Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain
by Pavement

Here is some some okay indie rock music, with more of a jangly folk-rock vibe compared with the band's debut album. Malkmus' slacker singing style isn't really for me. But instrumentally the album is pretty solid, though a bit messy for my taste, with a bit of psychedelic feel at times and country influence at others. Best: "Elevate Me Later", "Unfair", "Heaven Is a Truck" while the better known tracks didn't interest me as much.

It isn't full of great songs like their debut album, though there are some good ones. Overall it's an okay album, but I don't find anything very special about it.

From SomethingSpecial 07/01/2025 12:13 | #309832

For their second record, Pavement went for a more polished, professional sound, in contrast to the debut's lo-fi sound. The result became Pavement's best album to date, with Malkmus sounding more passionate than ever, and delivering some of the best guitar work of the decade, which would go on to inspire countless bands including Blur. And Gold Soundz remains Pavement's finest moment, and one of the greatest songs of all time.

Great album, they improved their music in every aspect here comparing to Slanted & Enchanted.

This is an improved version of Slanted & Enchanted where they have clearly refined their sound and gone away from their raw and rough roots. Some people may argue that this is a step in the wrong direction as that raw sound is what made them unique. I totally disagree with this point as the upgrade in sonic quality makes this a far more consistent and enjoyable listen. It might lose its relatability but it more than makes up for this with how enjoyable it is. It is difficult to find a weak point in this record with most tracks being at least good and some take it even further and are outstanding. These songs include Cut Your Hair, Gold Soundz and Range Life which in my opinion are 3 of their greatest ever tracks. When you pair this with the cleaner and better produced music you get a much more entertaining and engaging experience that feels cohesive and full of quality. Overall, this is an elite level album and it is slightly better than Slanted & Enchanted due to my liking of a more rich sounding release and I do believe this is the more consistent record.

From VictorVale 09/20/2022 18:52 | #289832

Jovial e ainda influente!

From Jboy56 03/11/2022 13:16 | #282735

I bet that better bands could be found even from Finland at this particular point in time. I just can't get this sound to affect my soul. I do not hate this , but I can live without this. 70/100 is well enough for this.

Buen disco

A slight notch below Slanted and Enchanted, but only slight. Its probably the apex of Pavement. In the middle of an incredible run. I saw them play a double show (early and late) in 1994. A band at the peak of their powers. Loved this album because I'm empty and you're empty too.

From sszwalbenest 08/03/2021 21:02 | #272227

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Only coming to this in 2020 - it's my cup of tea without overwhelming me across the whole album. But will return to it over time and get more familiar