The old five-point scale has been retired in favor of just rating stuff 1-10, which allows me a much more nuanced final rating. Still don't take it that seriously. Most of these come from my own collection, so the grades skew rather high. Your results may vary if you send me stuff to review.

Each album is given three Essential tracks, my personal favorites, regardless of how weird and inconsequential they are. The Quintessential pick is the one I think best represents the album as a whole, so you can try one song instead of a whole album of songs. Non-Essential picks range from merely disappointing to outright unlistenable.

Midwestern Dirt

[#] Amendments (2017)

If you're on that boat, you've got nothing better to do anyway.

Reviewed August 18, 2023

In all my talking to Patrick Kapp, the man rolling around in all the Midwestern Dirt, I've learned he's not a big fan of their debut, Amendments. Hey, I didn't think much of it for a long time either, I got on with the next album. I knew I loved the title track, this echoing, rumbling, six minute bout of moody, distorted strums and wailing leads in the cavernous darkness, with lots of lyrical languishing that turns to rolling thunderclouds on the chorus over top. It's easily the album's most effective moment, but beyond that, it just seemed like a lot of aimless strumming. I'm more kind on it now; this is the rougher, more primordial version of the Midwestern I fell in love with on Down the Stairs, and if you put it on and let it soak over you, you might just be surprised at what washes up next to you.

When Patrick sings "It's the same notes and progression/To a song you've heard before" on "Words to Forget", he's not kidding. Mood, not variety, is the name of the game on this one, and Amendments by and large mines the same tone, the same strumming patterns, and the same loping musical feel across all eleven (nine, if you don't count the guitar interludes) songs. It does lead to songs that should've ended a minute earlier ("Medicine" is a particular patience-tester), but there's successes too: "Cracks" is a satisfying bluesy opener painted in bassy scratches, and the title track, as said, is one of my favorite songs in their whole catalog. I think Down the Stairs is this sorta thing executed much better, but anyone who likes that album will find at least a handful of tracks to like here, and for a debut likely crafted without much expectation for what was to come, that's plenty good.

Essential:	"Cracks", "Amendments", "The Hollow Man"
Quintessential:	"Thru the Eyes of Apollonius"
Non-Essential:	"Medicine"
Rating:
Further listening:	Download from Midwestern Dirt's Bandcamp