miguelsan: Advice for first review?

miguelsan 04.25.20	Also Symbolic is now 4.6 avg which is deserved I must say
Source 04.25.20	type til the text box is filled, click submit
miguelsan 04.25.20	Noted. In which case I probably wont review this. Tips would still be appreciated.
miguelsan 04.25.20	Damn source I wasn't expecting such a revelation today
Snake. 04.25.20	don't do track by track format or use personal pronouns unless you're giving an anecdote
Dedes 04.25.20	Write about whatever you want man Always keep your end goal in mind. What do you want to convey? Have you sold even a potential naysayer on an album? Have you used the word "riffs ahrd" at least 7 times? Do these things and you'll kill em, champ.
Dewinged 04.25.20	Start with a hook line, provide context, describe generally, avoid track by track, embellish, sign it off with a killer line, boom, done. I fail to do all this every. fucking. time.
Source 04.25.20	what i said is a truly underrated strategy!
WatchItExplode 04.25.20	Proofread. Otherwise you're good.
bloodshy 04.25.20	Write it in word or something, then paste it in here. Also, don't make your first review the one you're most excited about. You'll probably regret it later.
neekafat 04.25.20	don't write reviews until you make it to staff tbh
Archelirion 04.25.20	When I start to write a review I'll have a few key points written down, which I can then start to construct the review around. Also try to steer clear of overfamiliarity unless you're really comfortable with it, and don't use phrases like 'I think that this...' or 'in my opinion' cos they're irrelevant. Also bloodshy is right. This site is prone to a few hiccups and there is a fair chance if you oneshot the review into the browser, you'll lose it and then be very very pissed Have fun with it! It's a good hobby :]
Sowing 04.25.20	Have fun and try to make it entertaining for the reader. That's all anyone can expect. The prose and grammar will solidify in due time if you keep refining your craft. Just don't lose a sense of imagination.
SitarHero 04.25.20	Agonise over every single sentence. Erase whole paragraphs and start over because they all suck. Neglect your friends and family and personal hygeine. Suffer minor mental breakdown. Throw computer across the room. Lie in fetal position. Reassemble computer and try again. Lament the educational system that has failed to teach you how to transfer your muddled thoughts to the written word in a manner that remotely resembles coherence. Say "fuck it" and post the garbled mess of a review anyway. Obsess over the pos's that the review receives. React badly to criticism. Remember that this is just a website where people write about music for fun and that the validation of your peers is meaningless and trite. Rinse. Repeat. Oh, and ONLY ONE REVIEW PER DAY. That's really the only rule.
bloodshy 04.25.20	Lie in fetal position. [2] This will give you a false sense of security, calm your mind, and really help you focus on that grammar.
Gnocchi 04.25.20	--Oh, and ONLY ONE REVIEW PER DAY. That's really the only rule.-- bitch please. ps. love your Parthan All jokes aside. There should probably be a loose, but formal guide to reviewing on sputnikmusic (and in general) on the site. I feel like I want to be a part of that.
JohnnyoftheWell 04.25.20	[write whatever you want, finish, leave for 2 hours, come back to it, pretend it's the work of a total stranger, shred the fuck outta it], repeat, publish and don't write it in the review submission window
ConcubinaryCode 04.25.20	Go to forums and people will proofread and give pointers on your review. People are pretty nice about it and encourage Good reviewers. Cuz most suck around here 😏
blou52 04.25.20	I'd be fine with seeing a new review of an album that's already been reviewed, just try to offer a view that isn't identical to one already there.
robertsona 04.25.20	listen to the album all the way through and take a bunch of random notes without haranguing yourself about which you will eventually integrate into a review proper. that's what works for me. just practically anything that crosses your mind. then I guess sorta just start shaping it from there, yoking together ideas and concepts that seem like they naturally go together? eventually excising the ones that don't fit well (although again you should take notes as if this isn't going to happen, essentially)? then you basically have an outline and then just sorta fill that out I guess maybe hmm if you want someone/anyone to look at your notes or a first draft hmu on my profile i'll give you my email
AsleepInTheBack 04.25.20	"Agonise over every single sentence. Erase whole paragraphs and start over because they all suck. Neglect your friends and family and personal hygeine. Suffer minor mental breakdown. Throw computer across the room. Lie in fetal position. Reassemble computer and try again. Lament the educational system that has failed to teach you how to transfer your muddled thoughts to the written word in a manner that remotely resembles coherence. Say "fuck it" and post the garbled mess of a review anyway. Obsess over the pos's that the review receives. React badly to criticism. Remember that this is just a website where people write about music for fun and that the validation of your peers is meaningless and trite. Rinse. Repeat." Good god, this. Exactly this. 100% this. Every fucking time I write. This.
