Reviews by nofaithmed11

Absolutely stellar power pop.

4.5/5

Wilco doesn't achieve perfection until their next album, in my opinion (and maintain that perfection for three subsequent albums as well). Being There still has a bit of filler and the feel of a band that hasn't exactly found their identity. That said, it's a very, very high 4 stars and still an excellent album. "Misunderstood", "Sunken Treasure", "I Got You (At the End of the Century)"...I mean, come on.

4/5

Very, very close to 4.5 stars. Doesn't finish as strongly as it starts, but goddamn, it's still pretty awesome all the way through.

4/5

I prefer a bit more room for exploration in jazz, and additionally, I generally prefer a more stripped back group. The stylings of and arrangements for the nonet lend this to sound like it still has one foot in the big band era of old, which I like fine enough but is rarely something I want to listen to in larger doses. That said, it’s awesome to pick out the aspects of it that are clearly pushing the envelope for the time. I love the unexpected dissonance in the harmonization of “Moon Dreams” in particular, and although Miles doesn’t sound totally like himself as a player yet (still great, of course), “Deception” sounds distinctly like a Miles composition. “Move”, “Godchild”, and “Boplicity” are additional highlights for me. I think Konitz, Mulligan, and Roach shine in particular, and I loved discovering that both J.J. Johnson and Kai Winding were featured in separate sessions years before recording their duet albums. A light 4 stars for me.

4/5

"Frankie Teardrop" just blew my goddamn mind. Holy shit, I can't wait to dig deeper into this.

4/5

Maybe one day I will appreciate this band more. Today is not that day.

3/5

Yeah yeah yeah, it's important and influential and everything, I have no problem giving it all the roses it deserves on an objective level. Subjectively, I don't want ever want to listen to music that sounds like this, no matter how well written or produced it is (or at least, how well written and produced people SAY it is).

2/5

Listen #1: My first Spirit album and I’m definitely impressed. Strong vocals and nice musical diversity. Will definitely be returning to this one.

Listen #2: On second listen, it didn't hit quite as hard; I'm not sure if I'm totally sold on the songwriting overall, and it struck me as just a bit style over substance, although I really like the general sounds and styles. I'm still landing at a pretty high 3.5 stars, mainly on the strength of Jay Ferguson's vocals and solid production. Perhaps I'll come even more back around on it on my next listen.

3.5/5

Way different and way cooler than I was expecting! Interesting and effective blend of organic Americana instruments/sounds with more standard British new wave and synthpop. I underestimated these guys! Excited to return to this and see if I go higher with my score.

3.5/5

I think the production is uniformly excellent; every sample and musical backdrop is expertly crafted, leading to hooks on hooks on hooks. I think Akil, Soup, Charli 2na, and Marc 7 all have pretty solid flows/timbres, and the guest appearances all feel pretty natural and seamless as well. Really, really good shit.

4/5

I don’t love it/it doesn’t mean as much to me as the debut, but I still absolutely love it. Jimi was the goddamn coolest.

5/5

It's always fascinating when you are thoroughly entertained by something, but equally can't stand anything about it. Respect. 0 stars, but a higher 0 stars than Limp Bizkit.

0/5

I won't pretend that the title track or "Life in the Fast Lane" are my favorite songs ever, or even that I ever have the urge to put them on, but I do enjoy them well enough when they're playing. Combined with the overall inoffensiveness of most of the album, they're enough to not sink it below 3 stars. But I just...don't care. It's honestly funny to me that people have such strong opinions about this band, positively or negatively, in the first place. Perhaps this is my privilege talking as a child of the 90's who didn't need to deal with their onslaught of fame in the 70's. Anyway...it's fine.

3/5

Yes yes yes yes yes. Total perfection. This performance of "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed" is one of my absolute favorite pieces of music ever recorded. One of the more important albums of my lifetime.

5/5

Much respect to both of these individual artists. This bored the fuck out of me.

2/5

Wanted to like it more than I did - I love the Singles Going Steady comp - but still very good.

3.5/5

I respect that everyone seems to love it, but I just really, really don’t get it. “Running Up That Hill” is great, but otherwise…meh. Just not my thing I guess.

2.5/5

This one gets a big ol’ “meh” from me.

3/5

I couldn’t be happier that this album is on here. It very much changed my life. White Blood Cells and Elephant made me a White Stripes fan, but this one kickstarted my Jack White obsession and opened the doors to looking at music in an entirely different way. I don’t care if other people view it as inferior to the rest of their catalog; I love every single second of it.

5+/5

Slightly confused as to why this one is so propped up, but I certainly can't pretend to be a hip-hop expert. As an outsider, this is extremely one-note and not half as interesting as quite a few rap albums also on this list.

2.5/5