I've often heard of the various "Foetus" projects from JG Thirwell. They were always something of a mystery to me as they were impossible to find in the days before the Internet. Even my music geek friends and the best indie record stores I had around knew nothing about this music. Surely, neither the music nor the titles were very marketable. The only way to experience Thirwell's music was through the very experimental remixes he did for Nine Inch Nails. I can easily see why Trent Reznor was a fan. The core style feels like a pretty well developed kind of industrial rock for its era and was surely very influential on albums like "The Downward Spiral".
As an album, "Nail" is fairly eclectic. The variety of styles is more kitsch than talent though and the industrial songs are the ones that stand out the most. This will be a difficult listen for some but as a fan of the genre, I really enjoyed finally getting to hear this beautiful, grating mess. I hope to hear more sometime.
Ok, so... this really isn't something I'd normally listen to. Soft rock and smooth jazz. Contributions from the likes of Phil Collins, Bonnie Raitt, and Jerry Garcia, among others. Not exactly the edgiest album ever made, is it?
So ok, it's not one that I'd play to try to impress anyone but honestly it's ok and had some moments I enjoyed, like "China Doll" and "Passing Through". It has socially conscious lyrics which is always good. And I kind of like the concept that Bruce Hornsby was just inviting people over for dinner, going to walks and recording music. Maybe it is cool, in a middle aged dad sort of way. Abandoning dreams of typical rock stardom for good living and recording with friends. I was initially tempted to make fun of this music but honestly, it kind of sounds like he was living life to the fullest here and I can't fault that.
A group of Brits in 90s Brixton mixing Southern Country with acid house really screams gimmicky. And when they start singing about the merits of socialism, it really feels like they're trying to troll the Nashville establishment from an ocean away. Oddly enough, I don't hate this. Does it "work"? Yes. No. Sort of. Somehow it feels like a spiritual sequel to Primal Scream's "Screamadelia". More so than the nods to The Rolling Stones, I'd say. I'm tempted to award 4 stars but the fairer score is 3. Because there are just too many moments where the novelty wears off and becomes borderline cringe. Not quite but too close to ignore. It's still kinda fun though.
Side note: how on earth did something like this end up on The Sopranos?
A very interesting modern take on prog rock. At some points, it feels in the same vein as Pink Floyd or King Crimson. At others, it fits more closely with early 2000s hard rock. The marriage of the two is really engaging. I'd definitely listen to more from these guys.
Oh I like this one! It sounds like a British version of Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band and I absolutely mean that as a compliment. It feels like the crossroads between traditional blues rock and anti-war psychedelia. The second half even struck me as kind of proto-grunge, like something that could have indirectly influenced Nirvana. I'm here for all of it. 5 stars might be on the generous side but I really liked this one. Possibly the best discovery I've encountered in my first month of the user submitted albums.
All I kept thinking is that this is a very enjoyable album, albeit not very interesting. That's fine. Some albums are just there to be enjoyed. They don't need to be groundbreaking. But I do question whether this could survive the test of time. How many people will know who John Mayer was 30 years from now? There are surely other artists sound similar but are more noteworthy.
I kept thinking that this sounds like an indie version of The Killers. And by "indie", I mean properly "indie". Not the "sells out huge worldwide stadium tours but sounds kind of indie" indie rock. For the record, I kinda like The Killers but The Vaccines feel a lot more down to earth. Very good album.
This is one of those albums that's pretty good and really scratches an itch for me sometimes but I'd probably forget it exists most of the time. It reminds me a bit of Ladytron who evoke a similar feeling for me. So while it's not going to be a new favorite any time soon,, thanks to the user who submitted it. Maybe it will make its way into semi-regular rotation.
I don't know what it is about Mogwai that I've never managed to connect with them. I like a good drone album and they seem to tick all of the right boxes, but I find that I only really like them in small doses. I enjoyed giving them another chance and liked the music ok, but I was a bit zoned out of it by the end.
An impressive merger of classic prog rock, post punk and new wave. For my money, this is some of the best work ever recorded by Robert Fripp and Adrian Belew, among their outstanding discographies.
Sometimes you get an album that's doesn't feel particularly unique or noteworthy but it's still pretty fun. As far as hard rock does, there's not much hear that you can't find elsewhere but, you know, it's still pretty damn fun. Best tracks: 'Holy Diver' and 'Rainbow in the Dark'.
It's maybe not the most unique Swedish heavy metal album but Swedish heavy metal is usually pretty fun.
This is one that really makes exploring the user submitted albums worthwhile. I doubt I would have discovered a 70s Argentinian rock album on my own but I really liked it. I can imagine people outside of Latin America finding this one at the time and feeling like they stumbled across a hidden treasure that no one else got to hear. It's funny how the language barrier is often enough to stop people from appreciating music from other countries but I'm glad to have been exposed to this.
