Journey in Progress
Discovering music one album at a time
363
Albums Rated
3.5
Avg Rating
43
5-Star Albums
33%
Complete
726 albums remaining
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4.1
Per Week
627
Days Active
Reviews
363
Written
100%
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vs Global
0.23
Avg Diff
3.5
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1950s
Favorite Decade
Hard-rock
Favorite Genre
UK
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Balanced
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2
1-Star Albums
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Rating Style
You Love More Than Most
Albums you rated higher than global average
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Infected | 5 | 2.92 | +2.08 |
| The Who Sell Out | 5 | 3 | +2 |
| No Sleep 'Til Hammersmith (Live) | 5 | 3.06 | +1.94 |
| Billion Dollar Babies | 5 | 3.11 | +1.89 |
| Pump | 5 | 3.11 | +1.89 |
| Chicago Transit Authority | 5 | 3.2 | +1.8 |
| Deloused in the Comatorium | 5 | 3.2 | +1.8 |
| School's Out | 5 | 3.2 | +1.8 |
| S&M | 5 | 3.26 | +1.74 |
| Shake Your Money Maker | 5 | 3.29 | +1.71 |
You Love Less Than Most
Albums you rated lower than global average
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tapestry | 2 | 3.92 | -1.92 |
| Only Built 4 Cuban Linx | 1 | 2.86 | -1.86 |
| Disintegration | 2 | 3.85 | -1.85 |
| Djam Leelii | 1 | 2.79 | -1.79 |
| Ill Communication | 2 | 3.65 | -1.65 |
| Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) | 2 | 3.61 | -1.61 |
| People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm | 2 | 3.61 | -1.61 |
| Blue | 2 | 3.49 | -1.49 |
| Tusk | 2 | 3.46 | -1.46 |
| Parachutes | 2 | 3.46 | -1.46 |
Artist Analysis
Favorite Artists
Artists with 2+ albums and high weighted score
| Artist | Albums | Avg | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Who | 3 | 5 | 4 |
| Pink Floyd | 3 | 4.67 | 3.83 |
| Motörhead | 2 | 5 | 3.8 |
| Metallica | 2 | 5 | 3.8 |
| Alice Cooper | 2 | 5 | 3.8 |
| Iron Maiden | 2 | 5 | 3.8 |
| Talking Heads | 2 | 5 | 3.8 |
| Beatles | 3 | 4.33 | 3.67 |
5-Star Albums (43)
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Popular Reviews
Alice Cooper
5/5
-An absolutely fantastic album
-"Hello Hooray" is a great anthemic-esque track
-"Elected" is a fun take on politics, and a total jam
-"Billion Dollar Babies" is an incredible track. Great guitar riffs throughout, some great bass slides, catchy lyrics, and basically anything else you could want
-"No More Mr. Nice Guy" sits with "School's Out" as the 2 Alice Cooper tracks I expect literally anyone to have heard
-"I Love The Dead" is classic macabre Alice Cooper. Great imagery, easy to sing along chorus, some crazy breathing sound effects, and lots of fancy instrumentation, as well as a nice bit of a jam in the middle
2 likes
The Doors
5/5
-Absolute banger album
-Jim Morrison's vocals are great, and Ray Manzarek shreds the keyboard
-"The Changeling," "Love Her Madly," "Been down so Long," "L.A. Woman," "The WASP (Texas Radio and the Big Beat)," and "Riders on the Storm" are all classics
-Personally my favorite is "Been down so Long," Morrison's vocals are super powerful
2 likes
Suicide
4/5
-The electronic drumbeats really keep the intensity going through the album
-"Frankie Teardrop" is very Alice Cooper-esque. Or maybe Alice Cooper is very "Frankie Teardrop"-esque. Also the scream when Frankie kills himself is pretty crazy. (Spoiler alert)
2 likes
Jamiroquai
4/5
-Great bass in "Emergency On Planet Earth"
-I love the fast-paced lyrics on "Revolution 1993"
-Very cool, quick tempo jazz stuff
2 likes
1-Star Albums (2)
All Ratings
Sade
3/5
-Smooth Operator was nice
-Hang on to your Love is catchy
-I like the baseline in Cherry Pie
Perfectly fine, just not my style
The Undertones
4/5
-Nice, solid classic rock-esque album
-I liked it, although nothing stood out
-probably go back and relisten to most tracks
Kraftwerk
3/5
-Chill electronic music
-I want it to pick up in intensity, but it isn't
-I actually liked everything but the title track cuz it could go on my study playlist
Motörhead
5/5
"It's fuckin' Mo-tör-head, alright? Fuckin' hardcore Motörhead." -Dee Snider
Pixies
4/5
-generally solid alternative rock
-nothing really stood out, but very nice
-will probably give it another listen
Milton Nascimento
3/5
-"Cravo E Canela" was catchy
-"Pelo Amor De Deus" sounds cool
-Some cool guitar or synth on "Trem De Doido"
-Overall very nice songs, just not really in my style
Prince
5/5
-Just a bunch of great songs
-I liked "Let's Go Crazy," "The Beautiful Ones," and "When Doves Fly"
The Who
5/5
I mean, it's Tommy. I don't know what else to say.
Fugazi
3/5
-seems like fairly standard punk rock...nothing standing out too much
Joy Division
4/5
Nice, chill, and rock-esque
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
3/5
-Like classic, bluegrass country
-a few songs were nice
My Bloody Valentine
3/5
-first song started really cool drum/bass, and then it was kinda boring and they got rid of cool lick and it made me sad
Franz Ferdinand
4/5
-great rock album
-I liked "Take Me Out," "The Dark Side of The Matinée," "Auf Achse," "This Fire," and "Michael"
The Black Crowes
5/5
Awesome southern/blues rock album
Jean-Michel Jarre
3/5
Perfectly fine ambient music. Added to my study playlist
Minutemen
3/5
-"Viet Nam" and "It's Expected When I'm Gone" were groovin'
-I like the big bass sound on a lot of the songs, like "#1 Hit Song" and "Shit from an Old Notebook"
-Its a long album, but every song is like 1:50, so at least it switches up quickly
-A lot isn't my style, but it's got a couple of cool track, really riding the line between a 3 and a 4
-"Corona" is not only relevant today, but it's also the Jackass theme which is cool
Björk
3/5
-She is clearly going for a certain feeling, and definitely achieves it
-Very chill, and consistent throughout the album
-To me, it often sounds like the intro to a song that is going to eventually going to pick up, but a more intense song was obviously not the goal
Eagles
5/5
-Hotel California is basically a bad help review and a 2 minute guitar solo
-New Kid in Town has a hint of country with the twangy guitar
-Why are there two Wasted Time's?
-"Victim of Love" was a nice jam
Pink Floyd
4/5
I like "Wish You Were Here" and "Have a Cigar"
David Bowie
4/5
-"Golden Years" is catchy, but that might be because he says "Golden Years" about 475 times
-I've preferred "Earthling" from Bowie
Nirvana
4/5
-"Come As You Are," "Lake of Fire," "Where Did You Sleep Last Night," and "Plateau" stood out
-Not as good as I thought it would be, I kind of expected more energy out of the setlist, like "School" or "Smells Like Teen Spirit"
Chicago
5/5
-Great jazz rock, the bass and drums are jamming quite frequently
-I always like adding orchestra elements to rock, and this has lots of horns and stuff added in
-I like bassline on "Listen." Probably other too, but I happened to notice "Listen."
The xx
3/5
-"Crystalised" was nice
-Overall chill and fine, but nothing of note really
Pulp
4/5
-Lots sounds like David Bowie, and 1 or 2 like Pink Floyd
-Some interesting tracks
Public Image Ltd.
3/5
-Riff from "Theme" sounds sabbathy
-I liked "Theme" the most
-Singer reminds me of that dude Angus O'Reilly O'Patrick McGinney from "Don't Eat The Yellow Snow - Live" from You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore, Vol. 1 (Live) by Frank Zappa
CHIC
4/5
-"Good Times" was good. Also the bass in the bridge sounded like Uptown Funk
-Quite a few catchy tracks, an overall solid disco album
Gang Starr
3/5
-Seems like a step between early rap and more modern rap, with slightly more complex rhyme schemes than old school rap
-"Lovesick" stood out as the best track
-"Step In The Arena," "Here Today, Gone Tomorrow," and "What You Want This Time?" were pretty solid
LCD Soundsystem
3/5
-"other voices" is reminding me of the Talking Heads, also has pretty cool guitar and stuff at the end
-I liked the grooving on "change yr mind"
-Cool Bass in "how do you sleep?"
The Auteurs
4/5
It was fine. A couple interesting tracks.
Sisters Of Mercy
4/5
Pretty cool rock album.
Jefferson Airplane
5/5
-Great rock album
-"She Has Funny Cars" "Somebody to Love," "3/5 of a Mile in 10 Seconds," "White Rabbit," "Plastic Fantastic Lover," and "Go To Her" are all fantastic
Bob Dylan
4/5
-I like the jamming harmonica on "Honey, Just Allow Me One More Chance"
-All of it sounded exactly how you'd expect Bob Dylan to sound, some guitar playing with Bob Dylan talking/singing lol
T. Rex
4/5
-Relatively calm rock
Metallica
5/5
-"Blackened" is totally jamming
-Nice, solid Metallica album
TLC
3/5
-\"Creep\" is catchy, I like the doubled chorus bits
-Perfectly palatable hip-hop stuff
The The
5/5
-Way better than Public Image Ltd., The other album I've listened to that I know is post-punk
-Promtped immediate re-listen
-Lots of good jamming
Curtis Mayfield
4/5
-I like the funky drums in "Pusherman"
-The tracks are great, but from the Brownout and Chicago and other funk/rock/latin bands I've listened to, I was waiting for the music to pick up into a rock jam
-"Little Child Runnin' Wild" is at a pretty good intesity
Megadeth
4/5
-I like "Holy Wars...The Punishment Due" and I especially liked the guitar shred towards the end
-I like the clear chorus in "Tornado of Souls"
-I like change of pace in "Dawn Patrol"
-Some of the album felt same-y, but overall I enjoyed it and will be doing more listening
David Bowie
4/5
-Solid album with some fun tracks
-I liked "'Tis a Pity She Was a Whore," "Sue (Or In a Season of Crime)," "Girl Loves Me," and "I Can't Give Everything Away"
The Divine Comedy
4/5
-Was pleasant to listen to
-Some tracks I enjoyed: "A Woman of the World," "Charge," "Middle-Class Heroes," "The Dogs & The Horses," "The Frog Princess," and "Through a Long and Sleepless Night"
-I like the classic/orchestralish instrumental
Big Brother & The Holding Company
4/5
-I particularly like "Piece of My Heart" and "Roadblock"
-I also enjoyed "Ball and Chain," "Catch Me Daddy," "Magic of Love," and "I Need a Man to Love"
-I kind of felt that these tracks just weren't as strong and energetic as "Piece of My Heart"
-This is one of the strongest 4 albums I'd say, but it just didn't have something that really made me want to push it to 5
New Order
4/5
-Honestly a pretty weak 4, but this was better than quite a few of the 3's. Generally palatable electronic dance stuff with a bit of a rock vibe
Travis
3/5
-I liked when "As You Are" got intense and there was a nice scream. And then there was some nice guitar solo-bridgey stuff.
-"Driftwood" was pleasant
-Why is "Slideshow" silent for like a huge gap in the middle??? I like the second half but I'm not gonna wait for like 3 minutes mid song???
-Why are the bonus tracks way better so far? "Green Behind The Ears" and "Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah" are actually good
-Nice Cover of "Be My Baby"
-Idk it was just boring
New York Dolls
4/5
Solid punk rock album. "Personality Crisis" stood out the most, I'd say.
Alexander 'Skip' Spence
3/5
-I like the low voice on "Cripple Creek"
-Great of the album was just very plain, boring rock
Creedence Clearwater Revival
4/5
Songs I liked: "Green River," "Commotion," "Wrote A Song For Everyone," "Bad Moon Rising" "Lodi," "Cross-Tie Walker," and "Sinister Purpose"
-"Commotion" is solid. Great intro riff anmd good groove throughout.
-"Cross-Tie Walker" and "Sinister Purpose" have solid basslines. The bass is slowly growing on me as I listen more
-I added "Broken Spoke Shuffle" and "Glory Be" to my instrumental study playlist
-"Bad Moon Rising" and "Commotion" stand out as strong tracks
-Overall very nice, just a little slow and lower energy than I prefer. Comparing to "Fortunate Son," which I had heard previously, these don't quite get to the same level
Ray Price
3/5
-Apparently this is like Honky Tonk Country
-To me it just sounds like Christmas music that wasn't written about Christmas
-Except it turns out that "Bright Lights and Blinds Haired Women" does talk about Christmas
-Enjoyed while it was on, but no desire to listen again
Missy Elliott
2/5
-Nice "-aded" rhyme scheme in "Intro / Go To The Floor"
-Method Man's verse on "Bring the Pain" was nice
-Good bassline in "Back In The Day"
-Overall just didn't really like the album, just fairly bland hip hop
Violent Femmes
3/5
-I like the bass/ acoustic guitar riffs in "Blister In The Sun" and "Please Do Not Go"
-I think the fat bass is really saving this
-It just really didn't have anything interesting other than the bass
Leonard Cohen
2/5
-Kind of cool acoustic riff in "The Stranger Song"
-ok the fact that Leonard Cohen wrote "Hallelujah" makes this album so much worse
-Its basically just guitar and Cohen reciting poetry kind of singing for the entire album
-there is like no change of emotion across the entire album
-this would be a 3 for a lot of other artists, but it was so boring and Cohen was capable of so much better
Mylo
3/5
It's nice, very pleasent electronic music, but a lot of it seems relatively simple
-"Drop The Pressure" was the first track to stand out
-"Destroy Rock & Roll" is cool
The Young Rascals
4/5
-Nice drum fills and bass riffs in "Sueno"
-"You Better Run" really stands out as must heavier than the rest
-"Place in the Sun" is upbeat
-Pretty standard early rock, a little chilly for my taste
The Go-Betweens
3/5
-"Love Goes On!" has a cool bit where it alternates between just the singer and the acoustic guitar to the whole band, in a kind of call and response kind of way. There's probably a name for what I'm talking about but I don't know what it is.
-I like the end of "Can't Say No Forever." Got a cool synth (?) And guitar jam going
-I liked the more upbeatness of "Was There Anything I Could Do?"
John Lee Hooker
3/5
-Great intro and guitar in general in "The Healer"
-Great of it wasn't too exciting
Gillian Welch
2/5
-The blues-y (?) guitar on "My First Lover" was interesting
-overall just a woman singing and playing acoustic guitar
Ice Cube
3/5
-The vast majority has a flow that you would expect from Ice Cube
-I like the general concept/story through the album
-Favorite Track is "AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted"
-It might be a 4 but nothing really stood out to draw me back for another listen
Culture Club
3/5
-"Karma Chameleon" is good and catchy. I can tell why it was the hit from this album
-"It's A Miracle," "Church Of The Poison Mind," "Man-Shake," "Melting Pot,"
-"Melting Pot" is my favorite track. It seems live, has trumpets, good guitar riffs and bass riffs.
Isaac Hayes
4/5
-Cool bass in "Walk From Regio's"
-"No Name Bar" is quite grooving
-"Do Your Thing" has great guitar solos and awesome guitar throughout. The lyrics are nice as an addition. It keeps my interest well for a 19 minute song
-This is a great album, lots of grooves and jams. Would probably be a 5 if it had lyrics. I get that it's a soundtrack, so it's not going to have many lyrics, but I just prefer music with lyrics.
-Basically all of this album is going onto my study playlist
Joy Division
4/5
-Great Drums on "Atrocity Exhibition"
-Great bass and drums on "Colony"
-"Twenty Four Hours" is a jam
The Beach Boys
4/5
-Pretty solid album overall, but the second half was kind of boring
-"Student Demonstration Time" was by far the best song
Madonna
3/5
-General catchy pop, although some of it is slower than I'd expect
-I appreciate the use of orchestral instrumentation
-"Act of Contrition" is quite cool with the electric guitar, reversed and normal clapping and chanting, and synth stuff, plus the twist on the prayer
-"Like A Prayer" is quite catchy and I appreciate the double entendre implied by the vagueness of the lyrics wow that sounded pretentious. I basically mean how you can't tell if she is talking about God or a lover
Little Richard
4/5
-"Tutti Frutti" is great, obviously
-"True, Fine Mama," "Can't Believe You Wanna Leave," "Long Tall Sally (The Thing)," "Oh Why?," and "Rip it Up" are all great
Jane's Addiction
3/5
-Great bass and guitar shredding on "No One Leaving"
-I like a lot of the bass. Great riffs and grooves. ie "Been Caught Stealing" and "Obvious"
-Idk what it is but I feel like I should have liked this more than I did. Maybe because the singer kind of sounds like Axl Rose but isn't as good in my opinion?
