Despite my initial resistance to its length, Brothers in Arms rewards patience with an impressive range of sound across its nearly hour long runtime. While the album can at times feel sprawling, Dire Straits use that space to demonstrate a remarkable stylistic breadth.
The standout moment arrives in the closing track, “Brothers in Arms,” a seven minute ballad told from the perspective of a dying soldier. Anchored by restrained synthesizers and a slow building, hypnotic guitar solo, the song show cases the post-punk attitude this band is know for. Its stark anti-war messaging lingers long after the album ends, effectively overshadowing some of the weaker moments elsewhere on the record.
Tracks like “Money for Nothing,” “Your Latest Trick,” and the buoyant “Walk of Life” highlight the band’s technical precision and genre fluency. Brothers in Arms may not be my personal favorite, but its ambition, sonic variety, and cultural significance—especially as one of the defining albums of the CD era—make it well worth a listen.
“Music soothes even the most savage beast,” and Smash mostly chooses to pummel that beast into submission.
Released in 1994, Smash sits squarely at the crossroads of punk urgency and post-grunge abrasion. The album borrows heavily from the era’s DNA: palm-muted, Nirvana-adjacent guitar riffs; shouted vocals that flirt with melody; and a lingering influence from ’80s hair metal in its muscular chord progressions and solo phrasing. The production is clean but aggressive—compressed guitars, punchy drums, and very little negative space—giving the record its relentless forward momentum.
The interspersed DJ-style commentary is a smart structural choice, acting as brief palate cleansers between tracks that otherwise blur together in tempo and texture. At 14 tracks, the album rarely shifts out of high gear, relying on fast BPMs, straight-ahead 4/4 grooves, and power-chord harmonic language. Personally, I find the constant loudness and repetition grating, but it’s undeniably effective—and very much of its time.
“Come Out and Play” stands out as the album’s most interesting composition. The song’s sitar-inspired guitar riff introduces a quasi-modal flavor that contrasts nicely with the otherwise standard punk tonality. The intentional pauses before the refrain—“you’ve got to keep ’em separated”—create tension through silence, a rare but effective dynamic move on the record. Lyrically, it frames violence as cyclical and performative, which pairs well with the song’s stop-start rhythmic feel.
“Self Esteem,” understandably the album’s most popular track, leans further into melody. Its catchy, descending guitar line and mid-tempo groove make it more approachable, while the drums use heavier fills to emphasize emotional shifts rather than pure aggression. The song captures the stench of ’90s teenage love—self-aware but still wallowing—and closes with one of the album’s sharpest lyrical moments:
“The more you suffer
The more it shows you really care
Right?”
It’s sarcastic, unresolved, and just musical enough to stick.
Smash may be sonically exhausting, but it’s also confident in its narrow focus. It doesn’t aim for subtlety or variety—it aims to hit hard, fast, and repeatedly. Love it or hate it, that commitment is what made it endure.
Very sentimental to the time in which it came out. This album, Lordes vocals, -- are a blueprint to the indie/synth pop that is still being released today. Surreal lyricism and valuable production choices throughout, this album will never not stir some level of adolescent heartbreak within me.
Honestly shocked at the lower rating of this album. Thought it was really dynamic and experimental. Starts off weak with a four minute introduction track titled “Broken Skin”. The opening track should have been the albums second (and strongest track) “Letting Go”. First minute and a half reminds of me of PJ Harvey with gamakas and sitar. The third track, “Homelands” was a banger. Although I cannot comprehend the lyrics, the continuous drums and hypnotic violin entrance you throughout the entire six minute track. “Pilgrim” was a very interesting vibe switch mid album. Giving a Tribe Called Quest over a Tyler the Creator ass beat. Lyrically weak but I like the flow and the beat is super interesting, went on a little too long for my taste. “Tides” the fifth track, switches right back into what Sawhney is known for, — beautiful jazz ballads. No lyrics (thank god after being force fed a constant stream of words in the previous track). The sixth track, “Nadia” is my personal favorite. An electronic, Aphex twin ass, brain fuck of emotional gamakas for five minutes. Something Id drive or bike to and just zone out since I cant understand anything she’s saying. I’ll save my review of the rest of the album but man… From jazz to rap to soul to electrica… This album covers it all in under an hour.
Fun live recording of Ellington & band at the Newport Jazz Festival. Could have done without the introductions and commentary tracks (but understand the purpose). Album had me wanting to swing dance around my house. Ellington is the king, the vocalization into the trumpet is just so fun and unique to his sound.
