I have to say that I hate it a bit less each time I hear it, but I'm never pleasantly overwhelmed by it. My observations from re-listening to it recently:
- It sounds like a RP solo album with Page on guitar (not surprising with the rhythm section being RP's rhythm section on several albums previous).
- Many of the songs don't sound fully finished to my ears; some songs sound more like high-quality demos.
- Why they had Steve Albini record and mix the album, I'll never know. Since he came originally from the punk world and produced for grunge bands like Nirvana, that's the sound that really comes through on the songs, even the quieter ones. If they hired him to sound more "current" (at the time), why? (I think Albini's mixing gave some of the songs the unfinished quality I raised in my last point.)
- The better songs are earlier on the album, IMHO - they seem to meander more as the album goes on.
Now, I do like several songs (e.g., Shining In The Light, Please Read The Letter, Most High, among others), but, IMHO, they should have just mixed the album themselves and fleshed out several other songs. When I finish listening to the album, I'm always struck by how spare the whole thing sounds - almost antiseptic in some songs...
I do wish they would release a live CD/DVD/Blu-Ray of the tour though - that was great!