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SteveG 
Forum Senior Member
Joined: April 11 2014
Location: Kyiv In Spirit
Status: Offline
Points: 20616
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 Posted: November 03 2014 at 12:36 |
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Not another review of Fragile, DSOTM, Hero And Herione and other albums with 30+ reviews. Tell me something I don't know.
Edited by SteveG - November 03 2014 at 12:43
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ebil0505
Forum Senior Member
Joined: December 08 2012
Location: Indiana
Status: Offline
Points: 230
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Posted: November 03 2014 at 12:07 |
 KingCrInuYasha wrote:
A good description of the music and, if the writer is capable, some good jokes.
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This
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"I like to think oysters transcend national barriers." - Roger Waters
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KingCrInuYasha
Forum Senior Member
Joined: September 26 2010
Location: USA
Status: Offline
Points: 1281
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Posted: November 03 2014 at 11:15 |
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A good description of the music and, if the writer is capable, some good jokes.
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He looks at this world and wants it all... so he strikes, like Thunderball!
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Rednight
Forum Senior Member
Joined: January 18 2014
Location: Mar Vista, CA
Status: Offline
Points: 4812
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Posted: November 03 2014 at 08:55 |
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I also don't want to see the word "pretentious."
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Tom Ozric
Prog Reviewer
Joined: September 03 2005
Location: Olympus Mons
Status: Offline
Points: 15926
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Posted: November 01 2014 at 18:20 |
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Having reviewed (badly) a few albums myself, I generally look for comparisons with other bands, what instruments are used, the quality of the musicianship, and mood of the songs.
Eloquent descriptions and imaginative details such as 'the tension mounts as if one were walking through a hoard of poppies in the early hours of the morning only to be jumped by 3 rabid aliens with giant mosquitoes as weapons....' (well, this effort is probably lame) - are also very powerful in interpreting the music without hearing it.
I enjoy most reviews I read, and get ample info from them so I've seldomly bombed out with any of my purchases.
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Man With Hat
Collaborator
Jazz-Rock/Fusion/Canterbury Team
Joined: March 12 2005
Location: Neurotica
Status: Offline
Points: 166183
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Posted: November 01 2014 at 17:48 |
Maybe I'm just an easy sell but I just want to know about the music. What does it sound like? What instruments are being used to make? What are the instruments doing? Is it composed/improvised/combination? If there is occasional sax/zither/vocals/crumhorns how often are they used? Etc. I don't really care about how it makes people feel because I'm not those people. That said, there are certainly reviewers whose tastes coincide pretty well with my own, so I can use that too. But in a general sense (ie I don't know the reviewer), I just want to know what the music sounds like. I do agree with people that the 'if you like ____ you'll probably like ____ too' is helpful, especially if the review is verbose (which I do prefer to ones of a paragraph or seven sentences in length).
Edited by Man With Hat - November 01 2014 at 17:50
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Dig me...But don't...Bury me
I'm running still, I shall until, one day, I hope that I'll arrive
Warning: Listening to jazz excessively can cause a laxative effect.
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tszirmay
Special Collaborator
Honorary Collaborator
Joined: August 17 2006
Location: Canada
Status: Offline
Points: 6673
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Posted: November 01 2014 at 16:46 |
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And I from you , my Welsh friend! Many, many albums were spawned by your words.
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I never post anything anywhere without doing more than basic research, often in depth.
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lazland
Prog Reviewer
Joined: October 28 2008
Location: Wales
Status: Offline
Points: 13759
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Posted: November 01 2014 at 15:44 |
tszirmay wrote:
lazland wrote:
Personally, I always look for a review by a bloke living in Cymru named Lazland. Intelligent, knowing, witty, pithy, yet also approachable, warm, and, above all, bloody sexy.  |
And mostly modest. In fact, Laz has won the Modest Mussorgsky prize for the best reviewer with a modesty streak, three years consecutively.  |
Am I, indeed, Petrovitch in disguise? Seriously, if you really like an album, then I instinctively know I will, and I have purchased some gems on the back of your recommendations 
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Enhance your life. Get down to www.lazland.org
Now also broadcasting on www.progzilla.com Every Saturday, 4.00 p.m. UK time!
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tszirmay
Special Collaborator
Honorary Collaborator
Joined: August 17 2006
Location: Canada
Status: Offline
Points: 6673
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Posted: November 01 2014 at 14:33 |
lazland wrote:
Personally, I always look for a review by a bloke living in Cymru named Lazland. Intelligent, knowing, witty, pithy, yet also approachable, warm, and, above all, bloody sexy. |
And mostly modest. In fact, Laz has won the Modest Mussorgsky prize for the best reviewer with a modesty streak, three years consecutively.
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I never post anything anywhere without doing more than basic research, often in depth.
