m b v
My Bloody Valentine- This never ends. It's like the same song over and over. - Probably met it in the wrong moment of my life.
- This never ends. It's like the same song over and over. - Probably met it in the wrong moment of my life.
# Playlist track - This is the day # Notes - When I loaded the album, I saw that "Uncertain Smile" had been liked by me on Spotify, despite having no recollection of it at all. According to last.fm, I heard it 5 times in 2019-2020. Cool. - Good for me. It's a great song. - Cool album! Definitely coming back to it in the future. -
# Playlist track - Damn, dis-moi # Notes - Starts out with a mediocre dance ballad. -1 - I notice there's 1:30 hour of this and immediately despair. - It's some kind of watered down La Roux. -2. - Album is not bad, but it's bland. It sets itself on a lukewarm tone and never deviates from it.
# Playlist track - Sound and Vision # Notes - Never heard this album before, even though "sound and vision" is one of my favorite Bowie tracks, ever. - Album starts out pretty great. Excellent opening. Fun, energetic, but it something does sideways halfway around. A set of weird experimental tracks takes over and they just feel out of place.
# Playlist track - After Hours # Notes - Not particularly interesting. - Found "Murder Mystery" to be way too gimmicky and the rest of the album to meander between "oh, that's really nice" and "can't this track just end already?"
- Listening to Iggy Mix first. - Liked the Bowie Mix better! It's less "muffled" - Great album overall. Noisy and energetic.
Angry and energetic. All time classic!
This is a completely different Queen from what I'm used to! - The opening act, Brighton Rock, is amazing!
Dark, nostalgic, dense.
- Interesting and energetic. - A bit too distracting when trying to do other things.
All time classic. - Sad, emotional, real. - Great lyrics, awesome karaoke material.
All time classic! - First listened to it when I was a teenager. - Introduced me to David Bowie via 'The Man Who Sold the World'
- *Like a Prayer* is great, - Love Song kind of sucks - Till death do us part has a catchy drum, but over repetitive chorus - Disc is overall bland and uninspired. Might have been a hit at the time, but it didn't age that well for me.
"Green Onions" opens with an instantly recognizable keyboard line - Rest of the album is not that great but still pretty good.
Immediately nostalgic. - Still pretty unique and exciting
- "Somebody up There Likes Me" is amazing. Great solo! - Never head his version of "Across the Universe" before.
- an album that has aged GRACIOUSLY - still amazing
- "Just to get a rep" samples "EVA" by Jaqcues Perrey wonderfully.
Reggae is not my jam
- I do recognize how innovative and awesome must a post-punk all female band been in the 70s, but this album didn't age that well. - Didn't enjoy it that much. Maybe it's a bit too rough.
Great album. Nice departure from always hearing only "The Autobriography Of"
Fun and energetic! Great guitars.
- That is one COMPLETELY new album. Have never heard of this lady before. - There's a lot from her sound that makes me think of the 90's and early 00's female singers. There's some Cranberries and Alanis Morrissette in there. - Pretty damn cool!
- Super fun and energetic. - London Calling and Lost in the Supermarket are absolute classics.
- 'Cecilia Ann' is an epic opening - Great contrast between 'Rock Music' and 'Velouria'
Formative in my teenage years
I'm sure this is great, but I got it on a bad day.
- Absolute banger. - Incredible all around.
- The album only have 2, 20 minute songs. - They feel like the structure and soul of a prog rock song. - Intricate. Beautiful.
- The vocals are very 80s, but the sound production carry a somewhat country/folk soundscape on the guitars specially. - I had never head anything about this band before. Cool discovery.
- Trippy and somewhat interesting but a bit repetitive. - Great opening act.
- I like this album very much, but at least some part of this comes from having listened to some if his later works, specially "You Want It Darker" - Seeing how his music and tone changed is part of a broader experience and I'm not sure how it would feel to listen to this in 1967. Probably amazing, tho.
- Incredibly catchy. - Fun, energetic. - It was cool listening to the "He's the greatest dancer" and realizing that the opening is the sample used in "Getting Jiggy With It"
Most 80s thing ever
It's Paul, he's a Beatle. It's fine. But a bit uninspired.
Enjoyable (but I'm not big on Reggae)
- not my vibe.
Albums starts off GREAT. Very cool and energetic. - At the ending there is a never ending drum solo that doesn't fit well with the rest. - Cool listen!
- All time classic and one of the first albums I listened back to back. Immensely important for me growing up. Amazing!
Cool is a great word for it. Love the sounds and the mood.
- Vocals are annoying. - It's quite repetitive. - There's some nostalgia thinking back on the edgy videos and 2000s vibe that prevents me from giving this a lower grade.
- Elvis sound just like Tom Jones. - Some kind of signature "Las Vegas" sound
- The opening, Highway Star, really sets the mood for the album. It's fantastic. - Album keeps up with high energy throughout and then leaves you with "When A Blind Man Cries" at the end. - 10/10
- I was super intrigued by the fact that I had never heard anything about those folks before, as well as by the interesting title of the album. - Huge disappointment. - This is supposed to sound creative and experimental, but for me it ended up being messy and annoying instead. - One of the few albums that I didn't manage to finish so far.
Cool album! Sounds a lot like the Toy Story soundtrack throughout.
Amazing
Amazing opening. - Full of interesting rhythms and cultural references. - I might be mistaken but this version of "Taj Mahal" sounds very different - Love the story telling
# Playlist track - Fast Cars # Notes - Never heard of them before. - Top notch punk! - Really surprised with the tracks on the album having 30-50k plays on Spotify.
- I've listened to this non-stop when younger. Still remember going to see Fatboy in rave when I was younger. Love this record. - "Right Here Right Now" is a perfect opener to this, and the transition to "The Rockafeller Skank" is masterful.
- It's one of those "you can either love it or hate it" albums. It's a heavy/power-metal classic, but not everyone is cut for listening to metal.
- It's well worth it to go see the music videos for DANCE and DVNO. Both are amazing. - I like the album, but a lot of its songs are available in better versions in "Access all Arenas" and Woman Worldwide. - I have no idea why, but this album reminds me of Kosuge Sugimoto's masterpiece [# 自主制作アニメーション『the TV show』](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQ9YtJC-Kd8)
- Interesting sound. Didn't pay that much attention to the lyrics, as I was working. - The album is a bit repetitive, could be shorter.
- She just sings too much. - I suppose that there are some good tracks but they get really annoying, really fast. - It's just too much. All the time.
The album has a very full, heavy sound that fits The Cure perfectly. But it drags too long.
- The album is fresh and fun throughout. - A bit too long. - It's my first De La Soul album. Cool find!
- Absolutely a classic, full of amazing tracks. - Taking one star out because the interludes are too long, breaking the flow of the album, specially after "Moonchild"
Upbeat and immensely fun. A bit too pop, if that makes sense.
