Not what I expected from Depeche Mode, but all I knew going in was Personal Jesus - that's literally it.
world in my eyes has very fun drums and loud synths. and a good bassline
This is very dramatic music. I like the synths (?) on track 2, and those big fat gated snares.
Personal Jesus is such a good fucking song dude. I like the laser sounds + the arp (?) guitar sound? Wait all the guitars are so cool what the fuck. and the outro...
Halo!!!!! Whoa.
My mom likes Waiting for the Night but I'm a little bored so far. Nice twinkles.
My mom used to play Enjoy the Silence all the fucking tiiiiiiime oh my god I can't listen to this. This song is great
bloop bleep blip bloop. Policy of Truth picks up. this guy can sing man
actually this song is fucking insane. there's so much groove to it
not big on blue dress
really really good sapcey sounds in clean and great lyrics to end
favorite: hard toss up between Halo and Policy of Truth
least favorite: Blue Dress
shoutout: Clean
8
Pre-bed skim: drums are crisp, surely they've been sampled
Thereās A World is Hot In Herre and that has ruined the song for me
Heart of Gold stood out so far. The guitar and drums are great but Iām torn on his singing, this guy is a CROONER
I am not a fan of the orchestra tracks, and that appears to be a shared opinion.
As a North Carolinian? I think I get what he's going for here
Old Man was really good. Familiar too
Words has good lyrics and the guitar sounds great, but it doesn't really *DO* it for me
going back
Out on the Weekend would be so great if I was fawning over somebody... which I am not atm. The guitar slides (idk what instrument that is. steel slide?) are fun and not overdone like a modern country track; some reverberated plucks during the harmonica solo that give the whole thing some character. I liked that song man
I love the melody/vocals in Harvest. It sounds so woeful. Love love love the inflection he hits on the third word in each line/"dream up". It tickles something in my brain.
Will I see you give more than I can take? Will I only harvest some? As the days fly past will we lose our grap, or fuse it in the sun? :'(
A Man Needs a Maid was boring. I like the lyrics, although I wonder if I'm interpreting them correctly. Too slow, and the orchestra swell is corny. Who put these bells here?
Heart of Gold is good shit man. The guitars are strong and his melody just starts off perfect. Bro was singing about getting old at 26 I get it Neil.
Am I ready for the country??? I liked this track this morning so apparently I am. Killer guitar solo
Old Man is great. There's that steel slide again
SO HOT IN!!! SO HOT IN HERREEEEE. WITH A LITTLE BITTA UH UH
Don't like that song, sorry London Symphony Orchestra
Alabama is great. I don't have much to say about it? It's just kind of pretty damn good. Guitar is excellent, chorus is fun, Louisiana is still cooler.
The Needle and the Damage Done isn't a song I'm a huge fan of sonically, but I loooooove the lyrics.
I've seen the needle and the damage done, a little part of it in everyone... but every junkie's like a setting sun
Words is epic. Great guitar
guitar was great, lyrics were ok, didn't like his voice
It's good but it's not my thing. 6
Favorite: Harvest
Least favorite: A Man Needs a Maid
mentions: Words and Alabama
hahahahaha yeah i like this album
it's not quite as good as what came after it, but man they had some ones on here. i remember getting really into Go Ahead In the Rain (the chop!!) and Description of the Fool because the samples are so weird. Footprints too
I'm gonna be so real Q-Tip is a way better sounding rapper than he is lyrically; like he's fun to listen to and the flow and voice are impeccable, but his lyrics and storytelling are just dated more often than not (I like Midnight, but that's not on this one). This is probably the most apparent on this one.. buuut it is 1990 early Native Tongues, so that fun and goofiness is part of the charm.
Push It Along is a great intro to the group, very simple
After Hours is one of the tracks on this album where I think the sample choice really shines! It's very spacey and jazzy combined with a solid break. More storytelling that I think is okay, relatable though; I've been here before. Most of this album is just Q-Tip if you listen carefully; Phife said he was too busy bullshittin to make it to the studio and he regrets it.
Footprints is kind of the exact same situation as the last song, but Tip is a little more vague with his lyrics and I think it's for the better - not a long ass story this time. The flow is dated though. I love how primitive the drum chop is.
El Segundo is a classic! Definitely a silly one, what the fuck was he doing in El Segundo to begin with?? That's such a drive man. Lowkey the song is kind of boring outside of the hook and the absurdity. I ordered enchiladas and I ate em...
Pubic Enemy is ridiculous, not a highlight for me. Yes STDs scary women "dirty" it's the 90's. The hook is also ridiculous, and Q-Tip making all these HUP! noises on top. Not a fan of silly interjections into the verse either.
Bonita Applebum... shoutout Roy Ayers and RAMP. Not much going on, but not much is needed.
