One of the most vibrant and definitive statements of culture and identity in jazz history.
I’m all for a throwback sound when done right, but this record just feels like a 60s shrine without any charm to truly set it apart*.
*Reflections After Jane is the one tremendous exception here and single-handedly keeps this from the red
Even with a complete lack of guitar solos (seriously, not *one* to be had for all 47-minutes), every track being about the infinite perils of war, and a general sonic conformity to the whole enterprise, Ashes of the Wake defies the odds to be a seriously heavy-hitting Groove record with absolutely *smothering* fry vocals
As far as comebacks go, A Tiny House isn't half bad, though there's certainly less 'oomph' here than the ever-flowingly vibrant masterpieces that preceded it
Fish is as excellent an opener to Sweet Trip’s discography as any of the other high points in their career- a serious contender for their best track. The other tracks here follow a similar train of thought- long, drawn-out ambient, dreamy electronic fuzzy-landscapes with little emphasis on vocals. It’s the blueprint for their stronger successes to come, while still feeling charming enough in its own right
The Ramones' best, on account of there being an actual discernible non-conformity in every track here. It's still utterly Punk Rock through and through, but tracks like Rockaway Beach or Teenage Lobotomy show a legitimate attempt at branching out (comparatively, of course)
In many ways, ground zero for ‘Punk’ and all its endless connotations to this day in music and culture. At the same time- the only true gem here is at the very start, while the remainder here is the same song with a different set of lyrics. Influential in every sense of the word, and I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t charming- it’s just tiresome
Having heard David Sylvian’s solo works around a year ago, it’s certainly interesting to hear his roots via Artsy-New-Wave outfit Japan. This record in particular has a lot of the trappings of some of his finer solo works like Brilliant Trees- punchy production, and especially plaintive moments that are capitalized by Sylvian’s bizarre lyrics. I wasn’t as in love with this as I was hoping to be, but the highlights here (Ghosts, The Art of Parties, Still Life in Mobile ... read more
Apt title. Many will be lured in here by I Love Music and its acclaimed Nas sample (best Nas track btw), but The Awakening is worlds beyond just a memorable sample flip. Jamal and his trio-mates deliver a glorious declaration of Jazz entering the 70s. While many of his contemporaries were fully ensconced in the burgeoning Fusion scene or exalting the Heavens via spiritual explosions, The Awakening feels reverent entirely on the merit of its performances- simple, but phenomenally powerful
The problems I have with Tumor’s other acclaimed records plague Praise A Lord to an even higher degree. So often, there’s an intriguing idea or sound palette on display here that seemingly evolves into a dead-end disguised by outlandish production. Wish this was for me more than it is unfortunately
As flashy as anything to be expected from Tumor, though with a bit of a sharper edge than their prior record. Kereosene! in particular sounds like an excellent modern Prince tribute (that is an almighty compliment). Still wish more moments locked in like it, but I'd say this is their best record to date
It’s flashy and at times brilliant, but many of the pop experiments here feel as though they encircle a grand conclusion as opposed to ever truly arriving at one
The ethos here is much the same as their debut- either the vocals aren’t an issue (or even an enhancer, shudder), or they blow this record to smithereens. I will say on the instrumental side of things, Melissa is the undoubted victor of the two personally, even though this record’s got plenty of great moments
Up front- King Diamond's vocals are a barrier in the form of a one way mirror to this record, its direction totally determining whether the downright gnarly performances here are worth digging to- if absolutely overblown, cheesier than all shit vocals are your thing (or at least tolerable), then this will easily be one of your favorite Heavy Metal classics. If the vocals aren't so much your bag? You're in the company of probably most, and you're better off running while you ... read more
Looking past my nostalgia for Worlds, I'd have trouble discounting the notion that Nurture is Robinson's most fully-formed statement- it's an exclamation of electronic glee, simply put. The production is bulletproof, while Robinson himself sounds the most assured in his sound to date
Fun fact: for a non-insignificant period of time around a decade ago (a year or two), Goodbye To A World was my favorite song in the entire world. It’s certainly not now, but I still feel waves of nostalgia wash over me whenever I hear it.
The rest of this record isn’t quite as impactful as that track if you ask me (and my rose-tinted glasses), but the waves of nostalgia still feel utterly embedded in this record nonetheless. Porter Robinson’s ability to make you feel ... read more
There’s an earnestness to Spitfire that is undeniable- it’s clear that Robinson truly did give his all with this project, and its passion can be felt.
It’s equally clear that his skill and craftsmanship behind the board would improve by quantum light-years in a matter of just a few our-years
After a 14 year hiatus, Television come back seemingly having lost their sense of identity in nearly every regard
Sure, when you prop Adventure up against Marquee Moon, it's a losing battle every time- but there's a sort of charm and approachability to this record that I think still makes it worth a fair shake. Tracks like Glory, Foxhole, and Carried Away show a more vulnerability to Verlaine and co's awkward sensibilities, which is in many ways refreshing
A time capsule of the transition from scrappy 70s punk to sleek and 'refined' 80s New Wave, though there's so much confidence in Debbie Harry's voice it hardly feels transitional at all and more like a grand declaration. Even the weaker tracks here rule
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Recent Review Comments
On Jalen Ngonda - Doctrine of Love
"@Shayden 100% agree, it’s a throwback record done right"
On 2Pac - Me Against The World
"@Cloudboy019 yeah I def get what you mean. Pac’s cadence and energy is so infectious for me I was able to look past the production being relatively ‘one-note’, even though like you said it is excellent production. That’s an excellent analogy"
On 2Pac - Me Against The World
"@Cloudboy019 that's a fair critique, I will say flow is not Pac's strongsuit, though a lot of people would probably disagree with that. The production is pretty much perfect here imo but it is definitely uniform across the record so I could see it growing stale if G-Funk adjacent stuff isn't as much your bag"
On David Bowie - David Bowie [Space Oddity]
"@usur_disc350 I’ll admit I’ve not revisited this much at all in the last couple years, but I’ll definitely stand by it having several great cuts beyond the title track"
On usur_disc350's review of McKinley Dixon - Magic, Alive!
