Rated 4/10
This always was at its best when they switched to instrumental parts. Not because the singing was bad, but because then interesting things started to happen, whereas the verses and choruses were a snoozefest.
That's why I enjoyed the second half of "Sunrise" and the subsequent "Elegia" most.
I don't think I'll revisit the rest of it.
2/5 - below average
Rated 4/10
The coolest things about this: the interesting intro track and the interludes that often use snippets from interviews and connect most tracks seamlessly which I think is really cool.
Also, great voice.
Unfortunately most of the actual songs are pretty boring to my ears with barely anything happening beat-wise or intrumentation-wise.
2/5 - below average
Rated 6/10
Complex percussion rhythms? - ¡presente!
Salsa piano sixths? - ¡presente!
Lovely spanish vocals? - ¡presente!
Great brass section? - ¡presente!
I really enjoyed listening. However, for my non-salsa-trained ear, everything started to blend together real soon, forming a nice trip to another world, but lacking any standouts.
3/5 - good
Rated 4/10
First Michael Jackson album I've ever listened to as a whole. Phew...
He employs his signature "heee heee"s, "wooo"s and "ow"s so damn often, you get the impression this is a Michael Jackson parody.
Most of the songs did nothing for me, though it had its good moments like in the title track or the groovy "Smooth Criminal". Other songs were cringeworthy and hard not to skip.
"King of Pop"? Apparently not earned through great songwriting.
However, worst of all is the 80s sounding production. The drums and bass sound like shit, the synths are just horrible.
1.5/5 - weak
Rated 6/10
This album just flshed past me without making a dent. Some moments sounded cool, others really silly, but nothing makes ma want to revisit sometime soon.
2.5/5 - okay
Rated 4/10
Makes me want to go lie down in my bed and cry. Not exactly a quality I'm looking for in music.
As in Kid A, I like some of the sounds (here, especially "I Might Be Wrong"), but wouldn't listen to this ever again.
I'll politely say: Please go whine into somebody else's ears, Thom Yorke.
1.5/5 - weak
Rated 2/10
Nearly unlistenable for my ears.
The beats are so repetetive, the instrumentals minimal, boring or annoying.
I get that I fail to connect with Hip Hop albums mostly because I'm not a lyrics guy and pay only little attention to the words.
However... whenever I did pay attention, it was cringeworthy or even a little disturbing. Nope, not for me.
To say something positive, the movie samples they used were really cool.
1/5 - very weak
Rated 6/10
If you don't pay attention to the lyrics (which I don't), then most of this album is quite repetitive.
That can be a good thing because some tracks have a really good feel to them, like "Love Sick", "Million Miles", and especially the cool "Cold Irons Bound".
On the other hand, it sometimes gets boring (my oh my, 16-minute closer "Highlands").
All in all, I enjoyed this much more than 1960s only-voice-and-guitar Dylan.
3/5 - good
Rated 8/10
Excellent! I love Jack's brand of modern blues rock, and his voice is as unique as his guitar tone.
The album is a potent mix of riff based blues rock numbers and ballads. I dig the use of keyboards and piano here, like in the nearly-over-the-top "Weep Themselves to Sleep".
All in all, lots of moments that made me smile, headbang or just feel groovy. Might become a 5 in the future.
4/5 - excellent
Rated 2/10
Similar to Coldplay, and equally hard to listen to.
Somehow even more infuriating because they sometimes put out good moments like a passable guitar riff or atmospheric verse, only to destroy any spark by detouring into totally forgettable choruses or cringeworthy parts.
No thanks.
1/5 - very weak
The band name sounds so much cooler than the music presented here.
Somehow, this was even worse than the Pet Shop Boys I listened to yesterday.
Hadn't it been for the kind of beautiful slowburning "Sealand", this would've been a sure 1.
1.5/5 - weak
Rated 4/10
The good: Some nice chord progressions and harmonies here.
The bad: The singer's voice, I don't like it.
The ugly: The instrumentation is horrible in my ears, artificial and dated, just no.
2/5 - below average
Rated 6/10
Positive vibes and great musicianship on all instruments. The brass instruments and percussion elements were especially nice.
However, what this album lacks is variety. I grew tired of the sound on the back half.
Funnily enough, right there in the track "Love's Got Me In Triangles" the German speakers among us very clearly hear a "Scheiße, mir wird langweilig" at 2:40... coincidence? I think not 🥸
3/5 - good
Rated 6/10
The A-side was really good. Especially "Perfect Day" is a great song, but also the upbeat rock numbers were very enjoyable.
Then, the B-side. What happened here? Didn't dig the tuba. Weaker songs overall. It's a pity. Still, nice find.
3.0/5 - good
Rated 6/10
It was okay, I could listen to it without skipping.
However, for me, the genre mix of funk, art rock and piano rock didn't work. Also I thought the sound lacked power, it felt somehow weak the whole time. And it doesn't help that I don't really like Bowie's voice.
Near the end it got better with "Stay" and "Wild Is the Wind".
2.5/5 - okay-ish
Rated 10/10
Do I think this is brilliant because I listened to it so much, making it sound so very familiar?
Or did I in fact listen to it so much because it is so brilliant?
Actually, I don't really care. I loved it when it came out, and I loved it every bit as much relistening now.
I think that the songs and the whole album is excellently constructed, the sound is guitar-heavy, just as I like it, and I somehow have a knack for these background "ooooh"s that are employed always at the right time.
There are lots of well earned hit singles on here, but I love most "deep cuts" even more, like the fast paced "Letterbomb" or the beautiful closer "Whatsername".
There is not much keeping this from being a 5/5, for example the opening title track being average instead of as brilliant as the rest.
4.5/5 - near perfect
Rated 4/10
Melodic, fuzzy riffs, lots of effects, rich instrumentation?
On paper I should like this.
But somehow I really didn't. Perhaps because it was all over the place, and not in a good way.
1.5/5 - weak
Rated 10/10
Blew. Me. Away.
The filthy guitar riff in the opening track. The beautiful vocal lines in "Book of Saturday". That groove at the beginning of "Easy Money" and the sick bass line during the psychedelic freakout later in this track. I could go on endlessly.
At no point did I know where the band would take us next. And boy did they create places to take us!
Masterpiece. Might become a proper 5/5 in the future. For now:
4.5/5 - near perfect
Rated 8/10
On first listen, I quickly wanted to dismiss this as "not for me".
But somehow, it called me back for a second listen, during which I realized I liked many aspects of this blend of dance and post-punk, especially the repetitiveness and the driving feeling that somehow felt Krautrock-inspired. Also, great instrumentation that differs from track to track, incl. bonus points for cool use of cowbell.
Highlights for me were "Get Innocuous", "Us v. Them" and the title track.
Unfortunately, not all tracks are that good and the voice remains a weak point.
Will surely revisit and take a dive into their discography.
3.5/5 - strong
Rated 4/10
Meh...
The actual riffs are OK. But most of the songs are too long without much happening (which is not bad per se if I dig the vibe, which I don't feel here), and obviously the whole album is much too long without enough variation.
Also I'm not a fan of "grungy" vocals, what most people see as a strength of this album.
Of the many many tracks I only really liked "Mailman" and "Black Hole Sun".
2/5 - below average
