Love or Hate?

Trollheart · 12-01-2015, 12:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TechnicLePanther

It's not yet midnight in the US, and therefore I believe I should be allowed to throw one more at you.

Blur - Parklife

And you know what, if you've heard it, I'll be fine with being cut off. If you haven't, you gotta give this a try. It's one of the finest albums to ever come from your side of the pond.

Sorry, as with all things it's Irish time I go by and you are past the deadline.

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Batlord

Am I too late?

Top Dog - Slam Dunk'n Hoes

You are indeed. That is one hilarious cover though!

TechnicLePanther · 12-01-2015, 03:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trollheart

Sorry, as with all things it's Irish time I go by and you are past the deadline.

Trollheart · 12-02-2015, 06:11 PM

Title: Strawberry Jam
Artiste: Animal Collective
Genre: Rock
Familiarity: Heard Merriweather Post Pavilion --- it was okay but nothing great
Recommended by: Frownland

1. Peacebone: Kind of reminds me of ELO's “Mr. Blue Sky” with the beat. Very bouncy with some sort of growling effect. Bit annoying if I'm honest.
2. Unsolved mysteries: This one's a little better but I'm still not that fond of it.
3. Chores: This is really annoying
4. For Reverend Green: A little better, but I just don't really hear anything here that makes me sit up and take notice. Sort of a carnival rhythm here, but the shouted then screamed vocal does nothing for me.
5. Fireworks: It's boppy and uptempo, but meh. Cheerful sure.
6. #1: Like the very prog keyboards, not impressed with the vocal though. Still, best of a bad lot so far.
7. Winter wonderland: And back to the crappy tracks.
8. Cuckoo cuckoo: Little better, but only a little. Still don't like it, but I don't not like it (

) as much as the other tracks. If you know what I mean.
9. Derek: Yeah it's all right but I'm past caring now.

End result: I just didn't feel it. The same as when I listened to the other album for my now-defunct A-Z Review thread. Just don't see what the big deal is. I don't like his vocals, not mad about the music, and none of these songs are likely to remain in my head for more than a few minutes after I move on to my next album.

So, Love or Hate? This is a Meh all day long.

The Batlord · 12-02-2015, 06:28 PM

Man, even my myopic, metalhead ass is disturbed by your lack of love for Animal Collective.

Machine · 12-02-2015, 11:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Batlord

Man, even my myopic, metalhead ass is disturbed by your lack of love for Animal Collective.

I kinda on the same boat as TH about AnCo from what I've heard. Just kind of boring indie rock/pop/electronic as far as I'm concerned.

Josef K · 12-02-2015, 11:04 PM

I think "For Reverend Green" is a really solid song, but yeah I don't like AnCo either. Some of their early stuff is sort of fun though, and I like Panda Bear a lot solo (although the latest album was meh).

Trollheart · 12-03-2015, 06:14 AM

It's not that I didn't enjoy it on its own merits. I mean, it's an ok album. I just don't see the love so many of you guys have for it. It's like MBV: you hear so much about them and you're all hyped up, and then you play Loveless and it's like, "Dude... what...?"

I could play you a Chris Rea, Deacon Blue or Prefab Sprout album and you would probably say "Boring ****" or somesuch. And I would wonder why you couldn't hear what I am hearing over the years with those artistes. Same with AC. Just doesn't click with me.

And that shouldn't be taken to mean I have anything against animals, by the way...

