Peak romance!

I absolutely loved this show. I've been looking for some nice romance in the past few weeks, and this really hit the spot. It's a classic really, there's a reason this gets recommended every single time anyone asks for romance recs.

The way Lovely Complex explores insecurity is simply beautiful, the constant hesitation, the fear that you might not be enough, and the certainty that begins to come over you as you fail over and over again at achieving your goals. Your fears manifest, a confirmation that your own body, that which you were born with and cannot change, is wrong. But through all that, the persistence of the characters, the way they persevere through these tribulations, is truly inspiring.

The setting is very adolescent, and this is a love comedy so even the most emotional moments are somewhat light-hearted. I think that's good, actually, it keeps the story flowing; the show is incredibly well-paced. I said adolescent, because it is set in high school and that's what the characters life revolve around, but the themes are very mature. I mentioned the insecurity, which the main theme of the show, but many episodes also touch on what it means to be in love, to be in a committed relationship, and what sacrifices one must make to maintain healthy relationships with those they care for.

It's beautiful.

The production quality is top notch, though very much outdated. It's Toei, the animation and music are both great, and the voice acting is fantastic too. Especially Nobu-chan, Higashi Saori might just be the GOAT. I'm not even joking, this was an all time performance by her.

What do you think? *** Rating: 5/5

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Dumb fun!

TikTok has been repeatedly and forcefully shoving GTA gameplay-attached clips of the movie Tag (2018), directed by Jeff Tomsic, down my throat. Perhaps my watching of this modern masterpiece is symptomatic of my as of now undiagnosed Stockholm syndrome, and a direct consequence of an easily influenceable mind. Regardless of my personal psychological shortcomings, this movie is surprisingly good.

I came in with VERY LOW expectations, but turns out it's just dumb fun. Ed Helms, Jon Hamm, Jake Johnson, and Hannibal Buress (hunk alert, wee-oo) all delivered good performances if you close your eyes, plug your ears, and pretend you're watching another movie, that is. Jeremy Renner and Isla Fischer, however, did actually pull off some pretty nice scenes. They didn't overplay the slow-motion shots, and I think they were pretty humorous. The action was well-choreographed and creative.

After the movie was over, I started immediately scouring the internet for self-hypnosis techniques in order to forget the incredibly odd Rashida Jones love-triangle arc. I was unsuccessful, but I believe I can keep on living through the sure-to-come recurring nightmares of bad, senseless plot lines.

The main plot, on the other hand, was decent. Nothing too special, but it's a whimsical concept! Really, isn't that what movies are all about?! ^(No.) Regardless, knowing it was based on a true story made it way more fun for me than it otherwise would've been, and the constant suspicion of basically anything Jerry did was very funny, IMHO.

At the end of the day, I think a relatively short movie that makes me laugh and occasionally flashes some cool visuals is worth watching.

What do you think? *** Rating: 4/5

Pretty good!

Ovrkast. hits us with some nice delivery every time, it's clear this dude really knows his way around a beat. His voice is very interesting too, he puts tons of emotion in every word, and I love it!

The lyrics are nice too, he talks about his insecurities as an artist, his confidence, his goals and ambitions, his life and his art. He's passionate about music, and he says it with his chest. It's inspiring really, it feels great.

The beats are pretty good too, some nice samples... But they're a bit flat, and the drums are just fine. Nothing to write home about really, but they do their job I suppose. The focus is the vocals, so it's not a big issue.

Overall, it's a nice EP. It doesn't have the depth I would like, it's rather short too, even for an EP, so it feels more like a sample of what ovrkast. could do than a full-fledged project. There's some really good stuff in here, but also some very mediocre stuff. Still, I'll be looking out for what he does next.

What do you think? *** Best song: RESET! Worst song: SHUTUP! Rating: 3/5

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Brilliant lyricism with better production.

This album is, simply put, incredible. Earl didn't disappoint on any level, his bars are emotional and packed full of meaning. He really is a word-smith. Topics of depression, loneliness, colonialism, and reflections on culture. And he manages to do all this with his signature flows and delivery; I think there's nobody out there right now that sounds quite like Earl Sweatshirt. He's unique, and that's fantastic.

That being said, the production is just on another level. The Alchemist might be the greatest producer right now. If you don't believe that, I beg you to check out this record, because he really knocked it out of the park. He did a bit of everything, more rhythmic beats, more melody, but all of them with incredible, soulful samples.

This album has 2 versions, the original and the streaming version, which have 3 different tracks. Both are very good, but the original version is a bit better. my brother, the wind is way better than Mancala.

Overall, this is a fantastic project that you should definitely check out, if you haven't yet. The lyricism just blows damn near every other album released this year out of the water, and the production is on another plane entirely. What's there not to love? But hey,

what do you think? *** Best song: Vin Skully Worst song: Mancala Rating: 5/5

Streaming version.

Beautiful and emotional!

I really liked this show. I was sceptical at first... I think it's very easy for shows that surround something seemingly inconsequential (such as a high-school club) to severely overplay how much people actually care about these things. Hibike! Euphonium did this very well though, from the onset. I guess it's about managing expectations, and what the audience can expect from the characters by showing what the characters expect from each other. I really liked the set up.

I love how distinct each character is too. They have unique personalities and interests, though a bit cliché (the big silent guy, the bubbly girl, the cold beauty). The main character though was just something else. I really, really liked her! I love how she treats the people around her, it felt very human, I think this was just excellent writing. She's cold sometimes and bursting with emotion in the next scene, but it never feels out of place. We really get to explore how she sees the world and what she values in relationships, as well as how much she's willing to sacrifice in her personal life to achieve her goals. I just love Kumiko.

The animation was very good too. I guess that's to be expected from KyoAni. What I really appreciated, as someone who has played in a band for many years (trumpet), is that they didn't try to make the performances magical. A lot of sports and art anime (Haikyu!!, Blue Lock, Blue Period) depict their subject as sort of nigh-magical, with colours flying everywhere and cool names for special moves. Hibike! Euphonium leans more into realism, it doesn't try to make music seem magical, it just lets the music be magical, if that makes sense. I thought it was beautiful; in a way, it's the animation holding back, but it's just really well done.

