Reviews by muse-getes

I was torn between a 3 or a 4 for this one as I did genuinely enjoy it but I also found it oddly grating at the same time. Something about the record seems affected and insincere to me; maybe it's the ostensibly Irish singer's weird faux American accent. It's certainly a fun album in spite of that though. If the style of the album cover didn't give it away, it soon becomes obvious as you start listening how influenced these guys were by the big 60s pop rock acts. It's far from a novel sound but I feel like The Thrills gave it just enough of their own spin to make the album worth listening to. That said, I don't really see what's so special about the album that earned it a spot on the list. It's not really unique, nor was it noticeably acclaimed or popular, and it doesn't seem to have been particularly influential or have a big cult following either. Strange.

Favourite tracks: One Horse Town, Big Sur, Santa Cruz

I'd heard a lot of good things about this album but this was just dull.

Love this album. Jeff Buckley is one of my favourite ever male vocalists and it's such a shame that this was the only album we got got from him before his untimely passing. He showed such range on this record, from intensely powerful belting to an angelic falsetto and plenty inbetween. I see some people describe his vocal style as over the top and self indulgent, but I think it sells the raw emotion of the music perfectly. He may lack subtelty at times but there's a time and a place for maximalism in my eyes and this record is a great example of that.

Vocals aside, this record is filled with really strong compositions with excellent progressions and some really great guitar work. That opening riff on the title track for example is such an ear worm, as is the main riff on Last Goodbye. The rest of his band were no slouches either, the drums in particular are impeccable throughout the album and compliment the energy of Buckley's guitar work well.

Honestly, this is probably one of the best debut albums of all time. It's such a captivating and evocative record that dances through genre boundaries whilst remaining immediately accessible. I can't even imagine how Buckley's music could have developed when his first effort was as realized and iconic as this. Too bad we'll never know.

Favourite tracks: Mojo Pin, Grace, Lover You Should Have Come Over, Last Goodbye

I really don't see the point of all these live albums on the list.

I don't know if I'd say I "enjoyed" this album, but it was interesting at the very least. The whole murder theme is honestly a little offputting as someone without much interest in the macabre, so opening with a track like Song of Joy, which seems to revel in being as grim as possible, gave me a bad impression right off the bat. That immediately being followed up by the unbearably edgy Stagger Lee was probably the nadir of the record. I feel like there must be something going over my head with that song because it's such a crude and unpleasant listen that it somehow feels out of place even on an album as dark as this one. Maybe it's a parody of something, I don't know.

The album does pick up in the middle though, with guest vocals from the likes of PJ Harvey and Kylie Minogue helping to break up the oppressive monotony of Cave's own distinctive singing style. I feel like the songwriting itself got a little more varied and interesting here as well, but I'll be honest I don't feel like listening to the album again to better elaborate how right now.

I can't give a review of this album without touching on The Curse of Millhaven and O'Malley's Bar. With this being my first Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds record I've listened to in full, I feel like I got a better idea of what Cave is all about and his sense of humour after listening to these. I do find the macabre subject matter more palatable when it's played as obviously farcical as it is in these tracks. While the lyrics are clever and engaging here, I think Curse did a much better job of not outstaying its welcome; 15 minutes is a tough ask when the music itself is as repetitive and static as it is in O'Malley's Bar. Then again, repetitive seems to be just how this band does things.

Favourite tracks: Where the Wild Roses Grow, Curse of Millhaven

This was a wonderful album. I love some baroque pop, and this is a shining example of the genre, with dreamy melodies & harmonies, and some unconventional yet always enjoyable instrumentation. The songwriting itself is quite sophisticated, with some great melodic change ups and good use of layered vocals and instrument tracks. As an example, I particularly enjoyed the way the third chorus in Maybe After He's Gone strips down to just the simple piano track and the harmonized vocals. Speaking of vocals, the lead vocals of Colin Blunstone and the backing vocals of the band really make the record; there's just something about Blunstone's voice and singing style that I find very captivating — soft and elegant, yet never boring.

Favourite tracks: Care of Cell 44, A Rose For Emily, Butcher's Tale, This Will Be Our Year

This album's a little too long for its own good and has a couple of weak tracks here and there, but I can't really justify giving it any less than a 5, it just has too many absolute classics. Powerful vocals, inspired songwriting, and great performances from Elton and his band. Let's just avoid talking about Jamaica Jerk Off and Dirty Little Girl.

Favourite tracks: Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting, All the Young Girls Love Alice, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.

Pass

A pleasant listen but not something I'm all that into.

