#83

[2022, Part 3 - Album 1]

Despite being comprised of sonically rich, layered, and pleasant tracks, ‘The Campfire Headphase’ lacks the uniqueness and experimentation that made ‘Music Has the Right to Children’ stand out.

Although I was enjoying myself at every point, the album rarely challenged me or pushed beyond what it was comfortable with. It felt very base-level Boards of Canada, making ‘Music Has the Right’ (despite having been released prior) ... read more

#82

[2022, Part 2 - Album 15]

MUSE's continued inability to write serious lyrics aids them when they're having fun, but cripples them when they aren't.

#81

[2022, Part 2 - Album 15]

It feels kind of unfair to rate this among all the other albums I've listened to because it can't really be judged in the same way. It's not very catchy, it's hard to revisit, it's long, it doesn't follow the rules of song making... but it is sublime. I can't give it an eighty because of the prior reasons, but as a piece of art I can very much recommend it. It requires coming at music in a completely different way: it's ... read more

#80

[2022, Part 2 - Album 14]

A solid album let down by a very poor ending. But they haven't lost it yet

#79

[2022, Part 2 - Album 13]

I've always felt like I like Bjork as a person more than I like her as a musician. Even though I do really like this album, I do feel like I ought to like it more. It's like, really good (nothing below a 7/10), but I don't LOVE it. But I want to? Like, I LOVE the cover art... because it's Bjork. But the songs?

Idk, this just feels like the litmus test for whether an album is a 'must listen': is it better than 'Debut'? If ... read more

#78

[2022, Part 2 - Album 12]

What happened to George Ezra?

Seriously, this guy was absolutely everywhere in the late twenty tens. Shotgun, Blame it on Me, Budapest, Paradise, Green Green Grass - these songs were absolutely everywhere. And then he dropped off the side of the Earth so quietly that I didn't even realise he was gone until I revisited this album. How strange.

Perhaps he had just run to the end of his tether, run out of ideas; this album certainly seems to back that theory. ... read more

#77

[2022, Part 2 - Album 11]

Although it is an excellent addition to the trip-hop genre, Tricky's solo debut does not hit the same marks for me as his earlier work with Massive Attack did. He takes the genre into more sexually charged and downright miserable territory (sometimes at the the same time), making this album both the first and the last thing you should turn to if you fancy a good shag.

Track list breakdown:

Overcome - This song succeeds where 'No Protection' ... read more

#76

[2022, Part 2 - Album 10]

From the looks of things, it seems like I will be the last person to say this is my least favourite F+TM album. My opinion on 'Everybody Scream' is still pending, as I've decided to think about that album again when I come to it. Which does give the impression that maybe that is my least favourite but anyway.

'High as Hope'. Is good. That's it really. It's like when people accidentally call something good "mid". ... read more

#75

[2022, Part 2 - Album 9]

This is an awkward one.

At the end of my last review, I mentioned that one of the albums I was intending to review did not exist on this platform. I was then informed that I could add an album myself and therefore have done so. Now, 'Spectrum' and 'Glitterwolf' have a presence on this database, and their work will not go unseen.

But this is where it gets weird: although I have gone out of my way to add and review this album, I do not think it ... read more

#74

[2022, Part 2 - Album 8]

The sun has returned to Glasgow and I am so, so happy. I'm bouncing down pavements, I'm bumping into my friends on the street, I'm watching the springtime flowers bloom, and suddenly it seems like nothing will ever be bad again.

All this is to say, I had a really good time listening to this album. Not only does HOME's music remind me of summer already (I first listened to this album in June 2022), but it has such an optimistic air about it ... read more

#73

[2022, Part 2 - Album 7]

I'm not very big into delicate, introspective, lyric heavy music - so it's as much of a surprise to me as anyone else that I really really like this album. In fact, back in 2022 I remember thinking it was the second best one I listened to that year. Things change: but not drastically. 'Under the Pink' remains an album that drums up an incredible amount of nostalgia for me, and every single track has at least one iconic musical moment that helps ... read more

#72

[2022, Part 2 - Album 6]

I got here the long way round. 'Freak Night' was on my discover weekly, loved it so much that I decided to listen to the artist's entire discography. I don't do things like that anymore.

