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A Crimson Mellotron View Drop Down
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Points: 5683 		Direct Link To This Post Topic: Should there be an 'I dislike your review' thread?
    Posted: February 25 2021 at 08:36
We all know about the 'I really like your review' thread, and it's pretty cool to see forum members praising each other's work; it's surely a sign of healthy communication, as well as decent manners and respect in the community. However, there are a ton of forum members who spill out those useless 100-word reviews, telling us all the general crap about the most well-known albums that we all know... So, my question is: What the hell is the point of doing this? Just to fill your pointless collection of reviews? It's something I barely give a crap about but noticed (and have been noticing for some time), as I am not someone who spends hours and hours reading all the reviews that are being posted. In fact, when I want to see someone's opinion on a specific album, I would search for reviews by the usual prog reviewers here, who are quite well-known and who write very good reviews; However, I won't name them all, as I will surely miss someone.

So, getting back to the original point of this thread, what is your opinion on these reviewers? (And on these kinds of reviews, in general?) Please let me know what you think, I am curious to see some other opinions on the topic of stinky, pointless reviews.


Edited by A Crimson Mellotron - February 25 2021 at 08:38
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Points: 18446 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 25 2021 at 09:05
I dislike your question !
Thank you for supporting independently produced music
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Points: 45656 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 25 2021 at 09:15
Originally posted by A Crimson Mellotron A Crimson Mellotron wrote:

We all know about the 'I really like your review' thread, and it's pretty cool to see forum members praising each other's work; it's surely a sign of healthy communication, as well as decent manners and respect in the community. However, there are a ton of forum members who spill out those useless 100-word reviews, telling us all the general crap about the most well-known albums that we all know... So, my question is: What the hell is the point of doing this? Just to fill your pointless collection of reviews? It's something I barely give a crap about but noticed (and have been noticing for some time), as I am not someone who spends hours and hours reading all the reviews that are being posted. In fact, when I want to see someone's opinion on a specific album, I would search for reviews by the usual prog reviewers here, who are quite well-known and who write very good reviews; However, I won't name them all, as I will surely miss someone.

So, getting back to the original point of this thread, what is your opinion on these reviewers? (And on these kinds of reviews, in general?) Please let me know what you think, I am curious to see some other opinions on the topic of stinky, pointless reviews.

no, there should not be such a thread because bad reviews are usually reported to get rid of. 
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A Crimson Mellotron View Drop Down
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Points: 5683 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 25 2021 at 09:22
Here's an example: http://www.progarchives.com/Review.asp?id=2496792
And another one: http://www.progarchives.com/Review.asp?id=2508823

Comment-length reviews! Should have posted them in the OP, but anyway, can still complement my point.
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Points: 5684 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 25 2021 at 09:25
Here's another one xD:


Edited by Hrychu - February 25 2021 at 09:28
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Points: 45656 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 25 2021 at 09:26
Originally posted by A Crimson Mellotron A Crimson Mellotron wrote:

Here's an example: http://www.progarchives.com/Review.asp?id=2496792
And another one: http://www.progarchives.com/Review.asp?id=2508823

Comment-length reviews! Should have posted them in the OP, but anyway, can still complement my point.

too short and rather poorly written. 
Red's review is not a bad one, but it's a long running sentence which is always annoying.

You can report the first one, it's just a rant. 
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Points: 5684 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 25 2021 at 09:32
I have no clue why those old short reviews by the so called "SPECIAL COLLABORTORS" haven't been deleted yet. Perhaps these guys are protected by some bogus immunity law? xD
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A Crimson Mellotron View Drop Down
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Points: 5683 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 25 2021 at 11:27
Originally posted by Hrychu Hrychu wrote:

Here's another one xD:
Yes, pretty awful.
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Points: 45656 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 25 2021 at 11:37
Originally posted by A Crimson Mellotron A Crimson Mellotron wrote:

Originally posted by Hrychu Hrychu wrote:

Here's another one xD:
Yes, pretty awful.

is it awful because you disagree or is it awful because you don't like the writing itself? 
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Points: 3895 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 25 2021 at 12:20
Here's a couple:

http://www.progarchives.com/Review.asp?id=2375610

1 stars Ok, I am in the lower amount of fans who enjoy Soft Machine. I do not enjoy this album, I found that this album was very messy, didn't have a solid atmosphere, and it shared elements of First Circle by Pat Methany... and I'm talking about Forward March. I apologize but I was not a fan of this overly experimental and non-structured album, it didn't show much emotion and it just seemed more like a huge mess of an album to me. Nothing here stood out, for me, If I want to listen to a Soft Machine album, I'll turn elsewhere, such as Bundles. Sadly, this just didn't do anything for me.

