SAW [Week 64 - "Home of the Strange"]

[speedchuck]

My actual review of this album:

Ayreon holds a special place in my heart. And for a time, this album was at the bottom of that place, the forgotten rubbish that was upended by the masterpieces that came after. For a time, that was so.

This album lacks the interplay between vocalists that is so prevalent on later albums. It lacks Ed Warby, the masterful drummer who carries every other Ayreon work. It lacks a story that pulls the album together, and it lacks the hard-driving metal edge that certain songs from other albums have. Heck, it even lacks that Celtic flair that I can find hidden away in my favorite albums.

Over time, however, I came to appreciate The Dream Sequencer for what it was. Songs like My House on Mars and The Druids Turn To Stone may not be tightly-written and powerful masterpieces that make me tremble with excitement, but they do their own thing. I can get lost in these two songs, in the sweeping tones and soulful lyrics. Other songs on the album paint a picture and give me a feel of what that time and place was like.
I appreciate this Ayreon album in a different way than most, but it still sticks with me, and I owe it more listens.

At least it is just as fun to sing with as any other Ayreon album.

4/5

[G-Man]

Still condensing my thoughts. I may only point out a set of top-three tracks on albums going forward when they really stand out. Sometimes it's been hard to find some/make up my mind. Here we go...

The Goat Rodeo Sessions

Spoiler: show

I enjoy bluegrass music. I find that it's purer (usually) than country music. Genre fusions are hit or miss for me though. Aside from Yo-Yo Ma's presence, I didn't get the sense that this was a genre fusion. Sure, it's classical instruments playing bluegrass with some traditional instrumentation in the mix but I didn't take in any noteworthy contributions by Ma. Perhaps I'm just not familiar enough with the superstar cellist's work to notice details that are distinctly him. To me, it seemed like you could have put any cellist in the mix and gotten the same result.

Overall, this was a very enjoyable, listenable album. It wobbled a little in the middle but my track ratings were otherwise a consistent 'very good.' It's easy for me to lose myself in this kind of music because I'm craving tranquility and contentment in my life. Most of what is on display here meets that standard for me. Nothing jumps out and makes me say "yes!" but I'd say yes to listening to this album again. A solid effort.

G-Man Scale: 3.64 out of 5 (B+)
Rico Scale: 3.5 out of 5


Somewhere to Elsewhere

Spoiler: show

Sorry, proggers, I've yet to find a prog album in this listening group that blows me away. My general sense of this album is that it's a pack of middle-aged guys out to prove that men of a certain age can still rock. In a way, it almost feels like a send-off album, as if the band desired to go out on top and put together one last solid album for their fans to remember them by. There's nothing wrong with that. I think everyone enjoys seeing bands redeem themselves and/or end their career on a high note. This didn't end up being Kansas's last album but the retrospective lyrics sure make it sound like it could have been.

Don't hate me, proggers, but my only comparison for the vocalist is that he sounds like Jack Black at times when he wails and yells. It wasn't a turn-off but it did make a few tracks seem more comical than the artists' intended. I also think some of the tracks go on for too long. There are also times where lyrics and/or music become a touch too melodramatic. Perhaps that's just inherent to prog and is an element that I will come to understand the more I am exposed to the genre.

There were three standout tracks for me amidst a sea of what I found to be 'pretty good' tunes. "Icarus II," "Disappearing Skin Tight Blues," and "Byzantium" all registered the most with me for one reason or another. As a whole, the album reminds me of the kind of songs that Trans-Siberan Orchestra puts on their albums to build narrative elements in between the rocking instrumentals that people program their Christmas lights to. Once again, it's not a bad thing. I like TSO and I found Somewhere to Elsewhere to be decent.

G-Man Scale: 3.30 out of 5 (B)
Rico Scale: 3.5 out of 5


Dataplex

Spoiler: show

It got better. It really did. After eight tracks of assembled noises, the artist actually produces some tracks that sound like music. Only tracks 9, 10, and 12 got a score above 'indifferent,' so it was interesting to watch this album's total score rise higher and higher merely by grading tracks as 'indifferent.' That was something.

At the 5-7 second mark of the opening track, a high-pitch tone blasts your ears momentarily. This is the exact frequency sound I hear in my ears every waking moment of my life, just not at as high a volume. Tinnitus is a real treat, let me tell you. Thankfully, this album did not make my tinnitus go crazy like Whole Stories did. It was a difficult experience at times though. On a side note, I was shocked that this did not end up as the lowest-rated album on the list so far but that's because Whole Stories only has two tracks, so they're weighted harder than an album with 20 tracks.

I think the low buzzing sounds annoyed me the most. Rather than competing or even complimenting the other scattered sounds going on at the same time, the low buzzing sounds just drowned everything else out. On the final track, I started laughing again because the low buzzing on that track reminded me of the motorboat sound effect on a bass fishing game we had on our family computer somewhere between 1995 and 1998. Until the sound went away, I could not stop laughing. I had my headphones on, so my wife was quite confused for a few minutes.

