Go review this random release

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spiritualized
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Go review this random release

Post by spiritualized »

In this festive period and a bit of time on your hands, I thought I'd throw a curveball with a new collaborative game, largely inspired by something I briefly saw on RYM

Here is the challenge :
I provide you with a random RYM entry which you have to review. The random entry can be a single, album, anything from any era.
You listen to it - several times is preferred - and review it with a final grading out of 10.
We have some FINE reviewers on this forum, so please be as expansive or reductive as you wish.

Once done, you click on this link and you provide a new challenge for someone else. I would suggest to provide the links to the songs/albums (search on Google, not only on Spotify) as well and do some research before posting it.

Here is the link : http://rateyourmusic.com/misc/random

Let's see if this thing can fly on its own !!
Last edited by spiritualized on Mon Dec 30, 2019 7:21 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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And the first entry is...a single to make things easy to start with :)


a Heavy Metal Kids single from 1976.

Delirious/Docking In

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Okay, I am listening now.
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Hymie wrote: Mon Dec 30, 2019 7:23 pm Okay, I am listening now.
I think you may find that a number of random releases go your way Hymie...I’ve seen quite a few oldies...
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The Heavy Metal Kids?

Their name tells you nothing about their sound. It is actually deceptive, as they sound more like some of the English rock bands of the time, like Slade. Not a bad record, but I wouldn't call it good either. It gets a 4.
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It's a two sided single.
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Cool idea, even if the period is actually quite busy for me to jump into it. I might do this every now and then, but sadly, the random page is only accessible with a RYM account.
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Django Reinhardt - a name I have heard many times but it took a while for me to realise he was French. His real name being "Jean Reinhardt".
His story is fascinating. A guitar player which has been recognised as an influence for many years to follow. Duke Ellington was a fan, tried to have him play in the States to little success though.
His particular play style was created by a tragedy - he lost much movement on his left hand following a fire in his trailer where his wife was creating cellophane flowers (highly flamable stuff) - he was left with two fingers being able to move properly.
When you know this and listen to "Topsy", you can't help but wonder how he managed.

Musically, Topsy is excellent - the interplay between the guitar and the clarinet sounds very jazzy, but the rhythmic base gives it something special. Reinhardt was apparently the creator of this style - "Gipsy Jazz" (Jazz Manouche in French) and was famed for it.
"Blues Primitif" sounds very jazzy too - apart from the last few seconds, I don't hear anything bluesy - but it's far more generic than Topsy, which really caught my ear.

Rating : 6/10
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Rob wrote: Tue Dec 31, 2019 9:32 am Cool idea, even if the period is actually quite busy for me to jump into it. I might do this every now and then, but sadly, the random page is only accessible with a RYM account.
The good thing about the idea is that there is no time pressure - and I agree that the time is perhaps badly chosen - you can pick it up whenever anyone wants. Heck, I could review these on my own self for a while...I just like the random aspect of discovery.
However - we're going to end up with seriously bad releases to review - but that doesn't usually scare you, Rob :)
Do not hesitate to create an account with RYM - good database and interesting reviews :)
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Entry : 3

Artist : Lomepal
Album : Jeannine
Reviews on RYM : 63
Rating on RYM : 2,85/5
Genre : French Hip Hop
Release Date : Dec 2018

Image



Tough one - another French entry and this is hip hop...I fear I might have to review this one myself - but I'll leave it a few days :)
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Jeannine is named for Lomepal's grandmother, who judging by the promotional material for the album, died in a psychiatric hospital when he was 8 and shortly before his parents divorced. On his sophomore album, Lomepal apparently aims to understand the mental illness of his grandma through the prism of the madness of his own life (both italicised words are 'la folie' in French). If that sounds beyond the capabilities of your standard Soundcloud-style rapper, that proves to be equally true for 'L'homme pâle', so-called as his pallid complexion always made him look sickly to his friends.

Comparing Jeannine's travails to his unoriginally regaled gripes with 'les haters' on Ma cousin and past loves on Dave Grohl ("When I think of her, my heart beats like Dave Grohl") does no one any favours. Only when he directly approaches the subject of his grand-mère on Beau la folie does he truly make sense of the album's concept, his hurt at Jeannine having "never found her place" in the world and his regret of having never gotten to know her imbuing the song with poignancy that transcends the text.

It turns out even the skits are heartwarming on this album, a result of them mainly being his mum's anecdotes of Jeannine (her own mother), including a particularly bittersweet tale of her beckoning her family to "follow the sun". Other voices on the album will be faintly familiar to long-time followers of our own Biggest Fan, namely Katherine (the singer of Papa), who brings grating comedic faux-naïvété (eh bien, fausse naïvété) to Cinq doights, and Orelsan (the rapper behind Suicide social), a welcome injection of humour into La vérité ("You're close to victims like a crook", he sneers; it sounds better in context, trust me).

