My first album on the user submitted list is a admittedly a dud. Sure this is super polished modern pop music, and I can say that it is that. But beyond that I can't say much, there is nothing here that catches me the way pop music should. I think Harry is obviously very talented but I have always felt like he plays it safe and holds back when it comes to his songs. This is all pretty forgettable.
I am only familiar with earlier Teenage Fanclub and this had an unexpected different feel to it. Not as noisy and rough around the edges as the earlier stuff, but a much brighter and janglier power pop. Not to say one is better than the other as Teenage Fanclub just crafts excellent songs. Really enjoyed hearing a different side of them, and really enjoyed this record.
Firmly in the guitar driven indie rock of the early 90s. I have always heard Polvo was worth listening to so was intrigued to see this pop up. Sounds exactly out of the time and place it came from. Inventive and interesting, but also a bit more brittle and artful than the heavy hitting guitar driven indie rock bands from the same time. Regardless, I enjoyed this enough, Polvo seems cool.
I had never heard of this band which is not surprising given that they seem like a pretty niche regional 90s funk band. I am not a good judge of what is good and what isn't when it comes to funk, as it's never really spoke to me. I'm sure this is good as far as 90s funk, but it's not for me.
I think in the 2010 post punk genre, this stands out as super solid. A great representation of that time and style for sure. Really enjoyed this.
Probably one of the quintessential dub albums out there. Feels like it's just cooked in to everything that's come since. Excellent record.
Had never heard of this artist at all. More fun and moved a bit more than I was expecting when I saw the "Dream Pop" genre affixed with it. I enjoyed this for sure.
This album is pure dreamy bedroom indie pop, and it's also super long. It's good for sure, but not really my thing, and it drags on a bit too long.
I saw Billy Squier open for Styx and Bad Company when I was in high school probably 25 years ago now. Styx was incredible and at this point I don't remember much else from that show. This album at the same time seems to be entirely familiar and entirely ordinary. I feel like I have heard of all of these songs so many times, but they all sound kind of the same, and just kind of sound like ubiquitous inoffensive rock music from the late 70s/early 80s.
I first heard this band on the original list, and this album did nothing to change my understanding of them, but just further enhanced it. I liked this album even less because of that. I get why people love this stuff, it sounds like an amalgamation of Tom Petty, Bob Dylan, and Bruce Springsteen to me, with some Paul Simon thrown in there. Just straight boring heartland rock tropes. Not for me at all, but it's pleasant and very safe and non-confrontational.
Definitely have been aware of Fontaines D.C. for a bit but hadn't checked them out yet. Decent and fun enough. Kind of some more poppy shoegaze. I enjoyed this quite a bit.
This felt like a pretty middle of the road forgettable catchy indie album from the 2010s. A dime a dozen for sure.
With this shitty art work I assumed this was the debut album from blink-182. Was surprised to learn that wasn't the case. This is definitely a bit different than what I know them for, but different does not equate to better. This was a slog and entirely forgettable.
I used to be very in to Bad Religion when I was teenager, and it's been forever since I've listened to them. That melodic 90s punk hits so right. Really enjoyed this. A classic album for sure.
I always assumed this group was like a bluegrass jam band. I don't know why, maybe just a generalization based on the type of people that I thought were in to them. This is definitely some crunchy fusion jazz though. Not my cup of tea by any means, but they are obviously talented and great at what they do.
I have never listened to Bon Iver before and this is more or less what I expected, but man is it so much worse than I would expected. This type of music just brings up so many negative connotations with that time and scene. Even trying to contextualize it is difficult, I understand he may have been early on with this before it became more ubiquitous, but it just feels so pretentious and empty to me. I just can't.
Everything about this just evokes such a specific time and place that I want nothing to do with. This whole vibe is just so empty and vapid. I can't take this seriously.
I had always assumed I would not like The Avett Brothers, no real reason why. Figured this would come up on this user list, since people seem to like them. I see this was produced with the guiding hand of Rick Rubin which already makes me skeptical. This was fine I guess, felt pretty hallow and empty and forgettable, but pleasant.
This has been in my backlog for a bit, and I had been holding out since it seems very much not for me and I figured it'd be a slog. All of that proved to be true. This was rough, long, and a slog to get through. Not great at all.
This was a hard album to find, but it was truly a gem. Beautiful music and a beautiful voice. Thanks for the introduction.
Very ridiculous and over the top Heavy Metal. Did not know anything about this group. Funny they are connected with Trans-Siberian Orchestra. This was about what I expected, fun and inconsequential.
I was a college kid in the early 2000s, so obviously I have a lot of experience with Blackalicious just being played in the background a lot. It seems fairly ubiquitous in that time and place. That being said, Blackalicious has always been sweet and always been something I enjoyed. It was nice listening to an album separate from that context. Good stuff for sure.