Can I Kick It? Probably! Unless Lou Reed takes all your money. Classic sample, classic break, we finally get some good stuff from Phife! Itās always bugged me how the very last line of his verse doesnāt rhyme with the rest of it āas you inhale like a breath of fresh air..ā.; he couldāve said ay-er at least. Tip sounds great, the break is perfect, what else can you say. The scratches are fun too.
Youthful Expression never stood out to me that much. The sample is fine, the lyrics are actually kind of good on this one! Very interesting, laid back flow. Callout to Rakim āI like fried foods, especially fishā. The piece of the sample they use for the hook is good and the bassline is nice, maybe this song isnāt so bad. Still doesnāt do it for me like the other deep cuts do, this song is ok.
Rhythm is another sleeper with a sample and break combo I love. Thereās that weird sub bass sound in the verses that works well with the drums (that I have to add sound great), but it disappears when the sample comes back in. Dave from De La comes in to say a line
Mr. Muhammad is a lot like the other sleepers but a bit of a dud for me again, the sample isnāt as fun outside of the vocals, and the drums are a little more basic. Ali Shaheed definitely deserved some shine though; it tripped me out as a kid learning Tip made all of these beats and not Ali Shaheed! Phife is here and he sounds great! His juvenile flow worked better than Tipās on the rare occasion he pops in.
Ham N Eggs is a fun back and forth cut with them both over a classic sample that I forgot the name of. Definitely a bit more gimmicky than I would like but this track is just a good time. Bridge!!!!
Go Ahead In the Rain is my shit. The sample is SO good, especially those high pitched chords that come in the last part of the 2 bar. The vocals going from side to side make it sound a little trippy. Tip sounds SLEEPY on this one, heās got this low register as if heās trying to sound older or something lol. Nice drum fill that lets the 808 bass shine - I LOVE when an 808 kick is on boom bap drums. It fills the track out so well, it works super well when Iāve done it. I like the drum solo towards the end, and the beat rides out to really let you hear how good it grooves.
Description of a Fool! The break is great, the lyrics are there on this one. More standard hip hop shit talking that we would see more from Tribe on their 3rd and 4th albums, but with a twist towards pumps and abusive men. Whatās da matter withcha BOYYYY?? Love the keys that come in on the latter half of the verses, one of my favorite parts. The vocal sample echoes out once we get towards the hook and really shape out the track. Not a fan of the HOOOO! scratched into the hook, but then the next verse pops in and weāre right back.
Favorites: Footprints, Description of a Fool, Go Ahead In the Rain
Least favorite: Pubic Enemy
Shoutouts: Bonita Applebum :)
7, but weāll lean towards 4 stars!
I donāt care for the remixes and never have. I donāt care what J Cole is doing to Can I Kick It. Ok the Pharrell one is kind of coolā¦
I walked back into my room after smoking a bowl and thought I left a video game playing. This is dope! And for 1978?
Man Machine is straight up a beat, and also a really niche Juicy J sample (among others Iām sure).
Shabazz Palaces bit the melody for Quazarz Born On a Gangster Star from The Model lol. Big fan of this song and how it has lyrics about things besides being robots and machines⦠although maybe you could find a connection between a model (THE modelā¦) and a machine.
Metropolis is great. You kind of have to look past everything bordering on sounding like NES music.
Wikipedia tells me that thereās an element of satire to the album, which I like hearing. I think if it was 4 dead serious German dudes accidentally laying the groundwork for techno then it would be too silly to take seriously⦠ironically enough.
I watched a live performance of The Robots and these guys are just ridiculous.
Neon Lights is a nice little song; feels more like a normal ass song than a robot experiment. I like the guitar-esque plucks from the synth, although the chords are a little silly. The synth breakdown in the middle started fun but 2 minutes in it gets a little grating; very loudā¦
Update itās been 3 minutes and Iām over it, way too repetitive and the vox synth that comes in doesnāt make it any more interesting. Outro isnāt bad
Man Machine is awesome, the breakdown and its funky sounds is so fun (oooh the arp), the drums groove hard as fuck, and the synth isn't obnoxious! Probably my favorite.
Metropolis is like... a foray into 90's VGM - thi is the track I thought was a video game. Sounds like System Shock 2, the swelling synths after the hook sound superb.
I wrote more but it got deleted. Spacelab is ok but gets old.
Favorite: The Man Machine
Lest Favorite: Neon Lights
Shoutout: The Model
7
very torn between 3 and 4 stars but i'm gonna lean to 3 because i just don't see myself going back to them a lot, playing it in the car, etc.
I opened my phone and went FUCK!!!!
I skimmed a little last night and I didnāt hate it. I think listening to Lou Reed and Iggy Pop before this guy got me accustomed to the weird inflection he uses.
Like a Rolling Stone was fine but I feel like we came back to the chorus like 10 times.
I've had the album on in the background while I work.... I can't lie man I don't hate it. I kind of like it! the instrumentals are definitely the high point for me, they sound crisp and the band is on point. Oh god it's harmonica time.... I also don't hate the harmonica! (Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues). Oh shit there's the Beastie Boys sample!!!
