Hard for me to rate a hip-hop album as I don't know much about it - I'll definitely need to give it more time once I go through more rap albums. For now, I really enjoyed the minimialist jazzy beats and double bass. It made other instrumentals stand out more and allowed for more focus on the lyrics. I loved the first song - Excursions, both intrumentally and lyrically, I think it's one of the best openings to any album I've heard so far. Overall, 3.5/5 for me personally, +0.5 for the cult status this album has due to its apparent significance to the genre.

I didn't like it in the beginning except for the few major hits (Praise You, Right Here Right Now) - I found the repetitivenes and the breaking down of all those beats too long and annoying. But then I played it on my headphones while working out and I found that I actually enjoyed it a lot more than expected. Still, it's not something I'd play on a daily basis and the loooong ending to Rockefeller Skank is just too much for me. 3.5/5 rounded down to 3.

I really loved this one. I’ll still need to dive into it more, especially to go through the lyrics. My favourite tracks: Alone again or; Andmoreagain; Maybe the people… (especially loved the solos on this one)

I was surprised to like it so much - it's definitely not something I'd have picked up if it wasn't for this list. But I really liked it, especially the more downtempo parts in the beginning and ending. Tracks such as Valley of the Dolls, Sunworshipper, Zenophile, Need You Tonite, Emotion 98.6 gave me a nice dancey vibe with a bit of nostalgia which suits this early autumn weather just perfectly. At times sounded a lot like Royskopp, which is perfectly fine with me. Drop the Pressure is pure fun. 4.0/5, will definitely be going back to this one

I don’t really know much about the genre, and the dance culture around it kinda irritates me. But an album like this one on its own is great. I enjoyed putting it on in the background while working or cooking. Definitely favourite track is Plastico and then Maria Lionza. 3.5/5 down to 3 simply because it’s not really my thing

I love everything about this album. It makes me want to move to some remote place in the mountains and just chill with a guitar on a porch. Favourite tracks except for the obvious first track and California Stars are One by one and Eisler on the go. 5/5

I’m sorry I don’t get this. Maybe I really am boring and the funk doesn’t get to me. I can appreciate the technical side and it’s very good. But overall I don’t really feel like listening to this

This is the 8th album since I've started and it's the first one that I know and love. I may not be very objective as it's been one of my favorites for a long time and brings back a lot of memories. It's a perfect mix of garage rock and dance and lyrics tell simple stories of a life as a teenager/early adult that bring out a lot of nostalgia for me. Favorite tracks: I bet you look good on the dancefloor, When the sun goes down, A certain romance. 5/5

Album No.9 - Not really my thing, I tried giving it a go and I really enjoyed the first two tracks which are actually pretty good. As for the rest of it, I'm not enjoying it too much and cannot imagine going back regularly to this, more like a curiosity of an era. 3/10

Album No.10 - I didn't have time to go through it in detail as I'd like to - I'd do that over the weekend. So far, I like the ambience created by the vocals and soft instrumentals in the back. Will definitely have to go back to check the lyrics out. Not quite my type of an album, but a nice one to put on in the background - and my wife enjoys it a lot, which is important too. 3.5/5 - for now down to 3.0 but maybe 4.0 after a while?

Album No.11 - it's also the second album that I got from the Big Beat genre following Fatboy Slim (which was a bit of a let down for me). I liked this one much more - it seems more consistent than FS while at the sine team being much less poppy and hit driven. There’s also less boring moments consisting of deconstructing of beats which annoyed me a lot when listening to FS. Also one more observation: it flows by really fast, I’m always a bit surprised that it’s already over. 4/5

I really enjoyed listening to this one - great rythm changes, amazing drumming following the bass riffs and then the layers of guitars - songs are just filled with great riffs. Also, a lot of great small gems, such as the acoustic guitar passage in Holy Wars. The vocals were not the best but sometimes reminded me of Mike Patton on Easy so that wasn't such a bad thing after all. Didn't really care much for the lyrics but the music was amazing. 4.5/5 down to 4.

