Album Club - Week 1

[Spindles]

Another upvote for LEG after discovering them when they supported Chvrches.  Excellent fun live.  They ruined my son's night when he dragged all his mates up to the rabbit's nest to see them and they didn't play.  He doesn't hold it against them.

[a6l6e6x]

Really enjoying LEG having never listened to them before. Huge Chvrches vibe so not surprising to see they supported them. Not a fan of Hot Pink though. Highlights for me are It's not just me, Falling into me and Donnie Darko

[kingcrawler]

10 minutes ago, a6l6e6x said:

Really enjoying LEG having never listened to them before. Huge Chvrches vibe so not surprising to see they supported them. Not a fan of Hot Pink though. Highlights for me are It's not just me, Falling into me and Donnie Darko

Falling Into Me was my favourite single of 2018, phenomenal song. Donnie Darko is up there too. The first time I saw them was Primavera 2017 at one of the pre-festival gigs and I was really impressed when they closed with that, it’s a real step up in ambition and quality from their first album. 

I’m looking forward to listening to Akua Naru’s album over the next week or so, not someone I’ve ever listened to before. I’m biased given one of my albums is this week but as others have said this is a great idea for a thread, especially at the moment, good work @EighteenSixty7!

[EighteenSixty7]

Thanks for all the good feedback, it’s very much appreciated!
 

I had LEG on for the journey to work this morning. Different but sounded good and definitely needs more listens. 
 

It’s Not Just Me was a highlight. 

[lessthanwill1]

Love I’m All Years. Still listen to it lots. Donnie Darko is one of my favourite songs ever at this point. Saw them live in Heaven and it was fantastic fun! 

Not heard of the second album - looks cool! 

[crocodiles]

I enjoyed the lets eat grandma album thanks for recommendation. 

Its not just me 

Ava 

Donnie darko  were tracks that stood out .

I've only listened to second album once through but will give it couple more goes to see if it grows . 

[HalfAnIdiot]

Excellent concept, thank you.

Alia Mari, never come across her/them before. Fantastic. And the baseline.....

[HalfAnIdiot]

Ok, I've listened to a bit more of both and thought a bit (with the benefits of some wine). LEG is very nice n'all and quite slick production. I'd probably make time to go and see than at Glastonbury unless they clashed with something better. AN tho is something else, West Holt's early evening, I'd make a b-line. Cool stuff.

[Hutchmaster]

As my profile pic will suggest, I'm a huge fan of I'm All Ears. Not just my favourite album of 2018, but definitely in my top 5 albums of all time. The production is slick, the lyrics are catchy and Donnie Darko is one of the best album closers I've ever heard. Just excellent synth pop. 

SOPHIE also produced on Hot Pink & It's Not Just Me.

[John the Moth]

Given both a listen, but there was a lot going on around me at the time. Good first impression but I’ll give them a ‘deep listen’ before giving a definitive response 🙂

[ghandi]

I've just finished listening to Let's Eat Grandma - I'm all Ears.

I thought it started and sounded a lot like Wolfe Alice in parts, possibly the vocal but with a more Electronic and bassier sound. I thought by far my favourite track was ' Snakes and Ladders'. This is first time I've heard them and they are 'ok', the track ' Falling into you ' was a single material ( don't know whether it was or not), honorable mentions to ' Danny Darko' and ' The Cats Pajamas '. I thought the track ' Cool and Collected' was way to long at 9 minutes and just seemed to meander aimlessly and I didnt think the interlude bits added anything to it, more like just filling time.

It's hard to put a number and I was going to make out of 10 where I would have given it a 5 or 6, but as we are marking out of 5 as there is no mean , I will mark it a 3.

I enjoyed it in parts, but not a ' Wow'for me.

[ghandi]

Ok, so just finished listening to ' The Blackest Joy' - Akua Naru

Am I mad or did she perform on the Glade a few years back? I had planned to see her early afternoon and the heavens opened. We ran back from the Park only to find the whole Glade crammed with people shielding from the rain and couldn't get near the stage so gave up.

Nu Soul,  Jill Scott, Lauren Hill, India Irie. All references that kick off in my head when listening to this. My fave track is Joy, love it's soulful lilt  and chorus and the 'Maze' guitar solo at the end. Also like Love right now, very India Irie. Love the Chorus to ' I made it ' and the thought provoking ' Baldwin's Crown'. I also love the nods to old fave singers of mine in Anita Baker and Minnie Ripperton.

I gave it a 3, but edging towards a 4 so I guess a 3.5! 🤪

[EighteenSixty7]

I imagined LEG to be a lot darker and harder but it’s quite refreshing. The closer is lover and so is the back end of Cool & Collected. 

[a6l6e6x]

I've listened through both now

As mentioned above some tracks I really like on LEG which I can see myself revisiting for some time. Really solid album overall and gets even better on 2nd/3rd listen through. 4/5

AS for Akua Naru not the kind of music I'd usually listen to but did really enjoy some tracks, the album did feel a bit long for me and some songs were a bit meh. Had a couple of run through and can see myself putting it on as background music when I eventually see people again. 3/5

Really good start to this album club for me, 2 artists I had never listened to before, 1 I really get along with and another I'll have at the ready when looking for something alternative

[foolee]

Is this listen to two albums per week? Any chance I can get involved or am I too late to the party? 

[DareToDibble]

Great idea. Don’t think I’ve ever heard music by either, and haven’t even heard of Akua Naru.

Will try and give both a listen today but if not this week.

