[.ca] Christgaus's Consumer Guide: Albums Of The '90s (ISBN 0312245602)

losing focus but still the best:
I challenge anyone out there to outdo Christgau. (Please don't bring me pretentious Greil Marcus, who is not really writing in the same genre anymore.) At this stage of the game he can afford to be less focused (hell, his subject - rock music - is hardly a focused genre anymore) ... I'm just glad he keeps going and keeps honest. I do wish someone out there, someone younger, could write such great criticism. I admit it's a pity to still depend on Christgau. I constantly search in vain for the heirs to Bangs and Christgau...still waiting. Many people have pointed out, quite correctly, that this is not a great intro to 1990s music - a little too obscure in places, assuming a little too much previous knowledge. This is a failing...and I agree that the 70s book is still the best. But, who says great popular art has to be easily digestible? Speaking of not so easily digestible, how about Radiohead, U2's "Achtung Baby", and other "undisputably great" icons of the 1990s? thank you Bob, yet again.

What a SUPERFICIAL collection!!!!:
His writing aims to be clever at the expense of informing the reader. Not only is his "analysis" woefully lacking in detail and description, but Christgau's taste in music is just plain awful. If you to read highly informed and passionate music criticism then read Jack Rabid, the publisher of the Big Take Over magazine.

The Only Critic Who Matters:
Robert Christgau has been writing rock criticism for over 35 years. He has graded over 12,000 albums. That's TWELVE THOUSAND. He's almost certainly heard more albums than anyone in history. When I read any other critic (not to mention outspoken laymen), my response is "Is that your opinion based on the 6 albums you've heard?" This book is the definitive work on the music of the 1990's. Oh no. Did he give OK Computer a B-? And What's The Story Morning Glory only got an honorable mention? And Anthology 2 got a dud? Yes. Have you heard Iris Dement: My Life? D J Shadow: Entroducing... D J Shadow? Freedy Johnston: Can You Fly? The Magnetic Fields: 69 Love Songs? Have you heard The Rolling Stones: Exile On Main Street? Every critic panned it when it came out except one.

Pretty useless, the nadir of music writing:
Robert Christgau has been reviewing records forever, and it's starting to show. From what I understand, he listens to thousands of records a year, and he determines his rating after one, maybe two spins. How can anyone determine the worth of music after that many plays? Then there's his indecipherable rating system, in which records are given star ratings, or letter grades, or icons to determine their worth. This would be more palatable if he were a decent writer, but he's not. Christgau is more concerned with tossing off cranky one-liners and implicitly calling attention to his own cleverness, and less concerned with telling readers why he liked an album. And even if he is telling you why he liked it, try to get through his unreadable blather. Or try to glean insight from some of his 4-5 word reviews of albums. This guide isn't really a guide as much as it is something to look over and have a few laughs about, you're not going to learn anything new. And another important point: this guy is old. Most of the music he reviews is not made for his ears. This guy is not out there as a part of any musical scene, he's sitting in an office listening to music, unable to understand the context in which it is made, not part of the living, breathing musical life that people half his age are a part of. The 'professor' nickname is right, since he tackles music as a cultural study, as one might study a civilization. His writing reflects that, because it doesn't convey any passion for music, nor anything as soul-baring as love or respect for the artists he admires. He's dry, boring, and analytical. And much like one shouldn't trust a tenured professor to tell you all about a sub-Saharan culture when he's never left the States, one shouldn't trust Robert Christgau to tell you which new CDs to acquire. He's 65 or something, for God's sake.

Don't waste your time.:
It's comforting to know, that before art and pop culture are gone, Christgau will be gone. His intelli-prole tone of authority rings throughout this book, giving it no useful heft at all. If you read this to aid in your music consumption endeavors, very little hope lies ahead. If you read it for entertainment/stimulation...you can't be saved anyway. F minus