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thwok
Forum Senior Member
Joined: January 15 2008
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 160
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Posted: November 01 2014 at 10:15 |
My favorite reviewers on Prog Archives are Conor Fynes, UMUR, and Warthur. I specifically seek out their reviews and opinions when I'm on our favorite website. I think part of the reason is that I seem to like a lot of the same music as these reviewers. I also have genres I like and don't, so there's a really good chance I won't listen to a band labeled electronic progressive, for instance.
I was a Communications major in college, so it's also not surprising that I'm a little particular about grammar and spelling. If a review is really hard to read because of shortcomings in the aforementioned areas, I won't read it. I think that a review that compares the music at hand to other bands helps readers determine what the music being reviewed sounds like. I have a pretty short attention span (gotta love Asperger's SyndromeJ, so reviews that go into detail about every song don't really work for me. I can determine for myself which songs on a CD are my favorites.
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I am the funkiest man on the planet!
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SteveG
Forum Senior Member
Joined: April 11 2014
Location: Kyiv In Spirit
Status: Offline
Points: 20616
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Posted: November 01 2014 at 09:51 |
BarryGlibb wrote:
Kati wrote:
Argonaught wrote:
Shorts and briefs |
That's ok by me as long as it's not about speedos coz they look very funny  hugs  |
What's wrong with Speedos Kati?! They are an Australian iconic brand. Even our Prime Minister Tony Abbott wears them with (ahem) pride. See here....
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Lame. I prefer Putin on horseback.
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micky
Special Collaborator
Honorary Collaborator
Joined: October 02 2005
Location: .
Status: Offline
Points: 46838
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Posted: November 01 2014 at 07:08 |
BrufordFreak wrote:
Frickin' raw emotion versus intellectual erudition. Which one would you take? |
raw emotion any day of the week and twice on Saturday.  This is music. It is all about emotion. That is why I tell people, my friends interested in some of wacky sh*t I listen to, I love it for when well it can reach out and grab you my balls and by the heart and just hold you, for groups and albums. for years and even lifetimes. Conversely though, when there is nothing better than prog rock done well, there is no music genre worse than prog rock at its worst. It is a big reason the genre to me (one of several I love) is so interesting to me.
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The Pedro and Micky Experience - When one no longer requires psychotropics to trip
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ClemofNazareth
Special Collaborator
Prog Folk Researcher
Joined: August 17 2005
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 4659
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Posted: November 01 2014 at 05:20 |
SteveG wrote:
ClemofNazareth wrote:
I want the author to convince me to listen to the album myself, or on the flip to warn me away from a waste of time. Style, verbosity and eloquence are all optional. |
I appreciate your answer Clem, but what would the author need to write in order to convince you to listen to the album? Or not? |
Sorry, I've been traveling all week, possibly this has been explained more eloquently by someone else since this post. Anyway, a convincing review is like any other discussion, debate, written work or other communication intended to make a point - it needs to be factual, informative and credible. The most annoying reviews are the fanboys who do nothing but talk about the album in vague platitudes ("Chocolate Syphillus's new live album will make your hair stand up man! I like had an out-of-body religious experience and I wasn't even tweaking. Buy this thing or yer a douche." does not do much to influence anyone. For classics that already have 1,000+ reviews I don't know that there's much a reviewer can add since those records are universally known already, but if one has to write a review anyway to complete a discography or whatever, at least try to find some obscure bit of trivia to make it a little fresh. And writing about personal experiences can be helpful if those experiences can be explained in the context of the band, the music, or even the genre.
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"Peace is the only battle worth waging."
Albert Camus
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BarryGlibb
Forum Senior Member
Joined: August 28 2010
Location: Melbourne, Oz
Status: Offline
Points: 1781
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Posted: October 31 2014 at 19:10 |
Kati wrote:
Argonaught wrote:
Shorts and briefs |
That's ok by me as long as it's not about speedos coz they look very funny hugs |
What's wrong with Speedos Kati?! They are an Australian iconic brand. Even our Prime Minister Tony Abbott wears them with (ahem) pride. See here....
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BrufordFreak
Collaborator
Honorary Collaborator
Joined: January 25 2008
Location: Wisconsin
Status: Offline
Points: 8302
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Posted: October 31 2014 at 15:42 |
moshkito wrote:
I hate to break up the love affair between Laz and Kati ... it was fun while it lasted!
I have to tell you, that after 500+ film reviews, over 100+ album reviews and over 50+ concert reviews, that I am not sure that I have EVER sat down and thought to myself ... what do I want to say?
Just like my poetry and all other writing, it is just a stream of consciousness and a feeling, that I try to express as well as I possibly can, given the language limitations to an event that took place inside my mind that is hard to descrive to someone else.
I DO realize that this is unusual and different and does not follow a "pattern", because the only thing that brings me to a film, or to music, or to a book, are how you expressed your own reaction to the whole piece, not just one song. So, if someone sticks to a "definition" of the music instead of the personal reaction, I'm done and gone, and I even doubt I will listen to the piece of music ... why would I? ... when that person already made it clear there was no feeling to be drawn from that piece?
