Vinyl Albums - Comments by sladesounds

Vinyl Albums - Comments by sladesounds

« Member Page

Page 25 of 26 : Previous : Next :

Member	Item		Review/Comment
sladesounds 14th Dec 2013		Vinyl Album Desaparecidos - Read Music/Speak Spanish (2002)	Review All Music Review by Kenyon Hopkin With Bright Eyes, Conor Oberst wears his languishing heart on his sleeve, channeling his most personal emotions via intense acoustic-based indie rock. The talented young songwriter seems ready to burst out into something noisier, and he gets that chance with Desaparecidos. On Read Music/Speak Spanish, the band rocks out with more of an emo edge, typified by blaring guitars and raging vocals. With fellow Omaha guitarist/songwriter Denver Dalley, bassist Landon Hedges, keyboardist Ian McElroy, and drummer Matt Baum (Baum and McElroy have toured with Bright Eyes, while Hedges plays in labelmate the Good Life), the group critiques American materialism and consumerism. Songs such as "Greater Omaha" and "Mall of America" resonate with sincerity, while Oberst's vocals quiver and scream about money and society. With such a convincing voice, there's never a time when his lyrics are less than earnest. This debut full-length was recorded in one week, which, as a result, adds to its unabashed rawness. ✔︎ Helpful Review?
sladesounds 14th Dec 2013		Vinyl Album Sonny And Cher - Look At Us (1965)	All Music Review by Bruce Eder For their first album-length excursion in the wake of "I Got You Babe," Sonny & Cher don't tread too far outside the influence of Phil Spector, including covers of "Unchained Melody," "Then He Kissed Me," and "Why Don't They Let Us Fall in Love," of which the latter shows off the most appealing elements of each singers' voice. "It's Gonna Rain," which Ahmet Ertegun favored over "I Got You Babe," is a sub-Rascals attempt at white electric soul, while "500 Miles" is Spectorized folk-rock that Sonny carries for one verse and a chorus longer than he should have.
sladesounds 13th Dec 2013		Vinyl Album Johnny Cash - Hymns By Johnny Cash (1971)	Review All Music Review by Richie Unterberger Although Sam Phillips steered Cash away from gospel and sacred music in the mid-'50s at Sun Records, in fact much of what Cash recorded in his early career still had a devout tone, often with piety and imagery that wouldn't have sounded foreign in a gospel context. So although this 1959 album was entirely devoted to religious songs, it didn't really sound that different from his prior work, and remains accessible to Cash fans whether or not they're religious or have an interest in sacred song. The arrangements remain as sparse as most from his 1950s catalogue, though stately backup vocals are often present. Too, these aren't strictly traditional numbers, as Cash writes or co-writes about half the tunes. Sure, "Are All the Children In" skirts bathos with its spoken sections, yet songs like "The Old Account" and "It Was Jesus" have the country-rockabilly bounce characteristic of much of his secular material. In fact, despite its specialized focus, it's somewhat generic 1950s Cash at a casual listen, though even generic 1950s Cash is good. ✔︎ Helpful Review?
sladesounds 13th Dec 2013		Vinyl Album The The - Infected (1986)	Infected's sound still suggests dance-pop, especially on the title track. But don't get the impression that it's made for dancing. Instead of the light fare displayed on Soul Mining, Infected's songs seethe instead of preen, and Matt Johnson's lyrics are laced with tension. Thematically, he plunges a lance into the exposed midsection of Great Britain, analyzing the state of modern urban life in the country. "This is the land where nothing changes," Johnson sings on the World Party-ish "Heartland." "A land of red buses and blue bloody babies/This is the place where the hearts are being cut from the welfare state." "Angels of Deception" matches rain-slicked verses to a powerful chorus flavored with gospel backup singers and enormous reverb percussion. With production tricks like this, Infected aligns itself with the dance-pop sound of its predecessor (and the prevailing sound of British pop music at the time). But there's no denying the record's acerbic lyricism or dark-toned instrumentation. "Sweet Bird of Truth" is gritty pop tinged with wartime radio chatter and muscular horns that somehow manage to be apocalyptic, and the sweaty finale "Mercy Beat" has a drink with the devil while dance-pop burns brightly in the background, sending embers into the London night sky. Synthesized horns and crashing drums converge around a mirthful Johnson lyric before the song finally fades to the weird tones of a looped guitar. Infected was the first true indication of Johnson's mercurial nature, and established the dissonance and reinvention of his later work. Johnny Loftus
