neepheid Posted February 4, 2015 Report Share Posted February 4, 2015 Brian McGee - Ruin Creek I do not favour the one person and a guitar thing, it's too sparse. I enjoyed the bits when there was a lady singing with the guy and maybe a tambourine or harmonica thrown in there better (simply because there was more going on), but it's still not something I'd seek out and listen to - I always just find myself wanting more to happen. Some of the songs seemed to have good lyrics going on. He's got a decent voice until he stretches it too far and then it breaks down. At least there wasn't any of the fucking cha-cha-cha last chord thing that so many one person and a guitar acts do - that really hacks me off. Marco Benevento - Swift I found this pleasant listening, widescreen sound, all lush, spacious and that. Happy without going as far as being cheesy. As some commentators have said, I hear little snippets of things I've heard before, I think I heard organ (mellotron-y?) sounds during "The Saint" and "No One is to Blame" which mixed with piano could easily have appeared on an early 70s Genesis album. Anyway, before I get pummelled for that comment, I just say that I enjoyed this as an overall kind of thing. Nothing leaps out specifically, it's just kinda good all the way through. Honeyblood - Honeyblood I thought I'd like this more than I did. It's not awful by any means, but it's not exactly lighting a fire under me either. It just lacks a bit of get up and go for me. A kind of a weird, detached feel about it that is probably trying to be aloof but it ends up being a little alienating to me. Not too jazzed with the production either - it's a bit of a wash when the guitars are going at it, better in the quieter moments. After I listened to this, I went and listened to some Breeders. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TR!ΔNGL€ T€€TH Posted February 4, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 4, 2015 Okay, so the selections were:Girl Anachronism - Brian McGeeCa_Gere - Marco BeneventoKirsten - Honeyblood Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TR!ΔNGL€ T€€TH Posted February 5, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 5, 2015 Next albums are - Dean Blunt - Black MetalAriel Pink - Pom PomThe Decemberists - What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paranoid Android Posted February 5, 2015 Report Share Posted February 5, 2015 The most familiar selections yet. I've heard Pom Pom a couple of times and I'm on the fence so listening again will be interesting. I was a big fan of one Decemberists album back in the day, the one with 16 military wives on it. I'm not confident of liking a new album by them but we'll see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TR!ΔNGL€ T€€TH Posted February 9, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2015 How is everyone getting on with this weeks selections? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lemonade Posted February 9, 2015 Report Share Posted February 9, 2015 I haven't had much of a chance to listen to them yet, do we have until the weekend? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Milner Posted February 9, 2015 Report Share Posted February 9, 2015 How is everyone getting on with this weeks selections? I had a busy weekend but ill be on this during the week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bathroom_laughter Posted February 9, 2015 Report Share Posted February 9, 2015 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paranoid Android Posted February 10, 2015 Report Share Posted February 10, 2015 How is everyone getting on with this weeks selections?I still need to listen to one, when are we aiming to post reviews? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TR!ΔNGL€ T€€TH Posted February 10, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 10, 2015 Reviews by Thursday, that would be a week to listen to all the albums. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirsten Posted February 10, 2015 Report Share Posted February 10, 2015 You're a loose cannon, Showbiz. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lemonade Posted February 10, 2015 Report Share Posted February 10, 2015 I wish people would stop changing their names. It's so confusing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ca_gere Posted February 10, 2015 Report Share Posted February 10, 2015 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stroopy121 Posted February 11, 2015 Report Share Posted February 11, 2015 Dean Blunt - Black Metal This record made me understand why some people hate the Pixies (even though I love them). It's just a really fucking weird, semi-pop album that manages to meander aimlessly but also feel repetitive. It felt like "experimental" music where the artist had no direction, no message and no point. But - that could be because I missed the point, obviously. Ca Gere seems to have looked into this way more than me, I just thought it was a successful attempt to break the mould, but also a failed attempt to make a good record. Ariel Pink - Pom Pom Twee is a great way to describe this - it's twee, a bit glam, a bit pop, a bit shit, but I really enjoyed it. There were some subtle dark undertones that hinted at some hidden depth, at points it almost felt like David Bowie meets Marilyn Manson. I really quite liked this, but getting through the whole record in one sitting was a tough shift. I'd listen to an EP or a short record, but a full-length is just a little too much. The Decemberists - What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World Good indie-pop songs, well written, well performed, just an ultimately forgettable album in my opinion. There are hints of orchestral sections in there which could have made it much more interesting.. but just not quite. Almost good, but not quite enough my cup of tea stylistically the type of thing I gravitate towards to be really enjoyable. My guesses:ColbParanoid AndroidNeepheid xx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TR!