1065
Albums Rated
3.77
Average Rating
98%
Complete
24 albums remaining
Rating Distribution
Rating Timeline
Taste Profile
2010
Favorite Decade
World
Favorite Genre
other
Top Origin
Cheerleader
Rater Style ?
220
5-Star Albums
8
1-Star Albums
Breakdown
By Genre
Top Styles
By Decade
By Origin
Albums
You Love More Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Kollaps
Einstürzende Neubauten
|
5 | 1.92 | +3.08 |
|
Trout Mask Replica
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
|
5 | 2.29 | +2.71 |
|
New Forms
Roni Size
|
5 | 2.52 | +2.48 |
|
Now I Got Worry
The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
|
5 | 2.52 | +2.48 |
|
Dr. Octagonecologyst
Dr. Octagon
|
5 | 2.7 | +2.3 |
|
Phaedra
Tangerine Dream
|
5 | 2.73 | +2.27 |
|
Medúlla
Björk
|
5 | 2.73 | +2.27 |
|
Histoire De Melody Nelson
Serge Gainsbourg
|
5 | 2.73 | +2.27 |
|
Vulnicura
Björk
|
5 | 2.79 | +2.21 |
|
Scott 4
Scott Walker
|
5 | 2.81 | +2.19 |
You Love Less Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
|
The Slim Shady LP
Eminem
|
1 | 3.28 | -2.28 |
|
You Are The Quarry
Morrissey
|
1 | 2.86 | -1.86 |
|
Greetings From L.A.
Tim Buckley
|
1 | 2.85 | -1.85 |
|
All Hope Is Gone
Slipknot
|
1 | 2.7 | -1.7 |
|
...Baby One More Time
Britney Spears
|
1 | 2.68 | -1.68 |
|
Follow The Leader
Korn
|
1 | 2.65 | -1.65 |
|
The Gershwin Songbook
Ella Fitzgerald
|
2 | 3.52 | -1.52 |
|
Chocolate Starfish And The Hot Dog Flavored Water
Limp Bizkit
|
1 | 2.51 | -1.51 |
|
The Marshall Mathers LP
Eminem
|
2 | 3.47 | -1.47 |
|
Diamond Life
Sade
|
2 | 3.45 | -1.45 |
Artists
Favorites
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| David Bowie | 9 | 5 |
| Björk | 4 | 5 |
| Talking Heads | 4 | 5 |
| Radiohead | 5 | 4.8 |
| Beatles | 7 | 4.57 |
| Sonic Youth | 5 | 4.6 |
| Brian Eno | 5 | 4.6 |
| Led Zeppelin | 5 | 4.6 |
| Pink Floyd | 4 | 4.75 |
| Nirvana | 3 | 5 |
| Queen | 3 | 5 |
| Nick Drake | 3 | 5 |
| Leonard Cohen | 5 | 4.4 |
| Stevie Wonder | 4 | 4.5 |
| R.E.M. | 4 | 4.5 |
| The Velvet Underground | 3 | 4.67 |
| Jimi Hendrix | 3 | 4.67 |
| Black Sabbath | 3 | 4.67 |
| Kraftwerk | 3 | 4.67 |
| The Stooges | 3 | 4.67 |
| Prince | 3 | 4.67 |
| Beastie Boys | 3 | 4.67 |
| The Flaming Lips | 2 | 5 |
| Kate Bush | 2 | 5 |
| Portishead | 2 | 5 |
| Iggy Pop | 2 | 5 |
| TV On The Radio | 2 | 5 |
| Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds | 5 | 4.2 |
| Bruce Springsteen | 5 | 4.2 |
| Tom Waits | 5 | 4.2 |
| The Byrds | 5 | 4.2 |
| PJ Harvey | 4 | 4.25 |
| Miles Davis | 4 | 4.25 |
| The Beach Boys | 3 | 4.33 |
| Simon & Garfunkel | 3 | 4.33 |
| Echo And The Bunnymen | 3 | 4.33 |
| The White Stripes | 3 | 4.33 |
| Bob Marley & The Wailers | 3 | 4.33 |
| The Smiths | 3 | 4.33 |
| My Bloody Valentine | 3 | 4.33 |
| Public Enemy | 3 | 4.33 |
| The Cure | 3 | 4.33 |
| Johnny Cash | 3 | 4.33 |
| Pixies | 3 | 4.33 |
| Peter Gabriel | 3 | 4.33 |
| Blur | 3 | 4.33 |
| The Who | 5 | 4 |
Least Favorites
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Eminem | 2 | 1.5 |
| Morrissey | 4 | 2 |
Controversial
| Artist | Ratings |
|---|---|
| Paul Simon | 2, 5, 5 |
| Tim Buckley | 1, 3, 4 |
5-Star Albums (220)
View Album Wall
Popular Reviews
Simon & Garfunkel · 11 likes
3/5
A surprising forgettable album from Simon & Garfunkel. The concept of side A sounded interesting but is rushed and underdeveloped. 15 minutes worth of music cover an entire life cycle, with only one stand out track ("America") and 2 full minutes of no music at all. It might have been better if they'd fleshed out a full album for this idea.
Side B is much stronger. "Mrs Robinson" and "A Hazy Shade of Winter" are the best two songs on the album. Unfortunately, there's really nothing new here, aside from one leftover track from The Graduate. The rest of side B are previously released singles. There's nothing wrong with that, but we're supposed to be rating the best albums ever made. A short concept for side A and a singles collection for side B is too low effort for artists of this level. It's fine for what it is, but hardly their best release in my opinion.
Public Image Ltd. · 7 likes
3/5
John Lydon had abandoned punk when he left The Sex Pistols and had already pioneered post-punk with PiL's debut album 'First Issue'. Here, the band fully embraces the avant-garde. This is particualarly evident in Lydon's bizarre (and slightly off-putting) vocal style. The original packaging, while being novel, actually created (intentionally?) a frustrating experience where listeners struggled to get the records out of the tin case. German band Can is a major influence here though not 'Metal Box' isn't as good as Can's best work. The hero of this album is bassist Jah Wobble. Bassists don't usually get that much praise, but his dub rhythms come out in full force on this album. If anything keeps the listener engaged, it's Wobble. This album also introduces PiL's fantastic drummer, Martin Atkins, though only on one track as he joined in the middle of recording. Overall, this record will annoy a lot of people. It's not something you'd play at a party or a relaxing Sunday afternoon. But it's an interesting one and there is some brilliance among the weirdness of it. A landmark post-punk album.
Klaxons · 7 likes
3/5
It's a good album and the band probably would have been fun to see live. But is there really anything exceptional or groundbreaking about it? I've heard loads of bands doing very similar things and frankly, these guys seemed a little late the dance-punk party. I'd pick The Rapture's Echoes over this one personally. That doesn't mean it's a bad album. Not at all. I enjoyed it all the way through for what it is. I just don't know that it's interesting enough to be on this list.
Morrissey · 5 likes
1/5
This might be the most insufferable Morrissey album yet. It starts with a song about how America isn't progressive enough, which is rich coming from Morrissey. In case that gave you any doubts about his politics, the second song "Irish Blood, English Heart" sounds like he's trying to write the theme song for UKIP or the Refom Party, moaning about being called racist for doing racist things. Later in the album, he sings about how he never found the woman of his dreams in the exact same song where he is at pains to describe how he's never sorry for anything. The rest of the album is basically a list of everything he finds boring (his go-to insult), while sticking his head further and further up his own ass.
This challenge has made me listen to three solo Morrissey albums now, which has only reenforced my belief that he is an awful person. The music from Alain Whyte is listenable and as usual Morrissey aligns himself with good songwriters, but it hardly makes up for it. The Smiths had the genius of Johnny Marr to make you ignore Morrissey's antics (and anyway, that are of Morrissey was a lot less controversial), but I'm happy to finally be done with these solo albums. To use his own words, this album was a crashing bore.
David Bowie · 3 likes
5/5
There is a small handful of swan song albums on this list, recorded with the knowledge that their long life was coming to end. They're often very powerful statements. But, true to form, no one ever created a swan song quite like David Bowie. "Blackstar" is a unique album, within Bowie's discography and also within popular music more generally. It's daringly innovative, like much of Bowie's best work. Released on his 69th birthday and a mere 2 days before his passing. The death of an artist is usually a massive boost to both sales and reviews but "Blackstar" was already a critical hit in those last days before the public knew he was dying.
What is so incredible about this album is the near lack of nostalgia. Compare to the final outings of people like Johnny Cash and Leonard Cohen, who powerfully delivered conclusive reviews of their lives and careers. If "Blackstar" did the same, we'd still be talking about it but it would hit very differently. Bowie was always at his best when looking forward and it's particularly startling to hear him do that when there is no forward. It creates the effect of starring into the abyss. The whole album feels mystical and cryptic. It's a clear reflection of death but also feels so full of energy and life. The music can best be described as art rock jazz with heavy influence from electronic music and experimental hip hop, which is a hell of a statement from a former glam rock star, let alone one practically performing from his death bed. The lyrics are loaded with references to death but are oddly also feels new and fresh like Bowie is trying to cram as much life as possible into his final moments. It feels as though he has created yet another new persona here, not unlike the eldery astronaut at the end of 2001: A Space Odyssey who is simultaneously dying and having life changingly bizarre experiences in his final moments.
There are references to Bowie's youth here as well, though they're harder to spot. The saxophone is a dominant instrument here, calling back to both his early love of jazz and his first band, The Konrads. The highly unusual "Girl Loves Me" contains century-old slang terms from the British gay community (signaling back to his days of sexual experimentation) and the invented language used in A Clockwork Orange (one of his favorite novels and a major influence on his career). This contrasts to the slightly shocking chorus "Where the fuck did Monday go?", suggesting a person who is running out of time and trying to make sense of it. Less subtle is his expression about never again seeing the English evergreens, which feels like a reflection on having left his homeland to settle in New York.
I could keep going. There's so much that you can say about this album. In short it was an incredible parting gift from an amazing artist. It's widely recognized as a career highlight, within a decades long career that was filled with highlights. It's also a call to go back and revisit his whole discography, especially the later work which has fantastic hidden gems among the odd duds. Bowie is sadly missed but he left behind a legacy that will endure for decades to come. R.I.P.
1-Star Albums (8)
All Ratings
Pulp
3/5
Adele
3/5
Janelle Monáe
5/5
Ella Fitzgerald
2/5
She has an absolutely beautiful voice and I appreciate the talent that went into this album, but the style of music isn't for me.
Violent Femmes
3/5
Sonic Youth
5/5
Charles Mingus
4/5
Aretha Franklin
4/5
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
3/5
The Beach Boys
4/5
The Waterboys
3/5
Paul Weller
3/5
Ice Cube
4/5
Big Brother & The Holding Company
3/5
Belle & Sebastian
3/5
Everything But The Girl
2/5
What a difference from their later work! This album was a major disappointment and it's hard to imagine that it was ever popular. It sounds like elevator music. By far, the highlight is Tracey Thorn's beautiful voice.
Madonna
3/5
PJ Harvey
4/5
Arcade Fire
3/5
Jane Weaver
4/5
I love Jane Weaver but this does seem like an odd choice for albums to hear before you die. It's fairly niche and not even her best work, in my opinion. Flock is the superior album by a mile. Still, it was a nice surprise to get this suggestion as I hadn't previously heard this album.
Gram Parsons
2/5
I hate to give a 2 star review but this album just did nothing for me. It's not my genre, to be fair. I was a little intrigued by the description of "cosmic American music" but this honestly just sounds like a standard country album to me. I'm sure it has its fans but this one wasn't for me.
Blue Cheer
3/5
Fats Domino
4/5
Shame that the second half of the album is missing on Spotify
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
3/5
Sufjan Stevens
5/5
Even on a list like this, this is a rare perfect album. The concept is admittedly gimmicky but the breathe and depth of the music and variety of styles makes up for it. Not a single bad track.
Roxy Music
3/5
Public Image Ltd.
4/5
Better than expected. While the Sex Pistols were clearly more influential, this album is a lot more interesting. It's definitely not for everyone though.
Arrested Development
4/5
Muddy Waters
4/5
New Order
4/5
Beyoncé
3/5
I read that this album was Beyonce exercising total creative control, which usually means you can expect a weird and wonderful collection. Unfortunately, there's not much about this album that's very unique. I don't mind all of the collaborators, but there's not much here musically that I haven't heard many times before. I'm giving three stars only because the end of the album has a few good tracks, almost hidden from the rest of the poppier songs. The standout track for me is Superpower where she seems to finally start taking some risks.
Goldie
2/5
Gang Of Four
4/5
Great danceable punk album. If you had to pick one main influence for LCD Soundsystem and the DFA label, this would be a strong candidate.
Herbie Hancock
4/5
AC/DC
4/5
B.B. King
4/5
Bob Dylan
5/5
Klaxons
3/5
It's a good album and the band probably would have been fun to see live. But is there really anything exceptional or groundbreaking about it? I've heard loads of bands doing very similar things and frankly, these guys seemed a little late the dance-punk party. I'd pick The Rapture's Echoes over this one personally. That doesn't mean it's a bad album. Not at all. I enjoyed it all the way through for what it is. I just don't know that it's interesting enough to be on this list.
Van Morrison
3/5
I wouldn't have sought this one out myself but it's definitely a solid album. It's nice to hear the lesser known tracks. I doubt I'd personally go back to this one often but I appreciate the artistry and skill here.
Snoop Dogg
2/5
Ray Price
2/5
Well, it's not my genre. I don't know enough enough honky tonk to say whether this is a particularly good example of it. I guess it's kind of interesting for what it is, but not really for me.
Jamiroquai
4/5
The Velvet Underground
5/5
The first album on this list that I already knew inside and out. One of my absolute favorites.
Radiohead
5/5
An easy review. One of the best from one of my favorite bands. It's likely not the best entry point for people interested in Radiohead, but it's undoubtedly the best album of the latter half of their years performing. Here they replace political and social commentary for personal introspection. Not a band song on the album.
Elvis Presley
2/5
I appreciate the role Elvis played in popularizing rock and roll, particularly to white audiences. He also clearly played an important part in establishing the public persona of many performers who came after him. Just in terms of the music itself though, I can't hear anything special about it. There are plenty of more interesting examples of early rock and roll out there in my opinion. Maybe if I'd lived through that era, I'd see more to it. The songs are decent but I wouldn't go out of my way for this personally.
Bob Dylan
4/5
The Divine Comedy
3/5
This one was completely new to me. There are definitely some catchy moments on there, although some of the chamber pop sound was a bit over the top for my taste. Overall, not a bad album and possibly one that would grow on me over time.
Elvis Costello
4/5
A very strong debut album. You can definitely hear the influence this must have had on the indie rock scene of the 80s and 90s.
Burning Spear
3/5
GZA
4/5
Pentangle
4/5
This one was a pleasant surprise. Based on the fact that it's a folk band I've never heard of and the cringe-worthy title "Basket of Light", I thought for sure that this was going to be "let's sit around the campfire and praise Jesus" kind of album. It was definitely a lot more interesting than that. From reading into the band, it sounds like they were considered fairly influential, which is all the more surprising that they're not more well known now.
Jimi Hendrix
5/5
An immaculate debut album from one of the world's best guitar players.
Jimmy Smith
3/5
The playing and improvisation on this album are impressive and the genre-bending heavy use of the Hammond organ is interesting. I can imagine this music being nice to hear played live at a jazz club or wine bar. Outside of that, I wouldn't personally seek it out but I appreciate the skill that went into it.
U2
4/5
A good album with powerful themes. The two singles, Sunday Bloody Sunday and New Year's Day, really stand out and do some heavy lifting for the rest of the album. Even ignoring those it's a solid album from start to finish.
Tears For Fears
4/5
I enjoyed this one more than I expected. Very 80s but also pretty infectious.
Youssou N'Dour
4/5
I knew of Yousou N'Dour mainly from the various collaborations with western artists and involvement with different charity causes but I'd never heard his own music before. Very impressive. It's really exposing some gaps in my musical knowledge and sending down a rabbit hole of his extensive discography, the mbalax style, and Senegalese history. I'd give 4.5 if I could.
Ice Cube
3/5
It's hard to decide how to rate this one. The intensity of Ice Cube's voice and the political commentary on institutional racism clearly give his album an important place in the history of rap music. The mysogyny however is uncomfortable. To his credit, "It's a Man's World" addresses sexism head on. However, it only highlights that sexism exists without any particular challenge to it. It also suggests a moral equivalence between sexism directed at both men and women. Even that limited response may have seemed revolutionary for a rap album released in 1990, but today it seems more like an empty gesture. Especially when the same album has a track called "Get Off My Dick and Tell Yo Bitch to Come Here". In that context, "It's a Man's World" feels more like an excuse than an apology. The message it sends is not "Let's challenge sexism" but "Sexism exists everywhere, so get over it."
Overall, it's a great album, especially put into the context of the time it was released. Unfortunately, parts of it haven't aged well.
Dire Straits
3/5
On first listen, I was put off by the adult contemporary smooth jazz saxophone. The stand out single "Money for Nothing" sounds nothing like the rest of the album and contains uncomfortable homophobic slurs (apparently the lyrics are all based on quotes from someone who was mocking MTV and rockstars. That explains the use of the slur but it's no less uncomfortable to listen to). The rest of the album felt all over the place.
On listening again, it grew on me. There's a lot that's impressive about the album and how eclectic it is. I've enjoyed parts of it more than I expected to. I'd be tempted to give it 4 stars but I doubt it's one I'd return to often.
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
4/5
One of the rare examples of a supergroup that really worked. I don't love every track, but there's enough here to make this album memorable.
Nas
4/5
Joni Mitchell
4/5
Beatles
5/5
Simon & Garfunkel
3/5
A surprising forgettable album from Simon & Garfunkel. The concept of side A sounded interesting but is rushed and underdeveloped. 15 minutes worth of music cover an entire life cycle, with only one stand out track ("America") and 2 full minutes of no music at all. It might have been better if they'd fleshed out a full album for this idea.
Side B is much stronger. "Mrs Robinson" and "A Hazy Shade of Winter" are the best two songs on the album. Unfortunately, there's really nothing new here, aside from one leftover track from The Graduate. The rest of side B are previously released singles. There's nothing wrong with that, but we're supposed to be rating the best albums ever made. A short concept for side A and a singles collection for side B is too low effort for artists of this level. It's fine for what it is, but hardly their best release in my opinion.
Willie Nelson
4/5
This album was a pleasant surprise. I've never listened to a Willie Nelson album before but always thought he seemed like an interesting person. I'm not a country fan but was willing to give this a chance. Reading that this release was a more conservative album of old cover songs, I really didn't expect much. But I ended up really enjoying this one. Very relaxing with some great performances. I'll definitely revisit this one occasionally.
Dire Straits
3/5
The Youngbloods
4/5
There's some great genre-bending on this album. It's firmly rooted into its era of late 60s rock, incorporating elements of country and jazz. It's not going to be my favorite album of all time but it's definitely worth a listen.
Creedence Clearwater Revival
4/5
I can see why this was so popular at the time. At a time of psychodelic rock and experimental albums, CCR delivered straightforward and memorable rock, with elements of country influence. Personally, I love the exact music that they were rebelling against. Despite that, I can definitely see the appeal of a band like this. It feels only fair to give this 4 stars for the song writing and performances, even though it's not my personal favorite.
Orange Juice
4/5
This album feels like a missing link between the Velvet Underground and the Smiths. One of the great early indie rock albums of the 80s. Equal parts post-punk and pop.
David Bowie
5/5
The first of many perfect albums by Bowie.
The Who
4/5
The term "rock opera" is slightly embarrassing these days but this one must have been exciting back in 1969. It's impressive and definitely one to be experienced as a whole (and ideally live). Most songs wouldn't work on their own though and you really need to be in the mood for a full length concept album to appreciate it. But it's definitely an important album in the history of rock.
Sade
2/5
Kid Rock
1/5
Easily the worst album Ive had to listen to in this challenge. Aside from genre mixing, what is noteworthy about this one? Just unremarkable music and toxic masculinity.
James Brown
4/5
I'm not normally a big fan of live albums but this is certainly an exception. It's definitely the best way to experience James Brown. What a performer. There's not a note (or scream from the audience) that's out of place here. The second half is surprisingly calm but still performed flawlessly.
The Rolling Stones
3/5
It's obviously an important album in the history of rock and roll but it's not the best by The Rolling Stones. It's a great glimpse of what was to come though, especially when they started writing more of their own songs.
Red Hot Chili Peppers
3/5
It seems kind of uncool to give this album a good review but it's hard to deny that it sounds unique and has some pretty catchy songs, particularly the singles. It really does seem like it's captures a time and place (California/America just before the turn of the century) perfectly. I might not seek this one out myself but definitely wouldn't mind listening to it again.
Justice
5/5
It could be easy to dismiss this as a Daft Punk rip off but Justice brings an intensity and unique production style to the French house scene. There's often a fine line between sampling as a lazy way to make music and being a genuinely interesting process. With over 400 samples and micro-samples, Justice are firmly justified in their approach, akin to artists like DJ Shadow or the Avalanches. The result is an album that's deeply rooted in the 70s, disco and funk traditions but is coated by an industrial sheen. Perfect for a good pair of headphones.
4/5
It's surprising to see a bootleg on this list. Back before the days of YouTube, bootlegs were the only way for the diehard fans to hear any unreleased content (especially live releases) and an entire hidden sub-industry sprang up to support it. The often sloppy nature of these releases is captured in the title: The "Royal Albert Hall" Concert that wasn't recorded in the Royal Abert Hall.
As far as the content of the release, the first half with the acoustic set is straightforward Bob Dylan. Impressive and classic songs, but not much that you won't get on the early studio albums. The second half with the full band is more interesting. Performed during Dylan's controversial transition period to electric guitars, the music is much fuller. What's missing is the audience reactions that were cut out for the official release of this album. In the original bootleg, you can hear the hecklers between each song. In that context you know that the band is loud and defiant, and feeding off the energy of the rest of the crowd who is along for the journey. The infamous "Judas" incident before "Like a Rolling Stone" was featured in Martin Scorsese's documentary and is worth looking for. It's a shame that the heckles were removed from the album as they only help to make Bob Dylan even more significant.
Barry Adamson
3/5
Blondie
5/5
Undeniably cool. This albums gets better the more I listen to it.
Jorge Ben Jor
4/5
Genre-mixing Brazilian artist hoovering on the edge of the Tropicalia movement.
Joni Mitchell
4/5
A beautiful album, sung from the heart. It's not one that I'd revisit often myself, but I can see why it's a favorite for so many people.
The Last Shadow Puppets
3/5
I never really followed Arctic Monkeys. This side project from their lead singer is clearly having fun experimenting with the sounds of 60s cinema and French pop. The singles are catchy but there's definitely some filler on this album. I'd give it a 3.5 if I could.
5/5
If you had to pick the best Bowie album, Ziggy Stardust is probably the strongest contender. It's a perfect record from start to finish. While it's definitely not Bowie's only perfect album, or even the first one, it's the most accessible, driven by a great concept, strong lyrics, and represents the first (maybe best) of Bowie's many characters. This is an easy 5 out of 5.
Moby
5/5
I have such a soft spot for this album. There's something both vulnerable and bold about it. Thinking that this would be his last album and that few people would hear it, gave him a lot of freedom to make a very different album of the music he loved. The fact that it exploded in popularity was a shock to everyone, including me. I bought this album the day it came out and loved it but always assumed that it was going to be this secret album that I listened to in my bedroom but no one else had ever heard of. 12 million copies later and that secret was out. Maybe 5 stars is too generous but this one brings back good memories for me.
Kendrick Lamar
4/5
Very engaging concept album about growing up and trying to get out of a rough place. The lyrics, music and production combine to tell a powerful and honest story.
Dizzee Rascal
3/5
Definitely notable for bringing grime and UK rap to the world's attention. It was a unique album when first released. The single 'Fix Up, Look Sharp' is by far the best track, but the rest is a bit repetitive in my opinion.
Randy Newman
3/5
If you ignore the lyrics, the whole album sounds like it could the soundtrack to a Pixar movie. If you don't, be prepared for a very surprising number of racial slurs! It's an interesting album, for it's social commentary on class, race and the divide between North and South in America. We're meant to laugh at the "redneck" narrator, but also to admit that he has some good points (e.g.: racism still exists in the North). I'm never entirely comfortable with the idea that singing as a character gives you license to say whatever you like but that opening song, and its bigoted lyrics are undoubtedly the most memorable part of this album.
Iron Maiden
4/5
I can't help but wonder whether the Christian groups burning their records were aware of how much that probably helped their album sales. For the rest of us, the skill of these performers is obvious and it's easy to get sucked into the fantasy of this music. It's great escapism.
Taylor Swift
3/5
A noteworthy album for a few reasons. Partly for being such a successful break from Swift's previous country albums. Partly for arguing for pop music as a serious form of artistic expression. And partly for attempting (unsuccessfully) to challenge the rise of streaming music platforms. To me, this album ticks all of the right boxes for a good pop album, but it's unlikely to be one I'll revisit.
John Coltrane
4/5
I need to be in the right mood to listen to an album like this but it's undoubtedly a masterpiece and was hugely influential.
Mariah Carey
2/5
It works well as a showcase for Carey's very impressive vocals performances. The hip hop influenced tracks are ok but the ballads, adult contemporary and smooth R&B that make up most of the album aren't for me.
Arcade Fire
5/5
By far the best album by The Arcade Fire. It perfectly reflects the feeling of being young in suburban America. It's both comfortable and uneasy, with a longing to get out.
MGMT
4/5
A very fun hipster dance record. Probably not as significant as most of this list but a great album nonetheless.
Buddy Holly & The Crickets
3/5
The influence Buddy Holly had on rock music history is enormous. The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Elton John, The Clash, among many others. However, the artists who learned from Holly dwarfed him and this album doesn't quite hold up against what came later. It's a little unfair considering he died so young and likely could have continued to innovate for many years to come. Thankfully, many others picked up from where he left off and gave us so much amazing music thanks to Buddy.
4/5
Those first three tracks really cement their status as rock stars. They're soaring and expensive and bring to mind vast landscapes and stadium concerts. The rest of the album has some high points but doesn't quite reach those same heights as the singles.
The Chemical Brothers
4/5
A noteworthy album in the Big Beats (or if you prefer, Electronica) subgenre of the late 90s. There are some great tracks here, from the cracks and distortion of Elektrobank to the oddly touching hangover anthem of Where Do I Begin. I've always thought that the original opening track, Not Another Drugstore (later released as a b-side), would have worked better. Overall, it may be a bit repetitive and grating at times, but for me, there's loads of nostaglia value in this album.
JAY Z
3/5
There's a few decent songs and some good production. The lyrics are largely raps about having a lot of money, dissing other people, and misogyny. It's obviously a very popular album but I really don't see the appeal.
Patti Smith
4/5
This album is partly a fairwell to lost rock icons of the 60s (Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix, etc). It also helped established punk rock while simultaneously moving it into a more avant garde space, with the help of producer John Cale. It's a great document of what was happening in the underground rock scene of the mid-70s in New York. Massively influential.
AC/DC
4/5
Bands rarely survive the death of their lead singer. Rarer still that they can continue to be hugely successful and create another rock n roll classic.
DJ Shadow
5/5
A "no instruments" album. The samples are arranged perfectly. You'd think the samples had been made to fit together.
The Clash
5/5
Is there any other double album that gets as much universal acclaim as this one? It's a punk rock classic that goes well beyond the genre. You can dance to it, drink to it, protest to it. It's energetic and varied without a single dull track.
The Stranglers
3/5
Never heard of the band before but it sounds like a gritty punk classic and an affectionate tribute to the less savory sides of London in the 70s. Lyrically, the sexist language is very outdated and unfortunate. Supposedly it's satire but nothing makes that obviously true. Maybe it's why this one isn't more well-known.
The Kinks
4/5
Maybe not the very best of the Kinks but an important evolution of their sound and an early example of a concept album. This is definitely an album that gets better the more I listen to it.
The Doors
3/5
Note quite what I expected from The Doors. I don't love the blues tracks, but the combination with psychedelic rock is fun.
Eminem
2/5
I guess it was noteworthy when it first came out. It has shock value and decent beats. But the lyrics are misogynistic, homophobic, egotistical, and incredibly childish. The songs sound like anthems for incels with misplaced anger and entitlement issues.
John Lennon
4/5
The best solo release from John Lennon and one of the best of any of the post-Beatles albums. This is Lennon at his best, at a high point of his career but totally free to make his own art. It's close to perfect but I think could have been improved by using some alternative takes of a few songs. But there's still a lot to love about this album.
Radiohead
4/5
It's impossible to talk about this album without talking about the companion album, Kid A. Originally planned as a double album, Radiohead decided to break the massive recording sessions into two releases. That decision allowed Kid A to shine on its own. Amnesiac is the less impressive of the two albums but helped solidify their status as one of the best bands of the 2000s and not limited to their electronic direction of the last album. When these two albums were reissued together, it was a joy to hear then side by side as orginally intended. But it needed to have been separated at the time to have worked.
Derek & The Dominos
4/5
The more I learn about Eric Clapton, the more I hate him as a person. But I have tried to look at this album objectively and it's a solid work from start to finish. I enjoyed the music more than I thought I would or wanted to. Too bad it comes from such an awful person.
Bill Evans Trio
3/5
This is music that's best listened to live in a jazz club where you're forced to pay attention and focus on the music. For me, this album evokes images of a rainy day in New York in the autumn.
The Zombies
5/5
A culture masterpiece. This group had so much potential to go further but were derailed by poor sales and in-fighting early on. The Odessey and the Oracle showcased what they were capable of. The Zombies had other great songs too but this was their own one perfect album.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
4/5
Written following the death of Nick Cave's son, his voice pierces through my skin with grieve, introspection and a very cautious optimism. This album will stay with me for a long time.
Talvin Singh
3/5
It's a good concept. Travelling the world via drum and bass and the tablas. Singh also has some high profile collaborations both on and off this album so there was a lot of potential here. Unfortunately, the result is ok but most forgettable, aside from one or two songs.
The Incredible String Band
3/5
A mess of psychedelic folk experiments, but it's oddly endearing. I can see why this would be a love it or hate it kind of record. I can't imagine being in the mood for it often, but it was interesting to listen to.
Depeche Mode
5/5
Depeche Mode's masterpiece. A perfect, stripped down synth-pop album. It's hard to pick a favorite song.
Leonard Cohen
4/5
Such a beautiful and haunting voice. I'm not that familiar with Cohen's discography, aside from a handful of greatest hits. This album feels more like one complete piece than a collection of individual songs, to be taken in in one sitting, reflecting on love and hate.
The Pharcyde
4/5
Fun, high energy, classic hip hop. Musically, the beats are tight and the samples are perfectly placed. Lyrically though, this album is all over the place. One moment, they're not taking themselves seriously enough. The next, the group is introspective, politically aware, and vulnerable. The next, they're transphobic, womanizing, and glorifying violence. It might have been 5 stars for me if not for that.
The Flaming Lips
5/5
One of the two masterpieces from the Flaming Lips. Whereas Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots might bring you into space and off to other planets, this album keeps you within the upper stratosphere, still feeling the pull of earth's gravity and heaviness of the human condition. Yoshimi has better singles, but the Soft Bulletin is arguably the better album from start to finish.
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
2/5
Neil Young is one of the most frequent artists in this challenge with 9 appearances. He's undoubtedly a great song writer and has recorded some great early work. But I really don't see what's noteworthy about this album, aside from being a Neil Young album. It's not terrible, just some pretty standard garage rock songs. Hardly his best work.
Abdullah Ibrahim
4/5
A significant figure in South African jazz and a symbol of apartheid resistance. There's not much information available on this specific album. "Manenberg Revisited" is version of a song written in 1974 (when Ibrahim went by the stage name Dollar Brand) about the destruction of Cape Town neighborhood and the forced removal of communities of color there. Supposedly when a copy was smuggled into the prison where Nelson Mandela was held and played on the loudspeaker, Mandela said "Liberation is near." Given this background, the album undoubtedly has many layers of meaning that aren't obvious to a casual listener outside of South Africa.
Electric Light Orchestra
4/5
This is such a palate cleanser of an album. If you're feeling down and just need to feel good about the world for a while, listen to Mr Blue Sky. The rest of the album almost as well.
Kate Bush
5/5
Like a strange dream that you keep thinking about throughout the day. Kate Bush has clearly inspired many weird and wonderful artists who came after her. Nearly 40 years old, this album still sounds bold and unique.
Deerhunter
4/5
A theme of romantizing the past and a blend of various styles, including folk, shoegaze and electronica. The result is an album that sounds like particularly raw, unpolished, and melancholy indie rock.
PJ Harvey
4/5
Raw and powerful, PJ Harvey channels Patti Smith for her debut album. This record fits perfectly among the early 90s indie and grunge scenes and still holds up well.
Garbage
4/5
The dirtiest grunge polished into a pop record. Butch Vig's various experience gels together into something both angsty and danceable. How could a teenager in the 90s not have loved this album?
Quicksilver Messenger Service
2/5
It's hard to get too excited about a 26 minute psychedelic jam band cover of a Bo Diddley song. This is an album that needs to be considered in the context that it was originally performed. It may have been significant at the time for helping to establish the genre, but doesn't hold up compared to some of their contemporaries like the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane. Not a terrible album, but not one that I'd return to.
Bruce Springsteen
5/5
It's impossible for me to give an objective review of this album. It's the soundtrack of my childhood and was always on in my house. While I know many of Springsteen's songs, I have never actually listened to a full album. The whole album has a cinematic quality that really comes to life when listening closely to the lyrics. It's easily at least a 4 star album, but for sentimental reasons, it's a 5 star album for me.
Belle & Sebastian
4/5
Darlings of the indie scene. I enjoyed this more than I expected.
Little Richard
4/5
Absolutely no one will be surprised to see Little Richard on this list. Even if you're not familiar with all his songs, his legacy is well known and well deserved. This is rock and roll in its purest, classic form. Although it predates the concept of the album as a complete work, it's a great collection from start to finish.
Buffalo Springfield
4/5
While I'm not a huge Neil Young fan and generally think he's overrepresented on this list, this was a great album and really demonstrates more range than I expected. Bluebird is just a gorgeous song.
Tim Buckley
1/5
This album is just embarrassing. Buckley seems desperate for us to believe that he has a lot of sex. Any merit the music had is subverted by the very cringe lyrics.
Wait, he was Jeff Buckley's father? Wikipedia says they only met once when Jeff was 8. Right, that tracks.
Sarah Vaughan
4/5
Such a beautiful, classic voice. This album also offers a bit of insight into the time, with the novelty of a live recording made evident by the introduction. You can imagine being in a small jazz club, knowing that this was going to be on a record.
The Magnetic Fields
4/5
It's an ambitious project. It really showcases Stephin Merritt's range and songwriting abilities. The modern, thoughtful and often humorous takes on the subject produces some great songs, focused on many different kinds of love. But it's a tall order to produce a triple album based on a simple concept, without ending up with a lot of filler. As enjoyable as it is at points, it's a slough to listen to the entire thing. It's a missed opportunity to be honest. If Merritt could have whittled this down to a single disc of the best 20 or so songs, it would have an amazing album. Save the rest for a special expanded edition, maybe. As it is, it's a good album, but it's just too bloated. The novelty of the length is too much of a gimmicky distraction and disservice to what could have been a great album.
Ramblin' Jack Elliott
3/5
An important figure in the early folk scene, connecting the dots between Woody Gutherie and Bob Dylan. Much of the music doesn't hold up as well against those heavyweight names but there's some impressive performances on here. It's certainly noteworthy as a document of that era.
The Rolling Stones
3/5
I always expect to be blown away by Rolling Stones albums but (aside from the occasional great song) I just find them ok. This album is noteworthy for the band having broken with their album and gained artistic freedom. And of course for the innovative and risqué album cover by Andy Warhol. But for me, most of the music isn't that memorable.
Aretha Franklin
4/5
Such a sensational performer and an amazing voice. What else needs to be said?
Slade
3/5
Hugely influential on a diverse range of genres, including punk, glam, and hair metal. This is rock at its least pretentious. It's just unpolished, screaming rock and roll to get you out of your seat.
Kacey Musgraves
4/5
Musgraves pushes the limits of the usual conservative genre of country by flirting with elements of pop and electronic music. It gives it a unique sound. Musically, country fans shouldn't be too distracted by the occasional synthesizer or vocoder but more conservative listeners might be put off by some of her progressive politics, something the genre isn't famous for.
The Smashing Pumpkins
4/5
If I had to pick one album to represent the 90s, this would be a strong contender. Its complex studio productions, courtesy of Butch Vig, combined heavy metal, grunge, and shoegaze, into something both melancholy and highly energetic. Even their look fit perfectly into the 90s indie scene, just slightly odd and rebelous but completely relatable to all the lonely kids. A classic album.
Korn
1/5
Nu metal was all the rage back in the day and this was probably the most popular example. It really does not hold up well though. A lot of growly music, adolescent lyrics, and the embarrassing memory that we once thought this was cool. I do like Jonathan Davis's scatting but it's still a cringey album overall.
The Cramps
3/5
Leading figures in the psychobilly subgenre. It sounds like if you mashed up The Sonics, The Ramones, 60s surf rock, and B horror films. They must have been intense live.
Maxwell
3/5
Part homage to the funk and soul singers of the 70s and part reaction to the state of hip hop and R&B in the 90s. Probably the smoothest album you'd have encountered in 1996. In some ways, it borders on self-parody but it's an impressive work when listened to as a whole. While I wouldn't seek it out often, I liked it more than I expected to.
Miles Davis
4/5
An impressive album, a triumph of jazz, and surely one of the most incredible albums that had ever been released by anyone up to that point.
Brian Eno
5/5
Against the backdrop of an industry that's always chasing music that's faster, louder, and harder, sometimes you need to go quiet instead. Here Eno coined the term 'ambient music' and effectively launched a genre that's (in his words) "as ignorable as it is interesting". By eschewing rhythm and predictable patterns, the sounds can surprise and intrigue the listener, just enough to shut out anxious thoughts, while remaining quiet and calm enough to prevent new ones. The music is perfect for study, self reflection, or sleep. It's also a welcome change of pace when other music starts to all sound the same. A calm-inducing, and secretly chaotic, palate cleanser. In the words of John Lysaker, "it holds together no better (and no worse) than a cloud."
The Residents
4/5
I remember being a teenager watching MTV in the middle of the night and seeing The Residents for the first time. They had played "The Act of Being Polite" and I genuinely felt deeply unsettled and mildly terrified. But I have always been morbidly curious about The Residents ever since. They're more Dadaist art project than rock band, touching the edge of commercial success while still making sure to make you firmly uncomfortable. Like all good art should, it definitely evokes a reaction. You'll either love it or hate it, or possibly both at once.
Marvin Gaye
3/5
What happens when a 70s soul singer confronts the realities of war and addiction? When he stops singing love songs and starts singing protest songs? You get something that's both angry but remarkably calm. It's doubtless an important album. I really appreciate both the skill and meaning behind it but unfortunately I didn't love most of the music.
CHIC
4/5
A perfectly executed feel-good disco album. Nile Rodgers is a sensation. Little wonder that he'd be recruited by both Bowie and Daft Punk.
Beck
5/5
Beck's masterpiece. With production from the Dust Brothers, they create a storm of folk and hip hop, grabbing chunks of any other genre (punk, grunge, Latin soul, etc) that gets in the way. A very nearly perfect album.
The Prodigy
4/5
The album where The Prodigy (mostly) abandoned their early techno sound and invited the punk rock kids into the clubs. For album from angry ravers, this album holds up surprisingly well, nearly 30 years on.
Black Sabbath
4/5
And with this the transition from the blues to heavy metal is complete. This is definitely one to think about in the context of when it was released. Supposedly recorded in its entirety in 12 hours, it's rough, chunky and dark. And it effectively launched a genre.
Dennis Wilson
3/5
Although clearly an accomplished musician and producer, it seems like Dennis Wilson must have lived in the shadow of his more famous brother and former bandage, Brian. This album puts aside most of the experimentation of the Beach Boys and shows that he could craft a mature, well produced album.
The Boo Radleys
4/5
The hype around this album was genuinely cringeworthy. A shoegaze White Album by a Brian Wilson-level genius inspired by John Coltrane, etc, etc. Ignoring these pretensions and ridiculous comparisons, I was pleasantly surprised to find that it's actually a really good album. No need to overhype it. Just enjoy the beautiful mess they've created.
Radiohead
5/5
By the end of 1994, you'd have been forgiven for thinking that Radiohead were a one hit wonder at the tail end of their 15 minutes of fame. Suddenly The Bends comes out to prove everyone wrong. Not only had they created more great singles, but they've crated them into a near perfect album. Quite a leap from their humble debut of Pablo Honey. It's hard not to compare it to their later, earth-shattering work. But the truth is that this album holds up very well, especially when you're seeking some 90s nostalgia. This was the album that proved Radiohead are a force to be reckoned with.
Echo And The Bunnymen
4/5
It's taken me far too long to really listen to Echo and the Bunnymen, a band that sit comfortably next to the likes of The Cure, New Order and other early 80s moody post-punk bands of that era. I only really knew The Killing Moon before, so I wasn't familiar with anything from this debut. I look forward to exploring their discography more.
The Saints
4/5
When I saw this, I worried that it was going to be another dime-a-dozen punk band. I was instantly proven wrong. Trumpets in early 70s punk? It worked perfectly. Digging in a bit more, I found that The Saints were well ahead of the game. Contemporaries of The Ramones who brought punk to Australia before the Sex Pistols formed. Why are they not better known?
The Slits
4/5
Pioneers of the fusion of punk and reggae. I don't want to belittle them by pointing out that they were an early example of a girl punk band because their influence and experimentation go well beyond that. But credit where it's due for helping to break the glass ceiling of punk. They may be lacking in talent but punk was never supposed to care about that anyway.
Yes
3/5
I don't mind a bit of prog rock and this was good enough to warrant a listen. Slightly interesting in that they changed musical directions slightly by poaching a electronic keyboardist from David Bowie. The musical interludes were a clever way to save a buck in the studio but are a bit boring. The rest is straightforward prog rock. Not very noteworthy but some great performances nonetheless.
The Kinks
3/5
I'm always happy to hear some Kinks but this album isn't their strongest.
It feels somewhere in between Face to Face and Village Green, both of which are better albums. Apparently this is a cult favorite but I don't see it. Certainly not bad at all, but hardly their best work.
Coldplay
5/5
Coldplay get a lot of flak for being overly safe or a cheap knock off of Radiohead. But this is a solid album with great songwriting. It won't appeal to everyone but you can see why this album was so successful. A very comforting listen.
Leonard Cohen
5/5
There's no denying the power of this album. A legend performing at the very end of his life. Full of pain and exhaustion from old age and back fractures. It's his final attempt to complete his legacy and his condition means that he has no other responsibilities or needs than to write, sing, and record from his living room. R.I.P. Leonard Cohen, a true great.
SZA
4/5
This album sounds like a drunken haze of personal introspection, empowerment, raw sexual desire, and the places where those areas clash. There's some great production on here. Standout tracks for me are 'Drew Barrymore' and 'Prom'.
Sugar
3/5
Bob Mould influenced by Kurt Cobain is about what you'd expect. Very 90s, grungy with some poppier songs in there. Not a bad album at all for a good nostalgia trip. But it's a far cry from Nirvana.
Aerosmith
3/5
There are some definite rock standards on this album, particularly Walk This Way and Sweet Emotion. It's hard to deny their significance. Unfortunately, this period is arguably the height of Steven Tyler's sleaziness. While it's tempting to try to separate the art from the artist, it's hard when you hear songs like Uncle Salty. In Tyler's words: "Salty worked in a home for lost children and had his way with this little girl." That's a little too close for comfort to the accusations against Tyler. Sadly, some of these songs hit a lot differently when you know the background.
The Go-Go's
4/5
An upbeat new wave album. A fun listen from start to finish. You can imagine the influence this must have had on young women in the early 80s.
Queen Latifah
4/5
I didn't have high expectations but this album was pretty impressive. The blend of hip hop, R&B and reggae all fits in the right places and keeps the content interesting. The empowering feminist lyrics are particularly striking for 80s. Appearances by De La Soul, KRS One and Prince Paul were added bonuses.
Todd Rundgren
3/5
I appreciate the ambition of this album and my interest was definitely piqued a few times with some odd studio experiments. I was really tempted to try to like it more. But if I'm being honest this one just isn't for me. Too many 70s soft rock ballads for my taste.
Lynyrd Skynyrd
4/5
Try as much as I might, I can't hate this music. It's just a classic album whose influence is obvious. It's a shame that Lynyrd Skynyrd helped so much to perpetuate the use of the Confederate battle flag and the myth that it wasn't connected to racism. The last surviving member of the original band did eventually denounce it in 2012 at least. This aside, the music is great.
The National
4/5
The National's sound is beautiful, hypnotic and melancholy. There are some fantastic songs here but for me, it doesn't gel together very well as a complete album. In my opinion, their previous album, The Boxer, would have been a much better choice and an easy 5. But I certainly didn't mind listening to The National in any event.
David Ackles
3/5
I can understand how Ackles could have been both a major influence on artists like Elton John and Elvis Costello, and also be largely forgotten to history. I don't see myself revisiting this, but for certain people, this will be a treasure waiting to be discovered. For my taste, the theatrical pop sound would be better suited to Broadway than the recording studio, but I'm sure that many would disagree.
The Notorious B.I.G.
3/5
Musically, this album is great. The production is slick, the beats are tight, and the respect for old school hip hop and funk shines through. Lyrically though, this does nothing to dispel the stereotypes of the genre, particularly from this era. With some exceptions, all songs are about glorified violence and constant misgony. I guess it's reflective of Biggie's reality as he saw it, but it doesn't age well. This is to say nothing about the painfully tedious and unlistenable skits of sex noises. What I wouldn't give for an instrumental version of this album (minus skits). It would definitely be a 5. Best track: "Things Done Changed".
Bob Dylan
3/5
It's been called the album that really started the 60s. It's hard to imagine higher praise than that. The recording sessions come straight off the back of Dylan's famously controversial electric performance at Newport. Yet the songs are seeped in blues tradition, pointing to both past and future simultaneously. It's not his strongest album, but it has a very significant place in music history.
Penguin Cafe Orchestra
5/5
What an amazing album from Brian Eno's label. The music is strange, varied and experimental but they manage to do it with a deep sense of calm and a lack of pretentiousness that's unusual in the avant garde. Very refreshing listen.
The Verve
2/5
There seems to be a strong following for this album. The fans love it and it's included on many different lists of the best albums of all time. I'm sorry to say that I genuinely didn't see the appeal. It just sounded like a generic indie rock band shopping around for a record deal. The vocals were off, the music a bit dull. I'm clearly missing something here but I really don't know why it's so revered.
Green Day
4/5
I'm not a big fan of the whole pop-punk sub genre, but there's really nothing to criticize here (aside from the awful ablum title). Young kids with punk attitude, slick production, socially aware lyrics, and good songwriting. Lots of earworms on this album. It's not my style so I wouldn't return to it often but I can still appreciate it for being a solid album.
Jean-Michel Jarre
3/5
An early example of ambient music and the potential of stereo recording. It's also a great homage to the pioneering early French avant garde electronic musicians like Pierre Henry. Ultimately it's great backroom music, as any ambient album should be.
Beatles
5/5
The final recordings of The Beatles. I often forget how good this one is. The album gives a glimpse into what a Beatles of the 1970s might have sounded like. The song writing had, in many ways, matured but there's still a playfulness that comes through. The use of the Moog synthesizer stands out. The studio recording process is more transparent here than in previous albums, fitting for a band that had stopped performing live several years earlier. On the other hand, the schism between Lennon's and McCartney's styles seems to be growing here. The temporary truce helped them to make one last wonderful album but it's also clear that their short time together ran its course, much to the detriment of fans everywhere who didn't get to hear enough.
OutKast
4/5
I knew some of this album already but never listened to the entire thing. It's really two solo albums from Big Boi and Andre 3000. I worried that it would feel bloated but the stylistic shift between the two halves is refreshing and there are loads of hits throughout. Speakerboxxx is the stronger album overall but The Love Below has so many great moments (including, obviously 'Hey Ya!'). My biggest criticism is that The Love Below is longer than it needs to be. It could definitely take out about 20 minutes or so and it help the entire project flow better. I'd skip the sophmoric and misogynistic song Roses, which was apparently a popular single at one point? Go figure. But overall, this is a great album with more hits than misses.
Television
5/5
Legend has it that Television once walked into CBGBs and asked the owner what it stood for. "Country, bluegrass, blues," he said. Television replied, "That's what we play." The end result of that deception was the creation of punk rock's Mecca with Television as its first mascots. Their debut album lives up to the reputation as icons of the scene. The music still holds up against countless imitators that have come since.
Can
4/5
Possibly the most famous of so-called Krautrock genre, though it sounds very unlike most of their contemporaries. Can were focused on abandoning the past. The older generations had brought Germany war, human rights violations, and made their country the ideological main battle ground of the Cold War. Can looked both to the West but also to the future for influences. They sought to abandon hierarchy but giving equal prominence to all members. This is their most celebrated album, super charging the German music scene and spreading its influence far beyond those borders. As brilliant as the album is, the second half is very experimental and rough to listen to. The first half works perfectly as a short album though.
Sex Pistols
5/5
Not the first punk album and arguably not the best. But it definitely set the standard for the genre, in terms of look, energy, and attitude. The Sex Pistols were the stereotype of punk rockers and influenced countless acts. The band itself is a little artificial though, created and led by their manager and surviving only long enough for this single album. While that is antithetical to the spirit of punk, I'll be damned if Malcolm McLaren didn't give the world something interesting though.
The White Stripes
4/5
Not my favorite by the White Stripes but it's always fun to see what these two come up with. It definitely has some stand out tracks, particularly "Blue Orchid" and "My Doorbell".
Raunchy blues from Rod Stewart and his band. It's not going to change anyone's life but it's fun for what it is.
Antony and the Johnsons
5/5
A beautiful voice, recalling the talent of Nina Simone, and a lyrical story rarely heard in popular music. ANOHNI is a very rare talent. It was a nice surprise to hear Lou Reed on this album. Fistful of Love is definitely a highlight.
Tom Waits
3/5
I'm only a little familiar with some of Waits' later work. Evidently this was his last album before he reinvented his style and I definitely enjoy the more eclectic sound that he'd evolve later. The music has a few highlights but others are forgettable. Lyrically, I can see the significance of his songwriting. As a reviewer said, Tom Waits can see as much beauty in the gutter as others can see in the Garden of Eden.
Deep Purple
4/5
I can't believe how much I enjoyed an album that has a song called "Space Truckin'". Genuinely great metal with psychedelic and funk influences.
The Young Rascals
3/5
A band from New Jersey that was clearly influenced by the British Invasion of the 60s. It's eclectic, moving between styles with ease, and it has some catchy songs. There's not much that you wouldn't find elsewhere though. It's a good example of the music of the 60s. It's just not the best.
Jane's Addiction
4/5
What would the 90s music scene have been without Jane's Addiction? They coined the term 'alternative' to describe their particular style of indie rock, a term that would be regularly used to describe the scene that followed. Their members were closely intertwined with the Red Hot Chilli Peppers. And their festival, Lollapalooza, brought many 90s artists to early fame. Jane's Addiction is another staple of my youth though I'm less familiar with this album. I prefer Ritual de lo Habitual but there are some amazing songs here too, including Mountain Song and Jane Says.
Bob Marley & The Wailers
4/5
My knowledge of reggae is very limited but I never quite clicked with the genre. A lot of it sounds the same to me, though I'm sure I'm missing things. Bob Marley is the one exception for me where the music really stands out among the rest. His music seems to me to be more dynamic and less predictable than his contemporaries and it does make me want to explore the genre further to try to see what I've been missing.
Fatboy Slim
4/5
A prime example of what would have once been called Big Beat. The music alternates between catchy, silly, and acid-laced dance party. I loved this album when I was young. Now, I'd need to be in the mood for it. It has retained some of its charm over the years though.
Pretenders
5/5
A stunning debut album from Chrissie Hynde's Pretenders. Her experience in numerous other bands and connection to the Sex Pistols brought her all the experience she needed to explode onto the punk and new wave scenes.
Portishead
5/5
One of the defining albums of trip hop. There's so much going on here. The vintage/film noir sound, the unconventional instruments and recording process, the incorporation of hip hop techniques seemlessly throughout. On top of that, Beth Gibbons' voice is gorgeous. She sounds like someone whose been crushed by the weight of the world and come back slightly jaded but stronger than ever. This is an easy 5 and one of my favorite albums of all time.
3/5
If U2 tried to make a Radiohead album, you'd have something like Muse. That may sound cringe worthy to many people but the end result is varied, bigger than life, and worth a listen. For my money, Muse is not Radiohead and it's debatable whether they deserved a place on this list. A few songs really stood out though, like Map of the Problematique and Knights of Cydonia.
LL Cool J
3/5
The beats have an infectious energy and the production has some great depth. Some of the lyrics are cringe (how many times can someone use sugary foods as a euphemism for genitals?), occasionally misogynistic and homophobic. But overall, the album holds up pretty well, particularly the title track.
Circle Jerks
3/5
Full disclosure, about 20 years ago, I spent a lot of time hanging around hardcore punk kids. I could kind of see the appeal at first, but I pretty quickly started to feel like there were several dozen cookie-cutter knock off bands all doing the same thing. Simple songs, played as loud, fast and angsty as possible. For me, this got boring very fast. How much of that same thing can you really listen to? How edgy can your music be if it's following the same formula for decades? Credit where credit is due, this is obviously a defining album of the genre. And the fact that it's been copied so often clearly means that set a certain standard for others to follow. At less than 16 minutes long, this is likely going to be the shortest album of the entire challenge. But that was about all the time I needed.
Led Zeppelin
4/5
How heavy can you get before actually being heavy metal? It's easy to see why Led Zeppelin are so celebrated and influential. The music really does stand out among many of their contemporaries. My possibly controversial take is that this isn't their best album. But that's by no means an insult. I've got four more albums by this band to explore in this challenge, including some I don't know very well. I'm definitely looking forward to them.
The Beta Band
5/5
Hot Shots II has always been a favorite of mine. It's like a perfectly smooth surface with small intereting kinks and imperfections that become obvious the more you zoom in. I can easily listen to this one on repeat. Does it deserve a place on the list? It's a tough call but I do think there's something unique here, even compared to their contemporaries, like Beck, Four Tet, or Caribou.
CHIC
3/5
Arguably, Chic didn't need to have two albums on this list. In terms of style and performance, there's not much here that you can't find on their previous album, 'C'est Chic'. It's still nice to hear an occasional feel-good disco album though.
Air
4/5
Some very chill music from a great band. But it's an odd choice for this list. The music is good but not as good as other albums by Air. As a rare example of a film score in this challenge, again, it's good but hardly the best one out there. I'm always happy to revisit an old Air album but I really can't find anything significant about this release. I'd replace it with 10,000 Hz Legend of Talkie Walkie.
David Bowie
5/5
The first of many true reinventions of Bowie's career. Having reached a peak of popularity during his glam rock/Ziggy Stardust period, he took a major risk by moving into plastic soul. By doing so, he proved that he could effortlessly move between genres and continue to be influential. Aside from soul artists, this album was also heavily influenced by Bowie's friendship with John Lennon, contributing to the very unique sound of the album.
Les Rythmes Digitales
3/5
Electro-clash before there was electro-clash. As a result, it sounds both ahead of its time and outdated at once. The best moments would fit in nicely on a Daft Punk playlist, but there's a lot of filler too.
Van Morrison
3/5
I'm not a fan of Van Morrison and was dreading that it's a live double album. But I will say that this is an excellent live performance and that it does bring some new life to his songs that makes them a bit more interesting. It's not for me but I can see what makes it an impressive album.
Iggy Pop
5/5
It's impossible to talk about Pop's first two solo albums without mentioning David Bowie. Both 'The Idiot' and 'Lust for Life' were recorded with Bowie during the frantic year of 1977 when they were both living in Berlin, recording and touring relentlessly. 'The Idiot' was the perfect companion piece to Bowie's album 'Low'. Bowie had rescued Pop from drug addiction and the loss of his band, The Stooges, but he also took over the project. In response, 'Lust of Life' was Pop's desperate attempt to make the music his own before his mentor could exert too much influence. Despite most songs being written by Bowie, the album definitely sounds closer to a Stooges album than its predecessor. In turn, the change in direction would also later influence Bowie's next experimental album, 'Heroes'.
Afrika Bambaataa
3/5
Possibly the best example of early electro music. While Kraftwerk took you on a journey across Europe, Bambaataa took it further by bringing them into the Bronx and merging them with rap and funk. The rapping style doesn't always compliment the music well and Bambaataa's legacy has been marred by scandal. But this album was definitely very unique and influential for its time.
Joy Division
5/5
This is arguably Joy Division's masterpiece, despite being less well known than 'Unknown Pleasures'. The music and lyrics are darker and more claustrophobic, reflecting the mental health challenges of Ian Curtis shortly before his death. But it's also much tighter and freer than their debut. 'Closer' is possibly the most important post-punk album ever released, as well as template for early goth bands.
Kraftwerk
5/5
My first exposure to Kraftwerk was the video for The Robots where they looked like mannequins and moved like very crudely designed machines. There was something kind of otherworldly about them. There was an uncanncy valley quality to them. This was in the late 90s and by then, countless artists that I loved had been inspired by them. Despite that, I felt like I had never really seen or heard anything quite like them. Later, I'd come to realize their place in krautrock and everything that came after them. 'The Man Machine' may be their best album. The music is at once more refined and more spacious, almost completely abstracting out anything human at all, aside from the content of the lyrics. Even today, the music feels strange, unique and hypnotic.
Massive Attack
5/5
'Protection' was the album I put on on September 11th, when I needed to stop watching the news and find something comforting. Tracey Thorn's lyrics on the opening track felt like a warm blanket insulating me from the world. The whole album continues to feel like a safe space, escapist but with one eye still on reality. I know 'Blue Lines' is their celebrated album but I always found 'Protection' to be a huge leap forward for Massive Attack. It's not a perfect album but since I don't get review 'Mezzanine' (as it's not on the list), I can't not give 5 stars to at least one Massive Attack album.
Fugazi
4/5
I knew of this band but hadn't heard them before. It sounds like a missing link between punk and 90s rock/grunge. The screamy vocals have now been done to death and don't do much for me. But the music is refreshingly complex and tight.
Louis Prima
4/5
Fun, unpretentious swing music. The combination of Prima's and Keely Smith's voices is magnificent. I can only imagine that this music might have once been considered scandalous.
Motörhead
3/5
There's a definite roughness to the vocals. The guitars are simple but heavy as hell. It all just kind of works though and it resonates pure rock and roll. This one seems like a big influence on heavy metal bands of the 80s and 90s. My only complaint is that much of it sounds the same.
Elton John
5/5
I knew a couple of songs but I have never listened to a full Elton John album. What better place to start than his magnum opus? It's far more cinematic and experimental than I'd expected. It reminds me a lot of The Who's "Tommy". I can't say that every song is equally strong, but there are plenty of great tracks to keep returning to here.
Ian Dury
2/5
I have mixed feelings about this album. I'm adding a point because it's a different Cockney perspective on popular music and song writing. From the sounds of it, Dury had a rough life. There was clearly a huge influence on Damon Albarn here. Dury even manages to sound like Blur occasionally (e.g.: 'Clever Trevor'). To start, this album sounded like a drunk guy at the pub playing a cheap keyboard and doing mediocre early rock and roll tributes. Side 2 goes much more punk, which suits him better. Odd that they omitted the single 'Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll'. It's much better than the other single, 'Sweet Gene Vincent'. Overall, sort of interesting with a few decent songs, but not good enough to save it from obscurity nearly 5 decades later.
The Smiths
4/5
The Smiths took the sound of New Order away from dance/pop and brought it back into the post punk realm. Morrissey always was fairly pompous but it was easy to ignore that when he was just singing about militant vegetarianism. It's Johnny Marr and Andy Rourke who really carry these songs. Some of the best tracks these guys ever made are on this album.
Metallica
3/5
Noteworthy for its slow, deep style of heavy metal. I'm very familiar with all of the singles on this album and liked them alright when I was younger, although I never owned anything by Metallica or listened to a full album. They feel a bit overplayed now but they definitely stood out back in the 90s.
Isaac Hayes
4/5
That first side sounds triumphant. Seemless blend of soul, funk, psychedelic rock and cinematic landscapes. The song lengths look intimidating at first but once the songs start, they're so comfortable and detailed that there's really no rush to move on. The second side slows down quite a bit but with isn't without its soul and style.
Roxy Music
4/5
An interesting art rock album from before Brian Eno's solo work. 'Editions of You' is the clear highlight here. The rest is varied and often unexpected. I feel like I'm listening to something halfway between Bowie and The Residents ('The Bogus Man'), which is a confusing place to rest, but at all a bad one.
Muddy Waters
4/5
This is a peak blues album. It's not a genre I listen to often, but when I do, I'll now reach for Muddy Waters. From start to finish, this album is great. It's impossible not to be affected by these sounds.
T. Rex
5/5
One of the greatest glam rock albums. Marc Bolan always gets compared with Bowie, but T. Rex beat him to the glam scene. As late as 1972 (before 'Aladdin Sane'), it was still fair to ask which was of two was better, in no small part to the strength of 'Electric Warrior'. Bowie was always going to win that battle in the long run, even if Bolan hadn't died tragically young. But T. Rex still stands as an important contemporary that holds up today.
Linkin Park
3/5
Of all the nu metal albums, this was easily the best one. Mainly because they don't just sound like self-centered frat boys. That's not a high bar. I haven't listened to it in a long time and wasn't sure how it would hold up. And it does a little. It's not my favorite album or even within my top 100 albums, but it still has some nostalgia value. It's still infinitely better than their contemporaries from the time.
The Kinks
5/5
After being briefly banned from touring the US, The Kinks started looking inward to their own homeland for inspiration. The result is a concept combining the traditionalist British culture with the loose, unrefined and experimental youth culture. An early concept album, a cult classic and some of their best music.
Metallica
4/5
I'm not really a Metallica fan, but "One" is an absolutely amazing song. The rest is a mix of thrash metal and prog rock. It's an impressive work, if a bit repetitive at times.
Stevie Wonder
4/5
I knew some of Stevie Wonders' albums already but knew nothing about this one. His classic era is great and this album fits in nicely. It doesn't impress quite as much as 'Innervisions' or 'Songs in the Key of Life'. But it's still great to hear more from this period.
The Psychedelic Furs
3/5
The blurred line between post-punk and new wave.
Elvis Presley
2/5
Elvis is obviously an important figure in the history of modern popular music and this album marks a return to form after nearly a decade of mediocre film soundtracks. It is also heavily influenced by the Memphis scene. As important as Elvis was in the 50s, by 1969, rock and roll had left him far behind. For Elvis fans, it's undoubtedly a noteworthy album. But I am just not an Elvis fan.
Bob Dylan
4/5
The beginning of Bob Dylan as a songwriter. It's hard go overstate his significance as a lyricist. This album is such a statement of the early 60s and would have been unparalleled at the time of its release. Musically it's generally sparse, which doesn't make for great background music. But it's not supposed to be. The music is a vehicle for the lyrics that deserve attention.
The Cars
5/5
Classic new wave that's catchy as hell.
Bonnie Raitt
2/5
Apparently one of Raitt's biggest supporters was Prince? That's unexpected. Slightly intereting background story. The music is fine but it's not my style.
David Bowie
5/5
A sometimes overlooked gem in Bowie's discography. On one level, this album is almost forgettable (including by Bowie himself who claims to have no memory of recording it due to intense drug use) in comparison with his many noteworthy and more easily defined albums. On the surface, it is a transition album between the "plastic soul" of "Young Americans" and the post-modern Krautrock-influenced "Low". Multiple listens to this album reveals that it's one of his most complex albums. It's completely free and beyond simple categorization. It also has some of Bowie's most beautiful vocal performances. This one is a must have for any fan who really wants to explore his work in depth.
The Libertines
2/5
There's certainly a lot of drama behind this album. But unlike some other bands who can turn drama and internal tension into great music, this is just ok. I can see how they might have seemed exciting at the time though, touring with legendary acts and also performing underground gigs in their flats. The excitement doesn't really hold up unfortunately and it mostly sounds like just another punk band.
Gillian Welch
4/5
Melancholy folk and bluegrass. I've never heard of this one before but it was incredibly absorbing. Music to close your eyes and daydream to.
Queens Of The Stone Age
4/5
Heavy, danceable rock that sounds like a modern take on Can. It's hardly controversial to say that this isn't their best album though. QOTSA were still establishing their sound at this point. Later albums including Like Clockwork or Era Vulgaris would have been easy 5s.
Scott Walker
3/5
Mixed feelings on this one. To start with, I only know Scott Walker from the excellent song '30th Century Man' and was hoping for an album more like that. I've also heard that Walker went avant garde later in life and there are some early flashes of that here. Overall, it's more interesting than I initially gave it credit for but there are only a couple of songs that I would want to return to. There are definitely some unfortunate and outdated lyrics here and there too.
Wild Beasts
3/5
This one doesn't deserve the hate it gets but it also doesn't deserve a spot on the list. The music is pretty solid to be honest but the vocals are so comical that it's just a distraction. If you're going to go falsetto, you need to either do it really well or commit to being a bit silly. This album achieves neither, which is a shame because the compositions would have been great without that.
The Strokes
5/5
I was very late to the party when it came to The Strokes. I dismissed them as overhyped rich kids making standard rock music. Probably not bad but I didn't have the time to bother. When I finally got around to listening to this, I could see what I had been missing. The album is so much better than I'd expected. It's not often that a band manages to balance on the fine line between mainstream radio-friendly rock and unpolished underground indie. But the Strokes managed and the album still holds up well. Easy 5 stars.
David Bowie
5/5
'Low' may be the most striking of all of Bowie's transformations. He'd already managed to move effortlessly from glam rock to plastic soul, which was a commercial success but drove him into a coccaine-fueled frenzy. To escape both addiction and fame, he took Iggy Pop and Brian Eno to Berlin. Bowie and Eno were heavily influenced by Krautrock artists, as well as Eno's own ambient style for the start of this incredible era. Combined with the paranoia of a divided Berlin, there was really nothing quite like this album before. His record label refused to release it for 3 months for fear of failure. 'Low' has gone on to be massively influential for post-punk, industrial and synth pop artists in particular. It's not everyone's taste but for many, this is will always be Bowie's masterpiece.
Röyksopp
4/5
I've always meant to listen to this one but never prioritised it. It sounds like trip hop with a heavy lean towards ambient music. Perfect for a relaxing Norwegian holiday.
Leftfield
5/5
There's really no album quite like this. There was a move in the 90s for dance music to get more serious. Artists like Underworld and Faithless were making albums that worked equally well in a club or in your bedroom with headphones on. A catchy beat wasn't enough, you needed more complex production, interesting lyrics and engaging art. Leftfield were definitely part of that corner of the music scene, but took it in a different direction. This is a very eclectic collection, covering all different styles of music. It's all over the place but fits together perfectly. Who ever would have thought that getting Johnny Rotten to sing on a techno song would work so well?
Beatles
5/5
For me, this is the point where the Beatles became really interesting. They finally had artistic freedom and they used it to really push through music that was both more mature, more eclectic and more experimental than anything they'd done before. This is no longer just a band for screaming teenage girls. It might not be as impressive as later works but this is truly the album that launched the second half of their careers. There's not a bad song on here.
Prefab Sprout
2/5
This strikes me as "you needed to be there" kind of album. I can see people having connected with it in the 80s and made some strong memories around it. The sound is not bad, but it's definitely very dated. I kind of see the appeal but it's not for me.
5/5
I once bought this album solely because Thom Yorke was on it. I very quickly realized that he was the least interesting part of it and this album became one of my all-time favorites. Partly a tribute to New York City. The imagery of being on a rooftop in Brooklyn, seeing the five bridges, will always be a powerful one for me.
Ravi Shankar
4/5
I can't think of any non-western musical instrument that had as such a pronounced 15 minutes of fame as the sitar, and particularly as performed by Ravi Shankar. It's interesting Shankar himself was so disillusioned with the 1960s rock and roll scene and the hippie movement, both of which had embraced him. He had so much love and respect for music that anything getting in the way of it (drug use, Hendrix setting fire to his guitar, etc) was blaspemy. That reverence for beautiful music certainly comes through here. Indian classical music might strike some as just a brief (and possibly tedious) additional to Western music, but you can't deny what an amazing musician he was.
Janis Joplin
4/5
Such a unique voice. This album had fewer of the songs I knew than the Big Brother and the Holding Company album but it represented an increased maturity of her as a songwriter. This is perhaps a glimpse into what her future sound could have been, had she lived longer. Very sad to have lost this talent at such a young age.
Germs
4/5
I'm not usually a big fan of the early California hardcore scene. A lot of it sounds the same to me. I'd heard of the Germs before but never listened to them. I enjoyed it more than I expected, possibly aided by Joan Jett's production work. Some tracks were tiresome though, particularly the tedious 9 minute finale, which is infinitely long on the vinyl due to the locked groove.
Björk
5/5
I know Bjork rubs a lot of people the wrong way but if you look past the perceived "weirdness" of her style, she really is a brilliant artist. 'Vulnicura' may be her most mature release to date. In her early punk and electronic releases, she was recording in toilets at clubs. Since then she's grown and explored classical structures, world music and the avant garde and brought all of that experience into this release. This is a break up album unlike any you've heard before, particularly notable as it comes from an older woman, rather than the likes of Taylor Swift. In some ways it's a shame that this challenge doesn't have more of Bjork's early work, which is more fun to listen to. But this is definitely an impressive work of art.
Alanis Morissette
4/5
Raw, mid-90s energy. A lot of the album really holds up well, due largely to the unique vocal style that lingers somewhere between singer-songwriter and grunge. It does lag a little here and there but the singles are very strong.
Stephen Stills
4/5
A technical very impressive album throughout, resulting from coccaine-fueled marathon recording sessions lasting days. There's a bit too much twang for my taste but there are also a handful of stand out tracks. If I'd had any say, I would have cut out about half of the album but I recognize that I'm not the target audience. Despite that I enjoyed this much more than I expected to.
Mercury Rev
4/5
This is one of those albums that I would have never gotten around to listening to if not for this challenge. The very large overlap with the Flaming Lips, both in terms of style and their careers, was a pleasant surprise. The album itself took a few listens to really sink in but it's really gorgeous and ahead of its time. It sounds really free and honest, particularly as the band held no hopes for commercial success and just wanted to make something they could enjoy.
Hawkwind
4/5
I've always been curious about Hawkwind. They seem like a crossroads between jam bands, hard rock, psychedelic, and electronic music. I don't know of any other bands that are quite like them, though there is a lot of overlap. It took a few songs for me to warm up to this album but it slowly won me over. While I would have preferred a studio album to showcase their sound, it must have been something else to see them performing back then.
Willie Nelson
3/5
Learning about the Nashville system has helped me explain a lot of what I don't like about country music as a genre. It's often manufactured, cookie cutter copies of the same concept, designed by conservative music executives. Fortunately, outlaw country exists as a much more interesting counterpoint and Nelson is one the most famous of it's artists. I've liked some other of his work better but there is something really genuine about this album and I'm glad I've heard it.
John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers
3/5
Impressive performances and a huge influence on the blues and what would later turn into heavy metal. This album's significance is easy to see. It feels like a showcase of Clapton more than anything else though. Interesting album for what it is though.
Ride
3/5
Sounds like a poppier version of My Bloody Valentine. Not a bad album at all but I don't see why critics were so excited about this one.
Various Artists
4/5
A rare example of a compilation on this challenge, though it could be thought of as a Phil Spector album, given his heavy involvement and his name on the title. This album is at once a showcase of his "wall of sound" recording style, an extremely modern sound for the time of its release in 1963, and contains a number of songs still held up as modern Christmas classics. Given what Phil Spector would later become, it feels odd to associate him with the holiday. But honestly, it's hard to think of a more iconic Christmas collection than this one.
Basement Jaxx
3/5
In the mid to late 90s there was a movement of increased maturity among dance music artists. Be it connection to the art world (Underworld), eclectic production (Leftfield), or deeply personal lyrics (Faithless), dance music was demanding to be taken seriously. The Basement Jaxx rebelled against this and just wanted to make feel good music that you didn't need to think about. There's nothing wrong with that in principle but they took it so far as to border on self parody. There are a handful of songs here that are genuinely enjoyable in small doses. The rest of the album tries so hard to avoid the depth of their contemporaries that the songs are instantly forgettable. It serves it's purpose in the music world. If you want to just dance, it's fine. But it's a bit ridiculous that they styled this as a 'remedy' to more interesting artists than themselves.
Frank Sinatra
3/5
I can't quite conceptualize the distance that would have been felt between Rio and Hoboken in 1967. Viewed as a Sinatra album, he applied his crystal clear voice to the bossa nova style. The results are nice but less interesting than the same material from Brazilian singers. Viewed as a Jobim album, he is an ambassador for Brazilian music into the US, teaming up with one of the heavyweight crooners to bring his sound in. It's a good and maybe unexpected collaboration but overall, Sinatra is kind of watering down Jobim here in my opinion.
Gil Scott-Heron
4/5
R.I.P. Gil Scott-Heron. An amazing voice whose lyrics speak to the same disenfranchisement that exists today. The union with Brian Jackson's keyboards works great. I just wish this was still on Spotify.
The Smiths
4/5
Johnny Marr's songwriting is near perfect, to the point where I can almost ignore my intense dislike of Morrissey. It's a strong album though, despite him. With a different vocalist, it might have been among my favorite albums.
The Clash
4/5
Am amazing debut album. The Clash were one of the world's best punk bands right out of the gate.
Echo And The Bunnymen
4/5
Echo and the Bunnymen might be a little harder to get into than some similar bands like The Cure and Sisters of Mercy. They are worth the effort though as there are some great tracks here. I definitely need to be in the right mindset but the dark and desperate sounds are perfect for a specific mood.
Dusty Springfield
3/5
Certainly an icon of the 60s and an early example of the British invasion, preceeding The Beatles. Her voice is stunning. The music itself is largely standard covers but that wasn't uncommon for the early 60s. I preferred the second half. She deserves a place on this list.
Can
5/5
It's less iconic and recognizable than their classic album Tago Mago but it's easier to get lost in. You may find that you even start dancing to it unconsciously.
Lucinda Williams
3/5
I was pleasantly surprised by the very strong opening track on this album. 'Can't Let Go' is another impressive song. I could easily imagine Jack White covering it. Those two tracks aside, the album is objectively good but not really that interesting to me. It's a fine example of modern country music but that's not my style.
Lambchop
2/5
Lampchop lean heavily into the chamber pop style. A bit too much for my taste. There are a few great tracks but others really lose me. Aside from some brief praise from the music press, I don't know see much significance to this one either unfortunately.
