It's very rare that a debut album is as breathtaking as `Fleet Foxes'. Arriving seemingly fully formed from the depths of the paranormal, it is a truly remarkable piece of work, an intricate, meticulously crafted record reminiscent of Smile-era Beach Boys.
It is immediately evident that Fleet Foxes possess astounding vocal ability, with harmonies intertwining to create a work of inconceivable splendour. The album begins with unaccompanied voices, creating a wistful ambience that sets the tone for this spectacular record.
That said, it is far from being a ground-breaking piece of work - as many reviewers have mentioned. The influence of Beach Boys, The Band and Fairport Convention among others is palpable, but Fleet Foxes finely adapt the recognisable with an astonishing outcome. In the Pop Idol generation of music, it is the salve for the troubled soul, the Astral Weeks of its day.
Singer Robin Pecknold sounds like a troubled Neil Young over the Love-esque baroque pop, with songs such as `Tiger Mountain Peasant Song', `Meadowlarks' and `Oliver James' concocting a melancholic, claustrophobic atmosphere, juxtaposed with the uplifting, enriching magnificence that flows throughout the record. The music is sometimes at odds with the lyrical content; with the melody of `White Winter Hymnal' concealing the darkness of "Michael you would fall and turn the white snow red as strawberries in summertime", showing a bleakness that is not initially apparent.
The album's liner notes mention the connection the band has with Brian Wilson, and never since The Beach Boys has a group of voices been able to astound and delight in such a way. The vocal purity generates a sense of opulence whilst maintaining a desolate undertone that sets the record apart from others of recent times, and induces a mood that is not dissimilar to that of Joanna Newsom's `Ys'.
`Fleet Foxes' is a marvellous achievement, an outstanding debut of supreme beauty, and possibly the greatest recording of 2008 (although people who have heard Bon Iver's 'For Emma, Forever Ago' amongst a few others may disagree). It is an album that draws the listener into a supernatural world, a world of pureness and intensity that leaves you gasping for breath, and one that you will never want to leave.

It is clear that, as with all Lynch films, Mulholland Drive is not for everyone. That said, if you enjoy surrealism, complexity and, ultimately, being challenged to think, then this is the film for you.
The film does have a storyline, it's just unclear at first (this is from someone who has now watched it 14 times), and it does require a lot of thought. Even if you don't know what the hell is going on (yes, that was me), it is clear when watching that, for one reason or another, this is an astounding film. I am not lying when I say that I finished watching the film for the first time at 1:30am and went straight back for a second viewing.
In my opinion, Mulholland Drive is a masterpiece, and ranks above even the greatest films (note Chinatown, Pulp Fiction etc, as well as other Lynch works). And even if you hate the film, you will definitely not forget it in a hurry.

Firstly, let me say that I am an enormous fan of The Sopranos, but The Wire has to be the greatest show of all time, and series 3 is my favourite (although 4 runs it close). Focusing on the changing of guard in the Baltimore drug leadership, as well as in the police, this series is an incredible piece of work.
Anyone who has seen the show will know that it is not afraid to tell the truth, no matter how brutal, and this series shows that better than any other. Right from the first scene, I was unable to stop watching, so be warned - it will consume your life!

It may seem fairly pointless to write a review for this album as, over 40 years on, everything has already been said. But I just couldn't resist.
Blonde on Blonde is a quite staggering achievement, one of the few albums that leaves the listener fully aware that they are experiencing a genius at work. It is also important to contextualise the album with what Dylan had done previously. Along with Highway 61 Revisited, Blonde on Blonde confirmed Dylan's departure from the powerful protest songs that resonated amongst the disenchanted youth of the time to the electric, rock songs of the late 60s. Anyone looking for another Masters of War or Blowin' in the Wind is in the wrong place.
However, as he did with the folk genre, Dylan made rock his own, with songs such as Visions of Johanna, One of Us Must Know, and the epic Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands cementing his position as the greatest lyricist and songwriter of all time. Needless to say, the album is a must have for any music fan.

Although it may seem like an insincere superlative when considering such legendary albums as Dylan's Blonde on Blonde, Van Morrison's Astral Weeks, or Love's Forever Changes, Radiohead's opus OK Computer is, in my opinion, the greatest record of all time. Never has any other album left me with such an incredible feeling of hope, desperation, beauty and, above all, the sense that I had just heard something remarkable.
Whilst it would be easy to dismiss OK Computer as over-hyped, pretentious, or similar to Pink Floyd, there is an incredible amount of substance to the album (and for the record, I loathe all post-Syd Floyd!) From the hard-hitting opener Airbag and the astounding Paranoid Android, to the epic Lucky and the uplifting closer The Tourist, it truly is an album of unadulterated genius, and the album that established Radiohead as the definitive band of a generation.