Not sure how I slept on this when it was released, given how much downtempo I enjoyed at the time it was released. Definitely rings of the Bristol trip-hop sound; bringing notes of Zero 7, Everything but the Girl (particularly "All I Need"), Massive Attack). Enjoyable listen, for sure.
While I understand why this received the critical acclaim that it did; over 900 samples integrated seamlessly and creatively into a cohesive and interesting record...I still had to force myself to listen to the whole thing. It just wasn't enjoyable.
I get it. We wouldn't have any electronic genres were it not for the pioneering 'werk' of Kraftwerk. That being said, this record sounds like a drunk man from Deutschland doing karaoke over the music from Double Dragon. Two stars for legacy alone and nothing more.
I don't have children but if I did, this is one of the records I'd want to share with them, sitting on the floor in my living room, encouraging them to listen to it with headphones for authenticity and stealthily basking in their reaction, whatever it may be. And while I watched, I'd secretly hope they felt even a little of the same things I did the first time I listened to it, just so I could play some small role in giving them that gift.
Moody and beautiful. Minimalist arrangements are more than ample, even Nick Caves vocal (which doesn't always land for me) is featured brilliantly, particularly on the romantic "far from me". I wish I found this sooner.
I tend to prefer Minor Threat, Bad Brains, and Black Flag, but one can certainly not overlook the band with the coolest name in punk. Notable songs - "Kill the Poor", "Viva Las Vegas". Bruce Slesinger's drums shine on both.
Groundbreaking for the time, some interesting jams and thrilled that I finally made some time to get my Brian Ferry on.
My hate for this knows know bounds. I had to search a picture of Stephin Merritt just so I could channel my disdain toward something. He looks, by the way, exactly like someone who would have the sheer audacity to not only create this atrocity, but to feel like he rightfully deserves the misguided critical acclaim that this car crash of a 3 hour misery tour received.
The caricature of an out-of-touch, elitist liberal, created by angry hillbillies inciting comment wars on social media would listen to this, and then look for any possible opportunity to insufferably discuss it's "genius" with anyone bored enough to listen. As my other half so eloquently stated, it is the banana, duct taped to a wall, masquerading as "art".
This isn't good. It's not creative, it's not groundbreaking. It's indulgent and grating.
No stars. And a slap in the face. I don't care for whom, just a violent, open handed slap.
Iconic and original, not much to say that hasn't already been said.
What an interesting album. I probably won't go out of my way to listen to it again, but after listening through even a single time, there's no denying the Monks influence on every artist from the Dead Kennedys to the Doors to Jack White, to maybe even Nirvana ("I hate you" sounds like it could've been a track on "Bleach"), among countless others. Considering the landscape of music in the late sixties, this was probably novel, punk (literally) and super fucking cool.
Favorite track - "Higgle-Dy-Piggle-Dy"
When we discuss movies that portray graphic violence, we are generally willing to accept it if it's critical to the plot or character development. We understand that it sometimes plays an important role in what's ultimately a great piece of art. Personally, I'm not at all a fan of -gratuitous- violence; but that's not what this album is. Every rhyme has a purpose, even if that purpose was to shock, and sometimes, sadden. This was a disruptive and interesting album that we couldn't look away from when it was released. It deserves it's credit.
No justification needed for a 5 star rating.
I didn't hate this but particularly as compared with other albums on this list, I don't get why it's relevant.
After everything that David Bowie has created and contributed to music as an artform, this record didn't need to be groundbreaking to be considered good. The sheer surprise if its release was more than enough to stay true to his form. The fact that it is, in fact, really good from beginning to end, is basically a bonus.
Aside from the album art and maybe "wicked world", this is no heavier than any Led Zeppelin from the same timeframe, and Led Zep I and II were released prior to this (not to mention the striking similarities between "The Wizard" and "Ramble On"). Not saying that Black Sabbath shouldn't be considered a metal pioneer, just not sold on them being the peak of the unholy trinity. Even so, this record is cool to death.
This is some peculiar and interesting shit that I never knew existed. I can't wait to play this the next time that I have friends over for dinner. Notable tracks: O Relogio (so dreamy), Adeus Maria Fulo, Senhor F (this is like a Portuguese smash up of Sgt. Peppers and When I'm 64, so weird and fun).
