A heartbreaking Five-star album from the legendary Nick Cave. And yet, I won't listen to it again anytime soon. I'll rarely put it on even if I want to hear Nick sing. Instant feels but the feels ain't good. This is not a record I enjoy but it's a record whose fragile beauty I recognize.
My dad had this record. I don't think he had any of their earlier albums until much later, but this one pierced his Led Zeppelin shield. At the time all of the lyrics on this record were basically over my head as a single digits earthling but the guitars sounded boss and the car was cool. Later I'll come to ZZ Top's Rio Grande Mud through a brilliant cover of Just Got Paid by some noise rockers who really should've named themselves better. The casual Texas objectification aside, Eliminator is a solid album and I can see why, along with the beards, these guys were a big enough deal that my POP! (as he prefers it stylized) would've picked it up.
I Wanna Be Adored is a great song that should've piqued my interest as a listener enough to check the album out right away. And yet, I never did. Maybe that was a good thing because there are also some duds on the record. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
In my home town everyone had the Complete Discography by the time we were up-and-coming punks. Minor Threat had been broken up for well over a decade and we already had Fugazi. But that never stopped me from feeling the impact of this band like a punch in the face. I loved them. I was straight-edge for some time due to this band. I hung out with anti-nazi skins and generally thought the D.C. scene was worth revisiting for inspiration. Hearing these songs in their "release" format is a treat. Did I just say "a treat"? Jeeze, I'm getting old. Well, that's the way it goes, isn't it? Yeah!
Some solid tracks where the whine was dialed down. Overall, their best moments were overshadowed by their worst.
This is the kind of album I want out of the project. I wasn't aware of the artist or this record. Overall sounds of the era. Well done.
Sarah Vaughan By Popular Demand. Everyone with performance anxiety should listen to this. It’s the imperfections that make art loveable.
Both spacious and focused. I own this which says a lot considering I am not a Floyd fan.
I've heard many of the singles, but never experienced "ALBUM ABBA". It's ok, I guess. The teacher song hasn't aged so well. Cringe. Otherwise decent record for this kind of music, which is not my thing.™
After three thrilling records, Elephant always felt flat to me. Senior Slump? I don't know but there are still enough stand out tracks that they pass. Listening to it again mostly confirms this for me. The good songs are really good and the ones that didn't grab me before haven't really appreciated over time.
The album gets off to a great start. Moody, dramatic and perfect for a drizzly September day. A couple of clunkers on the back half, but Joan of Arc is a good closer.
Initial hit of disco had me wondering, but this turned out to be an excellent salsa album—a genre I know next to nothing about. Great way to be introduced to this classic album.
An excellent record by the Fall. It's not the era I usually listen to of theirs (1980–1985) and so along with some of the usual Fall conceits it contained some surprises for me. Still, after a compelling start it ultimately suffers from the same illness as other records of theirs...just a song or two too long for me. This is a band whom I really enjoy but only about half a record at a time.
This is the first album I needed to listen to elsewhere which is a shame because this is exactly the kind of record I'd like to be able to fit into a streaming rotation while working. Blissed-out space-pulses. Definitely a mood though.
This has always been one of my favorite records by The Smiths. Shame about Morrissey's descent into the sewer of far-right fascism — it's more like Viva Johnny Marr at this point, eh.
I don't connect with the lyrics of the songs in all cases with Rod Stewart, but these records from the 70s have a nice sound. Perhaps, if the storytelling were different I'd be drawn to them more but alas that's not the case.
First record that's just not my thing at all. Woof. Very rare!
Aware of Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young — but not of this solo record. So good.
Hard to listen to Randy Newman's voice since his Pixar-related hit: You've got a Friend in Me...
One of my favorite records of all time. It was a great joy to see it show up for a Friday listen.
I was only really familiar with the first song. Overall not bad for Paul. :)
Great XTC songs are true gems to be admired, but there is a quality to most of their music that is best described as "circus-like" which I cannot stand. Both are present in this record.
Love the Dan.
Terrible album cover, great music. Second best Qotsa record?
Better than expected from the guy who cursed the world with the coconut song.
Ok for Lou Reed. Not too cringe.
The best moment on the album for me was when I heard "Worst Band in the World" for the first time. I immediately recognized it as the core of J. Dilla's classic "Workinonit" track from Donuts. I love that Dilla record, 10cc's album I like a lot less so.
Mothership Connection, indeed. Classic Parliament.
Sepultura ARISE!
It was a different time. Whenever I hear most Elvis songs I'm shocked at how popular I hear he was and that he caused so much outrage 50+ years of popular music and culture later he's just a crooner. Not a bad record, though.
Early Beatles…I can’t quite hear how they’ll become their more out there selves on this record and yet some of the White album is not too far away from this. A short, sweet pop record.
The blueprint for so much 90s rock.
I remember listening to this a long time ago and feeling like (the first track aside) it was mostly a waste of my time and attention...in that way, I guess this record endures? If I were able to revise history, I'd release this as a vinyl single with Sweat Loaf as the side A "hit" and back it on B with both the tracks Pittsburgh To Lebanon and The O-Men. Finally, if that were the case I'd be able to give the single version 4 out of 5 stars.
Not my favorite Stevie Wonder album, but it’s up there.
I’m familiar with a different record of theirs but only that. This was a good listen but removed from its context it felt unremarkable.
There’s maybe 2-3 tracks that I’d relegate to B-Sides for an otherwise brilliant record.
Having a couple of Scott Walker's late career efforts (which are perfectly fine) I thought I knew how I'd feel about this album before listening to it. Personally, I found this record more charming and enjoyable than those I own.
Chan Chan immediately feels like home after a long absence. I'd forgotten how much I love this music.
I bought this record ON CASSETTE as a young teen after reading a review in Thrasher magazine. At the time, I would never have predicted Björk would become a world-wide sensation. Instead, it was just a great college radio record from an obscure Icelandic band I read about in a magazine. None of their other records quite hit like this one for me and it still sounds fresh, sweet and a little creepy.
Familiar with a few of their well-known singles and such this record took a few extra listens to appreciate. I like funk, I like soul, but this flavor of funky soul wasn't quite my bag. Better than other stuff tho.
My second favorite Steely Dan album...although it's technically a better overall album experience than my first favorite which is purely about what Dan record I came to all on my own and not through anyone else's influence. This also has the better cover. I catch myself quoting snippets of these lyrics in daily life. All of this is to say that for a band I actively *hated* as a younger person, I ultimately fell for them and that's in no small part to this record.
Great beats, excellent flow on a lot of tracks, and distinct voices that work together as well as separately. Not all the lyrics speak to me directly, but I'm not the intended audience either. Solid entry. I'll return to it.
First notes with honkey tonk vibes. This record came out about 6 months after my sister was born. And, it feels old. Like maybe she felt at times before dying. Postcard on a yellow backdrop makes the cover: Greetings from L.A. An impossible dream — was that L.A. back then? It appears to already be a desert sprawl that fades into the horizon in 1972. All I know about Tim Buckley is that he's the father of Jeff Buckley who lasted maybe five years more on this earth. How to even listen to this record without all this baggage? Some guy goes to a tavern and talks up a healthy girl with an invitation to move with him. He's so charismatic he's got backup singers, except I'm not buying. This record is for someone else stuck in a different time.
The Fall is off to a good start with their first studio album: Live at the Witch Trials. It feels fully formed and yet this record doesn't overstay its welcome like some later albums by the Fall. I wish they had made a habit of the brevity on display here.
This is the first Joni Mitchell album I ever heard in full. My partner introduced me to her and I might've made some fun of the voice in the beginning. (Hey, just like I'd do almost 10 years later but with Joanna Newsom.) But that move has always just been a cover-up — a kind of vestigial macho pose that's nearly inexplicable upon even a surface reflection. "You're a mean old Daddy but I like you..." And, California will make me cry on the right day. Despite Hejira being a thing, this is my forever Joni album now.
My dad had this record. I don't think he had any of their earlier albums until much later, but this one pierced his Led Zeppelin shield. At the time all of the lyrics on this record were basically over my head as a single digits earthling but the guitars sounded boss and the car was cool. Later I'll come to ZZ Top's Rio Grande Mud through a brilliant cover of Just Got Paid by some noise rockers who really should've named themselves better. The casual Texas objectification aside, Eliminator is a solid album and I can see why, along with the beards, these guys were a big enough deal that my POP! (as he prefers it stylized) would've picked it up.
A college friend of mine used to work in a pizza shop in downtown Portland back in the early 1990s. He told me that Elliott often came in with just barely enough change for a slice — and that some times he didn't even have enough. About five years after this, Elliott is in a white suit playing Miss Misery at the Oscars. And, maybe five years after that he's dead. The news struck us hard given all the obvious and incidental connections that come with some shared community. And yet, despite living in Olympia, WA in the 90s I missed the initial release of Roman Candle and the self-titled record but Either/Or was anticipated and it stuck. This record is my most listened to Smith album. If you're paying attention and know any of Smith's biography it's a painful record to listen to at times but even if you don't know those details it's a beautiful, flawed statement with enduring resonance. Many songs will bring me to tears and yet some of them I've sung to those I love.
In general I have mixed feelings about The Who. I think Live at Leeds is brilliant. And, John Entwistle and Keith Moon were one of the most compelling rhythm sections of their era. But there's also some facets of this band that I find frustrating and for whatever reason it feels like those things are fully manifest on The Who Sell Out despite my love of some of those songs when found elsewhere. My most thrilling moment of this daily listen was out of the gate recognizing that the beginning was sampled elsewhere. I've also never been a fan of little fiddly interludes and such. I just couldn't Buy In to this record.
My dad has this record, I heard it a few times in high school because it was one of his favorites so even though it's the 1990s this is blasting out of the speakers in our home. It's a good record to my ears still. I like the psych. And I probably got that from my POP. But also, you see, there's this Boris record Rainbow with guest guitarist Michio Kurihara who likened inspiration for his tone to the tone of the lead guitar on this record. And, all I have to say is that as good as Happy Trails is that Rainbow record slays it. So it's hard to not rate this one relatively and in that context.
Like many people I was introduced to this band through their second album, so it's a bit of discovery for me to hear this. And yet, this album has all of the things that I like about System of a Down on it as well as all the things I'm less fond of.
I was too young for this to be my first Van Halen album, but over time it has supplanted my introduction. When I listen to this record and understand it as a product of its time and place I'm impressed with how fresh the music sounds and how dated many of David Lee Roth's themes and lyrics are. With that out of the way, this is a ripper, it slaps, etc. All the performances on this record are tight and energetic. The tone is quintessential Van Halen and therefore much of 80s hard rock. Is it any coincidence that Running with the Devil kicks off this record? —I think not (and it's my daily drop on Oct 31, no less).
Mariah Carey's music is not my thing, but this record is mostly listenable at low volume. I don't find it compelling but the production and vocals are smooth. That said, in listening to this I've found that it's best if I turn it down to the level of background music. Furthermore, if given any kind of choice, even from the same genre, I'd choose something else.
Decent proto-punk, but unremarkable other than how early it appeared? Sometimes it's hard to hear the significance of a thing on first listen when the gulf of time is so wide between then and now. For me, this record is one of those times.
Anything after Green I associate with my Mom. I know people want to talk about Dad rock, but I'm here to lobby for Mom rock. I find this record as well as Out of Time to be among the best examples of this genre that she's founded through her casual and not too critical listening habits. Thanks Mom.
I don't know anything about Pulp and I refuse to look at the Wikipedia entry before writing this review. This records sounds like some kind of 90s Brit-Pop band. Not as snotty-forward as Oasis and maybe a little less obvious than Blur, but definitely more mainstream sounding than bands from the shoegaze scene. But this record also feels like it's pointing ahead — showing the way for bands from elsewhere (geographically) and elsewhen (the future). Like reverse resonances or pre-echos of The Arcade Fire, Wolf Parade, The National, and that one that neither of us can think of the name of right now but is on the tip of our tongues...you know, they were big in the aughts.
Unexpectedly, this album holds a special place in my heart after all these years. They effectively came out of nowhere for me. I didn't have a lot of influencer friends or radio hyping them up before this dropped. I never saw Portishead live. I don't think I even bought this record until 10 years after hearing it. And yet, this album was such a soundtrack to our college lives at the time. Even for someone like myself who, then, identified as a quasi straight-edged punk and post-punk enthusiast drenched in Northwest Grunge and Washington DC DIY. DUMMY takes me places now that are more than the sum of its parts and greater than what's on wax, and yet this recording is cognitively sticky and resilient. Instant feels from within the source as well as all this external evocation.
My, my, my Mike Watt listening runs more Minutemen than fIREHOSE though I did Fly the Flannel back in the day. Still you can see how this particular record fROMOHIO is a wonderful bridge between eras for Watt but also for maybe some college radio heads in the late 80s and early 90s. You can just hear a kid from Arkansas or anywhere shift effortlessly from praising R.E.M's Green to this album.
