This was my album of 2025. It's grandiose, cinematic, touching, and bombastic. It blew me away on my first listen, and it still blows me away now.
First of all, RIP Dolly Parton. A wonderful person.
I've never been the biggest fan of her work musically. I'm not too into the super polished country/bluegrass sound of the '80s and '90s, but this is a decent album. The songs carry themselves well, it doesn't go on too long. There's too much sheen for my liking, but it was decent.
Such a difficult thing to rank. It's a stunning soundtrack that fits and elevates the movie so well. Some soundtracks, though, just don't work alone. It's like having a bowl full of herbs and seasonings but not adding any meat or vegetables. It's not a meal on it's own. Some soundtracks do work alone, such as Amelie, but I think this isn't one of them.
It's a decent DJ set, but I think it just doesn't have the impact as it would in a club when I'm sat with headphones on at home listening to it. I'm not angry about it or anything, but it's just...there.
I enjoyed it more than I expected, honestly. As other noted, it's very similar to Tool. I like Tool. Ergo, I rather enjoyed this.
Some absolute bangers, some cheesy nonsense, but it's a good package. Could probably trim a few songs to make it perfect, but it's a solid album.
A decent early punk record which inevitably suffers a bit by the garage nature of the recording.
Somehow makes me feel nostalgic for a time and place I've never known.
Whilst Ozzy's solo stuff often lands on the side of cheesy, it's still full of great tracks and amazing guitar work. As a Brummie, his passing hit the city hard, so it's always good to hear him, be that solo or with (the inimitable) Black Sabbath.
Also, as an Aston Villa fan, the fact that we walk on to Crazy Train at every home game makes it hit a bit harder.
UTFV. Up Ozzy.
Not what I was expecting from the album cover. I was prepping myself for something in the prog/metal vein, but experimental hip-hop was a bit of a surprise. It's a cool album. It creates such a vibe and the flows are tight. It also doesn't outstay its welcome and leaves whilst it's all still fresh. Interesting album.
Obviously, it's derivative as hell and incredibly date, but it's pretty fun. It's pretty goofy and there's a good groove on some of the tracks. It's not intentionally impenetrable like some prog has a tendency to be. I enjoyed it well enough.
Loved this album. Great mix of soul and hip-hop. Really enjoyed my time with it and have added it to rotation.
I've actually been listening to Boris a bit over the past few days after a mate's recommendation. This is cool. There's certainly weaker points in the album, but the whole package is solid.
"Big beats are the best, get high all the time".
That's one opinion. I just think it's fine. It's hard to appreciate this fully when you're listening to it nearly 30 years after the fact over some headphones whilst working. I think you need to be at a warehouse rave and off your tits to really enjoy it.
Shocking that this isn't on the main list, really. It's a stone-cold classic. Just wonderful from start to finish.
Slick and cheesy at the same time. This was good fun.
Pretty one-track, but enjoyable enough. I went through periods of enjoying it and then not feeling it so much. Fine enough.
Interesting at times, but ultimately sounds incredibly dated now. Usually a 37 minute album flies by, but that wasn't the case here.
Some cool bits and pieces in there, but this was corny as hell.
I don't want to directly insult someone's choice, but this is some virgin bullshit.
This really grew on me as the album went on. Great lyrics and the whole thing was just a cool vibe.
Late-night-with-a-whisky type music.
Again falls into the category of "great soundtrack" but not necessarily "great album". I felt the same way with the Bladerunner soundtrack which popped up on this list. It doesn't stand alone so well, but giving it a bad review feels really harsh for what is a very well made piece of media. Sticking it bang int he middle and moving on.
Whilst not enjoying the music anyway, there's a god-awful fake hiss over a lot of the tracks which genuinely gave me a headache. It's nice that they're doing their own thing, but it certainly isn't my thing.
I remember this coming out when I was in university and it really brought some joy when I was having quite a shit day. I've had a soft spot for Baby Metal since then. Too many metal heads take things too seriously, but they are a fun band making fun music and not taking things too seriously. I later moved to Japan and was pleasantly surprised to see that Baby Metal are actually a big deal over there. Good stuff.
One of the better albums of the year when it came out.
Better than other The Who albums. A little long and self indulgent. I will never really understand The Who beyond a few banging singles.
As early Greta Van Fleet was to Led Zeppelin, this is the equivalent for Joy Division. Not as good as their influence, but still enjoyable.
Way more enjoyable than I expected when it popped up. Somewhere between a 3 and a 4, but definitely worth a listen.
Fun album. Would listen again when having a BBQ with friends.
Pretty cool actually. I really liked the production on the bass and drums, gave it a cool vibe.
A bit overly twee. I enjoyed a few of the songs, but a whole album is just quite a lot to listen to considering I didn't vibe massively with the vocal style.
Pretty standard '90s punk-adjacent rock, but it was enjoyable enough. Would've probably eaten this up if I'd heard it as a teenager.
A pretty interesting collection considering it's full of half ideas. I wonder what the value was in submitting this rather than the full debut, though. That said, I did like the feeling of peeking into the studio before it's done. Like having some of the batter before baking the cake.
Perfectly enjoyable. Nothing ground-breaking, but well put together and a good vibe.
I actually enjoyed this more than previous Elliott Smith records I've heard from the list. He's still not going to change my life or anything, but it was good.
A little lightweight, but perfectly nice.