Okay, honkytonk Eminem! Here I was, two steppin' to the fiddle, digging on the Johnny Cash cover, and then comes "Buenas Noches from a Lonely Room" and Dwight the cuck shooting his lady friend in the head. So, after that "wait...what?!" moment, I went back and read the lyrics to the first few songs and paid a little more attention hence forth.
As I said in a prior review (not ironically, of the Slim Shady LP), I don't care for gratuitous violence. It's lazy at best. But this song is part of a story and it's purposeful and shocking. I have an entirely different perspective of this record. It's not just the same trite drivel that is pop country today. It's actually kind of interesting. 3 stars.
I'm more of a Joni fan than a Joan fan from a musical standpoint, but Joan Baez is such an awesome chick that she gets 4 stars for that alone. Plus, her withering, whispy naked vocal is lovely. There's no hiding when performing the way that she does.
I created a playlist on Spotify called "Cheese" that includes songs I really enjoy but that I'm ashamed to admit I like. That list includes, as it's title track, "Holding Back the Years", so admittedly, I was a little surprised to see this record on the grand 1001.
Reminiscent of Hall & Oates but missing some of their pop appeal and catchy hooks. Even so, I found this mostly enjoyable in a fluorescent lights, smell of popcorn, Woolworth's nostalgia sort of way.
Notable tracks: "Holding Back the Years", "Money Too Tight to Mention" (unsurprisingly).
This record is a fucking masterpiece.
Yeah, yeah. I know. She didn't take any risks, blah, blah, blah, but why would she? Not every great piece of music needs to be novel and groundbreaking to be good.
She is a phenomenal vocal talent; and her decisions on how to use that vocal differentiate her, along with (mostly ballads or not) top notch production and solid song writing.
Not what I expected but really engaging, layered and compelling.
I've been an android user (the audacity, I know) forever, so I'm not harboring the same vitriol as others over the iTunes incident with "Songs of Innocence". I'm also not angry about their attempted return to early 90's U2 with this release. The soundscape at the time needed it.
That being said, this record is fine but I don't think it's critical U2 listening, unless you can specify that the back half should be discarded preemptively and almost entirely. The singles are good, particularly "Beautiful Day", but from "In a little while" on, it's mostly forgettable and boring, befitting a mediocre rom-com soundtrack.
What do I know though, I really liked, "Pop".
I read that this is the Nick Drake record that most begin with, and I am no exception. For me though, writing something about this record is like trying to write something about someone I've loved forever; I still love them as much as I ever have, if not more since our love has matured over time, but it's really hard to see them with new eyes and articulate that in a way that's useful to anyone else.
I think the best that I can offer is that one can't listen to this album and not feel something, and isn't that precisely why so many of us turn to music, to feel something?
Because this album was so ubiquitous and such a prominent feature in eighties MTV culture, I never even knew of the ZZ Top that existed before 1983; the sound from which they departed with "Eliminator".
This album includes some sexy tunes that still hold up today. Everything but the Girl is a staple in this genre and Tracy Thorne's vocal is lovely.
The nostalgia is strong with this one, so for that reason, 4 stars.
Suburban white kid anthems
Pleasant, soulful listening.
So "Brimful of Asha" wasn't the fruit of a one hit wonder Cornershop? Who knew!
Much of "Butter the Soul" sounds like when the battery started to die in your Walkman, so the cassette would play at varying speeds, generating noises that sound like something melting.
"Chocolat" had potential but it kind of died on the boring, repetitive vine.
I would like to have heard more like "We're in Yr Corner", "Coming up", "Candy Man" and "Good Shit". These were fun.
In sum, a little over half of this record was throwaway noise, so for that reason, I'd like to give it 2.5 stars but since we need to round to the nearest star, 2 it is.
Deep Purple is the least interesting of the Unholy Trinity. They're just so... dad-ish. 3 stars out of obligation
I would've found this really pleasant were it not for the vocals. On most tracks, it's like Glen Hansard but instead of charming, awful. 3 stars for everything but the vocals.
If this had been the first KoL record I listened to, I never would've listened again. This record is musically creative, but Caleb Followill incites violence in me with at least half of his "vocals" on this record. His obnoxious noises were completely unnecessary to set this album apart.
I've tried so hard to love this record. Literally, my entire life, I've listened to this, hoping to feel something other than desperation for time to pass more quickly while it spins. This listen is no different than the many before it.