Otherwise, my opinion of this album can be summed up in one picture:

G-Man Scale: 2.24 out of 5 (C)
Rico Scale: 2 out of 5

[nutella]

Alright I gotta admit I'm really enjoying Ayreon so far. I'm listening to Part 2 now lol. It's suuuuper cheesy and not really the most original or impressive musically imo, but part of me is a real sucker for nerdy huge-scope concepts such as the premise of the Dream Sequencer and traveling back through human history, and I think it's done in a fairly compelling way. It's good fun. Probably like a 3.5?

Also I noticed one of the guest vocalists is Floor Jansen who later joined Nightwish -- [mention]speedchuck[/mention] I'd definitely recommend their album Endless Forms Most Beautiful, it's slightly less cheesy and less coherent as a concept album but pretty musically enjoyable and has some similar themes re: evolution and human history.

Anyway, yeah this is not the kind of thing I'd always be up for, and it is pretty over-the-top cheesy, but that's the type of project it is and the type of artist this guy seems to be, and the premise of the concept/project is compelling and I think it's executed well for what it is.

[speedchuck]

Alright I gotta admit I'm really enjoying Ayreon so far. I'm listening to Part 2 now lol. It's suuuuper cheesy and not really the most original or impressive musically imo, but part of me is a real sucker for nerdy huge-scope concepts such as the premise of the Dream Sequencer and traveling back through human history, and I think it's done in a fairly compelling way. It's good fun. Probably like a 3.5?

Also I noticed one of the guest vocalists is Floor Jansen who later joined Nightwish -- @speedchuck I'd definitely recommend their album Endless Forms Most Beautiful, it's slightly less cheesy and less coherent as a concept album but pretty musically enjoyable and has some similar themes re: evolution and human history.

Anyway, yeah this is not the kind of thing I'd always be up for, and it is pretty over-the-top cheesy, but that's the type of project it is and the type of artist this guy seems to be, and the premise of the concept/project is compelling and I think it's executed well for what it is.

Floor Jansen is on a number of Ayreon albums. Thanks for the recommendation! I'll check it out for sure.

Based on what you like from this album, I am near certain that you would prefer most every Ayreon album that comes after it. 01011001 and The Source (a prequel to 01011001) for the epic sci-fi cheesiness, and The Theory of Everything/The Human Equation for smaller-scope but still epic stories.

I recommend especially the two newest ones: The Source and especially The Theory of Everything. Love that album so much. Would love to know what you think of any of them, if you end up looking. Feel free to PM me.

-

Also, you should submit something else to SAW next time. Some of your submissions have been my favorites. And I'm caught up completely as of today, so that's saying something.

[nutella]

Btw I definitely recommend Nightwish's other albums as well if you end up liking them. All pretty awesome symphonic metal. I think Imaginaerum is my favorite, but a lot of their ~real fans~ seem to prefer their earlier ones in the era when Tarja Turunen was the lead vocalist, she's quite talented.

I definitely intend to check out the rest of Ayreon's albums eventually. Might have to take a break from the cheese though lol

I have something in mind for the next submission period (I actually have quite a few candidates, it'll take so long to get to everything I want to submit ) And cool, I'll check out your reviews!

[nutella]

41. nutella - Chris Thile, Edgar Meyer, Stuart Duncan, Yo-Yo Ma - The Goat Rodeo Sessions

Spoiler: show

I don't really like bluegrass. As much as I love stringed instruments, and as much as I like the concept, bluegrass just doesn't appeal to me. Just like with country music, I dislike to voices. And on top of that, bluegrass always seems to have the same circular, bouncing rhythm.
So while I approached this album with trepidation, I was rewarded with a mostly-instrumental album, completely free of faux southerners, that did not jangle along with the traditional rolling banjo. No. This was art, and I loved every second of it. I mean that in the most literal sense. The moment-to-moment music was perfect in sound, pleasing, interesting, and fun. The album was structured in a way that game me a distinct feel of what the band was trying to do, especially with the songs that had lyrics, but it didn't feel constrained by the structure.
And the energy here was just astounding.
I don't know what separates this album from... say Leucodyte. It's hard to say. There was enough structure to please me, and the instruments took me in various directions. The pieces weren't busy enough to throw me about, but each instrument was giving its all. It was like listening to one of my favorite prog bands freestyling on a sound test, but with less solo wankery and more strings.
I nearly gave this a 4.5/5, but while I loved every second of the album, I don't see myself coming back to it on the regular like I have with Beneath the Brine and other 4.5s. I have trouble articulating why, but I'd draw it down to preference. I can't sing along, and the music doesn't pump me up. It's background music, and art that I can appreciate with awe. By filling 2/4 of my 'things I look for in music'', The Goat Rodeo Session earns a well-deserved 4.

4/5

Well put!! This articulates a lot of why I like it as well.

