Reviews by abitfishy

This album was surprisingly good, wasn't too hopeful or knew what to expect for a 'Instrumental Hip Hop' album. It's literally what the name says, but it's a lot more than that. This album features heavy sampling and distorting and twisting those samples around and creating art from it, it's like the hip-hop equivalent of Since I Left You (even though the former released before the latter album.)

It's quite moody and nocturnal, which makes it quite soothing and relaxing. The album cover is pretty great as well. The song "Building Steam With A Grain of Salt" is pure bliss and perfection, it's one of those songs that spring up to me every now and then that reminds me that music is so great, to the point that it makes living and existing totally worth it.

I definitely see myself returning to this one.

Highlight Song/s: "Building Steam With A Grain Of Salt" and "Midnight In A Perfect World"

Probably my favourite Beck album so far (heard quite a few already, not sure if this is the last one.) It's quite melancholic and dreamy, it's the perfect album if just want to feel the just plain old sadness. It's different from other Beck albums I've heard (Odelay and Guero) in that it's not eclectic, but who cares, an album with just lovely arrangements that do nothing but enhance the sorrow that is expressed on the album.

Highlight Song/s: "Sunday Sun"

It's a nice relaxing folk album at heart, with some diverse sounds placed in and around the album. It has some really sweet lyrics and melodies that are really catchy. Paul Simon's voice is really lovely.

I think I've come to a conclusion with this album, in that I like Paul Simon and just do not like the Garfunkel part of Simon & Garfunkel. This was a hell of a lot more tolerable than Bookends and Bridge Over Troubled Water (I know controversial.) I haven't listened to his other stuff but I don't reckon it would be too bad.

Good album, doesn't overstay it's welcome.

Highlight Song/s: "Mother and Child Reunion" and "Paranoia Blues"

It's a nice little album. Probably this one of my first experiences with straight blues and not a derivative - like blues rock. John Lee Hooker's voice is quite wobbly and sounds unstable, not too sure how I feel about it as I'm not certain if he is deliberately doing it or not. The nocturnal moody feel is pretty sweet. This one was fine, nothing too exciting.

Highlight Song/s: "I'm in the Mood"

This Icelandic album that I don't know how to say or even type is a solid one. It's very dream poppy, which means it's very atmospheric and quite peaceful. It's instrumentation is quite sparse in parts of the album. It also has quite colourful arrangements on top of that, which I adore; they never fail to be excellent. I could find myself returning to enjoy the solitude this album emits.

Highlight Song/s: "Starálfur" and "Ný batterí"

This is the Metallica album that famously features no bass (cheers Lars!) while also being the first album with their new bassist Jason Newsted, which was totally disrespectful of Lars to turn it the bass all down. Though the album is so much more than just no bass in it.

It features their most complex stuff up until that point and perhaps all of their discography, just about every song has twist and turns with it of course being multi-parted and all, with a menacing riff to accompany each 'part.' My personal favourite riffs being the main one in "Harvester Of Sorrow" and that odd stuttery riff that's in "The Frayed Ends Of Sanity."
I believe this is the most that Metallica were ever political. With themes of injustice (hmm,) greed, anti-war, corruption and stuff in a similar vein being present.

The whimsical melodies in "One" are quite lovely, I am big fan of the Metallica songs that have a similar dynamic, like cut from the same cloth as "Fade to Black" and "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)." Just simply amazing
Another song I'd like to mention is "To Live is To Die" which is very triumphant. It's a song dedicated to their previous bassist at the time and just one of the most unique players of bass guitar ever, Cliff Burton. The track just radiates bitter-sweetness from all around. It also features poetry and basslines from Cliff, so he gets a posthumous songwriting credit.

I'm stuck in between giving it a 4 - especially after my un-expectantly long review of it - and 3, but I believe a strong 3 will have to make do. As the rating is brought down by loud sharp guitars that dominates for over an hour, which manages to fatigue me and my ears. This is still a good album.

Highlight Song/s: "...And Justice For All", "One" and "Harvester Of Sorrow"

This one has pretty good atmosphere and vibe to it. It kind of sounds like Nebraska's (Bruce Springsteen) long lost sibling who got all muddled up in some prairie near NowhereVille (idk I'm trying to use some American terms.)

It's quite country in terms of it's sound with the jangely guitars of indie rock. It's melodies are hauntingly beautiful like in "Pale Skinny Girl" and "Jenny" which reflects the album cover and the covers desolate feel to it. It's also quite a 'sleepy' album, it's very chill and relaxing AND soothing right up until the song "Bad Liquor" which woke me up from my very needed slumber. After that the singer seemed to be more erratic like he had gone mad from all the despair and gloominess from beforehand and decided to let out his psychobilly-ness that's hiding deep inside of him.