I was expecting something more similar to Stone Roses so at first I wasn’t too impressed with this. But then, after 4 or 5 listens it grew on me. It’s definitely a more chaotic and nonsensical side of the genre - especially lyrics are a mess. But this kind of chaos is addictive. I enjoyed the jangly guitars in the background building the atmosphere throughout the entire record. The bass lines were also distinctively groovy at times. My favourite tracks are Moving In With, Mad Cyril, Performance, Bring a Friend and Lazyitis (ticket to ride + a great guitar outro to the entire album). Overall, I think I enjoyed more the vibe the entire album gives off rather then particular songs. You can feel this very particular era of madchester on this album. But I’d still choose Stone Roses over this anytime. 3.5/5 down to 3 for the lack of any particular song that really grabbed my attention

This is a great album but it required a couple of replays from me to fully appreciate it. Definitely not something to just put in the background. The listing is a mess and varies in each issue, which results in sudden change of moods and styles. I was listening to Spotify version with a few bonus tracks. I can definitely see how this band and the album (which I have never listened to prior) was so influential to (mainly) American alternative bands. There's a wide spectrum of genres that can be spotted on the album, from powerpop (O, Dana), baroque pop (For You), glam rock (You Can't Have Me) and more folky tunes (Big Black Car). My favorites are the ballads which go from extremely sad and depressing (Holocaust, Big Black Car) to sweet love songs (Blue Moon, For You). I also enjoyed a lot the bonus track - Till The End of The Day which sounds like the Beatles meets powerpop. I also love the fragile voice of the singer, at times on the verge of completely breaking down. The only thing I did not care for was the Holocaust analogy, I think its a bit over the top and unneccessary, sounded a bit juvenile. Overall, the album is not only relevant thanks to its later influences, but also is a great piece of music on its own.

Simple and energetic pop punk from 1980. Very cool! I have only one issue with such albums - there's like 50 songs on it and they all sound very much alike. Hard to really pick something out of it as a result. Still, the album is very consistent throughout its entire duration (pretty short) and is packed with cool hooks. The instrumentals, production, lyrics - all of that is simple and just stands out of the way of pure fun coming from listening to this record. Plus, this is a great album to listen to while driving! Favorites: There Goes Norman, See That Girl (with a bit of a 60s parapapa in the background), Under The Boardwalk, Wednesday Week (totally sounds like a Beatles song) 4/5

One of my favourites. The best of the early Beatles era. Short album but just packed with bangers. 5/5

I love it! short and beautiful - except for the obvious, I especially enjoyed the guitar playing throughout the album, with interesting chord progressions. Will definitely play this one more often. 4.5/5

It's really good and I think it's actually the best from all the electronic albums I've heard while doing this challenge (including Chemical Borthers, Fatboy Slim, Milo) - it's the most complex one while at the same time not annoying and very much enjoyable. My only issue with this is that it's a bit too long, especially for such a repetitive kind of music. I'll be definitely going back to this one. 4/5

no, no, no this is just too corny, bland and unoriginal. I was 8 when this came out so can't really remember that it was so hyped. imagine my shock when reading about all the awards and critical appraisal. it annoys me that it seems like they try really hard to appeal to the listener. i would have given it a 2 but i still enjoy "beautiful day" and the production throughout the album, which is just crystal clear. i don't really wish to relisten to this but will probably force myself though to check if i missed anything. ps new york new york new york oh fuck off. i dont really understand how did it make it on the list? maybe to represent the bland 2000 rock era? if so, than it does its job very well 2.5/5 up to 3/5

this is one of my favorite albums ever since high school! i love every single track on it, but Alive is probably one of the top 10 songs of the 90s alone. the whole album, musically, is just such a perfect mix of grunge with more classic hard rock. and lyrics are great too - incredible storytelling on Jeremy and just pure emotion on Once and Black. i called out the biggest hits here but seriously there's not a single song i dont enjoy and i always come back to stuff like Ocean, Garden or Release Me. the only problem i have with this is that its such a great debut that they never really managed to top it or even come close to it. luckily, in the end Vedder went on to to find himself in more folky things such as the soundtrack to Into the wild. 5/5

