Rattlesnakes

I was prepared to hate this, but it's not bad. Sounds like Lou Reed covering the proclaimers. The cool instrumentation (backwards guitars? strings?) keep things more interesting than I was expecting.

Enjoyed this very much. Bouncy upbeat feel to it. 80s U.K. vibes done well. Down on Mission Street is amazing.

First time I've heard of this band! I like it.

Like the cure but without Robert Smith

Don't remember this from the 80's. but it's really good.

Quite indie sound. Like Speedboat and 2cv

This is amazing. I love the musicality of this album. The production does have an 80's vibe but not in the synth way that I usually think of 80's music. I will be listening to this again for sure.

Trivia Note: I started my first graduate job witH British Telecom back in '96. Among the half dozen other graduates starting in the same office that year was a guy called Blair. Blair was the keyboard player for the Commotions! He had dropped out of uni to chase fame and fortune and spent a few years on the rock star circuit. He then settled down, got married went back to uni and there he was starting alongside me at BT... Very nice bloke.

At first I thought it was just going to be another stereotypical 80's album from the isles, but it turned out to have some variation I enjoyed. So props for that!

Meh. Nothing bad, but not really exciting either.

Sounded cool but nothing really stuck out.

It was fine, but we’ve had a lot of things that sound like it. Not sure what about this one earned it it’s spot.

No clue anything about this dude but I was pleased with learning about him. Just a solid indie rock record. Singer songwriter type stuff. Got a couple tracks saved. All in all a good thing from front to back. I was a bit skeptical cause generally this is the best music ever or just forgettable. Happy middle ground. Just good.

For the second time this week, I’ve been introduced to an ’80s UK pop band I had somehow never heard of. I’m starting to wonder how often this is going to happen with this challenge. Overall, Rattlesnakes is a pretty solid ’80s album, and I really liked the instrumentation. The music switches things up nicely and delivers some genuinely great melodies. However, I wasn’t as into the vocals. Lloyd Cole often sounds more interested in being poetic than making the songs truly stick, and his delivery stays in the same lane a little too much for me. A few stronger choruses or more vocal variety could have pushed some of these tracks from decent to really good, maybe even great. Still, it’s not a bad listen. I just find myself wondering a bit about its inclusion, especially when there were stronger peers from that same era.

Belle basi con chitarre, qualche arco e qualche fisarmonica. Testi un po' ripetitivi, nessun tema troppo profondo. Si parla spesso di amori giovanili.

Vamos hoy miércoles con estos completos desconocidos. La voz del cantante tiene reminiscencias a Lou Reed, con la diferencia de que la banda tiene unos aires countrys mezclados con sonidos ochentosos. Me gustó. Disco tranqui. Hasta mañana, gente

I cant quite give this a 4, but its a strong three. It takes a lot of what i enjoy about this era of music: the energy and upbeat attitude, the storytelling lyrics and some jangly guitars and avoids a lot of the OTT 80's production. Needs a real stand out song or 2 to lift it up a notch.

Forest Fire

They have a chill Feelies slash REM sound. And Cole has a pleasing singing voice, the lyrics are a bit childish. I found a handful of songs I really liked and some not so much. I can't rate this very high but it did intrigue me enough that I want to hear it again.

It was a nice album, but also a little boring. I probably won't listen to it again. 3/5

More interesting than I thought, but not really for me

Okay

2.5

Cool record. Knew of Lloyd Cole, but hadn’t really listened to a record before. I hear similarities to Echo and the Bunnymen. Liking the guitars particularly. Taking me back to the bands of 120 Minutes in the late 80s. While I do like it, it’s not terribly remarkable and there are better records in the Brit pop Indy genre. For that reason 3.5.

Pleasant Brit-pop. Sounded like what might happen if The Cure were on an established Paxil regimen. The guitar on "Are You Ready To Be Heartbroken?" is really pretty. I'm glad I heard this once, but I probably won't be back. I wouldn't yell if someone put it on, though. My Rating: 3/5

A dated album that wasn’t smooth but wasn’t too bad

Me he guardado alguna canción jejej

Somewhere between The Smiths & mainstream pop, LC&TC at least punctuated a period smothered in blandness with something quirky & different. Their sound can be a bit hollow, but more interesting than much of what was going on at the time.

Summer just made everything more enjoyable. But come to think of it, it would have been much nicer if they could be pitch perfect. Recording is a bit odd too. Arrangement is arguably their strength but also feels a bit repetitive. Vocal performance is also on the bad side. Narrow range and not doing much, and very contrived cries.. don’t feel pleasant at all.

as far as our brit-pop albums go, i think this one has been one of the best. first couple of songs had me hooked, but then it kinda just went to be meh. not the worst, but not the best either.

The instrumentals are right up my alley, they almost foreshadow the late 90s guitar jangle sound. Unfortunately, the 80s-style vocals pretty much instantly ruin that vibe. An interesting album and an artist I had never heard of, it just didn’t deliver the way it could have.

