Reviews by galway_rat

One peculiar note about the accolades on Wikipedia are cited from academic articles, not music journalists. From that alone, this is a brave choice for the generator.

I don’t think I’ve ever thought critically about a vaporwave playlist before, but I can try. Shoutout to “Z e l d a w a v e” on Marble Pawn’s YT channel, that’s about the only example in the niche/microgenre I can name off the top of my head.

I was skeptical since the evocation of early 2000s America should mean one would have had to be in that time and place to feel what “Cat System Corp.” intended. And even then that’s subjective.
I was 5 when the towers fell and I don’t have any recollection of that day. But the Canadian weather channel, seemingly always on at my grandma’s suite, sounded just. like. this.
So the nostalgia bait is somewhat effective?

I gave the Crusaders 2 stars on the original list for veering too close to elevator music, and they literally are sampled for the purposes of this album!
That isn’t to say I don’t appreciate the musical merit of the sampled music, as much as they aren’t my cup of tea by any means.

Sometime before the end of the 1st side, I started to get taken in by THE CONCEPT, which is good because none of this works without it. I think the mid-sentence cuts, which omit the “This just in” moment from the actual broadcasts, are super eerie and effective.
I’m not entirely sure how to feel about the weather channel half. I guess the more immersive bits of morning television had me thinking there would be more glimpses into this banal universe, but no. A crackle of VHS static and it just ends.
Weird dream is over.

4 stars for the audacity

November 2, 2025

November 19, 2025

"Tick Tock", "It Runs Through Me" (feat. De La Soul), "Man Like You", "Water Baby", "We've Come So Far"

Oodles and oodles of potential

For such a laidback album, I feel like I went through a wide range of emotions. Anger for hearing such sophistication when I currently crave something noisier (as my voting record for punk and metal shows, that's not a common issue with me).
Joy upon hearing that De La Soul was involved, as well as during the funkier tracks like "Water Baby".
Contemplation, during the vibier tracks like "We've Come So Far" and that little Stevie Wonder excerpt.

Tldr this album made feel everything and nothing

7/10

"enjoyed! Though I was up at noon today, this feels like an appropriate sunrise album."
-October 21, 2024

That is all I wrote in my music diary. Damned past me is about to make me set an early alarm for Nujabes

November 9, 2025

HL: "Feather", "Ordinary Joe", "Luv(sic)", "Thank You", title track, "Horizon"

Listened to some of it at 8am and the rest at 8pm. It's a morning album, it's a night album, it's a frikin blast and I'm still not entirely sure why.
The guest roster of underground rappers like Shing02 and Apani B Fly get their time to shine but their features don't really stand out the way you'd expect from a hip-hop album; the album is mainly focused on dreamily shifting from one track to the next.
Though there are many great examples of mixing hip-hop and jazz before and after Modal Soul, this album is still a pretty special one.

November 17, 2025

HL: "Dancehall Vibes", "Don't Stop", "Ruffneck"

Okay, from my own bias with 90's electronic music (see also: my bias with all 1990s music), I'm not surprised that these songs about gyals and rude bwoys come from two British white guys. Though one thing the 1001 lacks is Caribbean genres like dancehall, hence "Dancehall Vibes" grabbed my attention right away.

Where's my pitchfork, it sounds like they're trying to pass off 80s electro as their own cooking!
Wait put down that pitchfork, that's actually the Soulsonic Force and not just an extended sample/interpolation.

Okay, by the time "Scratch 22" is playing, I may be enjoying this somewhat. The Pulp Fiction sample is silly but well-executed. Thought the closing dialogue was from Doctor Who but it's actually Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

I didn't care to hear another breakbeat album, but this was more fun than expected.

3.5/5

I think about the title track a lot, stemming back from when I learned the trombone solo to play in a band that never made it to its first gig. It's been quite a while since I've actually listened to this in full, recognizing it mostly as the butt of online jokes about online music communities now.
Maybe it just has to do with the passage of time, but the production doesn't faze me considering how often I grumble about lo-fi techniques (e.g. The Mountain Goats). It definitely abets the surreal atmosphere created by the lyrics, the artwork and unconventional instrument choices, e.g. the musical saw in the title track.

HL: title track, "Two-Headed Boy", "Holland 1945", "Ghost"

A big gourmet potato salad

Times like these are why I sometimes struggle with star ratings. My four stars include both some of the greatest, most ambitious albums of all time, as well as, uh, good ol' fashioned southern rock, sung and played well.
But then, when I try to devise a system that takes influence into account, it always gets defeated by me thinking something along the lines of "Well I liked Carolina Confessions too much for a 3 star..."

4/5 ☆, like A Love Supreme

November 11, 2025

HL: "Manguetown", "Maracatu Atômico" (Ragga Mix), "Macô", "Quilombo Groove", maybe "Corpo de Lama"

I am grateful to confirm that Brazilian music is more than just MPB and Sepultura. (as the callbacks to Os Mutantes remind me, there's also the psychedelic-leaning Tropicália groups

I am still conflicted about this album. The blend of different rhythms & percussion is the best thing about it, however when it turns into 90's rap-rock, I didn't find myself enjoying it any more than Chico Science's English-language contemporaries Fun Lovin' Criminals and Beck.

