1001 Albums Summary

Well, here we are, my first album of the user submissions. I’ve never heard of Anaïs Mitchell before, hey, Justin Vernon is on this album! I haven’t fucked with Bon Iver in a minute, but I know I’ll encounter at least a couple of albums of theirs on this list. In addition to not being up on my Anaïs Mitchell music, I’m also a little rusty on my Greek mythology, so this album should be a good refresher. Let’s go down to Hadestown! Hadestown isn’t the type of album that I gravitate towards, but I thought it was really good. The music on this album was really beautiful, and it did a fantastic job of creating a really vivid setting, realistic characters, and a haunting atmosphere. Rock opera-style storytelling tends to be hit or miss with me, but I thought this album did a great job of crafting a story with a lot of emotional weight that felt eerily relevant in today’s political climate. Orpheus’s struggle, though unwinnable, still had glimmers of hope throughout it, and even though he was doomed, I naturally felt myself optimistic that he might succeed in rescuing his love. I didn’t care much for Greg Brown or Ben Knox Miller’s vocals, and a few songs in the middle kind of dragged, but other than that, this was a really solid album, and an interesting submission from a fellow user.

Other than Lady Marmalade, I don’t think I know any songs by Labelle. I honestly had no idea that Patti LaBelle was in a group; I always thought she was a solo artist. I tend to enjoy funk and soul music, so I’m sure this will be a fun album to listen to. Hmm, well, this album wasn’t really for me. “Lady Marmalade” is a really fun jam, and the vocals and lyrics on this album are really good, but musically, there just wasn’t a lot that I enjoyed on Nightbirds. When it comes to funk, I expect a bit more pop in the music; I like good bass grooves and fun keyboard riffs, and this album didn’t deliver on that. As for the soul elements on this album, while the vocals were good, I didn’t feel like there was any oomph to the singing, and despite the meaningful lyrics, there was just no emotional weight to anything. Every now and then there would be an element that I would like, but it was just rare that any song was able to put it all together and create something that I liked listening to. This is a cool addition to the list, but it’s just not for me.

I don’t think I’ve heard of Al Stewart before, but this is certainly an interesting album cover. The soft rock albums from the seventies that are on the main list were a bit hit-or-miss with me, so I’m not sure whether I’m going to love or hate this album. Tomorrow marks the start of the year of the horse, so I guess it’s good to experience the year of the cat for now. Year of the Cat was a really fun album, and I would have never sought this out on my own. I thought Al Stewart did a great job of conveying so many different emotions and moods through his arrangements, and he’s a really good vocalist as well. Musically, the string arrangements were my favorite part of this album, but there were plenty of other elements that I enjoyed as well. “Lord Grenville” was a fine opening track, but “On the Border” really hooked me in with its excellent bass playing, beautiful strings, and the Spanish guitar. I really liked how this song had a southwestern feeling to it, without going completely into a typical Latin music sound. The keyboards on “Midas Shadow” and “Sand In Your Shoes” were really good, but they were really great on “If It Doesn’t Come Naturally.” The bass playing on “If It Doesn’t Come Naturally” was really good as well. On “Broadway Hotel,” I really enjoyed the guitar playing, and the string arrangement on the outro was really great. There weren’t any songs that I thought stood out above the rest, but the album as a whole was just really solid. Kudos to whoever submitted this album, because it was really cool and unique.

I’ve never heard of Angelo De Augustine before, so I’m not really sure about what to expect from this album. The cover is certainly interesting, and it reminds me a bit of the cover for The Drums’ 2011 album Portamento. I’m curious to find out what this album is all about! Overall, I thought this album was fine. The arrangements were really beautiful, and I enjoyed how a lot of the songs had subtle little melodies layered under the main melody. There was a somber mood that permeated this whole album, and I thought the music did a great job of conveying that mood. While I applaud the consistent tone of this album, I wished that there had been some fluctuations in the intensity of the emotion. I feel like I could have picked six songs at random off of this album and skipped the rest, and I wouldn’t have really missed anything. The vocals on this album reminded me Elliot Smith, but for some reason, ADA’s vocals wore me down quite a bit over the course of this album. While this wasn’t really up my alley, I can understand how this album would mean enough to someone for them to submit it for this list.

Well hello there Iggy Pop and The Stooges, fancy seeing you guys again. With the exception of Fun House and Lust for Life, I was pretty lukewarm on Iggy's solo stuff and The Stooges' albums that were on the main list. On top of that, I really don't care much for live albums, so this album is probably not going to be my jam, but I'll try to approach this album with an open mind. As I feared, I really didn't care for this album. The recording quality was just awful, and I understand that it is what it is, but I couldn't get past that. The Stooges' music already has a raw sound to it, so listening to it live and unfiltered didn't do much for me. The things that I do enjoy about The Stooges' music was so muddled and drowned out on this recording, that I found this album pretty boring. However, as a piece of music history, this album is pretty cool. Iggy's bantering with the audience and his profane ad libs were pretty funny. I thought it was interesting that I couldn't hear the audience very much, so I just had to rely on Iggy's reactions that they were out of control. It's pretty cool too that this was the last Stooges show for several decades, and I liked that it was recorded in Detroit. I can see why someone would submit this album, but it wasn't my jam.

Welcome to another edition of “I know nothing about jazz, but sometimes it sounds pretty cool.” I’ve never heard of Medeski Martin & Wood before (btw, congrats gents, you’re MMW for the rest of this review), but man, that album cover definitely screams nineties. I don’t think I gave any jazz album on the original list five stars, but I think the only one I gave two stars to was Bitches Brew. What an absolute slog that was for me. Anywho, I’m ready to jazz it up with MMW! Shack-man was a pretty cool album. I don’t think I really had any preconceived notions about this album, but I enjoyed its eclectic sound. I was pleasantly surprised to hear that MMW opted for some really fun instruments from the piano and keyboard family, and I think those choices served this album’s style and sound really well. I feel like this was the first time that I was able to somewhat follow the structure of some jazz songs, and understand what the musicians were doing. While this album’s songs weren’t particularly memorable to me, I did think that there were some fun grooves throughout it. At multiple points though, this album kinda became background music to me. It was good background music, but background music nonetheless. A few songs did stand out to me though, and I have some short notes on them: I liked how funky "Is There Anybody Here" was. What a great choice of instruments for this song, and I was actually able to follow along with the structure of what MMW were doing. “Bubblehouse” was really fun. I loved that fast tempo, and the solo drumming section was really awesome. I loved the bass and guitar on "Spy Kiss." The bass playing was particularly great, and I liked how steady its sound was throughout the song. While this didn’t convert me to being a jazz guy, I still had a fun time branching out and listening to Shack-man

I can’t remember when exactly I reviewed Eels’ Beautiful Freak, but if I had to put money on it, it was probably in my first 100 albums (ah, it was number 74). I enjoyed the overall sound of Beautiful Freak, and I liked how unique each song was. The lyrics didn’t captivate me, but the music alone was enough for me to give this album four stars. I don’t know if Daisies of the Galaxy is going to do the same thing for me, but I’m interested to find out! Daisies of the Galaxy was right on par with Beautiful Freak. The music was great, and I enjoyed the quirky but melodic sound of this album. I wasn’t particularly into the lyrics on this album either, but it didn’t detract from my enjoyment at all. I thought that the songs that featured the Wurlitzer were the best songs on the album, but I also enjoyed the Beck-like vocals and drumming. I really liked how varied this album was in terms of its instrumentation, but it still managed to have a really cohesive sound throughout. “The Sound of Fear,” “I Like Birds,” and “Mr. E’s Beautiful Blues” were my favorite songs on the album. Daisies of the Galaxy was a fun experience, and it makes me want to revisit Beautiful Freak.

I knew that someone added a Sophie album to the user submission list, and I’m glad that I’m getting to review this today. I only know the first song off of this album, but I think it’s a beautiful song. On top of that, I love synth driven pop music, so I think this album is going to be right up my alley. Well, despite a strong start with “It’s Okay to Cry,” I really didn’t care for this album. I expected this album to be a gentle sort of dream-pop, but that idea was dashed pretty quickly once “Ponyboy” kicked off. From there, “Faceshopping” was more of the same, with some bass so strong that it ratteled my fillings. “Is It Cold in the Water” was more up my alley; despite the chaos and the sharp sounds it utilized, it was a lot gentler and more melodic than the previous two songs. But from that point to the rest of the album, I just wasn’t impressed. I expected some beautiful and lush melodies like the first track, and I think this album lulled me into a false expectation. Back to “It’s Okay to Cry:” this song is really great. The gentle vocals are excellent, and it’s just a simply beautiful and melodic song. The crescendo at the end came out of nowhere, which made it really effective. I wish more of this album had been like this song. I guess I’m just not into this particular brand of pop music.

I’ve never heard of Tally Hall before, but I hope they’re better than Tammany Hall! No Gilded Age fans here? That’s okay, I don’t watch it either. I prefer to get my Carrie Coon fix by rewatching The Leftovers. But I digress. Time for a trip to Marvin’s Marvelous Mechanical Museum, which I hope is better than Mr. Magorium’s… I’ll see myself out. MMMM isn’t really my cup of tea, but I thought it was a pretty good album. Tally Hall has some fun songs on this album, and I thought their lush arrangements and vocal harmonies were unique and refreshing. Their best lyrics were pretty fun, but sometimes these songs descended into something annoying, cringeworthy, or both. But this record shows that Tally Hall was out to have a good time, and that they wanted their audience to feel that sense of fun as much as they were. This album didn’t always work, but when it did, it produced some bright, toe-tapping songs that were fun to get sucked into.