This was a solid one, it has a unique vibe to it. If you like songs with country overtones with indie elements and occasional psychobilly freakout moments I'd recommend it wholeheartedly, if not still very much worth a listen.

Highlight Song/s: "Firefly" and "Jenny"

I found this album quite a hot-and-cold one/on-and-off with quality. Some songs just really nailed a vibe like "Reelin' in the Years" and "Fire In The Hole" while most other songs such as "Change of the Guard" were just so 'meh' and underwhelming. Though I could see clear that Steely Dan really had this album all thought out and was very meticulous with it, which is something. Wouldn't say I'm a fan of this one, but it's not really 'bad' either, it's just something that I can't comprehend enough right now to come to a firm opinion.

Highlight Song/s: "Fire In The Hole"

This is very much an album with low-key vibes, it has pretty melodic hooks (mainly early on) and of course has the iconic line of "Hey, fat girl, come here are you ticklish?" in it; that line is as classic as it gets in hip-hop. The rappers from the Digital Underground seem pretty witty with their wordplay, especially Humpty Hump himself, I had trouble keeping up with who was rapping but he was one that I managed to remember (because introduced himself in the first song.)

Some bad points for this album are the length of some songs, which wouldn't be as bad if they weren't so repetitive and the chorus frequently coming back was just annoying.

I would say this was an enjoyable album when you weigh all of the pros and cons together, though a re-listen would have to be down the track. 65 minutes of this stuff was a bit draining. Good album for the mid-school vibe.

Highlight Song/s: "The Humpty Dance", "Underwater Rimes (Remix)" and "Packet Man"

First Bruce album, and first time listen to this one ever. I'm not too well acquainted with Bruce Springsteen's music, only really familiar with some top songs and the Nebraska album, but wasn't too much of a fan of his voice on this album. Just can't seem to dig it.

The album it starts out fairly aggressive which lead me to think this was going to be straight ferocious, (thought all songs would be in the style of "Adam Raised a Cain") but no, it starts to mellow out after the first couple songs. It has good production overall, but "Racing in the Street" manages to shine through production-wise when it comes to specific tracks.

Conclusion is that I believe this is a miss from me, it's not necessarily bad but there is a lack of memorable songs, and is a bit boring. Though I'm not completely put off just yet, might just have to let it set in.

Highlight Song/s: "Adam Raised a Cain" and "Darkness on the Edge of Town"

Selling England was an album I've been meaning to take a listen to as well as other Peter Gabriel-era Genesis albums. It was a good one, very fantastical. It features the 10 minute songs progressive rock is known for, it's multi-parted and you can tell it is very well thought out. The instrumental section in "Firth Of Fifth" is literally mind-blowing, I was filled with straight ecstasy during the guitar solo, especially when it kept repeating.

This is on the cusp a 4 star but some tracks like "The Battle Of Epping Forest" brought it down, just not a fan of that song, especially when it's a fifth of the album. However I strongly believe a re-listen and a different frame of mind would help, but for now a strong 3 will have to do.

Highlight Song/s: "Dancing With The Moonlit Knight" and "Firth Of Fifth"

This is one of the few thrash albums that isn't Metallica (I'm not a metalhead) that I've heard, it's not too bad of an album.
One thing that is very much apparent is the tempos, that are EXTREMELY fast, like holy hell! You can definitely hear the hardcore influences, the songs punch you right in the face and by time you've gotten yourself together the song just ends, and you end up wondering what on earth just happened.

The guitar riffs are very mean and menacing as one would want from a thrash album. I particularly like the riffs in "Raining Blood." The lyrics in that song is my favourite of all.
"Pierced from below / Souls of my treacherous past / Betrayed by many / Now ornaments dripping above"
The lyrics on the album are beyond comical. Kerry King and the gang aren't trying to be people they're not and they just get straight to the point with the devil-worshipping, doom and despair lyrics.

In conclusion these guys seem real mean and they seem like bad influences but this music is cool as hell, it's a perfect album for people who feel misunderstood and just wants an album that packs a punch.

Highlight Song/s: "Angel of Death" and "Raining Blood"

I can't vibe with much of Led Zeppelin's stuff, so this one wasn't particularly great, only tracks that I am fan from this album is "Rock and Roll" and "Stairway to Heaven" (especially the folk intro.) This one has less of Robert Plants agonising wailing "BABY!" ("Black Dog keeps the tradition from completely dying) that is overwhelming present on the first two albums. The song-writing is improved drastically from the first two with writing about sex, sex and sex to the song-writing of IV which has mystical, tolkien-esque, cryptic lyrics. I mean IV's lyrics are still cheesy but way less than the of the first two.

