Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin II

Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin II (1969)

Genre: Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, Blues Rock

Released a little over half a year after their stellar debut, Led Zeppelin II knocked The Beatles' Abbey Road off of the No.1 spot on the charts, twice, proving that they were a force to be reckoned with. As a reminder, I do not intend for this to be a really in-depth and complex review. I'm just sharing my quick personal thoughts on the album. As for any album review I will do, I try to be objective without letting any personal bias get too much in the way of the final grade.

Led Zeppelin II was more or less a continuation of the early heavy metal sound of their first record. Most critics and fans like to think back on this record as the most heavy among the band's discography, and I can agree with that. Hits on this record like Whole Lotta Love and Heartbreaker demonstrate this, with their hard pounding bass grooves and loud, distorted guitar riffs. The former song takes a break halfway through with a very psychedelic jam session which includes Robert Plant doing some interesting vocal improv (honestly, he sounds like he's having a seizure induced orgasm). The latter song also takes a break at the halfway point, just for Jimmy Page to get cocky and show off his flashy guitar shreds.

Personally, the heaviest track on this record would have to be The Lemon Song. This is over six minutes of pure, unadulterated Zeppelin at their finest. Two transitions throughout the song lead into a fine showcase of musicianship, with the members playing at full capacity, thanks in part to a really fast tempo change. Plus, with lyrics like these, one can't resist, "Squeeze me baby, 'till the juice runs down my leg... the way you squeeze my lemon, I'm gonna fall right out of bed." Still on the subject of heavy tunes, Moby Dick, which is pretty much just a glorified drum solo, still sounds intense and is fairly enjoyable. Bonham is truly a master of his craft.

Even though this record feels heavier than the rest of their discography, there's still a couple of tracks here that fit into the lighter side of the spectrum. Thank You is quite an underrated mellow love song, featuring some sweet undertones from Jones' Hammond organ. What Is And What Should Never Be and Ramble On, both incredibly infectious songs, balance the sound between soft and hard rock. Both start off with some incredibly sweet and melodic guitar riffs and break into some intense verses. 

While there was little innovation in the way of their sound on this record, there's no denying the amount of hits that came from it. Pretty much 2/3 of the tracks on here are classics that you instantly think of when Led Zeppelin is brought up. I still prefer their debut slightly more over this one, but I still consider this a great demonstration of late 60's hard rock and an incredibly consistent demonstration of what made Led Zeppelin so great as a pioneer of heavy metal.

A

Favorite Tracks: Whole Lotta Love, What Is And What Should Never Be, The Lemon Song, Living Loving Maid (She's Just A Woman), Ramble On, Bring It On Home

Least Favorite Track: Moby Dick

David Bowie - David Bowie [1967]

David Bowie - David Bowie (1967)

Genre: Baroque Pop, Music Hall

David Bowie's first album is one that seems to have been forgotten by fans and critics alike, as it is completely different from the sort of music he would become known for. As a reminder, I do not intend for this to be a really in-depth and complex review. I'm just sharing my quick personal thoughts on the album. As for any album review I will do, I try to be objective without letting any personal bias get too much in the way of the final grade.

Unlike Bowie's later celebrated efforts of the 70's which pulled influences from folk and glam rock, this is an odd specimen, focusing on baroque pop tunes that at times borders on cheesiness and/or cringe-worthy quips. Admittedly, the instrumentals on this record mostly work well for a 60's pop record. Quite a few tunes do have some catchy, if somewhat simplistic rhythms and some prominent brass and string arrangements. The underlying problem here mostly lies in Bowie's vocal presentation and lyrics.

Let me first point out a couple of stand-out tracks, however. Sell Me A Coat is quite a pleasant, if cliché love song. I'm sorry to say that if you find this song incredibly cheesy or cutesy, then it really doesn't get much better. Love You Till Tuesday is my other favorite on here, which ironically, just maybe the cheesiest song on the entire record. I can admit I can dig some cutesy tunes from time to time, but I still have to point out the cringe-worthy remark at the end of the song: "Well, I might stretch it till Wednesday..." It's pretty funny, and it's worth a listen just to see how far Bowie has come. 