I’ve never heard of Protomartyr before, but I do enjoy post punk and noise rock, so this album will probably be right up my alley! This album was a bit short of five stars for me, but I still thought it was really good. The guitar playing throughout the album was consistently great, and I enjoyed the moments when the violin and the synthesizer were used as well. The guitar playing did such a great job of crafting a really dense atmosphere, but there was a nice balance of different melodic techniques that were used to craft that atmosphere. It took a minute for the album to get going for me, but once it did, I really got into it. Some notes on the songs that really stood out to me: “A Private Understanding” grew on me the longer it went on. By the last stretch, I was really into it. I really liked that shift that it made towards the end. The guitars on “My Children” were really awesome. I loved how the tempo increased, because I had no idea where it was going to go, and that anticipation just made the song so much better. The guitars on “The Chuckler” were really great. The way those notes oscillated was awesome, and the guitar on the chorus was really great too. This was such a really well-fleshed out song, and the violin was incredible too. I loved that segue from “Night-Blooming Cereus” to “Male Plague.” Both songs were really good too. While this album wasn’t perfect, I thought it was really good, and it’s the type of thing I would go back to.

I'm not very far into the user submitted albums list, but this will be the first album I've gotten that I've already listened to. I haven't listened to The Shins in a hot minute, and I can't think of a good reason why I haven't, because I think they're great. I saw them live back in 2012 when they were touring for Port of Morrow, and I had a great time. I'm pumped to fire this album up today! This isn't a five-star album for me, but it's pretty darn close. The Shins (okay, James Mercer) packed this album with fun and beautiful arrangements, and some solidly poetic lyrics as well. This album is really fun to listen to, with some of the best indie rock from the aughts. The lead and bass guitars are great, as are the drums, keyboards, and synths. James Mercer may not be at the top of anyone's mind when it comes to great vocalists, but I really enjoy his singing, especially on the album's best track, "Phantom Limb." While we're on the subject, "Phantom Limb" absolutely rules. The opening fuzzed out bass tones, the driving rhythms of the bass and drums, the shimmering guitar notes, the infectious refrain of "ohh, oh-ohhh, oh-ohhh"... man, this song has it all. What a beautiful piece of music. "Sleeping Lessons" is wonderful too. I love how the dreamy intro shifts into an absolute pop-rock blast, with some incredibly dance-worthy drums and guitars. "Sea Legs," "Turn On Me," and "Split Needles" are great too, but "Sleeping Lessons" and "Phantom Limb" are in their own galaxy. The songs that don't stand out on this album are a touch boring and don't really add anything to the album's overall sound, but thankfully, those songs are few. Overall though, Wincing is a really solid indie rock record, and some of the best work James Mercer has ever put out.

I’ve never heard of King Tubby before, but if that’s him on the cover, I think his name doesn’t really fit him. King Tubby would be a good nickname for my overweight orange cat though. But I digress. I don’t think I’ve ever listened to any dub music before, but I enjoyed most of the reggae on the original list (but NOT Finley Quaye). I’m not really sure what I’m in for on this album, but I’m excited to find out. Wow, this was a really fun album to listen to. This isn’t the type of music that I typically gravitate towards, but this was really enjoyable. I was really hooked in by the bass playing throughout this album, and I loved letting the infectious groove just wash over me as I listened. The percussive elements were great too, and I enjoyed that there were so many different instruments used over the course of the album. On top of that, the echoes and reverb just added a really great atmosphere to the sound. My only gripe with this album is that there was a handful of songs that didn’t do anything new or exciting to my ears, but even my least favorite parts of this album were still pretty good. I’d definitely consider firing this up again, and it’s something I’d love to own a physical copy of. Solid addition to the list.

Oh boy, The 1975. I first heard of them when their song “Chocolate” was getting a lot of air-play. They felt like a band that I was supposed to enjoy, but I just didn’t like that song very much. A few years ago, I listened to their album I Like It When You Sleep, but I honestly don’t remember much about it. And now we know that Matty Healy is some sort of idiot-weirdo-asshole hybrid, and that hasn’t exactly made me want to seek out more of his music. I’m not sure how this album will land with me, but I’m willing to give it a fair shot. This album was a bit better than I expected, but since I had pretty low hopes for it to begin with, that lands it squarely in three-star territory for me. I did like the overall bright sound of the album, but while those brighter songs were fun to listen to, they weren’t very catchy, and I thought the melodies were a bit bland and forgettable. As for the more ballad-y songs, I felt like they didn’t have any identity or emotion in them, and they fell pretty flat with me. I can’t see myself going back to this album, but songs like “Oh Caroline” and “Looking For Somebody” were very enjoyable while I was listening to them.

Today is my 41st birthday, and I’m delighted that I get an album from one of my favorite bands. I own a copy of Boxer, but I’m pretty certain that I’ve only listened to it in its entirety one time. It’s not that it was a bad album, but when I’m in the mood for The National, I’m going to gravitate to Trouble Will Find Me (which was on my list of possible album submissions) or High Violet, which of course is on the main list. I’m sure I’m going to love re-listening to this album today, and I’d completely forgotten that it has gems like “Fake Empire” and “Squalor Victoria” on it. Happy birthday to me! Boxer wont’ supplant Trouble Will Find Me or High Violet on my informal list of best albums by The National, but hot damn, I just love listening to these guys. Their lyrics are just the right amount of reflective sadness for my taste, I think their arrangements are beautiful and haunting, and their overall musical talents are just incredible. Boxer’s themes of the anxieties of transitioning to adult life really resonate with me, even though I’ve been an adult on my own for over two decades. I look at where I’m at in my life, with a wife, two kids, a mortgage, and four cats, and it makes my head spin that I’m at this stage of my life, trying to navigate the daily stresses of having a family. I find the daily drudgery of chores and work can really wear me down sometimes, and Boxer really made me feel validated. I love Matt Berninger’s vocals on every National album I’ve listened to, and Boxer was no exception. I loved the arrangements on this album too, from the strings and the piano to the drumming and guitars, Boxer is really beautiful. “Fake Empire,” “Squalor Victoria,” “Slow Show,” and “Apartment Story” were my favorites on this album, but there wasn’t a bad song on here. The next time I want to listen to The National, I think I’ll mix it up and reach for Boxer.

Yesterday on my birthday, I got The National’s Boxer, and today I get another band that I love, in Vampire Weekend. I thought about submitting Contra for my contribution to the list, but someone beat me to it, and I also thought about submitting their self-titled album, but ultimately didn’t. I haven’t listened to this particular album in a while, but I’m excited to fire it up today, because I’m pretty certain I’m going to love it. I really loved revisiting Modern Vampires of the City. This album may have a darker tone and less pop influences that its predecessor, but it’s still a beautiful album. I love how MVotC has a healthy mix of slow and up-tempo songs, but the dark lyrical themes and overall musical sound ties the album together really well. Like Boxer, I thought this album did a great job of exploring the themes of finding your place in the world as you move further and further away from young adulthood. I wish I could spend another few paragraphs heaping specific praises on this album, but I just simply love the whole darn thing. Well, I’m big on “Hudson,” and it’s a weird turn for this album to take so close to the finish line, but that’s a nitpick. There are so many clever callbacks and references on this album, and even though Contra is still my favorite, MVotC deserves all the accolades it gets. My favorite song on this album when it came out was “Unbelievers,” and that still holds true. I love the main keyboard melody, and the drumming is perfectly catchy. The bridge is utterly spectacular too, and the horns add so much. I was raised in the evangelical church, but no longer follow evangelical Christianity, so this song’s lyrical themes of religious questioning and doubt really resonate with me. This is a wonderful album, and I’m so glad I got to revisit it today.

I’m somewhat familiar with Dallas Green’s work as City and Colour, but I’ve never listened to anything by Alexisonfire before. I enjoyed the post-hardcore albums that were on the main albums list, but I don’t think there was anything on there later than the nineties. I have no idea what to expect from this album, but I’m excited to… Alexisonfire it up. I found Watch Out to be really enjoyable. This type of sound is what I think of when I think of emo music from the aughts, but this was much better than what I typically imagine when I think of that sort of music. The guitar playing and drumming on this album were really good, and I loved the overall high energy. The combination of screaming and melodic vocals was really good, and it was really head-spinning for me to hear Dallas Green perform music like this. “It Was Fear of Myself” and “Hey, It’s Your Funeral Mama” were my favorite songs on the album, but most of the songs were really good. This isn’t the type of music I typically gravitate to, but I’m thinking of throwing this album on during my next workout.

I’ve never heard of Les $heriff before, but there’s a few bands from France that I really like (although none of them are punk bands), so I’m curious to see what I’ll think of this live punk album. Even though I don’t know any French, I enjoyed listening to this album. The French language worked really well with these short and energetic songs, and I thought the guitar playing and drumming here were really good. I listened to this a bit while I warmed up for a workout, and the energy from Les $heriff was really contagious. I think that this is the type of album that I would enjoy more with repeat listens, despite not understanding the lyrics. The choruses of these songs were really catchy, and I loved the way the lead and backing vocals sounded together. It was tough for this hour-long punk album in a foreign language to keep my attention the whole time, but I’m still glad someone added this to the list, because it was a unique and fun experience.