"Honestly, really well put. I still have this rated pretty highly but I'd say I feel similarly, there's a sheen over this style of 'indie rap' that's starting to feel like the sheen that's covered a large bulk of indie rock the past decade (post-Mac if you will), it's a sheen of homogenization. Hadn't really put much thought to it until now but I think this absolutely hits the nail on the head, and is probably why despite there being so much 'good' hip-hop nowadays, the bulk of it feels like one big swirl of sameness. Excellent take"
On susquatch - Water Plant
"@Rileone it is yeah but it’s also definitely math rock too"
On Faith Evans & The Notorious B.I.G. - The King & I
"@TheTrillTrolla that’s actually very informative, thank you!"
On Doofy's review of The The - Infected
"I prefer Soul Mining a shade, but I’ll agree that this record should be considered as far closer in quality than most. Nearly everything that makes Soul Mining so excellent is found here too, excellent production and songwriting especially"
On Clifford Brown & Max Roach - Clifford Brown & Max Roach
"@HomeSession3 holy shit what a story! Thank you for sharing, that certainly sounds like one of those life-defining moments, for you and Roach. Live Jazz may be the definitive form of live performing for the reasons you said- it makes the frail jolt to life"
On My New Band Believe - My New Band Believe
"@Trazyn I hate saying ‘annoying’ bc that’s reductive, there are def moments where the lyricism along with the vocal style felt really contrived and grating to me though. Overall it’s certainly not an ‘annoying’ album, just nothing particularly new for Windmill. I would say I’m annoyed with the windmill scene in general nowadays"
On Tangerine Dream - Rubycon
"@Litebill931 thank you much! I have to stop myself from over-writing a lot of the time lol"
On π©πππππππΆππ's review of Slayyyter - WOR$T GIRL IN AMERICA
"First review of this project that’s really made me want to check it out- seriously excellent write-up"
On XTC - Drums and Wires
"@sher12308 you’re totally right! Major goof on my part, I’ll edit that, appreciate the call-out"
On King Krule - 6 Feet Beneath the Moon
"@yusukeYYH thank you so much! His music is this really intriguing blend of abstract and extremely vivid"
On Weezer - Weezer (Blue Album)
"@ScaredDog6163 yeah for sure! I appreciate the compliment! Jeff Buckley is a perfect example of why 90s rock really shouldn’t be funneled into those two ‘categories’ I listed because he blends so many styles and sounds (a major reason why Grace is one of the most majestic albums of all time). I’m the same as you in that there’s very little I truly dislike that I listen to- it makes it a lot easier to be encouraged to check out more stuff! Let me know when you’ve got those reviews typed out, I’d love to check em out!"
On Weezer - Weezer (Blue Album)
"Sorry for the long winded answer, hope that helps! If you need help finding some specific bands lmk too and I can try and throw you some based on what you currently rock with π€"
On Weezer - Weezer (Blue Album)
"The other main strain in my mind is Slacker Rock (the kind I tend to prefer a bit). This is your Pavements, Built to Spills, Weezers, etc. This style of rock tended to ‘look forward’ whereas grunge took influence from a lot of its contemporaries in many ways.
In terms of what I’d do for a deep dive now- honestly, I’d determine which strain you like more and start with the big bands before digging deeper, maybe even trying out some of the influences/ similar bands. For instance, if you really fw Weezer I’d recommend other Geek/Wacky Rock bands like Cake or Grandaddy. Same goes for, say, AIC- you could check out other alternative metal bands for instance."
On Weezer - Weezer (Blue Album)
"@ScaredDog6163 for sure! I went on a pretty big 90s rock binge a couple years back and it’s definitely a vast canyon. This is a wildly simplified answer, but imo there are two *main* streams of 90s rock. The first is what most people think of , being Grunge. These are your Nirvanas and Pearl Jams and basically what the average person will probably think of when they think of ‘90s rock’- and it’s great! Grunge pulls a lot from heavier influences depending on the band, such as Punk and Noise Rock for Nirvana or even Metal with bands like Alice In Chains."
On The Radio Dept. - Clinging to a Scheme
"@Zubb autism + long commutes to work goes a long way lmao"
On Silk Sonic - An Evening With Silk Sonic
"@Iam_AKne thank you so much! It’s become something of a passion of mine for sure. The kind words go a long way, I’d love to have my own site or something one day"
On Silk Sonic - An Evening With Silk Sonic
"@Iam_AKne no I’m not, it’s funny you ask because in high school I had plans to maybe become a writer but it never panned out"
On Johnny Blue Skies - Mutiny After Midnight
"Unless you find a rip somewhere or dish out thirty bucks it’s impossible for the time being unfortunately, it is an absolute blast of a record though no doubt, one of his best easily"
On Silk Sonic - An Evening With Silk Sonic
"@Iam_AKne thank you much! I have fun with them lol"
On Frank Zappa - Joe's Garage Acts II & III
"@ScottShelby that does look interesting, I’ll try and get to it later today, thanks again for all the recs! You’re the Zappa guy so it’s been helpful as a total Zappa novice"
On Frank Zappa - Joe's Garage Acts II & III
"@ScottShelby honestly, having sampled a handful of tracks from his studio records to follow from here I think I’m going to bow out for the time being on his discography, I’d prefer to end it on a high note. Someday I’ll eventually go the whole distance but I think I’d honestly just get burned out going through a series of just messy subpar records tbh"
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