It's not going to be long: This is a foundational album. You can love it. You can hate it. And without denigrating anyone's opinion, it just doesn't matter.  This  Is  The most  Important  Record  Ever.

Even if I heard this album many years ago, listening to it today was a total discovery. As I checked the site and was about to play it I was readying myself for an old school rap record. To my surprise I was met by something much more rewarding.  First of, all the songs here kind of sound like Rockit by Herbie Hancock, which is not a bad thing at all. They also have a lively feeling to them, as if they were actually played and not sampled. Further research revealed that indeed, many parts were re-recorded rather than sampled from the original recordings Then I am reading that this is the first electro album ever made, a genre I am not really familiar with and that I will explore in the next few days.  And that's exactly what is interesting in this process: either you get a chance to discover something that you had never heard about, or you get a chance to listen again to some classics you hadn't heard in a while. And then there is the possibility of experiencing an album you already knew as if it were your first time ever, rediscovering aspects that weren't there before. Because we too are like musical instruments: the more you listen, with curiosity and open mind, the more you are fine tuned into a better understanding. 

Wonderful! This is one of my favourite albums ever. The book states that at first listen it could be tiring, but the first time I played it I was amazed: I thought it sounded as if it were made in 1993, not 1973; it really sounds far ahead of its time. The sprawling nature of the record reminds me also of the White Album, another of my favourite ever. I can hear Frank Zappa influences, Beatles, Beach Boys, some prog, gypsy music, and so much more. One of those records where you discover something new at every spin. I don't know if he was a true star, but for sure he is a true genius.

I had read some years ago an anecdote about Ravi Shankar and his combo giving a show, can't remember if it was in Europe or North America but this side of the world; as the show started the musicians played for a minute or so and then they stopped, and the audience got up and cheered. Ravi Shankar went to the mic and said something in the lines of "that's very kind of you but we were only tuning our instruments" On the first track of this album, An Introduction To Indian Music, he takes the time to explain the basis to us Occidental people. Actually, these explanations come and go from time to time across the length of the album. All this might sound somehow condescending, in the sense that he might try to school his audience (us, westerners), but it really is helpful if not necessary, as Indian music has rules of its own that doesn't really relate nor translate to the academic approach to European (and its descendants) music. The question presents itself spontaneously: is music really a universal language? I don't want to start myself on the possibilities of other life forms across the whole universe or even the possibility of the existence of music beyond the boundaries of our planet Earth, and if the aliens exists, do they still have ears? Can those ears hear? Can their brains or whatever those ears are connected to (if they exist, of course), decode the sonic signal the way we understand it? Because, you see, we imagine aliens from our human point of view, but they might be something, someone, completely different. Because we conceive that "somewhere else" from here, from the very place we live and always have lived in. "That" is there because "this" is here, but what if we could make abstraction of "this" and "here"? Where would "there" be?  But, yeah, music might as well be a universal language, but still, besides matters related to personal taste, one might lack the tools to really understand and appreciate "all" the music. Or the interest, right? In the same way that, say, a three year old kid might not have the same understanding of the spoken language than a professor in philosophy, even if they both speak the same "language". Or then again, the interest. Please note that I want to stick with the language thing, because a language is nothing else than a means to communication. And communication (I am about to become very technical here) is about coding, transport, and decoding. Therefore, communication is movement. Communication is evolving. The meaning of that last sentence is deliberately ambiguous, and I will leave it at that for you to interpret.  Me bringing up aliens having or not ears was also deliberate. Because when one chooses to be open, the possibilities become endless.  Ravi is a cool dude, his voice has a soothing quality. Or maybe it's just me fulfilling my own need of an Indian musician who speaks in a soothing way. We will never know. But we know that at the end of the aforementioned Introduction, Shankar says "The Western listener will appreciate and enjoy our music more if he listens with an open and relaxed mind" It's all about that. With everything, everywhere. 

Fuck no! First world, early new century granola eaters going to have their latte to the fair and inclusive café right in their basement, and feeling great about themselves for oh such an open view on the world around them. Bleurgh!

Boring. This was my first impression more than 20 years ago when I heard it for the first and only time up to now. Three tracks in and that first impression is confirmed. Will bear patiently with it until the end, but I don't see my point being changed anytime soon. Verdict: A master-bating exercise in fake blues.

This is one of those records that I don't necessarily dislike but I don't completely like either. It manages to get my attention in some parts, but in general I find it overly long and cerebral. I honestly would have preferred to see Relationship In Command by At The Drive-in in here.

On first listen I didn't know much what to make out of this. It sounded like one of those records nicely written, nicely played, nicely recorded but not much more than that. On second listen it started revealing itself. I now understand the comparisons with Sting and Peter Gabriel other writers brought up. There is also some Graceland-era Paul Simon (Weather To Fly, which is magnificent by the way); An Audience With The Pope has that guitar playing in the style of Mark Ribbot. The Fix has that California-era Mr Bungle thing going on. I wasn't that impressed with Grounds For Divorce (which seems to have given Imagine Dragons a couple of ideas) nor was I with the lush orchestration of Friends Of Ours, but I did like the orchestra on One Day Like This.   Still I wonder: does this record really deserve the classic status? We might not know yet, or at least I am not totally bought for the time being. 

By the second song I found myself surprisingly thinking "This is like a Beatles record written by Ringo!"  That's not a bad thing at all though. This sort of music hall /novelty aspect makes it sound really different from the rest of the music produced at the time, at least to my ears.  OK, there is a little bit of Paul as well.  All in all, a very British record with its own references and probably idiosyncrasies, which makes it a bit harder for me to get fully into it as, for obvious reasons, I lack the cultural background. 

This is certainly a smooth album that puts a smile on my face. Gorgeous!

Now we are talking!

I find hip hop to be a difficult genre: it's not easy for me to discern weather it's good or bad and there are just a few rap albums that I like. Having said that, I wasn't familiar with this one and I am really enjoying listening to it. There is an undercurrent of aggression, violence, grit, that I always appreciate in music. It also sounds a bit old school to me, which is a great thing. Also, we need to acknowledge that, 30 years on, the lyrics, and the anger with which they are delivered, are still relevant.

I came to know Massive Attack when they released Mezzanine, which I really love. Having heard the prior albums afterwards, I could never get into those. Nevertheless I managed to appreciate this one, but still. There are also a couple of songs (Unfinished Sympathy, Lately) that sound as if they were straight out of the 80s, which makes the overall feel of the record a little dated when compared to Mezzanine, which really sounds, undeniably, like an album of its time.

Beware of Mr Baker!

Wonderful! This is one of my favourite albums ever. The book states that at first listen it could be tiring, but the first time I played it I was amazed: I thought it sounded as if it were made in 1993, not 1973; it really sounds far ahead of its time. The sprawling nature of the record reminds me also of the White Album, another of my favourite ever. I can hear Frank Zappa influences, Beatles, Beach Boys, some prog, gypsy music, and so much more. One of those records where you discover something new at every spin. I don't know if he was a true star, but for sure he is a true genius.

I always had mixed feelings about this album: she is great, she really is, but the band doesn't seem to be right "there". There is certainly a good amount of energy going on but the songs don't sound right to me; they are probably underdeveloped or the arrangements are not at their best, I am not sure. Plus half of the tracks are live and I never liked live albums. So yeah, good for the vocals, the energy, the sense of "everybody's wasted", which doesn't do much harm in a rock and roll / blues context, but I am left with the feeling that this could have been a much better record. Or its issue might as well be with the high expectations that come with the hype? Or maybe it's just a matter of personal taste? Who knows!

Seldom an album title was so appropriate. This is raw and powerful start to finish, and it's loud AF; Even if you tried to lower the volume (although I see no reason to do such a thing) it still sounds loud, especially in the Iggy Pop mix. It was also ahead of its time, in the sense that almost none of the proto-punk albums showcase a fully formed punk sound as Raw Power does. For me, an absolute keeper.

I heard Royals when it came out and I thought it was a promising song; I then did something that I very often do to no avail: I bookmarked Pure Heroine as an album to listen to later on. To this day, I haven't taken the time to do so. Fast forward a few years and Melodrama comes up as part of the challenge. It's her second album but it's the first one I heard from her. I couldn't really connect with this album. It's all really nice sounding and pleasant to the ears, but I can't find that particular characteristic that makes me go ouff. It is a sad realization for me that millennial pop sounds all the same to me. It's like those old grumpy people back in the 80s who used to say "Punk sounds all the same", and I vowed never to become someone like that. Only that, after listening to this, I did take the time to listen to Pure Heroine, and I liked it very much. I guess I just don't like mature records.

As much as I have difficulty with millennial pop I find it really easy to connect with music that was produced decades before I was even born. Who knows! So I was excited of getting a 1959 of what seemed to be a country album, and really eager to get to listen to it. I am not deceived: the double bass, the subdued, barely audible acoustic guitar/banjo, and those vocal harmonies, just wow! One of my favourite albums of 2021 was Sturgill Simpson's The Ballad Of Doode & Juanita, and I can see clearly the influence that Marty Robbins' album might have cast over the kind of Sturgill's albums narrative.

Pounding drums, huge guitars. Power pop in all its glory. A classic.

Wonderful! This sounds to me like a well balanced record, taking cues from the old-school rap while still being firmly planted in the current time, making it sound fresh and new still twenty years after. A classic without the shadow of a doubt. Play it loud and with a lot of bass.

Back in the summer of 1991 I was working at a private beach, my first actual job. I lived in an Italian town that was specifically designed for summer vacation; a ghost town during winter time, its 2000 people population would increase by three times during the summer, and so would the level of activity, both cultural and economic, which meant that, for us, wild and flickering youngsters, summertime was the real deal more than in any other place, or so we believed (you would have to go through those pale winters filled with anonymity, as sad and useless as the non alcoholic beer in order to get a sense of what summers actually meant then and there) Working at a private beach from sunrise to sunset meant that the only people I would hang out with were there for only a couple of weeks, and then after swimming, boating, throwing ball on the sand, and so on, we were out for the night, more often than not until the next morning. Back then time was a constraint when it came to sharing and getting to know each other and everything happened at another speed: I remember all the faces and all the places, but not necessarily what happened at those places, and most certainly I struggle with names. On one night out someone gave me a 90 minutes tape cassette: on one side there was this album, on the other... Well, we'll get to the other side at some other time, it might come up in this challenge. At the time I knew nothing about Americana, so this album sounded kind of new to me and I listened to it a lot, really. I liked it, I could sense joy and nostalgia at the same time, that sort of blues thing going on; I also figured this was rock and roll, in a sense. It also sounded nicely recorded. The album, not the tape, although the recording on the tape was good too.  Listening to it now brings back all these memories and some more, and it is an ok album but not one that I would reach out to  A bit like looking at a summer picture where we all were smiling, curious, and somehow happy. And since this was a snapshot, I quickly moved on and started looking for more "alternative" as a figure of speech stuff in my music. Although  Upon arriving here in Montreal I found a second hand CD copy for real cheap and said to myself  Why not? Because yeah, pictures are made to be looked at, even if only once in a very long while. 