I’ve never heard of Reincidentes before, but this sounds like an interesting album. I know a very minimal amount of Spanish, but that didn’t really detract from my enjoyment of any Spanish language albums on the main list. Let’s see what these punk rockers have in store! Overall, I thought ¿Y Ahora Que? was a good album. The high energy, good guitar playing, and cool vocal techniques made this album pretty enjoyable to listen to. The Spanish vocals gave this album a really cool flair, and made Reincidentes’ punk sound really unique. There was a healthy bit of variation to the sound of this album as well, and it sounded to me like the band pulled inspiration from a few different sources when it came to their guitar playing. The drumming and the bass playing were okay, but everything else really took a back seat to the lead guitar. I did enjoy the strings on “¡Ay! Dolores,” and I wished that Reincidentes had branched out a bit more when crafting their sound, because they’re clearly good at it. Even though this album wasn’t completely my jam, it was fun to branch out, and I’m glad someone added this to the user albums list.

Ooh, Pinkerton! Man, I don’t think I’ve sought out any of Weezer’s music since the teal album (for the record, I like that album). I don’t have anything against Weezer, but there’s just plenty of other things I’d rather listen to these days. I’ve listened to this album in its entirety before, but the only songs jumping out at me right now are “Tired of Sex” and the incredible “El Scorcho.” I’m curious how this album is going to land with me, and I’m hoping for a fun trip down memory lane! Pinkerton was a great reminder of why Weezer’s work in the nineties still holds so much sway today. This second album of Weezer’s is certainly less pop-forward than the band’s debut, but I think the darker sound works really well here. The thing that really struck me about listening to this album today is that there wasn’t any particular part of the music that stood out to me. The guitars, bass, drums, and vocals are all good, but nothing steals the show. But together, everything just sounds great, which is also how I thought this album worked as well; the sum is greater than the parts. After a strong start with “Tired of Sex,” it took Pinkerton a bit to get going, but that run from “Across the Sea” to “Pink Triangle” is immaculate. I’d forgotten how great “The Good Life” is, but “El Scorcho” still stands out as the best song on the album. At times, the lyrics here felt like an inside joke that I wasn’t a part of, but I still found this album enjoyable to listen to, and I’m looking forward to when I get to review The Blue Album.

I first got into My Morning Jacket in the early 2010’s, when Circuital was on a bunch of ‘best of’ lists. I really enjoyed Circuital, and when I was reading up on MMJ, I saw that Z was supposed to be really good, so I bought that too. I know I’ve listened to Z in its entirety, but for the life of me, I can’t remember anything about it. I think it’s one of those albums that I always meant to go back to, but just never got around to it. I’m really pumped that I have an excuse to check it out again today! Damn, I really missed out by not revisiting this album until now. MMJ isn’t the type of music that I typically gravitate towards, but man, they’re excellent at what they do. Jim James’s vocals were excellent, the guitar work was great, and the overall mood and atmosphere of this album really stood out. I thought the songwriting was really good too, and the music suited the lyrics really well. Even though MMJ draws on various influences to craft their sound, Z is incredibly cohesive, held together by its themes of loss. I don’t think I could pick out a favorite song from this album, but the run from “Gideon” to “Off the Record” is immaculate. I wasn’t that big on “Into the Woods” (I really hate circus-sounding music) and “Dondante,” but Z is still a really strong album.

I beg your fucking pardon, but there are four Tool albums on the user list? And they only have five studio albums total? I’d say this more than vindicates David Bowie and Bob Dylan from having too many albums on the main list. Elvis Costello, you’re not off the hook though. I know a couple of Tool songs, but I’ve never heard anything off of this album. And despite my whining about Tool having four albums on the user list, I’m sure I’ll find this album to be fine at worst, because while this may not be up my alley, I think these guys know what they’re doing when it comes to music. I guess I better listen to this album before RFK Jr. bans it for having the word inoculum in the title. Eh, I thought Fear Inoculum was fine. I’m not a big fan of prog rock, so prog metal is mostly lost on me. I did like the guitar playing on this album though, and I thought it did a great job of creating a really dense and dark atmosphere. On top of that, Danny Carey’s drumming is excellent, and his playing complimented the guitars really well. For me, the big risk with prog is that the end of the long and winding journey you just went on might not be worth it, and that was the case for me on quite a bit of this album. The long and meandering songs would be enjoyable for a bit, but after a while, I just found that the music wasn’t really going anywhere interesting. This album was nice to listen to, and it was definitely outside of what I enjoy listening to, but I didn’t think it was anything to write home about.

I think I’ve heard of Scraping Foetus off the Wheel before, but for the life of me, I can’t remember where I’ve heard of them from. I certainly couldn’t tell you what type of music this is, and I have no idea what this album is going to sound like. Oh wow, this is an industrial album, cool! For the most part, I thought this album was pretty enjoyable. I enjoyed the way the arrangements were constructed, and I enjoyed the overall industrial sound. My knowledge of industrial music is pretty much limited to what I encountered on the main list, but while this album was enjoyable to listen to, I don’t think it did anything new or trailblazing for the genre. It did get a bit too goofy for my tastes at times, but after the goofy songs, it was able to rebound nicely. As an added bonus, after I finished this album, Spotify started up an Einstürzende album where the cover has a picture of a red horse ejaculating on the ground. Neato! The ejaculating horse will not impact my rating.

Man, Death really got in the death metal game at the best time. I really didn’t care for the few death metal albums that were on the original list, but the reviews for this album sound like this might be more up my alley. There’s only one way to find out! As far as death metal goes, I’d have to say that this album was fine. It felt pretty one-dimensional to me, with almost all of the emphasis on the guitars and drumming (which, for the record, were great), but I felt that Death was really good at what they do. The sound wore me down a bit over the course of the album, but I thought the lyrics were pretty good, and I appreciated the social and political commentary they featured. There weren’t any particular songs that really stood out to me, but I did like it when there were crazy guitar solos in the middle of the songs. Other than during a workout, I can’t see myself going back to this album, but it was certainly a unique experience.

Ooh, a Queens of the Stone Age album that isn’t their debut! Fantastic. I think I may have listened to this album in its entirety one time, but I think that was during a workout, so I didn’t give it my undivided attention. I know the singles off of this album really well, but most of this album will probably feel new to me, even if I did indeed listen to all of it at some point. Songs for the Deaf is a little short of five stars for me, but it’s still a really great hard rock album. Listening to this, it’s clear that it was crafted with a vision for a complete work of music, and not just a collection of songs. SftD truly feels like a road trip across a desert landscape, and Josh Homme is the perfect guide. To me, QotSA teeters right on the edge of being sinister, but without going full-tilt into that sinisterness. Homme is the perfect guide for that journey, because there’s a quality to his voice that makes you want to follow and trust him, but you know in the back of your mind that you need to keep your wits about you if you do. The guitar work on this album is great, and the riffs burrowed straight into my brain. “No One Knows” is incredible, and easily the best song on the album, if not the best song that QotSA has ever put out. There’s multiple catchy guitar riffs, expert drumming, and a bridge that manages to build a sense of dread and wonder at the same time. I wish a couple of minutes could have been taken from “The Sky is Fallin’” or “God Is in the Radio” and given to “No One Knows” instead. “Go with the Flow” is great too, with its screeching guitars, and “First It Giveth” is up there too. This album has a few points that dragged for me, but it did wind up finishing on a really strong note with “A Song for the Deaf” and “Mosquito Song.” Despite those low points, SftD is still a great album, and easily one of the best rock records of the aughts.

As a Houston native, I’m obligated to mention that I’m not a huge Beyonce fan. Is she good at what she does? Of course she is. Is what she does my cup of tea? Eh, sometimes. My favorite Beyonce song is “Schoolin’ Life,” which is a bonus track off of 4, so again, I’m not the best judge of Beyonce’s music. However, I see that Renaissance is a dance/pop album, so if any album of Beyonce’s is going to make me a fan of hers, this might be the one! Overall, I thought Renaissance was fine. The best moments of this album were absolute bops, but the parts that I didn’t like were grating and seemed to drag on forever. I did like the overall sound of this album, and I thought it was cool that Beyonce made this album as a celebration for black and queer communities, and I thought the songs that leaned more heavily into disco and funk were the best parts of this album. “Alien Superstar” stood out to me as the best song on the album. I loved the pulsing beat, and the outer space sounding synthesizers were excellent. I think Beyonce’s vision on this album was great, but the result just wasn’t something that was really up my alley.

I’ve never heard of Powderfinger before, but I’m not going to complain about the addition of Aussie artists to this list. I have no idea what this album is going to sound like, but I’m excited to check it out. After a two pretty strong tracks to start off, I felt like Powderfinger’s Odyssey Number Five fizzled out. Those first two songs were pretty good; I enjoyed the vocals, lyrics, and guitar playing. “Waiting For The Sun” reminded me a lot of Doves’ The Last Broadcast, which I really enjoyed (I saw that the person who submitted this album also gave that album five stars, and this seemed like an appropriate submission for someone who likes Doves). The lead and backing vocals were really great, and the overall sound had this slightly dark feeling to it that reminded me a lot of the alt rock radio songs I loved in the nineties (I feel like these guys invoked a lot of Live). “My Happiness” was really good, especially the guitar effects that were used. The lyrics here were good too, and I really loved the vocals on the chorus. This song reminded me of Our Lady Peace, in a really good way. But after those two songs, I felt like the band didn’t really establish any identity or signature sound for themselves. I thought the lyrics were pretty strong throughout the album, but musically, there was nothing that really added any emotional weight to those lyrics. This album wasn’t bad, but it felt like being a teenager, and buying a CD from a band who had a couple of radio hits you loved, but the rest of the album was just filler.