- It's a bit too sugary. Might be great for american tastes, but I prefer less industrialized, pasteurized, over-sweetened albums.
- This is a powerful album, no doubt about it. But it is incredibly annoying. It digs in your brain and it's really impossible to do anything else. - I do understand that people say that you should power through it, and be strong and that it will be worth it. Maybe someday I will. But right now, that feels more like an inside joke than anything. - Don't recommend.
- This never ends. It's like the same song over and over. - Probably met it in the wrong moment of my life.
- Didn't like it too much on the first run, but I enjoyed it more on the second. - The last track, "Small Hours", seems very familiar to me. But I can't tell from where. - Update: I LOVE last.fm. Now I know that I have, in fact, listened to it before:
- Such a surprising album. I've always knew Simon & Garfunkel from songs that are a lot more melancholic. - The cacophony in "Save the life of my child" blew me away. I thought that there was something else playing on the background. - "Mrs. Robinson" is still as fun to hum as ever.
- The southern accent and over singing, while part of their appeal, is also annoying. - Free Bird is as epic as ever.
- Interesting album. Surprisingly energetic and fun. - Seeing that it came out in 1980, it makes me think how much did this set the tone for upcoming bands in the decade.
Slapping bass, cool 80s atmosphere, but a bit too much OooooOOOOOooohhhh for me.
Too painful. Too many vibratos. Not really my thing.
- The album is fairly repetitive, but manages to still be a fun listen. I ended up adding "Shakedown on the 9th street" to my playlist, which is kind of the opposite of the album mood. - 5/7
- Super nostalgic, and help up pretty well! - Playlist track: All These Things That I've done - Had a blast singing and listening to this with decent speakers for the first time!
- I absolutely love "Book of Saturday" and "Easy Money" but the album is a bit hard at times. - This is not a bad thing in itself. In "Exiles" for example, the tense build up makes the release on the 2-min mark more real and rewarding. Still, not a listen for everyday.
- Interesting instrumentals, well executed, catchy. Great listen! - Not a big Radiohead fun, but still giving it a 4. - The opener, 15 Step, is a banger.
- The opening to "Luck of Lucien" is amazing. - Album starts off really strong. It's a bit too long, and I could trim a few songs. - "Can I Kick It?" is still amazing. - Great listen
# Playlist track - Mr Good Bar # Notes - It's kind of angry, kind of cool. - Drags itself too long. - I like some of interesting verses and instrumentals, like the guitar in "Mr Good Bar". One extra star.
- For many years, I only knew "Black Hole Sun" from them. And the parody "Asshole Son", of course. I downloaded an MP3 of it with the name of Weird Al on it. False, of course. - Album starts great, but it won't really open up in the first listen. The bass-heavy sound gets a bit too thick as it goes on and on. Could be a bit shorter.
- I didn't even know this album existed, nor any of its songs. Cool. - Why do I think that I know "How does the grawss grow?"
# Playlist track - The World is Yours # Notes - A bit repetitive. In some songs, like "NY State of Mind" you are already annoyed by the same 3 notes by the middle of the song.
# Playlist track - Babe I'm gonna leave you # Notes - Still one of the greatest rock albums of all time.
# Playlist track - Shake Your Rump # Notes - I believe this album shaped the 90s is ways that I don't fully understand. - Experimental, creative, fun. - Misses here and there, but overall a great listen
# Playlist track - Let's run # Notes - It's kind of angry, punk, and interesting, but also a bit repetitive and not fun. - Not for me.
# Playlist track - What's my name # Notes - It's an amazing punk album! - Punk is not really my thing, but this is really cool.
# Playlist track - 1999 # Notes - Album starts out pretty fun. - "Something in the water" is atrocious and then it slides from there.
# Playlist track - Worry, worry # Notes - Amazing record. I could do without the audience shouting sometimes, but that's part of the charm of it.
# Playlist track - Le Freak # Notes - Loses one star because it feels that is a bit too much "filler" towards the end. Specially "At last I Am Free" - Otherwise, fantastic listen. Super fun!
# Playlist track - Soul Auctioneer # Notes - First time listening to this. - An album with great moments, like Dirge, Aisha and Aladdin's Story. - Broken Little Sister and Lever Street cost one star ou of the rating. Each.
# Playlist track - Kids # Notes - Reminds me of my early 20s. - It's pretty unique and it sounded incredibly new at the time. Some of that is retained after all this years, in Electric Feel and Kids.
# Playlist track - Water Under The Bridge # Notes - I'm still bummed out about [[Adele, 21]] which I really didn't like. - This more of the same. If you like 21, you like 25. I didn't like 21.
# Playlist track - I don't wanna grow up # Notes - It's one of these albums that people need to explain why they like it. It's hard to listen, it's exhausting. Not my cup of tea for today.
# Playlist track - Terrible Love # Notes - Great opening. "Terrible love" really fills the room. - From there it's a great listen, but the opening kind of muddles it all for me.
# Playlist track - Mr. Blue Sky # Notes - I really really enjoy the vibes of this. It's definitely something that I want to go back to and listen more times. - Of course, Mr Blue Sky is amazing.
# Playlist track - This is the day # Notes - When I loaded the album, I saw that "Uncertain Smile" had been liked by me on Spotify, despite having no recollection of it at all. According to last.fm, I heard it 5 times in 2019-2020. Cool. - Good for me. It's a great song. - Cool album! Definitely coming back to it in the future. -
# Playlist track - Peace Sells # Notes - Spotify doesn't hold the original album, just expanded and deluxe versions. I'm not taking any of the extra tracks into consideration. - Good quality trash metal, but not too interesting.
# Playlist track - Bemsha Swing # Notes - Soothing jazz. Not too chaotic. Great soundtrack to work.
# Playlist track - Over, Under, Sideways, Down (Mono) # Notes - Listened to the Mono version in Spotify. - It's a good listen and has a lot of interesting tracks, but this thing is 31 tracks long. The deluxe version has 40 tracks! - It's just too much of a mess. Taking 2 stars out of the album.
# Playlist track - Grand Finale # Notes - I've first seen this album playing Guitar Hero! It is still amazing. - The "Grand Finale" absolutely blew my mind. I don't know what the hell was that and what is it doing on an Alice Cooper album, but it is GREAT.
# Playlist track - Beer Drinkers & Hell Raisers # Notes - Pretty solid album! - I already knew La Grange but pretty much everything else is new and super cool.
# Playlist track - When I'm 64 # Notes - It's been some time and this album still hits GREAT. - I hate that Spotify has 3 different stupid deluxe versions of the albums, but not the mono! - Great companion all around. Impossible not to give it all the stars.
