I was transported to Funky Town, population: me
Easy to listen to but probably just not my genre
I can't remember if this is my first listen through this whole album. It's a good album on its own, but definitely not my favorite by the Black Keys.
For me it's missing the raw Mississippi Delta blues guitar work that forms the core of their earlier albums Thickfreakness and Magic Potion, which partly returned for El Camino.
Apparently the soundtrack to a Bollywood cult hit film, although the first page of Google search results is for a cologne by the same name. The only tracks I think stand on their own are Aaina Wohi Rehta Hai featuring Lata Mangeshkar and Hum Bewafaa Hargiz Na Thay with Kishore Kumar.
Mouth organ playing alongside a sitar to underlying celtric folk tunes makes for a bizarre listening experience. Perhaps an influence on Comus although less demented. The eclectic mix of instruments seems to get in its own way sometimes, with the occasional fife coming in to play what sounds like a different song. Three is A Green Crown is probably my favorite track on the album.
Never have gotten into Bob Marley's music but I tried to keep an open mind. Still not my genre of music and I don't find much musically interesting about it. Most tracks don't rise above chill background music for me, although a few do the opposite; the repetitive Bend Down Low was incredibly grating on my nerves.
I've been meaning to listen to this album for a long time now; what a fantastic album title. Despite the length, I was surprised at the variety on the album and how well it flows. Contusion reminded me of Herbie Hancock or Jimmy Smith jazz fusion, followed by a damning social critique on Village Ghetto Land juxtaposed with light hearted instrumentation.
I don't have anything smart to say about any other tracks but "As" was probably my favorite that I didn't know before.
A great album but I'm maintaining an arbitrary rule of "5 star rating means I would never skip a single track".
I've always liked the first 3 tracks on this album. After a listen through the whole album nothing's changed there; there's some fun slide guitar on Victim of Love but everything else is forgettable for me.
Maybe the most abrasive vocals of any punk/hardcore band I've heard. Maybe not my genre overall but I did dig the punchy bass parts on Think Again. I didn't make it past the third track and instead listened to a more listenable punk album from 2 years earlier, the very uneven debut album from Bad Religion. I'm dismayed that none of their albums were deemed worthy of this list.
A fun curiosity. It's a bit hard to imagine a time when the sitar was unknown to Western music.
I like the grunge instrumentation of Smashing Pumpkins, but have always found Corgan's vocals the weakest part of the band. Would be emotional tracks like Disarm lack a punch for me from his whiny tone. Maybe I'm missing out on good songwriting, but I inevitably feel I'd rather be listening to any other of their alt-rock or grunge contemporaries, from Alice in Chains to Cranberries.
Been a while since I've listened to the whole album. Surprised a little at how slow the album starts but still agree that it's a masterpiece overall.
Bombastic, overwrought vocals throughout. Technically might be great singing talent but I can't appreciate the songwriting or genre at all.
An album I really like. Standouts for me are Cemetry Gates, Bigmouth Strikes Again, There Is A Light... Listening to the full album I'm struck at the influence on Belle and Sebastian and I'm sure a host of other bands. Morrissey's lyrics on some tracks like Some Girls remind me of lyrical comedy rock like Electric Six.
She has a powerful voice and I enjoyed a few tracks. Sounded like strong inspiration for Elton John's Lion King soundtrack, and I was reminded of Harry Belafonte calypso music in parts. My high was ended when the weird duet track came around with a giggling man.
Although very different bands, Supertramp has the clean, tight focus I like about fellow 70s prog rock band Yes. I'm familiar with 2 of their other albums and like maybe half the tracks on each of them.
Overall I'm not sure I like the early Stones sound. Dripping in reverb, Mick Jagger's straining half yells. Couldn't get through Going Home, but I do like Under My Thumb.
Not my favorite style of jazz. She has an amazing voice and I wasn't familiar with her before this album came up, which I suppose is what I want from this 1001 albums list.
Tripe
This band is what I imagine it would sound like if someone in the early 2000's traveled 10 years back in time to sing karaoke to LCD Soundsystem in the style of a drunk Townes van Zandt.
I think I first heard about Air from my friend Mike in 2004 when Talkie Walkie released, and initially resisted them based on hearing that album's three singles over and over. I've since grown to love Air.
I like this album start to finish and it's a rare album I wouldn't skip a track on. Fantastic use of the Fender Rhodes and just excellently mixed. 5 stars and that's not just because Robert Dimery has been giving us a lot of stinkers recently.
A great album, although while listening again I don't even remember "I'm in Touch...", the one track that doesn't match the energy on the rest of the album.
The snobbiest criticism I can level at this album is that it is SO listenable and catchy that we've been cursed with every track being co-opted by background music in ads, although it doesn't really make it less enjoyable to me.