Old enough to remember the Pixies breaking up, and yet, despite my love of Come on Pilgrim, Surfer Rosa, and Doolittle I didn't track Frank Black after the breakup. Fast-Forward five years to a friend forcing this album on me saying Frank Black deserves my attention. Looking back I'm surprised Mr. Black didn't track right after the breakup. The first 2/3 of this record is right up my alley. Really, it's only at song #21 that I start to think this thing has gone on a little too long. And then BOOM! it's over at the end of song #22. So there you go. Maybe if he had released four fewer songs in 94, I would've been converted. As it stands, I still saw Frank Black and the Catholics in 1999 after that same friend had put the CD in my hand as a hook to get me to buy a ticket to the show. Lots of these songs were played and played well. The record still holds up here on an abstract plain at the end of 2022.
Harmonica hurts at high volume. Caution for Queen Jane Approximately and a few other tracks. How do I know? Because I was otherwise enjoying this old Bob Dylan record at near max levels. Then that eardrum piercing shrill hit hard. There isn't much else I'm going to say about this record that'll convince you one way or the next about Bob Dylan. For me, listening to this guy came with so much baggage that I couldn't really hear the merits for such a long time, but now I can truly revisit Highway 61 Revisited and enjoy some of the trip.
I think this was the first NEU! album I ever heard and it was one that I bought outright on a whim without hearing first. Just pre-internet faith in a record being good based on the reputation of the person making the recommendation. A certain mood, good for a rainy fall day but also with enough pulse to work or study too. Sometimes I get a little distracted during the ocean waves and wander off but the album closes strong. Not ground-breaking by the time I heard it, but good enough to return to frequently.
I can't remember the first Hookworms track I heard but it was streaming era randomness—which is to say either partly or wholly governed by the algorithm. It felt like just a song on a playlist somewhere in the Spotify Sea. Off the coast of Wherever, it was enough to make me look into them. I've been a casual fan since. It must be hard for bands with casual fans. I never bought any merch, never bought an album, never supported them by going to a show or sending a few dollars their way. Essentially, I streamed a song or two with some regularity, probably threw one of them onto a playlist mix that I listened to for a month before forgetting it, maybe listened to a few albums at the outset during the discovery phase. And what's that amount to in terms of financial viability? A few pennies here and there from me. I understand platform math and the long tail and how things can add up. But they don't always. I also understand the money isn't what drives most music, but they got to eat too. Anyway, I hope these guys who were around from 2010 to 1028 understand. I liked them then and now. And I really like this record. It's definitely in that sweet spot for me of psychedelic, fuzzy, synthy rock. Some tracks step into the pop realm more than I might prefer but it feels holistic to the band. It doesn't feel like a coincidence that it's Neu! 75 for me one day, and Hookworm's Microshift for me the next. They, along with Maserati/Turing Machine, sound like kin to my ears. And, the kind of family you want to hang with. Not some annoying cousin who you wish would stay home. -- Note: Of course, this is one of the dangers of casual fandom: You might not ever know about if or when someone has been a creep. And, that just might come to light after hearing their record on 1001albumsgenerator.com and writing a positive (unedited) review only to check out the wikipedia after the record closes but before your new album is up.
Some beautiful tracks on this record, but (and not knowing its history) it really feels like a cashout album. By this I mean, at the height of someone's popularity they put a record out that is more about them performing some songs to sell records. A quick win. Less substantive than an album whose total experience is some kind of artistic accomplishment. Willie Nelson has had those in his long career, I'm sure. But Stardust is not one of them. It's a good listen. Easy on the ears and charming. On occasion it delivers real feels, but it also feels forgettable as an album even if some of the tracks are quite memorable e.g. Stardust and Georgia on My Mind.
A heartbreaking Five-star album from the legendary Nick Cave. And yet, I won't listen to it again anytime soon. I'll rarely put it on even if I want to hear Nick sing. Instant feels but the feels ain't good. This is not a record I enjoy but it's a record whose fragile beauty I recognize.
When your mind merges Heavens to Betsy and Excuse 17 into Heaven 17 you are abruptly shocked by this record more than you deserve to be. It says something about how expectations shapes our response to what we perceive. Now to get down to my experience of this record after the initial shock. It reminds me of a cross between Depeche Mode and Gang of Four. Quite possibly this record is the average of those two bands. That's another way of saying when I hear this, it reminds me to listen to records I like better.
Solomon Burke's Rock 'N Soul did not surprise or shatter any expectations but it's a solid entry in his catalogue.
With apologies to Jeff Beck's legacy, this isn't my vibe.
After listening to (a low rated) album of the day yesterday I mentioned that sometimes you just need a different concept of the song. It doesn't necessarily need to stray too far outside of the bounds of tradition, but it also shouldn't cloyingly cling to it either. This record is almost an expression of something else, but still hews a bit too close. At least it was a welcome relief of sorts. Today's rating might be some kind of relative recency bias based off of reacting to yesterday. But what does that tell anyone about what this even sounds like? The album is a mix of soundscapes colored in an industrial palette all cut with drum and bass beats. The record is a little overlong with some tracks feeling aimless at times, but more enjoyable than I would've thought at first glance.
Some times there’s not enough time to write a review that says, “This album was alright.”
I never liked this New Order record compared to nearly all that came before. For me this was album that firmly signaled the end. All the pathos that made their brand of pop more interesting was finally fully drained. Being a New Order record that’s still 3 out of 5 stars.
Do you ever feel like this album is the B-Sides to Stevie's Seventies hit records? As in Talking Book, Innervisions, and Songs in the Key of Life are all the stronger albums? A feeling that Fulfillingness' First Finale is the weakest of them all? I sometimes get that feeling. Of course, a Stevie B-side of an album is still strong. Lots to love here. I bet someone could flip this analysis on its head and say that this is a stronger record overall despite it not having some of the same "standout" singles as the others. And you know, I'd entertain that theory. I'd listen to that person. They just might have a point. So much so, that I'd look hard into the mirror myself and ask if that person could be me on a different day.
Hearing Dead Kennedys for the first time as a pre-teen Skate kid is one thing. Revisiting in middle-age is another. This band was my template for punk for some time to come—more than than the Ramones or the Sex Pistols. This wasn't the record I first heard (that was Frankenchrist) but it was a fast-follow. Some classic tracks here that have undeniable potency still. But it also lacks a depth I would soon crave in my music back then and still do to this day. In that way, I find this record lacking.
Thriller was the killer app for Michael Jackson for my generation, but this record is the one I reach for now when I want to revisit his music. This record still sounds fresh. I can hear this album in the likes of Louis Cole's music now which is to say its impact is felt over a span of more than 40 years. That's reach.
So yeah the Nineties and Epitaph Records equals Bad Religion to me. I was into Bad Religion in particular and punk in general enough to buy other releases from Epitaph around this time, but I never got into OFFSPRING. The track Come Out and Play meant you couldn't really escape them at the time. It just wasn't for me then. A little too pop and a little too slick but this was a time (teenage years) when you'd cut a band from your listen list for even a sliver of deviation from your personal aesthetics and ideals. Saying OFFSPRING wasn't for me then just means they were one of many bands who had some serviceable songs and reasonable records that I just rejected outright. Listening again, the vocals are overstrained and mixed a little too high for my taste but at least I can acknowledge it's not a terrible record. (Let's not overstate the case for this being a good album though, there are some clunkers on here.) Honestly, I wouldn't have gone in for a project like 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die back then. I couldn't suffer it. What does it say about me now that I can? Expanded my appreciation of music or gone soft?
An important Record. Certainly Revolutionary for some. Captain Beefheart is the Lewis Carroll of rock. But for me at this time in my life it's a bit extra in a way that I'm less interested in now than I was in my more avant garde hungry days. The rest of this review will now be written in how the music feels: Skronkly and woggly time and word a disheveled stumble bumble of nonsense no sense make sense fake sense in this wild life — needle notes and conscripted toots. Stop. Go! Time to be brave! Hit record. Drive a ford across a fjord. Clever boi.
Some backward guitar and a BOOM. Life is a mystery. Everyone must stand alone. I hear you call my name. And, it feels like...home. This isn't Madonna the outrageous or Madonna the classy vogue icon. This is middle Madonna to me. And, while some of the tracks are middling at best there are one or two standout pop songs. Unfortunately, the song with Prince on it is a disappointment and the album closes terribly as well. This wasn't the soundtrack to my youth, but I can get a little hit of nostalgia from some of it. It sounds way more 80s than a record coming out in 1989 should.
This album opens like an edgy, yet glum 90s movie. Small wonder that Into My Arms has made its way onto actual soundtracks. While I prefer my Nick Cave to be in The Birthday Party, this is a solid listen. It's more down and less out than other things of his, but it's good for a mood.
Moods. Blue. Indigo. Amber. Twinkling city lights in the distance. Smoky mist reflecting in a slick city puddle. Frank crooning in the background. It's practically a cliche both in image and in sound at this point. I guess for someone else, for another listener, what is cliche to me is classic to them.
Crisp production that nods slightly to earlier work but sheds so much of the 80s baggage it's almost a new band. I was surprised by this record. An album I would've never given any thought to listen if it wasn't for this project. The opening track sets the mood and my expectations. The rest of the album delivers on that. This simple thing is really quite indicative of whether or not I'll continue to enjoy a record, regardless of genre, that's been put on for the first time. The song April 5th downshifts the record too much in its current sequence. I'd be inclined to sequence it differently. If the last song wasn't slightly over 8 minutes, I think it could've been last. But then where do you put Time It's Time. So hard to make a perfect record unless you delete a song or two sometimes. Perhaps that's what this record needed to rate a little higher.
I was so happy to hear Tracey Thorn from Everything but the Girl on the first song. She has a voice that gets me every time. This opener is so good, and yet the second song Karmacoma is not my thing. I could barely make it through the track. This is the opposite of what yesterday's record did so well: Announce itself, set expectations and then proceed to deliver on them organically. The trick is to both show difference in each song on the one hand and yet to have enough of a through line, on the other, that the listener experiences a cohesive statement when taking things in as a whole. Massive Attack's Protection does not do this. It has a few good songs scattered about or intermingled with some duds. And then, to top it off, there is that terrible Light My Fire cover at the end. Is this the worst Massive Attack record out there? I don't know because I've never been a major fan. Mezzanine is fantastic though. A true classic. And, it's the record that follows this one.
Lust for Life is a great opening track and this record has The Passenger on it as well. Lesser artists would be lucky to land these two tracks alone. Furthermore, there are other solid tracks here: Sixteen, Some Weird Sin, Success, Neighborhood Threat are among my other favorites. All strung together with enough of the Stooges vibe to remind you of his proto-punk roots and that also keep some of the Bowie influences in check. You might say, when would that ever be a good thing? Bowie is a genius. And yet, I'd argue for Iggy Pop leaning a little more Stooges only makes the Bowie bits shine more. To me, it feels more integrated and balanced as an Iggy Pop record than The Idiot for instance. The closing track Fall in Love with me runs a little long and I start to lose my patience with the album when that happens. I'm always slightly unnerved by the photo of Iggy grinning at me like some bad year book picture, but I've also figured that was the point.
Hey! I have heard this record so many times I cannot hear it new again. These are now the songs a grandma brought back from the shore. But The Pixies hit me at an impressionable time. I can remember seeing the video for Here Comes Your Man on MTV at 15. Not too long after that I had both Surfer Rosa and Doolittle. I remember hearing that they might break up and being shook when it happened after Trompe le Monde despite thinking that album was already weak by comparison. I moved on pretty quickly what with it being my teenage years but those first few records stayed in rotation and really never fell out of it. From Debaser to Gouge Away you'll get no complaints. Rock me, Joe.
Historically I have struggled to find The Rolling Stones to be worth my time when it comes to listening to one of their records. As a younger person who was influenced by my POP's record collection in the beginning, I appreciated the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix and many others from the jump. The Stones were the band from that era I trashed consistently. Over time I've been able to appreciate more of the music and a few of Mick Jagger's best performances. This record has a couple of tracks that I enjoyed; they were: Brown Sugar and Wild Horses. And so I give this record one star for posterity and a star for each song I could dig.
What can I say? But I have no cred. I liked this much more than yesterday's offering by the Rolling Stones. Am I a tired of it by the appearance of Wipeout? Yes, I am. Did most of it serve a groove and fulfill the promise of the opening track? Indeed. Does it rate higher than the aforementioned Rolling Stones record? Probably not, but only because we don't do half stars here. If we did, this would beat Sticky Fingers by half a star.
First reaction. Aw yeah! But then I forget that there's like 1:44 before anything of substance kicks in. I've never been a fan of skits on albums in anything but the comedy genre and the first track cuts a little close to that experience. There's a critique to be made of the lyrical content of this record, etc. but I'm not the audience Raekwon is speaking to, nor am I the content police today. When I focus on the delivery, the flow and beats I enjoy the album. I think I own it, even. But therein lies an ambivalence. It's not a record I return to with any kind of frequency anymore. It was never "a favorite" either, it's always been a Wu-Tang-along for me.
Rebirth of the CASH. How many times has Johnny Cash been brought low and Risen again? Enough to never count him out and yet, when this record hit I was in a place where I really had counted him out. This album was a Revelation at the time. I return to it from time to time. It'll give your shivers if you take the time to listen close.