Gun to your head do you want to listen to Bob's voice, or Bob's harmonica? Shit man probably his voice.
Why is this song 11 minutes long. I mean it's good but jesus Bob.
Like a Rolling Stone - Great track from the band, cutting lyrics. How does it feel? Goes on maybe a little long.
Ballad of a Thin Man has great lyrics and a great melody. The instrumental is a bit slow, but the organ and guitar really make it worthwhile. Ok actually I fucking love this song.
Tombstone Blues doesn't do a lot for me; not a fan of the upbeat blues/rockabilly sound. Apparently this one is about Vietnam?
I'll say this: His songwriting demands to be looked into. Not in an "oh he's being intentionally vague to come off as deep", but moreso wondering where the hell he's pulling these references from, and what they mean. "The geometry of innocent flesh on the bone/Causes Galileo's math book to get thrown/At Delilah who's sitting worthlessly alone/But the tears on her cheek are from laughter". Very interesting, even if I can't (or don't feel inclined) to figure it all out.
I can't figure out what It Takes a Lot to Laugh is about. Something about a girl? The interpretations I'm getting don't make sense to me. Sounds okay, I'll have to go back to it.
From a Buick 6 is fun; big fan of that organ again. If you blink you might miss it, but I think this song is about cheating (...and liking her better)! Not a favorite but the first one I skimmed through that piqued my interest.
Back to Ballad of a Thin Man and wow I still love this song. Something is happening here, but you don't know what it is...
I missed Queen Jane Approximately earlier! The instruments sound amazing, again, especially when they slowly fall into place in the intro. Love that sharp guitar strum that comes in every so often. Hard to tell if these songs (and Like a Rolling Stone) are like a "yeah well maybe come and give me a try" or if Dylan is just judging the shit out of people for being lame; I think this one is more the former, and Rolling Stone is more the latter. The drums fills are particularly nice.
Highway 61 Revisited. Why the fuck is there a slide whistle. Another song like Tombstone Blues that doesn't do a lot for me musically, but has super interesting lyrics that make reference to these grand historical figures and vague events.
Oh God said to Abraham, āKill me a sonā
Abe says, āMan, you must be putting me onā
God say, āNo.ā Abe say, āWhat?ā
God say, āYou can do what you want Abe, but
The next time you see me coming you better runā
Well Abe says, āWhere do you want this killing done?ā
God says, āOut on Highway 61ā
Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues - Love the electric guitar, love the driving piano and drums, Dylan is on point.
I started out on burgundy
But soon hit the harder stuff
Everybody said theyād stand behind me
When the game got rough
But the joke was on me
There was nobody even there to call my bluff
Iām going back to New York City
I do believe Iāve had enough
I like that song.
Desolation Row, from what I understand, is more typical of what Dylan did prior to this album. It's well crafted, and maybe a good change of pace.. but I quite liked the blues rock sound we had going on!
Overall I'm pleasantly surprised. I've started to enjoy his voice, I just wish there was maybe some more satisfaction to figuring out his music. It seems that the vagueness is actually maybe a little intentional, and lends itself to making everything seem so *dense*, but is it?
Favorite: Ballad of a Thin Man
Least Favorite: Highway 61 Revisited
Shoutout: Queen Jane Approximately, Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues
I'm going to give it a 7 and lean towards 4 stars. I'm sorry for doubting you Mr. Dylan; lucky for me, I've got 6 more albums to hate on before I finish this list.
Every one of these songs sound like the punk music in Pro Skater 4 but more folky.
The first 3 tracks have blended together, with the second being my favorite. It sounds like pirate music. The vocals are good
Metropolis sucks, it sounds like half pirate music half 50's superhero motif. I think I get what the deal is with the chaotic blending of sounds, but it is not fun to listen to.
Okay look I don't really care. Like if there's an album all about how much someone loves being American and misses their country I'm probably not going to give a shit about it. Ireland is cool and I'm sure there's a rich culture, history, and heritage over there - but I do not care.
With that being said, Thousands Are Sailing is an enjoyable song that sounds unlike any of the tracks that preceded it. Mostly anyway.
Look man music can and should be fun, but Fiesta is just too much. I'm tapping out here and will pick back up tomorrow.
I'm listening to Nathaniel's Iron Maiden album instead, I am not excited to jump back into this one. Hell I ran back a Bob Dylan song before I reopened this album, hahahaha.
Ok we're coming back at track 8.
Dude this shit sucks. It's well made but I hate the way it sounds and I don't give 2 fucks about Ireland. I didn't sleep enough last night I'm not havin it today.
Hey isn't Aiedyn an Irish name.
The Broad Majestic Shannon is okay. I still don't like it.
I'm just gonna go ahead and set up for the end of the review; I'm going to get through it, but I checked out a long time ago.
Favorite: Thousands Are Sailing
Least Favorite: Metropolis, Sketches of Spain
Shotout: Uhhhh. The Broad Majestic Shannon?