A beautiful autumn album. Perfect to chill to on a lazy Sunday afternoon. It’s very consistent throughout. Also, one of a few examples of albums where the second half sounds much better than the first. Favourite tracks: Tears of Rage, The Weight, Lonesome Suzie, This Wheel’s on Fire. 4/5

I'm a big fan of Brazilian music - especially from that era - I love bossa nova. So I guess I was expecting something similar. This is much different though. It still has this amazing warmth mixed with melancholy to it that is so typical for Brazilian albumst that I've heard. However, I got lost on some tracks - maybe it's because it's a long album with many songs and I feel like I'm missing out on a lot due to not understanding the language. Trem de doido is a magnificent track - mixing the fuzz guitars with the calm and warm vocals is just perfect. Other songs I remember: tudo que voce podia ser and Um girassol da cor de seu cabelo (with that outro!) 4/5 trem de doido

expected to hate this based on what i've read and my overall ignorance in the hip hop genre - but so far i actually enjoy this a bit. probably helps that im not native english speaker and can ignore the bullshit lyrics and just focus on the flow and beats which are both really good. its still too long and the porn bits are just too much sometimes. My favorite track is Halfsharkalligatorhalfman - the idea of a 208 year old uncle as the final boss is hilarious. Also, there's another album about a horny gynecologist - Doc Gyneco made in France in the same year - who was first here? Don't really care but I think the French one is much better. 3/5

It’s just so pretty and fun. Elvis’ voice is deep and beautiful, the production is crystal clear. Most of the songs are rather simple tunes that make you want to drop everything and dance. Then by the end of the album it goes a bit more bluesy which is a bit of a surprise but a nice one. My favourite track is The Girl of My Best Friend - his voice on this makes me swoon and I’m a 30yo straight guy. I also love the Fever cover especially the sparse drumming.

It's certainly an enjoyable album but did not really captivate me in any way. Also does not seem too original, the sound reminds me of a typical rock band from the 70s. I guess I never really cared for glam rock. I also did not have the time to go through the lyrics, so maybe I'll still grow fonder of this album? No More Mr Nice Guy is a banger though! 3/5

I knew Nick Drake's Pink Moon before and loved it, so naturally I had high hopes for this one and it kind of.. disappointed? I tried giving it multiple chances but it just didn't captivate me in any way. I still enjoy Nick's delivery and the jazzy parts on this release are great, however there is not a single track that I'm thinking about after the album is over. It's just a nice record to put on in the back for me but that's it. Maybe I'll grow fonder of it with time, but there's just one day for each album at this point so for now it's 3/5 from me.

I have never heard Gary Numan before and I really liked it. I can definitely see how innovative and influential it must have been at the time. Nowadays it’s still enjoyable and sometimes surprising. In particular I was impressed how they used layers of synths as guitar riffs. Cars is the obvious hit here but I think M.E. is my favourite. I’ll be definitely coming back to this. 4/5

I love it, one of my favorites! Probably the best of the early punk era. And 'Mannequin' is one of my top songs ever. 5/5

I didn’t expect it but the album has everything I enjoy and will easily become one of my all time favourites. Grungy 90s vocals, folky tunes, Americana and just a right amount of politics make this a perfect combination of 90s alternative. I love it! Also I feel like there’s not a single filler on it - each song has something that draws me further into them. Hard to pick a favourite track!

I don’t know much about rap but this has been great. It’s my second album by the group (after Low End Theory) and its definitely less artsy and influential but at the same time feels much more authentic and fun. I particularly enjoyed the tracks with snarky and funny verses (the parts with nonsense in French are just perfect). Definitely one of my favourite rap albums of all time, which is not that impressive my lack of knowledge in the field, but still! 4.5/5

