So
Peter GabrielGuarantee you anyone born after 1982 is not putting this in their 1001 albums to listen to list
Guarantee you anyone born after 1982 is not putting this in their 1001 albums to listen to list
My only prior knowledge of Prince is loving the song Purple Rain but trying and failing several times to get into the album of the same name. I was quite excited when this popped up. After a couple of songs I thought there'd been some kind of mistake. The first track was ok, but the second poor. The third, Housequake, was abysmal. I checked the album on wiki to see what was going on and I'm astonished that it's cited as his best work. Really? The music sounds so dated, unlike a good chunk of other 80s stuff that survived the times. The poor drum synthasiser definitely doesn't help proceedings. Got half way through the album and had to stop. Honestly let down. Why was Prince so popular?
I'd like to think that there are hundreds of subgenres of music, and with this list being only 1001 long, the best 1-10 albums of any subgenre are represented here. If this album isn't right at the bottom of this particular subgenre then god help the rest of the albums. Jesus Christ.
Really? "Hide away in your ivory tower and cover me in your golden shower"... Feel like my ears have just been covered in piss after listening to this one. Awful pop rock from someone trying to come across as a bad boy. Cringe. Angels stops it from being 1*. 1.5*.
I'm often a fan of experimental music but this was terrible. Experimental albums usually have their high points and their low points, this was just the latter. Just seems to be rambling, directionless, no emotion/soul behind it.
Just too slow and soft for me
Espantoso vibes... Nice
Obvious great. But heard it too many times
I'd heard this album a few times growing up, but finally 'got it' when I was 22. Then I listened to it daily for about 6 months and totally ruined any future listening experience of it for myself. It's been years now and already after one listen I could easily avoid it for another decade. One of the best debuts of all time, an easy 5*, just wish I didn't rinse it and could still enjoy it.
Took me a while to get into it back in the day but it eventually got me. Very good but not great album. Wouldn't have hurt it to trim the fat and make it a long single album, rather than a double.
So dull. Just no enjoyable features.
Just ok, the honky tonk tracks didn't do it for me, bit some of the rocky ones were alright. Would give it 2.5* if I could. Probably won't listen again so maybe 2* is more fair than 3*
Starting off a bit interesting, dare I say good, but then just got a bit depressing and rambly as it went on. I'd have a couple of the songs on an atmospheric playlist but an entire album was a bit too much. Last track was so bad.
Started off really loving it. Bit of funk. Quickly went downhill though, by the time "will you cry" came on I was praying it would soon end. If they kept the same energy and enjoyment from the first track throughout it would have been a couple stars higher
I think the only Madness album I'd listened to before was a greatest hits, and I couldn't get quite get into the Ska-iness of it. This was quite refreshing however, seemed to go a bit deeper than their main hits. Definitely one to give another listen to
Wow. Rare I hear something that sounds so familiar that I've never listened to before. Shades of Daft Punk, The Avalanches, bit of lo-fi house etc. Definitely one to explore more of.
R&B just isn't my thing. First track I was enjoying, then when the vocals kicked in the second it just made me groan. Some ok tracks, mostly due to backing band. Some great bass lines. But most tracks I was praying for the end. I'm not trying to skip a single song in any listed album but by the end of this one I couldn't resist. Would give it 1.5* if I could purely for some of the decent backing tracks
Really great. Don't think I've ever even listened to Stereolab before. Captivated immediately, could hear shades of them in so many artists I do like. An artist to explore more of for sure
Some good songs, some not so good. Not really my style of music at all but I can see why it's popular. Just doesn't spark anything inside of me to be honest.
Despite being a big metalhead in my younger days, I never gave Priest any attention. Refreshing to listen to now, though I think Maiden took their brand of NWOBHM and perfected it. Probably won't listen to anything else by them, but if it was 10-15 years ago I'd have been a lot more hooked.
Just too early. Shades of what was to come, but R&B/Honky Tonk covers just don't thrill me. Ground breaking at the time I'm sure, but just dull and dated 60 years later sadly.
Interesting album. If I'd have heard this 15 years I'd have been in love. I can hear the effect it had on so many bands/albums I loved in my late teens... Manson's Portrait of an American Family, Offsprings's Smash, bit of Faith No More, early chilli peppers etc. Albums that I still love to this day but probably wouldn't grip me the same way if I heard them afresh. Like this one. Which is a shame. 3* purely because the tunes are actually really great. Can't dig the vocals though, although I definitely would be if I was 17 again. Something inside of me is screaming out to rate it higher, so maybe I'll revise after a few more listens.
The start of the ascent for the Beatles. Not much of a fan of the earlier pop stuff, but what came after was utterly groundbreaking. Revolver and Sgt Peppers are surely up there with the greatest albums (though it's almost a crime they decided not to include Strawberry Fields/Penny Lane on Sgt Peppers. Rubber Soul is the bridge between those two eras. Some great songs with signs of what was to come with some experimentalism, and it starts off strong. There are a few weaker tracks as the album chugs along, before ending with the absolutely terrible Run for Your Life. This one has aged particularly badly, especially once you find out about Lennon's wifebeating past. In isolation, this album is probably 3*, but knowing what was to come, and knowing this was the catalyst, makes me want to uplift it slightly.
Made it half way through. Sorry. Not my style at all. 'Booty' finished it for me. Not sure what I'm meant to be getting from this.
I'm often a fan of experimental music but this was terrible. Experimental albums usually have their high points and their low points, this was just the latter. Just seems to be rambling, directionless, no emotion/soul behind it.
Pretty bland britpop/madchester album. How I expect Oasis would have sounded in the mid 90s if Noel never joined. Some ok songs (title track for example) but the majority is forgettable. Lacking the actual good tunes that Oasis/Stone Roses/Dodgy/Doves had. Maybe one of those had to be there moments.
I'm very selective when it come to hip-hop. Extremely selective probably, thoroughly disliking 99% of it. Only albums I really like anymore are Illmatic and the Infamous, despite regularly listening to NWA, Dre, Snoop, Biggie etc when a teenager. I absolutely detested the hip-hop that came later, which seemed to revolve around how much money and/or how many girls/cars each had, and I realised a lot of that stemmed from the previous named artists, just taken to the next level. Illmatic/Infamous actually spoke about the real, in some way grim, lives a lot of people are tapped in. Onto this album. I've not even bothered with hip-hop artists in the last 15 years, writing them all off as the same. But this album definitely brought me back to the first time hearing Infamous. The beats are honestly incredible. First track floored me with the Aphex Twin vibes; the variety is amazing though, subsequential tracks drifting through jazz, soul, standard hip-hop, ambient, electronics etc. Some of the vocalists don't do it for me, but I only found one song skippable (Hood Politics) which is very good going. Looking forward to giving it another couple of listens to fully digest the lyrics
I've never given Neil Young a chance, despite being one of my dads favourite artists, as country has never done it for me. Four songs in, I felt my decision was justified. Just bland and poor. A man needs a maid was actually laughable, I hope that wasn't a genuine song at the time because that's incredibly sad, but I don't know why he'd be taking the mick. Are you Ready for the Country and Old Man turned my head though, two great songs, why couldn't the album have started like that?? The rest of the album was pretty solid. Needle was enjoyable. First four tracks ruined any chance of it getting 4*, but it's a very strong 3. It's a shame he's no longer on Spotify but I totally get the reason. Fully support him. But my god YouTube is so bad to listen to music on. Ads every two tracks is not my jam.
I'm very familiar with Jimi, but mostly the greatest hits. I remember trying to get into his individual albums years ago but it never gripping me so I never ventured back. The same is true today. There are some amazing, unbelievable tracks on there, but still the ones that I've been listening to for years. The rest are pretty good. What amazes me though as I didn't realise how early this was. 1967! For some reason I always put him in the early 70s. The fact this was out before the White Album, before any Zeppelin, blows my mind. Surely one of the best debuts of all time, to help pioneer a genre and cement yourself as one of the greatest guitarists immediately. A mixture of 3*, 4* and 5* tracks means I have to give this 4* overall.
I can do some bits of folk. I cannot do any country. Sadly here the latter shone through. Absolutely abysmal. Can't take his voice seriously. Some of the songwriting sounded like he was trying to emulate the freewheelin, but failing. So happy I never have to listen to it again.
So bland. Can't believe someone heard this and thought "yes, this has to be one of the 1,001 albums to hear before you die".
Terrible. Simply terrible.
I gave Hounds of Love a couple of listens a good few years back after liking some of her singles but could never get into it so never bothered with anything else. The Sensual World gives me similar vibes. Not particularly bad but not particularly great. Pretty even across the board, some decent tracks, some not so decent. Nothing amazing, nothing terrible. Music very 80's but not in a negative way. Pipes didn't really add anything vital.
Conflicting. Half way through my first listen my interest was thoroughly piqued. Three full listens later and I'm torn between praising the ideas/potential, and lamenting the ramblingness of it. I feel like the last eight tracks could have been clipped and the album actually improved as a result. Feel like this was released six months too early.
First track piqued my attention. New wave-ish with hints of other sounds in there. Bit of queen maybe. Second track I'd heard before but didn't realise how much I disliked it till now. Too poppy in a 'trying to be catchy without being catchy' way. Most of the album followed that path. Not terrible, but forgettable.
I can't do rap normally, but in French made it even more pointless. Background beats simple and uninspiring. Made it half way through most songs waiting for a decent hook before getting bored and skipping next track.
Drivel.
I wish zero stars existed as an option here, because this was by far one of the worst things I've ever heard. I wish I could go back to the person I was 58 minutes ago. I'd now like to sit down for a couple hours with someone who loves this album and try to work out which one of us is completely insane.
For some reason Spotify doesn't have the first three songs available, so I cheated a little and added his top three listened songs in their place. The only Bobby Womack song I know is 110th Street from the Jackie Brown soundtrack, which I do really enjoy, so I went into this with promised hopes. The album starts in earnest with Just my Imagination, which I was digging until about the final two minutes when it started to drag. The rest of the album was disappointing, a cross between accidently going to the wrong gig and feeling too awkward to leave ("this next songs dedicated to all those lovers out there..."), and something my mum would have on a mixed tape when I was growing up in the 90s (if you think you're lonely now). Shame. After a long row of disappointing albums this week this one follows suit.
Sounds like hiphop for 8-12 year olds in the late 80s. Boring, simplistic and nonsensical. Probably included 'De La Orgee" so it wouldn't be placed in the children's aisles at record stodes. Not absolutely atrocious though, so probably doesn't deserve 1*. Not far off though. 1.5*
I'd like to think that there are hundreds of subgenres of music, and with this list being only 1001 long, the best 1-10 albums of any subgenre are represented here. If this album isn't right at the bottom of this particular subgenre then god help the rest of the albums. Jesus Christ.
