The Album Review Club - Week #192 (page 1292) - 3ft High & Rising - De La Soul

[GornikDaze]

If I’d have gone early with my score this week following my first listen it probably would’ve been an 8. As I mentioned in my earlier post, I love the delta blues feel it’s a pleasure to listen to, but the vocals (specifically the lyrics) were a problem

Fast forward to today, I’m four listens in, and the vocals/lyrics are still a huge issue for me. I’ve not been to Morocco, and with no intention to trade Mrs Daze in for 3 camels and a tagine, I can’t see it happening. I get if you’ve been there you feel the vibe more vibe. But even on a sweltering evening in the Black Country with the faint whiff of weed in the air as drivers make their way back from work, I’m struggling.

The Black Keys did a great Delta Blues album collab just after Covid which the guitar sound reminds me of and this led me back to that. It was a much more enjoyable experience.

So I’ll cut my initial score and drop to a 5/10. Who knew that lyrics did actually mean that much to me?!

On a positive note Mrs Daze loved it and “would happily listen to more of this” - not whilst I’m around she won’t! ;)

 

[Coatigan]

If I’d have gone early with my score this week following my first listen it probably would’ve been an 8. As I mentioned in my earlier post, I love the delta blues feel it’s a pleasure to listen to, but the vocals (specifically the lyrics) were a problem

Fast forward to today, I’m four listens in, and the vocals/lyrics are still a huge issue for me. I’ve not been to Morocco, and with no intention to trade Mrs Daze in for 3 camels and a tagine, I can’t see it happening. I get if you’ve been there you feel the vibe more vibe. But even on a sweltering evening in the Black Country with the faint whiff of weed in the air as drivers make their way back from work, I’m struggling.

The Black Keys did a great Delta Blues album collab just after Covid which the guitar sound reminds me of and this led me back to that. It was a much more enjoyable experience.

So I’ll cut my initial score and drop to a 5/10. Who knew that lyrics did actually mean that much to me?!

On a positive note Mrs Daze loved it and “would happily listen to more of this” - not whilst I’m around she won’t! ;)

Maybe she should trade You for 3 camels! ;)

 

[GornikDaze]

Maybe she should trade You for 3 camels! ;)

She’d get the hump without me around ;)

 

[Mancitydoogle]

TINARIWEN AMAN IMAN



The nearest I’ve got to listening ‘World Music ‘ is a couple of Paul Simon’s and David Bryne’s albums.
So this was a totally new listening experience. Unfortunately I like my lyrics and obviously I couldn’t fathom what was being sang although a number of tracks sounded melancholic.I liked the guitar playing and the hypotonic hum of the rhythm section, the vocalist reminded me of an Tuareg Steve Earle on some songs.

It made for fine background music , but it’s not something I’d listen to again, I guess you had to be there to fully appreciate it.

Very different but interesting choice Spires and brilliant back story Coats

6/10

 

[FogBlueInSanFran]

TINARIWEN AMAN IMAN



The nearest I’ve got to listening ‘World Music ‘ is a couple of Paul Simon’s and David Bryne’s albums.
So this was a totally new listening experience. Unfortunately I like my lyrics and obviously I couldn’t fathom what was being sang although a number of tracks sounded melancholic.I liked the guitar playing and the hypotonic hum of the rhythm section, the vocalist reminded me of an Tuareg Steve Earle on some songs.

It made for fine background music , but it’s not something I’d listen to again, I guess you had to be there to fully appreciate it.

Very different but interesting choice Spires and brilliant back story Coats

6/10

This is an effective encapsulation of my thinking .As I am trying to move this week (old man downsizing) and I have a piece to write tonight, I will be brief (for me). While perhaps I’ve heard slightly more “world music” than MCD, the majority is probably somehow connected to Byrne/Eno and/or Paul Simon and/or Peter Gabriel too. As such I don’t have a lot of context for quality and no ability to connect with the lyrics. That said, a small musical theater group my oldest was associated with has done some wonderful things (like a musical of the story of Odysseus) and more to the point a musical done entirely in dead languages that I quite enjoyed. I do have a thing for high-pitched child-like choruses as I’ve heard in other music emanating from Africa. And the guitar here is unique and in some spots brilliant (especially in the opener). But as I listened through this I found myself trying to decide if — apropos of nothing else — this was a jam band or a groove band. I have more time for the latter than the former, which is why I lean towards “My Life in the Bush of Ghosts” as opposed to The String Cheese Incident or — god knows — Phish. The tunes kind of waver back and forth between the two, and though I don’t know that one should try to pigeonhole Tin as such, it helps me given I don’t have any sense for the lyrical content. I will say that a) I think o might like this more with repeated plays and b) I’d be curious as to if there are records this rather prolific group made that are considered “better” (in heavy quotes). It’s a solid 6/10 for me. And on the question of appropriateness, I absolutely think the weekly bus driver gets to put the destination on that rotating sign above the windshield and I appreciated this change of thread pace. I assure you my pick will be far more in the category of nostalgic junk though!