# Playlist track - Treason # Notes - Never heard of them. - Right of the bat, this is incredibly 80s. - It drags along too long. But it's fun and interesting. - Worth revisiting in the future.
# Playlist track - In The Flowers # Notes - There is so much noise all the time. - It was hard to get through it all. - I'm sure that this is kind of cool after you listen to it after a bunch of times, but I honestly won't.
# Playlist track - Come out and play # Notes - The opening act, saying "while this compact disc playing on your stereo" makes me feel very old. - It's an OK album. Doesn't hit me like "[[The Offspring, Americana]]".
# Playlist track - Strength of Your Nature # Notes - This album is all over the place. - I actually opened Spotify a couple of times to see if it hadn't changed to a different one for some reason. - It's breadth is super interesting, but a lot of the tracks are kinda uninspired. - Definitely worth a listen and revisiting.
# Playlist track - God Save The Queen # Notes - This must have blown people's mind out in the 70's! - Liked the energy and the pace. - Can't believe that I never heard this album entirely before.
# Playlist track - By the time I get to Arizona # Notes - Right from the cover, this is an amazing album. - Even though this is not my favorite genre, by any means, there are interesting samples and instrumentals throughout. - Definitely worth checking out.
# Playlist track - Gone Daddy Gone # Notes - After "Blister in the Sun" (which I already knew) I had a WTF look in my face the entire album. - Did those guys do an acoustic punk album? - Whaaaat, Gone Daddy Gone is a cover? - Super fun listen!
# Playlist track - Rue des tempêtes # Notes - Has some interesting instrumentals at times, but that's all. - The album is a bit boring. The super industrial sound might have been interesting in the early 90s, but didn't age well. - Very hard to choose a track to add to the playlist. I didn't ENJOY a single one.
# Playlist track - The Cisco Kid # Notes - Just great right off from the first track. - Kind of a jazzy, funky soul that is fun and catchy. - Even with 2 10+ minute tracks, War pulls it off, and the album doesn't drag at all. - Definitely listening again.
# Playlist track - Commotion # Notes - Classic album, lots of character and energy. - It was my first experience listening to the entire album, and not some "The Best of Creedence". - Definitely will listen again.
# Playlist track - Alegria, Alegria # Notes - It's really cool to look back and hear Caetano's debut album. - Having heard multiple versions of some songs, it's nice to experience their original form.
# Playlist track - Happy Jack # Notes - I don't really understand the role of this album in the list. - This isn't a really interesting compilation, nor a particularly good recording for me. - Not recommended.
# Playlist track - Down, Down, Down # Notes - Tom Waits' shtick is somewhat repetitive. There are fun instrumentals, but I couldn't even get myself to pay attention to the lyrics. - Giving it one extra star, because this is better than Bone Machine
# Playlist track - Tales of Brave Ulysses # Notes - Freaking amazing. Hard to choose just one track. - I listened to Cream a lot during my "mp3 download era". Still sounds just as great. - Still have no idea what "Mother's Lament" is about. lol. - Fun fact: In ancient times, I tried to create a blog, and the name would be "Strange Brew". As most things I wanted to do in life, procrastination got the best out of that one. - I was going to nominate "Strange Brew" to album track, but the imagery of "Tales of Brave Ulysses" is just too good.
# Playlist track - Pictures Of Me # Notes - My first time listening to Elliot Smith and reading up on his story. - Great album! It's sad, yes, but not in an annoying whiny way. More like "Sea Change" sad. - Definitely listening again.
# Playlist track - Into My Arms # Notes - Great opening act with "I don't believe in an interventionist god" - The album then proceeds with more or less the same tone throughout, and tracks kind of blend together. - Good, but not great. 3 stars.
# Playlist track - I Feel the Earth Move # Notes - What an AMAZING listen. - Listened back-to-back like 4 times and didn't get tired of it.
# Playlist track - Just the Way You Are # Notes - Such a cool and comforting album.
# Playlist track - Backwater # Notes - Weird, in a nice way. - Didn't like "Julie With"
# Playlist track - Criminology (feat. Ghostface Killah) # Notes - The album starts with 2 minutes of nonsensical phrases that end with "son". Awful. - Read the wiki, thought it was a cool idea, but it doesn't hold itself together. - There are nice beats and melodies here and there, but after the album is over, I don't want to hear nothing that rhymes with "son", "man", "dog", and "sayin'" for 3 months. - Also, horrible singing in "Heaven & Hell"
# Playlist track - Man in a Shed # Notes - Never heard of him before, nor about his story. - Cool album, ended up listening to it 2 or 3 times in a row. - Definitely coming back to it in the future.
# Playlist track - Gentlemen # Notes - I had that cover SO much. - Enjoyable album, but doesn't hold itself all the way. The final songs are not very interesting. - I had high hopes for this, because I really like their album "[[The Afghan Whigs, Do The Beast|Do the beast]]" from 2014. That's on me, I guess.
# Playlist track - Rolling # Notes - What a FANTASTIC listen. - Great album, interesting and fun from start to finish. - One of the best I've heard so far. 7/7
# Playlist track - Spinning Wheel. # Notes - Great album! It's all over the place, but it the coolest way possible. - Made me jump out of my chair when I recognized "Spinning Wheel" from Jason Forrest's incredible animation "War Photographer." - Do yourself a favor and go check it out if you haven't watched it yet. - Taking one star off due to the annoying tracks at the end.
# Playlist track - My Uncle # Notes - Interesting listen and definitely worth re-visiting. - Knowing nothing about them beforehand, it all seems a bit repetitive and over done. - This might be just due to the fact that they are so influencial that I've heard hundreds of songs copying them but I didn't realize. - 4 stars.
# Playlist track - White Rabbit # Notes - I knew some of the songs from compilation albums, but didn't listen to it before. - This is ALL over the place. They've tried their hand at pretty much every rhythm and style they could fit in this album. - Lot's of great gems, but a few also fall short. - Grace Slick really shines on the vocals, huh. Both White Rabbit and Somebody to Love are just amazing. - Also cool to listen to this version of "Plastic Fantastic Lover"! I only knew the version from "In Concert" and I assumed it was the only one. It's still my favorite, tho. They are called "Jefferson Starship" at that moment?
# Playlist track - Any Major Dude # Notes - My first Steely Dan album, and it's a great one. I've been hearing this over and over the entire day. - Super impressive breadth! Overall the album goes steadily on a ballad-like rhythm, but then it throws weird and cool tracks like "East St. Louis Toodle-Oo" at you from outta nowhere. - 5/5 will hear again!
# Playlist track - The Wind Cries Mary # Notes - When you hear the first chords of "Purple Haze" you can already tell that this is going to be a hell of a trip. One of the best song openings, ever. - The album goes by without a hitch, it's simultaneously fluid and light and free, but then comes those small genius moments and you stop work to listen to whatever is going on. - The bridge in "Highway Chile" - The chorus in "Fire" - The solo in "The Wind Cries Mary" - The bridge just before the solo in "Love Or Confusion" - Superb. All the stars!