Refreshing. Not the type of genre I would ever listen to but after the dross of the last 10 days if was nice to hear something talented. First track was the best, but the other were pretty good. 3.5*
I've always viewed Queen as overrated. One of those bands that have a decent greatest hits album but then too many album fillers when you try to actually deep dive into their discography. Queen II was actually alright, surprising given none of the big hits were on here (despite the weak Seven Seas of Rye). I enjoyed the heaviness of Father to Son, something I've not really heard in Queen before. Bit of a Zeppelin vibe in some songs on side 1, The Loser In The End particularly sounded like a range of bands that weren't Queen, so maybe they were still finding themselves at this point. Side 1 was definitely better, side 2 was the reason I'm not a Queen fan, gives off that 'rock opera' vibe that didn't age well, and I'm surprised was even a thing at the time. 4* side one, 2* side two. Funfact: I once had a long chat with Brian May when we worked at the same place. He spoke about Badgers for the majority of the conversation.
My entire knowledge of Isaac Hayes is from watching South Park as a kid. Refreshing to hear that voice again. Great first track. Peters out a bit from there, I know it's a soundtrack, but a large bunch of the tracks sound like they're trying to focus the viewer on what's happening, which doesn't really work in solely audio format. The other two vocal tracks Soulsville and Do Your Thing were disappointing for opposite reasons; the former because it simply wasn't good, the latter because it was good but then ran far too long. I'm a fan of a long jam but 10-12 minutes would have been much better than the actual 19. Might check out some of his other stuff given the vocal tracks were on the whole enjoyable.
I've heard of the Pretenders many times before, but it's only now I've just realised I had them mixed up with the Proclaimers in my head and (rightfully, if that were the case) never gave them the time of day. First track was therefore a bit of a pleasant surprise. First couple of songs in general had me interested, but then it tailed off a bit in the middle. Album wobbled it's way to the end, with a few decent tracks. Reading up on it afterwards I see it's lauded as one of the greatest debuts of all time, and indeed some give it a nod as one of the greatest ever albums. Had to be there I guess. 2.5*.
I've listened to their debut before which was alright. This one was similarly alright. "Hero" let it down a bit, regardless of whether or not it was a catalyst for the punk invasion that was soon to follow. First track was the best, rest were pretty skippable but not offensive. 2.5*
Brilliant. Never heard of these but was instantly into it. Janis' voice is phenomenal. Think it could have done without the bonus tracks, ending where it was meant to. No absolute stand out tracks, one to listen to as an album for sure.
Enjoyed that. Quite LCD-ish (though one track went down the Coldplay route which surprised me. Not sure it's something that'll be on frequently but one to dabble back into every now and then. 3.5*
Probably the best debut album of all time, if not one of the best albums. You Shook Me the only track letting the side down. All the rest are 5* material.
Pretty decent. I'd obviously heard Tuesday's Gone and Free Bird many times before, but the rest were all new to me. Most of the other tracks were alright, couple of honky tonk ones in there which didn't do it for me. Wouldn't listen to again but didn't dislike it. 3.5*
Just a bit dull and uninspiring. Not a fan of the generic 90s hip hop that this seemed to inspire, no heart or soul to it. Feels like his hops version of what Limp Bizkit was to metal. Amazing if you're a kid but changes the course of the genre for the worse for several years.
Really? "Hide away in your ivory tower and cover me in your golden shower"... Feel like my ears have just been covered in piss after listening to this one. Awful pop rock from someone trying to come across as a bad boy. Cringe. Angels stops it from being 1*. 1.5*.
Started off interesting, I was hoping the first track was the intro to a genre-exploring punk album, but it turned out to be more of the same. I can do the crap vocals, but I can't do the reggae-style at all. Bit less of the reggae and it would have scraped a 3*. As it is it slide down towards 2*.
Guarantee you anyone born after 1982 is not putting this in their 1001 albums to listen to list
An amazing album to hear as a pre-teen. All that pent up child/teenage angst released with a nice bit of rap/rock/nu-metal. Then a few years later I turned 16 and never played it again. Listening back as an adult I'm torn between hearing the songs as I heard them then and loving it and hearing it afresh now and realising it's pretty naff. 4* and 2* respectively for those two versions of me.
That was.... Good. Surprisingly good. If you gave me a 1 sentence description of the album before hand I would have immediately written it off. But wow. Great backing tracks. Peaceful but complex in parts. Vocals just on the right side of the line between annoying and modern. I'm learning from this 1001 albums that there are some great rnb/hiphop albums few and far between all the terrible ones.
There was a couple of years when I thought the electro-synth-indie-pop genre was going to take over the world. Once the dust settled I realised that a lot of the albums had very little replayability. At one point Alt Js debut was probably my favourite album... haven't bothered listening to it in the last 5 years. Get much of the same vibes from the xx. Good music but not anything that really excites me. First half of the album was definitely stronger. Was a tad bored by the end.
Some of the punk/post-punk movement brought some unbelievable bands with not so great vocalists, all the way from the Stooges up to the Pixies, where it just *worked*. What they lacked in vocal talent they made up for in spirit, sound, energy, meaning, passion. This album shows what happens when all of those crucial aspects are missing, and it's stripped down to a lazy punk album with terrible vocals. It's very rare I'd rank a rock album as 1 but here we go.
I only discovered Arcade Fire the other year with Funeral. Enjoyed it but didn't venture elsewhere in their discography. Likewise, I really enjoyed this album. Similar veins to Funeral, but the longer runtime resulted in a few more songs that I think could have been cut. Some great tracks though
Got excited at first. Sounded very stooges-esque. Quickly descended into boring rambling nonsense. By the end of Pablo Picasso I'd already written them off.
Music was great, especially the piano. But backing instruments also deserve credit. Some of the vocals though... Couldn't help but picture Vic Reeves doing his club singing. Reading about the album it sounds like Jerry was diddling his 13yo cousin, so there's no way he's getting 4*. Reading
That was strange. I can't recall hearing an album so dull without being able to put my finger on as to why. I don't know what I'm meant to be getting out of it. It wasn't terrible, or offensive to my ears, just so... empty, without the music itself being bland or quiet.
By far the weakest of their first six album imo, which is still pretty decent, more showing the strength of the other albums in potentially one of the best golden ages of any band. Ramble On and Thank You drag this album just about into 4* territory
Kraftwerk make me laugh. I think because I'd have actually liked them at the time, but listening to them 50 years down the line they've aged terribly. Cutting edge electronica music in the day that was shortly made obsolete by the hardware and software available. I feel like it belongs in a museum or something, which is most likely the reason it's on this list. Looking back without nostalgia though it's generally poor. Spacelab the only half decent track. The opener is diabolical. The singer sounds petrified and lacking self confidence when he's going for actual rather than computerised vocals. Not worth a 1*, but not a million miles off.
Second Neil Young album on my list, much preferred that to Harvest. It's a shame it's not on Spotify as I'll never listen to it again if so, can't even give it a second/third listen to pick up which were my favourite tracks as I've had enough with an ad-riddled YouTube sesh. Enjoyable though, first half was better I think, 3.5*
I've never got Simon & Garfunkel, turns out I also don't get it when it's just Simon. How was everyone not bored listening to this back in the day? Surely no one's putting on this LP, lining the needle up just right, thinking "I can't wait until 'when numbers get serious' and 'cars are cars' comes on". Dull as dishwasher.
Half decent soul music. Bit too slow and boring in most parts though. Would flick between 2&3 stars depending on my mood, I'll give it 3 today though. 2.5*
One of those 80s albums where having a great synthesiser (for it's day) meant the album was held in high acclaim, despite the guy apparently not being able to make good use of it for half the album with boring, tepid sequences. Vocals were bad, and not in an interesting, funny, or so-bad-its-good way. Just bad bad. Probably the best tune on this album, sex dwarf, had the worst lyrics, which sums this album up. Constantly missing the mark. 1.5*
Not the biggest fan of ska but that was alright. First half definitely stronger. Could hear a lot of ska-punk elements that bands I used to love borrowed/stolen.
Would have loved to have been around when Velvet Underground were releasing music, must have sounded groundbreaking and unreal at the time. The last 55 years has been relatively kind to it, with it not sounding overly dated, but I still can't deny if it was released today I wouldn't be particularly bothered by it. 3.5*, let down by one or two tracks (Jesus was crap)
Yawn. Not for me Clive. Hoping that's the only van Morrison album on here but I reckon I'll be disappointed
Now this is the kind of thing I was expecting to get from this list. Relatively obscure album that I never would have heard of otherwise (as have most of the population judging by the fact his 5th most listened song has less than 750,000 listens). Started off slow but really peaks in the middle. Can hear the Beach Boys elements but some of it so dark and heavy. Reading up on him afterwards...Jesus. Crazy life. Interesting and enjoyable album anyway. 3.5*
Never listened to Ian Dury, the extent of my knowledge is my dad was a fan. Pretty disappointing overall. First song amused me it, but it was pretty downhill from there. Track 4 onward was terrible, almost hitting 1* territory. I do wonder what Americans would think listening to this, I'd imagine this is heavily lost in translation. 1.5*
Tried getting into this album years back after discovering running up that hill (several years pre-stranger things, I'll hasten to add) but it didn't do it for me. A fresh listen now was much better. I think it helped having heard a lot of the shite that this list has produced from a similar era. It's actually great time for it's time, and her voice sounds great if you allow it to not annoy you. Second half a bit weaker but a decent finisher. Will definitely give it a listen from time to time
Second blaxpoitation soundtrack I've had. Not as good as shaft, but less instrumental tracks and didn't drag on as long which is good. Fairly okish album, not bad but definitely not good. Will probably never put on again, 2.5*
Loved the pixies first two albums but could never get into the last two. Just a bit directionless without the magic that sparked throughout the first two. Never listened to Black Francis' solo stuff as I thought it would be a continuation of the same and it looks like I was right. Bit of a bloated, mediocre album, but not unlistenable
Everytime I've heard the talking heads I've liked them. Kind of band that I think I'd have loved at the time if I was around. Slightly dated now but still good stuff. 3.5*
Never given The Cure the time of day after hearing Boys Don't Cry and Friday I'm in Love years ago and dismissing them as some kind of poppy prototype emo. This was great though. Certainly one to come back to.
Wow. Thoroughly enjoyed that. In another mood I might have found it dull but to work along to was amazing. Bassists in particular stood out, so sad to read that he died straight after in a car crash. What a final bow out. Something to explore more of, genre and artist.
