Swans - To Be Kind ALBUM REVIEW
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- Опубліковано 10 лют 2025
- Listen: • SWANS "OXYGEN" (TO BE ...
Swans' latest album takes a hypnotic, meditative approach to churning out some of the most grand and visceral rock instrumentation in the band's 13-album discography.
What did you think of this album? Love it? Hate it? Why? What should I review next, eh?
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FAV TRACKS: ALL OF 'EM
LEAST FAV TRACK: NONE OF 'EM
SWANS - TO BE KIND / YOUNG GOD / 2014 / EXPERIMENTAL ROCK, DRONE, NOISE ROCK, POST-ROCK, AMAZING SHIT.
10/10 www.theneedledr...
Y'all know this is just my opinion, right?
SHOUTOUTS!
Matt Farley
Austen
Oh, that Cal Chuchesta always ruining things. I HATE HIM!
Its okay Cal I forgive you
He's just a little boy
He just wants a little attention. Buy him a puppy or something.
C'mon now. We all know Cal is full of win.
It's ok Anthony I always check the description first anyways
There is a song on To Be Kind that is longer than the entirety of Kids See Ghosts
@@henrywise2746 bring the sun is a song
@@henrywise2746 thats a song henry
Kids See Suns
@@henrywise2746 Hey Henry, just a daily reminder that bring the sun is a song
@@henrywise2746 Day 2
this man really has not aged a day in his life, if it wasn't for the camera color scheme i'd never guess this was 7 years ago
You forgot the hair
veganism and stress free life
@@cayniner balanced diet >>>
He’s vegan tho
@@OL-qk7eyexactly, no "tho" needed
yeah man this Michael Cera guy is a genius
I dont't understand
He is. I fucking love Swans, they're incredible.
🤣🤣🤣
@@drewsimmons7892 The lead of Swans is Michael Gira
Spam singles haha i can see how u could make this mistake, but that's actually the quirky canadian actor who played Scott pilgrim
apparently swans created the genre "amazing shit"
ye
orgasm music
@@bobsbigboy_ that's actually quite an accurate description
@@bobsbigboy_ That's just toned down earrape
@@snowtoastpro665 good album too that too
The intro to this review is just so awesome.
So is your channel
Bring back the positives
You go girl
I give the intro a 10 as well
DOES SHANE LISTEN TO SWANS I NEED TO KNOW
*literally starts barking and making random sounds midway through a song*
10/10
Sounds like Death Grips
***Literally***
>Guy with xiu xiu dp criticising random sounds in a song
>"Blublublublblulilulyblublublublululboilblublublublubu" - 'Amargi Ve Moo' by Xiu Xiu
. I love that song.
@@mollyrulz9999 I was joking lmao I love both these artists
1/10, literally had no lyrics about swans.
CinephileKyle smh you must be a filthy geese fan
Rashotcake or the eagles
0/10.
Clickbait title, did not teach me how to be kind
everybody In this thread is reacting to messages from years ago
bunip not anymore nerd
MFWGMUARTTS - 6/10
The Seer - 8/10
To Be Kind - 10/10
The Glowing Man will be 12/10 confirmed
That's one hell of an acronym
It was 9/10 XD
I know
The math doesn't fucking add up
If you think _The Seer_ and _To Be Kind_ are good, try their actually good albums e.g. _Filth, Cop, Holy Money, Children of God, White Light From The Mouth Of Infinity, Soundtracks for the Blind_ you'll be blown away.
that was a sorta good beard. maybe i should bring it back.
You should. You kinda look like a lesbian without it sometimes.
you're talking about chuchestu right?
you might make more
Please, it would mean the world to me ;)
Pleez bby
This video is shorter than some of their songs
Most? A lot of their songs pre-breakup very rarely reach the 10 minute mark (let alone 17).
@@youtubeuserdan4017 you’ve cracked the code mate
Bring the sun/Toussaint Louverture is exactly 2x as long as this video
she loves us is literally the exact same length as this video
Wow wtf why didn't you like the song none of them
Not funny
+Reptile estrin I got 3 likes tho so someone must have thought it was
Reptile estrin
Nobody likes you.
ik best song
the songs only 7 min long too short
Cal Chuchesta saying "YOU GO GURL" has made my life.
10/10 bst albm evr
AOTY
Anthony, do u think Tool have an important influence by Swans?
I thought it was bad actually
Joan Saag Personally I think I could see that.
Joan Saag Swans have inadvertently influenced massive amounts of music. They were one of the main influences of the early grindcore bands.
