Album Rating: 4.5

Pretty much the same for me blackstar

Well just discovered this after seeing them on Jools Holland so they came across pretty well to me. Great album, I've been listening to it on repeat. Definitely one of the strongest albums this year.

Album Rating: 4.5

Bed of nails and Lion's share are prob my faves atm with Loop the Loop.



Theres just something about the start of lions share that gets me everytime.. cant think of what it reminds me of though.

'Loop the Loop' and 'Reach a Bit Further' are still my favourites. =)
Good stuff.

Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off

I have this at a 3 right now. I expected to be blown away, but I find the lead singer's voice rather off-putting at times, as well. It sounds nice, but it is really slow in some spots, and it feels like it takes forever to get through the record. I guess it bores me more than anything else. Is this a slow-grower? I hope so, because right now this just seems like a far inferior attempt at the Antlers' "Burst Apart."

yeah i'm not feeling this guys

Album Rating: 4.5

w--what

Album Rating: 4.5

because right now this just seems like a far inferior attempt at the Antlers' "Burst Apart."

actually the similarities in the singers' falsettos was one of the first things i noticed listening to this but otherwise i wouldn't really think to compare the two

Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off

Don't be a dickhead, Streelight Rock. Why not honor your staff title and respond to the comment with a counter argument instead of typing a three letter acronym used by 14 year old girls to generate laughs. Seriously, I feel as though this site is populated by people who get off on one-upping or "burning" one another on message boards, not serious fans of music. So, what say you? Or are you still too busy laughing out loud at me?

Album Rating: 4.5

Oh lighten up Patrick. I like this, I don't like Burst. Not that it matter because they are completely different records. You really wanna wanna have an argument about it? Three rounds? Opening, body, conclusion? With an arbiter? Jesus. Maybe if your panties weren't stuck so far up your ass you could have a laugh about being indignant on the internet.

alex certainly has not been honoring the staff's moral code of ethics of late

Album Rating: 4.5

fuck up



No really, I know, but this is my last semester and I've having real issues with it so yeah trying to lay off being too active.

Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off

Sputnik can be so wonderful, insightful, and revelatory, yet it's contiunally undermined, on a second-by-second basis, by a pack of nerds who all understand the same message board terminology. It's an insular group who seem to scoff at newcomers. I literally do not understand 85% of the comments beneath most reviews, and the other 14.99% are typically comments about other users. About .01%, if my math is correct, are comments that provide any semblance of substance or thoughtfulness. I realize I'm currently guitly of said offense, and am being hypocritical, but I had to respond candidly.



Nothing about your post was remotely funny to anyone but yourself, and perhaps some of the aformentioned pack, who would likely reward your dismissive "lol" beneath a phrase from my initial post with some kind of coded internet high-five. No one likes being the butt of a joke, my friend. So, forgive me if I seem a bit irked. Though, I guess it may be that new Victoria's Secret thong that's been lodged up my backside for a few days.



The phrasing of the last part of your response is quite telling, as that is what the message boards on Sputnik, in general, often consist of: arguments. No, certainly I would not like to have an argument with you about which of us is correct about which album is better, because that is what an argument implies: a winner, and loser. I'd like to have a friendly, polite discussion, and perhaps hear a well thought out reply to my post that challanges me to rethink my original opinion of the record. I had one such dialogue with Observer yesterday about the new Bon Iver record. I have it at 5, and he has it at a 2. His review and subsequent replies to my comment genuniely forced me to reexamine why I felt the record was so good in the first place. It was very engaging and fun.



That's what I want from this site in general, and that's what attracted me here intitally. However, after reapeated attempts to be genuine and earnest on message boards, I'm often met with snide, detached irony and online, smug sneering. It's bullshit, man, and you know it deep down; even if you respond to this post in a sarcastic manner.



In all honesty, I'm an easygoing guy who just wants to talk some music with people who love it as much as I do without being mocked. Is that so much to ask?



Anyway, I can take a joke with the best of them, and I apologize if anything I said was offensive or rude. I wish you the best of luck with finishing your last semester of school, and hope all's well. Take care, man.



PS - I checked out your charts and you have incredible taste! We're not so different after all, you and I.

Album Rating: 4.5

This is all very nice, but is there somewhere you guys can talk about it that isn't my review? I'm all for the free bumps but I'd prefer if they were at least music related. (:

Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off

Sorry, Stranger. I meant to do so with my first post, but I sometimes feel a need to defend myself on this site. Anyway, your review was excellent and very well written. I gave it a positive vote, even though I do not like the album nearly as much as you. Perhaps you can respond to my initial question, which would have subverted all of this in the first place. The album seemed so very slow when I listened to it yesterday, that, even though I liked a few sections, and admired the structure and melody of several songs, it bored me to tears overall. The title of the last song, "End Come Too Soon," made me chuckle a bit when I finally reached it. So, do you think this is a slow-grower? Do you think I would like it more after another few listens?

Album Rating: 4.5

Thought this album was fucking strange the first time I listened to it. Second time it blew my mind.

Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off

Chambered89, thanks pal. I appreciate the friendliness. I definitely need another few listens because, as I said before, I like certain sections, but my main gripe is that is maddeningly slow in some places. What works for you on this record?



I went back to their 2009 release, "Wild Beasts," and I liked that a bunch. I gave it a 3.5 on first listen, but could easily see it hitting a 4 after the melodies sink in. I think hearing his voice in a slightly different context is going to help me appreicate it on this album.

Album Rating: 4.5

What I usually do to crack into albums like these is to do something else while playing it in the background, that way I can get used to it and pick up on all the parts that stand out and distract you from what you're doing beforeyou actually take the album on head on.

Album Rating: 4.5

This didn't really click with me until the 3rd or 4th listen when I decided to do nothing but lie on my bed with the headphones on and try to hear everything. It's grown on me with every listen since, so it is sort of a slow-grower, but I also fell for it after just a few listens.



Something about this is so soothing and addictive while being equally interesting. I would like to see Hayden expand his range on his vocals because I know he's capable of blowing people away with them (like he did to me on Limbo, Panto). But I suppose this album was supposed to be more about the music than the vocals...



Anyway this band is capable of a masterpiece, and this is close, but not quite there (seriously if they mix everything I like from Limbo, Panto , Two Dancers , and Smother it could be one of my favorite albums ever)



P.s. I don't know how to italicize, or make my picture show up.