Reviews by j-bizzle

"You hate jazz? You fear jazz! You fear the lack of rules. The lack of boundaries."

I mean, this is mostly nonsense isn't it? In my humble opinion, a lack of any kind of cohesive structure makes for a dull and un-engaging listen, especially if you spread it into a long-form piece. I didn't hate it like I have some other albums, but I have to judge it based on how well it moved and involved me, and that answer is not at all. It sat in the background well enough, and I adopted a face of mild bemusement for the most part while listening to it.

Jazz isn't big, and it isn't clever.

It's a really nice album and well crafted. Very consistently good across all the songs. I really like the instrumentation and like his voice.

I didn't know anything about Kanye West before listening to this, apart from the fact that he did the 'gold digger' song, and that he's a flaming bellend in real life.

So I had no idea what to expect here. I was definitely expecting it to be way more obnoxious than it is, and I was under the impression that he was quite minimalist, but that's definitely not the case.

It's actually pretty impressive how varied and broad this is in scope. There's lots of different, interesting beats and samples, and the content is also more varied than I was expecting. It's incredibly well produced, and I hate to admit that this is good, but it is.

3.5 rounded down

I'd never really listened to this album all the way through before for some reason, despite loving 'Music for the Jilted Generation' as a kid. There's plenty of banging tracks outside of the big singles, although they don't all hit. In terms of quality and consistency I think someone like the Chemical Brothers were way better, but this is still decent and I'm pretty there for it.

3.5 rounded up.

Overall it's a nice record. There's some interesting experimentation and some weird old sounds in here, but also some solid, well-crafted 60's tracks. Favourite tracks: Thoughts and Words and My Back Pages.

It's all a bit dad-rock, gentle fist pump while sipping a cup of tea for me. Since others have pointed out the drums thing, it's really bothering me. It must be the most dull band to play in as a drummer. Even though there's plenty of layers of sound to the whole thing it still somehow feels really anaemic. And it's just so bloody boring, christ.

It's a bit hit and miss for me. I like a lot of the Doors hits, but there's lots here that's quite plodding and slow. I'm not really that excited by most of the album.

Love Her Madly and Riders on the Storm are the standouts for me.

It's quite nice, but it's a bit indie-wank. It's the kind of music Zach Braff would put in one of his movies. All very floaty and quirky and inoffensive with breathy vocals on top. Crafted well enough but not exciting in the least.

2.5 rounded up.

It's quite good. There's some good riffs and plenty of energy. Nice and short. Maybe a bit superficial? I don't know if that's a massive criticism as it is what it is, and it's not trying to be anything more than that. Just a bit of good fun that you can nod your head to.

Lots of really catchy tunes in here, and some utterly badass riffs. Loads of energy. This is great.

\m/

I like the vibe on this for the most part. It's a bit frantic at times, but they're an interesting band and the songs have a lot of experimentation in them. Probably not one I'll re-visit, but there's some good songs on here.

3.5 rounded down.

Oh this is nice. The music is complex and interesting, and there's lots of varied songs. Plenty of experimentation. I really like the acoustic playing, the vibraphone, the brass, the vocals. The musicality is absolutely on point.

4.5 rounded down.

Plenty of nice songs in here sung well. It's not something I'm massively into in general, but it's easy listening.

It feels quite samey all the way through, but it's pretty listenable.

I feel like The Cure are a band I should like, but I can never quite get into them. I quite like the vibe on this album. It's broody and a bit foreboding, with some interesting soundscapes to it. Once again, there's not really any standout songs, but as a whole it's quite consistent.

It's quite a chill time. He's got a great voice. It's just a bit slow.

I like the atmosphere on this. It's got a manic energy to it, and there's some interesting things going on musically. I like the psychedelic guitars. It's quite unique.

3.5 rounded down.

This is objectively a good album, with good standout songs, strong melodies, choruses and all the rest. It's quite soft and melancholic, and I understand that it's not everyone's cup of tea, but reading the top reviews on here it just reads like complete snobbishness. I guess it's just somehow cool to hate on it? Who knows? Fuck the haters, I like it.

I'm enjoying this. Real big sound and tons of personality.

What an album! So many amazing tunes on here, my god! Debaser, Wave of Mutilation, Here Comes Your Man, Monkey Gone to Heaven, Hey..

They've got a bit of an anarchic edge to them. Lots of weird and wonderful compositions and approaches, but then just tons of catchy hooks and choruses as well. The combination of male and female vocals...

It works so well as an overall album.