737
Albums Rated
3.01
Average Rating
68%
Complete
352 albums remaining
Rating Distribution
Rating Timeline
Taste Profile
1990s
Favorite Decade
Grunge
Favorite Genre
UK
Top Origin
Wordsmith
Rater Style ?
59
5-Star Albums
50
1-Star Albums
Breakdown
By Genre
By Decade
By Origin
Albums
You Love More Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Antichrist Superstar | 5 | 2.48 | +2.52 |
| Now I Got Worry | 5 | 2.52 | +2.48 |
| Beyond Skin | 5 | 2.77 | +2.23 |
| Kala | 5 | 2.91 | +2.09 |
| Ctrl | 5 | 2.92 | +2.08 |
| Vulgar Display Of Power | 5 | 2.97 | +2.03 |
| Ghosteen | 5 | 2.97 | +2.03 |
| Post Orgasmic Chill | 5 | 2.99 | +2.01 |
| La Revancha Del Tango | 5 | 3.04 | +1.96 |
| Make Yourself | 5 | 3.07 | +1.93 |
You Love Less Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bridge Over Troubled Water | 1 | 3.97 | -2.97 |
| Dusty In Memphis | 1 | 3.47 | -2.47 |
| Rumours | 2 | 4.46 | -2.46 |
| Coat Of Many Colors | 1 | 3.42 | -2.42 |
| Stardust | 1 | 3.39 | -2.39 |
| Elvis Presley | 1 | 3.38 | -2.38 |
| From Elvis In Memphis | 1 | 3.36 | -2.36 |
| Music From Big Pink | 1 | 3.36 | -2.36 |
| Red Headed Stranger | 1 | 3.35 | -2.35 |
| Horses | 1 | 3.31 | -2.31 |
Artists
Favorites
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Radiohead | 4 | 4.75 |
| Nick Drake | 3 | 4.67 |
| OutKast | 2 | 5 |
| Nirvana | 2 | 5 |
| Massive Attack | 2 | 5 |
| The Prodigy | 2 | 5 |
| Björk | 4 | 4.25 |
| Beastie Boys | 3 | 4.33 |
| Bob Marley & The Wailers | 3 | 4.33 |
Least Favorites
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Willie Nelson | 2 | 1 |
| Dolly Parton | 2 | 1 |
| Elvis Presley | 2 | 1 |
| Bee Gees | 2 | 1 |
| Gene Clark | 2 | 1 |
| Emmylou Harris | 2 | 1 |
| The Rolling Stones | 4 | 1.75 |
| The Kinks | 3 | 2 |
| The Byrds | 3 | 2 |
| Arcade Fire | 3 | 2 |
| Steely Dan | 3 | 2 |
| Joni Mitchell | 3 | 2 |
| Frank Sinatra | 3 | 2 |
| Bruce Springsteen | 4 | 2.25 |
Controversial
| Artist | Ratings |
|---|---|
| Brian Eno | 2, 5, 3, 4 |
5-Star Albums (59)
View Album Wall
Popular Reviews
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
1/5
Me: I am so sick of 70s rock music.
1001 Albums: let’s switch it up - here’s some 70s country music.
Fuck this.
19 likes
Can
4/5
It’s very weird, and very good. I’m struggling on how to rank it because the last couple songs get, like, avant garde noise rock weird, which is annoying, but the rest of the album is very nice. In fact, there are a couple places where you could almost convince me that it’s an early Radiohead B side.
I think the last two songs are too weird to give it 5 stars, but I think 4 is about right.
5 likes
Patti Smith
1/5
I've had an awful week. a bunch of 70s rock and a 90s Bob Dylan album which, let's be honest, is pretty much just 70s rock plugged into an amp. So I was *really* hoping for something good today. Imagine my chagrin when I opened the page and found...this.
Song 1: As bad as I feared.
Song 2: This is worse.
Song 3: I hate - HATE her voice. It's weird and nasally and doesn't have a single redeeming quality.
Song 3: WTF is this shit? Why is this considered "punk?" The whole album is just bad pop music without the benefit of a good voice.
Song 4: They can't all be this bad, right?
Song 5: Wrong.
Song 6: I just texted my wife, "fuck me this is terrible." I think I undersold it.
Song 7: It's almost over. There might be a god after a...IT'S NINE MINUTES LONG?! Honestly, the best song on the album by a MILE
Song 8: and we're right back to nasally bullshit.
So, this is NOT punk rock. It's bullshit, is what it is. Listen to Land (song 7) and then go on about your day. This should be in the book 1001 Albums To Avoid Until You Die.
4 likes
Kid Rock
1/5
Take the worst parts of rap, rock, and country, give it lyrics like:
“goo-goo, gah-gah, I gotta lotta,
Time to eat MC’s like a piranha.”
And you get this abortion of an album. This could potentially be the worst thing that came out of the 90s.
3 likes
4-Star Albums (151)
1-Star Albums (50)
All Ratings
R.E.M.
4/5
This was an amazing blast from the past! I don’t think it’s their best album, as I’m partial to their later work, but it’s definitely a classic and an important album for the music we were to hear in the 90s.
Metallica
5/5
Although fans of their earlier thrash work continue to call it a sellout, Metallica's "black album" was, and continues to be, their best work. It's the album that moved them out of the realm of the isolated long-hairs and launched them into being, for a time, the biggest band in the world. And the reality is - the album is that good. Not a weak song on the album, they all hold up over the decades that have passed. A masterpiece that deserves 5 star plaudits.
Motörhead
4/5
Fantastic album - Especially considering it was released in 1980. I’m obviously not going to put it on repeat, but I now understand why they’re so famous and influential.
The Beach Boys
2/5
As surprised as I was yesterday about how good Motorhead was, and how well it stood up over time, this is the complete opposite.
Hard to get through.
The Rolling Stones
2/5
Not good. I'm very confused why this band is so iconic. There were so many similarities between the Stones and The Beach Boys album. It's a bland, boring album.
Prince
5/5
A masterpiece. A couple of the songs are very much of the 80s, but the majority of this album is simply a timeless classic.
Iron Maiden
3/5
It was...fine? Very 80s hair metal, which isn't my thing. It is fun, however, to listen to these old metal/rock albums and really get to hear the influence they have on later music.
The Police
4/5
Both Synchronicity I & Synchronicity II are very catchy & Every Breath You Take is still a masterpiece. Honestly, the second half of the album is very, very good. Some of the songs in the first half were way too stereotypical 80s pop, but the second half really makes up for it.
The Dave Brubeck Quartet
3/5
Pretty decent straight jazz album. Great coffee shop background music.
Donovan
3/5
I think the people that created Dungeons and Dragons were definitely reading Tolkien, getting high as balls on weed and LSD, and listening to Donovan.
This is one of the weirdest albums I've ever listened to. Half the songs are like LSD-soaked medieval ballads, the other half are hazy, experimental 60s pop tunes. It's not my jam but...it's not bad!
Little Simz
3/5
Pretty decent. Offense, Boss, & Venom are highlights. Overall solid album, but we're not breaking any ground here, it's pretty standard stuff. I like grime, so I don't mean that in a bad way!
2/5
This album is anachronistic in all the worst ways. It's not only that it's from a long bygone era, it's that I can't even see the influence. When I listened to Motörhead, it's easy to hear the foundations of music that came after. The same goes for the Donovan album; not my cup of tea, but it's interesting, unique, and one can hear why it was popular in its time. This album is none of those things. It drags, it's boring, and I cannot understand why this band is heralded as influential.
The Beau Brummels
2/5
It's fine. I will admit I'm tired of being served 60s music, but this is far better than The Kinks album. I'd say this one is very much of its time, sort of a paint-by-numbers 60s pop album. But, along with the Donovan album, probably the best 60s album I've listened to. Yes, better than The Rolling Stones
Radiohead
5/5
An absolute masterpiece, this album is a a timeless triumph of music, creativity and experimental bravery. There is nothing that sounds like this album and its companion album, Kid A, either before or since - a testament to its genius.
Shuggie Otis
3/5
The Apple Music notes claim that he played every instrument and sang every part, and between the ages of 20-23. That, in and of itself, is very impressive. This is a great background music album, I actually listened twice while at work. Solid album.
The White Stripes
3/5
It's not great. Fell in Love With a Girl was a massive hit that catapulted the band into superstardom, but there's just nothing exceptional about this album. Jack White is an incredible guitar player, but you wouldn't know it listening to this album. In fact, it sounds like a couple teenagers set up in their basement. The drumming is absolutely dreadful, to the point it sounds like the drummer had only learned how to play 6 months previously and only knows how to keep time in the most basic 4/4 signature and fills won't come for another 6 months. In terms of star rating, it's not "bad," yet I don't know that I would say it's "good," either. I wish there was a way to give it 2.5 stars.
The White Stripes
3/5
Blue Orchid is good, but the next few songs sound like filler dross that could have been on their last album. Then it picks up and becomes a pretty catchy blues-infused rock album. It's better than White Blood Cells, and it has some genuinely good songs. Yet again, I wish I could rate in half stars, but I think This one deserves a 3.
Alexander 'Skip' Spence
3/5
I recommend reading about this album, the story is fascinating and heartbreaking. The album itself is...unique. It's quite experimental in some places, especially the songs on the back half of the remastered/extended version. Some songs hold up wonderfully, some are painfully anachronistic, and some are just, well, bad. Overall, It's a decent album for what it is. Using my star rating system of very bad/bad/good/very good/epic, I'll say it's a firm 3 stars
Justin Timberlake
4/5
This album sounds just as dated and "of its time" as any of the 60s albums I've reviewed, but since this time is *my* time, these songs cause an absolute flood of nostalgic dopamine in my brain. I used to sing some of these songs to my wife when we first started dating in 2002, the year this was released. It's funny that the album from the *NSYNC kid was considered more as hip-hop than pop a the time, thanks to his collaborations with hip-hop icons like The Neptunes and Timbaland.
My walk down memory lane aside, this album is stuffed with bangers. It is "of its time" in all the best way, like a musical time capsule stuffed with early '00s pop, hip-hop, R&B, & Latin-inspired grooves, with a splash of disco and a heavy dose of Michael Jackson worship thrown in for good measure.
There are some weaker moments on the album, like the formulaic Take It From Here, and the messy Let's Take a Ride that keep the album from being an all-time classic. But honestly, even the lesser songs are pretty catchy, and overall this album is stuffed to the brim with certifiable radio hits and club bangers that will have you nodding your head and swaying in your seat. Easy 4 stars.
The Jam
3/5
This is a pretty decent album that sounds like a mix of early punk with a dash of 70s New Wave. I liked it! Pretty even quality throughout, no standouts, but no clangers either.
B.B. King
5/5
I cannot believe what I’m listening to. Of course I know who BB King is, and I’m sure I’ve heard him periodically throughout the years, but HOLY SHIT this album is magic. I’m not really a blues fan, but this entire album had me bouncing my legs, nodding my head, making faces at the nasty guitar parts, and laughing out loud at the brilliant lyrics.
Listening to BB King bending those strings and screaming into the mic, one can see a simple, straight line to today’s rock music. I listen to a lot of technical “math” metal, and the influence of BB King is so clear.
This album is why I decided to start this project. It is genius that I have somehow missed, but my life is better now having heard it. Epic, magical, genre-defining, massively influential, masterpiece. 5 stars.
Stevie Wonder
2/5
Well, this is awkward. I mean, Stevie Wonder! Superstition! This is gonna be great, right? No, it was not great. In fact, besides for Superstition, it was not very good. It was clunky, disjointed, and very overproduced with 70s technology. There was so much background noise in the first track that it was actually distracting. It gives me no pleasure to give this a poor score, and Superstition is an all-time great song, but as an album? This ain't it.
Cornershop
3/5
Strange, but not entirely unpleasant album. I'm of an age where I remember this era of music very well, and it was a time where there was a jazz/folk/hip-hop/alternative fusion that saw a few songs get quite popular. Deep Blue Something, Soul Coughing, Cake, and this band, Cornershop, were part of that "genre" that parleyed their one-hit wonders into nice careers.
Gram Parsons
1/5
I started this project to expand my horizons, knowing full well there would be many albums I didn’t like, but committing to listen anyway.
With one exception: I will NOT listen to any fucking country music.
Silver Jews
1/5
The lyrics are so stupid, it’s like listening to a parity of Alternative music. “I want to be like water if I can, ‘cuz water doesn’t give a damn” is an honest to god lyric that was written, shared, sung, and recorded.
This is the type of “Alternative” that is very country-adjacent. Not *quite* twangy enough, but it’s got the requisite slide guitar, or banjo. The singer sounds bored, but to be fair, I don’t know who in the hell could muster up any emotion whatsoever while singing these insipid lyrics.
This is truly one of the dumbest things I’ve ever listened to.
Carole King
2/5
I guess this is OK for what it is. It's not offensive, and I understand why people who like this kind of music would think it's great. For me, however, I find her voice extremely grating. It's sort of your boilerplate, folksy, easy listening, soft rock the early 70s is famous for. To be fair, this album might be one of the the reasons the early 70s is famous for this kind of music, so I don't really mean that as a critique.
This is another album where I really wish there were half stars! I don't think it's 2 stars "bad," per se, but her voice is so annoying that it's hard to give it 3 stars to say it's "good." Ultimately, while I fully concede my own biases and that it's probably unfair to give this album 2 stars, I just cannot justify suggesting to anyone that this album is "good."
Soundgarden
5/5
Chris Cornell was probably the most talented pure vocalist of his time. Outside the scope of this review, his solo album, Euphoria Morning, is one of the criminally undervalued albums of the last 50 years. Superunknown, however, isn't undervalued by any means, and to this day it is considered one of the greatest albums in rock music history. Although this is the album that propelled them to megastardom, I'll always maintain that it is actually Badmotorfinger that shows the band at the peak of its powers. I feel like this album has an amazing first half, but the back half slows just a bit. It's an all-time classic album, inarguably one of the best in the genre.
Flamin' Groovies
3/5
It's fine. It's like what The Rolling Stones would sound like if they weren't absolute shit.
Evil Hearted Ada sounds like a weird Elvis knock off.
The Byrds
1/5
How this album can be categorized as rock music is beyond me. This is straight up, old school, twangy as hell, whiny ass country music. It's awful. We need a zero stars.
Cocteau Twins
4/5
This is another shockingly good album. I kind of missed the 80s, so there is a lot that I missed, especially the more under the radar stuff. I don't have any affinity for the typical 80s sound, but this album isn't that. It's a very dreamy, gauzy dream-pop precursor, and I'd bet dollars to doughnuts that Chino Moreno from Deftones absolutely loved this band. Again, I'd love the ability to do half stars, as this is a solid 3.5. I wouldn't say it's as good as Superunknown, but it's definitely better than Teenage Head, which I gave 3 stars.
Talking Heads
4/5
Really good album. I never really got into the Talking Heads, but this was a really fun album to listen to.
Louis Prima
3/5
It's pretty OK, I suppose. It's good tap your toes music. It's like the background music you'd hear in The Sopranos while the made men are sipping their cappuccinos. I don't think it's special by any measure, but it's not bad. 3 stars.
Radiohead
4/5
Radiohead is one of my favorite bands, but this album has always left me a little cold. Not that I have thought it was bad, just that it doesn't compare to the magnificence of their other albums (though I have always found it to be better than Pablo Honey).
Since I generally skip this one when I'm in a Radiohead mood, it was fun to listen to this with a "fresh" perspective. While I don't think it's a timeless classic like most of the rest of their catalogue, I still think it's a very goddamned good 90s rock album. I'm comfortable with 4 stars here.
Deep Purple
3/5
It is exactly what it says on the tin. Good, straight ahead, hard rock, keyboard-infused, 70s rock and roll.
Pink Floyd
4/5
This is a really interesting album. It's obviously one of the most popular, iconic, best selling of all time. I listen to it and it's obviously a good album, but I just can't quite connect to it. That's not to say I don't like it, I do! but without half stars, is it a 3 or a 4?
Going through the track listing, I think the instrumental On The Run is a throwaway, and the shrieking in The Great Gig In The Sky was off-putting in an otherwise very good song. Other than that, the other songs are all hits. How can I *not* give it a 4?
T. Rex
2/5
It starts out pretty good, actually. Marimba Sun is catchy and doesn't sound overtly 70s, and cosmic dancer also holds up pretty well. Then it just kind of gets...boring. The vocals get a little whiny on songs like Lean Woman Blues, which is itself just a cookie cutter bluesy rock song without any thing to set it apart. Bang a Gong is one of those songs I've heard in stoner movies my whole life. It's fine, I guess. Overall it's just an Ok, pretty forgettable album.
Oddly, Jeepster isn't available in my country via Apple Music, but I was able to listen to it through YouTube without a problem. Apparently that's one of the biggest hits off this album but, frankly, it wasn't worth the effort it took to listen to it.
Simon & Garfunkel
3/5
I don't know much about Simon and Garfunkel, but this album sounds a lot more hippie, psychedelic 60s than what I *thought* I knew about them, which was more of a old-timey folksy 60s sound.
Old Friends is a highlight of the album, a beautiful, haunting examination of the strangeness of old age by a young man. Now that these guys are, I presume, in their 70s, I'd be fascinated to know their thoughts on this song.
Punky's Dilemna is the low point. A dumb song about being a cornflake or an English muffin. I'm sure there's an allegory or metaphor in there that I'm missing, but the song isn't good enough for me to examine it any closer.
Mrs Robinson is the most famous song on this album, I think. I'm of the age that I know the song through The Lemonheads cover. A lot of times, the original can be a touch disappointing (Berlin's version of Metro being far inferior to System of a Down's cover, as an example), but I think this one holds up. I prefer the slightly more upbeat/electric Lemonheads version, but this is decent. Also, I had no idea A Hazy Shade of Winter was a cover!
Overall, decent album. Not one I'm going to put on a normal rotation, but it's definitely "good" for what it is.
2/5
Sounds like a Ramones and Sonic Youth had a baby. It sounds exactly like you'd expect early 80s punk to sound. Because, musically, it sounds like every other early 80s punk song. The female vocalist sets it apart from its peers, but definitely not enough to outweigh the fact that it's bog standard, formulaic, early punk rock.
Marty Robbins
2/5
I have absolutely no idea how to rate this album. It's so outside of the realm of music that I've been exposed to that I barely know what I'm listening to. I'll tell you one thing, though: it's fucking violent. All the old people that cry about hip hop music -- this is an entire album dedicated to shooting people! Hanging Me Tonight is a story about a dude that murders his ex-girlfriend and her new man in cold blood. There's an ode to Billy the Kid, a notorious murderer; a serial killer feted in Big Iron; and is chock full of stories that glorify the robbing, killing, and all-around depravity of the thug life.
Marty Robbins is about that life. Who knew?
Tracy Chapman
3/5
It’s a good album, and Fast Car is iconic. It’s an incredibly important album and one of the biggest selling albums of all time. However…I just struggle to connect to it. I don’t know why, it’s a good album, for sure,but that’s as far as it goes. Lyrically, it’s brilliant. It is timeless in that if I don’t know any better you could convince me it was released today, but still. Three stars
Willie Nelson
1/5
No.
Jimmy Smith
3/5
I mean, it's jazz. I don't know how to rate this, because it just sounds like jazz. Is it good? I don't know! is it bad? No clue! If you've heard jazz before, you've heard this album. I'm sure that's incredibly reductive analysis, and if someone who actually *knows* jazz reads this they're fuming at what an uncultured moron I am. In terms of rating, it's fine. 2 seems harsh, 3 seems inflated (considering some of the other albums I've rated a 3). I'd give it a 2.5 if I could.
Fred Neil
3/5
This is a strange album in that Apple Music has it categorized as "psychedelic," and that's not wrong, exactly, but it could easily be categorized as folk, or singer/songwriter, with a heaping helping of blues. Fred's voice is unusual in that it's not exceptional, but it's very pleasant, and it works GREAT with his songs. The initial album is pretty OK. I didn't intend to listen to the second disk, but im glad I did, because the live performances are the highlight of the show for me.
Overall, it's very 60s. Another highlight is hearing the sections where he's talking to the crowd and you hear that very stereotypical 60s/70s stoner accent. I'm ultimately pretty pleased I got to listen to this. Solid 3 stars.
The Afghan Whigs
3/5
Debonair is a high point. Otherwise this is the epitome of an early 90s, grunge-adjacent, rock album. And I say that, as a fan of early 90s rock music, in the least nostalgic/complementary way possible. It's just kind of boring. The singer isn't great. It kind of reminds me of The Lemonheads or Paul Westerberg. Not really heavy enough to be grunge, but with some of the same affectations. A grunge-ish paint-by-numbers album, if you will.
Not terrible, I guess. Would give a 2.5 if I could.
Cee Lo Green
4/5
This was a good album. Fun, and unique. It’s way, way different than his work in Gnarls Barkley. It was initially an easy 4 stars, but it’s LOOOONG, clocking in at over an hour, and the last third of the album wasn’t as compelling. I wish I could officially give it a 3.5.
Snoop Dogg
5/5
Fucking. Classic. All-time banger. Put this shit in a time capsule and future generations will know EXACTLY what 90s rap was all about. The incomparable Snoop D.O. Double G!
Various Artists
2/5
Apologies in advance for what is going to be a very "Bah Humbug!" review.
I don't particularly like Christmas music. It's the same eight songs covered by 93,765 artists -- most songs sound the same, though some artists want to put their own "spin" on the song. I'm not sure which strategy is more annoying.
I don't particularly like 50s pop. This album is filled with, what I presume to be, big-time 50s pop stars. The Ronettes & Darlene Love do most of the lifting here, and it's...sigh.
Look, I don't want to give it one star, but there's nothing here for me. I don't know who these artists are, and the songs I do know I've heard a million times, and most of these songs are essentially indistinguishable from anything I've ever heard before. I'll give it 2 stars because I feel guilty giving it 1 star, but, yeah.
The Flying Burrito Brothers
1/5
Christine's Tune starts the album and it's VERY country sounding. It gets worse from there. Sin City is a straight up country song. I almost never look up a band or album before listening because I want to formulate my own ideas, but I am *not* subjecting myself to listening to any country music.
So I looked it up and it's Gram Parsons, who people somehow constantly label as a "rock" artist, but who, in my opinion, sounds indistinguishable from any country music snippets I've ever heard.
In summary, this album is trash.
Sonic Youth
3/5
I’m a 90s kid and I never warmed to Sonic Youth. Listening now, I’d say I was a bit harsh on them, but I definitely remember why I never liked them. The Thurston Moore-led songs were better than I remembered, but the Kim Gordon screeching songs were intolerable. Overall, a perfectly serviceable early 90s album that bridges the gap between 80s punk rock and full on grunge. 3 stars is just right.
Rufus Wainwright
3/5
It was fine.
Air
3/5
Honestly, a bit disappointing. I loved this album in the 90s. It was so different than anything else, and it was difficult to find this kind of music. I was excited to see it pop up on the list, but honestly, it was just OK. It’s still a good album that I would recommend for lovers of a certain type of music, but revisiting it after a long time away, I found it a bit dry.
Bruce Springsteen
2/5
I’ve never understood the allure of Springsteen, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard a full song other than Born in the USA, either. So I was incredibly surprised at the music on this album. Many of the songs were surprising, the hard rock, versus the “working class“ pop rock that I’ve always associated with Springsteen.
Now, for the not so good. Springsteen‘s voice is absolutely horrific. I do not understand how anyone would willingly subject themselves through any amount of time, listening to him, mumble shriek, unable to hit anything close to approximating a high note. I’m torn on how to rank this album, because I don’t think it was bad, because the music was good. But I don’t think it was good, because I never wanna listen to anything that comes out of Springsteen‘s mouth for the rest of my days. I would give it a 2.5 star rating if I could, because two stars does seem a bit harsh. However, I think giving it three stars is an incredible injustice to some of the good music that I’ve listened to over the course of this project.
Orbital
3/5
It's fine. If you like this kind of electronica, It's what you'd expect. Bang on 3 stars.
Dr. John
2/5
This album is weird, man. It sounds like a Haight Ashbury hippie tried to make spooky Cajun music using a cookie cutter 60s psychedelic formula. It’s not “bad,” per se, but I don’t know why I’d ever listen to it on purpose, you know?
I’d like to give it 2.5 stars because it’s at least *interesting*, but in this format, I think 2 is the play.
Marvin Gaye
3/5
It’s decent. A couple classic bangers, but there is a good amount of filler in there as well. Not a lot to say about it. Could be a 2.5, maybe? But I’m good with 3.
AC/DC
3/5
I don't understand AC/DC. It wasn't terrible, but it's not my thing. I'd give it a 2.5 if I could.
Prince
3/5
Pretty good album. It's not as good as Purple Rain, but it's quite quirky and good on its own - in a VERY Prince sort of way. U Got The Look is the standout song on the album, and songs like Hot Thing, Housequake, and Sign O' The Times are very fun. Other songs, like Play in the Sunshine and Strange Relationship are very Prince-In-The-80s way.
I'd love to give this album a 3.5
Femi Kuti
3/5
I think it's a fun album. It's very upbeat and definitely gets your feet tapping. The criticism I would have is that it all sounds VERY similar. It's almost like a single one hour song. Not a bad thing as background music, but a bit repetitive when you're sitting down to actually listen to it. I'll give it 3 stars.
4/5
So, I'm not a big U2 fan, but the first four songs are incredible. Very, very good songs, and I thought I was going to have to revise my opinion of them! We were definitely trending towards a 4-4.5 rating. Then the rest of the album happened.
Look, it's not bad. It's fine. It's whatever. But I remember why I've always thought U2 was a bit meh. I believe this album is considered their magnum opus, and I can see why - if you're into U2. The album is moody, it's very unique for the 80s and doesn't really show its age in an anachronistic way. Exit is another very good song that's on the back half of the album, but songs like running to stand still and One Tree Hill are just kind of bland, overproduced, overwrought Bono pretentiousness. Still, though, four certified bangers plus another quite good song in Exit means that this can't be considered anything other than a quite good album. Honest to god, the last song, Mothers of the Disappeared was *just* good enough to push me over the edge. I'd love to give it a 3.5, but I think this will be the rare half star rating that gets rounded up.
I mean, whether you love U2 or not, no one can deny that it's an all-time classic album.
Solomon Burke
3/5
It was fine.
Kraftwerk
3/5
Super strange album. Listening to a man repeatedly intone "We are the robots" in a German accent for four minutes is certainly a new experience.
Still. Not bad.
Aerosmith
3/5
I was kind of excited about this album, because I know Aerosmith has some really good songs, including a couple on this album - Walk This Way and Sweet Emotion. Sadly, though, the first three songs kind of suck. No More No More is OK, and Round and Round is quite good, but other than those 4 songs, the rest of the album is decidedly meh. Overall, really disappointing album. I kinda would give it a 2.5 if I could.
The The
3/5
Decent.
The Rolling Stones
2/5
Truly one of the most baffling "superstar" bands of all time. For example, I don't like Bruce Springsteen, but the *music* on his albums is dynamite. His voice is shit, but lyrically, at the very least, the man tells an excellent story.
The Rolling Stones? Jagger's voice is awful. The music is bog standard basic "rock" at best, and cookie-cutter, cliche "bluesy" at worst. I just do not see the appeal in this band - at all.
Now onto the actual album review.
Sympathy for the Devil. That song slaps. I might like it because it's in the final scene of Interview With a Vampire, and I absolutely loved that movie when I was a kid.
Street Fighting Man is a halfway decent 60s rock song. Not great, but better than what I've come to expect from the Stones.
Prodigal Son is *actual* blues! Jagger does something with his voice that sounds different than usual, but fits perfectly as a blues song.
Stray Cat Blues - not bluesy at all, but another pretty solid 60s rock jam. Better than Street Fighting Man, and I'd actually go so far as to call it good.
And that's it. The rest of the album is filler trash. I'll give it 2 stars because there are two, possibly 3 good songs, and one song that doesn't suck.
A Tribe Called Quest
4/5
This is a nice album. It’s funny to hear, in a way, because it seems so anachronistic it’s almost sweet. It was a very different time in hip hop, the early 90s, and as the antithesis to “gangsta rap,” this is on the “conscious rap” Mount Rushmore.
That said, nostalgia aside, I think the chances of me choosing to put this in my current listening rotation is slim to none. It’s a nice trip down memory lane, but I’ll take my feel good dopamine hit and move on to the next. 3.5 stars, if it were possible.
*note: Busta Rhymes star-creating bars are always welcome in these ears!
Willie Nelson
1/5
Nope.
Coldplay
5/5
Brilliant album. Beautiful music, beautiful vocals, beautiful lyrics. It is nearly 25 years old, and it does not sound dated in the least little bit.
This album is a true, timeless masterpiece.
3/5
It’s peppy.
Prince
4/5
Very good album. Better than Sign O’ The Times, not as good as Purple Rain - but close.
Arcade Fire
2/5
Every morning when I see what album I have, I screenshot it and text it to my wife. We had extremely different upbringings, and have wildly different musical tastes, so it's fun to get her reactions of excitement, dislike, or even confusion for bands she's never heard of. Today's reply: "Meh."
Nailed it.
This album is aggressively mediocre. Most the songs sound pretty identical and it's so damn tedious. This album is what beige sounds like. It's inoffensive, sure, but goddamn. Do SOMETHING.
Duran Duran
4/5
Loads better than I thought it would be. Not a bad song in the bunch. I’m blown away at how good it is.
I’m not really an 80s music guy, but this project has shown me that there are some really, really good 80s albums.
Pink Floyd
4/5
Pretty great album, but difficult to rate. I don’t necessarily connect to it, but I 100% get why it resonates with so many people and why it’s one of the most successful, and enduring, albums of all time.
Bob Dylan
4/5
Very good. I've never been big on Dylan, but now that I'm older I definitely "get" him a lot more. Absolutely brilliant storyteller. If I have a critique, I'd say it does drag a little bit by the end.
Hugh Masekela
2/5
Boring. He kind of threw in some Afrobeat stuff to make it less straight jazz, but...yeah. Jazz.
Janelle Monáe
4/5
Weird album in a really fun way. There are some excellent songs in this album, like Come Alive, Dance or Die, and the the Gnarls Barkley-esque Tightrope. I didn’t love some of the slower, throwback songs like Sir Greendown, but I could see the sound and feel she was going for.
Overall, an album I would highly recommend. 3.75 stars.
Quicksilver Messenger Service
4/5
This is an interesting and eclectic album. It's kind of straight ahead experimental 60s rock, a harbinger of the progressive rock movement, a contemporary "jam band," and so much more. This is a terrific album in its genre and Calvary is one of the greatest guitar songs I have ever heard.
Neu!
3/5
It's an interesting album. Not nearly as experimental as I expected, but of course that may not have been the case in 1975. Overall a nice listenable album. great background music for studying or working.
5/5
Will it be a 4 or 5 is the question? I *know* it’s a good album, but I haven’t listened in a long time. Nostalgically, it’s a 5. But in reality is it a 4 with a couple all-time bangers? Because Wonderwall is fucking *gooood*, man. It is potentially the anthem of my generation - and I say that as a certified hip-hop head.
Wonderwall is nearly perfect.
Don't Look Back in Anger. My god, what a song.
Morning Glory is the underrated banger of the album.
Then, when you think you're winding down, they hit you with Champagne Supernova! What an album!
It's probably a 4.5, to be honest, but man, it's an excellent CD that has sparked a long convo with a buddy about the best 90s music for a certain subset of our generation. The dopamine hit from the nostalgia is worth another half star, easy.
Jane's Addiction
5/5
A masterpiece. A weird album made by weird artists for weird kids, somehow became a classic. Party Farrell gave us a timeless masterpiece that sounds as good today as when I discovered it in the early 90s. Not a bad song in the bunch. 5/5 stars all day, every day.
Doves
3/5
Other bands/ singers this band sounds like
- Richard Ashcroft
-Oasis
- Leonard Cohen
- U2
Every song sort of sounded different, but every song sort of sounded like someone else. It’s not breaking any new ground, but it’s a pleasant enough album. 3.5
Jeff Buckley
5/5
This is a beautiful album. I think it slows slightly at the last third, but overall it’s magnificent. It’s very much “of its time,” but it simultaneously transcends its time. It’s an excellent album, a special album by an artist who may have taken 90s rock in a slightly different direction had he lived long enough to continue his story.