Ok, for those who are upset about this review, please site my review on Larks for this review to make me sense. I made sure that I was more clear, and hopefully it will clear things up.


http://www.progarchives.com/Review.asp?id=2377542


2 stars Alright, deciding to rewrite this review too, but I'm not changing my overall thoughts on the album. I still believe that this album is fairly lazy of the bassist of Anglagärd to not change much about the style of either band he is in. I also think that Anglagärd did this style of music better, but am I going to give those two opinions as my review? After further consideration, I decided to listen to it over again and was still not compelled. This album is good for those prog fans.who do enjoy Anglagärd but for me, I would like to see something a bit more fresh, something the bassist can do with his skills without trying to sound too much like the other band. I can understand why people see this review as lazy but try to see where I am coming from. As a musician, I am not going to write similar material in all the bands I am in, I'm going to want to try something different for each band. That's why in my mind, this isn't much different than Anglagärd, therefore I cannot give this a higher rating. I tried to enjoy album since the day I got it, but it seemed that the vocals and the overall sound of the album just didn't work for me nearly as well as something like Hybris.

Hopefully this new review gives you some food for thought, and maybe you will see my side. You don't have to agree with me, but I cannot give this album anything higher than 3 stars, because that simply would be lying about my actual thoughts and i would rather be honest about this album. There are some decent moments every here and there but it's an inconsistent album with some mindless instrumentation, nothing emotional, and the singing to me is probably the worst thing about this album. I'm not trying to insult anyone, but I think this album could've been a lot better


The first review just sucks ass straight up, the second reads like a teenager doing a presentation on a book he didn't read.
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Points: 45656 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 25 2021 at 12:24
^ so what's wrong with the second review? 
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Points: 3895 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 25 2021 at 12:55
^ He just says "this sounds like anglagard" 7 different ways and doesn't actually talk about any of the songs, arrangements, production value. He doesn't even mention the name of the band or album. There's a lot more to say about that record than just saying it sounds like Anglagard imo.
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A Crimson Mellotron View Drop Down
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Points: 5683 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 25 2021 at 13:11
Originally posted by Cristi Cristi wrote:

Originally posted by A Crimson Mellotron A Crimson Mellotron wrote:

Originally posted by Hrychu Hrychu wrote:

Here's another one xD:
Yes, pretty awful.

is it awful because you disagree or is it awful because you don't like the writing itself? 
Because it is badly written, directionless, and sounds like a big old rant.
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A Crimson Mellotron View Drop Down
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Points: 5683 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 25 2021 at 13:13
Originally posted by dougmcauliffe dougmcauliffe wrote:

Here's a couple:

http://www.progarchives.com/Review.asp?id=2375610

1 stars Ok, I am in the lower amount of fans who enjoy Soft Machine. I do not enjoy this album, I found that this album was very messy, didn't have a solid atmosphere, and it shared elements of First Circle by Pat Methany... and I'm talking about Forward March. I apologize but I was not a fan of this overly experimental and non-structured album, it didn't show much emotion and it just seemed more like a huge mess of an album to me. Nothing here stood out, for me, If I want to listen to a Soft Machine album, I'll turn elsewhere, such as Bundles. Sadly, this just didn't do anything for me.

Ok, for those who are upset about this review, please site my review on Larks for this review to make me sense. I made sure that I was more clear, and hopefully it will clear things up.


http://www.progarchives.com/Review.asp?id=2377542


2 stars Alright, deciding to rewrite this review too, but I'm not changing my overall thoughts on the album. I still believe that this album is fairly lazy of the bassist of Anglagärd to not change much about the style of either band he is in. I also think that Anglagärd did this style of music better, but am I going to give those two opinions as my review? After further consideration, I decided to listen to it over again and was still not compelled. This album is good for those prog fans.who do enjoy Anglagärd but for me, I would like to see something a bit more fresh, something the bassist can do with his skills without trying to sound too much like the other band. I can understand why people see this review as lazy but try to see where I am coming from. As a musician, I am not going to write similar material in all the bands I am in, I'm going to want to try something different for each band. That's why in my mind, this isn't much different than Anglagärd, therefore I cannot give this a higher rating. I tried to enjoy album since the day I got it, but it seemed that the vocals and the overall sound of the album just didn't work for me nearly as well as something like Hybris.

Hopefully this new review gives you some food for thought, and maybe you will see my side. You don't have to agree with me, but I cannot give this album anything higher than 3 stars, because that simply would be lying about my actual thoughts and i would rather be honest about this album. There are some decent moments every here and there but it's an inconsistent album with some mindless instrumentation, nothing emotional, and the singing to me is probably the worst thing about this album. I'm not trying to insult anyone, but I think this album could've been a lot better


The first review just sucks ass straight up, the second reads like a teenager doing a presentation on a book he didn't read.

Doug, I am afraid that the guy who wrote the second review (not sure about the first one), is an actual teenager. LOL
But I agree, both of these are pretty sh*te. And the examples we could give are numerous.
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Points: 52608 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 25 2021 at 13:32
Reviewers come from all backgrounds, ages, and have different writing experiences. I don't see anything wrong with the reviews thus far posted in this thread. Whining and complaining about reviews that don't meet your bar of excellence in writing is more of a problem with you than the reviewers themselves. In the end this kind of "elitism" will turn away people from a site that should be inclusive and value its diversity.

