This Year's Model

this is fine. sure. i guess. idk. i'm just so tired of listening to another quaint little british white guy as if i have to listen to this before i die. hand-in-hand--is my record [spotify] skipping? is this more worth listening to before i die than czech disco? nope. although i think the spanish version would've been. at least it was peppy

Elvis Costello: a great album if you want to listen to the same song 14 times. I really did not find anything interesting about this album. Maybe some good background music for Diners, Drive-ins and Dives. 3.5/10.

It’s a running joke that Costello has so many albums in the list. Of course he’s a great artist, but I doubt that this is his best. The big hits are great but the rest of the album is too ponderous to maintain that high level

3/5

Some all time favorites on this album, and a lot of perfectly fine songs that sound similar but don't reach those high highs. ✅️ STILL BANGS Favorites: Pump It Up Lipstick Vogue Radio Radio

the beat !

Pretty good

I've said this before, but it's always cool to hear the music that the artists you like shamelessly lifted off of. In the running for the best Elvis on this list.

Ok album. Never been a fan of Elvis. Not my type of music but i see why people who do like this style of music think this is a great album

Elvis Costello was made in a lab for me to love and yet I just don't. If we were a couple, it would be me, not him.

McManus Jnr's second album and his first with newly formed band the Attractions. It's a very energetic, spiky, up tempo and potent album with four of his signature songs: 'Lipstick vogue', 'Radio radio', 'I don't want to go to Chelsea' and the amazing 'Pump it Up'. I don't hear a bad track here, though I wouldn't say that everything is a stone cold classic. Nick Lowe's production certainly helps as he came rom the same pub rock background. It was not obvious that Elvis Costello would become the eclectic auteur, in bed with McCartney, Bacharach. Emmylou and the Brodsky's, but there was potential for a fruitful career even at this stage, so long as he could hold his tongue for the most part......

Just a mere few weeks ago I got one of Costello's albums and realise there's fucking SIX of them on this list. And here we are again. It's not really about whether he's good or bad but considering how little I ever hear about this guy in the wild, compared to, for example, certain The Beatles, it really seems overblown. Not that popularity should be a factor, but still. Yeah, I still don't really like his voice and the music is just all right. I admit I like the production quite a bit though. Great sounding drums particularly. I guess this is were all the modern pop-punk, emo and whatnot originates from, since his vocal style is, very similar to what those artists tend to sound like nowadays. Makes me feel dirty listening to this as an almost 40 years old man, in a way I can't quite put into words.

I've heard enough Brit Pop for a lifetime from this list and I'm not even a year through Fave track: Pump It Up

No Action - 84 This Year's Girl - 82 The Beat - 85 Pump It Up - 86 Little Triggers - 87 You Belong To Me - 85 Hand In Hand - 82 (I Don't Want To Go To) Chelsea - 86 Lip Service - 87 Living In Paradise - 83 Lipstick Vogue - 85 Night Rally - 80 This Year's Model - 84

This album has a bit of that throwback 60s rock vibe mixed with punk and early new wave elements. Elvis found a blistering backing band The Attractions, which helped to elevate his songwriting. Side one is powerhouse with a stellar 4 song run "The Beat" through "You Belong To Me". It is all very upbeat, but I like that they add in a ballad to break it up some, like "Little Triggers". Side two is okay, a bit more of the same punchy power pop. There are a couple of really good standouts like "Lipstick Vogue" with its fast bass line, but side one is the star. Overall the album is a bit too one note and repetitive to be considered great for me, but it is fun and worth a listen.

Va i litt irritert humør idag og fyf herre gjor d ekstremt my verre når æ driv å sose me fakkass biokjemi labrapport, me mf som nekte å godkjenn den. I oppsummering, ikke en fan ass, ekstremt mulig t herre e decent, men vart bare uendelig ragabaita.

Elvis Costello has possibly the most annoying voice in music. He's kind of punk, which I appreciate, but his voice is just so nasally and it undercuts everything he's singing about. Even a song like Pump It Up, which is arguably a sneaky song about masturbation (which is pretty punk), loses any kind of cool factor based on his vocals alone. The real saving grace of this album is the backing band, The Attractions. They do a killer job. if a little heavy on the high pitched synthesizer. I didn't really enjoy my time with this album. I can accept his contributions to music, but I don't really like listening to it.

Positive vibes :-) 7.1/10

Pleasant enough to listen to.

Oh look, yet another Elvis Costello album. This is the 4th one I’ve gotten so far and I really couldn’t tell you any difference between any of them. It’s not even that bad of an album, but it’s just unnecessary

It's ok. Classic british pop-rock. Not my cup of tea, and historically less relevant than Beatles and so on, but it's ok.

The truth is, listening to a lot of Elvis Costello gets really boring. Next!