The Bees
3/5
Weird album. Definite indie vibes, but with some notes of funk, a little 70s organ rock, and No Trophy has that straight up classic reggae flavor. It's almost experimental? It reminds me loosely of The Flaming Lips, but more accessible.
Every song sounds different, which is interesting. The first half was kind of interesting, the second half kind of reminds me of The Polyphonic Spree, which is to say it tries to be this grand cornucopia of sound but it's actually a bit boring. Kind of a 2.5 album. This is where I complain again about the 5 star review limitations because this is nowhere near as bad as some other albums Ive rated 2 stars, but nowhere near as good as some that ive rated 3 stars.
Dinosaur Jr.
3/5
I texted my wife, "Pretty standard pre-grunge, punk-adjacent, late 80s/early 90s anti-glam rock. Sounds like a band Cobain would have loved."
Says it all.
Nick Drake
5/5
Turns out I really like Nick Cave. His voice is incredible! The album is from 1969, but *most* of it sounds like it could have been early 90s - which shows both the timelessness of his sound and how influential he is to musicians like Elliot Smith and Jeff Buckley.
The voice is the star here. The guitar and piano are set up softly enough to be adequate support for Drake to showcase his unique singing style. On several songs it sounds like he has an orchestral backing, and the strings pair beautifully with his voice, creating a lush, haunting soundscape.
Charles Mingus
2/5
It was very jazz.
Mj Cole
2/5
Not great. It’s bog standard BootsandHatsandBootsandHats dance music. Very boring.
The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
5/5
Another surprise home run that makes me so glad I started this project! I had heard of this band before, but somehow never listened to them. I don't know exactly what I *thought* they were, but it certainly wasn't the awesomeness that I just had the pleasure of hearing!
This album is searing, aggressive, technical, and so damned fun. it starts with a weird, primal scream and gets weirder from there. At no point did I ever *really* know what I was listening to, it's so unique and unlike anything else I've heard. Although I could definitely hear the blues inspired riffing in the guitars, this album is more unabashed in-your-face rock than anything else.
An easy 4.5 stars, a hidden gem, and one of the most pleasant surprises I've had in the 80+ albums I've reviewed
Billy Joel
2/5
Meh.
The Rolling Stones
2/5
This album is just not good. I remain baffled as to why The Rolling Stones are a thing.
Super Furry Animals
2/5
If the Beach Boys morphed forward to the late 90s, spent a couple years listening to current music, changed their sound as little as possible while still trying to be more "modern" and, because no one would believe them if they said they were famous time-travelers from the 1960s, released an album under the name Super Furry Animals, this is exactly what it would sound like.
Which is to say that it is bad.
OK, the above was written during the first half of the album. I will concede that they did diverge their sound a bit in the second half of the album, even getting a little experimental in parts, playing with a bit of electronica. They did not, however, get better.
A well-deserved 2 stars.
Hanoi Rocks
1/5
Their English is much better than my Finnish.
I wish it wasn’t.
Funkadelic
2/5
I have no idea what to even say about this. There's an entire song about poop, though. So that's fun.
Sade
3/5
It's OK. She's obviously very talented and has a great, smooth voice. But the songs sound quite dated to me. I'm actually a little disappointed, to be honest, because I've always known Sade to put out masterpieces - but apparently they haven't aged well to my ear.
Sugar
2/5
Cookie cutter early 90s “alt-rock.” It sounds like it could be the Friends soundtrack.
The Offspring
4/5
I've listened to this album a ton of times, but not for 20+ years. It's excellent, better than I remembered. Frankly, I never realized that the majority of it is straight up, unabashed, undeniable punk music. The big radio hits were a little more straight ahead rock with punk influences, but make no mistake, this is a punk rock album.
I never google an album before I leave a review because I don't want it to influence my opinion, but I would presume that this has to be one of, if not the, best selling punk albums of all time. Though I bet it's one that hardcore punk aficionados hate because they got popular and were thus "sellouts." But since the vast majority of Punk music is unlistenable shit, I think the direction The Offspring decided to take on this album was a good one.
Thin Lizzy
3/5
It's fine. I think it started out strong, then sort of got a bit boring in the middle. it picked up a bit at the end, but I was kind of over it at that point. It's not really my kind of music, so an hour and 20 minutes is a LONG time.
A bit of a fun fact: Apparently Huey Lewis, who would later achieve fame as the guy with all the songs in the Back to the Future movie, was part of the backing band or something. He got a call out for playing harmonica. This is definitely not Huey Lewis and the News-style music.
Anyway, 3 out of 5 seems about right.
Primal Scream
2/5
First song initial reaction: seems heavily influenced by Rolling Stones. This is not a good thing. After the first song they got a bit more diverse, but it made me realize something. All musical eras have their tentpole superstar acts that stand out and almost transcend the time and genre. Then there are myriad bands that are just kind of along for the ride, making music that is pleasing enough to the ears of those who like the tentpole bands, but never do anything interesting or fundamentally different.
For the early 90s Alt-rock scene, the his band is the latter.
John Martyn
3/5
Not bad, but kind of forgettable. Sort of a wanna-be Nick Drake, with a little Neil Young thrown in for good measure.
The Pogues
2/5
If you’re from Boston and like to fight, you love this album.
You know the type of white American that pretends to be Irish even though no one in their family has ever actually been to Ireland? This album is their soundtrack.
Goldfrapp
3/5
This is a very interesting, if uneven, album. After the first song, I wondered who, exactly, this was for. After listening to a couple more songs I realized it slots nicely into the Trip Hop, Bristol sound with bands like Morcheeba, Portishead, & Massive Attack.
I love those bands, and utilizing that comparison is where I start to have slight issues with the album. Some of the songs are actually awesome, and represent the genre quite nicely, but some songs are just...off. I'm not sure how to describe it, except maybe they go a bit pop-y? When you're expecting a trippy, slowed down, psychedelic sound and you get some weird yodeling, or an upbeat 4/4 beat, it can be a little jarring.
Overall, if you're into this type of music, this is gonna be a perfectly acceptable album - even good! Solid 3.5, but without any real exceptionality that sets it apart to push it to 4 stars
The Mothers Of Invention
1/5
WTF
Fleetwood Mac
2/5
It's just kind of boring. Dreams is...OK, I guess ? Not for me, thanks.
Led Zeppelin
3/5
it started off really strong. Immigrant Song is an all-timer, or course, and the album continued along that vein for a few songs. Then it got kinda bluesy rock, which was also pretty damn good. Then the last few songs were just kind straight blues. Which isn't a bad thing in itself, I just think they're not particularly good blues songs. Decent, sure, but nothing really to write home about.
I know this is considered a classic rock album, and I really wanted to give it a good score, but I just kind of think it's just OK. Good even - but not great
Rush
3/5
I wanted to love this so bad!I listen to a lot of progressive metal, and Rush is the godfather of the sound. It started off well then it just kind of petered out. It's a decent 70s rock album, but it's not very proggy, to be honest, and it's no better than the Led Zeppelin album from yesterday. So, a sad 3 stars.
Dolly Parton
1/5
No.
The Verve
3/5
Aggressively OK.
Alice In Chains
5/5
A goddamned masterpiece. I will admit that I am incredibly biased because I attribute this album to changing my life, but it really is that good. The songs hold up, musically and lyrically, more than 30 years later.
The early 90s were a brilliant time for music, but we have lost so many of these artists far too soon.
The Fall
2/5
It's listed as Indie Rock in Apple Music, but it sounds very punk to me. by that I mean it's sort of unimaginative, rudimentary instrument playing, and a high-pitched, nasally, South London accented singer with very little variation in his pitch or tone throughout the album.
That said, there were a couple of songs where I caught myself bouncing my leg, so it's not 1-star awful. It is kind of tedious; however, so I can't really bring myself to give it more than 2 stars.
Beastie Boys
5/5
Excellent album. There is just nothing else like the Beastie Boys. Rap, funk, punk - it’s all there and more.
ZZ Top
3/5
I’ll probably give it a three. It’s fun enough for what it is, but it’s definitely from a different time. It’s one of those “it’s fine, I guess” albums. Not shitty enough to be a 2, definitely nowhere near a 4.
The Killers
3/5
It's definitely a time capsule to the early aughts, when it seemed like every rock band wanted to have this sound. The Killers, Jet, She Wants Revenge, Franz Ferdinand, Kaiser Chiefs, The Strokes, and on and on and on. You don't hear much from any of them anymore, but this is a decent album. 3.5 stars
Ice Cube
3/5
It’s a good time capsule album, but it sounds really, really dated. The beats are just from a completely different time, and it sounds almost quaint. When it released, however, it was the hardest hitting shit of all time. Definitely worth a listen, but it’s not going back into my current rotation. 3.5 stars.
OutKast
5/5
This is a fantastic album filled with hits. Andre Benjamin AKA Possum Aloysius Jenkins is a goddamned lyrical genius. In an era dominated by gangsta rap (and OutKast gives you a little of that), Andre 3000 was usually way left of center. Even when he did dip his toes in the gangsta pool, his lyrics are written with a thoughtfulness and poetry only seen amongst the all time greats.
I’d give this one a 4.5 if I could. There are a few songs that I think are kind of filler and the album is too long as a result.
Talvin Singh
4/5
Beautiful album. It sounds like a movie score.
50 Cent
4/5
It's kind of the quintessential early 2000s rap sound. The early aughts royalty of the hip hop world - Dr. Dre, Eminem, Nate Dogg - are all here. This was a difficult album to listen to with an open mind. I've never really warmed to 50 Cent, and it's especially hard to disassociate from the absolute clown he's become, but honestly, for what it is, it's a damn good album. This is the best selling album to come out of the Aftermath imprint (by anyone not named Eminem).
It's hard to say where to put this album. I don't *adore* it, but that's because I don't *adore* this artist. That said, the beats kept me nodding my head and, if I'm honest, 50 Cent is a pretty damn good storyteller. I think I'd give it a 3.5 stars if I could, but it's undeniable that it is a massive album -- not only one of the biggest of its time, but one of the biggest in its genre of all time. And the diss track about Ja Rule is an excellent reason to bump it to 4.
John Coltrane
3/5
So, I'll concede, I just don't get jazz. I know Coltrane is supposed to be the master, but this sounds like every other jazz thing I've heard. Obviously the musicianship is tremendous - these guys are professionals. But why is this better than any other jazz album? I listened to it twice just to see if I missed something on my first pass.
It's good background music, I guess? But only in a coffee shop or something, because they go too hard with the horns to listen to this while studying or anything like that. I'll give it a 3 because I know I'm missing the point, so I don't want to go lower. It's not you, John Coltrane, it's me. But it's just not gonna work out.
Iron Maiden
3/5
It's different than I thought it would be, and I don't really know what I mean by that. There are a couple slow songs, which I didn't expect. It also kind of sounds like an exact meld of 70s rock and the hair rock that was big in the early 80s.
The singer is not great. Very limited. The instruments are good, hard rock fun, if a bit rudimentary - especially the drumming. I guess the best way to describe the music is that they won't be on anyone's top ten lists for their individual instruments, but they sure know how to have a good time.
This is a solid album. I've known of Iron Maiden, but they were a bit before my time so I never listened to them. Much better than I expected, I'd even say I enjoyed most of it, but I can't see ever listening to it on purpose. If that's not the quintessential 3 star rating, I don't know what is.
The Last Shadow Puppets
3/5
It’s OK. It sounds like Arctic Monkeys with a slightly 60s-ish loung-y vibe
The Saints
2/5
It's just punk rock template. It's fine, I guess, and if you're into punk you'll probably like it, but it's just so boring. Nothing unique or interesting about it.
Red Hot Chili Peppers
4/5
For better or worse, there’s nothing quite like Red Hot Chili Peppers — and both options are on display in this album. On one hand, songs like Breaking The Girl, Give It Away, and Under The Bridge sound as fresh and relevant now as they did 30 years ago. On the other, the juvenile lyrics featuring clumsy sexual metaphors and constant references to Keidis’s dick are cringeworthy and tired.
The secret sauce to the Chili Peppers is, undeniably, Flea. He has a very distinct way he plays the bass, and is responsible for the very non-alternative rock sound on this record such as the orchestral arrangements, trumpet and violin. Although I think the last half of the album drags it down a bit, at their best, RHCP are in a league of their own, and for the majority of this record, they’re undeniably at their best.
Elvis Presley
1/5
It’s Elvis. I don’t know how to fairly rate this. I’ve heard so many Elvis impersonators in my life that it’s impossible to take him seriously. At this point, Elvis just sounds like another Elvis impersonator.
Frankly, it’s just not for me, man. It sounds so old and outdated, I just can’t connect with it in the least little bit. And all of the organs and slide guitars put it veeeery close to being country, which I cannot abide.
I thought about giving it 2 stars, just because it’s Elvis, and regardless of whether I like him, his music and legacy has, for reasons I cannot fathom, continued to endure. Then I remembered that he’s a child predator, so fuck him. 1 star.
The Shamen
2/5
It’s not very good. It’s really kind of poppy and random. It’s like what you would hear at a kids dance party.
Queen
4/5
It's interesting. Some songs are definitely stereotypical 70s rock, but there's an interesting thread running through the album of non-traditional sounds. Mercury's voice is, of course, a high point of the album, as he's got incredible range and creativity.
Although songs like Bring Back That Leroy Brown are a bit hokey (as an almost ode to the 20s sound), there are definite high points such as Stone Cold Crazy and Killer Queen. Whereas bands like Led Zeppelin unabashedly "borrowed" heavily from Blues, Many of the songs on this album feel like they are from the soundtrack of a Broadway play. Hard rock cum musical theatre, if you will.
I listened to it a second time, and it really is quite good, for the most part. I'd say its a solid 3.5 stars.
The Jam
3/5
I didn't know what to expect when this popped up, but I was a bit disappointed because I'm tired of 70s albums. I've had 29 of them so far and it's my second lowest rated decade. I must say, however, that I'm pleasantly surprised by this. It's classified as Pop by Apple Music, which I find a bit odd. To me, it's punk-adjacent rock and roll. The musicality is superior to most punk music, however. They're nice, bite-sized songs rarely going much more than 2 1/2 to 3 minutes. 12 songs in 38 minute package.
I certainly won't be putting this in a normal rotation, but it was a nice listen. 3 stars.
DJ Shadow
5/5
It's the gold standard of this sort of record bin dumpster diving sample-driven electronic music.
The La's
2/5
I wanted to like this album, I thought the first song was fairly decent and had some R.E.M. vibes. Sadly, I feel like every song got just a little bit worse as the album went on.
Muddy Waters
3/5
It’s fine.
Antony and the Johnsons
3/5
Very interesting album. There are some songs that are extremely good, and some that aren’t. It appears to be a very personal story of a trans girl, and the lyrics are at times sweet, and delicate, and very moving.
The singer has a great voice with a very distinct vibrato - perhaps too much at times.
I liked this album. Although I don’t think I’d ever intentionally seek it out to listen from front to back, I probably wouldn’t skip any songs that started playing on a random mix.
Nirvana
5/5
Masterpiece. One of the greatest, most influential, genre-defining albums of all time. Literally not a single weak song on the entire album. This is the album that saved us from hair metal and I will be forever grateful.
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
3/5
It was pretty solid. I've never listened to any early Tom Petty, it was much better than I expected.
Joy Division
3/5
I know Joy Division is HUGELY influential, and I wanted to like it, I just couldn't really connect to it. I gave it a second listen, and I liked it significantly better. I'm not sure I love the singers voice, I'm not big into goth, and those are the vibes his voice gives me, even if the music isn't particularly goth.
Overall, I can't say it's a bad album, so 3 stars it is.
Jorge Ben Jor
3/5
It's kind of fun to listen to something so different. It's fun and bouncy, but it does start to get a little repetitive, especially as I don't understand Portuguese.
It's very U2. If that's your thing, you'll love it. if it's not your thing, you won't. I cannot for the life of me figure out why this band was so goddamned big. There are some decent songs on here, like Beautiful Day, but none of them are iconic enough to warrant the amount of adoration U2 always gets. I understand that Joshua Tree was a classic, but this album is like a decade or more later. Lots of bands have one awesome album and then a bunch of mediocre albums, why is U2 idolized?
Anyway, it's fine. 2.5 stars if I could.
Simon & Garfunkel
1/5
it really sucks. The Boxer is tolerable, the rest is just unlistenable 60s flower child ukulele bullshit.
Dire Straits
2/5
I don't know what I *thought* Dire Straits were, but it wasn't this, and I don't like it. I can't say it's bad, but it's tedious and boring. Sultans of Swing has something to it, that was the only good song on the album. It's definitely blues-influenced rock, and the lead singer sounds like a dime store bob Dylan without the interesting bits.
Roni Size
4/5
This is a truly great album. Borrowing from countless genres, yet unmistakably electronic, Roni Size samples and incorporates so many sounds, beats and rhythms to make this album sound like nothing else. Not quite jungle, and far from your standard bootsandhats techno, I don't know how exactly to categorize it, but I love it.
Deep Purple
4/5
Two songs in, and what an absolute delight of an album. The first 90 seconds sounded like a mic check, so I was a bit worried, but what followed was an unabashed hard rock album. It's not going to change the world, it didn't define a genre, but goddammit is it fun!. Bloodsucker is a fantastic mix of guitar shreds, offbeat rhythms, high pitched shrieks, and even a splash of 70s rock organ thrown in. What a treat!
The album only has 7 tracks spanning 44 minutes. The third track, Child in Time, is a loose jam that I'm sure was dynamite to hear in concert. the rest of the album is very good, not great, with a bit too much of the 70s rock organ for my taste. All in all a terrific album that is an absolute grandfather to modern heavy metal AND progressive metal. 4 stars
Grateful Dead
1/5
This is very much not my thing. The singing is fucking awful. Wikipedia says Jerry Garcia is known for his "distinctive guitar style" and it just sounds like rudimentary bullshit to me. I dont understand the allure of this band if this album is representative of their sound. I cannot find a single redeeming quality other than it's not country.
Right after I wrote the above, the next two songs have decidedly country-ish twangs to them. This album is just bad, man.
Steely Dan
2/5
There’s a couple songs on here that are recognizable, the rest of it is shit. I’m so sick of 70s albums.
The Sugarcubes
4/5
This is a really good album, man. I kind of want to give it 4 stars, but I’m not entirely sure I can because it does sound a bit dated. But it’s a hell of a fun ride and Bjork is incredible as always.
You know what, I’m just gonna do it. I’d probably give it a 3.5 if I could do half stars, but this album is so much better than many others that I’ve given 3 stars to. Maybe not as good a those I’ve given 4 stars to, but the gap is much smaller.
Booker T. & The MG's
2/5
The title track is sorta famous, I think? At least, I've heard it before and I have no clue who this band is. Furthermore, the second song, Ricky Dink, has some parts that are very familiar to me even though I'm fairly sure I've never heard the entire song.
The third song is I Got A Woman, which is a cover of a Ray Charles song. It took this long for me to be sure that that this is just an instrumental album. It's kind of catchy, but it's a lot of organ playing, which gets old fast. Otherwise, it's just kind of there, you know? I'm not sure what's special about this album other than the fact that it appears to be a vehicle for promoting the organ, which doesn't really scratch any of my personal itches.
Listening more through the album, it seems like it's very bluesy but distinctly, like, 60s rock organ bluesy. It's not my jam, but I think I can see why it was included in this list, because it is kind of its own thing, but at the same time, there appear to be several covers, which is the opposite if "it's own thing."
I don't know. I'll never listen to it again. 2.5 stars.
The Magnetic Fields
2/5
I just can’t. 3 hours is too much, and I don’t love “indie” music in the best of times. It wasn’t awful, there were some toe tappers, but it’s just too much.
3/5
Very weird album, more like experimental noise rock than alternative. That said, I did like it. It's very unique and not unpleasant. Im not sure I would seek it out to listen to again, but I enjoyed it.
The Police
3/5
Decent. It’s the Police.
The Modern Lovers
3/5
I'm SO tired of 70s albums, so I had very, very low expectations of this album. I had a bad attitude during the first song, so it was headed for a very low rating. But once I settled in, the album is actually quite good! It sounds less like 70s rock to me, and more like early 2000s the the vein of The Strokes, The Killers, etc.
It's not earth shattering, but it's a unique sound for the 70s. Comfortable 3 stars
Genesis
3/5
Oh hey, another 70s album. I'm shocked - SHOCKED, I tell you. I feel like this entire project is sponsored by the 1970s. Out of 145 albums so far, 40 of them have been from the 70s. Since my overall ranking is around 2.6 for the decade, you can imagine my excitement in seeing this album pop up.
That said, I'm pretty sure I've heard of Genesis. I *think* Phil Collins was the drummer or something? It's not like I'm a huge Collins fan, (but I also don't have Arseblog-levels of hate for him), so I'm not sure how much that's gonna swing this album to the positive, but here goes nothing.
Verdict: It's fine. Whatever. 2.5 stars.
Public Enemy
4/5
A very good album. It's definitely old school, but it somehow doesn't sound as dated as Ice Cube's Amerikkka's Most Wanted, which was released the same year. Flavor Flav is better as a hype man than the main vocalist, so the songs that he features on are just a little weaker than the songs fronted by Chuck D, though 911 is a Joke is a classic. Like the Ice Cube album, I'd give this a 3.5 if I could, but in this format, I think the fact that it still sounds fresh, plus the fact that the lyrics and ideas on this album still hold up, pushes this to 4 stars.
Pixies
3/5
The Pixies' heyday was slightly before my time, so I never connected with them, but they were famously influential on the early to mid 90s rock bands that I adored, like Nirvana and Radiohead. While I've heard songs like Monkey Gone to Heaven, I've never listened to this album in its entirety. Overall, I think it's pretty OK. It's not transformative, but that's only because it *was* transformative when it was released in the 80s.
Some songs sound a little dated, and some songs still sound very subversive. I think the album started a little slowly, but I warmed to it as it went on. Black's voice isn't the greatest, but it's somehow perfect for this band. The use of Kim Deal's hushed vocals on some - but not all - songs tend to add a welcome ethereal quality to the punk rock vibes, and tend to hit hard because the effect is used sparingly.
I'd give it a 3.5 if I could. I think it's a very good album that sounds a little dated, while simultaneously holding up surprisingly well for an album reeled in the 80s.
The Stranglers
3/5
First two songs have a TON of 70s rock organ. The singer and the vibe very much worship at the feet of The Doors.
The third song has an abrupt and curious shift to punk rock, of all things. I didn't see that coming. Then back to The Doors cosplay.
Look, I don't love it, it's not my thing, but I don't hate it, either. I'm slightly surprised this band isn't more well known, but also, there isn't really a stand out song on this album. In an era of radio play driving pop culture, having an album filled with solid songs without a hit single to drive it means very little outside a group's core fans.
3 stars. And please, if there is a god, please let me go a couple weeks without a 70s rock band with an organ player. Please.
Gary Numan
3/5
Hilariously, in my last review I asked theoretical god to give me a few weeks without a 70s rock band that features an organ player. So of course my very next album is a 70s rock band that features...a synth player! It appears there may be a god after all, and the prick has a very mischievous streak.
The second song, Metal, is familiar to me as it was covered by Nine Inch Nails. I'd imagine this Numan fellow was quite an influence on Trent Reznor.
Overall, a weird, quirky little album that I'm sure influenced quite a few acts from the 90s, but ultimately its just fine.
Jerry Lee Lewis
3/5
It's early rock and roll. It's pretty upbeat, so that's good, I guess? Better than Elvis, at least, and ironically less country-ish. Wikipedia says it's considered one of th greatest live albums of all time. That might be a bit much, but it didn't suck, so that's something. 3 stars.
Tears For Fears
4/5
This is a tough one. There are some incredible, 5-star bangers on this album, like Shout, Everybody Wants To Rule The World, and Head Over Heels. Those songs stand the test of time, and are Exhibit A as to why New Wave hit so big in 80s pop culture. Then there are songs like I Believe and Listen that sound a bit dated
I think this is a very good CD. Even songs like The Working Hour (which starts slow but grows into itself) and Mother's Talk are pretty decent. I've never identified myself as a person who likes 80s music - in fact, quite the opposite - but I like this album.
So here, again, is the limitation of the 5 star system with no half stars. This album is miles better than some of the recent albums that I've given 3 stars, like Jerry Lee Lewis Live, Genesis The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway, or They Were Wrong, So We Drowned, by Liars. On the flip side, I'm not sure I can say it's close to as good as any of the albums I've gives 4 stars, Like Public Enemy Fear of A Black Planet, DJ Shadow Endtroducing, or The Sugarcubes Life's Too Good. Where does that leave me, when I want to rank it 3.5 stars?
Ultimately, I've decided to give it 4 stars. Not because it's an album that I'm going to put in my normal rotation, but because it was a phenomenal album in its time, it's an excellent time capsule of the best the New Wave movement had to offer, and, overall, the songs hold up pretty well 40 years later.
Nitin Sawhney
5/5
This album is terrific! I wish I had discovered it when it was released, because I’d have listened to it a ton. It’s a very unique, eclectic mix of sounds redolent of the best Trip Hop of the era - a sound that I was consistently searching for at the time. There’s some R&B flavor, traditional Indian sounds, a healthy amount of ethereal vocals, the requisite undercurrent of electronic beats, and an overall ambiance that, if you’re a fan of Portishead, Sneaker Pumps, Massive Attack, or Morcheeba, you’re sure to enjoy.
I knew fairly early that this was a 4-star album, and briefly flirted with whether I should make it a 5 star. Then I realized that I’m scrolling through Apple Music looking for more of his albums. It’s that good. If a 25-year-old album holds up well enough that you're desperate for more music from the artist, that's a nailed on 5 stars. What an album.
Fleetwood Mac
2/5
The first two songs are pretty much country music. Not quite, but not far away. Lots of twang, lots of slide guitar, very whiny. Third song is more rock-y, but it's whatever. The fourth song sounds like -- you know those cheapo plastic pianos you can buy for a toddler? where all the keys sound similar and it's just a clinking cacophony of chaos as the happily bang away, oblivious to the migraine they're giving the parent? I'm pretty sure they used one of those pianos as the background for this song.
Fifth song...Why don't they let this chick sing more? She's got a great, unique voice. The dude is just annoyingly bog standard. It's like when Alice In Chains started letting Jerry Cantrell sing more. Read the room, Alice, we're here for the vocal god, not the dude that sounds like my dad singing tunelessly while changing the oil in our 1967 Nova. Anyway, fifth song is pretty OK, actually. Bit long, but best so far by a mile.
Song six, back to Jerry Cantrell Guy. Sounds like an overwrought marching band. I just checked and there are 20 songs. Fuck me, that's a lot of songs. I'm not doing this for 13 more songs, so I'll sum up at the end.
It's just not great. There are crap songs, and there are inoffensive songs. It definitely picked up after the first few songs, but nothing I ever need to hear again. One star is extremely unkind, so I think 2 stars is the play here.
Rush
5/5
Excellent album. It starts out with Tom Sawyer and holds that level for the next several songs. It flags a slight bit in the last couple songs which, because the songs are ten minutes long, is a substantial bit of the album! They're not bad songs, they're just not to the level of the first few. But saying a song doesn't hold up to Tom Sawyer is nothing to be ashamed of.
I find Rush, overall, to be uneven. Some of their songs are all time bangers, and some are just kind of there. I listen to a ton of metalcore and progressive rock, and Rush are the godfathers of those genres. But, overall, it's like I *want* to like Rush more than I actually do. Happily, this album lives up to the hype. Still slightly uneven at the back end, but an overall 4 star record.
Dennis Wilson
2/5
Not for me, thanks. The best thing I can say about it is that it doesn’t sound like The Beach Boys. I’ll give him a bit of credit for that.
Björk
4/5
This album is VERY Bjork. Lots of sounds packed into this, from orchestral, to strings, to weird buzzes, clicks and hums - it'll keep you on your toes. Of course Bjork's wonderfully hazy, ethereal voice is the star of the show here. Apparently this is a breakup album, and it shows. The lyrics are, at times, gut wrenching, the pain and emotion palpable.
I loved this album and would give it a 4.5 if I could.
The Specials
3/5
It's another one I wanted to like more than I did. It's just not great. It's also not terrible, it's just slightly boring. I can see how it was quite subversive in its time, but today it just sounds quaint and anachronistic. I'd give it 2.5 if I could. I'll probably end up giving it 3 stars because it's not *bad* per se.
The Darkness
4/5
This is such a fun album. I’ve watched the Justin Hawkins Rides Again YouTube channel several times but this is the first time I’ve listened to The Darkness. It’s so over the top! It’s not something I’m going listen to every day, but it is unabashed in its silliness, while at the same time exhibiting some real bonafide musical talent. 3.5 stars
Pantera
5/5
5 stars. I know this album like the back of my hand. This was the album that got me in to HARD music. I wasn’t allowed to listen to secular music as a kid (I was in a cult), so my cousin and I would go to the basement and huddle around his little tape player with the volume on one and our fingers hovering over the stop button in case his mom opened the basement door.
This was the perfect metal album. Cowboys from Hell still had tinges of their hair metal past, but by the time Vulgar dropped all traces of glam were erased and Phil’s growls, grunts and screams are pure aggression.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
3/5
I know Nick Cave is beloved, and I never really understood why - but I somehow kind of missed him in the 90s. Listening through this I can say that…it’s fine. Interesting voice, not a lot of new ground broken, but pretty ok. I really wish this thing had half stars, because this album is a solid 3. It feels unfair considering I’ve given worse albums 3 stars that deserved 2.5, and better albums I would have loved to give 3.5, and there’s just no way I can give this 4 stars. So it’s an accurate score that feels unfair to other albums based on the limitations of the rating system
Otis Redding
4/5
Love Otis Redding. That voice is as good as it gets.
Can
4/5
It’s very weird, and very good. I’m struggling on how to rank it because the last couple songs get, like, avant garde noise rock weird, which is annoying, but the rest of the album is very nice. In fact, there are a couple places where you could almost convince me that it’s an early Radiohead B side.
I think the last two songs are too weird to give it 5 stars, but I think 4 is about right.
3/5
pretty good, early prog.
Foo Fighters
3/5
I am very fond of Dave Grohl. I am not very fond of Foo Fighters. I was a huge Nirvana fan in the 90s, but never really warmed to Foo Fighters. Listening to this album, I think the non-radio singles are more punk, and better songs, but it all sounds very 90s - which is great! But it's still only fine. *Maybe* I'd give it 3.5 stars if I could do half stars, but I'm not agonizing about giving it a 3, either.
Give it a listen. Or don't. You won't regret either decision. It's that kind of album.
Bee Gees
1/5
No. Just fucking...no.
3/5
Ok, so, it’s not nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be. In fact, it’s not bad at all! Really pleasantly surprised. 3 stars.
Tom Waits
4/5
This is delightfully weird. Musically, it's all over the damn place. There are traditional sounds - guitar, drums, shaker - but there are all kinds of pops and cracks and just a general cacophony that probably shouldn't work, but does. And speaking of things that shouldn't work but do - Waits' voice. It sounds like he smokes 5 packs a day and gargles with razor blades but there's not a single misplaced note on the album. Who Are You is a song that's sparse, stripped back musically, putting his voice in the spotlight and, goddammit, it shouldn't work but it does. Even though the instruments are in the background, there's a standard 4/4 beat but there's a guitar, or banjo or something in the background that is definitely *not* playing the same beat/time signature and the rest of the song...but it works and it isn't distracting.
I get the impression almost like I'm listening to a demo, and not in a bad way. There are always these drums and percussive sounds that sound like they're in the background; not turned down, mind you, but like Waits and co. are huddled around a single microphone and the percussion is farther away from the microphone. It has a rawness and authenticity, a lack of polish, an honesty of musicianship that is rare.
I didn't know what to expect going into this album and, to be honest, I'm not *really* sure what I'm thinking after listening. I'm not sure I'd listen to it on repeat, but I'm pretty sure it's awesome?
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
3/5
It's better than I thought, but it's not great. There are some songs that I actually like, but then there are some that sound like country and country just plain sucks.
Merle Haggard
1/5
Country music is an abomination.
The Kinks
2/5
This is so incredibly not my kind of music that I just cannot see it. You Really Got Me is a song where you can at least see the Rock & Roll bones, but then they pivoted and went to this...mess. I don't even know how to categorize it other than to tell you there are lyrics about kissing a girl under the old oak tree. That's not much of a descriptor, I know, which should really underscore the deep antipathy I feel for this album.
