Reviews by scribeben

An unrecognized influence on David Bowie (who covered “Amsterdam” in English.) A uniquely grizzled and charismatic voice in chanson.

This is pleasant enough but I’d rather listen to actual classic crooners. Probably doesn’t help that I just got a Frank Sinatra record two days ago.

Another Ice Cube record? I’m 2/3 of the way through this list and have gotten two Ice Cube records and zero Tupac. Nonetheless this one has its virtues. The beats go hard and so does Cube, mirroring the social unrest he references with his own ultraviolent attitude. By the time “It was A Good Day” comes on it’s a breath of fresh air. There’s less of the relentless misogyny in this one, which isn’t to say it’s not there. There’s a bizarre presence/absence of self-awareness exemplified by the sample of Ice Cube on a talk show failing to seriously address the claim that he’s reinforcing the racist image of Black violence. I’m somewhat ambivalent about the whole thing, but it’s definitely not a bad record.

The most intellectually self-aware of gangsta rap records (compare to the cruder Predator album by Ice Cube of the following year) offering a kind of apologia for the genre. Whether or not you find his argument successful, there’s no doubt that it’s eloquently stated and the tracks are dynamic and varied, justifying the album’s length. I particularly like “Midnight” with its Black Sabbath/Led Zeppelin sampling and was pleasantly surprised when “Body Count” popped up.

Madcap Musical Madness

Fun, sardonic punk rock.

Smooth as it gets. Also there’s that current of darkness underlying it knowing what he was going through personally and such intricacies to the production that make it a truly great record.

At least it’s short.

I love her voice. While I’m not a fan of the musical style, I do appreciate the songcraft and think hearing these songs is importantly illuminating of mid-20th century American culture with all its jingoism and brutal misogyny. “Keep on beating me.” Jfc. Some of the lyrics I’m surprised many people understood even then “My nights were sour, spent with Schopenhauer.” I’m not sure why the instrumental tracks were all relegated to their own disc. It was weird hearing a series of preludes to nothing.

The epitome of “adult contemporary”. Heartfelt and poignant. Perhaps irritatingly so at times.

A missing link between disco and new wave. Smart and weird. I dig it.

HardcOrnette: A deliciously cataclysmic musical conflagration

Genuinely soulful country with occasional flashes of great musicianship.

Chill but rather boring and too long

I actually enjoy some of the instrumentation but something about the over earnestness of the vocals ruins it for me.

This is a pretty good electropop album though nowhere near the fantastic joy of her 80s records. “Frozen” is a jam though.

I vacillated between finding this pretty chill and kinda cheesy, the latter mostly during the vocal parts with their fake patois. I guess the politics tips the scale to the former.

Nick Cave at his gnarly, frenetic best. Not sure I’d heard this in its entirety before but it stands up with my faves of his.

I dunno what a Zuton is, but they should’ve stayed dead.

The Who’s best