Did I mention that I despise the Led Zeppelin I and II yet? Yeah those albums can go shove it.

Highlight Song/s: "Rock and Roll" and "Stairway to Heaven"

The only knowledge of this band is the album cover of their previous album to this; that morbidly obese woman, man. So I went in totally blind and I'll say it straight up, I'm not a fan. They have some cool ideas in the album every now and then like the clown-esque (Entry of the Gladiators) guitar riff in "The Girl Who Wanted to Be God" and some sick riffs scattered throughout the album. Just the album overall is bland and I can't get with the sound.

Maybe listening to The Fat Album might pique my interest and make me reconsider this album, but for now this is an album that I will forget about.

Highlight Song/s: "Everything Must Go", "Australia" and "Interiors"

Forget all the other albums that I've referred to as atmospheric, this right here is the one that deserves the most, this is the real deal of them all. This is also a very relaxing album, it's full of feelings of tranquillity. With all the positive feelings just mentioned there is a bit of a negative, which is that near the end of the album got a bit boring. So this album is a strong 3, just not quite enough to round it up.

Highlight Song/s: "Sexy Boy" and "Remember"

An interesting hip-hop album for sure. It was released when hip-hop had started to lean in more gangster stuff. It seems like this album was released a couple years late as it has a more mid-school approach. You know it would fit in well with Licence to Ill's and the Raising Hell's. This is a fine album, it's not anything crazy or maddening - it's pretty perfect if you are looking for the mid-school sound - it's good for what it's worth.

Highlight Song/s: "Latifiah's Law", "Evil That Men Do" and "Princess of the Posse"

The album is very laid-back and unhurried in its approach, like it's an insanely calm album. The sounds heard here tend to include rock, blues and country, with all those genres being mixed and matched at different times. There are some sick lead guitar parts, especially in the gem of a song that is "Sultans Of Swing" and a new discovery of "In The Gallery."

Highlight Song/s: "Sultans Of Swing" and "In The Gallery"

This one is quite boring to my ears... Just like the 1969 Traffic album this doesn't really move me in any way. The vocals are just not that good. I found myself enjoy the instrumental parts of songs more than the parts of the songs where it has vocals. Though however when he is singing yearnfully, those parts are good. Another good thing I can think of is the tone, which I enjoyed a lot.

Highlight Song/s: "Every Mother's Son"

London Calling is an album when a seemingly through-and-through punk band decided to mostly drop the punk sound, in favour of messing around with some of their favourite genres. The double album is just littered with anthems left, right and centre and it also has a very high consistency on songs. It literally feels like a greatest hits album which is borderline maddening for a DOUBLE album.

As mentioned earlier in the post, it's very eclectic. The styles include post-punk, new wave, reggae, ska, pop rock, and some remnants of their punk rock sound from their first two releases.
Side B of the album is my favourite portion of the album, it's just completely stacked! "Spanish Bombs", "Lost in the Supermarket", "Clampdown", "The Guns of Brixton", all right after each other is straight killer, like my goodness gracious. The title track has a vibe that no other songs here manage to replicate, it's simply just immaculate and is very Joy Division-esque.

This album is in my top 10 music albums of all time. Some last notes are: the album cover is superb and one my favourite of all time, the crow noises in the title track and "Death or Glory" are funny as hell and I hope everyone gives this album (who doesn't like it) a fair listen, which really does deserve one.

Highlight Song/s: "London Calling", "Rudie Can't Fail", "Spanish Bombs", "Lost in the Supermarket", "The Guns of Brixton" and "Train in Vain"

Just like Nick Drake's other only two albums here it has very playful melodies, introspective lyrics, intricate guitar playing and lush arrangements (except for Pink moon; still worth mentioning because 66% of discog. is like this.) I particularly like the arrangements in the songs "Hazey Jane II", "One Of These Things First" and "Bryter Layer." I found that a second listen helped my opinion of this album (as one might expect.) this is also my first Nick Drake album where I didn't experience for a first time without the holy generator, because why not. I definitely think Pink Moon is better than this because sometimes there has to be a favourite, but his catalog is still pretty killer, he didn't seem to miss a lot. Doesn't mean that this is a 'bad' album.

Highlight Song/s: "Hazey Jane II", "Hazey Jane I" and "Poor Boy"