A SHORT REVIEW OF BARONESS’ BLUE RECORD, DESIGNED TO MAKE YOU WANNA BUY THE ALBUM
Tuesday, October 13th, 2009 at 12:30pm by Axl Rosenberg
I’m gonna keep this short n’ sweet, because we’ve already expressed many times how much we love this album. But if a few of you need some graphics of horns to really convince you to go out and buy this thing, so be it.
In a perfect world, Blue Record (no “the”) would make Baroness one of the biggest bands in the world today. There just aren’t a lot of bands making rock music this good anymore – forget metal, I’m just talking good, old fashioned rock music, as it was meant to be.
It was meant to be loud and aggressive and sexy. Listening to it was meant to make you feel good.
Listening to Blue Record will make you feel good.
Like a certain Atlanta band to whom they are often compared, Baroness have probably spent as much time listening to Yes and Animals as they have Sabbath. Blue Record is hard, but not necessarily angry. There are people who will mosh at a Baroness show, but those people are kind of douchie, and you shouldn’t aspire to be like them.
Blue Record is, at its heart, a classic rock record. Yes, it sounds kinda retro, but in this case, “retro” is kind of synonymous with “human.” The guitar rolls, the bass slinks, the drums are big and warm. At no point will you wonder if a computer helped make this album, even if it’s entirely possible that computers did help make this album.
Blue Record isn’t the heaviest album of the year, isn’t the most evil album of the year, isn’t the most br00tal album of the year. But it might be the best album of the year. It’s more likely to instill in you the desire to make out with your girlfriend or boyfriend than to kill her or him. But, at least for this critic, that’s a big part of its appeal. We’ve had plenty of great, Satanic records this year. An aural massage is just what the doctor ordered in the tail end of ‘09.
So. In case you still need some horns graphics to convince you to go buy this thing:
(4 1/2 out of 5 horns)
-AR
I didn’t like it. you owe me a prostitue…I’m waiting
I swear, when you guys want to get on a band’s dick, you GET on the band’s dick.
Granted it’s a decent album but it’s not necessarily mindblowing. There’s plenty of other bands doing the sludge thing too that sound quite similar.
Sludge? Really?
Why is it every time a writer extols a band it’s considered “dick-getting-on”. You don’t see it as mind blowing because your expectations prevent you from listening to an album with objective ears. This is a great album, and there is nothing “sludgy” about it.
The production is pretty sludgy-sounding… Which is kind of disappointing considering it means a lot of the nuance of the (absolutely amazing) guitar playing is lost.
It’s entirely understandable, because sludge is a big, big part of Baroness’ roots, but they’re far more than that now and I think that the sound of the album is somewhat of a let-down considering the content of it.
It’s still quite possibly the best thing I’ve heard all year though (it’s hard to say- it’s been a good year!)
Too late, I already bought it. Should be arriving today or tomorrow, and I can’t wait to get on its dick too(metaphorically-speaking, of course).
Its a decent album, I’ve been listening to it the past week. It is rare that a good solid rock album is released these days it seems like,but beyond that it isn’t mind blowingly awesome. I definitely don’t see how it fits in as album of the year. Its a good album, worthy of listening to, but not a defining moment of the year.
Its good ok. I just wanted a free prostitue.
i will agree with metalsucks here, Oceano is better than this shit.
clearly Mr. Suarez’s review yesterday was a joke. how many people did not get the sarcasm
clearly mr hellboars comments 20 minutes ago were a joke. how many people did not get the sarcasm.
this album still sucks.
Earache is quoting the MetalSucks review in their latest Oceano press release.
That’s fucking priceless.
It’s an okay album, nothing too spectacular as most everyone else has noted. The production is excellent, though. On Red Album the band sounded too “clean”. Drums sound especially good on this one.
I think either the new red chord or btbam will be the greatest album of the year.. but that’s just me.
For once, I agree with MS on this one. Fantastic.
I never really got huge into these guys, but they are definitely growing on me. Perhaps an album purchase will sway me more.
Just checked these guys out fairly recently, but I’ve been streaming this album non-stop lately. I really love the melodies, the composition, the repeating musical themes throughout. This is an ALBUM, in the truest sense of the word, meant to be listened to from beginning to end. It’s not the heaviest, not the craziest, but it is one of the best all the way through ALBUMS I’ve heard in ages. Thank you, MetalSucks, for turning me onto this band. I’ll have to check out The Red Album now, too.
Just bought this on itunes this morning. I can’t wait to get baked and play this fucker front to back.
Out of curiosity, you say that this might be the best album of the year, yet you gave it a lower rating than Crack the Skye. Doesn’t that already say that you think it’s NOT the best album of the year?
