The Great Revisitation Project: 2023-24 Edition - Music Diaries

Anti
I Dream of Drone

Age: 28
Location: Somewhere in Ohio

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Selected Ambient Works 85-92 by Aphex Twin

February 17, 2024

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Just when I was beginning to think this album was overrated… To be honest, I haven't listened to this album in its entirety in at least 9 years. Since then, my tastes in music have fleshed out towards the more spiritual (meaning ethereal, magical instead of religious), psychedelic, atmospheric, hypnotic and such. I do love electronic music, but my tastes skew towards the ambient, psychedelic, danceable, atmospheric, and hypnotic electronic music. I don't really like it when it's industrial or too calculated/computery. It feels too cold and mechanical for me. I need that human touch. I haven't really touched too many Aphex Twin albums since I first discovered him because my memory told me he was one of those too calculated/computery artists and I never was in the mood for it. I mean, look at his releases! There's an overt expression of computer love and fascination by the way he creates his album art, song titles, etc. Something about today made it feel right to revisit his highly acclaimed debut album, Selected Ambient Works 85-92.

Either the timing was perfect, my memory serves me wrong, or simply this is an amazing album. The most likely is all three. This album is so chill, atmospheric, and icey. "Xtal" kicks off the album so perfectly and sets expectations brilliantly. "Heliosphan" is also potently beautiful. The vast majority of tracks on here are so goddamn memorable or ear-wormy. Now that I'm a little bit more versed in music chronology, it's really cool to see how influential this album really was. I'm hearing flares of house music, Boards of Canada-esque IDM, ambient dub/techno, pure ambient, trap-y high hats, etc. It really should not come as a surprise for listeners why this album is so highly regarded by electronic music fans. Keeping in context that these tracks were crafted from 1985-1992 makes the experience even more chilly. It does drag on a bit, but the ability to extract each track and enjoy it without the context of the album makes up for it. This album deserves all the acclaim it gets.

Rating: 98/100
_________________
...and for dessert!

Repo
BeA Sunflower

Location: Forest Park

Anti wrote:

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Willie Nelson & Family by Willie Nelson

February 12, 2024

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What an underrated entry in the Willie Nelson chronology. I'll admit I haven't dug too deep into Willie Nelson's catalogue, but if you were to bring up the most talked about Willie records you typically don't see Willie Nelson & Family be mentioned. I almost didn't include it in this project because when I first heard it it was after the establishment of this project, but the weather outside matched the album cover so I felt like spinning my copy-- and WOW! What an emotional country record. The orchestral backdrop is so rich and Willie's voice cuts so deep. I love how the record sounds. Sure, the VMP pressing I have is likely contributing to the presentation, but this really is a lush record. The opener grips my heart and the emotional rollar coaster goes on from there. Seriously glad I revisited this amazing piece.

Rating: 90/100

Great rec! Love Willie, BUT, as you say, this was NOT on my radar. Perfect for a cold Saturday afternoon inside!

Anti
I Dream of Drone

Age: 28
Location: Somewhere in Ohio

Repo wrote:

Anti wrote:

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Willie Nelson & Family by Willie Nelson

February 12, 2024

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What an underrated entry in the Willie Nelson chronology. I'll admit I haven't dug too deep into Willie Nelson's catalogue, but if you were to bring up the most talked about Willie records you typically don't see Willie Nelson & Family be mentioned. I almost didn't include it in this project because when I first heard it it was after the establishment of this project, but the weather outside matched the album cover so I felt like spinning my copy-- and WOW! What an emotional country record. The orchestral backdrop is so rich and Willie's voice cuts so deep. I love how the record sounds. Sure, the VMP pressing I have is likely contributing to the presentation, but this really is a lush record. The opener grips my heart and the emotional rollar coaster goes on from there. Seriously glad I revisited this amazing piece.

Rating: 90/100

Great rec! Love Willie, BUT, as you say, this was NOT on my radar. Perfect for a cold Saturday afternoon inside!