# Playlist track - Dreams by the sea # Notes - Very trippy, in a good way. - The opening track is fantastically moody, followed by a happy one, than a gloomy one, then a groovy one, and so on. - There are some boring misses, like "Go Down Easy" and "May You Never" (the most popular one?!) so I'm taking one star out.
# Playlist track - You Are My Sunshine # Notes - Ray Charles is super brave to go on and declare what the "modern sounds" are. - I'm by no means a music historian, but it does look like he was right. I never heard this album before, but I kind of recognize it. - Super interesting piece of history! - Album is a bit repetitive after 24 tracks. Taking one star out.
# Playlist track - Wild Flower # Notes - Albums starts out OK, but gets worse with each track. - -2 stars for an version of "Born To Be Wild" that is worse than what we usually get in drunken karaoke. - -1 star for the annoying and repetitive screaming.
# Playlist track - Everything is Everything # Notes - Cool listen, but not really my thing. - Half the album is just OK, but there are a few great songs. Not enough for a great album, tho.
# Playlist track - Samba Pa Ti # Notes - I really wish I had met this album back when I was listening to [[G3, Live in Concert]] all day. - Amazing album, some real bangers in there, and the guitar solos never get too long and tiring. - Latin beats really tie it all up together.
# Playlist track - I've got you under my skin # Notes - It's Frank Sinatra, so it cannot be terrible. But it's not great either. - All tracks are a bit too much the same. It's a pleasant listen, constant, fun. Just not great.
# Playlist track - Take the "A" train # Notes - I'm into jazz, and also into jazz performances, but I couldn't get to the end of this one, despite trying twice. - There are so many introductions, and announcements, and clapping and talking. - Albums stretches for over 2 hours, but you can never get in the zone, because you're going to be interrupted by people taking.
# Playlist track - Shout it out loud # Notes - The 1:30 intro to "Detroit Rock City" (which is a great track!) is silly, and should be in a separate track. No way I'm willing to listen to that every time I want to enjoy the music. -1 star. - It's not a bad album. Some good tracks in there, but not great either.
# Playlist track - Heart of Gold # Notes - It's an interesting listen. Possibly with the exception of Every Man Needs a Maid. - It's a shame it's not available on Spotify. Fuck Joe Rogan. +1 Star for Neil.
# Playlist track - soon # Notes - MBV, again? I just listened to [[My Bloody Valentine, m b v]] a few weeks ago. - It feels as you're listening to the album through defective speakers. - I get that the full, noisy sound is intentional and it's supposed to evoke some kind of feeling, but that doesn't work for me. - The grand exception here is "soon". It just works so much better. Maybe it's for this weird pauses in the main ultra distorted guitar sound for the weird experimental violin-ish guitars. +1 star
# Playlist track - The Modern Age # Notes - Boy, this makes me feel old. This was *amazing* when it came out. And it's aging pretty well! +1 - The opening chord +1 - Cover art +1 - Hard to choose a favorite track for the playlist +1 - No bad tracks +1
# Playlist track - Regiment # Notes - Interesting but a bit too challenging for the casual listen. - I can kind of relate to how much of an impact this must have brought back in the 80s, but in my experience this album is more of a curiosity than anything.
# Playlist track - Never Let Me Down Again # Notes - Dark and brooding in an interesting way, at least at first. - After tracks 4-5 it loses some of the shine and become repetitive. Might need to listen a few more times to get into it.
# Playlist track - Two Doves # Notes - The male vocals are overstretched in pretty much all the tracks. - Never ending unnecessary harmonies feel pretentious. - Boring as hell. - One star for being kind of unique sounding but that's all.
# Playlist track - Penguin Cafe Single # Notes - Super freaky and experimental, but with some nice, more accessible tracks to ease it off. - The opening track is kind of great. - Great instrumentation. - Only a couple of tracks are reeeeally hard to enjoy.
# Playlist track - Could You Be The One? # Notes - Album is too long and tracks blend into each other. - There is an interesting, energetic vibe, but it's too repetitive. - I was intrigued by the sound and the band and might try to listen a "best of" or another, shorter album.
# Playlist track - All things must pass # Notes - Amazing listen. Great tracks like "Beware Of Darkness", "My Sweet Lord" and "What is Life". - Some epic moments and also a few that drag too long, like the closing track "Out of the blue" - It's worth the listen, but the 2 hour + playtime is a tall order and it's perfectly understandable to get tired of it halfway through.
# Playlist track - Organ Donor # Notes - Super solid album. - It's super experimental, so it kind of loses me at times, and it's definitely not the easiest thing to listen. Still super cool! - Incredible sampling.
# Playlist track - Long Promised Road # Notes - Great listen! - -1 star for the sirens on "Student Demonstration Time" -
# Playlist track - Köln, January 24, 1975, Pt. II C - Live # Notes - Interesting concert with some really really great moments. - I'm not a huge fan of improvisations and still managed to enjoy it.
# Playlist track - Planet Rock # Notes - Very cool to recognize the hook from "Planet Rock" from pretty much everywhere. When I went to find an example and figured out it's originally from Kraftwerk's Trans-Europe Express. - That sample instantly throws my mind to the late 90s and early 2000s. - I do understand the folks that find the album a bit repetitive and that it didn't age too well. You've heard it a thousand times, but in other places. - Insane cover art!
# Playlist track - Running with the Devil # Notes - Running with the Devil is a great opener, but follow that with Eruption instead of "You Really Got Me" is a bit of flow breaker. I enjoy Eddie's solos as much as the next person, but -1 star. - Otherwise, pretty great album. Full of energy and fun.
# Playlist track - Bridge over troubled water # Notes - I've heard the title track 1000 times since I was a kid and downloaded it on Napster or something. Still hits just the same. +3 stars. - Andean music?! Amazing. +1 - I'd love to say that I can't stand another "La la lie" from The Boxer, but I would be lying. +1 - I don't LOVE the final tracks. They're cool, but so far in the album the bar is too high. -1
# Playlist track - The Hardest Button to Button # Notes - Seven Nation Army has been played to hell, but it still SLAPS. +1 - Interesting, fun and energetic throughout +2 - Not one bad track +1 - Cool visuals +1
# Playlist track - "Thing Called Love" # Notes - Opening track suffers from a serious case of "80s keyboard sample" but it's cool. +1 - "Thing Called Love" is super campy and fun. +1 - The slower, love-balady tracks that follow are a bit boring, and unfortunately they set the done for the rest of the album. - 80s Hair and outfit on the cover are also +1 star.