I think I listened to The Mountain Goats’ Tallahassee several years ago, but I wouldn’t wager money on it. If I did listen to it, it sadly didn’t make much of an impression on me. Also, not to nitpick, but the cities mentioned in these song titles are not in west Texas, so I already don’t trust these guys. Oh well, let’s see what this album is all about! Unfortunately, this album wasn’t really my speed. I didn’t think it was bad, but I really didn’t care for the super lo-fi sound that the whole album had. In my opinion, if you’re going to have a ‘gimmick’ like that, something else needs to really punch through, and I didn’t think there was anything remarkable about the guitar playing or vocals. I did think the lyrics were pretty clever though, but that wasn’t enough to make me want to seek this out again someday. I appreciate the Mountain Goats’ addition to this list, but this album just wasn’t for me.

I think I’ve only listened to one Mastodon song before, and it was on Rock Band 2, and it nearly caused me to embed that stupid plastic guitar in my TV. I don’t think that song was from this album, I think it was from the album before this one, so I’m glad I’m not going to have Rock Band 2 PTSD today. I’m not a big prog metal guy, so this album probably won’t be up my alley, but I’m going to give it a shot! As I expected, this wasn’t really my speed, but I still thought it was a pretty good album. The guitar playing really stood out to me, and I liked the Ozzy-adjacent vocals as well. The drumming and bass playing were pretty good too, and I generally enjoyed the way the music was arranged and layered. On some of the songs, there were some really fun and interesting elements buried under all of the louder parts of the arrangements, and I felt like this album rewarded the listener for paying closer attention. I really enjoyed “The Czar,” despite the fact that I typically don’t care for prog songs that are structured this way. I can’t see myself seeking out more Mastodon albums to listen to, but this was a pretty enjoyable listen.

I mean, it’s John Mayer. It’s not going to be good, is it? The only song I recognize from the track listing is “Waiting on the World to Change,” which I guess is pretty inoffensive. I think John Mayer is talented, but I’m not really expecting this album to be my cup of tea. Continuum wasn’t a bad album, but it certainly wasn’t my speed. For someone who knows his way around a guitar, I was disappointed that this album didn’t really take any risks or do anything exciting. Most of these songs felt like things that are perfectly safe for a doctor’s waiting room or Starbucks, and that was pretty disappointing. There were some flashes of brilliance on this album though: a groovy bass line here, some nice horn playing there, but as is the nature of a flash, they were gone pretty quickly, and I was left with generic guitar strumming and singing. As much as this album wasn’t for me, I think today was the first time that I’d paid attention to the lyrics for “Waiting on the World to Change,” and I’d never noticed that they had a twinge of social commentary to them. When it comes to the lyrics, I thought the closing lines to “Belief” were a bit more effective in terms of social commentary, but it was interesting to notice. But despite this album’s solid production and pleasant arrangements, it just didn’t wow or excite me.

I’ve never heard of Spinvis before, but I see that this is a lo-fi album, which, given my scores from the original list, does not bode well. When I hear the name lo-fi, it sounds like something I’d enjoy, but that turned out to not be the case when I went through the original list. Hopefully this Dutchman can break that curse! Overall, I thought this album was really enjoyable. I don’t speak Dutch (I did however earn straight A’s in three years of high school German and two years in college), but I thought that the vocals on this album went really well with the music. The melodies on this album were really beautiful, and the vocals felt like they were full of emotion. I thought “Ronnie Gaat Naar Huis” and “In De Staat Van Narcose” were the best songs on the album, but there wasn’t anything on there that I thought was bad. Musically, this album gave me a lot of the same feelings that Serge Gainsbourg’s Histoire de Melody Nelson gave me, which I really liked. If I had the time, I’d definitely consider giving this album another listen.

Ah, the Avett Brothers! I’m not a big folk guy, but I’ve listened to this album before, although it’s been a hot minute. Looking at the track listing, I’d say that I’m still familiar with probably half a dozen of the songs here, but I’m sure a few others will come back to me as I listen to this. I and Love and You isn’t an album that I would want to listen to frequently, but I think it’s fantastic. Listening to this again after several years of not hearing it felt like being wrapped up in a cozy blanket on the couch with a cup of coffee; everything about this album hit just right for me today. The arrangements are beautiful and varied, the alternating lead vocals from Seth and Scott Avett give you the best of both worlds, the production is immaculate, and the lyrics are beautifully written. The first half of the album is stronger than the back half, but the dip isn’t severe enough to make this album an uneven listening experience. But everything on this album feels so sincere to me, and I can’t quite put my finger on why. The lyrics to “Head Full of Doubt/Road Full of Promise” still really resonate with me. I’ve always loved the line ‘if you’re loved by someone, you’re never rejected, decide what to be, and go be it,’ and my love for it hasn’t dwindled at all over the years. This is a really great album, and it was a treat to go back and listen to it today.

I’ve never heard of Dead Boys before, but I do like punk music, so this album might be right up my alley. Despite my kids being Young, Loud and Snotty all winter long, I’m ready to fire this album up. I thought this album was very entertaining. Despite some underwhelming drums and bass playing, I really liked the chunky guitar chords that Dead Boys used on this album. I’m not an expert on punk music by any stretch, but I’m shocked I’d never heard of these guys before, because their sound was so different than other American punk bands from this era. While these lyrics ventured into some uncomfortable territory (what was with bands in the seventies working the phrase ‘sweet sixteen’ into their music so often?), I thought their pervasiveness really encapsulated the griminess of New York City and punk rock in the seventies. I really enjoyed how this album was arranged and produced as well, and I especially liked it when they played around with rising and falling volumes and depth of sound. Despite that, this album still had that simplistic and do-it-yourself sound of early punk. While this album wasn’t perfect, I think it makes a great addition to the list.

I've never heard of The Hotelier before, and I'm not even sure I've listened to an album that's a part of the emo revival (is Brand New emo revival? Oh wow, this is part of fourth wave of emo, which was in the late aughts? When the hell was the first wave? Just when I thought I knew something about music, I get my mind blown). I have no idea if this album is going to be my jam, but this cover is pretty cool. I enjoyed listening to this album, and I wish I had gotten to listen to it more than once, but time is not on my side these days. The guitar playing, drumming, and vocals were all very good throughout this album, and I thought that it was really easy to listen to and take in. The lyrics were really good too, and while they had a very 2010's feeling to them, they feel really relevant in today's post-COVID world. There wasn't one particular song that stood out to me, but the opening track did a really good job of getting my attention right away. I'd definitely be down to listen to this again, and I'm glad someone added it to the user submissions list. Editor's note: I was originally going to give this album four stars, but after listening to it today, I've been thinking about it a ton, and I can't wait to listen to it again. I know that if I'd had the opportunity to listen to it twice, it'd be an immediate five stars, so it's a five-star album for me.

Ooh, another Frank Ocean album! I’m 95% certain I’d listened to both Channel Orange and Blonde before starting this project, but I don’t really remember much about either one of them, but I don’t think I disliked them. Channel Orange was album number 100-something for me, and I gave it four stars, but my notes on it were pretty slim. I expect to enjoy Blonde as well, but I’m not sure whether I’ll enjoy it more or less than its predecessor. Overall, I thought Blonde was fine. I’m not a big R&B person, so most albums like this don’t really register with me. However, I can appreciate the artistry of Blonde; the arrangements were really good, and Frank Ocean is a very talented singer. The biggest thing that Blonde has going for it though is the emotional vulnerability on display. There are so many layers to peel back when it comes to this album’s lyrics, and I really enjoyed how Frank Ocean tackled subjects like materialism and drugs and escapism. While this album isn’t the type of thing that I gravitate towards, from an objective standpoint, I thought it was good.

I’m sad to say that I’ve never listened to a Childish Gambino album or even song before. I know the visuals from the video for “This is America,” but I’ve never even listened to the song sadly. I’m not quite sure what this album is going to sound like, but I’m curious to find out! I apologize Mr. Gambino, I was not familiar with your game. I thought this album was fantastic from start to finish. I expected this to be a pretty straightforward hip-hop album, but I was blown away by the funk and psychedelic rock sound that it utilized. Musically, this album hooked me in right from the start, with the bold and funky “Me and Your Mama.” I loved how the song started off really gentle, and then shifted into a rock and roll blast. It reminded me a lot of King Crimson in a way, with its bold and big arrangements. “Have Some Love” was great too, and I loved how it kept the funkiness going. I was a bit bummed as the album shifted away from the heavier reliance on funk and into more psychedelic influences, but it was still great. I really enjoyed how Childish Gambino used different vocal styles and techniques across the album. There’s something about that shift in vocal styles that feels incredibly symbolic of millennial anxiety, but I can’t quite find the words to describe it very well. It’s really remarkable that Donald Glover is a really good comedian and also a really talented musician; the use of a stage name to make his albums feels really apt, since this identity feels so distinct from who he is on screen and stage. This album was a pleasant surprise, and I definitely want to check out more Childish Gambino albums.