 

[GoatersLeftShin]

Years ago a mate of mine said I had to go to see these as they were playing the original blues etc. I don't quite know what I was expecting, maybe a 'better' blues or something but it didn't hit the spot for me. It just didn't float my boat and to some extent it made me think that basically I'm just too atuned to Western music. They were good live though and quite a few in the audience got into it and I felt slightly jealous that they were hearing something I couldn't get!

I had a listen to this album and again, it wasn't for me. It's not bad at all, but it's one that I can appreciate.

5/10

 

[LGWIO]

It made for fine background music , but it’s not something I’d listen to again, I guess you had to be there to fully appreciate it.

I think this about summed my thoughts up as I listened to this on the plane over today. I think I enjoyed this more today than listens in the car, although I still cannot get into the backing/chorus at all. The main vocals I can live with...seems very unfair me saying that, as even in a foreign language he can sing better than me.
But whilst I didnt hugely "get" this offering, I did enjoy it and have to thank @threespires & @Coatigan for the background and giving it a story.
Whilst I have never been to Africa, it did allow for some flights of fancy and looking at the pictures did give the music added weight.
The dipping in and out comments I could get though. Something new once again to broaden my horizons and I may look at trying out some of their other stuff.
The Bury jury says thank you and a 6

 

[BlueHammer85]

It made for fine background music

6/10

Don’t you mean dinner party music ?

 

[Black&White&BlueMoon Town]

Aman Iman - Tinariwen
A bold and adventurous pick by @threespires, and between that and the Coatigan backstory and reading about the band's formation in refugee camps in North Africa in the 80's, I felt I was in the right frame to listen and appreciate this dessert blues album. As others have rightfully mentioned, the music on this was the high water mark, and probably what I appreciated the most out of this.

A few initial follow-ups before I get too far that will help with the context of this.

I just relocated your nomination of "Toumast Tincha" from the Playlist Thread off the "Spaced Out" theme from the later album Emmaar, recorded in Joshua Tree State Park, and remembered how much I enjoyed that track.

And I think what I enjoyed about that track was the lack of backup vocalists that I could mostly hear on this album, as LGWIO also pointed out. While not altogether a negative, I don't feel the backup vocalists added to lead singer Ibrahim Ag Alhabib on some tracks.

And what also was not included on that excellent track from the later album was the ululation effects, found in a few songs, that, to me, really were an annoyance here. The ululation is a vocalization used in Arab culture, particularly at celebrations like weddings, to express joy and excitement. It's a long, wavering, high-pitched sound, often described as a trilling or howling noise. While not yodeling in the Western sense, it shares a similar quality of vocal manipulation with rapid changes in pitch. That unfortunately was probably the biggest negative for me, though I totally get it is part and parcel with the theme in the album. It's also why I didn't enjoy a track such as "Ahimana" as much as others might have.

To me, the five standout tracks on this album were in this order, and it was mostly from the guitars and overall chord progressions:

1. "Assouf" - musically, this was tops with the psychedelic distortion blues music sound
2. "Tamatan Tilay" - a very close second, I really enjoyed this one a lot with the strong percussion start
3. "Toumast" - similar title to the Playlist song, this too was very strong with the guitar-centered approach
4. "Matadjem Yinmixan" - a nice tough with a simplistic and quiet guitar start
5. "Awa Didjen" - the repetitive sound here with the understated guitar worked well

The band has collaborated and been influences for many western musicians, and I want back to check this out:

It wasn't hard see how Robert Plant and others are fans of this band after hearing some of his more recent post-Led Zeppelin solo albums, some that have similar eastern influences.