# Playlist track - Damn, dis-moi # Notes - Starts out with a mediocre dance ballad. -1 - I notice there's 1:30 hour of this and immediately despair. - It's some kind of watered down La Roux. -2. - Album is not bad, but it's bland. It sets itself on a lukewarm tone and never deviates from it.
# Playlist track - Elevation # Notes - Album starts pretty OK. The first 3 tracks were huge back then, but didn't age too well. Still cool, as long as it's in homeophatic dosage. +3 stars - The chorus for "Beautiful Day" has some oomph to it, but its just way overplayed. Not their fault, tho. - "Stuck in a moment You Can't Get Out Of" suffers from an ever worse case. It's not even the whole chorus, it's just the first phrase. Just OK track, bad vocals, spectacular 1-liner. - "Elevation" still sounds cool. Corny cool. But cool. Bono is there to avoid it being great. - From there on it's just downhill. It's kind of amazing, really. One after the other, each subsequent track is worse. -2 stars. - A horrible album with a passable opening act.
# Playlist track - Fify Years After The Fair # Notes - It's on OK album. Whatever, as the title says. - 90s balady, not groundbreaking, not too annoying. Whatever.
# Playlist track - I'll kiss you # Notes - Listening to "Girls just wanna have fun" at home, with good speakers is really interesting. There are some interesting instrumentals that are lost when the song is blared in shitty speakers late at night in a disco club. - Very interesting range here. I like the SKA guitars on "Witness" and the synths on "I'll Kiss You" very much. - Super fun album 6/7 stars.
# Playlist track - Just My Imagination # Notes - Great production. Sounds are rich, interesting and there are cool hooks throughout +2 - No bad songs +1 - Super corny, but like "cool 80s corny" +1 - Album lacks a killer track or unforgettable moment. Still super good!
# Playlist track - Stardust # Notes - Willie tells how it is from the very first second. It's cool, and crafted and it takes it time. Sit around and enjoy. Look at the sky for a while. - It's a pleasant, soothing ride all along. - When "Unchained Melody" comes up, I dread for a second. It's a very cheesy, overplayed song. Will it break the album? Nope. - 7/7 Stars
# Playlist track - Baby Can I Hold You # Notes - Impressive vocal control, interesting range. Sometimes a bit TOO minimalistic. - Great album.
# Playlist track - Movin' on Up # Notes - Album was brand new to me. - Love/hate the cover. - Weird moments like "Don't fight it, feel it" shake up the listening experience but don't annoy too much. Well done. - Come Together could have been a great song, but the intro is waaay to long. - Interesting listen, great flow, will definitely come back to it. 5/7. # Links
# Playlist track - Personality Crisis # Notes - The first impression is really... something. The punk vibes, the weird outfits, the piano blaring along. Cool. - Top notch punk! 6/7
# Playlist track - Keep On Moving # Notes - Very repetitive. A bit bland and uninteresting. - Not annoying or anything like that. But just OK. - Enjoyable.
# Playlist track - Let's Get It On # Notes - One of the most iconic album openings ever. - Nothing else in the album quite beats that single moment. Not the track. The opening 3 seconds. - Not to say that it's a bad album. It's pretty enjoyable all around.
# Playlist track - Big Time Sensuality # Notes - There are some fun beats and interesting explorations, I'll give her that. Also hard to imagine how would have been to listen to this back in 1993. - Having said that. - Bjork has awful vocal range and the higher notes and screams are often incredibly annoying. - "Anchor Song" is boring. "Aeroplane" is insufferable. - Nice to listen once, for its uniqueness and variety, but no longer than that.
# Playlist track - On Hold # Notes - If I had never listened to anything from the XX before, I would rate this album higher. - It's a good album, no doubt about it. It's dreamy, electric, chill pop in a very good way. But it's not GREAT. You kind of float through it and there's not much happening until "On Hold" hits. - Final Rating: Go listen to "xx" instead. 5/7 stars.
# Playlist track - Electioneering # Notes - One of those albums that has influenced so many bands that it's hard to imagine how it was hearing it back then. +2 stars - "Filter Happier" is a bit of a downer in the middle of the album. -1 star. - Riffs for "Electioneering" are just plain fantastic + 2 stars. - "No Surprises" is a masterpiece, and the music video that goes along with it too. +1 star
# Playlist track - Across The Great Divide # Notes - Hated the silly joke with the name, but the opening track is solid! - Great country album throughout!
# Playlist track - You and Whose Army? # Notes - I have the strong impression that this is one of those albums that are *hard* to listen. You need to give it time and attention. Play through a few times. You'll *earn* the right to delight on it. - Not having the time or energy for that right now, it's just a disjointed, weird listening experience. With some excellent moments interwoven with a lot of senseless wailing and depression.
# Playlist track - Paper Tiger # Notes - I had the "privilege" of listening to this after a nasty breakup. It was great. - The instrumentals on "Paper Tiger" are just great and it finished off with an amazing "but there's no road back to you" line that fits perfectly. - The album gets a bit too depressing sometimes, like in Around The Bend, but it changes things around enough that it doesn't ruin your day. - Listening now, I'm tempted to take 1 star off as the album stales a bit towards the end, but that is pretty much in character for the theme, so this takes all the stars. 7/7.
# Playlist track - Baby, Please Don't Go # Notes - Amazing blues. Hard to overstate his influence.
- Not available on Deezer and Shopify. Listened to some random youtube upload. - The opening track is atrocious, but it gets better. -1 star. - The rest of the album is... ok. - Not bad, but not good enough to make me go back for another listen.
# Playlist track - Enter Sandman # Notes - I've listened to Metallica when I was younger and it would immediately transport me to somewhere else. It was fast, angry, energetic, but also cool as fuck. - The album cannot keep the pace from "Enter Sandman" throughout the entire play time. But that is just a bar too high. Still giving this all the stars.
# Playlist track - When I Grow Up # Notes - I love the dreamy, hazy atmosphere and Karin's vocals and accent are just superb. - I get the comparison with Bjork, but I completely disagree! - 5/7 stars. Pretty cool!
# Playlist track - A Case Of You # Notes - Interesting listen. I didn't know much from Joni Mitchell before. - She has a tendency to "over sing" in some parts of the album. It doesn't feel like this is a lack of skill. Seems to be that those are ornaments and flourishes to add character and interest. However, for me, they tend to sound more distracting than interesting. -1 star. - By the end of the album, you are already a bit tired, and then you have to listen to "The Last Time I Saw Richard" which is the worst offender. -1 star.
# Playlist track - Believe # Notes - For some reason only the first couple of tracks are available on Spotify, I've pierced the album from Youtube Playlists. - Never heard of them before, album starts with a very cool mix of western vibes and my hopes are UP. - Unfortunately, the album doesn't really take off at all. - There are some interesting moments, cool riffs and vocals and you can kind of forget that you are listening to a boring album. After a few minutes, that cool little piece of music will be reused 10 times and you'll be back to thinking that this is a boring album. - Filled with interesting ideas, but none of them really pan out. 2 stars.