My mother loved Elvis. You could go so far as to say that for a time she was obsessed with him. Evidence being a life-sized cardboard cutout of Elvis standing in our kitchen among many other representations of him in memorabilia, e.g. Elvis clock, wallpaper, plates, etc. As you might imagine, I've heard a few Elvis songs and seen some Elvis movies in my time. This record has some okay songs, but nothing that really stands out as an amazing Elvis track. Too be honest, for me the best thing about this record is the typography on the cover and even that isn't the best of its era.
A couple of tracks you'd probably know as growing up somewhere in North American and sometime between the record's release and whenever they became so unfashionable that not even the dads want to hear it. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ The record struck me as heavier than expected although it's not really heavy once you venture outside of pop music. Sexual politics are a bit cringe, of course. Overall, not my thing but I've heard worse.
This band seemed to come From Out of Nowhere for me when this album hit. I wasn't familiar with the Chuck stuff that came before this record until well after it. Probably like a lot of other kids who were in different, or even in my case, adjacent music scenes it was the Epic single and accompanying "goldfish" video that was our introduction. Overall, I like this record well enough — there are a few undeniably great tracks — and I thought Angel Dust was an improvement but I could never get into the band 100%. I always wanted them to be heavier, darker, more aggressive, and less "jokey". Another way to say it in the context of this album is that I enjoy it when it's heavier, darker, more aggressive, and less "jokey" than it sometimes is. It's another record that makes me wish I had half-stars to hand out. In this case, I'm inclined to rate it higher on the whole stars...
I'd never listened to the whole record from Sister Sledge but, like most, was familiar with the album's title track We Are Family through all kinds of media. Taken as a whole this is a solid entry into the disco funk genre. I enjoyed it a good deal for what it was. And, this record makes no bones about what it thinks are its best songs, from titling the album after one of them to other clues. For example, I listened to the 1995 remaster which adds as bonus tracks 2 additional remixes of We Are Family and 2 more Lost in Music remixes as well. Some unevenness is forgiven and, in all honesty, I think this record is also responsible for the band Deee-lite like a decade later.
A Christmas Gift For You From Convicted Murderer Phil Spector is an anthology of Christmas songs. As is evidenced in the title it is produced by Phil Spector who is not to be celebrated. And yet, this record was made before the murders and performed by artists who also very likely find Phil's later life to be a tragedy all the way around. If Christmas is your thing, it's a great collection of holiday songs—many of which have become classics. So, 5 Stars for the music minus 4 stars for Phil Spector spoiling this album's legacy.
Sure. Okay it’s ok. Boogie Wookiee is a phrase that combines some old form of Rock n Roll with spellcheck.
Thank you Beck. Sorry about your breakup with your longtime girlfriend, but this is a wonderful, and sometimes sad, album.
A return—did it somehow feel like less than we'd hoped for? Maybe that would always have been the case given they went out on a perfect album. To me it seemed like the band hadn't changed much with this record but the world certainly had.
Boys in bikinis! Girls on surfboards! Some things last a long time. To be honest, Fred Schneider‘s actual vocals are my least favorite thing about the band’s music. His lyrics are fun, the camp vibes alongside surfy, rock and roll vamps make for a joyful listen. Fred’s nasal delivery is just a little grating at times. I’ll take the bad with the good when it comes to the B-52s. Instant alien beach party.
Heaven is a truck that got stuck on the freeway…
Not bad, but I enjoy other records of theirs more.
A couple of duds but overall this record slaps.
Got the feels.
Letter grade: C-
While Pink Moon is likely to be the most popular track, the album overall is a vibe.
Check out the olds here: I first heard Sheela-Na-Gig on the local college radio station KGRG 89.9 FM broadcast from Green River Community College in Auburn, WA before I graduated high school. The DJ introduced PJ Harvey as something like a "female fronted Fugazi" which after hearing the song felt both accurate and totally off. That aside, I was completely floored by the song and picked up DRY as soon as possible. And now I'm just another long-time fan of PJ Harvey whose amazing voice, artful song craft, and impassioned bravado has never fell out of fashion with me.
Hippies in the Garage! Not bad as a whole, but I suspect I'd appreciate this album more if I had listened to it in 4-5 song sessions over time. It's just a little over long for me today.
Notes of this and that...overall too diverse sonically for my ear to get a hold of it in any kind of satisfying way. I took to the more shoegaze and aggressive elements, but other parts less so. For an album named Vanishing Point there's a surprising lack of focus.
This album sits on the border between a two-star hell and a three-star hell. Today is Meat Loaf's lucky day with me.
My favorite Pixies album. Start to finish this album delivers. I don't even mind the interstitial skits that much.
I don't tire of CCR in the way that I often do with other music from this generation. The standout classics Born on the Bayou and Proud Mary appear on this record and most of the other songs are only one whole or half-step in quality from that. I'm not saying the record is without a clunker or two...
My Dad had the Touch tape in his truck so I'd say we were primed for this record as a house when it dropped. And yet, only the single Sweet Dreams made its way in. Hearing this record now, most of the songs are unfamiliar to me. Of course, the sound and vibe are all familiar through hearing the Eurythmics as well as many other bands who were trying to catch that 80s synth-wave lightning in a bottle. I'm not particularly captivated by it here but it's totally listenable. An extra star added to this review for the song Sweet Dreams alone.
An almost 5 star record, but surely each of these 4 stars are drawn upside-down and in a circle. Through cultural osmosis I had an opinion about Black Sabbath well before I heard a song from them, let alone a full album. I would eventually get into Sabbath through the Paranoid record (a route I still recommend to others). I honestly can't imagine the impact of Black Sabbath the album when it came out in 1970, but if I have my Led Zepplin, Cream and Coven dates correct I feel like it was both revolutionary and totally expected. So, I try to set aside all the baggage and just listen to this record. Opening the record with some church bells and rain lets you know things are supposed to be ominous. Black Sabbath and the Wizard are the standout tracks for me personally. They're the two I'd always put on a Sabbath mix. Let's not let it pass by unremarked upon that Black Sabbath open Black Sabbath with Black Sabbath. There is a statement there. It is when things become mostly medium-paced rock with the occasional psychedelic, blues jam vibes that seem de rigueur for the day, that the album no longer feels special as the debut of such an influential band. But there's enough heaviness that the album isn't something you'd feel a need to renounce artistically, either. All in all, it starts impressively strong—making a case that this is a band to pay attention to—and settles into heavy jam-blandness at the end. Had things finished with a metal wallop as strong as it opened this would be a 5 star release. -- I listened to the 2014 remaster which is not what was linked above for Spotify (the 2009 remaster). It's worth making the adjustment for.
Listened to this twice today. But I never got into it. Maybe because I listened on a Thursday? It's not bad. Just not for me. Not even enough to write a real review. Bummer.
This GREY Area is comprised of ten tracks. Half the area is middling and the other half is stellar. It's like you take two opposing colors and mix them together with the result being kind of gray. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
What to say about this genre-hopping, somewhat sprawling 16 songs from one of the greatest songwriters of the era? There's easily an 8 to 10-song mix to be made for each kind of Prince fan out there that would perhaps serve them better than just taking this whole album in. Sexy Pop, Social Commentary, Party-Funk, low-key traditional singer-songwriter, you can have all this and more if you take it all in at once. This record feels made for a different attention span, a different media landscape, for people who are effectively trained to listen in a different way. What even is a "Two Disc Set", he asks rhetorically... In the end, it is Prince penning a few more classics in an album that was a Sign 'O' the Times and in many ways hasn't aged as well as some of his other work due to that fact. And finally, let's be real, Prince needed to be Prince lyrically for greatness to be achieved, for the gold to be struck. You take the good with the cornball writing that sometimes makes its way to tape when listening to him. You forgive the completely goofy lines because they created the space for him to tell the truth and cut to the core elsewhere in the song or maybe on another track entirely. This is one of the Prices of Prince we pay along the way. On a record like this it is even more apparent to me than others.
Time-warp to an era where you'd care to have an album spend two minutes introducing itself each and every time you put it on. Or, just skip that Intro and Theme track to get to that reverb-soaked crooning, brushes drumming, soft tinkling piano, and gentle guitar playing. Night Life's vibe is sedate honky-tonk, sad songs sung earnestly but with little urgency. It's a slow dance best reserved to be uncorked long after sundown.
I love this record. In particular I love the version of it that I have which includes the live recording of My Generation with John Cale. I've listened to this album numerous times and the thing that struck me this time around is that, while I truly enjoy this record I never went beyond it with Patti Smith. Sure, I've heard a few other tracks of her's here and there—things that would just be in the culture by her. But while this album is compelling, it did not elicit a curiosity or desire to hear more, different records from her. Was it complete enough in its own right? Does one just need a single Patti Smith record for life and this was mine? Did she draw me into her world in such a satisfying way I needed no more or did she not draw me into her world enough? It seems that I have more questions than answers with Horses.
More like DI-OFF, amirite? I know nothing about this album and wish that it could still be so after today. Sorry.
Wait, they don't love you like I love you. This wasn't my first YYY's record; I was lucky enough to be living in Brooklyn to get in on the first ep early. It was a real treat to see some of the shows and watch this band ascend. To watch them move beyond the Post-Punk Brooklyn thing was no surprise and, for me, it was this record that truly set them on this course.
Taylor Swift knows her way around a pop song. There are some real gems on this album and even her missteps land in the territory of okay. That said, there are some who might immediately dismiss this album based on genre alone. I can understand.
Murmur through Green — peak R.E.M. They put out like an album a year and it all started here with this one. It's not my all-time favorite of theirs but it holds up very well. It's a fine start from Radio Free Europe to West of the Fields. An amazing debut. I want to give it five stars because it sets the table for their career. I want to give it five stars because Mike Mills melodic bass playing and backing vocals are infectious. I want to give it five stars because Michael Stipe's lyrics and delivery are both equally expressive. I want to give it five stars because Bill Berry knows how to construct a beat that's effective in its economy. I want to give it five stars because Peter Buck's ringing tones and articulate arpeggios from this record haunt me to this day. Ok, I'll give it five stars.
Overall this record is pretty good. Not every song is a classic, but even the worst are not bad at all. There are a couple of things that occur here that are about and not about the record itself but they trace a thing so... That moment when you are listening to the album of the day and you recognize a song but know it best through the cover version. I hadn't heard this record by The Gun Club before despite some interest in overlapping contemporaries and the genre. So when For the Love of Ivy came on I recognized it immediately through the Japandroid's Celebration Rock record (which is five-stars fantastic). And, anyone who has listened to OFF! has probably heard the name "Jeffrey Lee Pierce" yelled by Keith Morris. All these resonances speak to the importance of the band in ways that maybe this album doesn't always deliver despite being a solid punk rock outing.
Being too young to be open minded, I wrote off Radiohead when Creep arrived. So I missed the Bends album when it dropped. I barely gave OK Computer a glance when it first came out also. It took some cajoling from family and friends to get me to re-appraise Radiohead. I'm glad they cared enough to call me out on my bias. The bends is worth your time. 5 Stars.
Six Tracks Krafted in 1978 with German precision, humor and (what was at the time) modern synthesizers. Programmed Sonic Experiments in Popular Music — Robot Propulsion Laboratory Sequences Engineered for Aural Inspection whether it be in the Spacelab or Metropolis of your choice.
It's a vibe. Not my typical one but it's hard to deny that this CHIC record draws you right in with the Good Times and mostly delivers on that manifesto.
The first song was much better than expected. I am pleasantly surprised so far (1:17 into the album). But can Adele keep it rolling? She kind of did for the first three songs, but when Don't Your Remember hit I wanted the ejector seat button.
Superfly was an album I took in long before a more sustained engagement with Jazz and Funk from the era. It circulates in the culture in ways that transcend the genre. One aspect of this record I'm familiar with is that the musical director for Mayfield was the bassist on this record. I know this because for me the bass and Mayfield's voice elevate the music here. There's a well-kept pulse throughout that moves us through the material. I appreciate other facets of the record as well (string arrangements, content and concept). Solid record that keeps things moving.
I am not a fan of the harmonica. It grates on my ears, so this record does not start out well for me. The opening School is a bit pedestrian despite my fondness for 70s critiques of formal education as a means of socialization. The lyrics would've benefited from dropping some Paulo Freire or early Michel Foucault references. I'm not a fan of that keyboard / piano in the track either. Centering on the piano helps me understand what one of my main issues with this record seems to be. I'm not into the instrumentation in a lot of the songs. The keys and horns here distract me. Bloody Well Right. Sure. Okay. By the end of this record I was thinking this is much more Pink Floyd influenced than I had known Supertramp to be. TIL, I guess.
I avoided Arcade Fire at first and while this album is not their debut it provides excellent evidence as to why they blew up to begin with on the one hand and polishes it up with the other. It is maybe a little overlong to be a five star record but it is quite good.
The brother's gonna work it out...I may be wrong but in the 90s it felt like everyone's collection benefited from a having some of The Chemical Brothers in it somewhere, somehow. They were a cross-over event. This was my first, and not my last. Strong beats, great sounds, deep cuts. In Dust We Trust.
Honest Texas Blues-based Rock n Roll with growling bass, snarling guitar and cracking drums. This era of the band is what I prefer over their souped up Eliminator and onward output. It's ironic for me to say that because I have a tendency to tire of rock that gets too obviously bluesy. I say "Gimme Blues." And I say, "Gimme Rock." But I raise this eyebrow at most Blues Rock. And yet the ZZ Top of Tres Hombres walks that line perfectly. Have Mercy.
