I liked it for sure, her voice is really unique and incredible, and the composition of the songs really adds to the whole vibe of it. Feels very musical-y in a sense to my uninformed ear, or a more intense version of the female singer-songwriter pop albums coming out at the time such as Tapestry. There are a few stand out songs to me-Cry baby/me and bobby mcgee specifically, but the songs despite their power did seem to be a bit same-y after a while? Might've just been from a first listen. Definitely will be revisiting, but I did enjoy it. Didn't blow me away or anything, but appreciate the listen and a good way to kick it off.
was very excited to see this album pop up. I gave it a try a couple years ago, but got distracted and never got around to really finishing it. I’ve always loved the song Chicago, as well as the other tracks I’ve heard, but listening to it in full was a fantastic experience. It is brimming with nostalgia, despite me having no nostalgia for Illinois or this album. It just feels timeless in that way, as well as being one of the most cinematic albums I’ve heard in a long, long time. Definitely feels like it could be a musical, especially with the big-bandy instrumentation and the frequent use of ensemble singing. Favorite songs are definitely come on! Feel the Illinoise!, Chicago, predatory wasp, and zombies. No complaints, brilliant album.
Frustrating that this isn't available on Apple Music, or I'd want to revisit this a lot more. It is funk at its best, just amazing vibes, incredible instrumentation, and so catchy you don't even realize the lengths of the songs. The title track is incredible, as well as Who Says a Funk Band Can't Play Rock, and I adored the bonus track lunchmeataphobia as well. I'd heard and loved maggot brain in the past, so I was very excited to come into this one, and my high expectations were definitely surpassed. Funk isn't a genre I can put on whenever, but this is where I'd go if I want some of it. Hope it makes its way to Apple Music soon.
I really enjoyed this album. It brought a fresh coat of paint to the jazz fusion I’ve heard from the 70s-80s, and is both easy on the ears and notably musically complex. I’ve heard a few songs off this album and some of Thundercat’s other work, and my high expectations were met. I was worried by the album length at first, and while some songs lost me a bit, I was continually engaged through the end. My favorites have to be the last 3 song stretch, them changes obviously, and captain stupido. Definitely will be revisiting.
Fun listen, enjoyable blues music. Nothing too crazy or mind blowing on here just loaded with really well executed songs. Blues isn’t necessarily my favorite genre so I doubt I’ll be going back to this too often but if I’m ever wanting to listen to blues I’ll put this on for sure. Didn’t wow me or anything, but no major flaws either. Seems typical of 60s era albums that are just packages of songs rather than leaning into the album format with cohesion and sequencing. Can’t say which are my favorites since it did blend together a bit, each song was equal to the last.
I went into this dreading it a bit since I’d given this album a try a while ago and it didn’t really click. However, with fresh ears this was way better than I was expecting. The instrumentation is incredibly good, the vocal performance is outstanding and packed with personality, and the covers feel like their own creation, on top of the originals being excellent as well. Excellent feel good rock and blues. Highlights include ramble tamble, up around the bend, and heard it through the grapevine, though it’s consistently great.
Overall enjoyable metal. Feels very similar to the 70s era sabbath that I've listened to-great riffs, great execution, just a little less passionate than those albums were. Felt a smidge formulaic at times and the songs began to blend together somewhat after a while, but that isn't necessarily that bad when the overall quality of the songs was high. The god awful red white & blue bonus track left me with a horrible taste in my mouth until I realized it wasn't part of the original product, thankfully. Highlights include rapid fire, breaking the law, and living after midnight.
Enjoyable pop album-although the back half has the hits, I found myself enjoying the front half slightly more. Impressed by the variety and creativity. Not much to say, just a solid experience all around. Will say coconut really has not aged well. Favorites include Gotta Get Up, the excellent Moonbeam Song, and Jump Into the Fire.