Eagles
1/5
This easy listening, banjo-pickin’, boring ass, elevator music is not for me. This is one of the biggest bands of all time? The early 70s were a cesspool of shit music. The very best thing I can say about this album is that it’s only 37 minutes.
Orbital
3/5
Fantastic album if I wanna dance. Slightly less appropriate for sitting in my office. 3 stars, I think it's fine. It's not earth shattering, but it's definitely listenable.
Elton John
2/5
It's all very Elton John. It's kind of bouncy, I guess, but good christ, it's too long. All of the songs pretty much sound the same, so an hour and 15 minutes or whatever is just too damned long. 2 stars because it's not awful, but I'll be happy to never hear any of these songs ever again.
New Order
2/5
I wanted to like this a lot more than I did. Honestly, it's just a bit boring. I know New Order are supposed to be the New Wave gods that ushered in blah blah blah, but it just sounds really paint-by-numbers synth pop. Considering this album came out the same year as Pretty Hate Machine by Nine Inch Nails, I just think it sounds safe and uninteresting. It gives me no pleasure to give this 2 stars, and I would potentially give it 2.5 if I could, but here we are.
U2
3/5
It started really strong, with Sunday Bloody Sunday and New Year's Day being amongst the first 5 songs. I was surprised that this album is early 80s, because it really doesn't sound like it...until song six, The Refugee. I actually stopped what I was doing and looked at my phone, surprised because I thought it was a different band. It sounds so different than the first 5 songs, I thought it was, like, Oingo Boingo or something. It sucks, is what I'm saying. After that it kinda picks up and sounds like U2 again, which means it's aggressively mediocre. I'll give this 3 stars, but it's milquetoast U2 at its absolute peak.
Eels
4/5
This is a wonderful album. It’s definitely a little “different,” but it’s amazing. Novocain for the Soul was a massive hit that most people will remember. The lyrics are tremendous - thought provoking and, in places, heartbreaking. E is amazing at seeing people and writing from the heart. 4 solid stars.
Skunk Anansie
5/5
Honestly, one of the biggest and best surprises since I started this project, nearly 200 albums ago. I am stunned that I missed this band in the 90s. I had heard the name but somehow never came across any of their music and boy did I miss out!
Musically it’s fantastic. The unfortunately named Charlie Big Potato has the chunky grooves and creative time signatures that would make any prog band blush. The lead singer has pipes FOR DAYS. She is one of the rare breed that can actually use her voice like an instrument, getting gritty when needed, or sounding ethereal and angelic when it suits the song. Add to this mix the very good lyrical writing and you have an album for the ages. Why this band wasn’t even bigger I will never know, but it’s a 5 star album for me.
Cyndi Lauper
2/5
I do not like 80s pop music. At all. So you can imagine my chagrin when this popped up this morning. Oddly, It starts off much stronger than I anticipated. Money Changes Everything was almost more punk than pop, with strong lyrical imagery. Even Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, the epitome of 80s pop, tells a pretty strong story if you focus on the lyrics. This is where it starts to fall down. When You Were Mine is a bog standard unrequited love pop song, and though Time After Time actually has some really sweet and heartfelt lyrics, the song itself is dreadful, and it just gets worse from there.
The last song, Yeah Yeah, has some weird, badly mixed VoiceOver. I don't know if it's supposed to be Betty Boop or something, but it's distracting and annoying and it's definitely crap.
I'm going to give it two stars. I'm actually impressed by parts of the album, but the parts that lean into the cliche 80s pop sound are just too bad and too numerous to rate any higher.
Mike Ladd
2/5
I wanted to like this album more than I did. I really enjoy underground hip hop, but this one just seemed a little boring. I don’t know, it’s fine. I’m really torn. I don’t want to give it 2 stars, but I’m just not sure it’s good enough for three. I would give it 2.5 if I could. Since I can’t, I have to go with 2 stars because I was just bored.
Nine Inch Nails
5/5
Yeah. 5 stars. This album is one of the best albums I’ve ever heard. Not a single weak song. Goddamn, if I could give this higher than 5 stars I would. Masterpiece.
Prefab Sprout
2/5
This album is just a bunch of nothing. I listened to it yesterday and now, at 8am this morning, I can barely remember anything about it. It left absolutely no impression whatsoever. It is a bowl of non-flavored yogurt. It is a lukewarm glass of water.
Dolly Parton
1/5
Yeah...no.
Klaxons
3/5
Totally fine. Sounds like mid 2000s radio rock. Kasabian-like. It’s fine.
The Go-Go's
2/5
Ponderous 80s bubblegum pop dross.
Joni Mitchell
2/5
I don't know. Ultimately, I just find her voice regrettable. I think she's a good songwriter, but I just cannot connect with the music at all. I wish I could give it 2.5 stars. I think it's probably a "good" album if you're into this sort of thing, but I just don't like it, so giving it a 3 seems wrong. So just know in spirit it's 2.5.
Wu-Tang Clan
5/5
I'm not going to argue that this is the greatest hip hop album ever made, but I'm also not going to argue against it. This album changed everything. It was grimy, it was dirty, it was chaotic, it was layered, it was nerdy, it was SO FUCKING COOL. It was life in New York on the ground level, in a voice never heard in such a way. It was The Wire in aural format. It was, and continues to be as influential an album as has ever been created, a seminal piece of art, a nearly flawless masterpiece.
PS - Don’t listen to the edited version that the included link takes you to on Apple Music. Take a second to find the full, unedited version in all its glory!
M.I.A.
5/5
I'm pleasantly surprised. I know M.IA. through her radio releases, primarily Paper Planes (which, ironically, is one of the weakest songs on the album in my opinion). They're catchy, but they've never really grabbed me enough for me to seek out a full album. I can now say that was a mistake.
This album is really, really good. Taking a cornucopia of interesting sounds, cultures, experiences, and ideas, she's able to weave this really catchy tapestry of sound that has kept me bobbing my head and tapping my toes. I think the first two songs got a little repetitive within themselves, but that is a small niggle, and one that does not portend further repetitiousness throughout the album. Each song sounds different, but still work really well as part of a coherent album.
This is a great album. 4.5 stars.
Alanis Morissette
5/5
This album is filled with staggeringly good lyrics. They’re so smart, and heartbreaking, and relatable, and honest, and thoughtful, and wise - I cannot even believe they were written by a 19-year-old.
I'm a child of the 90s, so of course I've heard the big radio releases, but unlike Alanis I was nowhere near as mature or emotionally intelligent to really pick up on the words. It's simultaneously a VERY 90s time capsule album, and a timeless album.
You know, it’s almost a shame that You Oughta Know is the song she’s most well known for. I remember the talk always being how she was like kind of a psycho ex-girlfriend. When I hear it now I just hear pain and catharsis and an attempt to come to grips with the most intense emotional pain of one’s life. Which is what every breakup feels like at 19! But then the rest of the songs on the album show the growth, and self awareness, and expectations for future relationships, the healing process that shows how she came out the other side of that pain. There’s an understanding that pain is a part of life and if you embrace it, and learn from it, that it can be positive. it’s almost like You Oughta Know is the first half of the movie and most people don’t know how the movie ends.
There are a couple songs that I don't think are as strong as others. I'd probably give it 4.5 if I could. Normally, for a 5 star review, I can't pick out any weak songs, but the lyrics on this album, I think, are so overwhelmingly great that I can forgive a couple songs that I, personally, don't connect to.
Al Green
4/5
We’re having a baby in 9 months. Thanks a lot, Al Green.
Boards of Canada
4/5
Excellent downtempo electronic music. I greatly enjoyed this. One knock is I think it’s a little long, I kind of struggle with focusing with albums over an hour.
My Bloody Valentine
2/5
I don’t know. Maybe you had to be there?
The Isley Brothers
3/5
Quite good. I’d imagine this band was an inspiration to Prince, as they blend R&B with Rock & Roll.
T. Rex
3/5
It’s fine. Very 70s.
Queen
4/5
I find this extremely difficult to score. On one hand, it sounds like theatre music, and I don't like theatre music. On the other hand...I kinda like it. I think they lean into the camp a little too much for me at times with weird sounds and slide whistles and stuff (Seaside Rendezvous is exhibit A), but man, is there anything else that sounds like Queen? I have a son that hates rock music, but loves musical theater. He actually loves The Wall because it's just a glorified musical, and this album has the same feel to me so I keep thinking of him.
So how do I score it? I mean, it's a good album, but will I ever listen to it on purpose? Probably not. That said, I'm enjoying it! I'd give it a 3.5 if I could, but in this format, I think I'll give it a 4 because 1.) It's wholly unique, and 2.) Bohemian Rhapsody. The song is 50 years old and people still crank it. That's gotta count for something, right?
The Doors
3/5
I guess it's kind of hard to completely dislike The Doors, but on the other hand, they sound very, VERY dated. This is another I would kind of give 3.5 if I could. When comparing it to yesterday's Queen album, I'd say the biggest difference is that the Queen album sounds unmistakably Queen, and very different than anything else. That gives it a sort of timelessness. This album sounds very The Doors, but The Doors sound is very heavy on the 70s rock organ, meaning it sounds very anachronistic. For that reason, I think this album gets a 3.
Count Basie & His Orchestra
3/5
I enjoyed this. It was a nice palette cleanser, definitely music that I'm not very familiar with and it was a nice little head bopping background music soundtrack to my day.
I'll give it a 3. At one point I was trying to look at it as objectively as possible, and as the musicians are obviously very talented, I wondered if it didnt deserve 4 stars. Then as I continued listening I felt like it was just a very long album. When I checked, I had blown past the album by 4-5 songs and hadn't noticed. So while I'm sure that these people are fantastic artists, the reality is that they're not *so* good that I could differentiate their sound from the next 5 artists that popped up.
Ultimately, then, it was a pleasant little aside, and a happy 3 stars.
The Black Keys
3/5
This is a quite good album, however, it does get a bit repetitive. I like the Black Keys, but many of the songs on this album - while individually good - sound very similar. Another album that, in my opinion, suffers for going over the hour mark.
I really wish I could give this a 3.5. 3 stars doesn’t do it justice, but I just don’t know if it’s 4 stars good.
The Notorious B.I.G.
3/5
This one was a little difficult because, reputationally, this is one of the best rap albums ever made by one of the greatest rappers that ever lived. My reality, however, is that I never connected to it, or Biggie, when it came out. I have, of course, heard the radio hits hundreds of times, but I was legitimately curious to see how I would respond listening to the full album now, with fresh ears.
Verdict: mediocre. I still just don't connect with it. Look, it's fine. It's very OK! There are some good songs, even one great song, but mostly it's just fine. As a hilarious bonus, while listening to the song Who Shot Ya?, which was/is a Tupac diss track, my mind kept going, "Who Shot Ya but you punks didn't finish, you 'bout to feel the wrath of a menace," which are the lyrics to Hit 'em up, Tupac's rebuttal, and the greatest diss track of all time.
Checkmate, Tupac. Three stars.
Van Morrison
2/5
So. Fucking. Tedious. It’s ok, I guess, but I don’t get the hype. And a double album? It’s too much. No thank you.
New Order
3/5
it was ok. A couple songs I really enjoyed, and a couple sound kind of 80s pop. You could feel the there's something different in here, though, from normal 80s pop, and it's this new wave, electro-pop stuff that gave us Nine Inch Nails, so that's worth something. 3 stars.
David Bowie
4/5
I quite liked it. Bowie, like Queen, is really his own, singular thing. I haven’t really listened to a ton of Bowie, but this album was really good. 3.5 if I could, but I’ll bounce it to 4 because I wouldn’t have a problem listening to it again for fun.
Grant Lee Buffalo
4/5
I really liked it. I don’t know how I missed this in the 90s, but Wikipedia says that the band never really broke out of cult status despite mostly positive reviews. They were big in LA, I guess, and I lived far, far away in flyover country at the time.
Kate Bush
3/5
It’s an odd album. I thought it would be big standard 80s pop but it’s not. There’s a darkness to it that sort of seems like a precursor to emo. I liked it, for what it is.
Gene Clark
1/5
This is country music masquerading as rock and it can go fuck itself.
Baaba Maal
3/5
I liked it. I know nothing about this kind of music, and I can’t say I’ll be seeking it out to listen to, but it was fun and pleasing.
Michael Jackson
5/5
I was raised in a cult, and Michael Jackson was one of the few secular music artists I was allowed to listen to. I didn't own this album, but considering 7 of the 9 songs were released as singles, I might as well have.
I'm not sure how I actually feel about the album. Nearly 50 years later, Beat it, Thriller, Billie Jean, and Wanna Be Starting Something are still catchy in the best way. If I'm not mistaken, this is still the best selling album of all time, and with the way music is consumed now it will likely hold that record for the rest of time. How can you not give that a 5 star rating?
Slint
4/5
Welp, I love it. I couldn't listen to it all the time, but it's damned fantastic. I think it starts a little slowly, but that could be more because I didn't really know what I was listening to. It reminds me of Godspeed You! Black Emperor with vocals. I'm leaning towards 4 stars because I think it's a little niche for 5 stars, but it's great.
I listened to it a third time because I kind of want to give it 5 stars. I think, however, I will go for 4 stars. I really, really like it, but im not quite sure it belongs in the 5 star group. 4.5 stars, for sure!
The Avalanches
3/5
Frontier Psychiatrist is a BANGER, and Etoh was pretty great as well. The rest of the songs are kind of plug and play, paint by numbers, generic "electronic" music that I have trouble connecting with.
Tom Waits
3/5
first thoughts: I'm worried. It's too long, and I don't generally like interludes, and this album has 7 "intros." On the flip side, I think I like Tom Waits - or at least I quite liked Bone Machine. We'll see.
Starts out jazzy with the first intro, a live set where he's just kinda talking to the audience. It has the line, "I'm so goddamn horny the crack of dawn better be careful around me," which I appreciate.
So it appears the album is a live jazz performance. It's good for jazz, his voice definitely lends itself to this kind of thing. I think it's enjoyable, but not particularly interesting or novel. I wonder about replay value due to the riffing and crowd work. It's interesting the first time, but how many times can you listen to it before it loses its appeal?
Overall, I'm glad I listened to it, but I don't see how I can give it higher than 3 stars. One good thing, though, is that it's confirmed that I *do* like Tom Waits.
Kanye West
3/5
I've never understood the Kanye love. He's extremely mediocre. All of the bangers of his career are due to guest versus: Exhibit A is the song Monster. Absolute BANGER with a killer verse from Jay-Z and an absolute song stealing verse from Nicki Minaj.
If I’m being fair, I think Monster was the turning point of the album. The first 5 songs were very meh, Monster is a classic, and the rest of the songs were pretty decent. 3.5 stars
Nina Simone
2/5
I’ve heard the name so much with so much reverence that I was excited to get this!
Turns out, I don’t get it. The music is pretty boilerplate and her voice is nothing special.
Dexys Midnight Runners
2/5
the most 80s of crappy 80s music.
Michael Kiwanuka
3/5
It's pretty OK. Nice and smooth. It’s another one that’s tough to rank without half stars. I quite like it at points - Solid Ground is amazing. Probably 3.5 stars overall. Turns out he’s a t*ttenham supporter, which is AT LEAST a half star deduction.
Little Richard
4/5
This was about 20 years before I was born, but I liked it! I'm not sure I'd ever listen to it on purpose, but it was a damned good listen. This is a much better representation of 50s rock music than that thieving pedo fraud, Elvis. Elvis is boring and he sucks. Little Richard just makes you want to tap your toes and nod your head and shake your ass!
Eurythmics
2/5
I realize I'm listening to this 40+ years later, and everything sounds quaint after 40 years, but I feel like I'm listening to a Yo Gabba Gabba episode.
Sweet Dreams is good, so 2 stars.
The Kinks
2/5
Honestly, I just don't know what this is. Is it just cookie cutter hippie music? Because I cannot, for the life of me, find anything interesting or transformational about this music. I know the Kinks are supposed to be hugely influential, but why? Were they the first to do the 60s/70s rock organ thing? It all sounds like ren fair background music. It's awful, is what I'm saying.
Fats Domino
2/5
I wanted to like it because I enjoyed the Little Richard album a couple days ago so much.
I did not like it.
Pixies
3/5
Pretty ok, actually. I’m not sure what else to say. There were moments where I could really hear the influence they had on Nirvana, so that’s good.
Black Flag
3/5
It's punk rock. I think I can understand why it's "famous" in its genre. It's like The Sex Pistols, but even more aggressive. Rollins' singing is abrasive and repetitive, and the overall musicality is kind of poor, but overall it's not, like, terrible. It's not good, mind you, and it gets terribly repetitive by the end, but it's not awful.
Leonard Cohen
3/5
It's OK. I kind of like it, but it's definitely one of those things where I have to be in a very specific mood. 3 stars.
Peter Tosh
2/5
It's fine. Not much to say, really. It's kind of typical 70s reggae. It's pretty OK, for sure, but it's not special. probably 2.5 stars.
Gillian Welch
2/5
Too country. It's listed in Apple Music as singer/songwriter, but as the album goes on, the twang gets unbearable. I think she has a good voice, and the songs that don't lean country aren't awful - I could listen to them as background noise in a coffee shop. I'll give it 2 stars, because I'm fair.
The Beta Band
3/5
Actually pretty decent. I've never heard of this band, and I cannot for the life of me figure out why it's included in this list, but it's pretty OK. kind of chill rock, if I had to categorize it.
Guns N' Roses
3/5
OK, so Welcome to the Jungle is an all-timer if you like rock music, so let's just get that out of the way now. Sweet Child O' Mine is, if you're of a certain vintage, another all-time banger. Now for the rest.
I mean, it's hard for me to get the fact that this is the quintessential hair band out of my head, but this is definitely straight ahead hard rock. It's not as hair band-y sounding as, say, Poison, so that' something. Rose's voice gets grating after awhile.
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
2/5
Nick Drake
5/5
Perfection.
Michael Jackson
3/5
The first half was very good, the second half was much less so. I’d give it a 3.5 if I could, but I think I’ll harshly give it a 3 star because I very much disliked the second half of the album.
3/5
Pretty damned good, actually. Kinda punk, kinda zeppelin-y blues rock, kinda pissed off counter culture hard rock.
The Clash
2/5
I just find early punk to be so repetitive and boring. It’s not awful if this is your thing, but 30 one minute songs that all sound like they are slightly different arrangements of the same song just isn’t my thing.
Sister Sledge
2/5
Get jiggy wit it!
That’s the best thing about this album. I don’t like disco.
David Bowie
2/5
I like Bowie. I did not like this album.
Donald Fagen
2/5
No thanks.
G. Love & Special Sauce
2/5
Man, I’m on a bad run. This album was just kind of annoying and repetitive.
Songhoy Blues
3/5
Kinda decent in a “World Music” sort of way.
Kanye West
3/5
I just can't with Kanye. Jesus Walks is a banger, I'll give him that, but the rank hypocrisy is so annoying I can't really enjoy it.
Sometimes, he has some of the best lyrics in hip hop. Other times his flow is clunky, or so self aggrandizing as to be eye-rollingly tacky. Overall, I feel like it's an uneven album. Too long, for sure, but with enough quality songs that I can't hate too much. I'd give it a 3.5 if I could.
Aerosmith
3/5
Frankly, it’s fine. Kudos to Aerosmith for being able to maintain their core sound while still evolving enough to stay relevant across several decades, but unfortunately, that means this album sounds like an 80s album.
Lots of radio hits that I remember being pretty big, and even liking at the time, but now they just sound dated and mediocre.
Fever Ray
3/5
It’s actually pretty good - another example of why I really wish this project had half stars. Because I liked this more than I liked Aerosmith, which I gave 3 stars, but I don’t think it’s enough to give 4 stars.
Overall, solid electronic dream pop-y music. I actually like it quite a bit, musically, but the singers voice isn’t very good, so that knocks it down a peg for me.
4/5
I really haven't listened to much Bowie, but through this project I've realized I like him quite a bit. That said, I got Aladdin Sane last week, and that was a dog's album. awful. So I was actually nervous when this popped up today, but I shouldn't have been. I'm not sure if this is considered Bowie's magnum opus, but it should be. Magnificent writing, excellent vocals, and timeless musicality...for the most part.
It starts off very strong through Starman, which is one of the best two songs on the album. It falters a bit in the middle starting with It Ain't Easy, but it ends very strong. If not Starman, Rock n Roll Suicide is the standout track of the album.
Overall, I think the middle portion is a little too corny to give the entire album 5 stars, but this is a stellar album. Easy 4 stars, and another example of why we need half stars.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
3/5
It’s ok. It sounds kind of new wave-y in parts, and sort of in that mid-2000s Strokes/She Wants Revenge/The Hives/Interpol genre. I don’t love the singers voice, but I think the fact that it’s a female singer is the only bit that sets them apart.
David Bowie
3/5
The problem with being on the bleeding edge with new technology is that it massively dates you in the future. This album is kind of the equivalent of a 14lb mobile phone shaped like a brick. It’s not that I don’t see the foundation it set (a young Trent Reznor’s mind must have been blown), and I certainly appreciate what’s to come from this genre, but to me, this sounds antiquated as hell.
That’s not to say it doesn’t have its moments! There are a couple catchy songs on the first half, even if they do sound as fresh and relevant as bluegrass, and the second half has some nice ambient songs that are thoughtful and interesting and show that Bowie is not a linear thinker.
It’s about as far from Ziggy Stardust as you can get, and it was an interesting listen. I’ve never heard any of these songs, and I wonder if this is a harbinger of Bowie’s later albums/sound. I read in a comment somewhere that this project allegedly has NINE Bowie records, so we’ll see.
Led Zeppelin
3/5
Some bangers, kinda boring, tooooo long, basic Led Zeppelin template.
Bebel Gilberto
2/5
Lounge music isn't really my thing. The singer has a nice enough voice, I guess, but to my ears it's an album filled with The Girl From Ipanema, and that ain't it.
Red Snapper
4/5
I really liked it. Once again, we need half stars. 3.5 would be my pick here, but I’ll go with 4 stars because I think It’s better than fine.
Screaming Trees
3/5
It was better than I thought it would be, but it sounds very much like what it is: mid-90s grunge. Fortunately, I very much like mid-90s grunge! But it’s not timeless in the way the royalty of the genre tends to be. I think 3.5 stars for this one.
Black Sabbath
3/5
Iron Man and War Pigs are such classics, though, and this album was incredibly subversive when it was released. All metal owes this a debt of gratitude, for sure. That said, while I respect it, I found it a little boring. Three stars is just about right.
Circle Jerks
3/5
I wish I liked punk. I have to admit, though, there's something charming about leaning into the cliched absurdity of the ultra short punk song in such a way. 14 songs in 15 minutes is sort of hilarious. And, as a bonus, It's better than the Black Flag album.
Throbbing Gristle
1/5
I don't know what this is. It's just noises kind of shoved together.
Frank Zappa
3/5
Well, I don't really know what I expected, but it wasn't this. I've heard about how "weird" Zappa was for years, but I definitely didn't expect a jazz-adjacent instrumental album. It's not bad, I'll start there. It's "experimental," sure, but not so much so that it's weird. There are horns, there are some odd time signatures thrown in, it all tends to be a bit free flow-y, but it's pretty standard stuff, really. A couple songs kind of give me a bit of a Phish vibe, which is blech, but overall, It's really just fine.
Kings of Leon
4/5
I love this album, It's SO good. The smoky, husky voice, the mellow, yet complex melodies, the sad relatability of the lyrics, it's amazing. If I'm being uber critical, I'll say that it does sound a *little* dated. I'd give it 4.5 stars if I could.
The Band
1/5
I've never heard of The Band. Writing this during the first song, a 5+ minute whine-fest, I wish I'd still never heard of them.
Through the third song, this is awful. The vocalist is very bad. I understand why I've never heard of them.
OK, song 5, The Weight. I've heard this song. I think it's just one of those songs that has been in movies or something. I don't know, I just know it sounds familiar.
I'm through song 8. I am definitely considering some of my life choices. Mistakes were made.
OK. Wow. That was painful. 1 star. There is nothing here for me.
Robert Wyatt
3/5
I don’t know. I think it’s really good at some parts, and a bit tedious in others. Strangely, there are two songs with the exact same name, but they’re completely different. For me, the first Little Red Riding Hood Hit The Road is the highlight of the album.
Overall, I think the album starts a bit slowly, hit its stride on the third song, and finishes strongly. Solid three stars with the slight caveat that you absolutely have to be in the right mode to listen to it.
LCD Soundsystem
3/5
It's pretty OK. It sounds like mid-2000s rock (ala The Strokes, Interpol, The Killers, et al) but with a slightly more upbeat, slightly electro-pop foundation.
Massive Attack
5/5
This is not their magnum opus, but it’s still so goddamned good. 4.5 if I could, but I’ve no issues giving this all five stars.
The Strokes
3/5
I often say that I feel like the 60s through the 90s have signature sounds, but the 2000s and 2010s are just kind of mush, but this album has proven me wrong. The mid 2000s absolutely have a sound, and it’s this.
There are about a dozen bands that sound just like this, but I guess you’d say the strokes were the torch-bearers. I don’t know what you call the sound, or if they were the best at it, but they, and this album, are a time capsule to the mid-2000s.
Elvis Presley
1/5
Not for me. Blue Suede Shoes is fun and campy, but the I Got A Woman cover is a limp facsimile of the original. I Love You Because is sappy and unoriginal, and Just Because gives me old time revival vibes. The Blue Moon cover, however, has a sparse, interesting interpretation that I actually enjoyed. I know it's unfair, but Elvis has such an identifiable singing style, but unfortunately that sound and style has been relentlessly parodied for 50 years and I cannot take him seriously.
When I was a kid, I bought the myth that Elvis was unique, and original, and brought a certain type of rock and roll to the masses. But as I've grown, and discovered that people like Ray Charles, Billy Wright, Little Richard and scores of others were out there doing the same type of music, I fully believe that Elvises level of fame has more to do with his race than his talent.
Also, he was a pedophile.
Richard Thompson
3/5
This is so bad, dude. I think the singers sound Irish? So it kind of sounds like hippie Irish folk music - but not the cool hippie shit or the cool Irish folk music. If this was an album of old Irish drinking songs that would be AWESOME! sadly, it's more like music for Americans who pretend they're Irish and go to renaissance fairs and don't wear deodorant.
The last song on the album, The Calvary Cross (live) is terrific. Like, where the hell was this in the original song - or at any other point in the album?! It's so, so good. What a shame there's nothing else like it, id have enjoyed an album full of songs that sound like this.
Ok, so the last song was good enough that I went back and relistened to the album to see what I missed. I think it’s better than I originally thought, but i still stand by what I wrote above…just with a bit less vitriol. The Calvary songs are undoubtedly the highlights.
Miles Davis
2/5
I just don’t know what separates good jazz from bad jazz. I can tell you I liked this album more than the last miles Davis album I listened to. This was much more interesting, lots of electronic, computer-ish sounds. Still, at its core, it’s jazz. Is it good? Who know! But I’ll never listen to it on purpose.
Frank Sinatra
2/5
So, I'm not nearly old enough to have listened to a lot of Sinatra. That said, for the last 15 years, as we've set up the xmas tree with my kids, we throw xmas songs on the Alexa as background ambiance. Today I learned that Sinatra has, in my brain, just become the sound of xmas.
Past that...I don't know how to rate this. I'm not a lounge-y type guy, so this doesn't really grab me. On the other hand, the voice is iconic, and no one can deny that it's excellent, but it sounds so, so dated that it's kind of boring.
It's not bad, so it seems harsh and unfair to give it 2 stars. But I don't necessarily "like" it, and I wouldn't listen to it again on purpose, so giving it 3 stars seems like more of a reputation ranking. I'm going to go 2 star, because I think it's too long. I can stand it for a couple songs, but it starts to drone after a while.
Moby
5/5
I wasn't excited about seeing this album. I remember this album because it was everywhere you turned - tv shows, commercials - EVERYWHERE, and Moby kind of became a bit of an over-exposed joke. I was even less excited when I saw that the album is 2.5 hours long, which, no.
Turns out the album was combined with a B-sides, so I found out where the original album stopped and committed to that - a still long but much more manageable 63 minutes.
And it's terrific. Like, it's very, very, VERY good. The mixes, the vocals, the samples are all perfect and give this album an incredibly upbeat yet still chill vibe that is outstanding. I think it's aged awesomely well, and to be honest, I probably like it more now, 24 years later, with fresh ears.
If you like electronica, especially downtempo, you're gonna like this. I'm not sure it's *quite* the rarified air of a 5 star as I think a song or two could have been trimmed, but it's a 4.5 for sure.
David Bowie
2/5
I like Bowie, for the most part, but how many goddamned Bowie albums do we need? There are lots of really great bands that haven’t popped up yet, but this is my 4th or 5th Bowie. I’m adjusting my view of Bowie from “I like Bowie” to “Bowie has some good stuff”
This album was fine. I’ve never heard the full Changes song, just the chorus in movie trailers and such. It’s not that great.
I don’t know. Maybe I’m just a bit burned out on Bowie, but this does not feel like one of the greats.
The Monkees
2/5
I can't take the Monkees seriously. I'll say it's not nearly as band as I thought it was going to be. That's not to say that it's good, mind you. It's sort of stereotypical sappy 60s pop.
John Lennon
2/5
I’ve never understood the Beatles hype. They undeniably have a few good songs, but to be treated with such reverence and considered one of the best bands ever? I don’t get it.
This album is kind of like that. Imagine is undeniably a good song. The rest are fine, I guess. Nothing really sets them apart from any of the other 60s pop songs. My album yesterday was The Monkees, and if I didn’t know the names attached to each album, there’s just not a lot between them.
I'll give it 2.5 stars. Imagine is a good song, How Do You Sleep is pretty good as well.
Dirty Projectors
3/5
Damn good album. 3.5
Primal Scream
2/5
This is kind of tough for me to rate, because I'm not in the mood. I don't know exactly what it is, but I'm not in the mood for it.
LCD Soundsystem
3/5
It sounds like the dude from the strokes woke up and decided to play with GarageBand on his iPad. I don't love it. I will say it's unique-ish, so that's something. I'd give it a 2.5 if I could. I'm going to give it a 3 because even though I don't *like* it, per se, I don't think it's *bad*, it's just not for me.
Muddy Waters
4/5
This is dirty, low down,stinking, nasty blues.
Hell yeah.
Faith No More
3/5
Quite good, actually. It sounds pretty dated, but it doesn’t sound like 80s music at all. I can see why it’s so influential. 3.5 stars.
Leftfield
4/5
This was a lot of fun. I wish I had known of this when it came out. It’s very reminiscent of Massive Attack.
Leonard Cohen
3/5
It's not bad, but I didn't like it as much as I had hoped I would. I think his voice is pretty basic, and the music itself sounds really dated. I'm not sure if he's known for being a lyricist, but the lyrics didn't really connect to me; I'm not sure if it's a generational thing or something else.
I've heard the name for so long but never got around to listening to him. I have to say, again, I don't dislike the album, but I don't at all understand why it or he is so influential.
John Martyn
3/5
Weird album, kind of disco-y, didn't really love it, but Couldn't Love You More is the outlier stand out track. 2.5 stars.
Ian Dury
1/5
I feel like this project is a little too heavily skewed to old music. Out of 270 albums, I’ve gotten 78 albums from the 70s (the most of any decade) and 46 from the 50s/60s - nearly half - and only 10 from the 2010s.
Now, I do not, as a rule, like old music from the 70s and before. There are outliers, to be sure, and it's always fun when I discover the occasional BB King, or David Bowie, or Nick Drake. This album is not that. From the first song, it almost sounds like parody. Like a British comedian's version of what American disco sounds like. It's awful, is what I'm saying. It gets better after that...which is to say that while it still sounds like a British comedian's version of American music, it doesn't sound like disco anymore. So...better? It still sucks though. Bad.
It's embarrassingly bad. I can only think of a few albums worse than this. Country music, shit like Gene Clark, Gram Parsons and The Byrds which claims to be rock music but is really country music in disguise, and Throbbing Gristle. That's it. This album is *that* bad. It's irredeemable.
Fugees
5/5
I cannot overstate how absolutely fantastic this album is. I haven’t listened in many, many years, but holy shit. Not only does it hold up, it is definitively on the Mount Rushmore of hip hop albums.
The beats, the lyrics, the wordplay, the interplay between the MCs - It’s all flawless. I often complain that we don’t have half stars in this, and for good reason. Even some of the other 5 star albums I’ve rated don’t hold up to this masterpiece.