Van Halen
5/5
-It is literally Van Halen by Van Halen
-"Runnin' with the Devil," "Eruption," "You Really Got Me," "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love," "Jamie's Cryin'," "Atomic Punk," and "Ice Cream Man" are all bangers
David Holmes
3/5
-I like the rock vibes in the bass and guitar in "Don't Die Just Yet"
-It was quite good. A strong 3. Nothing really compels me to go listen again though, which holds it back from being a 4
4/5
I was previously familiar with this album, but never really dug into it particularly, at least compared to other Beatles albums. Like, now that I look at it, I'm only slightly familiar with some of the songs.
-I like the spooky and Indian-esque vibes of "Within You Without You"
-Whole album was nice, but I preferred the second half. Especially "Being For The Benefit Of Mr. Kite!," "Within You Without You," "Lovely Rita," "Good Morning Good Morning"
-I am well aware of this album's status as an innovative records, but I don't think it holds up as strong as other innovative records. Innovative records like "Black Sabbath" by Black Sabbath or "Tommy" by The Who hold up much better. The music inspired by this album has usurped it, in my opinion.
Black Flag
3/5
-Great bass/drum intro on "No More"
-Great Guitar intro on "Rise Above"
-Overall, the guitar and drums and bass are all fantastic across the album, but I'm just not a fan of the singer. I don't think it is the not conventional singing style, but just that there is little change in basically any way throughout the whole album. There is minimal change in pitch, style, or even volume, and that kind of drags everything else down
Frank Ocean
3/5
-"Sweet Life" had a nice bass groove and theme. Bass grooves also featured in: "Monks" and "Pink Matter"
-"Super Rich Kids" had some interesting lyrics and I liked the backing beat, but I thought the beat would like develop on some significant way
-The whole thing was pleasant, it just was SLOW and boring to me throughout lots of it, but I feel like it had potential
-"Pyramids" was probably the best song out of the album
X-Ray Spex
3/5
-I liked the instrumentals, but not the singer
-"Let's Submerge" was probably my favorite song
Nas
3/5
It just wasn't as good as I expected. It should be something I like, rap with multisyllabic internal rhyming, but I just didn't find the flow exciting.
Fleetwood Mac
2/5
-Quite the surprised but I actively wanted to turn this off, most of it was boring
-"Tusk" was great
-"The Ledge" and "Sara" were good
-Thay's pathetic for a double album
Cee Lo Green
3/5
-"Soul machine" has a great fast verse
-Liked the guest verse on "My Kind Of People"
-Cool flow on "The Art of Noise" and "Childz Play"
-generally good flow throughout, although I felt the beginning was much stronger than the end
-one of the stronger 3's, I just don't particularly care to listen again
Magazine
4/5
-I'm always a fan of rock+synth+other instruments
-Great basslines throughout the whole album
-"Recoil" is a great jam
-"The Great Beautician In The Sky" has a cool circus-motif and a groovin' bassline
-Cool like saxophone or something in "My Mind Ain't So open"
-Solid album, I'll definitely be listening again
Primal Scream
3/5
-Meaty bass in "Slip Inside This House"
-"Don't Fight It, Feel It" is nice and upbeat
-"Higher Than the Sun - A Dub Symphony in Two Parts" is quite cool
-A strong 3, but nothing in particular draws me to listen again
Elton John
4/5
Songs I liked: "Levon," "Madman Across The Water," "Indian Sunset," and "Rotten Peaches"
Julian Cope
4/5
-"Double Vegetation" gets pretty intense with some nice screams
-"Safesurfer" sounds like some David Bowie stuff
-Songs I liked, but didn't have something stand out particularly strongly that caused it: "Soldier Blue," "Leperskin," "East Easy Rider," "Drive, She Said"
-I like the keyboards in "Head"
Badly Drawn Boy
3/5
-A lot of it seems like it has cool instruments and effects, but its just relatively low energy and I just don't get excited about it.
-"Cause A Rockslide" is probably my favorite track. It has a good groove, and then there is a big explosion and a cool breakdown
-"Disillusion" has a decent amount of groove and I like the piano and guitar
The Specials
3/5
-Nice bassline in "Nite Klub." It's definitely higher energy than a lot of the other songs.
-I like the pickup in speed of "Stupid Marriage"
-Generally cool basslines relatively high in the mix throughout the album
-Perfectly fine ska music, but nothing in particular is making me want to listen again
Frank Sinatra
3/5
Umm it was Frank Sinatra. That was the interesting part
Tom Waits
3/5
It was nice, and definitely created the jazz lounge atmosphere it was going far. Most of the songs weren't too exciting. I did like the speed pickup in "Spare Parts I (A Nocturnal Emission)."
Morrissey
4/5
-"America Is Not The World" and "Irish Blood, English Heart" are both pretty awesome
-"How Can Anybody Possibly Know How I Feel?," "First of the Gang to Die,' "I Like You," and "You Know I Couldn't Last" are quite cool as well
Machito
4/5
-The drumming in "Frenzy" was pretty spiffy
-Generally nice Jazz type stuff
Bruce Springsteen
3/5
-I mean, "Born To Run" was cool...
Willie Nelson
3/5
-Very nice a nd pretty, but just not very exciting
-"Georgia On My Mind," "Blue Skies," and "Moonlight In Vermont" were all nice
The Boo Radleys
4/5
-I like the guitar and the groove in the background of "Upon 9th And Fairchild"
-"Leaves And Sand" has some serious jamming and drum fills
-Some of the songs were pretty plain
-I am interested in listening again, so I think that just barely bumps it up to a 4
Leonard Cohen
2/5
-A Bunch of Lonesome Heroes" actually picks up in intensity
-idk I really hate singer songwriter because it is so boring
The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
4/5
-This album was quite cool. A couple solid jams.
-"Skunk," "Identity," and "Wail" were all solid
PJ Harvey
2/5
-"The Words That Maketh Murder" is kind of good
-idk pretty boring
Steely Dan
4/5
Very nice, I like the mix of instruments across the album. Quite the jam.
Neil Young
3/5
-Last 3 tracks are like way better than the rest of the album. They save it from a 2
-"Alabama" is great, basically because it is really similar to "Simple Man"
Incubus
4/5
-Generally cool nu-metal-punk-esque stuff
-I like "Make Yourself"
-Cool bass in "Out from Under"
The Doors
5/5
-Absolute banger album
-Jim Morrison's vocals are great, and Ray Manzarek shreds the keyboard
-"The Changeling," "Love Her Madly," "Been down so Long," "L.A. Woman," "The WASP (Texas Radio and the Big Beat)," and "Riders on the Storm" are all classics
-Personally my favorite is "Been down so Long," Morrison's vocals are super powerful
Jimi Hendrix
5/5
-cool stereo mixing throughout
-I love the drumming in "Gypsy Eyes." A lot of it is so simple, but so effective
-Great drumming in "Voodoo Chile," l especially at the end
-Great bass, drums, and guitar in "Come On (Let the good Times Roll)"
-"All Along the Watchtower" and "Voodoo Chile (Slight Return)" are absolute classics
Al Green
3/5
-perfectly pleasant, but nothing memorable
Dr. John
3/5
-This was odd. It was a psych rock-esque album, but just not very exciting
Judas Priest
5/5
-Just a strong album
-Obviously "Breaking the Law" and "Living After Midnight" are great. Other tracks I liked were "Rapid Fire," "Metal Gods," "Grinder," and "You Don't Have to Be Old to Be Wise"
Grizzly Bear
2/5
-Everythinf is mad boring except "I Live With You." That's the only song that actually has any sort of pickup in intensity
-The rest are just the same vibe across the entire album, and the singer's style/the mixing make the singing not stand out at all
Simon & Garfunkel
3/5
"Fakin' It," "Hazy Shade of Winter," and "At The Zoo" are great tracks. The rest were kind of boring.
LCD Soundsystem
4/5
-"Time to Get Away" gets groovy with a decent bassline
-"North American Scum" is catchy. Or maybe just repetitive. It also has a cool synth rhythm
-"All My Friends" has got a fast, upbeat instrumental
-In "Us V Them" I like the high pitched cowbell (?) rhythm. Blame Zini if that isn't actually a cowbell
-Not really my usual style, but has some solid tracks and energy that I enjoyed
Fats Domino
4/5
-A nice old school rock and roll album
-"Honey Chile" is catchy
Bebel Gilberto
3/5
-Some kinda cool stuff happening in the background of "Samba Da Bencao"
-I like the rhythm of the melody in "Sem Contencao." It sounds almost swung or something. (Maybe it is? Idk, I'm not a music expert)
-"Bananeira" is quite upbeat, at least compared to the rest of the album
-"Close Your Eyes" at like 0:27 sounds like a lowkey version of the background music in "Backside Wallrides and Rock 'N' Roll Inspiration: The Amazing Richie Jackson Skateboard Show Ep. 3" at like 4:00
-A lot of these just kinda sound like elevator music, or maybe lounge music with a lady singing in Spanish. Just not the most impressive thing I've listened to.
Rod Stewart
4/5
-"Every Picture Tells A Story" and "That's All Right" pick up nice towards the end after starting bluesyish.
-Nice bluesy rock. If it had a little more intensity it probably would get up to 5 stars
Cheap Trick
4/5
"Hello There" and "Goodnight" are kind of genius intro/outro songs
-"Come On, Come On" gets into a nice fast groove
-"Ain't That A Shame" has some great guitar stuff in it. I quite like the very fast paced call-and-response section
-The drummer is great throughout the album
-I've definitely heard "I Want You To Want Me" and "Surrender" before like on the radio or something
-Very solid live album
Nina Simone
3/5
-I like the speed pick-ups in "Break Down And Let It All Out"
-I like all the cool stuff happening in "Either Way I Lose"
-Very nice piano and great singing. Very high quality, just not really my style
Frank Black
4/5
-I like the heavy start in "Whatever Happened To Pong?"
-The intro to "Freedom Rock" definitely sounds like a riff I've heard before. Also the drums are great
-I like the scream/jam in "Pie In The Sky"
-Generally solid
Alice Cooper
5/5
-An absolutely fantastic album
-"Hello Hooray" is a great anthemic-esque track
-"Elected" is a fun take on politics, and a total jam
-"Billion Dollar Babies" is an incredible track. Great guitar riffs throughout, some great bass slides, catchy lyrics, and basically anything else you could want
-"No More Mr. Nice Guy" sits with "School's Out" as the 2 Alice Cooper tracks I expect literally anyone to have heard
-"I Love The Dead" is classic macabre Alice Cooper. Great imagery, easy to sing along chorus, some crazy breathing sound effects, and lots of fancy instrumentation, as well as a nice bit of a jam in the middle
The Cardigans
4/5
-good bassline in "Your New Cuckoo"
-"Never Recover" is quite catchy
-Probably the chillest cover of "Iron Man" ever made, I also like the Black Sabbath reference in "Choke"
-Solid drumming throughout
-I feel like usually this would be too chill for me, but it was either just upbeat enough, or maybe there was just enough going on to make it interesting
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
4/5
-"Get Ready For Love" is very catchy and just great overall. Totally sounds like something right out of the 80's
-"Hiding All Away" has some seriously heavy guitar that totally seems like metal, but the song seems overall in the rock category. Very cool
-Great heavy drop in in "Fable of the Brown Ape"
-I like the subverted expectations on the lines "Orpheus looked at his instrument/And he gave the wire a pluck/He heard a sound so beautiful/He gasped and said 'Oh my God'"
-"There She Goes, My Beautiful World" jams
-Some songs were pretty cool, some were less cool, but overall it was a solid album
David Bowie
4/5
-I like the melody rhythm in "Breaking Glass"
-"A New Career in a New Town" and "Warszawa" have a pretty spooky ethereal vibe to them
-Generally pretty good, just never god really epicly
Sex Pistols
4/5
Solid punk rock. Not sure how I feel about the singing style
Ravi Shankar
3/5
-He really get shredding at the end of Dádrá. Actually he be shredding at the end of all of them, basically.
-Even though the talking about the structure of the songs is cool, it is also an L because it eliminates it from being able to be on my study playlist
Bob Dylan
4/5
-"Tangled Up In Blue" is actually quite catchy
-"Lily, Rosemary, and the Jack of Hearts" was pretty good too. Story sounded pretty cool.
-Generally better and more upbeat than the other Dylan albums I have heard
Iron Maiden
5/5
-Something about 'Prowler"
-"Remember tomorrow" is a pretty cool ballad-type song
-"Running Free" is a great, anthemic-type song. Great to, like, chant along to
-"Charlotte the Harlot" is a great jam, and the vocal rhythm of the chorus is pretty cool
-"Iron Maiden" from "Iron Maiden" by "Iron Maiden"
-Great bass that is pretty high in the mix for metal across the whole album
-Whole album is great
The Who
5/5
-"Armenia City In The Sky" is very psychadelic rock-esque
-BEANS
-"Odorono's" advertisement-ness is slightly flawed with how ell it fits in thematically with the rest of the album
-"Tattoo" is a great little story
-"Our Love Was" is a nice pretty love song, but really goes to show how even on a relatively calm song, Keith was always a madman on the drums, but it still works perfectly. He's banging away at the cymbals and doing fills all over the place and it still works
-Man, I wish radio just had a few 5 second jingles between each song like on this album
-"I Can See For Miles" is a pretty incredible track. Even with relatively simple lyrics and harmonies, the backing track is complex. Keith is all over the drums as always, but there's also a very interesting guitar tone that's almost like a squeaky siren. Definitely the standout track on this album
-"Silas Stingy" is a very catchy track from John Entwistle that has some cool horns in there for a second
-"Rael Pt.1 & Pt. 2" is a pretty cool jam, led by Keith Moon as usual, and it also hints at "Overture" and "Sparks" from Tommy
-I noticed this on other early Who albums (specifically "The Who Sings My Generation"), and it applies to "The Who Sell Out" as well, but Keith's style was definitely the most developed out of the whole group.
-It's The Who, I'm biased
Moby
3/5
-I like the reference to "God's Gonna Cut You Down" in "Run On"
-"South Side" actually seems like a full song with choruses and some nice guitar stuff in there
-idk, the songs were fine but seemed kinda simple. Catchy, but simple
The Temptations
3/5
-Certainly generally appealing and catchy
-"Run Charlie Run," "Papa Was A Rollin' Stone," and "Do Your Thing" are good
-Very nice R&B, but nothing really makes me want to come back to it
Slipknot
3/5
-Nice drum fill in "Prosthetics"
-Cool voice effect on "Gimme a reason why I need to..." on "Diluted"
-I like the bass slide things in "Eyeless"
-Pretty solid chorus in "Wait And Bleed"
-Cool guitar and drum(?) fill in in "Surfacing" The lyrics are also a lot clearer and make it easier to jam to.
-It does seem like heaviness with no real counterpoint a lot of the time. Not sure if that criticism is actually legit. Idk, the blast beat drums as very "intense" and just fast chugging guitar kind of turns to sludge for me a lot of the time.there are moments where the "musical point" is much clearer, and I tend to like it more, but those seem to be the exception rather than the rule
-However, I became more acclimated on the 2nd and 3rd listens, and my opinion definitely improved with more listening
Pink Floyd
5/5
"Breathe (In The Air)" has the classic chill, progressive/psychedelic rock, Pink Floyd Vibe to it
-I do like the synth(?) riff of "On The Run"
-"Time" is certainly a standout song. Definitely has a solid groove, and I how it is less-drone-like-ness than the other songs on that side of the album
-In my opinion, "Money" is definitely the best song on the album, by quite a wide margin. Way more energy and groove, and the jam parts have lots more going on, more evidently and more quickly. And it gets pretty darn heavy too.
