Trollheart Listens to Every Album on Wiki's List for 2017

Paedantic Basterd · 12-15-2017, 12:28 PM

Side note, slow, quiet Sufjan is my favourite Sufjan.

Trollheart · 12-15-2017, 01:17 PM

Album title: From Deewee
Artist: Soulwax
Genre: Synthpop
Nationality: Belgian
Release date: March 24
Position in Discography: Eighth
Fear Factor: Low
Familiar with this artist? No
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? No
Average RYM Score: 3.06
Ever heard of a metal musician playing on a pop album before? I guess it probably happens, but I feel it's really odd to see Igor Cavalera, drummer with Brazilian thrash metal merchants Sepultura occupying the drumseat for an album by a synthpop band from Belgium, but here we are. Sounds very Alan Parsons Project when it kicks off with a shortish instrumental, and you can certainly hear Cavalera's drumming on “Missing Wires”, at least I assume it's him. Certainly heavy, and slightly out of phase with the synthy, electronic nature of most of the rest of the music. I must admit, “Conditions of a Shared Belief” gets a little on my nerves. It seems to go on forever, though in reality it only runs for just over three minutes – feels like at least twice that. With three different drummers taking part on this album it's not that surprising that you'll have tracks devoted to, or almost devoted to, percussion, and “Is It Always Binary” is one of these. As a consequence, to me anyway it's quite boring and comes across as real filler material. In fact, there's nothing here I can really point to as catching my attention or standing out.

Hard to imagine anything with either of the Cavalera brothers being boring, but Christ this is. I've yet to hear anything that even shakes me out of falling to sleep, and we're now eight tracks into a twelve-track album, and this nextone is over six minutes long. I'm not sure I'm going to last. Okay, “Trespassers” wasn't terrible, but now we're on another drum solo. Who the hell wants to hear that? Well, not me anyway. Ah well; two tracks left after this. Looks like I will last after all. I did, but man was that boring. Not in a Mount Eerie “save me from this self-indulgent crap” kind of way (perhaps should rethink his band name to Mount Dreary?) but just stultifyingly boring. This is the kind of thing that give synthpop a bad name. Pass.

Check out more from this artist? Absolutely not
Check out more from this genre or subgenre? Yeah

Expectation Index: 8

Trollheart · 12-15-2017, 03:46 PM

Album title: Doris and the Daggers
Artist: Spiral Stairs
Genre: Indie Rock
Nationality: American
Release date: March 24
Position in Discography: Second solo
Fear Factor: Moderate
Familiar with this artist? No
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? No
Average RYM Score: 2.92
Apparently, Spiral Stairs is the pseudonym of Christopher Scott Kannberg , founder member of Pavement, and this is his second solo album. Starts off well enough, good rocky and catchy tune, but so far I'd say it's good but not particularly interesting. Nothing wrong with it but nothing standing out as such. Sax on “The Unconditional” is at least something different, song kind of reminds me of The Beautiful South and it's a nice one about the birth of his daughter. Interesting: since the horns came in (haven't been in any song since the opener) this has got a lot more energy and life, and thus I'm more engaged with it now. “Trams (Stole My Love)” is a great song, while “Exiled Tonight” is another rocker and the violin in “Angel Eyes” is just beautiful and really lends the song something. Maybe I just wasn't paying attention earlier, as either this has got a whole lot better, or else it already was good and I didn't realise it. Fair bit of Waterboys in here too, now that I really listen. Ending strongly certainly.

Check out more from this artist? I might
Check out more from this genre or subgenre? Yes

Expectation Index: 6

Trollheart · 12-15-2017, 06:19 PM

Album title: The Night Siren
Artist: Steve Hackett
Genre: Progressive Rock
Nationality: English
Release date: March 24
Position in Discography: Twenty-fifth solo
Fear Factor: Very Low
Familiar with this artist? Very
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? Extremely
Average RYM Score: 3.44
Those who know me will assume this album to be a shoe-in for a ten rating, but don't be so sure. The thing about Steve Hackett is, that though he was a part of Genesis for most of what is generally acknowledged as their golden era – the early to mid seventies – he is first and foremost a classical guitarist, and while that's great, sometimes it can be quite boring to listen to unless you too are a guitarist, and I'm not. Personally, I've liked a lot of Hackett's solo stuff but loathed a lot too. For my money, he's best when he does prog rock – that beautifully simple instrumental “Horizons” on Foxtrot, just before the epic “Supper's Ready”, the intro to “Blood on the Rooftops” off Wind and Wuthering, the simple backing tune to “For Absent Friends” on Nursery Cryme – these are the pieces I admire him for. But far be it from me not to want anyone to spread their musical wings, I just may not wish to accompany him on that journey.

