View Album
Thu Sep 09 2021
Bone Machine
Tom Waits
Didn't love it. Too grating.
2
View Album
Fri Sep 10 2021
Since I Left You
The Avalanches
I had never listened to this album or any of the songs having never heard of the band. Generally, I don't listen to electronic music. It was an interesting mix of genres with an electronic background making it all flow together. Some of the ones with a more Motown sound were soothing to listen to in traffic, and I was genuinely surprised that I liked it.
4
View Album
Mon Sep 13 2021
Happy Trails
Quicksilver Messenger Service
Maybe it was subversive, edgy or outsider when it first came out but it sounds a lot like every jam band since. Reminded me of the Grateful Dead or Jefferson Airplane. I'm not sure why this would be considered important unless it were earlier than the Grateful Dead or Jefferson Airplane and influenced them.
2
View Album
Tue Sep 14 2021
You Want It Darker
Leonard Cohen
I can appreciate Leonard Cohen as a lyricist, but as a singer/musician, not so much. Reading his words, I am a fan. Listening to him perform them, I am not.
I just can't get into the talking over the background sounds, which always seem slightly religious. The mood is like being in a dimly lit cathedral where some creepy cult is going to jump out of the shadows. I think this was among his last albums, and perhaps he was trying to excise some demons because he knew his time was limited.
I know I should probably like Leonard Cohen, but I don't.
3
View Album
Wed Sep 15 2021
The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill
Lauryn Hill
This album brought a flood of teenage memories. I had this album on repeat as background music.
The lyrics are so, so personal. And that's probably why they are powerful. Hill doesn't hide anything and lays all of her emotions out for the listener. It's so different than what most girls are taught. She doesn't keep it inside.
I remember thinking how brave and crazy that was when I first listened to the album. She vocalizes her broken love in the way you always wish you could have retorted in the moment and still better than what you come up with hours later when you lay awake thinking of what you should have, could have said.
Hill's singing and rapping flow together so well. There is no "bad" song on the album.
"To Zion" is the love song every mother feels when she meets baby and realizes she has never loved anyone the way she loves that child. And it features Carlos Santana as an added bonus.
5
View Album
Thu Sep 16 2021
The Yes Album
Yes
This is surely an overgeneralization, but progressive rock is music for guys. I mean, have there ever been women at a Rush show who weren't dragged there by a boyfriend, husband or brother?
Anyway, this album by Yes. It doesn't sound as clean as something by Rush, Dream Theater or Roger Waters. (Confession: I've only heard the two former because of my husband, not by choice.) It has a tinny quality, but maybe that's from the era of the recording. It seems like the band is trying too hard to be both very technical, showing off with lots of solos, but tap into some of the more mainstream success of other contemporary British bands.
The first few songs, I thought to myself, "what is this?," but as the album progressed, I realized I'd heard many of the songs previously.
I can respect that some progressive rock is difficult to play due to its complexity. However, I don't like to listen to it. I don't want to have to listen to an album ten times to get used to listening to it.
2
View Album
Fri Sep 17 2021
OK Computer
Radiohead
I've always liked this album. It takes me back to high school; back when you'd still listen to an entire CD because you paid good money for it. Even now, I could have it on in the background and listen to it all without selecting just one track and moving on to something else.
I remember that at the time it came out, it sounded different than a lot of other stuff on the radio, but now I notice that a lot of bands have since tried to emulate it.
Twenty-plus years later, I think the album still stands up
5
View Album
Mon Sep 20 2021
Oedipus Schmoedipus
Barry Adamson
This album, in particular, reminds me of this group of LoDo nightclubs (not dance clubs but lounges), which opened in the early 2000s, done by this interior designer I was friends with. The designer would proudly invite some friends to attend the grand openings for VIP tables and comped bottle service. I would spend the requisite time there, covering my free yet overpriced vodka drink whilst wondering how much longer I had to listen to the bad music and some Chad in a jewel-toned button down telling me about his struggle to pass the real estate exam or his job in finance while telling me how much he liked the music.