First 3 tracks - 5/5, the rest of it going between 3-4/5. a total of 3.5/5 brought up to 4 because of the initial trio I love how the first three tracks flow into each other seemlessly. Genesis is a great opener to the album setting the tone of the entire record, then followed by Let there be light constatly repeating the same melody over broken beats and amazing bass lines to ultimately flow into D.A.N.C.E. - just a perfect dance track (the bass on this!). This trio of tracks is just perfect. However, I feel like this was all there was to the album and the rest of is ok but does not go back near anywhere to the quality of the three openers. oh and I don't mind the Party and kind of like it - on the other hand, i thought DVNO was much more annoying

Just a beautifully done easy listening album full of tunes that could have easily been picked up for any Bond movie. The biggest strength of the album is the incredible voice of Dusty - it is maybe not the strongest of female voices but it’s timbre is so sexy it won’t leave anyone indifferent. My favourite except for the obvious Son of a preacher man was The Windmills of your mind - Dusty vocals meeting bossa nova - perfection.

It's a good roots reggae album. I liked the title track and the rest of it kind of flew by me in the background. Not really my type of music but it's nice enough. 3/5

I love CCR and this is their best although it does not contain my favourite tracks. It's a great statement of a particular place and time that sounds even exotic for someone from a completely different part of the world. Favorite tracks: Looking Out My Back Door, Who'll Stop The Rain, I Heard it through the grapevine and Long As I Can see the Light. I have to admit though, the rock and roll / bluesy parts did seem unoriginal and a bit boring to me. Hence, 4/5

I love Chris Cornell and consider him one of the very top rock vocalists ever. As for Soundgarden, it has always been my least favourite of grunge's big 4. They played a much different sound than the rest of the scene and you'll hardly find any poppy tunes here as on Nirvana or even Pearl Jam's releases. However, this is not to say it's bad - on the contrary. The music on this album is energetic hard rock with depressing suicidal lyrics, which create great contrasts and break my heart considering how it all ended. They also played much more with progressive side of rock, adding multiple tempo changes and unusual time signatures. In that respect, it's much closer to Stone Temple Pilots than the rest of the Seattle scene. Listening to the album I get a feeling that this is also the most mature music that came out of that era. Other than Black Hole Sun (which is easily among the best tracks of the 90s), my favourites: Head Down, Mailman and Fell On Black Days which has one of the best lyrical description of depression I've heard in music. 4.5/5

This is one of my favourite albums of all time. The guitar tone on this especially Mayonaise is just pure heaven. Love it. I don’t think there’s any bad track on it. Pure 90s perfection. 5/5

This is the breakthrough Stones record. It contains some of my favourite songs of theirs, such as Out of Time, Mothers Little Helper, Under My Thumb, Lady Jane and my favourite on the album - I Am Waiting (love the scene from Rushmore!). However I don’t really care too much for the rest of the bluesy country tracks and never did. Also I absolutely hate the fact that there are two different versions and only the US one has one of the best songs of all time, Paint It Black. 4/5 for all the great tunes but not consistent enough for 5/5 for me

This is so weird and at times very silly. And it doesn't help that I'm not that much into hip-hop. I have to admit that it grew a lot on me because at first I wanted to completely disregard it (especially after the unnecessary gore parts of 4 Better Or 4 Worse). There are two tracks that I really enjoyed - in big part due to exceptional instrumentals: On the DL, Passin' me By - and I'll definitely be coming back to those. Ya Mama gave me a chuckle too. All in all I guess this must have been interesting back in the day but for someone completely outside of the genre it's just a weird record with annoying lyrics and at times great instrumentals. 2.5/5

I don’t get this. Hard to fall in love with such an experimental album overnight I guess. The parts giving off Bowie vibes I enjoyed (on some faraway beach, dead finks are both very pretty) but there were some parts that made me want to pull my hair out (blank Frank, driving me backwards). I don’t really have too much time to dive into this right now. 3/5 rated up due to some parts I enjoyed and the apparent significance based on what I’ve read so far

Enjoyed this one but I guess expected a bit more. Feels like they had plenty of great ideas but didn’t really finish working on them or as if these are merely leftovers from other projects. Still, The Passion of Lovers is a great track. And I guess I expected more of the same, but didn’t really get it in the end. Overall I really enjoyed the cold winter vibes and I got to listen to it on the first day of snowfall which was just perfect coincidence and helped me immerse more into the atmosphere of the album. One thought I had while listening: it could use much more synths In the back. The additional material on the Spotify version is simply bad and completely superfluous. 3.5/5