My conflicted feelings about Bad Brains aside (detailed below), this is an excellent rock record. I've deliberately called it rock because I Against I shifts the overall focus from punk to rock. There's no denying that the threads of rock, metal, funk, punk and reggae are intertwined and interlocked in their sound. But both this album and With a Quickness are free of the genre constraints of typical punk. Despite my love of their S/T and Rock for Light records, I Against I and Quickness are sonically more interesting for leaving the punk cliches behind. Shame about the casual homophobia and other lyrical missteps typically brushed aside with "HR was a product of his time and place" not only because it mars the legacy of a great band overall but also because it makes certain songs irritating. It's worth asking though if Bad Brains are given the same amount of latitude when it comes to this kind of thing as other bands of their era. It seems to me that folks like to come at Bad Brains a little extra for it. The conflicted feelings remain.
I never listened to this record but I know most of the singles. I was surprised by the sequencing (I really expected We Got the Beat as the opener). Overall this record is a good mix of pop and punk. It still sounds contemporary in its own way — certainly not the sound of mainstream radio, but it's easy to imagine a group of young California kids pulling something along these lines off in their garage today.
From Excursions to Scenario there's not a bum song in the bunch except maybe Butter's content. I love the sound, energy and overall vibe of this record. Lyrics that are singable and worthy of study. It is peak Tribe.
Solid Afrobeat. Announces itself and delivers on its promise.
I remember when MGMT hit the scene (and you couldn't escape Kids in public) but I was in a much different listening place at the time. I was deep into the heavy stuff and eschewed anything too danceable or commercial that was coming at me from the world-at-large. Ironically, it is music I might've enjoyed if I had heard it coming from a friend, an artist or a band that I had already accepted into my inner circle of approved inputs. In other words, there's a tremendous resonance with stuff I had already allowed through: Wolf Parade, Animal Collective, etc. This closing off or setting up arbitrary musical boundaries is a recurring theme or phase I find myself going through. I felt it most acutely in Jr. High and High School. I had a brief period of open ears for part of College and afterwards. But there was some steady tightening up of the reins in the late-to-mid aughts that lasted maybe a decade or more. So, what does this have to do with MGMT's Oracular Spectacular? It's very good for music of that era but I wasn't willing to hear that then. So now I'm coming to it late and a little stupidly. Don't be like past me. Be like present me — actively fight against the desire to close up into whatever genre I'm deep into at the moment. Resist the myopia of whatever scene you're in. I'm glad I could open my ears to Oracular Spectacular today.
I'm already a little daunted seeing it's 21 songs by a band I'm not Super familiar with. The use of the typeface Cooper Black on this cover where they're busking with acoustic instruments combined with a name that reminds me of Supertramp and weed is cause for concern. Maybe if I knew their music I'd find the humor or irony in this. At least while I've been typing the music has proven that there is some intended distance between what we see in the cover image before us and the sounds being made. I'm starting to get some Britpop vibes cut with more athletic guitars. If this record can keep the tempo and pace then I might be handing out stars like they're candy. We'll have to wait and see. As suspected when things slow down they feel a little more generic. Perhaps a slower tempo exposes more of their songwriting flaws? Or rather, and probably more accurate, if I hold the mirror up — the tempo shows me what my own preferences are. My edit for the record would've been to do 9 rippers and then run. Then they can put out a different album shortly after. I don't need the sprawling two disc treatment. But maybe a short album of bangers would've been received by the public as one dimensional. It's a hard balance to strike. In this particular case Supergrass didn't quite achieve it for me.
I don't connect with this at all, but not all of the music itself terrible. I'm clearly separated from whatever the cultural referents are that make this relevant. I'm struggling between giving 1 or 2 stars. Let's see where we land...
One way or another you've got to like this album by Blondie—whether you have a heart of glass or are just a Sunday girl. I mean, I know but I don't know...you know? Yeah, all kinds of telephone themes on Parallel Lines just like those old wires. Classic.
I'm a little conflicted about the 4 stars but I also continue to be intrigued by this album after the first couple of listens and want to give it more time. In other words, only time will tell if I was too generous. I know it's not a five star record for me all things considered.
This record can still get me hype despite its age.
I'd seen the name Gainsbourg thrown around before and maybe heard a song or two but I never listened to a full album of his before. Not bad at all. Definite 70s vibes. I took a crash course in French to prep for a trip there but I'm certainly listening without picking up on the spoken content. I can only go by feel in that respect.
Off to a Funky start with a live feel we're brought into the good times vibes. But Run Charlie Run sure lets students of history know when this album was written. That song hasn't aged well even if it fully captures the sentiment of its time (and maybe has another reading I've yet to uncover). This record has Papa Was a Rollin' Stone rolling in as the third track. With that song on lock this was always going to be a classic record despite a few missteps here and there.
You Give Love A Bad Name, Livin' On A Prayer, and Wanted Dead Or Alive — two good songs and one great one. If you only heard those three songs, you wouldn’t know how terrible this album is. They saved it from a one star rating. There's some variety to their failures: D-grade Van Halen impressions and bad Journey vibes top my own list. Apologies should've been issued to their influences for this mostly terrible record.
In demographic terms, I'm the kind of listener that heard hype about Kendrick Lamar's To Pimp A Butterfly well before I got my ears around it in any kind of substantial way. This means I didn't have a friend turn it on for me. No one in my circles passed this my way, but plenty media to tell me how insanely profound this record was. I've listened a number of times prior to getting this as my daily assignment. It's good. His flow is sublime and I agree he's like a drummer in some ways—percussive delivery. That said, I think I got too much hype from all the press because I was also left with a sense of "Is this it?". Expectations can be a double-edged sword sometimes and so I'm here to tell you it's a solid four stars to these ears.
Swami John Reis hear my prayer: "Please send me a daily listen that continues to rock despite its years." Raise your hand if you're a Drive Like Jehu, Hot Snakes or Night Marchers fan. John Reis has blessed us with many great records through a variety of groups. Rocket From the Crypt has always been the "most fun" of them. Loud guitar, upbeat tempos, and cheeky lyrics — this album delivers on that most of the time. It's not 5 stars good. I've got to save those stars for Hot Snakes and Drive Like Jehu records.
I've never been a Dave Mustaine fan but I've managed to be friends with folks who are. This means that while I have a track record of loving metal, I'm not a Megadeth aficionado. My impressions: - I can't stand the vocals some of the time on Wake Up Dead and I think that will continue to be true over the course of the record. - A little too much room in the mix means that even their most punishing riffs don't feel monumental to me. - There are some fine breakdowns and a few choice riffs though. - You can see why Peace Sells But Who's Buying is famous: it's a riff with a groove, a classic 80s first-person cynical, anti-establishment subject matter, catchy repeated chorus/refrain, soaring guitar solo and a double-time outro. It's a vibe. I don't think that single represents the totality of the album very well. - Best stretch of songs is from Peace Sells to Bad Omen. That's 4 songs for about 20 mins of music. - I Ain't Superstitious should be struck from the record. - My Last Words gives me some Maiden vibes and that is not a bad thing, just a little surprising that the closer reminds me of another band so strongly. Overall, 3.5 stars. It's a weak four, but better than most threes.
This feels like a version of the 90s that has cemented itself as cultural memory and stereotype. I don't know anything about Alanis Morissette's trajectory or how she sees herself as an artist. And yet, I can't help but think she's the more commercially palatable and uncomplicated answer to the rise of artists like Liz Phair, Ani DiFranco and a bevy of fantastic riot grrrl bands. For many, this record was a real moment even if it was one I was distant from. The first couple of songs are okay, but Perfect is hard to listen to. The vocals actively grate. It's like a 12 song album, they could've cut that one and my impression of the first part of the record would've been much better. Okay, maybe also you'd need to cut the track Forgiven as well. I don't know why people reach for the harmonica, ever, but you can keep Head Over Feet. For these ten songs only, I give this record three stars. If I have to take it all, it's going to be two.
IGGY POP. Probably an Idiot. Maybe a Genius. David Bowie was certainly a genius and with David's help so is this record? Let's listen and find out. Eh, it's no Passenger.
Burning Spear is a big deal in the roots reggae pantheon. This record is just one of several that give evidence to this assessment.
Can fan here. Biased vote incoming, feel free to dock me a star, but can I say this isn't my favorite Can album and yet also tell you it's utterly fantastic and maybe their most influential? Groovy, spacey, squawky and skronky—you can't put a lid on Tago Mago. The music spills out in all the right ways.
Blue Cheer working that psychedelic blues rock formula. All the trappings of early hazy, slightly heavy jams are here. The best song on the record is the first and it is a cover of Summertime Blues. If you enjoy blissed out fuzz tones over blues scales, Blue Cheer are for you.
"Whoo! I am back. I want to thank everybody out there for their purchase." // "just my thoughts, right or wrong." // "vibe with me ... just vibe with me." I wish I had Jay-Z level of confidence and bravado. On some level, don't we all? Isn't this one of the reasons to listen to him? Best Tracks: The Ruler's Back, Takeover — ouch that takedown of Nas, Izzo (H.O.V.A.), Jigga, U Don't Know, Hola Hovito, Heart of the City, Never Change, Renegade. Tracks that are still good, but a step down: All I Need, Blueprint (Momma Loves Me), Lyrical Exercise. Boring tracks: Song Cry. Tracks that have me shaking my head: Girls, Girls, Girls (both) — it seems like songs along these lines never age well. In conclusion, Jay-Z is a study in contrasts. Four Stars.
From the band name on down, it's all annoying. But you can (mostly) dance to it. HOT CHIP In Our Heads earns two stars.
This review should open with some articulate words on Velvet Underground's importance in the history of late 20th century Western popular music, here they are: blah, blah, blah. Chances are just too good that if you've followed Western music culture in the last 50 years you've been exposed to some description of their importance so I'll leave it at that. What about this, their third, record? This album is really very nice, it's mostly mellow and even the uptempo tracks demonstrate restraint. It's a mostly quiet and small affair. Though not without the occasional rambunctious moment i.e. Murder Mystery is a bit crowded sonically and yet is a blueprint used by Hüsker Dü, Pavement, and more. You could almost use the adjective quaint to describe the album overall.
Jangly Dylan-influenced, vaguely Hippie folk pop. I can hear why some people really "dig it." Eight Miles High is a stand-out track. In short, the album is fine for what it is, but it's not my bag. It's my bag adjacent at best.
I loved this record the first time I heard it (when I didn't know much about Bill Evans or this trio). This record is so good you won't even mind that they "play the same song twice" four different times. To review, that's 8 tracks on a 10 track album. A considerable part of the success of this live recording in my opinion is the playing of bassist Scott LaFaro and drummer Paul Motian. They more than hold their own with Bill Evans. When Scott or Paul take the spotlight it's as equally rewarding as when Bill does.
Former US President Barack Obama correctly identified Kanye West as a jackass and if you can separate Ye's antics and outbursts from his music you might be able to enjoy this record for what it's worth. There are at least 4 great tracks on this record that are good enough to stand on their own outside of his complicated legacy. However, the remainder of the tracks are of uneven quality. Bracketing all the negative Kanye stuff would only put this record in three star territory reaching for that unattainable fourth star. Unfortunately for me, as the owner of four of his albums, I find it increasingly difficult to hold all that extra stuff at bay. Two stars.
The Sonics are local legends in the Pacific Northwest. There are a few tracks on this record that transcend their early American garage rock context like The Witch, Psycho, Boss Hoss, and Strychnine. Unfortunately this record is also littered with rock 'n' roll standards like Do You Love Me, Roll Over Beethoven, Money, and Good Golly Miss Molly. For every stellar standout song, there's some generic cover whose rendition sounds too timid today. This is a record best received by someone into early rock 'n' roll or garage rock. While I have listening interests adjacent to all this, it's not enough to save the rating despite the fact that if it were an EP with just the four stellar tracks I'd rate it four stars. Taken as a whole, it's hard to enjoy.
Despite my well-established hatred of the harmonica, I'm a casual Dylan fan. I like most of the songs from Freewheelin' Bob Dylan through the Blonde on Blonde record. From that era onward it's maybe just a song or two here and there but without exploring his catalogue at all. What does this mean? Why do we care? It means that I've never heard this record as a record. I haven't paid it that kind of attention and I don't know what I'll have to say about it after I give it a listen. The first three songs: Tangled up in Blue, Simple Twist of Fate, & You're a Big Girl Now make me wonder "Is this the sound of easy listening Bob Dylan?" At least, Idiot Wind sounds like Dylan woke up for it. He might not be as angry as he was elsewhere, but it has some grit. Truth be told, I lost interest around the song Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts — song number 7 of 10. Actively started to dislike If You See Her, Say Hello on repeat listen. But Shelter from the Storm is alright. I am friends with a Bob Dylan scholar, please don't tell him about my rating here: two stars.
Stephen Stills serves you up a pleasant rock album that's slightly Southern fried on the one hand — a dash of Lynyrd Skynyrd, a sprinkle of the Allman Brothers — and a little meat 'n' potatoes country-folk on the other — a pinch of John Denver, etc. As a meal, there are a few great tracks but also a few bites too many (like so many double albums of the time). I was ready to excuse myself from the table before it was done.
