13 Comments
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Linda Wilkins's avatar

I found the music....interesting. Still not quite ready to step out of my 50 year love affair with Led Zeppelin, but I appreciate how well this review introduced me to a different kind of music. I am fascinated how your brain works!

Oh, and that SNL clip was pretty cool.

Kevin Ryan's avatar

It’s definitely no Zeppelin 😂

Linda Wilkins's avatar

You know I have to throw them out there every chance I get 😉

@atommiller's avatar

Worth a listen. I listened to three Zep albums today and also this Gorillaz album. When I saw your comment I had to screenshot it. Can’t post a pic in these comments apparently, but here it is

https://substack.com/@atommiller450153/note/c-234865132

Critiques and Musings by Alex's avatar

I can’t wait to read this!

Critiques and Musings by Alex's avatar

I read it and it was great! Kevin is so knowledgeable about music. I like how he broke down the album

Andrew Heard's avatar

Awesome stuff. I like that you're getting into the cultural realm more. Would it be too self-promotional to suggest myself as an option for potential inclusion in cultural reviews?

Kevin Ryan's avatar

Send your stuff my way!

@atommiller's avatar

Awesome review! This album is either perfectly or terribly timed for me. My wife lost four family members since Oct. - both her parents in the past month.

We are steeped in death.

Dave Kingsworthy's avatar

Thanks for another thoughtful and informative piece. One little nugget that stood out to me was the reference to Blur's Song 2. I appreciated their smugness for a while but have come to believe that commercialization of grunge, heavy metal etc was not really a problem in the 1990s. Name me a band even into the 2000's that was either untalented or dishonest. I have come to love so much metal-oriented music of those times... now, to be clear, Ratt and Poison and the hair bands of the 80s -- they deserved a bit of shade.

Sam Foster's avatar

Great review. I really enjoyed The Mountain, though as you say it's a very bittersweet experience. It's amazing how the album can be so sonically adventurous without losing focus. I do disagree about the hip-hop verses being the least powerful though, I was always glad when Black Thought popped up.

ash's avatar

honestly this album renewed my love for this band. Damon's originality and cultural themes during their trajectory made me fall in love in the first place. this album is so beautiful and it's theme had me in tears just by the first notes of the first track. amazing review!