I try and I try to get into the Rolling Stones and I can't. This album has an undisputed musical quality and its impact on rock n roll cannot be questioned. It's also overflowing with masculine energy, yet it sometimes goes too far and the energy is a bit tiring after a while. Their usage of country and blues maybe was important for the popular music at the time, but right now - for someone picking up this album for the first time - it just gets boring and annoying (Dear Doctor is garbage). What I liked about it: Sympathy for the Devil is a really great tune and it stands out so much when compared to the rest of the album. Also, I like the slide guitars on some tracks which is apparently one of the last contribution of Brian Jones. Salt of the Earth is a nice closer too. Other than that, many easily forgettable songs, which is also one of my major problems with the band - incredible bangers scattered throught multiple albums among generic blues rock songs. 3/5 - due to its apparent significance and track 1

Street Life is a banger. The rest of the album is a nice thing to put in the background but nothing too interesting. 3/5

It’s nice enough but I’m not too impressed with this kind of folk albums. I think I’ve had too much recently. Plus the guy sounds incredibly pretentious. 3/5 cause I liked the melody in the first track

it's pretty enough but just a bit inoffensive and unattractive? there's nothing here that kept my attention for longer. what stood out? instrumentals, especially the punchy bass on Everydays, acoustic guitar solo on Bluebird. I liked Expecting to Fly (pretty vocals), Sad Memory (beautiful electric guitar hidden in the background). I feel like there's lack of any strong hit here and as a result there's no anchor to keep me listening to the rest of it. Pretty cover art . I don't know, it just feels incoherent. 3/5

it's a homemade d-d-d-dynamite! I think I must really be out of touch with modern music because this one completely blew me away. Absolutely loving it and it's totally outside of my comfort zone. I think there's not a single weak track (although some of the more poppy tunes are a bit too much for me, see Supercut or Perfect places). The lyrics are youthful but mature, and Lorde's voice is just beautiful. The entire album stands out from all the old classic folky albums I've been tortured with recently. Plus the artwork is so pretty it makes me want to purchase a vinyl copy. Favourites: Green Light, Homemade Dynamite, Liability, Writer in the Dark (that Kate Bush chorus!) and that short ending to Hard Feeling/Loveless. Straight to my favourite albums.

Little wing is a supreme guitar song. Nothing can ever top it for me. It’s just pure bliss. And I love that it’s so short too. I mean SRV elaborates on the subject and it’s great I like it. But Jimi just goes straight to the point and it cuts short before the melody flies away. Perfection. How can I rate an album with Little wing on it anything lower than 5/5? And there’s more to it too: Bold as Love, Spanish Castle Magic, Castles Made of Sand, Wait Until Tomorrow, One Rainy Wish - they’re all beautiful songs. And how about the tone of Jimis guitar on this entire album? then you have the rest of the band which is so easy to overlook but they’re there and they are doing great work to showcase Jimi’s magic. Last but not least - I think with Hendrix it’s so easy to focus solely on the guitar but please take a closer look at the lyrics: Castles Made of sand, Bold as Love and of course Little Wing - Jimi is very underrated as a writer. 5/5 perfect guitar album with the greatest electric guitar tune in rock and roll history.

I still have a bit of an issue with glam - it all sounds pretty much the same to me. However this one is a bit different and I guess that’s because they were among the pioneers and I can appreciate the value it must have added back in the day. You can definitely hear how bands like The Clash or Pixies were influenced by this album. Still, this sounds exactly as I was expecting - like a bridge between The Rolling Stones and punk, which is a great thing to get a better understanding of music history. But it still does not have much replay value to me at this point. I really enjoyed the guitar playing on this especially considering that they’re not put in the forefront. Don’t care too much about the vocals which sound too Jaggery for my taste. Cover art is super cool! makes me want to get a vinyl copy even if I don't care as much about the music. Favourite tracks: Personality Crisis, Frankenstein. 3/5

Exactly why I’m doing this challenge. I would have never heard of it otherwise and I enjoy it so much! Great collection of songs with simple yet beautiful melodies, interesting acoustic guitar arrangements, nice and warm voice (but not too pretty luckily!). There’s plenty of songs I marked as favourites so I’ll just pick one in particular - Pissing in the wind! I’m rating this as 4/5. Not a 5 because I feel like it’s a bit too long and has too many filler, which makes this album go all over the place sometimes. But still very much enjoyable piece of music.