The album in question from Page and Plant was their 1994 album No Quarter that featured a reworking of Led Zeppelin songs featuring a Moroccan string band and Egyptian orchestra. It also included four Middle-Eastern and Moroccan-influenced songs, especially my favourite "City Don't Cry". I enjoyed going back to listen to that on CD this week (not on Spotify [edit: in the US]) to see how it compared a bit in approach to the Tinariwen selection.

Overall, despite the non-English lyrics, I think the music on the whole was really the takeaway from this week and the pleasure about this selection. The instrument talent from the band is obvious, and despite the lyrical and mostly vocal challenges already noted, this was a 7/10 for me with some interest in their later album Emmaar that I also still plan to check out.

 

[Coatigan]

Aman Iman - Tinariwen
A bold and adventurous pick by @threespires, and between that and the Coatigan backstory and reading about the band's formation in refugee camps in North Africa in the 80's, I felt I was in the right frame to listen and appreciate this dessert blues album. As others have rightfully mentioned, the music on this was the high water mark, and probably what I appreciated the most out of this.

A few initial follow-ups before I get too far that will help with the context of this.

And I think what I enjoyed about that track was the lack of backup vocalists that I could mostly hear on this album, as LGWIO also pointed out. While not altogether a negative, I don't feel the backup vocalists added to lead singer Ibrahim Ag Alhabib on some tracks.

And what also was not included on that excellent track from the later album was the ululation effects, found in a few songs, that, to me, really were an annoyance here. The ululation is a vocalization used in Arab culture, particularly at celebrations like weddings, to express joy and excitement. It's a long, wavering, high-pitched sound, often described as a trilling or howling noise. While not yodeling in the Western sense, it shares a similar quality of vocal manipulation with rapid changes in pitch. That unfortunately was probably the biggest negative for me, though I totally get it is part and parcel with the theme in the album. It's also why I didn't enjoy a track such as "Ahimana" as much as others might have.

To me, the five standout tracks on this album were in this order, and it was mostly from the guitars and overall chord progressions:

1. "Assouf" - musically, this was tops with the psychedelic distortion blues music sound
2. "Tamatan Tilay" - a very close second, I really enjoyed this one a lot with the strong percussion start
3. "Toumast" - similar title to the Playlist song, this too was very strong with the guitar-centered approach
4. "Matadjem Yinmixan" - a nice tough with a simplistic and quiet guitar start
5. "Awa Didjen" - the repetitive sound here with the understated guitar worked well

The band has collaborated and been influences for many western musicians, and I want back to check this out:

The album in question from Page and Plant was their 1994 album No Quarter that featured a reworking of Led Zeppelin songs featuring a Moroccan string band and Egyptian orchestra. It also included four Middle-Eastern and Moroccan-influenced songs, especially my favourite "City Don't Cry". I enjoyed going back to listen to that on CD this week (not on Spotify) to see how it compared a bit in approach to the Tinariwen selection.

Overall, despite the non-English lyrics, I think the music on the whole was really the takeaway from this week and the pleasure about this selection. The instrument talent from the band is obvious, and despite the lyrical and mostly vocal challenges already noted, this was a 7/10 for me with some interest in their later album Emmaar that I also still plan to check out.

No Quarter is indeed on UK/European spotify, and I myself revisited it this week in a bit of nostalgia. Think it is one though, that does work better with its video content as recorded, than as an album. Imho.

I actually considered nominating it previously. The clue would have been a plant on a piece of A4 paper, with the full collection of US coins on it too, but with the quarter missing. For similar themes of discussion as here, but with a safer less ballsy frame. But for reasons of the video taking precedent, and also following shortly after a zeppy sounding nomination, I pivoted.

 

[Coatigan]

This is an effective encapsulation of my thinking .As I am trying to move this week (old man downsizing) and I have a piece to write tonight, I will be brief (for me). While perhaps I’ve heard slightly more “world music” than MCD, the majority is probably somehow connected to Byrne/Eno and/or Paul Simon and/or Peter Gabriel too. As such I don’t have a lot of context for quality and no ability to connect with the lyrics. That said, a small musical theater group my oldest was associated with has done some wonderful things (like a musical of the story of Odysseus) and more to the point a musical done entirely in dead languages that I quite enjoyed. I do have a thing for high-pitched child-like choruses as I’ve heard in other music emanating from Africa. And the guitar here is unique and in some spots brilliant (especially in the opener). But as I listened through this I found myself trying to decide if — apropos of nothing else — this was a jam band or a groove band. I have more time for the latter than the former, which is why I lean towards “My Life in the Bush of Ghosts” as opposed to The String Cheese Incident or — god knows — Phish. The tunes kind of waver back and forth between the two, and though I don’t know that one should try to pigeonhole Tin as such, it helps me given I don’t have any sense for the lyrical content. I will say that a) I think o might like this more with repeated plays and b) I’d be curious as to if there are records this rather prolific group made that are considered “better” (in heavy quotes). It’s a solid 6/10 for me. And on the question of appropriateness, I absolutely think the weekly bus driver gets to put the destination on that rotating sign above the windshield and I appreciated this change of thread pace. I assure you my pick will be far more in the category of nostalgic junk though!

