For whatever reason, when I first listened to this album a few months back it really didn't click with me- I thought it was very pretty, but little beyond that. Re-listening to it, however, I have no idea what I was missing back then. 'abysskiss' acts as another beautiful stepping stone in Adrianne Lenker's solo catalogue, tracks such as 'what can you say' and 'cradle' showcasing their talent for wistful songwriting. In particular, I actually prefer Lenker's iteration of 'terminal paradise' to ... read more
To be honest I was overall pretty disappointed with this album. It's not even bad- just by the score I gave its clear I thought it was pretty good even. But the album could have been so much grander imo. The concept of being a shoegaze-rock album inspired by campy-80s nostalgia sounds incredibly enticing, at least to me. Unfortunately, I feel like the album very rarely maximizes on this idea. Many of the tracks fall into the pitfall M83 often does of being produced excellently but sounding ... read more
I was not expecting the somewhat generic indie-rock sound this album has on several tracks, especially given how much further they drift from this sound with every release here on out. Tracks like 'Real Love' and 'Interstate' are surprisingly bland coming from a band known for pushing the boundaries of modern indie folk. On the flip-side, a track like 'Paul' makes for a PERFECT blend between this indie-rock sound and Adrianne Lenker's folk sensibilities, easily being one of the band's best cuts ... read more
The highs on this record are nearly breathtaking, easily some of the best shoe gaze I have heard in tracks like 'Unrecorded' and 'Be Wild'. I certainly can see why this album has a cult following behind it. I do think though that several tracks tend to really struggle to reach those same heights. Maybe this is just me getting used to shoe gaze as a genre as I haven't listened to it much before- either way still a great album
SHORT REVIEW:
Although I definitely don't think it's some groundbreaking release that will change the course of hip-hop moving forward as some are saying, this album is still an undoubtedly unique listen that I enjoyed quite a bit. The Floyd-Tame-esque production is genuinely stellar- tracks like 'the BLACK seminole.' and 'I'VE OFFICIALLY LOST ViSION' give me chills because of just how epic the layers of distorted guitars are.
The problem for me is just Yachty himself unfortunately, which is ... read more
SHORT REVIEW:
I definitely think this project is going to get far more hate than it deserves. Is it anything of particular note? No, definitely not. But, most of the instrumentals on display here display Mac's style in a really concise and polished way. In particular I think the instrumentals that seem to tonally match the places they were recorded really stand out- like 'Vancouver' and 'Gualala'. Either way, though, this is definitely his weakest main studio release to date, though I mean that ... read more
SHORT REVIEW:
The orchestration throughout this EP is generally quite great, feeling genuinely thought-out and with a lot of care put into it. At its best, this little side project really transforms some of half alive's tracks- the orchestrated renditions of 'RUNAWAY' and 'BREAKFAST' are particularly captivating. I can't help but wish this concept was drawn out even further though, I feel like if they had thrown in another 3-4 covers it would have really sold the concept better. There are ... read more
SHORT REVIEW:
I really don't know why this one has gotten so much flack. I think the group experimenting with having a shorter tracklist with much longer individual songs acted as a turnoff for some, but I think really isn't a blunder. The title track, 'Morning Rain', and 'Sands of Time' are genuinely quite good in my opinion, although I definitely think the other tracks under this formula aren't as successful. Overall though I think its certainly over-hated.
The highs on this record are honestly quite high, such as 'The Ghost' and 'Spare Me a Little of Your Love'- the latter of which being one of my favorite Fleetwood tracks. This record definitely sounds like the group starting to finally dig itself out of the weird transition era they became stuck in for several years, definitely being the best of their albums from said era. A lot of the tracks still fail to reach particularly interesting heights, but no tracks that stand out as 'bad' either. ... read more
SHORT REVIEW:
Definitely torn on this one. The highlights of this album honestly do stand out, like 'Emerald Eyes' and 'Hypnotized'. In particular, 'For Your Love' is probably Bob Welsh's greatest contribution to the band and is honestly one of my favorite Fleetwood tracks. That being said, most of the other tracks are quite lesser in comparison. There are some great ideas and, like I said, the highs are generally pretty high, but the record generally just feels like another weird transitionary ... read more
SHORT REVIEW:
Definitely not one of their strongest but really it isn't bad, just a lot of fluff. Standouts like Red Rover are really reminiscent of Rumors-Tusk era Fleetwood in a really cool way. That being said, there is a LOT of fat on it. The strengths are some of the band's greatest hidden gems imo, had it been trimmed down greatly I think it would be a cult classic album now. Still, pretty good overall, is a shame it was the group's last as this album does show they had a lot of ... read more
As others are saying, this really feels like a return to form, especially after the heaping disappointment that was Did I Make You Up. The production, especially in the verses, is so unique for the band and really does sound like some later Bon Iver stuff in this weird, but super interesting fusion of pop/electro/folk, before erupting into a more refined traditional chorus. It’s definitely up there with TIME 2, What’s Wrong, Everything Machine, and Back Around as there best since ... read more
Create an account to rate and review albums.
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 𝒩𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇𝓂𝑒𝒶𝓃𝓉'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 🤘"
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"
Advertisement