Reviews by penthousedawg

Big gay party. Its shiny and slick and over produced and more than a bit fabulous. It dips off around halfway before picking up for the last couple of tracks. If this was a list of the best glam-pop albums then it would probably get a 5 but for me it sits around a 3.

I've never heard the sound of a radio being tuned used as a solo before so that must deserve a point.

These are 50/60s rockabilly riffs with a load of fuzz, vocals drenched in reverb singing about vampires and werewolves. The drums sound purposely primitive. At first I thought I thought it must have sounded ahead of it's time - then I realised it was released in the 80s. So The Cramps knew they were being retrospective in their sound and I do love a band with a vision. It's a vibe and they know it.

These guys always remind me of the rockabilly theme nights ('Stay Sick!') at bars when I lived in Brighton. So for the fond memories, it's getting a 3.5.

Always sort of liked Neil Young and never really knew why and this listen, more than ever, confirms I'm in fact actually a bit indifferent to his brand of whimsy country folk. There are highs (Heart, Old Man, Needle) and lows (A Man Needs a Maid) but I never really felt super engaged with the music. And someone said he sounds like Kermit which sort of ruined it a bit for me.

I remember reading Q magazine back in the early 2000's and in a review for the single 'Plug in Baby', the author described Muse as "Masturbatory". This description has stuck with me ever since and unavoidably swims in to my mind whenever I lay ears on this band.

I saw the band live around the same time and their performance was very good - for that reason I have always had a favourable memory of their first two records. Beyond those, Muse just seem like a synthetic retro-futuristic Coldplay with classically inspired guitar riffs. Retro-futuristic like a starry sky projector from Poundland.

A lot of the deeper cuts follow the same template; guitar riff built around a particular scale run through six effect boxes, Bellamy's voice wavering in the gentle verse, howling in the bombastic chorus. It all becomes a blurry pile. I would probably be able to pick stuff out I like if I made the effort, but over the years I seem to have developed a real dislike for these guys. All the good stuff, boiled away, leaving nothing but a metallic and unappealing taste in my mouth.

Masturbatory, indeed.

Fun old school hip-hop beats. Playful and chill lyricism. Not really my genre but I'd take this over the murky, unpleasant aggressiveness of Biggie Smalls anyday. 2.5

Immediately put me in mind of Will Oldham and I was a bit concerned I would get a little bored - but actually, the songwriting and arrangements kept me in engaged and I enjoyed the warmth and even playfulness some of these songs delivered. I imagine the vocals will get some criticism on here - they do lack variety and the delivery is identical on every tune. But again, there was enough little musical moments - a little vocal harmony, a little organ motif, a wilting violin - to keep me listening. I don't like the album cover though - I think horses are evil and would kill us all if they could. Edit: Turns out this guy is Smog who I've listened to a lot before!

Another album from my childhood. I still think sounds as cool as the first time I heard it. Kim & Co manage to tow a line between edgy and goofy. Not my favourite album (Dirty might take that award) but real close. 5

Kate Bush is a big weirdo and that's great. I'd score the album higher if there wasn't a bloody Irish jig in the middle. Amazing album cover. Strong 3.5

I felt like I was transported to this big party in the 60's. I had never heard of Sam Cooke until now. I'm not a soul guy but the atmosphere and big energy made this an experience. The album grew and grew on me and I was exhausted listening to Sam keeping the party going.

Beautiful voice, quite unique in some ways, but the songs themselves didn't capture me and I was a little bored halfway through. The sparse arrangements and production didn't help. Her name on the album cover looks a bit like it's poop.

Billie has the voice of someone who has seen some shit. Soft and gentle, wry and raw.

Stripped-down acoustic folk-punk; I like how the sound of the fret buzz on the bass and the slightly wonky vocal harmonies add to the aesthetic. It's a remarkably strong collection of songs - which may have lost their charm if another band had written and recorded them with more complicated arrangements. Unique vocal style. Strong 4.

Hey look it's the Disco Space Beatles throwing everything at the wall and having a real good time - even if over half the ideas are hitting the floor with a big poopy splat. That's still a 50% chance of a good time though.

I get the Beastie Boys are somewhat iconic but this sounds like pretty basic stuff. Simple, childish lyricism paired with with simple, childish beats. Purposely immature and bratty. Theres fun to be had but little to no depth. Great album cover.

I liked the track Less Than Zero. The rest was fine at best. This is a medium to light 2.

When the cover of Lost in Music started, I had an extremely vivid image in my mind of a very drunken uncle at a wedding dancing with his eyes closed, swaying under the disco lights and forgetting all about his diabetes and prostate problems. Magical.

Oh boy I am really not the target demographic for this. Beautiful vocals, shimmering production and some interesting modern beats but this is really not my genres - I don't know if this is better than the next R&B (is that what this is?) record. At the risk of sounding like an old man, this whole record sounds the same.

Repetitive, to an extent, both in tone and song composition, the opening tracks are fairly weak - Under My Thumb is catchy melodically but questionable lyrically (is this about controlling your partner and celebrating it?). Going Home, Flight 505, High and Dry - most of these are entirely forgettable. Maybe this needs to be listened to with the cultural context in mind but it doesn't really stand on its own. It's scraping a low 2 because it's not terrible.

One of my favourite albums ever. I have heard this record a thousand times as a teenager and it still strikes me as a brutally personal, raw and visceral collection of songs. The album is of course tied to the legacy of Kurt Cobain, that's unavoidable. And thanks to teen angst its unavoidably tied to my youth - it felt a little painful to sit through it again in it's entirety. I'll leave it or others to discuss the production, Kurts vocal/guitar abilities and Courtney Love. Oh, and I think the algorithm is having a little fun selecting this back to back with Appetite for Destruction!

Guns n' Roses have a sound that is very much tied to the time and place of 80's rock. Sleazy, swaggering, dirty - and yet the production is polished and the band are tight. It is dated, but can be enjoyed like a time capsule that has captured a world where swigging JD, smoking cigarettes and thrusting hips in Spandex is still cool. This is bar brawl music for an 80s American dive bar - but still fun whilst sitting at my desk job at 7am in the South of England. Also, addressing the misogyny; yes, misogyny is bad and should not be condoned, but this is a GnR record: You don't watch a documentary about Jeff Dahmer and complain theres too much murder. Only songs I would have left out here are the last two which offer nothing the other tracks all do twice as well. Regardless, It's probably a light 4 for this one.