Reviews by giddy

I have so much to talk about relating to this album, so apologies to whoever reads this if you choose to do so, although I doubt anyone will.

Firstly, I've been looking forward to listening to this album for years, with it always being something I wanted to get around to listening to, but always forgetting. This is because not only is Lovefool easily one of the best, if not the best, pop hit of the 1990s, but because The Cardigans have always been compared to and been put into this bubble along with some of my other favorite bands, with Cloudberry Jam (which sadly seems to have been mostly lost in the streaming age), Stereolab, and one of my favorite bands of all time, Komeda. Cloudberry Jam always had some jazzy sensibilities, Stereolab, who's pretty well known, was the electronic one, and Komeda has a bigger alt-rock focus. The Cardigans, however, were far more pop-y then those others, and it had me worried I might not care for this quite as much as those other bands, but this was just as excellent as those. I love the whispery singing of Nina Persson, and they completely understand what I am looking for with a song, with each movement of a piece being satisfying in its own way, and they know when to bring into horns and woodwinds and all sorts of really creative stuff that sets their music apart without being too out there. I'm happy to finally listened to this. If you disagree with me, then know I'm the type of person to give a Black Sabbath album a three, and enjoy this cover of Iron Man far more than the original. Amazing album. What can I say, the Swedes make good music.

Also, just to make this review more niche than it already is, the bass riff in Lovefool is the same as Persona 4 Golden's intro theme, and that's knowledge I don't know what to do with. Also also, the first song sounds like a Katamari song, even more bonus points there. God, I love this feel good shit, pump it into my veins.

I have no clue why I find Black Sabbath to be so mediocre, as it seems like it'd be something I'd be far more into, but even the hits don't do anything for me anymore, and considering this album doesn't even have those, it's hard to understand the praise. However, it is still alright overall and easy listening (for metal) that doesn't have any ridiculously annoying parts. Although just making random noise for a minute-and-a-half is definitely pushing it. Again, this is okay, but I've gotten all three Black Sabbath albums on the list now, and none of which have switched me into thinking anything more of them. Definitely influential, but outdone by all their pupils.

A huge improvement over their debut album, with beats never feeling empty between lines, and the flow between the two is also much improved. My only issues is that sometimes you can tell they found a soundbite they lacked and spammed that shit, and the fact that some lines are still ridiculously cheesy and outdated, although that does add to the charm in a weird way. Anyway, very enjoyable, so many hits here that are all deserving of such, and it feels like a soundtrack to a skating game from the PlayStation 1. Although, it is incredibly funny to me that they didn't actually want to collab with Aerosmith, and it was kind of forced on them. See? Even people profitting off Aerosmith don't like them.

Since he doesn't have an album of his own, I'll mention here that Busta Rhymes has a really interesting flow that is super charming. As for the rest of the album, it's pretty alright. I like Missy Elliott's rapping, and some of the backbeats are great, but the bragging gets annoying, especially the praise of Timbaland that I assume he wrote himself. None of the features feel that present to me either, other than the before mentioned Busta Rhymes. An alright album that just feels very much like an album that you'd imagine if I just said "rap album".

There are beats and (I assume they're) samples that I like on this album, and sometimes the way Neneh Cherry raps reminds me of Chuck D's flow of all things, but the album feels like a bygone era that struggles to be interesting both in the realm of pop and hip-hop, so a mix of both just spoils moments after starting, and while this album isn't too long, each song feels like it drags. It's okay in short doses, but a whole album can be a bit much. Just a whatever album.

I feel often that with this generator I'm getting nicer and more open towards the albums I get, which is probably good overall, but it's making my positive-to-negative ratio feel slowly more and more lopsided to the former of the two. Luckily, I can count on The Rolling Stones to put me straight and remind me that my tastes and opinions are still consistent with when I started. For instance, here is the third Rolling Stones album to get a three star. Is it bad? No, in fact I could totally understand why someone would like, nay, love this, but it just feels so generic in a modern lense where Rolling Stones was falling so behind on the revolutions happening around them in music that they decided to fall back and rest on what they knew, and there can be merit in that, but what makes this more special past an admittedly great opening track. If I wanted music that sounded like this I would either go earlier into the 60's or later into the next decade, not give the very personal genres of folk and country to the British boy band. I''ll never deny Rolling Stones their iconic status, as they've certainly earned it from various track to track, but I don't understand so far what any of their albums as a whole work of art has done for the music landscape but seem like music your great uncle swears is better than the Beatles.

