Yeah I thought maybe I was just not in the mood at the time when I first heard this. But as the days went on and I just felt no inclination to revisit I started to think maybe this was just not good. Finally, I just listened again and yeah its so corny. The vocals are dreadful and childish and not in a likable way. They are bad whether they are coming through as annoying chirps or really abrasive heavily distorted and fake affected autotune or if they are delivered straight with a sort of teenage jaded wanna-be pop star shitcrapterrible spunk. It's bad in all modes.
The beats are these consistently half-baked hyperpop things that are designed to be as bouncy and plastic as humanly possible. The end of "spoiled little brat" is perhaps the worst couple minutes of music I've heard all year. And the indie pop songs are also laden with this thick coat of crap, stupid affects and vocal dreck, it all makes for an album quite annoying.
But it should be noted I am really just not in the mood for hyperpop or oh-so-poppy-or-quirky indie pop right now and maybe I never will be. If you like this and think its fun or cool, sorry if I seem like an asshole. But I reacted worse to this than almost any other album this year (only comparable bad reaction is my reaction to that new Matthew Sweet piece of cardboard.)
Okay, and I am not happy being so negative and so I do want to note that there are a few minutes of actual, sincere music with the jam that is "Dry Land 2001". And the song that comes after it "The fish song" is not terrible, and it feels like a mostly sincere and beautiful song with only a couple unnecessary and stupid moments of vocal affects. Okay, and that is what I will say positive.
2.
@Baystateoftheart, this is really great and a classic I think. (I mean I think i've seen it high on charts and so i have the idea that this is widely respected in music circles. it's been awhile since I heard it but vaguely recall it being great.)
I think earlier I may have been thinking of the 1969 album or, even more egregious error in recollection I may have been thinking of Transa. Either way, all great stuff.
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3.
And because I love ending off on high points, I will move away from 2021 and instead go back to 2020. Top 10 albums of 2020. (note: I will probably come back to 2021 soon, as its become a bit obsessive
1. "Gift" at Sogetsu Hall by Ichiko Aoba
2. Manger on McNichols by Boldy James & Sterling Toles
3. Melinoë by Akhlys
4. Totschläger (A Saintslayer's Songbook) by Abigor
5. Imperial Triumphant by Alphaville
6. Hour of the Centaur by Hate Forest (Jesus christ why does RYM like black metal so fucking much???)
7. Ummon by Slift
8. Source by Nubya Garcia
9. Medical Renditions of Grinding Decomposition by Pharmacist
10. May Our Chambers Be Full by Emma Ruth Rundle & Thou _________________ -Ryan
Funky Nassau by The Beginning Of The End
It's exactly what it says. Funk from the Bahamas. Way cooler than that cover suggests. Some excellent bass work, I loved the guitars too and it was so energetic, rich (in the production department) and life affirming overall. Not too cheesy either, just how I like my funk. I have a feeling a lot of BEA funk stans would love this (Seth take note). Another excellent album, I'm really liking my list 😁 Honestly this could be a higher rating in the future, but from one listen it's 8/10
(2)
Manger on McNichols is so good
(3)
Leftovers list + some 2021
Meridian Brothers - Desesperanza
Still Corners - The Last Exit
Lawrence - The Absence of Blight
John Talabot - Fin
Flamengo - Kuře v hodinkách
Sadaf - History of Heat
Ataraxie - Slow Transcending Agony
Armia - Legenda
Kauan - Sorni Nai
Steve Reich, Kronos Quartet & Pat Metheny - Different Trains; Electric Counterpoint _________________ Overall chart Fake overall chart
Surprisingly heavy psych from early 70s France. Guitar playing is consistently great and vocals are a bit weird, but not bad. Nice one to add to my psych knowledge.
Also, any artist that uses a painting from Pieter Bruegel the Elder is automatically great.
Ledzep, Armia is on my greatest chart, so go for that one.
A la Ping Pong- Extrem Musik a la Ping Pong Phase I
A Tent- Six Empty Places
Ache- De Homine Urbano
AD- Conspiracy
ADN' Ckrystall- Jazz' Mad
AGeM- Sekunda
Agencement- Agencement
Aktuala- Tappeto Volante
Allan Bryant- Space Guitars
Legenda by Armia
The vocals were a bit weak compared to music, but it's an interesting style for sure. Hardcore punk with french horn (?), acoustic guitar and some crossover thrash sections. A unique take on punk, and though I did enjoy it, I wasn't really fully into the songwriting. It may be the language barrier, maybe the fact that punk has to be really good for me to love it or just the lack of diversity which is a constant problem for hardcore punk (says a guy who likes old school thrash and death metal lol). Honestly if this was a Croatian release with strong lyrics I'd probably be all over it, but whatever. The highlight was the title track, a brilliant 7 minute rhapsody of D-Beat and crossover tharsh riffs with addition of the aforementioned horns and some synths and flutes (I think) as well. A more than fine album, would recommend to anyone looking for cool punk. 7.5/10
(2)
Space guitars sounds cool
(3)
RYM overall albums I haven't rated (FL - first time listen, probably)
Taking a detour from random albums of unknown origins. Or might just start ping ponging between the lists. So this will be RYM overall filtered by "rated" and also excluding OSTs. A lot of these will be relistens, but I really feel like playing some classics now plus if I haven't rated them yet on RYM it means they didn't get a proper listen since at least 2018.
