There are some super pleasant Indie Folk-Americana tunes on here like One Day and Watchman that definitely help elevate this record above mainstream folk-schlock for sure. That being said, there are definitely many weak moments and tracks and the production on this thing in spots is so overproduced that it can be hard to engage with it. Still a pretty good record
Even though this album pushes basically no boundaries in its production nor structure, I can look past it because the writing, vocals, and performances are all just so watertight. I was initially leery of this because modern folk/americana stuff like this is pretty hit or miss for me but apart from a few tracks I really enjoyed this. The highs here like Words, the title track, and Light Year are really great. Super solid
Although it’s really neat to hear how similar Sean’s voice is to John the actual songs themselves here feel pretty unfinished to me
Reminds me of the Stephen Sanchez LP- an album desperately trying to be a ‘throwback’ that hardly really commits to the idea and misses on basically all fronts
I think it’s def commendable that a somewhat run of the mill folk artist took a sharp left turn with a weird electronic project like this and there are def many spots like the opener that are equal parts catchy and eclectic. On the whole though this project felt like it was trying a bit too hard to be 22, a million for its own good
Incredibly gorgeous, swelling production and vocals that are really reminiscent of Weyes Blood, super easy to listen to. I do though wish more was done with a lot of these tracks as a lot of them meander around a very slow build up- still super pleasant
Very Jeff Tweedy-ish, some decent moments and sparks of great writing but just felt pretty uninspired and derivative
There’s def some great moments like Maria and the writing is superb. That being said the production is crazy flat and the similarity to Elliott Smith is so blatant at many points that it’s distracting. Still an enjoyable short listen
Yeah this is by an enormous amount their easiest album to get through to date. It sounds like they didn’t purposefully load the production with a bunch of wacky bullshit just to sound different for once (with some exceptions..). The writing though is still pretty abysmal, but there are legitimate moments of introspection like The Dumb Song. I certainly don’t think I’ll ever listen to this again but certainly better than I was expecting that’s for sure
I still think Picaresque is easily their best and I think I slightly prefer their debut as well but I fully understand why this is considered their best. The instrumentation and the vocals are so top notch even if there are a couple tracks I think are a tad weak. Still the highs here are just so damned good like the two long tracks and tracks like Summersong and the opener
Def not as good as their debut but still quite great, some bangers like Los Angeles I’m Yours and Song for Myla Goldberg are fantastic even if there are a few duds
Hot damn what a phenomenal debut. This thing really encapsulates the style of the decemberists incredibly well in a truly potent way, with tracks like Cocoon, here I dreamt I was an architect, and the closer being genuinely fantastic. I get some may find their sound too similar to Neutral milk hotel which I do see but I’m ngl I vastly prefer this over anything from NMH
I can definitely appreciate the epic concept of this record and in certain spots I think it works, like A Bower Scene, The Wanting Comes in Waves, or The Rake Song. Overall though, I just feel like the concept was way too grand to properly execute, which is a shame because this same theatrically-grand scale they did so incredibly on Picaresque
Good grief this completely blew me away. The fusion of folk rock, extremely grand theatrical production, and Emo-leaning vocals and sensibilities makes for a genuinely spectacular experience. Was truly not expecting this, one of the most seriously underrated records I’ve heard recently
The Lumineers are the very definition of mainstream folk to me. All of these tracks lack so much depth and character that even the catchier ones like Flowers In Your Hair and Ho Hey read as completely fake. Stil probably the best of their albums but that doesn’t say much
Emmylou is a phenomenal track and gotta be one of the best indie folk tracks of the 2010s. There are some other nice tracks and moments here like Blue but generally though none of the rest of it reaches the heights of Emmylou- still their best album tho for sure imo
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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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