Reviews by galway_rat

Not a drill, we have some CanCon today 🚨

I don’t know lang’s music all that well, but I found a cover album of hers in a thrift shop- Hymns of the 49th Parallel- and really liked it.

Turns out this is a cover album, and I really like it as well, go figure!
Though like an another album from this list I enjoyed from way back, Coles Corner by Richard Hawley, this kind of revivalist country is strange to include in the big 1001 when the originators of the sound like Patsy Cline and Roy Orbison aren't.

Another reviewer pointed out the book roasts this very album in the entry for lang's Ingenue (1992), which is oddly not the first time that happens. (The entry for Isn't Anything by MBV derides the band Ride, only to feature their album Nowhere a few short pages later).

HL: "Western Stars", "I Wish I Didn't Love You So", "Black Coffee", "Tears Don't Care Who Cries Them"

I find I don’t have much to say about Tical aside from
M-E-T-H-O-D
maan

I think that’s it for Wu-Tang albums on this list- already heard Raekwon, GZA, Ghostface Killah and the OG 36 Chambers. In a similar vein to Sonic Youth, I never thought I needed to hear 5 albums from this collective, but it’s been a neat journey.

HL: “Release Yo’ Delf”, “Bring the Pain”, “I Get My Thang in Action”, “Mr. Sandman”

February 29, 2024

HL: “4th of July”, “Jacob Marley’s Chain”, “Mr. Harris”, "Fifty Years After the Fair"

Typical 90s pop rock or baroque pop brilliance? Or both? Or neither?
What even is Whatever? Who am I?

People suffering from Byrds fatigue will be pleased to know that Roger McGuinn's jangly guitar features in track 2

3.5

One of those albums where the performance is impressive but I felt emotionally distanced from it. There are moments of playfulness & fun during the tango, but of course this is New Tango, which sometimes flattens out the quirky, idiosyncratic rhythms with more atmospheric, noodly passages. (No love lost to the opening track, even though it's an odd choice to begin the album).
This may be the best vibraphone showcase in 1100 albums, so I have to shout that out at least.

HL: "Little Italy", "Operation Tango", "Milonga is Coming"

February 27, 2024

February 26, 2024

HL: “Cracking”, “Marlene on the Wall”, “Straight Lines”, “The Queen and the Soldier”

It’s a little sophisti-pop (a la Everything But the Girl), and a little coffeehouse folk (a la Norah Jones), but I found this a more engaging listen than albums by those aforementioned artists. The synthy touches on songs like “Cracking” & “Small Blue Thing” don’t overwhelm the core songwriting & nice guitar work.

And even though I often neglect lyrical content in these blurbs (perhaps making reviewing folk and hip-hop harder than it has to be), there’s a lot of rich imagery of nature, castles and vintage cinema here.

Nice to finally remove my impression of Suzanne Vega from “do do doo do do do doo do”

HL: title track, “Missed”, “Dry”, “Me-Jane”

“There seems to be something lacking from this record, hmm…”
*turns volume louder*
“Oh there it is”

My worries about Albini’s name being attached to this project needn’t have been there. I actually prefer the production here over that of Dry (1992).
Still, overall I think I preferred the songs on that album more. However, Rid of Me’s twisted, angsty tone is nothing to sniff at, even if it’s not doing wonders for me this specific night.

3.5

HL: “Rocks Off", "Tumbling Dice", "Sweet Virginia", "Loving Cup", "Happy", "Shine a Light"

I put off this album for a WHILE. Perhaps like another album this month, Gaye’s What’s Going On, the hype and acclaim could never live up to the actual quality.
But considering I’ve listened to like 8 full Rolling Stones albums by this point, it probably shouldn’t surprise me that I really like this one too.
“Sweet Black Angel” & “…See His Face”, among other tracks, provide a kind of quaintness to the album that contrasts with the intentional whimsy in Their Satanic Majesty’s Request.
Almost like some 80s Tom Waits.

Also, “Tumbling Dice” and “Shine a Light” are top-tier Stones songs, which I enjoyed long before hearing Exile in full.

HL: "The Minotaur's Song", "A Very Cellular Song", "Waltz of the New Moon", "The Water Song", “Nightfall”

I have to confess, I listened to THBD before, since among the worst-ranked albums on this website, it was the one I was most curious about by far. How could a 60's psychedelic folk album be that bad, I wondered.
I just wanted to put on a couple tracks for a laugh, but ended up listening to the whole thing in a daze.

Now, the worst thing I can say from that experience is that the violin in "Cellular" felt like the sonic equivalent of chewing aluminum foil, but since it's just one element in this sonic maelstrom of kazoos, mandolins, & nursery rhymes, I didn't find it all that offensive. In fact, listening to it again today, "A Very Cellular Song" may be my highlight of the album. And that violin is easier on the ears when it returns in "Three is a Green Crown".

I know in the past, I've put on an album with low expectations and have been pleasantly surprised. But here is a moment where, bracing for an absolute slog, I instead found one of my favourite psychedelic albums. To be fair, the album cover is less Odessey and Oracle and more The Wicker Man. The vocals are unrefined, it's true. And the album as a whole is a dog's breakfast, with instruments thrown together with little regard to how they'd actually sound in the same recording.
But I can't detect any cynicism in the experimentation the way other contemporary rock acts introduced "world music" elements. While on paper, the concept behind this album sounds like the most pretentious thing ever, I can't recall a single moment where THBD takes itself seriously. In my opinion, that’s its greatest strength.

February 21, 2024

HL: “Brass Monkey”, “Fight For Your Right”, “Rhymin & Stealin”, “She’s Crafty”, “No Sleep Till Brooklyn”

That funky monkey

Eight days after Sea Change, we have Odelay, the 3rd Beck on this list; an artist I haven't been motivated to study before this challenge.

