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User
Reviews 25
Approval 97%
Soundoffs 7
News Articles 1
Band Edits + Tags 6
Album Edits 2
Album Ratings 600
Objectivity 63%
Last Active 08-03-18 1:18 am
Joined 07-11-16
Review Comments 3,086
| | Rec your fav albums! (JUNE!) | | 1 |  | Miles Davis
In a Silent Way
Since we’re approaching the end of the May series, I thought I’d continue since this has become a great way to find new music from my beloved Sputnik community. This time I wanna add a few rules:
you MUST have rated your recommendation at least a 4.5. It must have more than 50 total ratings, and at least a 3.9 average. I’ve been getting lots of obscure niche stuff that isn’t the quality I’m looking for.
Same rules apply otherwise. Recommend me an album you’ve 5’d or 4.5’d. One album per day. Please check if I’ve heard it. Let’s go! | | 2 |  | Fall of Efrafa
Inle
JUNE 1 - Ectier
Starting off with some post-metal, this album has a cool mix of ingredients, with the heaviness, the arrangements, and the production, and I dig the vibe this record has - it feels like something I’d play while sailing with Vikings on my way to pilfer and raid villages. I particularly like the vocalist and his accent, it gives the album a nice bit of edge and authenticity. I’ll be honest though, I haven’t returned much or felt like returning to it much either. The melodies and progressions don’t grab my ear much and grow a bit stale - 7 songs stretched out over 80 minutes, when one of those is a 2-minute filler? It’s just too long-winded. It did engage me for a good amount of time, and the meditative moments are cool, but after a while it felt like it was going through the motions. Still an interesting record.
3.2/5 | | 3 |  | Altar of Plagues
Teethed Glory and Injury
JUNE 2 - Wilt
Black metal spliced with post-metal, this is definitely an interesting sound. Black metal is perhaps one of my least favorite flavors of the genre, but post-metal is one of my favorites! As expected, I did prefer the moments where the latter shone through, but the fast-paced riffs here caught my ear too. The mix is a bit shrill and muddy, though sometimes it serves the glacial mood here. The vocals are hit or miss, as expected, the growls and cartoonish banshee shrieks weren’t my cup of tea, but the cleans are good! I like the space provided by the ambient sections here, a nice mix of analogue and digital instruments. I actually quite dig the closer. Thematically the record’s a bit heavy-handed as well (“Raped by a prophet, I watched my son die”? Sheesh.), so I don’t know if I’ll return much to it at all, but I can definitely see the appeal.
3.2/5 | | 4 |  | maudlin of the Well
Bath
JUNE 3 - TheSonomaDude
A sorta sister album to Choirs of the Eye, which I did a week ago. The density of creative ideas and versatility here is great, though ostentatious. I like how the songs are shorter but more numerous, so the presentation is tighter yet retains the mystique of COTE. I dig the amount of range these guys are able to cover, and they seem even more brazen here with the flavors of angelic female vocals, funereal organ, fast-paced or sludgy metal, zombie orgy, watery ASMR, Latin-jazz, classical, and even folk. I will say, this one has the opposite problem of COTE, it’s a bit too jarring and all its transitions don’t work too well. The performances are good, but the stitching is a bit iffy. Sometimes the mix is a bit shrill or muddy, and the vocal delivery isn’t perfect. But this is truly unique, several moments had me perplexed or awe-inspired, or both.
3.5/5 | | 5 |  | Animals As Leaders
Animals as Leaders
JUNE 4 - NexCeleris
This grew on me a LOT. I’m a bit iffy about instrumental prog of this era since it tends to be either overproduced and/or overly flashy/technical. Though this is guilty of both, man, the writing here really serves. Tosin Abasi manages to imbue passion and catchiness into his inventive explorations of the fretboard. He can groove and freestyle well. It’s the lurid production here that kinda bugged me - programmed drums, really? Meh, but even though they sound really processed, the arrangements are great. The overly glossy guitar tones give this the impression of a very impressive yet highly compressed video game soundtrack, giving it an overly MIDIesque quality (I need some low-end!). But some songs here are positively eargasmic. Impressive, but it needs some kind of remix to rectify the sterility. I concede, replay value takes precedence over production for me here.
