[Treasure Tuesday Ep. 18]

I'm not a huge fan, nor am I even an enthusiast, of this type of music, but I think I liked this quite a bit. Maybe there's a song or two that veers to much into a formula, but I really loved the production on this thing (Rostam is on here) and the variety of styles accompanying the traditional African sound is pretty admirable.

Fav Tracks: Shango Wa, Eva, Orisha, Cauri, M'Baamba (Kenyan Song), Ebile, Kulumbu, Bomba

Least Fav Track: Bana

Treasure Approval ... read more

After the awkward "The Top", "The Head On The Door" feels like the proper follow-up to "Pornography". It takes a more accessible approach to songwriting without sacrificing the gloomy aesthetics of their sound. The production is great, the instrumentation is catchy and Robert Smith's lyrics are as dark as ever, all while delivering some of The Cure's best songs to date.

Fav Tracks: A Night Like This, Push, Close to Me, In Between Days, The Baby Screams, The Blood, ... read more

Free Nationals' debut is a silky-smooth underground R&B record that features some amazing, groovy production with incredible collaborators. There are those one or two instrumentals that end up being slightly awkward but I enjoyed this overall.

Fav Tracks: Time, Beauty & Essex, Gidget, On Sight, Oslo, Eternal, Shibuya, RENE

Least Fav Track: Obituaries

Score:
8.4
Great

The average listener may think "TOOL had the longest hiatus of the past century". YOU INSOLENT FOOLS!!! it's really Duster who takes the crown with a hiatus of 19 FUCKIN' YEARS!!!

*ahem* Well then, this was a mighty surprise! Not only did Duster succeed at making an album that views their root sound through a modern lens, they just managed to make a record that is pretty much up there with "Stratosphere". The slow, but cozy lo-fi aesthetics are outstanding, the ... read more

After the chaos and modernism of "To Be Kind", "The Glowing Man" quiets everything down... almost everything. Gira and gang combine the elements of their newest works with some of the gothic folk of the past twenty years. The results are as unsettling as ever, with Gira slowly building up to these amazing, noisy crescendos that are equally as amazing as the slower parts. The instrumentation and songwriting is excellent. There's also the title track... oh my gosh if this ... read more

"To Be Kind" makes me want to piss on family picnics and eat people's drugs. I will then proceed to run ass naked rocket-shitting through a DCU Center and jump off the building so that when the police search my body, they will find my PSN username: sphincterhugger9k. My ghost will fucking beat them at Call of Duty!

This record is absolutely fantastic! Michael Gira, even at 60 years of age, still flexes his creativity and views on the human form. It explains what humanity has become ... read more

The short-lived DARKSIDE have created one of the most clever fusions of genres of the decade with "Psychic". It takes more than just a listen to appreciate Jaar and Harrington's work, with amazing production, distinctive textures, great instrumentation and tight structuring.

Fav Tracks: Freak, Go Home; Golden Arrow; Paper Trails; The Only Shrine I've Seen; Heart

Least Fav Track: Sitra

Score:
9.3
Outstanding

"Space Is Only Noise" is a crisp and beautifully-textured electronic record that mixes bleak atmospheres and amazing instrumentation with simple "dance" beats. The amount of depth and detail Nicolas Jaar brings to these tracks is absolutely astounding!

Fav Tracks: Space Is Only Noise If You Can See, Keep Me There, I got a, Specters of the Future, Variations, Columb, Too Many Kids Finding Rain In the Dust, Balance Her In Between Your Eyes

Least Fav Track: ... read more

"Love Streams" definitely has the warmest, most radiant production from Tim F*cker and there are some amazing sonic ideas on this project, but it all falls apart structurally and there are one or two questionable synth choices.

Fav Tracks: Castrati Shack, Violet Monumental, Up Red Bull Creek, Black Phase, Live Leak Instrumental

Least Fav Track: Bijie Dream

Score:
7.5
Very Good

The "1975"'s first album continues "Stratosphere"'s spacious sound and the results are even cleaner than before. It falls off on the second track, but the rest of it is catchy, distant and contains a couple of their best songs to date.