sladesounds 13th Dec 2013		Vinyl Album Big Audio Dynamite - This Is Big Audio Dynamite (1985)	All Music Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine Elbowed out of The Clash, Mick Jones responded forcefully with Big Audio Dynamite, a modernist audio-terrorist outfit whose 1985 debut, This Is Big Audio Dynamite, seemed all the more futuristic when compared to Joe Strummer’s reductionist retro rejiggering of the Clash on Cut The Crap. Strummer may have been intent on shedding every experimental element of the Clash’s prime, but Jones, in collaboration with longtime friend filmmaker Don Letts, picked up where Sandinista! left off, anchoring BAD in dance and rap, building the group’s debut on layers of samples and drum machines. As is often the case, what was once forward-looking seems inextricably tied to its time in retrospect and the clanking electro rhythms, Sergio Leone samples, chicken-scratch guitars, bleating synths, and six-minute songs of This Is Big Audio Dynamite evoke 1985 in a way few other records do. Nevertheless, BAD’s boldness remains impressive, even visionary, pointing toward the cut-n-paste masterpieces of the late ‘80s and early ‘90s, and since Jones did not abandon his innate gift for hooks -- if anything, he found ways to create rhythmic hooks as well as melodic ones -- it’s quite accessible for an album that is, at its core, avant-rock.
sladesounds 10th Dec 2013		Vinyl Album Glen Campbell - Glen Campbell's Greatest Hits (1971)	All Music Review by Tom Roland It covers the most productive period of his recording career, the years in which Al De Lory's soaring string arrangements, Jimmy Webb's snapshot songs, and the identifiable low-tuned guitars vaulted Campbell to the upper strata of both the country and pop charts. You simply weren't alive if you didn't hear "Wichita Lineman," "Galveston," or "Try a Little Kindness."
sladesounds 10th Dec 2013		Vinyl Album Joe Walsh - You Bought It (1983)	All Music Review by James Chrispell Joe Walsh attempts and nearly makes the free throw that wins the game. Great songs like "I Can Play That Rock & Roll" and "Space Age Whiz Kids" show he hasn't lost his edge. But the big claim to fame on this record is his "I.L.B.T.s" or "I Love Big Tits." Rather retro in feel, like the title, it harkens back to a wackier time. Good, but flawed.
sladesounds 10th Dec 2013		Vinyl Album Johnny Cash - Man In Black (1971)	All Music Review by Eugene Chadbourne That this particular album was the source of the "Man in Black" image for country icon Johnny Cash is a good example of how the public remembers what it wants to and forgets the rest. Indeed, there are few experiences that one might desire being able to forget quicker than the slide show this artist used to present at his concerts, in which all musical action would grind to a dead halt while shots of the extended Cash and Carter families cavorting in the Holy Land flashed across the stage. This album was actually the musical equivalent of these born-again yearnings, not only featuring a cameo by Billy Graham but also at least one or two more gospel numbers than are normally present on a Cash collection not devoted primarily to that genre. The sparse and subtle backup does indeed go a long way toward smoothing out the wrinkles in this project, while the song "Singing in Vietnam Talking Blues" is a fine example of the socially conscious material this artist was coming up with during the late '60s and early '70s.
sladesounds 8th Dec 2013		Vinyl Album Lol Creme And Kevin Godley - L (1978)	All Music Review by Mark Allan Together, these two multi-instrumentalist studio freaks were the British Frank Zappa. Overwhelmed by their own cleverness, they often wasted brilliant production and gorgeous vocal harmonies on trite material. The title of this album and a song called "Sandwiches of You" offer a hint of the problem. It's impossible to feel any emotional attachment to the material because of a sense that everything these guys do is tongue in cheek. This is a thoroughly forgettable outing by two chaps capable of much more.
sladesounds 8th Dec 2013		Vinyl Album Godley And Creme - Ismism (1981)	All Music Review by Mark Allan Prone to pretension, these two English Frank Zappas revel in outright silliness on much of this album, which was also released as Snack Attack. The mix puts their voices higher than usual, highlighting some truly bent tales of munchy madness, desert skullduggery, and JFK assassins. For contrast, there's the gorgeous "Wedding Bells," a rare AM hit for the former 10cc mates. Throughout all of this, you get the nagging feeling this pair was capable of so much more.
