Nurture

Oh damn I get to review my own album Well this is just a straight banger. Helped me through a lot of shit. 5 Mirror and Something Comforting best songs

God damn, this was Nails. Really good album choice, and not what I expected from Porter Robinson.

Oh wow this was beautiful

Pleasant; not an artist I'm familiar with, but enjoyed it nonetheless. Enjoyable to work to.

The more upbeat numbers remind me of going to big tech conferences, when you're gathering for the keynote in the cavernous conference center ballroom, thousands of chairs arranged in a grid pattern, huge widescreen at the front with random factoids popping up while people are getting themselves seated. It's the type of music they play to get people's energy up, but is also inoffensive and bland to some degree. Overall it's okay, just not really my thing. 3 stars.

I'll come back to this one when I'm not tripping balls.

I could not decide if I liked dullscythe or not because it sounds like it's glitching. It almost makes me feel like it's lightning, but I don't know, I think that effect could have been obtained a little more skillfully.

Easy listening electronica is the sort of stuff that plays while you're waiting for the sessions to start at a corporate retreat. 2/5.

Has a sort of "Sigur Ros but happy" vibe. A good time!

Rating: 7/10 Best songs: Get your wish, Musician, Mother

There’s quite a bit here. There are elements of hyperpop, dubstep, and synth wave tempered by ambient elements and nature sounds. It works for the most part. I really enjoyed this album though I felt it start to drag by the end.

Enjoying seeing albums I know pop up on here! This one’s pretty recent, I listened to this when it came out a few years ago. My first Porter Robinson album, and I really dig it. My review at the time: if music itself were a movie, this would play during the end credits. It’s got that feeling for sure, I love the fragmented nature of the production on here, a fun take on electronica and a lot of it feels as accessible as standard pop music. “Look at the Sky” is my favorite, and it was later added to Fortnite, which I still think is cool. Anyway, great album, great pick! Favorite tracks: Look at the Sky, Lifelike, Wind Tempos, Musician, Mother, dullscythe, Mirror, Something Comforting. 4/5

What a surprise. I immediately recognized Look at the Sky from Fortnite and it has me wondering who recommended this album? Huge Porter fan? Fortnite fan? Either way, they made it through 1001 albums and picked this puppy. Always enjoy an electronic album and this was great while driving.

Am I in a mall, or a made-for-TV movie? Or am I in a mall on a made-for-TV movie? I think the person on the cover was murdered in a mall parking lot, and the body was then dumped in a unmowed section of grass nearby. There will be a true crime TV movie made about it, but it will not feature any music similar to the music you hear on this album - only ominous low synth drones.

Alright, so I wasn't familiar with either the album or the artist. Thanks for letting me know! Based on what I've read online, it seems a lot of people are really into it. Honestly, it leaves me feeling like I might be missing out. I gave it a listen with an open mind, but I just couldn't find anything to click with

Ambient Electronica at it's best. Such a variety of styles that make it more than an Ambient album. The Electropop tracks are toe-tappers (I'm not a dancer :) This is an album I would have never heard if someone didn't added it the list. Thanks. I really enjoyed it. I'll keep listening to this one for sure. Standouts: Look at the Sky, Get Your Wish, Wind Tempos, Something Comforting, Unfold Rating: 4/5

Some of the songs sounded like movie soundtrack fodder, but serene thoughtful tunes.

Really enjoyed this

Not always the biggest fan of this type of hyperpop adjacent electronica, but this won me over bu the end. Pretty songs and nifty production

This felt like pastoral electronic music, all the way to its cover photograph in a flowery field. Reading a bit about the background, it does seem to be a response to a depressed and complicated world… it feels very light, aicy and redemptive. Just the light one might need in some dark places. I hope I remember to listen to this again!

It's not really my thing but it seems well done and unique enough.

Some interesting stuff here, but for me somewhat afflicted by the one-man-band syndrome that happens when the full product is generated electronically by a single artist. A little overly manufactured and uniform. Some collaborators and real instruments wouldn't go amiss.

Electronic music has always been a bit difficult for me, but in this case it is been mixed with acoustic elements and introspective lyrics. And than you have me. Well done!

Tough call here - on its own, I do enjoy this LP and the complete, calming world it builds across an extended runtime. In the context of Robinson’s discography, however, this was a huge letdown after the triumph of 2014’s ‘Worlds,’ an LP that lived up to its title with some of the most well-defined, expansive tracks of IDM/electronica at the time. Artists are free to change and experiment, and I love it when they do. However, given the wait between ‘Worlds’ and ‘Nurture,’ I expected so much more from the latter LP and felt a little disappointed when the world it built felt so insular and small. Additionally, the instrumentation is relatively homogeneous and the sampling near-nonexistent. It’s still airtight and solidly built, just lacking in scale and verve. Perhaps I’m just completely missing the point here, or am just feeling the results of my own inability to chill out with this chill-out album. Just wanted so much more from this one in the context of Porter’s body of work!