I greatly enjoyed my time with this album. The harmonies are just excellent, the songs are both emotionally engaging and catchy as all hell, and the bright spots on this are so incredibly bright. The three come together to make something really interesting and great to listen to. High recommend. Best is easy Judy Blue Eyes, its just a trip the whole way through, but the rest is great too (HM lady of the island for the opposite vibe done just as well)
Man this was an enjoyable listen. It’s unlike pretty much anything I’ve heard before-it’s a weird feeling since it feels like music from another world where you can barely latch onto anything, but in a good way. The Melodies and musical segments hook you in and then they Fleet away into something else. The highlights are astronomical, and the interludes are still listenable. Not a universally playable album but for what it is it executes perfectly. Highlights are Building Steam, Changeling, and Stem.
This was a beautiful album. The songwriting is absolutely phenomenal, the tone of melancholy is palpable, and it just is pleasant to listen to on both and active and passive scale. Suzanne is one of the most gorgeous songs I've ever heard—the use of the female voice as a sort of distant descant which is used throughout the album is such an amazing touch and something I'm surprised I don't hear more in other music just from how beautiful the effect is. Some of the songs blend together slightly as there is little musical variety on the album, which keeps it from being a 5 star, but the writing keeps it heavily in the conversation, and it is easily one of my favorite albums in the singer-songwriter tradition.
Good lord this album is good. I am only familiar with a small amount of glam (Sparks & Bowie, which are both fantastic in their own right) but this showed a less eccentric side of glam which i adored. While some songs don't stand out as much, that doesn't make them bad or anything, they're just standing to some of the best rock songs I've ever heard. It has the insanely crisp and breathy production that I've come to know from Tony Visconti, which is readily apparent on tracks like Mambo Sun, Cosmic Dancer, and Life's a Gas. It hits hard but doesn't feel the need to beat you over the head with maximalism. Bolan's vocals are so smooth and the lyricism is genuinely poetic in its simplicity. Of course, I have to mention Get it On, which despite being played to death still hits as hard as the first time I heard it. The album really knows how to restrain itself so the big moments hit all the harder. Cannot recommend this enough if you are even peripherally interested in glam rock, as it's influence is bleeding out of everything that came after it (Ziggy Stardust especially).
I liked it. The highs on this make for some absolutely stunning pieces of music (see the title track and The Ocean), which execute the vision of the album to perfection. It sounds like a great and modernized recapitulation of the 50s crooner style, but that unfortunately comes with its downsides at times, when the songs can become a bit cheesy, and a few of the more ambient tracks lost me a bit. Overall the content is good, however, and I definitely can recommend at least some songs as wholeheartedly great.
Pretty standardly enjoyable Britpop-sounds like a happier, less grimy Joy Division at times. Easy listening for playlists and background music which is always valuable, and the songs themselves are high quality and well produced. Especially enjoy Haha I’m drowning and thief of Baghdad. Solid listen all around.
I really couldn’t get into this album. It has the slightest of inklings of what they’d go on to do with pet sounds, but it’s a really awkward middle child between the commercial early stuff and their later work, but not in a good way a la 1965 Beatles. It’s cheesy yet takes itself seriously, the lyrical matter and sound is redundant, not catchy enough to be a guilty pleasure without the stand out songs that they have on other albums. Won’t be revisiting.
Solid album all around. I must admit I prefer the White Stripes albums I’ve heard to this-it was technically quite good and some of the songs stuck out (I wasn’t paying attention to titles) but there weren’t any moments that really blew me away, although nothing awful either. Definitely a recommend for people into that 2000s type rock music, since it executes that vision well. Just not enough of an evolution from TWS music for me to be floored in any way by it.
This album is great. It’s expansive, takes its time in everything it does, and when the big moments hit, they hit you like a truck. It really feels like you’re transported to a different world for its entire runtime. Outside of the cinema of it, it just is excellent musicianship all around. The grooves are brilliant, the guitars hit you in the soul, and Hayes’ voice is perfect on top of this production. His rendition of Walk on By is one of the greatest songs ever created, full stop. I can’t give it 5 stars due to it getting a tad overindulgent at parts, stretching out songs well beyond what the musical ideas have to offer, but in the grand scheme of things that’s really a minor nitpick. Listen to this album, it will hook you on soul if you aren’t already, and hook you onto longer form song structures.