Common
4/5
Really good album from the “conscious rap” catalog. One of the best of the era along with Mos Def, Talib Kweli, and Nas. Minus one star because my wife won’t stop telling me how hot Common is.
Public Enemy
3/5
It’s a classic, but like most 80s rap, it sounds pretty dated. 3.5 stars because the message and the lyrics are timeless.
Lightning Bolt
4/5
Like, what? Apple Music says this is punk, so I was prepared to be annoyed by nasal yelling, bad instrumentation and cliched riffs. What I got was…not that. The musicality is shockingly good (maybe only “shockingly” because of my own personal punk rock biases), and overall quite catchy.
Make no mistake - it’s a mess. At points it sounds like a mic check, or a pre-show warmup. But then they morph into something fun, energetic, and downright catchy.
The vocals are fuzzy and mixed back quite low, so there aren’t really any lyrics to speak of. I was so intrigued that I googled them, and Wikipedia has them listed as “noise rock,” which sound about right.
I’m going to give this a 3.5. I’m sure it’s partly influenced by it being better than I anticipated - i.e. not punk - but I also think it’s pretty good, and it’s very different, and I’d totally listen to it again.
Red Hot Chili Peppers
4/5
I'm not the biggest Chili Peppers fan. I think BloodSugarSexMagic was amazing, but after that I think they're just fine. This album, though, has to be considered a classic. Although I've never listened to this album all the way through, it's one of those that you kind of *feel* like you've listened to the whole thing because there were so many major hits released.
I'll give it 4 stars, well deserved.
Randy Newman
1/5
Randy Newman just sounds like Toy Story to me. This was like an hour of that family guy skit where he "sits there night and day, just singing about what he sees."
it's funny for 30 seconds, it's a nightmare for an hour.
Bob Dylan
3/5
It's OK. I mean, it's pretty good in spots, damn good in others, and a little reductive in others. I was really into it the first half of the album, but it feels like he really leaned into the harmonica and folksiness at times, and it stopped sounding fresh and started sounding very cliche, repetitive, and boring. I think a 3.5 is about right for this one, as the songs that hit are fantastic. But it's really hard to give this a 4 because I just didn't enjoy the last half of the album nearly as much as I did the first half.
Creedence Clearwater Revival
3/5
Most mornings, when my album pops up, I'll send a screenshot to my wife. This morning I sent a screenshot of this album with a crying emoji and a puke gif. Because I do not tend to like 50s and 70s music, and since this project seems to LOVE those two decades I feel like I have a constant onslaught of 60s and 70s albums.
To say I was not excited is an understatement.
But I have to tell you, it was much better than I expected. The first three songs were terrific! it loses a bit of steam after that, but there isn't really a "bad" song in the bunch. This is a solid 3 trending to 3.5.
Franz Ferdinand
3/5
Not really a whole lot to say. This is the quintessential sound of the mid 2000s. Not bad, but not that interesting either.
Holger Czukay
1/5
I like electronic music. As a relatively new art form, know that there is a certain degree of “you have to walk before you can run.“ This, however, is less “walk before you can run,“ and more “crawl out of the primordial ooze.”
Although I greatly appreciate the pioneers that paved the way for the great electronic music that I’m able to listen to today, That appreciation does not make this weird, early German electronic noise easier to listen to.
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
3/5
I was afraid I was going to hate this but I didn’t. I don’t know if this is in any way accurate, since I don’t listen to much Billy Joel, but this reminded me of Billy Joel.
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
3/5
I didn't like this as much as I had hoped I would. It strays dangerously close to country in a couple places. That said, Down by the River is pretty awesome, of not a bit overly long.
Overall, this is a three star album. Mostly fine, even pretty good in parts.
Liz Phair
3/5
Very 90s, and not in the best way. It’s not a bad album, but for all the love it gets, I’m not seeing it.
TV On The Radio
4/5
This is much better than I expected. On one hand, it very much has the mid 2000s sound, but it kind of does it in a unique and interesting way. Overall, I'd give this a 3.5 if we had half stars. I'll give this a 4 because it's better than yesterday's Liz Phair by quite a distance.
Linkin Park
5/5
For years I've had issues with Linking Park being lumped in with the testosterone-fueled Limp Bizkit bros of "nu-metal." In my mind, although there is anger and aggression at times, there is much, much more o this band. The Apple Music blurb for this album reads, in part:
When Hybrid Theory came out in late 2000, it was easy to lump LINKIN PARK in with other so-called nu-metal bands. The difference was in how they processed their anger. If anything, part of what made Chester Bennington so compelling as a frontman was his ability to explore trauma without ever trying to avenge or place blame for it—a huge feat, considering how deep his trauma seemed to run. So, while the rap/rock/industrial blend of tracks like “Papercut,” “Crawling,” and “In the End” redefined modern rock, they also called back to bands like The Cure and Depeche Mode: sensitive young men looking for a break from pain.
As one of those sensitive young men during those years, one who felt and feels a very acute connection with the lyrics and the pain of Chester Bennington, I feel seen and understood.
Crosby, Stills & Nash
4/5
This is a tough one - because I liked it A LOT more than I thought I would. It’s a 3.5 at least, but is it a 4? I don’t know. But I’ll say this much: I don’t know why they thought they needed to add Neil Young. I had a Neil Young and Crazy Horse album a couple days ago and this is miles better than that. Since I think I gave that one a 3, I guess I’ll give this one a 4.
Parliament
3/5
Pretty ok.
Sinead O'Connor
3/5
Pretty ok
Janis Joplin
3/5
It sounds like a Simpsons skit with Marge Simpson singing the most cookie cutter 70s rock music.
It’s not awful.
Lynyrd Skynyrd
2/5
There’s a certain stereotype of a Lynyrd Skynyrd fan that, as someone who grew up in Missouri, I have had the extreme misfortune of verifying many times over. So I never really sat down and listened to the band.
Turns out I wasn’t missing anything. This band is what a confederate flag sounds like.
fIREHOSE
3/5
It’s not bad. It’s like that early 90s mixup of funky punk and folk. Reminds me of, like, The Lemonheads, or Dinosaur Jr, or The Replacements. It doesn’t really *sound* like those bands, per se, but they’d definitely tour together.
Animal Collective
3/5
Part Polyphinic Spree, part Arcade Fire.
Amy Winehouse
4/5
It’s very good, surprisingly so. It’s not really my kind of music, but it’s undeniably catchy. I’m going to say it starts to get a bit old. Y the last couple songs, but I won’t sing it to hard because it has the decency to clock in at an excellently paced 35 minutes.
One of the relatively rare albums that lives up to the hype.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
2/5
I don't know much about Nick cave and the Bad Seeds, but this album sounds like a guy who is a frontman for another genre of music trying to be a singer. His voice isn't *awful*, but it's definitely not great. In fact, his voice - and the album - is just boring. It's not bad, per se, but it's boring, and repetitive, and just plain bland. When the primary backing is a piano, the voice better be otherworldly. Nick Cave's voice is *not* otherworldly.
The Prodigy
5/5
I'll never forget the night I saw the Firestarter video for the first time. Dark, mysterious, confusing, and a little bit dangerous. There had never been anything like it. Unapologetically hardcore, it was electronic music not for geeks, but for hip hop heads, ravers, metal lovers and those with punk sensibilities and a perpetual Johnny Rotten sneer.
In short, this album had it all.
I think this stands the test of time. Diesel Power with the inimitable Kool Keith is a highlight, but songs like Breathe, Smack My Bitch Up, and the aforementioned Firestarter will go down in history as some of the most famous and influential electronic songs of all time.
Electric Light Orchestra
2/5
I do not know if this is considered "yacht rock," because I'm not entirely sure what "yacht rock" actually is. But whatever this is, it *should* be considered yacht rock. Or the precursor to. It's really annoying and I don't like it at all. I'm only on the second song, so I don't yet want to doom it to a 1 star review, but I just looked and it has 17 songs and lasts for 1 hour and 11 minutes and I'm telling you now that is TOO MANY SONGS.
Gotan Project
5/5
This is exceptional. It just smooth, but funky. The use of horns and smoky vocals layered over a stellar backbeat is *chef's kiss*.
If you like Wax Taylor, RJD2, DJ Shadow, etc. you'll love this!
Deerhunter
3/5
It's kind of shoe-gazey, but not bad. There's a couple songs that, strangely, kind of remind me of, like, 60s pop that I'm not a fan of, but overall it's a pretty decent album.
Bob Marley & The Wailers
4/5
It’s excellent.
Jefferson Airplane
3/5
I'm much more fond of the straight forward rock & roll songs like Somebody to Love and White Rabbit than I am of the flower child, ren fair shit like My Best Friend, Today, or Coming Back to me.
If you're going to listen to weird hippie shit, I guess you could do worse.
Joni Mitchell
2/5
It’s hideous lounge singer shit.
Emmylou Harris
1/5
Absolutely not.
Sarah Vaughan
2/5
I'm sure my grandfather would have loved this, but it's not really my thing. All music from this era just sounds like lounge singer-y stuff. It's not *bad*, and she has a lovely voice, but the over-use of vibrato from this era starts to get on my nerves a bit.
Roxy Music
3/5
I wasn’t sure about this album when it popped up, because I’m sick to death of 70s music. I have to say, at first, I was very pleasantly surprised! I don’t think that it sounded like stereotypical 70s music, it was very interesting and unique. For the first half of the album, I was leaning towards a four star rating, but I think the back half really declined in quality, in my opinion. I’d probably give this a 3.5 if I could, because I do you think that it is a good, interesting example of 70s rock music that isn’t the stereotypical organ rock.
Ice T
3/5
I say this every time I get one of these classic rap albums, but old 80s/early90s rap sounds so dated and quaint, it's hard to take it seriously. The bottom line with this album is that it's better than I expected it to be, but it's WAY too long. No goddamned reason for this to be 24 songs and over an hour.
A microcosm of the album is the song Body Count. Ice-T slipped in a hard rock song by his rock band on a rap album. That's creative, and interesting, and brave! The song is more than 5 minutes long - that's too long!
I'll give it a 3. It is catchy, but man. Too long.
FKA twigs
4/5
This is probably the best time for me to have gotten this album, because I've been listening to a ton of this psychedelic soul/alternative R&B. Frank Ocean, Miguel, Sza, etc, and this album fits in with that headspace.
It's dreamy, it's poppy, it's ethereal. It's creative and unique, and it manages to be excellent background music while also being complex and poignant enough that one could sit in a dark room, close their eyes, and just concentrate on the music. 4 stars.
Supertramp
2/5
the epitome of 70s organ rock. This is not good at all. It's not country music bad, so I'll give it 2 stars, but it's really annoying.
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
1/5
Me: I am so sick of 70s rock music.
1001 Albums: let’s switch it up - here’s some 70s country music.
Fuck this.
Weather Report
2/5
I’m. Sick. Of. 70s. Shit.
310 albums, 95 of them from the 70s. That’s ridiculous.
As to this album, I have no idea what it is. Jazz, I guess? I don't get jazz, and then you add in all the weird 70s organs and I just can't.
Jurassic 5
3/5
pretty good. It's kind of a soulful, "conscious rap" type flow. The beats are more interesting than the lyrics, which are kind of standard, I think, but there's a lot of real creativity in the music.
Scritti Politti
1/5
I always say I don't like 80s music. But what this project has shown me is that there were loads of great albums released in the 80s, but what I don't like is a certain *kind* of 80s music. And that is this kind of 80s music.
This sounds like someone created some synthesizer music, tried to sell it to Paula Abdul, and when she passed, sold it to these guys.
I do not like it, is what I'm saying.
The Velvet Underground
3/5
I've always heard how hugely influential this band is, but I'm not sure why. I think you had to be there. Because I don't hear a ton of sounds that I can identify from bands that came later. Actually, I just googled "what bands were influenced by The Velvet Underground" and most places reference older acts like Bowie, Eno, and Iggy Pop, and almost everyone says they are the godfathers of shoegaze. I don't really listen to much of any of that, so that's probably why it's hard for me to notice the influence.
Overall, it's fine. The last couple of songs get weird, but I don't dislike it. I'm not sure I like it either, but 2 stars seems awfully harsh. 2.5 stars if I could.
George Michael
2/5
Very 80s - but admittedly, a couple bangers (grading on a curve).
The problem is, I just can't get past the cheesiness of it. It's 80s pop straight out of a lab, and that's just not for me.
Dire Straits
2/5
I did not like this. It wasn't at all what I thought it was going to be, it was very slow. It definitely had an 80s feel, but not overly so, like George Michael and that Scritti Politti nonsense.
Still not good.
Hawkwind
3/5
You know how sometimes in movies you see that old, stoner, hippie guy that drives a van painted with wizards, and dragons and shit? That guy loves this album.
James Brown
4/5
Quite fun. 3.5 if I could, but I really enjoy these old rock albums. Except Elvis.
Dusty Springfield
1/5
If Carol King and Joni Mitchell had a boring-ass baby.
Nas
5/5
In the 90s, I was a West Coast guy, so I didn't really listen to this on repeat like some hip hop heads did, so it's fun to listen to it now, with a bit of remove. I've never fully been on board with the genius of Nas, but this album is exceptional. the beats and samples are so good, and there isn't a weak song on the album. 4.5 stars.
Supergrass
4/5
It's pretty good. It starts out slow, but it picks up nicely - there are some bops in here for sure. The song Alright is the hit here - I feel like I've heard this song in every movie or TV show that needs a teen anthem montage. In fact, I just looked it up and it has been in 23 movies or TV shows since its release.
Overall, I'd give the album a 3.5. I don't think it holds up to some of the 4 star albums I've rated before, but I feel like it's better than just "OK" or "fine," which has been my criteria for a 3 star album.
The Beta Band
3/5
Pretty OK. Kind of a mellow rock type of deal. I'm curious why this is one made the list, but it wasn't unpleasant. Pretty unique. Solid 3 stars.
Beck
4/5
Really great album. I’m not really the biggest Beck fan, but this album is a bit of an outlier to his previous works. 4.5 stars.
Killing Joke
4/5
I have heard of Killing Joke but never really got into them. People of a certain age will remember Columbia House, where you could get CDs mailed to you for a penny. I remember ordering a Killing Joke album and it just didn't really grab me at the time. Firing up today, I was very dismayed to see that this album was released in 1980 - I thought they were a 90s band.
In short, this album is pretty awesome. It has shades of punk rock, in terms of the singers affectations, but musically it is much richer and more diverse. It doesn't sound like the 80s at all, or the 70s - it is something pretty damned unique. 4 stars.
Hüsker Dü
3/5
It's pretty OK. It doesn't sound heavily 80s, but it definitely has some 80s rock flavor to it. One thing that knocks its rating down a bit is that its quality is fairly inconsistent. Some songs I feel like I can hear bits of R.E.M. or The Lemonheads. Other songs just sound like basic album filler that is just kinda there. Overall, not a bad album, but too goddamned long. 20 songs is too many songs.
Eminem
4/5
I remember the first time I heard the song My Name Is, I literally said out loud, "Oh my god, Dre, what are you doing?"
Turns out, I was very, very wrong. Not only is the song an all time great, so ids the album AND the artist. Eminem gets a lot of ink for being a white rapper, but amongst all the unique things about this album, his race is nowhere near the most interesting, influential, or radical.
I've really spent a lot of time trying to decide the ranking for this album. with 25+ years of hindsight, I can say that this album launched the career of an all-time great, a cultural and musical phenomenon, a genius lyricist without peer. On the other hand, the lyrics are no longer shocking and, in fact, can seem attention-seeking and cringy. I would give this a 4.5 if I could. I don't think it's his best album, and I do think that it tails off a bit in the second half. Up to this point I've tried to reserve 5 star reviews for only the most special of albums, and I don't think this one *quite* lives up to that.
Cat Stevens
3/5
Overall, I like it. I think he's got a very unique voice. My main criticism would be that he doesn't have much range, so al the songs start to meld together a bit. I know people love Cat Stevens, so I'm glad I listened to it.
Justice
4/5
I love this album. There are a couple filler songs that keep it from being 5 stars, but the bangers are BANGERS.
Sufjan Stevens
3/5
This is a super weird album. At first, I thought I was really going to like it, later on...not so much. A brief listing of music that the album made me think of while listening: Arcade Fire, Charlie Brown, The Polyphonic Spree, Super Furry Animals, Peter & the Wolf.
It's not unpleasant. It's unique and, in places, very, very good. 3 stars seems about right. I'd listen to it again, but I wouldn't seek it out.
Björk
5/5
Masterpiece. This album is Bjork at her weirdest, creative, beautiful best.
Gene Clark
1/5
Country music is just whiny trash.
Deee-Lite
3/5
Firstly, Apple Music has this categorized as rock music. I'm not entirely sure *what* it is -- Funk? Disco? -- but it is *not* rock.
With that out of the way...it was quite nice. Not anything I'd seek out, but very upbeat, groovy, and bouncy.
Sex Pistols
4/5
I don't really like punk music, but this is pretty damned good. It's like all other punk is either the early bones that this album perfected, or it's simply trying to be this album.
I’m going to give this a 4, as I actually enjoyed it quite a bit.
Einstürzende Neubauten
1/5
German noise rock is so tedious. Three songs in and I’m hearing something that sounds like a bubbling, clogged toilet with some simple banjo picking - oh, and here comes the random scream/wail and the shouting in German.
It doesn't get better.
Spiritualized
3/5
I don't really know what to say about this album. In fact, I was so puzzled trying to determine whether I liked it that I listened to it twice. The verdict is: I still don't know. I definitely do not like the first song, but after that it settles in to a perfectly nice, soothing, dream pop-type album. It's perfectly OK, completely non-threatening and about as cutting edge as a bowl of warm pudding. I feel like I've given worse albums three stars, but there's something about this album that's so formulaic that it's almost offensive.
I think I'll give it a 3, because it's fine, but I'm not fully comfortable with it.
Michael Jackson
4/5
This popped up and my first thought was "oh, here's a 5 star album!" The first two songs are Bad and The Way You Make Me Feel - excellent! Both songs are toe tapping legends and we're well on the way to that 5 stars. But then...Oh boy. Speed Demon is just kind of weird, but still kind of bouncy and fine. But Liberian Girl is cringey af and Just Good Friends is gross 80s schlock. Another Part of Me is kind of catchy after you get past the early 80s sound effects. But then we're back to business! Man in the Mirror is amazing (even if it does sound a bit dated),Dirty Diana is still a pretty good time, and Smooth Criminal is still a banger.
Overall, it sounds much more 80s than I remember. I'd give it a 3.5 but I'll bump it to a 4 because my brother-in-law was in the Smooth Criminal video.
Big Brother & The Holding Company
3/5
Surprisingly decent. Wonderful? No. Very 60s, and Joplin is as screechy as ever. But eminently listenable.
David Bowie
3/5
A whole week without a Bowie album! Thank god this popped up, I don’t know how I was going to make it!
There are too many Bowie albums. This one was fine.
Gorillaz
5/5
I love this album. So fun, so unique. Fantastic from top to bottom.
Pulp
3/5
It's incredibly bland, to be honest. You can tell this band LOVED Bowie growing up. Other than that, It's not special at all. They're trying to be Bowie-ish and Oasis-ish at the same time, but not quite nailing either. It's OK, overall, I guess, but I was surprised when I looked at the run time after the last song and discovered it was "only" 52 minutes. It seemed much longer.
Iggy Pop
3/5
It’s fine, I guess, I don’t know. Lust for life is a bit of a bop, Sixteen is creepy as hell (how were 70s rock dudes all pedos?), and there was another song I recognized that was kind of good but I can’t remember what it was. 2.5 stars
3/5
My initial thought when this popped up: Ugh. Not looking forward to this one. Let’s get into it.
It starts off horrendous. Big Exit is a trash song that seems to go on forever, but it picks up a bit — a *slight bit* over the next song, and then One Line is actually good. A bit of a meh Beautiful Feeling, but then The Whores Hustle is pretty catchy. The Mess We’re In is FANTASTIC, though that’s mainly because it’s a Thom Yorke song. Back to meh for You Said Something, but then Kamikaze is a rocking good time. This is Love is OK, I guess (slightly above meh), and Horses in my Dreams is dreadful.
Overall, better than I was expecting, but my initial reaction is still a bit justified. I kinda liked half the songs, so it can’t be less than a 3 star rating. I’m trying to decide whether I would rather listen to this again, or yesterday’s Iggy Pop, and I can’t really decide. Some good songs, some filler. Honestly, despite being 20 some-odd years apart, they’re not that different.
Napalm Death
1/5
"That's a no from me, dog."
--Randy Jackson
Neil Young
3/5
Because 1001 Albums You Dhould Hear Before You Die should be named All 70s Wll The Time, of course it’s Neil Young. That said, I *think* I like Neil Young, so I’m cautiously optimistic.
Out on the Weekend had some slide guitar and a hint of strangeness twangy-ness that makes too country-adjacent for my tastes. This isn’t starting well.
Harvest sounds even more country-ish. This does not bode well.
A Man Needs A Maid is oddly named, but not country, so massive improvement. Sadly, the song - lyrically *and* musically, is just as bizarre as the name. Not great.
The rest of the album is kind of the same. Some good (Old Man is FANTASTIC), some not so good. 3 stars, but overall, I think it diminished my opinion of Neil Young.
Ray Charles
3/5
It’s fine. It’s just so…old sounding.
Nirvana
5/5
Masterpiece. Beautiful, bold, and flawlessly executed. Perfection.
Adele
2/5
OK, so, this may be incredibly unfair, but I just don't like it. I feel like it's really whiny. I'm all for a good breakup song, but dear god, every single song is about how she's been done wrong by a (I presume) man. So it's either she's been broken up with or cheated on, or she's pining for another woman's man or some sort of unrequited love. Ugh, it's boring.
She undeniably has a great voice. Very powerful, and she has great mastery of it as an instrument - but she doesn't really showcase a ton of range. All the songs sound pretty much the same (the Lovesong cover; however, is excellent). I feel like two stars is harsh, but I also feel like I'd rather cut my fingernails too short than to ever listen to this again.
Bonnie Raitt
1/5
Ew. No.
Anthrax
2/5
Anthrax didn't appeal to me when I was younger, but I wasn't really into thrash or heavy music at the time. Fast forward 30 years, and I'm very much into heavy music, but I still can't get into this. It just sounds very messy, and very antiquated. It sounds like a garage band, really. it's just very much a thrash album of its time. I realize Anthrax are hugely influential and hugely important in the progression of heavy metal, but it's just not a great album. 2.5 stars.
Depeche Mode
4/5
OK, this is a strange album. The first song starts and I swear it made me think of Cyndi Lauper, it sounded so anachronistically 80s. The 80s sound was also heavy in the next song, but that song still had me tapping my toes. Then comes Personal Jesus. Fucking. Banger. Nothing 80s about that song, it's completely self-contained, only of itself, and timeless. What a song! Then you got Halo and Waiting for the Night, which, whatever. Halo is pretty OK, a bit of a filler song, and Waiting for the Night is slightly better. Then back-to-back you have Enjoy the Silence and Policy of Truth which - holy shit, that's a genius ten minutes of music!
So, I've got an album that has some songs that sound really dated, and some songs that sound completely unique and amazing.
Taylor Swift
2/5
I gotta tell you- there’s nothing at all special or interesting about her music. Why the cult-like following? It’s cookie cutter, paint-by-numbers, bog standard, white girl pop music. And honestly, it’s just not that good.
Stan Getz
2/5
Not my thing. I guess it's probably fine if it is, but it just sounds like tiki bar background music to me. It all sounds pretty much the same, which is great if you just want bland background music while you're trying to chat up drunk, divorced cougars, I guess.
Arcade Fire
2/5
I don’t like Arcade Fire. Some songs sound like Bruce Springsteen. I don’t like Bruce Springsteen either.
The Temptations
4/5
It’s sweet and fun.
Joanna Newsom
3/5
God help me…I liked it. Like, a lot. Ren fair bullshit usually annoys the piss out of me and, honestly, it does with this album as well. But if I ignore the unforgivably stupid lyrics, it’s an outstanding album. I don't think I can quite give it a 4 because I think it's listenability is HEAVILY dependent on mood, but it's a strong 3.5.
Marvin Gaye
2/5
It's so boring I cannot be bothered. I am also very far removed from the headspace in which this kind of music could be appropriate. The US election results have shown that this ridiculous country has decided to show the rest of the world its entire ass and re-elect a racist clown that has promised fascism.
But, honestly, when a country that was founded on genocide and built on the backs of slaves shows that a leopard doesn't change its spots, is anyone *really* that surprised? So we'll get what we deserve when the Christian Taliban and Supreme Court drag this country back to the stone ages. As a black man, that terrifies me, but the straight white people in this country couldn't give a flying fuck about anyone but themselves.
Always remember: There is no hate like Christian love.
James Taylor
2/5
Boring. Next.
Massive Attack
5/5
One of the next albums, of any genre, ever made. There was nothing like Massive Attack before, and nothing like it since. Although the genre as a whole didn’t stick around, this album sounds as fresh and cutting edge as the day it was released.
And it’s not even their best album.
The Temptations
3/5
Fuck sake. Two Temptations albums in three days. It's fine. Probably even good, but I don't need two Temptations albums in three days.
The Birthday Party
3/5
WEIRD.
I kinda liked it.
Arctic Monkeys
5/5
I have had such a terrible week or so of albums, so thank god for the few rays of sunshine I have gotten. This album is awesome. It's so fun, and bouncy, and unique - I love it. Although I think they've done some solid work since this released, I don't think they've ever again quite reached these heights.
Paul Weller
2/5
It's...not great. I don't really think it stands out. It sounds like stereotypical early 90s rock. That time where grunge was starting to wind down, but there were these acts that were kind of stuck between grunge and Clapton era classic guitar rock. 2 stars
The Young Gods
2/5
30 seconds in, I'll say that I'm intrigued. Who knows if I'll like it (so far it sounds a little like circus music), but it's going to be completely new to me, and that's fun and interesting. I've gotten so tired of cookie cutter 70s rock, so anything new and/or different is so refreshing.
OK, on to the actual thoughts about the album: It's not great. I don't know who this is for, really. It kind of reminds me of industrial in parts, but there's also a whole lot of something that sounds like an accordion. The vocals are kind of shit. All the lyrics are in French, so maybe it's genius lyrically, but I don't speak French. Overall, it's kind of experimental rock. Not the worst I've heard, but nothing I'm clamoring to hear again.
Look, I stand by everything I said in the first paragraph. Discovering music is fun and energizing, and it's really the whole reason I started this project. That said, they can't all be zingers! And that's OK! So 5 stars to the project for including something unique and original, and 2 stars to the album for being a bit shit.
Sonic Youth
3/5
I never really connected with Sonic Youth in the 90s, but I gave their other album 3 stars, so let's see how this goes. I wouldn't say i'm excited for this, but I am feeling significant relief that it's not another goddamn 70s album.
Final verdict: It's fine. Whatever. Sounds like Sonic Youth.
Creedence Clearwater Revival
3/5
Hooray, more classic rock! Oh my god, it's been SIX WHOLE DAYS since I've gotten a 70s (close enough) rock album! I wasn't quite sure how I was going to survive without listening to another goddamned 70s album but THANK GOD that dry spell is over.
OK, now that the snark is over...It's not bad.
Stevie Wonder
3/5
It’s pretty ok for what it is. I got tired of it after awhile, but overall it’s solid.
Ali Farka Touré
3/5
Really enjoyable. Nice and calming, many of the songs were almost straight up blues. 3.5 stars.
Eminem
4/5
This is a difficult one. As a cultural touchstone, it's epic. It's Eminem's magnum opus. No one can rhyme like Em, no one can tell a story like Em. It's actually difficult to listen to this while doing something else, it's almost like reading a book. You're doing yourself a disservice if you're not listening to the words.
On the other hand, It's a tough listen in places. The violent and constant homophobia is gross. The violent and constant misogyny is exhausting. I'm not pearl clutching here, I know they're "jokes" or whatever, and I'm not offended, as it were, but it's just not appealing. I guess that's what happens when you push the line to get a reaction - eventually the line moves and what are you left with? An album that was once shocking but now, as society and culture have progressed, can come across as tired and cringe.
If I rank it according to its popularity at the time of release, it's an easy 5 stars. If I rank it based on how I feel about it now, I don't think its repeat listenability is at the level you'd expect from a 5 star. Honestly, whether I rank it 4 or 5 stars, it'll be both very fair and extremely unfair.
Joni Mitchell
2/5
Initial reaction to the album reveal: I am 49 years old. Prior to beginning this project, my entire exposure to Joni Mitchell is the line in Janet Jackson's Got Til It's Gone when Q-Tip says, "Joni Mitchell never lies." Based on the albums of hers I've heard during the last year of this project, I wish that were still my entire Joni Mitchell experience.
It's probably the best one of hers I've heard so far. It's still droning and tedious. I sincerely hope there aren't any more Joni Mitchell albums.
Bruce Springsteen
3/5
Initial reaction: FUCK.
I’d say that this album is approximating good. I don’t know if it’s quite 3 stars because I don’t really ever want to listen to it again, but it was miles better than the first Springsteen album I listened to, which I gave 2.5 stars.
I’m going to give it 3 stars if only to not be a contrarian prick. I’m not sure how much I agree with that as a rating, but I’m also not sure it doesn’t deserve it.
Isaac Hayes
2/5
Oh look, more 70s music. Shocker. This should be interesting, though. I’m too young to have seen the movie, but the song is pop culture royalty.
It's mainly just a score, which I was a little surprised about. The issue with that is that it just sounds like a cheesy 70s movie, which isn't extraordinary, it's just kind of forgettable. For a soundtrack to be something one "must listen to before you die" I would think it would need to be something exceptionally different or groundbreaking. For example:
Judgement Night - forgettable movie, but the soundtrack was really breaking ground by putting major hip hop artists with major rock artists. The rap/rock hybrid sort of became the dominant sound of the mid 90s, but this album predated that dominance and, in fact, heavily influenced it.
Purple Rain - I mean, just a masterpiece on so many levels. I know it's already in this project so I won't belabor the point, but THIS is an album you have to hear at least once before you die.
Saturday Night Fever - Look, I don't like disco, and this album isn't my cup of tea. But if you're talking about albums to listen to before you die, this is one of them. Whether you like the music or not, it tells a story. It is a love note to a very specific time and place. There are instructions in this album, there is history in this album. It is a time capsule and, for a moment at least, it was perfection.
Oh Brother Where Art Thou - This soundtrack took music that was close to 100 years old and somehow catapulted the album to number 1 on all the charts! Why? What was the allure? How the hell? Exactly! Don't you want to know the answers? Don't you want - no, *need* - to listen to that album before you die? Exactly!
There are literally dozens of soundtracks that are more deserving of being on list of Albums to hear before you die. Even if you're looking more at scores than soundtracks, literally anything by John Williams, Gladiator, Chariots of Fire, Interstellar, Last of the Mohicans, FFS!
Anyway, this album was underwhelming.
Jethro Tull
4/5
They should rename this project to 1001 Albums From The 70s.
Two songs in. I've heard Aqualung before, it's a pretty solid song. Cross-Eyed Mary is an unexpected banger! Like, what? 70s Prog Rock FLUTE is not what I had on my bingo card for this morning, I'll tell you that for free.
Overall, pretty damn good - and interesting - album. 3.5 stars.
The Who
2/5
Cool. More 70s rock. C’mon, man. The new Kendrick Lamar dropped yesterday and I have to listen to this trash. FML.
It’s whatever. Watered down classic rock.
Dinosaur Jr.
3/5
I don’t love dinosaur jr, so I’m not thrilled about this album. It’ll probably be three stars. That said, it’s not from the 70s, so that’s something.
Yeah, it's exactly what I thought. fine, I guess. I find the lyricist whiny and boring, but it doesn't suck. 3 stars it is. Ho hum.
The Smashing Pumpkins
4/5
So, the Pumpkins are from my time period in the genre that I primarily listened to at the time. But past Siamese Dream, which is a masterpiece, I've never really been able to get into them. I don't think I've ever listened to this album all the way through - I've only heard the radio songs - so this will be interesting.
It's simultaneously very good, and also I didn't really connect to it. But you really can't argue with an album that has Tonight, Tonight, Zero, Bullet With Butterfly Wings, 1979, and Thirty-Three. As previously mentioned, this was my era, so I can appreciate how different this album was than the normal fare while also staying (mostly) true to itself. So I'll give the fact that it's a double album a little leeway, because 2 hours of Smashing Pumpkins is too goddamned long.