Foo Fighters
4/5
As a huge fan of Nirvana back in the day, I always wanted the Foo Fighters to sound like a continuation of that sound. They don't. They're more accessible, far less experimental, and less daring than Nirvana was. Because of that, I kind of dismissed them. Nothing against Dave Grohl, it just didn't tick the box that I was looking for. Now I'm trying to give this a fair shot and trying not to see Grohl as standing in Cobain's shadow. Judged on its own, this is really an excellent album. In retrospect, copying Nirvana exactly would never have worked. Apologies to Grohl and the rest of the band. They deserve the acclaim they get.
Solange
4/5
Being the younger sister of (arguably) the biggest superstar on the planet must be a real double edged sword. On one hand, imagine how many doors are opened through nepotism. On the other, you will inevitably always be in their very large shadow. Thankfully Solange took a different path than trying to imitate her sister's success. Instead she's made much more interesting music that defies categorization. It's somewhere between R&B and Boards of Canada, with a healthy amount of political statements. I'd like to imagine that it speaks to many lonelier thinkers and dreamers who don't quite fit in with their peers but nevertheless have a lot to say.
Neneh Cherry
3/5
This album is like a masterclass of 80s pop music. Whether it sounds dated or classic if a matter of personal taste. 'Buffalo Stance' is the highlight here by a wide margin. Overall, it's a more daring and eclectic album than her contemporaries but it's very firmly rooted in the 80s.
Neil Young
5/5
The fifth appearance by Neil Young for me so far in this challenge. Aside from Buffalo Springfield, most of what I've heard by him so far has ranged from mediocre to just ok. This is the first one that I actually felt compelled to go back and listen to a second time. It has some beautiful songs for a broken heart. The title suggests the feeling of melonchony or depression after a period of excitment, which fits the music. Nice to see a bit more of what makes Neil Young a great artist.
Tina Turner
4/5
This isn't an album I would have chosen to listen to myself. Nothing but respect for Tina Turner and her dynamic voice and personality. But the music never really appealed to me. Truth be told, most of this album isn't my style, but I'm rating highly mainly because it was a pleasure to hear her and there were some nice surprises. This version of 'I Can't Stand the Rain' is fantastic and the highlight for me. I also wasn't expecting a cover from Bowie's unrealized Orwell musical.
The Pogues
4/5
Regional folk music runs the risk of sounding a bit gimmicky, like something that is played for tourists in UNESCO site gift shops. Unless of course you have something to have something to back it up. Shane MacGowan (R.I.P.) had a connection to the music, fantastic lyrics and the punk edge that the music needed to feel more authentic and modern.
Nirvana
5/5
This was quite simply the album that got me into music in the first place. I'd never heard anything like it before when I was first exposed to it. The radio and other kids in school were focused on pop music and Nirvana seemed to have come out of nowhere. 'Nevermind' is considered the archetype of grunge music but Nirvana were so much more than that. There was punk, noise, antiestablishment, anti-sexism. Cobain was defiantly questioning absolutely everything my young mind knew about the world and I loved it. I can still feel the surge of excitement over this discovery and how much it shook me. From here, I found a whole world of different genres and artists that I never knew existed. But my journey started with 'Nevermind'.
Depeche Mode
4/5
Another from Depeche Mode's classic period. This is some of the best 80s synth pop out there and represented a major development and maturity of their sound. I didn't immediately like this one as much as 'Violator' but it has really grown on me. Fantastic album.
John Lee Hooker
2/5
A famous name in the blues scene. Unfortunately, his voice and style are a bit drowned out by the very dated sounding production and mediocre collaborations. I feel like there must be better examples of Hooker's music out there. Personal opinion, there are better blues albums in this challenge.
The Stooges
4/5
The Stooges represented a huge step in the evolution of what would eventually be called punk. This album is a bit less listenable than their self-titled debut but it sounds more raw and at times more dangerous.
The White Stripes
5/5
If I had to pick a favorite White Stripes album, it would have to be 'Elephant'. The whole thing sounds tighter and more powerful than their previous releases. It's amazing how much variety two people can produce using old instruments and recording equipment. There are a few stand out songs here, including the amazing and instantly recognizable 'Seven Nation Army'.
Ali Farka Touré
4/5
I'm so glad to see some Malian music represented in this challenge. It's such an interesting country in terms of its music and has produced some really great artists, including Toure and Toumani Diabaté (listen to him too if you enjoyed this album). Toure himself was an interesting person. He grew up in a culture where musicians were the lowest caste but he wanted to play it anyway. He combined traditional Malian music with a heavy influence from African American blues artists. He was briefly mayor of a small town where he gave his money away to help build the infrastructure. And in his final years before succumbing to cancer, he created a recording studio in the hotel he was staying in because he couldn't travel far enough to reach any others. His album represents his final recordings, yet it's still full of life and a blend of musical traditions. For me, this is music for when you want to feel miles away from home.
Bobby Womack
3/5
The only song I previously knew by Bobby Womack was 'Across 110th Street'. This album is lot funkier and sexier than that song but also a bit less mature. That's not to say it's bad, just not what I expected. I can imagine loads of artists being inspired by Womack and his music really fitting a niche at the time. But to be clear, this isn't Stevie Wonder.
Sam Cooke
5/5
Wow, what an experience this one was. I'm not normally big on live albums, but there's so much feeling and power in this one. What's absolutely fascinating is that this recording was kept in a vault for more than two decades. It says a lot about the state of the music industry that the label was afraid this recording would harm his image as a pop star in the early 60s. The fact that Cooke appeared to be in his most free form when performing for African American audiences (and that the label felt the need to tone this down and hide that side of him) speaks volumes. This isn't normally my favorite genre, but I was just blown away by this album.
Talking Heads
5/5
This album established Talking Heads as a band to watch. The first of their work with Brian Eno, as well as their move to being a more danceable band. Although David Byrne gets the most acclaim, the whole band sounds great and there's not a bad track on the album. It's a classic and really enjoyable to listen to.
Beck
4/5
Often referred to as the unofficial sequel to Beck's masterpiece 'Odelay'. 'Guero' doesn't have the same impact and novelty, but it's great hearing Beck and the Dust Brothers working together again. I haven't listened to this album in many years and I forgot how strong it actually is. There are a lot of great songs here and it's a solid album from start to finish.
The Crusaders
2/5
About as edgy as smooth jazz can get, I suppose.
Talking Heads
5/5
After bouts of writer's block and internal tension, Talking Heads came back to record their magnum opus. Producer Brian Eno continued the work started with Bowie to combine elements of work music with post punk. But 'Remain In Light' is a lot funkier than anything on 'Lodger'. This album is another benchmark for a band who reinvented so much during their time.
Brian Eno
4/5
The album that paved the way for the Talking Heads album 'Remain in Light' (coincidentally, the album I got yesterday in this challenge). The experiments with world music and samples are very interesting and influential, particularly for the time. It lacks the hooks that you might expect from Byrne's music. Talking Heads is the album you play at your party. 'My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts' is the music you play when everyone has left and you want to spend some time alone with your thoughts. Definitely an album for people who are interested in experimental music and recording processes, not for everyone.
Ghostface Killah
4/5
This album really exceeded my expectations. It's a great blend of classic and very tight hip hop beats set against gritty rap. The collaborations were particularly a nice surprise as I didn't realize how involved MF Doom was on this album. In contrast to a lot of mainstream rap albums, this one isn't afraid to experiment. One of the best Wu Tang projects I've heard.
On the negative side, it's really unfortunate how it falls into the stereotype of including misogynistic and homophobic lyrics. Also, the skits. So unnecessary and boring.
The Who
3/5
I like The Who as much as the next guy but this hardly feels like their best album. Putting it in context, it seems like it was probably a return to form after 'Tommy'. And maybe for 1970, it was a particularly impressive live rock album. By today's standards, it sounds fine but I'd take a studio album over this any day.
Wilco
4/5
I always struggled with this album, only because 'Heavy Metal Drummer' is such an earworm and nothing else on the album sounds quite like it. I've tried a few times to listen to the full album but never engaged. This challenge has forced me to finally sit down and listen straight through to finally hear it for what it is: a very good indie record. Not perfect or especially groundbreaking but absolutely solid and worth revisiting.
My Bloody Valentine
5/5
A landmark shoegaze album. Marked by turmoil, overspending and a seemingly endless number of different recordings studios to get the sound right. But man, 'loveless' does sound otherworldly.
Elvis Costello
3/5
I'm fine with a bit of Elvis Costello but this album was just ok. I can see some excitement over its initial release and whether it was actually a reunion of the Attractions. But taking the long view, is that that really very interesting? It's not a bad album but not as impressive as his other work. It doesn't feel significant enough for this list.
The Rolling Stones
3/5
The Rolling Stones took the album template, experimentation, and world music influence of The Beatles' 'Rubber Soul' and ran with it. They did so with a lot more edge and grit. If parents hated Lennon and McCartney, Jagger and Richards were probably a nightmare. Their best song from the era, 'Paint It Black', is sadly missing from the original UK edition but there are still plenty of standout songs here. I have mixed opinions about The Rolling Stones but I think this is one of their better works. Unfortunately there's also a lot of misogyny that ruins would have otherwise been a very good album.
Björk
5/5
Although I'd argue that 'Post' and 'Homogenic' are stronger examples of Bjork's music (and not included in this challenge, sadly), 'Debut' is still a very powerful album. Bjork's voice is sensational and unique. She's long been one of my favorite vocalists. She's been a lifelong singer, releasing her first album as a child and then spending her teenage years jumping around punk bands, some of which were better than you might think. She finally found early international fame with The Sugarcubes, who produced some wonderfully weird music.
But Bjork always needed to go her own way. She is and always has been a force on her own, not a mere singer in someone else's band. She would eventually leave Iceland for London where she had the freedom to do her own thing and was embraced by the emerging electronic movements of the early 90s, with an explosion of subgenres having their moment, including trip hop, drum n bass, and acid house, among others. These sounds all seemlessly made their way into the appropriately titled 'Debut', with the assistance of 808 State's Graham Massey and the album's producer Nellee Hooper. While electronic music made up the backbone of the album, it is also filled with Bjork's early concepts and demos that never fit into her previous musical efforts the right way. The saxophones feel slightly out of place at first but on multiple listens they make up an essential part of the whole recording.
While her later work in the 90s may have been more easily digestible, 'Debut' is full of slow burns. I didn't immediately like songs like 'Aeroplane' or 'The Anchor Song' but sooner or later, they really clicked. It's a little harder to track it down, but the Brodsky Quartet version of 'The Anchor Song' is among my favorite pieces of music ever recorded.
Dwight Yoakam
2/5
As I'm not usually a fan of the genre, I find it hard to be completely objective. I was intrigued by the idea that he was rebelling against the Nashville establishment, as all the best country stars (Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, etc) had done before him. But I really don't hear anything special here. Experts in the genre will likely hear something that I'm missing but all I hear is run of the mill honky tonk with shamefully toxic lyrics. 'Streets of Bakersfield' is the only song I found noteworthy and pretty decent here but that's not enough to justify being on this list.
R.E.M.
4/5
I was a little late to the party with R.E.M. I never disliked them, I just didn't spend enough time actively listening to them to appreciate how good they are. This one is definitely something of a landmark in their career, marking a shift in style and their biggest success up to that point. There are some absolutely classic songs here. Overall, not my favorite work of theirs, but definitely a solid effort.
Public Enemy
5/5
This album taps into a time, a place and an angry determinism, and still feels as raw and relevant as ever. This is Black Lives Matter before many were aware of just how bad the situation was. To top it off, the music is phenomenal and the best output that I've heard by Public Enemy. The social message deserves strong beats to back them up and they definitely delivered here.
Pink Floyd
4/5
A pivotal release for the psychedelic movement and the debut of one of the best selling bands of all time. It's also interesting to hear Syd Barrett leading the band here. It's particularly bold for a debut album in the 60s and doubtless it turned more than a few heads. It holds up fine, both as an experimental record, but with enough pop elements to keep it listenable. It's obviously not as iconic as their later work, but it definitely deserves its place in music history.
Nightmares On Wax
3/5
A good example of what trip hop can be, focusing on the influences across multiple genres and great beats. It's not exactly genre defining the way the heavyweights of trip hop (Massive Attack, Portishead, etc) are. What it does showcase is how well bedroom producers can put together a solid album of very chill music. It's more background music than anything and it's a bit repetitive but it's a good album for what it is.
Eminem
1/5
Eminem always claimed that his music was supposed to be like a horror movie, in that it's for entertainment purposes only. It's a lazy and overused way to be able to say whatever you want. It's also very easy to pick apart. The opening disclaimer is clearly tongue-in-cheek. Eminem surrounds himself with layers of aliases to seem like characters rap bigoted and violent lyrics he wouldn't. The problem is that unlike other artists who can lose themselves in different characters, Eminem, Slim Shady, and Marshall Mathers all sound the same. Maybe it's fictional that in that he wouldn't really murder his partner or members of the LGBTQ+ community, but it's clear from the songs that part of him really wants to. The fact that he is self-aware of his toxicity doesn't make it any less toxic. It really just sounds like it was all written by an angsty teenager who thinks that shock value, humor, and art are all the same thing.
Why Dr Dre chose to produce this is a complete mystery to me but he's contributed the best quality of the whole thing. The beats are undeniably good. It's not enough to save the album, but it does illustrate how good this album could have been if it wasn't filled with bigotry and misdirected anger.
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
2/5
This is the kind of album that's a must have for hardcore fans but will bore most everyone else. The concept of a prog rock take on classical music is novel enough but the general silliness distracts from the impressive performances and high quality recording. It's an alright album but hardly deserves to be on this list in my opinion.
Country Joe & The Fish
3/5
Apparently these guys were huge in the San Francisco psychedelic scene and leftist circles of the 60s. My initial impression was that it's a less memorable version of Jefferson Airplane. But this album really picks up a few tracks in. The sound becomes muddier and more electronic than their contemporaries. It hasn't exactly survived the test of time and maybe not that many people today know who they are. But I can definitely see an enduring cult following for this group.
Barry Adamson
3/5
The idea of a soundtrack for a movie that doesn't exist seems less like a novelty and more like a resume for Adamson. But as that was his intention, I can't really fault him there. The music is fine and indeed would make a good backing for a neo-noir film. For me, soundtracks, real or imagined, are not usually that interesting to listen to on their own. But there are some interesting pieces here. 'Sounds from the Big House' could have influenced some early textures used by Nine Inch Nails. Indeed, Reznor would later tap Adamson for songs on the Lost Highway soundtrack. I don't know that this list needed two imaginary soundtracks by Barry Adamson but it was fun to hear this one.
Songhoy Blues
5/5
Wow, what a find this was. I've always liked desert blues, but haven't properly explored the genre. Songhoy Blues offer a slightly more modern take on the genre, showcasing influence by the incredible Ali Farka Touré, as well as a wide range of Western styles. Interesting that they cite hip hop and R&B as their 'main diet', while staying firmly connected to Northern Malian music. An added bonus here is the collaboration with Nick Zinner of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. None of this says anything about their personal stories of being internally displaced persons, in exile from a fundamentalist group who wanted to ban music from Timbuktu. Despite their modern sound, Songhoy Blues are also keeping their Northern sounds alive.
The Who
4/5
Are The Who responsible for the concept of skits on albums? If so, thanks a lot guys. Putting that aside, it's not bad for such an odd little album. The fake ads are fairly listenable and the rest of the songs are pretty good. It's gimmicky, sure, bit also documents a period of ads and pirate radio pretty well. Too bad they got a off of legal trouble for all of the unlicensed material.
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
3/5
It's a popular criticism of this list that it has too much Elvis Costello. While I agree that six albums is a lot and that some were particularly average, I am glad that Costello is featured on the list. 'Armed Forces' may not be the strongest release overall but it does feature some of his best work, including 'Oliver's Army' and '(What's so Funny about) Peace, Love and Understanding'. Unfortunately there's also a lot of filler here that's less memorable.
Lorde
3/5
There is something appealing about Lorde's music that I've never been able to put my finger on. Maybe it's her vocal style, or just that the music feels a little unorthodox for a pop star. I really only knew her debut album 'Pure Heroine' before. Unfortunately, 'Melodrama' doesn't appeal to me as much. There are some stand out tracks like 'Green Light', but it's lacking the eerie minimalism of her debut and has fewer tracks that stick with me. I still like it, but it's a shame that 'Pure Heroine' didn't make the cut for this list. It might have been a 5 for me.
Peter Frampton
3/5
I'd always been curious about Peter Frampton but never sought out his music. All I knew about him was that he was a school friend (and eventual collaborator) of David Bowie, and that he appeared on an episode of The Simpsons alongside Cypress Hill and Sonic Youth. That was enough to convince me that he must be cool. The actual music hasn't hit as strong as I thought it would. At times, it sounds like waiting room music. It's saved by the expert guitar playing and effects, particularly towards the end of this album. All of that is strong enough that I might eventually give Frampton another shot. But on one listen, it's not quite as strong as I'd hoped.
Devendra Banhart
3/5
Very nice (if a bit leftfield) modern folk. As much as I like the music, the vocal style doesn't do much for me. At times, it seems borderline silly to the point of distraction. I can't help but picture the stereotypical Williamsburg hipster of the early 2000s while listening. Tone down the vocals a bit and you'd have a very good album. Alternatively, go full experimental and really make it weird all around. 'Rejoicing in the Hands' is somewhere in between those extremes. The result is a ok album with some interesting peaks but not enough to really be memorable. There are better alt folk albums out there but it's not bad.
Prince
5/5
An undisputed pop masterpiece, even among many people who normally hate pop music. There was something different about Prince. He brought in influences from a diverse range of music. His music was larger than life, tightly produced, sexy and danceable. No one else has ever managed to sound quite like him.
The Doors
4/5
The last Doors album I heard was 'Morrison Hotel', which I wasn't that excited by. 'L.A. Woman' really stands head and shoulders above that one in my opinion. There is great energy, strong songwriting, and some daring experimentation, documenting the (perhaps too extreme) final days of Jim Morrison's life. Definitely attention grabbing and memorable.
Alexander 'Skip' Spence
4/5
I really didn't expect how strange this album would be. Written during a stay in a psychiatrist hospital and hastily recorded as intended-demos, 'Oar' reminds me in some ways of Van Gogh's final days of life when he was painting frantically. That isn't to say that Spence is the kind of genius that Van Gogh was but there's a similarity in that both men where attempting to do something more conventional than what finally came out. 'Oar' is both uncomfortable and endearing. Unsurprisingly, the record label had no idea what to do with it and it quickly faded into obscurity as a cult classic.
Frank Black
4/5
The first rock concert I ever attended had Frank Black as the opener when he was promoting this album, so this music really brings me back. That made him the first rock star I ever saw live, long before I knew who The Pixies were. Listening to this album now, it sounds like what you often hear from lead singer solo projects, which lacks the chemistry of the rest of the band. Despite that, it has some real gems. 'Headache' is the standout track and rivals most material by The Pixies. But there is enough else on here to make for a good album. My only complaint is that it's a bit longer than it needs to be. Trim about 20 minutes off and it would be a tighter album but I still really enjoyed listening and imagining that first live experience again.
Earth, Wind & Fire
4/5
This album is dated and a bit campy but I can't help enjoying it. The funky rhythms, the smooth synths, and the ultra cool brass all come together perfectly. Despite being such a huge group (by my count, there were nine members at the time of this recording), everything fits right into it's place, even with a refreshing amount of empty space in between sounds. I could pass on some of the more ballady songs but the rest is hard to hate. Classic album.
Public Image Ltd.
3/5
John Lydon had abandoned punk when he left The Sex Pistols and had already pioneered post-punk with PiL's debut album 'First Issue'. Here, the band fully embraces the avant-garde. This is particualarly evident in Lydon's bizarre (and slightly off-putting) vocal style. The original packaging, while being novel, actually created (intentionally?) a frustrating experience where listeners struggled to get the records out of the tin case. German band Can is a major influence here though not 'Metal Box' isn't as good as Can's best work. The hero of this album is bassist Jah Wobble. Bassists don't usually get that much praise, but his dub rhythms come out in full force on this album. If anything keeps the listener engaged, it's Wobble. This album also introduces PiL's fantastic drummer, Martin Atkins, though only on one track as he joined in the middle of recording. Overall, this record will annoy a lot of people. It's not something you'd play at a party or a relaxing Sunday afternoon. But it's an interesting one and there is some brilliance among the weirdness of it. A landmark post-punk album.
The The
4/5
The The walk the fine line between post-punk and new wave, not really fitting into either genre correctly. 'Infected' follows the pattern of extremely bleak lyrics accompanied with upbeat music. But the main significance of this album was probably the unusual decision (particularly for such a minor group at the time) to produce a video for every track. The videos themselves were extreme, fueled by drug use and putting themselves into dangerous situations. The police refused to try to protect them filming by a cracked house in the middle of the night. They were attacked by communist rebels in South America. The band appear to keep going on pure adrenaline. Shock factors aside, it's a good album on its own, deserving of time and consideration for the period it was made. Top track for me is 'Slow Train to Dawn'.
The Damned
4/5
I sometimes cringe went that I'm getting yet another 'punk classic' and 'proto-hardcore' album. The genre, while great, has a lot of cookie cutter copies out there. Not so with The Damned. Very endearing and varied with guest appearances by Lemmy and members of The Clash. Surprisingly catchy for such a rough and rowdy punk album.
Led Zeppelin
5/5
I don't know how I made it so far in life not listening to Led Zeppelin. I worried a bit about this being a double album, particularly after reading that some songs were seemingly tacked on from previous recording sessions just to make it fit. But 'Physical Graffiti' was great and without a single bad track. There's a refreshing diversity of styles here that doesn't hit immediately but listening straight through, it really solidifies. Any time a song starts to feel forgettable, it quickly turns into something new and novel. I'll definitely be revisiting this one.
The Velvet Underground
5/5
The original 'art rock' album. There's a lot to say about this one. Lou Reed brought a classic rock and roll sound and married it with the gritty subject matter of New York poets, singing about topics previously off limits in the genre, including drug use and prostitution. John Cale brought in a fearless experimentation inspired by early 20th century avant garde composers. The addition of Nico is a strange choice for a debut album but she adds a further sweet strangeness to the songs she appears on. Andy Warhol, supposedly the producer, did little beyond paying for it and adding a phallic front cover image. Yet his presence is all over the album. Without his reputation and fearlessness, this music wouldn't have existed. Few albums have ever been as influential as this.
The Police
4/5
The phrase "white reggae" really sounds like cultural appropriation by today's standards. Ignoring that, the Windrush generation brought Caribbean influence to the UK and why shouldn't that influence rock music? 'Message in a Bottle' is one hell of a song and carries the album but there are other peaks, including 'Bring on the Night' and 'Walking on the Moon'. There's also some filler here but I'm enjoying it all more with every listen.
Bruce Springsteen
4/5
Springsteen brings a brighter, poppier flair to his working class American ballads. His music was always on when I was a kid so I was really familiar with a lot of this album, but there were a few songs I had never heard before and they sounded just as strong as the others. It's a classic album.
Ray Charles
4/5
Ray Charles knocks you off your seat and makes you pay attention. The abrasive horns attack your senses and lead you directly into Charles' sensational voice. The force of side 1 flows into the smooth ballads of side 2, with the incredible singing still with you. As another reviewer said, he exudes pure class.
Deep Purple
4/5
A pioneer of early heavy metal and very influential in the genre. I keep wanting to dismiss Deep Purple but I'm always pleasantly surprised by how good they are.
The Beau Brummels
3/5
I was disappointed to see another San Francisco psychedelic 60s album on the list but this one was pretty unique. The instrumentation is impressive. The style feels like it's pulling all different genres from the era into a Tolkien-sequence world. The vocals are a bit distracting though. He sounds like he's trying to imitate Bob Dylan. Tone that back and let the music stand out more and you'd have a stronger record in my opinion. Despite that, there's a lot going on here that's worth a listen.
The Rolling Stones
4/5
Finally! This album is how I always hope a Rolling Stones album will sound, with the right energy and depth to match their style.
Dion
3/5
'Born to be With You' is a good example of an album that takes some time to get into. The first few tracks left me a bit cold. It was only about halfway through listening that I clicked with the production and the impressive vocal talent present. Specifically the song 'Only You Know'. It was enough to make me go back and listen again with an open mind. I can't say that I loved every track but definitely a good record with Phil Spector's fingerprints all over it.
Beach House
3/5
I can't help but feel like Beach House were a 'flavor of the week' kind of band. Pleasant enough to listen to and maybe something you can briefly get very excited about. But longer term, it's kind of forgettable. I really liked 'Norway' and 'Real Love'. The rest is sort of nice and calming background music. Nothing wrong with that but there's also not a lot to hold onto unfortunately. I remember these guys having their moment about a decade ago. I see it but can't imagine them being anyone's all time favorite band.
The Flaming Lips
5/5
The Flaming Lips' second masterpiece, after 'The Soft Bulletin'. A very ambitious album combining themes of science fiction, love, humanities struggles. 'Yoshimi' introduces electronic elements into their sound, mixed with acoustic instruments and hip hop influences. At times, it recalls parts of early electronic music experiments, like Pierre Henry's musique concrete. It's very modern, very strange, and very human. A very unlikely album to hold the official rock song of Oklahoma.
Dusty Springfield
4/5
A beautiful voice and some of the best known songwriters of the 60s. This is a lovely album. Not the kind of thing I would normally seek out myself but a pleasure to hear.
The Rolling Stones
4/5
I really don't know what to think of the Rolling Stones any more. At first, knowing only some of the bigger singles, I really wanted to like them. The first couple of albums I listened to were letdowns, and a bit toxic at points. Firmly wanting to dislike this band, I was exposed to 'Exile on Main Street' and there I could finally see the hype, though I figured it may be a 'one album wonder' situation. Over the first few tracks of 'Beggar's Banquet', I feel that my initial image of them as a singles band is still pretty accurate. 'Jig-Saw Puzzle' onwards, I've warmed up to it more than most of their albums. It's not my favorite album of all time, but where it works, it works. It's rock n roll, it's bluesy, it raunchy, it's still feels a bit creepy at points. But damn if there's not some good music on here.
Lupe Fiasco
3/5
Some good, intelligent modern hip hop. The singles are strong and I would definitely return to 'Kick, Push' sometime. The social consciousness really comes through from the perspective of a black Muslim man in Chicago. Overall though, it's not the strongest hip hop album I've heard. 'Outro' is 12 minute acknowledgements track with very repetitive beat and has been one of the more tedious songs of this entire challenge so far. But there's enough here to show Lupe Fiasco's talent.
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
3/5
One of the better Elvis Costello albums. The songs 'Pump It Up' and 'Radio Radio' alone make this one worth your time. As with his other albums, there's some filler too, but here are enough hits to ignore them. Here Costello continued the momentum of his strong debut album.
Megadeth
3/5
It seems funny to think of anyone being offended by something that sounds so ridiculous. The very over the top artwork and lyrics make Megadeath like a parody of themselves. But the performances are great and it works as long as you don't attempt to take them seriously.
Rush
3/5
Rush are undoubtedly legends of prog rock. I'm no expert in the genre but from what I know, this album doesn't feel like it represents the best of the band, or an early landmark in the style. It's maybe a breakthrough for Rush themselves, as they're previous works weren't very successful. It's definitely good, just maybe not the best example of the genre out there.
Sly & The Family Stone
5/5
I only really knew 'Everyday People' before listening to this album and I definitely wasn't prepared for what I was about to hear. 'Stand' is energetic, socially aware, sexy, pop, funk and psychedelic. I can see a strong influence on funk music that was to come. The album also feels like an appropriate document of the transition from the 60s to the 70s.
Suzanne Vega
4/5
Describing an artist as a 'singer-songwriter' sometimes feels like being served white bread. It's often comforting and familiar, and made by the right people, it can be amazing. But more often than not, it's sort of plain. Great for background music in a coffee shop, but it can all sort of sound the same after a while. I had heard of Suzanne Vega before but never knew her music. It was a nice surprise and had a bit more character than I imagined it would, with distinct different sounds to each song. The music seems both timeless but with subtle hints of 80s pop music. Really nice album.
Ryan Adams
3/5
I've never listened to Ryan Adams before. For an alt-country album (not usually my style) it has a few genuinely good songs. But for me, it really struggles to keep the quality high throughout. He sounds like a less interesting version of Jack White. From what I've read of Adams, he does seem like a bit of a mess. He seems to always be frantically recording albums, many of which he label refuses to release (including one with the very questionable title 'The Suicide Handbook'). He's had sexual harassment cases. He seems to kind of want to play punk rock but keeps going back to country. Are you ok, Ryan? Anyway, I can see why some people like him but for me, this album was about 40 minutes longer than it needed to be.
Miles Davis
5/5
In a sense, Miles Davis did the unthinkable with 'In a Silent Way'. He took a genre that was already defined by experimentation and freedom and he dared to change the rules even further. The reactions were very mixed. Was he taking the liberation of jazz to its next step? Or risking new confinement by bringing the genre closer to rock and roll? His use of electric guitars, extensive editing, and other studio tricks further alienated purists but excited many others. The result is something that doesn't quite sound like rock or jazz at all. It sounds like possibilities and at many points feels like a preview of what Brian Eno would later coin as 'ambient music'. I'm no expert in Davis's music, but this album has always been my favorite.
Run-D.M.C.
3/5
Amazing to think that the first hip hop album to reach such mainstream success and get a Grammy nomination didn't come out until 1986. And that it took rock elements and a cover of Aerosmith to make it happen, acting like a Trojan horse for the entire genre. But it definitely worked. Dated as it is, some of these songs still work. The inclusion of the song 'Dumb Girl' is unfortunate but there are plenty of hits here to help ignore it.
Girls Against Boys
3/5
My first time listening to Girls Against Boys. I've heard them described as post-hardcore, and I wasn't quite sure what that was supposed to sound like. And to be frank, a lot of it sounded like 90s grunge. Not a bad thing. Parts reminded me of Nirvana and Sonic Youth, though not as great as either. Thought about in the context of its time, I can see it feeling exciting, like an important part of a scene at its height. In retrospect, it suffers from being a bit repetitive and doesn't quite stand the test of time. But it has its moments and it's fun to imagine having been there.
Incubus
2/5
Incubus lie somewhere in between the high point of System of a Down and the very low point of Limp Bizkit. Which is to say it's ok nu metal but not much to write home about. I think I listened to this entire album multiple times when I worked in a record store but the fact that I'm not sure says a lot. The songs 'Stellar' and 'Drive' are good enough to be a little enjoyable but it's not enough for me to say that this album deserves its place on the list.
Supertramp
3/5
Echoes of Electric Light Orchestra and Elton John. Supertramp sounds cinematic and larger than life, much like those others. It's an odd choice of albums though, as 'Breakfast in America' is the more polished and more celebrated album. 'Crime of the Century' is fine but it pales in comparison to their masterpiece.
Napalm Death
2/5
Apparently a landmark grindcore album. It sounds like the band started writing each song and halfway through decided to make it very loud in the hopes that no one would care that it's not complete. The longer tracks are a bit better. 'Siege of Power' is the only one I'd return to. Obviously though, the effect of jumping from one track to the next in rapid succession is part of the charm for fans, to the point of absolutely absurdity. I have to kind of admire the ridiculousness of releasing a 1 second song as a single. But as a listening experience, 'Scum' is mostly tedious with a handful of good moments that disappear as fast as they emerge.
Creedence Clearwater Revival
4/5
Creedence are undoubtedly great musicians and songwriters. Their music is refreshingly simple and focused. While they're not a band I'd personally put on heavy rotation, I can definitely see why someone would. Previously in the challenge, I got 'Cosmo's Factory', which I would argue is a stronger album than 'Green River'. I also don't know that there's anything particularly significant about this album, other than being a popular CCR release. But it's certainly a well made album.
A Tribe Called Quest
3/5
Very strong start on this. It has a classic, minimalist alternative hip hop sound. I know a bit of Q-Tip's later stuff and have liked his style. The quality varied a bit, but I can definitely see the influence that this album has had, given that it was released in 1991. The standout track here stands out for questionable reasons though. Is 'Infamous Date Rape' social commentary, or celebration of misgony? Given the group's messages in other songs, I can entertain the idea that it might be the former and that there is a hidden message against sexual violence. However, the fact that that same song is riddled with period jokes makes it harder to buy that message. It's an odd miss on an otherwise great album, but it's striking enough that it's hard to ignore.
Rage Against The Machine
5/5
An incredible, raw, and politically charged album. Tom Morello's guitars cut right through you and force you to open up to Zach de la Rocha's assaulting vocal style and powerful lyrics. Where are these guys when the world needs them now? RATM also were among the first to successfully merge metal and rap. It would inspire a lot of terrible bands to come, and angsty young Republicans who didn't get the lyrics. But Rage were always the real deal.
Here is probably one of my most controversial comments for this entire challenge: I always thought this was Rage's weakest of their three albums. But I accept that I am odd man out there. Having said that, they are just a great band and it's always a pleasure to hear them.
Beatles
4/5
The first Beatles album containing only original material and an important step in their evolution as one of the most important bands in pop music history. Lennon and McCartney proved themselves to be serious songwriters by this point. The fact that there were no cover songs was already unusual for pop music of the era. This album won't do much to convince the nay sayers though, as it's little more than a 60s pop album, albeit a good one. Their real breakthrough albums were still to come but 'A Hard Day's Night' was a significant step in their journey.
Lenny Kravitz
3/5
I don't understand the hate that Lenny Kravitz gets. I also don't see the comparisons to Prince. Listening to this album, I feel like Kravitz is trying to channel John Lennon, Jim Hendrix, and maybe Stevie Wonder. The songs are generally good and have some impressive moments, particularly on the song 'Let Love Rule'. It also has a few misses and feels like it's missing something as an album. But overall, it's impressive for a debut album.
Michael Jackson
4/5
When reviewing albums, should you separate the art from the artist? No where is this question more relevant than with Michael Jackson. The artist (allegedly) committed unforgivable crimes. Though depression and mental health issues may have explained this, we shouldn't dismiss the seriousness or the long term effects on his victims.
On the other hand, this is one of the best selling album of all time by (arguably) the biggest pop star who ever lived. It's an album full of huge hits and was trailblazing in many respects. The blending of styles, the innovative use of music videos as art form. Jackson carried the torch from the ashes of disco's remains, and brought in the likes of Paul McCartney, Eddie Van Halen, and Vincent Price to help cement his status. This album broke racial barriers like none before it. Jackson couldn't even get on magazine covers due to his race, and yet he still managed such a huge impact with this album. And not just in America, but all over the world. Michael Jackson was more well known than most US presidents.
So how do we reconcile these two things? For the purpose of this challenge, I'm separating the art from the artist. Put another way, I want to hear this album as it would have been heard on its release. So I'm putting aside (for a moment) the feelings of discomfort about Michael Jackson the man, to focus on Michael Jackson the artist, singer and performer. And I mean, it's a great album. Not all songs are equal quality but the sheer number of hits is more than enough to save it. Case in point, Jackson and McCartney arguing over a girl is a bit cringeworthy but it leads directly into the incredible title track. I hate that this album is marred by history because I really want to like it more.
Dexys Midnight Runners
3/5
I agree with the other reviewers who say that Dexy's Midnight Runners didn't need three spots on this list. Sometimes it really feels like the author is just inserting his personal preferences to fill up space. Having said that, it's a better album that I expected. The band are talented songwriters and performers who did well in the UK, if not so much in the US. They have real talent. Despite that, it's just not the most exciting album in my opinion. It has its moments, but it's hard to stay excited when they keep switching to long passages of very quiet spoken word sections in the middle of songs. They are really trying to make you pay attention. For the dedicated fans who are willing to shut out the world and pay strict attention to every lyric, the pay off is probably great. But not everyone wants to devote so much energy to Dexy's Midnight Runners.
4/5
A classic New Wave album owing a heavy debt to German experimental rock band Can. Devo were yet another part of the ultra productive period of Bowie and Eno's Berlin years that also included Bowie's most experimental releases and the first two solo albums from Iggy Pop. In other words, they were in very good company and really tapped in at exactly the right moment. I love Devo though it's far from a perfect album. The imperfections kind of add to its charm and the whole devolution image. I can't explain why but I can easily listen to this album on repeat.
At the time of this writing, 'Gut Feeling' isn't on Spotify. I hope that gets sorted soon because it's the best song on the whole album.
Dr. John
4/5
One reviewer said it "sounds like a post-midnight ceremony recorded in the bayou swamp". I stealing this as I really can't think of a better way to put it. The blend of New Orleans styles with psychedelia is utterly unique, though perhaps only appealing to a niche audience. It's bizarre and haunting, somewhat hard to listen to but very deserving of a chance. 'Gris Gris' is wonderfully experimental and daring.
The Verve
3/5
I had a copy of this album when it first came out. Like so many others, I discovered The Verve due to 'Bittersweet Symphony'. It is undeniably a great song. The rest of the album was always just background music for me. Pleasant enough to listen to but nothing memorable. Revisiting this album many years later, it's much the same as I remembered it. The music is good enough but nothing really stands out. It's still great background music with one stand out single. But generally I just don't understand the excitement around this band.
Pearl Jam
4/5
The quintessential grunge album and arguably one that helped usher in 90s rock. Nirvana may get the main credit for this scene, but Pearl Jam were probably the purest demonstration of the sound. The music immediately takes me back to that time. The music holds up incredibly well, particularly given how short lived grunge was.
Booker T. & The MG's
4/5
An instantly recognizable title track. Everyone knows that song but few could probably name it. I personally would have guessed that it was written about a decade later than it was. The Hammond organ and excellent guitar riffs are a perfect combination. Enough so that the rest of the album can follow the same formula. It's simple enough but the execution is fantastic.
Frank Ocean
5/5
Wow. I haven't never listened to a single Frank Ocean song before today. I knew nothing about him except a vague idea that he was a RnB singer. Not a genre I was ever invested in. But this album blew me away. The music is impeccable, mixing elements of various genres and influences. The content is free and vulnerable, taking on numerous voices vividly. I never expected that this would be an album I play on repeat, but it's incredible.
Queen
5/5
The whole 'good versus evil' album has been done by many. But few could do it as well or with as much excitement as this band. This is the album where Queen really became Queen, with more complicated structures, multi-layered songs, and heavy use of overdubs. The various talents of the band are on full display here, particularly the progressive rock stylings of Brian May and the louder than life vocals of Freddie Mercury. What's striking is how little known this album is. It speaks to Queen's ability to create both iconic and instantly recognizable singles elsewhere, as well as perfectly crafted albums like this one. 'Queen II' is heavy, detailed, and utterly fantastical.
Waylon Jennings
2/5
I'm sorry to say, this one just wasn't for me. I'm not a country music fan, though I do appreciate a bit of the outlaw country subgenre. The fact that Willie Nelson supported this one did pique my interest a bit. Unfortunately, I just couldn't get into it. The honky tonk style just doesn't do much for me. I appreciate that Jennings is one of the stars of the subgenre and I didn't explicitly hate it. But it's just not one I'd return to.
Beth Orton
3/5
I was exposed to Beth Orton through her work with the Chemical Brothers and a remix by Four Tet. I've always loved her voice. And I always attached very high expectations on her. Because of that, I never really gave her a proper chance. This album isn't as perfect as I'd hoped. But it's still very enjoyable. Maybe I should search through more of her discography sometime. There are definitely some gems on this album (like 'Stolen Car') and wading through the filler is still a pretty pleasant way to spend an afternoon.
Amy Winehouse
3/5
A neo-soul record with amazing vocals. Winehouse is always smooth, jazzy and just slightly sleazy. It sounds classic while remaining modern. There's a nearly unanimous feeling that 'Frank' is the lesser album compared to 'Back to Black', but it's nice to hear this out as the showcase of young potential, as opposed to the tragic later days of a tortured soul. Amy Winehouse was definitely a talent and cut through much of the mass produced music of her era.
The Divine Comedy
3/5
I had another Divine Comedy album on this challenge many months ago. I gave it a 3 and wrote that maybe the music can grow on me. Since then, I've largely forgotten it. So this album came as a surprise because I enjoyed it more than I expected and (again) feel like it could grow on me if I let it. I don't love orchestral pop but Divine Comedy are more pop than orchestra, which helps. One of these days, I may spend more time listening to this band.
Fatboy Slim
3/5
A popular one from my childhood and one of the best examples of the Big Beat subgenre. Is it a great album? Maybe not. It's all surface level repetitive dance music without much substance. But it sure is fun to listen to.
Jefferson Airplane
5/5
An absolute classic of the San Francisco psychedelic scene and the summer of love. A handful of standout tracks really make this album shine. 'Someone to Love' has an intensity rarely heard in the genre. 'Embrionic Journey' feels like a destined journey across the country. 'White Rabbit' is the tribute to Alice in Wonderland that we all needed, whether we knew it or not. Truthfully, a few tracks are kind of forgettable but the hits more than make up for them.
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
5/5
Matt Groening, creator of the Simpsons, has the best review of this album. He said that the first time through he thought it was the worst album he'd ever heard and with each listen he warmed up to it a little more. By the 7th time around, he decided it was one of the best albums he'd ever heard. Unsurprisingly, many people's first reactions are pretty negative, as reflected by the fact that this is one of this lowest rated albums on this site. It's definitely a challenging one and it requires some effort on the part of the listener. Those willing to try it are in for an experience though. Personally, I love 'Trout Mask Replica' in all it's bizarre glory. It's a different view of the 60s, more chaotic than the typical flower power, summer of love vibes. This album is part bad trip, part confusion. It's blues, it's psychedelic, it's avant garde. The background of the recording reminds one more of the Stanford Prison Experiment than Woodstock, with the band effectively locked in the house, converted into a giant recording studio, under the watchful eyes of Frank Zappa. Officially, Zappa is the producer here, but his involvement is debated. More than likely, he created the space and opportunity for Captain Beefheart to fully explore and experiment, with both music and people. It's a challenging album but it is brilliant if you give it enough time.
The Specials
4/5
I've always thought of ska as the music that (to quote a popular meme) 'plays in a 12-year-old's head when they get extra mozzarella sticks'. I'd heard of The Specials and figured they were more of the same. The first thing that struck me was how true they sounded to the reality of the genre, truly a mix of reggae and punk, in the '2 tone' sense. Then the album continues and just unravels in a bizarre sprawl of different genres, including... elevator music? It is pretty endearing though. A successful band, burnt out, exhausted and unsure how to approach their follow up album. Everyone has different ideas so let's just try it all! The result is an album that according to the band, people 'won't even know if they like it or not', least the first time around. Spot on description. It grows on you though. It can't be described as a typical ska record.
Daft Punk
5/5
One of the classics of the 90s electronic music scene, and maybe the most successful French act in the history of recorded music. It's repetitive, sure, but by design. The music is for you to get lost in, and to get up and dance. The beats are all perfectly placed and the album has aged incredibly well compared to many of their contemporaries. Having said that, Daft Punk went well past these humble beginnings with two later albums, 'Discovery' and 'Random Access Memories', both of which are tragically missing from this list. Those albums deserve 5 stars, while 'Homework' should really get s 4. Still, it's Daft Punk and I can't miss the opportunity to give them a perfect score.
Stan Getz
4/5
A classic bossa nova record featuring many of the greats of the genre. The music sounds effortless and impossibly smooth. It's understated, saying only what it needs to, exactly as loudly as it needs to, and nothing more. This is music for when you and your partner get home late after a night out but are still wide awake.
Suede
3/5
It sounds like The Smiths directly passed their torch to Suede and in doing so it created Brit Pop. This album is incredibly 90s, guitar driven alt rock. Definitely not a bad thing. Overall, I say it was a bit overhyped on its release and I don't hear the Bowie influences that others have mentioned. Nevertheless it's an impressive work.
Simon & Garfunkel
5/5
Giants of folk rock at the peak (and soon to be the end) of their career as a duo. Paul Simon is the sole songwriter here and he gets the opportunity to shine. Despite the two drifting apart, their collaboration still works here. There are so many great songs. This is one of the best selling albums in history and it still sounds timeless today.
The Smashing Pumpkins
5/5
I had this album when I was young, but I tended to skip around the tracklisting a lot. Oddly enough, revisiting this album years later, I found it easier to sit through the entire thing. Like many double albums, it can feel like a slog at points, but there's a refreshing variety of styles which means that the low points are far from fatal. The music is orchestral, dirty, dark, and light all at different points. And it's seething with Gen X against and energy. Truthfully, this is an extremely 90s album, but it has aged pretty damn well (even if the band didn't as much). Personally, I'd have cut a few tracks out, but it's still strong enough to support being a double album.
4/5
Such slick production and performances on this. To me, the music paints a picture of urban landscapes as places where people live. They're beautiful, imperfect, a little unsettling, but more than anything, the cities depicted here are alive with people's energy. What a great listening experience this was.
Shivkumar Sharma
4/5
The Western fascination with Indian music (particularly among psychedelic artists) began here. A deceptive simple instrumental recording about a day in the life of a shepherd from Kashmir. The musicians inject elements of Western music which are subtle but helped them break into the 60s rock scene. It's not hard to see why it was so popular, despite the odds. The music really transports you to another world and a different lifestyle. For those questioning the daily hustle of capitalism and the pursuits of seemingly endless wars, this must have felt like the perfect escape. It still does today as well. It's beautiful, relaxing and escapist.
I'll also add my voice to the many other reviews cautioning that you should avoid the Spotify version which isn't the original.
Portishead
5/5
Imagine a band making two albums that defined a genre, disappearing for 11 years and then coming back with a completely different sound. Few bands could pull that off quite as well as Portishead. 'Third' is a haunting Krautrock and soundtrack inspired record that throws their trip hop roots to the winds. And it works, largely with the help of the flawlessly beautiful voice of Beth Gibbons. She sounds equally strong and vulnerable and it compliments the nervous droning of the music, as well as providing relief from it. If only Portishead would ever give us a fourth one.
The Killers
5/5
Any band that achieves the kind of meteoric rise in pop music will instantly attract naysayers. The Killers may not be pushing any particular boundaries. And maybe they were (and still are?) overplayed. But when the dust settles, this is just a great album, filled with hits, even if it's not cool to admit it. The opening four tracks are a complete onslaught. While the second half doesn't quite maintain the same momentum, 'Hot Fuss' is still an impressive debut. Naysayers be damned.
Alice In Chains
4/5
A murky, painful blend of grunge and metal. If the music doesn't make you uncomfortable, the lyrics surely will. Unfortunately, there's nothing that unique about a tortured vocalist, addicted to heroin and soon to die far too young. But Layne Staley's voice, married with Jerry Cantrell's guitars, has a way of dragging you down to the pit of your stomach. Love it or hate it, but it's not to feel anything here.
The Sugarcubes
5/5
I imagine a lot of peope come to this hoping to find a lost Bjork album. While her unique voice and contributions are clear, it's better to think of this as a post-punk album by separate band. Anyone who followed the Sugarcubes back in the late 80s must have felt like they discovered something very special.
Dr. Dre
2/5
Wikipedia says that this album brought hip hop to a wider audience. Previously the genre was dominated by themes of either partying or political empowerment. Dr Dre helped popularize the gangsta rap subgenre, with the main attention given to excessive violence, drugs and blatant misogyny. That may have sounded shocking in 1992 but it's fairly embarrassing now. Many rap albums of this era are similarly outdated, even if they did honestly reflect a part of the culture. By leaning into the 'tough guy' image so much, there's little left after the smoke clears (pun intended). The drug use isn't offensive but it's a bit childish. The constant need to sound threatening and boast their sexually accomplishments, points to a level of deep insecurity. The production is certainly a significant step forward, bringing the dense rhythms of Parliament/Funkadelic into the genre. But for me, it doesn't hold up well against other, better hip hop albums. Regardless, that production, along with the album's popularity make it an obvious choice for this list. But it really hasn't aged well.
The Cure
4/5
An early gothic rock classic. The blurry, abstract cover art perfectly reflects the music. The dark and moody lyrics over the fast basslines and drums are a perfect combination. You can picture the stereotypical goth kids dancing while staring at their own feet, completely lost in the music. 'Play for Today', 'In Your House, and 'A Forest' are the stand out tracks here. This isn't The Cure at their absolute best yet, but they're well on their way here.
Cornershop
4/5
This album (and band) will always sit under a massive Fatboy Slim-sized shadow. It's impossible to listen to this album without thinking of Norman Cook's remix of 'Brimful of Asha'. It's a shame because it's quite a good album on its own. While the blending of Indian and rock styles is nothing new, Cornershop revived it for the 90s in a more unique and contemporary way. The fact that it's made by British Asians also feels more meaningful than George Harrison picking up a sitar. The balance of Indian and Western sounds shifts from track to track but always feels very modern. I really enjoyed this album, despite a bit of filler. Production by the amazing Dan the Automator definitely doesn't hurt.
Le Tigre
5/5
They don't come much cooler than Kathleen Hanna. As lead singer of both Bikini Kill she's a deserving option for figurehead of the riot grrrl scene and holds her own against the punk rock bands. But Le Tigre had a unique energy, channelling elements of the early 60s and new wave, with a strong backbone of punk. Lyrically, the album shifts between angry and a yawning boredom of right wing patriarchy. You can almost see Hanna holding the classic 'I can't believe I'm still protesting this shit' sign. The music is full of bangers that could have been singles. 'Deceptacon' and 'My My Metrocard' are some of the best punk songs of the 90s. All in all, it's just a great album.
George Harrison
5/5
When you're a former Beatle and decide to release a triple album, no one is going to stop you. It's still an ambitious effort though. 'All Things Must Pass' contains more of Harrison's compositions than songs than the Beatles ever recorded, despite his efforts. Had the band stayed together, Lennon and McCartney owed him more room to shine on their next album. Harrison really cements his legacy as being much more than the backing performancer to his famous bandmates. It's long and sprawling, showcasing a murkier and more jam oriented sound. But it's definitely one of the best post-Beatles albums and some of the best music of Harrison's career.
As a side note, the version on Spotify has 5 bonus tracks snuck in at the end of disc 1. Kind of overkill for such a long album if you ask me. Disc 2 changes the order from the original release as well.
ABBA
3/5
Part of me wants to appreciate ABBA more. I can see that they're talented, that they bring in a wide range of styles, and they certainly made something unique and far reaching. I get why they're popular but I can also see why some people hate them. It's campy in a serious way, which itself seems a bit ridiculous. It has a very important place in themed parties and wedding receptions. Not so much in my regular rotation I'm afraid.
The Rolling Stones
3/5
On my 6th Rolling Stones album of this challenge, I'm running out of things to say about them. My constant complaint is that they produce very strong singles on mediocre albums. 'Let It Bleed' is a bit better in that respect. 'Gimme Shelter', 'Let It Bleed', and 'You Can't Always Get What You Want' are all fantastic. The rest is ok, if a bit forgettable. Despite that, I enjoyed this album more most of their others. They demonstrate a lot of skill and the album has some character. I can't really see this album being more significant any of the others though and there's not enough to keep it in regular rotation for me personally, except maybe those standout songs.
Al Green
5/5
Al Green's voice was both effortless and emotive. The music is velvety smooth funk that's been completely soaked in soul. I really enjoyed the sound of this one.
Dolly Parton
4/5
I really didn't expect much from this album at all. A supergroup of 80s country singers is really not something that I'd ever seek out on my own. With only a few exceptions, it's just not a style I've ever enjoyed. But wow, these three really created something special here. The harmonies between the three women are perfection. The brokenhearted and down to earth lyrics are a welcome change from male-dominated (and sometimes toxic) genre. If I was ever going to warm up to country music more generally, this would be a great starting point.
John Martyn
4/5
I've never heard of John Martyn before this challenge. Listening to this music, that's not surprising. This isn't exactly music for the masses but it's still has it's charm. How on earth do you categorise this album? It's experimental jazz with dub reggae influences, mixed with a heavy dose of folk music. If I'd read that description before listening to 'One World', I still wouldn't know what to expect. This album desperately needs to be listened to more than once, if only to determine whether or not you like it. And it is a slow burn. The husky vocals and overlapping echoes, add to a general feeling of being out of your element but in a calm way. Like being transplanted from a big city to a small farm and forcing yourself to be in the moment even when your mind is still racing at 100 miles an hour. The closing track leans into this even further by recording at the edge of a lake in the early hours of the morning, with geese and trains audible in the background, leading to the general feeling of being miles away from your life.
Spiritualized
4/5
I've tried listening to this album many times in the past and always gave up pretty quickly. Not that I didn't like it, I just wasn't engaged. I'm fine with the whole 'space rock' thing, but it just made me want to swap to something more familiar like Flaming Lips, and less like the Verve. Thanks to this challenge, I've finally listened to the entire album as a whole and man has it opened up for me. On repeat listens, it's finally clicking. There are a few stand out tracks, including 'I Think I'm in Love' and 'Broken Heart', but it's the chaotic 17 minute final track, 'Cop Shoot Cop' that really makes it for me. That song alone made the rest of the album come to life. It's a simple journey to start, but it's a wild ride by the end.
Air
5/5
One of my absolute favorite albums and a gem of the downtempo style. Whether you're on a date, falling asleep, or gently floating through space, this is the perfect soundtrack. I bought this album 25 years ago and it's still just as fresh as my first listen.
Morrissey
2/5
The more I listen to The Smiths, the more I come to realize that Johnny Marr was the genius and Morrissey was just the lead singer. 'Your Arsenal' is the first Morrissey solo effort I've listened to and it only cements that belief. It's an OK album but it's definitely not The Smiths. To its credit, Mick Ronson's production does help.
As always with Morrissey, we need to try to separate the awful human being of the artists from the art. I'm willing to do that for The Smiths but it's quite a bit harder when so much of the lyrics sound so Brexity. Imagine thinking that the line 'We vote Conservative' is edgy. Also, 'You're the One for Me, Fatty'? Really Morrissey?
The KLF
3/5
Interesting to hear an early 90s house group making a (somewhat tongue in cheek?) concept album with a story. It's enduring enough to work as a a narrative or in a club. There are clear influences from acid house, punk rock and reggae. Strange though that there are so many variations of this album. It's hard to pin down what is the "correct" version.
Steely Dan
3/5
My first exposure to Steely Dan and I can kind of understand why they have such mixed reviews. I really struggled to connect with it the first time around, though I can see that they're impressive performers. I can see the whole 'Dad rock' label, which is a weird thing to say about a band named after a sex toy. I appreciate the music a bit more after a few listens, and also dipping into some of their other releases. But I'm just not blown away by this album.
Raekwon
3/5
A common problem with a lot of 90s hip hop is the bigoted lyrics that haven't aged well. Sadly, Raekwon is also guilty of this, as the album is littered with examples of racism, homophobia, misogyny, and obsession with proving their sexual worth. It's not the worst offender by a long shot, but it's there and needs to be mentioned.
That aside, the beats are great and the lyrical style is impressive. Once again, the Wu Tang bring their unique style to another project. It's not as strong as some other entries on the list though, particularly GZA and Ghostface Killah, but it has its moments.
As a side note, this album cover is rough. Out of focus, both people's faces partly covered in shadows, a weird assortment of fonts, and a headache inducing color scheme. They look like they're pretending to rob someone's bottle of wine. And the background is, I guess, a Wu Tang necklace on fire? Or is smoke coming off of (Chef) Raekwon's head? I know we're reviewing albums and not artwork, but yikes...
Tom Waits
4/5
Waits recreated a small jazz club, complete with audience, inside the recording studio for this album. That may sounds gimmicky but it definitely works exactly as planned. If you didn't know any better, you'd swear it was live. Waits' crude, humorous, and growly spoken word is always likeable and is made all the more accessible by the accompanying jazz band. There's no sign of his later avant garde style here. This is something you might take a date to, as long as they had a good sense of humor and weren't easily offended. This is a great showcase of his early work.
I'm not sure it needed to be a double album though. Enjoyable as it was, I was ready to change albums by the middle of side 3.
The Yardbirds
4/5
An early example of blues mixing with psychedelic rock n roll. This album is most notable for the single 'Over Under Sideways Down', one of the first explorations of psychedelia within British rock, and for being the Yardbirds' only album with Jeff Beck as guitarist, in between Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page's tenures. But the rest of 'Roger the Engineer' is also pretty strong. More boldy experimental and hard hitting than most other music you'd have encountered in the mid 60s. They even beat The Beatles to the punch a few times. This one keeps getting better the more I listen to it.
Prince
4/5
Prince's sound was definitely unique. Like a sexual revolution coming in via a mix of every sound of the 80s. While I didn't find this album as good as 'Purple Rain' and possibly a bit too long, there are definitely still a lot of bangers on here. Prince was unusual and it makes some of the less popular tracks a little more difficult to crack. But it's hard not to be intrigued by the show he puts on.
Coldcut
4/5
I remember being exposed to Coldcut a long time, specifically the video for 'Timber' which was unlike anything I'd ever seen. And it was absolutely impossible to find any albums by them in America in the 90s, which further added to their mystique in my mind. I did eventually track down a copy of 'Let Us Play'. It was a strange album, like a massive collage of samples. Unlike artists like DJ Shadow who managed to seemlessly blend the samples into something new, Coldcut's sampling was exposed for all of the world to see. They were playful, funky, and even politically conscious, and anything was fair game to be sampled. This debut album was already long out of print by this time and remains so, as far as I'm aware, not even appearing on Spotify. It's less developed than 'Let Us Play', which is the better album in my opinion. But 'What's That Noise?' already has many of the key signatures of their sound. It's a pretty fun record that deserves a reissue, at least on streaming platforms.
Animal Collective
4/5
Who says avant garde can't also be fun? I get that Animal Collective may be a bit too unconventional for many people's taste but I find something very accessible hiding right below the surface here. There are shadows of The Beach Boys throughout the album albeit much more experimental. If nothing else, I don't know how you can hate 'My Girls', by far the biggest standout on the entire record and arguably one of the best songs of the early 2000s. 'Brother Sport' is also extremely fun. The rest may be more interesting to think about and not exactly music you'd play at your next house party. But sometimes it's exactly what I'm in the mood for.
Leonard Cohen
4/5
A classic of melancholy folk. The music is sparse, despite frequent arguments with producers who wanted a larger sound. It's hard to blame them. Before hearing a complete Leonard Cohen album, it might have been difficult to imagine his iconic sound compared what else was available in the mid 60s. This debut has some perfect moments. Even if it's a bit rough around the edges, the complete album still works well as whole. It marks Cohen's first steps into music making that would influence people across genres. In some ways, the music is less than important than the tone and the feeling of the songs. Describing it as mere folk music doesn't do justice to the beautiful bleakness of Cohen's voice. Time has been a lot kinder to this album than the contemporary reviews would have you imagine. But if the reviews on this site are anything to go by, it remains a controversial record for many.
Anita Baker
3/5
I can see why Anita Baker is accused of being bland supermarket music. It's extraordinarily non-offensive and easy to listen to, which turns a lot of people off. The production almost flattens the entire sound. Having said that, I liked it a bit better than expected. 'Sweet Love' and 'Same Ole Love' both having enough texture to keep the music interesting and compliment Baker's gorgeous voice. Much of the album is pretty sanitized 80s adult contemporary, which isn't really for me. But when it works, it works pretty well.
Grant Lee Buffalo
3/5
A pleasant enough indie rock album. Not a bad listen but I don't really see much significant about it, apart from praise from Michael Stipe and Noel Gallagher. There is indeed a 'fuzziness' as the title suggests but I hear much novelty to it. It's an alright album but one that's unlikely to stick with me.
CHVRCHES
3/5
Sometimes it's nice to get a straightforward minimalist pop album. There's a granular quality to the sound that I really liked. The album is loaded with singles, most of which are pretty strong. As a full album, it does drag a bit from lack of variety but there's enough on here to enjoy.
The Black Keys
4/5
A strong mix of classic blues rock created using both new and old recording techniques. You can definitely feel the power of the instruments here, particularly the grief-addled drums reverberating through the defunct recording studio.
Super Furry Animals
5/5
This is definitely an album that requires several listens to fully absorb. Stylistically, it moves all over the place the ambition of the album is very much intentional and really requires your attention. Genres shift significantly even within songs. No where is that more dramatic than the sweet folk of 'No Sympathy' that morphs into a chaotic acid-tinged drill n bass song. It's a clear highlight for me, along with the title track and 'Receptacle for the Respectable'. The latter is another genre bending track, featuring the likes of Paul McCartney munching on vegetables against poppy rock n roll before diving into a heavy metal influenced breakdown. The more I listen to this album, the more I enjoy it. I'd love to hear the surround mix one day.
The Go-Betweens
3/5
Nice enough pop from an 80s Australian band though I'm not sure what the significance of this album is. It's pleasant to listen to and the first few songs are pretty strong but the rest isn't particularly memorable.
Nick Drake
5/5
I have to apologize to Nick Drake. Even though I've known and loved 'Pink Moon' for many years, I never took the time to explore his other albums. I don't know what I was waiting for but I now know what I was missing. This album is fantastic and near perfect. The fact that Nick Drake's music wasn't popular in his short lifetime is criminal to me. To call it melancholy doesn't do it justice. The vocals are incredibly lush and engaging and the music is varied and layered. He deserved so much more and the world needed more of his music.
The Charlatans
3/5
My impression of the Charlatans has always been that they're the stereotypical 90s Brit Pop band. Like Oasis without the occasional chart-topping hit. Listening to 'Tellin' Stories', my impression hasn't change significantly but it was a bit more interesting than I expected. There's a lot more character to the music than I thought. Overall, I thought they provided a modern take on the Rolling Stones, but there are actually quite a wide range of influences that show up throughout the album, albeit subtly. I wasn't blown away, but I was pleasantly surprised to discover that I liked this album.
Boston
4/5
A very impressive debut album. Boston boasted huge rock and roll. The music started in a small home studio but is large enough to fill stadiums. The production is crystal clear and guitars are powerful and the hooks are undeniably catchy. There are hints of prog rock throughout but it remains perfectly accessible. The hits may have suffered a bit from being overplayed but that's not without good reason. This is iconic 70s rock created to be heard by the masses.
2/5
It has to be stated that Loretta Lynn delivers an incredible vocal performance. Unfortunately that's where the highlights end. The music is typical honky tonk country, nothing really special. And the lyrics are exactly what you'd expect on this kind of music. Toxic relationships and alcoholism. It's really not my cup of tea at all but it gets one extra point for Lynn's amazing voice.
Led Zeppelin
4/5
The Yardbirds ended before their time, but in retrospect, they needed to move out of the way to make space for Led Zeppelin to emerge from their ashes. As the New Yardbirds had none of the original members, Page made the wise decision to rebrand. This powerful debut, without any label influence, sounds absolutely massive and still does. This album is an important piece of history connecting the blues to hard rock, even containing some completely reimagined blues covers on the way. This record is the first classic from a band that kept producing classics. It hasn't aged a day.
Kraftwerk
5/5
The title song could be the anthem of the EU, though the European Parliament probably wouldn't go for that. But what better example is there of the celebration of post-war Europe? When people abandoned nationalism and embraced a European identity. High speed train travel helped further unite previously warring countries. The past was full of mistakes but the future looks bright here. Kraftwerk took krautrock further by turning to minimalism and adapting the sound of trains into something danceable. Influenced by the recent work of Bowie and Iggy Pop, 'Trans Europe Express' went on to become a seminal work in the history of both post-punk and electronic music, even influencing pop and hip hop along the way.
Lightning Bolt
4/5
Two people frantically trying to make as much noise as possible, as though their lives depended on it. This feels like being in the middle of a storm. But unlike noise artists like Merzbow, Lightning Bolt achieve this without relying on cheap tricks and synthesizers. They're just a rock band with as much adrenaline as they can muster. Rough as hell and certainly not destined for any radio airplay off of college campuses. I would have picked 'Hypermagic Mountain' over this album personally. While you still get a sense of their style here, 'Wonderful Rainbow' is a weaker album. It's saved largely by '2 Towers', one of the band's best songs.
Franz Ferdinand
4/5
Fun and catchy indie rock from the early 2000s. Some music snobs will lump Franz Ferdinand into the unfortunate 'landfill indie' label, claiming that the era was flooded with bland rock band all trying to sound like The Strokes. The criticism isn't completely wrong but there were still plenty of greats who cut above the noise. Songs like 'The Dark of the Matinee' and 'Darts of Pleasure', definitely kept this album securely above the landfill.
The Louvin Brothers
2/5
Well, expectations were a bit low for a 1950s country album so I wasn't exactly disappointed. Having said that, the lack of variety in the music is pretty egregious. Musically, I can't tell one song from the next and after 35 minutes, I was ready to switch to something else. The Louvin Brothers do some nice harmonizing. Lyrically, it's pretty dark as well, which I suppose may be notable for the 50s. It's also nice to be reminded of Nirvana halfway through.
The Flying Burrito Brothers
4/5
Sometimes this generator really surprises me. I really was not impressed by 'Grievous Angels' by Gram Parsons, an early album on my journey. Yesterday, I got the Louvin Brothers and similarly didn't really like. So today, I get a project by Gram Parsons with heavy influence by the Louvin Brothers. And actually, it was pretty good! I remember being disappointed by 'Grievous Angels' and the claim of a 'cosmic American music', meant to be a merger of country and 60s rock, but really just seemed like run of the mill country music to me. But here, on 'The Gilded Palace of Sin', it actually works. It's strange and wonderful, transcends both styles, and feels like it keeps leaping from the American West into the stratosphere, watching everything in between. My immediate thought was that this must have been a later album in Parsons' career, but no. So I'm happily confused by this one. Maybe I need to give Parsons another chance.
Machito
4/5
An early leader in the Afro-Cuba jazz scene, this is frantically danceable in a way that would have made the stiff upper lipped people of the 50s scowl. Machito's legacy influenced a wide range of other artists including Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker. Not a personal favorite but fun to hear.
Simply Red
2/5
This is about as dated as music gets. Adult Contemporary and Sophistipop were niche even during their heyday and neither were ever considered particularly cool. Listening now just reminds me of music that might now have been played in the dentist's office. It was an ok distraction at the time while heavy amounts of laughing gas, staring at the ceiling while I underwent root canal. But I'm not eager to relive any of that now. The brightest spot on the album for me was the penultimate track, 'No Direction', which sounded like it could have been a lost Talking Heads song.
Rahul Dev Burman
4/5
There are stretches in this challenge when you hear a lot of similar music. Even when it's good, it can all start to sound the same. Then suddenly, they slip in some funky Bollywood soundtrack and it forces you to pay attention again. Man, this was a fun album. It's almost abrasive at times ('Naag Devta') while also giving off strong James Bond vibes. It really speaks to the power of music in cinema that I can almost create a movie in my mind while listening to this. My biggest complaint is that I don't know where to seek out more music like this.
Kelela
4/5
I'm always happy to see albums from Warp Records on this list as they have a long history of innovative releases. Kelela's 'Take Me Apart' is no exception. The blending of electronic music and R&B works flawlessly and gives both genres so much needed variety. 'LMK' is the standout track and centerpiece of the album. For my taste, I'd have preferred the rest of the album have a bit more of a punch to it, but I appreciate it's hard to do that while maintaining an R&B grounding. Regardless, it's an interesting album and has me interested to hear more from Kelela.
Tom Waits
4/5
Tom Waits is at his best when given free reign and the freedom to pick up any instrument that he feels like experimenting with. This will certainly not appeal to everyone, but this is experimental blues for the eccentrics among us. This album marks the beginning of his most interesting period and evolution as an artist. Love it or hate it, nothing sounds quite like it.
Kate Bush
5/5
I have a slight distrust in anyone who calls Kate Bush 'too weird'. I do kind of understand though. Her vocal style is unique, her music refuses to be complacent, and she's routinely compared to Bjork (not a bad thing in my opinion). The last point is slightly unfair as Bjork was still aimlessly jumping around Icelandic punk bands when Kate Bush was already established. If anything, it's Bjork who sounds like Kate Bush. I've always been intrigued by her music though it didn't immediately make complete sense to me. Repeated listens and multiple albums really help to connect the pieces though. There's something different and truthful about Kate Bush that's sitting there waiting for new generations to discover. Thanks to 'Stranger Things' that's exactly what has been happening. If you didn't like this one or found it 'too weird', I'd encourage another listen. Like a good wine, sometimes you need to let it sit for a short while before drinking it.
Run-D.M.C.
3/5
A great example of classic early hip hop. Unfortunately, the music feels very dated, but it's still good to revisit and parts still work. 'It's Like That' is the stand out track by a large margin, though it's not as good as the fantastic Jason Nevins remix.
5/5
If this challenge was only the 10 Albums You Need to Hear Before You Die, it would surely still include Sgt. Pepper. It's often credited with legitimizing popular music as a true art form. It's perhaps the first example of a band adopting alternate personas to free themselves creatively (undoubtedly, Bowie took note). It's arguably the creative peak of one of the most important bands in living memory. It's an eclectic tapestry, refusing to be bound by the strict confines of live performance and allowing the band to take full control of the studio environment. It's a defining statement about 60s youth culture, including the obsession with drugs, mysticism, and love. Though there are stand out tracks, the album is definitely intended to be experienced as a whole. Because of that, it also helped cement of the idea of an album being a whole idea, rather than a collection of individual songs (sometimes hobbled together by a marketing team). The artwork is densely layered with intellectual and historical icons, unually for a pop album. In short, this is simply one of the most significant albums of all time. Those who weren't alive at the time (like myself) might mistakenly only hear oldies here. But taken in context and as a whole album, it was truly revolutionary.
Pink Floyd
5/5
For me, this was always Pink Floyd's best album. I appreciate that that may be a controversial statement, given that 'Dark Side of the Moon' and 'The Wall' are so celebrated. But 'Wish You Were Here' always resonated with me in a different way. It adds a much needed emotional dimension and bleakness to their sonic experiments. There are reflections on their status within the music industry. And most powerfully, the 9 part opener/closer is a tribute to their former band member who had fallen from grace since his departure and was nearing the end of his short life by this time, as may have been evident by the rest of the band upon his final visits to the studio. Overall, it's powerful album, intended to be heard as a whole.
Gotan Project
4/5
French electronic artists celebrating Argentinian tango with a Frank Zappa cover mixed in. This is the kind of album that transports you to another place and time. It has a tendency to blend into the background which suits it very well for a trendy bar setting. But unless a lot of background music, it has an interesting style that you can drift in and out of. It's always nice to remember that Gotan Project exist.
Nirvana
5/5
One of my favorite albums from the 90s. To me, this was Nirvana's best studio album, aided significantly by Steve Albini's (R.I.P.) production processes. In some sense, it's a marriage of the roughness of their debut, 'Bleach' with the commercial success of 'Nevermind'. Cobain thought of the album as using a handful of singles to grab the attention of mainstream kids who didn't have access, or just didn't know, about more experimental and abrasive music being made. They'd buy the album and be exposed to something that they never heard before. Well, it certainly worked on me. 'In Utero' opened up my musical horizons in a major way. It sounded fearless, emotive, and completely uncompromising, despite the occasional radio friendly song. I was so into this album that I remember hunting down the German import singles to get my hands on the b-sides (now all easily accessible on streaming services). Cobain claimed that there's nothing personal within the lyrics, but whether he knew it or not, the songs are seeped in his personal experience. The themes of birth, disease and death are unmissable and surely must have reflected the conflicted feelings of the birth of his daughter and the dark clouds gathering within his mind through his final year. The lyrics still manage to shock because Cobain was never trying to shock anyone. He was simply giving us a window into his mind.
I was young when Kurt Cobain took his own life. It was the first time that I really thought about death seriously when I saw the news late night on MTV. I didn't really have a concept of depression yet, but it taught me a lot about mental health. 'In Utero' is in a sense a powerful reminder of that to me. In another universe, this album was also a signal of where the band may have gone next, if they'd had a chance. The other hint was their MTV Unplugged appearance, but I'll save that for the another review when the time comes.
Van Halen
3/5
Another impressive debut album on this list. The guitars are absolutely shredding and redefined the sound of rock and roll. The vocals are certainly charismatic. The album is concise and maintains a satisfyingly steady pace without major lulls. There's really nothing bad to say about 'Van Halen'. It's a staple of any hard rock collection. Personally though, I'd have to be in the mood. I really respect their accomplishments here but it's hard not to hear them as a parody of themselves at times. But that's unfair because I recognize that they're great.
The La's
5/5
I went in expecting a one hit wonder that didn't deserve a place on the list. What I heard was a slightly unpolished gem. What a shame that these guys only ever had one album. Though judging from their 10 releases on Spotify, they gave people enough to obsess over. According to Wikipedia, they struggled to get the sound they wanted over the course of three years. I'd say that those efforts paid off pretty well, as this is a varied and interesting debut, with loads of great songs. 'There She Goes' stands out like a manicured thumb on an otherwise guitar callused hand. I suspect that it may have been there undoing. It must be hard to manage the expectations of people only want a full album of that but miss out on brilliant tracks like 'I Can't Sleep' and 'Looking Glass'. But I genuinely loved this album and think that one hit could have easily been removed, or replaced with one of the many outtake versions. Hopefully they're still getting royalty checks for all of the soundtracks that used it in the 90s though.
Tom Waits
5/5
The more I'm exposed to Tom Waits, the more I love him. Part of me completely understands why so many people dislike him. These aren't exactly accessible, radio-friendly pop songs that you put on for a nice dinner party. But another part of me thinks you're all crazy for not loving this raw, humorous, genuis mess of a person. Waits is a rare combination of vivid poetry, rough authenticity, and experimental musicology. His use of unusual instruments add to the feeling of being in the shadows of polite society. 'Bone Machine' leans heavy on percussion and was recorded in an echoy boiler room, to further cut into the listener and remind them of death and decay. Ok, fair enough, it really isn't for everyone. The two more stand out songs 'Goin' Out West' and 'I Don't Wanna Grow Up' are equally memorable but completely different. Such a great album.
Julian Cope
4/5
I recognize the cover from my years working in a record shop, but I had never actually heard it or known anything about Julian Cope. It's definitely an interesting album that takes a bit of time to process. There's a lot of experimentation and playfulness on it. It's also something that seems like it could have only existed in the early 90s alt rock scene, which is not an insult. There was a particular freedom to that era, like some artists were ready to embrace a bit of dadaism and continually break out from any perceived boxes imaginable. Bands like The The and They Might Be Giants seem to work in a similar ambitious vein and I always find it refreshing to hear them. 'Peggy Suicide' is a great example of this, complete with various left leaning politics that would come to define Gen X, from women's rights to environmentalism. Unfortunately, the 90s were also marked by the rise of the CD and the obsession (from record labels maybe?) to fill up as much of the available 80 minutes as they could. I get why, but the 40-50 minute range has always been the sweet spot for most albums and could have really benefitted Cope here. Focus a bit more and take out 4 or 5 songs and this could be a stronger album. Still, it's a great discovery.