I am fascinated by Alice Cooper Alice Cooper the band, Alice Cooper the character, and Vincent Fournier the person behind the mask. They all (as the story, or stories, behind them) have a depth and substance, and quite some contradiction, that escape to most; dudes be like "Alice rocks!" and they completely miss the point, but I am not here to illustrate. Actually, nobody is, even the documentary that was released a few years ago failed at really getting a grip over the whole thing.  I saw Alice Cooper live a few times in the later years, his shows are quite something, it's a bit like going to the opera and ending up at a horror burlesque theatre. Yes, I saw Alice Cooper stab a baby, slash a nurse, be put in a straighjacket, be hung, be decapitated, and always come back scarred but undefeated. I guess I will be forgiven by the reader if I see all this as a metaphor of the individual struggling with the modern society. And that's exactly what this record tries (and in a way succeeds at doing so) to capture between garage-psych and Broadway-esque musical, and almost everything in between: the theatrics, the horror behind the irony, the Greco-Roman tragedy. Even if I already had the record and had listened to it before, on this occasion it took me several spins to really get an idea of the complexity of these songs; a really challenging but rewarding experience.

Ok, this is not a first timer. I've heard this record a few times but had experienced it in two different ways: it either blew me away or it was just too tinny sounding for my taste. I guess this was one of those bands you needed to see live in order to really appreciate their music. Anyhow, you can tell that they were really wild and thunderous. UPDATE: The more I listen to it the more I like it. So bad that I need to pass to the next record. Crossing my fingers!

What can I say about this one that hasn't already been said? I loved the piano all over, and the slight music hall feel in many of its parts. Beautiful from start to finish.

With only one exception (which might or might not come up later in the challenge) I have mixed feelings about post rock records in general, including this one. I admire the ideas and the purpose behind it, I appreciate the compositional and executive skills of the band, but I also get the impression that it drags in places only to have a few other, and more rare, exciting moments. Or maybe it's only a moody record and I never listened to it in a more appropriate context.

Fuck no! First world, early new century granola eaters going to have their latte to the fair and inclusive café right in their basement, and feeling great about themselves for oh such an open view on the world around them. Bleurgh!

I always found Closer much harder work than Unknown Pleasures, which I always preferred. Closer is an alienating, hostile listen, even if you approach it with no conscience of the "suicide note" factor. Its intimacy comes up as intimidating instead of welcoming, and despite the spare, minimal, subdued atmosphere that pervades the record, it does sound ominously heavy. All this made me always feel somehow disconnected from the listening experience. Until now. Today I was able to play it only twice (out of more than 20 records so far, I only listened once to two of them, and played several times during the 24 hour arc the rest of them), once in the morning and once in the evening; because it isn't one of those records you can play twice in a row, in my opinion. And still, since the first time this morning, Closer manifested itself in all of its splendor. Magnificent. Even for such a statement of existencial anguish, and also because of this very reason, there is no other word to describe it: Magnificent. This is much more than an album to listen before you die, this is an album to own. And for the rest of your life.

I like some heavy metal, always did. But I was always put off by NWOBHM, especially the dual guitar attack, wannabe Beethoven compositional approach of Iron Maiden and Judas Priest. At first listen, this was no exception; I dismissed the first two tracks as totally insignificant, but acknowledged the classic status of Breaking The Law; Argentinean band Riff has a song from 1985, Dios Devorador, which features the exact same riff as Grinder; of course I am not saying that Judas Priest ripped off an Argentinean band, pretty much the opposite, but having known the Riff song for many years made Grinder sound more familiar to my ears. What with United? Isn't that a corny song? Were they attempting to re-write We Are The World for a metalheads crowd? Geez, that's horrible! On to You Don't Have To Be Old To Be Wise, great title but too long to re-type. Living After Midnight seems to give a template to a whole bunch of too-many-hair-metal-bands that were to come soon, especially out of LA. The Rage is really interesting! A reggae-like guitar, bass and drums intro that soon morphs into a classic metal, bluesy groove and comes back in the middle of the song; this one should have been huge, that's unfair. All along I can't help but think about some 80s movies with rebel teens in them or some kind of horror, and that's fun! And this is the whole point: British Steel comes up as a thing of its time. A second listen reveals some more details that make the experience more entertaining. Suddenly Rapid Fire seems to hint at the thrash that were still to come a few years later; Metal Gods is a headbanging anthem in the most irresistible way. Grinder still sounds great and even more so. I still don't like United though and I guess I never will, while the patriotic Red White And Blue could have been written by Ted Nugent were he British I guess. Let's face it: with its macho-ish, tough guy imagery of fire, steel, and epics, heavy metal hasn't aged well, but British Steel is still a lot of fun to listen to if only at an entertaining level; if you still listen to this with teenage conviction, that's ok honey, there's nothing wrong with you... but I would be worried. (*Hides underneath the table in order to call the psychiatric hospital*) 

I was so excited to see Pixies coming up and even more excited about Bossanova being assigned to me for the occasion. I love this record, actually I love all the Pixies records, but hey, great starting point.  Cecilia Ann starts off the album with clearly a surf influence. Then Rock Music comes in and Black Francis voice sounds more demonic than ever, while Santiago puts his guitar on fire (I can't help but thinking of that moment of the show where Santiago makes his guitar squeak and squeal and even if it's not the case you would think that he is alone on the stage, but I think about that specific moment in several points of this album).  Two songs later we are treated with Is She Weird, probably my favourite song ever; nobody knows what is it about but I could listen to this 28 times in a row and sing along (shout along!) every single time. It's right here in my opinion that the album really takes off: Ana is such a sweet song, with all those subdued guitar parts and the almost whispered backing vocals; kind of the same trick on All Over The World, but with more loud parts and with an epic ending (Santiago again center stage). It's a great transition into the kind-of-funky Dig For Fire. Has anyone else heard those ghostly voices in the background on Down To The Well? And what to say about The Happening? It's irresistible, if you don't bounce your head and/or dance to this song you are not from this planet, but neither Pixies are so nothing wrong with you. And then it comes Blown Away which in some ways show the direction they would take on Trompe Le Monde (controversially, my favourite album of theirs ever!). Hang Wire comes storming before Stormy Weather almost at the end of the album and then you realize that they haven't let go for a single second. That's a magnificent run of songs!  And finally Havalina sort of comes back to the mood of Cecilia Ann.  I don't know if I should say that this is a masterpiece, but I really really love this album and I know I already said it but there it is. 

I am surprised to see a 2021 album here, especially when I made for the first time my list of favourite albums of the year in 2021 and I didn't listen to this one. Well, I guess you cannot listen to them all.  I am not big on Lana Del Rey, but as soon as the piano and her whispered voice comes in I am already bought. I won't have time to listen to it more than once as I fell back in the challenge and have three other albums to catch up with, but my general impression is that this album totally reflects the black and white atmosphere of its cover art. All the songs sound intimate and kind of nostalgic. Actually, you know what? I am adding it to my Discogs wish list as I write. That's how much impressed I was with this album. 

Son Of A Preacher Man is the highlight here. I remember listening to this album once and  I was probably expecting the rest of the album to be as good, but unfortunately the rest of the songs didn't do anything for me.  Listening to it again tonight and it starts revealing some of the beauty that makes people love it so much. The lush orchestration, the spot on arrangements, and obviously her voice. The issue I have with this record is that it sounds to me as lacking personality and character: I hear a really nice end of the 60s set of songs but nothing more. And I wish I could hear much more than that, as she seems to be a singer with a strong personality. Maybe next time! 

I can't conceive the idea of pop and metal together, for me it's a contradiction. I am reading that Bon Jovi had the idea of integrating synths into their sound. I am not sure whether they were the first hard rock/metal band to do this, but, surprisingly too, the synths work flawlessly here. But somehow this Bon Jovi album remind me of same period Aerosmith, which I definitely prefer.  As Let It Rock, the first song on this album, came up I was taken aback at how hard it hits. Then there are the hits: You Give Love A Bad Name, Livin' On A Prayer, Wanted Dead Or Alive (my overall favourite on the album), and Never Say Goodbye. All songs that I wouldn't want to reach for but I don't mind listening to them once again. I'd Die For You and Wild In The Streets sound both a bit like this batch of songs but I don't know if they ever were hits. Less popular songs like Social Disease and Raise Your Hand hit as hard as the first song. Without Love sounds like Huey Lewis And The News though.  All in all I am glad I gave this a chance, but still it is not something I would come back to anytime soon. 

This is an all around great fun, garage-punk record, although I remember their first one being slightly better.  It all begins with the ska-punk More Songs About Chocolate And Girls. And, hey! Did they change the lyrics to Under The Boardwalk? Doesn't Hard Luck sound like Cheap Trick?  Girls That Don't Talk has that British punk rock swagger (It's funny that he's bothered by the way girls talk and also by the girls that don't talk!), same as My Perfect Cousin (which might as well be my favourite one in here, it's just perfect for a pillow battle) and Whizz Kids, which also reminds me of the Ramones. Tearproof has that nervous sound, a bit like early Talking Heads. I guess Wednesday Week was supposed to be a ballad, which is really not. So yup. A youthful, lots of fun album. 

The first time I heard this, some 30 years ago, I didn't understand. I had seen it on another essential records book, had seen a vinyl copy for real cheap, and bought it. I was in Italy at the time.  Although I brought back to Montreal most of my physical music, this record didn't make it; I just wasn't able to find it, as my parents too had moved around a bit during the years.  Then, with the streaming services and the such, I heard it again. What a fabulous album this is! I don't think I can add anything new to all that was already said both about Bowie and this album, other than it wasn't immediate for me, and if you listen to it for the first time and, like myself, find yourself not "getting" it, all I can suggest is that you patiently stick with it, it takes work but it is a really rewarding work. 

If Nevermind portrayed a baby on its cover picture and this is named In Utero there must be a reason: in a way the band is acknowledging the huge burden that following up on that album was, in spite of all of their efforts to distance themselves from it. At the same time, the uterus is the place where the baby was before. A warm, acuatic, comforting environment... Isn't there a parallel with the swimming pool and the dollar bill? And still, there is no regression here, quite the opposite, from baby to foetus, unless Kobain meant a return to a somehow more authentic nature of the band. Because there is nothing happy about the Nirvana state of consciousness, and nothing comforting about being in the uterus, especially when you know what is waiting for you out there. Famously a difficult listen, and I can confirm that this album surely is not easy listening . Never mind the Nevermind naysayers, this one is completely another beast, and deliberately so. Personally, it took me a while and many listens to even start appreciating its qualities, and every single time was like listening to a new album. Now that I am listening to it I am surprised at how it sounds raw and clean at the same time, loose and contained, wild and... I don't really want to say controlled but you get the sense that they knew what they were doing, what they were going for. The drums bang, the guitar screeches and howl, submerged in feedback, the vocals are throat-ripping, everything is so explosively loud and on the verge of collapsing that barely anyone is mentioning the cello on two tracks (Dumb and All Apologies). It's pure torment, anguish, rage. There is almost no pop in here. And still. No, this is not a classic. It's not for everyone, and for sure it's not for every day. A take it or leave it definite statement Same as a birth.