I was always much more Beatles than Stones, with this album cementing some of the reasons why. The faux-americana of tracks like Dead Flowers makes me physically cringe. What were they even thinking. The lyrics of Brown Sugar are just pretty strange as well. It could make for a good sombre, thought provoking track but the music alongside the lyrics makes it sound almost celebratory of the raping of slaves. Wtf Mick. Other than that it's alright. 2.5*
Let's put aside the obvious elephant in the room and focus purely on the music. Cracking stuff. The bass particularly drives this album, the percussion rythmic and perfect throughout. MJ sounds great. Mix of good to amazing tracks, having Smooth Criminal, Man in the Mirror, Dirty Diana, Speed Demon, Leave me Alone, etc on one release is insane. The only tracks letting it down are the slow ones (Liberian Girl & I just can't stop loving you), alongside Bad, which for some reason was chosen as the album name/leader. It's one of the worst. Seems to be appealing to prebuscent boys (oops); no adult is hearing that thinking "yeahhh, I'm bad too". So close to being an all time classic but the weak tracks bring it down. A hybrid of Thrillers best tracks alongside this would be one of the best albums ever surely.
All I knew about this album beforehand is it's one of my dad's favourites. Within 2 minutes I thought I was going to hate it. First listen through, I'm not sure whether it's genius or terrible. The sarcasm/juxtaposition of writing a battle ballad about an east end cockney brawl is ridiculous, but in an amazing or awful way? After the second listen through I think it's more the former. Very rarely after a couple of listens am I still utterly conflicted about an album. One to revisit, for absolute certain.
Started off interesting, I was digging the first couple of tracks, then I rapidly got bored from 4 onwards. I think in the right mood I'd be up for exploring this more, but not right now.
Imagine actually liking Frank Sinatra lol.
Probably the best alternative rock album out there. It's influenced can be heard in so many places. One of those rare albums where at 14 tracks not a single one is skippable (Love You comes close but just about escapes). I must have listened to it hundreds of times and not once have I got bored and turned it off. Jumping from genre to genre without seeming erratic. Pixies and Black Francis at their/his very best.
Interesting concept. Started off quite into it but then quickly got bored. Maybe one to revisit again when I'm in a particular mood. Can see why it made the list at least.
Don't really get it. Surprised to read Brian Eno was in the band as I liked a lot of stuff he'd produced. First couple of tracks were grating, got a bit better in the middle and some bits at the end. Singer was a bit crap. One to forget about.
Always find S&G a bit boring. No different here.
Good stuff. Bit Zeppelin-ish with some early NWOBHM thrown in. Really liked Child in Time, reckon Iron Maiden took a lot from that. Some songs were good but just dragged on too long, e.g. Flight of the Rat. Could go back and listen to again at some point. 3.5*
Could never really get into Bowie in my younger days, but I really enjoyed Low when I discovered it a couple years back, and I enjoyed Blackstar after hearing it on this list. Was looking forward to this reading it was the follow up to Low, and in the same vein, but can't help but feeling disappointed it didn't live up to expectation. Thought the instrumental tracks were fairly average, and other than Heroes the rest of the lyrical ones were fairly non gripping. Not a bad album, but not a great one.
Not the biggest Bowie fan, and I generally don't enjoy albums by artists 30 years after they've hit their peak, but this was great. Reading more about it, sounds like there's a bit of inspiration in there by bands I do like, like Boards of Canada, and LCD, so maybe that's no surprise. Definitely going to listen to this one again. Great swansong.
As far as hiphop goes it wasn't terrible. Nothing particularly good about it though. 2.5*
Find blues rock a bit dull. Don't think this really added anything to mankind. Could have been written in the 60s, 70s or 80s. 2.5*
Two Sinatra albums in a week, how unlucky can you get. This time I lasted three songs
Never my fave Zep album, always been between I and III for me. Still a fantastic album, but there's a few too many weak points for it to be one of the best ever. Black Dog is a good opener but gets old after a few too many listens. Rock n Roll is good at best - often it's a bit simplistic and repetitive, which often results in a skip. Evermore actually pleasantly surprised me this playthrough, I've always regarded as the second weakest track but this time I was into it. Perhaps my expectations were so low. Reminded me of some of the stuff from II/III. Stairway, perhaps controversially, I think also gets old after so many listens. Great song the first 50 times but I don't think I've ever searched for it to put it on since my days of streaming music began. Misty Mountain Hop is definitely the low point, the only track on the album that I would say is categorically bad. Four Sticks is a bit better but not by a long way. Finally we arrive at the pinnacle of the album, California and Levee being the perfect album closers, possibly two of Zeps greatest songs. These two are what save the album, and stop it from slipping into 4* territory.
Reading the blurb beforehand I was excited about this. One of the best live bands at the time trying to capture and show that energy? Sounds great. It wasn't. Even focussing on the six tracks initially selected for the first release, just felt a bit flat. Keith's drumming the stand out item. Enjoyed the medley/jam after my generation. But other than that it was pretty mediocre.
I've had a few early protopunk albums so far in this list. After the first two songs I thought it was alright, fairly standard but sounded half decent. Third track turned my head a bit, actually good. Melody Lee and Anti Pop then hit me. Great pyschadelic-infused punk tracks. Definitely something different about this band compared to all the other protopunk stuff.
She cannot sing. Not in a good punk way, just in a bad way. Ruins most songs. Shame as I think with a decent vocalist (or a decent bad vocalist who can pull it off) it would have been a half decent album. 2.5*
Great album. Where he made the clear leap to stardom. So much more consistent and just simply better than previous MJ/J5 albums. 10 tracks, 3 of which are weak (girlfiend, she's out of my life, falling in love). The others are all bangers though, 70% is a great hit rate. If he'd sang less about heartbreak and more about disco dancing this would have broke the 5* barrier
I try to listen to albums on here with fresh ears, but sometimes that proves impossible, like now. From hearing this hundreds of times in my teens to hearing it played live in full in 2013, even after many years away I can still recite every line before it comes up. I'd actually love to know how it would sound from an impartial perspective. 15-year old me would award it an easy 5*, but listening back there's just too many non-bangers that I think it would be unfair on some of the album I've ranked 4*. A few of the tracks towards the end are skippable but thankfully short. I've always disliked the placement of She though, it breaks up such a great run of songs before and after it right when you feel like the album should be hitting its peak. First four tracks amongs the best openers in pop punk though.
Never gave Courtney Love the time of day when I was younger and I stupidly bought into the slander that she was responsible for Kurt's death. Now older and wiser it's nice to give this a chance. Pretty decent. It's hard not to compare it to nirvana, with a lot of similarities but some differences. Bit publish, I like the vocals on most of the tracks. Overall pretty good, need to come back to it I think to make sure
I was heavily into It Takes A Nation.. years ago but never bothered exploring anything else. Similar vibes to that album, some of the Chuck songs are really good, but too many weak intermissions break up a lot of the flow. Less catchy then their previous album on first listen. Still pretty good though, 3.5*
I can actually imagine this being great if you were into the genre. For me though, just a bit depressing and, after a few songs, dull.
My only prior knowledge of Prince is loving the song Purple Rain but trying and failing several times to get into the album of the same name. I was quite excited when this popped up. After a couple of songs I thought there'd been some kind of mistake. The first track was ok, but the second poor. The third, Housequake, was abysmal. I checked the album on wiki to see what was going on and I'm astonished that it's cited as his best work. Really? The music sounds so dated, unlike a good chunk of other 80s stuff that survived the times. The poor drum synthasiser definitely doesn't help proceedings. Got half way through the album and had to stop. Honestly let down. Why was Prince so popular?
I've had a couple of Neil Young albums on here and so far they've been hit and miss. This one was a miss. Bit too countryish, not anything to really grab or turn your head. Not in the right mood for it so not even going to give it a second chance. 2.5*
Enjoyed the first listen through, but the second and third weren't as captiving. Really though it would go the other way. Bit lo-fi, bit pixie-ish, other bands in there also. Might revisit if I'm ever in the right mood for more lo-fi
That was actually pretty dull. I thought I'd like it since I've heard of them being a inspiration to a lot of later rock bands. Not sure if it's aged terribly but it seemed slow, simplistic, and simply not catchy. Metal Guru was the closest they came to being interested, but it turned it out to be a dropping off point rather than a jumping off point. Shame.
Never actually listened to anything from the Eagles before this (depsite hearing Hotel California too many times). Pretty disappointing. First sign was alright, but then quickly got terrible. Chug All Night was embarrassing to listen to. Rest of it pretty terrible except for Take the Devil. Country needs to be resigned to the bin.
First time actually listening to a motorhead album, pretty enjoyable, but I don't reckon I could listen to more than 30 mins at a time normally. Some strong tracks, some not so good, but overall good. 3.5*
Really enjoyed that. One annoying country song on there (Teach Your Children) that spoiled the start but quickly got better. Nice hearing Young's voice but not have it dominate the entire album. I'd love to give it a few more listens but as with most of the Young albums it's been decimated by Spotify signing alt-right conspiracy theorists up. YouTube is insufferable. Ah well. One to explore more of if it ever comes back. 3.5*
Just sounds like a poor-mediocre Smiths album, as per usual with Morrissey. Some good tracks, 2-4 were a nice run. Really goes downhill in thhe second half though, probably scrapes into the 3* bracket
Honestly always found Joy Division overrated. Tried and failed quite a few time to get into them. They're ok, just don't get how they're held in such acclaim. Closer is pretty average. First half definitely the weaker side. Just can't do Ian's voice most of the time. Latter half saves it. Very atmospheric, almost cure-like
I remember we got this when it came out, probably my first introduction to electronic music. Not heard it in years but listening back it's stood the test of time amazingly well. The tracks suffer from a bit of repetitiveness, the motif introduced in the first 10-20s of each song rarely develops into anything new over the course of each 3-4 minute track, which stops it from being an all time classic. Still, thanks to Moby for teaching me that music doesn't have to be rock or pop. Great album to have my eyes opened to.
I really hated most of the Indie-surgence that happened in the mid 2000's, but you can't deny a genuinely amazing album when you hear it. 1000x better than the overly contrived nonsense that a lot of their contemporaries were putting about. One of the only Indie albums I actually enjoy, and I absolutely love it at that. Not a single bad or even mediocre song on there (although New York City Cops is new to me?? Mustnt have been on the UK CD version). My head's going 4* for the Indie, my heart is going for the full 5*
That was pretty disappointing, especially after how good Are You Experienced was. Set the bar way too high. Only track that was an instant repeat was Little Wing. Disappointed in If Six Was Nine, especially given that was the only track I recognised before listening. Still a good album, but nowhere near what it could have been after his first.
Started off alright, a bit new-new-waveish, bit of LCD in there. Not bad but didn't really blow me away. I was a bit fatigued by the end though, got excited when I thought what was the obvious last track was coming to a close but then another one appeared. Probably scrapes 3*
Most likely this album was included on the list to present a snapshot of popular music at a moment in time, rather than for its artistic merit. It's not actually bad, but it's also really not great. Few very skippable tracks, only seemed to reach a good level during the last two.
