This is one of the greatest achievements in art
John drew a lot of power from sensuality & exuberance. A dichotomy of feeling that was always geared towards a wholistic effort in grasping a fervent yearning; still, he always knew the value of making room for emotional subdivisions. Alice, on the other hand, blends a multitude of degrees, encompassing the qualities of sparseness & density more fully. An elemental approach which gives the musicians more freedom to move in and out of her ... read more
There's an extremely gripping core here that the group never manages to get a solid grasp on. A quiet semblance built on subtle dynamics both internal and external to the group; Tom perry in particular is so singular here its astounding, Grimes as well! Overall Robinson feels a little lost in the shuffle at times and is the most at odds with the rest of the dynamic & unfortunatelty I don't think he adds enough to justify the choice. A sad day for clarinet heads (me) everywhere.
At every step of learning how much you could accomplish with a drum kit led me to the moment of listening to Rashied Ali and it's only been uphill since. A polyrhythmatist who sheds any notion of gimmick or redundancy in order to utilize the kit as an extension of himself. Frank Lowe is superb as well! They feed off each other so well on here & it results in a blissful listen.
The rough and rustic recording wonderfully compliments the jagged edge but spatially minded prerogatives of the percussion. The African inspired grooves & a whirlpool of textures are so well articulated, moving and intriguing from Graves & Glover. The searing blasts from Doyle are beyond compelling and props to him for not treating this performance like a one trick pony, no matter how good that trick is. An intense & groovy combination, a wonderful surprise, praise be to this ... read more
... Beyond ...
What do I feel? Darkness, calm, intrigue, tension, dissonant
What do I get out of this?: I get the impression that there’s a greater intention than simply replicating dark worlds, machinery for tension & something so representational. This album changes its methods, it doesn’t quite develop its atmosphere as much as it explores the nooks and crannies of what it sets up.
These songs leave neither feeling conclusive or anti-climactic. They make an impression, ... read more
Post bop is the ideal form of jazz. In adopting the strengths of bebop’s quick wit, modal jazz’s cool sense of exploration & free jazz’s liberation & artistic exploration. You get a synthesis that most closely resembles the idea of jazz I had in my head prior to diving into the genre. As well as a new creative pursuit that afford’s each musician even more freedom in shaping the essence of the music. Appealing to a classic sense of jazz in both technique & ... read more
There is something to be said for the unbelievable level of sensory detail on here and the ways in which it strengthens the warm atmosphere. Nestling in & getting comfy for a night.
A blazing portrait of forward momentum! Tyner & Gravatt are unstoppable animals on this project; Tyner's at the peak of his kinetic poetry at every point while Gravatt is a perfect jazz fusion drummer, all of that praise is not to downplay the excellence of everyone else here in assembling a record so immediate in its kinetic energy that you marvel at how spiritually spellbinding the final product is.
I'm not a huge fan of Tyner's large ensemble work; it steers into a style of writing that comes off a little to kitsch at times. But the dynamics on display here are not only lacking in that trait but excel in creating sharp dramatic accents while the Tyner, Mouzon & Booth contribute a splendorous combination of oddly wonderous energy.
The Essence of the Value of Sound in Music
Dissuade yourself from concept, narrative, tradition & emotion and you enter a space of primal intuition. One lost on you if you cannot attune yourself to the details of the sound itself, the dynamics between the musicians, the roles they occupy in the space and how it develops overtime. Parker and co. go beyond anything I would've ever imagined I'd enjoy much less love listening to in their experimentation, ironically, by relying on ... read more
Postmodern Primordial Soup
An abandonment of preconceptions takes the band into the far reaches of a paradox. Dry timbre & unprocessed drum rolls, colorfully stripped, blunt ecstasy, warped & warbled. All to the point of refusing to offer the same hype that appeals to their online fanbase.
Death Grips Is Online.