I really enjoyed this album. I've listened to quite a bit of Brazilian music, but this has a completely different feel to the others I've heard. It's much more eclectic, much more willing to experiment with song structure, and much more rough in a good way. The energy and passion throughout was palpable, and each song felt different from the last. A Minha Menina was definitely the highlight for me, it just was absolutely infectious and catchy beyond belief, on top of the great musicianship. In the upper echelon of Brazilian music for sure and a definite recommend.
It was good, it just was so dense of an album (as hard prog tends to be) that I couldn't fully click with it in the day that I was given. I'm sure that with time and more listens I will come around more on it, but I can say at least the technical beats are all there, it sounds fantastic, and it executes on its vision very well. Obviously the highlight is the overture, but the rest isn't too shabby either. Will be revisiting to give it the attention this deserves in the future, but off my initial impressions its a 3 star outing.
Man this was a brilliant album. It was incredibly upbeat when it wanted to be while also having this air of darkness and despair over it, and pulled off that dichotomy to perfection on tracks like Adam Raised a Cain. However, the album's absolute masterpiece came with Racing in the Street. It reminded me so much of River for being a crushing song written around an interpolation of what's usually a happy, upbeat song, and executed it just as well as Joni did. I was absolutely floored by it. Every Springsteen album I've heard so far has wowed me, and this one the most of all. An easy five stars. Listen to Racing in the Streets, Candy's Room, Adam Raised a Cain, the whole album honestly.
What a fantastic album. While some of its sound is a bit dated, it's in a good way rather than a bad way, especially when it was one of the pioneers of the sound that would be dated, if that makes sense. Ironically, I stumbled upon this album the very day the algorithm blessed with it, so I got a bit more time to digest it than usual. Despite some dips in quality, the highs of this album are absolutely insane. Movin' on Up, Don't Fight it, Feel it, Come Together, Loaded, and more, its loaded (for lack of a better term) with absolute bangers. It's essential pump up and feel good music, and the musicality and trip-hoppy elements to it just make it all the more addicting. Definitely won't be leaving my rotation anytime soon.
I enjoyed this. It felt like a more straightforward, intense version of Portishead with ethereal vocals over industrial-esque instrumentation. And I'm a sucker for Portishead, so I gravitated toward this as well. With that said, the vocals are absolutely insane which elevated every single song past their already good song structure, with catchy guitar riffs and knowing when to withhold energy and when to go all out. Highlights include Charlie Big Potato, Tracy's Flaw, Secretly, and more. If you like the 90s rock sound, give this a try for sure. Nothing mind-blowing or super innovative, but an enjoyable listen nonetheless.
Really really good album. Reminds me of Songs in the Key of Life in a way where it is just packed with insanely catchy, tightly written, charismatically performed, and overall fun songs that you don’t really get tired of. The first run of tracks is absolutely untouchable in their quality, with other gems throughout the runtime as well. It does have its dips and failed experiments (Jamaican jerk off) but they’re minor blemishes on an otherwise impeccable body of work. Deserves its place among the greats.
Almost perfect for what it sets out to do. It's vocal jazz, it's soul, it's big band, it's power ballads, it's so much wrapped into one, and each song executes on its intentions very well. The first half is big band, the second half is more somber, string and backing vocal led ballads. Not often do you see a double album that doesn't take 4 years to get through, but Charles does it. Let the Good Times Roll and Just For a Thrill, the two sides' openers, are the definite highlights. The only downside are that at points the production can get a little bit too full of itself, and it can feel like I'm listening to technically good music, but not necessarily what would be best for the song. But that's a minor nitpick. Definitely recommend for anyone looking for old(er) music.
A classic for a reason. The hits on this album are absolute hits—Many Men, In da Club, 21 Questions, etc. are consistently amazing despite how overplayed they can get. Despite some obviously dated songs and pitfalls into the conventions of the times, the good on this more than makes up for it. Definitely recommend this to anyone at all interested in the development of hip hop, since its an essential step and major influence on other (better) albums to come.