A perfectly fine album that I've already forgotten about.

Didn’t love it didn’t hate it. Very middle of the road

Es diez veces mejor de lo que aparenta che.

This was an alright album, but just that. Alright.

Reminiscent of The Smiths

god natt

Enjoyed this. Very pleasant.

3.5 for me. I really enjoyed this

There's something of a nostalgic quality with this for me but I'm not sure why. Don't think my mum ever played it or anything, maybe because it has an 80s feel but I didn't necessarily think it was dated The orchestral element on the title track was a bit more unique but and I was hoping for more of that but it felt underutilised, it could've done a lot for some of the other tracks too I think Can't knock it down too much because I still enjoyed it, possibly because of that nostalgic feeling 3.5 Highlights: Speedboat, Forest Fire

Too Smiths-y for me, some nice stuff at least and the singer def has a better voice than morrissey

Perfect Skin Rattlesnakes Forest Fire

Rv

I like Rattlesnakes and Perfect Skin, but I was expecting a little more from this album, maybe a bit for variety. It's a shame because I love 80s new wave and post-punk.

English jangle pop that had some good stuff but mostly didn't grab me. "Perfect Skin" "2cv" and "Four Flights Up" were the standouts for me

I don’t hate this but it’s not my thing. Very singer songwriter vibe. Rich smooth overproduced sound with self consciously clever lyrics. I want to give this 2.5 but I will round up.

The name is familiar; never heard them before. They come advertised as the prototype of jangly college pop rock of the 80s. They sound to me like just another 80s band. Likable, solid ... eh. Sort of like The Call and The Alarm, but those bands had big singles to hang their hats on. There's nothing here I'm excited about. It's fine.

I was a fan of Lloyd back in the day, although always with the understanding that maybe we weren't all that serious about him. Revisiting his work, I don't love the production style of the record of his I owned (the follow-up to Rattlesnakes). I found this album has aged a lot better than the one I had. I enjoyed this album, maybe for sentimental reasons. I still think Perfect Skin is a pretty great track. The rest of it was enjoyable, for the most part. A solid 3.

Laid back, brilliant instrumentals, self assured of the vibe it’s going for but the vocals, to me, are far too similar and predictable,

Never heard of this before. Some early REM and Cure sounds here.

Decent.

Rattlesnakes is a worthy debut from Lloyd and Co. All songs are listenable, interesting lyrics, and decent musicianship. Liked ‘em all, but Charlotte Street was top track. Looks like only a couple other albums after this one, will listen if time permits. (2.75*s) Snakebites.

Lloyd är alltid Lloyd. Alltid bra. Aldrig bäst. Som den eviga fyran Sven Nylander.

Småtrevlig pop från Lloyd. Gillar speciellt Charlotte street och den slicka soulen i Forest fire.

Have Patience and watch for Rattlesnakes when walking down Charlotte Street.

Fine

I expected more rattlesnakes than this actually contained.

I played this quite a lot when it came out (or thereabouts), but then significantly went off it later. Listening now after a long gap, its somewhere in the middle. I quite like the guitar sounds in Forest Fire. But Cole's voice is a little affected.

Listening session: may 14th, while crocheting Listened to before: no Thoughts: at points a bit boring, but otherwise an easy and average album to listen to with a few nice parts Favourite tracks: Speedboat, Down On Mission Street & Are You Ready To Be Heartbroken?

Some decent jangle pop, with a somewhat more downcast tone to much of the genre. The first half probably has the best of it, with the title track and Perfect Skin well crafted. But on the whole, it doesn’t have the unique touches as the best of this genre, it just felt a bit generic overall. A decent listen, but didn’t blow me away.

Interesting album. Enjoyed it. Nothing really out of the box though.

Never heard of this group but I enjoyed the album. Very 80s sounding.

Favorite Track: Down on Mission Street

How did they get every male singer in the 80s to sound the exact same? This was pretty good but as an album started to feel repetitive after a bit. Perfect Skin and Sweetness were my faves. High 3.

Pretty average early 80s rock/new wave"ish" music. Undistinguished in any way. No wonder they didn't make it across the ocean. Very low 3

Where do all of these bands keep coming from? No issue with anything I heard but I could not tell you what was special, unique, or essential about it.

A couple of the songs are good but most of them are quite unremarkable

It was okay but no songs stood out as something worth listening to again.

Some nice jingle-jangle but hardly reinventing the wheel.

this was so nice!

some decent tracks on this, not too bad

New to me and loved it. Will definitely listen again. Was almost a 4 on first listen but not quite

I liked this one but it took me multiple days to finish so it’s kinda dull

Works for me.

Interesting instrumentals. Even the vocals are interesting. I think I like his vocal delivery because it often reminds me of Robert Smith. Very new wavey. I liked it. I will come back to this. I can't give it a 4 because I think I need to give it a relisten, but it was a very good 3 at least.

This feels like background music. Could not remember a standout song afterwards. 3/5

Another okay but mostly uninteresting 80's album. 3 stars or C+.