I haven’t listened to any Death Cab for Cutie in a really long time, but I’m always down to listen to Ben Gibbard. I know I’ve listened to Plans and Codes and Keys, and while I know a couple of songs off of this album, I don’t think I’ve ever listened to all of it. Time for a trip back to the early aughts! While I definitely prefer Plans to Transatlanticism, I still thought this was good album. I love Ben Gibbard’s singing, and that was no exception here, as Ben’s vocals were as beautifully soft and vulnerable as they always are. Before today, I had no idea that this album was a concept album, and while I’ve never been in a long-distance relationship before, I thought Ben did a great job of making the feelings of such an experience really relatable. Musically though, this album didn’t offer me a lot. I liked the guitar playing, but a lot of it felt structurally pretty similar, and I would have enjoyed a bit more variation. As far as my favorite songs are concerned, I really love the restrained jauntiness of “The Sound of Settling.” The little ‘ba ba, ba ba’ vocal fills on the chorus really punch things up and add a lot to the mood of the song. The title track is really great too, and for a song that’s fairly sparse on vocals and lyrics, it packs a ton of emotion. While this wasn’t my favorite album, I still like DCFC and Ben Gibbard, and I enjoyed listening to this.

Ah, another one of rock and roll’s famous sex offenders, Chuck Berry! Man, was is it with perverts and making music? Anyway, on to the music. I wasn’t a big fan of the OG rock and roll records on the original list (Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard, etc.), but I thought they were interesting in a historical sense, and it was fun to try to parse out other artists who were influenced by those albums. I’m not expecting to be enraptured by this album, but I’m sure it’ll still be worth my time to listen to it. Overall, I thought this album was fine. The guitar playing was definitely the best part of this album, and it was really cool to hear how Chuck Berry’s playing influenced the likes of The Beatles and the Beach Boys. The tone of the guitar was great throughout the album, and even though the solos and arrangements seem simple by today’s standards, they’re still really great. The piano playing was really good, and I really liked how it was incorporated with the guitar playing. On the more up-tempo songs, this album was able to lean really well on blues and rockabilly influences to craft a really unique sound. This album worked best when it leaned more into a heavier rock and roll, but it bored me a bit when it slowed down. “No Particular Place To Go” was the best song on the album in my opinion. I loved the guitar playing, and the meter of the signing was really great too, giving the song a pacing that was perfectly in tune with the theme of driving. This album wasn’t my favorite by any stretch, but it was worth my time to listen to it. A solid addition to the user list.

I’ve never heard of Susanne Sundfør before, but I do tend to enjoy albums from Scandinavia (what has two thumbs and is looking forward to Robyn? This guy). I have no idea what to expect from this album, but I’m looking forward to branching out and trying something new. This album had a few songs that were really great, but most of it was pretty average in my opinion. For the majority of the album, the vocals and arrangements were very beautiful, but most of this album just failed to make me feel anything emotionally. However, “The Sound of War,” “Undercover,” and “Mountaineers” were all great. I loved the piano and pedal steel on “Undercover,” and I thought the vocals on this song were some of the best on the album. On “Mountaineers,” I thought John Grant’s vocals really added a nice touch. Susanne’s vocals were really good too, and I really liked the beautiful and ethereal sound of the song. Despite those two songs being really good, “The Sound of War” was the best song on the album. I loved how the song felt like a story in two parts, and I found its sound absolutely haunting. The arrangements here did a great job of creating a sound that was beautiful but also accurately captured the horror of war. On my first time listening to it, I had to start it over again so that I could experience that musical shift again. While I wasn’t blown away by this album, the best parts of it were really awesome, and I think that Susanne Sundfør is really talented, and I’d be willing to check out more of her work.

You’re a pop mega-star, Harry! I’ve listened to at least one full Harry Styles album, but I can’t remember which one. I recognize “Watermelon Sugar,” (my brother and I were cracking some jokes about this song just the other day in anticipation of Harry’s new album), but I don’t think I know any of the other songs on this album. I’m not expecting to be blown away by this, but maybe I’ll be in for a treat! Like Susanne Sundfør’s album yesterday, this album’s best parts were really good, but the rest of it was kind of bland. Most modern pop music is pretty hit-or-miss with me, but my favorite pop albums of the past fifteen years or so have some really awesome hooks, riffs, and melodies on them, which this album didn’t really have. It had some really fun songs, like “Golden,” the aforementioned “Watermelon Sugar,” and “Canyon Moon,” but this album just feels like a collection of songs to me, and it feels like this album wasn’t crafted with any unifying vision. Don’t get me wrong, Harry Styles has a great voice, and I think he’s a talented musician (his version of Peter Gabriel’s “Sledgehammer” on Howard Stern is incredible), but this album just didn’t put forth much that really sucked me in or made me crave more of it. If I had to pick a favorite song off of this though, I think I’d go with the title track. I really liked the bright and beautiful tones that were used in the last half of the song, and I liked how it built to this really beautiful conclusion. Overall, Fine Line had some really good moments, but most of it was just fine in my opinion.

Oh man, Contra. I absolutely love this album, and it was at the top of my list for albums that I wanted to submit, but someone beat me to the punch. My brother got me hooked on Vampire Weekend’s self-titled album, and Contra’s release was something I was very much looking forward to. I didn’t think these guys could pull off another smash like their first album, and boy, was I wrong. I honestly think this album is a glaring omission from the original list, but I’m so glad that I get to revisit it today. Even though it’s been a while since I’ve listened to this album, every minute of it still feels so warm and familiar to me. And I think that’s what makes this album one of my favorites: from the very start, every song on this album permanently embedded itself in my brain, and it still hangs out there, with its beautiful melodies bouncing around my noggin. I love that Contra has so many variations in sound and moods, but it still feels like an album that was crafted with a single vision, and not just a smattering of songs. Even though the moods and emotions explored on Contra are varied, the way they’re explored, and the use of some very clever lyrics, really ties everything on this album together. Vampire Weekend’s first two albums always invoke a feeling of a warm spring day to me, even if I’m listening to them when it’s cold and gray outside. Musically, I love the rich arrangements on Contra. The melodies are really beautiful, and the rhythms do a great job of establishing the mood and tone. I love that Vampire Weekend manages to do it all on this album” faster tempo blasts like “California English,” gentle, faster tempo songs like “Holiday,” and even slower, contemplative songs like “Taxi Cab.” For my money though, “Giving Up The Gun” has always been my favorite song on this album. The drumming is superb, and I love the chime sounds that drive the melody. The lead and bass guitars are excellent as well, and I really love the way they’re utilized on the bridge. Overall though, Contra is a wonderful album from start to finish, and I’d count in among my favorite albums of all time.

Oh, Shania. Man, this album was everywhere in the nineties, and I absolutely hated it. My parents went full-tilt into listening to nothing but country music around the time this album came out, and I was in hell. And to make matters worse, this album had enough cross-over power to make it on to top 40 stations too. But in the year of our Lord, 2026, my thoughts on Shania Twain have shifted. I hear those opening notes to the first song on this album, and I could run through a brick wall. I recognize a few other songs on here by name as well, and I’m sure that more of them will come back to me as I listen to this. Enough preamble, let’s go girls! As I expected, I had a blast with Come On Over. Is this objectively a good album? I’ll let people smarter than me tackle that question. All I know is that I thoroughly enjoyed this whole experience. Where to start… Well, as a whole, I thought this album did a great job of making a country album with some serious pop music pizzaz. These songs are incredibly punchy and catchy, full of awesome hooks, riffs, and melodies. From that starting Wurlitzer of “Man! I Feel Like a Woman!” I knew I was in for a blast. Even with all of the pop music sounds and techniques on this album, it still keeps its country feel, with plenty of pedal steel, fiddles, and mandolin. And just for good measure, there’s even a couple of songs that have a zydeco sound to them. I love the way the vocals are done as well. The way that Shania’s lead vocals are arranged with her and Mutt’s backing vocals is outstanding, creating a rich and deep sound. Lyrically, I thought this album was great too. Come On Over is a country album, but it never leans into the good ‘ol country themes that permeated popular country music in the nineties. With exception of the terrible line ‘and I goldarn gone and done it’ on “Love Gets Me Every Time,” nothing on this album feels hokey or forced. I’m not usually a big country ballad person, but even the inclusion of “From This Moment On” and “You’re Still the One” on this album didn’t dampen my good time. Lastly, I have to give a shoutout to one of my favorite producers, Mutt Lange. His work here is great, but I never felt like he was wrestling for control of this album with Shania, and I think he really helped her put her vision into action on this album. As a side note, I almost submitted The Cars’ Heartbeat City for my inclusion on the user list, which he also produced. Overall, Come On Over is a wonderfully fun album, and I’m glad that I can appreciate something that I used to hate.

