Do I really have the lowest rated review at the time I’m writing this? Damn. Alright well, to start, this was my introduction to the band, and how was it? Not… great?

The album was just pretty rough. Nearly every track on this album bored me to death, even if I thought the production genuinely sounded pretty cool. Just wasn’t interested by anything.

The lyrics were another thing… I’m not one that really gripes on lyrics because a good song with bad lyrics ... read more

I feel like people will just say this review is a diss to Anthony Fantano, so to quickly give my review, I liked the album. It was in dumb fun, I didn’t really dislike the tightness at all, and the clean vocalist whoever that is (I don’t really know this band lol) has a unique and appealing voice. The metalcore elements are cheesy, but I liked them too.

Some people however don’t really click with the cheese, like Fantano. That’s alright, but reading the reviews on this ... read more

How you boutta follow up Pet Sounds and Smiley Smile with this 💀

The production is sooooo bad. Like, so bad. Incredibly bad. It sounds like plastic and the vocals are always mixed too low (in the first song it was embarrassing). As soon as I heard Carl’s first word on the title track, I knew what I was in for. I knew that Brian wasn’t gonna be the producer on this one. He has such a distinct, creative and iconic production style. The drums in particular, ugh. I’m a drummer ... read more

It’s funny how The Beach Boys dropped what was effectively the anti-Pet Sounds album with the album that succeeded Pet Sounds. While Pet Sounds was very clean and poppy, Smiley Smile can really just be described as frantic avant-garde fragmentation. Some tracks are basically a cappella, some are just bizarre chants, some are more noisy, etc.

What I find especially notable is just the abrupt and quite frankly bizarre cuts. Take one of the band’s most popular songs ever, “Good ... read more

Everything that’s been needed to be said has been said. On a first listen, this album might be pretty boring, and hell, it is kinda boring, but no album in history has been more influential than this one. Without this, the Beatles would likely not branch out to experiment more. Without this, the psychedelic genres would likely not be as prominent. Without this, The Beach Boys would’ve likely broken up by the 1970s. Without this, the modern pop genre we now know would not exist. None ... read more

Yeah, a low score, I’m aware. I’ll probably be a bit critical on this one so I’ll start with what I liked.

During the recording, it did truly look like the band members were having fun, which is great, like to see Brian having fun during a rather tumultuous period in his life. Most of the covers were, okay? What I did particularly like was the laid back production style of Beach Boys’ Party, as Brian was hard at work for his magnum opus, Pet Sounds. It did genuinely ... read more

This is a weird one, because nearly every song on here is good (except “Amusement Park U.S.A.” and “I’m Bugged at My Ol’ Man”, we’ll get to the latter later), it’s just, a step down from The Beach Boys Today! which is so beautifully orchestrated. I kind of do understand why they had to commercialize that sound, because the record was indeed getting dissatisfied with the band and Brian in particular, and to the band’s credit, it’s not ... read more

This is a fantastic album. For one, the days of a couple-of-dude’s who know jackshit about surfing and cars singing about surfing and cars is over. The lyrical themes on this record are so much more mature and saddening, covering topics of emotional abuse, a fear of growing old, and a fear of turning away those you love. A lot of the lyrical themes likely are a result of Brian Wilson’s deteriorating mental health, who had his first mental breakdown on an airplane due to the stress ... read more

I know a lot of people find this album tacky and kind of a sell-out album, which it’s understandable; it seems rushed just for the Christmas season, but, to be honest, I like it. I’ve heard all of these songs a million times yet listening to this album, I was never once irritated. It’s just a very nostalgic and comforting listen. I guess my review summed up is that at no point did this project feel soulless, it was just a couple of guys getting a payout without taking it very ... read more

I will say, a lot of this album dragged, but it is probably the best release in The Beach Boy’s discography up to this point. It’s clear that the band’s firing of their father manager was a positive for everyone, as they felt more comfortable.

The sound might kind of be overdone, and again, the album might drag at points, but it is a worthy milestone in The Beach Boy’s discography; from this point forward, it’s all uphill quality wise although not everyone would ... read more

Imagine if “Little Deuce Coupe” had like half the car references and was slightly less shitty

So boring I genuinely thought I wouldn’t make it through the entire already brisk project without just fallin asleep. You know how the “surfer boy” novelty wore off at this time? Well, The Beach Boys knew that too, so they switched it to… cars? Seeing as though this came out merely like two or three weeks after their previous album, “Surfer Girl”, this might perhaps be a contender for the biggest mess of The Beach Boy’s discography. It must’ve ... read more

By this point, their third album, the “surfer” novelty has pretty much completely worn off for me. If it wasn’t for this album being Brian Wilson’s first major production credit in The Beach Boys, this would be the single most forgettable thing the band ever made. Anything with “South Bay Surfer” will admittedly suck varying degrees of ass.

Also, quick shoutout to the track “In My Room”, Brian did a great job producing and writing it. It comes ... read more

Definitely an improvement on their last album. I mean, this is the album with “Surfin’ U.S.A.”, absolutely it would be better. This album isn’t particularly notable besides from that one major inclusion, but there’s also nothing to dislike. Production is mostly fine, there’s no bad songs, runtime might run alittle too short, and there’s a very good cover of Misirlou, where the band takes a much more chill and laid back approach. I will however admit ... read more

How is The Beach Boy’s first album? Alright. That’s really all I have to say. It was passable. The biggest criticism I had is that 20% of these tracks I disliked and the other 60% I didn’t really care. I do however want to mention one track.

When I first listened to “County Fair”, I was genuinely interested all the way through. It’s a time capsule skit-song, and it’s aged I’d say quite well. Brian Wilson has quite the imaginative mind to be ... read more

I had never listened to a Brand New record before this one. I had heard the intro, “Sowing Season”, and absolutely adore(d) it, but I never really checked the album out. Plus, the whole thing with Jesse kinda turned me off from any potential long-term interest in the band. But, it is quite interesting to view this album with the reminder that Brand New is dead in the water and never coming back. The influence this album had on indie is unfathomable.

The album is incredible, and, as ... read more

never passin the aux again tf