Toondude10
Toondude
User

Reviews 77
Approval 90%

Soundoffs 298
News Articles 422
Band Edits + Tags 734
Album Edits 439

Album Ratings 1539
Objectivity 72%

Last Active 01-08-23 12:33 pm
Joined 10-02-12

Review Comments 15,186

 Lists
10.02.22 10 Years on Sputnik12.17.18 Toondude's 2018
12.07.18 Favorite EP's of 201812.07.18 Least Favorite Albums of 2018
11.12.18 R.I.P. Stan Lee02.17.18 Support my friend's band Peruse
12.16.17 Least Favorites of 201712.13.17 So...The Last Jedi
12.12.17 Toondude's 201712.07.17 Overlooked in 2017 ♦
11.16.17 So...Justice League11.05.17 Saw Trivium last night
10.02.17 5 Years on Sputnik ♦08.21.17 Solar Eclipse digs
07.18.17 So...Dunkirk06.05.17 saw Iron Maiden last night
01.28.17 R.I.P. John Hurt01.24.17 89th Academy Award Predicitons
More »

Toondude10's 25%: The Year So Far

I decided to do this series where I review each quarter of the year. It's basically my version of the typical "2015 Q1" sort of thing. I just want to be a bit fancier cause why the fuck not. If there is anything you guys want to recommend me that's from this year or anything I missed, then let me know.
1All That Remains
The Order of Things

1/5
By far the worst album of the year so far, easily. In fact, this might probably end up being the worst of the year overall now that I think about it. In any case, there's almost nothing on here that's good, memorable, or even enjoyable. This was just an absolute abysmal mess that was doomed from the start. The vocals are awful, the guitars and drums are muddled and weak, and the lyrics are beyond terrible. Put simply, it didn't end well.
2Three Days Grace
Human

1.5/5
Seriously, was anyone really expecting this to be good in the first place? When I first heard 'Painkiller' I didn't mind it that badly because I just simply took it as a Three Days Grace song overall, but that's one of the major problems in the album. It tries so hard to be Three Days Grace yet it tries to be different at the same time. The lyrics are incredibly monotonous (more so that Linkin Parks 'Until It's Gone'), the vocals are terrible, and the production is incredibly weak. The only song I didn't really mind is "I Am Machine," but mostly because it has the best instrumentals.
3Imagine Dragons
Smoke + Mirrors

2/5
I actually liked Imagine Dragons debut somewhat. Sure it had a handful of terrible songs but there were quite a few songs that I found catchy. This on the other hand is almost completely forgettable. I can't remember a single thing off of this aside from 'Bet My Life', which is incredibly annoying. To be fair, that's pretty much the worst thing I can say about it though, but even then it's still worth the rating.
4Kendrick Lamar
To Pimp a Butterfly

2.5/5
I'm not that much of a hip-hop person. The rating there is just me (I had it at a 2 before). So why did I listen to it you ask? Well everyone kept talking about it so I decided to give it a shot and what I got is what I expected. That being said, I understand why people love this. I'm not saying that everyone else sucks because they like this, it's just not my thing. Heck I even like a couple of songs on here ('King Kunta' and 'i'). Blow me.
5Periphery
Juggernaut: Alpha

2.5/5
This is pretty much the album that everyone was waiting to just pounce on (and I'm not gonna lie, I was waiting too) and of course, I didn't like it. Well most of it. ('MK Ultra' is one of the worst metal songs I've ever listened to) It has a few good songs like 'Black Minute' and 'Rainbow Gravity' but overall it's not very good at all.
6Periphery
Juggernaut: Omega

3.5/5
The better of the two albums, and this is the album that Periphery does best, and it should stay that way for the moment. Yeah, Spencer's vocals are incredibly whiny on both albums but I can tolerate him in this album (simply because he sings less in this). The instrumentation I feel is also much better on this as well. Even so, I still think P2 is their best album.
7While She Sleeps
Brainwashed

3.5/5
It's your typical generic metalcore band that you've heard several time before, that somehow manages to be slightly above average than the rest. While the vocals are pretty bad, the instrumentation sells this record. This could've been an easy 2.5 but thanks to the incredibly catchy rhythms and great drumming, it manages to be a solid record.
8Celldweller
End of an Empire - Chapter 03: Dreams

3.5/5
By far the weakest of his series, but it's still pretty solid. 'Good L_uck (Yo_'re F_cked)' is actually not as bad as it sounds (a hell of a lot better than Trve Kvlt Metal) and 'Just Like You' is probably one of the strongest songs that Celldweller has come out with. Yeah the concept is cheesy, but I don't care.
9Red
Of Beauty and Rage

3.5/5
This album isn't a great as everyone says it is. Dare I say, Release the Panic was better that this. Granted, there are some great songs on here like 'Imposter' and 'Gravity Lies' but there's also a few terrible moments on this. Not to mention I feel like this is incredibly over-produced. I was afraid that Red was going to essentially force their string arrangements right down our throats and that is pretty much the case. I still like it, don't get me wrong, but I feel like some of this ended up being fan service like how Recalibrated was. However, it seems that Red has their fans back for the time being.
10Too Close To Touch
Nerve Endings

4/5
This album was excellent. Say what you want about high, whiny vocals in this genre overall (excluding Periphery), I didn't mind them at all. In fact I really enjoyed them. This is certainly a lot better than the new Sleeping With Sirens. Skip that album and listen to songs like 'Pretty Little Thing' and 'Hell to Pay'.
11Modest Mouse
Strangers to Ourselves

4/5
This album is getting a lot of average ratings, and I can sort of understand. However, this I feel was much better than We Were Dead. This was a lot more memorable with a lot of incredibly catchy rhythms. Even if it has a handful of crap songs in it ('Pistol' comes to mind), there were some really great songs on here like 'Coyote' and the final track. It's kind of a shame really.
12Arcane
Known/Learned

4/5
Despite a lackluster second half, the first half just kills it. The vocals, the guitars, the instruments, the lyrics, they are just fantastic. Big fans of Haken, Dream Theater, and Karnivool will be sucked in. This is a band that could potentially be a force to reckon in the future.
13Bjork
Vulnicura

4.5/5
Bjork does it again. For someone who's almost 50, her voice just sells this in so many ways. I just can't wait to see what she has in the future (and I just got into her music).
14Steven Wilson
Hand. Cannot. Erase.

4.5/5
It's certainly has a bigger pop influence, unlike the 70s jazz-rock oriented The Raven that Refused to Sing, but it manages to work in incredible ways. Steven Wilson has a great voice for this type of music and he should continue doing this kind of music. Meanwhile we're still waiting for a new Porcupine Tree album.
15Godspeed You! Black Emperor
'Asunder, Sweet and Other Distress'

4.5/5
My favorite album so far this year. Despite the constant complaints on the 'boring drones' I believe that this is GY!BE's best album since Skinny Fists, easily. This is certainly a different approach for them as there's almost no crescendos into a massive climax, but I feel that is why I enjoy this album so much. I love it when bands attempt to deliver different ideas on the music they make in a successful way. I like the drone parts too, but of course there's the ending song that pretty much everyone agrees is one of the best songs that GY!BE has come out with, and it really is. This is a fantastic album from beginning to end and I love it.
Show/Add Comments (35)

STAFF & CONTRIBUTORS // CONTACT US

Bands: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Site Copyright 2005-2023 Sputnikmusic.com
All Album Reviews Displayed With Permission of Authors | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy