My Way (How To Write A Good Music Review)

Member Name: a-true-ben

Product:	How To Write A Good Music Review
Date:	19/07/03 (315 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Hopefully some useful tips, Better reviews benefit everyone

Disadvantages: You may disagree..., ...or find it preachy..., ...but it's just my way!

My regular readers will know I write a lot of music opinions. Well, I do have over 250 albums to review you know (I?m not joking when I say I buy one a week!). I?m not sure I?m best qualified to write this, after all, only three of my album reviews have ever received crowns. That said, I don?t tend to write them for crowns these days, as I think it?s probably too much effort(!) and I have had several other music crowns (gig reviews, festivals and band in general ? sadly no longer eligible). Most of this opinion will focus on album reviews, but I?ll have a word to say on band in general and lives at the end.

(Note: obviously all the normal advice, such as good spelling, applies too)

The first thing to do, of course, is pick an album. Ideally it should be one you own ? reviews of ?what I heard round my friend?s are likely to be poor. I tend to pick ones I?ve listened to quite a bit and know fairly well, but obviously if you?re reviewing a new release you may not know it so well. In this case, I think a couple of careful listens (taking notes) should be enough basis for a review, but beware songs that grow on you (or vice versa)!

When writing the review I think there are two obvious places to begin. Either with a bit of general info about the band ? e.g. ?Foo Fighters are a band formed by Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl after Nivana?s split. Their first album was a bit raw, but they?ve become increasingly poppy and this one??. Or start with some personal experience of the band ? e.g. ?Cyclefly were the first band I ever saw live, and loving their first album ?Generation Sap? I bought their second straight away because I knew I was going to see them live again?, or ?As a fan of Weezer and Blink 182, my friend recommended Bowling For Soup?s new album and??. You see all these introductions not only lead into your opinion, but also give information on the band, such as the type of person they might appeal to.

This is something I think is negl
ected in many reviews. In the old days one of the questions Dooyoo asked at the end was something along the lines of ?buy this album if you like?? and I think that?s a good idea to include in your review. Take for example:

?I think this is a really good album. The first song?s a bit of a rockier number, that will have people dancing. The second song?s a love song, and the third?s a ballad about [lead singer] missing his girlfriend when he?s away on tour??

An opinion like this tells you a bit about each song on the album, but it isn?t Very Useful in my opinion ? it could be about anything from Westlife to Metallica! Far more useful would be ?Westlife are a slushy boy band. You might like their music if you like Boyzone or Take That. Or just if you?re deaf but like good looking guys.? It doesn?t give you so much detail about the songs, but is far more helpful in making a purchasing decision about the album. After all, I?m not going to make my decision on whether or not track three?s a ballad?

Admittedly the temptation is to concentrate on the album, since that?s what you?re reviewing. But don?t forget, the album is by a group, and that?s what I feel is missing in many music opinions. Speaking personally, I most often use reviews when it comes to groups that are new to me. If it?s a new album from Machine Head or Nine Inch Nails I?ll probably buy it anyway, or at least make my decision on hearing a few tracks. It?s when I hear ?album xxx is really good? but don?t know the group that I?m more likely to look for details in reviews.

Even when I do know the group well, providing information on your view is still important. For example, I have Silverchair?s first three albums, and I?m interested in knowing whether fourth album Diorama is worth getting. I?ve heard mixed reports. If you begin your review ?I?ve followed Silverchair since their Bleach-esque grungey debut ?Frogstomp?. I was disappointed with ?Neon Ballroom?, but bought ?Dioram
a? anyway hoping for a change. Unfortunately I believe the band have continued down the wrong path?? then that tells me one thing. Conversely you might say ?I never liked the old Silverchair, I thought they were too raw and heavy. I heard a few songs from ?Neon Ballroom? which sounded more mature though, so I took a chance on buying their new album and like it quite a lot??. Giving your overview of a band?s care can be very useful, as it establishes a context for your review, and sets out what it is you like from the start. This is far more useful, in my opinion, than simply trying to review an album in isolation.

The next question is how to deal with the album itself. I think the first genuinely Very Useful opinion I wrote on Dooyoo was on Machine Head?s ?Burning Red?. It was an album I loved (and still love) so I did it track by track ? thinking ?this?ll be great, a crown surely?. It turned out, of course, that I?d merely reached the required standard for most album reviews! After seeing that track by track reviews seemed to be the norm, this was the style I adopted (and, incidentally, all three of my album crowns came for reviews featuring track by track reviews). I soon grew tired though ? track by track reviews seem rather formulaic to me ? a good easy way for a beginner, but they can be dissatisfying to write and to read. I?ve since adapted my style, so it focuses more on general comments about the group and album, and is generally considerably shorter. It doesn?t look like this is ever going to win any crowns, but produces what I feel are genuinely VU opinions, without having to write 1,000 words plus!

The best format probably combines the two approaches. I?d say an ideal is a lengthy introduction and/or outro which describes the band and album, coupled with a decent track by track commentary. For prime examples, I?d recommend miriamb?s recent op on Spiritualized or just about anything by dreamerz (note how not breaking the tracks into headi
ngs aids the flow ? it?s up to you which approach you prefer).

The thing is, I think, not to judge opinions by pre-conceived notions. If it?s track by track, don?t assume it has to be VU (or otherwise) and vice versa if it?s not. Too often I find track by track reviews feature nothing but the run through of the tracks, which I now doubt is really VU, specially as the comments are often brief or repetitive. ?This is a song with a verse and a chorus. I like it but it?s not the best. 7/10? If you only have one of these elements, I think the general commentary is far more useful, but I?d repeat the best reviews normally combine both if you?re aiming for crowns.

On the topic, I never think a track listing itself is that useful. I can normally see this on the album/on Amazon; it?s the opinion that informs my decision. Thinking about it (for purposes of this advice) it can be helpful I suppose if people are after ?The Terrorvision album with Tequila on? or something. I wouldn?t rate highly an opinion with little more than a track listing (as this could easily be found elsewhere, if it?s not already on Dooyoo); but where Dooyoo doesn?t list it, I might give track listings in future?

When talking about the music, describe it as well as you can. It?s difficult I know, sometimes more so than others (I always find dance hard). I always find opinions that tell me only what songs are about less than VU ? as I said earlier, a ?love song? could be anything from Westlife to Metallica. By all means, if you can pick out specific technical details ? such as saying the guitars are good but drumming poor. Not everyone can, in that case just saying you find it rather guitar dominated and thrashy. Describe it however you want ? throw in a few metaphors, or stick to a fairly basic what you hear ? but try to give your best impression of the sound.

As for lyrics, again they can be useful. I doubt there?s ever need to quote a whole song ? but I wouldn?t ?mar
k down? someone who did so as it?s easy enough to skip the lyrics if the reader?s not interested. A well chosen sample of each song, or perhaps just the singles or favourites, can be very helpful though ? giving an impression of the themes, or maybe even sparking recognition the title didn?t ? I only recognised ?that song on the radio? as McAlmont & Butler?s ?Falling? when I saw it on Top Of The Pops.

Other useful details it might be worth giving about albums include: total running time, hidden tracks, special editions and (if possibly hard to find) record labels/catalogue numbers. I often give a rating out of ten too, as I sometimes find five stars too restrictive.

Groups In General

My approach to this would be to expand the above description part to make a full opinion. I think a career history, combining biography with in effect a review of each album (or significant ones in the case of groups with lots of albums) is the best approach ? see again dreamerz for good examples, or Ian Proudfoot?s ones (particularly on Frontline Assembly and Cabaret Voltaire). Again I think this approach is far more useful than looking at single albums in isolation, and it?s a shame Dooyoo no longer give crowns in these categories. If you have anything else though, feel free to offer a different approach (for example, my interview with Cyclefly).

If you?ve tried suggesting a new album or live category then given how slow Dooyoo have been adding them at present, I?d fully forgive you for posting under ?in general?. Please, in this case, make the content clear in your title and be especially sure to include a fair amount of general information about the band!

Live

Like Dooyoo say, include details about song listings and band members if you can. Stage sets, support bands, or anything else all hope. Once upon a time, Dooyoo just listed ?Bon Jovi live?, which would draw in quite a variety of opinions over time. Now they seem to favour a
dding a year ? e.g. ?Cyclefly live 2002?. This means you can focus on one tour, so set listing and travelling support is even more useful. Don?t forget to add what you can about atmosphere, onstage banter and the like. Your experience is what we?re interested in ? obviously we?ve missed the particular gig, but try to inform us about the rest of the tour. Details about the specific venue, for example, are likely to be largely irrelevant though.

Festivals

Again, I?d say treat them like a ?your experience?. I like reading a kind of memory diary of the festival ? and after all, it?s not like anyone?s going to be making a consumer decision whether to go to V2001 any more is it? Tell us what bands you saw and how they were. Do try to comment on the general site and organisation though ? these details might be informative for anyone thinking of going next year.

Well, that wraps up a pretty long opinion (sorry!). Hope it doesn?t sound too preachy. It?s actually given me some ideas thinking about it. It might even alter my future style a bit, and influence the basis of my rating others too! At the end of the day, write how you want as long as it?s useful.

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