Surprisingly good! The Simon & Garfunkel, together or solo, albums I've had on here have bored me too death so far. Not my usual type of music but I could still really enjoy this. Great African infusion, some tracks didn't do much for me but didn't really grate. Some others though we're thoroughly enjoyable. One to listen to again for sure.
Only R.E.M album I really know, but I love it. Another 80s band, like Talking Heads, that I think I genuinely would have been very into if I was old enough at the time. First half better than second half, but a lot of catchy lyrics and melodies throughout
Think I just don't like big band stuff. First track was alright, Ray shone through and made it his own. Second track though, along with most of the rest of the album, felt too much like he was being told to try and emulate Sinatra, which is never a good thing. No need to listen to that again.
I actually like a lot of shoegaze stuff but I couldn't really do this. The non-lyrics had the opposite effect, constantly bringing my attention to it rather than letting me get lost in the music. Might have been the prototype which launched a decent genre, but knowing what came since makes this sound very disappointing on reflection
Naff indie
I feel like I should hate it but I also kind of don't. Side A was way better than Side B, which got a bit unbearable and I had to skip a few. Last track brought it back a bit. Don't think I could listen to it over and over, but it was an enjoyable listen for now. 3.5*
Haven't listened to this in at least 15 years, so it's been entertaining going back and rediscovering it. It's held up extremely well. Still think it would have been a perfect album if they'd chopped a couple songs off of it and shortened it - I Like Dirt and Purple Stain can go instantly, possibly Emit also - maybe it's due to being English but it just sounds cringey. Porcelan sounds like an absolute Smashing Pumpkins rip-off but I'll let it slide. Doesn't really suit the rest of the album though. A high number of 5* tracks on there, sadly slightly dragged down by the weaker ones. Arguably 4.5*, which is still a great score
Let's ignore the Swamp Songs. Of the other 10, they were so close to perfection but not quite there. Roll with it and Don't look back in anger are the biggest disappointments to me, what sound like on first to be class tracks quickly fall away on subsequent listens. Almost like Noel was trying too hard to write a catchy Oasis song. She's electric, much like Digsys Dinner before it, tried to provide a comic relief that was neither wanted or needed. The rest are all pretty stellar, finishing off with possibly one of their greatest songs. Solid 4-4.5* album. Have no regrets rinsing it to pieces in the mid-90s such that I can barely listen to it anymore. What an album it was at the time.
Strong disliked the previous Common album I got on here. This one was slightly better. First and Last track both really good. The rest was pretty meh. 2.5*
I've HATED Cecilia for years. Always played at parents parties when I was a little kid and utterly detested it. Never bothered to find out who sung it as I didn't want to associate that anger with a name but here we go. Congratulations Simon & Garfunkel. I've previously accused you of being the dullest artists ever but now you go and double down with infuriating. The only time the album wasn't awful was when they were ripping off the Beatles. Some good stuff in those bits.
I used to rank this way higher than Mellon Collie, as went into this review thinking I'd end up giving it 5*. On reflection though, as I've grown older the gap between the two has almost disappeared. Some amazing tracks on here, Quiet, Hummer and Soma being some of the best in the genre, but other tracks suffer from overrunning (e.g. geek USA, mayonnaise, silverfuck) that take good riffs/hooks and let them play on a minute or two (or 5, in silverfucks case) too long, that makes the album feel bloated, especially as by the end you're just glad the recent run has come to an end. Undeniably great album, but on reflection could have been even better with carefull editing.
Really interesting on first listen. Felt like it was going to be a grower, an album that would take a while to sink in but when it did, wow. Something like Arcade Fire, Alt J, etc. A further 5-6 listens and I'm fully bored. Didn't grow on me at all, in fact the opposite. 2.5*
Saw Herbie Hancock at Glasto 22 not knowing any of his stuff and was thoroughly impressed. First track here was great, think it was even one of the ones he played. Heard a lot of Squarepusher in the latter half. Definitely one to listen to more. 2-4 didn't do much for me though.
Not terrible country. But still country.
I don't know who that album was aimed at. Is it for britpop fans? Smiths fans? Pop fans? Comedy fans? Apart from the Father Ted bit it was painfully aimless.
Really not my thing. I recognised take five from somewhere and it was actually decent, but the rest bring and forgettable.
Probably Led Zep's most consistent album. I and IV probably contain better songs but each have their weak points. This just starts an inch from the top and cruises on from there. Perfect.
Like a lot of jazz albums, seem to start off great before descending into a bit of boredom. The solos in tracks 3 and 4 dragged on far too long. First two were alright. 2.5*
Meandering and uninspiring. I'm glad popular non-gangsta-hiphop existed out there in the early 90s for humanities sake, but this just ain't for me.
I'm really glad the late 60s happened and music evolved. 1.5*
What on earth was that? Sounded like a blend of New Wave and Gothic Rock that I hope never gets repeated again.
Everything by Simon and/or Garfunkel I've heard, except for Graceland, is just dull dull dull
After getting Murmur last week, this was very disappointing. Nothing in there other than the songs i already knew that interested me. Some actively disinterested me. Shame as I thought it was a band I could see myself getting into after Murmur.
The quintessential prog rock album. Everything from the lyrics to the music to the album cover. The only slight negative thing I can say is the post-moonchild element goes on a bit too long, but when it thunders into Court of the Crimson King... Wow. Easy 5*
I really wanted to love this album as a teenager. Tried so hard to get into it but after the first 3 tracks I would skip to the real thing and then end it there. Disappointing. Angel Dust was always my jam. Listening back with a much wider appreciation of music it's actually top notch. Makes much more sense after knowing Mike Pattons range a lot better, there's even hints of Mr Bungle in this despite the music being written before he apparently joined. What turned me off as a teenager was the jump from the thrash Surprise youre dead to soft rock of Zombie Eaters. But this time i was into the floating genres, very Mike Patton and very cool.
One of my favourite discoveries of the last few years is Christian Brothers by Elliott Smith. I listened to this album a few years back but wrote it off after one listen. Listening again a couple times now...I still don't really get it. It's not bad, but it's not particularly good either. Just straight average, but I know it's lauded. I feel like I'm missing something.
Some great tracks, some stinkers. Don't know why, but the "I've got soul but I'm not a soldier" always miffed me. Feel like they tried going too big in parts. Walk before you try running. The last track epitomises this. Don't fully get the hype tbh. 2.5*
Almost unlistenable. Like someone taking the mick out of 50s rocknroll, but badly. Thought it was one of those random mistakes you see on the 1001 list, maybe the inclusion of a genre pushing album that really doesn't deserve to be here. But looking at the album on wiki now, "wide critical acclaim", "one of the best rock debuts of all time", "frequently appeared on lists of the greatest albums of all time". Shame on you, human race.
Wow. Love it when my preconceptions are completely wrong. Album cover and year had me thinking it would be some naff Sinatra ripoff, instead some great folk. How was this guy not more famous?!
Pleasant, if a bit uninspiring. Street Life clearly the stand out track but lasted 7 minutes too long. Vocals sorely missing from a couple other songs. 2.5*
Weird one. I've got used to not seeing one of my favourite genres on here as it's not the usual 1001-vibe they go for. So one finally appears and it's a bit lacklustre? I can think of 10 very similar albums that are miles better than this. Good in parts but goes on too long. Some songs just a waste of time. Not terrible though.
First song had me dreading the next 40 minutes. Enjoyed Le Freak but I just thought it was going to be them trying to see how many times that could say "Chic" in one album. After that it was surprisingly alright. Something that my mum would listen to back in the day. Not my kind of music but I could vibe with it. Savoir Faire was an absolute banger. Great guitar.
I remember being blown away by this when it came out. Listening back now, you can hear the anger and emotion in a lot of these tracks, how fame hasn't helped him at all, particularly in The Way I Am, Marshall Mathers and Kim (the latter maybe a bit too much). Massively prefer this rap to the type that just bang on about how amazing/rich they are. Still quite a few weak tracks on the album, all the ones when he gets someone else involved as well as a few others towards the end. But there's 5 or 6 absolute bangers in here. The skits are terrible I should add, why on earth include them. Pointless and detract from the serious issues discussed on the album. 3.5*
I don't care for it, and I won't respond to it.
Slightly on the dull side, but not offensive. I think I could have listened to the whole album without listening to it. 2.5*
Holy 80s. Started off bearable but by track 4 I was praying for the end.
That was difficult to get through. Never been a massive Mac fan but could appreciate Rumours. This felt like their White Album, immediately following up a great album with a maraudering stumble through different sounds that just goes on too long. 2.5*
The first electronica album I ever got into. I used to enjoy the first half but would usually switch off toward the end. I then moved on to much better stuff. Listening back now 15 years later it's actually pretty disappointing given what else is out there. The songs have too little variation and go on far too long. Any catchy hook that appears is then rinsed over and over again. 2.5*
Love the message. I remember being 14 and flicking over to Wildstyle on Vice City every 5-10 minutes waiting for the message to come on (or be on next). Was looking forward to listening to the rest of the album but Jesus that was hard to get through. How can a song as groundbreaking as the message be pre-fixed by utter cross? Why was the message not on first, followed by similar politically conscious tracks, instead of terrible band intros, robotic autotuned samples, Steve ripoffs etc.. very disappointing. 1.5*
Not my jam
Not enjoyable, but I can't put my finger on why. Sounds similar to a number of other bands/artists in that early 90s grunge, soft/hard rock era but without any of the catchy stuff
I actually discovered Jane's Addiction on here with their first album, which I immediately regretted rating 3* as it grew into one of my favourite albums I've heard in a while. Their second is not as good admittedly, but still sounds pretty strong. Between the two album there's 10 or so unbelievable tracks. I can't not rate this a 4 to make up for Nothings Shocking.
First half bearable. Second half not so. Please end. 2.5*
Wrong mood for this today. I think instrumental rock music just doesn't work as well as in other genres. Rock is there to be sung over. I can handle it when it's a mix, Santana for example. Frank's amazing at guitar, but by the end I wasn't even concentrating on the music.
Wow. I know I've always hated Money for Nothing, but I didn't realise all of their songs were that terrible. I feel harsh giving this 1*, given the utter dross that have achieved my 1* rating, but it's really not far off. Lucky escape.
I fell in love with Once in a Lifetime years ago and instantly explored the rest of the album to find myself disappointed. Then about 3 months ago More Songs... came up on this list and I found myself completely hooked. Going back to listening to this album again, I just can't get on board with it. The first half is alright, it leans too heavily into the African theme but has some good hooks. The latter half, specifically the last two songs, are just pretty weak. Disappointing given how good buildings and food was.
Other than Straight Shooter (which was a good Beatles rip off) and California Dreamin (which is a class song in its own right) that was a pretty dull set of poor Beatles/Beach Boys rip offs. Disappointing given how great CD is, the only song I knew going into it. 1.5*
I presumed they would have been a one hit wonder band as you never hear anything else by them, but some tracks on here weren't bad. Most were though. But some good northern soul/early ska-punk in here. 2.5*, probably would not listen again.