A well produced and pleasant sounding record, that is completely forgettable. Certainly wasn’t a bad listen, but this one will almost certainly be something I look back at my listening history and can’t pick out a single noteworthy moment.

nice

A bit of Simple Minds' flair, but it feels like it's stuck in one gear throughout. I enjoyed it, there are some great tracks here. But it's a bit too one-dimensional for my tastes. Spins: 1 Playlist Additions - Perfect Skin - Rattlesnakes - Are You Ready To Be Heartbroken?

Nice. To me, sounded very typical, but it still had heart. Forest Fire, 2cv (really like the guitars), and Patience were my standouts. 6.0/10.

I need to start writing these reviews as soon as I’m done listening instead of the next day. I don’t remember much but I enjoyed it.

Pretty good representation of 80s alt rock.

Very enjoyable jangle pop but a little same-y.

7/10 nada especial. Canción rescatada: Forest Fire

Definite 80s new wave vibe. Had never heard of this album before, not bad.

Ok…. Listenable but not memorable

I had no context for this album when I started it and it definitely took me by surprise. With a band name and album name like this, I was expecting something either country or more aggressive, but instead it's some pretty pleasant folky sounding jingle pop. It's not the most demanding album, but it's not a bad listen.

Went in blind and enjoyed the whole album. Tasteful, well-produced 80s art-pop/rock. A nice discovery.

Loving the jangly guitars on the upbeat songs. The ballads drag down the energy too much.

++

I enjoyed a few songs here, especially “Patience” and “Are you ready to be heartbroken?”

I enjoyed this, though it didn’t particularly stand out to me amongst similar artists of the time like Echo and the Bunnymen, Prefab Sprout, and The Jesus and Mary Chain. That early 80’s rock, while often great, is arguably over represented on this list. That said, it was a nice discovery album and has some moments that are great.

Talking heads like

80’s lo-fi rock

3.5⭐️/5 [04.09.2026] 05.21.2026

There are much better albums that could be on this list instead. But anything that started in Glasgow and isn't really shit has to get at least a 3 from me. ALBA GU BRÀTH

I enjoyed this one more than I expected to. It has a bit of a "What if The Cure had gone to therapy and gotten on some good antidepressants?" vibe to it. Nice production, good performances, interesting lyrics. Would listen again.

When you order The Smiths on Wish

Entre le neutre et le pas désagréable.

Compared to other 80s pop albums, "Rattlesnakes" is actually good. I liked "Forest Fire", it's a hidden gem. The other songs have aged like fine wine. However, I wouldn't call "Rattlesnakes" a classic. It could do with a few more songs like "Forest Fire". 3 stars for "Rattlesnakes".

Soft rock new wave. The album is great but probably won’t return to it.

Never heard of this group before. Found it fairly enjoyable and the album grew on me as it went on.

High 3 tho

Me gustó mucho, no conocía y me sorprendió para bien, es el estilo de música que me gusta. 3 estrellas

New album for me. Some fun stuff in here. Also, some real 80s cheese. Felt like he wasn't committed to the sound he was making.

Raw

very close to a 3. just not the best songwriting. the sound/playing is good though

I enjoyed it.

A fun album but pretty disposable and tails off a bit

Yeah this is pretty pleasant, not a lot stood out though, maybe with another listen or two I might change my mind 3

New wave without any edge. 2.7/5

Was alright, I enjoyed the music, I have just heard better in this genre.

3/5 I mean it's alright! Nothing special, really.

The first half does remind me of House of Love. The second half wasn’t this good anymore. What a pity.

Good instrumentals, voice isn't great, lyrics are fine.

Liked: Perfect Skin, Speedboat, Rattlesnakes, Patience Added: Rattlesnakes

Coffee shop vibes. Nothing to say one way or the other

I'm running out of things to say for albums that are just ok.

This list had given other albums in this genre before and I honestly hated those. But this one is quite allright. It's not too serious and reminds you of tears for fears just enough. But it is still just discount tears for fears.

Yep, this was a fine listen. Nothing outstanding but I liked my time with it.

Mid-80s folk rock. One of those "it's fine" albums - don't mind the sound but I'll struggle to remember it in a week.

Solid

,= the Beatles

que

3+

I was once a bookish young man but I was never daft enough to imagine that was cool or sexy. Lloyd Cole's naive pretentiousness was always a bit annoying, to be honest, but I might excuse his naivety more now I am so much older than he was. Decent songs, on the whole

This was ok, I didn’t mind it but didn’t love it eirher

Feels like an influence to the 90's Gin Blossoms/Goo Goo Dolls era. Did enjoy.

