica. This is an all time rock masterpiece. And it doesn’t even stick to just one strict genre. All killer, no filler defined. An absolute must listen and one of the albums which defines rock & roll.
5/5.
“Party line” kicks off the album with a catchy pop / rock and roll sound, really representative of the time it was made and really catchy. “Rosy won’t you come home” is different, almost leaning into psychedelia like a lot of music at the time was, but with a strong pop sound. Not too far off a Beatles track. “Dandy” is relatively similar, leaning more towards simple acoustic rock. “Too much on my mind” is more Beatles-esque. I like the lyrics on this one. “Session man” sounds very similar. “Rainy day in June” leans more into the psychedelic qualities and is better for it. There is a return to rock n roll on “House in the country”. They might not do these songs as well as The Stones, but it still sounds good.
The second half of the album begins with “Holiday in Waikiki” which features some good guitar work and a catchy melody. “Most exclusive residence for sale” does a similar job - the instrumentation isn’t as good but the lyrics are intriguing. “Fancy” is the weakest so far, not very memorable. “Little Miss Queen of Darkness” is better, a very simple sounding song but sounds great with a nice melody and instrumental. I have similar feelings about “You’re looking fine”. “Sunny afternoon” is the most popular song on the album, and for good reason. It’s all of the best pop & psychedelic moments from this record into a song with a catchy melody which makes for a relaxed 60’s classic. The album ends on a strong note with “I’ll remember”.
4/5.
“Your Arsenal” opens with the explosive “You’re gonna need someone on your side” which is Morrissey and his band probably rocking as hard as they ever had. A similar thing can be said for “Glamorous Glue” which is equally as well crafted but stands out to me as a more memorable track. “We’ll let you know” changes the pace with a slower, more melancholic sound. Not too dissimilar to what you would find on a Smiths record but with a bit more experimentation thrown in on part of the track. Morrissey’s passionate vocals over a great instrumentation makes “The national front disco” a post-smiths classic. “Certain people I know” isn’t as gripping but is still a good track with a nice instrumental and a good way to end the first half of the album.
The second half begins with “We hate it when our friend become successful” - one of Morrissey’s best solo songs with funny and interesting lyrics with a unique and catchy hook. “You’re the one for me, fatty” is another good bit of pop rock with more of Morrissey’s uniquely catchy lyrics. Following this is “Seasick, yet still docked” which is a more melancholic track, shares some similarities with “We’ll let you know” but the song is more straightforward and the emotion comes through really well on this one in comparison. The penultimate track “I know it’s gonna happen someday” is probably the weakest track on the album, but it’s still good, with good lyrics and vocals from Morrissey. The album ends on “Tomorrow” which is a great track, taking it back to the rockers found on the first couple of tracks. In a sense, this doesn’t really feel like an album closer, but it’s a great track nonetheless.
“Your Arsenal” proves that there is some post-smiths work worth listening to. The album is a fun listen, the 10 tracks fly by, and there isn’t really any “misses”. In saying that, it could be fairly concluded that the Morrissey / Marr combo is what really made the pair special, as nothing on this album comes close to the work they did in The Smiths. It seems harsh to keep making that comparison though, as you still get much of Morrissey’s iconic vocals and lyrics over some good instrumentals, with some fun & more melancholic sounds which makes for an enjoyable and relatively varied listen.
4/5.
The album opens with the iconic “Time to pretend”. With great synths & catchy melodies, this track does a good job of capturing the essence of the album. The lyrics here are really good too, and a little sad, but over an infectious song. Following this is “Weekend Wars”, which takes a different approach. It starts with simple but great sounding guitar, drums & vocals. By the end, the song has a lot going on with great arpeggios, synths etc. Surprisingly this song channels Mick Jagger vocally, and at least parts of the song seem to be a nod to 60’s Rolling Stones. “The youth” is a beautiful track, quite melancholic, with great lyrics too. The chorus is one of the best parts of the album so far. The following track is the massive “Electric Feel”, which is probably one of the best tracks of the 2000’s. It’s a perfectly crafted song, worryingly catchy chorus, brilliant bass line. There is nothing more to say about the track, other than it’s just great. I have similar feelings about the songs “Kids” except it comes with a bit more depth and a big sense of nostalgia.
The second half of the album starts with “4th dimensional breakdown” which is a decent, more experimental song with a good outro but isn’t nearly as gripping as the other tracks so far. “Pieces of what” is fairly similar to “weekend wars” with the Mick Jagger inspired vocals. A great sounding guitar & lovely piano riff paired with the vocals make the song. I like that the song remains relatively stripped back throughout. “Of moons, birds and monsters” does a great job of balancing a pop and experimental sound with classic rock energy, with a great guitar break. The instrumentation here is on another level, and the second half of the song solidifies it as one of the best tracks on the album. The penultimate track “The handshake” has a great haunting sound to it, whilst still being as easy to listen to as pretty much any track here. The album finishes strong with “Future reflections” which is probably one of the best instrumental moments on the album.
Overall, “Oracular Spectacular” is a great album, which manages to deal lyrically with quite melancholic or reflective topics of growing up and problems in life etc. whilst managing to make a brilliant sounding album which perfectly balances catchy pop choruses with experimental moments and classic rock elements. It is produced really well, too.
5/5.