3.8/5 | | 6 |  | Swans
Soundtracks for the Blind
JUNE 5 - mystagogus
Ah, the most pretentious band of all time. I like some of their post-punk stuff, but I’m not convinced they’re the musical gods everyone makes them out to be, especially regarding this album, which I’ve heard. There’s some interesting stuff here, but I don’t really consider this an album of songs. It’s like a depressing YouTube clip that I don’t really feel like revisiting after the first time. The actual songs here have impressive moments but don’t warrant what seems like hours of empty ambient sound collage to build them up. I also wish they stopped charmlessly grumbling about the sun/incest/rape/whatever taboo subject they can craft a skeletal idea about. I get it, it’s spooky, but what else? My favorite aspect of the record is the eeriness, particularly in “Volcano” - if they channeled that eeriness into some better songwriting and less masturbatory meandering, this would be up my alley. 2.5 hours? Ouch.
2.8/5 | | 7 |  | Maxwell
Embrya
JUNE 6 - jrlikestodance
2 minutes in I think I said, “Yeah, I need an edible for this,” and took one. This is smooooth. Neo-soul is tricky; it can be a bit too self-indulgent and aimless, which are traits of this record, but the vibe and musicianship here stick the landing partly. The songs are quite long, and the songwriting feels a bit aimless, but each one fundamentally grooves. The embellishments of all the instruments and Maxwell’s captivating voice definitely help too. I can definitely see the appeal, it’s like a nice mix of Sade and D’Angelo, with a little bit of trip-hop a la Massive Attack or Morcheeba thrown in. It’s obviously sensual music, but there’s a meditative and watery quality to it as well to bring the blood pressure down. Looooove the opener. Cool stuff, I can chill with the ladies to it.
3.4/5 | | 8 |  | Earl Sweatshirt
I Don't Like Shit, I Don't Go Outside
JUNE 7 - Hawks
Man I’ve been sleeping on Earl. I keep forgetting he’s both rapper AND producer, and he’s no slouch at either. I adore Some Rap Songs, but it’s a hard listen, so maybe that’s why I was avoiding this. I’ve heard a few songs, like the legendary Grief, and it might just be because of where I am in life right now, but this album just speaks to my soul, man. Such fascinating and wonderful production here, I got touches of Radiohead and DJ Screw. I love Earl’s misanthropic and witty yet heartfelt lyricism and hungry flows. I am glad to see he’s doing better in life, because there’s some dark but honest music here, it feels very ghostly and disoriented, akin to a junkie in a haunted house. I’m not the biggest fan of his delivery, but his lyricism wins me over. I love the brevity as it’s only 30 minutes. Some (of these) rap songs really hit home. Long overdue listen.
4.0/5 | | 9 |  | Bone Thugs-N-Harmony
E 1999 Eternal
JUNE 8 - Drifter
I have kind of a love-hate thing with these guys. I dig their EP, as it’s a short burst of everything that makes these guys worth listening to; unique cadences and harmonies, soulful beats and melodies, and a sinister gangster-rap aesthetic. But melodic rap’s an acquired taste - several people I know dislike them as they’re so different. I like them, but in short bursts - an entire album, especially one this long, kinda bored and irritated me. Their flows are a bit TOO musical. It kinda gave me the vibe of a poppy barbershop quartet posing as gangster rappers over these eerie beats. I wish there was a bit more of a monotone delivery to support these edgy bars, they don’t really work as well when they’re harmonizing like choirboys. Nevertheless, there’s still some good tunes here. East 1999 is a fucking BANGER. Maybe more listens will change my mind. Definitely innovators in rap music.
3.4/5 | | 10 |  | Turnover
Peripheral Vision
JUNE 9 - Rowhaus
The “emo” tag here kinda scared me, but this isn’t as uncharismatic and whiny as most emo I’ve heard. The first song didn’t grab me, but from the second track onwards this was a pretty solid listen. Now, this is still not my favorite kind of music, it does have a bit of the staleness of similar contemporary dream pop/shoegaze bands, but the songwriting and arrangements here are decent. It’s interesting that all of the band’s most streamed songs come from this album, so it’s clearly loved and I can see why. It’s pretty, morose, and has relatable lyrics. It just doesn’t have that X-factor that’ll keep me returning.
3.2/5 | | 11 |  | Skee Mask
Compro
JUNE 10 - CottonSalad
Wow. Mother of high fidelity and sound engineering. Every producer should hear this. Absolutely perfect mixing, clarity and stereo separation. AND it’s a dance album?! This is the kind of IDM/techno I’d hope to expect in this day and age, combining the creative engine of the 90s age with the high fidelity of today’s production standard. It’s spacious yet tight, and brings to mind an indefatigable dance-floor of an alien world. This brought to mind some of my favorite electronic artists, like Autechre, Aphex Twin, and Caribou, but it’s incredibly original in execution and finesse. The icy ambient explorations, the subterranean harmonies, and the earthmoving percussion; I’m a fan of everything. Germans just really know their electronics. Some of my favorite electronic tunes ever here, I’m gonna wear this thing out on the highway. Deserves a higher average.