Irato: 9.5
Memphis Sophisticate: 7
The Motion Picture: 9
And Things (Are Mostly Ghosts): 9.5
August Relativity: 10
Want No Light to Shine: 9

Score:
8.6
Exceptional

I will give them credit, they're improving bit by bit. Still, that doesn't mean The Chainsmokers are learning they're lesson by forcing these generic EDM pop songs every year for profit. They basically make the same record every time and I don't know if I'm interested in paying attention to them any longer.

Fav Tracks: The Reaper, Takeaway

Least Fav Tracks: P.S. I Hope You're Happy, Family, See the Way, Kills You Slowly, Who Do You Love

Score:
3.1
Bad

While "Romance" isn't terrible by any means (aside from "Living Proof"), it's still an aggressively average pop record with hit-and-miss production and surface-level songwriting.

Fav Tracks: This Love, Should've Said It, My Oh My, Shameless

Least Fav Tracks: Living Proof, Easy, Liar

Score:
4.6
Meh

"Stratosphere" is a distant, spacious (post) rock album that feels oh so cozy. I'd say it gave me the same vibes as American Football's first album with an added space twist, and it's absolutely beautiful. A few cuts can feel a bit too short to bring their ideas into full force, but the majority of the album is so good it's easy to forgive that nitpick.

Fav Tracks: Stratosphere; Heading for the Door; Earth Moon Transit; Constellations; Topical Solution; Reed to Hillsborough; Gold ... read more

"Transmission, Flux" is a beautifully-crafted, spacey record with lots of tones to keep yourself warm from the icy depths of space... but why did it have to end so quickly?

Orbitron: 9.5
Fuzz and Timbre: 6
My Friends Are Cosmonauts: 8.5
Closer to the Speed of Sound: 9
Stars Will Fall: 10

Score:
8.1
Great

Before listening to this album, there was a huge shortcoming I noticed: what the fuck were Hyperdub thinking when they put this thing together?! The tracks go backward in time rather than forward and worst of all, they put all of the ambient tracks, his least interesting works, on the very front of this compilation. The pacing of this already two-and-a-half hour project is already godawful because the first 38 minutes are packed with these and it would've been waaay better if they had just ... read more

"Conference of Birds / Birds in Disguise" isn't nearly as captivating as "Cows on Hourglass Pond" and it's quite uneven, but it nonetheless brings the charm of an Animal Collective record and shortens it into a single EP, and it's still miles better than most AnCo-related releases this decade.

Fav Tracks: Uncle Donut, Disc One, Red Light Water Show

Least Fav Track: Enjoy the Change

Score:
7.7
Very Good

Spoon released yet another success on their part with "Kill The Moonlight", and it's also their most varied. We get the usual rock sound combined with an experimental track or two and a few psychedelic tracks as well. It shows an even more playful side to the band that's, once again, very well-written.

Fav Tracks: The Way We Get By, Vittorio E., Jonathan Fisk, Small Stakes, Something to Look Forward To, Back to the Life, Don't Let It Get You Down, Stay Don't Go

Least Fav Track: You ... read more

"Girls Can Tell" sees Spoon pulling a lot more inspiration from other bands while smartly improving upon the groundwork they've laid. The lyrics are witty, the instrumentation is great, the flow and straightforwardness of these tracks are admirable and it's just an even more enjoyable listen from them overall.

Fav Tracks: Everything Hits at Once, Take a Walk, 1020 AM, Believing Is Art, Me and the Bean, Take the Fifth, The Fitted Shirt

Least Fav Track: Lines in the ... read more

"A Series of Sneaks" is a huge improvement over their debut in pretty much every level. The hooks pack more punch, the lyrics are well-written and delivered, the short track lengths are more straightforward and it's just a lot more fun overall.

Fav Tracks: Execution, Utilitarian, No You're Not, Advance Cassette, Reservations, The Minor Tough, Car Radio, Quincy Punk Episode

Least Fav Track: Staring at the Board

Score:
8.5
Exceptional

"Telephono" is an unremarkable yet raw and punchy rock album with good vocals, noisy instrumentation and a great deal of Pixies influence... maybe a bit too much. The writing leaves some room to be desired, though.

Fav Tracks: Not Turning Off, The Government Darling, Cvantez, Nefarious, Don't Buy the Realistic, Claws Tracking, Theme to Wendel Stivers

Least Fav Track: Primary

Score:
6.8
Decent