Joni Mitchell
3/5
Mitchell is one if the great 20th century folk music poets. Her lyrics are often compared to the likes of Nobel prize winner Bob Dylan. 'Hejira' was inspired by her travels across America in the mid-70s and document a time of wandering, drug use, spirituality, and experiences with different lovers. It's refreshing to hear all of that from a woman's perspective, breaking the mold of traditional feminine roles in music and society. Musically, Mitchell moves away from her folk roots here with traces of restless experimentation and subtle jazz influences. Quite a few big name artists have named this one of their all time favorite albums and it's certaining interesting.
Scott Walker
5/5
I have very mixed feelings about Scott Walker. I always wanted to like him more and a few songs stand out, but the last of his albums I got wasn't particularly memorable to me. 'Scott 4' is apparently a favorite of Radiohead's and was very influential on Bowie's 'Low' so I know that I need to take this seriously. And indeed this is exactly what I'd be hoping for from Walker. It's more original, more free, and more sparse. The previous albums bogged down by baroque-pop orchestrations. But what he really needed was room to breathe. 'The Old Man's Back Again' is now my favorite of his songs.
Johnny Cash
4/5
Johnny Cash is the king of outlaw country, and he brought a new element to that reputation by playing a series of concerts in prisons. The entire concept of conservative values, so often associated with country music, are challenged here. The Republicans are often associated with being 'tough on crime.' But Cash dares to address prisoners as human beings and prisons as places to be detested. It's hard to think of many live albums where the audience is just as prominent as the artist. This is really heard on the the title track, so popular that it was sung twice, denouncing the very institution he was performing in, to thunderous applause. Of particular note is the fact that this concert was televised, daring to bring the faces of those society would prefer to forget directly into people's living rooms. And a as particular anti-authoritarian gesture, Cash famously flipped off the camera men for standing between himself and the incarcerated.
Does this list need two live albums from Johnny Cash recorded in prisons? I'll need to decide when the other one comes up.
Siouxsie And The Banshees
5/5
A landmark album. Hugely influential on a wide varieties of genres, including post-punk, synth pop, indie rock and (whether they like it not) especially goth rock. There's some very interesting guitar work and experimentation. This album fits equally well into the art rock and pop worlds. It's dark, brooding, and infectiously upbearr. There's not a single boring track and I could listen to the entire thing on repeat.
I only really one have criticism. Siouxsie and the Banshees have always walked a bit too close to cultural appropriation line for me. There's nothing wrong with paying homage to African music but there's something uncomfortable about just titling an album 'Juju' and slapping an African mask on the cover. Especially from a band that's made some other questionable decisions. This kind of stuff hasn't aged too well. Their music, on the other hand, certainly has. I really love this album, that one point aside.
The Jam
4/5
The list of influences on the making of 'Sound Affects' is pretty strong. 'Revolver', 'Off the Wall', Wire, Gang of Four, and Joy Division. Before even listening, we are off to a great start. The Beatles and post punk inspiration come out in full force, but less so Michael Jackson. The album is not more than the sum of all parts but it's still pretty great anyway. A lot of good hits here from start to finish. Sorry to say to Paul Weller that I agree with his record label though, 'Pretty Green' is the strongest single. Overall, this has been a great discovery.
The Teardrop Explodes
3/5
I was pleasantly surprised by a Julian Cope album in this challenge last week. So I was interested to hear what else he had done. Unfortunately, The Teardrop Explodes isn't quite as noteworthy. It generally sounds like a typical 80s indie rock band, recalling The Smiths or Echo and the Bunnymen. It's a decent enough album though and has some highlights. It's a fun album and has some good guitar work. It's a bit of a stretch to say it deserves a spot on this list though.
Guided By Voices
3/5
'Alien Lanes' contains an ambitious 28 songs over the course of 41 minutes. Inevitably, that ends up feeling more like a collection of half-formed demos than a proper album. The music sounds like a cross between the Beatles and pop-punk, which isn't terrible. Beatles fans may recall the suite of songs on 'Abbey Road' formed from incomplete songs. It's a similar effect here but arguably out stays its welcome fairly quickly. It's a novelty and as with other similar albums, any tracks less than 90 seconds are frustratingly short while the others are pretty decent. For me, I'd have cut out all of those micro tracks and called it a quick EP. There is something interesting about including a load of sketches of songs but for me, it's not something that I'd ever want to listen to again. Which is a shame because there are some genuinely good songs that get lost in the sprawl here. I may need to save them in their own playlist.
PJ Harvey
4/5
Funny enough, I was just thinking about this album yesterday and the fact that I never gave it a proper chance. I always loved 'Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea' and this challenge has made me really appreciate PJ Harvey's earlier works. I was intrigued with 'Let England Shake' when it came out, given its Mercury Prize win. But I just didn't click with it. Now that I've given it a proper change, I kind of see why. It's very different from her other work and requires a bit more work to appreciate it. Unlike her previous dives into blues-tinged post-punk, and her love songs to New York City, 'Let England Shake' is more like a tribute to early 20th century poets and the legacy of past wars. To understand what makes it special, you need to really focus on the lyrics, which take far more influence from T.S. Eliot than Captain Beefheart. The effect is to make the album feel firmly rooted in the past, while incorporating many musical elements of modern day PJ Harvey. The more I listen to her music, the more convinced I am that she's one of the most significant artists of this generation of music.
The Police
3/5
The stripped down final album from The Police. 'Every Breath You Take' is far and away the most famous song here, but I actually think it's one of the weaker songs (and the lyrics are pretty creepy but people have collectively chosen to ignore that). 'Synchonicity II' and 'King of Pain' are both a lot stronger and highlightsfor me. A note about 'Mother': I enjoy the occasional experimental number as much as the next guy, but The Police just aren't the kind of band that can pull it off. Overall, I didn't enjoy this as much as 'Reggatta De Blanc' but I still see the appeal of the band.
Cocteau Twins
3/5
Call it dream pop or shoegaze, but neither label completely fits. They're a bit too muddled to be completely dreamy and a bit too light to be shoegaze. It feels like being pulled between the earth and sky, or as they've aptly named it, 'Heaven or Las Vegas'. The clear highlight is Elizabeth Fraser's vocals but the music also has an unusual quality to it, like a daydream you can't quite wake up (no matter how much you might want to) from on a mild afternoon. There's a mild discomfort about it but also a temptation to lie back and let it wash over you. It's hard to say how much I actually like it, but is growing on me.
Jimi Hendrix
4/5
It's insane that this album was released in 1967. In terms of production, performance, and experimentation, it feels miles ahead of pretty much everything else of its time. I would have guessed that it was at least mid-70s. Stylistically, 'Axis' draws from rock n roll, blues, and experimental jazz, but doesn't really sound like any of those. It has a unique character that feels indifferent to their contemporaries. This is our music, do what you want. An attitude that would keep resurfacing in punk and grunge acts to come. The big highlight for me is the excellent 'Spanish Castle Magic'. As good as the songs are, I do feel like the songs could have flowed together a bit better. In that respect, it's maybe not Hendricks' best album. But there sure are a lot of genius moments.
Iggy Pop
5/5
We can't talk about 'The Idiot' without talking about Bowie. The story is very familiar by now. By 1976, Bowie and Pop were struggling with addiction and desperate to escape their fame. So they moved to Europe to have freedom from their past lives. 'The Idiot' is both Iggy Pop's radical departure from the proto-punk of The Stooges and the beginning of Bowie's frantic Berlin Era. Bowie later admitted to using Pop as a guinea pig to experiment with new styles that he hadn't quite figured out get. For that reason, fans rightfully argue that this isn't a true representation of Iggy Pop. But seen as a collaboration, it's really brilliant. Pop's vocals fit the bleak, industrial soundscapes perfectly. Together, the two artists created a really inventive album, drawing heavily on influence from the German rock scene of the 70s, particularly Kraftwerk. The title and artwork further add to the feelings of discomfort, recalling Dostoevsky and displaying Pop in a twisted, unnatural pose.
'The Idiot' has been cited as a influence of a huge range of artists. Most notably, Joy Division, as it was famously the last album Ian Curtis chose to listen to. It also ushered in a heap of post-punk artists and would continue to be felt through industrial, goth, and synth pop acts for years to come.
Jerry Lee Lewis
4/5
Rock n roll is filled with great performers who were terrible people. Jerry Lee Lewis is an early example of both. As a performer, it's easy to see why this album is considered one of the best live albums and best rock n roll albums of all time. He's really setting a template here for how musicians can act going forward. Lewis sounds raw and growly (for his time). He sounds as though he's trying to break his piano here. Instruments are replaceable, the audience isn't. This album also represents a landmark for live recording and captures the energy of both the artists and the crowd. Of course, no one has much positive to say about Lewis as a person. Take your pick of accusations from racism to pedophilia. But to do this challenge, you need to try to separate the art and the artist. And the music is definitely noteworthy.
As a side note, the version on Spotify is not the full release, which seems to be lost due to some rights issues at the time of its original release. Despite that, a tight 22 minute album gives you all the information you need. But for the purists, there are 5 extra tracks out there that don't appear on Spotify.
Mylo
3/5
'In My Arms' was a massive hit back in the day. Though it's kind of feels lost to history now, it holds up surprisingly well. The rest of the album is decent with some occasional strong tracks. 'Drop the Pressure' and 'Paris Four Hundred' are fun and danceable. The title track reappropriates a fire and brimstone preacher by twisting his words into a celebration of popular music. Ultimately though, 'Destroy Rock & Roll' isn't particularly memorable as an album. Daft Punk does the style better. Fatboy Slim does humor better. Loads of artists do sampling better. Despite that, it's a decent album with a few highlights and one great song. But you probably didn't really need to hear it before you die.
Tom Tom Club
4/5
Wait... Tom Tom Club were a Talking Heads side project? With Adrian Belew?? Why have I never known this before? Truth be told, I always knew of Tom Tom Club but never took the time to listen to them. That was definitely much better than I anticipated. I can understand now why Frantz and Weymouth always seemed annoyed to not get much credit for Talking Heads. Outside of the shadow of their larger than life frontman, they really shine as Tom Tom Club. A weird and wonderful album, pulling in influences from early electro, hip hop, disco, and reggae, firmly pulled into an art rock album. 'Genius of Love' is the stand out track but everything on here is really fun.
Thundercat
3/5
'Drunk' sounds like 70s Adult Contemporary, mixed with old school funk and modern hip hop, with lots of references to alcohol and old video games. I appreciate that it really doesn't take itself very seriously at all, but I'm not sure the novelty really merits an entire album. It does have some fun tracks though, including 'Uh Uh', 'Friendzone', and especially 'Them Changes'. For my taste, the album suffers from a lot of filler. It's definitely unique though.
Janet Jackson
3/5
Ah, what idealism we had in the 80s. Yes, the world is terrible, but we can imagine a world of peace and harmony where we stop hating each other and just dance! It's an obviously optimism worldview, but it's very tempting to let yourself enjoy it. Though I have far less optimism in 2024 than Janet Jackson did in 1989, it still makes for nice escapism. Despite that, she was addressing very real social issues, which did feel a bit risky for a major pop star at the time so I have to respect that. The music is very typical of the 80s, including very big, fun dance numbers with heavy drum machine beats, alongside ultra smooth ballads. I'd pass on the latter but some of the pop songs could develop into guilty pleasures if I was ever gave it a chance.
3/5
Some people might call this THE proto-punk album. The very first band to lay the groundwork for the genre. MC5 were also mentors to the Stooges, the best known of the Detroit proto-punk bands. The significance of this album is clear. You can kind of hear the influence of psychedelic rock of the era here but it's completed muddled by the raw energy of the performances. Truthfully, what makes this album interesting is the rough, distorted guitar playing of Wayne Kramer, which sounds amazingly skillful but still quite off and noisy as hell. Also worth noting is the battle between the band and stores who refused to carry the original version of the album due to its use of profanity. That's a familiar enough story now but at the time, probably gave them the majority of their fame. Truthfully, there are better punk bands out there. But credit to MC5, the trailblazers who set the whole forest on fire with their sound.
Judas Priest
4/5
I never realized that I like Judas Priest before, but this was a great album. It definitely helped set a template for heavy metal going forward. Hearing about Rob Halford's struggles with his identity and alcohol during this period definitely made it more interesting, but let's not dismiss the solid performances here.
Metallica
4/5
Metallica are the kind of band who I wouldn't seek out personally, but if I friend put it on for me, I'd genuinely have a great time listening. Similarly, it's been a fun listening experience in this challenge. The music is as massive and heavy as a mountain. The energy carries you from the start to the end effortlessly. I really don't have anything negative to say about 'Master of Puppets'. Having said that, by the time I get to the end of the album, I'm satisfied and feel like I've had my fill of Metallica until the next one comes up in this challenge. But that's just me. I can see why other people might be more obsessed with it.
Steve Winwood
3/5
I get that Winwood is a pretty talented musician and I really want to say something interesting about this album. But I was honestly kind if bored by a lot of it. When an artist tries to sound equally edgy and safe at the same time, it kind of doesn't sound like much of anything at all. While I appreciate some experimentation, it doesn't really suit Winwood in my opinion. But I did enjoy the more subtle tracks like 'Slowdown-Sundown' and 'Spanish Dancer' more than I expected. 'Night Train' also grew on me the second time around. Overall, it's fine and has some better moments, but nothing that memorable.
Pixies
4/5
The debut album from the Pixies, particularly notable for the production by Steve Albini. The mix of punk rawness with pop elements would become a defining feature of many 90s acts. Nirvana, PJ Harvey, and Smashing Pumpkins, among others, have cited 'Surfer Rosa' as a massive influence. 'Where Is My Mind?' is the album's (and perhaps the band's) strongest song by a good margin though it would need to be included at the end of 'Fight Club' before most people heard it. I love the rough style and the clash between high and low. But if I'm completely honest, I prefer 'Doolittle' overall.
Kanye West
3/5
I never really listened to Kanye before he started drifting into the world of extreme right-wing racist conspiracy theories. It's a shame that he turned into such an awful, hateful person. This album was alright. There's some good variety and great beats. West broke the mold for mainstream hip hop of the time, straying away from the dominant lyrics of gang violence and toxic masculinity, and instead portrays an average person with introspective thoughts. Though to be frank, I kind of feel like he's just trying to rebel against his university professor mother a bit too much here as the key theme here seems to be how her profession is useless and he's not going to go to college. But there's no question that it was influential and it does what it does well. Personally I think that some underground hip hop still does it much better but for this to reach the mainstream was definitely significant for the time.
David Bowie
5/5
1977. What a year that must have been to be a David Bowie fan! Bowie recorded 4 albums that year, including two collaborations with Iggy Pop. 'Heroes' was the last of these four and the second of the Berlin Trilogy with Brian Eno. By this point, Berlin was the main base of operations. The city with its Cold War paranoia and its famous Wall permeated the recorded sessions. Despite that, it's a brighter album than 'Low', as though his frantic experiments away from fame and towards the avant garde gave him a new lease on life. Bowie allowed himself to take some inspiration from Pop's recording style in the 'Lust for Life' sessions. He invited Robert Fripp of King Crimson to contribute, a move that certainly paid off and led to the title track, one of the most loved songs of Bowie's career. But it's Brian Eno who really shines here and acts more as a collaborator than a mere producer here. It's here that Bowie began to use Eno's Oblique Strategies cards to inspire creativity and a large degree of random chance. The two would use this technique extensively on Bowie's next album, 'Lodger'.
Fans will disagree about this but for me, I'd rank 'Heroes' as the least interesting album of the Berlin Trilogy. It feels like an exact halfway point between the very experimental 'Low' and much more accessible (but very underrated) 'Lodger', demonstrating elements of both. Nonetheless, it's an essential listen for any Bowie fan doing a deep dive into his music. Like most of his albums, it gets better the more I listen to it.
The Specials
3/5
What better response to the bleak austerity and right-wing economics of the Thatcher era than to blend Jamaican ska with English punk? What made The Specials unique is that their blending of styles was very genuine. They're not a punk band stealing bits and pieces from black musicians (which rock n roll history is filled with), or the occasional special guest appearance, but they're actually working together as one band. Equal partners working to make something greater than the sum of their parts. Ok, maybe it falls a bit more on the side of punk, but the principle is there. And more importantly, it works and makes a very fun album. I have a slight preference for their follow up album 'More Specials' just because it's so bizarre, but this was also a great listen.
David Gray
2/5
David Gray was certainly popular enough back in the day. Gray also claims that he paved the way for artists like Ed Sheeran by being a male singer-songwriter willing to bear his soul. Well, maybe, although I think it's a stretch to say that he pioneered that idea. It's enjoyable enough background music but I'm struggling to find much to sink my teeth into. It's just a bit too safe. Which is fine, just not very exciting. I feel guilty giving this a 2 as much of it is pleasant enough to listen to. But it's not something I could put on repeat and I didn't find it particularly interesting.
Tim Buckley
3/5
I'm very conflicted on Tim Buckley. The previous album I got from him, 'Greetings from L.A.' I scored 1 star. The music was a bit boring and the lyrics were trite and obsessed with proving to everyone that he sleeps with a lot of women. Wikipedia calls this his 'sex funk period'. 'Happy Sad' stands in pretty stark contrast to that later work, it's introspective, somber and remorseful. It is as much influences by folk music as it is jazz, with long and winding songs throughout. It's hard not to be transported to a bleak seaside view during ' Love from Room 109 at the Islander'. He sings an apology to his ex-wife and son. Apparently it would take another five years to actually meet his son, which undercuts the sincerity of the apology, but as an emotional expression, there's truth in it. In general, it's kind of good and without the cringeworthiness of his later work. If I had heard this album first, I might have even started to feel like a fan.
Brian Eno
4/5
Brian Eno's debut solo album sees him moving from the world of glam rock into the avant garde art rock that he would become famous for. Here are the early experiments that would one day come into the studio with the likes of Talking Heads and David Bowie, among many others. It's surprisingly poppy for an album with so many dadaist techniques involved. Lyrics are largely non-sensical sounds later turned into words. The performers are brought in with the intention for them to clash and make some mistakes as they go. Eno would try to instruct them via non-verbal communication. It's certainly an odd album, but also oddly engaging. The most notable of the guest musicians is King Crimson's Robert Fripp, who adds an impressive guitar performance to 'Baby's on Fire'. 'Here Come the Warm Jets' certainly isn't for everyone. But if you want to understand how later art rock artists developed, it's essential listening.
The Offspring
3/5
'Smash' was one of the first CDs I ever owned as a kid. I used to listen to it constantly. To the point where, despite not having listened to it for nearly 30 years, I'm surprised by how well I remember it. This album triggers a flood of memories of being in my childhood bedroom and secretly lip syncing the profanity-filled 'Bad Habit' over and over again. It was so easy to feel like a rebel at that age. After a while I outgrew Offspring and had no interest in their later work and probably felt embarrassed that I ever liked them. To my surprise, 'Smash' is better than I remembered and I actually feel a little proud of myself for having this early exposure to punk. Granted, it's not amazing but in the context of what else I would have been exposed to on MTV and the radio at the time, I can see why I liked it. And it certainly left a mark by both resurrecting and popularizing punk (along with Green Day) in the early 90s. Knowing a lot more about music as an adult, I can see that it's pretty juvenile and pales before the great punk bands of the past. But it's still kind of fun, and a little shot of nostalgia definitely gives it an extra boost too.
The Sabres Of Paradise
3/5
John Cage once praised electronic music for its ability to create "any and all sounds that can be heard". In practice that means that artists sometimes spend as much time sculpting individual sounds as they do entire songs. This can definitely be heard on 'Haunted Dancehall' which is filled with unusual sonic experiments, backed up by downtempo beats. It reminds me a bit of the days when the first synthetic colors were being created. The colors themselves were more exciting that what most artists did with them. Of course, not everyone is going to love that and there is possibly a fine line between electronic music like this and a sound effects library with added beats. I enjoyed 'Haunted Dancehall' more as it went on but to some extent, it does sound more like a musical CV than a real album. Indeed, Andrew Weatherall was a highly sought after producer and remixer, before and after Sabres of Paradise. Love it or hate it, they were at least trying new things.
Pink Floyd
5/5
For many people, 'Dark Side of the Moon' is *the* great rock n roll album. As of this writing, it's the number 3 best album on the generator's global stats. It's the fourth best selling album of all time. So we need to take it seriously. Let me start by saying that I like Pink Floyd, but always preferred 'Wish You Were Here' to this one. I understand that 'Dark Side of the Moon' is a very good album, but I never quite understood why it was so particularly revered. It's obviously a huge step forward for Pink Floyd as a band and their most accessible album, but if you weren't already a fan, where's the extra appeal? I've listened to it quite a lot in the past and never really saw it. On revisiting this album now, I'm trying to be a bit more objective and two things strike me. First, the lyrics are fairly universal, focusing largely on the discontents of the modern Western citizen, to occasional point of madness. Secondly, it's a kaleidoscope of various rock styles up to (and slightly past) 1973. There's prog rock, blues, winding rock ballads, musique concrete and even glimpses into early pulsing electronic work that would later find their way to the likes of Kraftwerk and eventually David Bowie. Yet, it all feels almost seemless. I say almost because my biggest criticism is the insistence on littering the album with unnecessary sound effects, which (personal opinion) are a bit jarring and take one out of the flow of the complete album. So I accept that it's a significant album and maybe even a great one. But for me, it's not quite a perfect album, but I appreciate that I'm in the minority there.
The Style Council
2/5
If Paul Weller's goal was simply to make something that didn't sound like The Jam, mission accomplished. It's a little harder to pin down any secondary goal for this album. It's certainly eclectic, which I normally don't mind, but the styles feel fairly disjointed here. 'Cafe Beau' is firmly rooted in the Sophistipop style that had it's moment in the 80s. By that measure, it's probably the most impressive thing I've heard from that genre. It's ambitious and some of the instrumentals are pretty fun. But Sophistipop is just not for me. Then we get to the second half, which is full of 80s white guy rap. That's about as cringeworthy as you'd expect, though the music is actually a bit better than the first side. I can hardly call this the best of Paul Weller.
Pere Ubu
4/5
I've always been curious about Pere Ubu but never knew how to get a foothold into their music. Like there was a wall separating me from understanding what on earth was going on. The key, I now realize, is brute force. You just need to sit down and listen to it, and then listen to it again. Now, it's starting to click and I love it. 'The Modern Dance' is like a punk rock version of 'Trout Mask Replica' (I mean that in the best way possible). It sounds like jazz and punk musicians trying to record together in the middle of a minor earthquake, with resulting happy accidents throughout mingling with moments of genius and raw energy. It's musique concentrate with angst. It's the Stooges in space. This album could exist no where but deep underground. It's not about to get any radio play outside of college campuses. Yet its influence is all over modern music, in particular Joy Division and Talking Heads. I know a lot of people will hate this one, but I'm honestly mad at myself for sleeping on these guys for so long.
Magazine
4/5
Listening to this album really makes me think about what the early post-punk scene must have been like, when it was still called 'new musick'. The punk scene in the mid-70s seems to have spread like a forest fire and burned out as quickly. So many of those artists were reventing themselves, rejecting the oversimplicity of the genre, while holding onto the D.I.Y. attitudes. Post punk embraced art, literature, eclecticism and experimentation, and brought it to the masses. Or whatever portion of the masses were willing to listen. Johnny Rotten formed Public Image Ltd. Joy Division took an immediate left turn early on. Iggy Pop escaped with David Bowie to Berlin for his early solo work.
But I never knew about Magazine. As others emerged from the embers of punk, so too did Magazine follow the Buzzcocks. Unlike some of their darker and more avant garde contemporaries, 'Real Life' is a damn fun album. The energy of The Buzzcocks is maintained flawlessly, but the music is completely unbounded by the strict limits of punk. In this way, post punk is a more honest reflection of punk ethos, given that it rejects any predefined rules of what the genre should look like. Magazine's more upbeat style and incorporation of synthesizers may have been an early step towards New Wave. They were certainly influential on the indie rock scene, with likes of Johnny Mar and Jonny Greenwood (among others) claiming to be big fans. Supposedly, Greenwood even declined to join them in 2009 because he felt too shy. This is despite Radiohead being one of the biggest bands in the world at the time. I might not be quite as big a fan as he is, but I definitely enjoyed this discovery.
Santana
4/5
I've admittedly completely ignored Santana. I remember when 'Supernatural' came out in 1999 and vaguely understanding that it was a comeback from a rock legend filled with contemporary pop artists. I was always tempted to dismiss it as a shallow marketing gimmick but truthfully, I never disliked what I heard. Still, I was too anti-mainstream in my misguided youth to ever let myself grow to be a fan. Deep down though, I was curious. 25 years later, I finally see what I'd be missing of Santana's history. This album is fantastic, filled with great guitar performances and a heavy influence from Carlos Santana's native Mexico. It's expertly crafted and doesn't overstay its welcome. Really nice discovery.
Dead Kennedys
4/5
I've always liked The Dead Kennedys. They're a bit ridiculous and hyper politically conscious. Many songs are sungs sardonically from the perspective of right wing warmongers and capitalists, but there's never any doubt about Jello Biafra'a leanings. Despite being a fairly niche band, they were a particular target of Tipper Gore and her crusade to eliminate bad words from the recording industry. Maybe their provocative name caught her attention. This is what the Dead Kennedys are best known for. And to top it off, the music is great. They were a punk band after most of the original punk bands had moved on, but they also included a lot of surf rock and a bit of experimentation. This combined with the biting political lyrics are what made this band. At least if you're like minded to Biafra. If not, expect to hate this album.
Motörhead
2/5
I appreciate the novelty of Motorhead but I really don't know why we needed a live version AND a studio version of basically the same thing in this challenge. Admittedly, it's a fun performance and they recreate their songs perfectly live. But all the more reason that we don't need both versions here. If you love it, you'll have a blast listening. If not, do yourself a favor and ignore the more than an hour of bonus tracks.
Hüsker Dü
2/5
Try as I might, I just don't get the appeal of Husker Du or any of Bob Mould's projects. I get that they were supposed to have been a hugely influential band but I really don't hear it (Ok, yes it does sound a bit like early R.E.M. but not nearly as good). 'Warehouse' has its occasional moments ('Ice Cold Ice' stands out) but for the most part I just don't feel much of anything listening to it. A lot of it just sounds like a dime-a-dozen local indie rock band who should keep trying. Maybe I'm judging it too much against all of the indie rock that would follow and not seeing it enough in the context of its release. The length definitely doesn't do it any favors. Cutting out the weakest 40 minutes could have persuaded me to give it 3 stars. Apologies to any fans of Husker Du. I tried, but it's just not doing much for me.
Fleetwood Mac
5/5
You hear over and over again how this album is filled with hits and how any track could have been a single from another band. With a few expections (no one would have thought that 'Oh Daddy' is anyone's hit single), I definitely see it. This is a powerful album, produced amid turmoil, obsession, excessive drug use, infidelity and jealously. The music seems to float above it all, compartmentalized and untainted by the chaotic lives of the musicians who made it. The background adds to the lore of the album. The idea of every track being a potential single misses an important point, which is that it works really well as an whole album. Like any good album, the music varies from one track to the next, but perfectly compliment the whole work. It's a difficult balance that only a relative handful of bands manage to achieve.
As of this writing, it's the second highest rated album on the generator, having recently been knocked from the number 1 spot by none other than The Beatles. For me, it's not the best album I've encountered here and I'm surprised that it's been on top of the list. But I appreciate that it's a near perfect album. My one and only criticism is that I hate the very campy and nauseatingly optimistic 'Don't Stop', partly because it's so widely played. But the inclusion of 'The Chain' more than makes up for it. I hate to feel like I'm jumping on the bandwagon here, but I don't feel right not giving 'Rumours' 5 stars.
Britney Spears
1/5
With sincere apologies to Ms Spears, there is a lot I hate about this album. The music is the campiest of bubble gum pop, mixed with high school crush love ballads. I appreciate that for some people, that was part of their childhood and still has strong nostalgia value. I also appreciate that it takes some skill to craft pop hits to reach such a massive audience. But to me, this is just the most vacuous, juvenile, lowest-common-denominator fluff. The music was generated to move content units, as Britney herself. Would this album have reached the heights that it did if not for sex appeal? And can we reflect for a moment on how creepy it is that the world was collectively sexualizing a teenage a girl? Britney's struggles are widely known. She was clearly being exploited by her family as well as record company executives, with an eagerly complicit media eating it all up.
If this was something you grew up with, I get how it would be appealing. It's designed to be marketed to kids and to speak to what they feel. It delivers what it promises. But as an adult, and especially seeing what happened to her through her fame and eventual decline, I just can't in good conscious give this a strong review. This is the only time I've been tempted to award an extra star out of pity for the artist. You dserved to have had a real childhood Britney.
The Dave Brubeck Quartet
4/5
Music like this makes me wish I understood music composition better. I have a general understanding about things like time signatures but I also know that some people will be able to hear a lot more in this album than I can. Despite that, even to my amateur ear, this a brilliant and complex album. I have to be in the right mood to listen to jazz but sometimes it's really the perfect thing to listen to, particularly when it's as beautifully composed as this. 'Blue Ronda a la Turk' and 'Take Five' are major highlights, complimented well by the rest of the album. You can imagine how cool a listener in 1959 might have felt playing 'Time Out' for friends. Jazz always runs the risk of seeming pretentious that way, but there's something also deeply accessible about The Dave Brubeck Quartet. At least if you're even a bit curious about the genre. It's an great introduction.
Joanna Newsom
3/5
'Ys' is one if those albums that's very ambitious and an stunning achievement for any artist. Yet I can't exactly say that I like it. Maybe it's more interesting to listen to from an artistry perspective but not something I'd really listen to for fun. I get people's comparisons to Bjork. I also get the people who add 'but Joanna Newsom is no Bjork'. Maybe I just need to be in the right mood but this strikes me as the kind of album that would just sit on the shelf for years hoping that one day I'm ready to listen to it. I used to own a lot of CDs like that. But life is too short not to just listen to what you really like. I'm giving it 3 stars, mainly on technical ability and the fact that I really want to like it more.
Beastie Boys
5/5
I really don't pay enough attention to this album. I'm a casual Beastie Boys fan and like them in small doses only normally. But this is really a perfect album. The Dust Brothers extensively layers sampling style fits like a glove to their vocal style (which admittedly isn't for everyone). It's a messy collage of samples from any genre you can think of, but it's still incredibly accessible. 'Paul's Boutique' shouldn't work but it does. It should feel like an assault on the senses but it's more fun than it is work to listen to it. The 100+ samples couldn't have been sampled so easily today, when record labels realized that there's good money to be made from licensing 3 seconds of a song. That alone keeps 'Paul's Boutique' unique and years later such famous samples would need to be used extensively to make it worth the cost. But in 1989, this all flew under the radar of pop culture and kept the commercial failure of the Beastie Boys a hidden secret for the few who connected with it at the time. The secret's been out for a while though and it's now recognized as a classic of hip hop, and one of the best in the genre.
Tom Waits
5/5
What a great find this one was! A beautifully eccentric portrait of the lesser seen sides of New York. It sounds like if Captain Beefheart was both weirder and more accessible. I never listened to Waits before this challenge. This has been my fifth (and I believe final) of his albums in the generator and it's been my favorite. It's hard to explain why exactly. It's just humorous and raw, and like it came directly from a different reality that most people don't see. Eccentricity is on full display here. Waits' recording technique was physical and deeply connected to the sounds, eschewing simple studio tricks for anything that we could make himself in a bathroom with a microphone, like a foley artist on a dare. I know not everyone would enjoy this but I loved it.
The Who
5/5
How should a band follow up a hugely popular double album rock opera? With another double album rock opera? Well thankfully not. Not that 'Lifehouse' didn't sound like an interesting concept. But sometimes it's much more refreshing to have a tight single album instead. The original plan gave the tracks a larger than life quality but editing down the best songs makes it a lot more accessible. I'd give 4.5 stars if I could, but on the strength of 'Baba O'Riley' and 'Won't Get Fooled Again', I lean towards a 5.
3/5
I suppose I'm going against the grain here with this review. I've always thought that Oasis had a good handful of strong singles but also a lot of filler. 'Morning Glory' is their most successful album, so it's a good place to look. 'Wonderwall' is a classic of course and the best song on the album. Oasis are always compared with The Beatles and there is obviously a heavy influence there. But they lack the sheer boldness of Lennon and McCartney. The songs are straightforward and safe. Not necessarily a bad thing, but the Gallaghers are no Beatles in my opinion. Their mastering technique recalls the old Wall of Sound method (which The Beatles did use at the end) and exchanges dynamics for pure loudness. But the effect works and sounds very big. There is a simplicity to Oasis which I suppose helps explain their mass appeal. Undeniably, this is a major benchmark of the 90s and the Brit Pop movement and sold like crazy at its peak. I'm not saying it didn't deserve to sell well but for me, it's far too safe to be that interesting, save a few big tracks.
Baaba Maal
4/5
I am vaguely familiar with Baaba Maal, largely due to various collaborations he has done for many years. But I haven't ever listed to an entire album of his before. I really wish there was more information available on what was meant to make 'Lam Toro' a significant release. From a small amount of reading, it doesn't seem to be among his most popular albums, just one release among his early years. So I'm taking an educated guess at what I'm meant to be hearing. Maal is clearly bringing traditional African music (specifically, that from Senegal) to wider audience and introducing what sound like early experiments merging it with Western instruments and composition. More than a decade into the world music movement, it's maybe not the most successful blend of worlds, but refreshingly, it gives dominance to Senegalese music. You'd be forgiven for missing the Western elements altogether, if not for the heavy use of synthesizers in some songs. It's not always successful unfortunately. The electronic sounds on 'Gidelam' in particular are dominant and sound like a cheap Casio keyboard that a 10 year old might learn on, but not really used by serious musicians. It works a lot better when those sounds are subtle textures to accompany more traditional sounds. Fortunately, that's the majority of the album, minus a few misses. 'Sy Sawande' is a personal favorite. There's enough here to make me curious to explore Maal's discography one day.
Bauhaus
3/5
I've got a real soft spot for post punk, even the ones that border on early goth. I only knew Bauhaus from their earlier singles, 'Bela Lugosi's Dead' and 'Dark Entries'. Truthfully, they're not quite as good as some who came before or after, such as Joy Division or the Banshees. But they do occasionally hit just right. 'Mask' is considered more accessible than their debut album and sure enough some tracks are very catchy and danceable. 'Kick in the Eye' is a highlight. The album drags in some spots. In others, Bauhaus maintain their experimentalism, which is good or bad depending on who you ask. If you're not a post punk fan, Bauhaus are unlikely to convince you otherwise. For the rest of us though, it's still a good album.
Black Flag
3/5
There are two different kinds of punk bands. The ones who want to tear everything down and fight every single establishment value, and the ones who want to revel in the space that's separate from that establishment. You need the first group to have the second but the second group can also be a place filled with solidarity, hope, and fun. You could argue that it's all pointless and a bastardization of the punk ideal. But fun is the big thing that revolutionaries often forget about. No where is that more obvious than the clearly most memorable song, 'TV Party' (imagine the horror of other punks that they're celebrating television!). The lyrics are stupid and bordering sounding like a frat party, but damn if it isn't fun. As a side note, Henry Rollins is an awesome human being and I'll always be a little more generous with his projects. Having said all of this, there are clearly better punk albums out there.
Beastie Boys
4/5
Beastie Boys' debut. It sounds dated, a bit cringew8orthy, and no where near as good as their later work, particularly 'Paul's Boutique'. There's some toxic masculinity (which they later apologized and repented for), it was maybe the music of 1980s fratboys, and it ushered in an era of terrible rap-rock artists. Despite that, it was completely groundbreaking and undeniably fun. 'No Sleep Til Brooklyn' and 'Brass Monkey' especially still hold up as some of their best ever songs. Despite some filler, it's still ranked among the best debut albums of all time.
The Lemonheads
3/5
I am really not sure if this album needs to be on the 1001 Albums to Hear Before You Die or not, except perhaps for the involvement of Juliana Hatfield. It’s fine, standard indie rock. It bring me back to some carefree days of the early 90s and maybe it represents that moment in time pretty well. ‘Rudderless’ sounds like something that I could have heard on the radio during that era without knowing who it was. Is it the best example of the era though? I really can’t decide. It’s a good album, with a few strong songs. The only song that I already knew was their cover of ‘Mrs Robinson’, which is certainly good enough, but not as good as the original. Ok, so I don’t know if it’s really significant enough but I definitely don’t hate it.
Crowded House
3/5
A decent example of that indie means adult contemporary style that had its moment in the early to mid 90s. Hootie and Blowfish fans take note. It's an alright album but I confess that I tuned out on a lot on this one, even during repeated listens (to be fair, I picked a day when I was quite tired to try this one out). 'Weather With You' is a good song and it does some heavy lifting of the others. But it's an alright album.
Supergrass
4/5
It's Brit-Pop from a time when Brit-Pop albums were a dime (or 10 pence) a dozen. Having said that, for my taste, I'd take Supergrass over Oasis any day. It's a fun, heavy hitting album that's easy to listen to and lacking pretentions. I'm not sure it needed to be on the list, but it's made a fan out of me.
Curtis Mayfield
3/5
Incredibly smooth blend of soul and funk. Music for when you want something a bit more lowkey and digestible than Stevie Wonder.
Doves
3/5
I've always liked Doves, particularly 'Catch the Sun', which is a bit of an earworm for me (in the best way possible). But honestly, I can't really see why 'Lost Souls' deserves a place on this list. It's a fun, catchy album, sure. Praised by critics upon release (but when was the last time you heard them mentioned anywhere?). There's some fun trivia about the album too. Following a fire in their ffirst studio, they started over and recorded in New Order's studio. And they were the backing band for Badly Drawn Boy, who I quite like. I don't know if that's enough to warrant a place on this list, but I'm happy enough to hear it again.
Joy Division
4/5
There's so much to be said about this album. It is perhaps the most important album in the post punk and goth scenes. The influence runs incredibly deep. It was the only Joy Division album released during Ian Curtis's short lifetime, though he wouldn't see their later success. Interestingly, 'Unknown Pleasures' has none of the songs that Joy Division would become famous for. For those, you'll want to listen to the excellent singles collection, 'Substance', which is arguably a better introduction to the band. But 'Unknown Pleasures' also represents the purest document of Joy Division, the bleak soundscapes and depression-fueled lyrics by Curtis. The band members famously attended a small Sex Pistols concert in Manchester before they formed and the punk sound was strongly felt in their early pre-album releases and live shows. But also present here is the influence of Bowie's Berlin Era albums. It would take Martin Hannett and his unusual (particularly for punk bands) production techniques to really create the album's sound. Equally, this is Hannett's most famous work, as he had completely freedom to record whatever sounds he felt could compliment the songs. In truth, the band and Hannett needed one another, and both needed Factory Records to keep it altogether. The label's anarchist-tinged philosophy protected them all from the kind of interference that a major label might have insisted upon. It all came together to create the perfect storm for a few short years. Later, the world lost Curtis and the newly formed New Order would embrace Italian dance music to become one of the biggest bands of the 1980s. Many others would take Joy Division's style and run with it. But 'Unknown Pleasures' remains a unique document in music history.
Led Zeppelin
5/5
It's probably an unpopular opinion, but to me this is the best Led Zeppelin album by a wide margin. There's so much depth and variation to the music here. The band that took heavy metal to the mainstream here demonstrates what else they could do. What's a better environment for a metal band (given that hell isn't an actual option) than a cottage in the middle of nowhere with no electricity or running water? That setting influenced a blend of heavy rock, acoustic blues, and other styles. Many panned this album upon its release, as too confusing and varied, and it never quite recovered to reach the celebrated heights of the other self titled releases. While later Led Zeppelin work owes a lot to these experiments and would come to be celebrated, 'Led Zeppelin III' remains a hidden gem, with only the opening track, 'Immigrant Song' (rightfully) loved. But for me, the entire thing is brilliant and engaging, and still my favorite.
Buena Vista Social Club
5/5
This is one of those albums that I've been meaning to listen to for years but never got around to it. Thanks to this generator for finally making me sit down with Buena Vista Social Club. What an incredible album. In some ways, it shouldn't even exist, given the US embargo of Cuba. Ry Cooder had to travel illegally to bypass this. The original plan for his collaboration was to include musicians from Mali as well. When their visas were denied, they had to recruit some new musicians and rethink the whole project. With so much going against it, you wouldn't expect it to work. But from the very first notes of 'Chan Chan' you can tell this album will be something special. It might be tempting to dismiss the traditional Cuban music on this album as a novelty that you might find in a tourist gift shop. Despite Cooder's involvement, the Cuban musicians dominate here. But this is truly an incredibly produced collection that earned its place as the top selling world music album of all time. Close your eyes and listen and you can imagine being in Havana, surrounded by beautiful people, colorful buildings, and classic cars. Truly a pleasure to hear.
Dolly Parton
3/5
Everyone knows that Dolly Parton is country music royalty. That alone doesn’t do much for me, as I’m just not a big fan of the genre (with a handful of exceptions). But Parton is clearly something special. Her voice is majestic, haunted yet confident. You can feel her heartbreaks and jealousies from miles away. It is what country music is meant to be, but she does it well and better than the vast majority of men who dominate that section of the industry. To top that off, she’s also just know to be very cool. I won’t listen to this one often, if ever again. As I said, it’s just not my genre. But I said that with the utmost respect.
The Good, The Bad & The Queen
4/5
I remember listening to this album when it came out and liking how unusual it was. My first reaction to seeing it on this list was surprise though. Surely, it's not even Damon Albarn's most noteworthy release by a mile. Upon revisiting it though, I have renewed affection for 'The Good, The Bad, and The Queen'. Particularly considering the status of the band members (including members of The Clash, The Verve and Africa '70). Usually you expect such an impressive supergroup to put out some big, chart-topping singles. Instead, the music is an unsettling portrait of a hyper bleak, but eerily beautiful, version of London. It's bizarre and tells a story that's quite unlike anything else I've heard. It owes a debt to some of the baroque pop of the 60s and 70s but feels like it's made by a post apocalyptic band of survivors trying to find joy amongst the rubble. At least that's the image that some to my mind. I'm always uncomfortable listening to this album but I find it very hard to stop. And surely that's one potential sign of a good piece of art.
The Monkees
3/5
My initial thoughts are that it was certainly successful but probably not as significant as most of this list. The Beatles rose through their creative outbursts so quickly that there was obviously still a market for their earlier sound. The Monkees were clearly a record label creation with the teenage heartthrobs on the cover and unrelated writing and performing credits on the actual record. Here was their first attempt to prove themselves as actual musicians. The result is fine. I admire them for demanding creative freedom while risking a winning formula. It worked for them as the album sold well. But let's be honest, among the giants of the 60s (The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Kinks and The Zombies), this album really doesn't hold up that well. Maybe if it had come out four years earlier, but the fact that it came out one week before 'Sgt Pepper' just makes it feel well behind the curve. Despite that, it's a decent album anyway and there's some experimentation that's especially evident on the b side.
3/5
This was a new one on me. Arguably, ABC didn't quite stand the test of time and faded into 80s obscurity. Ok, it's a very 80s album, but it's really not a terrible one. It's got a great energy and it's well produced. It's less cringeworthy and gimmicky than other reviewers would have you believe, despite the occasional sax. It's not particularly memorable though. It feels somewhere in between the dark crooning style of Echo and the Bunnymen and the quirky energy of Talking Heads, but not as great as either. Interestingly, this album led to the creation of avant garde pop group, The Art of Noise, from the various session musicians and producers. They might have been a more interesting addition to the list than ABC. There's something endearing about 'Lexicon of Love', but if I'm honest, it's not one I'm likely to remember for a long time.
Lloyd Cole And The Commotions
4/5
This is one of those albums that's faded in almost complete obscurity today but is actually still pretty decent. It's 80s indie pop, loosely influenced by Bob Dylan, with literary references and honest examinations of relationships. The style seems to owe a small debt to some of the more digestible post punk bands, but is a lot more radio friendly. 'Rattlesnakes' may struggle to be remembered these days, but honestly, you could do a lot worse than the Commotions.
N.E.R.D
3/5
It's always fun to hear what Pharrell comes up with. If memory serves, this album was released shortly before he became particularly well known, but he was already well established within the music industry. 'Fly or Die' doesn't have the perfectly crafted earworm pop of some of his later work, like 'Happy' but it clearly displays some of his evolution as a writer, performer and composer. Particularly noteworthy is that the group learned to play the instruments for this album, something admirable but not strictly necessary within a genre that liberally uses samples and guest appearances. It's a good album but truthfully it's just a taste of what Pharrell would accomplish later in his career. Side note, the DFA remix of 'She Wants to Move' is fantastic.
Turbonegro
2/5
Ok, what to do with this one... Musically, it's a good album. Ignore the lyrics and keep your expectations on the low side and you'll have a good time. Turbonegro's energy is great and they can clearly make a good album. But the lyrics... guys, really? 'Rock Against Ass'? I'm tempted to think it's an elaborate joke that the fans are all in on but the band's attitude really comes across like a bunch of teenagers who feel like they're making the heaviest and most shocking music that was ever made. I mean, maybe if it had come out in the early 70s, but just throwing around swear words, seemingly aimlessly, is really not as edgy as they might think. The band name is suspicious but they claim it's not racist. I could suspend disbelief until I read about their blackface phase. Nope, sorry guys, I'm done. 1 extra star for some good rock music but it's not good enough to ignore the rest, which is just embarrassing.
Donovan
4/5
Donovan is one of those artists who had a large following during his early years but seems like a more a footnote of the flower power generation today. To my knowledge, he only had a handful of really big songs (my favorite one, 'Atlantis' is sadly not on this album). Having said that, I genuinely like Donovan, or at least the little of his discography I've heard. He sounds genuine and passionate and cool in his own subtle way but without pretension. The music is heavily folk influenced with shades of psychedelia and sitar music. While that description could apply to any number of 60s artists, Donovan stands out as something special. One day, I think I should do a deep dive into his discography.
Kraftwerk
4/5
Kraftwerk themselves consider 'Autobahn' to be their true beginning. Even now, their first three albums are hardly known and not even made available on streaming services. 'Autobahn' was the album that set them apart from their contemporaries, by rejecting traditional instruments for purely electronic ones. Previously, electronic music was solely for avant garde composers and sci-fi movies. You'd never consider making a pop album out of it. Kraftwerk took inspiration from the experience of speeding on that famous motorway to create their sounds. It's a perfect match and there was something both ultra modern and atomizing about the experience. The band also formed their ultra clean cut and minimalized image during this era. That would prove to be influential for decades to come, including eventually the likes of Daft Punk. Truth be told, the title track is the much better than the second half of the album. But the whole thing is revolutionary.
Morrissey
2/5
Once again, we have to set aside Morrissey's toxic personality (we'll get back to that) and just focus on the music. As his first solo effort, one really can't help but compare it to The Smiths, which doesn't do him many favors. The absense of Johnny Marr is felt strongly here. Longtime Smiths engineer Stephen Street takes over Marr's music writing here and it's ok and fits the vocals well enough. But honestly, imagine for a moment this album existing without Morrissey's voice and celebrity attached to it. Who besides the most hardcore music fanatics would have heard it? Again, it's not bad and even has a few tracks that I really liked, like Late Night, Maudlin Street'. It's just not quite strong enough to stand up on its own. Back to Morrissey, he obviously has a distinct voice, which people love or hate. I don't mind the sound, but we already have The Smiths albums, which work so much better. Add to that the constant reminder that Morrissey is a right wing extremist and it's hard to put with only a decent output. At the time, we might have had some plausible deniability, but songs like 'Bengali in Platforms' really hit differently now that we now clearly where his politics are. I put up with it (albeit with some discomfort) to hear Johnny Marr. Otherwise, life it too short.
Eels
4/5
'Beautiful Freak' took me by surprise. I expected some introspective modern indie rock, which is definitely is on the surface. I didn't quite expect the uneasiness of this album though. It almost manages to reach the style of The Flaming Lips but stops but a little short of proper art rock. The music sounds introverted and kind of alien but also inescapable. It's a shame I didn't know about it when I was younger because I probably would have loved it. Despite having never heard it before, Eels have still managed to take me back in time to the late 90s and a period of subdued angst that just wanted everything to sound different from everything I had heard before.
Aerosmith
3/5
There are some bands that, despite the lyrics, aren't really about anything at all, other than the music itself. Just a celebration of sex, drugs and rock n roll, in all of its excessiveness. Aerosmith fits the bill for me. I'm not knocking it, although I don't exactly condone it either. Particularly in the case of the ever creepy Steven Tyler. But separate the art from the artist and just listen to the music and you can see the appeal. It's a good hard rock album (not heavy enough for metal though) and it influenced a generation of 90s band. Axl Rose is not surprising. Kurt Cobain is though. But again, it's just the power of music, isn't it? Personally, it's not a favorite and it lacks any standout singles present in other albums. But it's a good document of rock n roll of the era.
Red Hot Chili Peppers
5/5
This is easily the Chili Peppers' masterpiece. There's so much going on here, with the band breaking from their heavy metal style and hugely expanding the number of genres in their music. They had the freedom to experiment here, the respect for the music to play fewer notes which gave the music room to breath, and the maturity to understand how to structure a great album. Rick Rubin's production elevated them to a different plane. John Frusciante demonstrated his excellence at songwriting. All of the pieces just fit here to create one of the most iconic albums of the 90s.
Two criticisms: Anthony Keidis trying to sell himself as a sex god is fairly toxic, though he at least acknowledges this with 'Breaking the Girl'. Also, the album is longer than it needs to be, a trend of the early days of CDs when everyone felt like they had to fill the entire length of the disc. This would have been a tighter album if they'd cut some of the weaker tracks. Fortunately it's still a strong album overall.
Johnny Cash
5/5
Young Johnny Cash was a hero of the outlaw country subgenre who celebrated the forgotten corners of society. Older Johnny Cash forced us to look at our mortality, while continuing to show us how to appreciate life amid the darkness. His voice, once a youthful rebel, now haunts us and cuts to the bone. 'American IV' was the last album released in Cash's lifetime and also one of his most famous. It's made of covers, carefully chosen to reflect a long and interesting life. Truth be told, most of the covers aren't as good as the originals, aside from 'Hurt' which rivals Nine Inch Nails, by Trent Reznor's own admission. But they work to showcase the power and life of Johnny Cash. Aided by the likes of Rick Rubin, Fiona Apple, Nick Cave, and John Frusciante, this remains one or Johnny Cash's masterpieces in the twilight of his life.
Leonard Cohen
4/5
Leonard Cohen's second album features reflections on love, war, and modernity. It's more stripped back than his debut, allowing his voice to stand out more. It wasn't necessarily a welcome decision as the album had mixed reviews on its release. Retrospective reviews are far kinder to this and Cohen's other early work. The most revered piece on 'Songs From a Room' is the opening track 'Bird on the Wire'. Cohen took inspiration from his time on the Greek Island of Hydra where he'd purchased a home around this time. When he arrived, the island was disconnected from the world, as those a place lost in time. Perfect for a singer needed to escape his fame. Cohen watched as telephone lines were first installed, signalling that the modern world was creeping in everywhere and inescapable. In the song, he longs to hold onto to the simplicity of the place as he knew it, from a choir of drunken men singing in the night to watching a bird gently land on that newly installed telephone wire, hanging amid the serene nature of the place. 'Songs from a Room' may not be Cohen's greatest work but it still manages to leave its mark.
Scritti Politti
3/5
Strange to think that this album came about with Scritti Politti trying to get off of Rough Trade and quitting Marxist groups. Whereas today, many major bands trying to get off major labels and reject capitalism. I really wasn't familiar with this band before but you can see why they'd have been big in the 80s and largely forgotten now. This music is heavily dated and the vocals sound like a Michael Jackson impersonator. But even for a band who didn't quite survive the test of time, the 80s really did have its charm. The music sounds vibrantly (or even blindingly) bright and purely synthetic. It's like rejecting the real world and deciding to live inside the set of Tron. 'Cupid & Psyche 85' is bound to be someone's guilty pleasure.
Hole
3/5
Courtney Love certainly got a lot of street cred for hanging around (and sometimes dating or marrying) rock royalty of the 90s. I confess that I primarily still think of her as the wife of Kurt Cobain who publicly cried and swore at his funeral. It's disrespectful (and a bit sexist) to only associate a person by their more famous partners, so I'm trying to evaluate this music on its own merit. It's difficult because I feel like I'm hearing so much of Billy Corgan's influence here in the collision between grunge and pop music, but Love does bring her own style and sound in as well. Hole was never really on my radar, but Love did undeniably manage to become a star in her own right, outside of the shadow of her famous associations. As an album, it's a pretty good piece of 90s rock. And it feels weird not to include Courtney Love in that history.
Spiritualized
4/5
I great album for when you're in the mood for Brian Eno, but want a bit more indie rock mixed in too. This is shoegaze without the extreme melancholy, or rock to listen to while you're floating in space (appropriately enough, that would be the title of a later album). Sit back, close your eyes and let it wash over you. When you wake, you'll feel refreshed but remember only bits and pieces of what you just heard. If none of that appeals to you, then this album isn't for you.
Paul Simon
2/5
I guess this album is most notable for the being the one that finally broke up Simon and Garfunkel. Apparently, it started as their next album (following their first break up and long hiatus) before Paul Simon decided it would be better as a solo album. Art Garfunkel got offended and quit and Paul Simon removed him from the recordings. Given the significance of that group, I suppose it's a fairly important moment in music history. But I confess that I find the actual album to be a bit boring. It strikes me as a moment in time the long gap between 'Bridge Over Troubled Water' and 'Graceland'. Slightly interesting background, but it's hardly Paul Simon's best work.
The Gun Club
4/5
I liked this one much more than I expected. The Gun Club sound like rockabilly meets punk, with a heavy influence from pre-war blues. That description wouldn't have excited me as much as the music itself which feels like it could have gone back in time to have influenced The Stooges. It did however very clearly influence Jack White. The blueprint set by The Gun Club are all over The White Stripes' albums. The Gun Club featured members of so many other bands over the course of its existence that it's hard to believe I haven't stumbled across them before. The band described their own early work as "too arty for rock people, far too rock for arty people, too cuckoo for the blues crowd and too American for punk". Spot on. The music really does exist between those worlds.
Sepultura
3/5
I really didn't expect Brazillian death metal to be my 500th album, but here we are. I've heard of Sepultura but never listened to them before. I know they're big in that scene. It's good for what it is, a shredding metal album. The noteworthy elements are meant to be that they started taking more influence from industrial bands (I don't really hear it to be honest) and was the first experiment in incorporating traditional tribal drumming to their music. I was interested in that but it's only really obvious on one song, 'Altered States', which was the highlight for me. The rest was fine, but was pretty standard metal without much that stands out to a non-metal head. They've got another album on this list and I'm curious to hear how they have evolved later in this career.
TV On The Radio
5/5
Man do I love this band. TV on the Radio were so incredibly cool and it's a shame that they haven't released anything in the past 10 years (as of this writing). Tunde Adebimpe, David Andrew Sitek, and Kyp Malone had such great chemistry and made such fun albums. 'Dear Science' is arguably their greatest work (although personally, I'm torn between this and their debut album). My biggest criticism is that my favorite song, 'Family Tree' is right there in the middle and always delays me listening straight to the end, as I can't help putting that song on repeat.
Michael Jackson
3/5
One of those albums that I've never heard before, except that I have. I knew a lot of those songs even if I didn't know they were on this album. It's hardly surprising given the massive fame that Michael Jackson had. I'm putting aside the troubling allegations that dogged him later in life to just look at the album itself. Undoubtedly, it's a classic that helped set the template for decades of pop stars to come. It's not as good as 'Thriller' but this is probably the point where he became the pop star that would be world famous. Not just the kid from the Jackson 5 but a force himself, harnessing disco, pop and R&B into his own creation (very much aided by Quincy Jones). It definitely deserves attention as a significant part of music history, even if it's not a personal favorite.
Sonic Youth
5/5
As a Sonic Youth, I somehow never got around to listening to 'Sister'. I always knew of it but had dismissed their pre-Daydream Nation material as them still finding their sound. Having finally dived it, it feels crazy to me that I've been sleeping on 'Sister' for so long. This is a fantastic album and very worthy of their name. It's up there with Daydream Nation, which I'll still give a slight edge to. The song structures are poppy enough to balance out the noise rock sound to keep it just abrasive enough to keep listening. The nice thing about these kinds of discoveries that hide in plain light, is that I now have these amazing new songs to listen to, despite being released almost 4 decades ago. I will definitely be returning to this one.
Khaled
4/5
Nearly halfway into this challenge, I'm starting to encounter fewer and fewer surprises. There are only so many punk records I need to hear (though I like them enough). Occasionally I still get surprised by a new artist. Very rarely do I get to hear an entirely new genre. But that kind of find is what I love most about this challenge. Rai music is completely new to me. I can hardly call myself an expert after just one album and a handful of Wikipedia entries but it definitely sounds pretty interesting! From what I can gather, it emerged in poor communities in Algeria as a rejection of both traditional Arab values and French colonialism. The style appears to be characterized by political stances and incorporation of various other genres, most notably Western popular music. Though I'm mostly ignorant of this movement, I can see that Khalid is a major player in it and it's not hard to see why. The music definitely has its charm. It's varied and infectiously good. I can't help but put it on repeat despite having no background to it. The most memorable moment is also my least favorite, the cover of 'Imagine' which feels a bit gimmicky. But it doesn't prevent the rest of the album from being a great listen.
Steely Dan
3/5
They are clearly good musicians. 'Peg' is a decent single. But I just cannot see the appeal of Steely Dan and I am trying. Robert Dimery clearly thinks that I need to, as there are 4 Steely Dan albums on this list. I'm really trying to approach with an open mind and listen multiple times. I got 'Pretzel Logic' a few months ago and thought "maybe if I get a more famous album, it will stand out more." The music does get a bit better after repeat exposure, but it just really doesn't blow me away. I'll give it a three because I can see that it's ambitious and well produced. I don't know hate this album, but would just rather be listening to something else. I'm clearly missing something with this band but I'm unsure how much I care.
Stevie Wonder
4/5
A landmark album from Stevie Wonder, where he proves himself as an independent artist and someone to be taken seriously. Previously, he'd been considered a child prodigy, acting mainly according to the directions of his management and record label. Really, it's his second album displaying his new artistic freedom and explorations of layered electronics. But 'Talking Book' is huge step forward from 'Music of My Mind'. You only need to listen to 'Superstition' to understand that he's becoming a whole new kind of artist here. I hadn't listened to this album before, but it's really impressive. For me, it's not quite as good as the follow up, 'Innervisions', but still a great album marking the 'classic era' of an incredible performer.
Paul McCartney
4/5
There are two ways to view Paul McCartney's debut solo album. Either it's a rushed, half-assed record trying to take attention away from Lennon's (then secret) departure from The Beatles. Or it's a masterpiece of lofi recording from one of the century's greatest songwriters. In truth, it's a little of both. After Lennon's decision to quit, McCartney isolated himself and started to record an album in secret. When he then butt heads with Harrison and Starr over the rushed release, it caused the final breakup of the group. Due to the nature of the recording, the music sounds incomplete and unpolished, like early demo recordings. The lack of his bandmates feels striking here and one can imagine the layers they could have brought in.
But 'McCartney' also has a certain minimalist charm. When does a song become a finished song? There's no right or wrong here. The Beatles had already experimented with that idea by stringing together various incomplete songs into a medley during the 'Abbey Road' session. But now he took that a step further to showcase exactenugu at he could bring on his own. Whether it's good enough without John Lennon is for the audience to decide. These home recordings are fairly austere but certain songs really shine, particularly 'Maybe I'm Amazed'.
Reviews of this album have been mixed. I'm argue that it's not McCartney's best work (I prefer the very offbeat 'Ram' personally). But it's certainly significant for the backstory and the template it set for lofi recordings. That idea would later be embraced by punk and garage bands who no longer felt that they needed a fancy studio to be able to make a good album. You just need instruments some good ideas, and something to record them.
LTJ Bukem
3/5
Ok to start with, the music on Spotify is not the same album as what is listed in the book. Near as I can tell, 'Logical Progression' is accurate long out of print and at some point was replaced by an inferior but confusingly titled 'Logical Progression Level 1' compliation. The tracklisting is almost entirely different.
This is one of those rare occasions when I won't listen to the full album. First because it seems impossible to find a version online that matches the original 100% (you can find some of the music but with gaps and without the continuous mix from Bukem), and secondly because I used to own the original CD.
I did revisit some of Bukem's original songs on his 'Producer 01' album, which is a pretty good representation of what this compliation was going for. Bukem took a background in jazz fusion and used it to mix ambient textures with drum and bass. For my money, it's pretty decent. I'd take it over Goldie any day, though it's not as good as Roni Size or Photek. If you like the genre, you should take time to explore LTJ Bukem. If not, he probably won't convince you, especially not with this version on Spotify.
American Music Club
2/5
I haven't heard of this band and frankly struggle to see why it's included on the list. The Wikipedia page quotes an Icelandic newspaper's review. No offence to Iceland here, but it does feel a bit like they could have found a more well known publication for a review of a band that's within this list. Having said that, I can definitely imagine this album being an early influence on Sigur Ros, albeit within the same level of innovation. The music isn't bad, just not the level I'd expect for this generator. I like 'Blue and Grey Shirt' and 'Highway 5', but much of this was a bit forgettable unfortunately. It's nice enough as calming background music though.
Marvin Gaye
4/5
Famously, this album is thought of as the soundtrack to sex, and probably has been more times than we can count. You only need to listen to the first three notes of the album to evoke images (both serious and comedic) of a provocatively dressed person in seductive poses. I honestly can't think of any song that better represents sex than 'Let's Get it On'. The rest of the album continues the themes of passion and intimacy that Gaye became famous for and it holds up as a classic.
More interesting is the background to the album, which is worth reading. But fair warning, that this next section will definitely kill the mood for you. I honestly would have never guessed that Marvin Gaye was ever traumatized about sex from his preacher father. The story really adds so much to what the album represents. We all know it's a celebration of sex and love, but who knew that this was actually about healing for Marvin Gaye as well? Turning sex into something healthy and beautiful in constrast to the demonized view he'd been given in childhood. The story gets crazier when you realize that his father, who he's clearly rebelling against here, would kill him about a decade after this release.
However, you look at it, as a soundtrack to sex, or as a lighter chapter in a very difficult, tortured life, 'Let's Get It On' is an indisputable classic.
Traffic
5/5
I had previously dismissed some of Steve Winwood's solo efforts as proficient but too safe. Like he just needed a bit of a blunt edge to him. I hadn't listened to Traffic before, but that was my first instinct here too. But I have to say, this album really grew on me and I honestly think it's excellent after a few listens. While I'm not crazy about Winwood's voice, the music is fantastic mix of rock and jazz with a heavy nod to traditional folk music, particularly notable on the title track. The song writing is very impressive. It twists and turns all over the place, weaving a complex narrative. For me, this really benefitted from repeat listens. The first time thing, I was tempted to give a fairly generous 3, but man has it opened up now. Turns out that I kind of love this.
Nitin Sawhney
3/5
This is definitely case where the album cover really does not reflect the music. I get it as there's a theme of nuclear war, and the image drives home the seriousness of that danger. But musically, you really expect something more dramatic and heavy than what we have here. But maybe it's more striking that way because it's not a heavy metal album, which often have an element of self-parody.
As for the album itself, 'Beyond Skin' is a decent example of world music mixed with Western influence, especially drum n bass. It's similar to Talvin Singh's work, though it's a much more serious statement. There are two ways to listen to this, as background music in a trendy coffee shop, or as a serious contemplation of the fragility of the modern world. The former is easier, as it's tempting to ignore the subtle clues about the dark theme and just let the (somewhat Westernized) images of India wash over you. But then you suddenly hear Robert Oppenheimer's chilly words (quoting the Bhagavad Gita, tying things back to India). They end the album in stark contrast to the very light music. It rips you out of the comfort of your travel daydreams and urges you to listen to the whole album again, but paying more attention this time.
Roni Size
5/5
I guess I'm in the minority here, but I love this album. Drum n bass (or jungle as some people used to call it) is a genre that was just flooded by artists who all kind of sounded alike. It simple enough. Grab a sample of the famous 'Amen break', speed it up, and put some synths on top and you've got yourself a jungle track. It's simple, it works, but it gets a bit boring. The mid-90s saw a handful of artists who managed to do something a little more interesting with the genre. Goldie's 'Timeless' was heralded as a classic, but personally it leaves me very bored, despite many attempts to get into it. LTJ Bukem has some decent songs if you just want some chill background music. Photek is interesting, though he never really managed to create a strong full length album. A lot of this now sounds pretty dated. Goldie doesn't really seem so timeless any more.
But for my money, the true heroes were always Roni Size and his group Reprazent. 'New Forms' is (for me), the one really impressive drum n bass album that actually survives the test of time, if only because it has more character than the others. It has the dynamics that are severely missing from Goldie, the urban landscapes missing from Bukem, and the variety missing from Photek. It's heavily influenced by hip hop, and lightly by jazz. It's rooted in an urban landscape but occasionally lifts you up into space before you plummet back down and hit the ground running. The vocalists aren't merely singing on these songs, but feel slightly chopped up, as though their words are trying to fit into the space in between the beats. 'New Forms' won the Mercury Prize when it was released and it's well deserved.
My main complaint about 'New Forms' is that the 2 disc version starts to drag (never mind the anniversary edition with 4 discs!). Technically, this is the original, with the single disc version coming out later. The album only needs the first disc, no more and no less, and I treat the other one as bonus tracks.Aside from that, I think it deserves serious consideration as a classic from that era.
David Crosby
5/5
This is a complete Who's Who collection of artists who I should probably know more about than I do. It's very hard to deny the Crosby's songwriting, and the importance of this group of musicians to the San Francisco music scene of the time. In contrast to much of his other work, this album is chilled and airy, evoking the image of the album cover of looking out to the sea at sunset. It's calm and introspective and beautifully done.
Kanye West
4/5
Right, another Kanye album... OK first, we have to start with the man himself. He's an egotistical racist and seems pretty unstable. Some song titles remind me a little too much of Kanye the man. 'I Am A God' is obviously how he sees himself. 'Black Skinhead' is how the rest of us see him. This is only the second album I've heard by Kanye, the first being \"College Dropout', which was ok but not good enough to ignore his antics.
The thing is, if I'm going to try to separate the art from the artist, 'Yeezus' is actually pretty damn good! It's bound, abrasive, experimental and it doesn't quite sound like anything else out there. For the list of collaborators alone, it would make me sit and take notice. Daft Punk, Arca,, Hudson Mohawke, Lupe Fiasco, Rick Rubin. Clearly not everyone's cup of tea but I have to admire artists who can risk their fan base to make something truly different and exciting.
This puts me in the uncomfortable position of actually enjoying a Kanye West album. Had he been a different person, this would be an easy 5 stars but I have a really hard accepting that for such an outspoken Nazi.
ABBA
3/5
Ok, it's maybe not the best of ABBA but it has its charm. 'The Visitors' sees the group becoming more mature, both musically and lyrically. You don't really expect Cold War lyrics in ABBA songs, but maybe we should have. The band was also undergoing two divorces among its members so it's kind of amazing that this album exists and it's as good as it is. But hey, it worked for Fleetwood Mac, right? There's more depth and emotion on this album than their previous works, though it's lacking the obvious singles. This was the final ABBA album before they finally made a new one 4 decades later. It's one of the first digitally recorded albums and one of the first issues on CD, which seems fitting.
Boards of Canada
5/5
There's never been a group that sounded quite like Boards of Canada. They rejected the trend of electronic dance music that was growing in popularity at the time. Instead they drew influence from early electronic composers, mainly from film scores. Their name refers to the Film Board of Canada which produced documentaries that the brothers used to watch and were influential on their sound. The music evokes strong feelings of nostalgia, childhood and nature. I've always felt that there was also something unsettling about the music. For me, it recalls the feelings of being a child and experiencing a huge world. There's innocence, wonder and some fear in this music. This is the mature world of adults seen from the vantage point of a child. I also find a sense of isolation from the world in BoC's music. Like it's separated from the city and from home, to discover a new place. For an adult that might just be a camping trip. But for the child, it's the opening up to a new and curious world. Few artists can manage to create such vivid imagery with no lyrics.
The Doors
5/5
I can't say that I'm a huge fan of The Doors generally. I have found some of their music to be a bit boring and some a little more interesting. Their self-titled debut however was something special. With all of their best known tracks in one place, this is surely the best of The Doors right from the beginning. The organ sounds throughout the album give them a unique psychedelic vibe, matched with their rock energy. Arguably, this album has some filler, but it's still significant if only for the inclusion of 'Break on Through', 'Light My Fire' and 'The End'. Surely 'The Doors' is one of the best debut albums out there, even if their later work couldn't quite match it in my opinion.
James Taylor
3/5
'Sweet Baby James' is a pleasant album. It's introspective and relaxing. As far as folk rock goes, it's decent, but maybe not at the level of some of his contemporaries. Bob Dylan, Simon and Garfunkel, and Carole King among others, did it better, though King does appear on the album. Taylor does incorporate elements of country and what I'd almost call funk, placing him firmly at a crossroads of the early 70s. Also interesting to note that he was effectively homeless when recording this album. It's not a favorite, but it's not a bad album.
Brian Eno
5/5
The world of art rock was split wide open by 'Another Green World'. Eno utilized his Oblique Strategies cards to generate ideas and overcome writer's block. The cards were something like odd, minimalist writing prompts. Although Eno had used them before, the results really shine for the first time on this album. Other musicians (including Phil Collins and Robert Fripp) would receive their own cards, often with strange contrasts to what their fellow musicians were playing. Eno would randomly shuffle cards to instruct the others what to play, or imagine instruments such as 'snake guitars' which he'd then have to figure out what that meant. The result is an utterly unique piece of art that's also quite accessible, as long as you don't mind the lack of traditional song structures, which are certainly out of the window here. The legacy of 'Another Green World' for Eno was two paths. One, as a producer for the likes of David Bowie, Talking Heads, and others, he's apply the ideas of this album to their music, to much more commercial success. The other was to take the minimalism of these songs to their logical conclusion when he create 'Music for Airports' and essentially launch the ambient music genre. Either way, this is a landmark album.
The Darkness
4/5
The Darkness are a band that came several decades too late but that clearly didn't stop them. I always respect the bands who just seem to be having fun. You may dismiss the idea of glam rock from the early 2000s as gimmicky. You may laugh at some ridiculous lyrics. But honestly, try not to have fun listening to this album.
Lana Del Rey
3/5
As of this review, this is the most recent album to feature in the list, at least until a new version of the book is published. Recency bias is hard to overcome. It's definitely a good album. Is it a great one? Arguably. Deserving of a spot on the list? I'm not sure. I suppose Lana Del Ray was a big name in music for a while and should feature somewhere, so why not 'Chemtrails Over the Country Club'? It's a nicely done, bittersweet singer-songwriter affair. It evokes feelings of rainless clouds covering an otherwise beautiful country scene, echoing the lyrics of beauty and loss. I nice surprise is the guest spot by Jackie-O-Motherfucker singer, Weyes Blood. Though frankly, I might have preferred one by her instead. Note to the author, 'Titanic Rising' would be a great addition in the next edition of the book. Until then, Lana Del Ray has been a lovely, melancholy listen.
George Michael
4/5
My first thought about this album was that it's a British white guy trying to sound like Michael Jackson and Prince. By George Michael's own admission that's exactly what it is. The desperation to be taken seriously after years in Wham probably led to the blunt titles like 'I Want Your Sex'. Sublty won't do when you're trying to prove that your pop album isn't for kids. Having said all for that, George Michael does achieve much of what he set out to do and it was certainly reflected in sales of the album. Although his influences did it better, he did earn a place among them. The album is surprisingly good and manages to have its own identity, with a good energy and jazz elements that give it character. I could do without the rather bland 'One More Try' but I suppose the album had to have a ballad on there. 'I Want Your Sex', 'Look at Your Hands', and 'Monkey' are all great songs. I was fully prepared to dismiss it as an outdated pop flavor of the month and I'm genuinely surprised how good it was.
Eric Clapton
2/5
Clapton is certainly a good blues guitarist. Equally, he's a pretty awful person. I partially put my dislike of him on hold for Derek and the Dominoes, as it's really an excellent album. This one is a lot less interesting. His cover of 'I Shot the Sheriff' is the only song that interested me that much. But it's hard to appreciate his engagement with Black culture while also remembering his racist views. The rest showcases his skills but not.much else, and not enough to ignore the person behind the music.
Rufus Wainwright
4/5
I'm not very familiar with the (apparently famous) Wainwright family. To the extent that I always thought Rufus was the father. So I went in quite blind to this album and was pleasantly surprised. On first listen, I was hooked by a couple of songs ('I Don't Know What It Is' and 'Beautiful Child'), and the rest of the album has continued to open up with repeat plays. The music reminds me a lot of Sufjan Stevens and sounds very cinematic at points. The album as a whole is quite dynamic. It's easy to stop paying attention during some of the quieter moments, like the first half of 'Go or Go Ahead' but it always wakes up again draws me back. It is maybe a bit pretentious of hipstery (the album cover doesn't really help), but I really did enjoy it, much more than I expected. If it's good enough for Bowie, it's good enough for me.
Pantera
3/5
Sometimes I think I shouldn't dig too deep into Wikipedia when reading up on daily albums. I'll get to that. First, this album was surprisingly good. It seems to have been a landmark release for metal, particularly thrash metal, picking up where Metallica left off. There's something ridiculous about these lead singers doing their best cookie monster impersonations, but I still love it. Even though it's not my usual style, sometimes I'm really in the mood for something exactly like this. It's raw, energetic and heavy. And it's great.
I was a little familiar with Dimebag Darrel and his story. But I kept hearing people call the lead singer an asshole. I was tempted to ignore this until I heard the lyrics to 'No Good (Attack the Radical)' and I found the message to be a little too vague. So I went a bit deeper into Wikipedia and Phil Anselmo. Sure enough, he is a racist asshole. Just when I was about to call myself a Pantera fan. Never meet your heroes. In the modern day, maybe don't Google them either. Great album otherwise.
Norah Jones
3/5
'Come Away With Me' is a pleasant enough album. I listened while watching the rain out of my window, which was very fitting. I don't think that Norah Jones necessarily broke any boundaries with this album, but it's a nice, relaxing jazz standards record and sometimes it's just what you need. It was released by the legendary Blue Note record label, which had released albums from many of the greatest names in jazz, including Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, and Dizzy Gillespie, among many others. I don't have much in particular to comment about this album, except to say that she certainly has a beautiful voice. Great music for a coffee shop or rainy afternoon.
The Soft Boys
4/5
The Soft Boys really feel lost in time. But was this album released too late for the 60s psychedelic movement? Or too early for 90s indie rock? It exists somewhere in between but not along the usual evolution of rock music in the intervening decades. Instead, it opts to revive the Byrds and the Beatles while injecting it with experiments from a future beyond 1980. It's punk, new wave, classic rock, and psychedelia all rolled into one. At many points, it reminded of Velvet Underground, if they'd gotten their start in the early 80s. The more I listen, the more I love this. What a hidden gem this album is!