Some ups some downs but not super noteworthy

Jangle pop , sounds like the smiths. I’ll be generous bc it was pleasant enough

Not bad

I'm familiar with the singles, but never heard this album. In 1984 this was probably a bit too normal and radio- friendly for my ears, but today it's considered a 6Music Dad favourite. I quite like it; solid production and he's a good singer, just a bit on the safe side for purchase material. Heard before ❌️ Listened this time ✅️ Revisit ❌️ Safe ★★★☆☆ (6/10) Total reviewed : 245 Already owned : 55 Purchased : 13 To buy list : 3 Nope : 174

3 Fine, Bit forgettable

Rattlesnakes kicks off with a spectacularly good song - the single Perfect Skin, which is a top ranking song. If the rest of the album was as good, it would score a 5. Unfortunately the rest of the tracks really aren't that great. Not so catchy and rather contrived lyrics - contrived so as to drop in as many cultural references as possible.

7/10

Very 80s sounding

Pretty good. Totally new to me. Has a little bit of Echo and the Bunnymen sound. Can’t believe this did not hit my radar in the 80s.

Pleasant listening. I think I’ll need to dig into this one more

Rock with inspiration from folk and new wave that reminds me a lot of The Smiths. Not bad but not really catchy or interesting enough for me to want to come back to it. Perfect Skin and Rattlesnakes were my favourites after a first listen.

Cool background noise

A good album, I liked Perfect Skin, Rattlesnake, Forest Fire and Four Flights Up the most

Not offensive nor inspirational. But is it essential, important, influential, or groundbreaking?

Perfect straight-forward, punchy pop "She's got cheekbones like geometry and eyes like sin" Ultimately, not the best or worst from this era.

This wasn't bad, but I've already forgotten it for the most part.

Grew on me

Was fine enough in the background so I guess that tells you everything you need to know. Good music demands to be more than background music.

This really reminded me of the Smiths!

Fair to middling. Well not quite middling. Started off ok but drifted along after that and didn’t really do much.

I liked this one which is from another artist I had never heard of. It doesn’t really set the world alight or push any boundaries but would listen again.

- never heard of this group before, but the music is pleasant -- pretty normal and unoffensive. I hear a little bit of Smiths in some of the sadder, more personal lyrics ("it was much more my style/to find sand in my eye") and the shimmery guitar lines in the title track, but that might have also been features of most of the British alt pop rock coming out of the mid- to late 80s (Echo and the Bunnymen is another group that I was reminded of in the main hook of "Charlotte Street") - however, it doesn't stand out to me in the same way that Morrissey's voice stands out when telling a "woe is me" story about himself each time he sings on a Smiths album. I would say that overall, this album feels representative of other music from this genre coming out of the U.K. at this time, but I probably don't have the historical/musical context to determine much else that might make this significant in some other way

Solid

One of those rare cases where I agree with the reviews here. I don't think it would have made any difference to the list if this album was left out. Anyway it was a decent album and not a bad listen.

Echt best wel leuk. Bijzondere nummers. Bijzondere stem. Doet me een beetje denken aan die zanger van Rick and Morty met 'Goodbye Moonmen'

en terme d'album complètement lambda il se trouve là quoi

ct sympa

A very average album!

Nothing particularly stood out to me about this. I felt like the vocals got lost in the mix which made it drag on a bit. Few tracks were pretty solid, and a few a little slow. Didn't hate it but nothing particularly special feeling.

This was fine. Pretty good in places. Dragged a little, but enjoyable.

When I started this album I was confused for a bit since I didn't recognize the singers name but his voice sounded very familiar. After trying to remember and googling a bit I realized that its most likely just the brit pop sound from this era that sounds similar in singing style. While sounding like other bands might not be the best thing generally this time I didn't mind it at all. Its a really solid album with some catchy songs. Its on the verge of being whiny from time to time but the strings in the background saves it.

Solid jangle with annoying 80s vocal. Makes me appreciate the gin Blossoms vocals way more.

This is the perfect 3.5 album for me. Really liked some aspects but others just kind of turned me off it.

Ókei. Allt í lagi hljóðfæraleikur. Pínu boring. En þetta er örugglega betra eftir nokkrar hlustanir. Hljómar allt frekar eins.

This was cool. Reminded me of that Orange Juice album from a while back, but a little more creative and jangly. Strong 3. Didn't dislike anything on here, but not sure I love anything either. Well actually I loved the warped galactic ass harmonica on "Are You Ready To Be Heartbroken?" to end this one in style.

It was a reasonably decent slice of 80s jangle-pop/sophisti-pop but did little to elevate itself above that on my one listen.

po tem um janglezinho safado ali no meio, mas é isso num fede nem cheira, tem músicas boas e músicas paia

li jangle pop na wikipedia deles fiquei animado. mas eh bem medíocre, bem bobim!! nada demais não. é meio folkzinho new wave, não machuca ninguém, besta demais. não eh ruim, só medíocre. poderiam entrar mil albuns melhores no lugar desse, mas poderiam ser piores tbm i guess

5.5/10

Een sterke 7/10, vooral voor de title track ‘rattlesnakes’ en het al even poppy ‘perfect skin’. De echte parel hier is echter ‘forest fire,’ dat na +40 jaar nog steeds even origineel klinkt.

