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Special Event: atrlcritic | Ed Sheeran's new songs after the upgrade
Member Since: 1/1/2013
Posts: 13,978
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Oh cool I might do both of these.
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Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 27,856
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I can't believe it has been over a year since Lorde released Pure Heroine. It seems somewhat fitting that I get to review the album after the triumphant acclaim it caused her to receive last night at the VNZMAs. Through watching her go up 6 times in the night to receive her awards, I realised that the album still resonates with me as much as it did on the day it came out. It is no less a part of my life as the day I stayed up till midnight to download it. 1700 scrobbles later, I can still hear the beauty in Lorde's rhythm, lyricism and vocal control.
The personal highlight of the album has to be 400 Lux. Both Lorde's lyricism and Joel's production perfectly encapsulate suburban life in New Zealand and the image of driving down streets where "the houses don't change". Lorde makes it clear that her surroundings have shaped her into who she is. Pure Heroine illustrates that although her life and world are rapidly changing around her, she'll never forget her past and what and where she has come from.
Over the past year, I've also found I've come to appreciate different parts of the album. For example, I used to not be particularly fond of the concluding three tracks: Still Sane, White Teeth Teens and A World Alone. However, seeing her in concert recently allowed me to unlock the emotion of these three tracks. It's amazing how over a year later, I'm still managing to find aspects of the album unlocking. Whether it's a result of what I read (such as her recent article about her inspiration for Buzzcut Season) or even through close listening to the production and individual components behind each song. Every aspect Pure Heroine is so cleverly and expertly constructed by an artist with experience that would defy the age of a (now) 18 year old girl. In light of all this, I cannot see any reasons for one to deny the acclaim the has received. And boy, it has received a lot of it.
On the back of Grammy (and many other esteemed award) victories, a worldwide tour and the curation of the recently released Mockingjay Soundtrack, it would appear that Lorde is starting to get into the "swing of things". She has a top job ahead of her, matching the effort and success of her debut LP, which has gone on to sell close to 3 million copies worldwide. However, through the sheer talent and sophistication demonstrated on Pure Heroine, one would be a fool to doubt her chances of pulling it off.
All the best for what's to come, Lorde. Thank you for your gift of Pure Heroine. I can undoubtedly proclaim that the album has touched my life, and you deserve the absolute best in the world for doing that 
95/100
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Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 43,331
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Quote:
Originally posted by Wonderland
I can't believe it has been over a year since Lorde released Pure Heroine. It seems somewhat fitting that I get to review the album after the triumphant acclaim it caused her to receive last night at the VNZMAs. Through watching her go up 6 times in the night to receive her awards, I realised that the album still resonates with me as much as it did on the day it came out. It is no less a part of my life as the day I stayed up till midnight to download it. 1700 scrobbles later, I can still hear the beauty in Lorde's rhythm, lyricism and vocal control.
The personal highlight of the album has to be 400 Lux. Both Lorde's lyricism and Joel's production perfectly encapsulate suburban life in New Zealand and the image of driving down streets where "the houses don't change". Lorde makes it clear that her surroundings have shaped her into who she is. Pure Heroine illustrates that although her life and world are rapidly changing around her, she'll never forget her past and what and where she has come from.
Over the past year, I've also found I've come to appreciate different parts of the album. For example, I used to not be particularly fond of the concluding three tracks: Still Sane, White Teeth Teens and A World Alone. However, seeing her in concert recently allowed me to unlock the emotion of these three tracks. It's amazing how over a year later, I'm still managing to find aspects of the album unlocking. Whether it's a result of what I read (such as her recent article about her inspiration for Buzzcut Season) or even through close listening to the production and individual components behind each song. Every aspect Pure Heroine is so cleverly and expertly constructed by an artist with experience that would defy the age of a (now) 18 year old girl. In light of all this, I cannot see any reasons for one to deny the acclaim the has received. And boy, it has received a lot of it.
On the back of Grammy (and many other esteemed award) victories, a worldwide tour and the curation of the recently released Mockingjay Soundtrack, it would appear that Lorde is starting to get into the "swing of things". She has a top job ahead of her, matching the effort and success of her debut LP, which has gone on to sell close to 3 million copies worldwide. However, through the sheer talent and sophistication demonstrated on Pure Heroine, one would be a fool to doubt her chances of pulling it off.