I normally try not to mess with the tracklist if I haven't heard an album previously... but I sprinkled all the Maracatu Atomicos throughout the record in roughly equal intervals. It's a good song but not good enough to hear three times in a row.

November 8, 2025

HL: "Rozando la eternidad", "Rosa gris", "Historias tristes", "El chico de los ojos asustados"

Spain? So what, there are other Spanish-speaking countries besides Mexico now? /s
For real though, San Sebastián, where this band originate from, is the only city in Spain I've been to (being very close to the French border and all), so it's neat seeing it represented here.

Autobiografia is 30 songs and 2 discs long, much like the White Album, but is 10 minutes shorter than the latter. Efficiency!

I guess my main issue with the album is ("don't say too long, don't say too long")... um, a lack of diversity among the songs that made the cut in this double album. Even though there are some fun diversions like the folky brass in "El chico" and the rockier songs like "Entre salitre y sudor".
Though that last song (and its music video) gave me something to chew on. The umbrella of jangle pop, sophistipop & pub rock in the 80s often come with the idea that this is the "real music", a guitar-driven antidote to the artificial synth and dance-oriented music that dominated the charts.
But then you get something like that aforementioned song, synth strings galore, promoted by a music video with a guy miming cello over the synth strings... out of shame? That was their lead single for this album, so forgive me if I'm a bit confused

okay, not first listen--
Have to say, the October picks from the generator have been on point! 🐺

the title track is scarier than the werewolf one, how did I not notice before

HL: “Johnny”, “Werewolves”, “Headless Gunner”, “Lawyers”

Not first listen-- in fact, I've heard all of em Vampire Weekendses. I started in chronological order, listening to their self-titled & Contra last year, but then skipped ahead to this one after the (exclusively online) buzz became too loud to ignore.

I thought it made a strong impression, but then again I Shazamed a song in a restaurant this year, thinking it was really cool, and it was "Mary Boone" from this album.
*Googles 'can 29-year-olds get dementia'*
In my defence, my first listen was like at 4am. Also from my listening history, it MAY have been overshadowed by Imaginal Disk that week. But it's a good example of Vampire Weekend pushing their sound about as far as it will go while still sounding like themselves. As surprising as the overall noise level was, those soweto-style guitar licks are still there in "Classical" and "Pravda"*.

Somehow these twee bastards put more vitriol in "Gen X Cops" then I've heard from a lot of American "political" tunes

I thought "Hope" was a little repetitive and lackluster the first time, for an album closer, but it keeps sounding better and better.

The album cover evokes the unique production. It's a bit gross and unsettling until you see the whimsy of some dude walking on the walls. I have a feeling this is something I'm going to keep coming back to, so I'm feeling generous with the star rating.**

*Vampire Weekend was one of my "new" favourite acts last year. Though after finding some thinkpiece about their lifting of certain Afropop tropes, I happened to find another of my favourite listens, The Indestructible Beat of Soweto (1985). Never hurts to know where your favourite artists steal from (see also: Paul Simon and Ladysmith Black Mambazo from the original list)

**I may be a bit reticent with the 5-star albums this year. After all, including this one, only 4 of the top-rated albums were ones I had never heard before, and I was basically indoctrinated from an early age to like one of those four (Fully Completely 🇨🇦). Expect a couple edits for the 5iest of my 4-stars...

HL: "Classical", "Connect", "The Surfer", "Gen X Cops", "Mary Boone", "Hope"

This is the 2nd Yo La Tengo for me, after putting on
And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out (2000)
That was over a year ago, so I'm not able to closely compare them, but they definitely share a lot of the same vibes (sweet country flair at times, Jesus & Mary Chain-level distortion elsewhere)

ICHTHBAO lost me a little with "Spec/Bebop" & "We're An American Band", but finishes strong on a sweet ditty "My Little Corner of the World", which I just learned was first a hit in 1960.

I give this a "neato" out of 5

HL: "Moby Octopad", "Sugarcube", "Stockholm Syndrome", "Autumn Sweater", "Green Arrow"

October 24, 2025

Oct 22, 2025

HL: "Sunday Papers", "Is She Really Going Out With Him?", "title track", "Got the Time"

I knew “Sunday Papers” and “Is She Really”, but not so much the rest of Joe Jackson’s output. Which is a shame, since this a pretty strong debut from him. Even with the sad schmuck-down-on-his-luck lyrics. No, especially the sad schmuck-down-on-his-luck lyrics.

I feel like I’ll never stop going back to this, even as a fan, but SIX Elvis Costello…
The world has more pub rock to offer!

What you're about to hear is the kind of cutting-edge musical critique that only I can provide:
This album which has a length that is long...
It feels long.