"But the language barrier!", I can hear you hypothetically yell at me. A greater divide marks this album, however. Further listens may prove me wrong but musically, the first few impressions of this album suggests it doesn't distinguish itself further than the confines of commercial melodic rap and trap (et j'en ai marre), albeit without excessive Autotune. If you're a fan of either of the above genres, it may speak to you more, regardless of your understanding of French, as its emotions are often more articulate than its messages. My score: 5/10.
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Computer says: https://rateyourmusic.com/release/album ... and-sword/

Artist: Assacrentis
Album: Put Them to Fire and Sword
RYM rating: 2.77/5 from 3 reviews
Release date: Feb 2013
Genre: None identified yet but something tells me it's a subgenre of metal :whistle:
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Thanks for the great review milewide !
And for the third time in a row, another French artist - albeit in (indeed) "BLACKENED" Death Metal.

I think Hymie should review this one :)

Here are the lovely fellas
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and the link to their album
https://assacrentis.bandcamp.com/album/ ... -and-sword
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I don't think I'm wrong by saying that I probably have listened to more death metal than the entirety of the forum population (come forward if I'm wrong !). It doesn't seem very popular around here ?
And knowing the initial RYM fanbase, we were bound to have some metal release coming up sooner than later.

Fear not, I have done the listening for you - and I actually did it twice.
Initially, it was a case of "no, definitely not". See, the music can actually be quite good, technical and in this case, rather catchy for anyone with rock in one's heart and soul. But then the growling comes in. Boy, is this a turn-off - I haven never been able to understand the point and would rather have an instrumental version of all these songs.

But wait. Music is situational and I thought - why not getting into "it" ? I didn't get my satanist outfit, chains and all, so I went for the next best thing - I happen to play the Witcher on my PC at this time and playing Gerart whilst listening to Assacrentis is a far more successful approach than listening to the album on one's own.

The death metal experts will tell you that they have a fairly clean sound (clean production is actually a "bad" thing ?), heavily influenced by the Scandinavian metal behemoths. I have no idea about this - but this experience was far better than I initially feared. It's not a disaster, far from it - you just have to be in a mood for it.

Rating : 5/10
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Next up
Entry : 5

Artist : The Georgettes / The Belles
Album : Be My Baby / Sally, Go 'Round the Roses
Ratings on RYM : 0
Rating on RYM : N/A
Genre : N/A
Release Date : 1963

This feels like a Hymie review for sure this time...
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Yes, definitely a Hymie review. The Hit label was a budget label out of Nashville. They started in 1962. They had studio groups cover (a true cover, a copy of a current hit in an attempt to steal away some of the sales) current hit records and sold them for 39 cents (about half the price of the real hits) at supermarkets and shit like that, hoping that much of the American public knew the songs, but did not know who the artists were. Some of them are valuable, as people who later became stars were on them. I think one such case is a group with Lou Reed covering some hit record in like 1963. Other acts who recorded for Hit and later became popular include Sandy Posey, Ray Stevens, Bobby Russell and Sam Moore of Sam & Dave. Here's a link to the label's discograhy:

http://www.globaldogproductions.info/h/hit.html

Georgettes - Be My Baby - A cover of the Ronettes huge hit from late 1963. Really, I have to say, it's not much below the Ronettes version IMO. I am positive that most people who bought it back then did not get home and play it and get all upset. It sounds close enough to the Ronettes version to satisfy most people IMO. The Ronettes record, despite its lofty status, is only a 7 to me. I like some of their other hits better, in fact. The Georgettes version is missing some of the crispness and intricacies of the Ronettes hit, but for me it's still a 6.

The Belles version of the Jaynettes hit, "Sally Go Round The Roses," is another story. The Jaynettes record has a large cult following of people who see it as a unique and great record, but I am not one of them. I've never cared very much for the record. The Jaynettes gets a charitable 5, and I guess this one gets a 4. I never play the Jaynettes record, so the Belles version would probably fool me if I heard it by accident somewhere.