Oh, Queen. When I started the main list, I considered myself a casual Queen fan, but I was more-or-less let down by the Queen albums I’ve already reviewed. When it comes to Queen, I think I’m more of a ‘greatest hits listener’ for them. Maybe this album will break that trend! Well, A Day at the Races didn’t convert me into a believer in Queen’s LP’s, but I still thought it was a fine album. I think my biggest issue with Queen is that their albums wind up being a bit uneven to me. I think that their songs that lean more into traditional rock tend to work better, and their slower songs that lean into ballad territory tend to be a bit bland. Queen is at their best when they go full-tilt into glam rock, and unfortunately, there weren’t too many instances of that on this album. Give me Freddy’s most over the top vocals, May’s wailing guitar, and some jaunty little piano melodies please. The best parts of this album, like “Somebody to Love,” “Good Old-Fashioned Loverboy,” and “Tie Your Mother Down” were really good, but the rest of the album felt like filler to me. This wasn’t a great album, but at least it was better than Sheer Heart Attack.

I’m not familiar with Sea Power, and I have to be honest, I’m not super jazzed about the prospect of yet another British rock album from the aughts. However, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by plenty of albums so far, so anything can happen! While this album was far from being my favorite, I thought it was pretty good. The guitar playing was excellent throughout the album, and I really appreciated the different melodic structures that they provided. I also really liked it when the organ was utilized, like on “Something Wicked,” which gets the nod for my favorite song on the album (by a slim margin over the rollicking “Remember Me”). This album did have some songs that I thought were a bit boring, and even though “Lately” was sort of interesting, it completely killed the pace of the album for me. Despite that, this album did feel really cohesive, and like it was written and recorded as a single vision, which I really liked. I don’t think this album should replace anything on the main list, but it was still nice to listen to it.

The Dear Hunter is a band that I’m slightly acquainted with, but one that I haven’t thought about in a really long time. A friend of mine is a big fan of theirs, and back in the early 2010’s, he let me borrow a couple of albums of theirs. I know that I at least listened to Act I, but I don’t remember anything about it, and it’s not in my Apple Music library any more. I have to be honest, I’m not super jazzed about an hour-plus prog album, but maybe this will surprise me. I haven’t been converted into a Dear Hunter fan, but this album was better than I was expecting. Musically, this album was full of bright and beautiful arrangements. The overall sound was huge, but it never felt over-the-top. I was really surprised at how lush and cheerful the arrangements were, and I really enjoyed the way the vocal were arranged, especially the harmonies. For the fourth part of a large and sweeping story, I found this album to be pretty accessible to jump into. The biggest drawback about this album was its length, and I found it pretty tedious at times. Personally, I’m not big on rock operas, and lyrics that contain sweeping epics usually aren’t my jam, and that was mostly the case here. As far as favorite songs on the album go, I really liked “King of Swords.” I loved the dance heavy beat, and the guitar playing and horns were awesome. It did feel a little out of place to me on this album, but I didn’t care, because it was a blast, and it got me more invested in the last stretch of the album.

Ooh, The Breeders! I really enjoyed The Pixies albums on the main list (Bossanova being the best of the bunch), so I have pretty high hopes for this album from Kim Deal and company. Man, I hate to say it, but I really wasn’t impressed by this album. Yes, the guitar work was solid, but I just didn’t find anything else about this album to really latch on to. I liked that The Breeders leaned on different genres to create an album that still managed to be really cohesive, but I felt like this album just plodded along without giving me anything new or novel to be excited about. “Cannonball” is really good, as was the shoegaze inspired “Roi,” but I can’t say I really enjoyed much of this album.

I don’t think I’ve ever heard of Denzel Curry before, but I tend to enjoy hip-hop, so I’m interested to see what this album has in store. This album was pleasant to listen to, but it really didn’t do much for me. I thought the beats, samples, and musical accompaniment were really good, but overall, there just wasn’t much about this album that stood out to me. There were moments where I thought Denzel Curry’s rhymes and lyrics were really good, but for most of the album, his rapping didn’t really stand out much to me. This was a nice album, but unfortunately, I thought it was mostly forgettable.

I’ve never heard of Kashmir before, and I don’t even think I know of any Danish bands. So naturally, I had to go down a Google rabbit hole, where I saw that Alphabeat is Danish. Man, I used to blast their song “Fascination” really regularly in the early 2010’s. But I digress. I tend to approach artists from other countries with curious optimism, and I’m excited to check this out today. Despite some pretty good guitar playing, I thought this album was just okay. I did like the sense of anxiety and unease that the music created, but overall, I just felt like there was something missing from this album. I think I went into this album expecting something unique, but to my ears, Kashmir didn’t really do anything that excited me or drew me in to their work. This wasn’t a bad album, but I just found it pretty bland.

Oh Weezer. This is only my fiftieth album on the user submissions list, and I’ve already gotten both Weezer albums. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a Weezer hater. I saw them when they were touring for Red Album, and it was a great show and a really fun time. I think I groan when I see Weezer’s name these days, because I think the debate around their legacy amongst millennials is really played out, and a tad disingenuous. I could be misremembering history here, but I don’t remember anyone I grew up with being big Weezer fans when this album and Pinkerton came out. And there’s nothing wrong with that, but I guess I’m just leery of anyone my age who claims to have been a Weezer fan from the get-go. I’m just rambling now, so it’s time to fire this album up and see if it holds up with me. Much to my surprise, as soon as those opening notes to “My Name is Jonas” started, I felt awake, and full of energy. I found myself hanging on to every guitar note, and singing along to every word. Damn, I was really wrong about this album, because it absolutely rips, and the fact that it’s not on the original list is basically a war crime. Even though I don’t think I heard any of this album until the early aughts, The Blue album is just unlike anything that was getting tons of airplay on rock radio stations. Weezer really crafted their own sound, and they put out one of the most fun rock records of the decade. The guitar playing is absolutely fantastic throughout the whole album, and even though the drums and bass don’t really stand out much to me, the various ways that Weezer creates their guitar arrangements more than makes up for that fact. On top of that, Rivers’s lyrics and vocals are a blast too. Every song on this album has an infectious sound, and even thought I hadn’t listened to this whole album in years and years, everything still felt so familiar to me. I could go on and on, but man, I’m just blown away by how awesome this album is. As for my favorite song on the album… Man, “Buddy Holly,” while overplayed (that’s not Weezer’s fault), is still such a fun bop. But the slow pace and crunchy guitar of “Say It Ain’t So” are fantastic too. Man, I think I have to go with “My Name is Jonas.” I love those opening guitar notes, and the guitar solo is amazing too. Man, what an awesome album this is.

I’ve never heard of Mylène Farmer before, but French pop music from the early nineties? That sounds rad as hell, sign me up please! Overall, I thought this album was a bit lackluster. The vocals and arrangements were really nice, and I enjoyed the relaxing sound, but it ultimately fell flat with me. At first, I enjoyed that the songs were a bit longer, because it really gave me a chance to absorb the melodies, but as the album went along, the length of the songs became more of a detractor for me. As nice as these melodies could be, they were a bit like cotton candy, disappearing completely as soon as the next song started up. I felt like there was a lot of restraint utilized on this album, maybe as if Mylène was trying too hard to prevent this album from becoming a full-blown dance album, but the result was something that I found pretty boring. I can see why “Désenchantée” became such a hit though. I really liked the dark tone to the sound, and the piano playing was really excellent. This reminded me a bit of The Pet Shop Boys, without sounding like it was trying to copy them. Overall, I wasn’t wowed by this album, but I can understand how others would find it appealing.

Oh man, 100 gecs. I listened to this album somewhat close to the time that it came out. I seem to remember listening to it on my way to a therapist appointment. I don't know why, but thinking about this album gives me a visual of that specific parking garage. I remember having pretty high hopes for this album based on what I'd read about it, but I don't think it landed with me. I can't remember any specific songs, but I'm sure the overall sound and vibe will come back to me once I fire this up. Oof, yeah, this album just isn't for me. I respect the energy and the way they use this jumbled chaos to create their sound, but this just isn't something I enjoy listening to. I believe that this chaotic sound is supposed to be representative of the general anxiety of life today, and while 100 gecs hits that mark square on, I find it really unpleasant to listen to. I do think that this duo has quite a bit to say in their lyrics, and they find funny and clever ways to say it, but it's just a little too all over the place for me. I think when I first listened to this album, I expected something along the lines of Crystal Castles or Sleigh Bells, but this album is definitely not either of those things. I appreciate the artistry here, but this album is not for me.

I've heard of The Tragically Hip before (from a friend of mine who's married to a Canadian, naturally), but I've never listened to them before. I think I always imagined that they got their start some time in the late nineties, so I'm shocked to see that this debut album of theirs is from 1989. I have no idea what to expect from this album, but I'm excited to finally check these guys out. I was really surprised by how much I enjoyed this album. When it first got started, I thought this was just going to be a generic rock record, but The Tragically Hip had a really great sound, and I liked the darker themes of the lyrics. There was something really genuine about the way this album sounded, and I really liked that it didn't feel like something that a producer or record executive was trying to take creative control over. This album feels like it was exactly what the band envisioned. There were elements of this album that sounded ahead of its time, almost like a pre-grunge album, and I thought that sound worked really well. The guitars and bass playing were excellent, but I really enjoyed the vocals as well. The lead vocals from Gord Downie were great (man, reading about his passing was soul-crushing), but the backing vocals were excellent too. This album reminded me of The Black Crowes in a way, but also of The Cowboy Junkies (although this blew The Trinity Sessions out of the water). I don't think I could pick a favorite song from this album, but musically, it did drag a bit for me towards the end (despite the lyrics never wavering in quality). This was a solid rock album, and it's the type of thing I could throw on for any occasion and just enjoy having it on.