I love it, as well +theneedledrop, solid review. I am super stoked to see them perform soon in BK, March 22.
My take on the opener is that the concept is a character legitimizing killing their child. The litany of "no's" refer to all the things the child will not have to endure because they will not exist after they obey the command to "Come, child," and lose all. That's my take on it, anyway.
As ridiculously heavy as the content and instrumentation is here (but hey! It is a SWANS record, duh!), I am repeatedly gobsmacked by the brilliance and snarl that builds and builds and builds over the whole lp. The balance between grace and raw unadulterated power leaves me breathless, and simultaneously, highly inspired to go create.
Has anyone notices Anthony’s review is exactly 17.01 long? Same length as the track She Loves Us. We love you too bro!
17:02 actually... 😐
TJ PatronEz I see 17:01
TJ PatronEz i see 17:01
the song is 17:02 :) :) :)
I see 17:02.
im just a little boy!
**cheesy group laughter** **middle-aged businessmen chuckle**
boy, 5 years later, now halfway through the song: I NEED LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE
Hahahaha I feel like a dumbass cause I looked at the “fav tracks” then searched “all of em -swans”
i relate
Lmao
lmao
"FAV TRACKS: ALL OF 'EM/LEAST FAV TRACK: NONE OF 'EM".
Excellent.
@GUY PRODUCTIONS we
5:15 Screen Shot
7:00 Some Things We Do
7:50 A Little God in my Hands
9:05 Oxygen
10:00 Bring the Sun
11:34 Toussait l'ouverture
12:51 Just a Little Boy
13:47 She Loves Us
14:47 Kirsten Supine
15:06 To Be Kind
Thanks for gracing us ╥﹏╥
no nathalie neal love smh
@@user-fs1lc2cj5s fr😔
Kirsten Supine and Nathalie Neal deserve more love, they’re my favourites on the whole album
@@KOOL_AID_KID yea
Especially kirsten supine such a creepy ass song i love it sm
I had a dream once that Lana Del Rey recorded an album in the style of Swans. Imagine it, 30 minute instrumental monstrosities written by Lana Del Rey. I don't know if it would be terrible or amazing.
i don't know what i'm doing in this section coments in this year but your coment is worth it
That actually wouldn’t be too bad. Her beats are very atmospheric and I imagine being as dense as a Swans instrumental would add to it too. Plus her vocals can be very dreamy which could totally add to the atmosphere
I would love to at least see what that would look like
So like, Lingua Ignota?
I’m 7 years late but I NEED this
My palms are spaghetti right now. I gotta listen to this album before the rest of me becomes spaghetti too.
There's vomit on his sweater already
moms spaghetti
palms spaghetti*
Lucas Garcez Haha!
Hey! You're the Hip Hop rpg guy!
you should draw that.
This album is savage. I mean it's more brutal than black metal. There's no chill to be found in this record.
Alex AbdullahGM swans is more metal than metal itself
Kirsten Supine and To Be Kind are pretty chill for the first half.
Lol you haven't listened to The Seer, then.
And then daughters drop a Record...
You won't get what you want
11/10, review it again
05:14 - Screen Shot
12:47 - Just a Little Boy (for Chester Burnett)
07:50 - A Little God in My Hands
09:55 - Bring the Sun / Toussaint L'Ouverture
07:00 - Some Things We Do
13:47 - She Loves Us
14:48 - Kirsten Supine
08:59 - Oxygen
08:59 - Nathalie Neal
15:05 - To Be Kind
this isnt the emoji movie
THIS ISNT EVEN THE RIGHT VIDEO! IT DOESNT HAVE THE WATERMARK!
You're not wrong.
I AGREE
This review and your reviews of the money store, to pimp a butterfly and kids see ghosts are some of my favorite reviews by you just because it’s very apparent and clear how much you actually love these albums and it’s oddly fun to watch you nerd out over them.
Toussainthony L'ouvertano
coopsy respek on yo name for writing this shit without typo.
underrated comment
that fits way too well
The Money Store - (9-10/10
To Be Kind - (10/10)
To Pimp A butterfly - (10/10)
Kids See Ghosts - (9-10/10)
Speedin Bullet 2 Heaven - (0/10)
Angelic 2 The Core - (0/10)
You Won't Get What You Want - 10/10
The Big Day - 0/10
He also gave All Love Is Legal a 0/10
I mean, technically he never said Angelic 2 the Core was a 0/10 but a not good.
