Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off

I honestly didn't realize Baths was gay until I heard Obsidian and songs like Incompatible and No Eyes made it obvious



Cerulean = barely queer

Obsidian = rather queer

Romaplasm = gushing with queerness

Album Rating: 3.0

why? because he doesn't use gender specific pronouns to describe the lovers he's longing for on half the tracks on cerulean? i think how 'obviously' gay someone presents themselves might be a bit of a problematic metric for just how queer their music is



which is kind of the point of why we should be questioning what about this and obsidian is ~too queer~ for some.

Album Rating: 3.0

why are the nuances that make Obsidian and Romaplasm seem more queer off-putting? weird double standard to me, when people can listen to and emotionally engage and find something of value in albums about much less relatable material than topics of self-exploration regardless of sexual orientation.

Album Rating: 3.5

that potsy bump nice

I can't talk for other people, but there are few albums I've ever connected with on the way I have with Obsidian.

Album Rating: 3.0

its just strange to me that topics of escapism, fantasy, and a 'second youth' from a gay musician somehow is perceived as more queer and therefore less relatable to a straight demograph than love and loss songs from a gay musician. either way there is something there i can absolutely value and implore of others to seek. i can find parallels in my own personal growth to everything about this album and it seems to touch on a lot of stuff that really hasn't been explored very much if at all in pop music. that is important and substantial to me. the album and this review have made me reflect on ways that i've let myself down by blending into certain scenes to try and attain something real that is contradicted by the approach for instance, or escaped into my own various fantasy outlets to repress my own sexual and emotional unfulfillment.

Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off

I don't know, for me, as a gay man, it's nice to hear him be open and proud about his feelings in the lyrics



Cerulean's lyrical vagueness is harder to connect with in the way because I legit assumed he was singing about women back when I first heard it because that's the "norm" for a man to sing about in music I guess

Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off

With that said: musically Cerulean is still his best

Album Rating: 3.5

see to me the lyrical concepts seem very very personal as they tackle things like his favorite video games or anime stuff while paralleling it to his own life. its not that I didn't connect with them because he's gay and I'm straight, it's moreso that I just dont listen to or watch the same things as him so these references went way over my head. that was really my only complaint but I applaud him attempting to do something so out of the box

Album Rating: 3.0

i think in a sense this is infinitely more uniquely relatable to each individual than general love/loss songs. its so nuanced but still pretty universal. im just struggling to come to terms with the alienation i initially felt with it, that response is curious to me and worth reflection.

doesn't hurt that a lot of the lyrics on this record are actually very good

Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off

I honestly really like that he's being so specific



A big criticism I always have for lyrics is that a lot of artists try to be super vague so that a wide audience will relate to it, and i always find that shallow



Then again I don't seek music out because I want to relate to it so eh

Album Rating: 3.0

"it's moreso that I just dont listen to or watch the same things as him so these references went way over my head. "



yeah but you could say the same about like Mount Eeries new album or the references or topical media of classic 90s hip hop groups and we still connect with that stuff too?

Album Rating: 3.0

"A big criticism I always have for lyrics is that a lot of artists try to be super vague so that a wide audience will relate to it, and i always find that shallow"



did somebody mention Trent Reznor XD

Album Rating: 3.0

jokes aside i agree with that ars

Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off

But Potsy, there's a hole inside of Trent, and nothing can stop him now

Album Rating: 3.0

"I can't talk for other people, but there are few albums I've ever connected with on the way I have with Obsidian."



exactly! thats dope! and should be more common if you ask me.

Album Rating: 3.5

Mount Eerie's newest album is a bit different I would think, idk. lyrics are great tho yeah I just think the lack of impact can be attributed to the theme he attempted to tackle for me personally, not how well written they were. but thats not even a main gripe i have, its moreso the rly annoying melodies on a couple of these songs ahah. im more of a music first, lyrics second kind of guy

Album Rating: 3.0

i think what i am kind of scratching the iceberg on is that if u quantify how 'queer' something is, that kind of insinuates a more exclusive demograph will be getting the most out of it than 'less queer' stuff. but i dont think that that is an accurate facet of either Obsidian or this any more because as far as I can see it, a lot of that stuff is so rich that its a special kind of relatability that feels more personal and tailored. but that in no way means that I think anything about either album makes them inherently less relatable to any particular demograph, unless the fact that he doesn't always use gender neutral pronouns anymore makes you uncomfortable to relate to his work, which is obviously dumb.

Album Rating: 3.0

@con of course they are different but i'm just trying to point out that some straight people seem to be more hesitant to willingly relate to overtly queer media, subconsciously or otherwise, than to other topics that they probably know nothing about (ie losing your wife and daughter or growing up in the hood).