Reviews by galway_rat

Let’s see; I’ve heard Heartattack & Vine, Swordfishtrombones, Rain Dogs, & Frank’s Wild Years, so this will be my 5th Waits album.

The guy at his spookiest. Einstürzende Neubaten would be proud 🥹

But really, the industrial leanings in Bone Machine somehow lend themselves really well to Wait’s stabs at country, blues n’ gospel songs. Why was I apprehensive towards this album? The reviews made it sound a lot more unpleasant than it actually is. Of course, it wouldn’t be a Waits album without some headscratchers. Why does he have a lisp in “Jesus”? What are those sub-minute interludes? Yet even with those in mind, it somehow sounds exactly like the album he wanted to make at the time, even though it sometimes has the air of never before heard b-sides and studio footage.

HL: “Dirt in the Ground”, “In the Colosseum”, “Goin’ Out West”, “I Don’t Wanna Grow Up”, “The Ocean Doesn’t Want Me”

July 22, 2024

HL: "Summer's Cauldron/Grass", "The Meeting Place", "Season Cycle", "Another Satellite", "Mermaid Smiled", "Dying"

Probably enjoyed this more, or faster, than Apple Venus, though I attribute that to Apple Venus opening the door on XTC's peculiar style.
There's something uncanny about listening to Skylarking as a Beatles fan, since you can find similarities to the earlier bands at the surface level, but the more I pay attention to the songwriting those similarities vanish like smoke. Whose idea was it to put muted trumpets in “Mermaid Smiled”? They’re awesome!

July 23, 2024

HL: "Now U Want My Love", "All I Ever" (yes, the Kenny G-ass track), "It Takes More", "Dy-Na-Mi-Tee", maybe "Afraid 2 Fly"

Contains some filler in the middle, but overall an enjoyable discovery in 2000s pop. Ms. Dynamite's name, and the bop opener "Dy-Na-Mi-Tee", contradicted the solemnity of the later part of the album.

3.5

July 22 (later in the night...)

HL: "International Feel", "Flamingo", "Zen Archer", "Is It My Name",

Unlike Freak Out! & Tago Mago, AWATS puts all its weird stuff right at the beginning. Bold move, Rundgren

Would listen again

Idk much about this man's music, but there are a few albums produced by him on this list: Bat Out of Hell. New York Dolls' self-titled. XTC's Skylarking, which I literally listened to today. When you include this wild psych album, I haven't really gotten closer to identifying Todd's sound or style. Except, I guess, multiple layers? Synths?

I can not remember whether or not I listened to Born to Run in full (60% positive that I did), so for shits & giggles I put on something I’m 100% sure I’ve never heard before: The Wild, The Innocent & the E Street Shuffle (1973). Though slightly rougher-edged, it has a lot of the exuberant performance & anthemic choruses as heard in, say, the song “Born to Run”.

Now about the *album* Born to Run: Let me be clear. I think my favourite Springsteen is the arena rock that is Born in the USA (unless I'm depressed, then it's Nebraska). However, I do love this album quite a lot. "Thunder Road" never used to be a song I really cared for, until a year or two back where something switched and now it's basically a never-skip. Unless classic rock radio kills it again.

HL: "Thunder Road", "Night", "Backstreets", "Jungleland", "Meeting Across the River", the title track

July 20, 2024

July 18, 2024

HL: “Betray”, “Cashing”

From what I gather, the influence it had on 90’s punk & grunge, as well as thrash metal makes this a worthy inclusion on this list.
I just don’t find it that fun to listen to

HL: “Only Skin”, “Monkey & Bear”

If you need me, I have started a new life in the forest

Until my phone dies

HL: "St. Elmo's Fire", "Sombre Reptiles", "Golden Hours", "Becalmed"

consider me becalmed

July 16, 2024

July 15, 2024

HL: "Baba O'Riley", "Bargain", "The Song Is Over", "Getting In Tune", "Behind Blue Eyes", "Won't Get Fooled Again"

Not 1st listen;
with such titans of classic rock/early electronic music being the first and last tracks, it's almost too easy to discount the songs in the middle. But ye shouldn't! "Bargain" and "The Song Is Over" are some of the best Who, if you don't check out before the grand finale of "Behind Blue Eyes" & "Won't Get Fooled Again"

sItTiNg On A pArK bEnCh *DUN, DUN-DUN*

I haven't listened to the title track, or any Jethro Tull, in quite some time, so I'm interested in seeing what an album by them is like

👌 not bad, some really pretty moments flit by like “Wond’rin” and “Slipstream”, but too much of it kinda blends together in my ears to be a classic.
Though much of the title track sounds condescending to its subject matter, it’s still a pretty great hard rock tune

HL: title track, “Mother Goose”, “Wond’ring Aloud”, “Locomotive Breath”

July 14, 2024

Generator is bringing out the big (band) guns, with Sinatra, Fitzgerald & Ellington all in about a week!

Really happy for Paul and his two-hour sax solo in "Diminuendo", what a warm audience response; speaking of that track, the first listen was grating, the 2nd a few hours later was sublime.

It was weird listening to this when I was craving more straightforward rock (I've been putting on QOTSA & Black Sabbath this scorching weekend, which Ellington isn't QUITE the same frequency as). However, the performances are amazing, it's a bop, I'll give credit where it's due.