Absolutely fantastic album. I am a sucker for incredibly smooth, relaxed, and clean production, which this album has in abundance. It has a fantastic groove while maintaining a layer of stripped-back instrumentation, not needing to rely on insane musicianship to keep the listener engaged but just genuinely catchy melodies and bass lines. It's like a more R&B and cleaned-up version of 70s Steely Dan without the admitted cheesiness and extra bells and whistles, which works in its favor. Sade herself is just an incredible vocalist, floating over every single song, creating a chilly atmosphere while also filling your brain with dopamine. Highlights include Smooth Operator, Hang Onto Your Love, Why Can't We Live Together, really the whole album, its so consistently great. Must Listen.
Really enjoyable listen. Definitely similar vibe to the other trip-hop/plunderphonic type music I've heard from the 90s, though a lot more streamlined and an entirely different focus. This album is absolutely packed with catchy musical ideas, super entertaining chops and samples, and everything I could've wanted from an album like this. The run from Rockafella Stank up through Praise You is just hit after hit, and I was never bored for a second even with the long runtimes on these songs. I do wish it was a bit more experimental in its execution, since none of the ideas were at all mindblowing, just super catchy and fun to listen to. But there's nothing wrong with that!
Classic for a reason. While it actually has what you can consider “album tracks” unlike the previous two Jackson albums, what’s good on here is essential music. Bad, The Way You Make Me Feel, Smooth Criminal, Dirty Diana, and more are all just incredible. As I said, it has forgettable songs, but still great.
It was good. Definitely appreciate the mixups in genre throughout this, metal can get somewhat homogenous at times so each track did keep me on my toes. The grunge influence was palpable, while giving it a metal flair that was interesting. It got a little thrashy at times for my taste, so I’m not sure how much I’ll revisit it, but for what it is it was quite good.
Very enjoyable record. The Iggy Pop influence is absolutely palpable (Raw Power era especially), and it does that type of style quite well, although a bit derivatively, like if I wanted to listen to that style of music, I’d go to Iggy and other artists of that era. That doesn’t mean the music is bad in any way though, just a faithful recreation of what has worked for the genre in the past and executed well. The tracks did blend together a bit, but it was energetic enough to where I wasn’t bored. Plus, the fact that this is a compilation rather than a specifically crafted body of work knocks it down a few pegs as well. But, the songs are great, so can’t complain too much.
Stunning album. It’s lush while having a sense of being rooted in musical traditions, and it knows that it’s good, too. The opener is the highlight for me, it’s just a beautiful track through and through. From the runtime I definitely will need more listens to fully absorb what this album has to offer, but my first impression was very positive.
I hadn’t really listened to an album like this before—and the fact that something like this can exist, with genuinely ear worm Melodies and brilliant variations on themes, while being IMPROVISED, is just mind blowing. The first part especially, just due to the novelty and the scope of what I was hearing floored me. However, the charm did begin to wear thin by the latter second part, where I just ended up more impressed than musically satisfied. Still a triumph, and an essential listen.
One of the greatest albums ever made and for good reason. Every track on this (save maybe Dr. Roberts) is an absolute classic among classics. Taxman is one of George’s finest earlier songs, Eleanor Rigby is one of if not their best of the #1 hits, Yellow Submarine is catchy beyond belief, Love You To/Tomorrow Never Knows are mind blowing for their time, I’m Only Sleeping/She Said She Said are some of John’s best written songs ever, and For No One is one of the most soul crushing ballads put to pen. And that’s not even covering every track. It’s not far fetched to call this the best pop album to ever exist, since it’s just genuinely perfect in all regards. You’d be hard pressed to find someone who hasn’t heard this, but there’s not much more to be said about this one. Just listen to it.
I was a bit bored at first, since while the live aesthetic was nice, it seemed like pretty straightforward vocal jazz of the era which isn’t necessarily my favorite. However, the ending track “How High The Moon” absolutely sold me. It felt very improvised (which I assume it was) both instrumentally and lyrically, and Vaughan’s personality absolutely was gushing out of it. I could listen to that one over and over, and it makes the whole album, and it heightened my opinion on the rest. Really good album.