So I hope I will love this album, or at least like it, but there's no real guarantee that I will. Well at least there are vocals on the first track, though I expect some instrumentals. Heavier than expected, real “Kashmir” kind of sound, some really nice classical piano here too, very epic track to kick off with, then “Martian Sea” is more straight prog rock, with a very catchy chorus (that could be a single). Lot of sitar on this as well as flutes, and it also features Spock's Beard's Nick D'Virgilio on drums. A very Alan Parsons sound to “Fifty Miles From the North Pole”, and a nice choir too. Then we get the first instrumental, but it's heavier than expected and quite epic.

Hmm. “Anything But Love” opens on a flamenco guitar then becomes some sort of AOR thing, quite Kansas-like with a smidgeon of that riff from “Don't Fear the Reaper” too. More APP in “Inca Terra”, which then develops into some sort of East European folk thing with almost Beach Boys harmonies. Certainly an album of varied styles; not sure I would categorise it purely as prog rock, or even as such at all. To be honest, it may in fact be this which is turning me in the direction of, not hating or even not liking the album, but not loving it. I think maybe Hackett is trying too hard here, and it's coming across as overcomplicated and a little indulgent. No, that's not fair: a lot indulgent. This seems to be becoming a real “Look at me! I'm Peter Gabriel/Paul Simon/Add World Music Artist Here all rolled into one!” Yeah. Stick to the guitar, Steve, huh?

Troy Donockley's uileann pipes add real feel to “In Another Life”, as they always do when the Nightwish man is involved in anything, but I am getting increasingly bored now and kind of can't wait for the album to end. This is what I was afraid of. More “Kashmir” for what appears to be the single chosen for release, “In the Skeleton Gallery”, which really reminds me of something apart from the Zep classic, though I kind of don't really care now. The album ends strongly, but it's been something of a confusing disappointment.

Check out more from this artist? I'm sure I will over the course of time
Check out more from this genre or subgenre? Always (assuming we're talking here about prog rock, which this really isn't)

Expectation Index: 8

Trollheart · 12-16-2017, 10:39 AM

Album title: Wonderland
Artist: Take That
Genre: Pop
Nationality: English
Release date: March 24
Position in Discography: Eighth
Fear Factor: Moderate
Familiar with this artist? Yeah
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? A little
Average RYM Score: 1.90 (ah jeez, lads!)

Although I traditionally hate boybands, I gained something more of a sense of grudging respect for Take That when I dived into the world of sugary pop in my article Stranger in a Strange Land, some years ago in my journal, and I was relatively impressed with their album Progress, showing that they could rise above the banal pop song expected of them. This, however, starts off with, well, a bland pop song and doesn't give me too much hope that that album wasn't just an aberration. “Giants” is better; still a pop song of course but seems to have a little more about it than “Music makes me feel good”, which is essentially the theme of the title track, and has a great hook in it. I actually like this one a lot.

It's catchy stuff, can't be denied. They're not reinventing the wheel here, but what boyband is going to attempt that, and if they've found the winning formula they'd probably be crazy not to stick to it. Infectious, memorable and singable choruses, not too much to think about lyrically, a mix of pop and dance and a bit of soul: sure won't the little girls eat it all up? “Superstar” has a sense of rock (a la Nickelback, if you can call that rock without pissing yourself laughing) and is not bad at all, and then of course there are the ballads. The first one is “Hope” and it's pretty damn good I have to say, quite a lot of power in it, while the closer “It's All For You” has a sense of the movie soundtrack about it but it's nice too. Take That certainly know how to write the love songs, that can't be denied. “The Last Poet” has a nice feel to it, probably my other favourite if I have to pick, though I could have done with a better ending, and “Every Revolution” has a good sense of energy about it.

Not a bad album. Nothing that's going to set the world on fire, but then, I guess these lads have done their share of burning the charts down at this stage, and they can just sit back and watch the money roll in now, can't really fault them for that. As the Knack once grinned, the little girls understand.