Stevie Wonder - Songs in the Key of Life
Can - Tago Mago
Elliott Smith - Either/Or
Marvin Gaye - What's Going On
Prince - Purple Rain
Stevie Wonder - Innervisions (FL)
Nine Inch Nails - The Downward Spiral
The Kinks - The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society (FL)
Milton Nascimento & Lô Borges - Clube da Esquina (FL)
Can - Ege Bamyası _________________ Overall chart Fake overall chart
Caetano Veloso's third self-titled album is a minor disappointment, considering how much I love the first two and Transa. He mostly moves away from lush orchestrations to a more stripped-down folk sound, and simultaneously almost entirely replaces the Portuguese lyrics of his earlier work with English ones. The result is more emphasis than ever on lyrics that, understandably for those written in a second language, are not always outstanding. He also experiments multiple times with a vocal effect that sounds almost like he's smacking his lips eating something, and at first listen I'm not a fan of that. Does anyone know if there's a name for that and if it has any particular cultural significance? But enough of the negatives - this is still a very good album that commands my attention throughout its compact runtime. While not every song hits the mark, highlights such as London, London and In The Hot Sun Of A Christmas Day are gorgeous. And there is a lot of poignance on this album, as he sings about his exile in England during the military dictatorship. If you already like Caetano Veloso, this is quite a worthwhile album to check out, but not the best entry point in my opinion. 3.5/5.
A: Scoundrel Days - a-ha
B: Party Mix! - The B-52’s
C: The Peel Sessions - Can
D: Alive 2007 - Daft Punk
E: In A Major Way - E-40
F: In A Hole - The Fall
G: Fa-tal: Gal A Todo Vapor - Gal Costa
H: Roll Call - Hank Mobley
I: The Predator - Ice Cube
J: The Official Jay Dee Instrumental Series Vol. 2: Vintage - J Dilla _________________ Join us in the canon game :) / Add me on RYM
RoundTheBendI miss the comfort in being sadProfile Ground Control
Considerably better than The Air Force or OH NO. The combination of sounds here are really intriguing. Electronic and otherwise. His voice of course is an acquired taste, but on this record I feel like that's less the case. As someone who focuses on rhythm sections a lot, this album is not terribly interesting in that regard (think bass/drum parts that aren't just supporting the work). Rhythms are still intriguing. If I were to pick a Xiu Xiu album to listen to again from which I've heard, it indeed would be this one.
2. You just didn't want to listen to another U2 album 😜 - hehe, just kidding. I guess Ice Cube since knowing you that might be more of a stretch? It Was a Good Day one of his best tracks.
3. Gowi's Top 100 (Last Pick)
7. Diana by Diana Ross
22. Nightfall In Middle-Earth by Blind Guardian
28. Fox Confessor Brings The Flood by Neko Case
30. Rainy Day Music by The Jayhawks
32. The Sunset Tree by The Mountain Goats
33. The Photo Album by Death Cab For Cutie
36. By The Way, I Forgive You by Brandi Carlile
49. Meshes Of Voice by Susanna / Jenny Hval
54. Life'll Kill Ya by Warren Zevon
57. Radio Onsen Eutopia by Etsuko Yakushimaru
Purplepashranker, rater, & music list makerProfile Western Australia
This was really good. I do like QOTSA, and this would have been on of the first albums from these 2000 lists I'm doing that I would have chosen for myself. I've been paying attention to them since Feel Good Hit Of The Summer was a single so I knew a few of these songs well, but I hadn't heard the whole album before. Speaking of Feel Good Hit, what a great way to start the album, with a catchy dumb fun singalong. I was taken by surprise a couple of times with the more shouty vocals, but I liked that. and the closing track I Think I lost My Headache was a great way to end the album, and also a bit unexpected. Overall not quite as good as their later albums I've heard,...Like Clockwork (which was my favourite album of 2013 and is in my all time top 100), Songs For The Deaf, and Villains (which I seem to like more than most people) but a great sign of better things to come. I once saw QOTSA live on a double bill with NIN (in 2014), and even though I would say I prefer NIN, on the night QOTSA blew them out of the water. One of those great gigs I'll never forget. 8/10, 16/56 for 2000, and just sneaking in to my top 100 for the decade (probably won't stay there for long) at #100.
