Hi, everyone. Welcome back to another mini review post, and … this is way later than I planned for it to be. But better late than never.

This time, unlike my last few mini review posts, I think I succeeded at making these reviews ‘mini reviews’ … and there are also less albums in this post than there are in most of my mini review posts. Only six this time, one of which is a throwback.

Also, as always, none of this is meant as a personal attack on anyone. It’s just me sharing my personal feelings on these albums. Music is subjective, and I’m not trying to say that I’m objectively right about all these albums. I’m just sharing how much or how little they click for me personally, and why.

And now, let’s begin this post with some metalcore … 

They Fear Us by Ithaca:

This is a metalcore album that has a lot that I like, and also a lot that I don’t.

I find the production mostly good, but not super consistent. I like how the snares are mixed for the most part, especially on “They Fear Us”, “Camera Eats First”, “Fluorescent”, and the closing track, “Hold, Be Held”, but at points on the album, the vocals are mixed too quietly for me.

Some of the vocal melodies really click for me, but there are also quite a few that bore me.

There are some lyrics I like, but there are also some lyrics I don’t like, for example, the creepy lyrics on “Camera Eats First”. But overall, I’m not really listening to this album for the lyrics, a lot of which I just don’t understand.

Overall, this is an album that I feel starts and ends well, but the middle few tracks are the weakest part of the album for me. I’m going to give this album a 6/10.

Final Thoughts
Rating: 6/10
Favourite Tracks: “In the Way”, “The Future Says Thank You”, “Fluorescent”, “You Should Have Gone Back”, “Hold, Be Held”
Least Favourite Tracks: “They Fear Us”, “Cremation Party”, “Number Five”

THROWBACK REVIEW – The Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd (1973):

So, up until this point, I’d never done a throwback review of an album released before 2010, and it’s time that I change that now … so, how about one of the most critically acclaimed albums of all time? And I’ll just say right now that if I had a much larger audience than I do, this would be a very controversial review.

I feel like some people might misunderstand this review and think that I don’t like this album … and that’s not the case. I do like this album … it’s just that I don’t like it nearly as much as seemingly almost everyone else.

I will admit there are some spots on the album that bore me. For example, “The Great Gig In the Sky”, at least to me, doesn’t add much to the album. I feel similarly about “Any Colour You Like”.

But that being said, there’s a lot to like here, especially in the production. “Breathe (In the Air)”, for example, has clean guitars that sound absolutely awesome, and the drums are mixed super well. The instruments all fit together super well on this track, and the mixing is fantastic!

If I had to pick a favourite track on this album, I’d probably go with “Us and Them”, which is incredibly well produced, with the mixing being fantastic … and you just have to hear this song to understand how good the production is. But I especially have to point out the spots where it all builds up, and it sounds incredible! I also love the lyrics, and I specifically want to point out the last verse, which describes someone passing a homeless person and not helping … ‘Out of the way, it’s a busy day, I’ve got things on my mind. For want of the price of tea and a slice, the old man died.’

I also want to point out the dramatic (mostly) instrumental track “On the Run”, which is super eerie in the best way!

Overall, this is an album that has a lot to do with the passage of time, and I really like how it’s done. There are some spots that bore me, and I don’t love this nearly as much as so many people do, but it’s still getting a positive score from me, that being a 7.5/10. Really good album!

Final Thoughts
Rating: 7.5/10
Favourite Tracks: “Breathe (In the Air)”, “On the Run”, “Money”, “Us and Them”, “Eclipse”
Least Favourite Tracks: “The Great Gig In the Sky”, “Any Colour You Like”

SMITHEREENS by Joji:

After “Glimpse of Us” got a ton of critical acclaim, I was surprised how little critical acclaim the album got … but after listening to it, I get why.

Now, let me just make it clear that I don’t think this album is bad. But the thing is … well, this might seem like an even harsher criticism than calling this album bad, and I’m not trying to be mean or anything … but if I’m being honest, it kind of doesn’t feel like a full album to me. And part of that is that it’s not even twenty-five minutes long, but it’s still nine tracks long, and there are even shorter albums that feel more like albums to me. Or maybe it’s just my mind playing tricks on me because ‘interlude’, ‘demo’, and ‘freestyle’ are all words that appear in song titles here.

Overall, this album just doesn’t stand out much to me. While I respect the creativity of this album, a decent amount of it is just boring to me, and the majority of these tracks just didn’t click for me. For example, the song, “Dissolve”, which features a vocal effect I really don’t like on the verses.

There are some elements here that I like, like the quiet synths in the background on “Feeling Like The End” and the pianos on “YUKON (INTERLUDE)”, and there’s quite a bit more to like here, too, but as a whole, it’s a 5/10 for me. I get the appeal, but it’s not my cup of tea.

