flood

and not only that... surely David Sylvian had them in mind when he chose the title for his masterpiece!!!

What a really nice review, well done Francis! As for the album, I admit that at first it caught me a bit off guard (almost disappointed). On the first listens, I found it a bit elusive, not very engaging, but I have to say that the more I listen to it, the more it convinces me. It has a particular atmosphere that makes it a bit "shadowy," introverted, compared to the last album and his best records, but once you digest this "change," the album truly wins you over.

Well, the painful downward spiral (artistically) of John started when he was still young, almost 20 years before Bowie’s! The introduction of this review almost seems to suggest that Elton “pays” for many criticisms due to his ostentatious homosexuality, for being so “real”… but I’m not convinced; the public (huge) has almost always been on his side, the critics (rightly) a bit less because it is undeniable that the quality (and variety) of his musical proposal has been in constant decline… Bowie, on the other hand, released albums in the '90s that were appreciated by critics but decidedly less so by the general public; he was one to question himself, who went back to experimenting, risking losing the enormous audience gained in the '80s with albums that were real commercial ventures (like all of Elton John's recent ones). That Bowie is now resting on his laurels is very true, that his recent albums add nothing to what has already been done is undeniable, but perhaps now that he is almost 60 years old, it can be forgiven, after all, his music (though not beautiful) still retains a certain “freshness,” whereas Elton’s does not; he has been, for years, a singer tailored “Las Vegas.”

The review is really well written and detailed, but it’s a shame about the entire introduction that doesn’t clearly convey where it’s heading and what it has to do with Elton John... but it's sad to say that Elton was great only at the beginning of the 70s; then he became an increasingly clichéd, syrupy, and pompous figure. From an artistic point of view, Bowie outshone him; if nothing else, he attempted (even if he failed) to renew his sound! I'm sorry, but I just don’t understand these pointless disputes between characters... Elton was great but lost his artistic credibility and freshness in the sound of his compositions a long time ago (Bowie is unfortunately getting close to that). Is he more human? Who knows... looking at him, you wouldn't say so, or maybe it's just that I have much more sympathy for the arrogant ones like Bowie.

Damn, but there was already a review on Hats... I hadn't seen it, my bad...

Ahahah you don't really like the Cocteau, do you!?

Well, I can really feel the Middle Ages in an album like Treasure... like, a lot...

For me, this is also "my" Cocteau record, only I don't see it as so "bright"; on the contrary... but probably such an indefinable, rarefied music evokes completely different emotions in each of us... the review is beautiful, although I don't quite agree with what you say towards the end; Blue Bell Knoll is just a small step (but really small) under Victorialand.

The Blue managed the memorable (and unthinkable) feat of making even the New Kids on the Block seem regrettable.

It's not true that she stopped at this stunning album, because in '94 she released another one, Universal Mother, just a small step down, but unfortunately the bad publicity she attracted (we know how) made it go unnoticed... a nice album that deserves to be reevaluated. Great review, anyway.