Some great moments here but it doesn't blow my mind the I wish it did. It probably has many ingredients that I enjoy in an album: electric guitars used in a non conventional way, electronic sounds, some psychedelia, some 60s jingle jangle, and so on.  I probably should stick with it for some time.  Also, as many albums from the CD era, bizarrely the Brit pop ones mainly, it sounds tinny at times, which really bothers my ears.

Even if I heard this album many years ago, listening to it today was a total discovery. As I checked the site and was about to play it I was readying myself for an old school rap record. To my surprise I was met by something much more rewarding.  First of, all the songs here kind of sound like Rockit by Herbie Hancock, which is not a bad thing at all. They also have a lively feeling to them, as if they were actually played and not sampled. Further research revealed that indeed, many parts were re-recorded rather than sampled from the original recordings Then I am reading that this is the first electro album ever made, a genre I am not really familiar with and that I will explore in the next few days.  And that's exactly what is interesting in this process: either you get a chance to discover something that you had never heard about, or you get a chance to listen again to some classics you hadn't heard in a while. And then there is the possibility of experiencing an album you already knew as if it were your first time ever, rediscovering aspects that weren't there before. Because we too are like musical instruments: the more you listen, with curiosity and open mind, the more you are fine tuned into a better understanding. 

OK. This is really a bombastic one, but I wonder about the purpose.  All over I can hear Radiohead, Queen, and U2. None of these bands I particularly like, but if I have to, I much rather listen to the original ones. Not that Muse are bad, they just don't catch my interest, my attention continually wanders in and out. Starlight has that synth pop thing going on and the distorted bass, which is okay until Bono comes in. Map Of The Problématique becomes a bit more interesting as it sounds like Depeche Mode (or like Paradise Lost when they were trying to sound like Depeche Mode, without, exceptionally, really sounding like a copycat) in parts, until Bono auditioning for Radiohead comes in. Some beautiful vocal harmonies on Soldier's Poem. I liked that at the beginning it sounds very 60s, somehow doo wop (many have mentioned Beach Boys but I couldn't agree less), but at the end it morphs into a Queen tribute. The last, proggy bit of Invincible was interesting., while its first part really sounds like U2, not only the singer this time around. In general the use of synths is interesting all over the record, but again, if I wanted to listen to some prog I would go for some 70s band, and this not only excludes Muse but all the post 90s new prog bands. Some NWOBHM on Assassins mixed with bits of System Of A Down, which is kind of surprising.  Liked also the bits where they incorporated some world elements in the last few songs.  All in all, a band that seems to wear its influences on their sleeves. Highly visible though. To the point where you wonder if it's just influence or they are actually mimicking.  A curious fact: although the edition I have is from 2011, my book doesn't feature this 2006 album, which probably means that the it was kind of an afterthought for the authors destined to be featured in some future edition. 

I always thought of goths as boring people wearing a lot of make up bored with their own lives. Then emos came and they were much worse. But, hey! These are audiences, and we are here to discuss music, right? Right.  If I were to pick up an essential post punk band with really pessimistic sound and content, Joy Division would be that band. Still, this doesn't totally mean that I consider other bands in the dark/goth spectrum to be derivative, mind. I really love some of them, from Christian Death to Fields Of The Nephilim. I wasn't really familiar with the Sisters Of Mercy though. Lucretia My Reflection, Dominion, and the mighty This Corrosion (which I am sure I already heard in the past) were singles, and they were great. As a whole, the album really sounds huge, with all those busy, upfront bass lines and insisting drumming, a lot of female backing vocals, even some choir (a 40 piece one on This Corrosion), but never feeling overcharged. 1959 with only piano and voice fills up the room effortlessly. On Flood II there is an acoustic guitar along with the synths and the aforementioned, very effective rhythm section, and the whole thing comes out from the speakers as if it was a roaring monster. I could go on and mention all the songs in here, as there is no filler really. All I can say is that I need this record in my collection. A masterpiece. 

It is really important to kick off an album strongly, and Beautiful Freak understands this very well. From the very first second I am totally hooked! This is exactly what I expect from a pop record: quirky, versatile, surprising, filled with twists and turns, off-kilter. I had heard the following album to this one and the first thing that came to my mind was Beck; but when was that a bad thing? Also, I am reading that Mark Oliver Everett (the brain behind Eels) is from Virginia, USA, while I was convinced that he/they were British. They somehow sound British though, think of bands like Super Furry Animals or Gorky's Zygotic Mynci. No surprise then that opening track Novocaine For The Soul was a hit in UK).  Track 2 features an upright bass while Mr E walks us over Susan's House all while taking a heartbreaking polaroid of a cruel, everyday suburban reality (There's a crazy old woman smashing bottles on the side walk/where her house burnt two years ago/people says that back then she really wasn't that crazy... Here comes a girl with long brown hair who can't be more than 17/she sucks on a red popsicle while she pushes a baby girl in a pink carriage/and I'm thinking that must be her sister, right?).  Yup. I too have seen things while going over to Susan's house.  The title track brings together Beach Boys arrangements, accordions, a spooky piano coda, and a lament about loving people when they are "different".  My Beloved Monster instead is about that (beautiful) freak we all carry inside, begins with a banjo, that is soon left aside and adds some noisy flourishes.  Flower is a nice update on American folk with a processed choir that points out at how we get slapped since day one and so on forever and ever.  I really don't know weather someone else has ever sung the words "this could be your lucky day in hell" over such moving, lush melodies, and then go back to some distorted parts with such nonchalant elegance, but it works brilliantly.  I wish I had more than 24 hours to spend with this album and write more about it, but I guess that is part of the challenge. Without any doubt, another essential that I surely need to add to my collection. On to the next one, but, hey, Beautiful Freak, see you soon, I hope. 

I came to know The Go-Go's a few years ago when they reunited and opened some shows for the B-52s and was surprised to find out that they were the first band in which Belinda Carlisle, whom I already knew, was. Although it's impossible to compare their talent, because they are really talented, with the sheer originality of that other Athens band, I can see where the choice comes from. The Go-Go's are an all-girl band from Los Angeles that incorporates the tradition of girl groups into their own blend of punk-new wave. Beauty And The Beat was their debut album. During the years, I heard several versions of the first song, Our Lips Are Sealed, co-written with The Specials) and I still don't know which one is my favourite, as it really is an awesome song. Almost title track, We Got The Beat, is a 50s spy movie soundtrack vs Ramones mashup that works wonders. Skidmarks On My Heart has that space/surf guitar that's always fitting. A little bit of jingle-jangle on How Much More. This Town has that twangy guitar thing over a thrashing riff and lyrics that portray the decadence in LA at the time, really powerful. Fading Fast somehow foreshadows Belinda's solo career. Automatic has a stomp that really sounds automatic.  Beauty And The Beat is probably not a 10/10 for me, but it had an impact at the moment it was released and so many pop elements to enjoy that it is still a vital listening. I will surely come back to this album in the next few days. 

First of a rant: the reason why I went to the Amnesia Rockfest in Montebello, Québec, back in 2013, was because that edition of the festival featured the most incredible hardcore lineup ever, including, among other big names, Discharge, Cro-Mags, and Bad Brains, three bands I absolutely wanted to witness on stage, and three bands who cancelled at the last minute; Discharge and Cro-Mags, who were indeed touring together, got blocked at the frontier, while, if I remember correctly, Bad Brains singer H.R. got severely ill of his throat. Well, I guess I was much less lucky than people going to that piss pool of a festival to see The Offspring or Marilyn Manson, damn it! (Hey, at least I saw Alice Cooper! I even cried then!)  I read somewhere, some years ago, that when I Against I was released every hardcore/metal/punk venue played the song Re-Ignition before shows, with the whole audience going "Whaaaaaa?" every single time as a consequence. It wasn't the first time Bad Brains got us all going "Whaaaaaa?". From the start Bad Brains was an all black band playing hardcore, a genre predominantly, if not exclusively up to that point, white . And the audience went "Whaaaaaa?" (Racetraitor was a hardcore band who were utterly outspoken about white supremacy and white privilege decades before our modern social scientists started even mentioning those topics. By their confrontational approach, they used to call "crackers" the kids in their audience. "Racetraitor" and "crackers" are both white supremacist terms, reconfigured within the context of their thought provoking stance. It didn't go down well. The band earned an awful backlash from all the social and political sides involved, and their credibility as artists and individuals was severely questioned. - Straight Edge was a lifestyle that promoted a no alcohol, no cigarettes, no meat, no drugs, no promiscuous sex, no coffee, and no pharmacological drugs way of life. Straight Edge was also one of the most violent forms of hardcore punk music around. - Racetraitor ideologist and leader said recently: "We’ve had one time that turned into a physical fight. In the end, everybody was kind of forced to talk about what we wanted them to talk about. They just couldn’t ignore us." - The band would soon break up, one of the members would become a lawyer and work in the international human rights, another one would join pop-punk band Fall Out Boy. - This is the world in which we were growing up) Bad Brains was also a band of very technically skilled musicians who had all studied jazz. And the audience went "Whaaaaaa?" Social justice was a key factor discussed in the hardcore subculture, and so were the Bad Brains, but they were also concerned as much with spiritual issues, promoting the "Positive Mental Attitude"; they also practised the rastafarian faith and played reggae. And the audience went "Whaaaaaa?" Ric Ocasek was an early fan of the group and he went on to produce their second album, a few years before I Against I was recorded. And the audience. Yes, you got it.  The crucial point of this album is that, up to this point, and also in all of their subsequent releases, hardcore and reggae where two different styles that were never really meshed together, probably in the intent of keeping intact the sacred, spiritual nature of the genre. A groovy as hell record, I Against I showcases a real battle of Bad Brains against themselves. All of their influences, from jazz to punk, to reggae, soul, funk, and anything else come together in a streamlined, flawless, smooth even, beast of crossover never heard before nor since. All of these ingredients are integral part of the songs in a way that is impossible to discern, dissect, or separate, as if everything was actually processed through a blender in an irreparable manner. Like life itself, like death itself. Like the remnants of a battlefield served on a plate. I rest my case. PS: If you haven't watched the documentary Afro-Punk, I suggest you do as soon as you get a chance. Peace out. 

Ok, I took a day off with this one. I listened to it almost twice. Very nice, if somehow in a baroque way, but I struggle to understand why this should be considered essential. Next?