[G-Man]

Pescado Rabioso 2

Spoiler: show

The good and bad thing about music in foreign languages that I don't understand (which is most of them) is that I have no idea whether the artist is singing something stupid, so I'm forced to take the tone and emotion in the vocals at face value. This could be a masterpiece of deep songwriting or it could be "Yatta" for all I know. At face value, though, this album was pretty good.

I picked up a late Beatles vibe (Abbey Road and Let It Be) on a few tracks, some potential Led Zeppelin influence on others, and maybe even a few flashes of Rolling Stones. This reminded me of when we listened to the Romanian band Phoenix. It's curious how some sounds and styles take a while to trickle out to various parts of the world. In America, you have a slew of imitators almost as soon as a sound becomes popular. This album is from 1973, so it's a little late to the party but it all sounds good and is welcome by me.

There were eight very good tracks that I liked quite a bit but you might not know if from my rating. This is a long album. I'm guessing that it might have been a double-LP back in the day. That's all fine and good for the Argentinian's who ate this stuff up but I guess it just ran too long for me. Maybe the language barrier got a little old or maybe there were a few too many songs that were just 'pretty good' on my scale.

It's got a familiar and friendly sound. It runs long but not frustratingly so. It's easy to lose your place and realize three or four songs passed since you last remember being conscious of what you're listening to. I think it could be trimmed down to a tighter and more satisfying album but I think only one or two tracks here are really disposable. You've got eight very good songs to anchor your album with, so sprinkle three or four of your choice into the mix and enjoy.

I might not rush to revisit this album but I'd give honest consideration to it depending on what else you give me to choose from.

G-Man Scale: 3.40 out of 5 (B)
Rico Scale: 3.5 out of 5

[G-Man]

Pack Up the Cats

Spoiler: show

As I said in my intro to this album, it was a nostalgic pick more than a 'I want you guys to love this' pick. For that reason, I assumed my rating might skew high, seeing as it's an old favorite. I was surprised, however, that my rating wasn't so skewed after all.

The opening track is fun for me probably because it can be a challenge to the uninitiated. I'm pretty sure it drove my parents nuts with its repetitiveness, and what teenager doesn't love driving his/her parents crazy? I really did manage to give it a few critical listens and held it to the same standard as everything else we've covered in this listening group.

I am fortunate to have grown up during the heyday of 90s rock. Hair bands were extinct and creativity was everywhere. By the time I hit high school, however, rock was hitting a lurch as rap and hip-hop grew in popularity and pop music became a behemoth again. Hard-hitting rock never really recovered, as the indie sound shaped the course of rock in the early 21st century.

In that context, I can see why this album was praised by rock music aficionados and rock music critics alike. It had flair, wit, and tried to sound like something other than nu-metal or Creed. It landed on a few top 10 and top 20 lists but maybe that says more about the state of rock in 1998 than it does about the quality of this album.

It's a solid record but it was never going to save rock and roll nor inspire followers to mimic its sound. It's still a shame that the record label screwed the band over because the singer-songwriter-guitarist-bassist did actually improve his craft on their next record. I guess that's the nature of the beast.

G-Man Scale: 3.63 out of 5 (B+)
Rico Scale: 3.5 out of 5

[G-Man]

Quick notes on the current two I'm listening to:

Marina and the Diamonds sounds like a blend of Katy Perry and Lady Gaga, in a good way. But it's got an air of try-hardism that holds things back. The singer is trying a little too hard to be original and not hard enough at being worth listening to.

Ayreon kind of eluded me on the first run. I heard some Pink Floyd influence on the slow, moody instrumentals but I was left unfazed by most of it. It's still early for this album though, so we'll see what subsequent listens do for me.

[Tangrowth]

Ayreon. Sigh. Still absolutely not my thing. Tough to get through it. The vocals, cheese, etc. were generally much more annoying than enjoyable. I guess it could be worse, but yeah. Not much else to say. Sorry speed.

[G-Man]

Ayreon. Sigh. Still absolutely not my thing. Tough to get through it. The vocals, cheese, etc. were generally much more annoying than enjoyable. I guess it could be worse, but yeah. Not much else to say. Sorry speed.

I’m curious to know what you and others consider cheese in Ayreon. When I think cheese I think Meat Loaf. I didn’t hear anything that over the top in my first listen. Perhaps there’s lyrical cheese that I missed but I don’t recall hearing any bombastic cheese.

[Epignosis]

Ayreon. Sigh. Still absolutely not my thing. Tough to get through it. The vocals, cheese, etc. were generally much more annoying than enjoyable. I guess it could be worse, but yeah. Not much else to say. Sorry speed.

I’m curious to know what you and others consider cheese in Ayreon. When I think cheese I think Meat Loaf. I didn’t hear anything that over the top in my first listen. Perhaps there’s lyrical cheese that I missed but I don’t recall hearing any bombastic cheese.

