Reviews by tjehl

If you’re expecting another ABBA album for your nights of partying, you’re sorely mistaken.

Like the title suggests, this feels like an alien that tries to blend in with the ABBA discography - in the best way possible.
I mean, who would’ve thought of an ABBA record containing lyrics about nuclear war in 6/4 and strong Cold War references?

While not being their most catchy album it is by far the most interesting album by the group and it solidifies Andersson and Ulvaeus’ exceptional songwriting partnership.

Let's just address the elephant in the room right away. Yes, "Brown Sugar" is icky as hell lyrically. But musically it's as strong an opener as the Rolling Stones ever delivers.

After the disbandment of the Beatles the previous the year, Sticky Fingers feels like the Stones proving, that those hyper popular 60's bands would continue to have a voice leading into the next decade as well; with the Stones later proving that they would still have a voice even some 50 years later.

This also finds the band venturing further into both jazz and country which really suits the frantic sound the Stones is equally capable of delivering.

Also a review of Sticky Fingers without a mention of the absolute pinnacle of this record: "Wild Horses". So here goes.

"Wild Horses"? Wow.

Few albums actively defined a whole genre like Black Sabbath. But even fewer albums contain songs that lunged more than one genre almost a decade out into the future; as is the case with “Black Sabbath” and “N.I.B.”.

It’s unbelievable that this was recorded in just half a day from just the band playing their live set. Jesus, what I wouldn’t give to have seen an early Sabbath-show.

The whole band is as good as they ever were - which is almost surreal considering this is their debut. Especially Ozzy’s vocals are mixed to perfection. The panned production on “Behind the Wall of Sleep”? Holy shit.

It’s hard to fathom that this record is actually more than half a century old.

This is peak dad rock if there ever was one.
Even though I was nowhere near being alive when this released I feel weirdly nostalgic listening to it. Like reminiscing about a sweet memory.

There’s no reason this is as good as it is, but with an opener like “More Than a Feeling” you have no other option than to give in. Scholz is the perfect classic rock guitarist and Delp was one hell of a singer.

Banger after banger and great choruses followed by even greater ones. Had B-side been as strong as the exceptional A-side this had been an easy 5. But this is a thrill nonetheless.

First; Igor is an absolute beast behind the kit. Few combines the incredible speed and sheer power that he puts behind every hit.

Arise is where I really start paying attention to the Sepultura discography.
Venturing further away from their death metal roots (get it? lol) and experimenting with latin instrumentation and industrial really suits their take on thrash metal.

I say this with absolute no knowledge of the subject whatsoever, but this is one of the greatest records to come out of Brazil in the early 90’s.

There are few singers out there capable of conveying despair and helplessness in the same way as Robert Smith. And rarely is he more present than on this record. And oh my, does his guitar sound absolutely amazing as always?

If you’re used to only listening to The Cure’s more uptempo and (used with quite a bit of restraint) “joyful” later material, Pornography is extremely bleak - as perfectly illustrated by the brutally sparse “Siamese Twins”.

This is by no means their most accessible or easy album; but I think that actually makes it that much greater.

I don’t know where I went wrong in my high school obsession with the 60’s, but I honestly don’t think I ever heard of the Beau Brummels. And if I did, they didn’t do that much of an impact.

But this time they did!

“Only Dreaming” really caught me off guard and from there on I was blown away by their grasp of melodies. Among the best examples are “Painter of Women” and “The Wolf of Velvet Fortune”, where especially the latter should rank along the best choruses of the 60’s.

I don’t care as much for the fast driven “Nine Pound Hammer” and the pub sounding “Old Kentucky Home” but luckily they don’t tend to stay long with those sounds.

Glad to have found the victim of my next vinyl hunt.

There are some good intentions on this record. I understand where most of it comes from and I can even sense, what Bee Gees were trying to accomplish. But it just doesn't work.

You can feel the concept album that this was supposed to become in the title track and the instrumentals. But instead of a grandiose concept Odessa is strewn with half finished and often lazy songs without much weight behind them.

It's obvious that there was turmoil behind the scenes when this was recorded. I truly think that Bee Gees could have done something great here channeling all that energy. It's just not the case at all.

Dust stands as a monument to what a beast of a singer Lanegan was.
Scrappy and hoarse yet fragile and beautiful. An absolutely unique voice mainly comparable to singers such as Waits and Cave.

While a bit more polished than earlier Screaming Trees records this still sounds extremely raw at points. And while the string section delivers it is Barrett Martin's exceptional drum and percussion work that earns Dust the last star for me personally.

Legendary record. Ridiculously over the top, way too grandiose and at times it feels almost like a straight up spoof on rock operas.. In other words; it’s just perfect.

Steinman’s songwriting is incredible and the feeling of impending doom is perfectly supported by one of the most impressive bands ever put together and Meat Loaf’s almost absurd vocal. What a performance from just everyone involved.

