Reviews by giddy

Similar to my last Stooges album, Raw Power, I didn't think all that much of this one. It was full of manic energy and most of the songs were pretty blood pumping, but most of them also felt more like live renditions of songs, with lots of noise but not much back bone. Works in a setting where you're jamming in some sort of crowd, but not sitting and listening in an office or car, like many are when they listen. Just can't see myself choosing this over different energy filled songs when I'm in the mood.

Picture this: I start the album, and am greeted with a sick drum and guitar combo, I'm thinking this will be another Minutemen situation where I get a funky punk album I enjoy a lot. Now picture that all being ripped away ten seconds later, when the song completely changes to some folk punk that pales in comparison to bands like R.E.M. and Violent Femmes. The album isn't awful, but it never feels like it commits to the style, which I get would be a highlight, the variety, but despite this all the songs still blend together and only when that funky sound starts to bleed out does it get a little better, but nothing ever hits that high that those first ten seconds explore.

I'm going to just go out and say I always thought this album was far too overrated. I mean, obviously there are some excellent songs on here that defy expectations of what a "pop" song can do, but then you have songs like "Fixing A Hole" that just come off as awkwardly paced and boring. I just always felt this was the worst of latter half of The Beatles musical career, and that includes Yellow Submarine and Let It Be, and that Magical Mystery Tour was just a better version of this album.

Now, it sounds like I hate this alblum, but of course, a less than average Beatles record is still better than most albums in all of the history of music, and this album is no exception. A Day In the Life is fantastic, She's Leaving Home really shows that Paul just excels in more than just "silly love songs" and the beginning of the album until Fixing A Hole is hit after hit, really showing how important this album is. I view this album as an important stepping stone as to what we would see in the future, but doesn't quite hit that mark for me to be a perfect album.

Man, horny 90s R&B is gotta be one of the worst genres, so in comparison, this is... better? Still not very good... Some of this album sounds good but then I actually listen to the lyrics and I start wondering how anyone can take this seriously, or at the very least not get uncomfortable, but most of the time the songs boil down to the same thing, slow beat, and lyrics about fucking at night. Nothing much else to see here. I've also now had to listen to two different versions of "If I Was Your Girlfriend" because of this website now, and that song wasn't really worth more than the one try, didn't really need a lesser cover. Can't decide between 1 and 2 star, but gonna lean towards 2 star for the sake of not seeming overly hateful.

The nicest thing I can say about this album is it certainly sounds different, but that still isn't a compliment. It sounds like they took all the Samsung ringtones no one ueses because they sound weird and made beats out of them, but squeaker and more repetitive.

When the album started I was gonna be one of those people going against the pack, as with the first couple songs I didn't understand the more than four star average rating, but as the album went on I understood it a whole lot more, especially the last couple songs. Obviously Franklin's voice is magnificent, but as the album went on instruments came in to compliment the voice rather than just copy it and it became a nuch fuller album. Not perfect because of those first few songs, but I do get it now.

Yet another case of a lot of songs on one album just not quite doing what I want it to do. That may be due to its short run time for a lot of the songs, but often they'd have a good backbone (especially with that bass) then just repeat it rather than building it. I know that's kind of how punk generally goes, but it's still disappointing. It did get better as the album went on, but it was still just okay by the end.

This was actually one of the first albums I ever listened to all the way through without interruption, so I suppose you could say it holds a place in my heart of some kind. I mean, obviously it's a double album, but it's crazy how many memorable songs are on this album. 1979, Bullet With Butterfly Wings, Zero, We Only Come Out At Night, Lily, and many more. It's just a really fantastic grunge album that has a lot of variety. I admittedly seem to like the first part more than the second part, but both have great songs and are a joy to listen to. Getting some good albums lately, can't wait for another line of stinkers.

Relaxing, and the first album I feel asleep to, which no other album has even come close when I try. Not much actually notable about each song though.

Just amazing really. The album may be short with it's amount of songs, but when the "worst" song on here is better than most other songs, you know you have created something basically perfect. I just adore this.

Van Morrison should really stick with the horns section he rarely uses. It always sounds the best of all his songs. Sadly he instead thinks aimless guitar playing a yell talking counts as music and just bad poetry with annoying sound.

Far better than expected. I'm more familiar with Chicago's later work, and while 25 or 6 to 4 is an absolutely excellent song, the more and more ballads the less and less interesting. Luckily, this album had none of that, it was just excellent Big Band/Funk/Rock all around that also had some unexpected very experimental sound. I enjoyed the first half more than the second half, but it was all good, and if Jimi Hendrix thinks the guitar sounds good, then you're doing something right. Now if only the songs didn't go on so long sometimes. Not like they're repetitive, they certainly earn there length most of the time, but it makes it hard to imagine wanting to listen to them again when half of them are twice or even three times as long as the average song.

