1001 Albums Summary

Intro- oooh cheeky, suggestive women moaning! A nice bit of 60's esque organ and promises of a Gasoline Dreams- blaring fuzzed out guitar riff, tight breakbeat, impassioned vocals, strong opening after foreboding intro I'm Cool (Interlude)- palate cleanser So Fresh, So Clean - Silky smooth slice of R&B. They sing the hook in octaves, with falsetto! Electric piano plays the hook through the whole song and there are lovely string swells. Bass drops in and out. It's very mid-tempo, could cruise along to it. Although at face value, lyrics about someone being fresh, clean and sexy aren't quite as visceral as preceding track. But who cares? It's dope. Ms Jackson- Here we go! We're in it now, boys! The track getting all the love and praise 20 years on. The one I'd heard. I think of Mrs Jackson from my high school who taught Maths and Economics and probably thought Stankonia was The drums are brilliant in this- there are great gated rolls that hit every now and again, and stop-start beat with the vocals every now and then. So far- loving it. This is on track to be at least 4* The instrumentation is very organic I love the tone of their voices Snappin & Trappin - this isn't doing as much for me. Features Big Boi and not Andre- does this mean I'm an Andre 3000 man? I cringe at the crude lyrics like the sheltered prude I am - you may be a big boi but do we really need to know about what girls do to your dick? Spaghetti Junction - The retro skipping/mixing sound effects- was this knowingly retro and ironic back in 2000 or was it still a done thing? I like the brass samples but not much else here. I'm concerned this is falling down Kim & Cookie - Don't know what they're trying to achieve with these interludes... I'll Call B4 I Cum - Blimey, I'm too old for this. But wait- wow! They're being respectful! They are saying "after you" and it's 2000. The music sounds like a CASIO keyboard. BOB - This is excellent. Listen to that thumping bass! It's actually a little overpowering... so boomy... but I love the little bass riff that comes in with the chorus Xplosion - Is that harpsichord?!?! Musically, this feels a bit more in line with BOB and Gasoline Dreams. Apocalyptic... doom... catchy. I like this direction more. And that brilliant bass tone from BOB is back! We Luv Deez Hoes - please tell me this is ironic. And I'm missing a joke. (30 seconds in) Nope. Sarcastic or not, it's bad and just a bit tedious. I don't even like the music very much. All the good three tracks before is undone. Andre isn't here again! I must prefer him. Humble Mumble - I like the phrasing in the chorus. The keyboards are giving a nice mellow bed. Some really great drums kick in around 1:40. With an amazing flow. Drinkin Again- Quite a funny interlude! I almost smiled. ? - This is annoying because I've always wanted to do this for an album. It sounds brilliant. There are lots of questions. And what could almost be a theremin in the background. The production is dense. Bewildering. And stops to pour a drink and play an arcade game. Then piano! And filtered drums! And a complete change for the outro. Red Velvet - Was that Kate Bush?! (I googled and it was) Other than that this was a really boring track Gangsta Sh*t - I'm getting bored now. A lot of this album feels quite disappointingly generic. The first few tracks set me up for a lot of genre mash-ups and experimentation which hasn't quite stuck it out. All big singles in first half hour, were all great. Toilet Tisha - Just isn't justifying its length now. Slum Beautiful - Nope. Stankonia - With all the powers of my critical faculties, I can offer the insightful and balanced assessment that... I was bored. It had overstayed its welcome. I'd have cut this way down. 3 Likes: Gasoline Dreams Ms Jackson BOB 3 Strikes: Deez Hoes Toilet Tisha Those interludes Fave Track: BOB Least Fave Track: Deez Hoes Will I Listen Again? Yes! I'd like to get more into this but I think it's unlikely to be a classic for me, despite the potential I heard at the start. I'll listen and hope the second half will open up. Still prefer it to lots of hip-hop I know.

3 Likes: 100%- that howling feedback throughout the song Theresa's Soundworld- VU vibes Shoot- Seductive Sugar Kane Chapel Hill- great catchy, upbeat 90s intro, lots of changes, amazing heavy middle section 3 Strikes: Wish Fulfilment Orange Rolls, Angel Spit JC Listen Again? Yes- I enjoyed parts of this a lot! It was uneven in places but a lot more enjoyable than Daydream Nation- tighter song structures, pop gems hidden underneath all the noise, reminded me of where Velvet Underground could have gone. Some spoken word-y sections lost me (JC, for example) but overall a solid listen. Just scrapes 4*.

There's an overwhelming preconception that Coldplay are musical beige... it doesn't help how overplayed a lot of the singles are as background music on lightweight UK TV shows to elicit any kind of emotion. Despite this there was a lot to like for me here (I hadn't heard Amsterdam, God Put A Smile on Your Face or Warning Sign and all three were highlights). The Scientist is undeniably moving in its simplicity, but there are only so many mid-tempo torch songs a listener can stand before they all start losing their impact and smudging into each other. Still, imagining hearing these songs for the first time, in context from a fledging young band, made me enjoy Coldplay more than I perhaps ever have.