Reviews by syrinx

I like this album. It didn't really blow me away but I enjoyed it nonetheless. Not a whole lot to say about this one, it's pretty standard 80s alt. Sounds pretty raw and edgy, well played, interesting compositions. I dig it. 3.5/5 but rounded down because there wasn't anything that really wowed me.

I have to confess that this is the first time I've ever listened to a whole Grateful Dead studio album. They aren't exactly known for their studio work. Now I can see why. This album is boring. I've always found their live recordings to just be so-so anyway but this is almost unbearable. It's like a shitty country album where most of the songs are played too slowly and there are never any changes. Terrible vocals. Sloppy instrumentation. Poor production. It must be a lot easier to like after you've dropped acid continually for years. The one saving grace is Truckin' which is decent, or is it just the only mediocre track on an album otherwise full of absolute trash? 2/5 for Truckin' and the use of real instruments, albeit poorly played.

The idea of rock/pop bands playing with an orchestra was certainly not new when Metallica did it but I feel like they sort of reignited interest for the concept. Especially for a band whose songs tend to have a lot of orchestration already, or at least the potential for it, like Metallica, it makes a lot of sense. A solid idea for sure and this is probably one of the better records to showcase it. Sometimes these albums can sound like just different mixes of the band rather than the complete addition of an orchestra, this one does a wonderful job of blending both elements. One thing that stands out about this album which is different than a lot of the other albums like this is that they actually wrote parts for the symphony rather than just having them double notes, chords and melodies that the band was already playing - it was a genuine addition of music in this case.

The problem with this album, other than Lars randomly beating drums to whatever song is playing in his head at the time, is that unless you're a big Metallica fan this is going to be too long. I get that it's a recording of the whole live show(s) but the casual listener will probably stop about halfway through or just listen to a handful of songs they know well already. The track list is basically a 'best of' album so I think most songs will be recognized by most people but the audience for this album was probably never meant to be widespread. All in all, it's a good record but loses points from me just because I'm not a huge Metallica fan and it was a bit of a chore to sit through the whole thing. 3/5

Frank Zappa seems to be sort of controversial, with a lot of people lauding him as a genius and others simply calling his music noise. It's not mainstream by any means. I feel like most musicians would love this album, the average everyday music fan probably not as much. From interviews and things I've seen about Zappa, he seems like he would have been a really interesting guy to sit down and talk to.
For this album specifically - amazing guitar playing. And the tones he gets are unbelievable. Just fantastic throughout and really made me want to listen to this as loud as my ears would allow. Also Max Bennett on bass has to be mentioned - although the basslines are not super complex they are really interesting and played to perfection. Great bass tone too. Particularly on Willie the Pimp. That song has a groove that can't be beat.
Production on this album is great as well, nothing overshadows anything else, sound quality is good, levels are balanced. Zappa said this album was "a movie for your ears" and that's certainly an apt description. It sort of devolves into a little more avant garde in the second half that I think most people wouldn't really care for but I like it. The horns on the second half of the album are great, but again not to everyone's taste.
This is a hard one for me to rate because while I love it, I'm not sure I would give it 5/5. This is another case where we need ratings out of 10. This would be a solid 9/10 for me but I don't think I could rate it a 5/5. Maybe more like 85/100.

I enjoyed this album but I don't really get why some people were raving about it. I can sort of see the super early punk starting to emerge but it was mostly just kind of a straightforward rock album from the 60s. Nothing that would make me even really think to look to see who it was if I heard it randomly somewhere. 2/5

Maybe a little too electronic for my taste, but a decent album nonetheless. It's almost like if you gave The Cure or Joy Division or maybe The Smiths a lot of 80s synths. Not really too much more to say aobut this one, admittedly I listened to it while I was sort of focused on something else and it sort of just flowed over me. I'll listen again but I'm confident in giving it a 3/5.

The second album in a row I have to preface by saying I'm only commenting on the record and listening to it for what it is, separate from the artist that made it. On a personal level, fuck this guy.