ΔNGL€ T€€TH Posted February 11, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 11, 2015 Dean Blunt - Black MetalThis record is odd, and that can either be a good or bad thing. Everything in fact is quite strange, the vocals, the empty production, the songs! The album certainly grows on you with repeated plays. The whole album sort of propels itself with minimal beats, instrumentals and sleepy backing vocals. It can kind of reminds me of that guy who put adverts on the end of his songs and sang about Kurt Cobain. He is dead now. 3/5 Ariel Pink - Pom PomOne of the worst things that I have ever heard, it made me angry listening to it. Just infuriating listening, a bunch of half arsed ideas cobbled together as some kind of injoke. THE WORST. 0/5 The Decemberists - What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful WorldI was expecting this record to be okay at best and I'm not sure why. I had kind of gone off of them, inspite of their last record being pretty good. Maybe I listen to an awful lot of indie rock. Anyway, I like this record, there are some solid jams on here, the standout track being "Make You Better". They haven't done anything new here, but I would say that they do "The Decemberists" better than anyone else. Hunners of hooks and harmonies all over the shop. If you hadn't heard them before, I would recommend "Picaresque" before this one. 3.5/5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soda Jerk Posted February 11, 2015 Report Share Posted February 11, 2015 (edited) Dean Blunt - Black MetalI wasn't able to listen to this from start to finish without skipping bits when I got bored of a particular track, which was quite a lot. For me, it was a collection of songs that don't really go anywhere. Nothing grabbed me. Some of the instrumentation was nice I suppose, but the vocals always sounded so out of place. The vocals themselves just sounded really grating to me throughout. This was definitely not the record for me. 1 outta 5. Ariel Pink- Pom PomI have to agree with Jan. I gave it one and a half chances. I still don't understand what it is I have heard. It got shut off a few tracks into the 2nd play through. Zero. The Decemberists - What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful WorldPleasant enough to not make me want to turn it off at any point, like the two records above, but I've always found the Decemberists incredibly forgettable. Even with all the instrumentation, at it's core it's very acoustic guitar driven, and I tend to gravitate far away from acoustic stuff these days. It just doesn't do anything for me. Some nice vocal melodies, but I wouldn't go out of my way to listen to this or any of their other records again. 2 outta 5. Not a good round for me and my earholes. Edited February 11, 2015 by Soda van Jerk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
girl anachronism Posted February 11, 2015 Report Share Posted February 11, 2015 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Owl PhD Posted February 11, 2015 Report Share Posted February 11, 2015 Thought I should maybe join in with this, though I've certainly listened to one of these records a lot more times than the other two. Dean Blunt - Black Metal Interesting to read other people's opinions on this and I must admit to generally sort of agreeing with a lot of them. Blunt has been involved in making some of my favourite music of the last five years. His last album 'The Redeemer' was one of my favourites of 2013 and much of the stuff he did with Inga Copeland as 'Hype Williams' is pretty incredible. This album has some great moments, is characteristically bewildering and in certain respects is fairly obviously 'bad' in that Blunt is not really a very good singer and the musicianship isn't always that good. I find the album a bit too incoherent though and I don't think any of the individual tracks are as outstanding as the best tracks on most of his other albums. This isn't what I'd give people if I wanted to introduce anyone to Blunt's work. Even as a fan, despite listening to this lots of times in the last couple of months, I don't really feel like I've properly got into it. One good thing about the album is the developing presence of Joanne Robertson, who does backing vocals and I suspect plays most of the guitar. I like her voice and hope she features more prominently on Blunt's future work. 7/10 Ariel Pink- Pom Pom This is the first Ariel Pink album I've listened to from start to finish. I've sometimes quite liked