Reviews by theblanderman

Ugh, this is one of those releases that solely relies on one hit. "Let's Get it On" is a great song, and "Distant Lover" is pretty good, but the rest of this is just uninteresting filler, including a reprise of the first track. Really not essential, but Marvin's performance and legacy is too damn good for a low low score. 2/5

I thought this prison recording was fine, but not that memorable. His banter with the audience was pretty annoying/tone deaf, there were a lot of hecklers, and he played the same uninteresting San Quentin song twice (which I see why but doesn't make sense as an album experience). When he thanked the warden and the guards at the end I feel like he showed his hand - playing for publicity and notoriety rather than to actually connect with the audience. Some of the songs were good but overall found this performance to be uninspired and fake. 2.4/5 -> 2/5

A solid funk album. Some really good moments and catchy bits. Nothing that made my eyes roll too much, though the extraterrestrial characters are a little goofy. 3/5

Spare a few unique time signatures and interesting riffs, most of this listened as pretty standard thrash metal. Interesting to hear some Brazilian metal, though. 3/5

I love the meaning of this album, and the grooves and rock elements are infectious. Really impactful and quotable lyrics as well. Unfortunately, Terminator X repeats high pitch squeaky noises waaaay more than is needed which brings this experience down a bit. Still very good, though. 4.3/5 -> 4/5

The bops go hard, but the misogyny does as well. So many killer tracks and important messages, but unfortunately Snoop's particular takes on women pull this back from being the best it could be. 3.5/5 -> 4/5

Jazz fusion sounds like a video game loading screen - pleasant and predictable, always returning to the main chorus/motif prior to looping before slowly fading out. Without the fadeout, the songs could loop indefinitely.
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That being said I do appreciate some good jazz fusion, and while I prefer Casiopea to this, this wasn't bad by any means. 3/5

Pretty good jazz album with some highlights, no strong feelings nor complaints. 3/5

Ugh Spiderland. I've tried to listen to this many times over the years and it has never left an impression. This time around I listened maybe 5 or 6 times in the past two days, and while I still think it's impact is overblown (it essentially seems to mix the subtlety of Talk Talk with the quiet/loud elements of grunge), I do have more appreciation for a few moments, including parts of Good Morning, Captain. 3.4/5 -> 3/5

A pretty good and relatively consistent release from Neil. I do feel like Side A is much stronger than B, however it is nice enough while it's on. 3/5

This was good in some parts, just ok in others, and occasionally underwhelming. The songs that leaned into the jazz rap and more atmospheric bits were nice. I didn't much care for the meandering, mumbling delivery throughout. That is until the end when he was pretty expressive. 3/5

Wow, I'm astounded that this came out in the 60s. What an impressive and ambitious album. The songs are as catchy as they are profound. I'm floored by how good the production is and all of the instrumental layering going on. This might be a new favorite for me in the "classic rock" genre. Damn good work, kinks. 5/5

Oof I wanted to like this but found it a very tough to make it through. If I wanted to listen to German showtunes I'd turn on a dubbed version of Chicago.
In all seriousness I really did not enjoy most of this. But there were a few fleeting moments of intrigue die to her voice and the composition which were relatively moving. That and I appreciate that I hadn't heard this before. Still, though, not for me overall. 2/5

This album is Smooth Jazz done right. Sade's performances are beautiful and powerful, and the songs are so damn moving. This record sounds like a warm blanket and a fire. The only blemishes in my eyes are Frankie's First Affair which I felt was a slight drop in quality, and the cover of Why Can't We Live Together which the lyrics sound like an empty "All the colors of the world holding hands" infomercial and with very weak instrumentals.
Those gripes aside, this album is otherwise a delight and deserves it's flowers. 4.5/5 -> 5/5

Some songs that were really goddamn good (Fuck Me Pumps and In My Bed) and others that were not so interesting. This was definitely an unrefined, rougher version of what would impress on Back to Black. Still, not a bad album for a debut. 3/5

I can't fully comprehend the mixing skills that went into creating this album at the time, but it's certainly stood the test of time. Some earlier moments on the record are a bit more impressive and distinct than the later half, but still impressive all around. 4.4/5 -> 4/5

I think that these guys (and critics of the time) thought that this band's sound was more novel than it is. It sounds like a Soundgarden cover band hired a Cedric Bixler-Zavala soundalike to play heavy brit rock songs. There are some times on this record which are very impressive (the second half of Getting Bright at Night) but more of this felt purely derivative. 2.4/5 -> 2/5

This is the best punk album I've heard.

I'm not usually a fan of the genre, but the variety, vocal and instrumental performances and sociopolitical commentary are all very complex and impressive. As a person of color I've grappled with some of the lyrics in holiday in Cambodia for 20 years now, but in the context of the rest of the band's work it seems like the point is the make people uncomfortable and to be evocative. That's how I feel throughout the tracklist, slightly uncomfortable but on the edge of my seat. I loved the juxtaposition of HIC and the cover of Viva Las Vegas - what a wacky transition and closer.
Really outstanding work. 5/5

Damn I was game in the beginning. I thought this was going to be some hidden gem. But it quickly dissolved into muttering hillbilly show tunes. Pretty disappointed, 2/5.

Unfortunately, this obscure post-2000s alt rock ska album was not super impressive, other than a few moments early on that sounded like Jack White. 2/5