Trollheart · 12-05-2015, 05:30 AM

Title: Voyageurs de l'Aube
Artiste: Catuvolcus
Genre: Folk/Black Metal
Familiarity: Zero

1. Voyageurs des Brumes, Part I: Only four tracks, eh? Well on three of them the lyrics are all in French so I can't comment on what's being sung, but apparently this band tends to focus on historical themes, French presumably. Good bouncy start anyway, standard scratchy vocal, though the backing vocals/vocal harmonies are pretty sweet. Good powerful rocker, good start.
2. Voyageurs des Brumes, Part II: Slower, more a warrior's chorus here, or if you like, more folk metal whereas the previous track was more in the black metal vein I feel. Picks up after a few minutes, gets into a real rolling, swaying rhythm. Stirring! Some lovely violin there at the end, melding with the sound of the sea gives a real Viking idea.
3. Ressacs de l'ame: I love the guitar that kicks this off. So evocative. When it gets going it really hammers along. Very powerful and dramatic. Really expressive guitar then in the eighth minute (Spanish/Classical?) before it all takes off again for the big finish. Superb solo there at the end; kind of more an outro almost.
4. Thrill of the struggle: The only one in English, and it's a cover, but just as good as anything else that has gone before on this album, and that's quite a compliment.

End result: Loved this album. The sort of thing I would usually discover during Metal Month. No complaints whatever. Excellent.

So, Love or Hate? Definite Love.

Trollheart · 12-05-2015, 05:32 AM

Title: No No No
Artiste: Beirut
Genre: Indie Rock
Familiarity: Zero

1. Gibraltar: Ooh I like the soft cushioned drum intro. And the almost soul piano. Vocal reminds me of Phil Oakey. Kind of uplifting in a low-key way. Liked that a lot.
2. No no no: This is very pleasant too, quite uptempo with some cool horns (?)
3. At once: Slow piano ballad. Lovely. Is that trumpet?
4. August Holland: Lovely boppy piano in this
5. As needed: Is this an instrumental? Really nice. Accordion? Meh, probably synth. Nice though. Oh no wait: I see it is accordion. Cool.
6. Perth: This has somehow a real feel of island music about it. Very funky.
7. Pachecho: This one's quite laidback with a lovely Fender Rhodes line (I think)
8. Fener: Ah this is really nice too. Like the way it goes into a bit of a shuffle halfway with some cute organ which reminds me of ... something, I don't know.
9. So allowed: Very Divine Comedy feel to this. Nice sort of mid-paced with a soft swing to it and some fine cello.

End result: I wouldn't, in fairness, say it left the biggest impression on me, but I pretty much enjoyed everything I heard on this album. The vocal was very distinctive and I liked the slight mixture of styles on it.

So, Love or Hate? Would have to be a Love.

The Batlord · 12-05-2015, 11:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trollheart

Important note: Apparently there's a limit on how much text I can put into a post (did not know that) so I would have been unable to add to the list as it was. I had therefore to delete all the spoilered albums, but I will reset them in another post, or even a separate thread. I'm thinking about how to do it. For now, here is the current list, completely updated. If I've missed anyone out, let me know as this took a lot of searching, checking and rechecking and I may very well have missed one or two along the way.

You could always steal my idea of the index for Unknown Soldier's journal (I really gotta update that thing).

12-02-2015, 06:11 PM	#2233 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,994	Title: Strawberry Jam Artiste: Animal Collective Genre: Rock Familiarity: Heard Merriweather Post Pavilion --- it was okay but nothing great Recommended by: Frownland 1. Peacebone: Kind of reminds me of ELO's “Mr. Blue Sky” with the beat. Very bouncy with some sort of growling effect. Bit annoying if I'm honest. 2. Unsolved mysteries: This one's a little better but I'm still not that fond of it. 3. Chores: This is really annoying 4. For Reverend Green: A little better, but I just don't really hear anything here that makes me sit up and take notice. Sort of a carnival rhythm here, but the shouted then screamed vocal does nothing for me. 5. Fireworks: It's boppy and uptempo, but meh. Cheerful sure. 6. #1: Like the very prog keyboards, not impressed with the vocal though. Still, best of a bad lot so far. 7. Winter wonderland: And back to the crappy tracks. 8. Cuckoo cuckoo: Little better, but only a little. Still don't like it, but I don't not like it () as much as the other tracks. If you know what I mean. 9. Derek: Yeah it's all right but I'm past caring now. End result: I just didn't feel it. The same as when I listened to the other album for my now-defunct A-Z Review thread. Just don't see what the big deal is. I don't like his vocals, not mad about the music, and none of these songs are likely to remain in my head for more than a few minutes after I move on to my next album. So, Love or Hate? This is a Meh all day long. __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