I'm guessing it's prog-metal "cheese" MP is referring to, which was a common complaint on Prog-Archives.

[G-Man]

I'm guessing it's prog-metal "cheese" MP is referring to, which was a common complaint on Prog-Archives.

So what is prog-metal “cheese?” Is it the concept itself, a technical element, or just a genre bias against the so-called ‘metal’ component? I’m not well-versed enough in prog to understand.

[Epignosis]

I'm guessing it's prog-metal "cheese" MP is referring to, which was a common complaint on Prog-Archives.

So what is prog-metal “cheese?” Is it the concept itself, a technical element, or just a genre bias against the so-called ‘metal’ component? I’m not well-versed enough in prog to understand.

I never really understood it to mean anything other than prog-metal cliches, particularly with vocal delivery.

[Tangrowth]

Yeah, the "cheese" I hear is mostly the combination of over-the-top vocal delivery that occasionally makes me cringe, as well as typical cheesy, wankery prog-metal instrumentation. The lyrics certainly don't help either but they're more minor because I can tune them out. It's a tough combination to get through, but maybe that's just me.

[speedchuck]

If you want to hear unfiltered Prog-Metal CHEESE, listen to "Into the Black Hole" from the companion album to this one. It has the most overdramatic vocal delivery in existence.

[Tangrowth]

If you want to hear unfiltered Prog-Metal CHEESE, listen to "Into the Black Hole" from the companion album to this one. It has the most overdramatic vocal delivery in existence.

Oh my god.

[Tangrowth]

That said, I hope that it's clear that I mean the utmost respect to speedchuck and his submission, as well as anyone who does enjoy a hearty slice of cheesey prog-metal. I really wish I did, frankly, as I don't ever enjoy disliking any music. But inevitably, my tastes are just like everyone else's: just subjective things.

I tend to be picky with nearly all subgenres of metal as it is; I was always more of an electronic, jazz, and unconventional pop/rock guy, but there is definitely metal out there I really like. There is some prog metal out there I genuinely enjoy, but it tends to be more on the atmospheric sludge metal / post-metal or avant-garde metal end of the spectrum, which is quite different from stuff like Ayreon and perhaps not best categorized as "prog metal" anyway.

[Tangrowth]

In terms of conventional "prog metal", Devin Townsend is my favorite artist hands-down. I don't love everything he's done, but he's got some really neat stuff, and a few of his albums are my all-time favorite metal albums. It's generally been forever since I've listened to him though.

Perhaps I'll be submitting him here in due time.

[G-Man]

Close to finishing my thoughts on Marina. Ayeron, on the other hand, needs more time (and probably a listen with my headphones on). I still don't hear anything cheesy to me other than the concept being a little overdone and perhaps taken too seriously. It's hard to tell. It's long but I can hear the skill involved. It just doesn't move me much one way or the other. I jumped around in Part 2 today and there's a lot more life and gusto in that album. Perhaps I prefer zany bravado prog to straight-laced serious-business prog, because the little bit of Part 2 that I heard was entertaining.

[speedchuck]

Close to finishing my thoughts on Marina. Ayeron, on the other hand, needs more time (and probably a listen with my headphones on). I still don't hear anything cheesy to me other than the concept being a little overdone and perhaps taken too seriously. It's hard to tell. It's long but I can hear the skill involved. It just doesn't move me much one way or the other. I jumped around in Part 2 today and there's a lot more life and gusto in that album. Perhaps I prefer zany bravado prog to straight-laced serious-business prog, because the little bit of Part 2 that I heard was entertaining.

Part one is more atmospheric, slow, and varied. Part two is energetic, more metal-y, and more cohesive as a concept.



If my suggestion of part one got you into part 2 and you liked it some, that's cool. If you like zany bravado prog, part 1 was probably the worst Ayreon album to suggest to you.

[JaggedJimmyJay]

Week 48: Madvillain - Madvillainy

Submitted by MovingPictures07

Available on YouTube and Spotify

[Tangrowth]

Oh, cool. Time for Madvillainy.

For now all I'll say is:
(1) This is one of my all-time favorite hip hop albums
(2) Madvillain is the combination of MF DOOM as MC and Madlib as DJ

This album is one of the greatest things ever in all of music. Despite this album being a landmark slice of unconventional hip hop, even now 14 years later still there's nothing out there that sounds remotely like it.

I'll elaborate more on it later. For now, just listen, and hopefully enjoy the ride.