Aside from the love songs, it's weird to see a few examples of dark subject matter here. We Are Hungry Men presents a bleak picture of the world with lyrics that target overpopulation, abortion rights, and communism. I can't help but not laugh though, as the end of the song showcases a sound clip of Bowie swallowing, as an obvious pun to the title. Please Mr. Gravedigger sees Bowie taking on the persona of a guilt-ridden murderer. It has the dishonorable distinction of being the worst track on this record simply because it lacks music. This is pretty much an acapella tune over the sounds of thunder and rain, clearly adding to the effect of the story, but this isn't what I want to hear from a pop record.

For what this album is, it still fails to deliver on interesting ideas. If you don't mind your fair share of cheesy tunes and/or are just curious about Bowie's humble beginnings, still give this record a try. For most people, fans or not, this still isn't a very good record. I'm just glad that he shied away from this genre and music style and moved onto bigger and better things. I love David Bowie, but as far as debut albums go among my favorite artists, this is one of the worst. 

D+

Favorite Tracks: Sell Me A Coat, Love You Till Tuesday, When I Live My Dream

Least Favorite Track: Please Mr. Gravedigger

Gorillaz - The Now Now

Gorillaz - The Now Now (2018)

Genre: Electropop, Synth Funk

After their somewhat disappointing release of Humanz during the previous year, Gorillaz came back with a much more musically coherent and enjoyable album this time around. This album is being reviewed per request. As a reminder, I do not intend for this to be a really in-depth and complex review. I'm just sharing my quick personal thoughts on the album. As for any album review I will do, I try to be objective without letting any personal bias get too much in the way of the final grade.

I was left somewhat bummed out Humanz. It's ludicrous amount of guest artists and much more pronounced electronic influences made it feel less like a Gorillaz album, and more like a compilation of ideas by different artists. I'm glad to see that The Now Now sees a much more humble return to form, for the most part. Only two out of the eleven tracks here feature guest artists, and that's incredibly refreshing. I can certainly say that I was coming into this album with some high hopes after having heard a few of the single released prior to this record, with Tranz being one of my favorites, with it's dream-like vibes and esthetic. 

Surprisingly, for a band that is known for its hip-hop influences, there is a distinct lack of it on this record. Hollywood is the only track here that really fits that bill, featuring a much appreciated and laid-back performance by Snoop Dogg. It was probably for the best, as I thought it was one of the weaker tracks here. For the most part, a lot of the tracks on this album are surprisingly laid back and have a somewhat melancholy tone to them. The closing track Souk Eye is perhaps one of the "prettiest" songs to come out of the Gorillaz' discography, even as it starts transitioning into "disco" territory near the end. I can't say that these are the sort of vibes I expected out of a Gorillaz album, but I can't complain.

Similarly to Souk Eye, Idaho is a mostly acoustic track that proves how Damon Albarn doesn't need to make use of heavy studio experimentation to make a pretty great Gorillaz song, and still have it sound like an actual Gorillaz track. Lake Zurich is an incredibly synth heavy dance track which, surprisingly, features no real vocals aside from some seemingly spoken word interjections thrown in. Fire Flies is another highlight, featuring some satisfying syncopated vocal delivery and slow, but funky synth groove.

There are certainly no shortage of good tunes on here and while not the most musically diverse of their records, this album does well in combining funk, synth-pop, dance and soul into a short and sweet package. It's quite possible that after the release of Humanz, this may not necessarily be the return to form that most Gorillaz fans were hoping for, but it's certainly a welcome entry into their discography. Hopefully, Damon will take some of the good ideas on here, expand upon them and eventually give us a true Gorillaz album once again, one that mixes said good ideas with some quality hip-hop, in the same vain as Demon Days.