Wasn’t expecting too much from this but I found it ok on my drive to work. Would I play again? Probably not

Perfectly listenable, completely forgettable. Nothing bad, nothing great, just very average.

What a great backing band!

This guy was on fire in the late ‘70s

I was not looking forward to this. I was mistaken--British Elvis can write a song. 4 keepers in 14 (29%) 1 banger (7%) 36

Like this, some quite scathing and quite interesting bits.

A very good album, quite coherent throughout and a power-pop post-punk mainstay but not one for my personal repeated listening

Elvis Costello - This Year’s Model (1978) Not a massive fan of Elvis but this was pretty good – I see it’s regarded as his best album by some. Standout tracks The Beat Pump it up Little triggers I don’t want to go to Chelsea Living in Paradise Lipstick Vogue Night Rally 3.6/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Probably quite innovative for its time but not my cup of tea.

Solid þristur. Skemmtileg til hlustunar.

I don't care what everyone thinks: I want more Elvis Costello! This one is amazing! Suck it, haters!

Songs were catchy and very listenable, even if I didn't always care for the electric piano/organ sound.

I was never a fan and this hasn’t changed that

Definitely a progenitor of the new wave to come.

It was fine. Unlike everybody else, I wasn't the biggest fan of Pump It Up. Songs felt repetitive. I enjoyed Radio, Radio.

ELVIS

Ok this better be the last Costello cause this is like the 4 or 5th and im pretty sure ive done all the recognisable ones. This ones alright, one of his better ones for sure. Standouts are The Beat, Pump It Up, Chelsea and Lipstick Vogue.

Pump it Up was a highlight for me on this album. I love that scratchy guitar sound during that song. The rest of the album was just ok for me.

I just didn't see the charm of this album

4,0 HIghlights: Lip Service, Lipstick Vogue

No Action - Not the worst song 2/5 This Year's Girl - Okay 2/5 The Beat - Okay the sequel 2/5 Pump It Up - I know this song! 3/5 Little Triggers - Nah 1/5 You Belong To Me - Okay 3: Meh again 2/5 Hand In Hand - Nah 1/5 (I Don't Want To Go To) Chelsea - Losing me 1/5 Lip Service - Think I'm lost 1/5 Living In Paradise - Ready for this to be over 1/5 Lipstick Vogue - Hm 1/5 Night Rally - I've had enough 1/5 Thoughts that come to mind: "I feel like I can hear why people would like this. So far it isn't connecting with me, though." "This album could just be called 'Being a White Dude'" "As someone who doesn't love this, this album goes on too long." "There are a bunch of bonus and live tracks on this deluxe edition, but ain't nobody got time for that."

music is love

Pump it up slaps. Like seriously the bass drives it 🍆🍆🍆

Not a fan really. I appreciate it for it's place in music history and the inspiration Costello draws from but not something I would choose to listen to.

I'd heard a couple of his albums before and hadn't thought much of them, but this one is fantastic. It's such a huge upgrade on My Aim is True; the songs, production and, especially, the backing band (the Attractions, rather than Clover) are much better.

Much better than I expected - i've tried listening to some of his other stuff over the years and it just bounced off me but this one was legitimately great.

Good

a lot of british stuff on here aint there. This is decent like 3.5 maybe

This is very annoying but not incompetent so i cant put it down entirely in the 1 star caregory. Actually it grew on me, bass went off.

I really don't like this, it feels overly bland

Yawn

Forgetable.

I didn’t mind this record, but there wasn’t anything that stood out to me and I probably wouldn’t listen to it again.

On Spotify 'pump it up' is replaced with a spanish cover on the album which is really fun

There's a lot of Elvis Costello that I like, and some of it's here. In fact, maybe there's not a lot, just some bits here and there that I know. And like. I should work on discovery, and learn to like more. This fells like a common mantra.

Not on Apple Music. Rating based on other album.

Just a solid albam

7/10 Ha! Another Elvis Costello album - my third in little over a week. I think this has been my favourite, although generally they score a bit higher than Id like, but I'm 500+ albums in and this is way better than my 2 stars, and I would listen to it again. I just thought my 4 star albums would be better

He kind of sucks.

Elvis was hugely prolific in these early years. It's one thing to be prolific but it's quite another to be prolific at such high quality. There's absolutely no filler on this album same as the album before it same as the album after it. Is personal jazz leanings mean that the musical direction is always interesting and he has a real ear for a catchy melody. The bass and drums in particular are worthy of mentioned the former being melodic the latter being punchy.

Elvis ASStello

Monday, 12 October, 2026 Loved it. Side one is stronger, but great album.

Angry smart pop songs, and the band is killer - sneering, punchy, nimble, loud. Excellent record.

Snarky, bitter, funny, astute are words that come to mind here, plus of course great songwriting chops. Punk pop avant la lettre. No Green Day without him? Arguably the 80s would have sounded very different without him either.