Yeah I'm gonna have to go The Mountain Goats this time. Maybe I'm wrong and you will appreciate it.
Top 73 Music Albums of 2000 by Tha1ChiefRocka(3 picks left)
7. Go Hawaii by Casino Versus Japan
9. Figure 8 by Elliott Smith
10. The Empty Hollow Unfolds by Raison D'être
13. De Stijl by The White Stripes
14. The Museum Of Imaginary Animals by Pram
15. Multila by Vladislav Delay
16. The Sophtware Slump by Grandaddy
20. Disappeared by Spring Heel Jack
21. Ovalprocess by Oval
22. Crystal Gazing Luck Amazing by Compulsive Gamblers
baystateoftheartNeil Young as a butternut squashProfile Massachusetts
This is probably the best Ice Cube album I've heard so far. As usual, great beats and flows. It Was A Good Day is a strong contender for his best song, but it's not the only iconic single on here (Check Yo Self). Like previous Cube albums, my issues here are all lyrical. At their best, the lyrics are witty, edgy, and hard. There are a lot of pointed sociopolitical lyrics dealing with the Rodney King beating and its aftermath. But unfortunately, the edge on The Predator cuts both ways, as misogyny, homophobia, and misanthropy mar many of the tracks. In spite of this, the stronger songs do enough to make this a pretty good album overall. 3/5.
~~~~~
2. I really like this album. Also, it's Grandaddy's most acclaimed record, and you have their 2006 album as your AOTY.
A: Scoundrel Days - a-ha
B: Party Mix! - The B-52’s
C: Monster Movie - Can
D: Alive 2007 - Daft Punk
E: In A Major Way - E-40
F: Hex Enduction Hour - The Fall
G: Índia - Gal Costa
H: Roll Call - Hank Mobley
I: Plowing Into The Field Of Love - Iceage
J: Welcome 2 Detroit - J Dilla
[I changed it to be the most rated album I haven't heard by each artist (minimum 3.5 and 250 ratings), because RYM's algorithm disproportionately elevates more obscure stuff in rank.] _________________ Join us in the canon game :) / Add me on RYM
MercuryTurn your back on the pay-you-back last callProfile St. Louis
This album is such a sensory overload and the emotional lyrics and the heart of the album is so raw and intense - it all adds up to an intense experience. The production is very very full of many details and at times the beats are quite experimental and hard to follow or groove to. Still, its consistently so rich and ear-catching that even when I can't really fully bob my head to the production it is still interesting. Some production parts by Sterling Toles reminded me of TPAB, soulful and scattered yet still somehow very emotional.
The rapping is consistently good to great. Boldy's flow and voice is soothing at times and always grizzled and rough and there is a sadness and heaviness that comes through at moments that is quite touching. And the flows work and meld quite well with the detailed lush production. The bits of lyrics that I was most closely paying attention to were heartbreaking and emotional as hell.
Overall, this is a great hip hop album. Glad I finally pushed play on it. I see that Boldy James released 4 albums last year! Wow. Will need to get to them at some point.
1. "Gift" at Sogetsu Hall by Ichiko Aoba
2. The Normal Album by Will Wood
3. Melinoë by Akhlys
4. Totschläger (A Saintslayer's Songbook) by Abigor
5. Imperial Triumphant by Alphaville
6. Hour of the Centaur by Hate Forest (Jesus christ why does RYM like black metal so fucking much???)
7. Ummon by Slift
8. Source by Nubya Garcia
9. Medical Renditions of Grinding Decomposition by Pharmacist
10. May Our Chambers Be Full by Emma Ruth Rundle & Thou _________________ -Ryan
Can's debut Monster Movie arrived as part of the very first wave of krautrock in 1969. Both the band and the genre were fresh, daring, and yet to realize their full potential. In many ways, all the pieces are here. The instrumentals are fascinating and often hypnotic. Malcolm Mooney is a charismatic and expressive vocalist. The lyrics are easier to make out than they would be later on, but still weird as hell. Monster Movie does not reach the cohesiveness and vision of Can's run with Mooney's successor Damo Suzuki, or attain as many moments of sublime beauty per hour, but those are hardly glaring faults. It's an embryonic record, and an absolutely worthwhile one, even when it's noodly. 3.5/5.
A: Scoundrel Days - a-ha
B: Party Mix! - The B-52’s
C: Two Airships / Exploder Falls - Candy Claws
D: Alive 2007 - Daft Punk
E: In A Major Way - E-40
F: Hex Enduction Hour - The Fall
G: Índia - Gal Costa
H: Roll Call - Hank Mobley
I: Plowing Into The Field Of Love - Iceage
J: Welcome 2 Detroit - J Dilla _________________ Join us in the canon game :) / Add me on RYM
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Mercury
LedZep
Tha1ChiefRocka
baystateoftheart
RoundTheBend
Purplepash