That's the kind of album I was hoping to find on here. Took about six listens but I think I get it now. Such a mix and mesh of genres and bands in here. It's like if The Flaming Lips decided to make a tribute album to the Beatles, Squarepusher and Radiohead blended into one.
I don't know why, but I initially thought this was going to be terrible. Why do I have a bad impression of Beck, despite not knowing a single song he has done? Do I have him confused with someone else? Anyway, wow. What a nice surprise. Great voice, few skippable tracks, but mostly solid ones with a few gems in there. How have I never heard him before??
When I was a teenager I really tried getting to this album. I thought you either loved it or you stupidly didn't get it, and I was terrified I was the latter. After maybe 40-50 listens over the years, and caring a lot less about what other people think, I can happily say Joy Division are one of the most overrated bands out there. By far the worst album-rating-per-t-shirt sold ratio in the world. Disorders a great opener. And then it's 35 minutes of shite. 1.5*
Abba's hits make me a die a little inside. So a full album of abba non-hits makes me die a lot inside. One of the worst things to ever happen to music.
Never heard this guy before. First (real) song I was actually quite digging. The rest of the album seemed to phase in and out of semi-interesting to background music. I gave it a day for a refreshed listen the next day but felt the exact same thing happened. Nice to have non-offensive/outrageous hip-hop, but reading the reviews now on wiki I think I'm missing something. Wasn't particularly groundbreaking, wasn't bad. Just alright. Straight down the middle.
Pretty disappointing 80s alternative rock. Took all the bland bits of similar bands and rolled it up into one. Not a single track worth saving down.
I tried getting into Elton before Glastonbury this year but he just didn't do it for me. Crap gig anyway. So it was nice to be forced to a listen to a full album, his magnum opus apparently. I think it hasn't aged that well. There's a lot of 60/70s bands/sounds merged into one on this, but it falls flat apart from a couple of tracks. I think I've made my piece with Elton now.
Really this is two albums, so I'll review both separately. Speakerboxx was pretty generic early 00's hip-hop I thought, despite all the plaudits it got. Grated in parts. 2* The Love Below was an exciting experimental hip-hop/blues/rnb mix. Lack of stand out tracks but numerous good ones scattered throughout. 3.5* to 4*. Would listen to this half again for sure.
After the first few songs I was bored. Sounded a bit like generic early new-wave stuff. Bouncing babies caught my ear though, and then a few tracks later on..gave it a couple listens back in the end. Some of it weak but some catchy tunes. The bonus tracks all pointless, but the actual album is fairly decent. Saved a few tracks down. 3.5*
Second nick cave album on here. Just as depressing and disappointing as the first, but with a whopping 82 minutes in length it wins the rare and coveted 1* award. Congratulations.
First time listening to Elbow. Few great tracks, opener and #3 were great. Dragged on slightly toward the end, whilst The Fix should have been nowhere near this album. Take that away and it would have just tipped into the 4* bucket. As it is, it's an on the fence 3.5*
First time listening to this. Started off really well. Can really hear where the Stooges got their inspiration from, though I must say that I think they perfected it. Was doing great until Alabama song which felt so out of place and almost ruined the vibe. Light my Fire brought it back up before the second half went and ruined it again. By the time The End came on I was completely unenthused. Would have sounded much better if it followed some bangers. First half (excl Alabama) 4* Second half 2* Rounding up to 3.5* considering how early this was. Still pretty groundbreaking despite the second half.
I've never bothered listening to U2 ever, just never seemed like my kind of thing. And I was right, a lot of it just comes across as self-indulgent. Can't quite put my finger on why, but there's no soul to any of these songs. 2.5*
Any album containing Danny Boy has a ceiling of 2* which is a shame. But seriously, what a voice. It's a shame the track selection seemed to often detract from that, with many more misses (personal jesus, first time.., I'm so lonesome..) than hits (hurt). His frailty with age is exposed in a negative way in tracks like In My Life, whereas that same frailty is what makes tracks like hurt sound great. With the correct song selection this could have been 4* minimum
Having just watched Dewey Cox, I could semi enjoy a few tracks by imagining him singing it and believing it to be a pisstake. However, when the realisation dawns that this was an actual album. My god. 1.5*
Really enjoyed that. Nice bit of Dreamwave/shoegaze. Perfect to zone out and work to.
Managed two songs. Given they ran 40 minutes, I think that's fair enough. I don't get jazz tbh. I think it's good? Just not my thing. It wasnt off-putting, just got bored. Feel like I'd need to be stoned to actively enjoy it, and that ain't me anymore. 2.5*
Listened to this years ago after discovering Pixes but couldn't get into it so never bothered with it since. Wrong decision. Only a couple of listens in but I think this is going to be a grower similar to Doolittle. Excited to dive deeper into it.
Feel like REM steadily got less interesting over time. Loved their debut, liked their follow ups, but by now it sounds like they've run out of ideas. Still a good album, just definitely not a great one like their earlier stuff.
Inoffensive 80s pop/rock. Nothing really stands out but wasn't desperate for it to end. Not in the right mood for it but probably won't listen again.
I got about 20 songs in. Tedious. I'm terrible at music so I wouldn't even be able to write one of these songs admittedly, but I can't help but feel any musician who's half decent could knock up a similar set of 69 unfleshed out ideas within 24 hours. How is this even anywhere near the 1001 list.
First two tracks in I was loving this. I was feeling nostalgia for an album in never listened to at a time I would have been too young to appreciate it. However, it then quickly turned into mediocre 90s rock. Few other tracks on here that were enjoyable but a let down from how good it started off
Very disappointing. All I knew about Willie was his love for the green so I was expecting some decent country but nope. So dull. Tracks 2 and 3 the only ones I could possibly listen to again. The rest deserve to get in the bin. 1.5*
Pretty early/raw electronica. Could really hear a lot of early AFX in this but whereas he perfected the genre, this was just... dated and pretty disappointing. 2.5*
I am familiar and fond with the first 3 Sabbath album, so I was excited to see this appear. However, definitely didn't hit me the same way as their earlier stuff. Reading up on it it sounds like this was the first Sabbath album fueled by coke rather than booze and weed, which I think is the perfect summary for the deficiencies of this album.
One of the most overrated albums of all time. This one particularly annoys me as it totally blew apart the run they were on, with the three preceding it being three of the best album of all time. Waters' rock opera nonsense killed what was amazing about the band. Gilmour saved it a bit with Division Bell, but other than that this album marks the death of Pink Floyd. Few good songs that save it, but so much dross it's unreal.
First Metallica album I bought, and I remember quickly getting bored of it. Luckily I went back through their catalogue after and fell in love, rather than forward. This album is terribly overrated. So many more misses rather than hits. And Justice... wasn't amazing admittedly, but this album marked a slight but distinctive change from their earlier stuff that was definitely for the worse rather than the better. Probably sneaks a 3* due to a few of the decent tunes on here
One of those albums where they had one great tune so put it at #1 and hope that will be people's lasting memory. Bloated album with one or two other catchy songs (Sketch) was alright but for the most part just drags on and on. Too many songs and most of those overrun. Glad it's over.
Lasted three songs
Wow. Second Cure album on here and I've loved them both! How have I never gotten into them before!? Honestly blown away. Regretting skipping them at Glasto 2019 now. 4.5*, rounding up to 5* as I rounded Disintegration down
You know in Vice City when they made that fake band "Love Fist" that was a pisstake of 80s hair metal that were funny because of the lyrics and how ridiculous was, but not something you would ever listen to outside of the game? That's how I view The Darkness, but without the funny lyrics. Some of the songs, particularly without the high octave voice, are bearable. The majority aren't.
Strong no
Weak start, with a real low point at Tentative Decisions. The rest of the album is actually really good. Not as polished (and good) as the Eno-produced albums, bit a good debut nonetheless. 3.5*
The more I listen to Sonic Youth the more I think they caught lightning in a bottle with Daydream Nation. How can one band have such a stellar, groundbreaking album, but everything else they do is pretty naff? It's rare to find a good song outside of that album nevermind a good album. The few decent tunes here are ruined by Kim's strained vocals, which are used waayyy too frequently. 2.5*
Bit of a slog to get through. Few good tracks on there but most drag on. Album definitely could have been about 5 songs shorter and hit much better. Never been a massive fan of Soundgarden, they fell on the wrong side of the grunge explosion, unlike Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam etc. Still not bad though, especially when you remove the attrition from the queue.
I think I'd love JJ if I was into that style of music. Few tracks are ok but quickly gets tiresome, despite the short runtime. 2.5*
I've enjoyed a few REM albums from here, so I was disappointed to be disappointed in this. Felt like they had ran out of ideas a bit, which is strange as some of their later album were then pretty good again.
Self indulgent, over the top... It shouldn't work, but somehow it kind of does. Fair play. Drags on a bit at the end but start was unique.
Pretty good. What country could have become rather than Pick Up Trucks and what-not. Slower ones in the latter half dragged. Could have been a 10-track album and easily hit 4*
Between this and Zenyatta Monetary for the worst Police album, but only because the other three are so bloody good. Some stellar tracks on this but some very skippable ones. 3.5*
Used to be one of those pretentious metalheads who wrote AC/DC off as being a gimmick act with their school outfits etc, so never even gave them a proper listen back in the day. So now years down the road it was great to be forced to listen to this. It's actually really... Fun? Angus' voice probably would (and really starts to after 40mins) grate if listened to too much, but a small dose is great. Some amazing guitar work on here. The songs about shagging do start to get a bit old after the third or fourth one but a few select deletions turn this into a quality 25-30 minute EP
Goldfrapp is another one that I've never had any interest in. Slightly proved wrong I think. First track was amazing, really wish it was an entire album in that style. The rest of it was good but not great, nice background music but nothing really grabbing. 3.5*
What is this? Music for posh girls who know their parents would disowned them if they got into Emo music and dyed their hair black? Bored after 5 songs of being breathed at.
Sadly nowhere near on the level on the albums that surrounded this release. No Cars Go is probably the only track worth banging on repeat. The rest just sounds like the weaker points of Funeral/Suburbs. Not necessarily bad, but not great. 3.5*
Like Steely Dan, very hit and miss, but here with wayyyy more misses. Only the first track worth saving. Disappointing
Rinsed this album dry as a teenager so it's hard to listen to it freshly. But having just had Back in Black, which I rated as a fun 4*, surely MoP has to be in 5* territory. Not their best album (RtL imo), but with only one week track on the album (thing that should not be) and 4 or 5 absolute bangers, including one of the most powerful album openers of all time... Well done.
Dammit. Tale of two halves. First 5 songs are pushing 5*. Last 4 songs are lucky to get 2*... 3.5* average then? I'll round up but Stevie's a lucky boy
Like all of Blur's albums, a bit of a bloated mess with some gold in hidden in it. One of those bands with a legitimately great greatest hits album that isn't really missing anything else.
