Aug 8, 2025 at 6:10 PM Hey @Michael Myers if you wanna come back ill make a special event for Drake "ice man" We will all give it the s-----y score it deserves and you can try to change our mind
Aug 9, 2025 at 2:30 PM Arcade Fire - Neon Bible I was really excited to hop into this one. Aside from the Her soundtrack, I had never heard any Arcade Fire before (despite having Funeral downloaded on my computer for years at this point), so similar to the Pulp pick, I was ready to dive into a group that I had heard great things about. First off, I was surprised by the album's themes. I'm not sure what I expected from an album that's literally called Neon Bible, but I was caught offguard by the dark nature of it all. This album really reminded me of like 1984 or that movie Brazil. The lyrics to songs like "Keep the Car Running" and "Intervention" were really dark, but I enjoyed them. This point might sound a bit odd, but I feel like I enjoyed the album's themes more than the sound. I didn't dislike any of the songs or anything, but the instrumentals (mostly) didn't do much for me. This feels like a record that I might enjoy a lot more over 2-3 more listens, but after listening to this record once and a half, I guess it just isn't my sound, at least so far. Still, the album's messages were really cool in my opinion, so they're really what I got out of this for the most part. The exception is the closing track "My Body Is a Cage", which was really cool lyric, AND instrumental-wise. Still, I want to thank @Evad for the pick and yeah. Favorites: Keep the Car Running, Intervention, My Body Is A Cage Rating: 7/10 @AOTWClub @Justin Trudeau
Aug 10, 2025 at 12:41 AM @AOTWClub Sup fellas A little early, but since it’s past midnight, tomorrow is basically today. Here’s the pick of the week Failure - Fantastic Planet This band blends alternative rock, post-grunge, space rock and a few other genres, and they’ve become one of my favorites lately. I was debating between two albums. This one, which has more of a post grunge edge and ‘’The Heart is a Monster’’ which leans heavier into a dreamy atmospheric kind of sound. but this one is their most popular and I think the best starting point if you’ve never heard them before. Interesting thing about this band is that they went 20 years without releasing anything new. After putting out this album in 1996, they didn’t release another album until mid 2010s which also happens to be the other album I was talking about. Anyway, hope you enjoy.
Aug 10, 2025 at 1:55 AM Saw this album somewhere a few months back and saved it just for the banging cover art alone lmao. Excited to check it out.
Aug 10, 2025 at 2:49 AM A couple months ago I tried to get a physical copy of this album but it’s crazy rare. Some used CDs are selling for around $150.
Aug 10, 2025 at 3:33 AM @AOTWClub @Wreckless has shared his pick for the week I will tally up Arcade Fire- Neon Bible on Thursday!! Ripper Roo- 9/10 Failure- Fantastic Planet
Aug 12, 2025 at 7:50 PM @AOTWClub @Justin Trudeau Arcade Fire - Neon Bible Ngl I had no idea what Arcade Fire even sounded like and when I first heard about them I figured I wouldn't like them very much lol On first listen I figured my suspicion to be true, Black Mirror did nothing for me and while I didn't mind Keep the Car Running and the title track it still was keeping my interest. Then Intervention hit, something about that song really clicked with me and then every subsequent song I liked more and more. Black Wave, Ocean Of Noice, The Well and the Lighthouse were all great. Then (Antichrist Television Blues) came on and I thought that s--- was incredible, after already enjoying the song I did some research and saw it was heavily inspired by Jessica Simpson and her father which recontextualized in a f----- way that really hammers the point of the song home. Really liked Windowsill and loved No Cars Go but My Body Is a Cage is another highlight for me, it's a great distillation of the sound and writing of the album as a whole while still feeling like one of the most personal tracks. Best way I would describe this album is "Grandiose Melancholy". The writing was interesting while still being vague enough to project some personal experience into it which is appreciated. Win Butlers voice is cool, the whole band did great. Régine Chassagne's voice at points reminded me slightly of the lead singer of a band I listen to a bit called The Joy Formidable which was cool to hear. Then I spun the record back immediately again to see if y mind changed about the opening tracks, and it did! They're still not my favorites but I like them much more now and there's no song I dislike on here. I gotta listen to Funeral and Suburbs now. Favorite Songs: Intervention, Black Wave/Bad Vibrations, The Well and the Lighthouse, (Antichrist Television Blues) No Cars Go, My Body Is a Cage. RATING 8.5/10
Aug 12, 2025 at 7:51 PM My rating is bordering on a 9 but I want to spend more time with it which is a good sign!
Aug 12, 2025 at 9:21 PM Burn out is no joke yall. I slept for like 16 hours the other day. Take care of yourself!