All the best for what's to come, Lorde. Thank you for your gift of Pure Heroine. I can undoubtedly proclaim that the album has touched my life, and you deserve the absolute best in the world for doing that
95/100 |
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Beautiful review, by the way. 
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Member Since: 1/1/2013
Posts: 17,232
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PURE HEROINE
LORDE
______________________________
Released September 27th 2013
UMG
After More than a whole year after the release, 'Pure Heroine' still amazes me. Even the lowest points on the album remain great. One of the album's best tracks if not the best is the album's opener, a great way to started it. 'Tennis Court' presents the mood of the whole album. The song's best alone is just flawless, and let's not forget Lorde's haunting vocals.
'400 Lux' follows, it's slightly slower then 'Tennis Court', it gives quite a unique feeling, one of the best things about this album. The smash single 'Royals' follows and the song deserves the success it got a lot. Everything about it, from the lyrics to the beat to Lorde's vocals is great. 'Buzzcut Season' is another great track on the album, it's a personal favorite. 'Glory & Gore' is the 7th song on the album, one of the last great tracks on the album, as 'White Teeth Teens' and 'Still Sane' lowers the album's overall score, a litle bit like 'Ribs', but while 'Ribs' remains enjoyable, I can't really listen to those songs that much anymore. The album's final song 'World Alone' is a underrated track, a lovely song mostly thanks to Lorde's vocals. I also love how the album ends with the word 'Talk', which can be found in the first sentance of the opener, 'Tennis Court', it's very consistent.
'Pure Heroine' is one of the best albums released in 2013, even with the very few mistakes it has.
80
8/10
 List of reviews
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Member Since: 4/7/2009
Posts: 34,961
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Question: Why didnt you do earlier releases from this year so there could be some sort of year end?
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Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 43,331
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Quote:
Originally posted by MP2K
Question: Why didnt you do earlier releases from this year so there could be some sort of year end?
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atrlcritic was started over halfway through the year, and there's not enough time to review all of the major albums from the first half of 2014, considering right now (late November) is really the first time it's been quiet enough to even do two throwbacks.
Also, the moderators didn't allow throwbacks when they had control of the thread. I've only been in control since September 24.
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Member Since: 2/5/2014
Posts: 29,111
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Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 43,331
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Quote:
Originally posted by Bloomers
Can we review 7/11?
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You're the 2nd request. 
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Member Since: 1/4/2014
Posts: 3,221
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I'll do Yeezus tomorrow and I'll try to listen to Pure Heroine this weekend. I only know the singles 
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Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 43,331
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Quote:
Originally posted by YouDaIcon
I'll do Yeezus tomorrow and I'll try to listen to Pure Heroine this weekend. I only know the singles |
That's what this is for 
I'm actually going to check out Yeezus
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Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 13,761
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Member Since: 8/19/2013
Posts: 27,248
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Is anyone interested in doing Mockingjay? 
Lorde fans c'mon.
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Member Since: 8/19/2013
Posts: 39,572
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Breakouts happen when a song can be so great that it is impossible to ignore. We can all remember when our faves first released their breakout songs how fresh they seemed.
This is not that story. Royals is undeniably the worst Lorde has to offer, and throughout Pure Heroine she shows off all her considerable talents in an impressive way.
Thae for example, the summer holiday holiday promotional buzz single Tennis Court and the epic closer A World Alone. The two of them are arguably the best there, and also the most upbeat - the synthy backing of Tennis Court and the guitar-inflected instrumental for A World Alone provide much-needed variety in an album that is so cohesive, sometimes to the detriment of the overall experience.
That isn't to say the rest of the album is by any means bad, however. Team throws a curveball with one of the most effective choruses of 2013, Buzzcut Season does a wonderful job of showcasing her vocals in this often production-driven album, and White Teeth Teens is a great take on doo-wop which doesn't feel out of place at all. Before anyone praises Meghan and 'her' doo-wop revival, remember this. 
Without even mentioning the brilliance of tracks like Ribs and 400 Lux, I do have to comment on the missteps. Still Sane is nice enough, but comes across as the textbook definition of filler. Glory & Gore is one of my favourite tracks, but sticks a little to close to the Team-formula for my liking, not helped by the two tracks being next to each other in the tracklisting. And, of course, Royals itself, a too sparse, too bland song which quickly wore thin.
Overall, however, this is a brilliant album. One of the best of 2013.
8.3/10
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Member Since: 8/19/2013
Posts: 39,572
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My Yeezus review shall be here shortly. 
