Live Through This

Your two vinyl choices in the recent past were to get the German issue and usually pay for overseas shipping (City Slang / Berlin version) or the one that most said was a bootleg (no identifiers on back cover). If you are now buying this new on Amazon, you are likely getting what is being referred to as the 2016 "USA release", meaning available in the states instead of Europe (but evidently not made here: this "USA" release actually was made in the Netherlands and carries such a sticker). It was also mastered by Capitol. You can see the differences on the back of the album, both in the bottom right based on whether it says DGC (the new USA release), City Slang (German), or is blank. The new USA release (first picture) also has a different, noncursive font for the word "thank" on the back cover and the "Made in Netherlands" sticker on the shrink wrap. I can't say how the three versions sound compared to each other, I only have the one, but for those who like to know what they are getting if you buy new from 'Zon you will get the 2016 "USA" release (made in the Netherlands). I think getting the new USA release but coming with a made in the Netherlands sticker will also confuse some folks. But the album inside is definitely new, and copyrighted 2016. As to the album itself, a 4 1/2 star effort, Side 1 almost a perfect album side and Side 2 bringing it down just a tad. I'll let others debate over whether it was Courtney, Kurt, or whoever who really wrote it. Bottom line it is good, close to Nirvana's Nevermind or STP's Core from that same time period. From a vinyl quality standpoint, I had lots of pops the first time through which went away with a good cleaning - must have had a lot of mold release still on it. The bass is mixed a little underwhelming compared to how the CD was and what I was used to. But that was easily fixed with the bass button. Courtney's voice is much clearer, but I think they sacrificed some of the deep tones to bring that out. Regardless, still well worth picking up, without having to pay for overseas shipping or worrying about pirated versions.

One of my favorite records of all time. This came wrapped well and in mint condition. I have no complaints and have played this record over and over! Great album from beginning to end, and I can't say that about many albums at all.

I was a teenager in the 90's, and fell firmly on the PJ side of the unnecessary "Nirvana vs. Pearl Jam" debate of that decade. In my adolescent arrogance, I assumed that Courtney Love got some media attention for this album because she was Kurt Cobain's partner. So I listened to PJ and Alice in Chains, and never gave this band a look/listen, and boy did I miss out. I bought Live Through This last year and was so impressed... this is by far one of the best 90's rock albums. I remember not caring for Courtney Love's voice part in Doll Parts (the only track I knew as a teenager). But that track was clearly a stylistic choice, because her vocal on this album is superb, as the band weaves through several subgenres of rock music. There isn't a weak track on this album... non-radio-single highlights for me include the punk thrasher She Walks On Me, the straight-forward rocker Plump, and the chant-introduced Credit In The Straight World. And if you like high production (which I do), the glossy production on this album is flawless. Lastly, as this album was released in 1994 (really?), I have to think that it was very influentual for the "post-grunge" rock bands that rose to fame in the late 90's and early 2000's... because they sound like they're imitating Hole in Live Through This. Please listen to this... your life will be better for it (not joking, well kind of).

Perfect shape, good cd

What great memories this album brought back.

I first heard Hole through "Celebrity Skin", and it wasn't until years later that I tried this CD based on the reviews here. Well, 30 seconds into the opening track, "Violet", I knew I had not made a mistake. The first six tracks are all incredibly solid, chock full of anger and catchy, edgy musical hooks. After "Doll Parts", things are more hit and miss until the finale, "Rock Star". Throughout the CD, Love has raw howls that would make Black Francis proud, but when she takes the rasp out of her voice it can be surprisingly tender and even dare I say sexy. Usually I'm not one to pay much attention to lyrics, but here I found myself genuinely moved by them. It's sad when you realize Love's inspiration comes from a lifetime of pain, and that she knows it. It's all laid bare here and I felt like I was listening to what was going through the head of Jenny in "Forest Gump" as she looked down from the balcony. Most people give either 5 stars or 1, but I try to reserve 5 stars for only what I consider a perfect album. I'm not so sure this is an all-time classic, and I'm taking a little off because of a few weaker tracks ("She Walks on Me", "Gutless"), despite the fact that there are some classic individual tracks. Also, I felt that overall the album's songs (while very good), sound too similar to each other in tone. A perfect album takes you on a journey through different moods and perspectives and textures. Here it's pretty much uniformly loud and angry and bitter. A perfect album breaks new ground and influences musicians for years to come, and there's nothing so utterly original here that it lives up to that. Finally, the production values are not up to what "Celebrity Skin" offered. Individual instruments find it hard to pop from under the mud -- it's not a horrible-sounding album, mind you, but it could be better. Having said that, when I give 4 stars, it means this is a really, really excellent album, and well worth having in your collection. Ignore the Kurt Cobain connections: they aren't important. Take "Live Through This", and Hole, on their own merits. If you aren't a big fan of Miss Love's personality (and believe me, I'm not), I urge you to look past/get over that because you'd be missing out on some great music hidden behind it.

Thank you very good album. Now I can listen to it without YouTube commercials interruptions. Thank you.

vinile arrivato prestissimo, la consegna è avvenuta senza problemi. l’album in sé poi é stupendo. consigliato!

My daughter was delighted with this

Lo compré en vinilo y lo que más me sorprendió es la alta calidad de la grabación. El sonido es excelente

Chocada com a qualidade. Chegou em dois dias, bem embalado e em perfeito estado, tem um amassadinho na borda como quase todos os vinis mas imperceptível. Fiquei muito feliz com a minha compra.

Great album! Came on time, was in mint condition and sounds perfect.