Hot Rats

Good music, felt more conventional, which is to say I got a bit bored lol

Is that hot rats as in "these rats have been in the sun too long" or as in "damn idk bout you but Mickey and Minnie be lookin awfully fine these days"

I wish more Frank Zappa albums had little to no vocals. This is much more enjoyable than anything else I've heard from him with our without The Mothers Of Invention. A little jazzy, a little jammy, a little experimental.

Pretty nice soundtrack, I probably wouldn't choose to listen to the album again though.

Uventet og artig for en som aldri har tettet hullet mellom Freak Out og «Bobby Brown»

500 godina ispred svog vremena.

4.5
Really good, and I'm not usually huge on purely instrumental stuff

Liked this. Son of Mr. Green Genes was the standout for me. Think I need to relisten to fully get it as I got a bit lost in the sauce for a lot of this

Of course the best Frank Zappa album is the one where you see as little of him as possible. Or like most notable, or most well-known Zappa album? Something like that. What I'm trying to say is this album is awesome, but I didn't expect it from the guy who made "WHO ARE THE BRAIN POLICE???" and that kinda makes it more awesome. So just to start off, "Peaches en Regalia" is a fucking revelation. Not even 4 minutes but so much energy and life packed in. It's so uncharacteristically lush for Zappa, and so so SOOO beautiful. I saw somewhere that it's supposed to be a "movie for your ears" and damn if it doesn't sound like it. Every like 15 seconds something completely new turns up and it's astounding to hear. The saxophones, the flutes, the strings, it's all so pretty! "Willie the Pimp," while a much different song, is quite similar in its excellence: it just keeps changing slightly as it goes on and on and on.... the fiddle is also a really great touch. It gets so crazy near the end to the point where it begins to become almost like a really drunken, bluesy krautrock song. "Son of Mr. Green Genes," while great, is much less of an outright revelation than the first two songs, and more of a regular, everyday 8-minute jazz fusion track. Same with "Little Umbrellas," though that's only 3 minutes. "The Gumbo Variations," though... another insane song! I still can't believe how long this song goes on and still manages to be interesting. It's so incredibly layered! 13 minutes and not a dull fucking second! And then the last song functions sort of the same way that "Sunday" from Nick Drakes Bryter Layter functions, a nice little instrumental outro.

So basically how this album functions for me is that it has 3 songs that blow everything else of the water, with the slightest bit of dead space, and a lovely little outro. Very beautiful!
9.6/10

Just like a hot rat its 3 stars from me.

FUCK this rips so hard. An insanely good time it put me in such a good mood

First track is really fantastic, I admire the rest but it's a big drop off

What do you do with a jam band that can’t write a cohesive song? Just noodle around on your guitars for an unfocused hour or so, I guess.

I fw it

Its good i guess

I’ve never considered myself a Frank Zappa fan, but Hot Rats was a genuinely enjoyable surprise. I went in expecting something far more guitar-heavy, yet what stood out wasn’t quantity, it was quality. When the guitar does arrive, it’s sharp, expressive and superbly played.

This is jazz fusion I can really get behind. The musicianship is exceptional throughout, and the largely instrumental format allows the arrangements to breathe. There’s space, groove and a real sense of experimentation without it feeling self-indulgent.

“Son of Mr. Green Genes” instantly caught my ear and I can’t help thinking the opening has a similar feel to the intro of Toast of London, which made me smile. “Peaches en Regalia” is another standout: bright, melodic and brilliantly composed.

Favourite tracks: Son of Mr. Green Genes; Peaches en Regalia
Least favourite track: “Willie the Pimp” The vocal delivery and drawn-out feel make it less enjoyable than the instrumental highlights it leans more into chaos than cohesion.
Album artwork: A striking and colourful cover

Weird and enjoyable. Much easier to swallow without his vocals (which I don't hate)

Shut up and play her guitar is the best advice Zappa ever took. None of the annoying unfunny comedy bits, just shredding, jazz rock riffs, prog compositions, studio wizardry and virtuoso performances. Sounds like mario music, like a demonic fire pit seance, like classic rock radio run through a kaleidoscope, like a hard bop acid trip, like a funky riverboat.

Oh my god!!! To borrow an expression from a reviewer on Tubular Bells, this is longform instrumental wankery at its purest -- which I'm learning is exactly right up my alley. I'm willing to forgive Zappa completely for whatever Freak Out! was, because this is nothing but awesome jazz fusion heat.

VERY strong 4 that might turn into a 5 with a bit of simmerin'

Shoutout to rats 🐀

Standouts: Peaches En Regalia • Willie The Pimp • The Gumbo Variations

Ahead of its time. Very influential and unique listen.

8/10 [KEEP]