(Sigh!) I always had a troubled relationship with the Jacksons, all of them. I acknowledge their talent and that they have made quite some great music over the decades, at the same time, I don't exactly know what it is, but there is something about their celebrity status that bugs me profoundly. But let's discuss this album. ...  (Crickets)  ...  I played it several times. The first time I was really impressed from the start. Then  Social concerns. Check.  Dancefloor. Check.  Heartbreak. Check. Romance. Check.  Did I forget something?  Ah yes!  Empowerment through sexuality. Check. Remember when Latoya was believed to be Michael in disguise? A ball? Does anybody have a ball here? I need to practice against a wall. Oh thanks, Mate. Boing... Boing... Boing... What is this, why do I feel so restless suddenly? For fuck's sake, I thought I took my meds this morning! Oh yes, I did, the bottle of pills is empty. Should I worry? Got a cig? Hold on there. Do you think I should worry? I think I should. Lighter, yes, thanks. But... Worry about what? Ah yes, that's what I wanted to say! I got distracted while listening to this album. Several times even.  OK. I am becoming increasingly lazy at doing this. Impatient as well. Whatever. Geez! How long IS this one? 

The first time I checked this album out was upon watching the Pixies documentary loudQUIETloud, in which the Pixies were followed in Iceland going to meet Sigur Ros in their studio almost in a pilgrimage way. I don't remember seeing the Sigur Ros bandmembers on screen but I remember going WTF after hearing this. I also remember my friend saying exactly the same. I sure wasn't expecting an ambient album, and never played it again. Last year, someone suggested me () and my opinion about the band changed, but it wasn't until I received this vinyl copy that I really came back to Ágætis Byrjun (I just copypasted the title, it seems impossible to retype!). It really is an album that deserves to be listened on vinyl, and I was wrong: it is not an ambient album, there is so much more about it. I don't know if it's Iceland that do this to musicians, but the first impression I got is that it's heavenly, cold and warm at the same time, as if it were reflecting the sun at midnight. It's just majestic.  There is a dream-like quality to this music. No surprise that they cite Spiritualized as one of their influences, but still, sonically, there is almost nothing on this album that could ressemble that band.  I was about to go through every single track and try to describe them only to discover that it would have been a useless exercise: here, the music speaks by itself.  I cite from the record booklet: "... we had our own idea of what a song was about... because of how it made us feel. Like, underwater, or a womb-like floating feeling". And I couldn't agree more.  I still struggle with long albums, but this one went down much better, and that's surely positive. 

It's not going to be long: This is a foundational album. You can love it. You can hate it. And without denigrating anyone's opinion, it just doesn't matter.  This  Is  The most  Important  Record  Ever.

I am glad and somehow relieved that the two country albums I got so far came out on a Sunday. Sundays are ok for country, or should I say country is ok for Sundays? One way or another, this is a really pleasant listening, but I am not sure if I will throw it on again in the future.  Nice try, though! 

I like some Bruce Springsteen from time to time, but could never get into this one. Plus I couldn't find my tape, so I'm not happy.

My copy is a bit worn out, isn't it? I might prefer On A Corner, but this is still ace. Nothing I could say about it that hasn't been said before.

I had read some years ago an anecdote about Ravi Shankar and his combo giving a show, can't remember if it was in Europe or North America but this side of the world; as the show started the musicians played for a minute or so and then they stopped, and the audience got up and cheered. Ravi Shankar went to the mic and said something in the lines of "that's very kind of you but we were only tuning our instruments" On the first track of this album, An Introduction To Indian Music, he takes the time to explain the basis to us Occidental people. Actually, these explanations come and go from time to time across the length of the album. All this might sound somehow condescending, in the sense that he might try to school his audience (us, westerners), but it really is helpful if not necessary, as Indian music has rules of its own that doesn't really relate nor translate to the academic approach to European (and its descendants) music. The question presents itself spontaneously: is music really a universal language? I don't want to start myself on the possibilities of other life forms across the whole universe or even the possibility of the existence of music beyond the boundaries of our planet Earth, and if the aliens exists, do they still have ears? Can those ears hear? Can their brains or whatever those ears are connected to (if they exist, of course), decode the sonic signal the way we understand it? Because, you see, we imagine aliens from our human point of view, but they might be something, someone, completely different. Because we conceive that "somewhere else" from here, from the very place we live and always have lived in. "That" is there because "this" is here, but what if we could make abstraction of "this" and "here"? Where would "there" be?  But, yeah, music might as well be a universal language, but still, besides matters related to personal taste, one might lack the tools to really understand and appreciate "all" the music. Or the interest, right? In the same way that, say, a three year old kid might not have the same understanding of the spoken language than a professor in philosophy, even if they both speak the same "language". Or then again, the interest. Please note that I want to stick with the language thing, because a language is nothing else than a means to communication. And communication (I am about to become very technical here) is about coding, transport, and decoding. Therefore, communication is movement. Communication is evolving. The meaning of that last sentence is deliberately ambiguous, and I will leave it at that for you to interpret.  Me bringing up aliens having or not ears was also deliberate. Because when one chooses to be open, the possibilities become endless.  Ravi is a cool dude, his voice has a soothing quality. Or maybe it's just me fulfilling my own need of an Indian musician who speaks in a soothing way. We will never know. But we know that at the end of the aforementioned Introduction, Shankar says "The Western listener will appreciate and enjoy our music more if he listens with an open and relaxed mind" It's all about that. With everything, everywhere. 

The intro, And The Gods Made Love, sounds exactly like something David Gilmour's Pink Floyd did on that 1987 album. Exactly, minus a drum hit or something.  Zappa thinks I'm a jerk and so will you: I was on the verge of writing about the first Jimi Hendrix Experience album being the most influential when compared to the two that followed. Then I was taken aback by the groove of Have You Ever Been (To Electric Ladyland); it's a surprising update on classic soul and its undeniably soul. It's like, where do this come from! And then  We all know this, those who sing songs about love (or love songs as we know them) are ALL depraved! Or even I would say utterly PERVERSE. As it is the guitar solo leading us into Voodoo Chile. But blues was thought to be depraved a few decades before, so it is fair to bring back a bit of depravity. I wonder if Jimi would be disinfecting his hands before and after the guitar were he alive in these times of ours. But then I re-think the whole thing and conclude that he's going to put the guitar on fire by the end of the show ANYWAYS! Also, guitars have been obsolete these days around, so probably he would be setting fire to something else. Little Miss Strange is played by the Experience but sung by an uncredited British band. (Of course it is not, but it works well as a metaphor)  Rainy Day, Dream Away has a sax on it, which makes the song sound jazzy-er.  1983... (A Merman I Should Turn To Be) is a song that I could listen to all day, so pass me those boxing gloves please. It's long, I might probably listen to it only four or five times. Damn, days are not as long as they used to be. Bass guitar is played by Jimi himself on this one, which gives a sense of "sync" between bass and guitar. But he's not playing exactly the same parts on both, although he could have. And then there is a bass guitar solo, which might be him telling Pastorius how to do his job. Yes, I know what you are going to say but he was in the zone and when you are in the zone there is no timeline.  I swear I heard him playing tango on House Burning Down.  The album was entirely mixed in stereo, and it exploits that technology to a devastating effect.  These were actual listening notes. Yup. 

This is, at a personal level, probably the most important record of my life: I was listening to it at the precise moment in which I decided that I was (and still am) a woman.  And The Prophet Song should have been a huge hit.

Although not the first time listening to this, I only discovered this recently. For me it is and still remains a very surprising and original album. The 80s update on classic soul which doesn't even sound like R&B, and his voice, also so typically 80s; alright, I might be alone in this but the way he sings reminds me of Robert Smith. It is not supposed to work but it does!

I already said this before and I stand for my opinion: the Pink Floyd-ish guitar trip/workout that occupies a quarter of the record, not for me. Indeed for me this album begins with the second song, I Want To Know. Sly And The Family Stone vibes on Hit And Quit It. When Super Stupid came up I thought I was listening again to Jimi Hendrix. With Back In Our Minds we go back to a more funk territory, straying away from rock in a way. Wars Of Armageddon ends the record with a nice wild jam. But farts? Ok! It is a nice funk rock album but I prefer some other Parliament/Funkadelic albums to this one.

The oldest record I have made so far, from 1956, and almost the oldest on the book itself. There are not many records on the pages before this one, and the first listed is also from Frank, one year prior to this one. Which makes me think that the decades of the 30s and 40s were completely ignored. Further research shows that the first 12" 33 1/3 RPM Long Play record was introduced in 1948, so it kind of makes sense. Still, in the setting of this challenge/game I would have loved to be able to go further down history than the 50s. Now, back to Songs For Swingin' Lovers! (The exclamation mark belongs on the title) What can I say? According to the book, it's the record that defined the pop format with all the songs clocking at 3 minutes in average. For me it's like time travel, to a time where the way relationships were conceived was quite different than today's, and there is a really romantic and soothing quality about that, in the sense that things seemed to be quite easier, that there was this sort of candor and innocence that western culture was about to definitely (and irreparably so) lose in the following decade. It really encapsulates the ultimate nostalgic feeling, and I wonder if it was intended to be that way at the time of recording.  Although I don't really love it, I still like Frank's music and his character. He makes me think a lot about my father, who was also this type of charming gentleman from another era who never wore a pair of blue jeans (well, unless he was BBQing). But at the same time, a line like "I know I am the slave, you're the queen" is a line I never need to hear in life. A nice companion for a cloudy day. 

Yeah, rock!

I will start by saying that the only two Rolling Stones albums I really, really like, aren't most likely featured on the book (I haven't checked and I don't want to, as I prefer to keep the surprise factor going on) As this record begins, with Brown Sugar, I come to understand why it is so highly regarded. I expected myself to be annoyed though. Great job, 1001 Albums Generator! Still, I can't help but wonder if this is sort of a way of getting away with the Altamont affair.  The sax is a nice touch.  The country leanings of the two following tracks, Sway and Wild Horses, don't cut it for me, but I can hear that the latter is a really beautiful ballad, if excessively syrupy to my taste. By Can't You Hear Me Knocking I am convinced that the recording sounds wonderful and that it makes the whole thing infectious. There is a risk that I add it to my wishlist.  I also liked You Gotta Move, which reminds me of Chuck E. Weiss, although this one came decades before. The brass section on Bitch is another nice touch.  By I Got The Blues/Sister Morphine I got genuinely bored. I can't take that much Lynyrd Skynyrd. 5 for the recording, sound quality, and arrangements, 2 for the slide guitars and the such. Generous 3.5

Ok, this is the type of record that leaves me speechless. It's just beautiful. Listen to this album if you haven't already.

I might have writer's block but there is a lot going on on this album and it's beautiful. It made me think of late period Beatles, as well as Beck and The Flaming Lips.