If I have to have one rating for both sides of the single combined, it's a 5.
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I'll definitely do that Ekseption album one of these days. A band from my country that used to have some popularity, though not through that particular album. I'm actually curious. Don't know when exactly, but I will review it before the weekend is over.
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Rob wrote: Wed Jan 01, 2020 8:00 pm I'll definitely do that Ekseption album one of these days. A band from my country that used to have some popularity, though not through that particular album. I'm actually curious. Don't know when exactly, but I will review it before the weekend is over.
Thanks Rob,
I look forward to reading your review :) Always a pleasure to see your pertinent and witted comments !
Hymie wrote: Wed Jan 01, 2020 6:27 pm Yes, definitely a Hymie review. The Hit label was a budget label out of Nashville. They started in 1962. They had studio groups cover (a true cover, a copy of a current hit in an attempt to steal away some of the sales) current hit records and sold them for 39 cents (about half the price of the real hits) at supermarkets and shit like that, hoping that much of the American public knew the songs, but did not know who the artists were. Some of them are valuable, as people who later became stars were on them. I think one such case is a group with Lou Reed covering some hit record in like 1963. Other acts who recorded for Hit and later became popular include Sandy Posey, Ray Stevens, Bobby Russell and Sam Moore of Sam & Dave. Here's a link to the label's discograhy:
Hymie, this is amazing info - I had no idea that "hit stealing" was a thing in the 60s. I agree with you, there is very little between the Ronettes and the Georgettes' version.
The B side is a fairly uninteresting song too... but I've learnt much today.
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Rob wrote: Wed Jan 01, 2020 8:00 pm I'll definitely do that Ekseption album one of these days. A band from my country that used to have some popularity, though not through that particular album. I'm actually curious. Don't know when exactly, but I will review it before the weekend is over.
Looking forward to it. Looks like this game is a winner!
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spiritualized wrote: Wed Jan 01, 2020 8:40 pm
Hymie, this is amazing info - I had no idea that "hit stealing" was a thing in the 60s.
It was around in the 50s too. A label called Bell did the same thing. And there were other labels that would put 4 or even 6 songs on one 45 for a low price. Here's a 78 from 1953, with "Stranger In Paradise" by Tony Russo instead of Tony Bennett!


Image


These labels would rush to make a recording of any new hit on the way up, trying to sound as much like the record they were "covering" as possible.
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As promised my review of Ekseption's Beggar Julia's Time Trip

So, Ekseption was a Dutch band most known for their rock versions of classical music. Apparently they once saw The Nice covering some classical piece or other at a concert and thought that would be a cool thing to do. Their first self-titled consisted almost exclusively of rockified classical music and it turned out there was demand for it. I don’t think they had any notable success abroad, but in The Netherlands this first album produced two hit singles: The 5th based on Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony and Air based on Bach’s Suite Nr. 3.

It is through The 5th I learned about them some 10 years ago and around that time I had that under heavy rotation. Ever since I have a soft spot for those all too rare moments the world of classical music meets the popular world, as evidenced by my recent nomination of ORBI for Moderately Acclaimed Album of 2019 (it consists of a classical ensemble rethinking metal and prog pieces for orchestra) and my great love of Colin Stetson’ album Sorrow, based on Gorecki’s 3rd Symphony.

I don’t know much about the reception from the classical world when Ekseption released their first album, but I think much gnashing of teeth was inevitable. Classical music is usual viewed as something sacred, something above reproach and certainly above any other kind of music. You see it on this forum too, where some do not dare to rate classical pieces alongside other genres. A shame, if you ask me. It makes the music seem distant.

Anyway, I have no problems with a rock group bending classical pieces to their will. I know some call such a thing pretentious just on general principle, but they must not have heard the first Ekseption album. Neither did I until this week, but I did in preparation for this. It is a blast! You can just feel that the band is having fun playing these songs. I was afraid that The 5th would not be typical and that the whole thing would feel pompous, but it couldn’t be further from the truth. There is an appealing lightness and playfulness to it.

So when that debut became a success a follow-up was inevitable and released a year later. I never heard of Beggar Julia’s Time Trip before, nor of any of it’s songs, but apparently at the time it matched the success of the self-titled album. It won a prestigious national award named the Edison and produced another hit in Concerto, a Tchaikovsky adaptation, which is indeed the best thing here.

Nothing by Ekseption has really remained all that present in Dutch culture, but I feel that this album has faded from our collective memory more than the debut (they would have only minor hits afterwards) and Concerto never became the second tier classic that The 5th and Air are. I think that is because this album moves more towards the pretentious which the first one avoided. Ambitions grew. It would no longer do to just rockify some existing compositions: they had to make their own. There also had to be a concept, with a story.

So the album now is about a medieval peasant girl named Julia who travels through time, where she learns about several forms of music through our history (that is, if your idea of music history is limited to some classical music from Europe). You can basically divide the album into three parts. First a sort of extended prologue, followed by Julia’s visit to some classical period and finally modern part where Julia listens to Ekseption’s own, ‘futuristic’ work.

It starts of well enough with some flutes on Ouverture, which signal medieval times. The second half of the song turns to rock, with a spiraling melody that I think suggests the start of time travel. Then things get dull a bit, with an almost spoken word track introducing the story, followed by a very 1970 song named Julia that pays tribute to our heroine. The less-than-a-minute track Flying Power announces that we are in the year 1600 (the only time an actual date is mentioned for some reason). Ouverture and Julia are not bad songs, but not the type of stuff I would return to either.