robertsona 04.25.20	oh also something I'm bad at is making sure each paragraph leads logically to the next one and ALSO that the last paragraph links back to the first in that same manner
AsleepInTheBack 04.25.20	Also, what sowing said. If it ain't fun and you aren't sharing what you genuinely love, what's the point? And practice. I still hate my first handful of reviews, as (I think) do alot of people, but improvement will follow the more times you attempt to sort your thoughts onto paper.
facupm 04.26.20	my advice is, write your first review about whatever album you want to, although it better be an album you know really well and dont give a f***ck bout how many reviews it has, just do what you want
miguelsan 04.27.20	Prepping my first review now. Could take a week, could take a month or two before I'm happy to publish it. Many thanks for the feedback; it's been much appreciated :)
Storm In A Teacup 04.27.20	You should write about anything you feel passionate about. It doesn't matter if someone reviewed it already, trust me. Anyone who says you can't write something because x is not someone you should take advice from. The more reviews you write the better experience you will get at it.
JohnnyoftheWell 04.27.20	Exciting! also not sure if anyone mentioned this, but the best advice is just to keep writing!! learning from your mistakes + overthinking everything ever are both good, but there's no substitute for experiential learning
JohnnyoftheWell 04.27.20	(also love robertsona's advice + method, I find it v fun and helpful to take a similar approach)
Dewinged 04.27.20	Surprise yourself!
miguelsan 04.27.20	Just out of pure curiosity how do you change review ratings to be 3.3, 3.4, etc? I feel like being able to expand the range of ratings could more accurately convey how I feel about an album.
DDDeftoneDDD 04.27.20	Where you from Miguel?
SteakByrnes 04.27.20	You can't unless you're staff
miguelsan 04.27.20	Ah okay
JohnnyoftheWell 04.27.20	"I feel like being able to expand the range of ratings could more accurately convey how I feel about an album." The rating should be a reflection of the review and not the other way round; don't worry about that part til the last minute
GhandhiLion 04.27.20	So my reviews are just average? Thanks, I knew it.
SteakByrnes 04.27.20	If johnny gives you his login information you can use .1 incremental ratings
JohnnyoftheWell 04.27.20	Gonna have to work in well over .1 increments if you want that login (shivers) "So my reviews are just average? Thanks" Insofar as your 1 review is its own modal average, this is objectively true
GhandhiLion 04.27.20	The site needs 0.01 increments tbh. I want to be able to rate something 2.69
ReturnToRock 04.27.20	1. Listen to the album several times. See what features or traits stand out throughout all the listens and mention those. See what tracks stand out (positively or negatively) across multiple spins and if they are always the same ones. If so, mention those in your review as well. 2. Put together a rough outline and note down any particularly good sentences or phrases you come up with for future reference. Usually the outline should be intro - band context - album context - general description of sound - track details - highlights/lowlights - outro. You should have a rough idea of what you want to rate the album at this point, too. Note that down as well. 3. Avoid hyperbolic or exceedingly matter-of-fact statements (my old self was very very guilty of this, and I wish he had not been.) 4. Prepare for criticism, as it's your first review and it WILL unavoidably happen. Take it on board and apply it to any future reviews you may have planned. That's it in a nutshell.
EclipseInYourEyes 04.27.20	Write it in another writing app and paste it. I seriously can not stress this enough.
miguelsan 04.27.20	Touche Johnny. I've still got a lot to learn, probably
miguelsan 04.30.20	"Lament the educational system that has failed to teach you how to transfer your muddled thoughts to the written word in a manner that remotely resembles coherence." Yeah pretty much. Review should hopefully be ready by the end of the day (London time). It's for Through the Eyes of Heathens by Dozer if anyone is interested :)