As a huge Beatles fan and a fan of the other solo John record I've heard in Plastic Ono Band, I'm shocked I never actually had gotten around to listening to this in full before. And it's great! It has the almost ethereal quality that later John tends to have in droves, and the songwriting is just as tight as ever. Definitely feels much more focused and stripped back still than the later Beatles material, as I would've expected him to be the one to get weird with it after going solo. Of course there's the classics on this record, such as Imagine (which I don't care for all too much due to its heavyhandedness), and the much more potent Jealous Guy, but the album cuts are what really makes this album shine. Crippled Inside is a harrowing song that's stuck with me all day, Oh My Love/How? are beautiful songs that stick with you in a slightly different, more melancholy way, and despite your feelings on Yoko, Oh Yoko! is a brilliant love song. I greatly enjoyed this album, with the only major flaw being his overt political angst at times, which dates some of the songs a bit. But, when this is good, it's John at his best.
At first I was greatly upset by this album—the first few tracks were so stadium anthem-y, which is a great departure from the tracks on previous Springsteen albums that I’ve adored. But, as I got accustomed to the new sound, and came to realize the lyrical quality was just as consistent, I started warming up to it fast. I’m on Fire is a beautiful song that first tipped me off to this album’s quality, and the run of tracks from Glory Days onwards is absolutely classic stuff. Doesn’t reach the highs of some of his earlier, darker work, but still an excellent outing and an extension of an incredible streak of albums Springsteen was on from his debut onwards.
One of the easiest 5 star ratings so far. I'm more than familiar with this album, and it firmly ranks among my favorite albums ever. As much as I love his work with the Stooges and The Idiot, Lust For Life is the culmination of everything Iggy had done up to that point and executed perfectly. It wasn't scattershot like Raw Power, nor heavy railroaded by Bowie like The Idiot, it struck a perfect balance between the two, with his personality shining and Bowie's contributions merely complementing what Iggy already has, not replacing it with something else. The title track is an all-time classic, endlessly catchy and captivating lyrically and musically, it really flies by. Sixteen and Some Weird Sin continue the trend of being insanely catchy Punk/New-Wave/Rock, and then comes The Passenger, which has a claim for being one of the best songs ever, let alone on this album. Absolutely brilliant songwriting. Then comes Tonight, a cinematic bridge track, and Success, which does what it sets out to do perfectly—function as a jam-session like earworm. All of the great tracks before lead up to what I consider the centerpiece of the album: Turn Blue. Despite its train-of-thought, almost improvisational like quality that reminisces of his earlier work, its truly a masterpiece which brings you straight into the world of addiction that Iggy sets out to paint. It's heart wrenching, eye-popping, and just an amazing track all around which makes the album worth it, if it wasn't already. The album wraps up with Neighborhood Threat and Fall in Love With Me, which are nice, catchy tunes to come down from Turn Blue with. The musical soundscape is deeply consistent throughout the whole runtime, yet each song has its own identity and is not at all mistakable for each other, which is a tough feat. I could go on all day about how much I love this album, but it easily stands among Bowie's Berlin trilogy which this album spawned out of, and I would even argue that it's debatably greater than any of those albums. It's that good, and a bona fide classic.
Pretty good. I loved how unafraid it was to throw some very experimental sounds and breakdowns into each track, despite the vibe of the rest of it. It's not necessarily that album that you can just throw on whenever, but it executes what it means to quite well. Feels like a less tame version of what bands like Wilco would go on to do with their turn-of-the-millennium work. Favorite tracks initially were Hot Wax and Where It's At, among others.
Great album—every song was at the least catchy, and some of the songs were genuinely brilliant even among Paul’s incredible discography, such as the title track, Jet, and Let Me Roll It. I think Paul does have better solo albums, and it doesn’t really ever reach the timeless highs as some of his Beatles tracks do, but that isn’t a knack on its quality, as that’s a pretty insurmountable hurdle. Still very good and endlessly listenable.
I listened to half of this and decided I would come back to it once I heard other Metallica albums on this list, as I felt like I really couldn’t experience this fully until I knew more of them original songs. Tentative 3 stars until then.