Stephen Stills' Manassas yesterday and now I get this today? This gives me a sense of...Déjà vu. Only this record is better.
The one true Who record I love. My POP introduced me to this record when I was a young man (didn't have nothin' in the world these days). I enjoyed it so much I went searching high and low for studio recordings of these songs that matched the energy and power of LIVE AT LEEDS. I never found them. This record documents the true maximum rock 'n' roll of The Who. In my opinion it's their best album. And, it is among the best live recordings of its era. Too Much, Magic Bus. Five Stars.
Gramp's own Pa's easy listening. Put the record on in the ol' folks home and watch them stare far away into the distant past remembering a different time back when they were young and spry and their parents who controlled the radio had Louis Prima on it. So far away and yet, I can connect with the music today. The Wildest! endures.
This may or may not be true history, but it cuts to the heart of the album in review: The Black Keys heard the White Stripes update to the blues rock formula and started a band. What they lack in originality (to be docked from the final rating) they make up for in execution. The name of this album is Brothers. The rating is four stars minus one.
The grooves aren't bad if you turn it down low enough to be able to ignore the mostly dumb lyrics. I didn't bother to throw this on the headphones to truly test if the MCs were in Stereo. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Who is this vaguely new wave / new romantics band that I've never heard of before? Their slightly The The, Aztec Camera, Style Council, Fine Young Cannibals, Yaz fronted by Scott Walker meets the mellowest side of Comsat Angels spooning the Pogues vibes has me intrigued. My enthusiasm for the album slowed around the Easter Parade (though quite a timely listen here in April).
Why you gotta be like that Spotify/Joni? As of today, I can only stream Coyote there. Good thing my partner owns this album and I'm familiar with it through numerous listens. In my opinion, this is the most pleasant recording of Jaco Pastorius we have. His furious fusion finger work being awesome in a very different way. The restrained but virtuoso fretless is a wonderful, graceful compliment to Joni Mitchell's vocals. This isn't my favorite Joni record but it's up there.
Tricky tries too hard to be sexy sometimes.
Did The Mars Volta single-handedly revive Prog Rock? No one can ever say definitively yes, but if they didn't do it, no one did. And, if this full-length release didn't kick it off, then I don't know what did. This album continues to thrill.
Bitter Sweet Symphony was inescapable for a time. It's a fine song as are many on this record, but I don't find many of them particularly compelling. The songs here seem like they're great for slacking around in your loafers, comfy pants and bucket hat. Just like the guys on the record cover, you are looking elsewhere for something of interest.
There was a time when I was committed to the White Stripes. This album was in heavy rotation during that stretch, but it wasn't my favorite either. It's a four star White Stripes record. Depending on how you feel about their whole sound bump that up or down on your personal rock-o-meter.
Growing up a punk rock skate kid the Circle Jerks were always in Thrasher and other zines. They were seemingly required listening. Someone always had this record at hand. This record is especially great for its time and is significant to me by virtue of having the music attached to good memories. Listening many years later I find it sometimes lacks power compared to music made by the kids it inspired. It also suffers from an unfortunate trick that time plays on us all where pioneers of a formula can over time sound more formulaic than they did when they first made their statement. Don't get me wrong, it's still good. But even Keith Morris himself in OFF! is more consistently punchier than what is present here.
Never a fan of skits in albums I will take an entire star for the mar they make on what is otherwise a superlative record from Outkast. These interludes in particular aren't palette cleansers, they're straight up stupid. It's a shame because otherwise this is a five star record. Gasoline Dreams indeed.
The Smiths — it's even more complicated now. I'm likely to stan for Johnny Marr forever whereas Morrissey can stay in the toilet of his regrettable right wing nationalism. With that out of the way, this is among their best despite it being the end of The Smiths. It's not my favorite of which I rated five stars despite Morrissey's politics. I will again bracket Morrissey out of respect for Johnny Marr and the rest of the band. But this record only gets four stars.
Ah! A chance to reappraise DIRT by Alice in Chains. A band that I disliked on principle alone at the time they arrived on the scene. Early 90s I'm in punk mode in the Northwest and certainly grungy bands start getting some attention but the ones that appealed to me were the least commercial, the weirder more indie and punker of the cohort. Even Nirvana for a brief moment wasn't the international sensation that shook the music industry. So when Alice in Chains and a few others started to also rise in popularity I (and I wasn't alone) saw this as a land grab for cash and record industry attention that was uncool. They seemed like a glammy hard rock/metal band trying to change their sound for fame and fortune and AS A PUNK I WAS AGAINST IT. Full stop. There certainly are some stylistic tells or trappings of their hard rock heritage on this record: slower beats, tremolo dives, wah effects, bombastic solos with deep bends and impressive runs, ballads with oohs, chorus effects, etc. And, this record is also long, too long for me personally. By now I guess they knew what their fans wanted and felt a confidence delivering it over and over and over again. If you are still reading this you might expect me to rate this at two stars, but I'll say there are also some songs on this record that are recognizably great. They seem to have integrated some of their influences and aspirations into a better version of themselves. Is it necessarily my thing that I'll go back to? Nope. But is it better than I initially gave it credit for? Yes.
STATIONTOSTATIONDAVIDBOWIEFIVESTARS +-+-+ Many professional reviewers have crafted sharp, searching prose trying to cut the Stylistic Gordian Knot of this record. Is it Funk? Is it Disco? Is it Soul? Is it Pop? Is it all of these things but ... is it still also Krautrock? It's moody, it's heavy, it's celebratory...but it's a dark celebration. It's cerebral but moves your booty. Maybe the mind is not yet free but is being led by the ass?
Lyrics you can smirk to. Grooves you can dance to. Real feels for this ex-NYC resident while listening to "New York, I Love You But You're Bringing Me Down." My 11 years there overlaps heavily with LCD Soundsystem which might be why it rings so true. Signed, another North American Scum.
Green Day has spent their career disproving my hypothesis that I can totally hate them. And, while I can't totally, easily hate them...this record comes close with every overproduced, over-instrumented slow number meant to be "meaningful" from the band that brought us the album titled "Dookie" and named themselves after a big weed session. And here we are with this record. I'm not a fan of Green Day's Grease by way of the Clash mixed with their own selves from a decade ago and a dropout version of Professor Greg Graffin's course on Bad Religion. Quadrophenia this is not. And yet, I'll give it an entire star for existing at all as a signpost to punk that existed in the mainstream during some rough years for radio rock and a second star for the opening track.
Just a sure as a Gibson SG's tone is dirty and sweet, if you liked rock of any kind in the 80s you had to acknowledge AC/DC. Like a button or patch on your jean jacket you knew Highway to Hell at least. Coming out in '79, it wasn't my soundtrack and that wasn't my look but all them older kids made sure I heard it. Maybe you are like me and you find that it's hard to truck with an album oozing objectification out of nearly every pore but casual, mid-tempo eighties rocking rarely sounds as good as AC/DC's output here and on Back In Black.
Not my thing, but even I can acknowledge that there are about 3 songs that transcend the album itself.
41m 42s of CHIC is just about enough CHIC for any day.
Groove is in the heart and oftentimes in this record.
POP was a Hendrix fan. I first EXPERIENCED Jimi's record, the original US release, on vinyl and loud as that Hi-Fi could go. In his younger years, POP liked to play records so loud that the house was a speaker for listening in the backyard. It's hard to imagine how many minds were blown, just like speakers, from the opening RIFF alone. It's crazy to me that a record from 1967 still sounds generally excellent in 2023. Some of the inventiveness is now standard blues rock, of course. All the standout tracks still SHINE, but the thing that I appreciate on listening to the record today are the tracks that aren't the popular hits with the big streaming numbers; songs like "I Don't Live Today" and "Love or Confusion". They're definitely a bit more psychedelic and less radio friendly, but the quality is super HIGH.
For me, this record is definitively the Nineties but not in its production or sound. It doesn't sound like the Nineties. Instead it represents the era by virtue of being an MTV Unplugged session by Nirvana who broke things open for all that college radio stuff way back when it was marketed as "alternative." More insightful people than me will say more insightful things about the lyrics and the performance, but it's still a decent listen though Kurt is as tiresome as he is probably tired. By no means my favorite Nirvana record, but it remains an occasional listen especially for the Meat Puppets and Bowie covers.
I really like Tom Waits and many of the songs here, but not this album as a whole experience. As one of the greatest storytellers in song Tom's not worried though, and you shouldn't be either. Hang onto that dime!
This is okay in a mid-nineties generic Brit rock kind of way. Required listening it is not.
This album mostly recovers from her walk into the sea (looks straight ahead, not at he). That song, the first here, is such a high water mark. And yet, the album is filled with solid Stan Getz playing and holds its vibe. It's a pleasure to put on when you have the time and space to listen with intent because if you have it on as just background music it will only ever be "pleasantly same-y" aside from the Girl from Ipanema.
Interesting transitional band from British 80s sounds to the 90s Brit Rock that blew up alongside US Grunge. Feels a bit more rooted in the 80s vibe but strikes me as a proto-90s Brit Rock band.
I like a good Biggie Smalls single like the next person who came of age when he was making music, but I can't take a whole album of it. Gotta be a solid album experience to rise above 3 stars.
Some good tracks, but as a (w)hole it's not a great record. Close to L7, Babes in Toyland, and Dickless to my ear but with pop aspirations which makes them a little bit more listenable when Courtney Love is in control of her vocals. It's a shame that the semi-dis track/complaint song "Rock Star" closes the record given Hole can't seem to muster the kind of enthusiasm of a Sleater-Kinney or Bikini Kill in me. Overall, it's not my favorite 90s rock record, but it's not the worst of the era either.
I have this album. It feels like every budding jazz lover is instructed to check this record out at some point in their initial journey. Blue Rondo à la Turk is seared into my brain. The album announces itself well through this track and even though it has its peaks and valleys it doesn't fail to deliver on its promise throughout. All that said, it also feels at times like the musical conversation has moved on so much that this record now feels staid.
I listened to this album like four or five times today and while I cannot remember a single track distinctly each time was a good listen. I got Komeda meets St. Etienne vibes all day long. Success?
I had Peace and Love on cassette back in the day, but overall I never took to the Pogues. This record is fine, there are some good songs on here, but it's not a revelation.
Mercifully short record from The Memphis Flash. Blue Suede Shoes still has some punch and there are a couple of other tracks that I don't mind. His renditions of I Got a Woman and Tutti Fruitti however *pale* in comparison to other performances of these songs. Sorry King, it ain't my thing.
This is a good record although it's not my favorite Erykah Badu ever (that would be her Live album which I place above Baduizm even). A mid-level Badu is still solid. I suspect the algorithm will serve up at least one more of her records before I'm done with this project.
Hard-pressed to see how this record is significant in any way at all. Like why before I die do I need to hear this? The answer is unclear. It's not weird enough. It's not good enough. It's not exciting enough. Heck, it's not even boring enough or terrible enough. It's middling indie rock with a slightly punky vibe. Okay. But why?
Sorry Anthony Kiedis, I don't want to Break the Girl or Suck your Kiss nor do I care what happened Under the Bridge or when you were Naked in the Rain. The lyrics and vocals are the death of my enjoyment here. What I want is to listen to Flea, Frusciante, and Chad freakin' jam. The music on the record is tops, one of the best for the Peppers, I think. The rest (Kiedis) is flops. All the stars to the players.
Hear the Beasties tryin' to bust out of their Licensed to Ill cage with every beat, sample and rhyme. Not running from themselves, but running to where they wanted to be. Despite some cringe lyrics that haven't aged too well, this album still makes my top three for them, even if their try-hard striving is apparent.
This is Fine.
I missed the Amy Winehouse bus when it was originally leaving the station. I'm okay to have let it pass me by despite her amazing voice. While I recognize that talent, I'm not particularly into the lyrical content or the music and arrangements.
Killer cover though you have to wonder just how those fingers aren't totally cut up and bleeding over all that British Steel. Jokes aside, other than some minor quibbles around the sonic qualities of the mix, I'm into this record more than I would've thought based on prior impressions of Judas Priest. Breaking the Law and Living After Midnight are the two pillars under which some lesser songs do find cover. And yet, better than expected.
Not my jam but not objectively terrible. Definitely more piano and organ on these songs than I would prefer. The flute was unexpected, though I guess I shouldn't really have been that surprised.
I Wanna Be Adored is a great song that should've piqued my interest as a listener enough to check the album out right away. And yet, I never did. Maybe that was a good thing because there are also some duds on the record. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Divisive genius performs the occasional pearl. Suzanne is a five star song, but Stories of the Street is not.
Some people contend that there are no bad Paul Simon albums. That may be true in a strict sense, but this is a tedious Paul Simon album.
I've heard Ginger Baker was a bit of a grump. But it's hard to believe it's true when Fela Kuti says his name with such emphasis: GINGER BAKER!!!
The arc of this album is only so so. It starts off with its strongest track and then kind of nosedives from there.
Good and Great: The Boy in the Bubble, Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes, Homeless, Graceland, and You Can Call Me Al. Bad: That Was Your Mother. The Rest is typical middling Paul Simon despite slightly more adventurous instrumentation.