# Playlist track - I Never Asked to Be Your Mointain # Notes - What, he was Jeff Buckley's father? And they met only once? And he died of heroine overdose and then his son wasn't invited to the funeral? - Reading this guy's Wikipedia page was a wild ride. - Album is OK. Hard to imagine hearing it back in the 60's. Must have sounded super interesting. Still cool, but not breathtaking.
# Playlist track - Superstition # Notes - This is the album that has "Superstition" so I was really impressed that it was not the most popular track. I didn't know "Your Are The Sunshine Of My Life" but it IS pretty good too! - Super enjoyable album. - Some nice tricks are overdone, like the chorus on "Maybe Your Baby", so -1 star for that.
# Playlist track - Tighten Up # Notes - Great mix of rock and blues. Catchy riffs. - A bit too long at 1h 17min.
# Playlist track - Supersonic # Notes - Super nostalgic, but still rocks! - The "maybeeee" opening from Live Forever makes me want to sing "Wonderwall" -1 star
# Playlist track - One Two Cha Cha Cha # Notes - This is super interesting. Kind of made me want to see the movie.
# Playlist track - Weary # Notes - When I first listened to the album I found it to be *mostly* uninspired. It's good-enough soul. A bit too light, too diluted. Not too bad, not great. 4/7. - Reading about it, it seems that there is some good songwriting in there, but I didn't pay attention while listening, so take that into consideration.
# Playlist track - Sour Times # Notes - All around amazing. - I was lucky enough to get a hold of a pirate MP3 download of this one as a teenager. I always carried it on a pendrive whenever I went. - All the stars!
# Playlist track - Faeries Wear Boots # Notes - Weird-ass amazing cover art +1 star - Paranoid and the memories of playing "Rock and Roll Racing" +1 star - "I am Iron Man" +1 star - The worst track (Rat Salad) is still good +1 star - Shaped what it even means to play Metal music +1 star. - But seriously, this is an amazing album.
# Playlist track - Bird Of Beauty # Notes - Super trippy and fun. - +1 star for the phrases in Portuguese in "Bird of Beauty"
# Playlist track - Something for the Weekend # Notes - Album has some fun moments, but it's overall extremely overdone. To the point, I kept trying to figure out the the "Comedy" on the band's name was literal. - "The Dogs & The Horses" alone is worth -3 stars.
# Playlist track - Firesuit # Notes - Solid opening track (Firesuit) and follow-up (Here It Comes). - On Break me Gently, the "breaking" effect on the vocals is overdone and distracts from the song, which wouldn't be bad if it didn't sound like it was streamed over a bad connection. -1 star. - The rest of the album sits between "nice" and "forgettable" most of the time. - The band doesn't bring enough variety to fill the entire hour of the album. The damn "breaking" effect comes back in the beginning of "The Cedar Room" (the most listened to song in Spotify) and I can't help but skip it every time. -1 star - Reprise and A House are completely unnecessary filler and add nothing to the experience. -1 star
# Playlist track - Ten Years Gone # Notes - An incredible album, that I can't help but wish to be shorter. - There are no horrible tracks in this, at all. But having just-OK material shipped along with amazing stuff just makes the album a bit more bland than it could be. - It was really hard to choose a favorite, but being now a parent of an 11-year old, "Ten Years Gone" hit hard.
# Playlist track - Uh-Oh, Love Comes to Town # Notes - That's the album with "Psycho Killer", so my hopes were high! - David Byrne's vocals are super weird. It's hard to pin the whole thing on a specific genre on mood, but that keeps it fun and interesting. - Ended up listening to the whole thing 4-5 times trying to make sense of it.
# Playlist track - The Visitors # Notes - Starts out energetic and fun, but doesn't keep up throughout. - It's still good quality pop, but it's a bit of a letdown, especially compared with other ABBA hits, including the title track of the album.
# Playlist track - Proud Mary # Notes - A super enjoyable album! Great vibes, instrumentals and rhythm. - "Proud Mary" is an all time classic.
# Playlist track - Zen Archer # Notes - I'm always conflicted by this super experimental albums. - I can kind of sense that there is something in there. It was the 70s. Everything about it is unexpected and weird. This takes some real skill to do. - At the same time, you can't just listen to this thing once and go on about your day. It's just annoying. I might try to come back to it eventually and might revisit the score.
# Playlist track - Ripple # Notes - I've known this album for some time, but I don't thing I heard it entirely back-to-back. - I really love "Ripple"s lyrics. Always had. Not sure why. - The album has a couple of songs that are *really* downers, so -1 star for that.
# Playlist track - Blitzkrieg Bop # Notes - This is maximum energy, maximum energy, maximum fun. - Simple, cool, doesn't need to act or pretend. - I don't think I'll ever be careless, or free or fun as this album, and that sucks.
# Playlist track - I've never found a girl # Notes - Excellent opening! - All around great album. Nice metals, great vocals and a great listen overall.
# Playlist track - Morning will come # Notes - I kind of enjoy some parts of the album, and there is interesting experimentation here and there. But overall, it feels disjointed, and kind of a lackluster experience.
# Playlist track - Moonshake # Notes - This is a *really* cool album. There are some very endearing moments and you get really get lost into the nonsensical vocals and the flowing instrumentals. - The opening track, Future Days, reminds a lot of [[Air, Moon Safari]] - Definitely recommend to listen to this at least a couple of times. - Having the fact that it was released in '73 in perspective makes it even more interesting.
# Playlist track - Good Fortune # Notes - I've heard ABOUT PJ Harvey so many times while studying design. But never stopped to listen to her. Maybe I tried in some weird past. But I don't even remember it. - It's an interesting listen, and I catch myself all the time thinking that I should have tried it more when I was, in fact, a teenager. - I really like the Radiohead-ish tracks with Thom Yorke. But it feels like listening to Radiohead more than PJ Harvey.
# Playlist track - Don't know why # Notes - It's never too bad, all things considered. Starts off great, but then it just fails to go anywhere. - A bit too slow, too soft, too mellow. - Not bad, but not interesting either.
# Playlist track - Sound and Vision # Notes - Never heard this album before, even though "sound and vision" is one of my favorite Bowie tracks, ever. - Album starts out pretty great. Excellent opening. Fun, energetic, but it something does sideways halfway around. A set of weird experimental tracks takes over and they just feel out of place.
# Playlist track - Da Funk # Notes - I really love Daft Punk, but I got to admit that this one is kind of a weird choice. - It makes sense in the context of some awesome electronic party going on, I guess. - But if I forget that Daft Punk made this, and this is part of them building up to RAM, this album is *not that great*. - Sure, there are a lof of cool experiments and enjoyable moments, but there's also an plenty of long stretches of lost beats and loops.