The music of course was just fantastic. Don't have much to say on this subject in particular, it's a music anime, it has great music. I will say that I loved how much silence there was. Especially before and after an emotional performance, they just let the notes hang, letting the emotion build. Beautiful, I say!

The one criticism I have is that it's very short. It's only 13 episodes, and there's too many loose ends. I WANT MORE!!! Well, there is more of course but it's in the next season, which I haven't gotten to YET. This show is definitely worth a watch.

What do you think? *** Rating: 4/5

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This is a pretty cool movie.

The plot is very interesting, and there's tons of tension! Definitely keeps you on your toes as the pressure mounts for the main characters, especially in the undercover scenes. There wasn't really a point where I thought anything in the main storyline didn't make sense; the motivations of the characters are as clear as they should be, and the emotional weight of the story is perfectly translated every time. The immense stress that they're under is very compelling, and the inner struggle of the characters is fantastically depicted.

That being said, I thought some of the side characters and side plots were superfluous, not developed enough, or just straight up didn't make sense. Inspector Lau's fiancé's novel is a bit on the nose, and Yan's relationship with his psychiatrist came out of nowhere.

The acting was pretty good, especially for the two main characters and their respective handles. Some side characters were also pretty cool, I really loved Chapman To in particular.

The cinematography had some highs for sure, but also some lows. There were some shot transitions that looked like someone just pulled up WMM.

Overall, it's a cool film. I decided to watch it because it's highly rated and from Hong Kong. I'd previously watched Chungking Express and In the Mood for Love and absolutely loved them, but Infernal Affairs simply doesn't compare. It's OK, and definitely worth a watch, but it didn't blow me away.

What do you think? *** Rating: 3/5

Good music.

This is a nice project. I really like the vocals, Cody's more masculine voice and Juli's very feminine tone mix perfectly, and their harmonies are divine. That being said, individually they're both pretty good singers, though Juli is quite a bit better than Cody. The rhythms are pretty cool too, they mostly sing in a very "traditional" way, very melodic, but they also go for weirder rhythms once in a while, like in the song Muriel's Big Day Off, which I thought was cool. Regardless, they always sing their hearts out.

The lyrics are also pretty interesting. The songs strike me as rather spiritual in nature, even when they don't mention religion or spirituality. They're pretty abstract, which I think is pretty nice and matches well with the ethereal vocals. Some songs tackle themes of hope, continuing despite things not going your way, loneliness... It feels nice to listen to this, at least on that level.

The instrumentals are where this album falls short. There's some passages where they go for something a bit different and it goes great, but there's just a lot of strumming guitars and muted drums basically all the time. It stars to feel like a background hum, and it just gets annoying. I guess it has a sort of lo-fi charm to it? I don't know.

Overall, I think it's a nice album with great vocals, interesting lyrics, and lots of emotion.

What do you think? *** Best song: The Great American Picnic Worst song: Oklahoma Nova Scotia Rating: 3/5

Listen on YT Music!

Insane and interesting production!!

The production really is the crowning jewel of this project. There's quite a bit of variety; some are very melodic, some get pretty loud and distorted. There's a lot of different sounds used in the beats too, reminiscent of those singer-songwriter songs, bedroom pop. There's some very nice vocal chops spliced in, there really is a bit of everything, and it's really nice.

The rapping and singing is great as well. Beenzino himself can pull off some nice flows, but I don't really like most of the features. I must admit that I do not know Korean _{(I just translated the lyrics)}, so maybe it's actually really awkward, but it sounds good at least. Maybe a bit too much ad-libbing going on though. Still, he sounds very good on every track.

The lyrics are interesting too. The whole album just has this odd melancholic vibe to it. Beenzino talks about desperation, how boring he thinks his life is, and about making it big. He reflects on his past mistakes, particularly at the end of the album when he talks about his addiction and getting a second chance to do things right. There's also a lot about the overwhelming anxiety that comes with trying to make it in the industry, and the pressure that comes with the prospect of failing.

Overall, I'd say this is a nice album, definitely worth checking out. Still, there's a lot that doesn't quite work.

What do you think? *** Best song: In Bed/Makgulli Worst song: Change Rating: 3/5

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Iconic for good reason!

It's a bit of an old-school style, which makes sense considering it's a 29 year old project, but I wouldn't even say it sounds particularly dated.

The production is simply put: ICONIC! Very melodic, heavy on keys, and tons of vocal samples as well. Very chill. It's just very pleasant and easy-to-stomach, which actually really contrasts with more recent hip-hop, which can get pretty industrial and loud with it's production. Not Illmatic. I think it's what they call boom bap, but I'm not particularly knowledgeable about genres/styles.

The rapping is also immaculate, of course, it's Nasty Nas after all. He's very technically proficient and pulls out a few different flows, though I must say he goes for a very 1994 style every time. The lyrics don't fall behind either. Plenty of fun and sharp similes every verse; notable exception being the one about being bisexual.

The message is great too. A lot of love for New York and talking about living and growing up in New York, a lot of bragging and talking about his success. He talks of his struggles, but also finds time to brag about his abilities and success.

One thing I will say is that the chorus are usually not very good. They're not horrible or anything, just not as good as everything else.

What do you think? *** Best song: N.Y. State of Mind Worst song: One Love Rating: 4/5

Listen on YT Music!

Visually stunning and a brilliant cast!

The visuals are by far the most striking aspect of this movie. They're absolutely brilliant! I'm sure the black and white color-scheme and the odd aspect ratio play into this, but it's more than that; it's incredible cinematography, and it really helps tell the story and explore the intense emotions of the characters.

More than that, the acting is incredible, especially Frances McDormand, she really blew me away, though Denzel Washington was also fantastic. And Kathryn Hunter as the three witches was absolutely ridiculous, especially that scene where she continuously contorts her body... It really freaked me out, I loved it!

I thought the plot was great, but the pacing was a bit odd. The series of events, and the escalation of the situation felt somewhat rushed and disconnected. I've never read the original play, so I can't say if this is just how Macbeth is or if it's the movie.

