The Toad's Burrow

          It is time for me to once again speak on a genre I don't listen to that much and say that I don't like a critically acclaimed album as much as I should. I'd argue that you should blame my friend Omaid for this who recommended this record even though I swear I've never even heard him talk about it at all. Either way, I thought I might as well give it a shot. After all, I did enjoy the track Smooth   Operator  by Sade but I came into this review with a relatively clean slate clear of any biases. Except for one. I don't know how to put this but as someone who enjoys pop music I am simply just not impressed with the majority of sophistipop. Don't get me wrong I love That! Feels Good! by Jessie Ware, but I was surprised to find that most of her previous work was in that slower range of pop genres, and the hit rate just wasn't as high. Either way, this album was rated highly enough to give it a fair shake, so without further ado, my track-by-t...

    I don't know how to rate this film. It just kind of confuses me. I'm not saying that it's necessarily a bad film. I didn't hate it, but it feels conflicted and confused. There are just a lot of things happening at once, and I'm just not quire sure if this film knows what it wants to be or how to do a proper balancing act. Because what viewers are left with is an entertaining film no doubt, but one that feels less focused in general as it tried to wrap things up. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the concept, I think it's entertaining to have a fresher take on what seems like a story ingrained within western culture, but does this musical go about it the right way? Let's talk about it.     I cannot talk about this film any further without talking about the weird tonal shifts that are constantly happening in this film. Part of the fact is that this film is a musical, and for a good musical you want a healthy dose of dancing and singing to make it more lively...

      What? I just have like no words. What do you mean this is how the final season of this show ends? Hamsterdam was a bit of a stretch, but drug treatment zones basically already exist in some form, at least today. But this is ridiculous I'm sorry. How are you going to make an entire show whose entire appeal is how grounded it is, and introduce a plot about a fake, sensationalized serial killer? And the weirdest part is? Literally everything else about this season is basically the same old good The Wire  that everyone has come to expect except for this one small ruffle. It's bizarre really. So let's talk about it.     I mean a serial killer? Really. I thought it was going to be interesting, like they were actually chasing someone, but the plot was so ridiculous, and it just felt like everyone surrounding this whole serial killer thing was acting out of character. I mean come on you're just telling me Lester Freamon, who believes in making sure he does go...

    I love this album unabashedly. It took a little bit, and honestly I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it, but it's so good, it's just undeniable. I mean this entire album just scratches an itch I haven't even thought about in years. I remember when I first started developing my own music tastes one of my first loves was dubstep. For better or worse those minecraft intro's stuck with me, and so I'll be the first to say I listened to my fair share of Monstercat. Except one small issue exists, it's kind of hard for me to listen to it now without cringing a little bit. So where should I go to find that same sound, without feeling the same embarrassment for what I used to be? Well hyperpop helps to some extent, but this album really does the trick for me. I'll admit, it's not for everyone, but this is definitely one of those albums you never knew you needed until it showed up. So without further ado, my track-by-track review. I Love My Computer - Ninaji...

      In terms of how useful, relevant or necessary this review is, I can safely say it's not to all three of those questions. Obviously, as someone who tries to stay informed culturally, I know who Kendrick Lamar is, I listen to some of his songs, but to say that I am a fan of his, or even equipped to properly review an album of his would be a ridiculous claim to make. Even still, I do like some of the songs off of this album, and of course it is regarded as one of the greatest albums of all time, so I'm inclined to give it a listen at my friend Sweaty's behest. So without further ado, my track-by-track review. To Pimp a Butterfly - Kendrick Lamar Wesley's Theory - 75/100 I will be hated if I say that I liked the intro of this song the best out of this entire song, and I won't because it feels disrespectful to the rest of the song, which I actually enjoy a decent amount. A lot of it is definitely the instrumentals by Thundercat but I think the chorus to this song i...

      Alright, I'll admit it. I took a break from watching season four of The Wire. But frankly, now that I'm done it, I'm starting to question why I would ever make that decision. Look, my complaint of the past couple of seasons is that this show immediately dived headfirst into stretching itself out, trying to keep up with loose threads of past seasons. Though, I think that this season they made the right decision. The kids work, I think this might be the most emotionally impactful season of the show. You just want to make it work out for at least some of the characters, and I don't know if they knew it was leading up to the final season, but I think it's shaping out to be pretty good still. Let's talk about it.     Immediately, the most noticeable change viewers will make is that there is a large McNulty size gaping hole in this season. Outside of a couple cameos it's laughable Dominic West even gets his name to touch this season, he made his peace, he th...

      Really? This is the season? I have to say Only Murders   in the Building  season five has been nothing short of a disappointment. I mean seriously. It forgets everything that made the show good, and mainly just meanders around hoping that by showing off new characters it'll be enough of a diversion from the fact that they don't even take their own premise seriously. I mean first of all, they drop the whole podcasting bit because they decide to quickly sign contracts, and then decide to never discuss the fact that their whole livelihood was taken away until the very end when they all suddenly become podcast fans again. Then, the whole mafia/mob thing is only ever discussed for like TWO WHOLE EPISODES. The worst part is, to top it all off, the big reveal about how the murdered was pulled off sounds too convenient, easy, and stupid. It's not clever or ingenious in any real way, it's just bad. Let's talk about it.     What was the point of this seaso...

      I come into this review with a fairly fresh pair of ears. By the time I was old enough to care about rock music Muse was already fairly washed, releasing albums like Simulation Theory , but luckily I never cared about them so it didn't matter to me. I did recently listen to Black Holes and Revelations  though, which I thought was fine but didn't really understand why it was rated so high outside of a few stellar tracks, mainly Starlight . Even still, I'm determined to figure out why people love this band so much, I like rock music, why shouldn't I try and see why this band was ever so revered in the first place. So, when my friend CJ recommended this album, all I was told is that it basically sounds like Radiohead. I don't know if that works for or against this album because I don't really listen to Radiohead either, but without further ado, my track-by-track review. Absolution - Muse Intro - N/A It's just your average intro. Apocalypse Please - 80/100...

      I did it, after spending basically all of October, and nearly 200 hours playing the game, I am satisfied with my Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom playthrough. Basically the only thing I didn't finish were some Korok seeds, the compendium, and some fabrics/schematics that ultimately didn't matter. Yet, I can't help but be reminded that it took me multiple attempts to actually get me into this game. It starts off pretty slow in the sky islands, and I really had to set aside this month to get back into things. I use the term "get back into" on purpose because this game very much feels iterative of Breath of the Wild  for better or for worse, but it's not necessarily a bad thing, it's just that there's this very clear push and pull between.     I mean can you hardly blame the developers? Open world games take forever to make, I'm looking at you Bethesda, but also BOTW also came out on the Wii U, and as of the writing of this review the Switc...