Beautiful, beautiful album. Definitely one I’m going to need to hear a lot more since I can just feel like I’ll love this more with every listen. I’m a huge fan of their other self titled album, and this is just as good—I find myself gravitating toward the tracks that are reminiscent of that aesthetic such as Sunday Morning, but I’m sure that I will come to appreciate the others just as much with time. Four stars for now with the definite ability to go to five.
Great, great new wave. Like inside of the pure, poppier new wave lane, you really can't get better than some of what this album accomplishes. Shout is a certified banger, as well as Mothers Talk, and the big hit Everybody Wants To Rule The World genuinely is immune to being overplayed despite its ubiquity—it's that good of a song. The Working Hour is also a catchy tune, but less so than the other three that make up the opening stretch. The album begins to lose a bit of its insane momentum going into the back stretch as their slower songs, while also good, are not quite up to the gold standard of the A section. Definitely a pinnacle of new wave, and essential 80s music.
The Kinks can do no wrong in my experience. Insanely good songwriting, beautiful harmonies—it sounds like if Penny Lane was an entire album sonically, since it is a lot more authentically British than a lot of the other British Invasion material I’ve heard. Two Sisters, Harry Rag, and Waterloo sunset were the immediate songs I clung onto, but the quality is so consistent that it’s hard to pick any favorites. Can’t give it five stars since I know there is much better Kinks to come, but it’s still great.
Genuinely one of the most crushing albums I've ever heard. Jesus Christ. Right up there, if not the peak of the greatest swan songs ever created. Each song has such an air of grief and solemnity to it, yet also each one is nostalgic in a way too. He makes every song, despite some of their recognizability, into his own. The beginning stretch of songs are some of the best collection of music I think I've ever heard. His old-age voice is perfect for the stripped back, contemplative vibe of the production, and the song selection is just perfect for the old man looking back on life thesis. Highlights include the title track, Hurt, I Hung My Head, First Time I Ever Saw Your Face, Personal Jesus, and the finale, We'll Meet Again, which might be the perfect sendoff song. Made me tear up a bit. Essential listening.
It was good, but unfortunately it’s hard for me to like this when I’ve been spoiled by people pushing the envelope further and further to where this sounds very vanilla. The songs are all solid for the most part, but don’t sound like anything I can’t get anywhere else nowadays. The one standout I got was Can’t You Hear Me Knocking, as well as liking the others hits such as Queen Morphine. Compared to the other British Invasion acts, this one seems to have aged in a way that makes it seem generic (which might be a good thing if everyone copied this style?) rather than revolutionary. Good, but don’t have a lot of desire to revisit.
It was alright. It feels a bit dated nowadays since the production feels very very 90s, but the individual songs were catchy at the least. I thought the end stretch was really strong, where I started to emotionally resonate more with the songs, such as Long Gone and For Now and Ever. Otherwise, the songs bled together a bit. Will revisit to get more concrete thoughts in the future.
The sound of this album was refreshing and very interesting the first time, but it truly wears itself thin when repeated. Considering that I gave the first CSN album a 5 star, I was shocked how much I genuinely disliked listening to this. It feels like it has significantly less variety, leans way too hard into the constant harmonization, and is overall a step down from the first in every way. No song pulls off the sound as well as the best tracks on the first, either, so the lack of variety doesn’t even have a point. Lightning did not strike twice, and the songs genuinely annoyed me to listen to. Will not be revisiting to preserve the sanctity of the original album.
Gets 3 stars for the excellent title track alone. Rest of the album was quite derivative of Talking Heads style afrobeat fusion 80s new wave, but executes that solidly enough. Just not anything groundbreaking, but I'm a sucker for this type of music so I'm definitely not complaining. Will revisit.
Probably have a better opinion of it than it deserves due to my lack of familiarly with its influences, so this sounds still fresh and new to me. Came off as a catchy, more Brit pop oriented style of what Tiger Trap did, which I adored, so this couldn’t be too awful. No individual song really stood out but all was enjoyable to listen to at the least.
