Reviews by declaniom

This was flavour of the month in July 2002. The Geese of its day. I’ve probably not heard it since August 2002. It’s vaguely Beatlesy, mildly Nirvanay, slightly Costelloy, a bit Becky and all given the Strokes / Kings of Leon production treatment. Quite enjoyable but I can wait another 24 years before I hear it again.

Hideous neo-liberal dystopia. At least Orwell’s 1984 had songs.

Fun rhymes. Nice relaxed beats.

I would like Do You Realise??? Played at My funeral. So I’m glad I heard this before I died.

There is credit due to Janet for attempting a fully realised pop rnb album when that was the domain of (largely male) rock crowd. Would we have Brat without Janet?

That said, it’s a little bland when compared to Raw Like Sushi or Boomania. Beats haven’t aged well.

Surprised Rated R isn’t the Queens of the Stone Age lp or n here. But The compiler does love self-titled American debuts by middle of the road rockers.

Josh Homme may now be remembered best as the aresehole who ruined the Arctic Monkeys but he briefly was the great hope of alternative music when he performed Feel Good Hit of The Summer but the good feelings didn’t last and it turned out he had limited talent and fewer ideas. So he went the collaboration route.

This is the album before the hit but I bought it in the wake of Feel Good …. I thought it pretty boring and derivative and never listen to it again.

Listening now it’s ok corporate rock.

At the festival this day (see previous two reviews) began with Charlotte Church singing War Pigs. Then I woke to find this was my album of the day.

The rain was incessant. The festival is in the farm yard next to a castle. On the Great Lawn the wars of the roses was reenacted. Whilst in the drawing room Stewart Lee read a gruesome retelling of the Owl and the pussycat. Later a polar and a grizzly dueled during the headliner. Walking through the castle grounds what did a spy but fairies in boots dancing with dwarves. I tell ya I tell ya no lies for I saw it I saw it with my own two eyes.

5 stars highly recommend.

I’m at a festival in the grounds of a medeaval castle. Spent the morning wandering through the gardens pretending that I’m in the Courr of the Crimson King.

Like the bombast of the opener and the title track. In between it’s pleasantly ambient

I’m on my way to a festival in the Lake District. It’s rainy and I’m hungover. I don’t fancy the yomp up the big hill to the festival site or putting up my tent in the rain. This however has been the perfect soundtrack.

I’ve heard it lots though and it’s normally a 4 Star album even if today it’s a 5.

Since the eighties, if asked
If I liked the Triffids
I’d say “yes indeed”
Because since then, I thought did
But I can’t recall
Hearing these songs before
Either they’re unmemorable
Or I’m a fraud.

Obviously Dolly was a person with many admirable qualities. In particular the philanthropy.

This a good record. Liked the hints towards British folk revival that are throughout the record.

Simple Minds are better than I remember them. Maybe not surrounded by all the eighties crap their qualities come to the fore and their generic elements fade.

This sort of post-New Wave, post-post Punk mainsteam stadium rock was so horrid - think INXS or U2 or Billy Idol - that to go there and emerge with a three star album is a modest achievement.

This is a compilation of live tracks. Recorded over a longer period than Singles Going Steady, or Hatful of Hollow but they’re excluded and this is allowed.

By the sounds of it Lizzy must have been a great live band. Except this isn’t really live its the drums and the crowd noise from the shows and a load of overdubs.

There’s a pointless drum solo where the drummer speeds up and some crowd noise is dubbed over, presumably to hide the embarrassed silence.

Generally quite fun. But it’s pub rock really. Even the guests - Huey Lewis from Clover and the Rumour’s saxomphone player are Pub Rock stalwarts. They’re basically Eddie and the Hotrods. A damn good Eddie and the Hot Rods but Eddie and the Hot Rods nonetheless.

Is goth-surf a thing? I think it is.

Theres this, Walking in the Sand, the Jesus and Mary Chain's Kill Surf City and that Jan and Dean song about a motorcycle crash.

Beautiful album, obviously the guitar playing is extra special but I've always loved the enigmatic but dynamic lyrics.

My Tuesday bus journey had that day’s selection Countdown To Ecsatsy for my journey I wrote …

I don’t care, Steely Dan, I don’t care.

I don’t care about your chops
I don’t care about how long it took
To find a drum sound that pops
I don’t care about the melodic hook
I don’t care about you Steely Dan
I don’t care about your studious rhymes Of vacant people in empty lands
I don’t care so much I wrote these lines

Today is Friday and I get this. If Steely Dan are going to turn out the same dull album I’m gonna do the same review.

I still don’t care, Steely Dan, I still don’t care.

I still don’t care about your chops
I still don’t care about how long it took
To find a drum sound that pops
I still don’t care about the melodic hook

I still don’t care about you Steely Dan
I still don’t care about your studious rhymes Of vacant people in empty lands
I still don’t care so much I wrote these lines

Sounds like every 21st cenuary English punk band. But it was innovative at the time.

I love this record. Perhaps it’s because it was the first Kraftwerk lp I owned. Perhaps I fell in love with it because it was the time I also fell in love with the Beach Boys and Stereolab.

The second hand 70’s vinyl version of this lp is better than the Spotify remastered version by the way. Not always the case with Kraftwerk whose tinkering with their catalogue often refreshes but not here.

I don’t care, Steely Dan, I don’t care.

I don’t care about your chops
I don’t care about how long it took
To find a drum sound that pops
I don’t care about the melodic hook

I don’t care about you Steely Dan
I don’t care about your studious rhymes
Of vacant people in empty lands
I don’t care so much I wrote these lines

Ponderous.