This is a near perfect album for me, although I think the closing Josie is not as strong as the other tracks and more songs end with a fade out than I care for.
I'm a sucker for catchy guitar hooks which helps make up for the banal lyrics of AC/DC and grating vocals for me. They wrote some catchy rock anthems that make me want to get out the guitar and learn 3 or 4 chords.
Not my favorite Judas Priest album. This is after they began hitting mainstream radio play with catchy guitar hooks and radio-friendly choruses. Rob Halfords still has one of the most powerful, 10/10 voices in Rock history here. Overall I still prefer earlier albums Sad Wings of Destiny and Hell Bent for Leather.
My first time listening to Animal Collective was in college, finding them in a shared iTunes library and thinking the name sounded cool. I didn't appreciate them then and still don't now. Definitely not my genre and I don't find anything about them particularly musical other than some vocal harmonies. They seem to have the same exact sound and structure to every track and I couldn't bear to finish the album.
Bleh
I thought I was in for a rough time hearing the spoken word vocals on track 1, but I didn't know how good I had it by the time track 2 assaulted my ears with abrasive vocals, then track 3 hit me with the coup de grace of Southern Pop Country Rock. No thanks.
Listening to this album will always remind me of its use in Children of Men. A hauntingly beautiful album to me and generally more calmer than progressive rock tends to be.
I usually find Jack White's raw blues rock to be fun. I may not have listened too closely but didn't find much different about this solo album. Could have done without the detuned player piano banging out chords for an entire song, but I guess that one was old West saloon inspired
I haven't listened to this one as much as Demon Days. The highlights are every track with Del.
I've never heard anything like this. At times, creepy and subdued like Boards of Canada, and other times laying down an intriguing vibraphone laden track. Reading about the artist it makes sense he's influenced by movie scores.
Neil Young is in my category of singer songwriters who I respect but don't like listening to their voices: Bob Dylan et al. A Man Needs a Maid especially hits me with the bombastic orchestral score underpinned by his thin wavering voice.
One of the albums that got me into instrumental hip-hop. I enjoy most of the album throughout and don't think there's much filler.
Never listened to the Fugees before somehow. I love the laid back beats of this era of hip-hop.
Ok I can't resist: All I Wanna Do is turn it off. That's the only song I knew from this album but man that cover of D'yer Mak'er is painful. I guess the music is competent enough but it's definitely not my style.
I know nothing about this band but wasn't expecting the style of this album based on the name alone. Really manic vocals but I kind of enjoy the rockabilly otherwise. It vaguely reminds me of some White Stripes.
I think I gave Songs in the Key of Life 5 stars and still said I liked this album better, so I have to give this one 5 to be fair. Listening to it again in entirety, I actually forgot about the few tracks toward the end which slump a bit. Still, the first half is thoroughly great.
The titular track is by far the best on the record and such a great song. I appreciate that I guess they started or were at least influential on thrash metal, but Motorhead does get repetitive for me unless I'm in the mood to just pay attention to catchy guitar riffs.
Definitely not my thing. For some reason I associate Captain Beefheart with Tom Waits based on the gravelly voices and avant garde mix of genres.
Kanye definitely has a ton of talent in production. I find his mythos and brand insufferable. I usually try to separate the art from the artist but find it impossible to take Kanye seriously when he's still rapping the same trite lyrics about how everybody's blackballing him and telling him he can't make it, etc after he holds what, 20 Grammy's? Get real my man.
Somewhere in a parallel reality is a 5/5 album that sounds exactly like Mellon Collie but sung by someone not Billy Corgan.
I think No Sleep Till Brooklyn is the only track on this album I really like. Most of the others are a bit cringey teenage bravado.
A toss up between Doolittle for my favorite Pixies album, which I guess means I prefer their polished sound.
I'll always have a soft spot for Black Sabbath, between Ozzy's rending vocals, Iommi's guitar lines, the trendsetting bass tone, and the tight drums from the guy whose name I never remember. The debut album isn't my favorite though, and I'm always waiting for the plodding title track to make it to the fantastic outro. N.I.B. is the noteworthy track for me, with one of the classic rock bass lines.
I've come across so much praise for Cohen's songwriting that I feel badly by mentally grouping him with other singer songwriters whom I respect but whose singing I don't want to listen to. Oh well it is what it is, sorry Leonard.
One of the few albums that can place me back in time to where I was when I first heard it; in college, listening to it on campus with my first mp3 player. I think it's in my top 10 or 20 favorite albums but do find these days I have to be in the mood for it. I've liked most of their later albums, but love the frenetic raw energy of De-Loused... Inertiatic, Cicatriz, the closing track.
Not for me. Didn't find any of the tracks engaging except Black Skinhead.
Just noise to me, which I guess is the point. I'd rather listen to Mogwai.