Simply a great blues rock album by a great band of gifted musicians. A teenage me would have absolutely loved this. My favourite tracks are Greensleeves, Rock My Plimsoul and Beck’a Bolero. Great guitar playing - I would actually enjoy if it was made more prominent on the album since Beck has such an original sound and it seems a bit overshadowed by Stewart’s singing. The version on Spotify contains also a bunch of b-sides out of which I’ve been drinking is a great addition to the album and should have been included in the original release. Also Love is blue makes me think of Mad Men. That’s a rare thing for me to actually enjoy the bonus tracks to deluxe editions. 4/5

I don't think I can explain how much I love this album. It's probably among my top 5 albums ever. I've been listening to it since I was 17 and it just never gets old. Such an eclectic mix of styles with punk flavour on top! There are no weak tracks and I can’t name all of my favourite ones, so here’s my absolute top, other than the obvious hits: Card Cheat, Koka Kola, Brand New Cadillac and I’m Not Down. This last track got me out of so many depressing situations. Love love love this album

It's a beautiful album with incredible singing from Ray Charles. There's nothing much to say - I put it on in the back while walking through the city with Christmas illuminations and it was definitely working its magic. It just sounds too generic to me but this is probably due to its old age and being completely outside of my usual area of expertise. Still, a beautiful album with easy listening songs.

Suprisingly, I am really enjoying this. It's at time a bit too sweet but still a very solid album. From what I've read, this is the last album of ABBA recorded during the time when not only the group was falling apart but also the marriages of the members. This is reflected in the lyrics, most notably in One of Us. I like the theatrical I Let the Music Speak, which also foreshadows the next projects of the men from the group, who went into musicals. I also feel like Weyes Blood must have listened a lot to this album when making Titanic Rising because I hear a lot of similarities here and I love it. One of Us and Head Over Heels are great pop songs with incredibly catchy hooks - still ABBA's magic showing through. Also, One of Us makes me thing of The Sign by Ace of Base (notabene also a Swedish group) - pay attention to this little backing voice part in the chorus that sounds exactly like "life is demanding without understanding". Bass line on For the Price of One makes me think of this obscure Polish song from the 90s about animal rights (Buzu Squat - Nasze Przebudzenie). Again, sometimes too sweet, especially Slipping Through My Fingers (though the lyrics are really touching, reminiscent of She's Leaving Home by The Beatles). The cover art is beautiful and reflects perfectly the contents of the album. 4/5 - will be definitely coming back to this one.

I'm not into hip hop so never really listened to Kanye and always kind of wondered what's the big deal with this guy. Never really got a chance to listen to his albums. Then recently all kinds of disgusting things he said I assumed I'll just skip him entirely. And now I get this on my challenge. At first I was going to skip and give it a 1 star like some people here (always enjoy reading those reviews). But then I though that I listen to and enjoy many artists that were horrible people and did some questionable things. I mean, talk about the entire classic rock genre, guys like Jimmy Page or putin sympathizer Roger Waters. So I decided to give it a try and I'm glad I did. It's probably the best hip hop album I've heard so far. I don't know much about influences in this genre so I rely on other people's opinions in this regard, but man, the music on this just flows. And it's so accessible to non hiphop heads, I can definitely see myself using it as a gateway into the genre. The lyrics are impressive and I'll be damned but I can't find traces of anything he will have said in 2022. I'm gonna tell myself that this young Kanye from 2004 was a different person and continue to enjoy this. Now let's try some more of his works.