We now get to part two, which delivers what people expect: versions of classical pieces, this time Albinoni, Tchaikovsky and again Bach. This is the best part, but even here I kind of lament the loss of lightness and fun of the debut album. The guys at Ekseption had started to take classical music seriously and the loss is ours. Still, the playing is good and no one can deny these compositions, regardless of whether Ekseption matches them. I feel that their take on Bach isn’t as sharp this time around, but Albinoni and Tchaikovsky go along quite well. There is also notably no singing in this part and the story seems absent.

The third part – after a short space intermezzo – returns us to vocals and a forgettable song called Pop Giant. After that is Feelings, Ekseption’s most promising attempt at composing a classical rock piece. Not bad at all, perhaps because it is actually the lightest song here. After this there is still a semi-spoken word Epilogue, with some annoyingly pregnant line reading and a fine track called Finale.

There seems not to be that much enthusiasm from me here, even if there is some enjoyment to be had. It’s just that by becoming a more serious band Ekseption basically became your regular prog band. This album could have been done by The Moody Blues, Yes or Emerson, Lake and Palmer, but in their discographies it would have seemed like a lesser album, even if one that would not damage their reputation. Of course, this type of thing is highly unfashionable now, but so is the debut, yet I feel that people might get more enjoyment out of that one over this. Now I have a soft spot for prog, but although this is not one of the embarrassing examples of the genre, it certainly is not one of its highlights either.
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Next, Entry 7:

An EP this time:

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Eddie Berman - Blood & Rust (2013)

https://rateyourmusic.com/release/ep/ed ... -and-rust/



It's also, in individual parts, on YouTube.

It has a Laura Marling feature, so that has actually caught my own interest.
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Rob wrote: Sat Jan 04, 2020 6:07 pm
It has a Laura Marling feature, so that has actually caught my own interest.
Hi Rob,

If this is of interest, why don't you review it ?
I will listen to it myself - but I feel you will rate this more justly than I would :)

PS - fantastic review on Ekseption - I listened to it too and wasn't overwhelmed although the idea tickled me.
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I hope I'm not stepping on toes here but I've listened to the album a few times now, so here's my review:

A picked arpeggio with echoes of Led Zep III pauses for thought, then swings back into action with a kick-drum that beats down a door to Eddie Berman's world. Thus begins the opening title track but who is Eddie Berman? If this EP gets no closer to the answer, it at least represents an assured debut from a singer-songwriter with gifts in both fields strong enough to maintain a full album based on his own whims.

That he doesn't this time round makes this no less satisfying, with Laura Marling's vocal smoke-rings making themselves heard most clearly on the pleading Help Me When I Say and in alternating with Berman's voice on Dancing in the Dark, which is indeed the Springsteen tune. There, an accordion does the job of the original's blaring synthline after the first chorus, with a violin then joining in, gamely trying to keep up with a strident Marling after Berman's wearier first verse. Marling and Berman apparently met when the former decamped to L.A. for the Short Movie recording sessions; it was the latter's accordionist who had the idea of the three of them covering The Boss.

The accordion is heard earlier on Ruby, adding baleful foreboding to a lyrical highlight of the album, seemingly about a clairvoyant to the stars. In the absence of other voices or overdubs on the track, it is here that his voice strikes me as having resemblances to the timbre of Heartbreaker-era Ryan Adams and the cadence of a latter-day Kris Kristofferson.

If there is a weakness to the set, it's not the lack of innovation or indications of modernity as these characteristics do not lessen the vitality of the songs, nor are they failures on Berman's own terms; he seems averse to the kind of subtle nods to rock and jazz you might find on Marling's records. It's the lyrical shortcuts that he occasionally takes, leaving even him sounding disappointed that he can only rhyme "world" with "girl", "start" with "heart" on The Bricklayer's Son. Such is his emotional sincerity on this track, supported by a plangent FX-pedal-enhanced lap steel guitar, that it scarcely seems to matter. His sympathetic delivery and liquid playing disguise any sense of anonymity throughout what is a very likeable, listenable EP.

7 from me, somehow the highest score yet!
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The Randomator has decided your fate:

Entry: 8
Artist: Dzelzs Vilks [Iron Wolf]
Album: Ļauj man tevi... [Let Me Get You...]
RYM score: 3.64/5 from 5 ratings
Release date: 2003
Genre: Undefined by RYM but a quick run-through reveals it to be vaguely synth-pop/synth-rock
Language: Latvian

An album that was always destined in Anglocentric circles to be called "a Latvian curio"...until now! Dzelzs Vilks have been active since 1991, the year Latvia regained independence following the dissolution of the USSR, but 'Ļauj man tevi...', their fourth album, was the band's first to provide a nominating entry for the Best Song at the Latvian Music Awards.

Enjoy!

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=poGEi3oLl ... jQp4J35qhA

https://open.spotify.com/album/5iT3va8S ... 6myBVHC4gQ
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mileswide wrote: Thu Jan 09, 2020 12:24 am I hope I'm not stepping on toes here but I've listened to the album a few times now, so here's my review:

No toes to be stepped on, mileswide - anyone can post whatever review they wish, in whatever time they care to. I listened to this recently, it's not bad but not my cup of tea. So it's actually far more pleasant to read your review that what I would have posted. Thank you very much for your review.

