1001 Albums Summary

Critical listen during my sad, misundertood adolescence, and just a hair below his best from The Smiths, which is the only thing keeping it from a 5/5

Probably the least immediate of all his studio albums, but the #1 most likely to find myself getting lost in w/headphones on

Totally electrifying live performance, raw and raucous but still note-perfect — breathes new life into songs I've heard to the point of fatigue

Unlistenable to begin with and has aged even worse. Almost single-handedly responsible for the creative and intellectual drought that plagued heavy music at the start of the '00s.

You thought I was gonna give this a 1, didn't you?

A close second to the more experimental "Low" IMO, but still a rich and rewarding listen. Even Walmart's disgusting co-opting of the title track couldn't spoil this one.

I'm a sucker for this sort of lo-fi, pastoral folk. I wish he was a baritone — more contrast in the singing would complement this music a lot better. But then Nick Drake already exists, so I'm not sure we'd need to invent him again.

Did not expect to enjoy this as much as I did, but it transported me to another place

Killer 24-minute EP, saggy and bottom-heavy full-length album

I haven't listened to this in years and wasn't crazy about it at the time because it felt less aggro and heavy than their previous 2 records. Older and wiser I'm hearing influences I missed the first time — Grateful Dead, John Fahey, XTC — and am royally digging the way it all comes together

Love me some Birthday Party but I prefer "Hee Haw" to this one. The drugs had caught up to them by this point, and I think you can hear it