I mean… it’s the Who… unbelievable songwriting, commanding vocals, et all. Keith Moon absolutely wails on the drums (which I love).
I really don’t care much for this record, but I do think ‘School’ is a cool way to kick it off.
Peaks right away with Bittersweet Symphony and devolves /immediately/ into one of the most unfocused and forgettable albums I’ve ever listened to.
Big, theatrical, progressive rock. Not really my vibe but a fun listen, all things considered.
I really enjoyed this one (even though I thought I wouldn’t). Feels almost timeless in a way, and was obviously extremely influential to artists I listen to today.
Was vibing pretty hard to this while playing the Oblivion Remaster last night. Was a trip. Even though I didn’t understand anything — the production and musicianship made this an enjoyable listen.
I tried my hardest to like this record because, on paper, it’s right up my alley (90’s, “grunge”-ey, big guitars, etc).
In reality, the valleys outweigh the peaks, and around the midpoint this record becomes a slog. The heavier songs sound like bad Smashing Pumpkins, and the more ballad-like ones are everything that people roll their eyes at when you say “the 90s were my favourite decade for music”.
I get that this is a cult classic and whatever… but for me, this record feels almost like the beginning of the unfortunate post-grunge era filled with weird ballads with super shallow lyrics and heavy songs that sound like knockoffs.
2 stars.
I never really “got” The Smiths and (unfortunately) that streak continues.
Johnny Marr remains a genius, all things considered (they don’t give a signature Jaguar to just anyone)… I just don’t really resonate with Morrisey. I’m also not super stoked on the late-80s production aesthetic, either — and this record suffers from stage IV eightiesrecorditis.
It’s terminal.
Highlight for me was ‘I Started Something’, minus the lazy fade-out at the end.
This record absolutely rules.
Production wise, it is a joy to listen to. Songwriting wise? Theatrical and dark and epic and… well, basically everything you want from a heavy metal record, no?
I really enjoyed this one, and for me there wasn’t a single moment that felt stale or drawn out — even the 8 minute opening track (which usually I scoff at).
I want to preface this by saying that I think Devo is cool.
With that said, cool albums aren’t always super palatable or listenable… and that’s the case here (for me).
I love how punk rock and subversive this album is and I wish I could give it a higher score but…I was super burned out by the second half.
It’s tough to remain objective when you know a record from this challenge basically front to back.
My heart wants to give this one a 5, because it was the soundtrack to a very formative time in my life — but I’ll settle on a 4.
Dirty Boots, Tunic, Mary-Christ and Kool Thing is an incredible 4-track run to start a record that shows basically all “sides” of SY at that time. Tunic and Mary-Christ are definitely “old” SY-vibes, and Dirty Boots and Kool Thing were the newer, Geffen-records-signed vibes. That doesn’t discount how sick those two songs are — they’re just… different.
But just when you thought the old, noisy, experimental, thrashy and abrasive SY is gone, they hit you with the back half including Mote, Mildred Pierce, Cinderella’s Big Score, etc — as if to say “we’re still here”.
I’m of two minds when picking my favourite track from the record. Younger me wants to say Kool Thing, and older me wants to say Disappearer (or maybe Titanium Expose). Regardless, listening to this record brings me back to a better time (and it’s always a joy to spin).
Also — happy belated birthday to Kim Gordon.
Enjoyable enough (due to Joni’s voice) but not something I’d listen to again and again. Highlight for me was Help Me — in nice headphones it’s a crazy experience.
3/5
So many interludes, so little time.
I usually really like old-school, sample-driven hip hop (and I’m aware that this record has a LOT of prestige and is basically an icon of the east coast 90s scene) but it wasn’t clicking for me on first listen.
On a positive note: I really enjoyed the sample in Cash Rules Everything Around Me.
