Reviews by uls980

Perfectly acceptable electronic music. Next.

Ok, starting to understand why Imagine is the only song I know off this album. And I've never been huge on Imagine anyways.

Not that the album is bad, its perfectly fine, but its not blowing me away either. Bluesy rock that I'm burnt out on mainly.

Might have been a case of good album, wrong day, but this is sounding very dated to my ears. Add on top of that, I'm not huge on her voice (very sharp), and you got an album I'm just not enjoying.

Let's Stay Together is not as good as the original either.

Honestly, just a fine alt rock record from Black Francis here. Feel like I prefer the stuff he did with Pixies.

Might just be me, but we already have too many Pixies albums on the list (I'd cut Bossanova). Don't think we need a solo Black Francis album, even if it is good. I'd rather have seen an album from The Breeders (Pod or Last Splash) than this.

OK, so this is the Billy Bragg album with Wilco. It's been so long since I've listened to Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, so I can't really remember what it sounded like, but I don't remember it sounding like this.

That said, this is a really good slice of alt-country. Interesting that all the lyrics are Woody Guthrie written. Love the bounce of Christ for President.

Might not be something I'd go back to. Really good, but not really for me I don't think. We'll see if I ever do revisit it in the future though.

This really is a grower of an album.
The more I listen to it, the more I like it. I remember the first time listening to it like 10 years ago, I really didn't care for it (Loved OK Computer and Kid A at the time though).

Now though, this album is just fucking great. Love the drive of Jigsaw Falling Into Place. 15 Step is great also.

Only track that's not quite working for me is Bodysnatchers, but that's less to do with it not necessarily being a great song (It is) and more to do that it sounds like When The Saints Go Marching In, and I can't get my brain to not make that connection.

Knew going into this project Radiohead would be a rare band that would get two five star ratings from me (For OK Computer and Kid A), but didn't think it'd be getting a third with this one. Amazing album.

In much the same way that the Violent Femmes were way ahead of their time with their debut, this one feels similar and what I'm getting is that folk punk doesn't evolve at all. And honestly it doesn't need to.

Prefer when its more punky than folky in this case though (just coming from listening more to stuff like Dropkick Murphys and Flogging Molly).

But still a great album. Honestly a tad surprised, wasn't expecting to like it quite as much as I do.

I will forever be baffled as to why Mezzanine isn't on the list. Not that Protection and Blues Lines aren't good (they are really good), just that Mezzanine is transcendent. It's usually 2000's American rock acts Dimery has trouble with. Not 90s British acts.

But either way, Protection is still pretty good. The title track with Everything But the Girl's Tracey Thorn is fantastic. And generally the rest of the track list leans more on a darker vibe than Blue Lines (Protection is closer to the Mezzanine sound), which I prefer.

I will say, the Massive Attack Karmacoma version is not as good as the Tricky version.

But yeah. Good album, just pales in comparison to Mezzanine.

Honestly, a pretty solid listen. Usually in the category of albums where I don't have the cultural history with the genre to properly rate it, but this one was a vibe.

Still gonna rate it in the middle, but solid album.

Perfectly fine reggae. Better than that Finley Quaye album I got a few weeks ago.

But honestly, reggae is one of those genres where I really only need to hear one artist and that's Bob Marley.

Hell yeah, more Sonic Youth is never a bad thing.
Honestly, the 10 years where they released EVOL through Washing Machine is legendary and one of the best 10 year streaks any band has ever had.

This album is definitely on the more noisy side compared to some of their other albums during this time, but it's all great either way. Songs like 100%, Drunken Butterfly, JC, Purr, etc. are just great and stack up in their catalogue. Slightly prefer the Kim Gordon songs on this album over the Thurston Moore songs, but not by much. Only real dud is the one minute long nothing song Nic Fit with it's aggravating singing, but that's not enough to affect my rating at all.

Overall, fantastic album. Not quite the statement or as good as Daydream Nation, but damn close.

The sound of walking through a college town in the 90's (Honestly, the vibe still fits for college towns today).

Don't know if I have a ton to say about it, just that it's good. Reminding me a lot of some of the PNW indie rock bands from around the same time (The Spinanes, Built to Spill, The Pixies, etc.).

Couple reactions to getting this album. First is I've never really listened to King Crimson before, so I'm genuinely curious what everyone's going on about. But second was a slight "Ugh" because I really don't want to deal with another dated, noodly prog rock album from the 70s.

Well, good for me then that this album is coming off more like avant garde rock in the style of a Kayo Dot or maudlin of the Well to me than a masturbatory prog extravaganza. And at a svelt 46 minutes, even better.

There's a little bit of noodling on this album, particularly on the opening and closing instrumentals, but mostly it feels like it serves a purpose beyond just "Look how good I am at the guitar".

I am enjoying the first half of the album more than the second half though. Book of Saturdays and Exiles are great. Although The Talking Drum is feeling kinda microtonal a little bit in the same way that an Angine de Poitrine does.

Overall, not really what I was expecting, but do enjoy the record.

Again, solid bossa nova. Some songs though aren't as strong as the others, like Parade (A Banda) which feels a little too novelty to me. You Didn't Have to Be So Nice also, cute that her son sang on it, but just not that great. Some great tracks though, like the title track. Just good vibes.

