The BeeGee’s have a weird edge. It’s all seems very innocent, but there is something dark beneath the surface it’s hard to nail down. Even when they’re being overtly dark, it’s still got a ring of charm that feels like it’s hiding something worse. And what’s with the timpani’s that sound like they’re recorded in the deadest room possible? It just adds to the uncanny feeling this music provides.
While a lot of grunge artists made references to prog bands in interviews, this influence didn’t appear in the music. Soundgarden was maybe the exception. Stripped of prog's complexity but retaining and building on the heavy sonics and riffs, this record doesn’t shy away from the psychedelic or the hook-laden choruses that wouldn’t be improper in a Led Zeppelin record. The fact that Chris Cornell can really sing also made them stand apart from their grunge compatriots. This record also just sounds great. It’s powerful and energetic without being harsh. It continues to find new listeners for good reason.
This record is like Sinatra Live at the Sands for African Americans, which for me makes easily makes it superior. None of the condensing patter and all of the good vibes and energy from a clearly enthusiastic audience. Happy music with the saddest lyrics. It feels like BB’s voice and guitar playing is totally on point, and the band do all they can to support that.
I’ve always been indifferent about The Who. This record shows what a great live band they were. This sounds like a proper live album as well, doesn’t sound like they messed with it in post at all. Pretty good record, but I’m still not crazy about The Who.
God damn. What a beautiful record. I could listen to Marvin’s voice endlessly. The smooth rich strings, the great grooves from the rhythm section, some great interesting arrangement and mixing calls. Everything just so great.
Led Zeppelin. Great music, weird lyrics. This is a great album for good reason, but it feels a little incoherent. The bits between the tracks. Is this an attempt at a tip of the hat towards a concept record, or are they standalone moments of sound art? The filow of the songs is odd and nonsensical? Is that intentional or not? Maybe these things can be explained by the lore behind this LP, which I have no interest in uncovering.
Jorge Ben Joe is a legend. This LP feels and sounds great.
This record was quite uniquely annoying. The overbearing, mawkish sadness in the lyrics tops the list. The basic-ass music (not in a good way), the pretentious out-of-place arrangement and production calls, and the slack-ass out-of-tune singing and performances designed to telegraph authenticity and sincerity. This record is proof that Lou Reed unfortunately left open the door to allow wet men to write shit poetry and boring songs and think other people need to hear it. The thin veneer of country authenticity and Lynchian cool has the unique effect of degrading country music, the work of David Lynch, as well as simple, well-crafted songwriting in general. It appears to be a mechanism designed to lure in hordes of other sad, damp boys to indulge in the sentimentality most people mature out of by the time they’re 23. This is music for people so inwardly cowardly, they need every artistic prop they can find to justify their ongoing pretentious resistance to facing themselves and moving on with life. The fact the version of the LP I listened to has almost as many bonus tracks as LP tracks is testament to how little Howe Gleb thinks of the craft of songwriting. No one should give their time to art that uses music as an excuse for whatever bullshit this guy thinks he’s getting away with. Fake sadness is the worst.
Love this record. Most great “punk” records are just great rock and roll records. The distinct post-summer of love and general disenchantment with the promise of America, give the tone of this record a weirdness and unsettling energy that is completely compelling. But at the heart, The Stooges and their counterparts need to be celebrated for finding a way of pulling the thread of rock and roll through the hippie malaise for a generation who were untouched by its middle class sentiment.
This is a great record. I’ve just heard it too many times now. It’s still got the magic, but I need to not listen to this for 5 years or so, so that I can rediscover it again.
This is a good Frank Sinatra Album. I think I prefer Live at The Sands myself. Frank is a bit tainted for me because of how much boomers love him due to their overdeveloped sense of nostalgia.
Great damn record. The songs and arrangements are all solid. The real genius is the interplay between the electronic and other parts. It doesn’t feel locked down by rigid sequencing, and all those parts bring energy and vibrancy to the whole record. It’s killer.
This is a wild and beautiful album.