This is one of those albums again, where I really wish I had half stars to play with. The album is so much better than many albums I've rated three stars, but nowhere near as good as most of the albums I've rated 4 stars. I guess I'd give it 3.5 stars if I could. That said, I'm going to lean into recency bias a bit. I gave Dinosaur Jr. three stars yesterday and this album is light years better than that, so 4 stars it is.
Tina Turner
2/5
Not great.
Badly Drawn Boy
4/5
For what it is, it's really good.
It's kind of folksy, kind of rocky, with a bit of navel-gazing mixed in. It has some interesting sounds and the vocals just fit perfectly with the music and style.
It's really difficult to score, because I don't know if it's a home run 4 stars, but it's far better than a "meh, it's fine" 3 stars. I'm giving it 4 because I really liked it, acknowledging that at the end of this project this one may look a bit of an outsider.
Echo And The Bunnymen
2/5
It's not my thing. It sounds very early new wave, and I find that a bit boring.
David Bowie
4/5
"What I really need in this project is ANOTHER David Bowie album" said literally no one. There are too many goddamned Bowie albums. One caveat, however, is that this seems to be a 2016 album, which is a long time from his heyday, so I admit to being somewhat intrigued, in spite of myself.
Well, damn. It's fantastic. A little weird, a little out there, definitely different than any of the Bowie I've heard so far, but really good. I'm sure there are loads of Bowie "purists" that hate this album, but I this is definitely an album where Bowie was branching out, trying new sounds. Definitely not resting on his laurels.
I doubt that this album will be as timeless as some of his others have been. For one thing, where his earlier records sounded uniquely, singularly Bowie, this album sounds like I've heard parts of it before, but this is Bowie doing it, if that makes sense. Ultimately, however, I liked it.
Joe Ely
1/5
Fuck this.
Talking Heads
3/5
Extremely Talking Heads.
Bruce Springsteen
2/5
I don't like Springsteen - I am not looking forward to this.
Halfway through, it's very Springsteen. Like, paint by numbers, exactly what you'd think. It's pretty boring, but it does tend to get the toes tapping on occasion.
Don’t like it. Springsteen sucks.
Bon Jovi
3/5
I kind of missed the 80s because I was in a cult, so I don't really have the connection to that decade that most people my age seem to. That said, I *did* attend public school, and there were certain things that were so big thatchy were able to pierce that protective bubble of anti-secularism that I was encased in, and this is one of those things. I don't think I've ever heard the entire album, but even under my rock, You Give Love a Bad Name, Wanted Dead or Alive, and Livin' On a Prayer were ubiquitous. Now, I don't really like 80s pop, so this one will be interesting.
OK. The aforementioned hits were nice little walks down memory lane, for sure. but oh my god, it is cheesy as fuck. The production is dreadful - I now understand why so many older albums are remastered - this one could definitely use some love. If this is your cup of tea, it's probably quite good, but it's not mine. I think 2.5 stars. I'll bump it up to 3 stars because I do recognize how massive it was, and how influential Bon Jovi was for a minute.
Here's a fun/weird tidbit: you know how when you listen to an album, and it ends, your streaming service will keep playing song it thinks you'll like based on whatever algorithmic formula is in play? I started typing this during the last song of the album and the next song was Def Leppard. Makes sense, yeah? the song after that was...One Step Closer by Linkin Park. ohhhhkaaaay...
Led Zeppelin
5/5
Initial thoughts: SIGH, another 70s rock album. counterpoint - Led Zeppelin kinda slaps. This is also one of my wife's favorites, so there's that. I'm not disappointed to see this pop up, to be honest.
Dude. What can you say? Banger after banger after banger. There's honestly not a weak song on the album, it's actually astounding. Look, I don't adore this era of rock, but if I have to listen to it, *THIS* is the album to listen to! 4th album, 8 songs, 43 minutes, 5 stars.
Billy Bragg
2/5
I don't know anything about Billy Bragg. I'm not encouraged by the fact that it's an 80s album, but I've discovered some decent stuff from an otherwise awful decade during this project, so we'll see.
Yeah, this sucks. I love a thick Bri'ish accent as much as the next American, but this just sounds like a guy down the pub wailing at an open mike with a few too many pints in him. If I had to guess (and I can't be bothered to actually look it up), I'd say this is probably catagorized as new wave/punk? The vocals are definitely punk-like, by which I mean the guy can barely hold a tune. The backing music, however, is more like singer/songwriter territory. It's like if Hootie & the Blowfish had a baby with Billy Idol.
It's not for me, is what I'm saying.
Jimi Hendrix
5/5
Not disappointed to see this pop up. I know I rail on about being tired of this genre of music from this era...but this is Jimi, man!
Starting out with Purple Haze is FIRE. Does it get worse after that? IT DOES NOT! The next two songs are Manic Depression and Hey Joe! Although it doesn't seem to get the same love as the other two, Manic Depression might be the best song on the album, for my money.
But SURELY it falls off after that, right? Well, dear reader, do YOU consider songs like Love or Confusion, Fire, or Foxey Lady "falling off?" How about Are You Experienced or Highway Chile? This album spawns hit after hit after hit. If I were going to be nitpicky, I'd say the album doesn't *have* to be an hour and a quarter with 18 songs. So sure, there are a couple here that don't quite live up to the all-time greatness of the rest, but does that drop the totality of the album out of the 5 star stratosphere? Dear reader, it does not.
The National
3/5
Take Morrissey, add a dash of Arcade Fire, stir in just a pinch of Bruce Springsteen and you have this album.
Despite that, I actually didn’t hate it. I’m in kind of a morose mood because Arsenal drew Fulham, so it fits.
Big Star
2/5
Never heard of this. The release year doesn’t give me high hopes.
Not great. Kind of 70s rock pop, with a dash of 60s flower child hippie pop thrown in.
Curtis Mayfield
4/5
Curtis Mayfield is a pimp, there's no other way to say it. This is just really good, really smooth 70s soul music - what's not to love?
Well, actually, there is one thing: It gets a bit preachy/churchy/Jesus-y at points. YMMV but that annoys me. Enough to knock it down a star? Probably not. I would maybe give it 3.5 stars if I could but in this format, I think it deserves 4 stars because you kind of know what you're going to get going in, and it does that thing extremely well.
Radiohead
5/5
Initial thoughts: Fuck yeah! Instant 5 stars, absolute masterpiece, top ten album ever made.
I came to Radiohead a little late. I had heard Creep, of course, as everyone my age had, but it was whatever. At the time, I was very into hard rock and here come Radiohead, this little frou frou band - or so I thought. I was in the gym one day and was talking to this guy - an absolute jacked specimen of a man, and asked him what was in his headphones. "Radiohead." It blew me away. We chatted a bit more, he encouraged me to give them a listen, and the rest is history. Radiohead is my favorite band, and though choosing a favorite album is like choosing a favorite child (which is to say - you ABSOLUTELY have a favorite but you'd never say it in public), many would choose OK Computer as their magnum opus.
As mentioned in my initial thought, this is a certifiable all-time banger. Not a weak song on the album, not an ounce of fat, no notes: perfection.
Björk
5/5
Initial thought: I LOVE Bjork! the day after OK Computer - I'm in heaven!
So, I love Bjork. I know she's not everyone's cup of tea, and I understand why. But there's such delicacy in her sound that never seems to get overshadowed in her powerful moments, or the times where she's most creative or experimental, which allows for such beauty in her sound that it can get overwhelming. This album leans hard into that delicacy and beauty, as it sounds like a girl in love - the gauzy, exhilarating first moments of love where every sense is heightened, every moment is forever, and all the pieces seem to fit.
I love this album. 5 stars.
The Young Rascals
2/5
Never heard of this band. Based on the artwork and the year, I am really not looking forward to this.
Don’t love it. Sounds like an episode of The Brady Bunch.
Miles Davis
2/5
Man, it’s just not my thing. I’ll give it two stars because I feel guilty, but it sounds like an episode of Charlie Brown.
Rufus Wainwright
3/5
It’s fine. I know he’s beloved in certain circles, but I thought it was just ok.
The Stooges
4/5
Not looking forward to this. I don't really like early punk.
Well, shit. That was great. Like, I think I like Iggy Pop/The Stooges. There were a couple things in there that I could nitpick, but why? Overall, it sounds VERY much before its time. At no point did I think, musically, that I was listening to an album that was most likely recorded in the 1960s. There's an energy, and a violence, and a heaviness that I don't think is found very often in music from that era - especially not in a band that became fairly big.
It's kind of a difficult rating for me. an easy 3.5, but is it a 4? I'm not sure I'm ever going to seek it out to listen to on purpose, but I cannot deny that it's pretty awesome. And compared to some of the other trek from the late 60s/early 70s I've listened to? Revolutionary doesn't even begin to describe it.
Ella Fitzgerald
3/5
Initial thought: Meh. It's an interesting selection that I'm not upset about. I know she's supposed to be great, so I'll be interested to hear it, but also, I don't generally connect with really old music, so we'll see.
OK, so I'm listening to this, and it's fine, even pretty good for what it is. I'm at work, so I've been doing stuff while listening, and I've stopped a few times to talk to people, etc. But it finally dawns on me - it feels like I've been listening to this for a *really* long time. So I open Apple Music, scroll down and - holy shit - it's over THREE hours! No thanks. I looked it up and apparently it's a box set and it's like 6 albums and that is too many albums. I've already listened to the better part of two of them, and that's enough.
So 3 stars. It was smooth, she's got a great voice, it's proper lounge bar music, but it's too long for this project. Honestly, it's too long for anything. I'm glad I cut it off before getting annoyed with it. I'm sure some fans will say I missed some good stuff, but there's no goddamned way I'm listening to 3 hours of boomer youth music.
The Chemical Brothers
5/5
Initial thought: Hell yeah. I was a big club kid for about 15 minutes in my late teens/early 20s, and the Chemical brothers were *the* electronic band. I'm not entirely sure I've heard this album, but I played the shit out of Dig Your Own Hole. I have a feeling this is going to be fun.
Yeah, that was great. Lots of layered sounds, complex beats, and it just sounds great! I didn't stop tapping my feet the entire album. 5 stars.
Haircut 100
1/5
Initial thought: wtf is this?
This sounds like someone set out to make the most cookie cutter, fluffy haired, clean cut, white boy 80s pop template and succeeded beyond their wildest dreams.
I hate 80s pop.
Also, it’s over an hour. Very few albums should be over an hour long and this is not one of them.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
3/5
Initial thought: I'm kind of blah about it. I don't know a ton about Nick Cave. I *think* I've heard some and didn't love it, but I don't think I hate it either. I'm not excited about this, but I guess I'm not dreading it either.
Actually, I just took a look at my history and I've had TWO Nick Cave albums already! That's hilarious, and it shows how memorable his music is.
Too long, wtf. Why is this an hour and a half? It's whatever. some songs are pretty decent, some are stupid and annoying. I'd give it a 3 but I'm annoyed at how long it is.
Radiohead
5/5
Initial thought: Hell yes! I adore this album, I adore this band. I honestly don't know what I'm going to be able to say after listening - it's a 5 star banger.
I mean, that’s it. That’s the review. An all timer. It’s perfection.
Herbie Hancock
3/5
Initial thought: Oh no. 1973? Strike one. Jazz? Strike two. Sigh. Let’s get to it.
Actually, it’s pretty damned good. Turns out maybe I just don’t like trumpet jazz? Or maybe this is just cream of the crop. Either way, pleasantly surprised, and a solid 3.5. It got a little weird in spots. Not cool weird, but cringey 70s weird. That keeps it from a 4, but overall it’s nice.
U2
3/5
Reveal thoughts: OK, I'm interested. U2 is an odd band and this is their iconic album. Let's see how it goes.
Weirdly underwhelming. It has a couple all-timers like One and Mysterious Ways, but it has quite a bit that are just...blah. And that's the mysterious (ha!) thing about this album. They have some songs that are really great, that stand up over time, that don't necessarily sound like they're from any era but are able to stand on their own. Then they have a bunch of songs that aren't *bad* per se, but they're just really kind of boring. It a 3 star album because I didn't hate it, but I think it's an opportunity missed in a sense.
The Doors
3/5
Reveal thoughts: I'm not disappointed! Most of my experience listening to The Doors has been through movies, so it'll be fun to listen to an actual album.
Actually, I’m a little disappointed. Kind of boring, to be honest.
Elis Regina
2/5
Reveal thoughts: wtf?
It’s terrible. It’s live, and the singer is slightly out of tune in a lot of places. I don’t like it, it’s over an hour, and it’s the day after Christmas. I’m not going to make it all the way through this one.
Sam Cooke
3/5
Quite good for what it is. Lots of really good songs, but the live versions aren’t the best, in my opinion. Still, solid 3.5 stars.
Maxwell
4/5
Reveal thoughts: Hell yeah! I love(ed) this album!
So, this is an interesting one. I went into it thinking it could be 5 stars - I listened to the shit out of it back in the day. Now though…it doesn’t hit as hard. It magnificent for what it is, and I remember when Neo-Soul was my jam, and this album was/is Neo-Soul royalty! But this is the first album that has made me think about how different I am now.
I’m not saying it isn’t good - it’s really good! But it’s more like 3.5 good instead of 5 star good. A little boring, maybe? I think it’s one of those things I need to be in the mood for, versus there being a time where this *was* my mood.
Like I said, it’s probably 3.5 stars, but it’s so much better than many albums I’ve given 3 stars, it’s getting a 4.
Frank Sinatra
2/5
Initial thoughts: *heavy sigh* everyone is supposed to like Sinatra for some reason, but I do not.
Ok, so, it sounds like Frank Sinatra. Like, who gives a shit? It’s fine, I suppose, for what it is. But honestly, you could convince me that Sinatra had one album, and this is it, because every song sounds like every Sinatra song I’ve ever heard.
And here’s a mini rant: yesterday was Maxwell’s Urban Hang Suite and it’s sitting at a 2.98 rating. Because this is Sinatra, I guarantee this one will be above 3.5, probably creeping towards 4. But what’s the difference in the two albums? They’re both full of love songs that are a bit sappy. They are both filled with songs that all sound a bit similar. They’re both sung by very good, very smooth singers. But this one will be ranked MUCH higher, even though it’s not as good of an album, in my opinion.
I don’t know. It’s a 2.5 but I’m ranking it 2 stars because I’m a bit of a dick and I’m annoyed by what I wrote in the last paragraph. It’s time white Americans stop idolizing scumbags like Sinatra and Elvis.
The Divine Comedy
2/5
Reveal thoughts: No idea.
You know the movie Love, Actually? This sounds like if the “rock star” guy made a full album.
Super Furry Animals
3/5
Revea thoughts: No idea.
Slightly tedious. Kind of sounds a bit wanna be punk-ish, but not quite as obnoxious.
It was fine.
The Gun Club
2/5
Reveal thoughts: Never heard of it. Released in 1981. This is gonna suck.
OK, not sure it sucks, but it's not my thing. It kind of sounds like punk meets rockabilly? Some songs kind of have a blues-y type sound. This will be a tough ranking because I don't really like it, but at the same time, I can *just* see why it's in this project. It's sunk, mostly, but it's not exactly like the other punk from the era, and you can hear the influences of other types of music.
In the end, though, I just don't like it. It's too long, especially for a punk album, too repetitive, and too dated. 2 stars.
Morrissey
3/5
Reveal thoughts: OK, Morrissey could be coo…2004?! Wasn’t Morrissey about 20 years past his sell date by 2004?
So, It's hard not to like, because it's very Morrissey. He's got a very cool, soothing voice, and I like it. So there's that. But some of the lyrics, man. He's a deeply unlikeable guy, I think. He's VERY fucking pretentious who seems to think he's special and better than everyone. And sometimes, he *really* wants you to know that, at the expense of the song. An example is in America Is Not The World. Now, as an American, I like a good takedown of 'Merica as much as anybody, but lyrics like "Oh, in America, it brought you the hamburger. Well, America, you know where you can shove your hamburger." Like, what? That's not clever, that's just clumsy.
Anyway, I like his voice. 3 stars.
The Only Ones
3/5
Reveal reaction: I've never heard of this band.
I started listening to this a couple days ago, and just wasn't in the mood. Then I got sick and kind of forgot about it for a couple days. Coming back to it, it's actually quite a bit better than the first little bit of listening I did. I don't really know how to categorize it. There's definitely a punk twinge to it, down to the singers somewhat nasally delivery, but it's got some four-on-the-floor straight ahead rock chops as well. There's a few songs in here that have some shades of what would eventually become grunge.
I gotta be honest - for a guy that is PROPER sick of 70s rock, this kinda slaps. I'm not going to listen to it every day, but it actually sounds fresh for what it is. I know that's weird, because if I didn't know the year it was released, I'd definitely peg it as a 70s album, but at the same time it doesn't really sound like other 70s albums.
Tortoise
4/5
Reveal thoughts: no idea.
This is an outstanding album. I know post-rock instrumental music isn’t for everyone, but I quite enjoy it. If you appreciate Moreau or Godspeed You! Black Emperor, I think you’ll vibe with this.
Steely Dan
2/5
Reveal reaction: Oh no. Goddammit.
Full disclosure, I'm about 4 days behind on this project because I've been ill and I desperately don't want to listen to this album. I made a commitment, though, so let's get into it.
So, it's as bad as I thought. My wife informs me this is called "yacht rock." I have no idea why, but whatever. Apparently it's a genre of smooth rock jazzy shit that white people listen to on boats, I don't know. What I *do* know, however, is that it's not for me.
I really try to avoid 1 star reviews, and I'm really searching for something that allows me to give this 2 stars...and I got it at the end. Home at Last had me actually tapping my toes a little, and I Got The News is strangely jaunty and fun. With a different vocalist, I think Josie could be a decent 60s-ish funk joint with a killer bass line.
So there it is. That's all I got. If you're a white guy that has a predilection for white shorts rolled at the knee and boat shoes, you're probably really going to dig this album.
Suede
3/5
It's fine. Sludgy, mid-90s, post-grunge brit-rock. If Oasis and Screaming Trees had a baby.
Missy Elliott
4/5
Reveal reaction: This should be fun!
OK, I was right, it was a lot of fun! I've never really been that interested in Missy Elliot, so this is the first time I've heard this entire album. On one hand, it's a capsule to a time in hip hop where Timbaland was EVERYWHERE, and on the other hand, it's really unique in a way that I never realized. Off the top of my head, I can only point to Lauren Hill as an example of an artist whose album is as equal parts singing and rapping - and equally comfortable with each.
This album isn't as good as the timeless Miseducation of Lauren Hill, but it definitely deserves the love it gets. Great album that sounds of its time, but not anachronistic.
Dr. Octagon
4/5
Reveal reaction: Oh HELL yes! I used to listen to the shit out of this album, but it's been a long time. This album was never meant for general consumption, so I'm sure the overall rating is going to be dogshit, but I cannot wait to revisit this and see how it stands the test of time!
It's still really good to me. A little corny at times, but still interesting and unique. I think it's a 3.5, but I'm going to give it 4 stars because I'd happily listen to it again and again.
3/5
Reveal reaction: I LOVE the song Dear God, but I don't really know anything about them. I thought they were an 80s band, but this was released in 1999. So either they're not an 80s band, they had a longer career than I thought, or this is one of those late career "experimental" albums that completely change and refine their signature sound. We'll see.
The first song is brilliant. Very lush, and layered. The second song sounds like an outtake from a Pretenders album. Which is to say annoying, but oddly catchy. The rest of the first half of the album swings between very interesting and very catchy in a pop-y sort of way. Which is to say, it's very good. I thought I was heading for a 4 star review.
Then, starting at song 7, Your Dictionary, it just gets...boring. It's hard to put my finger on exactly why, because there's nothing egregious, there's no dramatic shift to the vibes, or a change in musical philosophy - it just kinda sucks. Fruit Nut might be the worst song on the record, it sounds like a crappy, organ-y, bouncy, spearmint gum commercial jingle. Even the best song of the back half of the album, I Can't Own Her, is just sort of bland. in fact, the last three songs are sort of interchangeable drone.
I know I've spent more words describing why I don't like the second half of the album, but that's only because I'm trying to work out what's *actually* wrong with it. I think the bottom line is that for whatever reason, it just didn't connect like the first half. Overall, solidly decent album.
American Music Club
2/5
Reveal reaction: Never heard of this band. But it's never a good thing when the album of the day isn't on Apple Music of Spotify. I found it on Bandcamp.
So, I should append "unfortunately" to the last sentence. The album starts with some very severe slide guitar. I had to stop it and check wikipedia to make sure I wasn't going to accidentally listen to some country music because fuck that. Either way, the first song is country adjacent trash.
The second song is better. Very indie alt-rock, sort of like The Lemonheads. What follows is a very mixed bag. There are some songs that are sparse, elegant and beautiful, like Jenny, but more often, the songs are boring, cookie-cutter facsimiles of better artists' music. I found myself swinging wildly between a 2 star and 3 star review here because there are several songs that are actually pretty damned good - the aforementioned Jenny being the pick of the bunch. but there are songs that are infuriatingly boring slogs. 2.5 would be the right play here, if we had half stars.
Elbow
4/5
Reveal reaction: Never heard of it.
First 30 seconds: Wait a minute, this might be excellent.
Two songs in and it's on a 5 star pace. I'm a bit blown away, so I'm getting down my thoughts in real time so I don't forget! I'm getting shades of Seal, Killing Joke, Sting, Chris Martin, a bit of Oasis, maybe some Peter Gabriel, and even a little Radiohead. The music is unique and almost orchestral in parts. The lyrics are abstract, but not so much so as to be pretentious, rather thought provoking and beautiful. The type of lyrics that allow themselves to be open for your own personal interpretation - and if they land, they land hard. The vocalist is not your standard rock front man, but wow, what a voice.
So I think it cools off a bit on the second half of the album. It's still very, very good, but maybe not the same high quality as the first half. Consider this another plea for half stars, because this is a 4.5 for me.
Everything But The Girl
4/5
Excellent album. Very much mid-90s Trip Hop.
Buffalo Springfield
2/5
Quite underwhelming, actually. There are a couple catchy tunes, but it's very folksy, almost country in many spots - which I abhor. Neil Young is in this band, but doesn't sing most of the songs - they do a weird rotation between 4 guys. That's fine, just an interesting tidbit, as Neil Young is so famous and the other guys are not. Perhaps that's why Buffalo Springfield didn't last.
This is a 2.5. There are some really nice songs on this album, but there's some dreck as well. I'm going to give it 2 stars because there are just too many country-ish songs for me to elevate it to 3.
Björk
3/5
I love Bjork. I do not love this album. For the first time, I think I see what her detractors often complain about. Normally, I love all the clicks, and beeps, and hisses, and strange background noises that are so inherently Bjork. I feel like it gives her music this lush, complex, and full sound that keeps my attention and seasons the experience. In this album, however, they feel like they're just there for the sake of being there instead of improving the overall experience.
I was excited when I saw this album pop up, so this isn't a situation where I'm just not in a Bjork mood, this album just doesn't connect with me. At all. I'm loathe to give Bjork lower than a 3 star review, but I don't really ever want to listen to this album again, which means it merits 2 stars. It felt like the second half of the album was getting better, but there are so many songs with weird heavy breathing and grunting and...I'm sorry, Bjork, I love you, but this ain't it.
Nick Drake
4/5
I very much love Nick Drake's voice. I love the Pink Moon album. This one, I think is very good, but not up to the level of Pink Moon. It feels like he tries to maybe go a bit too pop with this one? Maybe trying a little too hard to make radio music? I don't know the story behind it, but to me, Nick Drake is almost timeless, because he makes his own music, and it's unique. This album was very good, but had some songs that I felt like they sounded like Drake trying to fit himself into a box where he doesn't quite belong - and because he's *so* good, it's very good, it's just not transcendent.
The United States Of America
1/5
I have never done acid. The same, surely, cannot be said of the people in this band.
Jane Weaver
3/5
Extremely OK. Some songs I liked a lot, some songs I wasn't too keen on. Wouldn't be mad to listen to it again.
Mariah Carey
2/5
I really don't want to listen to this.
It was what I thought: syrupy 1990s R&B-tinged pop music. There are a couple decent songs, but it's so overproduced it's hard to listen to. constant layered vocals, or someone who sounds like Diddy mumbling about something, or something that sounds like birds twittering for some godforsaken reason.
Derek & The Dominos
2/5
The first two songs are unlistenable. I tried, but I ended up skipping them, which I seldom do. When I started this project, I knew there would be albums I did not like, but I resolved to listen to them all, to open myself up to new things - except country. Because fuck country.
If I’m being completely fair, it gets better after the first two songs. It’s still bog standard 60s blues-tinged rock. Which is fine sometimes, but the country stuff is unforgivable.
Baaba Maal
3/5
It's completely different than what I normally listen to, but it's squarely in what I would call "World" music. Which is to mean that it's got some cool percussion, some African-style chanting/singing, and some bouncy guitars. It's a fun listen, because it's new (and it's not 70s rock), but it's not earth shattering.
I liked it in the sense that it was pleasant to listen to, and it had me bouncing my leg, but I didn't like it enough to remember the name of it tomorrow.
Sly & The Family Stone
2/5
Nah. It's whatever, I suppose. It's supposed to be funk, but it's like, elevator music funk. There's a couple funky bass lines, but it's not that deep down, dirty, nasty, STINKIN' funk. Kind of boring, to be honest.
I don't hate it, I just don't want to ever listen to it again.
Sigur Rós
4/5
I quite like Sigur Ros, and I quite like this album. It’s definitely mood music, I couldn’t listen to it every day, but for what it is, it is amongst the best.
Ali Farka Touré
3/5
This is African blues. Well, technically all blues is African, but you know what I mean. Good album.
Siouxsie And The Banshees
3/5
I’ll be honest, it was better than I expected it to be. I’m not sure I think it was *good,* but I can definitely see why this band is so influential.
Firstly the bad: I cannot stand her voice. I don’t really like the punk affectation in general, so that’s no real surprise. That said, it doesn’t sound out of place. Like, in isolation, it’s shit, but with the music it sort of fits, if that makes sense.
And so the good: it’s super creative. It definitely sounds like what is is: an 80s, punk-inspired, alt-rock, grunge precursor. But what makes it so influential is that this album was released before alt-rock was really a thing and WAY before grunge.
I can’t give it a 4 because I didn’t love it and I don’t really need to hear it again, but it almost deserves a 4 for its creativity and its future-proofed sound. 3.5
Creedence Clearwater Revival
3/5
If you *must* listen to 70s rock, you can absolutely do worse. I kind of like it for what it is. It gets too southern rock at points, and there is a corny song or two, but overall, it’s pretty decent. That said, it’s a 30 minute, 9 song album. There’s no fat to trim, so 1-2 corny songs can easily knock a star off.
Lana Del Rey
2/5
Sadly, not for me. I think the pieces of a good album are here, but my god it’s tedious. In isolation, perhaps, I would like the odd Lana Del Rey song. But a full album is a slog.
Depeche Mode
4/5
I think it's really quite good, if you like Depeche Mode. I happen to like Depeche Mode, so it's very good. Is it 4-star good? Who knows? If we're grading on a curve, and there was never any music after 1989, it's a 5-star banger. Alas, music was produced in the 90s onward, and so this is probably a 3.5 at best.
Look, I'm going to give it a 4. I'm not absolutely sure I think it's earned it, but for 80s music, it's pretty awesome. It's unique, it's influential, and it holds up.
The Damned
2/5
no sir. I just dont like punk. It's still better than The Rolling Stones.
Air
4/5
There are two ways to consider this album: As a standalone work, or as an official score for a motion picture. regardless, it's excellent. As a standalone work, it is peak Air - breathless, and dreamy, and ethereal while still being accessible, and having enough substance to cause you to nod your head or tap your toes. As the score to a movie - woof. It doesn't get much better.
Barry Adamson
4/5
Yesterday I had the score to The Virgin Suicides by Air, and it was awesome. I don’t know what this album is, but it sounds more like a soundtrack than that album - which is an actual soundtrack.
It’s not unpleasant. It’s catchy in parts for sure, but there are a lot of moments of ambiance and background sounds that make sense if it’s a soundtrack, I guess, but kinda weird if not.
Turns out tabs concept album intended to *sound* like a soundtrack, because the artist wanted to get hired to make soundtracks. Gotta say, that’s pretty cool. It definitely earns 3 stars musically because it’s a bit of a bop, but I’m gonna grant it the fourth because making a soundtrack to a movie that doesn’t exist - and still being able to make it sound cohesive - is pretty bad ass.
Gang Starr
3/5
I say it every time I hear old school rap, but it sounds so anachronistic. It's almost sweet, you know? Gang Starr is definitely seen as one of the OGs of the old school, especially in conscious rap circles. This album does a great job in telling stories, and the beats are catchy. Sadly, this was a bit before my time, and I think you probably need a heaping dose of nostalgia to elevate this higher than 3 stars.
Morrissey
4/5
I'm sure Morissey is a certain sound that you either like or you don't. I cannot imagine that he's a universal sound. That said, I happen to like his voice, and his style. I'm not a moody teen anymore, but I still think the sadboi aesthetic works for him. The music fits perfectly with his voice, both being *just* depressing enough, without needing to get the razor blade. And then, just when it might be getting too heavy, he throws in an upbeat sounding poppy tune. The lyrics, however, and still depressing as shit, though, because this is fucking Morrissey we're talking about.
Incubus
5/5
This is one of the best rock albums of the 90s. I still contend that S.C.I.E.N.C.E. is their magnum opus, but I concede that this is the album that made them all very, very rich. Make yourself is a massive departure from the albums that came before it. Fungus Amongus and the aforementioned S.C.I.E.N.C.E. were harder, more underground, and leaned more heavily into scratches and the rock-rap stylings that were the hallmark of the grossly named nu-metal movement. With this album, Brandon Boyd cut his dreadlocks, became a heartthrob, leaned more into his incredibly impressive singing voice, and became one of the biggest rock bands of the era.
5 stars, no notes, incredible, incredible album.
Missy Elliott
4/5
A second Missy Elliot album? I’m skeptical that this is really necessary, but let’s see.
Still not sure if it was necessary, but this is probably a better album than her first. It has the mega hit Work It, so there’s that. Anyway, probably a 3.5 but I’m feeling generous.
John Grant
3/5
I don’t know what this is, and I don’t know who it’s for. Like, is there a person out there that is like, “hell yeah, this is my favorite album!” Stranger things have happened, I guess, but I don’t see it. This is one of those times when I just cannot see any reason for this album to be on the list of 1000 I need to listen to before I die. It’s a guy with a piano and/or guitar with silly lyrics. Aren’t there hundreds of these albums? What makes this one special, because I can’t see it.
It’s ok? But weird. There are bits where I approach liking it, and times where I’m thinking wtf is this awful nonsense. Sometimes those things happen in the same song. I don't ofter look up the album before I give a rating, because I know I can be susceptible to reviews, but this one was so out there that I did - and apparently it is considered a masterpiece in the indie scene. I'll admit, it did get better on the second half of the album, and I connected a lot more with the lyrics and style, but it's still just OK to me.
k.d. lang
1/5
4 seconds in and I think this is country music - fuck that shit. Apple Music says it's pop. Ok, fine, skip to next song. 2 seconds in, slide guitar. This is country music and can, therefore, go fuck itself.
Bob Dylan
3/5
This one isn't for me. I don't mind Dylan, and I even like some of his stuff, but this one was TOO 60s for me. Very nasally and weirdly poppy. I didn't hate it, but it's certainly not my favorite.
Malcolm McLaren
3/5
I liked it. It's an early dj-centric album in the vein of Wax Tailor or DJ Shadow.
The Who
3/5
I guess you had to be there?
Kid Rock
1/5
Take the worst parts of rap, rock, and country, give it lyrics like:
“goo-goo, gah-gah, I gotta lotta,
Time to eat MC’s like a piranha.”
And you get this abortion of an album. This could potentially be the worst thing that came out of the 90s.
Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five
3/5
It's OK. Like I always say about early rap albums - it's incredibly anachronistic to the point where it's almost sweet. I was into it at first, then it got a little repetitive.