What do you think? *** Rating: 4/5

Arr 🏴‍☠️!!!

Great punk.

This didn't blow me away, but it's certainly good music.

It's intense, with lots of guitars and charismatic vocals. The lyrics also have lots of personality. Some songs have a more introspective tone, while others take more of a critical look at the world and at people, like in the song Big Dick.

Overall, I think this is a rather poignant project, because it's 34 years old and so much of what is criticized in the songs is still very much alive. Some has even gotten worse, like the mass surveillance depicted in The Tower.

>I got tired of waiting because I found out there's only a very very fine line between biding one's time and wasting one's time. Do you know what I mean?

• Tired of Waiting

This album is about how fucked things are, the lies everywhere, the injustice that festers everywhere. More than that, it's about patience running out, time running out, and disillusion. It's very emotional, and I like it.

What do you think? *** Best song: Tired of Waiting Worst song: The End of All Things Rating: 4/5

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BRILLIANT!

I absolutely loved this!

It can be so loud and overwhelming, the guitars ringing in your ears, the drums and the bass pounding at your skull... But then there's soft melody and peace.

The lyrics are great, each song is a different story written very poetically. These songs aren't written anything like typical pop or hip-hop lyrics, it feels so intimate. Like you're being told a story by the campfire, or just an account of events, except there's blaring guitars. The vocal delivery matches the instrumentals: overwhelming and intense, or quiet spoken-word.

It's hard to put into words exactly how I feel about this album. I think the song Don, Aman is the best example of what makes this album so great. It's like the calm before the storm when you're alone on a rocking boat, that intense feeling of tension, expectation, waiting for things to fall apart when there's nothing there yet. And it's lonely.

What do you think? *** Best song: Nosferatu Man Worst song: Washer Rating: 5/5

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Hilarious and action-filled!

Finally managed to watch this movie, and the wait was worth it!

The music is impeccable (as usual), and the comedy is on point. The action is great as well, with tons of thrilling sequences with interesting character designs and well choreographed fights. The environments were also fantastic, with disgusting, slimy scenes everywhere, which really drove home the whole idea of "perfecting" the world being a complete sham.

The plot doesn't leave anything to be desired either. It's interesting and thrilling. The main villain does a fantastic job of being hateable! I thought it was great acting by Chukwudi Iwuji, really outstanding job.

The only thing I didn't like too much was the very notable lack of stakes. Well, obviously there were stakes, but I never got the feeling they could actually fail to get the job done. I never thought that they might actually lose, for once. On one hand, that kinda sucks, on the other hand, it's a comedy-action movie that has great comedy and action. I don't think the lack of tension is a big deal.

What do you think? *** Rating: 4/5

Arr 🏴‍☠️!

Witty lyricism and biting commentary.

This is a nice album. By far the best part is the lyricism and commentary. Open Mike Eagle is extremely witty and pulls off some great one-liners and very creative and nerdy rhymes on basically every song on this EP. More than that, he manages to also provide great commentary on politics, the economy, and the entertainment industry, as well as his personal struggles with the systems that rule our societies.

That being said, nothing else really stands out on this project. The beats are good, most of the time, but can also fall flat and feel mute. Mike's vocal delivery isn't the best either, his singing is mediocre at best.

I really liked the features though! MC Paul Barman and Milo really nailed it on Trickeration.

What do you think? *** Best song: Dark Comedy Late Show Worst song: Raps for When It's Just You and the Abyss Rating: 3/5

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A bloody smile, forced.

This album sounds beautiful. The guitars are great, and the vocals are really great. The screams just pierce your soul and shake your bones! There's plenty of similarity between each song, but they manage to make every track feel distinct and separate, yet connected. Some songs get beautifully melodic too.

Sometimes the line delivery leaves something to be desired, though. It feels weirdly unnatural, the way some lines are read individually regardless of whether or not they're a continuation of the previous line.

I really appreciate how every track flows into the next, like a tape. It makes the project feel like a single entity rather than a collection of tracks. It's almost like they're playing the songs back-to-back and we're just in the room listening in.

The lyricism is brilliant, if a bit unhinged. This album is written with viscera and splattered across the walls like the guts of a dead whale. It's disgusting, and a bit horrorcore, but it's just so emotional. It never feels overdone or nasty for the sake of shock, it's just raw emotion portrayed in a grimy sludge of words.

The lyrics really are the best part about this album. The themes of failure, regret, depression, indifference, and of taking part in life and community despite not wanting to and having to deal with the consequences... It's loud and powerful. The absurdity of continuing on despite all the horrible things that happen every day permeates this album; it's just fantastic.

These lyrics really stuck with me: > We were fed our first communion > But the bread turned to flesh > As we chewed, and boy we chewed

• lily pad pupils

What do you think? *** Best song: floral organs Worst song: 9/12 Rating: 4/5

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Beautiful and emotional!

Such an endearing story, told in such a marvelous way. This is what animation is for, I mean, everything is so beautiful and fluid and whimsical. I particularly liked the mice, but the bears are cool too.

The music is also stupendous, gorgeous strings and piano throughout the film. The little sections when Ernest plays piano and violin for Célestine are so adorable, and it actually sounds great. The voice acting is incredible as well, so much emotion in every word!

I'm a big character guy, and the varied cast really sells this movie. I suppose one could argue that characters outside of Ernest and Célestine are a bit one-dimensional, in that they're stuck in their ways and consumed by prejudice, blind to the world and obsessed with the otherness of the other species. Still, I feel that they serve their purpose perfectly, and they're all HILARIOUS! Once again, the animation shines here, granting these characters a certain absurdity of movement to match the absurdity of their ideologies. It also lets Célestine show how persistent and determined to change Ernest she is with more than just her words, namely with her ability to appear from anywhere after being tossed out, which also makes for some absolutely hilarious scenes.

The messaging is on point, of course. This movie is from 2012, which is more than a decade ago, but things really haven't changed. The characterization of society as divided yet equal, and of how, fundamentally, the great divider is class rather than anything else (for which species is a catch-all stand-in), strikes hard. The pervasiveness of hatred rooted in fear, and the initial scenes showing how this fear is nurture rather than nature really struck a chord with me. Ernest and Célestine both struggling with authority figures and their expectations of them, of the role they were meant to take in their respective societies, really pushes this idea that the system is flawed and broken.

