Poor Album Review in Uncut Music Magazine

[the professor]

it's a toxic combination when you give great music to the unlearned who are obliged to defend their hip credentials.  I can write a negative review just by adopting the snarky hipster persona; in other words, they write themselves.  I am embarassed for those critics and trust only my own aesthetic judgement.
As Alexander Pope made clear, for every bad poet there are 10 bad critics, who mislead our sense. Uncut means nothing to me.

[Doo Dah]

It's not the full album review - merely the title track:
 http://www.thespacelab.tv/spaceLAB/2012/04April/MusicReview-068-Beach-Boys-That-Why-God-Made-The-Radio.htm
 Vitriol.

I bring this up because we're going to see a lot of this play out. As fans we can surely analyze the song writing, whether or not we got to hear the 3rd section of the 'suite' (or whether some eeevil entity 86'd it), whether the vocals sound too processed, et al.

On the other hand, you're going to have a lot of these johnny come lately's break out their journalistic smirk and just butcher this poor album. It reminds me of those half-assed programs you see on VH-1 (top 40 one hit wonders, top ten sitcoms of all time, etc.). You see the video clips, and then you have a parade of media celebrities/comedians out duel themselves in coming up with some well-timed sarcastic put-down. As if the REAL art is in the put down.

Review it. Critique it. But don't be smart ass about it. Asking a lot for on-line journalism, I know...

[Landlocked]

it's a toxic combination when you give great music to the unlearned who are obliged to defend their hip credentials.  I can write a negative review just by adopting the snarky hipster persona; in other words, they write themselves.  I am embarassed for those critics and trust only my own aesthetic judgement.
As Alexander Pope made clear, for every bad poet there are 10 bad critics, who mislead our sense. Uncut means nothing to me.

So you think every negative review that comes out regarding this album is necessarily not a critique of the music but more a profession of one's hipness? You know, it's possible the Beach Boys can do wrong, musically-speaking.. They've done so in the past, they can do so now. It's silly to write off everything critical as blind hatred.

[joshferrell]

That's it.. I'm going to buy a copy of Uncut magazine and get a pair of scissors and cut it up....

[guitarfool2002]

That's it.. I'm going to buy a copy of Uncut magazine and get a pair of scissors and cut it up....

A real hipster would use an old-fashioned straight razor, and shoot a stylized video of the cutting process set to the song "Stuck In The Middle With You", then post it on whatever upstart video host is seen as more "current" than YouTube in a Tarantino parody-tribute worthy of viral status.

Or if you were a staff writer at the Lampoon, you'd put the results of your magazine slashing next to a shot of the guy from Manic Street Preachers all cut to hell so the real music hipsters would be the only ones to get the connection, then proceed to tell everyone why it's relevant...

But I digress.

[Don_Zabu]

That's it.. I'm going to buy a copy of Uncut magazine and get a pair of scissors and cut it up....

And give them another sale in so doing.

[joshferrell]

That's it.. I'm going to buy a copy of Uncut magazine and get a pair of scissors and cut it up....

And give them another sale in so doing.

actually it was a joke  (Uncut...Cut it up so that it's not uncut anymore...wakka wakka..oh nevermind.. )

[Heysaboda]

This Just In:

Uncut (usually a decent mag) can take a flying leap on this one.  Eff 'em!

[Heysaboda]

"Writing about music is like dancing about architecture."   - Martin Mull

"Listen, writing about music is like talking about f*cking. Who wants to talk about it? But you know, maybe some people do want to talk about it."   - John Lennon

"Rock critics like Elvis Costello because rock critics look like Elvis Costello"  - David Lee Roth

"Rock critics love Van Halen and hate me because rock critics look like me but want to party with David Lee Roth."  - Elvis Costello

"With me, grand opera is mostly the berries." - Al Capone

[runnersdialzero]

This Just In:

Uncut (usually a decent mag) can take a flying leap on this one.  Eff 'em!

How can you be so sure you won't end up agreeing with them? The review didn't sound particularly harsh or irrational, just honest.

[Wirestone]

Pitchfork gave TLOS a 7.8. I'm guessing this will get somewhere around there, plus or minus a few tenths.

I think as an artistic statement, TLOS is a much stronger album, so I really doubt Pitchfork will give this such a high score.

Have you heard the full new BB album? I think it's a bit premature to compare the two at this stage, assuming you've only heard samples of the new record.

[Chocolate Shake Man]

Pitchfork gave TLOS a 7.8. I'm guessing this will get somewhere around there, plus or minus a few tenths.

I think as an artistic statement, TLOS is a much stronger album, so I really doubt Pitchfork will give this such a high score.

Have you heard the full new BB album? I think it's a bit premature to compare the two at this stage, assuming you've only heard samples of the new record.

You're forgetting that Brian Wilson on his own has a bit more "hip capital" than The Beach Boys do with the Pitchfork crowd.

[Zach95]

Pitchfork gave TLOS a 7.8. I'm guessing this will get somewhere around there, plus or minus a few tenths.

I think as an artistic statement, TLOS is a much stronger album, so I really doubt Pitchfork will give this such a high score.

