A quality compilation from a Polish retro netlabel (7/10)
This is a quality compilation of contemporary club music: from electronica and nu jazz through hip hop to disco, all with a nice retro feeling, typical for productions coming from Estrada Nagrania netlabel. The retro feeling is strengthened through masterful mixing, blending modern tunes with sampled fragments of Polish radio programmes from the 1970s - often to very funny and surreal effects.
Only several of these tracks suit my personal taste, hence the rating of "7". However, trying to adopt a more objective view, I have to admit all of this material is top class and should satisfy a more club-music-oriented listener. And for people longing for "good old times", ready for a nostalgic time travel back to '70s - this should be a masterpiece. If somebody is interested in my choice, here is the list of my favorites: 04 - Symbiotic Sounds - 1987 08 - 2 Pac - Thug Style (produced by ylaib) 15 - Printempo - Szarosc poniedzialkowego popoludnia 17 - Ortalio - Cynematyka 19 - Graf Cratedigger - Lotniskowiec 21 - Sawersky - Spectral Type 1 22 - Synnc - Nights Of course, the clear winner is the one and only Printempo, whose new track is equally fabulous to the material from the debut album of this act, which I reviewed earlier. The album has been released by the Estrada Nagrania netlabel and you can download it for free in mp3 format. The lossless version is available in the netlabel's Bandcamp store under the "name your price" scheme. You can also listen to the full album online on Bandcamp. Of course, if you like this album and you intend to keep it, I encourage you to make a donation (purchase) through Bandcamp, even if you need only a free mp3 version. After all, "name your price" means any amount you can afford. PLEASE SUPPORT INDEPENDENT ARTISTS. |
Showing posts with label rap. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rap. Show all posts
28 September 2012
Various Artists - "Fonoteka 7 (Remixed)"
30 August 2012
scal.g - "Open World"
Calm electronic music with rock influences - very good! (8/10)
Calm electronic music with rock influences. Many tracks remind me of Moby, but I don't say they are just copies. Rather than that, both artists have similar approach to creating their music and they both use the same pieces of puzzle - just place them in a different way to compose a different picture. In brief: very good album for both electronica and rock fans. [mirror @ archive.org] | [Myspace]
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Labels:
calm,
cc-by-nc-nd,
electronica,
free,
hip hop,
instrumental,
jamendo,
pop,
pop rock,
rap,
synthpop,
vocoder
29 May 2012
Various Artists - "Newcastle Hardcore Vol. 1"
Interesting hardcore techno compilation (6/10)
My favorites on the Volume 1 are Pendulum - Feel The Pain and Syndicate - Lower Level. The latter reminds me of the early The Prodigy from the Experience period, but while the inspiration is very clear, this is not a blatant copy. The former has great disturbing dark atmosphere. Both songs are catchy, energetic and just pure fun to listen.
The other six do not fit my taste, being comprised almost exclusively of samples from other songs or speeches mixed with extremely fast techno-style drums. This is not creative, this is not catchy, this is not original, this is not anything interesting - for me this type of hardcore techno is totally boring. Still, if they are typical for 1994 Newcastle hardcore techno scene, they fit this compilation.
I guess this album is very rare now, but if you happen to run into it somewhere along the links, be sure to check it out, if you are a fan of hardcore techno. And do not forget to visit the official Bandcamp website of Bloody Fist Records, where you can listen to and buy some other releases from this label.
Newcastle Hardcore Vol. 1 & 2 [1994] was a first vinyl release of this label, presenting a compilation of artists from the local Newcastle hardcore techno scene. This is an interesting album, offering quality tunes, and although I personally dig only two tracks on each of the two records, the compilation remains a proof that the guy behind Bloody Fist knew what he was doing right from the start. |
My favorites on the Volume 1 are Pendulum - Feel The Pain and Syndicate - Lower Level. The latter reminds me of the early The Prodigy from the Experience period, but while the inspiration is very clear, this is not a blatant copy. The former has great disturbing dark atmosphere. Both songs are catchy, energetic and just pure fun to listen.