I like it. Lighter and more electro-pop than a band like Chvrches, who I discovered from this book/list.

Enjoyed the music didn't overly love the processed singing *shrug* Getting made you want more & hoping made you hurt more is a powerful lyric bc isnt that the fuckin truth... also especially liked dullscythe

I cried, but more because I’m peri-menopausal and going through a lot. The music may have had a part to play but results are inconclusive.

Not really sure what to make of this. Pleasant during work, but not a single moment where I was actually pulled in.

No intention of offending anyone, but sounds as some generic indie sound very popularized in the latest era. Don't find anything particularly ground breaking about this

I find this one both interesting and maddening. It's interesting because the instrumental pieces are often intricate and delicate ambient electronic gems -- pieces such as "dullscythe", "do-re-mi-fa-sol-la-ti-do", or "Wind Tempos", with the latter example even exploring post-minimalist turf that's quite surprising in that context. Yet even with all those assets, this record is also maddening because when Porter Robinson writes proper songs, his vocal parts and their harmonies are so damn CHEESY in most of the tunes that I want to smash my Bluetooth speaker into the wall. To be clear, I have nothing against vocal manipulation through digital shenanigans: those things can now sound good to my ears depending on the way they are handled. I just have a huge problem with the notes and bland major-chord-driven vocal lines that just go nowhere fast on a compositional level. Like, where is the subtlety displayed in those predictable vocal lines? Quite ironic when you name one of your tracks "Musician". A few songs towards the end -- "Sweet Time", "Mirror" and the sober acoustic-guitar-enhanced "Blossom" -- manage to escape that curse, breaking the usual commercial pop formulas for something more interesting on a compositional level. Unfortunately, it's too little and too late. These days, Porter Robinson logically attempts to hop on the hyperpop train, to mixed results. Which leads me to the second major flaw in this earlier LP, i.e. its lack of cohesion. In a sense Robinson has always been hyperpop-adjacent, but *Nurture* attempts to be so many things at the same time, in a way that paradoxically does not always avoid bland results, that it becomes difficult to have a cohesive emotional response to this LP as a whole. Apart from that, it's a very competently produced record, and I'm not doubting the sincerity of Robinson's intents for one second. Yet I can't help feeling very derisive towards anyone choosing such an album for this list. More power to you, whoever you are. It's just that I'm afraid it's gonna be quite a hard pass for me. 1.5/5 for the purposes of this list of essential albums, rounded up to 2. 6.5/10 for more general purposes (5+1.5). Number of albums from the original list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 465 Albums from the original list I *might* include in mine later on: 288 Albums from the original list I won't include in mine: 336 ---- Number of albums from the users list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 14 Albums from the users list I *might* select for mine later on: 28 Albums from the users list I won't select for mine: 53 (including this one). ---- Émile ! J'ai répondu à ton message. Regarde environ treize reviews au dessus ! Pas de nouvelle réponse de ta part, mais c'est pas un souci, je compte juste vérifier toutes les deux semaines environ. On est pas aux pièces, comme on dit sur le vieux continent. 😀

There is nothing even remotely interesting about this dull and generally quite bad electronic indie album. It's absolute paste. Rating: 1 Playlist track: Look at the Sky Date listened: 16/10/24

Wtf is this shit...

I really hated this. The vocal effects were so annoying. The songs were so earnest and trying to sound epic but it's just reeks of garage band presets to me.

Something new! Had me with Lifeline. This is lovely. I don't mind being in a good mood.

I got big LCD Soundsystem and Bon Iver vibes and since I love both of them, I am obligated to love this.

Not really my liking, but it wasn't bad

Well mixed, pleasant sound, however nothing too special imho

Fizzy, blippy and charming in its best moments. But I find the manipulated vocals to be really annoying. Fave Songs: Do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti-do, Lifelike, Wind Tempos, Dullscythe

pretty nice

Electronica, ambient, synth-pop, electropop. Ni fu ni fa.

I can see why people would like it

Can’t decide if I love it or not

It was overall a pleasant listen. I started growing a bit tired of it a few songs in but not a bad album at all.

Why is this on here? Lo fi beats to chill/study to ass music. Maybe if I was a cringe theater kid when I was in middle school I’d appreciate this more.

This is like a casio electronic keyboard amped up to 20 on the HAPPY slider. It seems to have a CHVRCHES vibe without the intrique and mystery. Overall pleasant and peppy, but nothing really stayed with me.

