Reviews discussion

AtomicCrimsonRush wrote: Ok i am preparing myself for the old adage - one mans trash is another an treasure - but when it comes to music I think its important to judge the music on its own merits

Oh, I fully agree, and this is a lesson I am trying to learn as I review more and more as well.  You can see the results of me applying this lesson in my review of the Seid album, which I probably would've dismissed a couple years ago, and now had a pretty positive reaction to even though I'd say it's not really my "thing."  For my motW review, I did write the last paragraph as a sort of "disclaimer" to leave it open to people to make their own decision, and my point in this paragraph was to try to say that positive and negative reactions are valid.  I considered going a bit higher in my rating, but to be perfectly honest the album was kind of a "run away!" reaction for me.  I mean, I actually started by listening to two songs and thinking "MAN, this is weird..." and I didn't listen to the rest for a few weeks because I was so creeped out by it, at which point I determined I HAD to finish it just for the sake of finishing and being able to say something about it.  I wonder how many other people are out there like me who tried out motW and immediately felt something strange was going on there and never listened to a whole album?

On the strength of Geoff's review I am listening to Bath. Even in the first track I would consider it more than one star. What a remarkable album. Maybe 3 stars on first listen and I reckon I could give more.

Ambient Hurricanes wrote: dtguitarfan wrote: Snow Dog wrote: On the strength of Geoff's review I am listening to Bath. Even in the first track I would consider it more than one star. What a remarkable album. Maybe 3 stars on first listen and I reckon I could give more. Haha, see, I said my negative review would probably generate more interest in the album.  Still, the album gives me the heebie jeebies. What about the acoustic tracks, did you dislike those too, or did they just add to the whole schizophrenic/bipolar vibe of the album?

I dunno - it's hard to put my finger on it exactly.  There were times when I was listening to a passage and I thought I'd like the album more if the whole thing were like that, but even then I felt like there was something...off...something strange about it.  And it could've been that the rest of the album was coloring my opinion of those sections, or maybe some of the things I'd read about the band and the idea behind the album were crawling into my assessment of it.

I may not have liked the album, but it's definitely one I will talk about for years to come.  There are albums I like much more that I've never talked to my music buddies about, but I have told them about this one - so that much can be said for it.  To me, though, the experience was kind of similar (loose analogy here - don't read too much into this) to watching The Fourth Kind: anyone seen that movie?  What it did, it did very well.  And I told people - lots of people - about it.  But MAN it creeped me out, and I don't EVER want to watch it again.  And everyone I told about it, I'd give them a disclaimer - something to the effect of "if you want to really be scared and creeped out, watch this movie.  But DON'T watch it alone!  And DON'T watch it if you're sleeping alone tonight either!"  Again, loose analogy, but maybe you can see what I'm saying.  I'm saying in a way I enjoyed the experience - like, to me, it seems like the worst reaction a band/album can get from me is apathy: don't like it, don't hate it.  Because even music I hate, it's almost like there's a certain level of enjoyment I get from hating it.  Kind of (VERY LOOSE ANALOGY COMING) like the auditions of the American Idol type shows, when they get someone terrible auditioning - I LOVE to watch those people!  You may know that I've gone to Prog Power on repeated occasions - well, one year there was a band whose name will be omitted in order to protect the innocent, and they were sooooo cliche'd.  And me and my buddies to this day still tell stories about how awful we thought they were, and we get so much enjoyment out of this.  We'll go look up videos of this band together so we can laugh about the experience again.  And there were so many people there that seemed to think this group was the greatest thing to happen to music...EVER.  I'd totally give a 1 star to an album by this band which shall remain nameless, but in a way I got a great deal of entertainment out of them, and I'd also say that what they did took more skill than many things I might give higher ratings to.  But they were just so cliche'd and...cheesy!  Which might be what people love about them?  These are all loose analogies to my feelings about motW, but maybe the combination of all of them together gives you a better picture of how I felt about them?  I mean, I thought motW was very strange: maybe that's what the fans love about them? 

Any of what I just said make any sense?  I was kind of rambling, I know.