With that logic every Not Good is a 0/1%
@@thedudeunderyourbed8474 yeah it would but he once said that NOT GOOD means the album is like a 2 or 3
Nathalie Neal is the most underrated song here. i love the way it slowly builds and the chorus is amazing. also, it's nice to hear an uplifting song on this album.
Absolutely, the intro is one of the most ethereal pieces of sound I've ever heard and as soon as it gets to the "main" part of the song it grows into one of the most explosive and awesome rock songs ever, so fucking awesome
My favourite song of all time, and I’m so sad that it was that only song Fantano didn’t specifically talk about in this review
Ive never seen 10/10 my life is complete
Death Grips Money Store, was his first
+TheGFTOW Death Grips wtf
death grips is a nice meme
knowyourmeme.com/memes/people/death-grips
***** Yeah they're pretty good, i've only listened to exmilitary and a bit of their new stuff so far though
Thanks for the excellent review, I didn't even realise a new Swans record had dropped until this popped up in my subscription feed, and what a pleasant surprise that it is so. freaking. good.
thank you! *hugs hugs*
@@theneedledropBUGS BUGS
Corey Feldman's album was better.
@@DMVGREY No, he's talking about SB2H.
Hidbid maybe he was talking about graveyard classics because that’s in the same realm as TBK
Brings me to Heaven more than TBK.
I'M JUST A LITTLE BOII
Lord Quoos HAHAHAHAHA
I NEED LOOOOOOOOOOOVE
HHHHAAAAAAA
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Lord Quoos quassss
apparently St. Vincent provided backing vocals on some of these songs..
+Hax Fraarf wwwhhhhhaaaaaaaat
She did
Yeah that's pretty awesome
whoa really???!! She's overlooked as hell.
He... gave an album... a 10?
Am I tripping right now?
tpab
He's given three 10s. Well 4 if u include the April fools one. He gave Kendrick Lamar - To Pimp A Butterfly, Death Grips - The Money Store and this one a 10
nah, he also gave Fever Ray a 10.
Shamus Leckie
Right
no he didn't shamus
The Money Store = Strong 9 to 10.
To Be Kind = 10.
Therefore, this was the first solid 10. (not including the classics reviews)
"solid 10".... seriously, are we not doing 'phrasing' anymore?
I think he meant salad 10
@Antoine Groot every January he reviews old albums that are widely considered 10/10 (unless stated)
Classics aren't necessarily 10, just classics.
in a recent livestream where he was asked to rank the 5 10/10s he actually placed The Money Store over this his ranking being TPAB > TMS > YWGWYW > TBK > KSG
“This song has one of the most [insert adjective] [insert musical feature] on the entire record”
I never thought I'd see the day, a 10/10! Gotta check this album out.
i hope you like it!
I listened to "A little God in my Hands“, reminded me of King Crimson!
He also gave The Money Store a 10/10, which is also a fantastically awesome album
+bulletfastspeed the money store changed my life
@Jason Talbott
It did for mine because what I heard was so creative, expiremental and boundary pushing, that it brought out my own creativity as a person, add that with To Pimp A Butterfly which also changed me a lot. Finding out about Kendrick and Death Grips at the same time was like gaining 900+ IQ and ascending to the 7th level of woke
I love this review. Fantano is able to articulate what's fantastic about the record with such amazing detail whilst also having his way of speech be accessible to a general audience, his energy along with his detail makes this video so exciting!
This review is truly amazing. He captures the feeling and sounds on the album so well by describing them, and no one could not be interested in this album after watching this review.
I think genius annotations and the explanation of lyrics attract you more to the magnificent that is this album.
you go girl
you probably forgot you commented on this
Swans are 30? dad rock
When your dad rock is more abarsive than black metal
Jacob L So what?
Lol shut the fuck up
Aesthetic Virtuoso there's nothing wrong with Dad rock just embrace it fam.
Its dad rock for Dads who are abusive and have dementia
This album just gets better every single listen, I didn’t care for it too much at first but I’m loving it more and more each listen now.
End of 2017.
Screen Shot is still in my Top 10 favorite songs of all-time.
This is the video that brought me to you, as I was very curious to hear what someone else thought of this album.
Three years of vegan melon.
Screen Shot has one of the best and most menacing intro riffs ever.
And that build up in intensity while tearing down the lyrics just kills.
10/10 really makes you *FEEL* kind
Crescendo *THE ALBUM*
I can’t believe a group of swans made this album, ducks could never!
10?
The veil has been lifted.
The curse of a thousand years has begun.