-"Brain Damage" and "Eclipse" are good too
-Overall very sonically interesting, even in the slower parts
Wu-Tang Clan
2/5
-Just not the biggest fan of most of the flows/styles
-there were bits of good flow in "Wu-Tang: 7th Chamber," "Mystery of Cheeseboxin'," and "Protect Ya Neck"
-I did like Method Man's style, all of his stuff was nice
Method Man
2/5
-I like the reference to "I Will Survive" in "Release Yo' Delf"
-I like the flow in "I Get My Thang In Action"
-Literally yesterday I said I looked Method Man's flow on "Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)," but I didn't really like the flow on most of this. Kinda whack
Talvin Singh
4/5
-"Sutrix" do be getting groovy
-The second half of "Decca" becomes really good but then it just stops after like 45 seconds and it makes me sad
-"OK" kind of sounds like some anime nonsense but it gets more intense than a lot of other songs on the album so I'll let it slide
-"Light" got the thumping bass and the flute-like instrument wailing
-Lots of cool bits but also some slow bits but also overall solid
Teenage Fanclub
3/5
-I like the jam at the beginning of "Satan," it is reminiscent of The Who smashing their instruments/jamming, and it is a good jam throughout
-I like the story and bass line of "Metal Baby." I also like the distorted guitar solo stuff at the end
-Just like, not very exciting
Public Enemy
3/5
-Cool guitar solo stuff happening in "Brothers Gonna Work It Out." I wish they put it a bit higher in the mix, I would think that would make it a lot cooler
-Some cool rhyme scheme stuff happening in "Welcome To The Terror Dome"
-Good general message and storytelling in "Burn Hollywood Burn"
-Some nice stuff, but nothing really makes me want to listen more
Herbie Hancock
4/5
-"Chameleon" got some cool grooves and at least 1 cool drum fill
-"Watermelon Man" is definitely the weirdest one from the bunch, with that vocal recording thing as part of the main loop in the song
-Lots of cool jams and grooves throughout
-Pretty sure I heard the lick in there a few times
Motörhead
5/5
-"Ace of Spades" has an absolutely thundering and classic riff. It is also a Chad song that doesn't even rhyme lol
-The riff from "Shoot You in the Back" sounds like the riff from "Watchin' You" by Kiss
-"Love Me Like a Reptile," "Fast and Loose," "(We Are) The Roadcrew," "Fire Fire," and "The Chase Is Better Than the Catch" are great catchy tunes
Portishead
3/5
-"Silence" is not silence smh
-Some very Black Sabbath sounding notes in "Hunter"
-Why is "Small" silent for like 3 minutes I literally checked did it was paused like 5 times
-The synth riff in "The Rip" sounds like "We're Finally Landing" by Home, which is the song Summoning Salt uses in his videos
-"Plastic" seems like a relatively strong song out of these. The cool drum fills and swooshy back and forth sounds and big bass-y synth are all solid.
-The drums in "We Carry On" really help change the feel of the song even if the rest of the song is relatively similar to the rest of the album. Just the chugging drums behind it make it seem more stressed or maybe scared than relaxed
-"Machine Gun" is also a lot cooler with it's drumline as well
-This album was probably gonna be a 2 but "The Rip," "Plastic," "We Carry On," and "Machine Gun" saved it. The first half or so of the album was incredibly boring
AC/DC
5/5
-A legendary album. "Hells Bells," "Shoot To Thrill," "Back In Black," "You Shook Me All Night Long," and "Rock And Roll Ain't Noise Pollution" are all absolute rock classics
-I hadn't heard "What You Do For Money Honey" and I love the part where it cuts to just singing and drumming and then goes into the guitar solo
-Back In Black is legendary for many reasons, but one thing I like it the cool rhymes throughout the sonf
Beatles
4/5
-"Beep Beep, Beep Beep, yeah" -The Beatles
-In "Michelle" stupid idiot singer accidentally starts speaking French, the song is in ENGLISH, DUMB DUMB
-I really like the synth riff thing in "I'm Looking Through You" I wish they used that sort of thing more
-I like the bass riff in "The Word" even though it is only in my right ear. Also "Bird" is the word, not "Love"
-It was all solid, Beatles-y music, but like nothing to poop your pants over
James Taylor
3/5
-I like the horns and bassline in "Steamroller Blues"
-"Suite for 20 G" is cool and groovy
-Other than those 2 tracks, the album was generally just fine. No real plans to revisit
Run-D.M.C.
3/5
-Some nice flows in "Peter Piper." I like the line "Not bad meaning bad, but bad meaning good"
-Hey "It's Tricky" is that Tik Tok song. It's nice to actually hear the rest of it. The song actually holds up across the rest of the track too. I like the simple but interesting beat. I swear one of the dudes sounds a bit like Ace Frehley at a few points
-Cool reference to Live Aid in "My Adidas." I recently listened to Live Aid and remember the Run-D.M.C.'s section
-"Walk This Way (feat. Aerosmith)" is great. An awesome rendition. I like that they mixed the original guitar and drums into a back eat for their rap style
-Nice guitar in "Raising Hell"
The Beach Boys
4/5
-It was The Beach Boys. Nothing really remarkable about it.
David Bowie
3/5
-"Young Americans" is good and catchy
-I like the funky groove in "Fascination"
-The cover of "Across The Universe" was cool
-"Fame" is quite catchy, but not mind blowing. I like the low voice bit at the end
-Idk just not the most interesting stuff from David Bowie here
Marty Robbins
4/5
-Hey, "Big Iron" is the meme song
-Cool and nice little stories within the songs, even if they are basically all "I'm a cowboy, I ride a horse, oh no I got shot, and now I'm dead"
Joni Mitchell
3/5
-"Twisted" has some fun vocal melodies
-"Raised on Robbery" is by far the best song. The vocal harmonies, the funky backbeat, the saxophone, it's upbeat catchiness totally separate it from the rest of the album
-Rest of the album was fine, but not very exciting
808 State
4/5
-"Ancodia" is pretty catchy with the upbeat backbeat and "L-O-V-E Love" line
-Nice driving groove in "Pacific 202"
-Lots of good grooves and stuff for an electronic album
The Byrds
4/5
-Parts of "All I Really Want To Do" sounds like "Mary Anne With The Shaky Hands"
-Cool bass in my left ear on "It's No Use"
-Woukd probably be cooler if I knew more Bob Dylan
-Generally nice folk rock, but nothing really amazing
-The Byrd's aren't real
Radiohead
3/5
-"The National Anthem" has cool bass stuff going on, and I like the saxophonery
-Cool harps in "Motion Picture Soundtrack"
-Some cool drum fills and a decent amount of lyrics in "Optimistic"
-I know this album is pretty big and famous, but it just didn't really pull me in. The only track that really Drew in my interest was "The National Anthem"
Coldplay
2/5
-It was very meh and it was also Coldplay
Hugh Masekela
4/5
-The piano and horns be groovin' in "Part Of A Whole." The drumming really picks up in some spots, and the trumpet too
-"Minawa" sounded like "Love Reign O'er Me" with the rain sounding piano, and then "Charlie Brown" for a second
-Generally solid jazz-y stuff. I'll put it on my study playlist
Bauhaus
3/5
"Muscle In Plastic" has good bass and drums and energy and stuff
-Some cool bass lines and guitar sounds in "Hollow Hills"
-"Kick In The Eye" has got a nice bass and drum groove
-Not a whole lot making me want to come back to it
The Sugarcubes
4/5
-Pretty cool album. Good number of solid tracks. "Delicious Demon" is definitely my favorite
-Pretty good. Not mind blowing, but just generally nice tracks with interesting stuff going on
Mj Cole
3/5
-Some nice flows and catchiness in "Bandelero Desperado"
-"Rough Out Here" is pretty solid. I like that it is pretty upbeat and not as repetitive, and the singing is great
-"Free My Mind" is nice but also pretty repetitive
Beyoncé
2/5
-Honestly not a lot of interesting stuff happening. Some good singing on some songs, but most of the beats were pretty boring. "Partition" was the most interesting
The Youngbloods
4/5
-"Darkness, Darkness" has an awesome distorted guitar sound
-It gets kinda slow across the middle of the record
-"If the world was peanut butter, we'd be sticking by each other" is a stunning lyrics from "Don't Let The Rain Bring You Down"
-Cool sax and drummery in "Quicksand"
-Great guitar and drum jamming in "Sham." It might be my favorite track from the album
-Definitely some great moments, but needs more oomph or consistency to get to 5 stars
Liz Phair
3/5
-Damn they actually kinda go ham in "Strange Loop"
-I like the fast-paced lyrics on 'Flower" and "Johnny Sunshine"
-This is stronger than the average singer songwriter album
R.E.M.
3/5
Perfectly cromulent like folk/blues/alternative rock album, but it was pretty musically the same across the album, it never really went anywhere
ZZ Top
5/5
-"Gimme All Your Lovin'" is such a catchy tune and the riff after the chorus is awesome
-"Got Me Under Pressure" is such an awesome song and I'm surprised it isn't a bigger bit. Something about it is just so awesome. The guitar riff grooves, and the pattern of the lyrics makes it super catchy. Although, I do prefer the live version where the lyrics have a bit more oomph
-"Sharp Dressed Man" is a ZZ Top Classic. Great riff, and I personally love the "...black tie (black tie)" bit.
-"I Got the Six" is a totally rad song. The drum riff thing in the choruses is great, and the drumming just keeps an awesome beat behind the slick guitar work throughout. Some of these sound pretentious but it's cuz I would just be repeating myself for half these songs. Also the scream after like the second chorus is pretty crazy
-"Legs" is a total classic, and the synth riff is pretty sweet, with plenty of "live" work over the top
-"Thug" was actually the first song I heard from ZZ Top after knowing "Sharp Dressed Man" and "Cheap Sunglasses" for years. The syncopated slap bass stuff is so cool, it's like catchy and unpredictable.
-"TV Dinners," "Dirty Dog," "If Only I Could Flag Her Down," and "Bad Girl" are all solid, but don't have some big standout feature
-Overall super solid and grooving album
Shuggie Otis
4/5
-Perfectly good soul funk type album, but nothing really mind blowing
The Stone Roses
4/5
-Very cool psychedelic Beatles-esque jamming on sitar and echoed/reversed vocals on "Don't Stop"
-"(Song for My) Sugar Spun Sister," "Shoot You Down," and "This Is the One" all get interesting
-Becomes a cool jam in "I Am the Resurrection"
-Has some really cool bits but is pretty mellow in the other tracks. Overall pretty solid
The Rolling Stones
4/5
-"Sympathy For The Devil" is certainly a classic. The solo is cool with the super high pitched clean melody stuff
-"Street Fighting Man" is solid
-Not crazy, but it does have the advantage of being The Rolling Stones
Raekwon
1/5
-Nice flow in "Guillotine" and "Incarcerated Scarfaces" for like a shirt amount of time
-"Ice Cream" has a cool voice at the beginning
-Just a not interesting rap album
The Shamen
4/5
-Probably one of the best electronic-type albums I've heard. Always upbeat and fast-paced with interesting and developing beats.
-Nothing really stood out, but I still enjoyed listening
Talking Heads
5/5
-"Cities" has some great back bass and groove, but I do prefer the more intense live version on 'Stop Making Sense"
-"Life During Wartime" is an awesome song
-The end bit of "Animals" is really cool, with the layers and layers of David Byrne singing
-Memories Can't Wait is pretty cool like psychedelic stuff kinda
-Just generally solid, even if the live versions are way better
Jamiroquai
4/5
-Great bass in "Emergency On Planet Earth"
-I love the fast-paced lyrics on "Revolution 1993"
-Very cool, quick tempo jazz stuff
The Mars Volta
5/5
-This album is pretty sweet. The guitar is shredding and the drums are awesome throughout the whole album. Definitely need to do more listening
Iron Maiden
5/5
-Pretty slick riff in-between lines in the chorus in "Invaders"
-Great drum intro on "Gangland"
-"Children of the Damned," "22 Acacia Avenue," and "Hallowed Be Thy Name" are absolute bangers
-"The Number of the Beast" and "Run to the Hills" are probably up there in my favorite tracks of all time. Truly incredible songs. Incredible storytelling, intensity, and raw power
-Obvioualy the riffs and singing are legendary, but the drumming is incredible, especially on "Run to the Hills" and the reverse cymbals to end "Hallowed Be Thy Name" if I remember correctly. Also the bass is quite strong and has some great riffs, especially for a metal album
Stephen Stills
4/5
-"Right Now" gets bangin'
-"Fallen Eagle" is a good, classic country song
-"Don't Look At My Shadow" has a good beat and the like guitar and violin are groovin'
-"Bound to Fall" has lots o' instruments going and the harmonies are interesting
-The first chunk of tracks (maybe up to like "Fallen Eagle") are pretty solid. Lots of cool instruments and stuff going on, but then it becomes a little up and down
The Crusaders
4/5
-Pretty spiffy jazz album
-Got some cool guitar at some points
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
4/5
-"The Beat," "Pump It Up," "(I Don't Want To Go To) Chelsea," "Lipstick Vogue," and "Radio, Radio" are all quite good songs
-"Lipstick Vogue" has an awesome drug intro and sweet bass throughout
-Solid rock album, I like the bass throughout it
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
3/5
-"Cinnamon Girl" is catchy enough
-"Round and Round (It Won't Be Long)" is pretty or whatever but it is also boring
-"Down by the River" gets into cool bass and guiar
-"Cowgirl in the Sand" is nice enough
-Its got some nice bits and pieces, but not nearly consistently enough to really get my attention
Abdullah Ibrahim
3/5
-Generally nice jazz but just nothing exciting really happening. "Tuang Guru" had a little bit of groove to it but just overall plain.
Cat Stevens
3/5
-"Miles From Nowhere" gets moderately heavy
-"But I Might Due Tonight" is a cool tune. The "you say so" part is cool
-"Longer Boats" is nice enough
-I like the intense-ish drum bits and the semi-yells in "On The Road To Find Out"
-I want to say 4, but it is pretty darn slow and I don't really care to listen again...
Stereo MC's
4/5
-A very weak 4 honestly. Generally pleasant to listen to, but not a lot really drawing me back. Songs are catchy and fun but just not very exciting
Madness
3/5
-I'e definitely heard "Tomorrow's Just Another Day" and "Our House" before
-I like the bit in "Our House" where they sing faster
-"Blue Skinned Beast" is quite catchy
-Generally solid rock album. Doesn't get too intense, but nice nonetheless. Would be 4 stars, but 1 star penalty for not being on Spotify and making me assemble half the album from Greatest Hits records and single releases and other random stuff. That's rude
Ryan Adams
3/5
-”To Be Young (Is to Be Sad, Is to Be High)” sounds like Bob Dylan at a few points
-Generally a little slow throughout a lot of the album
-I quite like the upbeat pace of “Shakedown on 9th Street.” The distorted guitar and drums are great.
-Overall nice, with some nice bits, but very slow in others. Not much pulling me back to listen again
Various Artists
4/5
I mean, it's essentially a compilation of Christmas classics. "White Christmas," "Frosty the Snowman," "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town," "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus," "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer," "Here Comes Santa Claus," and "Silent Night" are all legendary Christmas songs lol. Admittedly, some are not classics, like "A Marshmallow World," but it is a very solid set of the "classic" Christmas songs.
-Only notable/unexpected item music-wise were the pretty sick drum fills on "The Bells of St. Mary"
The Offspring
5/5
-”Nitro (Youth Energy)” is nice and fast and catchy with great drums
-”Bad Habit” totally rips
-The chorus in “Genocide” is very catchy. “Dog eat dog/Every day/On our fellow man we prey/Dog eat dog/To get by/Hope you like my genocide”
-I’ve definitely heard “Come Out and Play,” specifically that “You gotta keep ‘em separated” line
-Literally just a silent gap from 4:04 until 9:04 on “Smash.” The song is 10:40 and 5 entire minutes are just silent.
-This has some seriously catchy and great stuff, I think it has a decent likelihood of getting a good number of listens from me. I’m going to give it 5 stars because I think it has some serious potential to get me much more into punk.
Dennis Wilson
3/5
-I like the background screaming and low voice bit in the breakdown/bridge of "River Song"
-The super deep baritone sax(?) on "Dreamer" is cool
-"Time" has cool horns and bass groove thing going on
-Those couple songs are good but the rest of the album was kinda meh
The Go-Go's
4/5
-”We Got The Beat” is pretty darn catchy
-”Automatic is pretty cool as well, the start-stop bits are notable and the main riff is very psychadelicy.
-The alternating bass drum/lyrics and guitar riff bit in the chorus is very nice in “Skidmarks On My Heart.” Also some great drum fills in there.
-Overall solid album, not mind-blowing, but very pleasant. The songs have enough energy and enough going on to keep it interesting.