Reviews, are a tough thing, and sometimes it is all down to the stupidest things ... you don't like someone, you will never read anything. Been there. Done that. Got the whip marks on my back and butt. But there is one secret here ... you will lose the ability to learn and feel and take a look at something different in any art ... and that means ... you are not progressive anymore!
End of story! |
Here! Here! and Well said!
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Drew Fisher
https://progisaliveandwell.blogspot.com/
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moshkito
Forum Senior Member
Joined: January 04 2007
Location: Grok City
Status: Online
Points: 17856
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Posted: October 31 2014 at 14:58 |
I hate to break up the love affair between Laz and Kati ... it was fun while it lasted!
I have to tell you, that after 500+ film reviews, over 100+ album reviews and over 50+ concert reviews, that I am not sure that I have EVER sat down and thought to myself ... what do I want to say?
Just like my poetry and all other writing, it is just a stream of consciousness and a feeling, that I try to express as well as I possibly can, given the language limitations to an event that took place inside my mind that is hard to descrive to someone else.
I DO realize that this is unusual and different and does not follow a "pattern", because the only thing that brings me to a film, or to music, or to a book, are how you expressed your own reaction to the whole piece, not just one song. So, if someone sticks to a "definition" of the music instead of the personal reaction, I'm done and gone, and I even doubt I will listen to the piece of music ... why would I? ... when that person already made it clear there was no feeling to be drawn from that piece?
Reviews, are a tough thing, and sometimes it is all down to the stupidest things ... you don't like someone, you will never read anything. Been there. Done that. Got the whip marks on my back and butt. But there is one secret here ... you will lose the ability to learn and feel and take a look at something different in any art ... and that means ... you are not progressive anymore!
End of story!
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Music is not just for listening ... it is for LIVING ... you got to feel it to know what's it about! Not being told!
www.pedrosena.com
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TCat
Special Collaborator
Honorary Collaborator / Retired Admin
Joined: February 07 2010
Location: Canada
Status: Offline
Points: 11612
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Posted: October 31 2014 at 14:10 |
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I'm always attempting to write reviews as thoughts appear into my head and also as I am listening to the album. Unfortunately, some of my reviews end up being a lot more "all over the place" and not as organized as others. Once in a while, I write one that I am proud of. There is a lot of good information in this forum that will help me in the future, so forgive me for the poorly written reviews and celebrate the well written ones with me (wow....that's corny). I try to avoid track by track reviews (Ok I've done a few, like the last one I did Boulez Conducts Zappa, but not many). I like to try to keep them short and try not to repeat information that has already been given. The drawback to that is, there are a lot of readers that are reading your review as the first review because they may be reading it off the Home page, so some repetitiveness can be useful if it's important to the overall layout or atmosphere of the album. These are the kinds of things I like or don't like in reviews, so I try to format my own the same way. Giving new information is always great, and well documented reasons as to why you like it or you don't like it also helps. For example, you might give a reason you hate an album, but that might be a reason why I would like it. That has actually worked many times for me.
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Polymorphia
Forum Senior Member
Joined: November 06 2012
Location: here
Status: Offline
Points: 8856
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Posted: October 31 2014 at 13:48 |
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Free download codes or gtfo.
Or, more seriously, I look for people to describe the album as a human being, not as a musician or someone who knows anything about music. What images did you see? What emotions did you feel? What concepts did the album force you to think about in a different way? If they can make clear that this album is an experience not to be missed, and not just a collection of desirable traits, I feel more compelled to buy the album.
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octopus-4
Special Collaborator
RIO/Avant/Zeuhl,Neo & Post/Math Teams
Joined: October 31 2006
Location: Italy
Status: Offline
Points: 14318
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Posted: October 31 2014 at 13:35 |
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I think that everybody has ears, so I try to concentrate on the "meanings" of the things, when things have a meaning. Of course those are the most boring of my reviews, but I like them from a writer perspective. As reader short and straight to the core of the thing is better....probably this is the reason why I have written no more than 3 reviews in the last year.
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I stand with Roger Waters, I stand with Joan Baez, I stand with Victor Jara, I stand with Woody Guthrie. Music is revolution
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BrufordFreak
Collaborator
Honorary Collaborator
Joined: January 25 2008
Location: Wisconsin
Status: Offline
Points: 8302
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Posted: October 31 2014 at 13:28 |
I think I respond most to raw emotion. When the reviewer's enthusiasm or detestation are palpable--are transferred to me--that is what makes a review remarkable or memorable or impressionable to me.
There are some amazing writers contributing their reviews and opinions here on PA. I appreciate you, as well, but more on an intellectual or artistic level. It's kind of like comparing a Gilmour solo to one from Sir Robert of Fripp. Frickin' raw emotion versus intellectual erudition. Which one would you take?
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Drew Fisher
https://progisaliveandwell.blogspot.com/
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/PAlogo_v2.gif "Progarchives.com Homepage")
What are you looking for in an album review?
as in short and brief?