hjhhjij

Mythical and captivating, Don't Fear the Reaper, with its claustrophobic interlude and lyrics that I find among the wisest and most profound in rock n roll...

This, however, from the description, gave me more of a three-star vibe. 👽

In reality, it would be the classic 3.5. But the songs are good, it's just poorly recorded, that's why I generously rounded up.

After listening to it over and over lately, I completely agree with you. I think it's on par with Freewheelin'.

I disagree. 3 words... Blonde on Blonde.

That's also a great masterpiece.

By the way, Desolation Row is my favorite song by Bob Dylan.

try also with "don't look back," the next one, a great record as well.

The problem is that this style, these sounds, these songs tire me very quickly. No matter how valid these works may objectively be, they are not really my cup of tea; I enjoy listening to this 2-3 times and then it sits there, unused. I would hardly find any motivation to listen to a subsequent album in the same vein.

What can I say... in my youth I loved them a lot, a tight rock but also very light, focused on Sholz's guitar—they say he's quite a perfectionist, no joke—but definitely enjoyable in the moment and leaves you with just the right aftertaste. Anyway, "third stage" isn't bad either.

Sholtz is undoubtedly a skilled guitarist and musician, yet the problem with this type of music lies in its meticulous cleanliness even when it’s “tight,” or its decidedly polished “sonorous grandiosity,” which can become cloying over time, even though it's undeniably engaging and sometimes enjoyable upon first listens. It's not a type of music that conveys many emotions to me, even though it is undoubtedly good music. Very subjective impressions.

I have my thoughts on Boston. I define their music as "architectural": to appreciate them, it’s necessary to set aside the fact that the guitar riffs are always the same, the lyrics are incredibly banal, and the (few) forays into progressive are gaudy and primitive. The talent lies in three things:
The first is the arrangement of the songs, with multiple layers of electric and acoustic guitars that have the exquisite intricacy characteristic of architectural work.
The second is the bombastic sound of the lead guitar, valuable not so much in the attack, but in the release, in the enveloping; it’s hard to explain unless you’ve experienced it firsthand... the harmonics generated by the distortions of engineer Scholz create a particular richness and acoustic, and physical, satisfaction.
The third is the voice of poor Brad Delp. So angelically high that it cuts through the mix, yet without overpowering, remaining clean and celestial even in the most extreme passages. Only Jon Anderson of Yes is like him, but the latter has a colder and more northern feeling.
I want to highlight the great, for me truly great, songs by Boston: from the first and in order of preference "Long Time," "Hitch a Ride," "Smokin,'" and only now "More than a Feeling"; from the second "A Man I'll Never Be," "Don't Look Back," and "It's Easy." From the third "Amanda," "My Destination," and "Holyann," and from the fourth "Livin' for You."
One last thing: the fifth and sixth albums, released respectively in 2002 and 2013, are horrendous, and I feel ill at the thought of how bad they are.

I would say that she knows a lot... I pale in front of her perfect analysis.

I appreciate your comments from a more technical perspective, even though, alas, the band's expertise (you definitely picked up on two things that I also find commendable, such as the alternation between acoustic and electric guitars and Scholz's guitar sound) has already been recognized by me, let it be clear. However, I just can't get on board with this type of music and sound. "More Than a Feeling" and "Long Time" are still two great tracks, though.

The first two consumed back in the day but never picked up again. Maybe it's because I know them by heart after all these years. I really like them a lot.

Ohhhhhhhhhwoooooooooottttttttaaatat atati'llbethere, Drivin' Me Backwaaaaaaaaaaardss! (sorry, I couldn't help myself)

Spectacular that piece, the stuff that Eno and Fripp do is marvelous.

No, but "Dead Finks Don't Talk," shall we talk about it?

Revalued over time. Yesterday I wanted to listen to it again but I’m redoing my room and it’s a mess (by the way, Pawn Hearts has resurfaced), just to give a judgment. Among the favorites, there used to be Paw Paw Negro Blowtorch, just for those little keyboard nonsense... and I’ve been meaning to buy Eno's "ambient watercolors" for a long time.

Downrated, obviously. When I was still consulting Allmusic on Wikipedia, they gave it 5 stars and I was totally convinced, lol.

Here, it would have been better if you had stopped reading allmusic and kept giving "5 stars" to this album, one of those things that CANNOT be re-evaluated negatively run away, it has no flaws, no blemishes, and Paw Paw is one of those things to which part of Berlin Bowie and New Wave owe their gratitude every hour :)

I can't say much, it burns me up that I can't listen to it now.

When you find it again, we'll talk about it, there are some great comparisons to make between this and Taking Tiger.

I can say that the last differences I noticed between this and Taking Tiger are precisely the "oblique strategies." I never understood what the hell they were, but damn, could you feel the difference.

Enough, I've already said too much.

Taking Tiger and Before and After are, for me, magical and alien objects. However, I don't know what you think acca-j, but I’ve never really loved ambient Eno. I wouldn’t throw it away, of course. But here we’re on different planes!