This is the type of record that projects me back to "the time when": I haven't lived it but I can barely imagine what would it be like being in 1969, coming back from the record store, and playing this for the first time. It might have felt like witnessing history as it was being written. There's another record that I can think of that gives me that feeling, more about that in a future time. Much has been said about Nick Drake's acoustic guitar technique and his songwriting. I would like to mention the arrangements, which seem to broaden the very concept of folk. The first two songs have a bluesy, almost jazzy feel to them, with piano on Time Has Told Me, and strings being introduced on River Man. By Three Hours, bass and percussions become very busy, if also kept in an understated, intimate fashion. The strings on Way To Blue start off in a very dramatic way and then open up and keep swinging between these two moods.  And then there is Day Is Done, which is breathtakingly gorgeous.  And this is only the first half! The rest of it keeps this pace and quality with an outstanding consistency.  This album sounds beautiful, delicate, fragile. A must own.

I really liked Hüsker Dü but for some reason I hadn't followed them after the split up. Unrelated to this, Bob Mould always reminded me of Black Francis, I don't know why. The other way around doesn't work though. The first track on this album, The Act We Act, sounds pretty much like Hüsker Dü, the second one, A Good Idea, is (that's right) straight up Pixies. Helpless and Hoover Dam are nice tributes to the Beatles, with the former featuring synths and introducing the acoustic guitar (which will be prominent during the next few tracks), probably my favourite song on here. Most of the songs have that kind of sing-along chorus so dear to pop-punk, especially The Slim with the addition of some anthemic guitar playing.  As the alternative/indie rock of the 90s was about to shift toward a definitely poppier sound, Mould & Co. led the course. I guess that in foreshadowing this tendency this album was important, but I still find his work with Hüsker Dü to be definitely groundbreaking compared to this. 

Back in the day I invented a subgenre for Def Leppard and Van Halen: they were walkman metal. I sensed that, having incorporated synths, they sounded great on tape and with headphones on. But so does Run DMC's Raising Hell. To this day I prefer listening to these albums on tape.  Ok, it's all too cheesy, but then again, that's the point and you know what you are in for. 

A kaleidoscopic trip.

One of the first all-black crossover bands, and one of the most influential for the generations to come. A blast. Lovely.

Interesting! I'd never seen this featured in any list before and I am not sure if it's considered as a classic. First thing that struck me is the intricate vocal melodies Costello is capable of. Yes, I already knew, but for some reason this seems to be particularly stressed on this record. Second, whenever I play a Costello album most of the times I find myself thinking about Blur. In 1994, Elvis Costello reunites with the Attractions and kind of goes back to the more nervous sound of their beginnings. There is room though for delicacy (You Tripped At Every Step, This Is Hell with vocal harmonies and string arrangements in a very Beatles-y manner, London's Brilliant Parade) It's pretty much a long album and could probably use some trimming down, but the first half is strong enough to keep my attention from wandering. 

I love boomboxes!

The album that made Radiohead what we came to know as critic darlings Radiohead. I am not supposed to like this one, and still I find it enjoyable. I am fearing OK Computer though. 

Whenever I throw up Madonna my main concern is my neighbours' judgment. Never mind, I will punish them with some Black Dahlia Murder later on. And besides that, I always wondered: is she talented, or is she just someone who is surrounded by talented people? And then again, knowing how to surround yourself with the right people, is it a talent in itself, and to which extent is an "artistic" related talent?  I won't add anything to whatever has been said about this record, other than it still sounds fresh to my ears, even more than 3 decades after its release. Also, I wasn't aware that Prince had ever played with her, and that was a nice surprise, especially Act Of Contrition, something that I would have never expected to hear on a Madonna album. All in all, the sprawling, eclectic nature of the album recalls Purple Rain, and I can clearly see how influential the latter might have been in this case. I am also surprised that I already knew some songs from the album, other than the title track (Cherish). The book compares this album to Revolver, which seems to be quite a statement, but Oh Father is as magnificent. 

A classic start to finish.

I don't really know why but I usually find Stevie Wonder's albums to be long, even when they are not, so when I found myself in front of his double (and highly praised) album I felt a bit overwhelmed before even embarking on the journey. But what a journey this was! Yes, it's long, but it's thoroughly consistent and varied at the same time.  Village Ghetto Land with its string arrangement is a nice change in pace. As Confusion came up, I had to check my player, as I thought it had switched me to a 70s prog band. I already knew Pastime Paradise as it was sampled somewhere. Ordinary Pain is plain funk with female vocals and it also comes out of nowhere as if it were played from another artist, another album. I also knew Isn't She Lovely, probably a radio staple? He's kind of cute singing in Spanish, but please don't let him do that again! No Spanish to be reported on As but pretty much Latin rhythm with gospel-like choruses, while Another Star has an eye on Rio.  Final verdict, an absolute classic, in spite of its length. It feels at times like a various artists compilation. Very few songs feel like filler and it was less tiring than expected. 

At times quirky, at times dramatic, experimental music with a sense of craft. Right up my street. I can't figure out the meaning of the cover art though. 

I came late to The Smiths party, and I arrived there because of Argentinean hardcore vocalist Boom Boom Kid, who knowingly was influenced by Morrissey in more than one aspect. But I really never got them. Not their music at least.  I was rather fascinated by their image: Morrissey and Johnny Marr looked like two smartasses, the classic odd couple fed by a special chemistry, some apparent awkward dynamics, an appropriate update of the Jack Kerouac & Neil Cassidy myth adapted for their specific historical context. If anything, I can't help but admiring them for this aura that they projected around themselves. But then from time to time I played this and some of their other records, and I am always surprised to find something that comes up as compelling. Death Of A Disco Dancer with strings and keys, the reggae-like groove in A Rush And A Push And The Land Is Ours and Girlfriend In A Coma (is that a consequence of the double decker bus crash?), the joyful Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before (what with the extremely long titles?), the dramatic Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me. It is a fairly consistent album for being one from a band that at the time was on the brink of collapse.  Some trivia: Strangeways is a Manchester's prison, and the character portrayed in the artwork is Richard Avalos in a shot from the movie East Of Eden. Whatever it all means! 

This? Just <3

Here's another one that I never heard and that I was meaning to check out for quite some time now. Thanks, 1001 Albums Generator.  It doesn't sound like anything I was expecting. In the end there was equal parts deception and excitement. The album doesn't sound as filthy as I thought it would. What I hear is something like The Doors with a country singer (which I somehow like) and a little too much white blues (which I dislike), but it is okay. It's not the Buffalo Springfield and it is not the 13th Floor Elevators, but there is a garage undercurrent that I appreciate, and it might be the predecessor of both, and the execution is far more compelling than say Big Brother And The Holding Co. It is an interesting example of early San Francisco psychedelia in any case, and I will give Country Joe & The Fish that. A record with a historical importance that is somehow enjoyable, but I am still to decide whether or not is an album to own. 

1957! It is really surprising how this sounds as if it were recorded yesterday. Absolute keeper.

DJ Shadow might as well be a drummer so perfectly crafted his drum loops are. What is certain is that he is a virtuoso in turntablism.  This record is fantastic start to finish, plenty of surprising twists and turns, and lots of creativity going on. The only issue I have is, as with most albums from the CD era, its length. Also, for some reason, my mind doesn't seem to be willing to "stay" on it, but that I think it's because I need to spend more time with the album in order to tame the bugger monkey. I surely recommend this one. 

Out of the three Stooges' albums, this one is my least favourite. Still, that doesn't mean I don't like it either! Where The Stooges and Raw Power came up as each one a statement (their first being their first, and the third being... Well, raw power!), this one sounds to me more like an assessment of the first, and almost but not exactly a transition towards the third. What the album seems to do well is to capture the live feel of the band as if we were witnessing one of their shows.  Side one kicks off with Down On The Street, a typically wild performance of the band, and doesn't slow down until just before Dirt, which sounds like a slow burner without letting go of the energy.  Side 2 incorporates some novel elements: 1970 is not 1969 (which sounded more like the Velvet Underground) but introduces a sax that will stay there for the remaining two tracks, sometimes sounding like a jazz player who landed in the middle of the show and is just jamming along and having (right!) fun. Then Funhouse picks up where 1970 left and we close with L.A. Blues, with its riotous finale. These last three songs together almost seem to be a one piece, as if they just made up the whole side two in one session. A really great, lots of fun, garage album but I am still to decide if really is essential. 

This album is proof that my listening habits are changing: when I heard it for the first time a few years ago I was really enthusiastic, it seemed to me like an approach to punk that I'd never heard before. Going back to it now, I just don't find it at all that incredible. It is certainly a good album and it's full of hooks and I can see how the band differentiate themselves from their peers of the time, but it just doesn't grab me the way I wish it would.

Out of the thrash scene, Anthrax was one of the two bands I had time for, the other one being Suicidal Tendencies. At the time I didn't know exactly why; today I can explain that that relates to the many elements that they incorporate into their sound, from NYHC to early rap. There really is a form of richness and subtlety to their approach that goes far beyond 80s metal. The run of albums from Spreading The Disease to Persistence Of Time is absolutely brilliant, with Among The Living being their peak. Tons of riffage and mental drumming, changes in tempo and chord progressions that are simply breathtaking, with lyrics that swing from social matters to pop culture references, and the ability to not take themselves too seriously, everything is in the right place for the listener to engage in an interesting listening experience all while having fun.  Not only their musical choices were courageous at the time, but the fact that by the next album they would showcase a skate shoes, coloured bermuda, and white t-shirts style (as opposed to the all black with leather jacket that was mandatory for a metal band)  makes Anthrax the most thrilling band of the era. 

Seems like it's my late 80s week! I remember 1988 when this album came out and it was in all record shops bins, featuring prominently. I also remember enjoying Talking 'Bout A Revolution when it came up on the music video clip channel (which I watched obsessively) but not enough to bother with the album itself. All in all, it's a pretty album, well played, nice sounding, slick production, and overall a pleasant listening. Some songs are more interesting, especially the more romantic numbers in my opinion (Baby I Can Hold You, For My Lover). But Fah fuck sake! Is it boring! Reviews say that this is the album that brought back protest music to the 80s audiences, but in 1988 I was still happy to listen to The Clash. That hasn't changed much, besides the fact that I have added, Public Enemy, Asian Dub Foundation, and Rage Against The Machine to my socially aware, politically charged arsenal, along with some other less known acts. Sorry, Tracy, you haven't made it to that section of my record collection. So next. Just an average album that doesn't subtract but doesn't add anything either.

An okay album, there is plenty of variety, especially for an electronic album, but 10,000 hz Legend is still my favourite. I don't think I will listen to this again, but at least I want to watch the movie now. 

I have heard about Sarah Vaughan but I had never heard her. Now thanks to the challenge I have! I was expecting a singer in the lines of Nina Simone but I found a singer more in the lines of Ella Fitzgerald (whom she reference on How High The Moon). But Sarah is something quite on her own, with very versatile vocal skills and a real neat sense of humour. I spent quite some time with this album and, although not really my thing, it surely is a classic and a keeper. 