If one Beck album had to represent his oeuvre it should probably be this one; odd, glitchy, inventive alternative rock/folk/hip hop that it is.
It’s definitely from the same funhouse that brought us “Loser”, but with even more experimentation.
However, I think this is another album that will grow on me, but I don’t love it at this time. I was so lost in the Dust Brothers’ eclectic production, that I think I appreciate it more than the actual songs at times.
The constant shifts in musical direction were often entertaining but sometimes grating- looking at you, feedback in “Hotwax” and jackass in “Jack-Ass”.
Also, and I realize this is not a fair criticism, the segues between the country and the electro/rap gave me uncomfortable flashbacks to Devil Without a Cause. The difference between “High 5” here and “Roving Gangster” from that album is that I’m having more fun with the former, but it IS still country rap to my ears.

3.5

HL: “Where It’s At”, “The New Pollution”, “Devils Haircut”, “Lord Only Knows”

Monáe #3, after Dirty Computer & The Age of Pleasure

BUT- I’m going to make it #4, by listening to the Metropolis EP beforehand :)
Apparently that’s the first chapter of this project, and the Arch-Android is the next 2 parts.

While the EP was a nice listen, AA is a brave step forward, and takes its sounds, themes & bombast to new heights.

To be honest, "Suite 2" felt like the real album and "Suite 3" a victory lap. While it's certainly indulgent to a degree, it's also a joyous listen & celebration of Monae's influences. I love the unhinged theatre kid energy on display in this album.

The worst thing about this album is that it took me 14 years to get around to hearing it

HL: "Dance or Die", “Locked Inside”, "Sir Greendown", “Cold War”, "Tightrope", “Come Alive”, “57821”

February 19, 2024

7th Bowie album on this list (and after this, I will only have Pin-Ups and Diamond Dogs as 70s Bowie albums I haven't yet heard).

Not as necessary as other Bowies, but I enjoy it all the same. Chillest 70s jams I’ve ever heard from this guy (Station to Station infuses the funk with some icy paranoia)

…though the album’s distinction of being traditionally black music (funk, soul) being interpreted through a white British lens doesn’t sound much like a distinction.
Weren’t Eric Burdon, Zeppelin, the Stones, Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton, Elton John, etc. also kinda doing that by 1975?

HL: title track, “Win”, “Fascination”, “Fame”

How to go from not knowing what Supergrass was to hoping they’ll reunite, in one hour!

Not the first Beatlesque album this month, but ye don't hear me complainin

HL: title track, “Late in the Day”, “Sun in the Sky”, "Cheapskate", "You Can See Me"

February 17, 2024

Forward-thinking psych soul that sounds like a precursor to Thundercat and OutKast

Listened to some tracks from 1971’s Freedom Flight (eg its title track and “Strawberry Letter 23”), confusingly tacked on to the end of this album, and also found them enjoyable.

After 1 Sugarcubes & 2 solo albums, we are at Björk no. 4

Unexpected CanCon with Tanya Tagaq 🚨 Though using “Ancestors” as an example, this is definitely not an album to put on at a party. Inuit throat singing sometimes induces a fight-or-flight response in me :0

Other songs give off renaissance fair vibes (Öll Birtan)

Definitely pushes into a more ambient soundscape, as hinted at in Vespertine (“Desired Constellation”)

Like her debut, a mixed bag in the best way. It’s too niche and strange to go around recommending this to my friends (even compared to the other 3 Björks), but it’s also a gem I’m glad to have come across.

HL: “Where is the Line”, "Vökuró", "Who is It", “Oceania”, “Mouth’s Cradle”

February 15, 2024

February 12, 2024

HL: “The Golden Age”, “Lonesome Tears”, “Round the Bend”, “Sunday Sun”, “It’s All in Your Mind”

Despite the overall bleakness, the Beatlesque and Laurel Canyon touches are more than enough to rescue this from mere sadness n’ gloom.
Love the strings in such songs as “Round the Bend”.

Beck and Nigel Godrich are a combination I didn’t know I needed to hear.

I’ve heard the all the Berlin trilogy at least once before, but it’s been a hot minute

Forgot how much of a journey “Heroes” is: from the euphoria in the title track & the hand-claps of “Arabia”, to the dark avenues of “Doubt” and “Neuköln”, it seldom settles into a mode but I’m not getting much whiplash either.

Despite the more atonal moments, I’m really vibin’ with this today.

HL: the title track (to end all title tracks), "Beauty and the Beast", "Sons of the Silent Age", “V-2 Schneider”, "Moss Garden/Neuköln"

February 11, 2024

Listening to the title track twice in an hour, I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s neat. I’m generally a fiend for prog, so take from that what you will; however the 1st listen left me cold for some reason.
The “hymn” was an unexpected, beautiful, surprise as well.

3.5 (likely inspired albums I enjoy more)

February 10, 2024

Yess
(Also 3 in a row I’ve heard before, what are the odds)

If not my all-time favourite, definitely in the top 20

No bad songs, but if I had to pick the most skippable, I’d choose the one PMRC had their panties in a bunch over, “Darling Nikki”

HL: "All Apologies", "Heart Shaped Box", "Dumb", "Very Ape", "Scentless Apprentice"

Nirvana #3-- not first listen

probably my favourite Steve Albini-produced record, either because it's had years to grow on me, or that the other producers that were controversially hired to remix/fix the album maybe made it better...?

Every time I hear one of the versions of "All Apologies" (between In Utero & Unplugged), I'm always sure that THAT's the definitive version. Today, I insist on the noisy, sludgy ending this one has.

Note to self: The statistics from this website contradict an assumption I have about myself- that I don't like grunge.