Fuck, I really like this, and I was not expecting that AT ALL. I mean, five songs all longer than what I consider casually listenable? Seems like something I'm destined to be annoyed or at least bored with, but I really adored this. Firstly, it's gorgeous both musically and lyrically, with the strings really meshing well with the weirder choices such as a mouth harp and banjo. In that way it reminds me of a Leonard Cohen album, but I'd say the lyrics are far more abstract than Cohen's works, but it still really works. I like that there s no regular song structure yet it returns to the same line every few minutes to bring the song into its own orbit and not let it stray too far outwards and become a mess. I don't know if I'll go out of my way to listen to most of these songs separately due to their length, but as a whole album this is certainly up there as something great. I will admit her vocals remind me a little bit of whoever sings "Dance Monkey", but not really annoyed at it here. Then again, I never found the vocals on that track too annoying either, so perhaps I'm the one broken. Any way, amazing album, truly unexpected.

OutKast have been one of those duos that I've always said "I've liked," but I've never actually listened to one of their albums, so this is my first full experience, and this was good. I really enjoy the more regular song structured pieces, I assume courtesy of André 3000, but that doesn't stop the raps from being good too. I think if the album were just shorter (I don't know if I remember a single skit) and more tight in general, as some of the more jokey songs weren't what I would call good, then this could have made more of an impact towards me. All the big songs here, though, are great though, and even stuff like Toilet Tisha really caught me off guard with how good they were. I'm excited for The Love Below, and maybe Speakerboxxx will be good too, and that's what this album has basically made me think. Is that how people usually see OutKast? I've really got no clue. Still, solid album. Starts really strong then peppers good bits throughout.

I'm a sucker for fuzz guitar, and this album has plenty of that. That and big, crunchy bass, which also gets me. This album reminds me of a modern take on one of the earlier Black Sabbath albums, and that isn't a bad thing, despite my pretty mixed views of Black Sabbath. My partner was not a fan of this album despite both of us being big fans of Them Crooked Vultures' (currently) sole album, which surprises me, because listening to this, I don't see what this doesn't have that that album does. Just really enjoyable. I'm actually pretty close to giving this a five, but there's just some small things holding it back such as the goofier sounding instrimental track, the straight up creepy sounding ending, and the realitive repetitiveness of it all, it could stand to be shorter. Otherwise, really enjoyed this, and if this is a weak QotSA record according to some fans, then I really need to give their discography a listen.

Certainly alternative rock from the early 2000s, there's this sound you can pick up from it, but I like the addition of a sort of soul sound to it all, like if Lenny Kravitz started making music in this era instead. That being said, it is very repetitive, and almost none of the songs have a climax, it's usually the same song it was five minutes before with an extra voice and instrument or two. That isn't always true, but it certainly felt like it. Otherwise pretty alright, just feels like it should've done more.

This album reminds me of U2 if they were a bit more dance focused with the music they produced. That is not really a good thing in my eyes, and the lead singer sounds like the guest singer in Gorillaz's "DARE" when he was drunk at that one live performance. Could be worse, but did definitely got on my nerves at points.

One of, if not my favorite, thing about Love's other album, Forever Changes, was the strings present that made it stand out from most other psychedelic rock that was around at the time. However, this earlier album seemed to be going for a more forward thinking stance on the genre. That is not a bad thing, as there are some songs here I like just as much if not more so than Forever Changes, but it also blends in more with artists like the Rolling Stones and other hits from the time. None of that is more evident than with the needlessly long final tune on the album that feels like a jam session that really didn't need to be on the album and got quite annoying after a while. Is it interesting for 1966? Perhaps, but it really brings down the rest of the albums pretty rock solid line up into something that feels more "holier-than-thou" in its production, and I lose interest in the four star I was thinking for the album. Had it been the beginning or even the middle of the album then perhaps I could forget about it and still warrant the four, but putting it at the end leaves a sour taste in my mouth that really middles the album out. Hearing people having sex (or pretending to) has never been one of my favorite genres of music, and someone yelling in my ear about it for nineteen minutes is, I imagine, no one's cup of tea. This is a cool album, in theory, but at the end of the day hating half the album really doesn't seem fair to my other four stars.

Pretty alright musically, but I don't understand really what the point of each of these songs are, as they pretty much go over variations of the same topic in a loop that feels especially more apparent here than any other album with love songs, and just like "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone", there is a ten minute song here that could very easily be three or so minutes and get the same point across. Just a very forgettable album, but I liked what I heard enough.