Check out more from this artist? I think I've probably heard all I need to by now really
Check out more from this genre or subgenre? Probably will have to, yes

Expectation Index: 4

Trollheart · 12-16-2017, 11:40 AM

Album title: Tremaine: the Album
Artist: Trey Songz
Genre: R&B
Nationality: American
Release date: March 24
Position in Discography: Seventh
Fear Factor: High
Familiar with this artist? No
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? No
Average RYM Score: 1.94
For some reason I assumed this to be hip-hop. It's not. It's R&B, and what's more, it's very good R&B. That is, it's very pleasant but it's also a little bland; I can't pick out a song that's really spoken to me just yet, a third of the way in. A few decent songs - “Priceless” is the first that really stands out, while “The Sheets” is really, really, really REALLY annoying. Last track is nice, but generally a very meh album to me. Didn't keep my attention at all.

Check out more from this artist? No
Check out more from this genre or subgenre? Yes

Expectation Index: 0

Trollheart · 12-16-2017, 06:32 PM

Album title: La Lucha
Artist: La Vida Boheme
Genre: Alt-Rock/Indie Rock
Nationality: Venezulean
Release date: March 24
Position in Discography: Third
Fear Factor: Moderate
Familiar with this artist? No
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? No
Average RYM Score: 3.25
Starts off with some spoken word in Venezuelan (I assume) with some kind of nice ambient music behind it, but it's a short intro and then we have a poppy kind of uptempo number, then I really like “Lejos” (eyes?) which has a great hook and bops along like a good thing, very sort of arena rock but not really. This is great stuff: really happy, upbeat and catchy, makes you want to dance. Don;t worry: I'm not going to dance! This could turn out to be my favourite foreign-language album of this year. ****ing great stuff, not a bad track yet (9 of 13). Yeah, this was a massive surprise and a really excellent album. Arriba! (Or whatever they say in Caracas).

Check out more from this artist? Si senor
Check out more from this genre or subgenre? Aye

Expectation Index: 10

~~MicShazam~~ · 12-16-2017, 06:52 PM

That's 3 potential albums of the year in two days or so. Not a bad ratio.

Trollheart · 12-16-2017, 06:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MicShazam

That's 3 potential albums of the year in two days or so. Not a bad ratio.

Well yeah, but it took me most of that month to get to one. Like buses, eh?

The Batlord · 12-16-2017, 06:57 PM

Hopefully there won't be any artists releasing more than one album this year or else TH will throw down a rule.

12-15-2017, 01:17 PM	#1232 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,992	Album title: From Deewee Artist: Soulwax Genre: Synthpop Nationality: Belgian Release date: March 24 Position in Discography: Eighth Fear Factor: Low Familiar with this artist? No Familiar with the genre or subgenre? No Average RYM Score: 3.06 Ever heard of a metal musician playing on a pop album before? I guess it probably happens, but I feel it's really odd to see Igor Cavalera, drummer with Brazilian thrash metal merchants Sepultura occupying the drumseat for an album by a synthpop band from Belgium, but here we are. Sounds very Alan Parsons Project when it kicks off with a shortish instrumental, and you can certainly hear Cavalera's drumming on “Missing Wires”, at least I assume it's him. Certainly heavy, and slightly out of phase with the synthy, electronic nature of most of the rest of the music. I must admit, “Conditions of a Shared Belief” gets a little on my nerves. It seems to go on forever, though in reality it only runs for just over three minutes – feels like at least twice that. With three different drummers taking part on this album it's not that surprising that you'll have tracks devoted to, or almost devoted to, percussion, and “Is It Always Binary” is one of these. As a consequence, to me anyway it's quite boring and comes across as real filler material. In fact, there's nothing here I can really point to as catching my attention or standing out. Hard to imagine anything with either of the Cavalera brothers being boring, but Christ this is. I've yet to hear anything that even shakes me out of falling to sleep, and we're now eight tracks into a twelve-track album, and this nextone is over six minutes long. I'm not sure I'm going to last. Okay, “Trespassers” wasn't terrible, but now we're on another drum solo. Who the hell wants to hear that? Well, not me anyway. Ah well; two tracks left after this. Looks like I will last after all. I did, but man was that boring. Not in a Mount Eerie “save me from this self-indulgent crap” kind of way (perhaps should rethink his band name to Mount Dreary?) but just stultifyingly boring. This is the kind of thing that give synthpop a bad name. Pass. Check out more from this artist? Absolutely not Check out more from this genre or subgenre? Yeah Expectation Index: 8 __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

