Music Reviews

Let me just preface this by acknowledging the fact the I am a little biased towards these guys – after all they are THE band that defined my childhood. Still, even with all that in mind, this new album of theirs is pretty darn solid if I do say so myself, almost to the point where I wouldn’t mind calling it an instant classic.

You can hear that right off the back with the opener as well as the title track „EL PRESIDENTO“. The signature Kabát sound is there immidiately with a few electronics thrown in there that are actually really subtle and blend in very nicely and also make together with the rest of the song for one hell of an opener. The track absolutely kicks ass and wastes no time in doing so. Right after that comes the big hit „RUMCAJS MILOVAL MANKU“ and sweet mother of god this track absolutely solos. The chorus on this thing makes me want to just drunkenly moshpit with a bunch of sweathy 40 year olds – so basically everything a Kabát song should be. The solo before the last chorus is also a nice touch, honestly with most of these songs my biggest complaint is I wish they were just longer. Anyways after that comes „KAZAČOK“ whitch is another trademark Kabát song, this one especially sounds like something they would have done early on, the nostalgia is almost overwhelming. The weird voice interpolations fit right in with the rest of the song and overall make for another banger. „OPILEJ KLAVÍR“ is perhaps the first song I’m not super crazy about, it’s just a decently well made slower song. Nor the chorus nor the riff are all that memorable compared to some of the other songs here, the song just sort of exists, it’s fine. „ZATOULANEJ JAPONEC“ picks things up immidiately though, the riff is super energetic and just screams fun. The whole song is like a wave of positive energy and the lyrics are super goofy – also the really short country-esk switch-up that happens towards the end of the song is a really nice touch, it comes completely out of nowhere but works surprisingly well, I just wish it was longer. „TESTOSTERON“ I think just takes too long to actually get started and by then the song is basically just over and it feels very ammateurish when compared to other songs here, even though there are parts of it I enjoy. „ZA ZTRACENÝ NÁMOŘNÍKY“ is one of my absolute favorites from this album – both the riff and the similar orchestration that kick the song off are super catchy and creative and almost have a Nightwish feel to them. I also like the little segment that happens after the chorus, the guitars absolutely steal the show here. The solo is short-lived but welcomed regardless, overall this song is an easy highlight. „TŘI SOBY“ has one of my favorite choruses on this album and also has some really fun riffs and the solo is also one of the better ones (mostly because it lasts longer than just 5 seconds), I’m kind of running out of things to say about these songs, just know that this one is definetly one of the better ones on here. „TROLL“ is a song I was really excited to hear (yes, it’s just cause the name) and I gotta say this one really did deliver. I really like the way the drums are mixed on this one, they are super crisp and punchy, also the electronics are tastefully incorporated as well, this one’s not bad as well. „SLADKÝ TÓNY“ has a really nice sentiment and a really sweet melody to back that up, but again, I just kinda don’t have much else to say about it, I like it. „ZÁTKY“ is perhaps th most adventerous and experimental song on here – the jazzy elements really make this one of the best songs on this whole album, the trumpets and western-esk pianos are an awesome addition to the song that really bring it to new heights. It’s also just super fun and you can just hear through the music that they had a ton of fun with it too. However I did maybe speak too soon with the experimentation, because the next song „NESMRTELNÁ TETA“ has like almost a Death Grips type opening which is a comparison I never thought I would ever make – this gets brought back a couple of times throughout the song but I wish they did a bit more with it to be honest, the industrial sound works surprisingly well with Kabát. There is also this bizzare almost spoken word breakdown at the end that also just comes and goes – overall I appriciate the risks this song takes but I really wish they would have maybe build more on some of these ideas, because they have amazing potential. Anyways the closer „ONI“ is just your typical melodramatic trying to pluck at your heart strings type song which is a little disapointing I have to say, not that this format in general is bad at all, but Kabát don’t really bring their own spin on it in any sort of way – it’s an okay closer either way.

So yes, this new Kabát album actually kinda delivered – like there are some of their best songs period on this album and they sound like they really enjoyed making this album, which is what’s most important, especially when most of these songs sound this good.

-favorite tracks: EL PRESIDENTO, RUMCAJS MILOVAL MANKU, KAZAČOK, ZATOULANEJ JAPONEC, ZA ZTRACENÝ NÁMOŘNÍKY, TROLL, SLADKÝ TÓNY, ZÁTKY, parts of NESMRTELNÁ TETA

-least favorite tracks: ONI, OPILEJ KLAVÍR

Strong 7/10

… wow.

Alright so… I’m kind of speechless right now. The numbers are running through my head and honestly I’m seriously considering giving this the perfect score. Like… Is this even the same guy who made „From Me To You“?? Because this seriously is on another level, this surpassed all and any expectations I ever could possibly have for this man. I still just have no idea where to even start with this, this album is just too much.