Aug 13, 2025 at 8:33 AM Failure - Fantastic Planet Favorites: Saturday Savior, Sergeant Politeness, Blank, Dirty Blue Balloons, Solaris, The Nurse Who Loved Me RIPPER ROO’S RATING: 9/10 This album is exactly the vibe I needed right now. I love how moody everything is. The instrumentals are killer and feel grungy. The vocals are beautifully forlorn and angry, they fit the instrumentals well. It kinda reminds me of Nirvana. I love how the album starts and ends with the same sound effect. There’s a bunch of relatable lyrics here (Blank, Dirty Blue Balloons) as well as some interesting storytelling like on The Nurse Who Loved Me. I love the alliteration of Saturday Savior. The theme of space is interwoven in a cute way throughout the album along with the cover and title. Some of my favorite moments on the album are where they slow down a bit like on Blank and that makes the explosive moments more powerful. It also allows for some variation so the whole album isn’t the same throughout. There are some songs that feel weaker than others which is why I’m not giving this a 10/10, but the album is still amazing. @AOTWClub
Aug 13, 2025 at 10:20 AM Arcade Fire- Neon Bible Gonna do a quick little review only had time for 2 listens this week and they were spread out, ive been swamped at work. Anyways the album is pretty good. A Canadian band ive never really checked out. I feel like the piano on the opening track "black mirror" gives off a carnival-esque vibe which i really liked. The song itself is really good and got me excited to hear the rest of the album. "Keep the car running" is my favorite song on the album and its definitely one of the more upbeat tracks on here. Added it to my liked playlist. I really didnt like "neon bible" it was kinda a dud to me but "intervention" made up for it, the organ in the song is awesome. "Bad waves" is just a no go for me, hated it Then "oceans of waves" made up for it again, really enjoyed that song. I dont know how i feel about "the well and the lighthouse" even after multiple listens its just a meh to me. But once again "antichrist television blues" I really enjoyed, so its just been a constant back and forth for a few songs. And once again didnt enjoy "windowsill" that much but then really enjoyed "no cars go" The final song "my body is a cage" I found pretty decent too Sorry this review is quick and to the point, the album is pretty decent, just a lot of back and forth for me, so im gonna give this one a 6.5/10 @AOTWClub
Aug 13, 2025 at 10:46 AM Arcade Fire - Neon Bible review I’ll start my review off by saying that it is almost impossible for me to talk about this album without constantly refering to the record that preceeded it, Funeral, and the album that followed it up, Suburbs. These two albums are very important to me and were what made me a big fan of the band years ago. I did not really connect with any Arcade Fire material since like 2013 but that is irrelevant because of how absolutely crazy the projects I’ve mentioned are. The intro song here is a great mood setter that clicked with me immediately and did a great job of setting the stage up for Keep The Car Running, a song that is truly a gem and my personal highlight on this album. The amalgamation of tender folkiness and grand instrumentation that seems to be the blueprint idea that inspired this project reaches its peak on this song (and it is only track 2 lol) and isn’t really topped with the rest of the record, but it’s not like it wasn’t close. Despite the sound design and arrangements that the band went with on Neon Bible being undoubtedly ambitious, sometimes they take away from the album and make the vocal performances and lyricism feel less central to this project. The variety of instruments used is impressive but sometimes makes the songs sound like they’re too grandiose for their own good (I really did not care for how the organ was used throughout). Neon Bible has a number of strengths and is a logical entry in the band’s discography that is definitely worth checking out. It features some great writing, melodies, and moments that are reminiscent of the rawness and the passion the band introduced themselves with on their classic breakout record. Funeral was a record that optimized a smaller number of instruments and production tricks than Neon Bible did, yet, somehow, it still sounds much more monumental, intricate, and important. However, it is worth mentioning that following up a project like Funeral is probably the worst predicament the band could’ve found themselves in back in 2007 when Neon Bible was released. In hindsight this record makes a lot of sense; it was the predecessor to Suburbs (2010.), a record that I love because of how weirdly it embraces an Americana sound that was always present in the work of Win Butler but was urging to truly surface. Neon Bible is a record that sees the frontman slowly embrace this Bruce Springsteen-like demeanor that would then see him get critically panned. It wasn’t until Suburbs that Butler really made sense of what direction he’d take stylistically; Neon Bible just had to happen for him to succeed in dropping a second classic. The band’s newer output has been pretty trash due to Butler’s adoption of an Indie Jesus Christ persona, but listening to their older releases really brings joy to me. Neon Bible is no exception. My review may sound pretty rough and overly critical, but there’s not many albums that can stand in between Funeral and Suburbs and get away with it. I highly recommend y’all to check those two out if you liked what you heard on Neon Bible. Thanks to @Evad for the pick! Loved seeing AF get represented on the forum! Would definitely love to discuss more of their work. 7.5/10 @AOTWClub @Justin Trudeau
