The riffs on this album go very hard, and this whole album is a really solid hard rock project, I can definitely hear some White Stripes influence the sound of the album. The fact that Royal Blood clearly have one style of music, and don't really switch it up at all during the album's runtime, is a little disappointing, and leads no single song standing out all too much.
My favourite part of the album is absolutely the writing, I love how autobiographical it is, and it adds so much personality to the album. That being said, there are moments on this album where the production doesn't match the writing and just falls into mediocrity, because of this, some of the songs don't hit as hard as they would otherwise, the most notable example being the final track. That's not to say that the production brings down the album in any substantial way, ... read more
Ka's music has never really clicked with me before, so I'm happy to say that this is probably the best project I've heard from him. He still has his distinct, raspy, spoken-word style of rapping, but it's paired with this incredibly subdued production that gives the album an incredibly unique sound. The writing was also really good, with the idea of Christianity and its effect on black Americans being present on every track. This theme and idea is also made more effective ... read more
This album fell into background noise really quickly, while I can appreciate that this album sounds a lot more drone-y than a lot of other shoegaze albums I've heard, and how this album has a pretty consistent sound throughout, and works well as a single project this isn't the most interesting thing in the world. There's no real reason why I would ever really listen to this album again, it doesn't do anything explicitly wrong, it's just a pretty boring listen.
Definitely going to have to listen to this one a few more times to form a concrete opinion on it, because this sis one of the most insane songs I've heard in a while.
On a technical level, this album is insanely impressive and creative, but in terms of personal enjoyment, I didn't get a whole from this album.
I love the very subtle acoustic roots-y aspect to a lot of these tracks, it adds depth and avoids the album from being just another generic electronic album, it also works surprisingly well with the more hyperpop/electropop elements. A lot of the rapping/flows reminded me of something Coco & Clair Clair would do, which is a good thing, they make a lot of fun music. This album is also very entertaining to listen to, even if it feels a little directionless at points, there were a number of ... read more
Lou Reed's writing here is incredibly charming, and mixed with this style of singing here, makes it feel like he's just rambling to you at points. I think that works to the albums benefit, however, it gives each song its own identity and each song, no matter the quality, is full of personality. Not every song works for me in terms of personal enjoyment, and the first half is much stronger than the second half.
Thanks to @Bryan23 for the recommendation!
Really creative production here, it sounds like it's taking regular pop music conventions, and twisting them into something new.
Not sure why, but I just couldn't get into this album. I thought the production was good, pretty much what you would expect from a Xiu Xiu album, it was weird and varied enough to keep the album interesting, and probably stopped me from flat out disliking the album. That being said, Jamie Stewart's performance got a lot more grading as the album progressed, which was odd, because I've never really had an issue with that before, I guess their performance just didn't work with ... read more
This didn't do much for me, the production was decent, but every track felt so forgettable. Boldy James' rapping wasn't the most exciting thing in the world, and got a little stale by the end. A little disappointed if I'm being honest.
A really pretty album, and her singing is really incredible. This album is also incredibly well-written, with her detailing topics such as love and heartbreak, in a really simple but effective way. The instrumentals added a lot to this as well, it's not too harsh on the ears, and is really soothing. I think three spoken word songs is one too many, and they can break up some of the pacing of the album. Also, Alyosha is one of the most beautiful songs I've heard in a long time.
Some parts of this album are incredibly fun to listen to, and others sound really awkward. The rap-rock production fusion here sounds great, if a little generic at points. The awkward writing is probably the weakest aspect of the album, but it does work in some tracks, where the delivery saves it. The performances are probably the highlight of the album for me, it's high energy for the entire runtime, and never gets boring to listen to. Overall, this album has high highs and low lows.
The main issue I have with this album is that it's too short to leave a massive impression, being just over 20 minutes long. That being said, this is 20 minutes of really good music, Pusha T's rapping is great, the writing is solid, and the production is really good. The first track is absolutely the highlight for me, it has the best rapping and production on the entire album.
Anna's singing on this album is incredible, so many parts of this album are made so much better and more powerful as a result. Her singing can be quiet, and slightly warped by the production, creating this incredibly unique and haunting atmosphere. Haunted is the word I would use to describe this album, there's such a sinister undertone to everything going on here. The writing is equally as mysterious, and pairs well with the production, and the way it slowly swells, and lulls you ... read more
TiaCorine's personality, and how it comes out in her writing and vocals, really saves this EP from being super bland and forgettable. None of the features really did anything for me, and I thought that the EP picked up a bit in the second half. The production ranged from pretty interesting and creative, and really worked with the rapping, to standard and boring. I also thought some of the super autotuned vocals sounded a little messy on a few tracks, at least compared to the more ... read more
Really interesting combination of ambient and breakcore music, there's such a sinister undertone to every piece of this, on "High-life (Theme)" for example, there are faint sounds of what might be a warzone going on in the background, with faint sirens and explosions sweeping throughout. It doesn't at all feel like it's nearly an hour and 20 minutes long, it's unique soundscape was enough to keep me interested throughout, and it never felt boring. An incredibly ... read more
Probably the biggest jump in terms of sound for Swans compared to their previous album. This album feels like a complete evolution of what their previous albums had been attempting. It still has that industrial edge that "Filth" had, but has now fine-tuned it to work in a new context, in addition to combining it with some light folk and other more experimental elements. In the previous album, Jarboe's background vocals added a lot to the atmosphere and depth of many of the ... read more
One the best electronic albums of the year so far, in my opinion, and a massive upgrade from his previous album in every way. I'm glad that Jamie took the 9 years to work on his skills, because this really is such a fun listening experience. All of the features do a really great job here and are all pretty unique, they either add their own distinct production style to the songs, or have a really good performance that adds to the songs and work well with the production. There's also ... read more
A surprisingly emotional album, Conway's writing here was fantastic and his storytelling was really impressive. The production here is pretty standard stuff, but has some really great moments and adds to the atmosphere of the tracks. My biggest complaint on this album is that not every feature holds up, especially compared to Conway's great rapping, and sometimes they do feel a little shoehorned in and break up the pacing of some of the tracks.
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On HEAL XO - dis/ambiguate
"@healio No problem! Do you have any recommendations for albums that sound like that song?"
On HEAL XO - dis/ambiguate
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