Amy Winehouse
4/5
'Back to Black' sees Winehouse shift from the neo-soul of her debut album, to heavy influence from 60s girl groups like the Shangri Las. The innocence evoked from that early pop music contrasts starkly with the very tragic lyrics. You can't help but imagine the scandal of one of those 60s artists singing about rehab but Winehouse does it truthfully and bluntly. It's a bit unsettling to think of so many people singing along to one of popular music's most obvious cries for help. Winehouse's early death was shocking but probably surprised few of us, given her lifestyle. She was a unique talent and filled a void in the music industry that few knew we had. Truthfully, the tracks produced by Mark Ronson are a lot better than the Salaam Remi ones. But it's a definitely a powerful album regardless.
The Everly Brothers
3/5
The Everly Brothers are obviously very dated. The lyrics are sexism dressed up as teenage heartthrob romanticism. Although I don't care for the music much myself, I can clearly see the importance in music history. This is a huge influence on loads of artists, including the Beatles, Simon and Garfunkel, the Rolling Stones, and the Beach Boys. They'd all go on to do things much better but the Everly Brothers helped shape the direction of rock n roll to come, incorporating elements of country and R&B. It feels intrinsically wrong to think of these guys as playing a crucial role in the development of all popular music to come but credit where credit is due. They did inspire a lot.
T. Rex
4/5
I do like a bit of T Rex now and then. I wrote in my review of 'Electric Warrior' that Marc Bolan beat Bowie to being the early champion of glam rock and probably could have gone on to achieve a lot more if he hadn't died so young. 'The Slider' is another impressive performance, this time showcasing more of a heavy metal influence. It elevated T Rex well beyond their teen pop reputation and earned the praise of Johnny Marr, Gary Numan, and Guns and Roses, among others. I liked it but also went back to relisten to 'Electric Warrior', which in my opinion, is still the better album. But as a follow up to that masterpiece, 'The Slider' is a powerhouse of a record.
Fleetwood Mac
4/5
Fleetwood Mac as a post punk band isn't something I ever knew existed. Well ok, they're not quite post punk here despite Lindsey Buckingham citing the Talking Heads influence. But it's certainly more experimental than 'Rumours'. It's the frequent question for successful bands, how do you follow up your masterpiece? You typically either try to recreate the same success (to the excitement of record label execs) or you do something totally different. Either way is a gamble but I have a real soft spot for the ones who risk a totally new direction and 'Tusk' may be the thing that makes me a fan (though I already respected them as musicians). It's a double album which is an added challenge and really this one has required multiple listens to fully absorb it all. Many tracks do seem to stop abruptly which will put some listeners off. Comparisons with demo collections are common. I can't quite give it a 5, though I'm tempted to. Despite this, 'Tusk' is an excellent record and really shows what else they were capable of.
Bob Dylan
3/5
As always, Bob Dylan is an incredible songwriter. Fueled by personal heart ache, he paints a vivid picture of vulnerability and conflict. His son said that the album sounded like his parents talking, which must hit hard given their separation. Musically, I don't think it's strongest album. Half of it was re-recorded following the urging of Dylan's brother. It has some great songs from both the New York and Minneapolis sessions, including some of his best. 'Tangled Up in Blue' is one highlight for me, as is 'Shelter From the Storm', which recalls his early work. I really like 'Buckets of Rain' for reasons I can't describe. Overall though, the music isn't as strong as other albums. It's carried mainly by the power and poetry of the lyrics.
The United States Of America
4/5
Well that was something... These guys clearly looked at all of the most experimental music of the Beatles, Pink Floyd, Velvet Underground, and San Francisco psychedelic scene and decided it was all conformist, capitalist garbage. 'United States of America' is a very reactionary album in multiple ways. Clearly, the message is a far left rallying cry, disguised as a patriotic Trojan horse. I do wonder if anyone bought this based only on the name of the band and were severely disappointed. Musically, it's kind of all over the place. Certainly experimental and very psychedelic, owing a massive debt to some of the top bands of the late 60s. But it also blends in a large amount of traditional American styles, like Dixieland Jazz. Electronic sounds (not exactly music) are layered throughout the album. It's easy (maybe too easy) to be put off by the over-the-top barage of styles, which sometimes comes across as overly silly. It has some genuinely good moments, but most of the album is challenging, and probably by design. But I really can't call it a good or bad album exactly. It's like a storm of different music that doesn't belong together and would be boring on its own. But as a montage, it has the ability to awaken some creativity. It's possibly more fun to think about than to listen to, but it's still fun.
Eagles
3/5
The title track is (to me) one of the most overplayed songs on the planet. It's objectively good and quite catchy but how many times can you listen to it? Quite a few, it seems, for some people. Personal opinion aside, I was a bit curious to hear what else The Eagles could do. Frankly, my opinion hasn't changed much.
This album is country-tinged cinematic rock and it helps to think of it like a movie. To that end, it reminded me of going to the cinema on a rainy day with nothing else to do. There's nothing in particular I want to see, but I've seen the trailer for 'Hotel California' quite a few times so I decide to give it a shot. It's a good movie, with a fairly predictable storyline and good acting. I'm not unhappy that I watched it but I'm not likely to watch again. Other people are obsessed with it, which is fine, but I don't really get why. Surely there are better movies out there. Maybe I'll try it again one day. Possibly on a long plane ride or something.
The most interesting detail of this album on Wikipedia was the fact that Black Sabbath were in the recording booth next to The Eagles and frequently interrupted the recording by being too loud. I feel like that says a lot about 'Hotel California'. Full disclosure, I'd have been pretty annoyed by that too. But I've never had the illusion that I'm cool.
Joan Baez
4/5
The music is incredibly simple folk music, with most tracks simply Baez and her guitar. The recording apparently took place in a community hall with a couple of microphones and Baez sitting on a rug. "As long as a dog didn't run through the room or something, you had it." There is something refreshing about that simplicity sometimes. And for a very simple recording from 1960, it sounds pretty good. Her voice is gorgeous and distinct and deserves the space it gets to breathe. It's obviously not the most innovative album ever released, but put in it context of its time, you can forgive that. She beat Bob Dylan to a debut album by 2 years and did it pretty well. Her politics are obviously divisive, and even some on the left may have felt that she was a bit much. But I personally admit her stances. Regardless of what you may think of her, she certainly left a big mark on the 60s, on popular music, and American culture.
The Only Ones
3/5
The great thing about punk rock was that it was meant to be something that anyone can do. The bad thing about it was that many people did. That's not to say that The Only Ones are bad. Not at all. It's just that how many variations of the basically the same thing do you need? This album has some decent punk songs and they're a little poppier than most of the other bands at the time, which is something. They also were influential to the likes of Nirvana, Blur and others, which is also worth noting. It's a good album, but it just kind of fades into the general background of every other punk band out there. There are a handful that stand out above the crowd, but The Only Ones aren't quite at that level, to me.
Common
4/5
As far as hip hop goes, this is some of the best around. Sleek, soulful and jazzy. Common's rapping style matches the music. Some underground stuff is better but I'd call Common one of the best of the mainstream. As others have said, the album is too long but that was a common problem of the CD era. Had he trimmed about half an hour off, this would be a stronger album.
The lyrics deserve some attention here. Common stood out as a more progressive voice around the time of this release. He has numerous mentions of women being equals and calling out violence against women. That's great but it seems like a pretty low bar by 2024 standards. Given the context of the time and the genre, it's still noteworthy. It's undercut a bit by the homophobia and fat shaming though. Overall, not a perfect album but Common is definitely talented.
Alice Cooper
4/5
When I think of Alice Cooper, I imagine a typical shock rock star, the Marilyn Manson of his day. So I was surprised that the music more closely resembles the glam rock bands of the early 70s. But you can tell the difference in the lyrics and the visual style. Most glam rock bands didn't sing about necrophilia or dental horror but clearly they missed a niche. Cooper's visual style was groundbreaking though and likely inspired loads of artists to focus on theatrical elements of their tours in a new way. It wasn't just about being big and flashy. They wanted to get under your skin. This line from Wikipedia is worth copying:
"In preparation for the tour, two semi-trailer trucks carried a wide variety of props including a dentists drill, four whips, a surgical table, six hatchets, 33,000 program books, 300 baby dolls, 22,000 sparklers, 58 mannequins, 280 spare light bulbs, 1,000 patches, 6,000 mirror parts, 14 bubble machines, 28 gallons of bubble juice, and 250,000 packages of bubble bath."
'Billion Dollar Babies' is of course ridiculous and fairly tame by today's standards. It still has the power to shock some while the rest of us appreciate the Halloweeny silliness of it. The bands would inspire a mix of artists, some great, some cringeworthy. But he was definitely influential.
Fun Lovin' Criminals
3/5
There's a spectrum of rap-rock. It starts with Run DMC using rock as a Trojan horse to gain a wider audience for hip hop, and ends (more or less) with the heavy rap rock of the late 90s (Linkin Park, Limp Bizkit, etc). Fun Lovin' Criminals seem to fit somewhere in the middle. They're not particularly innovative and not particularly cringeworthy either. Well maybe the whole 'drugs and crime are fun' shtick is a bit ridiculous, but fine. The music probably filled a small niche during it's heyday and does incorporate some unexpectedly jazzy elements. Had I discovered this when I was young, I might have liked it. Now it feels a bit boring. It's fine for what it is but life is short and there is better music out there.
William Orbit
3/5
Very inoffensive ambient music. It could be music to study to, which will sound a bit boring to some people. Unlike some similar artists, William Orbit mixes in a fair number of live instruments and vocals to give a bit more texture and commercial appeal. It's a lot safer than than the greats of the genre which is good, bad, or just dull, depending on you look at it. It's good background music though. Madonna enlisted Orbit to help with her more electronic stuff in the late 90s, supposedly after Aphex Twin turned her down (or, if you believe the story, after she rejected his offer to produce an album of her making barnyard album noises). Orbit is a good artist and producer, just not particularly innovative compared to others.
Thin Lizzy
3/5
Right, another live double album I think. I don't mind the overdubs personally but for the first half of the album, I was a bit bored. The turning point for me was the one song I knew 'The Boys Are Back in Town'. Ok, I have to admit that it's catchy. The album really picks up from here and was pretty good. Not sure I'd listen again but if given an opportunity to see this show live, it does seem like it would be a good time.
Bad Brains
3/5
I'm not usually a fan of hardcore but I enjoyed this one. It sounds different from most hardcore bands, maybe because it's a kind of prototype of the genre. But also I think it avoids of a gimmicks that (to me) make these bands all too similar to each other. The simple fact they're not doing the growly hardcore voice on every track is refreshing. Thank you Bad Brains for challenging my conception of music that I didn't think I'd like.
1/5
I've been dreading this one since I started this challenge. The brief period of Nu Metal produced some truly cringeworthy artists, but none were obnoxious than Fred Durst. Like an entitled frat boy, he just always seemed like such a toxic human being. To my surprise, I didn't hate quite as much as I'd thought. 'The One' was actually a decent track reminded me a little of New Order. But that's about where my positive comments end. It's an embarrassingly juvenile effort where Durst likes to show off how many times he can say 'fuck' in one song, while also dissing Trent Reznor. The album seems to get worse as it goes on, culminating in the unlistenable 'Outro', which features someone laughing at his own joke for a full few minutes with no music. Why on earth anyone would want to listen to this, I don't know. The album was extremely successful on its release. Though it obviously aged extremely poorly, it's interesting to try to imagine who this massive audience was. It's definitely not me.
The Band
4/5
I'm pleasantly surprised by how much variety there is on this album. Given their history, I kind of expected Bob Dylan without Bob Dylan and thought I'd get some middle of the road folk music. While 'The Band' certainly has a folk backbone, there's strong influence of early rock n roll and Americana, with a nod to psychedelic rock. 'Jawbone' is particularly experimental. 'Whispering Pines' sounds like it could have been a Flaming Lips songs. I enjoyed this album more and more with each listen.
The Modern Lovers
4/5
The Modern Lovers were a small but important stepping stone between the New York art rock of the Velvet Underground and the abrasive London punk rock of the Sex Pistols. By combining the sounds of straight talking lyrics of Lou Reed, the droning experimentation of John Cale, and the post-rock n roll energy of the Stooges, they recreated this proto-punk classic. The Modern Lovers struggled a lot and never released anything during their original run. Aside from this one album, released after their first breakup, their discography consists of various compliations of unreleased songs. 'Roadrunner' stands head and shoulders over the rest of the album and is easily their best song. The rest of the album is interesting and has some high points as well. But if I'm being honest, it's not as good as any of the groups that came before or after them. It makes the Modern Lovers a controversial cult band, highly sought by collectors but never able to achieve a very big audience. Despite that, there's a lot to take from this album and its place in music history.
Side note to the band: Picasso most certainly was an asshole.
Soul II Soul
2/5
Soul and funk produced via a mid-90s bedroom DJ aesthetic. It's ok for what it is but I'm not blown away. 'Back to Life' is the clear highlight here but even there, you need to dive into the bonus tracks before you find the more iconic version of the song. Give me an album worth of that level music and we can talk. The rest is fine but a bit boring and dated.
4/5
'Close to the Edge' is the second album I've heard by Yes. I'd previously had 'Fragile' in this challenge, but it was over a year ago and I honestly don't remember much of it. I listened to both albums today, out of curiosity. I think I was a bit harsh on 'Fragile' as just another prog rock album and more of it interested me today.
Having said that, of the two I prefer 'Closer to the Edge'. The songs are bigger, longer, and more complex. I appreciate that that won't appeal to a lot of people, but if you're going to do a prog rock album, you want to do it right. It's all over the place (in the best way possible) and demonstrates more openness and lightness than other similar bands. It has more moments to let the music simply breath, which is refreshing. The fact that side A is partly inspired by one of my favorite novels, 'Siddhartha' is a nice bonus.
Returning to 'Fragile' after this did make me appreciate it more though. It's certainly more accessible and has more highlights than I'd previously given it credit for.
Sigur Rós
5/5
Nothing (except many some of Brian Eno's work) can calm me more than 'Agaetis Byrjun'. I remember hearing about Sigur Ros and searching everywhere for this album before I finally found an import version. I'd listen to it over and over while lying on the floor, staring at the ceiling. Jonsi's cello bow playing on the guitar mixed perfectly with the atmospheric music which seems to reach up to the sky and reflects the beautifully stark Icelandic landscape. I saw Sigur Ros during their tour for their third album '( )'. The venue allowed a 100 college aged kids with CMJ Music Marathon passes to attend. The crowd was rowdy, rude and drunk. They booed the opening act and generally were frustrating to listen to. But three minutes of Sigur Ros playing was enough to shut them up for the rest of the show. Years later 'Agaetis Byrjun' remains one of my all time favorite albums.
Terence Trent D'Arby
2/5
Terence Trent D'Arby (or Sananda Maitreya, as he's now known) was clearly influenced by just about every big 80s act. In this album, I can hear Prince, Michael Jackson, 80s Bowie, Genesis, Michael Jackson, and more. The cynical part of me hears this as a record label executive's attempt to capitalize on the popularity of others. I can certainly see talent agents courting him for that reason. Having said that, it has its charm, despite falling well short of the greats. This album obviously hasn't stood the test of time very well, although it's certainly not the cheesiest 80s album out there. There's a handful of decent songs here, including 'Rain', 'Wishing Well', and 'Seven More Days'. The rest is fairly forgettable and not that interesting. The album has been considered as a soundtrack to 80s prosperity, although I don't know that the image of a Wall Street banker dancing to it makes it any cooler.
Jacques Brel
3/5
It's very difficult to give a proper assessment of Jacques Brel with my very limited knowledge of French. Based on that, I'm giving this album 3 stars because it feels fair. That aside, I can appreciate the dynamics of the music, at times larger than life, and others gentle and soothing. There are certainly stories being told even if I don't know what they are. The influence on Scott Walker is very evident, even if he hadn't covered so many of Brel's songs. Francophone listeners, I hope you enjoy this one!
The xx
4/5
This is the first album I've heard by The xx. I was familiar with the name, as well as front man Jamie xx. But I hadn't really predicted what I've be hearing. I expected something a bit more dance pop. And The xx clearly have all of the elements of that but packaged in a surprisingly slow and sparse format that fits better in a quiet bedroom than a lively dance floor. For that reason, I didn't initially connect to 'I See You' but it really shines on repeated listens. There's something beautiful and open about the sounds. It's not only room to breath but room to reflect, which is certainly unusual in this genre. The rhythms fill the empty space and sometimes tempt you to get up and let them run through you. But it's never demanding and also lets you rest well before the point of exhaustion. The four singles are the perfectly curated high points of the album. The rest is perhaps a bit of filler but the album works as a whole very well regardless. It took a bit of listening but I'm now impressed enough to seek out more.
Mudhoney
4/5
When you think grunge, you probably think of Nirvana, or possibly one of the handful of other big names, like Pearl Jam, maybe Soundgarden. But there was a budding scene that was developing in Washington state before 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' hit big. Mudhoney is about as pure grunge as you're likely to find. Energetic, fuzzy, and roughly recorded. This is the first album I've heard by them, but I was impressed. It's maybe not as good as Nirvana generally, but I'd picked 'Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge' over 'Bleach' at least. It's a great album that lets you feel more intimately part of that original scene, rather than the worldwide sensation that grunge would soon become.
Public Enemy
4/5
Public Enemy was a force within the genre. Even some great artists of the era suffered from toxic lyrics and glorification of violence, even if they exhibited brutal honesty between the lines. Public Enemy on the other hand focus on social commentary. The anger at the system comes through loud and clear. Chuck D and Flava Flav complimented one another's vocal styles. The music is forceful loud, fast, and abrasive, as it should be. This is their breakthrough album, at least as far as the rock kids knew. 'It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back' is a bit dated musically, only because it inspired so much else that would come later. Despite that, it has some of their best moments, particularly 'Black Steel'. Politically, the album is as relevant as ever. It shouldn't be as we've had nearly 4 decades to make more progress. But it's still a powerful anthem for change.
Stephen Stills
3/5
One of the four top solo selling albums released within a year of the Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young's 'Deja Vu'. Neil Young's 'After the Gold Rush' seems to have survived the test of time the best. David Crosby's release was a pleasant surprise in this challenge. But Stephen Stills' self titled release hasn't blown me away as much. There's an impressive collection of collaborators, including his CSNY bandmates, Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton, and Jimi Hendrix. For 1970, that's quite a line up! And it's not a band album at all. It's well produced, the performances are good, the soulful backup vocals sound like they could have inspired some of Primal Screams works. But I'm just not as excited by the album as I'd like. Maybe another day if I'm in the right mood it would speak to me more.
Deee-Lite
4/5
This one has guilty pleasure written all over it. I can't in good conscience give such a ridiculous album 5 stars but it's definitely earned 4 by being so fun. 'Groove is in the Heart' is obviously familiar and by far the best track but the rest is better than expected. The clashing color scheme and charmingly obnoxious fashion sense give some hint of what you're about to hear. Some absurdity and avant garde filled the void of the music scene as the 80s turned into the 90s. Deee-Lite couldn't have emerged at any other time but it's a fun reminder of that brief era. If you're not having fun with this one, you may be taking things too seriously.
X-Ray Spex
4/5
Where has this one been hiding all of these years? A half-Somali woman-led 70s punk band with saxophones? It's as amazing as it sounds! It seems obvious that this would be a major influence on bands like Bikini Kill. While the classic punk bands like the Sex Pistols needed to demonstrate their angry and disenfranchised attitude at every corner, it's bands like X-Ray Spex that dared to actually have some fun doing it. The gaudy, bright outfits on the cover stand in stark contrast to standard Vivian Westwood punk style that the genre is famous for. As early as 1978, it was the women who were keeping punk fresh.
Guns N' Roses
4/5
'Appetite for Destruction' is certainly a rock n roll classic. I can't describe the sound better than the Billboard review which praised the album's mix of \"metal's forceful playing, punk rock's rebellious themes, glam metal's aesthetic, and bluesy guitar riffs that appealed to purists.\" The big singles should already be familiar to most listeners, including 'Welcome to the Jungle', 'Paradise City', and 'Sweet Child O' Mine'. Those are powerful rock anthems that Still hold up today. Axl Rose is the epitome of a rock star in all the best and worst ways. It's as easy to picture yourself on stage belting out lyrics like he does, as it is to pick again the sometimes toxic, often drug-fueled lyrics. The non-single tracks also don't have the same impact as the others. Still, for an 80s rock band's debut album, it obviously made a massive impact on the music scene.
Adele
4/5
Adele has a sensational voice and I can definitely understand the appeal of her music. It's powerful. It's drives through you and helps to lift you up to the sky. They're great songs with very relatable lyrics. For my money, I'd love if she took a few risks. But I suppose you don't get to be a massive superstar by ignoring what works. And it does work and I might actually return to this one. Though to be frank, it also makes me want to listen to Florence and the Machine.
Grizzly Bear
4/5
Well I'm not sure whether it deserved a spot on this list but I'm glad it has one. There's a lot of harsh criticism in these reviews calling it too hipstery. Which... OK yeah, I get it. It has a bit of an Animal Collective vibe (which is not an insult). But it's more accessible and has some really stunning arrangements. The choral elements add to the general atmosphere of the album, which feels equally grounded and experimental. My only complaint is that it could be a bit shorter, or it needs more hits on the level of 'Two Weeks'. But the second half of the album really picks up and keeps it interesting. Whether it's very significant or not, I still like it.
Black Sabbath
5/5
Wow, I didn't expect a lot from Black Sabbath. I've heard their debut album before in this challenge. It was good and an important piece of rock history. But 'Vol 4' blows it away. There's so much going on in this album without being overly indulgent or too much to process. It's just a great rock album with heavy guitars, furious drum breakdown, and simple minimalist ballads to balance it all out. The experimental 'FX' is maybe a little pointless but it doesn't overstay its welcome. The addition of the mellotron adds so much with so little. It gives it an unearthly feel that the music desperately needed. What a great surprise this one was.
John Lennon
4/5
I love John Lennon so it pains to me say that I never really liked this album. It of course gave us the amazing title track, which is arguably one best composition of his entire career. It's a beautiful song that's been used to evoke feelings of calm and memories. It was possibly the most famous song on the post-9/11 'do not play' list for American radio stations which worried that the anti-religion message wouldn't sit well with people. Despite that, people urged it to be played anyway, for it's powerful anti-war message and the 'brotherhood of man'. The song has lived so far beyond what the Beatles had achieved, which is no easy feat. It combines a beautiful melody with a plea for peace, while still being challenging and shocking.
Now imagine (pun intended) that that song was taken off the album. Imagine it was released by an artist you'd never heard of. Would it be on this list? Would you have ever heard of it? It's frankly a pretty weak album overall. Comparatively, Lennon's debut solo album is varied, experimental, energetic, and freeing. 'Imagine' (the album) is surprisingly slow with only a few highlights. It lacks the hooks and risk taking that Lennon was so well known for. 'Oh Yoko!' is the next best song and holds up well. 'Crippled Inside' is also pretty good. The rest doesn't excite me much. Yes there's some of the powerful political messages that he was famous for, but that's washed out a bit by confessions of jealousy and pettiness towards Paul McCartney. I acknowledge that McCartney did his part in this very public feud but at least 'Ram' is a great album.
The album obviously sold very well and gets a 4 from me. But honestly, that title track is doing a lot of heavy lifting. It just deserved to be on a better album.
Peter Gabriel
3/5
This album, unofficially titled 'Car', is another example of a musician sounding technically impressive but not really doing much for me. 'Solsbury Hill' proves Peter Gabriel's ability to make a hit song without his Genesis bandmates. Some if his later work is a lot stronger. 'Car' just doesn't move me like I'd hoped it would.
Nine Inch Nails
5/5
Arguably one of the most incredible and interesting albums ever made, but there's a LOT to unpack here. It's maybe best to start with the controversial, angsty, and often misunderstood lyrics. Here I'll be honest and admit that some of them appealed to me much more as a teenager than an adult. 'Heresy' is the kind of song that I feel self conscious listening to, even if I'm listening on headphones. 'Closer' is interpreted by many as an obsession with sex, rather than a piece of self loathing, as intended. But this confusion isn't surprising given the intense sexual imagery of the chorus and outro. 'Big Man With a Gun' has been alternately described as a satire of toxic masculinity, or a description of total loss of control. Despite the intention, it comes across as cringeworthy by today's standards. It's the song I'm most likely to skip. But setting that unfortunate misstep, the lyrics paint a vivid and disturbing picture of depression, sexual frustration, suicidal tendencies, and loss of humanity. People are likely to be either shocked and offended, or to feel seen. While parent groups would worry that it might have driven children to kill themselves, I actually wonder how many lives might have been saved by teenagers receiving a strong feeling of validation. Depression doesn't just go away because you ignore it, but it can get better if you don't feel alone.
Now there's a very strong element of macabre in 'The Downward Spiral'. Famously, the album was recorded in the house where Sharon Tate was murdered in 1969. Reports vary on whether or not Reznor knew this when he bought the house but he certainly didn't shy away from that imagery until
much later (after being confronted by Tate's sister). Reznor himself was in a very dark place at this period in his career. It's hard to think of many albums that have such difficult and personal images in their lyrics. The rumored song 'Just Do It' was believed to have been about the act of suicide. Producer Flood talked Reznor out of including it and it remains unheard to this day.
What requires special attention here is the music and sound design, which were heavily influenced by David Bowie's 'Low'. The sounds defy conventional palates of rock bands, drawing on synthesizers, extreme manipulations of sound, and industrial effects. It's little wonder that Trent Reznor and (his eventual bandmate) Atticus Ross have become so celebrated for their film scores in recent years. The music has a cinematic quality to it, resembling elements of a horror film mixed with a drama of personal traumatic events and depression. Love the content or hate it, you really have to admire the craft that went into the sound. 30 years later it still sounds incredible.
For me, the peak of Nine Inch Nails was their third album 'The Fragile', which takes the exploration of depression into stranger, more varied, more ambitious, and more experimental spaces. But 'The Downward Spiral' remains an absolute classic. Some will loathe this one, others will love it. But like any great art, you're likely to feel something.
Iron Maiden
3/5
A good example of 80s metal and a pretty decent debut album as well. I didn't enjoy this as much as their other entry in this challenge, 'The Number of the Beast', but it's still an ok album. It sounds like Iron Maiden were still trying to find their sound here, which is fair enough for a debut. According to Wikipedia, they were constantly fighting producers who wanted them to sound more like punk bands or Queen. That stubbornness probably paid off with early examples of what would become their signature sound, such as 'Running Free' and the title track.
The Bees
4/5
This has got a real Beta Band quality to it. It really sounds like the kind of thing that had a short moment in the early 2000s British scene. Artists like Simian, Badly Drawn Boy, and of course Beta Band, where putting together some very eclectic and fairly upbeat albums, mashing different styles together like they were picking up used records at random for inspiration and turning them into something pretty decent. The Bees may not be the most noteworthy example of this short lived indie rock genre (what would you call it anyway?), but it's still pretty good. The Os Mutantes cover was a nice surprise as well.
Pink Floyd
5/5
This album really hit my mood perfectly today. It's lucky because it's the kind of album that you do need to be in the right kind of mindset for. It's also the kind of album that doesn't stand out until you start really paying attention and thinking about it. The film adaptation helped a lot in that regard. When you do connect with it, it's a quite a work. The story is grand and ambitious while still feeling strangely grounded as the story of one person. Like many Pink Floyd albums, the shadow of Syd Barrett looms large over this one, with a lot of autobiography of Roger Waters as well. When the world feels unbearably tragic, the traumas we endure sometimes feel like more bricks in the wall isolating us from everything. It's not a happy album but it's powerful (if you let it be). Although it works best as a whole, it also has some standout tracks like 'Comfortably Numb' that work well as singles. For those with access to it, you may want to experience this one through the film to help feel the full impact. For others, try to focus on it or at least read the full Wikipedia description. The story matters here.
Pixies
5/5
'Doolittle' is, for me, The Pixies' masterpiece. I appreciate the temptation to say that 'Surfer Rosa' is the better album, solely based on the involvement of the great Steve Albini. Albini did some incredible work over his career and certainly helped to give The Pixies the start the deserved. 'Surfer Rosa' has some amazing songs, including their (possibly) best known hit, 'Where Is My Mind?' But I actually think that The Pixies and Albini were not the best match. They're not a punk band and they didn't quite fit into grunge. Toning down the abrasiveness and adding more pop stylings sounds sacreligious, but it really worked. 'Doolittle' is perfect album. It flows, it hooks you, and there's not a bad track on there. It has more memorable tracks including 'Debaser', 'Waves of Mutilation', 'Monkey Gone to Heaven' and the surprisingly upbeat 'Here Comes Your Man'. Least anyone accuse the band of selling out, the album's lyrics are nothing for Top 40 radio. The album works. The short tracks balance out the 15 song tracklisting. The Pixies really hit their stride with this one.
The Coral
3/5
The only thing I knew about The Coral before was that their fourth album was produced by Portishead's Adrian Utley and Geoff Barrow. It was apparently that the creative spark that got Portishead to reunite a few years later. So it was a bit disappointing to discover that the generator didn't give me that album, but their debut one. That sounds harsher than I mean it to. I can see why Portishead would have been interested in The Coral. They share a love for krautrock bands like Can, which is always a good start. They were also influenced by Captain Beefheart, although I can't hear it in this album. There's enough here to keep me intrigued and make me want to hear a bit more. But there's not quite enough to make me into fan, at least based on one listen.
Dinosaur Jr.
3/5
Growing up, I felt like all of the coolest older kids were into Dinosaur Jr. I never quite got it though. I can see comparisons with Sonic Youth, and influence on the grunge scene. But it just didn't click with me. I'm sorry to say my opinion hasn't changed much. It's fine indie rock but kind of forgettable. I guess maybe you had to be there. But I'd take Sonic Youth over this any day.
Sebadoh
4/5
Yesterday I got an album by Dinosaur Jr. Coincidentally, today's album comes from former Dinosaur Jr bassist, Lou Barlow's band. Sebadoh was Barlow's outlet when he found his creative voice being pushed out by bandmate J Mascis. To my surprise, I enjoyed this one more. It sounds more developed, more accessible, albeit a bit less groundbreaking. Sebadoh sounds more like the 90s indie rock I would have known from my childhood. Deeply influenced by punk and post punk, with nods to experimental music but poppy enough to dominate college radio stations of the era. I really feel like I can hear loads of hints of early Beck releases on here. What a great discovery. I wish I'd known this album earlier.
Aphex Twin
5/5
Ok, my strong feeling here is that if you're going to put Aphex Twin in this list, this is the wrong album. 'Selected Ambient Works Vol 2' is a lucid dreamscape. The tracks eschew traditional titles and each have vague pictures attached via a cryptic key. 'drukqs' is a twisted, chaotic jungle pushed to its breaking point and intercut with strange prepared piano tracks. 'The Richard D James Album' is a dark humor-tinged and deeply experimental but with enough pop qualities that he thought he could get on Top of the Pops. Aphex Twin is deeply weird and a fascinating artist.
This album doesn't do his legacy justice. It's arguably the safest album though. It's probably the only Aphex Twin release you could put on at a party. Others would have your friends either too focused on the music to socialize or looking everywhere for an excuse to leave, depending on their styles. 'SAW 85-92' is still a great album though. The style of chilled out ambient techno was pretty different than anything out there. It's techno but not to dance to. It's ambient but more engaging.
If the title is to be believed, Richard James started writing these ages around age 14. He was heavily involved with the music scene of Cornwall, whose dramatic landscapes often seep into the music. He would later be surrounded by various myths, some surely made up by James himself. He recorded in a disused bank vault, he bought an old tank to keep on his front lawn, he DJed with sandpaper, he went deaf and played music by smelling the grooves on records (that one was obviously one of his stranger jokes).
Do yourself a favor and listen to some of Aphex Twin's later work in addition to this. Love it or hate it, it's definitely interesting. There's never been another artist quite like him. I'm giving this one 5 stars on the strength of his entire discography, since I only have one album to rate.
Slipknot
1/5
I honestly didn't expect to dislike this as much as I did but I think it's really cemented the fact that I really dislike the majority of Nu Metal bands. It's some consolation that the members of Slipknot seem to also dislike this album. But then, why are we listening to it? I mean, it's better than Limp Bizkit but surely we can set the bar a bit higher, can't we? Well I doubt I'll be listening to Slipknot again. Unless... ah they've got another one on this list... alright, I'll try to keep an open mind when it comes along.
Dexys Midnight Runners
3/5
What's funny about Dexy's Midnight Runners is the difference in their success on opposite sides of the Atlantic. Usually US and UK opinions are (mostly) in sync. But here you had a pretty successful artist with multiple hit albums and singles in the UK but who were a textbook case of a one hit wonder in America. I can kind of see why. The music is slightly celtic tinged which is kind of a novelty for Americans but that much of a novelty. It's enough to support one song (obviously their best one) but the rest sounds just a little bit like something you'd buy in a tourist attraction and never listen to. But that's not a fair assessment. The music is fun and better than expected. There are elements of post punk here, along with celtic influence, jazz, and rock with the combination of strings and horns. It's an interesting album. Maybe Dexys didn't deserve massive super stardom, but calling them a one hit wonder sells this album short. I genuinely wouldn't mind revisiting this one.
Rod Stewart
3/5
I don't really think much about Rod Stewart. I have the vague idea that he's sort of a self parody of a rock star but I don't know if that's fair. There's an edge to his music that's sort of blunted, despite the raspy voice. He strikes me as someone that Baby Boomers can still get into to feel young again, which is fine, albeit not necessarily very cool. But hey, he's got talent and there are some catchy songs here like 'It's All Over Now' and 'Cut Across Shorty'. I can't exactly say that I'm a convert because there are better rock stars out there but credit to Rod Stewart for exceeding my expectations. It's a good album, though maybe not a great one.
808 State
4/5
Sometimes in the early days of a new genre, before it's really settled into a predictable pattern, you can see a lot of experiments. Techno came about from African American teenagers in mid-80s Detroit before quickly finding a more permanent home across the Atlantic. The UK in particular loved the genre and early artists helped space the house. Much later, people would criticize the endless repetition and squelchy noise, all designed to keep people dancing and spending money, without much need for creativity. 808 State were different. They programmed complex beats and sought out more organic samples to contrast the synthesizers. They became heavily influential among so called EDM artists like Aphex Twin and much of Warp Records' roster. Graham Massey would later gain particular notoriety for working with Bjork on her early solo material. Bjork, along with New Order's Bernard Summer, would also appear on 808 State's third album. The music on '90' is strange. Tracks like 'Pacific' feel like a dream layered on top of reality. I picture the California coastline under a bizarre multicolored sky. I appreciate that this album won't be most people's favorite but 808 State have always intrigued me.
R.E.M.
5/5
I really can't separate 'Out of Time' and 'Automatic for the People' in my mind. The two albums together represent the peak of R.E.M. The former is the poppier one but 'Automatic' is arguably their best and their most confident record. At this point, indie rock had really arrived thanks in large part to R.E.M. who took the post punk and new wave of the previous decades and crested something uniquely 90s. Some of the most classic songs of the era are here, including 'Everybody Hurts', 'Man on the Moon', and 'Night Swimming'. The production is perfect, with string arrangements from Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones. This is one of the most significant albums of the 90s and holds up perfectly.
Mudhoney
3/5
To start with, the tracklisting on Spotify is very confusing. 'Superfuzz Big Muff' started as an EP, turned into an album (with previously released singles rounding out the tracklisting, and later turned into a deluxe edition with 20 additional songs and the order completely changed. If you want the original version only, focus on tracks 4 to 9. These are (in my opinion) the highlights of the entire release. Maybe the early singles were Mudhoney trying to find their sound. But among the EP tracks, you really hear the beginnings of the murky grunge sound. Kurt Cobain would have surely taken notice.
Digital Underground
2/5
I guess a humorous concept hip hop album was something of a novelty in 1990. I can see how this could have been pretty influential some other 90s artists, particularly Dr Octagon. It's not without its charm, but man, it really didn't age well. The non-stop obsession with sex is fairly cringeworthy. It has some genuinely good moments in the music, but it suffers from many songs and the album itself really outstaying its welome. Sorry but five songs are longer than 6 minutes and each of them desperately needed to be edited down. Amazingly, the cassette version is even worse, with extra songs and extended versions. The music just isn't good or interesting enough to warrant these lengths. A trimmed down version could have gotten 3 stars, but as it is, it was a slog to get through.
Astrud Gilberto
3/5
What an amazing voice. It's like silk and evokes the most relaxing beach vacation imaginable. It lacks any distinct hit like 'The Girl from Ipanema', but on the other hand, it's nice to hear Astrud Gilberto shine, following her separation from Joao Gilberto, the father of Bossa Nova. This is a great background record that lets you occasionally close your eyes and get swept up in the vocals and the sounds that recall Rio. I only wish they were a few more risks on there and make it stand out among the other Brazillian albums on this list. But I'll take it for her voice alone.
Beatles
5/5
'Rubber Soul' was the point where the Beatles took their first steps into the avant garde, but 'Revolver' is where they finally took a deep dive. It's such an interesting album. To the extent that that's not obvious, it's only because the Beatles set the precedent for decades of artists to follow. There are a lot of firsts here. This is the first album where the Beatles rejected touring and gave themselves the freedom to strength the limits of what the studio could do without pressure to ever play it live. It was their first time breaking from the endless cycle of quick recording, promotion, and touring, which gave them more time to devote to crafting the album. It was their first attempt (and maybe the first by any Western pop artist) to incorporate non-Western musical style. It was their first properly avant garde recording with 'Tomorrow Never Knows'.
The album is full to the brim with studio experiments which would later become standard practice among rock bands. They reversed tapes, doubled their vocals, and misused everything. They had the express goal of making sure that no instrument sounded like the instrument itself. Lyrically, they broke from their pasrt convention of poppy love songs, exploring drugs, death, politics, isolation, and love for mankind.
I have to admit that I always viewed 'Revolver' as more of a stepping stone between 'Rubber Soul' and 'Sgt Pepper'. I'm rethinking this now. While 'Sgt Pepper' is a bit more developed and cohesively, 'Revolver' is truly groundbreaking. So why doesn't it have the same level of fame? It seems that America had a lot to do with that. First was the (infuriating) tendency of Capitol Records to slice up the Beatles' albums and repackage them with different tracklisting. The idea of the album as an art form took a bit longer to reach the states, apparently. The American release of 'Revolver' left off three John Lennon tracks (previously released in a different America-only release). This greatly affected the sequencing of the entire thing. It would take 20 years before the original version was released in the states. Add to this, Lennon's comments about Jesus and Vietnam and you can see how the conservative wing of the US would try to turn kids away from The Beatles of 1966.
Whatever the case, people see to now be waking up the brilliance of 'Revolver', myself included. It's hard to really imagine it now, but it must have been revolutionary when first released. As one former fan put it, it's the point where the Beatles went stark raving mad. Luckily for the rest of us, they certainly did.
Jungle Brothers
3/5
Some uplifting 80s hip hop. The most obvious thing is how much this stands apart from the grittier hip hop that would soon dominate the genre. It's tempting to dismiss The Jungle Brothers as a lesser copy of De La Soul. But on closer listen, the music is different. It's got more funk, it's more danceable, and it's even got some influence from African music. But the Jungle Brothers never got the same level of fame. Maybe the lyrics come across as a little preachy at times. Maybe it's too eclectic for a genre that was only just being discovered. Maybe it was just bad timing. Either way, it's a great discovery and helps fill the gaps of upbeat 80s hip hop.
The War On Drugs
4/5
War on Drugs is one of those bands that I've always been curious about but never took the time to seek out. I guess I've been missing out! They cleared have picked some great influences to emulate and they pull it off well. The likes of Springsteen and Neil Young are here but with a heavy stadium pop/rock sound. I can see taste makers getting very excited about this band and then abandoning them for getting too mainstream. But those are often some of the best bands, able to straddle the line between underground and pop audiences. I also hadn't realised that Kurt Vile was part of this band (though not on this album). 'Lost in the Dream' has been a great find.
My Bloody Valentine
4/5
When shoegaze legends, My Bloody Valentine, released their first album in over two decades, there was a considerable amount of hype in the music press. And unless you really dislike shoegaze, it didn't disappoint. The opening tracks recall the band's famous past releases. The remainder of the album evolves their sound to more experimental stuff, apparently heavily inspired by drum n bass (which is a combination I wouldn't have imagined). Whether My Bloody Valentine deserves 3 spots on this list, I'm not sure. But it definitely was a pretty cool comeback.
Paul Revere & The Raiders
3/5
Earlier in the week I got The Beatles' 'Revolver' which was released in the same year as this album. What that seems to reveal to me is how far ahead of the game the UK was at this point (ignoring a handful of interesting artists like The Beach Boys). Maybe that's harsh but it does feel like Americans needed a year or two more to catch up (insert some joke about Paul Revere being the response to a British Invasion). Nothing against The Raiders in particular. It's fine, just not particularly interesting. It has a few good points though, especially 'I'm Not Your Stepping Stone' which is easily my favorite track here. Otherwise it's ok, if a little forgettable.
Christina Aguilera
4/5
It's hard to talk about Christina Aguilera without mentioning Britney Spears. They were both former Disney child stars who appeared on the bubblegum pop music scene in the late 90s. Both had the same sort of creepy manufactured, highly lucrative, innocent but sexualized school girl image. Spears kind of leaned into that image (no doubt under tremendous pressure from record labels and hoards of fans) but Aguilera broke free. It sounds surprising to me now that this album was considered risky at the time and panned by so many critics. This is the best kind of pop album. It's honest, diverse, and alive. The ballads are larger than life and balance out the other tracks. There's a lot happening here, including R&B, rock, salsa, hip hop and soul. It works because it doesn't stay in one place long enough to get boring. The lyrics don't shy away from sex but turn it into something empowering rather than encouraging objectification. In some ways, this album didn't just allow Aguilera to better define herself, but also helped to usher in the (thankful) end to the wave of Disney-bred bubblegum pop that was inescapable for a few years before it. It was hugely influential on a lot of later pop artists who wanted to do something a bit more interesting than simply fit into the old cookie cutter mold.
Bob Marley & The Wailers
5/5
I definitely can't claim to be an expert on reggae but 'Exodus' is a fantastic album. Written against the backdrop of political turmoil, an assassination attempt on Marley, and his departure from his native Jamaica for London, there's loads to focus on here. This is very likely the most famous reggae album internationally. Purists may say that it's not a true reggae album and that it incorporates elements of other styles. Maybe Bob Marley was ready to branch out, or maybe the sounds of London seeped into his music. Very likely, the album's popularity comes from these influences. But most people would agree that the album works. From start to finish, it is still the best reggae album out there for legions of fans.
k.d. lang
3/5
I can't pretend that I was very excited by the sound of country-influenced adult contemporary. But k.d. lang has put together a pretty decent album here with more going on than I expected. The opening tracks didn't move me much but I appreciate the stylistic shift of 'Miss Chatelaine', which sounds like it comes from an upbeat musical. The instrumentation on 'So Shall It Be' and 'Still Strives This Love' are striking and soulful. But 'Constant Craving' is very clearly the stand out track on the album. So much so that it's surprising that it's been left for the final track. I can't say that I loved the whole album but k.d. lang can clearly write some good songs.
Django Django
4/5
I'd often heard of these guys but never took the time to seek them out. This sounds like the album Beta Band could have released if they stayed together and were binging Animal Collective albums for 6 months. It's equal parts experimental, eclectic, and very poppy. It's just the right mix to be interesting and accessible at once. Take it too seriously and you risk being dismissed as a hipster. But just have fun with it and you'll have a great time.
Massive Attack
4/5
Ok, controversial review time. I love Massive Attack. I absolutely respect that this is universally seen as the start of trip hop as a genre. This is also the only Massive Attack album that had Tricky as an officially member, which is another massive plus. But 'Blue Lines' just never clicked with me. It sounded to me like an early sketch of what they'd later become. Yet, it's seen by so many as their classic album. I tried many times in the past to get into it, but I always ended up switching back to 'Protection' or 'Mezzanine' (by the way, why on earth isn't 'Mezzanine' on this list??).
But the 1001 Albums Challenge is a chance to try to listen to everything with fresh ears, right? And it's always a nice surprise when old albums come back to life in unexpected ways. And sure enough, there are some great songs that I've been neglecting here, like 'Blue Lines' and 'Five Man Army'. There are elements of rock, hip hop and reggae that come through a bit clearer than in their later work. Like the elements haven't quite melted together yet but they're well on their way. But ok, here's one of my most controversial takes in any of my reviews: 'Unfinished Sympathy' is not their best song. It's good, very good, but I still find it a bit overrated. Sorry to any fans!
Overall, this was well worth another listen. A bit more maturity in my musical tastes helped a lot. I can really see how this album was a launching point for a genre full of great artists and I really can't give less than 4 stars on that basis. But I will always maintain that 'Mezzanine' is their best album by a mile.
The Monks
5/5
Holy shit, everything about this album is amazing! A group of American soldiers stationed in West Germany just when the Germans were getting eager for American rock n roll. They were possibly the most free rock band on the planet at the time, benefitting from a language barrier that allowed them to access unimaginably dark lyrics and a budding German record industry that didn't quite know enough about commercial appeal to stop them experimenting with everything. The Beatles had to earn the right to experiment. The Monks were just in the right place at the right time. And thank god they were. This album is one of the most influential works in the history of recorded music. It immediately shaped the budding German rock scene.
Elastica
4/5
Ignoring the fairly blatant plagiarism, 'Elastica' is a great album. It really shows where new wave and post punk transformed into Brit Pop, but it does a far better job than most others. Blur is great but if I'm being honest, they don't have any albums that can match this one (although they have some amazing singles). There's so much variety and energy here. There's also loads of unmet potential if I'm being honest. With the right producer, this could have been an absolute classic and there are hints of greatness. It's all mixes well together but doesn't quite melt into one whole the way I'd like it to. Still, there's a lot to love here.
Morrissey
3/5
The consensus about this album seems to be "Morrissey is an awful person now, but he was so cool 30 years ago!" I'd like to challenge the second part of that narrative. The Smiths were obviously amazing, thanks in a very large part to the genius of Johnny Marr's songwriting. But Marr never wanted to be a frontman. Credit where credit's due, Morrissey has a unique singing style and had the ability to address bleakness is a distinctive way that has been a massive influence on indie rock. And sure enough, he kept that momentum going after The Smiths broke up. But Morrissey always needed others to write his music and is only ever as strong as his collaborators.
And let's also acknowledge that Morrissey has always been pretty insufferable as a person. We all just put up with it for decades because sure he was an asshole, but he was *our* asshole. It was only really when he turned from animal rights to embracing right wing racism that people turned on him (fair enough). The transition was already well underway by this point in history. His previous solo album, 'Your Arsenal' has hints of what was to come. 'Vauxhall and I' thankfully doesn't have much of this but many of these lyrics are still pretty cringeworthy. The Simpsons' parody of Morrissey sums him up perfectly with the song 'Everyone Is Horrid Except Me', which honestly could have been the name of this album.
Having said all of this, the music is a big improvement over the other Morrissey solo efforts on this lisy. Alain Whyte (who wrote most of the music) has really matured as a songwriter here. And despite Morrissey having his head up his own ass, there is at least nothing much here to remind me of his politics, which is a plus. If I forget about his personality for a moment, I actually kind of enjoyed a few of these songs. But let's be honest, this is not The Smiths.
Don McLean
4/5
Don McLean demonstrates a melancholy that sounds like a poppier version of Nick Drake. While I personally prefer Nick Drake's style, I will hand it to McLean that he crafted some classic songs on his brand of introspective calming ballads. Overplayed as they are "American Pie" and "Vincent" are still beautiful and tragic. The rest of the album continues in the same vein and would perfectly fit a lazy, rainy day at home.
Slipknot
3/5
Another great mystery on this list is why on earth it needs to include two albums by Slipknot. I received another one (the appropriately titled 'All Hope is Gone') only a few weeks ago and was actually surprised by how much I disliked it. Nu Metal had some occasional successes but still generally just feels cringeworthy to me. Having said that, Slipknot's debut is a bit better. It's still sounds like an angsty adolescent trying to imitate Cookie Monster on meth, and I can only roll my eyes at some of the lyrics. But some of the music is actually pretty decent. Particular praise goes to the drummer who's really carrying the album. Give me a different vocalist and cut out some of the filler, samples and scratches, and this would be a pretty good album. It's at least a hell of a lot better than the other album on this list.
Iron Butterfly
3/5
The title track (an alteration of "In the garden of Eden") is clearly one of the most famous examples of psychedelic rock out there. It's long sprawling 17 minute journey lets you get completely sucked into its strange and wonderful soundscapes. Nothing else sounds quite like it. It's like taking an acid trip in the middle of a cathedral. It's bizarre, unpredictable and yet grounded in vageuly religious imagery. Not many bands can get away with filling an entire side of an LP with a single song and make it their best one. But there's a reason that people tend not to talk about Iron Butterfly otherwise. The A side is fine, but nothing really special. Plenty of other bands of the era had more great songs. Although I'm usually loathe to award points based on a single song, it does at least cover a large portion of the album.
Femi Kuti
4/5
"Femi Kuti" is an uplifting afrobeat record from the son of the legendary Nigerian artist Fela Kuti. Based in London, Kuti incorporates Western (particularly jazz) influences to craft this album. The sound fits in extremely well to the World Music movement that was (arguably) started by David Bowie's "Lodger". The album is frantic, extremely danceable and larger than life. "Plenty Nonsense" indeed, in the best way possible!
Minutemen
4/5
I really don't get the connection to the hardcore scene on this album. The music is a lot more complex and varied than what I usually expect from that cookie cutter genre (my personal opinion). There's loads going on across the 43 tracks, including lots of influence from jazz, punk, and folk music. The album title is a rebellion against rebellion, declaring that outrage against national speed limits from the likes of Sammy Hagar were pointless. Drive 55 but make better music, they declared. And indeed they did. It's eclectic, bizarre and cool, but too niche to have ever gained mainstream popularity. The extreme length only really becomes a problem when we get the final side, called the Chaff side, which were seemingly leftovers to fill the record. Before that, this is a great record filled with gems that work together very well as a whole.
Culture Club
2/5
When I saw today's album, I briefly thought "Interesting. Maybe this will make a fan of Culture Club." By the third track, I'd given up hope for that. Absolute respect to Boy George as a person and trailblazer for acceptance of queer people in the world. And "Karma Chameleon" is still a fantastic song. But the rest just feels underwhelming and dated unfortunately. Fair enough that it was big in the 80s but 40 years later, it doesn't really hold up.
Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five
4/5
"The Message" is a slightly frustrating record for me. It's very dated but a hell of a lot of fun. Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five demonstrate what was happening in music when soul and funk were merging into early hip hop. The electro subgenre never really took off, but the marriage of rap and electronic music in the early years was really interesting and there are some great examples here, like "Scorpio" and "The Message". The frustrating thing for me is that they couldn't commit to it fully. The attempts at soulful ballads are fairly boring in comparison and the album could have been a lot stronger without them, albeit a bit short. A few lull points aside, I love this album. The lyrics are mostly positive (aside from a very unfortunate homophobic remark). That album cover is locked into a very particular time and place, but I don't care. It's great.
Neil Young
3/5
Right, I just don't get the way people worship Neil Young. I can see that he has had some amazing releases, including 'After the Gold Rush', 'Harvest', and his work with Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young. But so much else of his discography feels a bit flat to me, including much of what's on this generator. It's not bad exactly, and I appreciate that there's a very emotional backstory here, having known two people who died of overdoses shortly before. To quote one review, "[t]he record chronicles the post-hippie, post-Vietnam demise of counterculture idealism." I can see it and maybe that's why it doesn't resonate with me. It seems to fit into this depressive place between 60s and 70s culture using country music as a crutch to barely hold itself up. Well ok, I guess it's an interesting concept, but it's not one that resonates with me especially. "Come On Baby, Let's Go Downtown" is the highlight for me, and interestingly was written and sung by one of Young's lost friends. I also enjoyed "Mellow My Mind". After that, it's a bit too country for my liking but it's kind of interesting.
k.d. lang
3/5
I definitely didn't expect a second kd lang album in this generator and I'm not sure that it was really necessary. But as modern country goes, it's ok. Also pretty interesting that an androgynous woman had made such waves in a genre known for its conservatism. There are quite a few big names on here which would be exciting for country music fans but don't mean much to me. I don't love this one but she's got a good voice and there's nothing really to be offended by so I'm inclined to be kind.
The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
5/5
I absolutely love this one. It's like being punched in the face by blues, and I mean that as a very strong compliment. I do kind of get that that's just not going to be everyone's cup of tea. I'd probably be reluctant to play this one for many of my friends. But tell me that you love this and we can definitely hang out. It's abrasive, noisy, challenging and completely free. Add in a video directed by Weird Al Yankovic (!) which is bizarre and fun. The many bonus tracks are a bit of a slog though. The 45 minute audio assault is plenty on its own. It's great, but needs space to breath again after it. Otherwise, this album was great.
Otis Redding
4/5
Some classic songs by a classic voice. There is plenty here that will sound familiar to even casual music fans, from 'My Girl' and 'Respect' to 'Wonderful World' and 'Satisfaction'. Add in writing from Sam Cooke and music by Isaac Hayes. It's hard to deny that this is a great album.
White Denim
4/5
Wow, where have these guys been hiding? Never heard of this band but it's a very impressive outing! The music is complex without drowning out any elements. It's upbeat, humorous and triumphantly full of life. I need to keep relistening to fully absorb it all but I'm definitely a fan already.
KISS
2/5
Despite the band members being in their 20s, Kiss has always sounded like a midlife crisis to me. There's just something kind of embarrassing about it all. Maybe it's the whole rock n roll cunnilingus clowns shtick. Maybe it's the constant merchandising of absolutely anything, including the Kiss Coffin. Or maybe it's just the feeling that they seem to be taking Alice Cooper and Ozzy Osborne and ultra commercializing it all. It's kind of gold plated rock n roll. Sure, it sounds like the real thing but there's not much substance underneath it. Still, I was curious about this album. Love them or hate them, Kiss certainly made at least one extremely well known rock song. Sadly, it's not on this album (apart from a small snippet during the annoyingly long intro). And the rest is just so uninteresting. They enjoy parties, rock n roll, and money. Got it. The one attempt to write an emotionally potent song is about how women can't love them for them. All they care about is the stardom and the money and they don't know the real men. This is undercut by the real of the album where they offer no suggestion that they have any more depth than that. And by the song that came immediately before it where they make fun of a woman who actually did want a genuine relationship with one of them. Jesus christ...
I appreciate that the so-called Kiss Army has a lot of devotees. But I just can't.
Van Halen
4/5
\"1984\" is an impressive collection of songs, which really stretched the sound of Van Halen. The introduction of synthesizers was met with great reluctance by lead singer David Lee Roth, but most would agree now that it led to really classic songs that sat perfectly alongside the guitar driven tracks. What's great about this album is how no two tracks sound alike, but they all manage to work together as a whole. There's synth pop, metal, classic rock, and art rock, all merging together and with some chart topping hits coming out in full force. I absolutely hate the fact that a song called \"Hot for Teacher\" is great, but despite some cringing at the lyrics, the music is fantastic. \"I'll Wait\" is a surprising art rock piece along the lines of Talking Heads and the unexpected highlight for me.
There is a bit of filler on there if I'm honest. A few tracks are a bit forgetable, but the rest is classic.
The Cure
4/5
A goth classic from The Cure's darkest days. The music channels the self loathing soundscapes of Joy Division. Popular music is filled with musicians who wrote from a point of absolute despair. Sadly, not all come back from the brink. Thankfully Robert Smith stared into the abyss and was able to show us what was there before coming back and transforming yet again.
The Stooges
5/5
Today I learned that The Stooges debut album was produced by John Cale and man does that explain a lot. Iggy Pop and his band reached to all kinds of rock and roll influences, both contemporary and classic and imbued it all with a truly raw energy. The sound of the singles would later be called punk but we're not quite there yet. True to form, The Stooges produced only a few short tracks for their demo, insisting that they had more, and were given 5 days to record a whole album. With Cale's influence, tracks were torn apart and turned into long avant garde pieces to fit alongside the proto-punk tracks, sounding like a Velvet Underground for the non-art school kids. Pop would later revisit this kind of structure on his first solo albums, with help from Berlin-era David Bowie. This album helped pave the road for punk, with an extra lane open for the experimental post punk era that would come later. Anyone who likes punk and art rock will love this one. If not, steer clear.
Recommended additional listening: the unused John Cale mixes on the bonus editions.
Pet Shop Boys
3/5
I'm not very familiar with the Pet Shop Boys and oddly enough, I've gotten two of their albums this week. I've gone out of order so that I could start with the earlier album, "Actually". In contract, "Behaviour" doesn't have of the handful of PSB songs I knew, but it does display a more mature sound that I was expecting. There's an intense calmness to it that I really hear in songs like "This Must Be the Place I Waited Years to Leave", which is the best track in my opinion. There's more seriousness and orchestration in songs like "My October Symphony" and "Jealousy". If I'm honest though, it hasn't hit me in quite the same way as "Actually", at least so far. It may be one to revisit in the future, but on first exposure, it's a respectable 3 stars.
Holger Czukay
3/5
The former member of CAN channels his roots as a student of German avant garde master Karlheinz Stockhausen. Czulkay combines rock and pop with musique concrete and the budding world music genre, pulling sounds from global music scenes. It's an impressive mash up and took some underground ideas of the 70s further. It's not exactly inaccessible but it's not one that you'd play over and over, unless you're a student of modern music theory. In some ways, it's more interesting to think about than to listen to. It's cool for what it is, but I'd take CAN over this any day.
Pet Shop Boys
3/5
The Pet Shop Boys always struck me as a great band for when you wanted some synth pop but found Depeche Mode and New Order a bit too indie. They definitely lean just a little bit heavier on the pop side of things. It's slightly misleading until you take time to explore some of the lyrics though. A song like "Shopping" sounds like it should be the soundtrack to a date out at the mall. But dig a little deeper, and you find that it's really a critique of capitalism's influence on society, with special interests and lobbyists buying their way into power. "Actually" is full of darker moments like this, if only you can see past the dance styles of the music. The album's singles really stand out, particularly "It's a Sin", which sounds like Tears for Fears if they were injected with New Order's energy. One extra point for that song alone. I can't say that I loved every single equally and there is some filler. The slower songs don't work much for me. But there are some incredible 80s synth-pop songs throughout that make the album great.
The Pretty Things
3/5
"S.F. Sorrow" is an interesting enough album. Psychedelic in a similar vein to many of the greats from the genre. Most notably, it's considered one of the first rock operas, very similar to "Tommy" though The Who deny any influence. Truthfully, I never would have picked up on the fact that it's a concept album if I hadn't read it or tried to listen very closely to the lyrics. It doesn't work as well as other attempts by more famous bands but Pretty Things get credit for trying out the concept first. It's not a bad album and maybe it deserves more of my attention. But it's not one that was destined for fame, apart from the historical footprint it gets. It's cool for what it is.
A Tribe Called Quest
5/5
This is great and very close to what I expected from A Tribe Called Quest's more famous entry, \"Low End Theory\". That album suffered significantly (in my opinion) from a song about date rape. There's nothing so glaringly awful in \"People's Instinctive Travels\", despite some occasional womanizing. And man do I love this kind of hip hop. In their own words, they weren't trying to be tough, they just wanted to be. There is really skill in the use of samples here (some that would be impossible to clear now) and the marriage to the beats and lyrics. It's positive, it's self assured, it's funny, it's real. There's plenty more like this in the underground hip hop scene but this was a rare triumph in the mainstream.
Cyndi Lauper
3/5
Cyndi Lauper sure made some good earworms back in the day. Love it or hate it, those singles are infectious. And the whole album is also surprising. It feels like the moment when New Wave finally abandoned its post punk roots and took off as 80s pop music. It's a lot better than I expected.
On a side note, being a Weird Al fan as a kid introduced me to a lot of music but some songs just never recover his parodies. Cyndi Lauper is a strong example for me and it's hard to take it seriously now. Sorry Cyndi.
The Black Crowes
3/5
"Hard to Handle" is pretty catchy but the rest didn't do much for me. They strike me as a bar band who could have stuck to covers. Nothing really to hate here but all a bit forgettable in my opinion. It sounds like a cross roads between the 70s and 90s, skipping the 80s altogether. I see the appeal but I just didn't connect to most of the album.
Public Enemy
4/5
Public Enemy had their data stolen before completing this album the first time around, so this is the second attempt to put it altogether again. You would have though that the original version would have resurfaced by now somehow, and maybe one day it will. You can imagine it would be pretty demoralizing to have to start it all from scratch and indeed the music doesn't quite match the revolutionary energy of their previous releases. The production is more rushed and simplified, leading to a different kind of style. Public Enemy are always pretty good, particularly when you're angry with the world and just need to vent to some great beats. The album isn't their best, but it does have some unique moments and was likely influential due to its cleaner production.
Parliament
5/5
There's a lot to love about this album. George Clinton is like a caricature of himself, but it adds to his personal charm. He embodies funk in a way that even the greats can't manage to do. James Brown was a great performer but he maybe took himself too seriously. Clinton on the other hand, dared to imagine and dream and present visions that others would have never dared to let themselves think. Why the hell shouldn't a funk album be a blueprint for equality where African Americans can become the bravest astronauts that ever lived? The Afrofuturism may have almost sounded silly but it's too inspiring not to love. Packaged in a fantastic, feelgood album with some great performers, and Parliament more than earned their place on this list. Just try to have a bad time while listening to "Mothership Connection".
Gene Clark
5/5
To paraphrase another reviewer, "No Other" sounds like what Graham Parsons set out to do, combining country and rock into a "cosmic" new genre. Only Gene Clark did it a hell of a lot better in my opinion. I find it hard to believe that this album was a commercial and critical failure in its time and Clark's lifetime. It's a great find.
Miriam Makeba
4/5
It's amazing how well this album holds up today, 65 years after its release. For many Westerners this was the first exposure to African music at the time and it's easy to see why. The music comes through powerfully, and sounds like the band is playing in your living room. Not bad for an non-Western record from 1960. There are bit and pieces that sound a bit familiar now but would have very novel to the early audiences. In addition Makeba may have been an ambassador the anti-apartheid movement, long before it became mainstream and eventually changed South Africa for future generations.
Milton Nascimento
5/5
Brazil is pretty heavily featured on this list. Outside of the English-speaking world, it's possibly the most represented country on here. Or maybe that's just my impression based on the relatively little information I had on that music scene previously. Now I've heard Brazillian samba's influence on American jazz, the Tropicalia movement's rejection of both traditionalism and right-wing dictatorship, and Jorge Ben's Afro-Brazillian style, seeming to be a representation of thinking of the "Global South".
But Milton Nascimento is completely new to me. My impression listening to this collection is that Nascimento and his main collaborator Lô Borges took the energy and Western-influence of Tropicalia and attempted to turn it into a real joy of playing with no political aim. Of course, under a dictatorship, most actions are political, whether you want them to be or not and they still faced trouble from authorities in releasing this album, due to the cultural restrictions and the influence from non-Brazillian artists like The Beatles. This is simply the Street Corner Club playing for the sheer love of it, in spite of the dictator, not as a reaction to him. I find it hard to explain what is so special about this album. Stylistically, it's all over the place. It's long and sprawling, yet some songs really sound incomplete. But the spirit of the performances really comes through and you can imagine a group of friends playing on the street corner, only for the love of it.
Orbital
4/5
I've always kind of liked this album. It's a bit like electronic music that doesn't quite belong in the club or in the bedroom, but exists just out in the world somewhere. Orbital craft some pretty interesting sounds that tell a story. I'd argue that it's not their best work, but it was the first album that married dancefloor techno with a poppier kind of ambient. For me, their previous album "Orbital 2" had the best hits. Their follow up album "Insides" is where they really hit their stride, but "Snivilisation" set the blueprint for it first. It takes a bit more time to think about and it works best as a whole experience, complete with subtle bits of social commentary reflecting the political end of rave culture, effectively setting the sounds out into the larger world.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
4/5
From what I've heard of Nick Cave, he seems to be at his best when he's experienced devastating life events and he's certainly had no shortage of them. I can't imagine having to bury two of your children, let alone one. "The Boatman's Call" is a heartbreak album though, following the end of his relationship with PJ Harvey. It's bleak, completely stripped down to the core, and also beautiful. "Into My Arms" is such a strong opener that it's difficult to get past it. But the entire album is somber and perfect for when you just need to feel sad and apart from the world, as any good break-up album should be.
Bruce Springsteen
4/5
I grew up hearing Bruce Springsteen, but was never exposed to this full album. I've only ever heard the single "Atlantic City" because it was on the (excellent) Greatest Hits compilation. It's the best song by a mile, so fair enough, but the whole album is an interesting part of Springsteen's discography. As always, he paints pictures of the joy and despair of working class America. What makes "Nebraska" interesting is that it's recorded without the E Street Band, based mostly on the original demos. It makes the entire thing feel more stark and sad. The characters in the songs feel a bit lonelier. The towns feel emptier, like it's the break of dawn and you've been out all night with no where to go. The sun has risen, but only a handful of disparate people are awake because they have to be.
I can't call it Springsteen's best album, but it certainly stands out against his better known anthems and gives a reprieve. You don't need to feel the excitement of "Glory Days". You can just be.
The Who
4/5
Compared to later Who albums, these sound like humble origins. It's amazing to think that "Tommy" came out only 4 years after this debut and sounds completely different. "My Generation" is particularly impressive because it could have had a spot on this list even if they've never released anything else. The Who literally declared themselves the voice of a generation and came out swinging rougher than most of their contemporaries. The Rolling Stones are maybe the closest comparison, but The Who were more abrasive, eclectic and interesting. It's a strong debut album for a band that would achieve monumental heights within a few years.
Joni Mitchell
5/5
I thought that I'd completely understood Joni Mitchell's music before, but this one really surprised me. It's poetry, folk, jazz and avant garde all mixed together. This album is like a flower that keeps blooming and unfolding completely new and different layers with each listen. It should be jarring to shift between the different styles so abruptly. But it kind of works, particularly in a song like "Harry's House / Centerpiece" which really is two different songs stuck together but I still love it. I like "Blue" ok. "Court and Spark" was interesting, but not my favorite. "The Hissing of Summer Lawns" really hit a cord with me though. Enough that I probably need to revisit the others sometime.
SAULT
5/5
Remember 2020? A lot of us would really rather not. The year was dominated by a global pandemic, rolling lock-downs, social distancing, face masks, and politicalization of vaccines. But that wasn't the only thing happening. 2020 was a massive year for the Black Lives Matter movement, with cities all over the US seeing demonstrations and demands to end systematic racism within police and justice systems. You couldn't ask for a better musical representation for that time than SAULT. There's anger and outrage of course, but SAULT were different from popular African American voices that came before them. Public Enemy were angry. Parliament envisioned a future where black people had achieved a level of equality where they got to be astronauts and politicians. What's different in "Untitled (Black Is)" are the feelings of hope, love, beauty and solidarity, that sit comfortably alongside justifiable outrage. The world is broken, but we're determined to change it. It's not merely dreaming, but taking to the streets and demanding a new world that is possible. It's just a fantastic album all the way through and it really captures the spirit of that movement, motivated by both justice and love.
John Grant
4/5
I hadn't heard of John Grant or his previous band, The Czars, before, but it's a great find. Members of the band Midlake supported this album in more ways than one, contributing to the music, but also by bringing Grant out of his early retirement from music. The music is both dreamy and dreadful, representing Grant's soul and struggles of his youth as a young gay man in a community that loathed his true identity. As an adult, he seems more self-assured in who is, but also tortured by the formative memories of his youth. The music drifts up into space-faring ballads that could sit alongside the links of 70s singer-songwriters, just as comfortily as it could next to The Flaming Lips. This album has the potential to really grow on me.
Deep Purple
3/5
Oh dear God, another live double album. I like Deep Purple. They're fun, they play well. They're kind of ridiculous in a great way, as evidenced by the song "Space Truckin'". But we already got two very similar albums from them, which cover five out of the seven of the songs on this live release so it really screams "filler" for this list. But ok, let's dive in.
Ok, the band can obviously play a great show. The long interpretations of the songs sound like they would have been great to see live. For all of the emphasis on audio quality though, it's surprising how many mistakes are present, but maybe the quality overall was impressive for the time it was made. It's great for what it is, but as I often find with live albums, I just feel like I'm listening to other people have fun. I'll stick with the studio versions myself.
Hole
4/5
I've never really understood the fame of Courtney Love and honestly always kind of suspected that her success was mainly to do with the people who she surrounded herself with. That's not as much as a criticism as it sounds. If someone can select the right people to create the art they want and it works, then why not? But in my limited experience listening to Hole, I just wasn't connecting to it. Hole's other album here, "Celebrity Skin" was kind of interesting but didn't really stick with me if I'm being honest.
"Live Through This" is a refreshing change though. The album was plagued by accusations that Kurt Cobain secretly wrote it, despite having very little to do with its creation (Cobain does some barely noticable backing vocals on two tracks). It's an enormous compliment to Love that those rumors persisted as she really does seem to be channeling Nirvana here, much more so than other Hole albums. It's the blend of pop and sheer grit that Cobain made famous. The themes of feminism and subverted concepts of beauty would have fit perfectly alongside her late husband's work. But the album compliments Nirvana more than it imitates, displaying more anger than disaffectedness. It shows another side to the Olympia grunge scene during its peak.
Hole would later change focus to themes of Hollywood and celebrity, seeming to reveal in its own emptiness. In retrospect, it seems like a natural move from the bleak suburban world of "Live Through This". But this is still the better album in my opinion.
The Temptations
4/5
I confess that I knew The Temptations primarily as the group that sang "My Girl", a poppy, feelgood R&B track that's a staple of wedding reception PowerPoint montages. But in fairness, it's a classic song and it's popular for a reason.
I really didn't expect what was coming on "All Directions" though. The music had evolved significantly, expertly crafted and incorporating a wide variety of musical styles. The Temptations seem to have abandoned their clean cut style in favor of a more contemporary look. The (sometimes) sickly sweet, radio-friendly lyrics have been replaced by loss and a fierce social consciousness. The band may have felt like they went too far with "Run Charlie Run", but they certainly left their mark. What an interesting development from their early successes to this deep and varied album.
The Undertones
3/5
The Undertones sound like they existed on the cusps of classic punk rock and early New Wave. At times it sounds more like The Ramones and at others, it almost resembles early Talking Heads. The songs are very short, doing what they need to do and then ending as quick as possible. That could sound exciting, energetic, or frustrating. In this album it's a bit of all three. The Undertones seem to have paved the way for some of the pop punk bands that would take a similar approach in the early 2000s. It's an ok album with a few stand out tracks. But ultimately, for punk, post-punk or new wave, there are better options out there.
Thelonious Monk
4/5
This is one of those albums that's probably a lot more interesting than I can really appreciate. If you know any music theory, the complexity of these songs, particularly the title track probably means a lot more. I can recognize that it's impressive and ahead of its time but I don't have the vocabulary to explain why. The novelty of the style is probably reflected in the incredible difficulty that he faced trying to get other musicians to play is correctly. But how do you communicate a sound that hasn't been heard before? Despite my lack of knowledge here, I still really enjoyed listening and trying to think about it all.
Simon & Garfunkel
5/5
The breakthrough album from Simon and Garnfunkel so had a string great singles before this. "PSR&T" really sees them mature as songwriters, Paul Simon in particular. There's a great mix of songs, many of which build up over 2 or 3 minutes before cutting off, leaving you wanting more and then shifting into something different. It keeps the music fresh and interesting. The social commentary of "Silent Night" does outweigh the actual music but it does create a good juxtaposition from being calm and happy to depressing news coverage. My only slight complaint is that there's a lot of recycled elements from previous releases but they seem to have really refined their sound. It's an incredible piece of folk music history.
Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark
5/5
I've been curious about this album for a long time and wow, it's impressive. My first impression was Gary Numan meets The Smiths, but as it goes on, I really hear more Brian Eno and NEU. This is definitely an album that deserves to be heard in its entirely, and multiple times, as the whole thing really opens up the more you listen. The choral religious influences lift the synth pop style into new territory and forms a template for many 80s bands to come. But it's also balanced out by some really beautiful and interesting ambient music. It's a very influential album on a lot of artists and I can now see why. I'll absolutely be spending a lot of time with this one.
Ladysmith Black Mambazo
4/5
The World Music scene really hit its stride in the 80s. It's a strange genre as it's essentially a catch all term for most kinds of traditional non-Western styles, which is a pretty massive generalization. But for most Western audiences, the category does make sense as a way into different cultures. The backing of more familiar artists, like Paul Simon (who both collaborated with the group and produced this album) helps to make it feel more accessible. Then it's up to the power of the artists themselves to hold our attention. Ladysmith Black Mambazo certainly did manage to make some beautiful with this opportunity. Their harmonizing produces some great sonic depth for these songs. It's also quite refreshing to hear an a cappella album on this list. It might not be one I'd turn to often, but I hope to remember this album one day when I'm craving a change from my usual Spotify rotation.
Destiny's Child
2/5
In retrospect, Destiny's Child really seems like it was also the launching pad for Beyonce's career. It feels obvious as her father managed the band around a revolving door of group members, often with pretty bad blood between them. But really, this was the album that Beyonce first shined on, producing and writing most of the tracks. And arguably, it contains some of the most famous songs, including "Survivor" and "Bootylicious". All of the hits are tacked on right at the beginning. The singles were catchy and popular, and generally focused on women's empowerment and redefining beauty standards. That's really what makes the fourth track "Nasty Girl" particularly hard to listen to. The music is fine, but the slut shaming really undermines the message of the rest of the album and is a low point here.
The rest of the album was an unknown to me going in. I expected a lot of filler, but there actually are some decent tracks throughout, particularly in the middle of the album. "Apple Pie a la Mode" and "Happy Face" stand out to me as good pop songs with a slight avant garde edge to them, though I suspect that they're generally skipped. The album ends with more ballady songs, which don't do much for me. Overall, "Survivor" has some serious flaws but just about works as a good pop album. It feels a bit harsh, but I think "Nasty Girl" knocks this down a point.
Underworld
5/5
To me, Underworld always represented the sound of a very late night, when adrenaline first starts to give way to exhaustion. It's like having been in the club until 2am, and heading home on the train (or God forbid, a late night bus through London). The excitement of the evening lingers but the rough edges of the city at night also creep in. The stream of consciousness lyrics represent the inevitability of real life after the escapist hedonism of the evening. It eventually leads right into a hopefully restful sleep but your mind is still going a mile a minute.
If the music sounds overly repetitive, you may be missing a lot. Like a lot of the genre, "Second Toughest in the Infants" does rely heavily on a steady rhythm necessary for a trance-like state, suitable for dancing, travel or sleep (or in some places, religious experiences). But Underworld give you a lot more as well including rich ambient textures, waves of acoustic guitar, complex song structures, and introspective lyrics. Underworld, along with a handful of other 90s groups, were techno for the art house crowd.