Maxwell
3/5
-Cool bass line in "Sumthin' Sumthin'"
-Generally pleasant R&B, but nothing super exciting
Paul Simon
3/5
-”Allergies” is pretty got dang catchy and has some splendid guitar fiddly-ness
-In “When Numbers Get Serious” he is seriously lackadaisical with his arithmetic. 2×2=22? 4×4=44? These are severe mathematical errors.
-”Cars Are Cars” is not only straight facts but also a nice little tune
-”Think Too Much (a)” has at least 2 cool basslines, and like a typewriter sound effect that is an interesting percussive element.
-A couple catchy songs, but not much that really piqued my interest to make me want to go back to listen. Still overall quality music, just not really in my wheelhouse
Koffi Olomide
3/5
-Background of “Papa bonheur” sounds like the Bloons TD Music
-Ok the whole album is just like reggae/dance-esque music in French lol
-The bridge of “Conte de fées” actually picks up to be pretty groovy with the high pitched whatever grooving along
-Very end of “Dit Jeannot” got kinda cool
-The whole album is just like reggae/dance-esque music in French lol
Belle & Sebastian
2/5
-The horns in “The Stars Of Track And Field” were interesting.
-The harmonica do be jamming on “Me and The Major," and the song is generally catchy and good
-Some moderately interesting guitar riffs in “Like Dylan In The Movies,” but it is still kinda boring and slow honestly
-"Judy And The Dream Of Horses" picks up to an okay pace but it's still pretty slow
-Idk kinda really boring and slow I think it might be a 2
Thin Lizzy
5/5
-"Jailbreak" has some solid riffs and some cool guitar stuff
-"Massacre" is a total jam and also the bass slide/riff at 1:17 is gnarly
-"Johnny the Fox Meets Jimmy the Weed" is just a fundamentally great song name
-The transition straight from "Cowboy Song" straight into "The Boys Are Back in Town" is cool. Also, "The Boys Are Back in Town" is one of the only 2 Thin Lizzy songs I previously knew (the other being "Cold Sweat") and the bass part seems to be amped up for the live version and I quite like it.
-Awesome jams in "Massacre," "Warrior," "Are You Ready," and "Suicide"
-Totally awesome live rock album, will absolutely be doing more listening
Miles Davis
4/5
-I am well aware of this album's importance, but am not smart enough to analyze jazz
-I like the doo doot part in "So What"
Van Morrison
2/5
-Every song is like acoustic guitar + man singing + one other small element like slow violins or drums or something
-Honestly mega boring
Pink Floyd
5/5
-Cool jammery in "In The Flesh?"
-I like the thumping in "The Happiest Days of Our Lives"
-"Another Brick in the Wall, Pt. 2" is obviously a classic
-"Mother" be like "MY BALLS"
-Cool bass and and jamming in general on "Young Lust"
-Lots of great moments and jamming and callbacks throughout the album. I'm definitely still missing some notes about great buts in various songs. I definitely don't appreciate it enough yet but it is incredibly solid.
Bruce Springsteen
2/5
-"Johnny 99," "Open All Night," and "Reason to Believe" gets decently groovy.
-"Johnny 99" sounds vaguely Johnny Cash-like
--The harmonica in quite a few songs is cool, particularly "Johnny 99" and "Reason to Believe"
-Overall just not very exciting or interesting
The Waterboys
4/5
-"Fisherman's Blues" be like a bluegrass country jam
-"We Will Not Be Lovers" has some of the thickest country-bluegrass sound I have ever heard. Some bass thing is absolutely chugging and the violin is flying
-"World Party" has got some jamming and a grooving bass as well
-"Blackbird" references in "Sweet Thing"
-"And a Bang on the Ear" and "When Will We Be Married" were catchy enough
-Pretty strong, but kind of died out in the second half of the album
David Bowie
4/5
-”Changes'' is obviously a pretty famous song that I’ve heard before. It’s basically guaranteed to get stuck in your head. Also, there is some cool bass going on in some parts
-”Oh! You Pretty Things” is pretty good, I’ll have to relisten
-”Andy Warhol” is pretty spooky and psychedelic. The whipping is cool. The whole thing is erratic but somehow fits together I think?
-”Song for Bob Dylan” is better than any song Bob Dylan wrote lmao
-Cool shreddy guitar in “Queen Bitch”
The Zombies
4/5
-”Friends of Mine” is pretty catchy and nice
-”Time of the Season” is pretty nice with a cool bassline and nice mellotron jam at the end. At least I think it's a mellotron, lol
-Generally nice psychedelic rock stuff, but just nothing really stands out. A pretty weak 4 but the fact that it is rock really helps it out
Soul II Soul
3/5
-"Keep on Movin'" is quite catchy
-"African Dance" has a great beat and someone is jamming on some wind instrument
-"Feel Free" has some chunky bass stuff
-"Jazzie's Groove" is grooving with a big bassline and drum beat
Miles Davis
4/5
-"Boplicity" is a great song title
-I'm still not smart enough to analyze jazz
Gil Scott-Heron
3/5
-literally 2 of these songs are on Spotify, so this is just a review of "The Bottle" and "Your Daddy Loves You"
-"The Bottle" was an awesome song with a sweet jam and cool bass solo
-"Your Daddy Loves You" was a meh R&B song
-Overall can barely rate because I only listened to 2 tracks
Muddy Waters
4/5
-Cool blues jamming. I particularly like "Tiger In Your Tank" and "I've Got My Mojo Working"
-Nice guitar and harmonica jamming
-Some of the lyrics were pretty repetitive lol
Jazmine Sullivan
2/5
-I liked Anderson .Paak's verse on "Price Tags"
-Not many interesting flows or beats
Pet Shop Boys
3/5
-"Yesterday When I Was Mad" has a cool, fast backbeat and the distorted vocals add some interest
-Generally pleasant pop-like music
U2
4/5
-Totally cool bassline and jam in "Until The End Of The World"
-"Zoo Station," "Even Better Than The Real Thing," "Until The End Of The World," and "The Fly" are nice heavier, hard-rock, kinda-Muse-esque songs
-"Ultra Violet (Light My Way)" is the first song that was a bit boring. Just a little slow and not as intense as the others
The Kinks
4/5
-I like the heavier screaming at the end of "Dandy"
-Generally good rock album
Gotan Project
3/5
-"Chunga's Revenge" is a cover of the Frank Zappa song, but I could barely tell lol
-"Tríptico" has this cool backing groove going on. Very chill, but stuff's going on enough to make it interesting, and it picks up as the song goes on.
-I like the intense, syncopated motif in "Una Música Brutal"
-"Last Tango in Paris" has like a cool funky groove and a classic French song overlaid on top of each other
-"La Del Ruso" has a cool swoosh sound in it and great groove throughout
-Very strong 3, but nothing crazy to really pull me back to it, but incredibly solid music
Lynyrd Skynyrd
5/5
-"I Ain't The One" has cool reversed cymbals, and a great bass to go along with all the guitar jamming
-I like "Tuesday's Gone" in the same way I like most ballads, which is that it's fine.
-"Gimme Three Steps" is incredibly catchy and also has great bass backing up the shredding guitar
-"Simple Man" is very anthemic. It's relatively simple riffs just ring out with power
-That's a big old honkin' bass riff at the start of "Things Goin' On." I also really like the ragtime-esque piano.
-"Mississippi Kid" is probably my least favorite on the album. Just kinda mellow.
-"Poison Whiskey is a solid groove of a song, with all the bits have been cited for the previous songs, ie solid guitar riffs, great bass and drums, and nice piano jams to go along with it
-"Free Bird" is obviously an absolutely epic song. The song starts mellow and increases in intensity at a gradual, but not snail-like pace, and then the guitar solo/band jam totally rips. I think the solo is hugely aided by the rest of the band playing along and supporting, making the whole solo more epic than if it were left as pure guitar. I especially love the drum accents in between guitar riffs.
The Cure
3/5
-"The Hanging Garden" has a great backing rhythm to drive it along
-"Pornography" definitely creates quite the spooky vibe
-Fine album but like nothing really stood out, like all the songs felt the same.
Def Leppard
4/5
-I like all the rock references in "Rocket"
-"Run Riot," which had great drum-heavy parts, stood out
-Obvioualy I've heard "Pour Some Sugar On Me"
-The Wikipedia said every song was written as a potential single, and I can definitely hear that. Every song is very anthemic and independent. A solid collection of fun ahir metal tracks
3/5
-"Big Exit," "The Whores Hustle And The Hustlers Whore," and "Kamikaze" are the strongest tracks. All are cool alt-rock jams.
-A strong 3, but nothing really stood out. No crazy guitar jams, or radical drum beats, just generally nice music with quality singing, so nothing grating. Much preferred to the other PJ Harvey album I had, which was very boring.
Randy Newman
3/5
-"God's Song (That's Why I Love Mankind)" and "Political Science" have particularly interesting themes
-"Lonely At The Top" was nice enough I guess
-The songs on this album all have a major problem and that is that they are by Randy Newman, but aren't "You've Got a Friend in Me" and we're featured in a beloved movie from my childhood
Radiohead
3/5
-"Bones" gets into a nice jam
-"My Iron Lung" has some cool distortion
-"Black Star" and "The Bends" got decently heavy
-I know this album is mega popular but I just didn't really see it. Bits and pieces were cool, but in-between was just not crazy interesting. I liked the album more than "Kid A" by them, but this really didn't blow me away
Yes
5/5
-Holy crap Lois why does the "We'll Be Right Back" meme continue for 8 minutes?
-This album is a little weird, it's like half big epic songs and half shirt little dinky ones. Still pretty cool. Great jams and groove and bass and stuff throughout
-I particularly like "Roundabout" and "Long Distance Runaround"
-"South Side of the Sky," "Heart of the Sunrise," and "America" are great too
-I plan to do plenty more listening, so I think that has just bumped it into the 5 star range
4/5
-Cool jam bits in "Colin Zeal," "Chemical World," and "Oily Water." I especially liked the ramp up at the end of "Chemical World"
-Generally kinda not-that-exciting alt/pop rock.
-Weak 4
The Cure
2/5
-Kinda pretty darn boring not gonna lie. Just a kind of sad, ethereal vibe, nothing really stood out in my listen. Idk if I'm missing something here but I see no reason to even bother giving another listen to re-evaluate
-I be listening to The Cure..."At Night"
Some critiques of song names:
-"Three is not the 3rd song
-"The Final Sound" is not the final sound
-"Seventeen Seconds" is not seventeen seconds long
JAY Z
3/5
-Sweet bass groove in "Takeover." Also it took a second listen but I noticed the sampling of the Doors on the second listen
-I like the very triumphant beat and lyrics to "U Don't Know"
-Mu favorite track was "Renegade," because I like Eminem and he is on that track. I also like how JAY-Z totally changed his flow to be more rhyme-scheme based to keep up with Eminem
-Why we're some of my favorite rhymes and flows on the hidden track "Girls, Girls, Girls (Part 2)?"
-Overall the beats were solid, although the flow wasn't my personal favorite
Joni Mitchell
2/5
If y'ain't on Spotify, y'ain't real. Exist to get a rating lmao
Talking Heads
5/5
-"Crosseyed and Painless" is super catchy with the main driving bassline, but within that main groove there's just a bunch of little parts. The main drums, the extra little background drums, the main bass, the guitar, lots of guitar flourishes, the synth, plus whatever other instruments I'm missing all blend to a really cool riff.
-The repeating lines in "The Great Curve" almost become a rhythm because they are so consistent and overlapping
-"Houses in Motion" has a great main riff. The elephant (?) solo at the end is pretty cool too
-Album gets very spooky at the end
-Solid tracks with a couple absolute bangers
Willie Colón & Rubén Blades
3/5
-I like the "doo doo bing bong ping ding bong" part in "Buscando Guayaba"
-Holy crap Lois they referenced "Despacito" in "Pedro Navajo"
-I like the big old bass that comes in in "Maria Lionza"
-It would probably be a 4 if it was in my genre of music, it just isn't really my jam, but it is all quality
Little Simz
3/5
-In "Offence" there is a bar that says "Got my team on deck taking out all pawns/And my knight got your queen in check, mate" which is a cool chess bar that *almost* makes sense
-"Offence" also has a cool bass slide that's cool, and some solid fast flows
-Oh, it's the "Venom" TikTok song. Also some great speedy bars in that song. Actually, the main part that is the TikTok sound is actually the least interesting part. The verses have great flow and rhymes, and the rap has a topic (not just rhyming random words and phrases)
-"101 FM" is a bit too bri*ish for me"
-Most tracks are like medium good, with "Offence" and "Venom" being solid. Not quite consistent enough for a 4, but one of the strongest hip hop albums I've heard in my opinion
Louis Prima
4/5
-He definitely be groovin' and jivin' on the sax and/or trumpet. Overall just a bunch of fun tracks with lots of energy
-"(I'll Be Glad When You're Dead) You Rascal You" is pretty savage
Hole
4/5
-Pretty Nice alternative rock. It's got a cool sound. Nothing mind blowing, but solid and engaging enough. Probably a lower 4
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
3/5
-I got really confused because I had heard the lyrics of "Into My Arms" somewhere before. Turns out Roger Daltrey covered it on his album.
-Songs are fine, nothing really stood out
Kelela
3/5
-"LMK" is pretty catchy
-Generally pleasant but not really my style. Nothing in particular made it stand out
Johnny Cash
4/5
-"Hurt" is obviously the popular ones and quite emotional. The change in perspective on the lyrics from Trent Reznor's heroin addiction to Johnny Cash's old age is very interesting.
-I actually quite like "I Hung My Head" and "Tear Stained Letter"
-Some of the songs get really sparse and slow for me, especially in the back half
-Pretty good overall
Erykah Badu
4/5
-"Penitentiary Philosophy" is pretty catchy will a cool, groovin', instrumental. Great drumming in particular. Honestly it gets pretty heavy at the end
-"...& On" has some very cool parts, specifically the quiet, fast-singing parts
-The synth-harmonized parts in "Kiss Me On My Neck" are quite catchy
-Overall, album is quite nice soul/funk stuff. A couple great tracks, some kinda boring. I think I'm gonna give it the benefit of the doubt and bump it from a 3 to a 4
The Cure
2/5
-Ayyo they really titled "Plainsong" accurately cuz this song do be plain
-"Disintegration" is like one tick up on the intensity scale
-Overall it's like not bad and it is rock but it is mega boring and the songs all just sit in the same musical area that isn't very interesting to me
Jimmy Smith
4/5
-Very solid groovy instrumental. I like the keyboard and trumpet parts
Joni Mitchell
2/5
Ain't on Spotify RIP
The Cars
5/5
-"Good Times Roll," "My best Friend's Girl," "Just What I Needed," 'Don't Cha Stop," and "You're All I've Got Tonight" are all classic radio hits of various sizes. All very catchy and fun
-"I'm in Touch with Your World" has an unexpected change to some spookyness, very cool
-All greeat, totally class rock tracks
Afrika Bambaataa
4/5
-4 might be a bit high, probably a low 4, but it's been my favorite hip hop album so far, I think
-Pretty cool instrumentals overall I like the use of stereo in quite a few of the tracks
-Fun fast rhyme on "Renegades of Funk - The Latin Remix"
-Great bass lines in "Who You Funkin' With?" and "They made A Mistake"
Paul Simon
3/5
-Generally nice songs
-"Paranoia Blues" is my favorite, had good thumping drums and heavier vocals
-Probably a really high 3, but nothing to really draw me back
Tom Waits
3/5
-"16 Shells From A 30.6" is a pretty sweet jam. Instrumentation is zooming and singer's belting out the lyrics
-Not sure why, but I like the xylophone on "Swordfishtrombone." Maybe cuz it is Zappa-esque
-"Down, Down, Down" totally wails
-Drums on "Trouble's Braids" are kind of sick
-I liked it more than the "Nighthawks At The Diner" album, and maybe a few more songs like "16 Shells From A 30.6" and "Down, Down, Down" would bump it to a 4
Nine Inch Nails
5/5
-An awesome industrial metal album
-"Heresy," "Closer," "Ruiner," "I Do Not Want This," and "Eraser" stand out as really strong tracks
The Lemonheads
4/5
-That riff in "Rockin' Stroll" sounds like "The Trooper" by Iron Maiden
-I totally interpreted the lyrics of "Frank Mills" to say that George Harrison was a drummer ("He was last seen with his friend, a drummer / He resembles George Harrison of The Beatles")
-Pretty nice alternative rock
MGMT
4/5
-Cool keyboards going in the left ear in "Weekend Wars"
-Cool vibes in "4th Dimensional Transition" and "Moons, Birds & Monsters"
-Love the end of "The Handshake"
-some very respectable musical thingies happening here
The Last Shadow Puppets
4/5
-I like the Old Western sound of "The Age Of Understandment"
-Quote solid rock/alt-rock album. Nice consistent, quick songs
Cyndi Lauper
3/5
-Woah, "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" is like Weird Al Yankovic's "Girls Just Want toHave Lunch" but it's the original
-"She Bop" is pretty catchy
-I like the kinda spooky bits of "Yeah Yeah"
Fiona Apple
4/5
-An interesting enough alt rock album, with also hints of a blues-y sound in a few songs.
