Reviews by j-bizzle

I watched their 2023 Glasto set, and realised they're one of those bands where you know way more of their songs than you thought you did. There's plenty in here which were pleasant reminders of that.

I think this is overall a good album. I love the trumpet on the opener. And then really, to be honest, when it's at its best it's with the singles and bigger hits. I thought it tailed off a bit in the last third or so.

There's some great songs in here though. Great melodies, happy singalong times. I may revisit the album, but it'll mostly be putting the bigger tracks into playlist rotation.

This is bad in the classical 80's way. It just sounds so dated.

The bits where she's singing definitely work better. There's some more upbeat numbers that are quite good, but overall it's just dated and feels hollow like so many other 80's mainstream pop albums.

It's real nice. He's got a lovely voice. Smooooth.

3.5 rounded down.

Thanks to this 1001 albums project, I've come to learn that I really don't like 'Post Punk', so at least I could come into this album preparing for the worst.

And yes, it still holds! I just think it's way too weird, and it does absolutely nothing for me for the most part. I don't like his singing style at all. He's either singing with some kind of mania, or just mumbling and farting about. I thought I would hate this more though. There's a few upbeat tracks that work well, but that's about it.

I've enjoyed this, but I have to be honest that it mostly sat in the background. I looked up and it had practically finished. So it's good, but obviously not gripping enough to push the score up further.

I didn't like this as much as the other album I had of his. It's still quite nice overall. He still has an incredible voice, and the instrumentation is still on-point for the most part. I'm not really into the whole 60's hippy folk-singing scene. To the person who mentioned it sounding like a renaissance fair.. I can't quite shake that, and yes those songs in that vein did grate a bit. Pleasant Street was real nice, that's the standout for sure.

2.5 rounded up.

Good country or bad country? Bad country. How does a 28 minute album manage to feel like an eternity? It's so, so dull.

There's some great tracks on here, but there's also a lot of generic filler. I don't think it really recovered after the rubbish 11 minute track smack bang in the middle of the album. Who thought that was a good idea? It completely kills all the momentum. The mix is really low and strange for much of the record too.

A generous 3/5

I quite like this, but it's not one I'll revisit. Breaking the Law is a real head-banging tune.

This is more interesting to me than it is something I actively enjoy. It starts off quite chill, with some interesting soundscapes mixed in and then it builds into this kind of relentlessly upbeat thing, which all feels a bit samey and repetitive. I think I would enjoy the songs more individually, but a whole album in one go is a bit much.

2.5 rounded up.

It's a good album overall. There's some really well crafted indie pop songs, and some particular standouts (basically the singles!). The longer form, meandering songs I'm not as big a fan of.

3.5 rounded up.

I recognise all the hits, but I'm not into them. It is hilarious how you have a bunch of female empowering songs, followed immediately by a song slut shaming someone and telling them to put more clothes on. Hmm.

It's a 'meh' for me overall, with one or two tracks that elevate it a bit. I can't relate to most of it and it doesn't really move or inspire me in any way. 'Happy Face' is probably the best and most interesting track for me, and that is by far the least listened to song on the album according to Spotify, go figure. I guess I'm really not the target demographic!

2.5 rounded down.

The Police, to me, put out really soft, insipid, uninspired, nothing music. It's not dreadful, but it's just so, so weak.

1.5 rounded up.

Top-tier Bowie. I love how generally dramatic and big the whole album is. Watch That Man is such a great opener. I love the elaborate twinkly keys across a lot of the album, definitely in songs like Aladdin Sane but then particularly in Lady Grinning Soul. That song is soooo good and elevates the whole thing.

I'm not usually into punk, because it's just so noisy and discordant, but as an example of the genre I think this is decent. There's some good grooves and riffs running through this, and it clearly has a lot of typical punk energy. It's way groovier and more musical than other punk albums, with the addition of the sax in particular.

3.5 rounded up.

It's pleasant.

It's pretty varied, upbeat, funky, lots of layers and grooves. Well produced. But boy is it loooong. And the second half isn't as good as the first in my opinion. I appreciate this one way more than I like it.

I would usually expect to go for something like this. Something with some moodiness to it, and with plenty of extravagances with the violins and brass and so on. But... it's just fine. I don't quite click with Alex Turner, either here or with the Arctic Monkeys. The songs just seem a bit superficial and lacking somehow despite all the nice instruments on top. They ultimately don't excite me at all.

2.5 rounded up.

I had a nice happy time listening to this. Straight down the middle, good vibes.

I groaned so loudly when I saw this pop up, but actually it's nice. I like the covers on here unlike some others, particularly Jumpin' Jack Flash. I like all the weird spacey sounds. I'm not sure about the extended 13 minute track, but overall it's a really chill album.