[speedchuck]

I thought, after listening to the Cunninlinguists, that I was warming up to hip hop. Apparently not.
My thought process, upon picking up the album, was "Oh, this is going to be unique, look at this cool thing it's doing to my headphones." I'll hold to that. The album was unique. Madvillain mixed in a bunch of speech-like segments, some naturally-occuring noises, and segments of odd, concept-album-like linkage that held the album together. It was an experience, I suppose. If I had the lyrics in front of me, I think they would at least hint at a real supervillain story, as they seemed to when I payed attention to them.
But, to my ears, nothing in the album was really pleasant, and the sound wasn't interesting enough to make up for that fact. I took several breaks from this music, not because it hurt my ears, but because I just couldn't derive enjoyment of it. Sure, it was different from hip-hop I might hear on the radio, but the instrumentation was repetitive and screechy at times, the odd interlude segments didn't do much for me, and the rapping itself neither sounded pleasant nor made me want to follow the beat.
This album contains none of my 'things I like in music', to the point where I'm not sure why anyone would really love this album. I look forward to seeing the opinions of others.

linki: well now I just feel out of the loop.

[JaggedJimmyJay]

I haven't heard this album in a while, so it'll be a good opportunity to revisit. I've tended to find it enjoyable, but I haven't grasped the canonical stature it has attained over the last decade-plus.

[G-Man]

Just skipped around Madvillain and I think it might be more eclectic than I can appreciate. We'll see. Speedchuck and I might be in the same boat on this one.

[Tangrowth]

I thought, after listening to the Cunninlinguists, that I was warming up to hip hop. Apparently not.
My thought process, upon picking up the album, was "Oh, this is going to be unique, look at this cool thing it's doing to my headphones." I'll hold to that. The album was unique. Madvillain mixed in a bunch of speech-like segments, some naturally-occuring noises, and segments of odd, concept-album-like linkage that held the album together. It was an experience, I suppose. If I had the lyrics in front of me, I think they would at least hint at a real supervillain story, as they seemed to when I payed attention to them.
But, to my ears, nothing in the album was really pleasant, and the sound wasn't interesting enough to make up for that fact. I took several breaks from this music, not because it hurt my ears, but because I just couldn't derive enjoyment of it. Sure, it was different from hip-hop I might hear on the radio, but the instrumentation was repetitive and screechy at times, the odd interlude segments didn't do much for me, and the rapping itself neither sounded pleasant nor made me want to follow the beat.
This album contains none of my 'things I like in music', to the point where I'm not sure why anyone would really love this album. I look forward to seeing the opinions of others.

linki: well now I just feel out of the loop.

Man, sounds like we're listening to totally different albums to me.

[Tangrowth]

Seriously though, obviously I hope you all like it, but #tastesaresubjective and all that jazz. If you don't, you don't.

Personally, this album is like my absolute ideal hip-hop album -- MF DOOM's rapping is off the hook, the lyrics are surreal but dense with wordplay and references, Madlib's sampling is beyond masterful, the skits/interludes are truly immersive, the eclecticism is always intriguing and yet the album still feels cohesive, etc.

[G-Man]

The Family Jewels

Spoiler: show

If you want to throw on 60s, 70s, or 80s pop, I'm down. Having grown up in a pro-punk, pro-grunge, pro-post-grunge household during the 90s, I only latch onto a very small number of pop songs from my generation and the current generation. To my naive mind back in the day, the resurgence of pop in the 90s, coupled with the mainstream rise of hip-hop and rap, killed rock. When the biggest names in pop were boy bands, girl groups, former boy band/girl group members, and Mickey Mouse Club House alums, is it any wonder that I wrote off most of the pop music of my day as manufactured crap?

The older I get, the more I let go of some of my biases and welcome other sounds in a quest to obtain a clearer mental picture of the history and trajectory of music. I can enjoy something like Marina and the Diamonds for the catchy hooks and well-made beats but I still throw a little shade at the facade pop stars and starlets envelope themselves in. Even then, I find myself in a bit of a conundrum.

I'm somewhat dismissive of The Family Jewels for using catchy pop music to subvert catchy pop music via edgy lyrics (excuse me for having my doubts that you're a 'f---ing wild card' when your music is laced with Pro Tools and splashings of Auto-Tune). And yet, had the album not been subversive of pop I'd have dismissed it as cookie-cutter. Damned if you do, damned if you don't.

I genuinely liked about half of the songs on this album. It's a little front-loaded in terms of quality but when Marina spends less time trying to make herself stand out and more time writing from the heart, it's noticeable. The rest of the album isn't filler but, for me, it's merely adequate pop music. Because she goes so far out of her way to be edgy and gritty with her lyrics, I found myself focusing on them more. Perhaps I was subconsciously trying to poke holes in her facade.

All in all, it's decent but only one or two songs would jog the name Marina and the Diamonds from my memory banks if I heard them a few years down the line.

G-Man Scale: 3.41 out of 5
Rico Scale: 3.5 out of 5

[dunya]

Seriously though, obviously I hope you all like it, but #tastesaresubjective and all that jazz. If you don't, you don't.

Personally, this album is like my absolute ideal hip-hop album -- MF DOOM's rapping is off the hook, the lyrics are surreal but dense with wordplay and references, Madlib's sampling is beyond masterful, the skits/interludes are truly immersive, the eclecticism is always intriguing and yet the album still feels cohesive, etc.