Hey, glad you liked it! Exactly the right setting for this album Cool

_________________
...and for dessert!

Anti
I Dream of Drone

Age: 28
Location: Somewhere in Ohio

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A Love Supreme by John Coltrane

February 20, 2024

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Yes! THE jazz classic, A Love Supreme! Coltrane's masterpiece! From the initial gong to the final whispers to God after John Coltrane plays the poem found on the inner gatefold of the vinyl through his saxophone, this album is undoubtedly a classic as John Coltrane unleashes his deep spirituality to God thanking him for recovery from alcohol and drug use, love, and peace. I love Coltrane's passion from his saxophone and McCoy Tyner's angelic piano, Evlin Jones' rumbling drums and Jimmy Garrison's foundational bass. Each track is wonderful with no bad moments per se. I would say I lose a bit of my engagement during the bass solo in "Part III - Pursuance," but that's not to say the track is bad. I honestly admire Coltrane's spirituality. I wish I had even a fraction of it. I do love this record, but I think that final connection that sets an album over-the-top for me isn't there because of my own lack of spirituality. Which kind of hurts me to bring down the rating of this album, but it is ultimately a measure of my own enjoyment of the record, not an objective scale. But don't let my own problems ruin others' enjoyment of this record. I will never argue against calling this album "the greatest jazz album of all time" because Coltrane's ability to channel his inner spirituality and making it an accessible form of art without diluting his expression makes this album a masterpiece alone.

Rating: 93/100
_________________
...and for dessert!

Anti
I Dream of Drone

Age: 28
Location: Somewhere in Ohio

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Hin-Fort by Trist

February 20, 2024

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Oh boy. Revisiting a two-hour dark ambient and atmospheric black metal record. Looks like Trist is a project by one of the Lunar Aurora band members. Hin-Fort is their most recognized work under this name. It's two discs, the first disc being a 60 minute track called "Hin" and the second disc being filled with dark ambient pieces. Starting with "Hin," it begins with 15 minutes of dark ambient until a voice clip (not sure what it's from) starts talking about the darkness in space. Then, you get hit with essentially a continuous 22 minute blast beat where the guitar, hiss of drone/low fidelity, and synths all blend together into a cosmic blizzard. The easist thing to make out is the obvious synthetic drums. Another voice sample kicks in, and then more of the blast beat which is less heavy on the snare, then ending with a few minutes of very whispy atmospheric ambiance. I really like this track. I think it's hypnotic and, oddly, pretty beautiful. Eventually I got into this trance where everything in my consciousness felt like it was swirling. I almost didn't want it to end. I wonder how the project would be viewed if this track was a standalone release.

Onto disc two: the primarily dark ambient tracks. The horror flick samples are just unnecessary. It's really the only thing I don't like about the album. Some moments felt like I accidentally put on a horror movie trailer in the background without knowing. But still, there are some wonderful moments. "Unter Den Wolken" is a seriously beautiful dark ambient. The longer tracks are more drawn out, space ambient pieces which I really like minus the horror movie samples. The track ends with "Fort" which is a melancholic piano, some sobbing, followed by ocean waves crashing. This, along with the cool album art, makes it feel like this exerpience was a dream, perhaps the artistic intent. Definitely the inferior of the two discs, and it certainly was enjoyable on its own, but "Hin" is simply on another level. I am glad that I enjoyed this revisit thoroughly. I was anticipating a decline in my rating, but I feel like it's at the same level as when I initially heard it.

Rating: 92/100
_________________
...and for dessert!

Anti
I Dream of Drone

Age: 28
Location: Somewhere in Ohio

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Blonde On Blonde by Bob Dylan

February 24, 2024

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I think this album is one of those masterpieces that transcend music listening itself. I mean, everyone knows who Bob Dylan is and the album cover for Blonde on Blonde is arguably the most recognizable in his discography. You see him and this album everywhere, from posters in college kids rooms to record stores to coffee shops and restaurants... Albums just don't get to that level of omnipresence just for a cool-looking album cover and a charismatic artist. The music should back it up-- and on Blonde on Blonde, it does. Compared to the rest of Bob Dylan's discography, this album doesn't sound or feel like simply the man with his band in his recording studio. It's like Bob Dylan's visions and dreams transformed into an album. Lyrically surreal and musically diverse. This makes sense to me because Bob Dyland has been reported to say, "The closest I ever got to the sound I hear in my mind was on individual bands in the Blonde on Blonde album.” He further describes it as “that thin, that wild mercury sound — metallic and bright gold,” which is too perfect of a description. Additionally, the amalgamation of American popular music during that time, or at least my understanding of it, seems to funnel through Bob Dylan onto this album. I heard blues, country, classic folk... yet for its likely inspirations it leaves a groundbreaking mark in this history of modern music. A true masterpiece and an honest contender for my favorite album ever.

