Ol’ Qwerty Bastard

there we go, had to bounce back.

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Music Blog / RYM / Last.fm / Qwertyy's Journal of Music Reviews and Other Assorted Ramblings

Trollheart

Album title: Brutalism
Artist: Idles
Suggested By: Gigantic Debaser
Genre: Alt-Rock/Punk Rock
Nationality: English
Release date: March 10
Position in Discography: Debut
Estimated Rating:

Familiar with this artist? No
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? No
Average RYM Score: 3.51
One more then before we head back to April. Right well, starting with a scream probably isn't the best way to win me over, but let's see how this goes. Not mad at all about the singer, very monotonous voice, shouting, growling rather than singing. Angry, abrasive, raucous – just not my thing. Not terrible, and I've heard worse punk – but not something I enjoyed on any level at all.

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

Actual Rating:

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Trollheart

Album title: AZD
Artist: Actress
Genre: Electronic/Experimental Techno
Nationality: English
Release date: April 14
Position in Discography: Fifth
Estimated Rating:

Familiar with this artist? No
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? No
Average RYM Score: 3.22
Most things that have “experimental” in the title give me a problem, especially electronic music, and I'm surprised to find this is a male artist, given the name, but there you go. It's okay so far but not really anything different I feel. “Cyn” brings in a rap, which is at least something of a change, against the spacey electronic backdrop, but overall I find it all pretty samey, quite boring and uninspiring, but then, someone into electronic and/or experimental music may wet themselves over this. Me? I'm totally dry. Okay, “Faure in Chrome” is quite nice, but that's about it really.

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

Actual Rating:

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Trollheart

Album title: Minzy Work 01 Uno
Artist: Minzy
Genre: K-pop
Nationality: Korean
Release date: April 17
Position in Discography: Debut solo
Estimated Rating:

Familiar with this artist? No
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? Sadly, yes
Average RYM Score: 2.56
Yet another member of a K-pop band who split for her parent group to try to make it on her own. And yet another EP. Oh, and she's collaborating with a rapper. Hum. It's what you'd expect. I'd ask why she bothered if I cared enough, and I don't. Next!

Check out more from this artist? Nah
Check out more from this genre or subgenre? I expect I'll have to

Actual Rating:

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Trollheart

Quick note: from now on, the question "Check out more of this artist/genre?" should be taken to have a rider, to wit: other than here, if I have to. In other words, the question is now would I check any more out of my own free will, of choice, rather than just being forced to via this thread. Just so you know.

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Trollheart

Album title: YOLO
Artist: Dia
Genre: K-pop
Nationality: Um....
Release date: April 19
Position in Discography: Second
Estimated Rating:

Familiar with this artist? No
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? Look, just shut up, ok? It's embarrassing enough as it is!
Average RYM Score: 2.42
And the K-pop just keeps coming. Sure, they use tags like bubblegum pop, soft rock, something called “trot”? But really it's all just K-pop, innit? Girls having fun, bouncing around and singing about boys. Sigh. Look! They're even laughing at the end of the last track, how cute. All right, well there are some good points. A kind of mariachi song, something with a French or possibly Italian flavour, which adds a little spice to the usual bland K-pop formula. Basically though it's the same old same old. Coming to expect no more with K-pop, not that I had any high hopes to begin with.

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

Actual Rating:

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Trollheart

(Pic too large and anyway who cares?)
Album title: H
Artist: Lee Hae-ri
Genre: K-pop
Nationality: Let me just think about that for a moment...
Release date: April 19
Position in Discography: Debut EP
Estimated Rating:

Familiar with this artist? No
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? Yes yes! I admit it...
Average RYM Score: N/A
Lee Hairy? Seriously, there must be something to enjoy while I'm listening to this flood of K-pop. Is there no end to it? At least this time we're back to just EPs. This one gets a pass as it avoids the usual generic K-pop formula by being a generic ballads album. A good one, but still all ballads, and while that's better than being a bouncy, poppy album, it's not a lot better and if you hate ballads you'll hate this. But I don't. Hate ballads that is. I don't love this, but it's certainly a whole lot more tolerable than most of the K-pop I've endured since I began this thread. So a slightly higher rating for you, hairy Lee.
Check out more from this artist? Just maybe
Check out more from this genre or subgenre? No