4.6/5 | | 12 |  | Marillion
Script For A Jester's Tear
JUNE 11 - Chippe
Prog may be the most promising yet oft-frustrating genre descriptor there is, and this 80s throwback is a good reason why. It’s got flash, structure, and the charismatic cheese of that era, yet that gestalt is not enough to save it from the staleness of this sound. I appreciate the energy here, the pop sensibilities mixed with the prog stylings creates a winning formula that has clearly helped these guys sell millions of records. It’s just not crazy enough in its flash or tight enough in its songwriting to properly pull me in. The standard reverb-heavy 80s production is in full gaudy effect too and doesn’t help. It feels like one of the bands whom Spinal Tap were making fun of.
2.7/5 | | 13 |  | Kinoko Teikoku
Uzu Ni Naru
JUNE 12 - Zac124
This is a bit of a mixed bag for me. I like how it started off; the first song, and the second one to a lesser extent, are really nice throwbacks to the more muscular 90s shoegaze sound demonstrated by Ride and Swervedriver. The subsequent tracks where the focus becomes more punky alt. rock kinda loses me, and feels like anime intro music. Regarding the singer, she’s alright, and I don’t know how I feel about the phonetics of Japanese in music like this. The performances are solid throughout, but it peaks during the first two songs, and I’m left a bit bored throughout the rest of it.
3.0/5 | | 14 |  | Meat Puppets
Meat Puppets II
JUNE 13 - mryrtmrnfoxxxy | | 15 |  | Karnivool
Themata
JUNE 14 - arthropod | | 16 |  | Greyhaven
Empty Black
JUNE 15 - HooperD87 | | 17 |  | The Gathering
Souvenirs
JUNE 16 - JohnnyoftheWell | | 18 |  | Gang of Four
Entertainment!
JUNE 17 - gabba | | 19 |  | Counterparts
Nothing Left to Love
JUNE 18 - Dedes | | 20 |  | Impaled Northern Moonforest
Impaled Northern Moonforest
JUNE 19 - CugnoBrasso | | 21 |  | Coil
Love's Secret Domain
JUNE 20 - bach | | 22 |  | UGK
Ridin' Dirty
JUNE 21 - Typhoon24 | | 23 |  | Silversun Pickups
Carnavas
JUNE 22 - Futures | | 24 |  | Kylesa
Spiral Shadow
JUNE 23 - FrozenFirebug | | 25 |  | Cardiacs
Sing to God
JUNE 24 - Squiggly | | 26 |  | Castevet
Obsian
JUNE 25 - osmark86 | | 27 |  | Stick Figure
Burial Ground
JUNE 26 - TheArtofTheGanja | | 28 |  | Venom
Welcome to Hell
JUNE 27 - ToSmokMuzyki | |
Flashmobba
05.21.25 | added the ones from the comments in the May series. don’t think I’ll do 2 recs per user this time, unless no one else recommends anything. Please don’t recommend me grind or anything you think I’ll dislike. | jrlikestodance
05.21.25 | Lone - Galaxy Garden | NexCeleris
05.21.25 | Animals as Leaders - Animals as Leaders | mystagogus
05.21.25 | Swans - Soundtracks for the blind
Minimum rate to be accepted is 4.5. | brickhed
05.21.25 | VGA Host - Copper Lemon Zinc | Hawks
05.21.25 | Lets try this again. | Flashmobba
05.21.25 | added 2, guys please read the new rules! | Hawks
05.21.25 | These rules suck. | jrlikestodance
05.21.25 | Swap mine for Maxwell - Embrya | Hawks
05.21.25 | Earl Sweatshirt - I Don't Like Shit, I Don't Go Outside | Drifter
05.21.25 | bone thugs n harmony - e 1999 eternal | Flashmobba
05.21.25 | hey if everybody came with some heat I wouldn’t have added the rules
hawky I’ll make an exception since it’s a 3.8 | Casavir
05.21.25 | Spiral Architect - A Sceptic's Universe | Rowhaus
05.21.25 | Turnover - Peripheral Vision
Changed my rec since my last hip-hop one was underwhelming and you've already gotten a good amount of those lol | CottonSalad
05.21.25 | Skee Mask - Compro | Chippe
05.21.25 | Can I tempt you with Marillion-Script for a jester's tear? Pretentious goodness from -83 | Hawks
05.21.25 | Good thing Drift rec'd 9. Its the best hip-hop album of all time. | Zac124
05.21.25 | Kinoko Teikoku - Uzu Ni Naru | sr388
05.21.25 | moving mountains - waves | Rowhaus
05.21.25 | "Good thing Drift rec'd 9. Its the best hip-hop album of all time."