Painful. Extremely painful
Rambling indeed. Quite bad early recorded country. Doesn't even sound sure of his own voice.
Easily the best, though tbf one of the only decent rappers I've had in the last 20 years. Take off a few dross tracks and this is a great album. A combined hits from this + pimp a butterfly would be approaching 5* which is incredible for rap for me.
I didn't hate two of the ten songs, so that's an improvement on the last Roxy Music album I got on here. 1.5*
Excited when this popped up, but honestly a bit disappointing. Really short runtime, about 30% of which is him chatting to the audience. Once song inexplicably appears twice in a row. The duet is cringy. The good songs end too early. Surely he's had better albums than this. Boy named sue brings this up to 2.5*
Totally zoned out. Forgot I was even listening to anything. Went back to the beginning and started again. After 3 tracks I was bored senseless. I find gangsta rap bad 98% of the time, good 2%, but this is the first time I've had no emotion to it. What a boring album. Boring beats, boring lyrics. 2* but I don't know why. Probably because I reserve 1* for albums I really dislike but I'm entirely indifferent to this.
My one regret for the human race is that the Beatles were stubborn and refused to put singles on albums. Imagine if Strawberry Fields and Penny Lane were on here. Even better, imagine if they replaced the only weak tracks, She's Leaving Home and When I'm Sixty Four (I'm with John - I dont care much for Paul's music hall obsession). Almost the perfect album. If I heard this for the first time now without any knowledge of what it is, I'd give it 3.5*. However, when you consider when this came out, and how groundbreaking it is, that surely bumps up to 4.5*. Rounding up due to finishing with Day In The Life.
Kickstarted an entire genre that I hate. The first track was alright, but from there it was rapidly downhill. 1.5*
Not listened to this in years. I resisted Muse for ages but obviously everyone in uni banged on about them so I finally absorbed this album. It's admittedly amazing. Some of the tracks wouldn't hold up as well on their own but as part of this album they sound great. The whole is greater than the sum of the parts. Didn't care for much of their other stuff so this is them at their peak.
I find the hair metal era a bit comical, not going to lie. Some good songs on here, particularly the Zeppelin-like ones (Girl Gone Bad for example). Others were pretty naff. Overall a mixed bag, not one I'll be rushing back to. 2.5*
My second Morrissey album from this list. The first one I didn't enjoy, thinking that he lost a lot of the magic that Smith's possessed. This album, his first post-smiths, straddled that line, with it sounded like his departure from that sound. Half of the songs are good, the half that could easily be Smith's outtakes. The other half...not so much. A blend of 4 and 2* throughout
Just can't do afrobeat. Never heard of the genre before this list but sadly it just does absolutely zero for me. Feels wrong to give it 1* as it's not offensive, just not for me.
I actually got this album at Christmas time and I still hate it. Surely one of the worst genres.
Thought I would like this, given I like early Dylan, but just didn't do it for me, mainly due to the Falsetto singing. Guitar was great though.
Like being in an excited elevator that occasionally claps at you. 1.5*
Pleasant. Nothing really stood out, but was nice to have on in the background. Unlike most things from the mid-80s, it didn't sound dated at all. Not sure I would have placed it correctly if I didn't know beforehand. Album cover looked like it was knocked together by an 8-year old who's just got into MS Paint
Pretty decent actually. Some some not so good tracks but short and sweet. Great for the 60s
Wow. Unexpectedly loved that. So 80s, but so many bangers on it. Take out the middle section (Tag through to San Jose) and that is a phenomenal album that I've never come across or even thought would be nothing but shallow new wave. I'd obviously heard of Relax, Two Tribes, Power of Love before but by themselves they seem like novelty 80s songs. Put them together and pad them out with the rest of the selection here and the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. 4*, only dragged down because of the middle section being weak
I hated that. I don't know Billy Bragg, I don't know Willie Guthrie, but I have zero interested in hearing anything else by them.
Arguably one of Radiohead's weakest albums, yet it still sounds absolutely amazing on reflection. Probably took me the longest to get into of any of their albums, but when you get it you get it. Luckily that happened years ago, otherwise I fear I'd be in the 2-3* region. Makes me wonder how many other great albums I've missed out on from instantly writing them off on this list. Sadly not enough time in the world to find out. Solid 4*
That felt like a more melodic, meloncholy Be Here Now. An absolute slog to get through to be honest. I'm exhausted and the last track is still playing. A few tracks less and a few minutes trimmed off several of them would have made for a much better album. Reading up on it now, how was this voted one of the best British albums ever. Jesus Christ. 2.5*
Really likes the Mambo ones. So tracks 1, 3, and the last one. The rest were not good. Either just drumming, or something which didn't for the rest of the theme. 2.5* averaging out
Was ok. Quickly got boring. Most songs followed the same structure. It's like they took the pixies formula and made a template song from that and just tweaked that very slightly 12 times only. 2.5*
Jazz just isn't my cup of tea at all. 1.5*, rounding down as even as far as jazz goes this is totally uncaptivating
Terrible, congratulations.
Interesting idea for a genre but a pretty dull execution. First track was alright but rapidly went downhill. Found myself a minute or two in before getting bored and skipping. Probably ok background music, but nothing more.
Whether by random or by design, I've had the three Jimi Hendrix Experience albums in order, and each one has deteriorated in quality, from 4* -> 3* -> 2*. This album is saved only by Voodoo Child (both the jam and the single) and Watchtower. The jam was new to me and I loved it, though the last couple of minutes rambledba but. The other two I know well. But the rest of the album was extremely disappointing. Absolutely nothing stuck out of any quality. Reading up afterward it sounds like this album isn't grower so I'll try it again at a later date, but right now i can't help but feeling let down by this entry.
Like all Iggy stuff after the Stooges, this was a bit disappointing. Dunno what drugs he was on but just seems a self-indulgent mess tbh. 2.5*
Like with most punk albums, one or two ok songs but the rest just drags.
I feel like this is some kind of inside joke I'm not a part of. 6 songs in and I still don't know what's happening so I'm going to call it. Abysmal.
First Beatles album that made me realise they weren't just a collection of sporadic decent songs. All Beatles albums suffer from filler that only makes sense the deeper you dive into it, but apart from one or two Revolver contains so many hidden bangers that don't take a lot to uncover. Taxman, Tomorrow Never Knows, Doctor Robert, Love to you, Got to get you in to my life. So many songs that would mean nothing to many people who claim to even like the Beatles. Here there and everywhere probably the only weak track on the album. Just incredibly dull. Also have a dislike for Yellow Submarine, but probably due to over listening as a kid. Feels out of place on an otherwise mature album. Apart from that, an easy 5*. Though I reckon it might be 2-3* if I wasn't already a big fan, which makes this entire exercise conflicting in some way.
Surprisingly good for an album/band I've never heard of. Quite Talking Heads-ish, only they seem to come a few years before. Only given a couple of listens but I think it's one that will be need to be on rotation before I can fully understand it
Fairly decent. Wasn't a fan of some of the blurbs that start most of the tracks, and some of the beats were a little dull, but on the whole there were some good tracks on there. Nothing really stand out though. Pleasant, but not essential. 3.5*
I've always found Bowie hit and miss, but this was more hit. A lot different to his usual sound but shows he can smash it out the park even when changing genre for an album or two. Fair play. Few duds but mostly hits. Beatles cover feeling completely out of place being the worst sin.
Sounded like emotive new wave. Recognised one of the tracks from vice city which was a nice throwback. Last 3 tracks definitely killed any momentum the album had, before then I was quite enjoying it. Middle of the road on balance.
Better than I expected, but not amazing. Seemed to meander at times. Some of the non hip-hop tracks were good, but a fair few fell flat. The vocals also got tiresome after a while, which is at odds with the intermissions also getting stale. 2.5*
Grunge seems to be either very good or very bad. This is the latter. If I was 15 and gave it a hundred listens I reckon I'd have grown to like it. But that time has long gone.
Kings of garage rock. Not my favourite genre, but admittedly great at what they do.
I used to enjoy the three EPs album when I was younger but never ventured any further. How foolish. This was great. The bits that went great I suspect might be growers. Definitely adding this one to my rotation list.
Extremely disappointing. My dad's got the front cover to this album as a poster on the wall so I was expecting great things. Possibly the worst Bowie album I've heard. Nothing worth keeping, besides maybe the Stones cover.
Absolute drivel. This can't be the same guy that's revered by so many rock lovers around the world? First time properly listening to him is from this list and it's god-awful. Every single song.
Aways find massive attack disappointing. Again they start off with a great album opener and just drop off a cliff from there. I like triphop, so why can't get I on board with these guys?
Wow. I'm stunned. 250 albums in and I've finally found something that's completely blown away from a genre I was no expecting. Everything just seemed to click and I've no idea why. The opener was earnest and heartwarming. Little Red Riding Hood seemed to be foreshadowing mid 2000's Radiohead three decades early. The Alfib tracks were strange at first but cute after a couple listens. And the album outro is so out of place but also perfectly in place. Binged a few times now and I still hear something new and exciting with every listen. Congratulations 1001 albums, you've finally done what I expected from the start.
I'm torn on this one. I think it doesn't make sense without knowing and appreciating Loveless. The first three tracks seem a continuation in the mould, a slightly worse version in my opinion, but still quite good. They then seemed to put a halt to that (quite literally with the ending who sees you). They then appear to showcase new stuff they're trying out in two further sections. I prefer the middle 3 to the last 3, but I honestly don't think it deserves the acclaim it gets. If this is on the list over Loveless then that's an absolute crime against humanity. Good but not great.
Just can't get on board with Buddy or early rock n roll in general. Sounds so primitive in a a bad way. Like hanging a children's drawing in an art gallery just because it shows the foundations of someone's art even though it's clearly shite.
Pretty uninspiring gothic/post punk 80s stuff. Like a blend of the cure/joy division/type o negative that didn't quite work out. First track was alright but quickly tailed off. Terrible album cover by the way. Looks like something I would have made in PowerPoint during my emo phase when I was 15. 2.5*
Conflicted. If I was 16 I'd be loving it (but aggrieved I just spent £10 on a 15-minute album), but it's just not that great now I've matured. Obviously a seminal hit, but other bands took it to greater and better heights. Also, Hardcore fans must be one of the most annoying of any fan base. I'd hate to go to a gig because of them lot.
This list has made me realise just how much I hate Clapton and Springsteen. Here's another one of the former. Tried to hide behind a different band name but within 4 seconds I was suspecting something was up and 20 seconds in I was letting out a groan. And not a good one. Layla the only non terrible song, but they went and ruined it by sellotaping 4 minutes of chaff onto the end and then naming the album "that + other songs". How up your own arse can you get man. Sick of him.