Produced by Kanye West and J Dilla (but apparently not the two producers together), Be presents a form of "intimate" hip hop on which Common raps against some funky, classic soul backdrop and some nice jazz touches and a sort of old school feel. Faithful features a gospel choir; both Testify and Go feature some funk instrumental and vocal samples. The lyrics range from social concerns to some wise shtick about living your life and being a decent human being.  The album didn't really caught my attention at first listen, it all seems so simple on the surface, but it all made more sense in second and further listens; it surely is a grower. 

There's nothing I could say about this perfect album that hasn't already been said. And yes, Pablo Picasso might be the greatest song ever. That's all, folks!

I had this on CD. It's pretty much a thing of its time, I guess. It has its moments and I like it but I wouldn't consider it essential. 

That's funny! This album seems to be hunting me, it follows me everywhere as if it really wanted me to love it!  Much have been said about the musicianship of Duran Duran bandmembers; allmusic claims that, curiously, all or almost all of of them followed a career in hard rock. This is not surprising to me, as they play a form radio-ready pop, yes, but the "touch" they have on their instruments has definitely a hard rock edge. Ok, they are not Toto, but some of you dear readers will probably know what I mean.  The title track opens up the whole thing all while letting us know that we are in for a catchy ride, complete with sax. The slap bass against funky guitar and synths on New Religion is just monumental (actually the bass playing is monumental almost everywhere across this record); then Simon Le Bon gives rap a cute try. Save A Prayer is the classic 80s make out ballad; do they still write songs like this? Does people still give any time at all to making out? Hungry Like A Wolf comes with a singalong chorus and I wonder how much air did it get at the time, while Hold Back The Rain plays a similar trick. There is something in Last Chance On The Stairs that reminds me a bit of the James Bond theme (or was it Wild Boys?), which is not really bad because that is a great song.  As I pointed out elsewhere, this is a really kind of weird record to me: if I listen to it once in a while I tend to pay more and more attention and like it more at every play, but if I play it too often I easily get bored. Who knows!  I'm heading now into the Greatest Hits, I want to listen to A View To A Kill, Wild Boys, and Notorious. 

Folk might just not be my thing.

I really preferred Paul Di Anno, but also, I never got into the Iron Maiden thing, even if I like quite some metal bands. Not for me really, but still entertaining

Sonic Youth are a strange phenomenon to me: they tick all my boxes and still I find myself unable to connect with their music; I find them to be hard work too. Having said that, opener track 100% is a blast, and I have the tendency to fall in love with albums with strong openers. Then the sheer experimentation of the classic Sonic Youth kicks in with Swimsuit Issues. The whole album seems to be balanced between the noise rock for which they are mostly known and a somewhat pop side to their music. Butch Vig, who was behind the boards during the recording of Nirvana's Nevermind, is also the producer in charge here, and I can see how his approach streamlined the sound of both bands. Definitely an album that requires more than one listen in life, for people who are interested in sticking to it. They could have trimmed it to fit in a 45 minutes disc instead of an hour long album though, but hey, I guess that was the CD era!

Ok, one of the 5 or 6 Led Zeppelin albums I am to be treated with during this process.  As far as I remember from the other Led Zeppelin "numbered" albums, this is the one where they kind of broadened their palette, with Immigrant Song being the opening track , a classic Led Zep stomping track, then, right afterwards things start becoming somehow interesting: Friends introduces an acoustic guitar and some percussion instruments that are not the usual pounding drums in a sort of trippy-hippy haze. On Celebratory Day we have something that sounds like a synth (mellotron maybe?) and a slide guitar, fast paced but uselessly loud. Since I've Been Loving You white blues is a hard pass but the Hammond organ is a nice touch, always thought that John Paul Jones was underrated as a musician. There is a banjo on the more folk/traditional oriented Gallows Pole, and That's The Way is a nice acoustic piece of music, although this one along with Tangerine remind me too much of Baby I am Gonna Leave You from their first album.  It is admirable how, despite their music being so rooted in traditions, they still managed to sound new at the time, and I understand that. I can also see how the band, along with Black Sabbath, was influential on the whole heavy metal genre; I can also see how the skillful playing might be exhilarating for some, but the whole chest-beating attitude and the somewhat (at least to my today's ears) conservative ideas behind their music, the feeling that, although they were trying to improve on their formula, as far as I can tell, I, II, III, and IV sound like the same album over and over again, all of this together is personally a turn off for me. 

I had to pause the challenge once again as I feel that this album requires many more listens than I can give it in a day. That said, I always get mixed  The Pretty Things with The Kinks; this album's and Arthur's similarities in subject matter don't help either. But I'm getting there! I like the fact that The Pretty Things were louder and rowdier than many of their peers at the time, and on S. F. Sorrow we still have a sample of that on Balloon Burning, but almost everywhere else this is an end of the 60s, psychedelic, British record. And a very good at that. I am intrigued by this period's bands who were really loud and turned psychedelic, and that goes also for their American garage counterparts: there was no internet at the time, and still that seemed to be the trend on both sides of the pond. Anyway, back to S. F. Sorrow, by Baron Saturday the experiment sounds as if it were on the brink of collapse. I don't know if it was the single but it should have been! I read that the album was recorded at Abbey Road; this makes sense! I also read that this album is regarded as the inspiration for many other concept albums to come, but I don't think that that is its sole merit. Private Sorrow has a folk-y, almost medieval thing to it and it must be the precursor of that 70s flute guy. Mr Evasion borders Hawkwind territory, especially towards the end,while Talkin' About The Good Times bears some middle East influences.  A lot going on in this one and it's maybe a bit overlong, but still a fascinating record. 

I know many people like this but it definitely is not for me. Next. 

While I wondered why the cover art is so similar to Boz Scaggs' Middle Man (and I know there is another one that did that but can't remember which one), I really liked Bartering Lines. The rest of the album sounded ok, everything is very well recorded, well played, there is a sense of intimacy, and the songs are easy on the ear, but I would still struggle to consider this one as an essential. 

Day 90 I am glad I got this album! Dolly Parton is one of those artists I find interesting and likeable in the way only iconic artists (which she clearly is) are but I have never taken the time to properly dig further into them. And I am glad that I've listened to this album and I have read about it because it got me thinking. A lot. Although some (probably preconceived) ideas were already there. So, my dear reader, strap yourselves in because we're in for a ride! I am reading (from Apple Music) that with this album she wanted to step away from the "sad-ass songs" she was so far known for and try to bring forward the intrinsic beauty in every day human struggle. The album kicks in with the title track, a song about poverty sung with a certain sense of joy and pride. A beautiful sentiment if you think about it, but I'd like to point out that at this point of her career, Dolly was already a staple of her own scene. I don't mean to say that she could have been intentionally hypocritical but The Dolly Parton we know and remember today is beautiful, enthusiastic, hugely successful, and forever young. She is sweet, so sweet when she sings and smiles (because you can hear her smiling when she sings!) that after spending a few hours with this album I had to sign in for a glucose levels check in. Her exuberant looks, coupled with a sort of candid attitude and the fact that she never made her marriage life public, makes of her a portrait of the 50s ideal woman of sorts: Ma'am has a sexuality that is somehow apparent to everyone (but not too much) and is only available in the context her own bedroom. With her husband. Talk about American dream! Or should I say white American conservative male dream? Clean-faced American dream. Blue-ish white teeth-bright-smile American dream. Be-happy-no-matter-what American dream. Always-perform-the-best-out-of-you American dream. Should I go on?  Still  Dolly Parton didn't need to take off her top or simulate an orgasm on stage, nor did she need to publicly claim she was a virgin and then reveal that she lost said virginity. She never had an affair with a fifteen year old dancer of her own troupe. She never had to cover herself in steaks either. Dolly Parton only sold the songs that she wrote and sang herself and left the rest for the crowds to fantasize about. Or not! And I am not being moralistic about it, I mean, if anything I don't see why any form of sex appeal should be a requirement when it comes to any female artist, and besides that I like my music to be down and dirty; but whereas more modern pop stars put their sexuality up-front in a way that (to me personally) seems forced, Dolly Parton came out as "too clean to be true". No swagger, in other words. Or too subtle a swagger? No rebellion, no nothing.  The fact that she would go on to become an icon for feminists, LGBTQ+, and socially oppressed people in general, only based on a sense of optimism, seems counterintuitive to me. As it is counterintuitive the fact that I find her profoundly likeable, a feat that Taylor Swift will never accomplish.  In a way I understand how, although far removed from reality (or at least, my reality), she might be a relatable character but I couldn't explain myself how, and that might have to do with something that is real but doesn't really belong to the conscious realm.   And... Ah, yes! This album is really fine stuff. 

Lots of paaaah papapapapaaaah paaaah!

Day 92: Exuberance. That's what I want from a punk/post-punk/new wave debut album, exuberance; joyous, pissed off, energetic, exaggerated, youthful, enthusiastic, outraged, utter exuberance. And in that aspect, the debut album by the Pretenders does deliver.  The bouncing guitars on Precious and then the drop, and Chrissie Hynde's commanding vocals; on The Phone Call the bass goes a bit acrobatic and suddenly we have angular guitars in the style of Gang Of Four. Up The Neck slows things down a bit but the energy is contained. Tattooed Love Boys races, or almost derails, at the pace of Pink Flag-era Wire. Space Invader lets the bass guitar invade the song space while Chrissie takes a coffee break; I am amazed at how talented Pete Fandon is as a bass player and wonder if there was any coffee around the studio. Probably another kind of stims; the ending with bass feedback and aliens chirping is something to frame in a picture and hang on your living room wall. On The Wait they seem to be more frenetic and frantic than before, and then another drop with Chrissie almost rapping. Stop Your Sobbing goes a bit Byrds/Mamas and Papas; I would have probably preferred to have this on Side 2, as Side 1 was a don't-let-go affair up to this point.  Side 2 starts off with Kid as we get a sense of later, poppier Pretenders. Private Life does a good Police job, which is not an easy task. Nobody gets arrested though. The band is quite solid. Brass In Pocket follows in a more poppy, almost yatch rock direction; I can see Huey Lewis and The News covering this. We finally get a ballad with Lovers of Today, the question is do we need that? Probably yes! It's quite a touch of sweetness; loved the part with the overdubbed vocals. Mystery Achievement closes the whole thing and we are back to a more new wave feel with angular guitars, but somehow more subdued than Side 1 and in line with what we had on Side 2. All in all, for being a sort of punk record, there is a lot of subtlety and some surprising twists within the songs, which is a good thing if you are a listener who needs some variety in order to keep engaged.  Although I presume that they were not the first, it seems that at the time nobody was ready to bet on a female fronted band of this kind, or specifically on her, I am not sure; I am glad that she shut their mouths up, as she really is a great vocalist and performer. I personally never gave any thought to this band until my friend Jonny posted his favourite albums of all time and this album was featured. Upon listening to it on streaming for the first time, I promptly grabbed a copy for cheap as soon as I got a chance and didn't regret doing so.  Just to get this out of the way before the next album comes up: I always preferred brunettes to blondies ;-)

Day 93 I live in the city, but work in a small village quite removed from there; I don't own a car, so I have to ride a bus which leaves me at the outskirts of the town and then I have a 20 minute walk before I get to my workplace. Today is a beautiful, warm sunny day, the sky is bluer than it has been so far this year, and the green is greener too, and while I walk through the village and watch the small houses and the pick up trucks passing, this music sounds just beautiful. I can sense that it is done in a really heartfelt way, I get a sense of how much they loved country music; the harmonies are superb, and while I usually mistrust any attempt at involving Judeo-Christian traditional values, it all comes across with such a level of candor and innocence that I just can't prevent myself from smiling. But all this, as sweet as it sounds, can also be problematic to me: it works at very specific times, when apparently I am in a very special mood. I get the same thing with The Beach Boys, everything is so white, pure, well-intentioned, that I end up missing the grit of say The Sonics, or The Monks. Ok, that might be a bit extreme as an example, but I trust the reader to understand what I mean. Having said that, I really liked You Got a Reputation and Lazy Days, which sound more soulful/garage, somehow Beatles-y, and Pretty Polly, with its story about a gambler that could as well have been told by Johnny Cash, but I am seeing now that those were additional tracks in later releases. All in all, I enjoyed this album pretty much, but I doubt I will attempt to repeat the experience again any time soon. 