The repercussions of such were never as plainly evident as their last tour. The irony pilled, trend fueled, meme keyed section of the fanbase is of the same lot as the ones who ... read more
Somehow despite listening to this record many times over the years I've never sat down and tried to articulate why I love it so much. I guess I should mention the fact that I'm an avid math rock enjoyer (though not as big on midwestern emo) with Toe being the band that acted as the gateway into this type of music. But over the years I've only found a fair few albums and bands from the genre that I've really grown to love and among those, Toe has been my favorite. Everything ... read more
I’ve been feeling pretty adrift with metal. As much as I owe to it for being the first genre that expanded my taste. There is a huge issue with not only a loss of identity in the modern metal scene but an unfortunate degree of sterility that pervades much of the scene outside of a modern context. A significant part of this is due to my own personal tastes in art & metal to be clear, but for awhile I really didn’t feel like I could find any metal that really invigorated me beyond ... read more
Love how Geese uses stasis to deploy some cutting grooves between much more thin harmonies and a low/rhythmic center that is something of a labyrinth. Feels like a great basis that is still stuck in making swaying krautrock music, which at times works very well but other times it leaves something to be desired from the lack of developing textures, and the sudden cutoffs really don't feel appropriate in these situations. I'll keep them in my rotation and see if anything changes.
Props to them for making a (mostly) fun record; honestly didn't think they still had it in them.
An elegy of a phoenix; one of the greatest contributors to the world of music died on July 17th, 1967, just a few short months after he performed "The Last Live Recording." The apex of his dive into the world of free jazz & the perfect sendoff to the final stage of his career. You see, many people remark that Coltrane never lived to see the end of his spiritual journey and while it's most certainly the case that it is a tragedy for him to be gone at such a young age and that ... read more
The unique principles of tricot's unique artistry
- Pop structure's that lacks rigidity, each player is an individual both compositionally & within the atmosphere. Catchy rock music at its finest.
- Intimacy amidst complexity; alterations in Ikkyu's singing offers a greater sense of intimacy like hushed breaths. Place that alongside the guitarist's usage of pedals, loops & then the mixing & production exists alongside the math rock riffs to intermix a greater ... read more
Texture, timbre, pacing & flow as philosophy!
This is a stunning record....the musical dissonance & jarring vibe switches are so in tuned with a flow of opposites that end up maximizing the overall transcendent effect that music alone is capable of producing. The last leg drops your heart along with your head in a stunning three track run "Btoum-Roumada->Lornaderek->QKThr" where the outer layer of an artist shielding themselves behind their mystique is drawn back & ... read more
The epitome of my current aesthetic development.
Gould showcases the unique manner in which music can elucidate a state of heightened consciousness, raw transcendent power. An equilibrium of conscious thought & intuitive resonance only few are capable of seeing. The energy being transmitted must be charted out as a series of developing patterns between the low & high pitched notes. Together they embody a stasis of subconscious(low) & conscious(high) thought and emotion. The ... read more
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On literallyMoss's review of Xiu Xiu - Ignore Grief
"A lot of people are not into experimental experiences, hence a lot of complaints about this not having "the other aspects of Xiu Xiu that makes their music memorable" without further elaboration, a comment like this says more about their taste's than it is a critique of the music"
On 🪓lexa ☮️💖☯️🤝🇵🇸's review of Xiu Xiu - Knife Play
"Homunculus should be genuinely painful physically and emotionally to listen too. It’s its best quality"
On Archerycraft18's review of John Coltrane - Live in Japan
"Thank you for providing an in-depth review, lovely stuff"
On Invent Animate - The Sun Sleeps, As If It Never Was
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On CheerAxConisuer's review of King Crimson - Islands
"He was Fripped out of his mind on "Sailors Tale""
On Spamman's review of The Necks - Disquiet
""it's a track that is a journey, a story."
In a sense The Neck's don't make stories within their music. They create static, explorative sonic environments built on repetitions & time manipulation, extensive run times help create the hypnotic effect, creating a mode of stasis where they can add new elements or change the specific details of these repetitions in order to alter the texture of the piece.
