You need to be in the right mood for this one, but if you are, it's great. You can really lose yourself in it.
Arguably the definitive Britpop album, Blur's Parklife carries you along with its bouncy pop hooks and dry lyricism.
Framptom Comes Alive (barely). Boring dad rock. Thank God punk came along.
I didn't know quite to expect from this - I've not listened to much 1980s indie, but I'm a fan of stuff in the vague orbit of it, so I was curious. I'm sad to say I had a strong negative reaction to this album. Bragg's voice was an immediate turn-off, and this simplistic acoustic sound lives and dies on the quality of its singer. It's just so overblown and grating. Beyond that, any attempts at more complex instrumentation felt gimmicky. I'm loathe to use the word \"preachy\" - I usually don't mind artists being political, in and of itself - but this was really it. It just oozes this tone of smug condescension (even though my political views probably aren't a world away from his). Similarly, any attempts at romance or sentimentality rang hollow.
Wow! I've never really been into metal but this was great!
Arguably the definitive Britpop album, Blur's Parklife carries you along with its bouncy pop hooks and dry lyricism.
It took a few tracks for me to get into it, but it's a decent slice of Latin rock. "Se a Cabo" and "Hope You're Feeling Better" were the highlights.
While not entirely my thing, Beggar's Banquet had enough classics to keep up the momentum.
I had some fun with it. "Think" and the title track were my favourites.
Wow! I've never really been into metal but this was great!
Of the seven Bowie albums on the list, this is probably the least essential (well, this or Young Americans), but I do love it anyway. It's the sound of Ziggy Stardust coming undone, and it's a fun, wild ride.
I was lukewarm on the first half. The second was fantastic.
A lovely, energetic slice of glam rock.
I didn't know quite to expect from this - I've not listened to much 1980s indie, but I'm a fan of stuff in the vague orbit of it, so I was curious. I'm sad to say I had a strong negative reaction to this album. Bragg's voice was an immediate turn-off, and this simplistic acoustic sound lives and dies on the quality of its singer. It's just so overblown and grating. Beyond that, any attempts at more complex instrumentation felt gimmicky. I'm loathe to use the word \"preachy\" - I usually don't mind artists being political, in and of itself - but this was really it. It just oozes this tone of smug condescension (even though my political views probably aren't a world away from his). Similarly, any attempts at romance or sentimentality rang hollow.
I'm very familiar with Madness's singles, but I've never given their albums a listen. I really should have, because this was fun! Beyond the hit singles "Our House" and "Tomorrow's Just Another Day", highlights include "Primrose Hill" and "New Delhi".
There are some inspired bits of song-writing here, but the production is so 80s it hurts. The only way it could be more 1986 is if it wore a fluorescent headband.
Some interesting bits of instrumentation elevate it above generic sixties blues rock and I quite enjoyed it, but I'm unlikely to ever listen to this again.
Only slightly less nauseating than I expected.
Unlike the best of their Britpop contemporaries, Elastica never feel like more than the sum of their influences. Still a decent listen, but even at a relatively brisk 37 minutes it feels padded. The singles are all bangers though.
Framptom Comes Alive (barely). Boring dad rock. Thank God punk came along.
If you've heard \"You've Got a Friend in Me\", you've heard the entirety of this album*. I'm in no rush to hear Randy's other album on the list (why on Earth are there two here?!). *Apart from the song where he straight up drops the n-word half-a-dozen times. I don't remember that in Toy Story.
I've never listened to much hip-hop. This was alright.
Bowie's final masterpiece.
Lots of yelling over samples. This hasn't aged well at all.
Q: What did Bowie and Eno get up to between \"Heroes\" and Lodger? A: Not much, apparently
You need to be in the right mood for this one, but if you are, it's great. You can really lose yourself in it.
Perhaps inessential outside the biggest hits, but I enjoyed it too much to really care.
Why haven't I listened to CCR before?
Chill vibes
Some great songs, particularly in the first half, alongside a lot of bland, Coldplay-ish padding. A shame really, there was some real promise here. That this is apparently among the best UK rock albums of the early 2000s just reinforces my opinion that this wasn't a great period for it.
Boring and vaguely irritating. One or two classics does not an album make.
I'm not a *huge* fan of the sound - it's a little dreary for my tastes - but there's some excellent song-writing here. Much better than I expected.
Boring.
This blew my mind
My most-listened-to Queen album
Impressively atmospheric and immersive.
Another classic CCR album.
Being honest, this hasn't aged well... but it's still a lot of fun.
Decent '90s indie rock.
Brilliant bit of jazz