I like the random aspect of this thread - but all in all, it serves the purpose of this forum - discovering music. We have yet to find a real stinker though...
I will listen to this Latvian band this weekend :)
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spiritualized wrote: Fri Jan 10, 2020 11:12 am No toes to be stepped on, mileswide - anyone can post whatever review they wish, in whatever time they care to. I listened to this recently, it's not bad but not my cup of tea. So it's actually far more pleasant to read your review that what I would have posted. Thank you very much for your review.
Kind of you to say, spiritualized :mrgreen: The EP isn't an instant hit, so I knew I'd need a few days before making a fair judgement, unlike some of my views on Biggest Fan, which can be just kneejerk. I also like the element of surprise with this idea, it's got a similar appeal to BF and hopefully one with just as much mileage! Hope Ļauj man tevi isn't the first clanger :music-listening:
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Dzelzs Vilks or, in Latvian, Iron Wolf.
The Randominator selected their fourth album, released in 2003. It looks like the band started as a death metal act and carried on as a more alternative outfit.

The album starts with a techno beat, aggremented by some heavy guitar, giving the song an almost industrial sound. Interesting start, marred by a very average follow-up track. The vocals are what you would expect from a Slavic band, deep but barely musical. It gets better later with Rīts (Izpūrušiem Matiem) where we meet the industrial guitars again, but this time with a decent tune and a singer who found his voice.
The band gets better the further the album carries on - gone are the unmelodic voices, we start hearing some proper tunes with Spēlējoties Ar Sevi and the title track. It remains firmly in the alt pop-rock world but suffers from a decided lack of originality. You can almost feel this band combing the industrial landscapes of Riga, playing for a few hundred people and enjoying it.

The album is not going to leave a huge mark on my listening experience. It's rather generic rock with a tinge of industrial/techno leftovers. By no means dreadful, its replay value is however quite low. (5/10)
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And from the frozen lands of Latvia, we move to...Japan with the opening music for Tales of Zestiria.
I am very lacking in the anime subculture. It is very J-Pop and... short ! this should be a breeze :)


Entry: 9
Artist: Flow
Single : Kaze no Uta (風ノ唄)
RYM score: 3.74/5 from 4 ratings
Release date: 2016
Genre: Pop-Rock / J-Pop
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Re: Go review this random release

Post by Hymie »

I'll grab this one. It's better than I was expecting. Pleasant synth pop effort that's best attribute is its one minute and 29 second length. The opening reminds me of "What Is Love" by Haddaway, which I am surprised is not listed here on the site. It was a huge dance record near the end of my DJ career.
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Re: Go review this random release

Post by Hymie »

Entry 10:

An album called Grand Prix by Vive la fête from 2005.

https://rateyourmusic.com/release/album ... d_prix_f1/


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The girl on the cover gets a great review from me!

Here's the album playlist on youtube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQmqtCg ... 9_1WmmuoXx
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Re: Go review this random release

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Hymie wrote: Fri Jan 17, 2020 11:16 pm Entry 10:

An album called Grand Prix by Vive la fête from 2005.

https://rateyourmusic.com/release/album ... d_prix_f1/


Image


The girl on the cover gets a great review from me!

Here's the album playlist on youtube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQmqtCg ... 9_1WmmuoXx
Wow. This sounds like a winner for my tastes.
I had never heard of Vive La Fête until our AMF meetup in Montpellier last year. Moonbeam had selected "Noir Désir" by this Belgian Band. I really quite liked this extreme song but never took the opportunity to listen to other songs. This is now going to be done...
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Re: Go review this random release

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One thing is sure : this game makes every listener travel the world.
France, the Netherlands, Britain, the USA, Latvia, Japan and now Belgium. Although no one could blame you if you were listening to Vive La Fête and think they were hailing from France.

Vive la Fête (Long live the Party) are really only a duo (a couple) who started out in 1996 from the minds of Els Pynoo (ex- model), Danny Mommens (ex Deus bass player) and put their names to 11 albums. Grand Prix is very much delving into the electro-rock genre, which I particularly appreciate. Rock guitars with electro beats which tend to be high tempo. The duo has clearly paid tribute to their 80s new wave influence - "Exactement" reproduces the "Fade To Grey" intro to the note (maybe giving the song its name), to good effect. Elsewhere, we find great rock songs, my favorite being "La Vérité". The whole album is sung in French - which in their own words, is one of the greatest musical language. On "Claude François" Els drops names of French celebrities appearing in her head, along a huge bouncy bassline.

They nod later in the album towards their compatriot, Plastic Bertrand, with "Tu Connais La Dernière" which flaunters its bouncy 80s pop like "Ca Plane pour Moi" did 30 years ago.