This album marked the second release from Underworld's MK2 phase. Having tried, without much success, to form a synth pop band, Rick Smith and Karl Hyde's bandmates quit and the group fell apart for a while. When the two finally recruited DJ Darren Emerson, they resurrected Underworld and focused on a new sound influenced but distinctly apart from the London rave scene. The three albums recorded as a trio are considered the peak of the band's career and any one of them could have made this list. "Second Toughest in the Infants" is possibly their most cohesive effort, even if it doesn't have any of their most well known songs. It was released shortly after they'd contributed two songs to the movie Trainspotting, marking the start of a partnership with director Danny Boyle that would eventually see Underworld playing the opening ceremony for the London Olympics. Quite a journey from the struggling synth pop band that nearly called it quits in the 80s.
Screaming Trees
3/5
Screaming Trees sound like someone tried to mash up Nirvana with U2. It's a noble effort that falls short of both. There are loads of nods to classic rock mixed in, with elements of The Beatles and Pink Floyd evident. It's not a bad album at all. But if this is being classified as grunge, then it's grunge that trying very hard to find a wider audience and a far cry from the authencity of Nirvana. That said, it's enjoyable enough.
Fairport Convention
4/5
Listening to this album, it's particularly striking how different American folk music is from British folk music. Whereas the American tradition sometimes recalls images of migrating farmers during the Dust Bowl or working class people during the Depression, the British version goes back much further. Pre-Victorian era and even the Middle English period, as showcased by the album title. Given the comparatively long history, it makes sense. The celtic roots of the British Isles are still evident in the traditional compositions. But like Bob Dylan before them, Fairport Convention don't shy away from incorporating electric guitars into traditional compositions. They even dabble in some psychedelia.
I've yet to hear Fairport Convention's "Unhalfbricking" but I understand that it's a more modern take, with more influence from Dylan. "Liege & Lief" is meant to be their real traditionalist take on British folk music. It inspired loads of other artists, but truthfully, it's a very niche sub-genre. But if you're going to listen to electricified traditional folk, you could do a lot worse than Fairport Convention.
Steely Dan
4/5
What on earth do I do with Steely Dan? On one level, they're soft rock that would fit in a dentist's waiting room. On another, they're very good musicians and they incorporate a heavy avant garde influence into their songwriting. For the last two albums on this generator, I balanced these out and gave a respectable 3 stars. But Steely Dan is wearing me down and I fear that I'm slowly becoming a fan, despite my instincts that it's too Dad Rock for my taste. Maybe "Can't Buy a Thrill" is just that much better than the others. It's certainly a great debut album. The band has the complexity and polished sound of a group that's been together for years. But if I'm being honest with myself, I've had the creeping sense for a while that maybe Steely Dan is better than I want to admit. It's not a favorite but I can actually really enjoy them. Maybe one day I'll go back to give the other albums another chance. For now, I'm happy enough with "Do It Again", "Dirty Work", and "Reelin in the Years". All great songs.
OutKast
4/5
Outkast were one of the coolest hip hop groups out there and "Stankonia" was their breakthrough album. They really took their time with this one and allowed the ideas to develop and diversify. There's a very eclectic mix of styles here, including electronic music, rock and gospel, but it's firmly held together by hip hop. Outkast were also trailblazers in the Southern hip hop movement. Before this, most big names in the genre would have been localized to New York and California, the two coasts that dominated hip hop and famously opposed one another. On top of all that, Outkast stood out for having more progressive attitudues about women than many of their contemporaries. Women in these songs are mothers, daughters, and partners to be valued. They're also sometimes victims of systematic sexism and Outkast calls on us to be allies.
And through all of the social messages, experimentation, and representation of their region, the music is also just fun and catchy. Although they weren't at the level of "Hey Ya!" just yet, it's easy to catch yourself singing along to songs like "Ms Jackson" and "So Fresh, So Clean".
Living Colour
3/5
"Vivid" is good enough example of heavy funk rock. You can see them being incredibly cool in the 80s. It's still a good album, but it doesn't exactly stand above the crowd, save a few songs. "Cult of Personality" is still undeniably catchy. The two songs that are oddly missing from Spotify ("Desperate People" and "Broken Hearts") are some of the stronger tracks. Dig into the album credits a bit and you'll find some surprising names like Mick Jagger and Chuck D, further suggesting that this band was pretty big during their heyday. But a lot of the album feels like its shine has dulled by the passage of time and doesn't really hold up today. I accidentally let the album continuing playing into the bonus tracks and found a remix featuring Prince Paul to be my favorite song. There's still something kind of great about Living Color, but I think it's more nostalgia (and one very strong single) than anything now.
Supergrass
4/5
Supergrass's best known song famously declares "We are young. We run free." That tells you a lot about what to expect from the rest of the album. There are intense bursts of energy throughout, and a freeom that comes with a youthful lack of self-consciousness. In other bands, that could border on pretention, but Supergrass just sound like they want to have fun and hope you do too. It's a great debut and "Alright" is a classic teenage anthem. I have to agree with other reviewers that I prefer this to the majority of Brit pop acts from this period, particularly because you can actually dance to this stuff. I'd argue that their follow up album "In It for the Money" is a significant development in their sound. But this is still a pretty damn fun debut.
Echo And The Bunnymen
5/5
Echo and the Bunnymen departed from the gloomy, isolated rock of their previous album, "Porcupine". That release felt like it existed within someone's depression. "Ocean Rain" in contrast, is huge and cinematic, without losing the dark edge. It's like coming out of the winter into a rainy but beautiful spring time. Arguably, it's their best album and contains some of their best songs like "The Killing Moon" and "Seven Seas". But there's loads of experimental and diverse elements as well, which flow perfectly through the entire album. It took me some time to really appreciate Echo and the Bunnymen. If the other albums on this list got me interested but this one made me a fan.
Bebel Gilberto
4/5
In the early 2000s, there was a movement where a large portion of trip hop music drifted so completely into lounge, soft jazz, and similar music that it's indistinguishable from the real thing, except for the odd additional synth sounds. Case in point with "Tanto Tempo". Bebel Gilberto enlisted Serbian-born electronic artist, Suba, to produce it. The album also samples another electronic artist, Amon Tobin (an old favorite of mind). But you could very easily miss all of that and just hear it as a simple bossa nova record. The electronic elements are (for the most part) extremely subtle, suggesting that Suba turned his skills from crafting songs to impressive production work. It showcases Gilberto's beautiful voice and a long tradition of Brazillian music. Suba's dedication to this music went quite a bit further, as he actually gave his life to save it from a burning studio.
Frustratingly, this album isn't on Spotify, though you'll find the majority of songs from other releases, with a handful missing.
The Dandy Warhols
4/5
"The Dandy Warhols Come Down" has the distinction of being (as far as I can tell), the oldest album to have ever been removed from this list. Most releases past 2000 have been safe from revisions since the first edition of book. It's a shame because it's actually a pretty great album. I would struggle to think of any reason why it particularly needs to be on this list but I can also think of a lot of better ones to remove. Fortunately it's still in the generator.
I'm surprised how much I enjoyed this one. The first person who ever told me about The Dandy Warhols described them as an emo band and I'm afraid I've been dismissing them ever since. Art rock would be a better description with elements of Sonic Youth, Nirvana, 90s indie rock and classic rock. The singles are all incredibly catchy and there's not a bad track on here. I'm sorry that I've been sleeping on this one so long. It's a great find.
Prince
5/5
This feels like the point where Prince really became Prince. The sound can be described as heavy funk synth-pop. It's been called the beginning of the Minneapolis sound, but really can you name any other artist apart from Prince who demonstrates that style? More importantly, this is a defining sound of the 80s, a decade characterized by very loud colors and sounds. It's vibrant, fun, sexy and a little dangerous all at once. Who would have expected one of the best dance hits of the 80s, and a staple of New Year's Eves parties ever since, to be a song about the dangers of nuclear war? The whole album is a blast and really cements Prince as an incredible artist.
Tangerine Dream
5/5
These are some harsh reviews for such an incredible album. Tangerine Dream were at the cutting edge of electronic music and the German rock scene that would strive to reject tradition wherever possible. They looked to avant-garde and academic circles to see what else was possible. But calling this academic-inspired electronic music doesn't do it justice. It's the post-war uncertainty and bleakness that comes through, and probably more so than from the likes of Kraftwerk or Can. Tangerine Dream were facing the future with a sense of fear but unwilling to look back. You hear it in the very rich ambient soundscapes of this album.
Unlike Eno's ambient that could be listened to or ignored, "Phaedra" sounds like it wants to invade your dreams. The Moog synthesizer is on full display here, and pushed to the absolute limits of the technology available at rhe time. Tangerine Dream would spend three hours a day getting the sound just right, followed by 12 hours of recording, pushing themselves to the limit as well. The synthesizers would overheat and the change in pitch would cause the music to warble in real time. Today, you could easily pre-set a synthesizer to cut back a lot of work. However, the limitations are what makes the album uniquely human and eerie. This is the stuff of very strange dreams and alien landscapes. It's beautiful and really holds up well today.
Emmylou Harris
3/5
It's pretty interesting that Harris took her first stab at writing the majority of her own music so late in her career. And why not? She'd been covering other artists for decades before this. Yet there's a certain vulnerability with putting your own literal voice against your own literal voice. It's a good album, with a lot of powerful messages. The blend of country and folk, set against the heavy, slow drums works well. It's Harris's voice that really carries the album, as with her past ones, but it's really not a bad effort at all even without that. It's not one that I'd return to much, but I still enjoyed it.
Traffic
4/5
I find it incredible that this album came out in 1968. Traffic seemed to be a good few years ahead of the 70s rock scene. Already they were taking psychedelic rock and blending it with complex structures, jazz, and a diverse range of instruments. What's impressive is how accessible it all is. How does an album with so many layers manage to include such a good single as "Feeling Alright?" There are hints of Steve Winwood's synth-layered jazz that would come later as well. I've been pleasantly surprised by how much I've come to enjoy Traffic, though I liked "John Barleycorn Must Die" a bit more.
Radiohead
5/5
"OK Computer" is simply a classic album, one of the greatest of all time, and you could make a strong argument that it's the best album of the 90s. It's sometimes derided as overrated, possibly due to Thom Yorke's voice, which some people describe as "whiny". But I'd really encourage any doubters to take deep dive into this album to understand what makes it so special.
Their previous album "The Bends" landed somewhere between grunge and Brit Pop, and was extremely popular, despite the introspective and often depressing lyrics. There was massive pressure on the band to recreate more of the same. It probably would have worked but it might have severely stunted their art. They wisely tried to do the exact opposite, starting with Thom Yorke attempting to make a happier album (you can hear hints of this in some b-sides and unreleased tracks, like "I Promise"). That direction was perhaps corrupted by requests from others to write songs about the Bosnian war and the final tragic scene of Romeo and Juliet ("Lucky" and "Exit Music", respectively). The majority of the album certainly doesn't sound as happy as Yorke intended. Contrary to what the critics say, this isn't an album about whining. It's not about themselves. It's social commentary and pre-millenium tension. It's a deep paranoia that we trust our lives to computers to automate live, consumerism to make us comfortable (if disconnected), politicians to fix problems, airbags to save our lives, etc. A huge part of why "OK Computer" became so successful is that these feelings really resonated with people of the late 90s and continue to now.
Musically, Radiohead evolved rapidly here from their previous work. Whereas "The Bends" was essentially poppy indie rock and a product of that time, "OK Computer" was a like a real love of music. The diverse influences on this album will look very familiar to anyone in the middle of the 1001 Albums Challenge. Among many others: DJ Shadow, Queen, Can, Portishead, Marvin Gaye, and many others. Their styles are woken together into something completely different from all of them, a masterpiece inspired by many masterpieces before them. It's full of experimental techniques, electronics, feedback loops, live recordings, and musique concrete. While Radiohead deny that it was a concept album, the music definitely evokes a feeling of night time urban landscapes, populated by overworked people, insomniacs, technology beyond our control, and aliens attempting to make sense of what they see. The band opted to record in the countryside and it seems to have given them an objective view of the cities they were trying to escape, filled with desperate attempts to solve loneliness through consumerism. They shine a light on it, as if to say "No, it's not just you. You're not alone. We all think this is rubbish."
Maybe that sounds depressing to some but it can also be extremely comforting. Nearly 30 years after its release, "OK Computer" remains a powerful document of its era.
George Jones
2/5
I've tried a few times throughout this challenge but I am just not a fan of honky tonk country. I don't know why. It's fine but just not that interesting. I guess the focus of a lot of country music is the sorrowful, expressive vocal performances, often about heartache. I kind of get it. It's very human and George Jones certainly can bellow out a performance about loss, likely aided by his actual divorce. And I mean, there are some joyful moments too.
Yesterday I got a Radiohead album and a lot of the reviews were complaining about it being depressing and whiny. But Thom Yorke does more than his share of interesting social commentary through those lyrics. But honky tonk country so often just sounds like it's drowning in its own self-pity. That's probably an unfair comparison but I can't help thinking about that juxtaposition of albums this week.
I can't deny George Jones' abilities as a vocalist to convey sorrow and loss. But this just isn't for me.
Common
4/5
I like Common quite a lot. The music is tight, soulful, jazz and exactly as subtle as it needs to be. The lyrics are powerful and socially conscious. But I have to admit that anything with Kanye West's name attached is a little hard to listen to. I'm trying to be objective and remember that this was before he came out as an extreme right-wing racist conspiracy theorist. And I can completely see why people loved his production work. Even when it's a little gimmicky (like the "chipmunk soul" style), it still works. So I'm going to ignore present day Kanye and say that he and Common made an amazing pair on this album.
Nirvana
5/5
A few days ago (at the time of this writing), Nirvana reunited for a benefit show for the people affected by the 2025 LA fires. In place of Kurt Cobain was a lineup of female vocalists, including St Vincent, Kim Gordon and Joan Jett. It's universally accepted that Cobain would have loved that.
The performce on MTV's Unplugged holds up as an amazing album, three decades on. The MTV show itself was largely forgettable, apart from this show. Big name bands playing to a small audience (if I remember correctly, most music industry people) acoustic (more or less) versions of all of their hits. Nothing wrong with it, aside from being a bit gimmicky. Nirvana didn't really belong on the show, but they were massively popular at the time and it was a no-brainer for the network's programming department. High energy noisy grunge stripped down to its bare bones would surely have gotten viewers. But Nirvana weren't ones to follow the formulas. The producers were completely confused by the lack of well-known singles. No "Smells Like Teen Spirit", no "Heart Shaped Box". Aside from "Come As You Are" and "All Apologies", all but the most devoted fans might have scratched their heads at the song selection. The room was staged to resemble a funeral, in sharp contrast to the usual lively enviroment there. Add in some obscure covers as well. Even the David Bowie one was a fairly deep cut (later to be made famous again by this very performance). Further frustrating MTV executives was the choice of guest stars. Given their fame, most artists would have leapt at the chance to perform with Cobain and company for a live television performance. Instead, Cobain used the opportunity to sneak his obscure friends the Meat Puppets onto a prime time show.
"Unplugged" more than any other album, really showed the potential that Nirvana had. If Kurt Cobain was still around, we can only imagine where his music might have gone next, but we get a very good hint here. There's a narrative of increasingly noisy grunge and experimental rock from "Bleach" through "In Utero". But the real punk spirit isn't about being loud and fast. It's about subverting expectations and avoiding marketability when it starts to feel too predictable. There were clearly a lot of interesting ideas floating around Cobain's head. Unfortunately, there were also too many dark ones which would eventually win out. Even this performance nearly didn't happen, as he'd been suffering from bounds of depression and had recently been in too difficult a space to perform. But he did, and it ended up being a final gift to fans, that showed just what he was capable of. If only he'd stayed with us longer to see what was next.
Queen
5/5
Queen don't get the credit they deserve as an album band. And I can understand why. Their greatest hits collection is pure gold and many fans are content to stop there. But there's a lot going on besides the hits. "Sheer Heart Attack" is a great example. Aside from "Killer Queen", these are pretty much all deep cuts. But it's an incredible collection, particularly noteworthy as it marks a transition for the band from fantasy-influenced prog rock to larger than life stadium rock band. The early prog stuff is sometimes dismissed for not sounding very Queen-like but it clearly laid a foundation for their later and it's clearly present here, among the poppier stuff. "Pop" here is no dirty word. Queen understood the best parts of pop music without falling into the pitfalls of formulaic, mass-produced, easily marketable content. They're clearly pushing boundaries here and having an amazing time doing it.
The thing about "Sheer Heart Attack" is that jt sounds best listened to as a whole. As great as "Flick of the Wrist" is, it works best between "Tenement Funster" and "Lily of the Valley". It keeps this album as something of a hidden secret, because they also offer you loads of very easily accessible singles, mostly found elsewhere. But given the chance, there's absolutely nothing to dislike about this album. It sounds effortlessly great from start to finish.
David Bowie
5/5
Bowie's Ziggy Stardust period spanned four albums. After the first one launched to rock star status, he was faced with the classic musician's dilemma: how to follow up the breakthrough album. He was torn between doing Ziggy Part 2 and changing styles again. He ended up doing something in between. Aladdin Sane was partly a new character, but really was an adaptation of Ziggy. For some parts of the album, you'd be forgiven for dismissing it as a continuation of the narrative.
Bowie called the album "Ziggy Stardust Goes to America" and there's a lot more to that idea than it may sound. America is a massive influence here and marked the beginning of a long fascination with the country. People may have found Ziggy strange when he landed in England, but he first experienced dizzying culture shock himself when he came to the US. Not only was Bowie touring extensively to his newfound audience there, but he worked during this period on albums from Lou Reed and The Stooges. This is all reflected back in an album obsessed with stardom, movies, racial tension, and urban decay. The music also draws on various American styles, like doo-wop and jazz. While it's still predominantly a glam rock album, it veers into area that other glam bands would never have dared. Particularly important here was the addition of pianist Mike Garson, whose works really shines on several tracks. The title track alone begins like a smoke filled jazz lounge, and deteriotates into a paranoid breakdown. The whole album is much darker, heavier and more experimental than it's predecessor. Save for a few tracks, it's also less accessible, but much more accomplished.
The biggest criticism is the unnecessary Rolling Stones' cover "Let's Spend the Night Together". It doesn't quite fit the rest of the album and could have been swapped with the non-album track, "John, I'm Only Dancing". But it's a very small issue for an otherwise revoluntary album. This the moment when Bowie proved himself as a force who could continue to evolve.
Buck Owens
3/5
I really wasn't excited about this one based on the cover. A band called the 'Buckaroos' lead by a white guy looking like a used car salesman in a white studded jacket. The image screamed mediocre honky tonk. It was much better than I expected and represented a bridge between traditional country and rock n roll, that would heavily influence the sound of Johnny Cash and other outlaw country stars. For my money, that's the more interesting side of the country music genre and credit where credit is due to Owens to pioneering the Bakersfield sound. I'd personally take Johnny Cash over this by a wide margin, but to my surprise, I really didn't hate the Buckaroos.
Björk
5/5
Bjork has a reputation (unfairly, I'd argue) for making music that's too weird. So I imagine that the idea of an a capella album from her will make more than a handful of people groan. If that's you, I'd urge you to put aside your preconceived notions and listen with an open mind. Because this a really fascinating album and quite unlike anything else out there.
To start with, calling this an a capella album is extremely misleading. True, there are almost no instruments on "Medulla", but this isn't just Bjork singing alone in a studio. She's testing the very limits of the human voice in as many ways as possible. Choirs meet rock star growling. Beatboxing meets Inuit throatsinging. Bjork hasn't merely removed instruments, as much as made them redundant. The carefully curated selection of collaborators are able to manipulate their vocal chords in a myriad of ways that have likely never been brought together before, since, or maybe ever again. Subtle electronic effects add different textures throughout the album as well. That technical process helps to create a blending of different cultures and times. At times, you can imagine a group of women singing in Medieval European choir. The image blends into a breathless indigenous woman passionately vocalizing stories of her ancestors. Next to them is an angsty modern rock star, and the world of the Bronx. Somehow, all of these diverse peoples are all together in a cave singing together, a beautiful celebration of human voice and cultures.
The content of the songs reflects all of this in surprising ways. There are universal themes of family relations and motherhood, along with stargazing and worship of nature. In some ways, it's a far cry from her early 90s London clubbing days, but in others is uniquely Bjork. This album is a triumph and of her best work (if also the most confusing to some people). Given the themes, "Oceania" was rightfully featured at the Opening Ceremony of the 2004 Olympic Games, another celebration of the world and human abilities.
Tracy Chapman
5/5
The phrase that keeps popping up in these reviews is "heart breaking". The lyrics deal with poverty, social injustice, domestic abuse, and other difficult issues. Chapman emerged as a popular local singer in anti-apartheid circles. What feels particularly tragic is the sense of hope throughout it, as though Chapman is holding up the weight of the world on her shoulders and has no intention of letting go. What particularly surprised me about this album was that it came out in 1988. The sound is so distinctly 90s to me that it must have been hugely influential in bringing popular music back from the era of synths and hair metal stadium shows, back to more personal and acoustic sounds of college campuses. Either way, it's a beautiful and socially conscious album that really exceeds expectations.
Sheryl Crow
4/5
My impression of Sheryl Crow has always been that she's a decent mix of country and 90s rock. Listening properly, it's maybe more like adult contemporary with strong influences from country, pop music and classical rock. The variety on the album was a pleasant surprise. The best known songs ("Strong Enough" and "All I Wanna Do") represent the rest of the album's style well. If they're overplayed, it's definitely because they're just great songs that can stand up to the test of time. Not necessarily my usual style but it's a great collection regardless and an impressive debut.
Jack White
4/5
After years of different bands and collaborations, "Blunderbuss" see Jack White taking full creative control for his first solo album. While his whole experience before was generating ideas with bandmates, this album saw him directing session musicians to his own songwriting and direction. The result is something far more carefully crafted and professional sounding than the White Stripes, while very clearly following the pattern of eclectic modern blues rock. What's missing is the spontaneousness of his previous work, and some of its soul. The impersonal 12 piece bands don't come across the same way as two people (in a loving yet strained relationship) just having fun in a studio. To whatever extent music can be viewed objectively, this was White's best album best album to date and a huge leap forward in his artistry. It won't capture the attention as well as the White Stripes could. But it's still a fantastic album on it's own. The run from "Sixteen Saltines" to "Freedom at 21" and "Love Interruption" is fantastic and diverse, as most Jack White projects are. This album is well worth repeated listens.
Baaba Maal
3/5
Is there a better cultural ambassador for Senegal (and possibly the African continent) than Baaba Maal? He's long been sought after by Western collaborators from Brian Eno to Mumford and Sons, and was a integral voice and partner for the Black Panther soundtrack and its sequel. Throughout it all, he has remained true to his roots. The music travels the world but never leaves the traditions of the banks of the Senegal River. "Djam Leelii" is his unofficial debut, as the first release to be widely distributed. Along with blind guitarist Mansour Seck, Maal crafts images of traditional life and musical traditions. The music is fit for dancing, travelling or just marveling at nature. I've always found the concept of "World Music" to be troubling, as it attempts to reduce thousands of unique styles into a single genre. Regardless, Maal is a deserving star within that category.
R.E.M.
4/5
Just a fantastic debut album from one of the most important bands of the indie rock scene. Some may call this the best album R.E.M. ever did, for its rawness. The band were already well on their way to their signature style, but "Murmur" feels a bit more like an underground classic that was waiting to be found at the bottom of a postal crate full of promo records at a college station. It's instantly recognizable as R.E.M., but it's not quite as polished and radio friendly (outside of the aforementioned college campuses) as their later work. Depending on who you ask, that's either a good or bad thing. Regardless, most fans would agree that it's an amazing start to a hugely influential band and their career.
TLC
4/5
As far as girl band RnB goes, "Crazysexycool" is surprisingly great. I wouldn't normally go for this kind of music but there is a certain understatement to much of the album that lets it breathe and allows it to just feel sexy without trying too hard. The beats are smooth, soulful, and often minimal. The vocals are young, sexy and free. It could be considered empowering in the sense of women proudly embracing their sexuality. "Waterfalls" is the clear hit here with just a hint of jazz underlining it all. The worst parts of the album are the interludes and skits, which were a generally an unnecessary bane on a lot of 90s albums. "Sexy" in particular breaks the narrative of the album by injecting crude humor into the album. It's unlistenable though part of me respects how subversive it is. And hey, Andre 3000 is on here too! Overall, a pleasant surprise.
Lauryn Hill
5/5
Damn, I wish more soul records sounded this amazing! Really sensational from start to finish. I've listened multiple times trying to absorb it all and don't feel like I've experienced it all yet. Hill's lyrics are so passionate and real, focusing on self-exploration amid a political climate that shaped her. The music is absolutely perfect, so full of soul and rhythm. I've known for a long time that this was an album Worth listening to but it took the generator to sit me down, shut me up, and make me hear it. Fantastic find!
Beastie Boys
5/5
Man, the Beastie Boys really don't get the credit they deserve. If you just listen to their hit singles, you might expect that they're non-serious frat boy punk and hip hop. The full albums tell a very different story. Beginning with "Paul's Boutique", they began to really sound like artists. That album could be called a fluke, with the sound shaped by samples and the collaboration with The Dust Brothers. By the time of "Ill Communication", sampling was out and live instruments used to recreate the vibe of their past artistry. It's noticeably more focused than "Paul's Boutique" and utilizes heavy jazz influence, very evident from the basslines. They remain true to their roots as a punk van's turned hip hop act which hides how brilliant the album really is. But they have expanded their style exponentially here. "Ill Communication" is the second triumph from these guys. They had some more excellent years to follow but this is peak.
Slayer
4/5
Hugely influential thrash metal album. I'm currently listening through a backlog of albums, out of order, and put this on after Joe Ely's "Honky Tonk Masquerade" because it felt like the biggest 180 I could make. What's really interesting about this album is how producer Rick Rubin sought them out to work with them. Rubin was previously known for helping to bring hip hop acts to the mainstream. How he ended up wanting to produce a band like Slayer, I have no idea, but it worked well for the band, as it helped them develop their sound and put "Reign In Blood" among the best known metal album of the late 80s, alongside contemporaries Metallica, Anthrax and Megadeath. Yes, it's over the top, but that's part of the very definite charm.
Incredible Bongo Band
4/5
I went into this one expecting to give a sarcastic review about the influence of the humble bongo. The concept is a bit ridiculous but this album really delivers! "Apache" is the stand out track and may sound familiar to many. Any wedding DJ should take note if they need to get people energized again. The whole album sounds like it could be the soundtrack to a 70s action movie (which tracks as the songwriter was also a movie producer) with the simple addition of bongos to make it all danceable. The novelty does wear off a bit as it goes on. "Apache" itself is worth an easy 5 stars, but the rest doesn't quite match that.
Frank Zappa
4/5
This is actually the first album I've ever listened to by the legendary Frank Zappa and I suspect that it was the wrong place to start. I've been familiar with him for years from his reputation, a handful of songs, and his work with Captain Beefheart. But I've never listened to a full album from Zappa or the Mothers of Invention. As I understand it, this was Zappa's attempt to move away from the experimental rock of the Mothers and produce a more free form jazz record. Again, it's weird place to start, why do anything in a conventional way when it comes to someone so well known for being the opposite?
"Hot Rats" is full of experimental and sometimes jarring or abrasive jam sessions that could turn off even the most hardcore jam band fans. But for thoe of us who love the weird and wonderful, it's quite a trip. It's not the kind of album where you might pick a favorite song. The whole experience should wash over you when you just need a frantic break from normality. I look forward to hearing the Mothers of Invention soon in this generator.
The Roots
5/5
I don't quite know what I was expecting from The Roots, but it definitely wasn't this! The progressive hip hop label fits but also doesn't do the album justice. There's a lot going on here, highlighting some of the best of early 2000s hip hop and neo-soul, mixed with a diverse array of other genres and a deep social consciousness. The African American experience is the focal point, particularly how it's been shaped by centuries of racism. The title and cover art reference the debunked practice of determining intelligence and personality traits from the shape of a person's head. This pseudoscience was used for a disturbingly long time as a justification for racist policies, colonialism and genocide. The fact that The Roots draw attention to this suggests that they're focused on the historical context of systematic racism, not simply what exists today. The lyrics remind the listener of urban decay that stems from these historial roots. Despite this, there's a explosion of creativity and diversity in the sound, reaching into jazz and punk seemlessly with hip hop and soul. There are occasional moments of misogyny that feel out of place in the other socially conscious collection. This aside, it's a great album and I can see that I definitely need to start paying more attention to The Roots now.
Joe Ely
2/5
Right... Just how many "honky tonk" albums must this generator give me? I've really tried to keep an open mind and in some cases, but I'm really struggle. Buck Owens was a little interesting for breaking with tradition and influencing Johnny Cash. But now it seems that we've gone backwards from that with a return to traditional honky tonk country. Ok, I guess it's well made, production is clear, Ely throws in some unexpected choices like the odd accordian or electric guitar. But sorry, I just don't really see the appeal of this sub-genre. It has made me crave some cornbread though.
D'Angelo
3/5
D'Angelo was obviously a key player in the neo-soul movement, but I'd really like to think that this is not his best album. Based on what's here, he's clearly a very talented vocalist with a great soul voice, but the music isn't very exciting. It's a debut album, so fair enough. But to read the Wikipedia page, you'd expect a lot more, as it cites influence from the likes of Miles Davis, Stevie Wonder, Sly and Family Stone, Isaac Hayes, and Prince. Honestly, I really don't hear much of that in the album. D'Angelo could afford to take some risks and diversify the sound, and hopefully he manages to do so in some later works. But this is the one the generator gave us. It's good for what it is, and clearly had an audience. It's an ok listen, but not too exciting.
Def Leppard
3/5
I can't pretend to be a huge fan of Def Leppard, but I can only imagine how fun they must have been to see live. As far as 80s big stadium hair metal bands go, Def Leppard are about as close to the stereotype as you can get. They write some good songs and know how to make themselves marketable, stylizing themselves after Michael Jackson's "Thriller" to make every song a potential single. It's not my favorite music, but one very notable thing about this album is that the drummer carried on after losing an arm! I can't help but represent the massive dedication it must have taken to carry on and relearn to play that way.
Throwing Muses
4/5
Imagine listening to this as a university student in the mid-80s, before the world had ever heard of Frank Black or the Pixies, and it must have felt like an incredibly cool find. It's a very cool female-led band vibe to it, though it's maybe not something that would be that memorable. Still, cool to hear.
Todd Rundgren
5/5
When listening to the previous Todd Rundgren album on this list, "Something/Anything?", I was tempted to enjoy it more, particularly the more experimental parts, but I was fairly bored by the very poppy ballads that existed throughout the album. "A Wizard, A True Star" is a refreshing change from that, where Rundgren thankfully abandons any attempt at being commercially successful to just allow himself to freely create and shift styles at whatever whim he likes. Rundgren called this album a "flight plan" for a drug-induced trip, beginning with chaos and crashing chaotically into soul. A critical hit and a commercial failure, what's interesting is how the album turned out to be a major influence on artists from the early 2000s, including Daft Punk (who used the opening track in their film "Electroma"), Tame Impala and Hot Chip. That shouldn't make much sense, but you can definitely hear it. While Rundgren was injecting experimental electronics into his rock and pop music, those other bands brought classic rock and soul back into electronic music.
I'm not too keen on the soul medley, but as a single point within an otherwise fascinating album, it's easy to forgive. There are a handful of cringeworhy lyrics as well. But honestly, I really liked this album and I'm willing to forgive a handful of poor decisions.
Nico
4/5
I discovered the Velvet Underground around the same time I discovered Wes Anderson so naturally, I've got a soft spot for Nico. I've never quite loved this album, apart from a handful of specific songs. It's top loaded with the two best songs right at the start. But some others just didn't quite work for me. Reading the background has been very eye-opening though. Turns out that Nico absolutely hated the flutes and strings that were added against her wish and this explains so much! I can now picture an imaginary version of "Chelsea Girl" that's starker and layered with drums, perhaps more closely representing the Velvet Underground, whose members contributed several of the songs. It's a bit of a stretch because the strings are so prominent in these songs that I know so well. But I'm completely with Nico about the flute! "Little Sister" and the title song in particular always kind of grated on my nerves, despite being penned by her former bandmates. They'd have been much better without that flute, as would "Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams", though the latter manages to be brilliant regardless.
Having said all of that, the album is what it is and the additions give it the distinctive character, whether Nico wanted them or not. I'm not entirely sure that the album would have worked as well without the strings. But the flutes should have never made it to recording and are the main thing keeping this one from reaching 5 stars. With apologies to Nico, who tried to stop them, it's not a perfect album, but it was close.
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
3/5
This is my second attempt to listen to Emerson, Lake and Palmer. The last one I had in this generator was "Pictures at an Exhibition", an extremely gimmicky live prog rock cover of a classical performance. It was probably fun if you were a fan, but fairly tedious if not. I was hopeful that a studio album of their own material might be better. I like the occasional prog rock band so they deserve another chance. And yeah, it's definitely better. The gimmicks are still there. If you want to hear "Oh Susanna" in math rock form, it's there. But it's at least not a one trick pony and there's a lot going on. There's variety and a loose theme. Pipe organs intermingle with synthesizers. It's interesting and it's very well executed. But it's not exactly a great album. I'd take Rush or King Crimson over Emerson, Lake and Palmer any day I'm afraid. My favorite track is one that leans more on the classical/jazz side of their music, "Infinite Space (Conclusion)".
Cheap Trick
4/5
I'm pretty surprised by the negative reviews on this one. What more do people want? It's straightforward, uncomplicated, great live rock n roll. And I say this as someone who usually really prefers eclectic studio albums, but this one just has such infectuous energy.I find something very charming about the idea of a Western band using their "we're big in Japan!" street cred to break into the charts in the UK and America. Every song is great and the whole album is a tight 42 minutes. There's no bad song here and "Surrender" is a classic. Many other people are hearing something awful that I've missed, but I'll enjoy my blissful ignorance.
Fairport Convention
4/5
Fairport Convention had an impressive run of three albums released in 1969. Over the course of this period they transitioned (spearheaded by new lead singer Sandy Denny) from an American influenced folk band to a new style of British folk rock, rooted in traditional songs. "Unhalfbricking" represents the midway point in that journey, taking inspiration halfway between modern America and English history. Fairport Convention were given access to a number of unheard Bob Dylan songs and covered three of them for this album. They also balanced this out with their most ambitious song yet, "A Sailor's Life", dating back to the 1700s. It's easily the most noteworthy track on the album, given the history, the change of style, the song's length, and the stark atmosphere it induces. That song alone is often considered the start of British folk rock, as a distinct entity from its American counterpart.
Tragically, the band's drummer would be killed shortly after this album and with him, the band itself nearly ended. Their follow up, "Liege & Lief" would complete their 1969 trilogy and the transition to English-centric music. It's arguably the more important album as it cemented their unique style and influence. But for my money, "Halfunbricking" is still the better album, as it straddles those two different worlds to make a more interesting (if less important) piece of art.
Neil Young
4/5
I officially can't figure out Neil Young. I love his work with Buffalo Springfield and CSNY. Then I found several solo albums to be a bit boring. Then I heard "After the Goldrush" which was excellent. "Harvest" is perhaps his most celebrated album so I've been excited to hear it. But again, I'm lost on why the generator feels I needed to hear this. "Heart of Gold" is undeniably an amazing song. But the rest? I mean it's fine. The story of his debilitating back injury forcing a simplicity to the playing is compelling, as is his then new love interest. But does it really make for great music. It has its moment but it also has a song called "A Man Needs a Maid". I'd hoped there was some other meaning behind that but he is literally singing about someone cleaning his house.
I wondered if I was going crazy in remembering that "After the Goldrush" was great so I've listened again and I stand by my enthusiasm for that album. "Harvest" on the other hand... sorry Neil Young fans, I just don't get it. But I guess it could get an extra point on the strength of "Heart of Gold" and the fact that I'm really supposed to like it for some reason.
a-ha
3/5
Perhaps a one hit wonder but what a hit it was. "Take On Me" holds up incredibly well today, helped in part to its current meme status. It had one of the earliest and still most innovative videos ever seen on MTV and was a technical triumph. That video catapulted A-ha to fame and was clearly significant. But the quality drops off quickly after that. The rest of the album is mostly standard 80s synth pop, with some chamber pop and what sounds like heavy influence from The Smiths and early Depeche Mode. There are some very good songs, alongside some boring ones, but only one great hit, enduring as it is.
Beatles
3/5
A good example of Beatles MK1. Before they took their role as innovators of rock n roll music to come, they were mastering the early 60s pop scene. There are a handful of very noteworthy things here. The skill in playing, the normalization of the band writing their own music (since a novelty at the time), and their first artistic take on the cover art. This was also the first British album to sell a million copies. All of this would be influential. However, the thing you hear all the time about this period is "It's not their best work". Hard to argue with that. If the Beatles had stopped here, they'd still have been an important band, but wouldn't have still been a household name today. They'd have been talked about in terms of nostalgia and academic history of popular music only. Their true place in Western culture was still to come but the early hints are there. The Beatles were already different from the rest at this stage.
The Velvet Underground
4/5
If you want to divide Velvet Underground fans, play them "White Light/White Heat". Casual fans of the band often mistake them for a charming pop band that hung out with Andy Warhol's crowd. Songs like "Sunday Morning", "Pale Blue Eyes", and "Sweet Jane" all feed into this illusion. In truth, they were always an experimental noise rock band in disguise. The odd avant garde songs comes in like a Trojan horse on other albums. But their second release was where they fully embrace this in all areas. The music is loud and noisy, the production is rough and abrasive, the lyrics seem designed to make the listener uncomfortable by exposing worlds unseen by polite society. The band had at this point abandoned Warhol and Nico, setting them free to push everything to the limits. This is also the final album with John Cale as a member (Cale and Lou Reed would eventually work together again two decades later on "Songs for Drella", their tribute to Warhol) and the experimental elements seem to have been heavily influenced by him.
The final (legimate) Velvet Underground album, "Loaded", now stands in sharp contrast to "White Light/White Heat". Fans will tell you that you have to love both ends of that spectrum from avant garde to pop to really appreciate them. But Reed and Cale certainly didn't make it easy for people.
The Chemical Brothers
4/5
Call it electronica or big beat, the sub genre from the mid to late 90s certainly had a lot of forgettable acts. A handful, like the Chemical Brothers and Daft Punk, found the right formula though. Synths, bass and beats weren't quite enough. The music needed a heavy tribute to the past to give it more character. The Chemical Brothers knew how to make it work with elements of psychedelic rock, funk, and hip hop all mixed in for variety. Even their artwork from the period recalled a different era, picked from unused 70s stock photos to feel more classic and also more human than most of their contemporaries. Their first hit, "Song to Siren" found a home on dance floors, but what's great about "Exit Planet Dust" is that it works so well outside of the club setting. Some of their best songs work best as radio-friendly pop songs, like "Life is Sweet" or their frequent collaborations with Beth Orton. This is an impressive debut and really survives the test of time better than you might expect.
Bruce Springsteen
4/5
Ok, it's pretty clear that this isn't Springsteen's best album. He'd been away for 7 years and more than a decade past his most popular era. And frankly, there probably wasn't much pressure on him here. Much like the president's approval ratings immediately after those terrorist attacks, people were looking for comfort in an uncertain time. Springsteen ticked loads of boxes here as both a hero of the working class and a patroitic symbol of America (particularly among those who didn't attempt to understand his often critical lyrics). He could have released just about anything as his post-9/11 album and it would have sold in droves.
All that being said, this is still a powerful album that really recalls a specific place and time. I could be biased here because I lived in New Jersey during those attacks, close enough to see the smoke from the World Trade Center out my window. My town was full of fliers for missing people who were all commuters working in the twin towers. There was an intense feeling of the shattered illusion of safety in America, the previously untouchable country and we suddenly realized how other parts of the world must feel when their cities came under attack. So I really do feel the context of that place and time when I listen to this album. It's somber and uncertain but often hopeful, as we all tried to be during that time. Springsteen has always been a gifted story teller and there were loads of stories from that time that deserved to be told. "My City in Ruins" is the emotional climax to this album about tragedy and has since been used to mark a sense of hope following other disasters as well.
Robert Wyatt
4/5
"Rock Bottom" is one of those albums that I secretly love but would never play it got anyone else. It's obviously quite niche but it's one of those weird and wonderful albums that's really interesting to listen to. The title suggests that it was inspired by the accident that made Wyatt a paraplegic shortly before it was recorded. He was very vocal about how it changed his outlook on life and forced him to slow down from his early rock star days. If you knew nothing else about this album, you might expect a record of soft rock ballads. Instead, Wyatt is extremely subversive here, turning the concept of rock-jazz fusion on its head. This is proto-indie rock with a strong undercurrent of jazz techniques underlining it all. The result is bizarre and unsettling. It feels like being lost at sea, with delirious and happy memories of cultures left behind. I guess that won't appeal to everyone but I can't stop listening to this wonderful oddity.
Merle Haggard
3/5
What do we have today? Another country album? Alright, here we go. As I've said previously, country just isn't my genre, no matter how hard the generator tries. What I will say is that not all country is the same. While I really don't enjoy honky tonk and the Nashville sound, some Bakersfield and outlaw country has been better. Some of it is excellent. Merle Haggard leans on that side for me. He was a prisoner at San Quentin when Johnny Cash gave his famous performance there and he has ties to (the not terrible, in my opinion) Buck Owens. It's kind of interesting in that Haggard really was a convict and could use that image to sell records, a clear one up on Cash. And the music is ok. But it's no Johnny Cash and not one that I'd likely return to.
Fela Kuti
4/5
A fantastic blend of African and African American sounds, bringing in some of the best of both worlds. It's a very infectuous record, before you even know the dramatic history. Kuti dared to criticize the Nigerian government it's "zombie" military, who he claimed followed orders without question. The popularity of this release would prompt the government to prove him right, as they would later storm his commune, tragically resulting in the death of his mother. It's speaks to the brutality of that regime, the power of music to make change, and to Kuti's popularity across Africa and the world. The story makes the music much more impactful and sad, but the music itself is fantastic.
Brian Eno
5/5
Arguably, the peak of Eno's solo rock albums. Despite being often forgotten, "Before and After Science" has a kind if maturity that his previous albums lack. It was recorded in the brief period between his work with Bowie in Berlin and his later work with the Talking Heads (who are name checked on this album, in anagram form). The Oblique strategies that he used to spark creativity was really hitting its stride by this time. Working with musicians from Can, Cluster, as well as Robert Fripp and Phil Collins, Eno brought healthy experimentalism along with a lot of accessibility, at least if you're willing to put the time in. Like Bowie's album "Low", "Before and After Science", as two distinct sides, one bordering on pop music and one resembling his later ambient works. The album takes some time to fully appreciate but it's worth some effort.
The Electric Prunes
2/5
The opening track "I Had Too Much to Dream (Last Night)" is about as catchy an anthem as you can hope for from the psychedelic rock scene of the 60s. Is it a bit gimmicky and silly, sure. But it's also a great song. They tried to recreate the same kind of quirky play on words rock song with their second single, "Get Me to the World on Time", to decent results. Unfortunately, the rest of the album is a bit dull. If this album is notable for much, it's mainly the fact that the record label severely limited their control, enlisting a songwriting duo to pen most of the songs, including the two best ones and a ton of filler. Maybe it says something about the marketability of psychedelic rock by this time that it was so tighly controlled and profitable. Even where the Electric Prunes did get some artistic freedom, it's nothing to write home about. So they're perhaps relegated to the category of one hit wonders, not to be heard from again. But that song is still pretty catchy.
4/5
Where have these guys been hiding? I felt a bit dispirited (no pun intended) to see another psychedelic rock album after a disappointing one yesterday, but this is a genuinely great album and goes very far beyond the simple confines of that genre. Maybe because it was released a bit later, with the scene having had its heyday in the 60s, Spirit sound both a little too late but also way ahead of the game. It's deceptively complex and layered. On my first listen, I didn't really hear much aside from a few standout tracks like "Mr Skin" and "Street Worm", but the variety and complexity of the entire album really starts to come alive the more I hear it. It seems to touch on funk, soul, and what would be later known as classic rock. Another great find in this challenge!
Richard Thompson
5/5
I really didn't know what to expect from this one. The description of it being a country/folk album had me concerned. But I'm very pleasantly surprised by this one. There is some fantastic songwriting here, which clicks now that I realize Richard Thompson was a member of Fairport Convention. He's clearly taken a lot from that experience into this release with a fair number of Celtic inspired elements. But this album really goes beyond simple English folk music and could have really held its own against the contemporary music of the mid-70s. I say could have as it was a sadly neglected album upon its release, taking another decade before being released outside of the UK, which undoubtedly hurt its longterm legacy. But there's something kind of magical about the idea of the overlooked masterpiece, like a prized secret within the collections of people in the know. I'd say it's high to reevaluate this one. But in the meantime, I'm glad to have discovered it today.
50 Cent
3/5
I feel conflicted about this one. This challenge has highlighted to me that I'm just not a fan of Dr Dre and most of his projects. They alway have great beats but are often filled with machismo, toxic masculinity, or extremely juvenile boasting about sex, drugs, and/or violence. 50 Cent doesn't deliver the socially conscious lyrics that I wish he would but he does at least feel more honest than the rest. Maybe it's because he generally avoids the adolescent attempts at humor (with a few cringeworthy exceptions). Or the fact that he does allow himself some moments of vulnerability (to Dr Dre's annoyance). Or the fact that he was actually shot nine times prior to making this album. Like some of his contemporaries, the lyrics speak to an experience of actual people. It may at times sound overly aggressive or toxic. The glimpses of a softer side don't particularly make him into a feminist or anything. But we can that these attitudes were in many ways shaped by experience and decades of institutional racism. The thug persona is for some a survival strategy. The album begs for some political and historical awareness in place of the glorification of violence. But it's hard to completely blame someone who's lucky to be alive for puffing out his chest to his rivals.
Goldfrapp
3/5
A lovely, dreamy little album. The full impact of this album is felt in contrast to Goldfrapp's other dancier, electronic music. For those unfamiliar, "Seventh Tree" on its own doesn't really show their versatility particularly well. Not that people can't still enjoy it, but it possibly doesn't stand out quite as much to non-fans. The music definitely hits a certain kind of mood when you may be craving calm, optimism, connection to nature, and a slight sense of wonder. My only criticism is that the songs don't really stick with you after listening. It would be a great album to return to occasionally, but it's unfortunately easily forgettable without any prompting.
Ash
3/5
Calling this Brit Pop really feels wrong and not only because Ash are from Northern Ireland. But the music is so clearly in debt to American bands, past and present. Ok yes, there's a strong Buzzcocks vibe, but it's outweighed by the influence of the Beach Boys, Sonic Youth, Star Wars, and a slew of quirky early 90s indie bands from the states. The band were so young that they had to tour between studying for exams and needed permission from their parents and the school's headmaster. Which is both embarrassing and very cool.
Aerosmith
3/5
Every Aerosmith album I get I just think, "It's catchy, it's fun, it's rock and roll, but I just don't feel like listening to this." Maybe it's the impression I have of Stephen Tyler but I'm just not keen on this band. Here Aerosmith are a bit older, a bit more mature. They've cleaned up their acts and gone off drugs. They seem to be carrying their style from their 70s beginnings and looking towards the 90s while still retaining a signature sound. But yeah, I don't know, I'm not thrilled by it. It had a couple of good singles that objectively work very well, and maybe it's a good story about how bands don't need drugs to fuel their creativity. In fact, maybe it's enhanced without them. On that basis, I maybe should award 4 stars. But if I'm being honest with myself, I'm just not that moved by it.
Serge Gainsbourg
5/5
For a few decades, Serge Gainsbourg was likely the most famous rock star that France had ever produced. It wouldn't be until the 90s and early 2000s that we got the likes of Daft Punk, Air, and Phoenix, and they all had to performe in English to achieve their fame. Before then Gainsbourg was it. His influence would end up being huge by the 90s, finding new life among some indie artists, and especially the emerging trip hop scene. Famous fans included Beck, Air, Portishead, R.E.M., Stereolab, and countless others. Mike Patton of Faith No More would later join Lovage, which was practically a Serge Gainsbourg tribute band. Less flattering, but the idea of a short, sort of ugly man being a 60s sex symbol would be an a model for the character of Austin Powers.
"Melody Nelson" was Gainsbourg's masterpiece and his only really fully formed album. The plot concerns a very seedy narrator (who uncomfortably resembles Gainsbourg himself) hitting an underage girl with his car before trying to seduce her. The idea is repulsive but the story is vivid. Not all main characters need to be likeable and this one certainly isn't. Musically, the album is built around themes and expertly blends rock with orchestral arrangements. He certainly wasn't the first to do this but the style is something different here. Whereas other artists might inject an element of classical music to elevate the sound, here the orchestra feels dragged down by the overall seediness of it all. "Melody Nelson" set a template for all kinds of chill, sexy, and carefree music that would eventually converge with 80s hip hop and 90s indie rock for some amazing music. Sleazy as the content may be, this album is certainly noteworthy
Ozomatli
4/5
A fun blend of salsa, jazz, rock and hip hop, emerging from an attempt to form a workers' union. The attempt failed but led to a cultural center, where Ozomatli were formed. The music remains conscious of Latino and workers' rights, so also being a celebration of Latin culture in California. Frustratingly, the album isn't streaming and even on YouTube it's pretty spotty (as of this writing). There's also not a lot of information about this particular album anywhere. But there's enough to get an idea of the band and the mark that they made.
Björk
5/5
"Vespertine" marked a major departure from Bjork's previous work. She'd previously been the punk Icelander who found a new home in the London club scenes (including recording in the bathrooms there). Her previous album "Homogenic" (criminally omitted from this list) had been a maximal and aggressive exploration of (among other things) dramatic landscapes. "Vespertine" however was the opposite of everything that Bjork had ever been. It's a deeply introverted album, evoking feelings of wanting to stay at home and perhaps hide under the kitchen table when the doorbell rings. It's not a lonely album though. It was inspired by her relationship with artist Matthew Barney and feels like a celebration of love between two people who need to shut the rest of the world out for a while to be fully together and simply be.
Fittingly, the music is also a major change from her previous works. Whereas "Homogenic" was filled with full bodied synths, distortion, and strings, everything on "Vespertine" is much more intimate. The string quartets are replaced by much more personal harp performances. The earth-shattering electronics are replaced by microbeats, largely built from recording and manipulating everyday options and actions. Microbeats are something of a forgotten art. The effect is like a having a small mouse climb over your arms. It's gentle and lightweight in a way that's exceedingly rare in popular music.
Bjork will forever be dogged by the idea that she's being weird for weirdness' sake. It's a deeply unfair characterization of a passionate artist who finds beauty in such an unusual corners of life. "Vespertine" is not my favorite album of hers, but I think it may be the most unique and beautiful of her career.
Rufus Wainwright
4/5
Wainwright called this album the darker sibling of "Want One" and that's pretty accurate. In my review of that album, I compared it Sufjan Stevens, who has his share of dark songs, but they're usually disguised as fairly upbeat numbers. Maybe this one is somewhere in between that and Leonard Cohen, though it doesn't quite match. At any rate, it's not a bad album and one that I might return to. The appearance by Anohni was a nice surprise.
Slint
4/5
It's really interesting to compare "Spiderland" to Nirvana's "Nevermind". Both grew from the same influences, both released in the same year by mostly unknown bands, both bands had worked with Steve Albini. Yet one is held up as a redefining moment in 90s rock history while the other remains almost completely unknown. Slint broke up before the album's release which likely hurt their album sales. But also, "Spiderland" was doing something different and wasn't necessarily destined for radio play. Whereas Kurt Cobain tapped into music culture's desire for something new, he also knew how to balance it out with some pop qualities. Slint dives deeper into what we might have called grunge, sacrificing accessibility. Nonetheless, they remain deeply influential for many, including bands like Godspeed You! Black Emporer who would use their template of bleak, drawn out, urban dystopia for their own albums. It's hard to full appreciate the innovation here as much of what they pioneered has since been done by others. "Spiderland" might not be an album you're likely to encourage in the wild, but it's certainly an interesting one.
5/5
If Oasis was the modern version of The Beatles, Blur was the modern version of The Kinks, which is infinitely more interesting, albeit commercially riskier. This album was almost never recorded and we might have never known Blur and Damon Albarn as anything more than a footnote in Brit Pop history. For the number of boring British bands from the 90s, Blur was the real deal in my book. Much more eclectic and daring, and less formulaic. "Modern Life is Rubbish" saw the band move away from the then popular grunge style of the States and looking inwardly to England, as the Kinks did. But Blur put it in a more modern context of the multicultural Britain with nods to the past. Sure, cheap holidays in Spain was standard now but who doesn't love a good cuppa at home too? There's loads of variety on this album which really keeps it fresh throughout and also gives a lot of hints of Albarn's later work, like Gorillaz. It's an impressive record from a band on the brink of collapse. Lucky for us they made it.
Travis
3/5
I've been excited to hear this one as I've heard a lot of positive reviews and I know it was produced by frequent Radiohead collaborator Nigel Godrich. I have to confess that I wasn't blown away though. I see the appeal but it's not a top one for me. It sounds like what Radiohead could have sounded like if they wanted to play it safe. And that's completely fine, just less interesting than I'd hoped for. "Why Does it Always Rain on Me?" is certainly an earworm but not in a great way.
4/5
At the end of the 60s, many rock bands were beginning to veer into more experimental, heavy or glam rock styles, embracing the transatlantic explosion of youth culture's current rebellions. Leave it to the Kinks to create a rock album about England's past, with references to the great wars and Queen Victoria. Perhaps in part due to the Kinks being banned from touring America, they were looking inwards on this concept album and (unfinished) accompanying play. Surprisingly, "Arthur" had the most success from the American press, paving the way for the reversal of the ban and their future comeback album "Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround".
Although unsuccessful, it's excellent album bringing together a century of English history with an extremely modern sound. The lyrics are full of both criticisms and affection for England and the British empire. It's anti-war, and critical of quaint village life, and yet seems to show a significant reverence for their homeland. While the album lacks many distinctive singles (aside from the extremely catchy "Victoria"), it works incredibly well as a whole album. It's far less ambitious than other rock operas of the era but works less for its focused story and concept. "Arthur" is a wonderful hidden gem of the era.
Liz Phair
4/5
A very cool feminist response to the only Rolling Stones album that I ever really liked (well supposedly - reports vary about whether Liz Phair actually meant it as a track by track reaction to "Exile on Main Street" but it's definitely a marketable idea). Phair takes a relatively lofi and minimalist approach here, pulling elements from 60s blues rock and the 90s indie scene. During my first few listens to this album, there are a few stand out tracks but it doesn't quite reach the status of the 90s indie bands that she's criticizing. The more I listen though, the more I heard a deep foreboding throughout the album. The song that really struck me was "Canary" which has a really beautiful bleakness to it and is now the quiet centerpiece to the whole thing to me. It needs a little extra to be a perfect album, but it's painfully close.
Roxy Music
4/5
Many years ago, I bought this album on CD knowing extremely little about Roxy Music. I had been on a Brian Eno kick and knew that he got his start with this band. I'd also heard that this was their best album. So it was a little disappointing to realize that Eno had already departed by this time (evidently so bored that he was daydreaming about doing laundry while on stage). In retrospect, it seems to have been for the best for everyone. Even after seeking out the earlier stuff, I have to agree that this is the band's best. It's not necessarily revolutionary, just a solid album without a single bad track. It's not quick art rock, not quite glam but it feels very early 70s. It's vaguely spacey and Krautrock inspired (apparently one of the models on the riskee cover was the sister of a member of Can). There are better rock albums out there, and better experimental albums too. But that's fine. There's still a lot to love here.
New York Dolls
3/5
The New York Dolls certainly had one hell of a reputation. Has there ever been a punk band that fit the description better than they did? An image so controversial it made even the most liberal fans slightly uncomfortable. Vulgar, anti-establishment lyrics. The rejection of any norms that say you needed to be a great musician to be in a band. The brazen attitude that they were rockstars regardless of the truth. The fast and dangerous lifestyle that not everyone survives. Sure, they don't have the same impact now that they did. Imagine anyone being offended by that album cover 50 years later, which seems incredibly tame by today's standards. The music is fairly straightforward punk, albeit a little more varied than I expected, but the attitude and the groundbreaking use of feminitity are what made the New York Dolls interesting. Embracing the feminine side would become a standard theme through the 70s and beyond. The Dolls broke that ground and did so with two middle fingers to the world. They were surely an important part of rock history. The music doesn't really hold up that well against of the legion of punk bands that came before and after. But for a short period, the world needed the New York Dolls, whether they wanted them or not.
The Byrds
5/5
By statistical anomaly, I am well over two thirds finished with this project and somehow this is the first album that I've gotten by The Byrds. I've heard plenty of the subsequent projects from band members Gene Clark, David Crosby, and Gram Parsons, with the vague idea that they were all once part of this band, at varying times. Listening to it this after hearing those others, it feels a bit like discovering a supergroup in reverse.
This has certainly met the high expectations that I've had for the Byrds. Here is the begining of American folk rock, combining the working class traditions of Bob Dylan (who wrote four out of these twelve tracks), with the modern rock style of early Beatles. During this period, the British Invasion dominated the music sales, until "Mr Tambourine Man" broke through. It's only their debut, but it would prove to be a massive influence on American music for decades, inspiring everyone from Simon and Garfunkel, Jeff Airplane, and R.E.M., all the way to the early 2000s and Wilco.
While today The Byrds are less a household name than Dylan or the Beatles, but they definitely earned an important place in music history through their contributions. This album still hopes up extremely well, but in the context of the mid-60s, this must have been a very exciting album.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
5/5
Damn these guys were cool. Art school weirdos turned into New York rock legends. Karen O claimed to have been extremely awkward in her youth and retains much of that image though transformed into a sexually powered rock star. Supposedly they were just making it up as they went along. You'd never know it from this perfectly crafted debut album, though they had some good help and influence from the revived New York music scene of the early 2000s. "Fever to Tell" packs just as much of a punch today as when it was first released.
Orbital
3/5
I've got some rose tinted glasses for this album, as I used to listen to it a lot. The stand out track by a mile is "Halcyon and On and On" which still holds up incredibly well, as seen by the number of appearances during film epilogues. The song perfectly captures the feeling of hope and security after the heros have saved the day. It's a gorgeous track and surely the best one Orbital ever produced.
The rest doesn't quite stand up to the test of time, despite time being an overarching theme of the album. The opening and closing of the album are fairly dull studio experiments with spoken word loops and phase shifting. They're fine but you're left hoping they'll get on with it. The bulk of the album sees Orbital expanding their abilities from their early rave days, with more atmospheric layers. They were ehavily influenced by Jack Dangers' Meat Beat Manifesto (who by the way should be on this list). It's a big step forward, if a bit repetitive. The songs generally work well as part of a dance mix, or as good background music. Unfortunately that's kind of it until you get to "Halcyon". It's definitely not a bad album but it's really not as impressive as I remember it when the novelty wears off. "In Sides" is still the better album.
Primal Scream
3/5
Equal parts psychedelic and paranoid. "Vanishing Point" feels like a tribute to a much seedier side of the 60s that you might have seen glimpses of in some the Velvet Underground's work. But whereas VU were tied up in the pop art of Andy Warhol's work, the images presented by Primal Scream recall something more gritty and uncomfortable. Forgotten B-movies and the ultra-violent work of Sam Peckinpah (the Quentin Tarantino of his day) can be felt throughout this record, though it's also ultra-modern and experimental. As in their previous work, they incorporate many elements from the 90s electronic music scene, including dance beats and ambient textures. It all contributes to the uneasiness of the album.
I had this album back in the day and just never knew what to make of it. I still struggle with it. I can hear a lot that's very interesting, but it also feels kind of all over the place, probably by design. Whenever it starts to make sense, it suddenly moves into a different direction. Yet, it needs to be heard as a whole. I very much want to love this album, but I just can't quite crack it open. It's definitely interesting though.
Radiohead
5/5
With "The Bends", Radiohead proved that they weren't a one hit wonder. With "OK Computer", they fought against being typecast into one genre. With "Kid A", they addressed their superstar status by rejecting everything and trying some bold, new experiments. With "Amnesiac", they demonstrated that those experiments could still feel human.
The most interesting thing about Radiohead's sixth album "Hail to the Thief" is that it's not particularly interesting. This is the first instance of the band having nothing really to prove any more and just setting out to make a good album. There's not much that's really challenging or novel compared to their previous work. Their approach was to work quickly and stop overthinking things. They finished a ton of works in progress and quickly recorded them (about a day per song). Even the lyrics are relatively simple, focusing mostly on post-9/11 political themes, fatherhood, heaven and hell. It's maybe a rushed album to get out of their contract with EMI, but it's done with the confidence and skill of a band that spent the previous decade proving themselves to audiences and critics.
"Hail to the Thief" is not one of the great Radiohead albums and arguably could have been left off of this list. It's feels slightly too long and less cohesive than their other work. Despite that, it's a great collection and there's no bad song on it. Not all albums need to be works of art. Sometimes it's refreshing to just get a good collection of songs.
Nick Drake
5/5
Nick Drake's last masterpiece before his very untimely death. The music is dramatically stripped down to mostly just Drake and his guitar (and one piano overdub). What's remarkable is the sound quality. These two basic elements completely dominate the room and your head space. Close your eyes and you can imagine sitting on the ground in a recording studio while he plays atop a bar stool. At the same time, it's so stripped back that it almost ceases to exist. It's like watching an ant very close up. It's something you could easily ignore but it becomes fascinating and fully engaging when viewed close up.
Much has been made about the depression that Nick Drake experienced. Given his early death and poor album sales, it's easy to imagine a tortured soul in these tracks. But I don't think so. This music is therapy and expression, for Drake and for so many of his listeners, even decades later when the music is so much more appreciated.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
4/5
Is there anything more Australian than Nick Cave and Kylie Minogue singing a duet about murder? (No offense to Australians of course) This album has the very literal name "Murder Ballads" recalling an old genre of songs about crimes of passion with a rock n roll edge. It's definitely interesting, but more from a storytelling perspective than the music.
Michael Kiwanuka
5/5
A psychedelic soul album produced by Dangermouse. Somehow that description doesn't do the album justice. Kiwanuka's vocals echo back to some of the 70s soul/funk greats but the album fits perfectly in this decade among both neo soul and modern indie scenes. This is an amazing find and a perfect album. I probably would have never stumbled across it without this generator but I'm glad I did.
Elis Regina
4/5
It seems like Robert Dimery let a compilation slip through. Maybe at the time of writing, it was difficult to find many albums from Elis Regina outside of Brazil. This is an interesting collection, where samba beats blend with rock and smooth jazz. I definitely enjoyed some songs more than others, particularly the collaboration with the amazing Milton Nascimento. I definitely feel like there's a lot more going on here than I can fully appreciate. There certainly feels like there's an intensity to the music that reflects back on her short life, filled with drugs, alcohol, failed marriages and the threat of imprisonment from the military dictatorship.
The Birthday Party
4/5
This sounds like Nick Cave is trying to mix the gritty experimental post punk of Public Image Ltd with the gritty blues rock of Tom Waits. If every part of that sentence makes you cringe, be prepared to loathe this album! For the minority of us though, it's a pretty wild ride. Nick Cave certainly refined his style and learned to calm down for the Bad Seeds albums. These humble beginnings are filled with a lot more angst, energy and subversion though, which is either grating or refreshing, depending on your outlook.
4 stars because I think it deserves better than to be one of the worst ranked albums on the list.
Blood, Sweat & Tears
4/5
Blood, Sweat and Tears combine blues rock with jazz into a pretty impressive collection, albeit a bit eclectic. The playing across the different genres is effortless. "More and More" is an absolutely perfect track, seemingly mixing the showman energy of James Brown with the best of psychedelic rock. "Spinning Wheel" is extremely catchy. "When I Do" is so full of peaks and troughs that it's hard to pin down but it works. It's a pretty interesting mix of covers as well, featuring everyone from Traffic and Cream to Billie Holiday and Erik Satie. The album certainly has a lot of highlights but it's also got a few misses. The 12 minute long "Blues Part II" kind of overstays it's welcome. The two separate covers of "Trois Gymnopedies" is kind of overkill too. But despite this, there's a lot to enjoy here.
Billy Joel
4/5
Whatever you might think of Billy Joel, this is a great album. I'm no expert on his career, but from what I can gather, he's had the occasional hit and some fairly cringeworthy pop songs in the 80s. But "The Stranger" is probably his strongest album. The performances with his choice of backup band is as skillful as it is fun. The songwriting is multi-layered and stays fresh from the first notes until the end. But it's the storytelling that really stands out here. The three part "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant" is the standout track to me. For the last several decades, it wasn't particularly cool to call yourself a Billy Joel fan. But for this moment at least, he definitely proved that he could make some great music.
Elvis Presley
3/5
I have really not enjoyed the other Elvis albums that I've heard in this challenge so far. But clearly the place to look was this debut album. In terms of significance, this is the point where rock n roll first broke through to general audiences. It coincided with the post-war rise in youth culture, when for the first time, the young Baby Boomers had enough disposable income to help shape the cultural landscape. Rock n roll had obviously existed already, but primarily within African American communities. It was daring (and maybe controversial) for a white artist to take on these styles but it was also the catalyst for change. Let's be clear, Elvis was not the first or best of his kind. But he had a unique quality and sure could sell records. The album works better than his later work, possibly because it's still a bit rough around the edges, like rock stars should be. I still can't exactly call myself an Elvis fan, but respect where respect is due for this one. It's a solid album that opened things up for so many artists to come, including the later recognition of those that came before him.
Rocket From The Crypt
3/5
So many times in this challenge, I've thought "Ugh, another punk album" only to be won over a few tracks in. The nature of the genre attracts so many well-meaning bands with the right attitude but nothing particularly new. The standard formula is "Don't worry if you have any talent, just play fast and loud". And it's far too tempting for a lot of bands to do exactly that at the risk of sounding like all of the other dime-a-dozen punk bands out there. Despite this, there are still a ton of great ones out there. Rocket from the Crypt are a great discovery, channeling the energy and style of The Ramones, with more diverse instrumentation, and making it some thing that feels both classic and ahead of its time. The fact that this was released in 1995 feels a bit out of place here. I had guessed, I would have said it was made at least a decade later, pulling on influences from mid to late 90s pop punk, but pulled back slightly into the domain of the 70s punk classics. RFTC aren't the best punk band I've come across, but they're still pretty damn good.
The Byrds
5/5
The Beach Boys may get more credit but The Byrds could definitely rival them for the title of the American answer to The Beatles in the late 60s. Though much of their work was overlooked at the time, "Younger Than Yesterday" is now held up as a classic of the era. As the first full album without lead singer Gene Clark, they proved that had enough talent among them to keep making classic albums. David Crosby kept incorporating psychedelic and innovative style featured on their previous album, while bass player Chris Hillman proved his songwriting abilities and introduced country elements which would become staples of their later work. This album seems like it's at a crossroads of different eras for The Byrds, and brings in the best of both. While it lacks any familiar singles, it's a great collection.
Haircut 100
4/5
There's a kind cheapy guilty pleasure in this one. It's like watching a Talking Heads cover band performing at a shopping mall. You might be reluctant to admit it to anyone but it's actually very fun. This is definitely on the campier side of New Wave. But if you can look past the cheesy saxophone, you'll have a great time. Don't worry if none of your friends join in. It can just be for you.
Steve Earle
2/5
I keep wondering if I've finally made it through all of the country albums on this generator but I keep getting new ones. I'll admit that a handful have surprised me, but most have been duds. Apologies to any country fans out there, but it just doesn't do it for me. "Guitar Town" really hasn't done much to change my mind. It's filled with every cliche in the book and doesn't add much musically to the genre. Country cringe gives way to 80s cringe on "Little Rock n Roller". There are some decent moments on the album as a whole and there's nothing particularly offensive. But it's definitely not for me.
XTC
4/5
I like XTC but have never really connected with any of their full albums. My immediate thought on getting this album today was a slight disappointment that this one doesn't include my favorite track "Making Plans for Nigel". But taking the time to explore "Skylarking" was well worth it. A concept album about the stages of life seen through the lens of a single day, the whole thing works. There aren't many strong singles, aside from "Dear God" (tacked on after the initial release due to some success from American college radio stations), but as a whole it's a really good album. The background makes it seem pretty unlikely. Lead singer Andy Patridge was a perfectionist who had dominated the band's previous producers to get the sound he wanted. But "Skylarking" saw Todd Rundgren in the role and his trademark was getting things done quickly and cheaply. Whether that was a genuine belief in embracing imperfections, or a cost-saving technique at the expense of artistic vision, it's clear that Patridge and Rundgren were at one another's throats. Remarkably, none of that comes through in the album, which does seem to merge the post-punk XTC with Rundgren's style of eclecticism and quick takes. It's obvious that the pair were never going to work together again but lucky for us that they managed to complete the album. It's definitely one I'll return to.
Missy Elliott
4/5
This one was another pleasant surprise. I thought I knew Missy Elliott, but I had really underestimated her skills. If hip hop is traditionally a genre plagued by womanizing, Elliott turns that on its head. This isn't just sex positive, but she takes control of the narrative. Men are objectified here, but it's hard to complain given that she's only levelling the playing field. Even the male guest stars (including some massive names in hip hop) can't steal the spotlight. Elliott is slightly a star. Her lyrical style is rhythmic, effortless and free, often skillfully punctuated by harmonies that recall the 1960s girl groups. The beats (coproduced by Timbaland) are impeccable. The lyrics openly address female sexuality, body positivity, and menstration. It would be shocking to most audiences if the music was so damn catchy. My biggest complaint that is that the album drags a bit in the second half, with the majority of the innovation front loaded on the shunning first half. Not that the rest is bad, it's just not as engaging. I can definitely forgive that for the hits on this one though.
Fishbone
4/5
How to classify this one? Punk, metal, ska, reggae... all are kind of correct. While their contemporaries The Red Hot Chilli Peppers took those same influences to reinvent rock and roll, Fishbone feel more firmly rooted in ska. Though they never made it nearly as big, they still made a damn fun album. I could listen to "Ma and Pa" on repeat for ages. It's a clear stand out for me.
Talking Heads
5/5
The not so humble beginnings for the Talking Heads. They were already darlings of the CBGB's crowd, opening for The Ramones, mentored by Lou Reed, and sought after by several record labels before they hit the studio. And they certainly delivered for this impressive and unique debut, merging punk, funk and disco, defying fears that they were becoming too commercial. Their template would pave the way for music of the next two decades so it's hard to believe that this was released in 1977. While their major fame would come a bit later with the help of Brian Eno, "77" remains a classic of the New York underground scene and it continues to inspire. Even people less familiar with the band are likely to have heard "Psycho Killer" somewhere without realizing it.
3/5
On the Venn diagram of people who love experimental jazz on one side and angry, fast punk on the other, there is a microscopic silver of an overlap. And for those people, "Spy vs Spy" is undoubtedly a masterpiece. John Zorn has invented a genre too unstable to really exist, like the Large Hadron Collider smashing particles at near light speed to see what emerges before it disappears a mere fraction of a second later. He called it thrash jazz and like those particles, it had no chance of survival for very long.
Having said this, I actually kind of like it in small doses. It's frantic, bizarre, thought provoking. I spent the time listening to this one sketching whatever came to mind, trying to mimic the intensity and constant left turns on this album. Given that I'm unlikely to revisit this album, that should serve as a good reminder that at one time, I did kind of like this beautiful mess of a record.
Tim Buckley
4/5
I had really dismissed Tim Buckley after hearing his cringeworthy "sex funk" album. In comparison, "Hello and Goodbye" is a masterpiece. Buckley seems to be merging the psychedelic baroque pop of "Sgt Pepper", the British folk revival of Fairport Convention, and the American folk rock of Harry Nilsson. This album is loaded with stunning tracks, particularly the sprawling "Pleasant Street", the guilt-ridden "I Never Asked to be Your Mountain", and the painfully alone "Once I Was". Aside from some anti-war lyrics, the album generally feels like a conflicted tribute to his son Jeff (who would one day overshadow his father's modest success) and his mother. It is definitely surprising that this album didn't sell better at the time. It's very impressive.
The Adverts
3/5
This generator has introduced me to a lot of punk bands, including a lot of fresh and interesting ones. Unfortunately The Adverts didn't age ad well. The album is fine but it suffers from sounding a bit too much like the punk template that's been copied over and over again. The blank generation playing one chord over and over again. If you were a Sex Pistols fan back in the day and were itching for more, the Adverts could fill a void. They did so with less aggression that many others, putting them somewhere in between The Sex Pistols and the Clash. It's a good album but it's now drowning in a sea of imitators.
Soft Machine
4/5
"Third" feels like a missing link between jazz, the avant garde side of classical music, and prog rock. Supposedly Robert Wyatt was once briefly denied entrance to the Royal Albert Hall where Soft Machine were scheduled to play. He was told "they only have proper music in there." That seems like a fitting way to describe this album. It's complex drawing on influence from jazz greats and composers like Terry Riley but it's all put into a rock context. I actually love how maddening this album is. There's so much going on and each section feels like a radical departure from the previous one. There's no need to worry about pretentiousness here, as the band are extremely playful which gives the music a nice balance. The songs get better the more I listen. My only complaint is that I wish they'd broken the very long tracks up into their different sections, just because it would really help to process everything that's going on here.
Astor Piazzolla
3/5
I wish I knew more about tango as a genre to be able to talk intelligently about this one. I appreciate that this was a considered a important performance and that Piazzolla had reinvented tango throughout his career. I can hear that it's a bit different from other examples and I enjoyed listening well enough. But I don't have much to elaborate on beyond that.
Fela Kuti
4/5
Fela Kuti never fails to impress. While this album doesn't hold the same significance as "Zombie", it feels like a very fun live performance. The most interesting thing about this album is the appearance on the second half of Cream drummer Ginger Baker. American blues first grew out of African styles that had come to US through the slave trade. Later it evolved into blues rock popularized by British acts like Cream. For Ginger Baker to be performing alongside Fela Kuti, well, it's not exactly that the music came full circle. But it probably says something about the history of colonialism. Why that history was certainly ugly, it's great to find these moments of joy and love of music that manage to shine through.
