Sign In to rate and review
Critic Reviews
a debut album that sounded like a mid-career upgrade because that is essentially what it was. Tanya Donelly is an A-plus songwriter, is equally adept at lead and rhythm guitar, and is a versatile vocalist who brings lots of intensity to her delivery without being showy. everybody knows the hits, but "Untogether" leaves you gobsmacked if you get it. what a song. but the real star of Star is "Stay", an absolutely perfect song. please play at my funeral or whatever.
Belly singer and songwriter, Tanya Donelly, writes songs with a lot of unusual chords. This makes the tunes interesting from a musical standpoint, but it also makes many of melodies come out sounding, well, unmelodious. For me, this doesn't given them a whole lot of relisten value. So, my favorite songs on this record generally break that rule. Unfortunately, the album contains more of the former than the latter, but I did enjoy the following: Someone To Die For, Gepetto, Slow Dog, Low Red ... read more
Definitely littered with some filler and no songs that are truly incredible, star is a solid and somewhat essential dreamy, hypnotic atmospheric early 90s’ record. The lead singer, Tanya Donelly has a unique vocal style that works and even if feed the tree isn’t incredible, it’s still a standout and pretty easily the best on this. The songwriting is uneven even with Donellys strong melodic instincts. It’s a distinctive debut that is ultimately not fully refined. A little ... read more
When I told someone I was a huge fan of Garbage, PJ Harvey and Hole they told me I had to hear this. Sadly it didn't come close to matching the quality of far superior albums like Version 2.0, Rid of Me or Live Through This. While it doesn't sound half bad for an alternative light rock set with pretty girlie vocals, none of the songs stood out as all that memorable except for Dusted. I also was wanting more rock moments and less lethargy and laze in the sound but that's not the ... read more
Think the Sundays with a bit more of an edge to them and you'll get Belly on this album. It's dreamy and ethereal with some solid alt-rock guitars underneath everything to keep it grounded. Each track takes a pretty similar rhythmic approach to its sound and I think it works to varying degrees of success. Some tracks are hypnotic and wistful masterpieces, while others stray on the more forgettable side. Compared to a lot of similar projects from the 90s, it's slightly surprising ... read more
Belly’s debut still holds up. Jangly alt-rock with dreamy vocals and some strange fairy-tale lyrics running through it. “Feed the Tree” and “Gepetto” are the standouts but the whole record has a really nice flow. Not a classic of the era but an underrated one.
Become a Subscriber
Subscriber badge, no ads + more benefits.
Subscriber badge, no ads + more benefits.
Advertisement
Track List
| 1 | Someone to Die For 2:04 | 71 |
| 2 | Angel 2:58 | 71 |
| 3 | Dusted 2:48 | 79 |
| 4 | Every Word 3:33 | 69 |
| 5 | Gepetto 3:23 | 79 |
| 6 | Witch 1:35 | 64 |
| 7 | Slow Dog 4:02 | 73 |
| 8 | Low Red Moon 5:32 | 76 |
| 9 | Feed the Tree 3:29 | 84 |
| 10 | Full Moon, Empty Heart 3:02 | 77 |
| 11 | White Belly 3:36 | 74 |
| 12 | Untogether 4:43 | 65 |
| 13 | Star 1:27 | 61 |
| 14 | Sad Dress 3:44 | 65 |
| 15 | Stay 4:56 | 76 |
Total Length: 50 minutes