The other six do not fit my taste, being comprised almost exclusively of samples from other songs or speeches mixed with extremely fast techno-style drums. This is not creative, this is not catchy, this is not original, this is not anything interesting - for me this type of hardcore techno is totally boring. Still, if they are typical for 1994 Newcastle hardcore techno scene, they fit this compilation.
I guess this album is very rare now, but if you happen to run into it somewhere along the links, be sure to check it out, if you are a fan of hardcore techno. And do not forget to visit the official Bandcamp website of Bloody Fist Records, where you can listen to and buy some other releases from this label.
24 January 2012
Tanya T6 (Devyn Rose) - "Pieces"
Music for elevators (5/10)
Generic pop / RnB / hip hop product crafted and targeted at clients looking for utility music. I must say it really delivers in this regard, as it sounds exactly like everything else in this genre and it is recorded on a professional level. Mainstream radio stations and elevator vendors should be delighted. Being simply a sonic product, not a work of art, it is completely devoid of any artistic value. But this product is of very high quality and may be sold without hesitation from the "Premium goods" shelf, not from a discount basket. [Artist's Website] |
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30 December 2011
Various Artists - "Feu‘netik Sampler"
Very good drum & bass compilation (8/10)
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With our first release we open the floodgates and fill up your ears to the brim with a vivid variety of music in order to let it be heard in the way it's meant to be: totally free of charge and as individual as those who produced it. Whether it's intricate electro, smooth breakbeats, fresh hip-hop or relaxed ambient - a personal note always goes hand in hand with the musical ones. The phonetik fellas team up with the long-legged lady to define what a colourful and interesting compilation can be. And what it should be. :)
iDEOLOGY has entered the building. Leech on!
Very good compilation of independent electronic music. This is the first release of the netlabel iD.EOLOGY and right from the start they set the bar very high. The album is oriented mainly on (but not limited to) drum & bass. Some elements of breakbeat, nu jazz and downtempo can be easily found too, making the record more diverse and interesting. There is only a one flaw - a very unfortunate hip-hop song "Late At Night" by Broke Gringos. Not only it does not fit here stylistically, but what worse it is simply bland and boring. All the others are top quality, so if you like intelligent electronic music, do not hesitate to check it out.
The album has been released by the iD.EOLOGY netlabel and is available for downloading at the netlabel's website in mp3 and ogg formats. It has been released under a specific Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivatives license described here.
The album has been released by the iD.EOLOGY netlabel and is available for downloading at the netlabel's website in mp3 and ogg formats. It has been released under a specific Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivatives license described here.
SUPPORT INDEPENDENT ARTISTS
If you like this album and you can afford it, consider supporting the netlabel and its artists by purchasing goods in its shop. |
Labels:
breakbeat,
compilation,
downtempo,
drum and bass,
electronica,
free,
hip hop,
iD.EOLOGY,
nu jazz,
rap
22 December 2011
Dollar Rex - "Chromatic"
Professional recording, but not quite my style (6/10)
This is a professional recording, showing expertise in producing catchy techno / house tunes, heavily based on disco and to a less extent on hip-hop and funk. Some tracks heavily reminded me of the works of the French duo Air, with their vintage sound. Disco-based house is definitely not my favorite genre and while these tracks may probably work on the dancefloor, the most of them are too primitive to be enjoyable. Still I managed to find three tracks that are quite interesting for me, despite their disco origin (nos. 03, 07 & 09). The rest is rather tiring with monotonous marked beats and uncreative and repeating sampled vocals. Fans of disco music can safely add 2 or 3 points to my rating, as it is a quality work from the technical side. It is strange, because this album is shared two times on Jamendo, in exactly the same versions, governed by the same type of a license. The second one can be found here. It has been also archived by archive.org. |
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Labels:
cc-by-nc-sa,
disco,
electronica,
free,
funk,
hip hop,
house,
jamendo,
rap,
techno
13 December 2011
Xenophobe - "Episode 2"
One of the best bands you have never heard of (8/10)
Very interesting recording supposedly featuring electronic reworking of music by Warfare, a metal band from the 80-ties, completely unknown to general public. Warfare's Myspace profile (yes, they have one!) says they were: "Thrash band from the Jersey shore in the mid 80's. All songs recorded live at band practices through headphones onto cassette..." |
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If this is true, it is another proof that talent hunters at the record labels are deaf and you need just a massive luck to be accepted. Why? Because these songs are great.