Few albums are as much pure fun as this. And while it contains every recipe to be well over an hour long, the fact that the runtime is just over 45 minutes is almost a miracle.

I doubt you find a folk artist or band in the last 20 years who isn’t massively inspired by Drake (the one with a first name).

While all of Drake’s albums are emotionally sublime, there’s something deeply ominous about this, his last album.

The production fits the tone of the compositions perfectly and both his guitar playing and vocal is haunting and eerily beautiful. Undoubtedly one of the best albums to clock in at just under half an hour.

This, and its sister album folklore, was were I first really understood the hype surrounding Swift. Working with Dessner did wonders to her songs; this sounds like an artist finding her true calling and potential.

Lyrically this is by far the peak of her career with her storytelling beating her contemporaries by quite a few miles.

folklore is more immediately available, containing a few more upbeat songs, but after listening a to both a few times I’m starting to be convinced this is the superior twin by a hair.

Eagles’ strongest card by far is the fact that they’re all solid vocalists and their ability to write strong vocal harmonies. It shines through on almost every song alongside the joy of just playing together.

There are obvious low point, such as “Chug All Night”, where they let straight up rock have the upper hand. Everything sounds more in place when they take it down a notch and let the melodies lead the way; as on “Take the Devil”.

This is a great template of everything that was to come for one of history’s best selling bands!

I mean… This had some fun songs on it, but as a whole I didn’t really care much for it. I don’t remember a single chorus or hook just hours after listening.

It’s not a bad record, but I don’t actually see the point of it being on here.
Maybe I would’ve been blown back in 1980?
Or maybe it’s an album that needs some time to grow on you?
But as of right now it didn’t do much for me.

I was honestly surprised at how good the first half is. The interludes didn’t bother me, the productions and beats are killer and there’s a fair amount of bangers.

Then the second half kicks in and I slowly lose interest. I don’t particularly care for their vocals when they rap and the songwriting is simply more boring.

Just as I was about to almost defend the inclusion of interludes, “Sexy-Interlude” kicks in. Oh how I love me some potty humor; just what I needed.. Fuck you whoever thought of this. The last interlude is likewise about 2 minutes too long.

Luckily André 3000 swoops in and saves the day on the awesome last song - this offers just enough redemption, along with the first class production on this whole thing, to deserve a 3.

Quite the debut album!
Knopfler (the not David one of them) is a laid back frontman when it comes to vocals, but on the guitar he’s a living legend. His picking style out of this world!

There’s a few almost misses, but overall there’s nothing truly bad to find here.

I completely forgot how fun it is listening to Pick Withers. Especially his work on the hi-hat and ride is intriguing while he still manages to stay well in the background just sitting tight in the pocket.

For someone who starting smoking at the ripe old age of 9, Mitchell sounds stunning.

The complexity in her vocal schemes, the innovative sudden changes in keys and the sheer mastery of the songwriting is beyond most recording artists of the early 70’s.

Her relationship with James Taylor becomes apparent on a couple of tracks; and we’re all the more lucky for that. Taylor’s playing suits Mitchell’s voice perfectly.

Mitchell is one of the most important songwriters of the 60’s and 70’s. And there’s really very little to debate right there.

Ending on “Cry Baby Cry” and only 28 songs was a really good decision by the Beatles. Really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really glad nothing comes after.

You can almost physically sense the creative overflow of the Fab Four on this record. You never sense the turmoil going on behind the scenes; on the contrary actually.

In many ways this is back to basic compared to Sgt. Pepper. Simply just expertly written songs one after the other.

Considering the fact that Billie Holiday's take on "Gloomy Sunday" was so depressing that it was once banned for decades on BBC, I am not surprised that this record didn't exactly lighten the mood.

At the age of only 43 it's remarkable that her voice sounds like it has already lived a full life - and then some. It's not as vibrant as in earlier recordings and while Ray Ellis (and his Orchestra) provides a beautiful tapestry Holiday paints almost every song with the exact same emotions as the ones before and sticks to the same vocal formula through every song.

The end result, beautiful and emotional as it surely is, simply isn't enough to keep me invested.

Tusk is a legendary album - especially due to its absurd cost.

It feels more evident than in previous and later albums, that the three main songwriters (Buckingham, Nicks and McVie) wrote these tracks individually.

Especially Buckingham’s songs stand out.. But often not for the better. “Not That Funny” and “That’s Enough for Me” are totally misplaced and it’s clear that he had wanted the band to go in a whole new direction - not an easy goal to achieve when the songwriters are given almost total individual freedom.

Nicks’ provides some of the best songs, “Storms” and “Sisters of the Moon” while McVie offers both great moments and easily forgettable ones.

At almost 75 minutes this is filled with both classic Fleetwood and a glimpse into a new direction for the band. In the end neither are pursued all the way and the result is, though most often great, somewhat incoherent.