My 1001 Albums Journey

785

Albums Rated

3.95

Average Rating

72%

Complete

304 albums remaining

Rating Distribution

Rating Timeline

Taste Profile

1950

Favorite Decade

Metal

Favorite Genre

Top Origin

Enthusiast

Rater Style ?

257

5-Star Albums

1-Star Albums

Breakdown

By Genre

Top Styles

By Decade

By Origin

Albums

You Love More Than Most

Album	You	Global	Diff
The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter The Incredible String Band	5	2.15	+2.85
Rock Bottom Robert Wyatt	5	2.38	+2.62
We're Only In It For The Money The Mothers Of Invention	5	2.46	+2.54
Black Metal Venom	5	2.47	+2.53
American Gothic David Ackles	5	2.48	+2.52
Movies Holger Czukay	5	2.71	+2.29
Phaedra Tangerine Dream	5	2.73	+2.27
Vincebus Eruptum Blue Cheer	5	2.8	+2.2
Ananda Shankar Ananda Shankar	5	2.82	+2.18
One World John Martyn	5	2.82	+2.18

You Love Less Than Most

Album	You	Global	Diff
Maxinquaye Tricky	1	3.05	-2.05
Psychocandy The Jesus And Mary Chain	1	2.95	-1.95
Our Aim Is To Satisfy Red Snapper	1	2.73	-1.73
Dr. Octagonecologyst Dr. Octagon	1	2.7	-1.7
Chore of Enchantment Giant Sand	1	2.63	-1.63
Haut de gamme / Koweït, rive gauche Koffi Olomide	1	2.61	-1.61
Chocolate Starfish And The Hot Dog Flavored Water Limp Bizkit	1	2.51	-1.51
Diamond Life Sade	2	3.45	-1.45
Songs Of Leonard Cohen Leonard Cohen	2	3.38	-1.38
Haunted Dancehall The Sabres Of Paradise	1	2.37	-1.37

Artists

Favorites

Artist	Albums	Average
Beatles	5	5
Pink Floyd	4	5
Talking Heads	4	4.75
The Who	4	4.75
Tom Waits	4	4.75
Prince	3	5
Nirvana	3	5
Stevie Wonder	3	5
Metallica	3	5
Public Enemy	3	5
Peter Gabriel	3	5
The Beach Boys	3	5
Johnny Cash	3	5
Black Sabbath	3	5
Aerosmith	3	5
David Bowie	7	4.29
Led Zeppelin	4	4.5
Miles Davis	4	4.5
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds	4	4.5
Beastie Boys	3	4.67
Kate Bush	3	4.67
Adele	2	5
OutKast	2	5
Aretha Franklin	2	5
Rush	2	5
The Pogues	2	5
Willie Nelson	2	5
Todd Rundgren	2	5
Isaac Hayes	2	5
Michael Jackson	2	5
Megadeth	2	5
Van Halen	2	5
Bob Dylan	5	4.2
Bruce Springsteen	4	4.25
Radiohead	4	4.25
The Rolling Stones	4	4.25
Elvis Costello & The Attractions	4	4.25
Yes	3	4.33
Kraftwerk	3	4.33
R.E.M.	3	4.33
Bob Marley & The Wailers	3	4.33
The Doors	3	4.33
Sonic Youth	5	4

5-Star Albums (257)

View Album Wall

It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back

A Christmas Gift For You From Phil Spector

Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music

Ladies And Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space

Popular Reviews

In A Silent Way

Miles Davis · 38 likes

5/5

This album sounds like "hold music?" Y'know, I don't very much like to make commentary on other people's reviews. I mean, I don't think anyone's here for that, and I'd rather focus on trying to express my own opinions than spend my time having a one-sided debate or argument with someone else's. Absolutely, honestly, it'd be a waste of review to do that. But, like... The top-rated review of this album is a 2-outta-5 calling it hold music. And enough people, who knows how many, agreed with it to make it the top-rated review. Frankly, I don't know what insurance companies these people are getting stuck on hold with if anything on this album sounds like hold music. Not a single instance that reminded me of Kenny G, anywhere. I mean, most hold music isn't made to be anything more than pleasant-enough background music to keep your ear occupied while you wait six hours. To suggest that this album is as mild and unadventurous as that is an insult — in fact, it seems to land on exactly the opposite of this album's mission. Now, look, I was negative years old in 1969. Heck, **my parents** weren't even born yet, I'm sure. I can't exactly remark on the controversy this album stirred up in the jazz scene, but just knowing that it was controversial... I mean, I can't say I can't hear it. This is some adventurous jazz fusion. I mean, electric piano like this? I can't recall the last time I heard something like that on a jazz album — and it's great. Especially on "In A Silent Way"; that song's downright pretty. And the thing is, these are long songs — this album's two long, and they both approach 20 minutes — but they're never boring songs. Really, they both fit into the two ways I figure makes a perfect jazz album. These songs are a journey-and-a-half hearing where they go next, so, hey, if you're into listening to jazz for its complexities, it's no THE SHAPE OF JAZZ TO COME, but it'll still be right up your alley. By that same token, they're, yes, pleasant to listen to; to get lost in — so if you're into jazz for a good atmosphere, absolutely, you'll love this. I mean, there's no shame in that sort of thing — let's just not add on the extra disqualifier that they're meant to be ignored, because they absolutely aren't. The album's a big ol' 5 from me. Like, put aside any rebuttals I have against randos for their opinions — which, let's be clear, are absolutely valid, no matter what I think. It's just an incredible work. I'm thinking back to every instrumental jazz album I've heard before, from Frank Zappa's to the stuff I've discovered on this list, and I can't think of one I liked better than this. Maybe ELLINGTON AT NEWPORT for "Diminuendo And Crescendo In Blue", but even there I'd call it a pretty close tie. It's just... Oof, way. Immaculate. And not even in a very loud way. Goodness. I mean, seriously, if I called the bank and they served me up either of these songs as hold music... Well, it'd probably sound like ass comin' out of whatever machine they play hold music on, but still, y'know? I'd hardly complain.

Devil Without A Cause

Kid Rock · 10 likes

1/5

Before my group had ever even gotten this album—hell, from the moment I found out this album was on this list at all, I'd already given it a 1. It was one of only two 1 I knew for a fact I was going to give, along with the Limp Bizkit album that's on here. And that's unfair, I get that. As I'm writing this, I haven't even heard the album yet. At most, I've heard the inclusion of the album's opener in Weird Al's "Angry White Boy Polka", Cledus T. Judd's parody of "Cowboy" "Plowboy", and the REGRETTING THE PAST video Rocked did on the album as a whole. And of course that last one especially would lead to me having a biased view-point going in. I'm fully aware of all this. But you gotta realize, even if I wasn't aware of the stuff I just mentioned, everything else Kid Rock's done recently would sure leave me feeling that way as well. This is the guy who would go on to release "AIN'T NOBODY GONNA TELL ME HOW TO LIVE" or whatever it's called and fully pander to the MAGA audience because those are the only people who sort of like him anymore. You give me an album by him, ANY album by him, and you expect me to go in with an unbiased mind? There's nothing listening to it could do to convince me otherwise; that I shouldn't just rate this album based on what I think of Kid Rock as a person and not what it actually contains. Because I know exactly what it is: it's shit-stupid country rap rock from a rich poser white boy selling a fantasy of being a suburban cowboy to other poser white boys. That's all this is, and the fact that it sold so much frankly kind of offends me. The hell was going on in the 90's that people just lapped this shit up? Hell, what is it even doing HERE, on THIS LIST? Normally I'm not one to ask why an album's here because I figure it has to be for SOMETHING, but in this case, I can't figure it out beyond MAYBE that it was important to rap rock? But was it really? Why is this something I HAVE to listen to before I die? Unless you wanna say it's because you can't appreciate the good without hearing what trash sounds like. I could possibly make an argument for Limp Bizkit, but not here. This IS a waste of a spot, completely. You can only imagine what else could have been included if not for this. Hell, I'm just left thinking about all of the albums my group could have gotten instead of this; from the proven timeless classics to shit I just love on a personal level. But no. We gotta waste our time with "FUCK ALL YOU HOES. DETROIT 'TIL I DIE, MOTHERFUCKER." And it's only because I wanna remain consistent in my intent to listen to every album here that I'm even bothering to taint my Spotify history with this sack of shit. So I hope you're happy, Mr. Rock. You've triggered me, at least. ---------------*****--------------- This part was written after I listened to the album, and... See, hours before I figured I may as well get it over with, I had this joke in mind. Imagine: all that preamble, 500 words worth, of me ranting on and on about Kid Rock and this album and the fact that it's on this list, all written before I even heard a second of the album. Then, when I get to the post-conceptions part of the review, I only have four words: "Well... That fucking sucked." You see the humor there, right? Oh, it would have been amusing—at least it would've been to me. Because right from the top, I didn't figure I had anything else to say about it. After everything I said beforehand, what else could listening to the album inspire me to say? Honestly, I WAS kind of considering just not listening to the album and posting that anyway. But I wanted to do my due diligence. I put YouTube in Incognito mode, started up the album, and... After a while, I got so bored of the album I just started watching Rocked's video on it and didn't even pause it. So it's entirely possible I missed some of the grosser lyrics, and, yeah, no doubt I didn't treat this album fairly. But the big singles and the occasional REALLY bad lyric aside, there's just nothing to it. Like every album that was released in the 90's, it's too damn long. There's so much stuff that could've been left out and no one would've missed it. Though unlike with other records I doubt cutting it down would help much. I mean, you'd still be left with Kid Rock's posing about being a "pimp cowboy," which only gets more infuriating every time he brings it up. All I can see is his stupid millionaire mansion. Seriously, Snow had more street cred than him—yeah, the guy who recorded "Informer". And at least Vanilla Ice was a goof so it was fun to laugh at his posing. I'm not even sure if Kid Rock's from Detroit! Lemme put time aside now to mention one thing I liked about this album, before I get into the worst thing. The instrumental for "Wasting Time"? I kinda liked it. Or at least how it sounded coming out of my iPhone's speaker. I thought it was some kinda monk chant that he'd recorded for the album, but I found out later on in the day that, yeah, it's actually a sample of "Second Hand News". I like the version I had in my head better. Speaking of the sampling, by the way, before my writing this I never 100% vibed with how Rocked talked about it on this album because I always got the feeling he thought sampling was cheap. Y'know, that sampling isn't an art form, as has been demonstrated on albums like PAUL'S BOUTIQUE and FEAR OF A BLACK PLANET. But that's just the thing—it's an art form, but the way Kid Rock uses samples is artless. I believe that's more Rocked's point; that every Kid Rock uses a sample, it's something where he could've recorded something original himself, but didn't because he's lazy and wanted to bank on recognizability. But let's get to the worst thing. Simply put, the last track on the album, "Black Chick, White Guy", is disgusting. Even if I understand that it's a true story he's rapping about here—supposedly, anyway—never in my life did I want to hear Kid Rock rap about ninth graders having sex. That's not ALL it's about; it goes from there to be about the consequences, but still. You're damn right I don't know the half of it—and I don't WANT to! So this ending up running on way longer than I thought: over 1,000 words. As I'm writing this, I have no idea if this website will even accept reviews that long; I might end up having to make a Pastebin for it. And of course it's an album as terrible as this that inspires so much writing from me. It's the frustration, and the fact that it's easier to dump about stuff you hate than stuff you love. I mean, I wish I had said nearly as much about MTV UNPLUGGED IN NEW YORK or GOODBYE YELLOW BRICK ROAD or SIGN "O" THE TIMES" or PACIFIC OCEAN BLUE or 21 instead of wasting my time on Kid Rock. Lemme, then, just summarize this whole thing the way I should have to begin with: this fucking sucks.

Fear Of Music

Talking Heads · 8 likes

5/5

Y'know, I've always liked Talking Heads' first two albums, but I've never truly loved them. It's like, as great as I find their early New Wave, white nerd funk to be, I couldn't help but feel like there was something missing. Some extra element that'd truly kick things over the top into "Oh, gawd, I love this." Not even "Psycho Killer", the big hit it is, could go over. Listening to this album again, for the first time in forever, I finally realized what was missing. As it turns out, it was a disco influence. See, their first albums are, like, a bit stuff? And that's not a full-on bad thing; it fits with what I generally expect from early New Wave. Starting on this album, though, they become a bit looser, a bit dancier, and they're all the better for it. This material is infectious because of it. Like, sure, it might not have something on the level of a "Once In A Lifetime", but "Life During Wartime" has always stuck with me. And it's like, they can claim that this ain't no party, disco or foolin' around, but it sure feels like one to me. It's just an incredible augmentation to their sound. I don't even really feel like I have much more to say than that. Like, I'm very sure I'm missing some deeper themes in here about urban living or pollution, and I don't wanna act like this thing is 100% a dance record from front to back, but... For real, if the influence being more present than it ain't isn't the best thing that happened to this band. Goodness, and now I got myself wanting to listen to STOP MAKING SENSE again to re-hear how good the performances of these songs are on there — and I keep reading they're **very** good. But for the moment, yeah. I can't imagine who would fear music, and especially this stuff. Jus', good shit, good shut. Goodness.

You've Come a Long Way Baby

Fatboy Slim · 5 likes

5/5

Definitive. This, to me, is what big beat should sound like, in sampling, production, tempo, tone, energy—everything. Even in length, as much as I don't think everything needed to be 5+ minutes. If there's anymore big beat albums on this list, I doubt I'll like them as much as I do this. I mean, you name me another album with "Fucking In Heaven"—y'can't.

Swordfishtrombones

Tom Waits · 4 likes

5/5

For the longest time I only thought of Tom Waits as, like... Strange music. The kind you'd plug in alongside Primus, That Handsome Devil, and maybe The Residents on the extreme end of things. That was certainly always the impression I'd always gotten from the song of his included on the SHREK 2 soundtrack — and, yes, I'm bringing that up again in relevance to Tom Waits. Like, jeez, is that the only thing I think of when I hear his name? I promise I have a good reason, though. 'Coz the first three tracks sure fit into the preconception I had of him. Odd lyrics backed by odd instrumentation... Yeah, that's it. Honestly, it's what I expected Captain Beefheart to sound like — which is to say, its strangeness is outward and obvious, instead of having it mostly exist in,like, polyrhythms or whatever. I'm kinda dumb, y'see. I mean, goodness, "Dave The Butcher" straight-up sounds like it's coming direct from a dark, evil carnival. It did not surprise me too much to find out that this was the first album Waits produced himself, and if the whole thing sounded this way, I'd be perfectly happy. This stuff is wonderfully weird. But then we hit "Johnsburg, Illinois" — and it's here where the true album reveals itself. Y'see, looking back on those first three tracks with the whole album in context, they strike me as a "scaring the hoes" kind of deal. A way to weed out the people who, y'know, "if they can't handle me at my most extreme..." 'Coz while the rest of the album still keeps a lot of its oddball charms, it's for sure toned down from "Johnsburg, Illinois" on. I mean, heck, it's a stripped-down, straight-up piano song, where, like... Goodness, I am so surprised that someone who sings the way he does, like he's vomiting the words, can make his voice sound this beautifully emotional. Consider me mightily impressed by this. And after this is where I get my revelation. 'Cuz for the rest of the album, I could only imagine him as a singer in a dirty piano bar: sunglasses on indoors, slightly hung over, holding his 36th cigarette of the night between his fingers... There is such sincerity, earnestness and realness I get from his music. Despite all the strange turns this material takes (maybe because of it, honestly), it really sounds like it's "for the people," or at least some of the odder ones. That he's down there giving light and a voice to these people. Truly, a bizarro world Springsteen. So much of it is honestly so beautiful, too. I particularly wanna highlight "Town With No Cheer" with its soft accordion and plucked strings (as a matter of fact, it's where I had my revelation) and "In The Neighborhood". That song is a mournful march, and even not knowing what it was about, it felt like one I should cry to. If a song can make me feel like that based on nothing but how it sounds — I mean, jeez, it can't be doing too much wrong, can it? Plus, although it didn't get me personally, I can totally imagine "Soldier's Things" making someone just break down. Another big ol' highlight. (I'll also point out "16 Shells From A 30.6" and "Gin Soaked Boy" as groovier blues numbers so you don't think this whole album is just piano bar songs once it's done being all-out weird.) And it was after I was done listening to this album, thinking about the song he had in SHREK 2, that I had my second revelation. Frankly, I should have known that this is what Tom Waits was like all along, 'coz how what that song used? As the one being sung by a piano player in a dirty bar. It was staring me in the face the whole time, but I was too caught up in the weirdness to realize it. How about that, huh? It's like, I don't blame this album for having the average score it does (2.97). Without intending to sound judgemental, some people just don't have the ears for this kinda music. They're gonna hear how strange the first three songs are and refuse to think about it any deeper. "It's weird for weird's sake, and I don't like that." I'm not gonna fault them for not recognizing how much deeper and prettier this album gets as it goes on, although I really wish they could and would. They're really missing out. This album is a big 5 from me, no caveats. It's absolutely not for everyone, but for the people who get it — and I'm more than happy to count myself among them... Gosh, it's so wonderful.

1-Star Albums (10)

Chocolate Starfish And The Hot Dog Flavored Water

Spy Vs. Spy: The Music Of Ornette Coleman

All Ratings

One Nation Under A Groove

Funkadelic

4/5

Damn, I always the guitar on Funkadelic albums was great because of how much I've heard "Maggot Brain" praised, but actually hearing a whole album's worth of it is... Woo boy!

Darkness on the Edge of Town

Bruce Springsteen

3/5

Y'know, I don't dislike this album, or even Springsteen (I think I like BORN TO RUN more, actually), but, gawd, he really does sound like he's singing in some kind of made-up gibberish language sometimes.

Parklife

Blur

4/5

aw man i love gorillaz :) and british people too ig

The Yes Album

Yes

4/5

I can't listen to "Your Move" without singing "Semi-Charmed Life" over the end part.

Goodbye Yellow Brick Road

Elton John

5/5

[NOTE: The following is a redux review written on October 25th, 2025 – I always thought I could've done a better job talking about this album, and thus I've tried to. The original review, written January 5th, 2024, is preserved below.] It's honestly kind of fitting to me that this song starts with a song for a funeral. And not for any morbid reasons, I should say; more just for the idea that this album represents the absolute apex of Elton John's career, and that I don't think he ever truly reached it again. Now, of course, Elton John would never stop making good music. After this album came out, he'd have songs like "Philadelphia Freedom", "The Bitch Is Back", "I'm Still Standing", "Song For Guy", "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me", "I Want Love", his cover of "Pinball Wizard" . . . I could go on. And it's not just songs; 'Captain Fantastic And The Dirt Brown Cowboy' is another incredible album; it's 100% worth your time. But whatever heights and peaks he achieved after 'Goodbye Yellow Brick Road', they could just never match up to how high he peaked with this album. And why is this album such a peak? Simple: it's the one with the biggest scope. Which of course comes with the territory, being a double album and all . . . but honestly, I can't think of a single other album in Elton John's discography that aims to be as big as this one is. There might be some individual songs that get there ("Burn Down The Mission", "Have Mercy On The Criminal", "Rocket Man", "Tiny Dancer"), but never a full album. Like, goodness me, the run of songs that kick this album off? "Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding" is absolutely massive, and the energy you get off of its size carries **hard** over into "Candle In The Wind" and "Bennie And The Jets". (And can we take a second to acknowledge how weird "Bennie And The Jets" is? It's all herky-jerk n' shit, with lyrics about electric boots and mohair suits . . . I love it so much.) It keeps going from there. I don't wanna just list off every song on this album, but I damn well could. Even "Jamaica Jerk-Off", for the sort-of out-of-place piece of cod reggae it is. I have a soft spot for it, what can I say? You're talkin' to someone who enjoys "Informer" by Snow and "Rude" by MAGIC!. But look down this track listing: the title track is an eternal classic with its wistful yet determined lyrics. "Grey Seal" is a fuckin' jam and a half. Of course "Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting" rips, but let's not leave out "All The Girls Love Alice", as tragic as its lyric is. "Social Disease" is a fun song, paired together with the pretty-sounding nostalgia of "Roy Rogers". And they contrast well against the beautiful sadness and anger of "I've Seen That Movie Too". All capping off with a hell of a closer in "Harmony", goodness. The line on the song that goes "Am I the only friend you ever had, or am I just the last surviving friend that you know?" has always stuck with me for some reason. Maybe it's the way it's sung, I'unno. At this time, I should tell you that not every song on here is an absolute winner. I think it's very rare that any double album has a 100% perfect track record, and I don't wanna overhype this thing and tell you that it does. I mean, I do enjoy "Jamaica Jerk-Off", but I won't tell you that it's all **that** good. "Dirty Little Girl" is fun, but I've never considered it **that** strong . . . and I've just never been all the way there on "Your Sister Can't Twist (But She Can Rock 'N' Roll)". It just seems a little too silly and dinky for its own good. I mean, I get what it's going for, but eeeeehhhhh. But here's the thing about that. Y'remember that "energy" I mentioned earlier? The stuff I said "Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding" lent "Candle In The Wind" and "Bennie And The Jets"? That energy, collected from song to song, is the secret sauce of the album. And what I mean is, when you look at a song like "Your Sister Can't Twist (But She Can Rock 'N' Roll)" all by itself, you could very well wonder what the hype about this album is supposed to be. But taken as one small part of a whole, riding off of the energy collected from every previous song . . . for one, it's a feat to have any double album hold song-to-song energy that consistently, but the variety between tracks sure helps. And when you're cruising on that energy, it can raise even the lesser songs to feel like "Dang, what would this album even **be** if you got rid of 'em? Honestly." It's a testament to both Bernie Taupin's lyrics and Elton John's vocals and arrangements. I've expressed many times in reviews of albums I've gotten after this one that double albums can very easily run the risk of being ego trips if you're not **very** careful and **absolutely** on your "A" game. It's just the gamble you hafta take for releasing a two disc set. And there is never a moment on this album where I feel even a hint of ego. There's no self-indulgence here; it's just nearly 17 of the finest songs you'll ever hear from the 1970's. You can see why this album is a hard act to follow up on or compare to. And I haven't heard every Elton John album, I'll admit that, but seriously — what even could compete? In my mind the only album that gets close is 'Honky Château', and even then . . . I mean, it's like Stevie Wonder's 70's discography? Albums like 'Talking Book' and 'Innervisions' are all-time classics, and maybe arguably stronger than the double album that's so often claimed to be his best. But 'Songs In The Key Of Life' still wins. And so does 'Goodbye Yellow Brick Road'. It's just that big and that strong for anything else to knock it off the peak. And for the record, I don't think it's a bad thing he never reached this peak again. I don't think he's ever tried to — and why would you? Any active, conscious attempt is gonna end up falling short, no matter how hard you try. So it's probably best to just say goodbye and keep on your way, doin' what you do. Keep this album in your memory, keep it in your heart — but just know it could never truly be replaced. It's one of a kind. And it's without a doubt Elton John and Bernie Taupin's greatest accomplishment. [The original review:] I mean, complete bias about this being my favorite Elton John album must be the only reason why I give a pass to "Jamica Jerk-Off".

Raising Hell

Run-D.M.C.

3/5

I thought side one was pretty good, but when it comes to me being as interested in side two... Well, let's just say that it's tricky. Well, not as much as rocking a rhyme that's right on time, true, but still.

Rust Never Sleeps

Neil Young & Crazy Horse

3/5

Well, I hope I'm more into any of the other six Neil Young albums that're on this list.

Rock 'N Soul

Solomon Burke

4/5

I vibe with it. Eight or so albums in, this one is so far the most "I'd never listened to this one before, but I'll be sure to do so again after today" one I've come across yet.

Apocalypse Dudes

Turbonegro

3/5

I enjoyed what I heard during my first listen, but, honestly, I don't really see myself coming back to this beyond one or two tracks. Still, though: motherfucking pizza.

OK Computer

Radiohead

4/5

"OK Computer?" More like... "Pretty Darn Good Computer."

A Rush Of Blood To The Head

Coldplay

4/5

I love me a good rush of side one.

Trans Europe Express

Kraftwerk

3/5

I kind of consider this a "chill n' vibe to" album in my head, and under that light... I mean, I have other albums I'd go to before this, but, y'know, still. Ich denke, dieses Album ist gut. Ich nehme an.

Berlin

Lou Reed

3/5

I'll just say: if it weren't for those 30 seconds on "The Kids", this 3 would be more of a "leaning towards a 4" than the "straight 3" it is. I get those 30 seconds, I get why they're there, and I can appreciate what Reed was doing there, but they were seriously one of the most unpleasant times I've had with music in recent memory. No thank you, Lou.

Murmur

R.E.M.

4/5

Boy, now don't **this** make me kick my own ass for not listening to more R.E.M.? Gawddamn. Document used to be my favorite, but now it's this, and I'm gonna look back at this four I'm giving it and I'm really gonna wish I gave it a five, dang it.

Metal Box

Public Image Ltd.

2/5

Of the first fifteen albums I've listened to from this generaor, this is the first one where I've had to spend all day reconciling how I feel about it. It's not like the others, where I give 'em, two, one-and-a-half, or even just one runthrough and I know. This one, though... I ended up interogating a lot of different topics to try and get to how I felt. "Did I listen to it wrong? Should I have listened to it in bursts and out of order, like how it was originally released?" "Was I just in the right head space, in this weird moment between accidentally falling asleep for an hour, waking up feeling off, and knowing I was gonna go to bed in another two hours? Did I not pay enough attention, even then?" "What about all of the praise critics have given it? Why's there such a divide between the 100% approval rating from them and low 2 from the people here on this website?" "Is it just because I'm not into post-punk?" "What's even the point of lists like this or the Rolling Stone 500? Does rating these albums even matter?" "How does my rating system even work?" I went on like this until I reached two conclusions: firstly, in general I'm just bad at quantifying my opinion down to a single number. Like, all of those questions, and more I didn't list, were just to figure out if I was gonna give this thing a 2 or a 3. I had no idea which number better represented how I felt. And even if decimals were allowed and I could split the difference at 2.5, would that even still accurately reflect how I feel about it? Then there's the second point, which is, simply, "What's the point in putting in overthinking your rating so much when by 00:15 the next day you'll be on to the next album?" It doesn't matter, ultimately. Just pick one and move on. So let's just finally move onto my opinion, huh? Enough blabbering. On the one hand, I feel like I get METAL BOX, or SECOND EDITION, whatever you wanna call it. I actually kind of click with what it's going for, musically. I mean, for one, the dub bass is fantastic. Absolutely the best part of the album, and all of the praise in the world to Jah Wobble for it. And, I mean, you combine that with the guitar, and... I'unno. It kind of reminds me a pre-evolved Primus? Switch out the dub bass for virtuosic slap funk and have more conventional song structures, and sure. Hell, I even really enjoyed "Socialist", "Careering", and the turn to relaxing synths for the closer "Radio 4". I can find a lot of good moments scattered throughout. But, note: scattered throughout. There's pieces and songs here and there I like. But on the whole? On the whole, I feel like it's too long. Which, yeah, relates back to the earlier question about if I listened to this wrong: this was supposed to be listened to in bursts, ten minutes at a time. Sitting down with it for the full hour was never how it was intended to be listened to. But even accepting that and disregarding its total length as a criticism, to put it simply, a lot of it just doesn't interest me. Whatever anti-rock experiments they were going for... Just didn't do it for me. I can tell why most folks here checked out after "Albatross". I mean, of course if I sat with it longer and truly let it sink in I'd maybe grow to like it more. But with only one chance to rate this album before I have another one I hafta spend the day considering... I jus' gotta go with my gut. It's a 2. Part of me doesn't like that, since I feel like experimental in particular gets a bad rap from this website's users, but whatever. "Wha'cha gonna do," eh? All I can hope for is that I like the next album better.

Logical Progression

LTJ Bukem

2/5

I put on the first disc. Nearly fell asleep. Took notice of the FERRIS BUELLER sample. Nearly fell asleep again. The first disc ended. I'm good.

Vulnicura

Björk

4/5

I'm pretty sure I transcended listening to "Stonemilking" for the first time.

The Low End Theory

A Tribe Called Quest

4/5

"Vibes and stuff?" Oh, you better believe it. To reference a song from a different album—I can kick it.

Another Green World

Brian Eno

4/5

I'unno if I have any thoughts about the vocal tracks, but the ambient ones? Aw yeah, **that's** the good stuff. Nice to hear what Eno can do outside of "produce U2 albums."

Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite

Maxwell

3/5

There's other soul I'd reach to first, and maybe I missed out on something by not banging someone else at the same time, but, hey, it's still pretty good tunes.

Led Zeppelin IV

Led Zeppelin

4/5

Listening to this album today, I spent a bit of time thinking about something I'd read on Wikipedia that Steven Hyden had written about this album. He put forth back in 2018 that there's, quoth, a "reflexive bias against it from both fans and critics," exemplified in two unwritten rules. First, you hafta claim a song from the second side as your favorite—'cuz that's the side has, quoth again, the "deep cuts with credibility"; and second, you can't ever claim that this is your favorite Led Zeppelin album. Now, I bring this up because when I sat down to write this review a few hours before the website would allow me that I decided would discuss where I fall on these two rules. Y'know, it's a way—a way, certainly—to get my thoughts down and out there. Better than just rambling off the top of my head and expecting gold to fly out, I figure. Though, what's funny is that the short answer to "where I fall on these rules" is that I actually follow both. That's particularly funny in the case of the first rule, because side two isn't even my favorite side. Sure, my favorite song on the record is there, "When The Levee Breaks", but otherwise it just doesn't do much for me. I much prefer the first side, since that's where the big hits are, and, well, at heart I'm a sucker for the hits. "Rock And Roll" and the ol' standby "Stairway To Heaven"... That's the good stuff! And the other two are fine as well. I mean, "Black Dog" is a really good opener, with that awesome riff, although I'm sure a lot of my affection for it comes from the fact that Weird Al was allowed to record a chunk of it for one of his parodies. And "The Battle Of Evermore" has guitar parts that I like, though I've never really cared to learn or dive into its high fantasy lyrics; it's kind of the weakest part of side one for me. When it comes to the second rule, my favorite Zeppelin album varies between II and III, and sometimes HOUSES. On those, I truly love and have affection for every song there. Yes, even "The Crunge"; I love how stupid it is. IV, meanwhile, has songs I really like—I just stated them in the last paragraphs—but more that... Are just fine to me? "Misty Mountain Hop" is good all around; "Four Sticks", even if I don't think it's bad, is the one I always pick whenever I hafta choose a "bad song" to make fun of; and "Going To California" is pretty, though it mostly glides by me until those "AAAHHH"s during the fade-out. It's just not a strong all-the-way-through package for me. Still a four star album for me, though. Even if my tastes skew slightly off enough that I can't join the endless streak of five-star ratings I've seen... Bah, there's nothing bad or even weak enough to justify me goin' down any further. I still enjoy thing every time I put it. Ol' wedding song does a lot for me, I tell you what. And speaking of "Stairway", if you ain't heard Frank Zappa's live cover of it, do y'self a favor. The horn section plays Jimmy Page's guitar solo note-for-note, which even got a shout out in the booklet for the MOTHERSHIP compilation. It's neat stuff.

Third

Soft Machine

3/5

Looking at from this album from the outside, it didn't look like one I'd enjoy terribly much. To begin with, the thing's a double album. Nearly 80 minutes of music! These days I'm not really that much into albums over an hour unless it's already something I love dearly, so right away this was fighting an uphill battle. And that battle only got steeper once I discovered that the album is only four songs long, one per side. That's four twenty minute songs! An album having one song that long is usually bad enough... And that's not even mentioning that this is a progressive jazz rock album! In my mind this was really shaping up quickly to be an interminably boring slog, like that drum n' bass compilation my group got a few days ago. Just endless jazz-y canoodling that I wouldn't be able to latch on. "Oh, a higher power have mercy. This is what I get for listening to every album that pops up." However, once I actually got into it and past the first minute—which really wasn't as bad as the top-rated review warned me it'd be, honestly... It kind of clicked with me? And I very quickly realized why, which ended up being my secret to getting through it: this album sounds a LOT like Frank Zappa's jazz work. Now, that isn't an original observation; I've seen a ton of other reviews, from here and on AllMusic, that point that out. It keeps getting made, though, because it's just true. It's a lot looser than a lot Zappa's jazz works could be, true, but tonally it's very close. Hell, there's even a part somewhere on one of these songs that sounds a lot like the electric violin used on "Willie The Pimp". (Forgive me for not knowing exactly which one; these are long and dense songs and I'm going off of only one listen.) With that framework in mind, anyway, my favorite and least favorite tracks don't exactly fall into it, 100%? I've seen a lot of people single out "Moon In June" as their favorite, but on initial listen, I'm not exactly feeling the hype myself. It's the one that sounds the least like Zappa jazz, and at this point that's what I'm listening to this album for. As a result, it ends up being a bit of a disappoint for me. Meanwhile, my favorite cut, "Out-Blood-Rageous", opens with these electronic tape loops and they're actually really pretty. It sounds nothing like Zappa would compose, albiet in the best way possible. If all that could've been in its own song, absolutely it would've been the one I'd come back to. And as a brief note before I conclude, part of me hates that I keep bringing up Zappa here instuead of considering the bang's music on its own. Part of me feels like it's disrespectful. But I don't mean it as disrespect, like I've seen at least one person use the compairson. I really like Zappa's jazz work. It's not my favorite section of his discography, but it's still an important one with a lot of great tunes. Anything that sounds like it gets positive points in my book. Although, with that in mind, I'm not sure if I'll give it another listen. For a one time listen, it was a pleasant surprise, and it was nice music to have on and not fully pay attention to while I played the Nintendo 64 DR. MARIO for the billionth time. The songs are still all twenty minutes, however, and I don't really usually have much room in my regular song rotations for it. So, with all that, it's a three for me, but if I do come back to again I could see it growing into a four over time. FInally, two spare thoughts that don't have anything to do with anything: ~ For the longest time I'd assumed that Soft Machine was a band that made music like The Flaming Lips did on THE SOFT BULLETIN or YOSHIMI BATTLES THE PINK ROBOTS. Just sounds like the perfect band name for that? ~ I totally mistook this band's THIRD for Big Star's THIRD.

Stand!

Sly & The Family Stone

3/5

Doesn't 100% bring the "wow" out of me, but damn if it ain't some good-ass funk n' soul.

Led Zeppelin

4/5

Y'know, I was gonna start this review with a whole diatriabe on an unavoidable topic when it comes to Led Zeppelin's music: the stealing. The undeniable fact that the band snatched a lot of stuff from other artists, black ones in particular. And I actually did initially write it all down, althoughh once I was done, well... It ran on pretty long, for one. Fourwhole paragraphs of clarifying my poisition on the whole matter. But once I stepped back and saw the breadth of it, I thought: does it even really matter here in 2024? Like, yes, the fact that they stole so much is bad, but like that's a new concept in blues music. The real problem, I always figured, was the lack of proper credit, and while I think it was pretty damn shitty that it wasn't there to begin with and that they had to be sued into giving a lot of it, most all of it's there now. So, how much does it really matter today if Zeppelin stole a few lyrics and riffs? It's not like anything can be done about what happened nearly 60 years ago. Of course I understandable completely if that's a hurdle you can't get over, but for my own money... Truth is, I've just never been bothered by it enough to not listen to them. And what a listen this is. While, as I said in my IV review, I ultimately prefer its sequels II and III, this is still a damn fine album. Good-ass proto-metal blues riffs and solos, outstanding drumming, a killer vocal performance... And just some rippin' tunes to bit. "Good TImes Bad Times" is an absolute door kicker of an opener; "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You" is a great bit of hard folk rock (with a part that sounds a lot like the riff from Chicago's "25 Or 6 To 4" in there, actually); "Dazed And Confused" has some all-time licks and violin bow noodling; I actually really like "Your Time Is Gonna Come"; "Black Mountain Side" is a neat instrumental; "Communication Breakdown" is damn proto-punk... The remaining tracks I don't really care so much for, and for me that's what mainly keeps it back from being on the all killer level of II, III and even HOUSES, but they're still jammin'. There's parts of how Plant sings "You Shook Me" that I'm pretty into. And just the fact that they recorded this all in 36 hours, too. Not that they're the first, or even last band, even in the heavy metal scene, to knock out an all-time debut in such a short period of time, but that doesn't make it any less impressive. Overall, yeah, it's a pretty four from me. Frankly, I don't think there's any Led Zeppelin album on this list I'd given less than a four. It just hits that good "dad rock" spot for me, y'know? I mean, maybe if IN THROUGH THE OUT DOOR was here... Although, that DOES have "Hot Dog", to... Anyway, I'm getting off topic. I can't ever forget all the stealing they've done, and I don't wanna underplay it (even as much as I kind of worry that "it's 2024" bit might come across that way), but I can acknowledge thing bad and love it just the same, y'know? Besides, like the stealing is even the WORST thing Led Zeppelin's done, though let's not get into THAT and drag this review out any longer, eh?

Sign 'O' The Times

Prince

5/5

The culmination of Prince's 80's work, as far as I'm concerned. And if not that, then an impressive and sprawling sample platter of a lot of what he'd been doing that decade, with some small glimpses into the future. Just one good-ass track after another. Some cuts are a little lesser than the others, true—mostly on side two, honestly—but that's more often than not inevitable on double albums, and there's nothing I don't enjoy here regardless. The whole second disc especially is just gold. I mean, you got bangers like "U Got The Look"? Fun-ass oddities like "Strange Relationship" and "If I Was Your Girlfriend"? The epic live jam that is "It's Gonna Be A Beautiful Night"? And such absolutely and amazingly perfect tunes like "I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man" and "Adore"? Absolutelt superb. Worth the price of admission. And let's shout out the first side as well: the stark and chilling minimalism of the title track, the absolute joy of "Play In The Sunshine", the absolutely danceable "Housequake", the quiet beauty of "Starfish And Coffee", those... Like, orchestral hits or whatever on "It" that've always sounded to me like that one instrument in TURTLES IN TIME that I've always thought of as a "turtle synth." And the part on "The Ballad Of Dorothy Parker" where he asks to get a fruit cocktail 'cuz he's not really that hungry... Inititally I wanted this review to have some kind of through line like my past couple have had. Y'know, an essay-like framework I can look at the album through. But, man, y'know, forget all that. This is just a good-ass album; one of many that've firmly wormed their way into my heart and/or soul and have gawddamn EARNED that 5 rating. And I don't need no fancy "creative writing" whatever to know or say that. 'Cuz lemme tell you, when this thing's on, that by itself is enough of a sign that there's a great time bein' had.

Drunk

Thundercat

4/5

Damn, the guy who featured on Gorillaz' "Cracker Island" made his own music? And it's **this good**? Well, damn! And if the Genesis Sonic samples ain't the cherry on top.

Wild Gift

3/5

I really like the rockabilly and early rock n' roll riffs that're on here (which it took me a hot moment to notice for some reason), but otherwise, eh, it's just above-fine to me. The idea of a punk album that covers domesticity and relationship issues is interesting to me, but it turns out it's more in theory than in practice.

Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea

PJ Harvey

4/5

Because I'd read that this album was inspired by PJ Harvey's affection for New York City, I decided it'd only be fitting that I spend my first listen to the album staring at video of someone driving around Manhatten. And somewhere during that, I just had to imagine the women—of course the badass kind in my mind—who relaxed by driving the long stretches of road under the bridges, just outside the jungle of buildings... It's sunny but coming on sunset, the top's down, and this album playing as the soundtrack... Yeah. It just hits right. Frankly, if I ended up getting bored at any point during the album, it was only because the footage ended up going into the city itself and, lordy me, you can't go for five seconds without havin' to stop at another light. Goodness me.

Clube Da Esquina

Milton Nascimento

4/5

When it comes to a lot of foreign language music, as someone who's only ever known a spare few words and phrases outside of English, it ends up being essentially instrumental music to me. Which isn't to undermine or undervalue the words that're there and what they mean, of course; just because I can't understand them doesn't mean they don't mean something to a lot of people. But even if I do take the time to look up a translation, it's not like I'm gonna remember it every time I listen to a foreign language song, y'know? For me, the vocals, way more often than not, end up becoming just another instrument; another melody line. And in that light... Gawddamn, these are such great melodies, and the Brazilian Portugese is so pleasing to my ear. As a showcase for what MPB had to offer at the time, this is way more effective for me than, say, LOGICAL PROGESSION was as one for jungle. Like, for one, I'm able to tell songs apart, and that by itself is a huge advantage. This album's getting a 4 from me, but believe me, I feel it's so far the closest any album I haven't listened to before on this list has come to getting a 5.

Night Life

Ray Price

3/5

As I'm writing this review, I'm only about midway through this album. Normally, for albums I haven't heard before I'd wait 'til after my second listen, or even halfway through my second at least, to get a jump on this, but... See, before I started listening to this album I did what I've done for a whilw now and checked out the already published reviews to find the most negative ones I could. Y'know, I guess I'm just interested in seeing the problems people have with these albums and then finding out if I disagree or not. Most of the ones I come across end up big negative "BAGHLE I DON'T LIKE THIS" dealies, but the one under this album that struck me so much is probably the most fair and balanced I've seen so far. In essence, it puts forth the following, which I hafta cop to: sure, it's good music, but is it important to music history or even notable enough on its own to be on this list of 1,001 albums? And at where I am in the album... Yeah, it sure is traditional country. Which is fine by me; I like traditional country. I know it's not the most much example, but I've listened to Johnny Cash's debut album a number of times. But—and maybe I'm just missing the larger context, I acknowledge that, but I can't hear what exactly's so special about this. Cub Koda on AllMusic claims this album is a number of things: "the last gasp of true honky tonk, the first stab at mainstreaming it into the Nashville sound of the 1960s, or country music's first country album," and, like, whichever one of those it is... I'm not getting it. Really, I'm having the same reaction to this that I did to X's WILD GIFT, where I'm not fully understanding why it's in this book. Although, I can at least acknowledge that WILD GIFT was notable to X as an in-between transitional point in their sound. Not to diss country, but what is NIGHT LIFE, this album, that a lot of other successful country albums from around the same time didn't also do? Now, my rating system is based purely on how much I personally enjoy the album and nothing else. That's why I'm giving it a 3; putting aside all of the gripes regarding its inclusion on this list, again, I like traditional country. As an album to, as Ray suggests, kick off your shoes and relax to, it does the job. Probably even better if I had a beer and a front porch to sit on. But if I was evaluating this album on whether or not it should be in this book; if I agreed or not that it SHOULD be something you listen to before you do... I'd hafta agree with that other review and smack it with a 2. Just how it is.

Pacific Ocean Blue

Dennis Wilson

5/5

I didn't know much about Dennis Wilson before today. Especially if you compare it next to how much I knew about, say, Brian Wilson or even stupid Mike Love, it's pretty much nothing. Hell, the only thing I really DID know about Dennis is that he was the only true surfer in The Beach Boys and that, ironically, he'd drown in 1983. That's always been the framework I've viewed this album through, then: that it was the only solo project he released while he was alive. And going in, I felt that was kind of unfair to Dennis. Like, come on, this album should mean more to me than what its relation to the fact that he passed tragically young. I mean, hell, in my mind it always feels to me like they happened closer together than six years apart like they really did. I should be trying to see what this album provides on its own, seperated from all that. However, that turned out to be a lot more difficult than I'd thought. There's just so many moments in there that remind me of it. "Moonlight", in how it sounds to me, evokes that kind of "lost someone you love" melancholy, even if the lyrics probably have nothing to do with that. Though, speaking of lyrics, "Thoughts Of You" hit me especially hard with the part that goes "All things that live one day must die, you know." On my first liste that was the only lyric I picked up, and, gawd, I felt like it could have destroyed me if I were in a worse place. That's not even to mention "Farewell My Friend", which I found out was played at Dennis's funeral. And I tell you, learning more about Dennis and his life surrounding this album's recording certainly didn't make anything better. Knowing all that context just makes this a very sad album to me. It was never meant to be that, but looking back on it nearly 50 years later and considering all of that context... Hell, even Brian Wilson has said at point that he hasn't listened to it because there's too many sad memories for him relating to it. But then, that's still one reason why this album touched me so much. As much as I hate to admit it, it's because the album ends up being so sad that pushes it over for me from just being really good late 70's rock n' soul. It can even make me look past that one farty instrument on "Dreamer", though that break it has in there probably could've done it, too. Don't get me wrong here. If you're a big, BIG fan of The Beach Boys, and post-SMiLE Beach Boys especially, this might not do it for you. Luckily for me, I dig that stuff a lot, even if I don't necessairly think this album comes as close to SMiLE as that comparison implies. I just wish he'd had the chance to do more; see BAMBU through to completion, at least. But for what he's done here, as "End Of Show" fades surrounded by applause, for the people who know, he's really made something that'll last forever. And besides, it's better to view this album like I just did than through his relation to Charles Mansion. Wouldn't even make sense; Charley there didn't even have anything to do with this album!

Sunday At The Village Vanguard

Bill Evans Trio

3/5

I'll admit, there's probably something about the performance I'm missing—a review of the album on this website mentioned how good the interplay is between the three is if you listen hard enough. Of course, like a lot of other albums I've covered, I don't really have the time to listen to it closely enough to hear that? Like I normally notice stuff like that to begin with, anyway. And besides, even the review mentions it's not the reviewer's favorite album by this album, so... For my money, it's good jazz trio jazz (I like that sort of atmosphere), but I think I'll stick more with the A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS soundtrack.

More Specials

The Specials

4/5

I'll put it like this: this album reminded me of how much I like ska so much that I spent five hours at my work shift that night listening to ska. Wish I had more words or deeper thoughts, but that's really all I gotta say: I like ska.

Rising Above Bedlam

Jah Wobble's Invaders Of The Heart

2/5

First of all, I'll grant you—I think this is better overall than the last thing I heard Jah Wobble on, METAL BOX. Maybe attribute it to this album's pop sheen, I'unno. Although, with that said, I still find METAL BOX to be, like... More interesting? Now, yeah, the world music stuff is interesting; I'm not gonna deny that. But otherwise, it just kind of washes over me. At least METAL BOX had some parts where I perked up and went "Ah, damn that's cool!" Meanwhile, here, aside from a Sinéad O'Conner feature on the first track, I really didn't get much of anything out of it.

MTV Unplugged In New York

Nirvana

5/5

For some reason this has been the hardest review I've written yet. I just can't seem to find the right words to describe how I feel about this album. So maybe I shouldn't say anything. Just listen to the album, all the way through. Right to the scream at the very end of "Where Did You Sleep Last Night?", where the whole band drops out like they're shocked to hear it, leaving him to sing the last few words completely unaccompanied. Chills. Every time. And I'll probably look back at what I wrote just now and wished I'd said something else, but, honestly, that moment says more than I ever could.

Trio

Dolly Parton

4/5

I don't say this to undermine the contributions of Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris, because of course theirs are just as important—but gawd, it's always such a joy to hear Dolly Parton.

Beggars Banquet

The Rolling Stones

3/5

All my life I've always been a Beatles fan more than I've been a Stones fan. Blame it on exposure: when I was young I had a full-frontal blast of THE BEATLES: ROCK BAND, which inspired me to collect every one of their stupid albums and buy into the mythology the old guards had given them (which, to some extent, I still believe to this day). Contrast that with the Stones, where at most there was one song in GUITAR HERO III, a Weird Al polka, maybe some needle drops, and the knowledge that Lennon and McCartney wrote "I Wanna Be Your Man" for them. There wasn't really as much there to get me to dig through their stuff. Even as the years drew on and I became more aware of the praise given to them, a lot of their stuff has remained in a pile that I've come to label "Albums I'll Listen To One Of These Days–Honest!" Hell, it was only a couple of years ago I finally listened to the US versions of AFTERMATH and BETWEEN THE BUTTONS. So here I am, finally, with the first album in their golden period. How does it hold up to me? What have I been missing all of these years? To begin, let's pull this framework all the way through and get it over with: I prefer what The Beatles were doing in '68, which was their legendary WHITE ALBUM. Now, it's no doubt probably not fair to compare them. I mean, the WHITE ALBUM is an eclectic monstrosity of a double album born out of the turbulence the band was going through at the time. BEGGARS BANQUET, meanwhile, is a single album made under lighter circumstances except for what Brian Jones was going through, and at its core it's a return to the roots rock and blues they were doing earlier in their career. And don't get me wrong, I get that that's why this is here on this list: the return to roots. Well, the partial return, anyway, because while they were coming out of a heavy dive into psychedelic music on THEIR SATANIC MAJESTIES REQUEST they weren't leaving behind the worldly and more exotic influences. You wouldn't listen to "Sympathy For The Devil" or "Factory Girl" and say they're just roots and blues. Not to mention, I figure it's expanding on how they incorporated those influences into their regular sound that would lead them to later make LET IT BLEED and EXILE ON MAIN ST. and so on. It's just there here, at its earliest "stripped-down return to roots" form... Even with the external influences, it's still mostly just roots and blues music. Of course it's GOOD roots and blues music; it hasn't gotten all of this praise as the first album in their golden period for nothing after all. But I feel like even if I had listened to this at that young age, in the period of time between "Paint It Black" and THE BEATLES: ROCK BAND... I don't think it would've really swayed me to be a Stones fan more. Maybe another one, but not this one. To put it another way: I also find that "Hey Jude" kind of upstages this album. Sorry 'bout the birthday, Mick.

Talking Heads 77

Talking Heads

4/5

Another one where I don't have too terribly much to say. I think I like a bit more the stuff I've heard on their future albums, but this is still a fun, funky debut. And that's something I don't need to say again.

Adele

5/5

And here I am kicking myself for taking, like, thirteen years to finally get around to this. Good-ass stuff from the lady who'd go on to sing the "Skyfall" theme.

Maxinquaye

Tricky

1/5

I wasn't able to give this album a second listen before I had to rate it like I'd wanted to, but, frankly, I don't think any amount of listens would make this album any less boring to me.

Timeless

Goldie

2/5

Between this and the LTJ Burkem compilation I got a few days ago, I've come to the realization that I just don't like jungle or drum n' bass. Sure, I can recognize merits in the genres and figure why people would like them, but for me... Nah. Not me. I mean, it just says something to me that the only track I really liked and devoted a good portion of my attention to was the third track from the first disc, which was the only one to me that didn't sound like drum n' bass. (It's for that reason, in fact, why I'm not recycling the review I gave for LOGICAL PROGRESSION like I'd honestly planned to. Believe me, though, with that **TWENTY MINUTE** nothing of a title track and opener I very easily could have.) End of the day, I just hope there aren't too many of these left on the list, if there are even anymore at all.

Ill Communication

Beastie Boys

4/5

Of course in any context I'd probably give this album a four. It's the Beastie Boys doin' more of what they do best. Unless you were expecting more samples, I don't know what more you could want. Sure, the runtime could be a problem (peak "CD era" issue), but the way I listen to things it was hardly an issue. It's just, I feel like I was enjoying it more than I normally would this time because after the last two albums this randomizer gave me were so ass boring it was just a relief to hear the Beasties rap and yell over some good-shit beats. I'll take this over drum n' bass any day.

Bringing It All Back Home

Bob Dylan

4/5

During the day I had to listen to this album, there was only one thing I wanted to figure out about how I felt about it: which side would I enjoy more? The acoustic half, or the electric half that prompted cries of "Judas?" That question puts aside how I feel about the album as a whole, by the way. To speak on that briefly, generally I think it's pretty good. This isn't my first Bob Dylan album (that would be BLOOD ON THE TRACKS), but it's been so long since I've heard any of his stuff that I might as well treat it as such. Under that light, and given that this record ends up being a transitional period for Dylan, I think it's a good introduction to his two most iconic styles: his acoustic protest songs and his electric folk. Of course, you could debate on how much protest there really IS in this album's acoustic songs, but that's besides the point. Though that actually does end up tying into which side I enjoyed more. 'Cuz y'gotta understand one thing about me, and that's that I'm ultimately more a fan of melodies than meaning. Not a bad thing, of course; you don't need to be a poetry scholar to enjoy music "correctly"–as if a "correct method" could exist. But you gotta look at how Dylan's lyrics are backed up on both sides. On the first side, the electric one, Dylan's words are scored by an electric band. As a result, I don't feel like I need to focus AS HARD on them. Naturally, I still do; they're not any less important here just because there's a drum kit. But if I find myself spacing out of the words and focusing on the music, then it's not as much of an issue. Compare with the second side, where the sole instrument a lot of the time is an acoustic guitar. With such sparse backing, the lyrics are the main focal point. That's all you have to focus on, aside from a harmonica line every now and then. If you're into dissecting all of Dylan's weird metaphors and obscure references, this side's way more of a treat, I imagine. And, yeah, the words are interesting as hell; please continue to not get me wrong here. It's just as a result of the presentation, it's not the first side I would reach for casually. This might be an esoteric comparison, but I like to think about it like this: Weird Al and the film WALK HARD: THE DEWEY COX STORY have both done Bob Dylan parodies. Hell, WALK HARD did two. Between them, I've listened to Weird Al's "Bob" way more than I have WALK HARD's "Royal Jelly". Or, to put it another way: consider me a Judas, too, I guess. So yeah. Now I've heard this Robert Zimmerman. And although I don't suppose I've taken in enough to fully agree with the hype, taking this as a cross-section... Yeah, I can begin to see it. I just hope I can get a little more out of his earlier, fully acoustic records whenever they show up.

A Northern Soul

The Verve

3/5

It's a fine album, I guess. My main issue with it just has to do with the 90's CD-era trend of albums being TOO DAMN LONG. But this isn't a platform for me to rant about that, so I'll just say that I don't think this album needed to do over an hour.

Superfuzz Bigmuff

Mudhoney

4/5

So that's why it's in Kurt Cobain's top 50. I'll be.

If You Can Believe Your Eyes & Ears

The Mamas & The Papas

4/5

It's a pretty fine album overall that's **really** elevated (by a whole star, even) by the presence of "California Dreamin'". Like, imagine how this album would play without it; imagine if Barry McGuire **did** end up recording it—and y'get it, right? I mean, if all the hype sticker covering the toilet had to bring up was their cover of "I Call Your Name"...

You Want It Darker

Leonard Cohen

4/5

Y'know, I can completely hear why someone wouldn't like this album. Hell, in a lot of spots it reminds me of that needless DARK SIDE OF THE MOON REDUX thing Roger Waters did last year. But in a similar case to Dennis Wilson's PACIFIC OCEAN BLUE, when this album's in the context of Cohen's passing just a few weeks after its release... Oof. It's hauntingly melancholic. Not something I'd return to very often, but gawddamn was it powerful during my time with it.

The Stone Roses

4/5

I wish I'd caught this album on a better day; one where I wasn't operating on only three hours of sleep and could give fuller attention, 'cuz from what I caught on my two listens it sounds damn good to my ears. It's not the Madchester I expected to hear, but of course it's for the better it doesn't sound like EMF.

In Rainbows

Radiohead

4/5

I like to think about this album in essentially the same way Ryan Marr does, as he wrote in his flash essay about the album for The RS 500: "as OK COMPUTER LITE: 'Subterranean Homesick Alien' with all the 'Fitter Happier' bullshit stripped away." Which, presented in that context, all by itself, sounds like an insult. Certainly it sounded that way to one member of the group I'm a part of. But it's not to say that OK COMPUTER is worse than IN RAINBOWS. Honestly, on whatever level you wanna define "objective" as, I'd say I still think OK COMPUTER is a better album overall. As for which one I'd return to first, though... OK COMPUTER is great. I just said as much. But it can also be a lot. Y'know, what with it being about the decline of Western civlization and all. IN RAINBOWS, on the other hand, is a lot simpler—and I don't mean that as an insult. It sounds like a much easier record to just throw on and enjoy without having to deal with any pigs in cages on antibiotics. That's true even if I can't really pick any one track as a stand-out like I could with OK COMPUTER ("Paranoid Android" and "No Surprises" for me). I guess to put it some way to close this out, if I'd been around for this album's original release, I wouldn't've paid nothing. Some pretty fine clothes the emperor's got there, I tell you what.

Synchronicity

The Police

3/5

My group's 50th album. I think it's good, but I wish I could've found more things to say about it than "this is the first one to have a song Weird Al parodied," "I think I prefer when The Police have more reggae" and "I get 'Mother', but that doesn't mean I hafta like 'Mother' all too much."

Wild Wood

Paul Weller

4/5

Hours before I had to write this, I read another review on this website saying that the instrumentation on this album was very 70's. 70's singer-songwriter, I assume, since they'd also brought up references to Paul Simon and the like. And, yeah, that's exactly why I like this album. The 70's **are** my favorite decade, after all—or so all of the data I've collected over the last five years says. Because of that, anyway, even though I would've preferred something more around 40 minutes, I can absolutely overlook it's 50+ minute runtime.

Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo

Devo

4/5

Ah, primordial new wave! Back when it was weird, post punk-y and art rock-y! And much more palatable post-punk, too, than ‘Metal Box’! I'd probably be more into their other albums (the ones that lean more into synth pop and sound more like Weird Al's pastiche "Dare To Be Stupid"), but I really do appreciate this one for how odd it is without being a mess.

Parsley, Sage, Rosemary And Thyme

Simon & Garfunkel

3/5

I can really appreciate how much work they put into the instrumentation and production (months worth, even—and it really paid off as far as I'm concerned), but otherwise I think it's just fine. I'm pretty sure I'll be into one of their other releases more.

Central Reservation

Beth Orton

4/5

While I was listening to the second track on the album, I came across multiple reviews on this website that mentioned nostalgia. Now, they were probably referring to the nostalgia they felt about when this album first came out, but I still wanted to see if it could evoke that sense in me; someone who only yesterday found out this album existed. So I leaned back as far as I could in my chair, closed my eyes, let me mind wander to earlier times... And it unlocked the rest of the album for me. Now, that doesn't let this escape the fact that this album is still too damn long (CD era bloat!), but, y'know, otherwise...

Now I Got Worry

The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion

4/5

Before going into this album, I was only familiar with the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion through the song of theirs that was in BABY DRIVER, "Bellbottoms". I've always loved it, largely for its association with the film, but in general I think it's great. And it did not prepare me for this album. I can hear some elements here and there, but this is some raw, loud, live show-ass punk blues. On some Jack White shit here. And I love it so much. It's so damn fun. I can understand that its energy might be too much, 'cuz it never tones down the whole album, even on the slower songs; and even if it isn't as long as some other 90's albums I've heard it could **maybe** stand to be a little shorter... Aw, but heck. I don't even care. It's fabulous. It's groovy. It dun' make me wanna dance.

Marquee Moon

Television

4/5

Y'know, on the one hand I don't feel like I 100% get what all of the hullabloo is about this album. Maybe I just haven't listened to enough that's been influenced by it; maybe I've heard **too much**... I can't tell. But of course what I **can** say is that this album is good. Damn good. I wouldn't say it's my favorite 70's rock album, buit it's gotta be way up there. I wasn't able to get in a second listen to "Torn Curtain" before the day ended, but from the little bit I sampled of it while I was writing this... Goodness me. So, like, in one sense at least I get this album's praise.

Devil Without A Cause

Kid Rock

1/5

Songs From The Big Chair

Tears For Fears

4/5

So, hey, it turns out the songs on here that aren't "Everyone Wants To Rule The World" or "Shout" are pretty dang good, too. And unless something else comes along, this might be the most 80's album I'll hear, so all around it's a real solid package.

Deserter's Songs

Mercury Rev

5/5

Going into this album, the most important factor in me loving it is the fact that I also love—and a LOT more, I should add—The Flaming Lips' album THE SOFT BULLETIN. I'll save my exact opinions on it for when that actually shows up, but to put it in short, as a piece of music it's a very good contender for my top 20, if I ever wanted to make one. Anything that sounds like it would naturally appeal heavily to me. Although, with that said, while there are a rather large number of spots here that remind me of THE SOFT BULLETIN, I don't wanna act like DESERTER'S SONGS isn't its own thing. It's not a dream pop record, for one; and it's not nearly as grand as THE SOFT BULLETIN can be. DESERTER'S SONGS is way more of a rock record, with its saxophone lines and guitar parts. And while DESERTER'S SONGS is more restrained, it's still a very cinematic listen—I mean, they wouldn't master this thing to 35mm film print if it wasn't. Plus it's got a few more musically odd moments than THE SOFT BULLETIN did—just check that untitled instrumental appended to the last track. But I don't wanna act like my love for THE SOFT BULLETIN isn't a factor here. It absolutely is; I wasn't excited to listen to this thing until I saw that there was a whole section on its Wikipedia page about how they shared the same producer. Not to mention, to quote Wayne Coyne, "I think without DESERTER'S SONGS being so significant, THE SOFT BULLETIN would probably have not been followed too much." In that sense, at least, I owe a lot to DESERTER'S SONGS. Without it, it's likely I wouldn't have "Waitin' For A Superman" or "Feeling Yourself Disintegrate", or even "Fight Test", "Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots (Part 1)" or "Do You Realize??". In that sense, even if I didn't like it, I'd have to give it SOME respect. And luckily, I do like it, a lot. Not as much as THE SOFT BULLETIN, but it's up there. And me relating it so much in my mind to THE SOFT BULLETIN, by the way, is a HIGH compliment, believe me. I had such a large smile on my face during the first track when I realized how similar they sound. I can't really give anything that evokes that kind of reaction from me anything less than a 5.

Young Americans

David Bowie

3/5

Y'know, I think it's fine. Like, I don't think Bowie did soul music badly, but I know there's better out there—better soul music **and** better Bowie.

Younger Than Yesterday

The Byrds

4/5

Kinda wish I had more thoughts on this album, but I'unno. The jingle-jangly guitar just really appealed to me. And reminded me a lot of the first song off of The Monkees' HEADQUARTERS, which, hey, that's a good thing.

Come Find Yourself

Fun Lovin' Criminals

4/5

Honestly, this album is fun as hell. It reminds me a lot of That Handsome Devil, actually; just less weird and a lot more chill. And with more raps about Gotti.

Juju

Siouxsie And The Banshees

3/5

I imagine if I were goth I'd be INCREDIBLY into this. But since I'm only someone who appreciates the style and am not so much a participant, it's some pretty fine juju.

There's A Riot Goin' On

Sly & The Family Stone

4/5

Of course I the more idealistic music Sly and company have made, but somehow I dig this stuff a lot more; the stuff inspired by drug use, paranoia, and the death of the 60's idealism that influenced their earlier music. It's some hard-ass funk music about riots that are, unfortunately, still going on.

Black Holes and Revelations

Muse

4/5

The most liked review for this album on this website compares it negatively to Coldplay (minus Chris Martin) apeing Radiohead. Well, joke's on them; I happen to **like** Coldplay! And Radiohead, too, of course. And I mean, like either of them would write that guitar line at the front of "Assassin", anyway. Or, for that matter, monsters of album openers and closers like "Take A Bow" and "Knight Of Cydonia". Or the... **Everything** of "Supermassive Black Hole". Maybe they could've done something like "Starlight" or "Invincible", but I'll take how they sound here. I mean, frankly, the one positive "they wouldn't write" I'll grant in favor of the other two is that I don't think Radiohead or Coldplay would write "We Are Fucking Fucked", but that's not even on this album. Does really make me appreciate how good the music is here, though, considering all I've heard about Muse's decline after this—and I'm saying that as someone who likes DRONES a lot.

Under Construction

Missy Elliott

3/5

This review is a Missy Elliott exclusive. Y'know, I'd be lying if I said a lot of the thoughts I had while I was listening to this album didn't have anything to do with the top-voted review on this website. Well, "review" in quotes, because it's not really one. It's a track-by-track stream-of-consciousness where they list off every complaint they have, presumably in real time. That sort of method just feels unfair to me. Like, sure, it's not as bad here as the "review" of THE FRAGILE that's over on Pitchfork, but if you're gonna try and formulate and structure your thoughts, then what's the point? What does anyone gain from this? I don't wanna make this whole review about that one, but lemme at least address the point where I stopped reading: right at the top, where they say "Shut and sing ffs." Before I heard the album, I thought they meant "Stop rapping; I just want to hear you sing." However, it turns out they were referring to a minute-long spoken introduction before the first song. Which I'm fine with, myself. This is a rap album, so they're allowed to have something like that. The words and what they mean matter more in this genre than any other (except maybe folk), and I liked being given some context directly from the artist themself. If this was a rock album, I think I'd have more of a problem with it. I mean, heck, I enjoy that one she has in the middle of the album, with the bit about Prince. Although, that said, it's not like Missy Elliott is a master lyricist. I don't think she's aiming to be one, but there's a lot of weird lines sometimes. Sometimes they hit, like on "Work It" (buh-dunk-a-dunk-dunk), but then you have that weird bit in "Pussycat" where she asks if she can put her ass on your spaghetti. And it's not like the featured MCs aren't any better a lot of the time, either; you hear that "solid water" bar from JAY-Z on "Back In The Day"? If that don't remind me of Nicki's whole "duct tape" bit on "Only". Plus, I can imagine how revolutionary Timbaland's production was back in the day, but here in 2024 it can sound pretty damn wacky at times. Of course, when it hits, it hits hard. It's just, when you take it together with some of the aforementioned lyrics... It's got weak spots, to say the least. As a sit-down-and-listen-to-it experience, anyway. I'm sure if you throw these on at a party people would indeed get on the floor. The album ends with another monologue from Missy (if you don't count the remix of "Work It", anyway), where she says, among other things, that she doesn't give a shit if anyone doesn't like her album. The "review" (and I checked, just to make sure I wasn't putting anything in their mouth) I read shrugs it off with an "OK." I can just hear their eyes rolling. And it's not like I can't see why someone, especially someone who doesn't like hip hop as that person admits, wouldn't dig this. I'm not giving this a 3 for nothing, after all. My problem isn't the negativity in and of itself. It's just that I feel like it doesn't add anything to the conversation. Complaining by itself, without much substance beyond it, is pretty useless. But then again, despite all I've said, I probably shouldn't care. I mean, if Missy doesn't care what they'd say, even as hard as I know it'd be for me to ignore it, I shouldn't either.rehtie t'ndluohs I ,ti erongi ot em rof eb d'ti wonk I sa drah sa neve ,yas d'yeht tahw erac t'nseod yssiM fi ,naem I

Blue Lines

Massive Attack

4/5

This is the second time now my group's gotten an album with Tricky on it—and unlike the time we got a second album with Jah Wobble, I can actually give this one a pretty solid thumbs up. Like every album I've gotten from this generator, I've only given it two complete listens at most, so I can't tell you exactly what makes this so much better than MAXINQUAYE. At the very least, I can say it's more interesting. The beats and production are interesting, the samples are interesting, the lyrics are interesting—and I'm not just talking about the strings of Beatles lyrics on that one song. It's not the bloated snooze-fest that MAXINQUAYE was. Maybe it's because this doesn't lean into dub as much as that one does, but I'unno. I was only going to give this album my typical "it's fine" 3, but as I'm writing this I'm listening to the second side of the album and "Hymn Of The Big Wheel" came on, and that alone is enough for me to bump it up another star. I also wanna say—my group all seem to agree that Massive Attack's later album, MEZZANINE, is better than this one. I haven't heard it aside from from hearing "Teardrop" hear and there, but looking it up on Wikipedia, I can't help but notice a curious lack of Tricky on it. Maybe that's relevant, I'unno.

Highway 61 Revisited

Bob Dylan

4/5

I feel like I'm giving this album a 4 largely because that's what I gave the last Bob Dylan album my group covered (BRINGING IT ALL BACK HOME). I mean, to me there's nothing really better or that much worse than the previous album that would give cause to a different rating. I think I ultimately prefer BRINGING IT ALL BACK HOME, at least the electric side, for how much more it leans into Americana melodies—I **do** tend more towards melodies than meaning, after all. And believe me, this album has a **lot** of meaning. It was way more with this album than with the previous one that I got some people's problems with Dylan. I mean, most people, especially those who're recently born, don't go to music to analyze Balzac poetry, I get it. I don't, either, and I had to go to Genius.com to help me parse a lot of it. But if I'm the mood for it, it can be pretty interesting. Heck, I was having a time figuring out what "Ballad Of A Thin Man" meant to me. If I'm not, combined with the instrumentals, it woulda felt like an absolute slog, but thankfully... And I don't know how to close this review, since I'm kind of just stream-of-consciousness-ing out thoughts I had about this album while I was at work, so, uhm... I guess I liked the "It Takes A Train To Cry" song the best? Ironically the track with the least words. And given my group got BLACK HOLES AND REVELATIONS the other day, that's two non-consecutive albums we've gotten in such a short period of time with ties to the WATCHMEN movie. Weird.

Seventeen Seconds

The Cure

3/5

Y'know, I think I like this album a better than the previous gothic rock outing my group got, JUJU, because this one's way more New Wave-y. And it's an early example of the sound, too, given that this came out in 1980. If you didn't tell me what year this was released in, I coulda sworn it was later in the decade. And, yeah, it's not enough to raise this album up a star, but,y'know, still. I can dig it.

good kid, m.A.A.d city

Kendrick Lamar

4/5

I haven't listened to this as much as I have TO PIMP A BUTTERFLY or even DAMM., but it's what kicked the door open for K.Dot, so... I wish I had more to say about this album, but I really don't. It's just good-ass raps around a story where a young Kendrick realizes maybe this hood life ain't so good after all. And note: a **YOUNG** Kendrick. To the guy whose response to the Eiffel tower line in "Backseat Freestyle" was "FFS grow up": did you even understand the plot? Seriously. Anyway, uhm, I'unno. "m.A.A.d city" goes hard as hell and that's the last thing I wanna say. Well, aside fro—YAWK YAWK YAWK YAWK.

Dire Straits

3/5

Before yesterday, Dire Straits was a band I knew for only two songs: "Money For Nothing" and "Walk Of Life", which I'd been exposed to via Weird Al and ROCK BAND respectively. I really love both of those songs (a number of lyrics on the former aside), but I never really felt the need to dive deeper into their catalog beyond that. Sure, I think I listened to BROTHERS IN ARMS once a few years ago, but I know it was only once and I can't recall anything about it. So here we have the band's first album from a few years earlier, and... It's not really as complex. I mean, of course; there's no organs or synths, and there's no female backing singers and no song runs seven minutes. One runs six, sure, but still. It's just a whole lot rootsier and less pop. And I like it; it's good guitar music without all the extra frills. I mean, you hear all of those riffs Knopfler's playing on "Sultans Of Swing"? Goodness me. That being said, I did find it a little easy to have my attention swayed from it. Maybe it has more to do with things about me unrelated to the album, but it's still a fact that not a whole lot on the first album 100% pulled me in except for "Sultans Of Swing" and maybe "Wild West End". It's not entirely fair to compare this album to "Money For Nothing" and "Walk Of Life", since that's comparing two days to songs that've been in my life for years, but they got the pop hooks, y'know? And hooks, I gotta admit, are what keep me locked in a lot of the time. Good guitar playing can only do so much before I start to phase out. I'm happy I've heard this album, of course, and I wouldn't put it past me to give it another listen—and maybe BROTHERS IN ARMS, too—but I'd gone this long without doing it, so...

Surrealistic Pillow

Jefferson Airplane

4/5

Before taking part in this generator, a lot of my experience with 60's music didn't go much outside The Beatles. Sure, I also have had dips into Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd and The Monkees and so on, but never a true step into **the** stereotypical sound of the decade—hippie psychedelia. The closest I'd gotten before now was Frank Zappa's satire of the sub-culture on WE'RE ONLY IN IT FOR THE MONEY. So as a first dip into the sound of San Fransico's Haight Street... Hey, I dig it. Outside of "Somebody To Love" and "White Rabbit", this is pretty much exactly what I'd imagine hippie psychedlia would sound like, and it turns out I like it a lot. The singles, of course, are just the little extra pinch of sugar on the LSD. Y'know, that's already on top of the sugar cube. Or something—I'unno, 60's drugs. Should I even be mentioning that stuff in the presence of "White Rabbit"? Big shout outs to THE MATRIX RESURRECTIONS for first tipping me off to that song, by the way. Amazing shit.

Abbey Road

Beatles

5/5

I remember this was the first Beatles album I ever got on CD, for my birthday in... I wanna say 2011? And ever since, it's never stopped being my favorite. It's just non-stop masterpieces, front to back. Yes, even "Maxwell's Silver Hammer"; I **love** all of the Moog shit on it. But especially "Something", "I Want You (She's So Heavy)", "Here Comes The Sun" and the entire medley. I get the arguments for REVOLVER as the more important Beatles album, but on a purely musical level, there's no other album that inspires as much joy in me as this one does. And I'm not even talking about just Beatles albums, or albums on this list. In general, it might be my favorite album ever made of all-time, and I cannot praise its ass enough. It's absolutely the one 6 I know I would give if I could. Now I jus' gotta hope the album I get after this can carry on this high.

Exodus

Bob Marley & The Wailers

4/5

There's so much things I could say about what this album makes me think about, from the fact that Marley was nearly assassinated before a concert against political violence, to my feelings about Marley's popular image is these days... But la-la-la-la, lemme just stick to the review: this is my favorite Wailers album. From all the hits on the back end to stuff I feel isn't paid much attention popularly up front. It's good to chill to, it's good to think about your spirit to... It's both sides of Bob, right here. And seriously, I'm doin' y'all a favor not writing a whole damn essay about...

Red Dirt Girl

Emmylou Harris

4/5

I feel like the top-rated review of this album gave me the wrong impression going in. If you haven't read it—maybe you're sorting by date and not top-rated, I'unno—in short, it's not a review of the album but instead a critique of the 1001 Albums list for including the 29th album by an artist instead of, like, albums from people who're newer and more recent. Like, are the boomers really taking up that much air that a past-their-prime album can get on here instead of, like, I'unno, DEMON DAYS? That thought really set me up for the worst, and... Honestly, I really liked it. I mean, for one, I like Emmylou's voice a lot. This is the second album my group's gotten from her, after TRIO with Dolly Parton and Linda Ronstadt, and her voice reminded me a lot of Dolly's, actually. Which isn't a bad thing by me; I **love** hearing Dolly sing, so this is just a treat. And beyond that, I just really appreciate that there's more going on here than it just being a country album. With that genre label, I was expecting some shit that's like "Of course the critics would lap this the hell up, but I find it **boring as toast**," though it turns out it's kind of not even accurate. Sure, the country-ness of it is all over the place, especially, I found, in how a lot of the lyrics are structured, but there's so many more influences that've gone into it. Honestly, I'm more wont to use Wikipedia's second genre label for it, "Americana," than country—and even then I don't feel like that really taps into everything Emmylou did here. Y'know? And, I mean, despite what I just said, I actually **like** country, but I'm jus' kinda glad it doesn't sound anything like the other country from around this time that I've heard (via Cledus T. Judd's parodies). So I dug the album. That's neat. As for whether or not I think this belongs on the 1001 Albums list... No? Maybe? It's not a knock against the album, of course, and I think it **is** worth hearing if you're into country, but... Do I feel like it's omething you **absolutely** need to hear before you die? I'm not 100% sure. It's more worthy than Kid Rock at least, although it's not like **that's** a high bar to clear.

Viva Hate

Morrissey

3/5

Y'know, if I'm kinder towards Morrissey than I am Kid Rock, it's not because I actually like the guy. More, it's just about exposure in relation to the quality of their music they've made. Kid Rock makes shitty rap rock that's very easy to dunk on, so of course more people have talked about him and his beliefs. Morrissey, meanwhile, was a member of The Smiths, and a lot of that stuff is generally accepted as "good" and not as fun to dunk on. Hell, the two biggest pieces of criticism of him I've seen are a recent SIMPSONS episode and a JPEGMAFIA song. And wha'd'y'know, this is pretty good, too. Musically a very chill record that brings to mind the words "atmospheric new wave" in a lot of spots. It's a sound I gel quite a bit. If this is anything like what The Smiths sounded like, then, honestly, it makes me feel a little sorry I haven't checked them out sooner beyond Richard Cheese's cover of "How Soon Is Now?". It's a bit of a wash-over, but like I don't like one of those every once in a while, eh? I was only able to give this thing one listen today, and that's largely why I'm giving it a 3, but I could totally see myself bumping it up to a 4 on repeat. Honestly, it's kind of a shame that just on principle I'm never gonna listen to this again. Like, if it weren't for the man behind it, I'd probably definietely play it a few more times. But that's what he gets for bein' a piece of shit. Boy, bet he feels bad now that I've said that. And, hey, I mean, if I want good music from people who hate Maragret Thatcher, I'll stick with Chumbawamba, thank you very much.

The Village Green Preservation Society

The Kinks

3/5

I'll admit, when I was listening to this album today I wasn't exactly feeling it. Sure, I recognized enough quality in it to give it an "It's fine" 3 at least, but compared to the other British 60's music I like, and even to blur's PARKLIFE, I wasn't exactly all there. But then I watched Parlogram Auction's video covering this and two other albums by The Kinks, where he pointed out a way it's relevant today: nostalgia. The album was always about nostalgia, of course, but specifically in regards to how people these tends tend to have artificial nostalgia for times they never lived in. After the video I went back and listened to the album's single, "Starstruck", and I started to feel it a lot more. 'Cuz, like, I've always kind of considered myself an older soul despite being in my mid-20's. I choose to blame it on how I spent a lot of time when I was younger and more easily influenced watching, like, James Rolfe and Doug Walker, and I ended up getting turned onto a lot of the nostalgia they expressed in their videos. I think it's largely where my love for physical media comes from, honestly. And as for music, well, I've always been a bit more fascinated by what's come before my birth than after. It might not be reflected stastically, but for as many modern albums as I love, I do tend to return to older stuff more often than not. Big surprise, when I take the lyrics into consideration I get more out of it; who'd'a thought? Anyway, it's not enough for me to bump this album up a 4, but it's certainly closer than it was before. Absolutely it's one from this band that should be checked one. And all the shout outs in the world to HOT FUZZ for turning me onto "VIllage Green", too. Love that movie!

Nick Of Time

Bonnie Raitt

3/5

The biggest thing I've had on my mind listening to this album has been context and its importance to the listening experience–or lack thereof. I've made it no secret in my past reviews that I find context pretty important: PACIFIC OCEAN BLUE, IF YOU WANT IT DARKER, EXODUS, even DEVIL WITHOUT A CAUSE. Nothing exists in a vacuum; what happens before and after a piece can be just as important as the piece itself. But I suppose the question is "To what point is it really necessary?" The review of this album on this website that stuck out the most to me has been one that claimed that Pitchfork's retrospective review of the album is 80% relaying the surrounding context. I skimmed the review before I read this, and that does seem to be the case. The reviewer does spend a lot of time going over the personal and professional trouble Raitt was going through beforehand and the success she found with this album afterwards. There's only a paragraph or two in there that actually touches on the music itself. And, y'know, on the one hand I get: the story is the appeal. Y'know, listening to it and knowing that Raitt was able to pull herself up from such a dark place and produce such a commercially and critically successful album. It won her Album Of The Year for goodness sake. But on the other hand, you wonder: is that it? Is that all this album has going for it: its surrounding story? What does it offer beyond that? I'll say to begin with that I had no idea who Bonnie Raitt was seeing this album pop up. Which felt weird to me. Sure, I recognized her name, the album title, and even the cover, but I didn't have a clue what it'd sound like. How do I recognize an artist so much and not know how they sound? It took me nigh on five minutes to remember she won the 2023 GRAMMY for Song Of The Year, and in the interim I legit confused this album for the Stevie Nicks one with "Edge Of Seventeen". Then, when I actually listened to the album... Despite clearly reading on Wikipedia that this is an Americana album, for some reason I kept comparing it to the country albums I've heard? From her debut she was blues and folk, but I kept thinking about, like, the Johnny Cash and Dolly Parton songs I liked, and the more modern songs I was introduced to through Cledus T. Judd. 'Cuz at least in the title track I can hear that style of writing. Musically, **Lord** no. It's not the most 80's thing I've ever heard, but it's up there. I mean, maybe that's why I thought it was country. I guess I expect Americana to be rootsier, like that Emmylou album I heard before. And with way less synthesizers. Certainly I can't hear it as **blues** like Wikipedia also claims it is. Honestly, listening to this album in 2024, I can't help but wonder why it was such a big hit. What was really so different in 1989 that this hit hard enough to win Album Of The Year? Even removing it from its context, like I often do with Axl Rose's CHINESE DEMOCRACY, doesn't make anything here terribly better. I guess her voice is nice, and I didn't think there was a song on here that was terrible, but... Beh. This is a 3 from me, but a lower end 3. It doesn't spill into the realm of 2's by virtue of not being an ass-boring drum n' bass album, and that's not entirely an impressive feat. At the end of the day, though, I don't wanna begrudge Bonnie Raitt anything. This album helped her out of a bad place, I'm happy for that. And clearly, this album and the story surrounding it holds a lot for people who resonate with it. Just a shame it doesn't do anything for me.

Safe As Milk

Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band

4/5

Ah. Good ol' Captain Beefheart. The absolute mad man who somehow got TROUT MASK REPLICA to exisit. And this is two albums before that. Y'know, only knowing Beefheart from TROUT MASK REPLICA, it really surprised me how... Compartively normal this album is. Sure, a bit of that weirdness is still there, particularly in the lyrics, but you compare, say, "Abba Zaba" to "Frownland", it's damn night and day here. And I actually like this lot. Like, yeah, this is pretty standard Delta blues compared to what Beefheart would later be known for, but he's got a great voice for it, and, I'unno, I jus' like me some good blues music sometimes. I mean, I only had to listen to this thing one time to understand it, so that's gotta be worth something, eh?

Bert Jansch

3/5

This ended up being a really evocative album for me. Not one I love, no, but one where, with just a guitar and his voice, I can just see the open London highway Bert's rambling down. And the way I figure it, how much you enjoy this album really plays into how much you buy the vocation. Either you're traveling right along with him down the road... Or you quickly fade back into reality, wherever you are. As for me, I'm firmly more in the camp where I can smell the early morning breeze.

Innervisions

Stevie Wonder

5/5

Y'know, don't get me wrong—I love all of the single disc albums in Stevie's golden period. This period isn't so highly regarded for no reason. But... I'unno. As much as I like them, at a point the start to mesh together a little outside of the REALLY big songs. Like, TALKING BOOK is amazing, and I've actually heard it more than INNERVISIONS, but there are songs where I can't really remember how they go. Not with INNERVISIONS, though. Each song, they're all distinct from one another; I can remember exactly how they all go. Even the two songs I find the weakest, "All In Love Is Fair" and "Jesus Children Of America", they stick out so well in my mind. And, I mean, look, this album's got "Higher Ground" **and** "Living For The City". Even if this album was a 1, the presence of those two alone would raise this thing to, like, a 3 at least; they're just that good. Of course that's not to underplay the other songs; "Golden Lady" and "Don't You Worry 'Bout A Thing" both come to mind immediately. It's just, those are such masterpieces on a masterpiece in a catlog of masterpieces. Absolutely incredible, all around. Another one I could give a 6 if I could for how much it's entrenched in my soul.

So Much For The City

The Thrills

4/5

Listening to this album, in a lot of spots I was reminded of Owl City. And The Beach Boys. And Barenaked Ladies. And Ben Folds. And The Flaming Lips. And "You're So True" from SHREK 2. And, like, in another person's eyes that'd be harsh criticism, but me, I'm just like, "Heck, I like all those bands; I'm down for this 100%."

Risque

CHIC

3/5

Y'know, I'm sure if I heard this album in a 70's dance club—and I mean a legit dance club, too; not something that was built into a strip mall—this woulda gone off for me so much more than it did.

The College Dropout

Kanye West

3/5

(Due to my strong personal convictions, I wish to stress that neither this review or how I rate this album in any way endorses a belief in Kanye West. Additionally, I listened to this album using files I'd downloaded years ago; no streaming revenue went towards West.) I don't think I'll dread writing any review more than I did this one. Even the other two Kanye albums on this list won't be as bad as this, because it's with this I have to grapple with how I'm even going to talk about or rate his music in the first place. I mean, for all intents and purposes, I should just give this a 1 and move on. A 0, if I could. I shouldn't even have listened to the album. As of late, he's done nothing to deserve praise or fair analysis for anything he's done or will do. No matter how many "bagners" he has, at the end of the day he's a raging, far-right anti-semite, and I know it's not just me, but I find it hard to enjoy music from someone like that. I mean, he's not like Morrissey, where I'm VERY aware of his views, but because I haven't had much experience with them I'm more able to fairly judge his work. It's been way more... Y'know, Kid Rock. Kanye's decline has been in my face for the longest time now, and I've made efforts not to listen to him since at least 2019 and JESUS IS KING. Once he started pushing that "prosperity gospel" nonsense, even before he started praising Hitler, it was all over for me. Aside from some degrees-of-separation stuff like toasty digital and a Weezer mashup album, that, frankly, I should cut out as well, I just couldn't put up with him anymore. So, imagine my surprise when I come out of this, his debut, and the main feeling I have is... Sadness. Maybe a little mournful, even, for what we've lost. I mean, hearing "Jesus Walks" again, all I can think of is how he later betrayed the song's message (that Jesus walks with the downtrodden; not the rich who'd set up shops in the temples if they could) with JESUS IS KING. With "Through The Wire", I just think about how he'd later reframe one of the most important moments in his life, the car crash that resulted in his jaw getting wired shut, to be some petulant "divorced dad" shit about Pete Davidson. And listening to the extended outro of "Last Call", where Kanye explains how he even got to make this album... Gawd, it just felt tragic, knowing where he'd end up. And where he'd end up is VULTURES 1. I refuse to hear it, just on principle, but even the little I've heard about lets me know I'd hate it. Just knowing that on "Carnival"—which was a **NUMBER ONE HIT**, for some reason—that for shock value he compares himself to Bill Cosby, R. Kelly and Chris Brown... I'm tired. Writing this review has stressed me and made me feel not great and I'm tired. I'm giving this album a 3 only because in the brief moments I could look past what I felt about him as a person, it's fine. Good, but not mind blowing. I mean, I'll admit openly, there's parts I like. Even as much as new context has tainted "Jesus Walks", it's still amazing. The outro to "Family Business" is prtty damn good as well. Plus, jus', in general the beatwork is immaculate. But from what I caught of the verses... Big "Eh," y'know? And, like, did it **need** to be 76 minutes long? This isn't as bad as premo 90's CD bloat, but still. Some of this possibly could have been trimmed. He'll make better stuff later on that more justifies its length—in the brief period of time when he still made good stuff, anyway. And I hope it's a long time 'fore I ever hear him again. Fuck you, Kanye, for making me do this shit.

Picture Book

Simply Red

3/5

I enjoy this album in a lot of spots, but, honestly, I feel like I'd enjoy this band more as a subject on One Hit Wonderland, y'know?

Hunky Dory

David Bowie

4/5

Y'know, I wanna try something different here. I'm gonna comment on each song on the album. And this decision, by the way, has nothing really to do with the album itself; I just feel like it, mostly. So, to get down to it: "Changes": The song from the album I recognize the best thanks to the cover in SHREK 2 that Bowie features on. And in fact, I like that cover a bit better? A lot better, actually. I credit it mostly to how much older Bowie sounds there. I mean, of course after 30 years he would sound older, but seriously. Maybe it's the nostalgia talking, too, I'll fully admit that, but I really think I'm being genuine here. Even with that, that's not to knock the original here. "Oh! You Pretty Things": During all of the listening I did today, this is the one I came back to the most. I kept getting the title line stuck in my head. Although, of the album's first three main songs, I think I'd put it third of three. I mean, come on, it's just hard to compare when you're standing next to two giants. "Eight Line Poem": Oh, yeah, this. This is one of those "flow over" tracks I have, where I'm pretty likely to zone out during it when I'm doing full album listens. It can be a nice listen; I just don't think it's really worth listening to outside of the full album context or as a coda to "Oh! You Pretty Things". "Life On Mars?": Best song on the album, full stop. I remember the first couple of times I heard it. I probably had the wrong expectations because I kept hearing it described as a parody of "My Way", and I was disappointed when it didn't really sound anything like it, even in a broad "pastiche" sense. I've since gotten over that, and it's just **so good**. I've naturally memorized more lyrics from it outside of its chorus than I thought I would, which means a lot, believe. And for the record: yes, I **do** believe there's life on Mars—in the metaphorical sense this song means it in, anyway. "Kooks": It surprised me to read reviews here and keep seeing people say "Oh, I don't hate 'Kooks'; it's not **that bad**." Like, I'm not sure what I'd consider the "worst song" on the album, but I never thought it'd be this one. I've always liked it, at least because it's fun to sing with the "hung up on romancin'" line. Like, I'unno. It's just a nice, cute song. And a nice little break before what comes directly next, too. "Quicksand": OK, I know I just said I don't know what I'd call the worst song on the album, but if I were hard pressed... I mean, I don't even wanna say this one, 'cuz I know I'd just be saying it only because I find it the hardest song on the album to understand. Taking a guess, I thought it was about that feeling you get when you're lacking inspiration, but it might actually be about not knowing what happens after you die? Something about the "great beyond?" I really don't know, and I'm not terribly equipped to analyze poetic lyrics like this. I like the "Don't believe in yourself" refrain, anyway. "Fill Your Heart": If there's anything I wanna comment on here, it's the same thing Abigail Devoe pointed out when she talked about this song: how Bowie jumps into his falsetto during that last "free-EEEEE." Such a joy. "Andy Warhol": Most of the time I think about this song, it's about how Metallica later quoted it during "Master Of Puppets". And about how I can't **really** hear it? I'm sure it is, but sometimes I'm bad at picking up melodic references like that. Also just the fact that, eh, I'unno. It's fine. I like the "Andy walking, Andy tired" bit, but otherwise... Oh, and of course the chorus, too. I love me my chourses. At any rate, if I were Andy Warhol, I'd like it more than he actually didn't. "Song For Bob Dylan": One time I read on Wikipedia that this was considered the weakest song on the album, and that's how I've always thought of it. Is it really? Probably not, but of every song on this side of the record, I think I'd think about it the least. Even though I did reference/quote the opening lyrics back when I talked about HIGHWAY 61 REVISITED. I mean, you name me another song about Bob Dylan to quote, huh? "Queen Bitch": The best song on side two, hands down. "Bippity-boppity hat," I love it. One time while I was listening to this song, I imagined myself back in mid-1970's New York, dancing in a silk dress around some kind of Bohemian apartment with a glass of wine in hand. I was actually in my family's townhouse wearing a housecoat and holding a cup of water with red Kool-Aid flavoring that'd been squirted in, but, y'know, still. The spirit was there. Real lucky, that Lou Reed, to get this song made about him. "The Bewlay Brothers": The song that actually has the densest lyrics on the album, but I don't mind it as much as "Quicksand" because even Bowie himself said before recording a take not to pay attention to the lyrics. And most of the time, honestly, I don't. Before now, it's been another "flow over" track for me, where I zone out right before the final bit snaps me back in. Just like on "Eight Line Poem", I mostly blame it on the instrumental not being as attention grabbing as some of the other songs. But... Y'know, when I was relistening to this album at, like, 5AM, and I was staring into some of the dark corners of my family's townhouse... With this song filling my ears at the same time, it was actually a little unsettling, imagining what could be hiding in there. Jeez. Overall, let me say first I haven't sampled the entire Bowie ouvre. Heck, I only heard YOUNG AMERICANS just this month thanks to the generator. But I'm fairly certain that once I do, this'll still remain probably my favorite Bowie album. This or ZIGGY STARDUST. It dips a little for me on side two, but come on, it's got "Life On Mars?". Like INNERVISIONS having "Living For The City", that's worth enough points by itself.

System Of A Down

4/5

Listening to this album really makes it hard to believe that it's the only System Of A Down album here. Like, no way this is the only notable thing they've ever done. You listen to Serj's vocals and how weird their instrumentals can get in places and tell me TOXICITY doesn't also deserve to be here at least. Come on, book. They've made some fun-ass angry music, and they deserve to get a double instead of a single.

The Suburbs

Arcade Fire

3/5

Do I like this album? Yeah, a fair bit. I don't think I like it as much as the last indie rock album my group got, SO MUCH FOR THE CITY by The Thrills; and I don't think enough to give it a 4, but I can hear why so many people were goin' nuts for it back in 2010. Do I think it's the best album of 2010, though? I mean, I think I've listened to PLASTIC BEACH a bit too much to agree.

Take Me Apart

Kelela

3/5

It's albums like these I'm glad I make an effort to listen to every album twice—or one-and-a-half times, at least. Because on a first go around, I was gonna give this a 3 that was leaning more towards a 2. Y'know, I didn't really understand it, but I didn't here anything I obviously disliked: it's fine. It was only within the last four tracks that this album finally clicked for me, and relistening to the first half of the album with those in mind (plus the knowledge that this is a concept album about relationships), I enjoyed it a whole lot more. Between Kelela's vocals and the R&B futurism beats... It's a lot of neat stuff. I'm still not giving this more than a 3 'cuz it's nothing I'd really return to beyond the day it was generated for me, but I had a good time with it while it lasted. Y'know, it's a 3 closer to a 4. (Also, another thing helped me understand this album, honestly: fanmade Epic Rap Battles. Jus', keeping those beats and flows in mind really did help me, honest to goodness.)

Moon Safari

Air

5/5

I've been tryna think of some kind of big through-line; some essay-style framework to write this review around, but nah, man. This is just some good-ass chill music. **Really** good-ass chill music. Like, within the first 30 seconds, I dug it so hard. Absolutely something I'm gonna put on in the future to kick back to. Hell, if my sleep schedule still meant I'd get up in the morning, I'd put it alongside FRIENDS by The Beach Boys and MOTHER EARTH'S PLANTASIA as a great "wake up, start the day" album. I mean, I don't even know what to say about the album specifically; it's just vibes too hard for that, and I'm all for it. And big shout-out, too, for the fact that The Moog Cookbook, a group I **really** like, remixed one of the songs on here. That's a damn cherry on top, and I don't even like cherries.

Surfer Rosa

Pixies

4/5

I wanted to write a longer review or whatever for this album, but some stuff happened in real life just before I got down to it that's stressing me the hell out as I write this, so I'm gonna make this a little briefer than I was planning. This is a fun album. I mean, **I** certainly enjoyed it. I can't hear **exactly** how it influenced Nirvana's NEVERMIND, but like I wouldn't take Kurdt at his word about it. It's clearly not for everyone—see the fact that the top-rated review of the album on this website, which gives it a 1, calls the it "just noise"—but if you click with it, it's a pretty enjoyable listen. And, hey, I'm just happy the superhero Tony finally got his own song.

Dub Housing

Pere Ubu

3/5

I'll put it like this: the band was described itself as "avant-garage," and I dig the "garage" half more than I do the "avant-" half.

Everything Must Go

Manic Street Preachers

4/5

The top-rated review of this album complains about the abundance of Britpop on this list—"shitty Britpop," as they put it—and, I mean... I'unno. I'm OK with it. More than OK with it, really. Turns out I'm real down for Britpop, even outside of the big two of blur and Oasis. I'd put this below blur, though. Just considering the albums my group has gotten, anyway. But I'd still put it above The Verve, so...

Crooked Rain Crooked Rain

Pavement

4/5

Y'know, I've seen some talk this is the best album of the 90's, from the best band on the 90's. Like, that's a damn claim coming from the same decade that gave us Nirvana's NEVERMIND, Oasis's WHAT'S THE STORY (MORNING GLORY?), Radiohead's OK COMPUTER, Weird Al's BAD HAIR DAY and so many more. What makes this road material so great? And I didn't go into this album with the predisposed derision that question would imply, but it was still on my mind. What **did** make so many critics claim this thing's greatness? I can't claim a defnitive answer. Frankly, no one can, but that's besides the point. All I can speak on is the moment I got the closest glimpse to what they were talking about—without reading what they actually said, anyway. I was listening to "Range Life" for the third time 'cuz I kept missing the verse where the band disses The Smashing Pumpkins, and during an instrumentral break, I closed my eyes and asked myself: "What decade does this come from?" Does this **actually** sound like a 90's album? Or is it more 70's? 60's? 2000's? I couldn't exactly pin down what decade it sounded like. Stark constrast to a lot of the other albums I've heard so far, even the ones I love more, with all my soul. INNERVISIONS and ABBEY ROAD are masterpieces of their time, but in a lot of spots they kinda sound like their time. Not in a bad way, of course; but there's just moments where I can point to and be like "That's the 60's/70's." Meanwhile, y'look at "Range Life", and the mentions of The Smashing Pumpkins and Stone Temple Pilots aside, I'd be hard pressed. I didn't relisten to any of the rest of the album after that, so I can't say how much the rest of it holds up to that, but at least from what I remember about side two (that's the one I listened to twice)... "Fillmore Jive" especially, I tell you. Wuuf. So, do I agree with the critics? No, I don't think so. But can I at least understand where they're coming from? Eh, enough, I'd say.

Californication

Red Hot Chili Peppers

4/5

I've yet to sample the entire RHCP ouvere, but for the time being, hot damn, this is my favorite album of theirs. Even when I do get around to sampling the rest of them, I doubt any of them will have just that right mix for me of their typical funk jams, alt rock doodlings and Kledis's weird-ass lyrics about sex, California or both. And they **are** weird lyrics, believe you me—let's not even touch those lines at the front of "Purple Stain". Big ol' bonus for me, too, that I can't hear any of the loudness war stuff I hear people talk about, so I don't got any points for that. I'm still docking for it's **length** of course, and that's the closest reason I can articulate why this is a 4 instead of a 5 (and even then that's not really an issue for me here), but at least I've never heard what clipping sounds like. Oh, and those lines at the top of "Purple Stain". Those dock points, too.

Legalize It

Peter Tosh

3/5

Well, it's 70's reggae by a Wailers-adjacent. You can't really go wrong with that stuff. Like, besides relaying my own relationship to legalized weed—that my mom smokes it for medicinal reasons and I think it smells kind of bad—I really can't think of much else to say. Granted, sure, it doesn't have that same spark for me that full-on Bob Marley material has—which is maybe why I liked the song he had a writing credit on the best—but don't take that to minimize Peter Tosh, no. He was a member of The Wailers, too, after all. But then, he doesn't get his name tossed up front, so... I'unno. Reggae is good reggae is the point. Unless it's cod. And even then I have my soft spots for "Jamaica Jerk-Off" and, damn, "Rude" of all things.

Music From Big Pink

The Band

3/5

Y'know, I'm just not sure if I really get what makes this one of the top 100 albums of all time accoridng to Rolling Stone (as in, it's 100 exactly as of 2020). Like, I can guess at elements—the harmonies, the communial songwriting, how it sounds like it actually sounds like guys playing in a basement... And just the fact that they were able to step out of Bob Dylan's shadow the way they did. I mean, I think of these guys, I hardly ever think that they were Dylan's backing band. Even on this album, where I'm actively aware Dylan wrote two songs. It's just, I'm not seeing the sauce. Worth a listen, sure, but I'm not sure why music from the Big Pink is good compared to music from anywhere else. Also, for some reason it really made me wanna listen to "The Chain"? I have no idea.

S&M

Metallica

5/5

I don't have much to say; I'm just an absolute sucker for when symphonies get added to songs that Ilike that originally didn't have them, and S&M is one of my absolute favorites. Sure, it runs a little long... A **lot** long, yeah, but I really don't care, honestly. Not when it has "No Leaf Clover" and among my favorite versions of "Master Of Puppets", "Fuel", "Hero Of The Day", and especially "One". The way James screams "NO" before the final guitar solo is just too perfect. It's stuff like that, and the transition from "The Thing That Should Not Be" to "fuel", that makes this one of those "deep in my soul" 5's for me. Plus, it's nice to give a metal album a 5 to balance out the 1 I gave to Kid gawddamn Rock.

Actually

Pet Shop Boys

4/5

Gawd, the keys and synths on this thing, man. The KEYS AND SYNTHS. That was my favorite part of this whole album, with a doubt. In fact, honestly, I kinda feel like this album could've been an instrumental and I would've enjoyed it just as much. I mean, certainly, whatever barbs it has against Thatcherism don't apply to me here and now, not being in the 1980's or the UK. But, jus', play me "Hit Music" or "It's A Sin" and I'm down **good**. If I gotta pick any one reason why I'm giving this thing a 4 and not a 5, I'll say it's "I Want To Wake Up". More like, "I Want To Fall Asleep. 'Cuz It's Kind Of Boring Compared To Everything Else On Here". Yeah, take **that**.

Cloud Nine

The Temptations

3/5

CLOUD NINE is an album carried **heavily** by two songs: the title track and "Runaway Child, Running Away". The rest of the album, meanwhile... I mean, to tackle those first, the songs from the fourth onward are just fine Temptations fare. Good, but nothing spectacular. Kind of underwhelming, honestly, in the face of its stand-outs. And, boy, that "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" cover sure does exist, dunnit? But "Cloud Nine" is a great piece of Sly inspired music, and "Runaway Child, Running Away" is a damn sprawling epic work of psychdelic soul that helped pave the way for their daminger sprawlinger epicer "Papa Was A Rollin' Stone". It's a trip and a half, I tell you what. The album's absolutely worth hearing alone jusr for those two. And, y'know, based on those songs merits I wanted to say that elevated this album as a whole to a 4. But, like everything else that aren't those songs are so "it's fine" that I'm really feeling it's more a 3. This isn't an INNERVISIONS and "Living In The City" or HUNKY DORY and "Life On Mars?" case here, y'know? So anyway, that was my group's 100th album. A bit of a squib for the only 100th album we're ever gonna get, but there's always hope our next milestones are better bangs.

Illmatic

Nas

4/5

Writing a review for an album like this is hard for someone like me. Because, sure, I enjoyed the beats and the samples that made them up, and I really dug the flows. Me tending so naturally towards melody, of course I do. But ILLMATIC is an album that's all about its lyrics; complexly-formed street poetry about inner-city life in Queens, New York. And it's just, unless I force myself to spend a whole day listening to nothing but this album and focusing on the lyrics, I can't grasp them. Sure, I can appreciate how the lines their constructed and all their internal rhymes, but I don't think I've absorbed enough of the actual meanings to really be able to comment on them. And with albums like this, I feel like if I'm not able to comment on the meanings, then why bother? Not that they'd mean much to me personally—me, a Canadian living in 2024. At the very least, do I think the lyrics expressed his stories well? With how well each line is made, it's hard to say they don't. I mean, I'unno. If I can appreciate MF DOOM's technicality without really understanding a lot of what he means, I can like this album, too. Besides, my favorite Nas song is "Hip Hop Is Dead", so how much is my opinion worth, really?

The Black Saint And The Sinner Lady

Charles Mingus

4/5

Seeing this album labelled as avant-garde jazz on Wikipedia made me expect worse. I mean, I see that descriptor and I'm expecting... Like, noise, honestly. Atonal and with everyone playing in a different weird time signature, but I'm supposed to appreciate it because, I'unno, it's hard to play a trumpet in 30/31. However, it turns out I really can't hear what's so avant-garde about it. At most it sounds like the jazz Frank Zappa would have The Mothers play—and that's a big compliment in my book. The same one I gave THIRD by Soft Machine, actually. (Though give this album the benefit, only one song approaches 20 minutes, and even then it's because it's comprised of three smaller movements). I'unno, I just really dug it. It's one I'd throw on whenever I'm in the mood for something like it, sure. Sometimes I need a little THE GRAND WAZOO, y'know? And this isn't even the album by this guy that got on the Rolling Stone 500? Gosh, you can only imagine how good **that one** is.

Coles Corner

Richard Hawley

3/5

I'unno. I get what it's doing—some kinda Roy Orbison-style nostalgia throwback—and normally I'd eat that sort of thing up, but for whatever reason it just didn't click with me the day I had it. Maybe I just didn't catch it at the right time, maybe blame it on the fact that I was too lazy to move from the room where my mom was blasting "It's Gonna Be Me"... For what it's doing, it's very good, but just for my own personal enjoyment, I'm givin' it a 3 right now. And the building on the cover isn't even Coles Corner. I'd remove a star for that alone~!

Ambient 1/Music For Airports

Brian Eno

5/5

Before I listened to this album, I told my group that I wasn't gonna be listening to this album. Which is to say, I wasn't going to afford it the same level of attention I've given every other album on this list. It's ambient music, after all; it's not meant to be listened to in the same way you would other genres. And that's not a knock against the stuff, of course. That's just, bluntly, how it is by design. And I understand, for that reason, the frustration some have about the inclusion of an album like this on a list like this. Ambient music, to most ears, is essentially wallpaper. You put that next to ABBEY ROAD and THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON and TO PIMP A BUTTERFLY, and how does it even stack up? How does it even compare? For me, yeah, I kept my word. I didn't really listen to the album; it just kind of floated in and out of my attention as I did other things. But whenever I did catch it... Damn, it's some transcendental shit. Just, these vast, open, beautiful soundscapes. Heaven stretches before your ears. There's not much there melodically, true. If you're looking for it, I get the disappointment. But just for how it evokes for me a sense of safety and calm... Damn. A++ tape loops.

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

Kanye West

4/5

(NOTE: I did not stream this album. I listened to it via a CD I've owned for around a decade now. No money was given to Kanye West in the making of this review. Thank you.) Every now and then I think back to the review I wrote for THE COLLEGE DROPOUT and wince a little. Y'know, as much as I stand by a lot of what I said, there I hafta wonder, "Did I spend too much time calling out Kanye?" Like, "We get it. He's big divorced dad energy and loves Nazis. Do you **need** to keep saying you don't like him and 'Fuck him' and all that? You've talked about how much you don't like him as a person more than you have the damn music. You already gave an 'I don't condone him' disclaimer. What moral brownie points are you aiming for here, exactly?" On the one hand, I blame this on that album being my first Kanye review. I felt like I had to take the time to air out my opinions on the man. With how much he ends up talking about himself on these albums, it's not exactly an unimportant piece of context. Plus, it's better to get it all out in one burst at the start than to keep repeating myself over the course of the next two–even if I doubt most people outside of my group are gonna read my reviews, let alone in order. But on the other hand–and this is the bigger hand, I figure–I don't have much of an attachment to THE COLLEGE DROUPOUT. Preparing for that review was probably only the second time I've heard it in full over the course of a decade. Of course, then, it was really easy for me to get distracted from talking about the music to going on about something where I had more to say. Don't get me wrong, I recognize THE COLLEGE DROPOUT for its beatwork and "Jesus Walks" (even if Kanye's gone on to betray its message). But I just don't have that link that inspires me to write much about it. Unlike this album. MY BEAUTIFUL DARK TWISTED FANTASY is home to my favorite song Kanye ever made, "Runaway". I love the extended "single note" piano intro. I love the beat it turns into. I love singing along to it. I even love the "I sent this bitch a picture of my dick" line for how memorably bad it is. And every other song on the album has its great share of beats, moments and memorable lines, too. "CAN WE GET MUCH HIGHER?" "Choke a SOUTH PARK writer with a fish stick." The whole ending to "POWER". Elton John's piano playing. "MJ GONE–A [n] DEAD." Nicki's verse on "Monster". "That'll be the same day MTV plays videos. That was a little joke–voila." That guitar line before Rick Ross's verse on "Devil In A New Dress". The "Iron Man" interpolation on "Hell Of A Life". "Avril 14th". The intro to "Lost In The World". None of them, though, compare to the second half of "Runaway". The entire vocal solo. That feeling when you want to express yourself, explain yourself ("I'mma be honest")... But you can't. And it can only come out as a long, pained, anguished wail that says more than any words ever could. It's beautiful, honestly. I get close to tearing up over it. And it's damn depressing with the context of 2024. I mean, let's be clear: it needs to be acknowledged that bad people can make good art. Just because Kanye turned out to be a piece of shit doesn't mean his old music is suddenly bad. Hell, he was a piece of shit back when he made this album. Remember the whole "I'MMA LET YOU FINISH" incident? This album was made following that controversy. And he's no stranger to controversy, of course–"GEORGE BUSH DOESN'T CARE ABOUT BLACK PEOPLE," after all. But when even the president was vocally calling him a jackass... You can view the vocal solo on "Runaway" as a reaction to all that. That he wanted to say so much in response, but ultimately couldn't. That he'd never be understood anyway. And in that light, this whole album is such an underdog triumph. That he was the world's public scumbag #1 and still came out with a critically acclaimed, world conquering smash. That success just feels non-existent these days knowing there'd be controversy following this album, and much worse controversy than stealing a microphone from Taylor Swift. MY BEAUTIFUL DARK TWISTED FANTASY is a masterpiece. Kanye's absolute peak before he slid off, in my opinion. True, it's entirely self-indulgent in how damn long it is (see: Rick Ross's verse on "Devil In A New Dress", the "Blame Game" skit, etc.), and just because a lyric is memorably bad doesn't stop it from being... Y'know, bad. It's just all trumped by the fact that it's my Kanye album. The first one of his I've discovered. Where, more than once, I'd imagined one of my own characters screaming out the vocal solo in "Runaway". That aria of sadness and anger at how painfully aware they are that they're a huge fuckin' asshole. And Kanye is an asshole. A jackass, even. He was one back then, and he's an even bigger one now. But I'll always have this. Even if I don't listen to this album anymore because of how inseparable Kanye is from his music, he'll never truly take "Runaway" away from me.

