Rating without Reviewing

I just did that a while ago, now if I get around to writing reviews I have a list already made.

Great question.

Honestly (I am being honest here), ratings without reviews do not mean much to me (with a few exceptions), and I'll tell you why:

Ratings without reviews often reek of impersonal manipulation.  For example, on my album, I've got one star ratings from individuals that I would bet my last beer have never even heard my album.

That said, some do not want to write reviews, but care to express an opinion, and so I think this is very cool that this site allows that (and to accommodate those of limited English).

Anyway, I look to two different classes of reviewers:

1. Those who share my taste.  These guys (like ClemofNazareth, for instance) like what I like, so reading their reviews of albums I do not have will encourage me to seek those out.

2. Those who consistently write well.  TGM: Orb is a great writer (first name to come to mind- there are many others), and he is very detailed.  But to be honest, sometimes I do not care to read a long review, and so someone like Evolver is perfect (he should be a prog reviewer in my opinion- he has almost passed me in number of reviews, and he is a master of brevity).

Bonus: Those who are entertaining: ExittheLemming gets this category- a master of words, and I read most of his reviews even if I do not know the album in question. 

My point here is this:  Write reviews.

Seriously- you only need 200 words, and on nearly any studio album, good or bad, that is easy to achieve.  Write your 200+ words, and post it.

Plus, reviews count more than ratings alone, so it's worth your while to let your voice be heard five times!

I understand where you are coming from, and I have also considered the same issue.  I have rated a ton of albums with just rating on rym but never done the same here on PA (part of the problem would be converting from the .5 scale)

If you can, saying anything it is going to be more useful than just a rating, but I also find that hard because I dont know that much about music (other than knowing what I like) and I'm not a very good writer.  Frankly half of me wants to go back and delete the few reviews I did a while back just because im not a good writer and im self-conscious about posting my poorly-written reviews on the internet.

A lot of the time I would only have a few sentences to say about an album and so I dont review it because I am intimidated by all the really great reviewers there are on PA.  After reading these multi-paragraph eloquent reviews, who wants to see us write "This album rocks!  I really like this song because its really cool and emotional and I like that part in the middle."  At the same time though, there are albums out there with very few ratings that I think are great and would want others to take notice of.
^^see, ending a sentence with a preposition, told you im not a good writer

thellama73 wrote: ^People who end sentences with prepositions piss me off.  I mean.... they piss off me? Oh dear.

Ohhhhh....

That's the sort of thing up with which I shall not put.

rpe9p wrote: I understand where you are coming from, and I have also considered the same issue.  I have rated a ton of albums with just rating on rym but never done the same here on PA (part of the problem would be converting from the .5 scale) If you can, saying anything it is going to be more useful than just a rating, but I also find that hard because I dont know that much about music (other than knowing what I like) and I'm not a very good writer.  Frankly half of me wants to go back and delete the few reviews I did a while back just because im not a good writer and im self-conscious about posting my poorly-written reviews on the internet. A lot of the time I would only have a few sentences to say about an album and so I dont review it because I am intimidated by all the really great reviewers there are on PA.  After reading these multi-paragraph eloquent reviews, who wants to see us write "This album rocks!  I really like this song because its really cool and emotional and I like that part in the middle."  At the same time though, there are albums out there with very few ratings that I think are great and would want others to take notice of. ^^see, ending a sentence with a preposition, told you im not a good writer

 

Being a writer does not necessarily mean you can write reviews. I enjoy writing and can spew pages of prose on any subject under the sun, but reviews blank me every time. It's a gift and an art I just was not blessed. With.

ExittheLemming wrote: Dean wrote: Being a writer does not necessarily mean you can write reviews. I enjoy writing and can spew pages of prose on any subject under the sun, but reviews blank me every time. It's a gift and an art I just was not blessed. With. Au contraire, there's nowt too shabby about this: http://www.progarchives.com/Review.asp?id=126583 (and it is a work of labyrinthine conceptual genius compared to some of the 'scribbled notes stuck to the fridge' that masquerade as reviews on the front page these days. (pah, those pesky parents, I blame the kids)

 oops! (Didn't think anyone actually read the bloody things). Half a dozen reviews in 3 years is nothing to shout about - for me they are the hardest pieces of writing I've ever written, they don't flow from the pen with the ease I would like. I really and honestly admire all the natural reviewers we have here.

Out of pure respect for bands; always write a review. They have left their guts in the studio. No matter if the result is a turkey (1 star) or a soaring eagle (5 star); they deserve at least 100 words.

I call this "good manners".

  

Speaking as someone who doesn't put much stock in ratings to begin with, I have no problems with ratings without reviews.  If I'm deciding whether or not to add an album to my collection I look at written reviews.  Better yet run down some streaming tracks.

toroddfuglesteg wrote: Out of pure respect for bands; always write a review. They have left their guts in the studio. No matter if the result is a turkey (1 star) or a soaring eagle (5 star); they deserve at least 100 words. I call this "good manners".

This is exactly what I think, especially when dealing with bands or artists that cannot afford to make music professionally (the majority of them nowadays, at least in the prog world). For the same reason, I always try not to be gratuitously offensive when writing a negative review - stuff like 'avoid at all costs' is something that you will never see me write.