Apr 7, 2026 at 10:44 AM Just talked to Marsh about movies and realized again why I just stay in this thread
Apr 8, 2026 at 8:57 PM @AOTWClub @Justin Trudeau Olivia Rodrigo - GUTS I'm already obviously familiar with Olivia's work but i haven't listened to this album in full in years so it'll be interesting to see if my opinion has changed at all. All-American b---- is a great opener, does a good job of showing the dynamics of the sound of the album is gonna be with some solid ironic energy to the writing. Always perfered her in the rock bag. Fun transition into Bad Idea Right? Which is another fun track, took me a while to get used to the more spoken verses and these songs always had a self aware energy that i appreciate, some really solid guitar parts at the end as well. Not in my absolute favorites but a solid cut for sure. Vampire is the start of the slower songs on here, thankfully i like her voice and i think it lyrically fits where shes at and her age. I appreciate the building in the energy throughout the track. Can maybe feel a bit derivative and reminiscent of her other ballads but it works perfectly fine for what it is. If anything i like it a bit more than i used to. Lacy is weird to me cause its one of the songs on this record that gets stuck in my head the most but its nothing super special despite my soft spot for it. Some cool lines and i do like the rise in vocals when the beat kicks in. Ballad Of A Homeschooled Girl is one of her best songs hands down imo. Gives that modern fem punk sound that reminds me of other acts i enjoy like Destroy Boys, The Beaches, The Regrettes and even the slightly more upbeat Beach Bunny songs at times. Super catchy, incredible hook. The slow down into the build for the last chorus is perfect. I enjoy Making The Bed, pretty good melodically and i like the lyrics. Like i said before even though it can be similar i have a bigger appreciation for her lyrics than Taylors cause it fits the young girl aesthetic of people figuring their s--- out. Works better for me in that very melodramatic age range. Logical is alright, i actually really like her voice here but much like SOUR the ballads can get a bit redundant even if i like them all. I think shes good at having her slower songs still have very catchy parts so it never feels like a slog. Bridge and outro is really solid on here "I know I'm half responsible and that makes me feel horrible" is a good lyric for the context of the rest of the song. I like when people writing songs dont entirely play the blame game. Get Him Back! Is *just* a Beck song, thankfully i like some Beck songs so this works for me. Love the hook on here, music video is also pretty fun. Not much to say just a solid little single. Love Is Embarrassing is another highlight for me, fun 80s/90s groove to it. Great precussion to fit the vibe and her delivery is perfect for the track. Catchy as all h--- it still gets stuck in my head. Another great bridge as well! Don't really remember The Grudge at all but wow this sounds a lot like Driver's License lol. Still a decent song, feels like if one of Lorde's ballads from Melodrama weren't as strong. Some good lines in here though for sure. Pretty Isn't Pretty is another favorite for similar reasons to Love Is Embarrassing. The thing that sets it apart though is that I think her writing is more interesting when she hits on different topics than just love or breakup songs. Its not an original song idea but it feel pretty real to her and its also just a good song. Up there with her best songs imo. I think most people in the zoomer era either deals with or has dealt with some form of body dysmorphia so i appreciate when its touched on. Teenage Dream is a solid closer, some parts of this lyrically such as "I fear they already got the best parts of me" hits pretty close to s--- ive thought about myself before. I think this is a really good way to close out a sophmore album specifically. Love love love the outro on here. Overall if anything I think my thoughts stayed similar about the quality of this record, if anything its more consistent than I remembered. I go back and forth whether i like this or SOUR more but both are really consistent and solid projects for someone still early in their career. Excited to hear the new album and good pick @Ripper Roo! Favorite Songs: all-american b----, ballad of a homeschooled girl, love is embarassing, pretty isnt pretty, teenage dream RATING 8/10
Apr 8, 2026 at 11:19 PM The former prime minister of Canada runs a weekly music club. It only costs 500 a week to participate bro. DM Justin to join.
Apr 9, 2026 at 12:23 AM I love the irony and self-awareness Olivia often provides. It’s one of the reasons her writing is often more engaging and relatable than the typical popstar. Even back when vampire first came out it always gave me an inexplicable nostalgic feeling. That chorus is just epic. There’s a theatric element to the song I love. Plus that bridge is underrated, Olivia is one of the queens of bridges right now. Absolutely. With the vibe of her new album she’s providing so far along with the lead single being called “drop dead” it makes me think we will be getting more punk. One of her lyrically deepest songs for sure. One of the more unique songs in her discography. Definitely. “They all say that it gets better but what if I don’t” love that line. Also love how it’s like the complete opposite vibe of Katy Perry’s Teenage Dream. h--- yeah!