A-

Favorite tracks: Tranz, Idaho, Lake Zurich, Fire Flies, Souk Eye

Least Favorite Track: Sorcererz

Abandoned Pools - Humanistic

Abandoned Pools - Humanistic (2001)

(Wish I could find a higher res image online)

Genre: Alternative Rock, Industrial Rock

After his tenure with The Eels and a couple of other side projects, Tommy Walter devised another project, Abandoned Pools. This is an alternative rock project which released their first album in 2001, but didn't garner much attention until the following year. This album is being reviewed per request. As a reminder, I do not intend for this to be a really in-depth and complex review. I'm just sharing my quick personal thoughts on the album. As for any album review I will do, I try to be objective without letting any personal bias get too much in the way of the final grade.

Typically, alternative rock seems to have simple song structures in mind based around easy chord progressions. For the most part, this holds true for this album as well, but is done in such a way that most of the tracks on here actually feel fresh. Songs like Mercy Kiss (which is my absolute favorite on this record, thanks in part to an incredibly catchy hook and satisfying riff) and Seed (which features a riff that feels straight out of a cliché heavy metal album, albeit a good one) feature some very aggressive instrumentation, worthy of some headbanging. On the other hand, there's also a balance between more uplifting tracks like Suburban Muse and the appropriately titled Sunny Day.

As with a lot of these alt-rock records of the 21st century, there's some synth use scattered throughout, but it's subtle enough to not detract from the raw instrumentation, and at times, actually works in favor of giving some tracks that little extra flair in tone. Blood actually makes great use of it for it's intro, creating a very dark and foreboding atmosphere that sets up some dark themes about the human condition presented in the song. When I think about it, all of these songs seem to speak to some sort human characteristic, whether it's love, one's mental state, and other similar topics. I can see where the album's title came from... Oh, and as a quick, fun side note, the first few seconds of L.V.B.D. almost sounds exactly like Blur's Coffee and TV. I can't know for sure if that was intentional, but it's neat nonetheless.

I must say though, I really like Tommy Walter's voice. It's not particularly powerful, but it's incredibly smooth and at times, comes off pretty androgynous, which is pretty relaxing, even during the more aggressive songs. As you can imagine, it's very effective on the more upbeat, light-hearted tracks. With that said, I don't think there's a single bad song on this record. Yes, there are a few standout tracks, but there's a consistent flow of decent, sometimes even great tracks on this record. It's nothing groundbreaking for the genre at the time, but it's an overall pleasing album and it's a wonder how this didn't get as much traction as it should have.

B+

Favorite Tracks: Mercy Kiss, L.V.B.D., Blood, Seed, Sunny Day

Least Favorite Track: Fluorescein

The 1975 - The 1975

The 1975 - The 1975 (2013)

Genre: Indie Rock, Indie Pop, Electropop, Funk Rock, Pop Rock, Alternative Rock

Indie/alternative/pop-rock group The 1975, dropped their debut studio album in 2013, offering a mix electropop and funk influences with some punk-style lyrical content sprinkled in. This album is being reviewed per request. As a reminder, I do not intend for this to be a really in-depth and complex review. I'm just sharing my quick personal thoughts on the album. As for any album review I will do, I try to be objective without letting any personal bias get too much in the way of the final grade.

I can't say I expected much after hearing the title track, which features some very interesting experimentation, but for some odd reason is full of euphemisms for oral sex. I don't see the correlation, unless this band is so full of themselves that they're starting off by announcing how many girls they lay down with on the daily. In fact, there's a lots of sexually charged lyrics throughout this album, with Sex being the most "in your face" track, lyrically. Here, Matty Healy seemingly gloats how he can steal your girl, being the Casanova that he aspires to be. I can't deny though, that it's probably their catchiest song on this record.