-I liked the more rock-focused vibe of the first few songs. "Criminal" was probably my favorite
-"Carrion" was a good ending track. Cool vibes in that one.
Jurassic 5
4/5
-The synced up chorus in "If You Only Knew" and "Break" were both catchy
-Whoever's got the deep voice is great. Especially the rhyme scheme in "A Day Races." Although pretty much everyone had great rhyme schemes in that one
-In "A Day At The Races" one bar is "You're out of your league like Jordan in baseball" and that's a solid bar right there. also the bass line is great
-Gnarly rhymes in "High Fidelity"
-In "Sum Of Us" he says 'Seeing more demons than Gene Simmons"
-"A Day At The Races," "After School Special," High Fidelity," and "Sum of Us" are all really strong tracks with great rhyme schemes and flows
-The best rap/hip hop album I've had so far
Red Hot Chili Peppers
5/5
-"Around The World" and "Parallel Universe" get kinda heavy at the end
-"Purple Stain" is quite catchy, the stutter-style lyrics really grab your attention
-"Right on Time" is a cool alternation of slow-style lyrics and blazing-fast lyrics. The bass is flying with a cool bassline through the whole thing.
-"Get on Top," "Emit Remmus," "I Like Dirt," "Purple Stain" and "Right on Time" are all stand out songs
-Great album, all the songs are interesting and most are very good. 5 stars!
Pet Shop Boys
3/5
-In this house, we criticize consumerism when we sing the song 'Shopping"
-"Shopping," "Hit Music," "It's a Sin," and "heart" were all catchy enough. Most of the rest of the album was pleasant but nothing really stood out, didn't get too intense
SAULT
3/5
-Hwatever vocal effect (duplicates?) On the lyrics "We are the original people / And we don't believe in evil" in "Stop Dem" is pretty cool. Also a chill drum-based backseat and bass line
-"Bow" has been the stand out song so far. Cool afro-beat vibe, but also mixing in electronic music and like a rock and roll guitar
-There were a few okay tracks, with "Bow" really standing out, but much of the rest was pretty weak
The Mamas & The Papas
4/5
-Mega Garfield Vibes in "Monday Monday"
-"Monday Monday" and "Straight Shooter" stood out the best
-Overall nice calm-rock sound with harmonies
The Hives
4/5
-Very solid punk rock. Lots of great, fun riffs and tunes
-Definitely heard "Hate To Say I Told You So" in 'Weird Al" Yankovic's "Angry White Boy Polka"
-He gets going quite fast in "Untutored Youth"
-"Hate To Say I Told You So," "Supply And Demand," "A.K.A. I-D-I-O-T," and "Automatic Schmuck" all stood out slightly as great track, but the album is quite consistent.
Screaming Trees
4/5
-"Dime Western" has a riff that sound like a Dream Theater riff
-Actually I think it sounds like the riff from "Heaven On Their Minds" from "Jesus Christ Superstar"
-Very cool psychedelic-Beatles-esque-sitar-like stuff going on in "halo of Ashes"
-"Gospel Plow" starts spooky and then picks up in quite a cool way
-Overall nice album with some cool spooky-slowish rock with some nice heavier moments throughout
Cocteau Twins
2/5
-Well it certainly was ethereal
-Idk if I'm just not being super nice to this album but nothing friggin' happened
Curtis Mayfield
4/5
-pretty nice groovy stuff, but nothing to go crazy over
-i like the high-pitched backing vocals
-not as strong as his "Pusherman" album
Solomon Burke
3/5
-A lot more soul than rock
-Every song was like the dang same, kinda reminded me of some old Christmas song
-Got kinda tedious just being the same sort of song over and over again without any real builds of energy or anything
Aretha Franklin
4/5
-Every nice soul/R&B with a powerful voice to give it some energy
-"Chain of Fools," "Money Won't Change You," and "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" were all very strong
-She really gets to belting it out in "Good to Me as I am to You"
-Also quite a few cool bass lines and other instrument parts throughout. I like the brass sections as well
Alice Cooper
5/5
-An incredible album
-"School's Out" is in the uppermost echelon of songs that I just expect everyone to know/have heard. It's also a banger. Incredible opening riff, iconic and relatable lyrics, and the hilarious "We can't even think of a word that rhymes" lyric.
-The rest of the album is super cool as well, with great instrumentals to back intriguing mini-story lyrics.
Earth, Wind & Fire
4/5
-I like the bassline and low voice singing in "Shining Star." It's also generally a catchy song
-Generally solid soul/funky songs with cool bass lines and catchy in general
The Kinks
4/5
-Pretty nice rock album
-Couple parts sounded Beatles-like
-Quick, Pleasent tracks
-Notjing stood out like crazy, but it was all nice rock
The Teardrop Explodes
4/5
-I like the guitar and keyboard grooves in "Sleeping Gas"
-"Went Crazy" has a cool bassline and catchy chorus
-I like the drum/guitar riff in "Bouncing Babies"
-Strong 3, Weak 4?
Anita Baker
2/5
-Able to find 5/8 songs on Spotify. Deducted a point.
-Nice soul music with great singing and solid instrumentals. Never got too crazy or anything.
-Potentially 3 stars if the album was on Spotify
Baaba Maal
1/5
Honestly at first this album seemed fine but it slowly got more and more annoying. Obviously I can't understand any of it, but it just seemed like the same guitar combo thing + nasally singing for well over an hour. It literally was annoying to listen to eventually. It felt like I was in a loop listening to the same not very interesting song
-Cool jams with guitar, piano, drums, and assorted other instruments in "Miss Judy's Farm," "Debris," "Memphis," 'too Bad," and "That's All You Need."
-"Debris" is reminding me a bit of Bob Dylan
-Very solid blues-y rock album
Pentangle
3/5
-A nice enough folk-ish album
-Some very good singing, but other than that nothing really kicked into another gear or caught my ear
Tricky
2/5
-"Black Steel" gets into quite a jam
-Basically the rest of the album is pretty boring, kind of goes off into nothing-tangent things. Basically nothing caught my interest, it almost sounded like music being played in the next room over. Personally wish more of it had been like "Black Steel." There were bits of intrigue in "Abbaton Fat Tracks" and "Brand New You're Retro" but they never really built on the creepy vibe they had.
-I thought I was going to give a 4 around listening to "Black Steel," but then as the rest of the album didn't really get anywhere close to that energy level I thought about giving it a 3, but now I think it is gonna get a 2 because there was literally just that one song that was interesting, and even though it was in the vicinity of rock that I usually like, the whole thing was pretty dull and other than "Black Steel," the interestign parts never got a good resolution.
Heaven 17
4/5
"(We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thang" is very catchy with the super speedy back beat and has a super cool bass jam in the middle
-First couple tracks were pretty strong, back half wasn't as good. Whole thing gave me Talking Heads and David Bowie vibes
Morrissey
3/5
First two tracks are pretty heavy ("You're Gonna Need Someone on Your Side" and "Glamorous Glue") but the rest is a bit more chill. Not quite as good as the other Morrissey album I had ("You Are The Quarry")
Happy Mondays
4/5
-The singer in "Fat Lady Wrestlers" sounds a bit like Ace Frehley
-Overall a pretty nice funk/dance/rock-ish album. Generally nice. Nothing was mind-blowing, but the energy was good. Probably a soft 4 star album.
B.B. King
4/5
-Very solid blues album
-Lots of great songs that started calm and built to a climactic jam/finish. The songs were not stagnant and boring which I highly appreciate, lots of instruments helped in the jam as well.
Fleet Foxes
3/5
-The part in "White Winter Hymnal" where everything comes in louder is cool
-Idk there were cool bits and pieces but nothing built to any cool climaxes or anything
Madonna
3/5
-A nice album, but not really in my style
-some pretty cool stuff happening in lots of the instrumentals, particularly in "Ray Of Light" and "Sky Fits Heaven." Some stuff sounded industrial/Nine Inch Nails like.
Penguin Cafe Orchestra
3/5
-I swear I recognize like 5 riffs from "Penguin Cafe Single"
-A lot of wonkyness but also some bass action in "Milk"
-It was kind of interesting, but mostly weird. The strongest song was definitely "Penguin Cafe Single"
John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers
4/5
-Strong jam in "Hideaway"
-very cool bluesy-rocky album with lots of cool riffs from lots of instruments (guitar, harmonica, drums, etc.)
-Tracks build enough to keep everything interesting, no total lulls where the song is just slow and boring for an extended period of time
Suicide
4/5
-The electronic drumbeats really keep the intensity going through the album
-"Frankie Teardrop" is very Alice Cooper-esque. Or maybe Alice Cooper is very "Frankie Teardrop"-esque. Also the scream when Frankie kills himself is pretty crazy. (Spoiler alert)
Buena Vista Social Club
3/5
-"De Camino a La Vereda" sounds like every song I've ever heard in a Mexican restaurant. Actually like half the album sounds like every song I've ever heard in a Mexican resturant
The Style Council
3/5
-A totally groovin' riff opens up and continues through "Mick's Blessings"
-some violent genre changes between "A Gospel," "Strength of Your Nature," and "You're The Best Thing"
-Hinestly the instrumental songs ("Mick's Blessings," "Dropping Bombs On The Whitehouse," and "Council Meetin'") were the best songs. They had solid jams. The rest of the tracks didn't really keep up the energy
Rod Stewart
4/5
-Generally solid rock+ piano with a nice blues feel
-Generally solid tracks with good energy dynamics (maybe a little low for my taste) up until "Cut Across Shorty"
-"Cut Across Shorty" is probably my favorite track on the album. Really high energy with a great guitar/piano riff/jam
-Right after "Cut Across Shorty," there was "Lady Day" and Jo's Lament" which were both mega boring and slow
-Luckily the album finished off well on "You're My Girl (I Don't Want To Discuss It)," which is second best to "Cut Across Shorty"
-Probably not as strong as the other Rod Stewart album I had, "Every Picture Tells A Story"
-Probably a sketchy 4
John Martyn
3/5
-Opening track, "Dealer" is probably the strongest on the album. Solid fun synth-y-ish stuff going on. reminded me of some parts of stuff from the 'Who Are You" album by The Who.
-Most of the rest of the album is kind of boring and low-energy. "Dancing" is nice, and "Big Muff" has some okay bits.
-Most is pretty slow, boring songs.
-"Small Hours" borders on like, AI-generated soothing ASMR music. Just nothing happening at all.
Eric Clapton
3/5
-I really like the drum groove carrying "Motherless Children." Overall it's guy a great riff that mixes between drums, guitar, and piano
-"Get Ready" and "Willie And The Hand Jive" were interesting enough
-"I Shot The Sheriff" is the best track in the album, although a lot of that is probably due to familiarity. But I like the multi-singer setup and just great riffs and catchiness overall.
-Rest of the album is kind of boring blues-rock. Really "I Shit The Sheriff" stands out as great, "Motherless Children" is pretty good, and the rest is meh. I think it is getting 3 stars, surprisingly enough
Aretha Franklin
4/5
-"Respect" is obviously super famous and a top quality song
-"Dr. Feelgood (Love Is a Serious Business)" is not related to "Dr. Feelgood" by Mötley Crüe at all.
-"Dr. Feelgood (Love Is a Serious Business)," "Good Times," "Do Right Woman, Do Right Man," 'Save Me," and "A Change Is Gonna Come" are all relatively upbeat tracks (compared to some of the earlier more ballad-like songs)
-Generally Aretha Franklin always balanced the calm, sad parts of songs with strong, powerful finishes that stops entire songs from being low-energy. her band is always consistent with keeping a strong background top not just leave it as her voice, which is obviously great and powerful and handles all the songs beautifully.
Jorge Ben Jor
3/5
-first 3 tracks are kind of nice, but not particularly exciting
-"Meus Filhos, Meu Tesouro" totally kicks into a funky groove that's pretty sweet
-I read on Wikipedia that Rod Stewart Got sued because "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?" sounded like "Taj Mahal," and it really does, like, a lot, lol.
-"A História de Jorge" is pretty fun, and I can actually sing along when he says "Jorge."
-"Cavaleiro do Cavalo Imaculado" starts off with a ripping bass line and then cool drums get thrown on top of that. Sadly they kind of go to the background for a calmer vocal delivery. But the intro was pretty fun.
-"África Brasil (Zumbi)" gets some cool yell-y vocals
-This had some sparks of really cool moments, but they were pretty spread out, and as the album is in Portuguese it is a bit harder for me to follow. If more of the album was like those cool moments and/or it was in English, I could see it potentially bumping up to a 4 or a 5
Parliament
5/5
-"P-Funk (Wants To get Funked Up)" has a cool intro story, with an alien funk ship taking over your radio and playing funky music. It's also super catchy during the singing parts.
-"Mothership Connection (Star Child)" is a just great, grooving funk song
-"Unfunky UFO" starts off with a thumping drum, and then all the other instruments come in for a big, fat, beefy, funky sound. The worbler on the bass, or whatever that effect is called, is cranked up. The guitar, horns, and everything else sounds fantastic. It's the highlight of the album so far.
-"Supergroovalisticprofunkstication (The Bumps Bump)" may very well be the best song name across all 1001 Albums.
-"Give Up The Funk (Tear The Roof Off The Sucker)" is a great song, and it has this super cool, deep-bass singer during some parts. Very fun.
-"Night Of The Thumpasorus People's" is nice and funky (as expected) and has some great lyrics ("Gaga googa ga ga googa")
-A great funk album that I thoroughly enjoyed, it never got boring. I plan on listening more in the future!
Bob Marley & The Wailers
3/5
It's Bob Marley. It sounded like Bob Marley. Nothing really blew my socks off., it was reggae. It was nice enough, but not really my thing
The Everly Brothers
3/5
-I mean, it just sounds like an album from the 50's basically
-It's nice, but just not interesting
-The first version of "Love Hurts" is on there
-"Lucille" has a pretty cool riff
-Other than those tracks it seems pretty generic
Dwight Yoakam
3/5
-Generally seems like every country album. Not too much bro-country theming but it sounds like completely generic country
-Woah "Buenos Noches From a Lonely Room (She Wore Red Dresses)" just has murder out of nowhere
-Acvording to the Wikipedia that murder was actually building up over the last 5 songs but on re-listen it still didn't really stand out to me
-Third day in a row where the music wasn't unpleasant but the genre is just not that interesting ("Natty Dread" by Bob Marley & the Wailers (reggae) and "A Date With The Every Brothers" by The Every Brothers (old school 50's-ish rock) (I missed "Me Against The World" by 2Pac))
Electric Light Orchestra
5/5
-Obviously, "Mr. Blue Sky" and "Sweet Talkin' Woman" are quite famous songs from this album.
-One of my favorites is "Turn to Stone," especially the fast part where they say "Yes, I'm turnin' to stone/'Cause you ain't coming home/Why ain't you comin' home/If I'm turnin' to stone/You've been gone for so long/And I can't carry on/Yes, I'm turnin', I'm turnin'/I'm turnin' to stone"
-"Night In The City" also stands out as a strong, catchy song.
-Overall a very cool rock album with lots of keyboard and vocoder and multi-singer-harmony parts to give it a unique sound.
Prince
4/5
-All the songs are good enough, just some are really repetitive, just saying the title or the main chorus line over and over again
-The line about "party like it's 1999" reminds me of Weird Al's line from Amish Paradise where he says "Tonight we're gonna party like it is 1899." I assume Al is referencing this song or both are referencing a common phrase from the time
-"Little Red Corvette" is cool, it's obviously one of Prince's more popular tunes
-"D.M.S.R." was my other favorite with "Little Red Corvette" It just seemed fun and catchy.