Slade
3/5
Overall, this is really pretty good. I don't know what year it came out, but at times you could convince me it was the 60s, the 70s, or the 2000s. I do like it, but I don't care if I ever hear it again, so I dont think I can give it a 4 star review. 3.5 if I could, because it really is quite decent. I suspect the album is actually late 60s, so I'm not sure why I've never heard any of these songs before.
Lou Reed
2/5
It's OK. Lou Reed is massive and I cannot for the life of me figure out why. he doesn't have a good voice, and musically, this album is just kind of bland. Songs like New York Telephone Conversation are just confusing. It sounds like something that would be on an album for toddlers, and I mean that literally, not as a joke or a slight.
I don't know, man. It's not dreadful, I guess?
Love
2/5
it approaches decent on occasion, but ultimately it's just kind of standard hippie flower child pop.
The Slits
2/5
It’s kind of shit. It’s early punk, which I generally don’t like anyway. Why is this on the list? It’s all women, which is a change of pace, but it’s still early punk, so the ceiling is pretty limited. I will say that it seems to lean more into the bouncy ska-type punk than the angry aggressive noise-pop punk.
Whatever. It stinks.
The Human League
3/5
It’s not really for me, but in the first 30 seconds I said to myself, “oh, this is kind of standard, mid-80s synth-goth. Then I realized: this is probably the band and/or album that started that sound. So three stars for being inventive and influential.
Pet Shop Boys
3/5
Very 80s. Very poppy. Surprisingly inoffensive.
Megadeth
4/5
This is surprisingly awesome. I always thought Megabeth was kind of Metallica’s slightly cringey little brother. Dave Mustaine got kicked out of Metallica and created a perfectly cromulent little side project. It bears saying that I’ve never actually listened to Megadeth - halfway because of the above, and halfway because I didn’t like their shirts/album covers. They just don’t look like things I would be interested in.
Anyway, it’s fucking great. 4.5 stars
Beck
3/5
I’ve always wanted to like Beck more than I actually do. People love him, he’s a massive name/act, but I just don’t get him. I like Sea Change better than this album, but this one is OK. Probably a 3.5 if I could, but I never could understand its reputation, and that didn’t change after listening to it today.
Beatles
3/5
The Beatles are the ultimate "guess you had to be there" band. I'm repeatedly told they're revolutionary, but it just sounds old and weird and boring. This album specifically is supposed to be a masterpiece but it's kind of not. and it's too goddamned long.
3 stars. it doesn't suck, I guess, but it's also not very good. I suspect it's going to have a crazy high score because everyone who was born after 1960 has been gaslighted and bullied into thinking The Beatles are the pinnacle of music.
Aretha Franklin
4/5
Surprisingly fantastic. This isn’t usually my type of music, but it’s a goddamned good time.
Ryan Adams
1/5
This is absolute trash. Why is this on the list? This sounds like the no name shit you hear in a Banana Republic dressing room while you’re trying on another pair of khakis. It’s background music - at best. I try to reserve 1 star reviews for the exceptionally shitty albums, like literally all country music, but this album is pissing me off with just how exceedingly bland it is. And come to think of it, there’s a suspicious amount of slide guitar in this, and I think I hear a banjo. Fuck this album.
Sabu
3/5
This was really fun! I liked it quite a bit.
The Smiths
3/5
It’s ok, definitely not their best. There are a few good songs, but it sounds uncharacteristically poppy in parts.
Neil Young
3/5
It’s ok. It starts off awfully but gets better. Not my favorite Neil Young.
Earth, Wind & Fire
3/5
Kind of what I expected. I imagine if you were of a formative age when this was released, it’s probably pretty magical and brings back a flood of nostalgia. Alas, I am not of that age. So although I recognize it as a sweet, good time, it doesn’t really grab me. I think it’s good, for what it is, but not exceptional.
Happy Mondays
2/5
This band very badly wants to be The Cure. Sadly for my ears, they are not The Cure.
Sidenote: the version that pops up in Apple Music is some extended version that's 2.5 hours long and, well, no. I looked on Wikipedia and the original release was ten songs, so that's what I listened to, and that's what's getting reviewed. I don't need to listen to a bunch of remixes and B-sides.
Kanye West
4/5
Is it possible to separate the artist from the art? Because the artist is as trash as they come - a literal self-professed nazi. Which makes the song Black Skinhead hit differently.
My thought on this album has always been that it's my favorite Kanye album - but I liked it better when Saul Williams and Trent Reznor did it with The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust. I love the experimental, industrial soundscape, and I actually think musically, it's his bravest and most creative album. Lyrically, however, it's kind of dogshit. It's mostly juvenile braggadocio referencing sex and the female anatomy. Which, fine, right? But on an album that has the song Blood on the Leaves, which talks about the history of lynching black people in the US, it just comes across as lazy and boring.
This is a tough one, because I despise Kanye, and I've always felt he was massively overrated. But while I haven't listened to this album a ton because of my antipathy for Kanye, I have always liked it and, overall, liked it this listen. Kanye sucks, but this album, sadly, does not.
The Verve
3/5
Very 90s post-grunge Brit-rock. You know how every decade has its huge, tentpole, genre-defining bands? And then there are dozens of bands that sort of dance around that band, sounding vaguely the same as the other coalescing bands trying to recreate the magic of the tentpole band? This is one of the secondary bands. Not awful, but sort of cookie-cutter, and very much of its time.
Since I very much like the 90s sound, I didn't mind it. I enjoyed some songs and some were kind of annoying, and all were pretty forgettable.
The Flaming Lips
4/5
Oh boy. I'm in for a ride today...
Surprisingly good. It’s unique, and it’s weird, but in a good way. I think much of their stuff tends to be weird for the sake of it, but I understand why this is such a beloved album.
Rocket From The Crypt
3/5
It's not trash, but it's a bit tedious. Apple Music has it listed as "pop" but I would categorize it more as post-punk, or 90s pop-punk. It's really not terrible, and I can see why people would love it, but I don't hugely love any of the genres this would potentially fit in, so the best I can give it is a hearty "meh."
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
4/5
It's pretty outstanding, actually. It's not normally my thing, but it's incredibly ambitious. I don't normally look into the albums until after I listen, but I took a peek at this because it is so unique and weird in a really cool way. Turns out it's a rock interpretation of a piano suite by a Russian composer.
I'd say there's a little too much 60s rock organ in this, but overall, it's really quite cool. I won't listen to it on repeat, but I'd definitely listen again for fun, and I'm pleased that I had the chance to hear it. Bonus points: it's a tight, 38 minutes.
Suicide
2/5
I don't know who this is for. It started out kind of OK, but then slowly devolved into sort of a throbbing backbeat with the singer kind of moaning and heavy breathing. I think he was literally masturbating on the song Girl. It was vaguely uncomfortable. As far as I can tell, Johnny is just him repeating the name Johnny for three minutes. Frankie Teardrop tries, I think, to tell some sort of story? But the random, very loud, distorted screams are kind of stupid. Like, it's not a rock song scream, it's just screaming for the sake of it.
I appreciate the decency of it only being 32 minutes, but it just kind of drones on. It's kind of like if Elvis discovered Pro Tools and was 30% more pervy.
Scissor Sisters
4/5
OK, it's pretty good. There's no way I could listen to it all the time, but it's pretty cool how it melds genres. I'm not a big glam guy, and that's really what this is at its heart, but it weaves in aspects of rock, pop, and electronica to great effect.
I have to say, though, that Comfortably Numb is comfortably the worst song on the album. Covers are always tricky, because people who love the original will obviously compare the two versions, so if you try to sound *exactly* like the original band, you're probably going to fail, and if you try to put your own spin on it you'll be accused of butchering it. Scissor Sisters took the latter approach and, well, they butchered it. Frankly, even if you don't compare it to the original, it's just kind of a shit song. On the other hand, Filthy/Gorgeous might be the best song.
Overall, this album is fun as hell. It'll have you tapping your toes and nodding your head and bopping around the office and, really, isn't that what music's all about?
Minutemen
2/5
43 songs is too many songs.
Arcade Fire
2/5
I just don't like Arcade Fire. I think there was a thin slice of time in the early aughts when this kind of music was popular, but I really don't hear anything like it anymore. I really don't understand why we need not one, not two, but THREE Arcade Fire albums. There are MUCH better bands that have put out MUCH better albums, but I have to listen to three hours worth of this boring, milquetoast shit.
Bee Gees
1/5
Goddammit all to hell. I just finished typing up a review on yesterday's boring-ass Arcade Fire album and my stupid brain literally thought, "well, at least I'm about to get something better than this," and now I have to listen to a goddamned Bee Gee's album.
I don't know what the fuck is going on here. It's not disco, which is excellent, but it's some sort of weird renaissance fair bullshit. Is this some sort of concept album or something? is this prior to disco or is this their "brave" album where they're trying to adjust their sound? Either way it sucks and I hate it.
D'Angelo
3/5
Excellent. 3.5. I love 90s era neo-soul. I don’t listen a lot anymore, but it was my jam back in the day, and this was amongst the best.
ZZ Top
3/5
Couple great songs. Couple decent songs. A few meh songs. It’s essentially just blues, I’m not sure why this is considered rock. Maybe the beards? I don’t know, it was fine.
Morrissey
3/5
Pretty good. I think it starts out great and then flags a little towards the middle. There are some questionable songs on here, like You're the one for me, Fatty, but overall a solid 3.5
Metallica
4/5
I’ve never really loved Metallica, though I’ll admit the self-titled black album is a banger and a classic. I don’t love thrash, so their early stuff never appealed to me. I have to say, though, that this album has stood the test of time. It’s funny, though, how something that is so crazy and subversive and “hard” now seems pedestrian and almost mundane! That’s not a commentary on the album, but rather the changing tastes of society.
I’d give this a 3.5 if I could, and I’ll bump it up to 4 stars for a couple of reasons. The dumb reason is because I’ve had a few albums recently that I would have rated 3.5 stars but it dodnt feel right to give them 4 - this one seems about right. The second reason is because I’m well aware of how many awesome rock bands were launched because of Metallica in general, and this album specifically.
Big Black
4/5
This was unexpectedly excellent. I tend to dislike 80s music, and I've never heard of this band, so my expectations were very low. Not only was this awesome in a "surprise, it's actually good!" sort of way, this is excellent in a "I'd probably listen to this on purpose" sort of way.
Apple Music has this listed as Alternative, and Wikipedia says this is a punk band. For me, it sounds more like early industrial with a bit of punk and even electronic mixed in. I'll tell you this - it's unlike anything else I've heard from that era. I don't know for sure, but this is certainly an album I would imagine a young Trent Reznor would have enjoyed A LOT.
4 stars, maybe even 4.5. There are several 5 star-worthy songs on this album, but as I try to keep 5 stars reserved for the best of the best, I'm not quite sure I can rank it that high, but make no mistake, despite my dumb, arbitrary star rankings, you *should* listen to this album, because it's awesome.
Taylor Swift
3/5
So, this is a tough one to analyze. I've never understand Taylor Swift. I'm not a heartbroken teenage girl, so I guess it's not *for* me, but the overwhelming adulation has been confusing because the handful of music I've heard has been pretty basic pop. The annuls of music has spawned dozens of female singer/songwriters that output roughly the same music. This project has already fed me her 1989 album which did nothing to disabuse me of the notion that she is a bog standard, paint-by-numbers pop singer.
This album, however, gives me pause. The opening song, willow, is actually pretty good. Not only that, the lyrics are really thoughtful and impactful. Not necessarily to my personal preference, but OK, I'm starting to see the appeal. The rest of the album, however, is really uneven. There are songs that lean heavily into her roots as a country artist, and fuck that noise right away. After six or seven songs I realize there's very little tonal variety in these songs. Her voice isn't spectacular, and she doesn't really do anything special or interesting with it, and so the songs start to get kind of tedious.
Now, I'm told that she's a lyrical genius and I'll say straight away - no she isn't. That said, there are snippets of VERY good writing on this album. There's a lot of the stereotypical Taylor Swift whining about a mean boy stuff in here, but there's also a lot of really thoughtful descriptions of hurt and loss and helplessness that I can completely see why it appeals to someone going through a breakup.
Overall, I think 3 stars is about right here. There's far too much country-adjacent shit on here to go higher, but overall this is the first time that I see the appeal of Taylor Swift.
Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark
3/5
This is a weird one. Some songs are very 80s pop, which I don't like, but other songs are very early 00s Arcade Fire...which I also don't like. At the same time, this album isn't *awful*. I don't really like it, but I respect its sound, which doesn't really sound like what you expect 80s pop to sound like. I'd maybe give it a 2.5 if I could, but I'm going to give it the benefit of the doubt and bump it to 3 here.
The Mars Volta
5/5
One thing I can guarantee you is that the global ranking for this album will be nowhere near as high as it should be. This album is a goddamned masterpiece. The inventiveness, the musicality, the virtuosity of the artists - God. Damned. Master. Piece.
I'm aware that this will be a bit, say, esoteric for the general listening public. But this album goes from strength to strength. It's never content to settle on one thing, one rhythm, one beat, one song structure. The entire album is filled with songs that are completely different from one another yet still come together flawlessly as a whole. It's genius.
5 stars.
Fairport Convention
2/5
Not good, Bob.
Drive-By Truckers
2/5
I’m going to click the button. I have doubts I’ll make it through this album.
Song 1: Hold on, this is pretty good! Not anything like what I thought it was going to b…
The rest of the songs: yeah…no.
This is a weird album. It’s not country, but the lead singer has a VERY pronounced southern accent, and it’s hard for me to get around that. It’s also too goddamned long. There are a couple really interesting songs but overall, I don’t like it at all.
Brian Eno
2/5
I'm really very grateful that music and artists like this exist, as they really pushed the envelope and showed that what was possible, musically, could be so much more interesting and different than what came before.
I'm also very happy that the music created afterwards means we don't have to pretend that this is good anymore.
The Psychedelic Furs
3/5
It's not bad, I guess. Very new wave, I guess. I don't know, I don't have much to say about it, to be honest. It wasn't great, it wasn't terrible. I've ranked MUCH better albums three stars, so that feels unfair, but it's nowhere near as bad as a 2 star review.
I suppose if you were around at this time and liked this band and/or album you're going to like it, but I doubt that this is going to produce many new fans.
Norah Jones
3/5
I was disappointed when this popped up because I was sure I don't like Norah Jones. Do I know any Norah Jones songs? I do not. Not sure why I had the feeling that I dislike her. Maybe in my head I'm conflating her with Lana Del Rey, whom I also don't like and also can not name a single song.
Anyway, first impressions are mixed, she has an amazing voice. The songs are approaching a sound that I would like, but then there's this weird undercurrent of country music that just pops in. Like a slide guitar, or a certain twang that just makes me start to squirm. For example, Come With Me, which is apparently her big hit, starts out with sort of a standard, smoky, jazz lounge sound, but then there's a guitar solo about halfway through that sounds like it could be on a Conway Twitty album. Have I ever heard a Conrad Twitty song? I have not, but that's not the point. Focus. The point is that I don't *hate* this album, but it's too close to country music for me to like it. Three stars because I like her voice.
Television
3/5
I find it incredibly bland. It's OK, I guess, but it's just boring. To be completely fair and transparent, I'm in a very bad mood today and this just isn't what I want to be listening to, so I can't be arsed to listen to it again. It *probably* deserves a 2.5, and I want to give it 2 stars because everything sucks but I'll give it a 3 out of an abundance of fairness that it may not deserve.
JAY Z
4/5
I’ve never liked Jay-Z, but this album finally shows me why he’s so highly rated. The production is uneven - a complaint that I’ve always had with Jay-Z’s songs is that I don’t really love the beats - but there are definitely some bangers. It’s also crazy to hear when Kanye had more talent than crazy.
Syd Barrett
2/5
I just read part of the wikipedia page for this album, which I rarely do before writing a review. Because this album is very bad. It's just a weird mishmash of 60s psychedelia cliches that sounds very much like all the other albums of this genre I've listened to from this era.
Look, I'm not going to go in on it too hard. I don't think it's special AT ALL, and if this album wasn't created by the original Pink Floyd singer, I cannot imagine it would be on this list.
Emmylou Harris
1/5
Shit
Billy Bragg
2/5
I can't. I know it's "folk" or whatever, but it sounds an awful lot like country. Too much slide guitar and twangy shit. It's really annoying.
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
2/5
Don’t like it. Very nasally. I know he’s super famous but never really knew why - I still don’t. I didn’t realize his stuff was so old, I thought he was an 80s guy
Caetano Veloso
3/5
It's very much not my thing, but I can recognize its talent. That said, since it's very much not my thing, I suppose I can't know for sure if it's especially talented for its genre. It's Girl from Ipanema lounge music to me, though I acknowledge that's a lazy, uninformed comparison.
I'm going to give it a 3. I don't hate it, I just wouldn't listen to it on purpose, but if it was on in the background for some reason I don't think I'd object.
George Michael
3/5
It's a bit uneven. There are plenty of songs that are actually very good - 4 star material. Songs that sound fresh and unique and really stand up 30 years later.
Then there are songs that you can just feel the 80s dripping off of them, Like Soul Free. Overall, I'd say it's a solid 3 stars. I can recognize the quality without wanting to ever hear it again.
X-Ray Spex
2/5
Yeah, I don’t love punk. It was fine as punk goes, I guess. I had to listen on YouTube because it’s not available on Apple Music, and that’s annoying because I hate commercials. Anyway, 2 stars is about right. I could be convinced to go to 2.5 is this thing had half stars.
Travis
4/5
This is a tough one to rate. because I like it quite a bit, but I also think it sounds a little same-y, you know? I don't think it sounds dated, per se, but it does have a very specific 90s sound to it like Keane, or Train. Kind of an Oasis wannabe with a bit less swagger and gobs more sensitivity.
I don't know. I like it. 3.5.
Sonic Youth
3/5
I don’t adore Sonic Youth, but they were just so omnipresent in the musical realm of my late teens/early 20 as I transitioned into listening to “secular” music. I never listened to a lot of them, but it seemed like all the bands I loved loved Sonic Youth. This is the third album of theirs I’ve gotten, and it's pretty much par for the course - no better, no worse. I know they're hugely influential, but I wouldn't seek this album out to listen to on purpose.
Minor Threat
3/5
If I'm not mistaken, this was one of the bands that really helped shape and inspire the American punk scene, along with kind of being the forefathers of the Straight Edge movement. Anyway, like most punk, this is extremely basic. It sounds like any group of 3 people who are minimally competent with their instrument of choice, and a random singer/yeller who could literally be anyone.
That aside, it's not terrible. some of the songs are pretty catchy, actually. I'm never blown away by the technicality of any of it, but it's fine. It starts to get a little same-y, but one thing I love about punk is that the album is only 22 minutes. That's not nearly enough time for me to get super annoyed. 3 stars is about right.
Hookworms
3/5
It's actually pretty good. I think it's really creative and I like the way how it melds different genres into something new and fresh. That said, I'm having a bit of trouble ranking it. I think it's good, quite good, but I also think the singer's voice is a little grating, and it starts to sound a bit Arcade Fire-y at points, which is annoying. It's an easy 3.5 if we had half star rankings, but the struggle is - do I bump it to a 4 or leave it as a 3?
It's better than yesterday's Minor Threat album, which I gave a 3, and probably better than the Sonic Youth album I gave a 3 the days before that. I gave Travis a 4, which is probably a bit high, to be honest, but this isn't as good as The Blueprint by Jay-Z, which I gave a 4 last week. Ultimately, I think 3, because by the time I got to the back end of the album I was more than ready to have it wrapped up.
Cream
3/5
Sunshine of Your Love is a good song, but Living Color did it better. I'd say it's a fine 60s rock album, but nothing special.
Common
4/5
This is a very good album. I'd give it a 3.5 if I could, but I'll bump it to 4 stars because there just really isn't much out there like it. Common is, rightly, lumped in as a "conscious" rapper, but there's a lot more than that on this album. There's jazz, there's blues, there are collaborations, there's standard braggadocio, hard core rap. It's really a great presentation for the breadth of Common's vision and skill.
Public Enemy
5/5
Mind. Blown. I don't know what I expected, but it's fantastic. From the first second of the first song, the album smacks you in the mouth and dares you to do something about it. Considering this was released in the early 90s, the bravery it took to talk about slave ships, and racism, and putting the spotlight squarely on white people is astounding. The Bomb Squad beats are out of this world with an aggressive, almost punk rock feel.
I've always kind of wondered what the point of Flava Flav is, but his interjections on this album are nearly perfect. His solo offerings are probably some of the weaker points of the album, but overall, he adds to the vibe rather than takes away.
And then there's Bring the Noise, their collaboration with Anthrax. This song might be the #1 reason American suburban white boys started listening to rap, and there's a direct line that can be drawn between this song and the nu metal movement that dominated the rock airwaves.
Whenever I've gotten an album from this era, I always remark on how anachronistic it sounds. And, I could definitely say that about parts of this as well, but because this album was *so* different, it just didn't age the same way. The flow is definitely different, you can tell it's from a different era, but the beats are so unique that it's really tough to place it if you didn't know.
With half stars, this is 4.5. But because of the creativity, the bravery, and the influence, I'm very comfortable giving this a 5 star rating for this project.
Youssou N'Dour
3/5
Tough one. It’s not for me, but apparently it’s a classic of the genre. I’ll give it 3 stars because I can definitely appreciate the skill and musicality. It’s not bad as background music, but I wouldn’t exactly seek it out.
Hole
5/5
This is a tremendous album. I listened to the *shit* out of it back in the day, man. When it first popped up, I thought I'd be ranking it 5 stars. Listening to it today, I'm not sure it *quite* reaches that top tier. Although some songs, like Credit in the Straight World, are much better than I remembered, overall, I just think it sounds a bit dated. I say that as the gentlest critique possible, because this album, as the kids say, absolutely slaps.
There's a fair bit of nostalgia involved in listening to this, not only for who I wa during the time this was released, but also because I can, now more than then, hear Kurt's influence on every one of these songs. I have no idea if, as has been rumored, Kurt actually wrote or helped write any of these songs, but if he didn't, Courtney just straight up stole his style because this album sounds like a Nirvana B-Side, and I say that in the best way possible.
I listened to it a second time, because it's awesome, and because I'm conflicted. I try to keep 5 stars rare, but goddammit, this is one of the best grunge albums ever made, and one of the best albums of the 90s full stop It has it's flaws, sure, and I'd give it a 4.5 if I could, but I can't, and so I'm more comfortable bumping it a half star on vibes versus docking it.
Small Faces
2/5
Nope, not for me. It just sounds like old hippy rock, I don’t know why this is special.
3/5
It's fine. I like Blur, but I think this album is a bit hit and miss. This is more of a transitional album, and they really hit their stride on Parklife. I'd imagine Parklife has to be on this list, otherwise I find it extremely sad that this album is here instead of the one that sent them stratospheric.
Also, I love Gorillaz. That has nothing to do with this album, of course, but I just wanted you to know.
David Gray
4/5
This album is a total vibe for me. I listened to it a ton when it came out. Lots of nostalgia built into this. I think these are great songs, and it should probably be 3.5 stars, but I’ll bump it a half star for the nostalgia.
Leonard Cohen
3/5
The Rolling Stone review from 1969 starts with a perfect encapsulation of this album:
"It doesn’t take a great deal of listening to realize that Cohen can’t sing, period. And yet, the record grows on you, and if you give it a chance, it has something to offer. But you can hardly be blamed if you aren’t willing to take the time."
However...
"something else does evolve on the far side of these stumbling blocks. It is a sound portrait of a man and of mood. A picture of Leonard Cohen: a terribly poetic, sensitive person who is depressed and depressing and who is capable of a great deal of honesty. His poetry, which might be considered sophomoric, becomes more serious when you realize that the man is pouring out his life before you. It becomes a somewhat painful thing to hear."
Finally:
"The backup and arrangements, while they occasionally underscore Cohen’s weakness as a singer, are superb at creating mood. The predominant mood is one of nostalgia and a rather wistful tenderness. And to someone who can relate to this sort of mood, the album would be appreciated."
And that's where I'm at. I'm not sure if I *like* it. but...I kinda don't hate it. I don't AT ALL see why he's so famous, but in a certain mood, I can see why someone would want to reach for this album. But I can also see why people would hate it.
Run-D.M.C.
4/5
One of the most formative hip hop albums in history. Hip hop has changed so much over the years, that so much of this sounds dated, but to disrespect its cutting edge and its influence is *not* something I'm going to do. Sounds like My Adidas, It's Tricky, and the Aerosmith collaboration Walk This Way are such classics it's almost impossible to review them without the weight of history and influence.
It's rare that you listen to an album and understand that without that specific release at that point in time, an entire genre of music would possibly not exist, or would be so different as to have been something completely changed. This is one such album.
This is hip hop history. This is American history.
Fela Kuti
4/5
I enjoyed it. Not sure how to review it though. I'd scythes is by far the best "world" album I've heard - the music is really cool and the vocals are great as well. probably a 3.5 but zI'm feeling generous so I'll bump to a 4.
Soft Cell
2/5
I think the late 80s had some awesome music by artists that are more thought of as 90s artists - Prince, Nine Inch Nails - even Bleach by Nirvana was released in 1989.
Then you have music that is quintessentially 80s music. And I think 80s music is the worst decade for music. And this sounds more 80s than anything that has ever 80s.
Goldie
4/5
I think it’s great. It’s a bit dated, but there’s a lot of nostalgia in this for me. I went through a club kid phase in the mid 90s, and I listened to a lot of Goldie. I grew up a bit sheltered, so finding black artists in genres other than hip hop and r&b was always a real thrill for me at the time.
Musically, I still think the album is so creative and interesting. I’m always a fan of melding genres, and this album does that so well. It’s electronica, it’s dance music, but it’s softer, somehow, more languid. Its Drum & Bass, but dreamy.
Again, I do think it’s slightly dated, but that may be because I can’t help but think of myself listening to it 30 years ago. Conversely, it’s so unique that it almost has a timeless quality to it that would allow anyone to throw it on for mood music and get the same atmospheric vibe as the first day it was released. I’m giving it a half star nostalgia bump.
Erykah Badu
4/5
Very good album. It’s a bit of a time capsule for me, back to a time when neo-soul was hot, and acts like Erykah Brady, D’Angelo, and Music Soulchild were at the height of their powers.
Badu wasn’t in the heaviest rotation for me at that time, but my wife tells a story of how when we first met, she had a boyfriend. So on her drive home she gave herself until a certain point on her trip to think of me, and up until that point, her artist of choice was Erykah Badu.
808 State
4/5
This is a pretty cool album, but I think it's a bit uneven. Songs like Kinky National are awesome and I think they hold up quite well. On the other hand, songs like Pacific 202 are not quite hitting. I can't tell if that's because they're just kind of out of date, or if they're just bad songs. But I'll tell you what - when this album gets it right, the songs are BANGING.
This is such a tough rating, because the good songs are *really* good, but the meh songs just drag down the overall vibe. 3.5 is the right call here, but do I bump it half a star or dock it half a star? Considering how early this album is in the electronic era, I'm leaning towards a bump. Because this isn't early, German, experimental noise electronica, it's catchy, bouncy and revolutionary.
Soft Machine
3/5
Well, it's certainly...unique. It's like part jazz, part prog, part experimental...there are parts that almost sound very early electronic.
I'll say that while I didn't *love* it, this would be the best "jazz" album I've listened to in this project. Conversely, it's probably the worst prog rock album I've gotten. Overall, I don't hate it, and I tend to have a soft spot for music where you can hear the foundations of what's to come, and that describes this album pretty well. I don't know the history of prog rockery well, but I imagine an album released in 1970 must have been right around the beginning, and so this is the band that had to crawl so that bands like Rush could run, and Tool could fly.
3 stars because it is fun, new (to me), and influential.
Bob Dylan
3/5
I don't know how the rest of this album is going to play out, but the first 45 seconds of song 1 has done my head in. Is this Bob Dylan...with vocal reverb? It's not quite auto-tune, but there's something being done here to digitize his voice. That's bizarre.
OK, the first song was actually kind of the highlight of the album. Firstly, it's too long. I don't need an hour and a quarter of...whatever this is. Secondly, I'm not sure who this is for, other than existing Dylan fans. Did this album attract a bunch of new fans? I doubt it. It's not, like, actively awful, but it's kind of boring. It doesn't have the punchiness of Dylan's early work.
I just saw that this album won Album of the Year over OK Computer and I'm absolutely dumbfounded. That's highway robbery. I want to penalize this a star because I'm annoyed, but I just learned that my favorite Dylan song, It's Not Dark Yet, is on this album, so I'll stick to a very generous 3 stars.
The Zombies
2/5
Nope. There's too much 60s/70s hippie shit in this project, and this is exhibit A as to why. Is this a good example of what was the dominant sound in rock at one point? Sure. Is it *the* shining example of its genre? Is it massively influential? Is it a foundation for tons of artists that came after? I doubt it. Am I better for listening to it before I died? I highly doubt it.
I don't know. I'm sure if you were around when this was new, you're probably all nostalgic about how awesome the weed was in 1968, and how the Summer of Love was the zenith of American culture...but if not you'll probably, like me, find it tedious and cliche.
Patti Smith
1/5
I've had an awful week. a bunch of 70s rock and a 90s Bob Dylan album which, let's be honest, is pretty much just 70s rock plugged into an amp. So I was *really* hoping for something good today. Imagine my chagrin when I opened the page and found...this.
Song 1: As bad as I feared.
Song 2: This is worse.
Song 3: I hate - HATE her voice. It's weird and nasally and doesn't have a single redeeming quality.
Song 3: WTF is this shit? Why is this considered "punk?" The whole album is just bad pop music without the benefit of a good voice.
Song 4: They can't all be this bad, right?
Song 5: Wrong.
Song 6: I just texted my wife, "fuck me this is terrible." I think I undersold it.
Song 7: It's almost over. There might be a god after a...IT'S NINE MINUTES LONG?! Honestly, the best song on the album by a MILE
Song 8: and we're right back to nasally bullshit.
So, this is NOT punk rock. It's bullshit, is what it is. Listen to Land (song 7) and then go on about your day. This should be in the book 1001 Albums To Avoid Until You Die.
Japan
3/5
It's 80s pop. Most of it is actually OK, considering I hate 80s pop. It's simultaneously Paint By Numbers 80s pop, yet for some reason it's way more catchy than irritating.
I can't explain it, but I'm giving it 3 stars.
The Associates
2/5
goddammit, this might be the worst week I've ever had in this project.
This album sucks and I hate it. It doesn't make me mad, so it doesn't get one star, but it's very bad.
Peter Gabriel
4/5
Surprisingly excellent. I say "surprisingly" because I very much dislike 80s pop. This, however, was very good. There was definitely some 80s cheese, but for some reason it just didn't grate on me the way 80s music normally does.
I know it's a bit cliche to say, but this just sounds different. I'm not exactly sure what it is, but there were interesting soundscapes and offbeats that you just don't normally hear in this genre. Frankly, it's a little weird in the best possible way.
3.5 stars for sure, but I enjoyed it enough I might give it a second listen, so I'm bumping to 4 stars.
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
3/5
It’s whatever. I don’t love it, but I don’t hate it. It’s fine.
The Beach Boys
2/5
I cannot connect to this in the slightest. It is SO long before my time, and it is music made for a population and community that I am not a part of, and that I do not romanticize is the slightest. In short, it is nigh unlistenable.
The Dictators
2/5
Not great. Not awful, I suppose. It's just kind of bland. I'll give it a 3. I don't think I really ever want to listen to it again, but I can't really say that it's "bad."
but I don't like it.
Eric Clapton
3/5
It's OK. Not really my jam, but I can tell it's pretty good if you're into this sort of thing, which is bluesy soft rock.
The Icarus Line
4/5
I think it's pretty good. It's definitely reminiscent of the early aughts vibe of Jet, The Vines, Kaiser Chiefs, The Strokes, etc. I'm going to give it a 4, which I feel might be half a star too high, but I've had an AWFUL 2 weeks, and I cannot tell you how thrilled I am to hear something that isn't 80s pop or 70s rock.
LTJ Bukem
3/5
Too long. I like my electronic to be a little harder than this. But overall it’s not bad.
The Pogues
3/5
This is music that white Americans who pretend to be Irish listen to. They predominantly live on the East Coast, most likely Boston or Philadelphia. They like pahhking cahhs, and drinking in bahhs. They often get into fistfights and a large part of their vocabulary is racist and homophobic slurs. Most of them are named Tommy (which they pronounce as Towmy), Mikey, Sully, or Marky (Mahhky). They won't shut up about their city's sports teams. They REALLY like fistfights.
