Reviews by wotanmjolnir

This is perfectly fine - it’s not my thing, but her voice is extraordinary, and while it may be a bit too safe and over-produced for the majority of the run time there are some good tracks her (ok, principally the big singles, but Cruz is a great track). It does go a bit Disneyfied in places - the girl may try and break out of The House of Mouse, but it’s gonna leave its nibble marks.

This is ok, in a gentle, undemanding kind of way. I couldn’t tell you anything about it, though.

I much prefer post-Highway 61 Dylan, but you can see flashes of that brilliance here. Solid album foreshadowing the brilliance to come.

Anthony and the Johnsons - I Am A Bird Now

"OK Mr And The Johnsons, we are looking for a really emotional vocal performance here. Try and really put your soul into everything!"

"Gotcha - vibrato on everything! Sweet!"

<Producer sighs>

"One other note - sometimes if we could get some more dynamics into the music, that would be great, too"

"Right-o - hit the piano harder and faster towards the end of the song. I'm on it!"

"Kill me now."

This is dire, and really, really annoying. This album is the reason nobody gives a shit about the Mercury Music Prize any more.

This is nice enough - I don’t have any cultural connection to it, and do t understand the language, but it’s pleasant enough.

You’re not Marty Robbins. You’re not Waylon Jennings, or Willie Nelson. You’re not even Johnny Cash. You’re a privileged pretender and I’m glad you’re dead. This is the U2, or Coldplay, of country music.

One of the best solo Beatles albums. It’s a bit front-end loaded, but there’s other really good stuff, too.

A really enjoyable rock album. There’s a fair bit more piano than I expected, but in no way does that bring this down any. Good tunes.

Is this bad? No. Did enjoy this? Also no. This is just not my bag, I’m afraid.

Ok, musicianship can’t be faulted, but musically it’s very, very repetitive. It’s not bad, but it’s not very interesting, either.

One of the albums of my childhood, loaded with great memories and songs. Asylum, If Everyone Was Listening, Crime of the Century, School, Dreamer … just loaded. It may be very MOR, and a bit cheesy, but I fucking love this album.

It’s a bit over-long, and a bit self-satisfied and self-important, but it’s a good record. The story in the concept doesn’t really hang together, or have any real direction, but that doesn’t really matter - it’s more of a mood piece imo, and as such it does display the anger and disaffection of the time. And, let’s be honest, that’s only got worse over time, hasn’t it?

At first I saw the name of the band and went “hmmmm”. Then I saw the names of some of the tracks and went “riiiiiiiight”. Then I listened to it, and realised it’s just pretty ok hair/glam rock/metal. Not great, not terrible, very mid.

This is fine, I guess. It’s jazzy, but jazzy in an interesting way rather than jazzy in a disappearing up it’s own arsehole way.

This does push the boundary of whether it is music or not, but on the whole it’s ok - it’s not as accessible as Hot Rats, but more music-y than We’re Only In It For The Money. What’s good is good, what’s more interested in freaking out the squares is less so, and on balance it’s pretty middling.

This is not good, not good at all. Having said that, there are worse albums that aren’t in the lowest rated group like this one, but also saying that there is no way I’m listening to this again.

This may be the most three-star album ever made.

I felt like I was inside a chapel of rest with just the piped-in music for company throughout the whole of this the dreary bollocks.

Good, punky, proto-grunge. I’m sad I missed out on Mudhoney at the time, but at least they are on my playlist now.

This is fine in a sort-of-grunge, Riot Grrrl-lite kind of way. Not sure I’ll dig it out again, though.