A double album often means double the dread. The fear of how much time I'm going to need to invest in a single day to unpack all the tracks and form some kind of an opinion on it. Throw on top of that we're talking about a group that's unafraid of skits and other interludes a person can become quite daunted quickly. Good thing for me that I own this record already. ;) Someone else with greater powers of pithy summarization will come along and say something succinct. They'll impart a bunch of wisdom while displaying their impressive wit. Me? I'm here to say: it's uneven at best. The best songs totally slap and all that but you have to put up with a lot of other tracks where you can tell that OutKast was at a point in their career and popularity that they lacked a person between them or in their inner circle who could successfully wield the editing pen. It's always a bit of a let down when you hear a ~40 track double album that feels like it drags in places and you know it could've made a classic, all-time great record with 12 tracks.
I never really paid them attention at the time. In fact, I had always had an imagined history for Grant Lee Buffalo: He was an uncredited member of Buffalo Springfield. He was a player on some Grant Hart solo records. He was in Buffalo Tom. Of course, I was wrong. He was, in fact, a whole band. And yet, how wrong was I? Basically, Grant Lee Buffalo music feels like a cross between some Neil Young and Buffalo Tom. If you ear-squint real hard, maybe you can even hear the softer side of late Husker Du somewhere in there. Anyway, this record is the reason I'm engaged in this project. Let me hear some things I completely missed and let me re-appraise some things I let pass me by in my high snobbery days. This is a solid record from a band that totally fell by the wayside for me.
I *always* had the same complaint when it came to the Cocteau Twins. I wanted more urgency in the music. I wanted harder hits and higher bpms. I wanted occasional crunch and intermittent grit — deliver a line with a throaty yowl once in a while. In other words, I wanted them to be a band that was not who they were. I wanted, craved, yearned for a version of the Cocteau Twins that was more punk than they ever wanted to be. I went so far down this road that a punk band I was in covered Wax and Wane. But, I've only begun to ask myself: Why? It may be as simple as this. The Cocteau Twins make truly great music that I'm drawn to; but as with many things we love, I sought to impose my vision on them, my own will, I could not step back and give them the space to be who they were. I loved them partially for what they were, but I loved them more (and was always hurt by it) for what I wanted them to be. Robin and Elizabeth, I've finally grown up. I'm sorry. I'm only now mature enough to fully love you for what you really had to offer. I no longer want you to be something that you're not. I'm grateful these records are still here for me to come to that understanding. Younger me would've foolishly rated this three stars, but not anymore...full five.
Hard Yes to Roundabout, South Side of the Sky, Long Distance Runaround, Heart of the Sunrise, America. No thanks to the occasional over-indulgent prog-wankery that appears here and there marring an otherwise incredible record.
Yet more evidence that the only way to listen to the Eagles is with a greatest hits collection because one amazing song and two okay ones doesn't make for a good record when the rest are audio abominations.
A whole lot of Duke Ellington live. You need to be in the mood for this, I think, rather than just having it served to you one morning. If you've never heard it before, it can be hard to listen to all the introductions and asides while waiting to decide if something is going to be worth the 2 hours, 7 minute investment. Jump right into Black and Tan Fantasy to get a sense and maybe even to help you get into the requisite mental space. An album best served with a drink late at night, I suppose.
1967: imagine starting a band so early you can snag the name Love. Even though they were a favorite of my own POP, as he prefers it stylized, I can't picture what it would've been like to put this record on a turntable...to hear a little ambient hiss and pop come through before those naturally mic'd acoustic guitar strings come through with that first arpeggio and soft lead line. Alone Again Or fills its sound out with strings and horns, but arranged with an attention to the dynamics of each section it's a journey in miniature that leads you home where A House Is Not a Motel. The songs here have a subdued or gentle urgency granted by a drummer showing more restraint over bombast and a singer who matches this approach. This feeling is aided by their preference for the acoustic guitar to communicate the chords. Love brings the electric in when they need a fevered pitch but it's not the dominant feel. They rely more on strings when they need something to cut through. It's a gentler vibe for sure. The Red Telephone didn't quite work for me as well as some of the other strong songs on the record, but I bet at the time it was a song that connected with its audience. Certainly some of the songs suffer here and there from Love being in one or two modes only. Maybe trimming the album by a couple of tracks or just accepting that time hasn't treated each song the same as they've aged. Overall, a solid record that I can now appreciate the appeal of more than I did yesterday.
I think this album may have got off on the wrong foot in terms of my initial reception of it. I had my streaming service on shuffle the first run through. Second time around, I corrected that and kicked up the volume only to realize that some of my early feelings were about the vocal mix (sitting a little low in places). Also I realized that Somebody Up There Likes You is a real momentum killer on the records. Speaking of the album overall: it's more about atmosphere than I would've expected from Simple Minds. I think you have to look at how the album is thought of in reverse rather than how it was heard when it first came out, the number of "viable singles" on it also seems low for what I expect of this band. As you can see, I have some baggage and expectation of what I'm going to get from Simple Minds and this album also confronts that bias. Maybe on a third listen I'll finally be able to "hear it". Though I admit some impatience while I listen.
I will try to listen to this record all the way through. I will try to listen to this record all the way through. I will try to listen to this record all the way through. Please, I'd take the Disco BEE GEES over this. Truly one of the worst albums I've had to endure through this project. Zero stars.
I appreciate how this record opens. A sense of quiet for the first 30 seconds and a melancholy openness follows — just a bit of guitar and a soft splashy cymbal before the track really kicks in with the full band. More contemporary music bets that the listener's attention will be lost in that silence. In other words, we rarely hear an opening like this anymore. It's not like I need to put the needle on the record and walk back to my chair before sitting down and "readying" myself to listen. Most things are singles in the stream these days. Shuffle, shuffle, shuffle. It's not my personal jam but this is a decent record with a pleasing pace. I've never fully been down with Dire Straits despite being able to recognize the obvious greatness of songs like Sultans of Swing (which graces this album).
My first introduction to R.E.M. was the album after this one: Green. But over time I've gotten to know most of their catalogue. Document is one of their records I've now spent a substantial amount of my R.E.M. time with. It's not my favorite or their best, but it's very good. It's just deep enough, catchy enough, rocking enough, and something surprising enough to keep me coming back. It has a few too many tracks like Exhuming McCarthy and Lightning Hopkins that don't hold up quite as well as you'd want on the one hand, and yet it has all-time greats like It's the End of the World as We Know it (and I Feel Fine), The One I Love, and Finest Worksong on the other hand. Solid record from a band who had even better things in store for us. Four stars.
The fear and dread I felt when reading the band name for the album today was off the charts. So imagine my surprise that it wasn't immediately terrible. I listened to the entire record without a hard cringe. But I might've had the volume down low initially, so I listened to it again! UB40 you were just a British reggae band who laughed their way to the bank with a terrible but popular song. I've maligned you ever since without listening to your other work. A surprisingly solid record.
I've enjoyed most every album by The National but this one I'm particularly fond of. It might be that Bloodbuzz Ohio is also one of my favorite songs of the era. That said, there are a few moments where if you are not engaged with the record and soaking up the mood it will begin to drag. A casual, whole album listen to this record is never without that danger. But if you're in the spirit of the record and present, it will reward you.
Simply some pipes on the vocalist. Not particularly my jam, but it's also not terrible by most measures. I appreciate that the best or at least most well known songs are in the middle of the record from a "How am I ever going to make it through this?" perspective because I was starting to lose patience.
Much respect to Kendrick. This album only cements how I feel about him. Great artist, some things I dig, but ultimately not for me.
Yet another great PJ Harvey record. The duets with Yorke are good but she shines when center stage.
I never really got into The Killers despite one of my friends really being into them at their peak. This record doesn't move me much. They're just more of that early aughts nicked from the past vibe. It's hard to see what the fuss is about.
Nice try Incubus. It's going to take more than heavy guitars for me to like this. Too polished and trying too hard to appeal. No thanks.
There's other Maiden I much prefer, but this is not an objectively terrible entry in their canon. The thing that's striking for me, however, is that it's hard for me to hear in this debut the juggernaut they'd become. Maybe at the time this album appeared more impressive.
I won't blame you if this is your thing, but Basie has never been mine even as a bit of a Jazz lover.
Some of these songs I've heard so many times and yet I've never listened to this record the whole way through before. I was allergic to the idea of Jeff Buckley for the longest time. Of course, this is dumb. The notion of "Taste" is a funny thing, just ask Plato, Kant and Bourdieu or in this context maybe Peel, Christgau, and Fantano but as anyone who reads my reviews probably already knows I'm a recovering music snob who came up with some strong DIY views. Anyway, good record. A little too long. Obviously a shame he passed on early.
Is this record great for studying, working, or having on in the background when you need a good bpm pulse but don't want to be dragged down by detailed audio? Sure, it is. Is there more going on in the record? Probably! But after a couple of listens, I can't help but think that it only matters to the headphone crowd now. What now sounds tame was once fire.
Great record. Cat photobomb cover. Would Carole King again. -//- This record deserves a lengthy review detailing all of Carole King's genius from the lyrics to the performances and more but I'm unlikely to write it today. While it's not a record I listened to as a kid, this is an album I've come to know quite well over my life. It's welcomes me back whenever I return to it. It's like the cozy sweater. Tapestry has never let me down.
Ditching the synth-pop flavors of their excellent first album for an even darker and grittier sound, I find the second record by NIN to be much stronger. It's got some real bangers on it as the kids might say. To my ear, this second album is more of an evolution from the first record than what you might say about Ministry's own change from an extremely synth-pop style to an industrial-metal sound. This second record cemented NIN in 90s music in a way that I don't think would've happened if they had just continued the direction of or repeated their first record. Funny thing is...(and by funny I mean, I'm dumb): I didn't really listen to this record so much when it first came out because, of course, I had dismissed them based on how I felt about their rising popularity off the first record. At that time, I was too anti-fame, anti-mass appeal to want to have much to do with them even if I liked the music.
Endtroducing.....a classic album of sampling-turntablist hip-hop.
If you listen to Parliament or Parliament-Funkadelic you might, on occasion, forget that Funkadelic itself can be kind of restrained. This is a totally enjoyable, sometimes mellow funky record.
It's good enough to have as an album for the day. But it lacks a certain Youngish quality that I've come to prefer over time. I don't know if I'd say it's truly an album I need to hear before I die since I'm also fairly certain there's some Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young on this list somewhere.
MC Solaar's flow transcends any linguistic barriers between the delivery in French and these ears of mine. Mostly smooth beats and laid back delivery on the tracks with a few moments of urgency (parts of some songs or songs like Ragga Jam themselves). By and large, this is an album you can chill to.
Although the opening song "Stop" might initially lead the listener to believe this record was going to be a strong follow-up to the revelatory (at the time it came out) Nothing's Shocking, Ritual De Lo Habitual is ultimately a disappointment. The album lacks focus and urgency in far too many songs. Sections meant to be hypnotic are just boring. Different parts feel phoned in by different players at different times. Is "Been Caught Stealing" a classic 90s song? Yeah, it is. But two or three good songs out of nine total doesn't make for an album we need to hear before we die. The smartest thing Jane's Addiction ever did was keep their sample size low after Nothing's Shocking because it turns out that the more records they made the more evidence of their mediocrity we had.
Otis Redding always delivers but this record didn't wow me as some of his have.
Willie Nelson is a national treasure in the United States for good reason. This record is a major contributor to his legacy. It's a favorite of mine.
I was living in Brooklyn during the 00s and had fallen in love with the Liars from the start with "They Threw Us All in a Trench and Stuck a Monument on Top". Honestly when "They Were Wrong, So We Drowned" came out I was befuddled and felt a little betrayed and yet...after some time passed...was intrigued. It's easier for me now to see how they got from there to here and through on to other musical territory.
Sometimes you just need six smooth songs. I enjoyed this despite the prominence of the saxophone on a few tracks. It is, though, totally unclear to me why I'd need to listen to this album before I died. There must be some historical reason I'm not yet aware of. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Thanks for pulling all your music from Spotify, Neil. I get it. I support it. But, also, I miss having it on hand. "After the Gold Rush" isn't my favorite Neil Young record but it's among them and is worthy of 5 stars.
I've mostly always appreciated Buddy Holly's music. This record is a vibe that I'm not feeling so much today but I can't deny the quality of the music for its era.
SPELLBOUND!
Layla is still a great song despite being overplayed. This was probably a good listening exercise to sit with the rest of the record for the first time. It starts out inconspicuous enough with a mild, mid-tempo blues. Unremarkable noodles and gentle singing did not invoke a Clapton is God response initially but the record shows occasional flashes of brilliance (if not always as urgent or intense as I think they should be). Clapton has a clarity of tone that is notable. I can understand him having some disciples and while he may be among the top players he is not the best of his generation to my ear. He's too tasteful, too restrained, and ultimately too backward-facing to be innovative and exciting. His playing is a supremely pleasant listen seemingly executed by a soulless technician.
