As opposed to the relative spectacle of most of his other projects, CloudNone simply gives us three straightforward tracks that please the ears but don't blow the mind (along with a fourth track that blew my mind). Ever the collaborator, he brings on three great vocalists who he has not worked with before to my knowledge, and they add much value to each track. I may not remember much about this EP in the future, but I will certainly enjoy every listen.
Favorite: Bottle It Up
Least ... read more
Jeremy Camp is quite a good songwriter and has the musical chops for a good album. And that's what this is! It is well-produced, well-composed, and well-written for the most part. However, for me, it doesn't carry the emotional weight it's trying to due to the shallowness of the lyricism. Sometimes when lyrics try to emotionally connect with all listeners at once, it ends up keeping a lot of listeners at an arm's reach. But for what it is, it's pretty ... read more
I expected this album to be full of simple carefree beach music filled with some Christian platitudes that didn't go very deep. And sure, all those expectations were met at parts. But I was pleasantly surprised to find something deeper, fuller, and more intimate in this album. This guy is quite adept at putting old expressions in fresh words. And although he keeps his smooth, cheery personality throughout the project, he brings it down to earth at several points. He keeps it relatable to ... read more
🔴 HEART123
🟢 The other 9 tracks
Upon first listen, this was a contender for bottom 5 album of the year. Upon second listen, it was a contender for top 10. During the third listen, some of the spectacle wore off, which gave it room to grow off me a bit. After noticing these polarizing opinions, I realized I had to take a long time with this album. After a few listens, I figured I would at least understand it if not enjoy it. Now I understand it and enjoy it much more than I used to. ... read more
🔴 Into The Walls, Pillow In My Arms
🟢 The other 12 tracks
Great debut album from a talented singer-songwriter, serving as a cautionary tale for those who give too much of their heart away too easily. The production shines in this project more than most other pop projects this year, having extra oomph comparable to some of my 2023 toppers such as Jenna Carlie's "call it art" and ysabelle's self-titled EP. The songwriting, although occasionally a little corny, is ... read more
Although the whole EP, down to the structure of every individual song, feels like a buildup that doesn't lead to anything impactful, the listener at least gets some nice minimalist instrumentation that melds helloworld's earmark analog style with the influences of his musician friends. Not helloworld's craziest project, but several high points make for a nice listen.
Favorite: Flowers
Least Favorite: For Us
🔴 love song
🟡 so how has the weather been
🟢 The other 4 tracks
A cute lil' hopeless-romantic vignette that satisfactorily delivers the dulcet vibes I've come to expect from fishkid. Simple theming, minimalist production, and reserved vocal performances could be a strike against a project, but I find these things to be some of this EP's greatest strengths. Quite a nice EP!
Favorite: our forever
Least Favorite: love song
🔴 Red Light Green Light
🟢 The other 17 tracks
Sure, it drags at parts. Sure, it's cheesy at parts. Sure, it's predictable and kinda cheesy at parts. But it's a fun experience throughout! And there are some genuinely gorgeous moments here. OneRepublic was clearly intentional about organizing this album; and even if the vibes feel a little clunky at times, the transitions make quite a bit of sense. W project from OneRepublic!
Favorite: Mirage
Least Favorite: Red Light Green ... read more
This EP opened my eyes to how talented INFEKT is at sound design. With this EP, he seemed to pour all his effort into the sound design with little left to spend on good melodies, catchy song structure, hype samples, or really anything other than the basses in the drops. I'm sure this would go off if I were to hear it at a live show or turn my brain off while listening. Otherwise, I glean a couple bangers and a lot of noise to which I'd rather not return.
Favorite: PLAY IT TWICE
Least ... read more
🔴 messy_2019
🟢 The other 13 tracks
I'll refer you to Bowtied Media's review rather than parrot him, since we agree here on every point he mentioned. I will add, though, that despite SABAI spoonfeeding us the album's message in the interlude, I still didn't get how the album was conveying the message. This album made me kinda sad but only because it had so much potential that I have faith in SABAI to capitalize on. He unfortunately did the opposite. I'll most ... read more
🔴 My Youth Is Fading Away, Follow the Line
🟢 The other 9 tracks
Quite an intriguing and pleasant listen! Sometimes the lyrics can get a little cringey, but the dulcet yet driving variety of instrumentals makes up for it. As my first experience with Petit Biscuit, I'm impressed and looking forward to hearing more from him.
Favorite: Cruel Heart
Least Favorite: Honor Your Goals
🟡 Alibi
🟢 The other 2 tracks
A nice-sounding EP reminiscent of Hellberg's EP on Monstercat way back. It has a bit of extra oomph that barely pushes it up to 65, cementing Codeko as a solid house producer I'll have my eye on in the future. But it also doesn't have much in the way of storytelling or emotional impact to hold on to. However, three solid tracks that I may return to later.