I am glad you mention the guitar sounding unique, because for all the previously mentioned hook dangled familiarity that it gives, and what/who it may remind us of, it's subtlety maybe flies under the radar a bit. Yeah the echos and reverberation of the electric guitar sound bluesey, but his playing style which I struggle to describe - 'minced' maybe? sound almost 'oud-ey' or bouzoukeyish, which to me grounds it back to its roots. Rather than just sounding like a western instrument added in for a gimmick or a bit of novelty, it is the driving sound of the album, and also kind of bridges (boke) the two worlds/sounds.

 

[Coatigan]

Technical Note:

The Blue Moon Forum has moved to 20 posts per page (as opposed to 10) - see the Techincal Queries sub-forum.
This means that our page number index in post #1 is now wrong.
As Ric has said that the change is not necessarily permanent, I'm not going to update the index yet but will do so if the change is confirmed (and will be looking for volunteers to help me!).

Must be some clever mathematical formula to work it out so it is self-working.

@threespires, ever worked as a maths professor?

I was half joking with this, and half not (you'll see what I did there in a minute). Turns out, there is.

Simply halve the page number that is listed on the first page, and that gets you to the relevant page. If it is an odd number, rounding up takes you to the write-up, rounding down takes you to the clues leading up to it.

Tried it for the first few and it seems consistent, eventhough the numbers themselves are random seeming.

I mean, who would have thought that doubling the number of posts on a page, would equate to halving the number of pages!

Edit - up until the point of changeover (the greenleaf album), obviously, at which point it stays as is

 

[RobMCFC]

I was half joking with this, and half not (you'll see what I did there in a minute). Turns out, there is.

Simply halve the page number that is listed on the first page, and that gets you to the relevant page. If it is an odd number, rounding up takes you to the write-up, rounding down takes you to the clues leading up to it.

Tried it for the first few and it seems consistent, eventhough the numbers themselves are random seeming.

I mean, who would have thought that doubling the number of posts on a page, would equate to halving the number of pages!

Edit - up until the point of changeover (the greenleaf album), obviously, at which point it stays as is

It seems obvious, but it also seems obvious that there might be a few that fall onepage eiher side.

As noted, I'm happy to leave it as it is for a few months, just in case Ric changes his mind.

 

[Coatigan]

It seems obvious, but it also seems obvious that there might be a few that fall onepage eiher side.

As noted, I'm happy to leave it as it is for a few months, just in case Ric changes his mind.

Yeah of course. Worth being aware of that the longer we leave it the more albums there will be to 'not halve' to keep track of. And as they appear in score order they will be scattered amongst others. Maybe an asterix in that field next to the ones after the change for now as we go might help, down the line.

Just a thought, in an effort to help. Offer is there to take my share too if it comes to it.

 

[Saddleworth2]

No Quarter is indeed on UK/European spotify, and I myself revisited it this week in a bit of nostalgia. Think it is one though, that does work better with its video content as recorded, than as an album. Imho.

I actually considered nominating it previously. The clue would have been a plant on a piece of A4 paper, with the full collection of US coins on it too, but with the quarter missing. For similar themes of discussion as here, but with a safer less ballsy frame. But for reasons of the video taking precedent, and also following shortly after a zeppy sounding nomination, I pivoted.

I bought that album when released, keen as I was to have any new Zeppelin content. I didn't much like it. I'm not sure why, something to do with Plants vocals and how they sounded above Egyptian musicians? I found some tracks to be quite jarring and discordant. I took to this week's nomination far quicker. I really must try again with 'No Quarter' and see if my tastes have matured/changed/mellowed. Its years since I listened to it.

 

[mrbelfry]

Aman Iman - Tinariwen
A bold and adventurous pick by @threespires, and between that and the Coatigan backstory and reading about the band's formation in refugee camps in North Africa in the 80's, I felt I was in the right frame to listen and appreciate this dessert blues album. As others have rightfully mentioned, the music on this was the high water mark, and probably what I appreciated the most out of this.

