Reviews by korb

The rich and immersive sound production, the excellence of the backing band, the hilarity of the banter with the audience (along with their responses), and the clever wordplay and vibrant lyrical imagery, make this album a diamond in the rough that is Tom Waits' discography.

I prefer the Decemberists.

I appreciate this for the root influence, the musical primitive, that it is. I can't say that it's all that enjoyable to listen to anymore, which makes the initial success of the album all that much more interesting, I suppose.

A stand-out from the crowded 'electronica' scene of the 90s, which stands the test of time impressively well.

I'll be damned, if I couldn't stop tapping my toe while I listened along. The blend of jazz and pop, spiced up with hints of latin, funk, and ska are an act of musical alchemical genius. The instrumental performances are flawless and the production is polished to a yacht deck sheen. While the lyrics aren't anything that will compete for a Pulitzer, their light and delivered the brightly and chorused with harmonies. An all-around feel-good album that would pair up nicely with a dance hall as easily it would segue into The Clash or The Specials.

I honestly can't get over the entirely unnecessary imagery of the young sleeping girl on the album cover. Add to that the deliberate inaccessibility of the music, and I'm not conflicted at all with giving this 1 star.

If you are into Joy Division, then I'm sure you'd be into New Order. I am not into Joy Division.

Yeah, hard stop at the song that casually talks about violent involuntary abortions.

I stand behind my beliefs that Kool Keith is clinically insane. I'd put this into the same musically interesting category as Wesley Willis' albums. Bizarre, profane, nonsensical, but unrefutably creative and expressive.

I understand why the Cranberries outshone these guys on tour.

Can we trade this one out for 'Safe As Milk'?

Try as I might, I just can't quite seem to discern what the overarching theme of this album is.

Does anyone else find it as hilarious as I do that the first 7 tracks are a passionate full court press advocating for getting it on, and then the last track is like, "Well, it's too late..."? It's like the campaign from the first 7 songs was successful, things wrapped up, and reality set in.

A veritable Jack In the Box of music. Sure, it's a bit confusing to follow-up a burger, with a taco and an egg roll, but it's tasty.

I genuinely believe this is one of the most perfect albums ever made. At a minimum, the opening trio of 'Praying for Time', 'Freedom! '90', and the haunting cover of 'They Won't Go When I Go', have to be heard to be believed. It is also tied for me to childhood memories of all-out voice-belting family sing alongs, which is saying a lot given how dysfunctional we were.

While I'm no George Michael biographer, I always felt like this album was a response to dysfunction. The man had been repressing his sexual identity while his musical career and international fame continuously grew, built (at least in part) on him being a hetero sex symbol. He is then outed in the most humiliating way possible and forced to confront it all, all at once, on CNN for Christ's sake. The album's name, it seems to me at least, is practically a plea to give him a chance.

While the dysfunction in my own life was of a different sort, this perception has given me a personal connection to this album that has only grown and deepened over the years. I can hear echos of truths I don't want to live with in these songs, and the hopes of the possibilities that come with living life after I begin to put them behind me.

It is precisely, unapologetically, and quintessentially synth-pop. I don't care for it myself, but it can't be under-appreciated for the influence it had on an entire decade's worth of music. The rating reflects my own personal tastes, but I completely get why this album is on this list.

As iconic as the album cover may be, the album itself was almost entirely unknown to me. I guess my main hang-up is that many tracks feel like they tried to shove a few more ideas in, than were really necessary. The gems that are 'Time', 'Cracked Actor', and 'The Jean Genie' strike the balance of glam and rock perfectly, though.

3 albums already from Neil and not one Townes Van Zandt album, yet? I don't get the appeal at all.

Up until this album it struck me that Bowie stuck mostly to portraying characters.
 
The album starts off with a song about “me” and it's like an actor breaking the fourth wall. That vibe continues for the first 3 songs and I wonder whether the narrative has turned to a 1st person perspective, or if Bowie is actually talking about himself at this point. The characters are definitely still there, but it’s nice to have some variety.

Bowie is over the brief proto-metal kick (The Man Who Sold the World) and back to his Avant-rock ways. Pianos, saxophones, keyboards, pianos, strings, unconventional time signatures, multiple transitions and movements in a single song – I still can’t fathom how an artist comes up with stuff like this.

Standout tracks to me (mostly cliche) are 'Changes', 'The BewlayBrothers', 'Oh! You Pretty Things', and 'Life on Mars?'

The music is fine, but this style of jazz is not really all that engaging to me. I've always wondered why, and I think I finally realized it's because of the group dynamic (or lack thereof). This album is primarily a collection of very talented soloists performing in immediate succession under the pretense of a collection of songs. Each songs starts as an ensemble piece, that gives way around the 1m mark to a medley of spotlight swapping solo showcases. I'm amazed at the patience of the rhythm section, as they play along while everyone else gets to do whatever they want.

Was this the album that was forced onto peoples' iPhones? I didn't listen to it back then and I didn't find anything overwhelmingly important about it now. It's a fine album that sounds like it was crafted with a "spare no expense" mindset. What I can't shake though is how formulaic it feels.