Listed below are the best albums of the 2020s (so far) as calculated from their overall rankings in over 58,000 greatest album charts. (Chart last updated: 5 hours ago).
"60 to 70/100 (This is a very impressive collection of many cool individual ideas and songs of distinct type that somehow never forms into a very cohesive whole. Still, some really cool songs and really interesting mix of styles, just somehow the whole is less than the sum of its parts - or howeve...""60 to 70/100 (This is a very impressive collection of many cool individual ideas and songs of distinct type that somehow never forms into a very cohesive whole. Still, some really cool songs and really interesting mix of styles, just somehow the whole is less than the sum of its parts - or however that saying goes.)
Weird stuff. Why, you ask? Well, I've listened 3 times, and yet I still can't put my finger on why I kind of like this album but mostly am indifferent. After their 2018 debut which wasn't amazing but definitely had a certain fire and certain grit that I quite liked, I was looking forward to this album to more-or-less high degree. And I was hoping for a couple things: That theyd develop more and experiemnt with new sounds and that they would find their own identity or de=istinct somethingness that would be all their own. They acheived the first thing - this album is a massive expansion in sound and muscianship. They tackle so many genres, elements of Baroque pop, electronica kinda stuff, art pop, subtly psychedelic stuff, stronger melodies, and a really beauitiful array of moments and modes. BUT the second thing I was hoping for was not at all achieved to my ears. I don't think they have formed an identity all their own at all. I think they went backward in that regard. Despite this album having many moments of inspired songcraft and beautiful sounds, none of the moments and songs are fully fleshed out or particularly memorable. They seem to have thrown many good ideas out onto one slightly overlong album without taking the time to weave all the elements and sounds together.
So, while I think songs like "Badibaba", "Anxiety Feels", "Pest", "Bang" and Where Do We Go?" are all quite good, they are lost in a set of other less good (but still solid) songs that each go in such different directions and none of those directions are followed very far before they turn around and then wander a few feet down another path and then turn around, etc etc, you get the metaphor I hope.
The album is good, its fine. Its got the individual elements (the lyrics, the vocals, the harmonies and bass playing and vocals etc) to make a really fucking awesome album. Somehow though none of these parts coalesce with the others and we have here a good but pretty forgettable indie rock/art pop/neo-psychedelia gumbo of fair-to-good."[+]Reply
"(This is an album wrapped up in the death of David Balfe's best friend. It explores beautifully all the angles of that grief, and all the memories David wants to reminiscence about with his friend. It's about dealing with grief, and trying to move on. Musically it's Spoken Word Poetry, House, Art...""(This is an album wrapped up in the death of David Balfe's best friend. It explores beautifully all the angles of that grief, and all the memories David wants to reminiscence about with his friend. It's about dealing with grief, and trying to move on. Musically it's Spoken Word Poetry, House, Art Pop and some other elements. This is a great album.)
This music is not usually my style. But its so heartfelt and so powerfully presented here that I fell under its sad and grief-filled and existential spell rather rapidly. It's a good album that can make me reminisce and feel newly the joys of friends now gone. And it is rare that an album makes me recollect the ones I loved and love now and want to call and reach out to them immediately. This album did that for me. The Poetry is good, the messages are harsh and real and relatable and brutal, and the tracks themselves, while nothing revolutionary or overwhelmingly brilliant, are tinged with such a beautiful and deep sadness. The samples and vocal snippets are excellent.
The genre tags are spoken word and progressive house with some elements of Hip Hop and Art Pop and sound collage. And that is a good enough description I suppose. It's all those things. But, more than that, this is a cohesive album all about the time the artist spent with his best friend and the feelings of loss from his death and his questions of where to go and what to do after the tragedy. It's about getting old, it's about what it means to be young and carefree. It's about a lot of things and consistently these themes are explored and fleshed out gorgeously. "[+]Reply
""Unearth Unreal” has a few things going for it. Hozier is a technically talented vocalist. The lyrics are well written. The ones in Gaelic are a particular nice touch. As the album unfolds, all these qualities are overwhelmed. Hozier’s performance becomes overwrought with him carrying his vocals ..."""Unearth Unreal” has a few things going for it. Hozier is a technically talented vocalist. The lyrics are well written. The ones in Gaelic are a particular nice touch. As the album unfolds, all these qualities are overwhelmed. Hozier’s performance becomes overwrought with him carrying his vocals like a chorus kid showing off. It bogs down any of the emotion root from the songs. The song writing becomes obsessed with writing about a relationship not working out. Each time it is brought up it’s less interesting than the last. The production alternates between dim acoustic backings and tacky gospel splatterings. The energy begins to take on that of a 90’s movie credit song desperately trying to hammer in the message. A good foundation built into an ugly house. "[+]Reply
"Ok honestly I wasn't crazy about the singles at first but as a whole I'm really enjoying the album. Surprised me cuz I thought I was just gonna be like meh.. but it's actually pretty cool."Reply
"Compared to the EPs and singles that they released in the four years prior to this, it is a bit of a disappointment. I adored everything they did up until this album, I hadn't been as excited about a new band in a long time. The sound doesn't quite have the same magic of those first songs they wr...""Compared to the EPs and singles that they released in the four years prior to this, it is a bit of a disappointment. I adored everything they did up until this album, I hadn't been as excited about a new band in a long time. The sound doesn't quite have the same magic of those first songs they wrote. Just a shame that they didn't save some of their earlier stuff for an album because if they had done that it probably would be my #1 favourite album of all time. But it's still good stuff - In My Head and Nightmares are my favourites on this album"[+]Reply