Final Thoughts
Rating: 5/10
Favourite Tracks: “Glimpse of Us”, “Die For You”, “YUKON (INTERLUDE)”
Least Favourite Tracks: “Dissolve”, “BLAHBLAHBLAH DEMO”, “1AM FREESTYLE”

Gemini Rights by Steve Lacy:

Steve Lacy’s second studio album, Gemini Rights, is an album which I feel somewhere in the middle on. There are elements that I like, such as a lot of the production, with some really nice, clear-sounding guitars and keyboards, and percussion that isn’t super powerful, but it fits the mellow vibe of these tracks.

But that being said, a lot of the compositions bore me. A lot of the chord progressions feel very repetitive and uninteresting to me. For example, there’s the song, “Cody Freestyle”, which I think is really well-produced, but the repetitive strings in the background don’t do much for me.

That being said, “Buttons”, probably my favourite track here, not only has great production, but I also love the vocal melodies, and the slow musical buildup in the track.

Overall, while this album makes me curious to hear more of Steve’s music, if I’m being honest, it didn’t really click for me. But I still think this album is decent. For me, Gemini Rights gets a 5/10.

Final Thoughts
Rating: 5/10
Favourite Tracks: “Helmet”, “Mercury”, “Buttons”
Least Favourite Tracks: “2Gether (Enterlude)”, “Amber”, “Sunshine”

I Didn’t Mean To Haunt You by Quadeca:

I don’t remember hearing about Quadeca much (if at all) until I saw a video from 2021 where he reacted to theneedledrop’s review of his album. And while I still haven’t listened to Quadeca’s 2021 album, From Me To You, I saw a lot of critical acclaim for I Didn’t Mean To Haunt You, and I wanted to check it out, and …

Well, it’s an album that might seem too complicated to write about in a mini review, but considering that I’m still pretty new to writing about music, it feels too complicated for me personally to write a full review of. I mean, I could write a full review, but I don’t think it would be a very good review.

Anyway, I think it’s important to not take this album too seriously … clearly the lyrics are telling a fictional story. In this story, the main character takes his own life, and once he’s in the afterlife, he eventually kills his mother, too. 

And like I said, it shouldn’t be taken seriously. Obviously, Quadeca isn’t trying to defend these actions. But that being said, I don’t really like this album that much musically. Yes, there are some cool ideas musically, and some amazing musical moments like the build on “fantasyworld”, but a lot of the instrumentals here just make me feel like despite the effort that clearly went into them, it’s not something I’d really want to listen to.

I’m also not a big fan of a lot of the vocal effects used on this album. There are exceptions, like on the song, “knots”, but then there’s a song like “don’t mind me”, which features a vocal effect that I don’t really like.

Overall, this is an interesting listen, but despite all the critical acclaim, it’s not really my cup of tea. So, here’s another 5/10.

Final Thoughts
Rating: 5/10
Favourite Tracks: “sorry4dying”, “fantasyworld”
Least Favourite Tracks: “tell me a joke”, “don’t mind me”

And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow by Weyes Blood:

This is one of the most critically acclaimed albums of 2022, and while I still haven’t listened to Weyes Blood’s probably even more critically acclaimed 2019 album, Titanic Rising, I was very excited about this album based on what I’d heard about Weyes Blood’s music.

And I’m going to be honest and say I don’t think this album is clicking for me as much as it is for so many. And it’s hard for me to describe why, but when I listen to a lot of these songs, it feels like there’s something missing to make it click for me even more … it’s like there was so much potential that was so close to being met, but it just doesn’t quite get there for me.

Also, while this is a very minor nitpick, “And in the Darkness” shows up in the middle of the album and does absolutely nothing for me. It’s only fifteen seconds long, but it still kind of throws off the pacing of the album for me.

But with that being said, the production on this album is absolutely fantastic, with the snares being really well mixed, and the strings sounding amazing with the rest of the instrumentation. Seriously, this production is absolutely stunning!

There’s also a lot to like here lyrically. For example, I love the lyrics on “God Turn Me Into a Flower”, which I interpret to be about self-love.

Overall, I still think this is a great album. It absolutely clicked for me, just not as much as it is for many others. But still, I’ll give it an 8/10 … and I’m sure a lot of people would argue it deserves a higher score, but I’m just sharing how I feel about the album, not some sort of ‘objective truth’ or anything like that.

Final Thoughts
Rating: 8/10
Favourite Tracks: “Children of the Empire”, “God Turn Me Into a Flower”, “Hearts Aglow”, “Twin Flame”, “The Worst Is Done”, “A Given Thing”
Least Favourite Tracks: “It’s Not Just Me, It’s Everybody”, “And in the Darkness”