Of course even in these reworked versions you can hear the limitation of the poor equipment and recording conditions. But what counts is that they are catchy and energetic and if these guys were given a chance, they could easily turn them into metal masterpieces.
OK, but what about these updated versions? Well, they are still merely of a demo quality, because they were recorded in the nineties on cheap analog equipment. Yet these tunes are so well crafted that I enjoyed them very much despite their extremely lo-fi sound. The album starts with an earthquake - an industrial metal riff of the first track "Mad". Equally powerful is the third track "Dawn Of Time". No. 4 is a little slower, as to make some room for handful of strange samples. No. 5 "Phat and Funky" seems to contain a vocal line by Les Claypool of Primus, although the album's description does not mention that. Maybe it's someone else perfectly imitating his voice, though it feels unlikely, when you know how distinct Claypool's voice is. So anyone thinking of using this music commercially, should take double care, because it may contain some copyrighted material.
From the track no. 6 the arrangements change from industrial metal into synthpop / new wave, but keeping their main feature - catchiness. Another stylistic change comes in track no. 9, where we meet hip hop, followed by rap metal in the next tune. In track 11 we go back to metal. The album ends with two crazy renditions of "Wild Thing" (probably still copyrighted too!).
The only weak track is no. 2 "Acoustic Song" - with a primitive melody, and low quality plastic-sounding samples (not that electronic sounds in other tracks are of exceptional quality, but in this one they are truly terrible).
To summarize - this album is a true gem and I recommend it to anyone ready to listen to very good music in not so good quality.
The album has been released by the NoiseCollector netlabel and is available for downloading at archive.org in mp3 and ogg format.
Of course even in these reworked versions you can hear the limitation of the poor equipment and recording conditions. But what counts is that they are catchy and energetic and if these guys were given a chance, they could easily turn them into metal masterpieces.
OK, but what about these updated versions? Well, they are still merely of a demo quality, because they were recorded in the nineties on cheap analog equipment. Yet these tunes are so well crafted that I enjoyed them very much despite their extremely lo-fi sound. The album starts with an earthquake - an industrial metal riff of the first track "Mad". Equally powerful is the third track "Dawn Of Time". No. 4 is a little slower, as to make some room for handful of strange samples. No. 5 "Phat and Funky" seems to contain a vocal line by Les Claypool of Primus, although the album's description does not mention that. Maybe it's someone else perfectly imitating his voice, though it feels unlikely, when you know how distinct Claypool's voice is. So anyone thinking of using this music commercially, should take double care, because it may contain some copyrighted material.
From the track no. 6 the arrangements change from industrial metal into synthpop / new wave, but keeping their main feature - catchiness. Another stylistic change comes in track no. 9, where we meet hip hop, followed by rap metal in the next tune. In track 11 we go back to metal. The album ends with two crazy renditions of "Wild Thing" (probably still copyrighted too!).
The only weak track is no. 2 "Acoustic Song" - with a primitive melody, and low quality plastic-sounding samples (not that electronic sounds in other tracks are of exceptional quality, but in this one they are truly terrible).
To summarize - this album is a true gem and I recommend it to anyone ready to listen to very good music in not so good quality.
The album has been released by the NoiseCollector netlabel and is available for downloading at archive.org in mp3 and ogg format.