watch Flash give it a 3 lol | brickhed
05.21.25 | okay i'll just not do your stupid list if you're gonna have safeguards like this
ridiculous | mryrtmrnfoxxxy
05.21.25 | the 50 votes rule knocked out my first 5 or 6 picks damn it all
U.s. maple - long hair in three stages
The clash - sandinista | mryrtmrnfoxxxy
05.21.25 | fuck not 3.9s erm | mryrtmrnfoxxxy
05.21.25 | meat puppets ii | mryrtmrnfoxxxy
05.21.25 | the most popular killdozer album on this site only has 29 votes! think about that next time you're drafting rules buddy | sr388
05.21.25 | "at least a 3.9 average" looks like i can't recommend any emmure :/ | arthropod
05.21.25 | Man, these rules...
Karnivool - Themata | Hawks
05.21.25 | "watch Flash give it a 3 lol"
That would make my head explode real shit. | HooperD87
05.21.25 | Greyhaven - Empty Black | Flashmobba
05.21.25 | thank god for the rules
cmon guys you can do it :* | mystagogus
05.21.25 | Yeah I was thinking of rec'ing The Angelic Process but then thought of seeing "2.9" being given and decided not to risk being heartbroken for real. | JohnnyoftheWell
05.21.25 | the gathering souvenirs | gabba
05.21.25 | Gang of Four - Entertainment!
ticks all your criteria, lfg! | Flashmobba
05.21.25 | see guys gabba’s excited with the rules, be more like gabba
I honestly thought I’d have rated some of these, lots of familiar faces | gabba
05.21.25 | yeah, be more like me so you can wonder all day long about how you could become like that | FrozenFirebug
05.21.25 | impossible rules because this site doesn't 3.9+ average actual 4.5s and 5.0s, especially not known albums
they're real good at 3.9ing 4s 80% accurately, but have no ear for spectacularity and shy away from it or shun it
lower standard to 3.7 or allow 4s, otherwise there's no point in this when you could just skim the "top genre all time" function of the site ¯_( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)_/¯ | Flashmobba
05.21.25 | no idea what you’re waffling about or if you understand the criteria, but 17 of these albums fit these “impossible rules” | FrozenFirebug
05.21.25 | if i debase myself and change one of my 4.0s to a 4.5 until the end of june then switch it back does that count cause i could figure something out in that case | Flashmobba
05.21.25 | why can’t you just recommend something that fits the rules | FrozenFirebug
05.21.25 | superb music very very very rarely fits the rules
i can't hand out a 4.5 to every trendy or established or acceptable thing but'll gladly give it the 4.0 it deserves if it deserves it | CottonSalad
05.21.25 | What if I nominate Murmuure, a FrozenFirebug 4.5? It has a 4.1 avg from 218 votes.
You're very welcome. | Dedes
05.21.25 | Damn brother you are really overcomplicated this
Jam Counterparts-Nothing Left to Love | Flashmobba
05.21.25 | @frozen you’re definitely overthinking this, follow the formula Cotton laid out so kindly for you and recommend something if you’d like | CugnoBrasso
05.22.25 | Impaled Northern Moonforest - Impaled Northern Moonforest | Dedes
05.22.25 | Grim and Frostbitten Gay Bar | Flashmobba
05.22.25 | please reconsider Cugno | budgie
05.22.25 | It must have more than 50 total ratings, and at least a 3.9 average.
pussssssytyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy | bach
05.22.25 | coil - love's secret domain | Flashmobba
05.22.25 | keep em comin guys, I think I just discovered one of my all time favorites here | arthropod
05.22.25 | the rules next month: minimum 1000 ratings and at least 4.5 avg | Flashmobba
05.22.25 | don’t tempt me you crustacean | CugnoBrasso
05.22.25 | No. Have fun. | klauswagon
05.23.25 | damn i cannot play by these rules sorry buddy : (
we reserve the right to refuse services to youu | Flashmobba
05.23.25 | you and the others are getting coal for Christmas | Typhoon24
05.23.25 | ridin dirty - UGK | Flashmobba
05.23.25 | dang I shoulda rated that, ty | Typhoon24
05.23.25 | no problem man. it's a perfect record imo | Hawks
05.23.25 | Yes it is. | Futures
05.23.25 | i appreciate the constraints on the list tbh lol
try silversun pickups- carnavas
| Flashmobba
05.23.25 | damn straight, sput’s full of pseudo-anarchists | FrozenFirebug
05.28.25 | if u can find it in ur heart to accept another 3.8 try Kylesa - Spiral Shadow. it made me happy | Squiggly
05.28.25 | Guess i'll reccommend Cardiacs - Sing to God AGAIN! Any other rec would be disingenuous. Get ready for 90 minutes of pure madness! | CugnoBrasso
05.28.25 | June 19 can't come soon enough | osmark86
05.28.25 | Castevet - Obsian | Flashmobba
05.29.25 | you know what 3.8 works since that’s still considered excellent | TheArtofTheGanja
05.30.25 | Stick Figure - Burial Ground
reggae/dub doesn't get much love on this site but they're one of the best in the genre today | TheArtofTheGanja
05.30.25 | eh i see it only has 18 votes but everything else meets your criteria so your call. they have a couple million listeners on spotify i think | DType
05.30.25 | Sleetgrout - We Had A Carnival | Flashmobba
05.31.25 | lol might as well forget the rules at this point for the last week | Flashmobba
05.31.25 | cmon @dtype at least not 2 votes | DType
05.31.25 | Oh i didn't read the rules beforehand, what a shame | Flashmobba
06.03.25 | decent first week so far, keep em rolling | DarkSideOfLucca
06.03.25 | THROUGH SILVER IN BLOOOOOOOOOOD | Flashmobba
06.03.25 | WHEN THE FALLOUT COMES HE IS FFFFIIIIIIIYYYYYAAAAARRRRRR
read the rules and rec me something as good if you can darkside | DarkSideOfLucca
06.03.25 | Ah okay - I have meetings for the next few hours, but I will check what you've heard and compare it to my 5's later today! | Flashmobba
06.04.25 | banga | Flashmobba
06.07.25 | anotha one | mryrtmrnfoxxxy
06.07.25 | yay love 8 | jrlikestodance
06.07.25 | Glad you dug some of the stuff on Embrya. While I get the indulgent criticisms, I feel thats what gives the album its character/vibe. The perfect soundtrack to taking psychedelics with your lover and going on a journey. To me its the definition of a grower and the songs slowly unfold themselves with repeat listens | Hawks
06.07.25 | YESSSSS FLASH BRO!!! Glad you dig my rec. Easily one of my fav modern rap albums. | Flashmobba
06.07.25 | @jr definitely, I think it’ll definitely grow on me with more listens and experiences
hell yea keep em coming boys | Flashmobba
06.10.25 | stop the fucking presses
big shoutout to cotton you done well | Chippe
06.11.25 | Lol, can understand your take but obviously disagrees | Demon of the Fall
06.11.25 | list peaked at #1
this is a bloody tough slate tho guys lol
That opening segment are probably all what one might call “growers” | Demon of the Fall
06.11.25 | okay I lied #17 is peak | mkmusic1995
06.11.25 | 22 and 13 are both 5's for me, hope those are thoroughly enjoyed. | Flashmobba
06.11.25 | sorry Chippe, thanks for the rec :)
sheesh even I can’t predict what I’m gonna like best | Hawks
06.12.25 | That friggin Bone Thugs take has me wanting to headbutt concrete. | Flashmobba
06.12.25 | lol I think I might have been generous with it honestly :) | Hawks
06.12.25 | You're nuts!! Best hip-hop album ever made. | Flashmobba
06.12.25 | sheeeesh melodic harmony rap is a bit like sushi, I dig it some days but I can’t keep eating it or I’ll barf | budgie
06.12.25 | darude - sandstorm | ToSmokMuzyki
06.13.25 | my favs dont match the reqs wtfffffffffffffffffff | Flashmobba
06.13.25 | ugghhhh fine no rules you whiners go ahead!!! rec me some esoteric c-side mixtape!!! | ToSmokMuzyki
06.13.25 | venom - welcome to hell (off by 0.1 ;( | JohnnyoftheWell
06.13.25 | "I don’t know how I feel about the phonetics of Japanese in music like this"
shut the fuck up lol | budgie
06.13.25 | mykill miers - its been a long time coming | Flashmobba
06.13.25 | lol @johnny knew that would be a controversial take
adding | Flashmobba
06.13.25 | budgie please work with me here, 1 vote at 3.5 is not gonna cut it (and you’re the 1 vote) | budgie
06.13.25 | "vibe of a poppy barbershop quartet posing as gangster rappers over
i get this. always felt like i should have dug bone thugs cuz i loved all of eazys stuff but it just sounds so fuckin goofy | budgie
06.13.25 | take it or leave it | Flashmobba
06.13.25 | wow, vindicated by budgie, boochas bracias |
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