Reviews by benc

Immaculate. Found this at a thrift store when I first moved to Massachusetts and didn't realize what a classic I'd stumbled upon. Proof that a covers album can reach the stratosphere.

Helmut Lachenmann once said, "composition is building an instrument." No "rock" band has taken this to heart like Neubauten. This record is imaginative, brutal, heartfelt, straight from the gut, and it really sounds nothing like anything that came before. I first encountered Kollaps when I was ~19 and it shook me; 4 years later I got my first drum machine and spent the next few years making my own version of industrial music. This was a life-changing record for me and I really encourage people to open their ears to what is happening here. In the post-Auschwitz, post-Baader Meinhof neoliberal dawn in West Germany, artists SHOULD NOT have been making feel good schlager pap. Sorry not sorry that all music can't sound like Fleetwood Mac, but this level of absurdist dissonance is what keeps me sane in an insane world.

A truly wild, weird, experimental record that, somehow, has had a lasting influence on pop music -- you hear the fingerprints from Maggot Brain everywhere if you listen closely. Also, an absolute shred fest -- killer guitars.

This is fine. I have almost no opinion of this music. But I am definitely annoyed by the ludicrous comparisons people make between this guy and certain other artists.

-I feel like I'm scouring for flaws in this album and coming up with practically nothing substantial. Yes, you could argue Yellow Submarine, Doctor Robert, I Want to Tell You, and even Taxman are not the finest from the songwriters, but even those have their charms.

-Practically every second of every song has something interesting happening.

-Paul shows off 3 of the best songs he ever wrote (For No One, Got to Get You Into My Life, Here There and Everywhere), and that doesn't even include Eleanor Rigby.

-Even though they recorded this album around the time they stopped touring, they were still able to show off what a tight band they were. The harmonies on And Your Bird Can Sing, Here There and Everywhere, and even Taxman are some of the best vocal harmonies ever recorded in rock music history.

-There's insane riffage all over this album -- the dudes are really playing their asses off on songs like She Said She Said, And Your Bird Can Sing, Got to Get You Into My Life, Good Day Sunshine, and even Taxman.

-George was still figuring out his songwriting strengths, but I have love for all 3 of his songs, even Taxman. Love You To does its thing better than it really ought to.

-Quoting a friend here, but John invented the sound of Britpop on this album, especially on She Said She Said and I'm Only Sleeping.

-Tomorrow Never Knows is a psychedelic masterpiece and is, arguably, the best thing this band ever recorded.

Rave music's got a lot of problems, but "not angry or aggressive enough" is not one of them. I generally enjoyed listening to this, but there is a tough guy silliness to it all that makes me roll my eyes.

Sorely disappointed. I remember checking this CD out of the library in high school because I heard "There Goes the Fear" on MTV2, but I guess there's a reason I never really listened to it after that. There's some tiny bits of vibey electronic-ish stuff that glues the tracks together -- these are the best parts of the album. But the songs -- woof. Horrible, overwrought anthem pap. Way too Coldplay-esque.

God this shit sucks so bad. Annoying, pompous, generic, dorky, pretentious corporate arena rock slop. One of my least favorite bands ever.

I adore this record -- whatever "imperfections" anyone may hear in this music only seems to add to its charm. Acid soaked Neil Young punks who are really great musicians and gripping singers/lyricists.

This is a great album and I know it's a bit sacrilegious but I would rank this as one of my lesser favs from Kendrick. For context, I was absolutely PUMPED when this album came out and bought it on CD at Amoeba Records the day it dropped. I liked it, but for whatever reason I continued listening to Section.80. I probably had a hard time adjusting to the big changes in the production style -- the two big singles are probably my least favorite tracks on the album. But overall there's so much heat on this album you gotta respect it.

Total cowboy cosplay, but also genuinely great blues folk music. Also, listening to this is how I discovered Ramblin' Jack is still alive!

I'm breathless in my ability to describe how much better the Cure sounds as I get older -- I really think they are one of the best rock bands ever. I hadn't listened to this album in a long time, and I remember being so-so about it when I heard it ~20 years ago. Listening to it again, I feel I now understand it better. I'm looking forward to relistening to this a ton.

Yet another reaffirmation: I really don't like this band. Yes, Plant is extremely annoying. But also, on this listen, I was struck by how tactless and tasteless Page's playing is. So often he shifts between "fast noodling" and "clunky fake blues noodling." The best part of this band is, without question, the drums.

I understand why this album is jarring for many listeners, especially if you're only listening to this in the context of the highly pop/rock inflected list. It takes a bit of work to shift your mode of listening if you want to enjoy this music, but I believe it's worth the effort. The compositions are zany and funny and terrifying and grievous. Also, Eisler was right about a lotta shit and it feels nice to have a dose of absurdist modernist sanity.

This is among the best ever examples of this kind of rock (whatever genre you'd prefer to call it). Say whatever you want about Courtney Love, but she sounds like the real deal on this album.

Mixed feelings about this. If you listen to it as a pure pop album, it's pretty good. The songwriting is strong and unique, and I enjoy the retro-ish synths. But it is otherwise relatively toothless and has already aged kinda badly -- see the millennial whoops and edm risers.

There's a lot to be said about Albini but, cutting through all that noise, this is just a great record. It perfectly scratches an itch for dissonant industrial punk rock. I also totally understand why anyone would hate this music, which only adds to its appeal for me. RIP legend.

Offensively boring easy listening pap. Clunky, not funky.

I listened to this album a ton in middle school, back when SP were my "favorite band." Listening 25+ years later, it's still a really good album, but it's hard not to be distracted by Billy Corgan's odious personality. The guitars sound (mostly) spectacular, and the hooky songwriting uses them to great effect. This is not an original thought, but Siamese Dream is like a shoegaze album for US rock radio. There's no real skips, and I feel like I could sing back every second of this record. Nonetheless, Corgan sounds like a complete maniac -- his lyrics are totally pompous and contrived, and the dude simply cannot chill out. Even on the ballads, Corgan is just belting his ass off in a totally inappropriate way. The worst offender is "Disarm," which I liked a lot as a kid but now sounds completely silly to me. Overall, good record made by a bad guy who absolutely cannot keep his ego in check.

I struggle to understand what people find so compelling about this band. I suppose, in the context of the post-2 Tone soul revival, this music probably felt somewhat refreshing in the early 80s. And the singer has character (like a pinched, less interesting version of Robert Smith). But to me it is incredibly boring and dorky.