Death In Vegas
5/5
I've always loved this album. It sounds like The Jesus and Mary Chain, Screamadelica-era Primal Scream, and The Stooges all having a jam session together. Given that members of those bands all make appearances, that's perhaps not surprising. Death in Vegas always managed to combine a bleak dirge-filled style of rock with subtle elements of electronica and noisy ambient textures. But "The Contino Sessions" is their clear best album. It's here that they found the best mix of collaborators that their music desperately needed. While their other albums have some good songs, this is the album that (for me) hits their targets on every track. There is argubly some filler like "Death Threat", which doesn't stand up on its own terribly well. But as an entire album, it fits into the flow perfectly, leading into the atmospheric "Flying" and the energic and distorted, Iggy Pop-lead "Aisha". The penultimate track "Broken Little Sister" is the most somber and dark point to the album, but listeners get a much needed reprieve on the surprisingly upbeat closer "Neptune City". "The Contino Sessions" has been a favorite of mine for decades and still holds up today.
Hugh Masekela
4/5
What strikes me most about this album is that for a collection of African jazz styles, it really feels very Western to me. It's an odd one because I really expected to exposed to some interesting world music but got something that mostly sounds like it belongs in a New York jazz club. Hell, there's even s song called "The Big Apple". The African influence is often hidden and you could be forgiven for hearing this one as a standard 70s jazz album. It's only on select tracks that the traditional styles come front and center and clearly mingle with the modern, Western sounds. Most notably "Ingoo Pow-Pow" which closes the album with the perfect balance of the two. Part of me wishes there was more of that but I'm also impressed with how jazz seems to make a perfect vehicle to expose people to African music in a more accessible way (well accessible to some people anyway). I didn't immediately see the significance of this one but it has started to click for me now.
Small Faces
3/5
I have to admit that there's something kind of charming about hearing someone recite such carefully crafted nonsense that it makes sense. It's like the feeling of learning another language and being surprised to realize that you can follow the conversation, albeit with some difficulty. For a novelty record, it's pretty fun and the second half has an entertaining surrealist story. Although I don't know how much value it has as something to revisit often. Focusing on the first side only, Small Faces seem to want to take psychedelia into a place of pure drug-induced whimsy, separate from the politically charged free love of their counterparts in San Francisco. They're certainly not as easily remembered though, except as a footnote to Rod Stewart's career. But hey, it's still a fun album.
Jimi Hendrix
5/5
Jimi Hendrix was arguably the world's best guitarist. Certainly for his time, he was a trailblazer in more ways than one. But I have to confess that he's an artist I love in small doses. Of course he's impressive and innovative, daring and expertly skilled. But unless your studying guitar yourself, how much of that do you really need to listen to. Not that his albums are fantastic but if I'm honest, I probably prefer his greatest hits to the entire discography. So with that all said, the prospect of a double album didn't excite me, even if it did end with two of his best tracks.
Multiple listens have really helped this one to come alive for me. On "Electric Ladyland", Hendrix proves himself to be more than a virtuoso of the guitar. There's a lot happening here and he pulls in a variety of different genres and collaborators. "Crosstown Traffic" evokes images of busy urban landscapes. "Voodoo Chile" is a sprawling and impressive jam complete with contribution from Steve Winwood. "Little Miss Strange" recalls the early 60s rock that Hendrix was leaving in the dust. Other tracks incorporate elements of jazz, blues and soul on top of the dominate guitar performances. The undisputed highlight however is Hendrix's take on Bob Dylan's "All Along the Watchtower", one of those rare covers that equals (or perhaps surpasses?) the original.
Stevie Wonder
5/5
This is probably my favorite Stevie Wonder album. I know "Songs in the Key of Life" might rank higher for some people and it's also an excellent album. But "Innervisions" is perfect. It's so beautifully crafted and impeccably performed (almost entirely) by Wonder himself. The variety over the course of 9 songs means that it never risks becoming dull. The lyrics are powerful and demonstrate that Wonder has both shed his child star roots and very much remembers where he came from. Tracks like politically minded "Living for the City" force the listener to pay close attention. And there's a huge reward for doing so. The album is at both desperate and hopeful, anxious and calm. It takes the listener on a journey of love, injustice, addiction, and redemption. I could listen to this album on repeat for ages.
Dinosaur Jr.
4/5
It's taken me some time to really get into Dinosaur Jr. They sound like the kind of proto-grunge band that would have opened for Sonic Youth in the late 80s, which is pretty much what happened. They don't sound quite as developed as Sonic Youth, but it's impossible to ignore the comparison. I will say that "You're Living All Over Me" is better than "Bug", in my opinion. There's great energy here, and some beautiful lofi compositions, particularly "Poledo", which closes the album in a really unique way. It's far less polished than their contemporaries, but I think after a couple of relistens, I am beginning to feel like a Dinosaur Jr fan after all.
Hot Chip
4/5
It turns out that I've really been sleeping on Hot Chip. I was familiar with them back in their heyday but these were the days before streaming was the norm. I still had to make decisions about what albums I'd spend my disposable income on. Hot Chip were always an option. I'd heard bits and pieces and was intrigued by them but never enough to invest in an album. Now I see what I've had waiting for me. Through the 80s and 90s, there was an explosion of electronic artists experimenting with the latest synthesizers and studio effects to create a multitude of subgenres. But their output was largely confined to clubs, raves and the few people listening to Underworld in their bedrooms (like myself). It takes a band like Hot Chip to gather all of these sonic inventions and turn them into more radio friendly indie rock and pop tracks. And they did so skillfully, balancing what was most special about those moments with the early 2000s indie scene. You can dance to it, sing along or simply daydream to it. It's not a top tier album but it's fantastic for what it is.
Suicide
4/5
If you were throwing a party and were ready for your guests to leave, putting on Suicide's debut album would be one way to do it. This is not an easy album by any means. I have a soft spot for this band though, having seen them live at South Street Seaport in 2007. Some reviewers have claimed that Suicide carried the torch from the Velvet Underground and I think there's a decent case to be made for that. Both bands showcased a reverence for older style of rock n roll from the 50s and early 60s. Both bands married that with abrasive and daring sonic experiments. Both bands wrote about the unseen and untalked about underbelly of New York City. But the Velvet Underground would eventually reach great fame, aided by a good number of pop songs that balanced out the most challenging songs. Not so much with Suicide, although they did have at least one radio friendly song (the excellent "Dream Baby Dream" which sadly isn't on this album). Their music was often darker, unsurprising for a band of that name. They incorporated a heavy use of droning synthesizers which was pretty novel for the time. Although they remain further in the shadows of music history, their influence is surprisingly far reaching, with electronic artists, goth bands, and even Bruce Springsteen singing their praises.
But would you actually want to listen to it? Well, it depends on you. Expect your blood pressure to go up and your faith in humanity to drop. This album is like a David Lynch movie in album form and I say that as a compliment. You might want a good palate cleanser ready after this one though.
Grateful Dead
3/5
I never quite understood the appeal of The Grateful Dead. Now, having listened to what's considered their best studio album... I still don't get the appeal of The Grateful Dead after the first listen. I guess the way it mixes rock, bluegrass and country is kind of interesting. And clearly they hung out with some of the best American musicians of the era, like David Crosby, Neil Young, Santana and Jefferson Airplane. And yet, I don't know. Maybe it's just a bit too jam-band for my taste. Given their massive reputation, I just kind of expected something more. More innovative, more psychedelic, more counter-culture. And maybe it's the result of hearing it 55 years after it was first released. In this challenge, I'm often able to put myself in the mindset of a fan hearing it for the first time the year it came out. But this one, I just couldn't find anything special to match the very famous cult following that the Dead had and continue to have. On my second listen, my adjusted my expectations to just listen for a well made album. And it is, but it still doesn't quite blow me away I'm afraid. Apologies to Jerry Garcia. I really wanted to like this more, but it just didn't click.
Queen
5/5
The mere fact that this is the album with Bohemian Rhapsody on it means that "A Night at the Opera" had potential to be a 5 star album. The song is just remarkable, bold, complex, and extremely catchy. It's like a little mini rock opera with constant twists and turns, and yet it remains so engaging from start to finish. They honestly could have expanded that single song into an entire album and it would have been amazing. Thankfully, they didn't, because the quick pace of each section is part of what makes this song so memorable. The album was the most expensive ever made (at the time) and it's clear that that was mainly down to the complicated nature of that single song. The record label supposedly hated it and though it would never sell. How wrong they were!
The rest of the album holds up very well against its top track. "You're My Best Friend" and "Love of my Life" are two of Queen's best songs. The album as a whole represents Queen at their peak. Their fantasy heavy metal past mixes seamlessly with Freddie Mercury's love for theatrics. Even the slightly cringeworthy "I'm in Love with My Car" is forgiven within the context of the full album. This Queen's mangum opus and proof that they were much more than a singles band.
Willie Colón & Rubén Blades
4/5
I know very little about salsa music. If I'm being honest here, my initial enjoyment of this album is that it kind of reminded me of being in Mexican restaurants, as it's probably the only place I was ever really exposed to the genre (in a pure form at least). But that exposure was just background music and all kind of sounded the same. On this album, I've heard something different, including just how varied salsa can really sound in the right hands. True, it borrows a bit from disco here and there, but there's still a lot of versatility despite this. My high school Spanish doesn't help me much with the lyrics, but the book describes them as covering social and political themes that resonated across Latin America. No wonder then that this was the first salsa album to go platinum.
The Mars Volta
5/5
Many years before this challenge, I had an early lesson in keeping an open mind for new music. My friends were all fans of hardcore band, At the Drive-In. Hardcore never did much for me. They were one of dozens of bands who (in my opinion) all sounded pretty much the same. So when they were excitedly talking about a new project called The Mars Volta from the lead singer and guitarist from ATD-I, I would zone out and think of something else. Some how or another, I was finally exposed to their music and immediately blown away. It was definitely not what I was expecting (and it also alienated a few of my hardcore-loving friends). Eventually Cedric Bixler Zavala and Omar Rodriguez-Lopez felt similarly about the genre, having grown frustrated with how confined it was. They were ready to move on and incorporate their vast love of music, blending prog rock with Latin music, jazz, blues rock and even some electronic music. The music is anything but derivative though. The Mars Volta took prog rock into new territory with this album.
The pace of the album is quite unless anything else I've heard. After a brief intro, giving you only a small build up, you're immediately hit by the panicked and frantic first single "Inertiaric Esp". There are reprieves to give you space to breathe before bringing back into the furious and complex songs heard throughout the album. More than any other album I know, this feels like a true fever dream, which matches the theme of the album. The band's friend, a local artist, had injected rat poison, fallen into a coma, and later committed suicide. The album's main character is inspired by this, and the lyrics take the perspective of someone in a drug induced coma, slipping between panic, fear, and paralyzed calm. This is vivid, complex storytelling, made by musicians who clearly love music.
After piquing my interest, I went with some friends to see The Mars Volta live. And then I was completely sold. I've been a fan ever since.
The Fall
3/5
The humble beginnings of The Fall. The music is kind of good but also kind of... not. It's so unpolished and uncaring that it's a little charming. The cheap keyboards and performing style remind me of a high school punk band. They're not exactly great but you kind of root for them because they have potential. That kind of feeling runs through much of punk and postpunk history so I can kind of see the appeal of The Fall. But I also wouldn't necessarily return to this one.
Megadeth
4/5
The Onion once ran an article with the fantastic headline "Humanity Still Producing New Art As Though Megadeth's Rust In Peace Doesn't Already Exist". Jokes aside, this album is roughly what you'd expect from a leading thrash metal band of the time. It's heavy, fast, kind of ridiculous ("Tornado of Souls" for example is such an absurd image that I can't help but love it). What surprises me is how politically conscious the band seem to be, writing about nuclear nonproliferation, The Troubles in Northern Ireland and, well, alien conspiracy theories. Ok, so they're not exactly Noam Chomsky. But I can't help but enjoy the energy and destructive imagery that's so exaggerated that it's also kind of hilarious. Try not to take the ghoulish images too seriously. The crowds in Northern Ireland did take their rendition of "Anarchy in the UK" seriously though when it led to riots, but I think that says more about The Troubles than Megadeath.
"All That You Can't Leave Behind" seems to be the peak of U2's popularity, but sadly not their creative peak. The album sees the band complete their transformation from underground post-punk inspired grittiness to radio friendly stadium rock giants. And it's kind of good in the same way that Coldplay is good. The songs are undeniably well made and many are catchy. U2 were trying to regain their past success after a string of experimental and increasingly unsuccessful efforts. "Pop" in particular is widely seen as a failure, perhaps similar to Kiss's ridiculous attempt to make a disco album. If "All That You Can't Leave Behind" was meant to return to some simple roots and bring back a wider audience, it clearly worked. But is it that interesting? I don't know. It has a handful of great songs but I honestly found the album as a whole to be kind of forgettable. Even Brian Eno's involvement hasn't done much to expand any horizons here. But it has a handful of good songs at least.
3/5
I always start off a little bitter when I realize that the album isn't on Spotify, but I try not to hold that against them. I like some of XTC's work, but this one didn't blow me away. Their stated goal was for a mix of orchestral and accoustic, which I can see. I kept thinking that it sounds a bit like the Beatles, if they had a different balance to some of their material. Think a very stripped down version of "Eleanor Rigby". I don't know if that's a fair description, but it was my main impression here. The pagan themes didn't particularly stand out to me. I probably could have stood to spend more time with this one, but given the difficulty of finding it, I'm unlikely to in the near future.
The Streets
4/5
I do remember The Streets and what felt like Mike Skinner's 15 minutes of fame. At least on an international level, the novelty of a white British rapper wasn't ever likely to last. Sure enough, when was the last time anyone heard from him? So I expected to find this one to be very dated. But actually I kind of love this album.
The idea of a concept album around a standard shitty day is actually kind of brilliant. There are so many artists telling powerful stories of love, crime, war, depression, etc. But there's something very refreshing about such a simple and relatable story of mundane things going wrong one after again. Skinner's delivery on experiences of finding an empty bank account and a dead phone battery make the listener remember being there (who hasn't?). Intertwined with the end of toxic relationship, Skinner also depicts a specific time and place, of youth culture in London in the early 2000s. The album is refreshingly simple, and driven by straightforward storytelling. And it even has a (mostly) happy ending. For me, this one stands up surprisingly well and is lyrically quite different from most rap albums.
The Vines
3/5
They were once hailed as the next Nirvana. But frankly, I think that says less about The Vines and more about how desperate people were about wanting more Nirvana, a decade after Cobain's death. No offence to The Vines. They've made a good album that's very representative of the era. But it certainly didn't meet those lofty expectations, did it? I'd happily listen to this album again but if I'm honest, I'm unlikely to.
De La Soul
5/5
What a great, classic hip hop album this is. It's fun, energetic and incredibly tight. The production by the amazing Prince Paul is perfect. Thankfully, they cleared the samples to get this one onto streaming sites, which was long overdue. Even the skits (very often the low point of albums from this era) don't detract from how impressive this collection is. This is easily one of the best hip hop albums of the 80s. I can't stop listening.
Moby Grape
4/5
The most noteworthy thing about Moby Grape appears to be their spectacular level of failure. The band was barely held together amid tensions and the album's release is a surely now seen as a prime example of how not to market a band (releasing almost every track as a single, all at once, probably sounded like a good plan on paper). If not for these setbacks, we're told, Moby Grape would have been a huge success. Maybe so. They weren't the only ones blending San Francisco psychedelic music with country and blues, for a uniquely American late 60s sound. But they did it pretty well. But this one hasn't worked as an album for me. Maybe because of the singles strategy or because (at the time of writing) there are loads of gaps on Spotify that required me to switch back and forth between services and listen to a lot of ads of online casinos. But I get the appeal and do think they deserved better. I'm not quite sure how to rate this one but I'm giving a generous 4 because I think it's worth returning to.
Jah Wobble's Invaders Of The Heart
4/5
I actually saw Jah Wobble perform last week. Part of his set including a collaboration with a band formed by his wife sons combining electronic music with traditional Chinese instruments. Now in his 60s, Wobble has become something of a local celebrity in the family-oriented London Borough of Merton. He hosts a weekly jam session, open to anyone regarding of experience, but specifically aimed at lonely older men, a group that often struggles with mental health. Given this social consciousness and rabid interest in world music, Wobble seems like a genuinely good guy.
This stands in contrast to his image though. To see and hear him, you might expect that he's the kind of person you might find at the pub, ready to smash a pint glass if his team loses. The pre-sober Wobble wasn't far off from this to be fair. The stories of his drunken days with Johnny Rotten and Sid Vicious seem to built into his general demeanor. This is the same person who once set fire to his squat-mates' furniture to keep warm. The same guy who joined Rotten's very dark and experimental Public Image Ltd. How did he arrive at Invaders of the Heart and jam sessions in the back of Wimbledon Library? By collaborating with everyone under the sun, apparently. Wobble has worked with the likes of Brian Eno, The Edge, Bjork, Primal Scream, Baaba Maal and many others. Somewhere along the way, he applied his bass playing and dub techniques to world music.
Long introduction aside, "Rising Above the Bedlam" does seem to drift in between Wobble's two worlds. It's easy to cringe at the idea of a white British punk kid playing world music, like the sad echoes of colonialism's past. But he generally does it the right way by recruiting the right people, like the amazing Natasha Atlas. It's not a perfect album. The dubs are sometimes gimmicky and the cheap keyboards are a needless distraction on a few tracks. But overall, it's a surprisingly good collection of songs. It doesn't make much sense but it's best not to think about that. You could cynically call this the soundtrack of a working class Brit on holiday. But this isn't an all-inclusive, drinking by the pool and clubbing at night affair. Wobble goes out into the world to meet people and has an amazing time doing it.
Q-Tip
5/5
This is fantastic. It sounds like 80s hip hop all grown up. The cover image speaks volumes with Q-Tip sporting a silver suit and holding a sampler in front of his face. It's also a bit deceptive, as the sampler plays a diminished role here compared to previous efforts. Instead, Q-Tip brings hip hop back to its roots by forming a band to create a live sound. It owes tribute to 70s funk and soul but creates something new (though samples still feel at home here and there). But it still keeps the flow of classic hip hop. Lyrically progressive, he raps about love and positivity. This is definitely a refreshing album.
Fiona Apple
5/5
I have weirdly fond memories of the early days of Covid. Obviously it was devastating for millions of people who lost loved ones, lost work, or suffered with their mental health. But despite this, there was some calm that came with lockdown. It forced a lot of us to slow down. Stay at home, work on your garden, start some projects, get some exercise, go on long walks, etc. And listen to "Fetch the Bolt Cutters". This album came out at the perfect time, unintentionally. With themes of domestic scenes, self reflection, politics, and escape, it became the soundtrack to many people's lockdown. The experimental nature in some ways reflect the attitude of the time when many people thought "Maybe I'll learn to bake sourdough". The heavy and odd percussion throughout the album was built around found objects in Fiona Apple's home. The songs are poppy but subverted. Calm with a deep sense of unease. If you didn't hear it at the time, it might not resonate completely but in those times, it was the perfect album.
Steely Dan
3/5
Now that I have listened to all four Steely Dan albums on this list, I can confidently say that I'm not crazy about them. Their mix of dad rock, light jazz and country tang just doesn't click for me. But I can recognize that they're kind of good. If I spent enough time with them, I could probably learn love it. But life is short and there is a lot of good music out there. Steely Dan just isn't my priority.
Fleet Foxes
4/5
This is probably one of the best albums from the early 2000s. Fleet Foxes took the religion out of gospel and the Sacred Harp vocal style, and they mixed it all with modern indie rock. The result is gorgeous and lush, like flying over a pleasant green, sprawling landscape. But like the deceptive cover art, there's a lot going on when you look closely.
Giant Sand
4/5
I often love these eclectic albums that throw in everything but the kitchen sink, but my first impression of this one was that it felt a little too hipster/millenial for my taste. The Wikipedia entry with almost no information on it just confirmed my suspicisions that this was likely a flavor of the month debut album in some music magazines and soon forgotten, aside from an additional to the list. But curiosity got the better of me and I looked into who Giant Sand is. So it was fairly perplexing to realize that the lead singer was born in 1956 and had been playing music since the 70s. The band had been together since 1985, making proto-grunge music, and this was the band's 16th album. So intrigued, I tried to give it another chance with open ears and I can definitely say that it grew on me a lot. It's another weird and wonderful album that just took some time to make sense. It's definitely a hidden gem in the indie rock scene.
Ramones
5/5
When people think punk, they might immediately picture The Sex Pistols, like subverted fashionistas who are furious at world. But a year before the Pistols released their album, The Ramones were presented a purer form of punk. They weren't angry, they just didn't care about anything serious. Their songs all exclaim what they want and don't want, with little desire to live a meaningful life. Their fashion is as stripped down as their music, donning jeans, leather jackets and long shaggy hair. Their four-chord music was all they had but it was incredibly refreshing during a time of increasingly complex and technical rock stars. The album is repetitive, sure. You could generously call it variations of a theme. But let's be honest, they were kind of a one trick pony. Despite that, the appeal of this album endures. The energy is infectious and it's hard not to smile or dance. And The Ramones manage to do a lot with very little. This the album that every young suburban punk band playing out of their parents' basements wishes they could make. But what so many miss is the heavy influence from often sickly sweet 50s Doo Wop and girl band groups that made The Ramones so endearing. It's like they took one of those huge rainbow lollipops, sucked off all of the color and threw it on the ground. You know it's still kind of sweet, but it's covered in dirt and grim now. Mind you, they don't do this out of spite, but out of reverence. They're paying tribute to the oldies without having any idea of how to actually make their music. They just do it anyway and have fun doing it. And if that's not punk, then what is?
Yes
4/5
As I understand it, this is the point where Yes abandoned their psychedelic cover band roots and swapped some members as their label was threatening to drop them. They emerged as a prog rock band making their own music. It's maybe not the most compelling story in the history of recorded music but they obviously went on to make a name for themselves. It's a decent prog rock album. I was leaning towards 3 stars but I really like "Starship Troopers" enough to bump them up an extra point.
10cc
4/5
As of this writing, the top reviews for this one are all pretty negative. I can't help but wonder, did we all listen to the same album? Because for me this was a great find. 10cc are innovative, with complex structures, time changes and vocals. Yet they do this with a lot of humor and little pretension. "Sheet Music" is incredibly light-hearted and fun. It reminds me a lot of Sparks and the influence on Queen's later works is obvious. I didn't love every song but there are plenty of excellent earmworms here. The standout track for me was "Clockwork Creep".
Stevie Wonder
5/5
Making a double album with near universal appeal is no easy feat. But this is Stevie Wonder at the height of his popularity and songwriting. Unlike the vast majority of double albums, it's hard to imagine what you could remove here. There's often some real fatigue by the time you get to side 4 of any LP. But here, it only gets more engaging, with some of the best tracks on the entire album rounding it out (ignoring the four tacked on bonus tracks on Spotify). Such is the brilliance of this one that it's been sampled left, right, and center. Younger listeners will undoubtedly recognize much more than they expected. "Contusion", "Sir Duke", "I Wish", "Pastime Paradise", "Black Man" and "As" are among Wonder's best songs ever. Although I'm a litle more partial to "Innervisions", "Songs in the Key of Life" is still an incredible album, particularly from an artist who almost gave up music entirely before he made it. It's clear that he still had much more to say.
Alice Cooper
4/5
What I never understood was the connection between Alice Cooper and Frank Zappa. Surely one is an angry hard rock star and the other is a deeply experimental avant garde rock-jazz mastermind. What would they have to do with one another? But I'm starting to get why Zappa supported Alice Cooper. This is an extremely eclectic collection of music. I really expected something like AC/DC but I got... something else. The best way I can describe this album is that it sounds like an uncompleted Broadway musical about a directionless youth finishing school in the 70s. That covers a lot of it but there's still a surprising amount of jazz influence on there to quite fit. But it's hard not to hear that with the West Side Story riffs and lyrics Alice Cooper worked in. It's definitely a pleasant surprise that it's such an unusual album.
Billy Bragg
4/5
If you listen to this as merely a split album between Billy Bragg and Wilco, it would be a pretty good album on its own. But the story behind it makes it a lot more interesting. Bragg was selected by Woody Guthrie's daughter to go through thousands of pages of unused lyrics to bring them to life. Wisely, she sought out Bragg because she wanted a folk artist with a modern edge to them, rather than trying to explicitly sound like her father. It was too much for Bragg to do on this own, so he enlisted Wilco to record half of the songs. The result is that Guthrie's voice got new life many decades after he died. Given the continued state of the world, Woody Guthrie continues to feel relevant. The experience was apparently meaningful enough to the artists that they went back to two sequels. The albums are a very cool blend of history and modern music. Guthrie isn't features in this challenge because he was never really an album artist. I'm glad to know that he could still fit in in some way though.
The Triffids
2/5
I really tired to see the appeal of this one. The fact that Domino Records re-issued it had me a little intrigued that there could be something special under the surface here. But I'm sorry to say that I just found it a bit boring. It's kind of the "smoother" side of new wave, maybe just as people were starting to get sick of the genre. I guess this is one of those "you had to be there" sort of albums to appreciate it. Unfortunately, I wasn't and this one was mostly forgettable.
The Beta Band
4/5
As a fan of Beta Band, it pains me to say this but this album isn't my favorite. Beta Band released three excellent EPs, and an eclectic and wild debut, full of electronics, samples and rapid genre shifts. The follow up was calmer, much more subtle and more refined. "Heroes to Zeroes" was their third and final album (for now. At the time I write this, Beta Band had recently reformed for some live shows after a 20+ year hiatus). The sound falls somewhere between their first and second albums. It's generally more mature yet unafraid to genre hop at a moment's notice. Yet for me, it's the weakest of the three albums and the one I tend to skip. Supposedly, the original version was a mess and they had to bring in Nigel Godrich to fix it. Beta Band broke up shortly after this, tired of critical acclaim but poor album sales.
Revisiting this album, it's much better than I remember. It's not their best work but it's definitely good. And it makes me hopeful for more material from the newly reformed band in the near future.
Coldplay
4/5
There's a lot of harsh criticism you can throw at Coldplay. They're the poor man's Radiohead. They're dad rock for a new generation. It's easy to hate them. On the other hand, "Parachutes" was a wildly successful debut album and it's simply because it's well made. There's a humility of a band that just starring off but who were soon destined to become stadium filling super stars.
I saw Coldplay live towards the end of their tour for this album. They were already playing packed venues and introducing faster paced songs from what would become their second album. My ex and I debated between seeing Coldplay or Depeche Mode. She won and even though I still think Depeche Mode would have been the better show, Coldplay still impressed me, even if I hate to admit it. Hate them all you want, "Parachutes" is still an incredibly accomplished album.
N.W.A.
4/5
Shouting profanities at police officers now feels almost mundane. In the era of Black Lives Matter, people are at least aware of the debate over institutional racism in the police force. Many go to great lengths to deny it but it's a lot harder to ignore the issue now. But when NWA came on the scene, hating the friendly neighborhood cop seemed unthinkable to much of (white) America. But African American parents were all having "the talk" with their kids about police harassment and they were seeing a very different reality. And unsurprisingly, the anger about this situation was coming out. NWA got their warnings from the FBI and plenty of other clutching their pearls. But the message would soon become standard for much of the genre thanks to the template created by "Straight Outta Compton". Sadly and predictably, there is some toxic masculinity here. Sexism, homophobia and glorification of violence are all here, but honestly not as bad as I expected. Future hip hop albums (including those produced by NWA's Dr Dre) would be far worse in later years. Given that this was the start of the infamous gangsta rap subgenre, it's also surprisingly upbeat and funky, while maintaining a harder edge than some of their contemporaries. "Express Yourself" is the clear standout by a mile. It's empowering and unbelievably catchy. Overall, I didn't really expect this album to hold up. Clearly in some ways it's very dated and its popularity got a massive shot in the arm from the FBI which saved it from relative obscurity. Despite all of that, it's still a pretty strong and significant album.
Siouxsie And The Banshees
3/5
The debut album from Siouxsie and the Banshees is undoubtedly significant. It was a major influence on Joy Division and what would become early goth music, particularly the stripped down and bleak performances. Impressive as it is, it doesn't quite click with me the way their later work does. "Juju" is an incredible album, but "Scream" definitely laid important groundwork to make it possible.
Harry Nilsson
4/5
The best album from the "American Beatle", Harry Nilsson. Being championed by the likes of John Lennon and Paul McCartney should have been a recipe for instant success, particularly in the early 70s when people would have been mourning the end of the Beatles. But Nilsson never really broke out beyond some modest success and a few appearances on the charts. Some of that seems to have been Nilsson himself wanting to shun fame. Maybe some of it was the impossibility of meeting such absurd expectations that people put on them. Maybe also, people were starting to crave a new sound for a new decade. Whatever the case, "Nilsson Schmilsson" remains a slightly obscure classic, but only slightly. Many people will know a few of the songs, even if they don't recognize the name. And the album holds up very well, with a collection of 10 very different sounding songs. "Gotta Get Up" almost feels like a younger sibling to The Beatles' "A Day in the Life". "Without You" is sheer (if slightly comical) desperation of a lost love. "Coconut" in contrast is completely carefree and absurd. "Jump Into the Fire" is just a classic rock song with perfect energy. For my money, some of the rest of the album does drag a bit, but those highlights are well worth revisiting.
Neu!
5/5
I remember many years ago, stumbling across Neu! in a record store. Their three albums were all reissued on the American label Astralweks. They all had stickers on the packaging with quotes from artists I loved praising the music. "Who is this and why I have never heard of them??" I thought. I wish I could remember who the quotes were from but a quick search confirms that Bowie, Radiohead, Sonic Youth and Stereolab were among their impressive fan base.
Now I'm much more familiar with them, particularly this incredible album. Neu! were a massive influence on Bowie's work in the late 70s, including "Station to Station", "Low", and particularly "Heroes". Neu! were an off shoot of an early version of Kraftwerk and during their few years on the scene, they were a major player in the music scene of West Germany in the 70s. They were rival Kraftwerk for the heavy use of synthesizers and motorik rhythms. But while Kraftwerk would soon abandon any semblance of nature life to masquerade as robots, Neu! managed to bring humanity with them into the future. Less novel, to be sure, but also more challenging. As the two members were torn on whether to emphasize synths or guitars, they each got to take the lead on a side. But such was their work together that you can easily not notice when the transition happens if you're not paying attention. "Neu! 75" remains an unheard classic that's still reverbing through modern music today.
The Jesus And Mary Chain
4/5
I really wonder if the drum machine is the main reason why The Jesus and Mary Chain didn't become better known. They were riding high on the praise from their debut album, "Psychocandy" when Bobby Gillespie left to form Primal Scream. Rather than replace him, the Reid brothers opted for the aforementioned drum machine and kept going as a duo. The result is a bit closer to New Order than My Bloody Valentine, but still sort of inbetween. It has a bleak seriousness that New Order more or less abandonded when they lost Ian Curtis and embraced Italian disco. And MBV always desperately needed just a little more pop in their style to be anything other than a band you listen to when you're in the mood only.
"Darklands" didn't achieve the fame they deserved, despite some amazing songs. "Down on Me" is severely underrated in my opinion. With apologies to Bobby Gillespie, I kind of didn't notice he was gone here. The Reid Brothers alone managed to prove they were more than just another shoe gaze band.
Kings of Leon
3/5
Kings of Leon get the dubiously distinction of being the band with the most albums *removed* from this list. All three additions were taken off of subsequent editions. We know that post-2000 albums are pretty much the only ones that end up on the chopping block here but maybe Robert Dimery also got a bit tired of them. What does this tell us, if anything?
"Only by Night" was the band's best selling release (I believe) and produced some of their best songs. It's extremely overplayed but "Sex on Fire" is still an amazing song. There's plenty here to earn their distinction as the "Southern Strokes", though maybe they also border a bit on standard stadium dad rock. Some of the second half is a bit more interesting, albeit less radio-friendly. "17" is close to being a stand out song for me... but it's very hard to get past the creepy lyrics. While that's the most obvious one, there are quite a few mentions of sex with teenagers that are uncomfortable here. If Kings of Leon wanted to channel the spirit of rock stars past, that's one thing they could have done without. The music is good and you can see why they skyrocketed to fame (for a while at least). But it's definitely not a perfect album.
Sepultura
4/5
I am generally not a fan of the Nu Metal trend. It's a lot of the same growly, screechy vocals and tuned down guitars (sometimes with a DJ thrown in there). A lot of the artists from that scene were insufferable and full of themselves. It was maybe a bit novel at the time, but how much can you really listen to of the same thing. Sepultara however were a different beast entirely. They abandon the loose hip hop connection in favor of collaborations with the indigenous Xavante tribe of Brazil. As far as cross-genre collaborations go, I'm hard-pressed to think of many that are more interesting than this one. Not only are indigenous people featured on the album as performers, they're in the lyrics, the artwork, the symbolism, and the spirit of the entire album. The album raised awareness of the existence and plight of these suffering people. What's more metal than that?
My only complaint is that I wish Sepultara had leaned into the concept even more. I want to hear so much of the indigenous drums and chanting and how it could work with their brand of heavy metal. Aside from "Itsari", their direct influence is easy to miss if you're not listening closely. I feel like it could have been completely hyponotic to be laced through the entire tracklisting. But hey, what they did is still very cool.
Nina Simone
5/5
A very easy 5 stars. If I had to pick my favorite voice in all of recorded music, I'd probably pick Nina Simone. She has such a powerful intensity like she could make someone stop dead in their track, to sit down and listen. And she marries this equally powerful lyrics. This album features a few of her very best songs. The bold depiction of "Four Women" fighting to be seen as people beyond their stereotypes. The hauntingly sorrowful "Lilac Wine". The dizzyingly sparse and draw out title track. And the stripped down, raw beauty of "Black is the Color of My True Love's Hair."
My only complaint about Nina Simone is that of the many collections of her songs that are out there, few perfectly capture her talent as well as she deserves. To my mind, Simone always performed songs, and didn't necessarily make great albums per se. I haven't explored her very extenstive discography enough to verify that. Up until now, the best collection I'd found that the 2022 compilation "Feeling Good: Her Greatest Hits and Remixes", which is amazing. "Wild is the Wind" truly rivals that collection. It's staggering to think that these were just leftover tracks from previous sessions and yet they made just an incredible album when brought together.
Flamin' Groovies
4/5
I'm surprised to have never heard of these guys. They did The Rolling Stones better than The Rolling Stones and also dipped into proto-punk. Apparently they didn't do well in the US but found some success in Britain. Shame they didn't do more!
Badly Drawn Boy
5/5
I used to love this album and I've very pleased to hear that it still sounds incredibly fresh 25 years later. Badly Drawn Boy shows how you can make a very chill album without any hint of ever being boring. Every one of the 18 tracks is completely different and a unique story that flows into the next. It's a a quilt created out of old memories. The whole is very comforting but each square has a lot happening. It's just a fantastic album.
Mott The Hoople
3/5
Mott The Hoople's biggest claim to fame was being gifted a song by David Bowie. Getting Bowie's seal of approval is usually a pretty good sign. In this case, "All the Young Dudes" remained their most noteworthy hit. And when a recorded version from Bowie himself came to light, why do you really need any other version? Well that song isn't on this album, so we have to judge them without any of Ziggy Stardust's influence. And the album is fine. If you really, really like glam rock, this will be right up your alley. For most of us, we have Bowie's glam phase, T-Rex, and maybe the New York Dolls, which feels like plenty. The only really standout track for me is "Violence", only because it's a bit different, and not because of the obvious pun of using violins. The rest is fine, but hardly the best glam music out there in my opinion.
Dr. Octagon
5/5
What a wild about this is. Let's just start with the slightly cringey idea of a rapper pretending to be a gynecologist. You kind of know where this is going, right? Sure, there is a skit about Dr Octagon posing as a women in order to seduce a patient. It's in poor taste but also so ridiculous that it's hard to really be offended by it. There's also a porn sample with a similar theme. To be expected.
Those two tracks aside, "Dr. Octagonecologyst" becomes genuinely weird. The lyrics are on the border between juvenile humor and dark, surrealist dreams. The title character travels through space and time, curing/spreading bizarre diseases and murdering (accidentally?) his patients. It's kind of medical horror meets b-movie sci fi, and the result is dizzingly psychedelic. Love it or hate it, there's nothing else really like it and it stood in stark contrast to the hip hop of the day, which moves from the underground and obtain as much wealth as possible.
But we really need to talk about producer Dan the Automator who seems to have been so inspired by the surreal lyrics that he sort of reinvented hip hop. Automator pulled on the inspiration of classic hip hop, but in a darker and more bizarre way, to emulate the feelings of space and medical settings (sometimes both). This was the album that established Automator was a force of nature who would one day launch the success of Damon Albarn's Gorillaz, among other amazing projects. Layered on top of that is the supernatural scratching skills of DJ Q-Bert. Together, Q-Bert, Automator and Kool Keith formed an amazing group for this project.
Kool Keith himself hated this project, feeling that it took attention away from his other work and brought in only white audiences. Admittedly, this album is going to really turn people off for being too strange, juvenile, and (at times) sexist. But beneath it all is a really incredible hip hop album.
Dagmar Krause
3/5
To start with, for anyone having trouble find this album, try these links:
Part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbYmWrfNJpQ&t=1s
Part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwEqjE4D4iE
"Tank Battles" sees Dagmar Krause bringing the music of composer Hanns Eisler into a modern context. This is going to take some researching...
Krause is an avant garde German singer, who has played with a collection of bands you probably haven't heard of. The biggest claims to fame that I can identify are that Faust acted as the backing band for one of her projects called Slap Happy, and that she's done some work with and tributes to Robert Wyatt. She seems to have a strong interest in "Weimar-era cabaret". It is fair to say that Dagmar Krause is a niche act.
What about Hanns Eisler? A socialist composer who was first exiled from Nazi Germany and then later kicked out of the United States by the House Unamerican Activities Committee who called him "the Karl Marx of music". Upon leaving the US, he said "I leave this country not without bitterness and infuriation. I could well understand it when in 1933 the Hitler bandits put a price on my head and drove me out. They were the evil of the period; I was proud at being driven out. But I feel heartbroken over being driven out of this beautiful country in this ridiculous way." He wrote the national anthem of East Germany and lots of lefty songs, and then fell into depression and alcoholism. It makes for a good story, albeit a sad one.
So what to say about "Tank Music" as an album then? It's maybe a slightly interesting novelty record. If you like the musical Cabaret but wish it had less sex and more socialism, you'll probably enjoy it. Of all of the amazing German artists on this list, Dagmar Krause is one that I don't think really needed a spot on this list. But I'll give it a few points for being different.
Manic Street Preachers
4/5
Manic Street Preachers were a band that I tried to get into when I was young. I'd see their name mentioned a lot and I was curious. But their music never did anything for me, from the little I heard. Not terrible, just kind of forgettable to me. So this was my first time really giving them a chance. I did still find some of it less engaging, but there were definitely some great tracks here. "Kevin Carter", "Everything Must Go", "Small Black Flowers That Grow in the Sky" are all songs that I'd happily revisit. Overall, it's definitely not my favorite Brit Pop album, but it's far from the worst.
There's quite a sad story behind this one, with the band's lyricist and rhythm guitarist Richey Edwards having disappeared early into the recording (eventually to be presumed dead). From the description, it feels very much like the spirit of their lost band member runs through the album. All of the best songs (in my opinion) contain his lyrics.
The Beach Boys
5/5
The Beach Boys were surely two different bands. One was the fun-loving surfer pop stars who played big feelgood concerts to excited fans. The other was a brainchild of a man who grew tired of touring and longed to turn pop music into a complex, studio driven artform, with little concern for live recreations. What's weird is that both bands existed at once, with Brian Wilson locked away in the studio while his brothers played live. Even weirder is that the experimental stuff continued to sound like the original band, at least on the surface.
"Pet Sounds" represents the peak of the Wilson's artistic success. Inspired by "Rubber Soul", he was one of the first to understand the value of an album as a single cohesive statement. This was particularly unusual in America where record labels were still cutting up tracklistings from British albums to increase sales. The Beach Boys would come to inspire The Beatles in turn when they went to record "Sgt Pepper" (and also stopped touring). Comparisons of the two bands is impossible to avoid. But while The Beatles used experimentation to set new templates for rock music, Brian Wilson is celebrating experimentation for its own sake, but fit it comfortably within the band's sound. The studio is very clearly the main instrument here but you could miss that if you were playing enough attention.
"Pet Sounds" is a unique album for its various tricks but also it's ability to produce some great songs at the same time. It's as if you forced John Cage to make radio hits and he delivered. But it's also challenging which led to a number of critics dismissing it at the time. Not only for the studio trickery but for daring to mix upbeat music with depressing and introspective lyrics. Funny to think now that that seemed like such a controversial idea.
I can't count how many times I put this album on repeat to try to fully absorb it all. Although I've never heard it in full before, I have to admit now that it's a masterpiece. The fact that I got this one today is no coincidence but a push from the generator to mark the loss of this mad songwriter. R.I.P. Brian Wilson.
Eurythmics
4/5
This is really one of those albums where the hit single does a disservice to the rest of the album. Listen to it all several times through and odds are that you'll still just remember one song. And clearly that's because it's a brilliant song. It's catchy and its survived the test of time to remain a classic of the era. It's possibly one of the best songs of the 80s. But is it a great album? It's unique, sure. There's a particular mix of synth pop and post-punk that's more interesting than a mere one hit wonder. The androgynous lead singer also clearly turned heads, simultaneously challenging sexism and gender roles in the music industry. But again, you could pretty much heap all of that praise on the title track. Do you need the rest? I really can't decide if it's worthy of this list as a whole album. But that one song really does stand out and I'm feeling generous.
TV On The Radio
5/5
I don't know what the other reviewers are talking about who say that this album is too "weird". I love this band and album. TV on the Radio emerged from the early 2000s New York music scene, which also gave us the likes of The Strokes, Bloc Party, and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, among others. As someone who was around at that time, I can say that they fit perfectly into that time and place. Formed by the incredible David Sitek (the producer who helped Yeah Yeah Yeahs achieve their fame) with vocalists Tunde Adebimpe and Kyp Malone, they put together an incredible debut. The vocal harmonies are nothing groundbreaking, but work so incredibly well with this style of indie rock. You can really appreciate this on tracks like "Ambulance" and "Staring at the Sun" (the demo version does this even better). Maybe I just have a soft spot for these guys, having seen them play in Brooklyn's Prospect Park back in the day. But I'll always love this album.
Mike Ladd
4/5
This is some incredibly thought-provoking, intellectual and experimental hip hop. Mike Ladd was apparently educated in India, has worked as a university lecturer, and now lives in France, which all adds to a pretty unique perspective on the genre. I have to say that I need to be in the right mood for a lot of this one, but the Sun Ra cover is amazing any day.
Cee Lo Green
3/5
This is a tough one to review. The novelty of Cee Lo Green really wore off about a decade ago, and the sexual misconduct allegations certainly didn't help him. To top it off, this album doesn't even have his best song (the infinitely catchy "F*ck You"). Despite that, I can't really call it a bad album and I can still see the appeal it had. There's a slightly gritty and non-serious take on soul-funk here that just made for a good pop album at the time. Not perfect and not timeless, but Cee Lo did have his deserved 15 minutes of fame.
Bee Gees
3/5
A 70s album with a name in reference to a famous battle by a band with a silly sounding band. I found it impossible to go into this one not expecting it to sound like ABBA's "Waterloo". And look, there's a song about Waterloo too. In fairness to the Bee Gees, this album came out 3 years before ABBA's song, but I still can't help the comparison. It doesn't help that the Bee Gees most well known song was a massive disco hit. In contrast, "Trafalgar" is filled with huge sounding ballads. Much of it is a little too over-the-top soft rock for my taste, but it definitely picked up in the second half. The title track, "When I Do", and "Walking Back to Waterloo" were all great songs, and almost sound like they could be later Beatles works. The rest leaves me didn't do much for me, but I can recognize the skill that went into making it.
fIREHOSE
4/5
I went in thinking "Haven't I had this one already?" It looked like a fairly forgettable indie rock album. I'm happy to confirm that it was new and much more interesting than I expected. It feels like really pulling from early punk as well as 80s indie rock, with heavy Minutemen vibes. Oh, half the band were formerly in the Minutemen? Well that absolutely tracks and fills a nice void if you ever get bored with "Double Nickels on the Dime". Definitely a pleasant surprise.
Neil Young
4/5
Neil Young continues to confound me. I've been left pretty cold by most of his solo albums that I've heard in this challenge, yet I love his work with Buffalo Springfield and CSNY. I had very high hopes for "Harvest" and was let down, but I was blown away by "After the Gold Rush." I didn't quite know what to expect from Young's beach album, but I assumed it would be a fairly lighthearted and forgettable affair. Once again, he defies my expectations. If this is someone on a beach vacation, he's going to bring down the mood of the entire group pretty quickly. But I actually really love the bleakness of this album. Apparently part of his "ditch" trilogy where he was rebelling against his own fame and clearly in a bad place. There's nothing in particularly groundbreaking about it, it's just pure raw energy and good playing. So confusingly, I find myself liking Neil Young once again.
This leads me to to the uncomfortable question of whether I only like Neil Young when he's depressed. I hate to be the kind of fan that wants the artists to keep suffering for their art, but Young really does seem to make his best works when he's down.
The Dictators
3/5
What to say about The Dictators... They certainly helped to establish much of the template for punk. Their brand of humor influenced the styles of The Ramones and the Beastie Boys. And it's hard not to have some fun listening to this album. On the other hand, some of the humor is deeply uncomfortable. "Master Race Rock" is, I think, a joke but I'm not sure that the joke comes across as clearly as they'd like. But likely they didn't really care. The Dictators are the kind of band who would have said "It's a joke. If you don't get it, too bad." Not dissimilar to someone like Eminem who uses that line to effectively get away with saying anything. Add to this, Handsome Dick Manitoba went after a Canadian artist named Manitoba (now changed to Caribou). That story brought a bit of attention to both The Dictators and Caribou but it's about as antithetical to punk as you can get.
The Dictators then have a pretty mixed track record. Given that they're pretty far underground and always have been, they can largely escape scrutiny though. "Go Girl Crazy" remains a footnote in the history of punk but arguably an important one. As a side note, I've hung out in the dive bar in New York's Alphabet City that was (as I understood it) owned by Handsome Dick Manitoba. It was pretty much exactly what you'd expect. Unclean, a bit unsafe, and filled with the very best of New York's counterculture. That was proof enough to me that even if The Dictators didn't earn their punk rock cred, they certainly had their place in its history.
Little Simz
5/5
Wow, I have taken far too long to listen to an album by Little Simz. I was a little familiar with her work and had heard a few excellent singles but never managed to get around to a full album. I've been missing out. "Grey Area" is simply flawless. There's a brutal honesty in her lyrics that cut deep. Simz is a fierce MC and the music really packs a punch, shifting seemlessly between the thick, distorted bass of "Boss" into funky soul of "Selfish". Later, the dark, cinematic "Venom" gives way to the quirky highs of "101 FM". A bosss in a fucking dress indeed!
Justin Timberlake
3/5
Before listening, my immediate thought was "If we have to have Justin Timberlake on this list, can't we have the wildly superior 'Future Sex/Love Sounds'?" Instead, here we are with his debut, released while he was still a boy band teen idol. But in the spirit of this challenge, we need to keep an open mind. With this in mind, it was better than expected. Timberlake scores some unused Michael Jackson songs and excellent production by The Neptunes (as well as Timbaland on a handful of songs). There are some undeniably catchy songs here and they're clearing trying hard to emulate Jackson's best stuff. It hits a lot of the right marks and if you keep your focus selective, you can definitely understand why people would think of this as MJ for the new generation. "Rock Your Body" in particular is a stand out track, with "Cry Me a River" not far behind. Both will be in my head all day.
The energy of the first half of the album dies out quickly though and the ballad-filled second half is fairly weak. While "Justified" clearly shows Timberlake maturing from his NSync background, there's still room for improvement in the music, and the very adolescent lyrics are best ignored. But when the album works, it definitely works. Whatever you may think of Justin Timberlake now, he did at least make a handful of great songs in this era. I was almost tempted to award 4 stars, but there's a bit too much filler on here for my taste.
Christina Aguilera
3/5
Yesterday's album was Justin Timberlake emulating Michael Jackson. Today I get Christina Aguilera emulating Billie Holiday, which is much cooler on many levels. Aguilera was always the best of the late 90s former Disney Channel child turned pop stars. At least when she finally managed to shed the pop industry trappings that caught her contemporaries. Unfortunately, none of this translates to an amazing album for me. It's good and does what it says on the tin, but it's mostly forgettable. The stand out track is "Ain't No Other Man" which succeeds in bring the sound of the old classics into an upbeat, modern, hip hop-influenced context. Sadly though, I don't hear much of note in the other tracks.
But hey, she's clearly enjoying herself and celebrating some great artists. I didn't love this album but I definitely can't hate it either.
Metallica
3/5
In this challenge, the words I tend to dread most are "double live album". Unless I'm a huge fan of the band, that's already going to be slog. Added to my dread is the fact that this was an extremely overhyped release in the 90s which often don't meet the expectations. But I had two surprises here: 1) it's actually not a bad album, and 2) the orchestra is the worst part of it. No offense intended to the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra. You played very well at all, but was this really the best use of your time? The orchestra playing with a rock band thing has been done before and since and has been merged better. The effect of "S&M" is take the big sound of Metallica and make it sound a bit bigger. Which... Ok. The crowds sound like they're having fun but it's kind of gimmicky, isn't it? At times it sounds a bit like two different musical styles going at once that happen to sync up from time to time. Again, ok, but the novelty doesn't last too long. But ok, it's kind of different to mix classical and heavy metal like this I guess and for fans, it was probably pretty exciting when first released. Metallica clearly put on a great show, with or without the orchestra. Having said that, the over 2 hour length was a bit much.
Jeff Beck
3/5
A fitting album given Rod Stewart's Glastonbury performance a few days from now. "Truth" is considered by some to be the original heavy metal album. I'd call it Hard Blues but it definitely does illustrate an important step from blues to metal. It's not a bad album but in my mind it's flaked by The Yardbirds and Led Zeppelin on either side. I'd pick either of those over this one personally. No disrespect to Rod Stewart but there's a reason it's the Jeff Beck Group and not the Rod Stewart Group. There are definitely some highlights here though, especially the cover of "Morning Dew".
Tito Puente
3/5
I confess that my only real knowledge of Tito Puente was from his excellent appearance on the Simpsons. Imagine my disappointment today to learn that he didn't actually write or perform the song "Senior Burns", as teenage me believed. Despite this, this is a very fun, upbeat and danceable mambo record. I can't say I'm very well versed in the genre at all, but it definitely can lift your mood.
Solomon Burke
3/5
This album is great for demostrated the connection between early rock n roll and soul music. As the title suggests, Solomon Burke had a foot in both worlds. While the later half of the 60s would see rock music shoot off into strange new directions, Burke maintains the classic style and does it perfectly. Burke's sweet and powerful crooning alone is worth a listen. While it's not my favorite album out there, there's definitely something classic about this one.
Elbow
4/5
I've known about Elbow for a long time but never really bothered to seek them out. It's a very good find. They sound like a cross between indie rock style of Radiohead and the smooth, lush arrangements of Zero 7. Honestly, the Radiohead connection felt so strong that I swore it must have been produced by Nigel Godrich (it wasn't). I can't quite describe that connection, maybe like the two bands were fellow travellers going down the same road. Regardless, there's plenty to like here but my highlights are "The Bones of You", "Weather to Fly", and "The Loneliness of a Tower Crane Driver".
Marilyn Manson
3/5
How on earth do I rate this one... The easy option I guess is to point out that Brian Warner (aka Marilyn Manson) is toxic and a bit of a clown, slap 2 star on it and move on to the next album. But there's actually a lot to unpick on this one so let's dive in, trying to be as objective as possible.
First of all, it's impossible to properly talk about this album without mentioning Trent Reznor. His credits on the album are fairly minimal and he spent much of the time in the studio next door working on the soundtrack for Lost Highway, but his fingerprints are all over the entire album. And Marilyn Manson would likely have never risen to fame without Reznor, having been championed by him and signed to his Nothing Records imprint (although Nothing signed loads of other, more interesting, but less controversial artists as well). Reznor also allowed them to use his New Orleans studio and enlisted a camp of Nine Inch Nails alumni to help make this album. Reznor himself contributed to a handful of tracks and also mentored the album's main music writer, Jeordie White (stage name Twiggy Ramirez). White would later go on to join NIN as a member of their live band years later.
In some ways, "Antichrist Superstar" is as close as we ever got to "Downward Spiral" part 2. Reznor was never one to repeat himself, but everyone wanted to copy him. By showering Manson with resources and musicians, he allowed the band to emulate much of the sound of his most famous album. But these two albums are fundamentally different. Where Nine Inch Nails was fueled by similar angst, there's also a lot of personal pain and honesty in their music. Marilyn Manson on the other hand were powered by shock value more than anything else.
Which brings us to Brian Warner, the name more commonly known as Marilyn Manson. In recent years, his legacy has come crashing down by sexual assault allegiations, during this period. And frankly, it's really hard to separate the art from the artist when the lyrics are nothing but venomous references to hatred, violence, and rape. But it's a character, right? Surely, we say, he doesn't really think he's the antichrist. Probably not, but he's still a pretty awful person. The premise of the album is (as far as I can tell) that the antichrist seduces the American Christian right to win an election and usher in the acopalypse. And well, have a look at the world today and you can see where this idea came from. But it feels pretty pseudo-intellectual when the opening track repeatedly uses the N word and expresses the wish for more middle fingers. Subtly is obviously not part of the Marilyn Manson experience.
Ignore the loose storyline here. The lyrics are mainly shock value. Good art isn't about making you feel good, it's about making you feel *something*. And this album achieves that, even if what you feel is just anger and the feeling of pins going slowly under your finger nails. That's not going to appeal to a wide audience but it definitely gets a reaction. "Antichrist Superstar" was a lifeline to teenagers wanting to rebel against their strict conservative parents but it probably also drove more parents to join Christian censorship campaigns. There was surely a small percentage of the albums sold that ended up in bonfires. And to hear Manson himself tell it, he sold tens of millions of units, though the stats don't support that claim.
More than 2 years into this challenge, I really didn't expect my longest review to have been for Marilyn Manson, but here we are. In summary, the album had the makings of a successful metal record, with music mainly by Jeordie White, given an industrial upgrade from Trent Reznor, and adolescent, high shock value lyrics from a sexual predator and scum bag. I don't know how to rate it because there are honest moments of brilliance and massive cultural significance here but it's also quite toxic in many ways. So I'm settling on 3 stars as the best compromise I can come up with.
Fun fact about this album: The song "Cryptorchid" features John Lennon's old mellotron performed by Reznor. Listen to "Strawberry Fields Forever" to hear this connection.
Van Morrison
4/5
I really struggled with other Van Morrison albums. Maybe because I just kept expecting him to break into "Brown Eyed Girl". But I did actually enjoy this one. Apparently he went to pretty great lengths and angered a lot of people to make it (including a record label executive who died, with his widow blaming Van Morrison). But I have respect for artists who risk fame and fortune to make the art they believe in. In this case, blues-tinged pop was exchanged for less marketable folk and strong jazz connections. The result is an unexpectedly great album. I would have liked a slightly more stripped back version but it's still quite a success.
Jethro Tull
4/5
Is there such a genre as "hard folk"? It sounds like a contradiction in terms, or parody of itself. Yet it's the unironically the best description I can think of here. It's interesting that Jethro Tull were so adamant that "Aqualung" is not a concept album given that it's united by a handful of ideas (the homeless people of the Thames River Bank and God) as well as a recurring character and chapter titles. Whether intended or not, the central themes definitely work. For yesterday's album, I was reflecting just how.much I dislike the use of flutes in rock music. After hearing "Aqualung", I take it all back!
David Bowie
5/5
There is a small handful of swan song albums on this list, recorded with the knowledge that their long life was coming to end. They're often very powerful statements. But, true to form, no one ever created a swan song quite like David Bowie. "Blackstar" is a unique album, within Bowie's discography and also within popular music more generally. It's daringly innovative, like much of Bowie's best work. Released on his 69th birthday and a mere 2 days before his passing. The death of an artist is usually a massive boost to both sales and reviews but "Blackstar" was already a critical hit in those last days before the public knew he was dying.
What is so incredible about this album is the near lack of nostalgia. Compare to the final outings of people like Johnny Cash and Leonard Cohen, who powerfully delivered conclusive reviews of their lives and careers. If "Blackstar" did the same, we'd still be talking about it but it would hit very differently. Bowie was always at his best when looking forward and it's particularly startling to hear him do that when there is no forward. It creates the effect of starring into the abyss. The whole album feels mystical and cryptic. It's a clear reflection of death but also feels so full of energy and life. The music can best be described as art rock jazz with heavy influence from electronic music and experimental hip hop, which is a hell of a statement from a former glam rock star, let alone one practically performing from his death bed. The lyrics are loaded with references to death but are oddly also feels new and fresh like Bowie is trying to cram as much life as possible into his final moments. It feels as though he has created yet another new persona here, not unlike the eldery astronaut at the end of 2001: A Space Odyssey who is simultaneously dying and having life changingly bizarre experiences in his final moments.
There are references to Bowie's youth here as well, though they're harder to spot. The saxophone is a dominant instrument here, calling back to both his early love of jazz and his first band, The Konrads. The highly unusual "Girl Loves Me" contains century-old slang terms from the British gay community (signaling back to his days of sexual experimentation) and the invented language used in A Clockwork Orange (one of his favorite novels and a major influence on his career). This contrasts to the slightly shocking chorus "Where the fuck did Monday go?", suggesting a person who is running out of time and trying to make sense of it. Less subtle is his expression about never again seeing the English evergreens, which feels like a reflection on having left his homeland to settle in New York.
I could keep going. There's so much that you can say about this album. In short it was an incredible parting gift from an amazing artist. It's widely recognized as a career highlight, within a decades long career that was filled with highlights. It's also a call to go back and revisit his whole discography, especially the later work which has fantastic hidden gems among the odd duds. Bowie is sadly missed but he left behind a legacy that will endure for decades to come. R.I.P.
Genesis
4/5
I'm mainly familiar with Genesis from the Phil Colins era "Invisible Hand", though that admittedly seems uncool (although I have a soft spot for "Land of Confusion"). It's interesting to hear their early work and how different it was. Firmly still within the prog rock camp, this album was a breakthrough for the band and you can see why. There's a distinct pop quality that's emerging here and it's very listenable, particularly for those long 11 minute long numbers that are usually pretty challenging for audiences. The Medieval English flourishes are a bit much but I can see how they work for the theme of a idealistic England being corrupted by American culture. I didn't love every second here but there are more hits than misses.
The Replacements
3/5
This is very quintessential 80s college rock. It's very much a product of a certain time and environment. A handful emerged from that scene to become major bands, like R.E.M. But there were others like The Replacements who were loved by their early adult cult followings and college radio stations. I was only aware of this band before because They Might Be Giants (who opened for The Replacements in their very early days) wrote a song in tribute to them. Not that there aren't any good songs here. There's some decent indie rock here with elements of punk (most notably in a couple of songs that you definitely wouldn't play for your grandparents). I did find some filler here but there were still good tracks among them.
Madness
3/5
This one is very definitively Britain in the 1980s, isn't it? Partially based on the concept of childhood memories, the music recalls both the transatlantic New Wave scene and the ska movement in England. The album has a lot of character, but "Our House" is the best track by a mile. Given the subject matter and style, it's maybe no wonder that they did well in the UK but were a mere one hit wonder in the US over the same time.
The Fall
5/5
My only previous exposure to The Fall was their debut. It had it's charm of course. The lo fi post punk rebelling against new wave, synth pop and hair metal. It's cool, and it fit a niche. But how much of that can you really listen to? "This Nation's Saving Grace" is a welcome change in direction, mixing the rough, off key nihilism with just enough accessibility to keep it interesting. The addition of Brix Smith seems to have really worked for them. It's just a much more striking album, and feels like The Stooges trying to be Joy Division. Or maybe vice versa? The Smiths appear to be rebelling against their own lives, with two tracks about moving house and painting, sounding like sarcastic admissions of domestic life. Contrast this to a song like "L.A." which captures both the sexiness and artificiality of Los Angeles. Cap it all off with a tribute to Can frontman Damo Suzuki and I now get the appeal of this band a lot more. Of course it influenced James Murphy. I can't unheard that now.
Robbie Williams
2/5
The thing about a lot of pop music is that you needed to be there to get why it was so significant. In the case of Robbie Williams, if you were young and British in the 90s, it was massive. Like the Justin Timberlake of the UK, he emerged from a bland pop band with a drive to be taken seriously, and massive worldwide stardom awaited. Except for America where he just couldn't break through. Yes, he scored some decent album sales there, but always seemed more like a curiosity than a phenomenon. The fact that he tried to take his cue from Brit Pop probably didn't help. Sure, Oasis and Blur were popular stateside, but a handful of bands was enough. Did we really need a former boyband member trying to copy Oasis? I get the significance of this one, especially if you had really followed his career from Take That. But if not... well, "Let Me Entertain You" and "Angel" are decent songs, but the rest was fairly dull unfortunately. I tried, but it just wasn't my thing.
MC Solaar
4/5
This is one of those albums that's great but not immediately obvious why it's on the list. Maybe to demonstrate that hip hop could was able to survive and thrive outside of America as early as 1991? The genre was proving to be a conduit for the voices, not just of African Americans, but reaching as far as immigrant neighborhoods of Paris. MC Solaar's journey took him from Senegal to France, with a brief stop over in Egypt, the unlikely place where he was first exposed to Afrika Bambaataa. What's surprising is that he managed to make a pretty decent impact in the US as well. Far from a household name, but he was clearly good enough to attract fans as high profile as will.i.am and Missy Elliott. Not bad at all for a boy from Senegal. Language barriers be damned, MC Solaar comes out loud and clear.
Method Man
3/5
Ah to be a young member of the Wu Tang Clan during their early days. What an unlikely success story they must have felt like at the time. Mixing experimental and mainstream hip hop with a (let's be honest) nerdy love for Kung Fu. As the first solo release from any member, and produced by RZA, there were undoubtedly high hopes for this album. Unfortunately it doesn't really hold up that well. The dark murky beats are interesting but the album feels pretty underdeveloped. I liked "What the Blood Clot" and "Release Yo Delf" but the rest felt like it needed more work. Future Wu Tang projects were definitely more interesting, in my opinion but I guess they had to start somewhere.
Meat Loaf
4/5
Some albums are just so huge and over the top that it's impossible to dislike them. The elements that make this one probably shouldn't have worked together but they absolutely did. Meat Loaf certainly doesn't look anything like a charismatic lead singer, and even decades later, it's shocking to see him channeling Freddie Mercury. Combine this with Steinman's music, originally intended to be a modern retelling of Peter Pan, it's seeped in sex and Americana (added by members of the E Street Band). If record sales were initially slow, it may have been that people had no idea what to make of it. But the ongoing sales decades later confirm that eventually people caught on. It's a ridiculous but feel good album. If it's not working for you, consider taking music less seriously.
Venom
2/5
Sometimes albums are a pleasant surprise. Other times, you kind of exactly what to expect from the cover and that's definitely the case here. Venom were a low budget death metal band, exploring the stereotypical themes of satan worship, while pushing the edges of the genre into faster, growlier territory. I can see how it was very influential, but on its own, it sort of feels like a caricature of the genre. The points are mainly for significance here, as I don't think I'll end up listening to this one again.
Bad Company
3/5
I was vaguely familiar with this band but was surprised to hear that they were considered a supergroup. Composed of members of King Crimson, Mott the Hopple, and Free, it really isn't my area. Apparently Free and Bad Company were pioneers of bridging the gap between blues rock and hard rock. But honestly, "hard rock" feels like a stretch here by today's standards. It really has a very dad rock feel, which makes all of the references to drugs all the more off-putting. Credit where it's due though, the singles are pretty good. Overall though, despite the influence of this album, I just can't help but imagine the Baby Boomers enjoying their mid life crises by playing Bad Company covers in a seedy bar. Apologies to anyone who really does enjoy this. I get it but I wouldn't return any time soon.
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
4/5
Ok, I know that Costello gets a lot of flak around here. He's overly represented on the list and they quality of his music varies. I genuinely like some of his stuff, despite the complaints. But I've never come across "Imperial Bedroom" before. It seems to be a divisive album from a divisive artist and was marketed as Costello's masterpiece (with a question mark for extra intrigue and plausible deniability). It honestly feels like the kind of album I should like. It's ambitious, experimental, and completely free, all with a definite pop quality. I didn't initially connect with it, but after more than 2 years of doing this challenge, I know a slow burn when I hear one. Sure enough, after a few listens, this one started to click more. You can rightly criticize this list for having too much Costello and I understand why you'd be tempted to gloss over this one for the lack of obvious pop singles. But it's worth a bit of effort and a chance. Even the very ballady ones are more interesting than I originally gave him credit for.
The Undertones
4/5
Imagine finding this one in a record shop with no knowledge of who The Undertones were. You're taken aback by just how ridiculous the album cover is. Who are they kidding, you think. But curiosity gets the better of you and you decide to try it out, just for a laugh, to see what kind of people would make something that looks like this. Within moments, you're convinced: The awful album cover was absolutely intentional and these guys know how to have fun. "Hyponotised" is a serious improvement on The Undertones self-titled debut, marrying punk with some effortless pop hooks. Like much of the pop punk genre that would emerge later, the songs are all short and sweet. They're rough enough to appeal to teenage angst while being radio friendly enough to get some airplay (on college radio, if no where else). Before the template for this style was firmyl established (and copied to death), it was probably a tough balance to get. Despite the countless imitations of this style, this album holds up pretty well and is full of fast, catchy songs.
Calexico
4/5
I didn't quite realize how much I needed mariachi-infused indie rock in my life, but here we are! "Feast of Wire" is a really good album that delivers what it promises. My only complaint is that I felt it dragged a bit at the end, but I still really liked it.
Eagles
4/5
Oh no... Do I... kind of like an Eagles album? Country soft rock Eagles? Hotel California Eagles? Hated by "The Dude" Eagles?? Well I feel very uncool to admit this, but I actually did enjoy this one. In the spirit of this challenghe, I always try to give everything a chance. In my opinion, this debut is a lot stronger than their other album on this list (despite the prolific earworm of a song that is "Hotel California"). It's extremely well produced. The performances and melodies really do help you slip into a "Take It Easy" kind of calm that's miles away from rushed cityscapes. I initially rolled my eyes at the double speed banjo playing. It's hard to remove the stereotype of a person in nothing but overalls sitting on his porch. But even that won me over eventually, as it really does add a lot additional texture and depth to the music. The non-singles are the better songs in my view, particularly "Most of Us Are Sad" and "Earlybird".
Is it going to be one of my new favorites? No. Was it worth destroying my street cred to write a positive review of the Eagles? Probably not. But if I'm being honest and putting my preconceived ideas behind, it was a surprisingly good album that I might actually return to.
The Auteurs
4/5
Suede may be the more memorable of the proto-Brit-pop bands, but The Auteurs just barely beat them to the punch, releasing their debut album only a matter of weeks earlier. I can see the connection a bit more with Suede, but I really liked the The Auteurs too. They feel a bit moodier, a bit darker, like they'd be influenced by the likes of My Bloody Valentine and The Jesus and Mary Chain. It's not quite a perfect album, but there are loads of highlights, including "Show Girl", "How Could I Be Wrong", and "Early Years". This is one that I should definitely return to.
Teenage Fanclub
4/5
Before listening, I read that this album was ranked as the best album of 1991 in Spin magazine, beating out both R.E.M. and Nirvana. That's rich, I thought. And yeah, that obviously sounds pretty ridiculous in retrospect, but I can actually see why they were so enthusiastic about this album. It takes the noise rock of Sonic Youth, tones it down significantly and mixes it with catchy pop hooks that could be mistaken for Pixies covers. The album feels pretty rough and, well, teenage, but that does add to the charm. It's far from the best album of 1991, but there's still a lot to enjoy here.
The Stone Roses
5/5
There are some artists that you first hear at the wrong time in your life. Thank god for this generator re-exposing me to The Stone Roses. Many years ago, I heard things about them and was interested based on their connection to the Madchester scene, already having been a fan of Joy Division and New Order. I kind of liked "Fools Gold" but just didn't click with anything else I heard. Well today I can firmly say that I am definitely a fan. This album is simply incredible, at the crossroads of indie rock and dance music, and infectuous from the very first track through to the seemingly never-ending (in the best way possible!) "I am the Resurrection". I really can't get enough of this album. It is a rare case where I consciously kept listening to the bonus track, the song that I already knew and have renewed appreciation for. This is an album that I put on repeat immediately after finishing the first run through.
Joan Armatrading
4/5
There are more than a few hidden gems in this challenge. Joan Armatrading has been a particularly surprising one. If I'd seen this in a record store, I'm sure I'd have immediately dismissed it. Even listening to it the first time, I was tempted to dismiss it as good but not worthy of being on the list. Maybe it's kind of interesting as a being a successful record from a Black woman singer-songwriter. That's definitely not nothing but is it enough to get on this list? Does it survive the test of time? I keep thinking of a review that said this is the kind of album you only put on once in a while but keep coming back to. And I can see that. There is something special about it. There are so many diverse elements here, including folk and jazz and blend perfectly with the singer-songwriter style that leads the sound. Multiple listens reveal more each time. For my rating system, I should possibly give this 3 stars but I want to be generous here because I think it may be one yo explore more in the future.
Saint Etienne
3/5
I quite liked this one. It felt like the early 90s London club scene (the one that gave us artists like Massive Attack and early Bjork releases) but heavily coated in 60s nostalgia. The result is hypnotic, lucid, and chill. It feels like a constant movement between two worlds. My only issue is that I'm not sure how significant it is. There are surely better, purer examples of that London club scene. Saint Etienne are probably a bit more niche and maybe too much for this list. But hey, it was a new discovery for me and I was happy enough to hear it.
Butthole Surfers
4/5
Ok I actually liked this one a lot more than I expected. It's dark, heavy, murky, disturbing, yet full of absurdist humor. So it's not going to be one that I play at a dinner party but as lofi, cheaply made, ridiculous sonic experiments go, it's brilliant. Honestly the most off-putting element to me is the album cover. But the music is fantastically weird. It's not great in an objective sense, but I love it for it's unashamed rupture with anything radio-friendly. Surprisingly I only previously knew The Butthole Surfers from their 90s hit "Pepper" which did get a lot of radio play at the time. This album is a lot more niche, to put it mildly. If it makes you uncomfortable, take comfort in the fact that you're in the majority. But if you manage to see something in it, you're still in very good company. Kurt Cobain listed this as one of his 50 favorite albums. Not bad for a group of guys experimenting at home without the benefit of a recording studio.
Black Sabbath
5/5
Arguably the best Black Sabbath album but certainly the most influential. "Paranoid" is maybe the most important piece of heavy metal ever made. It's far from the first one but Black Sabbath managed to mold the genre into something unique, separated from its blues roots, and characterized by themes of darkness and the occult which would cause such panic in parents. Reports of Satan worship are severely exaggerated however. A keen listener will see that Sabbath don't celebrate darkness as much as reflect back the darkness they see in the world (and yes of course that means wearing all black and calling yourself the Prince of Darkness, maybe a step further than Johnny Cash would have gone). The lyrics are heavily political, calling out the bank bosses in bed with politicians beating the drums of war (the War Pigs mentioned in the opening track) and the herion addicted veterans who came back to nothing. There's also a heavy dose of Sci Fi mixed in, contributing more to three general theme of apocalypse. When it's not the War Pigs, it's the Iron Man. Either way, the world is destroyed. For my money, "Vol 4" is still their peak, but I can't deny just how brilliant and catchy some of these songs are, particularly in the first half, rounded out by the stunningly improvised title track and the unexpected calm and space age "Planet Caravan". It's fitting and certainly no accident that I got this one today, following the passing of Ozzy Osborne so soon after the final Black Sabbath concert in Birmingham. R.I.P. the Prince of Darkness. I'm sorry that I didn't learn to appreciate your music sooner.
Pet Shop Boys
3/5
"Very" is both a return to form for The Pet Shop Boys, as well as a celebration of singer Neil Tennant's identity, as he'd recently come out of the closet before its release. And for that, you can definitely see why it's so loved. It's confident, self-assured, and very dancefloor friendly. If you need a soundtrack for your next Pride party, you could do much worse than "Very". Having said this, it's not really for me. It's a little too similar to Casio keyboard sounds that a beginner in the 80s might have played on. That's fine for what it is, and I still see the appeal. But for my money, the Pet Shop Boys have better songs than what's on offer here.
Happy Mondays
4/5
If there's ever been a more Madchester album than this one, I haven't heard it. The Happy Mondays were born out of the Factory Records scene, the fiercely independent record label that was home to Joy Division and (just about) everything else that come out of Manchester influenced by the Sex Pistols. As Joy Division would give way to the dancier, synth-laced New Order, so would other bands start to bring post punk to the dancefloor. The Happy Mondays were supposedly pretty chaotic behind the scenes, but they really delivered on this new style, aided by the production of DJ Paul Oakenfold. Primal Scream would follow this path a year later, enlisted electronic artist Andrew Weatherall to produce their celebrated "Screamadelica". While "Pills 'n' Thrills and Bellyaches" may not have achieved the same fame, it's arguably the more exciting album, with hits like "Step On" and "Loose Fit" lighting up Factory's infamous club with a brightness that Primal Scream could never quite reach. If it sounds a little dated now, remember that it was very much a product of its time and place and should be remembered for the achievement it reached at the time.
R.E.M.
5/5
Before its release "Green" caused some panic in fans who feared what major label R.E.M. might become. The story is familiar enough. A small time band gets a small taste of success and then tries desperately to sell as many albums and get as much radio play as possible. But Stipe and company were not the sell outs that some feared. Major label backing got the word about R.E.M. to a wider audience, sure, but not at the expense of their art. In fact, they only accepted a record deal on the promise of artistic freedom and used the experience to create their most experimental work here, trying different styles, new instruments, and switching isntruments to create wider possibilities. This experience also set the template for what their sound would evolve into. The sounds of "Out of Time" and "Automatic for the People" had their foundations in "Green". This album is clearly a major turning point and it incorporates some interesting pop elements alongside the experimental ones. For some, this is the peak of the band's career. Few would argue that it wasn't important.
Michael Jackson
4/5
The third and final collaboration between Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones. In retrospect, this was really the winning combination, wasn't it? Not that Jackson wasn't already famous, but that trilogy of albums are really the past where he turned into an international superstar and it's hard to not notice that Jones was there for this period. We can also see in retrospect that this was the period when Jackson seems to have started really suffering in his mental health. Undoubtedly, that all began in his childhood, but like many others, adjusting to explosion fame seemed to have been pretty damaging to him. Ok, clearly mental health is not an excuse for his alleged crimes. But let's remember that there was a time before that, when he was still an inspiration to many and (arguably) the most famous person in the world. But "Bad" is the point when he started to seclude himself from the limelight, when he got a pet monkey, when he changed the color of his skin. It's also the time when the fear of following up "Thriller" was simply paralyzing.