How can an album that has pretty impressive technical feats present be so tone deaf in the actual musical department? Every song isn't just flawed because of how it sounds, because that, at the end of the day, is preference, but every song sounds the exact same, and the short song lengths only highlights this, rather than makes it stand out. Yeah, I can't deny there were times where I liked where it was going, but then the dog-like singer barked into the microphone for twenty seconds and they just repeated that at different paces into the mix for a excruciating thirty minutes. I thought maybe I was going to give this a two about a quarter of the way through, because it was more funny than anything, but by the halfway point I was exhausted and tired. It wasn't funny, or impressive, or even interesting, it was just soul sucking. Perhaps that's what they wanted, but it sure as hell doesn't make it anything more than being edgy on the surface level while far more interesting musicians actually get famous off their metal. This is just noise. Awful, awful noise.

God, what a gorgeous send-off to a brilliant artist. It is amazing to me that an album can sound so reassured yet so scared, so at peace yet not ready to go, and so relaxed yet so on edge. The use of avant-garde jazz is used to the benefit rather than just as meaningless noise, and the short but sweet album knows when to bring in something to changed it up. It is also completely admirable that nothing here sounds derivative of anything else Bowie-like, going out with a bang rather than a "best of" situation. Just fantastic from beginning to end. Bowie really nails those short track listing albums to a tee. Seems like a ten minute opener is a guaranteed fantastic choice. Also wild to see Kendrick Lamar and Death Grips as inspirations for this, but I can hear it. I also really liked the allusion to A New Career In A New Town in the final track with the harmonica, whether intentional or not.

God dammit, Morrissey is such a fucking nonce. The whole time I was listening to this I was reading quotes of his that just displayed what an asshole he was. And yet... this was good. The nonce makes good music, because of course he does, its like a requirement of a musician. Usually hear I'd praise the singer for liking Sparks, because I am the your local friendly Sparks shill, but nah, fuck this. Bad fan to have, thank God Sparks have never joined in on his comments. Hell, they told him "lighten up" in a newer song. Anyway, he doesn't get praise. Just enjoy your four star and get out of here. Oh, and that album font on the cover is ugly.

It is getting hard to remember if an album has baffled me as to why it is on this list yet, but this one certainly makes me feel that way. I mean, it has a pretty decent average global rating, and musically it is inoffensive at worst, but why is this here? Like, this genuinely makes me upset listening to it, because it is either the type of music I'd hear at a nice-ish restaurant trying to sound intellectual, or the background music of a baseball documentary, depending on which instrument has the focus, and even though it is only four songs, it gets old FAST. I mean, wouldn't have one song sealed the deal as to what my thoughts would be? Again, this is extremely technically competent, but I can't seriously be in the minority for thinking that it is insane that this made the cut over so many other iconic albums? Just upsetting, and drags it way down.

I'm sure the dog on the front had nothing to do with it, though. He's a good boy.

I knew of this album prior to getting it from not only my partner getting it and loving it, but also seeing it on multiple "best concept album" lists, and I definitely agree that it is amazing. The range of genres and making it all sound so good is fantastic, and the length isn't even noticeable, which is quite a feat with me. Amazing album.

Man, this has a lot of hits and singles on it, doesn't it? May as well be a best of album, save for one or two missing tunes. I do think it earns its popularity, however, being a very solid album throughout, with only one or two tracks that reek slightly too much of 80s cheese to stand out. Of course, I may not go out of my way to listen to most of this again, because I can hear half of it by just going grocery shopping anyway, but still very good. I particularly enjoy the punch of the final song, "Yeah, Yeah," as it's one of the few I'd not heard before, and it definitely sends the album out right.

Wow, what a crazy step up from "Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere", and I know that's unfair, as there are albums between the two projects, but the generator gave me this next, and it wanted me to listen to it, goddammit! Anyway, I actually adore this. It has that melancholic vibe a lot of America albums have, but with this grit that make them feel really weighted and like it all means something, and the intimate style of the album, feeling very personal between Young and the listener, all culminates into an album that is extremely enjoyable and that I like a lot. My only nit-pick is the amount of songs labelled "blues" that are hardly such, but that isn't an actual complaint, and would not drag this down to a four alone. This is a lighter five-star, as I'm not head over heels or anything, but I still enjoy this enough for me to finally "get" Neil Young.