Reviews by amanda

Another band I've heard of but have no concept of. Now that I think of it, this is a weird name. Wiki suggests it comes from "an offer on a breakfast cereal packet, where customers could send off for a gold Jesus & Mary chain". Fine, except what in heaven's name is a breakfast cereal PACKET? Is Scottish cereal like Canadian milk?

Anyway, they sound a bit like Echo and the Bunnymen and The Cure, which I guess makes sense. At first I was in the 3-zone, but either they got noisier or I got crankier; either way I think they've fallen to a two.

Lowlight: 'Never Understand' (my reaction to extended guitar feedback)

This generator website is always getting updated. Makes me feel insecure about my own website, like when the neighbor mows the lawn. Anyway, I've heard of this album but don't know anything about it. A blank slate!

It's (punk?) rock. Sounds more 80s than 70s though. Not sure that we need a 10 minute song in any decade, but otherwise it was decent.

Highlights: 'Guiding Light', "It's too too-too to put a finger on"

Now we're talking. Actually, although boards of canada are on a lot of my electro playlists and mixes and whatnot, I've always found them boring and background-music-y. But I have never listed to a full album, so let's see. OK, I still feel this way. It's pleasant but definitely not a 100% attention kind of listening experience for me.

Lotta color + shape talk (in the titles).

Highlight: the title 'Rue the Whirl' is like something I would come up with (therefore: good)

Any relation to Jeff? Wait, yes?? It's his dad??? I wasn't expecting that. Add it to the [related people on the list] list!

Surprising no-one, I like the 90s Buckley a lot more than this 70s Buckley. I'm sure you had to be there, but it sounds very 70s. Interestingly the genre is listed as R&B, which at least disproves my "r&b is just pop by black people?" theory, but I also don't think this sounds anything like (modern?) r&b. More like blues rock (boooo, although I guess that is the eponymous "b") with some jaunty horns in the background (yay?). Altogether, this album made me vaguely uncomfy. Next!

"Live" in this case actually means, well, live. Unnecessary quotes always make me laugh, so at least there's that.

A live album of covers from the 60s though, I dunno. At least I do know several of the songs. (Except I didn't know 'High School Confidential' - I know a different song called 'High School Confidential' based on the same movie that this 'High School Confidential' is named for. Boo! The "Jerry" chanting at the end of that song was silly though because I can't help but associate it with Jerry Springer.) Anyway, of the songs I DID know, I think I always like a different (original?) version of them better. But they are more interesting songs than some of the boring "vocal jazz" covers from earlier this week. Though when I was in middle school we had a 50s day where they played 'Great Balls of Fire', and my friend Brandy was so into it and I was like, "this song sucks??", and unfortunately, I still kinda think that. How does this all factor in? These are like bowling alley songs. Is that better than dentist songs? Yes, but they're also live, so.... I think it's a 2 for me. Sorry! I know it's lauded!

I did of course have a period of time where I mixed up Ryan Adams with Bryan Adams. Ryan did a cover of Wonderwall, though. And apparently, this album. And apparently, harassed Mandy Moore. Surely another 2000s solo sadboi like Daniel Bedingfield or James Blunt could take his place on this list!!

Ah well, as an album it's fine. More pop than country in my view. One of the songs had the Counting Crows guy on it, which makes total sense because Ryan has a bit of a Counting Crows/Hootie and the Blowfish vibe. (Heck, those bands could take his place on this list too!)

I've been on La Cienega. I didn't realise it had a face.

Highlights: 'New York, New York', RA's got a bit of a Billie Joe Armstrong hairdo on this album cover (which reminds me, Green Day could also take his place on the list)

More oldies! Vocal jazz though - she wanted it to feel similar to Ella's songbook, and I think it does (although blessedly, much shorter). I don't really know any of the songs, but I like the backing music :D? Not that I dislike the singing, but as is the case with jazz, there's no hooks!! So it's kinda boring to listen to as an album.

Delaware: Cab Calloway also sang 'I'll Be Around', and he's the namesake of the school I consider the Torrey Pines of Delaware.

Magnetic Fields: 'My Only Friend' features the lyric, "Hey, Lady Day, can you save my life this time?"

