see subject. For example, I read a review that said "Third" is Portishead's least accessible album. What does that mean?

It means casual music fans will be the least open to it.

I think it can also mean music that does not require many repeated listening sessions to understand and fully enjoy (i.e., sounds great the first or second time through without a lot of effort).

It means it's really hard to get into. Radiohead is a good example of this. Most people will not like Radiohead on the first listen unless it's "Creep". But after listening to their songs multiple times, most people start to really get into them. VS. Someone like say Lil Wayne who has music that most people can instantly get into.

it's a sound/music that's not as mainstream-sounding as something else might be.

Some think Hard Candy is Madonna's most accessible album in years- translated, that means least risky (musically) and more pop than recent efforts.

Bill, you actually went with the opposite there.

I think maybe I have the reverse experiences with your example. Radiohead I "got" right away. I heard "Paranoid Android" the first time and was floored by this dense, complex sound I'd never heard. Meanwhile, everytime I listen to Weezy I like it more as I discover the genius in his different kinds of wordplay and his insane sense of flow.

Goes to show everyone has different experiences with music.

It's a bit confusing because the subject of the post asks what "accessible" means, but the body of the post asks what "least accessible" means.

I was going by the first post and what he got out of a review. The review stated that is was portishead's least accessible able. So I told what it means when they say least accessible. Sorry if it seemed like I was getting inaccessible and accessible mixed up.

Okay sorry but here's an edit to my first post; I'm a little tipsy so I am screwing up my English a little.

I was going by the first post and what he got out of a review. The review stated that it was Portishead's least accessible album. So I explained what it means when they say least accessible. Sorry if it seemed like I was getting inaccessible and accessible mixed up.

By the way that post was in response to Paul.

In reply to Alex, that is indeed very interesting. It really is amazing how music can be such a varied experience for different listeners.

Bill, I was talking about narps' question, not your answer, which makes sense.

Oh okay, sorry for the misunderstanding.