-Sone of the songs towards the end of the album have really quiet vocals for some reason
-It sounds like I hated this album, but I enjoyed it lol
David Gray
2/5
-Honestly very boring
-The only point that stood out in the album was the passion in the chorus of "My Oh My"
-Everything was sonically just very plain and boring
The Stranglers
4/5
-Lots of strong bass + keyboard grooves. I particularly like the groove in "Goodbye Toulouse." The riff in "Sometimes" is quite good as well
-I like the fast but in "London Lady" when they say "Plastic's real when you're real sick" over and over
-The lyrics and some of the instrumental on "Princess of Streets" gets quite heavy
-The drum/guitar breakdowns in "Hanging Around" and very cool
-Great bass/keyboard intro on "Peaches." The main riff is also totally sweet. Also the lines "Down on the beaches, just look at all the peaches" are pretty funny and catchy
-This album has great instrumentation and lyrics throughout, it is very close to being a 5. Everything was great, it was just missing some special factor to kick it up a notch
Cypress Hill
3/5
-"How Could I Just Kill A Man" and "light Another are pretty catchy
-Crazy bass intro on "Real Estate"
-"Psycobetabuckdown" has a very cool digital robot-y intro/beat. Also parts of it remind me of the Red Hot Chili Peppers
-Cool instrumental on "Tres Equis." The mix of horns and the spooky guitar sounds almost Mexican/wild westish or something. When the intro begins it does not sound like a rap song at all
-Overall one of the stronger rap albums I've had. I'd say its potentially bordering on 4 star territory.
The Police
4/5
-Slick bass riff in "O My God"
-"Mother" comes in strong with a crazy, driving Indian-influenced riff
-"Every Breath You Take" is the popular tunes off of this one lol. It's good enough
-"Tea In The Sahara" has quite a complex drum beat but it is still kinda boring
-Dang "Murder By Numbers" honestly sounds pretty happy but the lyrics are quite dark
-Couple great tracks, rest are decent enough tracks. I think the album's best songs are "Mother," "O My God," and "Murder By Numbers"
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
4/5
-Fun upbeat groove in "Rockin' Around (With You)"
-I like the emotion in the the word "breakdown" and some of the slick guitar riffs in "Breakdown"
-The little breakdown/bridge in "Fooled Again (I Don't Like It)" was quite cool, I wish it had continued for longer than like 3 seconds
-All pretty nice tracks
The Beach Boys
4/5
-Did not hear the sound of even one goddamn pet
-Honestly not as mind blowing as it is claimed to be. The songs are supposed to be super complex but I don't know if I'm cracked out of my mind but they don't seem that crazy to me.
-"Wouldn't It Be Nice" is nice, but it is also the only song I had heard from the album before. the only other song that stood out in any capacity was "Sloop John B"
-Just not super crazy
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
4/5
-In general, solid Emerson, Lake & Palmer jams. Lots of weird and interesting keyboard and drum rhythms and things. "Are You Ready Eddy?" stood out as being catchy but that might be because it repeats the title a lot and is last. In any case, many fun parts, but nothing standing out as insanely cool to boost it to 5 stars
Ice Cube
3/5
-"When Will They Shoot" has great, meaningful bars. I like the intense, shout delivery
-"Wicked" has the cool fast bars and Ice Cube has good flow throughout
-"Now I Gotta Wet 'Cha" has a pretty cool vocal loop going in the background. It's pretty catchy and I find the concept kind of funny
-I like the multi-phase "Say Hi To The Bad Guy." Also that cop should have known to not mess with another man's donuts
-Overall, I like the more shouty-lyriced songs. The other songs didn't have quite as interesting of flow. Pretty close to a 4, but just not enough strong tracks
Led Zeppelin
5/5
-"Black Dog" kicks in with the famous vocal intro and a killer riff
-"Rock and Roll" is a ripping rock classic
-"The Battle Of Evermore" is a little slow in my opinion
-I know "Stairway to Heaven" is like the most perfect rock song of all time, but I just don't get it. The build just doesn't pay off for me. The buildup is like 4 minutes for it to just be a jam that I would say is weaker than "Black Dog" or "Rock and Roll." It's not terrible or anything, but just too slow of a build and not enough payoff for it to be praised to the level it is, in my opinion
-"Misty Mountain Hop" is fun, and the vocal rhythms are catchy and interesting
-"Four Sticks" and "When the Levee Breaks" were strong
-Overall great rock album, both only 2 or 3 tracks kinda slacking in my opinion. Some of the most classic classic rock songs are "Black Dog" and "Rock and Roll"
John Coltrane
3/5
-Actually gets to a solid level of jam with the sax and drums about halfway through "Pt. III - Pursuance"
-It is kinda boring for like 15 minutes, then cool for 5, then boring for the next 10. Bad ratio, dude
Pavement
3/5
-"Silence Kid" is a cool enough song
-"5-4=Unity" stood out as the most musically interesting song, probably because it is instrumental so the instruments actually had to do something.
-Most o9f the instrumental parts seemed like dead basic to me, and the singing was fine I guess. just not a particularly inspiring album.
The Triffids
4/5
-"Kelly's Blues" comes in heavy. It's also got a sweet bass line. Then the scream and bridge jam are totally awesome
-"A Trick of the Light" is clearly a rip off of "Trick Of The Light" by The Who
-"Holy Water" is a catchy track with quite cool instrumentation
-"Vagabond Holes" is just a solid, catchy tune. Nice upbeat drums and simple lyrics seemed to make it stand out
-Overall solid enough. Probably a low-mid tier 4. If more songs had a little more oomph like "Kelly's Blues" it could have been higher
Billy Bragg
3/5
-Something a little spooky about low voice in "Way over Yonder in the Minor Key"
-"Hoodoo Voodoo" gets some upbeat honky tonkin
-"She Came Along to Me"
-Something about "Christ For President"?
-"I Guess I Planted" has some uniony stuff
-Some nice tracks there, but overall not my style
Paul Weller
4/5
-"Sunflower" is a solid jam
-"Can You Heal Us (Holy Man)" and Has My Fire Really Gone Out?" both become great jams. Also, "5th Season gets into a full jam with keyboard and stuff
-"Country" is calmer but has appropriate dynamic changes. Same with "Shadow Of The Sun"
-"Hung Up" is fun as well
-Only a couple songs that are a bit slow, overall very strong
-THIS is how you do softer rock, with actual dynamic changes and not just being slow and boring for the entire album
Fairport Convention
3/5
-"Genesis Hall" and "Autopsy" had a bit of a spooky vibe, but maybe that's just what folk and/or this band sounds like and I'm stupid
-"Si tu dois partir" has the horrible flaw of being in French (🤮)
-"A Sailor's Life" was kind of slow/standard for the album for like 5 minutes, but the drums and bass have been picking up into a solid jam...I wish it didn't start so late in, or the song had been a little more interesting in the beginning
-"Cajun Woman" is an awesome, upbeat, fast paced track! Rhythm section is shredding, I believe I heard an accordion going, and some very slidey guitar is ripping away as well. By far the best song on the album
-"Percy's Song" kind of builds up but it mostly just is the same thing but louder
-If there were more track like the jam in "A Sailor's Life" and "Cajun Woman," this could definitely be a 4 or maybe a 5 star album, but there's too much in it that is meh
Michael Jackson
4/5
-Nice funky beat in "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough"
-Nice fast beat and trumpetology in "Workin' Day and Night"
-Fat bass in "Get on the Floor"
-Fun funk disco in "Burn This Disco Down"
-I actually didn't like his singing that much, or at least, I liked most of the other parts of the song better
The Verve
4/5
-"Bitter Sweet Symphony" was pleasant
-"The Rolling People" gets pretty heavy
-End of "Weeping Willow" with the echoey vocals under the main vocals is cool
-Super cool and heavy in "Come On." The mix of the guitar and keyboard and drums grooving along is super solid
-I really hate hidden tracks in this style. "Come On" is a great track but there's just 6 of silence before the "Deep Freeze - Hidden Track" starts
-The hidden track, "Deep Freeze - Hidden Track" is an interesting spooky, computery, squeaky thingy
-Overall, cool slightly chiller alt-rock album. Does not fall into the common pitfalls of some music like this where it is just super boring. There's enough dynamics and instrumentation and stuff to keep it interesting
The Slits
4/5
-Fast high hats & nice singing in "So Tough"
-Cool bass groove and catchy chorus in "FM" (song that says "Frequent Mutilation" a bunch)
-"Adventures Close To Home" has some catchy bass and an interesting enough baseline
-"I Heard It Through The Grapevine" has a very strong bass line and I like the passion in the lyrics of the chorus, as well as the bongo blast in a later chorus
-"Liebe And Romanze" was actually a pretty cool slow, grooving instrumental. I actually liked the 2 bonus tracks the most...
-A weaker 4, but pleasant and interesting ideas. I don't have much desire to go back but I feel it separated itself from the 3's enough
Big Black
2/5
You have to be on Spotify to exist. It's a shame since the bit I listened to on YouTube sounded pretty cool
Linkin Park
4/5
-"One Step Closer" is nice and heavy, very easy to sing along to on your first listen. I also really like the chorus. Maybe it's the alternating lines with long, extended notes and then faster lines? It's cool
-"Crawling" has the classic "Crawling in my skin / These sounds, they will not heal"
-The vocal distortions on the screams throughout "By Myself" are pretty crazy
-"In the End" doesn't really stand out as a track other than the fact I am already very familiar with it. Maybe it's just the most digestible, which made it the most popular track? I'd say I like "One Step Closer" or "Crawling" more. Not a bad song, just not sure why it's the mega-popular one over the others
-Big heavy intro in "A Place for My Head"
-Basically all solid tracks. Keeps great energy throughout without getting boring. Lots of fun riffs and vocal melodies. Solid album
Leonard Cohen
3/5
-Oh God, I have not enjoyed Leonard Cohen's albums in the past ("Songs from Leonard Cohen" and "Songs From A Room" (both got 2 stars)) Wikipedia says that this has some of his biggest songs, so I'm hoping for the best
-Good start. "First We Take Manhattan" has a cool, creepy vibe with the electronic beat going and the low voice singing. Actually reminds me of David Bowie's "Earthling" album, which I really enjoy. The song creates a cool scene in my head
-I don't really like how much the backbeat slowed down for "Ain't No Cure For Love" and "Everybody Knows," but the low voice singing is still nice
-The low singing is really helping this album. The drop on the word "man" in "I'm Your Man" is cool
-Woah, "Jazz Police" has a crazy driving synth riff. That was pretty cool. It kind of does towards the end?
-"First We Take Manhattan" and "Jazz Police" were definitely the standout track with their faster, more interesting instrumental. The rest of the instrumentals were slower and more plain. The best part about the other tracks was his low singing which is always fun. Congrats Leonard Cohen, you got your first 3 star album. A weak 3, but a 3 nonetheless. It was generally tolerable, with two nice tracks.
A Tribe Called Quest
3/5
-Generally nicer rap than most of the early 90's rap I've gotten before. Much better and interesting flow
-However, still not the most interesting stuff. The best stuff came from Busta Rhymes's guest verse on the last track.
-Nithing really draws me to listen to this album again
Slipknot
4/5
-"Psychosocial" is definitely a strong track, a good mix of the blast-beat style metal and more conventional metal sections
-"Dead Memories" and "Vendetta" are both very nice and heavy without being goop. Having it not be entirely blast-beat-y full boar actually comes across as heavier for me because it is clearer to me
-The big drum fill to guitar solo in "All Hope Is Gone" is pretty sweet. Probably my favorite musical moment in the album. Sadly the rest of the song is kind of goopy
-Luckily most of the album has a good balance of not turning into goop. Just the first two tracks were goopy for me
-Not my main metal genre, but pretty much all the songs has a fun riff or vocal melody or something to grab into to make the song interesting
-goop
The United States Of America
3/5
-"Hard Coming Love" has a pretty cool bass/synth/drum intro
Great kick in during "Stranded In Time"
-Overall okay experimental rock. Lots of it was only kind of interesting
Simon & Garfunkel
3/5
-Some kinda cool and spooky vocal effects and harmonies in "Patterns." Also the backing drums are cool
-I like the upbeat pace of "The Big Bright Green Pleasure Machine." The drums are also kind of shredding
-Woah the synth kinda go crazy in "A Simple Desultory Philippic." Also lots of pop culture references that I at least kinda get. Also Bob Dylan parody thrown in there
-I like how everything is thumping at the same time in "A Poem on the Underground Wall"
-"7 O'Clock News / Silent Night" is pretty spooky combo of, well, the news and "Silent Night"
-Nice, with some interesting points, but other than "A Simple Desultory Philippic" there is nothing that makes me want to listen to any part of the album again
Dr. Dre
2/5
-This album was sold as an NFT. L.
-Was able to find a live version of "Nuthin' But a 'G' Thang" and it was fine
-If you don't exist on Spotify, you don't exist, also NFT L
The Jam
4/5
-"To Be Someone (Didn't We Have a Nice Time)" has a nice strong, catchy chorus that was giving me Cheap Trick vibes
-They like writing songs with people's names, like "Mr. Clean," "David Watts," and "Billy Hunt"
-"Billy Hunt" is quite catchy, probably because they say "Billy Hunt" about 1000 times. Also the end jame with the drums going is fun
-Bass-groovy bridge in "It's Too Bad" is fun
-"'A' Bomb in Wardour Street" has some nice distorted guitar and is a nice jam
-"Down In A Tube Station At Midnight" is giving me punk vibes and it also has some sweet bass riffs backed up by flying high hats
-Overall very nice rock album. A bunch of short, strong tracks
Steve Earle
3/5
-Ok enough country rock
-Not actively unpleasant
-That's about all I got
Jane Weaver
2/5
-Aggressively plain pop-electronic-ish music
-Literally like nothing notable happened
-Woukd usually get a 3 but it was aggressively boring and I did not even want to continue to the next song
The Who
5/5
-"Baba O'Riley" opens up the album unimaginably strong with the now iconic, but also highly detailed and interesting synthesizer-y riff, which then becomes the triumphant bum-bum-bum's. Dalteey's vocals are ripping and every instrument is just perfectly melding together into simple but highly intricate rhythms. The finale of the iconic "Teenage Wasteland" lines, then a guitar solo that transitions into a violin solo sounds crazy but the song is incredible. Whatever I'll stop explaining it is a famously a very good song
-"Bargain" is a banger track that strikes a great balance between being ballad-y and being a rocking track. The sections sung by Roger are super energetic and feel like a determined protagonist, and the Townshend verses sound somber and hopeful, basically like saying any price would be a bargain to get you
-"Love Ain't For Keeping" is a solid track but if I'm being honest it doesn't blow my nuts off. The rest of the album is incredibly strong competition so not standing out on the album is barely a negative quality a song can have
-"My Wife" is possibly the quintessential Entwistle track. Very funny exaggerated version of a fight with your wife. It's also totally catchy, Entwistle gives a great vocal performance (especially on live versions) and the drumming stands out a bunch on this one. The horn section is also sweet and a little out of left field but fits perfectly
-"The Song Is Over" is not like my totally favorite track on the album but it is a great example of building a song from small and kind of sad up into a powerful song. Actually makes the slow, calm parts worthwhile. Also Keith's drumming is totally unique, as usual. The Roger sections really sound like they could fit onto a track from "Who Are You"
-In my opinion, the drums heavily carry "Going Mobile" Keith is constantly doing drum fills in a way that fits perfectly with the song. The bridge's combo drumming/guitar solo/chorus and then the drive into the conclusion is great
-"Behind Blue Eyes" is an incredible build. It starts super sad an somber, and although the instrumental stays relatively the same, Roger's voice builds slowly from sadness to anger, and then the instruments abruptly catch up into a total jam. Truly incredible song
-"Won't Get Fooled Again" is another track where I'm going to try and explain what makes it so good but probably just be confusing
-"Won't Get Fooled Again" opens with another iconic synth-y line and goes right into a ripping song of victory. Every instrument's part is incredible. Every instrument is combining to make one entire rhythm, and each one has its own complex, independent part. The song builds up into one of the most iconic moments in rock and roll. The synth chugging along, then Keith's insane drum fills, and then Roger just belts out the most famous, the most powerful, and most iconic scream in all of rock, and possibly of music history. Then scene of them performing it live, with Roger in the laser lights, then Pete's big knee slide is possibly the greatest single moment in rock history.
-An incredible album with some absolute killer tracks. Some of the bonus tracks, like "Water," and "I Don't Even Know Myself" are great as well. But "Baba O'Rikey" and "Won't Get Fooled Again" are some of the top songs all time. "Bargain" and "Behind Blue Eyes" are incredible as well
Roxy Music
4/5
-Re-Make/Re-Model" is a great tune and the trade-off solos across a bunch of instruments is fun
-"Would You Believe" starts off kinda boring but then kicks in and becomes a great tune. I like the old school distorted guitar
-Rest of the songs were pretty dang plain. A very weak 4
Queen Latifah
3/5
-Choruses in "Wrath of My Madness" and "The Pros" are catchy
-It's like, fine...