It amuses me a lot hearing you rave about Madvillainy. I'm sorry

It's 4/5 album according to by 2010 RYM rating, but I havent listened in so long. I'll give it a relisten and new review, but I'll be praising it for sure

[S~V~S]

I stopped doing this because some of the reviews became almost intimidating in their level of expertise and completeness, but reading back it would seem that we have some more casual reviewers mixed in now, too, so I might try again.

It helps that I used to love this album (I believe I picked it up from a list of MP's on maybe 8Tracks or Facebook), and haven't listened to it in a while so am looking forward to it.

[speedchuck]

I stopped doing this because some of the reviews became almost intimidating in their level of expertise and completeness, but reading back it would seem that we have some more casual reviewers mixed in now, too, so I might try again.

It helps that I used to love this album (I believe I picked it up from a list of MP's on maybe 8Tracks or Facebook), and haven't listened to it in a while so am looking forward to it.

Glad I encouraged you to come back.

[Tangrowth]

Seriously though, obviously I hope you all like it, but #tastesaresubjective and all that jazz. If you don't, you don't.

Personally, this album is like my absolute ideal hip-hop album -- MF DOOM's rapping is off the hook, the lyrics are surreal but dense with wordplay and references, Madlib's sampling is beyond masterful, the skits/interludes are truly immersive, the eclecticism is always intriguing and yet the album still feels cohesive, etc.

It amuses me a lot hearing you rave about Madvillainy. I'm sorry

It's 4/5 album according to by 2010 RYM rating, but I havent listened in so long. I'll give it a relisten and new review, but I'll be praising it for sure

Haha, why's that?

[Tangrowth]

I stopped doing this because some of the reviews became almost intimidating in their level of expertise and completeness, but reading back it would seem that we have some more casual reviewers mixed in now, too, so I might try again.

It helps that I used to love this album (I believe I picked it up from a list of MP's on maybe 8Tracks or Facebook), and haven't listened to it in a while so am looking forward to it.

Glad to have you back! Definitely you should share your thoughts on whatever however you want.

[S~V~S]

Thank you

I had not listened to this in a while, and had forgotten how much I liked it. I'm a binger, I will find a thing I like and play it all the time, then some other new shiny thing will catch my eye, and things I really like get pushed to the side.

I did a preliminary listen to this last night for feel and it was like I never left. For all the disparate elements, it all works together as a unit. I do not know that i would like any individual piece taken out of context, but the whole is beautiful, and I think listening to it otherwise doesn't do it justice.

For all the disparate elements, it has an almost jazzy feel, the way they work together. It gives me the same type of feeling I might get from jazz that pushes the bar.

I will listen again tonight after work for lyrics and just a bit more in depth in general.

[G-Man]

Universal Migrator Part 1: The Dream Sequencer

Spoiler: show

I think my main complaint with this album is that it all seems so random unless you understand the concept at hand. A guy plugged into machines gets a glimpse of his childhood and past lives. I didn't pick up on that just from listening. It all made a little more sense after reading up on the album a little. But I still found myself feeling a little about the concept because 1) I lack a frame of reference on the interconnectedness of Ayreon's albums, 2) it's an incomplete story, and 3) the incompleteness of it means this is just an album about memories.

That's not to say that it isn't good. I guess the concept fell a little flat for me but perhaps listening to Part 2 will leave me feeling differently about this album. I almost wish that the opening track were split in two- the opening sounds and dialogue, and then the instrumental. I liked that opening instrumental and the closing reprise. That was good Pink Floyd-esque moody stuff.

Other than perhaps two tracks, the songs on this album are all pretty decent. I like the female vocal arrangements on several tracks, even though I was pretty neutral on the lyrics for the most part. It's another conundrum for me- I like a lot of the songs on their own but as a collective unit, the album doesn't have a cohesive sound, which flustered me a little bit. There was some psychedelic influence, some straight-up proggy prog, and even some 80s synthesizer in the mix, making the album sound like it should be older than it is.

None of it gripped me but I wasn't turned off. What little I listened to Part 2 was more fun and up my rocker alley. I'm not sure when I'll be able to give it a listen.

G-Man Scale: 3.07 out of 7 (B-)
Rico Scale: 3 out of 5

[G-Man]

...and I'm caught up!

Skipping around through Madvillainy was a mistake on my part. I've listened to it in full twice now and it was enjoyable. I think I understand what S~V~S means about the album having a jazzy feel. I like the use of older music samples (or samples made to sound older) as opposed to slick modern beats. That adds a lot of character and makes it stand out from a lot of other rap (not that I've heard much other rap though). The short song structure on several tracks is going to give me fits when I try to work on a rating.

[Tangrowth]

Well said, both of you. I agree that this album is the classic example of "sum is greater than its parts"; it all works together in a truly unique way despite all tracks being little eclectic hip hop snippets that lose some context in isolation. I generally listen to albums as opposed to songs/shuffle anyway when I listen to music, but if I ever try to listen to random songs from this one, I end up restarting and listening to the whole album.