I’ve never heard of Yeti before, but Krautrock? Yes, please! I know Can is usually the standard-bearer for Krautrock, and their albums on the main list were really good, but give me Kraftwerk and Neu! please. If I had to guess though, I’m guessing this album is going to lean more towards Can than Kraftwerk, but that’s fine. Let’s fire it up! Amon Düül II isn’t going to replace Kraftwerk or Neu! as my favorite Krautrock band, and while this album wasn’t really my speed, I still thought it was pretty good and uniquely enjoyable. While I went into this album expecting it to remind me of Can, it really reminded me of Hawkwind. I enjoyed the way that Amon Düül II created such rich and deep sounds with their guitars, and I really liked the songs that utilized the violin as well. I wasn’t a big fan of the improvisational material on the second half of the album, but the first half was much more enjoyable to me. I really liked “Cerberus,” with its spaced-out guitar distortion. I don’t know that I’d come back to this album, but I thought it was really unique in how it straddled both psychedelic and prog rock.

I know of Ani DiFranco, but I’ve never listened to her music before. I know a friend of mine at some point in my life, probably in college, was a big fan of hers. I used to get her and Tori Amos mixed up, but now that I’ve completed the main list, that’s no longer an issue (Little Earthquakes is phenomenal). There were quite a few really great albums by female singer songwriters on the main list (the aforementioned Tori Amos, Liz Phair, Alanis Morissette), but there were some duds on there too (Aimee Mann and Beth Orton). I’m not sure how I’m going to feel about this album, but my gut tells me this will probably land in the Amos-Phair-Morisette camp. I didn’t wind up loving Dilate as much as I loved the albums from Amos-Phair-Morisette, but I still thought this was a really great album. I was immediately pulled into Diate with the opening track, “Untouchable Face.” I loved the distorted guitar playing and Ani’s soft vocals, and I really loved how wonderfully the song developed as it went on. Most of the other songs on the album were like this as well; they’d start off rather simply, and then their melodies would develop into something rich and beautiful. Despite those rich arrangements, there was something really raw about them as well, and I liked how well that meshed with the emotional tone of the lyrics. I didn’t like the more rock-forward songs on this album as much as I enjoyed the slower ballads; to me, Ani’s music was much more effective when it was a bit gentler. As the album went on, I lost interest a few times, especially on the longer songs. Thankfully, there was always something to pull me back in. As far as favorite songs on this album are concerned, I really liked “Untouchable Face,” but the title track was great too. The first chorus was so punchy, but the restraint up to that point did a great job of building tension and drawing me in. Dilate is a really solid album, and I really enjoyed listening to it.

I was really excited to listen to Living Color’s Vivid on the main list, but I wasn’t as wowed by it as I had hoped I would be. I’m curious to see if this follow up will be more my speed. While Time’s Up was a bit different than Vivid, (or at least my memories of Vivid), I found it to be about right on part with its predecessor. Like Vivid, the lyrics on this album were great, full of some really insightful social and political critiques. I really enjoyed how the lyrics weren’t preachy, and it felt like they were more observational, asking the listener ‘is this what we really want out of our society?’ Musically, I found this album to be pretty accessible, which I attribute to an overall poppier sound that came through in the vocal arrangements and some the guitar playing. The bass playing on “Time’s Up” was really great (as were the clock sounds), but I felt like the bass playing slowly withered away as the album went on. The guitar playing on this album was good, but over the course of this album’s almost one hour runtime, the sound felt repetitive to me, and I kept wanting something more from it. Time’s Up wasn’t a bad album, but to me, it felt like it could have been more.

I’ve never heard of The Chats before, but this album title and artwork seem a bit cringey to me. I’m hoping that my initial judgement of these lads is wrong, so let’s jump in! Get Fucked wasn’t my favorite, but I don’t feel compelled to turn its name on it either. The Chats look like they’re younger than 9/11, but they play like they’ve been making music together for a decade. I really enjoyed the cohesion that these guys showcased on this album, and I really liked their punchy and succinct songs. I thought the guitar playing was really strong, and there were quite a few fun solos on some of the songs. My biggest personal issue with stripped down punk music like this, is that it sounds one-dimensional and repetitive to me, and this album fell into that category a few times. Still, this was album was pretty fun and brimming with enough energy to make me want to listen to it again. My favorite songs on the album were “Panic Attack,” “The Price of Smokes,” and the wonderfully titled “I’ve Been Drunk In Every Pub In Brisbane.”

Crystal Castles! This album is one of my personal favorites, and if I had access to my life stats, I’d assume that this would be in my top ten of most listened to albums. I first heard about Crystal Castles in 2010 (on the heels of their second album, which is also fantastic). I was in line to get into an MGMT concert, and I made friends with a couple of ladies who’d driven in from Atlanta to see the show. One of them happened to be a huge Crystal Castles fan, so I decided to check them out, and I immediately fell in love. I’ve seen the band twice, once in 2013, and again in 2016. Both shows were great, but the show in 2013 was better. It’s a bit tough to listen to this album now, knowing that Ethan Kath was abusing Alice Glass during the band’s heyday, but this album is also a testament to Alice’s strength and ability to create some really great music, even while her life was being made a living hell by Ethan. I’m really excited to fire this album up today, and I can’t think of a better way to spend a Friday afternoon. I always have such a great time listening to this album. The sound is so consistent from song to song, but the album is full of peaks and valleys and sprints and marathons. There’s a constant tension in this album that I absolutely love, and I find that it always demands my attention when I listen to it. I love the way that Ethan and Alice built these melodies. In another illustration of the contradictions and opposites that they used in making this album; some melodies remain constant throughout their songs, while others change and evolve. I never thought I could be so engrossed in an album that feels like it’s spliced together from NES and Atari sound effects. I grew up loving eighties pop music, especially anything with keyboards or synthesizers, and I spent my teenage years in the late nineties and early aughts yearning for something that could fill my head the way Tears for Fears and Duran Duran’s music did. Those cravings were satisfied when I became obsessed with indie rock in the late aughts and early teens, and Crystal Castles always fill that space for me. I think this album is wonderful, because it’s such a great showcase of how anything can be used to build beautiful and hypnotizing melodies. This album will always be a favorite of mine, and I was delighted for an excuse to listen to it today. Here’s hoping that Ethan Kath is scrubbing truck stop bathrooms for a living these days.

Ah, I’ve heard of Fontaines D.C. before, but I’ve never listened to them. Based on everything I’ve heard about them, I think their music should be right up my alley. I’m excited to finally check these folks out! My initial reaction to Romance was not a good one. I didn’t care for the first two songs at all, both of which I’d sum up with the phrase ‘don’t 21 Pilots my Arctic Monkeys.’ Both the title track and “Starburster” were pretty off-putting to me, with their combination of generic guitars and lazy vocals. But from there, the album got much better. “Here’s the Thing” was pretty good, and I liked the fuzzed-out guitar playing. “Desire” was even better, with its excellent synth arrangements. But things really peaked on this album with “In the Modern World.” I loved the echo on the vocals, and the strings were great too, which continued on “Bug.” “Motorcycle Boy” was one the best songs on the album too. I loved the looped vocal refrain, and the way the song built up the tension before the piano kicked in was fantastic. “Sundowner” was really good to; the way the vocals were arranged was great. I wasn’t that into “Horseness Is The Whatness” or “Death Kink,” but thankfully, they weren’t as bad as the first two tracks, and the album closed on a strong note with “Favourite.” I checked out the bonus tracks on the deluxe edition, and I really wish some of those songs had made the album. Romance wasn’t my favorite, but I can understand why Fontaines D.C. have cultivated quite the following these days. I’m excited to check out their other album on the user submissions list.

I’ve never listened to anything by MF DOOM before, but I know that he has quite a dedicated following, and he’s highly respected for his influence. Even though I don’t know any of his music, I was listening to a podcast last week that talked about his Madvillain collaboration, and I’m grateful that I’m going to be listening to this album with a little bit of knowledge about who MF DOOM was. I have no idea if I’m going to like this album or not, but I’m excited that I finally have an excuse to check out this album. This album wasn’t completely my speed, but there were still some things that I found enjoyable about it. I liked the overall lo-fi sound of the album, because it reminded me of what I really like about listening to 36 Chambers. However, this album never felt like it was ripping off Wu-Tang’s sound, because of the way it used samples of old Fantastic Four cartoons, which also helped MF DOOM construct his persona. I also liked how the theme of food was woven into the album, from the song titles and lyrics, to the recurring spoken word samples that mentioned food. Speaking of the samples, I liked this album best when the music sampled funk. The other samples were fine, but those funk samples really elevated the album. I wasn’t the biggest fan of MF DOOM’s voice, but I enjoyed his rhyme schemes. While this album was only 45 minutes long, the pacing of it absolutely killed me, and it felt like it was about twice that length. I don’t know if it was the lo-fi sound that made it feel like time was at a standstill when I listened to this album, or something else entirely, but whatever it was, I didn’t care for it. This album was interesting and unique, but it’s not something I could find myself coming back to.