I don't think I've ever heard an album sound more like Genesis without having any members of Genesis in the band. This is obviously not a particularly hot take and plenty of critics have said the same of Marillion. It feels like the kind of thing that you need to dig at for a while to see where they're unique, but for the majority of listeners, they're going to hear Genesis-esque poppy prog rock. Which is fine, but a bit too similar to really stand out to me. Not bad though.
It's arguably a weird choice for a Lady Gaga album as it doesn't have any of her well known works and was (I believe) a critical and commercial disappointment. It's also probably a lot more pop than art, apart maybe from some of the lyrical themes, it's mixed with a high level of superficiality (maybe touch in cheek?). Honestly though, I don't hate it and could easily listen again. My only criticism is that she included R Kelly. But to Lady Gaga's credit, that song was removed. I can't say I really have any other notes so, yeah, not bad.
As much as I like bands like Can, NEU!, and Kraftwerk, I just never got into Amon Duul II. Here I feel like I finally hear what I've been missing. "Yeti" feels like a missing link between psychedelia and krautrock. There's a lot of great variety here and I found myself listening on repeat. Definitely a great find!
Slowdive are the kind of band you find when you're on a deep dive into a subgenre. That is to say, it's good, just not as good as the giants of shoegaze. But I see the appeal. They're like My Bloody Valentine but less noisy. Jesus and Mary Chain but lighter. "Souvlaki" (apparently named for a crude joke that the band liked and not the actual food), is a pretty solid album. But it's not quite as good as some of their contemporaries. They come close sometimes though.
I only recently came across the term "filk" for the first time when someone was arguing that it described They Might Be Giants. I have mixed feelings about this because there's arguably a need for a term to describe their style of music. But I also kind of like that there isn't. Anyway, the genre seems to describe a lighthearted style of indie rock characterized by a lot of wordplay and mixing with other genres. Well that's certainly TMBG. But what else is this genre about then?
Now I've been exposed to Ookla the Mok and, yeah, the comparisons are unavoidable. Songs like "Curb Your Dogma" (the highlight for me) do almost sound like it was written by TMBG. "Rats Live On nO eviL staR" is a playful songs about palindromes, which TMBG did years before (but better).
But there's also a lot of differences here. Ookla the Mok doesn't have the same level of eclecticism that TMBG achieve and feel a lot more grounded in an 80s indie / pop-punk sound. The lyrics can be clever and silly but there's a bizarre obsession with monkeys and other primates on this album, which gets boring fast. At times, these guys reminded me more of the band that the characters in Big Bang Theory created to sing about comic book characters. Which is fine but not really my thing.
Overall, this album is not without its charm and I liked some of the songs well enough. But I'm also relieved to now feel like TMBG are more than just a filk band.
This style of pop punk is a genre that I always struggled like. Like Pokemon, it came out when I was just old enough to not care about it, but young enough that I was still exposed to it a lot. As a result, I always found it a bit annoying and thought it all sounded the same. That's probably not fair but I have such a bias against bands like Sum 41 that I really struggle to give it a chance. Objectively though, there's nothing that I specifically hate here. I guess I just feel a bit bored listening to it and remembering all of those (slightly) younger kids who desperately wanted me to see the appeal when I was too focusdd on other music.
Having said all of this, I'm trying to be open-minded and it's alright. It's maybe a bit too polished for punk in my opinion but not awful. And there are a couple of tracks that sound a bit different. I don't love the singing style but it reminds me at times of Linkin Park who I did like for a short time. Overall, it's not my cup of tea really and in my heart, it's a 2. But that feels too harsh and part of me wishes I did like it more so let's be generous.
This album just keeps growing on my over the years. I think on first listen I only thought that Bloc Party were ok but the album was really opened up for me with repeat listens. The mix of different styles is so subtle that it's almost unnoticeable and weaves into their unique brand of indie rock. Personally I think this ranks among the best albums of the early 2000s and probably should have had a spot on the original list.
It's entirely possible that I would have never started a challenge like this if it wasn't for Weird Al. As a young kid, I just wasn't into MTV. I didn't get the appeal of the angst, anger, boosting, celebration of drug culture, and exploitation of young women. But I liked humor. I particularly liked humor that was absurdist, caustic, dark, or over the top. Weird Al was there to appeal to that part of me and help me laugh at a ridiculous world that sometimes took itself too seriously.