sladesounds 8th Dec 2013		Vinyl Album Hazel O'Connor - Breaking Glass (1980)	[YouTube Video]
sladesounds 8th Dec 2013		Vinyl Album Little Feat - The Last Record Album (1975)	All Music Guide Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine The title of The Last Record Album isn't literally accurate, but it cuts a lot closer than the band intended, for this really is the last album of the group's classic era. Starting with this album, leader Lowell George fades into the woodwork, and while the remainder of the group tries valiantly to keep the band afloat, the timing of friction was wrong and the amount of tension was too great. Musically, the group attempts to make Feats Don't Fail Me Now, Pt. 2, but the production from George is curiously flat, and, truth be told, the group just isn't inspired enough to make a satisfying album. For a very short album -- only eight songs -- too many of the cuts fall flat. Those that succeed, however, are quite good, particularly Paul Barrere and Bill Payne's gently propulsive "All That You Dream," Lowell George's beautiful "Long Distance Love," and the sublime "Mercenary Territory." Even these songs don't have the spark or character they would have had on the more organic Feats, due to George's exceedingly mellow SoCal production, which is pleasant but doesn't provide Little Feat with enough room to breathe. There are enough signs of Little Feat's true character on The Last Record Album -- the three previously mentioned songs are essential for any Feat fan -- to make it fairly enjoyable, but it's clear that the band is beginning to run out of steam.
sladesounds 8th Dec 2013		Vinyl Album Elmo Hope - The All-Star Sessions (1976)	All Music Guide Review by Scott Yanow ...the music originally came out on the Prestige album Informal Jazz and the Riverside release Homecoming. The often-overlooked pianist/composer Elmo Hope is heard in three different settings. He first heads a four-song jam session (two swinging originals and a couple of standards) that has lengthy solos from trumpeter Donald Byrd and the contrasting tenors John Coltrane and Hank Mobley, along with fine support from bassist Paul Chambers and drummer Philly Jones. The 1961 dates consist of a sextet outing with trumpeter Blue Mitchell and the tenors of Jimmy Heath and Frank Foster, plus four numbers played with the trio from the album (which has bassist Percy Heath and drummer Philly Joe Jones). Other than a version of "Imagination," all of the selections from 1961 are Hope's intriguing and ultimately logical originals. Excellent music from an underrated great.
sladesounds 7th Dec 2013		Vinyl Album Adam Ant - Friend Or Foe (1982)	All Music Guide Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine Adam Ant and Marco Pirroni ditched the rest of the Ants not long after the release of the widely derided Prince Charming, which provided them with the perfect opportunity for a new statement of purpose in the first Ant-less album, 1982's Friend or Foe. They had already begun moving away from Burundi beats and Indians on Prince Charming, but here they ditch any pretence at the underground, favouring big, glitzy glam pop. There's still residual artiness, of course, since Adam and Marco are post-modernists that love to paste together seemingly incongruous strands of pop culture in an attempt to craft something new. The difference is, they've wrapped this instinct in big, big production and cheerful, unabashed pop hooks, best heard on "Place in the Country" and the hits "Friend or Foe," "Desperate But Not Serious," and "Goody Two Shoes," the latter becoming Adam's biggest hit in the U.S. Since these are deliberate pop trifles, several critics laughed off Ant as a silly lightweight, but that's missing the point -- these are intentionally tongue-in-cheek tunes, delivered with an excess of flair and good humour. Though Friend or Foe does lose momentum on the second side and the cover of the Doors' "Hello, I Love You" falls a little flat, this is good, giddy fun, one of Ant's best records and one of the best new wave albums.
sladesounds 5th Dec 2013		Vinyl Album Adam And The Ants - Dirk Wears White Søx (1979)	All Music Guide Review by Chris Woodstra The original Ants lineup released only one LP, Dirk Wears White Sox for Do It in 1979. The album finds a young Adam Ant exploring the sometimes-awkward fusion of punk, glam, and minimalist post-punk with bizarre images and disturbing tales of alienation, sex, and brutality. And while the somewhat pretentious, overly arty lyrics and inexperienced playing are a drawback, the album offers a fascinating look at the Ants' formative years, capturing a raw energy that would be sacrificed for more polish on subsequent releases. At the height of Antmania, Adam acquired the rights to the album, remixing it, dropping a few tracks, and adding a couple of early tracks for reissue in 1983 with a different cover for Epic. In 1995, Sony Music U.K. released a hybrid version for CD, restoring the cover art, original mixes, and the previously dropped tracks but retaining the additions and running order of the reissue. Epic chose to keep the remixed version for CD release in the U.S.