Can't really say anything I haven't said for other bossa nova albums. They're music for soundtracks and resort vibes to me, unfortunately. Not particularly for sitting down and listening.

I'm finding I just don't care for straight up punk music that much. It needs to have something else going on (post-punk, skate punk, hardcore, metalcore).

So overall, solid punk record, just not really doing anything for me.

Honestly, was extremely curious about the other Talking Heads albums on the list, because I absolutely loathed Fear of Music (As of writing this, I haven't relistened to Fear of Music, which I will do once I finish listening to More Songs, so look for my updated thoughts on Fear of Music at the end of the review).

And even as much as I hated Fear of Music, I had a hard time believing that I'd hate the rest of the Talking Heads' stuff as much as that, and lo and behold, I'm quite enjoying this. From what I remember of Fear of Music, it was just extremely unpleasant, not catchy at all, and sounded like the band was way too far up their own ass trying to create "Real music".

Luckily, More Songs is catchy, pleasant to listen to, and they sound like they're actually having fun.

Warning Sign is giving me a very New Order/Pacific Northwest punk sound (Hot Rock era Sleater-Kinney), which I'm enjoying quite a bit. Found a Job is more along the lines of what I expect from Talking Heads though. Perfectly fine song, but not something I'm crazy about. Especially since I don't think David Byrne is a particularly good singer. I'm Not In Love is a great track though. Guitar, bass, and drums are GOING.

And of course, you got the more commercial hit in Take Me to the River, which is a solid track. I'm starting to realize that Talking Heads basically sound like the art version of The Cars on this album.
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Thoughts on Fear of Music after a relisten: Yeah, it's not as bad as I remember it being, but I still don't like it. Is it enough to get me to bump it up to a 2? I don't think so at this point. And I don't know if I'll go back again a third time to spend more time with it. But yeah, compared to Some Songs, it just doesn't have the hooks, is far less concerned with being accessible, some songs go on for too long with the same idea without changing up, and David Byrne's singing is kinda bad on some of the songs. Really the only truly good song is Heaven.

Some Songs is just the far better album. Catchier, more accessible, interesting.

Whole Lotta Love has got to be up there as one of the greatest album openers of all time. And following it up with What Is and What Should Never Be is great as well.

Things drop off a tad with The Lemon Song (Still a good song, just a little too bluesy for my tastes), but pick back up with Thank You (I wouldn't be surprised to learn that The Marshall Tucker Band had that song on mind when writing Can't You See).

And the hits keep coming with Heartbreaker, Living Loving Maid, Ramble On (Jesus Christ are Led Zep fucking nerds with their references to Tolkien), Moby Dick.

The album ends on a slightly lesser note with Bring It on Home (Again, like The Lemon Song, still good). But overall this is an amazing album that just rattles off great tracks one after another. The songs that are just merely good aren't enough to bring it down below a five star for me. It's that good of an album.

And then there was one. Only got Hard Days Night left from the Beatles (aside from the Lennon and McCartney solo albums).

Honestly was expecting more from this album? When its hitting, its really hitting (Taxman, Eleanor Rigby, Yellow Submarine, and Got To Get You Into My Life), but otherwise I'm finding the rest of the tracklist to be fine. Not a super big fan of the Indian influenced songs with the sitar and tanpura. Although it doesn't sound quite as appropriative and cringe as when pretty much any other band use those instruments.

The sequencing can be a little rough too. Eleanor Rigby going into I'm Only Sleeping is a bad transition.

Still feeling a 4 on this one, but a light 4 that is pretty much propped up by the hits I mentioned before. Probably slot it above The White album and With the Beatles, but below Sgt. Peppers and Abbey Road.

Honestly, not music I would ever want to hear in an airport. Maybe if the airport were completely empty, no one in it, and it was early morning where the sun is first peaking out, but yeah.

I don't think there's much to say about it honestly. It's pleasant, but not something I'm ever going to "listen" to. Overly long where he just barely develops (with minor changes here and there) and idea or two over ten minute track lengths. I would have much preferred more interesting developments and movements over the loops.

In comparison to the other Eno albums I've got, its probably one of the better ones, but that's more a function of it not doing stuff I dislike like on Before and After Science and My Life In the Bush of Ghosts as opposed to doing stuff I enjoy. Still think Another Green World is his best though. Need to get Here Come the Warm Jets, so the jury is out on that one.

You know, don't really know what I was expecting from this album. I had a vague idea of what I thought The Jam were (Maybe like a bluesy artrock or something?), but 70's post-punk (ish) rock influenced by The Beatles isn't what I had in mind, although it makes total sense.

As far as 70's post-punk goes, this is probably the best one I've gotten so far. It's not so far up it's ass trying to be "true art" like some of the other albums I've gotten (Fear of Music and The Idiot), that it works for me.

Especially a song like Set the House Ablaze. Some of the album does sound a tad dated to my ears (Especially when they're shamelessly ripping off The Beatles, particularly on the track Start! where it's just straight up Taxman), but it never sounds unpleasant.

In the end, quite an enjoyable listen.