Janszoon

Can I join this group?

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A Night in the Life of the Invisible Man

Time & Place

25 Albums You Should Hear Before the Moon Crashes into the Earth and We All Die

last.fm

Trollheart

Of course you can. You'd be more than welcome.

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Synthgirl

Agreed! One of the albums I discovered from reading this forum and it blew me away. Should be more legendary than OK Computer.

Trollheart

Say hi everyone to Janszoon, who has joined us!

Jansz, I'm sure you'll be a regular contributor to and valued member of the club, but as per the rules I've put you in as an Associate Member. All that means is that you need to participate in two album reviews before you can nominate one and become a full member. It's just to stop people who shall remain nameless but have something to do with ruling small flying reptiles coming in, nominating their album, reviewing it and then ****ing off and never taking part again. True story. Sorry, I don't make the rules, I just make them.

Welcome!

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Janszoon

Alright, I have some late breaking reactions:

Linkin Park—Living Things

Full disclosure: I've always disliked this band, but I tried to approach this with as impartial an ear as possible. On my first listen, I found it hard to sit through all the way because I really dislike the Chester Bennington's vocals. After a second listen, I found the vocals a little less grating, so I was able to focus more on the rest of the band. My takeaway is similar to my feelings about Limp Bizkit: the drummer is the best thing about the band. The combination of him and the keyboardist is solid and I might even enjoy listening to a different band with the two of them in it. The bassist might be fine too, but I actually found it hard to track what he was playing. The guitar, though, is only good when it plays a supporting role. Whenever it's the focus of attention it just doesn't work for me. Some of the rapping and screamed vocals are okay, and I would probably enjoy the album more if that's all there was, but then the overwrought nu metal/emo singing comes in and spoils the song for me every time. The best tracks were probably "Until it Breaks", "Victimized", and "Tinfoil", but I'm unlikely to listen to this album again.

3/10

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Vox—From Spain To Spain

I had never even heard of this artist before so I didn't know what to expect with this one. As I listened, I couldn't help wondering about the title and why it was chosen. It wasn't until my second time through that I perceive the musical arc of the whole thing. My first thought was that it's like a journey from Madrid through Andalusia and into Morocco, but I think a better explanation is that the sonic journey is a trip back and forth in time through Spanish history. The earlier tracks certainly have more of a traditional Western European feel to them, despite the occasional oud, while toward the end, it starts to have more of North African or Middle Eastern quality. I liked every song on this album, but there were definitely some standout moments. The first was "Bells For The Virgin (Queen Na Virgin)", with its bells and slow build. "While The Birds Sing" pulled me in with its evocative percussion and flute. "Deus Ex Machina" gets the thumbs up for the surprise cuíca, something I usually associate with Brazilian music, and I love the crazy stereo vocal effects toward the end. "Miragre" felt appropriately epic for a penultimate track. Lastly, "Bearer Of The Cups (Ajuha)" makes for a terrific outro, with its pensive, haunting mood. I noticed that last track has way more plays on Spotify than all the other tracks, I wonder if it was used in a movie or something. I could see it. Anyway, it was a very enjoyable album overall and I'm sure I'll be listening again.

8/10


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Definitely. It's a way better album imo.

__________________
A Night in the Life of the Invisible Man

Time & Place

25 Albums You Should Hear Before the Moon Crashes into the Earth and We All Die

last.fm

Lisnaholic

Great news to have Janzsoon join the club ! I hope you enjoy yourself here .

Double great news to see a positive review of From Spain To Spain, which turned out to be a dud in most people's eyes. I'm glad someone else enjoyed the subtle variety that exists across the different tracks.
I also wondered about the title and my conclusion was similar to yours, Janzsoon, though not exactly: I thought it referred to the different religious/ethnic enclaves within medieval Spain (Jewish, Christian, Muslim) exchanging ideas in a spirit of peace and harmony, and creating a unique cultural mix born out of mutual admiration for each other's musical expression.
Dream on, Lisna.

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"Am I enjoying this moment? I know of it and perhaps that is enough." - Sybille Bedford, 1953

Janszoon

Thank you both!

I like your take on it! That's an intriguing era in Spanish history.

__________________
A Night in the Life of the Invisible Man

Time & Place

25 Albums You Should Hear Before the Moon Crashes into the Earth and We All Die

last.fm

rubber soul

Welcome, Janszoon.

Yeah, I can see where Grandaddy can be compared to Radiohead. Both rate as my number one albums of 1997 and 2000 respectively. I have to say I was blown away the first time I listened to Grandaddy; not sure if I have as much since.

But we haven't even reviewed this one yet. Let's hear Beach House (another album I'm looking forward to) first. I'm sure SGR would appreciate that.

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SGR

Believe me, once the Beach House comes on, I don't care what anyone is discussing

Lisnaholic

Linkin Park - Living Things

The only thing I knew about Linkin Park going in was that I once watched them by chance on tv for about 2 mins, before I voted with my remote and changed channels.

So I was pleasantly surprised with the electronic intro to the first track, Lost In The Echo. Pretty soon though, a rap singer joins in, which spoiled the track for me. And that pattern was repeated throughout the album: some agreeable surprises in the variety of Linkin Park's styles, but I was always turned off by the re-emergence of the rap elements.

Until It Breaks is another track that demonstrated what I felt was the good and bad of Living Things: There's lots of interesting electronically modified sounds going on at first, but then that heavy-handed rapper comes in with, as far as I could judge, the same old tell-it-like-it-is swagger about urban survival on mean streets. Yawn. But then, with a complete change of tempo and mood, the track ends with some sweet Beach-Boysie singing. The whole track feels like Linkin Park in a four-minute nutshell.

I quite liked the gentler tracks, Castle Of Glass, Powerless, and the short explorations of electronic/industrial sounds, but what I took for LP's variety ultimately resolved itself into two types of sound in my mind: annoying rap and unexceptional old-fashioned pop. Enduring the former while waiting for the scant rewards of the latter didn't make a very satisfying listening experience for me, so 3/10
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__________________
"Am I enjoying this moment? I know of it and perhaps that is enough." - Sybille Bedford, 1953