The Undertones

4/5

Just a very nice, fun burst of early pop punk (I didn't even think it existed before the 90's!) that reminded me a lot of the Buzzcocks and The Clash. And Jello Biafara in some spots, weirdly.

Calenture

The Triffids

2/5

The first time I saw this album's cover, there was just this vibe about it. Like it was going to become the new album I bring up whenever I make some of the inclusions on this list. "CALENTURE got on this list, but not something or other?" That sort of deal. Listening to the album certainly didn't dispel that feeling. And the thing is, actually, that I don't even really think this album is... **Entirely** bad. It's got moments here and there—check those Irish-sounding instruments on "Jerdacuttup Man", not to mention how its opening sounds like Pink Floyd's "Echoes". I think that stuff's neat. It's just all so few and far between is all, which really highlights how oppressively, suffocatingly "FI-I-I-I-INE" the rest of the album is. I just can't hear what makes this thing so special, and as a result it's so hard to give a shit about it. While I was writing this review, even, I got so bored re-listening to the first side that I didn't even let it finish. What would I even gain? It's not like letting "Open For You" play out a second time would change my mind. In conclusion, to be fair, this album's got more going for it than others I've found to be slogs—TIMELESS, MAXINQUAYE—but, yeah, it's definitely going to be one of my new punching bags. Sorry, Australia. Maybe give me some AC/DC or INXS or whatever next time.

The Sounds Of India

Ravi Shankar

4/5

I kinda wish we got more albums like this and CLUBE DE ESQUINA more often. Not that I don't enjoy a good 60's folk album or... Random whatever from the 70's or 80's whose only legacy is being on this list, but I'd love to have more dives in foreign reigional music. I mean, it's just really interesting to get an earful of Hindustandi classical music—the really real stuff, too; not just what George Harrison was doing with The Beatles. And even if it turns out it's not your thing, I still think you're enriched by having heard this stuff. So, y'know, regardless of my feelings on it, I think it's worth your time.

Melodrama

Lorde

3/5

I remember Todd In The Shadows's best list for 2017 was the first time I didn't recognize a single song he included, nor did I feel particularly inspired to listen to any of them. That was up to and including the song he picked for the top spot: "Green Light" by Lorde. Finally listenjng to it, and the album, seven years later... Man, I'm just reminded of how much I don't really care for modern, current popular releases. Like, sure, I can't hear anything I dislike about it, and I can probably point out a few specific moments I like, but in general nothing really speaks to or clicks with me, y'know? Even "Green Light". I mean, the only 2017 album I listened to in 2017 was HUMANZ by Gorillaz. **That's** what I'm into. This... Eh. Not as much, sadly.

James Brown Live At The Apollo

James Brown

4/5

The album that made James Brown a star. I mean, really; this right here is "star time." Front-to-back, it's nonstop excitement. And if you think the music's energetic, you gotta imagine what moves James is pullin' on stage. I mean, that's probably the only thing I'd really ding this album for—that, and the album ends a bit too abruptly after "Night Train"—but of course that's just a general fault of audio recordings; not just this album. Otherwise, more than just his hit songs or the sample clips, this is absolutely the album to understand why Brown was, indeed, the Hardest Working Man In Show Business.

Cafe Bleu

The Style Council

2/5

When this album first popped up for my group, my initial reaction, like with a lot of albums from musicians and/or bands I don't recognize, was "Who the hell is this?" I mean, I hate to judge a book by its cover, but something about its cover just seemed... Off to me. Like this would be another random forgettable whatever where I hafta wonder why it's even on this list. Imagine my surprise, then, when after I listen to the album a friend in the group tells me that this group has **Peter Wellers**. The guy from The Jam! and whose solo album WILD WOOD I'd previously rated highly! That guy! I wish his presence did more for me than shift my question to "**What** the hell is this?", but still! Y'know, it actually took me a moment to figure out what a specific problem I had with this album was, and I think it's this: The Jam album I listened to back when, SOUND AFFECTS, is Mod revival and power pop, and it's very good at that. WILD WOODS is very much a 70's singer-songwriter dealie in the 90's, and it's very good at that. CAFÉ BLEU is called a sophisti-pop album, but it jumps all over the damn place, and it doesn't do anything it tries well. Aside from the album's opener, most of the album is just "bleh" dives into various styles. It's very lounge-y, and not even the fun, swinging kind of lounge. And when it's not just "whatever," it's "A Gospel", and the last thing I needed to hear on this album was any attempts at rapping. It's the most memorable thing here, and for all the wrong reasons. So that's a miss in my book, Wellers. I liked WILD WOODS, and my group hasn't gotten SOUND AFFECTS but I know I'm gonna rate it highly, and I know two-out-of-three ain't bad, but... Gawd, why the hell is this here?

Tidal

Fiona Apple

3/5

The thing that surprised me the most about this album, honestly, is something another review for this album pointed out: if it were released today, or at least a few years ago, no one would bat an eye at it. In a world with Billie Eillish, it (Apple's voice here especially) doesn't sound out of place. And that's crazy, because not only was this album released back in the 90's, but by a 19 year old. How the hell did this woman at that age have such foresight to make this thing? I have to marvel at it. That being said, because it sounds so modern, it's not really for me. Like I said in my MELODRAMA review entry whatever, a lot of current popular just doesn't do it for me. Even Billie Eillish; I listen to new.wav's blink-182-style'd cover of "bad guy" way more than the original. The specific vibes this album gives off just aren't for me, y'know? I'unno. And I'unno how to end this, so I'll just say that when it comes to me and chamber pop, I way prefer LIL' BEETHOVEN and PET SOUNDS to what this is layin' down.

Talk Talk Talk

The Psychedelic Furs

3/5

Eh, I'unno. As New Wave, it's not as weird as Q: ARE WE NOT MEN? A: WE ARE DEVO!, and it's not polished as, say, RIO. It sits kind of in the middle, and as a result, it's fine, but not terribly interesting my ears. I 100% dug "She Is Mine", though, so you can have that at least.

Dig Me Out

Sleater-Kinney

4/5

Damn exciting album y'ask me. Exciting riffs, exciting drums, exciting vocals... Darn gets me in the mood to check out some more riot grrrl, I tell you what. Or maybe I'll end up just listening to "Rebel Girl" again, I'unno.

Arular

M.I.A.

3/5

This is an album that's walking a very fine line between being annoying and... Being annoying. Between all the various influences and sources that make up the instrumentals and M.I.A.'s voice itself, it's one hell of a balancing act where, like, it never fell into obnoxiousness for me, but I can absolutely hear how it would for others. All that said, if I'm giving this album a 3 and not a 4 for any reason, it's an apples and oranges comparison kind of deal. Like, if I want music with revolutionary lyrics, I've already got Chumbawamba and Rage Against The Machine for that. Their respective brands of anarcho-punk/dance/world/folk and rap metal are way more up my M.I.A.'s dancehall material. And none of them were anti-vaxxers far as I can remember, so...

The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill

Lauryn Hill

4/5

Before now, the only Lauryn Hill album I've really had any experience with was the one for her MTV UNPLUGGED 2.0 show. Defend that album all you want, I don't care, but to me it's for damn sure the worst introduction you could have to her music. I get that it's an unplugged show and that it's not supposed to be representative of her normal sound, but seriously, it's two straight hours of amateur plink-plonking on an acoustic guitar, ramble-y as hell lyrics, and babbling from Lauryn that to me sounds like the hook to Kendrick Lamar's "Real" on loop. When you take her mental condition into account, too, whatever exactly it is, the fact it was released at all just gets all the ickier and you gotta wonder, "**This** is the follow-up to MISEDUCATION?" I mean, be fair to Lauryn—if **I** put out an album as good as MISEDUCATION, I wouldn't be able to follow it up, either. On her first solo attempt, she put out a greatest hits record. I'm someone who's melody first, so I probably missed a lot of great lyrics, but just taking it as a vibe, it's pretty damn immaculate. The beats are probably some of the best from the hip hop albums my group has gotten so far. Lauryn's got a really good voice, too; it's fun to hear her rap, and it's pretty to hear her sing. I don't even mind this thing's length. I'm sure it could be cut down in a few spots, but it's still more than carried by what's here. Just on those merits alone I can hear why this was the highest charting hip hop album on the 2020 ROLLING STONE 500. I mean, do I agree 100% with it? At this stage, maybe not. It's the cliché music nerd answer, but I might still think something like TO PIMP A BUTTERFLY is better. Although, it's not just about quality, is it? It's about impact, too, The legacy. And I'm not aware of what exactly this album's done for the culture, though this just feels like an album that's changed everything. Mostly for women in hip hop, but in general, too. So, like, even if Lauryn never comes out with another album as long as she lives, she's got this under her belt. For anyone, that's damn more than enough. (And this all reads like a 5, I'm aware, but I'm giving it a 4 just because I don't think I've spent enough time with it yet for that. Once I actually do pay attention to and learn the lyrics, though, believe me, I'm gonna be wishing I gave this thing a 5.)

Elastica

4/5

Aw yeah, more female-vocal punk stuff. I dug the hell out of this—maybe even a little bit more than DIG ME OUT, honestly. And for that, I think I hafta credit the Britpop sheen that's over this album. The riffs, the vocals... I jus' think it's fun stuff, y'know? I've loved every Britpop album my group has gotten so far, and this is no exception. And thus, I've paid the whole "WIRE copying" thing exactly as much attention as I think it deserves.

Back To Black

Amy Winehouse

5/5

Coming into this review, I had a lot of thoughts about Amy Winehouse, but they weren't about this music. They weren't even really about her as a person, honestly. They were more about how the media in her time, specifically tabloids, treated her—as nothing more than a junkie barrelling to an early grave. Or how I assumed her biopic this year would treat her—I hear it's as "nothing more than a junkie barrelling to an early grave." Hell, I was thinking a lot about how the woman who co-presented Winehouse her GRAMMY for song of the year claimed that people like her "shouldn't be rewarded for bad behaviour." But going in with this mindset isn't fair to Winehouse. The treatment she got wasn't fair, either, and it's absolutely worth condeming, but that's not how I should be thinking about her. I should focus just on her art and what she gave the world. And what she gave the world was... Truly immaculate. A tight 35-some minutes of throwbacks to the early Motown sound and early rock n' roll. I love this kinda shit. Take it from someone who spun AN EVENING ON SILK SONIC back when it dropped, I love throwbacks so much. But not **just** throwbacks. Ones that, like the Silk Sonic mention implies, brings it into the current days. Give it up for Ronson and Salaam. They nailed the sound, but I'd never think this came out any earlier than the 2000s. Even when all I knew about this album was "Rehab" thanks to ROCK BAND 3, it still sounded so fresh to my ears. It's a groovy-ass track, but when this album needs to get soulful and back to black, such as it is, you bet your ass it will. And Winehouse's voice. Amy herself, so I've read, didn't regard her abilities as anything more than a party trick. But what a trick this is. If it didn't evoke "Motown diva" as well as it does while still being recognizably her own thing, it'd all fall apart. And, yeah, me being me, a lot of the lyrics didn't register in my mind. But just the tone of her voice was enough to get enough of the meaning across to me. That sounds like something most people can achieve, but to do it truly well—that takes a little something extra. Y'know, normally I reserve 5's for albums that've already wedged their way into my soul, or albums that manage to edge their way in there. I'm not sure if BACK TO BLACK is truly there yet, but regardless, it deserves a 5. Not as an "Oh, so tragic she died so young" deal. Not as a clapback against the people who treated her so poorly. But just because she made a damn good album. It was a damn good album back then, it's a damn good album now, and I wouldn't be happy if it wasn't a damn good album on the future. Gawd, I needa find the time to put on FRANK!

The Wildest!

Louis Prima

5/5

Oh, this one's just a blast. There's really nothing else to it—it aims to be swingin' fun and it sure as hell is. It's downright infectuous how clear it is how much everyone recording this is enjoying themselves. It makes me look forward to when/if my group gets more swing music like this. And in the meantime, I guess I'll spin this album again.

Low

David Bowie

4/5

Going into this album I didn't expect to like it terribly much. After all, there was a line on its Wikipedia page about how much it influenced post-punk bands. I haven't disliked every post-punk album I've heard, but I sure as well haven't had a clean track record with it either, so I didn't have exactly high hopes. But then at the beginning of side two, there was this moment where I had to just... Stop what I was doing. Stop, close my eyes, inhale deeply through my nostrils... I have to give all the credit in the world to Brian Eno and the influence he had. Even on an album this gloomy and dark, there are moments in the soundscape I found kind of beautiful, actually. Really, it's a similar reaction I had to the two Eno album my group's gotten before, and it proves I really shoulda paid more attention to the "electronica" genre credit on Wikipedia. HUNKY DORY, largely because I've spent so much time with it, is still my favorite Bowie album, so that's why I'm not giving this a five. However, just the fact alone that it made such a strong case for that spot is incredibly noteworthy.

The Number Of The Beast

Iron Maiden

5/5

It's just kick-ass NWOBHM, simply put. Killer riffs, solos and vocals, front to back. It's no wonder this is the album they truly broke through with. I don't even know what else I wanna say, really. Just listen to "Hallowed Be Thy Name"—you'll get it.

Life Thru A Lens

Robbie Williams

3/5

I think this is the least interested in a Britpop album I've been so far. Like, I'm not gonna say it's bad, but it's not particularly exciting. For the most part, it's radio music—incredibly safe, even acknowledging some weird lines I've read about. And I don't even mean "radio music" as an insult; it can really hit the spot sometimes. I'm just not sure what makes this so special compared to any other Britpop I've heard—blur, Oasis, Manic Street Preachers, Elastica... Honestly, I'm not even sure how much I even hear this as a Britpop album; it feels way more like a straight-up pop album 90% of the time. My one big exception is "Let Me Entertain You"—not a Queen cover like I always thought it was, but still. With its very obvious Who influence, it's driving as hell and the biggest burst of excitement and energu on the whole damn album. I can shake my head to that one, seriously. And, y'know, maybe if the rest of the album matched up to that... As it stands, the album's fine, but I can do without it. Like, maybe, JUST MAYBE, this list could do with one less Britpop album, y'know? Maybe?

Dusty In Memphis

Dusty Springfield

3/5

This album's largely carried by "Son Of A Preacher Man", yeah, but that's not to put down the rest of it. It's very nicely orchestrated blue-eyed soul and there's not really much to complain about. Or say in general. So... Yeah. Good job, Dusty.

Something Else By The Kinks

The Kinks

3/5

Of all of the British invasion regularly brought up and celebrated by Big Important Music Critics™, I've always had the hardest times with The Kinks. Up until now I've never exactly had a grasp on why, but I think I've finally managed to come to a answer—simply, they're the most British. No other big British invasion group (The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who) are as British as The Kinks. It's in the tone, the riffs, the melodies, the lyrics... It's **British**. Not a lick of American skiffle, blues or hard rock in there. It's partly why, I'm sure, they're as regarded as they are. For my money, though... Mm, I'unno. Here, on The Kinks albums we've heard so far, it just really hasn't clicked with me. Hell, I'm not sure I click with extremely British music in general until Britpop in the 90's. Y'know, there there's bombast, bigness. On something like this album, meanwhile, it's a lot smaller, restrained... And I don't wanna say it's "simpler" given that this is some premo psychedelic music hall stuff, but it just feels that way to me. Of course every now and then there's something I can fully get behind. "Waterloo Sunset" is regularly highlighted as the best song on the album and for damn good reason. That's the one where the riffs and all work for me. But for the majority, it's good stuff, but not anything I'm really clamoring to get back to. And I don't think they should've had more American influence like the Beatles, Stones and Who just to appeal to my dumb ass, but... I mean, since they don't, I'll tend more towards who does.

Bad Company

3/5

See, I'm giving the same numerical rating as SOMETHING ELSE BY THE KINKS by The Kinks, but believe me that this a much more positive 3.'Cuz... Man, I'unno. As much as I wanna pretend that I have good, approvable taste in music—even if I don't sway much outside the mainstream—in my heart of hearts, I can't help but be a bit of a dad rock girlie. It's nothing terribly special or memorable, but in the moment it's fun times. Plus, it's just fun that this group has a self-titled song on a self-titled album. That's the first and maybe only reason you'd put 'em next to Iron Maiden, Motörhead, Black Sabbath and Living In A Box.

Songs For Swingin' Lovers!

Frank Sinatra

4/5

Oh, sure, it's corny, it's cliché, it's... Another thing I had on the tip of my tounge that starts with "C" that I forgot. But darn it, that's what I wanted this album to be and that's what makes it so good. It's just such a delight, between Sinatra's voice and the arrangements. Man, neat my group got the Sinatra album that **isn't** depressing first, anyway.

Ace of Spades

Motörhead

5/5

Back-to-back-to-back loud, dirty n' heavy-ass rock n' roll that absolutely deserves to be played in a sleazy biker bar n' strip joint in the middle of nowhere off a desert highway. And I mean all that as the highest of compliments, by the way. It both kicks **and** bads asses. Next to AC/DC, you ain't gonna find a group that does one kind of rock n' roll as well as they do. Gawd**damn**!

Document

R.E.M.

4/5

Back when my group got MURMUR, I declared it my new favorite R.E.M. album. I was just so taken back by how much rawer that album is that I guess I got some kind "walking out of the movie theater" receny hype. Which I don't bring up to say that I suddenly think MURMUR's a bad album; just that, yeah, DOCUMENT is still my favorite R.E.M. album. It's the polish from producer Scott Litt, really. Applying it to the band's unique sound, which going too overboard with it... Gawd**damn**. The riffs and vocal melodies were always amazing, but they stand out so much more here. Some songs in the back half don't do it for me 100%, but throw on either of its two killer singles, and, woof, boy, I sure feel fine.

All That You Can't Leave Behind

2/5

On the album's Wikipedia page, it says that this album is meant to be a return of sorts to their earlier sound, after all the dance and alternative they tried out for the entire 90's. So, as part of my listening today I also took in their album WAR, and... Man, I'unno. Even without having WAR in mind, this album just sounds kind of... Dull to my ears? Sure, it's not without its moments—"Elevate" is one of them—but on the whole it kind sounds like the stereotypical image people have of U2. Kind of a bummer to hear given how much I like THE JOSHUA TREE and enjoyed WAR, but eh. At least I've got those albums to go back to if I want the band's early sound.

Blood Sugar Sex Magik

Red Hot Chili Peppers

4/5

Now this is peak Peppers. Smply put, it's the best and completest realization of their funk rock sound. It's true I haven't heard their entire discography, but I really kinda doubt anything else could match up to this. Just check "Give It Away"—besides my fondness for its Weird Al parody, if it mentioned California it'd be **the** Peppers song; the one to hear to see what they're all about. Although, all that said, I **do** kind of prefer CALIFORNICATION. Maybe I'm just a bit more fond its alt.-ier sound, I'unno. Plus, I'll acknowledge that it could be because I'm less familiar with this album, but there **is** a point where when it's not either of the songs parodied in "Bedrock Anthem", it **does** kind of blend a little for me? At least, I wouldn't be able to tell you what each song specifically sounds like aside from two or three. But I'll still maintain: this is the RHCP album to check out first. It's pure Peppers, and it doesn't get anymore red hot than this.

No Other

Gene Clark

3/5

Lemme say off the bat, I don't think it's bad. It's a perfectly good mix of country rock, gospel... There's some R&B in there, too, I 'spose. I can hear how the melodies would do it for me. But the thing is, I gotta agree with the most-liked review of this album on this website. And even before I saw that review, there was just this vibe I got off the album that if I grew up listening to it I'd like it a **lot** more than I do. If it was there for me alongside THE WALL, ABBEY ROAD and Weird Al's complete discography, sure, maybe. But hearing it now, in 2024, in my mid-late 20's, sandwiched between all the other music I love and want to listen to more... I can only say it's just fine. I'unno, maybe you'll get more out of it than I did.

War

4/5

I actually first listened to this album three days ago, for comparison against another U2 album on this list, ALL THAT YOU CAN'T LEAVE BEHIND. Weird that this album shows up so soon after this one, but whatever. I don't wanna talk about ALL THAT YOU CAN'T LEAVE BEHIND too much, since I already reviewed it, except to say this: that album felt disingenious, which I can attribute largely to the "arena rock" sheen over everything. No matter how good it **can** sound in parts, it comes across as a little plastic, without even the irony of their 90's albums to justify it. On WAR, however, it's all post-punk. Raw, energetic, and **angry**. So damn angry. New Year's Day and Sunday ain't no beautiful day. And that's what makes WAR so engaging and relistenable. You can feel real easily how much they believed in these songs. It's not my favorite of U2's sounds—hello, THE JOSHUA TREE—but it's sure as hell worth your time regardless. Now hopefully this is the start of a trend and my grouo actually does get THE JOSHUA TREE three days later. Please, Randomizer? Pretty please?

Getz/Gilberto

Stan Getz

4/5

Smooth, chill-ass bossa nova. There's a simple description of it, but that's all it is, really. It's an album to put on and mellow the hell out to. I really hear why it won Album Of The Year in 1965. Like either of the Barbara Streissand albums that were nom'd had a chance to beat it anyway.

The Fat Of The Land

The Prodigy

4/5

Damn good agro dance music. Shit like "Breathe", "Firestarter" and, yes, "Smack My Bitch Up" just go off so hard. Really, the only reason I'm not giving it a 5 is that I prefer what the Fatboy slippin' does so much more. Still, absolutely worth your time to check. Just put it on and lose y'damn-self.

Live / Dead

Grateful Dead

3/5

I spent quite a bit of today wondering why the Grateful Dead had the following they had—still have, even. What was their "secret sauce?" Turns out, even Deadheads don't know what it is. There's just this "intangiable 'X Factor'" about their live music, as I've read. "Vibee," in other words. It's just vibes. All vibes. The way I've heard "Dark Star" described in particular that's stuck with me is that it doesn't "start," per say—you "enter it." Conversly, it doesn't "end"; you "exit it." Like it's not a song but instead some field of energy you briefly entangle yourself in. Basically, you're supposed to lose yourself in the jams and improvisations, appreciating the near-psychic link the band members have between each other. And if you don't match up with those "vibes," then it's just a lot of pointless canoodling. Myself... I mean, I think I've listened to too much Phish to say I don't like jam bands or what they do. As "vibes" music, it's fine. Just not mind blowing like I imagine it still is to a lot of the OG Deadheads. Of course, if I wanted to hear what they do, I'd probably have needed to actually catch them live. Not 100s of times like some of these fans have, but at least once. Unfortunately, it's a bit too late for that now, so judging the music for its own sake... I get it. I just don't love it.

Led Zeppelin II

Led Zeppelin

5/5

There's this line I remember hearing about sophmore albums. Essentially, they tend to be worse than first albums because it's on that first album where you have all of the ideas you've likely spent years and years toiling over. Meanwhile, your second probably has to be rushed out in a couple of months to capitalize on the first album—hence the "sophmore slump." It happens to even the best of 'em. Which makes it twice a miracle that LED ZEPPELIN is not only better than the first album, but in my eyes maybe the best album in their whole discography. I mean, not only did they release this album the same years as their debut, but they did it in-between tour stops. By all accounts, this should be a mess, but then they barge in here with "Whole Lotta Love", "Heartbreaker". "Thank You", "Ramble On", "Bring It On Home", "The Lemon Song", "Moby Dick", "What Is And What Should Never Be"... Even "Livin' Lovin' Maid"! From the moment you put the needle down on side one to the time it falls off side two, it's nothing but some of the best, stronger stuff they've ever done. And the most varied, too, until HOUSES OF THE HOLY. You just can't argue with riffs and melodies and a rhythm section like this. And seriously, "Thank You" might not be the first song most people think of when they think of favorite Zeppelin tunes, but it's **so high** up my list it might even be at the top, for serious. Like, if you can't tell, I don't even have anything insightful to say, really. It's just damn good stuff! Put it on! Jam out! I'unno, do **something** with it! Just don't listen to TRAIN DOES LED ZEPPELIN II. That's the worst thing you could do.

Stankonia

OutKast

5/5

Y'know, I should be saying more about the album as a whole instead of talking about only one song, 'cuz as far as it's concerned it's probably the best rap album my group has gotten so far. The beats, the flows, the lyrics... It's all great and unique in that OutKast/ATL kind of way. But for my money, all I wanna do is gush about my favorite track, "B.O.B.". Simply, it's the hypest damn track I've ever damn heard. It's a rush, and hearing it in the context of the full album for the first time, I legit had to take a second to reorient myself. It's like I was skating along, and then this song burst in out of nowhere and I had to quickly scramble to get myself back on track. It's amazing, and so enjoyable to shout along to "BOMBS OVER BAGHDAAAAAAD" and "POW. ER. MU. SIC, E-LEC-TRIC RE-VI-VAL." Sure, maybe a couple of the lyrics are... Too unique that might be... Like, a little bad? Mostly I'm thinkin' of Big Boi's verse here when I say that, but I can hardly care. There's so much energy it carries me over all of that, and makes it just another lyric that I try to keep up with as I rap along with it. And the beat, THE BEAT. I've only heard this album one-and-a-half times, so maybe I could change my mind, but it's the best one. Kinda beat you get up and lose your damn mind to. Seriously, I can just imagine concerts where the moment it starts everyone's already turned the floor into a giant pit, y'know? It's just incredible. And I know from this review it might sound like I'm giving this album a 5 based just on one song, but, first of all, what a song it is. Secondly, I mean, a lot of this uniqueness, freshness and energy carries over to the rest of it, even if none of it's at the same tempo. It holds up insanely well even 20+ years later and the whole package is absolutely worth your time. STANKLOOOOOOOVE

Who's Next

The Who

5/5

Honestly, I'm kind of glad the original LIFEHOUSE pitch didn't happen. I mean, can you imagine? Instead of just nine of the greatest tracks The Who would ever make simply existing by themselves, they'd be surrounded by all of this weird whatever about people being fed entertainment through tubes or something? There's some explanation that the intro to "Baba O'Riley" is someone's DNA converted into song or whatever? I love a concept album, but nah. You don't need all that. It's a masterwork enough on its own. From the well-known songs down to even "My Wife"—funnily enough, the only song not written for LIFEHOUSE. Simply put, the album's the best The Who ever had. (THEY BEST THEY EVER HAAAAAAA....)

Roots

Sepultura

3/5

I wish I had more to say about this album. It's perfectly good metal, but it just didn't really grip me too hard. Maybe it's the overall length, maybe it's the specific style... I'unno. Part of me feels bad, 'cuz I'd love to have more to say about or higher marks to give non-American metal, and I do like how they incoporated an indigenous Brazilian tribe (the absurd length of the hidden track "Canyon Jam" aside), but that's just how it be.

Beauty And The Beat

The Go-Go's

4/5

Aahhh, it's just fun and energetic pop New Wave. "Bops," as the kids these days might put it. It's really not any more complicated than that. Sure, I can understand why people might find their voices annoying or grating, but if you don't crazy when "We Got The Beat" starts... Well, I don't even know what to tell yah.

Celebrity Skin

Hole

4/5

For reasons unrelated to the album itself, I wasn't able to absorb the album as much as I would've wanted. Even with only 1.5 listens. Allow me, then, to keep this a bit short, so I didn't even up thinking of much to say. To begin with, I came into this album expecting it to be a lot... Y'know, angirer. Grungier. Punkier. Riot grrrl. That was always the impression I had of Hole, largely going by the cover to their album LIVE THROUGH THIS and maybe a sample I heard in a mashup somewhere. Color me very surprised, then, to put this on and hear California power pop and alternative. And more so to find out that I dug a lot. Hell, maybe even a little bit more than I would have LIVE THROUGH THIS. I don't have any specifics to bring up, 'cuz, y'know, as I mentioned, but the vibes are just there. And I like her voice a lot. I'unno. I just dug it a lot. Get off my back, eh?

Call of the Valley

Shivkumar Sharma

4/5

I'unno if this is any better or worse than the last album of Hindustani classical musical my group listened to, honestly. But if I enjoyed my experience with this album any more than I did with THE SOUNDS OF INDIA—and I don't mean this in a negative sense—it had nothing to do with the music itself. Simply, because the only version of this album on Spotify is an apparently terrible re-recording, I had to listen to a vinyl rip on YouTube. And there was just something about all the vinyl crackle and pop underscoring the music that... Y'know, really, really did it for me. It makes me glad, actually that I didn't listen to this via streaming. Without the crackle, it wouldn't be the same. And I'm probably rating this album more for that than the actual music, 'cuz by itself I think it's good but the not mind-blowing "one album of Indian music you must own if you own one" I kept reading it is. But what an enhanced experience it is, eh? Kinda makes me wanna play more records, even if all I have are two portables Crossleys. So I guess I actually hafta thank Rahul Sharma. For him and his dumb re-recording being the only version available. That's something, I suppose.

I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You

Aretha Franklin

5/5

I mean, come on. It's Aretha. She has such a powerful voice, she has such a pretty voice... She has such a **voice**. It's what makes her music, more than anything else. Sure, you can argue the instrumental or the lyrics or the backing vocals aren't up to snuff, but as long as she's on her game vocally, it's hard to call it bad. And, hey, this album has "Respect"—it's one of those songs that by itself gives this album a 4, so good on the rest of the album for earning that extra star.

Nevermind

Nirvana

5/5

Y'know, originally I planned to open this review with a short bit about how this album's always been referred to as and presented to me as a culturual moment, and how it's always so highly rated on "best of" lists, but let's cut straight to the point: it's a great album. An **amazing** album. On both ends, there's a reason it made grunge popular in the 90's and was ranked 9 on Apple Music's 100 in the 2020's. Lemme explain it thorugh my two favorite songs on the album. First, at the end of the album, there's "On A Plain". It's got hooks, man. "LOVE MYSELF, BETTER THAN YOU." "I'M ON A PLAIN—UHHHN, UHHHHN." Big singalong. Compared with that riff, I think it coulda been a hit. And I've always loved, too, how the lyrics end up being about the songwriting process, even referencing the fact that this is the penultimate song on the album (if you don't count "Endless, Nameless", anyway). Then there's "In Bloom". Contrasting heavy, loud choruses and interludes with a quieter chorus. Classic structure The album's big hit "Smells Like Teen Spirit" of course has it, too, and of course I love it as much as everyone else does, but I've always liked "In Bloom" a bit better for its slower pace. It's always made it and its riff feel heavier to me. Plus, the lyrics about the people in Nirvana's audience who enjoy their music without understanding what it's about... Funny my two favorite songs end up being about their own lyrics, but I guess that kind of thing just appeals to me. Point is, it's all great songwriting from Kurt Cobain, played wonderfully by himself and his bandmates Krist and Grohl. I know one of the reasons he went on to resent the album was for its polish, but darn if it ain't still heavy as hell even despite it, y'know? It's not like it was made weak by the polish; you listen to "In Bloom" and "Breed" and tell me it's not heavy. Especially "Breed", with its machine gun drum fills. It's a 5-star album from me. I kinda feel like I should've said more just now to justify that, but it's just one of those album that's worked its way into my soul and was always going to be a 5. Does there really need to be anymore explanation than that? Well, I'd prefer to hear it over not, but still, putting on the album and letting it play is just as good as an explanation as any. It's totally worth the hype, high list rankings and deeming as a "cultural moment" it's gotten.

Unknown Pleasures

Joy Division

3/5

Like the last couple of goth rock albums we've gotten, I imagine I'd be into it way more if I was a goth girl. Since I'm just a regular girl, though, it's... Fine, y'know. I'll admit, there's some stuff here that made me like this album a bit more than some of the other goth albums we've gotten—I mean, that one guitar lick that sounds like it came from a surf rock song? I dig that all the way! On the whole, though, it just had a hard time keeping my attention for too long.

Otis Blue/Otis Redding Sings Soul

Otis Redding

5/5

Listening to this album, I couldn't help but compare Otis Redding's singing to Aretha Franklin's—for no other reason, really, than the fact that this album features three songs Aretha would go on to cover. In particular, there's "Resepect", which actually showed up on album my group got just days ago: I NEVER LOVED A MAN THE WAY I LOVED YOU. And it's not exactly a fair compairson. Like, of course Aretha's take on "Respect" knocks Otis's out of the park. Even he said she'd stolen his song. But it's also not one I wanted to do if I could help it. They both have great voices, and they're both going for their own things, so what's the use? I mean, it's probably just because Aretha's take on "Respect" looms so large over the original that it's hard to remember there even was an original. Thus, by its presence on this album, it kinda spills over into everything else—not even helped by the fact that Aretha would also cover two other songs from it, "A Change Is Gonna Come" and "I've Been Loving You Too Long". Let's take Aretha out of all this, though. Fully leave her aside like I should have done from the beginning and judge the album on its own merits. And going just by what it does, it's really great stuff. I mean, all the love in the world for how Redding sings, specifically when it gets **gruff**. That shit? Oh, I love that shit **too death**. I listened to "Otis" five times the same day just because I wanted to hear his scatting on the beat. And that samples a song from the album he released after this one, so—! He's just so much fun to listen to, and so unique. I can't think of anyone else who sounds exactly the way he does. So, hey, that alone gets this album pretty good marks. And thankfully, the tunes underneath it are good enough to carry this thing to **really good** marks. I can't really recall anything specific about any of them, but that doesn't really matter to me. As just a front-to-back listening experience, it's a rippin' time. So, I guess to close this out I may as well answer the question I proposed at the front that I didn't wanna ask. Ultimately—yeah, I prefer Aretha's singing. It's prettier when it's soulful, and I like her hollerin' better. Otis's is good, but if you had him sing, I'unno, "Border Song" it wouldn't hit the same. But again, it doesn't matter. Regardless of who I prefer, he's just as much a soul legend as Aretha, and his music (not just this album) is worth anyone's time. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go scat along to the "Otis" beat again.

Pink Moon

Nick Drake

4/5

Going into this album, I was ready to treat it the same way as I did PACIFIC OCEAN BLUE by Dennis Wilson or IF YOU WANT IT DARKER by Leonard Cohen, or how I'm sure I'll treat BLACKSTAR by David Bowie. In short: I tend to define albums like these, at least to one extent or another, by peoples' deaths. Even BACK TO BLACK, as much as I didn't want to, I partially defined by Amy Winehouse's death. So here we have Nick Drake's PINK MOON. Before today, I'd always thought of it as "that bleak, depressing album made all the sadder by its proximity to Nick's death." Hell, before today I thought this album was released **posthumously**—that's how much I'd had his passing looming over the album. Indeed, as I first listened to the side one and realized it wasn't as bleak as I thought it was, there was this air of melancholy I just couldn't shake. Even as I came to find out how beautiful it could be, the melancholy lingered. "How sad he died in proximity to this album's release." That's a thought I wasn't holding by the end of the day. In-between listening to side one and finally giving the whole thing I spin, I watched Abigail Devoe's Vinyl Monday video on the album. In it, she makes the following statement, which all but calls me out for my mindset: "I don't think it's intentional, but those who call PINK MOON one of the saddest albums ever made apply the end of Nick's life to his work, and that robs him of his legacy." I mean, let's consider—what even **is** a PINK MOON? I always thought it was a sad, poetic metaphor for something. However, a pink moon, from what I've put together, is actually the first moon of the spring season. The signal that winter—the hard times—is over, and that there are brighter times ahead. And with that framing in mind... Re-listening to the title track, when the piano line came—the only time on the album there's an instrument aside from acoustic guitar—I nearly cried. And Nick's guitar playing throughout, especially on "Horn"... What a talent. What an incredible talent. Although, I'll admit, if I'm not in love with this album, it's because runs a bit old on side two. It feels weird to say that kind of thing about a 28 minute album, and "Parasite" and "From The Morning" are exceptions, but that's just how it is. Maybe once I give it more time... Hell, maybe if I had given it the time it deserved today instead of realizing too late that it deserves it. As it stands, PINK MOON—and all the albums I mentioned above, for that matter, are more than just their artists' passing. And if I'm sad about anything in regards to it, it's that they didn't live long enough to see these albums succeed.

Billion Dollar Babies

Alice Cooper

4/5

It's a pretty good album all around. I just don't have much to say about it. Like, I just can't think of a hook to base the review around. I'm pretty slow to pick up lyrics, even from albums I've listened to nearly 100 times, so there's not much I can say there. Besides, I doubt any of its content is really all that shocking today, in CURRENT YEAR 2024, compared to how it must've been in the 1970's. At most, I can say it's got a lot of good riffs, some pretty nice melody lines for the vocals, and of course "No Mr. Nice Guy" is a classic single. That statement alone might not be enough to sell anyone on this album, bult it's all I can give, so y'might as well take it.

A Short Album About Love

The Divine Comedy

4/5

This kinda stuff is jut really up my alley sometimes, y'know? This orchestral pop crooner thing. I'unno. I mean, don't get me wrong, it's more Bublé than Sinatra, and it wears out a quite bit during the last half of the album, but I found the first half just so much fun and the record (true to its word) is pretty short anyway at only half an hour, so I'm still able to come out of this saying I dig it. And the first track, melodically, really sounded to me like it could be sung by the guy from Sparks, and that's a non-zero factor.

Straight Outta Compton

N.W.A.

5/5

Imagine being Arabian Prince, huh? You're on one of the most seminal, famous and influential rap albums of all time, and your only contribution to it is... "Something 2 Dance 2". A weak, wack-ass elecrtrodance track that sounds nothing like everything else on the album. Imagine: that's on the same album as the title track, with its driving, forecul production. It's on the same album as "Fuck Tha Police", so infamous for its calling out of the cops (even though it's really only Cube's verse) that it got an FBI letter. It's on the same album as "8 Ball (Remix)", with its amazing interweaving of samples. It's on the same album as "I Ain't The 1", which... OK, to address the lyrical content, a lot of the violence n' whatnot I've seen people ding it for can be easily excused, at least in my eyes, by the fact that they were just rapping about their reality at the time. And who am I, or anyone, to tell them how to represent their stories? But the misogyny, mm, that's a little less excusable. Hasn't aged all that well—not that it was any good at the time, but you know what I mean. That being said, though, I'unno why I'd spend in my time railing against nearly 40-years old lyrics when it'd probably be more worth everyone's time to address the misogyny still ongoing in modern rap. Although that's besides the point. Even despite that and it's weird, kinda corny beat, at least Ice Cube's delivery and flow are really good. Imagine all of that coming beforehand, nearly an hour of classic gangsta rap, and then you show up for dated production with barely any lyrics or flow with an alright sample usage at best. And as an album closer—don't get me started! If I were Arabian Prince, I'd be kind of embarased. Especially considering how hard he's been written out of the group's history. Goodness, he's on the damn album cover, but even a Wikipedia-style summary of their history like the STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON biopic can't make time for him. Although, to be fair, despite his appearance on the cover, he wasn't actually in the group at the time, so I don't know how they woulda fit him in anyway. And all that said, I can't actually say I dislike "Something 2 Dance 2". Frankly, I find it too goofy in how out-of-place it is to dislike it. And besides, I rag on Arabian Prince, but he was still on STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON. I wasn't, and you weren't either. He's got that legacy going for him. Oh, and, uh, album's a 5, by the way. Not gonna argue with the current group average. I mean, **damn**, that shit was dope.

Electric Ladyland

Jimi Hendrix

4/5

Mm, I'unno. It's great music—all the experimentation here of course has to be comended—but I just don't dig it as much as I do the simpler pop hits and face melters on the first two Experience albums. Don't get me wrong, I do love my fair share of cuts here:there's "All Along The Watchtower" and "Voodoo Chile (Slight Return)", naturally, but I'm also all for "Crosstown Traffic" and the extended blues jam epic "Voodoo Child". But "House Burning Down", the entire second side excepting "Burning Of The Midnight Lamp"... Eh. Even "1983... (A Merman I Should Turn To Be)", as much as I recognize it as the centerpiece odyssey, isn't something I wanna listen to all the time. In short, I recognize it as Hendrix's most complete artistic statement, and I wish he'd lived longer to see what he could do next. My album preference doesn't make it any less of a 4, or even a 5. I just personally wouldn't return to this first over EXPERIENCED? or AXIS.

Winter In America

Gil Scott-Heron

4/5

It was already pretty clear to me which genres I pay attention to their lyrics and which ones I don't, but it stands out more on this album than others because it has both cases. Like, when it's doing its soul jazz thing—and it's primarily it's soul jazz thing—the lyrics kind of pass by entirely in favor of the melodies and instrumentation. This is where I hafta give all the shout-outs in the world to Brian Jackson. Fantastic stuff; amazing stuff, all around. It's a sound I can really go for. But then when it's on its proto-rap thing on "H20gate Blues", and Gil Scott-Heron sounds like the guy who asked who will survive in America and stated that the revolution won't be televised—damn. The rhymes! The delivery! I don't wanna just say "Wow, it's enjoyable," 'cuz I feel like that kind of ignores what he has to say poltically, but seriously—it's really damn enjoyable to listen to. This guy, with this voice—I really like hearin' 'em go off. So, hey, that sounds like a pretty good 4 to me. If only I coulda listened to this album on Spotify, though. Thankfuly there's YouTube uploads, but I can't imagine why it's not on Spotify. Oh, and if my group could've gotten this album in winter, too, ans not the first day of June, that woulda been really appropriate. But then I'd still be in Canada, so y'know, ultimately, whatever.

Sea Change

Beck

3/5

It's pretty good collection of melancholic music. I'm sure if I felt the same way he did making it I'd be more engaged, but since I don't and didn't, it's a fine enough listen. Enough so that I didn't mind how it kept fading in and out of my attention. I'unno.

The Gershwin Songbook

Ella Fitzgerald

3/5

Until today, I've had this running joke with my group that only I've told that we weren't going to get an album longer than 69 LOVE SONGS. As far as I knew, that was the longest album in the book, standing at 172 minutes. It was gonna be the closest we ever got to three hours. After all, I knew the 1001 ALBUMS book didn't have mega-epic, 250-plus-minute box sets like AMERICAN ANTHOLOGY OF FOLK MUSIC or James Brown's STAR TIME, so once we got that we'd be in the clear. Then today happened. We got this album. And my jaw dropped a little. Look, let's make this clear: I don't have a problem with Ella Fitzgerald's voice. She's a lovely voice, beautiful. 100% deserved the shout out she got in Stevie Wonder's "Sir Duke". I don't have a problem with George and Ira Gershwin. Or the Great American Songbook for that matter, or jazz standards in general. I still occasionally spin Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga's CHEEK TO CHEEK album, and I really love "Anything Goes", the title track and "I Can't Give You Anything But Love". I don't even have a problem with the arrangements. I like myself a fair bit of vocal jazz and traditional pop every once in a while. Look at how much I liked the Frank Sinatra album my group got—and again, there's CHEEK TO CHEEK. My problem with this album, simply and solely, lies in its crushing length: **THREE HOURS AND FOURTEEN MINUTES**. That's longer than Prince's EMANCIPATION. I have no idea why they decided to record so many of these things except that they could. And truthfully, from the moment I saw its length, I knew I wasn't gonna bother listening to the whole thing. And I didn'! I heard from "Sam & Delilah" to "The Real American Folk Song (Is A Rag)", and then after that I just listened to a 40-some minute compilation from 2007. 'Cuz seriously, even listening to only the first hour of this got a bit excruciating. I don't hate this sound, but there **can** be too much of a good thing. Like, by the time I got to "Just Another Rhumba" and I heard "September" pronounced as "Septumba," I really wanted to just stop. I'd more than had my fill of Ella siiiiiiingiiiiing mooost of the sooooooongs like thiiiiiiiiiis. But there was still twenty minutes left, so—! One of the people actually did manage to sit through the whole thing. I can't begin to fathom how they did it. As I'm writing this, it's hours before we can share our reviews, so I don't know what they think of this, but I can imagine they're all too positive about the length either. Even beyond its length not every song on here is a winner. Like, some of them hafta be obscure for a reason, y'know? Again, I point to "Just Another Rhumba". Or the one that I read has the damn 20th Century fanfare. Or they're just plain indistinguishable from each other and blend together. Even on the 2007 "very best of" compilation they kind of do, but at least there there's only 12 songs and not **a billion**. And that's **still** the best way to listen to this material. Of course, by all means, if you wanna go digging through this set to find your own "very best of," be my guest. (Hell, I know I'm probably gonna do the same thing whenever I **do** get around to Prince's EMANCIPATION.) Or if you've already done it—good for you! I'm glad you were able to discover something in there that I didn't, seriously. For my money, however, I just don't have the time or patience. Ella's voice is generally too good to give this any less than a three, but believe me—I could. At least now I no longer fear 69 LOVE SONGS as much as I did before. Hell, I'll embrace it, even! The sweet, sweet feel of **SLIGHTLY UNDER** three hours. Oh, it'll be so nice.

Scream, Dracula, Scream

Rocket From The Crypt

4/5

Really fun hardcore punk with horns sometimes. Reminded me vocally of The Clash in a lot of places. I'unno, I just had a lot of fun with it. Shows what I know for giving it the ol' "Who the hell are you?" treatment.

Only By The Night

Kings of Leon

3/5

I'unno. On my first listen, I just didn't care for it all too much. Very "boring late 2000's rock" vibes. Like, it honestly had my wondering why this album was a hit—if it even was a hit at all and wasn't just being carried by its two singles. Really, it was only on my re-listen to the first half where I began to enjoy it, and only because I saw someone compare this album to U2. Specifically, JOSHUA TREE-era U2, and, like, I'unno. I can hear it, certainly, but nothing here soars for me in the same way THE JOSHUA TREE could. Of course, that U2 comparison is the thing alone that's raising this to an "it's fine" 3, 'cuz otherwise I really could not care.

In The Court Of The Crimson King

King Crimson

4/5

Don't ask me why I haven't heard this album before today. You'd think being the progressive rock fan I am (i.e. I love Pink Floyd and two/three Yes albums and don't hate ELP) I'd've heard this sooner. But, no. Blame it on the thing's overwhelming popularity, blame it on the fact that I wouldn't be able to have its cover shown on Last.FM... Most likely, blame that I just never got around to it. Whatever reason, it doesn't matter. I've finally gotten to this album, and, boy, am I glad I did. This is some premo-prog rock. Seriously, every song (save maybe one) scratches that exact itch. From the bombast of "21st Century Schizoid Man", to the way it quiets down for "I Talk To The Wind", to that Mellotron riff on "The Court Of The Crimson King". An exception aside, I don't feel there's a moment wasted. Impressive for an album where the shortest song of five is **six minutes**. (And that one exception, by the way, is "Moonchild". That's not an unpopular opinion, I hear; most fans of this don't like how "Moonchild" just... Doesn't end. I'm aware there's a remix by Steve Wilson that chops off two minutes and fans prefer that version—but that's besides the point. I'm not into all the free improv, in short.) In fact, "Moonchild" dragging on as long as it does is the only reason I'm not awarding this album a 5. Believe me, otherwise it completely deserves a 5. I mean, with how it lives up to being the codifier for prog? You bet your entire ass. But... Eh. If the remix were the version I listened to, maybe. In any case, I'm just happy to finally have this one under my belt. And I should actually go listen to other prog albums, too. Like THE LAMB LIES DOWN ON BROADWAY or... I'unno. TARKUS? I meant to get around to that one but never did. Maybe with this album on my mind, I can—... Eh, later.

2112

Rush

5/5

Whenever people talk about this album, I feel like they're mostly talking about the title track. That's not to put down the other songs, of course, but "2112" is such an incredible, iconic, towering piece of prog rock (any Randian infiuence it might have aside) that it's hard to compare. But then, I don't think this album would be as acclaimed as it is if it was just a "2112" delivery system and the rest was "Who gives a dang?" The second has to, and does, hold ifs own. "Something For Nothing" and "Lessons" rock on their own; "A Passage To Bangkok" has to the hookiest hook on the album; "The Twilight Zone" is classic prog nerd topic shit with a killer guitar lick to boot... Even "Tears", the ballad of the album, comes out an enjoyable listen as some kinda 70's cheese. I wouldn't entirely blame the mindset claiming that the second side of the record is filler to justify releasing the title track on an album. Sort of a weird take on how a lot of 50's albums were constructed, y'know? But that's missing the fact that the other five songs are classics in their own right. They're worth the time, just as much as "2112" is. And all together, it makes one of the truly finest prog rock packages I've ever heard. And from Canadians, no less! My people! Now **this** is some national pride right here, I'll tell you what.

Fever Ray

2/5

Y'know, if this were just an instrumental album, I wouldn't fully understand why it's here or the hype from mainstream, but I'd think it was just fine. Chill-type-I-guess electro-pop. Maybe a little boring to me, but otherwise it's nothing offensive. The vocals, though—**the vocals**. Like, I'm sorry, Karin sounds like a Björk wannabe. And not a very good one, either. Their voice really grated on me; enough that I had to dock this thing a star down to an "Eehhh" 2. Them's the breaks. Also, I kept reading their stage name as "Freaky Ray." And maybe it their vocals **had** been a little less freaky...

The Stranger

Billy Joel

4/5

Y'know, I've never been much one to joke on Billy Joel, and this album here is pretty much why. Now, sure, before the first time I listened to this album in, I'unno, 2021, I just generally didn't have much of a reason to. But giving this thing two relistens in 2024—oof, boy. This is some amazing piano-led singer-songwriter 70's pop rock. And there's all those qualifies, yeah, but still—it's real good stuff. Maybe a little cheesy in some parts, but like I'm not at least some-percent cheese at this point in my life. I do with cheese; I enjoy cheese... This is good. Just look at "Scenes From An Italian Resturaunt". It's an epic for sure, and a fan favorite for a reason. And if I'm not giving it a 4, it's only just because it hasn't quite yet reached the "entered my soul" phase yet. I can't say I don't see this album doing it, but as it stands, it's just a really great listen. So, y'know, ultimately, no. I might not have provided a lot of explanation, but in general, that's why I won't joke on Billy Joel. Even with some of the stuff he made after this. Or some of the stuff he made **before**. You ever hear Atilla? Goodness me. Joke on that stuff all day.

The Cars

4/5

Y'know, maybe it was just the state of mind I found myself in today—very tired, I guess 'cuz I forced myself to wake up earlier than I had been recently—but I'unno. This album just didn't blow me away. Of course, the one-two-three of the opening tracks are great (that's where "Just What I Needed" comes in, after all). Everything else, though... Eh. Kind of all slid together for me. And I'll grant, I could just been in the wrong head to take it in properly, although I have the impression I wouldn't even if I hadn't got conked out hard when I laid down on my bed while playing this album a second time. Still, I wanna give this thing a 4, thanks to those first three tracks. They're good times, what can I say? Otherwise, eh, it really woulda been a 3 from me.

Eternally Yours

The Saints

4/5

I don't really have much to say about this one, except that of all of the Australian albums my group has gotten so far this is the one I've liked the best. Turns out all they hadda do to win my affection was play some damn solid punk with horns on a few tracks. Who woulda knew?

I See A Darkness

Bonnie "Prince" Billy

4/5

I think it's a good album, but one where I wasn't in the right mood to truly love it. Like, if I was happened to come into this thing while I was feeling sad, it probably would've blown my mind. For sure, the few times I tried to put myself in that headspace, it clicked way better. Though without truly being there—y'know, not pretending... I can feel it, rumbling under the ground, but at most it's a 4 teetering on a 3, speaking in terms of personal enjoyment. At least it wasn't the slog the album covered made it look like it'd be, oof.

1977

Ash

4/5

And just as I thought I was getting sick of Britpop, here's one that leans way more into garage rock and pop punk (Britpop punk?), and, da,mn, I just think this shit rocks. 50 is a little long, yeah, but I had my fun with this, so I can't complain too much. Or really have much to say other than what I just did. "Girls From Mars" reminded me a lot of Weezer. I'm not the only one, right?

Dummy

Portishead

4/5

I feel like in most normal situations I'd give this album a 3. Like, as much as I can recognize in the moment, while it's playing, all the stuff that makes it great—the production, the sampling, the vocal style, the mood—hours later, I can't remember a second of it. And that goes for most all trip hop, really. Unless it's in direct comparison to much more boring trip hop (see: MAXINQUAYE), I'm not sure what it can really do to bump up an extra star. Well, this thing found a way: a **bitchen guitar solo on the last track**. Seriously, I'unno who decide it should rip so hard, but if I ain't happy! Absolutely, it's enough to earn that extra star from me. And maybe more trip hop albums should have solos like that, I'unno. Massive Attack, it wouldn't hurt to try. You too, Tricky.

Pornography

The Cure

2/5

I can't 100% remember how I've rated every other goth album my group's come across, but I think it's here I wanna firmly put this genre into the "not my thing" box. Like, lemme just stop saying "If I were goth...," y'know? 'Cuz this album in particular, this album was very "in one ear, out the other; can't recall nuffin'" for me. Normally I'd attribute that to undiagnosed ADHD, or a general "if I had more time to spin it," but here, with this kinda soundscape, it does nothing for me. And I'm not particularly clamoring to remember, either. There's not even any one element I can shrug at to justify bumping it an extra star. So, all the goths of the world out there, I like your fashion, and I like your girls with the big tiddy, but your music? I jus' gotta be honest with myself here and stop giving the benefit. Maybe down the line I'll find out that appeals more to my sensibilities, but for sure it's not here.

Scissor Sisters

5/5

I wanna summarize how much I enjoyed this album just by talking the weird-ass cover of "Comfortably Numb". 'Cuz its ass is **very** weird. I mean, if you didn't tell me this was a Pink Floyd cover, just from the arrangement alone I wouldn't be able to tell. Some kinda electroclash glam rock thing? Very strange! And the vocals—they sound like SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER Bee Gees, right down to "AH-HA-HA"s. Why did they even cover this song at all? What the heck even is this? I don't know about anyone else, but to me, what this is is **great**. I know I've described a lot of albums I haven't heard before as "fun listens," but this is the most I've meant it yet. It's largely thanks to how glam-y it is. I've always had a thing for glam rock, and the way it's done here—**good shit**. Combine that with how queer it is, and I kinda feel a little dumb for not checking out any of their albums sooner. Like, I can blame my mom and sister annoying me with "Let's Have A Kiki" all I want; at the end of the day, this is incredibly up my alley. I'll even choose "I got distracted by other things" as the reason why side two didn't do as much for me as the first and why I won't dock it a star for that. I don't think there's any other Scissor Sisters albums on this list, and as I'm writing this I don't feel like checking. So thank goodness we at least got this album. I can't say how "worthy" it is to be here, but it's an absolute blast regardless. (And seriously, my mom and sister were **all the damn time** with "Let's Have A Kiki" back when GLEE covered it. In retrospect, it's the biggest foreshadowing I can remember for how much they'd end up getting into stuff like RUPAUL'S DRAGRACE. And, y'know, better that than wherever they would've ended up if they got more into the "Turkey Lurkey" half of GLEE's cover.)

Live At Leeds

The Who

5/5

This is actually the first time I've heard this album with its original vinyl track listing. Before now, I've always listened to it as it was expanded in 2001, which pushed its runtime from under 40 minutes to nearly 90. Hearing how it sounded with only six tracks to its name, though... Well, to start, in either case the music was electric. This is prime Who performing live here, after all. How they sounded in the studio was always great, but in a live setting, especially in the days this was recorded, they went to the next level. It was some of the wildest, hardest rock of its time, and even still now, and I'm thankful they got an album that captured that. And in this six song format? The expanded edition was always enjoyable, but 83 minutes **is** a lot, no matter how good the material is. With just the 40, however, this is **tight** shit. No nonsense, just three covers and three hits, including the mega-medley-extended "My Generation". That thing's gracious enough to give us a little "Listening To You" in there, and, like, I understand people who balk at its runtime, but with that, and energy and playing like this, I could never come close to disliking it. Speaking about people who balk at this album, by the way—I mean, I hate to make my review about other people's reviews, but I wanna defend not just this album's inclusion on this list, but the decision to include live albums at all. It needs to be realized—they can be just as, if not more important than studio albums. Take what I said above: The Who were great in the studio, but they could only come so close to capturing their live sound in there. I think it'd be a tragedy if we didn't have this album to preserve it for people who couldn't be there. And look at enough album on this list, James Brown's LIVE AT THE APOLLO. That was the album that **made** him into the star he was and household name he remains. He put his own money for that, 'cuz he knew he needed a good representation of his live shows that studio recordings couldn't. And, hell, take a look further into the metal scenes—with exceptions, I don't think you can be a good metal band without a classic live album to your name. Iron Maiden's LIVE AFTER DEATH, Judas Priest's UNLEASHED IN THE EAST, Motörhead's NO SLEEP 'TIL HAMMERSMITH, Thin Lizzy's LIVE AND DANGEROUS, Deep Purple's MADE IN JAPAN... I could go on. Point is, they all serve a purpose and provide a sound and energy that studio albums could never hope to. LIVE AT LEEDS very much deserves its spot on this list, right alongside WHO'S NEXT and TOMMY. It's an essential part of who they were as a band that cannot be missed. If you don't like live music, fine. I don't expect everyone to be 100% with how songs get changed or expanded on stage, especially when they **can** devolve into wankery sometimes. (Bonzo, I love you, and I'm in awe of your playing intensity, but I cannot deal with your 30 minute drum solos.) But don't say it doesn't belong here. It's more worthy than a lot of studio albums I've heard, and that's a fact. Also, the album packaging's got a really cool "bootleg" design, and that's just neat shit, man. I always love seeing bands intentionally do this kind of thing—like, Aerosmith's got one, too, that's even called LIVE! BOOTLEG, and that's just great. I hear actual material on it's not up to snuff—and in fact, from everything I've come across, I don't think Aerosmith has a single good live album. But I **did** say that were exceptions, after all. Sorry, Steven.

Rum Sodomy & The Lash

The Pogues

5/5

No deep thoughts this time. I just think Celtic punk is fucking awesome. And Celtic folk, too, for that matter. I just love the melodies these have. Like, damn, I feel like I should be in a pub, five Lagers deep trying to sing along, but I'm so blitzed I can't even **speak right**, let alone sing. And when the band plays "Waltzing Matilda", I'm down on the bar sobbing. Gawddamn. Amazing stuff.

Fear Of A Black Planet

Public Enemy

5/5

I'm just in awe of the production, mostly. Of course Chuck D and Flava Flav's rhyming and rapping is amazing and worth a five on theif oqn, but the production from The Bomb Squad? The sampling going on here? Incredible, incredible. It's this kind of sampling I would love to do if I were a producer myself. In fact, at some point in the future I gotta

BEYONCÉ

Beyoncé

4/5

Mm. I think this is one where I hafta blame my expectations. Like, as far as I've seen, this is supposed to be the bestestest Beyoncé album **ever** forever and ever. I'd always assumed it'd be LEMONADE, but, no, it's the one she surprise dropped in 2013. And I'm just wondering, "Is it actually that good, or are people still being blindsided by its release method?" And it **is** good, don't get me wrong. But the greatest Beyoncé album of all time? I don't have enough context to really answer that, though I feel I'd still fall back on LEMONADE. And is it really that amazing? Eh... I won't say "No," but it just didn't hit that level where I can fully agree. Like, I know what a 5 for me sounds like, and this just ain't it. Beyoncé's got the voice and whatnot for a 4 at minimum, but I just didn't find that certain intangiable element that'd make me 5 it like the rest of my group. Just how it goes. (Also, even if I did, "Mine" would still be boring. Take that, Drake—I guess.)

Peter Gabriel

5/5

Another one from the category, "Before now I only knew it for one song, but now that I've actually heard it—damn, what took me so long?" It's gotta be one of the best albums of the 80's, as one good album with "Sledgehammer" (the aforementioned one song) should be. Like, in terms of all the various worldy-type progressive art pop songs from the decade, I doubt it got any better than this. My only real complaint is that some of the outros run a bit too long, but it's a nitpick in the grand scheme of things. To quote a bunch of teen girls voiced by an e-mail checkin' wrestlem'n, this album really is "so good." (Now, to address if it's the best album of the 80's overall—I **did** have that thought, but, I mean, as long as Weird Al's IN 3-D still exists... Though that's such a high bar to clear, I would take it too seriously, y'know?)

You've Come a Long Way Baby

Fatboy Slim

5/5

Tragic Songs of Life

The Louvin Brothers

3/5

Part of me feels weird to like traditional country music as much as I do. Not country music as a whole; I've listened to too much Cledus T. Judd to say I don't like country. It's **traditional** country in particular I feel odd about. I grew up in the mid-/late-2000's. I became a teenager in the early 2010's. What is someone in **my** age range doing liking music this (to use this word as much as I can in the non-political sense) conservative? And if I was younger—goodness! Like, I'unno. This kind of sounds, these arrangements and instrumentations, the way they sing... It just does it for me. Like, this to me is **COUNTRY**, no extra qualifiers. I can totally see the appeal of just kicking back with a beer to this stuff. Even if the songs that aren't about heartbreak are about murder. It's not a sound I'd seek out all the time, but every once in a while, if I don't wanna put on Cledus or go the "I only listen to Johnny Cash" route... Sure. I can throw it on. Part of me wants to give this a 4 because of how much I ended up liking it despite my expectations (before we got it I was ironically hyping it up to my group), but... Eh. I like it, but I'm not in **love** with it. Definitie "It's fine" energy. Now if this had a goofy lookin' Satan on the cover like they'd have a few albums late, whoo! Five stars! A+! Six stars! Hot damn!

Zombie

Fela Kuti

4/5

Now **this** is some damn good shit. I'm not sure what I expected out of it besides political commentary and criticisms I wouldn't 100% understand (and maybe I still should, though it's maybe a little too late for that), but this funk/jazz Afrobeat thing it's got going on it just amazing. I hardly even mind the fact it's made up of two tracks each nearly 13-minute; they're just that enjoyable to listen to. I don't even have a proper closer for this little paragraph excpept to repeat myself: this is **damn** good shit.

Giant Steps

The Boo Radleys

3/5

As Britpop goes, this is fine. I guess I just can't hear those "giant steps" forward for the genre that this album is supposed to have. I mean, I do like it quite a bit, but I just can't get myself too hyped over it.

Twelve Dreams Of Dr. Sardonicus

Spirit

4/5

I'unno if I've said this in an earlier review or not, but I really needa stop seeing albums from artists I don't recognize and going, "Who the f**k is this guy?" 'Cuz I've really enjoyed all the ones my group's gotten so far where I've had that reaction, and this is no exception. It's really fun late-60's psych rock released in 1970. And it's twelve whole dreams! What more could you want?

Surf's Up

The Beach Boys

5/5

The Beach Boys' output post-PET SOUNDS from the late 60's to the early 70's, from SMILEY SMILE to HOLLAND, is a very interesting stretch of albums. In the grand scope of a band like them these records are pretty obscure stuff, put next to PET SOUNDS, SMiLE and their surf material. However, at the same time, they also happen to be a lot of the best work this band ever did. For example, SMILEY SMILE could never match up to what SMiLE could be, but as an early lo-fi and bedroom pop record, it's fantastic. SUNFLOWER has songs like "Add Some Music To Your Day", "This Whole World" and the masterpiece "Forever". And FRIENDS? FRIENDS is generally one of my top three Beach Boys albums; I used to wake up to it nearly every morning, back when I actually woke up in the morning. Then there's SURF'S UP. One blemish aside, it's the best thing the group had made some PET SOUNDS. Or maybe it's even better, if you wanna go that far. Front to back, from "Don't Go Near The Water" and "Disney Girls (1957)" to the triple threat of "A Day In The Life Of A Tree", "'Til I Die" and the title track, it's near untouchable progressive pop. Especially those last three songs. I didn't wanna focus all my attention on them, but seriously, the organ on "A Day In The Life Of A Tree" alone—!! You'd never expect music this beautiful coming from an album with a record cover like, y'know, **this one**, but that's part of why it's so amazing, honestly. It's not as dark as the cover lets on, but it still somehow manages to capture a lot of the feel, I think. At any rate, no matter how much I like Cooper Black font, it's a better album cover than PET SOUNDS had, that's for sure. Now, let's address the blemish: "Student Demonstration Time". It's the only one Mike Love wrote without any other Beach Boy, and fittingly, it's the worst track on the album. It's just so out of place with everything else. Seriously, what's this rewrite of "Riot In Cell Block #9" doing in the same space as "Surf's Up"? I can appreciate the band being more socially conscious with this song and "Don't Go Near The Water", and I get having some variety, but it just doesn't land too well. All the same, though... That's also why I kind of love it? Either way I don't think it's bad enough that its inclusion drags this album down a star, but I'm just so amused by how much of a sore thumb it is. And it's dumb "BAH-DAH-DAH-DAH-DAH" blues rock. I find it hard to hate that too much. Besides, it's not even the worst Mike Love song based on another song—and I know Brian co-wrote it, but in my mind "Be True To Your School" is all Love. Just the perfect example of him as an uncool prep. But anyway, it couldn't have made me happier that this is the first Beach Boys album we got. I actually spent a lot of time today listening to material on the box set FEELS FLOWS from this album's sessions; that's how excited I was. I don't think even PET SOUNDS, where I still maintain the cliché of holding it as their best, would've inspired me to dig in like that. Naturally, then, I can't give this album any less than a 5. I'd give it a 6 if I could, and I haven't felt that way about an album since we got ABBEY ROAD. It's just a gorgeous collection of tunes. I really wish they could've kept this streak up past HOLLAND, too. I mean, I give it up for THE BEACH BOYS LOVE YOU, but I know that it's not for everyone. And just knowing that this band eventually ends up recording "Summer Of Love" and letting John Stamos sing "Forever"... Yecch. Thanks a lot, Love.

Jagged Little Pill

Alanis Morissette

4/5

Man, it was fun to see this one pop up, 'cuz I'd heard it for the first time only a month ago—ironic, don'tcha think? Anyway, I think it's a pretty darn enjoyable listen. I'm not 100% that any of the album cuts hit as hard as "You Oughta Know" or "Ironic" (except the chorus of "You Learn"; I fell in love with it the first time I heard it), but it's not like they're that far away, all things considered. And that moment when it cuts to silence on the opening track—man, I gotta kick out of it. So, yeah. In total, I just can't hear any reason why I wouldn't rate it a 4 at minimum. And that's not just because I'm Canadian and needa rep my people, no.

Live At The Star Club, Hamburg

Jerry Lee Lewis

4/5

Up top, I wanna say that my relationship with Jerry Lee Lewis doesn't go any further than the fact that his biopic, GREAT BALLS OF FIRE!, is one of the few I actively refuse to watch. And keep in mind, I've seen STARDUST and BACK TO BLACK, so that's saying something. It's just, I know he's a bad guy, and I'd rather not watch a movie about his life, but otherwise... Like, all I really know him for is his musicianship. And because of that, that's no doubt why I'm able to listen to this and enjoy it so much. 'Cuz, gawd, I can hear what all the fuss is about; he can **play**. Y'think you can calm down a second, man? Goodness. Sounded to me like one of those performances where the people would just straight fall apart because of how hard he's playing it. For my group's first rock and roll album, it's really good for showing off how wild you'd imagine it'd sound. I mean, there's still a part of me that'd prefer we'd've gotten something like HERE'S LITTLE RICHARD first, and not for any reasons having to do with Lewis as a person, but I don't think I can really complain about the album we got too much. As for the fact it's a 4 and not a 5, it's the usual reason—I'm just not blown away enough by it to really justify the extra point. It probably deserves it, but... Eh. I guess I'll blame that "RRRRRRRRRRR" thing Lewis kept doing; I wasn't too big on it. (Also, if anyone knows why the version on Spotify is truncated to 22 minutes... Seriously, the hell is up with that?)

Birth Of The Cool

Miles Davis

4/5

*{nod, nod}* That's some cool jazz alright. I mean, I'unno. I'm no expert on what makes this jazz specifically so cool, but it's real good shit, at any rate. Gets me exicted to hear the other Miles Davis that're no doubt on here. Well, excited as I can anyway for an album as cool as this.

Moving Pictures

Rush

5/5

What a treat to get this on Canada Day. I mean, it'd be a treat to get this any day, but on Canada Day, specifically? Man, oh man. 'Cuz simply, this is one of the best Canadian albums ever released. Seriously, from the crashing opening synth of "Tom Sawyer"—damn thing's a jump scare if you're not paying attention—it's Rush at the top of their game, right on down. Like, 2112 the song is a masterpice, but as an album? Really feels like "2112 and five other songs," as good as those other five are. But MOVING PICTURES here, it's the whole package. You got your radio-ready songs like "Red Bachretta", and you got your proggier stuff like "Witch Hunt", but neither side is any more or less important than the other, y'know? It's rock damn solid. And to touch on the radio-ready material—like that's a bad thing? Hell if a prog band has some songs with hooks and that're catchy. Sorry they're not writing neo-jazz classical epics about By-Tor and honewdew, y'know? Like, my apologies, but it really stings me that the top-rated review of this album—which, I'll be up front, I didn't read in full because I come here for reviews, not creative writing exercizes—seems to be saying that Rush killed prog going into the 80's. At least that's what I gleam from the paragraph where Geddy Lee stabs prog rog to death—prog rock, who used to be about jazzy suites or whatever. Truthfully, I haven't heard enough 80's prog rock to comment on how it fared or has aged, but just talking about this album—no. No. Hard no. This might be Rush's greatest album, far as I'm concerned. This or 2112, but either way, MOVING PICTURES is a landmark album. It's simply incredible. I don't know how someone can hear "YYZ" or "Lifelight" and think this album's so bad they hafta write a whole fairy tale to express how much they don't like it. I mean, maybe I'm just mad at the form of the review. The fairy tale thing. Really, if they dislike the album that much, fine. In fact, I'd love to know **why** someone dislikes those songs as much as they do. But in the way they chose to present it... I'unno. It just strikes me as incredibly pretentious; like they think they're **so smart** for not liking this album and saying so in this way. And, y'know, apologies as well for ranting on so long about that. MOVING PICTURES has the kind of reputation where it doesn't need defending—by anyone, let alone me—but as someone who cares about hearing people's opinions, wether I disagree with them or not... It just frustrates me. So, lemme bring this back around: without any spite, I meant what I said about this album. It really is that good all around. Now, sure, I might return to the 70's hard rock sounds of 2112 a bit more than this album's synth thing, but that's not to undermine it. It's a classic from my home country, plain and simple. At the end of the day, that's really all that needs to be said. (And, hey, this album doesn't have influence from Ayn Rand, so that's another positive.)

Beach Samba

Astrud Gilberto

3/5

It's... Pff, I'unno. It's just some easy listening bossa nova. Perfectly servicable. I just don't know what it's doing here on this list. Like, what exactly is so notable about it that it deserves to take up a spot? It can't be for Astrud herself, because you can already hear her singing on GETZ/GILBERTO. And that album doesn't have any out-of-place circus music, so...! Again, I'unno. It's pretty listenable; I'm just not impressed with it.

Autobahn

Kraftwerk

5/5

This album can be really pretty in parts. I'm not sure why this isn't as celebrated as TRANS EUROPA EXPRESS. I mean, that's all I really hafta say: I enjoyed this one **way more** than I did the other one. And people complain about this being repetitive? Please, like it doesn't evolve on itself. I swear...

American Idiot

Green Day

5/5

This is one of those albums that's wormed its way so deeply into my heart and soul that I can't even think of anything to say about it. I mean, is it mixed like a brick? Sure, but I hardly even notice. I just throw on "Jesus Of Suburbia" and I'm, like... Still in awe of it. Top three Green Day album, for damn sure. Goodness me.

Come Away With Me

Norah Jones

3/5

I mean, I'unno. I just have such a hard time getting invested or, like, interested in this. I'm sure there's some technical aspect about that I'm missing, like her breath control or something, but... Nah. I'm just gonna rate it how I feel: an "it's fine" 3.

Tommy

The Who

5/5

Y'know, for the longest time, QUADROPHENIA was my favorite rock opera The Who had made. Attribute that to how I first experienced deep cuts from both that album and TOMMY: I saw The Who in concert back in 2016, and I was blown the hell away by "The Rock". Back-to-back with "Love, Reign O'er Me", I became an instant fan. Meanwhile, they'd played "Amazing Journey" and "Sparks" earlier, and... Well, I recognized "Pinball Wizard" at least. I'unno, at that time they just didn't really do anything for me. Fast-forward years later. I still like QUADROPHENIA a lot, but especially after having seen the film adaptation... It just feels a little more standard than it used to? Like, "Yeah, this is how The Who typically sound." And of course, that's not a bad thing, but... Eeehhhhh. It doesn't sound as incredible to me as it used to. Meanwhile, TOMMY, having seen its film version and having spun Tenacious D's medley a million times? Oh, hell yeah. This is the weird-ass rock opera shit I wanna hear. Mrs. Walker, it's a joy. Whatever problem I had with it way back when—maybe I thought TOMMY sounded smaller than QUADROPHENIA—I don't even mind. Nor do I mind its 74 runtime. I just have a blast listening to it, whenever I do spin it in full. But even when I restrict myself to the songs in Tenacious D's medley ("Pinball Wizard", "There's A Doctor" and "Go To The Mirror!")... Well, simply: "Listening to you, I get the [good-ass] music." (WHO'S NEXT still tops, though, just to be clear. And if you've never heard Elton John's cover of "Pinball Wizard" from the movie soundtrack, do y'self a favor. Honestly, I like it even better than the original. Love me all that piano stuff, goodness.)

Eli And The Thirteenth Confession

Laura Nyro

3/5

I'll admit up front, I didn't really give this thing the proper time and attention that it—that any album, of course—deserves. Much like back when my group got COLES CORNER, for some reason I thought it'd be a good idea to try and listen to this thing in the same room where my mom was cleaning and blasting her own music from the TV. I mean, heck, even in the moment, I realized very quickly that there's only so much you can pick up on when "Houdini" and "The Real Slim Shady" are blaring right next to you, but thanks to the pure stubbornness I had for not wanting to listen to Eminem right then... The only part I remember fully picking up on (and it was only after I finally moved somewhere quieter) was the final vocal hit of the last song, and... I'unno. There was just something about the way it sounded that hit me the wrong way. Enough so that I didn't even bother giving this thing a second listen, so I'm writing this mostly based on samples and scrubbing around fan YouTube uploads. To be honest, I don't think this album's bad, really. It's a collection of soul-y late-60's tunes, very far away from the pretension I imagined I'd be in for thanks to the "folk jazz" genre label on Wikipedia. Normally, I'm very into this sorta thing. I dig Aretha Franklin, after all. And I can't say there aren't a few spots where I did find this thing kind of beautiful, even through the noise of "Mockingbird" and "What's The Difference?". On the whole, though... Look, I hate to parrot opinions, but there's just something about her voice sometimes, man. It leaves me very unenthusiastic to wanna revisit this thing. Now, I don't think I'm asking for a perfect voice here. I know I'm used to hearing voices digitally modified to be flawless, but I can recognize how much charm there is in the little human errors. That's what makes this shit alive, man. That's where the soul is! Or something like that. But Nyro here... I can tell when she wants to hit the big notes like Aretha does. She just can't manage them, though. In those moments, she sounds like Cher. I only just now realized that as I was writing this, but yeah: she sounds like Cher sometimes. And the thing is, Cher sounds like that **all the time**, so I'm at least able to let her get away with being unique. Nyro keeps fluctuating, though, and I suppose I can respect the fact that she's not trying to put on a voice, but I just wish she'd stick in one lane or the other. Now, I'd kinda feel bad about giving her a low rating. After all, from everything I've seen, she's clearly someone very influential who just didn't get her public due at the time. The album wasn't a commercial hit, but it did influence people like Elton John and Todd Rundgren, and in 2020 Rolling Stone named it one of the 500 greatest albums of all time. A more famous, well-known "greatest album"—like, I'unno, as an off-the-dome example, TALKING HEADS: 77—had to be kicked out entirely for this to be here. That's not nothing. And it's not like any of that means it should get an automatic five stars from me, but... I liked enough parts of it that I can't go lower than a 3. I don't like her voice, but again, there parts I **did** find kind of beautiful. It's just that this feels like the least enthusiastic 3 I've given since... COLES CORNER, funny enough. So I guess I didn't really miss too much when parts were drowned out by "Venom".

The Velvet Underground & Nico

The Velvet Underground

4/5

For me, listening to this album was about two songs: "Heroin" and "European Son". "Heroin" is pretty much exactly what I hear in my head when I hafta imagine The Velvet Underground. Stark lyrics getting at real experiences of doing drugs and living life on streets. The kind of lyrics you'd call "poetry." The arrangement is minimal, based around on chord and drums that're more being thumped than played. There's an atypical structure where there's no real chorus but it variously speeds up and grows in intensity to emphasize its words. And it's got those avant-garde-y noise elements in there as well. It's the kind of thing you listen to and give a small nod: "real music." In 2024, I don't really personally understand how groundbreaking all of this (aside from the lyrical content), but I still like it a lot. It's a bleak, harrowing listen, and the previously described way it goes up and down just appeals to me, I'unno. Then there's "European Son", which, as a closer, I think represents a lot of other things about this album. Not all of themm—Nico isn't on it, for instance—but for one, the first couple of minutes are way... Hookier than I expected it to be? Which I don't think is a bad thing. I like hooks, and I don't expect VU to be all all-caps "ART" like "Heroin" all the time. It's just a matter of expectation, y'know? Even if I do like them quite a bit. But then when it does get art-y, jamming out for the last three or so minutes, I kinda get this "noise for the sake it" feeling. Like, just play whatever you want as loudly as you want and call it "art." It's not as bad here as that description would imply, but it still leans in a little—so that's what I think about the art-y parts that I don't believe work too well. And the lyrics... I'unno, they're about somebody in Andy Warhol's circle. Or who was. As someone who has to take a second to start getting the lyrics, they're fine. As is the whole track—to paraphrase somebody else in my group, it's "a perfectly unconvential closer for an unconvential album." Speaking of closing, I suppose I should say something about Nico before I go. She's fine. I get this kind of New Wave-y vibe from her voice, and I'm kind of into that. I'unno why Andy decided she **needed** to be on here, but she's not a detracting factor. She does "I'll Be Your Mirror" very well—as I hope she would, after she broke down crying after how many times she had to record it. Overall, I can't give it less than a 4. I can't hear that special "makes you want to start a band" factor I've heard about that would make me give it a 5, but darn if it ain't good music all the same. Different from the norm, sure, though that's still what makes it so special to a lot of people. Y'wouldn't want it sounding any other way. Such as, for instance, what Billy Idol did to "Heroin". Serioiusly, if you haven't heard it before—goodness me, you're in for a trip. Recoil slowly and laugh.

Get Behind Me Satan

The White Stripes

4/5

Y'know, while to me The White Stripes are very much, definitionally, garage rock and blues, I did really enjoy hearing them explore sounds outside of that. Playin' around with marimba and more piano... And, hey, there's the song from the PARANORMAN credits. At my core, I'm still more a "Ball And A Biscuit" girl than anything (except maybe "CNR", honestly), but still, I'm happy they went ahead and tried all this out.

Songs Of Love And Hate

Leonard Cohen

2/5

Y'know, listening to this, I was thinking back on why I gave IF YOU WANT IT DARKER a 5, and how much of it was because it was "the album he released before he died." Now, of course it's not the sole reason; that's shallow and would ignore everything being done there. The soundscapes, the mood, his voice, the lyrics I managed to catch... Like, it would have been an amazing album either way, but with the extra, unintended context of his passing, it just became all the more powerful. Here, then, we have an album on the opposite end of his life; his second ever released. The one I kept hearing described as "bleak," "depressing," "scary," "a mirror..." All that. It's probably his most famous album besides his debut or whichever one "Hallelujah" is on. A poet singer-songwriter's masterwork. And if this thing is a mirror... Well, I'unno how it reflects back on me that my second time listening to the back four songs on this album, I straight-up fell asleep halfway through. Like, don't get me wrong, there's stuff I like about this album. His guitar playing style on "Avalanche" was unexpected, but I was pretty amazed by it. And I can certainly hear, in its atmosphere, why everyone keeps saying it's so depressing. But then, that's also kind of the problem there: it's depressing, and aside from one or two songs, it hardly changes from that mood. Which is only a problem for me because I'm not in a state of mine where I can relate—or, at the very least, I don't feel like I'm smart enough to understand the lyrics well enough to get it. Like, trust me, I know there's no shame in it, but I still feel so stupid having to hop over to Genius and rely on their annotations to figure out that he's singing about Nico. I mean, I don't wanna have it come across like "sad music bad; happy music good." That's not it at all; there's plenty of sad songs I can put on and enjoy. It's just, when it comes to the super poetic singer-songwriter playing an acoustic guitar late-60's sorta deal... I'unno, I've enjoyed Bob Dylan's nonsense word salads more than I have whatever points Cohen's trying to make here. So, y'know, I wanted to give this thing a 3 at least. Like, hey, there's part of the instrumentation I enjoy, and maybe if I sat down and read all the Genius annotations... But I just gotta rate it how I feel. And to that, I **do** feel a little bad about it. Of course, I don't hafta be generous just because he's passed on, or so often called a genius, or a fellow Canadian, but... I guess combined with what I was talking about in the first sentence, it seems like if he'd passed shortly after this album and it that surrounding context I would've rated it a lot higher. And to be honest—maybe. Maybe I would have. But in a timeline where he thankfully went on to release a lot more music... I'unno. This just really wasn't my thing.

Metallica

5/5

To me, this is the last of Metallica's classic period. I'm sure there's quite a few diehard metal heads who would love to debate me on that (among other topics, like if Metallica even had a classic period to begin with)—but look. This thing is full to the brim of amazing songs. And not just the singles, although let's not forget how incredible "Nothing Else Matters" is for being a 3/4 love ballad from Metallica of all bands. I'm talkin' the deeper cuts as well: "Holier Than Thou", "Don't Tread On Me", "Through The Never", "The God That Failed"... This is consistency up there with MASTER OF PUPPETS, you ask me. Sure, it's a more traditional "heavy metal" sound and not as thrash as some would prefer it, but like that even really matters. I doubt it'd bug most people while "Wherever I May Roam" is playing. Even the over-played stuff, too: they're played as much as they are for a **reason**, after all. So, big surprise, Metallica gets a second 5 from me. And if you ever have the time, check out Wax Audio's mashup of "Sad But True" and "Superstitious"; it's really good.

The Score

Fugees

4/5

I can dig this. Vibe with. I really dig the beat work it's got goin' on. And... Yeah, that's all I feel like I hafta say. Which feels weird to me; I should have more about one of **the** albums of hip hop, but... I'unno. Yeah. It'd be neat if we lived in a timeline with a second album from these people.

KE*A*H** (Psalm 69)

Ministry

4/5

Y'know, ultimately the first side of the album (the one with "Jesus Built My Hotrod") **is** the better half, but I really liked the second half as well. It's a departure from the "metal psychobilly" thing side one had going for it, but I'unno, I really dug these slow, heavy, epic riffs. It reminded me a lot of Rob Zombie, actually, and that's a big plus for me. I wasn't a fan of the last track, and that's why I'm only giving this 4 stars, but still, I had a blast with this album.

Dust

Screaming Trees

4/5

Y'know, I can't exactly hear what's so "grunge" about this, but for harder 90's psych rock that keeps in a lot of that folksiness—dang, it's good shit. I wish the group coulda gotten one of the albums that led to this group being named one of the earliest pioneers, alongside people like the Melvins and Mudhoney—'cuz otherwise I have no idea why this is here—but still, good tunes are good tunes, and these are good tunes.

Dirt

Alice In Chains

5/5

Y'know, it's not just another amazing slice of Seattle grunge. That alone would already earn it high marks. But you factor how damn **metal** this thing is, and, oh, goodness, it's one of the highest classics of the time. That's all I have to say about it, really—it's just so good. I mean, shit, Layne's vocals and Jerry's guitar aren't praised to the Heavens and back for no reason. Combined, no one else in this genre sounds like this group, and that's damn special. My dad had really good taste buying this CD back in the day, I tell you what.

Snivilisation

Orbital

3/5

I like the downtempo and ambient parts, for sure. The rest... Well, I didn't find the more inaccessible parts to be as grating as others have. That's all I'm really inspired to say about this album—yes, sadly, I don't have any unrelated stories to tell about nearly having sex in a Joker costume. What a shame.

Grievous Angel

Gram Parsons

4/5

*{clicks fingers, finger guns}* That's country, alright! I'unno. I guess I just don't hear the "Cosmic American Music"-ness about it that makes it so important. To me it just sounds like early 70's country, which, hey, I can dig. I'll be generous enough to strike it a 4

Let Love Rule

Lenny Kravitz

4/5

There's a 1-star review for this album that compares Kravitz here to "Prince at home." Funny enough, I'd also compare Kravitz here to Prince, but in a 4-star way. I mean, 'ey, what can I say? I love Prince, I like the few Kravitz songs I've heard... Put 'em together with all these hippy vibes, and, hey, I can dig it. Tune in and drop out, man.

Paul's Boutique

Beastie Boys

5/5

An absolute masterclass in sampling. Without a doubt, it's my favorite sampledelia album of all time. Like, seriously, the breadth of the samples used, and the way it all weaves together... I wish records like this could still be made. But short of releasing it independently, without clearing them beforehand... And I like what the Beasties are doing, too, by the way. I love how they rap, and the way they work with the samples is amazing. But the Beasties are the Beasties, y'know? Call me dumb for not catching the intricacies, but to me they don't sound terribly different from album to album. So for me, it's all about the beats, and I can hardly think of an album with better beats—not just sampled-based, honestly—than this. So, y'know, thanks for screwin' all this, Gilbert. Thanks a lot.

Chirping Crickets

Buddy Holly & The Crickets

4/5

I'unno, I just like 50's rock and roll a lot. Most of it, if not all, sounds the same, I'll admit, but within this space, I don't think that's a bad thing, personally. I mean, getting on 50's rock and roll for sounding similar is like getting on Motörhead or AC/DC for all their songs sounding alike. If they do that one sound well, what's to complain about? And Buddy Holly and the quote-unquote "Chirping" Crickets do it very well. There can be something comforting in it, y'know? That said, if you want the **best** Buddy Holly album, go check out 20 GOLDEN GREATS if you haven't already. That's the best of the best of his work, and not just because they're all some of his biggest hits. I mean, that collection has "Words Of Love", and that alone's enough for the big thumbs-up.

Welcome To The Pleasuredome

Frankie Goes To Hollywood

4/5

LISTIE SAY yeah, it's a real good 80's album. I just wish I had a bit more time to figure exactly **why** it works so well for me. Is it just that I like synthy 80's music so much? That could be something, sure. Do I appreciate how odd this album is a lot of places? Good probability, yeah. Is it just because I recognize a lot of samples that were used in this kick-ass mashup with Iron Maiden's "Rime Of The Ancient Mariner"? I can't say no. Whatever the reason, its hits me (HITS ME) with those laser beams. Absolutely worth checking out beyond its one big hit.

Doolittle

Pixies

4/5

Off the bat, lemme put this in the exact words that helped me clarify my opinion on this album: if SURFER ROSA is the Pixies' IN UTERO, then DOOLITTLE is their NEVERMIND. Maybe that's a bad comparison to you, but here's what I mean... I get why some people would consider IN UTERO(/SURFER ROSA) to be the better of the two albums. Courtesy of Steve Albini's production, it's artier, abrasive and very un-commercial compared to its sibling. And of course, just because something's commercial doesn't automatically mean its worse, but if the strawman I constructed in my head does exist, then that's the reason they'd cite. And it wouldn't be unfounded; even Kurt(/Francis) didn't like the polish the other album got, prferring IN UTERO(/SURFER ROSA)'s more underground stylings. Which, I don't say all this like I don't personally get why they'd think that way. I can see through the fuzz and appreciate the music for its riffs, emotion and energy. Without the polish, it's a lot rawer, and to a lot of ears, honest. I **do** enjoy IN UTERO(/SURFER ROSA) a lot. But even as much as I understand, I can't deny who I am at my core. And at my core—well, I often tend more towards polish. Poppier production. And that's why I tend to agree with the more general opinion that NEVERMIND(/DOOLITTLE) is the better album. Not only is it the blueprint for a lot of music going forward, but, damn, it's got the **hooks**, without really sacrificing any of what makes the band special. Even without all the noise, the songs and musicianship are still just fantastic. I mean, let me drop the gimmick here to say this: I think I'm gonna remember and enjoy "Monkey Goes To Heaven" a lot longer than I am "Where Is My Mind?". Naturally, "Where Is My Mind?" isn't a worse song, and I think how it sounds is interesting. However, "Monkey Goes To Heaven" has "THEN GAAAAWD IS SEVEN," and that sticks in my head. That's just how it all falls out. (Also, I think this is the album Weird Al had in mind when he wrote his pastiche of the band, "First World Problems", and me being me that alone gives it extra points. Enough for me to tell my friends and enemies Ilike DOOLITTLE better, though just not enough to push it over into a 5. Maybe in time.)

Common

3/5

Hip hop albums always tend to [[be]] the hardest ones for me to review. I figure I've talked about this [[be]]fore, but just in case: I'm a melody girl. It's always what I tend to focus on, more than anything else. Like, I hafta **really** love an album or something to really pay much mind to its lyrics—and even then... The point [[be]]ing, anyway, that when I listen to hip hop albums, I'm mostly focusing on the beats and how the flow interacts with them. It's missing the point of the genre to not pay mind to the words, I know, but that's just how I [[be]]. And these, by man I've many times now expressed my dislike for Kanye West... Are fine. "The Corner" has the best best, and then the rest are just fine. Not even Dilla's beat wows me that much, surprisingly. So... I guess I'm at a 3? I'unno. If I allowed myself the time to really dig into and analyze the words, maybe I could rate it higher, bit with my autistic and undiagnosed ADHD ass... This is the best I can do. Take it or, I'unno, let it [[be]].

A Grand Don't Come For Free

The Streets

3/5

Let me just start by saying this: I haven't had ths bad of a first experience with an album since I heard Public Image LTD.'s METAL BOX . The first three tracks on this album... I had to wonder, honestly, if this guy was takin' the piss. I just couldn't comprehend that someone could have this kind of anti-flow on purpose. Like, does he know he's supposed to... At least **acknowledge** that the beat exists? That he doesn't have to stress each syllable exactly the same? That, hell, the beat should also be on beat? And I came into this knowing that British rap usually isn't very good in general, so you can only imagine my shock hearing this. I can breathe a sigh of relief, though, that it **does** actually get better from there. I can't say I ever 100% gelled with this guy's rapping style, but as the album went on I was more and more able to be fine with it. To the point where, heck, I'll say I actually liked the last two tracks, the closer especially. It does a neat thing halfway through, I feel like. Neat enough, anyway, given what this album started with. As for this thing's plot... Well, you'd probably do best to not think of it as a rap **opera**. It's more, as one of my group friends put it, a rap "TV show." I don't totally think thst saves this album's story from being a fair bit of nothing, but under that "TV show" mindset I can't be too bothered by it. So color me surprised that this thing actually managed to raise itself from a "What the hell is this shit?" 2 to a "It's fine, in the positive sense" 3. I don't really think it's something I **needed** to hear before I die—and I wouldn't call him "idiot savant Brian Wilson" like one review I saw did—but I can't really say I wasted my time pushing through it. Seriously, though, mate. Those first three tracks. It should be so easy to not sound like that, honestly.

Nowhere

Ride

3/5

It's 3-star albums like this I always have the most trouble with, 'cuz, like... I'unno. It's fine. I liked what I heard, but I wasn't amazed by it. I'unno what else to say, really. I guess there's that I liked the psychedelic parts the best, and if there had been more maybe I'd've bumped it up to a 4. But as it stands... Yep. That's a 3-star-ass shoegaze album. It's neat.

Eliminator

ZZ Top

4/5

Did you know that ZZ Top's sound on this album was actually kind of controversial? Yeah, Dusty Hill, the bassist, compared it to the "Electric Dylan" controversy. I mean, ZZ Top, to that point, were best known for playing blues and boogie—the kind you'd hear in southern Texas, not too far from the Mexican border. So this comes along, and... What's that? Synthesizers? Drum machines? **New wave influence**? I gotta imagine their audience weren't happy with this contemporary, more-commercial sound. All these years removed, however, spinning it here in 2024... I'unno. Maybe it's not "La Grange", but it still sounds to me like ZZ Top. And that's all I could really ask from a ZZ Top album. Sure, the songs all sound like each other, but take it from a fan of AC/DC and Motörhead: that ain't a bad thing for some people. If the sound's good, distinctly theirs and they do it really well, who cares if they keep repeating it? So, y'know, I'm pretty good to give it a 4 all around. It's not a magnum opus masterpiece—gimme TRES HOMBRE if you want that—but as an early 80's rock record, it ain't one where you can go wrong.

We Are Family

Sister Sledge

4/5

Y'know, disco's one of those genres where I know when an album's good or isn't, but I wouldn't really be able tell you exactly why either way. Maybe I'm just not gay enough—I'unno. So, like, this is obviously a really good disco album, thanks largely to Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards's writing and production. I just can't tell you why I think it's a better CHIC album than the last one I heard, RISQUÉ. Hell, I couldn't even articulate why I was so in-the-middle on **that** album. To me, disco's just disco—if there's there, it's there, and if it ain't, well, white people who ain't the Bee Gees probably made it. I will make one specific remark: past the title track, I feel like the album starts to drag a little. I don't think anything really changes past then, and my drifint attention around then might hafta do with how much sleep I'd gotten that morning, but I'unno. It just feels like a small step down from "He's The Greatest Dancer" and the frequent film needle drop title track. I mean, that first one didn't get sampled into "Gettin' Jiggy Wit' It" for nuthin'. Anyway, I feel like I'm ramblin', so lemme jus' cap it here. The album's a 4, it's solidly in the "good disco" camp, and... I'unno. I keep thinking their name's Sledge Sisters, like the Scissor Sisters.

Locust Abortion Technician

Butthole Surfers

3/5

Off the top, I just wanna say: I get it. Y'know, why this is currently the 19th lowest rated album on the entire website. I do, honestly; I have sympathy. From what I understan, I can't imagine the Butthole Surfers are an easy band to get into. If you don't dig more experimental music—which, given a lot of the other album's in this website's bottom 20, most people don't—it's gotta be a real uphill battle. I mean, there has to be something there. Multiple publications wouldn't name this one of the best albums of the entire 1980's for nothing. Kurt must have had his reasons to put this down as one of his 50 favorite albums. So... What's, uh, the deal, eh? What did I hear? Above, I described the band as experimental. Now that I've taken in the album fully (I wrote those two paragrphs beforehand as preconceptions)... Well, it's still an appropriate word to describe them, of course. It's just not the single one I'd use anymore. They're more, like... "Noise." Big noise. Which, don't take that entirely in a bad way. There's still some melodies and riffs. It's just that they do whatever the hell they want, as long as it's noisy and abrasive. They do rock, sludge, punk... As long as it's chaotic and loud. And that, I figure, is the reason why it's rated so lowly. Some people can listen to this stuff, this noise, and hear the art of it; of the band pushing past and defying conventions and sensibilities. It's ugly, but that's what makes it so great compared to the formulaic and broadly appealing music of the mainstream. If you can't click into that, though... Well, then it's just noise. Too thick to penetrate and not worth the effort to try. And that's not laziness on their part; I mean, why waste the time when you know you're not gonna get anywhere? But that's enough essaying about other people's opinions. What about my own, eh? What did **I** think? Well, I can hear through the wall of noise and see what they're doing, but I'm not in love with it. It's just not the kind of music I gravitate towards, and there's nothing here that really convinced me to try harder. Sure, I did like a lot of the heaviness and sludginess, and that's why I can't give it lower than a 3, but it feel it says something that my favorite part of the whole album is the "Sweet Leaf" riff. And if I wanna hear that riff... I could just listen to "Sweet Leaf"? And VOL. 4? Maybe if I was sicker of the classics and the mainstream, or at least had more problems with it, I could hear this and be amazed by how unconvential it sounds. But I just gave a ZZ Top album a 4-out-of-5, and I can't tell you how many times I've listened to "Nothin' But A Good Time". I appreciate the underground—it's just not my scene.

The World is a Ghetto

War

4/5

Hearing this album for the first time, I realized—general pop culture knowledge has done WAR a disservice. Just look at their two most common needle drop and reference points, "Low Rider" and "Why Can't We Be Friends?". Both are good songs, true, don't act like I'm tryna put them down, but neither are in any way indicitive of what they're really capable of. Like, damn, you're tellin' me these same guys can also make extended odysseys like "City, Country, City", "Four Cornered Room" and "The World Is A Ghetto"? I'm not just impressed; I'm kicking myself for assuming this album'd sound like their biggest hits and not checking to confirm. This is some progressively soulful and jazzy music to get lost in. I hear this is their best album, and, frankly, just hearing "City, Country, City" alone I can agree. From everything I've read, that's not even people's favorite, although for me it **was** the moment it all clicked. Where I went, "Naw—for real? They can do this?" And I just started to imagine driving out of the city, passing all of the gas stations and rest stops and other stuff at the limits, until—bam. You hitn the country. Rolling, rolling along, slightly disturbed though still without a care. But then, the gas stations and billboards appear again, until—bam. City again. As you drive across the country, the cycle repeats. City, country, city; country, city, country... On and on. That's just wha popped into my head, anyway. So... Yeah, that's a big ol' 4 from me. It borders on a 5, but as I'm writing this it's only barely not there. Still, in any case, if somehow you've stumbled across this review on this website and haven't heard it yet... Well, damn, give it a spin. Hear for yourself the best of what WAR is good for.

Gorillaz

4/5

Y'know, I just find it curious that this is the only Gorillaz album here. Or, if there can only be one (to nab a phrase), that **this** is the one that made the cut and not DEMON DAYS at least. That's not to put down the band's debut as a bad or unimportant record, but... I'unno. Maybe that's just me as a big Gorillaz fan speaking, 'cuz as someone who came into this group during the long hiatus between PLASTIC BEACH and HUMANZ... Their debut has just never been one of my favorites? Out of eight or so albums, I think I've commonly ranked this one around the middle. Maybe even towards the bottom. It's just that, with a few exceptions, this album is largely trip hop and dub. It's not my genre, exactly. Like, besides MAXINQUAYE on the trip hop side of things, I've yet to come across a trip hop or dub album I'm truly 100% negative about, but by that same token I've yet find one I'm 100% **positive** about. Which, to be fair, this probably the closet I've come, and not just because I'm a Gorillaz fangirl. I can't think of a better opener than "Re-Hash", "Tomorrow Comes Today" is of course incredible, "New Genious (Brother)" grooves hard, "Double Bass" is a nice roundabout, "Slow Country"... Well, honestly, "Slow Country" might be my favorite deep cut from any Gorillaz album. That synth line that preceeds the "Can't stand the loneliness" section—maybe my favorite moment on the entire album. Considering "Clint Eastwood" is on this same album, to this day one of the band's top five singles, that's saying something. And let's say some words about the rockers on this thing. "5/4", besides being a neat bit of... Whuzzit? Poly-meter? Mixed meter? Whatever word means that the riff is in 5/4 while the rest is in 4/4. I wish that one had gotten its video back in the day, but the fanmade version more than suffices. "Punk", meanwhile, is such an enjoyable, unintelligble goof that, heck, I can't help but love it. You'll always catch me yelling my own gibberish alongside it. As for the things that keep me from that 100% positivity... I'unno, "Latin SImon (¿Que Pasa Contigo?)" never really did it for me. It's just a little off my vibe—in Spanish **or** in English, for the record. Then you got "Starshine", which I've always found a bit too slowly and space-reverb-y for my liking. And "19-2000" is a fun single, but I've always much preferred Soulwax's "shot at a hit pop record" remix over the original. On the whole, too... Well, as I said above, this is their trip hoppiest album. Even with the rockers and the poppier bits, I don't think it has as much variety as some of their later albums. That variety, in my mind, is what makes them as great as they are: DEMON DAYS, PLASTIC BEACH, season one of SONG MACHINE... And also, they're poppier, and more often than not I tend towards that stuff? Which, y'know, this is probably a huge assumption about you, the reader, but don't take me as someone who looks up "without the rapper" mixes of these songs. I wouldn't live in a world without Del's verses on "Clint Eastwood", and neither should you. "Rock The House", even as a slightly lesser single in my mind, is way funner with Del's verses than whatever else could've been written. Similarly, as much as this isn't my favorite Gorillaz, there's a lot I love about it, and I hafta respect it for being as much as a success as it was. Enough of one, even, that it got to be in this book above DEMON DAYS. There's way more to it than Pitchfork's 7.6 would imply. It has "short-lasting, faddish appeal?" There's no way you coulda known where they'd go, mate, but come on. Murdoc, 2-D, Noodle and Russel deserve more credit than that. (And speaking of that review, I'unno why it kept confusing 2-D for Damon Albarn? I know they have similar voices, but continually insisting that Albarn's singing on this... Wasn't he busy making some opera about JOURNEY TO THE EAST at the time, anyway? Come on now. I expect better from you, Pitchfork.)

The Wall

Pink Floyd

5/5

THE WALL has always been a hard album for me to talk about in terms of why I like it. Of course, I rattle off about the autobiographical-inspired elements from Roger Waters, the general amazing muscianship, the flow of the narrative, how incredible it is we even got this album at all given the state the band was in... And for the record, it's not even because I'm more melody-first than lyrics so I don't know what to say about this. This was my first Pink Floyd album; it's the one I've lived with the longest. I can rattle off nearly every word of it by heart. It's my third favorite behind THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON and WISH YOU WERE HERE, in that order. I love, love, **love** THE WALL. Hell, it was Doug Walker's shitty "review" of the movie adaptation that got me to **finally** stop watching him. No, no, I've always struggled to talk about why I like this album is because I don't know what it means to me. Note: what it means **to me**. Not **generally**; I well understand that. What do **I** get out of it, personally? THE WALL, more than any other album I've encountered, feels like one where you **need** to talk about what it means to you. You can't just point out bangers or say "It's a bit comfortably shit, innit?" and move on. You need to have at least **some** self-reflection on what it says about **you**. And that's probably just a load of pretentious shit, I realize that. I'm probably just over-thinking and over-worrying about not enjoying this album "correctly." I know I won't be looked down upon if I don't bare my soul as part of this review. Certainly, looking around at a lot of other reviews, not a lot of people share my feelings. But that's just kind of the person I am, y'know? 'Cuz sometimes I think about this piece of creative writing I did for myself on THE WALL, inspired by The RS500, where all I did was talk about how my dad bought it for me at a book store, and I feel bad. 'Cuz it's like, "Really? That's all you get out of it? That you own it? There's really no deeper significance to you beyond the fact of your possession?" And knowing what the album generally means, and the elements taken from Roger Waters' and Syd Barrett's real life... I mean, is it any shallower than Doug Walker interpreting "Goodbye Blue Sky" as an Oscar bait song about "World War II with monsters?" There wasn't even a word in there about how I enjoyed it. So, maybe I'm just concerned that over a decade later the only other meaning this album's gained for me is "Doug Walker's a shithead." 'Cuz it's not like I haven't had experiences with isolation, or with how easy it can be to descend into far right points of view (and how hard it can be to completely rid yourself of them, goodness). It's just, I've never really made the connections back to this album. So what does that say about me and music, then? Believe me, THE WALL isn't the only piece of music I don't derive personal meaning from. Is it a lack of personal experience? Do I need more? How do I get more? Will I ever? Will I just be stuck behind this waist-high wall I've built for myself, that I could easily get out from behind but just refuse to for one reason or another? **Will I ever truly touch grass**? And it can go on like that, spiraling forever and forever further down the line of "What's wrong with me?" But that's probably a bit deeper than even this album calls for, honestly. And again, I look out at every one else who enjoys this album; all the people who blast "Another Brick In The Wall (Part 2)" and "Comfortably Numb" without playing the rest of the album around them, or who go to concerts and make the "hammer" sign... Is enjoyment not enough meaning in and of itself? To experience a story, grasp its theme, delight in its melodies... Even if it's not as deep a meaning as I want it to be, it's still **something**. It's no less valid than relating personally to the album's themes of isolation, war, abandoment and cycles of violence. Just because I'm not engaging with the album, or art in general as a mirror doesn't mean I'm engaging with it wrong. So maybe that's the part of my soul I mentioned above. Or maybe it's not, and I still need to dig deeper to find it. In any case, THE WALL is deeply entrenched in there. For my money, it's the greatest rock opera of all time. I doubt I'll ever get sick of it. From the crashing, epic riff of "In The Flesh?" down to the hopeful words of "Outside The Wall"—followed then by the realization that the album loops, and that the cycle of walls being built and demolished will never end... It's a masterpiece among masterpieces. An amazing end to their imperial period that started with DARK SIDE. Bless THE WALL, and everything it does or could stand for.

Your New Favourite Band

The Hives

4/5

The awfully presumptuous title aside—I'unno, a lot of this sounds to me like it could've been in the SCOTT PILGRIM VS. THE WORLD movie soundtrack. Y'know, put it next to the Sex Bomb-Omb songs... They're garage rock, The Hives are garage punk... Makes sense. And I really love that movie, and I really like those songs, so on that basis alone... They're not my new favourite band, but yeah, I'm happy with a 4. (Also, a fact: my favorite Hives song is "Tick Tick Boom". Thanks, LEGO ROCK BAND, for that one.)

The Chronic

Dr. Dre

4/5

Off the top, in response to the top-rated review of this album, lemme just ask this: is it THE CHRONIC's fault gangster rap got as popular as it did in the 90's? Like, should we be mad at it for being the thing that popularized the genre, if you're the kind of person who gets mad at gangster rap as something that "killed hip hop?" Personally, I take the same stance as I do when I talk about SHREK being at fault for a lot of bad animated films in the 2000's: you can't blame the originator for everyone else copiyng it poorly. After all, it could have been anything, and getting mad at and blaming the album or film that randomly won the draw feels a bit like a waste of energy. I get the desire and the impulse to have something to rail against, but I'unno. With that off my chest, we can talk about the album proper—and already, I need to pull out another "off the top." We need to get the lyrics out of the way, first and foremost. Putting aside the rhymes and flow (both of which, honestly, Dre isn't terribly good at), this album can be terribly misogynistic and homophonic. That's not a new statement, of course; pretty much everyone who talks about THE CHRONIC address it at one point or another. It's not most can easily get over, if at all. So, y'know, I understand people who would rate this thing a 1 based on that alone. But at the same time, as much as I understand, I'm not here to pearl clutch about it. This album is some 30 years old. In 2024, I don't see the use, really, in getting too worked up. That kind of stuff is still happening, after all, and I think it'd be more worth everyone's energy to deal with it now then make a big show condoning it back then. That's enough moralizing and talking about what I think people should and shouldn't do. This is an album with a song called "Deeeeeeeez Nuts"; I should get a soap box if I **really** wanna go off. In the end, I jus' wanna express why I, myself, like this album as much as I do. It's really simple, and, point of fact, doesn't even have anything to do with the lyrics: it's the beats. What can I say? Dre's a great producer; an **amazing producer**, and G-funk beats... The **synths**...! If I had to pick any one reason why I generally tend to like West coast hip hop more than the East coast stuff, it's that the West gave us G-funk, simply. Next to sample-heavy beats, they have my favorite kind, period. And this album was where it started. They're all over this thing, and that makes me so happy. Like, 2001 has its own, iconic beats, sure—just look at "Still D.R.E.", but on the whole, nothing matches up to a good G-funk synth. Hell, if there was a purely instrumental version of this album, I'd be all over that. Of course, though, to stay consistent within this review in my beliefs, I must also say that I can't give this thing too much credit for being the thing that popularized G-funk. It could have been any other album; it's likely someone else could've stumbled onto what Dre did. Or, hell, some other sound could've defined Cali if THE CHRONIC or G-funk. But all the same, just because I can't give it credit, that won't stop me from being happy that this album **did** popularize it and loving the beats. So maybe I'm a hypocrite, just getting mad at people who like a thing I do, I'unno. You make the call. Me, well, I can't give this thing a 5, because... Well, yeah, its lyrical content (though, let's be real, it's not **all** just hating on women and gay people—there's hating on Eazy-E, too, after all). But as an album I put on to bump to its beats, damn. Near untouchable.