A beef I have with a lot of hip hop albums in general, even ones I really like, can be the album length. For me this is easily the #1 hip hop release in terms of "I wish it was longer" every time I finish it, because it's always over way too quickly. Individual songs feel that way too. It's so hard for me to name highlights but cuts like "Meat Grinder", "Curls", "Fancy Clown", "Operation Lifesaver", and even the longer "Rhinestone Cowboy" (at 3 1/2 minutes), are just WAY too short because they're so incredible. I'm still amazed every time I hear those cuts in particular; seriously, why can't more music sound like this? It's like the best tasting candy to my ears.

Sometimes I convince myself that "Rhinestone Cowboy" in particular is like THE hip hop song of all-time. I'm not a lyrics guy as you all know, but the fucking lyrics throughout this album, and especially that track... just holy shit. Such dense poetic mastery. And that part where MF DOOM modestly says "oh, no no no, enough" to an imaginary audience clapping because he fucked up the rhyme scheme on that verse is just... too perfect. Such a weird part, but so convincing in its surrealism and MF DOOM's persona, and somehow a perfect closer to the album as a whole. Gets me every time.

I just absolutely love how MF DOOM is often rapping about real and ordinary topics yet in such a surreal and unique way (see: (1) villains as an analogy for rappers running throughout the whole album (with a self-reference to his own persona with the clip mentioning the villain "Bald headed DOOM"), (2) "Operation Lifesaver" as MF being on a date and overwhelmed by his date's bad breath and offering her a lifesaver (and worrying about how she'll take it)... I could go on. Each song is like its own surreal painting of an ordinary event, and then even better all of them placed next to each other paint an overall picture. I know that sounds pretentious as fuck, but that's how I view this album, and it's one of many reasons I think it's a genius slice of music barely matched by much else. Seriously, check out the genius page for this album if you feel inclined. It's incredible how much MF DOOM has left for us in each track. And again, that's coming from a guy who normally doesn't care much about lyrics. But this album is an exception for good reason; the lyrics and music separately are top-notch, but it's the way they work together that makes this album such a home run.

And the way Madlib finds just the perfect samples to complement the whole feel and story is incredible; the two work so well with each other it still blows my mind even though I've heard this album hundreds of times. It's true that Madlib is heavily influenced by jazz; he has a solo album in fact where he flips a bunch of samples from Blue Note records. As a fan of jazz and jazz rap, I definitely appreciate the jazz influences that come out in some of the samples, but I also appreciate how this album doesn't really feel like a jazz rap album. I certainly wouldn't call it one. Madlib's use of wide range of samples on this album make it feel eclectic and yet he knows just how to keep the whole package cohesive as well. This album illustrates why he's one of the best DJs in hip hop history, at least IMO; it might just be his best sample work ever.

Anyway, combine all of the above musings and I think the recognition of the craft put into this product by both MF DOOM and Madlib is clear, and it's why this album has become such a legend (it's currently the #47th highest ranked album of all time on RYM and 4th highest of all time in hip hop specifically) and a source of inspiration for creative hip hop in the last 14 years. It's also why nothing else still quite sounds like it nonetheless. Even though I guess I'm still a bit picky with hip hop, there are still plenty of groups and artists I love, and I feel right now even the genre is undergoing yet another creative boom. That said, still to this day no other MC/DJ combination can capture what MF DOOM and Madlib accomplish here. Incredibly influential for other abstract hip hop to follow, and yet completely unique.

Yeah, I'll stop there. I promise. Not trying to be pretentious or 'objective', but rather explain just what I love so much about this album. Really I could gush about this album for hours, sorry.

Anyway, this is an easy 5.0 every day of the week... which is something I'd say about probably less than a handful of hip hop albums ever. I could (and do) listen to this album literally in any context, and every time it absorbs me and transports me into a unique world for the entire album's duration every time. Perfection.

[nutella]

Great summary. This album is solidly awesome and very dense. The samples and everything are really cool and the lyrics.... there is SO much going on there, with fantastic delivery as well. I've recently gotten into the habit of checking out the Genius annotations for basically everything I listen to because there's often cool meanings behind lyrics to catch, and this is one of those cases (as often with hip-hop albums in general) where I really can't even keep up with how many references, plays-on-words, etc are crammed in there. Truly fantastic

[Tangrowth]

Great summary. This album is solidly awesome and very dense. The samples and everything are really cool and the lyrics.... there is SO much going on there, with fantastic delivery as well. I've recently gotten into the habit of checking out the Genius annotations for basically everything I listen to because there's often cool meanings behind lyrics to catch, and this is one of those cases (as often with hip-hop albums in general) where I really can't even keep up with how many references, plays-on-words, etc are crammed in there. Truly fantastic

[speedchuck]

I tried jumping back into it again, but... agh, can't get it. I see what you guys are saying, but it's just me. Hip hop has to be very particular to catch me, and whatever Cunninlynguists did to catch me, this didn't.

