This is very generic pop punk, and formulaic at times. But it's not necessarily bad as long as you like that genre. It feels like MGK took a lot of the tropes of the genre and shoved them into this album, sometimes adding his own flavor. There are times where it lands, and times where it doesn't. But in the end it's just some guy making a pop punk album because he wants to, and it's fun. It's not meant to be looked at critically. The lyrics also aren't that good. They try to be relatable but I ... read more

This is truly a journey. Eskimo Callboy took all of the stereotypes of the -core genres and amplified them to 100% in a parodic fashion. If you're paying attention to the lyrics (or watching the music videos), you're probably going to laugh as long as you're not taking it too seriously (because the band sure as hell isn't). On top of that, it's actually good music. The vocalist balances the clean and unclean sections very well and the breakdowns are some of my favorites. It's also spiced up ... read more

It's late and I'm tired so my thoughts aren't gonna be super complex. This is my second favorite so far. It's the most poppy sound (I wouldn't call it rock at all really). They absolutely nail the climax of the album like they always do, going full circle with references to previous songs on the album (as well as using the epic riff from Astoria and End of An Era). I mentioned before that I think even though the lyrics written by this band seem basic at times, it's the vocal delivery that truly ... read more

Okay let's get into this one. First things first, I don't think it's as good as Astoria. While just as emotionally heavy, it doesn't always deliver as such. The singer's voice also sounds much less refined. Something it does better though is cohesiveness. The tracks flow together perfectly, sounding like one big song instead of 12 different ones. And while that doesn't always work for albums, I think it definitely does for this one. These songs are meant to be listened in order with each other, ... read more

This one kind of had me all over the place. There were time when I was kind of just listening to it, and other times when I was bopping my ahead along to a super catchy chorus or crying because of some lyrics that hit just a little too hard. I think there are times when this album suffers from being a bit too formulaic (similar to Astoria, but Astoria made it work because of the placement of those "stereotypical" pop songs). It also seemed to be just a bit more experimental than most ... read more

Okay, so the thing I took from this album the most is that I wish this band had kept making music. There are a lot of moments of greatness in this album (Musical Chairs, Amarillo Sleeps on My Pillow, Coppertank Island, and the last track was an excellent closer. Not only did it mostly consistent of a ballad, but it faded to this super weird horror type ambience and then ended with a man yelling while an organ plays. Hard to explain, but perfect ending in my opinion. I can't recommend this one ... read more

I've said before that grunge isn't my thing, and this album isn't an exception to that. A lot of it felt like it was lacking something. That being said, there are exceptions to that. The three singles are truly good songs that stand on their own, the last track on the record (not including the weird hidden one) was a good closer in my opinion, and Black was the absolute standout. The rest of the album, even the songs I liked, fell far short of Black.

This was a very good instrumental album in my opinion. First half reminded me of early Nothing More, second half reminded me more of God Is An Astronaut. I was pretty much engaged the whole time, despite it being a bit longer than I prefer instrumental albums being. I'm definitely keeping this one around to listen to in the future.

I don't have a lot to say about this one. There were both good and bad parts. Beginning started off weak, then picked up a LOT in the middle, then ended on an okay note. I definitely see the appeal of an album like this, but it's just not for me.

This album seemed very messy. I really liked some of the songs. But others were pretty much the equivalent of "bro-rock" (bad bitch rock?) and it didn't sit well with me. Especially the ones glorifying toxic relationships. I'm also going to describe the music using a word that has become controversial these days: generic. It's possible Halestorm were one of the firsts to do this kind of sound, and if so I'll take this back, but it just kind of sounds generic to me. I didn't hear ... read more

For me, this album is the perfect example of the statement "It's good, but it's just not my taste." I didn't find myself disliking any of the tracks, but only a couple really stood out to me as something I might want to listen to again (although I will be revisiting this album sometime in the future). At first I didn't like the vocals, but after two or three songs they grew on me. She's got a super soft voice, almost akin to Billie Eilish's style, but Rankin has a lot more oomph. It ... read more

This wasn't necessarily bad or anything. It just wasn't my kind of music, so I have a hard time rating and reviewing it. A positive is that it kind of works as background music for me. It's not too forward and doesn't demand my attention while I work. A negative is that I wasn't a big fan of the switch between languages. When it's done in songs I can get behind that, but when an entire album does that, it kind of throws me off. That's just me though.

This album is a very mixed bag in my opinion. With most songs, I found myself really liking some parts, and really disliking others, which pretty much ruined those songs for me (consistently though I was happy with Mike's rapping). Chester's voice didn't always do it for me, but every now and then he'd sing a line or two that I thought was really good. Even though most songs didn't strike me as that great, when they did pull everything together they created songs that were truly amazing ... read more

Not super sure where to start with this one. Vocals are a bit unusual and might take some time getting used to, but I've been listening to this band for a while now so it's not a problem for me. They are super strained but I think it works with the style this band is going for. As far as a debut album goes, it doesn't get much better than this. I enjoyed every single song from this album other than the last (although the very end was kind of cool). My favorite part by far were the lyrics, which ... read more

When I first listened to this, the drums were the only thing that really stood out. Vocals didn't catch my attention at all, and seemed like just another instrument. When I started my final listen of this album, I kind of got disappointed. It wasn't as good as I remembered, and the thing that stood out to me the most (the drums) didn't sound as prominent while using my good headphones. That changed pretty quickly. Not only did I end up enjoying the vocals quite a bit, but the instruments as a ... read more

To make this quick: I enjoyed pretty much nothing about this album. I have no prior experience with Bowie albums, so I don't know if this is typical for him or not. But it's not something I liked. I appreciate some of the symbolism though. If even half of what is speculated is true, he was a very talented lyricist.

Not really my type of music, but for what it is, it's good. I could see how some people might not like his voice, but it didn't bother me a whole lot. I think it really fit well with the music. I definitely don't see how this could be bland or generic, but I do understand the criticisms of the production being over-blown. I felt the same at times, but for the most part it felt pretty stable. Probably not something I'd ever revisit, but I'm glad I listened to it.

I have very pretty much no symphonic metal to compare this to, but it seemed pretty good. Super powerful, had a very epic feel to it most of the time. I really liked the slower tracks where you got a chance to breath, because this album was pretty much non-stop high energy. Subject matter was also pretty cool.

Just like with their first album, I feel like I'm really not appreciating this as much as I could be if I had read the graphic novels that accompany this band's music. Sadly, graphic novels have never really been a form of media that holds my attention. The highlight of this album is the vocals. They are pretty unique and sound much more powerful and tuned in this album than in the first. Composition is unique, but not quite my style. I think that might be the prog aspect of the music though. I ... read more

This is not one I'm super comfortable with rating. It was a decently enjoyable experience, but it's not what I want out of my music so I have a hard time giving it a high rating. I can imagine there is a very specific mood that this album is perfect for, I just don't think I've ever been in that mood before. I almost didn't rate it entirely, but I feel like I have to so I'm giving it just slightly above average.