Quote:
Originally posted by holyground
Is anyone interested in doing Mockingjay?
Lorde fans c'mon. |
I am 
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Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 12,760
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Let me dedicate my 4000th post to an amazing album
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Lorde - 'Pure Heroine'
8.8
Emerging seeminly overnight with her debut single 'Royals', Lorde rapidly became one of 2013's most talked about celebrities and even went home with two Grammys. After an excellent EP I was certainly anticipating 'Pure Heroine', especially as it released on my birthday. The album features minimalistic production and songs that appear about nothing. Weaving the album together is Lorde's razor sharp lyricm, especially impressive given her age. "We're hollow like the bottles that we drain" she sings on 400 Lux'. a song simply about being driven home.
The album really picks up with two consecutive standout tracks. 'Ribs' and 'Buzzcut Season'. One of the main reasons Lorde has found so much success is due to the fact she is very relateble. 'Ribs' really epitomizes this. The song is about Lorde's worries about getting old and it almost feels like it was written for me. On the languid 'Buzzcut Season', Lorde makes simplistic lyrics such as "cola with a burnt out taste" and "I live in a hologram with you" really hit home. Lorde lets loose her idiosyncrasies on 'White Teeth Teens', which shines among side b of the album. With vague lyrics ("I know you love it when the hair pins start to drop") over an instrumental that's both bouncy and eerie, it was obvious from the beginning that it's doomed to remain an album track but it is brilliant nonetheless.
But the record isn't perfect by any means. While the sparse, bare bones production shines on earlier cuts like 'Tennis Court', it leaves 'Still Sane' unfortunately washed out and forgettable. And as a whole, the album can feel quite samey, although closing songs 'White Teeth Teens' and 'A World Alone' lessen this slightly. Regardless, 'Pure Heroine' is an accomplished debut and surely one of the best albums of 2013.
Must Listen: 'Royals' 'Ribs' 'Buzzcut Season' 'White Teeth Teens'
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Member Since: 8/18/2013
Posts: 4,663
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Quote:
Originally posted by Eeveelution
Must Listen: 'Royals' 'Ribs' 'Buzzcut Season' 'White Teeth Teens'
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What kind of flawless taste
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Member Since: 8/19/2013
Posts: 39,572
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Quote:
Originally posted by Eeveelution
The album really picks up with two consecutive standout tracks. 'Ribs' and 'Buzzcut Season'.[/FONT]
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Why didn't you include Royals as it is also consecutive with these and was in your best picks 
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Member Since: 10/14/2008
Posts: 14,986
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If there has ever been an album that is more contrived than a Tori Amos cover, it’s this one. Lorde seems to have taken out her pen and paper and took terrible notes from the uniqueness of previous global enigma Lana Del Rey, and while she espoused pseudo—modern-electronic sounds to make up for the sheer mediocrity of its substance, the lyrics evoke ears-scratching irritations. It all comes crashing down with the cringe-worthy lyrics right after the average album opener, “We’re never done with killing time, can I kill it with you?” / “You got me orange shoes.” It’s almost as if she’s catering to the niche indie pop fans, and she might have commercially succeeded at it, but the beginning of her album promises for a dreary, sleepy and tired session. The third, arguably most played record of the past 3 years, is certainly the only song that could have launched a career as big as hers. Infectious, “relatable,” but the problem with Pure Heroine is that the entire album sounds like 10 Royals carbon copies, with more pretentious song writing that go nowhere. The album certainly picks it up from the low-points – basically the majority of it – halfway through with Team, but goes back to being endlessly long and same-sounding. For such a popular album, you would think there’d be little merit behind it, songs that make you want to dance or make you dive into it’s haunting ballads, but it ends up sounding like a semi-professional effort created by a talented 20-something year old who layered her vocals of dreary lyrics into a This Will Destroy You album without their permission and uploaded it on YouTube with high-quality audio, heck, even the album cover makes it look the effort was made by an amateur singer on a free online app.
There is nothing special or captivating about Pure Heroine that was promised by the lead single; in fact, it should have been called Pure Royals.
15/100
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Member Since: 1/1/2014
Posts: 43,331
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Member Since: 8/12/2012
Posts: 13,665
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What can I say to Louie's review aside the orange shoes? Well, maybe I'm crazy or maybe Nietzsche has the
right answer.
"Die Tanzenden wurden für verrückt gehalten von denjenigen, die die Musik nicht hören konnten"
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