Say what you will about the guy, he definitely succeeded with "Bad". He clearly wasn't fooling anyone with the tough guy persona, but he still made some extremely catchy pop music. It set a record for producing five number one songs and a sixth one in the top 10. It's one of the best selling albums of all time and it's gloriously 80s (some of the backing tracks sound like they could have been music from Sonic the Hedgehog games and I mean that as a compliment). "Thriller" might be the better album, but "Bad" firmly established the world's biggest pop star. Temporarily at least before the disturbing downfall. If you can separate the art from the artist, this album will remain a classic.
Bruce Springsteen
4/5
Growing up in New Jersey, Bruce Springsteen was completely inescapable. Even if it's not your kind of music, you can't help but know it and love it. If for no other reason than his "plight of the working man" lyrics. "Darkness on the Edge of Town" saw Springsteen expanding his reach and influence far beyond the weird curvy borders of his home state, to address the entire country and beyond. In doing so, he bring in the small influence of punk rock, slightly more country, and a huge helping of Woodie Gutherie and John Steinbeck. While this album didn't have the same commercial appeal as his previous work, it's been held up in retrospect as an important part of his discography, and a huge part of establishing himself as an enduring presence in music. These recording sessions included the incredible song "Because the Night", not included here but gifted to Patti Smith. To this day, Springsteen's message resonates to all different corners of the world. But he'll always embody the spirit of the voices of the New Jersey seaside citizens, struggling and occasionally celebrating through life.
Carpenters
3/5
This challenge has a lot of music that can be challenging to listen to. There's a lot of "only the cool kids got this" kind of music. Well, The Carpenters are... not that. Sorry, but it's really hard to make a brother & sister contemporary vocal band, directed by their parents, sound very cool. You're just not going to impress many people with your Carpenters record collection. But ok, it's not unpleasant, right? And there are some decent musical performances here and there. Surely, the Burt Bacharach and Hal David compositions memorable and kind of objectively good, for what they are. "Close to You" is good enough to Homer and Marge's song, which I guess counts for something. I'm reaching a bit here to find nice things to say. It's well made and successful and I guess it's significant. But yeah, not really for me. If you want a more interesting alternative, I'd recommend listening to The Free Design.
Elliott Smith
5/5
Elliott Smith seemed to have both channeled and modernized the spirit of Nick Drake for a near perfect meloncholy indie rock performance. What surprised me the most about this album is just how optimistic is feels compared to Smith's reputation, legacy and tragic death. As the final album releases in his lifetime, I did expect something quite a bit darker. Which isn't to say that it's a particularly lighthearted album. Lyrics about a serial killer will certainly take you down a bit. But "Figure 8" to me really sounds like the product of a songwriter using his art to manage his depression, which beautiful results. Surely, his work must have similarly touched many fans who also struggled with mental health.
The music will stay with you when you listen to this album and you may want some time to stay in that melancholy state before putting on anything much more lively. But sometimes you need that. Although the circumstances around his death remain mysterious, there's little question that he was a tortured artist in his life. The world lost Elliott Smith far too young, but he certainly left us with some incredible music that has the power to heal and to calm. Best listened to alone in a quiet room.
Einstürzende Neubauten
5/5
Until recently, "Kollaps" had the dubious distinction of being the worst rated album in this generator. As of this writing, it's been inched up to number 1088, narrowly getting past Throbbing Gristle. I hate that Neubauten is rated so low, but I honestly can't say that I am surprised. I love this band and their entire discography. Those of you who have only been exposed to them through this generator may be surprised to hear how different their music becomes later on. Try listening to their album "Silence is Sexy" and consider that it's the same band. Aside from the continued use of industrial percussion, their evolution is part of what makes Neubauten among my favorite bands.
But we're here to talk about their debut, the grating, experimental, and very non-commercial, "Kollaps". It is easily the least accessible album they ever produced. It's also the most significant. A decade earlier, bands like Can were rejecting Germany's past that had led to fascism, war, and a divided nation. Can embraced the future, taking rock music into unique new places that would influence much of Western music. Neubauten rejected that optimism for the future, but rather than hoping for a return to the ugly past, they embraced pure nihilism. Their name loosely translates to "Collapsing new buildings", a reference to shoddy post-war architecture that was meant to represent a bright future. They took the ethos of punk into a very strange new place, discarding anything fun, and playing with whatever they could find, including metal objects and the undersides of bridges. In doing so, they single-handedly invented Industrial music.
Neubauten's fanbase was very niche but extremely excited by what they were doing. Bands like Skinny Puppy and Nine Inch Nails own a huge debt to them. Trent Reznor would later try to repay that by releasing their album "Ende Neu" on his Nothing Records imprint. Henry Rollins loves them so much that he got a tattoo of their stick figure cyclops symbol. Cave was so astounded by Neubauten's terrifying live performance that he would invite lead singer Blixa Bargeld to moonlight as a member of the Bad Seeds for several decades. Neubauten's live shows in the early days were sometimes shut down, often for causing riots. In one infamous example, the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London had to stop Neubauten's performance as they were literally destroying the stage they were standing on (rumors circulated that they were trying to dig a hole to Buckingham Palace).
"Kollaps" is possibly the "purest" example of industrial music ever made, but even Neubauten themselves would slowly start to mellow out over time. Their later work became more structured, with proper rhythms and melodies. Bargeld would one day be softly crooning more than screaming. But through this, they also expanded their industrial techniques, incorporating new unusual instruments such as amplified springs, taboo whip, metal trash cans attached to wires, and a sculpture of trash "played" by blasting its various contours with air. Bargeld's own singing style would also incorporate his own brand of throat singing, which would appear on later albums.
I understand that most people will hate this album and many won't last until the end. It's by far their most challenging album and it's definitely not their best. But purely for its significance, it absolutely deserves its place on this list. 5 points may seem overly generous, but I really love this band. They put on one of the best live shows I've ever seen. Thankfully there were no riots.
The Temptations
4/5
A significant album in the discography of The Temptations, "Cloud Nine" also demonstrates a generally shift away from traditional Mo Town music into more psychedelic soul and funk, pioneered by Sly and the Family Stone. The first side is joyful, bold and free, celebrating a break from their previous formula that brought such hits as "My Girl". Unfortunately, the second side plays it too safe, sticking to their previous sound without much to really write home about. Despite that, the first side is incredible even if it's only 3 songs. The 9 minute "Runaway Child, Running Wild" is the easy highlight here, combining a radio friendly funk single with an extended jam outro that sounds great all the way through. Overall, this album marks the beginning of a new phase for a band that was at risk of running their course. It's a shame this era is less well known as they made some great songs here.
FKA twigs
4/5
I used to listen to a lot of glitch music around the early 2000s. Artists like Prefuse 73 and Oval felt excitingly different but destined for relative obscurity except for a brief period of Bjork's music. Hearing a genuinely new kind of music, it really felt like a shame to have it lost to music history. Fortunately, it found a nature match as a bizarre and challenging kind of R&B. The collaboration was desperately needed. Artists like Arca make some interesting music but really, how much can you listen to? And R&B also needed some major innovation to stay fresh. The combination of the two works perfectly for an unusual yet sensual new kind of music. FKA twigs is a clear champion of this suggested, having quickly risen to fame and a Mercury Prize nomination for her debut. The cover art prepares you for something equally human and post-human, like the music itself. It's definitely challenging and may take some time and the right frame of mind to appreciate. But you can't accuse her of making boring music.
UB40
4/5
I never would have imagined that the most anti-Margeret Thatcher album I'd ever hear would be from a reggae band, but it defintiely tracks. The descendents of the Windrush generation, once celebrated for rebuilding post-war Britain, have never been fans of the Tories. UB40 emerged from the British 2 tone scene, mixing reggae with ska, much like The Specials. The name UB40 refers to their unemployment forms (probably also antagonizing the Conservatives) but the album title "Signing Off" is a bold statement that this was going to be their ticket out of that lifestyle. It feels particularly subversive in a way, because they're co-opting the right's own message of pulling themselves up by their boot straps while also celebrating the socialize benefits that allowed them to do it all from a tiny house in the country. Given how popular the album was, it seems like it worked, and the legacy continues. "Signing Off" remains one of the best reggae albums produced outside of Jamaica.
Mike Oldfield
3/5
It's hard to imagine a more iconic opening to an album that the first few minutes of "Tubular Bells", famously used as the music to The Exorcist. There's something surreal about hearing the rest of the album evolve into something else though. I think this is one of those albums where being so familiar with a small part of it is a major disadvantage. It really doesn't live up to the intensely creepy sound that you may expect. It's a technical triumph, sure. And maybe if it wasn't for The Exorcist, I could judge it separately. Unfortunately, the iconic sound is so limited to the first moments that it's hard to really care about the rest. A fine album in and of itself, but the noteworthy part wraps up far too quickly to remain memorable.
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
3/5
Having now finally listened to all 9 albums featuring Neil Young in this challenge, I remain deepy confused about what I think of him. I've rated his albums between 5 stars and 2 stars. The prospect of getting a live album by him definitely filled me with some slight dread. Most of his album struck me as among his more boring material, if I'm being honest. Ok, I get that there was some controversy around the central concept: "It's better to burn out than fade away". Multiple other artists weighed in and Kurt Cobain quoted it in his suicide note. So yeah, that's pretty heavy. But what else do we get aside from one extreme lyric. Most of the songs were fairly forgettable. But... I absolutely love both parts of the album's bookends, "Hey Hey, My My". Both songs work incredibly well on their own and compliment one another perfectly. Neil Young was said to have had a big influence on grunge music, but I never heard anything other than an aging folk singer trying to cash in a teenage trend. But there's definitely a real grunge intensity to that closing track.
But once again, I just don't know how to rate it. On the power of that great two part song, I'm tempted to go up to 4 stars, knowing that I might one day come to appreciate the rest of the album. But if I'm being honest, two great songs among some filler is only 3 stars. Apologies to Neil Young fans, but he's just got a very mixed track record for me. When he's great, he's great, but I don't love it all the same.
Taylor Swift
4/5
Wait... Taylor Swift had an album that was basically a collaboration with The National? And it features HAIM and Bon Iver as well? Considering how famous she is, how did I not know this?
Taylor Swift brings up some extreme emotions in people. She's so widely worshipped and villified that it's hard to review her music objectively. But honestly, she makes some decent music. I suspect that a big large of the support and backlash is that she sings a lot from a strong women's perspective and supports LGBTQ+ issues. I'm completely cool with that, though plenty of others have come before her. Admittedly, Swift has more universal appeal than, say, Bikini Kill. And I think it's also the moment we are in. But try to seperate out the extreme reactions she gets and judge the music for what it is. It's really not a bad album at all, and The National bring a lot of their calm indie style to her. There's a bit more country twang than I'd really like here, but I appreciate it's Swift's background, so fine. I'd actually return to this one.
The 13th Floor Elevators
3/5
At 841 albums into this challenge, this is one that I swear I've already heard. How many 60s psychedelic albums does one really need to hear after all? It turns out that 13th Floor Elevators were pretty influential in pioneering the sound and were the first to adopt the term. It's notably different from other examples with a heavier influence from garage and surf rock. Jefferson Airplane may be better known today but this is a unique album. I still don't know what an "electric jug" is though.
Elliott Smith
4/5
Another impressive (if depressive) album by Elliott Smith. As I said in my other review of his music, he seems to be channeling the spirit of Nick Drake into a modern context. As far as I can tell, "Either Or" seems to be Smith's breakthrough album, having had several tracks added to the "Good Will Hunting" soundtrack and clearly a much wider audience because of it. I really have nothing bad to say about this album, though I preferred "Figure 8". I'm thoroughly convinced that I shoud be spending more time listening to Elliott Smith in the future.
The Mothers Of Invention
4/5
I really can't believe that Captain Beefheart gets so much flak when The Mothers of Invention sounded like this. Not that this album is rated particularly high but it's leagues above the Zappa produced "Trout Mask Replica" despite being a far less cohesive album. But I kind of get it. All they really had to say was that they were making fun of hippies and The Beatles and people will find the otherwise random sound experiments much more accessible. The joke is eaiser to "get" than Beefheart's sincere (and incredible) masterpiece. That said, I do like this album for what it is, but you need to take it with a grain of salt. Causing one of the most celebrated artists of all time of being "only in it for the money" is a just cheap, and unsubstantiated shot, but it's subversive enough that it definitely works. Adding to the fact that they seem to be deliberately avoiding any commercial success and you can definitely understand the appeal here. For counterculture kids, it must have been very exciting to bash "Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" in favor of something utterly bizarre and with no attempt to sound serious.
Now no one is going to seriously argue that The Mothers of Invention were a better band than the Beatles, but there is something very freeing about pretending that that's true. For those who knew this album, it signaled that even the supremacy of Lennon and McCartney could be challenged. It doesn't have to be "better", as long as it's weird and irreverent. So for what it is, this album is kind of amazing.
Fugees
4/5
Evidently, this is one of the best selling hip hop albums in France. For some reason, that makes sense to me. It's soulful and smooth, intellectual and political. It's angry but retained and channeled through poetry. These are people who want to change the system, but simply get their piece of it. While I prefer Lauryn Hill's solo album, the Fugees definitely paved the way for it.
Billy Bragg
4/5
This album was described by Wikipedia as "folk punk" and I feel like that label could have fit Woody Gutherie. I recently saw a picture of Billy Bragg for the first time and briefly thought it was Jeremy Corbyn (a quick Google search will show you a picture of both them hugging each other at Glastonbury in 2017, and you can see what I mean). Anyway, Bragg is clearly keeping the spirit of Gutherie alive within a modern British context. This is music to play on a date, if you met you partner at union meeting. Extra points of Johnny Marr's excellent contribution to two tracks.
Ute Lemper
2/5
I sometimes strain a bit to find the significance of some albums on this list. This album is a particular struggle. It's fine, but honestly, not that interesting. Baroque pop cover songs backed by The Divine Comedy. It has an audience, sure, but it feels pretty niche and not particularly groundbreaking. The original artists are better and mostly feature elsewhere in the list, so I'd ideally save some time and listen to those.
Also, this album is something of a Trojan horse to sneak more Elvis Costello into the generator!
Paul Simon
5/5
"Graceland" was Paul Simon's comeback album. After completely disconnecting from Art Garfunkel amid a well known falling out, poor album sales as a solo artist, and a difficult divorce, you might have thought that Simon was at the end of his career. But "Graceland" proved that he had more to say. It was an unlikely comeback from a folk legend to make an African influenced pop album. And it wasn't without controversy. Recorded during apartheid, many people criticized Simon for ignoring the South African boycott. Paul Simon countered that he was supporting the oppressed people and drawing attention to their cause. History seems to have vindicated him but other critics have accused him of cultural appropriation which is a thornier one to argue against. Clearly though, Simon did see something special about the music and invited local musicians to contribute to the sound of the album. Despite the controversies, it really holds up well as an album. For me personally, I listened to it with my son who spontaneously started dancing and dragged me up to join him. So it's pretty hard not love it after that. Such is the power of great music and honestly, this is a great album.
Happy Mondays
3/5
The Happy Mondays definitely get points for being different, but let's be honest, this is a rough album. It's an early example of Madchester, mixing post punk with acid house and rave culture. It's hardly the best example though. The singing and performances are pretty poor. You can imagine the band high on every drug they can get their hands on, playing back their music, and feeling like they were the greatest band on earth. Joy Division producer Martin Hannett is the best thing here but it's sort lip stick on a pig. The Happy Mondays had better later work but never matched the Stone Roses. This album was at least very influential so points for that. It's interesting but no masterpiece.
The xx
4/5
There's some really fantastic production on this album. Don't go in expecting to be hit over the head with obvious hits. This album takes some time to sit with and just enjoy, like appreciating a good wine. The music is subdued and influenced by indie rock, electronic music and R&B. The result is some beautiful dream pop. I'm not at all surprised that this album was a "sleeper hit", steadily selling more over time rather than being an overnight sensation. It takes some time and repeated listens but it's well worth some effort.
Ryan Adams
2/5
It's a bit too Americana for my taste and Ryan Adams is too much of an asshole who preyed on young female artists. "To Be Young" was the only song that really stood out to me and I'm tempted to award a point for Gillian Welch's contribution. Overall though, it's not for me.
Meat Puppets
4/5
If I hadn't known anything about The Meat Puppets and I read that they were a mix of punk and country, I think my eye would have started twitching. That sounds like a pretty obnoxious combination, like a proto-Kid Rock. Fortunately, this album is nothing like that. The band managed to take the best of both worlds and make something really unique for the music scene of the early 80s. It's the rural atmosphere of the American West that comes through, not the rigid and toxic Nashville sound. The punk side is more gritty and untidy than angry and fast. As with other punk bands, the unpolished sound is part of the experience, though it might feel jarring at first. This is another album that really benefits from multiple listens.
The biggest claim to fame that The Meat Puppets ever had was at one time collaborators with Nirvana when Kurt Cobain invited them on stage for the famous MTV Unplugged performance. It's hard not to think about Cobain while listening to songs like "Plateau", "Oh Me" and "Lake of Fire". But the Meat Puppets deserve credit beyond simply having one high profile fan. They made a great album here that I'm sure I'll return to.
Frankie Goes To Hollywood
4/5
My immediate complaint here is why on earth would you make it a double album? That's quite a bold move for a band's debut, also considering that fans would have had to shell out a lot more to get a double vinyl back in the day. What's even more frustrating is that you could easily cut out the intro, the unnecessarily long version of "Welcome to the Pleasuredome", and all of the cover tracks. If they'd done this, they would have had a tight 35(ish) minute, 10 song debut, powered by 3 very strong singles. Or a bit more with the edited version of "Pleasuredome". And that would have been a pretty solid album, with some classic 80s songs, and a good celebration of LGBTQ+ themes. But the extra bits just feel a bit underinflated just to make it a double album, which definitely hurts it. So I'm a bit torn between 3 and 4 stars here, but I feel like the shortened album that could have been is actually pretty decent and deserves some points. If nothing else, "Relax" is a hell of an earworm and the whole album (including the covers) is pretty fun.
Ananda Shankar
4/5
Ravi Shakar's nephew doing sitar covers of popular Western rock and pop songs sounds pretty much exactly the way you'd expect it to. But in 1970 there was still plenty of excitement around that idea and these two covers were enough to sell a lot of albums and generate some nostalgia for the recently passed psychedelic era. However, those were really the least interesting songs on the album.
Ananda Shakar's debut album began life as a proposed collaboration between himself and Jimi Hendrix. While that would have been great, I'm glad that he turned the offer down to make his own music. After a few years of Western musicians incorporating Indian music into theirs, Shakar turned it around by leading an American band with guitars and Moog synthesizers. Kind an anti-cultural appropriation. However, it was more controversial in his native India where many people felt it was diluting traditional music with rock music. I understand this concern but for many, Shankar was opening up possibilities and allowing his music to reach a greater audience. Not simply as a background to rock bands, but with the sitar and tradition front and center. It's an incredible album.
Sleater-Kinney
4/5
I came for the feminist and queer themes. I stayed for the great, high energy rock n roll. I mainly knew Sleater-Kinney as Carrie Brownstein's (from Portlandia) band but never spent the time to listen to them properly. They're really a fantastic band, bringing influences from classic rock and punk. I had expected to hear something similar to Le Tigre or Bikini Kill. While the spirit and lyrics are roughly aligned with those bands, Sleater-Kinney are pulling a lot more from bands like The Kinks. In doing so, they're declaring that feminism doesn't need to be confirmed to the traditionally friendly genres like punk and grunge. They can reach for the heights of commercial appeal and the great bands of the past. Ok, Sleater-Kinney are not The Kinks, but they're still damn good and refreshingly challenging to both gender and genre (as one reviewer put it). Well worth a listen.
John Martyn
4/5
Another interesting album from John Martyn. This one is a mix of jazz, folk and blues that seamlessly manages to drift between the three genres. It's not quite mainstream but much more accessible than some of his other work I've heard. The title track was apparently written for Nick Drake shortly before he died. I think I'm intrigued enough by John Martyn's music that I should explore more of his discography one say.
Sabu
3/5
A cool Cuban Rumba album. What I particularly like about these kinds of albums is how old they are. Decades before the world music movement and at a time when rock music was in its infancy, jazz bands and crooners were reaching out to Latin American musicians. This was some of the most exciting recorded music of the era. Suba came to prominence as a member of Dizzy Gillespie's band and as a backing musician for others. Here he got his chance to shine in his own debut album, bringing more attention to Latin Jazz and Rumba to American audiences.
Simple Minds
4/5
A fine 80s synth pop album. It was a breakthrough for Simple Minds and highly influential on some big name artists like Depeche Mode and U2. But you really need to consider this one in the context of the year it was released. It probably contributed a lot to the sound of 80s synth pop to come. In retrospect, it doesn't quite hold up as well as other bands. For one moment in 1982, it seems like Simple Minds were on top of the genre and helped push forward a more human sound. So for that it's certainly significant. But they'd be surpassed by the end of the decade which is likely why most people only know their one gigantic hit song. I love some good synth pop so this was a great listen for me anyway. And bonus, Herbie Hancock makes an appearance.
The Byrds
4/5
My third Byrds album in this challenge and a very noticeable change from their earlier work. The overall feel of the album is very experimental. The Byrds were one of the first bands to incorporate the Moog synthesizer into their music, which is already pretty bold. But this is also a key album in the direction of the California sound, mixing folk, country, and psychedelic rock. It makes "The Notorious Byrd Brothers" a very bold album and a big step from their poppier early days. These sessions also saw a major shake up from the band, with the dismissal of David Crosby, which would further change their future going forward. Regardless of the personal drama behind the scenes, this remains the most distinct Byrds albums I've heard yet. It's not quite my favorite one, but I really do appreciate the spirit of the album.
Fiona Apple
4/5
Fiona Apple was impossible to avoid in the 90s. Of all of the angry woman songwriters, there seemed to be something very unique about her. There's something kind of sexy but equally disturbing about her. Her youth implied a bit more innocence like the 90s pop starlets who took up most of the spotlight at the time. But she felt more corrupted and overly mature in a way that cut deep and took everyone by surprise. The top songs of this album still feel fresh today, and a bit shocking. Half of the album's 10 songs are excellent, especially the three stunning singles. The rest is a bit forgettable but the strong tracks are well worth revisiting.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
4/5
Another killer album from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Karen O and company still feel like the one of the coolest bands of the early 2000s. The high schools geeks turned indie stars manage to sound fresh and a little bit darker with the new synths on their third album. The result is one of their best works that's up there with there high energy debut album. "Heads Will Roll" is an easy standout track with "Dull Life" close behind.
Bob Marley & The Wailers
4/5
Apparently, this was the album (and tour) that really brought Bob Marley and the Wailers to global fame. As someone who doesn't really connect with most reggae, I have to say The Wailers are always great and well worth listening to. This album is solid from start to finish, though it lacks any of their most well known songs. Otherwise, I really don't have any bad to say about this one. It delivers what you'd expect of Marley and every track is great.
The Mamas & The Papas
3/5
"California Dreaming" is easily a 5 star song, but I have to say that the rest really didn't do much for me. It's a great example of 60s music and I can easily see why it would have been so popular back when it was released. Maybe I'm biased by the band's reputation, but I just didn't really find anything that special about the rest of the album. It's fine, but no where near the best music of the era. Still, it's got that one great song though.
Hookworms
4/5
Surely, even Hookworms themselves must be wondering why they were included in the 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. I like a good indie electronic drone album as much as the next guy, and I enjoyed listening to this one. But this feels like one of those albums that's only significant because it made this list. I'd happily listen to it again, but I really can't justify a very high score. I do quite like the mess of sounds featured in "Boxing Day" though and wish I could hear more of that... Oh what the hell, 4 stars.
Super Furry Animals
3/5
Having absolutely loved "Rings Around the World", I was hopeful for another great one from Super Furry Animals. Unfortunately, I wasn't really blown away by "Fuzzy Logic". It's fine Brit Pop but not at the level of their later work. Well, it's a debut album and everyone's gotta start somewhere. It's an alright listen, but Blur does it better.
Gorillaz
5/5
There are some albums that really bring me back to a particular time and place. This one was me, fresh out of high school and working at a record store. Gorillaz was on constantly. Honestly, this isn't the band's best album, but there was something really special and unique about their debut. To start with here was Blur's Damon Albarn abandoning his Brit Pop roots for something completely different, which was already a surprise. There's such a fun mix of trip hop, punk, Latin, and pop sentimentalities here. Albarn recruited Dan the Automator to produce, who in turn set the standard for Gorillaz to bring in diverse collaborators in future albums. The debut has a fantastic cast of musicians, including Del the Funky Homosapien, Kid Koala, Miho Hatori, Ibrahim Ferrer, and Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz of Tom Tom Club/Talking Heads. The mix of sounds was completely unlike anything I'd heard before.
The next thing that really stands out is the artwork by Jamie Hewlett. Plenty of bands have their frequent collaborators for album artwork, but Gorillaz were unique in having their artist as a proper member and co-founder of the band. There is no Gorillaz without Hewlett. Along with Albarn, the two were reeling from recent breakups and feeling disillusioned with pop culture. Supposedly they were watching a lot of MTV and described it as experiencing hell. From that came the idea of crafted an animated post-apocalyptic band. Despite not playing any instruments or writing any songs, Hewlett's characters play a central role in the feel of the music. They're more than mascotts, they're properly attached to the music, even "performing" live at Gorillaz's songs.
As mentioned, Gorillaz have better albums, but I get why this one was chosen. Despite some filler, it was a pretty exciting album that still holds up well today.
Tori Amos
4/5
One thing that I love about this challenge is rediscovering albums that I was exposed to many years ago and had completely forgotten about. I vaguely remember someone playing me a Tori Amos album when I was young. It didn't click at the time (I was probably too young for either the music or the lyrics). But 1 minute into "Little Earthquakes" and I knew I was in for something special. I remember many of these songs but I didn't remember how powerful they were. Tori Amos is understandably throw in somewhere in between Kate Bush and Fiona Apple. But listening now, I feel something very different. There's a rawness, and a pain that's been channeled into power. Nowhere is that more obvious than "Me and a Gun" which is a shocking and brutally honest account her real life trauma. But the entire album is incredible.
The opening track "Crucify" is an immediate stand out for me, and instantly attention grabbing. Tracks like "Precious Things" make the ground feel unstable under you. Other tracks, like "Winter" feel bleak and isolated. In short, compared to other women singer-songwriters, Amos feels more angsty and uneasy. I hate that I sat on this one for so many years but truthfully, this was the time in my life when I was ready to appreciate this album.
Faith No More
4/5
Some bands have early albums that almost don't count. I still can't really imagine Faith No More without Mike Patton. He took over lead vocals for this album and started the band's most successful period. Their style of metal seemed to feature hints of influence from bands like Queen. Whether I'm just imagining that or not, Faith No More were definitely huge in defining the sound of the late 80s, as hair metal and synth pop gave way to grunge and indie rock. "The Real Thing" features three incredible singles which kick the album off. Epic indeed. The remainder of the album is sadly not as good but still keeps to the style. As hard as I try, Faith No More always seemed better suited to greatest hits compilations than actual albums. This is probably not the best work but there's enough on there that's worth hearing. And as the first album with Patton, I can't argue the decision to include it here.
Hanoi Rocks
4/5
Well this was a nice new guilty pleasure. By all measures, Hanoi Rocks sounds a bit ridiculous. It's glam rock after glam rock fell out of fashion. It's punk when everyone else was going post punk. It's very rough around the edges and hard to take seriously. But honestly, I kind of loved it. The first half in particular packed some good punches. I can completely understand why they attracted such fans as Mott the Hopple and Axl Rose. Shame that they didn't last as a band. I can easily see them having matured, with this album being the slightly embarrassing fan favorite that no one admits to. But honestly, it was pretty good.
Jeru The Damaja
3/5
There's some pretty great production on this, particularly for the time. The samples add a certain sting to the beats. But is that more the work of DJ Premier? Hard to say as he co-wrote the album. Lyrically, this is another 90s hip hop album that's unfortunately filled with misogyny. On the worst offending track "Da Bichez", Jeru goes out of his way to remind you that he's not taking about *all* women and that he has respect for some. Unfortunately, he later describes the "Queens" like trophies to be stolen. I suspect that "respect" means "I'll give you money but not too much money". Ignoring these toxic parts, the album is pretty good. For 1994, it sounds like an impressive step forward for the genre.
Heaven 17
4/5
There's a scene in A Clockwork Orange where two girls are in a record store discussing what albums to buy. Among artists with names like Goggly Gogol, they mention a band called Heaven 17. It was fictional band but it inspired some former members of legendary synth pop group Human League to steal the name. That tells you a lot about what you're in for with this album. In the 80s it may have felt fresh and new but in 2025, it has some strong retrofuturism vibes. It's definitely unusual but also fairly niche. They suffered poor album sales, very likely because their lead single was banned by the BBC for the references to Ronald Reagan. Without that controversy, I think they would have done a lot better in that period.
"(We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thang" is still an amazing song that recently found new life from LCD Soundsystem, with subtle updates to reflect similar fears about another fascist in the White House.
The Associates
4/5
I've thought a lot about post-punk as a genre throughout this challenge. I didn't really know the term before (though I knew some of the artists already) and it's been interesting to see how the label has been applied. In a very literal sense, it's just the music that came after the first wave of punk artists, including works by the artists themselves (e.g.: John Lydon moving from the Sexi Pistols to PiL). The actual music though is pretty diverse, including some dark proto-goth bands, some celebrating synthesizers and dance music, and some that are just utterly experimental. All are united only by the punk attitude of "anyone can pick up a guitar and do this".
What makes The Associates interesting is that they seem to be doing all of the above at once. It's dark, sometimes infectuously danceable, and highly experimental. Though they claim to have had clear plans for the album, the recording seems like a mess, fueled by drugs and an attempt to blow through their recording budget, alternating between purchasing instruments just to see what they're like and destroying or rebuilding others. This album has some clear hits and plenty of others that will divide opinion. The Associates seem to be building off of the legacy of Joy Division and Bowie's Berlin era, with a large degree of chaos. But sometimes, you need chaos. It may not make the fan favorites, but it can definitely make things interersting.
I don't necessarily think that the Associates were the geniuses that they imagined themselves to be, but I still like the mess of this album.
Crosby, Stills & Nash
4/5
Supergroups are a dime a dozen. Most don't offer much beyond a bit of novelty and some name recognition to help boost sales. A handful can really create something special and that's certainly the case with Crosby, Stills & Nash. Their debut brought their three distinct voices together in perfect harmony, and was very influential in setting the musical standards of the 70s. While The Byrds had already experimented with merging country, folk, and psychedelic rock, CSN really hit their stride here, creating a new sound for California. Personally I think they improved greatly by including Neil Young on their next album. But this debut was doubtless a great leap forward nonetheless.
Stan Getz
4/5
The album that started the bossa nova craze in America. Sadly, for a Brazillian album, there are no Brazillian artists included here, but they do at least provide most of the music. Stan Getz and Charlie Byrd do an incredible job of recreating the sounds they were inspired by. It's incredibly cool and accessible. While rock music would be the peak of sophisticated culture by the end of the 60s, jazz was still dominate at this stage. Call it cultural appropriation if you must, but it's doubtless that Getz brought international fame to this genre and its stars.
The Isley Brothers
4/5
Whoever said that family bands can't be cool? Well ok, the majority are hard to argue for. For the Isley Brothers, recording in the room next store to Stevie Wonder is probably a coincidence, but without knowing anything more about their history, it really sounds like the funk and soul legend allowed part of his talent to rub off on their recording. You only need to listen to the familiar opening track "That Lady" to know that this was going to be a fun 70s album.
King Crimson
4/5
The word that I kept thinking about while listening to this album was "dynamic". The word has two very different meanings. People often use the word to describe things are that big, positive and energic. But the original meaning is something marked constant change. Listen to a pop song and then a piece of classical music and you'll see the difference. The former is engineered to be fun, so the volume, rhythm, etc are all fairly constant. The classical piece is more "dynamic" in the original sense of the word. It will be quiet as a mouse for one movement and loud as a lion the next. One is being better than the other, they're just different things. The pop song is made for you to dance and sing and go about your day. The dynamic music forces you to pay attention.
That's exactly what's happening with "Larks' Tonges in Aspic". It's not simply prog rock (which will already divide casual music lovers), but it's total change in direction and heavily influence by Eastern European modernist classical music. And it works, but like most classical recordings, it just doesn't work as background music. You need a good pair of headphones, or at least an undistrubed space, to really appreciate it. In an ideal world, you also avoid all other distractions like smart phones and just listen (though who has the discipline any more?). Your listening experience is make or break for this album. I put in the effort to try and I really enjoyed it. I can't say it's the best prog rock album I've heard, but it's definitely interesting.
Blur
4/5
I don't love the majority of Brit Pop but I have a soft spot for Blur. They are both the ideal example of the genre, as well as exhibiting a healthy amount of diversity to keep the sound from getting too repetitive. "Parklife" really demonstrates this with songs influenced by synth-pop, punk, new wave, and Syd Barrett-style psychedelic rock. Throughout it, the spirit of 90s London is strongly felt, which might be either charming or annoying, depending on who you ask. For me, "Parklife" is a great album and a sign of what was to come for Damon Albarn. There are hints of Gorillaz in the eclectic nature of this album. Their previous album "Modern Life is Rubbish" is a better complete album, but this one has some of Blur's best ever songs. The first four tracks are possibly the strongest run of songs the band ever made. The excellent "To the End" features Laetitia Sadier from Stereolab which is a great bonus.
Cream
4/5
As much as I hate Eric Clapton as a person, he really did contribute to some great music. So separating the art from the artist for a moment, "Disraeli Gears" is a very important album and a major stepping stone from blues to hard rock. There's a surprising amount of psychedelic rock on here as well. Songs like "Sunshine of Your Love" sound like they could have been the soundtrack to some hippie love ins. 1967 was a year stacked with great and important albums. Cream definitely earned their place among those impressive albums that year.
Led Zeppelin
5/5
This challenge has exposed me to a lot of Led Zeppelin. Now listening to my fifth and final one, I had to definitely admit that they were an incredible band (questionable personal lives aside...). This one didn't initially grab me in the same way as the others. I know "Black Dog" is one of their most famous and I get it but the disjointed nature of the song isn't my favorite. Compare it to something like "Immigrant Song" that knocks you out immediately. But boy does the album pick up from there. Plenty has been written about the individual songs but I'll focus only on the most well-known and the centerpiece of the entire album. "Stairway to Heaven" is often noted for it's length but this misses the point. There are plenty of long rock songs out there, but few manage to hold the listeners attention so perfectly. The movements are timed exactly right, the contrast of styles fits together, from Tolkien-esque to rock ballad to its massive rock n roll climax. It's no wonder it's so universally loved. I'm between 4 and 5 stars but that song alone is enough to tip the balance.
Beck
3/5
It must have been a pretty devastating breakup that was able to take the weird out of Beck. With the help of Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich, "Sea Change" is a beautiful and pain-filled album. There are plenty of good songs here with the major standout being "Lost Cause", one of the best he's ever recorded. But this isn't an album you would listen to if you were in the mood for Beck. If you're after melancholy, others also do it better. It's an accomplished album, just not one that I'd listen to often. But credit to Beck for stepping out of his comfort zone and doing it well.
Marianne Faithfull
3/5
This is one of those for me that has all of the makings of a great album but doesn't quite click. Marianne Faithful had a life centered around rock n roll and paid a familiar price for taking that lifestyle too far. After years of drug addiction and homelessness, she made her comeback. Her experience forever changed her and it's clearly evident in her now raspy, lower and heavier vocals. That alone makes for a great story.
The album itself is not quite what I expected. The addition of Steve Winwood of all people definitely threw me. It is an interesting sound though. Sort of proto-80s synth pop clashing with late 70s post punk. I kind of love everything about this album more than the music itself. Two tracks stand out to me as the best though, the title track which sets the scene for what I'd hoped would come, and the album closer "Why'd Ya Do It", which most resembles who I think Faithful is. The latter track was banned from some early editions which must have made it an amazing find for people who sought it out as it's the best of the entire album. It's punk but completely bitter and harsh, as Faithful earned the right to be, but also seems to nod to reggae rhythms. The rest unfortunately didn't hook me though I feel like with the right producer, I might have liked this album a lot more.
Chicago
4/5
This album sounds like what would happen if James Brown, Jimi Hendrix, and Yes formed a supergroup. There's brass! There's long distorted guitar solos! There's a complicated maze of composition and playing! That description is probably either as great or as awful as it sounds to you. But honestly, it kind of won me over in the end. It's hard not to think that this is the sound of the city of Chicago. But maybe that's just the power of suggestion. The band were intended to be a democracy with no one member or instrument dominating. It's no easy feat but they largely manage by having a wide variety of styles from song to song. I'm usually pretty critical of double albums as debuts but Chicago definitely made good use of the space across four sides.
Ray Charles
4/5
Sometimes context really matters. Without knowing more about this album, I might have thought "OK, I get it. Ray Charles is one of the greats of his era. He's got a great voice and this is some fine R&B. Not really my thing but cool." I might have been slightly confused by the title though. Clearly this isn't a country western album. Digging a bit deeper, this album becomes a lot more interesting. Released during the height of the civil rights movement, Charles dared to cross traditional racial lines in the music industry and make country standards his own. He didn't do this to prove any particular point, he simply loved the music and wanted to use his creative control the way he wanted to. But that in itself is a powerful statement that we don't need to confine ourselves to specific boxes, whether that means genres of music or seats on public buses. In doing recording this album, Charles raised his own profile, challenged society a little more, and affected the direction of several genres all at once. This is more than simply a Ray Charles album. The significance is huge here. It's not one I'd personally listen to much as it's not my style but it absolutely deserves its place on this list.
Sly & The Family Stone
4/5
"Stand!" Is the more well known album (as far as I'm aware) so it's hard not compare the two. While that album felt like an invitation to dance, "There's a Riot Goin' On" is more of a call to action. Sure you can dance to much of it, but it's the politically charged lyrics that really make an impact here. Spurred by progressive (and justifiably angry) calls for racial justice, Sly and the Family Stone clearly got more serious with this album. Musically, it's a bit sparser than "Stand!" but that works to help underline the message.
LCD Soundsystem
5/5
I've always said that the thing about LCD Soundsystem is that it's not necessarily greater than the sum of its parts, but those parts are all great. James Murphy was the kind of guy who got a later start to his music career. He was off on the sidelines, featured deep in the linear notes of other people's albums and a figure within the New York music scene for many years. I still remember a lot of excitement from his debut single, "Losing My Edge", a song about getting older and not being hip any more. It's an ironic place to have launched a career as one of the darlings of early 2000s New York. For someone who's no longer cool, he sure seemed cooler than most other new bands. The song itself was a giant playlist of other artists, a tribute to a forgotten past, but also a reminder than this guy knows his stuff. The following album brought more of his many influences (and one big name drop for Daft Punk), and proved that Murphy's edge was very much intact.
The second album is always a challenge for artists though. There's immense pressure to prove that the debut wasn't just a fluke. Fortunately, Murphy knew plenty about music from his years in the studios with others. "Sound of Silver" brought more of the same as the debut, blending bits of punk, krautrock, glam and other influences, but with more precision and maturity. Murphy takes bits of Can, Television, and Bowie, among others to make them his own. It sounds more like collage than passing the torch, although Bowie was impressed enough that he asked Murphy to produce his final album (which he declined, saying that he felt too overwhelmed by it). But this is the point where James Murphy really sets his own mark, with two songs in particular. The nostalgia-filled ode to keeping friends in adulthood, "All My Friends" resonates in a way that's rare to hear in popular music. And anyone who's ever lived in New York can relate to the bittersweet "New York I Love You But You're Bringing Me Down." The rest of the album is introspective, depressive, sarcastic, and yet very fun to listen to. But those two songs really elevate the rest of the album to something special.
Rush
4/5
To my mind, this is the peak of prog rock, along with King Crimson's "In the Court of King Crimson". Maybe because it's a bit more accessible than a lot of others. Yes, it's "math rock" but also a bit more radio friendly. This is a great entry point for the genre. For those who want something a bit more traditional of the genre, the amazing "YYZ" is a major standout and doesn't disappoint.
Love
4/5
Released in 1966, this album feels early for the creative explosion and experimentation of the late 60s. Yet, "Da Capo" contains so much of what made the decade great. There's classic rock n roll, folk, psychedelia, baroque pop, and heavy jazz influence. I feel like I can hear bits of what would later come from The Velvet Underground. The first side is not perfect but it's wonderfully balanced and completely free. One of the best suites of music of the era. The second side consists of a single sprawling, screaming mess of a track. It was a pretty outrageous thing to do at the time. While it's not something that will appeal many, it probably did break things open in terms of what was allowed in music. If the first six tracks weren't so good, it might have never been heard. Sadly for the band, it didn't help their chart success. But cult status would await them.
ZZ Top
3/5
ZZ Top sounds pretty much exactly the way you'd expect them to. Pretty straightforward boogie blues rock. The kind of thing you hear in a bar in the American South when country doesn't cut it. It's kind of fun. But let's be honest, "La Grange" is the best song by a mile.
Malcolm McLaren
4/5
What on earth to do with this one... Malcolm McLaren always struck me as a bit of an ass. Sure, he created The Sex Pistols, but it was mostly driven by the image and used to sell clothes. It was undoubtedly a culture phenomenon. It was also a bit like having a house band for an offensive (by the standards of the time) version of The Gap. Here McLaren focused on his debut album. Not as an artist, mind you, but an "impresario", whatever that means. His focus now is on the music of Africa and the African diaspora (particularly American hip hop). I find something particularly sleazy about the fact that he claims not to be an artist but puts his name on the cover and takes half of the songwriting credits (the other half going to Trevor Horn, but not to any of the black musicians featured). OK, complained about McLaren a fair amount, this album is actually pretty fun to listen to. And to be fair to McLaren, he does use his fame to give a platform to diverse artists (supposedly increasing the popularity of hip hop in the UK). So I don't know. Is it a good album? Sure. Did McLaren go about it the wrong way? I'd argue yes. I guess at the end of the day, I'm judging from the music, not the linear notes, so it deserves some credit for that.
Jurassic 5
5/5
This is my favorite kind of hip hop. Fresh beats, sleek production, perfect cutting and sampling, and devoid of the unfortunate sexism heard in a lot of 90s albums. My only complaint is the brief sample of Bill Cosby but Jurassic 5 could hardly be blamed for that in 2002. I've always heard of them but it's taken me far to long to listen to this music.
Arctic Monkeys
3/5
Somehow I don't think I've ever actually listened to an Arctic Monkeys album before. I knew of them, because who doesn't? They definitely demonstrate that blunt style of British rock from the early 2000s, recalling contemporaries like Franz Ferninand and Maximo Park. They're probably a little more accessible than both of those, which helps explain their massive fame at the time. It's a good album but I think it might have been more exciting at the time it came out. You had to be there, as they say. Still, it was worth a listen.
Sister Sledge
4/5
Produced and written by Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards, "We Are Family" is particularly a Chic album by another name. At the height of their popularity, the two were cranking out hits, so why not lend some to some other vocalists? It obviously worked, as there are plenty of well-known and frequently sampled tracks here. Speaking of, you can immediately hear where the music that Will Smith used to get "jiggy with it". Remember when artists could "sample" someone by basically just singing over another artist's song? As usual, the original is far better. Anyway, Sister Sledge doesn't work quite as well for me as Chic, but they did managed some impressive songs that really passed the test of time.
The Byrds
3/5
I kind of love the idea of The (bunch of hippies) Byrds coming into country music and threatening the very conservative Nashville establishment. But I also kind of hate that Gram Parsons came in as a live band member and changed the direction of the band. Very early in this challenge, I got a Gram Parsons solo album and I just didn't get it. It's just kind of mediocre country music (in my opinion). Given the legacy around Parsons and the influence he held over his bandmates, I really feeling like I'm missing something. So I'm trying to listen with an open mind but I'm struggling. Maybe I'm biased from a lifetime of hating Nashville country, but I do like Johnny Cash and the other outlaw country artists. This isn't that. It's very hard to sound cool when you're bragging about your Christian lifestyle.
The thing is, The Byrds flirted with country music in their other albums but it was different. In small doses and with less twang, it worked. Without David Crosby and with Gram Parsons, The Byrds were a completely different band. But to be fair, they were never the kind of band to sit still and so I have a lot of respect for the boldness of this change in direction. But even so, I'll stick with their earlier work after this.
Isaac Hayes
3/5
Listening to film scores isn't for everyone. The music is purposefully minimal to underscore the action of the movie. Make the music too exciting and it risks distracting from action and/or dialogue of the film, so most of it is just background music, by design. Some are definitely better than others and many films have spaces to fit more iconic songs (usually opening and end credits). All of this is true of the Shaft soundtrack so it's a little surprising to find it on this list.
But "Shaft" is more significant than it might seem at first. The idea of a popular artist (as opposed to a composer) scoring a film was almost unheard of. True, "The Graduate" had already managed to fill a movie with Simon and Garfunkel songs a few years before and movies like "Easy Rider" also used existing rock songs instead of a traditional score. But "Shaft" dared to let Isaac Hayes complete an entirely original soundtrack of funk and soul mixed with a full orchestra. Surely the sound of that movie was a large part of its success. The opening theme elevated the main character from suave detective to a larger than life, exciting figure.
Despite being a score and mostly instrumental, there are some gems on here. While it doesn't really work as a standalone album, it was groundbreaking for the time, has a few amazing songs, and makes me want to watch the movie. And that's all worth some points.
Brian Wilson
5/5
"Smile" by The Beach Boys is probably the most famous lost album of all time. A little background. Following the success of Brian Wilson's artistic masterpiece, "Pet Sounds", he set to work on the Beach Boys' follow up album. He worked in a friendly but fierce competition with The Beatles. Fueled by high praise, obsessive followers and heavy drug use, the descriptions of "Smile" were a bit overblown and pretentious. The so-called "teenage symphony to God" set up some high expectations. As Wilson's mental state deteriorated, the plans collapsed and "Smile" was shelved, replaced by the generally lackluster "Smiley Smile", which at least gave the world "Good Vibrations", as well as the lasting legend around the lost recordings.
For a lot of lost albums, the legend tends to overshadow the reality. For decades, "Smile" only existed as fan assembled collections of leaked demos, and as a grand idea in Brian Wilson's mind. Like other lost albums, the recordings were chopped up and recycled across other releases. The more time passes, and the more the songs appear elsewhere, the more impossible it becomes to resurrect an old concept. Brian Wilson seldomly ever spoke about his biggest failure.
Nearly four decades later, to the surprise of everyone, "Smile" became reality. Recorded without the Beach Boys, Brian Wilson finally brought the album to light. Maybe even more surprisingly, it turned out really good. If this album came out in 1967, people would have hailed it as the perfect follow up to "Pet Sounds". But truth be told, this isn't quite the album that he originally planned. It's a brighter album, made by someone in a better state of mind. The very thing that made it possible to complete the album also turned it into something else. So The Beach Boys' "Smile" remains lost forever, with "Brian Wilson Presents Smile" being another chapter in the story, along with "Smiley Smile" and "The Smile Sessions" officially released a few years later. The three releases can be used to triangulate what the original album might have sounded like. It's a lot of effort to not actually hear an idea but its undoubtedly an important part of recorded music history.
Ms. Dynamite
3/5
I'm vaguely aware of Ms Dynamite (aka Lady Dynamite) from the early 2000s but have never listened to her. This is an impressive R&B/soul record and I can see why it attracted some attention and a Mercury Prize. But I have to confess that I didn't find this particularly memorable or overly significant. I guess it's not really my style. I kept thinking that it sounded like a British Beyonce, which is certainly not a criticism. I understand why she's got her fans, and I don't have anything negative to say, but I wouldn't normally seek this one out.
The Blue Nile
3/5
Given the high quality, minimalist music, and the fact that the album was releases by an audio equipment manufacturer, it's easy to see why people would have panned this album as little more than a vehicle to sell Hi-Fi systems. While it certainly did tick that box for the company, there are some pretty solid songs on here. I'm not normally a fan of genres like Sophistipop or Blue-Eyed Soul, but I did genuinely like "Tinseltown in the Rain" and "Heatwave". The rest didn't jump out at me, but I'd return to those tracks at least, if not the whole album.
The Fall
4/5
Man, I really struggle to pin down The Fall. They're great and amateurish at the same time. Their style changes so much that the only possible categorization for their music is "post punk", for all its possible meanings. The style changes go hand in hand with the constant changes in line up, suggesting that the band is not quite anchored in any one sound. The one and only constant is vocalist Mark E Smith, and (let's be honest) he's not much of a vocalist. But that's all part of the appeal isn't it? Nobodies with no talent subverting expectation, and having a great (and angry) time doing it. What could be more punk?
"The Infotainment Scan" sees The Fall mixing post punk with the electronic-influenced Madchester scene. Imagining what that should sound like, it just feels like a mess and it's not that far off. I have to confess that during the first track I thought "This is probably not their best work." But "Lost in Music" got my attention. "I'm Going to Spain" almost loses me again with vocals that sound like they'd been recorded at a karaoke bar. But the album really picks up and dives into dancier songs soon after. It really feels like it shouldn't work but there's a definite charm.
King Crimson
5/5
This, to me, is the classic prog rock album. It's complex, sprawling and full of fantastic imagery. It set much of the template for other bands to come, including some less math rocky bands like Pink Floyd. It won't appeal to everyone but for those interested in the genre, it holds up incredibly well.
Leonard Cohen
5/5
When you heard that the original master of bleak, melancholy folk music turned his attention to cheap synthesizers and smooth jazz saxophones, you'd probably imagine that you're witnessing a midlife crisis in action. Add to this that Leonard Cohen is seen on the album cover eating a banana and you'd surely think that he can't be serious. Against all odds though, this album is great. The heaviness of Cohen's voice matches surprisingly well with a diverse range of instruments. His voice is the primary sound here, with the 80s synths closely behind. The two merge into an image that could be part of a David Lynch movie. Imagine a dark cabaret where an almost comical scene plays out. You almost want to laugh at the middle aged man at the Casio until he launches into a genuinely disturbing political piece about terrorists taking over the West. There are moments of lightness but Cohen's voice sucks it all away each time like a black hole. The album experiments with other genres from song to song but always end up sounding sarcastically dark. Tim Waits expressed his admiration for this album and it's easy to see why. The darkness and light blend together as few other artists could do.
The highlight is "Everybody Knows", a laundry list of the world's ills set against unsophisticated electronics and bouzouki playing. "I'm Your Man" can hardly be called Cohen's best album but it definitely stands out as a very interesting one.
Minor Threat
2/5
I understand that this is a landmark album in the hardcore punk scene but I'm just not a fan. In college, I was surrounded by kids who would play hardcore music constantly. I even went to a few shows with them. But I never saw the appeal. Personal opinion here but it always felt to me like it lacked any teeth. It's like an angry declawed cat trying desperately to scratch you until it gets too tired. It might seem a bit scary until you realize how safe it really is. The songs all sound incomplete and like the band just stopped trying and moved on to the next one. On top of that, there are so many of these artists who sound exactly alike that it just bores me to tears.
Apologies to fans of hardcore and Minor Threat, including some of my closest friends. You're all clearly seeing something that I can't. So enjoy but it's not for me.
Tortoise
4/5
I've always had a soft spot for Tortoise. They're not the kind of band you'd get stuck in your head and there are no obvious singles anywhere in sight. But it's great background music when you need to get some work done. I don't want to sell them short though, because there's actually a lot going on here. Tortoise were pioneers of post-rock, blending electronic music, jazz, and krautrock. The band members are all multi-instrumentalists, with none of them specializing in any in particular. This allows them to switch around instruments at a whim, often mid-song. Their instrumental rock isn't hindered by needs for hooks or confined structures of songs. The band members all have other projects, so Tortoise remains a place of freedom to experiment as they please. Future post-rock bands like Godspeed You! Black Emperor had the road opened to them by the early work of Tortoise and others. The music may be too complex to hum along to exactly, but you can either analyze it or let it wash over you. For what they do, Tortoise are one of the best.
Skunk Anansie
4/5
It's taken me a while to really appreciate Skunk Anansie. I'm not sure what it is but maybe their very punk look had me imagining something a bit grittier or more distorted. Skin's vocals, while impressive, are almost too perfect for this kind of music. But multiple exposures have help me to appreciate their music for what it really is. It's less punk/metal and more hard alt rock with poppy overtones. Nothing wrong with that but it's necessary to adjust your expectations going in.
Suede
3/5
Suede went from arguably inventing Brit Pop to distancing themselves from it between their first and second albums. The rise of bands like Blur and Oasis may have turned them off from the label. A large amount of personal in-fighting in the band further strained them. The resulting second album is still pretty Brit Pop, but with a lot of orchestral and slightly experimental elements. But really, aren't they just doing the same thing as the others? This split audiences and critics and I can see why. It has a few good tracks, but some of it does come across as pretentious and over the top. The relatively straightforward "New Generation" is the highlight for me, but I wasn't blown away from the album overall.
Lou Reed
5/5
I know how lucky we are that Bowie gave us such an extensive and varies discography in his life, but I'm greedy. I wish he also produced more music for other artists too. He had such an incredible talent for bringing out the best in artists while also bringing them into new territory. Lou Reed's "Transformer" is no exception. The Velvet Underground had been a cult band in their name and Reed's first attempt at a solo album failed to match the excitement of his old band. Many people might have written him off as past his 15 minutes of fame. But Bowie was a true fan and knew that there was more great work in him.
"Transformer" is an incredible album. True to his style, Reed was able to take simple rock n roll and marry it to lyrics highlighting the unseen people of New York. "Take a Walk on the Wild Side" is a sweet and catchy about the trans community decades before that was a public discussion. "Perfect Day" sounds so much like a song about simple pleasures with a loved one that many people don't realize the true meaning. It's only the closing lines "You're going to reap just what you sow" that give you a hint that it's actually about drug addiction. Bowie's backing vocals shine on "Satellite of Love". There's plenty more to unpick here as every track has something great. It's hard to argue that Lou Reed ever made a better solo album that this one. It really is perfect and even rivals some of The Velvet Underground's work.
Love
4/5
I really wonder if Love just suffered from an overcrowded marketplace during the Summer of Love. Their music is very good but they had a ton of competition from countless psychedelic and experimental artists. "Forever Changes" saw them move to a less experimental and more mature output, heavily loaded with strings. Few would argue that this is the very best of the era, but it's still pretty damned good. No wonder then that Love has gone on to achieve so much cult status decades later. They're like that person standing at the back of a party not talking to anyone. You could easily ignore them but when you take the time to get to know them you realize that they're actually pretty interesting.
Donald Fagen
2/5
I've struggled to find words to properly describe my feelings about Steely Dan in three album reviews. But I think I kind of understand now. It's not just dad rock. For reasons I don't understand, it's like hearing rock from *your* dad. It's particularly embarrassing to listen to. And somehow it's actually more embarrassing when the music is kind of good. You want to try to enjoy it and be sort of proud but you wouldn't dare risk your friends catching you listen to it. What if your dad gets a fanbase and some radio play? Oh god, your friends will find out about this, won't they?
Oh what now? Your dad is making a *solo* album?? Please let it not be too awful. But also, please don't let it be good either. Oh no, "The New Frontier" is actually pretty catchy but the rest is cringeworthy. Maybe he'll get bored soon and move on to some other mid-life crisis project...
That about sums up my reaction to Steely Dan and Donald Fagen. It's sort of good and I'm tempted to enjoy it a little. But it's there's just something too embarrassing about liking it.
Bill Callahan
4/5
I really cringed when I saw that this was labeled as a country album. How many more do I need to suffer through? But I was very pleasantly surprised by the music. It was described elsewhere as "Doom Country" which still doesn't quite feel right but it definitely makes it sound more interesting. The best description I can think of for this music is bleak folk set against large orchestral strings. I really enjoyed the effect of this one. I absolutely would not lump it in with the ultra conservative honky tonk Nashville establishment. This is something much more special.
Bee Gees
3/5
Reading the background on Wikipedia, it seems like this album was initially a flop until it was reissued as a significantly paired down single disc version. And man does that track. The music is fine, in a "we'll try to pick up where the Beatles left off" kind of way but it's very bloated and the quality really varies. Even some individual songs seem to drag quite a bit. There are a handful of decent songs here but I could really do without half of them. On the strength of the edited edition, 3 stars seems fair. I'm not blown away but I can see the appeal. Also I'm a sucker for songs about the sea and genuinely enjoyed the opening track. I'm unlikely to return to this album though.
4/5
One of the contributors to this list seems to really like Brazilian music! So much so that they included a solo album from one of the country's most prominent producers, the Serbian born Suba. I was once introduced to Suba's music through an obscure compilation of modern Brazilian music called "Caipirissima: Batucada Eletronica". I bought it on a whim because it looked interesting and had a track by the amazing Arto Lindsay. I imagine it's long out of print now and not on any streaming platforms, but it was a cool mix of electronic music with Brazilian bossa nova. It was also the last time I heard of Suba before this challenge. This album reminds me a lot of that compilation. It's a cool interesting take on Brazilian music. Suba died quite young and I can see that adding to his mystique within certain circles, not unlike the well known rock stars who we lost too soon. Does that mean that it was an album that we needed to hear before we died? For most of us, probably not. But I still liked it.
Soft Cell
4/5
Soft Cell are remembered for "Tainted Love", one of those rare cover songs that far outshadows the original song. Fewer people know the rest of the album today which is maybe not surprising as it's clearly a product of its time. It's tempting to think of 80s synth pop as cheesy, fun dance music but with Soft Cell you can see more of the evolution from late 70s post punk. Synthesizers became cheaper and you could practice in their apartments. No need for a costly rehearsal space any more. You can easily see the appeal for young punks wanting to break into a sleezy/sexy club scene. And that's clearly who Soft Cell were. The lyrics expose not only the club but the seedy after party, all escapism from a dull paycheck to paycheck life.
The band struck gold by getting access to a top of the line synthesizer, which gave them a major edge in crafting striking sounds for the era. Other 80s bands would polish the synth pop sound more to make the decade bright and vibrant. But these are the dark origins in divey bars and clubs. Songs like "Sex Dwarf", "Bedsitter", and "Say Hello, Wave Goodbye" as well as bonus track "Memorabilia" are all fantastic, dark and danceable.
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
4/5
First things first, if you're listening to the two disc version on streaming platforms, the album from the generator is actually disc 2. Start there and go back to disc 1 if you like. It's an entirely different album.
Next, let's talk about variety in this generator. The majority of the list is obviously Anglo-American rock, with the greatest percentage being 70s rock. When we get the odd album from Pakistan, it feels like a small token for the sake of diversity. I'm all for the (so called) world music on the list, but it always raised the question, why this album and not others? A quick read of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan's Wikipedia page gives a hint that he had a lot of admirers in the West. Collaborations with names like Peter Gabriel, Eddie Vedder and (posthumously) Alanis Morissette no doubt contributed to this artist having a higher profile worldwide.
But I don't want to discount how absolutely beautiful this album actually is. Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan was called the "King of Kings of Qawwali". Very high praise, but what is qawwali? It's a form of devotional music in Sufism. Listening to this album, I imagined (based on my admittedly very limited knowledge of Sufism) the trans-like dance of dervishes and meditative landscapes of the Indian subcontinent. The whole album is lush and calming. The vocal performances are what really stand out though. Khan's voice is powerful, complex, and positive, like he's warding off evil with his words. He was evidently known for being able to sustain these performances for hours, which is hard to appreciate in recorded form where the songs are relatively short. But you can definitely feel the emotive force of his voice throughout. "Devotional Songs" has been a very pleasant surprise for me. I'd have to be in the right mood but I can definitely see myself revisiting this one.
Killing Joke
4/5
Killing Joke are a great band. They took post-punk and combined it with a more accessible take on the (then deeply underground) industrial movement. Their music set the stage for artists like Ministry and Nine Inch Nails. My only complaint is that this album doesn't contain their best track "Eighties", but it's an impressive debut nonetheless.
Wu-Tang Clan
5/5
The debut album from the Wu Tang Clan was really something different. Here was an alternative hip hop album that actually achieved chart success and pretty significant name recognition. At the time of its release, the genre was dominated by upbeat jazzy groups like A Tribe Called, West Coast gangsta rap, and politically conscious protests of Public Enemy. Wu Tang came out of nowhere (aka Staten Island) to provide a whole new style. While it has allusions to violence and drug use, and crass humor often found in the genre at this time, what really stands out is the almost joyful escapism. Who else could have imagined a kung fu hip hop concept album? But it's fantastic and different and actually very fun. Beyond that concept is the diverse range of the group's members. The Wu Tang Clan are a loosely knit group who all have the freedom to do their own thing. Each has their own recording contract (from different labels) but it all ties back into, and strengthens, the Wu Tang brand. The members each contribute funds to keep the group going and thriving. Even within individual songs, the artists all contribute in a completely free way, all tied together by RZA's "dusty but digital" production. The Wu Tang Clan are unlikely heros of their genre and this debut really shows where it began.
Sonic Youth
5/5
When I think of Sonic Youth, I often remember the scene in Juno where the main character angrily shouts something along the lines of "I listened to more Sonic Youth and it all sounds the same!" It's not an unfair criticism of the band who were so determined to try to stay underground that they rarely branched out from their characteristic sound (with occasional exceptions before running back to their comfort zone). I say all of this as a fan. I love Sonic Youth but I admit that you can't really sit and listen to more than two albums in a row without it sounding the same.
So if you had absolutely had to pick only one of their albums that you could ever listen to again, it's a safe bet that the majority would pick "Daydream Nation", the band's magnum opus. It would absolutely be my choice. It's the point where their sound matured, where they learned to channel their live performances into recordings, where their indie label street cred reached its greatest peak. Each of the three main vocalists has some of their best work here (Kim Gordon on "Cross the Breeze", Lee Ronaldo on "Hey Joni", and Thurston Moore on "Candle" are a few highlights worth mentioning).
For me, this is one of the albums that truly ushered in the 90s. It didn't create the blueprint for noise rock or grunge but it sure offered a lot of inspiration. Sonic Youth could have stopped here and basked in their cult status. But I'm not mad that they kept going. "Daydream Nation" is arguably their best but they did continue to make some great music after, even if it's very similar. One of my favorite concert memories will always be seeing this album played live in its entirety.
The Sonics
5/5
Possibly the first proto punk album. The formula was pretty simple: cheap recording set up, rough sound quality, and a fair amount of screaming. Essentially it's rock and roll for anyone without enough money or willingness to confirm to record label norms. The brassness of this band, along with others like The Monks, and later The Stooges, would set the stage for the punk movement to fully embrace the idea that anyone can start a band, and that rules are very much meant to be broken. The Sonics were so important to underground music that they received four separate shout outs on LCD Soundsystem's "Losing My Edge". I'm not sure how much that's worth, but it's still a damned good and bold album that shattered the mold for other bands to come.
Throbbing Gristle
3/5
There are some albums are seem better suited to a contemporary art gallery than your home. It's the kind of place that you go into expecting to be shocked, disturbed, confused, etc. These collection are more like artistic statements than rock albums. That's certainly the case with Throbbing Gristle. As this writing, this album is the worst rated album on the generator, followed closely by the debut album from Einsturzende Neubauten. Both feel pretty unfair to me, but I also get it. Both are early examples of industrial music (though as far as I can tell, the two bands were unaware of one another). Throbbing Gristle are challenging in a different way. It's an almost analytical approach to breaking down barriers. Neubauten felt born out of the punk movement, but Throbbing Gristle feel more like they escaped from the art world.
The album is not nearly as bad as the reviews would make you think. The sound collages don't necessarily fit well together, but most of them on their own are not particularly unpleasant. The band is clearly on a mission to deconstruct the concept of what music really is. In doing so, they picked up the mantle from experimental composer John Cage who heard music in everything. There's a joyous energy to John Cage's works. Throbbing Gristle on the other hand seem more nihilist, perhaps finding music and joy in nothing and wanting to force you out of it. It's not exactly something that's going to get a big fan base, but it goes feel appropriate for a challenge that's meant to take us out of your comfort zones. No matter what album you listen to next, it's bound to be more accessible.
I appreciate this album for what it is (aside from the intentionally disturbing cover art, which is a bit much). But ultimately, it's music that's more interesting to read about than to actually listen to. And that's ok. We need things like this to shake up our concepts of music as we know it. I've always loved a quote from the lead singer Genesis P Orridge: "When in doubt, make no sense." Love or hate the album, I think that's a fantastic philosophy for making art.
Madonna
4/5
"Like a Prayer" represented Madonna's move from 80s pop to more serious material. The lyrics are drawn from personal experience, with a general theme of sexuality clashing with Catholic guilt. The music builds on this theme with choirs and echoing sounds reminding the listener of a (mostly) empty cathedral. I could do without the more ballady filler but there are definitely a some standard setting tracks on there, especially the title track, "Express Yourself" and the Prince duet "Love Song". Madonna may have started as a mere dime a dozen pop star and may now be the butt of jokes but this album is a reminder that she was once a master of her genre.
John Prine
3/5
My heart sank a little at seeing this album cover. I really thought I was almost done with all of the country music in this challenge but the album art told me what I was in for. John Prine seems to have been heavily influenced by Bob Dylan given the nasaly vocals and storytelling and Dylan in turn was a fan. I will say that this was alright for a country album. The lyrics were well written and it's thankfully not overly conservative. I genuinely enjoyed "Hello in There" which was a nice surprise and the stories were very vivid. Not bad for a singer who said he had just learned his craft when he was ushered into the recording studio. I did briefly think it might win me over and be one of the small handful of country albums that I'd listen to again. Unfortunately it's still just not my genre.
The Pogues
4/5
Another good collection of Irish folk songs mixed with punk energy. Between the two albums on this list, this is the better release. If for no other reason than the fact that it has one of the best Christmas songs of all time (despite the unfortunate slur).
Cocteau Twins
4/5
I listened to this album while lying in bed with a bad cold, half awake and feeling sorry for myself. It turns out that it's an excellent dream pop soundtrack for that situation.
Syd Barrett
4/5
Syd Barrett is an odd figure in music history. He seems to be more famous for where he isn't than where he is. Pink Floyd seemed reluctant to part ways with him, even going as far as recruiting David Gilmour to pick up for him when he was on stage and not doing anything. Although they were eventually make the difficult decision to not invite him to some future gigs, the spirit of Syd Barrett loomed large over Pink Floyd for years. Future albums were supposedly in tribute to him and the band always held the doors just slightly open in case he might return, though of course he didn't. Drug use, exhaustion, and mental breakdown would take him away from a rock and roll live like so many others. But his influence as a driving force in Pink Floyd and British psychedelia would always make people wonder what if he'd done more. His solo album isn't as great as anything by his former bandmates, but it's an interesting testament to what he could bring to them. The album sounds oddly like the Beatles if they'd gotten too into their drugs and became obsessed with the Velvet Underground. Shine on your crazy diamond.
The Jesus And Mary Chain
5/5
The Reed Brothers' debut is often considered their best to this day. They channeled influences from industrial and noise bands like Einsturzende Neubauten and The Velvet Underground into a shoegazy tribute to the 60s. In doing so, they carried the torch from New York band Suicide but made it a lot more accessible. Having had decades of cult status, the Jesus and Mary Chain got a revived shot of popularity when the stand out track "Just Like Honey" was featured on the soundtrack to Lost in Translation. It did for me anyway as it was the point when I realized I'd been sleeping on this great album.
Ministry
4/5
I've kind of resisted the temptation to like Ministry for a while. They get lumped in with Nine Inch Nails (one of my favorites) under industrial music, but I always felt like they were closer to metal. Maybe I was just expecting too much from them, because this album was actually pretty good. "N.W.O." is a fantastic opener (and yeah, ok, it's maybe similar to some early NIN). I doubt any other band can say that they were saved by the Butthole Surfers, but when Ministry was wasting their money on drugs and partying, they managed to squeeze out a great hit, "Jesus Built My Hotrod" with Gibby Haynes, which was what kept their label from dropping them. Lucky for us, it's a great song.
The Avalanches
4/5
"Since I Left You" is up there with "Paul's Boutique" and "Endtroducing" for mosaic style sampling techniques across many genres. The Avalanches took it a step further by drilling deep down to thousands of microsamples and structured the album into a single hourlong piece of music. It's undoubtedly very impressive. These guys also put on some great shows. Having said that, the technique doesn't produce the same level of results. This is the kind of album that I put on once in a blue moon when I haven't listened to it for a while. I find it hard to really engage with the sounds given the rapid shifts and it functions more like background music for me. Still, I have a lot of respect for the skill and determination to make an album like this. It may not be an all time favorite, but it's still great.
M.I.A.
5/5
M.I.A. really lit up the music scene when this debut album came out. She wouldn't achieve her greatest fame until "Paper Planes" came out a few years later. "Arular" was more of an underground success and was maybe bigger among fellow musicians than fans, but for me, this debut is still her best work. It's political, personal, and represents a uniquely diverse range of music from technology, punk, and international styles. And it's infinitely danceable. Political themes hadn't been this fun since The Clash. There's an uncomfortable connection with the militant organization The Tamil Tigers which brought some controversy (along with a reference to the PLO), but M.I.A. denies that her revolutionary father was actually engaged with violence. Giving the benefit of the doubt, challenging political energy and awareness into the dance floor is certainly more fun than keeping it to the battlefield. This album remains a powerful statement about revolution and love of music.
Elton John
3/5
Elton John's experiment with prog rock is definitely a good album, with some complex songwriting and strings that elevate the entire thing at the right points. "Tiny Dancer" was obviously a massive hit as well. Aside from that, the title track (evidentally not written about Richard Nixon as rumored) is a stand out for me. Overall, it's good, but doesn't reach the level of "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" and his glammier, poppier material that he's best known for today.
Keith Jarrett
4/5
When you have the right kind of performer, improvisation can be really impressive. In the case of Keith Jarrett's Koln concert, it was never the plan. A series of errors led to Jarrett not having the piano he needed for the planned show. After nearly pulling out, he was convinced that the show must go on. It's one thing to go into a concert knowing that you'd be creating as you went along but it's particularly impressive to know that it was a last minute decision. The music is beautiful and must have been exciting for the audience to hear for the first time. As an album, it's more background music than anything but it has some gorgeous moments. It would be worth revisiting this some day.
ZZ Top
3/5
I really wouldn't have imagined that a Southern boogie rock band being influenced by Depeche Mode would be very good but I don't hate this album. There's something charming about this era of ZZ Top. They seem like they're trying to be edgy while singing about "your hugging and your kissing" and wearing suits, but it's sort of endearing and fun at the same time. This really feels like a guilty pleasure.
The Jam
4/5
I think the appeal of The Jam and Paul Weller is partially experiencing it in the 1970s UK. For the rest of us, some of it probably gets lost in translation. As an American 90s kid, I like it but I don't feel as blown away as some other fans. What I hear sounds something like a missing link between The Who and Blur which is certainly no insult, just a little removed from styles I know better. This album sounds like a very British take on new wave. Some highlights for me include "English Rose", "Fly" and excellent "Down in the Tube Station at Midnight". I can't guarantee that I'll return to this album... but I probably should. I think I'm missing out on something special that I just haven't appreciated yet.
Doves
3/5
No offence to The Doves. They're a good indie band that I don't mind listening to occasionally. But I really cannot think of any reason for them to have a place on the list, let alone two. I enjoy listening to it again but there are loads of more deserving albums out there.
Soundgarden
4/5
I sometimes fantasize that I could go back in time to the 90s and offer some great artists a word of advice: "You don't have to fill up the entire CD. Aim for 40-50 minutes." CDs as a format just made it too easy to put everything on their. We didn't judge artists too harshly because we could skip songs and program playlists pretty easily. But let's be honest, this album is too long to listen to straight through and the band could have easily taken off 5 or 6 tracks. If they had, this would be an absolutely brilliant album and one of the best of the grunge era, after Nirvana. Chris Cornell's voice was something special. The singles "Spoonman" and "Black Hole Sun" are among some of my favorite songs from the 90s and it's deeply nostalgic. Given all of this, I'm willing to ignore a bit of filler and imagine the album it could have been.
3/5
Unlike (apparently) the majority of users here, I don't hate this. A Williamburg hipster band moves into the woods to record a noise rock (which is not nearly as noisy as you'd expect) album about German witch trials. Yeah, ok, it's kind of pretentious and clearly not made with the intent of going platinum. But try not to take it too seriously. It's quirky and weird and pretty fun. As another reviewer said, it helps to imagine a campy coven of witches dancing to this, like Halloween decorations come to life. Look, this is never going to be a favorite on the generator, but it deserves a bit more love than it's gotten so far. It's unlikely to be one that I'd return to often, but I enjoyed the refreshing weirdness of the concept.
Billie Holiday
3/5
Billie Holiday is one of the great classic jazz singers and it's easy to see why. Her voice is so distinction and dominates the recordings. The music is (to me) fairly run of the mill 50s crooner stuff. Pleasant but not all that interesting. But no one is here for that, are they? The vocals are what matter. "Lady in Satin" is the final album released in Holiday's lifetime and age has blunted the edges of her voice. It's deeper, heavier and more worn by life experience. It's probably less representative of her abilities, but it tells a great story. I always wished that singers like Billie Holiday had lived longer to have set their talents against a more varied palate of music, but they were a product of their time. Try as they might, there really aren't many singers quite like this any more.
Aimee Mann
3/5
I find Aimee Mann slightly frustrating. She has some stunningly good ones, most notably the ones featured on the soundtrack to "Magnolia". A full album of songs as good as "Save Me", "Wise Up", and her covet of "One" would be an easy 5 stars and one of the best singer-songwriter releases of the 90s. Like many people that was my introduction to Aimee Mann, as well as her producer and collaborator, Jon Brion. Unfortunately, I've never quite found anything as good as those songs, though I'm always hopeful. It's a familiar story listening to her debut album "Whatever". It's a solid debut but it just doesn't grab me the way I hoped it might, the way she's capable of. Maybe there are better albums for me to explore. Maybe this another missed opportunity in this list to have included a better album from a great artist. Having said all of that, it's still a good album. I just wanted more.
Faust
4/5
As much as I love Krautrock, I never quite got into Faust. CAN seemed to set the template for a new kind of rock music, Neu! worked with drones, Tangerine Dream championed ambient electronics, and Kraftwerk fully embraced synthesizers at the willing expense of their humanness. But I just never knew what to make of Faust. It's perhaps more avant-garde than some of their contemporaries, embracing bits and pieces of other Krautrock styles and a lot of musique concrete. It feels less focused and maybe a bit less memorable overall. But giving it a real chance here, there are some gems. "Jennifer" in particular is an amazing song and a clear highlight. It sounds like it may have inspired a lot of the early shoegaze bands.
The layer sampling and tape loops may have been too much for all but the most dedicated Krautrock fans, as Faust aren't remembered quite as fondly as the others and they broke up after this album. All despite counting Richard Branson as a fan. Having said all of this, it makes for a great deep dive into the genre.