I remember when Marilyn Manson sort of came into the spotlight. It was different than anything I'd heard back then and middle school me loved it but didn't really know what to make of it. I used to really like his music and got into it more as I got older but at this point have sort of given him up due to the recent revelations about him as a person. I do think that maybe what makes this album great is the contributions the band made and not necessarily Manson himself. This may be totally wrong but I get the feeling that Manson is a super hard guy to work with (as evidenced by the revolving door of band members) and that the rest of the band, whoever they may be at the time, are likely responsible for the bulk of what's recorded. Some of the lyrics on this album are very smart and offer an interesting point of view into a different way of thinking than is typically seen in mainstream media. Some of the lyrics are super cringey now, though maybe that's looking at them with nearly 30 years of hindsight. And a lot of it seems to be 100% for shock value, but I think that was the intention all along. I mean the album is called Antichrist Superstar.
Beautiful People is a fantastic song and by all accounts was written largely by Twiggy. Play that song for anyone of a fairly large age range and they're not only going to recognize it but tell you it's probably the best songs Manson did and maybe one of the best of the 90s. Dried Up Tied Up is great as well. As is Antichrist Superstar. But there were a few songs I had to skip. Probably just because I don't think Manson really deserves much of my time anymore. This is a tough one to rate. Some of it I really like, some of it is fine. If the whole album was as good as the handful of strongest tracks, it would be a fantastic album. As is, it's middle of the road and I was ready to move on before it was over. 2/5

I try to keep these reviews focused only on the album and the artist and the music they made and not bring in any kind of personal issues they may have had. It's not always easy.

That said, as far as the music goes, this album has a lot to offer. It's soooo 80s. It's a really interesting record as a follow up to Thriller, lots in common but it definitely goes in a different, more 80s direction. I've always really liked the title track and The Way You Make Me Feel. That's a great way to open a record. I think the problem that this album has is that it's almost so over-produced and saturated with 'new technology' that his voice sort of gets swallowed by it all a bit. Not that you can't hear the vocals or anything, but just that he had such an amazing voice (one of the best ever, really) but it sounds a little artificial or like it's going through too many effects filters and takes away from how naturally strong it is. Not for the whole album but definitely in parts. Not as bad as Autotune, thankfully, but I felt myself thinking "that's too bad" a few times.

All in all I think this is a really strong record, definitely more modern sounding that what he did before it. I think I like Thriller better though. I'd rate this one at like a 3.9/5.

Classic Stan Getz. And one thing I love about this album over Getz/Gilberto is the guitar playing - I think Charlie Byrd was a much better guitar player. This album kicks off with Desafinado which is fantastic and would fit right in on the Getz/Gilberto album but I really like the guitar part better here. The rest of the album is good but not great. I would listen to this every now and then but it's not something I could listen to all the time like Getz/Gilberto. Solid 3.75/5.

This album sounds like what you would expect from a stereotype of punk. Like if someone was making a movie and one scene needed some late 70s punk music for some kind of montage but the production didn't have money to buy rights to anything commercially released so they just decided to find someone on the crew to 'record something that sounds like punk music'. This album would be that recording. It's great if you like it. But I guess that can be said about anything. 2.5/5 rounding up to 3 because I had no idea that Pat Smear was in this band or even old enough to be in this band.

I've always loved this album. She had an amazing voice and was such a great performer. Her life is a sad story and I feel like listening to this album you can hear all sides - her struggles, hopefulness, longing for help, striving for independence, maintaining dependence on others, wanting to improve, wanting to stay as is. I mean really that all shows up in just Rehab. It's a brilliant record and was made that much more meaningful after her death. I wish we had more performers like Amy Winehouse around today. 5/5

So this was a total shocker for me. I liked this album a lot more than I thought I would. I knew of The Go-Go's of course but never really gave them a shot, just kind of wrote them off as a bubblegum pop kind of thing probably just based on We Got The Beat which I've never really cared for. But damned if this album wasn't a lot more than I expected. It's almost like punk-lite, early new wave, 80s girl rock, sappy pop all blended together. The songs are not necessarily complicated but they are well structured and super catchy and well palyed. It's sad that they basically just fizzled out. I think the production on most of this album could have been a little better but maybe that's just a result of the time and them being an all female band. I can't imagine that they were working with super great producers and engineers. It's not bad but I wish it had a little better balance in some parts and the sound was a little fuller. It's mostly kind of tinny. But still, it's a great record and I'd absolutely pick this one up if I saw it in the record store. 4.5/5 rounded up because of how great the surprise was.