12-03-2015, 06:14 AM	#2237 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,994	It's not that I didn't enjoy it on its own merits. I mean, it's an ok album. I just don't see the love so many of you guys have for it. It's like MBV: you hear so much about them and you're all hyped up, and then you play Loveless and it's like, "Dude... what...?" I could play you a Chris Rea, Deacon Blue or Prefab Sprout album and you would probably say "Boring ***" or somesuch. And I would wonder why you couldn't hear what I am hearing over the years with those artistes. Same with AC. Just doesn't click with me. And that shouldn't be taken to mean I have anything against animals, by the way... __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018*

12-05-2015, 05:30 AM	#2238 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,994	Title: Voyageurs de l'Aube Artiste: Catuvolcus Genre: Folk/Black Metal Familiarity: Zero 1. Voyageurs des Brumes, Part I: Only four tracks, eh? Well on three of them the lyrics are all in French so I can't comment on what's being sung, but apparently this band tends to focus on historical themes, French presumably. Good bouncy start anyway, standard scratchy vocal, though the backing vocals/vocal harmonies are pretty sweet. Good powerful rocker, good start. 2. Voyageurs des Brumes, Part II: Slower, more a warrior's chorus here, or if you like, more folk metal whereas the previous track was more in the black metal vein I feel. Picks up after a few minutes, gets into a real rolling, swaying rhythm. Stirring! Some lovely violin there at the end, melding with the sound of the sea gives a real Viking idea. 3. Ressacs de l'ame: I love the guitar that kicks this off. So evocative. When it gets going it really hammers along. Very powerful and dramatic. Really expressive guitar then in the eighth minute (Spanish/Classical?) before it all takes off again for the big finish. Superb solo there at the end; kind of more an outro almost. 4. Thrill of the struggle: The only one in English, and it's a cover, but just as good as anything else that has gone before on this album, and that's quite a compliment. End result: Loved this album. The sort of thing I would usually discover during Metal Month. No complaints whatever. Excellent. So, Love or Hate? Definite Love. __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

12-05-2015, 05:32 AM	#2239 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,994	Title: No No No Artiste: Beirut Genre: Indie Rock Familiarity: Zero 1. Gibraltar: Ooh I like the soft cushioned drum intro. And the almost soul piano. Vocal reminds me of Phil Oakey. Kind of uplifting in a low-key way. Liked that a lot. 2. No no no: This is very pleasant too, quite uptempo with some cool horns (?) 3. At once: Slow piano ballad. Lovely. Is that trumpet? 4. August Holland: Lovely boppy piano in this 5. As needed: Is this an instrumental? Really nice. Accordion? Meh, probably synth. Nice though. Oh no wait: I see it is accordion. Cool. 6. Perth: This has somehow a real feel of island music about it. Very funky. 7. Pachecho: This one's quite laidback with a lovely Fender Rhodes line (I think) 8. Fener: Ah this is really nice too. Like the way it goes into a bit of a shuffle halfway with some cute organ which reminds me of ... something, I don't know. 9. So allowed: Very Divine Comedy feel to this. Nice sort of mid-paced with a soft swing to it and some fine cello. End result: I wouldn't, in fairness, say it left the biggest impression on me, but I pretty much enjoyed everything I heard on this album. The vocal was very distinctive and I liked the slight mixture of styles on it. So, Love or Hate? Would have to be a Love. __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

12-02-2015, 11:04 PM	#2236 (permalink)
Josef K A Jew on a motorbike! Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 800	I think "For Reverend Green" is a really solid song, but yeah I don't like AnCo either. Some of their early stuff is sort of fun though, and I like Panda Bear a lot solo (although the latest album was meh).