Question: Will this mark the first 5 star review I've given to an artist I hadn't heard of before? I don't know the history of this album that came out in 1976 but I bet at the time it was groundbreaking. After the album was over, Spotify transitioned into other pieces from this genre and it was a seamless blend of old and new. This must mean that this record is a classic for being both of its time and timeless — in its own now but also from the future looking back at us and beckoning our ears forward. Answer: Nope, but so close! (4.5 stars, rounded down)
I don't "la la la" like this band. The second Supergrass album to cross my path through this practice of listening each weekday to one of the 1001 albums I must hear before I die. It's the second time I wondered to myself, I'd Like to Know: why this band? Send some of their influences my way, please. That is at least what's interesting here. On paper, I ought to like them and yet, I can't get into it. At least this record was shorter than the other I was served. It also seemed peppier overall. Better than the last, I guess. Ok, review over. Time to Go.
Not my favorite by Depeche Mode, but it's still good. A few songs are more cringe now than they were upon my very first listen to them and some remain the classics that they immediately were. This is a band whose singles I could listen to a lot, but their albums have always been a hard listen for me. I often lose interest somewhere along the way and this one is no exception to that.
This isn't my favorite Springsteen album. I feel like the record starts with a zig and a zag: Badlands is a little too happy with its piano romp and sax solo. While the throaty yowl of Adam Raised a Cain plants its pathos more firmly in the Darkness one might find on the Edge of Town. The record takes awhile to find itself and once it does it *can* be satisfying. Still, it's no Nebraska.
My POP had this record on vinyl and I'm not going to lie to you, I used to rock out to some of these jams. The playing is still outstanding but now when I try to take the whole album in as a statement I'm just not as impressed as I was when I was 7 or 8.
I'm not feeling this album. Sorry Boys!
Big fan of Pink Moon but I never really gave Five Leaves Left a shot. This album is also excellent. However, I'm not a fan of the kerning between the capital A and the capital V in the cover. Ouch!
By the time I get through this 18 minute long song I can expect to listen to the single version of it 5 minutes later. Don't get me wrong, I like a lot of this album but it sure is heavy on a trip to Phoenix.
A classic for a reason. Listen to find out What's Going On.
In order to listen to this I had to get myself in the correct headspace. First, to remind myself that this record is largely misunderstood. It is not intended as some rah-rah nationalistic celebration but an album by the songwriter who's preceding album, Nebraska, was essentially written at the same time as Born in the USA and is openly critical of big business and the situations that working people find themselves in. Second, to shed some of the personal associations with this album in terms of who in my life has championed it (and that I largely disagreed with). Third, prepare myself for some saxophone (which I am so often troubled by in "rock and roll"). Fourth, just forget every Springsteen video associated with the album while I listen. Fifth, that red cap in the back pocket isn't the same as what a red baseball hat means today. Sixth, ignore that letter spacing on the cover... I think you can get it that this album has a lot of baggage. And yet, and yet, right from the opener if you're paying attention you're going to understand that the music is going to play with opposites sometimes and you'll need to keep an open mind — upbeat music and cynical lyrics: Born down in a dead man's town / The first kick I took was when I hit the ground You end up like a dog that's been beat too much / 'Til you spend half your life just covering up, now And, I think this is the fundamental misunderstanding of this record, the arrangements and instrumentation are intended to produce radio hits (and they certainly did!) but the sentiments behind the lyrics are local, labor, tired and a bit jaded.
Hey Hey I've always misjudged this band despite having a friend who was way into all their stuff and swore to me there was pop brilliance behind all the bubblegum shenanigans. I already have music I prefer that fills this particular niche for me, however, having listened to this record I can hear that my friend was not entirely wrong. I would've had to have had to encounter them with an open mind when I was much younger for them to have stuck.
It's okay.
1969 doesn't start off as revolutionarily as you might expect but you know that you're into something else by the end of the title track. It is further confirmed once I Wanna Be Your Dog comes on. The record might suffer some from the sequencing that puts the next track on deck at 10 minutes. The song also reminds us that we shouldn't reimagine the Stooges as an only a proto-punk band forging some template of bravado and brevity but rather a band from another era who helped usher in punk rock with some of its songwriting and attitude.
This album is just radio and mom friendly almost indie. I feel like it's a "nothing to see here, move along" kind of an album but I guess it's something we all need to hear before we die to understand an important lesson about mass appeal. Sand off the edges for smooth sailing!
Plenty of Sunshine Superman and Season of the Witch awareness but I've never listened to this album all the way through. It is what you might expect from hearing both of these songs except with the hippy dial turned up even more. The album sounds cliché now but I'm sure minds were absolutely blown at the time.
This † still sounds fresh and new to me. It's an excellent listen if you're looking for something to both engage with *and* zone out to at a BPM that can move you.
Yes, you can dance to it, but I hope someone smacks The Prodigy all up for glamorizing abuse.
Should we talk about the weather? Should we talk about the government? No, I think we should talk about this album by R.E.M. Green was my introduction to this band so I'm not going to lie, I'm flat out biased. Over time it doesn't always hold the number one spot in my heart when it comes to their records, but it does occasionally claim the throne. As an aside, we are all, always, allowed to change our minds when it comes to matters of taste; and music is certainly within the domain of taste-based conversation. Mike Mills, the not-so-secret weapon of the band, is a revelation on this record. When I hear him sing his backing lines like "Get up, Get up" or "Freedom" the hair on the back of my neck and arms stands up as I get the feels. His contributions always bring an additional emotional layer as well as rounding out the sound. Songs like You Are Everything are necessary precursors to later hits a la Losing My Religion, and yet they are themselves affecting touchstones of a time in our lives when we held someone as absolutely essential to our being and being in the world. Let's not forget that this album moves effortlessly between such emotional songs and uptempo pop. We get a dose of the pop as the opener does what it says on the tin. Later we shift into it with Stand, which, pardon the pun, Stands out in that category. Hey, just another aside, as we're free-associating on this record: It was R.E.M.'s Stand and the Pixies Here Comes Your Man that were in serious rotation on MTV together and both secretly sneaking in more twangy guitar than I would've otherwise consented to. In retrospect it makes sense that we'd see a rise in indie-country sounds in the wake of that much play. World Leader Pretend, Orange Crush, Turn You Inside Out, I Remember California...I mean c'mon, every song deserves its own exegesis uncovering the influences, drawing connections and otherwise celebrating the craft of songwriting. But I only have a few minutes to write this review and I'd rather be listening to this great record than typing.
Not my favorite album by The Who, but I think that's true for most fans of the band. To be fair, I'm not a rabid fan of the band. I have a bit of their material on records and playlists, but it's pretty casual stuff around here. I think this record makes the list because it's their debut and has a certain raw and raucous sound that blew a few speaker cabinets at the time and inspired some listeners. It's going to get 3.5 stars rounded up because it's not just an average record and yet, it's close!
It turns out that I have mixed feelings about Devendra Banhart's oeuvre as I imagine it to be more than as it actually is. I've always associated him with Joanna Newsom and that SF freak-folk thing which I both like and dislike. Of course, I've learned over time that there's a lot more to his music than just that. Taking his records one at a time has been instructive, and this particular album I find thoroughly enjoyable and affecting. A surprise 5 stars today.
I broke my own rule of listening to the album with only the knowledge of the band I already have. But I felt justified because after hearing the first couple of songs I needed to better understand the choice behind what felt like a bad American Apparel inspired cover. Who is this person on the cover? Are they a band member? What's the design decision being made here — is it just more of the same lame male gaze or is there something else being hinted at? From what I can tell, it's just a repetition of the former and no trace of the latter. That's a shame. The music was okay.
While I'm always down for some Curtis Mayfield, I hadn't heard this record in its entirety before today. It's good, though some songs blended together for me in the mid-to-back half.
This sounds too much like Randy Newman's part-time country funk band. No thanks.
I didn't need another Heard it through the Grapevine rendition, but otherwise a solid offering from The Temptations. I'm, uh, tempted to round up from 3.5 to 4 stars but I'll resist.
My experience of Talking Heads as a young person was filtered through my POP's copy of Sand in the Vaseline. That box is in its essence a greatest hits+ collection. But listening to Talking Heads albums is wholly different than listening to a greatest hits collection or even one of their excellent live (The Name of this Band is Talking Heads) or popular concert records (Stop Making Sense). Collections and live records deliver all peak and no real significant valley. More often then not, they erase the quality of experience that was present in a given album and color into the collection something more commercial and appealing as the experience. Remain In Light continues some of the Fear of Music menace and paranoia but with a broader palette. It's one of my favorite Talking Heads records to pick up and listen to as a whole. I picked up a copy on vinyl though today I'm streaming it and thinking I know I should mention the rhythms in this review, but instead I'll offer that what we should be thinking about and talking about when listening to this record is INTENSITIES. Complex interplay of drum and percussion rhythm underneath layered vocals sliding, doing call and response, stabbing guitars, solos and other instrumentation flown in hot and high in the mix, bass punctuating is one kind of intensity the record offers, but it's not the only one. We also get music that's both claustrophobic and atmospheric leaving space to experience a different kind of intensity altogether. I'm not talking about dynamics purely, even though that is part of it, but about presence and pulse paired with dynamics — how much sonic matter matters in a moment, in other words music, and for me that's what makes the album title so apt, and this run on sentence so long, REMAIN IN LIGHT, as in, I to the E keep in intensity.
I love David Bowie, but not this record. That said, even lesser Bowie is still better than most.
A couple of absolute classic songs everyone should know. You might even say they should hear them before they die. Even in his "lesser" songs, Paul Simon knows how to speak plain but also turn a phrase. He manages give rise to and coax an emotional response from me more than I'd like him to. It's a gift that keeps on giving. That said, I feel like there wasn't a lot of reining Paul in when he thought something was a good idea which is how we also get "Hobo's Blues" on this record only to be followed up with some questionable instrumentation on "Paranoia Blues" which borders on self-parody. The album just doesn't close as strong as it opens, I'm sorry to report. Even Congratulations which isn't as bad as his "blues" tracks doesn't have the gravitas of the starting block (first half of the first side).
I've always found The Rolling Stones to be kind of boring and definitely not the world's greatest rock 'n' roll band of their era or any era. I appreciate their perseverance, however. This is a two-star record.
Bowie's genius is on uneven ground with this record. Here we have ALADDIN SANE and a lad insane all rolled into one as Ziggy Stardust goes to America. For me there's something exhausted, lashing out and unresolved about a number of these tracks but held in a certain light or listened to on the right day it delivers another dose of Spidery sounds.
All we have in the house are like The Jam collected this and collection that. I have criticized collections for what they tend to do about the musical output of an artist — provide a different impression of an oeuvre than what their albums feel like. But I've also praised them as the only way I can stand to listen to some bands, e.g. The Eagles. This record by The Jam is a revelation, there's greater depth to the band than a collection might give you a sense of. There are a few tracks that are weaker than those only found on a greatest hits, but the album experience as a whole is greater.
This record is great. It doesn't prevent me from frequently mixing up Bill Callahan with Will Oldham, but it helps. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
I have no knowledge of this artist or record, but in looking at the cover I am expecting some songs about fantasy fishing. I hope it delivers. *Starts Record* Well, it's not van art metal or prog fishing songs, but it's surprisingly good! I prefer the uptempo, funkier numbers over the slower, jazzier jams but overall it's a decent listen.
I fell in love with Mingus through Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus even though I'd get tired after my third mention of Mingus and skip the final two. The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady came later for me despite both records being cut in '63. That's just the way it used to go when you'd pick up an album or two of an artist with an immense back catalogue and you had no mentor in the genre or media to point out the discography. Yeah, this was a while back. Prehistoric times, a stone age daydream. Mingus has always tickled my ear though and this record didn't disappoint when I finally heard it. It's treat to hear it again today.
The international cover is here to clear up any ambiguity around the name of this band. Step aside life altering medical events, this is band is focused on the phallus. The US cover, given our puritanical roots, leaves things more open to interpretation. You might even say that the US cover is semantically flexible enough that the listener is invited into the lyrics and music of the album in order to make their own interpretation as to what this band is about. It doesn't take long, of course, to come to understand the themes of the band, but in that brief moment between the one and the other a listener can experience the levity and light of a record that holds the promise of more. And yet, at a brisk 36 minutes running time, the listener might finish and ask "Is this it?"
This album has a lot of quality tracks, and yet it lost me or rather I lost the thread, more than once. Maybe it just hit on the wrong day, but it's hard to even give it a three.
You want to talk about a broken heart? Hearing what a jerk this guy is. I used to really like this record and now his behavior has made it hard to listen to. I acknowledge the contradiction, etc, here. I am somehow able to separate Morrissey's distasteful politics of late from The Smiths music and still mostly enjoy those songs and yet somehow Ryan Adam's actions have tainted the music in a way that I can no longer enjoy it. It's through this lens that I rate the record so low. And, I guess that does make it and him a Heartbreaker. :(
You are now about to witness the strength of street knowledge. Despite all the legitimate critiques you can make against the often deplorable content, and lesser music made in its wake by imitators, this record still slaps when it comes to the sound and delivery. It's a sonic masterpiece. If I could replace nearly all the lyrics with those more in a PE or BDP vein and keep every flow intact I'd be listening to this record to this day rather than treating it like a historical artifact to appreciate. But then again, I was never the audience either and I can respect that.
I can't imagine what it was like to have this drop in 1973. For me when i first heard it I thought it was over-hyped and boring aside from Money. Now that I'm no longer a 14 year old skate punk I can appreciate it for its merits even if I still find The Great Gig In The Sky to be a bit silly. It's not my favorite Pink Floyd but it's better than I used to give it credit for.