It feels somehow unfair to have discover Vive La Fete AFTER La Femme and the Ting Tings. They clearly sharpened the style of electro-rock coupled with a twee, disinterested female singer and male backing vocals. The resemblance with La Femme is really uncanny - so if you like the French band, listen to Grand Prix by Vive La Fete. They are clearly worth multiple listens, never get boring and clearly state their influences with a touch of originality

8.5/10
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Re: Go review this random release

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Oh well, another J-Pop girly entry. A single again, which cannot be found on the streaming platforms. But two of the three songs are on YT and the rest are instrumentals, so why not ?

I fear we may have our first real clanger there...

Entry: 11
Artist: KNU
Single : 一点突破、かたおもい。
RYM score: not rated
Release date: 2014
Genre: J-Pop

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The last song is not on YouTube, you have a snippet on a Japanese website. That should be enough to have an idea...

https://recochoku.jp/song/S1002803293/
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Re: Go review this random release

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How could I refuse? Oh but look, I can't navigate the Japanese site with the third clip...oh well, the first two songs will have to do!

As a companion piece to a 2017 documentary on J-Pop, the BBC wrote on their website that Japanese Idols (aidoru), pop groups composed of teenage girls and women predominantly clad in 'fake child costumes' (buri buri isho), are presented as "entirety innocent about adult matters". It is unclear whether K.N.U. are supposed to have bucked the prevailing trend as their name is a pun on kyonnuu or 'huge breasts'. Another huge thing about K.N.U., like other idol 'concepts', is their personnel--as many as 45 singers have been on their payroll (including the never-stood-a-chance Ni kkari, Japanese for 'disappointment') but they are believed to have slimmed down to an eight-piece and have been known to perform as a quartet.

This maxi-single's title track Itten Toppa Kataomoi (either 'Breakthrough' or 'I'm Talking') floats into focus on some lightly plucked strings, perhaps on the traditional lute-like instrument, the biwa, cruelly giving us no warning of the horrors to follow. The first verse starts with a similarly agreeable cod-rock rhythm and BPM to Love Machine by Girls Aloud except with the traditional instrument still soothing away. After what feels like the second verse, the kind of happy hardcore you'd hear blaring from a fairground about ten years ago (in the UK at least) takes hold of the song. To torture the fairground metaphor, the operator then seems to let go of the ride completely as the track is sped up further to come off its axes AND comes crashing into an improbable last-chorus key-change, with what's left of the melody straining to go any higher.

Oh Pineapple Love! Yes, you heard me right--for reasons possibly best kept to K.N.U., that's the name of the second tune on the EP. The live version I had access to couldn't capture any studio trickery shown by the original; even so, the production values are karaoke backing track-level and the vocal hooks through the verse owing a deal to Let's All Chant (i.e. Ooh-ooh! Ooh-ooh! etc.) Then, you get used to the choruses and they're actually catchy! Maybe it's the fact there's a recognisable English word in the chorus (namely 'love'), maybe these earworms have burrowed their way into your brain.

However technically abject Oh Pineapple Love is (the singing is the only part that appears to be no worse than mediocre), it is not quite the ardour that is the title track's dance to wilful deafness. I give Itten 2 and Pineapple 4, equating to a grand total of 3/10.
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Re: Go review this random release

Post by mileswide »

Random even, random odd, which obscure album will get the nod?

Entry: 12
Artist: Buckethead
Album title: Pike 56 - Cycle
RYM score: 2.91/5 from 34 ratings
Release date: 2014
Genre: Progressive Rock and Atmospheric Drum & Bass (you don't see that genre clash every day!)

https://rateyourmusic.com/release/album ... -56-cycle/

Yes, it's the erstwhile Guns 'n' Roses guitarist Buckethead, famous for both wearing a KFC bucket on his head and having a mascot that was just a prosthetic head in a bucket! Whoever decides to review has a lot more they can explore, considering RYM estimates BH to have amassed 326 albums in his career, including 275 in the Pike series. Rock on! :music-guitarred:
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Re: Go review this random release

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Ahahaha GREAT review mileswide - I love it and had no idea about the meaning of KNU. Although it falls in place when you start looking at their website.
I cannot believe that this type of music can be called entertaining.
To top it all, they can't even dance in sync.

As for Buckethead, I have listened to a fair few of his releases (13 to be precise) - it was never offensive but never uplifting either.
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Re: Go review this random release

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spiritualized wrote: Fri Jan 24, 2020 10:49 am As for Buckethead, I have listened to a fair few of his releases (13 to be precise) - it was never offensive but never uplifting either.
You've listened to 13 of his albums? And you're sure you're not a fan of his on the sly? ;-)
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Re: Go review this random release

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Buckethead - Pike 56

Surely the man with the highest output in the music industry, this is his 56th album in the Pike series.
The Californian played in Guns'n'Roses between 2000-2004, even co-writing songs on Chinese Democracy, is considered by many an expert to be an exceptionally gifted guitarist, has been named the 8th fastest "shredder" in the world (??!), played in bands with John Zorn, Bootsy Collins and Bill Laswell. Extremely shy, he fought his unease by putting on a mask and a KFC bucket on his head.