Overall I love how positive and energetic this whole thing is especially when you consider Iggy's previous album, The Idiot. It’s like a completely different thing and there was just a couple of months between both records. The two iconic tracks - The Passenger and Lust for Life - are all time classics. The rest of the album is top tier as well. I really liked the riff on Some Weird Sin, the Bowie-like melodies on Tonight. Success was great if not a bit too long and too repetitive (would have been great if it was cut earlier), Turn Blue is a great and atmospheric track. Neighbourhood Treat is ok. The last son fall in love with me is too much glam and less interesting. Sixteen is similar and they’re both the weakest tracks for me on the album. I really enjoy the instrumentals throughout the album: strong drums, nice guitar riffs and atmospheric keyboards from time to time. The lyrics are cool. Iggys delivery is great. Cover art makes me smile. He looks like such a nice guy here. It’s a 4 from me but I can easily see myself growing into loving it much more over time so a potential 5 in the future or if I had heard it earlier in my life it would have been a 5.

really not my thing. only one song got my attention - Conte de fees, which had cool guitars and all. other than that, did not really find this interesting.

I was very excited at first because the first track is soo good. The Wall Street Shuffle has a fantastic guitar riff (and what a tone!), cool and timeless lyrics as well as great melodies with interesting instrumentals. However, the rest of the album is a huge disappointment. It seems like they threw at this all of their ideas hoping something will stick. And maybe it would if they followed through on some of those. But no, if anything interesting appears on this album it is immediately followed by some other - most often silly - idea. Luckily it doesn't drag too long as it's only 37 minutes and in the end there are some better tracks but the middle part of it is at times unlistenable, with special regards to the Worst Band in the World. Few highlights of the album except for the first track: Hotel, Baron Samedi. Overall its been a big disappointment.

I had no expectations as it's completely out of my usual genre and absolutely loved it! From the new jack swing snare to heavy guitars on Black Cat, the production and instrumentals are just a perfect representation of the era. The tracklist consists primarily of solid dance tunes with sociopolitical message, which sometimes may sound naive but it seems like the author was completely aware of that and had all the best intentions. There are some weaker points, sure, especially towards the end which is unnecessarily packed with ballads, but its still a very good album overall. I will be definitely coming back to this and I'll try some other albums from Janet. 4/5

already knew this one before and I like it a lot. It's a great thing to put on in the background. Favourite tracks: Xtal, Tha, Ptolemy. I really don't like Green Calx, which is the only one track that actually bothers me on this otherwise perfect ambient album. 4/5

Smooth and beautiful. Incredible vocal performance. Not much to be said here. I think I sort of have a problem with those oldies as I love putting them on as a background but can't get too invested into their actual content. Maybe it's because they've become such a standard at this point it's hard to be bothered to find something new and exciting?

It's one of those formative teenage albums for me. I first heard it in 2004 when I was 12 and I've loved it ever since. This thing not only made me dig deep into the blues and garage rock, it pushed me to pick up an electric guitar! It still rocks and I don't think there's any weak track on the whole thing. Still, all the heavy guitar playing aside, I think my favourite is In the cold cold night. I just have so many memories come up when I hear it! Love this album, one of my all time favourites.

I don't think I get the appeal. There are a couple of songs I enjoyed (Ocean of Noise, The Well and the Lighthouse, My Body is a Cage) but overall it seems pretty bland to me. Moreover, when I look through the tracklist it seems that the album starts really slowly and the songs at the front are not nearly as good as the second half of the album, which probably impacts my overall sentiment. I enjoy the instrumentals, especially considering that the band is full of multinstrumentalists. Especially like the organs on the last track. I didn't get trhough the lyrics too much - they're a bit too complex and poetic for me as a non-native speaker to dig through over one day. I don't know why but I get a feeling that these guys are a bit pretentious though? Not sure if this is right, just a feeling. Still, it is a good album but does not match the hype for me. 3.5/5

It's a great album that I have a lot of nostalgia for. Kinda makes me wish I grew up 50 years ago in some random town in the middle of nowhere in US. Still, I thought it was a little bit better back when I first heard it. 4/5