It's obvious immediately that this is a concept album. It's has an ambition and maturity that extends beyond being great pop music. A great listen for listen, if I was going to like a Beyoncé album it would probably be this one.
I had it set in my head that my submission to this list would be Super æ. The day I finished this was among the 5 most recently added albums to the user list, so I abandoned that.
I definitely prefer more the spacey trance vibe of Super æ and Vision Creation Newsun, but this album rules so much. Stoked Boredoms are on this list regardless.
Midwest hardcore from the 2000s. This was about what I was expecting it would be. It was fine.
An easy 5 stars. Probably the most universally agreed upon omission from the original list. Egregious to say the least.
This album is nearly perfect, it was huge, had a massive effect on a generation of music afterwards. It's kind of impossible to overstate how important this album. And on top of that it's long been one of my favorite albums. There were so many second and third albums from artists that were questionable to be on the list to begin with. This album's omission kind of undermines any legitimacy of the original list to begin with.
Anyway, I listened to this on vinyl and listened to it loud, like I have done countless times in the last 30 years.
Emo isn't really my thing. It wears on me a bit. This was fine, definitely not my jam, but it was okay to listen to.
This is certainly a modern dance pop album, which means it certainly did not hit for me.
Scottish indie pop band from the early 2000s I have never heard. This was enjoyable enough, felt like they so many songs were on the verge of being great, but not quite there. Overly long record as well.
Definitely not what I was expecting. Much more eclectic and interesting than I assumed it would be.
A very chill and dreamy shoegaze record from the 90s. Good enough for sure.
British hip hop. Surprised this wasn't on the original list since seemingly getting shortlisted for the Mercury Prize seems to guarantee inclusion. This was fine.
Never cared to try to get in to this band. I enjoyed this more than the album of theirs that is on the list proper, but this type of indie folk rock revival is not for me.
Surprised that this wasn't on the original list. A classic album anyway you slice it. Roky was the best.
This seems like it's maybe a decade too late. Some chamber sounding indie pop for sure. Not really my thing, but interesting enough I guess.
Had never heard of this, and both this artist and album do not have Wikipedia pages, so I wasn't expecting much. But this was excellent. Great flow, sounded like something from early 1990s rather than early 2000s. Really enjoyed this. Great selection!
Thrilled that someone added Arthur Russell to this list. A singular and phenomenal talent. Love this album and everything he did.
I have never checked out Childish Gambino before. This was more interesting than I expected it would be. Very eclectic and genre blending. Really enjoyed it.
This is pop music and is pretty inconsequential. The mix on this feels so buried. Some catchy songs for sure. But this isn't it.
This dude just seems like a poor man's Elvis Costello, which is definitely not a good thing.
Nothing all that interesting here aside from it being in Swedish.
This was a great album, really enjoyed this on a lazy morning with my coffee.
Another Boards of Canada album was on the original list, and I didn't know anything about them previous to hearing that. I enjoyed that record enough as being something that was not offensive and not all that great, and serves as a great thing to put on as background music. I feel about the same with this one. Nothing all that interesting.
Undeniably a great album from a great talent. I think this is probably one of the better additions to the user list.
I am not super familiar with They Might Be Giants, though I did have tickets to see their cancelled show a couple days after 9/11. I was skeptical because it was more recent, but this was awesome in all the right ways. Great record and I enjoyed it a ton.
Super classic outlaw country. A wonderful listen on a lazy weekend morning.
I am not sure if the user list will have anything that’s more of a sure fire 5 stars for me than this album. I had it on my shortlist to submit once I finished, but was beaten to it. One of my all time favorites.
The melodic post hardcore screamo stuff is definitely not for me, but I always appreciate the energy and conviction behind it, and also always appreciate how short it is. No complaints about this.
This was a truly ridiculous inclusion. Progressive metal at its most over the top. Fun for a bit for sure, but so ridiculous.
Had never heard of this, and was not particularly looking forward to it after looking into it and also seeing how long it was. This was honestly great. Spose is obviously super talented and super eclectic, this album just grooved pretty hard and I really enjoyed it. I wouldn't call it essential and it is too long, but with a lot more obscure inclusions on the user generated list, so far this is one the better albums I've listened to.
Post hardcore is not really for me, and I wasn't thrilled with the long runtime on this, but I ended up enjoying this quite a bit. Settled in nicely.
A truly beautiful recording. An excellent and essential jazz record.
I have heard the Vampire Weekend name forever but don't think I had ever (knowingly) heard them or could explain what they sounded like. This was very bad, and I'm a bit disappointed that I couldn't have just maintained not being exposed to this band, but here we are. I guess at the very least, at least this album was short?
Every aspect of this was painful and grating to get through. It sounds like some shitty early 2000s pop punk band trying to be a metal band. At least it was well over an hour long.