The ending was a bit underwhelming, perhaps. That's really the only negative thing I can point out. It felt like things were resolved very easily. It's a metaphor, and really it's a bit on the nose, but I guess I just wanted another chase scene...

What do you think? *** Rating: 5/5

Great concept, poor execution.

Everything that relates to the production value of this movie is subpar: the voice acting, the sound design, the animation... There's nothing excellent here, there's really nothing good here.

The voice acting sounds awkward at times. Japanese voice acting is known for being great, but here nearly every line feels emotionless, and the main characters sound like they're whispering very loudly instead of just talking. Which is something I can only assume is an artistic choice? I suppose it fits the theme of the movie, but it sounds bad. Notably, Anzai Chika's performance as Kobayashi was actually pretty great.

The music and sound design on this thing are also not great. It sounds so quiet, so empty. Once again, this must have been by design, as it fits the theme, but it sucks! It makes the whole movie feel bland and faceless. Just because it's about a secret and escaping others doesn't mean the movie should be empty.

The animation is somewhat decent. It's not a very distinct style, and some frames look horrible. There's also some scenes with 3D animation that are very not good. Still, for the most part it's OK.

That being said, this is definitely not a bad movie. It's a very interesting concept. Personally, I love time-related movies (like Tenet and The Girl Who Leapt Through Time), and the idea of being able to stop time for a short duration is cool.

The relationship between the two main characters is also great, and very engaging. Murakami's whole personality, or lack thereof, really made me think... I wonder if there really are people that act this way. Personally, I related to Moritani WAY more, feeling overwhelmed and just wanting to run away. Murakami's whole ordeal felt very odd to me, but it was still very emotionally compelling. I think it was conveyed in a very nice way.

The conclusion was a bit underwhelming though, probably as a consequence of this running for only 1 hour. Still, it didn't leave a sour taste in my mouth or anything, I just wish there was more to the story. I suppose that's actually a compliment to the plot, in a way.

^{I related to Moritani's perverted tendencies too.}

What do you think? *** Rating: 3/5

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A lovely story with incredible art!

The visuals really carry this one. The lines are beautiful, and the shading is very well done, it really gives every single page lots of depth. I love how Nakamura used empty space to give some pages this feeling of letting the words float in the air, while some others feel horribly cramped. It really enhances the reading experience.

The plot is nice too. There's a very sad backdrop to every interaction, and the way the main character (Mizushima) talks about life and death is a bit cringe, but there was still plenty of emotional weight.

It's a one-shot, so there's not much time to properly develop the characters, but I felt that things weren't particularly rushed.

I love the themes of loss, trauma, and depression, and I really appreciated how much everyone around the main character cared for him. Especially Hanamori, of course. Mental health is a very serious thing, and seeing how much Mizushima struggled with his personal trauma really touched me, but I think a lot of authors, when they try to tackle these issues, end up putting their struggling characters in seemingly hopeless situations where everyone is against them, and it's up to the main character to break out of their misery. Not here. The people around him care about him, and they try to help and support him, even if Hanamori was the main catalyst for his recovery.

I think that was really beautiful.

What do you think? *** Rating: 4/5

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It's not good.

The lyrics are interesting, and I like a lot of the themes that the songs approach, but this album is just so boring.

The production is weird, not that unique in the genre really, but still. Being weird and different isn't enough to make good music.

I feel like there's nothing to hold on to, every song feels so similar, like a never-ending buzz. The album isn't even that long, but it feels like HOURS...

There are some nice cuts, like FaceTime, but most of the songs are just billy rapping with that monotonous tone of his, non-stop. And there's 17 tracks on this thing, yikes. His lines aren't even that good, he keeps rhyming every fucking line. Makes everything sound like that lyrical miracle stereotype. Ew. DOOM from Wish.

This album feels like staring at a wall while the washing machine is running.

What do you think? *** Best song: FaceTime Worst song: Soft Landing Rating: 2/5

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There's so much good music in the world...

This album is pure emotion. It's beautiful in every way and in all the ways.

From the production, to the performances, to the lyrics. Everything flows together and dances in perfect harmony.

Really, this feels more like a movie than an album. Every line paints a picture, and the gorgeous music completes a masterpiece. And the story is great; it's personal, emotional, meaningful.

Really, the beauty of this project is indescribable. Do yourself a favour and go listen to this album if you haven't yet.

What do you think? *** Best song: Dedicated to Tar Feather Worst song: Tyler, Forever Rating: 5/5

Listen on YouTube Music!

One of the wittiest movies I've ever watched! It's hilarious!!

The animation is gorgeous, and the soundtrack is also incredible. The voice acting by Chloë Grace Moretz and Riz Ahmed is also spectacular, and even Eugene Lee Yang (of The Try Guys fame) does a very decent job.

The story doesn't leave much to be desired either. It tackles themes of isolation, not finding your place in the world, and discrimination, both on an individual and systemic level.

Though it doesn't actually address the problem of systemic oppression, preferring instead to scapegoat a single character.

Actually, that single element of the story really stung. It's clear that they went to great lengths to have a very diverse cast of characters, and it's obvious they're trying to be progressive, and this is meant to be a progressive story. However, I can't help but think that it's all posturing, if in the end all the systems that allowed such horrible mentalities to fester still remain intact, with only the "top dog" being taken down. You can't fix a system by removing an individual.

There's so much more I'd like to say about this, but I feel this isn't the place. Plus, this is clearly a kid's movie, a very good one with a deep message and complex characters, but still. I suppose the message is still a net positive despite such a massive blunder.

Additionally, there's a dance sequence in the middle that feels so painfully out of place I almost cringed myself to death. Thankfully it was very short.

Overall, I think this movie was good. It's not really gonna blow anyone's socks off, but it might make some people think, and it's very easy on the eyes and ears.

What do you think? *** Rating: 4/5

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Just a good album.

The vocals are great, and the lyrics are pretty interesting at times.

It really starts off on the wrong foot though... Swing (In A Dream) is one of the worst songs on the project, and the intro portion of that song in particular is just horrible.

After that though, the album only really dips in After the Flash, and even that is fine.

This album makes me feel rather despondent, for some reason. I would say this project sounds like an internal spiral, the feeling of letting go of control of your own life, things falling apart and ripping at the seems.

I don't really have much to say, but it's certainly enjoyable.

What do you think? *** Best song: Siphon Song Worst song: After the Flash Rating: 3/5

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After having listened to their most recent album and having loved it, this is a huge let down.

I suppose it's on me to expect a band to hit the nail on the head every time, but I really had high expectations for this project and they were simply not met.

Every song sounds the same, it's just a bunch of strumming electric guitars and vocals singing about some shit I don't care about. I mean, no offence, but full offence. This is just bad.

It's not the worst thing in the world, I suppose, because after 3 songs everything starts sounding like just one big boring hum in the background, and when you dissociate completely form the music it doesn't even bother you.

^{I wish I could pull a Beehaw on this album.}

That's really the best I can say about this though. One song is fine, but they have 41 minutes of the same song over and over and over again, and THAT is what sucks.

I'm not gonna listen to this again.

What do you think? *** Best song: Rain Dance Worst song: Opportunity is Knocking Rating: 1/5

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This album just oozes happiness. Except when it doesn't. It's still good though.

The instrumentals are really nice. Lots of guitars and keys. They get pretty dirty at times, but not all the time. It's very cool really, I like what they did here.

I love the lyrics too. They can be hopeful and soulful, and so vivid! That really got me, you can really picture everything they're singing, and it's all so pretty. But there's also some exploration of religion and trauma and loneliness, which actually turn pretty dark.

A cold summer breeze, laying on the grass. Smoking alone in an empty bar.

They're not afraid to get weird too. Some songs on this thing really go off the rails and feel like they aren't even on the same project. That's not necessarily a bad or good thing. I like the variety, but it's also a bit jarring.

The most striking part of this album is the vocals though. I mean, this dude can SING! His performance is very good, there's a lot of personality and emotion, it's incredible. Such a powerful voice. There is a lot of screaming though. Thought I should mention that.

Overall, definitely worth checking out. I'll give their first album a try as well, though I've heard it sounds not at all like this one.

What do you think? *** Best song: Cowboy Nudes Worst song: Domoto Rating: 4/5

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Actually pretty pleasant. I wasn't really vibing with this at the start, but it's not that bad. I think you need to be in a certain mental state to enjoy this, it's very... Odd... _{I think that's just Art Pop/Neo-Psych really.}

The vocals are horrible, though. I'd never heard of John Cale before, but I'm aware he's rather old. Maybe he's lost his hearing in his advanced age, on the other hand, Beethoven, so I'm just gonna say John Cale's vocals are trash.

The production is fine. It's nothing special, there's not much distinguishing each track, but there's some nice passages, occasionally. The drums are bad, the guitars on I KNOW YOU'RE HAPPY are really nice though. It's a bit of a hit or miss on whether any given song lands on the good or bad side of mediocre.

The lyrics are garbage. Maybe I just don't get it, I'm willing to admit that, but honestly I didn't care about anything he was saying, and honestly I'd rather he hadn't said anything. I'll remind you the vocals suck, there was really nothing he could've said that would've made his piss poor performances worth it, but still, I'd appreciate something more than repetitive repetition, repeatedly.

He does ask some very hard hitting questions, though. Namely on this song called THE LEGAL STATUS OF ICE. I recommend you listen to it. You'll regret it!

It was hard to put THE LEGAL STATUS OF ICE as my least favourite song on this album. It's hilarious. It's ACTUALLY so fucking funny (which is why it's also my favourite track on the album), everything, every single word, the instrumentals, the performance. It just cracks me up! It sounds horrible, it's just so bad I can barely comprehend why anyone would ever put that in a serious album. I think it's a troll, honestly. And that just makes it better.

>What is the legal status of ice? Where does it come and where does it go

Comedy gold.

Listening to this album almost gave me an aneurysm. *** Best song: THE LEGAL STATUS OF ICE (feat. Fat White Family) Worst song: THE LEGAL STATUS OF ICE (feat. Fat White Family) Rating: THE LEGAL STATUS OF ICE/5

Listen on SoundCloud!

This is a spoiler-free review *** Let's start with the obvious: the animation is brilliant. It's MAPPA after all. The production quality on this show is very good, and leaves very little to be desired. Sure, it's not the pinnacle of modern animation, but it's more than serviceable, and it posed no issue whatsoever.

Regardless, this show is very interesting, visually. The characters too, but mostly the environment is totally CRAZY! It's weird, and beautiful, and creepy. The flowers are just stunning, and knowing what they mean in the story just adds a special layer to such stunning visuals.

The voice acting (sub) is great as well, but the general sound design was subpar. I felt like a lot of scenes were very silent, and not in a cool or creepy kinda way, just in a "they didn't know what to put in the background" kinda way... The OP is a TOTAL BANGER though, and it was hard to skip, honestly.

Still, all of this isn't that big of a deal if the plot and the characters make up for it.

But they didn't really.

There's a varied cast with their quirky personalities and origin stories, but they're so poorly explored that that barely matters. The only characters that have any emotional weight are Gabimaru (MC) and Sagiri (MC). To be fair, these two do have very compelling backstories and cool chemistry. The rest of the cast either didn't have enough screen-time for us to truly engage with their stories, or had basically NO backstory at all.

Gabimaru specifically is a very emotional character. His struggle with his up-bringing, with love, family, and freedom is really compelling, and so is Sagiri's struggle with human nature, sexism, and her place in the world.

The plot is just OK. The setup is awesome, and promises a lot of action and adventure with lots of tension and high stakes, but that just ends up not being the case. We spend most of the time watching cool fight scenes. The fight scenes are very cool, sure, but where's the substance? I think a big problem is that Gabimaru is way too strong. His plot armour is just too much...