HL: "Festival Junction", "Newport Up", "Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue"

July 13, 2024

The fact that Sade doesn’t rhyme with Suede makes me sad

HL: “Smooth Operator”, “Hang On To Your Love”, “When Am I Going to Make a Living“, “I Will Be Your Friend”, “Why Can’t We Live Together”

July 12, 2024

July 11, 2024

HL: “So Young”, “Moving”, "Breakdown”, “Animal Lover”, “Where the Pigs Don’t Fly” (bonus)

Online articles mention the "Big Four" of Britpop- Blur, Oasis, Pulp & Suede.
Well I've heard 5(!) Blur albums, 2 Oasis (Oases), 1 Pulp and not a lick of this band before today.

A fine night-time listen, but in a tricky place between its influences (Smiths & Bowie) and the later 90’s Brit albums that came to define the era more. At least here in North America

Later on July 10th...

HL: "Lu", “Poverty Train”, “Eli’s Coming”, "Stoned Soul Picnic", "Emmie"

Too bad this didn't pop up earlier, delightful listen

kinda psyched for this one, I enjoyed Thundercat's other solo album, It Is What It Is, as well as pretty much any song I've heard him guest on ("Wesley's Theory", "Cracker Island")

Kendrick jump scare on "Walk On By"
edit: 2nd Kendrick jump scare in "Friend Zone" ("Bitch Don't Kill My Vibe")

I can't say why Dimery & co. put it on the 2018 version of the book, since it was removed by the time I got the 2021 version.
It's both a maelstrom of genres & virtuosic compositions, as well as a a mess of ditties about Mortal Kombat, being a cat, & substance abuse (hence the title). If that doesn't sound good to you idk what to tell you bud

yacht rock • astral jazz

HL: "Them Changes", "Uh Uh", "Lava Lamp", "Friend Zone", "Drink Dat", "Inferno"

July 9th, 2024

July 10, 2024

HL: “Eight Miles High”, “John Riley”, “Wild Mountain Thyme”, “What’s Happening”, “Why” (non-album single)

My opinion of the Byrds has become increasingly complicated since starting this list. True, I thought they were a great band before & I still think they are today, but pretty much every album has sounded like a mix of legitimately strong folk rock… & studio outtakes, cobbled together. It doesn’t help we’re dealing with 60’s stereo mixing, which is bad at the best of times (see: Revolver, one of my favourite albums ever) but especially distracting here.
Tbf, the psychedelic stylings of “5D”, “Eight Miles High” & “I See You” had me thinking this might be the best Byrds yet, but the one-two punch of “Hey Joe” & “Captain Soul”, an anemic blues number, sent me spiralling back to Earth.

A Byrds greatest hits would be straight fire in comparison to their studio albums 🔥

59 songs? But last year- last year I had 69! 😡

After breaking that Magnetic Fields album into 3 days of listening, I decided to power through it all today. Broken up, of course- a bit in the wee small hours (speaking of that, here’s another album this week arranged by Nelson Riddle!), a bit before the first coffee, a bit on the work commute, etc.

In no order, highlights include Ella’s takes on:
“Funny Face”, “I Got Rhythm“, “Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off”, “Oh Lady Be Good”, “Just Another Rhumba”, “The Real American Folk Song”, “S Wonderful”, “You’ve Got What Gets Me”, “He Loves and She Loves”.

Since I don’t really choose to listen to vocal jazz in general, I was surprised how much I liked this. 3 hours is a bit numbing for any genre, and there are much shorter albums I didn’t fully absorb on 1st listen.
Nonetheless, I’ve already added Ella & Louis to my personal listen-list, so it’s probably a good takeaway that I didn’t listen to ENOUGH Ella Fitzgerald.

July 7, 2024

Also July 6th, 2024

HL: “Faith Healer”, title track, “Last of the Teenage Idols”

I could be imagining things, but I recall seeing this album cover in a bar in my hometown, which is pretty far from Glasgow.

Respectable hard rock, a good album for being downtown at rush hour

The book really only gives “Next” and “Faith Healer” as reasons why this is on the list, although “Swampsnake” (catchy) & “Vambo” (kinda annoying) are also highlighted on the tracklist. Oh, also they were apparently great live, which I GUESS you get a sense of through the rollicking, fun performances.

The last song sounds like a prototype for how Jim Steinman/Meat Loaf would sell a jillion records 4 years later

3.5

July 6, 2024

HL: "Chain Gang", "Cupid", "Twistin' the Night Away", "Bring It On Home To Me"

Great listen; even with the 2005 "remaster" it still sounds like a bootleg tho

July 5, 2024

HL: title track, "Awful", "Use Once and Destroy", "Northern Star", "Heaven Tonight"

I can barely remember why I was dreading coming across this. Was it the promise of slick late 90's production, that Billy Corgan was involved, or that it's Hole/Courtney Love?
Because I really liked the last Hole (Live Through This), & I highly rated the Smashing Pumpkins' 2 albums.
So, maybe it's that I'm twice shy about 1998 albums (for some reason my least favourite year in music, at least according to the data here).

Well, dread was unfounded

If I have any real criticism, it's that Love's vocal performance seems flatter than I remember, and that it drags a bit after the firecracker that is the first three songs. Yet from "Use Once" onward, I got back in it.
"Northern Star" brings back the visceral roars I remember from the last Hole, in the form of... a spooky acoustic ballad!
The rest of the album is very poppy cuts, but wouldn't be unwelcome on MY 80s/90s radio, that's for sure.