From lyrics about Manson, Nixon, and Neil himself, On The Beach is a requiem of the 60's that birthed the paradox we know as Neil Young.
I think people aren’t able to look at art like this on its own terms. I don’t think there’s some life-altering brilliance to it, but it’s an album that I think is really interesting as art. It’s not about the sound itself, but how the package and presentation makes you consider this short little bloop as an experience and not just a short little bloop. Neat.
Who would've thought that the same guys who helped make I'm Not In Love would also make a Mr. Bungle album years and years before Mr. Bungle was a thing. There were multiple moments where I thought "Oh my god this sounds like something Cardiacs would do!?"
There were several moments I absolutely loved on here, but I do think that this album's pretty front-loaded, maybe the last 3 tracks will warm up on me overtime but I prefer the more stressful and varied arrangements ... read more
The film is amazing, but these songs are best consumed in context
I expected fun songs with cool production and that’s exactly what I got. It’s not going to blow your mind but it’s not really supposed to.
If I had found this album at a record store when it released, I would have taken it home, listened to, then put it away in an R section next to The Rolling Stones and Roxy Music, then would have never listened to it again. It's almost shocking that they released 2112 the next year.
After track 19 the album falls apart in an almost incomprehensible way. This would be a bit more acceptable if this wasn't a concept album where each little part counts, but this album is a concept album, so it really sucks in that regard. This album has so many good moments but most things don't really get expanded on. We get all these characters mentioned that we barely hear of again. Cousin Kevin is a great track where you just feel powerless, you really feel like Tommy, but you ... read more
I'm sorry but I couldn't find earnest enjoyment in most of this. I respect it, but this release isn't for me.
This album is so far the perfection of a musical interpretation of the movie genre of Horror.
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Recent Review Comments
On This Heat - Deceit
"That’s really interesting, I’ll make sure to keep that in mind on my next listen. Thanks for the perspective! I’ve mostly thought of this album as a series of separated scenes that follow the same setting and theme, as opposed to a more sequential story. I took the track primarily on its own, so I I’ll try to see what I’ll think once I attach the last two tracks together in my mind when I listen to it!"
On Porkus's review of Split Enz - Time and Tide
"I’d say that I definitely had a similar reaction to you on first listen. I was expecting more Zolo elements, and was a bit underwhelmed by the album and thought it was kinda alright. I think that when I started to look at the album more as a general 80’s pop rock album, and I started to really appreciate the unique and catchy melodies along with the vibrant production. It’s a very different listen, but their earlier album Second Thoughts is more frenetic and might be more your style. I’ll definitely be checking out your rec for This Heat, which it’s absolutely insane that I haven’t heard it before, I feel like it’s right down my alley!"
On Johndoealpha's review of Kenny G - Kenny G
"I get your last point, but think about Chuck Mangione, a guy who isn’t Japanese and doesn’t have beach covers, has pretty decent reviews on this site even though he’s in the same genres that this album is in."
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