I guess the best way to start is just do you know, just do it – the album opens up with the multi-phased „sorry4dying“, an amazing tone-setter that right off the back sounds like nothing Quadeca made up to that point, the improvement on all fronts is apparent right from the start with the lyrics, the aesthethic and just the overall quality of sound off this song, I really feel this is Quadeca at his most realised yet. And the streak of stellar song doesn’t stop there, right after we are blessed with the song „tell me a joke“ which was actually a single release prior to this album and it’s not surprising to see why – once you get used to the burried sound the song is easily one of the most instantly infectiuous and catchy of the whole album, the chorus gets stuck in my head like at least 3 times a day. It’s also just one of the most cohesive songs on the whole album, the song structure is super unique and unpredictable and it never becomes stale or boring, you’re always just at the edge of your seat thinking about where will the song go next. And if that wasn’t enough the song finnishes off with a rather grand finale, a crescendo if you will, that’s just the absolute cherry on top. The next song „don’t mind me“ has probably one of the weaker tunes of the whole album, however it more then makes up for it with honeslty what is just an even catchier chorus melody than the last song, the „closed eyes and a dream“ is just sung so beautifully I can’t get enough of it. It kinda drags in the middle portion of the song admittedly, however I can honestly look past that with all the other amazing things this song does right, it’s just comparing this one to some of the other songs on the album, this one’s just ever so slightly not as impressive I’d say. Even less so maybe with the next song „picking up hands“ which is perhaps the only song of this album I’m not just super in love with – don’t get me wrong it’s still great and continues the narrative concept really well, but the sound isn’t all that memorable compared to the others and the climax at the end just feels a bit rushed and un-deserved, like there was pretty much no build up leading up that – still a pretty good song, but if I really wanted to speedrun through this album and had to skip a song, this would probably be my pick even with the 8 minute closer. Fortunately this is as „bad“ (which is a joke to say obviously) as this album gets, so it’s really only up from here. Speaking of the next song „born yesterday“ is a prime example of that – this song honestly rules. This is the song that also marks the „banger territory“ as I like to call it on this album, which is basically the entire rest of this thing. Anyways the song just paints such a serene and hauntingly beautiful picture with these atmospheric guitars and glitchy instrumentation, it all feels super other-worldly and kinda off but in a good way. The vocal harmonies on this one are also just genius, can’t get enough of the „ooo“s, again, just the way they are sung clicks with me heavy. After this song we have the only interlude on this album titled “ the memories we lost in translation“, which I gotta say for interlude standarts this is a pretty good one not gonna lie. Then again it’s still an interlude so there is not all that much to talk about, but I definetly think the harp strings and swirling orchestration should just absolutely take your breath away either way. It also just leads perfectly into the next song „house settling“ with DANNY FRICKING BROWN. Yes, you’ve heard that right, the guy that made Atrocity Exhibition is on this track and is rapping in the most hungry way from the perspective of carbon monoxide (I couldn’t make this up if I wanted to) and the best part is that it absolutely solos. Like my man absolutely kills it, Quadeca does really well on the song too, but once Danny comes on he honestly absolutely steals the show, who are we kidding. The verse also just goes on and on and on, he just never stops dropping these weird but strangely fitting bars, like there is just something really unsettling (get it) with this whole song and I think Danny has probably the most merit in this. So yeah, this is a pretty good one if I do say so myself and it only gets better from here with the next song „knots“ which is a song I was probably the most conflicted on my first listen, mostly because I just didn’t expect this extremely experimental grungy harsh Death Grips-esk thing from Quadeca and even if I did nobody could have prepared me for how extremely well he would pull it off – like this might just be my favorite song from this entire album now. It definetly takes a while to get used to, but once you do oh boy this song just keeps on giving each and every time. It’s probably the least accessible song from this entire album but with that also the most experimental and boundary-pushing, like even if you don’t like it (which like how) you gotta at least respecet Quadeca for just making this one, like this just shows his artistic evolution. Anyways after this raging banger comes the 7 minute long behemoth of a song „fantasyworld“ which is probably the album’s emotional opus, the build up throughout the song doesn’t get tiring for one second and once everything finally crashes down on you, you are instantly just transported into a different dimension (a fantasyworld if you will). I’m getting tired of just repeating myself over and over again but yeah, another pretty good one, honestly no words can’t really do these song justice. Speaking of these words don’t do you justice the next, and also second to last song, „fractions of infinity“ is essentially the calm after the storm. The mezmerizing keys with the haunting atmosphere of everything is really unnerving but also weirdly comforting and it all manages to not be cheezy or tacky throughout this whole album mind you. This song also feature and I kid you not the Sunday Service Choir, like how does one even get that on a song?? But yeah, just for that this song is a must listen, the repeated mantra „these words don’t do you justice“ (now the transition finally makes sense) is honestly just a complete tearjerker, I cry to this song like 90% of the times I listen to it and I ain’t even ashamed to admit it. And finally the album closes up and ties everything nicely together with the last song „cassini’s division“ which is this spoken word piece with really gorgeous instrumentation that I think fits perfectly right here at the end of the album, it just puts a nice little morbid bow on everything. Once that’s over the song in the last few minutes fades out into this buzzing mess that eventually just stops which was a really nice touch.