1 star. I went ahead and skimmed their other album on this list and it's the same shit.
Started track 1 and said "Aw hell yeah".
I have an odd feeling towards country music as a whole. I don't hate it, honestly I find it really endearing. It reminds me of home (bluegrass is actually what reminds me of home, but it's far too chaotic for me to enjoy in high doses). But it's also more often than not just not quite my thing, sonically or thematically. I think radio country from the mid 2000's - 2010's really soured my view on the genre (I hear it's only gotten worse), but I've always enjoyed what I know from people like Johnny Cash or Waylon Jennings, so maybe I'll be surprised. So far I like the voice and overall country flavor over it far more than I liked Neil Young's go at it. I'm so happy it's not The Pogues again.
You Don't Miss Your Water stands out; it sounds like the Beach Boys tried to make a country song? Huge fan of the way the vocals stack on top of each other and sound. Oh and the lyrics are really really fucking good.
Hickory Wind!!!!
You Got A Reputation!
Lazy Days!
Blue Canadian Rockies!
I've just had it on in the background all morning, this is really pleasant.
It's worth noting that track 11 is the final track on the original release until a re-release in the 90's, but I quite like those last 3 tracks, so I'll allow their inclusion. The various rehearsals included I will not be partaking in, as they are the same songs!
So apparently one guy joined the band in '68 and was like "I need to make country music cool" and the rest of the band was like.. not 100% on board. By the time the album came out the guy was on his way out of the band (says he quit in protest of touring ZA during the apartheid era, based), didn't even make it a whole year.
7 leaning to 4 stars this was pleasant all the way through. It's hard to pinpoint moments because a lot of it blends together, but that's not a bad thing here. The harmonizing/layering vocals, the twinkle and twang of the guitars (mmmm steel guitar), the yearning lyrics... Neil Young didn't sell me but this did. Some of the more upbeat songs don't do it for me like the laid back folksy ones do, but they're few and far between.
Favorites: You Don't Miss Your Water (so good), Hickory Wind, You Ain't Goin' Nowhere, You Got a Reputation
Least: Pretty Boy Floyd
Shoutout: You're Still On My Mind, One Hundred Years From Now
ok 7.5 i didn't realize i added every song except one to my spotify
Late start today, idk The Pixies at all. Titties!
Bone Machine is fun but I'm not big on the absurd lyrics. Guitar sounds great, drums too.
Why do they keep singing about Bones. I like the vocals in Break My Body, especially the hook.
Something Against You was a bit much, but not bad. A lot of the album isn't sticking out to me, but it's solid.
Gigantic - I like the girl's voice more! This one is nice, I could tell it was a single.
River Euphrates is ok.. I can't decide if I like the hook or not. Band is on point.
Oh fuck this song is on this album??? Okay well I knew ONE Pixies song leading in. Where Is My Mind is great.
I like Cactus a lot. Good lyrics. The drums are very punchy on this album!
Not a fan of Oh My Golly. Too much going on.
Oh of course Albini produced this shit.
I just got home, I'm crossed, I picked back up on Vamos... and the guitar is pissing me the fuck off it sounds like a bug in my ear when it does that thing it keeps doing. Stop it! Ok they kinda did and the rest is interesting.
Didn't really do much for me; I won't deny that it's good, but it's just not quite what I'd like from this style of music. Too much!
Favorite: Brick Is Red
Shoutout: I'm Amazed, Break My Body
Coming back to give it a 3, it was a lot more fun in the car.
This is what I have to drive to tomorrow?
I donāt wanna be a soldier is really really fucking good. The drums are insane.
How do you sleep!!!! Wow. Oh this is just a straight up Paul diss, kind of silly but man it sounds good.
Didn't blow me away but I had an unexpectedly pleasant time with it. Lyrics were a little silly at times, but the songs sounded cool
Favorite: How Do You Sleep?, I Don't Wanna Be A Soldier Mama
Least: How?
Shoutout: Oh Yoko!, It's So Hard
MF DOOM sample for Dead Bent detected within the first 30 seconds. Hood Took Me Under, 2Pac Me Against the World, and Biggie - Warning sample within the first 60, that's crazy.
Song 2 immediately a DJ Quik sample. Public Enemy sample detected
It really is hard to listen to this without just grooving to the samples, but some of these sounds are crazy; this album sounds way more 1970;s than 1969. Strings are beautiful, background vocals are incredible, drums are CRISP (I've used these drums before lol). His voice is so endearing it hurts, once you get past him being Chef anyway. Oh and the guitarist is on point, this song is long ass shit though.
Leave it to him to make the most romantic, salacious and tempting song about cheating on your woman, only to turn around and give us an 18 minute epic about a man who was jut too kind getting cheated on over and over and the woes associated.
