Reviews by ninevoltheart

This is just the perfect metal sound to me. Fast, precise guitars, powerful, anthemic vocals, songs that have real meaning. I didn't listen to Iron Maiden when I was younger and I'm sad about it so I've been making up for lost time in the last few years. This album is foundational and has inspired so much of the music I *did* grow up with.

I'm in my 30s but I want to be Bruce Dickinson when I grow up.

I've always liked this album! Super fun sound that's not quite like anything else - not that it's the most unique sound, just that it clearly stands out from most of the other indie rock at the time. Just a really solid album with a bunch of great songs on it - super enjoyable!

I've always been intimidated by metal despite having heard and loved various metal songs/albums since I was about 12. All that to say that I don't have much to say about the technical aspects of the album or what makes it different from any other metal album. But everything about this is intoxicating to me and makes me want more. It just scratches some itch deep in my brain. I've always been more familiar with Peace Sells (and liked it more as a result) but this album is just about perfect to me. Every track tells its own story and the sound is cohesive without sounding repetitive or same-y. I just love it. I wish more albums felt this perfect.

One of my favorites, forever and always. The soundtrack to being a moody teenager stuck in a suburban bedroom wondering what life will hold. Love the fuzzy guitars, Billy's vocals switching between soft and rough, the sheer longing and loneliness and emptiness of it all. One of those albums that just gets me and resonates somewhere deep inside. Everyone needs a Siamese Dream 🖤

3.5 stars.

I can't quite give this a 4, but I really enjoyed it. I hear little bits that remind me of The Stooges, Lou Reed, The Clash, Felt - the fact that the sound ties to so many different decades of music is really cool. To my modern ear, it's a bit forgettable, but I get why it was a standout at the time and I always love a bit of proto-punk.

This is like a 70s B movie in album form. I wouldn't say it's *bad*, but I sure would struggle to say it's good.

Eh, fuck it. Why not. We all need a little more melodrama in our lives.

Immaculate vibes. I can't necessarily put my finger on exactly what I like about this album, but I like it a lot. Makes me feel like I'm flipping through records at a store with a great selection, just marvelling at all the sounds that exist out there. Love it.

3.5 stars.

To me, there's a fine line between bland, meaningless shoegaze and really good indie rock that you can get lost in. This album definitely belongs to the latter category for me - there are enough textures to keep me interested and some really unique sounds that immerse me. Reminds me of Bob Mould or Sunny Day Real Estate but with a bit less catchiness than either.

It's not a standout album and I doubt it'll ever be a favorite, but I think it's a solid album to put on while working or trying to clear my head or just trying to get into a dazed, floaty headspace.

This genre of mid-200s/early-2010s soft indie rock has just never really connected with me. The songs just feel so flat and same-y and the vocals do nothing for me. There's no emotional or dynamic range, and yet it feels like they're aiming for a nostalgic feeling that just doesn't work for me.

My impulse is to say that it's all too soft but there's plenty of soft music that I love - I think the word I want is just flat. There just isn't anything in this to catch me and draw me in. The lyrics seem a little interesting but they're so slurred that it's way too hard to actually hear them. It's just... boring. Generic. Bleh.

Well this is definitely not for me and I'll probably never go back to it, but there was something about the drum sounds and repetition that tickled my noise-loving brain in a weird way.

I've been a fan of Rush for a while but this album isn't one I've spent a lot of time with. It has everything about Rush that I love, but something about it just doesn't click with me as much. It feels a bit too wide, cinematic - which I realize is what makes this album iconic! But I just love the harder, rockier Rush more. Maybe I just need to listen to this one more though.

Nothing will ever go quite as hard as this album does and few songs will ever top War Pigs. RIP Ozzy. Love you forever.

I was surprised by how much I like this! A double album for a debut is kind of crazy, and I think this might be one of those double albums that didn't *really* need to be one... But I like the jazz rock vibes and I had fun listening to this. It might not enter my regular rotation but it's got some solid songs and there's nothing I actively *don't* like about it (except maybe that last track) so 4 it is! I even like the experimentation on "Free Form Guitar", and I love that they were brave enough to put that on a debut. Really respect a band that can do both commercial and experimental in one go.

Not a Beatles fan so I wasn't expecting to like this but went in open-minded. "Jet" is cool and made me wonder whether I'd have to reconsider a few things. The rest of the album confirmed that no, I do not.

3.5 stars.

Really great. Full, smooth, fun sound throughout. Another review called the sound 'velvety' which is the perfect description. Not my usual fare but super enjoyable!

Not sure I've ever listened to any recordings by The Coral before, but I saw them live 4 times in 2018 as they were opening for the Manic Street Preachers. I wasn't a big fan then, and that hasn't really changed with time. "Dreaming of You" is fun the first time you hear it, and then it gets old quite quickly. There's nothing particularly offensive about their sound, but there's nothing that really catches me, either. I'm not a fan of the raspy vocals or the use of saxophone, which to me feels like it's just been added in to make the sound stand out rather than being an integral part of their compositions. Truly not sure this one belongs on the list as it's just so unremarkable, and it makes a lot of sense that it's been dropped in more recent editions.

I feel like anyone who knows me would expect me to hate this, but there's something in it that really grabbed me. The production is excellent - minimal yet full and crisp. The vocals sound delectable - smooth, clear, emotive yet calming. I love the lyrics and the delivery of the vocal lines - the rhythms are really unique and give these songs a lot of energy. Some of these songs remind me of ones I've written, in spirit rather than sound, but it inspires me to want to write more. You don't need a huge range or complex arrangements to write something beautiful and striking - sometimes simplicity, rhythm, and carefully-chosen words are all you need.

2.5 stars.

There's a lot here that is quite beautiful. The arrangements are interesting with a lot of variety in the instruments and it all works together well without it being too much. The concept is interesting and appears to be executed well. I understand why people like this... But I just feel like it's not for me. Some songs are the type of soft and sad that gives me a panic attack ("John Wayne Gacy, Jr.") and most of the others ("Chicago", to name but one) are just too deeply rooted in the mid-2000s indie aesthetic that felt as exclusionary then as it does now - a sort of holier-than-thou, I'm-more-interesting-than-you feigned earnestness that just rubs me the wrong way. For Stevens himself I have no doubt that it's sincere, but i that's the energy I'm getting from the people who love albums like this one, and as a result it just doesn't feel like it's for me. Idk. Maybe I could be convinced to come back around on this one if the timing and context were right. I feel bad for rating it so low, but it's just not connecting at this particular point in time.

This is a delicious album! I'm not sure I would have found this album on my own, and it's a great discovery. Really rich sounds, great beats. Fun, chill vibes. Love the variety of instruments, sounds, and textures.

Was going to give it 5 stars until I saw someone else mention the homophobia in 'One of Them'. Went back and listened again more closely and... yeah, no thanks. Otherwise a solid album, though.

This was the album that truly made me fall in love with music. Is there anything particularly unique or technically accomplished about it? Maybe not. But it's peak 90s bubblegum pop and I love it.

This album was what made me want to be a singer and what made me obsessed with all the different ways music can make you feel. Every song takes you into a little world and the songs on this album were some of the first worlds I fully explored.

Is it cheesy as hell? Yep. Are there some skips? Yeah, absolutely (although this is more the case with the deluxe edition that's currently on Spotify). But I can't rate this album any lower for any of its faults. I wouldn't be who I am today without it.