Odessey And Oracle

The Zombies

4/5

I don't think I've heard another album that so perfectly—and beautifully, honestly—captures the exact sound of late 60's psychedelic baroque pop. I'm in awe, quite frankly. So... Damn, I ain't got no choice but to give this thing a 4, at least.

Crossing the Red Sea With the Adverts

The Adverts

4/5

If I half-points were possible, I feel like this is the first one (that I can remember right now, anyway) I'd give a 3.5 to. See, on the one hand, I like this quite a bit—this kind of snotty 70's British punk does it for me. I mean, heck, I still like the Sex Pistols' album despite a lot of their... Y'know, problems. (I don't need to hear "Bodies" ever again, and we'll never forgive them for necessitating the Dead Kennedys to record "Nazi Punks Fuck Off" years later.) The sound of the guitars, the shout-singing, the pace, the energy... That's what I come here for. On the other end of things, however, there was the problem that I've run into with a lot of albums on this list from more obscure artists: what makes this thing so special, anyway? 'Cuz as much as I like it's British punk-ness... Yeah, it's sure British punk. What exactly sets it apart from all of the other British punk that I presume is on this list? 'Cuz it doesn't have the prestige of the Clash's debut, nor the historical impact and infamy of NEVER MIND THE BOLLOCKS. It's just... A good punk album? That's it? That's all it takes to get on this list, over innumerable albums that're just as, if not more worth? And I don't wanna turn this into another one of the endless million screeds on this website about the fact that MADVILLANY or whatever isn't on here. Again, I wanna stress: I **like** this album. Enough to tip that 3.5 over into a 4, even. Jus', I'unno. Maybe if I had the book in front of me to explain what makes this album so important to listen to before I die, I'd get it. But in the absence of it... I enjoyed my time with it, yeah, and I might revisit it in the future. It's not like I'm gona to my grave, though, feeling like I missed some important part of music history because I never heard The Adverts.

KIWANUKA

Michael Kiwanuka

5/5

Modern retro soul. I've seen a lot of other reviews describe this album that way and, I mean, really, it's the best way. It's like if "golden period" Stevie Wonder was making albums five years ago, it's great. There's not more I can really think to say than that, honestly. It's just a good reminder that I should probably be going out and listening to more recent music. Even if "recent" here means "half a decade old."

Band On The Run

Paul McCartney and Wings

5/5

I wanna put aside that this is an album from Paul McCartney. Throw away any comparisons you'd be unconsciously making to the legacy of The Beatles—how do you consider this album on its own? If it was just a release from a band called Wings? Simply: it's one of the absolute greatest 70's rock albums of all time. Up there with A NIGHT AT THE OPERA, HONKY CHÂTEAU, HUNKY DORY, OUT OF THE BLUE, LED ZEPPELIN IV, THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON... I could go on. It's just masterful: hit after hit after **hit**. The only one I can think of that I like better than BAND ON THE RUN is BAT OUT OF HELL, which, I mean, that's a high bar to clear, but just that it's even in the same conversation...! And I just wanna take a second to say: "Jet" might be the best song on the whole album? I'm not sure what consensus says about it, but for me, gawd, the opening of "Jet" can excite me like nothing else could ever hope to. And the synth lines on it, too? **Damn**. Jus', I'unno. I'd talk more, but specific words fail me. It's really an album where I'd rather just play it for someone and let them experience what makes it so great than try to describe it myself. So... Y'know, go on, if you haven't already.

Veckatimest

Grizzly Bear

2/5

Look, I gave this thing the best shot I could, but... I'unno. I just really didn't care for it. Like, the first three tracks were fine, I guess. But after that, it was just a whole lotta indie rock nothing to my ears. Nothing I could really grasp onto. Sorry.

Penance Soiree

The Icarus Line

3/5

I don't have many words to say about this, honestly. It wasn't as noisy as I was worrying it'd be, and thank goodness for that. Going by the reviews and the samples Spotify provided, I was worried I was in for "noise purely for noise's sake." While I still don't think it adds to much, it's not completely unbearable. And what they're playing behind all the noise... Yep, it's 2000's garage rock revivial. Ultimately, I think I'd rather be listening to The White Stripes, bit as the "we have it at home" variety... It's not gonna "save rock n' roll," but in a pinch, it's fine. And that's my final verdict. "It's fine." A big ol' down-the-middle 3. Which, hey, I was expecting to give this thing a 2, or even a 1, so if I were The Icaris Line I'd be happy with a 3. I also, as well, wouldn't be surprised that I was taken out of later editions of the book.

Jazz Samba

Stan Getz

4/5

Well, samba continues to not "wow" me too much, but just juding what's here: yeah, it's nice. Relaxing. Pretty in parts. I can see myself throwing it on again, and, I'unno, at this moment that's enough for me to score this thing a 4.

The Sensual World

Kate Bush

4/5

Eh, first, let me just say I wasn't able to take this album in as well as I wanted to the day my group got it. I'unno, things happened. But I will say, from what I did manage to take in—yep, that continues a lot of the stuff I loved hearing on the first side of HOUNDS OF LOVE. That's an easy 4 stars from me.

Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1

George Michael

5/5

Y'know, on its own I woulda given this thing a 4. It's really good, soulful pop, but nothing that really blew my mind. But consider that I played this album's cover of "They Won't Go When I Go" three times. That alone moves it up to a 5 for me, goodness. So, so good, goodness.

Siamese Dream

The Smashing Pumpkins

5/5

Y'know, when it comes to Billy Corrgan and the Smashing Pumpkins, I'll for sure have more to say about them once my group gets to hit up MELLON COLLIE AND THE INFINITE SADNESS. **That's** the one I have some sort of attatchment to. Versus this album, which, until today, I'd only known for "Cherub Rock" and, especially, "Today". As a result, in comparison, I don't really feel like I have as much to say about this album—except for that I'd really hafta agree that it's one of the best and most unique alternate rock and grunge albums of the 90's. Goodness me, can Corrgan write a tune—and can this band **play them**. (Plus, I don't mind Corrgan's voice, so that's a hurdle I have no problem getting over.) It's an **easy** 5 from me. It's an easier 5 than MELLON COLLIE might get at least, that's for sure.

Brutal Youth

Elvis Costello

4/5

I'll admit, the only reason 100% on this album is because of how many times I've listened to MY AIM IS TRUE (and, as well, Weird Al's pastiche "I'm So Sick Of You"). Now, don't get me wrong: I still liked this album a lot. Enough to slap it with a 4, even. Compositionally, it still sounds like Costelo, and I like his writing a lot. It's just, instrumentally, aesthetically... In short, I prefer his new wave/pub punk sound. This alt. rock/power pop sound... It's **good**. It's just not what I'd reach for first. Ain't no "Miracle Man" or "(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes" on here.

Konnichiwa

Skepta

4/5

I'unno who I heard say that UK rap sucks, because, honestly, I thought this "banged"—as the kids say. "Ladies Hit Club" or whatever it's called kinda sucks, but otherwise, yeah, I'm happy I heard this.

Fire Of Love

The Gun Club

3/5

I could give this thing 1 star just for the damn headache I put myself through before I heard even a second of this thing. See, I found out that there are two songs on this album where the writer and singer, a very white guy, uses the N-word. With a hard "R" both times, too. (Genius.com claims the second one's a soft "a," but let's not split hairs; the first four letters are the same.) So, me, myself, for my benefit, before I could put this album on, I felt I had to answer one simple question: is this guy racist? Catch me, then, doing Google searches and reading articles from websites I'd never heard of, about not only this guy, but about punk's use of the N-word in general. See me find a Reddit thread where someone references a biography from a third party who says the songwriter regretted those N-words. Find me doing some soul-searching to figure out if the use of the word even bothers me, and what that might say about me as a person—after all, I still listen to Billie Joe Armstrong, Elvis Costello, Axl Rose, Ben Folds and Richard Cheese despite all of **them** using it. Eventually, after what felt like an **hour**, I just hadda stop. 'Cuz what was I even doing this for? Simply put: I don't know him. I'll never know him. Even if he hadn't passed away twelve years ago, I'd never get to know him well enough as a person, personally, to know if he's racist or not. I didn't even know his name before today—and even as I'm typing this, I can't recall it. All I'm left with, then, is the art. And I don't know if I can judge a person's entire soul based on forty minutes, let alone one word among many. And, yes, of course: it's a bad word. I don't like that he used it. But I can't just see it and call him racist entirely on that alone. Like, what's the context of the line? Does he **really** mean it? Is he playing a character? Or does it even matter in the first place? And for my money, I'm willing to give the benefit of the doubt. This is punk, after all. Unless you're one of the groups the Dead Kennedys wrote "Nazi Punks Fuck Off" about, I believe, generally, you're against racism. Of course, there's plenty of exceptions you could list, but for this man alone, I didn't see anything to suggest otherwise. In the songs where he used that word, I'll grant he was probably just playing a character. If other people don't, that's fair. Interpretation and all. But as awkward as I feel about it, I just can't agree. So that's settled then. Although first, before I actually talk about the damn music, I wanna state the funny thing about those previous paragraphs. See, if my group had never mentioned it, or I just didn't see them mention it, chances are I never would've known about those N-words. After all, as I've stated in previous reviews: I'm melody-first. I hardly register lyrics the first time I'm listening to something unless I'm staring directly at them. And there's no guarantee I would've been for this album, so it might have flown over my head completely. I could've saved myself the headache and however long I just spent writing these nearly 600 previous words. Let's get to the actual point, then: the music. What do I think of it? Eh. It's fine. Like, I'unno. I saw one that Wikipedia had given "psychobilly" as one of its genres, and that got me really excited for something that, frankly, isn't here. This isn't the Reverend Horton Heat. No, I should've been paying more attention to the **first** given genre: "punk blues." And on that front... Sure? I guess? I'unno. There were a few parts of it that rocked, but on the whole it just didn't impress me terribly much. It's not **bad**; I'm willing to give it a 3 at most. I suppose it's just that I had misplaced expectations. Although believe you me, I'm **very** tempted to give this thing a 1 on the fact that I spent all that time reading articles and worrying just to end up at an "Eh, it's fine." Especially given that I didn't do nearly as much worrying over listening to Kid Rock or Kanye West, and I know for a **fact** over how terrible **those guys** are. So, I'unno. Take it or leave it. ("It" meaning either "this album" or "this review," frankly.) I'm just gonna hope whatever my group ends up getting tomorrow won't tire me out as much as this one did before I even pressed "play."

To Pimp A Butterfly

Kendrick Lamar

5/5

Y'know, while I was listening to this album I wasn't sure what exactly I was gonna say about it. 'Cuz, I mean, come on. It's TO PIMP A BUTTERFLY. Without a doubt, it's the most important and highly praised hip hop record I can remember. I know there's a lot of people who'd **heavily** disagree with that, but for my money, nothing else comes close. And therein lies the problem: I'd want whatever I'd say about the album to match how big I feel this thing is. But even after nearly ten years of living with it, I struggle to really come up with the words. It's not even a typical case where I can excuse myself 'cuz I don't really "understand" the album, because I do, and pretty well. Maybe I just don't have the vocabulary? I'm not sure, and I don't wanna bore you with speculation, so allow me to get to the one definitive thing I know I have to say. This album begins with a spectacular run. "Wesley's Theory" is... Like, maybe the best track on the album, honestly? "King Kunta" bangs so hard. "u" is, exactly as it set out to be, fucking depressing. And "Alright" is such an incredible groove that I can't even. But then we hit a strerch of songs where... Honestly, they just don't do too much for me? Excepting "How Much A Dollar Cost" and "The Blacker The Berry" (phenominal, both of them), the stretch from "Momma" to "You Ain't Gonna Lie (Momma Said)" just doesn't do it for me. Even understanding their place in the narrative. Now, of course, I don't not enjoy them enough to not give the album as a whole the 5 I believe it fully deserves, but... I'unno. I think it's just the beats? Comparing it to every think that comes before it and everything that comes after—well, there's some outros I love, but as a whole, they're just too laidback for me. So much smaller than what I expect from the rest of the album. It's always been a sticking point for me, and it's probably why whenever I listen to stuff from this album it's usually just the first three or five songs or just "Alright". Ultimately, at the end of the day. though, it's a nitpick. Not nearly enough to knock this thing upon the towering pedestal of importance where I've placed it. It deserves all the praise it's gotten, and whatever more can be said about it. So... I'unno, yeah. That's my perspective on that. What do you think about that, Pac? Pac? Pac—?

Chocolate Starfish And The Hot Dog Flavored Water

Limp Bizkit

1/5

Welp. You know what time it is. Let's get this over with. As far as I'm concerned, there are two big "whammies" on this 1001 Albums list. Just, two albums that are "1/5" awful without a doubt, and are the only two where I legit wonder why they're here. First, there's Kid Rock's DEVIL WITHOUT A CAUSE. A solid hour of shitty rap rock from a complete poser wannabe-cowboy-pimp-gangsta. Completely irredeemable even if Kid Rock wasn't a MAGA shithbag. And second, there's... Well... To me, Limp Bizkit isn't a band. Literally, yes, of course, they are. But in perception, they're a joke. A meme. Completey incapable of being taken seriously. Which isn't the fault of the instrumentalists or the DJ, let's be clear. They're all great players. The instrumentals on this thing are actually kind of kick ass. Especially "Take A Look Around"—the MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE theme as a metal riff? Hell yes! No, the problem is, of course, Fred Durst. I didn't wanna lay the blame entirely at his feet, but that's just the truth. He gets his Durstiness all over everything and drags whole thing. He can't rap—when he doesn't sound smarmy, he's whiny, or he's putting on that "tough guy" voice. He can't sing—he's nearly completely flat and soujds like he doesn't care. And his lyrics? Goodness, they're petulant and stupid. I'm actually kind of offended he claims OTHER PEOPLE need to "get some better rhymes." And when you put him next to actual MCs like Xzibit, Method Man and DMX, Durst's shortcomings as a rapper only become that much more evident. Believe me, I wanted to be kind to this album and give it a 2, if only for the musicianship. None of them deserve to be stuck here backing up an idiot like Fred Durst. But Durst's the face of the band. He's the only member, besidee maybe DJ Lethal, most people know by name. He's the draw. And on that basis—yeah, no, this sucks major shit. This fully deserves the 1 I was always going to give it. I'm not as mad at this album as I was at DEVIL WITHOUT A CAUSE, but it's a chocolate hot dog nonetheless, and neither of them should be here. Fuckin'. (Man, can you believe my group got this album back-to-back with TO PIMP A BUTTERFLY of all things? Crazy.)

Throwing Muses

3/5

Honestly, after the last three albums my group got, I'm just happy to have one where I know I'm not gonna spend so much time reading, writing or thinking about it. (Seriously—way too much preliminary reading for FIRE OF LOVE of all things. Goodness.) This is a solid up-the-middle "it's fiiiiine" 3. Nothing great about it, but just enough that I wouldn't spin it down to a 2. I mean, honestly, it was nice to hear some good, punk female vocals. The abrasive kind, too, that for sure is gonna offend some people's sensitivities. It kind of reminded me of Yoko Ono's experimental warblings (which I mean in a positive way, I feel like I hafta point, 'cuz I know how some people would read that). All the same, however, I don't think it's a voice I'd regularly come back to. And besides the voice—unless I missed some stand-out lyrics, of course—there's just nothing else here I find terribly interesting. So, yeah, a generous weak 3 from me. I can applaud the fact that they apparently made all of this as teen-agers, which, goodness, I could never. But I can only hope they found some more interesting material on future albums.

Mothership Connection

Parliament

5/5

I feel like there's a lot I could write about this album, but let's cut straight to the point: this is some the funkiest-ass funky ass funk I've ever heard. Grooves to interstellar degree. Jus', goodness me. Put this on, put on some sunglasses, and get the hell down. 'Nuff said.

Kollaps

Einstürzende Neubauten

2/5

Y'know, I don't have much a defense against this thing being one of the lowest rated albums on the website. Like, yeah, I'm not gonna blame aggregate taste for putting it down here; sonically speaking, it's for sure the absolute hardest album I've heard yet to get into. But I don't think it's **as bad** as its status would imply? For one, I expecting it be nothing but noise: no melody, just clattering and shreiking for the sake of it under the excuse of it being "experimental." But there actually **is**, however, composition, and some kind of melody line to latch onto. It's an incredibly **unusual** melody line to most ears, but it's still **there**. It's not completely thoughtless and thrown together like I'd've otherwise assumed. Then there's the second factor here, and that's the fact that it absolutely belongs here on this list. Like, there's two things I personally want out of this list: albums generally considered the greatest of all time (RS500-core), and interesting shit from around the world. This **absolutely** scratches latter. Believe me, chances are more than likely you're not gonna come out of this album liking it, but I garuntee you you've never heard anything like it before, and you'll be all the better for it. I mean, seriously, I can't tell you how many American and British albums my group's listened to that're flat 3 and I've gained nothing whatsoever from them. "That's sure **this** genre," "that's sure **that** genre," etc. I want more stuff like CLUBE DE ESQUINA, CALL OF THE VALLEY, RUM SODOMY & THE LASH, ZOMBIE—and, yes, this. Random, obscure 80's New Wave or post-punk albums won't broaden your horizons. But this will. It's absolutely worth at least one run-through. And at any rate, **this** is the lowest rated album on the whole website and not **Kid Rock**? The heck are we doin' here, people? Goodness me.

Oedipus Schmoedipus

Barry Adamson

3/5

I'unno. As I'm writing this, it hasn't even been that long after I finished listening to this, and already I can't remember a second of how it sounds. Is that a critique of the album, or is it just me getting distracted and forgetting? Take your pick, I guess. Either way, I feel generous to slap this thing with a 3. There were enough spots I liked that prevent me from going lower—if only I could remember them.

Rhythm Nation 1814

Janet Jackson

4/5

The biggest question I feel like I've had to ask myself in trying to talk about this album is "Is it dated?" That being, "Is it dated in terms of its production and genre?" and "Is it dated in terms of commentary on the real world?" Of course, my answer to both variations of that question is "Yes." This thing was released in 1989, after all; I'd be surprised if either one had aged terribly well in 2024. But let's pull in and address each one separately. I wanna start with the thing I feel like most people would take issue with: the commentary. Naturally, there's gonna be a few issues it tackles that maybe don't apply... As well today? Although, if I've learned anything from history, a depressing amount **does** carry through across centuries. But that's not actually why I think most people would have a problem with it, despite "datedness" being the thesis. Moreso, I imagine they'd take issue with the fact that Janet Jackson is a celebrity, and, as such, who the hell is she to try and talk about the problems of the "common folk?" Given the pedestal she's been placed on, can it come across as anything but fake? To be blunt, personally, I don't care. I often talk to myself about the "power of music," but it can only do so much by itself. If Janet brought attention to some issues through some sick jams, then that's a good thing. I mean, I'm not sure what else she could or is really supposed to do besides jump to the extreme of "quit music entirely and spend the entire fortune she's amassed to fix it herself." I don't believe that'd be as effective as some people would want it to be, and generally I don't think that's what most people would want her to do, really. Frankly, I'd just be happy that someone with a position like hers would be speaking about this stuff at all. And besides, if I can listen to all of her brother's socially conscious music and never get put off by "fakeness," then it's not a problem for me here, either. And let's switch over to talking about the music, and to get back on the thesis. I'm not gonna front here: this album sounds incredibly dated to the late 80's and early 90's. But, like, I'unno—is that a problem, really? This is New Jack Swing. Maybe I'm just too much of a sucker for modern throwbacks to older sounds, but to me this is just what it's supposed to sound like. And frankly, it sounds **incredible**. It's maybe—no, **definitely** the single best collection of New Jack Swing I've heard. I mean, sure, it **can** get a little tiring because of how long the album runs. (64 minutes? Oof. I kind of wonder if the original vinyl version, which edited the album down a bit to fit, runs any better, but let's stick with how we were supposed to listen to this thing.) On the whole, though, I can only think of a handful of songs from other artists that I'd classify as more definitively "New Jack Swing." I can't think of any other **albums**, that's for sure. I'm still knocking it a star for its length, but regardless, I really enjoyed my time with this album. If you're the kind of person who's bothered by datedness in music, I maybe wouldn't recommend it, but if you take it as it comes like me, it's a hell of a time. No wonder there was a point in time where Janet was bigger than Michael, oof, goodness.

Foo Fighters

4/5

Y'know, I'm mostly just curious why **this** is the only Foo Fighters album on this list. Like, let me clear: this isn't a bad album. It still rocks, and hat's all I expect from them, ever. Long as they have the tunes, I can hardly complain. And of course, they are here, and the fact that Dave played it all by himself is impressive. I can tell why this was big. Me, though—I'unno. I just figure it's not the best of Foo. Like I know System Of A Down's debut shouldn't've been their only album on the list. Good grief, I'm not even the biggest fan of either band, or even that up in arms about it, but just knowing about their discographies all my life... But here we are, so... I'unno. It's just curious to me, that's all. Still, for their breakout, I can't give it less than a 4. In times like these, I don't figure it's anything **that** special, but honestly, it doesn't owe me anything. For what it gives, yeah, I'll stick around.

Teen Dream

Beach House

3/5

Y'know, maybe I had wrong expectations going into this. 'Cuz when I read that this thing with dream pop, my mind jumped to the example it always does: The Flaming Lips, circa THE SOFT BULLETIN and YOSHIMI BATTLES THE PINK ROBOTS. And those are both masterpieces of their times, so it's probably not fair, either, to compare this album to those. But I listen to this thing, and, like, honestly, there really isn't too much of a comparison? Like, it's dreamy in parts, although nothing to the extent that BULLETIN or YOSHIMI could be. Y'know, there's no "Buggin'" or "In The Morning Of The Magicians". Frankly, I think I'd hafta stand with what I've seen so many other people say and call this thing more "2010's indie." Which, if you consider that a knock against this album, it might just be a "blaming SHREK for all the terrible kids movies that came out after it" situation? Or maybe not; I haven't heard enough 2010's indie music to say. But just judging this... Pff, yeah, I'unno. It's fine. Kendrick Lamar got a good sample out of it, but otherwise... I'unno, I'm just waiting for THE SOFT BULLETIN to show up.

Heaven Or Las Vegas

Cocteau Twins

4/5

See, this is more like I wanted from the dream pop album my group got yesterday. Beautiful, etheral... Absolutely dreamlike; as if you could float away on it. And as far as I can remember, this is the best "vocals as an instrument" album I've heard in a while—where, yeah, there ate lyrics, but they maybe don't really matter? They're another melody, to help everything else flow along, and they're great at that. Jus', mm. I'm in love. It's real good stuff.

Cheap Thrills

Big Brother & The Holding Company

5/5

Way back in my review of The Who's LIVE AT LEEDS, I made a big deal vouching for the inclusion of live albums on this list. In short, if you haven't read it: there are just some bands where the studio setting didn't do their sound justice. Sure, they could sound **good** in the studio, but what they could do on stage is another level entirely. The Holding Company—as far as I'm hearing from this video I'm watching as I type this—was one of those bands. After their smash hit show at the Monterey Pop Festival and their debut studio album, the people were **clamoring** to hear the band's live sound captured on record. For some people, it was a hotter, more anticipated release than The Beatles' White Album. And come August 12th... Well, they sort of got it? Kind of, technically? Maybe not, depending on how you look at it? Most people these days probably know this, but in case you, the reader, don't, lemme jus' rip this off: this is a studio album. And it's not even a funky hybrid case like Frank Zappa's SHEIK YERBOUTI, where he overdubbed the shit out of live tracks. Despite what the cover claims, only one song on this album was recorded live, and it wasn't even where the cover says it was supposed to have been. This album is "live" in the same way "Bennie And The Jets" is, or Richard Cheese playing a royal wedding or Mos Eisley Spaceport. But putting that aside—would you know if I didn't tell you? They still kill it. They still rock to shit. Sure, even the **crowd noises** were recorded in the studio, but it's all put together so well, and the music is so good, I can hardly care. It's like the accusations lobbied against KISS's ALVIE! or Thin Lizzy's LIVE AND DANGEROUS being a studio creation. Sure, they lied about what kind of album this was, but I'm pretty sure I'll be able to get over it, y'know? Generally, I'd still enter it into the same pantheon as NO SLEEP 'TIL HAMMERSMITH and MADE IN JAPAN. And with it being at a nice, tight 37 minutes, too, there's no reason why you shouldn't give it a spin and try it out. It ain't a ball and chain; y'ain't got nuthin' to lose.

The Poet

Bobby Womack

5/5

I'll keep this short, since I wasn't able to get to this album the day my group had it and I just **need** to hurry on to listening to Country Joe & The Fish—oops, I'm not supposed to know that. But anyway, before now, I had no idea what Bobby Womack had done besides "be on a Gorillaz song." So to discover that he used to make lush-as-hell funk and soul... Oooh, this shit is incredibly up my alley. The soul stuff especially, it's so pretty. Honestly, I really wish I'd been able to spin this yesterday instead of having to hurry along like I feel I hafta. This is shit I really adore, goodness. Country Joe could never.

Electric Music For The Mind And Body

Country Joe & The Fish

3/5

Unlike other people in my group, I'd recognized Country Joe & The Fish right away: they're one of the bands who played Woodstock. Yeah, these guys were there on the same bill as Jimi Hendrix, Santana, Sly & The Family Stone, Janis Joplin, The Who, Joe Cocker, Joan Baez.. They shared ground with all'a those people. Although, honestly, from what I can remember of the movie soundtrack, I feel like I'd probably put Country Joe & The Fish more on the... Y'know, Arlo Guthrie and Sha-Na-Na side of notability. Which makes it even crazier than Country Joe himself got a solo performance on the album **alongside** his performance with the band, but that's besides the point. Neither song is on **this album**, anyway, so let's get back to the point. This, apparently, is the first psych rock album to come from the Bay Area. Right at the top of the Summer Of Love, these guys were there, and I hafta imagine that's why they were invited to Woodstock. By that same token, I also hafta imagine that's why people today wouldn't be too kind on it. Even accepting its place in history and its importance, it can be hard to go back to the first of something while being actively aware of all of the tropes and clichés it helped spawned. Now, I already made a case in my review of Dr. Dre's THE CHRONIC for why that sort of thing doesn't bother me. In short: I don't think you can blame the originator for everyone else doing its thing poorly or for everyone else tiring its thing out. Although... I'unno. This thing ended up going back and forth for me a lot. On one end, you got the stuff that leans more into acid rock, and that's the stuff that really got me to sit up and go "Yes! I can dig it, man! Tune out, drop in, whatever." But then on the other end, you got tracks where all I can think to myself is, "I've heard this a million times before—so maybe I just didn't like this kinda stuff to begin with? Or maybe they just didn't do it that good to begin with?Especially the song that explciity mentions LBJ, jus', **wow**..." Like, maybe it sounded better back when it was more special; when it existed more by itself and there wasn't as much similar material to compare it to. After being to absorb so much and come to a conclusion, though... Boof. I mean, lucky for them, I'm probably gonna remember this more for the acid rock stuff, but still—boof. And that's why I'm at a 3. "Section 43", by itself, is too good for me to really rate it any lower. And being 100% honest, the psych stuff isn't all **that** bad. Even if it's not very special, I can still be a real sucker for that keyboard sound. On the whole, however, besides the Woodstock notoriety, I'm not sure why you'd come back to these guys **first** over a lot of the other stuff that came out afterwards. At least they had a better set than Sha-Na-Na did.

Elvis Presley

4/5

Elvis was an amazing singer. Elvis **is** a **helluva** singer. We can have discussions for days about the people he took his voice from, or the system that caused his in particular to catch on over others', but that doesn't change how much of an incredible performer he was. It's evident even and **especially** as far back as his debut here, which was cobbled together from random RCA and Sun sessions. Truthfully, this isn't my favorite era of Elvis–I'm more excited for FROM ELVIS IN MEMPHIS to pop up–but regardless, it's always such a treat to hear him do his thing and adapt seamlessly to each style he tries while still sounding like himself. Jumpin' rockers, walkin' R&B, weepin' country... I can't help falling in love with his voice. Of course, let's calm down here and address some realities about this album. Primarily, as enjoyable as I think this album is, I believe, firmly, that it's more on this list for historical reasons than for "you **must** hear it" reasons. This **was**, after all, the first 12" record teen-agers bought in droves. Prior, the long-player was strictly the domain of serious classical and jazz, while the teen audience stuck with 45's and singles. As a result of its popularity, it's essentially **the** album we can point to as where rock and roll was popularized, alongside "Heartbreak Hotel" being the single. But as an album experience... Well, remember what I said above: it was thrown together from random RCA and Sun sessions. So, while it's a very enjoyable listen, it's not even where most people would recommend you go to discover why Elvis was as big as he was in the 50's. For that, you'd hafta turn to collections of his Sun recordings, such as THE SUN SESSIONS and SUNRISE. Heck, even the quickie "we need Elvis product while he's away in the army" albums FOR LP FANS ONLY and A DATE WITH ELVIS contain stuff like "Mystery Train" and "Baby Let's Play House". (Shout out, by the way, to the British being lucky enough to get "Mystery Train" on **their** version of this album.) FROM ELVIS IN MEMPHIS was also cobbled from sessions, but at least it feels a bit more purposefully put together. So, yeah, in 2024 there's better ways to understand Elvis than this album, and there's better Elvis album experiences than this album. Hell, there's better ways to take in this era of Elvis than this album (check ELVIS' GOLDEN RECORDS). But all that, of course, doesn't change how fun this album is, from Elvis's singing down to the band backing him. Seriously, let's not forget Scotty Moore, Bill Black and D. J. Fontana; they're as important as Elvis himself is. And if you wanna hear the exact songs, in the exact order, that caused America to fall so in love with Elvis, you're not gonna regret it. I mean, it's only 28 minutes, anyway; you don't have much to lose. All I know is, whatever way you choose to engage with this material, you're bound to be having fun on record with Elvis.

Live At The Regal

B.B. King

4/5

Slick, professionally played blues music. Compared to other albums we've gotten recently, it's not as energetic as LIVE AT LEEDS or LIVE AT THE APOLLO, or as jammy as LIVE/DEAD, or even as wild as CHEAP THRILLS (for all that album's "recorded in a studio"-ness). B.B.'s a consumate showman, and he can play the **hell** out of his guitar, even if he never lets himself get **that** out of control. Still, it's an album I've enjoyed a number of times before, and it's one I know I'll enjoy again. (Although, I'll also remark: crazy that this is here and not the Cook County Jail one. I know this one is regularly cited as a performance primer, and that's probably why it was here, but, man, that whole "performing in front of a prison crowd"t hing adds so much, you don't even... Jus' a bit of a shame is all. Seriously, check that album out if you dig this—or, like, AT FOLSOM PRISON, I guess.)

The Libertines

3/5

Indie garage rock. Ho-hum. It's perfectly fine; I found it really hard to care. I hate to leave reviews this short, but I really can't think of anything else to write up. No frame, no lens, nothing to write a faux-essay about. Just, "Ho-hum. Indie garage rock."

Hard Again

Muddy Waters

5/5

Holy shit. Now **that's** some fuckin' **blues**. The kind so hard it'll blow your speakers out if you play it too loud. Like, goodness, it's such a contrast from the last blues album my group got, only just a few days ago. 'Cuz, I mean, yeah, B.B. King's professionalism is something to be admired, and his playing is amazing even under his restraint, but you put it next to a band playing so raw and so electrically it's like they're gonna cause a blackout just on their own... Jus', oh, goodness. In short: it's the kind of blues I like the best (i.e.: "it sounds the most like Weird Al's 'Generic Blues', which is a **huge** compliment in my book, believe me). It's so much a 5 in my book, I won't even take the easy erection joke set-up the title gives. Good-ass job y'did there, Muddy.

Parallel Lines

Blondie

4/5

Y'know, for most of my time listening to this album, I was all ready to give it an "Eh, it's fine" 3 and move on. 'Course, that's 'cuz I spun side one twice before I got to side two. And side one... I mean, it's good, but... Eh, I'unno? I was just expecting to have my mind more blown by "the album with 'Heart Of Glass'," and nothing on side one was really clicking into that. Even "One Way Or Another", although that might be because I'm so more familiar with it as "the Swiffer commercial song" than I am with it as a Blondie song. Then I slapped on side two... Oh, wow, "11:59". Now **that**'s an amazing tune. It aligns so much with the kind of energy and tone I normally enjoy that, g'y'ah, I hope it's the fan favorite deep cut, 'cuz it's sure mine. I'd put it with Elton John's "Have Mercy On The Criminal" on my "list of amazing side two openers that I can think of/remember as I'm typing this." And wouldn't y'know, the rest of the side kept pretty well around the bar "11:59" set—and "Heart Of Glass"goes without saying, naturally. So, that's a 3 for the first side, a 5 for the second side (I was at a 4 'til I heard the "WOW" leading into the guitar solo on "I'm Gonna Love You Too")... Well, hey, that's an 8/10. And I'll have you know, I woulda still rounded it up to that even if I gave side two a 4. Good that it all evens out for you either way, eh, Blondie? (Also, next time I'll listen to the two record sides closer together, promise.)

Kala

M.I.A.

2/5

Hrm. OK, see, here's the thing: ARULAR was obnoxious. Incredibly so. That's what my review on this website of the album was about, and thinking back, it's really the only thing I can remember (besides "g'lang-a-lang-alang"). Despite that, however, I never found myself crossing over into annoyance at it. For sure, I got close a few times, but at the end of the day, I kind of just recognized that this was thing and I hadda accept it. KALA ended up being a different story. On the whole, I actually found it a whole lot less obnoxious than ARULAR. Although, as a result... I was kind of bored by the whole experience? Perhaps it's because M.I.A.'s whole "world music dance hall," "nasal monotone voice" thing isn't as shocking as it was the first time? Honestly, as much as I know I should, I can't muster up enough of a hoot to actually check. Hell, I don't even care enough to interrogate the thought I kept having throughout that it felt like big critics go gaga over this kind of music specifically because it's obnoxious on purpose (I **really** can't see what Robert Christgeau saw in this). Frankly, the only song I really paid any attention to was the big single, "Paper Planes", and that's just because, instrumentally, it remindedme of Post Malone's "Sunflower". And maybe I recognized a vocal performance from a mashup? But otherwise... Like, y'know, some part of me wants to be generous and give this thing the same 3 I gave ARULAR. M.I.A. doesn't **deserve** that kind of generosity, but that's besides the point. I could slap it with a "maybe it'd go off better in the club" and use that as the justification, 'cuz I really don't hear how it's any better or worse than ARULAR. But let's not underesimate how damn uninterested I was in this album. I hear this kind of beat work on the last album, I heard these nasally monotone vocals on the last album... For sure, there's something about this album that I'm missing. Something in its conception, or just some "media literacy" intepretation that'd make me like it a lot more. I just really don't care, though. Lemme jus' cross this shit off with a 2 and never hafta think about this damn anti-vaxxer ever again.

The Nightfly

Donald Fagen

2/5

According to Wikipedia, this album's legacy has very little to do with its music—as in, the compositions, or what these songs about. Instead, its legacy is that it's a favorite among audiophiles. This album was a popular demonstration record for speaker sets. It, especially its opener, has been used to test studio and front-of-the-house systems. I'm sure the only list besides this one where it sits besides PET SOUNDS and SGT. PEPPER'S is EQ's list of the ten best recorded album of all time. Not that any of that matters to me, really, I should say. I'm the furthest thing from an audiophile. I listened to this album on, like, $20-some headphones. I can't tell if something's bricked or clipping unless I'm looking at it. And, generally, as long as what I'm listening to doesn't sound like unmistable **total ass**, I'm fine. I just find it curious that this album's biggest impact was to became a tool for testing speaker quality. 'Cuz listening to the music... Well, it's not bad. And maybe I actually kind of like more than a fair few moments on it? But it's wholly unremarkable; completely inoffensive jazz pop that, at points, sounds like it should be playing the background of a Sega CD pool FMV game. During two different songs, on opposite sides of the album, I yawned out loud, no foolin'. And, y'know, I don't wanna make any assumptions and say I "understand" what pepople are talking about when they say Steely Dan is boring, 'cuz this is from only one member of the group.... But he is, notably, the only currently living member, so... Look, if this thing **is** one of the best recorded albums of all time, then maybe it's been recorded too clean. Y'know? Nobody's doing anything terribly interesting; there's no risks being taken; there's no **edge** to it. It's been polished to be a smooth nugget. And, sure, I can admire and appreciate all the effort that went into getting it that way, but it's not even that shiny. It's there. It's something to fill your time for a moment. And then you move onto something more interesting.

Beautiful Freak

Eels

4/5

Y'know, I'd just like to pull up two terms from one of the reviews of this album I read on this website: "Flaming Lips vibes" and "baroque-grunge." That about sums this album's appeal to me. It's the dreamty, contended sigh of melancholy, sometimes wrapped purely in the instrumentation of angst, and other times mixed in with more unique spices. Which, reading that back, sounds like a really pretentious way to put it, but that's the best way I can think of to describe it. Plus, of course—it has a song in SHREK. Nostalgia for that alone already garunteed this thing points, so it's nice to hear that the rest of it holds up as well.

Liquid Swords

GZA

3/5

Mm, I'unno. For me, it was all just a bit too low-key. What mean is, I just didn't find the beats terribly interesting, and being the "melody first" kind of person I am, if I'm not interested in the beats, then I'm probably not gonna be able to pay much mind to the lyrics. I figure GZA's a good lyricist—this album wouldn't be one of the big two solo Wu-Tang albums otherwise—but overall... I'unno. It just caused me to zone out too much, and not because the flows were hypnotic or whatever.

Haut de gamme / Koweït, rive gauche

Koffi Olomide

1/5

Look, let's get one thing straight: I review music, not musicians. If I wanted to just rant about how awful someone is, there's Twitter for that. I mean, consider Kanye West: these days, I hate that man with a burning passion, the divorced dad, Nazi-lovin' fuck. But despite that, I still gave MY BEAUTIFUL DARK TWISTED FANTASY a 4 because the music still resonated with me. Sometimes, bad people make good art. That's not a rule, but it **is** a common fact of life. But I don't wanna sound like I'm pro-"separate the art from the artist," because let's make this clear as well: you can't. As much as people out there would want to, I personally believe you can't fully understand an art unless you take into consideration the artist. That's why, as much as I gave MY BEAUTIFUL DARK TWISTED FANTASY a 4, I'm never gonna listen to it again, because Kanye is a fuck and I don't wanna give him my time. Like, usually it's never enough to affect my rating (unless you're Kid Rock), but if you're gonna come in here and be like, "Well, if you just look past their past transgressions," I feel like you're being disingenuous, at best. So, look, this guy's a child rapist. He was found guilty of raping a 15-year old, and that was the first thing I knew about him (because despite this album's appearance in this book it's apparently still not even notable enough in the English world to get a Wikipedia page). I could easily give this thing a 1 and move on with my life just for that alone. I don't blame others for doing that, but, myself, I just had to dig deeper and know: what's this thing actually like? Boring. This thing is fucking boring. From the first second, all I could picture in my head was commercials for cruise lines and it never let up the whole time. That's what this thing sounds like: chintzy background music for advertisements. And I don't know if that's what all rhumba music sounds like, or just what this guy sounded like by 1992, but I sorta refuse to let **him** be the representative, so... And none of these songs have enough going on to justify them being as long as they are. A 7+ minute average for track? Jeez! What gives him the right? Trust me, if you've heard the first thirty seconds, you've heard the last thirty seconds, and every random cluster of seconds in-between. Where in the world does this thing get off? Now, of course, there **are** parts I like. There hafta be; nothing's 100% bad. Even Kid Rock's stupid album had at least one or two parts I could begrudgingly say I like. But then, here's a good question: "why would I listen to **this guy** for it? Why do I **have to**, when there **has** to be someone else doing this who also **hasn't** been found guilty of any heinous acts?" Like, don't tell me there's no other album in the world that could've represented rhumba music better; I doubt **this guy** is the only one worth considering. So, like, this shit's a 1. A big, fat 1. And I don't hand those out easily, lemme tell you: you hafta **offend me** on some level to get one. Kid Rock's, well, Kid Rock. MAXINQUAYE was such an intermittently boring waste of time that I couldn't help it. And Limp Bizkit... Well, I was kind of hard on that Limp Bizkit album, but that's besides the point. If this guy had made better music, I woulda grumbled and complained about it, but I still would've given him the credit. Or, hell, if he wasn't a guilty child rapist, this thing would've been a 2, at best. But I feel no desire to give him any benefits. All I hear when I listen at this is this man's crimes. And frankly, given that I didn't know about him yesterday and I'll forget about him tomorrow, that's **all** I'll ever hear. Allow me to rate this thing accordingly, then: it's a 1. He's not worth anyone's time.

Slanted And Enchanted

Pavement

3/5

I think it's pretty good, but I don't think I'm as interested in it as I was in the last Pavement album my group got. Maybe because I can pin it more to the 90's, whereas they'd achieved something not as easily pinnable on their follow-up? I don't really find myself as interested in interrogating as I did the last time. I'll nod, acknowledge that it had some nebulous good influence on indie that I don't have the experience to figure, and say that there's quite a few moments and a couple of songs on here that I enjoy, but I can't do much more than that. It's a "minimum 3 and no lower" in my eyes.

Pretenders

4/5

"The Pretenders" was a name I'd already known, but when it popped up, I couldn't figure out why for the life of me. I knew they were an important band for **some** reason... It just alluded me at the moment. Or maybe I never knew, I'unno. Well, after listening to the album, I can tell you the exact reason: these are just real good tunes. It's not any more complicated than that. Although, I will say in agreement with Robbi Miller (from SOUNDS): yeah, the second side's better than the first. I listened to the first side while I was taking a walk, and, sure, I could hear **something** in there, but overall nothing really struck me. I can't even think of a specific song to bring up as an example. Listening to the second side hours later, however, after taking a second to warm up to it... Damn, goodness. "Brass In Pocket" and "Lovers Of Today"? Absolutely incredible, both of them. Listening to this album was worth it alone for discovering those two. **Especially** the last minute or so of "Lovers Of Today", I swear. For most of the day I was feeling a pretty decent 3, but after taking in the second side, yeah, I'll give it a 4. I've been made happy enough to be generous and do that.

Truth And Soul

Fishbone

5/5

SKA. I LOVE SKA. Seriously, at the moment I'm writing this, I can't think of another genre that makes me as happy as ska does. I'm such an unironic fan of the stuff—so why have I never heard Fishbone before today? I'unno. I suppose it's just a case where I already have albums lodged away as "my ska albums" (LET'S FACE IT by The Mighty Mighty Bosstones and TURN THE RADIO OFF by Reel Big Fish), and given how much else I listen to as it is, I just don't have the want or time to find more. But dammit, I'm a fool. This Fishbone album, sonically, is everything I want from ska. It's damn near perfect—or maybe it just is, flat out. And, frankly, I should be giving Fishbone the respect they deserve, given how hard those previous bands I mentioned knocked their style. So, here I present it now: thank you, Fishbone. Not just for paving the way for stuff like "Sell Out", but for being the first among those mentioned here to make kickass music. (Seriously, though. You shoulda seen the smile on my face and felt the happiness in my heart. Gawd**DAMN**, I love ska!)

Moondance

Van Morrison

3/5

Y'know, I've actually heard this album. Yeah, I know this kind of album isn't exactly in my normal wheelhouse, it's true. I heard it one time, years and years ago—I'd wager at least six or seven of the buggers. I believe I was tryna start listening to the entire 2012 Rolling Stone 500 list, and this was the only album I heard before I got distracted and forgot, but it's been so long, and with a memory like mine, I can't really say for sure. I'll say this much: I remember exactly as much about it from hearing it six or seven years ago as I do from hearing it an hour ago. Like, I'unno. Maybe I was just in the wrong headspace when I put it on, but it kinda just washed over me. Perfectly pleasant, except for some, like... Dips into jazz, I think? They were out of place and I didn't like them, whatever they were. But other than that, I remember better the fact that this guy made a shitty anti-COVID restrictions song with Eric Clapton than a single second from this, his most acclaimed album. Honestly, I just can't bring myself to care. Still, I'm willing to be generous and give this thing a 3, because even how forgettable it was, I don't think I disliked enough about it to go full-on with a 2. It's teetering, though, believe me. Sorry, Van. Y'jus' ain't "the man" to me.

69 Love Songs

The Magnetic Fields

5/5

Well, I figured it had to happen eventually. Here it is, what I considered to be the wall of my group's walls before I had the displeasure of discovering that Ella Fitzgerald album: 69 LOVE SONGS. A nearly three-hour triple album consisting of... Well, just as the album's title says, with 23 of these suckers a disc. It's a tall order to ask, and there's not any way to cheat like there was with the Ella Fitzgerald album and its decades-later "best of" compilation. Hell, a lot of people in my group were talking about taking the album one disc a day at a time. And that's probably the most sensible solution here. Me, though? I decided, "Aw, fuggit. I'll get this album all out of the way now." And thus, I broke these nearly-three hours into twelve chunks (following the six 10" disc vinyl release) and listened to them across how-many hours. My goal, then, was simple: treat this thing like Prince's EMANCIPATION and try to find a good single album in this mess. Which kind of defeats the point of why this thing was made, but I doubt I'm ever gonna come back to the whole package, so... How did I fair? To begin with, lemme speak generally about this album: I actually like quite a fair bit of it. Yeah, a lot of songs on here remind me of They Might Be Giants or Sparks, with some of the weird angles it takes love songs at. As well, the woman who sings sometimes sounds like she comes direct from Chumbawamba, and I love the woman who sings in **that band** a lot, so that's another thumbs up from me. Reminding me of any of those bands is a big "plus" in my book. I wanna credit the TMBG and Sparks comparison, too, for why I ended up paying so much attention to the lyrics. Like, as I've stated so many times in my reviews, I'm "melody first, lyrics second," so if you've made music where I can actually pay attention to the lyrics... Jus', wow, million points in your favor. And I'd forgotten how much a song's melody can be improved by some good lyrics, 'cuz there's some songs on here I found legit beautiful. Pretty, at least. Like, goodness, it's sure been worthwhile for me to dig in. But let's narrow in on that. "Digging in." Unavoidably and obviously, the biggest problem with this album is that there's too much album. If you're willing to take the time to sift through it, you're bound to come out with a lot of material you like. But that's a tall, tall order to ask anyone, to sit through 69 songs and nearly three hours to find the smaller album within. It's why I haven't actually done this sort of thing yet with Prince's EMANCIPATION, even as much as I want to. Like, even accepting this thing's concept, I shouldn't **have** to play album editor, y'know? Sure, I can find it fun, but it's not something you should be asking of everyone. And especially if you listen to this whole thing in one straight shot instead of breaking it up into chunks like me... Like, even before I started playing this album I didn't agree with the 1/5 reviews I saw, but I can't act like I don't know where they come from. It's very easy for the ambition you'd hafta have to make something like this to be mistaken for complete and unashamed ego. Or maybe it's the other way around–who knows? For my money, though... Aw, hell, even if I know I'm never gonna listen to this thing in full ever again, I'll slap this thing with a 5. Not every song on here is perfect or even all that special (which would be a miracle if they were given there's 69 here), but way too many of them appealed to me specifically to really mind those lesser ones too much. Besides, this thing's such a unique experience. There's only maybe two or three albums I can think of that could provide something like this, and I doubt any of them would be as enjoyable or live up to this thing's level of consistency and quality material. I'm completely sympathetic for anyone who'd hate this thing, but, hey: at least the songs on here weren't all soul-drainingly similar like that Ella Fitzgerald album was. Seriously, goodness, now **that's** a slog... Now, about that "single good album" I said I'd whittle this thing down into... Well, unfortunately, it'd require a bit more time than I really had today. I will probably make one down the line, certainly—I didn't put all this effort into consideration for nothing—but for this review, allow me to close things out with my two favorite songs from each chunk. The "24 Song Loves," if you will. I'unno. (Also, apparently Daniel Hader, aka Lemony Snicket, played on this thing? I literally didn't find that out until the last few seconds of the last song. Well, I'll be damned.) A: "I Don't Believe In The Sun"; "All My Little Words" B: "Let's Pretend We're Bunny Rabbits"; "The Book Of Love" C: "Fido, Your Leash Is Too Long"; "The One You Really Love" D: "Nothing Matters When We're Dancing"; "Sweet-Lovin' Man" ==(23)== E: "Grand Canyon"; "No One Will Ever Love You" F: "(Crazy For You But) Not That Crazy)"; "Promises Of Eternity" G: "Washington, D.C."; "Papa Was A Rodeo" H: "Epitaph For My Heart"; "The Way You Say Good-Night" ==(46)== I: "Busby Berkeley Dreams"; "I'm Sorry I Love You" J: "The Death Of Ferdinand De Saussure"; "Wi' Nae Wee Balm We'll Me Beget" K: "Queen Of The Savages"; "Blue You" L: "How To Say Goodbye"; "The Night You Can't Remember" ==(69)==

The Downward Spiral

Nine Inch Nails

4/5

Y'know, I like this album quite a fair bit—I think it'd be weird if I liked Weird Al's pastiche of this album and not the album itself—but I'm not as gaga for it as I know the others in my group are. Sure, I like a lot and appreciate how it meshes together all of these harsh elements and melodies and makes it sound seamless, but it all comes down to that ever-so-intangible and unexplainable "X factor." Simply, industrial rock isn't my thing, and I didn't hear anything on here that made me wanna explore more. Johnny Cash's cover of "Hurt" is more up my alley, y'know. Still, I don't feel I can give this thing less than a 4; it's just that well put together. Still gonna bring down my group's average, but, hey, not as bad as I could have.

Bryter Layter

Nick Drake

5/5

Y'know, I can understand why people would prefer the simplicity of PINK MOON to this. If the arrangements don't go off 100%, well... It kind of undermines the lyrics, doesn't it? And if you're already not feeling them—woof. I mean, heck, I can tell you I wasn't feeling the flute on the instrumental title track. But lucky for me, I actually found a lot of this album to be incredibly pretty. "Fly" in particular was gorgeous, goodness. I read that the arranger's goal with this album was to try and evoke PET SOUNDS, and, well, I say 'e got real damn close. Not to mention, Nick Drake's guitar playing is as amazing as always, so... Yeah, I'unno. I'm feelin' happy enough about this whole thing to give it the 5 I didn't give PINK MOON. (Although, I mean, given what I hear about the lyrics, feelin' happy might not... But whatever.)

Chemtrails Over The Country Club

Lana Del Rey

2/5

Y'know, I don't believe this album should be here. And it's actually not because of what I think about its musical content—I'll get there in a moment—but more its recency. Which, yes, I know, I'm not the first one to bring it up in the reviews on this website. I'm sure one of the top five rated reviews brings it up, or more; I don't feel like checking right now. Regardless, I stand pretty firm in my idea that albums under five years old should be disqualified from lists like this. Simply put, we've had no chance to see if they stand the test of time. Like, in thirty years, we could be looking back on this album as a complete wreck, if we even remember it at all. Of course, all the same, we could be praising it as the modern SGT. PEPPER'S or PET SOUNDS, but, goodness, give it a chance to stew for a second first. This album was only six months old when it got added to the book—in human terms, it probably couldn't even crawl yet. And as I write this, it's currently three-and-a-half years old—still probably shaking on its legs a little. Now, here's the thing: I'd maybe be willing to forgive all of that. I don't normally like talking about what should or shouldn't be in this book, 'cuz more often than not it's irrelevant to my reviews. I'm not here to talk about something's inclusion; I'm here to talk about the music. So, if you catch me bringing it up... Woof. Yeah, I'm sorry to the people in my group who were excited to hear this album; this thing's boring as shit. Like, I always had this assumption in mind that I wouldn't like Lana Del Ray, and finally actually hearing her for myself, yeah, I was right. I mean, maybe her other albums are better, but as an introduction, I don't think the randomizer could've picked a worse one. It sounds like so many other random pop songs I've stumbled across, with its cooing, baby vocals that I don't think she can really pull off, and all these atmospheric "vibes" instrumentals that nearly put me to sleep. And after, like, the first two tracks they all sounded the same to me. I only remember "White Dress" 'cuz of this bad vocal inflection she does, and because she tries to fit way too many words into one of the lines, and the title track... Well, I'm already forgetting it as I write this, so... Like, she really wants to call this shit "wild at heart?" This is as wild as room temperature milk. And it's not like I dislike modern music, either. That's an assumption I feel like I'd have, but there's a fair number of new albums, of new material, that aren't even five years old that I can safely say I love. Coheed And Cambria's VAXIS II, BABYMETAL's THE OTHER ONE, Gorillaz' CRACKER ISLAND... Hell, The Weeknd's DAWN FM, to bring up an artist who's popular in the mainstream. It's just that this sound is **extremely** not for me. People who're into this artsier sort of stuff... Sure. All this "art deco chamber pop nostalgia vibes" stuff. And I'm not even against vibes, but... Blurgh. I wanna give this thing a 2 just because I feel like a 1's too harsh. Like, that's the rating I reserve for shit like Kid Rock, or for convicted child rapists who make boring rhumba music for cruise line ads. Hell, I probably shouldn't have even given Limp Bizkit or MAXINQUAYE a 1. Like, this album's worst crime, speaking about its music, is that it bores me pretty badly. I'm sure if I knew more about Lana Del Ray's politics I could see how it influences my view of her art and **maybe** justify lowering the score, but honestly, I'd rather not. Like, honestly, the worst thing I can say about it is just what I started this review with: I don't think this album should be here. And as much as I'd like to say it's more for reasons of recency than for subjective reasons of "quality"—being 100, there's a good chance it's not.

Live And Dangerous

Thin Lizzy

4/5

I wanna put aside any debates about how much of this album was recorded live or in the studio. If I can still consider CHEAP THRILLS a live album despite how much I know for a fact was done in the studio, then to me this is 100% a live album. A pretty fun one at that, too. I mean, Thin Lizzy just rocks hard. There's really nothing more complicated to them or this album than that. And being as much of a sucker for dad rock as I can be sometimes... If Thin Lizzy is even normally considered dad rock, but that's besides the point. I enjoyed myself listening to this, and at the end of the day, that's all I ever wanted from it.

Ten

Pearl Jam

5/5

Maybe my problem's just that I've heard Nirvana and NEVERMIND too much. That's not to imply right out the gate that I disliked TEN; far from it. For as dark as it can and does get lyrically, this thing rocks to hell and back. Goodness, "alive" is downright anthemic despite what it's **actually** about. Then there's Vedder's voice. I know, especially from a lot of the reviews I skimmed here, how much of a sticking point it can be for people. Either they've heard one too many bad imitations, or maybe they just don't like it... For my money, however, I can't imagine these songs without it. Vedder's voice, even after all of the copycats, is still unique, and it's damned **impassioned** as he sings. In short: yes, I like it. So what's with that sentence at the top, then? The heck do I mean by that? Very basically, it's just that for much as I accept it as one of **the** defining albums of the grunge and alt rock movement of the 90's... I'unno, it just doesn't sound very grunge to me? Alt rock, for sure, but when it comes to grunge, NEVERMIND has always been my benchmark. "In Bloom", "Come As You Are", "Breed", "Territorial Pissing"... **That's** grunge to me. Maybe it's because Nirvana takes so many cues from punk, whereas Pearl Jam, as I've read it, sounds way more classic rock. And maybe if I'd spent years listening to TEN I'd feel the opposite way. Either way, ultimately, despite the fact that the sentiment's my opening sentence, it doesn't really matter too much to me. Both albums are incredible, front to back. I don't think grunge could've gotten two better albums to get launched by. And for me, it's the fact that it lives up to its reputation that bumps it up that extra point from a 4 to a 5. S'only fair if I've also given NEVERMIND a 5.

Mama Said Knock You Out

LL Cool J

3/5

As a melody-first music listener, lemme say up top that the beats are pretty fresh. Fly, funky, phat... Whatever word you wanna use. On that front, it gets a pretty good rating from me. As late-80's beats, anyway. You compare this to where the rest of the 90's went, and, woo, no competition here. But considering this is a late-80's record, really, yeah, it does good. Now, speaking about LL as a rhymer and a flower... Mm. Honestly, to me he's got a voice where, like... I don't feel like I hafta take him too seriously? Besides the title track, it often sounds to me like a typical "party jam rapper" voice. Y'know what I mean? I'unno, I hear him and I think of Young MC. Like, I'm not saying it's unenjoyable, or that some of the rhymes can't be good (even putting aside some of the ones that've, well, "not aged well"), it's just... I kinda feel like I'm missing something. 'Cuz it's not bad; it's a 3 at minimum. I just don't know if I'd say it's one of the 50 best rap albums of all time. In short: I can't say he knocked me out.

Groovin'

The Young Rascals

3/5

Yep, that's 60's music alright. ... What else do you want me to say here? What else **can** I say? Like, sure, I guess it can be kinda pretty in a few spots (the title track is the best song here), but otherwise it's just... So blandly fine. I don't wanna go so far as to call it "generic," but there's really nothing here as far as I can tell. White-ass, lightly psychedelic "soul" with a cover drawn by a 6-year old. It's pleasant enough, and I don't feel mean enough to give it a 2, but goodness, if there ain't a billion other 60's albums I'd've rather spent my time with than this.

Fleet Foxes

5/5

Right from the words "indie folk," I'll admit, I was a little worried. See, I tend to have this association in my mind between it and, like, insufferably pompous and hipster twee shit. The kind of stuff contemporary critics will just eat up for one reason or another, but for everyone else it's just a nuisance. Now, of course I went into this project with hopes that that line of thought would be proven wrong. I'm not **that** cynical. I just... Had some doubts otherwise. After listening to it, on the one hand, I can hear where I was coming from. "Lookit us with our flannel and our mountain-man beards–aren't we so **cute**?" That sort of sound. If someone upchucked hearing this music, I'd completely get it. However, looking at the other hand, I gotta admit: I'm happy my doubts were largely proven wrong. I tolerated it way better than I thought I would–heck, I wouldn't even say I "tolerated" it. I actually liked it quite a fair bit, thanks largely to this kind of "beautifully dreamy" atmosphere it has. It reminds me a lot of The Beach Boys' PET SOUNDS. I jus' kinda sank into it, and, well, while I never had that same feeling of "Damn, this is the greatest music of all time" I have with PET SOUNDS, it was just so nice to float along this thing's current. It's not too dissimilar to what I get out of some of my favorite dream pop songs. So, yeah, I gotta hand it to Fleet Foxes. I went into this album expecting it to be a "3 at **best**" deal, but listening to it here in the dark as I write this review... Goodness, no, I may just hafta give this thing a 5. It just hits such a wonderfully good mood for me. I can't say "no" to it. And I guess I should take back what I said about their beards, too. Not the flannel, though. Flannel's a bit much. Like, I'm sorry; I know it fits your aesthetic and all, but that's just how it is.

Here Are the Sonics

The Sonics

4/5

This album sounds like it was recorded in a sort of cramped space with only one, low-quality microphone. And I only assume it was a cramped space because I hafta assume the saxophone player was placed right next to the microphone the way it blasts over everything every time it appears. But, I'unno, it adds to the charm. This whole "garage proto-punk" thing they got. I mean, I feel like it tends to play out better when they're doing their few originals over the covers—which is a bit of a shame given that the album's 1:2 originals to covers. Like, even with their ramshackle recording, the covers just don't sound too terribly special to me? Honestly, in some parts it sounds like the parodies of garage rock Frank Zappa would have The Mothers do. And, yeah, it does feel like at least 25% of the words spoken on this album are just the lead singer going "WWWWWOOOOOAAAAAAAAWWWWW!!" But I still think I can nod at it as a good enough time to give it a 4. I can understand an argument for why it could go lower—that it's just noise that later bands would refine into less noise—but I'unno. Here are The Sonics, and here I am pretty satisfied.

Gasoline Alley

Rod Stewart

4/5

My first time listening to this album, I didn't get it. Like, sure, I thought it was... Fine, I guess, but in a really underwhelming sort of way. I just couldn't figure out what was supposed to be so notable about it. That changed once I read Stephen Thomas Erlewine's review on AllMusic and I realized: this thing's largely acoustic. There's one electric guitar that comes in every now and then, but otherwise, it's largely driven acoustically. I could go so far as to call it folk, even. In that light, it's actually kind of amazing how hard this thing rocks, all without a hint of fuzz or distortion. Just Rod singing the hell out of these songs and the band playin' similarly. Color me impressed, I gotta say. It's enough to make me feel justified giving this thing a 4. Good job, Rod. I just hope your next album is more immediately understandable.

Time Out

The Dave Brubeck Quartet

5/5

I'll admit, I cheated a little on this album. Before I even heard it, I went and watched an old video about it by Polyphonic. So, no, I didn't hear this thing with clean, unaware ears. But honestly, I'm glad I did, because knowing ahead of time what this album's deal was allowed me to appreciate it a lot more. Like, it is just damn impressive that these guys play in so many unusual time signatures (9/8, 3/4, 5/4) and yet it's still an album you can throw on at a dinner party. Most people would use that fact as an insult, but I really like that its rhythmic complexities don't get in the way of it being a great listen. You can enjoy it either as a super-intense jazz listener, or just casually. It's not at all what I expected from a famously "complex" jazz album. Although, it's not like this is THE SHAPE OF JAZZ TO COME or anything; don't let me get too ahead of myself here. Plus, most of the songs end up being in 3/4 "waltz time" anyway, so... Still, I'm perfectly happy giving this thing a 5. It's just stellar playing and great jazz melodies all around, with an added layer to keep it interesting beyond that. And once more, shout outs to Polyphonic for explaining that layer to a dummy like me.

Live Through This

Hole

5/5

Puttung aside a lot of what I could say about Courtney as a person, sympathetically or negatively—hot damn, now this is the kind of angry punk grunge I dig the shit out of. Those rockin' guitars, those crashin' drums, and goodness **me**, when Courtney Love's voice gets that "yelling strain" on it... I'm all for it; I'm all over it. Like, I can't remember exactly how CELEBRITY SKIN sounded, though I can tell you for sure that this has gotten me more into Hole than that album did. Jus', goodness, it's amazing this thing came out as good as it did despite everything that happened around it, both before **and** after. (And to be clear, of course this album isn't 100% wall-to-wall loud and angry grunge guitars. It gets softer musically every now and then, and I like those moments a lot as well. They keep this album up at the 5 where the louder songs put it. I'm just being honest about what I'm probably gonna remember this album for, and it's gonna be for the louder, angrier songs.)

Killing Joke

5/5

Post-punk has never been a friend of mine. Check my profile—no matter when, you're probably bound to see that it's my worst rated genre. Any time the randomizer gives us an album that's classified as one, unless I already know it, I tend to groan. You can probably blame METAL BOX for that. Even though I have given good reviews to albums labeled as "post-punk," I still come back to METAL BOX as **the** sound for me of the genre. Which is to say: artsy nonsense. Throwing together every dull, irritating anti-music idea you have and acting like we're supposed to be impressed because it's "anti-commercial." It was the first album I ever gave a 2, and since then, I've never felt like being too kind to the genre. Shit like DUB HOUSING didn't help. So, what about Killing Joke, then? How do they stack up against METAL BOX? Do they break the mold? I'm happy to say that, yes, they do. This whole albums fairs a **lot** better than METAL BOX and I dig these songs a lot—hell, I'll even say they "bang." "Rip?" Whatever word the kids these days use (I'm in my late 20's). They groove in just the right way for me, I like the guitar riffs and rhythms, I **love** whenever the keys come in... And I can totally see the complaint that some of these songs maybe run a little long, but it didn't bother me. Heck, I kinda liked getting a little lost in them. They rock so hard, I don't even care. This is just really good, heavy punk shit. No wonder bands like Metallica took inspiration from them. And to narrow in my invocation of Metallica... Yeah, it's not just because they covered "The Wait". Moreso, they're the umbrella I feel like putting it under over post-punk: that is, heavy music adjacent to metal and grunge. And heck, that sort of logic follows through to the albums I mentioned I'd given 4's. They were by DEVO, Talking Heads and Television, and I'd consider them all more New Wave or just straight rock than post-punk. So, perhaps that's really why I have a problem with the genre, truly: I keep finding reasons to separate out the stuff I like, leaving me to think of it as just pretentious crap. Hell, even this album, chances are good I'd refer to it as "industrial rock" to people before "post-punk." And that's not fair to post-punk, I realize—assuming it even is anything beyond an arbitrary label, but let's not get into that. Instead, I'll say this much: KILLING JOKE is the best post-punk album I've heard yet. It appeals so directly to my love of heavy music, and I think it bangs hard. If you like bands like Metallica or Nirvana, it's worth giving these guys a shot. And I can only hope that moving forward, albums like this can become the rule for my image of post-punk rather than the exception.

Ogden's Nut Gone Flake

Small Faces

5/5

Listening to today's album, I ended up playing both the mono and stereo mixes of the first side. Basically, there was some small talk in the group about the general difference between the two kinds, and I figured it'd only be right to give them each a shot. In short: they're both fine. Generally for albums released in the 1960s, I tend towards the mono mixes, since the ones in stereo were usually an afterthought, but they both do the job fine. I understand the remark from one of my colleagues that the mono mix is a bit muddy, but, personally, it sounded just fine to me. Kinda made the songs sound a bit more powerful, honestly. And boy howdy, I'm glad I got so familiar with side one, 'cuz that shit's great. Amazing psychedelia that rocks like hell, front to nearly the back. My group hasn't gotten far enough in the list yet to be sick of 60's psychedelia, and I'm glad we aren't, 'cuz I'd've hated to throw this aside just because we got a bunch of mediocre ones. And this stuff's actually not even just psychedelia; there's a whole lot of garage rock and even some proto-punk tones in here, which is for sure probably why I like it so much. Like, seriously, draw some attention to "Son Of A Baker" and the guitar thing it has going on there. Goodness! There's only one song I wasn't all for, "Lazy Sunday" (it's nearly a bit too cheeky for my tastes), but regardless, I feel like I could give this whole album a 5 just for this first side alone. But then there's the second, and... Look, I like a bit of narrative in my stories. I love concept albums and even a bit of musical theater. And, heck, even the songs on this side are pretty good. Nothing **quite** on the level of the first, but nothing that'd drop the album down a point (and even still, I'd put it back up just for some of its organ sounds). It's—wuff, it's just the narration. It's just... Dumb. With all of its made-up British words, sounding like it's meant to be read to young lil' lads n' lassies. And, I mean, I regularly engage with young peoples' media, but this sounds like it's for **young** people. Kindergarteners or preschoolers, really. I mean, I'll put it like this: I have a lot of love and respect for BLUE'S CLUES as **the** show of shows I watched growing up, but even on my most nostalgic days, I don't think I'd go out of my way to rewatch any of it. (I **am** an **adult**, after all—I watched THE IRISHMAN and nearly fell asleep!) I'd be a real dummy to mark this album just for a little bit of narration on the second side, though. In the grand scheme of the record, it's more a nitpick than anything else. The music here is still incredibly stellar. Like I said, my group luckily hasn't gone too far that this would be lost in the shuffle aside a billion "Who gives a shit?" albums from this decade, although I still wanna believe even if we were, I'd still be able to recognize this material as stand out. At the very least, it's the best album I've ever heard packaged in a metal tin—yeah, that's right, PIL's catching another stray. How about that, eh? Now **that's** nut-gone, innit?

Blur

5/5

Y'know, I'm really glad that there's another blur album on this list, and not just because I enjoyed the last one of theirs I heard as much as I did. No, I'm glad I have a second chance to review them, after my first was some Letterboxd/Stan Twitter-type nonsense that amounted to "hurr, Gorillaz, am I right?" These days I kinda really hate that style of "review," so it's nice to have an opportunity to say something more. Though, to be 100% to start: I still kinda just hear 2D whenever Albarn sings. Like, yeah, I know, that's just how he sings, but you spend as long listening to PLASTIC BEACH as I have, it's hard to hear anything else. That said, I really do like that voice in this musical context, all rock-y and pop-y and... British. Come to think of it, maybe I just like Albarn's voice in general, or at least the beds of music he chooses to place it in. And let's talk about that music by switching lenses, from Gorillaz comparisons to Oasis ones. For the longest time, I'd always tended to listen to Oasis more because of--well, to be blunt, their Beatles-ness. As much as that's an insult hurled against them, it **is** why, alongside the general hugeness they aim for, I'm more likely to put one of their songs. The fact that general Western pop culture is aware of more Oasis songs than just one like blur doesn't help. But actually putting on blur, honestly, they interest me way more. I feel like they're more keen to experiment than Oasis is, who, meanwhile, tend to stick in their Beatles-inspired wheelhouse (from what I've heard, anyway). It's something I can hear clearly carried over to Gorillaz and their tendency to play genre roulette. Of course, blur still fits pretty nicely into "Britpop" (and they're **very** "Brit", goodness), but I really enjoy their willingness to try other tones, textures and soundscapes. Of course, that experimentation (not to mention, again, the Brit-ness of it all) is probably why Oasis won the "Britpop wars" over on this side of the pond, and why Albarn didn't really get his time to shine until he put himself behind cartoons. That's really a shame. Don't get me wrong, "Song 2" is great, but I kinda wish a few more blur songs had become hits. Wha'cha gonna do, though, eh? In all... Y'know, from what I remember, I believe I gave PARKLIFE a 4. I liked that album a lot, but I think what kept me from pushing it over into a 5 was... Like, I think you got the sound of this album pretty early on, and I don't recall very many exceptions or deviations except for a few. PLus, if you care about lyrics but you're not a Brit at that specific point in the 90's, you may as well not bother with 'em. Lucky for me, I don't tend to, and this album has way more sonic variation than PARKLIFE. So, yeah, I'll happily give this one a 5. Makes me feel pretty "heavy metal," as one might say. "Woo-hoo," indeed.

Morrison Hotel

The Doors

3/5

This album's two sides are labeled as such: "Hard Rock Cafe" (that's the first five or six tracks, depending on if "Blue Sunday" is separated or not) and "Morrison Hotel" (the rest, from "Land Ho!" on). "Hard Rock Cafe" is the "blues" half of the album. Now, I was ready to write off this half because The Doors have always been a psychedelic rock band in my mind's ear. So, this whole "return to roots" blues thing... I didn't think I'd be too much for it, but y'know what? It's good stuff. I won't say I'm amazed by it, but there's some pretty good stuff here. Well, aside from the opener "Roadhouse Blues", anyway. I'unno, for some reason it didn't do anything for me, either time I heard it. Maybe it's just too generically "60's blues rock?" I dug everything else, though. "Peace Frog" is a bit of the Doors sound I come from, and "You Make Me Real" is a rollicking piece of garage blues. "Waiting For The Sun" is a pretty neat stand-out, too. I'd give it a 4 in total. As for the second half, "Morrison Hotel" (the psych half)... Y'know, this is the half you'd expect I like more. It's the sound I come to expect from the band, after all. But then, the sound I expect comes from their hit singles and Weird Al's pastiche. "Light My Fire", "Love Me Two Times", "Riders On The Storm"... Heck, even "Touch Me", from the album whose negative reception was the whole reason this album, and side one in particular, was made. That kind of fun psychedelia, or at least atmospherically ethereal enough. And "Land Ho!" is the former for me; I'll point that one out as a favorite. But everything after that... I'unno; I'd be hard pressed to remember anything specific from them. I suppose "Indian Summer" comes closest to the "ethereal" point, and my lack of ability to pay attention could be more general and blamed on a tiredness I've been feeling all day, but I'll say it again: I'unno. I didn't hate any of it, so it's worth a 3 at least, but I think this side could've stood to be a bit more... More. Balance the two sides out, it's a 3.5, which... Mm, honestly, I'd bump down to a 3. Even as much as I liked the first side and "Land Ho!", looking at the whole package... I don't think it would've been my first pick for my group's first The Doors album.

Aladdin Sane

David Bowie

5/5

Y'know, I can't say I really dug this album the first couple of times I heard it. I'unno, putting in contrast against the two Bowie had released before this—HUNKY DORY and gawddam **ZIGGY STARDUST**—mixed with the fact that, for some reason, I just couldn't get a handle on it... That's why, at the same time, I was both looking forward to giving this thing a second chance and worrying I still wouldn't find anything to speak about. So, I wanna thank this four-star review of the album I found on this website that said, simply, "Elton John if he was edgy." And it all clicked. Like, this is glam. This is heavy glam rock—why didn't I hear that before? Holy shit, it's heavy glam, and it's **so good**. All the heavy guitars and the melodies and the horns and the background singers and... Well, the everything. And there's so much everything, goodness. And I wanted to say it didn't have the same sense of theatrical greatness that the last two albums had, but then "Time" happened and shut me right up. If I can reference another review, a negative one this time: it **does** sound like a rock opera. And that, on top of the glam, is why I feel so happy giving this thing a complete 5/5. Which kind of feels strange? I mean, check my history; I didn't even give HUNKY DORY a 5, and I said that was my favorite Bowie album. So, is this my favorite now? I mean, for as great as I've found ALADDIN SANE to be, it doesn't have "Changes", "Oh! You Pretty Things", "Queen Bitch", or "Life On Mars?". I'm not sure if any individual song on here quite matches up, so for that reason alone, I'll keep saying HUNKY DORY's my favorite Bowie album. But as a complete album experience, until I get to hear ZIGGY STARDUST again, ALADDIN SANE will hafta be happy with second place.

Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots

The Flaming Lips

5/5

(THE REVIEW BEGINS... NOW.) Alongside its older sibling THE SOFT BULLETIN, YOSHIMI BATTLES THE PINK ROBOTS sets my benchmark for dream pop. And believe you me—that's a pretty high bar. A collection of eleven beautiful songs about life and love, all leading up to "Do You Realize??", perhaps the most poignant song I've ever heard about accepting the fact that you will die and making the most out of life while you have it instead. It's another one of those albums where I wanna have more to say about it, but it's wedged itself so deeply in my person that I struggle to really come up with the words. I mean, I guess the album kind of dips a little between the second part of the title track and "Do You Realize??", though ultimately it's a dip from a perfect 10 to a 9.5, and either way it rounds up. Now, if you'll excuse me, I hafta go beg the randomizer to give my group THE SOFT BULLETIN as soon as possible. (THE REVIEW IS OVER... NOW.)

Never Mind The Bollocks, Here’s The Sex Pistols

Sex Pistols

3/5

These days, my opinion of the Sex Pistols runs a lot more negative than they used to. The fact they're a punk rock boy band. The mere existence of "Bodies". The idea, which I subscribe to, that it's their fault the Dead Kennedys eventually had to write "Nazi Punks Fuck Off". And I'm not even gonna get into what Mr. Rotten's been up to recently--let's just leave it at "I'm disappointed." But like I've said many times before, I review music, not people. I hate Kanye, but I've given his albums positive scores. The people in my group know this well enough, so I won't dwell on it. I will briefly mention "Bodies", though. An anti-abortion song? Ew! No! As much as I'd wanna pretend I don't let my politics get in the way of my enjoying things--THE INCREDIBLES, for instance, is **incredibly Randian**, but it's still one of the best Pixar films ever made--but sometimes, I just have to put my foot down. This is one of those times, and honestly, I didn't even listen to it this time around. OK, OK, OK. All of that stuff talking about politics is out of the way. Let's actually get to the damn music on this thing. Which--it's sort of weird to not wanna talk about its politics, honestly. Part of the reason why it's famous, or infamous, is for how shocking songs like "God Save The Queen" and "Anarchy In The U.K." were at the time. I mean, calling the monarchy a "fascist regime?" Oh, my monocle! Hell, even the fact that the cover used the word "bollocks" was controversial. And maybe it still is, who knows? Of course, it's 2024 right now. The only thing shocking about the Sex Pistols is the general fact that way too many punk rockers have turned hard conservative. So, finally, finally, lemme finally get off this kick and actually talk about the gawddamn music like I said I was going to ten minutes ago. Frankly, there's a part of my brain that's still 13 or 14, that still likes this music as much as I did back then because it's loud and bashy, with some snotty British voice shouting over it. Surely, I may have been vaguely aware of what these songs were about, but I couldn't tell you exactly what. There were just a lot of parts I liked to shout along to, or imitate to myself, even when I wasn't listening to the music. Although much of my opinion about the band and its members has changed and evolved over the years, I think I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy my time with the music. That said, however, now that I have way more experience with punk than I used to--your Clashes, your Green Days, your Bad Religions, your Ramoneses--this album jus' feels... I'unno, maybe a little too simple? I mean, yeah, it's punk, and given the skill level of some of the band members... Plus, y'know, it **is** basically the grandfather of punk, so it can be cut **some** slack. I'm just left thinking about what other bands would do with this style in the future, and... Well, I don't think it's any surprise that these days I mostly engage with the Sex Pistols via covers of "God Save The Queen" and "Anarchy In The U.K.". Check out Motörhead's cover of the former, by the way; Lemmy does it great. All in all... I think when it came to Sex Pistols, I think they were more concerned about being shocking to the establishment of the time than anything else. Sure, they managed to bang out a couple of good tunes, and ("Bodies" aside) I won't say this is a bad album. Like, clearly it still resonates with people enough that it made a top 100 placement on the 2020 Rolling Stone 500. Goodness, Kurt Cobain even claimed that they were more important than The Clash--y'know, "the only band that matters," as they were dubbed. For my money, however... I guess I'm at a 3? More specifically, a 3.5, but I just can't bring myself to round it up. It's fine for what it is, and I'll never be able to say I don't enjoy it, but there's been so much better punk music since. (I mean, this ain't worth much, but I'll take it over PIL anyway. Yeah, that's another shot at METAL BOX fer yah. Truly, the worst thing I could say about Mr. Rotten these days.)

This Nation’s Saving Grace

The Fall

2/5

And right after I'd given KILLING JOKE 5 stars, too. Like, I was pretty hopeful, honestly, that after that point I would actually start to hear more in post-punk. Like, I don't **want** to hate it; I don't wanna hate **any music**. There just has to be **something** there that I'm just missing. Then this album waltzed in. And maybe I'm not missing anything. Maybe I just don't like post-punk. I'll give this album one thing: it doesn't have any of the apparent dub influence that's colored so many other post-punk albums. At least The Fall left that style out of this. The rest, though... I mean, it really felt like a lot of these were written in the studio. As if one of them just started playing a riff that everyone else liked and they just went off on it, expecting to be able to pull a fully-formed song out of thin air. Unsurprisingly, they don't, and these songs often sound like they're just going around in circles trying and failing to find a point. It's not even a cool moment when the riff comes back in; it's like they're just returning to the only concrete part of the song they have. The mixing's ass, too. I hardly comment on mixing, and I know this is still punk, even if it has the "post-" prefix, but I'm sorry, this is bad. And if **I'm** noticing how bad it is...! Like, goodness me, you guys couldn't have even found a bigger closet to record in? You really had to stick the drummer in another room? And, jeez, at least get a mic that can produce a sound better than "1920's radio." Oh, sure. Maybe if I had more of an appreciation for abstract art, maybe I'd understand and like this better. That's how James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem came to love this album. And I'm not gonna say every riff here is that bad. But... Jeez. It's not as abrasive as METAL BOX was, but I don't think I've disliked a post-punk album this much since METAL BOX. And at least METAL BOX did have some nice songs, as rare as they were. About the "abstract art" thing, too. I don't wanna let this get away with being a mess just because it's "artsy." That's an excuse, not a reason, like Tommy Wiseau claiming THE ROOM was always a black comedy. Like, yes, it's art; I'm not saying it's not. But all music is art, good or bad. And this is bad. Honestly, maybe the only good thing that came out of this album's apparent success was that it led to Mark E. Smith featuring on a Gorillaz song. "Sch-tick?" yeah. Not my kind of schtick. I'll pass, thank you. And maybe--unfortunately--I'll remember not to get my hopes so high about any post-punk albums my group gets in the future.

Kind Of Blue

Miles Davis

4/5

I don't ask for much from jazz. What I mean is, I'm not a scholar. I can't tell you tit from tat about modal jazz, or about how exactly anyone here is playing. If I tried, I bet I'd come across as a huge poser. At best, I'd just be repeating something I might've heard in a Vox video. But even if I did have the ability to identify specific keys, modes and notes, I don't think I'd want to listen to jazz like that anyway. Putting it on specifically to analyze the music theory of it? Sure, I can appreciate complex playing, but I've never been one to tend towards music just because it's complex--or abstract or experimental, or however else "real, important jazz" is supposed to be impressive. I've grown up listening to pop and rock. Older stuff, mostly, but that's besides the point. As such, I generally tend more towards... Y'know, melodies. As long as I'm provided a good melody; something I can focus on or just have play in the background--and there aren't any external, non-music factors that'll discourage me from listening--I can't really complain. Now, that's not to say I'm a complete sucker; that as long as a melody's pleasing I'm perfectly pacified. There **has** to be more going on there. I mean, I can't tell you how many albums I've heard from this list that sound pleasant, but really had nothing else going for them. There needs to be a deeper layer, and that's where the complexity comes in. Even if I don't focus solely on it, just being aware that it's there really does a number for my enjoyment. The ol' "Ooo, I'm so smart" "big brain" feeling, y'know? And it's always appreciated where it's not too present; not distracting if you're not specifically listening for it. "Great players playing great melodies and solos." That's all I really ask for, in short, and that's what KIND OF BLUE provides. I mean, if I'm being 100%, I'm not sure if I'm gonna hold any specific differences between this or the other Miles Davis album my group listened to, BIRTH OF THE COOL. Like, if I ever listen to either of these again, it's probably gonna be a coin toss. In that sense, I don't think I can rate this any higher than I did BIRTH OF THE COOL--which I gave a 4, but still. Either way, this is some of the greatest work from one of the jazz men and group of jazz players to ever exist. If you're willing to not be such a jazz snob about its "simplicity," it's absolutely worth your time.

Abraxas

Santana

3/5

Coming into this album only knowing Satana only for "Smooth" probably gave me the... Well, not the wrong mindset coming in, but different expectations, for sure. I mean, to be clear, I'd always known that Santana existed for a **long** time before "Smooth". Hell, they'd played Woodstock--just like Country Joe! So, here we are only a year after Woodstock and 29 years before "Smooth". What do they sound like at this time? There's two I think I hafta keep in mind about this point in this history. For one, prior to their first album, they were a jam band. Even though--according to whoever wrote the Wikipedia article for their first album--they'd largely give that up for more conventional songwriting, they still kept a lot of the improvisation inherent to jam bands in there. Secondly, there's this genre tag that Wikipedia (them again) applies to this album: jazz fusion. And I think that goes a long way to explaining why this album sounds the way it does. "Smooth" had set me up for way more energy. Not so much, y'know, high tempos, horns and singing like Rob Thomas of Matchbox Twenty, but... Energy, y'know? But ABRAXAS, I find, is actually a pretty laid-back album. Sure, it can kick it up a notch when it wants to, but I'm pretty sure that when I think back on this album, I'm gonna think of the more chill tracks. The ones that rely on the groove **heavily** to carry things forward. I do like it quite a bit, lemme say. If I'd caught this at a better time, it would've been nice to just max and relax to Latin grooves. Note, though: "if I had." 'Cuz this was another one of those rare days where I finally woke up at the time I normally want to, but since my body's used to me getting up later, I spent a lot of the day being all yawny and tryna keep my eyes open... So an album like this was incredibly easy to space out on. To which--I mean, I don't think a lot of albums would be able to completely, 100% hold my attention when I get like that, but goodness me, this could've done better. And I think that's why I'm feeling a 3 on it? One that I could see myself going up to a 4 on, by the way. I recognize, the state of mind I was in today wasn't this thing's fault, and I shouldn't judge it for that. All the same, however I do think it kind of highlighted how... Nondescript I found it? I mean, I'm sure I'll come back to this in the future and find a lot more to enjoy--Carlos Santana's guitar playing, for instance. I mean, hey, if anything carried over to "Smooth" nearly three decades later, it's that he can rip a mean guitar. But at this stands... Pff, yeah. Man, it's only a warm one.

Boy In Da Corner

Dizzee Rascal

2/5

In 2003, this album won the Mercury award--essentially, it'd been deemed the best album of 2003. This was a fact I'd stumbled across way back when my group had gotten Coldplay's A RUSH OF BLOOD TO THE HEAD, where I discovered that it'd lost to this album. In fact, albums from Radiohead and The Darkness, and The Thrills' SO MUCH FOR THE CITY (which, hey, I like that album) had **all** lost to this album. This album, which--OK, I'm not British, and I was a little kid in 2003, so it's not like I would've known about this thing at its height. I can't throw the "Well, **I've** never heard of this album before" card at it. But I still hadda wonder the obvious--what **is** this thing's deal? What did British critics see in it? According to whoever wrote this album's Wikipedia page, it was its success that helped grime music gain mainstream exposure. So, hey, let's look at it like that--this is the album that brought grime to the common folk's attention. This album, more than any other, should explain the appeal of grime. And, honestly, it's because of this album I think I finally know why people don't like grime so much. In short: it can be pretty obnoxious. Every song this album is just... Loud. And kind of repetitive. I get the feeling that they were supposed to be "hype," but I don't get that feeling. I'm just... Kind of tired, honestly. And wondering, with every new song that pops up, how long it'll be 'til this album is over. Seriously, I do **not** think this thing needed to be just shy of an hour. The fact that way too many of the beats are kind of complete ass doesn't help. Seriously, the bass on some songs sounds like a bad, extended fart. Like, goodness, once I get over the novelty of this all being rapped in a Cockney accent... And, boy, don't even get me started on some of the obnoxious vocals and vocal effects sprinkled throughout this thing... What's funny to me is that this is actually the first UK rap album I can say I dislike. Like, A GRAND DON'T COME FOR FREE started out atrociously, but by the time it ended it'd actually managed to win me over. KONNICHWA, meanwhile, I think is just plain good aside from its lead single. They both had me wondering, in different ways, what UK rap and grime had done to make it so infamous to Western ears. And, well, I get it now. At least I have my own understanding of it. So, y'know, even if I'm never gonna listen it again (unless I wanna get a headache), I **am** happy I heard it, in some weird way. I wouldn't **recommend** anyone else to listen to it, but still. And, like, the only reason I'm not giving it a 1 is because... I'unno, a "1" always feels to mean unless I feel like an album **really** deserves. I figure if this album was shorter, or at least if I'd taken it in smaller doses instead of taking the brunt of it all at once, I wouldn't have been so down on it. Or maybe I would have, who knows? It's pure generosity that this thing might not actually deserve. So... Take it or leave it, I guess. (Speaking of things this album don't deserve, by the way--seriously. This album over the one with "Clocks"? Goodness me, British people have weird tastes.)

Electric Prunes

The Electric Prunes

3/5

This band's history is kind of fascinating to me. Did you know that their third album was a collection of religious mass songs sung in Greek and Latin? Which, for the record, wasn't even the band's idea--Reprise Records thought a classically trained musician should arrange their third album, and then the only reason they went through with this idea was because the band's producer (who owned the rights to their name) agreed with Reprise. The recording and release of that album, by the way, went so badly that the band dissolved afterwards, and wouldn't reform until the early 2000's. Of course, that didn't stop the band's producer from releasing two more albums under their name before the 60's ended. From all the reading I did about the band's albums (and albums credited to the band), the impression I had is that they never really got control of their own sound. And that extends to this one, by the way. They'd been composing material for an album, but their producer decided to bring in two outside songwriters to compose a majority of the album: seven out of twelve. In the end, the band's two main songwriters ended up being solely responsible for only one track, "Luvin'". Before the 2000's, it seems the only time the band really got to dictate their own sound was their second album, UNDERGROUND--and even then... Hell, before the 2000's, the only Electric Prunes album written entirely by band members was JUST GOOD OLD ROCK AND ROLL, and by that point the band was just a random group of musicians their producers slapped the name on. So, that's a lot of preamble and context for this band I'd never heard of before yesterday. Again, it's all just so fascinating to me, the ups and (mostly) downs their group had. It's honestly a lot more interesting than the actual music on this album, 'cuz, like, at the end of the day, it's just 60's garage psych. It's not bad stuff, or unenjoyable, but even the band members will tell you that some of the stuff on here is filler and didn't belong. Sure, I liked the two big singles ("I Had Too Much To Dream (Last Night)" and "Get Me To The World On Time") and the two songs that the band's actual damn songwriters had a hand in ("Train For Tomorrow" and "Lovin'"). The rest, however... It's either nondescript stuff I imagine my group is gonna hear a dozen or so more times before this list's over, or "The Toonerville Trolley". And I really do hafta feel bad for any band who has to record something like that. It's like when Elvis was forced to sing "Old MacDonald". And that's really the feeling I come out of this album in general with: I just feel bad for the band. Like, not horrible, and I'm not sure how much this album would've been if they'd been allowed to use more or all of their own material (AllMusic, for instance, rated all the albums that came out later that did slightly worse than this one), but... Y'know, still, it sucks that they got jerked around so much by their producer. At the very least, I can tell you if the band had more creative control they wouldn't've had some random classical musician make them record gawddamn church music. The music on this album is fine at best, not particularly inspiring in the middle, and "The Toonerville Trolley" at worst. I wouldn't have ever seeked it out on my own, but, hey, at least I ended up having more to talk about and comment on than just their name. "The Electric Prunes"--seriously. Only in the late-ish 60's could a band get away with calling themselves something like that.

She's So Unusual

Cyndi Lauper

5/5

This album is Cyndi Lauper's legacy. Besides the title track from the follow-up album, TRUE COLORS, I imagine if anyone thinks about Cyndi, they're gonna think about this album--and its big hit more specifically. From the quick overview I did, it just seemed nothing else she did (besides "True Colors") could really ever compare to how big and explosive her debut was. Which I don't think is a bad thing, entirely. Like, if you're gonna have a legacy, this album is a pretty good one to have. For one, as overplayed as "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" may be... It's still "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun". It's one of the biggest and most iconic songs of the 80's, and not for no reason. It's huge, it's anthemic, and, dammit, it's just plain fun. And "fun" is the word I'd apply to the rest of this album. Sure, it's all pure bubblegum. No one's suggesting you should live off of it. Take it from someone who chews a lot of Juicy Fruit, though: it's really tasty gum. Produced in the most superbly 80's New Wave pop kinda way. Lauper sounds like she's having an absolute blast recording this thing. Add on top of that a pretty good of my favorite early Prince single... Honestly, I have a hard time thinking of any negative points I feel worth bringing up. Maybe the fact that "He's So Unusual" is hard-right panned? And then in that same ear on "Yeah Yeah" you've got this squeaky Harley Quinn voice? And "Witness" might be the weakest song? I'unno. None of that makes me want to give this album any less than a 5, anyway. It's just fun, and that's all I, a girl, want.

Achtung Baby

4/5

These days I don't really believe in "irony." To paraphrase Todd In The Shadows, hitting your hand with a hammer still hurts. Maybe back in the day I subscribed to it, 'coz I felt like I hadda justify watching things that were widely disliked. But these days, if I like something... Heck, maybe I just do. I bring that up because that's what U2 was doing here: ironic rock n' roll. After the public declared the band firmly up their own asses following the mess that was RATTLE AND HUM, the band figured the best way to get their cred back was to drop all sincerity. No more of that JOSHUA TREE Americana, no. We got twelve slices of Eno-produced irony rock for the 90's. Which ended up helping them in the long run, of course. That's what allowed U2 to survive the arrival of Nirvana and grunge that killed so many other bands--the idea that they weren't really serious about any of this. That this is all some satire of the culture, expanded especially in the accompanying tour and the album they recorded during it, ZOOROPA. However, I'm writing this review 33 years later. Irony may be coming back in vogue in some small way, but I like to think in general people're allowing themselves to be more sincere about things. So, let me be sincere about this: this is my second favorite U2 album. I mean, let's not act like the appeal of this thing was entirely just the irony. This is U2, not too long after THE JOSHUA TREE and a long ways off from ALL THAT YOU CAN'T LEAVE BEHIND. The Edge plays a great guitar. I like the way Bono's voice moves. Eno can produce like a muh-fuh. This thing's got great singles, and it's got great hooks from all of them. "Even Better Than The Real Thing", "Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses", "One", "Mysterious Ways"--oh, goodness, "Mysterious Ways". I suppose the only thing it's really missing for me, and why it's second behind THE JOSHUA TREE, is that anthemic quality. "Where The Streets Have No Name", "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For"--I just need to bring up those two and you get what I mean. It's just something they had to give up when they traded their sincerity for cred via irony. And I can't say it was a bad move. Again, irony is what helped them survive the 90's, and what allowed them to eventually crawl up their own asses again with stuff like SONGS OF SURRENDER. Besides, even if their attitudes gave the idea they weren't taking any of this rock star posturing seriously, it's very clear that they were still 100% serious about the music. They put a lot of work into these songs, and it paid off in dividends. Enough so, even, that they were able to have a residency at the stupid Las Vegas Sphere that ended just last March where they played the whole thing, front to back. If that's not some indication of this thing's legacy... Either way, I really love this album, completely and sincerely, and that's enough. Don'cha think?

Tom Tom Club

4/5

Y'know, as much as I'd want to pay this group some respect by not comparing them to Talking Heads--to be judged solely on their own merits as a New Wave act, at least... I find framing my listening that way kind of unavoidable, honestly. 'Coz the only question I have going into it, really, is "What do these guys sound like when David Byrne **isn't** around?" As it turns out: "less nerdy Talking Heads." Even if it still has quite a few of those weirder edges (particularly in the back half), it's way more polished than any Talking Heads song I've heard. Heck, I'd go so far as to call them a bit more mainstream--and I don't mean that as an insult, knowing how some would use it. I mean, you just gotta look at their biggest hit, "Genius Of Love". That's such an incredible synth hook it has. It's no wonder why Mariah Carey eventually had it sampled up for "Fantasy" (and then **that** got sampled up and knocked off for "Big Energy", but let's stay on topic). It's synth-y, 80's fun, with this crazy danceable groove, and just the right amount of weirdness to give it that aforementioned edge while still keeping it commercially appealing. I'm not surprised it became **the** song people know this group for, even if the rest of their catalog's seemed to have faded away from public knowledge. And if I could bring up a deeper cut favorite... "As Above, So Below" was probably my favorite. It reminded me the most of Talking Heads, which is maybe why I like it as much as I do, though I don't think I'd ever mistake it for one. Thanks largely to Tina's vocals (which, in spots, reminded me of lower-vibe ABBA songs), it can stand on its own. Plus, hey, it's also got a good groove, so... ("Lorelei" gets an honorable mention as runner-up favorite. The "Under The Boardwalk" cover is real good, too.) There we go, then: I like this album. It's not as much of a New Wave masterwork as the last New Wave album I heard (SHE'S SO UNUSUAL), and I'm not blown away stupid by it, but it does its job well. If I have only one gripe about it, "Wordy Rappinghood" probably wasn't the **best** way to kick off the album. Sure, it has a pretty good instrumental, but... I mean, maybe I just don't like New Wave rapping? I haven't gotten to that one Blondie song everyone seems to like, so we'll see if my opinion changes, but from the ones I **have** heard... Look, all I'm saying is that interpolating "Old MacDonald Had A Farm" kinda makes your song lame. I mean, "Old MacDonald" was the lowest point of Elvis's career; you really wanna hitch onto **that** legacy? As you've seen, I've given this album a 4, but even if the rest of the material was good enough for a 5, I'd still drop it to a 4 just because this song is so lame. I mean, seriously, goodness... But let's bring it back up a positive note. As someone who's only a casual Talking Heads fan, I'm happy to've heard this. I feel like I have a new appreciation for the non-Byrne band members now. I never figured he was the sole genius behind the group, but it's nice to have evidence that the rest of them could carry their own weight. Ultimately, however, I do think I still prefer Talking Heads for its nerdier, awkward-er edges, though if you're a fan of the band, or New Wave in general, I think this is worth your time. At any rate, it's better than NO TALKING, JUST HEAD. Goodness.

The Last Of The True Believers

Nanci Griffith

4/5

Y'know, I like country music. The old stuff, anyway. 'Coz, I'unno, modern country music is just... Modern music. And I hardly listen to that in general. But old music? The old country stuff? That's up my alley. And, no, I'm not an "I only listen to Johnny Cash" type. Most anything from the 1960's to the 2000's is up my alley, especially if it's been parodied by Cledus T. Judd or recorded by Dolly or (yes) Johnny Cash. And this album came out in the late 80's, so... Yeah, it's all my alley. And I like it. ...I'm not sure what else to say about it, honestly. "It's good country music." That's all I can muster. I mean, you want me to get into the specifics of why I like it? I'm not sure why. I know there **is** differences between artists, but for the most part, being 100, besides which decade it came out in, I have a hard time telling a lot of country music apart from each other. Which is fine by me; that means if I like one song from one decade, I'm bound to like more. And that's not to say I don't have specific favorites, but... I'unno. Country is coming to seem like it's gonna be the hardest genre for me to talk about, unless there's something particularly special about it—AT FOLSOM PRISON, for example, to bring up Johnny Cash again. So, yeah. It's a good album, I like it enough for a 4. I just don't have anything specific to say about it. First time in a while I haven't been able to blabber on and on about an album, but that's just bound to happen. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have this urge to go to Woolworth's.

Play

Moby

3/5

Like a lot of people, pretty much the only reason why I know and remember the name Moby is because Eminem dissed him in "Without Me". Don't ask me why; it's 20-some year old beef and I don't care. But if you asked me—and Moby, for that matter—this diss was actually a great thing for Moby. It got (and is still getting) his name in a lot of ears. "Without Me" **is** one of Eminem's most well known and played singles, after all. And, goodness me, in 2024 it might be slightly better advertising for him than his music. I mean, let's be clear: I don't dislike it. Far from it, actually. There's a lot of stuff I like a lot, **especially** the piano parts. They're gorgeous. And letting myself vibe out to this album while I'm playing DR. MARIO... Yeah, it's a great time. But actually listen closely to the album, and taking it as a whole... Frankly, I don't think it really needed to be an hour long. Like, so you can maybe understand what I'm talking about, let's just focus on the songs built around samples. He takes a snippet of a blues vocal, lays down some dance drums and piano around it, sometimes inserts some synth strings, and lets it flow up and down. It's not bad, and it's where some of my favorite piano lines come from actually. He just never really builds on that set-up. I mean, take Fatboy Slim's YOU'VE COME A LONG WAY, BABY—which, yes, is built on more samples than this album, and is going for a different sound, but hear me out. Fatboy Slim does a lot with his samples, not just between songs, but even within them. They're always switching up into different sections to keep things moving along and interesting, and no two songs pull the same tricks. This album, meanwhile, opens with the same trick twice. Sure, I don't think either one's bad, but did they really both need to be here? Or at the very least, more could've been done to make them unique besides their sample and tempo. And it's not like there's not exceptions across the album. As I was writing this, the closer, "My Weakness", came on, and that's a beautiful track. As a whole package, though... This kind of feels like a casualty of CD bloat; like there wasn't any restraint in what to include. Just throw everything on there, even if it doesn't have any more ideas than the five other songs it sounds just like. Maybe I'm overthinking it. Like I said, if I allow myself to just vibe to it, it's fine. And, hey, there's no shame in that being your relation to an album. I'm not even sure why I would've been expecting too much, anyway, given where I know Moby's name from. But I can only be honest with what I heard, and what I heard is a pretty "it's fine" 3. One that could've been a 4 if it's tightened up its runtime, 'coz, seriously, I really do a lot of its piano stuff. The way it is now, though... Yeah, I doubt I'll ever again give the whole thing a play.

New Boots And Panties

Ian Dury

3/5

If this is proof that God doesn't exist, then I guess there really didn't need to be that much in the first place. This really isn't even bad, honestly. I feel like maybe the worst thing I can say about it is that Ian Dury's vocals are a little more lowkey than I'd like. A little too sleepy, maybe, even. It's not like it doesn't work at all atop a lot of these disco and music hall instrumentals, thanks in large to his accent, though I don't feel like I was really into the album until the last three songs. That's where it gets incredibly punk and pub rock, and it kicks ass. Even with "Blockheads" having this massive synth fart. It's maybe a case where the fact that I'm melody first is really doing this album a disservice. It's apparently filled with these stories of love and working class people from Essex, so perhaps if I'd dug into those more I'd've gotten more out of the majority of the album. Inevitably, though, I am who I am, and unless it's something I'm particular into... Yeah. At the very least, this album's musically good enough that I wouldn't give it lower than a 3. The only thing that holds it back from a 4 in my book is that the vocals could've stood to have been more interesting. And it didn't make me question my faith in a higher power in the universe, anyway, so that helps.

...The Dandy Warhols Come Down

The Dandy Warhols

4/5

This is an album in two modes. In its first mode, it's superb 90's power pop. Incredibly hooky with an infectious, driving energy. It's really as Pitchfork put it: it's one of the best Britpop albums I've heard, and it isn't even British. Seriously, it ranks right up there with the best stuff I've heard from blur, Oasis, and at least some of the dozen random Britpop acts this list has given up. All it's missing is a snotty, Cockney accent—though I imagine some people are pretty thankful it's nowhere to be found. In its other mode, it's space rock. Now, I haven't heard very much space rock. There's the stuff in Pink Floyd's early catalog that could be called such, and that's really about it. So, getting to hear a 90's take on this genre... Gosh, I'm floating. It's such a good sonic soundscape. I can just picture being at the helm of a spaceship, lazily drifting among the stars through the cosmos. Seriously, any song on this album, not just the space rock half, could have been on a GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY Awesome Mix, as far as I'm concerned. If I hadda pick one mode I liked better... I believe I'd pick the space rock mode? Largely 'coz it's stuff I haven't heard before. As good as the power pop stuff is, I honestly couldn't shake the feeling that it all sounded like some other band I'd heard before, and I could never exactly place my finger on it. On top of that—and I might be speaking more about my preference for album length than I am CD bloat—I'm not sure if this really needed to be 66 minutes. Somewhere in the middle, I kept spacing out (no pun intended). Now, normally I'd chalk that sort of thing up to my attention span and not dock the album any points, but I'unno. This is one of those rare times I wanna be kind to an album, but combined with the remark about feeling like I'd heard some of this stuff before from others... Yeah. O course, it's still ultimately a 4 out of 5, and a heavy recommendation from me. The space rock stuff and the power pop I didn't space out on are too good to give it anything less, I figure. Like, it wasn't terribly consistent, but on the whole I'd still say I had a great time coming down with the Dandy Warhols. From where or what, I'm not sure, but, hey, it's the climb and all that...

Rumours

Fleetwood Mac

5/5

Abigail Devoe doesn't like RUMOURS, and that helped me understand why I like it and so many others love it. Now, to be clear, Abby likes the **songs** on RUMOURS. She could point out a number of those to you, from the opener "Second Hands News" to the closer "Gold Dust Woman". Her problem with the album lies in the way it's produced. Lindsay Buckingham's goal with RUMOURS was to produce a perfect pop album, and he went far out of his way to do it. Just check out the anecdote about how he had his guitar strings changed three times every hour while recording "Never Going Back Again" so they'd retain their brightness. And to Abby, this method of production devalues the material — as she puts it, it's "manufactured magic." She prefers a break-up album like this to be way grittier, rawer, looser — see BLOOD ON THE TRACKS or BLUE. In other words, a more subtle genius that confronts the audience with its emotions, rather than pave over it with a layer of pop polish. If things were more like "Gold Dust Woman" or the outro of "The Chain"... Of course, that's all a fair and valid opinion. I won't even say I disagree with her, and I very much recommend you seek out that video to hear her opinions from her own mouth. However, I find myself much more siding with a comment I saw below the video that stated that, yeah, no, it **is** this album's production that made it as beloved as it is. The emotional heft would've always been there. The cacophony of three or so voices all yelling over top of each other to try and convince you that "No, **that person** is the asshole." It still would have struck a chord with people — I mean, hell, BLOOD ON THE TRACKS and BLUE are both top 10 albums on the 2020 Rolling Stone 500, right alongside RUMOURS, for as much as that's worth. At the very least, it shows that rawer emotions can absolutely hit it off with people. But neither of them had a song resurge on TikTok like "Dreams" did. N', heck, look at this very website: RUMOURS has the second-highest average, beaten only by ABBEY ROAD. From what I've read, it even used to be **number one**. And if I can attribute any one specific reason to why that is, it's that production makes it go down easier. To be 100, I'll recognize, maybe I'm just speaking through my own "melody first" likes and preferences for production. I do often find myself gravitating towards stuff with a lot of production. There's no orchestra or anything, but I eat that kinda shit up. Especially if it can make the music feel "grand" or "huge" or "epic." And I wouldn't say any of those three descriptors necessarily apply to RUMOURS, but look at "Never Going Back Again". Lindsay's insistence on replacing the strings as often as they were paid off. It ends up one of my favorite songs on the entire album **because** the strings are as bright as they are. It adds a level of beauty to the song that wouldn't have been there if it'd been any gritter. Or look at "Dreams" — it might not have resurged the way it did if it wasn't as laid-back and, for lack of a better word, dreamy as it is. It's that perfection, too, that I think helps a lot of the looser moments stand out. "Go Your Own Way" and especially "The Chain" wouldn't go as hard as they do if the songs around them weren't as shiny as they are. And you really do have to be in awe at the fact that this album was even released at all. Not just because the tapes it was recorded on were apparently run so thin the risk was run of having the whole thing tossed out, but... Y'know, the band turmoil. Of course the band turmoil. Everyone knows the band turmoil; it's **the thing** it's known for. But seriously, you hafta admire the fact that even though these people were going through such a rough and bitter break-up, they were still able to devote themselves to the music — even if they were playing on songs about how much of a jerk the other person thought they were. That's commitment right there. This has all made me appreciate and like RUMOURS more than I had before. I **had** liked it; I'd just never really gotten the hype around it. Again, just four years ago it was named a top 10 album on the Rolling Stone 500. To my eyes, even knowing it's just a list among lists, that's not nothing. And maybe some of it was resentment at TikTok, 'coz I've never liked that platform, so, of course, anything **it** popularizes... And, well, even now, I'm not gonna say this new listen-through and this new understanding has suddenly made it a top 10 album for me. There's other albums, in and outside of this website's top 10, that for one reason or another I'd place over RUMOURS. I will still agree with its reputation of greatness, though, of course. For all the hardship the band went through to make this album, and given what they produced, I don't think it deserves much less than a 5 — a 4, at worst. It's just the right combination of emotional weight and perfect pop polish. Which, for the last time, I get why the latter fact would turn people away from this album. Abby's just as right in **not being** a fan of it as anyone else is for **being** a fan. We can all go our own way about it. For my money, though, it deserves all of the acclaim and success it's gotten. It's one of the best albums of the 70's, and I won't be surprised at all if future generations keep that chain of praise unbroken.

Moby Grape

5/5

Well, this is a better album to convince me of the Bay Area psych scene that Country Joe & The Fish were. (And I can't even remember anything about that album except for, like, some song about LBJ? I'unno.) Now, the funny thing is, I know it's not the "psych" part of this album that makes me like it so much. No, it's the **power pop** part. The way these songs drive, the way these guys' vocals harmonize, the way the drums bang, the way the guitar jus' **play**. It's front-to-back excitement. Even on the slower songs, or the ones that're full-on country, which I can get carried through thanks to, again, those vocal harmonies — and of course the fact that I just like non-modern country in general. Honestly, I don't even hear any traditional "psych" elements in here; it's way more folky and rootsier. Which, hey, is fine by me; I don't think my group really needs another one of those "generic 60's psych albums" I keep seeing reviews complain about. In short, this album's a winner in my book, and it's further proof that I should probably dig into these 60's bands a bit further than just The Beatles, The Beach Boys and The Monkees. Now if only this thing could be completely uploaded to streaming so I don't hafta listen to this thing on YouTube between Chips Ahoy!'s stupid twerking cookie ad, goodness.