Had no prev exposure to this, so nice to listen fresh. Felt like it had been inspired by Television (without going to far into punk) and The Cure. Prob deserves more than a 3, would go 3.5 if I could.

ลำเอียงเพราะ 80s เพลงแรกๆดีหลังเริ่มเข้าไม่ถึง ทำไมมันไม่มีคะแนนแบบ .5 วะ

First Listen; 2.5; Enjoyable album with some interesting songs. Jangly and bright, with a fun new wave sound. At the same time, some of the other songs are pretty plain and boring. Favorite Track: Perfect Skin

An interesting blend of roots rock with synthy 80s sadpop. Three stars for New Wave Mark Knopfler.

Fun, unexpected brit new wave fun.

A perfectly cromulent 80s rock album

Quite a nice little album. Certainly never would have found it otherwise. Quality is up and down a lot. I think there’s an excellent EP in here.

3.5

Nice.

I was aware of Lloyd Cole and the Commotions before this project, but not certain I'd ever heard any of their songs. As I'm generally a fan of 80's new wave, I was excited to give this a listen today. After hearing the first few songs the thought that struck me was that they are ALMOST very good to possibly even excellent, but something was missing in each. I was really digging Down On Mission Street, until I wasn't. The same was true for every song on the record. The two songs I liked the most, Forest Fire and Patience, were enjoyable but I felt even they could have been even better. What I eventually came to feel is that Cole's vocals are too...everything. On each song that was the problem. Musically I think this had a great variety of styles, and even the backing vocals were pretty cool. But the lead vocals felt too forced and going for an emotion that the songs themselves didn't seem to need. A more straight ahead approach would have served the music much better. It's a shame as I wanted to like it, and really did appreciate each song in one way or another. But those vocals...

This was okay. I’m not familiar with the artist, but this wasn’t terrible background noise.

Strong start with Perfect Skin - jangly Smiths-like pop But then it quickly gets less memorable and slows down. Kinda boring and felt much longer than its actual album length. Andy's Babies is pretty painful.

Sounds very familiar lots of instruments fun to listen

This was a nice surprise. I recognized the title track, from the early 2000’s Tori Amos album “Strange Little Girls”. It was a quick and jangly ride. I’ll be back… 3.5/5

I’ve always been a fan of Lloyd n crew. Probably more so by the time their 2nd album hit. Still, this is a pretty impressive debut for a band. It plays just fine now, but it for sure played better back then as its jangle rock style was such an antithesis to so much of the cheesy 80s pop being circulated.

a pleasent listen, i just like 80s

I hadn’t heard of this band before and went into it expecting a rootsy, Americana sound, owing to the group’s name and album title. I hear some of that as an inspiration, but this is more squarely melodic British jangle pop featuring some very good songs. As the bandleader, Cole’s clearly a highly literate lyricist, and he occasionally reminds me of Morrissey in his sense of poetry and flow, though he’s nowhere near as prone to the latter’s dramatic excesses. He’s also much more limited as a vocalist, which isn’t disqualifying in an of itself — I like plenty of artists (Neil Young, Leonard Cohen to name two) who don’t possess great singing voices — but his underpowered, speak-sing delivery doesn’t quite rise to the level of the excellent playing on this album.

This exercise has done much to acquaint me with jangly Scottish rock bands, which I like fine, but when this album ended and my streaming service started playing songs from other bands I didn't even notice.

This album isn’t offensive, but it’s also not interesting. It sounds like every other new wave / alternative band from this era.

3.5

I liked this one. Good enough for sure.

Couple of really great tracks on this

It sounds like the 1980’s. 😊

jangly 80's pop

A bit of the transition from new wave to alternative. Nothing sticks with me, but the songs are ok.

Not bad

Very good

I quite enjoyed this, although I found it got a bit monotonous towards the end, and that's even after I skipped the last 4 bonus tracks for not being part of the original release. First half is probably a 4, second half has bumped the whole thing down, but I'd be keen to revisit this one.

Never heard of this before. Surprised because this would have been right in my wheelhouse in the 80's. I don't love it as much as I probably could have. Too many songs feel "samey". A few standouts. Probably one I would put on for background music..

I liked some songs but overall it’s meh.

Nothing really wrong about this album at all, but nothing really stood out to me at all. Square 3 at best, maybe a bit lower for being forgettable

Nice quick folky album. Enjoyable but forgettable.

RATTLESNAKE! RATTLESNAKE! Halfway through and this seems pretty inoffensive, but nothing special at the same time. Getting kinda bored as it goes on. Meh 3.

Its good, jangly, maybe slightly uninteresting. Needs a bit more grit or something Title track is good

super cute! 3.5/5

Middle of the road 80s new wave

quite generic compared to a lot of the albums that have made this list but i still enjoyed it a lot. the songs sound a bit similar to each other as well.. which despite being a weakness, manages to uphold a certain atmosphere which i appreciated. i can see myself spinning a few tracks off this here and there

Listened to this three times and liked it more each time. No time to see if this trend continues. I need to consume this list like junkfood. Next one. NEXT ONE

Not super interesting.. I sort of dig the 80’s sound here but also find it sorta plain. I’m a bit split

When a record is as innocuous as this and yet underwhelming it feels punitive to rate it 2 stars...I'm not mad Lloyd, just disappointed.