Vince reviewed the Mastodon one. Contrary to popular belief, multiple people write for this website.
Ahhh fair enough. I wasn’t sure if you guys consulted each other for the final results of your reviews or not. Anyways, both are definitely best-album caliper, so I can see why they both received such praise. Thanks for the response!
I can assure you that I consulted no one but myself when I gave Oceano’s ‘Depths’ a 5/5 rating.
Red Album is better
yup
I disagree… Blue Record is more consistently great. ‘Rays On Pinion’ is still my favorite Baroness song, though.
It’s gonna take a few more listens of Blue to decide for sure, but at the moment Red is still edging it out.
Maybe I just need to hear it a few more times. I loved their old albums, first listen of the Blue album I was severely unimpressed.
It took me a few listens to enjoy the album. I like the album but still prefer Red over Blue.
Avatar Test
Fail?
Finally there are some reviews rolling in on MS.
Also, do you people (the commenters) can’t just enjoy? Don’t answer, it’s a rhetorical question
It is also a nonsensical question :-)
At first I thought Mastodon’s Crack the Sky was Album of the Year, until I heard this one, I think I might switch it out for this one. Both are fucking amazing, I can’t decide. Totally deserved equalling the 5 horns that CtS won. Unlike that shit from yesterday.
Good “mood” music. Terrible “driving” music.
Agreed! It’s great for running though!
I’ve had it in the car non-stop for the past few days. I think it’s excellent driving music, especially because it sounds better when you turn it right the way up!
(unless you meant something other than driving a car when you put “driving”?)
I’m with Axl on this one. There’s something about this album that 99% of music today lacks. It’s kind of hard to put your finger on it, but there is a welcoming sincerity to this album. Blue Record is easily on the top 3 albums of the year for me.
Agreed. Just made it through the first listen. Like the red album, there is something special and sincere about the songs they write that really is hard to identify, but is it there.
Great album. Definately in the top 3 for me as well.
I plan on buying the album, when its released on vinyl. Hopefully they’ll have it on tour
I think it’s out on vinyl? At least, one of the pre-order options was for a vinyl edition. Gatefold sleeve and everything.
Am i the only one who thinks that MS is getting a bit too generous with their ratings lately (obviously not including the Oceano joke). Don’t get me wrong, this is a good ass album, but giving everything 4.5’s doesn’t really give me a good idea of what a quality or shitty album is. Just saying maybe you need to be a bit more conservative next time MS.
In technical terms, this is known as “Rolling Stone Magazine Syndrome”
Mastodon’s CTS blows this B.S away! As everyone elso already stated, very UN impressed by this… and also another BETTER rock record – Alice in Chains BGWTB.
They definitely used computers on this album. Listen to “O’er Hell and Hide” again. Great record though.
I love this album a little more every time I hear it, and I listen to it A TON.
FREE show with Coliseum this Friday night in Asheville, NC. I know some smartass will say that even free is paying too much, so let me go ahead and assure you we’ll all be glad you won’t be there. That is all.
It’s a grower. I love Baroness but it’s not Album of the Year. Top 10. maybe even top 5.
This is the biggest polished turd of 2009. Most of the songs are the intro repeated…..2 out of 5 brass turds.
eat shit and die
hahahaha
i was so pissed when i couldn’t find it at the CD store today
its fucking bullshit that they didnt have it there, because i know they stock baroness shit, it was the same place i bought red album,
i love this record; its keeping me alive! take the product of this record and crack the skye, and you will find next years renaissance of progressive rock. cts is definitely tighter thematically, and more virtuosity, but br has way better art and the melodies are better.
baroness might inspire me to travel to usa to see them. should i go detroit or buffalo? does anyone know if baizley sell posters or prints or anything at shows?
that said, vocals are meh, drums are meh. and it definitely doesnt blow away the red album.
Prints are available at their shows. They do his artwork even more justice.
Do not go to Detroit. I wouldn’t go to Detroit for Zeppelin.
I reviewed this album on my music blog last night as well:
http://lexiconofsound.wordpress.com/2009/10/13/blue-record/
Please visit, read, and leave a comment if you have the time. I’m just getting this thing started, so I’m looking for all the input I can get.
Awesome album… easily top 5 of the year for me, probably #4 after Clutch, Gorod, and Ensiferum. And the review is fucking spot on.
Great review
Gave a shoutout to MetalSucks in my review of this record on my own blog. Thanks for turning me on to such an incredible piece of music! Relapse picked it up on Twitter, and then the band posted it on their Twitter and Facebook as well. Couldn’t have done it without MetalSucks. Anyways, here’s a link to the review: http://themusicarium.blogspot.com/2009/11/baroness-blue-record.html