Jun 12 2021
View Album
Sign 'O' The Times
Prince
Didn't enjoy this quite as much as I would have expected. I just did a run through all of Ween's albums, and there were some weird parallels to draw that I didn't expect (pitch shifted vocals, genre bending, and an overly playful feeling).
3
Jun 13 2021
View Album
This Is Hardcore
Pulp
Pretty dang enjoyable. I'm actually really surprised how short this feels despite the long run time. One of the better Brit albums from the 90's that I've heard.
4
Jun 22 2021
View Album
James Brown Live At The Apollo
James Brown
First time listening to a full James Brown album. Leaning a little more on the doo-wop era than I would have hoped. Not a bad thing, just not my choice of genre in the grand scheme of things. Still so much talent on display here.
3
Jun 23 2021
View Album
Rage Against The Machine
Rage Against The Machine
What can I even say? A hugely important album for the development of my musical taste.
5
Jun 24 2021
View Album
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
Enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would. A lot of these tracks sound like they would be a blast to learn on guitar. I also love that Petty looks like the softest member of Sodom on this album cover.
3
Jun 25 2021
View Album
Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea
PJ Harvey
Solid, but just not hitting me as much more than that on first listen. The only other album of hers that I've heard is Let England Shake, and that was more of an immediate impact. It's still clear that she's one helluva musician and songwriter.
3
Jun 26 2021
View Album
Sunshine Superman
Donovan
4
Jun 27 2021
View Album
American Pie
Don McLean
2
Jun 28 2021
View Album
Sheer Heart Attack
Queen
Fun listen. Queen never quite hits home perfectly with me, but you can't deny that this is a solid album with some really fun tracks.
3
Jun 29 2021
View Album
Mr. Tambourine Man
The Byrds
3
Jun 30 2021
View Album
Drunk
Thundercat
Not what I expected. I was familiar with Thundercat the virtuoso, but I didn't know about Thundercat the goofball. Fun stuff that I should have checked out earlier.
4
Jul 01 2021
View Album
Bad Company
Bad Company
Just very boilerplate hard rock. There are a couple tracks and moments that I enjoy, but the package as a whole is a big snooze.
2
Jul 02 2021
View Album
Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1
George Michael
Really taken aback by how much I enjoyed this. It's been a long time since I've been impressed solely by someone's vocally quality, but dang, Michael has such a nice timbre despite its cheesiness. Immediately went to Discogs to pick this one up.
4
Dec 17 2021
View Album
The Modern Lovers
The Modern Lovers
I feel like I understand better now what The Strokes are pulling from.
2
Dec 18 2021
View Album
Done By The Forces Of Nature
Jungle Brothers
It's been a long time since I've listened to rap in this vein. I really enjoyed this. So much going on and a lot of subtle, clever details. A fun listen.
4
Dec 19 2021
View Album
Oracular Spectacular
MGMT
Critical listening for my late high school years. Still a great album to boot.
4
Dec 20 2021
View Album
The Downward Spiral
Nine Inch Nails
4
Dec 21 2021
View Album
Tonight's The Night
Neil Young
4
Dec 22 2021
View Album
Purple Rain
Prince
3
Dec 25 2021
View Album
In Utero
Nirvana
3
Dec 26 2021
View Album
A Christmas Gift For You From Phil Spector
Various Artists
3
Dec 27 2021
View Album
Moondance
Van Morrison
3
Dec 28 2021
View Album
From Elvis In Memphis
Elvis Presley
3
Dec 29 2021
View Album
Songs From The Big Chair
Tears For Fears
4
Dec 30 2021
View Album
This Nation’s Saving Grace
The Fall
3
Dec 31 2021
View Album
Five Leaves Left
Nick Drake
4
Jan 01 2022
View Album
Jazz Samba
Stan Getz
Extremely relaxing. So funny that this was recorded in a church in an area of DC I used to frequent all the time. I see this is allegedly responsible for the bossa nova boom... a pretty cool nugget of trivia. Highly enjoyable stuff.
4
Jan 02 2022
View Album
Ragged Glory
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
4
Jan 03 2022
View Album
Vulgar Display Of Power
Pantera
I will always like it more than I want to. Good riffs, obnoxious people.
2
Jan 04 2022
View Album
The Joshua Tree
U2
The one U2 album that I really love. Brian Eno works his magic here to make them into the band they should be.
4
Jan 05 2022
View Album
Phrenology
The Roots
4
Jan 06 2022
View Album
Fifth Dimension
The Byrds
I love this. It's incredibly uneven, and feels as though there wasn't much consensus internally regarding direction. But that's the kind of album I love; a bit scattered, but intensely artistic throughout, with a real sense of building a new movement for pop music.