Edited by progaardvark - February 25 2021 at 13:33
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Points: 3535 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 25 2021 at 13:39
I'm not a fand of such a thread because it is too negatively charged. Besides, there is a reviews discussion thread already. It should be capable of embracing discussions about the quality of particular reviews too. There's a reporting thread too in case the review doesn't match the rules.
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Points: 24429 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 25 2021 at 13:50
The review by Hugues (Sean Trane) you posted was written almost 15 years ago. My earliest reviews are not on a par with those I wrote years later. Many people's efforts improve with time and practice, and bashing those early writings a decade and a half later is not particularly productive (not to mention mean-spirited). I also don't see why you had to post that review with the name of its author attached, while the other reviews posted in this thread appear anonymously.

Of course, this is not to say there aren't bad reviews here on PA. There's plenty of garbage, but that's the price to pay for allowing everyone to have their say. For the record, I don't particularly agree with this policy, but I'm not the one who makes decisions around here.
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Points: 166183 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 25 2021 at 13:57
There is a place to post about reviews that aren't appropriate, for a variety of reasons, so it's probably just better that if you see a review that falls into that space that you just post in the reviews reporting thread. 

If you want to be more personal about it (ie saying you dislike it as opposed to saying it doesn't follow the rules), you can always PM the author directly. It probably won't make you popular though. Tongue
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Points: 45656 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 25 2021 at 14:18
Originally posted by dougmcauliffe dougmcauliffe wrote:

^ He just says "this sounds like anglagard" 7 different ways and doesn't actually talk about any of the songs, arrangements, production value. He doesn't even mention the name of the band or album. There's a lot more to say about that record than just saying it sounds like Anglagard imo.

True
Seen worse reviews around though. Oh well... 
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Points: 8617 		Direct Link To This Post Posted: February 25 2021 at 14:39
Originally posted by progaardvark progaardvark wrote:

Reviewers come from all backgrounds, ages, and have different writing experiences. I don't see anything wrong with the reviews thus far posted in this thread. Whining and complaining about reviews that don't meet your bar of excellence in writing is more of a problem with you than the reviewers themselves. In the end this kind of "elitism" will turn away people from a site that should be inclusive and value its diversity.

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This pretty much sums up my thoughts on this kind of negativity. 



1. There is a review reporting thread where you can report reviews that violate site guidelines. 
2. There is a review discussion thread where we can discuss reviews and whether they are in violation of site standards. However, calling out people and shaming them for reviews will not be tolerated.


As a matter of fact, these reviews were already a topic in reviews discussion. 


Originally posted by dougmcauliffe dougmcauliffe wrote:


Here's a couple:

http://www.progarchives.com/Review.asp?id=2375610

1 stars Ok, I am in the lower amount of fans who enjoy Soft Machine. I do not enjoy this album, I found that this album was very messy, didn't have a solid atmosphere, and it shared elements of First Circle by Pat Methany... and I'm talking about Forward March. I apologize but I was not a fan of this overly experimental and non-structured album, it didn't show much emotion and it just seemed more like a huge mess of an album to me. Nothing here stood out, for me, If I want to listen to a Soft Machine album, I'll turn elsewhere, such as Bundles. Sadly, this just didn't do anything for me.
Ok, for those who are upset about this review, please site my review on Larks for this review to make me sense. I made sure that I was more clear, and hopefully it will clear things up.



http://www.progarchives.com/Review.asp?id=2377542



2 stars Alright, deciding to rewrite this review too, but I'm not changing my overall thoughts on the album. I still believe that this album is fairly lazy of the bassist of Anglagärd to not change much about the style of either band he is in. I also think that Anglagärd did this style of music better, but am I going to give those two opinions as my review? After further consideration, I decided to listen to it over again and was still not compelled. This album is good for those prog fans.who do enjoy Anglagärd but for me, I would like to see something a bit more fresh, something the bassist can do with his skills without trying to sound too much like the other band. I can understand why people see this review as lazy but try to see where I am coming from. As a musician, I am not going to write similar material in all the bands I am in, I'm going to want to try something different for each band. That's why in my mind, this isn't much different than Anglagärd, therefore I cannot give this a higher rating. I tried to enjoy album since the day I got it, but it seemed that the vocals and the overall sound of the album just didn't work for me nearly as well as something like Hybris.

Hopefully this new review gives you some food for thought, and maybe you will see my side. You don't have to agree with me, but I cannot give this album anything higher than 3 stars, because that simply would be lying about my actual thoughts and i would rather be honest about this album. There are some decent moments every here and there but it's an inconsistent album with some mindless instrumentation, nothing emotional, and the singing to me is probably the worst thing about this album. I'm not trying to insult anyone, but I think this album could've been a lot better



The first review just sucks ass straight up, the second reads like a teenager doing a presentation on a book he didn't read.




This topic will be closed. 

 


Edited by Tapfret - February 25 2021 at 14:48

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