Reviews by rylee

First time I've heard anything from Neil Young. I was expecting something very stripped-back and minimal. And that was my impression for the first few minutes of the album. But once "A Man Needs A Maid" came in...oh my goodness. That beautiful, lush orchestra. And then later on in the album, when The Needle surprises you with thunderous audience applause, cutting straight to one of the few electric jams on the record. The production on this thing is immaculate, despite presenting itself as so toned down.

Harvest actually sounds quite a bit like the album cover. The font itself is flashy and detailed, but outside of that, there is almost no color or any frills at all. The album, both sonically and visually, is exactly what it needs to be and not a bit more. For that, I really appreciate Harvest.

Mixed feelings here. On one hand, it's a positively beautiful record. It's sweet, it's nasty, it's soulful, the production is unimpeachable, and Winehouse's vocals are killer every time. It's everything you'd want in a genre like soul.

But I have a hard time separating it from the fact that it's a white woman effectively colonizing a historically black style of music. I guess it depends on who you ask. Fans will say she's "paying homage" to her idols, while deriders will say she's a "ripoff" or a "hack." And she suffered those deriders for her entire adult life before she succumbed to her vices.

She was exploited, harassed, stabbed in the back, and treated like a plaything. A month before her death, at her last performance, she was booed off the stage by her fans. I cannot imagine the mortifying humiliation she must have felt. But if I wanted to, I could just look at any of the pictures that people took of her at her lowest moments.

You have to love her. You have to.

Nothing could have prepared me for how weird this is. Maybe I just hadn't heard the right "art rock" but I was totally surprised by how many multitudes this album contains. One listen was not nearly enough.

There's cute songs, there's hard rock, there's strange singing, there's very plaintive tunes. All over the place. Even after multiple listens now, I'm not even sure if I /enjoyed/ everything on the album. But I'm sure it made an impression on me, a positive one at least. I have to give it credit for that.

This is your free pass, reader. You do not need to listen to Amnesiac before you die.

I don't believe there is any universe outside of the one we live in where Amnesiac must be heard before death. There are good songs on the album, but 80% of this record is musical backwash--outtakes and rehashes from Kid A (of which I'm not a big fan anyway, but that's another story.) Life in a Glasshouse is a beautiful, unique piece of work, and Pyramid Song is a must-hear across their entire discography. But the majority of the album is sonic experiments that don't deserve to be fleshed out into full songs. They don't even try to flesh out Hunting Bears!

When compared to Kid A, which it must be given the context in their discography, Amnesiac has the lesser version of Morning Bell, the lesser guitar interlude...it even has two songs that sound essentially the same. I am a Radiohead fan, and I don't have it in me to hate this album completely, but I have to give it this score to just let this site know. It does not need to be here. You do not need to hear this before you die, you don't need to hear this at all.

There's a lot of talk among Radiohead fans of this being their actual best album, better than OK Computer, the "sleeper hit" of the catalogue. And I can understand that. Everyone involved decided to reel in all the electronic experimentation they had been doing for the last seven years, and get back to writing songs that are just...good songs. Songs that you can play on guitar or piano. Songs that don't cease to exist if your synthesizer crashes and you lose all your presets.

From the get-go, you think it'll be their most experimental album yet, with Thom singing over these delay-scratched sequenced beats. But overtime, '15 Step' ends up feeling more and more natural, and the album never returns to that field again. There's a reason Thom called these "love songs." They're so intimate, they're so grounded. You have good ol' rock-and-roll cuts (Bodysnatchers, Jigsaw) as well as the exceptionally moody songs (House of Cards, Nude, and oh my god Videotape.)

I don't think it's perfect. The songs here are beautiful and many are still catchy, but they don't have the same level of eat-your-heart-out theatrical ambitions that OK Computer does. And while there is no filler on In Rainbows, some songs might possibly overstay their welcome. House of Cards does not need to be 5 1/2 minutes long.

It harkens back to the classics from the 60s and 70s, when albums only existed on a vinyl LP. Every artist only had 40 minutes and change to prove to you why they should be included in your collection. And of course, In Rainbows is no exception. It's for those who wanted a more concise band, less whining, more traditionally great singing. Better drumming, better guitar licks, it's just a beautiful record.

just dropped my whole fuckin dinner on the fuckin floor stupid fuckin imagine john lennon fuckin ass

I have nothing to contribute to the world of music hobbyists and journalism. My perspective is severely limited. I'm picky, stubborn, and there's likely thousands of "classic" albums that I have never heard before. I did this project to broaden my tastes. An attempt to understand myself and my tastes better, and to be able to articulate why I like or don't like something.

Today, on album #4, I encounter my first obstacle: why do I really dislike Crime of the Century?

It feels unfair to say something as dismissive as "I don't like prog rock." Even if I added a stipulation and said "I don't like 70's prog rock" that still doesn't get to the heart of it. I still enjoy some Pink Floyd, and I love Roundabout by Yes, which is quintessential 70's prog rock. So what's going on here? Am I unable to get into its musical theater stylings? Do I not like the thin sound of the keyboards? It's hard to say exactly what turned me off from the album, but from the beginning, nothing even turned me on. I wasn't sold.

I found Dreamer more obnoxious than anything. In fact, I found a good chunk of the album obnoxious. The album as a whole is not bland, boring, or offensive, and I'm not inclined to call it anything particularly mean. But in the course of any music hobbyist's life, there comes a time. A time when you have to admit to yourself...you don't like (most) 70's prog rock.

It's alright. The songs are beautifully written, and aside from cheesy saxophone solos and the predictable pastiche of a big climactic ending, they're timeless. Even I am not immune to a song like Vienna--I'll listen to it in my car and think to myself "I'm fine. This won't make me cry. Why would it? I'm not tearing up at all" as a lump forms in my throat.

When it comes to the two big ballads on here, I prefer Vienna over Just The Way You Are. In regards to the two biggest hits, I'm definitely on team Movin' Out. But other than the straight New York heat, I'm not a massive fan of the album. I personally feel it loses steam after Only The Good Die Young. But I can't deny that it's a beautiful piece of work.

I am a vocalist. Something I get asked from time to time is if I have any tips on how to sing well. I don't--most of my experience comes from singing along to Mike Patton in my car. The one tip I could provide, if any, is to really put your back into it. Embody the words. Invest in what you're saying. Even if you're a "bad singer" you can find the right people as long as you're presenting confidence.

I have never heard any of Elvis Costello's music before, but obviously, the first thing that struck me was his voice. He's a fine singer, but his enthusiasm is what got to me. I found it very easy to get over the obstacle of thinking "why does he sound like that?" and just appreciate it. Then came the impeccable drumming. Then came the savvy, nimble basslines. One by one, every piece came together, and each song sticks to your brain like peanut butter. Side A runs through the listener like a freight train, and while side B slows things down, all the tracks still have the minutiae that make them distinct and satisfying.

Fun. Fun is the word that wraps up everything about this performance in a heart-shaped box of chocolates. The excitement! The vitality! The banter, with both audience and fellow musician! It's so easy to close your eyes while listening and imagine yourself in the crowd, twirling around the dance floor with your partner. It's the kind of show that can go on forever and never get boring. I imagine everyone walking out of the club, still feeling loopy.

I saw a lot of comments on this from people who immediately dismissed it because "live album" or "not a good guy." That innate negativity bothers me, and I want to encourage everyone to keep this in mind for every album on this website: it's someone's favorite. This album is someone's favorite album. So I'm going to give every album on here a fair shot and try to understand it like they do. Wouldn't you?