# Playlist track - Little Fury Things # Notes - Weird and noisy at times, but have some great riffs. - Kind of remind me of being younger, for some reason. Maybe is the grunge-ness of it all. - This is earlier than bands live Nirvana and Pearl Jam, so must have been super mind-blowing at the time.
# Playlist track - Rock of Ages # Notes - Solid hard rock, from start to finish. - I don't really have a sin to take out any stars. It's a really good album. It's fun and energetic. It's just *not amazing*. - Had a lot of fun recognizing the opening from Offspring's Pretty Fly (for a White Guy) on "Rock of Ages"
# Playlist track - A Funky Space Reincarnation # Notes - It's Marvin Gaye. The vocals are great, there is some soul to it. It's soft and cool. But if I hadn't listen to other tracks from Gaye, I doubt I would pay this one much attention. - As usual, I listen while working and doing stuff, not paying much attention. After that, I read some of the reviews, and this album seem to be a very different experience when you factor in the whole divorce thing. Not taking that into factor for this review.
# Playlist track - After Hours # Notes - Not particularly interesting. - Found "Murder Mystery" to be way too gimmicky and the rest of the album to meander between "oh, that's really nice" and "can't this track just end already?"
# Playlist track - Wanna be Startin' Somethin' # Notes - This thing has Thriller, Beat It and Billie Jean. In a row! - It's fun, campy, catchy, infectious maybe. All around amazing listen.
# Playlist track - The Age Of the Understatement # Notes - Never heard of it before, even though I really like the Arctic Monkeys. - Found it enjoyable over all. Interesting tracks, especially in the opening tracks. Loses some steam midway though and end up on a somewhat disappointing ending. - Very cool movi-esque instrumentals everywhere.
# Playlist track - oh, baby # Notes - It's a dense album, not a dance one. I kind of like the dancier LCD Soundsystem. - Not bad, not great. Worth the listen.
# Playlist track - Rhythm Nation # Notes - I expected *nothing* of this and found the album to be pretty solid! I like the beat! - There is too much filler and empty space in the album. Useless interludes that don't really add to the experience and a couple of meh tracks. - All in all, way better than I expected and definitely worth checking out!
# Playlist track - 19-2000 # Notes - Still sounds amazing! Definitely influenced by how I felt *back then* when I listened to "Clint Eastwood" for the first time on MTV. - The album is pretty great all around, with the exception of "M1 A1", which is kind of boring. - Very iconic album and definitely worth your time to listen a couple of times, and watch the videos too!
# Playlist track - Fit But You Know It # Notes - One of the worst albums I've ever heard. - Opening track would be enough to make me quit the entire album if I wasn't listening for this project. One of the worst chorus ever. - Pretty much every track flows in a weird way, but not like in a cool broken-but-it-makes-sense like in some prog rocks and jazz. Just wonky. - The only reason this album gets one star is because there are some very interesting beats scattered throughout. It's just a shame that we cannot enjoy them without the horrible vocals laid on top.
# Playlist track - Hymn Of The Big Wheel # Notes - An genre-defining album. - Love the ebb and flow of the rhythm as the listening goes on. It never gets boring or repetitive and ends in an awesome note. - Must-listen. And a great starting point to digging more into massive attack and trip-hop in general.
# Playlist track - Light My Fire # Notes - Definitely not without its flaws. - There are some boring moments, the lengthy solo, and the over the top moodiness in "The End". But it's a pretty great listen and left it's mark on the history of music.
# Playlist track - Cowboy # Notes - Let me start by saying that I have no goddamned idea of what the lyrics say. I listen to these albums while working or doing something else, so it doesn't really get to my head. - I'm mentioning it because folks seem to thing it's REALLY shitty, and there's no way in hell that I'm listening to it all again just to make sure. - The album sets with the right foot. It's energetic, and have a pretty cool beat. - "Cowboy" instantly takes me to listening to MTV on my grandmother's house. - Mid-album it has become repetitive already. - When the ballady track and the bunch-of-talking one hit, I want to stop listening. - It's kind of experience for folks my age to take a listen, but not a very good album to be honest.
# Playlist track - Rio # Notes - When I saw the cover on the recommendation page, I knew this would be great! - The opening track, Rio, started playing and it even blew my expectations! - I love the punchy bass, the synths, the mood. Awesome album all around, no bad tracks! - One of the best 80's albums.
# Playlist track - Crawling # Notes - There are some solid tracks in there. Both "Crawling" and "In the end" definitely left a dent in the early 2000s. - Other than that, I wasn't a huge fan when I was a teenager, and listening to it now, it seems like a very teenager-ish album. - The instrumentals are not great, the raping verses tend to be bland. The calm to angry transitions get a bit old before the album is over. - But in the end, it doesn't even matter.
# Playlist track - You're all I've got tonight # Notes - Never heard those guys before. Since I was too lazy to come up with this entry, I ended up listening to it for a couple of days, and I ended up enjoying it. - It's not an amazing album, but I kind of like it! - Won't change your life, but it's fun and well worth the listen.
# Playlist track - Your Latest Trick # Notes - I used to LOVE playing the sax lines of "Your Latest Trick" on the Keyboard back in my teens. - The first side is absolutely brilliant. Banger after banger, no comments. - Side B is a bit weaker, but since A is so great, I'm taking out only a star for it.
# Playlist track - B.I.B.L.E. (Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth) # Notes - The album have its moments! Sometimes the flow, the samples and the mood hit just right. - Waiting for those moments is a bit boring tho. - Maybe more context on the time, the culture, or even Wu Tang would reveal me more about the tracks. There definitely seems to be a layer of it for people in the know. - I doubt I'll come back to look for them. In my -admittedly limited- experience, it's just another rap album and shouldn't be in this list.
# Playlist track - Change # Notes - It's one of these albums that takes some time to digest and enjoy. - First run, I pretty much hated it. The mixing is weird, with muffled vocals and muddy bass sometimes. Just didn't seem to make any sense. - This is especially noticeable in "Wardance". - As I listened to it a couple more times, it grew on me, though. There are cool riffs, a lot of raw energy. - Not a great album for me, but one worth getting to know at least once.
# Playlist track - Something 4 the weekend # Notes - Albums starts right, with high energy and cool guitars. But it completely looses itself along the way. - Band members seem disjointed. And not it a "wow, this is innovative" kind of way. - Similarly, tracks are so disconnected from one another that it feels more like a buckshot fired from a mile. - Overall, a very forgettable experience that I seriously doubt I'll want to repeat.