Highlights: The full title of 'I Get Along Without You Very Well' is apparently 'I Get Along Without You Very Well (Except Sometimes)', which is a funny title, but better yet, it was written by Hoagland "Hoagy" Carmichael. Now that's a name. Meet my sons, Blimpie, Hoagy, and Grinder.

Hmm, interesting. I only know their Yoshimi song (not on this album), which I like moderately well. I think I tried to listen to the rest of that album once and couldn't get into it, kind of similar to the situation with the Arcade Fire and their singles. But Wiki says this is the Pet Sounds of the 90s! We'll see about that. . . .

Nah, it's not. Pet Sounds is good because the songs are so different from eachother, and all these songs feel pretty similar (at least on first listen). Fewer hooks too. I guess the instrumentation is similar, and both bands have high pitched voices?? Maybe I'm predisposed to think so, but the lyrical content on this album also seems pretty depressing, which is the total opposite of Pet Sounds! I give it a Sloop John C+ .

Also, it's weird to include 2 versions of 2 songs. I was like "oh, these last two songs are OK", but that's because I heard them already. Sneaky!

Highlight: "'Cause it's gettin' heavy / Well I thought it was already as heavy as can be" (#emo)

There are more Bruce albums (on this list) than I expected. But this is probably his most famous one, right? We actually have a lot in common, because I too was born in the USA. Unfortunately, you wouldn't even believe the number of bad things that happened to me today (it's at least as many as there were Bruce albums), so the album is being perceived thru a lens of exhausted devastation. I don't know if that's helping it or hurting it, but it's getting a 4. Much better to me than "Nebraska" even though a lot of these were from the Nebraska sessions apparently...

Highlights: 'I'm on Fire', 'Dancing in the Dark'

Me: what the crap is this garbage? (Also, a 3rd Beth Orton appearance as vocalist?!)

Me 10 minutes later: wait, I know this guy, I have listened to several of his albums (although as is typically the case on here, not this one)! & he's on Balance mixes!

Me 20 minutes later: He died 2 months ago? I am devastated ;__;

This guy's birth name is Wainwright, but no famous relation, I think. He chose "Orbit" because he loves space [thus, this is space electro?? Hm, is all electro "space electro"? I think I posit: no].

As for the album, turns out I liked it. Ha. Serves me right for judging by the (unappealing, looks like 80s metal) cover! Some tracks a little boring, some really lovely, none offensive or bad.

Highlight: 'Harry Flowers'

An album I didn't realise I was waiting for! One of my favorite compilations is the 90s CD box set "Music To Watch Girls By", which has Dusty on it (along with like, Andy Williams, Louis Armstrong, Perry Como, etc). So, I like her. She exemplifies like a genre I like, which for me is "oldies", though this is listed as pop. And she didn't write any of the songs, so I guess that tracks. But I think she has a good and unique voice, and the songs are nice and short. The female Elvis??
None of the songs here were that catchy really, but it's all the more impressive that I enjoyed listening anyway (and just wait until she's doing 'You Don't Have to Say You Love Me' or 'Wishin' and Hopin''! Just wait!)

Another artist that my cousin Elaine liked (along with Franz Ferdinand and MIKA). I didn't really like them, although maybe that's just because I was sick of hearing from my mom about how cool they were because my cousin said so!!! (The Magnetic Fields are also cool!!!)

Anyway, I did go on to use the song 'Laura' on mix CDs for my friend Laura (and now that we've had a few albums with "shamone"s on them I know it's not an SS original!).

As a cover, I hate this version of 'Comfortably Numb', but if I assume it is just a totally different song, then it is fine. Sounds a bit like 'Relax'.

Overall I guess this genre is up my alley, and I enjoyed listening to the album. Did I 4-enjoy it? I think I 3.5 enjoyed it, and my lingering resentment will lead me to round it down. The guy singer is on on Broadway now though; good for him.

Highlight: 'Music Is the Victim'

Good album cover. Looks like a xanga.

Classic 90s rap themes: have-gun;will-use, cops=bad, doing drugs and drinking Moët, hooking up with women (misogynistically), being an MC, gang life. I will say, I think the delivery is a step above a lot of the other contemporary hip hop albums. It still got kind of repetitive by the end though, and even if I think it's better than other 2s, I don't want to listen again.

Slur count = 207.