BH's recordings are easy to listen to. They last about 30 mins and are made up of 3 to 4 songs, all instrumental. A guitarist wet dream.
Number 56 is unusual compared to his other output. The tracks are well...groovy, the guitar taking a backstep and leaving the electronic drums and bass take first stand. The tempo is slow, mellow and quite pleasant as background music. The last track ups that tempo, firmly remaining in groovyland (no wonder Bootsy is a close friend)
Not by any means groundbreaking (how could this be with so many records out there), Pike 56 makes it to the top 3 releases from BH I have listened to.

Replay Value : 7/10
Overall Rating : 6/10
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Re: Go review this random release

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Entry : 13 - and we fly to Italy for our first film score !

Artist: Ennio Morricone
Album : Milano Odia : La polizia non può sparare (1974)
RYM score: 3.62
Ratings : 12
Release date: 2007 (?)
Genre: Film Score

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Re: Go review this random release

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Dibs on the Morricone record! Big fan of his work, but I haven't heard all of his 500+ scores (he is actually more prolific than Buckethead!), so I'm naturally curious about this one. I won't have time to review it before the weekend, though.
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Re: Go review this random release

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Rob wrote: Thu Jan 30, 2020 11:01 am Dibs on the Morricone record! Big fan of his work, but I haven't heard all of his 500+ scores (he is actually more prolific than Buckethead!), so I'm naturally curious about this one. I won't have time to review it before the weekend, though.
Be my guest :) Looking forward to your review !
Looks like people have favourite genres they like to review - it's a pleasure to be able to read your experts' opinions...
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Re: Go review this random release

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Ennio Morricone – Milano odia: la polizia non può sparare (2007)

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Let’s first get some facts straight. This album was released in 2007, but it is the soundtrack of a film from 1974. No need for a question mark for the date, Spiritualized. When this album released in 2007 it was specifically marketed as a yet unreleased soundtrack. This is far from a rare practice. Not every movie score gets an actual release outside of the movie itself. These days it is more common to at least have a digital version for each score, but in the past people were more selective. The iconic music to Blade Runner by Vangelis was only available outside of VHS tapes of the film itself 10 years later. Even a no-brainer like Disney’s soundtrack to The Jungle Book, full of iconic songs, only saw a release in 1990 (though some songs appeared on Disney compilations before). In this regard, it is no surprise then that sometimes music from lesser known films remains unavailable for a long time – or forever.

Enter Ennio Morricone, currently aged 91 and if IMDb is to be believed currently working on his 518th score! There is bound to be unavailable stuff. According to RateYourMusic, 395 of these have currently also been released as an album (that’s excluding bootlegs and live albums). Archival releases of previously unavailable stuff by Morricone are a lucrative business, perhaps only matched by the similar, almost annual releases of Jimi Hendrix’ stuff (the age difference between the two artists is notable). Today’s Milano odia was part of the archival series.

I have listened to a lot of Morricone, ever since I first saw Once Upon a Time in the West in 2005, one of my favorite films, with my favorite score for sure. Morricone has remained one of the mainstays of my listening time ever since. In fact, Spotify recently claimed that he was my most-listened-to artist of the whole decade! That doesn’t take into account that I spend massive times in the 2010’s listening to Bob Dylan on CD and vinyl instead of on Spotify, but I still think Morricone is indeed a likely number 2. Listening to everything the man has made is a fool’s errand, if a surprisingly appealing one. If you just take the true classics you have a discography that is as big as many artists with a sizable career. There’s not just the music for the six Leone films, which are his most iconic, but also the incredible The Mission, The Untouchables, Novecento, The Thing, Days of Heaven, Investigation of a Citizen Under Suspicion, Nuovo Cinema Paradiso, Maléna, The Legend of 1900, Verushka, The Great Silence, his belated Oscar win for The Hateful Eight and on and on we go.

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But it is certainly fun to finally dive into a lesser-known soundtrack. I had never heard of Milano odia, which was released abroad as Almost Human. Despite his almost royal status amongst film composers Morricone has never shied away from b movies, at least in his home country of Italy. Milano odia is one of many cop thrillers that were popular in Italy around the period, I think as a follow-up to the success of American efforts like The French Connection or Dirty Harry (the synopsis could be for Dirty Harry sequel, in fact). The IMDb score of 7,3 is actually quite respectable for such a thing, so it might be among the better ones in the genre.

