@jazzpurist's
reviews.

Plastic Beach (Deluxe)

Gorillaz · 2010

★★★★★★★★2.5

The drums are mixed flat and dry and it's the best decision on the record. Modern drums are too compressed to swing — these breathe. Track 6 is a masterclass in pocket.

ASTROWORLD

Travis Scott · 2018

★★★★★★★★2.5

Pacing is the real story here. The first three cuts feel like the band still finding the room, then it locks in and doesn't let go until the closer. The mix prioritises bottom end and it's all the better for it.

Kind Of Blue

Miles Davis · 1959

★★★★★★★2.0

Reference points: late-period Stevie, the quieter Steely Dan records, anything Larry Levan would've spun at 4am. Doesn't sound like any of them — sounds like it learned from all of them.

CHROMAKOPIA

Tyler, The Creator · 2024

★★★★★★★★3.0

Composition is dense and rewards re-listens. There's a counter-melody on the third track that I didn't catch until the fourth spin. That's the mark of writing that has more underneath it than the surface lets on.

Loud

Rihanna · 2010

★★★★★★★2.0

The drums are mixed flat and dry and it's the best decision on the record. Modern drums are too compressed to swing — these breathe. Track 6 is a masterclass in pocket.

More Life

Drake · 2017

★★★★★★★★★★5.0

Less of an album than a mood piece. Works front-to-back in a way most modern records don't. Best on a rainy afternoon at low volume.

Honestly, Nevermind

Drake · 2022

★★★★★★★2.0

Less of an album than a mood piece. Works front-to-back in a way most modern records don't. Best on a rainy afternoon at low volume.

Views

Drake · 2016

★★★★★★★★★4.0

A grower in the truest sense. First listen I was lukewarm; by the fifth I was rearranging my year-end list. The production rewards a real hi-fi, which is annoying but accurate.

DAYS BEFORE RODEO

Travis Scott · 2014

★★★★★★★★3.0

Reference points: late-period Stevie, the quieter Steely Dan records, anything Larry Levan would've spun at 4am. Doesn't sound like any of them — sounds like it learned from all of them.

Comedown Machine

The Strokes · 2013

★★★★★★★★2.5

The drums are mixed flat and dry and it's the best decision on the record. Modern drums are too compressed to swing — these breathe. Track 6 is a masterclass in pocket.

In Tongues (Deluxe)

Joji · 2018

★★★★★★★★3.0

The vocal performance is the centerpiece — restrained where lesser singers would oversing. The arrangement gives it room. That's the whole game.

YHLQMDLG

Bad Bunny · 2020

★★★★★★★★★★4.5

Song two onwards is a clinic. The arrangement builds without you noticing it building, which is the hardest trick in the book. I haven't been able to stop revisiting the bridge on the title track.

Angles

The Strokes · 2011

★★★★★★★★2.5

Reference points: late-period Stevie, the quieter Steely Dan records, anything Larry Levan would've spun at 4am. Doesn't sound like any of them — sounds like it learned from all of them.

Ram (Archive Collection)

Paul McCartney, Linda McCartney · 1971

★★★★★★★★★3.5

Pacing is the real story here. The first three cuts feel like the band still finding the room, then it locks in and doesn't let go until the closer. The mix prioritises bottom end and it's all the better for it.

Unlimited Love

Red Hot Chili Peppers · 2022

★★★★★★★★★★5.0

The production sits between Madlib's haziness and J Dilla's percussion sensibility. Track 4 is the centerpiece — that bassline is going to live in my head for months.

A Matter of Time: The Final Hour

Laufey · 2026

★★★★★★★★★4.0

A grower in the truest sense. First listen I was lukewarm; by the fifth I was rearranging my year-end list. The production rewards a real hi-fi, which is annoying but accurate.

The Life Of Pablo

Kanye West · 2016

★★★★★★★★★4.0

Less of an album than a mood piece. Works front-to-back in a way most modern records don't. Best on a rainy afternoon at low volume.

Alive 2007

Daft Punk · 2007

★★★★★★★★3.0

A grower in the truest sense. First listen I was lukewarm; by the fifth I was rearranging my year-end list. The production rewards a real hi-fi, which is annoying but accurate.

Drip or Drown

Gunna · 2017

★★★★★★★2.0

Lyrically uneven but the writing carries. There's a four-track stretch in the middle where every song feels essential. Closer is the kind of statement that makes the whole thing land harder retroactively.

Larger Than Life

Brent Faiyaz · 2023

★★★★★★★★2.5

Song two onwards is a clinic. The arrangement builds without you noticing it building, which is the hardest trick in the book. I haven't been able to stop revisiting the bridge on the title track.

Discovery

Daft Punk · 2001

★★★★★★★2.0

Less of an album than a mood piece. Works front-to-back in a way most modern records don't. Best on a rainy afternoon at low volume.

Ram

Paul McCartney · 1971

★★★★★★★★★4.0

Mastering is loud — almost too loud — but you can tell every choice is deliberate. The drums are the star: live, dry, tucked behind the bass. Not for everyone but I'm in.

Thriller

Michael Jackson · 1982

★★★★★★★★2.5

Mastering is loud — almost too loud — but you can tell every choice is deliberate. The drums are the star: live, dry, tucked behind the bass. Not for everyone but I'm in.

OK Computer

Radiohead · 1997

★★★★★★★★2.5

Pacing is the real story here. The first three cuts feel like the band still finding the room, then it locks in and doesn't let go until the closer. The mix prioritises bottom end and it's all the better for it.

Is This It

The Strokes · 2001

★★★★★★★★★3.5

Mastering is loud — almost too loud — but you can tell every choice is deliberate. The drums are the star: live, dry, tucked behind the bass. Not for everyone but I'm in.

Swimming

Mac Miller · 2018

★★★★★★★★★4.0

The vocal performance is the centerpiece — restrained where lesser singers would oversing. The arrangement gives it room. That's the whole game.

HEROES & VILLAINS

Metro Boomin · 2022

★★★★★★★★2.5

Sequencing is everything here. The label could've front-loaded the singles but they trusted the album. The patience pays off by the time you hit the title track.

Hatful of Hollow

The Smiths · 1984

★★★★★★★★★3.5

The drums are mixed flat and dry and it's the best decision on the record. Modern drums are too compressed to swing — these breathe. Track 6 is a masterclass in pocket.