And the ending... I mean, come on. IT'S A FUCKING JOKE! If they were gonna end the show like this, it should've just been a 24/25 episode release. I know S2 is already in the works, but this season simply felt incomplete.

Well, the show does a lot of things right, and a few things wrong. If more time was spent developing the characters and advancing the plot this would've been way more satisfying. For that reason, I'm still looking forward to the second season. *** Rating: 3/5

Watch on Crunchyroll! Arr 🏴‍☠️!!

JPEGMAFIA might be the best producer of this generation. The beats are so intense, you just feel every track reverberating in your chest, it's incredible. This man is a genius, no doubt about it.

On top of that, he's a fantastic rapper. Witty lines with great delivery. I mean, even the names of the songs are hilarious!

Now, why has this genius ^{(god amongst men)} decided to collab with DANNY FUCKING BROWN?!

Yes, I'm a Danny hater, and I'm gonna keep hating. He's fucking unbearable. With that annoying voice, nasally and high pitched... I just can't get over it, it's FUCKING GRATING. I mean, his lines aren't that bad really, they're fine, they're good, but god every time this man opens his mouth I cringe myself to the size of a pea.

In his all-knowingness however, Peggy made the instrumental so loud and overwhelming that we can't actually hear Danny like half the time. And the beats are ACTUALLY insane, deranged, in a mental asylum, the white room with the rats. Every second Danny is rapping and I can't hear him is a win in my book. And if what I'm hearing instead is incredible production, all the better.

There's also a lot of variety in the instrumentals, which is really nice. Some DnB elements, glitchcore, rock guitars? It's awesome! The samples are god-like, absolutely brilliant. I know Peggy's production from his previous project, LP!, so I knew what to expect, more or less. But this was another level altogether.

And then Danny raps. Ok.

The gap in quality is enormous. At some point, I start wondering if I really am just a Danny Brown hater, if he's really not that bad and I'm just exaggerating. Then he starts his verse, and my beliefs are reinforced.

75% of this album is amazing, 25% is Danny Brown. If you like Danny Brown, maybe you'll like this more than I do. I can't get over it though.

If I am a hoe, consider my timbers shivered. *** Best song: SCARING THE HOES Worst song: Garbage Pale Kids Rating: 3/5

Listen on SoundCloud!

A brilliant musical journey.

I've listened to a lot of music. A lot of great music. And I can tell you, this is special.

It's one thing to infuse your art with a message, another thing to actually convey it properly, and a whole other debacle to manage to do that while creating something truly enjoyable. Little Simz made something magical. This album is way more than just music, it's a whole experience. And one that I'm sad I won't be able to experience again for the first time.

Being a woman, being black, her culture, her desires and aspirations. Little Simz shows all of herself for us to see. This album is incredibly personal, and one of the most majestic things I've ever listened to.

I already knew she was a brilliant rapper; her lyricism is nigh unmatched, and her delivery is second to none. Of course, the production leaves nothing to be desired either.

But really, the message is what elevates this to the next level.

There's a nice variety of sounds too, some hardcore hip-hop cuts, some jazzy tracks, pop, soul, and plenty of time to cleanse your palate before the next stop on the Introvert train by way of several interludes. Some spoken word passages as well, which I really appreciate.

I tend to dislike longer albums; 30 minutes is plenty, 60 minutes is pushing it. But this is different, I can't have enough of this!! I wish it would last forever...

If I could tattoo this album on my brain, I would. *** Best song: Rollin Stone Worst song: Never Make Promises (Interlude) Rating: 5/5

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I don't like reviewing unfinished works, as I feel a poor landing can destroy a whole story, just as a perfect finale can justify anything. There are 127 chapters out, as of me writing this.

However, I feel that every second that I stay silent about this web-series is a second wasted, an utter affront to fiction, and a betrayal of everything I stand for.

If even one person reading this did not know of "The Nature of Predators", I command you to look into it.

This is pure brilliancy. An epic story filled with action, drama, tension beyond belief. Mystery, betrayal, political collusion, and romance spanning the whole universe... There is nothing missing!

I have racked my brain for any weakness in the story... Maybe the pace, or the prose, maybe the characters aren't developed enough, maybe the plot isn't compelling enough... But no. Everything is impeccable, a true work of art. And to think it's not even completed yet.

"The Nature of Predators" follows several characters, with different beliefs, motivations, and interests. Some characters only appear later in the story, some appear early but fizzle out, some we've had the pleasure of accompanying from the very start and to this day.

There are characters you are made to love unconditionally, and characters you are made to hate. Some that want ultimate good, but can't help their nature, and those that went against their nature for their own survival. Terror inflicted upon the innocent, BY the innocent. A world upside down.

I simply cannot describe the emotional weight of the characters. I'm not ashamed to say I've bawled while reading this. Straight up tears and snot.

And in all this chaos, different personalities and stories clashing all over the universe, somehow everything clicks. Every plot point is addressed, in due time, and never are you left high and dry wondering helplessly about the true nature of things. It feels like no stone is left unturned...

But the stones never end! There is always the next step, the next adventure, the next mystery, the next quarrel... It's a relentless journey into the cosmos, and it's expanse is unending beauty.

A perfect balance between closure and novelty, tension and release.

My words CANNOT do this work justice. I urge you to read it, or listen to it. Do whatever you can to inject this story into your mind, for you will not regret it.

That being said, it is HFY. I know that bothers some people. *** Rating: 5/5

Read on Royal Road! Alternatively, listen on Youtube:

• Adastra has the best narration, but is currently almost 100 chapters behind.
• Agro Squirrel Narrates is only about 10 chapters behind, but the narration isn't as good (IMHO).

This is a SPOILER FREE review. *** Horror done PERFECTLY.

"FROM" is creepy, desperate, and hopeful. Every second is crawling with this sense of imminent dread. Time is ticking, and ticking, and _ticking... And they can't escape. But they still hope that that might change.

The characters are brilliant. From father Khatri to Boyd to Jim to Jade, they all serve their purpose perfectly, and the more secondary characters also manage to flawlessly push the plot forward, as well as provide some much needed reprieve from the main storyline of the show. Because the main storyline is INTENSE!