Number: 281 Familiarity: Extremely (5) Rating: 5 Before: ======= This will be my 2nd Elvis Costello album so far in this challenge. I expect it will get a 4, maybe 5 from me. It's not my absolute favorite one from him, but probably in the top 3. After : ======= A pretty solid 5. I don't get all the negative reviews but to each his own. I suppose it helps my appreciation for his music that I was in my late teens/early twenties during his heyday. Yeah, he has too many albums on this list but this is one I would probably keep.

A few decent songs in a sea of songs. He likes the sound of his own voice, he doesn't stop. There's no breaks.

Ikke noe for meg

Déjà écouté avant. Fermement planté à l'intersection de l'énergie adolescente du punk et des ambitions mélodiques de la new wave, Elvis Costello signe avec This Year's Model ce qui est probablement son meilleur album. Un album sans véritable tube, mais dont chaque morceau ou presque est une pépite du genre, des textes qui conjuguent frustration libidineuse et exigence "littéraire", et un backing band remarquable, The Attractions, qui suivra Costello pendant un paquet d'années, et on comprend pourquoi. Beaucoup moins connu par chez nous que de nombreux contemporains, Elvis Costello prouve sur This Year's Model qu'il est pourtant un artiste essentiel de la période la plus décisive de l'histoire du rock, celle de l'immédiat après-punk. Top : Lipstick Vogue Flop : You Belong to Me

I recognize a few of these songs by title, but otherwise have never listened to this album start-to-finish. This is good, but not great.

fever dream

Not for me

eeeeeeeeeh

100% better than the last one they made us listen to.

It was better than the other one I suppose.

Why would a British man sing like this?

I'm so sad because the farther I get into this album, the more I dislike it

thoughts: - okayyyyyyyyyy spanish standouts: - pump it out (for the spanish, obvi) - lip service and lipstick vogue - radio, radio more spanish?????????

Average rock. I’ve never been to impressed with him.

favourite song: the beat

3/5

I do not know why such albums appear out there - in general it is fine, and sounds good, but nothing special honestly, one million other artists perform like this.

Don’t hate, don’t love it, it’s just pretty meh all around. The record retains a similar sound throughout that made the listening to it feel more like a chore than anything else sadly.

Objectively good songs but I got a bit tired of his voice/the vibe pretty quick and was craving something different after a few songs

Pump it up was one of my top song queues at parties some years back. Been a while since I’ve listened to the full album but i love it. Mix so dry I had to drink a glass of water. Favorite tracks: No Action, Pump it up, Lip Service

Love it. Very strong 3 or weak 4 imo. Can't believe I've never given Elvis Costello a chance before

this rocked, aside from hearing some songs in the background somewhere i hadnt really listened to it before i love dry drums!!

This kind of 70’s production is right up my alley. Good happy energy - 3,5

Enjoyed and pump it up is obviously and all time bop but felt like a lot of the song came and went without leaving much of an impression - i might revisit this album at some point and i can def hear its influence

Off the bat, I'm really not a fan of his voice. This whole album is really not my thing to be honest. I just feel that's overly loud, and I don't find myself being engaged at any point. And I mean, the lyrics are just God awful. It's really not a very interesting album. Well, so I don't really get the choice to add the rat sound effects on that one track, who decided that was the correct decision. Fav Track: Lip Service

This Elvis sucks

This album is from 1978?? Gah!! Still sounds fresh and new-wavey. It's obvious how influential Elcis Costello was to bands that followed.

Never someone I had listed to in detail before. Had always enjoyed his singles and he has a great voice but it's not an album that really grabbed me.

Elvis Costello was my first concert. I loved it, and yet I never really explored his catalog. This album was phenomenal from start to finish. The 70's protopunk sound gets honed on this record. Costello's vocals shine with emotion, while his lyrics are brutally honest. I love the sound captured on this album.

This is the first Elvis Costello album I've gotten and it's pretty good, it's like what if Mick Jagger was a hipster who discovered the synth. That's Elvis Costello folks. It's very funny that Radio Radio was the song that pissed off Lorne Michaels so much that he was banned from SNL for years.

El álbum arrancó SÚPER regular, pero más o menos sobre la mitad, se pone genuinamente pegadizo y casi que mejor mezclado... como si se hubiera grabado la primer mitad del disco con una mente y un estudio y la segunda mitad con otra mente y en otro lugar. ¿La primer mitad? Un 3 o 4/10... la segunda mitad un 8/10... cerremos en un 6

I’ve always been ambivalent about Elvis Costello. This album did not change that.

Does there need to be 5+ Costello albums?

Elvis Costello ain't exactly a musician I'm particularly fond of, but I respect what he tries to do. This album, albeit not as remarkable as his debut, is slightly better than My Aim is True, and I personally prefer his Power-Pop/ Punk Rock direction