No thanks. For me, this was the least enjoyable Kinks record I've heard. Borderline unlistenable.
Spotify doesn't let you listen to much of this record but I dug a little deeper and caught up with it at the end of the day. It's better than yesterday's offering. The catchier numbers were among my favorites despite some goofy sixties sentiments.
Just give me shoegaze or actual rock, so much brit-pop is lukewarm, middling, meh to my ears. This record is a fine example of the wet noodle sounds of many British bands in the 90s.
Nearly every indie rock hipster and fan of The Posies or The Replacements knows what is expected of them when it comes to Big Star. And yet, as someone who has been tagged with at least two if not all three of those labels at times, I've always thought Big Star was just okay. Decent records with some great singles, but they never floored me. The review of "the band" overall matches #1 Record.
One of several peaks in The Cure's long history as a band. There is always something in their discography for me whatever the mood or time I find myself in. Disintegration is among my favorites. Although I will say I was initially suspicious of it at the time it came out since I had moved on to other genres of music. I eventually bought a used copy of the CD and am grateful that I did.
Brass in Pocket is my top track with Stop your Sobbing a distant second. After those songs, the rest of the record kind of leaves me cold. I feel the same way about some of their other records as well: a great single or two and the rest are just kind of meh. Essentially this is a band with all the right ingredients for good music but insofar as the cooking is concerned I'm not floored by a lot of the results. There's a lack of consistent creativity. When there's a spark it's pretty awesome though.
The Auteurs New Wave wasn't anything I rode at the time. They weren't on my radar to like or dislike but this is a good record. Listened to it through more than once and I enjoyed it so much I played their After Murder Park today as well. To be honest, I appreciate the darker, heavier After Murder Park more than New Wave. But I can see New Wave having a greater appeal to most listeners. It is cleaner, more contained and polished. In essence, it is more "pleasing" — which tends to draw in more listeners.
The best songs here sound like watered down Radiohead to my ear.
Strange vibes. Intriguing. Beguiling. Genre defying? +//+ Of course, "very British Art-Rock from the 1970s" is its own micro-genre but to point that out is to be crankypantsman.
Back in the late aughts I had a coworker who was super smart and funny. He was a very likable guy. He got me into Kanye through this album and Graduation. My Beautiful Dark Twisted fantasy wasn't out yet, but if it had been I bet he would've pushed that one along with these two. Despite being a hater of skit interludes, I've enjoyed all these records. Obviously things haven't turned out so well for Kanye and it is difficult to listen to some of this music now. I can't abide some of his statements. I also worry about his mental health and stability. That all said, this record still has some bops that hold up.
You probably have an opinion on this record that I'm not going to sway you from. For me, it is not my favorite Pink Floyd album but it is up there.
Despite him only being my second favorite Beatle, I've always enjoyed Paul's bass playing and much of his songwriting too. There are some solid tracks here but a few that are marred by way-too-goofy lyrics.
Yesterday I had the 1970 McCartney solo album and today I have John's 1971 Imagine record. It's a head-to-head battle with a foregone conclusion. I already submitted my review in which I call Paul my second favorite Beatle. If you know me you know that Ringo and George aren't number one. I understand John may have been a terrible person in life sometimes, but I've always been drawn to his songs more and I thought of all the Beatles his solo work was the most compelling. Honestly, it's hard for me to listen to this record without some serious feels.
In my home town everyone had the Complete Discography by the time we were up-and-coming punks. Minor Threat had been broken up for well over a decade and we already had Fugazi. But that never stopped me from feeling the impact of this band like a punch in the face. I loved them. I was straight-edge for some time due to this band. I hung out with anti-nazi skins and generally thought the D.C. scene was worth revisiting for inspiration. Hearing these songs in their "release" format is a treat. Did I just say "a treat"? Jeeze, I'm getting old. Well, that's the way it goes, isn't it? Yeah!
I wasn't an immediate fan when this came out but it really grew on me over time. I think my initial reaction was to hearing it too often at every restaurant, bar and hip store while living in Brooklyn when it dropped. I think it holds up better than some other records of the era now.
I was a Nirvana fan as a teen. When the Foo Fighters became I thing, I hated them on principle. I avoided listening to them for quite some time — it was everlong you might say (although you're probably better off not making that pun). This record was okay. Honestly, I don't think I missed much by avoiding them early. I've heard some other material that's better than this. Humble beginnings I guess.
Not my favorite Radiohead record, but it is still a Radiohead record.
While I came to Telegram Sam through Bauhuas, I enjoyed this record with the hindsight and distance that history can afford. Therefore, my listening was also without any sentimental connection or nostalgia. Three stars despite some five star songs.
Was not Slayed by Slade. Minor wound, maybe.
First track: "High School Confidential" — I'm immediately uncomfortable. Music was fine, some bops.
There isn't anything I'm going to write that will match the greatness of this record. Prince's achievement in 1984 still amazes me. A 10 star cultural impact, and yet, only a 4.5 stars music album for me.
This was the first AC/DC that I heard. My sister's friend had a dance party and I was friends with that person's younger sister who was allowed to invite a couple of people. I remember this coming on. It felt alive and dangerous in a way that I hadn't experienced before in music. Is it my favorite AC/DC album of all time? I don't know, it depends on the day. But it's always 5 stars and welcome to my ears.
Proto-College Rock vibes. I think it's interesting to hear that psych-thread being pulled through some other musical context. In this case, it's within the swell of what would become new wave.
Dusty Springfield. Dusty In Memphis. I have a cousin named Dusty. I never thought that she might possibly have been named after this Dusty. I'll have to ask, though she never married the Son of a Preacher Man. Solid vibes. This is a good record to put on to invoke a certain mood. Four stars.
When you've sung some of these songs as indie lullabies to your child, you're likely to rate the album highly. I promise to listen with the least amount of bias possible before I give this record its flowers. Not every track is perfect, but a good number of them are.
It's not BAD but it's no Thriller.
I appreciate the higher octane versions of some of their classic songs.
Not my favorite from them, but it's still alright.
Am I too jilted for this music? Possibly. This music does very little for me. I'm beginning to suspect that The Prodigy was a band someone on the project came of age hearing. I get the sense that only someone who was into The Prodigy early in life would love them enough to include them twice especially given how little difference there is among the tracks and thus the albums.
A superlative Steve Wonder album. Coming in at 21 songs not every track will be for everyone. But Sir Duke is on this as are several other bops. I'm a major fan of this era of Stevie Wonder, and even though this isn't my favorite of those records, I'll take it.
Coming through The Birthday Party front door into my Nick Cave fandom, I've always appreciated the more abrasive and uptempo songs from Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds. The opener Abattoir Blues delivers in this regard as do a few other tracks on this double album. To be fair, there are tracks that are more subdued and introspective which are also good. Solid.
I've been on record as a Sheryl Crow hater...after I listen to this will I have to, gasp, eat crow? I hope not. Let's listen and find out. Not every track grates on my nerves as much as "All I Wanna Do" nor do any of them engender worse feelings but neither have any won me over as a listener. In sum, not as terrible as I expected but definitely not my thing. This record is a test of how bad something needs to be to warrant a single star rating which I have reserved for things I found truly hard to listen to. Despite some tracks being firmly in that range my eyes did not become redder with rage at each subsequent song. I want to give it one star, but I must admit it's two. *wanders off to purge his listening history now*
I appreciate hearing Unknown Pleasures end-to-end to remind me that some of the most iconic artists of an era could deliver an uneven record. This album is excellent, but not without some warts and wobbly moments that tend to get erased with collections and greatest hits. Sometimes you only get some of the substance with those things and I understand why. This record is near perfect Joy Division.
Oh, looks like I'll have a good cry today. Important people in my life have this record and they've all put it on at one critical point in time or another. I get all the feels when I hear it.
It Was A Good Day and Check Yo Self bolster an album that I've always found difficult to vibe with even thought I've always appreciated Ice Cube.
"Hello, I'm Johnny Cash." Sincere, deep and low — Cash has a proven appeal to criminals and citizens alike. Which one are you?
Beck's slack pop vibe has aged well. Devils Haircut is a solid opener and I find myself enjoying the rest even where its a bit uneven. The things that can make a Beck song uneven can be distilled down to simply saying when he goes too far i.e. the parts where he's too country, the parts where he's too rap, the parts where he's too cute or too funny. As you can see, it's all a judgement call. I acknowledge it's all totally subjective but what I'm trying to highlight here is that, in my mind when it comes to Beck, the unevenness is less about the craft of songwriting and more about excesses in presentation or style.
A record like this is why I enjoy this project. I've never heard it nor is it of a genre that I often browse. But I enjoyed listening to it and will likely give it a spin again.
I remember being disappointed in this record initially because it wasn't as tough as Congregation which itself wasn't as gritty as Up in It. I had so desperately wanted a "return to form" and did not get it. All the biases of youth and wanting a band or recording artist to regularly deliver the thing I first picked them up for. I didn't want growth back then, I didn't want experimentation. Just give me the loud and the fast and never take our foot of the gas. It didn't take too long for this album to grow on me just like Congregation had. It's not my favorite AW but it turns out this is a pretty good record.
It was a revelation at the time and, after all these years, I still think this is their masterpiece.
She's great. It's a mood. Can't put this record on at any old time.
A perfectly fine Radiohead record, but it is less amazing than others.
Living just outside of the second largest city in my home state, while growing up, we were always catching shade for being behind the times. With that context in mind, my friends and I were allergic to anything remotely country and so this "cow punk" album was mostly avoided. Anyone who has dug through the crates, and maybe listened to some Nirvana, could guess this reaction to this album was prior to 1994 and the airing of Nirvana's MTV Unplugged performance that spawned a Meat Puppets revival of sorts. Not every song on this record is my thing but I enjoy more of it than I would've ever known if not for Nirvana (and I guess this 1001 Records project...).
This is a classic Stevie album. Eminently listenable, it easily demonstrates that pop music when it’s done well can be musically interesting. Unfortunately, the “kid from the countryside” skit hasn’t aged as well as the rest of the material so I can’t rate the album a perfect 5 stars, but it’s still good enough for an imperfect 5.
This album tells you everything you need to know about itself, the band and where their career would go within the first two songs. Welcome to the Jungle is ripe to spill out of the open doors of every Trans Am, I-ROC and Mustang in the parking lot. You can hear how many thought they were the United States heirs to AC/DC: sex and indulgence obsessed. A dash of Aerosmith but harder as they put another button on their jean jacket and saved up cash from their part time job for tickets to the coliseum-arena show. And yet by the conclusion of It's So Easy any attentive listener is aware that Axl has enough casual misogyny and lyrical carelessness to go around that many of these songs will not age well. The more prescient among them might even be able to see that if given enough leash this dog is going to tie itself up and make a mess out of everything. And, while It's So Easy isn't as musically lazy as You're Crazy or Anything Goes it gives the listener an idea of where the floor of this album might be. I will try to not hold the diminishing returns of GN'R Lies, Use Your Illusion I, Use Your Illusion II, The Spaghetti Incident?, and Chinese Democracy against this record i.e. over the course of their career Guns N' Roses has proven itself to be nothing more than a one or two-star band. There is enough evidence on Appetite For Destruction alone to warrant the assignment of 2 stars despite a handful of era defining singles and the record being 18x platinum. There will be plenty out there who think that I'm wrong, but I write this review after listening to the record twice in a row today to give it my honest re-assessment and I admitting that when I first heard it coming out of the open door of my older sister's friend's Camaro at an impressionable and tender age I was absolutely thrilled.
I have a love-hate relationship with The Police. A more clever writer would insert a joke here playing off of the name of the band The Police and the institution of the police. Today I am not that writer, instead I can only offer that while I enjoy the blend of punk, reggae and pop music I always felt like The Police never quite fully delivered on the potential of their best material on the one hand while simultaneously being one of the greatest pop bands of their time on the other. Reggatta De Blanc is indicative of that tension. Message In A Bottle, Walking on the Moon, Bring on the Night, and The Bed's Too Big Without You are all memorable songs that merge different styles into something wholly their own. Meanwhile, Does Everyone Stare, On Any Other Day, No Time This Time, Deathwish, Contact, and the titular track Reggatta De Blanc are largely unforgettable filler. For me, The Police are far superior to The Eagles but they suffer similarly in that both bands are frankly better when only viewed through the "best of" lens and yet that is not what we are here to do. The best songs from this record absolutely carry the others.
I own this set. After many listens to all 69 Love Songs — and again today — I can confidently run the numbers: I Love 21 Love Songs I Like 13 Love Songs I Meh 27 Love Songs I Dislike 8 Love Songs
Revolver was one of my first album encounters when it comes to the Beatles. It remains among my favorites.
I never knew Japan was the missing link between glam and Duran Duran but when I first put this on that was my first impression. Over tracks 1 & 2 this feeling was hard to shake, but not a bad thing. Despair dips into slower territory. Frankly, it is a momentum killer in the number three song slot (even if it's an okay song). It breaks the Duran Duran association for me and Japan moves into a different place in my musical map. In this Quiet Life songs 1, 2, and 4 are Top Quality while the All Tomorrow's Parties cover is a terrible mistake and everything else is just okay.