The way the different personalities clash and slow things down, beautiful chaos. Even just the dynamic between the town and the colony house! The best part, really, is how much power is in the hands of the people, how much THEY control their life in the town. And how much one person can doom so many others.

Still, my favourite thing about the show is the very clear theme of family. That's what moves everything, they all lost family, and they all found family in that accursed town. I love that.

The audio and the visual are both great. Everything is set up magnificently to give the viewer that rising terror.

The only real criticism I have is the acting. It's not bad, but it's not that great either. I wasn't familiar with any of the actors before watching this show, but I'm not exactly looking forward to what they might do next. Still, it doesn't really take away that much from the show, since they do a good enough job of conveying everything that needs conveying; occasionally they knock it out of the park too.

This season left a lot of mystery to solve; more loose threads than I can count. *** Watch on MGM+! Arr 🏴‍☠️!!!

A very interesting sound!

This was majestic, beautiful, mystical! Both the vocals and the instrumentals are ethereal, and the lyrics are inspiring, sweet and sour, all the right things.

The production remains interesting throughout. You can hear something weird nearly every second of every track, but it never gets boring or repetitive, it's just good production.

The seemingly ubiquitous vocal harmonizations really remind me of Aoba Ichiko. It's just an image I can't shake when listening to this. Normally, that'd be a great compliment, but I feel like it's not done very well actually, like a poor man's Ichiko...

As the track list progresses, it feels as if the album keeps winding down. It starts so strong, but by the time we get to Hopedrunk Everasking we've slowed to a halt.

How long can she stay floating in harmonic clouds? I'd argue not 45 minutes, gee. And yet, that's what she tries to do.

She picks it back up a little bit in Smoke, but too little too late.

The album never crosses the dreaded threshold from "interesting" to "bad" that so many alternative projects do. It manages to stay tolerable throughout. It starts incredible, but it loses steam.

If she'd cut it off at Track 5 this would've been a brilliant EP, but alas, it's a mediocre LP. *** Best song: Sunset Worst song: Fly To You Rating: 3/5

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Extremely emotional. The feelings of being lost, hurt, depressed... slowthai screams his misery at the top of his lungs. He opens up about his struggles with addiction and relationships, and that makes this album feel really personal.

There's a nice variety of sound on this project; every song feels decently distinct, even if they have a lot of thematic overlap. There's a lot of guitars and heavy bass, very punk, but also a strong beat and artificial sounds. There's some hip-hop slices too. I love it!

The sounds on this album really jump out at you though, there's no two ways about it. Really, what jumps out the most is slowthai's vocal performance. He puts his all into nearly every word, you can really feel his emotion, his desperation, his despair. He's lost, and he'll make sure you know it, and that you won't do a thing to help.

This album feels like a trip down a tortured mind.

Still, the lyrics make the album, no question. The instrumentals are great, the vocals are strong, but the lyrics... He really has a way of keeping your attention, of pulling you in with melodies and punching you square in the jaw with total hopelessness and drug-fuelled spurts of vague happiness. The emotion is almost overwhelming at times.

I'd heard of him before, and I've even listened to one of his songs before, which I liked quite a bit. This is the first full-length project of his I've listened to though, and I'm looking forward to finding more of his stuff. This was great. *** Best song: Selfish Worst song: Falling Rating: 4/5

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This is horrible. The industrial style... It's so heavy, I feel like I'm drowning. It's crushing, overwhelming, uncomfortable,

grating.

There are definitely things here that are interesting, I liked passages from basically every song. But the vast majority of this album is just unadulterated trash. It doesn't even feel like music, just a random assortment of sounds barely "arranged".

I suppose that's the thing with experimental albums; if you want to listen to innovation in music, you have to be ready to listen to all the failures. Most of the stuff on this album doesn't work, it's horrible, actually. Occasionally, a nice melody plays, an interesting beat shines through... And that's it.

I'm trudging through shit in hopes of hearing gold. ^{Maybe I'm giving this shit too much credit...}

Also, this album is 2 years old, so I guess I've already listened to the good stuff in other songs, from artists that took inspiration... Really, it's unfair.

The lyrics are interesting sometimes. The flow, when there is a flow, is usually pretty cool. The spoken word sections are nice.

I mean, all things considered, this wasn't torture. But it did feel like Injury Reserve are unable to avoid ruining a perfectly good song with awful production and ridiculous vocal performances.

I don't have it in me to recommend this to anyone, ever. Their knees hurt 'cause they're growing, my ears hurt 'cause I'm listening to this album. *** Best song: Bye Storm Worst song: Superman That Rating: 1/5

Listen on YouTube!

Intense!!! That's the best word to describe this tsunami of an album. The beats keep coming at you, throbbing and punching. That is... Except when María finds the time to pull out an emotional ballad with beautiful lyrics.

It's good. I love how she breaks out the Spanish sounds so often. You can really tell she loves her music. This album feels unmistakably modern, it's hyperpop and violent, crazy, but it still manages to dress up in a red dress and dance.

It's a bit too violent, maybe... It really comes at you, no mercy, and the patches of beauty in the sea of insanity aren't enough. It's an aesthetic, sure, but it's almost sickening.

Still, it does what it sets out to do, and for the people that love this kind of sound, such as myself, it really hits the spot.

I'm looking forward to what's next for María. *** Best song: ME MIRABAS Worst song: CREO QUE HOY NO ME APETECE QUERERME MORIR Rating: 4/5

Listen on YT Music!

This is a short reminder to leave your hopes and dreams behind.

A beautiful project. I love the mostly instrumental nature of the album! The vocals are very welcome though, and the vocal chops add a lot to the texture of the tracks. And the vocals feel mostly like just another instrument, really.

This album feels like bubblegum and depression. I'm a big fan of hyperpop, so this really scratches a particular itch for me. It's weird in all the right ways, and it manages to have this connecting thread throughout the whole thing that makes it feel somewhat grounded. The spoken portions of the album add a special human flare to the otherwise very alien production, but they're not exactly great.

The Bandcamp entry states this was mostly made in-transit. I feel like the feeling of constant motion, of a rushing landscape, really permeates every note.