L.A. Woman

The Doors

5/5

I spent a lot of time over the course of this album thinking about the myth and legacy of The Doors. Which is really to say, "the myth and legacy of Jim Morrison," 'coz even though the band released a few more albums after Morrison passed... They don't count. Not really. Which isn't to discount the rest of the members, but that's besides the point. If there's one thing I remember hearing about The Doors, more than anything, it's that they were pretentious. That, y'know, Jim Morrison was some stuck-up, head-in-his-ass, "sensitive poet laureate," and that made The Doors's music incredibly lame and wince-y. That's certainly how the band's biopic (the one where Val Kilmer played Morrison) put it. And as much as I'd wanna proclaim that I'm a free thinker who doesn't fall into accepting public opinion like that, I feel like I still kind of did? 'Coz even as I enjoyed a lot of Doors music (mostly their hits), there was always this thought in the back of my head that if I dug any further, I'd uncover those pretentions everyone was talking about. The poems and whatnot. So besides a greatest hits compilation album, I never really did go any further than "Touch Me" and "Break On Through" and, at most, "The End". This is another album where I hafta thank Abigail Devoe for helping me find a better way to think about this stuff. See, Jim Morrison was a fat kid. He loved poetry. His father was a Navy man. His birth name was James Bouglas Morrison. He wasn't cool — he was kind of a square, actually. And, sure, he might have slimmed down by the time The Doors recorded their first album, but... Well, at heart, he was still that same fat kid. That slim appearance was never going to last. Just check out how much he still liked blueberry pancakes. So, instead of viewing Morrison as some big, important, up-his-arse poet, I took to him more as, y'know: a nerd. One who still wanted to be a serious poet — and he was one; he wasn't buried in Père Lachaise for nothing — but who probably wasn't **as** much of a jerk as the biopic made him out to be. (Though he might've still been one, I'unno.) And while I'm sure I still would've enjoyed this album either way, viewing this album through that framework did a **lot** for me. Heck, for one, it helped me accept and like The Doors' blues tunes a lot more. I wasn't so hot on them when I heard MORRISON HOTEL, and for all I know maybe the ones here are just better, but I really dug what I heard. Of course it's nothing like what you'd get from the traditional blues masters, but, damn, you put Ray Manzerik's keys on just about anything... And, oof, boy, Morrison's voice. It's **really** good on this stuff. Then there's the lyrics and poetry. As per usual, I didn't take them in as well as everything else. I'm "melody first," let's remember. But let me tell you, accepting the fact that the poetry was here, like... Just because he wanted his poetry to be put to music, I was actually able to take it more seriously than if "taking it seriously" was the expectation to begin with. I still probably didn't get much out of it, 'coz I'm bad at deciphering poetry, but, hey, still. That's better than I figured I would've done before. I actually **liked** "The WASP". I also wanna specifically spotlight "Riders On The Storm", the album's closer. For my money, this is the best song here — big shock I pick the song most people regularly consider the best on the album, I know. But, y'know, I think it's the best because, in my eyes, it's to The Doors what "The Show Must Go On" was to Queen. Of course, it's not a 1:1 comparison (the rest of the Doors didn't know that Jim didn't have much longer), but as the songs that ended up being the final songs on their respective final albums... I really can't think of better songs for them to end on. "Riders On The Storm" is the ultimate culmination of everything The Doors had done, and listening to it this time, I couldn't help but imagine this cinematic shot of Morrison riding off down a desert road, trailed by snakes and desert lizards. Which is maybe a bit too reverent of an image for how I now perceive him, but it's just what came to mind. (Also, shout out to "Hyacinth House"; I might honestly pick that as my favorite "deep cut.") I really think I understand and appreciate The Doors and their music a lot better than I used to. I'll tell you for sure, before I gained the new frame I did, I would've enjoyed this album, but at best it would've been a good 4, elevated to such by the presence of "Riders On The Storm". But coming out of this listen... Yeah, damn, it's a 5. It's a good-ass 5. The Doors were way more than the psychedelics and pretentious I'd originally pegged them with. Really, the only complaint I can think to have is the same one Abby had: that the title track should've been the opener. Seriously, just put it there in front of "The Changeling" and don't do anything else and it's perfect. But, yeah. Morrison, like every other member of the unfortunate club way too many are a part of, deserved to live longer. To have had a chance to play revisionist with his own history instead of the people like those who made his band's biopic. But as unfortunate and tragic as his passing was... Damn, if he and the rest of the band didn't leave a damn good musical legacy, and one hell of an album to close their book on. (Again, ignoring the ones the band released after Morrison passed; they don't count.)

It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back

Public Enemy

5/5

I really miss this era of sampling. These "sampledelia" records. It's frankly incredible what people like the Bomb Squad (and the Dust Brothers on PAUL'S BOUTIQUE) could do, taking all these tiny snippets and stringing them together to make something that's not only new, but goes hard as hell. I feel like Chuck D and Flava Flav would've always been as good as they are — the former's message combined with delivery, and the latter's ability to be the hype man of hype men — but it just wouldn't be the same without the bed of samples under them. Like, goodness, who would have even thought to add a Slayer sample to the beat? It's an awe to behold. And it's not like this kinda sampling went away completely after O'Sullivan's lawsuit against Biz Markie caused the general price of samples to rise considerably. J Dilla's DONUTS exists, after all. And even using less samples, people have been able to do really good shit: look at MADVILLAINY, for instance. Besides, online mashup artists, not beholden to sample prices, have been able to do amazing things. Just look at Girl Talk, Titus Jones, The Kleptones, or Danger Mouse's THE GREY ALBUM. But still, this era of sampling was special, and I don't know if it could truly be replicated, even if price wasn't an issue. So, y'know, I cherish very much what there was. Believe the hype — this brings the noise.

Rio

Duran Duran

5/5

In 1977 and 1978, respectively, TALKING HEADS: '77 and Q: ARE WE NOT MEN? A: WE ARE DEVO! were released. They, to me, are the definitive sounds of early New Wave: this quirky or artsy punk music... Particularly DEVO's album. Songs like "Uncontrollable Urge", "Jocko Homo", "Mongoloid" — that kinda stuff, right there. Unlike post-punk, this wasn't music that was entirely adverse to being pop hits (Talking Heads had "Psycho Killer", and Blondie's PARALLEL LINES from '78 had quite a few), but I feel like a lot of it still made an attempt to have higher artistic intentions or follow punk's ethos more than any other pop songs at the time. Early New Wave, to my mind, was the domain of punks, nerds and arty folk. It's four years after ARE WE NOT MEN?. DEVO had been bringing synths more to the forefront of their work. MTV had launched just last year. And Duran Duran has released RIO. What does New Wave sound like now? Like, OK, lemme break from my essaying for a second to make it clear that I'm no musicologist/music historian. I can't tell you the exact evolution of New Wave and where RIO fits in — or if it's even actually that important at all. Besides, New Wave's a pretty arbitrary label, anyway, let's be real. But I'll tell you this: I really thought RIO had come out later on in the '80's than just '82, 'coz looking at this album, I'm thinking it's **the** sound of New Wave everyone recognizes. I mean, obviously, I don't think that early New Wave went away overnight. DEVO, Talking Heads and Blondie were still around and having their successes. Early MTV was filled with punks, geeks and art weirdos, and a number of them, even later in the decade, would get hits on the Hot 100 — as much as that's worth. Although, I think by that point, that's when the 80's truly became the "greatest decade for one hit wonders." Heck, this list might have an album or two from them; I haven't checked lately. Then we have RIO: slickly produced, very synth heavy and way more radio friendly. These are songs with hooks destined, maybe **designed**, to be pop hits. Just listen to "Hungry Like The Wolf" — you've **probably heard** "Hungry Like The Wolf". That song alone says it all. Like, I read on this album's Wikipedia page that it's supposed to be more experimental than Duran Duran's debut, but for the life of me I can't hear it. I suppose there's, like, the bridge of "Hungry Like The Wolf", though I'd hardly even consider that "experimental" if I wasn't actively looking for examples. And I don't keep bringing up MTV for nothing, by the way. Out of the nine songs on this album, six got music videos. This was the first album to really be marketed heavily on MTV, and from what I can tell I think it helped paved the way for how image-focused the channel would become later on in the 80's. I mean, the members of Duran Duran sure didn't **look** like geeks, lemme tell you that much. Now, pop isn't a bad word to me. I don't bring any of this, necessarily, to slam the band. Heck, I like "Hungry Like The Wolf" as much as everyone else does, and the title track "bops," as the kids say (I'm 26). I even really like this "synth-pop" style of New Wave — more than a lot of the earlier, artsier New Wave I've heard, actually, even. This album so specifically scratches any itch I'd have for it, and, honestly, I kind of love it for that. I just find the difference between late-70's New Wave and early-80's New Wave interesting, with how hard it got glammed up in the mainstream not even half a decade after DEVO's debut. Blame the record execs, I guess, I'unno. This album's a big 5 in my book. It's definitive 80's British synth cheese. I'm not terribly surprised it's what really kicked the second British Invasion into gear. Obviously, if you're not a fan of this sort of sound, or you just don't have the stomach for cheese, you should avoid this album at all costs. The synth flutes on the closer will probably do you in if the sax on the opener doesn't. Me, though, I love this kind of sound a lot.

Meat Puppets II

Meat Puppets

5/5

There's been quite a few albums my group has gotten where I've found myself thinking about Kurt Cobain and, more specifically, his last list of his 50 favorite albums. Pretty often, I find myself wanting to refer to it when I'm listing an album's accolades: "Not only did ROLLING STONE name this one of the 500 greatest albums of all time, but Kurt Cobain dug it enough to write it down on a list!" That sorta deal. And I find myself wondering, why **do** I keep doing that? Do I really hold Cobain's opinion in the same high regard that I apparently do ROLLING STONE? Which, even as much importance as I throw on it, I still recognize as just being a list like any other. Well, this is the first time I've thought about Cobain's favorite albums list and it's actually mattered. After all, Cobain did have Nirvana cover three songs from it during their MTV Unplugged special. They even had two of the band members join them. Like, really, consider: out of 50 minutes, Nirvana spent 1/5th of it, ten straight minutes playing the Meat Puppets' music. They must have meant something to him. And even if it weren't for that, I think I'd still always think about the Meat Puppets in relation to Nirvana. I mean, as far as I know, Nirvana's the big (or maybe only) reason why they got picked up by a major label. (Just like the Butthole Surfers — although in their case, Nirvana was absolutely the only reason.) However, this album was released **long** before Nirvana blew up, so let's just rewind the clock and allow me to ask myself the simple question: what even **is** its deal, anyway? To begin with, I wasn't expecting it to be as... Country and bluegrass as it was. Like, the three songs Nirvana covered probably should've clued me in, and it's not like I was expecting Snot, but I really did think that, on average, the tempos here would be a little bit quicker than they are, y'know? That said, though, I did like what I heard quite a bit. You can attribute that to how much I do like country music, so a lot of this clicked pretty snugly with me. Particularly on the instrumentals — which, that's another thing I didn't know there would be, but they're so nice. "I'm A Mindless Idiot" especially, goodness. And hey, most of this album being country and Americana tinged does a big favor to the songs where they **do** get louder and/or faster; they're a nice change of pace. So, hey, I suppose you can call me "pleasantly surprised" with this whole endeavor. I can't be 100% on what Kurt might've seen in it, but whatever he did, hey, I'll probably agree. (And it's actually funny I keep bringing up Kurt and his favorite albums list, 'coz as it turns out, this album isn't actually on there. Yeah, surprisingly. Public Enemy's IT TAKES A NATION OF MILLIONS is, but not the album he devoted time on his band's big MTV special to. Crazy.) But even that aside, this gets a pretty big thumbs up from me and... Aw, heck. I'll give a 5? Why not? Maybe it's just because I wanna keep my streak of 5's up, but I really can't think of anything that'd make me wanna bump it down. Maybe the lead singer's vocals if I wasn't already pretty used to that kind of tone. And I suppose it didn't exactly wow or amaze me like so many other 5's do, but, hey, I'm wanna be generous with an extra point. This music vibes, bangs... And whatever other words the kids these days use to describe music (I'm still 26). It wouldn't make **my** list of favorite albums, but it's one I'd be happy to come back to.

I’m a Lonesome Fugitive

Merle Haggard

4/5

Y'know, I really can't imagine hating country music just **that much**. I mean, hating it so vehemently that you give an album like this a 1 on sight. I suppose I can understand taking issue with some of the more... Erm, "modern patriotic" sides of the genre, let's call it ("WE'LL PUT A BOOT IN YOUR ASS; IT'S THE AMERICAN WAY"). But classic-ass country music like this? I suppose if you just **really** hate this sound... Lucky for me, I don't. And thank goodness I don't, 'coz of the other reason I'd suppose: I'm not really sure how this is different from a lot of other country albums — specifically classic country like this — that I've heard. The arrangements, the instrumentation, the topics, the voice... It's all a sound I love, but without a loudly defining character like Johnny Cash's, I find it a bit hard to figure out why I'd pick one country album over another. And maybe Merle has one and I'm doing him a disservice by not looking into him to find it, I'unno. Like, the only thing I knew about him before today was that Cledus T. Judd mentioned him in one of his originals. In fact, that's why I'm even talking about this sort of thing. I knew early on that eventually I'd run out of things to say about albums in this genre, and... Well, after managing to actually pay attention to some of the lyrics for once, I liked the title track. I dig its melancholy, and the way it describes the narrator's situation. For sure it's a good "feelin' down" song. But then once my attention inevitably slips away from the lyrics... Yeah. So maybe it's my problem for being as melody-first as I am, I'unno. I'm willing to put that forth, at least. I get the feeling, though, that even if I wasn't, I still wouldn't hear much terribly unique about this album. That's why I'm feeling a pretty nice 4 on this. Jus', I'unno. If I didn't already like country music the way I do, I don't think it would convince me, but since I do... Yeah. At any rate, I don't think it deserves a "1" on sight. It's just a bit too harsh, y'know? Goodness.

Natty Dread

Bob Marley & The Wailers

4/5

I was feelin' pretty under the weather I listened to this album and wrote this review, so jus' keep that in mind if it doesn't end up bein', like, **super long**. Honestly, for the first three songs, I just spent a lot of time thinking about the live versions that would pop up a year later. Not that I think any of them are bad, of course. It's just, y'know, a little hard to go back to how small the original "No Woman, No Cry" is when its live performance is so perfect, down to even the bit of microphone feedback seeming completely purposeful and intentional. Then there's the rest of the album, which is also pretty good — classic Marley stuff — but none of it exactly matches up to the deeper cuts on something like EXODUS. It's another case where if I paid attention to lyrics I'd probably get more out of it all, given this one review that says this album's a big "Here's who I am, here I am" thing for Marley. This **was** his first as sole frontman of The Wailers, after all. But, y'know, me being me — even if I **didn't** have this pressure on my sinuses and a soreness in the back of my throat. Still, like all good reggae, the groove can still absolutely carry, so ultimately I don't have much to complain about. Y'know, I'll give this thing a 4. A lot of my experience listening to it probably had more to do with my sickness and how tired I felt than anything the album actually did. I'm sure if I had a clearer head I would've had a better experience. So, in all fairness, it's a 4 at least. Now hopefully what I caught can clear up before my group gets another great album, goodness.

Paul Simon

3/5

Paul Simon's first album after he got himself detached from the guy from the funny last name, and... See, I can understand why this is supposed to be so special. Simon is, evidently, a phenomenal singer-songwriter, and his inclusion of world elements was particularly unique at the time. Ain't no American artist in those days using a cuica. However, as much as I acknowledge and accept that — and as much as I did, honestly, try to pay attention to the lyrics and stories... This album just didn't do terribly too much for me. Maybe I just feel like it's lacking a little edge? The world elements aside (and maybe some of the deeper political meanings I missed, I'unno) it just felt kind of safe and typical. I mean, jeez, at least when he was palling around Garfunkel they had those beautiful harmonies, and that was interesting enough to carry me through. By himself... Yeah, I suppose he **is** a 70's folk singer-songwriter. But I'm not gonna act impressed by that, y'know? I'unno, it's an "it's fine" 3. I can appreciate some nice guitar and some of that 70's flute sound, but other than that, there just wasn't enough to really keep me engaged. Maybe when he takes a trip down to Graceland and I can call him Al there'll be more there. In the meantime... I'unno. Me First And The Gimme Gimmes did a cover of "Me And Julio"? Check that out, I guess? Sure.

Larks' Tongues In Aspic

King Crimson

4/5

I feel like progressive rock gets a bad rap for being... Y'know, wanky. "Ooo, lookit me noodling away on my keyboard and doing whatever the hell I want for 20 minutes in this 40 minute song; I'm sooooo boundary challenging." Stuff like that. Which, mm, I'unno. I think I've listened to too much Pink Floyd and Yes to truly feel like that about prog rock, though I do understand where it's coming from. I mean, you just look at ELP performing the entirety of "Pictures At An Exhibition" and tell me that's not... And I doubt today's album would really help anyone's opinion of the genre. You just need to look at the two part title track that opens and closes the thing, particularly part one: there's no clear structure or form. It really just sounds like... Ideas, and the band's just randomly flowing between them. To ears already inclined to hate prog, this kind of experimentation is pure self-indulgence. Why would anyone wanna put themselves through this — to get to the more conventional vocal tracks on the other side or, like, at all? It's just jerking around and hiding behind experimentation and progression as an excuse. Y'know, it's not something I really like I could argue against. Or that I'd even want to; I don't write about music to argue. But... I'unno. I've probably just listened to so much of Frank Zappa's experimental work and Primus's general discography that a lot of this doesn't strike me as overly indulgent. In fact, I think it's pretty interesting to hear how it shifts and evolves. There's a portion of myself that might prefer the more conventional songs because — well, yeah. I don't think they're really as interesting, though. Sure, there's a lot of parts in them that makes me go "Ooo, that's something" but none of them are really the complete journey that part one of the album's title track are. You feel what I mean? Even if I'd come back to something like "Easy Money" on its own first. I'm pretty happy getting this a 4. Prog is a genre where, as much as I like it, I figure the deeper I go away from what's generally accepted as "the best stuff," the more and more I might understand the detractors. Never enough to point where I'd fully dislike it, but I'd probably end up with more than a few examples of lousy playing and/or structure masked as "experimentation" or overly standard shit that tries to mask itself as deep by calling itself "progressive." That general feeling is probably true about any genre, though I feel with prog it's something I hafta worry about more often than not. But if this album proves anything to me, it's that I might not have such a problem with it as I'd figure. I mostly stick to convention, but I like a lot of the experimental and Eastern influences here. And if I can listen to all of this without blinking an eye, I can handle anything. I'm not gonna call it the best prog I've ever heard — I might not even like it as much as IN THE COURT OF... — but it's a damn fine showing of the more experimental side. If you dig prog and you somehow haven't already given this a shot, well, what're you waiting for? Dig yourself larks' tongue in aspic. Whatever "aspic" is.

Fuzzy Logic

Super Furry Animals

5/5

Gawd, this album just hits the floor running. The moment you press play, it's already going at top volume and showing you the magic. Not even an **instant** to let you prepare yourself. Which I don't think is a problem, actually. To be 100, it was my first indication I would love this album — it just kicks down the door and gets going right away. I kind of admire it for that. And, yeah, like I just said: I love this album. I don't think I've heard Britpop that aligned this well with me since... Goodness, blur's self-titled? And that makes all the sense in the world to me given how much this album reminded me of blur. It's like, instead of the experimental turns they took on that album, they got way into 70's glam and late-60's psychedelia (and more so the glam than the psychedelia). This shit rules. And I think I generally like the glam tracks better, 'coz, well — I just like glam a lot. Simple and plain. But the psych hits off pretty well, too, even if it's not done as often. (Legit, I counted how many psych songs there were to glam, and it's 1:2.) It's a real strong 5 in my book. I don't even have anything particularly complex or essay-y to say about it. This album just rocks and it rules. Turns out I shoulda checked out this band sooner after hearing its lead vocalist on a Gorillaz song.

(What's The Story) Morning Glory

Oasis

5/5

Y'know, there was a moment listening to blur's eponymous debut album that I thought they were my favorite Britpop group. And not just because their frontman went on to co-create Noodle and the rest of Gorillaz, of course. I'm just staring at the quantity of great material they have, and how much of it is absolute quality. Heck, how much of it sounds unique from each other. Like, I don't consider blur to have "one sounds," necessarily; they kinda jus' do whatever they want, while still being able to fit under the "Britpop" label. It's great stuff, and it's interesting to hear what they're gonna do next. Versus today's subject, Oasis. While I can name a number of blur albums of note, there's really only two Oasis albums I figure are worth consideration. Maybe three if you wanna include BE HERE NOW as "the album that killed Britpop." As for their sound... Yeah, they have **a** sound: Beatlesque Britpop that's huge to the point of potentially being to blame for the Loudness War. Not really as interesting to consider as all of blur's various turns from song to song. So, obviously, in my mind blur wins the Britpop War. They're just more sonically intriguing. And that's just that, right? But then I actually fully listened to today's album, for the first time in a while. And... Y'know, there's a very good reason why Oasis was more of an international success than blur. Why, for example, people might know more Oasis songs than "Wonderwall", then they'd know more blur songs than "Song 2" (besides that blur might be too obviously British). And simply, it **is** their sound. Not just the comparisons you can make to the Beatles (which are a "plus" in my book, anyway), but their hugeness, and How anthemic they can be. They sound and feel like the biggest songs in the world, demanding to be made classics. And, hey, lookit — they did. Now, I wanna make clear, it's not **just** the bigness; the songwriting behind it plays just as important a role. If you want proof of that, just look at BE HERE NOW. In a haze of cocaine and conflict ("wibbling rivalry," even), the quality of their songwriting went straight out the window and... Well, like I said: "the album that killed Britpop." The songs there just drag on forever, largely because they just hit the same hook over and over and over again. After a while, it can get draining. And the thing is, I **do** kinda like "All Around The World" for how monstrously big it grows over its **nine minute** runtime. Even then, however, it still kinda exists in my mind as "the template for the overgrown, overstuffed and overblown mess of a song one of my characters would create in a horribly misguided attempt to make something big and important." Y'get what I mean? Whereas on this album, the songwriting is so much tighter and more focused. They can go on a little, but they never overstay their welcome, or at least they do enough new or the hooks are just that good that it's never really an issue. "Wonderwall" didn't get played as much as it did for nothing. Plus, y'know, "Some Might Say", "Don't Look Back In Anger", "Champagne Supernova"... Even the songs on here that aren't singles! Like, as much as I wanna act all "big brain" and smart and prefer blur for it's my eclectic turns, in the end, I can be a bit more simple than that. Some times, a lot of times, I turn on to big hooks, and this album has that in spades. blur, as much as I like them (and Gorillaz), they really can't compete on that front. "Woo-hoo" just don't stack. So while, thanks to this list and a compilation I've heard, I do have a lot more love for and interest in blur than I used to, I'd still probably reach for Oasis first. Oasis just tickles my "melody first" brain so much better. Of course, this Oasis album is getting the same 5 I gave the last blur album my group got, so it's not like there was really ever any competition to begin with. They're both fantastic, just for different reasons, and I'm happy they've both provided us with so many wonderful songs. Besides, neither group has Noodle as a member like Gorillaz does, and that alone means Gorillaz win in any imaginary war I'd make up. That's just fact.

Trout Mask Replica

Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band

3/5

I remember the first time I came out this album, some three years ago, the only thought I had was to ask myself, "How many more times **should** I hafta listen to this?" Now, obviously, I had Matt Groening's quote about the album on my mind, the one about how he had to listen to this record several times before he really "got it." And coming into this album all this time later, I still wondered: "How much time **should** I give this thing?" 'Coz I've always had the impression that this was an album you've really had to sit with for a while before you can decide if you like it or not. Which, y'know, might be kind of a dumb way to think of things? I don't think you should be forced to sit with an album — or any piece of art, really — for so long before you're allowed to decide if you like or even "get" it. It's the line about video games: "It gets really good 15 hours in." Like, OK? So it sucks for those first 15 hours, then? So why would I play it if it sucks for that long? It can apply to albums like this: why would I force myself to replay it over and over if I'm not digging it the first time around? What could I possibly gain from multiple replays except, I'unno, sunk cost fallacy? 'Coz if you're gonna spend **that long** with an album and you're not getting anything new out of your **tenth** play that you didn't already get on your **first**... Not that replaying, rewatching, rereading or re-anything-ing art is necessarily a bad thing. You can rewatch a movie, for example, and notice little details you weren't looking for the first time. Similar goes for an album. It can only help you appreciate a work more. But I figure if you're doing that, you already like the movie or the album or whatever, and not because you're trying to find reasons to justify why you've spent hours with this thing. First impressions are important, and if something doesn't give you a good reason to go any further with it... Well, that's as good a reason as any not to. TROUT MASK REPLICA lays all of its cards on the table within the first minute. Like, "Frownland", far as I can hear, is **the** sound of the album. Guitars, bass and drums seemingly playing whatever they want, in what time signature and key they want. They only barely sync. Hell, the vocals feel like they come from a different song altogether. It's the kind of sound where if you're not gawking, slack-jawed, at it now, you will be when you find out that it sounds like this **on purpose**. Like, this isn't The Shaggs amateur hour; this stuff was all specifically composed to sound like this, and they spent **weeks** **rehearsing** this material so they could record it all in one straight shot. On that level, I'm kind of impressed that Beefheart managed to carefully compose his band to sound like a bunch of first year music school dropouts playing in their garage band for the first time. I imagine if you're a music nerd, there's a lot to dig into here. Polyrhythms, polytonality... Stuff like that. Or, hell, even if you're not, maybe you just have a weird enough ear that all this stuff just clicks perfectly into place. Got some kinda special x-ray ears that can hear through the noise and find some kind of odd beauty underneath it all. And, well, clearly enough of both types agree that this thing is as acclaimed as outsider art as it is. As for me... I remember back when I first heard it, I thought it was strange to begin with. Again, "Frownland" is a hell of an opener. If you can't make it past that, you're probably not gonna do well with the rest. As I came closer and closer to the end of the album, though, my ears acclimated more to this album's way of doing things, and by the time I was done... Honestly, I was kind of disappointed? When you're able to look past the layer of weirdness covering this thing and hear what's actually going on... I'unno, it just sounds like blues music? Incredibly atypical blues, sure, like you fed an algorithm the genre (to reference a comment I saw), but... Really, once I got to "Veteran's Day Poppy", I couldn't even begin to guess what was supposed to be so special about this album. (And boy howdy, this thing being nearly 80 minutes...) And for this listen-through, with very different ears than I had those four years ago, I fell into that even sooner. Like, some moments aside, nothing terribly grabbed me. It just flowed by. Honestly, besides "Frownland", I think the only thing I'd probably remember is "The Blimp" — and that's probably mostly 'coz Weird Al quoted it in a CD bonus feature. (Also, the anecdote that Beefheart's band isn't even playing on it, but The Mothers; check the song "Charles Ives" on YOU CAN'T DO THAT ON STAGE ANYMORE, VOL. 5). So, y'know, I guess I have weird ears, but not ones that can hear this material and be too wowed by it. (And the runtime didn't bother me as much this time, but it's not like it helped this music **not** fall into the background, y'know) Frankly, I think I enjoyed SAFE AS MILK a bit more. The music there was just as strange as I expect a Beefheart record to be, but there was no expectations of it being some outsider, experimental, avant-garde, "You gotta listen to it 50 times to get it" masterpiece. It was just good-ass blues. And, like, of course I'm happy this guy got to make the exact album he wanted to make with this, but... Y'know, I can't say I agree with TROUT MASK REPLICA being the eleventh lowest rated album on the entire website, but I can understand why it is. It's not like I'd rate it that highly, either: a 3 outta 5. But to me, it's not because I think it's noise acting like it's more important than it is 'coz it slapped itself with an "experimental" label. I **can** kinda hear through to what Matt Groening might have heard his seventh time around. But I don't think I'd be willing to put in the effort to get to that seventh listen, myself. Just the two is fine enough for me. I suppose it just wasn't fast n' bulbous enough for me.

Medúlla

Björk

3/5

Y'know, it's not that I dislike a cappella music. That one album by The Bobs I heard, that arrangement of Richard Cheese's "Gimme That Nutt" cover, the CRASH TWINSANITY soundtrack, that version of Lil Nas X's "MONTERO"... Those are all goofy, quirky examples, yeah — maybe not the best frame to go into a serious, artsy Björk album with — but still: I can and do tolerate mouth music. So, if I have any problem with this album; if there's any reason I kept hesitating between putting on the next side, it's not its concept, experiment and/or gimmick, but more the fact that I largely think the music's pretty boring, actually. There's exceptions, naturally; I rather dug the dancier tracks, like "Where Is The Line", "Who Is It", "Triumph Of A Heart"... Y'know, the ones with the beatbox behind them. But the rest... Ehh, it might all just be a bit too serious and artsy for my taste. I'm really not much one for solemnly considering music, and that's probably why all of my previous a cappella experiences are so quirky. Like, goodness, at least VULNICURA had those gorgeous, transcendental strings to pull me through. I do think the human voice can be very pretty, but moments of that for me are few and far between here. "Sonnets / Unrealities XI", maybe "Ancestors"... Those are really the only two I can think of. Like, I don't wanna be too hard on this thing and call the experiment a complete failure. There's a small handful of tunes here I can say I dug, which automatically disqualifies it from a 2 or lower. But on the whole, I just wish my group could've gotten something more engaging for our 300th album generated. Well, I can always hope for #400.

Kid A

Radiohead

5/5

For the longest time, I actually avoided listening to KID A. Not that it was necessarily difficult for me to avoid or anything like that, but I didn't wanna listen to it, for one simple reason: I wasn't sure if it would live up to the hype. After all, this thing has been praised to the moon and back several times over. I'd heard so many times, over and over again, that it was the greatest album of the 2000's — of the entire decade, if not the millenium. Rolling Stone included it at 67 on their 2012 500 list, and it was the last album on there released past 1999. Heck, on their later list focusing on just the 2000's, it was number one with a bullet. It inspired that one guy over on Pitchfork to write that... Whatever the hell about watching stillborn babies playing in the afterlife on IMAX. These are just the examples that're important to me, and I could go on with more, but you get my point. KID A is a big, big deal. I mean, it lost Album Of The Year to a Steely Dan album barely anyone remembers, but still. It's perhaps the single most famous left turn in music history, let alone alternative rock. And, like, it's hard to hear all of that and not have expectations to the heavens and beyond. Like, this album must really be something if it'd garnered **this level** of universal acclaim. What exactly **is** this thing's secret sauce? And that's where we come to the reason why I didn't wanna listen to this thing for so long: what if I couldn't find it? Or what if I did and I didn't like what it was? Or even if I did, and I didn't like it as much as the hype led me to believe I should? In any situation, I figure because of the expectations I had I would've been much harder on the album than if I hadn't had any. And I just... Didn't want that, y'know? I didn't wanna be let down by an album I'd heard so many good things about — or, worse, become someone willing to crow about how it's "overrated." Generally, I'd rather avoid being like that. And it's not like I could just throw away all of my expectations and listen to the album simply for its own merits. Frankly, it's impossible to go into anything without preconceptions, no matter how big or small they are, or how conscious you are of them... And having ones like I had... Jeez, it simply wouldn't be fair to the album. So, I avoided it. Better to just not find out at all how I'd react, I figured. And again, it's not like it's hard to. Ignorance was bliss for me for the longest time. Eventually, though, I did check it out. I can't recall exactly when, but I know I've listened to it a few more times since then. Even as recently as earlier this year, during the same work night where I listened to the other album that lost Album Of The Year to Steely Dan, THE MARSHALL MATHERS LP. And I can't tell you what I thought of the album back when I first heard it; it's been too long and I simply can't remember. But as for how I'm feeling about it now, here, in 2024... If there's any reason I wouldn't go so far as to call this "the greatest album of the 2000's," it's because I'm not sure if I have enough experience with that decade to make that call. Besides, there are albums that resonate way more personally with me than this does — Weird Al's STRAIGHT OUTTA LYNWOOD, for instance, to use a really personal example. Heck, for my tastes, THE MARSHALL MATHERS LP might've even been my pick for Album Of The Year. But that doesn't stop KID A from making an incredibly convincing argument in its favor. For one, KID A sounds like it could've been made now. Even as painfully aware as I am that this album is from October 2000, there's not a single note I'm hearing in here that ties it specifically to the 2000's. It could have come out, exactly as it is, last week, and even though it might not have had the same impact, the music still would sound as good as ever. And that's all while still being recognizably Radiohead. Before I put on this album, I listened to two cuts from OK COMPUTER ("Paranoid Android" and "No Surprises"), and, sure, yeah, there's big differences between the two of them, but I wouldn't mistake either of them for another band's music. Which, yeah, it's probably largely Thom Yorke's voice. I don't think you hear much of it anywhere else, generally, save for his solo material or stuff he features or guests on. But it still anchors the music to this band and it keeps it unique to them. And even without it, I don't think I could hear another band making exactly this kind of stuff. And to talk about the stuff itself — the music — directly... Me being me, I think I'd probably listen to OK COMPUTER more for its alt.-rock-ness. And for what's on here, of course I gravitate the most towards the Eno-y "beautiful ambient" stuff as my favorites. As a whole, however — gawd, lemme use the word "unique" if I haven't before, and also throw "interesting" as well. Or "intriguing," if that's a stronger word. They're such fascinating soundscapes, without ever being too harsh. I'd say maybe the "most" moment for that is the horns on "The National Anthem", and they're really not even that bad. I wouldn't call any of this "commercial" since it clearly wasn't their goal — you wouldn't switch styles like this after something as big as OK COMPUTER if you wanted commercial potential — but the word "accessible" still comes to mind. Nothing here would necessarily alienate me if I was a fan of OK COMPUTER in the 90's and I then came into this. And even if I did think the style switch-up was strange at first, I'd like to think I'd still quickly click into what it's doing. It's amazingly good stuff, regardless of whatever expectations and preconceptions I might have had. I can totally hear why it's as highly praised as it is. Sure, of course, though, my tastes and conceptions might keep me from being rapturous about it on that scale — and certainly not to that point of that Pitchfork guy — but I think I'd be a fool to not still sing its praises. To reference the way-too-short I wrote for OK COMPUTER: "KID A? More like 'KID A-OK with me.'"

At San Quentin

Johnny Cash

5/5

I don't pretend to know how the Randomizer works. I mean, yeah, to be completely literal, of course I do: it's RNG. But how it works in, like, a **cosmic** sense... **That's** what I'm completely in the dark about, 'coz I'm not sure why exactly my group would be given this album before AT FOLSOM PRISON. In fact, I'm not really sure why this album is here when FOLSOM PRISON is as well. Even looking at them from the outside, I couldn't really figure out the difference between them aside from the track listing and where they were recorded. I understand that's the appeal of its original release, at least from the label's perspective: "you liked the first time Johnny Cash played a prison, so here it is again!" As for this list, though, we already have AT FOLSOM PRISON for that, which also happens to be Cash's best **and** most famous album. His biopic ends with the album's recording, for goodness sake. So, what exactly does this bring to the table that the other one doesn't — again, aside from different songs? Not much. However, honestly, despite how much of a stink I made about it in the previous paragraph, I don't really care **that** much. It's still Cash playing to a prison audience, and it's incredibly clear how much he loves doing it. I mean, there's a reason there's **four** albums of Cash playing to prisons. And that's another defense of live albums being here, alongside all the others I made. Most live albums are here because they capture a sound that a band just can't replicate in the studio — The Who, Thin Lizzy, Big Brother & The Holding Company, and so on. But the ones where the artist has such a rapport with the audience... They're not as common — I can't even think of any others, besides B.B. King's own prison live album — but, oh, they're so great. I mean, I'unno who else would play the same song twice in a row just because the audience wanted them to. It's stuff I kinda didn't wanna talk about here, 'coz I still needa have some things to say about AT FOLSOM PRISON whenever my group gets it, but whatever. And, I mean, between those two albums, I'd still recommend you listen to that one first. You even get way more songs than this one does (only ten songs feels like the record company being like "Eh, they like the concept so much anyway, we don't hafta put too many on there"). Still, there's no reason why I wouldn't give this thing the same 5 I'd give AT FOLSOM PRISON. Johnny Cash never sounded better than when he was playing for inmates, and that's a fact.

Psychocandy

The Jesus And Mary Chain

1/5

This album is a coin. Two sides n' all that, y'know? Heads: I'm honestly surprised by this album. I went into this thing expecting nothing but boring-ass loud noise. Y'know, just because they put the volume and reverb all the way to 11, I'm apparently supposed to consider this "good" because it's "not mainstream." But then there's actually a number of tracks where, through the reverb (was this thing recorded in the Grand Canyon?), I actually think it's kinda pretty? It's these '60's pop group melodies where, like, if these songs had been recorded conventionally, this might as well be bubblegum. And of course, those ended up being my favorite. Besides the reverb, I feel like the worst thing I can say about them is I maybe would've liked a different vocalist. Something that actually fits that '60s pop aesthetic instead of... Well... Tails: I'm honestly not surprised by this album. I went into this thing expecting nothing but boring-ass loud noise. Y'know, just because they put the volume and reverb all the way to 11, I'm apparently supposed to consider this "good" because it's "not mainstream." And yep — that's what it is alright. Harsh buzzsaw guitars and faceless post-punk vocals, all slopped into a mushy mush thanks to a way-too-thick level of reverb. The reverb's really just a step away from how it sounded on Stan Freberg's parody of "Heartbreak Hotel", and only a small one at that. Like, I can't even really think of any specifics to comment on because the reverb makes it just that hard to. Although, hey, I'm pretty sure if you **did** get rid of it there still wouldn't be anything to talk about. Like, "Ah, cool, more post-punk nonsense — my **faaaavoriiite**~." Of course, this album isn't exactly a coin flip. It's "tails" more often than its not, unfortunately. Even when it **is** "heads," I don't find myself really thinking that I'd wanna return to these songs. In fact, being 100 with y'all: I didn't even finish this. Yes, I listened to the first side (the first seven songs), then I tapped out. I just couldn't fathom what I'd gain listening to the other seven tracks. Like, how could this album possibly different in the back half that'd make me go, "Oh, no it's actually **genius** and I **love** having noise blared at me." Look, maybe I have baby ears that are just too used to pop and traditional production methods. I recognize fully that I was never gonna be in the audience for noise music like this. But I gotta rate this how I feel, and... Oh, I so wanted to be generous and give this thing a 2. Like, just on the merit of those couple of '60s melodies I liked so much. However, given the fact that it actually caused me to stop listening halfway through... Yeah, no. On that alone I have to give this thing a 1. Even albums I was feeling less generous towards, I could still get through to the end. Hell, I finished shit like DEVIL WITHOUT A CAUSE and MAXINQUAYE. Not here, though. I'm tired and I don't wanna yawn my way through more solid walls of noise. "Poetry-noise?" I suppose. It's just not worth my time to make heads or tails of it.

Phaedra

Tangerine Dream

5/5

It kinda bums me a bit that electronica has ended up being such a low rated genre for me. I mean, before yesterday, before I gave PSYCHOCANDY a 1, it was number three in my bottom three genres. Only post-punk and (surprisingly) world music beat it out. And it just gets me because that's not even remotely close to how I feel about electronic music. I love it a lot, actually! Like, yeah, of course there's Daft Punk, but I also have a good love for Moog music and a lot of synthesizer work and electronic ambient soundscapes... I'm all for all of that kinda stuff. I suppose I've just been getting too many bad draws: those drum n' bass albums, MAXINQUAYE, FEVER RAY, KALA... All boring albums (or annoying, in KALA's case) that I couldn't help but give a 2 or lower, really bringing the average down against the fewer 5's I've given to Fatboy Slim and AUTOBAHN... I just don't find it entirely fair to 'em, y'know? So, y'know, I thank the powers above that this album isn't another bad draw. This album consists of long, ambient, space-y excursions, and oh, I mess with it so hard. Just lying back on this soft bed of stars and letting these beautiful sounds carry me across the cosmos to wherever they may. Believe me, it's absolutely not for people who want things to... Y'know, happen. To my ears, it's an album for relaxing. Letting these sounds fill up your mind, pushing out all the bad stuff in the process. Close your eyes and don't even think. Just let the sound envelope you; wrap you up tight. And more new age meditation jumbo like that. But you get what I'm talking about — that's just what this album means to and does for me. It's music I'd put on to calm down or focus. And in that lane, jeez, not since I heard the music Brian Eno did for airports. So, hooray, another 5 for an electronica album. The average goes back up and the genre gets further away from where it doesn't belong. Not that placement or averages really matter, anyway. Like I said, they don't reflect how I truly feel about electronica. And certainly, the 3.47 it currently has doesn't reflect how I feel about this album at all. All I need to do is turn off my mind, relax, and float down stream. 'Coz these numbers — they're all in the mind, y'know. They're nothing to get hung about, and nothing's gonna change my views about electronic music. (Lotta random Beatles quotes at the end there, goodness. Point is: this is a 5. Big recommendation if you're like me and love ambient music. I'd've maybe hoped for a spookier album to end October with, but, hey, I can't complain about what my group was given.)

Tres Hombres

ZZ Top

4/5

As much as I like ELIMINATOR, I wouldn't exactly call it **the** ZZ Top album. I mean, ELIMINATOR gets placed 398 on the 2012 edition of the Rolling Stone 500, whereas this album only gets 490? Sure, ELIMINATOR has "Sharp Dressed Man" and "Legs" — undeniable hits and great songs, both of them — but if I were in charge of things, their positions would be reversed. See, the thing about ELIMINATOR is that it's just got this... 80's sheen about it. I'm not even just talking about the synths; it's just... The vibe coming off of the whole thing. That step away from what I choose to know 'em best for and more towards more typical hard rock. Which, yeah, I'll stress: it still rocks. I gave it a 4, after all. I just don't find it definitive is all. For that, we have TRES HOMBRES, and **the** sound of the band, in my ears: Southern-fried Texas boogie blues, blasting from just north of the Mexican border. It's the kind of album I could legitimately cook a steak to. Or, I'unno, fajitas, if I ate those. It's the kind of music you'd hear coming from the local tough guy biker bar. In my head, I kinda compare the material on this album to AC/DC or Motörhead. Y'know, this isn't complex material; you're not gonna break yourself in half tryna figure it out. Sure, if you really dig hard enough you could find something, and that's one part of a reason why I wouldn't call it "simple," but it just doesn't try to be anything more than what it is. And when it comes to being what it is — oh, goodness, it's so good at it. So incredibly good. Really, I can't think of any reason why or how someone could hate this unless Texas boogie blues just gives them a **really** bad taste. Which, at that point, I think they more have a problem with the genre itself than this specific album. It's just a good rockin' time. That's all you could ever ask of it, and that's all it ever provides. On those merits, I could give this thing a 5, for delivering so well on what it promises. But in the grand scheme of things — the grand tapestry of life — I think a 4 better fits its position. It's never not a fun spin, but it won't blow your mind. Regardless, of course, it's still a hard recommendation from me. Put this album on, fire up the grill and cook that shit well done. Or however you like it. Me, I prefer my meat juicy (and, actually, I like pork chops more than steak), but, hey, you do you.

Step In The Arena

Gang Starr

4/5

DJ Premier's got the chill, funky beats. Guru's got the smooth flow... And yeah. That's about the size of it — or at least as much as I can see. I'unno, it was just a really nice album to come to and put on after a long day out and about. It might be my favorite East coast album I've heard so far, and it didn't even hafta do much. I'm perfectly happy giving this thing a 4. I'm sure on a worse day I woulda harder on this album for not being engaging, but yeah. Not bad from an MC I'd never heard of before.

Ellington at Newport

Duke Ellington

5/5

OK, so, to begin with — so we're clear — I only listened to the songs that were included on the original 1956 LP, in the order they were presented in. It's not that I didn't have time or want to hear the complete concert. Much like The Who and LIVE AT LEEDS, I wanted to hear the album as it was originally released (as much as I could, anyway),so... Here we are. And for my second "to begin with," let it be known that all of the material here is amazing. This band is just superb and tight as hell. Hearing these concert recordings specifically instead of the studio versions makes it all the better; knowing that they were doing this stuff live in one go in front of a crowd. I mean, hey, that's part of the magic of live albums, innit? And in terms of jazz live albums, goodness, this big band stuff is so much more my shit to listen to than that "Sunday at the Village Vanguard" album by some trio I can't remember the name of. Seriously, them horns and that drummer. It'd make me wanna watch WHIPLASH again if that movie wasn't so much... A **lot**, y'know? But that's off-point; simply put, none of the material here is worth missing. Now, of course, I say all that because... Goodness, "Diminuendo And Crescendo In Blue". I can't imagine anything else being the climax of the album. It's— wow, what a showstopper. Especially knowing that the solo Gonsalves played was apparently so exciting that the entire audience couldn't help but get up and cause a big ruckus dancing to it. That, and that one Gonsalves finished his solo he **collapsed**. On its own, without this extra context, it still would've been an awe-inspiring solo. With that extra info, though... Yeah, goodness, I can hear why this performance is so legendary, even without hearing all of it. Needless to say, I'm a big 5 on this album. Goodness me. I really gotta return and hear this thing in full sooner than later, I swear. A masterwork, pure and simple.

Stardust

Willie Nelson

5/5

On the one hand, I imagine this might be a bit of an odd Willie Nelson album to start with. I don't know him for much (mostly "On The Road Again"), but if there's anything I would expect... It wouldn't be pop standards. "Georgia On My Mind" and "Unchained Melody"... Heck, it's even the return of the Gershwins, which my group last tangoed with when Ella Fitzgerald spent three hours covering their entire songbook. And as I said in that review, I do quite love me some pop standards. When they're interpreted right, they can be amazing. It's just that I imagine for someone like Willie Nelson, you'd wanna hear more of his traditional outlaw country to start with. Get a sense of what he's more and mostly known for, y'know? That said, consider the other hand: I'm actually really glad that this was my first Willie Nelson album. I feel like it was a good chance to experience Willie as a musician first before considering him as a country artist, and, well... To put it in short: oh, these were all interpreted so right. These are just incredibly beautiful, plain and simple. So much credit has to go to Booker T. Jones, of Booker T. & The MG's fame, for producing and arranging these. I just... Had such a big, happy, peaceful smile on my face. And of course, Willie sings these beautifully — and really, the fact that he defied the expectations of his record label to record this, and it came out as beautifully as it did... Jeez, I have nothing but respect. And I can't give this album anything less than a 5. Jus'... Damn.

Speakerboxxx/The Love Below

OutKast

5/5

===< PART 1/2: SPEAKERBOXXX >=== It's hard to not feel bad for the Garfunkels of the world. You know what I mean: the second bananas. The other half of the duo that just don't get no respect — or at least not as much as the guy up front. Of course there's Art Garfunkel, but there's also John Oates, Kyle Gass, Meg White, Luigi Mario, TV's Frank... And lots more I can't even think of right now. They're people whose impact and importance to the group isn't to be undervalued, don't get me wrong. It's just that it's hard to escape shadows as large as the ones they live in. Big Boi is another such person who finds himself in this situation, and it's not hard to see why. Like, Andre 3000 is just... Out there. So much wilder in the stuff he releases. I mean, goodness, just the other year he released an instrumental flute album and everyone went nuts over it. Simply, his stuff is just generally more interesting than Big Boi's, who I've always viewed as the more "traditional rapper" of the group. The guy who brings Andre's energy down to a more reasonable level. An important role, naturally, but not one that's gonna get many eyes on you. So when Big Boi and Andre 3000 dropped their debut solo albums on the same day, I don't think it was a surprise that Big Boi's went pretty overshadowed. His didn't have a pop hit like "Hey Ya!" or "Roses", after all. But, still, let's put that aside and take this thing seriously. On his own, what did Big Boi create? As it turns out: I think calling Big Boi the "traditional rapper of the group" kind of undersells him a little. I don't believe that assessment is entirely wrong; it's certainly way more straight hip hop than I imagine Andre's would be. But this album, if nothing else, makes it clear to me that Big Boi is not just the "grounding factor" of OutKast. At every turn on this album, there's always something interesting going on. The hooks, the beats, the flows, the lyrics... No song sounds too similar to each other, and they're all a blast. All these groovy, funky-ass tunes... Seriously, I can't think of a track here I can say I didn't like. Not all of it blew me away, but more than a fair share of it did, particularly "The Rooster", "War" and "Church". Like, damn. This is some good-ass shit. And it was actually between "The Rooster" and "War" that I realized: this doesn't sound too terribly off from an OutKast record. Some of the odder edges that a true OutKast album would have aren't here, yeah, but a lot of the time I didn't think any of this would sound out of place on one, even with Andre largely being absent. On an initial listen, I'm really feeling a 5 here. Sure, I imagine on subsequent listens, as I get more familiar with it, I'll think I was being too generous and that I shoulda given it a 4, but I'unno, I'm just really impressed here. Without a doubt, it proves my line of thought that Big Boi is just as important to the duo as his partner. Which, I probably didn't really **need** proof of this, and I could've just always assumed this from the beginning, but... Yeah. It's just nice to have proof anyway. And what fine proof it is, goodness. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ( * ) ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ===< PART 1/2: THE LOVE BELOW >=== If there's any reason I feel like I keep coming back to OutKast, it's Andre 3000. For some reason, I've always subconsciously attributed everything I like about the group's music to him. To the point where, honestly, in my mind Big Boi can kinda come off like a feature on his own group's songs. Just take "B.O.B." for instance. Andre's verse is masterful, front to back. Flow, energy, wordplay... Mmm, it's so good. Compared to Big Boi's verse, which, like, still has a lot of the flow, but I also consider, like... Kind of weaker overall? Y'know? And I can't even remember what Big Boi did on "Ms. Jackson", to bring up another hit from the same album. And it doesn't help that I also attribute the beats to Andre, too, even if I'm sure someone else actually produced them (as I'm writing this I don't feel like looking it up). Y'know, in short: Andre's the pop maverick; the auteur. And Big Boi's also there. Like, I don't wanna completely undermine him; I get what he adds to the duo. He's the grounding factor that keeps Andre from going fully off the rails. I mean, goodness, you leave him to his own devices for long enough and eventually he'll put out an instrumental flute album after years of nothing. But that's **compelling**, y'know? That's the kinda stuff that really grabs my attention. So, an album that's strictly Andre 3000 should be right up my alley, right? He dropped his solo debut on the same day as Big Boi, and of course Andre's was the bigger hit. It had "Hey Ya!" after all, with all of its wackadoo pop stylings. A pretty depressing song masked as one of the grooviest things of the summer — "Y'all don't wanna hear, you jus' wanna dance" and so on. But I've actually never heard the album in full before now. Like, as much as I like "Hey Ya!" and the stuff he did with OutKast, I guess I was just never enough of a fan to actually wanna check it out in full. Of course, though, that changes today. Let's see what Andre put together when left entirely to his own devices. As it turns out: Prince. I saw a review mentioning that this album sounds a lot like Prince and... I don't think it's 100% accurate (it goes back and forth a bit if I could hear him play it or not), but, yeah, I think that's the quickest way to put it. The album is all of these excursions into psychedelia, progressive soul, jazz, funk... Sometimes multiple at the same time. Sometimes it's smooth, sometimes it's sensual, sometimes it's dance-y, sometimes it's beautiful... It's fascinating. Every new track that comes on is like, "What's he gonna do next?" (I know **I** wasn't expecting a breakbeat take on "My Favorite Things".) It's a selection of songs and sounds where if you're not down to follow Andre wherever he wants to go, you're probably not gonna have a good time. Especially with how some of these run on maybe a bit more than they should? But, hey, I'm happy to let the beat ride sometimes if I'm enjoying myself. And believe me: I was. Y'know, going into this album, I had the thought I'd come out the other side thinking Andre 3000 was a self-indulgent jerk. It seems like having him knocked down a peg would have been a natural arc ending given what I was coming into this with. I mean, I try not to think too highly of "auteurs" these days... But no, no. If anything, my preconceptions are reaffirmed. I don't think I'd go so far as to call him an out-and-out "genius," but damn, if he don't make some good and interesting shit. It's an absolute 5 from me. Downright ice cold music — y'feel me, right? Right? Alright. Alright. Alright. Alright alright alri— ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ( * ) ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ===< EPILOGUE >=== Of all of the reviews I'm gonna write for this website, I can't imagine any of them are going to be harder than this one. Which, yeah, it's largely my fault for taking the angle I did: writing reviews of both halves of the album as if they weren't released together and I hadn't heard the other. That's for sure way more work than I really **needed** to put in. Besides, I can just imagine someone going through these reviews and thinking to themselves, "Both of these reviews bring up and repeat points between each other. Like, why did you even bother if they both weren't going to be more different?" And I'm not gonna act like I'm a master writer who pulled this off flawlessly, but simply put: I'm interested in how those points change depending on the perspective they're viewed from. On the one, you got Big Boi and SPEAKERBOXXX as "the other guy in the group"; and on the other, you have Andre 3000 and THE LOVE BELOW as "the maverick auteur." I took this album as a chance for me to hear what each member brings to the duo by listening to what they made when largely separated from each other. On that front, for sure I succeeded. I've a much greater appreciation now for what Big Boi brings to the table, and... Well, jeez, I might actually check out Andre 3000's flute album, let's put it like that. As for if I succeeded in writing good reviews of each album... That's up for you to decide. Either way, the whole album package gets a 5, honestly. I can completely see how, like... These two maybe didn't need to be released together like this? But in pairing them up, it leads to such an engaging and iconic two hours of music that I can't even really complain. I don't think I'd really say it's a better album than STANKONIA — but then, that's an OutKast album. This release is a Big Boi album and an Andre 3000 album. And on that front, as showcases of what they can do... Goodness, I can't imagine it getting better than this.

Illinois

Sufjan Stevens

4/5

Before I even started writing this review, I realized I wasn't gonna be in the state of mind to give a review of a length I'd find fitting. Which is a shame; this really feels like an album where I should be able to produce a long review. But, ah, well, it happens. To put it in short, then: I thought this was a very pretty album, verging on and even passing into "beautiful" in some spots. Thanks to my state of mind, outside of a few spots I'm not sure exactly how much this album's sound varies over time to really justify the whole "varied instrumentation" thing, but, eh, I don't mind either way. As someone who digs stuff like PET SOUNDS and THE SOFT BULLETIN... I don't believe I'd say it's an album of either of those calibers, or if those are even apt comparisons, but still, this album's up my alley. If I were a state (and didn't just have one of mind), I'd be proud to have an album like this about me. It'd a pretty good 4 from me.

Opus Dei

Laibach

4/5

From the onset, this seemed like an album I would not really enjoy. I mean, "martial industrial?" The "military industrial-music complex," as I call it. That just sounded like... Not a very fun time at all. Even before this year's U.S. election I would've thought, but living in the aftermath of who actually won? "Solvenians yelling at me in German over dark, military-inspired industrial beats sounds" like the last thing I would have wanted. Which makes it all the funnier, then, that I actually did kind of enjoy this a lot. Like, one more thing to begin with, you also gotta understand my conception of industrial music. Whenever I hear the term, I always imagine music that's loud and harsh. Music that's abrasive for the sake of it, though not enough to actually cross over into noise. Now, don't ask me where I got that perception from, I have no idea. But if I don't imagine that, usually I picture something just... Like, clanky and boring. In short, I have a bit of a predisposition to disliking industrial music. And that's not even to get into what I feel about the military. Let's not even get into it, for the sake of keeping things focused if nothing else. So color me surprised that this album isn't loud, harsh or abrasive. It's actually a lot of trumpets (I imagine trumpet synths) over these marching beats. I'd had this assumption they'd be slower than they are, and maybe they are still slow, but they're not so slow as to be a boring crawl to my ears. And with a little mix of guitar in there sometimes... Honestly, this sound kind of kicks ass? I would have never seeked this out on my own if not for this Randomizer, not in a million years, but... Yeah, no. I can really dig this. That title track and "The Great Seal" especially — oh, gawd, those triumphant horns. Oh, I love it. I absolutely love it. It actually reminds me a lot of RAMMSTEIN. Sure, yeah, it's partially just because these guys are largely singing/speaking in German, but I feel like if you added some heavier guitar riffs and sped up the tempo a little it wouldn't be too far off. I don't think you'd even need to change the lyrics. (For the record, by the way, I didn't translate. That's bad practice, I know, but besides the fact that it's been, like, a decade since my last high school German class... I'unno, I haven't translated any other foreign-language album my group has gotten, so why would I start now, y'know?) Y'know, besides the optics of getting this album when my group did, my biggest worry, honestly, would be that I'd hafta give this album a 2 or, goodness forbid, a 1 and plunge Metal right out of my top three genres. Like, I'd finally gotten it back in there after stupid DEVIL WITHOUT A CAUSE caused it to be out of there for so long... And I wouldn't even actually call it "Metal," but regardless, it makes me really happy to give this thing a 4. I even almost wanna give it a 5 just for how surprised I was that I actually liked it as much as I did, though let's not get **too** excited here. And, yeah, still, the optics of my group getting this album when we did aren't great. It only could've been worse if we'd gotten this thing yesterday, right after the American election. And, yeah, any "ironic" use of Nazi iconography in the lyrics isn't... Good? I mean, I don't give the Sex Pistols a pass for that shit, so I don't know why I would anyone else. Once again: bad practice that I didn't do my diligence to translate the lyrics and find any of it. But all I know is that from what I **did** understand... Aw, heck, I enjoyed this thing a lot. I'll even give it the highest compliment I can give an industrial album that isn't by Nine Inch Nails: I'll probably listen to some of this stuff again. Goodness, you don't even know how much that means...

Bridge Over Troubled Water

Simon & Garfunkel

5/5

The last time I reviewed a Simon & Garfunkel album, It was PARSLEY, SAGE,ROSEMARY & THYME, and I gave it a short review and a 3. Simply: as much as I appreciated the work they put into their orchestrations, I didn't think the music was any much more than just fine. Maybe it was just a bit too folk for my taste; I didn't go back and check that album for this review. Now, I also said at the end of the album that I'd probably like their other ones more. So, did I? I have no idea what changed in the intervening four years between that album and this, but goodness. Goodness. This album is actually incredible. Beautiful in some parts, like with the title track; fun in others, like with "Baby Driver"... Mostly, though, it's pretty beautiful. Jus', goodness me. And, like, besides these songs just being written and arranged amazingly, if I could attribute anything to that, it's the fact that... Well, this was their last album. Much like something like ABBEY ROAD, it just hangs over the whole record until the end, where it finally can't ignore it anymore. I mean, the last two songs, "Bye Bye Love" and "Song Of Asking", are basically the two of them saying goodbye to each other and extending an olive branch if they ever wanted to get back together (or at least Paul is). Which, I don't think they ever did, given that Wikipedia still lists this as their last album, but still. The fact that the album ended like this is sweet. And this is coming from someone who hardly cares about Simon & Garfunkel outside of "The Sound Of Silence", so, hey, if this album's able to pull off making me feel like that... It's a hard 5 from me, and a heavy recommendation. I'm happy they were able to go out on top with something like this. And, hey, this album has the song that provided the title for my second-or-third favorite Edgar Wright movie, so that's worth something at least.

Basket of Light

Pentangle

2/5

This is actually another album I didn't listen to in full — fun fact! Like, I tried to give this thing a fair, full shot, I really did. Honestly. I don't **want** to only listen to half an album and act like I know everything about it. That's just bad practice right there, 'coz for all I know, there could be something in the second half that redeems the first half, and it's my due diligence to see if it's there or not. At the very least, it's only fair to the artist. But, like, I started listening to the second half of the album, "Hunting Song", and, jus'... Oh, goodness, I was so interminably bored. I legitimately could not stand how boring I found this music. I mean, seriously, you hafta understand: most music I find boring just kinda fades into the background. Y'know, it's wallpaper, whatever. Not interesting in the slightest, but I guess it keeps the ears occupied. But this was a weird kind of boring, where... Y'know, I swear it was on the verge of something. This light renaissance faire thing, I could be down with it — if it ever went anywhere! Like, if they went whole hog with it, that'd be one thing, but note: "LIGHT renaissance faire thing." They found one, soft, turgid pace and are determined to stay there the whole time. With these vocals that're, like... OK, in parts they remind of Church Of The Cosmic Skull, and if the music behind them was more exciting, I'd be really into that. But again: it's not! And from the moment the lady on the first track went "la-da-dee-da" or whatever, I was already annoyed by them. Maybe the problem is they're taking themselves too seriously? Maybe if they loosened up a little and picked up the damn tempo or volume sometimes, they could have something. Like, I'm just frustrated, mostly, honestly. I can hear potential in this! I can hear something where, y'know, I'm not in **love** with it, but goodness, it's something I could stand to listen to for its entire runtime! Frustration and disappointment. Maybe the worst two feelings you can have with an album. Goodness. Like, I'm giving this thing a 2 'coz I didn't **hate it** like, say, DEVIL WITHOUT A CAUSE, but understand how much worse this 2 is than that album's 1. 'Coz I never had any expectations for Kid Rock. At most, I figured he'd suck, and what a surprise, he did. Now, I didn't have any expectations for this album either — in fact, Wikipedia giving it the label "folk jazz" had me already feeling predisposed to not liking it — but... It teased me with an idea of what it could do. And it never did. Jus'... Urgh. It's boring and it sucks. Another day, another 60's folk album. Who cares?

Live At The Harlem Square Club

Sam Cooke

5/5

Y'know, I'm just taken by the fact that this album was apparently held in the vault for 20 years after it was recorded because Cooke's label thought this show was too raw and would damage his pop image. And I just gotta wonder: are they stupid? Like, maybe I'm missing something about how Cooke was publicly perceived at the time. Before now, I'd only heard one Sam Cooke song, on the GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY, VOL. 2 soundtrack, and it honestly took me a second to remember that. And I especially don't know anything about the landscape in 1963, over 60 years ago, so, yeah, for all I know, maybe it would have hurt his pop image. But at the same time: who C-A-R-E-S about his "pop image?" This is the single most exciting and electrifying live performance I've heard in a hot second. Cooke is **amazing**, the band behind him doesn't miss a beat, and the audience... Oh, goodness, I kinda wish I coulda listened to the version where the crowd sounds were louder? I can only imagine how this thing woulda felt if it had crowd mixing like James Brown's LIVE AT THE APOLLO. OK, maybe not **that** extreme, but still. I can't even really think of any specifics to gush about. It was just an incredibly entertaining 30 minutes, and I feel like it was such a crime to keep this from the world until **1985**. And if you couldn't tell, this is a huge 5 from me. Another notch in my "live albums deserve to be here as much as any other" argument. Seriously, I can't imagine how anyone could listen to this and not get into it, goodness. Expect me to spin it more than a few times more after today.

At Newport 1960

Muddy Waters

4/5

I really wanted to like this more than I did. Like, in my mind, this is **the** blues album, y'know? Not even just Chicago blues; blues in general. It inspired everyone from Led Zeppelin to Jimi Hendrix. It's an important album, and from everything I've heard, maybe Muddy's best. Only his first greatest hits album might pass it. And to be clear: I don't **have** to like it just for those reasons. After all, I'm sure I've disliked plenty of albums that're just as important to their genres as this one is. That's to say nothing about common critic consensus. And of course, I recognize as well: it's high expectations. I shouldn't be coming into any album with expectations that high, but, hey, it's not like I can easily stop having them once I get them, so... Y'know, if there's a short answer to why I feel the way I do, it's just that I expect a different kind of energy from blues than this album provides. I'll admit: maybe I was spoiled by having my first Muddy Waters album be HARD AGAIN. The blues on that album is loud and hard as hell; the kind that'd blow up your speakers without even needing to turn it up too high. Meanwhile, this album's a lot more, y'know, laid back. It's quieter, the tempos are lower... Neither really picks up 'til they play "I've Got My Mojo Workin'" twice in a row. That's when the album peaks for me, and the energy carries after that, but it's so late in the album by that point that it hardly matters. Of course, I realize that there's probably a lot of nuances I'm missing, from how they're playing to Muddy's charisma and personality. And I wanna emphasize, I hardly think this is bad at all. It's still Muddy Waters, and he does a damn fine blues tune. On top of that, its context as part of the Newport festival, where I believe this was the last show played before the other two days got canceled, does add a narrative weight to the whole thing that I rather enjoy. Ultimately, however... Eh, it's largely just not what I really look for in the blues, y'know? Still, I wouldn't feel right to give it less than a 4. I suppose you could chalk it up just to how much I liked "I've Got My Mojo Workin'" and that otherwise it'd be a 3 — Muddy didn't work his mojo to the point of complete exhaustion, after all — but I'unno. I still think it's worthy of a 4, even if it's not exactly what I want from the blues. I still had a good time with it, and that's what matters.

Fishscale

Ghostface Killah

4/5

Of all of the rap albums I've heard so far from this list, this might have some of the best damn beats. So many shout-outs to the producers Ghostface got for this thing — up to and including MF DOOM and J Dilla! Which, yeah, true, their contributions came from previously released albums (DOOM's SPECIAL HERBS series and Dilla's DONUTS, respectively), but still, they're good-ass beats, and regardless I'm glad they still get to be on this list in some small way. So that's me complimenting what I mostly get out of rap albums: the beats. What about the actual rapping, though? Well, to begin with, compared to the last Wu MC we got, I like Ghostface better than GZA. I like his voice better, I think his flow and lyricism is more interesting... All of that. I actually wanted to pay attention to him, unlike GZA. Now, my problem with the album: its subject matter can get a little tiresome to my ears. Like, yeah, it's a concept album with an organized crime theme, and I've heard that that's Ghostface's thing, so it's not like I wasn't expecting it. It's just that, after an **hour** of it... I'unno, I jus' got a little bored by it. There's only so much you can say about dealing drugs before I begin to lose interest. But I don't think it's really a huge problem, honestly. The beats and the way the vocals interact with them were enough to carry me through, even after I stopped paying attention to the lyrics. And I **did** last longer than I thought I would, so... Hey, y'know? Still, however, I feel like it's enough to ding this album down to a 4. It really was almost there, but... Ahh. Blame my usual preference towards albums under 60 minutes, I guess. At any rate, I'm just glad I got to hear these DOOM and Dilla beats. I wish they coulda been on this list proper instead of being relegated to this album, but, eh, whatever. I'll take what I get, and what I got is pretty dang good. Of all of the rap albums I've heard so far from this list, this might have some of the best damn beats. So many shout-outs to the producers Ghostface got for this thing — up to and including MF DOOM and J Dilla! Which, yeah, true, their contributions came from previously released albums (DOOM's SPECIAL HERBS series and Dilla's DONUTS, respectively), but still, they're good-ass beats, and regardless I'm glad they still get to be on this list in some small way. So that's me complimenting what I mostly get out of rap albums: the beats. What about the actual rapping, though? Well, to begin with, compared to the last Wu MC we got, I like Ghostface better than GZA. I like his voice better, I think his flow and lyricism is more interesting... All of that. I actually wanted to pay attention to him, unlike GZA. Now, my problem with the album: its subject matter can get a little tiresome to my ears. Like, yeah, it's a concept album with an organized crime theme, and I've heard that that's Ghostface's thing, so it's not like I wasn't expecting it. It's just that, after an **hour** of it... I'unno, I jus' got a little bored by it. There's only so much you can say about dealing drugs before I begin to lose interest. But I don't think it's really a huge problem, honestly. The beats and the way the vocals interact with them were enough to carry me through, even after I stopped paying attention to the lyrics. And I **did** last longer than I thought I would, so... Hey, y'know? Still, however, I feel like it's enough to ding this album down to a 4. It really was almost there, but... Ahh. Blame my usual preference towards albums under 60 minutes, I guess. At any rate, I'm just glad I got to hear these DOOM and Dilla beats. I wish they coulda been on this list proper instead of being relegated to this album, but, eh, whatever. I'll take what I get, and what I got is pretty dang good.

Colour By Numbers

Culture Club

3/5

Well, the album opens strong at least. "Karma Chameleon" is a stone classic, and without a doubt the best song here. That harmonica line it has does so much for me, whether it's fake or not. As for the rest of the album, though... I wouldn't go so far as to call it bad — the 1's and 2's I've seen people give it are a bit too harsh — I wouldn't exactly day I was all that interested in it, either. Over the rest of its runtime, I found it very easy to space out and let my mind drift elsewhere. And unlike other albums, where I feel very bad about doing that sort of thing... Not here. Besides "Karma Chameleon" and "Victims" (which I managed to rejoin the album in time for; I think it's a nice ballad), nothing here sounds terribly special to me. Like, jeez, at least RIO had hooks, y'know? I'm at a 3 with this. I don't think it deserves lower. Like, maybe without "Karma Chameleon" to kick down the door... But still, nothing here's that offensive to my sensibilities, so... Yeah. I like y'wears at least, Boy George. Y'did real good with y'did there.

Tical

Method Man

3/5

I feel like the Randomizer's just being cruel at this point. Seriously, this is the third solo album from a Wu Tang member my group's gotten now. First LIQUID SWORDS, then FISHSCALE, and now this, only two days later. It's just incredible how many of these we're getting before we've even gotten 36 CHAMBERS. It's like watching THE MANDOLORIAN before A NEW HOPE,y'know? Obviously it's not bad, but I feel like you'd appreciate it more after seeing the original. Which, I feel like I have more to say about that than the album itself. Like, I'm not gonna say it's bad, or that I didn't enjoy it, but until it hit me in the face with the "I Will Survive" interpolation on "Release Yo' Delf", I really didn't have much to latch onto. The beats are fine, Method Man's raps are fine... It's all nothing that really inspires me to wanna say much. Honestly, part of me can't help but compare it to FISHSCALE album my group got two days ago. That had some incredible beats, and in general I found Ghostface Killah to be a more interesting MC. It jus' kinda... Pales a little. And maybe if I'd been allowed to have more space in-betweenI wouldn't be thinking that, but since the Randomzier decided that I needed to hear it **now**... And I don't have much else I really wanna say about it. It's a perfectly fine 3. I just hope the Randomizer decides to give us 36 CHAMBERS sooner than later — though, watch, we're gonna get ONLY BUILT 4 CUBAN LINX... tomorrow, I guarantee...

Africa Brasil

Jorge Ben Jor

4/5

Y'know, first of all, besides how good of an album I think this is, I gotta say, it does make me pretty happy just that the Randomizer finally gave my group a samba album that has nothing to do with Getz or Gilberto. Seriously, as much as I liked them (except BEACH SAMBA, honestly), it's just nice to move outside of the 1960's, y'know? And, yeah, like I said: I think this is a good album. I mean, it was good enough for Rod Stewart to rip off for "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?". As it's one of those "world" albums (as in, "it's not from America or Europe"), I'm not really sure what the lyrics are about. The top review of the album on this website tells me it's some pretty important stuff, although I don't think it really matters if you actually know the lyrics or not. Like, sure, it's probably better if you don't pull the "Y'all don't wanna hear me; you jus' wanna dance," but as just an album to dance to, absolutely, it's great. Like, sure, I don't think any of the songs really evolve once they get started, but I don't think that's a problem. As long as you can lock into its groove, that's all that matters — and fortunately, I can, especially because of its samba and MPB rhythms. It's a pretty solid 4 for me. And, uh, I don't know what else to say that I haven't already. It's just good, funky samba music — and, again, it's not BEACH SAMBA. I can't think of anything else I would've asked of this album.

Tellin’ Stories

The Charlatans

3/5

This is just Oasis. Like, this — that's all this is. It's just Oasis. And I feel like normally I wouldn't have a problem with that sorta thing; if I like a sound, I'm generally not gonna complain about it. But this time around, I'unno. Maybe it just caught me in a bad mood, but I had a lot less tolerance for this album. Like, we already have an Oasis album on here, and it's MORNING GLORY. "Wonderwall", "Don't Look Back In Anger", "Some Might Say", "Champagne Supernova"... After including an album with as many classics as that, what in the world could this one possibly add? And not to mention, I'm pretty sure DEFINITELY MAYBE is also on here, so we already have a second Oasis album anyway. I'm probably missing some context here in the relationship between this band and Oasis. I mean, The Charlatans actually pre-dated Oasis by, like, four years. It's entirely possible possible I should be getting on Oasis's shit for ripping off **these guys** — not that there seems to have been any bad blood, given that The Charlatans played the support slot for Oasis at Knebworth. Like, consider: the biggest show in Oasis's career, and these guys were right there with them. Crazy. And the thing is, I don't even think this album's that. Sure, it sounds like "Oasis at home," but The Charlatans don't do a bad job at it. It's just, living in the shadow of MORNING GLORY, I find it hard to really think of any of this as that special. Now, sure, there's a few songs here where they break away from that, and I think those songs are much better, but I know that's not what I'm gonna remember this thing for. It's a "me problem," for sure, but it's still a problem for me, so... I'unno. After listening to this, I think all of the people giving this a 2 or lower are being a bit harsh, although I wouldn't rank it much higher. I'm giving this a 3. Like, I was thinking about giving this a 2 — for the fact that it's "hip hop soul," if nothing else — but ultimately, I'm not actually that offended by this. At worst, I'd return to Oasis a million times before I'd ever come back to this, if at all.

Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes

TV On The Radio

4/5

From the onset, I didn't think this album had a terribly good dance to win with me.. Even before the website goofed up and allowed me to think about The Monkees today, seeing Wikipedia label this album as "dark wave," "experimental," "avant-pop..." "POST-PUNK..." Yeah, not a prayer I'd give it higher than 2 at most, far as I could see. I figured at best it'd just be a thing I'd hafta get out of the way before I got to what I actually wanted to do. Color me surprised, then, that I actually liked it a lot more than that. I'unno if I've explained this before, but for some context, whenever I see something labeled "experimental," I'm typically expecting, like... Y'know, noise and atonal nonsense, that I'm supposed to be impressed with because it's "art." Similar feelings go for post-punk — it wasn't my lowest rated genre for as long as it was for no reason, after all. It made me all the more surprised to actually hear convention in here. Beats, melodies, guitar and key parts... Stuff I could actually latch on to Sure, none of this would land on the Hot 100; it's too odd and minimal for that, but I was actually getting engaged in some of these songs. Someone else in my group compared it to early Gorillaz, and, honestly, I can hear it. Really, my biggest problem with the album is that the songs can be a bit too long. Even as much as I enjoyed them, I don't know if they generally do enough to really justify each song having an average length of, like, five minutes. I suppose the point might've been to lose yourself in the atmosphere — and it's not like that's something I can't accomplish — but for some reason here I wasn't really able to. I guess I just clicked with this album too late for that? I'unno. Either way, honestly, I'm feeling a 4 with this thing. I never would've guessed that's where I'd end up, and I might look back on this and think I was too generous, but for the right now, I really was just that pleasantly surprised. So, hey, good on TV On The Radio for that. Now — hey-hey, it's onto Monkee business! Woo!

Headquarters

The Monkees

4/5

It's interesting to me how much of The Monkees and their legacy is based around the fact that they were created as a prefabricated band for a sitcom. Like, before this album, they basically had no control over their own direction. The songs were all written by pros, they were all played by session musicians, their producer had complete control over track listings... And, heck, if one of them hadn't put their first clean through a wall, they well could've been the ones to have recorded "Sugar, Sugar". The four of them were trapped in a black box, with nothing to do but smoke in-between flopping around on camera. I can only imagine how crazy that would drive someone. Like, sure, if this were the 1950's and they were Elvis, singing other people's songs wouldn't really be such a bad lot. But unfortunately, this was the late-60's — where, funny enough, Elvis found himself in the same spot as The Monkees. I mean, The Beatles were the entire reason The Monkees were created in the first place, and they set the standard for bands writing their own songs. The Rolling Stones had moved to penning their own material, Brian Wilson was crafting masterworks, Bob Dylan... And yet, here these guys were, faking songs for a teen-age audience that didn't care about the artifice. They had hits upon hits — but what does it matter if none of them were theirs? That's where HEADQUARTERS comes in. See, their next single was supposed to feature a compromise: the A-side would have the group singing on one of their producer Don Krisher's tracks, and the B-side would feature something the boys had written and performed themselves. Krisher had seemingly agreed to this — until the next single came out and it featured two Krisher tracks. It caught everyone off-guard: not just The Monkees, but also the show producers and the **label executives**. Needless to say, the move wasn't exactly worth it. Krishner was out, and finally, **finally**, The Monkees were able to record an album under their own direction. So, after all of that preamble — how does the album itself actually play out? See, I don't wanna front and say that the surrounding context isn't a big reason why I'm as much a fan of the album as I am. It's a great story of fighting for freedom and achieving it. Honestly, there's some part of me that tends more towards the prefab artifice of their previous two albums. I mean, come on, **the hits**: their TV theme song, "Last Train To Clarksville", "(I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone", "I'm A Believer"... It's all bubblegum, factory-made and everything, but if it ain't fun to chew, y'know?, they can be so **garage**, I love it. I'm not sure if there's a song here that really matches up to any of those — or even their later hits, like "Daydream Believer". But that's speaking on a song-by-song basis. As an **album**, absolutely, this is the band's greatest achievement. 'Coz, look, as much as their debut and MORE OF THE MONKEES had great singles, and some amazing garage-type rock, as a complete experience... Well, there were some notable low points, to be sure. There's some part of me that gets a kick out of shit like "I Wanna Be Free" and "The Day We Fall In Love" in spite of themselves, but I can't act like they're not... Y'know, **good**. That's not even to mention the stuff that just feels tossed off, like, "Eh, this episode needs another song, sure." HEADQUARTERS is a more consistent experience. The highs might be lower, but the lows are higher, and it all balances out pretty nicely. It's just... A really good listen, y'know? Which I feel is all it needed to be, to prove they could make it on their own. At the very least, I've put this on more than I have the previous two, and not out of any sort of "this is the one where they gained autonomy" obligation. Goodness, there was one night this year or last last where, for some reason, I listened to the first side of this record, like, three times in a row. If that doesn't tell you how I feel about this album, I don't know what else will. Oh, and if I can quickly name the best song on this album before I move on: "Randy Scouse Git". Just, 100%, it's "Randy Scouse Git". It even went all the way to no.2 as a single in the UK — with the alternate title, uhm, "Alternate Title",'coz... Well, you look at what it's more commonly known as. Following this album, The Monkees would meditate once more on being a prefabricated band, with the movie/freak-out trip HEAD. That movie's a whole extended essay unto itself, so I'll refrain from going on about it. Just to say that, hey, The Monkees wouldn't have been able to try and kill off The Monkees if this album and its success allowed them the freedom to do that. For that alone, it's their most important, and thank goodness it had the tunes to back that up. I mean, if this had turned out to be the 60's NICK OF TIME... I mean, goodness, I don't even know. For me, this album's a solid 4. Honestly, I'm not sure if The Monkees were ever capable of making a straight 5/5 album, but as the best they've ever done by themselves... It coulda been worse, y'know? Plus, hey, they had Frank Zappa's approval, and in my eyes that counts for a lot.

Fragile

Yes

4/5

To me, 70's Yes is, like, "ur-prog." Y'know, the prog that's just... Always been around, always. The first sound you think of when you think of prog; the genre at perhaps its basest level. I'd call it timeless, too, but... Ehh, naaaah. It's still pretty pinnable to the 1970's. Which is just as well; if the 70's ain't prog's decade, then no other is. FRAGILE lands itself smack in the middle of what are, in my eyes, **the** Yes albums — ten months after (funnily enough) THE YES ALBUM, and ten months before CLOSE TO THE EDGE. And, like, it's crazy, you know? There's not too many other bands I can think of who can pull off something like this. Of course, in the case of FRAGILE, it helps that there's really only 4 "main songs." Now, that's not to put down the other five songs here, which are each composed individually by the five band members. They're all fun, and give a good sense as to what they bring to the group. I even really dig "Cans And Brahms", even if, for stupid contract reasons, it's just an arrangement of a classical piece. I guess my problem is just that... I'unno, as much as I like 'em, they make the album feel shorter than it actually is? Like, FRAGILE is only a minute shorter than THE YES ALBUM and three longer than CLOSER TO THE EDGE, but because 5/9 tracks jus' kinda breeze by, it makes it feel like there's so much less there on the whole. But, hey, despite that, the four "main songs" are still as good as ever, particularly "Roundabout". I mean, putting aside that one anime whose name slips my mind, it's not as iconic as it is for nothing. A sick bass line, virtuoso keys, great vocal harmonies... Across the board, it's simply incredible. Much the same goes for the rest, with a special highlight to "Heart Of The Sunrise". Goodness. **The** second song I tend to think of from this album. So, hey, it's all good stuff. However, ultimately, I think when you put these two halves of songs together... Honestly, as a whole package, it could be stronger. Like, my favorite Yes album is CLOSE TO THE EDGE, and that one wastes no time. It's simply three of the best songs the band would ever make, with not a second wasted, as far as I can hear — lot more beautiful vocal parts and harmonies, too. FRAGILE, on the other hand... Like I said, the solo composed tracks just do weird things to the pacing to me. That's my big problem here. If the album was weighted more towards the main songs than the solo fragments, sure, but as it stands... Yeeeeaaah. Still, I can't give it less than a 4 at minimum. It's still Yes in the middle of their best period, and I don't think they deserve much less. This is referencing the wrong album, but despite some of my misgivings, I can still get up **and** get down with this. (Now hopefully it's not, like, what, ten months until we get **that** album? Or more, goodness. I hope not!)

Harvest

Neil Young

4/5

And just like with yesterday's album, my group returns to an artist we got very, very early on in our journey. The seventh album we'd ever gotten was Neil Young's RUST NEVER SLEEPS, a live album he did with Crazy Horse. I'd written a very short 3/5 review for it, which I can reiterate in its entirety here: "Well, I hope I'm more into any of the other six Neil Young albums on this list." As you can see, it's not very insightful. Back then, I guess I just didn't have the words to explain how much I wasn't into Young getting his Dylan on. Well anyway, it's taken 317 albums, but, hey, here's another one of those six. His most acclaimed, to boot — 72 on the most recent Rolling Stone 500. So... Was I actually more into this than RUST NEVER SLEEPS? Absolutely. This is a great album, comprised mostly of what I've taken to calling "country comfort." Y'know, to me most country music evokes late evenings, porches and bottles of beer. A whole "the modern man unwinds" kinda thing. This album also evokes unwinding to me, but it's not just confined to the porch — it's out there, on the ranch or in the prairies. There's this larger scope to it all that I really dug. It's just top-notch music, all around. And, sure, maybe a few lyrics on here are a bit too depressing to fit that "country comfort" vibe exactly, but, look, I can't just not imagine sitting on a horse, looking out over the canyons, or just resting on the fence watching the sunset. It's that vibe that does this whole thing so well. Which just makes it all the odder when I get randomly interrupted by another album. Like, OK, let's talk about the London Symphony Orchestra songs. To begin with, I'm not opposed to the orchestra being here. Hell, I love a bit of orchestral accompaniment. You should see how much I love Metallica's S&M, or even those Royal Philharmonic Orchestra albums where they RPO all over Elvis and Beach Boys songs. And if they were accompanying Young on, like, "Old Man" or "Alabama", that'd be one thing... (And can you imagine Skynyrd calling out the London Symphony Orchestra alongside Young? Goodness.) But like I said, the songs they're on both sound like they come from different albums. They're so grand and sweeping, and I like them, but they're just at such odds with the rest of the package. Especially because there's only **two** of them, one on each side. Like, maybe I'd understand it more if the LSO was on half of the tracks, or all of them, or if they just weren't here at all... I'unno, it's like taking Aerosmith's ROCKS and throwing two "I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing"s on each half. Y'get me? And I **like** "I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing"! Like, the country comfort stuff by itself would've been a 4 verging on a 5, but with the LSO tracks, as much as I did enjoy them... Yeah, it pulls the whole thing down to a 4 solid. Good stuff, of course, just... Could've been the slightest bit more cohesive. Alright, well, that leaves five more Neil Young albums left to get through. Fingers crossed it doesn't take **this long** 'til my group sees another one — and, hopefully, I dig it as much as this.

Teenager Of The Year

Frank Black

5/5

Y'know, I never woulda been able to guess what I'd get from a Frank Black solo album. Heck, before this album I didn't even know this album existed — or who Frank Black was, for that matter. For real, I'd known about the Pixies and I at least knew the name Kim Deal, but it turns out I had no idea who Frank Black was. So, learning that this guy fronted the Pixies, I suppose my initial expectation going into this was that, like... It'd be more? And exactly "more" as in "more of the same," but like "a more extreme version; more concentrated." Which, to be clear, I liked the two Pixies albums I heard. I didn't **love** them; I still think I generally enjoy Weird Al's pastiche more, but I did enjoy my time with them. So, there was a small part of me that wasn't really looking forward to hearing a more concentrated Pixies. But goodness me, I never woulda guessed that **this** is what the frontman for the Pixies would've made. Like, it's way popper than I would've guessed. I mean, I suppose this **is** indie rock, whereas I'd always pegged the Pixies as alternative and punk. (And, yeah, genre definitions are loose, so the Pixies are also indie, but you get what I mean, right?) It's catchy stuff. It also reminds me so much of a specific band which, for the life of me, I can't think of the name of, but I know it's one I like, so it's still a good thing anyway. So many key and synth parts I liked, goodness. I think what surprised me most is how much I actually paid attention to the lyrics. I normally don't do that the first time with an album; not even with the Pixies albums. But here, they jus' kinda captivated me. LIke, there's songs about PONG and the aqueduct. I'd never heard the word "aqueduct" outside of a Monty Python. movie. It's just interesting stuff — kinda quirky and specific, which I guess just captures me way more than conventional and broad. But together with the music especially — goodness, it's great stuff. Honestly, I'd be pretty happy to give this thing a 5. It worked for me just that well — and it's a higher rating than I've given to any Pixies album, even. So, hey, good on you, Frankie. And big congrats on that Teenager Of The Year award, by the way. I'unno how **you** got it, but, hey, maybe the judges were working off of "casting for a high school drama" logic. Y'know, I never woulda been able to guess what I'd get from a Frank Black solo album. Heck, before this album I didn't even know this album existed — or who Frank Black was, for that matter. For real, I'd known about the Pixies and I at least knew the name Kim Deal, but it turns out I had no idea who Frank Black was. So, learning that this guy fronted the Pixies, I suppose my initial expectation going into this was that, like... It'd be more? And exactly "more" as in "more of the same," but like "a more extreme version; more concentrated." Which, to be clear, I liked the two Pixies albums I heard. I didn't **love** them; I still think I generally enjoy Weird Al's pastiche more, but I did enjoy my time with them. So, there was a small part of me that wasn't really looking forward to hearing a more concentrated Pixies. But goodness me, I never woulda guessed that **this** is what the frontman for the Pixies would've made. Like, it's way popper than I would've guessed. I mean, I suppose this **is** indie rock, whereas I'd always pegged the Pixies as alternative and punk. (And, yeah, genre definitions are loose, so the Pixies are also indie, but you get what I mean, right?) It's catchy stuff. It also reminds me so much of a specific band which, for the life of me, I can't think of the name of, but I know it's one I like, so it's still a good thing anyway. So many key and synth parts I liked, goodness. I think what surprised me most is how much I actually paid attention to the lyrics. I normally don't do that the first time with an album; not even with the Pixies albums. But here, they jus' kinda captivated me. LIke, there's songs about PONG and the aqueduct. I'd never heard the word "aqueduct" outside of a Monty Python. movie. It's just interesting stuff — kinda quirky and specific, which I guess just captures me way more than conventional and broad. But together with the music especially — goodness, it's great stuff. Honestly, I'd be pretty happy to give this thing a 5. It worked for me just that well — and it's a higher rating than I've given to any Pixies album, even. So, hey, good on you, Frankie. And big congrats on that Teenager Of The Year award, by the way. I'unno how **you** got it, but, hey, maybe the judges were working off of "casting for a high school drama" logic.

Gold

Ryan Adams

4/5

Oof. Got caught up yesterday and couldn't find the time to listen to this album before another one got generated. Forgive me, then, if I rush this a litte; I have a MAGGOT BRAIN on the other side of this that I wanna get to. So, like, from the words "alternative country," combined with that pop emo-ass cover and **especially** that runtime, I wasn't looking forward to this. Now, I've liked plenty of country music just fine, but something about putting "alternative" in front... Actually, I don't know why it rattled me so much. I guess maybe I was thinking this'd be some kind of ultra-hipster country music? The stuff I "should" be listening to if I wanna understand mainstream country. But y'wanna know what this actually sounded like to me, honestly? OK, so one of the songs on here, "The Rescue Blues", was used on an episode of SCRUBS, right? Reading that before I listened to the album, I just shrugged and went, "OK." Matters to me about as much as another song getting used in BRIDESMAIDS. But then once I listen to the album, and especially once I get to "The Rescue Blues", it all clicks for me. 'Coz, y'see, so much of this album reminds me of "Superman" by Lazlo Bane, the song SCRUBS used as a theme song. And I **love** "Superman", so getting to listen to a whole album in that sonic vein... Which, I mean, I probably shoulda listened to that Lazlo Bane album first, but still, I dug this so much. Especially coming after all the stuff I got caught up on, too: it was a nice album to just unwind to. Now, of course, I still have a problem with this thing's runtime. As much as I sympathize with Ryan for the fact that his label forced him to chop off the last five songs... Like this thing needed to be any longer. Over 70-some minutes, goodness. This absolutely could've been cut down **more**, possibly. As much as I don't like saying I agree with meddling with his artistic vision... I mean, it's not like I actually listened to those last five songs this listen around, y'know? And as for the lyrics, I didn't really pay attention to them, of course (typical of me), but if they're really anything like what groupmate Gutseh was saying... Goodness. And I didn't not like "Nobody Girl", for as long as it was, it could've been more of a "Champagne Supernova" overdeal like he said. Overall, y'know, both my group mates gave this thing a 4 rounded up from a 3.5... And I feel like I'm at a 4 solid? If not just in the same boat, honestly. Like, I'm pleasantly surprised by this, but I'm not head over about it like I was that Frank Black album where I had similar expectations. It's just a really nice time, sonically. At the most basic level, there's not much more I could ask. And somehow I wrote 500+ words, including these. Hm. Well, I hope I can match for MAGGOT BRAIN. Goodness, what a solo...

Maggot Brain

Funkadelic

5/5

This album has a real 2112 thing about it. Which, what I mean by that is that while the whole package is a great, 5/5 time, it's kinda hard for me to not place all my focus on the title track. "2112" and "Maggot Brain" are both the first tracks on and centerpieces of their respective albums; are both one of, if not **the** most famous things these groups ever did; and are, in their own ways, absolute tour de forces. In the presence of these songs, the others just can't help but fall under the "and also" category. Like, "Maggot Brain" is just... Soul-rending. The most emotional guitar solo I've ever heard since Frank Zappa's "Watermelon In Easter Hay". Even if you don't know the famous story where Eddie Hazel was told to play like he was just told his mom had died, you can still feel what this song is about in every note, tone, flange and wah. It sounds like the world's ending. Seriously, if this song caught me at just the right or wrong time... As for the rest of the album... Well, I'm not sure if it's as consistently strong as 2112's "rest of the album," but all the same, there's nothing here that'd make me dock the album a point. Not even "Wars Of Armageddon" and the actual fart sound effects it has over halfway through. The grooves and guitar playing are just that strong throughout. Especially "Super Stupid", which I'm picking as my "deep cut favorite." Pitchfork's absolutely right in their analysis; it really **does** sound like a tune Black Sabbath would be proud of. And with this kind of guitar playing, too — oof, my goodness. It's absolutely the hardest yet I've ever heard Funkadelic go. And, like, I kind of don't like to place so much focus on the guitar playing over everything else. The vocals, the lyrics, the grooves — y'know, all the other members of the band... They're all doing great work, too; I don't wanna undersell them. But, knowing about how George Clinton deliberately de-emphasized the other members on "Maggot Brain"... Like, they're there, and they're important to keeping the beat and melody. Eddie Hazel's guitar playing would be incredible even if it was just screaming all by itself, completely freeform. With that steady beat and melody underneath it, though... Well, it's just even better. But again: the other members were deliberately de-emphasized on that song. And it can be hard for me to not apply that to the rest of the album. But regardless, MAGGOT BRAIN as a complete package is a 5. The title track alone grants it that, and thankfully the rest of the album supports that. Y'know, I'm just thinking back to the first review I ever did with my group, which was also of a Funkadelic album, ONE NATION UNDER A GROOVE. Even as far back as that album, I was praising MAGGOT BRAIN's title track... And it's also really a contrast in how I've grown in regards to talking about music. That review was only just one above 30 words, versus here, where I'm already at 524. And in under 11 months, too — goodness. I'll say as well, I think I like this album better than ONE NATION. ONE NATION was more about, well, the grooves and vibes, whereas this had more focused songs. I can dig a good vibe, but at the same time, hey, y'know, gimme some good focus So, yeah, as a homecoming to the group where this whole journey started for me... Well, I don't think there woulda been any other options, but regardless, I'm happy it's with an album as great as this one. Big R.I.P. to Eddie Hazel: April 10, 1950 to December 23, 1992.

Out Of The Blue

Electric Light Orchestra

5/5

Y'know what I just love ? Y'know, what I really fancy myself a bit of sometimes? Overproduction. Now that's typically a bad word in talking about music, but for my own money... Oh, goodness, there's just nothing like it. When you take what coulda been normal, average songs and just pump them up with so much until they become larger than life, and then some. That's why I like OUT OF THE BLUE as much as I do. Front-to-back, every song sounds like a grand adventure. Even the shorter or more lowkey ones, it doesn't sound like there could be anything bigger. Like, it hardly matters to me if these songs are "soulless" or if there's way too much cribbed from The Beatles or whatever. The mere fact that for a while there I would put on the third side of the record, "Concerto For A Rainy Day," every time I woke up to find it was raining outside should tell you how much I don't mind either of those things. Besides, it's not like I have a problem with bands wearing their influences on their sleeve; as long as they can still sound unique in spite of that, it's all good. And, well, even acknowledging the fact that Jeff Lynne would go on to produce two Beatles songs 20-some years later, I don't think I'd mistake ELO for another band, y'know? It doesn't even matter to me that this album is as long as it is. It's one of those 60+ minute albums where I feel like it truly justifies its runtime. The songs, to me, are really just that consistently solid and carry the pace so well that it hardly even feels like it's that long. Accepting the "Concerto" as a different, mini-album in the middle of this album helps, too. Honestly, if there's anything I'm down on, it's the fact that I was kinda, like... Extra-tired today when I heard this? Which gets to me, 'coz this is an album I wanted to pay the fullest of attention to. And I feel like I paid enough, don't get me wrong, but... Ehh, I just had this feeling of "tired" behind my eyes ever since I woke up two hours later than I wanted to, I'unno. But that's besides the point, and hardly impacts my enjoyment of this album. For me, it's a full 5. Jus', goodness me, so many great songs and moments. Like, that rapid-fire breakdown in "Turn To Stone"? Goodness me. All the way to the grand closer of "Wild West Hero". Which is actually how I closed my 2023, by the way, after the album had also opened that year. (Huge shout-outs as well to the "PLEASE TURN ME OVER" at the end of "Mr. Blue Sky". I've always loved that. Really, the whole outro of that song... Goodness.) Now, I'll be 100 and admit that it's not actually an album I've put on too often. Like, outside of the "Concerto," I think I've only played this album in full four times (contrat with the **53 times** I've played the "Concerto"). If there's any commitment I wanna make after this review, though, it's to listen to this album way more. It really, truly deserves it. It's a masterwork of 70's overproduced pop — which, yeah, is absolutely not for everyone. But if no one else, it's for me. Jus'... Goodness. I don't even know what else to say. Go listen to "Mr. Blue Sky" — I mean, chances are you already have, but go listen to it again. You hear how happy it is? That's me when I play this album. Nothing but clear, blue skies and sunshine as far as the eye can see.

In A Silent Way

Miles Davis

5/5

Bookends

Simon & Garfunkel

4/5

Y'know, if I were the Randomizer, I would not have given my group this album **after** BRIDGE OVER TROUBLED WATER. Or, goodness, at the very least, not within the same **month**. 'Coz in the debate over whether this or BRIDGE is the group's best album... Well, I can't lie and say I'm exactly in the former's camp, that's for sure. As usual with statements like that, I must make clear: I **like** this album. You saw the score before you saw that first line; you know for a fact I think this is good. But even removing the power BRIDGE gets from being the duo's last album — or at least, trying the best I can to — yeah, I think BOOKENDS gets outshone a bit. And in light of removing that "last album" power, I don't think there's anything specific I'd point to, honestly. I suppose generally BRIDGE has an overall grander feel to it, whereas BOOKENDS, while certainly leagues and such ahead of the first album my group got from the duo, just doesn't hit me in the same way. As a complete package, it doesn't exactly strike that chord where I'm nodding along like, "Yes, yes is the good stuff." Maybe if it committed more to either half of itself. 'Coz, it must be realized, this is basically two half albums glued onto each other. The first half is a concept album about life and aging, bookended (fitting) by the album's theme. The second half, meanwhile, is a collection of out-takes from THE GRADUATE and also an in-take, "Mrs. Robinson". And keep in mind as well: this is a **short** album, just barely under 30 minutes. So, on the one hand, these are nice, bite-sized mini-albums that you don't hafta break your back listening to. On the other, though, neither really go on long enough to develop into much. I might fall more into the latter. I mean, this ain't no 2112 situation. Of these two halves, by the way, I think side two's the more interesting one. Yeah, the one with all the left-overs. Side one's good, but overall it doesn't really grab me. Meanwhile, from the opening seconds of "Fakin' It", I was hooked in. Like, even if you removed "Mrs. Robinson" from the line-up (the stone-cold classic that it is) this side would still hit harder. Honestly, for my tastes, side one might just be a bit too... I'unno, a bit too serious? Not too much that it's a slog or whatever, but still, y'know? If I were to rank the two halves of this album separately... Side one would get a 3 and side two would get a 5. Put 'em together, divide, that's a 4 overall. Good stuff overall; I just prefer one half to the other. And seriously, y'know, if I were the Randomizer I would not have given my group this album **after** BRIDGE OVER TROUBLED WATER.

Fifth Dimension

The Byrds

3/5

Honestly, I kind of struggled to figure out what I wanted to say about this album. And not for lack of a hook or perspective; by everything I've written, this is commonly considered the original psychedelic rock album. Heck, "Eight Mile High" is apparently, according to a lot of folk, **the** first psych rock song ever written. Which, y'know, I take claims like that with a bit of "If it hadn't been that, it would've been something else" — but still, it can be hard sometimes not to marvel at the thing that started it all. And yet, here? I'unno. I didn't dislike this album as I heard it, but after taking a few minutes before starting this review... I can't recall a lot of it; nothing specific I can bring up for this review. Like, sure, after one listen I'm not gonna have the whole thing completely memorized, but still, I should be able to come up with **something**. As I sit here, though, my mind keeps flashing through a bunch of other songs I heard today — "Savoy Truffle", Peter Griffin singing "Memories" — but not really anything from **this** album. At most, I suppose, there's "2-4-2 Fox Trot", which is kind of an odd closer. I mean, I understand the concept and I don't really fault its execution, but I imagine it's a song that would've improved with better stereo mixing. I mean, take out an earphone: y'wanna hear the band, or jet whining and someone talking over a radio? All the while the band stands in the cockpit chanting "I WANNA RIDE A LEARJET." Second time I've heard about these things in a song, and this ain't no "Money". I'unno. I can appreciate this thing's place in history, and in the moment it's good, but... Mm, I'unno. During the album I was feeling a 4, but just for the fact that I forgot so much and that it's not exactly compelling me to give it a second listen... 3. It's an "it's fine" 3. Jus', I'unno. That's just how it is. Maybe if there **had** been another Bob Dylan cover, who knows?

The Hour Of Bewilderbeast

Badly Drawn Boy

2/5

It's never a good sign when I see an album pop and my immediate gut reaction is "Who the hell is this guy?" Now, that's never a reaction I **want** to have, y'know? I feel like I'm just immediately dismissing an artist out of hand just because I'm not aware of them. 'Coz I know, there's so much great music in the world that comes from people you've never heard of. And I feel like that's kind of half the purpose of a book like this; to place some light on more obscure releases by putting them right alongside more famous albums. Sure, it could also be the result of just needing to fill space, 'coz let's not forget that 1,001 albums is a **lot** of albums, but I choose to believe that there's more than that. And it's not like this album doesn't have any credentials; it **did** win the Mercury Award in 2000. There's a bunch of albums on here who've also won that award, and I've even agreed with some of those wins. Even if I, or most people, haven't ever heard of it, clearly there's **something** that resonated with enough people, y'know? I don't get it. I tried — I really did — but I don't get it. I mean, OK, sure, it's baroque indie folk. It's catnip to critics who wanna have big, important, refined tastes in music. I won't say I really dislike it; there's a few melodies around here I really enjoy. But as a complete experience, it's just... Honestly, it's kind of really boring. All the songs just mush into each other, and none of them are engaging enough to where I'd wanna try telling them apart. This boy, badly drawn as he is, just plonks away on his guitar for an hour. Sometimes there's chimes or whatever; sometimes there's strings... Whatever. I can't bring myself to care. And I promise you, it's not because I don't know who he is; it's not a knock against critics for "snobby taste"; and it's not even a dig at the book's writer for his tendency towards including nondescript British albums. There's songs I like in this style, but for an hour, and across eighteen songs? No, not really. I wanted to be generous with this album and give it a 3 at least, 'coz, again, there's melodies I like, and I do honestly dig the song "Disillusion". But I can't give the whole thing a pass just because I liked one song and some spare change. The whole thing honestly feels like a 2 to me. Big "ehhh" energy. I can't be surprised that this is one of the albums that got tossed out of later editions of the book in favor of newer entries. I'unno. Maybe draw your boy better next time. And, seriously, PARACHUTES by Coldplay lost to this? Goodness, if this ain't another Mercury Award winner I disagree with...

Urban Hymns

The Verve

3/5

Y'know, it never struck me before now that The Verve is a one-hit wonder, but they totally are. Before I started this list, there wasn't a single song I knew from them besides "Bitter Sweet Symphony". In the public consciousness, everything else may as well not exist. Todd In The Shadows could totally cover this group if he wanted to. And even after my group had gotten the Verve album before this one, A NORTHERN SOUL, a couple of months ago... Yeah, no, I still only care to know one song from them. And thing is, that goes for this album, too. I don't figure it's ever a very good sign when a one-hit wonder has their one hit open their album. Of course, there was no way they ever coulda known, but still, goodness. It's right there at the top of the pile; you don't even hafta dig for it. And, I mean, "Bitter Sweet Symphony" isn't their one hit for nothing. That orchestral riff, taken from a Rolling Stones song or not, is incredible, and the vocal melody placed on top of it... It's so unique in Britpop. Seriously, I can't think of another song in this genre that sounds like this. It's a great one hit to have. The rest... Well, as I might've implied, the risk you run when your one hit is placed at the top is that it might all be downhill from there. That was the case with Chumbawamba's TUBTHUMPING, for instance, but it managed to prove it was a great album even besides that. URBAN HYMNS, meanwhile... Doesn't. I'm not gonna say it's bad, necessarily, 'coz I do like Britpop, especially in the Oasis mold, but... That's it. That's all there is to the rest of the album. It's just pretty-alright Britpop; nothing terribly unique about it. It all jus' kinda ran together and faded into the background. And, like, I feel bad about that sorta thing, but... That's just how it is, y'know? This is my group's tenth Britpop, and honestly, I'm just wondering how this band got **one** album on this list, let alone **two**. Besides "Bitter Sweet Symphony", what else is there? All that said... The presence of "Bitter Sweet Symphony" alone keeps this thing at a 3. I really wanna say that if it wasn't here that this album could still be a 3, but... Honestly, would it even be on this list if not for that song? So, this album gets a pass from me, but really only barely. I guess I can only hope that the rest of the Britpop albums (or one-hit wonder albums, for that matter) can do more to prove themselves.

The Clash

5/5

The Clash: "The Only Band That Matters." Are they now, huh? Living in 2024, well past the heyday of The Clash, I'm not 100 on how much I'd agree with that or not — speaking just for my own tastes, anyway. I mean, there are a lot of bands that matter to me, from The Beatles to the one backing up Weird Al. So "the only band?" I probably just had to be there at the time. At any rate, I can agree that they're a pretty damn good band. And, at the very least, a better one than the Sex Pistols. Yeah, it's kind of unavoidable for me to compare The Clash to the Sex Pistols, as it seems to be for a lot of people. They're both 70's British punk bands who ended up being huge sources of inspiration for nearly every one that came out afterwards. Heck, The Clash even opened for the Sex Pistols on a tour, and it was a negative review they got during that that inspired them to write "Garageland". And, like, look, I have my problems with the Sex Pistols: as people, as musicians, and in regards to their formation, politics, and unintentional impact. Even though I like a fair bit of their music, there's a part of me these days that considers them a punk boy band that relied on shock value, between songs like "God Save The Queen" and the fact that they put the word "bollocks" in their album title. I mean, I'm not gonna come out here and say I hate them and their impact just because "Bodies" exists or that it's really their fault the Dead Kennedys had to write "Nazi Punks Fuck Off", but... I'unno. It's just harder for me to enjoy their bashing and thrashing as much as I used to when I was 13 or 14. So then we come to The Clash — one of the bands I've logged away in my head as "really left," alongside Rage Against The Machine and Chumbawamba. And lemme shut this down off the bat: that's not the reason why I like any of those bands. It helps, sure, to be able to nod along to those songs and go "I agree with them," but there's just as many bands and artists I like that I don't. No, of course, it's their musicianship. Rage making kickass rap rock. Chumbawamba mastering their way through punk, dance and folk. And of course, The Clash, doing some of the best punk I've ever heard. Like, besides any nonsense regarding "politics," if there are any strong reasons why I like The Clash over the Sex Pistols, it's that I think The Clash are better musicians — and, at that, more relatable. I mean, The Clash could play "Anarchy In The U.K.", but I don't think the Sex Pistols could play, say, "Police & Thieves". And in regards to their subject matter, honestly, thinking back on it, the Sex Pistols were a little broad? Which was probably the point, but I don't think it hits as well as The Clash writing specifically about being a youth in 1970's London, from the more serious stuff in "White Riot" and "Career Opportunities", to smaller things like "Protex Blue" and "London's Burning". Mixed with Strummer's vocals and Jones's guitar and the slight edge of pop that's in there... Woof, goodness. And I wanna rewind to "Police & Thieves" for a second: the intersection of punk and reggae. For the longest time there, I never got why these two crossed over so often. Why did punk bands do reggae so often? Why did Bob Marley write "Punky Reggae Party"? What **was** the deal? As it turns out, I was thinking too aesthetically, and not thinking about the thematic elements. They have a lot in common, and "Police & Thieves", in that light, fits really well here. I mean, just earlier on the album The Clash were expressing dislike for the police and calling out civil bureaucrats. So a song like this... Yeah, it's perfect. And it helps that The Clash do reggae pretty dang well here. And I've read that they apparently do it **better** on later albums? I'm not gonna say they're on the same level as, say, The Wailers, but still, goodness. Taking it all in total, while the Sex Pistols still probably have **the** punk album of punk albums, The Clash, for sure, have the best. I've never qualms whatsoever about giving it a 5. It's just that good. And I didn't even get around to mentioning the rock n' roll influence. If you've somehow stumbled across this review and haven't heard it yet, well, get yourself on it. LONDON CALLING, too, for that matter, but, y'know, I'll get there when I get there... "The Only Band That Matters?" I'm still not 100, but damn if they don't make a good case for bein' one of the big ones.

Faust IV

Faust

4/5

Y'know, I can't remember why I thought this would be worse. I suppose between the fact that I'm still not 100% on what "krautrock" is and that I read "noise rock" and "sound collage" on Faust's Wikipedia page... Maybe I was just worried I'd get that kind of experimental music that's loud and noisy just for the sake of it. And while there **are** moments that lean into that... It's not as bad as that would imply? Like, there's two kinds of songs on this album: cosmic, ambient instrumental music, and The Mothers Of Invention. And I don't think I'm as into either kind of song as I am elsewhere (that Tangerine Dream album my group got and, y'know, any MOI album), I don't think it's nearly as bad or as boring as that average 2.77 score would imply. Frankly, I'd give this thing a 4. I'm not gonna act like I'm **that** crazy about it, or that I'd revisit any time soon, but for surpassing my expectations... Yeah, it's got me feeling pretty generous about this whole thing. "Für mich war das ein unterhaltsames Album" or something.