There's a lot of genres mixed in here, but there still seems to be a mostly consistent type of song structure throughout. Almost all tracks have a very prominent synth-pop vibe, but the production here is decent enough that the synths never blow up more than they need to. A very prominent use of synthesizers is on the track Menswear, which plays out like a chill, lo-fi hip-hop musical background for half of the song's length. I almost expected Matty to come in with some bomb-ass bars, but he didn't. *tear*

While there are no shortage of decent tracks on this album, there never was a single track that stood out above all the rest to such a great extent. As I stated, Sex was probably the catchiest here, and aside from that, only Chocolate and Talk! made we want to get up and dance a bit. The latter features a simple and subtle, but effectively funky bassline that kept my ears occupied. M.O.N.E.Y. is a song which I didn't necessarily love, but did feature some interesting use effects and electronic vocal alterations. I have yet to understood how silly, yet intriguing it is to hear Matty spell out "money" after his voice has been transformed into an annoying little robot.

Because of the overreliance on common pop-tropes and synths, the album does start to stumble a bit with the second half. The best track from the second half would probably have to be Girls, with its upbeat, simple chord riff. Again, nothing on here ever lives up to the fun nature of Sex, but there's no shortage of simple, funky tunes either. The album ends with a sultry, yet minimalistic piano ballad, Is There Somebody Who Can Watch You, which seems drastically different within the context of this album. Overall, their first album was a decent effort in incorporating funk and synth-pop into more traditional alt-rock and pop rock, while unironically leaving in some room for some youth-driven care-free type of songwriting. There's quite some room for improvement, both sonically and lyrically, but for what it is, there's definitely some enjoyment to be had here.

B-

Favorite Tracks: Chocolate, Sex, Talk!, Girls, The City, She Way Out

Least Favorite Track: 12 (Yes, I'm counting the minimalist interludes)

They Might Be Giants - They Might Be Giants [The Pink Album]

They Might Be Giants - They Might Be Giants (1986)

Genre: Alternative Rock, New Wave

They Might Be Giants' debut album, released in 1986 mixed a plethora of influences and genres such as folk, synth-pop and alternative rock to create an interesting esthetic. This album is being reviewed per request. As a reminder, I do not intend for this to be a really in-depth and complex review. I'm just sharing my quick personal thoughts on the album. As for any album review I will do, I try to be objective without letting any personal bias get too much in the way of the final grade.

Right off the bat, I have to admit that there is no shortage of creative ideas on this record. There's so many musical influences, genres, and instrumental quirks thrown into pretty much all 19 tracks on this thing. The great thing about packing that many tunes into this 38-minute record, is that it constantly feels fresh, rarely boring you with any dead ideas. Interestingly enough, I like to think of this record as a collection of "catchy-filler." Number Three is one such example that comes to mind. There's something really moronic, yet hilarious about a song who's lyrical content deals with literally writing said song. And yet, I can't deny how catchy it is.

In fact, it's hard to ignore how many of the tunes here contain such incoherent lyrics, and yet doesn't detract from the their enjoyment. Youth Culture Killed My Dog is quite hooking with it's early synth-wave bass groove and heavy alternative rock style. But seriously, what the heck does the song mean? I could write 20 pages worth of content trying to make sense of the lyrics on a lot of these songs, but that aside, it really is quite odd when once in a while you come across such an upbeat song with some seemingly dark subject matter. I Hope That I Get Old Before I Die is one such example, obviously dealing with the prospect of death and how we subconsciously fear its inevitability. There's no rhyme or reason on this album, but that's just part of the group's charm. 

There's something to be said about the vocals that really drives some of these tracks. Half the time, the singer sounds like he's a hillbilly who just had a smoke for the first time. In simple terms, they add a very poignant country flair, that while not necessarily bad in the context of this kind of music, it may end up coming across as either amusing in a comedic way, or just plain annoying for some. I tend to mostly appreciate it. It's quirky and interesting to see the contrast between such songs and others where the singer showcases some pretty heavy vocal performances, reminiscent of more traditional indie hard rock. 