Still love this review
man the same day i choose to give this album a listen for the first time you post this
i liked it btw
I still don't know how many fingers you're using ;CCCC
Ok Bradley
Lol nice to see you here. Hope you are good. Looking forward to the next Radiohead reaction
yo wassup bradley
FOREVERRR LAAAAAAAZZZYYYYYY
THE UNIVOOORSOOOOLLL
MAYYYAAAYYAAAYYAAAYYYAAAYYYAAAAAAANNNNNND
TCHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
Can Swans be considered the most costant band in term of quality by decade?
They have my vote, they haven't done a 'bad' album. Even there less preferred albums are brilliant to me personally. I think it may be because there music is worth the effort it takes to get into them, like Godspeed
Well, there were a few duds in the day, but overall, I'd agree with that assessment. Miss Jarboe, though.
David Adams
Harry Smith Rui Almeida Sure they're completely dedicated about their own music, and that helps.
David Adams Agreed on Jarboe. She brought something quite special to the mix.
Johnny Wrong
Harry Smith Rui Almeida David Adams And forgot this is a 10 by Fantano, could be viral soon!
Soundtracks for the blind classic review let’s go
Took me 9 years to get into this group and then i realized half their songs are longer than that
Tubey Kind
2B [K]ind
To be kinemaster
12:22 "in the early 1700's and the late 1800's" damn toussaint must have lived like 150 years minimum
2 Songs into this record and it made believe in rock again.
i like this review. Anthony is just gushing about his favorite album
This is genuinely the greatest piece of music I’ve ever heard
Yeah, it’s crazy. When I heard Bring the Sun for the first time it was almost a bittersweet feeling. Knowing that there’s nothing else (music wise) that will make me feel like that. It literally is a spiritual experience for me. Fucking incomprehensible.
"Yeayeayeayeayeayeayeayeayeayeayeayeayeaaaaaaaaaaaa" - Michael Gira
10 out of 10. Totally agree with you on this one. This record is a massive and fantastic piece. Punishing...but in the right sense of it. A glorious album for sure.
I find it charming too that your two highest ranked albums of the year (Swans and Sun Kil Moon) are my two favorites of this year as well.
Screen Shot is my favourite song on the record. That groove just vortexes me into a zone I don’t wanna step out of.
"FAV TRACKS: ALL OF 'EM
LEAST FAV TRACK: NONE OF 'EM"
Poetic
Gira seems to be one of the only artists out there that is truly paying attention to the real muse..."My Father will Guide Me"..."The Seer" & "To be Kind" make a lot of others out there,(not naming names) sound like children's music....
WHAT IS THE REAL MUSE!?!? TELL ME!
theneedledrop
you know it when you hear it...and you know it when you don't
Shamanarts i'm not the only one crazy here.. phew
Put your light in my mouth
they just want my soul, fuck y'all life is weird
the most underrated 10 you gave
not really underrated, this thing is hella acclaimed everywhere
"Where the hell is rock?"
WHOOMP THERE IT IS
Listening to this album was my first experience with Swans. At first I thought it was super pretentious and repetitive and long for no reason. Now, I freaking love it. Favorite songs (To listen to by them self): Just a Little Boy, A Little God in my Hands, She Loves Us, Oxygen.
F that, grew on me even more. Favorite tracks: All except Some Things We Do. That track is good, and serves a purpose when listening to the album as a whole, but I wouldn't put that song on by itself.
Anthony you made me listen to this, 2 hours AMAZINGLY spent.
7:35 he says this line in such a Vsauce way
lol
I searched up melon swans and this is the first result
Had a feeling this was how you'd feel about it. Such an Incredible album. Probably my second favourite of the year after Benji, which has more of an emotional resonance with me. But both are worthy of a 'perfect' album tag in my opinion.
I don't understand the appeal of 'Benji'. That album sounded like long winded stream of consciousness ramblings of a middle aged man, and everyone praised it as being the best thing since sliced bread.
mybloodyboognish Well, you might look at the wrong things if you consider sliced bread great. But prefer stuff like baguette personally. And personally I think "Benji" feels natural and honest. You write "long winded stream of consciousness..." like it's a bad thing but that's what I love with the album.
mybloodyboognish Benji, for me at least, is such a raw, intimate album, and the stories told in it are heartbreaking in terms of both performance and lyrics. It's long winded, yes, but that's what's so good about it. It's honest and real. But that could be just me! (and RayasNegroOvejas )
***** You too bud. it was meant to be
mybloodyboognish IDK man, for me, Benji is probably the best album of the decade thus far, along My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.
I love Cal so much.