Have you heard the full new BB album? I think it's a bit premature to compare the two at this stage, assuming you've only heard samples of the new record.

No, I'm just giving a very rough estimate as others have regarding the Pitchfork score. Pitchfork is very aware of the circumstances surrounding an album, i.e. BWPS received a 9 and number 5 on the greatest albums of 2004 from P-fork, and they very much articulated the monumental achievement of the album.  Of course, this album is not the official release of long lost Smile, but it is a very important feat and may mark the end of an amazing career. Pitchfork realizes this, and the album's review will reflect that, I presume.

[Rocky Raccoon]

I'll wait for the guys at Rolling Stone to give it a shot.  I know David Fricke is a big Beach Boys fan. 

I don't trust reviews by reviewers I've never heard of.

[Runaways]

Rolling Stone has put out some questionable album reviews lately though.  I think pitchfork is a big Brian fan, not sure about the rest of the group.  Though they did rate Sunflower pretty highly. 

[Cam Mott]

I don't read reviews say I.

[Jon Stebbins]

You're forgetting that Brian Wilson on his own has a bit more "hip capital" than The Beach Boys do with the Pitchfork crowd.

http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/11943-pacific-ocean-blue-legacy-edition/

[Chocolate Shake Man]

You're forgetting that Brian Wilson on his own has a bit more "hip capital" than The Beach Boys do with the Pitchfork crowd.

http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/11943-pacific-ocean-blue-legacy-edition/

As does Dennis.

[OGoldin]

I know we are not going to get another Smile but a negative review from the likes of Uncut might be what it takes to get Brian and his people to decide to give us something at least a little weird and out there again.

[Zach95]

They all do! Smiley Smile received a 9.1, Sunflower/Surf's Up received an 8.9! Love You received a very formidable 7.8!

[Chocolate Shake Man]

They all do! Smiley Smile received a 9.1, Sunflower/Surf's Up received an 8.9! Love You received a very formidable 7.8!

Yeahhhh...those are the ones they've reviewed. And for a reason. The Warmth of the Sun also got a very high rating with these little nuggets in it:

"Most Pitchfork readers are familiar with this period of the band's career-- they're used to debating how Wild Honey stacks up against Sunflower, and trying to figure out which of the mid-70s albums has the most to recommend."

"'All Summer Long' is an excellent opening thesis, but then the comp detours with four kitschy throwbacks in a row-- two about surfing ("Catch a Wave" and "Hawaii") and two about cars ("Little Honda" and "409"). The chorus of "Little Honda" is still something to behold, the way the backup vocals chug along like pistons while Mike Love gets us up to third gear. But "409" sounds like a middling test-run from the Chuck Berry rip-off days, and the dippy "Hawaii" is interesting only as history ("I don't know what town you're from, but don't tell me they have bigger waves/ Everyone that goes comes back with nothing but raves"). The meat of the lesser pre-Pet Sounds material are the songs that showed how far Brian Wilson's art had come even before he was considered a great artist."

[Mike's Beard]

Who cares what music mags think?

Typical rock music magazine thinking.  "Blah blah blah The Beatles, blah blah blah The Sex Pistols, blah blah blah U2, blah blah blah Oasis, blah blah blah Coldplay".

Anyone else is always going to be considered secondary.

[Disney Boy (1985)]

For the record, it was only a very short review. My few remembered quotes was pretty much the entire thing (they also made an arsey comment re 'the original lineup are back together - David Marks after a mere 49 year break'). I hope though that if and when Mojo or Rolling Stone give the album a glowing review everyone here who's said they don't care about critics will still be saying 'Huh, music critics, who cares what they say'?

[b00ts]

I'll wait for the guys at Rolling Stone to give it a shot.  I know David Fricke is a big Beach Boys fan. 

I don't trust reviews by reviewers I've never heard of.

Rolling Stone will give it 3.5 stars, as with every other major label LP released since 1995.

Seriously, who cares? Why are people getting worked up over this? Whether it is a sincere dislike based on the record's perceived merits and shortcomings, or a poorly-informed review as the result of a cursory listen, a bad review doesn't mean you can't enjoy the record and think it is the best album ever.

[The Heartical Don]

Moot point (that review, I mean) -

could well be that, if the writer is unknown, he/she wants to make a name for him/herself by working against the mood of today (admit it: Brian and the BBs, by TSS for example, are riding a high wave nowadays, and the current shows are really good by all accounts, not just 'retro-good for inducing nostalgia). And what better way than give TWGMTR a mark that would be termed: insufficient, in Dutch school lingo?

We in Holland have a respected writer, by the way, working for a quality newspaper, who did exactly the same with Bri's 'Presents Smile' and subsequent works. He is a good reviewer, but aging, and I ascribe his odd and really unbelievable/incredible vendetta against Brian to the same mechanism.

People with problems and/or grudges and/or over-ambition usually resort to these tactics, folks.

That said, in all fairness, Uncut is a very good rock mag.

But I am not impressed in the slightest, and will wait. Until the CD/LP materialises.