Sonically, the album employs good use of a wide assortment of instruments, like the accordion and synthesizer, as well as some samples. They gives a lot of the tracks more depth and personality, because the root of most of these songs lie within basic chord structures and alternative rock tropes. Rhythm Section Want Ad employs heavy use of the synthesizer to create a carnival-esque soundscape that becomes prominent at a certain break in the song. Slightly creepy, but very interesting within this genre. Other songs employ their own neat quirks as well.

I honestly don't want to get into much detail about the tracks, because I believe they all have their charm, and it's hard to pinpoint something that really sticks out to me for a majority of them. This is just simply an enjoyable record, with a great mix of different genres and some interesting sonic experimentation. If you're a fan of less traditional alternative rock and enjoy some humor in your music, this is a pretty solid album. I find it very hard to say much else because much its charm is something that will (hopefully) be much more appreciated and understood if you simply listen to it yourself. 

B+

Favorite Tracks: Number Three, (She Was A) Hotel Detective, Youth Culture Killed My Dog, Alienation's For The Rich, Rhythm Section Want Ad

Least Favorite Track: Toddler Hiway

King Crimson - In The Court Of The Crimson King

King Crimson - In The Court Of The Crimson King (1969)

Genre: Progressive Rock

Often hailed as one of the greatest achievements in prog-rock history, King Crimson's debut album has become a staple of rock history and pop culture, and one that by 1969 standards, seemed ahead of its time. This album is being reviewed per request. As a reminder, I do not intend for this to be a really in-depth and complex review. I'm just sharing my quick personal thoughts on the album. As for any album review I will do, I try to be objective without letting any personal bias get too much in the way of the final grade.

After many years of this album seemingly going under my radar, thanks in part to its absence from YouTube and Spotify, I can now finally agree with the fanboys. This is an essential, prog-rock album, and anyone that claims to be a fan of the genre would be doing themselves a great disservice in skipping it. With its smooth blend of symphonic, jazz, and classical influences, I'm still amazed that this was released in 1969.

Uncommon for the era, 5 tracks are all that's presented here. This record runs nearly 44 minutes, so you can expect some pretty lengthy passages. As is obvious, you cannot hold someone's attention for that long without offering something incredibly well-crafted and interesting. For the most part, King Crimson did well in delivering some sweet guitar improv passages, pounding bass riffs and strangely enough, some of the best hard hitting drum fills I have heard on any record. 21st Century Schizoid Man opens up the album with an incredibly upbeat jazz-influenced track that crescendos into one of the most satisfying climaxes I've heard in progressive rock, a little bit after the 2 minute mark. This trails back to the original style of the track around the 6 minute mark. A lot of people consider this to be the highlight of the album, and I can see why, though it's hard to decide if it truly is.

As far as musical variation goes, 21st Century Schizoid Man probably takes the cake, but tracks like Epitaph and the title track are so full of life, so hypnotically beautiful, that it's hard for me to decide on a favorite. Epitaph especially, has a deep sense of urgency surrounding its haunting instrumentals and depressing lyrics, which bring to mind thoughts of nuclear fallout. Court Of The Crimson King is a wonderful album closer, and features some great fantastical imagery that really takes you to another world. I Talk To The Wind is the most "traditional" song on the record, presenting a colorful, lovely acoustic melody, perfectly complimented by Ian McDonald's sweetly melodic flute playing, which is also prominent halfway through the title track. 

The worst track on this otherwise perfectly constructed album would have to be Moonchild. There is nothing inherently wrong with some Avant-Garde experimentation in a prog-rock album. However, when the track is just over 12 minutes long, and most of it is dedicated to minimalistic instrumental quips, it does drag quite a bit. Granted, it's not a big deal for aficionados of the genre. I can't say that I wasn't amused upon first listen, though I wouldn't find myself hard-pressed to listen to this track in its entirety every time I go through this record. The sums on this record greatly outweigh the few cons here though.

A

Favorite Track: Can't decide

Least Favorite Track: Moonchild