Labels:
archive.org,
cc-by-nc-nd,
cover,
demo,
electronica,
experimental,
industrial,
instrumental,
lo-fi,
metal,
new wave,
noise,
NoiseCollector,
non-free,
rap
21 November 2011
Various Artists - "The WIRED CD Rip. Sample. Mash. Share"
Very good compilation (8/10)
This is a very good compilation from the variety of artists, some of which are well-known, like Beastie Boys or David Byrne. The compilation is very diverse stylistically, ranging from hip-hop, r&b and latino through rock to electronica. Most of the tracks are really good - I didn't like only 4 tracks out of 13, so it's a quite nice ratio. Be sure to check it out! The fact that some famous artists support the CC licensing mode deserves the highest praise on its own, of course, and makes it a very important work just because of that. By the way, visit the official website for three more tracks not included on the Jamendo edition. |
***Check out the official website for licensing information*** [Official website] |
21 April 2011
Celibatfighters - "Envol, l'"
Mediocre achievement (5/10)
This is not a bad recording. These guys are generally skilled, they know how to play their instruments, singing is acceptable, although sometimes their performance lacks confidence. The same could be said about production. Most of the time it is OK, sometimes it could be better. My main problem is with melodies, which don't appeal to me. The two exceptions are no. 6 "Ne reviens pas" and no. 09 "Fin de la vague" - these are quite catchy. I can't speak French, so I can't say anything about lyrics. Maybe they are exceptionally good, what usually rises the rating, even if the music isn't particularly attractive. Having access only to the musical side of this work, I cannot judge it higher. Sorry, guys. [Artist's Myspace] |
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15 April 2011
Samplastik - "Duchowe karate"
Hip hop masterpiece (10/10)
I don't like hip hop. It doesn't mean I am unable to appreciate and enjoy good hip hop works. What I mean is that this genre is generally so devoid of creativeness and populated by morons without even a trace of talent that good hip hop works are almost as hard to find as the brain of G.W. Bush. I hate boring R&B beats repeated in the majority of hip hop songs like they were produced on the same assembly line in a Chinese rap factory of Crappy Music, Inc. I hate stupid self focused lyrics ("Yo niggas! This is MC Moron rapping to all my hommies. Let me tell ya all them bitches are mine."). I hate uncreative ripping off the music of others only to drown it in a meaningless mumbling of some retard. That is why I usually avoid hip hop, because the probability it will be listenable is extremely low. That's why it's almost a miracle I didn't just move along seeing this is a hip hop album. It must have been the sixth sense or something that stopped me and forced me to try it out. Because this is the rare hip hop gem. With great intelligent meaningful lyrics. With great flow. With powerful rhyming skills: "Niósł czerwony grzebień w tylnej kieszeni I lekko się uśmiechał wychodząc z sutereny Potem przeczesał włosy chyba setny raz z kolei Wyjął Carmeny, miał plamę na flaneli." This is an excerpt from "Czerwony grzebień", a really atmospheric song about a serial killer - one of the best on this album. But that's still not all. What else? Original beats - no repetitive R&B shit here. The record is full of catchy creative tunes, utilizing a variety of real instruments (or really convincing samples) and clever electronic sounds. So... Yo niggas! Listen to me! Let me tell ya this. Samplastik is the mastah of a hip hop bliss. No, no, take it easy - that's not Samplastik. That's just my take on a shitty hip hop. Quite successful I think. ;-> Back to the subject. Despite the above rave and the highest possible rating, you shouldn't get the impression that I think this is a perfect work. It could be better. Not every song is equally good (the worst being no. 15 "Niczego więcej", another take on a similar theme to that of "Czerwony grzebień", but much less successful), but still, you have 17 tracks here, and the average quality is definitely sky-high for the regular hip hop. Not every track is also original (for example no. 07 "Więcej nie chcę" strongly resembles Eminem's work - too strongly in my opinion). So why five stars? Because it rises so high from the pool of usual hip hop shit, that it deserves to be acclaimed. Like Samplastik well put it himself: Widziałem was na spotkaniu w Empiku / I saw you waiting for fans in the record store Jak siedzieliście sami przy stoliku / You sat alone by the table I tylko jeden dziennikarz się spytał / And only one journalist asked you Jak można gówno tłoczyć na płytach. / How come they publish shit on CDs So it's not 10/10 on my scale, but rather 10/10 on a hip hop scale. This record is definitely 100% shit-free. The final disclaimer: all the lyrics on this album are in Polish, so this work may not be interesting for people that can't speak our strange language. |