I only know of Rita Ora because she replaced what’s-her-bucket the Pussycat Doll on The Masked Singer, but I don’t know any of her music (speaking of the Masked Singer, why did that show become a dumping ground for MAGA clowns? Jesus, the right really has minimal artistic talent). I’m not expecting to enjoy this album, but hey, I’ve been surprised plenty of times already. I tend to enjoy pop albums, but I found this to be a bit of a dud. Despite that though, there were a few things bubbling under the surface of this album that could have made this album much better, had they come to full fruition. There were some catchy beats on this album, but there really wasn’t a point where those beats drove the overall song, which would have been a fun change of pace. The vocals weren’t bad, but I didn’t find anything particularly unique about Rita Ora’s singing style. I was really caught off guard by the interpolation of Eddie Murphy’s “Party All The Time.” While I didn’t find Rita’s take on one of the worst songs of the eighties to be that great, I can applaud the bold choice to try to give some life to an all-time punch line. The best song on the album was “You & I,” with its wonderful synth arrangements. I liked how the synth tones were bright and poppy, but the pace of the song was a bit of a slow burn. I thought it was easily the most unique song on the album, and in my opinion, the only song that really showed some artistic promise. On top of that, “Unfeel It” and “You Only Love Me” were pretty good, but the rest of the songs aren’t really worthy of their own blurbs. Sorry Rita, but this was a swing and a miss.

I was pretty underwhelmed by the self-titled Gorillaz from the original list. I appreciated its influence, but I was just bored by the album. I don’t know if I’m going to enjoy this entry any more than its predecessor, but I’m hopeful that this will be more up my alley. While I didn’t love Demon Days, I thought it was much better than Gorillaz’s debut album. Like Queens of the Stone Age’s user submission, I find it mind boggling that this album didn’t make the original cut of the list over the self-titled album. But I digress. I think the main thing that I enjoyed about this album is that it was much more purposeful and realized than its predecessor. The melodies here felt like they were able to develop on their own, and nothing felt forced. The vibe on this album is really chill and relaxed, but despite that, it has some really great beats and rhythms, and there are some really great hooks here too. I thought the first half of this album was stronger than the first half, with the highlight of the second half being the dance worthy “Dare.” “Dare” had a wonderful beat, and the keyboards and synthesizers were excellent, giving it a feeling of a disco anthem for the aughts. The album’s first half is heavily boosted by “Last Living Souls,” “Dirty Harry,” and “Feel Good Inc.” While I wouldn’t call myself a convert to Gorillaz after listening to this album, Demon Days definitely made me understand their appeal. I can’t remember if there are any more Gorillaz albums on the user submission list, but I’m looking forward to any that are.

I’ve never heard of Tekkno before, and I have no idea what metalcore is, least of all what to expect from German metalcore. I’m sure this album is going to be an interesting ride! Well, this album was certainly an experience. I was immediately hooked in by the bright synths on “Pump It,” but I was really thrown for a loop by the screaming vocals (I guess that’s metalcore, baby). The novel sound of this album was really great on that first song, and I loved the booming drums and bass, and I really enjoyed the contrast of the bright and screaming vocals. But from there, the album didn’t really do much for me, and I felt like the novelty of the genre really wore thin with me. However, I did really enjoy the cheesiness of “Tekkno Train.” The goofy lyrics and sound were really fun. This album wasn’t bad, but as unique as it was, I found its overall sound and schtick to be generally forgettable.

I’ve heard of Mr. Bungle, but I don’t know anything about them. I thought Mike Patton’s only appearance on the main list, Faith No More’s The Real Thing, was very good, so hopefully I’ll enjoy this album just as much. Well, this album was certainly a journey. While I wouldn’t say that I was particularly fond of Mr. Bungle’s California, I thought it was certainly interesting, and the band’s molding of doo-wop and rock created some songs that were really out there. I like Mike Patton’s voice, but some of the wackier musical elements were off-putting to me, and as a whole, the album felt pretty jumbled. That jumbled feeling might have been intentional, but for me, I just didn’t care for it. While I didn’t care for how the album felt as a whole, there were some good songs on here, like “Retrovertigo” and “Pink Cigarette.” On top of that, even on the songs that I wasn’t particularly fond of, I thought the lyrics were pretty solid throughout the album. I don’t think I’ll be rushing back to Mr. Bungle, but it was fun to listen to a band that I’d heard of, but had no point of reference for their actual sound.

I’ve heard of Babymetal before, but I’m not familiar with any of their music. If a book can be judged by its cover, I think I can probably take a stab at what this album is going to sound like. Oh hey, look! It’s Electric Callboy, who I learned about literally two days ago! Here goes nothing… Well, like Electric Callboy, this album fell pretty flat with me. The first couple of songs were pretty good, and I enjoyed the way that the band blended synth melodies with heavy metal guitars, but the novelty of their sound wore off on me pretty quickly. I would have loved to hear more synthesizers and keyboards, but Babymetal seemed content to rely on blistering drums and shredding guitars instead. That’s not bad on its own, but to my ears, these songs really sounded the same. There wasn’t any melodic development, nor was there anything particularly new or novel about the way Babymetal arranged most of their music. This wasn’t a bad album, but it grew stale with me pretty quickly, and it’s not something I’d come back to.

I’ve never heard of Men I Trust before, but after looking at some of the reviews for this album, I decided that I needed to go take a look at the submitter’s profile, and… yikes. I’d spend some time commenting on that, but there’s no sense in beating a dead horse. This user’s taste in music clashes pretty heavily with mine, so I don’t have high hopes that I’ll enjoy this album, but maybe this will be the one thing I’ll agree with them on. I wasn’t wowed by this album, but it was pretty good. My biggest complaint with Oncle Jazz is that it didn’t make it worth my time to spend an hour and ten minutes listening to this. Sure, the melodies and vocals were nice, and the vocals were soothing, but this album didn’t really do anything particularly interesting in my opinion. For something that sounded so dreamy, Oncle Jazz didn’t manage to craft anything that I felt pulled on me emotionally, or made me feel a strong sense of place. And maybe that wasn’t their goal, but it’s something I personally enjoy in a softer pop record. There were some songs that did stand out to me though: “Tailwhip” was great, because the solid beat really added a lot to the overall soft sound. The melody unfolded beautifully, and it was a wonderfully paced song with so many wonderful elements to take in. “Say Can You Hear” was really good. I liked that shimmery quality to the guitar. The drumming was great here too; It’s a simple rhythm, but it’s really effective. I also like it when the drumming drops out, it makes me miss it. This song reminds me of The War on Drugs in a sense, which is a high compliment. I liked the vibe of “All Night.” It had a 90’s soft rock sound to the vocals that created a fun sense of nostalgia for me. While this album wasn’t really my speed, I thought it was fine, but it’s not something I could see myself returning to.

I’ve never heard of Extrechinato y Tu before, but I really enjoy checking out albums from non-English speaking countries, so this album was a welcome sight in my feed today. I really enjoyed listening to this album. Despite not knowing what the lyrics were saying, I thought it was really beautiful, and I loved the combination of electric and acoustic guitars on these songs. The piano playing and percussion were really good too, but I just loved the way the guitar arrangements drove the melody on these songs. I thought the first half of this album was a bit stronger than the second half, but it was still a great album. I’d love to listen to this again, but on a second listen, I want to make sure that I have a translation of the lyrics at the ready.

I’ve never listened to Operation Ivy before, but I did see The Transplants open up for the Foo Fighters back in 2003, so I have a reasonable expectation for what to expect from this album. Other than a few songs by The Mighty Mighty Bosstones and Reel Big Fish, I can’t say I’m incredibly familiar with ska punk, but I think this should be a fun album. Do people still skank to ska music? How quickly can I learn how? The holy spirit didn’t move me to learn how to skank today, but this was still a decently fun album. To me, ska punk feels like a pretty narrow genre to operate in, but I enjoyed the way that Operation Ivy incorporated traditional ska music into their sound, especially on “Take Warning.” The music on this album was infectious when it was at its best, but there were quite a few moments on this album that felt repetitive and uninspired. I didn’t find the music on here to be that impressive from a technical aspect, but the drumming and guitar riffs were enough to suffice, and I bet that these guys were a blast to see live back in the day. I’m not terribly well versed in ska music as a whole, but I’m 99% sure today was the first time I ever heard that ‘pickitup, pickitup, pickitup’ used on a song, and not just as a gag in a reel on Instagram. I don’t think I’d ever come back to this album, but I don’t regret the experience.

I’ve never heard of Mustafa before, but I’m always down to clown with some Canadian music. I have no idea what to expect from this, but I’m curious to see what awaits me. I’m ashamed to admit it, but I assumed this was going to be a hip-hop album, and it definitely wasn’t. But hey, good thing implicit bias is a completely made-up concept. The benefit of that bias though, is that my world was sufficiently rocked as soon as this album started. I really loved the way the album pulled me in on the first track with with its beautiful guitar playing and vocals. The way that the subtle percussion and additional instruments came in later on the song made it even better. When I pulled up the album on Wikipedia, I saw that Jamie XX was one of the producers, which made complete sense. The two songs that he produced on the album were definitely two of the stronger songs on the album. In addition to those two songs, “Separate” and “Ali” were great as well. On “Separate,” I loved how the soft percussion in the introduction drew me in; it really made my ears strain to hear every detail that was present, and I felt hyper focused while listening to the rest of the song. How does Drake have a career when you could listen to Mustafa instead? This album is a bit short of five stars for me, but it’s not going to stop me from checking out more of Mustafa’s work.