This type of metal is really not my speed. Especially live albums, since I feel like I'm skipping the step where I actually want to listen to these songs live in the first place. Out of the metal I've listened to, I much prefer the slower, more sludge-y type than this up-tempo type, which just gets too overstimulating for me to really enjoy. Did not really enjoy listening to this, and it just isn't for my tastes, despite whatever quality it might have to other people. Hope to find more metal that I enjoy elsewhere on this list.
Really solid. She has an absolutely angelic voice, and Gershwin is obviously a legendary songwriter. She does all of his works justice (I listened to the truncated best of version, rather than the complete 3 hour edition). I’m sure there’s stinkers on the larger compilation, but the best of was all killer no filler. What brings it down is that they’re incredible performances of the songs, but lack a bit of the emotionality that’s resonant in other renditions such as Chet Baker’s that I am more drawn to. However, for those that enjoy straight vocal jazz, it doesn’t get much better than this. Just not particularly my taste most of the time.
Absolute classic. The first three tracks alone bring this up to 4 stars minimum. Obviously the hits on here are absolutely essential music, but a ton of the albums cuts are also infectiously good as well and feature some insanely well executed verses. Plus, the influence this album had is absolutely palpable, you can really feel how much of this style was emulated (to varying success) in pretty much every hip hop album to come. Some tracks are pretty barebones compared to what the artists behind NWA are capable of, so I can’t give it 5 stars, but it’s damn close.
It was a fun listen. It was quite the hodgepodge of genres under a bow of Brit pop, featuring some shoegaze-y production at times (which did clash with the Brit pop vocals) alongside some songs that had incredibly catchy instrumentation, bass lines specifically. It was a bit all over the place, where some songs grew on me and others didn’t, but there are a lot of good ideas going on here. Just a bit unfocused. Stands out amongst the sea of Brit pop though which I do appreciate.
Absolutely brilliant album. Definitely similar to Soda Stereo output of the area which I adore so this was right up my alley. Every song was cinematic, lush, downright dark, and overall a complete experience. Not a track on here that I didn’t love, they were all the absolutely pinnacle of what the genre has to offer. Absolutely masterful songwriting and production. Easily five stars, essential listening.
Really did not enjoy. I know some people love this kind of stuff, but it’s just a wash of twangy country over my head without any of the substance that makes other country albums at the least interesting or at most incredible. Not my lane at all, never will be going back to this. Much better, much more inventive country out there if I’m ever in the mood.
An Album that has aged incredibly well. I haven’t listened to any other Roxy Music output, but I was a bit afraid going into this considering this was a post-Eno album, and I hold his work in very very high regard. But, my fears were instantly quelled with the impeccable run of opening tracks. All of it just sounds so sleek, expertly crafted, and well performed. Definitely still had creative juice even without Eno and it definitely showed. The first 3 tracks were my favorites, with a bit of a momentum dip at the end, but it was at the least consistently good. Definitely will be an album I’ll be revisiting.
This is the rare album that’s so over indulgent and so cheesy and so campy that it wraps around to being absolutely brilliant. Other glam acts reach this to some effect, but nobody has cranked it up to the level of extremity that Meat Loaf did with this album, not even the eccentricities of Sparks and Queen. I loved every second of it. Just fully operatic, fully maximalist, all killer. Highly recommend to see this type of music pushed to its absolute extreme. Not for everyday listening, but a feat nonetheless. Title track is the obvious standout, but every track is a journey in and of itself.
Absolutely beautiful jazz. Flows together perfectly and goes through incredibly interesting and jaw dropping territory along the way. Requires a full listen through every time, but as someone who doesn’t interact with raw jazz much, I was very very pleasantly surprised by my enjoyment.
Enjoyable DJ/Electro/Trip-Hop Album. Some songs are definitely stronger than others, specifically the songs based around 1-2 vocal chops are catchy beyond belief and surprisingly don’t get stale. Others are a bit more spacey, which isn’t bad, but doesn’t keep the momentum that makes the rest of the album so strong. Definitely will be keeping a handful of songs on repeat, and a good listen regardless.