sladesounds 5th Dec 2013		Vinyl Album Adam And The Ants - Kings Of The Wild Frontier (1980)	Review All Music Guide Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine Hooking up with Malcolm McLaren was a pivotal moment for Adam Ant, since the manager not only introduced Ant to the thundering, infectious Burundi drum beat that became his signature, he stole his band, too. Adam and the rest of the Ants had just worked up how to exploit the Burundi style when McLaren pirated the boys off to support Annabella Lwin in Bow Wow Wow -- using the very same sound they had developed with Adam Ant. It was now a race to get that sound into the stores first, and Adam lucked out when he joined forces with guitarist Marco Pirroni, who quickly proved to be invaluable. Adam and Marco knocked out a bunch of songs that retained some of the dark artiness of Dirk Wears White Sox, largely anchored by those enormous Burundi beats and given great, irresistible pop hooks -- plus a flash sense of style, as the new Ants dressed up in something that looked like American Indians with a velveteen touch of a dandy fop. It was a brilliant, gonzo move -- something that quickly overshadowed Bow Wow Wow -- and the resulting record, Kings of the Wild Frontier, is one of the great defining albums of its time. There's simply nothing else like it, nothing else that has the same bravado, the same swagger, the same gleeful self-aggrandizement and sense of camp. This walked a brilliant line between campiness and art-house chutzpah, and it arrived at precisely the right time -- at the forefront of new wave, so Adam & the Ants exploded into the British popular consciousness. If image was all that they had, they would've remained a fad, but Kings of the Wild Frontier remains a terrific album because it not only has some tremendous songs -- the title track and "Antmusic" are classic hits, while "Killer in the Home" and "Physical (You're So)" are every bit their equal -- but because it fearlessly, imperceptibly switches gears between giddy and ominous, providing nothing short of a thrill ride in its 13 songs. That's why it still sounds like nothing else years after its release. ✔︎ Helpful Review?
sladesounds 5th Dec 2013		Vinyl Album Adam And The Ants - Prince Charming (1981)	All Music Guide Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine Kings Of The Wild Frontier brought Adam and the Ants massive popularity in England, and it brought enormous pressure for Adam and guitarist Marco Pirroni to stand and deliver another slice of dynamite. The first single, the punchy horn-laden "Stand and Deliver," suggested that they were up to the task, but when Prince Charming appeared in late 1981, it was pretty much universally panned and it still stands as the weakest record from Ant's classic period. With its ridiculous song titles and cover photos, which suggest that the Ants were moving away from Native Americans and toward pirates, it's hard not to view it as a descent into camp, yet Adam claims in the liner notes for Antbox that he believes that Prince Charming is "a very serious record based on very classical, historical themes." That may be true on certain tracks, but it's hard to see where "Mile High Club," "S.E.X.," "Mowhok," and "Ant Rap" fit into that scheme, but he's right about the intent -- this is a markedly different record than Kings, intentionally so. The group have not only moved on in image, they've also left behind their signature Burundi beats while upping the cinematic qualities inherent in their music. So, "Five Guns West" and "Mowhok" are given neo-spaghetti western backdrops, while eerie guitars, mariachi horns, and trilling vocals underpin "That Voodoo." There are a lot of little details like that to dwell on in the production -- "Picasso Visita el Planeta de los Simios" sounds absolutely terrific -- but apart from "Scorpios," "Stand and Deliver," and the cheerfully ludicrous "Ant Rap," the songs just aren't there. Kings had style, sound, and songs, while Prince Charming simply has style and sound -- which, in retrospect, isn't all that bad, but it's also not hard to see how it sparked a backlash at the time.
sladesounds 3rd Dec 2013		Vinyl Album Jack White - Blunderbuss (2012)	Scan Notes: Inside cover left and right are identical, a stereoscopic picture as Jack is seen holding in the insert scan. A & B side label are different shades of blue, this is not a scanner fault. I have added a few stock pictures of the lightning bolt vinyl and the inverted lightning bolt vinyl. Each pressing of the lightning bolt and the inverted lightning bolt vinyl has a unique pattern.
sladesounds 3rd Dec 2013		Vinyl Album Rod Argent - Moving Home (1978)	Have added the inner sleeve scans along with a copy of my back cover which has been stickered with the Cat#'s MCL 1695 & MAPS 9071.
