Scott Heisel
WORRY. feels like the true start of Rosenstock’s solo career, with a backing band that is finally locked in, a record label 100 percent behind him, and a tower of critical accolades growing taller each day.
9y
Thankfully, Damage easily bests the previous two Jimmy Eat World full-lengths, and its high points rival those of Futures and Bleed American.
11y
A sprawling, 17-song, 64-minute monster that is without a doubt the finest music these three artists—vocalist Hayley Williams, guitarist Taylor York and bassist Jeremy Davis—have ever made.
11y
¡Tré! feels scattershot and slapped together, making it difficult to enjoy on its own merits.
11y
Childish Gambino is more than just a rapper, and Camp is more than just an album: It's a stone-cold classic.
11y
The unifying thread is Dreyer’s incredible knack for storytelling; the album’s centerpiece, the seven-minute “King Park,” is a jaw-dropping retelling of witnessing a shooting and the event’s aftermath. The song is grisly and haunting.
6y
Ultimately, Neighborhoods is a slightly awkward entry in the band's catalog that shows as much potential as it does flaws.
11y
Far from the emperor with no summertime clothes, the five songs on Fall Be Kind--a mixture of holdovers from the MPP sessions and new material recorded this year--retain the electronics, but add some samples and head in a darker thematic direction.
3y
But where eyes truly trumps its predecessor is in its balance ... eyes astonishes from start to finish, with the bouncy confessional “Looking Up” and the immensely powerful closing track “All I Wanted” showing up as diamonds in an already gem-covered rough.
11y
While the disc does get bogged down with a little too much force-feeding of the Christian and Gloria characters (just like Idiot's Jimmy and Whatshername), it's a safe bet that the listener will come out the other end having largely enjoyed the last 70 minutes and 18 tracks.
10y
Scrambles is Rosenstock’s finest work thus far, and it is a true treat to witness his growth as a songwriter.
5y
While Folie a Deux at times feels like the band are showing off the contents of their Rolodex, the album’s standouts are so good that they will undoubtedly become standards for the band’s live shows for years to come.
11y
Doo-wop-inspired harmonies lend a barbershop charm to the Chicago quintet's earnest and energetic pop-punk sound, though the retro styling of World occasionally comes off as more tired than inspired.
11y
Their wink-and-nod classic rock appeals to parents for the same reason it attracts their offspring: All you need to do is pump your fist and sing along, and all the world's problems go away. As Finn intones on the title track behind a chorus of "whoa-oh"s, "We gotta stay positive." He's doing his part.
11y
The Icelandic contingent return with the soundtrack to their soul.
11y
The Red Album is a wonderful jumping-off point for their second wind.
11y
The real reason Narrow Stairs works so well is that despite the band's more esoteric experiments, they still contribute standalone pop hits.
11y
Recording for the first time as a quartet, Paramore-vocalist Hayley Williams, guitarist Josh Farro, bassist Jeremy Davis and drummer Zac Farro-have created 11 more-than-competent pop-rock numbers, each with a heavy, radio-ready crunch courtesy of producer David Bendeth.
11y
As it stands, they’ve still turned in their best album to date, schizophrenia and all.
11y
It’s beyond anything that any band in this scene are currently creating. Simply put, Brand New have no peers.
10y
Hypnotize isn't a radioactive pile of suck, but had the Down boys offered some genuine hairpin turns in their aesthetic, there might be more reason to pursue a more meaningful dialogue that transcends the tired notion of "System just being System."
11y
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