Reviews by scribeben

A funky good time like only P-Funk can bring. This one is a bit more gimmicky and not quite at the level of artistry of Maggot Brain but is still brilliant and irresistibly fun. The lyrics of “Handcuffs” are pretty cringe though and the talky bits take me out of it a bit.

Another Springsteen record. This one a collection of earnest, heartfelt blue collar americana ballads. There’s a definite mood to the record that you can sink into. I prefer it to most of his boisterous arena rock. “State Trooper” is a highlight. It may be even more effective with a bottle of whiskey. But I’d rather listen to Mark Lanegan for that sort of thing.

This is pleasant enough but I don’t quite see what’s so remarkable about it.

Pleasant but a bit too innocuous for my taste.

It’s like hip-hop infused electronic dance pop. Extremely early 90s sounding. I guess the progenitor of a lot of stuff of the time that sounded the same. I don’t hate it but would not choose to listen to it on my own. Though ironically I probably like it more now than I would have if I had heard it in the 90s despite how dated it sounds.

This Bjork album is tremendous. The arrangements are made up of mostly vocal sounds though not quite entirely a cappella. Reminds me of the group Mycale that did a fully a cappella John Zorn record, but with an edge provided by the harsher tones of Mike Patton, Rahzel, and the Inuit throat singer Tanya Tagac. First rate mouth sounds all around. Enchanting and beautiful from the first note, this is a gem of a record.

Interesting beats and flow, though a bit repetitive at times and grows abrasive after awhile.

Extremely cool beats, smooth flow, thoughtful lyrics, and a relentless momentum throughout. I enjoyed this one thoroughly.

I think I listened to this too late in life to be fully affected by it. But I still feel the energy of it and dig some of the songs.

This album rules way more than I expected! Besides the just masterful songcraft, there’s an edge, like an underlying seething anger that only barely bubbles to the surface. I also feel like Chris Cornell listened the hell out of this record.

This is my fourth favorite Bowie record from his “Berlin” period between 1976 and 1979 (I count Iggy Pop’s The Idiot and Lust for Life among them.) An excellent record in any case.

The first half of this is an extended jam session on a single musical theme that is pleasant enough but only moderately held my attention. I’m sure it seemed epic to tripping hippies in 1969 who had not yet experienced the great prog epics to come. The rest is also pretty noodley and unmemorable. The guitar and bass tones are great though.

Largely derivative cock rock. The singer’s constant falsetto is impressive but (maybe not unintentionally) comical and obnoxious.

This is peak 80s. The hits are wonderful but the rest of the songs don’t really stand out.

I was immediately turned of by the chord progression and sound of his voice on “Badlands” but I kinda dig “Adam Raised a Cain”. Everything after that I didn’t care for.

This album is just as beautiful and compelling as it was 30 years ago. The arrangements are so delicate and supple. His voice is just dripping with understated emotional resonance. It reveals their songs as what they really are, not just aggressive paroxysms of angst, but tortured folk songs wrought by generations of trauma and exhalation. When I was like 13, I met a conspiracy theorist who thought the cia killed Kurt after the unplugged performance, because he revealed that his music was more than just loud, aggressive, angst and he was about to lead his listeners to something more socially conscious and truly revolutionary. That’s probably not actually true, but I feel like there’s some grain of truth in the idea, especially given how rage and rebellion would become so completely commodified and intensified in the ensuing half decade.

It’s not my favorite Foo Fighters album, but I still enjoy listening to a lot of the songs and Grohl makes a solid one man band. The ghost of Cobain looms large here. As far as lyrics, Grohl has admitted a lot of his are nonsense and it really feels that way on this record especially. Also it kinda trails off in the second half. I’d probably like it less if it weren’t for nostalgia.

Regardless of what you believe about MJ, Thriller is generally tremendous by virtue of the hits alone. There were two songs I hadn’t heard before “Baby Be Mine” and “The Lady in My Life”. They’re certainly not highlights but are okay. “The Girl is Mine” has always been pretty stupid though.

This has great energy, as if a community celebration is happening rather than merely a performance. The musicianship is at a high level, and it is a lot of fun!

Not unpleasant but a bit tedious to pay full attention to. Fine as background music. “Telephasic Workshop” “Roygbiv” and “Turquoise Hexagon Sun” are highlights.