Review of Neil Young: After the Gold Rush

Please read Scott Coates’s pick for Neil Young: After the Gold Rush before reading and listening to our reviews below.

Quick Summary: 

  • Worth the hype?
  • Influence us and our tastes?
  • Would we recommend?
4

Neil Young: After the Gold Rush

There is one thing that none of us doubted, and that was Neil Young’s massive influence in the world of music. Well wasn’t it strange that none of us had really given Neil his due respect? After all, the members of The Sonic Collective are all Canadian. Maybe it was the fact that he was most influential in the 70s when most of us were toddlers or not born yet, or that he was known more for folk music, which isn’t the usual pick of the group. Or, maybe, it was his high-pitched squeaky voice? Well, we listened for a month, and the results were quite shocking. Maybe not as shocking as Darren revealing he’s a secret fan of a modern pop female vocalist that will make you giggle. Scott’s pick and insights are worth listening to. Enjoy our review!


Our Individual Review Scores
Scott Coates:
Overall opinion: 4
Would I recommend?:4.5
Influenced my tastes: 4
Worth the hype?: 4
Darren Scott:
Overall opinion: 4
Would I recommend?: 4
Influenced my tastes: 2.5
Worth the hype? 4
Scott Gregory:
Overall opinion: 3.5
Would I recommend?: 4
Influenced my tastes: 2
Worth the hype?3
Alain DuPuis:
Overall opinion: 3
Would I recommend?: 3.5
Influenced my tastes: 1.5
Worth the hype? 4

Led Zeppelin: Led Zeppelin II

Led Zeppelin


Led Zeppelin is often called one of the most influential bands to emerge from the late 1960s, and are well known for hits including Immigrant Song, Black Dog, and of course, the unforgettable Stairway to Heaven.
Aside from listening to the usual radio-friendly singles, I’ve never formally been acquainted with a full Zeppelin album. That’s why for April 2017, we’ll be listening to the second eponymous album, Led Zeppelin II.
 
Led Zeppelin II - Album cover
 
The album was a commercial success, hitting the number one spot on the charts in both in their home country of England as well as overseas. What intrigues me the most is how the band described the recording process. Songs were written while the band was on tour rotations. They would write whenever they found hours in between concerts. Each track was recorded, mixed, and produced separately at various studios spread out across the UK and North America. The resulting sound is supposedly rife with spontaneity and urgency through necessity. Jimmy Page, the band’s guitarist receives the bulk of the credit for the album’s production oversight. He and engineer Eddie Kramer worked together to cobble the completed album together from recordings taken in piece-meal, sometimes impromptu sessions in cheap studios, hotels and “holes in the wall”.
Interesting? I think so.
Let’s delve into Led Zeppelin II, and we’ll reconvene at the end of the month to see what the group thought.
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Links:
Album Wikipedia
Band Wikipedia
Buy the album on iTunes
Buy the album on Amazon