What may seem like the exact same thing really isn't at all due to how they play around with microtones, pacing & then adding and subtracting pieces from the overall construct. I agree with your assessment on "Causeway" but it's strange to me that you don't see how elements are weaving in and out of the first two tracks."
On landminemower's review of The Necks - Disquiet
"It wouldn't be a 10/10 if it was shorter. The length is integral to the experience of lulling you beyond considering time."
On HomeSession3's review of Joy Division - Unknown Pleasures
"I can only wish you & your family the best, an honest beautiful tribute that means a lot to me as I read it. Thank you for having the strength to post this as you go through this incredibly difficult time"
On s3sh's review of Xiu Xiu - Ignore Grief
"Come on man, I can understand where this perspective comes from, but it's sad to see people that wouldn't try to understand the art for what it is than for what their preconceptions of art would dictate for them to believe. Abstract art is art for a reason and its worth exploring why this album is the way it is or at least being able to formulate substantial criticisms for others to contend with instead of offering a statement so broad and dismissive that it begs to be replied too. Just sort of expressing some views the review conjured and not trying to make you feel worthless or express any kind of personal hatred :)"
On Echoesanywhere's review of Andrew Hill - Compulsion
"This review is a great example of reviewing abstract/difficult works of art. Following the music through its patterns (emotional, structural, musical) it reveals the core of what the art is and it doesn't have to be so impossible to define or require knowledge on music theory. The real key I've found is to just really tune yourself into the sound and what it's doing between all the musicians. It will speak to you."
On HomeSession3's review of The Mountain Goats - Through This Fire Across From Peter Balkan
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On DAVECHER's review of Stan Getz & João Gilberto - Getz/Gilberto
"I wish the bland recommended jazz had the same degree of warmth in the production & sensory depth in each instrument. Getz sax work is especially stupendous, take O’Grande Amour where he spends most of his time in hushed breath yet the whole thing is so playfully emotional. Making that first and final push at the end so impactful."
On HomeSession3's review of Geese - Getting Killed
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On cappyk's review of La Dispute - No One Was Driving the Car
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On Miles Davis - E. S. P.
"@HomeSession3 Sure you can recommend them to me or comment them on my page, I'd love some as I've really gotten into the genre this year :)"
On HomeSession3's review of Imperial Triumphant - Goldstar
"I love this review and it's a style that I try to grasp when constricting certain reviews of mine, but rarely capture it as well as you do here. Less a checklist of good and bad qualities and instead you paint a picture of the records character and quality from within. Lovely stuff and my favorite review I've read this year."
On Doofy's review of toe - the book about my idle plot on a vague anxiety
"You should check out their next release For Long Tomorrow, I feel like that one may resonate a bit more."
On H1DD3N_1N_TH3_ST4T1C's review of Hail the Sun - Divine Inner Tension
"Haven't listened to this one yet, but you would really enjoy their output if this one works for you. I'd listen in this order: Secret Wars, Wake, New Age Filth & Mental Knife after that is pretty open to what you're interested in."
On jaredpeelstich's review of Rage Against the Machine - Rage Against the Machine
"not on my watch
no rating submitted, review gives a 10/10"
On chaz's review of Don Caballero - American Don
"they're a "multiple relisten's" kind of band for sure"
On tyler's review of Charles Mingus - The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady
"I’ve only listened to the tracks A & B, but I agree with what you’ve said so far. I started getting into jazz and i think you should check out “Let My Children Hear Music” which is also by Mingus. It’s my favorite of his that’s I’ve heard so far, it blends classical music & avant- grade jazz, love to know your thoughts."
On CLJesse's review of Glassjaw - Worship and Tribute
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On CLJesse's review of foxtails - fawn
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On mj04's review of Code Orange - Underneath
"Idk man, I really love the vocals. Sound very intense and very much something of their own. "
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