I'm not sure the purpose of dullscythe... bothered me. The other songs on the album were decent. Look at the Sky was good.

Nurture is a nice and varied pop, edm and electronic music album. Personally i perfer the electronic music tracks. When the songs tend to be more pop or edm i'm missing some substance and believe contemporaries like Caroline Palochek, Charlie XCX and Olivia Rodrigo better.

This is my third time hearing this album and I've only just realized that there is no woman involved in this. That's a man's voice through a filter. All of it. What the fuck. Anyways, it's alright. Porter Robinson is more of a singles artist to me. One or two songs in a while is fine, but an entire album's worth of this stuff is too much for me. I've tried to get this to grow on me, but it never goes past "that was pretty good, I guess".

Yea, quite nice

This one was ok. I’m happy to check out modern music that I generally wouldn’t know about or listen to. Probably wouldn’t listen to it again but I’m glad to have checked it out.

Stinks to live in a world where the wikipedia on this thing is talking about how this is a very emotive & personal album for Robinson, but all of my associations with this kind of music is, like, cab rides and twitch stream intermissions. The background radiation of overstimulating situations. New generation of elevator music. I didn’t even dislike it, I think I just have negative associations with where I’m likely to hear stuff like this out in the world

Dullscythe is annoying. I was pleasantly pleased that this had some really nice, poppy tracks that make you feel happy. Unfortunately it's interspersed with some experimental gumpf that sounds like a failed download. The nice poppy stuff really is quite nice though.

undecided.... needs another listen so a safe 3* as a holding rating

A bright and blissful electronic album that made it to my best of 2021 list, though I haven’t revisited the whole record until now. Look at the Sky is euphoric and a fantastic way to kick off the album, and Blossom near the end is an incredibly beautiful song and one I went back to a lot shortly after the album came out. Everything else is pretty good, and the production is remarkable throughout, but it’s really just those two songs that stick with me

It's not unpleasant and in places quite good (if derivative). I want to like this but it's a B- from me........

Although I learned to respect electronic musicians much more during the last 3 years, listening to new albums every day, it's still a style that I dislike too much. It needs to shine to catch me. Fortunately, this was the case here. It's not an absolutely incredible album. Sometimes it still sounds like a mix of the background of an advertisement and a child playing with an electronic drum, but I found it interesting.

The best ambient album I've come across

Quirky glitchy interesting and seems to be much debated in Reddit. It's got a real neon glow.

While Nurture grew to not offend, it never outgrew those initial, weak artificial sounds. Overreading the feature on Unfold, it's artist typography which doesn't break up the record's energy in any way. Could go either way. The other songs cover a wide range, often slightly glitched, to uncertain ends.

Electronic - it’s not for me

Good, but too soon to have it on the list

This was an album I could not find enjoyment in. It felt like if a teenager was told to make an electronic album for Disney channel. It was very upbeat and poppy but it just felt very juvenile to me. Not something I would revisit. 3.8/10

Meh. Sorry this is someone’s favourite, but I can’t stand wispy flimsy indie electronic whatever this is. Cool album cover I guess? I just don’t care for this at all.

It's dance music to watch cartoons to. It's a miss for me.

Not for me. I like some ambient/EDM type stuff, but in it's attempts at beauty it strived for, it ended up closer to budget videogame music, or classy hold music for a firm swinging and missing at youth.

Over produced dance music, like what would happen if someone like Calvin Harris had significantly less talent, way too much time on his hands and, on at least one track, decided to poorly remake Treefingers from Kid A. Albums of dance/EDM/electronica (even with a smattering of acoustic instruments) tend to drag pretty quickly. The use of studio flummery to create a second voice from the same artist was vaguely interesting, but why would you not just get someone with the vocal qualities you want for the song? Not for me, although I can see why some folk might like it.

I like electronic, but prefer old-school stuff. This is a bit sentimental for my tastes.

What an incredibly bland album. It is hard to believe someone listened to the 1089 and then thought this is the best album to offer next! Beige. Weak. Twee. Overly produced. Nothing special. Like Purity Ring, but shite.

Didn’t seem like my thing at first—too sweet, too much autotune—but a few tracks in the second half like “Unfold” pulled me back in. Not sure yet, but there’s something here. I'll give it another go and maybe it'll grow on me.

Nuture is alright background music to work to that occasionally elevates itself into something good; Musician, Mirror, Something Comforting are favourites, the rest of it is a bit bland but inoffensive to just fill the silence. 2/5, not remarkable enough to be on someone's list, though if we're doing electronic music this occasionally gets closer to what I want from it than some of the crap on the main list.

Reminds me of when I was at a corporate conference and Chainsmokers was on repeat.