Anthahnee 😂
Speaking of David Lynch, Toussaint L'Ouverture really reminds me of the Club Silencio scene in Mulholland Drive, I keep expecting Gira to shout 'NO HAY BANDA!' haha.
I wasn't sure if I was feeling a 10 for this at first, I was a bit disappointed that there wasn't as much stylistic variety as on The Seer but the more I listen the more it's opening up to me and I think I'm starting to prefer it. It's so fun to get lost in the rhythms of this album, and Gira's vocals sit brilliantly over the top of them, he sounds like a crazy pastor. Fantastic stuff.
i will never forget the first time i heard the laughing in Just a Little Boy
Album literally gave me an out of body experience on the last track. Jesus Christ.
2 hours!? Am I allowed to take breaks?
On vinyl, you're allowed five breaks switching sides.
Frijolero18 tfw one song eats up an entire fucking side
Hax Fraarf Pleb detected. Do you even prog, jazz, or experimental?
Times goes faster if you're entertained.
I took a break in the middle of the 30 minute 2 part track
I love how this review is the exact same length as She Loves Us (AKA the best track on TBK).
I enjoyed that one a lot while listening to the entire album
A little god in my hands is better for me
Your Swans reviews are consistently more exciting than any Swans album. I mean that earnestly, I can't for the life of me get as into these albums as you do. Great review regardless.
Gave this album a try and....Dammmnnn!!!!..I've been recovering from my wisdom tooth surgery, laying in bed listening to alot music lately and when I came to this record, it took me on a dimension defying roller coaster. Which means... Shit was Crazy!! Speakers on blast, didn't know what to expect..just Madness!!! I'm a hip hop head and I definitely do not regret giving this 2 hr record a listen.
This shit would be great on some endone
This is the scariest music I have ever heard
It's definitely up there, but I think Uboa's 'Origin of My Depression' and Lingua Ignota's 'Caligula' really lean more into the agenda of completely terrifying the listener. Big recommendations if you like music to traumatise you
@@calypso2099 Throat by Little Women (which I later found out Anthony has also reviewed) is one of the most terrifying jazz albums I’ve ever heard.
Axis of Perdition is pretty scary
*Everywhere at the end of time joined the chat*
If you can’t handle this, then you can’t handle the money store or anything by peppa pig
this is the first Swans related video to get 1 million views, kinda crazy
The official audio for A Little God In My Hands now has a million views too!
Did you know that Phil Puleo, the actual drummer of Swans, in the 90s played drums in an industrial noise rock band called "Cop Shoot Cop"?
And did you also know that on of the songs in that album by Spiritualized is also called Cop Shoot Cop?
Coincidences?
like the drum sounds on this album are so clean it's some kinda wizard shit
i love how Anthony says Toussaint L'Ouverture
album of the year in my book, i doubt anything will change that either.
Amen!
Review Swans
One of the few records of late that deserve a 10. Blown away!
This is one man telling another version of himself that everyone loves him :/
dunno what you're talking about, it's just cal talking to anthony
Pretty much my thoughts as well. Absolutely adore the new album. It's also wild to me that it can at once sound like it carries the ideas of Swans' early material all the while bringing something entirely new to their repertoire. Incredible.
This is an older one but I really enjoy how you delve into the lyrics and themes. Great review and fantastic album for sure.
Watching Fantano making Cal cry is the saddest thing I've ever seen
You're the vsauce of music reviews.
Oh THIS is where Brad got the "I'm feelin...a 10" audio from
Cause it’s iconic as hell
Yeah
Love him or hate him Cal spittin straight fax
still not as good as the new greenday album
hahahaha good one
Nice eyebrows
@@fatdabbinmashinelol4713 thank you, you have a charming face aswell
@@jorisvandenhoek6251 do you what to go on a date i find you exquisitely attractive
@@fatdabbinmashinelol4713 when you go to sleep tonight we'll be together in our dreams😘
I love listening to Anthony nerd out about music because it reminds me of what I sound like when I do that haha
Hmm... This album was hard to grasp, I am kinda put off by the vocals. But the instrumentation is fantastic.
You should review Casualties Of Cool's debut album next. It is a pretty cool mix of country, ambient and blues-rock.
there is a song on this album that is EXACTLY twice the length of this video
All calculated
Mathematica calculation will be correct at all time
And it’s the best song on the album
I hate it when people say an albums overrated. Just because it's good and popular does not mean it's overrated.
I've been looking for this kind of thing without cheesy-ass lyrics for a very long time, I love this.
THANK YOU!
Just listened to it for the first time...holy fucking shit.