I wonder if Europa was travelling exclusively between 2 places though, as every song feels rather similar. It's nice, as I mentioned before, to have a connecting thread throughout a project, but there's not enough to distinguish every track, to make every entry unique.

Overall, I like it quite a lot. The laugh in Toxibaby is horrible. *** Best song: Absentia Worst song: Toxibaby Rating: 4/5

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A musical machine gun! A gauntlet of short tracks held together by... Almost nothing really. He manages to make some songs under 3 minutes feel TOO LONG. That's actually impressive, in a way.

The production leaves something to be desired; it's not bad per se, but it's just less interesting than I'd expect from the odd construction of the album.

If you're making a relatively short project (<40 minutes) with 18 tracks, I expect some variety, something interesting. And some songs do sound different, but there's a lot of sameness here... And it's not even that good. Sounds a bit like elevator music really. Pleasant, sure, but boooooriiiiiiing!

Also, he needs to improve his singing, or stop, or autotune maybe. His rapping is great, but this man can't hit a note.

>Niggas say I'm copying Tyler like he invented jazz >Half you niggas copying Carti like he invented ass

\- LONE SOLDIER

Hilarious line, but he does sound a lot like Tyler. It's not just Jazz, it's the way he writes, his flows, the way he changes his voice in some songs. Admittedly, this album sounds less like Tyler than \*GHETTOLAND, but it's still not particularly distinct. Maybe it's unfair to compare an up-and-comer with a mainstream artist.

I like the themes of family that come up pretty regularly. I appreciate a rapper that is so open about his life, his tribulations, about how much love he has and how much he cares for those around him.

I also appreciate the intentions behind the album, I like his call for the lost to try and just do what makes them happy, to try and find happiness even if the world is pulling them down, or holding them down.

So yeah, it's a respectable project. It's certainly not the worst thing I've ever heard. It's just not good either. It sounds very odd, so maybe it's for someone else, out there... *** Best song: LOVED ONES Worst song: GOOD THING Rating: 2/5

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This dude is REALLY trying to be like Kendrick. That's not a bad thing necessarily, but he's falling short.

You can't help but feel like this is a poor impersonation of K-Dot. The song The Huud Shtrayt is a rip-off, and not a good one at all.

Every song has those soul, melodic, hymn passages. I mean, they're nice, but why does every song have something like that? It's a Kendrick parody, that's why!

The message has some weight, I suppose. Empowerment and racial unity? I'm all for it, and I think it got through. There are some fun tracks too, and I like the self-awareness in taking part in this rap culture so full of boisterous consumerism, extravagance, while he's just some random broke dude. Talking about black gangs and street-life, and then getting called out for going to a PWI.

There's some high-points, such as Urgent-C, but the low points are painfully low.

The production too, it's nothing special most of the time, occasionally it's bad, occasionally it's good. Nothing to write home about either way.

Even the features! This is OK in every way, some good vocals, some bad ones, some good verses, some bad ones...

Still, I'm hopeful. If he can find his identity, if he can build something that's truly his own... I think he has promise. This wasn't bad. He's technically proficient in everything he does in the album, he just needs to put HIS OWN SOUL in his music, not Kendrick's. *** Best song: Urgent-C Worst song: The Huud Shtrayt Rating: 3/5

Listen on SoundCloud!

Nothing's right in this town...

A brilliant show! Tons of characters, all voice acted incredibly well. The production quality is incredibly high, and it really elevates the show.

That being said, the production quality is not the best part of the show, the plot is. The mystery is delightful, the drama is enthralling, and the occasional comedy is very much appreciated.

It's described as a "fantasy crime procedural", but really the fantasy element feels secondary. Don't get me wrong, it's front and centre in the story, but it also doesn't... Matter? It's an element of the story, but it would work without it. It's a tool to boost the horror and to justify some actions and prejudice in the plot, it's a justification for horrible things, but not a driving force exactly.

I love the way the show explores human nature and emotion: fear, desperation, regret, isolation, hope, determination... This is what moves the story. Blind hatred versus Total selflessness, truly a battle for the ages.

And as it ends, I am overcome with a want for more.

That's the one thing that keeps the show down; the amount of loose ends left at the end of the short 8 episode run-time is almost UNBEARABLE. There's so many things I want to know, and I fear I may never get to find out the secrets of Darkstead.

I guess that's the issue with building up such a great setting with such compelling characters in such a short time... There's just so much left to explore after you're done.

*** Rating: 4/5 Listen on Google Podcasts!

Guitar heavy production punctuated nearly every track by a face-punch bass on the chorus. Honestly, I vibe with it.

There's a decent amount of synths, the percussion is a bit deaf but it does its job.

Everything is a bit blown-out, which is definitely not for everyone, but I'm a huge hyperpop fan so this is really not an issue for me in the slightest.

Here's what is an issue: every track is the same. What I said applies to every track, everything sounds the same. I appreciate cohesion in an album, I do, but COME THE FUCK ON MAN, EVERY TRACK?!

Not to mention, every song is so short that this project really just feels like 30 minutes of Aries' vaguely whiny voice talking about some hypothetical lover and his success in the industry over blown out pop guitars. There you go, that's the album. It's a sludge of mediocrity... I felt like I was drowning the whole way through.

His flows are OK, I guess. His singing is OK, I guess.

But really, the production and the performance aren't the worst... The lyrics, god. A couple of highlights follow. *** Song: ETA >Prada shades I can't see through >Hello, mamacita >How long can I breathe for, under >So sentimental, zoom, zoom

Song: ONE PUNCH >You took a shot for the magazines, yeah >Another shot, John Kennedy *** It feels to me like Aries wrote a bunch of cool (?) choruses, produced the same beat 12 times, and just put them together, filling them out with whatever words he could pluck out of his brain. I mean, this dude is very talented, but this is NOT IT.

Perhaps I'm misjudging his music, I'm willing to admit that. Is this a compilation of stand-alone songs mislabelled as an album? *** Best song: HOW RUDE Worst song: ETA Rating: 1/5

Listen on YT Music!