You Are The Quarry

Morrissey

2/5

I tried. I really did. I tried not to let my thoughts on Morrissey as a person overly impact my thoughts on the work. 'Coz while that sort of thing is unavoidable, I don't wanna fall into rating the person and not the music. I mean, if I can give a Kanye West album a 4 despite hating him as much as I do, then anything's possible. But we all have our limits — especially if the music itself can't make up for the awful human being at the center of it. Just look at Koffi Olomide, for instance. The samba music he made was so boring and "commercial for a Caribbean cruise line" grade, I felt no guilt ripping into him for being a convicted sexual predator. Similar goes for Kid Rock, the poser and grifter he is. And what's funny about all that is that I actually like a fair bit of the music on here. Like, I gave the last Morrissey album my group got a 3 'coz it was all, like, chill, atmospheric New Wave, and I liked it, but in the months since then, I'unno how much I'm clamoring to hear it again. Versus this album, which is full of energy and a nice bit of pop. If anyone else was singing anything else over this, I'd be close to giving this a 4 or, heck, a 5. I like it just that much. But I'll repeat: "if anyone else was singing anything else." I made the mistake of actually following along with the lyrics this time, and... Oh my fuckin' goodness, I can't stand this fuckin' man. Shut your fuckin' mouth, you pretentious ass. I can't even really begin to describe it, but I've just never had lyrics get under my skin as badly as this. Jus', this pompous fuckin' dick wants to lecture **me** about how America sucks? Buddy, in 2024, I know that already — and like I'd want **you** to tell me anyway. That, and the shit like "Wahhh-wahhh, I'm so alone" and "Ohhhh, no one can understand how **I** feel" and "Everyone **else** is just **so boring**" and "the press wuz mean 2 me :(." I don't need this shitheel's whining or pseudo-intellectual musings about the state of the world. Seriously, he's lucky I like the actual instrumentals as much as I do, 'coz that's literally the only reason why this thing's getting a 2 and not a 1. Muh'fucker this he's so fuckin' cool, posing on the album cover with a tommygun. He's a fuckwit is what he is, and he doesn't deserve instrumentals like these. If "First Of The Gang To Die", the only song I liked here, could've been sung by anyone else...! I don't even know if I want the one last Morrissey album on this list to show up soon so I can give it over with or later so I don't hafta deal with him again for a while. Either way, besides any Smiths album my group gets, I'll be happy to never have to deal with him again. Goodness me, I can't even...

Neon Bible

Arcade Fire

3/5

I tried here as well. I really did, honestly. You gotta understand the thought I was going into this album with: "I thought Arcade Fire only had one — sorry, **two** albums." Legitimately, before this popped up, I'd completely forgotten this band existed outside of THE SUBURBS and, like, FUNERAL, and even that second one took me a moment to recall. 'Coz they've really never meant much to my life other than "one of their albums was widely named Album Of The Year, and that's a random fact I have stored away." I'd know their name if I saw them, but I couldn't tell you what they sounded like, and I was never particularly compelled to find out. And, heck, even after this Randomizer actually had me listen to THE SUBURBS I still couldn't and wasn't. So, here we go with another one. Their second, actually; the one they released between FUNERAL and THE SUBURBS. And if there's a metaphor I wanna use to describe this album, it's based on one that was used for this album: the ocean. Generally, so says Win, it's used here to represent a "loss of control." And you might think I'd use the ocean as a metaphor for the album's expanse, depth and beauty. But, no, no. See, my mind's stuck on the opener, "Black Mirror", which describes an black ocean on a moonless night. And something about that evokes how I feel about this album where I'm trying, honestly, to focus on the water cresting, but it's so hard to and everything jus' kind of melts into each other. It just ain't the kind of water I enjoy lookin' at, y'know? Like, sure, when I do catch something, it's fine — and when the big, bright boat that is "No Cars Go" passes by, I'm all eyes — but for most of the time I'm spending with it, there's just other bodies of water I'd rather deal with. And maybe that metaphor makes sense or maybe it doesn't, I'unno. I found out during the course of the album that I was more tired than I thought I was, and that's no fault of the album, but it sure didn't help any. Even if I wasn't, though... Yeah, I still don't think I'd think much of it. I'll be generous and give it a 3, 'coz I really did like "No Cars Go" just that much, but otherwise... I still can't tell you what Arcade Fire sounds like and I'm still not particularly interested to find out.

Trafalgar

Bee Gees

4/5

Even though I've been aware for years that the Bee Gees weren't always a white disco band, it's still kind of a surprise to hear what they sounded like four years before "Jive Talkin'". 'Cuz that's just who they are in popular culture, y'know? High voices going "AH-HA-HA-HAH" over a four-to-the-floor beat. So to fall back in time and hear an album's worth of Beatles-y soft rock in decidedly normal voices... Most people, I don't think, would've ever guessed this was the same band who'd later light the world on fire with "Stayin' Alive". And, hey, wouldn't you know — I actually really like this. What can I say? I'm a sucker for soft rock cheese every now and then, and this is, mm, such good cheese. I mean, you hear these orchestrations? Goodness me. Like, I say this is Beatles-y, but really, this specifically sounds to me way more like a softer, subdued Electric Light Orchestra. That's a kind of comparison that's a big plus in my book, given how much I loved OUT OF THE BLUE when my group got it. I guess the worst thing I can say is that the Gibbs' normal voices are maybe a little wonky, but it was never a bigger problem to me than just going "Huh." Honestly, there's not even much more I wanna say about this album. I just think it's good stuff, y'know? I really enjoyed it. Not enough, I don't think, that I'm chomping to give it a 5, but I wouldn't go less than a 4. Like, I can tell why this sound isn't as iconic as their disco stuff, but, aw, heck. I'm happy to hear it. (Boy, and if you wanna talk about the Bee Gees and The Beatles... The SGT. PEPPER'S movie is a trip and a half; I'll say that much. Goodness.)

The Gilded Palace Of Sin

The Flying Burrito Brothers

4/5

I don't think I would have ever guessed that an album by a band called "The Flying Burrito Brothers" would've been another chapter in the great Gram Parson "Cosmic American Music" saga. Honestly, I would've expected something more like The Electric Prunes — but here we are. The last album my group got from Gram Parson was, well, his last album: GRIEVOUS ANGEL. Despite the 4 I gave it, I said in my review that I didn't really get why it was so important; that it just sounded to me like 70's country music. I recognize, that probably means I'm missing something about the history and evolution of country music through the 70's, but... Look, honestly, it's the same here. I think this is really good late 60's/early 70's country music, but I'm not sure beyond that why it's supposedly so important. Heck, I'm still not even sure what "Cosmic American Music" is really supposed to be. Is it, like, those fuzzed out guitars in "Hot Burrito #2"? Either way, regardless, I like it a lot, but... Honestly, I feel like this mostly comes down to the fact that I already like country music as much as I do. Maybe I just have low standards, I'unno, but I've never felt like being that hard on any I've ever heard. So, if I don't "get" this album in the grand history of country music... Well, I'm still willing to give it a 4, anyway. Honestly, I can't even imagine what a country album I'd give lower than a 3 would sound like — unless you wanna count DEVIL WITHOUT A CAUSE, but I really don't, so... At the very least, I know it won't come from Gram Parsons, that's for sure.

Untitled (Black Is)

SAULT

4/5

As I sit down to write to review... Honestly, I have no idea what I wanna say, exactly. Like, to be crystal clear: on a thematic level, I agree with it. Obviously, of course; I'm not an asshole. But to be 100: I don't think I'm really... Y'know, equipped to discuss any of it. For a lot of reasons — none of which I feel like I'm able to discuss either. Please realize, I'm not trying to avoid any conversations I don't want to have or that make me uncomfortable. At most, I'm jus' tryna avoid saying anything I'd heavily regret later. And maybe I'm gonna regret all this, too, I'unno. So let's talk how I feel about the music n' melodies, since those're always what I'm not interested in anyway. I actually had some high hopes for this album, given the way some people in my group were talking about it. And, like, come on, it's soul, R&B, funk — I've loved plenty of albums in all three of those genres. I couldn't imagine why I wouldn't like this. And once I listened to it... Well, I'll admit that at a point I kinda lost focus on the album? Although, I'd probably chalk that up more to me fixating on some art I was doing and not listening to it by record sides like I normally do, 'cuz listening back to samples now, this is all very good soul. It's not the kind of soul I prefer; I'm more into 70's Stevie Wonder stuff... But as someone who doesn't listen to a lot of modern music, let alone modern soul — yeah, I can dig this. I don't think it exactly lived up to the high hopes I had, but I also wouldn't argue that it shouldn't be here like I did with CHEMTRAILS OVER THE COUNTRY, and that's a really good thing, believe me. Coming out of this album, I was honestly feeling a 3 at best, but after listening to these clips... Yeah, I'll give it a 4. Big thumbs up from me. It's good soul music, and I really can't imagine why anyone would like it unless they have... Y'know, other issues. But let's not get into that either.

Funeral

Arcade Fire

3/5

OK, OK, OK. So, when this album popped up, it finally occurred to me what my problem with Arcade Fire is. Like, beyond the fact that I only knew them as some "Album Of The Year" winners and nothing else. To put it in short, before now, before I decided to partake in this randomizer, I've never been faced with a situation where I had to take them seriously. Before now, honestly, this band existed in my mind solely as a punchline — **the** band a stand-up comedian will bring up when they're making fun of hipsters and their flannel and beards and overpriced artisan coffee. Because of that, I suppose I've been inclined to be a little harsher on them when they don't live up to the "GREATEST ALBUM OF 2010" or "THE ENTIRE 2000'S" hype I've heard so much about. And of that latter hype — y'know, I remember making a big deal in my KID A review about worrying over hype backlash, but honestly, I don't think it's that big of an issue with me. At worst, I might be kinda disappointed; not so much "AUGH, GRRGH, I HATE THIS ALBUM FOR BEING OVER-HYPED." And when it comes to 2000's, I can't think of an album besides KID A more hyped as "THE GREATEST" than this one. Like, literally, it's regularly number two on a lot of those big "best of the decade" critics lists. There is **something** for it to live up to. And yet, recognizing my biases, my preconceptions, and that "hype backlash" isn't really an issue for me... At the end of it all, frankly, I'm just not into this sound. I don't **hate it**; I've given both previous albums 3's, and there's moments across all three Arcade Fire albums I can say I like. But beyond moments and maybe one or two songs — these compositions, these soundscapes, these lyrics, these vocals... I really don't care. Listening to it, I can't imagine hearing it for fun outside of the context of this list. I can't picture myself putting it on as I'm reading or washing dishes or working or playing a video game or writing or making art or, heck, just listening to music for the sake of it. Once I'm past "this thing was on a list of music someone thinks I should hear before I die," it doesn't really have much of a purpose for me. There are so many albums that have come out in the 2000's, and, heck, 2004 alone, that I'd go to before and consider greater than this one. I mean, come on, the SHREK 2 and SPONGEBOB MOVIE soundtracks alone~... Still, ehh, I'll stick with the rule of thirds and give this a 3, too. I can't say it's bad, but it's just really not for me. Like, I don't think I'd hafta be a hipster or a big important music critic to get into this. My tastes just skew too hard elsewhere. I mean, I just brought up the SPONGEBOB MOVIE soundtrack as a 2004 album I'd consider greater and not, like, I'unno, AMERICAN IDIOT. What does **that** tell you? So, yeah — unless there's another Arcade Fire album on this list I don't know about, I guess that's all of them dealt with. They can go back to being just a punchline in my eye. Like, it's kind of unfortunate they didn't do anything to convince me otherwise, but them's the breaks I guess. I'unno, I guess I've just been to better funerals, y'know?

Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables

Dead Kennedys

5/5

One of my absolute, all-time favorite punk albums, full stop. Honestly, it's probably the punkest punk album I love. 'Coz, like, I think about all of the other punk bands who have an album I love — Green Day, the Ramones, The Clash, Bad Religion — and they have a pop sheen to them, to one extent or another. Which, pop isn't a bad word to me, but you compare any of those band's albums to this and it's a massive gulf. With its massive surf rock influence and the elements of horror and humour throughout, and with how damn fast they play some of those songs, there's really not a single punk album I've heard that goes harder. Maybe a Snot album, but I haven't heard one of those in full. And it just does not let up. It's 30 minutes, front-to-back, of all-cylinders-firing killer and not a second of filler. From the big notable songs like "California Über Alles" and "Holiday In Cambodia", down to stuff like "Stealing People's Mail", "I Kill Children", "Drug Me" and "Chemical Warfare", it's all amazing. I don't even need to give any deep, faux-essay reasons why — which I easily could, given how I consider Dead Kennedys near Rage Against The Machine and Chumbawamba in how left they are. You just need to listen to them play — incredible, right? (Many shout outs to the "Viva Las Vegas" cover they end the album with, too, by the way. Even besides my being an Elvis fan, I just love how wild it is. Goodness.) In case you couldn't tell: instant 5 from me. It's one of those albums I honestly could have written a review of months before my group got it 'coz I love it just that much. So, yeah, I'unno what else to say. Go dig this album if you somehow found this review without having done so already. POL POT

808 State

4/5

For me tryna discuss this album, there's two obvious questions I needa ask. First: "What, exactly, **is** acid house?" And second: "**Why** is acid house?" To answer that first question, it turns out it's very simple: house music with basslines from this one specific synthesizer, the Roland TB-303. There's more to it, of course, but that's basically its big defining characteristic. And, like, somehow I expected more? Like, I'unno, I figure if a genre's gonna get its own name, there'd be more going for it than that (again acknowledging that I'm simplifying a lot here). As for the "Why" — really more a "How"... Well, "Da Funk" was always my favorite song on Daft Punk's HOMEWORK, anyway, so no doubt that's why I had as little trouble with this album as I did. Like, I won't say I can't understand why someone would feel like this music would only be good at a rave or when you're on drugs or when you're on drugs and at a rave, but, like, I'unno, sometimes I like a good electronic groove to jive to. This album provides one of those, so, hey, I can't really complain. So... Yeah, I can give this thing a 4. I've got no heavy complaints about it. I mean, I don't listen to HOMEWORK as much as I do DISCOVERY or RANDOM ACCESS MEMORIES, so that's generally more the kind of dance, electronic and house I'm into, but y'know. It was a nice way to spend a bit under 40 minutes. And this was released in '89, too? Goodness.

Garbage

3/5

Mm, I'unno about this one. I was excited to get into this 'coz I really liked "I Think I'm Paranoid", the big single from their next album, but listening to their debut here... It's just not doing it for me, honestly? A bit more of it than I like just kinda flew by me. I've been tryna pin down what it is. Well, I've seen this album labelled as dance-rock... Maybe this is the wrong kind of dance music for me? 'Coz I've loved my fair share across its many different flavors. But here, it can be a little too... "Trip hop" for my tastes? A little chill and trance-like; not the kind of thing that regularly grabs my attention. Really, it doesn't surprise me that my favorite tracks ("Only Happy When It Rains", "Stupid Girl" — of course I gravitate towards the singles) sounded way more rockin' to my ears — an', heck, from what I read, "I Think I'm Paranoid" isn't even dance-rock, so what does **that** tell yah, eh? Frankly, it's those two songs that're pulling this thing up to a 3. It's just not my thing. Like, I was really comin' in here thinkin' I was gonna be the trash man, eatin' up Garbage — and for a couple songs, sure. But on the whole, I'm good.

All Things Must Pass

George Harrison

5/5

Back when I talked about BAND ON THE RUN, I made a point to try and separate it from the Beatles legacy and look at its legacy as one of the greatest albums of the 1970's. As much as I'd like to do the same for this album — and it might be an even greater album, let's be 100 — I feel like it's a lot harder to separate this album from the band the man who made it used to be a part of. Not just because of its proximity in time (I believe this was one of the first Beatles solo albums to come out), but because of where a lot of its material came from. Looking back on The Beatles in 2024, George Harrison comes across as the unfairly sidelined songwriter of the group. Like, sure, he did contribute a **lot** of great stuff, from "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" to "Something", and while his number of contributions aren't as small as Ringo's, they're still kind of dwarfed when put next to the beast that is Lennon-McCartney. Which, yeah, they were amazing songwriters, let's not kid ourselves — but you gotta imagine how insane it would drive someone to have all these songs, and yet only be allowed two on the record at most. Maybe three if you wanna help ghostwrite Ringo's. So, we come to the line about ALL THINGS MUST PASS that I've always heard: that these are the songs George decided to hoard for himself. And, boy — he saved himself quite a few. Like, I wanna address this real quick: the fact that this is, at its core, a double album. (I mean, it's actually a **triple** album, and the first of its kind, but I'll get to that later.) If there aren't the songs to justify the length, the whole thing can come off as pretty egotistical. The whole sort of "All my ideas are so good, I can't afford to cut **any of them**" mentality that'd only get worse when CDs are introduced and record companies don't hafta pay that for a second disc, or even that much more. I mean, heck, even George Martin has been quoted saying that the Beatles' White Album maybe should've been a single disc. So, on that face already, ALL THINGS MUST PASS has an uphill battle for most people. "Did you really hafta drop **all** the songs you had saved **at once**?" Yep. Absolutely. These songs totally justify this being a double album. I mean, y'know how good the two songs George gave to ABBEY ROAD were? Yeah, "Here Comes The Sun" and "Something"? Imagine they're a bit more Allman Brothers-y, and imagine there's two discs worth of them. That's what we're dealing with here. If there's a reason why the "George was an unfairly sidelined songwriter" thought exists, it's this album, 100%. You're tellin' me that any Beatles album could have had **more** of these? Goodness. And there's a lot of songs I could focus on, draw attention to. Throw a dart; you're bound to hit something incredible. But I wanna focus on... Y'know, what's maybe the obvious choice: "My Sweet Lord". Does it plagiarize a Chiffons song? Honestly, I don't even care — for reasons mostly beyond how much I like it, but let's just keep focus on that for now. I'm not a very spiritual or religious person. Not that I don't, won't or can't believe; I just don't feel the need to align myself with any one belief. "My Sweet Lord", then, is the closest I've ever come to complete religious bliss. It's a chorus; a hymn to a higher power that grows bigger and more joyous and, like, really feels like it could go on forever. I've heard it more than any other solo Beatles song. Nothing else compares. I wanna shout out "What Is Life", too. That's my other favorite song on the album. I mean, hey, anything good enough for Weird Al to cover has to be high up on my list. And with just how driving it is, too — goodness. That's not even to mention how nuts "Art Of Dying" goes. Or how pretty "Behind That Locked Door" can be. Or, goodness, that horn line on "Run Of The Mill". Or what a nice tribute to the fans "Apple Scruffs" is. Or how hard "Wah-Wah" plays (as a song dissing Paul, by the way). And it's like that across the board. All this folks-y, Allmans-y rock, played just perfectly by a band including Ringo, Billy Preston, Klaus Voormann, Eric Clapton (anyone else hear the "Layla" riff?)... An', heck, I even gotta give sum' up for noted murderer and producer Phil Spector. I can't say his production doesn't add on to how good this whole thing is, even if I did listen to the 2020 mix that removes a lot of his Spectorisms. Jus'... Wonderful all around. It's incredible I haven't listened to this album as much as I really should have. So, now that we've got the feature presentation out of the way, let's talk a bit about that third disc. Like, yes, as I said, this is a triple album, and the first of its kind. I give it all the credit for that. However, at the same time... Y'know, to me it's like, if this is a triple album, then SONGS IN THE KEY OF LIFE is as well 'coz it happens to come with the A SOMETHING EXTRA EP. In other words, I've never thought of the third disc, titled APPLE JAMS, as anything but an extra little bonus. I mean, the whole disc is just some jams they recorded, and I'd honestly never heard them before today. Like, if I were to complain about the album's length in any way, it'd just be that including this disc seems, y'know, a little excessive ("Out Of The Blue" specifically). It's not even like any of them are all that bad; they're just not entirely necessary to the ALL THINGS MUST PASS experience. Still, I can't give ALL THINGS MUST PASS as a whole less than a 5. Like, maybe if I didn't consider APPLE JAMS a bonus I could maybe bring it down to... I'unno, a 4.5? But I still round it up a 5 regardless. It's just remarkable that on his solo, non-soundtrack debut, Harrison managed to put out **two albums** worth of amazing material, proving to everyone that he deserved to be considered on the same level as Lennon and McCartney. And it says something as well that even with those two later putting out masterworks like PLASTIC ONO BAND, IMAGINE, RAM and BAND ON THE RUN, ALL THINGS MUST PASS still manages to be in good conversation for the best Beatles solo album ever released. Heck, among Beatles albums **period**. I listened to it **three times in a row** today (minus APPLE JAMS the latter two times around) and I never got sick of it once. If that don't tell yah how I feel... Not, hey, bad for the Beatle who'd previously been considered the quiet one, Harrison. Seems like you got the last word after all.

GREY Area

Little Simz

5/5

From the top, I'm inclined to like Little Simz. Oh, and not because SOMETIMES I MIGHT BE INTROVERT was such a highly acclaimed album, bo; I haven't even heard it. No, it's actually 'coz she already has the "Gorillaz feature" seal of approval. I figure, hey, if I like her there, I'm probably bound to dig her on her own shit. Which, I mean, that isn't a **100%** rule (Martina Topley-Bird was on a Gorillaz song and I didn't like MAXINQUAYE at all, even if it hasn't **her** album), but I get the feeling following it will land more hits than misses. And, hey — I'd consider this another hit. Like, as someone who's melody first, this thing has some damn good beats. "Offence", for real? Dang. "101FM", too. I just hadda groove to it in my seat. On that front alone, it gets good marks from me. Then there's Little Simz as a rapper — a British rapper, specifically. Now, sure, there's a lot of points over the album where I thought to myself, "Is this the only tone of voice she's gonna have the whole album? Everything, in this one tone of voice? Goodness." On a lesser album, that sort of thing would've dropped the whole project down a few points — "Try a bit more variety," y'know? "Try being **interesting**." But, I'unno, matched with these beats and the topics I was able to catch... I'unno, it kept me engaged. It all just worked. You back her up with a few stellar features (including, hey, someone else with the Gorillaz seal, Little Dragon), and... Ahh, goodness. It's all so good. (The entire thing's not even 40 minutes, too, so, dang, this thing goes down pretty easy, I think.) So, this album did the best thing it really could have: make me actually wanna go and check out SOMETIMES I MIGHT BE INTROVERT. "If Little Simz is this good here, imagine if **that** lives up the hype!" On the fact of that alone I could give this a 4. But judging it on its own merits — heck, I'll bump it to a 5. Honestly, I really did enjoy it that much. No "grey area" for me. (I mean, is it cheesy to shove in the album title like that as a closing line? I'unno. But I'm tellin' yah: the Gorillaz seal of approval works.)

Gunfighter Ballads And Trail Songs

Marty Robbins

5/5

Y'know, I've liked a lot of the traditional country music my group has gotten, but I'd never been particularly "WOW"ed by any of it. There's a place for it in my heart, but when you put it next to country music from the 90's... Traditional country music just doesn't seem to have as much going on. Like, I'm a sucker for that kind of over-production and high pop-ish energy. So all this spare guitar strumming and close harmony vocals just doesn't hit **as** well for me — unless you're Johnny Cash, but that's the typical exception. So here along comes an album which... Honestly, for the longest time, I'd kind of avoided listening to? Specifically because its opening track, "Big Iron", was such a big meme. Which, that sort of thing isn't unique to this album, by the way; there's a lot of stuff I've been turned off to 'coz I encountered the memes of it first. Look at Scott The Woz, for instance. And it's not even like I'd heard any of the "Big Iron" edits, by the way. I just saw the thumbnails with the album cover all mangled up and I was like, "No thanks." Unsurprisingly, I had nothing to worry about. This isn't just good country; I'd go so far as to call it **classically** good country. The bedrock kind of country music so much afterwards is built on; the kind of country music you think of when you think "traditional country music." And it's all about the story-telling — and I don't know if the stories here are really any more or less interesting than the ones I've heard on other country albums, but whatever the reason, I got pulled into this one way more. And, like, I'm not sure if I can even go into any more detail than that. It's just really good playing and singing, relaying good stories that are easy to follow along with. (And if there's anything **I** need, it's stories that are easy to follow, goodness.) I can give it a 5, easy. Maybe I'll look back and think I'm too generous, but, hey, all the last few traditional country albums my group got could give me were "good beer on the porch songs." I'm happy to get anything with a little more depth to it than that. And, hey, if the "Big Iron" memes helped introduce people to this music, then I can hardly be too mad at it, now can I? (Especially since I never even heard any. Goodness, my occasional inclination to dislike popular things, I swear...)

Licensed To Ill

Beastie Boys

5/5

More often than not, parody and satire can be a hard tightrope to walk. Unless the satire's broad enough or you're incredibly obvious about it being parodic, a lot of people can and will naturally assume you're being completely legit in the views that're being expressed. Like, believe me, there are people who very easily miss the point of the movie STARSHIP TROOPERS. By that same token, however, how different, really, is expressing a view ironically from expressing it sincerely? I mean, to even give it air, no matter what your intention... To reference a Todd In The Shadows video: even hitting your hand with a hammer ironically still hurts. So, should one not be held accountable for things they say, even under the veneer of "satirism?" (Especially if you have someone trying to claim innocence by saying they were being "satirical," although that's not really relevant to this discussion.) 'Coz here's the thing you hafta keep in mind about this album: it's a joke. In large portions of the album, the Beastie Boys are playing caricatures of stupid, dumb "PARTY HARD" frat boys who don't respect women. Like, in its conception, "(You Gotta) Fight For Your Right (To Party!)" was meant as a parody of meathead "attitude" rock songs like "Smokin' In The Boys Room". You are absolutely not meant to take this as a serious portrayal of who they are as people. And yet, of course, people did. A large part of their audience became the dumb frat boys they were trying to take the piss out of, and as a result they swerved hard away from this sound on their follow-up, PAUL'S BOUTIQUE. And, well, I can't exactly blame the general public for believing the Boys were being genuine about all of this; this **was** their debut, after all. What other information did they have to go off of? Just as well, I wouldn't blame someone these days, aware of the satire or not, for criticising this album for a lot of its dated, sexist lyricism. I know that's not who the Boys are, but even despite that, "Girls" still might not've played that well back in the 80's. And if it didn't back then, then in 2024 — woof. All the same, however, LICENSED TO ILL is still considered one of the greatest debuts in hip hop history. Given what I just said, I'm sure you could have a long, analytical look into why that is. For me, though, I actually wanna briefly bring it back to STARSHIP TROOPERS for a second. The film is a satire of fascism, and, in my mind, not exactly a subtle one in parts — you look at Neil Patrick Harris dressed as a Nazi and tell me otherwise, eh? However, there are some people who see the film as just a fun, dumb sci-fi action movie, and, frankly, honestly? That's completely valid. 'Coz it is fun, even if I recognize what it's actually supposed to be saying. I don't think someone's dumb if they don't really see anything more in the film than that. A similar sorta thing goes for LICENSED TO ILL. At its core, beneath its satirizing of frat boys, it's just a fun album. The Boys would get better about their flows, hand-offs and lyricism on their later albums, but they still have the energy here where it's an entertaining time to hear them do their thing. Like, there's a reason why songs like "(You Gotta) Fight For Your Right (To Party!)" have endured despite the Boys' own disowning and distancing from it. It rocks, pure and simple And, like, I wanna take a second here to mention "No Sleep 'Til Brooklyn" all on its own. To this day, it's still maybe one of the all-time greatest rap rock songs of all time. It kicks so much ass, and I love it every time I hear it. On this listen-through alone, I went out of my way to hear it twice before moving on. And can you believe the Boys didn't like the Kerry King guitar solo on it? Goodness, that's an amazingly wild solo. I feel like there's a lot of things in general you could rightfully criticize Rick Rubin for, but choices like that on this album aren't one of them. So, yeah, I really like LICENSED TO ILL. I don't know if I say I **love** it, 'coz I do prefer the sampledelia of PAUL'S BOUTIQUE, and there can be a bit of that "beats too simple for its own good" problem that Run-D.M.C.'s RAISING HELL ran into... But on the whole, I think it deserves the reputation it has, for good and for ill. I can give it... Aw, heck. I'll give it a 5. 'Coz, absolutely, it's worth taking them to task for a few of the worse lyrics on here, but I don't think it's anything you should be thinking too hard about, ultimately. Just slap on "No Sleep 'Til Brooklyn", and you'll be having nothing but a good time. (Also, kinda weird I kept bringing up STARSHIP TROOPERS in this review? As if I didn't have a second example of satire to bring up. I'unno, jus' the contrast in their targets is all — y'know?)

Court And Spark

Joni Mitchell

3/5

I... Can't think of anything to say about this, weirdly. 'Coz it's not in a way like, "Oh, I like this so much that the words just aren't coming to me." No, it's honestly more like... I'm just kind of apathetic to this album? I don't think the instrumentals are bad, I'm sure the lyrics are fine, and I don't even necessarily dislike Joni Mitchell's voice. It was just so easy for me to tune this out while I was listening to it, and then when I started writing the review I hardly remembered anything about it. Even listening to short clips after the fact I couldn't think of anything to say. Jus'... I'unno. I really tried to write a proper review, with a through-line and actually talking about the music, but I've really got nothing. I guess I can give this thing a 3 'cuz this a, y'know, fine enough listen while it was on — and "Raised By Robbery" has a neat instrumental, actually — but yeah. Sorry. Hopefully the one my group gets tomorrow will inspire me to say more.

I Against I

Bad Brains

5/5

This album kicks ass. I mean, you're tellin' me, not only does this album give me some of that hardcore sound I like, but also that heavy metal sound I love? With some of the hardest, rippinest guitar I've heard from one of these 1001 albums in a hot second? (Also, apparently "rippinest" is a word according to Google Docs.) Sign me up; sign me all the way the hell up. And it really doesn't get any more complicated for me than that. I could say all the words I want and pad this out, but, yeah, the long n' short of it is this album rocks and is awesome. I'll tell you, too: even though I wouldn't point to necessarily anything here as the definition of "hardcore punk" (I still have "Deadfall" by Snot for that), I can't recall any album I've heard before that's made me wanna check out the genre as much as this has. I mean, if this is the kind of stuff they're putting out when they're branching out to touch on other genres, I can only wonder what they sound like when they're pure hardcore. For what this album's worth, though, in case you couldn't already tell: it's a hard 5. I've said I'll put a lot of albums on again, but legitimately, I will probably spin this thing again whenever I'm in the mood for this kind of punk and shreddery. Again: this album just kicks ass. And, honestly, most of the time, that's kind of all I want. (Also, between "Deadfall" and one of the songs on this album ("Re-Ignition"), I wanna play GUITAR HERO: WARRIORS OF ROCK again. Goodness, I gotta go dig the ol' hunk of plastic out...)

Power In Numbers

Jurassic 5

5/5

I'd always figured I was gonna like Jurassic 5. Even back when my sole experience with the group was Charli 2na playing Neil deGrasse Tyson in an Epic Rap Battle, from his voice alone I figured I'd be down for them. What ended up surprising me, then, was exactly **how much** I liked this album and Jurassic 5. Let's get out of the way the thing I always notice first: the beats. Phenomenal, front to back. All the props in the world to Cut Chemist and DJ Nu-Mark. These smooth n' fresh jazz rap beats, next to these hard knockin' boom bap beats — and me being me, I feel like I might tend towards the latter more, but either way both are great. The flows these rappers are doin' on top of these beats, too — goodness. I can't remember the last time I heard beats and flows work together this well. And seriously, what a voice on 2na, I swear. Then there's the lyrics. Normally, I'd give this album high marks on the beats alone with paying too much mind to the lyrics — which, to be 100, isn't really my choice; as I've said in many other reviews, I'm melody-first and find it hard to pay attention to lyrics on initial listens. That's just how I am. But with this album, for whatever reason, either because I was trying a new thing where I played TETRIS DX at the same time, or because they're honestly that good... I found myself really interested in the lyrics here. To the point where I noticed a lot of the subjects and stories, where usually I'd only be able to grab one or two lines at best. And from that, I can tell that this is the kind of album that has a lot of serious things to say, but while also keeping it a fun and enjoyable listen. Seriously, you could throw this stuff on just to jam to and you wouldn't hafta worry about the whole "Y'all don't wanna hear, you just wanna dance" effect. And I didn't even see the twist coming on "Remember His Name", goodness. Great flow, great beats, great lyrics... Yeah, that sounds like a 5 to me. I feel like this is the most positive I've been in a long time towards a rap album I haven't heard before. Which, y'know, nothing against none of those, but this album really is just that fun and engaging. Heck, I might even hafta go check out the rest of their discography at some point. Not bad for a group I'm only aware of thanks to Epic Rap Battles — where, no joke, I originally thought Tay Zonday was playing Neil deGrasse Tyson. That's what a lack of knowledge of Jurassic 5 will lead you to, I guess.

The White Album

Beatles

5/5

Look. Let me be extremely blunt here: THE WHITE ALBUM is a mess. That extends all the way from the state of the band at the time, to the album's conception, to its recording, to the final product itself being a double album. As I expressed over in my review of ALL THINGS MUST PASS: if they don't have the tunes to back them up, double albums, more often than not, can run the risk of coming off as the ultimate ego trip from an artist, with the idea that everything they made is so good they can't afford to cut even one. I said in that same review, too, that even George Martin had famously said years later that he thought this should've just been a single album. And from the onset, ALL THINGS MUST PASS seems to have one clear advantage over THE WHITE ALBUM: cohesion. ALL THINGS MUST PASS was constructed from all the songs Harrison had hoarded for himself while the band was still together. THE WHITE ALBUM, on the other hand, is considerably more patchwork; stitched together from songs from four different songwriters all going in different directions and trying different things. All THINGS MUST PASS roots itself in folksy rock, while nearly everything seems to have a seat at the table in THE WHITE ALBUM. Hard rock and ballads; proto-metal and baroque pop; dirty blues and clean orchestration; goofy songs and serious songs; happy, upbeat tunes and sad, downbeat ones; sappy sincerity and bitter irony... Heck, there's even eight straight minutes of musique concrete courtesy of the infamous "Revolution 9". It can almost play like an unorganized playlist of various artists, the way you're thrown from genre to genre and soundscape to soundscape. It's not surprising that, inspired by Martin's comment, nearly everyone has tried to reorganize this beast into a more cohesive single disc. Of course, all of that is what's so beautiful about this album. 'Coz let's not act like patchwork can't be art in and of itself; that just because something's stitched together from various sources makes it any less art than a pristine painting. I mean, you just need to look at the poster included with the album: a hodgepodge scrapbook of random photos, drawings, film strips and whatever else could be added. That poster, pretty much, is this album. And I hafta commend the band, too, for just **going for it**. They assembled all these desperate ideas and slapped them together under a pure white cover and no name besides their own, pretty much saying, "This is us, separate and together, for better and for worse, the good and the bad — make whatever you want out of it." And people have. Like, are you aware of the Instagram account "We Buy White Albums"? It's an account whose whole purpose is to, well, buy other people's copies of THE WHITE ALBUM and display them for the world. You can see, people have taken that blank, white cover as a canvas. For their own art, for notes to themselves or others... Even the smallest scuffs make each copy unique, reflecting everyone's experiences with it. 'Cuz, of course, no one's going to like every song on it — "Revolution 9" makes sure of it. And, sure, some people have used THE WHITE ALBUM for, well, let's just "less than savory" things — hello, Charlie. But whatever songs you end up latching onto; whatever experiences you have with it; whatever you make of it... That's all unique to you. Even people's own single album constructions, even if track listings line up exactly, the exact reasons will always be different. And that's a beautiful thing to consider. It helps, too, that the music is generally amazing. Like, put aside any essay pontificating about "what this album means to me"; it's The Beatles in my favorite stretch of their career. Even if it's that weird transition point from SGT. PEPPER'S to ABBEY ROAD, and even if they all kind of don't like each other too much, the songs themselves are still phenomenal. I could just list off a bunch of my favorites, and even without explanation, you could still get it. From the 1-2 whombo of an opener "Back In The U.S.S.R." and "Dear Prudence"; to the wild ride through meta references "Glass Onion"; to two of George's best songs ever, "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" and "Long, Long, Long"; to the hard n' heavy rockers like "Helter Skelter" and "Yer Blues"; the smaller moments like "I Will", "Julia" and "Blackbird"... And others I can't think of descriptions for: "Sexy Sadie", "Happiness Is A Warm Gun", "Revolution 1", "Everybody's Got Something Except Me And My Monkey", "Honey Pie", "Why Don't We Do It In The Road?", "Rocky Raccoon", "Mother Nature's Son", "Birthday", "Cry Baby Cry"... Even the much maligned "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da". Heck, I can't even picture this album without "Revolution 9", the ultimate mingle-mangle (check my **thesaurus use**). It just wouldn't be the same if it wasn't there. So... Yeah, that's about the size of it, I think. To be honest, I haven't come back to THE WHITE ALBUM as a whole very often. This listen-through is maybe only the second time recently I've travelled all the way through it, and the first time was part of a general Beatles marathon. But: "as a whole." As I'm sure I've made clear, I don't find the whole to be the point. Whatever you get out of it, **that's** what's important. Which, sure, maybe that kind of take isn't unique to this album — I think I also came to about the same conclusion with 69 LOVE SONGS, and I pretty much feel that way about the SMiLE sessions — but this is the album where I feel the strongest about it. Oh, and if you couldn't tell — it's a 5. So, if you've come across this review and somehow haven't heard this album already, go ahead. Go find your own WHITE ALBUM, whatever it may be. And if you don't want to, or if you just don't like it, well, to quote Paul McCartney: "It's great, it sold, it's the bloody Beatles WHITE ALBUM. Shut up!"

Tubular Bells

Mike Oldfield

4/5

For this album, I tried something a little different. When I went to listen to it, I turned off all the lights in my bedroom, laid on my bed, closed my eyes and — in that near sensory-deprivation — let the music take me wherever it may. To that end, I ended up imagining off the top of my head some kind of plot about a cult who worshipped the tubular bell object on the cover, someone who escaped that cult, and the summoning of a fallen angel associated with that object. Honestly, I dipped in and out of it a bit, so I can't give you a full plot summary... And you're not here for that anyway. Speaking on the music itself, well, put me in the camp of people who're impressed by the fact that this was all performed by one person. A 19-year old, no less. I mean, this is a complex, nearly 50 minute suite that only gets broken up because of the limitations of vinyl. In fact, that's part of why I listened to this album — this piece, really — the way I did; considering it more in the realm of classical music than anything else. And I'm not even someone who listens to much classical music, if any. Through that lens, though, I think it's very good. I'll say, I'm not nutso about it — the New Age-iness about it is probably why I dipped in and out of my imaginary movie every now and then. Y'can't imagine to something if you're not focused on it, y'know? Plus, y'know, extended instrumental music like this just normally isn't my thing. Blame my undiagnosed ADHD, which is the other, larger reason why I listened to this piece the way I did. Honestly, though, if I were to have this on as background music, soundtracking whatever I'm doing instead of dictating my imagination... I'd be perfectly happy with it, yeah. It's tryna focus on the intricacies that can be a problem for me, y'know? Which is kind of strange given how much of a big deal I've made over the fact that I'm "melody first," though that usually applies to shorter songs. Under normal circumstances, I'm probably more likely to concentrate on "Nuclear" than this piece. All that said, however, I'm perfectly happy to give this thing a 4. It's not its fault I have trouble with longform composition like it, and from what I did pick up, I liked what I heard. And, hey, it did allow me to pull an extended FANTASIA segment completely out of thin air, so for prompting that alone... Worse music wouldn't have, is what I'm thinking. Not gonna lay on my back like that for any other albums going forward, though. Gwoof, you should feel how I've felt typing this up. My neck and the taste in my mouth mostly... So odd. Though I suppose I always could've felt worse. Eh, Regan?

Two Dancers

Wild Beasts

3/5

Look around reviews of this album on this website, everyone harps on the one singer's voice. Everyone, whether they liked the album or not — and most of them didn't — feels the need to bring it up. Shall I, too, find myself throwing my weight into that thoroughly-covered topic? Yeah, sure, why not? 'Coz tryna talk about this thing on an instrumental level... Eh, it's fine. Perfectly fine. If this album were completely stripped of its vocals, it would have been an alright piece of background music. Which, of course, I don't mean as an insult; wallpaper can be as much art as anything in a frame. Besides, it can be better than staring at an empty wall, huh? On a vocal level, though, I actually have something to add. See, I've actually heard these vocals before. 'Coz it's Sparks. That's what these vocals are. They're a shot at how Russell Mael of Sparks sings. And believe me, I love Sparks. Watch me gush about KIMOMO MY HOUSE whenever my group gets it. As well, there's NO.1 IN HEAVEN and LIL' BEETHOVEN and a whole variety of scattered songs. I'm actually incredibly used to these kinds of vocals, and I kinda like them. That said, though, they **do** feel kind of off here. Not in a way where I actively dislike them, but, like... OK, hear me out. One of the things that makes the music of Sparks so great is how they apply a layer of theatrical unseriousness to nearly everything they do. Like, of course they take the compositions seriously, but there's always this cheeky edge present — a surprisingly British one for an American band. That's what helps make their music so fun, whether they're doing glam, electronic dance or minimalist chamber music, and Russell's singing and androgynous falsetto plays a huge factor in that. PLus, it's just a really good falsetto, so that helps. Listen to anything from KIMONO MY HOUSE, or at least just "This Town Ain't Big Enough For The Both Of Us". You'll get what I mean. Versus the falsetto on this album, where I never got the sense that this music was supposed to be cheeky or fun. No, I'm supposed to take this completely seriously. And even as much as my experience from Sparks keeps me from hating this kind of singing... At the same time, it kinda makes me wish I was listening to Sparks. Y'know, there's maybe a bit too much pretension towards making something **IMPORTANT AND MEANINGFUL** here, versus anything Sparks has ever written. Like I'm supposed to look back on this as a touchstone in my life or something, when all it'll really be is "that album I delayed watched THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS a bit to listen to 'coz I was late hearing it." And then the other guy, the one who doesn't do a falsetto, starts singing and there's nothing to say 'coz... He's just a guy? Goodness, at least the other one lets me babble on about Sparks like it's actually **that** relevant (I mean, I think it is, anyway). (And this is another album that, from what I hear, it's a good thing I don't focus too hard on the lyrics. Goodness.) So... Yeah. For "wild beasts," they sound pretty damn tame. It's a big fat 3. It's fine straight down the line, and not too terribly interesting to me for that. I mean, goodness, if I end up spending a good chunk of my review talking about Sparks instead, there's gotta be something at least a **little** wrong. Speaking of Sparks, by the way, I hope my group gets KIMONO MY HOUSE soon. What an album, I swear...

Deja Vu

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young

4/5

It's weird. When I first heard this album, what, three or four years ago, I really loved it. Jus', goodness, the harmonies. I'd heard tell of them, and they lived up to every expectation; they were beautiful. I can't even remember anything about it other than that — which, hey, that alone was enough to get me excited to hear this again. So, yeah, it's three or four years later now. Fittingly, I was expecting to have a sense of déjà vu in regards to my reaction. And yet... I don't know. I'll say that, absolutely, this is a great album. These four men are great writers and composers. They play great, and their singing, especially their harmonizing, can be incredible. (And, yes, I don't have a problem with Young's. It's different, but it's fine.) I do believe it deserves the acclaim and accolades it gets. However — and maybe it was because the way I was trying to listen to it (on my back with my eyes closed) didn't really work as well as it did the last time I tried it — I wasn't exactly as wowed by it as I was before? I can't really put my finger on it, or what could've changed since I first heard it... Or if it just caught me on a bad day, who can say? Whatever the case, I kind of found it a little bit tricky to really engage with the album like I wanted to. The best I can figure is that, well, I've heard a lot of new music in the interim. I've especially heard a lot this year, thanks to this Randomizer. With my expanded palette, maybe this album just doesn't sound as special to me as it used to? There were certainly a lot of spots where, despite my praise for their harmonies — and I do still believe it, despite what I'm about to say — I ended up thinking, "These just sound like 70's harmonies. Put on another random record from the decade, I'm sure I'll hear something else like it." I didn't think that often enough to find it a problem, but I think it's still relevant to how I engaged I ended up being. And I'll tell you, I really didn't expect there to be as many rockers as there are. Even if there's only two, it sure goes against my perception that this group only does varities of acoustic folk. Like, goodness, this arrangement of "Woodstock"? And what do you mean this arrangement was originally meant for Jimi Hendrix? And that they actually pull it off? Crazy, man. And here I thought they were just "Carry On" ("Suite: Judy Blue Eyes" without Young). Big points for rocking, I suppose. But on whole... I wanna say, if I thought I would've had the time to write this review tomorrow, I absolutely would have. It's entirely likely that tomorrow I would've been in a better state of mind to focus on and actually talk about this album. And certainly, I'll tell you, if I was asked to rate and review this album all that time ago, I would've given this a 5 straight. However, I can only talk about what I got out of this album today, and today... Eh, it's still a 4. I don't believe it really deserves to go any lower. But, yeah, I'unno. I'm probably gonna look back on this review and regret writing it the way I did, but, hey, that's just how it breaks down sometimes. At least Weird Al's pastiche "Mission Statement" remains one of my top three originals from him. Great stuff if you haven't heard it before, goodness.

The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn

Pink Floyd

5/5

I wanna be honest about me and the early years of Pink Floyd. 'Coz, look, I have nothing but respect for Syd Barrett. Being aware of his story and the impact even his absence would have on the band, it's impossible not to. I mean, he inspired over half minutes of my favorite Pink Floyd album, WISH YOU WERE HERE. With how much the band clearly respected him, why wouldn't I? Not to mention, this is the only Pink Floyd album he'd have direct influence on. On the following album he'd only have two songs, and after that, well... You'd only have a harder time tryna **not** talk about Syd Barrett if you were reviewing his solo album THE MADCAP LAUGHS. So, coming into this album, I felt like talking about Syd was unavoidable, and not something I wanted to take lightly. That's part of why I've honestly had a bit of trouble tryna write this review; it's making sure I've been taking him as seriously as I feel he should be taken. But here's the other part of that trouble, and honestly kind of a bigger one. When it comes to me and Pink Floyd, as much as they're one of my favorite bands, I hardly pay much mind to their early years. When it comes to stuff before THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON, there's MEDDLE and sometimes ATOM HEART MOTHER and that's about it. Beyond that, I usually experience this era of Pink Floyd through whatever ends up on compilation albums — and that's typically just "See Emily Play". As a result, I don't really have much of a connection to this album; not in the same way I do with something like WISH YOU WERE HERE. Frankly, I don't tend to think about this album too much outside of it being "their only true psychedelic rock record." It's just not where my tastes lie. Which isn't to say I don't like this album — and I'll get to **finally** talking about the dang music on this thing in a second — but, y'know, you understand why I've been struggling with this review, right? I'm the kinda person who wants to essay it up about albums and discuss the context surrounding them. I wanna discuss Syd with the importance I feel he deserves, 'coz Syd is the single most important context here. I mean, we wouldn't even have Pink Floyd if it wasn't for him. It's just hard to talk about him the way I'd want to when I don't really have much attachment to the big album he was involved in. So, yeah. That's what I had to reconcile with before I even thought I could talk about the music. Essentially, all of that was my preemptive apology for not being able to do the good job I wanted to do. (And in fact, lemme apologize in advance for my MADCAP LAUGHS review. If **this** was a hard one, then hoo boy...) But, some 500 words in, let's finally get down to what we're actually here for: the music. Taken in 2024, how does it hold up? Well, you're never gonna be able to mistake it for another decade, that's for sure. This is 60's psychedelic rock through and through, from the soundscapes down to that sweet 60's panning — hell yeah, drums entirely in my left ear! Although, hey, this **is** 1967, so it's not as bad as it could be on other, earlier records. Besides, they do some neat stuff with the panning over on "Interstellar Overdrive". And in regards to 60's psych rock, hey, this is maybe — no, probably — no, actually some of the best and most unique I've ever heard. Of every psych album this Randomizer has had me hear, and it's had me hear a **lot**, I can't think of another that sounds like this. Maybe in the future there'll be something (there **are** a **lot** left), but I know I'll compare them first to this. I also just can't think of psych albums with topics like these. Songs about scarecrows and gnomes, next to one that just directly reads from the I CHING... And then there's whatever "Bike" is about. It's a ride in any case, with how it randomly shifts tempos every verse. This feels like one of those albums where if you wanted to give it a deep reading in light of what happened, you maybe could. None of this is "Jugband Blues" to my ears, though; this album is just legitimately that innocent. I even feel like I could go so far as to call its innocence childlike. Those are just the vibes I get from this thing. And, really, I do appreciate that this album can get really "underground weird" in spots. Of course you got the poppier stuff (and the original American release just straight-up included "See Emily Play"), but then you have what I'm pretty sure is the album's centerpiece, "Interstellar Overdrive". Now this is a song that's not concerned at all with appealing to the masses. All it wants to be, and what it successeeds handily in being, is a complete and total freak-out. It's one of those songs you'd swear you'd hafta be on LSD to enjoy, but take it from someone who would never take substances: it's still damn good when you're sober. In fact, I tell you, when I was younger I probably would've disliked this song for being as long and strange as it is, but these days, I really dig it. Seriously, I just love that part where it's made to sound like the band is rapidly spinning around you; it's great. I'm not even sure if I have any complaints about this album. At most, there's just the fact that, like I said, psych rock just typically isn't my taste. I could go long into why that is, but just to say, I know I'd listen to "Time", "Wish You Were Here" or "Comfortably Numb". And of course, that's not even the fault of this album. So... Yeah, I think I've talked myself into a 5 here. It's never what I'd spring to first — and, honestly, I wouldn't recommend anyone who wants to get into Pink Floyd should start here — but it's hard to deny it as a masterpiece of psych rock. Syd Barrett really did know to make this stuff, and I can only imagine what Pink Floyd could've sounded like if he'd been able to have more direct influence over the rest of their discography. Of course, the cruel truth is that if Syd had managed to stick around, we wouldn't have gotten some of the band's greatest works: DARK SIDE, ANIMALS, THE WALL... We wouldn't have even gotten WISH YOU WERE HERE. Or at least, we might not have gotten them in the way we got them in this timeline. We can only speculate. But me, I'd rather just appreciate what Syd managed to give us. In the grand scheme of Floyd's career, it wasn't much... But dang, they just wouldn't be the same without it. Bless you, Syd. And I hope I can talk about you good again whenever THE MADCAP LAUGHS comes around. I mean, jeez, with what happened around that one — again, if I thought talking about **this one** was hard... Goodness.

Selling England By The Pound

Genesis

5/5

Well, consider me a fan of this era of Genesis. Seriously, it's incredible I've never listened to this stuff before. I mean, I've always been aware that it's been pretty damn quality, but, for some reason, prior to today I've only ever listened to one of their songs, "Land Of Confusion". Which, hey, that's not a bad one song to be stuck on; it wasn't a world conquering single for nothing. But actually diving into something from Gabriel's tenure in the band — and not even one of the more well-known ones, at that... Oh, wow. Wow. Woooow. This is amazing. Simply amazing. I'm struggling to put a word to exactly how this sounds to me, but goodness me, I love how it sounds. This kind of, y'know, vibe and tone. I'm comparing this to some of the other 70's prog bands I've heard, like King Crimson and Yes, and unlike critics' comparisons at the time, I'm actually **favoring** Genesis. And don't get me wrong, of course; Yes is great, and I've really liked what I heard from King Crimson. Genesis, though... This sound that they got just really appeals to me. I think the best I can describe it is that it's the most "uplifting 70's rock" prog I've ever heard. Seriously, I can't even begin to describe how this scratches an itch I didn't even know I had. As soon as possible, I'm really gonna hafta check out some of the other more well-known Genesis albums, like FOXTROT and THE LAMB LIES DOWN ON BROADWAY, goodness. And... Yeah, on an initial listen, tryna describe my initial reaction, that's really all I hafta say. From one album alone, Genesis might've already become my second favorite prog rock band, only beaten out by how much Pink Floyd is truly a part of me. It's a hard 5 from me, no question about it. It's a new benchmark for judging prog albums I haven't heard before. So, y'know, good luck tryna match up... I'unno. CRIME OF THE CENTURY? Do ELP have an album here? Yeah, they probably wouldn't stand up too well.

After The Gold Rush

Neil Young

5/5

Boy, the Randomizer could barely wait, huh? It was only just a few days when my group got DÉJÀ VU, the seminal and (to put it mildly) commercially successful album by Crosby, Stills, Nash & sometimes Young. Seriously, that thing sold damn **numbers**. From what I've read, to this day it's still the highest selling album of any of the individual member's careers. Which, I mean, hey, from what I've heard about C, S and N, that makes sense. But Y? I coulda sworn Y would've had at least one more popular, given his levels of acclaim. Speaking of Y, album sales and acclaim, DÉJÀ VU was such a hit record, that when each member released a solo album afterwards, they all enjoyed increased success just by proximity and association. And of course, none of them were bigger than good ol' Neil Young's. So, yeah, only three days later my group gets to consider Neil Young's follow-up to the biggest album of his career — and I'm also pretty sure this is his third biggest overall behind HARVEST, although for all I know AMERICAN DREAM could actually be number three. It's not about the sales numbers, anyway; it's about the music. So how does that stand up to me? Honestly, I think it's very lovely. Instrumentally, I mean — putting aside the few songs that rock too much. It's the kind of album where I'm sure if I actually registered the lyrics I'd realize it's too serious or too much of a downer to be considered "lovely," but since I don't normally perceive most lyrics a first go around, and since a first listen is what I nearly always go off of... Yeah, this is just lovely instrumentation. Very pretty stuff. I wanna lean back in my chair and just smile. It's really times like these that I'm glad I'm not bothered by Young's voice. Like, believe me, I can absolutely get it. Young has one of the more... Y'know, unique voices in popular/critically acclaimed music. Like a... High warble with a little bit of frog. But I've never found it annoying. I absolutely know what that sounds like to my ears, and Young's just ain't it. It's — it can be amusing, y'know? One of those voices that can be fun to imitate, though not to the same extent as someone like, say, Dylan's. And, like, if he had a more generic folk singer voice, I don't think this music would land like it does. Shout-outs to "Southern Man", too, for being the other song that pissed Lynyrd Skynyrd off enough to write "Sweet Home Alabama". I like all of these songs, for the record, but it's just funny to me that one of Skynyrd's biggest hits ever is an angry response to Neil Young — and a bad one, I'm sure, if you actually take the time to look at its lyrics. Lucky for them, I haven't yet, so like Neil's voice, it don't bother me at all — which is how they feel about Watergate, funny enough. So, yeah, that's off-topic. Lemme pull it back to the point: honestly, I'm feelin' a... 5 on this? Yeah, a 5. There's a small part of me that feels like I've been too generous lately with the 5's, but honestly, I did like this instrumentation enough to justify that. Plus, hey, I'm sure I'll like the lyrics once I'm actually able to take them in, so I may as well give it that as well. Pretty good for the **fourth** Neil Young album my group has gotten, I'd say. Looks like I'm still living up to my RUST NEVER SLEEPS review: "Well, I hope I'm more into any of the other six Neil Young albums on this list."

Slippery When Wet

Bon Jovi

5/5

Look, I get why hair metal gets a bad rap. Or at least, I can imagine the general perception of hair metal. To a lot of people, not just headbangers and metal purists, it can be a joke to even call these groups "metal" in the first place. Bands like Poison are a lot closer to 'NSYNC than they are to something like Metallica. I mean, you listen to "Unskinny Bop" — you call that a "metal" riff? It's not even heavy! And, y'know, they got all these upbeat "nuthin' but a good time" drinkin' n' partyin' fun times songs about girls, girls, girls... And it's like, unless you're Guns N' Roses, there's rarely any danger or edge to this kinda music. You could play this stuff to your grandma, and at most she might ask about how much hairspray they inhale. It's never been a very respected genre, in short. Sure, the Sunset Strip might've brought in the big bucks, but they were always gonna be a punchline next to acts like Venom and Slayer. And as much as I can understand that, frankly, I don't care. To me, hair metal was never about how real or heavy or dangerous they are — it's just fun music. That's all I ask from them, so I really can't complain, can I? I mean, goodness, I'm the kinda person who unironically enjoys the ROCK OF AGES movie soundtrack, 'coz I enjoy the genre (and GLEE-style theater kid Broadway covers, I guess) that much. (And, y'know, in light of what I said above, it's funny that the movie ROCK OF AGES wants to act like ending up in a pop boy band is such a terrible fate — worse than a stripper! — but that's completely off-topic...) One of the bands covered in the show and on the soundtrack is — hey, hey, I get to tie back in with the review topic: Bon Jovi! Which... Actually, it's funny. Despite my pre-amble, I don't... Entirely consider Bon Jovi to be hair metal? No, honestly, I've kind of always slotted them in more alongside arena rock. Journey and all that. Which is another genre widely derided, labelled "corporate rock..." And, y'know, I don't care about that perception either. Look, lemme jus' cut to the chase: I love this album. A lot. Wall to wall, it's fun, upbeat, and poppy. The chorus of "You Give Love A Bad Name"? So much fun to sing and shout along to. The whole vibe of "Wanted Dead Or Alive"? So badass. The talkbox riff on "Livin' On A Prayer"? Iconic, and also a blast to try and imitate. And that's not even bringing up the **key change**. Abrupt? Oh, for sure; it comes straight damn outta nowhere. But at the same time, it's **amazing**. The way Jon goes for that "WOOOOAAAH-OOOOOAH!!!!!" is... Like, gosh, it's cheesy in the greatest possible way. I mean, there's a damn good reason these songs have stuck around for as long as they have; they're straight-up classics, full stop. It's impossible to not wanna crank these up as loud as you can. But those are just the singles. They're monsters, in and out of the context of the album. How do the rest of the songs hold up? OK, so this might sound like a back-handed compliment, but I mean this in the nicest, most-positive way possible: they're good enough that they don't bring the rest of the album down.'Cuz of course, they were always gonna be "lows" in comparison, but that's just because the album's hits tower so highly in general. These deeper cuts are still a lot of fun on their own, and keep the energy up. I can't imagine any song other than "Let It Rock" kicking things off. "Social Disease" has, y'know, **an opening**, but damn if I don't dig those horns. "Without Love" and **especially** "Never Say Goodbye" are as good of hair ballads as you can get. And "Wild In The Street" — now **that's** the best non-single on the album, honestly. Burner of an album closer. Honestly, in regards to these songs, I feel like the worst thing I can say about this album is that it's front-loaded. All of the singles, the best songs on the album, are on the first side. I'll stand by the deeper cuts, of course, but I can't blame people for never playing side two. (Also, "I'd Die For You" is probably the weakest song here, but I can give it a pass.) All n' all and all around, I think from my tone you've already assumed that this album is a 5. It's just a blast, front to back. Any complaints I have, they're outweighed tenfold by how much I enjoy listening to this. I mean, that's just hair metal for you, as long as you're not thinking too hard about it. This was an incredibly fun one to get on Christmas Eve, and I can only hope the one my group gets tomorrow can match up. (And seriously — that boy band parody is actually the best song from the ROCK OF AGES movie? Seriously, it rules.)

A Christmas Gift For You From Phil Spector

Various Artists

5/5

As I'm writing this, Christmas is pretty much over. In two-and-a-half hours, it'll be Boxing Day and 364 days 'til the most wonderful time of the year comes around again. So, I guess this can be taken as my farewell to the season. And, y'know, Christmas music gets a lot of flack — rightfully so, in most cases. After all, it's either yet another cover of the same handful of songs that've existed as far back as the 1930's (keeping the boomer's Christmas memory alive and well!) or it's some tossed off piece of whatever, whether it's attempting to become the next Christmas standard or not. Yet, despite my awareness of that fact... I mean, I do genuinely love the season, even if these days I generally end up getting more excited for Halloween. So, hey, why not get ready for the season by listening to a small selection of the abundance of Christmas music there is? It just doesn't surprise me too much that what I end up listening to is either old classics like Elvis's Christmas album or extreme novelties like Richard Cheese's SILENT NIGHTCLUB. And if A CHRISTMAS GIFT FOR YOU FROM PHIL SPECTOR isn't part of that line-up... Well, believe it or not, it has nothing to do with the fact that I refer to him as a murderer first and a producer second. Like, don't get me wrong, he deserves all the shit he got and more, but... I'unno. Maybe it's just because Phil Spector's brand of "Wall Of Sound" mono mixes are just way before my time, but it's not like I can't listen to "Be My Baby" without thinking "OH, HE'S A MURDERER." Not in the same way there's such a vile vibe for me coming off, say, I'unno, the shit Kanye West produces these days. Really, the only reason why A CHRISTMAS GIFT FOR YOU isn't in my Christmas album rotation is just because... I guess I figure I have enough? I already have THE BEACH BOYS' CHRISTMAS ALBUM in there, and that's essentially Brian's attempt to do this album for himself, so it'd maybe be a little redundant to have both. Let me be fair, though — at least as fair as we can be to a man who died in prison for murder. How does it actually sound? Should I be giving it more of a chance in my rotation? My immediate conclusion, even from track one, is that I can understand why this would be the only Christmas album someone would listen to. This is classically Christmas; the kind of overproduced Christmas music all other overproduced Christmas music compares itself to. It's fun, lush, grand and **huge**, despite it being in mono. Only the original originals can really beat this out in being the ur-sound of Christmas. 'Coz, look, Phil Spector as a person sucks to hell and back; no one's gonna argue that. And, sure, not every production decision he made was... Y'know, **great**; LET IT BE... NAKED and the recent remix of ALL THINGS MUST PASS exist for a reason. But the man could overproduce like no one else. There's a reason why Brian Wilson made such attempts to be like him, and why a lot of the songs Spector produced are among the greatest of all time. Goodness, just "Be My Baby" alone would be enough. And as much as I wanna keep "yeah, but"-ing myself and covering my ass with the "he's a murderer first" thing, that's just the truth. Sometimes the shittiest of people are just that good at what they do. And Spector is just that good. I do suspect that at the very least we should be giving just as much credit, if not maybe a little more, to all of the people who actually performed on the damn record. Like, yeah, Spector can produce and mix, but without the compendium of master session musicians The Wrecking Crew to pull off these arrangements, and without vocalists like Darlene Love, The Ronettes and Crystals to sing the damn thing, where would he even be? Let's not "auteur" "great man" Spector too much here. Like, really thinking about it, there's something not terribly great about the fact that a box set of Phil Spector's production work gets to be 358 spots higher on the 2003 ROLLING STONE 500 than The Ronettes debut — the one with "Be My Baby" — y'know? For whatever the RS500 lists are worth, anyway. Regardless of all that, though... Yeah, for better or for worse, this is an absolute Christmas classic. One I should probably try to work in my Christmas rotation more, between the Jackson 5 Christmas album and the midwestern emo cover of "The Christmas Shoes". I mean, it's not gonna top A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS as my favorite Christmas record of all time, but in any case, it's a 5, for sure. I'm very happy that the Randomizer was likely rigged to let me, my group, and anyone else who partakes in this spend their Christmas with it — or to end it off, specifically, in my case. I suppose the only question now is "What on Earth is my group gonna get **next Christmas?**" 'Coz I'm pretty sure this is the only Christmas album on this list. Well, I guess we'll just hafta wait 364 more days to find out. And whatever it is, maybe I can spend a little less time "yeah, but"-ing myself. Goodness.

Destroy Rock & Roll

Mylo

5/5

Y'know, I feel like the title "DESTROY ROCK & ROLL" might set people up with the wrong expectations. Certainly, it set me up with a neat zinger if it turned out this album was bad actually: "DESTROY ROCK & ROLL? How are you gonna do that when you can't even kill a beat?" Har-de-harr. For me, an album calling itself "DESTROY ROCK & ROLL" sounds like it should be setting itself up for some hard hitting stuff. Real "bangers," so the kids call 'em. And while I do think this album has those, they also tend to be a little... "Boppish," as well? I mean, I wasn't expecting this album to be adjacent to IDM or harder genres of electronica like that, but... Yeah, no, this is actually electropop. Mostly sampled from radio-friendly soft rock, as it happens. I'm not sure if I'd call it terribly special, nor something I **needed** to listen to before I died, but unlike a lot of reviews I see that amend that thought to their 1/5's... Hey, I think it's a fun piece of background music. And as I stress when I praise something for being background music: there's nothing wrong with. It has as much right to exist as everything else. Sure, it doesn't go anything good for the album's longevity unless the artist who made it is just **that** notable (see Brian Eno's ambient album). For what it is, though, I feel like I have hardly anything to complain about. In fact, I actually enjoy how a lot of it is sampled from soft rock. For the record, too, by the way, it turns out the title "DESTROY ROCK & ROLL" comes from a Chrisitian fundamentalist sermon sampled on the title track, which mispronounces several artists names, including "Weird Al" Yankovich[sic]. So, really, I can only assume, then, that the use of "destroy rock and roll" is supposed to be ironic — that "rock and roll" is meant to refer to all music, really, and that the album is in favor of **not** doing that. So it's nice to know we're on the same side here. All in all... Y'know, honestly, I am kinda feeling a 5 on this. Part of me was hesitant to do so, since I have been wondering lately if I've been too generous in handing those out.... But honestly, "Emotion 98.6" did actually convince me to go all the way. I really did the track, and the end of it specifically, just that much. Unlike other albums I give 5's, I'm not sure if I'm gonna come back to it too frequently, if at all, but for the time I had with it... Yeah, it turns out this guy can actually kill a beat after all. Go figure.

Let's Stay Together

Al Green

5/5

Coming into this album, I figured it'd have a similar issue to 2112 or MAGGOT BRAIN. Y'know, those are albums where their opening title tracks are so great and massively famous that no matter how the rest of the album stacks up, it can't help but be dwarfed in comparison. And it's not like I think that those title tracks don't deserve the acclaim they've gotten; I love them as much as anyone else. It's just that, at the same time, I can feel for songs like "Something For Nothing" getting a bit lost, y'know? And don't get me wrong here either: "Let's Stay Together" is as incredible as I've heard that it is. I can absolutely hear why it's as big as it's become, from every performance on it, but particularly Al Green's. He's so soulfully smooth, my goodness. I'm just thinking, it's such a good thing for the rest of the album that it carries itself as well as it does. I'm not sure if I'd say any of it is on exactly the same level as the title track, but let me say: if that's an 11/10, then everything else is an 8 or 9/10. They're really not that far off — especially that Bee Gees cover. A part of me was already inclined to love it, 'coz I do enjoy it whenever I see someone cover a Bee Gees song that didn't soundtrack John Travolta, and thankfully it lived up to my expectations beyond that. And "Judy" right after it? Like, wow, I just needa shout out those strings, I swear. A++ performances all around, my goodness. I'll admit, this is one of those albums where I wish I had more to say about it, but dang it, sometimes an album is just that simply good that you don't need too many words to describe it. This is classical soul, pure and simple, shared with any of the best by Otis Redding. I'll end a third paragraph in a row with this: my goodness. Unsurprisingly, I'm at a 5. My seventh in a row, even! Part of me feels like I've been too generous with those lately, and that I'm probably gonna look back on a few of these and figure I should've dropped a point at least (checking you, DESTROY ROCK & ROLL). This one, though? Nah, no chance. I'm gonna let this one stay, you can bet.

Rain Dogs

Tom Waits

5/5

I really wasn't expecting to get this album as quickly as I did. Like, this isn't my first encounter with Tom Waits, to be clear. This is, as it happens, the second time I'm talking about an artist I first heard through the SHREK 2 soundtrack, after David Bowie. "Little Drop Of Poison" was one of my favorites, 'coz the arrangement was stranger than anything else on there and Tom Waits just had this uniquely gravelly voice, like nothing I'd ever heard before (it'd be a few years before I'd hear Captain Beefheart). It was also one of the two "piano bar" songs on the album, along with "People Ain't No Good" by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds — and somehow, I always thought this album would be more like that. I'unno, the album cover just always gave me the vibe that it'd be really "sad piano ballad-y," and potentially a little boring as a result if I wasn't in the mood for that sorta thing. Like, this album **did** come out 20 years before SHREK 2; I thought maybe that's just Tom Waits was doing way back then. Nope. Unsurprisingly, I was wrong. Within the first couple seconds of the opening track, I got the sound of this album immediately — one half of its sound, at least. This is clearly the kinda shit that inspired bands like That Handsome Devil and Primus, with these unconventional arrangements and lyrics about strange, odd people. I was especially reminded of That Handsome Devil with these vocals. And, like, goodness, if I thought Waits had unique vocals before, I swear, there are so many times where it sounds less like he's singing, or even yelling, and more like he's just... **Vomiting** the words. Some kinda Bruce Springsteen who went way too hard on the liquor and cigarettes. It's kind of amazing, honestly. These are the kind of songs where I can tell why someone wouldn't like this album; it might just sound strange for the sake of it. But believe me, once you've got an ear attuned to it; if you've heard as much SAILING THE SEAS OF CHEESE and A CITY DRESSED IN DYNAMITE as i have, it's great stuff. And that's half the album, probably actually a majority of it. As for the rest, it turns out there is actually a small selection of songs that play into that "sad piano ballad" thing I was somehow expecting from this album. I wanna highlight "Hang Your Head Down" and "Blind Love" specifically, where I was honestly taken a little off-guard by the emotion he was able to wring out of his vocal style. And actually managing to pull off those vocal melodies — honestly, they maybe hafta be my favorite moments on the album. What an album it is, goodness. Not even the fact that it approaches an hour is really an issue to me. It breezes by, and I'm loving it the entire time. It's another hard 5 from me — my eighth in a row now! Just outstanding music, my goodness. So that's another win for the "SHREK 2 soundtrack seal of approval," I guess. Which, I'm already aware it doesn't have a 100% success rate — lookin' at you, Dashboard Confessional — but dang if it ain't have a good track record so far.

Sulk

The Associates

3/5

And just as I was wondering how long my 5/5 streak was gonna go on for, here comes a post-punk album, guaranteeing I won't be able to give it a 5! I mean, to be fair, this album isn't **just** post-punk; Wikipeia classifies it as synth-pop as well. But, boy, if there's anything that would make me not look forward to an album, labelling it as "post-punk" would be it. And, look, I kinda don't like to be this unfair to any genre. There's always gotta be something I like about each and every one — at least **one small thing**, at minimum. It's just that I have had the least amount of luck figuring out what that thing is with post-punk, let alone what its appeal is supposed to be. Goodness, even with jungle and drum n' bass can have some nice piano lines every now and then. I mean, if you were to ask me to define what I thought post-punk was supposed to be, I'd honestly probably say something like "It's uncommercial hoo-hah that I'm supposed to applaud at just because it's uncommercial." Y'know, I started bad with METAL BOX, and it hasn't gotten any better for me since. So, this album, then. What's its deal? Well, for one, I feel like I can attribute everything I like about it to the "synth-pop" label, that being the instrumentals, mostly. They're pretty good, honestly, even if they're not exactly mind-blowing. If this album were just those, I could see myself giving it a 4 at most — and not just because I've been wondering if I've been too generous lately with my 5's. As you've seen, though, I've given this album a 3, thanks entirely to one thing: this guy's vocals. I read a review on this website comparing this vocalist to a bootleg David Bowie, and, yeah, that's really the vibe I get. He's doing all this whooping and caterwauling 'coz, y'see, that's what vocalists on **important, artsy music** are **supposed** to sound like — I guess. It just didn't do anything for me, or at least anything positive. And I get the feeling that on any other album I might not have minded this too much, but you combine the fact that I thought of these guys as "post-punk" first with the whole "Who the hell are these guys?" kind of reaction... Yeah. Yeah, no. This guy just sounds like he's trying too hard to sound important, and it's a detriment to everything. I mean, jeez, I read a review that compared these vocals to Russel Mael of Sparks, and... No? No, not at all? Not even close? So, yeah. Big ol' 3. It's fine, but coulda been better. Part of me's happy my group got this, though more as a reminder that I **can** rate stuff less than a 5 than because of anything that's actually on this album. If I had a choice of listening to any other 80's album today, believe me, I absolutely would have.

Black Sabbath

5/5

OK, so... Indulge me for a second here... ==< [...] >== It was a dark and stormy night — and one with a particularly strong emphasis on the "dark" part. No matter how closely you move your hand to your face, you just can't make it out. In fact, if you were to mose it any closer, you'd be covering your face. Not that that would matter. Besides the occasional crash of lightning trying to pierce through the thick forest covering to light your surroundings, you were basically wandering blind. Trapped in a void that would threaten to swallow you whole, if not for the one thing guiding you: a distant church bell. Every now and then, it would toll, just barely audible above the pounding rain. You weren't sure if this was leading the way home or not — a doubt that continued to grow like a weed in your mind as you approached — but as they say, "Any port in a storm." However, very slowly, you come to a stop. A chill runs down your spine — noticeably, one that seemed to have nothing to do with how you were freezing in this rain. Something, you could just tell, was wrong. Through a large hole in the forest canopy, you could see another bolt of lightning flash, lighting up the forest and the cloudy sky. As well as... Something standing off in the distance. You couldn't tell what it was; it was too far away, shrouded in blur and a silhouette... But you could gather one thing: it was big. Very big. The church bell rang in the distance. Lightning flashed again, and the shape in the distance seemed to have gotten... Bigger? The wind picked up to a sharp howl, which forced you to shut your eyes to keep them from stinging. You rubbed your arms, trying to keep yourself warm, but it was like trying to light a match underwater — good luck with that. The church bell rang in the distance. The wind died down as soon as it picked up. Slowly, you were able to open your eyes again, just in time for lightning to strike once more and... Wait. Through squinted eyes, you wondered: "Did the figure get bigger again? Or... Maybe not bigger, but..." The church bell rang in the distance. As if on cue, a hellishly red fire rose in front of you. It didn't seem to shed much light on your surroundings, but it did reveal this — this **thing** was standing right in front of you. This towering, imposing figure, maybe ten feet high. Like before, it was completely cloaked in shadow, but thanks to the fire raging behind it, its exact shape was even blurry and less clear. One thing you could tell though, and you didn't know how you knew this — it was smiling. It spoke. It was in a language you'd never heard before, but somehow, you understood perfectly well. It spoke of you how you were the chosen one. How you were meant to bring an end to it all. How the figure was there to guide you. You started to laugh. You didn't understand why. You just began to. It was maybe all you could do in the face of this. The figure continued to speak, but you could hardly hear it. Quickly, your laughter was growing louder, overpowering the figure and, shortly, even the rain around you. The figure's grin grew wider and it began to laugh along with you. It spread its mighty wings wide and reached out a clawed hand to take you. By that time, you didn't know if you were laughing or screaming. The forest was dark. Rain poured down in a seemingly endless torrent. The wind whipped around the trees. The church bell rang in the distance. ==< [...] >== Alright, so apologies for all that. Typically, I'm not 100% about the whole "Pitchfork writer who clearly can't wait for his own time to creative writing" mode of reviewing. Like, sure, I like seeing creative writing based on music, but if I come for a review, I come for a review, y'know? However, in this instance, I feel like writing all of that was maybe the only way I could really relay the reverence I have for this album. 'Cuz whatever I actually think about the contents of the album, I'll always hold it up as one of the most important releases in music history, for being the album where metal was born. Like, as far as I'm aware, the history of metal splits into two periods: pre-Sabbath proto-metal (think "Helter Skelter" by The Beatles), and then post-Sabbath. For sure, it's probably way more complicated than that, and I have a whole-ass book to confirm that, but that's just the legend that's been relayed to me, and it's one I've always believed. 'Cuz you've had heavy acts before like Led Zeppelin and that one Blue Cheer album, but nothing compared to even how this album opens. A slow, doomy, detuned riff, crashing drums, lyrics about a nightmarish figure that drives the singer mad, and an outro with a ripping solo. It's incredible. The title track alone and they've already got a masterpiece and cornerstone of an entire new genre. The album hardly lets up from there. And I'll admit, before re-listening to this album (which was my first time in a while, actually), I had the lingering thought that I'd come to discover I was overhyping the sound of this album to myself. Y'know, that it'd turn out that this album outside of its opener is just heavier-than-usual blues — and it's not **not** that. I'll say, I do prefer their follow-ups for refining their sound away from English blues. But make no mistake: this is **heavy** blues. You only need to listen to the sound of Tony Iommi's guitar. You hear that distortion? That menace? Heck, just how big it can sound? Not even Jimmy Page had a guitar sound like that. The magic it turned out you could get from playing a right-handed guitar upside down as a left-handed one. And I know we've all been living with Ozzy Osbourne and his singing for years now, between the wacko locomotives and telling his mother he'll be returning shortly, but we just hafta appreciate what a voice he has. It works so well with the dark subject matter he ends up singing about. Seriously, the way he wails "OH, PLEASE, GOD, NO" on the title track — it legit sounds like he's begging to not be driven insane by whatever dark forces are confronting him. And, jus', ahhh, that one vocal melody on "N.I.B.", it's so good. Let's not forget to give it up for Geezer and Ward. Metal's got great vocal and guitar histrionics (ooo, big word), but they'd be nothing about their rhythm sections. Watch me make that case especially when my group gets MASTER OF PUPPETS, but yeah, seriously, give a hand to Geezer and Ward for holding all this together. I've always loved the sound of Geezer's bass, I gotta say. Jus' got this... I'unno, "plomp" to it sometimes. That's a made-up word, but it's as close as I can get to how it sounds to my ears. And would you believe that this whole album was recorded in only twelve hours? Yeah, they pulled recording this off in less time than it took The Beatles to make PLEASE PLEASE ME. That's just crazy, right? Sure, I can't hear anything on here that sounds like it should have taken more than twelve hours, but if they can just bang out a record like this in that short of time, you can only imagine how much better the rest are when they had **more** recording time. I could go on — really, I could. It's hard for me to not gas up this album, even though, like I said, I prefer the two follow-ups more. It's a mandatory must for anyone interested in metal, just to hear the most commonly and widely agreed-upon point where the genre started. I mean, just for how so many bands that I love might not exist if this thing hadn't come out, I hafta give it respect for that alone. And all that, on the top of the fact that it rocks like hell? Are you hearing these **riffs**? I'm just saying, it's something when my only gripe about it is that the North American release jams a bunch of tracks together into large medleys. Would you even be surprised if I said this thing is a 5 to my ears? If you somehow missed the number at the top, the tone of my writing would probably give it away. And sure, there's probably gonna be other metal albums (even besides PARANOID and MASTERS OF REALITY) I'm gonna be way more positive about, if you can believe it, but I don't think any of them would inspire me to gush at length like this one did. Or inspire me to write **short-form narrative fiction** to open a review. I won't deny that its legacy and legend plays a part in why I like this album as much as I do, but, oh, what a legacy. What a legacy.

Sweetheart Of The Rodeo

The Byrds

4/5

Yesterday, my group got Black Sabbath's debut album, widely considered "the first metal album." Now, metal is a pretty mythologized genre, so it was pretty easy for me to get caught up in the legend and reverence towards it. I mean, goodness, it inspired me enough to devote 2/5ths of a 1,500 word review to a narrative adaptation of the album's title track, as if most people would find it at all relevant. Then you have this album, meanwhile. It holds a similar-ish place in music history, being where the subgenre of country rock kicked off. In fact, it seems the band was rejected for being innovators; Nashville viewed them as a bunch of hippies trying to invade their space, and I doubt a lot of rock people knew what to do with all of this country music. So you think that'd get something similar from me — well, not a whole-ass narrative, but at least a similar level of reverence. But whereas I'm very aware of the mythology of metal and do kind of buy into it... Don't get me wrong, I'm also aware how important country music has been, and of its place in American music. It's just... I've never heard country music as anything but just country music. Y'know? I don't wanna call country music all "the same" and act like there's no difference from artist to artist, but, like... Honestly, country strikes me as maybe the hardest genre for me to talk about. Like, rap can be difficult for me to talk about 'cuz that's a culture I'll never have a full and/or proper understanding of. Jazz, meanwhile, feels like it requires a golden ear to hear the subtle intricacies in playing and, like, modes. With both of those, though, I can at least appreciate flow, beats and lyricism in the former, and in the latter I can get lost in some good melodies and soundscapes. Country, though? Unless there's some super notable context about it, like Johnny Cash's prison albums, I often don't know how many unique things I can say about one album without repeating myself from others. So, like, this album specifically. I mean, yeah, it's country rock. I do like myself some country music, so I do rather like myself this. The fiddle, the slide guitar, the melodies... It's all there. Unless being melody-first is making me stupid and miss some particularly excellent story-telling — and most of these are covers, anyway, so I'unno how much I could praise **this album** for any of that — I just don't know what else I'm supposed to say about it. What makes this all even wilder to me is the fact that this is the **third** Gram Parsons country album my group has gotten now, and it hasn't even been a month since the last one. I know he's pretty well respected, not just for helping found country rock, but also for something he called "Cosmic American Music"; I've read as much. However, between a posthumous solo album, the first Burrito Brothers album, and now this — and of course I mean no disrespect towards the man, but I just can't figure what all the hype is really about. He makes good country music, sure. What else am I supposed to get from him? (And I hafta consider this album as a Gram Parsons album, by the way. This is also my group's third Byrds album, but besides some Bob Dylan covers, it's so far-removed sonically from what I remember, say, FIFTH DIMENSION sounding like that I can't really consider them together.) This might read like a pretty frustrated review. I mean, I spent less time talking about the album than I did complaining about my struggles writing about country music. But I will reiterate: I **do** like this album. Again, it's country music. I dig that sound, and this album is really good at making it. My biggest issue with it is just that I don't hear much special about it, and that's more a gripe with country albums in general (or at least the ones this Randomizer has been giving me so far). That's not enough for me to push this any lower than a 4. It's just, I'unno. 366 albums into this Randomizer, I wish I had more specifics about this kinda stuff. Well, hey, there's still 635 left on this list, and tomorrow's a new year, so I guess I'll just hafta wait and see if I get some or not.

Histoire De Melody Nelson

Serge Gainsbourg

2/5

Well, it's a new year, and it seems the Randomizer figured the best way to kick it off would be to have my group listen to an album entirely in **French**! Ah, yes, finally, a chance to put my mandatory French classes to good use! Except not really! 'Cuz, for one, I never actually retained anything from those classes, despite taking them for most of my schooling career... And, two, well, from everything I've read about this album, maybe I don't **want** to know what this thing's actually about? I kinda don't wanna get myself too worked up over an album that came out over 50 years ago, but, f'woof, boy, if finding out this thing's plot didn't make me a little biased against it from the start. It's... A **little** gross, to put it mildly? "A middle-aged man falls in love with, lusts after and has sex with a 14 year-old before she dies in a plane crash." Eee-yuck-o. But whatever. I've never been lyrics-first anyway, as I've stated multiple times, and that goes double for albums that aren't in English. Is that me being ignorant or whatever? Oh, probably, absolutely. But I always figure, music is its melody, so if this thing is lyrically gross, at least it won't be **as** notable. So, how does this thing stand up melodically, then? Uhm... I'm finding it hard to be impressed by it. Like, the instrumental work is all well and good, but... I'unno. Nothing about it strikes me with any particular "Wow!" factor. No kind of "Oh, that's cool" or "Oh, that was clearly the inspiration for [artist]." Mostly just, "Huh. Well, OK." It was pretty easy for this stuff to breeze by me, not helped by the fact that this thing doesn't even run 28 minutes. Which, to be clear, I don't think is necessarily a bad thing. I'd rather this thing get in, do its thing, and then get out in a succinct, tight package than drag itself on for another ten or twelve minutes. It just doesn't terribly help first impressions sometimes. Then there's this guy's voice, where all I feel like I really hafta say is that it's a bit too, y'know, ASMR at times? I don't like how often I heard his spittle. It's a bit off-putting. And it's not like the woman playing the 14 year-old girl does much to distract from that. I swear, all she says on this album is her character's name; she may as well be a Pokémon. That's probably something that makes sense in the context of the story, but I'd rather **not** consider the story, so... Blehh, I'unno. For most of the album I was willing to give it a 3 because, again, the instrumentation was nice enough. Honestly, as I'm sitting here writing this review, I'm feeling so unenthusiastic about it that... Aw, heck — it's a 2. I really didn't get much of it besides "Eh, sure" and "Ecch, ew." So that's not a great way to start up the year. But, hey, on the bright side, there's more than enough room to go up from here. Plus, at least now I can treat this thing like my French classes and forget I ever partook in them. If that ain't a positive for this kind of album, zut alors, I swear.

Oar

Alexander 'Skip' Spence

3/5

Y'know, I was really not expecting to struggle writing about this album as much as I did. Like, I didn't think this would be an easy job, but I didn't go into this thinking I'd end up starting over this review over as many times as I did. Look, I just needa get this roadblock out of the way. Before I even heard a second of this album, I was reading about how it was made following Alexander's stay in a mental hospital, and about how it was apparently "one of the most harrowing depictions of pain and confusion ever documented." From all that, I knew I had to be respectful of this guy and his struggles. After all, I'm not an ass. But, like, here's the issue: you know Syd Barrett and THE MADCAP LAUGHS? This album's backstory reminded me a lot of that one's, even down to the fact that this was the last thing Alexander released before largely disappearing from the music industry (Barrett released one more album after THE MADCAP LAUGHS, but still). I know THE MADCAP LAUGHS is gonna be a hard review for me to write, given everything I know about him, his problems, and what he means to Pink Floyd. But then, that's the thing: I know a lot about Syd Barrett. It's hard to be a fan of Pink Floyd without knowing about him, given all he ended up inspiring. Alexander, meanwhile, was a member of Moby Grape, a group I hadn't heard of until the Randomizer gave us one of their albums, and one I haven't thought about since that day. And I didn't even know Alexander was a member of Moby Grape until **today**. Like, as respectful as I wanna be — and of course I would be towards someone like this, regardless of circumstances — it's not exactly easy to write about someone I have so little connection to. Which just makes it all the worse that, on top of all that, I don't really have anything to say about the album itself. I can't remember the last time an album passed me by as badly as this one did. In one ear, out the other, I couldn't remember what it sounded like even seconds after the album ended. Which, sure, I could probably blame that on the fact that I got up late today and wasn't working at 100% mental capacity — that could legit be the reason. At the same time, though, there was just barely anything going on musically for me to latch on to. 'Cuz there's the other issue there: me being melody-first. I don't come to music to analyze poetry, so that's probably why I'm missing out on how "harrowing" this album is. But at the same time, you take another artist I'm wont to write about seriously 'cuz of their story, Nick Drake. I didn't really pay attention to his lyrics either, but goodness, he's at least he's such a beautiful guitar player that I can latch on to that. Alexander, meanwhile, didn't exactly give me anything to get engaged with except some of the most egregious 60's stereo panning I've heard in a long time. Seriously, whose idea was it to have songs where the drums were in one ear, and **literally everything else** was in the other? Not since the German-language Beatles songs. None of this is terrible, or even bad, but between Alexander's acoustic plonking and low-voiced mumble, if I didn't know any better, I would've assumed he was just some kinda jerk who was trying **way too hard** to be a Serious Artist™. Like... Y'know, at the end of the day, I was conflating not liking this album with being disrespectful of the man who made it. I mean, as far as I heard, he was essentially baring his soul and singing about his world. Who the hell am I to look at this and go, "It's a bit shit, innit?" But, look, that's not true at all. I mean, if I can like a fair bit of Kanye West's music despite not being respectful towards that man at all, why can't the opposite be true? Alexander's story, from all I've read, is tragic, and I don't mean any ill will towards him. But his music simply isn't for me. Like, I'll be generous and keep this album at a 3, but I was honestly considering a 2. As I say, that's just how it is sometimes. Alexander, Skip... Well, I can only hope you're resting in peace.

Electric Warrior

T. Rex

4/5

Well, this'll be a way simpler and shorter one to write about than the one my group got yesterday. This is just glam rock — what's widely agreed as being the first glam rock album, as a matter of fact — and, hey, if I'm the kinda person who thinks glam metal rules, you can only imagine I feel similar about its 70's predecessor. And, yeah, I do think this album is fun: straight up, plain ol' unpretentious fun. There's not much I really feel like I hafta discuss. You just listen to the guitar, the horns, the vocals — you get it. I don't think it's too hard to hear why the British fell so hard in love with glam rock. If I have any problem with it, I think it honestly has to do with the fact that it's the first. To be clear, that's no fault of the album; everything has to start somewhere. But comparing it to everything that came out after it, I'unno, ELECTRIC WARRIOR somehow feels a little too restrained, largely? I mean, you gotta understand that my sense of glam rock comes from, y'know, "Ballroom Blitz", "Crocodile Rock" and ZIGGY STARDUST. Those are all pretty wild takes on glam rock — and in the case of "Ballroom Blitz", damn manic — and besides "Bang A Gong (Get It On)", I don't think anything here really achieves those heights. "Ride A White Swan" and "20th Century Boy", stand-alone singles released before and after this album, both achieve way better what I want from this genre. Still, even then, I'd be a fool to give this album anything lower than a 4. Even if I wouldn't call it "classical glam rock" in the same way I'd call Black Sabbath's debut "classical metal" or Dr. Dre's THE CHRONIC "classical G-funk," there's no denying that this album is a good, fun time. At worst, it's just not exactly what I'd jump to first, which, again, isn't even its fault. So... I'unno. Go bang this gong and get it on for y'self.

Darkdancer

Les Rythmes Digitales

3/5

Beh, I'unno. I don't think I can call it "terrible," exactly, but at the same time, my biggest takeaway from this album is that it sounds like... Y'know, either royalty-free house or the soundtrack to some low-rent PlayStation 1 game. It's not anything I wanna spend too much time ragging on. Honestly, the most I feel like the most I got out of this album was the one synth on "Disco II Disco" that sounds like a penguin tryna do a Gumi-chan laugh. I had a good time chuckling at that... I suppose the only other thought I had in mind throughout the album was... Well, I hate talking too much about "What's this doing here instead of this?" I don't feel like that's a terribly good use of anyone's time on here — or at the very least, it's not something that should factor into a final score. And so we're clear, it's still not a factor, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't spend a lot of the runtime stuck on a thought I had yesterday: "Why **isn't** Daft Punk's DISCOVERY on this list?" Like, it's just curious to me that this faux-French house can get in a revision of this book, but Daft Punk's DISCOVERY can't. That, apparently, isn't something the list author(s) think I should hear before I die. It's just odd to me is all. 'Cuz ultimately, like... This is a pretty unenthusiastic 3. As background music it works, but I have so many other albums to reach for first over this. Jus'... I'unno. I'll forget about it by tomorrow, just you wait and see.

Roxy Music

5/5

I'll keep it 100: from seeing the words "art rock" on this album's Wikipedia page, I got the feeling I wouldn't like this. Kind of a sense of dread, actually, that I'd hafta spend the next forty minutes with this. Y'know, I haven't had very good experiences lately with "artsy" music — particularly post-punk and some experimental music. I mean, if there's any impression I've gotten lately from music that's tryna be "artsy," it's that it's usually atonal, noisy and verging on unlistenable for nothing more than for the sake of being "uncommercial." As if actually being appealing to people is somehow the worst thing in the world. It's the kind of music I imagine some folk like just because it makes them feel like a smarty smart big boy to "get it," unlike all the other plebeians and "normies." Luckily, though, my fears were found to be unfounded — and as it turns out, completely irrelevant. Like, yeah, there's quite a few moments on here that fall into being atonal and/or noisy, but none of it's ever abrasive. Y'know, none of it screams out "LOOK AT HOW UNCONVENTIONAL WE ARE; CLAP FOR US, DAMMIT." In fact, I probably shoulda paid more attention to the first genre classifier Wikipedia had up: glam rock. 'Cuz this is actually way closer to what I like from glam rock than was on ELECTRIC WARRIOR — and again, that's a good album. But here, it's bigger, it's wilder, and it is **not** restrained. The way "Re-Make/Re-Model" trades off solos at the end is amazing. "Would You Believe?" has a lot of that old rock n' roll flair, and it's great. But even when it does get artsy, like with the oboe melody at the front of "Ladytron"... Gawd, it's vibes. So much of this album is vibes. It's really something how much this album, in vibes, reminds me of Brian Eno's ambient work — and I do love me some ambient. Just as much, it's incredible that these vibes don't feel out of place next to all the hard rockin' glam. They just fit together so well. Oh, and also, going back to the traded off solos on "Re-Make/Re-Model" — each one quotes a different piece of music, from "Day Tripper" to "Ride Of The Valkyries", and that was such a Frank Zappa move to my ears that that alone convinced me that this album was good, actually. So once again I've learned to not judge an album by its genre label on Wikipedia. ("Once again?" Has it happened before? Probably, but heck if I can tell you where or when. And it'll happen again, let's not kid ourselves.) It's a real good album — one that's obviously not aiming for big mainstream success, but at the same time not aiming to be a big, off-putting mess just for the sake of it. I would listen to it again, and I wasn't even thinking I'd give it that much. So, yeah, it's a... Mm, yeah, a 5. I'll say I was impressed enough for that. It's nice to know some good Roxy music that wasn't played by Zappa and his band, I tell yah. Goodness.

Smash

The Offspring

5/5

Ahh... Nothing like kicking back to a little pop punk. Putting my feet up, sipping a diet Canada Dry that I wish wasn't a diet... These are the good times, people. For real, though, I do really love pop punk a lot. Which, OK, there was a part of me that hesitated on saying "love," 'coz I don't normally listen to much outside of Green Day, blink-182 and Sunrise Skater Kids — but I wanna emphasize how much I do truly love pop punk. It's a genre I could swear by, truly. Even the worst stuff, that was trying way too hard to relate to "the youths" — see stuff like Simple Plan or Good Charlotte — heck, it's still pop punk. As if I haven't spun Simple Plan's "Grow Up" more than once. So, what about The Offspring specifically, then? Despite being one of the Big 4 of pop punk in my mind (don't ask me who the other two are), I actually haven't listened to them much. Of course there's songs from them I play regularly, mostly singles: "Come Out And Play" (no duh), "Pretty Fly" ('cuz Weird Al parodied it), "Why Don't You Get A Job" ('cuz it's an "Ob-La-Di, "Ob-La Da" parody), "The Kids Aren't Alright" (that one's just awesome)... But I haven't played any of their albums like I have DOOKIE or ENEMEA OF THE STATE or... Goodness, even Sum 41's ALL KILLER NO FILLER. For the longest time I wasn't able to place my finger on why exactly, but I think after re-listening to SMASH I finally understand. Let's get this out of the way before anything else: SMASH is good. Amazing, even, actually. Top-tier pop punk, 5/5, no notes. It goes as hard as any of the other three albums I mentioned above. But if there's any reason why I don't reach for this first, honestly... It's the snot and attitude. Neither of those elements are entirely absent, but you just compare Dexter Holland's voice to Billie Joe's, or Tom's or Mark's, or Deryck's — you get it, right? The Offspring strike me as being way similar to, like, NOFX or Bad Religion. Those are bands I love, too, but I'm not sure if I'd call either of them "pop punk." Y'know, it's melodic hardcore, skate punk... Good stuff all; I'm just not as into as I am regular ol' pop punk. I think the short version of what I'm tryna explain here is "The Offspring are often more serious than I prefer." Just being 100 about my tastes. All said, though, of course, like I said above, I'm still giving this a 5/5. It rocks too hard and I had too much of a good time not to, even if it's not usually my thing. After all, punk, poppy or melodically hardcore, soothes even the most savage of beasts. (Hidden tracks don't, though. I can appreciate them in a pre-streaming age, but these days, unless they're split up like "Her Majesty"? Just a hassle, goodness.)

Our Aim Is To Satisfy

Red Snapper

1/5

Well, that was a whole lot of nothing. Normally I don't like to be that blunt right off the bat, but, wow, there just wasn't... **Anything** there for me to get invested in. Not even the vocal on one song that sounded like Donald Duck with a cold could do too much for me. There's a person in my group who talks about this "the first minute is the whole song" trope. Now, I'll admit, I was reading some crossover fanfiction as I was listening to this album, so maybe my attention was too diverted to notice any deep intricacies, but seriously, that trope applies to this whole album. Every time my focus wandered back to the music, I had to check what song was playing and how far I was into it, 'coz for all I knew I could still be at the very beginning of the first song. And, y'know, I can forgive repetition if the song at least evolves and morphs over time, but there ain't no "Around The World" or "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" here. Honestly, there were parts where I had to wonder if they were just looping the same bar of music over and over again. The album's length sure didn't help either. 57 minutes. Why did it have to be 57 minutes? Lemme bring back an idea I've discussed in a lot of my early reviews that I haven't brought up lately: CD bloat. The fact that once CDs became the dominant form of releasing music over vinyl records; once artists lost the limitation of 23 minutes per record side, they suddenly felt like they had to include every idea they could because... Well, they had the room. Who was going to stop them? And this isn't as egregious as some other cases; this is at least under an hour and not aiming for the full 73 minutes... But I still hafta ask: **none of this** could be cut? Not a single second? We **had** to have "The Quick And The Dirty"? Or, like, a bunch of these songs that're barely distinguishable from each other? All of this was supposed to be worth my time? Really? Like, I gotta wonder who exactly they were aiming to satisfy here. Me? Well, obviously not; no one makes music specifically for me except me. I'm not **that** much of an egotist. Was it clubgoers, then? I mean, like that's the most discerning audience in the world. As long as there's a good boom-down beat, I'm sure clubgoers could dance to anything. So, like, was it just themselves, then? 'Coz I've been going back and forth on whether the band's name is supposed to be a part of the album title or not, and... Y'know, I don't wanna go out claiming the band is like that, even as much as I didn't like their music. It just wouldn't surprise me, from the way it looks, if we really were supposed to read it as "Our Only Aim Is To Satisfy Red Snapper" is all. I really can't remember the last time I got so little out of an album, yet so much to complain about. 'Coz, like, I had no expectations for this album, so I shouldn't be too offended that all I got out of it was acid jazz/trip hop mush. What did I even want out of it in the first place? I suppose jus'... Something more than this. Honestly, it doesn't even make for good wallpaper. Even Les Rhythmes Digitales, who I actively thought I was gonna go after for making faux-French house music, did a better job at it. And as I've been writing this, I've been debating with myself if I really wanted to slap this thing with a 1 or not. Unlike every other rating I give out (check my 150 4's), I don't just wanna throw those around willy-nilly. An album actively has to do something to get under my skin to justify that. Either the artist has to be so shitty, where I have so little respect for them, that I can't justify keeping the album at the 2 it'd otherwise get (Kid Rock, Koffi Olomide); or I have to find the album just that unlistenable for my sensibilities (MAXINQUAYE was too boring; PSYCHOCANDY was too much of a noisy mush). I really hafta be honest with myself in asking if this album really bothered me that much or not. Was there really **nothing** redeemable about it? Yeah. No. No quarter. There wasn't. I'm slapping this thing with a 1. This album is a box. I could have chosen to spend my time with anything else; anything that I'm already familiar with, but I chose to take a chance on finding out what was in the box. And inside the box... Well, if I may quote the scene from UHF I thought of upon seeing the band's name: "NOTHING! ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! STUPID! YOU SO STUPID!"

Whatever

Aimee Mann

3/5

If nothing else, at the very least, I hafta give it to this album that it wasn't what I was expecting. From its cover, I thought this was gonna be way more in the vein of... Y'know, Avril Laveigne, Alanis Morisette, Liz Phair... That kind of sound. "Chick rock," for lack of a better phrase. And from the top of the album, it did sound like that's exactly what it was going to provide me. However, then it had that small "Penny Lane"-like breakdown and I sat up in my chair — "Oh? There might be more going on here than I'd naïvely assumed based on no more information than the album cover aesthetics?" The next track confirmed it: yep, there's some Beatlesesque tracks on here. Much-produced orchestrated pop with a knack for a hook. Ah, something I could latch onto. And let me be clear, I don't dislike Avril, Alanis or any other artist who could be slotted into that crassly-blunt "chick rock" phrase I used. Simply, my worry is that this would just be **generic** to my ears, where I'd be left wondering what people like Elvis Costello were going to gaga over. Y'know, the whole question of, "Why would I go to this woman for this sound, when there's so many others in this field that could provide the same thing?" And good for her, I can't think of anyone else who provided this sound in the 90's, sliding between rock, orchestrated-type pop and even some country-style acoustic ballads. That's something I can be impressed by. However, at the same time... I'unno. Not even too far into the album I was kinda getting tired of it. Maybe if it's too much of a good thing, or because I wasn't splitting it up into "vinyl sides," or because I was distracting myself with making a work night playlist at the same time... Or maybe her voice just wasn't that unique to me. Seriously, I spent way too much of the album tryna figure out all the women I thought she sounded like, and I couldn't land on even one specifically. So maybe this is another album that would have benefitted from a little editing? Like, did it really **need** to be 52 minutes? And I don't wanna entirely kid myself; there **are** albums that are this long that I can listen to just fine without any kind of break. This just... Isn't one of them, I guess. At the end of the day, I don't think I can give this any less than a 3; I was too pleasantly surprised by its content to go lower. I just wasn't ultimately too engaged with a lot of what it ended up presenting, so I also can't go any higher. Just leave at an "it's fine" 3. Like — I mean, I'unno. Whatever.

The United States Of America

2/5

Off the bat, I take issue with this band's name. "The United States Of America" — I'm sorry, but that just sounds incredibly pretentious and up-their-own-ass. It comes across to me way too much like the kind of name someone slaps on their art to make it sound deeper and more important than it actually is; like they're making such **the** definitive statement about America that it can't be titled anything else. I mean, it'd be one thing if this band was making "A Horse With No Name" or "Peaches", but this is Serious, Important Experimental Music™ with Serious, Important Commentary™ and radical left politics! I needa take this as seriously as its name suggests I should! And to be clear, I love me some radical left politics. Just look at how much I dig Rage Against The Machine, Dead Kennedys, Chumbawamba and The Clash. Like, I realize, I'm aware, this is just me taking way too much issue with aesthetics — ultimately, whatever the band calls themselves doesn't really matter. But it's not exactly irrelevant to how I was coming into this album, y'know? Besides, how much I like or don't like someone's politics often doesn't impact on how I feel about the actual music itself. If they're egregious enough, sure, but I'm not gonna act like I don't still listen to and enjoy some people who believe some things I just can't agree with — just look at Frank Zappa, for instance. By that same token, I don't hafta **like** music just because I agree with politically, and... Well, I'm not gonna say I completely hate this music, but it's not like I'm terribly impressed by it. Like, to begin with, experimental music has never been my bag, so that's already a point against this album. At best, it's something I put up with because I like the rest of the music so much. To bring up Frank Zappa again, I'm never gonna say my favorite part of any of his albums are the atonal sound collages. So the stuff here, like the multiple with the five American standards being played over one another — I mean, sure? But especially in 2025, I'm not sitting back in my chair like, "Wow! What a noise!" Then there's all the parts that aren't experimental, and, y'know, I'd be lying if I said there weren't parts I enjoy, mostly on side two. "Love Song For The Dead Ché" is a nice instrumental. The strings on "Stranded In Time" are pretty lovely. And there's quite a few moments all over "The American Way Of Love" I dig, especially that electric violin that sounds a lot like it came from HOT RATS (oh, wow, Frank Zappa again). But besides that, it's mostly light psychedelia that doesn't sound too unique from stuff I've heard on other albums. I just can't hear what I'm supposed to be so impressed by. So... I'unno. Ultimately, I'm not left very enthusiastic about this project. I might even say I'm **un**enthusiastic. I mean, given that the longest paragraph in this review was the one where I bitched about their name — what does **that** tell yah, huh? Like, all it comes down to for me is the arbitrary idea of whether or not they've "earned" the name; if they can back it up musically. Green Day does, I think, and that's why I don't have issue with AMERICAN IDIOT — nor, for that matter, Rage Against The Machine calling themselves Rage Against The Machine. But this, to me, slides closer to... I mean, it's not **as** egregious as Madona's AMERICAN LIFE or CSNY's AMERICAN DREAM; I didn't dislike it **that much**, or even really much at all. But still, this is closer to those on the spectrum than not, so... I'unno. I'm feeling a 2, honestly. It's probably more a 3, but I really don't care enough to bump it up that extra point. "This is my United States of whatever," I suppose.

Lady Soul

Aretha Franklin

5/5

Y'know, as much as a part of me would hate to have this review be just "It's Aretha Franklin" without much further explanation beyond that... I mean, it **is** Aretha Franklin. Most people would completely understand the 5/5 I'm giving this album from just that alone. Her voice? One of the most amazing and powerful in all of soul music, whether it's on a slow ballad or one of the harder tunes. The accompaniment, from the instrumentals to the backing vocals? Always a pinpoint and perfect compliment, helping Aretha's voice soar even higher than normal. It's just a marvel to behold; simply incredible. I find it interesting that on the 2012 Rolling Stone 500, this is so close to the other Aretha album my group has looked at, I NEVER LOVED A MAN THE WAY I LOVED YOU. In fact, LADY SOUL is **one spot** below I NEVER LOVED A MAN: 85 and 84 respectfully. Like, to ears in 2012, they were just that close in quality, that I figure the big reason why I NEVER LOVED A MAN got to be higher was because it had "Respect" — and it's hard to compete with that. And in fact, it's so hard that in 2020, while LADY SOUL rose to 75, I NEVER LOVED A MAN went all the way up to **13**. Nearly a top 10, eight years later. It's nuts. And to my ears, I don't mean this as a negative to either album, but I feel like it made more sense when they were closer together. Maybe my ears are just that ignorant, but I really can't hear a difference between them. They're both just that good. Force me to pick between them, though, and it could be recency bias here, but I'd honestly pick LADY SOUL over I NEVER LOVED A MAN. It's just so smooth, and at only 28 minutes, it's no big commitment whatsoever. (As if 32 minutes is really that much more, but y'know what I mean.) But, really, it's no competition; they're both 5's. Heck, I say actively don't choose. Just listen to them both and bask in how amazing of a singer Aretha was. Do yourself that favor, come on.

The Grand Tour

George Jones

4/5

Oh, hey, it's an old country album. Lemme take a wild guess here: I'm gonna like it 'coz I generally really like this kind of sound. Well, hey, wha'd'y'know — I do. It's got all the slide guitar and whatnot I usually like to hear outta these things. That's a different tone than I've normally had reviewing any other album, but like I said in my review of SWEETHEART OF THE RODEO, unless there's particularly notable context behind an old country album, I feel like there's only so much I can say before I start repeating myself. Like, being an old country music fan must be great; if you like one song, you're probably bound to like nearly all of them. I can't imagine listening to nothing but this music like I'm aware some people do, but I also can't say I can't hear why. Lemme take a second now to speak a little about George Jones specifically, so this doesn't end up being a review I coulda given any old country album. He's another one of those names I know about mostly because Cledus T. Judd name-dropped him in one of his songs complaining about the current state of country music, alongside people like Merle Haggard. Like Merle, I'm happy to report that I do enjoy George's music, and, honestly, it kind of does get me one step closer to understanding those kinds of "complaining about modern country music" songs? Understanding that in the 2020's country music is hardly about stories like it used to be. Unless you wanna count... I'unno, "Last Night" as a story? I'unno. I gotta say, too, that it's bonkers to consider that this is Jones's **39th album**. His 50th album overall, even, if you count other releases as well. Honestly, I jus' gotta... Marvel at the quality level here. You'd think after, like, 20 albums he'd run outta good shit — and maybe I'd be feeling differently if I had heard everything he'd made before now — but, hey, y'know, that's just old country music, I guess. Real consistent, through and through. Also, I read somewhere that apparently the title track is considered one of the all-time great country weepies, and, well, it didn't get me to break down, but, still, goodness, I can hear it. So, yeah. This is probably one of my more scattered reviews, but like I said, country music is hard for me to talk about. If I gotta go off the dome and it comes out like this... Y'know, that's just how it is. And this is another good old country album — and a real breeze at only 28 minutes. Thumbs up from me. Give it a 4 like all the rest.

