Reviews Supplemental

I reviewed a couple of them before. The first one on the day the world ended.

26 Jul 2014: Night Ranger/"Midnight Madness" (1983)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/06/finding-lost-city-of-atlantis-by.html

This album features both of the Night Ranger songs I know.

It starts with You Can Still Rock in America, which is a pretty sweet song. Very nearly approaching anthem territory.
Why Does Love Have to Change? reminds me of REO Speedwagon. Gotta roll with the changes.

Then there's Sister Christian; one of the greatest songs ever written. Completely serious, here. There are few songs that instantly put a smile on this face of mine, and this is definitely one of them.

Touch of Madness reminds me of Def Leppard, if Def Leppard were any good.


Overall, this is a good album that is completely overshadowed by Sister Christian in every possible way.

27 Jul 2014: Alice Cooper/"Billion Dollar Babies" (1973)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/06/handing-over-my-healthcare-cheque-by.html

After playing No More Mr. Nice Guy in GHWOR, I realised I hadn't ever reviewed an Alice Cooper album. TIME TO CHANGE THAT SHIT
This album features GH2's song (the title track) and No More Mr. Nice Guy.

Hello, Hooray is an... odd way to start the album. It's pleasant as shit.
I think Alice is playing a joke on us. Raped and Freezin' also sounds rather pleasant. I actually like it.

No More Mr. Nice Guy is great. It completely deserves any praise it gets.

The album falls apart toward the end, but it's a fun ride until then.

27 Jul 2014: Silversun Pickups/"Carnavas" (2006)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/06/youre-giving-me-cancer-by-cancer.html

I'm curious as to what the whole thing's about. I'd never heard of them before RB2/GHWT.
There's not much to it, really. It's nice. It's something you have in the background, but not something you listen to with everything you've got and are all like "OH SHIT YEAH".

28 Jul 2014: Phoenix/"Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix" (2009)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/06/a-life-full-of-lies-by-men-who-are.html

Phoenix's Lasso from this album was in both RB3 and GHWOR. I figure it's time to tackle something French.

Not only does this album feature borderline pop music, it also has a FILLER INSTRUMENTAL. PUSHING THE BOUNDARIES MOTHERFUCKER
Other than that, it's good but unremarkable.

29 Jul 2014: The Sword/"Age of Winters" (2006)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/06/jokes-about-bricks-by-robert.html

After hearing three of their songs in GH, and liking all of them, here I am.

Celestial Crown opens the album. It's an instrumental, but I can forgive it, since it's short and has a nice riff. It leads right into the second track, but that was lost because of Spotify's ads. Oops.
I hated Freya when I first played GH2. That riff was the bane of my existence. Now that I can actually play the riff, I like the song a lot.

Aside from Freya, this album is kind of unremarkable.

30 Jul 2014: Train/"Save Me, San Francisco" (2009)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/06/as-per-usual-by-usually.html

The one with "Hey, Soul Sister" on it.
Hey, Soul Sister is the song of the year, 2009. Song of the decade contender.

I Got You rides completely on The Doobie Brothers' Black Water. It's a complete abomination that melds a cover and an original song.
The line "I'm not in it to win it, and there's a thousand ways you can skin it" hurts me. I'm half the man I used to be.

Breakfast in Bed is COMPLETE filler. There is nothing else it could have been intended for. Same for Marry Me.


Train used all their talent on Hey, Soul Sister, and didn't have any left for the other ten songs.

31 Jul 2014: Kanye West/"808s and Heartbreak" (2008)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/06/words-of-terror-by-terrifying-terriers.html

I'm nothing if not stubborn.
I listened to My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy after liking Power, and hated most of it. Well, I like another of his songs, which is on this album. I've read that this one is experimental? And shit? But I'm going for it. Balls deep, motherfucker.
It's not really about hipping or hopping, bitches or hoes, money or cash, sex or carnal relations. Well, I guess you could say that. It's more about, well, heartbreak.

Heartless has something the tracks before it don't. It's a lot less solemn, I guess. It just seems to have a lot more impact as a song.
Love Lockdown is another standout. The faux-drumbeats are super-great, and the autotune level is perfect. I mean, yeah, it's definitely there, but it's not drowning the song until Kanye wants it to on the loud parts.

RoboCop has these really neat fake violins. Oddly, the song doesn't feel out of place in an album about heartbreak.
The final live track doesn't mesh with the rest of them. It's the obvious lowpoint.

Other than that, this was a neat album that I'd recommend to anyone who wants something different. I guess.

01 Jul 2014: "1" by The Beatles
This is about as good a compilation as you're going to get from these guys. Even if it's missing some of their best songs. Hell, it doesn't even have any songs from The White Album. But that's okay.

01 Aug 2014: Primal Scream/"Screamadelica" (1991)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/06/dont-deliver-those-pizzas-to-my-house.html

This album is on the /mu/ essentials list. Bringing it back, motherfucker.