A few initial follow-ups before I get too far that will help with the context of this.

And I think what I enjoyed about that track was the lack of backup vocalists that I could mostly hear on this album, as LGWIO also pointed out. While not altogether a negative, I don't feel the backup vocalists added to lead singer Ibrahim Ag Alhabib on some tracks.

And what also was not included on that excellent track from the later album was the ululation effects, found in a few songs, that, to me, really were an annoyance here. The ululation is a vocalization used in Arab culture, particularly at celebrations like weddings, to express joy and excitement. It's a long, wavering, high-pitched sound, often described as a trilling or howling noise. While not yodeling in the Western sense, it shares a similar quality of vocal manipulation with rapid changes in pitch. That unfortunately was probably the biggest negative for me, though I totally get it is part and parcel with the theme in the album. It's also why I didn't enjoy a track such as "Ahimana" as much as others might have.

To me, the five standout tracks on this album were in this order, and it was mostly from the guitars and overall chord progressions:

1. "Assouf" - musically, this was tops with the psychedelic distortion blues music sound
2. "Tamatan Tilay" - a very close second, I really enjoyed this one a lot with the strong percussion start
3. "Toumast" - similar title to the Playlist song, this too was very strong with the guitar-centered approach
4. "Matadjem Yinmixan" - a nice tough with a simplistic and quiet guitar start
5. "Awa Didjen" - the repetitive sound here with the understated guitar worked well

The band has collaborated and been influences for many western musicians, and I want back to check this out:

The album in question from Page and Plant was their 1994 album No Quarter that featured a reworking of Led Zeppelin songs featuring a Moroccan string band and Egyptian orchestra. It also included four Middle-Eastern and Moroccan-influenced songs, especially my favourite "City Don't Cry". I enjoyed going back to listen to that on CD this week (not on Spotify) to see how it compared a bit in approach to the Tinariwen selection.

Overall, despite the non-English lyrics, I think the music on the whole was really the takeaway from this week and the pleasure about this selection. The instrument talent from the band is obvious, and despite the lyrical and mostly vocal challenges already noted, this was a 7/10 for me with some interest in their later album Emmaar that I also still plan to check out.

ululation isn't just an Arab thing - it's fairly common in many African countries. I don't think I've ever heard it at Nigerian weddings but pretty sure I have at Zambian, Zimbabwean and Eritrean

 

[Coatigan]

I bought that album when released, keen as I was to have any new Zeppelin content. I didn't much like it. I'm not sure why, something to do with Plants vocals and how they sounded above Egyptian musicians? I found some tracks to be quite jarring and discordant. I took to this week's nomination far quicker. I really must try again with 'No Quarter' and see if my tastes have matured/changed/mellowed. Its years since I listened to it.

I do get what you mean. I also agree, this is far easier to get into (or get over hurdles). Because it feels more natural, and they also aren't taking known things and changing them, which as belfry points out may meet instinctive resistance.

It is, at the end of the day for the best part a live performance recording, and imo shold be treated so. I always liked it. Would maybe go as far as even argueing more than the originals. Plus it was a decent bit of background going into stuff like this. Along with those couple of things Eddie Vedder did with Nusret Fatah Ali Khan, in the 90s, which had a similar-ish mood.

 

[RobMCFC]

Yeah of course. Worth being aware of that the longer we leave it the more albums there will be to 'not halve' to keep track of. And as they appear in score order they will be scattered amongst others. Maybe an asterix in that field next to the ones after the change for now as we go might help, down the line.

Just a thought, in an effort to help. Offer is there to take my share too if it comes to it.

Thanks. When the time comes, I can always produce a table sorted by week number and share it amongst volunteers. Then it will be obvious which page numbers need changing.

 

[Coatigan]

ululation isn't just an Arab thing - it's fairly common in many African countries. I don't think I've ever heard it at Nigerian weddings but pretty sure I have at Zambian, Zimbabwean and Eritrean

Man of the world. Had no idea it was called ululation, I just always called it 'that R-L-L-ing thingy' they do. School day.

 

[RobMCFC]

Foggy has indicated that, due to his new relaxed schedule, he won't be out of bed to post his clues until 3PM-ish.

So any stragglers have until 2.30-ish before I do the round-up.