Highlights: 'Juicy', Diana King

Lowlight: Pager beeps in 'Warning' >:(

Nice, nice, nice, nice. A gift for me on a busy week. Move over, Phil Spector. I wish I had more time to devote to this one, actually, because I have never heard this album before, even though I like New Order. It seems good and I enjoyed it. I will give it a 4 for now but maybe if I ever go back through these (lol) I could upgrade it.

Highlight: 'All the Way'

Well, I like her hairdo and the swoopy B-R. Otherwise... they're calling this "heartland rock", which really means "Adult Contemporary", the likes of which you'd hear on 101.3 The Rose, aka if I'm hearing this I'm surely at the dentist. At least Steely Dan aren't the only ones! All genders can make boring music for me to hate while my mouth hurts! (Actually, this is very similar to Shania Twain's best-selling album "Come On Over", which I listened to quite a lot... but I submit that this album is a less interesting version of that one, which isn't even *that* interesting in retrospect!)

Whatever, it's unobjectionable, so Bonnie "The Road" Raitt, I Raitt you a Middle-of-"The Road" 3.

Herbie Hancock is on this album, also. He's famous.

Line that left me pondering: "I ain't no porcupine, take off your kid gloves."

What "D" hell is this? I predict I will hate it. I bet more than half of this album's total listens come from this very project. I don't like what's happening with that dog-goat(horse?) hybrid.

OK, turns out.... this wasn't that bad. Kinda generic on a first listen (Wilco-esque?) but not offensive in any way, and not overlong. The lyrics aren't anything special but the sound is more "modern indie rock" than "southern rock" to me. Maybe in another world if it were on the rock countdown I would have good feelings about it instead of thinking "fine, but why is this here?". Alas... we are in the world that we are in.

This is one of those bands (is a duo a band? I guess so) that I think I've heard before, but I might be mixing them up with someone else. 90s electronica, though, so I've probably heard them somewhere or another. (Update: yes, I have, although more their third album than this one. 'Let Forever Be' is a banger.) This is very Basement Jaxxy. Every song sounds a little bit like 'Where's Your Head At', but a bit better, in my estimation, although it'd be better still without all the "yeah"s and suchlike. When my neighbor was leaf-blowing, I wanted to give this a 3; when it was quiet outside, I wanted to give it a 4. I will round up, because that's the world I want to live in.

I think the middle of the album was the strongest. Hey, Beth Orton (vocalist for the last track) was on this list before. I guess there are only so many British people.

Grammar check: Is 'Three Little Birdies Down Beats' supposed to be 'Three Little Birdies's Down Beats' or is "down" a verb here? I guess I should respect the text as written... but I think it's the first one. Anyway, I support the little birdies whatever they're doing.

Highlights: 'Chico's Groove', 'One Too Many Mornings'

Genre: Hard bop. You have my attention!

Shocking news: this is neither hard nor bop. It's jazz. Easy jazz. It's fine. Among the upper tier of its genre, probably, but I don't think there's any jazz I LIKE like.

Track ranking: 3 > 2 > 5 > 1 > 4.

Hello DEPRESSION, I guess.

On the side of whimsy: very appealing album cover, and the -een suffix makes me think of pusheen, the cute little internet cat. (Both '-een's are from the Irish diminuiative suffix -ín, if you were wondering)

Otherwise, whew. Bit of a downer. Kind of like one really long, sad song, which I guess means it's a very cohesive album, but for the non-weepers out there, it's probably boring. It's giving a little bit "Bruce Springsteen does Leonard Cohen" (complimentary, I think).

Crazy low back vowel on "pastures" and "past".

Lowlight: He rhymes "hand" with "hand" one time.

I have a big poster on my bedroom wall from a Common concert when I was in college. I didn't go to the concert but I have good feelings about the poster, and furthermore, I like the book with the same title as this album. Unfortunately I didn't like this very much. Wiki calls it "progressive hip hop", which is a different meaning from "progressive rock", unless I really missed something about prog. First of all, I feel like most hip hop is at least somewhat progressive (in the sense that it's political & race&class-conscious) ... though also somewhat problematic (re: violence, misogyny, homophobia)) ... so it doesn't seem a very useful label. I guess the entries on this list might be a very particular subset, though. Anyway, I found this album disappointing, because I was hoping to like it but it didn't stand out very much. Some songs were better than others, but none were really what I'd call highlights. Good album cover.

Slur count = 76.