both this and 'another green world' i feel are best described as alternate-timeline music. even (nearly) 50 years later, it still sounds futuristic. if you like mid-late 70's bowie and/or talking heads, you'll love this.

although it certainly comes across as cheesy and boring adult contemporary pop on the surface, there is a LOT to unearth here. pay attention to the subtle yet complex modulations in the keys, chords, melodies, etc... level of sophistication van dyke parks is able to achieve is absolutely incredible (he wrote just about everything on the album, brian is really only the singer). it is more obvious in certain sections more than others, but trust me, these songs are a lot more cerebral than they ... read more

q(≧▽≦q)

so how does one follow up dark side of the moon? well normally i'd say "you don't" however, they seem to have done just that! now, is it any better? in my opinion, not quite... most of that boils down to my personal enjoyment, having to be one who especially loves huge emotional crescendos, and although there are still some here, it generally feels less grand or massive to me of an album than their previous effort. "shine on you crazy diamond" is a solid epic, ... read more

i would say this is one of the most underrated folk albums of the mid 2000s, though in recent years i do feel appreciation has really grown, and it certainly deserves it! although it is absolutely beholden to its influences (you'll notice early on how fleetwoodmac-esque this is), you still cannot argue its creativity in song writing; every track is a welcome change in mood, and this never gets old, i feel it could go on forever... the songs themselves are not the same, i do feel they are a ... read more

one of the best metal records ever, easily, and not even a question. not overrated in the slightest, this is peak thrash from start to end.

sentimentality only goes so far, so how do you tackle the incomprehensible horrors of the 20th century? you make art that goes against every biological instinct of human or animal, to have the audience reckon with the ugly truth. it may require a great deal of meditation to understand things like this, but i feel it is important.

"lesson no. 1 for electric guitar" is not only one of the first post-rock songs ever made, but is also one of the best i have ever heard, it's beautiful. "dissonance" is the absolute opposite. it is nihilistic and misanthropic, and although that is to be expected with no-wave, there is something especially hateful to it. the bonus track "bad smells" is absolutely worth listening to as well. it is crazy to me how little base there was/is left to cover in ... read more

the "contortions" section is easily the best, though even at its most annoying it's still decent. very unique moment in rock/punk/no-wave, especially for its time.

i like their debut and follow up record, i think "red" is decent, and some of their 80s stuff is good too... but to me, their sound is just so... cold, inhuman, and honestly, not very enjoyable. it doesn't feel like 'flaunting' per-se, nor misanthropic in the way bands like primus, who do similar things, somehow come off as being. king crimson after their first 2.5 albums almost totally forgot what melody was and completely shifted towards a mechanical and evil sound, ... read more

my mother is a big duran duran fan, so i grew up listening to these songs, and never gave much thought to them either. but really, don't dismiss it! yeah it's just synthpop new wave, but sincerely they are capable of writing deeper than that, and ultimately there is more going on than what you may assume. of course there is "hungry like the wolf", but that somehow manages to be one of the less impressive tracks off the record, though maybe that is just because i have ... read more

what if you took lady madonna, combined it with ghost busters, and have a literal dog sing it? you get peak, that's what ya' get!

the bar has never been so high. at this moment, this is considered the best album of all time... and I can kind of see why? you can't really ask for anything much more from a rap album, or honestly any album in general. there is no bad moment, just varying degrees of "good", and... well, i guess it's just about perfect, then! but not every track is as good as the last. "u", "alright", "complexion", and "wesley's theory" are my ... read more

music that tries to be more than the sum of its parts but fails and is just lame as hell.

this is their best work. the prog is perfectly integrated into the more traditional and folkier songs (on top of a complete evisceration of almost all blues-rock), and this is where they peaked; i wish they realized this was the right balance, but not even minstral in the gallery struck the same chord. i especially love the acoustic songs on here, though the rock ones are good too.

what soulless blob gave this a 45? this is irresistible! it's so fun!

bloated and not very cohesive, but this band undeniably has a lot of potential. no particular song is better than the other, but the opening track really sets the stage well, almost too well, to the point where later on in the album it feels they are repeating themselves. still a great album, but there is room for improvement; i am intrigued in their future.

swans fans try to admit everything they do isn't the same damn thing over and over again challenge (impossible)... oh wait, this is actually one of their best songs in years... well, something i like about this is that it isn't a total downer, there is actually a glimmer of light in this as opposed to what i am used to with swans. i especially like the last 3rd, sounds like a more pretentious version of early U2 covering bowie's "heroes", i dig it. i hope they continue ... read more

very unique sound but doesn't really work as an album per-se. that isn't to say i dislike it, but people need to be honest with themselves too. similar to the silent hill 2 soundtrack, they're soundtracks, not necessarily made with 'flow' in mind. we aren't reviewing the show here, this is an album, and personally the cheesy jazz tracks (which although good in their own right) kind of take me out of the motion.

...we'll see how this ages.