But on top of that, he was like a trojan horse for other music. Like a lot of people, I now associate a good handful of songs with Weird Al's parodies. Either because it was the first version I heard or because I listened to his version nonstop. What worked so well for me is that Weird Al was essentially offering me a massive sampler of so many kinds of music and gave me a way to get into them. Slowly, I found myself seeking out the original songs and the artists from his parodies and patisches.
Slowly I moved away from Weird Al as I got into my teenage years and found a wealth of music that I truly loved. But the lessons remained: 1. Music is a lot more than just what's on MTV. 2. Humor is often the best way to make sense of a world gone mad. I'll always have a soft spot for Weird Al. This may not be my favorite album of his but it is where it began and I'm grateful for this starting point on my musical journey.
It's been a very pleasant surprise to see how many albums in the user generated list have been from non-English speaking countries. Auri is a side project from Finnish metal band Nightwish and it sees them move in a more mythical, Celtic, orchestral direction. That description may either excite you or fill you with dread and either way, you're probably getting what you expect. I liked it and glad it was something that I wouldn't have otherwise been exposed to.
I'm so glad this album is on here as it's my favorite Vampire Weekend album by a wide margin. I was first introduced to Vampire Weekend at a festival about a decade ago. Exploring their discography, I really fell in love this one and still think it's a newly perfect album. I can understand why it doesn't click with everyone. It has a very hipster chic Colombia University vibe, and often feels too clever for its own good. But I don't care. These are brilliant songs that really stuck with me. The lyrics are innovative and the music is damn catchy. It feels almost accidentally brilliant, like they just stumbled across something without knowing how good it would come out. I appreciate this may be a minority opinion but I love seeing this one here.
Pretty good, in a Mumford and Sons-esque, huge sound rising above the natural landscapes, kind of way. I liked it and would potentially listen again.
I really like the concept of this album more than the actual music. Exploring bluegrass through a modern lens with an incredible vocalist and a seasoned producer. It has all the makings of a great album. Unfortunately, it was kind of missing something for me. Maybe it's that the production felt a bit flat, or the music just needed a bit more texture or something. There's a lot of potential here and I think it would be worth relistening sometime to see if it click a bit more with time. Alternatively, Valerie June might just be a name to watch because her voice was really great and I think there are some amazing songs in her.
The original list is mostly spot on but with 1001 albums, it's to be expected that there are a handful of questionable choices and glaring omissions. Some of that may be down to limitations in the author's knowledge or personal biases and many are forgivable. But some omissions are just mind boggling. To me, the lack of "Discovery" on the original list is the most unforgivable sin of the entire book.
Sure, Daft Punk did get an entry and "Homework" is a good album. But the step between that and "Discovery" was a giant leap for the duo, as well as for electronic music and the entire French music scene (Internationally at least). The album is completely seeped in nostalgia for an older era of music, where disco and soul dominated the clubs, it also feels completely fresh and unique. This is also the point where Daft Punk took on their particular mystique, ditching their cheap dog masks for the iconic robot chic look that they became known for. The style was a perfect reflection of the music that felt partly human and partly mechanical. It felt like an early expression of what artificial intelligence could sound like. Robots making music for humans. Of course behind the helmets were just a couple of French guys but they really knew how to make that effect. Their general reculsiveness only added to the feeling that maybe they weren't human after all.
Many thanks to the user who added this one. It absolutely deserved a spot on the original list. If you hadn't added it, I might have.
I've always loved this album. It sits among some of the great concept groups produced by Dan the Automator, alongside Dr Octagon, Handsome Boy Modeling School, and Lovage. For Deltron 3030, he collaborated with Del the Funky Homosapien and Kid Koala to create a hip hop sci fi story about a former mech soldier fighting oppression. Thematically, it reminds me of the sci fi songs of Sun Ra, but firmly rooted in underground hip hop. The album dips a little in quality in the middle but there's more than enough to love here. Aided by guest appearances from Money Mark, Sean Lennon and Dan Albarn, it remains a classic to me. I also consider this album to be the spiritual sibling of the first Gorillaz album, as it marked the first collaborations between Albarn, Automator, Kid Koala and Del. Although Gorillaz would grow into something bigger, that first album really felt like a natural extension of Deltron 3030.
Oddly, while listening to this album on headphones, I went into a coffee shop and found that the staff were listening to it as well. A bit of a surreal experience for an old underground hip hop album.
Ok, I know I'm biased but my impression of bands like My Chemical Romance is that it all kind of sounds the same. Which is why I was surprised to read that they were trying to make every song sound distinct on this album. And ok, yeah, when I'm listening more closely it's a bit more diverse than I gave them credit for. Unfortunately I still found a lot of it kind of boring and flat. I appreciate that this is largely subjective and that other people probably think my favorite bands all sound the same too. But this album to me felt a bit like driving very fast on a long, straight road with no traffic. It's exciting at first but then inertia sort of takes over. You need a few curves in the road and some occasional accleration to make interesting. Otherwise, it's just kind of auto-pilot. What the album desperately needs is some dynamics to make the highs feel more high. Or simply put it just needs some space to breath and the gut punches that you get in good rock and roll songs. But that's just me.