This album is super weak. Every time I hear Paul Simon's solo stuff I always think how much better he was with Garfunkel. He was a great songwriter for the most part but whatever Garfunkel contributed to the music really made it stand out for me. I'm kind of surprised that this is the second of his solo albums I've had so far on this list and I'm not even 20% of the way in. Surely we could have just had one or two S&G records and called this box checked.
I saw another review that called this album something like 'sanitized world music for white people' and I think that's really the best description. I won't be coming back to this one. 2/5

Ok so I have to start by saying I hate Stevie Nicks. Always have. And I don't know why, I'm usually a sucker for a female singer in a rock band. I liked Fleetwood Mac a lot more when they were a bluesy psychedelic band with Peter Green. Stevie Nicks sort of ruined them a little bit for me.
That said, I do like this album. I think this is one of those albums that every likes because you're told it's good all the time. It is a good album but not one that I would really ever pick to listen to. Maybe once every few years. One of the best albums of all time? Not for me. But it definitely should be on this list. I'm sort of conflicted as to what rating to give. It's better than 3 but it doesn't make it to 4 for me. Do I round up for the general acceptance of the album as being great or do I round down based on my personal liking of the record and the silly, childish cover?

It's always fun to have an album that I have never heard of before. Never even heard of this band before. I must confess that when this popped up and I saw a band called White Denim and that they were from Texas I immediately thought I was in for a shitty country pop album. But what I got was a super fun bluesy/psychedelic/indie/pop rock record that even has some forays into acid jazz. Really cool guitar parts throughout. Great vocals. Good song structures. Terrible album cover. I'll have to listen another time or two but on the first listen this was a great album.
Overall I really liked this record and will definitely be listening to some of their other stuff. I'm giving this one a solid 3.75/5.

I'm happy to see this record on here, I've always loved it. Santana is one of those guys who can play one note and you know it's him. He has such a unique style and sound and there's just an unmistakable tonal quality to his playing that nobody else can replicate. And I really think this album has some of his best playing. The whole fusion of Latin jazz, rock, even samba is something that everyone should hear and I think most would appreciate. I can understand that this kind of music might not be up everyone's alley, but you can't deny the musicianship on this record is top notch. Production is great too - such a big sound and very well recorded. I just wish it was longer. 4.5/5

It's Ray Charles, you know what you're getting. Fantastic voice. But as with the other album of his on this list, the record just doesn't blow me away. I mean I liked it but it just kind of washes over you. 3/5

Radiohead will always be the band that a generation of people who wanted others to think they were 'deep intellectuals' and 'get music' said was their favorite. If you tell me Radiohead is your favorite band, I don't need to know anything else - I know exactly what type of person you are. I don't dislike Radiohead but I'm sort of indifferent about them. They have some good songs but if I never heard them again I wouldn't really count it as a loss.
This album is fine. It's a good listen but it doesn't really stand out from any other album of the time to me. And I get the hate for Thom Yorke, he does seem like a super pretentious dude and that totally carries over into his band. I actually like his voice which is a sticking point with a lot of people. I can't really pick a favorite song, or even one to highlight, from this album. They all run together but in sort of a good way. The songs are structured well although they never really take off but I think that's kind of the point. 3/5

I don't think I'd ever heard this but the cover is vaguely familiar to me. And as far as mid 80s new wave albums go, this one is much less like a cheesy movie soundtrack. Maybe this is more like 80s art pop than new wave? I don't know but I dig it. Happiness Is Easy is a great song. April 5th is kind of a weird slow spot and I think might have worked better as the album closer rather than the side one closer. It didn't really make me want to turn the record over. The second side plays a lot like the first, a slow spot towards the end. All in all I really enjoyed this album and I'll definitely listen to it again. If I saw it in the record shop I'd probably pick it up. 3.5/5 round to 4 for the re-listenability.

I've always felt like the Stones are one of the most overrated bands of all time. I love a few of their songs but for me, a greatest hits record would be enough. That said, Keith Richards and Charlie Watts are both among the best at what they do.
For this record, there are some bangers on here - Brown Sugar (if you don't listen to the lyrics at least) and Can't You Hear Me Knocking are great. I've never liked Wild Horses. The rest of the album is sort of unremarkable to me. I think this is just one of the albums that you're supposed to like from a band that you're supposed to like. There's nothing wrong with this record, really, it's just sort of beige. 2.5/5 rounded up to 3.