4
Jan 07 2022
View Album
Can't Buy A Thrill
Steely Dan
First time I've actually dove into some Steely... fuck it's good. It's painfully good because I always assumed this was some old man yacht rock that was soulless, sun bleached, and moronic. It's pretty much the opposite. The sunshine in this album is making fun of you in the dark hours.
4
Jan 08 2022
View Album
A Love Supreme
John Coltrane
Yeah, I don't know what to say. It's damn near perfect. One of those records that any perceived deficiency is probably due to my lack of context/knowledge.
5
Jan 09 2022
View Album
Headquarters
The Monkees
3
Jan 10 2022
View Album
Like Water For Chocolate
Common
3
Jan 11 2022
View Album
Endtroducing.....
DJ Shadow
4
Jan 12 2022
View Album
Ananda Shankar
Ananda Shankar
4
Jan 13 2022
View Album
Rust In Peace
Megadeth
One of the best metal albums ever made, and certainly twice as good as anything Metallica recorded.
5
Jan 14 2022
View Album
Straight Outta Compton
N.W.A.
My brother gave me this CD to listen to during a family road trip. Blew my fucking mind, and tasted like the sweetest of forbidden fruits. A classic.
-1 star just because the sexism is a bit grating in this day and age for my personal taste.
4
Jan 15 2022
View Album
Rubber Soul
Beatles
So many classics. So streamlined and focused. They deserve the accolades that are heaped on them. Top tier legends.
4
Jan 16 2022
View Album
A Northern Soul
The Verve
A lot better than I anticipated. The space rock touches really did a lot to increase my enjoyment.
4
Jan 17 2022
View Album
Channel Orange
Frank Ocean
4
Feb 04 2022
View Album
(What's The Story) Morning Glory
Oasis
2
Feb 05 2022
View Album
Ramones
Ramones
One note throughout, but if there were ever an album to forgive for it, it would be this one.
4
Feb 06 2022
View Album
1999
Prince
Something about this just doesn't click with me. It's probably a "me problem", honestly, but I can't pretend to have really enjoyed this much.
2
Feb 07 2022
View Album
Let's Get Killed
David Holmes
3
Feb 08 2022
View Album
1989
Taylor Swift
3
Feb 09 2022
View Album
I Should Coco
Supergrass
3
Aug 27 2022
View Album
Me Against The World
2Pac
3
Aug 28 2022
View Album
Life Thru A Lens
Robbie Williams
Feels so vapid and flat. Sure the production and performances are fine, but these songs are about nothing.
2
Aug 29 2022
View Album
Water From An Ancient Well
Abdullah Ibrahim
It's just a little too "cool" for me. I like jazz to be a bit more frenetic and energetic.
2
Aug 30 2022
View Album
Blue
Joni Mitchell
There's a cool, hopping jazz quality to this that I didn't expect. Joni's voice is immediately recognizable, but still pulls unexpected pivots and trills. Really enjoyed this, and it'll probably grow with time as well.
4
Aug 31 2022
View Album
Every Picture Tells A Story
Rod Stewart
3
Jan 12 2023
View Album
Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite
Maxwell
The dry, clear sound of the bass tone on this is awesome. It just strikes me as too repetitive and shallow to really enjoy with all of my attention. At the end of the day, I suppose it's for bangin', and it succeeds at getting out the way.
2
Jan 13 2023
View Album
Get Rich Or Die Tryin'
50 Cent
It's deft, clean, and polished, but that just runs counter to the whole mood it's trying to conjure. I want Danny Brown's style of musical polish and lyrical grime instead of this sanitized gangsta stuff.
2
Jan 14 2023
View Album
The Fat Of The Land
The Prodigy
It haunts me to this day. Any of these tracks make me think of 2000s racing games, late night MTV, and intrigue of druggy sub cultures.
4
Jan 15 2023
View Album
Sail Away
Randy Newman
Wow. So darkly satirical. I don't have anything original to say, only that the glowing positive reviews out there mirror how I feel about this.
4
Jan 16 2023
View Album
Tusk
Fleetwood Mac
Not much to object to. A lot of individual tracks are strong. All the performances are clean as well. It's just a little poppy with too much open air in a lot of the tracks.
3
Jan 17 2023
View Album
Liquid Swords
GZA
One of my favorite albums of all time.
5
Jan 18 2023
View Album
Dust
Screaming Trees
I wanted to like this a bit more than I did. I mean... it's ST so I'm bound to like it, but I think I'm a hard customer for this type of music since I've had such extended exposure to it growing up in Washington.