Actual Rating:

(Only because I like ballads, and it breaks the somewhat generic K-pop formula a little)

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Trollheart

Album title: So schön anders
Artist: Adel Tawil
Genre: Pop
Nationality: German
Release date: April 21
Position in Discography: Second
Estimated Rating:

Familiar with this artist? No
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? A little
Average RYM Score: 0.76 (We have a new winner in the low ratings stakes!)
Another German pop star. This kicks off better than the previous one anyway, though after Hairy Lee I'm somewhat over-ballad-ed and this starts with a ballad. Ah well, room for one more, eh? It's a good one, and it's also the title track. And a second ballad. But again, a very good one. Okay, I see he was in a boyband prior to going solo, and the next track certainly has that feel about it. Youssou N'Dour adds some class to the fourth track, but it is weird when the whole thing is sung in German, apart from, well some parts, which are sung in English. Good horns certainly, and I like “Worte”, though there's that ****ing squeaky voice again in the background. Not a bad pop album, certainly better than I had expected. Maybe a few too many ballads, but we won't hold that against him. Certainly doesn't deserve the ****ty rating. Some people are just ****s.

Check out more from this artist? Doubt it
Check out more from this genre or subgenre? Yeah

Actual Rating:

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Trollheart

Album title: Bad Habit
Artist: Alee
Genre: Country Pop
Nationality: Canadian
Release date: April 21
Position in Discography: Second
Estimated Rating:

Familiar with this artist? No
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? No
Average RYM Score: N/A
All right well so far this is nothing special. Comes across as the female equivalent to Bro Country (Grrrl Country?), not very impressive. More pop than country, and not great pop at that. Yeah, there's nothing here. Ten-a-penny pop with some not very advised country pretensions.

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

Actual Rating:

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Trollheart

Album title: Wrangled
Artist: Angaleena Presley
Genre: Country/Americana/Outlaw Country
Nationality: American
Release date: April 21
Position in Discography: Second solo
Estimated Rating:

Familiar with this artist? No but I love Pistol Annies
Familiar with the genre or subgenre? A little
Average RYM Score: 3.19
I've already enjoyed Miranda Lambert's breath-takingly beautiful solo album The Weight of These Wings from 2016, and I've loved both the albums from Pistol Annies, so a solo effort from another of that band should be right up my street, hence the high expectation. I also need some proper country after enduring what Alee laughingly terms it. Unsurprisingly, I love it from the first track, the dour and maudlin “Dreams Don't Come True”, and it's low-key, downbeat country of the very highest tier all the way. This is how to do it. Country ain't about singing about girls, or boys, or even gettin' drunk (well, yeah it is, obviously) – you got to get to the soul (Alee!) if there is one, and then kind of rip it apart while downing ten Jack Daniels. Bottles, not glasses! The dark piano on “Only Blood” is ****ing chilling.

Bit too much rockabilly in “Country” though, and I can't say bringing Yelawolf in on it works really, but it's a small (though annoying) blip and we're back to quality with the title track, kicking on with “Bless My Heart”, though the slightly Mexican-tinged “Outlaw” is something of a disappointment: bit limpwristed and weak I feel. That notwithstanding though, what I love about this, and the Pistol Annies albums to a slightly lesser degree, is the note of bitterness that runs through them. This isn't good-time, honky-tonk country, this is get-the-****-out-of-my-face-before-I-get-my-shotgun-from-my- pickup country! “Cheer Up Little Darlin” features narration from the legendary Guy Clark, and it's good to see her two sister Pistols adding their vocals to the album.

Overall, pretty much what I expected, and another great addition to the growing Pistol Annies extended discography. Eat it, Alee!

Check out more from this artist? Yup
Check out more from this genre or subgenre? Yes

Actual Rating:

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018