12-15-2017, 03:46 PM	#1233 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,992	Album title: Doris and the Daggers Artist: Spiral Stairs Genre: Indie Rock Nationality: American Release date: March 24 Position in Discography: Second solo Fear Factor: Moderate Familiar with this artist? No Familiar with the genre or subgenre? No Average RYM Score: 2.92 Apparently, Spiral Stairs is the pseudonym of Christopher Scott Kannberg , founder member of Pavement, and this is his second solo album. Starts off well enough, good rocky and catchy tune, but so far I'd say it's good but not particularly interesting. Nothing wrong with it but nothing standing out as such. Sax on “The Unconditional” is at least something different, song kind of reminds me of The Beautiful South and it's a nice one about the birth of his daughter. Interesting: since the horns came in (haven't been in any song since the opener) this has got a lot more energy and life, and thus I'm more engaged with it now. “Trams (Stole My Love)” is a great song, while “Exiled Tonight” is another rocker and the violin in “Angel Eyes” is just beautiful and really lends the song something. Maybe I just wasn't paying attention earlier, as either this has got a whole lot better, or else it already was good and I didn't realise it. Fair bit of Waterboys in here too, now that I really listen. Ending strongly certainly. Check out more from this artist? I might Check out more from this genre or subgenre? Yes Expectation Index: 6 __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

12-15-2017, 06:19 PM	#1234 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,992	Album title: The Night Siren Artist: Steve Hackett Genre: Progressive Rock Nationality: English Release date: March 24 Position in Discography: Twenty-fifth solo Fear Factor: Very Low Familiar with this artist? Very Familiar with the genre or subgenre? Extremely Average RYM Score: 3.44 Those who know me will assume this album to be a shoe-in for a ten rating, but don't be so sure. The thing about Steve Hackett is, that though he was a part of Genesis for most of what is generally acknowledged as their golden era – the early to mid seventies – he is first and foremost a classical guitarist, and while that's great, sometimes it can be quite boring to listen to unless you too are a guitarist, and I'm not. Personally, I've liked a lot of Hackett's solo stuff but loathed a lot too. For my money, he's best when he does prog rock – that beautifully simple instrumental “Horizons” on Foxtrot, just before the epic “Supper's Ready”, the intro to “Blood on the Rooftops” off Wind and Wuthering, the simple backing tune to “For Absent Friends” on Nursery Cryme – these are the pieces I admire him for. But far be it from me not to want anyone to spread their musical wings, I just may not wish to accompany him on that journey. So I hope I will love this album, or at least like it, but there's no real guarantee that I will. Well at least there are vocals on the first track, though I expect some instrumentals. Heavier than expected, real “Kashmir” kind of sound, some really nice classical piano here too, very epic track to kick off with, then “Martian Sea” is more straight prog rock, with a very catchy chorus (that could be a single). Lot of sitar on this as well as flutes, and it also features Spock's Beard's Nick D'Virgilio on drums. A very Alan Parsons sound to “Fifty Miles From the North Pole”, and a nice choir too. Then we get the first instrumental, but it's heavier than expected and quite epic. Hmm. “Anything But Love” opens on a flamenco guitar then becomes some sort of AOR thing, quite Kansas-like with a smidgeon of that riff from “Don't Fear the Reaper” too. More APP in “Inca Terra”, which then develops into some sort of East European folk thing with almost Beach Boys harmonies. Certainly an album of varied styles; not sure I would categorise it purely as prog rock, or even as such at all. To be honest, it may in fact be this which is turning me in the direction of, not hating or even not liking the album, but not loving it. I think maybe Hackett is trying too hard here, and it's coming across as overcomplicated and a little indulgent. No, that's not fair: a lot indulgent. This seems to be becoming a real “Look at me! I'm Peter Gabriel/Paul Simon/Add World Music Artist Here all rolled into one!” Yeah. Stick to the guitar, Steve, huh? Troy Donockley's uileann pipes add real feel to “In Another Life”, as they always do when the Nightwish man is involved in anything, but I am getting increasingly bored now and kind of can't wait for the album to end. This is what I was afraid of. More “Kashmir” for what appears to be the single chosen for release, “In the Skeleton Gallery”, which really reminds me of something apart from the Zep classic, though I kind of don't really care now. The album ends strongly, but it's been something of a confusing disappointment. Check out more from this artist? I'm sure I will over the course of time Check out more from this genre or subgenre? Always (assuming we're talking here about prog rock, which this really isn't) Expectation Index: 8 __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