And there you have it folks, my album of the year contenders made by a youtuber, never in a milion years though I’d say that but here we are – however don’t get it twisted, this thing truly is a masterpiece in the purest sense of the word and I just can’t wait to see where Quadeca goes from here, because in my eyes I think there is still a chance he might top this one of someday in the future – either way, go stream this thing, bye.

-favorite tracks: all of them lmao

-least favorite tracks: picking up hands (if i had to PICK one get it)

Strong 9/10

The long awaited 3rd studio album by the infamous youtuber turned singer Joji is after what felt like an eternity finally here and right of the back I gotta say this one kinda flopped. I’m not sure if Joji’s label was just forcing him to release something but besides a few key tracks this album feels more like an EP than his literal EPs. Like the enitre second half of this album is as undercooked as it gets – also on that note this is the last album in the world that would need 2 fricking discs, like the material on here can barely be counted for one disc considering it’s just around 20 minutes long. However there are, as always with Joji, few incredibly high highlights but even the short runtime can’t save those from being burried beneath just so many filler and clearly unfinnished tracks. Let’s go through some of those now, shall we?

The album kicks off with the literal best track on the album and also the big single from this thing „Glimpse Of Us“ a heart-wrenching piano ballad that sets the bar up so high for the rest of this album that even actual non-rushed tracks would have trouble measuring up to it. The lyrics are really heartfelt and Joji’s singing is very on point, everything just clicks with this one and it also just sticks with you for a long time. Things go south from here super fast though. The next song „Feeling Like The End“ has a solid trap beat that I think could have worked if the song just had a little more meat on the bones – it just comes and goes before you even get used to the switch in sound from the last song and it just leaves you kind of confused and craving for more. I do like the song overall, I just think it would have really benefited from just being longer, maybe have anohter verse also something like a bridge and you’ve got yourself a pretty decent Joji song, but like this it’s just decent. However the next song „Die For You“ does picks things up quite substantially, it’s another really solid ballad, with actual drums this time around and honestly just ear-gasmic Space Song-esk guitar licks and synth work that just transports you into another dimension – this one’s another hit for me, really wish this album had more songs like this one. After that comes the song „Before The Day Is Over“ where the only redeeming quality is honestly the lyrics, they for some reason really hit close to home for me, but I just wish the rest of the song was as intresting to convey those lyrics. Like if I don’t get grabbed by the lyrics and the story immidiately, the song just starts to drag so much and I usually tend to skip it. The first disc if you can even call it that closes of with the song „Dissolve“ that’s kind of hit or miss for me – there are some parts of it I really like but overall it’s just super forgetable and uninspired, not much else to say about it, the autotune is used really poorly here and the watery guitars just do nothing for me, it’s just a nothing burger of a song.

Now the second half has only 4 songs out of which 1 is an interlude, 1 is a demo and 1 is apparently a freestyle that’s honestly barely a song. And the only actual song on this side „NIGHT RIDER“ just straight up is not good. The sound effects are obnoxious and super distracting and again, there is just nothing to talk about here, like if you removed this song and honestly the entire second half and just released this as a weird EP mixtape thing it would have honestly been just so much better. The „BLAHBLAHBLAH DEMO“ sucks, like the song is just bad. The vocal melody is kinda nice? But yeah, the song literally says to you it’s a demo, like why is it even included on here. „YUKON (INTERLUDE)“ is probably the best song out of the bunch here, it’s just the most listenable and solid cut on this side, but again nothing mind-blowing, I could take it or leave it to be honest. And finally the outro song „1AM FREESTYLE“ is just barely a song, it’s a nice outro song I guess, but it just tries to make this whole thing somewhat of a full experience when it’s just clearly just not.

And yeah, that’s Joji’s latest album SMITHEREENS – an album that had a lot of potential for being his best but ended up being arguably his worst. I’m sorry, I definetly can appriciate his growth as a singer and his song-writing capabilities have definetly improved as well over the years, but this is just blatantly unfinnished. I really think his label was just pressuring him to release something, because this album is the third of the length of his last and it has somehow double the ammount of filler.

-favorite tracks: Glimpse Of Us, Die For You, parts of Feeling Like The End and YUKON (INTERLUDE) and lyrics on Before The Day Is Over

-least favorite tracks: Dissolve, BLAHBLAHBLAH DEMO

Light 6/10