![]() [Artist's website] |
SUPPORT INDEPENDENT ARTISTS
If you like this album and you can afford it, consider supporting the artist by making a donation. |
13 April 2011
Ogg Vorbis - "Tube H Yeah"
Interesting fusion electronica (6/10)
Interesting fusion electronica. However, there is too much of rap and distracting sampled speeches for me on "3 Les messagers" & "6 Tube H yeah". And "4 For nightclubers" is just a primitive dance/house tune - it differs negatively from the rest. I can recommend only the following tracks: 1 Pornosax 2 La charogne 5 Killer il est ![]()
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Labels:
cc-by-nc-nd,
dance,
electronica,
free,
funk,
funk rock,
house,
jamendo,
rap,
rock
08 April 2011
Ogg Vorbis - "No. 2"
Not bad but too chaotic (7/10)
Quite good actually. Better than the first album. But too chaotic. Let's take, for example, no. 3 Space Aviator - what have we here? Jazz improvisations, strange electronic sounds, samples of an aeroplane, rap, funk, flamenco guitar, vocalise, atonal piano solo, slogan-chanting and many more - and all of this in under 6 minutes. It's almost like listening to a recycle bin of an audio editing program. I felt pity for all those samples that couldn't make it... Poor bastards. Maybe if they were shorter, you could fit another 50 or so? Please excuse my sarcasm - I like genre-mixing, but it's not enough to throw 100 samples into editor and press "save" button... Maybe you've done hard conceptual work here, but if so - you've missed it. The result is chaos. But quite nice chaos. :-) ![]()
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25 March 2011
Various Artists – "Music For Danny DeVito"
What a brilliant idea! (9/10)
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This is a very good compilation of songs by independent artists. It is very diverse stylistically, ranging from various genres of techno and electronica, through hip hop and pop up to rock. So I guess everyone would find here something of interest. Mr. DeVito included.
I liked 10 tracks out of 16, which is not a perfect, but still very very decent, score. While some songs are first class records, there are a few, which are below average for me. However, I'm giving this compilation one additional point for the brilliant surreal concept of making this album as a gift for the great actor Danny DeVito. I love this kind of humor. And this hilarious cover - guys from Mixgalaxy Records totally rule.
I won't elaborate on bad tracks for a change. Let's focus on the good ones this time:
02 - Grosse - Mousy Cheese Song
A funny parody (I hope so ;-) ) of an acoustic rock ballad - vocal line is comprised of "la la la" sang out-of-tune over an acoustic accompaniment.
03 - Cubic - Unded
Another not fully serious recording. Looped kitschy sounding trumpet as a leading tune for some electronica. Funny and catchy.
04 - Zunzagi - Empathy
Classy trip hop / pop. Nothing too original (like the most of trip hop), but very atmospheric and catchy, with nice dreamy vocals and good accompaniment.
06 - Bear and Lampshade - Witch Hunt
Great breakcore. Don't miss this one!
07 - Gipa - Mad Electric Dog
Very good creative techno / electronica.
08 - PiXtar - Space Adventure
Electronica flirting with industrial and synthpop.
11 - YARA - Walk On Clouds
Creative and interesting ambient.
14 - Without Time - Trap
Great rock / post rock. Atmospheric, dreamy, catchy, powerful.
15 - Fedorov Mark - By The Sea
Calm acoustic instrumental rock. Not bad at all.
16 - Waterplea - Spring Reprise
Calm instrumental rock. Nice dreamy atmosphere.
The album has been released by the Mixgalaxy Records netlabel and is available for a direct download as well as at archive.org in mp3 or ogg format. Additionally, it is available on the sonicsquirrel.net website and in the BitTorrent network.
I liked 10 tracks out of 16, which is not a perfect, but still very very decent, score. While some songs are first class records, there are a few, which are below average for me. However, I'm giving this compilation one additional point for the brilliant surreal concept of making this album as a gift for the great actor Danny DeVito. I love this kind of humor. And this hilarious cover - guys from Mixgalaxy Records totally rule.
I won't elaborate on bad tracks for a change. Let's focus on the good ones this time:
02 - Grosse - Mousy Cheese Song
A funny parody (I hope so ;-) ) of an acoustic rock ballad - vocal line is comprised of "la la la" sang out-of-tune over an acoustic accompaniment.
03 - Cubic - Unded
Another not fully serious recording. Looped kitschy sounding trumpet as a leading tune for some electronica. Funny and catchy.
04 - Zunzagi - Empathy
Classy trip hop / pop. Nothing too original (like the most of trip hop), but very atmospheric and catchy, with nice dreamy vocals and good accompaniment.
