I started this album too late in the evening, and ended up passing out immediately after I finished it, so I'm now writing this the next morning.

Sunlit Stone is another monumentally long release from NSB, a double album clocking in at 2 hours and 32 minutes. Now, this one is known for being one of their worse projects, and I do agree judging from the albums I've heard so far, but I also think it's still quite underrated.

The album does stick to NSB's formula of psychedelic folk and ambient ... read more

For my 500th rating, I decided to cover one of the most polarising albums on the site; that being Captain Beefheart's infamous 'Trout Mask Replica'. And suffice to say, I'm on the positive side of the spectrum!

This 78-minute collection of wildly experimental blues rock (with a sprinkle of free jazz on the side), is nothing short of brilliant. Recorded in Frank Zappa's own studio, after Beefheart was instructed "just do whatever you want", he certainly did take his friend's advice ... read more

A fantastic mixture of spacey unhinged jazz-funk-fusion insanity, and some amazing piano interludes too. This album was extremely ahead of its time for 1974, and will always be an underappreciated favourite of mine. It’s such a fucking cool idea, like, space jazz??!? Hell fucking yes omg, I love it so much

Favourite track: Song to the Pharoah Kings

I listened to this with every single volume slider on full blast, and my hair tied up so that it was coming right into my ears. It was an extremely fucking harsh, brutal experience, and my eardrums physically hurt after it. Very enjoyable, but never again

I need the T-shirt of this lol

Favourite tracks: A Screw, Stupid Child, ★ Another You

The music feels exactly the same as the album art. It's chaotic, experimental, complex, and fucking awesome. I don't even know what I just listened to, but it's gotta be one of Zappa's best projects yet. It also includes his first super long track, despite being split into parts, the incredible free jazz song "King Kong" clocks in at a whopping 18 minutes and 13 seconds. This album certainly shows Frank venturing into even wilder territory than he was in before, and it's incredible. I ... read more

Contrary to BCNR's previous heavy departure from the post-punk genre last year, for their brand new second album Squid seem to have warmed up to the sound even more.

Now, I don't know if it's just because this isn't my first time hearing them, but this one didn't quite hit me as hard as Bright Green Field did. It's in some ways similar, but also wildly different. Of course, it's still very chaotic, very groovy and very well produced, but it just doesn't have that same, 'oomph' as their debut ... read more

Okay it's official, I LOVE SQUID!!! I was just checking this out so that I could listen to O Monolith after, but holyyyyy,,, what an experience it was. Now I really can't wait to do the next one tomorrow.

This feels like if you took early BC,NR and black midi, smashed 'em together, and even sprinkled a little extra bit of sillyness on top. I love every part of it - the skrunkly dunkly experimentation, the skittishly britishly shouty vocals, the smexity brexity production, all of it ties ... read more

God, the closer is heartwrenching. I hope Dave's okay now
R.I.P. Virginia Grohl & Taylor Hawkins

If we're talking about the album itself, it's pretty great too. Quite powerful, has some great riffs and is very well-produced. Better than I expected for Foo Fighters

Favourite tracks: Hearing Voices, The Teacher, ★ Rest

Cop, but just way better. This kept me on the edge of my seat for the whole time, and is also some of the grittiest music I've ever experienced. The lyrics to 'I Crawled' are fucking vile
Can't wait to listen to Public Castration Is a Good Idea at some point! Apparently it's even more loud and insane

Favourite track: Young God

With this being the 'worst Swans album' and all, it makes me excited to hear the rest!
It's still heavy, still hard-hitting, still gruesome, still violent, but a lot more boring than Filth. I'm not denying that it's good tho, there are certainly some crushing gory bangers on here, like mentioned below.

Favourite tracks: Half Life, Why Hide, ★ Cop

I can't even begin to collect my thoughts on this album, all I know is that it's one of the best things I've ever heard. One whole mammoth experience of continuous atmospheric perfection.

Take Me Back to Eden in interesting project, to say the least. When I first heard about it, I never expected the mix of genres the band presented to work - I expected to hate it - but was pleasantly surprised!

They genuinely pull it off really well for the most part, and it often makes an awesome dynamic that sounds really good; they don't hit all of the time, though. There some quite mediocre tracks, some problems with the album's flow, and the voice definitely took me a while to adjust to, ... read more

One of the most appropriate titles for an album I've ever seen. Mind-boggling and often terrifying to people in its time. The last three (NO COMMERCIAL POTENTIAL) tracks are some of the most insane shit I've ever heard, let alone from the 60s.

Also read the liner notes they're funny as hell

Favourite tracks: Hungry Freaks Daddy, Help I'm a Rock (Suite in Three Movements), ★ The Return of the Son of Monster Magnet (Unfinished Ballet in Two Tableaux)

I WANNA THROW SHIT I WANNA FUCKING RIOT I WANNA DESTROY SOME SHIT I WANNA SLAM MY FUCKIN HEAD AGAINST THE FUCKIN WALL I WANNA FUCKIN RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

My 420th rating :roflcopter:

Just some solid doom metal. It's very impressive the endurance they show by keeping up the energy for the entire hour, but it just doesn't do that much for me.

Extra note: It's been 20 minutes since I finished it, and I don't remember it at all. Take that as you will.
It still went hard though. I loved the huge guitar tones and booming vocals.

I'll also listen to the live version of Sonic Titan that's in the original issue, and rate it here.
After listening, I ... read more

My longest review yet!
I decided to start this at 5 pm. When the album finished (including some shortish breaks), it was about three in the morning. 15 minutes later I am writing this to say, those 10 hours were well fucking spent. What an experience, what an undertaking, what an adventure this was. The French folk duo Natural Snow Buildings' masterpiece Daughter of Darkness sent me to another world entirely. It banished me all the way back to the Dark Ages, when technology was only such ... read more

May their brave souls forever rest in peace.

Curiosity killed the cat

Masterpiece. Fucking MASTERPIECE. WOW. WOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWO

This album is so so so cool, it has some of the most amazing ideas I've ever heard in all of music. The lo-fi home recorded production doesn't conventionally sound good, but it really does sound fucking GOOD. It's a really emotional project as well at times, some of the moments have me physically sweating with pure anxiety or on the verge of tears. I love the general vibe that the lyrics have, and how morbid and ... read more

For my 400th review, I'm covering a very meaningful and historical album to me.

A bright and beautiful, calming piece of intricate folk music, this record has been with me for my entire life, even coming out just three months after I was born. I'm ashamed of myself not to have it on vinyl yet, lol.

My parents always loved putting this on (as well as Helplessness Blues) in the living room when I was young, and it's always been and will always stay on my playlist. White Winter Hymnal was the ... read more