This is not a cohesive album, more just a collection of tracks. And the transitions between them are non-existent. Each song is a jarring new sound. Add in the weird talking over the grating electronic sounds followed up by some jazz, this album is a hard no for me.
1
View Album
Tue Sep 21 2021
Third/Sister Lovers
Big Star
Some of this album sounded a lot like classic '70s rock - the Byrds, Bread. But other parts sounded like less instrumentally complex DeVotchKa or REM. While listening certain parts of songs reminded me both of bands that probably influenced Big Star and bands probably influenced by Big Star. I can understand why this was included despite not having heard of the band.
3
View Album
Wed Sep 22 2021
Berlin
Lou Reed
I'm partial to storytelling, so I like the concept of a rock opera. I also really like Lou Reed as a lyricist and storyteller, although some of his songs leave me wanting the rest of the story. This album provides that.
In my mind, I pictured the songs portrayed by puppets a la the rock opera that Jason Segel's character composes in "Forgetting Sarah Marshall." But maybe puppets playing Caroline and Jim would make the tale even more tragic.
Listening to the progression of characters through different songs does require a more concentrated effort. And "The Kids," with actual children crying and calling for their mother was really effective at selling the sad tale of Caroline. It also really grabbed the attention of my three year old.
5
View Album
Fri Sep 24 2021
Is This It
The Strokes
Reminds me of college and garden level bars in Boulder. Bars that got grandfathered in with smoking rooms when it became illegal to smoke inside in public. I liked it then and I like it now. I've listened to it a few times this week and I'm not tired of it. I feel like bands have tried to emulate the sound of the album since it was hit, and a few bands got a song or two, but not an entire album.
5
View Album
Mon Sep 27 2021
Exile On Main Street
The Rolling Stones
4
View Album
Tue Sep 28 2021
Celebrity Skin
Hole
This Hole album reminds me of my freshman college roommate. She really liked Courtney Love. I, however, have never been able to separate this artist from the work, and Love has always seemed like a garbage human.
3
View Album
Wed Sep 29 2021
Let It Bleed
The Rolling Stones
I don't have any disdain for The Rolling Stones, like some people, ahem. I will even venture to say that I like them. Will I spend hundreds of dollars to go to one of their shows? Probably not.
I think this album shows the breadth of their music - some songs are clearly rock, others are more jazz, some are acoustic and others a bit country/honky tonk.
Their impact to the music that came after them is far reaching. And yes, the whole druggie rockstar thing is played out now. Many will try to emulate their music and their lifestyle and few will be successful.
4
View Album
Thu Sep 30 2021
Take Me Apart
Kelela
Did they just randomly pick some albums from the 20-teens? Adding R&B to electronic music doesn't improve it.
1
View Album
Fri Oct 01 2021
The Gilded Palace Of Sin
The Flying Burrito Brothers
Several times while listening to the album, my subconscious thought I was listening to the radio and my arm reached to change the station.
I broke my rule of no research before a review, and from that I learned that the reason this album sounds a bit like lots of other artists is because at one point or another, anyone doing the country rock thing was either in The Flying Burrito Brothers or was in a band with someone who was in some iteration of The Flying Burrito Brothers.
I get that the band is/was important because they are an early example of a band marrying rock and country. But that was also problematic to me because I don't think they did a good job. It seemed too heavy handed, too twangy, too much piano. I particularly dislike the talking quality of the singing in "Hippie Boy" and all similar songs that followed by other artists. Either sing or be a poet, but fuck off with your in between. While I, gasp, like other bands who flirted with country and rock such as the Eagles, I don't necessarily enjoy the bands that influenced them.
And the album cover? They didn't hike out to this rural location dressed in gaudy suits, so what are they trying to convey?
