Immediately I enjoy how the album is nonstop, with each song seamlessly flowing into each other. Diverse sounds and genre mixing, which are awesome. Rock, dance, jazz, wacky sound effects. I’m hearing a dark energy mixed with bouts of lighter energy. The lyrics are heavy — especially “Time,” talking about how fleeting moments are in life and how time can be taken for granted. Bouncing back between intense moments of anxiety and relief. It goes up, down, up, down in terms of the vibe — over and over. Ugh the transition from “Us and Them” to “Any Colour You Like” is incredible. Hmm, that was a great album. A little too heavy for me, but I see the appeal and understand why it’s a masterpiece for its exploration of genres and themes such as mental illness, life and death, greed, violence, regret and helplessness.
Classic ‘70s sound. I enjoyed the opening track “Ramble Tamble” and how it changes in tune and tempo throughout the course of one song. I keep thinking it’s a new song, then it reverts back to the original sound before it ends. It was nice to listen to. The songs blur together, which is not necessarily a bad thing. It is cohesive. But at least in overall sound it lacks distinction, in my opinion, from other records from the same era.
I enjoy the cohesive, signature sound of Bob Marley. This album makes me wants to sway back and forth in tropical weather with a cocktail… or a certain other vice. But I’m struggling to get into it. Reggae is a bit too monotonous and repetitive of a sound for me to listen to for too long without wanting to listen to something else. Ya know what, I did really dig “Heathen” with the guitar. “Exodus” is also very groovy. Overall, it’s not for me but I see why people would enjoy it.
A stunning voice that pairs well with the music. The horns, drums, guitar mesh well with the rise and fall of her voice, bringing a burst of energy into moments of the songs. “I Don’t Want to Hear It Anymore” stands out to me so far. I did like “Son of a Preacher Man,” but I thought it’d have a stronger imprint since it’s one of her popular songs. “Breakfast in Bed” caught my attention. OK wow, I’m now to “The Windmills of Your Mind” and I’m mesmerized. The rise and fall of the violin with the plucks of the guitar, tambourine and her soft voice is incredible. Immediately adding to saved songs.
What a mesmerizing voice. The first two songs were soft and cozy, with a nice touch of audience participation. I like how it speeds up a bit in “Just One of Those Things.” There’s a longing in her voice that I can’t help but notice, yet she makes me feel calm and content. OK, the last two songs were great. “Just A Gigalo” was a standout. And, of course, “How High The Moon” was whacky and so playful.
I’m excited for this one, because I love The Cure and I’ve heard songs on this album before. “One Hundred Years” has always been a favorite of mine. It’s so haunting but makes me want to get up and dance. It feels like I’m in a vampire discotheque. “A Short Term Effect” is OK, but not my favorite. I do like the beat of that one. “The Hanging Garden” is good, but neither this one nor the previous song compares to “One Hundred Years.” The whole album up to this point is bleak and reeks of despair about the state of the world, a deep dive down into nihilism. The themes of sex are interesting, too, in “The Hanging Garden” and “Siamese Twins.” Both songs center around the disgusting feelings you sometimes have about sex… talk about a post-nut clarity, haha. “The Figurehead” is my favorite so far purely based on lyrics. The wanting to be pure and always feeling like something is wrong with you, that you’re unclean and you can’t shake it off and you’re not living up to the arbitrary/unrealistic standards set by a shapeless person/entity … relatable to someone with OCD. Wow, the beat of “A Strange Day” is catchy. Makes me want to be wine drunk in a dim venue that smells like cigarettes. The synth in “Cold” is niiiice. After such a dark album, the desire to recover from a horrible mental state is much needed at the end of the title track “Pornography.” I like how it sets the more upbeat tone to future albums by The Cure. Overall, I dig the album. I wouldn’t say I “enjoy” it because it’s so heavy. But I relate to the feelings of things being futile in life and how depressing it is with how twisted the world is. You’ve got to pull yourself out of that, though, and make the best out of life.