Genesis
4/5
I still think of Genesis as the Phil Collins led synth pop(ish) band that they would later become. I know they were first known as a prog rock band but I was exposed to a lot of the Collins stuff as a kid and it's sheered into my memory. Because of this, I never quite appreciated what an interesting band they were in their previous incarnation. But there's loads going on here. It's an experimental rock opera filled with jams, twisted ambient structures and darkly surreal imagery. The story is nightmarish and violent with flashes of anatomical mutilation as well as innocence (the lamb from the title inspired images of calm in the middle of the hectic New York City setting). It's a difficult album to process in one go, only partly due to its length. But you can easily understand that there's a complex layered story along with a wide variety of music. Definitely an interesting album that I could listen to again one day.
Paul Simon
5/5
There's part of me that thinks this album is at least as good as anything Simon and Garfunkel released. It certainly cements Paul Simon as the main songwriting force of the duo. There's also a ton of variety and some really stand out tracks here. "Me and Julio Down by the School Yard" may be my favorite thing he's ever done. There is a part of me though that feels like it's missing something. Maybe it's too eclectic without really gelling together, or maybe Art Garfunkel had a subtle quality that really helped to balance things out. For some reason, this album feels just shy of 5 stars to me, but I can't put my finger on it. But the thing is, I can't actually find any good reason *not* to give it 5 stars as it's really good album regardless. So I'm feeling generous in the hope that when the mood strikes me, this album will just fit perfectly because there's a lot to love here, even if I don't quite hear it as a whole today.
Fred Neil
4/5
Fred Neil is one of those people who deserves to be recognized even if he doesn't have a particularly spectacular album under his belt. Neil was an important figure in the late 60s, albeit somewhat behind the scenes. He wrote good songs that other artists turned into great ones. He helped bring Bob Dylan to fame when first arrived in New York. But he was somewhat reclusive, didn't tour, and never had many hits himself. His self titled album is definitely a worthwhile album, though it exists somewhat in the shadows of bigger name artists. The most obvious hit here is "Everybody's Talkin", famously covered by Harry Nilsson for the Midnight Cowboy soundtrack. It's impossible not to compare the two versions but it's a bit unfair to Fred Neil. In other circumstances and maybe with more effort and touring, I think he could have been much bigger.
G. Love & Special Sauce
3/5
Well this one is surprising to see on the list. If you were listening with broken headphones, you might think you were hearing early Beck (before he hit his stride) outtakes with his characteristic blend of blues, 90s indie rock and hip hop. This is one of those albums that's sort of cringeworthy, but also a bit infectuous. For every song I was looking to get over with, I found myself tapping my feet to the next one. It has redeemable elements, mostly with the music. The vocals are a bit rough, though intentionally so. G Love strikes me as the kind of guy you'd find on a college campus who seems very cool at first, but increasingly self-centered and obnoxious. Put another way, I see the appeal but in a limited sense. I can tolerate him long enough to enjoy a handful of tracks, but I can't really justify the inclusion on the list.
Silver Jews
3/5
Today I learned that the origins of Pavement were in a short lived, cult status, alt country band called The Silver Jews. My first thought was about the oddness of having a country band in Hoboken, NJ. I spent a lot of time in Hoboken when I was younger and the vibe is very young professional meets punk rock. You get the people who want a quieter place to live with a very easy commute of Manhattan. You also have one of the punk and indie Meccas, the venue and bar Maxwells where the likes of Sonic Youth, J Mascis, and early Nirvana would play. None of that screams country. Yet I can imagine an intense sadness from lead singer David Berman, working out his identity (as aluded to, slightly cryptically in the band name), and looking out at the New York skyline with the hectic pace it represents. Maybe country, or a form of it, is exactly the outlet to channel that sadness. But the Silver Jews were as far from Nashville as they could possibly be, physically, musically and culturally. The style reminds me much more of Elliott Smith as a reflection of depression. But with Smith, I always found a slight amount of hope, like the music was helping him to cope. Berman feels a bit more desperate to me, at least for much of the album. It's definitely an interesting one, especially as Pavement would later come about from The Silver Jews' break up. I'm unlikely to return to this one often though.
Green Day
5/5
I have to confess that I was never a Green Day fan back in the day. It seemed like everyone around me definitely was though. They were massive and inescapable. And probably because of that I felt like they were too popular to really be cool. To my mind, there were dozens of better "real" punk bands our there. The fact that they ushered in an era of pop punk bands wasn't helping either.
Previously in this challenge, I listened to their early hit album "Dookie" and ate some humble pie to admit that it was actually pretty good. So much so that I was a lot more open to listening to "American Idiot". I remember the hype around this one. Green Day felt just a little past their prime at this time but came back with a punk opera for the post-9/11 crowd protesting the Bush administration and the Iraq War. Probably because I lived through that era myself, this one really does hit differently. It has the youthful punk energy but with a lot more seriousness, both in terms of composition and concept.
We were angry then and more awake to what was happening in the world. There were plenty of good soundtracks to that time but I'm sorry that I slept on this one. In retrospect, those times not feel simple and peaceful compared to the world we're in in 2025. But at the time, it really did feel like we were going to change the world. Nice feeling while it lasted...
My Bloody Valentine
4/5
"Loveless" will always be the album I think of when I think of My Bloody Valentine. It's a bold and unique example of shoegaze where drones completely take over the soundscape. "Isn't Anything" is a comparatively modest debut album. It feels more rooted in sad indie rock like The Smiths until the drones slowly take over. It's potentially the more interesting album as you can see the evolution of the band more clearly. Their later work would lean into the MBV sound, but here it's being created and fleshed out. It makes it a bit more accessible as well as more varied. I can't easily say that one is better than the other but I do really like the purity of "Loveless" which gives it an edge. It's definitely interesting to explore how they got there though.
Big Star
4/5
This is one of those albums that is destined to remain within its cult status forever. The final album from Big Star as the group was imploding. There's maybe a sense of relief in knowing that they were calling it quits after this. The album would go unreleased from 1978 to 1985, existing only as hobbled together bootlegs for those years. Even the eventual official releases are all different with no one being able to agree on the right tracklisting. But there is a free and experimental feeling about this album. It kind of calls to the experimental feeling of the late 60s, recorded in the late 70s, and going on to influence the indie scene of the 80s, including REM. As of this writing, half of the tracks are missing from Spotify for unknown reasons, which just reenforces my belief that it can't go beyond being a cult album.
Spacemen 3
3/5
It seems like this is turning out to be a very shoegazey week. I had My Bloody Valentine a couple of days ago and now Spacemen 3. I've heard of this band for many years but never really got into them. As shoegaze goes, this probably isn't the most impressive example if I'm being honest. It lacks the intensity of My Bloody Valentine and it's not as unique as bands like Slowdive, Seefeel or the Jesus and Mary Chain. Unfortunately, it's a genre that's kind of easy to replicate and can produce some ok albums like this one. But I just didn't hear anything that helps it stand out among the crowd.
Shuggie Otis
4/5
There is a charming simplicity to this album. The funk and soul performances are top notch but also fairly minimalist. Otis performs the majority himself and the absence of a full band can often be felt. Certainly not in a terrible way though. There's something refreshing about having extra room to breath and using simple compositions. Particularly as a lot of funk bands could be huge bands who were larger than life and getting parties started. Otis in contrast channels that kind of energy into something simpler and more intimate. It sounds like it's coming more from a bedroom than from a packed dance hall. But it doesn't come at the expense of quality. At times, the music feels like it's dipping into something like Miles Davis's "In a Silent Way" and at other times it almost feels like a percusor to 80s Detroit techno, that dared to combine James Brown with Kraftwerk and cheap synths. This album is so smooth, it could slip out of your brain. I'd definitely recommend repeat listens.
The Shamen
4/5
"En-Tact" was part of the rock and dance hybrid genre that emerged in the early 90s in the UK, alongside bands like The Happy Mondays and Primal Scream. The Shamen had embraced rave culture following their time as a psychedelic rock band. The various versions of the album feature remixes by some major names in the early British techno scene, like Orbital, Paul Oakenfold (fresh from working with the Happy Mondays), 808 State, William Orbit, and Jack Dangers of Meat Beat Manifesto. It absolutely marks a very specific place and time.
While I didn't live through that era myself, I did once become interested in it and so there's some secondhand nostalgia for me here. There are some good songs, as well, most notably "Move Any Mountain". It captures a bit more of the rave side of the movement as well. However, I don't think it's the best representation of the era. To start with, it's sort of a remix album, so a lot of the sound is coming from other artists. For the rock/dance sound, other entries on this list did it better. For rave culture, they could done better by selecting early works from someone like Moby or Orbital (both on the list, but from later eras).
It's a very generous 4 stars from me. It deserves 3, I know, but I found it fun to revisit this kind of album.
Cat Stevens
5/5
Beautiful, calming music from Yusuf, better known to the world as Cat Stevens. As always, his music is simple but engaging acoustic folk/pop. It will calm your nerves while it takes you on a journey. "Tea for Tillerman" is arguably his greatest album and includes some of his most well known songs, like "Wild World" and "Father and Son". The latter is one of his best songs, evoking generational gaps in politics, culture, and attitudes to war and peace that all remain relevant.
I once purchased a used copy of this album at a record fair. When I got it home, I discovered that the wrong disc was in the record sleeve. This explained why the album was only a dollar. Anyway, I realize today that this is actually my first time listening to the entire album, a fact that was only obvious to me when I recognized the closing track as the end theme on Extras. I'm glad to have finally listened to it in its entirety as it's a beautiful album.
Nanci Griffith
3/5
If I was forced to listen to country music but got to pick the artist, I'd almost certainly go with Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, or someone like that. If I wasn't allowed to pick anything like these outlaw country stars and had to pick something closer to the stereotypical conservative Nashville style, well, you could do worse than Nanci Griffith. She still has one foot dipped into folk music, while the rest is thoroughly country. She does have a great voice though. I can't tell if there is something special about the music or if this challenge is just wearing me down. But I didn't hate this one.
Bert Jansch
5/5
This is a really gorgeous album that I'd never heard of before. It has the simple beauty of a man and his guitar that reminds me of the intensity of Nick Drake, without his bleakness (for the record, I love the bleakness of Drake's albums). A bit of digging reveals that he was a member of Pentangle but I personally enjoyed this solo album much more.
Marvin Gaye
4/5
Sometimes the story behind an album really helps to make it interesting. In this case, Marvin Gaye was going through a messy divorce and agreed to let his soon-to-be ex-wife have 50% of the album's royalties. That's a strange starting point for a creative project, when personal circumstances are directly connected to the recording. Gaye apparently didn't care much at first, perhaps creating a lacklustre album out of spite. But the idea of channeling his emotions into something great for the fans must have been too tempting and suddenly the project took on a new life. It's not a simple funk album but ranges across many styles and feelings. Sometimes it's bleak, sometimes it's hopeful. "A Funky Space Reincarnation" has elements of black science fiction that you might hear from George Clinton or Sun Ra. Notably though, the album lacks many obvious singles. It's works as an album though, albeit a lengthy one. It didn't sell very well until Gaye passed away and is now considered one of his best works. I imagine it was bittersweet knowing that his artistic triumph and commercial failure wouldn't have earned much for his ex, as least while he was still alive.
Everything But The Girl
4/5
Finally. Early on this challenge I got a different album by this group and really disliked it. The only redeeming quality was Tracey Thorn's voice (I guess you could hated everything but the girl). I'd heard that their later work was a lot better and I finally see it. They abandoned the cheesy 80s Sophistipop for some smooth drum n bass. I suppose to some that might sound equally dated but I grew up with music like this. More importantly (to me) it just makes a much better vehicle for Thorn's vocals. I appreciate this is my personal bias talking but I find myself wondering if the other Everything But the Girl album was only included to show the contrast between their earlier and later years. I much preferred this one.
The Cult
4/5
The Cult sound like the kind of band that you'd hear in a movie about a fictional rock band. The filmmakers hire someone to write music that sound like a stereotypical hair metal band from the 80s. The thing is, these things are fun while you're watching the movie and you exist in that world, but you wouldn't necessarily buy the soundtrack and even remember the songs afterward. It requires a small degree of suspension of disbelief to work. But of course, this isn't a soundalike, this is the real thing. This is what soundalikes are based off of. It just doesn't feel real any more because its time as passed. Instead of a movie, it works as a vehicle for nostalgia now. But what's wrong with that? The Cult sought out Rick Rubin to create a stripped back rock and roll album. We might be tempted to make fun of The Cult as four decades out of date and full of toxic egos, but let's be honest. Given the opportunity to go back in time and see them live, it would be pretty fun.
The Zutons
4/5
So often in this challenge, I find myself thinking "Was the editor scraping the bottle of the barrel here looking for more entries?" It feels especially true of post 2000 albums. And I want to be critical and rate it low. But more often than not, the album wins me over in the end. It's certainly the case here. The Zutons mix indie with blues rock and punk, among other genres. They're sort of dime a dozen but I actually really enjoyed this and the wide variety of sounds. I'm not sure it deserves a spot on the list but I'd happily listen again.
Morrissey
1/5
This might be the most insufferable Morrissey album yet. It starts with a song about how America isn't progressive enough, which is rich coming from Morrissey. In case that gave you any doubts about his politics, the second song "Irish Blood, English Heart" sounds like he's trying to write the theme song for UKIP or the Refom Party, moaning about being called racist for doing racist things. Later in the album, he sings about how he never found the woman of his dreams in the exact same song where he is at pains to describe how he's never sorry for anything. The rest of the album is basically a list of everything he finds boring (his go-to insult), while sticking his head further and further up his own ass.
This challenge has made me listen to three solo Morrissey albums now, which has only reenforced my belief that he is an awful person. The music from Alain Whyte is listenable and as usual Morrissey aligns himself with good songwriters, but it hardly makes up for it. The Smiths had the genius of Johnny Marr to make you ignore Morrissey's antics (and anyway, that are of Morrissey was a lot less controversial), but I'm happy to finally be done with these solo albums. To use his own words, this album was a crashing bore.
Curtis Mayfield
5/5
I really can't get enough of this album. Isaac Hayes may have come first for Blaxploitation soundtrack genre. Marvin Gaye beat Mayfield to the politically conscious soul concept album. But for my money, Curtis Mayfield blows them both out of the water with "Superfly". There's so much happening on this album. The entire story is laid out in the lyrics, eliminating the need to watch the film for many people. The music is just incredible. It's layered and contains so much variety. It avoids the common pitfalls of popular artists doing movie soundtracks where the music sounds too much like a typical film score. Even "Shaft" had this problem at times. But "Superfly" functions primarily as an album, only relying on traditional film music sparingly. It's a difficult balance to achieve, as commercial music can be distracting within a film's context. The variety of percussion and strings, along with the beautifully smooth soul music really captures the listener's attention throughout. Mayfield also manages to keep the lyrics grounded in the story, which gives the album a strong focus.
"Superfly" was hugely influential among a lot of different artists and genres and I'm definitely not surprised. I've already listened to it four times over and will definitely return to it in the future.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
4/5
There's really brooding intensity to Nick Cave's music and "Henry's Dream" is no exception. I found this one a little more accessible than some of his other releases. But I've gotta say that I can only really listen to the Bad Seeds in small doses. I should absolutely revisit this and every other album of theirs on this list, but I definitely need to pace myself before I get too sucked into that world.
The Band
3/5
When Bob Dylan's band first stepped out from his shadows to record their own material, they made a name for themselves as a creative force in their own rite, and helped popularize the emerging Americana movement. The sounds stood as a refreshing contrast (for some) to the psychedelic rock that dominated popular music of this era. Dylan himself wisely took a back seat on this one, contributing only a few songs and an album cover but no actual performances. It was a smart move as it really let the others shine. I do think there's a unique energy to this album and I kind of love that it was made. But it's also not one that I'd probably return to often, apart from the stunning "The Weight" is stands far above the rest of the tracks. I'm glad I heard it though, as it's a good album and a nice piece of music history.
Koffi Olomide
3/5
I really appreciate that this generator occasionally throws up some obscure artists from other countries representing styles of music that I know nothing about this. Browsing Olomide's Wikipedia page, I see a slew of genres that I know nothing about including soukous, Congolese rumba, tcha tcho, kwassa kwassa, and ndombolo. I don't even know where to begin trying to unpick all of this and I'm sure it could lead down a very big rabbit hole of exploring music I know nothing about. And one day I might. I actually quite liked some of this, particularly the opening track, although I can't put into words why exactly.
A bit further down the Wikipedia page, we learn some unsavory things about Olomide unfortunately, particularly infidelity, assault, and alleged statutory rape. Now look, the history of recorded music is filled with people like that who got away with their crimes and continue to be celebrated. I do find it hard to completely separate the art from the artist. I might have given a generous 4 stars because I love being exposed to something totally different, but as with some other artists, I'm knocking off a point because the personal history makes it harder to listen to them.
If the generator was going to give us a Congolese artist, I really wish they could have found someone a bit less creepy, as it reflects poorly on all of those genres that most people won't know much about. Konono No.1 would have been my pick for this list.
Japan
3/5
Japan sound like a point where post-punk and krautrock (via David Bowie) started to morph into new wave and synth pop. You can hear elements of Bowie's "Low" but more than that, is the blueprint for early 80s synth pop bands like Depeche Mode and Soft Cell. The album wasn't that successful (apart from sales in Canada and Japan) and truthfully it's not as great anything that came before or after. You could even argue that Gary Numan bridged the gap better than Japan could. But "Quiet Life" is an important step in the development of the 80s sounds, as a key part of the short lived New Romantics movement. It absolutely deserves a place on this list and I enjoyed listening. Even a poor imitation of Bowie is often pretty good.
Madonna
4/5
Man I really wanted to hate this album. I always liked "Ray of Light" but the fact that the follow up was a cowboy themed 42 year old Madonna trying to compete with the Britney Spears' of the world did not interest me in the slightest. But of course, now that I get it here, I have to try to have an open mind. And I'm alarmed to say that it's a lot better than I'd expected. Madonna was never really that innovative. The vast array of music on this album includes electrohouse, glitch pop, and folktronica, but she didn't invent any of these styles. "What It Feels Like For a Girl" (the album's highest point) sounds like it has the microbeats limited directly from Bjork's "Vespertine". Plenty of other influences are present and borderline ripping off fellow artists. But the thing is, these styles are mostly hiding off in the distance at this time. Madonna not only brought them together but also gave them a pop makeover, selling millions across the globe in the process. I can't completely hate her for that. I'm loathe to go as far as calling Madonna cool. But credit where it's due, she pulled together an groundbreaking album here, despite my initial prejudice.
Erykah Badu
4/5
As of this writing, the top review on the generator is a criticism that the music is great but the vocals are boring. My own view is 100% the opposite. I love Badu's voice and vocal style, but I find a good deal of the music to be uninteresting. Not bad, but kind of dime a dozen jazzy lounge music. There's nothing wrong with that but it's kind of forgettable without the vocals. Some are definitely better than others but it's Badu who brings it altogether. I know that this is one of her more celebrated albums, but for me, I really prefer her New Amerykah albums well above this one. The best part of listeningto "Mama's Gun" is that it reminded me to revisit her other work. But I appreciate that this is probably an unpopular opinion and I do kind of like this album anyway, so it's 4 star from me.
Miles Davis
4/5
Possibly the most famous experimental jazz album ever made (if not "A Love Supreme"). What's interesting about "Bitches Brew" is the major intersections with rock n roll, while sounding nothing like rock n roll, jazz, or anything that could be described as "jazz rock". Davis was heavily inspired by Jimi Hendrix and the increasing use of electric instruments in popular music. So you might have expected this to sound like a jazz album with a lot of overdriven guitars. Nothing could be further from the truth. Instead, Davis produces something like a template for jazz fusion and prog rock in equal parts. The album would go on to inspire generations of rock stars, including bands like Radiohead. The album art as well feels far more like something you'd like from a psychedelic rock band, with scenes from (presumably) Africa melting into the sky.
It's a complex triumph of an album with its secure place in history. But it's definitely not an easy album to listen to. It's no mere background album, but it demands attention and memory. It's completely fair if you don't have the energy for it, but the album remains there for those who do.
Rod Stewart
4/5
Having not grown up with Rod Stewart, he always seems like the butt of jokes. Maybe it's something about the image of him playing daily shows in Las Vegas to pensioners that's hard to take seriously. But then again, maybe they're on to something. Because this album was unexpectedly great and every encounter I've had with Stewart in this challenge has been better than expected. If nothing else, I have to at least believe that Rod Stewart, at some point, was actually kind of cool, despite my discomfort with that fact.
Emmylou Harris
3/5
At album 964, I'm surely almost finished with the country albums this generator has for me, right? Look, it's fine. As country albums go, it's not awful. Harris has a nice voice. But it's just not something that's going to excite me much unfortunately. But I'm grateful that it's not a more toxic example of the genre.
Peter Tosh
3/5
Musically, not a bad reggae album. I'm definitely one of those people who thinks of Bob Marley immediately when thinking about the genre. Marley's great but I've never really managed to see past him. Peter Tosh's album is probably one of the best I've heard. There's some good variety and sounds on there and it's fun to listen to. It makes sense that he was a member of the Wailers (and maybe I haven't actually expanded my horizons that far yet!). Lyrically, my first thought was that this album was going to be another obsessive (and frankly a bit immature) collection about smoking all of the time, like a reggae Snoop Dogg or something. And it was probably heard that way in a lot of American dorm rooms. But the message undoubtedly hits different in Jamaica where marijuana has a cultural significance and it's connection with political struggles. An interesting album, not as good as anything by the Wailers, but definitely worth a listen.
Pixies
4/5
I avoided listening to this one for a while as I'd always heard people say that it's not the best Pixies album. That's a fair assessment but it's still pretty great. "Bossanova" lacks the obvious hits but otherwise fits right in with the band's style, merging proto-grunge and post punk with surf rock and
The Young Gods
3/5
Some harsh reviews here. Look I get that an experimental Swiss cabaret industrial act is going to be a slightly harder sell for some people. But The Young Gods were incredibly influential in their time. They reached everyone from Bowie to Mike Patton, Nine Inch Nails to the Chemical Brothers. I suspect that this is one of those albums that was a lot more influential upon release than it feels now but credit where its due for pushing forward the genre. As the lyrics are in French, I have limited ability to break them down here. Except to say that the title track is apparently a song about menstruation, which is definitely not what I would have expected. Overall, an interesting piece of industrial history, if not the best example of it.
Pavement
4/5
It's hard not to be charmed by Pavement. They didn't achieve the same level of fame as bands like Nirvana and Sonic Youth, but man fit right into that scene. Maybe they didn;t care quite as much about achieving any fame. They just sound like the kind of band who didn't know what else to do with themselves except to form a grunge band. The music is great, if less memorable than a band like Sonic Youth. This album is proof that you don't need a lot of money or a record deal to make a great album.
The Stooges
5/5
A hugely influential proto-punk album that still sounds incredibly fresh. The immediate punch of "Search and Destroy" is the album's best track and sets the energetic pace of the entire record. This album helped prepare the ground for the punk movement and would be a major influence on The Sex Pistols, The Smith, and Nirvana among many others. Whether you prefer the Bowie mix or not, the mere fair that Bowie saw the magic of this album before anyone else tells you much about what you need to know. This generator doesn't always hit the mark, but this album really is essential listening for any rock fans.
Peter Gabriel
5/5
Look, I can see how this album might come across to many people as very dated and a bit cringeworthy. But I like to try to consider albums in the context of the time they were created. Here we have Peter Gabriel, blending art rock and world music into his most accessible album yet. If it's lost some of its lustere today, it's probably from being overplayed, but it's quite an impressive album for its time. I also stand firmly behind "Sledgehammer" as one of the best songs (and music videos) of the 80s which is really adding weight to my scoring today.
Stereolab
5/5
I have always loved Stereolab. They're mix of 60s French pop, synth and guitar drones, with themes of space and revolution are always perfect. My slight annoyance here though is that this is not their best work in my opinion. Ok, it has "Cybele's Reverie" is a great song, but much of the rest is kind of standard Stereolab stuff. This is fine, but an album like "Mars Audiac Quintet" has more memorable lyrics. "Sound-Dust" and "Margerine Eclipse" have much more developed sounds. It could just be me, but "Emperor Tomato Ketchup" just never struck me as much as some of their other work. But I love the band anyway, so it's still 5 stars from me.
The Disposable Heroes Of Hiphoprisy
4/5
Honestly, my first reaction was "why have this on the list when we already have Public Enemy?" And sure, Public Enemy is the more famous and (arguably) better group. Both are angry, politically conscious hip hop. But The Disposable Heroes Of Hiphoprisy sound more focused, like they've managed to channel their anger into a call for change. It's much the same as what Chuck D was aiming for, though I feel that he gets a bit more lost in his (understandable) anger. This album has a bit more detachment for its message, which makes it feel a bit less personal but also more impactful and serious. I can't say that one group is better than the other but they complement each other well.
Os Mutantes
4/5
Os Mutantes are still the champions of the tropicalia movement. The spirit of the 60s was very much alive in Brazil here, despite fierce opposition from supporters of the dictatorship. Unlike the majority of the leftists who supported a return to traditional music, artists like Os Mutantes just wanted to tear everything down, inspired by the breathtaking pace of experimental and psychedelic rock in the West. This album doesn't have the same skill as some of those 1960s giants but it contains the same freedom and ambitious creativity of the era, coupled with a healthy dose of Brazilian sounds. It's weird, wonderful and (in the context of the time it was released) dangerous. It's always a great one to revisit from time to time.
Anthrax
3/5
I don't mind a bit of heavy metal every so often, but I often find that a lot of these artists start to sound the same. Despite their fame, I couldn't really find anything very significant about Anthrax compared to some other bands. It was fine, bur I doubt I'd return to it.
Robert Wyatt
4/5
I genuinely don't understand the reviewers who listened to this and thought that Robert Wyatt is being pretentious and overly obsessed with making art. There are certainly albums like that out there. But "Shleep" sounds like such a pure joy in making sounds to me. It's not intended to be an album that only smart people will get. You know the type. Instead, Wyatt brings together a wide variety of artists to mix their sounds together and see what happens. Not because it's art, but just because... why not?
I can definitely see why the album's second track "The Duchess" turns a lot of people off though (and maybe made them stop listening). It's challenging track for sure. But there are a quite a few gems that more than make up for it, including "Heaps of Sheeps", "Free Will and Testament", "A Sunday in Madrid", "and "Blues in Bob Minor". To each their own of course, but I think these songs are a lot more accessible than people are making them out to be. I really liked this album.
Pulp
3/5
It's weird to name your album for a style of music that definitely is not featured on the album. But I guess CBGBs wasn't named for the style it featured either. Anyway "This is Hardcore" is an evolution from Pulp's previous style. A bit more experimental and darker maybe. It's not bad, but it lacks the memorable moments of "Different Class". If there were such a genre as post-Brit-pop, this would be it. Not bad but not great.
Big Star
4/5
This one grew on me a lot. Released at a time when rock was moving increasingly into new styles and experiments, Big Star just wanted to keep making straight forward rock n roll from the mid-60s. At first glance, it feels a bit dated but the simple approach with the recording gear of the era was a major step forward for the power pop subgenre. A hidden gem of an album to me.
Caetano Veloso
3/5
If you want to get a first taste of the Brazilian tropicalia movement, your first stop should probably be Os Mutantes. You don't need to understand Portuguese to appreciate the revolutionary nature of the music and how ultra conservative supporters of the dictatorship would have hated them. It's right there in the music for anyone to understand. Caetano Veloso on the other hand is the opposite extreme. The challenges to traditional music are much more subtle and some reading suggests that there's a lot going on in the lyrics. You could easily pass this one over without ever realizing that it's a form of protest. To that end, I can appreciate it for what it is, but I also know that I'm missing a lot of significance here.
Dexys Midnight Runners
3/5
Before Dexys Midnight Runners would find their fleeting worldwide fame with the single "Come On Eileen", they were just a bunch of drug addicts in Birmingham taking the two-tone sound of the Specials and blending it into something that would later evolve into northern soul of bands like The Verve. It's a decent album, but the story about them stealing the master tapes (and nearly destroying them by accident) to get a better deal from the label is the most interesting thing about this release.
Sonic Youth
4/5
"EVOL" was a huge leap forward for Sonic Youth. Through collaborations with Lydia Lunch and Minutemen's Mike Watts, they moved from the New York no wave scene into more pop-oriented noise rock which would become their signature style. Kim Gordon called it their "goth" album and you can kind of see how it could sound a bit like a a grittier, more experimental version of Siouxsie and the Banshees. The vinyl version ends with "Expressway to Yr Skull" (renamed "Madonna, Sean and Me" on later versions), with a lock groove at the end, essentially making the song infinitely long. Well, at least until you couldn't take it any more. These recording sessions would also include the side project Ciccone Youth, where the band members with Watt would cover pop songs from the likes of Madonna and Robert Palmer. Well worth seeking out if you're a fan of this album.
U2
4/5
Ok, I know it's easy to hate U2. They can be preachy and maybe a little conceited. But they definitely had a string of some excellent albums back in the day, including this album. It's a definitely change of style for the band with subtle influences from electronic and industrial artists. It's perhaps not their most easily accessible album. It's also maybe their most daring album (which I'd give to their flopped disco album 'Pop'). But it definitely achieves a lot, including some of the band's best songs, like "Mysterious Ways" and "Better Than the Real Thing". The legacy of this album would later be revisited in a tribute album called "AHK-toong BAY-bi Covered". Covers were provided by the likes of Nine Inch Nails, Patti Smith, Depeche Mode, Jack White and others. That impressive line up is the proof that this remains an important album.
Marty Robbins
4/5
If this challenge has taught me anything, it's that country music doesn't have to be cringeworthy. Not that there hasn't been plenty of that on here but there are the odd albums that really demonstrate the other side of the genre outside of the influence of the ultra conservative Nashville establishment. Seeing the cover of this album, I didn't have high hopes. Another pretend cowboy spouting honky tonk toxic masculinity I figures. But this album really does remind me of the romanticism of the old West in a genuine way. It took the outlaw country stars like Johnny Cash to keep the spirit of this style of country alive, but this is the real deal. It's raw and rustic, evoking dangerous stories told around the campfire. If country still sounded like this, I'd call myself a fan.
Jane's Addiction
5/5
Maybe it's because they got their start right before the decade started but Jane's Addiction always feels like the true sound of 90s indie rock to me. Of course maybe it's because they also spearheaded the Lollapalooza Festival around this time as well. Either way, this album is, for me, the peak of the band. While their debut contained classic tracks like "Jane Says". But the follow up came as close as they ever would to a perfect album. The first half are all fast paced rock songs. While there's some forgettable tracks here, "Stop!" and "Been Caught Stealing" are incredible songs. The second half of the album is more conceptual, focusing on lose, addiction and death in sprawling indie jams. There's not much in the way of singles here but overall, the second half is the better one.
Jane's Addiction make a good case study in the question about the influence of drugs on art. Some say that it frees the artist, while others say the addiction ultimately holds them back. Maybe it's simply a matter that the people most likely to become addicts are more likely to have great art in them. In any event, Jane's Addiction couldn't function as a band after this, despite multiple attempts to reform over the last few decades. The in-fighting is publicly visible to all, and sometimes even violent, suggesting that it must have been pretty ugly behind the scenes. It's a shame because their meteoric rise suggested that they could have been a truly great band. Even so, they certainly left a mark in their first few years.
Stereo MC's
4/5
Stereo MCs sound like they took the sound of the Madchester scene and brought it to its obvious pop conclusions. Mixing elements of dance, electronic music, hip hop and rock, "Connected" is one of the lesser remembered 90s albums but still a great one. Both "Connected" and "Step It Up" remain perfect pop songs.
Lou Reed
4/5
"Berlin" may not be Lou Reed's best work but I'd argue that it was his artistic triumph. Challenged to take his story writing to the next level and create a concept album, Reed revisited a couple from a previous song and gave them a full story. The music takes on a cinematic quality and would have been adapted to a stage performance if not for the (initial) poor sales and reviews. It's a fantastic album. My only complaint is the extended crying of small children. Reed could have gotten the message across without this.
4/5
Sounds like Calofornia's answer to Blondie and the B-52s. Fun early 80s post punk.
Goldfrapp
3/5
Indie electronic cabaret music about loneliness. Not a bad album at all but I'm not sure it deserves a spot on the list. Still a good listen though.
David Holmes
4/5
Quite an unusual album. A teenage David Holmes travelled from Northern Ireland to New York City with a handheld tape recorder. Years later, those recordings would form the backbone of Holmes's second album. One gets the impression that he didn't spend his time doing the usual touristy New York things. The central theme of the album is drug abuse in contrast to the public image of New York as having been cleaned up in the 90s. Like Lou Reed, Holmes exposed a side of the city that the tourist boards would like us to forget, though it's probably less scandalous for its time compared to The Velvet Underground. Musically, the album feels like an extension of the gritty electronic tinged rock of Primal Scream, brought up to date with breakbeat rhythms. The standout tracks include some not at all subtle tributes to James Bond and Serge Gainsbourg which add some interesting texture to the sounds.
Listening today, this does sound a bit dated. But at the time of the release this album was an interesting personal soundtrack of a Northern Irish kid on a New York drug bender (I assume). Not going to be everyone's favorite by a long shot but I do still like this one.
The Afghan Whigs
2/5
A slightly interesting take on grunge with a few decent songs. But the lyrics are fairly cringeworthy. "Gentleman" is often described as one of the best break up albums ever. But it sounds like the kind of break up where one side is pretty much entirely at fault. You know when you want to be supportive of a friend but you kind of just think they're an asshole? Well that's this album. The lead singer is clearly aware of this and gave the album an ironic title. He claims that the lyrics are only semi-autobiographical but I'm not sure that that makes him look that much better. If you're going to embellish your own character, you could make them more sympathetic. Overall, there are some songs (such as "Debonair" and the closing track) that I am really tempted to enjoy more but the lyrics and grating vocals make it hard. It could have been a better album but I think it's not for me.
M.I.A.
4/5
M.I.A.'s most successful album almost certainly achieved that status on the strength of the phenomenal single "Paper Planes". But there's a lot more happening here, a lot of which is challenging for the majority of people. But I can really imagine that a big percentage of those album sales may have some from first generation kids in London who recognized the sounds of their backgrounds blending, unapologetically, with punk and gritty dance music. A lot of albums are heavily shaped by the recording process and that's certainly the case here. M.I.A. planned to record the entire album with Timbaland but couldn't get a visa to stay in the US long enough. Instead, she travelled the globe with different producers, incorporating (so called) third world source material at every turn. Lyrically, the album is about her mother's struggles and focuses on gun violence, visas and critiques of capitalism. While I still prefer "Arular", I have to agree that "Kala" is M.I.A.'s real masterpiece.
The The
5/5
When we think about the 80s, what we usually picture is big hair, synthy pop music, power ballads, and garishly bright colors. But in the meantime, the post punk scene was running more or less in the background, planting the seeds for much of the 90s indie rock scene to come. I've always liked The The and their debut "Soul Mining" is arguably their best work. If nothing else, it definitely contains two of their best songs "This is the Day" and "Uncertain Smile". I'm happy these guys are still going strong, having another great one in 2024, more than 40 years after "Soul Mining". Still a great band making excellent music under the surface.
Christine and the Queens
4/5
While the generator does at times struggle with post-2000 albums, I think "Chris" is a great representation of the era. It's an examination of identity and pronouns, something that was once buried but always felt, and now part of our cultural consciousness (despite some opposition). This album feels very on the cusp of a public transition. Like Bowie before him, Rahim Redcar has drifted through several names and images throughout his life. What is a bit unusual here is that he used both male and female names (Chris and Christine) alongside one another, as though identifying with both alternatively or gradually moving from one to another. This is mixed with excellent pop music, sung in both French and English (maybe here too, he is existing between two worlds?). My only complaint is that this album doesn't have his best song (in my opinion) "Tilted", but there's still a lot to like here.
David Bowie
5/5
A fitting album to receive now, only a few days before the 10th anniversary of Bowie's passing. I know it's tempting to rate this one a little lower. Bowie has the most solo albums on this list and "The Next Day" is arguably the least interesting one. Surely in any list of his best work, this album wouldn't have cracked the top 5, maybe even the top 10 for most fans. But a 4 star Bowie album is still worth 5 stars compared to most other music out there.
"The Next Day" is more interesting than a lot of people will give it credit for initially. Obviously, it was overshadowed by his incredible final album, "Blackstar". But Bowie's swansong makes more sense when put into context. This was the album that came out of nowhere. Bowie had a resurgence of popularity in the early 2000s and seems to be unstopped. Until a heart attack stopped him dead in his tracks. All at once, he stopped touring, making music, and existing in public life at all. It was a remarkably human moment for a man who always seemed so otherworldly. Then, as abruptly as he stopped, he made a surprise return nine years later with this excellent album.
Bowie always seemed to struggle with nostalgia. As such a forward looking artist, that was his strongest skill. The attempts to look back were some of the least interesting of his career. "Pin Ups", his cover album of his influences was an unusual miss in the middle of the famed Ziggy Stardust/Aladdin Sane period. "Toy", his lost album and attempt to revisit his own past songs, was shelved by the record label. But "The Next Day" manages to touch on nostalgia in a really interesting way. It sounds like classic Bowie without sounding too similar to any other release. The lead single "Where Are We Now?" recalls his time in Berlin. The album cover repurposes one of his most famous albums but updated in a jarringly modern way. This is to say nothing about the other, dark themes throughout the album.
I could go on, but here's my main point. I've given 5 stars to the last 8 Bowie albums I've received in this challenge. I was tempted to give this one 4 stars, just in principle, to even things out. But I love this one too and I can't do it. Bowie gets a perfect score on this challenge from me. Because it's Bowie.
The Icarus Line
4/5
Shortly after this album came out, guitarist Aaron North quit the band. Engineer Alan Moulder suggested that he audition for Nine Inch Nails' live band. According to Trent Reznor: "He shows up, he looks shitty, he's got junk equipment, he looks like he's just got up and I want to punch him. And then Aaron starts playing and on the first note it's like, 'You're the guy.' He wasn't trying to be me, and play like I play. He played and chaos came out."
My experience listening to The Icarus Line was similar. At first I hated it and was planning on giving it 2 stars. But the more I listened the more I got into it. It was like an aggressive blend of punk, indie and noise rock. I'm really surprised by how much I ended up enjoying this one by the end. I'd listen again if I was in the right mood.
Laura Nyro
2/5
I imagine this was quite influential for singer-songwriters in the late 60s, particularly the embrace of such dark themes. It didn't do much for me unfortunately. "Eli's Comin'" was the only track that really stood out to me. I might have enjoyed it more if the volume was leveled out a bit more, but I sometimes find the extreme dynamics harder to appreciate without constantly adjusting the volume. In a different mood, I might have appreciated this one more, but I unfortunately I didn't really enjoy this album.
Mekons
3/5
This album is described as blending punk with country. There are plenty of elements of both genres in there, but the result is really neither of them. It sounds more like 80s new wave but with fiddle, steel guitar, and harmonica instead of synthesizers. And that works surprisingly well. Some songs are a bit rough around the edges, but generally I enjoyed this album.
Pavement
4/5
For me, Pavement's debut album sounded like what you'd listen to when you got tired of all your Sonic Youth albums. This is certainly not a bad thing. But their follow up feels more unique. It's both poppier and bleaker at the same time. It feels more like their own sound to define a generation of disaffected youths. The fact that they were never as famous as their contemporaries only adds to their charm, like a hidden secret somehow always stayed a secret despite near universal acclaim. Pavement are easy to forget about and then rediscover later, which is part of the reason they remain who endearing to those in the know. This isn't just music for the slacker generation, it's music for anyone who can remember what it was like to be a teenager, lost in their world.
Peter Gabriel
5/5
What a discovery this was. I've always liked a handful of Peter Gabriel's songs and I had to admit that "So" is a solid album. But this one (informally called "Melt") blew me away. The dark experimentalism, combined with some amazing collaborators (top among them Robert Fripp and Kate Bush), was perfect. It's hard to imagine that this wasn't influenced by the work of Bowie and Eno in Berlin shortly before. Either way I loved it and have been listening all day.
Kings of Leon
3/5
Kings of Leon have the distinction of being the band with the most albums ever removed from different editions of this book. As of the 2021 edition, three albums had been removed in total, with none in the latest version. That tells you a lot. I'm sure at some point, someone claimed that Kings of Leon saved rock n roll from the usual non-existent threats. Their reputation as the Southern Strokes kind of fits and the music is kind of fun in small doses. But they don't have the same power to survive the test of time. Why bother with the Southern Strokes when you can just listen to The Strokes? Combined this with the band members being kind of obnoxious and you can see why they slipped right off of the list. It's alright though for a modern blues rock band but there are better out there.
Shack
3/5
It's good album, but didn't Brit Pop peak around 1996? I really can't think of anything particularly influential or significant about a band clinging on a genre that was well on the way out by this point. Sure, there's a market for those who still wanted more Oasis albums and Shack certainly tick that box. But it's really a stretch to say that they deserve a spot on this list. But I guess if you close your eyes and pretend that it was a lost album from earlier in the decade, it's a pretty decent listen at least.
The Sensational Alex Harvey Band
3/5
This is album 1001 for me. I think this is probably the sleeziest one I've heard yet, though there were definitely some contenders in the previous 1000 albums. There is something charmingly ridiculous about these guys. Their obsession with sex is comical, their stage presence over the top, and their music seems to take whatever instruments they can find or whatever notes they can play to make something exciting. If that's not punk, what is? I can certainly see the appeal that they would have had in 1973, and even now a little. Realistically though, there are better examples of everything they're trying to do. But you had to kind of admire how over the top it us.
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
4/5
This might very well be my final country album in this challenge. I've had a strained relationship with this genre throughout, with occasional albums I've enjoyed among most that I hated. This is an interesting one to end on. Despite some mentions of Nashville, this collection is rooted more in Appalachian bluegrass than anything else from the challenge so far. It's hard not to enjoy it at least a little. The closest thing that most younger listeners may know similar to this is probably the soundtrack to "O Brother Where Art Thou?" It's the kind of music that inspires images of working in the mines and coming home to the ranch for a big family barbecue. Or something like this, it's pretty far outside of my own background. It's a romantic image that's fun to picture yourself in.
It is long though. I get that it's an anthology of older music with a nearly forgotten generation of musicians. But the novelty does start to wear a little thin if you attempt to listen straight through. If you could go back in time to the heyday of bluegrass in West Virginia, you might love it for a while before you start craving modern conveniences. That's sort of what this album was like. But hey, it was fun for a little while. For exceeding my expectations, 4 stars feels fair here. I'd really have to be in the right mood to listen again but maybe someday.
System Of A Down
4/5
I mean, it's kind of the wrong album to include. "Toxicity" is the obvious choice for a System of a Down album. But their debut is still pretty great. This band was always lumped into the nu metal category with the likes of Korn and Limp Bizkit, but it was always pretty unfair to them. While that the quality of that genre varied a lot, there was an overall impression of it being music for frat boys trying to look edgy. System of a Down were a different beast though. While there may have been some similarities to the style of music, Serj Tankian comes across more like a ringmaster in some sort of heavy metal circus than a frat kid who likes to party. The lyrics are politically charged rages against drug abuse, corruption, propaganda and the Armenian genocide. Not exactly what you'd expect to hear from Fred Durst.
Missy Elliott
4/5
Missy Elliott is a really unique hip hop artist and a breath of fresh air sometimes. Not that there aren't a lot of greats in the genre, but she manages to escape the usual cliches, particularly for women, to make something fresh and interesting. She's not a sex symbol (though there's some confident sex positive content there) and she blends her style of rapping with Afro-futurism of the music (aided by Timbaland) and her visual style. The surreal use of the eyefish lenses and oversized silver plastic jump suits where groundbreaking when Missy Elliott arrived on the scene and still an iconic image of the 90s for me. I really enjoyed this album, particularly lead single "The Rain".
Ali Farka Touré
5/5
A stunning collaboration from two different worlds. The blues guitar of Ry Cooder meets the traditional Malian style of Ali Farka Toure. I don't know what it is about Mali but for a landlocked African country that you never really hear about, it produces some amazing music. Even without Cooder's contributions this would be a good album but the perfect blending of their styles really works. This is perfect music to relax and get lost in.
Primal Scream
5/5
For me, this is the peak of the Madchester scene. It was a style defined by former post punkers discovering ecstasy and rave culture. Like other bands of the era, they recruited electronic music DJs to blend their style into something else. In this case, it was Andrew Weatherall (with some work from The Orb's Alex Patterson) to create a collage of sound including punk, dance, ambient, gospel, and whatever else they could throw in. It's definitely a challenging album but with some gems, really highlighting the sound of the era. The album would go on to win the first Mercury Prize and the legacy remains as a significant album of its time and place.
Sisters Of Mercy
5/5
Oh man I love this. The album cover alone tells you that you're in for some good 80s goth dark wave stuff (that probably takes itself too seriously). These kinds of dark synth pop bands are a dime a dozen but Sisters of Mercy really stand out, aided in no small part by Jim Steinman, famously Meatloaf's chief collaborator. It gives it a Broadway (or West End) polish to music usually reserved for an angsty goth club. "1959" is a weak point but every other track is impressive. I can easily keep this one on repeat.
The White Stripes
4/5
The breakthrough album by The White Stripes. Despite a divorce, Jack and Meg carried on recording and even created some of their best work, incorporating garage rock into their blues rock style. Despite having some of their best songs, there's also a fair amount of filler here. But the strong points really make up for them.
Jeff Buckley
4/5
I have often wondered if some of the praise for this album is about its mythos. "Grace" was the ignored classic upon its release and only album from the man with a famous and famously estranged father. Jeff the musical prodigy who died far too young. All of this is true and I can't help but listen to this album feeling that there was so much potential for his career. Like many artists before him, his death would be the thing that finally found him success and fame. But there are echoes of his father on there. Although Tim Buckley had only met his son, it's easy to see that Jeff may have been interested in music before of him. All of that background aside, it's an excellent album on its own. While "Hallelujah" is rightfully praised, "Lilac Wine" is equally beautiful. There's not a bad song on here and Buckley was a real talent who could have gone on to greatness if he'd had the chance.
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
3/5
I know Elvis Costello gets a lot of flake from people in this challenge for having too many albums. On the one hand, he has some genuinely great songs. But I've gotta say, his discography definitely has some forgettable ones too. With this being my sixth and final Costello album of the challenge, I definitely feel that he deserves a place on the list. Just not six. "Blood & Chocolate" is fine, but it's nothing groundbreaking.
Bonnie "Prince" Billy
4/5
A lovely understated indie folk album. I always enjoyed this one as well as Bonnie "Prince" Billy's collaboration with Tortoise that came out around this time. Great music for a solitary mood.
2Pac
2/5
Before listening, what I knew about Tupac was that he had been shot, arrested, accused of sexual assault, and engaged in a famous East Coast/West Coast dispute that left both himself and the Notorious B.I.G. dead. Some background suggested that this album was a more honest, emotional, and artistic effort from Tupac. This is everything I understood going into this album.
Ok, so let's start with the positive. The beats are pretty good, not the best I've heard but not bad at all. At times it really does remind me of some other artists of the era, which I think was a major part of their rivalry. It's also an honest portrayal of the kind of life Tupac led, similar in a way to someone like Nas. And the song about his mom is striking in a bittersweet kind of way.
But the rest, I don't know. I'm just hearing a lot of womenizing and violence, but also feeling sad about it? Maybe I'm missing something but it sounds like a lot of machismo self-pitying. Maybe I'm missing something here but I just don't hear the whole "blues" thing that people suggest when the content is "fuck the world". Obviously there's a sociopolitical angle here that says Tupac is the product of an unjust and systematically racist system, which is undoubtedly true. But I still don't really want to celebrate violence and misogyny.
Weather Report
3/5
A landmark album in the jazz fusion genre. How exciting that is really depends on you. It's clearly building off of the merger of jazz and rock that was explored by Miles Davis and influenced so many. There are clearly echoes of prog rock bands here as well. So I get that this will appeal to a certain kind of person and on some level I kind of like it too. But also, it's a bit boring. And 1977 is pretty late to pretend that this is all that innovative I think. Maybe it helps popularize the style but I don't know if that's saying much considering it's not such a popular genre. But hey, I don't hate it and O particularly liked the final track.
Big Black
4/5
Very abrasive punk rock that may have helped plant the seeds that would eventually become noise rock and further influence early industrial music. It's an interesting take for the time it was released and kind of fun to listen to. I need to take it in small doses though!
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
5/5
I tend to find Nick Cave a bit hit or miss. I kind of love his music but only in small doses and some is kind of forgettable. So I was a little weary of listening to a double album (really two albums put together). But I was really impressed with this release and think it's some of his strongest material. Shifting between heavy dark-themed blues rock on the first disc, and lighter material on the second, there's nothing very obviously different from his previous work. Yet this material, marking a late comeback from some disappointing work, manages to balance the sound better by introducing a greater range of styles and the frequent use of a choir to counterbalance the murkiness of Cave's vocals and the Bad Seeds playing. There's a lot to digest and it does drag a bit halfway through the second disc. But there's also a lot to love. It will require some repeated listens to full absorb it all. This may be my favorite Nick Cave album yet.
Richard Hawley
3/5
Dreamy chamber pop and lounge music from a former Brit Pop musician. It doesn't feel like something that should work but it's actually pretty good. I only wish it had my favorite song of Hawley's, "Tonight the Streets Are Ours". Still a nice album though.
Ice T
4/5
A different take on early 90s hip hop. It's mostly socially conscious, largely progressive, and occasionally very juvenile. Ice-T's attempt to subvert the misogyny of his peers by defining some men as "bitches" isn't exactly the feminist message that he thinks it is, but I guess it was noteworthy for the era. Some great beats here though!
Tricky
5/5
Artists take a gamble when they leave a successful group to try and go it alone. Surely this was the case when Tricky left Massive Attack shortly after their acclaimed debut established trip hop as a genre. But man did it pay off here. "Maxinquaye" injected a dark experimentalism into the genre. There's a brooding intensity to the sound. Tricky's raspy, sexualized depression melts perfectly with Martina Topley-Bird's sultry vocals. The samples are achingly slowed down to make you feel very heavy note. Tricky and Topley-Bird exchange male and female roles throughout the album and strikingly in the promotional materials. The result is progressive but depressed. Optimism drowned out by drug use and a disillusionment with adulthood in mid-90s Britain. This is unlike any other album I know and easily up there with Portishead's "Dummy" and Massive Attack's "Mezzanine" for one of the best trip hop albums ever made.
The Allman Brothers Band
2/5
There's little I dread so much in this challenge as the words "live jam band double album". I mean, look, it's impressive. It popularized jam bands. It sounds like a blast to have seen *live*. But listening at home, this is a chore. There are some brilliant moments but there's a lot of slog to get through in between. I can also understand that the blend of genres is innovative, but let's not overstate it. This is 99% southern rock jam sessions with a bit of jazz in the mix. I don't begrudge anyone for loving this though. I get it and I'm glad you enjoy. But for me, both the songs and the album just dragged in far too long.
Funkadelic
4/5
I really can't decide if this album is more funk with rock n roll, or rock n roll with funk. Every time I listen to it, I feel more of one side than the other, but then it switches. I guess it's just the sound of Funkadelic. And that's more than good enough for me.
Scissor Sisters
4/5
This like if Prince and Elton John got together to try to make an early 2000s indie rock album. Scissor Sisters were celebrated for depicting the LGBTQ+ scene in New York City and they definitely made a fun album out of it.
John Cale
4/5
An unexpectedly poppy album from Velvet Underground veteran and avant garde composer John Cale. My first impression was that this album, while kind of catchy, is a weird misstep from Cale. Orchestral pop music isn't his territory. Turning it into a history lesson is kind of interesting but it's nothing the Bee Gees hadn't already accomplished. Still, I like Cale's music and there are a handful of good tracks so I was inclined to be generous. On repeat listens though, this album opens up. It's better and stranger than I'd originally given him credit for, in ways that I can't quite explain. Maybe it's Cale's unusual singing style which reminds me of his former collaborator, Nico. Maybe it's a quality to the music that has something different to it. In either event, this album really grew on me. Stand out tracks included "MacBeth" and "Paris 1919".
Drive Like Jehu
2/5
I don't know what exactly it is that doesn't appeal to me about hardcore. But I think it may be vocals, which seem to be attempting to maintain maximum intensity throughout every song. Calm down, guys, take a breath, put some dynamics into the music. Anyway, some of the noise reminded me a bit of Nirvana, which was kind of cool. But yeah, not really for me.
Talking Heads
5/5
What a nice surprise to see that, despite being near the end of the challenge, there was still another Talking Heads album waiting for me! "Fear of Music" is considered by some to be their best work. The band are at the top of their game here, aided by Brian Eno once again, and a guest appearance by Robert Fripp. The lyrics depict a disaffected (and dystopian, with some artistic license) existence searching for success in New York. All set to very danceable rhythms. Talking Heads get a lot of spots on this list and there's probably not a great justification for that. But I'm not complaining.
Sinead O'Connor
4/5
Sinead O'Connor was really treated unfairly. By trying to expose abuses of the Catholic Church, she was a trailblazer but suffered for it. By now it's widely known but she still took the fall as a trouble maker who wouldn't simply smile for the cameras and avoid controversy, like a good pop star. But she absolutely was a pop star, just an outspoken one. The pain and anger she felt is on display in the music, but there's no storage of great ballads and upbeat dance songs. She had a reputation for stirring things up which may have blunted her stardom. But that controversy is part of what made her fearless and great. It's not separate to the music or her. It was part of the art.
Sonic Youth
4/5
I love Sonic Youth but I really struggle with the fact that many of their albums aren't something you can easily keeping listening to. "Daydream Nation" aside, I find myself listening only once in a while and quickly getting bored. The noise rock style is only ok in small doses. Frustratingly, they have some incredible songs in between. "100%" and "Sugar Cane" are both great tracks that I could easily listen to on repeat. And their entire discography has plenty of songs like this. But the albums only work when I'm in the right mood. I wanted to give this 5 stars because I genuinely love this band. But if I'm being honest, it's only a handful of great tracks that keep my interest here.
The Cure
5/5
When did goth music get the reputation for being overly dark and scary. The best of the genre was always the stuff you could dance to. Maybe you avoid eye contact with everyone and stare at the ground but that's fine. It's want makes The Cure such a great band, even now. It's about more than just depression. There's a longing to feel something more but an extreme discomfort in expressing happiness. So when The Cure flirted with pop singles and sold out stadiums worldwide, Robert Smith knew that something wasn't right. Returning to moody roots, the band composed "Disintegration", probably their best album. It's beautiful and anchored in what made the band great, but it's balanced out by some strong and highly accessible singles. "Lovesong" even manages to be a genuine love song as the title implies. It's growth in baby steps but it's sincere and it's perfectly produced. There's no bad track here.
Wilco
3/5
I've never heard much of Wilco's early works. While "Yankee Hotel Foxtrot" feels like a folk-tinted indie rock from the early 2000s. This one feels a bit more like light country rock. At times I felt like ZZ Top has a three men and a baby situation and the child grew up and moved out to Williamsburg. But hey, even though I prefer Wilco's later work, this is still good for what it is. My biggest complaint is that it's far too long. I thought for sure that disc 2 were bonus tracks, but no. One disc would have been fine.
Drive-By Truckers
2/5
I fully appreciate that Lynyrd Skynyrd deserves their place in this challenge. I am far less convinced about a 94 minute rock opera from the early 2000s about Lynyrd Skynyrd and in the style of Lynyrd Skynyrd but not as good as Lynyrd Skynyrd. There's an audience for this and more power to them, but I really didn't feel like I needed to hear this one.
Kendrick Lamar
5/5
This is an absolutely stunning and incredibly ambitious album, covering so many facets of African American history, music and experiences. Kendrick Lamar has so much to say here and does so with a seriously channeled energy and awareness. The music covers hip hop, jazz, soul, funk and R&B, but blends them all together in something equally accessibly and avant garde. My only complaints are the unnecessary disses against other artists and some sexist language. For me, those are the only negative points in an otherwise incredible album. Probably one of the best hip hop albums in the last 20 years.
The Hives
3/5
The Hives are kind of good, but if we're being honest, there's nothing that that we haven't heard before. If you like The Sonics, you'll like The Hives. This collection in particular really demonstrates their attempts to make it big. Not an album, but a sort of mini-greatest hits from their first three releases, repackaged with a bold claim as the title. The strategy may have worked for the Clash, but it feels a little more desperate here. "Hate to Say I Told You So" is undeniably great. The rest is more or less standard punk. But it did alright and I suppose it scratches an itch. Maybe not such a significant album looking back on it, but it's good enough listen.
Gene Clark
4/5
I can't really explain why I liked this album. It's probably not the most interesting or significant music I've heard. But I enjoy how open and simple it is. Great music for a lazy weekend.
New Order
4/5
The division between Joy Division and New Order was marked most notably by the band partying around Europe and letting themselves be influenced by the music they hear. It was a way to ease the pain of the loss of their former bandmate, but it seems like every passing album got a little further away from their roots. "Technique" is probably the apex of their dance music journey. The rock band behind it is partly noticeable here on some tracks, although hints remain. This album also lacks any of their biggest hits. Despite that it was a huge success for the band and is still an excellent album. It might be easy to dismiss it as a bad Ibiza club album at first glance but the more you listen, the more of the band you can hear underneath. "Vanishing Point" is a major highlight for me and one of the best New Order songs out there.
Sparks
5/5
One of those hugely influential albums that most people have never heard of. Sparks were one of the best glam rock bands out there, largely because of how open and playful their music is. They have an amazing sense of humor, musical range and flare for theatrics. The frequent plays on words keep the songs are indefinitely fun and comical and the Sparks Brothers were never afraid to experiment. It's a breath of fresh air in a genre that got stale very quickly. Unlike the others who had to evolve or disappear, Sparks and their signature sound are still going strong.
Funkadelic
3/5
I didn't quite like this one as much as the raw rock-centric funk of "Maggotbrain". But this is probably the more accessible album and still pretty fun.
The Beach Boys
4/5
A strange but strangely beautiful later career album from The Beach Boys. Gone are the days of fun loving surf rock. This is building on the precedent.set by the experimental "Pet Sounds". But it's not simply Brian Wilson at the helm, although his work is clearly present. All of the members have their stake in trying to stay relevant after the late 60s. It may not be their best work and certainly not their best known. But this is more evidence that The Beach Boys were one of the most significant bands of their era.
Bob Dylan
3/5
I appreciate that as a Bob Dylan album, this is kind of interesting. It's a return to form after a long slump. The recording is clean with an open atmosphere. Dylan, turn to form, has poetic lyrics. But, being honest here, how much would we care about this album if it was recorded by someone else? It's good, sure, and the fans will undoubtedly love it, but I don't know that there's much that's particularly memorable or exciting to the casual Bob Dylan fan (let alone the critics). It's hardly at the level of his earlier work. But sure, it's a decent one. I could have done without the 16 minute stream of consciousness jam session at the end though.
Blur
4/5
I never quite got this album when I was young. Today I learned that Blur was heavily influenced by Pavement and the album makes so much more sense to me now! The combination of Brit Pop and American indie rock is brilliant, but it just didn't click before today. Now I love this. In the war between Oasis and Blur, Blur is still my band and it's not even close. Sorry to sleeping on this one guys!
Cypress Hill
3/5
You need to admire the nuisanced arguments about the police, focusing on reallocation of a percentage of resources to other important public services. On marijuana, Cypress Hill discuss its cultural significance in parts of the world as well as the important medicinal uses.
Ok none of that is true. Cypress Hill are maybe caricatures of 90s hip hop but they made some good beats and have a distinct rapping style. I could do without the homophobic slurs though.
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
4/5
Delta Blues reinterpreted as part of the late 60s California psychedelic scene. There's a healthy amount of Dadaist absurdity and the excellent guitar playing of a young Ry Cooder. If that doesn't excite you, there are a good number of earworm hits mixed in. "Yellow Brick Road", "Abba Zaba", and "Electricity" are all standout tracks. If you continue on with the bonus tracks, the title track is also excellent but it does get a bit cluttered and unfocused by the end. All in all, a fantastic debut that was ahead of its time.
Frank Sinatra
3/5
The earliest album on this generator (I believe). It's strange to evaluate albums from before the mid-60s, as it's before the "album era". There aren't many albums from the 50s here but of course some early exceptions need to slot in. There's an easy argument to make to include Sinatra. His voice and style remain iconic decades later.
As the most well known of the croners, he should be celebrated alongside an unlikely instrument: the microphone. We tend to think of microphones as merely tools to get the sound onto a record, but Sinatra's style wouldn't have been possible without it. By raising the volume of his voice, he was able to sing, sweetly and softly, over the larger than life music that otherwise might have drown it out. It's easy to take it for granted now, but this simple innovation in recording techniques revolutionized recorded music and ultimately led to the wide variety of other genres to come. It wasn't necessarily the genius of anyone in particular, just the tinkering of audio engineers to get the sound just right. But it opened the door for Sinatra and others to make new kinds of music that the world hadn't heard before. It makes it an excellent starting point for this album list.
On a personal level, I love the vocals and the history here, but the music itself does get a bit dull after a while. Sinatra never quite embraced the album format as a complete artistic idea, which is a shame. But obviously, he was already big enough that he didn't need to innovate any more than he already had.
George Michael
3/5
Listen without prejudice is good advice. Having heard George Michael's previous album, I did expect more pop music. This follow up is his attempt to be taken a bit more seriously. And surely, it's less of a chart-topping singles machine, but it does have a decent amount of pop-quality to it. The music walks a fine line between the synthetic sound of 80s synth-driven dance music, and heartfelt ballads. The music often sounds cheap, which works fine in the context of a 80s dance club, but maybe less well for more reflective content. Still, it's all pretty decent with a handful of beautiful moments throughout. "Freedom 90" is the clear standout, with "Praying for Time" and "Heal the Pain" closely behind.
Skepta
3/5
I do have a slight soft spot for grime artists. It was a unique take on British hip hop and still sounds kinda cool to me. I never necessarily heard any real greats from the genre, but Skepta is still pretty good.
Kanye West
4/5
Once again, I need to decide how to rate a Kanye West album. Obviously, it's one where you need to try and separate the art from the artist. Kanye became a pretty awful person in recent years, which won't surprise anyone. Regardless of what you may think of his music, it's pretty hard to imagine anyone defending his personal antics in any way, aside from acknowledging mental health difficulties. Interesting by the way that this album contains criticism of Donald Trump many years before Kanye tried to be friends with him.
Anyway, we all know about this stuff, so let's put it aside. I don't love all of Kanye's albums, but I have to admit that this one is brilliant. It's a really fresh take on hip hop, really varied, maximal, and with a host of great guests. Turning Aphex Twin's "Avril 14th" into a hip hop song doesn't seem like it should work as well as it does (ignore by the way, the fact that Kanye tried to steal this initially before giving Richard James a writing credit).
I really hate that I love this one.
The Mothers Of Invention
4/5
Well, this one definitely gets points for significance. The first rock double album and one of the first concept albums. It's bizarre and experimental, even for an era that was full of bizarre and experimental music. At points, it sounds like a parody of "Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band", except that it came out a year earlier. It's satirical and non-sensical, critical of psychedelic rock, while simultaneously pushing the genre forward as breakneck speed. The whole thing is hard to classify. It's completely free and silly and weird and probably pissed a lot of people off. This was Frank Zappa introducing his style of avant garde pop rock right off the bat. This was never going to be a chart topper, but it's probably changed a specific stream of underground rock music for decades to come. Other bands may have already started changing the rules, but the Mothers of Invention showed what can happen if you ripped up the rule book completely and played under its falling confetti. Weird and wonderful, but not for everyone.
Frank Sinatra
3/5
It's just classic, isn't it? This list is full new, challenging and innovative music. But sometimes it's just nice to hear some classic vocal performances. My only criticism is that there's not much variety here but for what it is, it's great.
Manic Street Preachers
2/5
Part of me really wants to like Manic Street Preachers more. In my last review of theirs, I was pleasantly surprised by their other album on this list. But I have to confess that this one really didn't do much for me at all. It felt a bit all over the place, a bit 80s rock ballads, a bit of grunge, a bit of Brit Pop, but also not really any of those things. I just couldn't really pin it down. It's obviously pretty dark which would normally be up my alley but yeah, I just couldn't connect here. Maybe I just need to be in the right mood but I just didn't like this one.
LCD Soundsystem
4/5
This is definitely not the easiest LCD Soundsystem album to listen to but it's arguably their greatest accomplishment. If I remember correctly, James Murphy had briefly been working with Bowie during the final years of his life. Bowie's death inspired Murphy to reform LCD Soundsystem and create a more fearless album than their previous works. Which probably explains why it dives deeper into a dark post punk sound than their previous work. It's probably more alienating to the average listener, with only a handful of dancier songs to keep them going. It's probably more introspective and maybe even a little more depressing than what came before (not that Murphy's lyrics were ever that cheery to begin with). I have to admit that I like some songs more than others but I have a soft spot for this band and probably always will. As mentioned in a previous review, LCD Soundsystem aren't necessary better than the sum of their influences, but they're more than enough.
Dirty Projectors
3/5
These guys really had their moment, didn't they? Dirty Projectors were widely admired by music industry people and other well known bands. They collaborated with the likes of David Byrne and Bjork around this time. They were critical darlings and had a respectable following. In some ways I can kind of see it. They sounded very different and hard to classify, which can be pretty exciting. But for many people, this will just come off sounding pretentious. The kind of thing that the Williamsburg hipsters would have laughed at other people for not "getting". It's music for people for feel like Animal Collective are too mainstream.
I think the truth is a little bit of both. I'm ok with weird for weird's sake. It can be fun and it can influence other artists. It's like people creating new paint colors a few centuries ago. It's not high art in itself but it creates the tools for the other artists. I like some parts of this album, but probably not enough to spend much time with it.
Mj Cole
3/5
I remember hearing this album when it came out. The 2 step garage style was notably different for the time. But even then, I found myself getting a bit bored after a while. I'm not sure what it is but maybe it just feels too sparse, too soulless, too repetitive. There's something novel and good about it but it just kind of feels like an incomplete thought. Like it desperately needs some extra element to hold it altogether. A synth, some layered vocals, something. It gets closer with "Bandelero Desperado" which contrasts 2 step beats with an interesting rap style. But a lot of the album is unfortunately kind of underdeveloped and forgettable.
Bon Jovi
4/5
It's incredibly uncool to admit that I kind of love this. It's unbelievably cheesy, over the top, and embarrassing. But it's also just infectiously fun, isn't it? Look, I grew up with this music. I felt the bitter shame when my dad would blast this album throughout the house as I was kid. Such incredibly ridiculous music, I hoped my friends wouldn't hear it. But now, as an adult, I kind of get it. At a certain point, you get older and stop caring so much about what other people think. Life is too short to resist what is obviously great (albeit also kind of dumb) feel good music. It's freeing to admit liking this and finally abandoning any attempt to be cool. It's not worth it. Sorry I made fun of this one, Dad.
Duke Ellington
4/5
Some truly classic jazz. It's really interesting to hear this and put it in the context of the 1950s. It's particularly interesting to realize what would have caused "pandemonium" from the crowd at that time. This music sounds pretty tame today, like something that your grandparents might put. But at some point, this was cutting edge and people would have reacted quite strongly to it. But the truth is, it's a great performance and goes get pretty frantic at points. It must have been exciting to be in those crowds.
Carole King
5/5
Carole King is like the voice behind other famous voices. She had long lent her songwriting talents to other artists. That's fine for some but some songs just need the personal touch of the songwriter as the singer, delivering their powerful lyrics in their own voices. Surely that's the case with Carole King, hiding in the shadows until she was finally encouraged to record herself. The proof is all over this album, among the most successful albums of all time. It easily holds up as a stunning example of the singer-songwriter genre.
Count Basie & His Orchestra
4/5
The (literally) explosive cover art must have had an impact in the late 50s, a time when album covers were meant to show the artists and nuclear tensions were high. Count Basie was a powerhouse of his era and this album shows him at his peak. It's also probably the peak of big band music, as the genre was about to give way to rock n roll. Basie showcases what was great about the style before it faded away to obscurity. And it feels very much alive as he does it. One wonders how we lost this music but it's probably simply a matter of practicality. You needed a "big band" to get that effect before Sister Rosetta Tharpe showed the world that the electric guitar could do it much more easily. Still, it's a great document of a bygone era and it feels easy to imagine the excitement of being there.
Def Leppard
3/5
Def Leppard sound exactly the way you'd expect Def Leppard to sound. They sound like standard generic 80s power hard rock. Which I guess says something, because they helped set the sound of this style enough for it to become a stereotype. It all kind of sounds the same to me, but hey, it does what it says on the tin I guess. If this is your style, then there's probably loads to enjoy here.
Johnny Cash
4/5
It's really hard to argue that Johnny Cash needed two live from prison albums on this list. One live from prison album? Absolutely. But two? It's kind of the same thing, isn't it?
But what am I going to do? Give this a bad rating? I don't think I can. These are two of the best live albums ever made. The imagery of Cash in front of a group of rowdy convicts is a powerful one. And man do they sound like they're having fun.
The Byrds
4/5
The Byrds have been a really interesting band to learn about in this challenge. I've heard them as a classic early 60s rock group, an establishment challenging country band, and as lovers of sonic experiments. I've read about the revolving door of band members, including several great songwriters of the era. This is my 5th and last of their albums in this challenge. It feels like a stepping stone between different parts of their career. With the departure of Gene Clarke, they maybe felt more willing to experiment, mixing folk rock with early psychedelia. The lyrics touch on drug use and science. The band apparently hoped that radio stations playing their songs would reach alien life one day. The sound blend different styles, effects and (painfully) the sound of a jet engine.
It's a fairly disjointed album, which suffers a lack of focus or clear message. But there are some amazing songs here nonetheless, which foreshadow later work of the band and its members. It's not the strongest Byrds album but there's still a lot to like and to think about here.
Nick Drake
5/5
This is a different kind of Nick Drake. He is best known today for the stripped down melancholy of his vocal and a guitar alone, as heard in "Pink Moon". Here the music is larger and fuller, aided by members of The Fairport Convention, session musicians from The Beach Boys, and John Cale, among others. You can easily imagine a version of this album without any of that. Nick Drake's style really didn't require a backing band and I can understand why he was unhappy with it. In a way, it even feels like a label just overdubbed some unnecessary extra music on top of existing tracks. But the thing is, it works and gives us a new dimension to what Nick Drake could sound like. With or without other bandmembers, the music is great. So why not have some variety?
Talk Talk
3/5
I like some good new wave music. Maybe it's a bit ridiculous with all of the synths. It can sound cringeworthily 80s, but I don't care. I'm a sucker for it. But it feels weird to than take the synths out of it... Somehow it just doesn't work as well. It's like seeing a rainbow in black and white. You can see clearly see what it is, but it doesn't quite feel complete, does it? I have a strong feeling that this album appeals most to people who were already fans of Talk Talk, but that it doesn't work as well as an introduction to the band. I didn't hate it and it could possibly grow on me, but first impressions were a bit bland.
Laibach
3/5
Laibach are an interesting band, to say the least. Their name appears to be a reference to a planned Nazi take over of their city. Their music and imagery depict fascism and militarism, mixed with a goth industrial style. But it's incredibly unclear how much is tribute and how much is satire, which makes people understandably uncomfortable. But a bit of exploration really do point to satire, given the frequent silliness of the album (albeit delivered in a grimly serious manner). The blurred lines about their real beliefs probably contributed to their invitation to be the only Western band to date to play a concert in North Korea. They performed a heavy metal rendition of the Sound of Music soundtrack. You can imagine the audience, cut off from any Western cultural references and the storyline of the movie, trying to make sense of these Slovenian cultural ambassadors. Love this band or hate them, they're definitely interesting. They may make your head spin trying to figure them out though. It's absolutely not one that I'd return to often, but it's been an interesting one to think about, so it gets some points for that.
Miles Davis
4/5
This is, I believe, the earliest recorded music in the entire challenge. While the album came out in 1957, some of the songs date as far back as 1949. In this era, jazz really was the coolest genre. Miles Davis would remain in the shadows of rock n roll, influencing other musicians for decades to come. Here is the early first steps of Davis, stepping out of the shadows of Charlie Parker's band. It's not quite true to say that his innovations led to rock music, but he certainly was an important voice in story. So this album seems like as good a place as any to have started the journey. The birth of the cool indeed. I couldn't have done without the vocal track at the end though, which felt like an odd add-on and didn't really fit with the other songs in my opinion.
Creedence Clearwater Revival
4/5
This list probably didn't need more than one CCR album. There's not really much more that you're going to learn about these guys after one album. If you like it, you like it. But I'm not necessarily mad at having to listen to it. As far as Southern blues/hard rock goes, there's really no one better. I'm not even really a big fan of this subgenre, but it's hard to argue with the intensity of their sound and John Fogerty's vocal performances. "Proud Mary" is a clear highlight but there's not a bad track on here.
Cowboy Junkies
4/5
Going in, all I knew what an alt country band recorded in a church and included a Velvet Underground cover. This was enough to keep me intrigued. I wasn't quite prepared for how ethereal the experience would be. Sometimes simply just the right acoustics can make an album and that's certainly the case here. The music is sparse, minimalistic, and does exactly what it needs to make you feel it. The cover/sequel to Elvis's "Blue Moon" is a highlight for me, along with their mournful cover of "Sweet Jane". Beautiful album.
The Smiths
5/5
It's nice to think of simpler times when you could listen to The Smiths without worrying about whether you were supporting Morrissey. This one was their final album and by their own estimates, their best one. I do get it, it's less catchy but more complete, more experimental and more expansive than their previous work. Despite tensions and drug use, they were more comfortable with one another than ever before. In previous reviews for The Smiths, I mentioned that they were (in my opinion) Johnny Marr's band. He wrote all of the music after all. Morrissey was a mere, slightly obnoxious front man. But I have to confess that it's nice hearing them together here. Morrissey, when he's more scaled back, fits perfectly with the music. Maybe he needed Marr to keep him (mostly) grounded. Maybe if they'd continued on, they'd still be making great music today. Well, we can dream. The truth is, Morrissey and Marr were two very different people who happened to collaborate for a relatively short part of their lives. But I'm grateful that they did, because they made some great albums. Johnny Marr has made it very clear that no reunion is ever going to happen so this is the final document we have of their simpler times for The Smiths.
Oasis
4/5
In the Brit Pop wars, I was firmly in the Blur camp. I still am. Damon Albarn had more character than Noel Gallagher in my view. I'd like to pretend that I'm too cool for Oasis. But honestly, they made some great music. At one point I dismissed it as imitation Beatles but that's not really fair. They did really capture the sound of a moment. Not just limited to Brit Pop either, this really feels like the 90s. Even Albarn had to confess that Oasis won the war when they reunited and had a wave of nostalgic obsession. They really did stand the test of time in the end. Still not my favorite band but they're damn good.