It starts with Movin' on Up, which was in San Andreas. I can't exactly rate it fairly as a song because of this, but it's fucking great.
Unfortunately, the rest of the album is absolutely nothing like it. Fucking hell. It's really bad experimental/dance/shit shit that wears thin after the second song.

02 Aug 2014: Interpol/"Turn on the Bright Lights" (2002)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/06/let-me-take-you-up-by-updraft.html

This review's purpose is to try and find out why. Just, why. Why did this make it so big? Why is it on the fucking /mu/ essentials list?

The album itself raises some very poignant questions, such as "Could God make an album so boring that even He Himself couldn't stay awake while listening to it?"

03 Aug 2014: David Bowie/"Scary Monsters" (1980)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/08/the-hat-goes-to-seattle-by-hat.html

What is there even to say about Bowie any more? It's 1980, and he's being about like you'd expect.

Here are some headlines from the newspapers on the day it was released:
BOWIE WRITES GOOD SONGS BUT NOT GREAT ONES; RELEASES IT
BOWIE HIRES JAPANESE LADY; PROBABLY FUCKS HER
BOWIE RELEASES SEQUEL TO SPACE ODDITY APPARENTLY; IS IT REALLY THOUGH
TURKISH COUP; MILITARY TAKES OVER COUNTRY

04 Aug 2014: Ken/"By Request Only" (1976)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/06/holding-onto-cup-by-shamed.html

From the /mu/ essentials list into my waiting ears.

I liked my filler review I wrote over, so here it is for posterity:
i won it
just because none of the other athletes had the foresight to use steroids doesn't mean i didn't earn it
I SACRIFICED SO MUCH


I'll be honest, I'm on track one now, and am really digging it. Ken is not lacking in sincerity, and the song itself is just right in tempo and pitch. A very strong opener, not even kidding. I have a big, goofy grin on my face.
Modern Religion has this really neat piano track, and the wah on the guitar is just perfect.

Toward the middle, the album hits a bit of a lull. Luckily, Ken pulls it out at the end and delivers a winner.

This may be the best album Ken has ever released, and it may even be the best album on the /mu/ essentials list.

05 Aug 2014: Sonic Youth/"Sonic Nurse" (2004)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/07/a-confession-by-me.html

The album before Rather Ripped.

I like Sonic Youth a lot when Thurston is singing a good song over a nice group of instruments. Unfortunately, that only seems to happen a few times on this album.
I don't like Kim Gordon. I don't like her voice or the songs she sings. I really wish she wasn't there.

Overall, I guess it's good. I just with it had more Thurston.

06 Aug 2014: Neil Young/"After the Gold Rush" (1970)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/07/it-wasnt-me-by-me-and-guys-who-are-also.html

I hated the first Neil Young album on the essentials list, but I really liked Rust Never Sleeps, so I'm giving the second a shot. Oh boy.

Southern Man is way too long and kind of annoying.
Other than that, it's just good. Nothing too too special, but I enjoyed it.

07 Aug 2014: The Antlers/"Hospice" (2009)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/07/lump-of-gold-by-guys-who-lumps-in-their.html

Not only is this album on the /mu/ essentials list, it's one of the big ones at the top, among such classics as Kid A and In the Aeroplane Over the Sea.

This album makes me feel like I'm stuck in an elevator.

08 Aug 2014: KISS/"Creatures of the Night" (1982)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/12/give-me-back-by-lunch-money-guys-by-frog.html

This is the first KISS album without Ace Frehley, not that you'd know it from the album cover. The band was pretending he hadn't left.

Danger is kind annoying. It's all like "DANGER DANGER DANGER DANGER"
I Love it Loud is trying to be an anthem, but fails miserably. It's like they were ripping off I Wanna Rock before I Wanna Rock even existed.

Honestly, this is the best KISS album in a while. Rather than try to go deeper into experimental territory, the band went back and just wrote good music. It's definitely what they needed after losing half their members.

09 Aug 2014: Styx/"Kilroy Was Here" (1983)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/07/doing-laundry-on-mars-by-housewife.html

I've apparently reviewed five Styx albums. But none of them had Mr. Roboto or Don't Let it End on them, so I can see why only one scored above a 2.5.

Mr. Roboto opens the album, and is probably the best album opener in history. Domo arigato.
Don't Let it End is third, and is seriously amazing. The title of the song pretty much sums up my feelings on the matter.

Aside from those two masterpieces, the album is very mediocre. Luckily, the album ends with a reprise of both, featuring Meat Loaf. I can't imagine a better ending.

10 Aug 2014: ZZ Top/"Eliminator" (1983)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/07/sea-of-sight-by-teeter-totters.html

Think of a ZZ Top song. Any one will do. Got one? Okay, I'll bet whatever you thought of was on this album. If it was Tush or La Grange or, uh, Cheap Sunglasses, I lost. Otherwise:

The album opens with Gimme All Your Lovin', which is probably ZZ Top at their ZZ Topiest. I like it a lot.
It's immediately followed by Got Me Under Pressure, which could stand to have the vocals made more loud. They almost blend in, and don't really take the song where it needs to go because of it.