This had a rough start with the literal clown music in the first track, but as the record went on I started to dig what they were going for here. It's unashamedly weird, yet oddly catchy and engaging. The album's wikipedia page mentions that the usage of electronic instruments here was pretty cutting edge and experimental for the time, and I can certainly see how that would be the case. In a lot of ways it doesn't sound like something made in the 60s, though in others it sounds like the most 60s album ever made. My knowledge of the 60s psychedelia movement in the US is pretty much exclusively derived from that Simpsons episode where Homer becomes a hippy, and I'd believe you immediately if you told me Hard Coming Love was played during that episode at some point.

This album goes through a few different styles of music, so I find it hard to imagine someone getting bored listening to this. There's the sort of eerie, downbeat soundscapes on tracks like The American Metaphysical Circus and Where is Yesterday where things get most avant-garde. Even when they're being deliberately weird, though, they never take the songwriting for granted. There are a lot of interesting progressions going on in these tracks, and the vocals are both excellently utilized and just plain nice to listen to. The two vocalists are both great at bringing different styles and textures to the tracks they take the lead on.

Then you have the groovy psych rock tunes Hard Coming Love and Garden of Earthly Delights, as well as the lullaby-esque ballads Cloud Song and Love Song For The Dead Che (the former track being seemingly the blueprint for every upper-middle class female singer-songwriter in the late 2000s/early 2010s. Not that I have a problem with that, it's a great vibe.) I'd say there's something for everyone here, but looking at this album's rating that's evidently not the case. Oh well.

This would be more of a 4.5 if that was an option, but I'm going to round it down rather than up as it's hard to really describe this as an all time classic. I liked it a lot, though.

Favourite tracks: Garden of Earthly Delights, Where is Yesterday, Coming Down

Enjoyed this more than I thought I would as someone who generally can't stand metal. There were a lot more prog elements to this record than I expected, but then again, it's apparent to me now that I never really knew much about Iron Maiden and their music in the first place. I'm pretty sure I've conflated them with other metal bands for my whole life. That said, this still isn't really my kind of music, but I didn't hate it like I thought I would.

Favourite tracks: Phantom of the Opera, Remember Tomorrow,

Fun at times, but mostly just trite and corny.

The music itself is great, but that's all on Dr. Dre. This would be a much better album with someone other than Snoop rapping over it.

We had it good back when Kanye was on his meds.

There are some good tracks on here, but they're interspersed with far too much low-tempo musical rambling, so it's hard to stay awake for long enough to notice them when they come.

Favourite tracks: Intro, Heart Skipped a Beat, Night Time

This is mainly just a decent dance-punk album that isn't doing anything too groundbreaking, but it does get a bonus star from me by way of the nostalgia bias, as I thought that barking out esoteric lyrics over hyperactive mish-mashes of production software samples was the most creative thing I'd ever heard when it first came out. I'm not nearly as impressed by it now, but it's still a good time for the most part.

Some of the songs here teeter on the fine line between "abrasive" and "irritating" at times (Four Horsemen in particular being a track I thought tended toward the latter), but I still think these guys had a good knack for hooks, as there are plenty of catchy, danceable tracks on here. All in all, I'm glad to have been reminded that this album exists.

Favourite tracks: Atlantis to Interzone, As Above So Below, Golden Skans

I'm sure this is perfectly good jazz if you're into this sort of thing.

I'm not even a professional U2 hater like a lot of the folks you'll see in the review section on this site, but this was just bland and basic. Bono's vocals on his record are so one-note, and it sounds like he can barely even manage to maintain that note at times. There's nothing particularly interesting going on with the music itself either. I won't be coming back to this one.

Mindnumbing

It's a shame I don't speak Portugese, as I'm sure I'm missing out on a lot that this album has to offer by not being able to understand the lyrics. Even so, this was a delight to listen to. Both Milton and Borges have captivating voices; I feel like I could just sit and listen to them sing over a simple guitar track for hours on end (If only I knew what they were actually saying). As for the music itself, honestly this album is so long and dense with variety that it's hard to really summarize my thoughts with the amount of time I'm willing to spend on these silly little reviews, but to generalize as best I can, the record is packed full of some really beautiful soundscapes that it's easy to find yourself getting lost in, with lots of little flourishes and interesting progressions to keep your attention. It's very impressive to make an album this long that so rarely loses your interest.

My only real complaint is that the production and mixing seems a bit off in places. Sometimes the vocals seem a little drowned out by the instruments. I'm not sure what's going on near the end of Cais either when all the sound suddenly cuts out in one ear. I suppose they might not have been working with top of the line production techniques in Brazil in the early 70s, so it's understandable.

Favourite tracks: Tudo Que Voce Podia Ser, Um Girassol Da Cor De Seu Cabelo, Os Povos, Trem De Doido