I understand its musical implications and influence intellectually, but I find it almost unlistenable. For now, I guess I'll have to admire it from afar, give it the respect that groupthink has lead me to believe it's earned and just categorize my disdain for it as one more thing that makes me uncool.
Eagles are yacht rock royalty and Hotel California is their edict.
There are so many Rush albums I'd choose to enjoy before this one, but this represents the fork in the road and their decision to go in the direction that eventually lead them to the Rush we know and love.
I'm sure I'll get some hate for this, but in terms of avant-garde jazz, I find this far superior to Miles Bitches Brew. The transitions on this record are brilliant, and I think that's what changes it for me. Absolutely loved it, and will be looking for it on vinyl because I'm a hipster douche.
Whatever subgenre of hiphop Outkast is considered, is my favorite.
I had so much sex to this album when I was in my early twenties.
I made it to "My Old Friend the Blues" before I had to stop. This is bad country dad rock, and I don't get why it's notable for that time at all.
The first thing I noticed is that the production value is good but I hate the way it's mixed. This might be more related to a stylistic thing from that timeframe because some of Dwight Yoakam's stuff sounds similar but in any case, I don't like it at all.
Secondarily, I really struggled to appreciate Steve Earle's vocal. At times, perhaps intentionally, he was flat and his vibratos were misplaced and lamby, particularly on the ballads.
I like country but not this.
I can’t provide an unbiased perspective on this record, so I’m going to reminisce a little.
Though I loved Nirvana, it was Soundgarden (and to be fair, Alice in Chains) that initiated my adoration for grunge. I bought this record as a young lass of barely 14, and it couldn’t have come for me at a better time. I needed a soundtrack then, something to bring solace in the isolation that comes with hiding from myself (I was struggling to come to terms with my sexuality), and here comes “Fell on Black Days”. I needed a little boost to blast through my headphones while trying to escape the realities of being a poor kid, living in a trailer park, feeling suffocated by the mouth-breathers around me who were content to rot there, and there was “Mailman”. Something to put on while driving fast with the windows down? - “Superunknown”. Eat the rich? “Black Hole Sun”. Level up my drumming – “Spoonman”. Escape? “The day I tried to live”.
This record is an invaluable part of my lifelong soundtrack - it reminds me of where I’ve been, which also serves to remind me of where I am, and for that, I am SO grateful.
This is a supreme listening experience on a good vinyl press.
Not in the top three of my favorite Prince records but still neat.
Love the first part of the record but the back half departs into a more experimental and amelodic sound; it's artful but not as enjoyable. Still a necessary listen and PJ Harvey is cool to death.
It's insane to me that he was able to effectively produce such a creative and listenable gem while in a coke induced haze. Also, "Golden Years" was perfectly written for Elvis and I can't believe he turned down. Nanner and bacon eating dummy.
Highlights - Station to Station, Golden Years
Note sure if this is a hot take but "Love is Hell" (and "Prisoner", for that matter) is far superior to "Heartbreaker" and that's really all I can think about when I listen to the latter. Even Adams himself agrees, he's quoted as saying that "Love is Hell" is "..alot like Heartbreaker but better and more severe". Exactly. I'll save my love letter to "Prisoner" for that review.
They remain a one hit wonder in my mind. Love me, love me. Or not.
This album is the proof of Pearl Jam, at the right hand of Nirvana, with Sound Garden and Alice in Chains battling it out for the left hand, of alt. grunge's unholy trinity.
Some undeniable bangers for karaoke on here, putting glam rock on the map, and super fun. Ideally, I'd give this three and a half stars.
He hadn't found his sound yet but his albums only get better and more interesting from here.
Can you imagine this being your debut album? It's basically a greatest hits record, not to mention the iconic album art.
I don't get the appeal. I mean, they're fine, but I don't understand the cult following.
I wish I would've found these guys in 1996 when I was still a young teen. I love the infusion of blues and the occasional guitar riff disruption. 3.5 stars. Notable tracks - The Grave and the Constant, Bombin the L, King of New York
Much like the other albums in contention for the best hip hop in the last 30 years, the lyrics didn't age well. I acknowledge that, but if we listen to it in context, appreciate the storytelling, flow, production and beats, this is peak hip hop. I wish today's hip hop still sounded like this.
