it's thriller.

it's not edgy, it's honestly cute. it's upfront with its themes, and although you could say it's over the top and juvenile, i'd argue that works towards its advantage; there's no other "Black Parade", this is the only album of its kind, it's a teenage symphony to death, which, let's admit it, death is a liiittle epic, a bit of a vibe, a bit of an aesthetic, and they turn it into a playful, artsy rock opera. if nothing else, the record has one ... read more

yeah, haha, "in 83 i really think they came into their own". funny! but seriously, there is something about Huey Lewis' music. on the surface, these are cheap, easy, pleasurable, basic pop songs, with very little substance. but there is a self-awareness to it, too, maybe even a clever critique of consumerism... or something... boy, this guy really manages to make any thinker sound like bateman when discussing his music... anyways, it's quality, catchy pop that i think holds ... read more

calli stocks have been going up lately.

ok... some of y'all are really being pathetic. this shit is not a "15", are you out of your damn mind?
look. yes, his songwriting here leaves something to be desired. it's simply just not on the level of quality we are used to, i suppose. i'll even agree that he's ringing this modern sound of his dry, and yeah, this ain't no progressive art masterpiece. but if you expected much more than easily enjoyable tunes from literally the top musician in the world ... read more

about what you'd expect a 1978 beach boys album to be, overwhelmingly boring, impressively uninspired, and confusingly regressive.
look, i know why people hate this. and i am not here to say "this is actually the best thing ever!" or something. nah, it's bad. it's actually quite shit! but... at the same time... no, it is not the work of satan. it's just offensively mid.

before anything else, i have to admit that i am mainly here to mention the four best moments ... read more

i've always had a special place in my heart for this album, something about it just feels like macaroni art from a kid, incredibly naive, juvenile, vulnerable, yet creative and endearing (knowing Brian's does enhance this, it makes me smile™ listening to him write passionately again here). between the unique electronic production and near pet sounds level writing, it's always been one of my favorites. but with the new "We Gotta Groove" box set, these songs are ... read more

generally, i think "pretentiousness" is overhated, like... just let people try their hardest to make something big! and Yes here.. boy they certainly aimed for the stars. even if this isn't your favorite, or even if you hate this, you still gotta respect their attempt. personally, i like it for the most part. i'd honestly say this is probably the weakest record of their famous 5 album stretch (fragile to going for the one), but that's mainly only due to the 2nd track, ... read more

i came across this on total accident and chance, and i was taken so aback that i had to call my friend to hear it. holy hell, what an interesting find! very zappa—magma—zorn—mahavishnu-orchestra—jethro-tull—soft-machine—rundgren—beefheart—pink-floyd—black-midi—hammill—esque with a dash of central european folk influence... that's a lot of -esques, but hopefully that should give you an idea of what this sounds like. some of ... read more

hands down among the greatest songs "they" ever recorded. it's one of those melodies that simply blow your mind it's so good, and one i show to many beatle-deniers for conversion. just don't listen to the 2025 mix, that shit sucks dick. the 1+ 2015 remix is the ideal way to listen to it.

this record contains what i would say is quite easily their best crop of tracks and most refined sound; they've adopted a style immediately recognizable as their own, with just about every song reaffirming a total mastery of their craft. "DAYDREAM" is (probably) their best work (with the possible exception of Long Season, if you consider that as just one song, which i do), and i'd even say that song is virtually perfect (though admittedly toy pianos playing waltz is a ... read more

in my opinion, the live version of LONG SEASON renders this studio version... nearly obsolete. there are some awesome moments in this version that are unique to it, however! and what's more, even if the live version is better, it's still a total mastapiece. so creative, unique, fun, meditative, and honestly joyous. if you like music in any intelligent way, i don't think it's possible to dislike this, it's inherently lovely.

holy shit

man, people are SLEEPING on this one. Brian was really flourishing here, and you can tell how this leads into Pet Sounds. really love the jazz chord progressions he'd started to experiment with here. "When I Grow Up to Be a Man" is a damn near perfect rock song in every aspect; it's tight, it's experimental without being polarizing, it's innocent yet introspective, it's fun yet slightly emotional... it's incredible. "Please Let Me Wonder", ... read more

utterly irresistible. though i can't tell if the lyrics are tongue-in-cheek... if they are, great song! if they aren't... still good song, but a little laughably cringe (albeit relatable). regardless, this definitely has one of their strongest instrumentals, almost as good as This Charming Man! which is a real feat!

i... don't get it. it doesn't effect me at all. yes, i know the point of the album, and yes, i know HOW one is "supposed" to listen to it... but it didn't make me feel anything other than boredom with some slight indignation.

to be honest, such a concept does not require 3 hours of poopy-sounding 78s with reverb and another 3 hours of just straight up noise. the Caretaker probably puts a lot of thought and care into every second, but it sure doesn't feel like ... read more

for sure, it is novel! yet... it quickly becomes boring in my opinion. it's really just a gimmick, and even then there's little to it. it warrants a single EP, not a dozen records... but i digress. this is the best of what i have heard from the Caretaker, the best distillation and summation of his contributions.

a big bucket of bummer!
i feel you need to be a sad person to like this... unfortunately, i'm pretty happy. but, if i were sad, boy, this would hit hard!
it is a bit of a one-trick pony though, though doom metal in general tends to be that way; dark and brooding atmosphere with deeply emotional lyrics, but as it goes on, it doesn't really generate many new ideas than what had been established already from the first two tracks. still not bad, maybe just not my personal cup of tea.

nearly as solid, if not equally as strong as What's Going On and Let's Get It On in my opinion. every single moment is so damn smooth that i just cannot understand how one could even make this, it DOESN'T make sense. the only gripe i can think of is more of a wish than a problem i have, i just wish the songs flowed into each other more, in the way that What's Going On does, rather than the fade-outs... i also generally don't care too much for sexual moaning sounds in my ... read more

going from "awaken" to this is... confusing, to say the least.
i guess it doesn't suck, if anything, the songs themselves are decent. but it's still an underwhelming mess. whatever.