^Cruel

Edited by Snow Dog - July 21 2012 at 18:59

dtguitarfan wrote: Ambient Hurricanes wrote: dtguitarfan wrote: Snow Dog wrote: On the strength of Geoff's review I am listening to Bath. Even in the first track I would consider it more than one star. What a remarkable album. Maybe 3 stars on first listen and I reckon I could give more. Haha, see, I said my negative review would probably generate more interest in the album.  Still, the album gives me the heebie jeebies. What about the acoustic tracks, did you dislike those too, or did they just add to the whole schizophrenic/bipolar vibe of the album? I dunno - it's hard to put my finger on it exactly.  There were times when I was listening to a passage and I thought I'd like the album more if the whole thing were like that, but even then I felt like there was something...off...something strange about it.  And it could've been that the rest of the album was coloring my opinion of those sections, or maybe some of the things I'd read about the band and the idea behind the album were crawling into my assessment of it. I may not have liked the album, but it's definitely one I will talk about for years to come.  There are albums I like much more that I've never talked to my music buddies about, but I have told them about this one - so that much can be said for it.  To me, though, the experience was kind of similar (loose analogy here - don't read too much into this) to watching The Fourth Kind: anyone seen that movie?  What it did, it did very well.  And I told people - lots of people - about it.  But MAN it creeped me out, and I don't EVER want to watch it again.  And everyone I told about it, I'd give them a disclaimer - something to the effect of "if you want to really be scared and creeped out, watch this movie.  But DON'T watch it alone!  And DON'T watch it if you're sleeping alone tonight either!"  Again, loose analogy, but maybe you can see what I'm saying.  I'm saying in a way I enjoyed the experience - like, to me, it seems like the worst reaction a band/album can get from me is apathy: don't like it, don't hate it.  Because even music I hate, it's almost like there's a certain level of enjoyment I get from hating it.  Kind of (VERY LOOSE ANALOGY COMING) like the auditions of the American Idol type shows, when they get someone terrible auditioning - I LOVE to watch those people!  You may know that I've gone to Prog Power on repeated occasions - well, one year there was a band whose name will be omitted in order to protect the innocent, and they were sooooo cliche'd.  And me and my buddies to this day still tell stories about how awful we thought they were, and we get so much enjoyment out of this.  We'll go look up videos of this band together so we can laugh about the experience again.  And there were so many people there that seemed to think this group was the greatest thing to happen to music...EVER.  I'd totally give a 1 star to an album by this band which shall remain nameless, but in a way I got a great deal of entertainment out of them, and I'd also say that what they did took more skill than many things I might give higher ratings to.  But they were just so cliche'd and...cheesy!  Which might be what people love about them?  These are all loose analogies to my feelings about motW, but maybe the combination of all of them together gives you a better picture of how I felt about them?  I mean, I thought motW was very strange: maybe that's what the fans love about them?  Any of what I just said make any sense?  I was kind of rambling, I know.

Okay, since I won't get in trouble for posting here, I'll add what I wanted to say:

Bath is far better than both Images & Words and Train of Thought together.

I don't get a word what you say about maudlin of the Well.  They are very strange, yes, but if they scare you, then maybe you should put a protective covering under yourself lest any theaters during your dreams are wet.

They have one album I don't like at all.  Bath I liked.

..also here imo

If we want to pick out every review that's below par made before the 100-word limit and reviews standards were made we'd have to delete hundreds upon hundreds of reviews. I don't want to point fingers, but there are a helluva lot of reviews that are probably 40-50 words that are barely "reviews" yet are the flagbearers of many albums because they were posted when the site first went up.

That Geoff review is dripping with the kind of close minded rejection of extreme metal that he so dislikes DT and their ilk being subjected to.   Anyhow, this here album Bath, which I am streaming parts of, might be the first Toby Driver work that lives up to the hype for me.  Going to save some money to get this one.  

Edited by rogerthat - July 21 2012 at 23:53

Ambient Hurricanes wrote: I've never heard Geoff complain about someone writing a negative review.

O RLY

Ambient Hurricanes wrote:   From what I know from talking to him, reading posts, etc., his complaint is the disrespect (disrespect, not dislike) for DT and other bands that he perceives in the forum.

Isn't that the same thing?  Potentially any negative review not written by a fanboy is disrespectful because it is liable to be construed as written out of spite and not 'unbiased'?  So by the same token, if he dislikes extreme metal so much, he should not review such an album either?  No, I am not literally saying that he shouldn't, I want diverse views on a forum or website but his contradictory approach is plain to see.  I am one to call a spade a spade and a shovel a shovel, take it or leave it.

 

Ambient Hurricanes wrote:    Can we all please get over the fact that Geoff didn't like the album and stop making pointless attacks on a well-written review?

He is completely entitled to dislike any music, including the Beethovens, and write a caustic review about it if he wishes to......as long as he does not encroach on the right of every other music listener to do so as well, EVEN when said albums are the ones he loves to death.  Yes, I am sorry, but you have to accept that as a listener;  another man's poison may well be your meat.  If you want to crib about it, please only review the albums of your favourite bands and don't set out on crusades to 'drag down' 'overhyped' bands.