bits I've heard by him but have always been a bit prejudiced against him since seeing be a complete tool when he played at the Tunnels several years ago. I was intrigued to see if this album is as bad as others say it is. I actually quite liked a few bits - sometimes fragments of songs and sometimes whole tracks. It sort of teeters on the edge of awfulness a lot of the time, which is not necessarily a bad thing, but it does, I have to say, stray over the edge on occasions. I guess Ariel Pink is known for doing music that sounds like it's what you might hear dialling through various radio stations in the late 1970s. This seemed to me mpre like stumbling over the soundtrack of some sort of weird retro soft porn musical. That's maybe an okay idea but the results aren't on the whole what I'd want to listen to for pleasure. I found it mostly uninvolving and a bit irritating, despite the occasional good bit. In the end I tend to think a band like Ween did this kind of slightly tongue in cheek take on retro pop and rock much better. 5/10 The Decemberists - What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World I'd never listened to a whole album by this band either. It's relentlessly competent and I certainly quite liked a few tracks. In some ways this is quite close to a lot of things I really enjoy but I don't find the guy's voice particularly affecting and that means I can take or leave a lot it. It sounds very much like an album by a band who know how to do what they do going out and doing it. This is fine but, even with bands I really like, I usually want to see a bit more adventure and something new. I get the feeling they're not really taking many risks with this album. 6/10 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TR!ΔNGL€ T€€TH Posted February 12, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 12, 2015 Any more reviews, or should I get the next batch of albums sorted? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paranoid Android Posted February 12, 2015 Report Share Posted February 12, 2015 I will try and review tonight Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
girl anachronism Posted February 12, 2015 Report Share Posted February 12, 2015 I'll review today also Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colb Posted February 12, 2015 Report Share Posted February 12, 2015 Mine will be tomorrow/Saturday - apologies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murrr Posted February 12, 2015 Report Share Posted February 12, 2015 My reviews are WIP, but should be completed soon. It's been a particularly laborious week of listening. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ca_gere Posted February 12, 2015 Report Share Posted February 12, 2015 (edited) This week was a bit grim (no offense to those who picked the music). Really had to force myself to listen to all three. Edited February 12, 2015 by ca_gere Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neepheid Posted February 12, 2015 Report Share Posted February 12, 2015 Dean Blunt - Black Metal I found this hard work to be honest. I was on a bus at the time and in hindsight a snooze probably would have served me better than listening to this. A bleak sparseness to it all, glitchy electronica in the background which seems perpendicular to the whole thing. The vocals bugged me in particular, a particularly bad combination of low register and lack of adherence to a tune which grated with me a bit. I didn't enjoy it much, it's not that any of it seemed lazy either, there's clearly been effort and thought put into it, but it was wasted on me I'm afraid. Ariel Pink- Pom Pom The first time I listened to this I was rather bewildered by it all. What kind of record IS this? What does it want to be? Does it even know? One thing's for sure in my estimation - it's too long. I think it would have benefited from excising some of the wackier interludes, evening it out a little and making it a little less WTF. All the same, I mostly enjoyed the ride, it seems to inhabit the kind of weird world that my mind does frequent from time to time, albeit after consuming ten too many cans of Red Bull. It seems to be a nod to so many things, as if someone had assembled all their heroes and influences in a room then ran around said room high fiving them all for an hour. It is absurd, it is preposterous, but for all that it seems to revel in it and I can't help but raise a smile about that. Use sparingly though - the only reason I don't have diabetes after listening to this is that I suspect it's more saccharine than sugar. The Decemberists - What a Terrible World, What a Beautiful World A pleasant listen. I enjoyed how the opening track built up from almost nothing to a full on guitar/choir/strings thing. Then moving onto a brass driven thing which had me thinking back to some Boo Radleys stuff. Then piano pops up in track 4 to drive things along. Better Not Wake the Baby made me smile, here's the banjo. Later on there's a moothie. It's almost like a tour of instruments. That's principally what I took from it, that and it being very polished and professional sounding. I'd give it another listen, yeah. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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