Favorite: Reel Me In
Least Favorite: So High
🔴 Guilty Pleasure, Balance Baby, Karma
🟢 The other 2 tracks
This EP was better than I thought it'd be, which does not bode well for Siwa. The instrumentals are solid for the first four tracks (what *happened* to "Karma"?). Not only are the lyrics not deep enough to seem to come from Siwa's heart, but none of it seems original enough. I understand artists writing for each other is normal, but come on Jojo, give us something to hold on to here! The whole EP feels ... read more
🔴 HALF BAG, TIMEOUT
🟢 The other 18 tracks
It doesn't seem difficult to make a phonk project a cut above the rest, given the lack of effort "the rest" demonstrates. Still, I applaud THIRST for being a cut above the rest of the phonk projects out there. This mixtape surprised me in proving that with a consistent vibe and a bit of variety to carry the listener through. It won't break any records, but it's an alright background listen that maintains THIRST's ... read more
🟡 Gods Don't Pray
🟢 The other 8 tracks
I don't remember the last time I felt this yelled at. XD
Joking aside, with some relatively high highs and low lows, Imagine Dragons is sure to please the fans and fuel the haters with this album. The worse tracks are honestly kind of funny, whereas the better tracks can easily reach guilty pleasure status. Overall, a pretty forgettable installment for a band that has proven to do loud, grandiose, and intimate much better in the past. ... read more
It feels like Mazare committed all four tracks to the bare minimum. The instrumentation goes little further than merely what makes sense for what the feature already wrote. Conversely, the lyrics felt shallow and generic enough to complement the vibe of the instrumental. In short, the key word for this effort is "enough"--as in, everyone was simply trying to do "just enough" for the track. As a result, the EP falls flat even though it sounds nice *enough*.
Favorite: Tidal ... read more
There's a lot of images for the vibe of this EP: a lingering hug, a pensive campfire choir, wistful solo reflections in the night or on a pleasant-weathered walk. But overall, the warmth and feeling is evident here, feeling surprisingly full for just a guitar and two voices. The insightful reflections on love being a journey of personal growth experienced together with someone are the icing on the cake. What a wonderful EP to float through!
Favorite: Oh What a Dream
Least Favorite: Over ... read more
🔴 the 1, the last great american dynasty, august, illicit affairs, mad woman, betty, peace
🟡 cardigan
🟢 The other 8 tracks
As larger-than-life a character as someone is in the public eye, a simple dinner table conversation with them can convince someone that at their core, they are human just like us. Taylor Swift gives us a dinner table conversation here, which is a nice change of pace for her. It helps that this style of music has a special place in my heart. Although none of these ... read more
🔴 We Made It Look Easy
🟢 The other 11 tracks
Some solid uplifting alternative pop-rock that makes for an enjoyable, albeit relatively forgettable, experience. People looking for the nostalgic hit of the old Bon Jovi style may have little to grasp with this album, but those who can see past it will find a bit of poignance from a musician in a generation that doesn't get much of a voice in music anymore.
Favorite: Seeds
Least Favorite: Walls of Jericho
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Recent Review Comments
On Open_Doors_'s review of TYNAN - TYNAN TIME
"That point about the latter drops being much more interesting is bars. Wish he leaned into those cool sections a lot more."
On Bowtied Media's review of Quadeca - Vanisher, Horizon Scraper
"Just now finished listening. Dang, what a wild album. That ending was one of the craziest album moments of the year."
On Slushii - Chrysalis
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On Bowtied Media's review of Riot Ten - Requiem for a Riot
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On dygyt's review of Disphing - href_v1.1
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On Rok3's review of Matthew Parker - Dragonfly (Deluxe)
"Oh I misread that as the original Bloodstream my b"
On Rok3's review of Matthew Parker - Dragonfly (Deluxe)
"Thought your least favorite track was Martian Party. 0_0"
On Matthew Parker - Daydreamer
"I do understand the argument; it's perfectly reasonable. I just don't feel that way when I listen to this album. I have too much fun with it."
On Matthew Parker - Meet Your Maker
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On Matthew Parker - melon collie
"You know…u rite. 🤔"
On altair - EXEC: BYPASS
"Had some nice ambience outside the drops, and first drop was okay. But it really did not need to go into quarter-time, nor did I feel the sluggish SFX patterns justified it. Maybe I’m missing something obvious though, idk. 🤷♂️"
On tobyMac - The Elements
"Oh yeah, tobyMac slumped for sure, and this album was a bit of a return to form, just not as weighty a record as LAD imo. Also Scars is such a feeler."
On tobyMac - Welcome to Diverse City
"Banger 🔥"
On Jessica Baio - UNSAID
"Good catch, thanks. I review so many of each that the wrong word slips out on occasion."
On Bowtied Media's review of Sullivan King - CHAOS WILL BRING PEACE
"When you are the actual screamy dubstep man and you finally make a song called "Fury" but that song has the tamest, least furious drops on the EP, you know you're cooked. :|"
On Culprate - Unity Project, Pt. 3
"I still need to listen to part 2! I see there's an Au5 collab in there. :O"
On no_clue's review of Sam Bowman - Children of the Burning Heart
"Let’s gooo! Love to see you enjoyed this one. And “Icarus” is also my favorite track, so based!"
On no_clue's review of Jaron Steele - Everything In Between
"I was just listening to this EP again! Such a phenomenal EP, and the review sums it up well! :D"
On no_clue's review of Virtual Riot - Simulation
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