12-16-2017, 10:39 AM	#1235 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,992	Album title: Wonderland Artist: Take That Genre: Pop Nationality: English Release date: March 24 Position in Discography: Eighth Fear Factor: Moderate Familiar with this artist? Yeah Familiar with the genre or subgenre? A little Average RYM Score: 1.90 (ah jeez, lads!) Although I traditionally hate boybands, I gained something more of a sense of grudging respect for Take That when I dived into the world of sugary pop in my article Stranger in a Strange Land, some years ago in my journal, and I was relatively impressed with their album Progress, showing that they could rise above the banal pop song expected of them. This, however, starts off with, well, a bland pop song and doesn't give me too much hope that that album wasn't just an aberration. “Giants” is better; still a pop song of course but seems to have a little more about it than “Music makes me feel good”, which is essentially the theme of the title track, and has a great hook in it. I actually like this one a lot. It's catchy stuff, can't be denied. They're not reinventing the wheel here, but what boyband is going to attempt that, and if they've found the winning formula they'd probably be crazy not to stick to it. Infectious, memorable and singable choruses, not too much to think about lyrically, a mix of pop and dance and a bit of soul: sure won't the little girls eat it all up? “Superstar” has a sense of rock (a la Nickelback, if you can call that rock without pissing yourself laughing) and is not bad at all, and then of course there are the ballads. The first one is “Hope” and it's pretty damn good I have to say, quite a lot of power in it, while the closer “It's All For You” has a sense of the movie soundtrack about it but it's nice too. Take That certainly know how to write the love songs, that can't be denied. “The Last Poet” has a nice feel to it, probably my other favourite if I have to pick, though I could have done with a better ending, and “Every Revolution” has a good sense of energy about it. Not a bad album. Nothing that's going to set the world on fire, but then, I guess these lads have done their share of burning the charts down at this stage, and they can just sit back and watch the money roll in now, can't really fault them for that. As the Knack once grinned, the little girls understand. Check out more from this artist? I think I've probably heard all I need to by now really Check out more from this genre or subgenre? Probably will have to, yes Expectation Index: 4 __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

12-16-2017, 11:40 AM	#1236 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,992	Album title: Tremaine: the Album Artist: Trey Songz Genre: R&B Nationality: American Release date: March 24 Position in Discography: Seventh Fear Factor: High Familiar with this artist? No Familiar with the genre or subgenre? No Average RYM Score: 1.94 For some reason I assumed this to be hip-hop. It's not. It's R&B, and what's more, it's very good R&B. That is, it's very pleasant but it's also a little bland; I can't pick out a song that's really spoken to me just yet, a third of the way in. A few decent songs - “Priceless” is the first that really stands out, while “The Sheets” is really, really, really REALLY annoying. Last track is nice, but generally a very meh album to me. Didn't keep my attention at all. Check out more from this artist? No Check out more from this genre or subgenre? Yes Expectation Index: 0 __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

12-15-2017, 12:28 PM	#1231 (permalink)
Paedantic Basterd Music Addict Join Date: Sep 2010 Posts: 5,184	Side note, slow, quiet Sufjan is my favourite Sufjan.

12-16-2017, 06:32 PM	#1237 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,992	Album title: La Lucha Artist: La Vida Boheme Genre: Alt-Rock/Indie Rock Nationality: Venezulean Release date: March 24 Position in Discography: Third Fear Factor: Moderate Familiar with this artist? No Familiar with the genre or subgenre? No Average RYM Score: 3.25 Starts off with some spoken word in Venezuelan (I assume) with some kind of nice ambient music behind it, but it's a short intro and then we have a poppy kind of uptempo number, then I really like “Lejos” (eyes?) which has a great hook and bops along like a good thing, very sort of arena rock but not really. This is great stuff: really happy, upbeat and catchy, makes you want to dance. Don;t worry: I'm not going to dance! This could turn out to be my favourite foreign-language album of this year. **ing great stuff, not a bad track yet (9 of 13). Yeah, this was a massive surprise and a really excellent album. Arriba! (Or whatever they say in Caracas). Check out more from this artist? Si senor Check out more from this genre or subgenre? Aye Expectation Index: 10** __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

12-16-2017, 06:52 PM	#1238 (permalink)
~~MicShazam~~ Account Disabled Join Date: Aug 2015 Location: Aalborg Posts: 7,634	That's 3 potential albums of the year in two days or so. Not a bad ratio.