I did kind of enjoy "The Jetset Life is Going to Kill You" and yes, I concede that it's not *quite* the same song over and over again. I can't say it really made me into a fan though.
What a ridiculous album! It's kind of impossible to classify because it's just kind of a collection of very different genres. The common threads are being energetic, loud, maximal, and childishly humorous. Otherwise, it sort of blends pop, punk, ska, and... gabba? Happy hardcore? One of those silly niche electronic subgenres that produced artists like Kid 606. But then it abruptly shifts to ska or rock or whatever the hell else they felt like. It's hard to take them totally seriously but I kind of love the wrecklessness of it all. Top track by far was "Doritos & Fritos" but I liked every track on some level.
As a side note, apparently this music was featured on a Fox News show, which feels like it probably pissed off fans of both 100 gecs and Fox News.
I've always struggled to pin point what distinguishes J-Pop (and K-Pop too for that matter) from other pop music. Obviously the lyrics are largely Japanese and doubtless have some cultural references I wouldn't get even if I understood them. Now that I've been presented with a J-Pop album, I've decided to go in and imagine how it might have been received in the West in the 1980s, ignoring the language barrier. And true enough, it does have a different quality to it. It's sort of bright and sort of minimalist at the same time. It's clearly using better quality synths than what we had 40 years ago. It's poppy enough that they could have had a following but odd enough to appeal to art school kids. It's like Cindy Lauper meets Kate Bush. Being a complete novice in this genre, I don't know how representative Hikaru Utada really is but it was an interesting one to listen to. I'm not sure if I'd listen again but it could possibly grow on me.
Such a great album and one of the best of the grunge era. L7 never quite reached the audiences that they deserved, even with the backing of Butch Vig doing their production. Nirvana are still the peak of the genre, but "Bricks Are Heavy" is not far behind in my opinion. "Pretend We're Dead" and "Shitlist" remain two of my favorites from this era.
Very 80s. Very Basque. It's pretty good, but there's maybe not much that's particularly noteworthy. Nice to get representation from another part of the world though.
If we must listen to another Korn album... Ok, I was a little curious to see that this was released in 1994, quite a bit earlier than what I normally think of the nu metal period. And to try to see where they came from. It definitely still sounds like Korn, albeit maybe not quite as MTV-friendly. And I have to admit that compared with some others in their genre (*cough cough* Limp Bizkit *cough cough*), Korn were ok. I liked the heaviness of their sound. The production is pretty clean. "Faget" almost threw me off as a toxic song before I paid some attention to the lyrics about being different. "Follow the Leader" had once been a slight guilty pleasure for me when I was young so maybe there's something I kind of enjoy about their music, even if I hate to admit it.
A fun funk band. It's probably a real stretch to think that this is an album anyone needed to hear, but fun nonetheless. I don't think I've ever heard a song about a tug boat before.
I definitely wouldn't have minded an extra Tom Petty album being on the list. They're always solid listens and it's nice to hear some 90s era stuff produced by Rick Rubin. My only slight complaint is that he always felt like he had the potential for a really outstanding perfect album and they tend to fall just a little short of that. But there are no bad tracks so I can't really complain.
Music history of the last 50 or so years has plenty of examples exploring the theme of humans becoming machines. There's a continuum that starts with Kraftwerk and goes through Daft Punk, Nine Inch Nails, Erykah Badu, and many others. Robyn's entry into this theme is... fine. It's very poppy. So much so that it feels more like someone wearing a sexy robot costume to a Halloween party than a story of losing humanity to machines. But that's ok, just not super interesting. There a handful of good songs, such as "Dancing on my Own", "Call Your Girlfriend" and "Love Kills" and some good guests like Royksopp, Diplo and (checks notes) Snoop Dogg? I have to admit that it grew on me a bit.
I discovered Frightened Rabbit when I heard them on a playlist of indie Christmas songs. I've liked them ever since, although I never really followed them that closely. The blend of indie and folk reminds me a bit of bands like The National and Mumford & Sons, though at times, I prefer Frightened Rabbit's sound. It's interesting to hear a full album. The vocals start to sound more tortured to me as it goes on, and sadly, that tracks. Lead singer Scott Hutchison had been found dead a decade after this album's release, seemingly after a long period of depression. It's a shame that this band wasn't bigger in the day, though, with depression, that might not have helped. But I hope he knew that people loved his music and still do.