I’m not an expert on David Bowie’s work by any means, but I can tell it’s a spotlight return for him. I enjoyed the title track, especially as an opener. He’s like “Yeah, I’m actually still here!” And then he revisits the past in “Dirty Boys.” I was a bit bored listening past there… until “If You Can See Me.” Lovely song. Sounds like classic Bowie but also very 2013-ish at the same time. “I’d Rather Be High” is funny and relatable. The rest of the album… I kind of drifted out of. Overall, it’s not my favorite. I feel like a lot of older artists who made music at this time had relatively weak albums… which is ironic since the point of the record is him returning from retirement and having trouble reconciling with the thought that his new work won’t live up to the brilliance of his older work. I am excited to hear his older work to compare.
Two songs in, and my initial thoughts: Great rock sound, with a hint of electro pop. Very 2008. I’ve always loved the song “Sex on Fire.” You can hear the singer’s longing, wanting and desire in it. Hmm, I didn’t know “Use Somebody” was by them. I like that song, too. “Manhattan” is a good song, sort of reminds me of something that The 1975 would put out. The rest of the album blurred together. Not a bad album by any means, and I think it still holds up today. I wouldn’t be mad if someone put this on the aux.
The opening to “Gimme Shelter” is lovely. Meh. The rest of the album just blurred together. It’s OK and I’d be fine having it on as background music (although not my first choice). I’m not a huge fan of this era of rock music overall.
What’s happening to me… my hips won’t stop moving! I love mambo, bossa nova and other groovy Latin genres. This is something I could passively listen to for background noise as I work, do chores or cook. At the same time, I could get up and dance to it. “El Cayuco” and “Llego Mijan” are my favorites so far.
Immediately into the chaotic screaming in the opening song. I have no idea what the singer is saying, but it’s so upbeat and sorta deranged in a good way. I want to head bang and mosh to this. So… the lead singer died not long after the band released its one and only album. What a tragic ending. RIP Darby Crash. He and his band made a fantastic punk album, and you can hear their influence on other artists.
I feel like I’m on a vacation island adventure. Personally, I’m not a fan.
I’ve heard this album many times (well, at least many of the songs on it). “Plainsong” as the opener is so good. It’s dreamy yet a bit sad. Of course, I love “Love Song.” That song was special to my parents. “Lullaby” is probably my favorite song on the album. “Fascination Street” is also great. “Disintegration” sounds so sad yet also relaxing, in line with the vibe of the entire album. The guitar and drums combo in “Homesick” accurately paints the feeling of that term, thinking about something that you miss that is now gone and you won’t have/experience again. “Untitled” is a great closer to the album. This was a great album. A little depressing, but it is The Cure after all.
I’m not a huge fan of rock music from the ‘70s… (I wish I was!), so I had preconceived notions going into this. But I’m enjoying “Turn to Stone.” I hear influences from disco (which I do like!) unless I’m just making that up. “It’s Over” was chilling and anxiety inducing, not in a bad way. Yeah, this is pretty good. Nice ‘70s sound with distinct beats and tones that match the lyrics of each song.
I skipped the instructions, knowing I won’t remember them anyway. Halfway through “Dádrá,” I’m enjoying this so far. The pluck of the strings is nice. Ooh, now it’s speeding up, almost in the way that a guitarist will do in a rock song. It all blends together after a while but not in a bad way.
“Sunday Bloody Sunday” — Wild how contemporary this sounds. Same reaction to “Seconds,” which I guess makes sense since U2 probably inspired a lot of indie rock groups that came along in the 2000s and 2010s. I enjoyed this album more than I anticipated. I would listen again. Perfect sound for autumn when you want to bro out to white boy rock music.
“Love Vigilantes” has such a calming sound to it. I love the twangy sounds of the guitar mixed with upbeat synth in “The Perfect Kiss.” I also enjoyed “Sunrise” quite a bit. “Sooner Than You Think” is a bit weaker than the previous songs. Oh damn, the opening to “Sub-culture” is amazing, and so is what I imagine would be like a dance breakdown in the middle of the song near the 3-minute mark. “Face Up” was a great ending track. Overall, this was a great album. I’ve heard other New Order albums (at least bits and pieces), but I wasn’t familiar with this one. I’m glad I listened to it.