It's a memorable album, though.

[Tangrowth]

I tried jumping back into it again, but... agh, can't get it. I see what you guys are saying, but it's just me. Hip hop has to be very particular to catch me, and whatever Cunninlynguists did to catch me, this didn't.

It's a memorable album, though.

I can actually understand that opinion, believe it or not.

I felt the similarly about the album the first few times I heard it. First couple times I heard it like 10 years ago I didn't really think much of it, but then again I had extremely little exposure to hip hop at the time, and I specifically checked it out because of its canonized status, so I thought it was probably just me and hip hop was something I'd not appreciate that much. Then I revisited it a couple years later after successfully getting into some hip hop (mainly golden age stuff like A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, etc.), and I still didn't have much of a reaction. Then I thought for sure it was doomed to be one of those albums I'd never get. It wasn't until I revisited it a year or so after that after getting into even more hip hop that it hit me like a ton of bricks; I noticed I had instant appreciation for a lot of the tracks. I'm not sure exactly what it was that changed other than seeking out more music and having heard the album a few times, I suppose, but it unexpectedly grew on me. Since then I've liked more and more with each listen, and now like 7 years later here it is one of my all-time favorite albums; never thought it would be if you'd asked me when I first heard it. Even a year ago I would confidently say I really liked it but not quite as much as I do now.

So I guess you could say it was a grower album for me (unlike other albums which blew me away first time I heard them, including genres I initially struggled with, such as hip hop; see: Low End Theory by ATCQ which "unlocked" the genre for me, so to speak).

I think due to its dense nature, it can be a difficult album to approach. I nominated it anyway. Seriously, I think its unconventional nature makes it a good exposure to hip hop especially for people who aren't too acquainted with the genre. Obviously though not everyone will like it. I've heard other sentiments of this being a "grower" album for other listeners as well, so maybe there's something to it. Who knows really.

It's funny how music tastes can shift over time too, so perhaps that something to do with it for me as well. Not saying your appreciation will suddenly grow for it; obviously no one can know that, but you'd know better than me or anyone else. Nonetheless, at least for me personally, being honest I'd say I never necessarily know 100% (I may think I do, and it's really like 99.9%) whether an album will sneak up on me down the road and I'll find myself developing a liking for something I previously thought would elude me forever.

[Tangrowth]

Sorry to go off rambling so much this week. But I guess this is a music thread after all, so you all should expect that possibility from me.

I think that's what is so great about this group though; I've already been exposed to stuff I'd probably never have heard or revisited otherwise. And I obsessively seek out music probably to an unhealthy degree. There's nothing else quite as outstanding as discovering new music, at least IMO, even if the reaction is not ideal. I still appreciate being exposed to new music even if I personally don't appreciate the product itself.

I hope we can keep this going strong for as long as possible.

[G-Man]

Madvillainy

Overall, I thought this album was on par with A Piece of Strange. It had wit, humor, and very good samples and beats. The lyrical content stood out in places. The references and name-dropping encompassed a very broad spectrum, suggesting that the duo is aware of much more pop culture than you would find on the average rap or hip-hop album.

Some of the tracks possessed a good foundation but maybe didn't do enough with the beat or the track could have been longer. I was never bored but I did struggle to keep my place a few times when trying to score the album. Madvillainy may suffer a little under my metrics given the total number of tracks but I don't think my final score is too far off base.

It may not be my genre to pull from regularly but this is a worthwhile album. Given its quality, I was surprised to see the duo's discography is so small. I can't relate to all of the lyrics but that doesn't make it any less good.

G-Man Scale: 3.49 out of 5
Rico Scale: 3.5 out of 5

[G-Man]

Did Ricochet pick a version for his album choice? I'm looking forward to some classical sauce this week.

[JaggedJimmyJay]

I was able to give Madvillainy a listen earlier in the week, but I was a bit distracted as it played. It sounded about as it always had before to me: decent, listenable, agreeable, and unspectacular. It could be that it would start to assert itself more with repetition if I can ever find the time for it. I have nothing bad to say about it though.

[JaggedJimmyJay]

Week 49: Igor Stravinsky - Petrushka

Submitted by Ricochet

Available on YouTube and Spotify (multiple different performances)

[JaggedJimmyJay]

Rico, I defaulted to the performance you included in your original submission (The Cleveland Orchestra). If you prefer a different one be on display, by all means share it.

Note to all that the Cleveland performance doesn't appear to be on Spotify, but a few others are there.

[JaggedJimmyJay]

It's that time again. Open submissions have worked fine lately, so just stick and album in here if you have one.

[speedchuck]

My submission:

speedchuck - Royal Blood - How Did We Get So Dark? / 2017 / Alternative Rock / 10 tracks / 34:25 / YouTube and probably Spotify