Day 94 I had more than a feeling that this wasn't going to be for me, and I wasn't wrong. Still, I was really surprised by how much variety there is in this album. Hitch a Ride is the most "Southern rock" track on this and features some acoustic guitar bridges and a gospel-ish ending. Foreplay / Long Time has some prog twists and turns and it's easily the most interesting thing on here; again, I really liked the acoustic guitar touches. Rock n Roll Band and Smokin' are uninteresting odes to the rock and roll life, with the latter having a church-y organ break in the middle.  Forever confined to the discount bin, the day this will go for $40 I'll know that the world has really gone wrong. 

Day 95 What I love about first albums is that they usually capture the energy of a band in its purest, rawest form. In the case of a debut EP, you are not running short of pure energy, but you might run short of songs. That's my first complaint about this one. The second complaint is the lack of Touch Me I'm Sick on here. But in terms of an album intended as a document, this album delivers in spades: you can sense the vitality of the Seattle scene just before it exploded/imploded into the international market. And it's so imperfect that it is moving. 

Day 96 A heart-shaped grenade bleeding in a hand? The poetry of that cover art should be enough to bring a tear in your eye. Or maybe not, but it is for me.  I was aware of Green Day (but then again, who wasn't?) but didn't listen to American Idiot when it came out. But I have a very precise memory of that moment in time: Green Day came to Montreal and played a show in a huge open air venue; it was summer and I was broke, I didn't go to see the show, but I remember seeing the kids around the city on public transportation heading to the venue; there were thousands, millions of them and It was a beautiful spectacle to see: suddenly the city was filled with punk kids in their black clothes, each with their own version of a punk haircut, hair dyed in different colours, wearing their face piercings and make up; tattoos weren't that common yet so there weren't many of those, thank you. This is exactly the image I view whenever I listen to Green Day. This, and Billy Joe Armstrong. I love that chap, I think he's awesome cuz he looks exactly like one of those kids even if he's decades older than them. Whenever I see a picture or video with Billy Joe on it I just wish I could give him a warm hug, he really looks like this fragile, shy and sensitive teenager who gets pissed off about the injustices in the world and speaks out without becoming a pedantic asshole; the kind of teenager who asks questions and doesn't assume they have all the answers; the kind of teenager-adult who looks sort of innocent but takes no bullshit and believes in integrity. Are you reading this, Bono?  With American Idiot, Green Day took pop punk to a whole new level and gave it the substance it was lacking; many of the songs have a Phil Spector feel, or sort of. Some have written that American Idiot was Green Day's attempt at being The Who and recording Tommy; although I can see where they are coming from, they clearly need to listen closer. Rating: all the bombs pumping blood through my heart. 

Day 97 I am glad I got this album. I don't know many hip hop albums. I mean, I like the genre but I really never knew where to start besides Run DMC and Public Enemy, and whenever I tried some other hip-hop acts they often come up as boring and unoriginal to my ears. Not the case with LL COOL J and that is great news; on Mama Said Knock You Out, he seems to bear that old school sound and grit that makes it interesting to me. I am reading on the book that, before recording this album, he had lost popularity upon going against all hip-hop trends by recording a ballad and participating in an anti-drugs campaign, which makes him all the more likeable.  Rate: as many funky beats as you can get. 

The 1001 Albums Challenge - Day 98 Radiohead - OK Computer The most overrated, overhyped album of all time. I tried once again today, and nothing has changed.  Here's the link to a YouTube reviewer who says exactly what I think, but he says it better.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuqV5GvEZpk

Day 99 As someone who's contemplating the possibility of dramatically trimming down their record collection, I wonder if this is really essential. I haven't heard much from LCD Soundsystem but I understand that the one to go is their first album? I haven't checked the book yet, but I am curious as to why the authors picked this one. Most of the songs sound like U2, a couple other songs sound like Talking Heads (these are the ones that I enjoyed more), on one song he seems to be impersonating David Bowie (not the one that is dedicated to the White Duke, black screen); the title track is dedicated to the late Alan Vega and sounds like Suicide in a vague kind of way. The last two songs were more ambient oriented and the ones that I found more interesting, even if they do sound late 90s; elsewhere it's all very pleasant if derivative, which doesn't mean it's a bad album, only that it doesn't give me enough reasons to get back to it.  Rating: No idea, Mate. 

Day 100 Once again I had to pause the challenge as this is really a difficult record. Strangely enough, it is the kind of album that could blow my mind, the sort of thing that sounds as damaged that it would be easy for me to relate to it, but apparently I am not at that stage of my life anymore. I get the experimental approach and everything, but I also feel that I have heard it all, probably in later and less influential albums that in turn might have been influenced by this band. Having said that, there is a lot of musicianship, ideas, and variety here to keep the open-minded listener engaged. Rating: All the points have distortion and feedback. 

Day 101 Here's a really strange one! Despite Elisis Regina being a very popular Brazilian singer, there is close to none information about Vento de Maio: it seems to be a posthumous compilation, and it is not even clear when it was released; some sources state 1978, some others 1980. To add weirdness to the confusion, Ms Regina passed away from an overdose in her mid 30s in 1982; she hadn't retired, quite the opposite, she was at the peak of her career, so how does this count as posthumous? Anyways, posthumous or not, what strikes me is the choice of a compilation, and a minor one that doesn't even cover the entirety of her extensive career. In 1978 Regina released a proper album titled Transversal do Tempo which bears a very similar cover photo. My guess is that the book's writers fucked this one up entirely, which is really, but really sad, as it comes across as a failed attempt at compensating for the Anglo Saxon hegemony in popular music, a failure that does nothing but confirm said hegemony. All this, plus the fact that the record lacks in cohesion, distracted me from experiencing Regina's astonishing singing abilities. Also the production is problematic at points, sounding as if she was backed by an average fusion band, a common issue (or one I am familiar with) in recordings from both Brazil and Argentina at the time. I wasn't happy with what I heard but I suspected that there was a lot of potential, so I went with one of the Apple Music picks, Falso Brilhante. Now that's much more like it. There are a couple of bluesy numbers, a couple of more jazz-rock oriented that sound much better than those on the the other record, two Argentinean folk songs (both countries were very close in terms of musical exploration at the time), some mighty prog, and one traditional song, Fascinação, that I am sure heard by someone else but couldn't tell who. But most importantly, this is all Brazilian music at its best. Long story short, if you are a music fan, don't just settle on the records featured on this book, especially when it comes from world artists, but  be curious and do explore further, you might find some quite hidden gems. Rating: Book pick: 1 Apple Music pick: 10 

Day 102 Another rap/R&B album I was happy to see pop up even if I didn't know anything about it. I don't feel inspired to write at this moment, and probably I would need to spend a lot more time with it, but this album has plenty of bangers and interesting moments. A keeper. 

Day 103 I don't know much about Neil Young; I have had Harvest for decades but never bothered with the rest of his output and sometimes I think I should, so I was excited to see this coming up. I love Neil Young, he seems to be a really nice chap and I know he had a really long career and that he put out some mighty records. This one might be one of those. But unfortunately it didn't do much for me; I kinda like the live sound and can see how it influenced the 90s alternative scene, but this kind of music, that in my head comes across as classic rock, is not really for me now. A great album for sure though, I can't deny that, but for the time being I will stick with Harvest. Hope his other entries on the book will move me as much as that album did. 

Day 103 I'll start by saying that Ella Fitzgerald is an essential listen: possibly one of the most influential singers of all time, hugely talented, and a very pleasant voice to the ears; there's really a good humoured sweetness in her voice pretty often and she manages to convey these songs wonderfully. I understand that she released albums as far back as 1947. That's crazy.  The Song Book was originally a set of multiple records but I don't know how many, in streaming services is a 3 hour plus set. Yes, it's very long. I listened to the whole thing but not in one sit, and I couldn't listen to it more than once; I also admit that I wasn't paying attention all along, but I wasn't annoyed either. As I said, everything is very pleasant, I just couldn't not be distracted over such a long period of time and if I didn't repeat the exercise is only a matter of the day being too short. The songs are also wonderful, beautifully written and very entertaining. I caught myself wondering if the Gershwins invented pop music with their blend of classical, jazz, and easy listening. Credits go to Nelson Riddle also, who wrote the orchestral arrangements. Definitely a must. 

Day 105 John Mayall & The Ballsbreakers - Balls Breakers with Eric Clapped Out I am really hoping the authors have included some Albert King, FFS.  Rating: It's in the title if you haven't noticed. Now get out of here. 

Day 106 Yeah Yeah Yeahs has put out a few great albums. This is the one I am the most familiar with, I used to listen to it a lot while biking to work, it was a period in my life during which I was really angry, and haven't listened to it since. I was surprised by how good it still sounds.

Day 107 I hate football, always did.  I already knew the first song on this album, Ponta de Lança Africano (Umbabarauma) in the version by Max Cavalera's Soulfly; I love that song but it's a song about football and we all should agree that music should never be about football. Well, Jorge Ben in 1976 made a whole album of songs about football, and it's a freaking blast start to finish; Umbabarauma and Hermes Trismegisto Escreveu, the first two songs, are an irresistible one-two punch as Afro as Fela Kuti and as funky as Sly and the Family Stone; by the third song, O Filósofo, the Brazilian elements become more prominent, and that's the direction that the record takes from that point onwards. I guess this is the music everybody imagines as being the Carnival soundtrack. The 6th track, Taj Mahal, is possibly the most well-known (and infectious) hook to come out from Brazil. A Histôria de Jorge could be featured in an Italian Poliziottesco movie ambiented in Rio, if that ever existed.  Hooks, that's the word I was looking for. Jorge Ben seems to master the art of hooks impeccably; there's plenty of danceable, sing-along hooks on this thi6 I hate football, but I am going to buy this record, and you should too. Rating: And the whole stadium went "Goooooolllllll" 

Day 108 Who likes some compressor effect? Venom does!  Black Metal by Venom has nothing to do with the black metal scene, although it might be an inspiration. This is all tongue-in-cheek rock and roll, more related to Motörhead (although definitely lo-fi) than say Burzum. It's cartoonish, and I like cartoonish. 