Rating: 100/100 Applause

_________________
...and for dessert!

Last edited by Anti on 02/25/2024 14:08; edited 2 times in total

Anti
I Dream of Drone

Age: 28
Location: Somewhere in Ohio

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City Of Syrup by Big Moe

February 24, 2024

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Contender for most misleading album cover (not in the purposely ironic sense). With Big Moe pouring lean over the city of Houston, you would think this would be some slow and heavy chopped and screwed release with a misanthropic feel, but this is actually a very fun pop rap album. Pop rap is a genre that I have feel fallen out of favor for as I grow older, but this album holds some value to me. I'll admit, part of it is the scarcity of physical releases, but there are some legitamately solid bangers on here. The album starts out with an interesting into (to say the least), and afterwards, the first formal song, "Barre Baby" is such an earworm. "I Wonder" is another highlight for me, where it's essentially a contemporary R&B song that is perfectly 2000s in sound. "Payin' Dues" has this tropical flare that can work for a summertime playlist. I think the closer is also very good. Some cons: it's pretty long, covering 72 minutes; some of the skits are just unnecessary, especially the longer ones; most of the guest vocalists don't really bring much to the table; and not enough chopped and screwed for a S.U.C. album. Overall, this is an awesome release.

Rating: 86/100
_________________
...and for dessert!

Anti
I Dream of Drone

Age: 28
Location: Somewhere in Ohio

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Bloweyelashwish by Lovesliescrushing

February 25, 2024

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God, I love this album so much. I get kind of jealous of all the high school and college kids who are discovering this for the first time. They have no idea of the beautiful world of music they can soon discover if they really liked this album. I mean, look at those genre tags! Shoegaze, ambient, noise, drone, dream pop, ethereal wave, post-rock... This is as Blairski of a release as it can get. This was a defining release for my tastes. I was never the same again after listening to this masterpiece.

Bloweyelashwish is a beautiful meld of shoegaze and ambient music. It's so transcendental and ethereal in sound that my insides bursts with bright and colorful light. Side note, when I was in college, the top floor of my library had a beautiful wooden ceiling and the outter walls were all windows. Listening to this album on a bright winter's morning with snow on the ground reflecting and amplifying the brightness in the room naturally was a sober euphoric experience. Anyways, I love the lush noise sound. It's so soothing to my ears. This album was mothered by the cassette format and Scott Cortez certainly used it to his advantage to create incredible lush soundscapes. Even the plucking of pianos (you gotta listen to it to know what I'm talking about) under this low fidelity sounds so good. I love both vocalists and their ethereal voices. It's hard to pick out a standout track because I do enjoy all of them, but "crushing" is the closest thing to literal ascension that I have ever heard. Bloweyelashwish is a perfect piece of art that wonderfully marries into experimental noise. One day I hope to catch a cassette copy of this masterpiece to hear it in the format it may have been intended for.

Rating: 100/100 Applause

_________________
...and for dessert!

Anti
I Dream of Drone

Age: 28
Location: Somewhere in Ohio

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Alcachofa by Villalobos

February 25, 2024

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Easy Lee…

There is a type of magic with this type of techno that I have a hard time describing. "Organic" can be one way, but not in an earthly or environmental sense. It's more of a "I forget that these sounds were made by electronic instruments or computers" type of "organic." And, yes, this is a minimal techno record, but sometimes I think of the wrong idea with the word "minimal." I get so fixated on the "minimal" aspect, as if it's impossible for the album to sound enveloping. However, Alcachofa, definitely can consume the room if you're playing it on speakers. This album mutates and flourishes. It's like cellular growth. What limits my enjoyment is that it does get kind of annoying towards the end of its 77 minute duration (or even longer depending on what version you are listening to). It starts off so nice with "Easy Lee," but by the time "Dexter" is over I kind of want it to end. There's a lot of good to make up for it, though.

Rating: 81/100
_________________
...and for dessert!

Anti
I Dream of Drone

Age: 28
Location: Somewhere in Ohio

Quick update: I didn't forget about this project on BEA. March was a really busy month for me at work and when I got home I just wasn't in the mood for revisiting music (not in a bad mood, just would rather watch a movie with my gf or play video games with my friends or read the Dune series). Also, I was on vacation which I did revisit a series of albums which I will post now, but their write ups took a bit to compose since I wasn't actively on my computer. The project is still going, I promise! I appreciate the kind comments that have been made so far!
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...and for dessert!