Hard to pinpoint a lot of it, but it's a fun time all the way through. 4/5
Fav: By The Time I Get to Phoenix
Least: The part of Walk On By when the orchestra gets too loud
Fuck Shit Up sounds really cool; could do without the vocals. A lot of it has been.. a lot so far.
2Kindsa Love was cool
Hot Shit also fun.
Can't Stop has a fun groove to it. Still don't like the vocalist. Very good drum break!
Firefly Child has a good groove too; I like the bluesy tracks and this drummer fucking rules.
Eyeballin is interesting; again with the grooves. Why hasn't the band been this consistently good til now?
RL Got Soul is more of the above.
Sticky is just not fun to listen to I'm afraid\
I don't like Rocketship; something about the way he says wild child sounds dumb, and he says it a billion times.
It's fine, but it doesn't do a lot for me. 2/5
Favorite: Fuck Shit Up
Least: Rocketship
Shoutout: Cant Stop, Firefly Child, Eyeballin
The bridge in Alive šāāļø
I gave this album a try a few months back in the midst of my Alice In Chains phase, and while I enjoyed it, they really didn't scratch that itch for me. Pearl Jam is not standard *grunge* just because they came up in the scene. Eddie Vedder joined the group from Temple of Dog when Cornell needed some help hitting a harmony. One of the only ones left too.
Previously I only added Alive (still awesome) and Black to my Spotify.
Once is great, a very, very strong opener. Black is still incredible, a great song that maybe I should have listened to way closer when I was all sad and shit over the Winter. Or maybe not...
Sheets of empty canvas, untouched sheets of clay were laid spread out before me as her body once did.
Fuck man Jeremy is on here?? I've heard this song and story WAY too many times (thanks Matthew). Honestly? A fan of the story, not of the lyrics. "Seemed a harmless little fuck, ooh", "Gnashed his teeth and bit the recess lady's breast", although I guess if you think about the *perspective* of what kind of kid is saying that about Jeremy, it makes a lot of sense. The outro is INSANE.
"It came from a small paragraph in a paper which means you kill yourself and you make a big old sacrifice and try to get your revenge. That all you're gonna end up with is a paragraph in a newspaper. Sixty-four degrees and cloudy in a suburban neighborhood. That's the beginning of the video and that's the same thing in the end; it does nothing ... nothing changes. The world goes on and you're gone. The best revenge is to live on and prove yourself. Be stronger than those people. And then you can come back"
Also the guitarists are fucking crazy. Oh duh it was McCready I already know he's crazy
Garden dropped and I had to like stop working and look over. God damn Eddie. Reminds me of Mad Season a lot in its melody.
People seem to be indifferent on his voice and I definitely understand that, he taps into this super dramatic 80's singer mode here and there, but I think the way the tone aligns with the instrumentation is way more crucial.
Release is fun, although long... oh it has a secret track. I LOVE the cheesy early 90's stock samples that started and ended the album. So out of place, yet so fitting at the same time. Reminds me of Mad Season almost.. funny. "Master/Slave" it's called, so that the album feels like a loop.
There's also some cheesy synth-esque noises layered with the guitars starting off Jeremy...? Very odd choice (and it took me 4 listens to notice them). The harmonizing on "King Jeremy, the wicked" is goooood.
I'll need to listen closer to the production when I get home; saw a lot of people talking about it and that reverb is STROOONG!
Why Go is a fucking banger.
Porch is very dramatic and epic.
The initial low riff for Deep reminds of of Sludge Factory
I quite like this album. I'm excited to get home and give it a little more focus. I really need to find my airpods.
Alive has such a killer outro
Oceans is a little boring, 4th time through and I'm just now noticing it. Very cool sounds but a little slow. Ok somehow I looped straight back into it and I like the clean guitar tone.
Porch probably least favorite, although the hook is really good... Garden still cool
You know what I'm gonna be bold and give it the 5, this album rocks dude. The music is beautifully written and played, Eddie has a great voice and knows how to write a song, it's pretty damn consistent (if maybe to a fault..); fuck it.
Favorite: Alive
Least: Oceans
Shoutout: Black, Once, Garden
I mean yeah fuck it man.
So like, it's cool. But it's also just straight up Indian music. I really like the flat sounding driving percussion that's in every song; it sounds hard to play and this morning I was brushing my teeth and just got lost in focus during Dadra.
I like Bhimpalasi. And Sindhi-Bhairavi (12:40!!!!). I like what I've learned and the music is cool, but the actual experience of listening to it is... a little boring!
Really cool piece of education, music, and history. Not the most fun listen. Will update with favorites but you can probably just look up there and figure it out.
Had to skip a day bc of Spectrum
I'm 40 seconds into song one.... my brain thinks this sounds just like Space Oddity Bowie lol. I like it! Quirky. I'm not quite in concept album mood and this is clearly a concept album, but it'll be ok.
Whoa ok what the fuck is track 2. What is this, indie Deltron?