[DareToDibble]

2 hours ago, foolee said:

Is this listen to two albums per week? Any chance I can get involved or am I too late to the party? 

Not wishing to answer for @EighteenSixty7bit this is week 1, get involved 😊

 

Edited February 15, 2021 by DareToDibble

[Gnomicide]

First Old Man Shouts at Cloud review:

Let's Eat Grandma

Was it horrific?
No.

Did it sound as I expected?
No. I thought they were more shouty, bit of a punky edge to them, this was much more accomplished, mature sounding than I remember from their Jools appearance.

Overall thoughts
At times they reminded me of The Joy Formidable, which was nice and after a very bad start with Whitewater, it grew on me as it went on. There were a couple of tracks that did nothing for me. Donnie Darko in particular sounded a little out of place, maybe left over from a previous album? All in all, yeah, it was alright.

Would I watch them at a festival?
Yes.

Would I listen to it again?
Probably not but I certainly wouldn't turn it off if it did come on.

Will I investigate them further?
No

Score out of 5
3

[Gnomicide]

Old Man Shouts at Cloud review 2.

Akua Naru

Was it horrific?
No.

Did it sound as I expected?
Yes.

Overall thoughts
I like the jazzy undercurrent and I'm sure it's really well done if you like that sort of thing but it ultimately doesn't do a lot for for me. It's all very samey, very repetitive. I got bored the longer it went on.

Would I watch them at a festival?
Sunny day, already at the right stage, yes. Otherwise, no.

Would I listen to it again?
No

Will I investigate them further?
No

Score out of 5
2

[Supernintendo Chalmers]

Couple of solid threes for me.

Based this album alone, Let's Eat Grandma are the kind of act that if they were on before someone I really wanted to see, it would probably sway my decision to get there earlier and see them, too. Their influences are obvious and for my taste, that's no bad thing.

 

[Haan]

Great picks!

I've heard the LEG album before, really good stuff. I also saw them open for Chvrches in Nottingham and they were very fun, pulled out a recorder at one point if I remember correctly. I do think they can do better though, but they're very young so I'm sure their next album will reach newer heights. Love the SOPHIE produced tracks the most, Hot Pink is probably my fav song and the cat purring interlude is my fav moment.

 

I think the Akua Naru (who I've never heard of before this thread) album is also decent; excellent content and some powerful lyrics, but some of the hooks don't work for me and the production isn't as smooth or as hard as I'd like. I imagine she's excellent live tho, and the drums that don't hit as well with headphones on probably sound really rich on stage. My fav tracks are My Mother's Daughter and the bonus track version of Made It. 

 

@EighteenSixty7in terms of suggestions how about having the users who submitted the album also submit some questions/discussion points? For example, "Fav songs?" "Do you agree with the artist when they said x" "After listening to the album, will you be aiming to catch them live/check out more?" 

Edited February 15, 2021 by Haan

[st dan]

@EighteenSixty7 liking what @Gnomicide did there with his questions after listening. 

Only a suggestion, but maybe you could include a template of these set questions to the post each week, and we answer each one when replying to the topic. Say, 5/7 questions along the lines (if not identical) to those @Gnomicide posted above? 

Edited February 15, 2021 by st dan

[a6l6e6x]

I like the templated questions idea to avoid my pointless rambling

[EighteenSixty7]

11 hours ago, foolee said:

Is this listen to two albums per week? Any chance I can get involved or am I too late to the party? 

Of course, just get involved and I’ll keep a note of who is posting and listening etc. 
 

I’ll incorporate some form of questions in the OP of each week if that’s what people are liking.

 

I had Album 2 on last night and it’s right up my street, I’m going to enjoy listening to that this week. My head was nodding from the off. 

[Quark]

Slightly adapted Grandad's answer structure 😄

Let's Eat Grandma - I'm All Ears

Overall thoughts
Remember liking this album when it came out and haven't listened to it for a while, so was good to revisit.  Different to how I remember it, mainly because the only track that stuck in my head was It's Not Just Me and it's actually a bit catchier and poppier than the rest of the album. Like with most albums & artists I find those filler tracks like Cat's Pyjamas and Missed Call just a bit...pointless. And some of the tracks could do with being a wee bit shorter, although contrary to that I think Donnie Darko is a really good track. 
Would I watch them at a festival?
Yep, although not something I'd make a beeline for.  Very much subject to clashes, and would need to be on the right stage as well. Something I'd want to see in a tent stage rather than a big open air job, feels like it would work better with an air of claustrophobia.
Would I listen to it again?
Probably
Will I investigate them further?
Probably
Score out of 5
3

Akua Naru - The Blackest Joy

Overall thoughts
Completely new to me, not normally my thing.  The jazz / gospel sound to the tracks is actually really good, and kept me more interested than I expected.  Made It was the standout track for me, really uplifting sound and sentiment.  But ultimately not my cup of tea.  I just find the vocal style quite impenetrable at times, and by the end I was definitely switching off a bit. For me it could have been trimmed by a couple of tracks. It's also a subject matter that very definitely feels like it speaks directly to a specific audience, and as a result it's not something I can easily connect with. All to do with personal taste rather than quality.
Would I watch them at a festival?
Probably, yep. The musicality would definitely keep me interested, and I would like to see how it translates into a live show. Something I could see with the sun out and a cider in hand.  Not sure I'd do a whole set, but would pique my interest.
Would I listen to it again?
Unlikely
Will I investigate them further?
No
Score out of 5
3