Reviews by wotanmjolnir

Really not a single exciting thing about this album. Dull.

This is admittedly quite dated, but it is still a really enjoyable album by one of the most important British bands of the 80s. No Smiths = no Britpop. No Britpop means this list is probably half as long ...

I think jazz is shit. This is shit, but at least it's largely inoffensive. I'd still rather listen to some dude's old car glovebox play light jazz than this, though.

A Monet of an album - looks OK from a distance, but when you pay some closer attention it's a right old mess. Half the time the rhythm section seems to be playing a completely different song to the rest of the band, and there are moments when it settles down into a more regular type of music and then they realise that they need to be more avant garde and it jets off even further up it's own arse.

I can get why this album is on the list, as I can see it was influential in the development of this type of music. That is a bit like recognising that the human experimentation carried by the Nazis and Japanese during WWII was vital in medical breakthroughs that came after as they carried out atrocities without consideration of ethics or humanity.

The twentieth anniversary release of this shit is over 5 hours long. Fuck right off, you repetitive prick.

Loved this album. I knew a handful of Pogues songs, but had never listened to an album, but this is one of a handful of albums from this project that I have put straight back on after the first listen. Brilliant.

It did feel odd listening to Fairytale of New York in August, though.

King of Rock and Roll my arse.

This is a bit of a tricky one. On the one hand the subject matter is decidedly ... challenging, although the fact it is in French (which I don't speak well) does obscure this. On the other hand the music is really good, with a great guitar sound. Then there's the album cover which makes me think I'm not far away from going on a list somewhere.

At the end of the day though, this is a really good collection of music.

"This first track is great - I don't get all these shitty reviews!"

<5 minutes later>

"Jesus fucking christ, what is this bullshit?!"

<3 tracks later>

"Hold on, hold on ... no, this is pretty good actually!"

<4 minutes later>

"FUUUUUUUCCCCKKKK!!!!"

Ĺee Mavers had a reputation for perfectionism which caused major difficulties in the recording of this album. Rhyming 'knowledge' with 'porridge' does not attest to this.

It's OK- There She Goes is obviously a belter, but the rest is bland skiffle-inflected indie pop.

Rap and hip-hop really isn't my thing. It's not bad, but I'm not going back

Looking at this with 21st century eyes this doesn't feel very punk, but by the Christ it shook the UK up in the 70s. Such an important record, it doesn't matter that it's unpolished three-chord musicnoise, it's the sound of music shifting on its axis. Not the best music, but one hell of an album.

I really enjoyed this. Dark and brooding synth pop sounds like an unlikely combination on paper but Depeche Mode really pull it off, and Dave Gahan has an excellent voice to complement it.

Look, I know PJ Harvey is highly regarded and I admit she has done some good songs, but seriously, what the fuck is this shit?

It's not so much bad or boring as just very uninteresting. Groove Is In The Heart is an absolute corker though, so it's not one star.

Fuck me but this album is so repetitive. Everything would be so much more enjoyable if it lasted for at most half of the time it does. Still, I can't understand how Fleetwood Mac didn't get the shit sued out of them for ripping off Beetles in the Bog for Tusk

Such a wonderful album. The title track is simply one of the greatest songs ever written - optimistic, compassionate, heartfelt and hopeful, and delivered with a glorious vocal performance. The Boxer, The Only Living Boy in New York, Baby Driver, Keep the Customer Satisfied ... just great tune after great tune. So Long Frank Lloyd Wright is a bit of an oddity but is pleasant enough - really the only minor misstep is the live Everly Brothers cover, which is the kind of thing you might expect on a debut, rather than a final recording. Still, a brilliant, brilliant album.

Opening up with Cult of Personality feels like both an error, and their only option. It stands head and shoulders above everything else on this album, which is just mid-level 90s lite-metal, albeit produced incredibly well. If I ever listen to this again I expect I'll stop after track 1.

This has no place on this list. A covers album by a 60s torch singer is really not one I need to listen to. Not 1 star dogshit, but absolutely 2 star dogshit.

I'm sure there is more to this album than just very heavy riffing, growling and some very good drumming, but it is eluding me a little. It's OK, but I'm not going back to it.