Track 4 sure is a lot. I believe this is where the concept part ends(?). Upon a few relistens I am not a fan of this song. The screaming/meowing noises, the silly scale the bass follows, the BELL. Noooot a fan; I think it's just part of the loose concept though - it sounds like she's battling the robots :P
Track 5 is dope! I really enjoy the spacey melody, and the bass is awesome!
Ego Tripping is also dope! A little too whimsical for me, but the bass sounds great.
Are You a Hypnotist is also cool; a lot of this album has blended together for me so far, but I like the vocals. Love the plucky reverberated guitar (?) sounds.
I had forgiven you for tricking me again... but I have been tricked again into forgiving you
It's Summertime is great! This album is really slow. But I love this song! Big fan of all of the electronic and hip hop elements scattered throughout.
All We Have Is Now - simply too somber and sad. I can only be reverberated low pass sad synthy for SO long man. Oh man this song is actually really fucking good. I still miss Jen.
Going back, I really like One More Robot. I also enjoy track 4 way more this time around, it's silly but the basssssss!!!
Yoshimi having a black belt in karate makes me think of Dayman being a master of karate LOL
Do you realize
That happiness makes you cry?
Do you realize
That everyone you know someday will die?
And instead of saying all of your goodbyes
Let them know you realize that life goes fast
It's hard to make the good things last
Great I'm crying thanks guys.
Wait a minute dude I may need to go back again and sit with the lyrics...
"Oh to fight is to defend, if it's not now then tell me when would be the time, that you would stand up and be a man
For to lose I could accept, but to surrender I just wept and regretted this moment. Oh that I was the fool. I don't know where the sunbeams end and the starlights begin.. it's all a mystery."
Fuck.
I think I've teared up like 3 times now. This album is very sad in a very particular way; more often than not I really don't enjoy explicitly *sad* music, I don't like to wallow (except for this past winter, that was pretty fun...). But the topics the music touches on and the way that it's touched on... along with how YOU interpret what you're hearing and how it applies to your own life is what makes it so sad. Not just the topics. Not just the writing. But the takeaway. It's full of existentialism, the human experience, learning to let go, accepting the inevitable tough moments that we will all go through, love, loss.... and maybe how it's all just gonna be okay regardless.
It just so happens that this exact strand of emotion is one that really, really gets to me all the fucking time. Good timing Generator.
4 stars. One for each time I teared up at work. :D
Favorite: Do You Realize??
Least: Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots, Pt. 2
Shoutout: One More Robot, Ego Tripping at the Gates of Hell, Are You a Hypnotist??, In the Morning of the Magicians
The piano in track 1 sounds like How Do You Fix a Broken Part by Iggy. This is interesting... 1973? Not a BIG fan of the vocalist, but the band sounds pretty good. Not great, but pretty good!
Vietnamese Baby is sick - what the fuck is that evil noise that comes in during the hook though??? Hahaha
Not sure I agree with the reviews saying they changed punk rock; Funhouse was 3 years prior. Actually wait a minute what the fuck do I know? Never mind. Apparently they were very important in New York... and New York is very important in punk music. And stuff. I like the vocalists strange deep register better than the one from the other day where the dude just sounded like bootleg Elvis the entire album (The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion).
I still need to come back to give this one more attention, but overall it's ok!
Favorite: Trash
Least: None! It was all pretty agreeable.
Shoutout: Bad Girl, Subway Train, Vietnamese Baby
Inoffensive. I've been through it several times now and literally nothing has stuck out to me; I did add 3 tracks to my Spotify though, so maybe when I get back to them I'll change my tune.
Barrytown is boring as shit.
East St. Louis Toodle-Oo.... no....
Matthew told me Aja was like *the shit* and that I need to listen to it, but that's a road that we will cross when we get there.
Sometimes I think it sounds like early 70's Bowie - Like on Charlie Freak and Rikki. Lol.
Everything is sonically pleasing, but I don't find it compelling.
I had to go take a break and listen to Joy Division. I need some yacht rock to perk me back up.
Any Major Dude is fine... again it's just like all very bleh to me.
The songs are well-written but not very interesting. The band is locked in, I will give them that one.
Parker's Band is cool I like the piano and the groove of the whole thing. Is it about Charlie Parker? Lol. Oh it is! I'm so smart, look at that.
Through With Buzz is fun, although it's too short! I love the inflection of the hook, and the twinkly sounds that come in. Could go either way on the orchestra.
Pretzel Logic has great keys, and a great chorus.
Charlie Freak is fine, one of the Bowie-esque ones.
Monkey In Your Soul is cool too, I like the horn a lot! Like a lot a lot.
I'm glad to see the tone of my review lines up with most of the other ones; I saw someone say "low ceiling high floor" which seems pretty accurate. It's consistently pretty damn fine... but it's, for the most part, only ever pretty damn fine. Like something just quite isn't there. I'm excited for more, but not really for more of this album. Guitarist rules, I've heard him do a crazy solo on another album of theirs.