California

American Music Club

2/5

From the jump, I was not inclined to like this album. I mean, I see that someone on Wikipedia has labelled this album as "slowcore," and already I'm expecting the worst. With a name like "slowcore," you may as well just come out and tell me "this album is boring." The only genre label I've seen lately that outmatches it for "Oh, this is gonna be no fun at all, isn't it?" is gosh-darn "**sad**core." But, hey, hey now, that's just a genre name. I had no idea what it could even sound like. So, take a breath, procrastinate a day on playing it, and actually give it a chance. You never know; I might actually really dig it. And for the first couple of minutes, yeah, I was. It's not anything I'd go nutso over, and I'm not 100% with this guy's voice — there's **way too many times** it nearly verged into "I'M SO IMPORTANT SUCH A GOOD WRITER; PLEASE TAKE ME SERIOUSLY" but just narrowly stayed in "Like... Sure, fine? Whatever?"... But the backing instrumentals and melodies were all nice. Some pretty country-ish stuff; I'm down for this. I could maybe take a whole album of stuff like this, even if there's some quirks I hafta deal with... But then "Bad Liquor", the album's "big rocker," hit. Until this point, I was tryna fight off the easy thought of "Maybe this album sucks, actually?" Like, I'm giving it an honest chance; let's leave my knee jerk "I don't like the name 'slowcore'" reaction to the side for a moment and see if it's actually justified or not, eh? But with "Bad Liquor", the question mark in that thought turned into a flat period, and nothing else that happened the rest of the album could change my mind. Seriously, past "Bad Liquor", the album got interminable. The kind of experience where I'm desperate to see how much time is left, 'coz the album's such a slog that I feel like I'm trapped. Besides "Bad Liquor", it just never gets terribly interesting. Even the few songs I saw people in my group highlight as good ones didn't do much for me. It's just the same "who cares"/"whatever" over and over and over again. After I was done listening to this album, I hadda put on blink-182's CALIFORNIA so I could remember what an album I **like** with that state's name sounded like. (What kind of a name for a group is "American Music Club," by the way? Is this some LOVE LIVE! 'Japanese Idol Club' thing? Honestly, it gathers nearly enough irrational bother in me as The United States Of America did, but not enough to go on about it beyond this aside.) So... Aw, heck, I'm at a 2. There's not enough in here that I dislike that I'd give it a 1, but goodness me, I'm never gonna listen to it again. California, as a state, has and deserves better than this — and in fact, maybe "slowcore" does, too.

A Girl Called Dusty

Dusty Springfield

3/5

Frankly, I'm mostly finding myself... Like, just unsure why this album was included on this list. The way I figure it, if you've heard DUSTY IN MEMPHIS, you're probably good for Dusty Springfield albums you "need" to hear. It's the one with "Son Of A Preacher Man", after all. With a doubt, that's her greatest song, with or without a popularity boost from Tarantino. The rest of the album is pretty good blue-eyed soul, too, so... I'unno, I just can't imagine what else you're supposed to get from a **second** album of hers that IN MEMPHIS doesn't already provide. And it's not like this album provided a good answer. Like, yeah, it's a 60's pop album, composed entirely of covers. And, look, I'm not down on covers, or largely recording songs the artist didn't write; as long as the artist can provide something new or that makes it uniquely their own. Elvis did that all the time — and "Son A Preacher Man" falls into this as well, since not only did Dusty not write it, but it was originally meant for Aretha. Now, "Son Of A Preacher Man" turned out to be a classic, whether it's Dusty or Aretha singing it. Meanwhile, this album, being 100, makes me wonder what's so special about Dusty Springfield. She's a great singer, and she's got range, and it's all a pretty fun listen, but... What's the big deal about this album, besides the fact that it's from the woman who'd go on to be the second pick to sing "Son Of A Preacher Man"? I'm willing to bet, there's probably a dozen other records from 1964 alone that'd sound just as good as this one. So why does **this** hafta be something I **need** to hear before I die? Now, I'm not gonna be a complete jerk about that, like so many others would be. To my ears, this is still a pretty solid 3. It's a good listen that I can't say I didn't enjoy. I'm just lost on what that "special something" is really supposed to be. Like, this could have been any girl called anything, y'know? But, eh, whatever. I'm not gonna throw a fit about it. Besides, at least it was a way better listen for this Randomizer than American Music Club's CALIFORNIA, even if that's not a very high bar to clear. Jus', goodness.

Crosby, Stills & Nash

5/5

After I got done listening to this album, I had to go back and replay DÉJÀ VU, 'coz about halfway through the first side, this question suddenly popped into my head: "Do I actually like this better than DÉJÀ VU?" Now, normally when I get albums from The Randomizer I don't like to stray over to other ones. While I may reference other albums in my discussion, I want to have the work assigned to me be the only music in my head as I enter a discussion. Sometimes I cheat and get an outer-album song or two in there, but I never do full albums. But listening to this album, I couldn't help but think back to what I said about DÉJÀ VU and how, that time around, I ultimately wasn't as impressed as I was the first time around. I still acknowledge it as a classic album, but I supposed that the years in-between listens did a number on my opinion. In contrast, I'd never heard this album before, but, gosh darn, I was quick to groove with as easily as I had DÉJÀ VU that first time. And I just had to wonder, what was so different about that follow-up that I can click with this album that I hadn't heard as much about versus the other one that I had? And I didn't wanna say it was just Neil Young and call it a day. After RUST NEVER SLEEPS, I've been doin' pretty well with every other album of his that's been thrown my way (and there's still a **lot** left), so I don't wanna take the easy way out. What I ended up coming back to is this: consider "folk rock." Split it down the middle — "folk" and "rock." Neither album fully, completely one or the other, but I feel DÉJÀ VU is more on the "folk" side, whereas this album is closer to "rock." DÉJÀ VU clearly has way more refinement and polish than this one has, and maybe that's Young's influence, maybe it is... Whoever's influence it is, this album, meanwhile, just comes across to me as a bit rougher; a little more open to having electric guitars jam along with the acoustic ones. And, y'know, of course DÉJÀ VU has "Woodstock", "Cut My Hair" and even a little in "Carry On", but still, it doesn't feel like it has rock guitar to the extent that this one does. And, yeah, on a relisten, where I'm not tryna fight off falling asleep 'coz it turns out that's all my "listen on my back with my eyes closed" strategy does for me, I actually do like DÉJÀ VU as much as I used to. But as it turns out, I like this album more. Like, goodness, "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes" alone is a masterwork. Just an incredible journey. Plus, as amazing as the harmonies on DÉJÀ VU are, hearing them over the kind of songs that're on here are even better. I even dig the folkier acoustic songs that're here a bit more, to not focus on the rockers entirely. Jus', top to bottom, it's great. All that pre-"we've completely figured this group out" refinement, I'm tellin' yah... Goodness. So I guess Young's presence is really missed after all. Hm, well. Either way and anyway, y'know, I didn't think I'd spend as much of this review talking about DÉJÀ VU as the one I was actually supposed to discuss, but there yah go, I guess. And if I could go back and re-rate it, I'd give it the same 5 I'm giving this. Like, regardless of which one I prefer, they're both spectacular pieces of folk. Certainly, of all of the albums that sparked off the "California sound," between this, SWEETHEART OF THE RODEO and MUSIC FROM THE BIG PINK... Well, you can probably guess my pick. (And once again, if you ain't never heard Weird Al's "Mission Statement"... Like, besides an acoustic line lifted from "Carry On", it's basically just "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes". It's so good.)

Lost Souls

Doves

3/5

OK, OK, OK, I'll be fair here: it's not actually as bad as I thought it would be. Like, I'unno. I'd seen that one of the genre labels it'd been given on Wikipedia was "shoegaze," and between that and the fact that this thing is nearly an hour long... I was expecting a slog, quite frankly. Now, first of all, don't ask me what my problem with shoegaze even is, exactly. Taking a second to think about it, I... Well, I'm really not entirely sure. I suppose it's just an impression I have of its fanbase, where it's mostly hipsters who're really obnoxious about how their taste in music is better than mine. Even then, though, I can't tell you where I got that from. You can only imagine how happy I was, then, that this album didn't turn out to actually be as shoegaze as I thought. (Not that I could easily point it out without being told "that's what it is," but still.) However, that only means that I've gone from my pre-conception of "UURRRRGH, this is gonna be a SLOG" to my current opinion of "urrrggghhh, it's fine, I guess — whatever." I just... Really found it hard to care too much about this album. Sure, I'll grant it, it's got quite a few more melodies I like than I would've otherwise assumed, but... I'unno. It's just got this air about it that it's... Honestly, that it's low-rent Coldplay. And to be clear on two fronts, I actually really love Coldplay, and I don't actually mind it too much when a band's sound is another band's. To the former, well, I own copies of VIVA LA VIDA, A HEAD FULL OF DREAMS and MUSIC OF THE SPHERES — and if owning those last two isn't sign enough of me being a Coldplay fan... As for the latter, well, I'unno. If I like a sound, why would I necessarily complain about hearing more of it? That's why I was never too down on Greta Van Fleet, for instance — well, until I actually heard their music, but I was never gonna get on 'em for "sounding like Led Zeppelin." Here, though... I don't know. It could be that there's this part of my brain that wants to hold onto my knee-jerk negative preconception, so that there was ultimately nothing this band could do to win me over. That can be a bad habit I have sometimes with all forms of media, I'll admit. Just as well, however, honestly, I just... Didn't find this terribly exciting enough to truly wanna give it the benefit. Note that I did say this was "**low-rent** Coldplay" — "low-rent," specifically. The kind of rare soundalike where I just hafta wonder why I'm not just listening to the original. Y'know, ultimately, I just don't think they did the sound well enough. And as for the parts that don't fall under that "low-rent Coldplay" generalization, well, I'm not too wild about those parts, either. At best, I think they're alright, but nothing more than alright. So... I'unno. Give this thing a down the middle "it's fine" 3? Which, believe me, is still a step up from the 2 I was thinking I was gonna slap this thing with. I'm just left figuring, if I had gone in with a more open mind; if I had focused on any of the genre labels besides "shoegaze," I might have been more willing to go higher. Like, maybe the problem, ultimately, was just me preemptively deciding based on next to nothing that I wasn't gonna give it a chance. But, I'unno. This is just what I got out of this listen, and I don't wanna be anything but honest. Maybe a second listen would go over better — who knows?

Ready To Die

The Notorious B.I.G.

4/5

I don't feel like I've had a very good track record with East Coast hip-hop — what I consider as "East Coast hip-hop," anyway. 'Coz, see, THE LOW-END THEORY is an album I like a lot, but I don't actively think of it as such. After that, there's Nas's ILLMATIC, which I do consider "East Coast hip-hop" and also like, but I'm not particularly wild about... And then there's all the various Wu-Tang solo albums my group has gotten, which I've been pretty back-and-forth on. Now, I couldn't tell you what exactly it is about East Coast hip-hop I'm not too big on. Best I can figure is just that when you put it next to West Coast hip-hop and G-funk... Yeah, it's hardly a competition in my mind. Living as someone who's largely "melody first," the beats on G-funk albums do it so much harder for me. Despite all the parts of THE CHRONIC that haven't exactly aged well, I still dig it a lot for its incredible beat work, if nothing else. Although, there has always been one exception. In the East vs. West beef of the 90's, I've always preferred The Notorious B.I.G. to 2Pac. Part of it might just be that me and Biggie share a birthday a few years apart, and, y'know, me being me, I hold a bit of importance to that date. Beyond that, though... Well, I haven't heard a 2Pac album in forever, so I'll tell you what my thing is with him whenever The Randomizer gives my group one of his (know for now, at least, that I do **like** him; not just as much as Biggie). And, look, I think it's worth addressing right now, before anything else, the parts of **this** album that haven't aged terribly well. To begin with, there's a pretty healthy dose of misogyny and homophobia. It's not something I'm really gonna ding this album before, since it's unfortunately a pretty common trait of rap records around this time period, but it's still a factor. I mean, you got a song that'd otherwise be a pretty sad (fictional) story about Biggie's wife getting shot dead in place of him — except that the song's called "Me And My Bitch", and he spends the entire song referring to her as, well, "his bitch." It undercuts things a little, y'know? (Let's not even touch "Friend Of Mine", goodness.) Then there's the other elephant in the room: Diddy. He's all over this dang album — and not even as a featured artist, like Method Man. No, he just... Keeps showing up. Y'know, to do ad libs and act as Biggie's hype man... And, I mean, this sorta thing might just be an element of rap music I just haven't encountered, but goodness me, if it don't come across like Diddy's just piggybacking off of Biggie's success. Y'know, like these songs are just happening like normal, then out of nowhere Diddy runs in and is like "I'M HERE TOO! I'M HERE TOO! I'M ON THIS SONG AS WELL! I HAVE LINES ON 'JUICY' AND 'BIG POPPA'! I'M A CONTRIBUTOR!" Like, jeez, man. I know Biggie's your discovery or whatever, but just stick to producing. This guy's ass, tainting Biggie's rep in the 2020's by association... It sucks. I also wanna say I'm not too big on a lot of the skits? Like the one that's Biggie having sex with a girl, or the, like, ten uninterrupted seconds of mouth sounds hidden at the end of "Respect". I don't have many problems with skits on rap albums, but these strike me as ones like, "Why would I listen to these every time I spun this album?" But finally, let's get to the parts of the album I like. Biggie, for all the lyrics that haven't aged too well, I think it's phenomenal on the mic. Generally, I really like his voice, but I also like his flow and storytelling. Like, sure, the songs where he's just bragging about how he's gonna shoot, or about how good he is at The Sex™, they're just as good as any other song of this type. However, the storytelling on songs like "Warning", "Gimme The Loot"... Even "Me And My Bitch", despite its problems. I just find his way of words in these songs so engaging and interesting. Plus, I gotta give props, too, to the songs looking at the hood and his life: "Things Done Changed" and, of course, the masterpiece that is "Juicy". Just amazing looks into his life and life around. The beats are great as well. Sure, there's nothing on the level of any of the G-funk classics I've bumped so often, but these are maybe the best I've ever heard from the East Coast from the list. There could be an album I'm forgetting, but, hey, I can't think of what it could be, so... Shout-outs, too, to the sampled hook on "Big Poppa". I really like that hook, I'unno why. Then we have the closer, "Suicidal Thoughts". It's — y'know, it's always gotten to me that this is the way this album ends. Like, it opens with his birth, and then a quick skim through the rest of his life until this album — his family life, his arrest, his release from jail... And then the rest of the album, y'know, while there are dark spots, he's still bragging about how he's gonna kill you, about how he's good at The Sex™, about how he's made it despite how no one believed in him... The biggest hint something's on is the title track — heck, the title — but until this song, it doesn't seem like too much next to "Machine Gun Funk" and "Friend Of Mine". But then you hit this song, and... Well, if I can quote a disciple of 2Pac, "Money can't stop a suicidal weakness." It's the one song on the album where I don't mind the presence of Diddy. I wish it coulda been someone else, but still, having another voice on the track, starting out confused but then by the end begging B.I.G. to not do it... Goodness. It's chilling, honestly. It's the kind of closer that I can't take lightly; I hafta sit there and just... Let it wash over me. Like, damn. Damn. Made all the worse by the fact that Biggie did, though not by his own hand, actually die not too after this album came out. It makes the opening of the posthumous album LIFE AFTER DEATH, where it's revealed that B.I.G. survived the attempt, kind of sad, actually. And a bit cruel, in the cosmic sense. Like, for good reasons, I can't justify giving this thing a full 5/5. There's just a bit too much of that plays wrong in 2025 for me to go there. It's still, however, absolutely a 4/5. A great album from a great artist who, alongside 2Pac, was taken from the world too soon. It was all a dream...

Meat Is Murder

The Smiths

4/5

To this point, I have not been very happy with what I've heard from Morrissey. Either his music's been shoulder shruggingly "ehhhh, fiiiine" like on VIVA HATE, or I just could not get past what an asshole he is like with YOU ARE THE QUARRY. I mean, for someone who used to be part of such a well-respected band, I'm a little surprised that the stuff he made without them hasn't been that great, at least to my ears. Well, today I got to find out at least one part of what that band was all about. My group, at last, was given an album by The Smiths — finally, an album with Morrissey that I figure people generally actually like! And, hey, it's the one with the title that relates to one of those things I hear Morrissey is very annoying about! But let's put that aside for the moment, though, and just answer the simple question: did Morrissey fare any better with a band behind him? Oh, goodness, yes. Absolutely, yes. I like this way more than anything else I've heard involving Morrissey. Seriously, all the credit to Johnny Marr for actually writing music I can be engaged with. It's often pretty rockin' and driving, and, ahh, mmm, it's so enjoyable. I'll take this tenfold over the "restrained and refined" whatever that VIVA HATE had going on. Y'know, that this is particularly wild or rough, but goodness, it doesn't feel the need to be nearly as uptight and respectable, y'know? Then we've got the lyrics, which, like usual, I wasn't able to catch all of. Jus' how I am. However, from the little bits I were able to catch, this isn't nearly as aggravating as YOU ARE THE QUARRY was. That album, at various times, felt either like Morrissey complaining about how awful everyone else is or Morrissey being smug about how **great** he is. Real asshole behaviour. Meanwhile, here — well, I can't pull any specific overarching theme out, but just the fact that I didn't wanna skoosh him for anything he said is a major point in this album's favor. Even the closer and title track wasn't as obnoxious about its veganism as I would've thought it'd be. Another point, too: I found Morrissey's voice better here than on any of his later solo albums. Which, maybe it's just a case of better backing instrumentals making him sound better as a result, but whatever the case, I'll take it. Big respects as well to the band for playing as well as they did, of course. So... Well, shucks. I'm pleasantly surprised! If this is what The Smiths generally sounded like, then yeah, I can understand just from this alone why they were held in such high regard. Even if it did lead to Morrissey becoming such a name on his own... Well, y'can't really hold that against the music, can yah But anyway, as for a rating, uhm... I'm really tempted to give this thing a 5? Which, goodness, ain't that an improvement from the 3's and 2's I've otherwise been givin' this guy's work? Ultimately I think I'm happy with a high 4. 'Coz I needa remember, the 5 is for big "Wow, this touches in my soul" reactions — or at least close enough — and as much as I like this, it just didn't quite get there. Still, it's the best thing I've ever heard from Moirrissey, and I can only hope their most famous album (THE QUEEN IS DEAD) is even better.

Solid Air

John Martyn

4/5

Singer-songwriters were never gonna easily be my friend. Especially not once I read a line somewhere that said something to the effect of "Singer-songwriters are poets pretending to be musicians." 'Coz that's just it, isn't it? With these types, what's important are the words, with the actual instrumentals backing them often not being much more than a bed for them. That's not to say there aren't singer-songwriter types who don't aim to do more with the melodies than act as breaks between segments of poetry, like Bob Dylan's harmonica solos, but more often than not... Yeah, that's how they really come across to me. Even though I've liked my fair share of them, I still always kinda groan a little whenever I see an album labelled as such, 'coz how they make music is completely antithetical to how I enjoy music. I've stated this many times before: I'm melody first. I don't often pay attention to lyrics 'coz I'm typically bad at understanding poetry. So, a genre of music that places **all** of the emphasis on the lyrics... Heck, even more than rap, 'coz at least there there can be hot beats. The most you can often hope for with these 60's and 70's singer-songwriters is a **lot** of acoustic guitar. How's this one fair, though? How does it fit into my perception of singer-songwriters? To begin with, of course I didn't pay too much attention to lyrics. Not even the title track, which is a tribute to Nick Drake (which I did feel a bit bad about, but, y'know, I are what I is). Although, without actively reading the lyrics, I'm not sure how many I would be able to gather by myself anyway. Like, I can completely hear the criticism I heard about his kind of "mumbly" delivery. Y'know, the kind of "serious, sensitive" kind of deal. I wouldn't go so far as to call it "baby talk" like that one review did, but I wouldn't exactly give this guy high points for diction. Listening to it as another instrument, though — well, I've probably heard better, but for what he's doing, it's not bad. It can be pretty nice in some spots. (I do like the bits of lyrics I heard about jelly, though.) What really got me, though... So, I was talking about how in this genre instrumentation is basically being an after-thought, right? That is absolutely not the case here. There's a lot of tracks where the instrumentation is just, ahh, so good. So good. It's not every track; some of them fall back into acoustic strumming, or diversions into Da Blues. But the tracks that **do** go above, into jazzier sounds? Goodness me. Like, even if I didn't pay attention to the **lyrics** of the title track, the **music** was enough to carry me through. I'm especially impressed knowing that the song wasn't written with an arrangement in mind, so this is just them jamming out. It's darn good stuff. And then you got a lot of the stuff going on over at the end of "Dreams By The Sea"? Like, that may be the single prettiest moment on the whole album, I think, beyond how the rest of the song is way funkier than I would've expected from a singer-songwriter album. So, once again, I judged a book by its cover and was actually pretty happy with its contents once I took a look inside. It's a recurring thing, 'coz as much as I wanna claim that genres don't really mean much to me... Well, as you can tell. Made all the funnier once you actually go and look at this album's genres on Wikipedia, and none of them are actually "singer-songwriter"; I just saw John himself describe that way and extrapolated from there. I may as well have taken issue with how he's Scottish for how much it should mean. (And for the record, this website classifies this album as such, but I didn't see it until I was almost done writing this review.) Let's quickly bring this to a close. This is a 4 from me — possibly rounded up from a 3.5 depending on how much the songs that're more strictly folk bounced off of me, but a 4 nonetheless. I just think the jazzy and psychedelic excursions are just that good, and well surpass my typical negative expectations for this kind of music. Will it mean that in the future I'll be kinder towards singer-songwriter albums? Probably not. But at least this one's on my good side, and, hey, it ain't nothing. I hope John's resting in peace.

Highway to Hell

AC/DC

5/5

AC/DC has never been a terribly complicated band. They make rock n' roll — in fact, all they do is make rock n' roll. It's not something they're unaware of, nor ashamed of. You might've seen a quote floating around: "I'm sick to death of people saying we've made 11 albums that sound exactly the same. In fact, we've made 12 albums that sound exactly the same." To some people — heck, to a lot of people, really — this is a huge issue. Like, why would a band do that, just make the same music over and over again? Why would anyone need to listen to more than one album from this group? Heck, more than a small handful of songs, if it's really true all the albums sound alike. Here's the thing, though: AC/DC are good at what they do. They're **really** good at what they do. Regardless of what song or album you're listening to, this hard and fast rock and blues stuff kicks so, so, **so** much ass. That's what's kept them around and as popular as they have been for so many years. It's that you know exactly what you're getting into when you put on an AC/DC album: badass rock music and a good time — no more, no less. It being so simple is the point. In fact, I'd smack down the line that they're repetitive and say that they're more **incredible consistent**. Like, sure, some albums do the sound and formula better than others, but you'd hardly go wrong picking one over the other. In that regard, I've always compared them to Motörhead, another band who makes badass rock n' roll and could be accused of making the same album 20 times. (And for real, like you don't get a kick out of this album's title track, or BACK IN BLACK's title track, or LET THERE BE ROCK's title track, or FOR THOSE ABOUT TO ROCK WE SALUTE YOU's title track, or "Thunderstruck", or "It's A Long Way To The Top", or T.N.T.'s title track... A lot of their title tracks are very popular.) But anyway, that's enough a defense of AC/DC as a group and their sound. What about this album specifically? What makes it so notable it ends up on a list like this, and even 200 on the 2012 Rolling Stone 500? I mean, jeez, it's ranked one spot better than THE DOWNWARD SPIRAL. What's it got goin' for it? Well, of course there's the unfortunate historical context: that this was Bon Scott's last AC/DC album before he passed away tragically young. Seriously, he was only 33 at the time. Just tragic. And while, yes, in a literal sense he was replaceable; AC/DC would soldier on with Brian Johnson... Let's not kid ourselves: Bon Scott was one of a kind. AC/DC would never again sound exactly the same without him, even as much as I do love Brian Johnson and his goblin voice. I mean, I'm not gonna like I've always been a #1 Bon Scott believer; like most other people, I was introduced to Brian Johnson-led hits first. Plus, don't mistake me, I'd never wanna nudge too close to people who're really obnoxious about Paul Di'Anno being a better singer than Bruce Dickinson. That's an annoying realm to exist in. But all the same, y'know, it's an undeniable fact. Johnson's great, but Scott's voice is just way more "hard rock party good times," and, y'know, that's what AC/DC is, at its core. And to that end, the other reason why HIGHWAY TO HELL is here is that it's simply the best the band would ever sound with Bon Scott fronting it. No disrespect to the albums that came before this, particularly LET THERE BE ROCK, but it's like I said: some albums do their sound and formula better than others. And goodness me, does this one ever. Like, there's not even anything I can particularly say that you can't gather just listening to the music. You can hear Angus Young's wild solos. You can hear Malcolm Young keeping the riff's consistent. You can hear Cliff Williams's bass grooving along. You can hear Phil Rudd's locksteady drums keeping it all in place. This is the kind of music where you turn your stereo up to 11 and just rock the hell out. And if you're lookin' for deep cuts beyond the title track, well, I think "Love Hungry Man" is really good. Reminds me of KISS, actually (and I mean that in the best way; I do like KISS a lot). Angus says it's their worst record, and,'ey, I'm gonna say it's their best, but "worst?" Even "bad?" No way. Well, that was a lot more words about AC/DC than I think I was expecting to say — and at this point, I don't think I have any left that wouldn't just be repeating myself. That's gonna make it real fun when my group gets around to covering BACK IN BLACK, but let's not get ahead of ourselves and just close shop on this one. It's a 5, and it's not purely an uncritical one. It's AC/DC at the top of their game, and it's a game I'm more than happy to see them keep replaying. Like, this album was never meant to be Bon Scott's last — in fact, they were working on BACK IN BLACK material right before they passed. I hear it's a hot debate topic whether he should be credited for lyrics or not. But with a few exceptions, no one gets to choose their last work, and as one... Well, I can't think of a better record for him to leave us with. I say this for you, Bon: "Shazbot. Nanu nanu." BWAMP.

Sound of Silver

LCD Soundsystem

3/5

This ended up being kind of an odd break between the stuff I planned to listen to today — which is to say, Frank Sintra's "feels bad, man" sad albums to try and ignore what was happening today, and then Rage Against The Machine's debut to actively engage with what was happening today. You can see how I was tryna be, right? Y'know? And I coulda stuck to just that, but I didn't see any reason to put today's album off, so I snuck it in and here we are. And what fun, it ended up probably being my least favorite kind of album to get from this list. Yes, it's the unfortunate classic: the "I acknowledge that this is a very good album, even a great album, but ultimately it just really doesn't inspire me to say much about it" kind of album. But maybe not even that; honestly, I felt a little underwhelmed for most of the runtime. And that sucks, 'coz I'm the kinda person who **loves** to rattle off their thoughts about and relations to an album, across maybe hundreds of words. It's kind of my thing, I figure. But when I start making my review about how I can write a good review, well... Like, at this point, I don't think it's a problem with me and my ability to express myself. Lemme put it like this. I saw a review not from this website that described a song from this album as "dance music for grown-ups." And y'know what that description reminds me of, honestly? Grape Nuts. Bran Flakes. All the cereal I see in the aisle and go, "Why should that have to be the cereal I 'graduate' to once I grow up? There are people who really give up Froot Loops and Cap'n Crunch and Nesquik and all that for gawdamn **Grape Nuts**?" Which, I don't think this album is as bland as comparing it to Grape Nuts would imply — I do think it's good, even great music, regardless of how underwhelmed I was by it — but if this is dance music for grown-ups, gimme some damn Froot Loops. It largely just bounced off me, and I don't think it was solely because I was also busy distracting myself doing outfit sketches for an OC. I just didn't really get into it too much until "Us V Them", and by that point, it felt a bit too late. Not even the closer could really save my opinion, and I liked it a **lot** for how it reminded me of Ben Folds. So... Yeah, I'm gonna be the outlier in my group again, I figure. 'Coz while they're probably gonna give this thing 5's, honestly, I'm feeling more like a 3. That's more a reflection of my enjoyment than how I feel about it quality-wise, but ultimately, it still feels like the best one for me to give it. Jus' how it be sometimes. LCD Soundsystem, your album's fine, but that fact's bringing me down.

In Utero

Nirvana

5/5

There's a line I remember about this album — and don't ask me where I got this line from, but the way I remember it going is, basically, "IN UTERO was made with the purpose and intent of losing every fan Nirvana had made with NEVERMIND." Whether or not that's exactly true, it's always been the lens through which I've understood this album. It's not an entirely unreasonable assumption. You listen to the noisiest tracks off of NEVERMIND and there's a level of polish present in them so that they won't scare off people who bought the CD for "Smells Like Teen Spirit". The guitars are heavy, and the drums can do machine gun fills, but none of it's mixed to be too loud or abrasive. Meanwhile, you contrast that with a lot of the songs on this album, with its whining feedback, up-to-eleven fuzz and distortion, confrontationally descending riffs... Goodness, just how Kurt screams a lot of the lyrics. There's hardly any concessions to mainstream appeal beyond, like, one or two songs — and you could argue that they're only there because the album couldn't be 100% noise. They're not The Jesus & Mary Chain, after all. But, I mean, even the big lead single, "Heart-Shaped Box", doesn't strike me as exactly the friendliest sound for radio. Honestly, listening to NEVERMIND directly after IN UTERO, I can really understand why some people in my group said pretty quickly after the album was revealed that it was Nirvana's best. NEVERMIND, despite how good the material is and how important it is to popularizing grunge, can sound like a compromise when placed next to how raw and punk IN UTERO is. It can feel like NEVERMIND is only considered Nirvana's best album because it has the big pop hits, overshadowing the true genius found in songs on IN UTERO like "Milk It", "Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle" and "Radio-Friendly Unit Shifter". For my money... I will say, I actually am inclined to agree with that to an extent, although I would still say NEVERMIND is my favorite. See, I'm someone who likes polish and big pop hits. "In Bloom" and "On A Plain" might not have that raw punk sensibility of abrasive noise, but damn it, they're killer songs with great hooks. NEVERMIND isn't as acclaimed as it is for nothing, after all, and I can't front: polish and hooks are more often than not I'm gonna return to first over anything else. I mean, I don't think it's not nothing that besides the songs that were released as singles, the track I return to the most from IN UTERO is "Dumb", an outlier in the track listing for being a mellower song with a cello. The rest, let's be real, can blend into the mush of "noise." But as for IN UTERO as Nirvana's best album, meanwhile — y'know, I wanna start off by making something clear about my perspective. When I say that this album was made to lose all of the fans they'd gotten with NEVERMIND, there's sometimes a part me that subliminally extrapolates that to their **entire** fanbase. As if this album was supposed to be their equivalent of Eminem's ENCORE or Bob Dylan's SELF PORTRAIT; just a giant middle finger to the fans, the critics, the label, the expectations, everything and everyone. Clearly, though, they did still want people to **like** this album; I don't think you'd have the mellower songs like "Pennyroyal Tea", "Dumb" and "All Apologies", and I don't think they would've left off songs like "I Hate Myself And Want To Die" if that were the case. What it's more about is that this album was designed, from its conception, to be the kind of album the band would like to buy. So, y'know, y'still got your share of pop-ish moments (Kurt **did** love MEET THE BEATLES!, after all), but it's louder and way more unrestrained. And if we're to view this album, then, as the band's "true sound," unchained from concessions... Yeah, in that sense, absolutely, it's the best thing they ever made. So, despite my small reservation about this album falling into "noise for noise's sake," I can't give it any less than a 5 like I gave their other two albums on this list. It's incredible, from Kurt, Dave and Krist's performances, down to Steve Albini's decision to get out of the band's way and let them make the sound they wanted to. I don't reach for it as often as NEVERMIND, but I don't hafta in order to recognize its greatness. All in all, that's all it is. Kurt Cobain (1967-1994) Steve Albini (1962-2024)

Fever To Tell

Yeah Yeah Yeahs

4/5

Until today, the only thing I knew about this album was that it was in ROCK BAND. For real, besides the name of what song was in the game specifically ("Maps"), that's everything. Honestly, I couldn't even tell you what the song **sounded** like, 'coz I don't think I ever went out of my way to play it. (I mean, I never really played many songs from ROCK BAND 1 anyway; I wasn't used to the kind of fast strumming some of these songs required, so I mostly avoided them.) If I'd had to guess just based on the album cover... I'unno. Some kinda "Hot Topic fringe" emo? On the wannabe, try-hard side, like Simple Plan or Good Charlotte. I could probably get some "guilty pleasure"/"so bad it's good" enjoyment out of it... So it turned out I was entirely off the mark, 'coz not only is this album sung by a woman (Karen O, who I think I kept mistaking for Wendy O., namesake of one of the Koopalings), but this song was... Way indie-r than I would've assumed. A little soulful, even, although I wouldn't straight-up call it "soul." I mean, yeah, it kind of sounds like if the verses of Kelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone" never turned into the chorus, but I'd still take it over the Maroon 5 song of the same name, for as much as that's worth. I guess this was gonna be the album, then, huh? Indie rock? It;s... Far from my favorite genre in the world, but sure, whatever. I could probably tolerate it... And so it turned out I was wrong again, 'coz, see, "Maps" is actually an **outlier**. The rest of the album, as I found out, is more SCOTT PILGRIM movie soundtrack garage rock. Like, seriously, you play me "Maps" and any other song from this album back-to-back, I never would have guessed they were both from the same band — and, honestly, I'm kinda grateful. Seriously, if the rest of the album sounded like "Maps", this would probably be a much shorter review. Honestly, I kind of don't get the fuss about "Maps". I won't say it's bad, but it's just kinda... There? And doesn't really go anywhere besides that one guitar part. I mean, I suppose I can hear why it was the big hit of the album when put next to everything else, but that doesn't really help my opinion of "Maps", y'know? As for the rest of the album, like I said, it's SCOTT PILGRIM movie soundtrack music. It's a big garage rock sound, which, yeah, I guess a hint of indie in there, but not enough that it bothers me. And, hey, I like that soundtrack, and invoking it was my sole reason for why I gave that Hives album a 4, so... Yeah, I dig this. I suppose if I had any complaints... Well, Karen O has a great voice, let's not get that twisted. She's killer on these songs. Hell, even on "Maps", which is maybe the "indie rock" safest her voice gets the whole album. But I don't front, there are times it does kind of get to me a little. Like, OK, there's a review of this album on this website that gives it a 1/5 because there are a lot of times where the songs go "Ha-ha, we're saying this dark thing in a girly voice, aren't we cute?" And that sort of thing didn't bother me enough to wanna lower the score that low (helps that I hardly pay attention to what albums say in the first place), but I'd lie if there weren't a few vocal lines that... Mm, didn't hit me right, terribly much. Otherwise... Yeah, no. I thoroughly enjoyed this. It's not gonna replace ELEPHANT as my go-to for a garage rock fix, but I'unno, today it just hit the spot right. I can happily give it a 4. So, y'know, good on you. I like you, Yeah Yeah Yeahs. With a score like that, you know you should be glad.

Happy Sad

Tim Buckley

2/5

Off the top, I just wanna say, if for my own sake if anybody's, that it was tragic Tim Buckley died as young as he did. He was only 28 — I mean, goodness. That's a sort of sentiment I feel like should go without saying. Big "No, duh," right? But I wanna bring it up 'coz of this idea that gets lodged in my head every time I find out an artist died: that to openly dislike their work would be in some way disrespectful. It feels like kicking a dead man when he's down, y'know? The whole "don't speak ill of the dead" thing. But, like, disliking an artist's work and respecting them after they've passed are two different things, right? I mean, just because I might not like someone's output, that doesn't mean I can't be gentle about how or when they passed. There's no hard obligation either way. And of course, having an artist's passing in mind when engaging with their work can actually bring something extra to it — I gave high praise to stuff like PACIFIC OCEAN BLUE and IF YOU WANT IT DARKER because of their proximity, after all. Not to mention, that sort of thing is why ★ has the reputation it does (that'll be a fun one to get to). (And, yeah, we'd all prefer all of those artists still be alive, but y'know.) So, jus', please believe me that I have no ill will against Tim Buckley when I say that I found this album kind of painfully boring. Like... **Painfully** boring. At first I was thinking it was just a thing where my undiagnosed ADHD causes me to get sleepy and yawn a lot when I try to sit down and just focus on music, but no, no. It just does that little for me. I mean, this thing was already fighting an uphill battle for being a folk singer-songwriter album. As I've expressed many times before, I do **not** do well with singer-songwriter music — check my review of SOLID AIR for the full lowdown on that. The short version is that this kind of music, especially from the 70's, largely ends up being poetry that just so happens to be set to music, and poetry is not what I come to music for. Although, it's actually fitting I get to bring up SOLID AIR. That's an album I actually ended like quite a fair bit thanks to how jazz-y it could get. Seriously, specific shout out to the end of "Dream By The Sea", goodness. Now, this album tries to get its jazz thing on, too, but... I mean, it mostly just amounts to a vibraphone being present on every track? So, great, not only is it the usual acoustic plonking, but you've also got a vibraphone meandering around, too. They just never do anything interesting. I'd honestly believe me if you told me that none of these songs had arrangements and that they just improvised the whole thing. Which, heck, puts it a step below SOLID AIR again, 'coz that's exactly what happened with its title track and it came out a **lot** better. It doesn't help that the songs are as long as they are. The shortest is the closer, at only two-and-a-half minutes, but the rest are all over five, and two of them are over **ten**. They just drag on and on and **on** without ever realizing that maybe they should actually **go** somewhere. Like, I really tried to just give myself to the music and let it take me away with its beauty, but besides parts of "Dream Letter" and "Gypsy Woman"... Look, if I can quote a fanmade Rap Battle with Huggy Wuggy: "You call it experimental; I call it b-boring as fuck." I'm honestly surprised that keeping Tim's passing in mind isn't causing me to be any kinder to this album, but there you go, I guess. And that's why it kind of bums me out to give this thing a 2. I know I said above that I'm not obligated to like this album; that I can still respect Buckley and his passing regardless of how I feel about it, but... Gosh, that doesn't mean I hafta feel **good** about this rating, y'know? And I was seriously considering at least bumping this thing up to a 3 for the parts of "Dream Letter" and "Gypsy Woman", but even the appeal I find in those can't last forever with how dang **long** those songs are. So, yeah. It's another one of those "That's just how it is sometimes" reviews from me. All I can hope for is that if there's another Tim Buckley album on this list I can get more of it than I did this one. Oh, and that I manage to get something out of his **son's** album, too. Goodness, it would **not** make me good if I disparaged albums from **both** of them...

A Hard Day's Night

Beatles

5/5

The crazy thing to remember about A HARD DAY'S NIGHT, both the album and film, is that it wasn't meant to be good — and certainly not some of the greatest work this band would do in either medium. 'Coz let's recognize, when United Artists got The Beatles under contract to do all this, all they were expecting was a quickie exploitation film; a cashgrab. At best, they probably figured, they'd get something like Elvis's movies: some cheap rush job with flimsy plot meant to do nothing more than to prop up the boys galavanting about and singing songs. They didn't care; the fans would come to see their boys on the big screen regardless of if it was good or not. Heck, they'd buy the **album** regardless it was good or not — which would promote the film, while the film promoted the album... It was a genius strategy. Or at least it was until the Colonel had it milked dry by the middle-end of the 60's. Seriously, you didn't wanna be Elvis in the middle-late 60's — but that's a story for another day... So imagine everyone's surprise, then, when The Beatles and director Richard Lester pulled up with a film that was actually really, **really** good. Instead of Elvis driving cars or doing the clam around Hawaii, they got a cinéma vértié-style look into 36 hours into the band's life at the time ("[A] train and a room, and a car and a room, and a room and a room"), which is kept from being depressing by the witty and clever dialogue dispensing Liverpudlian humor and some brilliant songs. Add in how charming The Beatles were on screen, plus some innovative camera work during the musical sequences, and you have a movie that'd wind up in the Criterion Collection for being a precursor to MTV and music videos. In short, besides YELLOW SUBMARINE (a personal favorite), it's the best film the band would ever be involved in. And about those songs (this **is** supposed to be an album review, after all)... Frankly, I consider this album a triumph; the peak and pinnacle of their first three albums — their "beat"/"boy band" phase, as I think of it. I mean, come on, it's the only album in their entire discography written solely by Lennon and McCartney: a whole 13 songs worth! Not even SGT. PEPPER'S can make that claim thanks to George's "Within You Without You" (which is a fantastic song, of course). And the fact that they all came out as strong as they did — goodness! The title track is among the best album openers this band has ever had. I mean, the iconic opening chord alone would be enough to cement that fact, but then you get into how frenetic the rest of the song is, from those bongos to the guitar/piano duet solo that had to be recorded at half speed for how fast it is. "I Should Have Known Better" is one of my favorite harmonica rollicks from the band, "If I Fell" and "And I Love Her" are both beautiful acoustic ballads... Goodness, that one high backing vocal on "Tell Me Why" ("If there's anything I can do-ooo-ooo") gets me every time, it's great. Honestly, among the first side, the weakest song here might be "I'm Happy Just To Dance With You", but I enjoy George enough as a singer that I can hardly mind it. Besides, when side A closes with another of the band's best-ever songs, "Can't Buy Me Love", I bet you're hardly thinking about the weak points. Which brings us to the second side of the record. In what was apparently tradition for British soundtracks at the time, it consists of a bunch of extra songs. Y'know, a just-under-equal smattering of bonus tunes to go along with the ones from the movie. And they're... I mean, I'm not gonna lie; they **are** a bit of a step down. In fact, if there's anywhere you might miss the covers the band included on their first two albums, it's here. But all the same, I think they're generally strong enough that my earlier remark about this being the pinnacle of their beat phase stands. I mean, heck, at one point "I'll Cry Instead" was considered good enough for the movie itself. It only didn't end up on side one because they figured "Can't Buy Me Love" was tonally a better fit for the scene it would've scored — and even then, it still wound up on the American version of the soundtrack, even if by accident. I do like "Any Time At All" as a side opener. Jus' the way it goes "THUMP!" and, well, we're off running. Plus, I've always had a soft spot for "You Can't Do That", in part because of its early inclusion on another American release, THE BEATLES' SECOND ALBUM. That's not on this list, unlike MEET THE BEATLES!, but I still wanna recommend it anyway for being a good encapsulation of the band's early rock n' roll songs. As for the other three, they're all pretty enjoyable. I like how "When I Get Home" walks, with its "WAOH-OH-IIIIII"s; "Things We Said Today" has a nice vocal from paul, and I enjoy that "hard strum" riff it has; and I think "I'll Be Back" plays as a nice album closer, what with the repeating riff it fades out on. Not to mention, as a meta-promise to the fans... Boy, would they ever be. At any rate, I kinda doubt anyone would find the songs on side B weak enough that they'd actively bring side A down. Side A is just such an incredible run of songs, making it easily the music from this phase I've returned to the most often. By itself it gives this whole album a 5. Like, sure, PLEASE PLEASE ME has originals like its title track, and WITH THE BEATLES has covers like "You've Really Got A Hold On Me", but put them in context of their entire record side and they can't quite compare. And for real, if you haven't seen the movie yet, what're you even waiting for? Go do yourself a favor and watch it. I know I'll be watching it, and singing along as loudly as I can. Goodness.

British Steel

Judas Priest

5/5

Y'know, instead of spending half the review on prose like I did the last time I talked about a legend of British heavy metal, let's cut straight to the point: this album kicks serious ass. Front to back, it's 36 minutes of nonstop riffing and soloing, and it's **awesome**. As you can tell, I'm not particularly complex when it comes to what I want from metal albums. Heck, I'd probably even call myself a little simple, or even shallow. It's probably why I have so little trouble loving hair metal as much as I do. I mean, if a metal album makes me scrunch up my face like "Aw, hell yeah, that's **sick**," then it did its job right and **I'M A HAPPY GIRL**. And seriously, this album has all the right things going for it. Like my tastes in metal, they're not terribly complicated, but... Goodness. You take that twin guitar attack from K.K. and Glen... Those just awe-inspiring vocals from Halford... Not to mention, the **choruses** he gets to sing throughout — you might call 'em cheesy and commercial; I call 'em **AMAZING**... And you just lock it all down with Holland's rocksteady drumming... I've called Black Sabbath's "classical metal" for being the prometheus flame of metal, and honestly, I'm incredibly tempted to call this album the same for 80's metal. At the very least I'd call it traditional metal for how much it clearly inspired bands that came afterwards. I can hear so many of them in this album, from Maiden to Metallica... It's inspiring, honestly. (Seriously, though, "Rapid Fire" sounds so much like an Iron Maiden song it honestly kind of stuns me. You just so easily hear Bruce Dickinson singing it, goodness. Gawd, the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal — that's really the good shit right there.) No "duh" this album is a full 5 outta 5 for me. It's just so... Fwoof, man, I feel like I've run out of synonyms for "kickass." 'Cuz that's just what it is, without question, and that's all I have and need to say about it. Unless you're just **that snobbish** about metal — and I know some people can be **really** snobbish — I can't imagine not having a good time with this. And I really don't envy the random 60's singer-songwriter psychedelic folk album The Randomizer is gonna give my group after this, 'cuz, boy, ain't it gonna look like an absolute smoldering nothing next to this absolute face-melter. Seriously, jus' give us MASTER OF PUPPETS or Iron Maiden's debut already, I swear...

Ramones

5/5

ONE TWO THREE FOUR I've talked a bit before about "classical genre albums" — the albums that, to my ears, are **the** sound of their genre at their basest, simplest forms. Y'know, there are the examples I've mentioned before: Black Sabbath's debut is "classical metal," Dr. Dre's THE CHRONIC is "classical G-funk," and so on. It doesn't necessarily have to be the **first** album in a genre, but it helps a lot. It just has to be the album that, to your ears, is the genre at its most basic, without any fluff. And this album... Boy, yeah, this is "classical punk," without a doubt in my mind. I'm sure there could be a case made for the Sex Pistols' debut, since that has a lot of the snot, and even some of the political commentary, that the genre would later become well known for... But let's not kid ourselves: the Sex Pistols wouldn't exist without the Ramones. To me, the Ramones and this album are to punk what, like, Nirvana and NEVERMIND are to grunge (that album is "classical grunge," by the way). Like, there's no pretense or aspirations to anything big on here. Y'know, nothing is aiming shots at the monarchy or anything like that — or even that complex, for that matter. There's plenty of songs on here that consist of only three lines at most, nothing they sing about is terribly complicated (besides one song about, uh, Nazism),and musically speaking most of them don't aim for anything more than "buzzsaw these three chords." And let's be clear: that's the appeal. I've seen people give this album a 1 because it's repetitive and most all the songs sound similar to each other, but I give it the same defense I've given AC/DC and Motörhead: it's just what they do, and they're just that good at it. Like, if you come into a Ramones album expecting much more than raw "three chords and the truth" punk, that's on you. It's a rush of pure energy, and, bluntly, it's fucking awesome. I also wanna draw particular attention to "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend", probably the biggest outlier in the track listing because of how slow it is and because of its use of instruments like tubular bells. Of all of the songs on the album, it's the one with the clearer influence from 60's girl groups, which is something I've always felt like has been the secret ingredient in the Ramones' music. Sure, I love what an adrenaline shot this album is from how simply fast and loud it is, but it's the way they incorporate girl group-style lead and backing vocals on top that pushes things into another realm entirely. Like, "The KKK Took My Baby Away" is my favorite Ramones song because of how melodically similar it is to a girl group song. Swap out the guitars and tempo (and the KKK, too, I guess) and when you're left with just the melody, it's not too far off. So it should come as no surprise that "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend" is my favorite song here — second place going to "Beat On The Brat", largely because Weird Al has covered it, but also it just has a fun vocal line to sing/shout along to. Simply put, not only is this one of the greatest debut albums of all time, but absolutely a definitive and landmark album — and not just within punk, I don't think. It's a burst of simple, loud joy that I'm hard pressed to find any fault in. Not even the fact that it just barely isn't even a half-hour long is an issue; that just means they knew exactly what they wanted to do and didn't bullshit around. And, sure, I might gravitate a bit more towards their later albums for how they managed to expand upon what they laid root here, but that doesn't change what a raw blast this is. It's a 5 and big ol' "HEY HO LET'S GO" from me.

Lust For Life

Iggy Pop

4/5

Well, after I reviewed that Yeah Yeah Yeahs album I didn't think I'd be tackling another entry in the "Hey, I know that album cover from ROCK BAND" case file so soon, but here we are. And unlike that Yeah Yeah Yeahs album, I can actually remember the song that got included in ROCK BAND — LEGO ROCK BAND, in this case. But before I get into that, lemme talk for a second about Iggy Pop. Honestly, he's another person I know more for his name and reputation than anything else. Y'know, he was, like, the frontman of The Stooges, I think? They had that album that was infamously purposefully mixed like total ass (or maybe it was the remix that was? I can't remember). I can't remember what I thought about it 'coz it's been way too long of a while. Beyond that, besides his random cameo in LEGO ROCK BAND besides Queen, blur and Spinal Tap, I can only recall his name from a Patton Oswalt bit about skinny jeans. That's really it. So that just leaves us with the one piece of music I'm actively aware of from Mr. Pop, "The Passenger". A few hours before I got to listening to this album I read somewhere that it was inspired by a Jim Morrison poem, and, like... Yeah, this reminds me a lot of The Doors. Just add some Manzarek-style keys and it wouldn't be too far off — like, from the swingin' bounce to even the vocals, it's already pretty much there. I really dig it. It's got a nice "la-la" hook. At any rate, compared to the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, this is a way better song I was introduced to through ROCK BAND than "Maps". And listening to the rest of the album, it turns out that "this reminds me of another artist" would be a small recurring thought. Take the title track, for instance; it sounded a lot to me like The White Stripes if Meg had been a more technically skilled drummer. Or take "Tonight" from later on. If I hadn't already known that David Bowie has his fingerprints all over this album, I would've been able to guess here. It was the first song where I noticed this nonspecific "Bowie" sound that I'd keep hearing throughout the rest of the record. I mean, supposedly this album is more strictly Iggy Pop's baby than the last album he and Bowie worked on (THE IDIOT), but not having yet heard that... Well, I don't think I really woulda been able to guess, y'know? Really, coming out of this, I don't really have a good idea what the "Iggy Pop sound" specifically is supposed to be. And maybe this is a bad album to try and find that out, but I'unno. All that said, however, I still liked this album a whole lot. I know it sounds like I damned it with the whole "nonspecific Bowie sound' remark, but that is legit something I like about this album. I won't lie and say it's not done incredibly well. Certainly, I got into it way quicker than I did the Bowie album that was released before this, LOW. This album is great poppy rock n' roll stuff. Like, gawd, the hard garage shuffle on the opening track is amazing, and "Turn Blue" is an incredible slow burn of a tune, where I don't even mind that it's six minutes. Follow that up with "Neighborhood Watch" and its low, bendy grumble of a guitar line at the end — goodness. Really, this thing is a solid 4 in my book. I do kinda wish I could've pinpointed something that was clearly "Iggy Pop," but I suppose if I wanted that I would've gone and blown my ears out with RAW POWER. For what this is, all garage-y and proto-punk and New Wave... I didn't go gaga over it, but I had a good time. There's nothing much more I really could've asked for. Well, that's two for two from the ROCK BAND case file. Can I go three for three? That's partially up to The Randomizer, I suppose... Gosh, imagine if it was a Bowie album. Could you imagine? It'd be like, "Gawd, this Randomizer sometimes... I swear."

Madman Across The Water

Elton John

4/5

It's kind of weird to me to see an Elton John album labelled as progressive rock. Like...Elton John? Prog rock? Those just don't sound like they fit together. I mean, you've gotta understand my perspective on prog rock: to me, it's stuff like Pink Floyd, Yes, King Crimson... Y'know, that kind of crop. Whereas, meanwhile, I gotta look at the songs I associate with Elton John — stuff like "Candle In The Wind", "Crocodile Rock", "Border Song", "Rocket Man"... Mostly piano ballads and pounders, with a little glam flair in there at most. It's like, I don't hear anything else on GOODBYE YELLOW BRICK ROAD that strikes me as particularly "prog," or on DON'T SHOOT ME or HONKY CHÂTEAU for that matter. That's all music I love deeply and dearly, but "prog?" Unless my definition of prog is narrower than I thought, I just don't hear it. Particularly on the album my group got today, the one that's actually labelled prog. Like... Is it because they're longer than Elton John songs usually are, on average? Is that it? 'Coz that reminds me of the claim that a lot of Iron Maiden's recent work has been "progressive," when really they're just longer than they have been before. That's not necessarily a knock against anything on this album or Iron Maiden's recent work, 'coz I do like it all, but I'unno. To my ears, it should take more than stretching a 3 minute song out to 6 or 7 minutes to make it progressive rock. (Seriously, though, songs like "For The Greater Good Of God" and "Empire Of The Clouds" aren't to be missed. This is an unrelated aside, but if you ain't heard either of them yet, go ahead and do so, goodness.) Really, to me this album just sounds like typical Eltom John fare. Maybe there's a few more orchestras than usual, but otherwise, I'd've never been able to guess this was supposed to be anything else. Which, I mean, regardless of all my yapping about genre, it's still really good stuff. Of course "Tiny Dancer" and "Levon" are the standouts, but everything else keeps up at a good enough pace. Really, the only song I feel like I'd give the side-eye to is "Indian Sunset", though I don't take as much offense to the lyrics as I know other people do, so... I'unno, I just like a good orchestra, and it has one. Honestly, I feel like this album only falls flat in comparison. I listen to this, and I do legitimately enjoy what I hear, but at the same time I find myself wondering why the cosmic entity that runs The Randomizer would give us this over HONKY CHÂTEAU. That album is Elton's single-disc masterpiece if you ask me, and way worth hearing before this. I mean, come on, that album has "Rocket Man". If that song's appearance on that album alone isn't an incentive or reason enough... 'Coz that's where the glam started, of course, and as much as I like the pre-glam stuff like "Your Song" and especially "Border Song"... Goodness, it just ain't the same. So... Yeah. MADMAN ACROSS THE WATER has a lot of great Elton John fare, with some neat orchestrations to boot, but... Eh. I wouldn't go as gaga over it as I did for GOODBYE YELLOW BRICK ROAD or I would for HONKY CHÂTEAU. At the very least, it's not one I'd recommend anyone start with. It's more like a "after you've taken in the best of the best..." Still, just for how much I like typical Elton John fare, I'm gonna give it a 4. He plays piano good and I like his voice. What can I say?

Happy Trails

Quicksilver Messenger Service

3/5

Y'know, before I started listening to this album, I felt like I had to ask myself a simple question: do I actually like jamming or not? Now, I'm the first person in my group who'll defend live albums to the dickens and back for capturing a band's sound like a studio album never could, but... Jamming, specifically. The art of noodling around, live on stage. Is that a part of live albums I actually enjoy? I'm only asking myself this 'coz... Well, this is a late 60's psych rock live album. The last time my group had to deal with something like that, it was the Grateful Dead's LIVE/DEAD, and I wasn't exactly a huge fan of that one. As much as I felt like I could understand where Deadheads are talking about when they bring up the group's "intangible X factor" — the group's "vibe," in a simpler word... Frankly, I just wasn't too impressed. Vibes can only take me so far. I mean, you can describe "Dark Star" as "entangling yourself in a field of energy" all you want, but eventually I'm gonna need a hook to ground myself with before it all just starts sounding like noise. Luckily, thankfully, this album didn't really have that problem — not entirely, anyway. I don't know if I'd say this band is better players or jammers than the Grateful Dead, but dang it, they actually managed to play a couple of melodies I could latch onto. Even when I wasn't entirely focused on it, it still made for better, more pleasant ear wallpaper than the Grateful Dead's album did. It's absolutely not what I was expecting from an album that spends its entire first side on an extended Bo Diddley cover. Still, as pleasantly surprised as I was by this album, I don't wanna act like I'm too crazy for it. I'll mention again that large parts of it ended up as ear wallpaper — and as I've said before, I don't think that sort of thing is bad or invalid. However, at the same time... Y'know? I'unno. I mean, it's not like I'm gonna remember terribly much of this album even a day from now, and I doubt I'll ever really feel the need to listen to it again. Why would I, when I have better live albums **and** better ear wallpaper? 'Coz, yeah, I didn't dislike this album, but... Yeah, no, I can't really name the "intangible X factor" that's supposed to make me wanna come back. 'Coz it's not like this album doesn't dip into its share of noise either. So... This thing's a 3? Is a 3 fair? That's the same rating I give LIVE/DEAD, and while I **do** mean this 3 in a much more positive way than I did that 3... Yeah. At the very least, it did reaffirm that I can like jamming as long as it doesn't end up as "vibes" noise. Hopefully that carries over to something like Deep Purple's MADE IN JAPAN, but, y'know, we'll see. Well, happy trails, Quicksilver, I guess. I'unno if we'll ever cross paths again, but... 'Ey, you never know.

Dirty

Sonic Youth

4/5

Ever since my group got PSYCHOCANDY I've been a little on edge about any album labelled with a genre prefixed by "noise." Like, I gotta be fair, maybe PSYCHOCANDY was just a bad first step into noise music. After all, that's an album which reverbs itself out to the point of being dull, undecipherable mush. If there are any pleasant melodies to be heard, they're buried under a mile and a half of reverb. It struck me as music made by people who're so far up their asses about how they're "too good" for popular music, for people who're up their own asses for the same reason. That's not typically a mindset I like to have musicians and their audiences, but I can't even begin to stress how that album was the most unpleasant experience I'd had in a while. So it really does make me happy to report that this album wasn't even nearly as bad an experience as PSYCHOCANDY was. In fact, not only would I say that it's actually a pretty good one, but that's more comparable to something like Nirvana's IN UTERO than anything else. For real, it's a good thing my group got to listen to that album recently,'coz it really did help me in understanding this one. There **is** a lot of noise here — feedback and atonal guitar noises and all the stuff you'd expect — but it never gets in the way of the fact that these songs just rock, plain and simple. None of it is just loud for the sake of it, I wouldn't say. There's a lot of hard and heavy guitar tones, and dang it, I'm down for it. Of course, a lot of this music would still probably scare away... Well, let's call them "people with lesser limits." I was gonna say "untrained ears," but there are just people who aren't gonna like some styles of music no matter how much they "train."I know **I** won't probably won't ever like PSYCHOCANDY — although let's not bring that album up again, huh? And I know what I just said, but I still feel it's kind of a shame that some people would hafta miss out on tunes like these. I don't think I'd wanna say I'm **completely** over the moon for this album; there's a few moments here where the album relies a bit too much on "mood" for me to be completely into it... But all the same, I can be pretty simple: I hear a good guitar, I'm happy. If nothing else, this gets my expectations up for the other, bigger, more famous Sonic Youth albums that're no doubt on this list. If this, one of the lesser big ones in their discography, is as good as this... Woof, goodness. But, yeah, it's a 4 all around from me. "It was not an assault on my ears — a triumph!"

My Aim Is True

Elvis Costello

5/5

It can honestly be kind of frustrating that some of the hardest albums for me to write about are the ones that are among my favorites of all time. For real, this album is one of those that I describe as being "entrenched in my soul," alongside stuff like Pink Floyd's THE WALL, The Beatles' ABBEY ROAD, and Weird Al's ALPOCALYPSE. It was one of the first two albums I ever picked up on vinyl. It's been pretty much always one of my first choices whenever I just wanna throw on a random album. Heck, I've barely listened to any other Elvis Costello album outside of a few songs simply because they just don't hit me in the same way that this one does. And the whole time, I've hardly thought about **why** — and I never even really wanted to. I was just happy to accept it as one of my all-time favorites without reason or question. So, like, I'm not even sure exactly what I wanna say here. But you didn't stumble across this review expecting no opinion, so if I could take a stab at it... I think it's because this album is kind of nerdy. Not in the way that, like, They Might Be Giants is nerdy, but more like... I mean, just look at him on that album cover. Scrawny. Bit of an awkward pose. And with the **Buddy Holly glasses**... This man is not cool. If he was in a high school movie, the jocks would be pushing him around. Heck, even at a regular corporate job, the guys who used to be jocks would be doing the same thing. But he is **smart**. He knows his way around words and then some. And it's not even particularly deep poetry; it's just good words, about life and love and all that. And as for the music, well, he was never gonna make it as an absolute rocker, so instead he makes this New Wave pub punk power pop... And gawddamn, he's **so good** at it, and it's so perfect for his voice... And you gotta look at his smirk on the cover, too: he might not be traditionally cool, but hell if he cares. This is the music he wanted to make, and dammit, he's happy with it. I gotta throw a shout-out to The Clovers (the band who backed Costello on this album), too. I think part of the reason why I never really 100% gelled with Costello's later albums is that he switched to being backed by The Attractions, and while they are a good band, don't get me wrong, they're just... A little more forceful than I'd like Costello's music to be. The Clovers, from what I've read, were a country band, so they're a little looser, a little more relaxed... And, I'unno, I just think they're perfect for the material here. They probably couldn't do "Radio, Radio" all too well, but for stuff like "Allison", "Miracle Man", "(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes)" and "Less Than Zero", I couldn't imagine them being performed any differently. This is subdued rocking, but it's still rocking nonetheless. And those, hopefully, were the right words to explain why I was always gonna give this album a perfect 5. 'Coz, don't me wrong, I do believe in those words, but... I'unno. Just like any other album that's truly been entrenched in my soul, I don't know if words alone could completely express how I truly feel for them. Short of listening to this music through my ears, through my perspective, there's no better job I could realistically do. I suppose that's true of all opinions and trying to relay them, really, so... I'unno. Take it or leave it. Just know that whatever I type, without a doubt, my aim is true.

Butterfly

Mariah Carey

2/5

I really wanted to think more of this album. I really did, honestly. I mean, we all know her as the "All I Want For Christmas Is You" lady, right? That's basically her entire legacy these days: having this one song get incredibly overplayed starting the day after Halloween. It's a meme, pretty much, how consistently it tops the Hot 100 during the holidays. And I won't lie, I'm among the many, many people who've come to loathe the song for that exact overexposure. I'm not a unique story, I'm aware. But at the same time, y'know, I'm not mean. I ain't no jerk. I wanted to believe that there was more to her music than one Christmas song. There **had** to be, y'know? I'm pretty sure that song might not have become as omnipresent as it had if it wasn't for whatever came before. So, like, if you take **that one song** out of her discography and take a look at some of the other music she used to be famous for, what do you got? What was even her appeal way back when? Looking back on this stuff from 2025... If I may quote ULTIMA IX: ASCENSION: "I'm not entirely sure." I mean, yeah, OK, this is pop R&B, and Mariah has a great voice. At a base level it'd be generally inoffensive enough with enough chops to be a hit with a mainstream audience. In fact, I know it was a hit because its, like, fifth single, "My All", was number one with a bullet on the Hot 100 the week I was born. Given the unearned importance I place around my birthday, that does mean I do have something of a connection with this song... Which really makes me wish a better song had been number one. Let me not beat around the bush: this is a pretty uninteresting listen. Every song seems to go the exact same way: a lightly lush instrumental that Mariah sings over in a high coo. At some point during every song, and it always feels very early on, it seems like they just run out of verses and resort to having the backing vocals endlessly repeat the chorus while Mariah freestyles. Honestly, it feels like the backing vocals sing more actual words than Mariah does. Listening back to "My All", I swear it's mostly comprised of vocal runs of gibberish meant to fill space until they could think up any actual words, but they never did or just forgot to. The whole album just **crawls** along at the same slow tempo — which, sure, probably makes for great wallpaper for cuddling. That's completely valid. But actually tryna listen to it, it all blends together at a certain point. Nothing terribly interesting happens besides the occasional out-of-place record scratch, or whenever a guest artist shows up to provide a different voice to listen to. 'Coz the thing is, I'd think a lot of these songs were very pretty if this album otherwise had any damn **variety**. By the time "Fly Away" comes around with its thumping dance beat, it's kind of too late in my eyes, and there's still two songs left after it, including a seven minute Prince cover. (Speaking of different voices, by the way, it's frustrating that fuckin' Diddy was a producer on this album. I really thought I wouldn't hafta think about him again after Biggie's album. But at the same time, it's kind of funny to hear him on the first track pull the same shit he did all over Biggie's: mumbling ad libs all over the song so he can claim that he was there. Is that just his trademark? Goodness.) And let me briefly talk about that Prince cover, by the way. Seven minutes? Seven minutes. For what? A cover that feels just a hair too slower than the original, that ends up missing all of the intensity that the original had? It just sounds so standard — like, ah, that's what this song would've sounded like if Prince didn't wanna add any pathos. Seriously, you do not understand how much this song misses when you don't forcefully deliver "DO YOU HIM? OR DO YOU WANT ME? 'COZ I WANT YOU" or just start screaming at the end. And I get, too, that comparing a cover of a Prince song to the original is a losing battle — nothing compares 2 him, after all — but... Gawd, it just makes me wish my group could have gotten PURPLE RAIN, so we could have gotten some actually interesting R&B mixed in with some actual **variety**. Honestly, I'm disappointed I didn't end up liking this album too much. As I keep emphasizing, Mariah's got the vocal chops, and, I mean, I **do** wanna like her. I feel like I've heard enough individual songs from her that I should (shout out to the one that randomly has Ol' Dirty Bastard; that one's great). And maybe that's just the problem here. Maybe if I took a handful of these songs in isolation, I'd've liked them a lot more. Like, that synth line on the closer is such my shit, you don't even know. I should have loved the song for that synth alone. But in context of the whole album, nearly an **hour** of music — well, I still did like that song, but I found it so much harder to care than I would have otherwise. So, believe me, it pains me to give this album a 2. When I saw this album pop up, I was actually pretty excited for it. "It's her magnum opus, after all! It's gonna be great to kick back with all this beautiful R&B." But... Eh, I can't be anything but honest about my opinions. It was generally just too dull for me to get much out of it. Well, I suppose it's back to not thinking about Mariah 'til she defrosts on November 1st. And it's not like I'll be actively trying to listen then...

Hotel California

Eagles

5/5

Y'know, come to think of it, I'm not actually too sure why The Dude hates the Eagles. I don't think he ever really gives a specific reason why... Which, I mean, given the state he was in when he said he hated the Eagles, I don't think he was in too much of a mood. If I could throw out a wild guess, I suppose if you hate typical 70's rock an album like this ain't gonna do much for you. Y'know, this is no real frills 70's rock, unlike Creedence with their swamp thing, or Dylan with his folky-ness, or First Edition and their hard psych. No, this is just **the** typical sound of 70's rock, take it or leave it. And I'll take it all the way to the damn bank, thank you very much. I believe this is the first time I've found a "classical genre" album for a whole decade. Like, if I were to imagine what 70's rock sounded like without much extra added on top of it, like Queen's theatricality, Led Zeppelin's heaviness or Elvis Costello's nerdiness, I think I'd end up coming pretty close to this. That's up to and including the CSN(Y) harmonies, even, and they're my favorite part of this album next to how fuckin' hard the guitars on this thing rock. Seriously, I always knew the guitar work on the title track ripped, from the moment it starts to the twin solos at the end, but goodness me. This is just so much, at the most basic level, the shit I wanna hear from a 70's rock album. And I really wanna emphasize that, like with every other "classical genre" album I talk about, being a genre at its most basic isn't a bad thing. Sometimes all you want are meat and potatoes, no extra garnish. But I tell you, it takes a true talent to make meat and potatoes rival more gourmet dishes, and I think Eagles are chefs like that. Now, the thing for me is that I kind of didn't even expect this. See, when I think of the Eagles beyond "Hotel California" (and before now I've never heard this album beyond that song), I tend to think of, like... Soft country rock. Stuff like "Desperado" or "Lyin' Eyes" or, honestly, this one parody of the Eagles I heard called "Dead Cicada". And it's not like this country influence can't be heard across this album (particularly in those aforementioned CSN(Y) harmonies, and a little bit of slide guitar here and there), but goodness, I'unno what happened ONE OF THESE NIGHTS and here that got them to rock the hell up so much, but I sure as heck appreciate it. Well, shucks. I think I'm gonna hafta enter this album into my 70's rock album rotation then. It sure as heck proves it and then some, even just by the guitar work (to bring them up one more time) if nothing else. I always knew I was gonna give this album high marks 'coz of the title track, but it makes me very happy to know that the rest of it holds up, much like something like Rush's 2112 or Funkadelic's MAGGOT BRAIN. It's an easy, easy, **easy** 5 from me, and if I wasn't late on getting this review out and didn't need to hop over to the next album on my group's docket, shucks, I'd listen to this all over again right after I finished writing this. Well, it looks like I'm gonna hafta wait a little longer, 'coz believe me, I'll be checking in again as soon as I can.

Sticky Fingers

The Rolling Stones

5/5

Has it really been nearly a year since the last time my group got a Rolling Stones album? 363 albums... Goodness. Well, I suppose with a gap like that, it's time for a bit of a refresher on my relationship to the Stones. To put it basically, when it comes to the debate about who's better, I've always preferred The Beatles to The Rolling Stones. From their early beat boy bands stuff to their later experimentation and pop masterworks, The Beatles have always been more up my album. The Rolling Stones, meanwhile, have kind of always just been a British blues and rock band to my ears. A **very good** British blues and rock band, yes, but nothing I've heard from them has gotten terribly close to the music I've loved from The Beatles. I've supposed that part of it could just be I've just been exposed to The Beatles more than The Stones — a whole-ass ROCK BAND game versus one song in GUITAR HERO III — but I think the music has spoken well enough for itself. I've just generally never had much interest in diving too deeply into the Stones' catalog. Frankly, I've always considered The Beach Boys more a point of comparison against The Beatles than The Rolling Stones. But let's put The Beatles aside. This is 1971, and they, as a group, haven't been a thing for one or two years. Let's focus strictly on the Stones: it's been two albums since BEGGARS BANQUET. They'd since released LET IT BLEED and the live album GET YER YA-YA'S OUT!. ALtmont continued to have been a disaster. Brian Jones had passed. What do The Rolling Stones have going on here? Well, lemme keep LET IT BLEED in mind, 'coz I think that's an important piece of the puzzle. See, I read on Wikipedia that this album was a return to basics and that got me a little worried. After all, that's what BEGGARS BANQUET was, and I didn't find much special about that album at all — or was it? There's actually a key distinction that needs to be made: BEGGARS BANQUET was a return to **roots** after the clusterfuck SGT. PEPPER'S wannabe that was THEIR SATANIC MAJESTIES REQUEST. STICKY FINGERS, on the other hand, was a return to **basics**. To me, that reads like at most they just dropped a lot of the unique instrumentation from LET IT BLEED, and that they're still keeping whatever songwriting philosophy they had there. And trust me, that's worth a **lot**. LET IT BLEED is one of the few Stones albums I've actually heard, and it's the one among all of them I'm the most excited to revisit. After all, it has two of the best songs they ever made: "Gimme Shelter" and "You Can't Always Get What You Want". Those are songs that went well beyond what the Stones normally did without going over the top like THEIR SATANIC MAJESTIES REQUEST did, and they're both absolutely amazing for it. On STICKY FINGERS I feel like, by choice and necessity, they had to scale back on the ambition a little, but only enough that these still end up being incredible rock songs. Seriously, the worst they get is the lyrics on "Brown Sugar", but if you can manage to find a way to look past them (and that could be hard, I know)... Goodness. Honestly, despite how much I've talked before, I feel kind of speechless about how much I like this album. I knew the Stones always had it in them for an album I'd like just that much (AFTERMATH and BETWEEN THE BUTTONS both feel just a bit short), but... **Thus much**? I mean, let me put it like this: when the keyboard solo on "I Got The Blues" happened, I hadda stop writing for a second and make that kind of lip-biting stank face that expresses "Aw, hell yeah — now **this** is the good shit." No other Stones album has done that for me before. That's a big deal. In the end, I'm very confident giving this the highest praise I think I could give any Stones album: this is on the level as some of the best Beatles albums. Maybe a bit towards the bottom end, given some of the absolute gems those boys have, but still, it's up there. And even again putting The Beatles aside, it's still one of, if not the best Stones album I've ever heard — we'll hafta see if LET IT BLEED can surpass it when I can get around to it again. Either way, let me give this thing a 5. In my eyes, the band's reputation has been completely recovered, and I look forward to whatever record of theirs gets tossed my group's way next. Let's just hope it doesn't take another full year, huh?

Wish You Were Here

Pink Floyd

5/5

It's not too terribly often I think about Syd Barrett. I mean, as I've said before, the early years of Pink Floyd aren't exactly my thing. Even as much as I can say I do like those first two albums, that kind of psychedelic space rock isn't usually what I want out of the band (or in general, but that's besides the point). It might be a bit typical, but the run of albums from THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON to THE WALL is way more my speed — alongside records like MEDDLE and (yes, really) THE DIVISION BELL. I've even listened to THE FINAL CUT more; it's honestly not really that bad. And if I don't often listen to THE PIPER AT THE GATES OF DAWN, you can imagine how much I've listened to something like THE MADCAP LAUGHS. Now that's an album that requires just a bit too much serious consideration than I'd like for a casual listen. Goodness, it's gonna be fun when my group gets to that one... But all the same, I'd never dare speak ill of Syd Barrett. And frankly, whenever I do end up thinking about him, it's pretty common that I end up coming to the conclusion that he's the most important member of the band. Absolutely, they would not be the same without his influence — even if, specifically and tragically, that influence came from his absence... Like, if it weren't for Syd, would we have "Brain Damage"? Or large swathes of THE WALL? I know for a fact we wouldn't have today's album, that's for sure. Syd and the shadow where he used to be loomed so largely over the band, it's hard not to have respect for him. And there's nothing they ever did where you can feel how much respect they had for Syd, and how much they missed him, as WISH YOU WERE HERE. Let me lay this down right now: this is my favorite Pink Floyd record. Full stop. DARK SIDE OF THE MOON and THE WALL both make good cases for coming close, but in the end, nothing can. Not really. I mean, if I haven't listened to it as much as I have THE WALL, that's only because I'm trying not to lose any part of its magic to overplay. It's... It's just special, y'know? Honestly, for most of the day I was worried I wouldn't have anything to say about it. I was excited as the dickens when my group got it; it was the fastest I'd hopped on listening to an album since ACE OF SPADES. But as for actually talking about it... Well, as I've discussed back when I talked about MY AIM IS TRUE, there are just some albums so deeply entrenched in my soul that it's hard for me to find the words to say about them. And if that's true for MY AIM IS TRUE, then it applies a thousandfold to this album. Part of me can't even really fathom articulating the words. To me, this album's greatness goes without saying. If this album doesn't just speak for itself, then no other does. But if I could try... Well, it's just like I said: there's nothing else in their whole body of work where you can feel how much they loved, respected and missed Syd like this album does. The fact that half of the album is dedicated to a song celebrating Syd should tell you enough all by itself. And... Gawd, "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" is beautiful: all nine parts, and all twenty-plus minutes. If it hadn't been split up to bookend the album, it'd beat out "Echoes" as the greatest single track of their entire career. It aches for Syd, and it's very sad that he's gone, but at the same time it doesn't forget to be happy about who he was and what he did for the group. It kind of plays to me like a memorial service, honestly. Like, it's not the funeral, where you're actively mourning someone, but... It's the memories. It's looking back on all the times you had with someone, good and bad. And there's just this... This hole in yourself where they used to be. And I don't think that feeling is better encapsulated on this whole album than those three guitar notes. Like, it's incredible that just those three notes can evoke so much and so many feelings. I'm in awe every time. Chills, seriously. "Wish You Were Here" evokes largely the same feeling, albeit in a smaller setting. If "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" is a large-scale celebration of a loved one, surrounded by family and friends, then "Wish You Were Here" is when a song comes on the radio that quietly brings everything back. Like, you're just about to get out of your car, stressed out about some bullshit or whatever, when you hear those notes come over your radio and — and suddenly, you're out of place. You just can't bring yourself to leave until the song's over. You just can't. They're too important to ignore. And, y'know, whoever you're thinking about, they don't even have to have passed on — Syd wasn't when this album was released, and he wouldn't until a few decades later. It's just, whoever you couldn't have imagined living without, but have had to face that reality anyway. And it tears you up inside, because you don't know when you're gonna see them again, but the idea that eventually, some day, you will — that's what gets you through. And speaking of that bullshit that stressed you out, that's what the other half of the album is about — music industry bullshit, specifically. About a cold, unfeeling, mechanical industry that chews up and spits out any talent unfortunate enough to try and get too close. About executives and management who care so little about you compared to the bottom line they can't even be assed to remember your damn name — and yet when the big bucks start pouring in, they act like they had anything to do with it. Well, beyond trying to crush your soul into just another cog, anyway. They're an empty suit in the desert, selling you dreams but leaving you with nothing but burns from broken promises. These songs aren't as clearly angry as the ones on ANIMALS are, but you can still feel it beneath the sarcasm and haunted warnings. "Have A Cigar" is the only other song in the band's discography to have a guest vocalist (here it's Roy Harper), and it says so much to me that someone outside of the band ended up singing these words. It's not exactly a happy album, if you somehow couldn't tell. Honestly, put all together, I can't help but imagine a story. One about someone who tried to hack it in the music industry, but ended up getting so lost in the shuffle and burned out that only the memories of their loved ones could carry them forward. And even that couldn't last forever — after all, that's not them singing "Shine On You Crazy Diamond". Whether or not this reflects Syd's story, I'm not enough of an expert on him to say. But that story, and its emotional resonance... If that ain't one of the big reasons why I keep coming back. And I haven't even gotten around to mentioning the musicianship yet! It's all top form, across the board. Like, I wanna highlight Wright's keys on "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" specifically. They're the star of the song, and most of the reason why it's as good as it is. From the opening solo over those ambient glasses, down to the slow funeral march, followed by the "See Emily Play" that closes the album... Everyone else is amazing, especially Gilmour for playing those three notes on "Shine On" and that opening solo on "Wish You Were Here", but Wright especially deserves credit. Absolutely insane that Waters would later fire and demote him to session musician come THE WALL, goodness. If all my blabbering hasn't made it evident, this is an absolute 5, among the strongest I've ever given. Across 44 minutes, it just does not miss. It's simply the most stunning and beautiful music they'd ever make. Like, I understand why THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON is often held up as the greater achievement. It came first, it has the hits, and people probably generally resonate more with its songs about aspects of life than they do this album and its themes of alienation. And don't get me wrong, I hold DARK SIDE in the same high regard; this isn't a competition about which one is better. I just agree whole-heartedly with Richard Wright and David Gilmour when they say that this is the best Pink Floyd record — 'coz it is. It might just be my favorite album of all time, honestly? If it's not, then it's certainly top 5 — or, heck, top 3, actually. And I still don't know if I've used enough words to express how I feel about it. It's just that big in my mind. And, y'know... I can't imagine being any of them on the day during recording when Syd came to visit — during "Shine On You Crazy Diamond", of all coincidences. Where they couldn't recognize him for minutes because he'd lost all of his hair and grown overweight. I've seen the picture — it's a little hard to look at. Roger Waters was so distressed by how Syd looked he was reduced to tears. And there's this one I've read — I don't know how true it is, but there's one anecdote about the visit I've always remembered. It's when Syd stands up and says that he's ready to play, only for the rest of the band to have to tell him that there's nothing for him to play. It breaks my heart every time I think about it. And that's pretty often when I'm listening to this album. Bless it, for everything it's worth.

American IV: The Man Comes Around

Johnny Cash

5/5

I don't think I've ever heard another album this quietly sad. Like, for most of this album's runtime I was just... Staring off into the distance. At the wall, at the floor — at nothing in particular, honestly. I just couldn't do anything else. Not with how this album was causing sadness to wash over me, over and over. Every time I thought it would stop, I'd catch Cash's voice — so old and ragged — and it'd all come back all over again. Even the songs that were more upbeat in one way or another still had an air of melancholy around them. You can't shake the feeling, no matter how hard you try. It's like he knew he didn't have much time left. It's like he knew that this was his last statement. It's like he knew that if he didn't say anything about where he was right then and there, he wasn't gonna get another chance. And that's just remarkable when you consider that this album is mostly covers. Like, that's the big thing that separates it from albums like Leonard Cohen's IF YOU WANT IT DARKER and David Bowie's ★. There's only two songs that Cash penned himself, and one of them is a re-recording of a song written decades ago. But if you don't know these were all covers... Gosh, you'd never be able to tell. It's like what I usually say about Elvis: even if he never wrote a song in his life, just him being him was enough to make any song he sang his own. That's pretty much exactly what's going on. Cash being who he was, and being as old as he was when this was recorded, is enough to make songs like "Hurt" all his own. They're imbued with so much more meaning than if he'd been a younger man at the time. Which, there's a part of me that feels like that's kinda messed up. Y'know, the idea that I like this album **because** he died so shortly after it was released. That if he'd somehow lived long enough to release AMERICAN V, this album wouldn't have held as much weight as that one would have. But that's just the truth, and the same goes for stuff like IF YOU WANT IT DARKER, ★ and any other album with this kind of reputation. That's just honestly where it gets its power from, no matter how much I wish they could have lived longer and had done more. Though I wanna feel like either way this would still be a melancholic heartbreaker of an album. I don't think you can hear a voice like this, over arrangements like this, and not feel at least somewhat down. I can't imagine the kind of person who can hear stuff like this and not feel anything. I mean, I've gone out of my way to avoid using words like "depressing" and "feels bad," 'coz I feel like those are a bit over the top for what I think this album evokes, but... Still, goodness, y'know? I would absolutely be lying if I said I didn't feel close to crying more than once. I just can't give this album any less than a 5. It just wouldn't feel right to. Not with the context of its release and how much it gives to what would've been very powerful material regardless. It's, jus'... Oof. Goodness. And I do hope his reassurance at the end comes true: that someday soon — who knows where, who knows when — we'll all meet again. That someday, eventually, the man in black will come around once more.

Feast of Wire

Calexico

3/5

Y'know, right off the bat, let me be 100% with my problem with this album: it's indie rock. As much as I'd want my take on this album to be more complicated than that, it's really not. I mean, indie rock is— jus'... I'unno. It's not even the genre I have the most trouble with. Generally, I feel like I still have more problems with shoegaze and post-punk for how actively and purposefully unappealing they can try to be. But, goodness me, can this genre ever be the most boring whiff of nothing sometimes. Like, more often than not, I'm honestly not even sure what the appeal's supposed to be. I can't even fathom a guess at why people would go so hard for indie rock. And if listening to three Arcade Fire albums won't give me any clues, I don't know how anything can, let alone this album. I really do wish this album had leaned into its other genre way more: tejano (or "Tex-Mex," as the album's Wikipedia page called it). Heck, it's what I was hoping this album would be more, 'coz if I've learned anything from watching MACHETE, I really like this kind of music. Whenever this album goes all out with the horns and the accordion, that's when it's great. If the whole thing were like this, honestly, I'd hafta restrain myself from giving it a perfect 5. But I'unno. There was too much stuff on here that I could only think of as "just boring indie rock" that, frankly, it kind of spoiled the mood. I mean, heck, give one to the thought that I spent two paragraphs on indie rock before I even brought up tejano music. More than anything, I come out of this album a bit mixed and honestly disappointed. I was really looking forward to this being something like, I'unno, The Pogues, where it's this really rippin' national sound and it's absolutely **amazing**. Instead, even when I got what I was looking for, I was still a bit too busy groaning at the stuff I wasn't to fully enjoy it. So... A 3, I guess? This shoulda been way more my alley, goodness... And seriously, what is with this album cover? Lookin' like some kinda "recolored screenshot" deviantART OC. I swear.

Bitches Brew

Miles Davis

5/5

Y'know, I already find writing about jazz hard enough. As much as I always talk about how I'm "melody first," talking about jazz seems to require an especially tuned pair of ears that I just don't seem to possess. Modes, tonality, interplay... I'm clueless about all of that. And so far, I've only had to talk about jazz albums of a normal album length. Imagine how daunting it was looking to me when I found out I had to tackle a jazz album that's **94 minutes**. 94 minutes. No one ever told me that this album was 94 minutes — across only six tracks at that, with the first two being **over twenty minutes**. Goodness me. Here's a real "no shit" statement fer yah: that's a **lot**. A **loooot**. I mean, sure, my group has tackled much longer, from 69 LOVE SONGS to that one Ella Fitzgerald box set, but the thing is, they were comprised of a **ton** of tracks. There was a mountain of material to deal with, but at least you could deal with it on a song-to-song, two/three minutes per basis, y'know? Versus here, where entire record sides are taken up by only one or two tracks. That's a fair bit of music you hafta consider all at once. Undeniably, it's a massive hurdle for a lot of people — and if I ain't getting flashbacks to Soft Machine's THIRD, I tell yah... But the thing is, despite my initial reservations about how long on average this thing is, I don't really have a problem with songs that go on for tens of minutes. Not as long as they can keep things moving and interesting. I mean, heck, I was one of the few people in my group to give THIRD the benefit, y'know? And besides, if there's one thing I've learned about Miles Davis from the last few records my group's gotten from him, it's that I really shouldn't doubt him in those regards. 'Coz, look, these aren't just long songs. Really, they're odysseys. Vast, expansive soundscapes where, yeah, you're hardly gonna catch everything you first couple go arounds — and, yeah, the terrain's gonna be a little rough for some people, and I won't blame 'em entirely if they tap out — but if you're willing to make the journey, it's damn impressive. Like, just that, first of all, this was all improvised. There's not a single moment of "prearranged shit," as Davis called it, across these 94 minutes. It's all down to Davis's instructions, his moment-to-moment cues, and the band just that fucking tight with each other that they could play off of one another like this. I can't imagine what it's like to be in that close sync with another person, let alone however many others played on any given song. Seriously, they all have, like, two drummers and two or three keyboard players. It's insane. This would have been an absolute mess if they just didn't click with each other — and thank goodness they do! And not just that, but you consider all of the **editing** that went into this, too. From what I read, the album was recorded in short segments before being stitched together in the editing process, and, honestly, I'd never guess if I wasn't told. It's seamless, and there were apparently a lot of edits. On just the first record alone there's 34, and some of them are as small as second-long fragments. It's nuts — especially in 1969! A lot of credit needs to be given to producer Teo Macero, not just for this, but for IN A SILENT WAY as well, as it turns out. Y'know what I think music is great for, honestly? Fantasiaing. That state of mind where you put the record on, lean back, and let the music paint your imagination. Throughout the entire album I was falling in and out of Fantasiaing, and, boy, lemme tell you, the wild stuff your mind can come up with to tunes like these... The way all these wild trumpet and keyboard and saxophone solos lend themselves so easily to— gosh, honestly, it's been a long time since I was able to do this with an album, and it was great. Non-zero reason why I liked this whole thing as much as I did, seriously. This is a 5 among 5's if I've ever heard one. Whatever praise this album's gotten, it deserves it all and way more. I used "odyssey" before to describe the songs by themselves, but really, you can, could and should apply it to the whole album. It's an experience I don't feel like I've gotten from any other album before. Jus', a masterwork, front to back. I'unno if this is the last Miles Davis album on the list or not, but if it is, then, dang, I can't imagine a better way to have gone out.

Apple Venus Volume 1

XTC

4/5

For some reason today I don't think I have the awake-ness for a longer review, so lemme sum this up briefly. Giving this album a low score or dismissing it for trying to sound Beatles-y is undercutting it a little, I think. Like, yeah, no one's ever gonna be able to do that sound as well as John, Paul, George, Ringo and George did — that's indisputable. But as far as attempts go, however, I honestly liked this a lot. I mean, I'm already someone who listens to The Rutles just as much as they do The Beatles, so this was always gonna be right up my alley. I don't know I'd say I'd go as hard for this as I do for, say Electric Light Orchestra's OUT OF THE BLUE, but still, it hits the spot just right enough. I can hardly complain about that, and it gets me interested to hear what XTC had offered up before this. Maybe not enough to go seek it out right now, but, hey, whenever the Randomizer tosses one my group's way, I'll be pretty excited. So, yeah, I'll be pretty happy to give this a... 4? Yeah, a 4. If it went a bit bigger like ELO did I think this would be a 5 easily, but as it stands, yeah, I'm glad I heard it. Really, the only thing that's bumming me out is that I didn't have the brain energy right now to write more. But, y'know, ah well — wha'cha gonna do, eh?

Idlewild

Everything But The Girl

3/5

"Sophisti-pop"... Look, I hate to pre-emptively judge an album by its genre, especially because I doubt these two were actively aiming to make it, but goodness me, if I ain't never seen a genre name so up its own ass. To me, it evokes, like... Assholes, honestly. Both the psh, snobbish asshole musicians who think what they're making is **so much better** than "regular pop," and the snooty, elitist asshole critics who agree with them. I think only IDM clears it as a more "Oh, stop sniffing your own turds" name. And, look, I'm not judgemental enough to assume that's who Everything But The Girl is. I mean, I've seen Todd In The Shadows's One Hit Wonderland on them and "Missing"; I know this for a **fact**. But I can't lie to you, seeing this album labelled as "sophisti-pop" already leaves me expecting a bad taste in my mouth. I mean, it's not like I was too big a fan of the last "sophisti-pop" album my group got (PICTURE BOOK by Simply Red, who I also dinged as a One Hit Wonderland subject), so... And actually listening to the album doesn't really do much. Sure, it does prove itself to not be as teeth-gratingly elite as I was worried it'd be, but it's not like it's any more interesting beyond that. It's chill, it's jazzy, it's atmospheric, and normally I'd be really down for all of those things, but... Gosh, I'unno. There's just something about the way it's all done here that causes the album to hit a bit of a wrong note for me. It's not nothing, clearly. Tracey Thorn has a really nice voice. It's, like, a third to a half of the reason why "Missing" is so good. I won't deny that. But as for the rest of it... I mean, I'm just trying to imagine this album soundtracing some part of my day, right? And it— I can't picture where exactly it would fit. Not while I'm making art, not while I'm doing dishes or cleaning, not while I'm taking the dog out, not while I'm reading... Not even when I'm listening to music for its own sake. Not unless I'm tryna listen to something to feel smart. It's wallpaper, and I don't begrudge it for that, but it's just not the right kind of wallpaper for me. It's... Honestly, it's just too sophisticated for me. There's not even a sick dance beat under any of it to keep me engaged. Still, all said, I'm not so much of a jerk that I'll give it less than a 3. It's not bad; it's perfectly fine. It's still nicely chill and synthy. It's just not something I'd really reach for outside of partaking in this Randomizer. Like, this album is a really nice piece of fine art — but I just don't have much use for it next to my framed Beatles photos and LOVE LIVE! posters stuck to the wall with blue putty. Pass it on to someone else; they might get more of it than I could.

Songs Of Leonard Cohen

Leonard Cohen

2/5

I do not like that I'd given SONGS OF LOVE AND DEATH a 2. To this day, honestly, I feel kind of bad about that. Y'know, 'coz I was so down on that album right after I'd been so glowing about IF YOU WANT IT DARKER... I understand that this is me overthinking things, and that I don't really think this, and that it's really not that deep, but, like... I'unno. With the way I remember framing those reviews, I feel like I was saying that his music is as good as its proximity to his passing. That just does not feel like a right thing to believe, whether I'm talking about a legend of Canadian music or not. And, y'know, of course that's not the real problem. No matter how I worry that I subconsciously or unintentionally think it is or whatever, I'd never be so callous. No, the real problem is that SONGS OF LOVE AND DEATH is 60's/70's singer-songwriter folk. And I **do not** mess with 60's/70's singer-songwriter folk. Like I explained back in my SOLID AIR review, singer-songwriters of this era come across to me to the effect of poets pretending to be musicians. The words are what they put all their effort into, and then also they know how to plonk along on an acoustic guitar or whatever. And for me, no matter how good the words are, poetry is simply not what I come to music for — and acoustic plonking isn't enough melody to keep me entertained. Even if Leonard Cohen was actually, like, **really good** at acoustic plonking, from what I remember. So... Gosh, I put off actually listening to the album for so long. Even that intro I wrote down was part of my procrastination. It's just because I had this worry in the back of my head that I'd end up feeling the same about this album as I did SONGS OF LOVE AND DEATH. The last thing I need is another 2 to feel bad about. No matter how much I know it doesn't mean anything... Dang it, that's just the way I am, y'know? And, well... It's slightly better than I'd worried? Or it started that way, anyway. I mean, it's still Cohen picking away at his guitar while he kind of boringly sings his poetry, but there is actually a **tiny** bit more going to hold my attention. It's ultimately not too much, but damn it, "any port in a storm" and all that. The orchestral parts that show up are neat. The strings sound kinda pretty. And the female backing vocals that there are sometimes? Yeah, I'm down for those, too. That's all good stuff. They're just... Not enough for me, honestly. They're almost enough, but they just can't fully mask up that this is music I don't typically enjoy listening to. Doesn't help that "The Stranger Song" doesn't have anything else going on for it besides this endless loop of fingerpicking. Goodness, at least "Teachers" has more than one instrument... In the end, I feel like the most I can give this album is that it kind of manages to surpass my initial assumption. This isn't just "poetry where music happens to be there"; there's clearly a bit more intention going on hre. But all the same, it's still poetry first and first. And I just do not have the attention span to comprehend them on a first listen, nor even the smarts to understand what I do manage to catch. And I feel like, if you're not able to pick up on the lyrics, well... Maybe this music just isn't for you. And it's damn sure not for me. I was hoping to avoid giving Leonard another 2. Like, if my feelings about this album fell out that way, sure, fine; there's nothing I can do about that. But I was just hoping, hoping, **hoping** there would be enough here to at minimum justify bumping it up a point. And there wasn't. Just barely, there was not. So... Yeah. Another 2. Jus'... I'unno. I hope my group doesn't get another singer-songwriter album for a long time.

Freak Out!

The Mothers Of Invention

3/5

Hrm. For the longest time now, I've been sitting here tryna figure out how exactly I want to review this album. It's not for lack of opinions and feelings about the album and the artist at the center of it — Zappa is one of my favorite artists of all time, as it happens — but... Gosh, I'm just not sure how exactly I wanna put it all together. 'Coz, look, this album is a lot. Across psychedelic rock, doo-wop, musique concrete and jazz, it skewers pop music, satarizes then-contemporary American culutre, and, well, sometimes it just plain freaks out. All spread throughout two records: this was the second-ever double album, only beat to the punch of being the first by Bob Dylan's BLONDE ON BLONDE. For any average listener, it's way too much. Heck, even for someone like me who gets a lot of what it's doing it's daunting. And this isn't even getting into my thoughts on feelings on Zappa himself. To keep it brief, he's definitely the smartest man I've gone back and forth on wondering if I agree with him or not. Some days; others... If you ever get the time, go read THE REAL FRANK ZAPPA BOOK and you'll see what I mean. But let's keep the focus on this album. I think if there's anything I wanna focus on, to structure my thoughts around... Let's go back to how I said I get a lot of what this is doing. Honestly, in some way, I feel like that's a detriment. It's a similar sort of way I felt about TROUT MASK REPLICA, actually. With that album, I listen to it and I can understand all the eccentries and oddities around it. I'm not as repulsed by it as I know a lot of people are. But at the same time, I feel like I'm kind of, y'know, seeing through the Matrix, as it is? 'Cuz the deeper I got in to TROUT MASK REPLICA, the more it sounded to me like just kind of odd blues music that goes on for an hour. My last go around with it, I actually wasn't terribly impressed, and I ended up slapping it a three outta five. Now, FREAK OUT!, as I said, has a lot more going on than TROUT MASK REPLICA does, at least on a more obvious level. The pop, the psych, the doo-wop — on that level, I enjoy it way more. But, like, I'unno. Actually understanding what's going on here, the whole album just... Doesn't strike me as weird as I feel it should? I hear the skewed pop songs, and I get how stupid Zappa thinks they are, but as I'm listening to them they just sound like slightly odd pop songs. Y'know? It could just be that I'm too used to this kind of music for it to feel as strange as I think it should, but I can't be sure one way or the other. Although what's funny is that when this album actually does get as freaky as I feel it should be I like it a bit less. Neither "Help, I'm A Rock" or "The Return Of The Son Of Monster Magnet" scare me, and at a point I'm just left wondering when they're gonna end. Especially "The Return Of The Son Of Monster Magnet" — it's actually only the basic tracks of a monster Zappa wanted to make, but Verve refused to shell out any more money for overdubs, and honestly, I'm kind of really glad they didn't? Goodness, take me back to the white blues of "Trouble Every Day" — or even "Who Are The Brain Police?", for that matter. I'm not against Zappa being all experimental and avant-garde, but it's never been my favorite part of his discography. I've more just accepted it as part of what he does than anything else. And as a matter of fact, the 60's generally aren't my favorite part of Zappa's discography. Oh, sure, there's albums like HOT RATS and CRUISING WITH RUBEN & THE JETS that I couldn't imagine going without, and even while I do generally enjoy a fair bit of the stuff he put out in the 60's, the 70's are more where it's at for me. ONE SIZE FITS ALL, OVER-NITE SENSATION, APOSTROPHE ('), ROXY & ELSEWHERE, SHEIK YERBOUTI, ZAPPA IN NEW YORK... **That's** the good stuff. Hell, I even listen to a number of his **80's** albums more, particularly YOU ARE WHAT YOU IS. It kind of makes me wonder why they don't get as much respect as these early Mothers records do. APOSTROPHE (') has never made a "greatest albums" or "essential albums" list. Of course I'm just speaking from personal bias in this matter, but I just wish there could be a bit more acknowledgement this man did a lot more than two albums in the 60's for the 60's commenting on the 60's. Y'know? And just like everything else, I know how impressive this is for the 60's. Hell, it's arguably the first concept album, depending on how you view stuff like PET SOUNDS and IN THE WEE SMALL HOURS. There's a lot of weird sounds being made across this record, and it opened the door for a lot more freak and outsider music. The fact alone that he was even allowed to do all this, regardless of Verve putting their foot down on "Monster Magnet"... This is a man making it clear from the very first album what the fuck he does and how much he doesn't give a shit what anyone else cares. "No commercial potential" and all. To that end, there is a part of me that feels bad for liking the dumb pop songs the best out of everything here. These are songs where the whole joke of them is that they're deliberately banal and stupid, and Zappa spends a lot of liner notes for the album razzing them for being inoffensive and safe. I'm supposed to laugh at them, not earnestly like them. But, y'see, listening to these songs again, I wound up thinking about how a number of them got reinterpreted for CRUISING WITH RUBEN & JETS. That's an album where, through parody, Frank got to sincerely and earnestly show his love for greasy 50's R&B and doo-wop. And considering that I've listened to that album a lot more than I have this one... That's not nothing. I can tell you what much. Coming to the end of this review, I'm honestly still not sure if I talked about this album the right way or not. Now, everything I said is truly how I feel, let's not get that confused. More, like I said, this album is just a lot. And short of writing a 33⅓ book about it, I'm not sure I could really capture every corner I'd want to about it. Hell, I've spent so long talking about Zappa as if he's the only member of the band, I completely forgot to mention how talented the people backing him are. Jimmy Carl Black, Roy Estrada, Ray Collins, the billion people in the Mothers Auxiliary... The last thing I wanna do is forget Zappa's band (I don't hold the Roxy one in such high regard for nothing), but again, between the mountain this album is, and how much I don't really ever revisit this era of Zappa **or** The Mothers... Yeah. I suppose I should actually just close this review out before I find something else to go on forever about. Giving this album a rating... I'd honestly stick it with a 3? I do think this is something people should give a spin, just to help expand their musical horizons if nothing else, but it's absolutely not the first Zappa album I'd recommend to people. This is the kind of thing that needs to be eased into a little — and certainly, my pop-melody lovin' ass never chooses this first over anything else. And when I do, I'unno. I'm just not wild about it. Maybe if I was a freak in 1960's L.A. (instead of a freak in 2020's New Brunswick) I'd be hipper to it. As it stands, though... If absolutely nothing else, if this album hadn't become a cult hit with the Laurel Canyon freaks, I don't know if we would've gotten the rest of Zappa's expansive discography. And what a shame that would've been, huh? That mother be crazy. Sincerely forever, Listie Creamcheese

I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight

Richard Thompson

4/5

And today in "Oh, I recognize that album cover — how does it sound, actually...?" I don't like singer songwriters. Especially 70's singer songwriters. I think I've made that **very** clear by now. In fact, it's probably **the** thing I've realized about my music taste from partaking in this project. For the sake of the people in my group, then, I'm not gonna reiterate my grievances. If you reading this aren't a part of my group, you can go search for my SOLID AIR review; I lay it all out there. Or mostly, anyway. As a matter of fact, let's generally put the topic of "singer songwriters" aside for this review. Despite being what I came into this album worrying about putting up with, I actually ended up hardly thinking about them, except in the context of how little I actually heard them. See, if this album is anything to me, it's not "singer songwriter" like Wikipedia labels it as second. No, to me it's more the first label: folk. British folk, at that — and if there's anything I've learned from Chumbawamba (musically, anyway), it's that I actually do like myself a bit of British folk. There is just so much going on here aesthetically and melodically that I adored. The way the first song ended is maybe the most amazing moment on the whole album, if for nothing else than confirming to me that there'd be more going on than I'd assumed. From there, it just kept going; each song had some neat element that kept things engaging to my ears. Whether it was the horns on the title track, or the soundscape on "The End Of The Rainbow", or, jeez, Linda's voice in general. There was no track on here that instrumentally was an endless loop of finger-picking. Stuff was actually **happening**, and I appreciate that so much. Really, I feel like my only dig against this album might be **Richard's** voice. I wouldn't say it's bad, necessarily. He's not nearly on the same level as Linda, but for what's being done here, he does well enough. It's just that sometimes, honestly, he sounds like he's doing a voice. Y'know, like he's putting on some fake, exaggerated accent. And for all I know, that's just how he sings, but there are spots where he sounds like a caricature of a British folk singer songwriter. Linda dips in there occasionally, though not as often as Richard does. And even then, despite how much paragraph I've spent pointing this out, I don't think it's that much of a problem either. At most, it was something I blinked at like, "Huh. You for real? OK..." But, yeah, I was pleasantly surprised about this album. And unlike some others where that's the best thing I can say about it, I really did enjoy what it did just that much. Maybe not enough for a full-on 5; this feels, at best, like a "very good" 4 to me... But I'm really happy I heard this, honestly. I'd put it on the list of albums I'll say I'll listen to again but never do. I should, though. It's good stuff. And I gotta put on Chumbawamba's world/folk albums again. This made me wanna listen to those again, and believe me, that's a compliment. Not bad for an album whose cover was written on shower glass.

Frampton Comes Alive

Peter Frampton

5/5

Y'know, I've made my case for live albums being included on greatest or essential albums lists. On the one hand, there are the albums that capture a sound that a studio recording never could: The Who's LIVE AT LEEDS, James Brown's LIVE AT THE APOLLO, B.B. King's LIVE AT THE REGAL... I imagine those are why most live albums are included. Then you got the ones that are included for capturing historical moments: Muddy Waters's AT NEWPORT 1960, Duke Ellington's ELLINGTON AT NEWPORT, Johnny Cash's AT FOLSOM PRISON... The ones that're preserving these moments for everyone in the future to hear. In the face of just those two points alone, I think it's a bit silly to act like live albums in general shouldn't be here. Just because a small handful are less engaging than others... Y'know. And then there's my third point. Now, it's a bit of a smaller point than the first two, true, but it's just as valid a reason. I mean, look, some of these albums are just fun as hell listens. There's nothing terribly complicated or historical about them — they're just a fuckin' blast, full stop. That's where FRAMPTON COMES ALIVE!, well, comes alive. Now, sure, this record has its significance: the talk box solo on "Do You Feel Like We Do" is famous for helping popularize the talk box. That's not nothing. At its core, though, this album is just an incredibly enjoyable experience. These are great musicians, playing great songs greatly. I can't imagine having a problem with any of this unless you just really hate the sound of crowds cheering. Not even the fact that this is an hour-long double album dampens the mood. Honestly, time flies when you're listening to these songs. By the time the 16 minute closer rolls around, I doubt you'll've really noticed this thing's length. I don't even really have anything else to say about this album. I do honestly view it that simply: it's nothing more than just a good time. And as good times go, well, I can certainly see why it sold like gangbusters back when it came out — seriously, it was the single best-selling album of 1976. And count me in the line of people who would've bought a copy, goodness. Honestly, screw it — this is a 5. Normally I wanna save 5's for albums that touch my soul, and not things I merely enjoy like Mylo's DESTROY ROCK & ROLL, but no, no. I don't want this 5 to be me overblowing this album as being anything **that** mind-melting, but frankly, I really did enjoy listening to it just that much. I can't front and I can't lie. And really, I can only hope you feel like I do. Honestly.

Aqualung

Jethro Tull

5/5

AQUALUNG is not a concept album. If there's anything Ian Anderson would wanna have you take away from this album, it's that there's no concept, story, or overarching theme. Sure, a few songs maybe share a couple of characters, but that's it. Otherwise, it's just a bunch of songs. And I'm not here to tell him he's wrong. After all, he wrote the thing; he should know better than anyone. Honestly, listening to the album myself for the first time in forever, I'm not even 100% on what the plot would even be. I guess it'd be about an old creeper and a schoolgirl prostitute or something? Well, thank goodness it's not. If I wanted to hear about a creep and his underage lover, I'd go listen to HISTORIE DE MELODY NELSON again — and of course, I don't want to. But here's the thing about that "concept album" belief people held about this record. Even if it's not actually a concept album... It darn well sounds like it. Which, what I mean by that is that these songs sound structured like narrative. They sound like they're meant to evolve and tell stories and play by that flow and not so much the typical "verse, chorus, verse" mould. And as someone who enjoys themselves a good narrative every now and then (excluding something like HISTORIE DE MELODY NELSON, anyway), that's exactly why I like this album so much. Y'know? Either way, I think it would've been good 70's rock. It's sure got the melodies and riffs for it (goodness, the title track's), with just enough unique instrumentation to keep me engaged. Like, I know everyone clowns on Jethro Tull for the flute, but that is honestly part of what makes them so interesting. Don't act like it's bad flute playing, either. I'd even go so far as to say it's kind of awesome. At any rate, believe me, it probably could have been **way** worse... Goodness. And even if this album isn't a concept album, I don't think the band getting the claim laid at their feet that it was was a bad thing. After all, it did inspire Anderson to write THICK AS A BRICK, his parody of concept albums — and boy, that's a dang fun one. Pretty neat that we got a second good album out of the whole claim. And, yeah, concept album or not, AQUALUNG is pretty dang good. Good enough for a 5, honestly, and I really do try not to hand those out too often. If you somehow haven't already, check it out for yourself and see if you can find your own story in there. I think it's worth your time. Unlike HISTORIE DE MELODY NELSON! Oh, I hadda bring it up again — rule of three and all.

Endtroducing.....

DJ Shadow

3/5

I really do love mashups — truthfully, honestly, and totally. It's a fascinating kind of music: to take pieces recorded at different times, in different places, with different people and under different contexts and still find a way to make them work together. I never would have thought that "Basket Case" would sound so nice layered on top of "Fireflies" — or "Smells Like Teen Spirit" over "The Final Countdown", or "Bring Me To Life" over "My Heart Will Go On", or... I could go on. When done just right, the mashup can be a truly incredible thing that elevates every song involved and makes you appreciate them just that much more. And if I like mashups that much, you can only imagine how I feel about sampling in hip hop. Especially the ones that go above and beyond with their samples: the Dust Brothers' work on PAUL'S BOUTIQUE, the Bomb Squad on FEAR OF A BLACK PLANET, J Dilla's DONUTS, and of course today's album... Naturally, this kind of hip hop beat-work operates under a different mentality, skillset and end goal than regular mashups, but they still come from the same place. It's all about manipulating existing work to create something bigger and greater than the individual pieces. Like, it's amazing listening to this album keeping in mind that there was nothing new recorded for this album, besides the record scratches if you wanted to count those. Everything here comes from an existing record or film or whatever, but all structured and manipulated in a way that you can hardly notice. For real, I listen to some of these and I can't imagine how they were strung together. They sound like they were recorded this way fresh. And, true, part of that might be because I didn't recognize anything here except for a snatch of "Orion" early on... But still. I can't pick out where a sample begins or ends. So on a purely technical level, this album is a marvel — I mean, goodness, it inspired Radiohead to edit drum loops for OK COMPUTER. And I won't tell you it's not a great listen. Sure, it's an hour, but it remains pretty engaging for its runtime. It's just... If I have any problem with it, it's that it's not just instrumental hip hop and sampledelia — it's that it's also trip hop and downtempo. These aren't just supposed to be beats without raps over them. They're also meant to be chill, ambient, trance-like... And, look, I don't take much issue with trip hop. There's songs I like, even in mashups; check out "Golden Teardrops" by Wax Audio. But... I know I just said that this album remains engaging, and I meant that. I really did enjoy listening to this. If there ain't some times, though, where it's really easy to slip beneath the surface. Like, I put this album in conversation with PAUL'S BOUTIQUE, FEAR OF A BLACK PLANET, DONUTS... And it belongs there, of course. It's a seminal piece of plunderphonics; I'm not trying to downplay what DJ Shadow did here. Speaking just for my own tastes, however, I don't 100% think ENDTRODUCING..... entirely stacks up as an experience. Take DONUTS on its own, even. I'm not about to compare Dilla's techniques to DJ Shadow's and definitively declare one better — I mean, it **is** damn criminal that it's not here on this list, but that's besides the point... You listen to any random song on DONUTS and no matter what mood or energy it's going for, it never demands anything less than your complete attention. You're left captivated at every flip and turn Dilla makes these samples do. Hell, just how he manipulated the drums on "Don't Cry", with little regard to any of the other sounds on top of them. As well, there's also no track that runs over nine minutes, and that's not nothing. ENDTRODUCING....., for all of its positives, and there are many, just doesn't inspire me in the same way. Y'know, it's kind of like the Kleptones' double album UPTIME/DOWNTIME. I've listened to the "UPTIME" half of that album a fair bit for all of the fun ways it mashes up and strings together various sources. It's entertaining **and** impressive. Meanwhile, the "DOWNTIME" half... DOWNTIME is ENTRODUCING....., and ENTRODUCING..... is DOWNTIME, and I'm not surprised I haven't really listened to either in years since I first nearly fell asleep to them. When this album popped up from the Randomizer, I was really excited, honestly. Again, I love mashups and sample-based hip hop production. There's nothing more interesting than cutting and pasting old shit together to make new shit. It's basically a more direct version of how music has always grown and evolved. I was ready to slap this thing with a 5 just from that alone. But, I'unno, over the course of writing this, and especially once I put DONUTS on to soundtrack the back half... Jeez, I've come to feel like a 3 is more appropriate? Which pains me — I've repeatedly emphasized how much of a feat and milestone this was for sampledelia. A 3 feels like undermining it. I just can't lie about my feelings, though. Hearing DONUTS again and thinking about the best stuff off of PAUL'S BOUTIQUE and FEAR OF A BLACK PLANET... Or, heck, stuff like Danger Mouse's THE GREY ALBUM, or even more traditional "rap vocals on non-rap instrumentals" mashup albums... Jeez, and I haven't even mentioned MM..FOOD yet — how in the world has **that one** slipped my mind until now? Like I said, it just comes down to the fact that ENDTRODUCING..... is downtempo trip-hop. If I'm in the right mood for it, sure, I can let the soundscape carry me along. More often than not, though... I mean, it's not like I expected this to be MUSIC FOR AIRPORTS, y'know? So, yeah, as much as it pains me, this is a 3. Still worth checking out, if for nothing more than DJ Shadows's technique, but if you ask me, any of the other albums I've mentioned are much more engaging experiences. And seriously — I hate to complain too often about what is or isn't on this list, but it's damn criminal that DONUTS and MM..FOOD aren't here. Honest to goodness...