Anyway, the album is pretty good. I couldn't listen to it all the time, but as a change of pace, I don't hate it. Every song sounds the same, though.
New York Dolls
2/5
Very little to like here. It's a very specific, early 70s punk sound, where the singers all adopted the same nasally affect and they all took pride in not being able to play their instruments well. I have respect for the fact that I, intellectually, understand that it was groundbreaking and foundational, so I'll add a star for that, but I did not like this album at all.
Talking Heads
3/5
Pretty decent. It’s kind of a solid 3 stars. I wouldn’t mind listening to it again but I probably wouldn’t seek it out.
Bill Evans Trio
3/5
Well, I don’t like it. It sounds like something my grandfather, who was born in 1929, would have liked. So I’ll give it three stars because it made me think of my grandpa.
Marilyn Manson
5/5
I can always get behind a concept album critiquing the fascism of the American conservative and christian right. Nearly 30 years old, and these messages are needed now more than ever. Who ever would have thought the words, "Well, Marilyn Manson tried to warn us" would be a thing?
Anyway, politics and social commentary aside, this album is dynamite. It's MUCH harder than I think I realized, without sacrificing melodies. The Trent Reznor influence is strong in this one, and it remains, I believe, the bands best work.
Waylon Jennings
1/5
Nope.
TV On The Radio
3/5
I'm going to give this a 3 star review, but barely. I think it does some neat things, enough to sound fairly unique for its time, but at over an hour it's too long and it starts to drone. The singer doesn't seem to have much range, so it's the same aural equivalent of beige for the entire album. There's a little falsetto thrown in for harmony, but the vocals are not the highlight here.
Musically, again, it does some interesting things, enough to get my toes tapping on several occasions. I don't think I'd seek it out, or crave to listen to it again, but I'd be open to it. Thus, a very uninspired three stars.
Roxy Music
3/5
I don't know. It's fine. I wouldn't listen to it on purpose, but it's not offensive as background music. I can definitely see the bones of good music that came after, so I guess I appreciate the trailblazing aspect of what I'm listening to. and it's miles better than the Brian Eno album I got.
As an aside, I couldn't tell if the album cover is a lady, or a guy in drag. So I googled it, as one does, and apparently she married Mick Jagger's brother, and that's how I found out that Mick Jagger has a brother that, at one point, looked *just* like him.
Bruce Springsteen
2/5
Why is Springsteen iconic? I don’t understand it. And why and album from 2002? Wasn’t that a couple decades past his heyday?
Anyway, yuck. It's bad.
The Waterboys
3/5
Overall, surprisingly good. Although I try to keep an open mind, I will admit to a certain bias when I am presented with an album from the 80s, so I was not excited to see this album pop up. That said, I was very pleasantly surprised.
I think it’s very unique, in that it sounds like a mix of many different things, and not at all the stereotypical 80s sound. About half the album deserves 4 stars, but there are too many songs that sound country-ish, or just kind of bland. I wish I could give it a 3.5.
The Zutons
3/5
Quite good. I’d really love to give this a 3.5. Never heard of this band, but it’s very unique and really listenable.
I’m really kind of struggling with my rating system at the moment, because 3 is “fine” and 4 is “really good,” but there are loads of albums that are just good, you know? So if 3 is a baseline rating of albums I merely don’t dislike, and 4 is the rating for albums that I *really* like, then where do I go with albums like this, where I’d be more than happy to listen to it again, but I more than likely won’t seek it out?
Country Joe & The Fish
2/5
It’s ok. Look, this is why I’m always whining for half stars. I rated my last two albums three stars, and I liked both of those LOADS better than I liked this milqutoast, paint-by-numbers, psychedelic 60s rock template - but I didn’t *dislike* this. It’s not my kind of music, and I don’t really want to listen to it again, but do I want to give it a 2? I mean…kind of. But even at 2 stars, I’d rather listen to this than the Bruce Springsteen album I got a few days ago. 2.5 stars.
Brian Eno
5/5
I got Brian Eno’s Here Come The Warm Jets a few months ago, and while I could hear its influence and the bones of future music it inspired, the album itself wasn’t very good.
So when Brian Eno popped up again today, I was incredibly disappointed. But from the first note, I knew that I was in for something very, very different than Here Come The Warm Jets. I would have to say, that in nearly 550 albums, this one has been one of my top three or four most pleasant surprises.
I’m a huge fan of the Ghosts albums by Nine Inch Nails, which I now understand to be a direct successor to this album. It’s simple, yet layered. Melancholy, yet hopeful. It’s haunting, yet accessible. It’s simply beautiful.
Steely Dan
2/5
I don’t really love it. It’s just so boring, like something you’d hear in a supermarket.
Basement Jaxx
4/5
Very good album. Yet another example of why we should have half stars.
Very good 90s-era house album that shows its age but holds up fairly well. 3.5 stars.
Johnny Cash
2/5
It’s Johnny Cash, but it’s still country. I’ll give it an extra star because I liked the movie.
The Byrds
2/5
It sounds like the Monkeys, or the Beach Boys. It’s awful.
The Cure
4/5
Excellent album. Bit too long at an hour and a quarter. I love Robert Smith, but it starts to feel a bit same-y, even though every song is excellent. Solid 4 stars.
Sonic Youth
3/5
Overall it’s fine. Good, even! Does this project really need *four* Sonic Youth albums? I submit that it does not.
Blue Cheer
3/5
The singer sounds like a male Janis Joplin, all raspy and shrieky.
It’s not bad.
Sly & The Family Stone
4/5
This was surprisingly good. I think it's probably a 3.5, but I'm going to give it a bonus half star because I spent the rest of the day listening to The Payback by James Brown, and that album is FIRE.
Lloyd Cole And The Commotions
2/5
OK, this is bad. It's very stereotypical 80s whiny pop. There are a couple songs that actually had me tapping my toes a bit, but there's just so much in this album that encapsulates an era and genre of music that I dislike very much. I guess if you're a fan of 80s pop, it's probably fine? I can't identify anything special or unique about it, but who knows? It's on this (very British-centric) project for a reason.
Brian Eno
3/5
This is interesting, because I hated Here Come The Warm Jets, but I adored Music for Airports. I’m not excited to check this out, but I’m curious.
So, I think this album is smack in the middle of the other two. I think there was a lot to like, but I also think there were songs that just sounded out of date. I kind of liked it, so three stars it is.
MC Solaar
3/5
I don’t know, it was ok? It’s hard to rate as it’s old, and it’s in a language I don’t understand. I didn’t dislike it, and it had some decent beats, so I’ll give it a 3. Maybe a 2.5 if there were half stars.
Afrika Bambaataa
3/5
It's really kind of cool. It's weird as shit, and it's very uniquely its own thing. It sounds very old and dated, but I can tell it was very influential on hip hop culture. I liked it.
Pavement
3/5
Mostly boring, but there are a few really good songs. Mostly it's just kind of droning, mid 902 background "alternative" music. I've been vacillating between 2 and 3 stars the entire album. I'll get a good song, then the next couple start to drain me closer and closer to 2 stars, then I'll get a good one that jumps me back up to 3 stars, and we start the process over again.
Jean-Michel Jarre
3/5
I think it was really good, probably a 3.5. It was trending towards a 4-star, but it got a little elevator-ish at the end. I liked it, and based on the year it was made, it was very influential and I think it holds up well. It's just that I've heard too much soundtrack music that sounds just like this to really justify a 4 star review.
Beastie Boys
4/5
It's awesome. The mixing of hip hop, funk, punk, and rock, plus the prodigious use of sampling, creates an incredibly creative, forward-thinking, and influential record. The frat boy rhymes can be both intelligent (Pass me the scalpel, I'll make an incision I'll cut off the part of your brain that does the bitching; Put it in formaldehyde and put it in the shelf; And you can show it to your friends and say "that's my old self"), and bawdry (Rapunzel Rapunzel let down your hair; So I can climb up and get inside your underwear).
As with all hip hop, it shows its age, but I also think it has aged like a fine wine with a realization of how foundational and influential this album was during the early days of hip hop. 4.5 stars.
Les Rythmes Digitales
3/5
Extremely fine. I'm not the biggest fan of "dance" music, but this is peppy and decent.
Johnny Cash
3/5
I cannot abide country music. I know Johnny Cash has become this larger than life, beloved by all, Americana-type figure, but I've never understood why. What I will say is that this doesn't really sound like country music. It's not weird and twangy. This may be because most (all?) of the songs are covers from better artists. That said, though it's too long and Cash's voice is very much the same through every song, it's not terrible. 2.5 stars, probably, but I'll give it an extra half star because Hurt is an awesome video, even though the original song is better.
Saint Etienne
3/5
It’s OK. Not exceptional, but not bad. Too long. Three stars.
Joan Armatrading
3/5
Quite good, actually. Very Tracy Chapman vibes - although this is well before Tracy Chapman.
Robbie Williams
2/5
I’m an American, and Robbie Williams really didn’t hit over here. I couldn’t find out how high the album charted in the US, but I did learn that his highest ranking single only reached 53 before I got bored of looking.
I’m nearly 600 albums in at this point, and I feel like this project has a slightly British bias in some of the album choices, but this may be the most egregious. It was MASSIVE, apparently, in the UK, but didn’t really hit in many other countries.
Anyway, I used to think I didn’t like 80s music, but what this project has shown me is that there are some incredible 80s albums, it’s really just 80s pop music that I don’t like.
I’m a 90s kid. It brings warm feelings, even if it’s music I didn’t really connect to at the time, like the Alanis Morrisette album.
But what this album has showed me is that I just don’t like pop music for ANY decade, because this is pretty shit.
Living Colour
4/5
Absolute BANGER of an album opener. Not only one of the best opening songs of all time, Cult of Personality is one of the best songs ever made.
Open Letter (to a Landlord), Memories Can’t Wait, Glamour Boys, and What’s Your Favorite Color and timeless and awesome. I love this album, and I think Living Colour is possibly the most criminally underrated rock band of all time. I also think that there are parts of this album that start to show its age.
I’m really torn between four star and five star. On one hand, I don’t think it’s as good as most of the other albums that I have in the five star group. On the other hand, I’m very cognizant of the influence that it had on music, Culture, and me personally. And in those areas, it’s an easy five star.
Madonna
3/5
It's interesting, but the entire album sounds like a remix album. Like some house DJ made a bunch of songs, and then remixed them with Madonna's vocals. It's not off-putting, but it doesn't sound natural, if that makes sense.
I don't really like Madonna, but I do tend to like - or at least appreciate - things that are weird or unique - and this album is certainly weird/unique. I also tend to like dance music, so I don't hate this.
Ultimately, I think this was a fun one time listen, and I think I understand why it's included. I'm going to give it 3 stars because it's definitely fine, and I wouldn't be mad if I heard the occasional song in the background, but I'd never actually search it out for another listen.
Gil Scott-Heron
2/5
I have to be honest - I'm not feeling it. Wikipedia says "Winter in America has been recognized by music writers as one of the prominent examples of early rap" and I'm sorry, what? This just sounds like smooth jazz - where the fuck are people getting "early rap" Music writers love to group black artists together, even if they're completely different genres.
Anyway, I don't love it. I feel bad giving it two stars, but I never want to listen to it again, and that's kind of my litmus test.
Mylo
3/5
Strange, but enjoyable.
Le Tigre
3/5
It’s kind annoying. I didn’t hate it, and musically it was pretty decent, but the singers voice simultaneously shrill yet bland. 2.5 stars if I could.
Beastie Boys
4/5
3.5. There were some straight bangers, and there was some cringey mess. Overall, I actually think Paul’s Boutique was a better album. I never realized just how much classic rock was used for samples in Beastie Boys early work. I think I’ll give it a 4, but it’s just barely.
Lenny Kravitz
4/5
This is a good time. Not as good, in my opinion, as some of his later work, and it leans a bit to heavily on religiosity and hippie aesthetic, but Lenny is so cool he just about makes it work. 3.5 album if we had half stars, but I'll bump it to 4 stars because I'm a Lenny Kravitz fan, even if this isn't my favorite album.
Talk Talk
4/5
Surprisingly good.
The Cult
3/5
Ok. A bit tedious
Jazmine Sullivan
4/5
Yet another fairly difficult album to score. I try to start at a baseline of 3, and if an album annoys me it starts to drop, and if it impresses me, it starts to raise. The first several songs of this album looked to be trending towards a really poor score. It seemed like a boring, recycled R&B/soul album with a strong - graphic - focus on sex from a woman's perspective.
Then I hit song 8 with Anderson .Paak, whom I quite enjoy, and something seemed to click. Then I hit the song Lost Ones, which is one of the simplest, most effective, heartbreaking breakup songs I've ever heard, and I was all in.
The album's structure took me a few songs to properly grasp, but once I got it, the genius of it really resonated with me. A real story by a real person, followed by a song that explores the preceding tale. I'll be honest - some of the tales annoyed me, but the writing of the songs, and the storytelling overall is incredible.
I think this is another example of why this project needs half stars, but the writing on this album alone means it deserves more than the standard "it's fine" rating of 3 stars.
Brian Wilson
1/5
This sucks. A lot. I can't stand The Beach Boys, but I tried to go into this with an open mind, because solo music doesn't always sound exactly like the band the artist was in.
Except this shit absolutely does. And it sucks.
How did this album come out in 2004? It just sounds like some shitty 50s Beach Boys outtakes. I don't get it, there even appear to be Beach Boys covers? I don't know, and I can't be bothered to look it up.
If you like this album, congratulations on having made it to your 80th birthday, I guess.
Johnny Cash
2/5
Which Jesus do I need to pray to in order to not get any more Johnny Cash albums? I like baby Jesus the best, of course, but I'll pray to pre-teen Jesus if I need to, or obnoxious mid-20s Jesus, even. Just, please. No more Johnny Cash.
Culture Club
2/5
I think I knew I wasn’t going to like it. I kind of wanted to like it, but there was really no way that I was going to like it. I’m just not a fan of this sort of schlocky 80s pop. I will admit, karma chameleon kind of slaps, but this type of music just isn’t for me.
Teenage Fanclub
3/5
It's whatever. Early 90s alt rock, shades of Pavement, or Dinosaur Jr., or Weezer. Which is to say kind of boring, but not the worst. It's fine.
M.I.A.
4/5
This is the second album of M.I.A.'s that I have gotten. The first album, Kala, was one of the biggest surprises of the project for me, and I rewarded it with a 4.5/5 star rating. This album doesn't quite reach the same high standards as Kala to my ears, but that is not to say that it is not an excellent album. I feel like Kala was a bit more experimental, and really kept me on my toes not knowing what to expect from song to song. The first half of this album sees the artist very heavily leaning into a strong dancehall sound. It's quite good, and kept my toes tapping, but it wasn't particularly compelling, if that makes sense.
The second half of the album, however, was magical. Bingo has production that sounds like it could be by Trent Reznor, and Amazon is as good as any song on either album. The creativity and unpredictability of Kala is in full effect.
I'm certain this album is going to have a much, much lower rating than it deserves, as was the case for Kala, but anything under 4 stars would be criminal, and I am not a criminal.
Tom Tom Club
3/5
OK, so, I don't really like it. That said, it's one of those albums that I *absolutely* understand why it made the list. Do I ever want to listen to it again? I do not. Usually, that's a 2 star review. However, I can see the strangeness of this album, and how it pushed creativity away from the 70s sound into the synth-pop driven 80s. Bonus points that it seemed to be HEAVILY influential to hip hop, considering all the artists who have sampled music from this album.
I'm giving it an extra star out of respect.
Iggy Pop
3/5
I’m going to give it a 3, but just barely. It was fine, but kind of droney and way more boring than I expected. I got a Stooges album that blew me away, and this album had nowhere near the kind of energy I was expecting. It was kind of like a Lou Reed album. I don’t know. It was fine, I guess.
The Cars
4/5
Surprisingly good. I always thought of cars like a quirky little new wave band, but they’ve got some proper 70s rock songs going on here. I really enjoyed it.
Metallica
3/5
This is 100% an album that deserves to be on this list. For me, however, it’s just a bit uneven. There are songs where the symphony absolutely enhances the song, then there are songs where it just sounds like there’s an orchestra kind of playing along. When it works, holy shit, it’s awesome. When it doesn’t, it’s just a little, I don’t know, boring? Underwhelming? Also, I’ve never been to a normal Metallica concert, but does James Hetfeld always bail out of the high notes? His voice was a bit monotone at times. Last complaint: it’s too damned long.
Ok, it sounds like I hated this, but that’s not quite the case. I’m going to give it 3 stars, and I wish I could give it 3.5, because it really is a very cool concept and a very cool album. There were a couple of times I got chills - and although I beey much love the Black album, I wouldn’t really call myself a Metallica fan.
Anyway, damn good album, if flawed, and definitely one to hear before you die.
The Roots
5/5
Masterpiece. I know of The Roots, and I even know a couple of their songs, but I never knew they could hit like this. I really missed out by skipping them in the early aughts. 4.5 stars.
Scott Walker
3/5
What a weird ass album. It’s like what I imagine Liberace sounds like, or the What’s New Pussycat guy, but it’s oddly…not bad. Each song is like a little self-contained story, and some of these stories are WILD. Like the one where he compares dogs and women, or the one where he tells us how he got gonorrhea for the first (first!) time.
It’s a wild ride, and I don’t think I’ll ever listen to it again, but if I’m being honest, I kind of enjoyed my time with it. Solid three stars.
The White Stripes
3/5
First off, Meg White is a dogshit drummer. people tie themselves in knots trying to explain why "ackshully" she's some sort of savant, but she's the most rudimentary, basic, first week, boring-ass "professional" drummer the world has ever seen. It's shocking.
Secondly, why in the unholy hell does this project need THREE White Stripes albums? Jack White is, it turns out, a terrific guitarist. But there is nothing in any of these albums that is groundbreaking, or overwhelmingly influential. So why? Why three?
So on to the actual album. It's fine. Like, totally fine. I *almost* gave it 2 stars because I'm so fucking annoyed that I have to listen to another White Stripes album when, apparently, there's not a single Deftones record on the list. But that wouldn't be fair, because this is the poster child for a completely banal, milquetoast, bland-ass blues-rock album. probably 2.5 stars, but I'm so frustrated I'm willing to give it 3 stars to mitigate my bias - but I'll tell you one more time, this project DOES NOT need three White Stripes albums.
Alice Cooper
2/5
I appreciate that it has the decency of only being 37 minutes.
Keith Jarrett
3/5
Do you like the piano?
Dizzee Rascal
4/5
The his was unexpectedly excellent. It’s a definite difference from American hip hop, and the beats were abrupt, hit hard, and keep the song poppin’. The writing was also excellent, painting a picture of British projects that aren’t, maybe, as culturally ubiquitous as the American ghetto, but the artists stories show that while we may be separated by thousands of miles and an ocean, we’re not so different.
Can
3/5
It’s ok, I guess. Not much to it, to be honest, I barely remember it and I just listened to it. Decent background music, I suppose?
Fatboy Slim
4/5
Quite good. Probably 3.5. I was going to give it a 4 but I think it’s maybe just a slight bit dated.
George Harrison
3/5
It’s ok. I don’t really like the Beatles, but I don’t hate them either, I just don’t really connect to their “genius.” I’d say I feel the same about this album. It’s inoffensive, I suppose, and a little boring, and altogether too damned long, but it’s ok.
Queen
3/5
Fine. Disappointingly boring, but perfectly fine background music. 2.5 stars.
Bad Company
2/5
Super yacht rock-ish. Weirdly mellow.
Mercury Rev
3/5
Fine. Forgettable.
Green Day
3/5
I think it’s pretty good, though a bit long. I think I liked the first half of the album better than the second half, I feel like the second half just sounded a bit repetitive and it was harder for me to follow the storyline. Solid album, though, probably approaching 3.5.
Yes
3/5
I’m on a streak of fair to middling albums. This is one of them. I have affection for Yes because I greatly enjoy prog rock, but this album is a little underwhelming. Fine, perfectly OK, but nothing special.
SAULT
4/5
Loved it. As it’s a chill album that’s hard to categorize, dedicated to black excellence, it’s going to have a lower score than it deserves. But not from me.
The Byrds
3/5
Didn’t love it, but it’s fine, I guess. It got dangerously close to country on a few occasions, but it was also kind of weird and experimental at times. Mostly just kind of late 60s hippie rock with a toe dipped in acid. It’s fine for what it is. 2.5
The 13th Floor Elevators
3/5
Two 60s hippie acid rock albums in a row. Neat.
Neil Young
3/5
This is a weird album. At first I thought it was awful, but once your ears adjust and you get used to it, it actually becomes sort of pleasant. I wouldn’t ever seek it out, but I wouldn’t be mad if it came on. I could never recommend this album to anyone as I don’t really think it’s very good…but it’s also not that bad. 2.5 stars.
Christina Aguilera
2/5
Let's get this out of the way - the girl can SING. The problem is that they are DESPERATE to let you know. Every second of every song has her doing slides and scales and going up and down the register and it all feels so over the top and forced. There's a distinct attempt at a hip hop flavor that comes across as desperate mores than legitimate, and the whole thing is overproduced and cringey. She name checks all these great singers of old while tacitly placing herself at the same level - and she isn't. And the final song on disc one is legitimately the cringiest thing I've ever heard. I was so embarrassed for her that I couldn't finish the song.
I guess the second disc is much better than the first. The problem with that is twofold: 1.) I was already very annoyed and over it because disc one was awful and 2.) I don't need two fucking discs of Christina Aguilera.
The Disposable Heroes Of Hiphoprisy
3/5
It's OK. I've always liked Michael Franti...but I've also always thought he was a bit tedious. I listened to Spearhead a bit when I was young, but although this predates that, the Michael Franti I know is all here. He's a good storyteller, if a little heavy-handed. If you want a history lesson, or if you want to be outraged at the state of the country, this is the album for you.
Honestly, it's staggeringly sad that this album could have been written today. INS Greencard A-19 191 500 is the most timely 30-year old song I could imagine.
Overall it's a decent album that's probably a little longer than it should be. I like it, but he has a unique voice that gets to be a bit same-y after awhile.
Spacemen 3
4/5
The first thing I do when I see that an album is two hours long, or has more than one disc, is tho check Wikipedia to see if I've inadvertently gotten some stupid reissue version and, hallelujah, that was the case with this album. Because while I really liked it, I'm not going to listen to two hours of it.
So this review is based on the first 9 songs, because that was the original release - and the first 9 songs were pretty damned good. It's kind of dreamy, shoegazey, and I would have never guessed it was released in the 80s. I can hear the shades of music to come, which lets me know it was probably super influential to bands like Mogwai, Godspeed You, and the like. It's a 3.5, but I'll give it a half star because it surprised me
Sheryl Crow
3/5
A whole lot of nothing. Why is she so famous? It was fine, I guess, nothing offensively bad, but I don’t hear anything that would suggest it’s genre-defining, or worthy of inclusion on any Best Of list. All I Wanna Do is pretty catchy, but is one catchy pop song enough to warrant a spot on this list? I submit that it’s not.
Traffic
2/5
My god it's tedious. So, so tedious. I feel like I've heard this album dozens of times already. If there's a template of 60s/70s rock, this follows it perfectly. I wouldn't say it's a *bad* album, but it's not good, and it's exhausting in its sameness.
2.5 stars, but I'm docking it half a star because my mood noticeably improved when I started listening to something else.
Kate Bush
3/5
The worst part about this album is that I just found out that Clipse released their first album in 15 years, and Travis Scott also released a new album this week. I'd much rather be listening to those albums, so I'm kind of listening to this like a kid eats his broccoli.
Overall, it's pretty OK. It's weird, not your typical 80s pop sound, so that's endearing. I'd probably give it a 2.5 if I could.
The Cure
4/5
It's good. It sounds like early cure, so it's definitely not something Im going to listen to a lot, but I quite like The Cure.
Unfortunately, there aren't half stars in this stupid thing, so I have to figure out whether to rank it 3 stars, the same as my last two albums by Kate Bush and Sheryl Crow, or bump it up to 4 stars, which is *supposed* to be albums I like quite a lot. So, it deserves a 3.5, but I'm giving it an extra half star because it's not Kate Bush or Sheryl Crow.
The Clash
3/5
Pretty good for an old punk record. That’s a low bar, though.
Genesis
4/5
Surprisingly excellent. I don't know much about Genesis other than Phil Collins, and he's more of a pop guy to me, so when I would read things about Genesis being a prog band I was always so confused, because the few songs I heard by them didn't sound prog to me at all.
This album is definitely prog.
I liked it quite a bit. I just read the blurb and apparently it's kind of controversial amongst Genesis fans, but I don't have time for all that nonsense. I listened to it, I enjoyed it a lot, and so I'm giving it 4 stars.
Butthole Surfers
4/5
I don't know what the fuck I just listened to, but I like it.
Garbage
2/5
This was disappointing. I remember a few of the songs, but they really don’t hold up very well. It’s probably a 2.5, but it was kind of crap. There’s nothing special about this album, and I honestly cannot fathom why it was chosen.
Don McLean
4/5
Surprisingly excellent. I was very much not happy when this popped up. I don't tend to like 70s rock very much, and the song American Pie is one of the most overrated songs in music history. That said, once I got past that, it turns out this guy is a terrific songwriter! The Grave is one of the most haunting songs I've ever heard, Empty Chairs perfectly encapsulates the incredulity and remorse of a breakup, and "Everybody loves me, baby, what's the. matter with you?" is in the running for the funniest lyric of all time, even though it's hidden in what I'm pretty sure is a strong anti-war, anti-imperialism protest song.
Excellent album, and one I'm certainly glad I was turned on to by this project.
The Boo Radleys
3/5
Records like this are why Gen X were known as the “ slacker” generation.
Lupe Fiasco
4/5
Sometimes, I start listening to an album and I’m pretty unimpressed for the first couple of songs, and then something, usually a lyric, will catch me, and I’ll start listening with a different mindset, like a switch has been flipped. This album is one of those.
For the first few songs, I was bored. It sounded too much like Kanye, I didn’t think the production was all that interesting, and it was just background noise. And then we got to I Gotcha, and the wordplay, the flow, the peppy beat - it just grabbed me. The album just got better from there.
This is some of the best storytelling you’re going to get in a rap album of this era. This project needs more modern hip hop, and this is an absolutely worthy inclusion.
Black Sabbath
3/5
Not my cup of tea, but I respect the forefathers.
Astrud Gilberto
2/5
Don’t love it. I think this is the third or fourth of this type of album and it’s unnecessary.
Beck
4/5
I don't know, man. What do you say about Beck? I don't really know how to explain his music, I don't really know *why* it's good, I just know it's damn good. It's weird, the lyrics don't make any damned sense, he's constantly got little snippets of sounds that don't sound like they should work, but they're actually perfect, and the songs are all so catchy.
So this is a Beck album, and although I can't explain why it's awesome, I can simply tell you - it's pretty awesome.
Slipknot
4/5
When this popped up, I audibly said, “fuck yes!” I’ve just had a slog of 70s rock, 80s pop, and weird Girl From Ipanema-type albums, so this was incredibly refreshing.
This is an awesome album, but it’s a little confusing that this is the album selected, when it’s probably the third or fourth best Slipknot album. Iowa is, in my opinion, their magnum opus, and their self-titled is another 5 star.
All that said, there are some killer, all-time greats on this album. Psychosocial is as good as any song they’ve ever released, Snuff is a beautiful ballad that one would never expect from a band of Slipknot’s reputation, and songs like Gematria and Vendetta show that they’ve still got the heavy chops that have made them icons. I think there were a couple meandering songs that kept this from being a 5 star, but it’s definitely good enough to be in your metal album rotation.
Skepta
4/5
So, I wasn't sure about this album on my first listen. I thought it was a little underwhelming, and frankly disappointing. But my listen was a bit disjointed, and split over two days, so I decided to listen to it a second time, and the second time through was *much* better! One thing I was able to do was skip the stupid skits, so that instantly raised my regard for the album.
I still think it's a tough album to score, though. I like British rap, I think it's fun. That said, I kind of feel like this album tries really hard to be regular old American rap. Not a bad thing, per se, but I've heard dozens of artists do that better. I think it's a really catchy album and I like it. I'd probably give it a 3.5 if I could. I'm going to bump it to 4 stars because rap is generally pretty hated on this project, so I'm sure it'll be underhanded.
As an aside, I just learned that this album beat Radiohead's A Moon Shaped Pool for the 2016 Mercury Award. That's so absurd that it made me feel a bit angry towards this album...until I learned that Radiohead has been nominated for five Mercury Awards and have NEVER won:
1997: OK Computer lost to Roni Size - Represent. A good album, but not even on the same PLANET as OK Computer.
2001: Amnesiac lost to PJ Harvey - Stories. This is a BANANAS decision. There are four nominated albums better than that album.
2003: Hail to the Thief lost to Dizzee Rascal - Boy in da Corner. Get fucked.
2008: In Rainbows lost to Elbow - The Seldom Seen Kid. Now, I do not agree with this decision, but I will say that I think this album is genius and is criminally underrated.
2016: A Moon Shaped Pool lost to Skepta - Konnichiwa. A travesty, but probably the second best album to incorrectly win against Radiohead.
So I'm not mad at this album anymore, but it's obvious that the Mercury Awards are a joke.
Blur
3/5
Song 2 is awesome. Very fun. The rest of the album is fine, but forgettable.
Gang Of Four
2/5
It's OK, I suppose. I don't really like 70s punk that much, it really just sounds like everything else in this genre from its time. It's a 2.5 star album, it doesn't suck, but it's also not very good.
Joy Division
3/5
It was decent. Not anything I'd listen to on the regular, but pretty good. I think this is considered New Wave? Apple Music has it listed as "Goth Rock" which is the dumbest thing I've ever heard of. There's definitely a punk undercurrent, but the singer isn't a nasally, whiny little shit, and I think the rest of the band actually know how to play their instruments.
It's said to be a masterpiece, and while I wouldn't go that far, I can understand why it could be seen as such if it was released in 1979. I'm sure it completely blew the minds of lots of teenager when it was released.
David Crosby
3/5
Oh god, this is going to suck.
It's whatever, man. I'm getting so much 70s shit that it's all starting to meld together. It all sounds like three things: hippie shit, rock shit, or nascent punk shit.
Magazine
3/5
Kind of weird, kind of punk, it was ok, I guess. There are too many albums in this project that I cannot figure out why I “have” to listen to them before I die. 2.5 stars.
William Orbit
3/5
Perfectly cromulent 90s chill.
Coldcut
3/5
It’s fine. Cool to hear Queen Latifah randomly show up. She would have been a teenager, well before superstardom. To hear her pop up on a UK breakbeat album was definitely not on my bingo card for today.
The Adverts
3/5
It’s good, for what it is. Which is 70s punk, which means the bar is low. Theres very little on Wikipedia about the band or this album, except a quote that calls it the equal of the Sex Pistols debut.
I will simply say that although I do not like 70s punk very much, I have heard of the Sex Pistols, and their debut. I have never, until today, heard of the Adverts.
I’m not saying this album doesn’t belong here, it’s better than many I’ve heard, but I don’t know, man. No Deftones? No Tool? But this?
Tricky
4/5
This album is terrific. It’s better than I remember. I used to think Pre-Millennium Tension was Tricky’s best but I forgot just how good this one is. I do think it tails off a bit at the end, but the first 2/3 of the album is as good as you’re going to get in the Trip Hop genre. 4.5 stars, this is a banger.
Megadeth
4/5
The thing about this album is that it’s really, really good, but even though I’m old enough to have listened to it new, I wasn’t into heavy music until much, much later. I think I said this on my review of the other Megadeth album, but I’ve always seen them as Metallica’s slightly cringy little brother, and I couldn’t have been more wrong. Metallica softened their sound and went supernova, but Megadeth were every bit their contemporaries in the heavy “thrash” genre. And they didn’t have a douchebag like Lars playing drums for them, so that counts for something.
Dwight Yoakam
1/5
Lol. Fuck off.
Pet Shop Boys
2/5
VERY 80s pop. Not for me.
Spiritualized
3/5
On one hand, I remember kind of liking it as I was listening.
On the other hand, that was less than 24 hours ago and I remember almost nothing about it.
Sidenote, this album beat out OK Computer for that year’s NME award, which is yet another example of how worthless the NMEs are.