I actually know this album pretty well, as my mother would play it constantly as I grew up. Despite now questioning if this was the best lineup of songs for a child to be listening to, this album is excellent. The song has a great presence of punk that a lot of folk "punk" bands miss. It certainly feels just like raw emotions, and sounds good doing it. Are the lyrics questionable? Absolutely, but I'd say not understanding that that's the point would be a major disservice to this album. Every song just knows exactly what beats to hit when needed, and ending on a slower, melancholy note really wraps it all up. Just wonderful.

I don't think I'm much of a Prince fan. This is the first of his albums I've listened to in it's entirety, and while there were a couple songs I liked, a lot of songs felt like filler. Really the whole album felt like a filler album, and that's a shame. I thought giving Prince a proper shot would change my thoughts on his music.

While I'm not as attached to this album as some others seem to be, I cannot deny that this album is excellent, or at the very least has excellent songs. Some of it is a little steretypical rock for my taste, but stuff like Stairway to Heaven and Black Dog are famous for a reason. No, the big surprise for me was the quieter song Going To California. I've never heard anyone talk about this song before, and it's probably my favorite. It's just so nice and calming, while still definitively having that Led Zeppelin flair. Almost reminds me of what I've heard from Zeppelin III coming into one perfect song. Album was great as a whole, though, not perfect, but deserves it's recognition.

Starting this album, I really didn't get it, as it just seemed like Pacific Rock from the era, and not much more, but the second half of the album, starting with Thoughts of You, really changed the album into something that felt a lot more impactful. His voice seemed like it genuinely meant what it was singing, and the musicality really showed through from that forward. It felt like the first part was like "Yeah, I was the Beach Boys, but these are my true musical abilities. It's a shame that he died so young and couldn't have a flourishing career, I truly think it would've only gotten better.

It took quite a few listens for me to bridge the gap mentally between the A-side and the B-side of this album, dare I say I still don't fully understand the thought process of taking the momentum of the first half, via tracks like Sound and Vision and Be My Wife, and turn the pace down to deliver something that only lets you sit with your thoughts as you embrace it, but I think on this fourth or fifth go-around with this album I start to appreciate this album a lot more. It helps that I've delved into Eno's work a bit more since my last run, and this album tries its best to scratch the itches that Another Green World hit with ease.

The whole album, however, especially the A-side, is magnificent, with Bowie crafting a record that destroys the walls set up by other pop records and creates something that will truly speak to all listeners. Bowie is no longer pouring out his heart to the audience, but rather pouring the audience's heart out to themselves, and in those moments of contemplation the album will truly allow the vague lyrics and ambient synths to whisk you off as a rocking guitar keeps you from going out of orbit. It's a grounded release, but one that isn't afraid to blow the listener away, and while it does become perhaps a little too much downtime for my taste in the back half, the album as a whole makes a strong argument for why albums are the way they are, and the fact that we've sort of lost that only makes this album's excellence all the more magical.

The beginning of this album had me worried, as while I don't mind talk-singing, it didn't exactly sound great in the first song, and then the second song was mostly instrumental, but it wasn't interesting instrumental. Luckily, the third song, Mama Roux, was actually pretty enjoyable, and I enjoyed my time with the rest of the album. I don't know if I think it's anything all too special. Even if this was 1968, I'm sure plenty of other artists were making music such as this, as it's obviously inspired by such. Forgive my ignorance if that's not true, though. But yeah, okay. Perhaps I'll revisit this album sometime to see if my views become more positive, as I could see it doing that.

I can't stand most 90s alternative British rock, other than Radiohead (yes that includes Oasis), so before I heard of this album I thought it would just add to the pile, but this was pretty great. A lot are mentioning influences like Oasis and Beatles, and while I do hear that, all I could think during was actually Smashing Pumpkins. Not only in his voice, but being able to rock out then reel it back in to really give the album some nuance. Not every song is a banger or anything, but this was still really enjoyable, and the last few songs were absolutely fantastic.

This album was just nothing for me. It blended into the background really well once it started, and it only had me start listening a couple times throughout the album. Did I hate it? No, but the only situation I could imagine actually liking it is in the middle of playing something like Gran Turismo, otherwise I can't imagine dancing, or just listening to this.