Sometimes I Wish We Were An Eagle

Bill Callahan

3/5

The big thing about listening to music melody first is that even if you I'm paying the closest attention to what's being said, the voice is just as important an instrument as any other. It's timbre, it's texture, any third music theory word... Regardless of whether they're actually saying anything or just spouting nonsense gibberish words, the voice means as much instrumentally as any guitar or piano. Heck, it's maybe why I don't listen to instrumental music as often as I'd think I would: I'd just miss the voice too much. So then we have this album. Instrumentally speaking, gawd, it's beautiful. The acoustic lines, the guitar reverb, the piano chords, the **strings**... I'm left kind of awestruck, honestly. Like, goodness, I wasn't sure how in the world this album would sound, but I didn't expect this to be this emotionally resonant. Even without paying much attention to the words, I can understand exactly how it wants me to feel from just the composition and playing alone. On the basis of the instrumentals alone, I could give this album a solid 5 — and as I keep stressing, I try not to hand those out too often. But then we have the voice. Look, I don't wanna be too hard on Bill Callahan here. He's clearly going for a Leonard Cohen thing, and even if I've been mostly bored by Cohen's music, I can accept that it's not a bad voice. As long as it can fit in alongside the rest of what's going on instrumentally, I shouldn't have a problem with it. That's just the thing, though. It largely doesn't. Like, yeah, there are a couple of times it works really well: check the "It's time to put God away" on the closer. The way it's sung, it's perfect; I can't imagine it being done any other way. However, any other line he sings in the song just doesn't sound right. He's way too stuck in this one-note warble, when I feel like this music should require a bit of a larger range. I'm not talking about something like Fredie Mercury's or, I'unno, Mariah Crey's, with whistle tones all up in here; that wouldn't have fit the music. But at least he could have a **few** notes outside of the one or two he's stuck on? Maybe? No matter how stunning any of these songs' backing instrumentals are, his vocals always drag them down. If his limited vocal melody wasn't the focus, that'd be one thing, but the human ear is often naturally drawn towards the human voice. It'll always be at the front, especially on albums like this where what that voice is actually saying really matters. I'm just left at an impasse where, honestly, my favorite song was the penultimate one, largely because he didn't sing on it. I haven't been wanting to call his voice "monotone" or anything, because I feel like that's a bit of an extreme descriptor, but... Dang, I can't act like he doesn't turn these songs into a bit of a drone. I imagine the others in my group are gonna be kinder to this album than me, since they're probably gonna actually focus on the lyrics and what this thing is actually about. (Myself, I couldn't even begin to tell you why Billy wants him and whoever else to be a single eagle.) Listening to this album the way I typically listen to music, though... Yeah. Bill's voice, as an instrument, honestly gets me feeling like this is a 3 — 3.5 at most. It's a shame, 'coz I really do think the instrumentals were just that beautiful. Maybe if **this** was an instrumental album... I'unno.

We're Only In It For The Money

The Mothers Of Invention

5/5

So, hey, this is fun. Just like with my review of FREAK OUT!, I was having a pretty hard time trying to think of what I even wanted to say about this album. I had the thoughts, the opinions... Everything. I just, y'know, didn't have the words, that's all. Truly, this is phase two of that review. Like, already I'm suspecting that this is gonna be a trend with Zappa albums — I mean, if my group gets HOT RATS and this happens again... Goodness. However, I was having trouble for different reasons than I did with FREAK OUT!. Kind of the exact opposite reasons, actually. See, with that album, I hadn't listened to it too much, and there was just a lot of ground to cover, both in terms of material and what it was satirizing. A whole hour of taking the piss out of American culture and popular music, all for the freaks of Laurel Canyon in the 1960's. I'm a bit out of my depth there. Meanwhile, with WE'RE ONLY IN IT FOR THE MONEY, I'm actually **very** familiar with it. As far as I can tell, this was, like, maybe my second Zappa album ever? I remember buying it off of iTunes around the same time I also purchased THE BEST BAND YOU NEVER HEARD IN YOUR LIFE, long before I went out and got APOSTROPHE (') or YOU CAN'T DO THAT ON STAGE ANYMORE, VOL. 2 on CD. This album has been in my life for over a decade at this point, so I end up running into the same initial "I don't know how to verbalize my feelings for it" problem I've had with stuff like WISH YOU WERE HERE and MY AIM IS TRUE. Honestly, at this point in time, I can't even exactly recall **why** I got this album as early into my Zappa fandom as I did. I mean, well, I do have one guess... While, length-wise, this album has less material than FREAK OUT!, clocking in at under forty minutes, the subject matter... On the one hand, there's really not as much ground to cover? For the most part it boils down to "Not only are hippies stupid, but so are the cops who beat hippies." It's a real SOUTH PARK "both sides suck" kind of mentality. If it wasn't for how I swear I can hear some empathy for hippies behind all the satire (or at least the freaks and the more opened-minded among them) on songs like "Mom & Dad" and "Concentration Moon", it'd bother me just as much as SOUTH PARK can and has. "Hippies are stupid, and absolutely should be called out for their stupidity, but the system is even worse" or something. That, and that this album is such a time capsule of 1968... It's kind of hard to be too bothered by it in 2025, y'know? But that's not the part of it that's given me trouble writing. It's... Well, you've seen the album cover. You've seen the title. It's The Beatles and SGT. PEPPER'S. This album, famously or infamously, is in part Zappa's response to SGT. PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND. It's an accusation that the group is insincere: extremely plastic and flat-out commercial. "Even if the album and music are OK, they're clearly just riding the psych rock and hippie train to make a buck." A lot of the intros I thought up for this review placed them and SGT. PEPPER'S at the forefront, describing either its release and the culture around it, or even just briefly relaying my relation to it, before transitioning over into this album. After all, I'm pretty certain that's largely the reason why I bought this album as early as I did: I love The Beatles and I accept the old guard's line about SGT. PEPPER'S, so why not dig into Zappa's little satire of both? Here's the thing, though: it's not. Beyond the packaging and its title, I don't really see this as a parody of The Beatles or SGT. PEPPER'S. At most, they're just a symbol for hippie culture and psychedelic rock. I mean, if anyone's the true target here, it's the people who become hippies mostly for ass and acid — the aesthetic more than anything else, as demonstrated on "Who Needs The Peace Corps?" and "Flower Punk". Being 100, I kind of had to excise The Beatles from my mind entirely while trying to review this album. I even removed a prelude line I originally had at the top ("This album is not about The Beatles") because it still fronted them too much. Besides, it was more a reminder for me than anything else. And I don't think excluding them made writing this review **that** easy, but... I mean, I was able to get even this far. That's not nothing. But let's get back on track. After some 800 words of preamble, what can I say I actually like about this album? Well, I think it's very sharp lyrically. Not a whole lot of what's actually said applies to me in 2025 (or maybe it doesn more than I'd like to think), but I still find them either pretty witty, or some very nice character sketches, or both. Like, for real, "Who Are The Peace Corps?" and "Flower Punk" do a really good job of describing fake-ass fake hippies. To that same effect, "Let's Make The Water Turn Black" is a vivid description of some real life people Zappa actually knew. Meanwhile, I find songs like "Mom & Dad" and "Lonely Little Girl" honestly kind of heartbreaking. That "They killed her, too" can be a real gut punch. Then you got the lighter material — I think "Take Your Clothes Off When You Dance" is just fun, and "Mother People" was my favorite song on the album for a long time for how catchy the lyrics in the chorus/refrain are. Although, speaking of that chorus, I think I should take some time here to address the censorship. Truthfully, they don't matter too much to me: there was a spoken word line about the Velvet Underground that was snipped, the original first chorus of "Mother People" was dropped, and its inclusion played backwards in "Hot Poop" still had a "fucking" removed... There's nothing I'm losing sleep over, and besides the original chorus of "Mother People" was included on the compilation of MOTHERMANIA, so whatever. I know for a fact it could have been worse. But if there's one instance of censorship where I think it does matter — and Zappa would no doubt hate me for this, 'coz I think it improves the song — it's "Harry, You're A Beast". There's a part that references a Lenny Bruce bit ("Don't come in, in me"), and the way random parts of it have been chopped up and reversed... Goodness, it adds this whole disorienting effect to the section, and I love it. The one time censorship made something better, go figure. Finally, let's get onto the one thing I usually care about when it comes to music: the music. Y'know, the melodies. And if there's anything that's kept me coming back to this album... Ironically — and this could just be nostalgia bias talking, but I think this album has some of my favorite psychedelic rock songs. "Concentration Moon", "Mom & Dad", "Absolutely Free", "Lonely Little Girl", "Mother People"... These are all fantastic songs. Particularly "Lonely Little Girl"; I really do wish the main part of it could have gone on longer, 'coz that's some sick-ass guitar. And, well, hey, "Let's Make The Water Turn Black" has such a nice patter melody to it that Zappa kept it around in live shows as an instrumental piece alongside "Harry, You're A Beast". Not even the experimental noise tracks bother me too much. You'd think they would; they **are** largely just noise for noise's sake, but... I'unno. I guess they're just not as long, nor as obnoxious in spots, as something like "The Return Of The Son Of Monster Magnet" was. (And I won't lie — understanding all of this in the context of "nightmare SGT. PEPPER'S" doesn't hurt.) Now, despite all of that, I still wouldn't call it my favorite Zappa album, or even my favorite the 60's. After all, CRUISING WITH RUBEN & THE JETS and HOT RATS still exist. It's not terribly often these days I'm in the mood for this 1968 skewering of 1968 for the people of 1968. It's not its fault stuff like APOSTROPHE (') aligns better with my tastes. But still, I've come back to it more often than FREAK OUT!, and generally speaking I'd still call it the strongest of Zappa's 60's satire. Y'know what, I'll give this album a 5. It nails what it's going for, it's satirical without feeling **too** far up its own ass, and, I'unno, the music is just good. This could be nostalgia bias again, but nah, it's legit. Way more legit than any "flower punk" was, at least. In conclusion... Well, to answer Eric Clapton's question at the top of the album: yeah, I guess I am hung up. Or, uh, not, if being one is a bad thing. I mean, is it? What does it mean to be "hung up," anyway? I— I'unno. Is the review over yet?

It's A Shame About Ray

The Lemonheads

4/5

And **today** in "Oh, hey, it's **that** album cover..." Turned out that reading the top-rated review of this album before I listened to it wasn't a good idea. Because it evoked teen-age slackers on a college campus, all I could picture hearing this music was a teen movie that never existed. Like, my opinions of this album really aren't any more complicated than that. These songs sound like they should be on a soundtrack that's praised even today for it's "cool, alternative" taste, despite retrospective assessments that deem the film itself "problematic" or something. And I don't even mean that as a dig; I've seen 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU in the last month, and that has a pretty good soundtrack. Same goes for CLUELESS, which I haven't seen lately, but maybe I should see again at some point soon? I'unno. This is just really nice jangly, rockin' music. Nothing I was losing my mind over, but it's not like every album in the world has to. And, I mean, sure, most of them are pretty similar to each other, although to me that just means they're consistent. And there's this one song that has a very strong influence from country music, and I really loved that one. A good country song can jus' do it sometimes, y'know? Damn, that slide. Plus, hey, hey, hey, there's a rockin' cover of "Mrs. Robinson" on here as a bonus track, that, honestly, I might like a bit more than the original? It's nothing against Simon & Garfunkel, of course; I just really love how this one rocks. And it's the only one of these songs I've heard in a 90's movie — and WAYNE'S WORLD 2, at that. Go figure. All that, and the fact that it's too much above 30 minutes... Yeah, it's a 4 and a thumbs-up from me. I really didn't have much to say about it (only 345 words, not counting these); it's just plainly good and enjoyable. And, hey, it made me wanna watch CLUELESS again, so that's a plus. It's no shame about this album — I guess. I'unno.

m b v

My Bloody Valentine

3/5

Y'know, generally speaking, I don't feel like I've had much luck with albums labelled as Shoegaze. I mean, you just have to look at my lowest-average genres: currently, it's tied with World for the worst with a 3.17, and it's that not far ahead of Post-Punk's 3.28. Even if it's still above 3, it's not **not** an indication of something. Yet, looking back through the albums my group has gotten that've been labelled Shoegaz, it seems like I've actually been way kinder to them than I'd previously thought. Heck, there's an album labelled "shoegaze" that I'd given a **5**. Realistically, it seems like the only reason why it's so far down my genre ranking is because I once gave PSYCHOCANDY a 1 outta 5 — and that was more because I found it horrendously mixed and unlistenable noise than for any thoughts of "Shoegaze." (For the record, the same "'coz I gave one album a 1" thing goes for World music as well, 'coz fuck Koffi Olomede.) In fact, really thinking about it, PSYCHOCANDY is probably the big reason why I've come to feel like I hold such disdain for Shoegaze. It's not fair to every other album labelled as such, I know, but someone it's just wiggled its way into my mind as **the** definition of the genre, even though it's really more "noise music" than anything else. As well, I'm probably getting it a bit mixed up with the real dislike I hold for Post-Punk... And, I'unno, it seems like one of those genres snobby people tell you're supposed to like. That's petty, but I can't act like that's not a factor here. So coming into this album, I was... **Really** not looking forward to it. With my skewered preconceptions, backed with a random couple seconds from the middle of a random song, I seriously doubted I was gonna rate it that highly. At best, I could see giving it a 2. It didn't help, either, to find out that this album was entered into the 1001 Albums book only a year after its release, only to then immediately be removed in later revisions. Seemed like I was gonna get a little bit of that "But did it get put into this book too soon?" bias I'd previously slapped CHEMTRAILS OVER THE COUNTRY CLUB with. Things were not looking up. But there's one review I'd read that suddenly popped into my mind before I pressed play that made all the difference. More specifically, it was these four words: "Ambient music for metalheads." And then it clicked. Oh — **THAT'S** what this shit it! Keeping that in mind, being someone who very much enjoys both ambient music and metal... Yeah, yeah, no, I liked this a lot. Like, just figuring that I wasn't supposed to scrutinize this so hard; that I was just supposed to get lost in these beds of fuzzed out and reverb guitars... Goodness, it did the world for me. Not that I don't still have problems, of course, the biggest of which being that, like... Even understanding this material as ambient music, there are spots where it can get a little too repetitive? I mean, this album isn't something like MUSIC FOR AIRPORTS, where it was out and out explicitly designed to be wallpaper: stuff you're not supposed to pay attention to, or, at best, get lost in a trance listening to. The songs on this album are still, y'know, **songs**. Even if the vocals are done to be incomprehensible, you're not supposed to ignore this stuff. It's a lot easier here to notice when these songs dedicate themselves to playing the same riff over and over again for what feels like a whole minute. That, and, well, speaking strictly in matters of taste, I've always preferred my ambient music to exist in the realm of electronic music. There's the aforementioned MUSIC FOR AIRPORTS, but I'm also one of the rare few people who's a big fan of THE ENDLESS RIVER. This isn't even to mention all of the light Moog music I consider ambient for how relaxing it can be — MOTHER EARTH'S PLANTASIA and all that. There's a lot of spots on this album I do legit find pretty despite being largely guitar noise. The tone and pitch they hit just scratches the right part of my brain. All the same, however, there are some tones, like, while I wouldn't call them ugly or unlistenable... Well, like the repetition, they're a bit too noticeable for me to fully eat this up as ambient music. Despite those two lengthy paragraphs of complaints, though, I wanna re-emphasize that I did actually like what I heard. It's a harsh cloud of music, sure, but it's not a bad one to float away on. I can honestly hear why so many critics named this one of the best albums of 2013 and why someone was so horny to add it to this book. It's not something I feel like I'd 100% agree on in either case, but given that hours before listening to this album I was mentally preemptively writing a straight **1** review, I can at least say it surpassed my expectations. Enough so much that I even considered giving this a 4 — but given my complaints, I think a 3 better fits how I feel about this album. The funny thing is, despite my mostly positive feelings, this is still gonna move Shoegaze as a whole down to being my number one worst rated genre by average (3.14). A 4 or higher would've saved it from that fate, but it's not like I'm gonna rate albums just to manipulate my averages, y'know? I'm not that crude. The way I figure it, if nothing else, at least it didn't move down as far as I would have if I'd given it a 2 (3.00) or a 1 (2.86). This keeps Shoegaze's small margin above dropping below 3 — and, I'unno, if I were the embodiment of Shoegaze, I'd be pretty alright with that.

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band

Beatles

5/5

Welp. Here it is. The one we've all been waiting for. ... Y'know, to start off, I wanna say that I actually kind of dislike the question "What do you want me to say?" 'Coz, to me, it reflects the idea that everything you can "objectively" say about an album has already been said, so it's not worth trying to say anything new. Anything you say would be repeating something someone else has said, so what's the point in even trying, huh? Which is, like, not a great way to think about talking about your feelings on something? I mean, when I look for someone's opinion on something, I'm not looking for the singularly most unique take in the whole wide world; some new, world-shattering revelation about this piece of work. All I want to hear is whatever words that come closest to describing how you, specifically, feel about something. Even if parts of it come out sounding like someone else's feelings, well, they're not. They're still yours — you're the one saying them. That's what's important, over everything else. All of which I say because, if you'd think there'd be any album that'd be hard as balls to talk about, it'd be this one. It's SGT. PEPPER'S damn LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND. The album of albums. The album of all time. The album that has, until pretty recently, been regularly considered **THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME** by **THE GREATEST BAND OF ALL TIME**. This thing's been praised to the far edges of the galaxy and back. Goodness, it's been close to sixty years since this album was first released. People have not stopped talking about it since, and they're very likely going to continue for the next sixty. What could you even say about it? Well, here's a few things. To begin with, let's just get this out of the way: is this the greatest Beatles album of all time? Speaking definitively— well, it's impossible to speak definitively. But on a personal level, no, I wouldn't say it is. Take it from someone who spent a decade buying the "GOAT" line from the old guard, the Beatles have better. Take REVOLVER, for instance. These days it's a pretty popular choice for "best album" given that it's where a lot of the innovation SGT. PEPPER'S was claimed to have **actually** started. Alternatively, there's ABBEY ROAD, for having the absolute finest pop songwriting the group would ever do, together or apart. Certainly, it's **my** pick for "best Beatles album." The old review I did for it wasn't very long, but it gets across that point very clearly, I think. But that's not to act like SGT. PEPPER'S is any slouch. The songs on here are still incredible, and remain among the most iconic they'd ever do for a reason. Goodness, there's a very good argument that "A Day In The Life" is their masterwork: the single greatest song in the band's discography. Y'know, their very own "Echoes" or "Bohemian Rhapsody" or "God Only Knows", I'unno, "Break Stuff". I mean, let's just not act like "Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds" or "Lovely Rita" or "When I'm Sixty-Four" aren't all great songs. And if this album isn't as innovative as REVOLVER — or maybe we've been living in its wake too long to really perceive its effects — then dang it, it's sure as heck **consistent**. Just a bit more **cohesive**. 'Coz, look, REVOLVER's my number two Beatles album, but there's always been some small part of it that feels it's a little... Grab bag-y? Not to the extent something like The White Album would be, but jumping from "Taxman" to "Eleanor Rigby" to "I'm Only Sleeping" to "Love You To" to "Yellow Submarine"... It's a little scattered. Can't help but feel that way a little. And, sure, obviously cohesion isn't a deciding factor which album is better than another, but the only other Beatles album I can think of that fits this well together is, well, ABBEY ROAD. This is, by the way, including Harrison's little stop-over for Indian classical at the beginning of side two. Some people probably don't like it; see it as too much of a diversion from what the rest of the album was doing... I mean, heck, George is the only Beatle on it, I'm pretty sure. And it's not something like "Yesterday", which is a simple acoustic number with strings; no, this is a whole production number. In fact, it's the sole thing keeping this album from being the only other time a Beatles album was written entirely by Lennon-McCartney after A HARD DAY'S NIGHT. And it still ends up being the second best song on the whole album — go figure. Like, I'unno, "The Inner Light" has always been one of my favorite Beatles B-sides, and it's basically a lite version of this, so... Speaking of cohesion, too, by the way, I wanna talk about SGT. PEPPER'S as a concept album. That's always been a hot topic, isn't it? Like, "Is it **really** one, or is that another line from the boomers and the old guard?" After all, the Lonely Hearts Club Band themselves seem to only appear on the title track, its reprise and "With A Little Help From My Friends". How do you square away stuff like "She's Leaving Home" and "Within You Without You"? To me, it's always been simple: the idea has always been for the band to put on costumes and pretend to be another band, right? Well, who says that has to end right after the band stops singing about themselves? This whole album is a Lonely Hearts Club Band — named BEATLES, I guess. The songs with the audience noises could be dubbed in, or, heck, they could just be live recordings with some overdubs, like what Zappa would do on some of his albums. That doesn't sound so far-fetched to me. As for Billy Shears, "the singer," I've never believed he was the singer of the Lonely Hearts Club Band. To me, he's a special guest vocalist, like Roy Harper on "Have A Cigar". The rest, then, is all sung by the Band themselves. And this might be a stretch, but for real, it's what I've always believed. And it's funny to bring up Frank Zappa here, too, given that he liked SGT. PEPPER'S enough to name his next album WE'RE ONLY IN IT FOR THE MONEY as a critique of both the album and the Beatles'. (With the extra fact that Paul has been quoted saying that SGT. PEPPER'S was their FREAK OUT! — in terms of being a complete concept album, anyway.) Coincidentally enough, my group got it only two or three days ago, and to address Zappa's accusation that they were plastic and insincere... No, no, they're legit. This isn't something like BEATLES FOR SALE; they clearly believe in what they're doing here. This doesn't sound to me like a "How do you do, fellow kids?" cash-in on the youth culture of the time — if anything, it **directed** the culture. Look at how The Rolling Stones tried having their own SGT. PEPPER'S with THEIR SATANIC MAJESTIES REQUEST. Look at how this album (and the non-album "Strawberry Fields Forever") was one of the reasons why SMiLE became one of the great lost albums. Look at how IN THE COURT OF THE CRIMSON KING was meant as an homage. Look at how bands generally have called albums "our SGT. PEPPER'S." Heck, just look at the fact that it's maybe **the** most iconic and definitive album of the entire 60's next to PET SOUNDS, THE VELVET UNDERGROUND & NICO and WHAT'S GOING ON. Circling back to talk about the songs for a moment here... Gosh, "Being For The Benefit Of Mr. Kite!" is probably my number three, if for nothing else than those calliope breakdowns. They're absolute madness, and they really make you feel like you're walking through a crazy display of lights. Before that, you have "She's Leaving Home", and if there ain't a more beautiful string number on the entire album... Like, it's not a particularly original story, but damn if they don't sell it between the string arrangement and how they sing it. It's a crime the original stereo mix slowed it down. Actually, jumping forward from that, "When I'm Sixty-Four" is another great "oldies-style" Paul number. I really do love how granny and vaudeville it is, and those backing vocals just can't be missed. They might just be the best backing vocals on the whole album — or at the very least, it's a strong fight against Ringo's number "With A Little Help From My Friends". It's just a lovely tune that no one else but Ringo could sing. Seriously, that last note he sings just would not have hit the same if he'd had a larger range. Like, "Damn, listen to him just **go for it**." And speaking of songs, pull back to that non-album song: "Strawberry Fields Forever" and its companion A-side "Penny Lane". Should they have been on this album? Um... Yeah. Yeah, probably. They would have fit in right alongside everything else. As much as I like "Fixing A Hole" and "Getting Better" (minus it's "I used to be cruel to my woman" line — worst moment on the album, no doubt), I don't think I'd miss them **that much**... Although, that said, I kind of can't imagine a SGT. PEPPER'S with any songs other than the ones it has now. Maybe blame it on nostalgia and how I'm way more used to hearing "Strawberry Fields" and "Penny Lane" on MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR, but... Yeah, I'unno, they just belong here. They're part of the album's cohesion — not that "Strawberry Fields" or "Penny Lane" wouldn't have been, but if I had the chance to change history, frankly, I don't think I would. Let those two be amazing on their own, eh? And briefly, I wanna bring up the album cover. As someone who finds visuals like that very important, it almost doesn't get any better than SGT. PEPPER'S. It's not imitated as often as it is for nothing, only beat out in my mind by ABBEY ROAD for the best Beatles album cover. You can spend a long time just looking at it and all of the people they included. Like, it's just fun to let your eyes wander over it. N', heck, even Alastor Crowley is there! Really, the whole packaging is a treat, with its gatefold cover and cut-outs and all the lyrics on the back... It makes the whole thing feel incredibly prestigious, and it's the kind of thing I love to see out of album packaging. And I could go on — believe me, I could. I haven't even spoken specifically on the title track, "Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds", "Lovely Rita", "Good Morning Good Morning" or the reprise (love 'em all, of course; I used to consider "Good Morning Good Morning" my favorite, for as much as I know others don't like it) — and without those this review **still** might hit over 2k words at the rate I'm going. But I think you get it by now. I agree very much that this is not the Beatles' greatest album. They'd done better, before and after. I won't say it didn't make me very happy to see that the 2020 Rolling Stone 500 had dropped it down to 24 while bumping ABBEY ROAD to the top 5. Matter of fact, it might not even be the best **60's** album. Besides ABBEY ROAD, people could and have made great cases for THE VELVET UNDERGROUND & NICO, WHAT'S GOING ON and PET SOUNDS — and not only are the latter two ranked higher on the 2020 RS500, with WHAT'S GOING ON at number one, but PET SOUNDS got to stay at #2 while SGT. PEPPER'S fell from the top 20. Goodness, huh? But even if it isn't the SUPER DUPER ALL TIME NUMBER ONE BREAK THE SCALE ELEVEN OUTTA TEN BEST ALBUM EVAR... Let's not front: it's still up there. A splendid time was guaranteed for all, and they sure as hell provided. I mean, if the stupid Bee Gees/Peter Frampton movie couldn't kill this thing's rep, nothing can. That's just a fact, and that's all I have to say about that.

Exile On Main Street

The Rolling Stones

4/5

According to fans, this is apparently the best album The Rolling Stones ever made. Critics these days would agree: 5's, 10's and A's across the board. ROLLING STONE (the magazine) would agree as well. On its 2012 list it was a top ten entry, at number 7. Later in 2020 it dropped down to 14, but it's still the highest-ranked Rolling Stones album by far — heck, at this point it now out-ranks SGT. PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND. That's quite a bit of pedigree for my ass. However, The Rolling Stones themselves (or maybe just Mick Jagger) would not agree. At the very least, he or they don't understand all the praise. The album didn't yield very many hits, after all — and that's not even to bring up the **mixing**! It's curious to me to see that disconnect. It's not particularly pronounced, yeah, but just that it exists at all... And, I'unno, just based off of the vibes I'd gotten from the Stones, I don't think I would've guessed that **this** was supposed to be the absolute cream of the crop. STICKY FINGERS, LET IT BLEED, those feel more to me like they should be claiming the top spot. Especially LET IT BLEED — how can an album that has shit like "Gimme Shelter" and "You Can't Always Get What You Want" **not** be the best thing? Goodness, STICKY FINGERS has "Dead Flowers", and that's an amazing little deep cut. Meanwhile, I look at EXILE ON MAIN ST., and I don't recognize a single song here. From the outside, I'm seeing what Jagger is talking about... And, like, I recognize, I'm largely judging a book by its cover here. Just because an album doesn't have any big obvious hits doesn't mean it's any worse. Heck, albums with big hits could be **worse** 'coz they only have the one or two good songs. It's just not typically a good sign in my eyes, y'know? It's not like listening to the album entirely disproves that, either. I mean, don't get me wrong: this is great rock music. In fact, it's not **just** "great rock": there's so much country and gospel influence throughout... And, oh, goodness me, the gospel influence. Let me put it out there right now, the gospel stuff is the best stuff on this album. Any time there was a song that leaned that way (or in a similar soul-ish direction), ah, I was all for it. Certainly, within the group of Rolling Stones album we've gotten so far, I like this a lot more than I do the strict "return to roots" blues rock of BEGGARS BANQUET. However, despite how much I find I like this material... I'unno. I'm still being held back from finding it all that incredible. It's great rock music, sure. But is it better, as a whole, than STICKY FINGERS? Or, why not, SGT. PEPPER'S? Legit, I do think the problem is that I didn't pick out any particular hits. As good as the material here is, and as well as it's played, I don't think I really heard that one song that would keep me wanting to come back for me. That's something I feel is cruisical, y'know? Even if it's just one song, a really good album — the best in a band's discography, even — should have that one song that makes you jolt your head up like, "Ooo! Listen to **that**!" STICKY FINGERS has those in the form of "I Got The Blues" and the aforementioned "Dead Flowers", not to mention the actual hits "Brown Sugar" and "Wild Horses". Meanwhile, on EXILE, I'd be hard-pressed to pick out any particular song. It all operated on such a nearly flat plain of "Yeah, it's good; I like this" that I barely noticed when one song ended and another began. This isn't exactly a glowing endorsement of the album here, I'm aware of that; I wanna stress again that I think it's great, even... But **the best**? Maybe if it'd been trimmed a little. I'm not sure if it **really** needed to be two discs — and ain't that the death knell for a double album, eh? But for real, maybe if the album had been tightened up some of these songs could have stood out a little more and I'd be more willing to cop to the consensus. But, y'know, I actually dislike making reviews so much about the consensus or others' opinions. So even though it provided me with a framework to talk about this album, let's put it aside as we wind down. I'll emphasize one more time, I did enjoy this album. When it got its gospel tinge on, or when it went a little country, I was all for it. When it was more straightforward rock, it was— it was fine. Good as any good rock music should be. It's just not one I'd be clamoring to revisit too soon, unlike STICKY FINGERS or the one I'm really looking forward to, LET IT BLEED. Still, though, I wouldn't give it less than a 4. It's a 4 that's less enthusiastic than usual, but a 4 nonetheless. At worst, it just doesn't get me too much closer to understanding why exactly the Stones could be such a critical darling. (And for real — the 2012 RS500 had this **how many spots** above **ABBEY ROAD**? I would never, goodness.)

First Band On The Moon

The Cardigans

4/5

Yeah, that's a pretty good album. I'm surprised I don't have too much to say about it, either. Y'know, it's one of those fun 4's where I think it sounds good, but it doesn't really inspire any specific words. You'd think between this album having their big-ass hit "Lovefool" and these Black Sabbath references I'd have more I'd want to say, but... Nah. Not off the top of my head, anyway. Lemme try and force something through, though. Uhm... The keys. I really like the keys on this thing. There's a line on "Step On Me" that I really like. The "Iron Man" cover has some neat stuff, too... So does "Great Divide", too — it may be the best song for keys? And of course "Lovefool"'s keys are good, to bring that up again. The melodies are really good. Like, I guess I can't be too surprised that the Swedish have a good ear for melodies, but goodness me. It's really solid stuff, front to back. What else, what else? Uh... Oh, the vocals. Nina is a good vocalist. Sometimes her voice dips maybe a bit too close into "cooing baby voice," although I never think she goes far enough for it to be too annoying. There's a lot of great stuff happening on "Choke", particularly that riff between lines... Oh, and the flute! I dig the flute all over this thing. And going back to that "Iron Man" cover. On its face, it's ridiculous. To most people, it might not be any more than just kind of amusing. However, take it from someone who loves these kinds of genre roulette covers: it's legit. For serious. Gosh, honestly. As a whole, I feel like the second half of the album is the stronger half. That's where you get all of the songs I've mentioned above... Yeah, if I were to come back to this, it'd be the second side of the LP for sure. And... Yeah. I think those're all the thoughts I've had. I bet this is one of the most well-structured reviews I've ever done, ho-ho... But, no, for real, it's a good album, worth checking out for more than just the one big hit. A real solid 4. Not bad for what's apparently the first musical group to grace the lunar surface.

Station To Station

David Bowie

5/5

Cocaine is a hell of a drug. First of all — Randomizer, that's the wrong drug for my group's 420th album. But putting that aside... The whole day before I actually got to this album — hell, while I was listening to it and once I was done — that was the thought on my mind. I mean, truthfully, it's how I've always considered the album: "The one Bowie made mad on coke." Which— I'm coming to realize, I never really had any feelings connected towards that thought. At most, there was some mild amusement (granted from being so far removed from the reality of what making this album was actually like), but otherwise I never meant it in a good or bad way. It was simply just an objective fact. To be frank, if my hesitation going into this album came from anything, it was the inspirations and what the record after this was. Now, look, in regards to the latter, I can't speak on Neu!, but I've mostly liked what I've heard of Kraftwerk. Sure, I only found TRANS EUROPA EXPRESS to be "just fine..." But AUTOBAHN, though? Oh, now **that** was a great-ass record and title track. When it comes to LOW, on the other hand, while I don't remember being too wild about the first half of the record, I still liked the second enough to ultimately give the whole thing a 4. Going into this, however... I'unno. I suppose the stark album cover — while I love, by the way — influenced me a bit too much to get stuck on the negative aspects. How repetitive TRANS EUROPA EXPRESS could be; the influence LOW is claimed to have on post-punk... Combined with the vague memories I have of being bored listening to it for the first time a few years ago... And the fact that it's only six songs across 38 minutes (an average length of 6.333... minutes per song). I wasn't exactly expecting the best. That's not even mentioning how much of a **character** the Thin White Duke persona was... So imagine my surprise when not even halfway through the album I'm figuring this might just be my second favorite of the Bowie releases my group has gotten thus far. See, the thing I failed to remember walking into this album is the one that Bowie released the year before: YOUNG AMERICANS. STATION TO STATION is often seen as a bridge between it and LOW, and although I wasn't too crazy about YOUNG AMERICANS back when I first heard it... Yeah, that thing's plastic soul is still way more what's happening here than my worries that it would be mind-numbingly dark n' stark Neue Deutsche Welle. Goodness, Bowie wouldn't even get close to Germany 'til after this record dropped, when he moved to Berlin. From a pure musical standpoint, this comes close to rivaling HUNKY DORY, honestly and truly. The rock is so groovy and funky that it kicks all kinds of ass. Meanwhile, there's R&B-type songs, and the melodies on those can be damn pretty. These are songs so strong, I don't even mind how long they are; they're the kind of songs where I can just fall into whatever they're doing and float along. Even when they repeat themselves in parts — the repetition is **far** from being egregious like I was worried it'd be. And the extra cherry on top? Bowie's voice. As much as I love HUNKY DORY and ZIGGY STARDUST — and I do truly love them; ZIGGY's gonna bump this one down to number three when it shows up... Well, look, I'm someone who grew up on the cover of "Changes" in SHREK 2 that Bowie guested on. His voice there — **that's** what Bowie sounds like to me. The higher, younger voice singing "Life On Mars?" and "Suffragette City" is recognizably him and it's good, but in a blind taste, I'd probably lean more towards how he sounds here or on, I'unno, LET'S DANCE. So, jus', these great melodies, being sung by this Bowie voice? I am **all the way** for it. Man, I'm kinda really glad Elvis Presley rejected "Golden Years" (if that story's true). I'd love to hear how Elvis woulda sang it, but man, if it don't sound just so good comin' out of Bowie. My goodness. So if ain't another great example of why I shouldn't pay too much mind to preconceptions. You'll never truly know 'til you go station to station yourself, eh? And having my journey through the six, yeah, I'll absolutely slap this thing with a big ol' 5. Don't let the monochrome MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH still on the front fool you; this is legit shit. And he made all of this during the darkest days of his life? Goodness me. I'll say it again: cocaine is a hell of a drug. Cocaine is a hell of a drug. First of all — Randomizer, that's the wrong drug for my group's 420th album. But putting that aside... The whole day before I actually got to this album — hell, while I was listening to it and once I was done — that was the thought on my mind. I mean, truthfully, it's how I've always considered the album: "The one Bowie made mad on coke." Which— I'm coming to realize, I never really had any feelings connected towards that thought. At most, there was some mild amusement (granted from being so far removed from the reality of what making this album was actually like), but otherwise I never meant it in a good or bad way. It was simply just an objective fact. To be frank, if my hesitation going into this album came from anything, it was the inspirations and what the record after this was. Now, look, in regards to the latter, I can't speak on Neu!, but I've mostly liked what I've heard of Kraftwerk. Sure, I only found TRANS EUROPA EXPRESS to be "just fine..." But AUTOBAHN, though? Oh, now **that** was a great-ass record and title track. When it comes to LOW, on the other hand, while I don't remember being too wild about the first half of the record, I still liked the second enough to ultimately give the whole thing a 4. Going into this, however... I'unno. I suppose the stark album cover — while I love, by the way — influenced me a bit too much to get stuck on the negative aspects. How repetitive TRANS EUROPA EXPRESS could be; the influence LOW is claimed to have on post-punk... Combined with the vague memories I have of being bored listening to it for the first time a few years ago... And the fact that it's only six songs across 38 minutes (an average length of 6.333... minutes per song). I wasn't exactly expecting the best. That's not even mentioning how much of a **character** the Thin White Duke persona was... So imagine my surprise when not even halfway through the album I'm figuring this might just be my second favorite of the Bowie releases my group has gotten thus far. See, the thing I failed to remember walking into this album is the one that Bowie released the year before: YOUNG AMERICANS. STATION TO STATION is often seen as a bridge between it and LOW, and although I wasn't too crazy about YOUNG AMERICANS back when I first heard it... Yeah, that thing's plastic soul is still way more what's happening here than my worries that it would be mind-numbingly dark n' stark Neue Deutsche Welle. Goodness, Bowie wouldn't even get close to Germany 'til after this record dropped, when he moved to Berlin. From a pure musical standpoint, this comes close to rivaling HUNKY DORY, honestly and truly. The rock is so groovy and funky that it kicks all kinds of ass. Meanwhile, there's R&B-type songs, and the melodies on those can be damn pretty. These are songs so strong, I don't even mind how long they are; they're the kind of songs where I can just fall into whatever they're doing and float along. Even when they repeat themselves in parts — the repetition is **far** from being egregious like I was worried it'd be. And the extra cherry on top? Bowie's voice. As much as I love HUNKY DORY and ZIGGY STARDUST — and I do truly love them; ZIGGY's gonna bump this one down to number three when it shows up... Well, look, I'm someone who grew up on the cover of "Changes" in SHREK 2 that Bowie guested on. His voice there — **that's** what Bowie sounds like to me. The higher, younger voice singing "Life On Mars?" and "Suffragette City" is recognizably him and it's good, but in a blind taste, I'd probably lean more towards how he sounds here or on, I'unno, LET'S DANCE. So, jus', these great melodies, being sung by this Bowie voice? I am **all the way** for it. Man, I'm kinda really glad Elvis Presley rejected "Golden Years" (if that story's true). I'd love to hear how Elvis woulda sang it, but man, if it don't sound just so good comin' out of Bowie. My goodness. So if ain't another great example of why I shouldn't pay too much mind to preconceptions. You'll never truly know 'til you go station to station yourself, eh? And having my journey through the six, yeah, I'll absolutely slap this thing with a big ol' 5. Don't let the monochrome MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH still on the front fool you; this is legit shit. And he made all of this during the darkest days of his life? Goodness me. I'll say it again: cocaine is a hell of a drug.

Walking Wounded

Everything But The Girl

5/5

It's so strange to me that "Missing" is, well, missing from this list. Now, I understand all of the angles for why the song and the album isn't here. I doubt any album here is included for a single song and nothing else, for one. Then there's how I've heard from a fan that the album it's on (AMPLIFIED HEARTS) isn't very good (and I don't feel like fact checking)... And both of those are ignoring the fact that the version of "Missing" that got famous isn't even on that album to begin with. I suppose all of this is just the curse of Everything But The Girl being a one hit wonder in my eyes... But just as well, when it comes to this album, I don't think "Missing" being (different word) absent is nothing. After all, if I wasn't aware of the arc of their career, I absolutely would not have been able to recognize this as being by the same duo who recorded IDLEWILD. Jeez, you get one fluke hit from one of your songs getting a dance remix... Right? Although the thing is, while I might chuckle a little at this sudden swerve in sound — from high-class sophisti-pop to breakbeats and string synths — I'm not actually against it? In fact, I'm all for it, 'coz I like this **way** better than I did IDLEWILD. I mean, I didn't think it was bad, but that album felt way too high class for me. The only people I could really picture enjoying it, full 5 outta 5, were snobs with stuck-up tastes. Meanwhile, with this album... Well, it's just as I predicted: I did need a dance beat to keep myself engaged. Tracey's voice is just so perfect over these instrumentals. It's like... I don't wanna keep referring back to IDLEWILD, 'coz I'd wanna consider this album on its own, but dang it, IDLEWILD was way too chill for its own good, and Tracey's voice couldn't do much of anything to elevate the material. Compare it with what's going on here, where they work so well in tandem that it'd honestly surprise me to find out they weren't always an electronic duo if I didn't already know. Like, "What do you mean this is their **ninth** album? It really took them **that long**? And this was their **second to last** before going on a decades-long hiatus?" Gawd, it's a shame they didn't do more of this, I swear... And I'll say this, too: this is infinitely better than MAXINQUAYE. Like, I'm not 100% how applicable bringing up that album is since I literally cannot remember how it sounds, but in regards to the trip hop led by female vocals I've heard, this clears whatever the hell Tricky was doing and then some. Goodness, I like this a hell of a lot more than basically every other trip hop and drum n' bass album we've gotten (including maybe even DUMMY). Gawd, all the shout outs to Ben Watts and the other producers. Good, good shit. Y'know, despite how I ended up feeling about this album, I actually had my doubts about it. With my past experience with trip hop, drum n' bass, and Everything But The Girl, I was expecting an excruciating forty-some minutes. At best, it'd maybe be something I could talk up to a 3 like I did IDLEWILD... But no, no. Screw it. This is a 5. I liked it that much. In fact, I'll prove it to you by saying this: I was considering listening to the two remixes stapled on to the end. And that's something I don't do for any album other than, like, The Flaming Lips' THE SOFT BULLETIN. Believe me, that's an endorsement coming from my fingertips. And if you don't believe me, well... I'unno what to tell you. I've said basically everything I can — everything but the convincing part, anyway, I guess.

Apocalypse 91… The Enemy Strikes Black

Public Enemy

5/5

From the onset it would seem curious to me that there's a **third** Public Enemy album on this list. I know they have a good discography, but within the context of a list like this or the Rolling Stone 500, I wasn't sure exactly what you'd get out of this album that you couldn't get out of IT TAKES A NATION or FEAR OF A BLACK PLANET. This'll be a "No, duh" moment here: you get another good-ass Public Enemy record. The beats are hard as fuck, Chuck D is as righteously forceful as ever, Flava Flav is the hypest of hype men... That's all I could ever really want out of a Public Enemy record, so I know I'm damn satisfied. And it's not like there's nothing different about this album compared to the other two. Particularly, it's in the beats: thanks to their work being stolen, the Bomb Squad had to rush the production to meet album release, and as a result the beats are a lot simpler and less dense than the other records. It's really not a bad thing; it proves to me that the Squad can hit just as well even when they're not making stuff like "Fight The Power". Actually, honestly, as much as I love the dense sample work, it's pretty refreshing to hear Public Enemy over simpler stuff. It doesn't make them any less hardcore than they always are, so... Look, though — if there's any one reason, personal and selfish, why I'd have this album on this list... Y'know, I said back in my last review (of Everything But The Girl's WALKING WOUNDED) that I didn't believe that any album was included on this list for one song. No album **should** be here for one song. You wanna talk about songs, singular, and not complete projects, go look at the Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs. Just as well, this reason isn't to diminish any other song on this album, particularly "By The Time I Get To Arizona", otherwise the best song here. Screw it, though. All by itself, this album to me is worth the price of admission just for the re-recording of "Bring Tha Noize" with Anthrax. Holy shit. Matching Chuck D's flow and delivery with Anthrax's wild brand of trash metal? This kicks ass. This kicks so much damn ass. By a country-sized margin it's my favoritest thing here. Like, I don't know if I can really emphasize how excited I was for my group to get this album for this song alone. As one of the first volleys of rap metal, far as I know, it's still one of the best ever. Goodness me. So, like, this album would've always been a 5. It doesn't get nearly as much recognition as the other two Public Enemy albums, but shit, if this one don't earn its keep. However, even if the rest of the album hadn't held up, "Bring The Noize" has the strength that this would still be a 4, minimum. Legit one of those "Living For The City" or "Life On Mars?" songs strong enough to do that. So even if you've think you've gotten all you can out of the others, do yourself and don't pass this album up. Yeah, I'm tellin' you.

Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere

Neil Young & Crazy Horse

4/5

OK, but I hafta ask: what exactly is so special about Neil Young, anyway? I mean, seven albums. He has **seven albums** on this list. The only singular artist that has more albums than him is David Bowie and, well — that's David Bowie. The famous line about him is that he was a chameleon, reinventing himself over and over again throughout the years, and nearly on every album. I get that to get the full scope of Bowie you can't just throw up ZIGGY STARDUST and call it a day. With Young, though... I mean, all I feel like I've ever heard from him is singer-songwriter folk. Why do we need more than **one** album to understand that? Well, OK, I'm not a complete idiot. Just because my "melody first" ass doesn't recognize lyrics doesn't mean they're not there. That has to be one part of it, no doubt. After that... I'unno. I guess the high guard who makes these "greatest of all time" calls finds the songs on Young's albums just **that** consistently strong. Me being no tastemaker myself, it's not like I can exactly argue with that. But whatever. These are thoughts that could've been applied to any of Young's albums. What about this one? Is there anything here that could maybe help me out a bit more? Funny enough, I don't feel like I'd credit too much of what I'd like about this album to Young himself? At least not entirely? Which might sound a little dumb; he's the sole writer on this album, after all. I just have to wonder to myself, though: how much of this is Crazy Horse's influence? Like, I think back to the other Neil Young albums, and I can't really think of any of them as "rocking." Sure, they each have a few country and folk rock songs, and "Southern Man" jams harder than Lynyrd Skynyrd, though on the whole I struggle to consider them as more than just "singer-songwriter folk." The only exception to this is the second half of the other album Young did with Crazy Horse, RUST NEVER SLEEPS. Now, yeah, I know Young can rock on his own — besides "Southern Man", "Rockin' In The Free World" **does** exist, after all... And, yeah, this album doesn't go as hard as either of those songs or the second side of RUST NEVER SLEEPS, but damn it, it's still what I liked the most about this album. This thing is more late 60's, hippie-ish country/folk rock than it isn't, and I dig it quite a bit. Like, sure, it's nothing I'd go completely nutso over, but for a simple, rockin' time, I don't feel like I can complain. The ten-some minute songs didn't even bother me too much; the melodies are just strong enough that I didn't really notice their length. For that matter, the fiddle on the penultimate track wasn't an issue for me, either. It could be that I've heard that particular tone in one too many Vitamin String Quartet covers, but is it "Geneva violation" bad? Hardly, please. The only track I wasn't feeling too much, frankly, was the purest folk-type song here, "Round & Round". As a little bit of variety, yeah. On that merit, I wouldn't toss it off the record... However, although I never would, it'd for sure maybe be the one I'd most consider skipping. To bring it back to my earlier question about Crazy Horse's influence, though... I'unno. I've given HARVEST and AFTER THE GOLD RUSH 5's, and I don't feel like this would go much higher than a 4, but it still feels like something I'd return to first. Put aside the one track I didn't really feel — for my own tastes, I'd still take an album that's largely folk rock over folk songwriting. Y'know? So that might not have gotten me any closer to really understanding why there are so many Neil Young albums here. If anything, I cemented more why I, myself, wouldn't have put so many on here. But, y'know, how much is that opinion really worth, huh? Everybody knows it's not much. But, eh, whatever the remaining albums are, I doubt any of them would be much worse than a 4. That can't be nothing.

When I Was Born For The 7th Time

Cornershop

3/5

Oh, it's fine. Like, by my standards and expectations for British indie rock — neither is particularly high — it's serviceable. The biggest thing I can complain about is the way the album's big hit repeats the line "It's a brimful of Asha on the 45" a million times, and that's really not much. So, that's it, right? That's my review? Well... See, that right there is actually just my complaint about strictly the "British indie rock" side of things. When it comes to the album as a whole... Dang, I'll be 100: maybe the "British indie rock" could've been smaller? Like, honestly, for real? Y'know? 'Coz, look, like I just said, the indie rock stuff is fine. It'd get a shrug and a low-end 3 on its own. However, when it gets its raga rock on or Dan The Automator is allowed to do his thing... Aw, **hell yeah** — now **that's** what I wanna hear! That's the **good shit**! Mm! I mean, it's **unique** stuff, right? There's a billion indistinguishable indie rock albums on this list, but I can't think of many with songs that sound like "Butter The Soul". You ask me, **that** should have been the guiding vision of the album — that and maybe the "Norwegian Wood" cover. Seriously, there are spots to me where it sounds... Well, sub-Gorillaz, but Gorillaz nonetheless. This kind of stuff is what I **want** out of this list. **That's** more the kind of stuff I wanna hear before I die. Not yet another middle-of-the-road-ass indie album. And yet, that's still what about half the album is. Or maybe it's actually **under** half — either way, I'unno. The averageness of that stuff sticks out to me just a bit too much for me to get all that enthusiastic about it overall. Like, I'd rather not have spent so much review on it, and I'd rather have instead gone about the stuff I actually liked, but... Eh. "Jus' how it be sometimes," as I say. At the very least, I can say this album's gone from a shrug and a low 3 to a nod, a "yeah," and a high-end 3. Not much of an improvement, but a tick up's a tick up regardless of how big or small it is. Jus'... Eh. Not my tastes.

The ArchAndroid

Janelle Monáe

5/5

OK, OK, here we go: Janelle Monáe! I've heard quite a bit of talk in my time about how big she should've been — or maybe I'm just remembering something Todd In The Shadows said a decade ago, I'uno... But here we go! The Randomizer finally got me off my ass to actually listen to one of her records! I finally got to see if it lived up to all of my expectations! And I suppose that was my problem initially: my expectations. Within the first five tracks, I wasn't really impressed, honestly? I thought what I was hearing was good, and I loved how cinematically it was presenting itself with the orchestral overture and everything, but... I'unno. I got myself figuring maybe the problem was me; that I generally just don't really jive with much modern music (me calling the nearly 15 year old album "modern"). Like, I'd give it a 4 for how good I thought I was, but I'd hafta shrug and admit that this "progressive soul, alt. R&B" thing wasn't really my bag. But then "Cold War" hit. And when specifically that guitar solo happened... **Goodness**. "Cold War", to my ears, is the single best song here. By itself, it rocketed this album straight to a 5, and from then on it never gave me a single reason to put it back below. Like, I really can't emphasize how much "Cold War" (and, by extension, "Come Alive") did to my enjoyment of this album. Jus', these hard-driving-ass psychedelic soul rock songs... Gawd, they're fuckin' amazing. And I **will** swear to emphasize how amazing they are. They're good enough to warrant it. After the album ended, I replayed the record side with those songs, and these days I rarely replay **any** part of an album after I'm done listening to it. I also occasionally make a deal about how I'm gonna revisit some albums but then never do, but here, legit, I can see "Cold War" becoming one of my most listened to songs of March — or maybe any other song on the album as I keep listening to it because of "Cold War". Honestly, yeah, I don't know why Janelle Monáe wasn't a bigger hitmaker. I can totally hear these songs killing on the Hot 100. I mean, can you imagine a world where some of these songs had made an impact? Seriously, the only place "Cold War" charted was in **Belgium** of all places. Honest to goodness... All this, and I didn't even have a damn clue what was supposed to be happening in the plot. Goodness me. Jus'... Damn, Monáe are hella good songwriters, and Monáe herself is a damn good singer. Goodness, I just can't think of another album where I've gotten this big of a "Why the hell weren't you listening to this before now?" kick in the ass. This isn't even really a review as much as this is a stream of consciousness about how incredulous I am about how I hadn't given it a chance before. So, like I said, it's a 5. A big-ass 5 all the way down. I don't even know what else to say except to re-emphasize that I was a fool for not getting to this sooner. Hell, I should actually, legit, no-forgetitng-about-it go and listen to her other albums, and I can kick myself even harder for missing all of **that** stuff, too. All in all, not a bad way to end February. Goodness me.

Since I Left You

The Avalanches

4/5

So, I'm actually a few days late getting to reviewing this album — my group got it March 1st; it's March 3rd as I'm writing. There's other albums I wanna get to so I don't fall too far behind, so I wanna try and keep this short. Which is just as well, 'coz I don't have terribly much I wanna say about this album. In brief: it's pretty much exactly what I wanted ENDTRODUCING..... to be. As a reminder, although I adore much of the craft on display on ENDTRODUCING....., I find the actual end product a little boring. Too ambient, chill trip hop. For my money, I prefer my sampledelia records with a bit more kick. You take PAUL'S BOUTIQUE, FEAR OF A BLACK PLANET, or most any straight mashup album... Yeah, that's my bag. Thankfully, this album lines up with that. From the opening moments, I was happy to hear just how danceable it sounded. This thing has got some **grooves**. Now **this** is the kind of shit that holds my attention! Really makes me want to look into how the samples broke down instead of just gliding straight over them — y'know? Now, like, I can't 100% front. Even if this album is better at keeping my ears on it than ENDTRODUCING..... was... Boy howdy, did it really need to be an hour? Some of these songs could have been cut down, at least a little. Plus, I will say, as a personal preference, I've come to realize how much I do prefer sampledelic rap albums with vocals over instrumental sampledelia — besides DONUTS, anyway. The way the Beasties interacted with the samples on PAUL'S BOUTIQUE is just fascinating; endlessly more so than just letting these beats ride endlessly. And I get it, this album was made for dancing, not so much for sit down focusing, but either way. (I wanna mention, too, that I listened to the Zomba promo version of the album since I heard a lot of people insist it was the **only** way to hear it. Now, in the absence of hearing the officially released version I can't tell you if it is or not, but I did read that the Zomba promo contains all of the samples they used, uncut, so... Yeah, I guess that's the one for the "pure" experience.) And all the same, I won't say this isn't an impressive record, because it is. I mean, any album that builds itself out of samples like this is impressive, but... I'unno. This just has the air around it like it's extra special, eh? You feel me? But yeah. I don't feel like I can completely agree with the rest of my group that it's a straight 5, but at any rate, I can't see going any lower than a 4. Sampling is an art form, and this is one of the examples I'd point to, without a doubt.

Kimono My House

Sparks

5/5

You can't begin to understand how biased I am in favor of this album. Hell, of Sparks as a whole — legitimately, they're one of my favorite bands of all time, and I don't know how much hearing only this one album does them justice. Like, in a career that featured swerves like the Moroder produced NO. 1 IN HEAVEN and the minimalist chamber music of LIL' BEETHOVEN... They're your favorite band's favorite band, and not without good reason. Heck, they're one of Weird Al's favorites, and that's good enough for me. I mean, to me, their appeal is pretty simple: there's a strong English cleverness and theatrically to them. The kind of wit and quirkiness you'd get from a They Might Be Giants record, but with a harder, more bitter edge to it. Look at... Gosh, I wanted to name only a few songs, but I could name pretty much all of them except "This Town Ain't Big Enough For The Both Of Us" and "Amateur Hour". Like, the cruel twist surrounding "Here In Heaven"; the double-negative think of "Thank God It's Not Christmas"; the familial clinginess and exploitation of "Talent Is An Asset"; the bleak scope of "Equator"; the black comedy in the final verse of "Complaints"... Just the imagery that "In My Family" evokes with the line "Gonna hang myself from my family tree." And of course what makes how English this all is even more impressive is the fact that Sparks is actually from California. Yeah, they're American. Even well knowing that you'd never guess they were. But, seriously, as someone who loves the bizarre places They Might Be Giants goes, the sophisticated but bitter wit of Sparks is incredibly up my damn alley. It helps, too, that the actual music is great across the board. Like, behind only ZIGGY STARDUST and HONKY CHÂTEAU, this is my favorite glam rock album. "Amateur Hour" might not be as literary as the rest of the songs here (it's about people who're new to having sex), but if there ain't a damn good reason why it ended up being one of the biggest hits from the album, only behind "This Town Ain't Big Enough For The Both Of Us". And **that** song — **gawd**. It's **track one**, and it's maybe the most impressive thing here for its progressiveness? Like, for real, how dare The Rubettes keep it from being a UK number one. I've never even heard their song, but I know for dang sure it ain't half as good as "This Town Ain't Big Enough For The Both Of Us". And to point this briefly: yeah, Russel Mael sounds like that. I absolutely get why people wouldn't be into it, but, hey, to me, it wouldn't be Sparks without it. I **like it**, dang it. If I can dig Claudio Sanchez sounding like a woman, Russel's no problem — as if there's a problem with sounding like a woman, either way, goodness. This has to be one of the easiest 5's I'll ever give, up there with ABBEY ROAD, WISH YOU WERE HERE and, I'unno, MY AIM IS TRUE. Sparks isn't for everyone, but if you can find an appeal in them, they're absolutely worth your time. They're one of the greatest cult bands of all time, and this is the album that kicked it off for them. If somehow you found this review without having heard the album first, go ahead and listen to it, and then the rest of their discography. You won't regret it. You can't begin to understand how biased I am in favor of this album. Hell, of Sparks as a whole — legitimately, they're one of my favorite bands of all time, and I don't know how much hearing only this one album does them justice. Like, in a career that featured swerves like the Moroder produced NO. 1 IN HEAVEN and the minimalist chamber music of LIL' BEETHOVEN... They're your favorite band's favorite band, and not without good reason. Heck, they're one of Weird Al's favorites, and that's good enough for me. I mean, to me, their appeal is pretty simple: there's a strong English cleverness and theatrically to them. The kind of wit and quirkiness you'd get from a They Might Be Giants record, but with a harder, more bitter edge to it. Look at... Gosh, I wanted to name only a few songs, but I could name pretty much all of them except "This Town Ain't Big Enough For The Both Of Us" and "Amateur Hour". Like, the cruel twist surrounding "Here In Heaven"; the double-negative think of "Thank God It's Not Christmas"; the familial clinginess and exploitation of "Talent Is An Asset"; the bleak scope of "Equator"; the black comedy in the final verse of "Complaints"... Just the imagery that "In My Family" evokes with the line "Gonna hang myself from my family tree." And of course what makes how English this all is even more impressive is the fact that Sparks is actually from California. Yeah, they're American. Even well knowing that you'd never guess they were. But, seriously, as someone who loves the bizarre places They Might Be Giants goes, the sophisticated but bitter wit of Sparks is incredibly up my damn alley. It helps, too, that the actual music is great across the board. Like, behind only ZIGGY STARDUST and HONKY CHÂTEAU, this is my favorite glam rock album. "Amateur Hour" might not be as literary as the rest of the songs here (it's about people who're new to having sex), but if there ain't a damn good reason why it ended up being one of the biggest hits from the album, only behind "This Town Ain't Big Enough For The Both Of Us". And **that** song — **gawd**. It's **track one**, and it's maybe the most impressive thing here for its progressiveness? Like, for real, how dare The Rubettes keep it from being a UK number one. I've never even heard their song, but I know for dang sure it ain't half as good as "This Town Ain't Big Enough For The Both Of Us". And to point this briefly: yeah, Russel Mael sounds like that. I absolutely get why people wouldn't be into it, but, hey, to me, it wouldn't be Sparks without it. I **like it**, dang it. If I can dig Claudio Sanchez sounding like a woman, Russel's no problem — as if there's a problem with sounding like a woman, either way, goodness. This has to be one of the easiest 5's I'll ever give, up there with ABBEY ROAD, WISH YOU WERE HERE and, I'unno, MY AIM IS TRUE. Sparks isn't for everyone, but if you can find an appeal in them, they're absolutely worth your time. They're one of the greatest cult bands of all time, and this is the album that kicked it off for them. If somehow you found this review without having heard the album first, go ahead and listen to it, and then the rest of their discography. You won't regret it.

The Doors

5/5

This is the end. Well, the end of my group getting The Doors albums, anyway. I suppose it's fitting, and maybe for the best, we ended up getting their debut album last. Not just because it concludes our trilogy of albums with "The End", but... I mean, I get the feeling that if I hadn't made the discoveries I had while listening to MORRISON HOTEL and L.A. WOMAN, particularly the latter, I might've been a bit harder on this album. Might've tried too hard to look for the "BIG IMPORTANT ARTSY POETRY" band the public has made them out to be, instead of the psych/blues band led by a former fat kid who **really** wanted to be a poet. Under that light, their music becomes so much easier to just... Kick back and enjoy, y'know? Not hafta stress too much about whether Morrison "deserves" to be buried in that French graveyard for poets. And of all of the Doors albums we've gotten, this is by far the one I've enjoyed the most. After all, it sounds the most like what Weird Al's pastiche of them, "Craigslist", had led me to believe they all the time sounded like. That's legit a bias I had to get past with the other two albums, and 100% why I enjoyed this album as much as I did. And, like, we talk about Morrison a lot, but holy shit, what a band he had behind him. John Densmore and Robert Krieger are great drummers and guitarists respectively, and for real, not enough praise can be put on Ray Manzerik's name. His keyboard sound is just **the best thing**, and **the** defining feature of The Doors' sound, you ask me. That riff on "Light My Fire" is so iconic, goodness. Now, "Light My Fire" is probably the best representation of "classical Doors." What you imagine this group sounds like at a base level. However, if I were to narrow in on any song as the best on the album, and a good contender for their masterwork... Yeah, it's "The End". To my ears, only "Rivals On The Storm" rivals it as the greatest thing they ever made. Some might call this song a self-indulgent slog, but to me, it's an epic. A slow, psychedelic epic with heavy progressive and brooding jazz tones... It's a marvel. A feat unto itself. There's no more perfect way I can imagine this album — or, for that matter, my group's journey through The Doors' albums — ending. I feel like reviewing these albums has given me a new appreciation for The Doors. I can see why there are people who consider them pretentious and over-rated, but for my money? Nah, they deserve the acclaim they get, and this album particularly. It's a 5 — just an incredibly strong collection of songs, worth a few dozen spins and then some more. In fact, I'd even go so far as to say these songs are STRONGER THAN DIRT. Yeah, that's a good reference to end on.

Kilimanjaro

The Teardrop Explodes

3/5

This website really needs to stop scaring me with that "post-punk" tag. At this point, my experience with the genre has been so bad that I'll always come into an album tagged with it expecting the worst. So, y'know, on the one hand I'm like, "Thank goodness it turns out that this is just bog standard British New Wave." But then, y'know, obviously that's also this thing's big problem: that it turns out that this is just bog standard British New Wave. Within the first few seconds, I thought these guys sounded like a one hit wonder. I have no proof if they actually were or not, but that's just the vibe I got. And, like, they're not the kind where they had such an incredibly unique song that it caught the public's imagination, no. This isn't a "She Blinded Me With Science" or "Come On Eileen". I'd say this is more, like... "Turn Up The Radio" by Autograph. Where they happened to be at the right place at the right time with a popular sound. I mean, this album just strikes me as "Yeah, they really didn't have much else to offer beyond their big hit that you couldn't get anywhere else." That's not to say there's nothing here. The keys, synths and guitars can do nice things at times. In fact, the singer's voice, though a bit generic, isn't even that bad. You wouldn't not have a decent time going through this; there's just enough "goofy new wave" fun. I just can't imagine going that wild over this unless I was just **that big** a fan of British New Wave and somehow didn't know where to find better. Ultimately, if they were a one hit wonder and I was asked if they deserved better, I'd say "Not really." They're perfectly serviceable, but that's all they are. Just an also-ran you'd forget about the moment Duran Duran dropped their debut a year later. It'd be mean to give them less than a 3 — and for sure they're better than many post-punk albums I've had to put up with — but they really don't deserve any higher. (Also: "neo-psychedelia?" They're not that either, Wikipedia. Where the heck did your editora get that from? Goodness me.)

This Is Fats Domino

Fats Domino

5/5

I mean, come on, it's Fats Domino. It's not exactly hard to hear why this stuff is great. Between how hard Fats pounds the piano and all the general New Orleans (N'AWLINS) jazz influence... Yeah, this is my favorite 50's rock n' roll music, without a doubt. I agree 110% with Elvis when he said that Fats was the **real** king of rock n' roll. And normally I'd like to get my reviews up and over 300 words, but in this case... Yeah, I ain't got much else to say, and I ain't gonna force anything else. This isn't particularly complicated material. I mean, this isn't the first album I'd recommend; I'd probably go with FATS DOMINO SWINGS, 'coz it has stuff like "The Fat Man" and "Ain't That A Shame"... And also that album's actually **on streaming**... But no matter which release you go with, you can't go wrong with Fats. Huge 5 for just being a fun as hell time.

Very

Pet Shop Boys

5/5

Y'know, it's been a long since my group last got a Pet Shop Boys album. It was our 99th, actually, and we've had, like, over 330 since then. That's a lot! I mean, I can't even remember too well what I thought of that release. Best I can remember, I liked the synths and keys, but it otherwise wasn't able to hold my attention too terribly well. I'll admit, going into the I was worried I'd be in for more of the same. But, hey, this album actually comes from six years further into their discography. For all I knew, this could've been different. And, well, was it? Yes. Oh, **yes**. And, jus'... Oh, my goodness, this was the most incredible thing. Absolutely fabulous. Like, I'm actually sort of at a loss for words. I mean, you're telling me this was here the entire time, and I never knew about it until now? Goodness me. Like, let me just put in short the fundamental reason why I liked this so much: it's not just that it's really good British techno/house, no. It's that this sounds like the best soundtrack you've heard ever to an early CD video game that doesn't exist. Seriously, in some spots I'm almost getting some SONIC CD vibes from this? And in other parts it's just so huge... This music is relentless and completely electric, hitting the floor from the first moment and never letting up. And you'd think it'd get tiring over its 50-some minute runtime, but it's actually super good at keeping things interesting. I can completely hear why this was a smash. For anyone with a nightlife, songs from this album must've caused pandemonium in the disco. If this wasn't an essential party album for the 90's, I don't know what it was. (And of course I missed most of the lyrics, so I didn't catch a lot of the introspective moments I heard that this album has, but from what I did gleam... Honestly, it kind of reminds me of Sparks's turn to dance music on GRATUITOUS SAX & SENSELESS VIOLINS? And take it from a huge fan of Sparks, I already know I like this album far better. More of this, please.) But, yeah, give this... Jus', like, the biggest 5 you can muster. The last album we got from these guys completely underprepared me for this album. At best, it's alright, but nonetheless... I mean, seriously, this discovery has to be one of the absolute best I've come across doing this randomizer. I was completely floored by it. I jus' love the performance on here so much... Goodness me. I don't even have anything else I wanna say — and I don't wanna try and cram in any more Pet Shop Boys album titles and single names. So, I'unno. Go west and listen to it already if you haven't, I guess.

...Baby One More Time

Britney Spears

4/5

Some people need to get their heads out of their butts. Now, look, I hate making my reviews about other people's reviews, but, like... If you wanna find this album dated, that's one thing. That's fair enough, honestly; this material is **very** late 90's/early 2000's. I mean, for goodness snake, there's a song on here called "E-Mail My Heart". If that's not dated, nothing is. I'd get ragging on this album for that — though I wouldn't, myself. I actually kind of really enjoy it when music sounds so much like the time period it came from? Of course the stuff that withstands the test of time will always be better, but as if I'm not sometimes in the mood for the specific sound of an era, y'know? And if you're not into this kind of teen pop production and songwriting, I also get it. Y'know, the songs can sound maybe a little unspecial, which can not pair very well with how huge they present themselves. Although for me, I've always loved what an absolute steamroller these songs can be. For real, this whole era of teen music, from Britney to *NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys, is absolutely amazing. I'll acknowledge I might just be shallow, but even if the substance itself isn't much, how enormous they can sound more than makes up for it. And there's other stuff you could ding this album for. The dancehall thing on "Soda Pop" is a little "...Huh?" Not to mention, it's entirely fair to not like how this album presented Britney despite her age at the time. That's completely legit. No, my problem with these reviews from what I've scanned is that most all of the negative ones seem to boil down to just "I CAN'T LISTEN TO THIS; I'M AN ADULT." And, like... Are you serious? Are y'all for real? That's **really** enough of a problem in your eyes to give this album a 2 or even a 1 outta 5? Heck, to drag this album's average rating down to a 2.66? Allow me to quote someone who was mocked at the time for speaking the truth: leave Britney alone. I mean, OK, sure, some of this seems to be tied into how Britney was portrayed here, but come on. Unless you're listening to straight-up nursery rhymes or music made for actual toddlers, however old you are shouldn't matter. I'm in my late 20's, and that might not be too old in the grand scheme of things, but I hold no shame in liking these songs. They're good listens, even if most of them aren't exactly the most mind-blowing things in the world. I mean, in general I still eat Nesquik and read books like DOG MAN alongside "proper grown-up" fare. Let's not act like there's an age limit on things, eh? So, yeah, that's my review built out of complaining about other peoples'. In total... Honestly, I'd give it a good 4. Even as much as I like this album, there's still a part of me that feels like it blows its load a bit early? I mean, after something like the title track there's really nowhere to go but down. Still, it's not enough of a drop off to bring the album **that** far down. I'd give it a few more listens, and I wouldn't feel the need to switch over to porn 'coz it'd be "less embarrassing." Frankly, I hope there's more teen pop albums on here. Give us MILLENIUM! Give us NO STRINGS ATTACHED! Give us some also-ran who's not as good as any of the before mentioned but, damn it, just hit the spot! I'll be there to give 'em 4's — just you watch.

Sound Affects

The Jam

4/5

Y'know, this actually isn't my first tango with this album. Or, like, half of it, anyway. Y'see, nearly a year ago my group got one of Paul Weller's solo albums, WILD WOOD — some kind of 70's singer-songwriter dealie in the 90's. I was having a spot of trouble writing my review, so I figured it'd be for the best if I got a sample of something he did before, for context. And since he was a member of The Jam... Hey, what better album to put on than that group's best? I was unfortunately only able to take in half of it at the time, but just from the little I heard (the first side)... Goodness, I remember being blown away. I'd always had it in my head that The Jam were a legendary act that just never struck it big as they should have — thanks Todd — and from what I heard... Damn, it was so exciting to hear that my assumption was right. I remember loving it a **lot**, so you can only imagine my joy when the Randomizer picked out this record for my group. Finally, I get to hear this music again! So you can also imagine how strange it felt to me when side one just didn't hit in exactly the same way it had back then. Now, of course that's understandable. It has been nearly a year since I'd heard this material; it's only natural that my tastes could have changed just enough in the interim that, well... Frankly, it shouldn't have been something I focused on so much. And yet, I'unno — it got lodged in my head. What **exactly** was I missing here? What could I see the first time that I wasn't now? It baffled me. So much so that I honestly forgot to take in the music as well as I should. For my sake, then, let's put side one — well, aside. I wanna put all my focus onto what I hadn't heard before, side two. And what's on here... By goodness, yeah, it's great stuff. What I like the most here is... Y'know, all the various styles these songs go for. They're all still easily categorized as pre-80's New Wave punk, but they're clearly each tryna evoke their own tones. I know that sounds pretty "no shit," but I'm thinking back to other UK punk albums I've heard, particularly the debuts of the Sex Pistols and The Clash, and neither of them shake up their styles as much as this one does. That's even acknowledging The Clash's dive into reggae **and** knowing that they'd go on to do with their future albums. I can absolutely see why this album has been compared to REVOLVER. OFF THE WALL, not so much — but REVOLVER? Absolutely. And I wanna point out, too: the bass is fantastic. I don't typically notice bass as often as I should have, but, ah, gosh, it was so good here. Goodness me. (And rescanning just one song from the album's first side, the big hit "That's Entertainment"... I mean, I doubt I'll ever again hear what exactly I heard that first time, but at the very least I can confirm that, yeah, of course this is also real good stuff. Goodness me.) All in all... Man, I'unno. I'm feelin' a good 4 on this thing. And, like, I can't put my finger on why I'm holding this thing back from a complete 5... It just feels right, y'know? And believe me, it's a very highly recommended 4. It's just... Yeah, I'll say it again: it's good stuff. No more, no less. And I don't know what else to say besides that, so... Yeah! Good jams from The Jams. Whaddya know?

Tago Mago

Can

2/5

Y'know, I gotta wonder if my brain is just wired differently, 'coz I did not have the reaction to this that I was expecting to. Now, to be clear, the reaction I was expecting to have was... Well, there's a review of this album on this website that calls it "hoe scaring music," right? Simply put, I was expecting to be one scared hoe. After all: 74 minutes of experimental avant-funk 70's Krautrock? How would I be able to survive? And being a day or so late with my review, I was able to build it more and more in my mind as an absolute slog to get through. A big ol' case of "Gawd, let's just get this shit over with..." So on the one hand, it might be my fault for over-inflating my expectations. Or maybe it's not; my brain has a tendency to over-worry and blow things out of proportion sometimes... Or maybe I just didn't engage with it right, and I let way too much of it just float on by me? Like... OK, let me discuss the two discs one at a time so you can get what I mean. On the first disc is where we find all of the funk stuff and, like... Oh, gawd, it's all so "Who the hell cares?" Even if I didn't come into this album expecting a cream pie of weirdness to the face, I still wouldn't have been all too impressed by what I heard here. Like... Sure. It's funk. I guess it was improvised, maybe? And, sure, there's a violin playing out of key in one part, but other than that? I could hardly be assed to pay much attention — so if I **did** miss something, I guess you can blame the material for not holding my interest well enough in the first place. Or I'm just dumb for expecting too much weirdness off the bat, I'unno. Then we get to the second disc, where **finally** all of the experimental stuff comes out to play, and... I mean, look, this is all clearly way more interesting than the first disc. All the places it goes to, versus the endless loop of "whatever" funk... If there's any side of this record to hear, it's this side. You could definitely "Fantasia" to this and let the music conjure some wild imagery in your mind, like I did with BITCHES BREW. At the same time, however, lordy me, was I ever unimpressed. It's why I ask if my brain is just wired differently. I mean, whenever I come across highly experimental, avant garde "big brain smart" tracks like this, my immediate assumption is always that it's gonna be an unbearable slog, but then it just, like... Never is? "Revolution 9" has honestly never bothered me, and I remember listening to "Return Of The Son Of Monster Magnet" a few weeks ago and not really getting much out of it except mild annoyance in its last minute. Y'know, if this is "hoe scaring music," consider me not even a hoe to begin with. Don't get me wrong, there are interesting parts in there. There's some drum stuff about fifteen minutes into "Augmn" that I dug, and there's moments early on in "Peking O" I could nod to like, "Yeah, this is something." But then it seemed like most of "Peking O" was dedicated to someone slapping their hand on a keyboard and burbling while rapidly speaking gibberish. Like, is this really one of the "best albums ever, period?" This? This nonsense? I don't wanna go all "My kid could do that," but if this don't stand as the audio example of how I just can't see what the big deal is supposed to be here. And I wanna emphasize the crazy thing: whether I just don't get it or I let too much of it float past me, **I AM FOR THIS**. Unlike most every other negative review that just calls this thing unlistenable noise, I was all ready, despite my prehensions, to ride this roller coaster and see where it took me. But... Y'know, food metaphor. Largely thanks to my autism, I'm a picky eater. Whenever I'm presented with new food that looks or smells strange, I always psych myself out over how it's gonna be awful and I'm gonna hate it. But then, when I do take a bite of the damn chip or broccoli or whatever, it just... Tastes wholy inoffensive. It's something I **could** eat again, but, like, why in the hell would I when it doesn't do anything for me? Y'know? Honestly, I wanted to like this album. I wanted to hear this exciting, thrilling experimental album that just blew my mind. I wanted to buck against my kneejerk reaction that this was "Ooo, so serious and important and adult" Bran Flakes next to something like Britney Spears's "**DUMB AND FOR BABIES**" Fruit Loops. (Yes, I almost made **TWO REVIEWS** about those reviews — dodged a bullet, eh?) At the very least, I wanted to justify giving this thing a 3 off of "Hey, at least side two is **doing things**." But given everything I just wrote, and thinking back on what parts stick out in my mind... No, no, I'm sorry — I gotta go with a 2. Like, it's so weird to be on the "I think it's boring" side of a 2 and not the "I think it's not fun to listen to" 2, but here we are. In the end, all I can hope for is that, if there are other CAN albums on here, they can do more for me than this one did. Jus', I'unno. "CAN?" More like "CAN do without, thank you."

The Real Thing

Faith No More

5/5

This is another review I'm gonna go on too long with, 'coz I've got a very simple reason for giving this a 5: this kicks ass. Like, so much damn ass — it's so damn good. I don't even think I'm biased 'coz of how much I generally love metal music. The guitars are loud, the riffs go hard, the solos are wild, the songs can be damn funky when they wanna be... Heck, the synths and keys are great, and more often than not they're just accents. It's the kind of music that makes me bop my head and do that scrunched-up stank face: the kind screaming "YES — THIS IS REAL MUSIC." Honestly, I'm just amazed that with how much I liked "Epic" it took me until **now** to check out this album. This should be one of those Randomizer choices where I could write up a review for it months ahead of time, like I've done for FROM ELVIS IN MEMPHIS and want to do for BAT OUT OF HELL. This should be one I've slotted between, like, CALIFORNICATION and Primus in my "funky metal" rotations. In fact, put it in my regular metal rotation, alongside PARANOID, POWERSLAVE and MASTER OF PUPPETS. I don't know if I'm just that easy to please, but, yes, I do actually like it that much. N', y'know, there's a part of me that wants to focus on Mike Patton as a central figure here — I mean, I have always kind of considered it "his band" next to Mr. Bungle — but apparently he didn't have much actual input until the next release. Allow me, then, to give my shout-outs to Mike Bordlin's good-ass drumming, Roddy Bottum's astounding key work, Bill Gould's... I don't even know the word I wanna use to describe his bass. It just has this exact tone that I love, and it's **so good**. Bass is always the underappreciated glue in metal music, so I wanna heap as much love on it as I can. And of course, all the shout outs to James Martin on guitar. Just fantastic work, short and simple. (And even if Mike didn't have much a say on this album, it still makes me wanna check out the ones where he did — and Mr. Bungle, too, for that matter. I've always heard that stuff is crazy, so I really should give it a shot...) But, yeah, this is "the real thing" alright. It's **real** dang good. If I didn't have yesterday's Randomizer pick to get to, I'd honestly consider spinning this thing again, or at least getting to the CD bonus tracks now. But alas — I have avant-funk krautrock to get to. So, lemme jus' close out by saying once again that, damn, I **really** love metal music, and this is bar far no exception. Oh, yeah — it's "it" alright.

Blunderbuss

Jack White

5/5

This has nothing to do with how I felt about the album, but while I was listening to it and taking notes, I was watching a looping video heavily tinted blue of a record spinning. It just felt wrong not to have that in my peripheral vision while I had this thing on. After all, they related to two of things I've always liked about Jack White: the consistent as hell color motifs in his works, and his passion for vinyl records. As someone who's long had an interest in branding and physical media, of course he's been someone I've had in mind for a while now. So then why is this only the first time I've listened to his actual music? Well, his **solo** music, to be clear. Of course I've heard The White Stripes before; who hasn't? At this point it can't be easy to avoid hearing "Seven Nation Army". And in fact, my familiarity with The White Stripes might be why I've taken so long to scoop Jack's work under his own name. I couldn't imagine what he could offer me that I couldn't get or didn't already have from the Stripes. Frankly, judging a book by its color scheme, I'd always assumed Jack's solo work was... Like, "serious," y'know? That there wouldn't be any fun "Ball And Biscuit" shenanigans here, but instead moody, serious, indie-ish music. That's just always how stuff like BOARDING HOUSE REACH came across to me. But that album came out **many** years after this one did. Let's focus on this one: what does it sound like? OK, so, the goal of The White Stripes, to me at least, was to bring rock and blues back to its roots. And I mean, it's absolute primitive, bare-minimum roots: a guitar, drums, and a voice. There'd be some augmentation sometimes, like maybe a piano here and there, but for the most part it was just those three instruments, no more, no less. That was their appeal; that they were so stripped back, raw and **loud**. I mean, heck, the band's whole sound was built around Meg White's basic drumming style — and I mean "basic" as the biggest compliment I can. That sound carries over to this album (or at least it's first three tracks), but it's way more evolved. There's more instruments in the mix, and the drumming is a bit more complex. If the whole album sounded like this, I would've quite liked it. True, it wouldn't hit as hard as some of the best Stripes tracks do, but at least it would've proved to me that Jack White didn't stray **too far** into "serious music" — at least not to start with. However, the whole album doesn't sound like that. Starting with the title track, there's a country/folk influence that starts seeping in and only gets stronger as the album goes on. And it's some good-ass country/folk influence, too. Like, the pedal steel on the title track and "On And On And On" are **so damn good**. Honestly, following track 4 I heard only one more true dip into blues music, and that was with the cover of "I'm Shakin'". Funny enough, it was also the first track where I openly thought "This doesn't sound like White Stripes with extras" — thank the guitar bounce for that. But if there's anything that got me goin' wild on this album, it's the **piano**. The piano on this thing is, like... Incredible. Just plain incredible. Like, seriously, looking at my notes, most of them are just me pointing out how much I liked the piano — especially on "Hip (Eponymous) Poor Boy". Paired together with that mandolin, it, ah, just might be my favorite song on the album. Which, y'know, that's **saying something** given how much I was dazzled by the keys on "On And On And On". Seriously, it is not **not** a battle for my favorite song on here, I swear. Also, also, 'coz I don't know where else to fit this in, I like how much "I Guess I Should Go To Sleep" sounds like it should be playing in an old saloon. That's just fun, y'know? Once again, this Randomizer has gotten me to kick myself in the butt for not checking out someone's work sooner. And it's especially bad here because despite basing way too much of my preconceptions on how one album cover looked, I had no excuse — and let's not act like what I just said is one, either. In fact, while I was writing this review I went and listened to Spotify's samples of BOARDING HOUSE REACH and, yeah, no, I'd love this, too. I'm tellin' yah, aesthetics can do way too much for my opinions sometimes, goodness... So, yeah, that's a big ol' 5 from me. It's good-ass evolved Stripes blues, it's good-ass folk n' country rock... I have very little to complain about here. **And** it gets me to listen to ELEPHANT, and that ain't never a bad thing, lemme tell you. (Honestly, some part of me would've found it funny to give this thing a 3 just for the bit, but I ain't gonna lie about my feelings just to be funny, so...)

Imperial Bedroom

Elvis Costello & The Attractions

3/5

"Masterpiece?" That was the one-word tagline the album was marketed with — and I suppose the question it wants anybody who listens to it to consider. And, like, damn, if that ain't a presumptuous question if I've ever seen one. The marketing team was just **that sure** of you, eh? I mean, even if it **is** a masterpiece, you shouldn't hafta ask people before they've heard a single second of it. Besides, whether it is or not wasn't even the main question I had on my mind as I went into this. I was more wondering if I actually liked Elvis Costello's work beyond MY AIM IS TRUE. More specifically: do I even like his stuff with The Attractions? This isn't my first dance with 'em, after all; I've heard both THIS YEAR'S MODEL and ARMED FORCES before, and numerous times at that. I want so much, so badly to like them as much as I do MY AIM IS TRUE, but... Mmph— I mean, besides the big singles appended to the end as bonus tracks, I honestly haven't really meshed with either of them. Maybe THIS YEAR'S MODEL a little more 'coz it has "Pump It Up", though otherwise, it's been pretty fruitless. Like, this is a thought I've been having even as far back as when I listened to BRUTAL YOUTH, and I haven't exactly been able to figure it out. Even the answer I gave in my review of MY AIM IS TRUE doesn't sound 100% right. So, now that my group's finally gotten an album with The Attractions, I guess it's finally time I figure it out once and for all, huh? Well, if I've figured out anything, it's that I should be saving that question for when we actually get THIS YEAR'S MODEL or ARMED FORCES, since this maybe... A bit more baroque pop than I normally expect from him? Like, sure, there's songs that I don't think would sound too out of place on any other album, but then there's just as many with an accordion or a harpsichord or a full 40-piece orchestra. All of this studio experimentation does make it a bit hard to judge The Attractions on their own merits, y'know? Still, I did feel like I got something out of this, 'coz any of the songs without the unique instrumentation just didn't really do it for me? They're just fine at worst, to be clear, but... I'unno, I'm thinking about songs like "Tears Before Bedtime. There are parts I like, such as the keys, but on the whole I'm finding it hard to get excited by it. Or take "Shabby Doll": the bass does a cool thing, and the piano's nice, but beyond that... Or there's "Kid About It" or "Boy With A Problem", that felt like they could have been bigger than they were... Or, hell, there's "Little Savage", which I feel like could've probably been dropped entirely. Like, part of me has to wonder if I'm just spoiled by MY AIM IS TRUE; that I've heard it and love it too much to accept anything else he's done. Y'know, 'coz it's not "the sound I expect from him." "If it don't sound like 'Red Shoes'...!" I might just be that shallow. The same goes for Weird Al's pastiche "I'm So Sick Of You", which is probably more based on something like THIS YEAR'S MODEL than I'd realize. But then I get to the tracks with the more unique instrumentation, and, yeah, no, I really dig them. "...And In EVery Home" is the most obvious one, where I hafta give it respect for swinging **that hard** for a Beatlesque sound with the orchestration. Nothing on the album beforehand prepares you for that, especially not "Almost Blue" and how stripped-back it is, and that's kind of great. "Human Hands" is good when the sitar and the horns come in; "You Little Fool" is **amazing** in the parts with the harpsichord; and "Town Cryer" is pretty much what I wanted "Boy With A Problem" to be thanks to the orchestra. Then there's what ended up being my favorite song, "The Long Honeymoon". Seriously, with the accordion and the piano over that Latin-style groove? I could see myself listening to it a bunch more times, I swear. Heck, I even wanna shout "Man Out Of Time". It's not as instrumentally unique as the others, but it's got a good drive, I like the tone of it, there's a good chorus melody... And, oh me, oh my, the part near the end, right before it jumps to the outro? Nuts. It's so good, I kinda wish it was the actual outro. Really, I just wish this album was more tightly focused around these songs. This thing is 15 tracks and 50 minutes long. True, it's not a slog like some **other albums** I could name (y'know, if I wanted to), but I still think this thing safely could've had a few tracks cut. Once again, I'll offer up "Little Savage" for how much of an inconsequential nothing I found it. So if you couldn't guess how I feel about this album... Yeah. I mean, when this thing's good, it's really good, and it does confirm to me that I can like Costello's music outside of MY AIM IS TRUE — when he goes for it and experiments. 'Coz when he sticks with a more typical sound, it's too "simply fine" for me to care all too much. Ultimately, the album waffles back and forth between those two modes way too much for me to think much highly of it. So, no, I wouldn't exactly call it a masterpiece... And I'd be lying if I didn't mention that even despite the confirmation, I still had a seed of doubt sowed in my mind about me and Costello's wider discography. Although, that's a matter for how the remaining three Costello albums turn out, so let's make any hard calls right now. For the moment... Yeah, it was real close to a 4, but I gotta slap it with a 3. And, frankly, it does make me kinda wonder if BRUTAL YOUTH deserved one, too... But, hey, even if the rest don't turn out too well, at least I'll always have MY AIM IS TRUE to go back to. I don't think I'll be too upset about that... 'Coz that album, for the record, is a **true** masterpiece. I will not hear otherwise, I swear...

Swordfishtrombones

Tom Waits

5/5

Queens of the Stone Age

Queens Of The Stone Age

3/5

Y'know, I didn't want much out of this album. I mean, I know what a Queens Of The Stone Age is and what it does; I've heard SONGS FOR THE DEAF enough times. As long as it provides me with that kick-ass Palm Springs desert rock I know 'em for, I'll be happy as a damn clam. Heck, I was even willing to keep in that this is their first album and not judge them too hard if it's not "exactly there yet." I'll emphasize: I **was**. But then I heard the album and, uh... Like, look, I'm gonna sit here and tell you it's **that bad**. If you're looking for a little hard desert rock, I can't say this won't do the job, but it won't do any more than that. It's just so flatly fine that I'm not really finding myself inspired to wanna say too much. Off the top of my head, the best I can think of is that, well, this was at least successful enough to lead to the album I'm actually interested in? I'm also mentally comparing it to the other "band debut that's actually a one-man band" dealie I know of, Foo Fighters' eponymous, and, jus'... Goodness, what Dave did on that album was so much more interesting than what Josh did over here. "I'll Stick Around" by itself clears everything on here. 'Coz, I'unno, Dave just has more things going on in his songs than Josh does. Josh is perfectly happy to let the same drum and guitar riff loop for, like, 80% of the songs, with vocals on top that hardly make up for it. This is "stoner rock" in that you might hafta be stoned and not really paying attention to notice how much isn't going on. I wanna give credit to one song, and that's "Mexicola". In my mind, it's the best track here, and it's the closest I'd come to calling any of this material "kick-ass." I mean, heck, it's actually **interesting**, go figure! Now, to be fair, I didn't actually listen to the entire album as it exists on streaming; I listened to the original vinyl track listing. For all I know, "The Name Of This Song Is A Quote From The Movie Star Wars" would've redeemed the whole thing, but I'm not particularly interested in finding out. So... Yeah, I'unno. A 3. It works for what it is, but already being aware of SONGS FOR THE DEAF, I don't have much use for this. Heck, even if I did, I wouldn't wanna listen to it in full again for how "I Was A Teenage Hand Model" ended. Pure discomfort, goodness me. So... I'unno. Honestly, it's kind of a shame that it's the only QOTSA album here, but what'cha gonna do, huh? Well, I don't know about you, but me, I'm gonna go put on "No One Knows".

Different Class

Pulp

4/5

Did you know that's a "Big 4 Of Britpop?" I sure didn't! Until today, I would've guessed it was only a big two: blur and Oasis. I mean, can you blame me? I didn't live in Britain in the 90's; I have no idea what a Pulp is. Isn't that the stuff you find in orange juice? And I sure don't drink that stuff, either! But what's crazy is that I could've sworn I knew who Pulp was? The name was so familiar, and yet I couldn't exactly place where I knew them from. It was driving me crazy! And, no, it wasn't because I was already aware of Jarvis Cocker existing; before I saw his name on this album's Wikipedia page, I thought he was only a stop-motion puppet in a Wes Anderson movie. Regardless, though, going into this album with that "Big 4 Of Britpop" thing in mind, there was one thing I wanted to figure out: what was their hook? After all, I think back to blur and Oasis, and I don't like either of them just because they make good Britpop. For one, blur, is, like... Stupidly British, especially with Damon Albarn's singing voice, and they're willing to experiment — just check their eponymous album, or Damon's later creation Gorillaz. Meanwhile, Oasis sounds absolutely massive, with a large side heaping of Beatlesque influence that they just can't shake. So, what exactly does Pulp hafta offer that puts them up in those ranks? The best thing I was able to figure out, between listening to the album and reading a few 5/5 reviews, is that Pulp is... Joyous. Not all that slappy happy upbeat, but joyous. That's the vibe I get from their music, and particularly what's apparently their signature song, "Common People". And... Y'know, that's not nothing. I don't recall either blur or Oasis sounding this joyous. Heck, it makes it a lot more enjoyable than some of the other Britpop my group has gotten, where the only thing they have going for them is "it's some of the other Britpop my group has gotten." On top of that, there's this whole, like... "Sexy vampire" thing Jarvis has going on sometimes? That's something I read in a negative review, and I can't say it's entirely wrong? There were parts of the video where I could only picture him as, like, Brendon Urie in an early Panic! At The Disco video. "I Write Sins, Not Tragedies", y'know? It's fitting given that I've heard most of the album is about either sex, revenge or revenge sex. (Speaking of the lyrics, by the way, there's only two I actively picked up on while I was listening. There's the line in "Pencil Skirt" that goes "I really love it when you tell me to stop / It's turning me on," which... OK, I saw this in another negative review, which called the line rape-y, and it's like... Y'know, the song's about having a quick one while he's away — sex with a married man's wife and all that — and as much I largely read it as all consensual cheating... Jeez, that line doesn't scan well. And there's a line in "I Spy" where he wants to shove **something** up my ass? I don't even wanna find out.) Putting that aside though and taking the album purely on vibes, yeah, I dig it. There's a lot of stuff to enjoy here, particularly the strings on "Something's Changed" and, yes, "I Spy". Being the string lover I am, goodness. As well, there's a lot of nice stuff done with the synths... Audially, it's just such a good time. Honestly now. Not even Jarvis's occasional "sexy vampire" tone can take away from that — not much, anyway. But the question arises, my friend: do I hold this on the same level as blur or Oasis? Nah. I mean, to talk about this in terms of the only Big 4 I knew before now, if those two are Metallica and Megadeth, then Pulp would... Sub-Slayer? I can hear why Pulp is put up here, but I'm also not 100% surprised why a Canadian who ain't in the know wasn't aware of them before now? "Being joyous" isn't the best hook in the world, no matter how good the music ends up being with it. Still, eh, it's a solid 4. I'm happy I heard it. Once more, I'll take it hand over first over a lot of the other Britpop we've gotten. So... Yeah. Good show, good how. And, hey, lookit it like this, Pulp: I felt like I should know why you are. That's way more than I can say about Suede. Who even are those guys? The ones who went "ooga-chaka, ooga-chaka?" I tell yah!

Back to Basics

Christina Aguilera

2/5

Gawd. I'm so tired. Let's get this over with. So. Coming into this album, I had a bias against Christina Aguilera — I'll be upfront about that. I thought that while she did have talent in singing, she didn't have any style. She could put a lot of power into her belting, but you look even barely below the surface and there's no character whatsoever. So the idea of spending nearly 80 minutes with her just seemed intolerable. Just as well, I'll be honest about how old and outdated this bias is. I got it about a decade or so ago, when Todd In The Shadows uploaded his review of Christina's film vehicle BURLESQUE. Back then he still had a lot of that "angry reviewer" in him, as was the style at the time, so it's not like he was exactly trying to be charitable to Christina. Meanwhile, in those days I was way more susceptible to parroting any opinions without ever stopping to ask myself if I actually personally believed them or not, so with this being basically my only exposure to and engagement with Christina besides the chorus of a Pitbull song... I mean, it's not like I ever felt any incentive to see if that bias was based in anything or not. By the time I gained it, she was barely relevant in the mainstream anymore. The story I heard was that her 2010 BIONIC flopped so hard it killed her momentum dead on the spot, and the movie BURLESQUE sure didn't help. Hell, if Todd hadn't reviewed it, I may have never heard of it. As far as I was aware, she disappeared from the face of the Earth after that aforementioned Pitbull single. I don't even know if I knew that "Genie In A Bottle" and "Beautiful" were hers. So I was not looking forward to listening to this album. "Dread" is a bit of a strong word, but it's not, y'know, **not** applicable? Especially when you combine it with the fact that this was supposed to be her "throwback" album, paying tribute to the 1920's soul stars that inspired. Like, great, that's just what I need: modernized retro. And 80 minutes of it at that! A 22 track double album — just what I needed. But, y'know, I gotta realize what I was happening there. See, I'm autistic, and there's this thing I do with food where if it's something I haven't tried before, I'll tend to overthink how much I'll dislike it. How bad the taste and texture and everything about it will be... All that. Normally, though, once I try it I end up— I mean, not loving it, or even **liking** it, but I realize it's not that bad and I was getting worked up over nothing. That's what was happening here, I figured. Once I actually sit down and put the album on, it'll be just fine (a 3 at worst) and I'll feel a little silly for spending so much time worrying about it. I just need to try and push my bias aside and everything will be good. Well. OK, so, I want you to note what I said above: "this was **supposed to be** her 'throwback' album." Let me rip the bandage off here. My big problem with the album is that this record was sold to me as a "throwback." The album is named after this concept, she invented a whole alter-ego to go with it, and two tracks on the album are dedicated to making a big deal about it (the intro and "Back In The Day"). And, y'know, I have no issues with throwbacks as long as they're done right. I mean, you look at Bruno Mars's modernized retro takes on 70's and 80's R&B, or Daft Punk's take on 70's disco. That kind of stuff is great. If only Christina actually did that. Hell, she didn't even do any Meghan Trainor-style modernized retro — and as excruciating as **that** would have been... Goodness! It would have been **something**, at least! Besides a few tracks scattered between both discs, this album ends up just sounding like mid-2000's pop. That's it. I mean, she honestly seems to think that randomly adding vinyl crackle to the start of some songs and having one that namedrops people like Coltrane and Billie Holiday is enough. And, like... Come the shit on. If you're gonna do a throwback, **commit** to it. I thought this was largely gonna be a precursor to what she did on the BURLESQUE soundtrack, besides the only that randomly samples a Marilyn Manson song. Instead, the furthest back she ends up throwing to is, like, 2004, at best. It's not even like these are bad songs. They're largely fine, at best. It just bugs the shit out of me that she put so much importance and emphasis only to largely forget about it. Why did she even bother in the first place? By the time we get to a couple of songs back-to-back on the front of the disc that actually do what I expected this thing to do, I was so tired that I could hardly even bring myself to care. Point of fact, I was a little pissed, actually. Like, what in the hell took you so damn long to get around to this? Goodness me. And the fact that this is a double album. There is no good reason whatsoever that this needed to be a double album. "Here To Stay" and "Thank You" needed to be here? The album needed to have a **second** intro with "Enter The Circus" and "Welcome"? Honest to goodness, it was in the middle of "Welcome" that I really started getting upset. Like, what in the shit Insane Clown Posse carnival barker nonsense is this? This was absolutely necessary? Goodness, what was left on the cutting room floor? And I get the idea: that the first half is sample heavy, while the second goes largely without 'em. But, like, who cares? If the album's overall concept is largely abandoned, why did **this** need to be adhered to? And I wanna narrow in on "Thank You" for a moment, 'coz... Oh, my goodness. I mean, look: despite how I've come across, I'm not that mad at this album — or at least I'm trying **really hard** not to be. It's a dumb mid-2000's pop album with a botched concept. Ultimately, who cares? And this song, I wanna emphasize, I know it's not for me. After all, its subtitle is "Dedicated TO The Fans..."). If you were a fan of Christina's, especially someone who sent in one of the voicemails that get played, you probably loved this. A nice shout-out to the fans. But, I'm sorry, having this play immediately after the song where she proclaims "CRITICIZE ME ALL YOU WANT; I'M GONNA BE HERE FOREVER!", this comes across as one of the most egotistical things I've ever heard on an album. Like, goodness me. It's just even worse when, like I said, Christina largely faded from relevance after her next album. The hubris, y'know? So... Look, it's not a bad album. If you want some loud, dumb mid-2000's pop music, there's stuff on here that'll do the job just fine. Quite frankly, putting my feelings aside, it's a 3. There's some stuff on here that's kind of obnoxious, but overall, I think you could do worse. Christina's voice isn't even as bad as my old bias would have led me to believe. But I can't be dishonest about my feelings. After "Enter The Circus" and "Welcome" got me all pissed off about the album length, and after "Candyman", "Naughty Naughty Boy" and "I Got Trouble" were "too little,too late" in actually accomplishing what this album promised me it set out to do... I'm sorry, but I gotta go with a 2. I can't give it a 1; that'd just be me pissing and shitting my diaper at that point. But for how absolutely tired I was by the last four songs, and for how little I'd ever wanna revisit this material... Yeah. It's a 2 for me. Give it a shot if you want; you might get way more out of it. But me, though? I'm gonna get back to stuff I actually like.

Aha Shake Heartbreak

Kings of Leon

2/5

It's not a good sign when within the first minute of an album if I honestly hafta wonder if the singer is even singing English. Y'know, lately i"ve been taking notes on the album I listen to. I think it's led to better reviews — certainly longer ones on average than when I just winged them off the dome. That's a thing I wanna keep up. But, like... Gawd, it's not even worth it to do it here, 'coz frankly, I'm not sure if I would write anything down beyond "This is boringly fine" and "What the hell is this guy saying?" I mean, seriously, is this a joke? Is this man taking the Mick? What did he think he was doing here? I don't wanna exaggerate too much and give the idea that it pisses me off **that much**, but it's the only thing on this album I find even remotely interesting. I mean, the instrumentals? Bland 2000's rock, without even the courtesy to be sub-U2 like the last Kings Of Leon album we got was. And the lyrics? As I've said many times before, I don't really pay attention to them on a first listen — and besides, you get that I'd hafta **understand what this guy's saying** to fully be able to pay attention to the lyrics, right? Besides, if what another group member says is true, I probably wouldn't like them anyway. I just can't understand why this album is on this list. What makes it so special that it **needed** a spot on here alongside ABBEY ROAD and WISH YOU WERE HERE and all of these Bowie albums? Hell, I gained more from TROUT MASK REPLICA, KOLLAPS and LOCUST ABORTION TECHNICIAN than I did from this, and I'll for sure get more out of stuff like DUCK STAB!/BUSTER & GLEN and SCUM. Goodness, all those albums at least have **something going on**. Like... Gawd, it's a 2. I just don't give a shit about this album, and the way this guy sings doesn't help anything. There's not even a "Sex Of Fire" anywhere to keep me pacified. And you're telling me there's **one more album** from these guys on here? Goodness. Besides that one song, I just don't get the hype. Of course, don't get me wrong: I've heard **worse**. There's only six albums I've ever given a 1, and they've had to **earn it**. This album isn't even worthy of that. Just a bunch of concrete grey slop topped with confused garnish. Not a fan, whatsoever.

Sex Packets

Digital Underground

3/5

I gotta be honest: I'm mostly disappointed. This album started off so well! I mean, "The Humpty Dance" is an all-timer, no question about it. It's like a big ol' party — the one where you don't notice that the full thing is six minutes. "Time flies when you're having fun" and all, and this is damn fun. Now, I wanna tell you here that I was actually listening to the **vinyl** version of the track listing, so for me the rest of side one consisted of "The Way We Swing", "Sex Packets" and "Packet Man", alongside the interludes that precede the later two. None of them hit the same high as "The Humpty Dance", but that doesn't stop them from being enjoyable. In particular, "Sex Packets" surprised me with how much it sounds like an André 3000 or Prince song. Especially when that guitar lick hits — for real, it sounds exactly like one of Prince's slow funk sex jams. "Packet Man" keeps things up with the beat, flow and delivery; and although "The Way We Swing" might be the weakest song in this half, I still find it hard to not get into how much these guys are clearly enjoying themselves. Once Side 1 wrapped up, I was all ready to give it a 5 outta 5, or at least a 4. I mean, it's such fun, how could I not, huh? Side 2 was quick to answer how. It consists of every other song on the album, besides "Gutsfest", and, like... I mean, it's not like they guys stopped being goofballs or enjoying themselves. On "Underwater Rimes" one of them does an entire verse in a "M'NYEAH, SEE?" old-timey gangster voice. A stick in the mud wouldn't do that. But... I'unno. The goofiness just feels way too toned down, and it gets really easy to tune a lot of this stuff out. Even when it picks back up on "Doowutchyalike", there's good bits (especially where they briefly fade the song out early for radio stations), but it barely just isn't able to distract from the fact that it's eight minutes. I gotta wonder if this stuff woulda played better if I heard them in the CD order... Or if it woulda meant I just had a lot of "mmrgh, alright" to wade through before I got to the stuff I actually enjoyed. 'Coz once again, what constitutes Side 1 of this album is great; I'd easily listen to it again. And it's not like Side 2 is all that bad, either; just clearly not as good. So... I guess we'll split the difference and give the overall package... A 3.5, I guess? Rounded down to a 3 for the sake of this website. It really feels like a shame, but hey, at least I had the chance to do the hump. Can't front on that.

Treasure

Cocteau Twins

4/5

This isn't gonna be a very long review, I promise you. I mean, this album's very simple to get — so simple, in fact, that I didn't even feel the need to take notes on it. Like the last Cocteau Twins album my group got, this is vibes music, through and through. It's so much "vibes," that it can honestly border on being ambient music. Like, sure, yeah, there are words, but they really don't matter. They may as well be singing gibberish — as long as the vocal melody helps keep you floating along, it doesn't matter. And, sure there are some spots where the vocal melody seemed... Maybe a bit too "twee" for my tastes? If that's the right word? I'unno. Even though I'm bringing it up, it's hardly an issue. I mean, this is the one album where I find yawning during it to be a **compliment**, 'coz that means you're drifting away and that the album's doing its job. So... Yeah. For sure, this is gonna bring my "average words per review" total down, but, y'know, whatever. I don't really have anything else I feel like I wanna say. Jus' give it the same 4 I have the last Cocteau Twins album we got and leave it at that. It's neat stuff.

3 Years, 5 Months And 2 Days In The Life Of...

Arrested Development

2/5

There's just... A vibe around Arrested Development that I have a hard time getting past. It's all summarized in this quote from Robert Christgeau, where he says that "their short-term commercial success was a long-term musical fraud--limp, sententious rap feel-goodism quickly forgotten once it failed to drive the scary stuff away." I get the impression that they were only as praised and rewarded as they were because they vehemently anti-gangsta rap. And I get it. As much as I love a lot of gangsta rap, I'm not gonna act like there's not a lot of shit it should be rightly criticised for, particularly its treatment of women. It's absolutely pervious. Plus, hey, I'm generally down for the group's mission to promote love instead of hate. It's something I try to live by, myself; lifting up the stuff I love instead of wasting time focusing on what I hate. I figure I'll be happier for it in the long run. Problem is, the group's leader, Speech, comes across to be insufferable sanctimonious. Like he's standing on a pedestal of soap boxes, burning judgement into me as he stares down his nose. He raps in a tone of voice like he's so humble and wise; dispensing simple yet life-altering words of wisdom. But I'unno, it feels like he should be telling me to pull up my pants and eat my vegetables, with the smugest energy imaginable radiating. It was honestly so distracting to me that nothing else was really able to hit for me. Like, I should be giving all of the credit in the world to the Headliner for the beats and Dionne Farris for her amazing vocals — y'know, both providing something to maybe distract me from Speech's preaching — but it's kind of hard when they're doing this in service of shit like "Mr. Wendal". Like, no, Speech, just because the homeless should be treated better doesn't mean they're secretly prophets and fountains of wisdom. Crawl out of your own ass and see what's actually going on around you, huh? Like, gosh, if I wasn't bored by this album, I was mildly frustrated by it. And knowing that I could've listened to worse (see their second album) doesn't make anything better. I mean, really, to paraphrase Todd In The Shadows, if the choice comes down between Snoop Dogg and these guys, they lose, every time. Snoop at least never talked down to me about how things, "unh, **should be**." I'unno. I'm at a 2 with this thing. If I could ignore Speech and just vibe with it, maybe I'd at least be generous enough for a high 3, but nah. I'm good with a 2. (And seriously — what the hell was "Warm Sentiments" on that second album? Like, oh my goodness, Speech, shut your entire mouth, I swear.)