3
Jan 19 2023
View Album
Green Onions
Booker T. & The MG's
The definition of chill. It's not mind blowing by any means, but great music for when your hands are busy.
4
Jan 20 2023
View Album
Sweetheart Of The Rodeo
The Byrds
This sounds like the start of a lot of country western pop that I can't stand. Well played, just not interesting to me.
2
Jan 21 2023
View Album
Gorillaz
Gorillaz
This was the first parental advisory album I ever owned. My mom was slightly worried about it, but I was so innocent at the time I thought the intro to Left Hand Suzuki method was a soda being opened.
4
Jan 22 2023
View Album
Sea Change
Beck
5
Jan 23 2023
View Album
When I Was Born For The 7th Time
Cornershop
So strange yet so catchy and easy to listen to. It has an almost Ween like ability to blend and hop between genres. A super fun listen.
4
Jan 24 2023
View Album
The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn
Pink Floyd
Exploding with exploration. It's almost better when it's barely making sense. RIP Syd.
4
Jan 25 2023
View Album
Play
Moby
This has a huge nostalgia factor because it was drilled into me as a kid.
4
Jan 26 2023
View Album
Midnight Ride
Paul Revere & The Raiders
Really fun listen. The ways in which it's aged poorly are more endearing than distracting.
4
Jan 27 2023
View Album
Kind Of Blue
Miles Davis
There's something effortlessly cool and graceful to this that is hard to find elsewhere. The bass just stumbles and trips all over the place without ever losing grace.
4
Jul 18 2023
View Album
Diamond Life
Sade
Enjoyed this a lot more than I expected. She's got a lot of interesting textures in her voice, and the storytelling is both nostalgic and vivid.
3
Jul 19 2023
View Album
...Baby One More Time
Britney Spears
Such a massive album in terms of influence and wake for my generation. That being said, I just can't honestly say I enjoy it much. Things would get way more interesting later with tracks like "Toxic" which totally kick ass. This just feels a bit dated and even creepy in a certain light.
2
Jul 20 2023
View Album
Music Has The Right To Children
Boards of Canada
My heart jumped a bit when this came up for the day. It's a pure classic that I go back to again and again. One of the best in any sort of electronic genre.
5
Jul 21 2023
View Album
Merriweather Post Pavilion
Animal Collective
It's a polyphonic masterpiece. It kind of swims back and forth between Panda Bear's poppy, saccharine vibes and the dark psych tastes of other members. Truly an album that is more than the sum of its parts, and a modern classic in my mind. This had a huge impact on my taste when I listened to it during high school.
5
Jul 22 2023
View Album
The Cars
The Cars
Well, fuck me. I thought I would hate this album. Instead I came away "getting it" for the first. Yeah, deserves all the praise I would previously shake my head at. I don't think I ever listened to this with headphones before, which is probably a factor. The biggest factor is being born in '92 and having the radio and commercials absolutely abuse certain tracks on this album until they felt like inartistic bullshit. I hear all the New Wave now, and I like it quite a bit.
4
Jul 24 2023
View Album
The Stooges
The Stooges
Lots of seeds being planted here, and I have huge historical respect for this album. That being said, there's a lot of fat to trim off the true meat of this album.
3
Jul 25 2023
View Album
The Dark Side Of The Moon
Pink Floyd
It's hard to say anything novel about this album. I'll just say that it always hits harder than I expect, given all the hype. But ya know... it really is that unique, especially when you situated it within its historical context. It's a true classic. Even the art is some of the most important, influential in pop music history. I don't even know how to approach evaluating this "objectively". It changed the world dramatically before I was even born.
5
Jul 26 2023
View Album
Lam Toro
Baaba Maal
Very cool. I don't know WTF is up with the RYM score on this album.
4
Jul 27 2023
View Album
Rings Around The World
Super Furry Animals
A pleasant listen, but just feels a bit vapid despite being lushly produced.
2
Aug 01 2023
View Album
Disintegration
The Cure
As perfect of an album as I have ever heard. So consistent in tone and theme, but it still feels like a journey. And despite being so morose, it's a great sunny day album. A rare achievement.
5
Aug 02 2023
View Album
Here, My Dear
Marvin Gaye
This kind of smooth synth soul is something I didn't know I wanted. The funk playing at the edges helps out heaps as well. It's really thoughtful album lyrically. I'm not super familiar with Marvin Gaye, but that seems to be a through-line for his work. I'll have to catch up on his other work based on how quickly this one landed with me.
4