I wouldn't have previously considered myself as a fan of soul, but this was a rally fun listen to. hearing the vocals and singer side by side like this feels like concert audio to me, but in a good, present way.
On first Listen I was like, yuck. On my second listen i started bobbing along to some parts of the song, thinking well, maybe Neil is just a diomind in the rough, hes got some good sounds developing, some really catchy parts, maybe I was too harsh, a 3 at least. Then it hit me. WAIT A SECOND. These songs are reminding me of other, better songs, ive been had, scammed, HOODWINKED. The duplicty of this album hit me like a freight truck, hes somehow managed to make an album that emotionally reminds me of better songs without having any good ones itself. The rough parts for me are pretty rough and make me want to say count your fucking days Neil. Upon looking at when it came out, (Almost half a acentury ago) the vitriol left my body. Ya alright, you get a bit of a pass, but only as a historical artificat, Now hold this 2
Unfortunately, I kind of liked it. The first quarter had some interesting songs that feel like they would be appropriate in situations deliberately intended to make someone uncomfortable or discontentful. Or maybe Im just a fan of quirky and weird. alot of albums have a very simialr sound all throughout, and this one for the first half each one has a distinct enough sound, for better or worse. However, the leads voice kind of kills it for me quite a bit. he sounds pretty whiny, and the further I got into the album, the more over it I was getting. The lows are just a bit too low and numerous for me, and the highs are infrequent and mildly interesting at best.
Well to prepare for this experience I listened to No one is as Irish as Barack Obama. And except for the first and last sang, NOIAIABO clears this whole album and its not even close. The first one I would politely describe as drinking during st-paddys day in a random bar in america slop. the Band played waltzing matilda is not their original song, but its done well here. I dont think id be happy to stumble upon anything in here really, but also I dont think Id notice. Overall I would say the songs range from fine to forgettable, but hey NOIAIABO slaps and I wouldn't have listened to it otherwise.
inoffensive Caucasian slop. Only realized it was over because new band started playing something good. Really tries to appeal to a suburban america that I am just indifferent to. Listened to it a second time (something I wouldnt do if it wasnt so short) to try and see if it could change my mind, but its just... bland.
This album reminds me of the opening of batman beyond and that was an unmeasurably hype time as a child. As a kid, this is exactly what nightlife music sounded life. it's fun and quirky. As an adult, I can appreciate it electronic music more, but it definitely has a time and place, I wouldn't really seek it out, but If I was out and about, I wouldn't mind hearing it.
Ill leave a snip from a much better review than mine:
" Writing as one who has never “Smack[ed] My Bitch Up”, I should perhaps merely confess that I can’t relate and move on. But that wouldn’t be fair to the art."
Fun! Really re-sparked my revolutionary spirit w/ the first one. Overall im not a hater, its fun and jazzy and has a good vibes. Its a bit harder to have as background music, but I would be more than happy to stumble on it. The lengths of the songs dont bother me really, and I think its great for work music, maybe not as much for at home.
Well I kind figured id like it by the start of the first song, but id felt that way before and been disappointed. I think the first two songs are my favorites. I like them for a lot of the same reasons I liked otis blue, but they feel a bit faster paced, a bit more exciting. Otherwise, I think the rest of the album is pretty good. Four cornered room felt a bit out of place for me, especially since the songs are so long, it felt like an extended intermission, and probably my least liked song of the album. But the second half of the album takes a bit of a more mellow approach anyway, so holistically, I think it's a nice touch. I wish The rest of the album was as good as the first though, overall I think my favorite was where was you at or cisco kid
David bowie. This is actually my first time listening to a david bowie album! This album was generally very nice to listen to. As ive been listening to albums, ive discovered a greater appreciation for blues and this feels like Bowies blue hour. my only gripe is that it feels like an ode to the genre rather than trying to make a more unqiue experience, which I may be wrong about, since im . Which is overall, not bad, but make it a tad shallow at times for my taste, there are alot of moments where it feels like im listening to the intro to a 90s show. But for someone who is a fan of bowie, i can see how theyd be a big fan
I started this very hype. I was ready to rank it a 4 by the middel of the first song. and then ther next song played... and the next.. and I kind of just liked each one a little less? I dont think they were necessairly bad, but the first set high expectations and the rest of the album didnt meet it. But Overall, I defintly think that for less than new music (youre welcome Bob), they do a really good job sounding unique and fresh. I wouldnt have thought this song came out in the 90s. High 3 imo
At first I thought the album was a bit sad, which some songs are, but overall, its just very mellow. Its just a bit jazzy. The fact that its short makes me like it even more, it doesnt overstay its welcome. I think I would probably cut an additional song or two for my personal preference, but While I'm not necessarily a huge fan of the one's id cut, they still fit overall nicely in the album. My favorite song might be blue skies, it's good enough to enter my main rotation, and the others would not necessarily good for just any time, it's just a nice album to have in the background.
im a pretty big fan! I dont really have a great analysis, but this is the one album wherre I had to stop what I was doing to listen to each song and contemplate, is this my favorite song of the album? Theres just a lot of fun and variaty in it.
Good! This is kind of the opposite of the spectrum from the other things Ive liked, but it would very fun to have in the backgground for me. I think a few moments are not as exciting for me, but they act as very good lead ups. I think a slice would end up in my regualr rotation, and the rest are just pleasant to run into. I think my favorite is a tie between good times, bad times and babe im gonna leave you.
I can 100% see the influences this song had on other artist I like, and I can appreciate that. However, for the most part these songs just dont sound finished. This is also coupled with teh fact that mroe than a few songs have any lyrics and have multiple cuts on the album. You can have simple acoustics/sound, or no vocals, having both just makes it feel empty. Even if we compare them to songs popular that were popular around this time, these sound more like intros and snippets than full fledged songs. If I had to pick a favorite it would probably be Complications.
Truly there's like 2.5 songs preventing me from putting it at a 5, that being said, I enjoyed the rest of the album quite a bit. The first song was my favorite but the album felt like it had rhytmic flow to it, where there would be an equally good song two away. It was holistically a nice expereince. now the bad Legend of child girl linda sounded way too much like a modern church song, which is unfortunate because im certain he both does it better and did it first. ALSO i did NOT know he sang season of the witch originally, and to be honest that shoots it up on the unrelated but but always present cool scale.
First time I listened to this album I was not really a fan. But then I locked myself in a tin box with no stimulation, no way out, and no other way to pass 2 hours. And you know what I really liked it under those conditions. The album has a similar sound to a lot of songs I like, but those songs are pretty varied in tone and genre but this album manages to put them together in a fairly cohesive way.
I think my favorite song is further away, but there's a lot of close choices.