# Playlist track - Wish you were here # Notes - The weird thing about this album is that it's only 5 tracks long. Each track ebbs and flows in all kinds of interesting directions. - There are long solos and weird explorations, yes. - But they just work together. One moment melts into the next and you never feel stuck or waiting for something to happen. - And, of course, there is the title track, which is just the perfect amount of trippy, sad, and emotional. - Definitely worth listening at least once in your life! 5 stars!
# Playlist track - Jeremy Bender # Notes - Too overwhelming. Too much, all the time. - I know and enjoy some other tracks from ELP (C'est La Vie, Lucky Man) but "Tarkus" is just too relentless and neverending. Feels like a wierd mismatch and I couldn't really get it.
# Playlist track - Heartattack And Vine # Notes - The album kicks off on a moody, kind of interesting vibe, which is super nice. But it never leaves. By the 3rd track I'm kind of sick of the same shtick. - It then tried to get moving again and becomes enjoyable for a while. Waits then falls again on the hole and it's back to the same old. - The atmosphere is there, it's well executed. But it's a bit boring to stay at this bar for the entire album.
# Playlist track - I Will Dare # Notes - I don't dislike much about the album, but there's not much to like either. - Vocals are kind of weak. Some good riffs, good energy. - Can't reprehend it too much for sounding extremely 80s, as I have no idea if they are a cause or consequence of this. - I've got a feeling that I would like it more if I've gotten to this while I was younger.
# Playlist track - Darklands # Notes - A pretty cool surprise. I knew nothing about them. - Got hooked pretty much straight away. - What's with this album and rain? - Definitely worth the listen, and I look forward to getting to know others too.
# Playlist track - Super Rick Kids # Notes - This album is so weird. But it's also so interesting. - I love the "Street Fighter" sounds at the opening track. - I'm not really a hip hop guy, but there are so many things to hear on this album. It was hard to choose a favorite track. - Might be just me, but it doesn't seem that Ocean is a great singer. lol. That doesn't get in the way, tho. - Recommended for all. Five stars.
# Playlist track - Zero # Notes - The opening tracks are SO DIFFERENT from the rest that the whole things even seems like a scam of sorts. - Zero and Heads Will Roll are amazing, but it goes downhill from there, really fast. - The last few ones, especially the acoustic versions are downright awful. - It's boring, repetitive and doesn't bare any resemblance to the energetic and fun opening. What a shame.
# Playlist track - Silver # Notes - I stumbled upon this album a few years ago, and it was an incredible experience. Listening to it again, I'm glad to say it still feels the same. - The delivery is cool, the album got an interesting rhythm and under 37 minutes, it's gone before it starts to drag itself. Good call.
# Playlist track - Anyway The Wind Blows # Notes - This starts out super interesting. It's a dazzling journey crashing on so many different styles and references that I cannot help but admire it. - There is such a thing as "too much kazoo" for an album. Lol. - Taking 3 stars out for the last 3 tracks. They are incredibly annoying. Maybe that's the point? Couldn't stand it, so congrats if that's what you wanted.
# Playlist track - Smooth Criminal # Notes - Not the greatest, but enjoyable throughout. - "Bad" and "Smooth" criminal are enough to justify hearing to the whole thing, anyway. - The other tracks (with the exception of Liberian Girl, maybe?) are good. Nothing special. But they are perfectly executed and polished. - 4/5, recommend!
# Playlist track - There's no way in hell I'm adding any of those tracks to my playlist. # Notes - I admire the commitment. I really do. However, this is so bad that it almost made me a conservative so I could complain about "them kids and they shitty music." - It's noisy and wild, sure. But not in a "oh wow, this noisy album is so cool!" kind of way.
# Playlist track - Sun Hits The Sky # Notes - Listened to this a couple of times to make sure. Not once I caught myself wanting to learn more, or add a track to my playlists. - It's a fine album, sure. It's also not memorable. - Interesting how many people praise this in terms of life in the UK. That might make sense. But honestly, it's not a great album for folks literally everywhere else.
# Playlist track - Train Leaves Here This Morning # Notes - I like the atmosphere, the laid-back vibe. - The best moments remind me of The Grateful Dead, actually. - +1 star for great cover art. - A mostly peaceful, very enjoyable album. Recommend.
# Playlist track - Red Barchetta # Notes - "Tom Sawyer" is a great opening to the album, and it is followed brilliantly by my favorite one here, Red Barchetta. - YYZ picks out great but meanders a bit too deeply into over elaborate compositions, and the band won't get out of there until the last track, Vital Signs come up. - A super enjoyable experience and a very rich one at that. Definitely recommend listening at least once!
# Playlist track - Get It While You Can # Notes - Janis vocals are so refreshingly fun and unique. - The accompanying band is absolutely amazing. Instrumentals are top-notch throughout! - Janis seems like a fascinating character, and the album cover just compliments that nicely. - Definitely worth giving a listen, or two, or three. Super fun and rewarding.
# Playlist track - Natalie's Party # Notes - This is mediocre britpop, at best. - Doesn't start out that bad (that's probably why I chose the first song to add to my playlist). - There are interesting instrumentals and a very full, rich sound in many tracks. - Those are one of the best features in the album, but they are overdone a number of times. - Crescendos grow forever, and more and more instruments are added before the silly fade out ends your suffering. - The vocals are appalling. The first minute in "Comedy" has some of the worst phrases ever sung in a mic. - Not going to revisit this, and I like britpop a little less after that.
# Playlist track - Can you get to that # Notes - The opening track is a bit too slow. It doesn't really fit well with the rest of the album, and leads you into a different place that just don't exist anywhere else in the album. - The mix of funk and progressive/psychedelic rock that takes on is super cool! Not quite funk, not quite rock. Something interesting and new.
# Playlist track - Tears Dry On Their Own # Notes - Amy's vocals are absolutely brilliant. She sings with a very rare combination of talent, technique and emotion that is in full display on this album. - The band follows dutifully. She is supported by amazing instrumentals and production. - Just learned that Mark Ronson has his hand in the production of the album. That makes a lot of sense. - I remember listening to it back when it was released, and you couldn't go to any parties without "Rehab" being played twice. Re-listening again, it's impossible not to get a little bit sad about her tragic life and all the sadness that fueled these amazing songs.
# Playlist track - Sultans of Swing # Notes - Just got "Brothers in Arms" recently. Nice to hear their debut and to connect them together. - This one isn't as polished or interesting as the next, but it's a great debut. Their style is pretty unique and it's well worked in each track. Not long enough to be boring or repetitive. - Not life changing, but definitely worth the listen!
# Playlist track - Astronomy Domine # Notes - It's kind of interesting to listen and to ponder what Pink Floyd could have been with Syd Barret. - Having said that, this isn't a great album. It's interesting, and noisy, but it is not quite there yet. - Worth a listen, but just move over to the other albums after.