The Pleasure Principle

Gary Numan

5/5

Some in my group (but certainly not the rando reading this) will remember I've talked before about my perception of the evolution of New Wave. With me not being a musicologist or whatever, it wasn't very deep, but the gist of it was that New Wave began with the art freaks and dorks before being morphed into something for the MTV generation. Where once New Wave was strange and odd, perhaps even a bit abrasive to the ear who's unused to it, it became defined by slick synth lines and heavily polished production. To make a short story even shorter: early New Wave was DEVO, and what you think of as New Wave was Duran Duran. Now, I suppose this all leads to a very basic question: what happened in the middle, then? What caused this change, and what did it sound like? Once again, of course, I'm no expert in the subject, so don't expect any deep answers pointing to where exactly in a random underground subculture 80's New Wave germinated. But if I had to take a stab at what exactly it could have sounded like... THE PLEASURE PRINCIPLE by Gary Numan isn't too far off. Legitimately, this album sounds to me like the midpoint meeting between these two eras of New Wave. On the one hand, it's clearly artsy enough to hang with DEVO or Talking Heads. Just look at that cover: it's directly based on a surrealist painting I don't think most people have heard of. That's some "art nerd" shit right there. On the flip side, though, there's a level of polish and refinement to this material that it wouldn't sound too out of place next to Duran Duran and, I'unno, Bananarama. The rougher edges aren't completely scrubbed away, so I wouldn't expect this album to have a "Hungry Like The Wolf"-size hit, but... Gawd, there are synth and key lines on here that are downright pretty in a way I just wouldn't expect from a song like "Jocko Homo" or whatever. There's a strong part of me that wants to label this album as "classical New Wave" for the way it plays to the best parts of both eras. Like, goodness, I jived with this album so damn hard, particularly on the instrumental tracks. I think the only thing that holds me back is, like... Yeah, there's no real "Jocko Homo" here. Even in its artsiest moments, the needle isn't exactly in the middle; it does a bit closer to Duran Duran than it doesn't. Still, it's not like I wouldn't recommend it. Out of everything my group's gotten yet, it's the best "midpoint" I've heard — not to mention that I did genuinely like it a lot. I struggle to think of any complaints. Maybe just that one seven minute song didn't really **need** to be seven minutes, but otherwise... I mean, I wanna emphasize those synth and key lines again: goodness, they're great. The kind of stuff I wanna hear out of this genre. Or stuff labelled under this genre, anyway, I'unno. But, yeah, point is, it's a worthwhile listen, and a nice new marker on my "incomplete history of New Wave" timeline. One of these days I'll have a complete picture of it. One of these days...

Peter Gabriel 3

Peter Gabriel

5/5

When it comes to me and Peter Gabriel, I find that SO looms large over everything. Well, probably more just "Sledgehammer" than anything else, but you get what I mean: if there's any way I understand Peter Gabriel, it's as a pop artist. In that sense, well, I kind of figured I'd gotten everything I'd wanted out of him. I recall looking at the albums he released before SO, all eponymously titled, and thinking to myself, "This probably wouldn't be for me. This all seems, like... Way more experimental and serious than I'd be into. I doubt there'd be any hooks like there are on SO (aka 'Sledgehammer')!" So until the randomizer had this album pop up, I just never bothered looking into them. I know what they say about assumptions and judging books, but look at these covers. I didn't exactly have a reason to think I'd be proven wrong. And certainly not as badly as I was. 'Coz if there's anything that surprised me about GABRIEL 3, it's how much SO I ended up hearing in it. With the melodies and the hooks, it's like... Clearly this isn't a different album than SO. It's a way more challenging album than SO, as a matter of fact. If I'd heard any of this when I was younger, though, besides maybe "Intruder", I would've been down as hell for this. Like, when it comes to this album being all "experimental post-punk and serious" like I was worried it'd be, "Intruder" is probably as bad as it gets. Y'know, it's the most "scaring the hoes" cut on here: weeding out the people who "just wouldn't get it." It reminds me a lot of the opening track on Tom Waits's SWORDFISHTROMBONES, actually — and just like that, the songs past it are relatively toned down. This isn't to put down "Intruder", by the way; it still has a great hook with that one "AAAAAAA" part and the riff around it. I wanna point to "Family Snapshot" particularly as the song where it all clicked into place for me. There's piano stuff on there that's just beautiful. Damn pretty, at least. My initial assumptions about this album would've never expected that, and I could not be happier to hear that they'd been wrong. In fact, I feel kind of sorry that I doubted Peter Gabriel at all. I mean, if there's any lesson I should've taken from my group getting one of the Genesis albums with him on it, SELLING ENGLAND BY THE POUND, is that this guy can write an amazing melody. I never got the impression that any of this material was compromised because of the melodies and hooks, though. Y'know, nothing's simplified or watered down just to accommodate them. It's still aiming to be all artsy and post-punk and not exactly for everyone. It just clearly doesn't wanna be **just** that, is all I'm thinking here. I mean, again, the fact that I can only claim one song on the album as "scaring the hoes" music means a lot. Honestly, it kind of makes me wonder about the people who called this album "too experimental." They must have some weak stomachs if **this** is what did them in. Mark this down as another album that feels like it should be kicking me in the ass to check out the rest of their discography. Whether or not I do will remain to be seen, but at the very least, I have way more respect for Peter Gabriel than I used to. That's not to say I didn't before now — just that, yeah, he really is just that good, in and outside of the one song I chose to define him with before now. Bless. And now, I find it only fitting to do as this album did and also present everything I just said in German — Google Translate'd, of course: Wenn ich den Musiker Peter Gabriel so verstehe, überragt sein Album „SO“ alles andere. Genauer gesagt, es geht eigentlich nur um seinen Song „Sledgehammer“, aber Sie verstehen schon: Wenn ich Peter Gabriel überhaupt verstehe, dann als Popkünstler. In diesem Sinne—

Fear Of Music

Talking Heads

5/5

Survivor

Destiny's Child

4/5

Question: I feel like people might be over-exaggerating how some parts of this album have aged. Like, yeah, there's a stretch on this album that's not... Great, exactly but I don't think people should be acting like it stands for the **whole** album. Actually, before I get into that, I should probably explain how I figure Destiny's Child. Which is really more how I figure Beyoncé at this point in time than anything else. Yeah, I'm one of those people who largely sees Destiny's Child as "that group Beyoncé was in." "Beyoncé and the other two," as it is. And, I mean, can you blame me, exactly? Beyoncé has long been such a towering figure in pop culture that I can find it a little hard to look too lightly at anything she's done. Now, sure, the weight of her celebrity and fame doesn't bare down on me as hard as, say Taylor Swift's does — I'll get to **her** some day — but I still wind up with the perception that she's, like... A goddess among artists. What she does is **important**, damn it, and is worth **serious** consideration. And it's not like I don't think that's wrong, necessarily; I generally hold LEMONADE up in that high regard. But, I'unno, it can put a stress on to make sure I'm talking about her "right." (And I"m pretty sure I didn't before when my group got her self-titled, but that's besides the point.) Which brings us to her time in Destiny's Child. I won't lie, there's something about her being in a group that, like... Humbles the perception, I suppose? Even though I still wind up centering her in my thoughts, she doesn't feel as unreachable as she would be in her solo material. Is that the other members bring her down to "our level," for what that means? I don't wanna be too dismissive of them, but, like, to be frank... Maybe a little? And it's not their fault, of course; when you're put next to someone so big, it's easier for them to get down than to have you raised up. That's not to say they're slouches, though. Even if I can't pick their voices out or, like... Name them without looking them up, they manage to hold their own. Honestly, they're keeping pace; they're clearly way more than just back-up singers for big Queen B. Like, damn, all three of these women are amazing singers — enough so that it justifies them showing off with that acapella gospel medley at the end. Believe me, if they weren't, or if there just wasn't anything to their voices but power and tricks, this track would've been intolerably self-gratifying. Y'know, "You think you can just roll up and impress with nothing but your voice? Get outta here." But for real, it's a nice way to bring some of that religious humbleness onto an album of what I'd otherwise describe as "bad bitch music." You know what I mean: the kind of music for women who are strong, independent and sexy; who love their man, but refuse to take any shit from them. "I could have another you in a minute" and all that. It's what Beyoncé's career would largely be built out of before she evolved into stronger feminism and black power. I mean, the first three tracks spell it out well: "Independent Women", "Survivor", "Bootylicious"... Throw in something from later on the album, like "Brown Eyes", and you have the whole picture. Well, almost. Here's the part where we get into what I figure is most people's problem with this album. Y'see, after those first three songs, which are nothing but kind and supportive of their fellow ladies, we suddenly get "Nasty Girl" and "Fancy", which, if they're about anything, are about hating other women. For being a "nasty girl" — which, I think, is the nice way of saying "dirty-ass how" — or for stealing "my man/style..." Y'know. It's, well, a sharply nasty turn for the album to take. And what makes it even stranger is that this general topic is never addressed again after these songs? As far as I can tell, anyway; unless I missed a stray shot somewhere. And, like... Look. I get it. On an album with such strong "girl power" feminist vibes, it's bizarre that they'd dedicate any time to putting down other women. It's not **not** a point against the album. To me, though... I guess the best way I can put it is that it's not unexpected. That just comes with the territory of "being a bad bitch." In my mind, there's always gonna be an inevitable crossover with being a mean girl, and, y'know, part of that entails being shitty to other women. We've all seen the movie; you know what I mean. So while I'm not really happy with this kind of stuff being here, at the same time, I'm not gonna have a fit about it. I mean, in general, unless they're particularly egregious, I don't like getting all up in arms about "problematic elements" of older art. I don't see much value in it besides you're deliberately trying to score "I'm a good person" points. Besides, there's other things about this album I'm not 100% on. For instance, as good as "Independent Women Part I" is, I don't jive with the decision to have it tie **so strongly** into the old CHARLIE'S ANGELS movie. I mean, to the point where the song — and, in fact, the **entire albums** opens with name dropping the lead actresses? That seems a little far for synergy. And since we're talking about "Independent Women", "Part II" is just... So bizarre to me. For the most part it's good, but between the old cartoon theme sample and the literal clown music interpolation in the verses... Like, why? Why was **this** the **original** version? It feels a little like a joke, frankly. And also, I'unno, "Sexy Daddy" just didn't do it for me. Maybe the most "It coulda been left off song" here — I mean, jeez, at least "Nasty Girl" had the random "Tarzan Boy" interpolation. That's something, at least. But all that aside, I can't act like I don't like this album a lot. As I said, all the women on here are great vocalists. Their chemistry together makes the whole thing. Plus, goodness, there's a lot of great production on here. The title track derives a lot of its power from the women, but gawd**damn**, does that beat ever drive. It's propulsive. Plus, hey, I really dig the ballad material that's on here. I can be a real sucker for them, and, mm, "Emotion", "Dangerously In Love" and "Brown Eyes" all hit the spot. Particularly "Brown Eyes"; it's a piece of Quiet Storm, and, gawd, the keys and synths on that are great. Top it off with a good ol' key change, and it's absolutely one of my favorites. In total, yeah, this thing has its rough spots. Parts that, for sure, haven't aged well, if they weren't already stinky to begin with. But that's not the whole album; the rest of it consists of largely enjoyable, empowering "bad bitch music," and I feel it'd be a waste to throw the baby out with the bathwater. I mean, take THE INCREDIBLES. That's a film with some... Undeniably Randian beliefs. Practically impossible to ignore. And that's, y'know, **not great**. But I wouldn't trade that movie for the world. Now, sure, that's not a perfect comparison; THE INCREDIBLES is a straight 10/10 in my eyes, where I'd say this album is more... I'unno. An 8/10? 7.5, at worst? But you get what I mean. If you're able to look past its one glaring issue, and I understand not everyone can, it's a good time. And certainly, I think it's more worthy of being here than Beyoncé's self-titled was. Seriously, over LEMONADE? All because it was the first to be surprise-released and also a video album. I mean, come on now. Does Beyoncé's self-titled have "Formation"? I don't think so...

Exile In Guyville

Liz Phair

4/5

Y'know, coming into this album, my biggest frame of reference for Liz Phair and her music was her album of weirdo goof tracks, FUNSTYLE. The one where she rapped. The one where she said "You're being a peñis — colada, tha is." The one she lost her record contract over. And it's like, as much as I thought that was a weird reference to go into such a critically acclaimed indie darling with, I figured at the very least it'd provide a good perspective for my expectations. "I've seen the bottom of the barrel when it comes to this woman's work — it can only be uphill from me." And, yeah, of course this album is better in every conceivable way. It's not like "Beat Is Up" is a hard song to top. Like, just talking about this thing on a pure melodic, instrumental level, it's a pretty good indie rock. I mean, it goes harder on the "rock" side of indie rock than I've come to typically expect from indie rock albums, so that's a huge plus in my mind. On that alone, I'd score this album big points. Goodness, I don't even have a problem with Liz Phair's voice; it fits in real damn well. It's when we come to the lyrics, though, that I hit a bit of a snag. To be crystal clear, I do not think they're bad. The distance between these songs and "peñis colada" is so vast, I shouldn't have to bring it up. But... I'unno. Part of me feels like this where the **inverse** expectations are hitting. Like, I'd long heard that the lyrics on this album are brash and confrontational; where even if they're not about her, they still paint such a vivid and complex portrait of a woman. Big feminist vibes that the wrong people are gonna take too much of an issue with, y'know? I mean, maybe it's just that I'm not much of a lyrics-first gal, or that my autistic ass has a hard time understanding lyrics even when I do try and pay attention to them. Heck, I might just be dumb, 'coz these don't strike me as necessarily complicated lyrics, despite the complex picture they're supposed to paint. I just... Didn't find myself terribly impressed by them? Like, OK, it's not like I can't hear why critics went so gaga for them, but... Like, in a world where I hadn't heard FUNSTYLE first, I still think I'd be trying to figure out why these didn't hit as hard for me as I expected them to. If nothing else, I don't think expectations are 100% to blame. I mean, the ones I had for Radiohead's KID A in general were a lot higher than I had for this thing's lyrics, and I still managed to come out of that believing the hype. When it comes to this album, then... Well, let me say that there **were** a couple of songs that did hit lyrically for me. There was "Soap Star Joe", for one. And "Divorce Song" — well, dang, add in that hot-ass harmonica and it's probably my favorite song on the whole album. But ultimately, I'm left thinking about the opinion I had on The Rolling Stones' EXILE ON MAIN STREET, which this album was infamously claimed to be a song-by-song response to. How I feel about that album as a whole is kind of how I feel about this one's lyrics — "it's far from bad, but this is the best thing they've ever done?" Big 3 energy. Still, though, how unimpressed I am with the lyrics hardly detracts from my overall feelings about this album. It's still really good indie rock. I mean, heck, I enjoyed this album overall more than I did EXILE ON MAIN STREET, so if nothing else it wins on that front. It's more than worth a listen, and certainly it's a better thing to know her by than FUNSTYLE. Like, goodness, if I were here, I'd rather everyone forget about **that** mess. Seriously, "peñis colada." I can never get over it, I swear.

Little Earthquakes

Tori Amos

5/5

For reasons unrelated to this album, I'm not feeling the best coming in to write this review. Add on the fact that I'm behind an album and needa play a bit of catch up... Yeah, just for my own sake, I'm gonna try and keep this short. Which is a bit of a disservice to the artist behind today's album, Tori Amos. She's an artist I know by name, but not by sound. Even after remembering where I've heard a bit of her music before — in Wax Audio mashups, and from the fact that she's covered Slayer and Eminem — I couldn't begin to tell you what she sounded like. As I found out, it's very piano heavy. Lots of piano, lots of strings... There's a person who found the album could get a bit homogeneous because of how heavily the piano is featured, but for my money, well, I'm crazy for it. I love myself a good piano album, from Elton John's work to some Ben Folds. Like, this album never rocks as hard as either of those guys can, but... Gosh, this is an album where, even when I'm not paying attention to the lyrics — and because I'm autistic, I mostly don't, and that's "y Listi kan't read" — I still get such a good sense of the emotion in these tracks. Believe me, it's palpable, goodness. Honestly, it does make me wanna try and figure out the lyrics just so I can clue into why these emotions are happening — y'know? Heck, just that I had more time between all of the everything else happening today. But on just a first listen, mostly solely paying attention to the instrumentals... Yeah, I can say I'm a big fan of this. For sure, it's one of the better albums I've heard classed as "singer songwriter." And for real, go check out Wax Audio's mashup "I Want Precious Things"; it's really good. And, uh, I'unno, if you really want to, go check out her ten minute cover of "Happiness Is A Warm Gun"? I mean, if you **really** wanna, goodness.

Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)

Eurythmics

4/5

Honestly, I'm mostly just stumped about why I wasn't able to come up with anything specific to say about this album. I mean, come on, it's is Eurythmics! And it's Annie Lennox! People love 'em! I should be able to come up with **something** to say about them! If nothing else, I should be able to find out where they fit into my ongoing "timeline of New Wave." This came out after Duran Duran's RIO, so what does that mean? What is this thing's place? I had options! Ideas! And yet... Nothing. I listened to this album **twice**, which is a luxury I rarely grant **any** album these days, and even though I quite liked what I heard both times... Gosh, I'unno. The specifics of **why** I liked this stuff just kept eluding me. Like, yeah, it's real fine New Wave, and Annie has a nice voice, and of course the title track is great, but... I mean, these are the worst kinds of 4's to get, aren't they? The kinds that are just so straight-forwardly good that you can't even really articulate why exactly. Jus', yep. If I was someone in the 80's who bought this album off of the strength of the title track... I mean, nothing else here hits as hard as that one — and, honestly, side two beyond it isn't all **that** exciting — but I think I'd be happy with my purchase. It'd get some spins. But even back then I don't know if I'd have much to think about it. (Honestly, there is some part of me that wanted to give this whole thing a 3 just because of how little I was able to specifically come up with about this album, but, like... That's not entirely fair to the album, I don't think, first of all. Second, I mean, come on, the presence of the title track alone keeps it from falling down there. So, like, if it wasn't here... Sure? But since it is, nah, I'm fine giving it a 4 and just movin' on. "Keep your head up, movin' on...")

Something/Anything?

Todd Rundgren

5/5

Well, hey, look! It's Todd Rundgren! The man who I know best as a producer, specifically for producing what's one of my top five albums of the entire 1970's: Meat Loaf's BAT OUT OF HELL (can't wait to get to that one)! Not to mention, he also produced the first Sparks album and helped kick off that entire legacy. As it turns out he's also a musician in his own right, too. I mean, this isn't something new I just learned; I was aware of this album for a bit before I heard it for the first time last year... But yeah — he put out an album! Or, rather, four mini-ones. Y'know, the way this album's structured is actually perfect for me. See, ever since I saw this one Polyphonic video where he waxed nostalgic about vinyl, I've been listening to albums exclusively by record sides. Yes, even on streaming; I put in the work to look up beforehand what's on what side and queue 'em that way. I figured it'd be better for me to take albums in smaller chunks and consider them that way rather than tackle 'em all at once — and, yeah, it's worked out great. And this album is built especially well for that: every side is particularly well self-contained, each having its own name and conception. I mean, hell, the track titled "Intro" is seven in, as a kick-off to side two. Really, I can't think of another album that was so perfectly made for me, listening-wise. And in the spirit of this structure, I'm gonna talk about each side on its own. Just like a fellow group member of mine did, 'coz, hey, that's the best way to go, I figure. So, let's kick things off with... SIDE ONE! Sometimes I wonder what "Beatlesque" actually means. After all, The Beatles weren't beholden to just one style: they did beat music, folk, psych, good ol' rock n' roll... Heck, REVOLVER and THE WHITE ALBUM are such genre roulettes in and of themselves. I could begin to guess how "Beatlesque" is supposed to be defined. It might just be something where you know it when you hear it. Y'lnow, the likes of Electric Light Orchestra, early Bee Gees... Oh, and this. 110% this record side. It claims itself to be "A Bouquet Of Ear-Catching Melodies," and by goodness, it is. This is the kind of 70's music I find myself going the wildest for, after, like, Queen and BAT OUT OF HELL. It might just be my favorite side — and maybe that makes me basic, but I'unno. I know what I like, and damn, I like this. SIDE TWO! Here we come to "The Cerebral Side." Just judging a book by its title, I figured it'd be the one I had the hardest time with. I mean, my AuDHD ass has a hard enough time with regular lyrics as it is; you can only imagine how I deal with **cerebral** ones. Lucky for me, I hardly even register lyrics anyway unless I really wanna, so I was able to just take in the music, and... Yeah, it's still really good. I don't like it as much as the first side, 'coz this is fittingly not as poppy, but I still had a great time. Plus, hey, this side has a fun game to play, too: "spot the studio mistakes!" And I didn't play it, but, hey, I imagine it could help take a bit of the edge off the lyrics if you were the kind to pay attention to them. SIDE THREE! Oh, watch out, girlies! This is the side where "The Kid Gets Heavy!" In, like, a topical sense, I mean. I assume — again, I didn't really register them. Luckily, though, in a purely musical sense, this rivals side one in being my favorite. It might even surpass it, to be honest, 'coz while the heaviness mostly comes from the lyrics... Goodness, let's not act like the music itself is any slouch. The opener and closers go **so damn** hard. The ballads feel just so important. And right in the middle — I've heard tell about how "Couldn't I Just Tell You" was a precursor to power pop, and, woof, it's not for nothing, let me tell you. Plus, on all of this — the guitar stuff? **The guitar stuff**? Oh, goodness me. Give it to me all day. SIDE FOUR! Boy, and Side Four is the fun side if you're listening only on streaming. With a name letting you know that "Baby Needs A New Pair Of Snakeskin Boots," this is a pop operetta where the actual plot of the thing is only conveyed through the record's liner notes. Yeah, one of those deals. I went out of my way to go look them up — which isn't very hard, actually; it's just a matter of going to Discogs and squinting at slightly blurry pictures — and... Look, to be 100, they're not entirely important. At least not next to what I figure is the actual hook of this album, 'coz this is where I tell you that this is the only side where Todd didn't play and sing everything himself. Yeah, to this point he was a one-man band — and if that doesn't make everything before now more impressive, I don't know what would. And that's not to put this side down too hard; just because there's other people playing now doesn't mean it doesn't hold its own. It's just... I'unno. This is the record side that felt the longest. Not even the Cerebral felt like it was going on too long, but... I'unno. Let's just say this isn't the side I would revisit first. AND IN CONCLUSION! This is a record that takes you around and back again... But, no, seriously, I feel like the album being presented the way it is is really neat. It's basically telling you to just pick your favorite side(s) and not worry about the rest. In fact, to be honest, there's really no picks here. I mean, across the board this is the closest I've come to hearing something I'd call "classical 70's pop." And, sure, I'm not the hottest on side four, but you might think it's the best thing here. That's the joy of this thing, I figure: finding out which side speaks to you the most. It might be a bit of an investment, but it's certainly worth it. Like, if you think this album is an interminable 90-minute slog, I'd recommend giving this side-by-side approach a shot. Who knows, you might get something out of it. Or anything, anyway. And seriously, when's this randomizer gonna give us BAT OUT OF HELL? I can't overemphasize how much I'm excited to gush about this album, my goodness...

Movies

Holger Czukay

5/5

Look, I didn't like TAGO MAGO. In one hand, it was boring-ass white funk; in the other, it was boring-ass wankery I'm supposed to like because it's "experimental." There weren't exactly a lot of positives for me to latch on to. I mean, the most interesting thing to me about that album is the fact that I found it so boring. From what I remember of the other reviews I read, I might've been the only person who thought it **wasn't weird enough**. When you raise yourself on Frank Zappa and a long-held interest in The Residents, I suppose it's hard to be too impressed. So being an album by CAN's frontman — or an EP, according to Spotify — I can't say I was too excited. In fact, when I found out that this album was on the list, my mind raced ahead of my listening to think of all of the ways I could slag it. That's bad practice, of course, but it's not like I'd been given any reason to expect more from this. What could an album from the man from CAN honestly offer me? Entertaining and interesting music, as it turns out. Who woulda known, eh? To begin with, the funk on this thing is way better than on TAGO MAGO. There's not even that much of it, but believe me, anything's better than what I heard on TAGO MAGO, I swear. So already that's a big point in this album's favor. And then there's just these, like... great instrumental bits. There's some really good synth, and guitar that reminds me a lot of Pink Floyd in places, and these engaging rhythms... Jus', wow. Part of me's kind of amazed I liked these as much as I do, given my preconception. I especially didn't think it'd all sound so... For lack of a better word, "commercial?" And you can view that as a bad word in the shadow of what's so often considered a masterwork of Krautrock, but you gotta understand: I can be really basic sometimes. Most times, really. You might say it takes the edge off — for me, at the end of the day, all I want is some good melodies, and this thing provided that. I can't complain. But then there's the thing that interested me the most: the sampling. I believe I might've said this before — or maybe it was just implied by how often I've mentioned ones I like, but I love mashups. I make 'em myself, even, and I've always had an interest in its history. So, to hear some real plunderphonics-style stuff on this album — I mean, dang, my only complaint is that there should've been more. Jus', mm, mm. It's so good. And those are my largely stream of consciousness thoughts while I listened to this album. Somewhat restructured to a "review" format, but otherwise... Yeah. I mean, that should tell you how much I liked this thing; I couldn't even wait to take notes on it. It does suffer the problem where some of these tracks do feel their length — and when there's only four, that's not the best thing — but whatever. This strikes me as music to zonk out to, and in that pantheon... Yeah, I can only give it my thumbs-up. Not a bad second showing, Mr. CAN Man. I guess here's to hoping the second CAN album on this list plays out nearly as well as this does — I mean, I kinda doubt it, but I can always hope.

Astral Weeks

Van Morrison

4/5

On the advice of a fellow group member, I decided to engage with this album by "Fantasiaing" with it. I'm sure I've mentioned "Fantasiaing" before, but in case I've never explained it — and for the benefit of those where this might be my only review they read... Well, you might've heard of the movie FANTASIA. It was the third feature-length movie Disney ever released, and consists of a number of vignettes animating and visualizing classical music. "Fantasiaing" is essentially just imagining your own vignettes in the same vein. It's very similar to how I like to imagine music videos or fight scenes or whatever to songs, though "Fantasiaing" tends to be a lot more fluid and abstract. It's more about letting the music guide the imagery rather than having a concrete set of scenes — y'know? It's the difference between any Gorillaz music video and how FANTASIA presents, say, "Toccata And Fugue In D Minor". And that's not to say what Van T. Man did here was on par with classical music. Far from it; this is very light folk with some jazzy overtones. If I wasn't "Fantasiaing" to this, I can see myself getting pretty bored with it like I did with MOONDANCE. With the extra context of "Fantasiaing," though, and imagining lush autumn forests, with streams gently running through and squirrels hopping about, or picturing a woman walking and dancing the leaf-covered fall street of a small, rustic town that's largely built out of cobblestone, and stopping in particular to swing around the park gazebo... And I realize, this is very different from how most people engage with music, but damn if it doesn't work, y'know? For sure, it got me thinking about how much of an autumn album this is. Like you should be walking down a little back road path between these beautifully red and orange trees, feeling a crisp breeze on your face and admiring how pretty the sunlight looks breaking through the leaves. Certainly made me wish it wasn't all grey and cloudy the day I heard this thing... All to say, this is an album where atmosphere and vibe are king. It's not an album for doing; it's an album for laying down and mellowing. And, y'know, there are times where even "Fantasiaing" it can be a bit much — even the most vivid fantasy in the world can't distract my AuDHD brain from how long these songs can feel and how repetitive they can get. But certainly, I feel like I locked in with its vibe better than I would have if I treated this like a traditional album. I mean, hey, I never felt the need to rag on Van for him being anti-lockdown with the Coronavirus was raging, and believe me that that's a major plus. Like, honestly, I know it's not something everyone's gonna be able to do, but if you can just turn off your mind, relax and float down stream... Well, jeez. You'd probably end up conjuring better visuals than FANTASIA 2000 did.

The Next Day

David Bowie

4/5

Even before getting to the music I accumulated a lot of thoughts on just the album cover alone. Believe me, I could probably write a 1,000 word essay about it all by itself. To keep things on track, though, and not dedicate half a review to prose again (no regrets, but still), I'll make one observation. If there's anything this cover says to me, it's both an acknowledgement and a rejection of the past. An acknowledgement in that, "Yes, this is where I've been." At the time, it might've even been making the point that David Bowie would only be defined by his past; that anything he released now (that being 2013) would have to stand against these titans. And in that, we find the rejection: by defacing the cover of "HEROES", it's definitively declaring, "But I've moved on from that — it's the next day now." To me, that's how this album sounds. All over, Bowie's jumping from old style to old style, never settling into one too long before switching over and back again. None of it sounds like he's revisiting these styles just for the sake of them, though. For one, while sonically they're familiar, tonally they wind up being largely darker than I recall most Bowie material being. The title track is about a condemned man considering the hypocrisies of Christianity. "I'd Rather Be High" is about a soldier who would, well, rather be high than face up to his emotions. Hell, "Valentine's Day" is straight-up about a school shooter. But lyrics have never been at the forefront of my mind. I try to keep in mind what these songs are about, though as always I'm more concerned about the sonic and melodic side of things. On that front, if you had no idea what these songs were about, I don't think you'd ever guess how dark a lot of them were. This isn't like ★, where from what little I've heard the music directly reflects how dark the subject matter is. On this album — well, allow me to bring up "Valentine's Day" again. Despite its subject matter, it sounds like a big ol' glam rock pop song. Bowie's biographer himself called it the catchiest song on the album, and he's not exactly wrong. It's like, goodness, if it weren't for Bowie's clearly aged voice... And I want to speak on Bowie's voice for a second here. See, as I may have expressed before, the first time I ever heard David Bowie was on Butterfly Boucher's cover of "Changes" for the SHREK 2 soundtrack. To be frank, I much prefer that cover to the original, specifically because of Bowie's voice. The age in his voice makes the whole thing feel much more poignant than it did with his younger voice from, like, 30 years prior. As a result, and because of how much I heard this cover as a kid, this is just how I've come to expect him to sound. I do truly love HUNKY DORY and ZIGGY STARDUST, both way more so than this album, but this one strikes me as possibly the perfect crossover between what I want and expect out of Bowie. You've got the glam and such of his older work, the voice of his later one... I figure I can't lose. All the same, however, there was a moment on this album where I wondered to myself, "Why exactly am I listening to this?" Because for as much as I enjoy these songs, I can't exactly say there's much, like... New going on here? And I get it, that's the point: it's an acknowledgement of the past as well as a rejection. I'm 100% in favor of that. I suppose I'm just wondering how much of it truly is a rejection or not. On that note as well, I hafta question if there was any recency bias in putting this album on this list. Consider: this album came out in 2013, and it was later added in in the 2014 revision. This is the kind of thing I gave Lana Del Ray's CHEMTRAILS OVER THE COUNTRY CLUB shit for, and just for consistency's sake, I don't wanna give Bowie any quarter just for being Bowie. After hearing the album in full... Well, one thing to remember is that I generally don't like the kind of music Lana Del Ray makes, so that might be one reason why I went in so hard on its recency. Meanwhile, I did genuinely enjoy Bowie's album way more, even if I might not feel the urge to come back to it as much as, say, HUNKY DORY. It doesn't make me want to listen to his older material, but besides the sound of his voice here, I'm not sure if I wasn't given the best reasons in the world to generally pick this over any of that other stuff. How are you really gonna top stuff like "Life On Mars?" and "Moonage Daydream". And thus, I have proven the cover's point correct: his newer stuff will always be held up against his older stuff. It's like it can't win against any of it; the acclaim for ★ is proof enough of that, but... I guess that's the problem with call-backs and continuity like this. That's something else about the album's cover that I love; it makes a body of work feel more complete if it weaves throughout itself like that. The pitfall of that, though, is that you directly invite comparison to the past... Unless you're doing something truly spectacular, it won't be the best look. And I like this album enough that the comparison doesn't reflect too harshly on my opinion, but... Yeah. It's not **not** a thing. In the end, as a comeback for Bowie that proved that, well, he had nothing to prove, it more than did its job. And I wanna stress again: this **is** a good album, certainly worth your time if you like Bowie's early stuff. Hell, I'll probably revisit this album sooner than later. I just personally wouldn't put it too high in Bowie's echelon. And whenever I **do** come and revisit this album... It won't be the very next day, that's for sure.

The Message

Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five

5/5

It feels weird that there was stuff on this album that I didn't expect. It's like, come on: this is old school hip hop. One of the first hip hop albums ever released, I'm sure. I knew what I was gonna get here: a bunch of "My name is [x] and I'm here to say"-flow partytime MC raps, followed by a strongly political song at the end — not "Public Enemy political," but still. I wasn't gonna old this up to the standard of Kendrick Lamar, or even Run-DMC. I knew what I was gonna get! Or at least I figured, anyway. So you can imagine my surprise when I pop on the first song and it's, like... Basically New Jack Swing? Which, yeah, has a lot of rapping and hip hop influence in it, but... Hm. Then a few minutes later "Scorpio" hits and, goodness, this is hard-boppin' electro. Which, OK, STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON ended with a little of that — and this is **leagues** better than that was — but... Hm. And then we get to the two songs right before the title track, and, goodness, is this The Jacksons? Did The Jacksons pop by to sing a couple of songs? Like, this is full-on piano R&B. This owes more, by its own shout out, to Stevie Wonder than it does to DJ Kool Herc. What **is** this? It sure is strange to hear these styles thrown in there. After all, the most R&B I'd expect to hear on any hip hop album is, like, the hook, at most. It threw me for a bit of a loop to hear these come up. And yet, despite how my "Hm"s and "What **is** this?" would make me sound, I actually really liked all of this. I mean, go back to the top and take a snippet out of what I expected: "partytime." That's what this is all is: party music. A hip hop groove to get funky to, an electro beat to get loose to, and some R&B to really get your moves on to. Like, seriously, give these guys credit; they can do a damn fine Jacksons. And seriously, "Scorpio" bops **so hard**. If I were Arabian Prince, I'd be embarrassed that I couldn't make "Something 2 Dance 2" as good as this. Top it all off with "The Message", not only one of the first rap songs with something to say (as far as I'm aware), but with some of the catchiest and most iconic lines of early hip hop... Seriously: "DON'T PUSH ME 'COZ I'M CLOSE TO THE EDGE" and "It's like a jungle sometimes, it makes me wonder how I keep from going under." Excellent, excellent. The worst thing I can say about it is that it reuses the "Genius Of Love" sample from earlier, but, hey, it's a good sample — like I'm gonna complain. So, shucks, in general I really ain't got nothing to complain about. I suppose there's the fact that this album isn't on Spotify, and that's hardly the album's fault, now is it? I mean, I wanted a good time, and I got a good time. Like I'm gonna go too hard on 'em when they've done that much for me.

Mask

Bauhaus

2/5

I imagine this is another album where you could probably rightfully get on my butt for not paying close enough attention to the lyrics, or enough attention in general, and that's why I didn't like this thing as much as I should have, but... Goodness, I don't know. I just didn't get anything out of this whatsoever. The whole thing was jus' kind of this sludge that just kept going 'til it didn't anymore. Whatever subtly great playing there was, or amazing turns of phrase that were sung — I just can't bring myself to care too much, frankly. To be perfectly honest, I don't know what I can say about this album that I haven't said about every other goth album my group has gotten. I just don't understand what exactly they see in this music so much. I guess it's my fault for not really understanding this subculture beyond just an aesthetic and huge boobs, but I don't think I should have to in order to at the very least enjoy their music. Certainly I don't really get emo culture, but I love a **lot** of emo music. Even the shitty stuff like Good Charlotte or Simple Plan get a kick out of me in the right song. I suppose the difference is just that emo music is often very outwardly emotional, whereas gothic music is more than happy to just sulk and get all moody in the fuzz. So, y'know, consider me more a fan of My Chemical Romance than The Cure, I guess. Like, seriously, just the fact that I've been able to dedicate those two short walls of paragraphs to only ostensibly talking about the album... That should tell you everything, shouldn't it? And it's not like I'm not giving these albums a chance; there **has** to be one out there that speaks to me. But I'unno, this one is just mush in my mind. I didn't hate listening to it, though, goodness, if I could have been doing anything else... I like the font Bauhaus at least? And I guess I'd rather listen to this than the Dream song? Gosh, I hope there's not too many of these gothic albums left... I imagine this is another album where you could probably rightfully get on my butt for not paying close enough attention to the lyrics, or enough attention in general, and that's why I didn't like this thing as much as I should have, but... Goodness, I don't know. I just didn't get anything out of this whatsoever. The whole thing was jus' kind of this sludge that just kept going 'til it didn't anymore. Whatever subtly great playing there was, or amazing turns of phrase that were sung — I just can't bring myself to care too much, frankly. To be perfectly honest, I don't know what I can say about this album that I haven't said about every other goth album my group has gotten. I just don't understand what exactly they see in this music so much. I guess it's my fault for not really understanding this subculture beyond just an aesthetic and huge boobs, but I don't think I should have to in order to at the very least enjoy their music. Certainly I don't really get emo culture, but I love a **lot** of emo music. Even the shitty stuff like Good Charlotte or Simple Plan get a kick out of me in the right song. I suppose the difference is just that emo music is often very outwardly emotional, whereas gothic music is more than happy to just sulk and get all moody in the fuzz. So, y'know, consider me more a fan of My Chemical Romance than The Cure, I guess. Like, seriously, just the fact that I've been able to dedicate those two short walls of paragraphs to only ostensibly talking about the album... That should tell you everything, shouldn't it? And it's not like I'm not giving these albums a chance; there **has** to be one out there that speaks to me. But I'unno, this one is just mush in my mind. I didn't hate listening to it, though, goodness, if I could have been doing anything else... I like the font Bauhaus at least? And I guess I'd rather listen to this than the Dream song? Gosh, I hope there's not too many of these gothic albums left...

The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway

Genesis

3/5

Look... I don't know, man. This thing is just a lot. And I don't mean it's "a lot" in terms of its plot. Well, not entirely, at least. I knew ahead of time that this album had a particularly strange story, and after reading over the synopsis on Wikipedia... Yeah, it sure is. I'm sure it means something to someone, but just at a glance, it comes across like one of those surreal "I'unno, shit just happens" kinda plots. A lamb lies down on Broadway, and 80 minutes later, a raven is stealing the protagonist's penis, which he had cut off to avoid becoming a slipperman as a result of having sex with the laima — and this is after Death tried to kill our protagonist with gas, but our man just shrugs it off and walks away. In terms of plot, it's basically the audio equivalent of one of those heady art films you're told you're supposed to like **because** it's so weird and doesn't make any sense. I mean, it's not like I can't deal with strange plot; TOMMY certainly isn't very normal. It's just, all this... Fwoof. So I didn't bother listening to the lyrics. I mean, I heard that despite the plot they're actually really good, but, hey, if I'm not bothering with the story, I may as well throw out the words all together. If this website had comments (and thank goodness it doesn't) I'd give you full permission to call me out on this front. In the absence of lyrics, then, this thing would have to live and die off of its melodies, and I had faith in it. After all, I liked SELLING ENGLAND BY THE POUND enough to consider it a new benchmark for judging prog albums, and that was literally the one before this. I'm not expecting this to sound **exactly** the same, of course, but I didn't doubt they'd keep up that same quality level. And they did, don't get me wrong. In the first half of this, I was thinking that even though I haven't heard enough of their catalog to make a complete call (I haven't even heard "Supper's Ready") this was probably their masterwork. It was so good! The performances are top notch! There's some damn good melodies on this! I mean, damn, I gotta kick myself in the ass some more for not listening to this material sooner. I couldn't get enough of it! Then it kept going. And going. And going. And going. And... Like, this is what I mean by "it's a lot." This thing is 94 minutes and dense with material — 23 tracks, goodness. And no matter how much I like what I'm hearing, well, "too much of a good thing" isn't a saying for nothing. And I didn't even listen to this thing in straight shot; I queued it all up by record side, one at a time. So maybe I should have taken more time between sides? Who knows! All I can tell you is that even if I had been listening to the lyrics, I probably wouldn't have been able to for the whole album. It gets me thinking about the plot again. It's like, I'm no stranger to concept albums. Matter of fact, I love a bit of story in my music. I find I tend to have stronger attachment to songs if I can understand them in the context of a narrative than if they were presented on their own; it's why I take to jukebox musicals as much as I do. It's why I imagine fight scenes and general music videos to songs so much. So, I just think about the rock operas I love: THE WALL, TOMMY, JOE'S GARAGE... And the thing about them is no matter how weird they get, and something like JOE'S GARAGE gets very weird, is that there's a strong sense of action and reaction. There are characters who make choices, and it's all pretty easy to latch on to. Compare with THE LAMB, where... I mean, like I said: it's an art film. There's barely any plot to speak of; it's mostly just the protagonist running around randomly and seeing strange things until the album, like, jus' kinda stops. I can only identify one choice he makes on the whole album, and it's when he chooses to save his brother over returning to New York. However, I don't have any attachment to what's going on. Who's the protagonist? Who's his brother? What's their relationship? Why do they suddenly have the same face? What does any of this mean? Maybe if I read the long-ass summary Gabriel wrote into the gatefold... But just taking the music on its own, I have no idea. Hell, I haven't even felt the need to mention the protagonist's name: it's Rael, for the record. Like... I just can't picture it. And no matter how much I like the music, if a concept album can't succeed on that front... Fwoof. It feels like something I need a lot more time with; a lot more than this randomizer would allow. I can imagine after a couple or so spins I'd forgive it for its nonsensical plot and just enjoy it on its melodies — if I can do it with Coheed And Cambria... Like, I don't want my issues with the plot and the length to take away too much from how good the music itself is. I do really like what I've heard of this era of Genesis and what they've made and I wish I'd gotten into them sooner. And maybe if I had I'd be more familiar with this album and would be able to be lighter on it. But on just a first listen... I can't lie about how I feel. Once more for the world: fwoof.

Debut

Björk

4/5

In some aspects, this might be the weirdest Björk album. Like, consider the albums my group has gotten from her before: y'got VULNICURA, which is filled with strings and electronic ambience and her wearing... Whatever **that is** on the cover. Then you got MEDÚLLA, where its gimmick is that everything is heavily modified a capella... I mean, when I picture Björk and what her music looks like, it's these oddly beautiful alien landscapes, but where there's enough resemblance to an Earth forest or, I'unno, fjord that it's all graspable. Y'know, it's recognizably human, but it's all still pretty out there. So what makes this album weird is how... Grounded it is. I listen to this album, and I can't picture anything that wouldn't exist on Earth. In fact, I mostly picture cities at night, bustling with life as people go to clubs to dance 'til the sun comes up — and Björk's among them. It's... Well, "normal" feels like the wrong word. What **is** "normal" anyway, y'know? It's more, like, "commercially accessible," way more than anything else I've heard from her — even with her still vocally Björking all over the place. I mean, just look at the cover: it's very much Björk, but given my perception of her work, it's odd to see her dressed so normally and not in, like, some Queen Amadala dress or stylized moss. And, look, as much as I do like and respect Björk's typical output (I think VULNICURA can be drop-dead gorgeous in parts), I don't wanna front. This might be the most I've liked a Björk album, and, yeah, it is largely because it might be the easiest to get into. Look, as much as I wanna have deep, refined music tastes, the kind where you can chat about avant garde music over a glass of wine, more often than not, I'm simple. I hear a melody that appeals to me, over a beat that largely interests me, and I'm good. It doesn't even have to be mind-blowing, and this material certainly isn't. I worry I'm being dismissive of her more avant garde material, but I don't think you could really blame someone for preferring the uncomplicated material, huh? I mean, heck, I'd take this over MEDÚLLA any day. So, yeah, me liking this album really isn't that complicated. It's just a good night out dancing. I can imagine for some people that's not enough, but, hey, I wouldn't say "no" to a good time.

Manassas

Stephen Stills

3/5

Y'know, looking from the outside, I was feeling pretty dismissive about this album. Like, a 72-minute album from a band formed by one-third of CSN? And a band that might not even really be a band, given how Spotify sure doesn't classify it as one, and how Stephen's name is slapped on this thing's cover twice. I mean, I wasn't expecting anything bad, but, like... Y'know, against my better judgement, I was already wondering what it was doing here. Bad form, I know, but that gives the album all the more chance to tell me why it should be here. For this review — well, "review"; this is already feeling like more of a ramble — I've decided to take up the same structure I did for SOMETHING/ANYTHING?. Each record side has its own title, and they're all supposed to have their own themes, so... Sure, why not? Let's treat each side like a mini-album and see how this all pans out. Come on! Give me a reason! SIDE ONE! This side (titled "The Raven"), from what I read, comprises a lot of the rock stuff the group would perform live. And... Yeah, this sure is Americana folk n' country rock. I can't say I dislike it, and there's some Latin rhythms in there sometimes that keep things interesting, but on the whole... Yeah, I'unno, it's just fine. The best song here is "Jet Set (Sigh)", which is this slow burn blues track, and it's not even five minutes but it still kinda feels like it goes on a bit long? Even with the last leg of the song switching up styles. I'unno, I just found it easy to tune this side out. Next. SIDE TWO! Here on this side ("The Wilderness") we have — YEE-HAW!! — country music! This is the side I felt better about drifting away to 'coz, hey, it's country music. I don't ever expect much from it. As long as I get to hear a good pedal steel, **I'M A HAPPY GAL**! I really don't have anything else to say about this side beyond that. It's— y'know, it satisfies, but it's not more than just fine. Next. SIDE THREE! The title of side three makes a simple request: "Consider." Consider what, exactly? Heck if I know. This side is supposed to have a bit more variety in styles than the previous two, but I don't think anything here would've been too out of place on either of them? The most I was able to hear was the Moog on "Move Around" (probably the best song on this side) and the fact that there's a song here called "The Love Gangster". Otherwise, I had to wonder if I was just tired with how hard I zonked out on this side. I guess I can only hope the final side brings it all home somehow. Next. SIDE FOUR! It was during side four (titled "Rock & Roll Is Here To Stay") that I hadda wonder if I was being too hard on this album. After all, I don't dislike anything I've heard — in fact, I quite like it! So why aren't I feeling more up on it? And really, it just comes back to the fact that it's largely just fine, and it doesn't even have the courtesy to be "just fine" in an interesting way. It does the job while it's happening, but I'm not really compelled to be that engaged with it. Heck, I can't even think of much to say about this side. "The Treasure" is maybe the best here, but I don't know. AND IN CONCLUSION! Honestly, I don't think treating this thing like SOMETHING/ANYTHING? helped all too much. Like, don't get me wrong, there **are** clear differences between each side, but I'm not sure if there was really a need to present it like this? At least not when compared to the degree that SOMETHING/ANYTHING? went whole-hog on it. And, yeah, like I've kept going on about through this whole tangent, this album is just the worst kind of "fine." There's nothing I can really say about it beyond just gesturing at it and going, "Eh, right?" I can see myself revisiting these sides and, y'know, not **not** having a bad time, but, beh, I'unno. I feel like I'd take the first CSN album a dozen times over this. So if there **is** a reason why this album is here, well, I sure didn't find it. Kind of a shame, but, eh, wha'cha gonna do? At least none of this was on the quality of stuff he was doing on AMERICAN DREAM, I'll tell you that.

Millions Now Living Will Never Die

Tortoise

4/5

Y'know, I think I just needed to get a sense of perspective. See, I'm writing this review a few days after this album was picked for my group, and I'll be upfront: I hesitated so long on it entirely because of the genre attached to it on Wikipedia. "Post-rock." Eee-yuck'o. If that don't sound like the kind of snooty, up-its-own-ass artsy "Oh, we're **too good** to make **enjoyable music**" shit I rag on post-punk for all the time. I mean, really, at this rate it seems like I'm afraid of most any genre with "post-" in front of it. I was worried — honestly. From the genre alone, it sounded like this was gonna be a torturously intolerable mess. Just pure noise for 35 minutes that I'm supposed to like because it's artsy. I've ranted extensively about this sort of thing before. So what finally got me to actually listen to this thing, huh? Well, first of all, I'm tired of getting reminder e-mails. "Did you know you have a new album you haven't rated?" Deleted on sight, every time — as if I didn't know I was behind. The second thing, though, was — well, like I said: perspective. I had to remind myself why I was even partaking in this list in the first place. It's not something I've entirely forgotten about, but I guess I just needed to think it out loud again. To put it in short, I'm here to expand my horizons. To look out of my bubble and truly discover what my tastes are. After all, if I just stay in place and never venture outside, I'll never truly know what they are or aren't. So, really, I shouldn't be afraid of anything that aims to challenge me. Post-punk, post-rock — whatever. Even if I end up not liking it, I tried it and found out how I felt. That's something. I mean, if anything, I should be reserving my ire for shit that's just playing it safe. Y'know, not really doing anything beyond the minimum, yet it somehow ended up in this book because some old person recalled it being revolutionary at the time. But that's a rant for another day — probably when my group gets another 60's psych rock album? I'unno. But that's enough preamble. I've finally made the trek with Tortoise, and now I'm able to tell you what I've found. For starters, I found that I had nothing to worry about. Like, I'm realizing now I probably did myself the biggest disservice by loading up the first track on YouTube — the scariest of them all, 20-some minutes! — and randomly clicking around. All I ended up hearing was the bits of transitional noise and I got myself all worried that that was going to be most of this album. Just a lot of jacking around and making noise because, hey, it's "not traditional rock structure" or whatever. But like I said, it turned out to be just transitional noise. There's actually a lot of nice melodies on here, and the rest of the album. It's... Like, it's just such a vibe, y'know? Not exactly ambient music, but I think it works very well in that lane. Jus'... Good shit to lean back to. And I particularly really liked the last track for the whole "cowboy revenge flick" energy I got off of that guitar. It grabbed my attention away from the other thing I was writing as I had the album on and is for sure something I can do some good Fantasiaing to. Gotta give those kinda props wherever I can. There's not much I really wanna say beyond that. It's just some really good, vibe-y, ambient-type music. I dig that a lot, even if I wouldn't say it blew my mind or anything.. In fact, it's got me thinking I should have saved that whole preamble for another album like KOLLAPS or LOCUST ABORTION TECHNICIAN — the true thing I'm talking about when I talk about expanding my horizons. But, eh, I wasn't lying about those being my thoughts coming into this thing, so... Yeah. Honestly kinda wish I didn't take to get this album, 'coz, hey, I ended up getting more out of it than I did MANASSAS, that's for sure. I mean, goodness...

Shadowland

k.d. lang

4/5

Y'know, despite how Canadian I am, I don't really listen to a lot of CANCON. All the big, famous stuff, like Leonard Cohen, The Tragically Hip, Neil Young, whoever wrote "The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald"... Before I joined this randomizer, a lot of it hadn't crossed my ears. I mean, my lifetime listening habits have been largely centered on the States and the UK, whereas my Canadian intake has usually been nothing more than a little Rush and the first Barenaked Ladies album. And, y'know, I realize I don't hafta be in love with my country's music if I don't want to. Besides some good ol' patriotism and ultranationalism, there's really no good reason I'd have to be. But I guess it's just been weird to me that despite how long I've been living in this country and identifying by it — that is to say, my whole life — I just don't know too much about my own national music scene besides some stragglers and the stuff that's made it big in the States: Drake, Justin Bieber, Nickelback... Only the best stuff, y'know? I mean, jeez, I knew more about Snow as a one-hit wonder than I did k.d. lang as a Juno Award winning artist. So on its face, I couldn't begin to imagine how this album would sound. I mean, k.d. lang has long been one of those artists where I've known their name and that's really about the size of it. Heck, I'm not even 100% if I knew she was Canadian before now. If I had to judge a book purely by its cover — or, in this case, the name of its author — I would've guessed this would be some artsy singer-songwriter folk. Y'know, the kind of shit critics on either side of the border would just eat up. The fact that she stylizes her name is all lowercase just gives off that vibe: "She's so serious, she doesn't even use capital letters in her name!" That kind of thing. It came as quite a surprise, then, to find out that this is a country album. Yeah, it turns out she's a country singer. From what I read after finding that out, it seems her big inspiration to get into music was a fascination with the life and work of Patsy Cline — in fact, this album even has one of her big producers, Owen Bradley. And besides that, this album's final track has two cameos I sure as hell recognized: Brenda Lee and Loretta Lynn (the latter of whom's biopic I still needa see...). Honestly, finding this all out is kind of a relief, 'coz it means to me that I don't think about any of this that hard. As I've said no doubt plenty of times before, I am not very picky or particular about country music, especially the older stuff. I mean, to my ears there's not a whole lot of difference in how much of it sounds, so as long as it keeps hitting that note... Well, dang, I'll be a happy-ass gal. And I am real damn happy with this. There's the pedal steel, the fiddlin', a pretty as hell voice... If I'm struggling with anything, it's if I have any complaints. I didn't listen to the lyrics, as my AuDHD brain is wont to not do, but I doubt there'd be anything in there. After all, this ain't 2010's country, where the genre's gotten really defensive about itself (when it's not being overly self-critical about itself) and all worshipful over the small town. I guess if there's anything, it's just personal preference; that I feel like I'd still tend towards big dumb 90's country music like Shania Twain than more restrained 80's stuff like this. Although, hey, let's be real: it's not a huge preference gap. This album can be damn beautiful, I'm telling you, and I'd for sure take it a million times over whatever Morgan Wallen's dumping out these days. In the end, I feel kind of relieved, honestly. Some part of me might've been worried this would turn out to be another Leonard Cohen thing, where as much as I admire them as a Canadian legend, I simply can't vibe with their music — and I still feel a little bad about that, for the record. Instead, hey, I got a nice little country album to chill out to, and another bit of CANCON I can add to the roster. Even if I'm probably just gonna end up listening to "Another Postcard" again. Funny monkey song, y'know...

Selected Ambient Works 85-92

Aphex Twin

4/5

There's genres where I've talked before about how hard I can find it to discuss them. Jazz, for instance: I often feel like discussion of it requires an ear for and knowledge of music theory I just can't get a grasp on. Or there's rap: thanks to my AuDHD brain, I struggle paying attention to or understanding lyrics, and since that's rap's main appeal — at least as I understand it — I'm left at a disadvantage. And, y'know, those are both personal problems, and I do try my hardest to engage with these genres despite them. But then you have the one genre represented on this list I don't doubt not too little people have a problem with discussing: ambient music. Now, this isn't my first rodeo with ambient music. We've gotten a lot of stuff before that's leaned into the genre, and particularly we've even gotten one of its most landmark albums: MUSIC FOR AIRPORTS. Heck, on my own time, I'll admit to being one of the rare people who doesn't mind Pink Floyd's THE ENDLESS RIVER all too much. The problem with discussing this kind of music, though, just comes along with its entire goal, purpose and reason for being. Ambient music, more than any other genre, is wallpaper music. More than anything else, it's meant to color space audibly and unnoticed. You are not meant to engage with it like you would any other album — in fact, you're probably missing the point entirely if you are. I mean, you wouldn't judge wallpaper with the same standards you would any classical painting. Why are you even looking at the wallpaper in the first place, even? And that's not to say there can't be anything notable in ambient music, or that it's impossible to quantify or judge it. Ugly wallpaper **does** exist, after all. And heck, I **like** a good bit of ambient music here and there. It's just that I doubt the average layman can really tell the difference from one swatch to the next unless it's just **that** egregious — perhaps myself included. Which brings us to this Aphex Twin album. Now, I don't have very many preconceptions about Aphex Twin himself, besides that he made "Windowlicker", he has a funny grin, and that Kanye West stole one of his piano lines once. The most relevant thing I'm coming in here with is just the knowledge that this album and its follow-up are pretty highly regarded in the world of ambient music. Certainly, a lot of people in the Discord group I'm in are crazy about it; one person has given this album some 800 plays between all of its songs. Thus, of course, I was left with the most simple and obvious question: what does Aphex Twin do with ambient music that's so special? In short: techno music. There's a lot of techno influence here. Mostly, it comes in the form of these drum machine beats you have underscoring the tracks. You know, the album is still largely composed of the airy, free-floating synths I've come to expect from ambient music, fading in and out of view — and they're as pretty and relaxing as ever — but then you've got these driving beats pushing them along, and... Honestly, it's interesting how much such a simple addition as that can do to these songs. It leads to a different feel entirely than if it was just the synths on their own, or if these were just techno songs. Throw in the occasional unusual synth on top of that... Yeah, there's clearly stuff to dig into here. I've gotta be real about my tastes, though. As ambient music... Mm, it just doesn't quite do it entirely for me. Like, the techno beats are what make this album, but they're also what have me thinking I might not return to this too often. Y'know, other people harp on other ambient music for being sleep-inducing and uninteresting, but, like, that's honestly the sort of thing I come to ambient music for. I like my ambient music relaxing; y'know, something to zone out to. Focusing on nothing else but these pretty synths and letting them wash me away from the world. Adding a four-on-the-floor "tss-tss-tss-tss" beat to these kinds of tracks, yeah, kind of takes away from that appeal a little. No matter how good they are, and I do think these are very good, they just won't match up in my mind to Eno's MUSIC FOR AIRPORTS or, heck, even the recording of wine glasses Pink Floyd made. Honestly, I think I'd be more into Aphex Twin's second volume of ambient tracks, despite its insane run time of 156 minutes. Like, jeez, at least this thing is only 71 minutes... Still, though, my personal preferences aside, I can appreciate how this pushed ambient music forward. It's a statement that wallpaper can and should be considered in the same breath as more classical, traditional pieces. I mean, just because something was made to fill space doesn't mean it's not art and isn't worth consideration, y'know? Like radio jingles or bumpers on TV: artists still made those, and they shouldn't be counted out just because they didn't make big, important rock albums. I'm not saying you'll find absolute beauty or the secret life in any of them, but still. If nothing else, you gotta appreciate the effort to make life a little less empty, eh?

Golden Hour

Kacey Musgraves

5/5

Going into this album, I didn't expect to have much to say. Like, sure, it won Album Of The Year at the 61st GRAMMYs, but come on: it's a country album. I never usually have much to say about those, since I never have very high expectations for them. "Country music is just country music," is what I've always thought: "there's just never much difference from album to album." I figured I'd rattle off the same sort of spiel I've given to other country albums and I'd be able to just move on — right? Well... Here's the funny thing. Finishing off this album, I still didn't feel like I'd have much to say, although for different reasons entirely. For large portions of the album, I was honestly struggling to come up with the exact word I'd want to use to describe what I was wearing. 'Coz this isn't **just** country music; there's some very strong electropop and disco influence spread throughout. Heck, to my ears, some of these songs are just straight-up funky. Right from the first song, it lends the whole album such a different vibe I just haven't encountered on a country album before — hence my struggle to come up with the word. Somewhere after the halfway point, I think I hit up the one that describes the vibe I was getting: "ethereal." Like I was spending a lot of this album just floating on air. Honestly, even if I didn't know this had won Album Of The Year, I think I would've been able to guess anyway. This just feels like an album that's just that important, y'know? And yet despite that, I never felt like it was too big. From the snatches of lyrics I caught, the whole thing was still incredibly grounded — probably even relatable. Not to me, but I can imagine someone else hearing this stuff and know it's speaking directly to them. Gotta give Kacey some good credit as an amazing singer, too. This album wouldn't work half as well if she didn't have the voice she does, goodness. Y'know, I haven't heard every album that was nominated for Album Of The Year at the 61st GRAMMYs. Honestly, skimming the list, there's a few on there I just really would not want to listen to — I mean, BEERBONGS & BENTLEYS? No thanks. And if there aren't a million more albums I'd rather listen to than Drake's SCORPION, lordy me. But despite not having the first-hand knowledge to say for sure, I feel like they made the right call. I mean, seriously, the alternate universe where Drake's overlong piece of shit beat this out... I can't even begin to imagine. But anyway, if there's anything I'm gonna take away from this album... Well, dang, I guess there's pie in my face for thinking so little of modern country, eh? Turns out there's been more going in the past six years than the same ol' formula. (I mean, there's also been the shit Morgan Wallen's been churning out, but that's besides the point.) I'm incredibly impressed. So, y'know, big props to the album for letting me know how wrong I was assuming that. And I guess I can also give the GRAMMYs some for managing to get one right for once. Which, it doesn't mean I'm gonna forgive them for having KID A lose to some late-period Steely Dan album, but still. Good on yah.

Loveless

My Bloody Valentine

4/5

It feels so strange to realize that My Bloody Valentine have put out only three studio albums. Like, legit, before today, I had no idea that M B V was their **third** album. The way I'd always heard people gush over this band, I'd always figured they had a much larger output I'd just never heard about before going on hiatus. But, no: they released LOVELESS, and then besides a few EPs and a live album they didn't really put out much of anything else until M B V. For years, this was their only musical statement to the world. Well, the only one that really mattered, anyway — imagine my surprise to also find out that this was their **second** album. And until today, well, it was one of those statements where I nodded and accepted its importance, but I couldn't tell you **why** it was so important. Y'know, it was one of those "Oh, hey, **that** album cover" albums. Although unlike, say, FEVER TO TELL or whatever that Lemonheads album was called, I actually had my reasons for never getting around to it until now. Simply put: it's my old enemy shoegaze again. I've made it no secret how much disdain I have for the genre — in fact, it was the focus of my review of/babble about M B V. Back then, it was tied for my worst rated genre with a 3.17, and the review would ultimately push it down further with a 3.14. These days, meanwhile, it still holds second place, though it's managed to rise up to a more respectable 3.25. And, y'know, I'll be honest: looking at my bottom three, I don't think world music should be my worst-rated. That 3.14 isn't fair; it's only because Koffi Owlede sucks shit as a person... And for that matter, to be completely 100, I don't think shoegaze should be my absolute worst-rated, either. Like, I'm not gonna front and say that I've loved everything I've heard from this genre, but after this album, I hafta wonder if I had been listening to it all wrong. I mean, my preconception of shoegaze has always been that it's a snobby genre; something that my strawman idea of a pretentious music critic would push as the greatest thing **EVAR**, which I couldn't imagine the public (or the public I could view from my bubble, anyway) honestly enjoying. I've also previously put it on the same level as another genre I've said to hate (post-punk) and slapped it with the same opinion: that I "don't think it's good just because it's unappealing on purpose." And, y'know, maybe I've just been getting the wrong albums... Come to think of it, I might just be letting one album color my perception of the entire genre. After all, the first post-punk album my group got METAL BOX, and it really hasn't gotten better for me since. Elsewhere, it wasn't the **first** shoegaze album my group got, but my group got PSYCHOCANDY by The Jesus And Mary Chain, and I hated that so much that it might've scared me towards any other shoegaze album we've gotten. Enough so, in fact, that when the randomizer tossed us LOVELESS, it took me a second to remember that I didn't actually hate M B V. So I think I wanna stop hating shoegaze, I need a new album to define it by. I mean, PSYCHOCANDY was never a good one in the first place; I tend to think of it more as "noise rock" than as "shoegaze." And if I'm gonna let any album define shoegaze for me, then, hey, why not the single most famous entry in its genre? It's an obvious choice, sure, but I can't imagine that it's this famous for absolutely no reason, y'know? Now, to actually start talking about this dang album, 600-some words in... Well, my initial reaction is that I thought I knew what to expect. After all, I liked M B V, and that unlocked once I learned to think of it as "ambient music for metalheads." This is a few decades earlier, but I didn't have much reason to expect anything else, right? This would be my confirmation that that was what shoegaze is. And yet... Y'know, "ambient music" is still a factor in this, I figure. It still does strike me that way, and I will say that I do still prefer it with electronics over guitars. But it's not **just** that — and in fact, I wouldn't even describe this album as "ambient music for metalheads." If I had to go with anything, well, I think the better description is "dream pop grunge." Right? I mean, the music has the loud guitars and edge of grunge, but with the way the guitar is being played and with how the vocals are mixed so far back and are normally so high in register, everything gets smoothed out into this dreamlike atmosphere. The guitar technique that was used on this album is called "glide guitar," and that's an apt name for it, 'coz "gliding" is how you feel listening to it. Like, understanding this album in the same context I do The Flaming Lips or I have Cocteau Twins, suddenly everything makes sense. And of course for me it can't compete in that realm; it's no SOFT BULLETIN or YOSHIMI... But as its own thing — as shoegaze — this is the most I've liked an album in this lane with no caveats. Y'know, it's not like when I listen an album I hafta go "Well, the post-punk part isn't my **favorite** part. Here, it is, and that's such a milestone. Heck, this album probably helps me better understand "vibes" music, too. I've seen people knock the album for its repetitiveness, and for how unintelligible the vocals are, and those aren't not valid, but to me they're both features. This is where the "ambient music" part comes back in, 'coz it's all about connecting with the vibe. If you can tune in and let your mind float free, well, dang, it's some great shit. But then on top of how vibey it is, it still has some good riffs and melody lines? That was the thing that especially surprised me about this album, particularly on "I Only Said", which I ended up listening to twice by accident. Heck if I cared, though: there was this one line on there that was, ah, so good, and it carried me clear through to the other side. So that's just it then, eh? I like shoegaze now? Well, let's not get ahead of ourselves here; I'm still not crazy for the genre. Don't go thinking this is a new top five album for me or anything like that, y'know? And besides, a stinker will always be a stinker, no matter how much I like or understand a genre. But if nothing else, I'll probably have an easier time now understanding and enjoying the genre than I did before. And the next time one pops up, I doubt I'll be as quick to dread it as I have others. And, hey, this is all good news for post-punk, too. After all, if I can learn to enjoy the genre currently rated worse than it as I'm writing, there might just be an album out there that'll cause post-punk to click with me as well. I kinda doubt it, 'coz it really does seem like it's unironically a snobby genre, but, hey, you never know what the future holds. As for My Bloody Valentine, meanwhile... Yeah, if you're gonna have only one musical statement that matters, this is a pretty good one to have.

Raw Like Sushi

Neneh Cherry

3/5

Look, I don't know. I just found it so hard to give a shit about this album. Like, musically speaking, I don't think it's all bad. There's some parts in there I like. Y'know, this new jack swing, hip hop/pop thing... But on the whole, I'unno — I just found that as it went on my expression got more and more stoney as I started to wonder more when this thing was going to end. I'll just tell you my problem with it: Neneh's rapping came across to me as annoyingly juvenile. I mean, in terms of delivery she's not doing much different from any other poppy MC of the day, but, like, with her exact tone of voice, I feel like I should be watching some random teen star that I don't know a single thing about bouncing around on the Disney Channel. It grated on me, but not even in any way that made me particularly upset. Jus'... Blurgh, I just wanted this thing to be over with. I mean, I don't wanna be too hard on this whole thing, 'coz I do thing Neneh has a very nice singing voice, and, again, there were parts of the instrumental I do dig. And, y'know, it's not even like I'm saying I don't like a woman doing boisterous new jack swing raps like the dudes, no. It's jus', I'unno. It's juvenile and bratty in a way that just wasn't any fun to me. And the fact that some of these songs felt like they went on forever didn't help much either, goodness... Y'know, I'm sure for 1989 this album was fun. Have some singles tearing up the dance floor, y'know... But in 2025, it's not even that bad, I feel like I could've gone my entire life without hearing this. Pbbbt, I'unno. Lemme move on to the next album already.

The Dreaming

Kate Bush

5/5

Y'know, I thought I got Kate Bush. Not enough that I'm able to put it into words, I mean, but if I were to imagine it off the top of my head I feel like I'd get closer to her general sound than I wouldn't. Now, I'm not gonna say this album changes that too much about that, but this album does enter in an element of her sound that I don't think I ever considered before. Coming into this thing, I was expecting the more experimental aspects. After all, "experimental" is how I read this thing described — riveting, eh? But yeah, I knew this was still a pop record, so it wouldn't be **that** over the top, like a Residents record. What I hadn't been expecting, though, but I was very happy to discover... Was the theatricality of it all. Like, if I had to use any one word to describe the material on this album— I mean, I can't think of any other I'd want to use. Part of this comes from the variety of styles present on the album. There's stuff that I'd say sounds more typical, but then you got something like the title track, which is so Australian it hurts. The one after that, meanwhile, is a straight dive into Irish music — and following that, you've got this airy, floating ballad number. And surely, it's a compliment to how well this stuff is all arranged and composed. If there's any one thing, though, that gets me to call this album theatrical... It all comes down to Kate Bush's performance. Throughout the album, if I'm imagining anything, it's her on stage — but not a concert stage. More like a play stage, acting these songs out like disconnected numbers from various strange musicals. It's captivating to listen to. Like, honestly, of the Kate Bush albums I've heard before — and at this point it's just HOUNDS OF LOVE and THE SENSUAL WORLD — this might be my favorite thus far? And it's just for that fact. I mean, seriously, there are parts and styles on this album where I'm reminded of Sparks and their own odd British-by-way-of-California sense of glam theatrics. That's a compliment and a half right there from me. It made me wanna go and listen to some of her other work — or at least "Running Up That Hill" and "Cloudbusting" from the follow-up album, if nothing else. Obviously, being more conventional (on this side of the record, anyway), she doesn't aim as big or go as hard as she does on THE DREAMING, but... Keeping what she's capable of in mind, I'm able to appreciate her performance way more than I did before. Like, if I was an 8 before, then we've cranked it to 11. You've gotta give an album props if it can do that. And, hey, if I think those songs are even better with this context, I look forward to seeing what it'll do for my opinion of the **second** half of the album. I remember not being too fond of that half when I first heard HOUNDS OF LOVE... But I'll get there when the Randomizer's RNG randomly decides it's time. In the meantime, I think this album is really worth the people's time. Get a little theater in their day, y'know? And heck, some Kate Bush in general. She's the good stuff, y'know...

Qui sème le vent récolte le tempo

MC Solaar

4/5

Boy, this took me a while to get to: nearly a whole month. And it's like, I don't know. I just fell behind on albums one week, and I never really found the time nor want 'til now to actually give it a spin. 'Coz I mean, I've talked before about my problem with reviewing rap: that because, until recently, I've never been the kind of person to focus on and take in lyrics. So you then present me with a genre of music entirely based around lyrics... And, like, look, I'm a fan of my share of rap, but it's not like I have too much to say about any of it that often, besides maybe commenting on the beats. I'm surprised I've been able to say as much as I have. So you'd think this album would be right up my alley, then, huh? It's a **French** rap album, where I wouldn't even be able to understand the lyrics anyway, unless I **really** wanted to look them up (I never retained a thing from my Canadian French classes). But still, I don't know: I knew I wouldn't, so I'd feel like I was missing half the picture. Or maybe that's just an excuse 'coz I could never find the time, who knows? But anyway, I refuse to let an album go unlistened to, so, yeah, as you can tell, I did finally find the time. And was it worth it? Y'know, I'm slightly embarrassed to admit that I forgot how far even rap music can get on just vibes. I mean, that's basically the appeal of a lot of the rap music that charts. And yeah, going strictly off of flow and beats... Man, this thing is a vibe and a half. I'd say it bumps. Heck, it bangs sometimes, even! Like, rapping in French actually does interesting things to the flow. There's the accident, first of all, but then there's just the language itself. As a fellow group member has said, "the amount of extra syllables & nuance [...] allows for some really mesmerizing flows to pop in & out without ever once breaking the rhythm of each track." (The Jamaican/reggae influence is really good, too. Like, there's quite a few styles this album switches through, but the dancehall toasting stuff is, mm, so good. The stuff on "Ragga Jam" is nuts.) It's just a really fun record to groove to, y'know? And, yeah, like another group member said, I do kinda wish I knew French so I could appreciate the "complex wordplay" that's apparently present in the lyrics (something that would probably be lost in an English translation). Just listening on a surface level, though... Worst I can say about it is that I maybe wish it was a little shorter, but then what rap wouldn't I wish that about? Très bien, Solar. Err, "Solaar?" His MC name has had two "a"s this whole time? Dang.

Duck Stab/Buster & Glen

The Residents

3/5

I've always found it curious that the albums with the lowest average user ratings on this website are largely the more experimental releases. Well, OK, "curious." I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised that the material that aims the hardest to challenge the listener would be collectively rated so low. And it's like, I don't even mean that in the sense of like "Oh, the common person is an **idiot**" or "Oh, they don't **wanna** be challenged." Nothing like that — 'coz I get it. Honestly, truly, I do. Every time I've run across a post-punk album, I've winced. I've never looked forward to one, and more often than not, I find I was right not to. Heck, I have this whole perception in my mind that post-punk — pure post-punk, that isn't adjacent to New Wave or whatever — is a genre for people who're up their own asses, acting as if making unlistenable shit on purpose somehow counts as "art" and I should like it for that. I'm not assuming they're insincere in their efforts, but just that if I told them I didn't like their work they'd be really snobby in telling me "I just don't get it." And, yeah, maybe I don't. But I don't particularly like the material enough to try to, y'know? And, y'know, that's probably the reason most people would give to why they don't like albums like this, or KOLLAPS, or most anything else on this website's bottom twenty. And that's all completely fair and reasonable. Believe me, I am sympathetic. But for my money, I wouldn't use that reason at all on a group like The Residents, and simply because, well, they're outsiders. Take it from someone who's had a long-standing interest in The Residents, I've never gotten the impression they were ever pompous or snobby about any of this. This, as strange as it can be, is just the stuff they wanna be making, damn how anyone else feels about. They're not practitioners of the Theory Of Obscurity for nothing. I mean, why do you think they kept anonymous for so long? So I'm willing to be easy on them. I mean, just on a base level I appreciate anything that wants to challenge me; if I had the final say in matters, you'd have far more flatly boring albums on the website's bottom 20. Although there's a funny thing about me and the more experimental music on the list, and that's that... Well, I can't think of a better way to put it: I might get it **too much**? Take something like TROUT MASK REPLICA, another infamously low rated album. I can hear all the way it's weird and off-putting and strange, and I understand it all perfectly well — enough so to the point where I find I end up hearing past it and I'm just left with a bunch of blues music. For sure unusual blues music, but blues nonetheless, and I'm left wondering what's supposed to make it so special. Part of it might be that I've spent my whole life hyping myself about how weird they are, so when I actually do get down to listening to it, well, it just can't compare. So let's actually get down to talking about the album itself now. Taking it as a whole (because even though this is a compilation of two EPs, I can't much tell them apart)... Yeah, it's strange stuff alright. You'd only need to listen to the opening track, "Constantinople" (not "Istanbul") to get that much. There's this processed, come-on creepy duck-style voice singing, who knows what over bizarre instrumentation playing odd melodies... And if there's any structure, it's not immediately identifiable. It more feels like the track is just staggering around randomly, only barely keeping itself from falling over. And there's **something** recognizable there. You can't place exactly what it is, but it's there, and that might be the most off-putting thing of all. If you're not expecting it (and who could?)... Jeez, no matter how sympathetic I may be, I just can't imagine getting a shotgun blast to the face of this kinda stuff. And it hardly lets up from there. There's the occasional where it's... Less weird than it is normally. Heck, there are spots where in isolation it wouldn't sound strange at all — I don't wanna play up this thing's strangeness **too much** like I have to myself. But more often than not... Yeah, if you don't got the ears for it, then this must be some kind of Lynchian fever dream nightmare. A complete bizarro version of "normal music," such as it is. And I actually do like a lot of what I've heard here; I **do** have the ears attuned to this sound. I mean, heck, being the fan I am of Primus, it'd be weird if I **didn't** like this sound. But, y'know, like I said: although I might not be put off by its weirdness, there's still some part of me that's not... Terribly impressed by it? Not to the extent I was unimpressed by TROUT MASK REPLICA, but still, more than anything else I just find myself nodding at it like, "Yep. That's outsider music alright." My problem might just be that I don't typically have much use for this kind of music. It's like, I can appreciate it all I want, but it's not like I'm going to be a part of my regular album rotation. Within the past few months, my big album listens have included Weird Al's STRAIGHT OUTTA LYNWOOD, The Weeknd's DAWN FM, and the soundtrack for the first SHREK movie. There's not much room for The Residents of any of their ilk. It's why as much as I've had an interest in them I've never really bothered to check them out. And I try not to have that sort of thing impact my opinion, but at the same time, y'know, I never wanna be dishonest about how I feel, so... I'll say this much: for my first Residents album, it didn't hurt like I'd always thought it would. If you're OK with experimental music and you know what you're getting into, it's a fine enough time. And, y'know, it does get me wondering if there are stronger Residents albums — I mean, this thing **is** two EPs slapped together, so I can only figure the ones that were always meant to be albums... Y'know? But for most people out there who'd listen to this thing... Once again, I can't blame them. It's not like I'm all **that** hot on this thing, either. Honestly, if anything, I should be giving credit to the people who stuck this thing out, even if they came out the other side giving this thing a 1. They still gave it a chance, and, hey, even discovering what you don't like is still expanding your musical horizons. I wouldn't call that a waste of time whatsoever. Listening to one of those boring-ass Britpop or psych rock albums, sure, maybe, but this? Absolutely not. Ignore the average — I think it deserves to be here.

Henry's Dream

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

5/5

Well — I was sure surprised. Nick Cave is another artist I thought I had a good handle on. I mean, I'd heard his song on the SHREK 2 soundtrack (yep, he's another one of those). I'd heard all about the album that song comes from, THE BOATMAN'S CALL. He's a guy who makes sad piano songs — or at least just melancholic or depressing. I knew what I'd be getting into here. My first clue that I actually had no idea what I was in for was when I read this album's Wikipedia page and saw it labelled as "punk blues." I had to read it again: "punk blues." It just didn't sound right to me. My assumption, honestly, was that this was some one-off change-of-sound album. Y'know, an experiment, maybe. Everything else probably still sounded as I expected this, but for this one album they were trying something else. And when I finally got around to giving it a shot... Oh, wowie me. The first word my mind conjured within the first three tracks was "epic." That's really how it sounded to me, with its driving riff and orchestration and how the backing vocals accentuated everything... I was a little stunned for a moment. This was incredible. Completely and truly incredible. This is some of the stuff Nick Cave & His Bad Seeds were doing, and I'm only just now finding out? Honestly now. I wanna highlight "John Finn's Wife" especially; now **that** is a song worthy of the word "epic" if I ever heard one. And to be clear, I mean in the sense of how I perceive size and scope, and not so much in the standard "meaningless synonym for amazing" kind of way. And actually, as the album went on, "epic" kind of felt insufficient to describe the album as a whole. I struggled to find the right one for a moment, but in the middle of "Loom Of The Land", it finally hit me: "cinematic." The songs on this album feel grandly cinematic. Even hardly listening to the lyrics like I normally don't, I could only imagine these songs being projected on a large theater screen, playing out as dramatically as they could without running over into straight parody. Like, goodness, I wanna emphasize again: this was all from the guy and band I knew solely for "People Ain't No Good". Who would've known they were capable of this? The answer: most people, probably. If there's anything this album taught me, it's that I got it all backwards. THE BOATMAN'S CALL, as it turns out, is where the band's sound actually changed. HENRY'S DREAM, meanwhile, is more likely what they sounded like before that point. Well, maybe a little less post-punk (yecch) than I've been reading, but still. And not that this group even has just one sound, anyway; it seems more recent albums have dived into electronic and ambient stuff. But we're talking about this album, and as an introduction to what Nick Cave & His Bad Seeds were capable of beyond that one song from SHREK 2... Well, dang. Consider me intrigued to see what the rest of their catalog has to offer. Handily a solid recommendation from me, and yet more proof after Tom Waits that the SHREK 2 soundtrack seal of approval is a real thing. Well, it's real as long as I don't listen any further to Dashboard Confessional, anyway.

Countdown To Ecstasy

Steely Dan

3/5

So there's a bit George Carlin has in one of his specials where he criticises people who use baby slings. Y'know, how they treat their baby like camping equipment, leaving their hands free to shop instead of, y'know, actually touching the dang kid. As Carlin puts it, they're the kind of people who "sort their garbage, jog with their dogs and listen to Steely Dan" — yuppies, in other words. For the longest time, that bit right there has influenced how I've viewed the band Steely Dan. And not even necessarily those exact words, I should point out — more just the way he says the band's name. "Steeeeely Daaaaahn." It's dripping with this, like, amused wort of contempt that just screams, "Yeah, this is some lame-ass music for lame-ass white people. Gimme a break." And it's been drilled so thoroughly in my head that it's **the** thing I think of whenever I hear or see their name. Combine that with how Steely dan beat out both Radiohead's KID A **and** Eminem's THE MARSHALL MATHERS LP for Best Album at the GRAMMYs that one year, which really comes across like the boomers at the Academy rejecting the newer sounds that scared them... Yeah, I can't say I've ever had the highest opinion of Steely Dan. Which makes it all the more embarrassing to admit that I've hardly listened to them before now. Yeah, I know, I know. I'm not gonna make any excuses for myself about this. I had my preconception built for me out of scraps of other people's thoughts, and I just never felt compelled to see if it was correct or not. That's horrible form. I wasn't even that young when I first heard or saw these things. So it's about time I finally got around to seeing if I was wrong all along. And with a full listen in mind... Well, unsurprisingly for this kind of ordeal, I was wrong. Or at least, I was wrong more than I wasn't. 'Coz here's the thing: while, based on just this album, I can pretty firmly say they're not that bad, it's not like I can't also see why I could've come to my preconceptions regardless of outside influence. The way I figure it, the problem with Steely Dan is that a lot of what's interesting about them exists on a purely technical level. The production, the use of chords... If you've got ears for that kind of stuff, you're probably a big fan of Steely Dan. If you don't, and you're the more "average" listener... At best, you'd probably think this material is fine and that's about it. It all clicked for me the moment I heard "Razor Boy". Like, the album starts with "Bodhisattva", and it's for sure the most rocking song here — as much as Steely Dan can "rock," anyway. I mean, it **was** featured in ROCK BAND 2... But anyway, coming out of a song like that into "Razor Boy", which is a very soft "latin/jazz/lounge" sort of thing... Yeah, no, I get it completely. It's so "yacht rock" it can hurt. And I don't wanna come up here acting like "yacht rock" is a bad word to me. I've heard TOTO IV a few times too many to be completely against it. But, y'know, I can totally hear why this band got a reputation, at least in Carlin's eyes, as "yuppie music." If you're not looking for the deeper intricacies, it's just soft and inoffensive. It doesn't rock hard enough, it doesn't pop hard enough. It's just... There. And it's fine. Whatever. That's about how a bit over half the album feels to me. "Razor Boy" got the brunt of my attention for being the key to this band's sound, but after that... Well, the 1.5k word review rated as the best review of the album singles out "The Boston Rag" as the album's centerpiece, but I didn't really get much from it. I guess I like the opening, and the one guitar riff that repeats is pretty nice... And a similar thing goes for the closer, "King Of The World", where I liked the little synth line but that was about it. Meanwhile, as I'm writing this I don't remember a single thing about "Your Gold Teeth", and I was actively bothered by "Show Biz Kids" for its backing vocals. They just never stopped repeating the same line over and over, and it was driving me nuts tryna figure out if they were saying "lost wages" or "Las Vegas." Jus', goodness. As for the remaining three songs I haven't mentioned yet, well, "Bodhisattva" might be my favorite song here just for being the biggest rocker. I promise you, that's not the rockist in flaring up, but I just overall found it the most interesting. For sure the one where I had the easiest time appreciating any complexities the band had to offer without the softness causing me to tune out. Then you have "Pearl Of The Quarter", which struck me as a pretty country-ish track thanks to its pedal steel guitar, and for that reason I liked it quite a bit. Finally, there's "My Old School": that's the one with the horn arrangement, and lemme tell you, it did a **lot** for the track as a whole. Like, across the board the backing vocals are fine (save for "Show Biz Kids"), but I think they really shine paired with the horns on "My Old School". It might be my second favorite after "Bodhisattva". But then that only ends up being three tracks out of eight I can really go for bat to. And it's like— look, I wanna be fair to Steely Dan here. I like a fair bit of soft, smooth music every now and then, and Steely Dan doesn't do it all too bad. I can see putting "Razor Boy" on as music to relax and vibe to. I recognize as well that when it comes to music theory and production I tend to have a pretty tin ear, so I'm probably not appreciating their compositional skills as much as I could be. But then at the same time, I don't think you should have to know what a "mu major" chord is in order to get something out of this music, and unless you're a music major or as yuppie as yuppie can be... Y'know, I really was hoping I'd come out of this feeling like the hate this band gets was completely undeserved. That maybe I'd be able to listen to that Carlin bit again and be like, "Oh, come on now..." And despite my gripes, I would never, by any stretch, call this a **bad** album. It's really not in my eyes. It's just... Fine. Achingly fine. The kind of fine where I can't really muster up any strong feelings about it. And that does kind of disappoint me. I wasn't expecting to come out this a born-again fan or anything, but I was expecting **something**, at least. I suppose a better understanding of who they are and what they do will hafta suffice. And, hey, I'm sure for a fact this isn't the last Steely Dan album on this list, so I'll have my chance to try again. For the time being, though, I don't think that the way Carlin says the band's name is gonna leave my head all that soon. "Steeeely Daaaaaahn."

This Year's Model

Elvis Costello & The Attractions

5/5

For the longest time I had no idea why I didn't gel with this album (or, for that matter, ARMED FORCES). After all, I figured, I'm a really big fan of MY AIM IS TRUE, and I love "Radio, Radio"... What else did I need? And matters didn't get any better when my group got two of his later albums, BRUTAL YOUTH and IMPERIAL BEDROOM, and I didn't really jive with either of those. It got me wondering, honestly, if I was actually a fan of Costello or if I just happened to like that one album and a small handful of songs? And there'd be nothing wrong with that if I did, but I'unno — given how much MY AIM IS TRUE is one of those "entrenched in my soul" albums, it'd feel wrong if the latter was true. Well, it'd been a long time since I last heard THIS YEAR'S MODEL — about four years, by my count? In the interim, I'd really expanded not only my musical experience, but my ability to listen in general. Maybe now I'd have the tools to hear whatever I wasn't able to before. I mean, this is apparently regularly considered Costello's greatest work, even more than MY AIM IS TRUE. Of course I'd disagree with that idea, but I figure there has to be some merit to it, otherwise I wouldn't have heard it touted so much. What exactly was I missing? Well, I think I figured out what my problem was with THIS YEAR'S MODEL. As it turns out: I liked MY AIM IS TRUE too much. Here's my theory: I've listened to MY AIM IS TRUE a lot. A **lot**. For a time it was the album I'd just throw on if I wanted to listen to something but didn't know what. I'd gotten myself very used to its pub rock stylings and how it never got too intense. So when I pull over to an album like this, which does greatly pump up the intensity in contrast, and leans way more into New Wave, punk and garage rock... I think I just couldn't accept it. "That's not what Elvis Costello sounds like." I could take it for "Radio, Radio" because of the SNL story surrounding it, and for "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love And Understanding" 'coz... Well, I just like that song. But for a whole album? Nah. At the time, I just couldn't handle it. Once I let my guard down, though, and took the album for what it was, rather than for what I wanted it to be... Yeah, no, I get it. I totally get why people (or at least the old guard) love this thing so much. For my tastes, I still prefer MY AIM IS TRUE, but just as well, I could see myself growing to love this one just as much as that. I think what I like the best about it is its... Well, I keep calling it "intensity," but I figure that's just a smarter word to use for this sort of thing than "loud." I mean, "intensity" is a bit of a strong word; I don't wanna make it sound like this album is teeth-clenching or anything. But they sure are playing a hell of a lot harder and a hell of a lot louder, and that's what I liked about it. MY AIM IS TRUE is something you could kick back to — even when it tries to be a bit harder, it's still kind of soft. Meanwhile, this is largely some shit you can just jam the hell out to. It's got its quiet moments, of course, but on the whole... I mean, damn, I tell yah: I don't know why I didn't appreciate this record for that all the way back when, gosh darn. (It's honestly particularly embarrassing to me because I've long liked Weird Al's Costello pastiche "I'm So Sick Of You", and this is way more THIS YEAR'S MODEL than MY AIM IS TRUE. Though, to be real, it **did** take me a while to come to like the song as much as I did, so... The cycle keeps on repeating, eh?) Well, you can consider me particularly looking forward to ARMED FORCES and seeing if my opinion of that thing's raised, too. Chances are really strong it has, but, hey, I'll never know 'til I try. And who knows, maybe I'll like BRUTAL YOUTH and IMPERIAL BEDROOM a bit more now as well, whenever I wanna relisten to those... But for the time being, I can be happy just finally being able to say that I'm a fan of this album.

Here, My Dear

Marvin Gaye

3/5

Before anything else, I just wanna say that it's really funny that **this** is the first Marvin Gaye album my group is getting. Like, we could have gotten WHAT'S GOING ON, an album so critically acclaimed and still relevant today that it was named the #1 greatest album of all time on the 2020 ROLLING STONE 500, dethroning SGT. PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND and then some. But, no, no — instead, we get HERE, MY DEAR, which I've always known as Gaye's bitter-ass divorce album. An album that's tied so tightly into not only one specific period of Gaye's life, but all of his and his ex-wife's dirty laundry... Like, damn, Marvin. I know you apparently only made this thing about your divorce because your ex was gonna get half of your percentage of royalties from it, but you didn't hafta go and record nearly 74 minutes on the subject. Goodness, man, you get feelings or what? I mean, I gotta be real here: I don't give a shit about the personal lives of celebrities. Whatever they get up to behind the scenes is really no business of mine. Like, how does it impact me? Why should it matter to me? I got my own life to live, and I just don't understand obsessing so much over someone else's. I get learning things about someone you're a fan of, but getting **this deep** in the weeds? It seems kind of pointless to me. And these were feelings I held before artists suddenly decided their lives were "lore" that I "needed" to understand in order to enjoy their works — hi, Taylor. It gets even worse when this personal shit is 50 years old. I mean, why, in 2025, should I give a hoot about Marvin Gaye's divorce in 1975? Heck, in 1977 it seems like people didn't care much about it either; this thing was a commercial and critical flop at the time. What the heck is it about this thing that it got such a reevaluation in the years since, to the point where it's named one of his best albums? After listening to it myself, I can't say I found much that would cause me to personally agree. Do I think it's bad? No, not really. But, like... I mean, if I had to guess why the album is so hailed these days, I'd hafta say it rests entirely in the lyrics. Not so much that people really care **that much** about Gaye's divorce, but more just that they find the lyrics about them to be so open, honest and dark. Y'know, that he just really didn't hold back about how he felt. And if you're into the rawness of it all contrasted over these smooth-ass light disco instrumentals, sure, I can get that. However, lyrics were never much my forté — and I know, I know. If I were someone else hearing me talking about this album, I'd think it'd be pretty weird I'd spend so long harping on the album's lyrical content knowing I wasn't even really gonna pay attention to them. But it's not like I wanna ignore what this album is, y'know? And from the few I did manage to catch... Yeah, I guess I can understand where people are coming from? It's just really not my thing. So that leaves us with the music itself. Like I said, it's smooth light disco and funk, and, hey, y'know, I really dig it. Marvin Gaye has such a legendarily amazing voice, and hearing him sing over these kinds of instrumentals is such a treat, whatever he's singing about. I can see putting it on as a vibe record; music to chill out to. Sure, the exact lyrics might make it a bit of a weird one to vibe to, but I still think it'd work really well. On that front, I'm for this record. But then we come around to the fact that this thing is a 74 minute double album. I've talked about this before, but a double album needs to do a lot to justify itself. I mean, if it's not done correctly, a double album can easily come across as an ego trip; an artist proclaiming that all of their ideas are just **so good** that they can't afford to drop even one. There are albums where that's true, like Prince's SIGN "O" THE TIMES; or albums where the sprawl and mess of it all is part of the appeal, like The Beatles' WHITE ALBUM. And HERE, MY DEAR is already running at a disadvantage for being such a personal record, made specifically out of spite for his ex-wife getting half of his profits from it. It's just that as good as Marvin Gaye is, 74 minutes of material where even **fans** of the thing will admit there's not much sonic difference from song to song... I mean, I can't say I was too tired out by this material, but I can imagine that if I was trying to pay attention to the lyrics, the album's length and how similar everything sounds would've made it a bit hard. I mean, I'd say the solution would be to take this thing in chunks and never all at once, but it's a concept album; it was **meant** to be taken in as a whole. And if my suggestion is to **not** do that... Goodness, y'know? I don't find this to be an easy album to love. Like, I can't say people are entirely unjustified for giving this thing a 2 — I mean, that's a little harsh, but if you really just don't give a shit about his divorce and can't get with how similar a lot of the music sounds... Yeah. I can't completely blame them. Me, it just makes me wish we could've eased into Marvin Gaye with one of his other albums. 'Cuz as much as I don't hate this, or even dislike it... I just can't completely bring myself to care all too much about it. Like, yeah, I guess it'd make some good, soulful wallpaper, but then that's betraying entirely what it sets out to do. And I don't wanna act like 74 minutes is a completely unreasonable running time, but I know there's more concise packages out there if I want some of Gaye's sound anyway. It's like, I can completely understand how this appeals to people. It just doesn't entirely to me is all. I'll give it enough points for its smoothness to push my score over into the positives, but otherwise... Y'know, I can't see myself revisiting this any time soon. At least it's a better divorce album than Robin Thicke's PAULA, even if that's not saying much.

My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts

Brian Eno

2/5

So, I make mashups. If you've been following my reviews (and if you're not part of my group, how have you been doing that?), I might have mentioned it before. And I gotta tell you, if there's anything I love hearing in a mashup, it's spoken word samples. Like, come on, recontextualizing a bit of dialogue from a film or whatever as an intro, outro or interlude to a track? That can be amazing. I particularly wanna highlight The Kleptones for how they've done it; they're my biggest inspiration on that front. Here we have an album by Brian Eno and Davie Byrne, then, that is famous for its sampling of largely spoken word sources. This should be something right up my alley! Like, yeah, there's only one source sampled per song, but still, I can imagine something incredible being done here. Or if nothing else, it'd be nice to hear to glimpse some DNA that'd be expanded on in later music from other artists. And, y'know... On the one, I can appreciate this for bringing this kind of sampling more mainstream. Brian Eno is an artist with clout — certainly more than I imagine the guy from CAN has — so if this inspired artists to try more of this kind of vocal sampling, then that's only a good thing, and for that alone I'll be happy this album exists. But as an experience; as a collected whole; as an **album**... Well, when you understand vocal samples the way I do, it makes the whole album kind of feel like... Y'know, interludes. Like we're hearing the parts before the actual song starts, or the parts once it's done, or the parts that serve as breaks in-between parts. For most of these tracks, it's like I keep expecting the vocal part to come in, but it never does. They jus' kinda... Run around in a circle for a bit before they decide to stop. And they're not bad for it; this isn't ambient music, but as experimental sampledelia to paint a scene to, it's fine stuff. I'm just thinking, there should be more going on, right? And as much as I wanted to say more about this album... Yeah, no, that's really about the size of it. Just this overwhelming sense of "Is that really it?" And it's not even like I was expecting that much from this album to begin with, and certainly there are instrumental patches in here that sound weird enough to be more interesting, but it's just... Really not to me. Not enough so that I wanna be **too** mean to this thing; my appreciation alone for what it meant to sampling, even as much as I hear it's debated, keeps me from being too down on it all overall. But it's like, I was actually really surprised when this thing ended. It hadn't even sounded like it'd started yet, and now it's over? Gosh, I'm talking about my rating now... Lately I haven't been mentioning my rating in my reviews since I wanna have people focus more on my feelings directly than how they relate to a number, but with this album...! I mean, look, I really give this thing a 3, at minimum. To shrug and go, "Oh, well, not my thing, but I can at least appreciate its impact." But every time I think that, my gut tells me I'm wrong, and, well, who am I to argue with my gut? It does kind of pain me to give a Brian Eno and David Byrne a 2 (even if I have no idea how much Byrne actually contributed to this), but... Eh, as I say, that's just how the pieces fall out sometimes. Ultimately, this album's just too uninteresting to me, and it never sounds like it actually starts. At least Eno's purely ambient work had an excuse. So... Pshm, I'unno. I'm just bummed out this is how this thing turned out. Guess now I don't hafta feel too bad that I could never remember how this thing was titled? "Ghosts In The Bush Of Life?" "Life Of My Bush Ghosts?" "Bush Of Life Ghosts?" Seriously, it just always eluded me... And yet I can remember well more than half of Chumbawamba's THE BOY BANDS HAVE WON, et. all, so go figure.

More Songs About Buildings And Food

Talking Heads

5/5

More words about Byrnes and Eno. So, the last time I talked about a Talking Heads album, I was going on about how I enjoyed their third album more than the first two because it was with FEAR OF MUSIC they finally gained that all-too-important "disco" element to their sound. The part that made their songs danceable, and, to my ears, just a bit more enjoyable than the earlier, stiffer post-punk nerd funk sound on their other two albums. It should be noted that when I wrote that review, it'd been a few years since I'd heard MORE SONGS ABOUT BUILDINGS AND FOOD, and I hadn't exactly gone back to see if my description of it fit. 'Coz, honestly, listening to this album again knowing why I like the stuff on FEAR OF MUSIC and REMAIN IN LIGHT so much... Y'know, it deserves a bit more credit than I was willing to give it in that other review. The band does sound much looser here than I remember them sounding on their debut, and while I wouldn't say it's danceable as much as FEAR OF MUSIC is — this thing's cover of "Take Me To The River" is no "Living During Wartime", in that regard... Certainly, it hits me a lot better than their debut did. I can tap my foot and bop my head and groove in my seat to it (that's the most I dance, because believe me, I cannot). So, yeah, that's about the size of it. It's a really fun album and deserves credit for being where they started getting dance-y. And seriously, why haven't I gone and listened to STOP MAKING SENSE like I said I would back in that other review? Goodness me, now **that's** an album should be here.

The Renaissance

Q-Tip

4/5

Y'know, I don't really have an intro to start this review/babble off with, so allow me to just cut straight to the chase and say that this album's fine. I mean, speaking as someone who usually isn't easily able to catch on to and understand lyrics, the instrumentals on this thing are so enjoyably smooth. These are some chill-ass, vibe-y beats. I can totally see throwing this thing on as something to mellow out to. Particularly with how Tip flows over these beats. He's just got such a good voice for this sort of thing, goodness me. And because I don't really have much to say about the lyrical content on this thing, as a result of my dang AuDHD brain... Yeah, that's really about the size of it. Now, I don't know if I'd go on record and say that this is something I absolutely think people should listen to before they die, and I don't know if this is gonna join my regular rotation of "mellow" albums... But yeah. Good show from Q-Tip. Kinda crazy my group got this before another proper Tribe Called Quest, but that's the Randomizer for you, I guess. (Also n' also, I wanna admit, too, that it actually took me a second to remember who Q-Tip was? Legit, for hours there I thought he was Questlove, no foolin'. I'unno, I guess I just thought the album cover fit his aesthetic? Whatever it is? I'm dumb sometimes and don't think about Quest often is the point — A Tribe Called Quest **and** Questlove.)

Deloused in the Comatorium

The Mars Volta

5/5

Oh, this kick ass. This shit kicks so much ass. Like, let's not even beat around the bush here: this is incredible. And, y'know, I was always sure I was gonna like The Mars Volta. I mean, "L'Via L'Viaquez" is one of my favorite songs from GUITAR HERO WORLD TOUR, and because of it I'd always had interest in checking out their material. If there was anything that stopped me before now, besides just getting generally distracted... I mean, honestly, I think I had this assumption that they wouldn't be the fun kind of progressive. From the way FRANCES THE MUTE sounded, with its plot and all of the context surrounding it, it sounded maybe a bit too dark and heady to be enjoyable? If this album is anything to go off of, though, that is **absolutely** not the case. Like, if there's any other band I immediately wanna compare this album to, it's Coheed And Cambria — specifically on their first two albums. It strikes me as a very similar kind of progressive hardcore, and the singer even sounds a little like CLaudio... And, heck, their respective plots are just as incomprehensible and not worth trying to understand. I'd say the biggest difference between them is that The Mars Volta takes a lot from jazz and Latin music, whereas Coheed And Cambria would go on to dive deeper and deeper into what I like to call "AMV music." And if I might prefer the latter for how joyously dumb it can get, make no mistake: they're both so damn awesome, it's not even... Goodness. Like, I am really struggling to think of any problem I might have with this. Honestly, I might not have any at all. It's progressive music that goes really damn hard and heavy at times... It's absolutely not for everybody, but for my money, hell, I listened to this thing **twice**, and I rarely allow **any** album that these days until I feel like they **really** deserve it. So, damn, guess it looks like I'm a Mars Volts fan for real now. I suppose I should finally get around to FRANCES THE MUTE now that I know I'm a real sucker for their sound. I mean, hey, if it is as dark and heady as I'm imagining it to be, at least I got this to fall back on, if nothing else. And Coheed And Cambria, too, of course. Have you heard their most-recent album? Such good shit...

Black Metal

Venom

5/5

Let's not beat around the bush here. Is this album simple? Yeah. Is it stupid? Yeah, a little. Is it primitive? Sure sounds like. Is it not mixed the best? I can't tell production apart most of the time, and even I can tell you that this isn't the greatest production job in the world. To most people, any combination of those things would be enough to condemn this thing to the realm of low ratings. But let's be real: to people like me, this is what makes this album awesome. There's quite a few genres of music out there where I don't ask much from them. Country music is probably the biggest, but coming right up behind it is metal music. And, I mean, we get into how I feel about all of the various sub- and micro-genres of metal, but let's just stick to the base level, and on that front... I mean, jeez, as long as there's loud, chugging riffs and some lyrics about war, mythology, The Devil or how great metal is, I'd be hard pressed to dislike it. That doesn't mean I'll just eat up any old slop; I **do** have standards. It's just that BLACK METAL easily meets them, and then some. Frankly, it's one of those "I don't have much to say about this album" albums, 'coz I'm not sure how I could really express my feelings on this thing besides just motioning to the music and going "Yeh?" And if you don't get it, well, then I really don't know what to tell you. It's like... OK, so I've seen some reviews of this album compare it to Tenacious D, right? Or even just straight-up call it parody in a derisive way. Well, I'm not only someone who loves Weird Al, but also someone who loves Meat Loaf's BAT OUT OF HELL precisely because it comes across as so parodic that it wraps back around to being awesome. And, yeah, that's BLACK METAL to me. Besides "Teacher's Pet", there's nothing I can think of to knock it for — and even then, if I'm fine with a song like "Hot For Teacher"... Honestly, I feel like I really hafta appreciate an album like BLACK METAL. There's no pretensions to it, and I don't hafta think up any big, deep reasons why I like it. There's no poetry I hafta scrutinize; no complex musicality I hafta squint my ears at; no long history I need to know; no big emotions I hafta pull out if it... All I need is my raw, gut reaction of "Hell yeah." And as much as I do enjoy albums that give me a bit more to chew on, every now and then, it's just nice to have something I can enjoy so simply. For me, you can chalk this up as another victory for the New Wave Of British Metal, right alongside Iron Maiden and Motörhead. Good-ass shit. ('N really, I'm glad this is only "black metal" in name only and not in sound. Now **that's** a sub-genre I don't recall being too hot on, I tell yah...)

Born In The U.S.A.

Bruce Springsteen

5/5

So this has been a time coming. In some ways, this album feels like a bit of a homecoming — and maybe a chance at redemption? 'Coz y'see, the second album my group ever got was a Bruce Springsteen record, and specifically DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN. It's one I remember giving a 3/5 because... Well, honestly, I have no idea. This was so early in my group's 1001 Albums journey that I had no idea how I wanted to write reviews and express my opinions. Heck, I don't think I really knew how to listen to albums, 'coz I only wrote exactly 35 words about that record, and my biggest comment about it was that Springsteen could be a little unintelligible sometimes. So if this album's anything to me off the bat, it's a chance to give Springsteen a bit more respect, y'know? Then there's the fact that... Well, the only other thing I mentioned in that old review was that I preferred BORN TO RUN to DARKNESS. But y'see, I misspoke there; I've actually never heard BORN TO RUN before. I meant to say that I preferred **this** album, BORN IN THE U.S.A.. (And you can blame me for mixing them up? Both of their titles start with "born"; you can' tell me I'm the only one who got them backwards.) Naturally, then, I must ask myself: why **do** I like BORN IN THE U.S.A.? Or why did I think I did, anyway? And either way, was I basic for picking Springsteen's single most popular album besides the other one with "born" in the title? Like, I mean, come on. This is BORN IN THE U.S.A.. It's one of the biggest albums of the entire 80's. Over half the album was released as singles I may as well say my favorite Michael Jackson album is THRILLER, or that my favorite Prince record is PURPLE RAIN. It isn't and it is, for the record, although that's besides the point. I don't think picking an artist's most popular album as your favorite is wrong if it really does speak to you. So... Why, exactly? How does it speak to me? This is where, once again, I wonder if I'm basic. After all, I'm a girlie who listens to music melody first, and in that sense... Goodness me, this wasn't one of the biggest albums of the 80's for nothing. It sounds absolutely massive, just as I'd want any good 80's album to sound. And hooks? Goodness me, it has hooks for days. With those synths, too? It's hit after hit after hit, it's nuts. You can tell why so much of it was released as singles, and, honestly, in this regard, I feel like I'd be hard pressed to argue about this being one of the best albums of all time, even if it wouldn't be one of mine. And while, at least for my own sake, I've never thought that listening to music for the melody was shallow, it does need to be acknowledged that taking this thing on melody alone is missing part of the point. It's what led innumerable people to think that the title track is pure, blind patriotism instead of being about a disillusioned Vietnam vet's allientation after the war. Yeah, it's one of those albums, where despite how upbeat and poppy it sounds, it's actually kind of depressing once you dig below the surface. It's all about working-class struggles and all that... And to side-track for a second, I jus' wanna say that as I perceive Bruce Springsteen, none of his songs about that stuff have ever sounded inauthentic. Like, even here, on the biggest album of his career, I listen to him and I can't imagine that he doesn't care. No matter how much his star rises, he's still a man of the working class, blue collars and all. And, y'know, that's an appeal of all of his albums — or at least the stuff I've heard. But as for this album specifically, like, come on: it's exactly **because** it's so poppy and unbeat that it hits so well. Not just in the contrast between how anthemic the music is contrasted with its actual subject matter, but also just because it makes it all generally more palatable. Now that I'm thinking about it, my problem with DARKNESS might've just been that it didn't hit the same heights that BORN IN THE U.S.A. does. It's more restrained, and a bit more serious and raw. I don't recall a single song on DARKNESS ripping a sax solo like multiple tracks on BORN IN THE U.S.A. do. And, yeah, I can't act like that's not a reason why I was "fiiiiine" enough with it to give it a 3/5. Besides "Badlands", there just weren't hooks like the ones on BORN IN THE U.S.A.. And I worry a lot about being basic or shallow — ultimately, I don't think it matters. For one, since there's no comment section here, I doubt anyone's gonna seek me out on Bluesky or Discord or whatever to tell me I am. But what I feel is... Let's take the title track. I don't think it's bad to like it for its sound and its sound alone as long as you don't pretend like you know what it means. It's not something to be played at pro-America "rah-rah" campaign rallies, y'know? Like, I'm not advocating ignorance here; just don't act like you know more than you do, eh? Be honest here. And being honest, even if I **do** know what "Born In The U.S.A." means, for the time being I feel like I'm still bound to come back to it more just for how it sounds than for any big, important point it's making in its lyrics. There's nothing wrong with that. But let's get back to talking about the album directly and wrap this up. I think it's a truly great album, and like I said, truly one of the best of the entire decade it comes from (in terms of popular ones, anyway). Put it right alongside U2's THE JOSHUA TREE, or Madonna's LIKE A PRAYER, or Weird Al's IN 3-D. It has deep, important lyrics about America and the working man's struggle if that's what you're looking for, but if you just want the tunes and the hooks, well, damn, it'll provide for yah and then some as well. Other people can argue about if it is or not, but for me, yeah, it's The Boss at his best. