Reviews by stade

Not as oppressive as I initially thought, in fact I actually found their darker experimentation to be quite compelling. The presentation is ridiculously over-the-top and the music truly sounds like they're throwing random shit at the wall, yet it all feels inexplicably intentional at the same time. Shocking to have fever dream music, thai samples, and heartbreaking testimonies of sexual assault come together somewhat cohesively.

As much as I respect the execution though, I'm not sure it's something I'd really come back to.

Standouts: Graveyard • Kuntz • 22 Going On 23

He most certainly does!

Standout: Down In the Valley

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..Maybe that's a bit disingenuous. To be fair, there are some inventive synths and bloops to enjoy here, and they did occasionally conjure up some rhythm that would have me nodding along. It just suffers from pretty unfocused songwriting that leaves the project feeling bland overall.

Standout: Love's Dart

The record very well succeeds at setting an unnerving atmosphere, yet keeping you anchored the whole way through with some mechanical rhythms (which really start to grow on you by the end). Their choices of percussion definitely add an interesting texture to it all. I genuinely winced whenever they'd pull out the dentist's drill - quite the unpleasant experience, but fitting for what they're going for.

Standouts: Kollaps • Sado-Masodub

Hmmm... There are some songs here that I'm kind of indifferent towards, and there are others that I absolutely adored. At the very least, their instrumentation is consistently entrancing and certainly astounding for a 60s album (entrancing... astounding... perfect descriptors for Venus In Furs, god what a song!!). I also found Heroin, with its ups and downs and ultimate chaos in its last leg, to be some genius storytelling through song structure alone.

What's funny is that I've historically struggled with noise rock, punk, grunge, basically everything TVU pioneered... yet for some reason I find these guys' approach to be particularly compelling and listenable. Quite the mystery. Case in point: I saw that the closing track's lengthy, noisy jam session was a particular point of contention for many people, and I gotta say that I was having a blast with it. Their real flex, though, is that they can effortlessly switch between heavier tracks and softer, more traditional ones. Sunday Morning and Femme Fatale are heavenly!

As I said, there are a few low points on the album, but the highlights are so strong that I can definitely see myself revisiting it all. Liked it!

Standouts: Sunday Morning • Femme Fatale • Venus In Furs • Heroin • I'll Be Your Mirror • European Son

This has some damn interesting production! It's a reggae album at its core, but it's hard to pin it as only that when every song takes a little influence from everything. The execution isn't perfect and the singing can be... varyingly enjoyable, but I can respect what Finley Quaye was trying to pull off. Not bad!

Standouts: Sunday Shining • Even After All • Your Love Gets Sweeter • Supreme I Preme • Red Rolled and Seen

The music rips. My first impression was that Crazy Horse was carrying the shit out of Neil on this album, but then one element I repeatedly ended up enjoying is how the soft and tender themes in the lyrics contrast with the grungy/heavy instrumentation. Even if the vocals aren't always perfectly sung, I do think Neil is the right man for such a combination.

Just don't talk to me about Farmer John.

Standouts: Country Home • Over and Over • Love to Burn • Mansion on the Hill • Love and Only Love

Woooonderful album with such colorful arrangements I'd never have expected based on my past Nick Drake experience (Pink Moon). I do think his voice loses a bit of its magical quality when the instrumentals are so comparatively flashy, but it's hard to see that as much of a flaw. He makes it work nonetheless. Good stuff!

Standouts: Introduction • Hazey Jane II • At The Chime Of A City Clock • One Of These Things First • Bryter Layter • Poor Boy • Northern Sky • Sunday

I didn't know they made new wave this old!

In-between the slightly off-putting vocals are some legitimately kickass instrumental passages. The whole time I was finding myself petty to disregard the music because of that admittedly small factor, but it bothered me enough that, if I'm being honest, I only enjoyed one song in its entirety.

Standout: 2HB

I can't pretend to enjoy the grunge and anger all that much, but damn if the music doesn't perfectly convey its feeling.

Standouts: Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle • Dumb • Radio Friendly Unit Filter • All Apologies

Poor bug :( Why don't they like him?

Dinosaur Jr.'s guitar tones are always fun when you let them fully wash over you. Even the singer's dissonant vocals work in the music's favour!

While this album didn't grab me as thoroughly as You're Living All Over Me did, it does showcase the band's range a bit better in my opinion. They do a good job mixing in some more accessible material in-between the heavy sludge. Of course, the album closer is there to remind you that they can still get aggressive with it, and it fuckin rips. I liked it!

Standouts: Freak Scene • They Always Come • Let It Ride • Pond Song • Don't

Prog.... elevator music?

I'm absolutely saving this to see how it grows on me over time. It's a breezy and pleasant listen overall, yet it's also deceivingly dense and begging for some revisits with good headphones. I'm all over it!

Standouts: Moonshake • Bel Air

Is it unlistenable? Not at all, in fact it might actually be one of the better-sounding albums in its genre, yet it still paradoxically sounds like all the others. Please, Mr Dimery, that's enough British punk.

Standout: Plan 9 Channel 7

She sings minionese but makes you hear God. That's what the title's about.

Standouts: Cherry-coloured Funk • Heaven Or Las Vegas • Fotzepolitic

To the losers crying about racial politics and discrediting this project's themes and messaging: you will be thrilled to know that the generator has a Kid Rock album waiting just for you.

This is a wonderful modern inclusion that surely flew under a lot of people's radars! With production helmed by Inflo - close collaborator of Little Simz and Michael Kiwanuka records I've previously loved - it's no wonder that I was frequently hooked by the instrumentals, consistently loving the low-end and the genre influences at play.

If anything, I think it might be a bit over-ambitious; at 20 tracks, it does get to be somewhat hit-or-miss at times, but maybe the variety isn't such a bad thing! For as heavy as the themes it approaches may be, they're not afraid to let some brighter and more positive moments shine through, and ultimately I think it makes for a better overall record. It's just missing some refinement in the weaker tracks!

Standouts: Don't Shoot Guns Down • Wildfires • Bow • Black • Miracles • Pray up Stay Up

This is spiritually a 1-star album for me, narrowly rescued from that fate by some of the insight I gained by reading some of the reviews here. As crappy as I find the music to be, I can genuinely appreciate its artistic intent being less about the compositions and more about the aesthetic; as a rallying sound for like-minded individuals. One reviewer's comparison to the Rocky Horror Picture Show somehow makes complete and total sense from that perspective. Also, it at least pulls off the "singer purposefully going stupid" shtick better than fucking Adam & The Ants, so it deserves a little bit of credit for that.

Sweet!

Standout: The Way I See You

Been aggressively taking the trip hop pill recently, so this could truly not have come at a better time.

Experiencing their debut for the first time after having thoroughly dived into three (*three! three! three! three!*) other Massive Attack projects in the past, what struck me the most is how *bright* and even soulful it gets! Very refreshing sound in that respect, even if I do love them at their darkest and paranoidest.

Definitely holds up even today. What a way to kickstart a genre.

Standouts: Safe From Harm • One Love • Be Thankful For What You've Got • Five Man Army • Unfinished Sympathy

This is to Nine Inch Nails what Slipknot is to System of a Down. Edge and shock value simply don't equate to meaningfulness, and while there are some admittedly tight and infectious riffs on display, the persona singing along completely ruins any interest to be had. It gets to the point of being unintentionally goofy; I implore everyone to take a look at The Beautiful People's music video, and tell me the Jared Leto-brand Jonkler energy isn't off the charts. Get outta here.

The Doors were described to me as "THE white boy blues band", so having gone through some mind-numbing Clapton blues a few days earlier, I definitely felt trepidation going into this album.

...I enjoyed it! It's like a bridge between 60s and 70s rock. It does indeed get very bluesy at its core, yet it's also infused with the sort of interesting instrumentation that the year 1970 seemingly blessed numerous rock bands with. In the shoes of a blues fan back then, I could see my mind being blown by this sound.

This won't be a regular listen... yet.... but I can at least say that The Doors are pretty good!

Standouts: Waiting for the Sun • Peace Frog • The Spy • Queen of the Highway • Indian Summer