Favorite: Through With Buzz, Pretzel Logic
Least Favorite: East St. Louis Toodle-Oo
Shoutout: Parker's Band,
I don't think I've heard this album since I lived in Winston-Salem and my mom plopped me down in the dark with this on CD and Wizard of Oz on the TV. I was always far more impartial to The Wall as a kid, but I remember liking this one quite a bit - all I remember is Money.
Breathe sets the tone perfectly. This is probably gonna be good as fuck lol. Love the organ and the vocals on the hook.
I LOVE how each track just rolls into the other one.
On the Run is super fucking cool - it sounds like someone on the run. I like the strange sound collage shit they have going on. Ended up falling kind of flat though.
Wiki says each half of the album reflects the 5 stages of life (very obvious from the names, for the most part).
4. Time is so fucking ominous. In more ways than one. Oh yeah I remember this song. Damn. The lyrics are really good. Oh they're really really really good.
"And you run, and you run to catch up with the sun, but it's sinking. Racing around to come up behind you again. The sun is the same in a relative way, but you're older. Shorter of breath, and one day closer to death. "
5. Holy shit.
Money sounds fresh to this day. Always enjoyed how the money sounds were pulled into the rhythm for the intro. Isn't this when Wizard of Oz goes into color? (it is!)
Us and Them is a nice change of pace. I like when the vocals start. Very obvious anti-war song? There must be more to it. Ugh I love when they pull these speeches and samples in it's so fucking COOL. Love the echo on the vocals, the last verse sounds incredible. Dude this album fucks.
I got distracted by that song ending and didn't realize we moved to a new one. This one is cool, very funky.
Brain Damage feels like a continuation of The Great Gig with the singer coming back. Obviously about Syd Barrett.
I don't want it to be over! I really don't. The last two songs rolling into one another was such a nice way to wrap everything up. They made a fuckin masterpiece didn't they? My god.
Again, I'm a sucker for any kind of art that deals with the concept of time and how finite life is, combined with the complexity of the human experiences, and how our actions and choices shape what that finite time will look like. The content of the lyrics and the concepts chosen are addressed and written about to perfection -there was not a single line that felt corny or unnecessary. At all.
The instrumentation is probably perfect. You know you've done something right when I'm tearing up at music with no words (Great Gig, the intro to Breathe, so on). Obviously everyone is playing at top form, but the way they've gotten their instruments to *sound* compliments the compositions in perfect harmony. Fuck and the vocals. Waters and Gilmour both sound excellent... I think I'm just a bit more impartial to Roger Waters' performance (very alight and airy), but the two don't sound too dissimilar.
It's gotta be a 5 man I can't help it. I'll always prefer The Wall though. THAT is a fucking album. It does fall flat A LITTLE towards the end, but I mean shit it's a 43 minute album.
Favorite: Time
Least: On the Run
Shoutout: Breathe, Money
Oh man ok...
I do not like big band music. It does not do shit for me. I don't care if it's ballads, I don't care if it's jazz... is ska big band music? Typically the bands are big... well ska is mid anyway so my statement stands.
Frank has an excellent voice but he is just such a product of his time. I feel like I've been transported to that part of Fallout 3 where you go into the simulation of the 50's neighborhood (but without the murder mystery subplot). But no matter what he does with his voice or lyrics (these are all love songs).. it's still going to be over the backdrop of some god damn Tom and Jerry ass music. Blah. I wouldn't mind being surprised though.
There's no reason for this to be 15 songs long.
"You're just too marvelous, too marvelous for words. Like 'glorious', 'glamorous', and that old standby 'amorous'"
It's like when I hear the word "strife" in rap lyrics. You have never once said that word you just need something that rhymes with life. No one has ever called someone amorous. I hate a forced rhyme.
I don't mind the band on Love Is Here to Stay
I Thought About You is also good!
I'll have to give him a reassessment, I'm simply not at all in the mood to be crooned to. 2/5, but I would like to come back and try again in another state of mind. The stories are cool too
Favorite: I Thought About You
Least: Makin' Whoopee
Shoutout: Love Is Here to Stay
I need to stop skimming the reviews before I get to an album, because they have a bad habit of shaping my listening.
This guy sounds like a whiny Bob Dylan. That is a bad indicator for the rest of the album. The drums are cool on track 1... there's like a weird DNB thing going on... but my earlier skim on the toilet revealed to me that that will not be the rest of my experience. At least this song is cool!
The folky weird electronic instrumentals are cool but man this music is just kind of lame. Not bad, but itās like early 200ās alt rock radio.
Silver Lining is ok. My Oh My as well
The drum break on White Ladder is interesting⦠not big on the vocals. Probably the coolest one so far, but I wish more synth stuff was going on. Oh there it is, the hook is cool.
This Yearās Love boooo boring
Itās all kind of bland. Lyrics are bleh and the vocals are whiny. Sounds like Christian music sometimes.