Beth Orton
3/5
Meh
Guided By Voices
2/5
I have long maintained that the 90s is the best era of music.
Even the best have their occasional slip-ups.
This album started out sounding like a Beatles tribute band, and morphed into the illegitimate love child of a Beatles tribute band and a Lemonheads tribute band. Then it went downhill from there.
A lowlight was the song I couldn’t really make out the lyrics because there was some very loud snoring. I had heard of Guided by Voices but for some reason I thought they were an American Christian band. After listening to 28 songs of this mess, I don’t think an American Christian band could have been worse.
Violent Femmes
4/5
This is a difficult one to rate, because half of the album is certifiable bangers that are very fun. The other half of the album is fine, but fairly forgettable. I can listen to the bangers now and forever, but don't care at all about the others. So how do I rate an album like that? It's 3.5 if this project had half stars.
Ramones
3/5
It sounds like The Ramones. It just drones on, but it’s ok.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
3/5
59 minutes of singing about murder is too many minutes singing about murder.
A Tribe Called Quest
3/5
I think Hip Hop reflects its time more than any other type of music, which is a great credit to the artwork, but it also lends itself to sounding anachronistic when listening 35 years later. I like this album, let's just get that straight. I like it more than most albums that get the same star rating (again, please PLEASE give us half stars), but it does sound extremely dated – it's almost sweet.
I wish I could give it a higher rating, but it would be disingenuous to give it 4 stars, as there's no way this album would enter any sort of current rotation, it's just too dated. But if you're interested in the history of Hip Hop, this is a classic that cannot be missed.
Tim Buckley
2/5
I don’t get this project, man. Is this album *fine*? Sure. It’s perfectly OK. But it’s just a template of 60s hippie, renaissance fair, folksy bullshit. I read this guys Wikipedia page, and it sounds like he was an interesting dude that had some experimental shit, and some albums that really pushed boundaries. So why include the cookie cutter album? Why not one of the interesting albums that pushed boundaries and inspired experimentation?
I don’t know. His son’s album is miles better.
The Velvet Underground
3/5
I don't like it, but I respect its influence. It just sounds old, and kind of outdated, you know? You can definitely see the bones of what punk tock became. Sister Ray starts out pretty decent, but 17 minutes is too damned long.
David Holmes
3/5
It's fine. I tend to rate electronic music higher than most on this project, but the inclusion of this album is confusing. So much electronic music during this time period that are classics, genre-bending, and influential, whereas this one just kind of exists. I'll give it a 3, but I feel like 3 stars is turning into a "meh, whatever" rating.
Underworld
3/5
I quite like it, though not as much as the grade I'm going to give it - I'm grading very much on a curve. You see, this album should be 3.5 stars. It's good, maybe bordering on very good with the caveat that it's boilerplate BOOTSandHATS techno and should be listened to primarily while taking drugs or in the background while working in an office or cubicle well after your drug-taking days have concluded. But we don't get half stars in this project, so that's out.
So this album should be 3 stars. It's good, but (prior caveats notwithstanding), it's not *very* good, you know? So then why am I rating it 4 stars? Because I have massively fucked up my own personal ratings. I've had some halfway shitty albums that I've rated 3 stars, because I didn't hate them enough to rate them 2 stars. but now I like this album way, WAY more than those albums, so is it fair to give it the same rating? I gave Tim fucking Buckley 3 stars, FFS, and now I'm supposed to give *this* 3 stars? yesterday's album was Let's Get Killed by David Holmes, a very pedestrian, albeit listenable, album of the same genre, and this one is way better. So how do I give it 3 stars?
I don't know, but this is taking up too much space in my life. It's pretty good if you like techno. The end.
The Louvin Brothers
1/5
This is like the soundtrack for O' Brother Where Art Thou, but bad.
Frank Sinatra
2/5
There are few things more underwhelming than a Frank Sinatra record. Like everything else he’s ever done, this is great music to put on in the background when you e got a new date coming over and you’re trying to convince her that you have taste so you can get laid.
Stevie Wonder
4/5
It’s just music that makes you feel good, you know?
I will say, 1 hour 45 minutes is toooooo long, so I’m taking away half a star. But I’m giving it right back because I just happened to check Wikipedia while listening to Isn’t She Lovely and learned that it was written about his first born, which made me tear up because my first born went away to college last week and I love him so much and I’m so sad and excited for him at the same time.
Brian Eno
4/5
I think it's exceptional. I'm curious about what the community score will be though. Because this project fucking LOVES 70s music, but very much hates electronic/ambient music. For me, though, this is a banger.
Green Day
4/5
This is a really good album. All the pop punk you hear on the radio these days? This is the album that broke down those doors. This is the original, and the best.
Calexico
3/5
Pretty decent, but not quite 4 stars good.
Venom
3/5
It’s not for me. I see its influence, though, as there are lots of parts that sort of sound like the bridge between Motörhead and Metallica. I think it’s a little hokey with the satan worship shit, but I bet in 1982 this is the shit that led to the Satanic Panic that meant my mom wouldn’t let me play soccer as a kid.
Dagmar Krause
3/5
This is a tough one. Not sure why it's on the list over some others, but that's going to be a common refrain from me over the next 400+ (fml) albums.
I could only find 24 minutes of it on Youtube. I didn't hate it, and I thought it was kind of interesting. I could tell it was telling a pretty emotional story, but half of it was in German, so I couldn't follow. The song she sings to her son, who becomes the one kind of good Nazi (a dead Nazi) is pretty sad when putting yourself in her shoes.
Overall, I thought it was fine and interesting. I'll never listen to it again, but it makes more sense as an "adventure" than yet another Frank fucking Sinatra album, or a tenth David Bowie.
The The
3/5
Sounds like an episode of Phineas and Ferb.
a-ha
2/5
Oh boy! ANOTHER cookie-cutter 80s euro-pop album! I'm so glad I heard this before I died! *sad trombone* *fart noise*
Neneh Cherry
2/5
So, yesterday I made some snarky comments about the a-ha album being cookie-cutter 80s euro-pop. I apologize to a-ha, because this album is worse. It's cookie-cutter 80s euro-pop masquerading as hip hop. If uncanny valley was a thing in 1989, that's how this album would have been described. It's *approaching* hip hop, but it's by someone who has clearly observed the American experience from afar rather than personally experienced it.
It's like the book/movie The Help. The way the black women talk in that book becomes FAR more problematic when you learn that it was written by a white woman. Same with this album. It's like Neneh Cherry saw Salt-n-Pepa and thought, "I can do that."
Spoiler: she cannot.
Jack White
3/5
Three White Stripes albums and at least one Jack White solo album but apparently no Deftones albums, and no Tool albums. It getting increasingly difficult to give this project even a passing amount of legitimacy.
Kings of Leon
3/5
I think a lot of the ingredients that shot them to stardom are here, but they just haven’t come together into that something special just quite yet - that’ll come in their next album, Only By The Night. THAT album is 5 stars, but his one is a little more difficult for me to score. I like it, but I don’t love it. I want to give it a 4, but that feels like a reputation score more than an accurate reflection of how I feel. I was excited for this album and I’ve been a bit disappointed. A 3 feels low, especially considering some of the other stuff I’ve given a 3 lately, but therein lies my biggest issue with not having half stars.
Lambchop
2/5
Why?
Ramblin' Jack Elliott
1/5
The soundtrack of white supremacy.
2Pac
4/5
The genius of Tupac is that he was equally comfortable with hardcore gangsta rap, and "conscious rap", akin to groups like Tribe Called Quest, Common, and Mos Def. This album is closer to the latter, therefore a bit slower, and requires a bit more thought. On the flip side, it definitely has that mid-90s, West Coast G-funk flavor which allows you to just sit back and nod your head to the groove.
Tupac was a poet that happened to use music to package his message. Even though the music is a time capsule to its time, Pac's storytelling is timeless, a boots-on-the-ground recording of the 1990s. This is a great album and, although not 2Pac's best (in my opinion, that's his next - and last - release, All Eyez On Me), a very worthy inclusion to this project.
The Rolling Stones
1/5
I’ll put this as diplomatically as possible: this is dogshit. If you take The Rolling Stones, a shitty, overrated band, and have them cover Buddy Holly and crappy 50s songs, you get this album. It is a bad album. A very bad album.
ABBA
2/5
Did I like this? No I did not. But did I appreciate it? Also no. Ah, but did I *respect it for what it is? Still no, but a little less effusively. It is not what I thought Abba sounds like, so I will give them respect for that. I didn't like it, but I also didn't hate it, but I did think it went on too long. Do I ever want to hear it again? Not particularly.
The Undertones
3/5
It's 70s punk, so it's annoying, but it is more musical than you normally get with that genre. It has the decency of being only 34 minutes, which saves it a star because I was definitely starting to get annoyed with it. As it is, I'll give it 3 stars for not being Sex Pistols lite.
Koffi Olomide
3/5
It's fine. Pretty pleasant for background "world" music.
Everything But The Girl
2/5
This is a tough one. I like Tracey Thorn's voice. I like later Everything but the Girl albums. I loved her work with Massive Attack. This album, though, is boring and I don't like it. It's only tough because I like them and don't want to give them the 2 stars this album deserves. I like that it isn't standard 80s pop, but it is very poppy, and it's from the 80s, soooo...
Korn
4/5
I loved Korn in the 90s, and I still think that overall this is a very good album - it's just not the rock solid 5-star I thought it would be when I saw it pop up. I still think the bangers are bangers, but I never thought this was one of Korn's best albums, and I think that there are plenty of songs that sound dated, and the one with Fred Durst deserves a docked star all on its own.
Overall, I think it deserves 4 stars. It's a good album that maybe didn't stand the test of time, but was an important and critical piece of art from a time where this style of music was dominant in the zeitgeist.
Leonard Cohen
1/5
I don't know what's more surprising: that this was apparently a number 1 record in multiple countries, or that someone thought that anyone who had thus far blissfully missed this abortion *needed* to hear it before they died.
I can practically smell the pink neon tube lights, hair gel, and suit jackets with massive shoulder pads oozing out of my headphones. This is bad.
Beatles
3/5
The Beatles are perhaps the most ruthlessly overhyped and overrated band in the history of recorded music but with this album I can almost, if I squint really hard, see "it." It's not a great album, but it's interesting - and with the Beatles, that's a positive change of pace.
Robert Wyatt
2/5
Like...what?
Leonard Cohen
2/5
This is the fifth Cohen album of this list so far. I assure you that no one — NO ONE — needs to hear five Leonard Cohen albums before they die.
Chicago
3/5
It starts off in this weird, free-jazz sort of style that I don't love, but it soon morphed -- while maintaining its jazz roots -- into something different. I don't think this is going to turn into any sort of regular rotation album, but it is intriguing. The mix of jazz, prog, blues, and even a little funk is quite interesting. There are too many albums in this project that are incredibly confusing as to why they were included, but the is not one of them. Although it may not be my favorite thing, it doesn't sound like other 60s rock, and I can hear the melding of sounds to create something new, and I can understand how it would have been groundbreaking and influential in its time.
I'm dead sick of 60s rock albums, but if you *have* to listen to one, you can definitely do worse that this.
Nightmares On Wax
4/5
Very good 90s downtempo/chill. I'd love to give this thing a 3.5. I think there are probably better albums from this era that showcase the sound and vibe a bit better, but overall this is a very good listen.
The Mamas & The Papas
2/5
When this popped up I knew I was going to hate it. I'm 670 albums into this project, so I'm going to finish it, but I'll tell you - I'm not excited for it anymore. There's just waaaayyyyy too much 60s and 70s bullshit, and many of these bands have five and six albums - Bowie, apparently, has nine! That wouldn't be so much of a problem except they've left out some very obvious albums from other eras/genres and it's frustrating.
I guess this is less of a review of the album and more a vent about the project. So here's the album review: it stinks. it sounds like the Beatles added a chick and some tambourines. It's such a template of 60s flower child hippie bullshit. It sounds like the Monkees. It sounds like every other hippie, flower child template album in this project, of which there are about 30.
Mott The Hoople
2/5
What a slog. ugh.
Kraftwerk
3/5
I didn't love it. It wasn't terrible by any means, probably a 2.5 if I could. I'm going to give it three stars because I respect that it's very, very influential, but I think it was a bit boring.
Shivkumar Sharma
3/5
I quite liked it, to be honest. It was pretty soothing background music while working. Not anything I'd be tempted to listen to on purpose, but pleasant enough.
Tim Buckley
3/5
This is my second Tim Buckley album, and based on my first experience with him, it's fair to say my expectations were LOW. So I have to report that I am pleasantly surprised by this album. It's kinda catchy, even if there are some really weird, out-of-place vocalizations throughout the album. But it's only, like, 39 minutes long, so hat tip to Mr. Buckley for that.
Overall, especially with how sick I am of 60s/70s rock albums, this was a fairly enjoyable listen.
Siouxsie And The Banshees
3/5
It was OK.
Adele
4/5
I’m blown away. I’m not a big pop music fan so I really haven’t heard any of her stuff. But I just told my wife, in a timeline that makes sense, Adele is the biggest woman pop star in the world, not the warm glass of milk that is Taylor Swift. Except…she only seems to make sad songs. So it starts to get a little same-y if you’re not actual depressed. Very impressed by this album. I probably won’t listen to the whole album again on my own, but I could see bringing up a couple of the songs when I’m in the mood.
Nanci Griffith
1/5
All the country music is dragging my average down, but country music is an abomination and this album is no different.
Bad Brains
3/5
Surprisingly good. There are shades of punk, hardcore, and metal. I think they’re generally considered a punk band, and I would say that they’re pretty amazing musically, for a punk band. I don’t think it’s going on my current rotation, but I enjoyed my time with it.
Frank Black
3/5
I’m one who thinks the 90s produced the best music in history.
Not this.
It’s fine, even pretty decent, but it sounds 90s in the worst possible way. I don’t know how to explain that, but I just don’t think it aged very well. Again, it’s a totally ok album — but it isn’t greatness.
The Prodigy
5/5
Love this album. His was the first album I ever heard that made me think electronic music could be angry, and subversive, and in your face. While not as song-perfect as Fat of the Land, this album slaps, as the kids say. 4.5 stars.
TLC
3/5
I remember how big this album was back in the day. You couldn't go anywhere without hearing Creep and Waterfalls. A decent time capsule to 90s R&B.
Orange Juice
2/5
I don't even know what kind of music this is. It's like 80s pop/new wave, maybe? I don't know, but it sounds like the cover looks. I didn't like it.
Buddy Holly & The Crickets
3/5
Better than I feared it would be. I'm thinking because it's SO old, it's kinda quaint. Instead of thinking about the music I just keep thinking about it as the soundtrack to a movie, like Back to the Future or La Bamba. I definitely wouldn't want to queue it up every day, but for a one off album, I've got few complaints.
Stephen Stills
3/5
Sounds like the generic soundtrack to a Vietnam War movie.
Ozomatli
4/5
This album is fucking AWESOME. Albums like this remind me why I'm still engaging in this 1001 Albums project after yet ANOTHER two week run of 70s rock.
I could not tell you what genre this is, because it's like 6 genres wrapped into one. I would say I've never enjoyed a foreign language album more than this, but that's cheating a bit because at least half of the album is in English.
I know this isn't exactly an intellectual review, but I'm a bit overwhelmed because after the last few weeks, this album is like a glass of water in the middle of the desert.
The Incredible String Band
2/5
Boring, predictable, repetitive and cliche. Apple Music says it's one of the "most...innovative and influential records of the late 60s," but to me it sounds like you're going to a renaissance fair, or playing a guitar, barefoot, on the street in San Francisco.
The Vines
4/5
I’ve had a terrible run of albums. This album is good. Is it 4 stars good? Maybe, maybe not, but I’m so glad that it has broken up the bullshit run I’ve had.
Boston
3/5
Actually not bad. Not really my type of music, but I kinda liked it, and there were some bangers. 3.5 stars.
Bob Marley & The Wailers
4/5
This is a great album. A little less poppy than some of the albums that came afterwards, but you can hear the bones of it here. I think it drags a bit toward the end, but overall an excellent album.
Cowboy Junkies
4/5
Half of this album is spectacular, but there are a few songs that drift too close to country for my liking. But I really like the singer's voice, and overall, I like the vibe of the album. I'd love to give it 3.5 stars, but there are too many country-adjacent songs for me to feel comfortable giving it 4 stars - even though half the album absolutely deserves it.
Actually, looking back at some of the albums I've given 3 stars that I just thought were moderately listenable, I'm giving this 4 stars because I actually really liked most of it.
2/5
If the Cure weren’t moody and depressed, and instead were a vacuous pop band, they might sound like this.
SZA
5/5
I think this is a phenomenal album. It's creative, original, catchy, and extremely personal. Stories of life, love, and the desire for acceptance abound in this album, and Sza's voice complements perfectly.
I'd say it's a 4.5 rating, but I'll give it the half star bump because Sza is one of my son's favorite artists.
Supergrass
4/5
Pretty damn good 90s rock album. It held my attention through the entire thing and had me tapping my toes and shaking my leg like crazy. Definitely worth your time.
The Monks
3/5
I enjoyed this more than I thought I would…for the first 11 or 12 songs. Unfortunately, it’s 16 songs long — too long.
I don’t know what this is, but it’s wild and weird. I thought it was good fun until the latter third of the album, which just seemed to get weird for the sake of being weird, as opposed to being original and eclectic.
Yes
3/5
I wanted to like this more than I did. I enjoyed the musicianship of it, but it strayed a little too close to country/bluegrass-y on several occasions for my tastes. It’s not that it was bad, I think I just expected more. A disappointing effort by an exceptional band.
De La Soul
4/5
Awesome. A classic. Hip hop is so steeped in the culture of the moment that listening to old albums can be a bit like a time capsule. Overall, it holds up. A bit long, but I enjoyed it.
George Jones
1/5
Country music is abominable.
Devendra Banhart
3/5
I really liked it at first, but then it started getting really avante garde and annoying.
Paul Simon
3/5
Sounds like the soundtrack to a Vietnam War movie.
Dexys Midnight Runners
3/5
It's OK. There are a few songs that sound kind of like a peppier The Cure, but the guys voice gets a little grating after awhile.
Knowledge of Beauty is awful, and I think that's dragging down my overall opinion of the album. Also, I'm a little salty that I'm listening to Dexy's Midnight Runners and There's no Come On Eileen. It's an outrage.
Overall, I din't hate it, but I'm glad it's over.
AC/DC
3/5
It's pretty good for what it is. I'd give it 3.5 if I could. It sounds a bit dated, for sure.
Willie Colón & Rubén Blades
3/5
It's fine. I don't know.
OutKast
5/5
This is an amazing album. Although I consider Andre 3000 as one of the greatest rappers of all time - he doesn't really rap on this album, choosing, instead, to lean into singing. I'm not going to say he's a great singer, but somehow he makes the songs work on his half of this double album.
The Big Boi side is exactly what you'd expect from Big Boi, but done as well as you'd hope. While I think both sides are excellent in their own way, they're completely different vibes, and I'd probably want to listen to them separately, depending on my mood.
And therein lies the problem. I'm not sure I'll ever really be in the mood to listen to Big Boi without Andre 3000, and although I like The Love Below, and I'm impressed by it's creativity, it's deployability for me is fairly low - much lower than other albums in their catalog.
All that said, I'm giving this album a 5. Is it as good as Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik? No. it as good as Atliens? Absolutely not. Is it a banger, a classic of the genre? You're goddamned right. So it should probably be a 4.5, but even when genius slips, the output is still incredible.
Public Image Ltd.
4/5
I quite liked it, actually. It was weird, and I didn't know this was Johnny Rotten's band. It's nothing at all like The Sex Pistols.
This is a tough one to rate, because I'm not sure I liked it 4 stars worth, but I like it better than most of the stuff I've given a 3.
Deep Purple
4/5
I'm not a huge fan of live albums. It's like, take the songs you love, and make them worse, then add a bunch of crowd noise. This one is good to very good. It gets a little screechy in parts, but you can tell these guys were *rocking* for the 70s.
For the life of me I cannot fathom why this is on the list of albums to hear before you die. Like I said, it's good, but what elevates it over literally any Tool album, since there are apparently none on this list. I won't ding the album for that bullshit, but it's bullshit.
Ms. Dynamite
4/5
It’s actually quite good. Not MIA good, but still pretty good. I’ve never heard of this person before, but apparently this album won the Mercury award. I know that’s supposed to be an achievement, but knowing Radiohead has never won a Mercury award means I cannot take them serious and therefore disregard that accolade entirely. Anyway, 3.5.
Bob Marley & The Wailers
5/5
It’s about the perfect album. There isn’t a weak song here. Just lovely.
Rage Against The Machine
5/5
Another amazing album. Rage had a pretty big influence on my late teens and twenties, really opening my mind to a lot of injustices in an era that didn’t have the 24-hour news cycle and constant flood of information that we have now. It’s a real shame we didn’t get another album or two out of them before Zack shut up shop, but we have this masterpiece to remember them by.
Khaled
3/5
This is pretty cool. It's not something I'm going to listen to all the time, but it's pretty damn good, if not overlong. The songs are interesting compositionally, and though I do think it starts to drag a bit, I found myself engaged throughout. I think it's strongest when it leans into the traditional sounds, and less effective when it strays into a poppy, almost merengue style. Three well deserved stars, I'd give this 3.5 if I could, but it just doesn't quite meet the standards of 4 stars.
Ray Price
1/5
God, I just loathe country music, with extra spicy antipathy towards this honky tonk bullshit. I don't know if Ray Price was racist, but I presume he was because country is music made for racists by racists.
Iron Butterfly
2/5
I only know this band through the title track, which I've heard several times, but not for a long time. But I thought this was a really hard rocking band but it turns out - not so much.
Song 1: pretty dance-hippie with plenty of 60s rock organ. It's really more of a pop song than a rock song. It's not at all what I expected when I hit play.
Song 2: More pop! If you told me this was the title song to a Brady Bunch type of TV show I'd believe you with no hesitation.
Song 3: I have been gravely mislead. Was this band big with the teeny bopper American Bandstand crowd? This is just shitty hippie pop music.
Song 4: OK, it's still a bit light in the ass, but I can at least hear some rock stylings here. It's like they're reaching for something and they haven't quite gotten there.
Song 5: Last song before the main event and now we're talking! The first 30 seconds actually sounds like Rock and Roll! Then the singing starts and I've been let down, again. Still, this is the rocking-est song so far. As an aside, I know it was a different time, but the mix is goddamned awful. It's so tinny and thin, there's almost no bass, and the kick drum sounds like a little puff of air. The guitar has its moments, but the real star of this album is the organ. They really made sure it was predominately front and center.
OK, here we go: Song 6, the title track, the money maker. I've never heard the 17 minute album version, so is this song enough to save the album?
No. It is not.
Look, it's a decent song, but being 17 minutes certainly doesn't help it, especially when what seems like 10 of those minutes id the most rudimentary drum solo I have literally ever heard.
This album sold more than 30 million records and was, in fact, the bestselling Atlantic Records album until Led Zeppelin IV blew it out of the water. Still, 30 million records is a metric fuckton of records sold, and it goes to show that in the old days, if you had one banger you could make a killing selling records, because people had no choice but to buy the whole thing.
I appreciate that this album had the decency to only be 36 minutes long, but not as much as I appreciate the fact that I never have to listen to it again.
Talking Heads
4/5
This is surprisingly great. Even more so when you realize it was released in 1980.The first several songs I was thinking this was definitely something that I could put on rotation, but I think it slows a bit at the end. It ultimately doesn't attain the upper reaches of a 5 star rating, but it's very good, very influential, and it is one of the increasingly rare albums that I can completely understand why it was chosen for this project.
Cocteau Twins
4/5
Frankly, I am blown away at how good this album is. When I saw it pop up, and I saw the year was 1984, a feeling of dread washed over me but I need not have worried. This album is lush, and layered, with dreamy, ethereal vocals. While I do think the vocals are a bit shrill for my tastes, it is obvious that this album was the inspiration for the Trip Hop era, and acts like Bjork, and Massive Attack.
This is a solid 4 star album, and undeniably an album that is worth listening to before you die.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
4/5
Another surprising entry, I liked it a lot but I'm not sure why I *needed* to listen to it. Just because it's a female fronted punk band? Either way, It was a fun listen, so I'm not mad.
Christine and the Queens
3/5
I've always said I don't like 80s music, but I've had an interesting, and frankly, shocking, run of 80s albums lately that show me that it's not 80s *music* I don't like, it's 80s *pop* music I don't like. Well, this album was released in 2018 but sounds like it was released in 1981. It's bubblegum poppy, complete with a heavy reliance on synth.
Actually, the more I listened to it, it's still obviously *heavily* influenced by 80s pop, it is kind of an updated sound that I actually didn't hate. Yet another time I wish for half stars, but since I don't have them, and I'd listen to this album 10 times before I subjected myself to Iron Butterfly which I gave a 2, this gets a 3.
Run-D.M.C.
3/5
It's an interesting album and one that is on this list for obvious reasons. One of the most influential and important rap albums of all time, and the first to really penetrate the main stream American conscious.
It's a really interesting listen because there's a lot of rock influence in the songs - which I presume is the Rick Rubin influence but I'm too lazy to look up whether he produced this one. It's also interesting to hear the extent that the DJs were, at that time, the stars of the show. The rappers were kind of just there to showcase the DJ, who was the man the audience came to see. How far we've come.
Ultimately, one of the greatest things about rap is that it is a perfect little time capsule of the era it's created in. Although that can lead to a healthy dose of nostalgia and admiration, it also means that rapp from certain eras can end up sounding cringey, corny, or just plain anachronistic. I respect the hell out of this album, but I don't think I can say I like it.
XTC
2/5
This was a huge disappointment, sadly. I adore the song Dear God, and, having never listened to this entire album before, was expecting more of the same. I am gutted to announce that the rest of the album was nothing like Dear God, which was the last song.
Now, just because I didn't really love the album doesn't mean that I can't hear how influential and creative it is. I'd love to give this a 2.5, but I'm going to give it a 2 because I just don't ever want to hear it again. I feel bad about it, but there's really only one good song on the album.
Jah Wobble's Invaders Of The Heart
3/5
Some songs are very trip hop-ish, and I like the mixture of sounds - arabic, Indian, rock, Spanish guitar. musically, it's a very interesting listen because of the melding of all these disparate sounds. the vocals, however, leave a lot to be desired. It mostly sounds more like spoken word than singing.
But on certain songs, Like Soledad, where there is a guest vocalist, and it's pretty magnificent. Overall, I think this is a solid album that I enjoyed more often than not. I think I would have enjoyed it a lot more when it was new, but it's definitely not without its charms. 3 stars.
Black Sabbath
5/5
It took until today for me to understand why people rate Black Sabbath so highly. This album is incredible. It is the foundation upon which heavy music has been built on. I don't even think any of their famous songs are on this one, and it's still sublime!
This album is why lists like these exist.
Pavement
3/5
It's very OK. Even bordering on pretty damned good at points. I never really connected to Pavement, what little I heard of them, but it was different than I expected. Very much a bridge between punk and indie/alternative/shoegaze. Sort of like Weezer before Weezer - and with a much harder edge. Also they don't suck as hard as Weezer.
3.5 stars.
Madonna
2/5
Not for me. I'm not sure why this album is here, it doesn't sound particularly fresh, or interesting, or new, or influential. In fact, it sounds quite the opposite. It sounds like Madonna chasing the new trends instead of the reverse like earlier in her career.
It's catchy, in a way, but it really sounds like an aging superstar clinging to relevance. 2.5 stars
Ash
3/5
I actually quite liked this, but it's ANOTHER example of why this thing needs half stars. Yesterday I got a madonna album that I rated 3 stars because I didn't hate it, but would have rated 2.5 stars if I could have. Today I get this, and I'll probably rate it 3 stars but I would rate it 3.5 if I could. It's a whole star difference, but they're going to get the same rating. That's insane.
Mudhoney
4/5
Does it sound a little dated? Yes. Does it sound dated from the greatest era in rock history? Also yes.
Fishbone
4/5
Damn good album. Fishbone is criminally underrated.
Dead Kennedys
4/5
I don't generally like punk music, but I like this very much. The lead singer is awful, but compelling. This album, as the kids say, fucks.
Method Man
3/5
It's a weird thing to rate a Dead Kennedys album higher than a Method Man album, but here we are. This is a pretty good album, but definitely not a special album. There are a couple very good songs and no terrible songs; it's a perfectly cromulent 90s Hip Hop album. We need half stars. 3.5
Meat Puppets
2/5
Well, it kind of sucks. It sounds like some grungy kids decide to kind of do grunge, and kind of do country. There are a couple good songs on this album, but those are pretty much the songs that Nirvana covered.
Christina Aguilera
2/5
Once again, I have to preface this by saying she is a very gifted singer. Now that that acknowledgment is out of the way: Why in the fuck would we possibly need to hear TWO Christina Aguilera albums before we die? But there are no Tool albums. Cool.
This album is painfully late 90s/early 00s pop. Along with Justin Timberlake, I think Aguilara is the biggest offender of the white artist "blaccent" phenomenon in pop music during that time. And if you listen to her interviews, she doesn't speak that way normally, only in her albums. Which leads me to another annoyance - the talking bullshit during songs. It's not a phone convo, Chrissy, just sing, thanks.
Look, This album sounds like it was produced by Timbaland (I'm too lazy to look it up), which is to say, there are bits where it's quite catchy. But are we breaking any new ground here? Is it an album that was influential in any way, or contributed to the art form in any way? I'm not a pop historian, but I'd imagine not. I think talent-wise, Christina Aguilera has the singing ability Brittany Spears could only dream about. For better or worse, however, her cultural impact was primarily as Brittany's foil, and that's just not enough to elevate her or her music beyond anything other than an historical footnote.
King Crimson
4/5
A bit worried about this. The Apple Music review blurb includes the line, "Often considered the first part of a trilogy that features Starless and Bible Black and Red, Larks’ is arguably the toughest for new fans to process...". Oh boy.
Welp. That was great. Like, really, really great. I'm a fan of prog, but I'm not the biggest fan of 70s rock. So even though I've known forever that King Crimson is considered one of the founding fathers of progressive rock, I've actually never heard anything by them. This album makes me realize how much I've been missing. Is it for everyone? Of course not. It's primarily instrumental, and the vocals aren't really that great. But in terms of listening to an album with historical relevancy, I'd say this fits the bill way more than yesterday's SECOND Christina Aguilera album.
This truly is one of the albums that one should listen to before they die. 4.5 stars.
Aimee Mann
3/5
This album is painfully early 90s girl power indie pop rock. Less of an "edge" than Fiona Apple or PJ Harvey, but almost indistinguishable from Cheryl Crow, Melissa Etheridge, or Natalie Imbruglia.
So is it good? Well, it's not *my* cup of tea. There are some catchy songs, in an early 90s poppy sort of way. It veers dangerously close to country a few times with some shitty slide guitar, but overall, it doesn't make me angry.
Yet another album that isn't bad, per se, but I cannot understand why it made it into this project. 2.5 stars.
The Who
3/5
Fine, I guess? The "humor" of it is lost on me, but whatever.
Simon & Garfunkel
3/5
Ugh. I anticipate this will suck.
OK, it didn't suck. It's actually pretty decent for a 60s hippie album. 3 stars, did not hate.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
5/5
Sometimes, something is so beautiful you get out of the way and let it speak for itself.
Germs
3/5
It's a punk album. It's probably slightly better than most, but punk isn't exactly known for nuance.
The Pretty Things
3/5
It’s actually pretty damned good. Lots of sounds I don’t expect to hear in a 60s album. At some point a they sound like a Beatles rip-off, and some times they sound like a mid-2000s classic rock resurgence band in the vein of The Vines or The Strokes. It’s criminal we don’t have half stars for this project. This is a solid album, 3.5 stars.
King Crimson
3/5
You know, I'm disappointed in this. I had Larks' Tongues In Aspic a few weeks ago, and everything I read was that it was a difficult album for "new fans" but I loved it. So I was really quite excited when this album popped up, as this is supposed to be their magnum opus. It's...fine? It's a lot slower than I thought, and it doesn't sound as unique as I thought it would be. It sounds more like a bridge between hippie 60s rock and what they would ultimately become. That's fine, and I *do* think that a bridge album of sorts justifies a spot on this list, but it just didn't connect with me the way I had hoped it would.