Well you're missing out on a couple of the best tracks on the album so...maybe just start at track six next time ;)

I like it!

It's growing on me...I especially love Golden Platitudes and All We Make Entertainment.

The one with the banjo thing - I Think I've Found It - is one of the most annoyingly shit songs i've ever heard in my life.

Wat were they thinking with that?!!

Overall for me is 7/10

It's not a banjo, it's a mandolin. And I don't really get the hate towards ITIFI. Considering it's a Manics song it's underwhelming, but there are worse songs on PFAYM.

It's one of my favourites on the album, infact I think I love it.

I like the mandolin part of it.

It goes back to what Daniel said. They need more quality control. This sounds like shit that would be left off of EMG or This is My Truth or SATT.

We know they can do better, a lot of their back catalogue is a testament to that. What really irks me is that this is the kind of thing they're GOOD at an this album is just poor in comparison. I'm slightly offended that they expect us to lap this stuff up. They've done better than this. Maybe it's just a sign that they're not longer able to make great pop rock records.

As an aside I should also say that it's not even a relevant sounding pop record. It would have been in the 90s, but it's not today.

And let's not pull out the experimental card, eh? This is not an experimental record at all. It's an attempt to make a pop record, it incorporates elements of pretty much every record since 96. There's nothing experimental about it.

Also the comparisons to other pop tunes by other artists are probably deliberate on their part, in my opinion.

After a good chunk of listens I think the album isn't bad but it also isn't great. Some songs are growers while others are just horrible.

Some Kind of Nothingness is my favorite song on the album.

I would give it a 6/10 or 7/10. I guess 6.5/10.0 would be it for me.

I hated I Think I Found It first time around but now I actually think it's brilliant, particularly the chorus.

Experimental? Huh? I think your definition of experimental music differs greatly from the universally excepted understanding of what actually classifies music as experimental. The instrumentation they've used, or better yet, how they've chosen to incorporate them into songs is old hat. People like Burt Bacharach, Scott Walker, etc had been employing such sounds when the boys were still in diapers. Experimental implies that that the sound isn't familiar or at the very least, takes familiar sounds and turns them upside down. Usuing a sitar (though I doubt it's an actual sitar - most likely sounds generated from a keyboard, but I guess the physical release will clear that one up in the credits) is certainly different for the band, but it isn't exactly experimental in a broader sense.

I do think the Manics have been 'experimental' in their career - THB and Lifeblood are certainly proo of that - but from what little I've heard of this album (I have heard Hazelton Avenue though and I will admit, the sitar bit is the best part. Its lovely!), I don't think 'experimental' will ever be used to describe this album. It's an admittedly contrived album and therefore why would they attempt to experiment with sound when they're deliberately trying to appeal to a commercial audience?

Btw, I take exception to the remarks being made about why people are expressing their dislike for the new album. The accusations being thrown about are not only ridiculous, they're also insulting. I'll admit, I've not heard the entire album, but from what I have heard, I can tell it's not going to be my cup of tea. I've been a fan of the band since 1992 and while I consider the Manics one of my favourite bands (I literally grew up listening to them), I don't enjoy everything they've ever produced (GATS, KYE and SATT are all crap IMO), but the albums I do love, I consider some of my favs. Just because I'm likely not to enjoy their new material doesn mean I should bugger off as a fan nor does it mean I want every album to sound like THB (in fact, I've gone on record several times on this forum stating that I wish the band would be more progressive with their sound). The audacity of even implying something like that simply because someone may not like the new album's musical direction is a fucking joke!

[QUOTE=Tetsu;2072361]How was it not? The band has repeatedly said so. It was a special occasion album done to celebrate Richey's memory and talent. They said it's highly unlikely they make another record that sounds like it, because they can only get that type of sound with Richey's lyrics. I guess their whole post-Richey discography also kinda confirms this, doesn't it?

I think the phrase tribute album is what's causing a problem here. It makes the album sound like some cheap, off the cuff celebration to a lost member. Which it certainly is not. The interviews at the time always tended to lean towards the notion that the material left behind by Richey was of a certain artistic integrity and demanded to be used in some way. Maybe the tribute part was just a result of that process. I never personally got the impression that the tribute to Richey was the over riding purpose of that record, rather, that even 15 years on the lyrics were still pertinent and meaningful within a new context, and it was this meaning they wanted to get across. And as a result, like you say, make people aware of Richey again, as a lyricist.

Well it just goes to show eh, you can't please all the people all the time. I'm liking it so far.

I don't mind the able. It has a few surprises on it. I genuinely liked A Billion Balconies Facing the Sun the first time I heard it. The Future Has Been Here 4 Ever is also a surprisingly good Nicky song.

The only song I disliked immediately was I Think I Love It, which has grown a bit, I don't mind the end but the intro and the verse are a bit annoying lyrics wise. It's too saccharine for the Manics in my opinion.

But other than that Its a solid pop album. Some Kind of Nothingness is a good song though I may have played it too often already.

[QUOTE=SupernovaStar;2070672Golden Platitudes is so amazing[/QUOTE]

I'm curious what's so amazing about this track. I don't hate it, but it seems like half a song. There are only two verses, no chorus, the "Hey Jude" gospel-y bit at the end somehow seems too short... For me, it's tied with "I Think I Found It" for least favorite part of the album.

Ericstephenson, I don't hate 'Golden Platitudes' either. It gets better on successive listens, but still is on my bottom three. It could use another couple of lines of lyrics. Maybe if I'm in a more reflective mood, it'll resonate more.

Have i missed something? Has the album leaked?