2 stars because the instrumentals are cool sometimes
Favorite: White Ladder
Least: This Yearās Love
Shoutout: Silver Lining
Well the story behind this album stinks, poor Gene!
Love the strings that peek through on track 2, and the guitars with the weird FX that come in and out. Really cool song, I like the lyrics too. The women singing who come in sound like they've been ripped straight out of the 20's? It almost sounds like a sample.
No Other has sick guitar. This album is cool man.
Everyone has been in my room today to yap to me and they've all been subjected to this smooth rock country medley. I fucking love it, everything that hasn't been interesting has been well done, and most things that have been interesting have also been well done. It's definitely very country folksy, but there's some quirks to it that really sell it. I'm gonna have to listen to The Byrds aren't I?
True One is much more of a traditional country ballad... it fucks. It's more perfected country like that one Byrds album they gave me. This guy is a good singer (funny enough, he wasn't on the country one).
There's only 8 songs so I think I can track by track this bad boy
Life's Greatest Fool. Do you believe deep in your soul that too much loneliness makes you grow old? Great song, not too much special about it but it's extremely solid. I like the choir harmony but not the background vocals as much; sounds too soulful to fit a country tune like this. Stoned, numb and drifting, hard to be profound. I like the second half a lot more, sounds more epic.
Silver Raven - this song is awesome. I love the way the guitars sound from the jump; very atmospheric, and the strings poke in during the verse but.. they sound weird? They almost sound like a synth patch with a crazy fast decay, it's really interesting. As I said above, the background vocals here are SUPER neat. They sound so far away... ugh and the hook and the way that weird sound starts to pick up in frequency. Is it about getting old? Kind of. I think it's about looking for the answer. I really need the generator to stop giving me existential music.
The intro to No Other.... it's sooooo funky. God damn man. What was this guy going for?? Another song about isolation huh? Or maybe it's against isolation. I love this one too. The hook!!!!! That funky ass guitar man god damn it this guy. WHOA the way the song changes halfway through?? It's bordering on like.. 70's chase scene music for that little upbeat piece. The vocal melody is really entertaining.
Strength of Strings immediately starts with such a catchy little riff. This song is very endearing. The choir in the back really fits the instrumentation, and adds a lot to Clark's singing.
This guy keeps talking about silver. A phial is like a vial lol. Funky guitar again. Oh this song is about addiction and using drugs to escape. Damn dude, they're not supposed to sound that good.
Ok I saw the kids now I can jump back into this bad boy.
True One.... mmmhm.
Lady of the North is epic, although it's a bit long and I've lost my focus.
So what we've learned so far is that I have a soft spot for country music! But it has to be good country.
Same people on production as Paul's Boutique huh?
Devil's Haircut didn't do much for me. Fun, but not exciting.
Lol Hotwax is just missing a KICK IT! This is a lot more up my alley, I don't know if I'm fond of his vocals or not yet. He's a little ha ha goofy for me, but it was 1996.. I love recognizing samples, the horns in the back of the last part of the track... also my favorite part of the track.
Ok yeah I don't like xDD random lyrics. Unfortunate for me...
I like Lord Only Knows. The guitar is good, the vocal melody is pleasant to the ear, and the drumbreak sits so nicely with everything else!
New Pollution grew on me. A fun rhythm and pretty solid and straightforward lyrics
Derelict is super cool. A little odd for sure. It's still just as cool my second time through. Ok the third time through I'm a little over the middle eastern music drum solo we get midway through. The overall sound is dope tho.
I don't like the brand of quirkiness Beck brings to the table. I think it was a 90's thing; in 2026 we're all quirky white boys with a blend of interests across genres. Hearing Beck talk about his two turntables and a microphone, and then turn around to do blues vocals two songs later... it just doesn't do what it should for me. But I can't fault him for it. Where It's At isn't my jam. The instrumentation and production are all there but I just don't like the final product that we get all that much.
Sissyneck has good drums. Actually this whole song is good as fuck I like this one. And the synth noise halfway through? Cool song.
Idk. It's just a little too hodge podge and not enough grabbing, interesting moments in that hodge podge. Well no, there actually are quite a few of them, but they're so fleeting that I forgot. It makes me want to go listen to Paul's Boutique. Like, really bad.
I didn't like Jack-Ass first time around but now I quite like it. The donkey at the end made me giggle.
I've totally heard Where It's At all over the radio.
Readymade is fine - another interesting one that pulls you in a little. I like the lyrics and overall vocals of this one! Rare.
I don't like High 5. It is all over the damn place and for no reason; I guess it's supposed to be this fun and silly ode to hip hop parties... but it just does not make for a great song. Sometimes he hits these nice internal rhyme schemes and I'll give him credit there.
Ramshackle is a nice moment. I think it's a really good way to end an album that has been so consistently absurd up to this point.
Favorite: Novacane(?)
Least: High 5
Shoutout: Jack-Ass, Sissyneck, Readymade