Going into this I was hoping for more of Keep It Like a Secret, but instead I got the most lyrically direct and gut-punching set of Built to Spill songs I’ve heard yet, alongside, as expected, the incredible songwriting and guitar work that’s unavoidable with Doug at the helm, but I must say the second half of this album really surprised me and grabbed my attention in a way that I just wish the first half could’ve done too - great stuff

Some decent R&B songs that all kind of blend together in my mind - nothing offensively bad, but nothing that really captivates me beyond the odd hook here and there

It took me a little while to get the appeal, but along with Deftones this emo-tinged headbanger is a lot of fun with some really spectacular vocals and interesting songwriting

After her folksy era, this is an odd choice, and one that works really well on the more sonically creative/experimental songs, but that absolutely falls flat when adhering to the formula from 1989 that’s now been done to death by Taylor herself and all her copycats

An interesting collection of songs in a world I’m not super familiar with - I don’t hate it, but I don’t fully get the appeal personally, although that’s more to do with a lot of modern hip-hop than anything MAVI does on this project

Such a cool musical concept between the songs executed phenomenally with a collection of fascinatingly jazzy and psychedelic pieces, most of all Iron Lung, a genuine mind blower

By far their most consistent album that absolutely elevates everything great about their first 2 albums, peaking in absurdity, intensity, lyrical depth, and songwriting all around - absolutely incredible work as a whole

A really unique one in Kendrick’s discography for somehow being even more emotional and personal than all his other works, and the most vulnerable moments on here keep me coming back despite my personal preference for the jazzier and more unique sounds on his obvious two masterpieces

Super duper generic Latin pop that just doesn’t appeal to me at all

Dripping Tap is one of the best Gizz songs period, and everything else just fits in so nicely, in spite of how widely diverse the individual songs - an underrated patchwork

An incredibly consistent modern folk suite that’s immensely warm and wonderful

Pure cinema - an unmatched rollercoaster of emotions that draws you in close and thrashes you around until you’re weeping and begging for love

A ridiculously creative and consistent style that draws you in and keeps you hooked, especially on the stand out songs like headboard, but after 40 minutes I just feel like it needs either do something new or wrap things up already / my only complaint really

Now this is some freaky abstract hip hop that really make me feel like an astronaut falling through the dust of Jupiter and being collapsed by the gravity into a natural but unnatural state of atomic human waste

Honestly this is just some inoffense and interesting modern punky rock/metal that makes me excited for what they’ll do in the future but doesn’t really sell me on the sound yet - I’m not mad at it, but I want a little more meat o the bones

This just feels too horrifically dark and like it’s trying too hard to unsettle me, and while it did work, I didn’t really enjoy listening to it in the same way more naturally haunting albums, like a couple from Swans and the Bungle

The final third loses me a bit, but the first half is genuinely some of the most creative, manic, noisy, Bungle-esque rock I’ve heard come out in ages, and it’s honestly made me fall in love with the band

This is just some really solid stuff - the big radio hits are kind of boring, but a lot of the deeper cuts really make me feel like pop artists are going back to the days where albums mattered just as much as singles, but I’m sure the next Sabrina Carpenter album will make me change my mind about that

I don’t really know why this doesn’t click with me, but it just doesn’t - it’s not heavy enough, not soft enough, and not fun enough, not depressed enough for me to find anything here that really makes me want to come back

I’m once again back to defend these guys, here more than any other album, as this one is by far their most complete and unique-sounding work with a bunch of songs that, if it weren’t for the public hatred for the band, should be considered modern classics in the popular rock scene, although the mix on this is a really tough listen at points