1
View Album
Mon Oct 04 2021
Modern Life Is Rubbish
Blur
3
View Album
Tue Oct 05 2021
Private Dancer
Tina Turner
3
View Album
Wed Oct 06 2021
Vauxhall And I
Morrissey
I'm just going to put this out there - this is the first time I've listened to this or any album by Morrissey in its entirety. It came out in the early '90s when tween/teen me was preoccupied with grunge, which spoke to my soul. I'd heard some of his solo work but just a song here or there.
But I listened to it three times.
I can see why so many friends and acquaintances are/were big Morrissey fans. He taps into that melancholic, misunderstood energy that so many feel.
His voice is lovely and soothing, the music was easy to listen to.
4
View Album
Thu Oct 07 2021
Calenture
The Triffids
1
View Album
Tue Oct 12 2021
Apocalypse 91… The Enemy Strikes Black
Public Enemy
3
View Album
Wed Oct 13 2021
I Should Coco
Supergrass
Didn't hate it, didn't love it. Alright just reminded me of my junior high/swim team BFF and going to see Clueless at the movies back when you'd beg your parents to drop you off away from the front door so they couldn't embarrass you. Bonus point for that nostalgia.
3
View Album
Thu Oct 14 2021
Figure 8
Elliott Smith
2
View Album
Fri Oct 15 2021
You're Living All Over Me
Dinosaur Jr.
2
View Album
Thu Oct 21 2021
Cosmo's Factory
Creedence Clearwater Revival
4
View Album
Wed Oct 27 2021
Five Leaves Left
Nick Drake
2
View Album
Fri Oct 29 2021
Let Love Rule
Lenny Kravitz
1
View Album
Mon Nov 01 2021
Born In The U.S.A.
Bruce Springsteen
4
View Album
Wed Nov 03 2021
Phrenology
The Roots
4
View Album
Thu Nov 04 2021
American Beauty
Grateful Dead
My favorite Dead album. I had this on CD and know all the songs by heart.
5
View Album
Fri Nov 05 2021
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
David Bowie
3.5
4
View Album
Mon Nov 08 2021
The Sensual World
Kate Bush
2
View Album
Tue Nov 09 2021
First Band On The Moon
The Cardigans
4
View Album
Wed Nov 10 2021
Stand!
Sly & The Family Stone
3
View Album
Thu Nov 11 2021
The Village Green Preservation Society
The Kinks
3
View Album
Fri Nov 12 2021
Songs From The Big Chair
Tears For Fears
Reminds me of cassettes my mother owned and listened to on road trips.
3
View Album
Tue Nov 16 2021
At Budokan
Cheap Trick
3
View Album
Wed Nov 17 2021
The Idiot
Iggy Pop
3
View Album
Fri Nov 19 2021
Garbage
Garbage
4
View Album
Mon Nov 22 2021
Bringing It All Back Home
Bob Dylan
5
View Album
Wed Nov 24 2021
Parsley, Sage, Rosemary And Thyme
Simon & Garfunkel
5
View Album
Thu Nov 25 2021
Eagles
Eagles
5
View Album
Mon Nov 29 2021
Horses
Patti Smith
4
View Album
Thu Dec 02 2021
Lust For Life
Iggy Pop
3
View Album
Fri Dec 03 2021
Blood On The Tracks
Bob Dylan
Sorry, Curt, I think this is a solid album.
5
View Album
Tue Dec 07 2021
This Year's Model
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
3
View Album
Mon Dec 13 2021
Ingenue
k.d. lang
3
View Album
Tue Dec 14 2021
Paul Simon
Paul Simon
4
View Album
Thu Dec 16 2021
Selling England By The Pound
Genesis
1
View Album
Fri Dec 17 2021
Pretzel Logic
Steely Dan
Popular with both of my parents, I remember listening to this album a lot as a small child.