sladesounds 2nd Dec 2013		Vinyl Album Courtney Pine - Journey To The Urge Within (1986)	All Music Review by Scott Yanow This early Courtney Pine recording (the tenor saxophonist was 22 at the time) features some of the most promising black English jazz musicians of the time, including Pine (who also plays some bass clarinet and soprano), singer Cleveland Watkiss (who often is reminiscent of Bobby McFerrin), vibraphonist Orphy Robinson, and pianist Julian Joseph. While most of these players have not yet lived up to their potential (Pine remains an expert Coltrane imitator), this disc has its share of strong music. The emphasis is on Courtney Pine's originals which cover a wide span of emotions and grooves.
sladesounds 29th Nov 2013		Vinyl Album Paul McCartney And Wings - Band On The Run (1984)	Other than some classical albums, I always thought that "Nimbus Records" did no more than master and press vinyl for other record companies rather than issue records like this under their own label name. However there is quite a bit about Nimbus on the web and a list here of the Beatles pressings. It seems other than the giveaway gold stamp on the sleeve, the dead wax is normally etched with the company name. Nimbus seems to be the label name to use very much like the Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab label we use for other specialist hi-fi releases. I also saw that a copy of this album sold for £310 earlier this year (details on popsike)
sladesounds 27th Nov 2013		Vinyl Album Santana - Beyond Appearances (1985)	Poor showing from Santana which can be avoided with ease. Sounds more like an early Sting or Mike & The Mechanics album rather than anything associated with Carlos Santana! All Music Guide Review by William Ruhlmann Seven months in the making, and appearing two-and-a-half years after Santana's last album, Beyond Appearances was produced by Val (Bette Davis Eyes) Garay in a hot 1980s style, replete with prominent synthesizers and drum machines. In the interim, the band had undergone changes, with Alphonso Johnson replacing David Margen on bass, Chester D. Thompson and David Sancious replacing Richard Baker on keyboards, Chester Cortez Thompson replacing Graham Lear on drums, and singer Greg Walker rejoining. Garay co-wrote "Say It Again" (#46), Santana's final Hot 100 entry until "Smooth" in 1999 (a remake of Curtis Mayfield's "I'm The One Who Loves You" hit #102), but this latest pop interpretation of the Santana sound did not endear it to fans, and, at a peak of Number 50, Beyond Appearances was the lowest charting Santana album yet.
sladesounds 20th Nov 2013		Vinyl Album Amon Düül II - Carnival In Babylon (1972)	dr. zoze - you seem to have a question to ask - could you translate into English if you want an answer. Google translate doesn't make a great deal of sense on this one.
sladesounds 18th Nov 2013		Vinyl Album Bobby Richards - The Smashing Bird I Used To Know (1969)	Late 60s movie featuring the likes of Dennis Waterman & Madeline Hinde. The IMDB link is here but to give you some idea of how poor it was 2 of the taglines used in the advertising blurbs were "One step up from the gutter and one kiss away from jail!" & "Where the initiation rites are wrong... Very wrong!" :eek:
sladesounds 16th Nov 2013		Vinyl Album Sidewalk Society - Venus, Saturn And The Crescent Moon (2012)	[YouTube Video] [YouTube Video]
sladesounds 13th Nov 2013		Vinyl Album Tomita - Grand Canyon (1982)	My scans are the later issue with elements of the sleeve "blacked out" (see notes). A little research has shown PL 14317 was used in most European countries as this releases Cat # however my copy is stickered over on the sleeve with RS 9005 (RL 14317) and I am not sure what countries that relates to.
sladesounds 4th Nov 2013		Vinyl Album The Beatles - A Collection Of Beatles Oldies (1966)	I've update the notes with some information regarding the different pressings and I've tried to get the scans in order. Any changes that still need doing or notes that need amending - let me know :)
sladesounds 28th Oct 2013		Vinyl Album Nektar - A Tab In The Ocean (1972)	Cheers YD - your comments are appreciated!
sladesounds 24th Oct 2013		Vinyl Album The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Axis: Bold As Love (1967)	Aye but it would look better rotated :grin:
sladesounds 12th Oct 2013		Vinyl Album Various Artists - You Can All Join In (1969)	You're third set of images are for the release IWPS-2 (the version I have). Will add the album a little later with some cover scans.

Page 25 of 26 : Previous : Next :