This is another album that has some nice moments and there is nothing really bad to say about it...but there isnt anything particularly special either. It's a good 80s new wave, pop, and ballad album.

I liked it.. different

“We have Dire Straits at home” vibes up and down this record. I like it more than a lot of the synth-pop style New Wave that was destroying radio by 1984, but this… Honky Tonk New Wave? Roadhouse New Wave? Country & Wave-stern? never took over or made a big enough splash to mean much to music history… or did it? Maybe this aided the country music crossover that would eventually give us Sheryl Crow, Shania Twain, and all the bro country in the radio today? I fear I’m reaching for meaning, and also terrified to be right, so I’ll shut up. I still need some convincing as to why we aren’t letting this one rest in peace back in 1984, but I might be re-listening to this until I get it. Woof. Absolutely not how I thought this review would end when I started writing it. Highlights: When Lloyd Cole says “vITimins” in “Are You Ready To Be Heartbroken?” Nothing says C ountry like British pronunciation. All of the twinkly guitar fills that help sew the seeds for Midwest Emo in the 2000s.

It's refreshing to hear a non punk or metal album from mid 80s that isn't new wave and doesn't suck. The second track is pretty cool. Third track a little on the 80s side for me with some goofiness, but it's not way over the top like most new wave stuff. Overall, this is pretty good. Kind of has notions of Nick Cave. A little janglish at times, but not so much that it ruins the overall product. High 3, but I could see this growing on me.

Is fine and non-offensive, if a lil repetative

I love Perfect Skin, one of my faves. Upbeat, slightly Avant Guard (in a good way). But... Ive never listened to the album. The Title track has the same energy, but there's some darker, more diverse listens. I mean there's some stuff on here that sounds like Elvis Costello, like Morrissey and even hints of The Saints. But still is uniquely Lloyd Cole. cool.

I'd heard Perfect Skin a few times before but nothing else on this album and, while it was all decent enough, nothing on Rattlesnakes made me want to listen to it again.

About great example of just how well written but bland AOR can get

Pretty good, but not particularly outstanding

Not gonna start a commotion or rattle any snakes over it, but pretty enjoyable

I like the instrumentals a lot, very up beat and easy to nod along to, however I just don’t like his voice. Sounds like he has a blocked nose 👍. my favourite track is rattlesnakes

It’s kinda just a alright

Very new wave vocals and instrumentation. Pretty cool overall. Some acoustics and synth strings and things. Plenty of synth in general, in fact, but used a little more conventionally rather than experimentally.

Istovremeno tako ok i tako ništa posebno, a mislim da takvi albumi ostave najgori utisak iako nisu loši jer ono zašto si ovdje?

This was a weird one. It was a super easy listen as long as I didn't pay attention, and then I thought it was quite average.

Heavy-bodied vipers with a series of horny rings on their tails that, when vibrated, produce a characteristic rattling sound as a warning.

Pas mauvais, pas pour moi.

Rattlesnakes is a pretty decent album. I haven't really heard anything from Lloyd Cole or his band, The Commotions, but by listening to this album, i feel a strong bit of R.E.M. vibes from it with maybe a few extra synths that i feel that the R.E.M. albums that i have listened to did not have. But other than that, it seems to mark a lot of the same checks like the vocals and the general direction with the melodies and of course, having very similar sounding guitars. While i don't think this album is as good as any R.E.M. album i have heard, I still think this album is a fairly solid listen which breezes through without feeling like its missing anything. Best Song: Down On Mission Street Worst Song: Forest Fire

Both extremely good yet quite boring? It definitely felt longer than it actually is. Perfect Skin is a great opener but all the other tracks apart from Ready To Be Heartbroken, feel quite samey. Yet I enjoy it. I wouldn’t go and listen to the album as a whole but wouldn’t skip if a song came up on shuffle.

Guitar really pushes melodies on this record. Lyrics are full of places and personal connections, giving a sense of environment. Production is super clean and clear. Not my cup of tea, but not a bad record by any definition.

It doesn’t move my needle, but it’s not a bad album.

Fine, but nothing more than that

Nothing offensive but nothing really good. Hard to give it a 3, but 2 feels too harsh

Why? Just, why? Utterly forgettable, I don’t think it was important in the 80s, and I know because I was there. Not bad, not good, not vital to listen to. It gets three because it isn’t bad, but it’s a grudging three because two feels harsh for something that neither improves nor diminishes the world by existing.

Koselig musikk på høsten. Litt like låter.

A fun, upbeat, poppy album with witty lyrics (i.e. “It’s just a simple metaphor for burning love” on “Forest Fire”). Definitely of a time, felt like I was in a John Hughes movie, not in a bad way. Highlights: “Forest Fire” and “Are You Ready to Bleed”

Another one I had never heard of. Decent, but ultimately not that memorable. 2.5/5

It's fine.