THAT is followed by Sharp-Dressed Man, which has a sweet riff. GH1 represent
Stepping away from the hits for a second, I Got the Six is a very fun song. A lot energy and shit.

I've never really liked Legs. It's fine, I guess. I could probably use it as the standard by which I rate other songs. Better than Legs? Good song. Worse than Legs? Bad song.
Thug was in GTA IV. As usual, Rockstar picked a winner.

Overall, this album is much better than it probably should be.

11 Aug 2014: Weird Al/"Dare to be Stupid" (1985)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/07/destruction-of-personal-posessions-by.html

So, I wanted to review a Weird Album. That's the best joke you'll hear from me. My best since "Panic! At the Discography".
Anyway, I decided to go for the one where I knew most of the songs the parodies are based on, and this is what I ended up with.

The album begins with Like a Surgeon. I've never really been much of a Like a Virgin fan, but Weird Al takes it to a completely new place.
Weird Al's style parodies are oftentimes more effective than a simple song parody. Dare to be Stupid is one of the best examples of this. The absolute best is Albuquerque, but that's neither here nor there. "I can't hear you" / "Okay, I can hear you now" is one of my favourite lines in anything.

I wasn't sold on I Want a New Duck until the quacking started. Now I am fully on board.
Yoda is just impressive. The lyrics all work with the theme, and just damn. "I know Darth Vader's got you annoyed / But don't kill him or you'll be unemployed"

The George of the Jungle theme cover was probably pointless, but I loved that movie when I was younger. I can't say I remember anything else about it, though.
Girls Just Wanna Have Lunch is probably the weakest track, but Weird Al gets points for being a better singer than Cyndi Lauper.

"If money can't buy happiness, I guess I'll have to rent it".
The ending polka is pretty much perfect.

Overall, I liked this a lot more than I was expecting to.

12 Aug 2014: Beck/"Sea Change" (2002)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/07/wizards-wizarding-wizardly-by-wizardry.html

I'm willing to give Beck a third chance. Why not?

This album isn't full of what I would call "Beck songs". Sure, they are songs written and performed by Beck, but they are not "Beck songs".
The entire album feels weird, offputting because it's so... normal. Despite this, it is still the best of the three Beck albums I've listened to.

12 Aug 2014: Paul Gilbert/"Stone Pushing Uphill Man" (2014)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2014/08/julio-and-case-of-missing-meta-knight.html

This album features a lot of covers, so, naturally, I thought "OH BOY PAUL IS SINGING AGAIN".
Well, uh. No.
In addition to playing the normal guitar part, Paul is also playing the vocal lines on guitar. It's, uh, different. Like, it's neat, but I'll probably never listen to it again. All I think is "oh man I should listen to Aerosmith later" or "man I haven't listened to Elton John in a while".
Also, Why Don't We do it in the Road? without the lyrics is just missing the point entirely. SCRATCH THAT IT GROOVES PRETTY HARD

I don't know if I Got the Feelin' is a cover or what, but if it's not, it would probably be one of Paul's best songs IF IT HAD FUCKING VOCALS
PAUL'S GOT A GREAT VOICE
PAUL IS A CLEVER SONGWRITER
JUST BECAUSE HE'S A GREAT GUITARIST DOESN'T MEAN HE SUDDENLY HAS TO MAKE A THOUSAND INSTRUMENTAL ALBUMS

Okay, the last song has singing.

Spoiler:

Overall, I enjoyed this more than I thought I would at the beginning. I guess that's good?

12 Aug 2014: REO Speedwagon/"Life as We Know It" (1987)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/07/whats-recipe-for-deck-of-cards-by-suits.html

Is it just me, or have REO Speedwagon been getting softer and softer as time goes on?
Either way, this is a pretty good album, yo.

13 Aug 2014: Jim Croce/"You Don't Mess Around with Jim" (1972)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/07/rewarding-act-of-acting-by-actors-guild.html

My local "CLASSICS" radio station plays two songs from this album regularly, so I thought why not.
Jim Croce is probably best-known for Big, Bad Leroy Brown. That song might just be a retread of this album's title track. I think so, at least.

The problem with this album is that it's full of ballads and shit that are made obsolete by Operator. It's pretty good, I guess.

13 Aug 2014: Elvis Costello/"Almost Blue" (1981)
http://musiccouldbebetter.blogspot.com/2013/07/day-of-wreckoning-by-smash-it-steve.html

The opening track, Why Don't You Love Me Like You Used to Do?, is exactly what I want in an Elvis Costello song.
Oddly, the rest of the album is mostly ballads. They're good ballads, mind, but I was kind of surprised.

This album is bookended by its best tracks, which is always nice.