Sadly, I was not able to view the film for this review, even though I might want to check it out in the future. I’ll have to review the music as a standalone. I have heard many times that people find it hard to listen to film music outside of context, but I rarely have this problem. Morricone especially tends to have a certain majesty that makes every occasion great. So, I don’t know were all this belongs in the movie, but at least the music to Milano odia sounds good on its own.

It does start a little strange though, with a track called Rapimento which lasts over 15 minutes. I don’t think I have every come across a score with a track anywhere near that length. Was it for a particularly lengthy scene? Oddly, it sounds like a medley. Especially the second time around, having made myself familiar with its themes and motifs, Rapimento feels like a summary of the complete score.

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Not that it needs that summary, as the remaining 30+ minutes still have a lot of repetition. The best track is actually the second, Raptus Omicide, which is still uncommonly long at over 8 minutes. It is a jazz-based song with a lot of atmosphere and tension. It plays on Morricone’s initial strengths, he broke through with his silence-before-the-storm tension that became basically the claim to fame for Leone’s westerns. Later Morricone also displayed an enormous talent for more lyrical compositions, but that’s not what Milano odia is interested in, nor what I suspect it needs. This soundtrack is all about action, but above all about feeling dread while looking cool.

A question that I always had was how Morricone could keep his ideas fresh among so many soundtracks. Over his long career he tried many styles with success, but certainly not every single movie could be a new experiment. There is no denying that Milano odia was one were he played it more than a little safe. When we get to the title track there is a central melody that is almost indistinguishable to his acclaimed title theme for Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion, from a few years earlier. It is a great melody for sure, but it diminishes the interest in this soundtrack a little. I already noticed it in Rapimento for a short while. Like I said, it is Raptus Omicide that I really loved, but it makes me wonder if that too is based on an earlier composition I just haven’t heard before.
The remainder of the soundtrack is mostly short variations on Raptus Omicide and the title track. This is not unusual in soundtrack business, although in this case I feel there is particularly little variation. There is little information about this album or of the film, but I suspect Morricone used the most b of the movies for the money and put his heart, soul and experimental side more in the – ahem – more promising films. If this sounds cynical and makes Morricone come off as unsympathetic, you should know that many of these police thrillers were basically treated as factory line productions by everyone involved. I’ve read a lot about the period in Italian filmmaking and saw documentaries about them. They cranked out quite many films a year, with quantity unapologetically above quality. There are great movies there, but frequently they were happy accidents. I don’t know how the music was handled, but it would be in line of the production methods that the producers would simply go to Morricone and ask him without shame to give them just a variation of An Investigation of a Citizen Under Suspicion. Note that this is very much speculation.

So how do I feel about this album and should you listen to it? Despite the derivative nature the tunes still sound great and soulful so they make a worthwhile listen, but I hardly feel like making a case for this as one of the first Morricone soundtracks you should seek out. It is for people like me for who there can’t exist enough Morricone. This album may have been just one of many for the maestro himself, but it doesn’t sound half-assed.

So, a 7 for people who love Morricone and a minor 6 for everyone else.

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Re: Go review this random release

Post by Rob »

Ehm, the next one is an unauthorized bootleg. I'm not sure how easily available it is:

https://rateyourmusic.com/release/unaut ... ck-wizard/

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Pink Floyd - Black Wizard
Year: 1995
RYM rating: 3,83 (8 votes)
Genre: Psychedelic rock

It sounds interesting, but if it takes too long for someone to review this I'll draw another random release.
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Re: Go review this random release

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Rob wrote: Sun Feb 02, 2020 1:30 pm Ehm, the next one is an unauthorized bootleg. I'm not sure how easily available it is:
The Milano Odia review's as widescreen and epic as its subject (maybe more so if the film/soundtrack isn't any good), impressive stuff as ever, Rob! It'll come as no shock but the Floyd bootleg's not available to stream, the Wheel of Random might need another spin...
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Re: Go review this random release

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mileswide wrote: Wed Feb 05, 2020 1:08 am It'll come as no shock but the Floyd bootleg's not available to stream, the Wheel of Random might need another spin...
Yeah, I figured something like that would be the case, but perhaps this forum might house someone who collects Pink Floyd bootlegs? Well, if so, he or she can review this album later, but I draw a new random gem:

https://rateyourmusic.com/release/singl ... _my_heart/

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Artist: Travis Tritt
Title: Can I Trust You With My Heart
Type: Single
Genre: Contemporary country
Year: 1992
RYM rating: 2.97 (7 votes)
Spotify link:
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Re: Go review this random release

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Rob wrote: Wed Feb 05, 2020 1:41 pm Yeah, I figured something like that would be the case, but perhaps this forum might house someone who collects Pink Floyd bootlegs?
You'd think so, we have followers of practically every other niche, I'm proud to say!
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Re: Go review this random release

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I managed to find the PF bootleg on Slsk.
Need to listen to it, several times - but I’m generally not a fan of bootlegs.
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