The 1001 Albums Challenge - Day 109  Foo Fighters - Foo Fighters I purposedly never gave Foo Fighters the time of day. When this album came out we were at the peak of what I call the CD era: CDs replaced vinyl and tapes, and seemingly they were quite affordable; I couldn't tell which was the cause or the effect, but I noticed that by that time every single band seemed to find record deals very easily, and they were putting out lots of interminable albums that couldn't fit in the old 46 or 60 minutes tapes, 90 minutes tapes were too long for one album and too short for two, besides the fact that I never really liked the 90 minutes format; some of those bands were incredibly exceptional; most of them sounded like they were ripping somebody else off; there was a lot of experimentation, some of it compelling, some of it sounded like the artist was trying to be weird for the sake of being weird. And don't start me with the nu-metal that was just around the corner! Every single week we were greeted with a new nu-metal band, so much so that soon enough the genre wasn't "nu" anymore. Not that it ever was, anyhow. The dawn of grunge seemed desolate. I never liked Dave Grohl, even as a person. I mean, I never was a Nirvana/Kurt Cobain fanboy but I liked some of their output; Dave Grohl and the Foo Fighters seemed to me a hypocritical attempt at capitalizing on Cobain's sad end; I wasn't disgusted by the idea but it did seem to be something of bad taste to younger me. The fact that he later became increasingly popular and ubiquitous didn't help; at one point you couldn't watch a music documentary without walking on him sooner or later. Same goes for Lars from Metallica but that's another story.  But!  I am glad that I got the Foo Fighters debut from the challenge, I really listened to it while trying to keep an open mind and I can say that I didn't dislike it as much as I thought I would. It does feel like trying to revive a genre that was bound to its own end. This Is a Call really sounds like a good Nirvana outtake and he seems to be wanting to sound like Cobain. Same goes for Alone + Easy Target a few songs later. The second song, I'll Stick Around, somehow goes in a different direction; where Nirvana was about anger, there is a form of enthusiasm in Foo Fighters, so that there is a distinction. Big Me has a Beatles-y thing going on. Floaty is exactly what the title says, with some shoegaze thrown in it. Weenie Beenie goes back to the hardcore roots. Kind of Meat Puppets country thing in For All The Cows.  All in all I enjoyed this, but I am not sure I will be going back to it  Oh, it's 44 minutes long! I could tape this thing! Oh, hold on... 

Day 110 Back then, in Italy, Elastica was deemed to be part of the "new wave of the new wave" scene; I didn't pay much attempted to them, because why, I could listen to the original new wave bands, right? Well no, I was wrong, this is an amazing album that has everything I could ask for: catchy hooks, great playing, great songwriting, a lots of that youthful energy that never hurts.

Day 111 I don't know about B.B. King, I always felt that he's so loved and respected by the record buying public because he managed to get more exposure than some of his peers; nothing wrong with him, I mean he seems to be a lovely chap and an accomplished musician, but he doesn't move me in the way that Albert King, Big Joe Turner, Howling Wolf, or even John Lee Hooker do. Also, I don't like live albums, the cheering crowds distract me from the music and usually live recordings are not really good recordings. This sounds very well executed and recorded though. At the same time, his voice sounds younger than other albums from him that I heard, which somehow gives his singing a soulful quality; I was pleasantly surprised in that sense. I guess it is a great album if you like him or the genre, but this is not the type of blues that I preferred. I didn't dislike it though, but I wasn't thrilled either. Score: See you tomorrow.

Day 112 Tragic indeed. I cried.

Day 113 This is the second live album I get this week, and the third one from the sixties, all in a row; all three albums are in the blues/rock and roll/country side of the music spectrum. This one is the one I liked the most though. I like Jerry Lee Lewis when he sticks to pure rock and roll; he seems to be in a ferocious form here, almost sounding proto-punk, and keeping the set list down to his essential songs.

Day 114 I have this on CD somewhere; I also have Nothing's Shocking. For some reason this was the one I listened to the least, and I just recently realized how wrong I was: Ritual de lo Habitual is the more expansive and possibly the most accomplished of the two, but it is also the most difficult. While the first two tracks, Stop and No One's Leaving are classic Jane's Addiction, the reggae elements of Ain't No Right and Obvious really came out as a surprise. But things get really interesting by Three Days and Then She Did, two long psychedelic suits full of twists and turns, while Of Course results in a come down with violins. Definitely an album worth of your attention.

Day 115 Prince has always been a difficult one for me: on paper I should love his music, but when I listen to him, I find myself having a hard time; I don't dislike him, at all, it's just that I don't get the hype, which is probably deserved by the way. I feel kind of left out. Still, I like Dirty Mind, I like Sign O' The Times, and I like some of Purple Rain and some of Around the World in a Day. While listening to 1999 for the challenge, I finally understood what puts me off him: I can't hear a band, nor can I hear a one-man band, which would be totally fine as well. I can't hear a production either, or more precisely I hear a hollow production; all I can hear is toys, and don't get me wrong, I like synths and some (if not all) synth-based music. He probably sounds kind of detached from his music to my ears, or I am just unable to connect with him. These were my thoughts while listening to the first three songs, which according to the book make for a perfect way to introduce the album. Then D.M.S.R. happened and things started to gel; a few spins later I still think this is the standout track for me with all that funk upfront. Automatic kind of goes back to the sound of the prior tracks but now it works better for me; the slapping bass solo is a nice touch, even if it feels a bit buried in the mix. The synth parts become much more interesting on Something in the Water. All the Critics Love U in New York is another highlight, and finally International Lover points towards Purple Rain the song. All in all my perception of Prince hasn't changed much but I did found something to like on here. I guess I will keep trying as I have been doing during all these years. "I sincerely want to fuck the taste out of your mouth" is quite the line though, and it's worth the whole album honestly.

Day 116 The Talking Heads are easily one of my favourite bands ever; those who know me well know that I don't drop "favourite" and "ever" within the same sentence that easily. And '77 is also one of my favourite debut albums ever. I know some may say that their following albums were "better"; in my opinion those other albums only improved on their formula, but this is a very accomplished debut, the band sounds fully formed, and all the elements of the next few albums were already there: steel drums and calypso rhythms on the opening track Uh-Oh, Love Comes to Town and more Latin on Tentative Decisions, the funk on New Feeling and Who Is It?, reggae and afro on First Week/Last Week... Carefree. And then the overall quirkiness, and especially the neurotic histrionics of Byrne, Psycho Killer being an all time classic, while No Compassion might as well be the perfect new wave song.

Day 117 The fact that I always thought that Billy Joel was Lionel Ritchie should sound anecdotal nowadays but it did happen. I heard The Stranger for the first time in maybe 2017; I was checking a list of supposedly good records that you could find for just one dollar; they also had Boston, Styx, and Blue by Joni Mitchell, among others I can't remember right now; I listened to it (and all the other albums on that list) once and kind of liked it. In the next couple of weeks I found it in a one dollar bin and bought it. I guess they don't have those bins anymore, or at least not with somehow listenable music in them. Anyhow, I took The Stranger home and played it. Only once. I was deceived, I didn't dislike it but I didn't enjoy it either. It sounded just meh, just like some generic AOR from the 70s. Listening to it now I can understand why this album sold so much at the time: it's all very pretty, easy on the ears, warm. Maybe he's a great songwriter, maybe these songs are all very well written and executed, but it's nothing more than just that, a pleasant listen. Rating: 2 bucks, because of the inflation.

Day 118 The Beasty Boys are like Spiderman: they make you wish you lived in NYC no matter what they do, and Ill Communication is certainly one of their best albums. I haven't heard this in years and always thought of Ill Communication as Check Your Head Pt II; nothing wrong as that album is absolutely fantastic. Listening to it now I get the feeling that I wasn't right, but I wasn't wrong either: Ill Communication follows in the direction of the jam-packed Check Your Head but trades the latter hyperactivity for more subdued, hippy-trippy textures derived from the trio's interest in Buddhism but that's not all; there's a couple of hardcore punk moments, some jazzy arrangements, so much funk, and once again, a lot of jamming. This record is a lot of fun and it sounds like they were having a really great time recording it. What else should one expect from music?

Day 119 Pink Floyd made a few good albums, but this is the real shit in my opinion.

Day 120 Booker T. & the M.G.'s was the stable house band of Stax Records; they backed recordings from people like Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett; I wish these recordings had some of that grit. Green Onions, the album, is a collection of instrumental pieces that fall somewhere between soul, jazz, and pop/easy listening. I'm not really in the mood for this type of music these days, but that doesn't mean it's bad, if I could follow whatever is happening on the album I would probably say it's brilliantly executed and stuff, just not today.

Day 121 Besides Out of Time, I never understood R.E.M. Spending some time with this album was somehow great; at times it seemed to reveal itself to me, but then it was just a glimpse. At the same something about Murmur was clear from the start: the drumming is huge! Well, that was a great starting point. But I still struggle with the songs in and on themselves. At times it was okay, but at times I was wishing I could be listening to Out of Time instead. And oh, I know many think that's far from being their best album, but maybe one day I will get to write about it.

Day 122 Back in the day I couldn't care less about acid house and rave culture. It was only recently that I became curious about it all and started digging back and checking out some of that scene records; some of them became part of my collection, some others went on to become part of my never ending wantlist. Now according to my wantlist I already heard Utd. State 90, which is kind of the US version of this album. I must have heard that in 2017/2018; my hearing has changed since: I now seem to struggle with much music that was originally mastered for CD and this doesn't have to do with genres but with audio quality, a certain brightness of sort. In short, I'd probably like the music on this album a lot but I can't handle the recording, it causes an increase in the buzzing in my ears. It is sad really because it is an interesting album, full of poly rhythms instead of the insisting beat on the third, with some scratching, some wah wah funky effects, and a lot more going on; I can also hear its influence on the 90s scene that was about to explode a few years later, especially Dig Your Own Hole by the Chemical Brothers, which by the way doesn't bother me as much. Also, it would have been nice to include Cübik, included the US version, which in turn adds more tracks and loses The Fat Shadow, which I don't think is necessarily a filler. Rating: the whole square, minus a drop.

Day 123 I didn't know anything about Donald Fagen and I learned he was in Steely Dan, another band I know nothing about. I also read that this was the first album completely recorded in digital technology, which probably explains the smooth, slick texture. But jazz-pop or whatever you might call it is not a genre I might be interested in. Not to say it's bad, and it's not that I disliked it either, it's just that I don't really care about it as much; I guess this is one of those that might grow on me given the time and work, but do I need to? Who knows!