Look, for me it's absolutely Here Come. As for Eno's ambient be, it's really a different type of experience; if I'm not talking nonsense, Airports is designed to be listened to while you're doing your own thing, for example. Anyway, nice stuff there too, but Eno's four albums are the best, I completely agree.

Yes, also Here Comes, although a little bit (pocopoco) less.

Pinzillacchere.

& trifles

I have asked myself several times why you have never written a review!!!

Something that for once Battlegods would do well to mention as an influence for an album he reviewed.

It would be a safe bet, that's for sure.

What a unique "Third Uncle"! The time has come for you to start listening to Eno.

Well, I have never explored her in depth; I see you've been speaking very highly of her for years. Maybe I’ll look into it in the coming times. Which album would you recommend to start with?

From the beginning. To understand how ahead of her time she was as a folk singer-songwriter in terms of vocals and songwriting style (we’re talking about 1964!). Then there's this, which is the most varied and kaleidoscopic, and finally "Illuminations," which is... Well, it's the album for which she will rightfully remain in the history of music, in the year 1969, also years ahead of the stuff of that era. If you like these, which are, in my opinion, her three masterpieces, feel free to move on to the rest; up until the early '70s, it's all quality material, then I stopped.

The twilight 'Summer boy' has captivated me.

Chilling, one of the best.

Here, it’s time to listen to her seriously!
Ps: right now I have a beautiful "He lived alone in town" in my headphones.

A piece of incredible melancholy and sadness. She will continuously evolve; she was ahead of her time in 1964 and will still be so in 1969. In my opinion, the other two cornerstones of her discography are the versatile "Fire Fleet & Candlelight" (where her passion for traditional British music explodes, anticipating the recovery of two pieces even before Fairport Convention and Pentangle, and where she interprets two songs by a Mitchell still active only live) and of course "Illuminations," her peak, psychedelic-spirited-alienated-elec tronic singer-songwriter work. However, in the 60s (and very early 70s), all her records are good.

You've piqued my curiosity and I'm listening too... really not bad...

Only a few people know her :( But I’m glad I’ve piqued a couple of interests.

I had overlooked the release date of the album. 1964!

"One of a kind"... after all, she belongs to an almost extinct breed, it's only natural that her songs and singing style come across as distinctive to us.

"She belongs to an almost extinct race." Exactly, Canadians. Just kidding XD Yes, in fact, the roots of Sainte-Marie often resurface both in her singing style and in her "musical" writing, as well as in her lyrics ("Now That the Buffalo's Gone" is a pretty decent business card, I’d say, a bit like her "Blowin' in the Wind"). But it’s not just that; blues is even more, otherwise her passion for traditional British music wouldn't make sense—she was truly versatile. Even French chanson has influenced her; "Until It's Time for You to Go" is a beautiful song on her second album that very much resembles the style of French singer-songwriter music. Indeed, in her 1967 masterpiece, she re-recorded it with a more emphatic style, singing it in French.

Oh, and by "return to the singing style" I mean those shamanic flourishes present in practically all of his albums, peaking on "Illuminations," which feels like a ritual with hallucinogenic herbs from some ancient and now extinct tribe that has found itself with synthesizers while traveling through time.

I go over it to say that I've listened to all the songs on this album, and a question arises spontaneously: how is it possible that such a singer-songwriter (perhaps one of the most distinctive and unique of all time, thanks to a vocal style that already seems unique in this album) is so little regarded even on Debaser?

As a debut, it’s more of a 4.5 than a 5 star (minor details...), but among the singer-songwriters I adore, more or less contemporaneous with Buffy (Mitchell, Nyro, Judee Sill, and even Nico), none have debuted like this, with such a well-defined personality already (for example, the debut albums of Mitchell and Nyro are overflowing with beautiful songs, but their personalities don't fully emerge, in my opinion).

For me, this deserves a 5 also because some of the subsequent ones are, in my opinion, a bit inferior, like "Many a Mile" from 1965, which is nice but, in my view, not as good as this one. Meanwhile, the other albums you mentioned, after a nice but still not outstanding debut, started to bring forth masterpieces (although I think Sill, unlike Joni and Nyro, was already fully formed and deserving of a 5 from her debut, though that’s just a detail). Perhaps Buffy, having debuted (before all the others) with such a distinct and declared personality, alternated between good albums and other masterpieces (at least a couple for me, "Illuminations" for sure). I don't know why she is so little regarded on Debaser; after all, it's not like Laura Nyro has received such a massive following here either...

However, thinking about it, even Mitchell had a very distinct personality from the very beginning, although that album is, for me, just beautiful and not yet exceptional. I say this because at the time of her debut, Joni had spent at least two years lending her songs, performed live, to various artists, including Davy Graham and, indeed, Sainte-Marie. The Mitchell style, when "Song to a Seagull" was released in 1968, had already been around for a couple of years, very recognizable.

Oh, I didn’t know the vampire played as well. I’ll look into it.

vampire-slayer, sorry. That was the one who was getting it on in the series, right?!

By the way, I hate that series, please don’t mention it again when talking about this singer-songwriter phenomenon :D