maybe i'll come back later to review this in more depth but, as of right now, i'm just thankful to have it. what a beautiful piece of art from such a beautiful person. and the story of this project makes it only more fitting for us to all be hearing it at the time we are, so i'm glad this side of mac could finally see the light. i just wish the circumstances could be different.

right. so it's not offensively bad and, like most cloud rap, i can see how people could love it. it's just that essentially every track follows the exact same formula with slight alterations to make it a different song than the previous and the following one, and i don't enjoy that formula. his vocals do nothing for me; he's not a good singer in a technical sense and i'm not partial to his tone or unique stylings. the instrumentals are largely uninteresting and ... read more

as it stands, the weather station have still just not clicked for me. and that honestly really baffles me because i think the vocalist has a wonderful tone, especially in her lower register, and i love the instrumental pallet that they bring to the table. i also think the music itself is mixed fairly well and everything has a nice warm quality to it. the problems begin as everything comes together to, you know, create the songs. every component, even the ones i may enjoy individually, just ... read more

AI generated cover and music that might as well be. you know, i actually remember liking some of alan walker's music a number of years ago. the issue with this album is that he's making it quite difficult to find a reason to like it any time after that. it's truly as if he doesn't care what anyone thinks about it at all, but not in the artistically free way, in the exact opposite one.

for starters, i have to join the train of pointing out how amazing this album art is. my favorite cover of anything i've seen in a very long time genuinely; it's gorgeous. as for the music, there's a lot to like there as well. i'm not quite sure it ended up being what i expected going in, but i'm also not quite sure i could've expected what i got. this blend of sounds is seriously unlike anything i've heard before, and i'd like to think i've listened ... read more

first track was the biggest pump fake of all time. it's pretty solid on its own but it had me expecting a fun, engaging experimental electropop listen maybe somewhat influenced by charli and the brat movement (which i'd have no problem with) that was gonna have me dancing and making faces at crazy production. instead, i got what the pop music boardrooms of the past decade would've come up with right after they heard brat (or any pop music with a bass drop) for the first time. ... read more

things are obviously all a little half-baked and he definitely wears his influences on his sleeve, but the performances themselves are mostly entertaining and the ideas are well-executed. the production is the most consistently enjoyable aspect of the project and pulls me into it more than anything. vocally, i think he fits better on some styles than others and his presence is a little unconvincing at some points, but it's clear there's a lot of potential and i look forward to seeing ... read more

generally speaking, i love music that addresses the topics that are addressed in this music; i also love music that is fueled by the same energy that this music is; i also love music that has literally the exact same genre descriptors placed on it as this music. problem is, i do not love this music.
i was going to end the review there but i genuinely almost feel bad for disliking this as much as i do just because of how much i'd probably get along with these people and how much i ... read more

hard to rate numerically but a truly captivating experience that, if given the room to exist, will shift your eyes to your own existence, position in society, and relationship with the world. it is also an experience that is oddly more indicative of ethel's cultural impact than any of their prior music. personal in a way that offers a hand if you'd like to understand too.

nothing too offensively bad here, but it was just generally very uninteresting. the few risks that did pay off were almost always offset by something unsettling or annoying that was added moments later. a very yup this is music album.

this album is complicated for me. there are genuinely so many great ideas littered throughout the tracklist and there's clearly so much potential here with this sound. aaron corcoran is absolutely onto something. the issue is that, simultaneously, almost every song sounds just one or two steps away from making everything click. there is a constant aura of "something's missing" haunting this album and i wish i could better describe what that may be, so here is my attempt.
i ... read more

one of the most breathtaking collections of contemporary folk music that exists.

not ruby's best by any means, but still a very solid group of tracks. the middle of the tracklist dips in quality a bit, but there's a lot of creativity on the backend to make up for it. i think this project sees an improvement for ruby on a lyrical and melodic front, while the experimentation and variety dip a bit simultaneously. i'm loving the quantity of releases that we've been getting from ruby, but i think if they were to take the time to combine a lot of the best ... read more

i don't really have an issue with this all being presented as one track considering it's only 17 and a half minutes, especially if the point is for people to engage with it as a full experience. unfortunately, i just wish that full experience had me more engaged than it did. i'm a big fan of all of the genre descriptors used for this project, but nothing here really compares to the great projects that already exist within them. i enjoy some of the production ideas, but a lot of ... read more

this is awesome. the music isn't too full of itself or dragged out, but develops enough to be captivating and build worlds as it progresses. i think asian glow understands exactly how to balance creativity and dynamics in their production, while still considering the listener's experience and ability to get lost in the long stretches of noise. they truly tow that line perfectly and give the listener a multifaceted journey. at the same time, the playing and melody ideas are so creative ... read more

some intriguing production ideas never fully realized; lyrics were fun though.

my first full lil shine project and i enjoyed myself. he clearly has a lot of personality that shines (no pun intended) through in his various vocal inflections and cadences, and i feel like that helped keep the project interesting. there were multiple moments where i wished the ideas were explored further or had been more fully fleshed out though, and some of the beat and melody selections just weren't really for me, so it did get a bit inconsistent by the end. overall though, it was a ... read more

he sounds like he knows how bad the beats are while he's rapping on them.

there's actually some solid highlights, but it's not interesting enough to be as samey as it is, and the consistent eyeroll-inducing one liners make this relatively average length project a drag to sit through.

beautifully multifaceted; a fun, poignant, and touching tribute to puerto rico; benito's best by a good margin.

edit: 73>77