Hold thine applause. >:0

Maybe I'll love it one day, as there seems to be some genes shared with Spiritualized and Godspeed You! Black Emperor. As of now, I haven't learned much beyond what I gathered from snippets off of RateYourMusic and Wikipedia, that they're some Texans who play their guitars really loud and ramble for about 1-2 hours concerning Texas and religion. Generally when those two things are combined, it makes something incredibly problematic, but in the case of the Texas-Jerusalem Crossroads, it comes together pretty nicely all things considered. I typed all of this in the 14-minute space before the hidden track 'untitled'. It's a good length of time to pause and reflect.

If the house band at my local evangelical church were introduced to drugs, do you think they would sound this good?

3.5

October 29, 2025 (rated user album #200 today. The second second of eternity has passed)

October 23, 2025

HL: "High", "Bomb", "Shitsville", "Lakers", title track

A strange mix of ear-candy instrumentals and the everyday horrors that Gibbs raps about- you'd almost think, with the music behind it, that thuggin' and pimpin' are steps to some great spiritual revelation.
Before today I knew Madlib from his contributions to Madvillainy, and Freddie Gibbs from a random SNL skit starring Chris Redd. Thankfully, I have a greater appreciation of both after today.

Plus, a shocker comes from the fact that my favourite song MIGHT be the one with Raekwon. Yes, the guy whose album Cuban Links was one of my lowest-ranked hip-hop albums from the original list.
Do you hear the winds of change?

I had a feeling the musician who chose this album cover wasn't black... I was correct in that assumption.

Never heard of this before now, but is pretty futuristic for a 1978 record.
"No Regrets", the closer, is easily my favourite track despite all 6 sounding pretty similar to each other.
"<< H >> Friend" ought to be in a movie set in a strange, otherworldly club. A haunted dancehall, if you will -_-

HL: "H Friend", "No Regrets"

maybe a 3.5, idk

October 25, 2025

October 30, 2025

HL: "Jewel Drop", "Ophelia", "The Curse of Being a Girl", "Snowman"

These guys are from København, eh?
I would've sworn I've encountered at least one Danish act from this website, but perhaps I'm just thinking of Queen of Denmark by John Grant.

My 5 seconds of research before the album made me think this would be in the realm of Snow Patrol and Travis, and it occasionally crosses into something one might wave a lighter to, but mostly remains in a somewhat cold, brutalist environment. "The Cynic" featuring Bowie is neat; the spoken word piece from Lou Reed adds some spooky vibes but mostly felt like filler. I'm generally not a big fan of Reed in general tho (I'm not a hater, just a... meh-er).

Overall, I liked No Balance Palace the most when it delved into those stormy, shoegazey elements, and least when Kasper Eistrup sounded a little too much like Thom Yorke ca. Hail to the Thief. ("Kalifornia", "She's Made of Chalk").

3.5 today, maybe a 4 down the road

O man, with a Canadian band like this, who needs a second ("hey Siri, play Glass Tiger, Platinum Blonde, Chilliwack, Bryan Adams, the Tea Party, Nomeansno, Blue Rodeo, Spirit of the West, Alannah Myles, the Spoons, the Pumps, Sloan, Thrush Hermit, Plumtree, Doug & the Slugs, Martha & the Muffins, and Men Without Hats :)")

The user who picked this also chose If I Should Fall From Grace With God as their fave from the original list, and that makes strange sense to me.
Like, the Pogues and the Hip aren't exactly similar musically, but... either one would be great by a fireplace on a cool day.

Gord Sinclair. I looked up the bassist's name, since he's such a highlight of "New Orleans" among other songs. Add him to the other renowned Canadian Gords like bandmate Downie, Lightfoot and Pinsent.

October 24, 2025

HL: "Speed of the Sound of Loneliness", "Woke Up This Morning", "U Don't Dans", "Old Purple Tin"

Over an hour of 90s British electronica, people here are going to HATE it.

Upon checking the ratings, people in fact DON'T seem to hate it. Progress?

It's decent, but I liked Screamadelica as a representative of this subgenre more, and no I swear I don't work for NME. Also in terms of 90's British blues/gospel pastiche, I'd go with Spiritualized

October 14, 2025

HL: "The Meter", "Like a Dog", "These Days"

First I'm hearing Powderfinger, of Brisbane. Decent, sometimes great pop-rock with the occasional singalong chorus.
I give it a 7 outta 10

October 15, 2025

As one of the psychos who gave the Incredible String Band 5 stars, I assumed I would greatly appreciate this other strange folk album. And I appreciate it, but I don't love it at this time. The vocals are especially off-putting, especially in the opener "Diana", albeit appropriate for a spooky October night. The lyrics are also creepy, but not always in a good way.
Based on the fact I listened to this on the 15th, then the 16th, and am writing this on the 17th possibly means I'm still processing this album. The flute-laden instrumentals are often transcendent.