Siouxsie And The Banshees
3/5
-Just not a very interesting post-punk album. I feel like it sounds exactly like another band as well. Nothing really stood out through the album. Maybe a strong 3, which is pretty rough cuz most albums in this genre would easily get a 4
Gary Numan
2/5
-In the bass synth in "Airplane" I thought I was hearing "We'd like to take you home with us" repeated like in "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band"
-Not much stood out on this one. I think I might start downgrading these to 2's
Tina Turner
3/5
-The arpeggio (?) into cool synth riff in "I Can't Stand the Rain" is pretty cool
-"Private Dancer" is definitely gonna be stuck in my head
-"Steel Claw" is a total jam. Fast moving instrumental and intense vocals. It's competing for my favorite track on the album
-Cool cover of "Help!" by The Beatles
-Very cool cover of "1984" by David Bowie. I was not familiar with this track before but I really like Turner's cover. High energy, lots of great vocal lines
Les Rythmes Digitales
2/5
-"Jacques Your Body Makes Me Sweat" has cool bass to drive the song along
-"Music makes you lose control" and "Hey you what's that sound?" have lines front he hooks I've actually heard before
-"Soft Machine" mentions "Lucifer rising," which was a bit of a surprise
-Other than those small notes, generally I found the music straightforward and repetitive. I can see how some of them would make good songs to dance to, but they weren't interesting to listen to
Iron Butterfly
4/5
-Side A was pretty good, but not the most thrilling or innovative rock I've ever heard. All quick pleasant tracks that sound like relatively standard psychedelic rock tracks with a single tick more intensity. Not bad by any means, but also not as intense as side B would have led me to expect
-Side B: aka just the one song: "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida." A classic rock tune with a killer riff. Overall the jam is great, I like the individual solos. At one point the Jan really slows down and that part was weak, but the whole intro and all the singing parts are killer and absolutely classic pieces of rock music.
Crowded House
3/5
-"Chocolate Cake" is a great track. Super catchy, cool instrumentation. Cool bass in the bridge area
-"Tall Trees" is another great tune. Drums push the upbeat tone of the track
-"Italian Plastic" is a fun psychedelic-y track, and the end but is cool with the switch up.
-rest of the album is pretty bland
Everything But The Girl
2/5
-Every song is just computer beat + whisper singing and it's not bad, it is just boring. Just 50 minutes of the same track it feels like, and the track isn't very compelling
-"Flipside" and "Big Deal" were the most interesting, cuz they had like a "beat drop"
-This sort of non-offensive but boring album gets 2 stars now
The Byrds
4/5
-Generally plain psychedelic rock. Nothing mind blowing.
-"Captain Soul" is instrumental and they seemed to up the instruments for that
-"2-4-2 Fox Troy (Lear Jet Song)" is pretty cool, lots going on in that one. There's the instruments in the left ear, pilot radio chatter/airline sounds in the right, and the vocals in the middle. That's pretty cool.
-Overall just barely a 4
Beastie Boys
2/5
-"Tough Guy" is definitely punk influenced
-"Bobo On The Corner" was cool cuz it was instrumental
-The instrumental on "Sabotage" was super heavy
Johnny Cash
4/5
-"Blue Suede Shoes" is a jam as usual, and the guitar tone is pretty sweet
-"Wreck of the Old 97" is fun a fun upbeat tune
-"Boy Named Sue" is a cool story
-The "Folsom Prison Blues" medley is fun and the drummer goes nuts on the drums
-Lots of classic Johnny Cash-type tracks, including most of his hits. Great guitar tone on lots of the album. The drummer occasionally goes crazy in a way I did not expect. Some of the tracks are a bit slower but overall very fun
Beach House
2/5
-The guitar riff and drum fill in "Better Times" is fun
-The orchestral crashes at the end of "10 Mile Stereo" are cool
-Those were really the only interesting points in the album. Just not very interesting to me
Simon & Garfunkel
3/5
-The end of "Bridge Over Troubled Water" is cool with like the orchestral swells but like they are all faded which is weird to me. I feel like I would have preferred it coming to a more normal crescendo but I'm probably stupid
-Nice drum intro in "Cecilia"
-I like the explodey drums in "The Boxer"
-"Baby Driver" has some catchiness
-Just barely edges up to 3 stars
Janelle Monáe
4/5
-Awesome driving bass riff in "Dance or Die"
-Respectable catchiness in "Faster" and "Tightrope"
-"Tightrope" also has a sweet groovy bass and Big Boi has some cool flows
-I really like the punk-ness and intense, screamy vocals in "Come Alive (War of the Roses)"
-"Mushrooms and Roses" has a cool, spaced-out type vibe and the guitar jam at the end is solid
-"Make the Bus" has cool David Bowie and Prince influences
-Overall some really cool and strong stuff. A few calmer tracks that were weaker in my opinion, but a really strong showing for a pop-ish album
Adele
3/5
-I like "Hello," "Send My Love (To Your New Lover)," "When We We're Young, and "Water Under the Bridge" since I heard them enough on the radio
-I like the drums and the harmonies in "I Miss You"
-The harmonies and swells into the main chorus in "River Lea" are great
-My familiarity with it maybe held boostit, but it's right on the border of strong 3 and weak 4
Röyksopp
3/5
-"Poor Leo" is kinda catchy
-"Röyksoop's Night Out" is cool
-Just barely interesting enough to get a 3. But overall kind of repetitive electonic music
Bill Evans Trio
3/5
-I'm still not smart enough to analyze jazz
-I found these to be indistinguishable by memory from the Miles Davis albums that I've had ("The Birth Of The Cool" and "Kind Of Blue")
-Idk 3 stars I guess cuz that's what the other jazz ones got
Orange Juice
3/5
-A nice, kind of fun punk-ish album
-I like some of the more fun instrument choices throughout, especially in "I Can't Help Myself"
-Definitely straddling the line between 3 and 4 stars, but nothing really stood out as crazy good and really deserving of a relisten, but overall still fun.
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
4/5
A perfectly okay blues rock album. Not particularly crazy. "Electricity" stood out for whatever reason. Riding very close to the line between 3 and 4
Lana Del Rey
2/5
-"White Dress," "Chemtrails Over The Country Club," and "Tulsa Jesus Freak" all sound like the bridge, intro, or outro to a song, but for the whole time. Basically I felt like the song needed to transition to something better/different the entire time. Not a good start to the album and especially not a good sign since that was 3/4 of the singles for the album.
-"Let Me Love You Like A Woman" and "Wild At Heart" were a bit better with some more harmonies on the singing and more interesting music pieces
-Yo "Dance Till We Die" suddenly turns into a blues-y rock-ish song for a second. That part was the best part of the album so far
-Yeah overall very slow and generally same-y album. Didn't even have the desire to re-listen to see if I missed anything because I didn't see it being enjoyable
Talk Talk
3/5
I listened through twice but it was just a very plain rock album from what I could tell. Some songs were especially slow. Debated between 2 and 3, but I'm just giving it a 3 because I don't want to have to listen through again to see where the moderately interesting parts are to justify 3 stars.
The La's
4/5
-The starting riff from "I Can't Sleep" totally sounds like an old school riff from The Who. Also just a solid blend of like 60's rock and a bit of punk. Has some cool bass licks that pop out on occasion
-Cool main riff in "Liberty Ship"
-"Feelin'" and "Way Out" are fun little tunes
-"Looking Glass" goes pretty crazy at the end there
-Pretty fun album. I'll give it the benefit of the doubt and give it a 4. Definitely some fun stuff in there
The Jam
3/5
-Great opening bass riff on the opening track, "Pretty Green"
-"But I'm Different Now" flies in with a sweet guitar riff and then super speedy hi-hats and is a fun, fast paced song
-I really like the instrumental on "Start!," but the vocals are a little weak in my opinion
-The middle really lulls, they just seem a lot weaker of tunes
-"Boy About Town" picks back up with a catchy chorus, big drum beat, and cool horn section
-"Scrape Away" is cool with the builds and echoing, and the hi-hat kick drum beat towards the end
-The above named tracks are fun jams, but the rest were just so plain. Not bad, just uninteresting and not catchy. Had some serious potential but didn't deliver
Roxy Music
3/5
-"In Every Dream Home A Heartache" starts with a creepy vibe and then suddenly becomes a hard rock jam
-Other songs are perfectly plain rock songs, not much notable
Orbital
2/5
-It's just like background music for an hour. It isn't unpleasant but it isn't interesting
Echo And The Bunnymen
3/5
-"Thorn of Crowns" is a great series of buildups to a crescendo
-The other songs were just okay
-A very plain pink album, honestly bordering on 2
Beck
2/5
-"Sunday Sun" gets heavy at the end, that was nice
-Other wise a very boring album that I just wanted to turn off. It was just in the same kinda sad mood the whole time
Aerosmith
5/5
-"Young Lust" is homonymous with "Young Lust" by Pink Floyd. Also is is a super catchy, upbeat song to kick off the album
-Intro to "F.I.N.E." almost sounds like heavy metal
-I appreciate the dumb pun of "Going Down/Love In An Elevator
-"My Girl" is another high-intensity track
-The intro to "Don't Get Mad, Get Even" is a great thumping rhythm
-Low voice jam at the end of "Hoodoo/Voodoo Medicine Man" is very cool
-A lot of songs with slashes in the titles
-Great album with solid, catchy tracks, only two songs I didn't like super enjoy ("Water Song/Jamie's Got A Gun" and "What It Takes"). Probably a lower 5 but it is certainly way stronger than lots of 4's so I will give it the 5 stars
Mercury Rev
2/5
-First half of the album is megaboring
-Album picks up in the second half. "Hudson Line," and "Funny Bird" were good.
-"Funny Bird" was probably the best, it actually got heavy
-"Delta Sun Bottleneck Stomp" has a good thumping groove, but the back half of the song is just random noise nonsense
-Honestly there are like 6 minutes of quality music on this album, it was bordering on a 3 but so much is boring crap so it gets a 2
Roxy Music
4/5
-Crazy rhythm section to open up "The Thrill Of It All"
-"Out of the Blue" has some cool, bass riffs and hi-hat grooves. Also the shrieky guitar is cool
-"Bitter Sweet" has a both a Halloween-y camp feel and a more spooky, Alice Cooper-like style
-"Casanova" has an almost funk-like groove going on
-A solid album with a bunch of solid tracks. I should do more listening
Sister Sledge
3/5
-A perfectly fine soul/R&B album. Some nice bass lines throughout
-It has the "We Are Family" song
50 Cent
2/5
-Not really a big fan of gangster rap
-I like Eminem's verses on "Patiently Waiting" and "Don't Push Me," particularly on "Patiently Waiting"
-The lines "In the Bible, it says what goes around, comes around/'Hommo' shot me, three weeks later he got shot down/Now it's clear that I'm here for a real reason/‘Cause he got hit like I got hit, but he ain't fuckin' breathin'" in "Many Men (Wish Death)" is absolutely savage
-I've heard "In Da Club" and "P.I.M.P." before and they are quite catchy
-Idk it is a fun vibe I guess but I just don't find this rap that interesting
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
4/5
-Very Emerson, Lake & Palmer-y type jams
-All quite fun, although "The Sage" was a bit of a dip
-Not really as strong as "Brain Salad Surgery." Had a harder time following the musical motifs and lyrics were pretty sparse
-Still overall solid rock and keyboard jamming
Joan Armatrading
3/5
-"Water With The Wine" has like a funky groove and solid drums going on
-A couple of okay tunes, nothing mind-blowing. Probably riding between a 2 and a 3
Jimi Hendrix
4/5
-I love the alternation between simple, driving drum beat and lyrics and the full scale jams on "Spanish Castle Magic"
-Drums and Bass be going kinda crazy on "Wait Until Tomorrow"
-"Little Wing" isn't that crazy to me, but I know it is quite highly praised. Not bad, just not a particularly standout track
-"If 6 Was 9" has a cool groove going to it and then goes to a wonky psychedelic jam
-"You Got Me Floatin'" is a solid, catchy tune with a sweet jam to finish it off
-"She's So Fine" is like a weird mix of an old Beatles tune a psychedelic rock
-All the tracks are good, but many of them lack some sort of oomph to make them strong Jimi Hendrix tracks. Not too much really sticks in my head as particularly crazy. Again, it is all very good, but it isn't up to the level of other Hendrix stuff I have heard. Straddling the border between 4 and 5
Dire Straits
4/5
-"Down to the Waterline" is a catchy, spooky tune
-"Six Blade Knife" also has a bit of spookiness to it
-"In The Gallery" almost has a funky vibe to it
-"Sultans of Swing" is obviously the big hit from this album. It's good, but certainly not my favorite Dire Straits song, of which I only like a few anyway
-The album is some very plain rock. Not my favorite rock genre, but perfectly fine. I think it is just barely holding onto 4 stars
The White Stripes
4/5
-Big fat guitar chugging along in "Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground"
-"Hotel Yorba" is a very upbeat fun tune. Love the lyrical rhythm with the bug guitar and cymbals in the chorus
-Very gritty version of "Fell In Love With a Girl"
-"I Think I Smell a Rat" is a short, quick catchy tune with some cool distorted guitar
-Lots of cool guitar riffs throughout the album
-Cool dirty sound to the album
Fishbone
4/5
-"Ma and Pa" is a nice upbeat song
-Cool horns on "Question of Life"
-"Pouring Rain" is a vibey slower jam that has some nice start-stop moments. The horns and drums help keep it interesting
-"Deep Inside" is a quick blast of guitar rhythms and drumming fun
-Big old funky bass groove in "Bonin' In the Boneyard"
-Definitely a fun funk rock album. It had huge potential to be a 5 star album with just a few tweaks. Either way, it's a super strong album and definitely some enjoyable funk
Beatles
5/5
-"Come Together is just a killer song with an iconic drumbeat. Idk the interaction between the drums and bass makes a dope beat. The lyrics are totally nonsensical as far as I know but they are still dope.
-"Maxwell's Silver Hammer" is an absolute banger I don't care how goofy it is
-The jump in intensity in "Oh Darling!" is dope. Also the yelling bits are mega intense and very fun to sing along to
-OI OI GOOD JOB RINGO "Octopus's Garden" IS A RIGHT JOLLY CHUNE, VERY SPLENDID AND ABSOLUTELY SILLY SCENARIO (octopuses don't have gardens, so it is very silly)
-"I Want You (She's So Heavy)" is a super heavy tune with a great breakdown. I love the shredding keyboards
-The drum, bass,and cool voice after the kick in in "You Never Give Me Your Money" is cool. The guitar like 2/3 of the way in has cool licks as well
-"Mean Mr Mustard" and "Polythene Pam" are totally bangers. Both a quick, right little songs with lots going on that just get stuck in your head
-"The End" is just an absolute banger with such a good drum solo from Ringo (as much as I hate to admit it) and some sweet guitar shredding.
-"The End" is really an incredible way to end their recording career and the final line being "And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make" is really beau-OH SHIT out of nowhere here's "Her Majesty" to screw that whole idea up
/sidenote
-The medley isn't quite the smooth medley that everyone claims. It has some great song transitions, but also has some starts and stops. I'd argue it's more like this: (slashes denote 2 different songs, arrow means they flow together)
-You Never Give Me Your Money/Sun King>Mean Mr Mustard>Polythene Pam>She Came In Through The Bathroom Window>Golden Slumbers>Carry That Weight>The End/Her Majesty
/end sidenote
-For me, this album's songs are in 4 tiers:
1) Godly songs: "Come Together," "Maxwell's Silver Hammer," "Octopus's Garden," "I Want You (She's So Heavy)," "Mean Mr Mustard," Polythene Pam," and "The End"
2) Good Songs: "Oh! Darling!," "You Never Give Me Your Money," "She Came In Through The Bathroom Window," "Golden Slumbers," "Carry That Weight," and "Her Majesty"
3) Fine songs: "Here Comes The Sun" and "Sun King"
4) Songs I don't really care for and I am aware I will be crucified for: "Something" and "Because"
-All in all, the album got bangers and good tunes and flows and they really do be crossing the street on the cover
Creedence Clearwater Revival
4/5
-"Ramble Ramble" kicks off the album with a fun riff, catchy song, and a cool jam
-"Before You Accuse Me" sounds like a 50s Chuck Berry track with the big fuzzy guitar riffs
-"Travelin' Band" like a killer old school rock sock. The singing is high energy, the instrumental is great, and the horns are a great addition!