Poundland Bryan Ferry

M'eh not bad, not good, a bit boring

(Trying to) rhyme ‘Norman Mailer’ with ‘Tailor’ is a hanging offence.

This served me well as a drivin’ out of town record, and sometimes that’s all you really need.

I had no idea this band even existed, but I kind of like the very British vibe. I especially liked Forest Fire, and a lot of the guitar lines stuck with me.　Honestly, if this album is on the 1001 list, there must be plenty of others that could have made it instead.

Hey, c’est correct

Pretty much anything jangle-pop I’m gonna like, it seems. The issue here is that I’ve never heard of this band or any of the songs. I appreciate it though the sound is a bit generic to me and begs the question why it was a must-listen. Just bc they were a hit in the UK during Demery’s teen years, I suppose.

69/100. It’s good, but I’ve heard a lot of jangle pop and prefer many other albums. It catches a vibe really well, so it still has its place.

I enjoyed this overall. It's not amazing music, but it's solid, and plenty listenable.

Quite liked bits of the music here, though it verged on Phil Collins at times it was mostly pretty interesting. The singing voice grated though, the guy had a sort of crooning thing but he couldn't really do it. These sort of songs have an attitude like he was a really good singer though. I don't know, I didn't like it. So on balance it was okay but not good and won't be back. 2.5.

Thoughtful, atmospheric good lyrics surprisingly worth a listen and maybe a second listen too.

Perfectly fine pop album. Nothing really memorable or interesting, but goes down smooth.

Pretty nice.

An enjoyable rock / pop album from the 80s. Less annoying than many from that genre. Forest Fire was the clear standout song for me.

01) Perfect Skin - 7,0 02) Speedboat - 7,0 03) Rattlesnakes - 6,5 04) Down on Mission Street - 7,0 05) Forest Fire - 7,0 06) Charlotte Street - 7,0 07) 2cv - 6,5 08) Four Flights Up - 6,5 09) Patience - 7,0 10) Are You Ready to Be Heartbroken? - 7,0 TOTAL: 6,85 (69/100) Current ranking: 425/670

This is fun, definitely a nice vibey 80’s album, it just doesn’t particularly hook me beyond that. Good, but not exceptional enough to listen on repeat.

I am surprised at myself but for whatever reason this really worked for me. Really effective melodies and song structures. Will revisit.

It was pretty decent, good for road tripping. No overly strong feelings

It sounds so common and forgettable. I wish it had passion, but instead it is a pillow.

Very easy listening. Though also nothing I'd really listen to again...

This was okay. Kind of new wave, but kind of a mix of directions. Almost reminded me of stoic “the smiths”. I’ll give em a pass because they’re Bri’ish, mate. But otherwise I’m indifferent.

Never heard of this band or album before, but I’ll be honest my first impression is I like the sound. Just kind of that 80s pop style that I appreciate, though kind of rough vocals and odd topics. Upon closer inspection I still didn’t really connect with the lyrics. Interesting that the album was influenced by Bob Dylan considering I had one of his albums earlier this week. The music for Down on Mission Street was the standout for me, but overall this was middle of the road and won’t likely be visited again.

Another album that was released in my youth, and another album that I didn't have any awareness of until now. Of course, I'd heard of Lloyd Cole & The Commotions but I couldn't name one of the band (other than Lloyd Cole himself) or one of their track or album names. It was listenable, I was reminded of The Smiths musically (but not as good).

78% Best: Rattlesnakes; Forest Fire; Four Flights Up Must-Hear? Not quite

Like if Morrissey was less of a twat but also less talented.

Pleasant enough pop album. Nothing amazing.

It was ok ig

meh

It was fine, but there really isn't 1000 better?

I was a little skeptical going into this album after reading the reviews, but overall I thought this album was not too bad.

It reminded me of some other band or singer but I can’t figure it out. It seemed long. Nothing special but not bad.

I enjoyed it. It reminded me of The Cure in a more poppy way. It didn't drag on too long to overstay its welcome. There's something about that 80's emo vibe I've always enjoyed.

רוק פופ חמוד. אלבום טוב, לעתים משעמם שיר מועדף - 2cv

This had moments of brilliance, but ultimately was a fairly middling pop rock album. I particularly liked the vibe of Speedboat, I wish they could have captured more of that.

A bit hokey and cute for today, but I bet this shit went hard as hell in the 80’s

Not good, not great just kind of there.

Perfectly cromulent music. Nothing much more to say past that.

Anytime I see a British artist I’ve never heard of on this list, I cringe at knowing it probably shouldn’t be on the list. But I liked this more than I thought I would! Not life changing, but not bad at all.

Pretty decent 80s sound, enjoyable but nothing too mindblowing. Standouts: Perfect Skin • Speedboat • Patience • Are You Ready To Be Heartbroken?