3
View Album
Mon Dec 20 2021
Sweetheart Of The Rodeo
The Byrds
2
View Album
Mon Dec 27 2021
A Christmas Gift For You From Phil Spector
Various Artists
1
View Album
Tue Dec 28 2021
Rio
Duran Duran
3
View Album
Thu Dec 30 2021
Violent Femmes
Violent Femmes
4
View Album
Tue Jan 04 2022
Blood And Chocolate
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
3
View Album
Thu Jan 06 2022
Mask
Bauhaus
2
View Album
Tue Jan 11 2022
Dust
Screaming Trees
3
View Album
Wed Jan 12 2022
Songs In The Key Of Life
Stevie Wonder
4
View Album
Thu Jan 13 2022
The Man Who
Travis
3
View Album
Fri Jan 14 2022
London Calling
The Clash
4
View Album
Mon Jan 17 2022
Gasoline Alley
Rod Stewart
1
View Album
Tue Jan 18 2022
Maggot Brain
Funkadelic
3
View Album
Fri Jan 21 2022
The Message
Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five
3
View Album
Mon Jan 24 2022
Tonight's The Night
Neil Young
4
View Album
Wed Jan 26 2022
Talking Heads 77
Talking Heads
3
View Album
Thu Jan 27 2022
Darklands
The Jesus And Mary Chain
3
View Album
Fri Jan 28 2022
It's A Shame About Ray
The Lemonheads
3
View Album
Mon Jan 31 2022
Isn't Anything
My Bloody Valentine
2
View Album
Tue Feb 01 2022
3 Years, 5 Months And 2 Days In The Life Of...
Arrested Development
2
View Album
Tue Feb 08 2022
(What's The Story) Morning Glory
Oasis
I can listen to this entire album anytime.
5
View Album
Thu Feb 17 2022
Ragged Glory
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
4
View Album
Fri Feb 18 2022
Darkness on the Edge of Town
Bruce Springsteen
4
View Album
Wed Feb 23 2022
Tidal
Fiona Apple
3
View Album
Fri Feb 25 2022
Jagged Little Pill
Alanis Morissette
4
View Album
Tue Mar 01 2022
Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
4
View Album
Thu Mar 03 2022
Arc Of A Diver
Steve Winwood
3
View Album
Fri Mar 04 2022
Truth And Soul
Fishbone
2
View Album
Tue Mar 08 2022
Aftermath
The Rolling Stones
4
View Album
Thu Mar 10 2022
Pearl
Janis Joplin
4
View Album
Tue Mar 15 2022
Very
Pet Shop Boys
2
View Album
Wed Mar 16 2022
Queen II
Queen
4
View Album
Mon Mar 21 2022
People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm
A Tribe Called Quest
4
View Album
Thu Mar 24 2022
The Chronic
Dr. Dre
4
View Album
Fri Mar 25 2022
Rubber Soul
Beatles
4
View Album
Mon Mar 28 2022
Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not
Arctic Monkeys
5
View Album
Tue Mar 29 2022
To Pimp A Butterfly
Kendrick Lamar
1
View Album
Wed Mar 30 2022
At Fillmore East
The Allman Brothers Band
5
View Album
Fri Apr 01 2022
Fragile
Yes
1
View Album
Mon Apr 04 2022
Unknown Pleasures
Joy Division
4
View Album
Tue Apr 05 2022
Here, My Dear
Marvin Gaye
4
View Album
Wed Apr 06 2022
Me Against The World
2Pac
3
View Album
Thu Apr 07 2022
Beauty And The Beat
The Go-Go's
3
View Album
Fri Apr 08 2022
Psychocandy
The Jesus And Mary Chain
3
View Album
Mon Apr 11 2022
Californication
Red Hot Chili Peppers
2
View Album
Tue Apr 12 2022
Every Picture Tells A Story
Rod Stewart
1
View Album
Wed Apr 13 2022
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
4
View Album
Thu Apr 14 2022
Kala
M.I.A.
1
View Album
Mon Apr 25 2022
O.G. Original Gangster
Ice T
4
View Album
Thu Apr 28 2022
Songs From A Room
Leonard Cohen
4
View Album
Fri Apr 29 2022
The Rising
Bruce Springsteen
4
View Album
Thu May 19 2022
MTV Unplugged In New York
Nirvana
A classic, but overplayed. The David Bowie cover is my favorite.
5