-"Ooby Dooby" is just a solid tune
-Ah, "Up Around The Bend" is the popular track from this album. Definitely heard it before, and it is certainly catchy
-"I Heard It Through The Grapevine" is certainly a catchy tune. I particularly like the instrumental breaks, they have such a good groove to them
-Certainly a fun album, riding along the edge of a 4 and a 5. Nothing really kicks up the excitement enough for me to give it a 5, but a solid album nonetheless
Pretenders
3/5
-"Mystery Aceivement" had a catchy driving guitar/bass/drum riff going on
-Idk the rest of the album was just not super interesting, nothing really drew my attention
Neil Young
2/5
Not on Spotify L
Sly & The Family Stone
4/5
-"Stand!" starts calm but then kicks up into a cool soul jam
-"Don't Call Me Nigger, Whitey" and "I Want to Take You Higher" both have sweet soul-y jams
-The jams and yells in "Sing a Simple Song" are great
-The organ on "Somebody's Watching You" is gnarly. The lyrics/other parts of the song are a little lackluster
-Cool jams and what I believe is a voice box on "Sex Machine" although the jams aren't as good as some of the shorter ones on other songs
-Great album with some great tunes. Rides the edge between 4 and 5 stars, but it doesn't quite have anything amazing to push it into the 5 star category
Ghostface Killah
3/5
-The chorus of "Back Like That" is a catchy kind of R&B thing
-Shoutout to "Kilo" for spreading awareness of the metric system. As they say "A kilo is 1000 grams / It's easy to remember"
-The guitar on "The Champ" is sweet
-"Three Brick" is about bricks (epic) and it's pretty cool, especially Biggie's verse
-Overall the album didn't blow my mind but it was nice enough
Bob Marley & The Wailers
3/5
-It's a Bob Marley album...it sounds like Bob Marley
-Yo "The Heathen" starts with a cool riff that would have made a totally spooky song but they kind of just abandon it
-I've definitely heard "Three Little Birds" before. That one's like super famous
-I've maybe heard "One Love / People Get Ready" before
-It uhhhhhhhhh it sounds like reggae
A Tribe Called Quest
2/5
-Its just that really early rap flow for the whole album. Nothing crazy exciting to latch onto.
-Some of the beats are fun but they aren't enough to really make it worth it with the relatively plain flow.
-Not UNpleasant but there just isn't that much that I find interesting
2/5
Not on Spotify, big L because it sounded cool
Buffalo Springfield
3/5
-The jam with the keyboards in "Rock & Roll Woman" is cool
-Honestly, a phenomenally boring rock album. Just not very interesting
Carole King
2/5
-"I Feel the Earth Move" was an awesome opening track. It's upbeat, catchy, and the keyboards are cool throughout. The mini jam is pretty dope as well. Too bad it set far too high expectations for the album and the rest was kind of dissapointing
-There was a big pause in "Will You Love Me Tomorrow?" where I totally thought there was going to be a drum fill and there wasn't any it made me sad
-Lack of interesting stuff happening, just wanted to listen to something else
The Temptations
3/5
-"Cloud Nine" is a great, catchy tune. Great drums, cool keyboard, and the low voice parts are fun as well
-"Running Child, Running Wild" is a cool jam that I like for the same reasons as "Cloud Nine," but it is a 10 minute jam with lots of keyboard, drum, and bass jamming. The kid crying about "I want my mama" is kind of sus tho
-Rest of the tracks didn't stand out too strong
Metallica
5/5
-I love any rock/metal+orchestra
-Songs from Metallica I knew where it was cool to have the orchestra added: "The Call Of Ktulu," "Master Of Puppets," "Fuel," "Nothing Else Matters," For Whom The Bell Tolls," "Wherever I May Roam," "Sad But True," "One," Enter Sandman," and "Battery"
-I wish they had mic'd the audience a bit better as the audience sings many lines from the songs. Small critique.
-New Metallica songs I have been turned on to via this album: ""The Thing That Should Not Be," "The Memory Remains," "Devil's Dance," "Bleeding ME," "Human," and "The Outlaw Torn"
-Cool chorus in "Devil's Dance"
-"Human" really stood out to me on first listen
-Overall a great assemblage of familiar and unfamiliar Metallica with cool orchestra to back it up!
Jethro Tull
5/5
-"Aqualung" is just an absolute jam with killer riff. The lyrics are so descriptive as well. Just an awesome tune
-Hell yeah it is flute time in "Cross-Eyed Mary." Another track with a sweet riff. So many instruments absolutely shredding on this one. The bridge/end but is a great mini-shred of all the instruments
-"Mother Goose" has the repeating Renaissance-ish theme thing
-"Up To Me" has another great riff motif, this time with flute in it!
-"My God" has some serious flute jamming going on
-"Hymn 43" is another awesome track. Drums are going crazy through the whole thing basically. The scratchy guitar riff that repeats with different mini-solos over it is killer as well
-"Locomotive Breath" is another totally legendary tune. Absolutely iconic riff
-I had not really been appreciating the top quality riffs out of Jethro Tull before this
-"Wind Up" has a great build up to intensity, and some very poignant lyrics
-Just a killer album of solid rock tunes, with lots of flute thrown in as bonus!
Elton John
5/5
-Wow, an actual good slow build in "Love Lies Bleeding / Funeral For A Friend." Like some chill bits to start and then the synth came in and then a bit of a jam and then it goes into a sweet Elton John tune. Nice.
-The "Love Lies Bleeding" section is catchy and has great instrumental with a sweet bass line
-"Bennie and the Jets" is a classic tune. The stuttering and the vocal changes are classic. It's also got pretty dang cool synth riffs at the end. Totally fun classic track
-"This Song Has No Title" and "Grey Seal" are both catchy, fun tunes
-"The Ballad of Danny Bailey (1909-1934)" builds to a very intense level, especially for being a piano-centric song
-"Dirty Little Girl" is crazy heavy. I can't even describe how. Other than the sick bass slides that happen a few times
-"All The Girls Love Alice" is also heavy. It's got a crazy instrumental with a great riff and it kind of goes crazy at the end
-"Your Sister Can't Twist (But She Can Rock 'n Roll)" is a great fast-paced track
-STOP WRITING SONGS ABOUT 16 YEAR OLDS, THAT'S 2 IN A ROW, ELTON ("All The Girls Live Alice" and "Your Sister Can't Twist (But She Can Rock 'n Roll)"
-"Saturday Night's Alright (For Fighting)" is an absolutely classic and absolutely banger song. To me, it is an iconic representation of the 50's and greasers and it reminds me of the book "The Outsiders." Everything about this song is classic, the riff is sick (and I totally sing the lyrics into the riff like "Saturday, Saturday, Saturday...etc"). Definitely was my favorite song before. It has a little competition, but I think it is still my favorite.
-An album that really balances the soft rock and absolutely wailing on the piano/synth/jamming. I really enjoyed it, and more than I expected. On top of that, it has 3 classic songs in "Candle In The Wind," "Bennie And The Jets," and "Saturday Night's Alright (For Fighting)." However, the other tracks totally hold up as solid as well, and the only song that I actually didn't care too much for was "Candle In The Wind." Definitely adding this album to my rotation.
XTC
4/5
-"Ballet For A Rainy Day" sounded like an Electric Light Orchestra song
-"Grass," "That's Really Super, Supergirl," "1000 Umbrellas," "Season Cycle," and"Earn Enough For Us" are all catchy fun tracks.
-All the songs were good and cool to jam along to, but nothing stood out as impressive. I still enjoyed listening, and didn't mind doing a second listen, so that just bumps it up to 4 stars
Michael Jackson
4/5
-Yo this guy totally ripped off "Fat" by Weird Al
-The bass lines in "Bad" and "The Way You Make Me Feel" are gnarly
-The drums and drum fills in "Speed Demon" were sick
-"Just Good Friends" has a crazy instrumental. Like a sound-effect drum beat and crazy synth and stuff all over the place
-"Dirty Diana" is just a ripping rock piece. Probably my favorite track on the album
-"Smooth Criminal" is iconic with a sweet bass line
-Album does not live up to title
-Ahs the legendary songs of "Bad," "Man In The Mirror," "Dirty Diana," and "Smooth Criminal"
Tito Puente
3/5
-Some fun drum fills in "Mambo Gozon"
-Just some mambo music, not really that exciting for me. Just kept it interesting enough for a 3
Ananda Shankar
3/5
-The covers of "Jumping Jack Flash" and "Light My Fire" are cool
-The gets jamming pretty good on "Metamorphosis"
-Got pretty slow and sparse in lots of sections. I much preferred "The Sounds Of India" by Ravi Shankar
Britney Spears
3/5
-"...Baby One More Time" is a classic and very catchy, with a highly recognizable intro
-Rest of the album is perfectly cromulent pop music. I seemed to have a slight preference for the first half of the album or so. ("...Baby One More Time," "(You Drive Me) Crazy," "Sometimes," and "Soda Pop"). They seemed to be a bit more upbeat and have more stuff happening.
-Long story short, the big hit was good, rest is not my style, but perfectly cromulent music
Bee Gees
2/5
-"Don't Want To Live Inside Myself" and "Walking Back To Waterloo" kind of caught my attention
-Otherwise, this was a very boring album of ballads with nice singy harmonies but not enough to make it interesting
-The Bee Gees need to go back to Stayin Aliveing
The Smashing Pumpkins
4/5
-Woah "Jellybelly" comes out of nowhere being heavy after 2 calm tracks to start the album. Just a totally sludgy guitar throughout the whole thing. Then the end jam has the drums blazing and the guitar squealing and ripping
-"Zero" is quite the jam. I like the start-stop stuff
-Hey "Bullet With Butterfly Wings" has the famous "despite all my rage I am still just a rat in a cage"
-"An Ode To No One" is nice and heavy. It jumps between calmer and full blast guitar and drums. Very cool
-"Muzzle" is a solid track that I missed on my first listen
-"Tales Of A Scorched Earth" is crazy and the vocal effect/screaming is pretty intense
-"Thru The Eyes Of Ruby" is heavy and a long tune
-"X.Y.U." picks up into like the craziest punk song ever
-Important critiques: "Zero" is not the zeroth song on the album, "Thirty-Three" is not the thirty-third song on the album, and "1979" is not the one thousand, nine hundred seventy-ninth song on the album.
-Somes songs I loved, but some chunks seemed to get too mellow for me, and with the album being so long it is hard to get a good concept of the whole thing without spending a ton of time with it. I preferred the heavier tracks, particularly "Jellybelly," "Zero," "Bullet With Butterfly Wings," "An Ode To No One," "Tales Of A Scorched Earth," "Thru The Eyes Of Ruby," and "X.Y.U.."
-With how strong those heavy tracks are, I find it likely that I could come to like a lot of the tracks that are mellower or even just not at full-throttle intensity. I think I will give it the benefit of the doubt on the many mellower seeming songs and give it a 4, on the expectation that the album will grow on me in the future (ie "Zero" and "Tonight, Tonight"grew on me on a second pass)
Eminem
4/5
-Hey I get the reference of "I'm just playing ladies, you know I love you" to the "I'm just playing Diddy, you know I love you" from something from Kamikaze. Also the "I wrote it on a starter cap" from "Stan" and "Killshot." Definitely got those references in reverse
-"Stan" is a classic famous track and tells a great story of an obsessive fan and a good response from an artist
-"The Real Slim Shady" is a classic rap song. Lots of fun flows and rhymes. Also hilarious and fun. Love the lines "Will Smith don't gotta cuss in his raps to sell records /
Well, I do, so fuck him and fuck you too"
-"Kim" is crazy violent. Really surprised me
-Intro to "Criminal" is a funny bit on people taking all lyrics literally
-Lots of tracks I enjoyed. I really like the slightly goofier stuff instead of the violent stuff but all of it kept very good flows and great storytelling
Dire Straits
4/5
-Already liked "Money For Nothing" and "Walk of Life," but hadn't listened to the rest of the album.
-"Money for Nothing" just has an absolutely gnarly intro. The drum buildup to the classic guitar riff is absolutely killer
-"Walk Of Life" tells a fun little story about Johnny. The song is upbeat and fun with a solid backing synth riff. I particularly like the instruments cutting out to just drums and vocals on the line "Turning all the night time into the day"
-Cool horn intro on "Your Latest Trick." Rest of the song is certainly music.
-"The Man's Too Strong" is a cool song that strikes a good balance between slow and spare and more intense portions. I like the booming guitar and drum/synth something in the chorus section. It is generally a calmer song but it keeps a cool spooky vibe going.
-"One World" starts with some awesome slap bass. Then it continues with awesome guitar and drums. It borders on being a funk tune.
-I liked this album more than their self-titled album, which I had reviewed previously. I think this album had more quality tracks, but the less exciting songs were more boring. In particular, "Why Worry," "Ride Across the River," and "Brothers in Arms" were very long and drew almost no notice, despite their runtime being almost 20 minutes and almost 35% of the whole album. But, its got some great tracks as well. "Money for Nothing" is legendary, "Walk of Life" is fantastic, and "The Man's Too Strong" and "One World" are solid tracks that I intend to listen to more in the future.
Stevie Wonder
5/5
-An album that is outside of my usual preferred genre range but had some awesome tracks on it.
-"Too High" starts off the album with a nice, chunky bass line. Definitely a fun track.
-'Visions" is a little mellow for my tastes
-"Living For The City" is a catchy tune, and keeps your attention for the length of it (7 minutes and 22 seconds). the bridge/intermission is an interesting bit of social commentary. I also like the stressed-voice style of singing.
-"Golden Lady" is fun. The instruments really hold up the song, although the song will definitely be stuck in your head
-'Higher Ground" comes in with a full funk beat. It's so upbeat and I can't help but jam through the chorus
-"Jesus Children Of America" is just solid. Nothing stands out crazy. maybe its just the slick funky-ness and the backup singers.
-"All In Love Is Fair" is a little slow for my tastes, but is a strong show of quality singing. Not that any of the other tracks have lackluster signing
-"Don't You Worry 'Bout A Thing" is definitely one of the ones that was immediately stuck in my head, and had me jamming along and yelling right along with the chorus. The jump in energy between the slightly more mellow verses and the super-happy choruses is great
-"He's Misstra Know-It-All" is a solid track to end off the album, not really in my top songs from the album, but I don't mind it in the slightest. Another one that gets stuck in your head.
-An album full of great tracks. Almost all of them are earworms that will stick in your head. luckily if you listen to the whole album, there are so many that it cancels out a little bit. Just from memory, my top tracks would be "Higher Ground" and "Don't You Worry 'Bout A Thing." Glad I finally got to explore some Stevie Wonder. I think that this one breaks out of 4 stars and into 5 stars. It's outside of my usual musical sphere, but it had such a strong showing, with only 2 tracks that I wasn't too excited about.
The Flaming Lips
3/5
-"Flight Test" is a nice, very happy, pop-rocky song that really contrasts with the extra story-like elements in the beginning and end of the song. The main portion reminds of something that would be in like Lego Rock Band haha. Calm and very happy rock.
-Cool bass line in "One More Robot / Sympathy 3000-21." rest of the song is just okay
-"Are You a Hypnotist??" is very ethereal and Pink Floyd-y
-"Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots, Pt. 2" and "Approaching Pavonis Mons by Balloon (Utopia Planitia)" are both cool instrumental tracks. The former was a cool rock jam and the latter was cool with the horns and stuff
-This album seemed like a good idea but it was poorly executed. The "environmental" sounds in the opening track make it seem like there are going to be darker portions of the album but the cool dark moments never really return. Was quite dissapointed.
Wilco
3/5
-I do not understand "Misunderstood." The intro drum build is crazy and then it goes out to a very lame bit of slow song. Then it jumps back and forth between cool and boring.
-"Monday" is just a banging rock song out of nowhere
-"The Sunken Treasure" and "Kingpin" are cool
-Too much boring on a very long album for me
Sam Cooke
4/5
-All very catchy and nice 50s/early 60s style songs.
-No complaints, fun to listen to, not mind-blowing
Q-Tip
3/5
-Cool bass line in "ManWomanBoogie"
-Generally nice flows throughout the album, but it was also kind of same-y
-Didn't get me too jazzed up, but was fine. Just barely a 3, I'd say