Apr 9, 2026 at 3:12 AM Tag the group or myself you stupid f--- Thanks for your attention to this matter!!!
Apr 9, 2026 at 3:14 AM @AOTWClub ill be thallllllyyyyying up the Olivia Rodrigo Album tonight later on for anyone who hasnt reviewed
Apr 9, 2026 at 10:46 AM GUTS - Olivia Rodrigo REVIEW Score: 9.0 Review: This album is so f---ing good dude. I can't help but glaze the h--- out of this album because O Rod is my favorite artist to blow up in the 2020's (other than Yeat) so I'm always going to hype this album up...and it legitimately deserves! I appreciate how she made sure this album wasn't just SOUR 2. While there are def songs that can fit on SOUR, I do not feel that any are leftovers from sessions for SOUR. This album showed artistic growth, even just being 2 years removed from SOUR. More versatile sound, better songwriting (even if I still like the songwriting on SOUR), and feels more tight of a listen. Favorite songs on here are all-american b----, vampire, lacy, ballad, making the bed, the grudge, and pretty isn't pretty. making the bed was my favorite O Rod song overall for the longest, but recently it has become the grudge. To me, that speaks volumes that I can come back to an album that I have been back to over and over almost 3 years later when the next album is about to come out and a different song blows me away and becomes my favorite. You knew I'd say this, but phenomenal pick @Ripper Roo @Justin Trudeau @AOTWClub
Apr 9, 2026 at 1:17 PM Purple Mountains - S/T review Okay so, since I missed out on reviewing several albums already in this round, I am totally okay with my score not being included in the final rating once everything’s tallied. However, I love this album to bits and already listened to the thing dozens and dozens of times before so I just had to do a writeup of sorts. David Berman is probably one of my favorite artists of all time. I love his work so much that I even got his book of poetry ‘Actual Air’ a few years back (I’d recommend this to anyone who’s into that sort of stuff, it is a collection of some truly great postmodern poems that have been blowing me away for years. Anyway, onto the music. As a diehard Silver Jews fan, I was so d--- hyped once Berman announced the end of his hiatus in 2019. At that point he’d been pretty much retired since 2008 and new music seemed highly unlikely. Him coming back with a new project altogether elevated the excitement further. I had been itching to see how the guy evolved over the 10 years he’d been away. And boy he showed up big time as Purple Mountains. As bleak as this album is, with its depression-brimming lyricism that we now tend to read as evident foreshadowing, it is also absolutely beautiful and highly intelligent. Berman’s music had always felt like poetry over instrumentation; with this album, though, this idea is absolutely perfected. Songwriting-wise, the record is sharp throughout. Berman comes through with his signature style that blends humor, self degradation, cynicism and observation into a single dark but brilliant body of work. It’s absurd how good this guy was, and even more absurd how his already off-kilter approach continued to get better during the years he’d been away. I also have to shout out the music on this album. The sound of this thing is very tasteful. It’s digestible country that is, despite the gloomy subject matter, highly melodic and catchy. I’ll say right away that I have absolutely zero gripes with this record. My only ache is that we never got any more of Purple Mountains. I’ll go ahead and paste some of my favorite lyrics from the album: I’ve been forced to watch my foes enjoy Ceaseless feasts of schadenfreude Ghosts are just old houses dreaming people in the night This world is like a roadside inn and we’re the guests inside, And death is a black camel that kneels down so we can ride We're just drinking margaritas at the mall This happy hour's got us by the balls Magenta, orange, acid green Peacock blue and burgundy Drinking margaritas at the mall Songs build little rooms in time And housed within the song’s design Is the ghost the host has left behind When you’re seller and commodity You gotta sell yourself immodestly Turn your pedestal into a carving board If that’s what the audience is starving for And to think he only made this album cause he was broke and living in a studio apartment paid for by Drag City. Rest in peace. 10/10 Thank you, @Yeez for picking this album. I just had to hop out of my hiatus for this one. @AOTWClub @Justin Trudeau