Interesting voice. Would be a great voiceover on TV/film. Maybe an audiobook. Just not music. Insanely bored 5 songs in. 1.5*
First listen through I quite enjoyed. Bit of a blues with hip-hop, lazy singing but not in a bad way. Intrigued, I dived straight in for a second listen. Not as good. Too much hip hop, not enough blues, too lazy in parts. Third listen through I stopped half way through. Couple of great tracks but mostly misses. 2.5*
Where it all changed for Radiohead. I thought Pablo Honey was pretty poor whereas OK Computer is one of the greatest albums ever written, so this is a lovely stepping stone to get there. The Pablo-esque songs are the weaker points (Bones, Just, Sulk). The stronger points are when they begin to explore the elements of their sound that would shortly propel them to the echelons of music. Solid 4*
I listened to this album when it won the Mercury prize, loved it, then immediately forgot about it. Glad to hear reminded. I initially thought it might be 5* worthy, but after another couple of listens I think what holds it back is although almost every song is very, very good, there are no amazing songs that I'd want on constant rotation. 4.5*
Way too much filler here. Always thought this album was overrated, bar a few decent tracks nothing really sticks. You can see the bridge between their earlier terrible funk albums and more melodic stuff that was to come. 2.5*
So so so so so so bad.
Really gave this one a chance, due to how many swifties I seem to have as friends. It's ok. Catchy in parts, but I just can't connect with any of it, really feels like it just isn't written for me, which is fine. Not all music is. Arguably the most catchy song, Shake It Off, is inexplicably ruined by a terrible bridge towards the end which is a shame. Less poppy ones are amongst the better ones. 2.5*
Pretty mediocre. Interesting voice and well jell of the guitar skills, but no really stand out tracks even on second listen. Reading the reviews don't really understand how it's a cult classic. Maybe another 20 listens would be required...
Strong no from me.
Love Stooges, find Iggy a bit meh. This is better than the Idiot, but not by a long way. Title track, Passenger and fall in love with me doing a lot of heavy lifting here
A deceiving album. I heard Next Girl years ago and dived into the album, immediately loving the stripped back sound. Like a more bluesy, slightly cooler white stripes. But after a handful of listens I came to the conclusion not lacked depth, and almost every song got boring after a couple of sprints. Fast forward 10 years and my conclusions are exactly the same. I reckon I'd have given this 4* after 2-3 listens, as it is I'm struggling to give it much higher than a 2.5*
Pretty bland early Floyd - Beatles - beach boys crossover. Only the opening and ending tracks worth listening to again.
Wow. There's so much terribly rap out there but each time one has appeared on this list it's had some good moments. The same cannot be said here. What an absolute terrible collection of songs. The beats are incredibly lazy, the lyrics uninteresting, the skits pointless. Drivel.
Stunning. Heard of this guy but completely got him confused with a mesh of other artists which he is not. Ethereal and beautiful album. Slightly trails off a bit in the latter half but excited about diving a lot more into this over the coming months. Starting off with a 4*, but can easily see this slipping up or down a tier. It feels like it's either gonna grow or get boring..excited to see which.
Congratulations Kanye, one of the worst things I've ever heard. Hope you're proud. I would literally pay a lot of money to never have to hear this front to back again.
God help anyone who rated this 5*
Well that answers my question of "what if the Rolling Stones had no talent?" 1.5*
I'm adamant no one truly enjoys Bruce Springsteen. They just think people like him so they follow along. It's like that Darren Brown episode where he coerces someone into committing murder via peer pressure alone. The same is true for Eric Clapton. Once people start to realise this basic truth the world will be a much better place.
Very bold to put a live album by an experimental rock band on here as the the first time I'm hearing them. Maybe just unlucky on my part. Funnily enough I'm hearing a bit of squarepusher and other IDM stuff in here. For the most part though it's just skippable. Think I would have loved it at the time but not now.
Couple astounding songs, few good songs, several bad songs. With albums like this I wonder why, after writing something like Perfect Day or Walk on the Wild Side, they wouldn't wait to pen another 5-6 unbelievable tracks rather than just release them next to any old thing.
Doors always sounded like a less fun Stooges to me. I don't think it stands the test of time very well. Probably very cool in the day, but that day has been and gone.
Disappointing, given the other Kate Bush albums I've had on here which I've rather enjoyed. Feels a bit out of left field this album, alternative and edgy in a negative way. The growls and screams can work great in the right genre, but this is not it.
Not bothered with this album in years, I always wrote off most of the early Beatles stuff as too poppy. Sop pop almost. A few songs on here are still like this, I'm happy to dance with you for example. But there are some really great tracks buried in here, almost masquerading themselves as pop but trying to break free. Others are blueprints for later Beatles, You can't do that sounds lightyears ahead of the rest of the album. Actually a pretty decent album on reflection. 3.5*
Pretty uninspiring 60s psychadelica. Not sure how this made it on here.
Love ateviea voice and style. Didn't have as good songs as the other Stevie album I've had, Innervisions, but some pretty solid tracks here regardless.
Got as far as the terrible cover of Imagine. No thanks.
Like most trip hop albums, some good songs but most last too long and there are too many tracks on here. Its actually one of the better ones though, despite not being great still.
God damn I'm still bitter my uni days coincided with this lazy shite British indie rock nonsense. Ruled out 90% of songs played in clubs. Boyband pop for teenagers who think liking guitar music is cool. Only of my biggest regrets is waiting hours at the mainstage to watch these headline Glastonbury. Should have just left my mates for a few hours and actually had a good time elsewhere.
Enjoyed bits of that. African bit towards the end not so much, but early parts were pretty chilled and fun. Not something I'd have often but once in a while.
As if Sinatra wasn't already destined for a 1* again already, he's decided to make a song called "making whoopee", which appears to be saying don't shag your wife on your wedding night else you'll have kids(?). Let this man's music die goddammit.
Lasted until the end of Work It. After reading that that song won a Grammy Award, and was named the 56th greatest song *of all time* by Rolling Stones, I realised that this stuff is like landing on an alien world and just not being able to understand any of it so what's the point in trying. It sounds utter, utter, shite.
Always had the inkling Massive Attack were overrated from the little I've heard from them, and this album solidifies it. So many skippable tracks
An interesting album, that was completely unhelped by poor audio quality. Low fidelity, when not by design, never sounds good, masking the nuances that would make some songs extremely interesting. Low-fi when used in modern music plays on that and uses it to it's advantage by making song structures purposefully non-complex, which was not the case here. It was hard to get past that. Not really much worth keeping, but I can appreciate that at the time this must have been mind-blowing to hear. 2.5*
Way better than Sinatra, but that's not saying much. Wish the album continued in the style of the opening track which was actually pretty decent. Rest just got too slow and 50s for my liking
Tale of two halves. Great opening tracks. 3 & 4 also pretty good. 5 - 8 much weaker, (Fred Durst has forever ruined Behind Blue Eyes it seems). Outgoing song was pretty good. Not sure why it's heralded as one of the greatest releases ever though. Nowhere near as good as other seminal rock hits of the early 70s.
Despite loving the Freewheeling and the times... I was never able to get into anything Dylan after that. This was pretty good, though still nothing compared to those two. Some good tracks, but nothing to blow me away. Some poor ones. Good but not great album. 3.5*
That was bizarre, but disappointing. Music was mediocre early UKs raver scene, with a few very self indulgent dubbed vocals. The wiki page on this band though was an absolute wild read. Music didn't live up to the heights I was expecting based on this sadly.
No unenjoyable but not sure why this was on the list. If this has made it then surely Richard Cheese or Elvana have to definitely be on here. Maybe these guys were first. Definitely didn't need to last 80 minutes though. 2.5*
Started off good but really tailed off in that second half. Some good 80s synth pop in there (despite it being a 90s release). Not paid much attention to Depeche Mode, I reckon they'd have a decent greatest hits album but way too much filler on this. First half 4*, second half 2*
Okish tribute to 60s British rock. What gets me is how insanely good Dreaming of You is compared to the rest of the album. One hit wonder almost. If I'd written a song like that I'd have harnassed all my energy to achieving 10 other songs like it, but it feels like they only got anywhere near close once or twice.
Pretty dull 60s psychadelic rock. This list seems to be a bit saturated in this stuff now, I've lost count at how many times I've written that first sentence. 1 or 2 good tracks, the rest utterly skippable. 2.5*
THE industrial rock/metal album. The only one that matters anyway. Pretty Hate Machine and The Fragile I'd argue are different genres, so, (the broken EP aside) Trent came in and absolutely smashed it out of the park with this release. This album is probably the one that has the most profound impact on my life. I used to love other bands at earlier stages in my life - Oasis, Blink, Limp Bizkit (sorry), Queens of the Stone Age etc. But this was the first time I properly connected with an album on a much, much deeper level. The first and maybe only time I'd felt like an album was written *for* me. I havent listened to it properly in years so it's nice to be made to go back and listen to it afresh again. Mr Self Destruct is such a great opener. Basically tells you what you're going to get on this album. Other bands had mastered the soft/hard style of songwriting (Nirvana, Pixies spring to mind) but Trent shows he is equally adept at it here. Closer has perhaps been overplayed too many times that I didn't think too much of it on reflection despite absolutely loving it as a teenager. Ruiner/Becoming is such a good combination. The Godzilla samples he uses on Becoming are so perfectly placed. The last 5 songs though are just a phenomenal run. People (including Trent) have said that Hurt is now a Cash song, and I get that point of view, but also respectfully disagree. Cash changed it to something else which also had great meaning and sounded amazing, but in a different way. Similar to how the US office is totally different to the UK office but it's ok to love and respect both without feeling one ripped off the other or made it better. They're literally two different genres in each example. 5/5 on reflection, thought I'd like it less than I did listening back 20 years a later but it's an absolute beast. Phenomenal stuff.
Really enjoyed that. Some good slightly psychadelic 90s British rock. Reminded me a bit of of Dodgy with sprinklings of Smashing Pumpkins/Sonic Youth in there. First 5 tracks were absolute belters, but definitely trailed off a bit in the latter stages. Would have loved it to end on the penultimate song, don't understand why some bands end great albums with gimmicky songs (looking at you Kyuss/Lick Doo). Will listen to this many times again I'm sure.
Well that answers my question of "what if a giant Welsh guy had the voice of Michael Jackson?" Very 80s. Very poppy. Very disco-y. But it kind of works. Not going to lie, even by the end of the 39 minutes I was slightly bored of it, but it had it's charm in places. 2.5*
This list loves a bit of new-wave, which is strange looking back as someone born just after that period ended. It's clearly not a good enough genre to stand the test of time, same as bubblegum pop, glam rock etc. etc. Pretty mediocre stuff.
Really loved that. First time hearing these guys, great bit of funk n soul. Definitely gonna put this on the rotation.
Was excited about this, loving metal and all. Even the albums namesake I used to love in my teenage years. Sadly didn't do a lot for me. A lot of the other NWOBHM were better, if still not my thing. Very average.
Good opener, amazing closer. The rest was pretty meh. Unique voice but it got tiring by the end. Last track should have modelled the whole album. Pretty good, feel I will listen to first and last track a lot in the future but the rest maybe never again.
Wow. First time really listening to Bjork. Blown away. That voice is unreal, utterly captivating. Music is phenomenal, blend of UK rave, IDM, jazz, pop, all blended into one. 4.5*, rounding up for the surprise factor
.
Ignoring Hotel California. That song is so overplayed it's impossible to rate. The rest was boring dad rock. Some songs teased that they might go somewhere interesting, but they were just teasing apparently. 2.5*
Thought it sounded dull on the first lesson. Read up on the album on wiki and thought I must have not being attention given what was written about it. Second listen, still dull. Third listen, still dull. It's not bad, there's just nothing particularly good about it. 2.5*.
Like a slightly less annoying version of the wall. Not a fan of the 70s rock opera esque albums that pop up on here. 2*
Hear me out, I think this album needs to be on this list. The rap-rock genre was absolutely massive at the time, and this album encapsulates all the bad parts of the genre - over-produced, by a guy who was completely fake, terrible lyrics that a teenager would be proud of, an appearence from the flavour of the day (Eminem here). The genre died as quickly as it came about, so this acts as almost a time capsule into why it was a flash in the pan. 1.5* for the music, rounding up to 2 as perversely I think it needs to be on this list even though it's absolute dogwank.
Amazing. First track was brilliant, second good in parts but didn't hold itself like the first. Can really hear the impact this had on music, still hearing it's legacy in music released today... Floating Points, Squarepusher etc. Second or third Miles Davis album I've had now and by far the best. Definitely will have this on rotation. Perfect to work to.
Very disappointing. I had ill communication a while a back and thought it was ok at best. Rapping style got a bit tiresome after a while but there were a few good tracks on it. This one...rapping even more annoying and no good tracks. 1.5*
Made it half way through. Couldn't do the honky tonk. Not going to lie, I thought at first the album cover was him having a wank over a couple. It was downhill from there. Unnecessary intro track, a not terrible actual first track, and then loads of naff tracks before I pulled the plug. 1.5*
Enjoyed that. Didn't need to be so long, could have been a great 10-12 album or so. But still, cut the weak and there's a fantastic album in here. First time hearing him and impressed
Nope. 1 year in and finally meet a Grime album, one of my least favourite genres. I just can't take it seriously. Literally grow up and do something productive for society instead of this individualism bullshit.
Great album. Listened to it once when I was younger but couldn't get into it. Right time/age now. Appreciate him not overdoing it and making an hour long 14-track album which kneecaps most of the best ones. Few weaker, softer, more biblical tracks stop the covered 5*, but it sure comes close. 4.5*
Not great, not awful. Poppy first half got old after one song. Rocky bit was better but still uninspiring. Liked Black Maria, sounded like recent-qotsa. Rock opera was awful, turned off mid way through. Interesting concept, probably great for the time, just doesn't really do a lot for me personally. 2.5*
So dull. What was that?? How is that something everyone must listen to. It wasn't bad, but was so hard to tell if it was good as it was instantly forgettable. 2.5*
I'm guessing that was a ground breaking album for its time because otherwise it's just pretty boring jazz from the 60s that's randomly appeared on the list. 2.5*
Normally not a fan of live albums when unless a massive fan of the music already, but was intrigued when I read that this was the album that got him fame, after his previous ones didn't sell to well. Sadly it met my initial expectation. I feel like I'd need to know the original version inside out to get the emotion and intricacies behind the live version. Audio quality wasn't amazing although I'm sure it was great for a live recording back in the 70s. Bonus track was the best on the album, ironically the only non live one. 2.5*
That actually wasn't bad. Inoffensive hiphop/rap. Went on too long as always but there were actually some decent tunes in there. More relaxed ones were more enjoyable. Saved a few.
Lasted about 15 minutes. That was so bland it's impressive. I'm not sure if I'm meant to feel anything towards that.
It's rare to say this, but what an incredibly beautiful album. One of my favourites despite rinsing it dry after spending £1 as a poor student on it when they released it initially as pay-what-you-want on the internet (remember those times?). Every song hits you in different ways at different times. Videotape might be one of the most chilling album endings ever. A very very welcome response to Hail to the Thief, which was imo their poorest since Pablo Honey and signs they were falling away a bit. It's a shame they've never hit the lofty heights of In Rainbows since then, but if this is indeed their last 5* album of their career then what a bloody great run they had.
Felt bit like a modern art exhibit at points. So while some tracks were enjoyable, most others seemed up to the listener to turn it into something greater than they actually were. For example "Black" was little more than a slightly annoying basic tune on repeat, with someone frequently telling us they were black on top of it. Feels like when I'm at the Tate Modern looking at a rusty bedframe stuck to a wall and the plaque says it represents the evil and suffering of mankind. Fair enough, but I'm still just seeing a bit of metal sellotaped to a wall. Taking the music and lyrics in isolation, removing the social issues aspect, I don't think there's enough going on here to justify it being a great album. I'm not surprised they've pumped out 11 albums in 5 years given how basic this was. 2*, though removing about three quarters of the tracks that don't lead anywhere you'd have a pretty decent short EP of meaningful songs.
What an album opener. Bring a big fan of metal, I would have loved to have been there at the time when this album came out just to experience the title track, having heard nothing of the sort before. Easily one of the best doom/stoner metal songs of all time, and it arguably was the first one to exist. Sadly the rest of the album doesn't live up to these lofty heights. Sabbath would go on to achieve greater things in their next two albums, but the rest of this album is a bit meandering. The wizard is ruined by the harmonica imo, and Evil Woman was an unnecessary cover inclusion which is sounds like the band didn't even want on the record. They recorded the album in less than 12 hours and mixed it in one further day, so I can't help but feel if they spent more time making it tight rather than practically a live album it could have been an all time classic.
Pleasant. Not as good as What's going on which came a couple days ago funnily enough. Less social issues and entirely love related, which gets a bit boring after a while. Appreciate the short run time though. Combining the best from the two albums and you've potentially got something pushing 5* on your hands.
I'm going to assume this was the first experimental instrumental album released, because otherwise if the reason for it's inclusion on this list is it appeared in the exorcist that's a joke. Pretty poor stuff to be honest. I've seen this album referenced a lot so that was a big let down. Massively overrated. The sections were too jumpy, haphazardly moving from one segment to another without any link or keeping the listener engaged and understanding the flow. When he started listing instruments that were due to come it was time to bow out. Way better pieces have been made by this. If there's no Steve Reich in this list but this makes it in that's a crime against humanity.
Might be biased as I think the genre is shit, but this list has an overabundance of US country music. It's strange as it also has an overabundance of British rock, which I don't mind as a genre. But why those two genres? If the list is made by one person it's very bizarre to love two genres that have zero overlap. Anyway, naff. Somehow butchered a Beatles song. Congrats 1.5*
Just cannot do Rod's voice. Honky tonk also just doesn't sound right to me, nevermind from someone our side of the pond. Stones are the only ones to vaguely pull it off imo. All Over Now is alright, the rest of the album was pretty tosh.
My favourite Smiths album. Though it's only now I've discovered that How Soon Is Now sometimes isn't included... The CD version I had growing up was obviously the 1993 UK rerelease version, as it looks like the original UK release and the 2011 remaster both don't have it, as with the Spotify version. Weird hearing That Joke... segway into Nowhere Fast. I included it back in for my listening pleasure Anyway, this contains a few of my favourite smiths songs, Headmaster, How Soon, Barbarianism. But what makes this album their best is that other than Rusholme and the title track, the rest are incredibly strong. Johnny Marr's playing is unbelievable, and it's one of the best guitar - bass combo albums. The presence of the bass being brought right to the front of the mix on Headmaster and Barbarianism makes it sound bloody amazing. 5* (4.5* if we're excluding How Soon Is Now)
Pretty bland 80s funk/rock. I preferred Faith No More's debut which is the only thing I can relate to it. 2.5*. Not bad, not great.
Can't stand indie, but this wasn't absolutely terrible. Just mostly terrible. Opening track the only one I recognised, wasn't as bad as I remember. Most of the rest was tosh. Man who would be king was alright tbf. But my god what a bland souless genre of music.
First two tracks were class. Super funky. Loved the surprise Let Me Ride by Dre sample in track 2. Sadly it tailed off a bit after that. Track 3 good but 4-7 really dropped in stature. Will throw those first two into my rotation list though for sure. Good vibes.
If you told me I was about to embark on 35 minutes of instrumental music from a backing band in 1962 I'd have said Oh Christ. Luckily it wasn't as bad as I feared. I do actually love the 12 bars riff which formed the basis for a good chunk of the songs. The organ was a welcome addition in lieu of any vocals. Couple tracks saved down, first one is obviously timeless. Also nice to hear where Beatles got their Twist & Shout version from.
New wave has always been a bit up it's own arse, but this took the mick a bit. I'm not sure if he was singing out of tune on Joan of Arc on purpose, but it really didn't come off well. Turgid.
That was shite. I've seen Alice before but was too pissed to remember. Looking forward to being made to listen to this when it popped up but what an absolute mess. Seemed to stumble from genre to genre, tweaking each slightly to try and sound cool to rebellious 14 year olds in the early 70s. Really, really not my thing. 1.5*
Possibly one of the best debut albums (of original songs) of all time. The fact he was 20/21 when writing these lyrics is incredible. Some of the best song writing of all time. The way he wraps existential dread, anger, sorrow, all up into humourous and downright clever lyrics blows my mind. I'd start quoting but there's too many examples to even begin. Few weak tracks (never got on with the opener), but 8-9 of these songs are easily 5*. This album could be nothing else.
The creator's love for britpop continues. I feel sorry for the confused yanks going through this list, the same way I feel sorry for myself when the 200th terrible country album appears. Pretty bland stuff from the verve. I've honestly never met anyone in 35 years of living in the UK that has ever mentioned the verve, nevermind it being a positive opinion. I feel drained of energy after this. It's as if Pearl Jam did a 90s album without a single catchy riff or lyric. 2.5*
"First album written on ecstacy", but far from the best surely. Way to much echo/reverb placed on Shaun's vocals to find them enjoyable, and a real lack of catchy tunes. Sounds like a "had to be there" album. Not bad, but not offering much to the table 35 years later.
Not on Spotify, which makes it annoying to judge. Managed to find a version on YouTube, it after about 20 minutes and my fourth adbreak i gave up. There was one funky track near the start I liked, after that it got a bit naff. Move on.
Dull as dishwater. Not in the mood for this today.