Quote:
Originally Posted by Ninetales
This review looks like it has scaruffi fingerprints all over it (not necessarily a bad thing), although i do disagree with your assessment of what constitutes a "true work of art". Albums that are "challenging" will differ completely from listener to listener in that some won't find Can or Pere Ubu's sound challening at all. Saying something is challenging without context could easily just mean an album you didnt like right after the first listen, which could apply to Ok Computer and you.
In other words I doubt that bands like Neu! or Faust would be challenging for you in the sense that they would "turn you off at first" anymore. It doesnt mean you like them any less or that they are any less great.
In regards to OK Computer itself I dont think its amongst the greatest albums ever but it is still really good. I think i rate it similar to OP in the 7/10 range. I can certainly see why its so popular though. It has this sort of a desensitizing feeling to it that might be the perfect album to portray the internet age. It feels more like a refusal to admit guilt than depression. Like an overweight conscience remaining silent. You can do all kinds of terrible things over the internet while hiding in anonymity that it might not even seem like youre doing anything wrong at all. This is what i see in OK Computer. Its the soundtrack to a young internet and all of its loyal followers.
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Just for the record, I think Scaruffi's a dick.
Re: challenge, I see what you mean that Can/Ubu type stuff actually isn't challenging to me anymore. With that said, I don't really agree with the comparison. Whereas I maybe disliked a band like Can when I first heard them because I wasn't used to the sound and the things they did on their records, I am used to Radiohead's sound.
OK Computer is an album that I think is entirely accessible, and I don't consider it a challenge whatsoever. I actually think as a pop album it's pretty much as
solid as you can hope for.