Somewhat because of this album (mostly because of Lamb, but we'll get to that). In my memory, this whole thing was just kind of mid; but returning to it now I can say that isn't the case. The first half is actually very good. So good in fact, that I ... read more

#71

[2022, Part 2 - Album 5]

Adding to - and possibly best encapsulating - my vibe at the time, 'The Seduction of Claude Debussy' lay (and lies) in the perfect balance of experimental that I really fuck with. Why make a synthpop concept album about Claude Debussy in order to celebrate a century of music? Why not. Especially if you're going to make it this good.

Track list breakdown:

Il Pleuere (At the Turn of the Century) - To the guy who rated this a 5/10: I am waiting for ... read more

#70

[2022, Part 2 - Album 4]

You lot just hate rock then. That must be it. what do you MEAN a 74? 74??? For one of the greatest rock albums of all time?

Look its not all perfect, I'll admit. But when it's good it absolutely soars. No matter what qualms you may have with it, you just can't take away the fact that this album features three of the greatest rock anthems ever written. And the rest of it is also pretty fucking good. It's a great time from start to finish and ... read more

#69

[2022, Part 2 - Album 3]

Okay, so I don't think 'the greatest album of all time' is the greatest album of all time. Sue me.

I do recognise it as amazing, I do recognise it as a must hear album, I do recognise it as contributing three of the greatest psychedelic rock songs of all time. I also recognise that the first half is stellar. The second half? Not so much. I know I'll get called a contrarian for this but oh well, what the hell. What's the point of ... read more

#68

[2022, Part 2 - Album 2]

Initially I wasn't the biggest fan of Florence's new direction. Although at the time I was more than excited at the prospect of one of my favourite artist releasing a brand new album (this is one of the first albums I had listened within the same year of its release), I was surprisingly underwhelmed. It wasn't what I expected, and it wasn't what I wanted, so I mentally put it down as alright, but not of the same calibre as her early work.

My ... read more

#67

[2022, Part 2 - Album 1]

Now, at the end of my review of their first album, I said that my choice to listen to Lamb's entire discography was a bad one. Now, although I do stand by that in general, to say it got bad quickly would be a bare faced lie. In fact, I'd say that their sophomore album, 'Fear of Fours' is actually a step up from their previous work (something 16 year old me would never have agreed with). The tracks are more diverse and more well realised. ... read more

#66

[2022, PART 1 - ALBUM 14]

We're rounding off 2022 Part 1 with a bang. 'Lost Horizons' is one of my personal favourites: it perfectly distils the feeling of an encroaching summer (which has made relistening to it in December somewhat of a whiplash). Its sampling is perfection - Lemon Jelly are some of the best to ever do it - and it's one of those hidden gems that I stumbled on at this time that I really feel deserve more of the limelight.

Although it may be bookended ... read more

#65

[2022, PART 1 - ALBUM 13]

Deep in the midst of my 'sample heavy concept album' era, I came across this project by Public Service Broadcasting. It's a neat package: the aforementioned sampling is used to an effective degree, the music is sonically solid, and each piece well represents the subject matter it's based around. It also functions well as a piece of historical storytelling, marking out the key moments of the titular 'Race for Space'.

However, ... read more

#64

[2022, PART 1 - ALBUM 12]

I've come to realise that early 2022 was a good time for me and music. Like, I had taste back in the day - and a proper listening profile; I wasn't expecting such a concise sound world for my retrospective, but 2022 Part 1 has really blown me away. Perhaps I've just become nicer with my ratings in the past year; perhaps its just nostalgia; perhaps I've just gotten better at listening to music - but the numbers don't lie: I was really ... read more