I guess kudos for selecting an obscure band from an overlooked time frame within an underrepresented genre of music. Aside from that, there is not much else that is redeeming about this.
An excellent example of early electronic music. It reminds me of Giorgio Moroder. I was unfamiliar with this, but this is an excellent release. An EP worthy of inclusion on a list of albums.
Absolutely loved this, so dreamy, what a vibe.
Very much sounds like a watered down Pink Floyd, lacking the urgency the full band was able to create. I lean more towards the David Gilmour contributions to that band than Roger Waters. This was interesting enough I guess. I guess I've just never cared to explore what any of those guys have done outside of Pink Floyd.
Super solid and enjoyable Argentinian rock from the 80s. Better than I was expecting, and kudos for something outside the box.
I guess this was fine. It was a long live album, and I'm not sure anyone ever needs another one of those in their life. Joe Cocker is sweet enough though.
This had a good groove for sure. Different and interesting enough and not too long. Nice album to listen to on a weekend morning.
Sounds like a generic overproduced commercial R&B music. Which I know that hits the spot for some people. This is not for me.
As far as 60s British music that hasn't had a lasting impact, this is an album that enjoyed more than others. Obscure 60s psych that contains all the best elements of The Kinks and the The Zombies. This album was great.
We do not need so many prog metal albums on this list.
Definitely do not need this.
Completely unfamiliar with this artist, but man what an incredible record. This is the type of thing that makes this list and exercise worthwhile. Easy 5 stars.
Just an absolutely beautiful jazz record.
Absolutely no interest in Metalcore.
About as middle of the road as you can get.
Very middle of the road. Sounds like tons of stuff already on this list.
About as good as I could have expected. Blends a lot of genres and the massive wall of sound is so calming. Exceeded my expectations for sure.
I mean an incredible "debut" solo album from one of the all timers, with some of his most iconic songs. Great album all around.
For how much Pink Floyd was on the original list, it's absolutely to ridiculous to consider this to have been missed. 90s era Pink Floyd just isn't it. This is too perfect and calculated and empty and incomplete, and far too long. I guess I'm happy to say I was able to slog through this thing, but this is a hard no.
This is the exact brand of 2010s indie rock that I find uninteresting and boring.
I caught the first 10 minutes of this band at a fest in 2019 without knowing them, and my friend and I decided they'd be a great band to skip to get some food from the food carts. They've blown up a lot since then, and I don't really get it. This is the first time I have listened to one of their records. It's fine for sure, but man it just seems so mellow and boring--nothing wrong with it being mellow and quiet, it's just surprising to me that they've blown up as much as they have. Did not enjoy at this all.
I do not need this melodic hardcore music.
I have a lot of respect for King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard. I saw them play in a small venue in 2013 before they started to explode and the show was incredible. I definitely cannot keep up with their albums, a bit too proggy (and frequent) for me, but love what they do. This was enjoyable enough to listen to.
I can see how this would be a great album for it's genre but it doesn't do anything for me.
I was not expecting to love this album as much as I do. What a debut. Brilliant songwriting with a resonate energy that feels right at home in the long storied history of Irish troubadours. It feels very working class and very tender and articulate at the same time.
Psychedelic trance for sure. As far as EDM goes there is plenty worse to listen to than this. So within that genre this was great, but in general, definitely not.
I have never had any interest in listening to this record. It was fine I guess, but certainly feels like the rest of the band sans David Byrne trying to keep something alive that wasn't anymore. These songs feel out of place and out of time, and feel more like a compilation than a fully formed album. Not great at all.
A fun proggy art pop album from a band I have never heard of. Some of this was a lot of fun and I was left with some parts stuck in my head for the rest of the day. Enjoyed it for sure.
Man this was so bad and so tough to get through. Seems like music perfect for shopping while in a Target or some bullshit like that.
This was fine, certainly occupies it's own space. Slightly off kilter from what we usually get on this list which is a plus.
If this wasn't on this list I would have never known how much I don't need this.
Obviously Dolly Parton is incredible. I don't have all the context for different periods of her career or anything, and I'm not super familiar with her records, but this was just so enjoyable and lovely on a weekend morning.
This firmly fits in that boring and uninteresting world where EDM and pop music intersect. Too long as well.
This is very much my alley and very early in to this I was shocked I had never heard of this band before. That hyper literate lyrical approach and delivery remind me so much of Dave Berman. Absolutely loved this, what a treat.
A rare record on this list that at least makes sense. A highly influential band out of the mainstream produced by one of the best to do it. Raw a noisy and sounds great. Albini really capturing the best sound in the early 90s alt/noise rock scene. Thrilled this came up and was stoked to listen to it today.
Certainly an interesting and eclectic sound.
90s pop country is really not for me.