I wanted this to be a 4 so badly, but 3.5 rounded down. There are some amazing tracks on here, like Charlotte Street, that could have been the blueprint for the entire album. However, they have only 35 minutes and there is some wasted time in my opinion that could've been used on things like more interesting instrumentation. Solid effort.

Цей список альбомів місцями є сумнівним, але за що він мені подобається, так це за отакі знахідки. Звісно це типу не найкращий альбом в історії ітд ітп, але прикольно відкривати для себе отакі британські артефакти 80х. Ставлю 3.5, залишаю в себе в бібліотеці.

Good, chill album

Kelpo rock-levy, mutta ei myöskään ihmeellinen. 3/5

there's some twanginess here that appeals to me but at the end of the day it's still so much like many of the other mediocre new wave albums on the list and he's still doing new-wave-guy voice

Not really my thing, but this album is pretty cool. It's very well produced and sound clean. The atmosphere here is pretty pleasant. Nothing all that unique, but I enjoyed it. 7/10

What

Perfect Skin, Rattlesnakes, Are You Ready To Be Heartbroken are great, the other's not so much.

“Alexa, define mid”. This album is OK It’s not good, it’s not bad. It’s just OK. It doesnt bore, it doesn’t excite. It’s not basic, it’s not complex. At no point did it make me sit up and pay attention. It’s better than 2 stars, it’s nowhere near 4 stars. Oh, and the vocal quickly grates. I’ll never listen to this again, and don’t feel I’d have been any worse off if I’d not listened to it this week.

- This one I had a little trouble with. Reading through some of the other takes I see that I'm not alone. It's easy to dismiss as the music isn't all that interesting and the writing isn't particularly stand-out. The style recalls a number of artists and it seems that many others were reminded of the same artists that I referenced as I listened. Then I looked at the year released and it was much older than I had thought so they prefigure many of those artists ..... In the end it's the quality that matters and I just don't think it's there. It's perfectly competent but kinda one-dimensional. The writing isn't as good as it is clever, the story telling is murky. 2.5 rounding up for the forward-looking nature of it ....

Ok. Not my style.

It’s almost really good. But I can’t really get into Lloyd’s singing style/voice. The lyrics are basically cultural name dropping in the hopes of infusing some romanticism into the void. But again, I am a sucker for the pretentiousness of 80’s new wave and jangle rock.

# Album Name: Rattlesnakes # Artist: Lloyd Cole and the Commotions # Rating: 3/5 # Comments: honestly, just ok. nothing stood out to me. wasnt offensive either. shouldnt be on the list # Top Tunes: ? # Would I listen to it again? no

Net zero experience.

I was glad to have listened to this because of a Camera Obscura song called "Lloyd, I'm Ready to Be Heartbroken" that is an answer song to “Are You Ready to be Heart Broken?” and that I love. I enjoyed the jangly 80’s pop aspect of this album, but Lloyd's voice and the pretentious overly referential lyrics were negatives for me. Was this album life-changing? No. Was it a decent? Yes.

3.5

Serviceable 80's indie-ish. Some decent tunes on there -- lots of Smiths influences, obviously. Made for an interesting mix once the album was done. But not overly intriguing.

Much poppier than I expected. Really super clean production. Actually enjoyed a couple of the songs. Very light, very thin. British synth pop. Three stars.

Didn't listen enough, can't judge

Det er jangle pop, minder lidt om the smiths faktisk. det er også fra 80'erne. Jeg synes det lyder godt og meget varieret, men jeg synes overraskende nok ikke at det er noget sådan mega specielt. Det er ikke noget som skiller sig ud fra det bedste af det bedste. Angiveligt er det som er virkelig imponerende ved dette album, at det er en ung sangskriver som kommer med rigtig mange kulturelle referencer til film, bøger osv som gør det sofistikeret og klogt. Desværre er det sådan, at jeg ikke selv er særlig god til hverken at lytte til tekster eller er særlig litterær så jeg er meget melodi og lyd-baseret. Derfor kræver det muligvist et revisit en anden gang?

I remember Houmous & Chutneys famous tour of Samoa in ‘78. Lloyd was supporting with his band, The Coals. Not sure what happened but they were being very loud and aggressive. Len Houmous turned to Lloyd and asked ‘what’s the commotion?’ The rest is history! 3.0

Enjoyable and interesting album, mix of early jangle pop and sad British guy, a bit Smiths-like. Speedboat and Rattelsnakes were standouts. Really liked the string instruments mixed in throughout the album. 3.5 stars.

Pleasant enough pop. So far not dramatically interesting enough to rate 1001. Have I become jaded? I am enjoying it well enough and the production is spot on. Just likeable, not earthshaking.

I want to like Lloyd Cole more than I do. I guess it starts with him as a vocalist — the delivery, tone, disaffected vibe, it just doesn't resonate. The songs also strike the same note... which is to say, they don't draw me in. I've listened to a bunch of his music.... well, I guess I've given him a number of chances, and always arrive at the same place. I guess it just isn't meant to be.