06 - Bear and Lampshade - Witch Hunt
Great breakcore. Don't miss this one!
07 - Gipa - Mad Electric Dog
Very good creative techno / electronica.
08 - PiXtar - Space Adventure
Electronica flirting with industrial and synthpop.
11 - YARA - Walk On Clouds
Creative and interesting ambient.
14 - Without Time - Trap
Great rock / post rock. Atmospheric, dreamy, catchy, powerful.
15 - Fedorov Mark - By The Sea
Calm acoustic instrumental rock. Not bad at all.
16 - Waterplea - Spring Reprise
Calm instrumental rock. Nice dreamy atmosphere.
The album has been released by the Mixgalaxy Records netlabel and is available for a direct download as well as at archive.org in mp3 or ogg format. Additionally, it is available on the sonicsquirrel.net website and in the BitTorrent network.
Labels:
ambient,
archive.org,
breakbeat,
cc-by-nc,
compilation,
diverse,
downtempo,
dubstep,
electro,
electronica,
experimental,
free,
house,
Mixgalaxy Records,
netlabels,
pop,
rap,
rock,
techno,
trip hop
23 March 2011
Paradeigma - "Galoperidol"
Terrible hip hop mixed with electronica (0/10)
Terribly ugly hip-hop mixed with chaotic electronica. Avoid at all costs. The album has been released by the 49manekinow.net netlabel and is available for downloading at archive.org in mp3 format. |
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Labels:
49manekinow,
cc-by-nd,
chaotic,
electronica,
free,
hip hop,
netlabels,
rap,
songs for the deaf
22 March 2011
K-not - "Prodigity"
Classy electronica (8/10)
Classy electronica (mostly breakbeat and dubstep). Diverse and entertaining. Highly recommended. By the way, people who want to use this work commercially should be warned that the track no. 7 "Black Fog" contains a sampled vocal part from "Good Girl Gone Bad" by The Herbaliser. It is so distorted though, that's it's almost impossible to recognize. Apart from Jamendo, this album has been released by the 49manekinow.net netlabel and is available for downloading at archive.org in mp3 format. Strangely, this release is governed by a different CC license: ![]() You can also download it directly from the artist at Bandcamp for free in a variety of formats, including lossless FLAC version.
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![]() [Artist's Myspace] |
Labels:
49manekinow,
archive.org,
bandcamp,
breakbeat,
cc-by-nc-nd,
dubstep,
electronica,
experimental,
flac,
free,
jamendo,
lossless,
netlabels,
rap,
techno
16 March 2011
K-not - "Sinfinity"
Quite interesting electronica (6/10)
Quite interesting electronica, although not every track is good. Some are influenced with primitive house, dance and hip-hop (3,4,6,9,11). Also the cover of "Missing" is dull. All tunes are also slightly too repetitive. By the way, "Missing" is of course copyrighted, so CC license does not apply here.
The album has been released by the 49manekinow.net netlabel and is available for downloading at archive.org in mp3 format. You can also download it directly from the artist at Bandcamp for free in a variety of formats, including lossless FLAC version. |
15 February 2011
Psicodèlic FunkilljazZ - "Psicodèlic FunkilljazZ"
I've got mixed feelings about this (5/10)
The musicians are skilled. They try to mix rock, funk, latino, hip hop and many more genres. Still, the overall result is not convincing for me. Apart from tracks 05-07 of the closing suite, which are really nice. But tracks 01-04 are worse. No. 01 lacks power and a little bit of craziness, which are required in this kind of music. No. 02 wanted to be crazy and funny, but something didn't work as planned. They are not RHCP - not yet. Then no. 03 - too long, with very irritating female vocals and many elements that do not fit each other. Very tiring. And finally, track no. 04. A really dreadful ballad. Never do this mistake again. A boring melody with terribly bad, ugly vocals. Fortunately, then the "Odyssey of the lobster" (nos. 05-07) saves the day. It's almost as played by a different band - especially comparing to a horrible track no. 4. |
![]() [Artist's website] |
SUPPORT INDEPENDENT ARTISTS
If you like this album and you can afford it, consider supporting the artist by making a donation. |
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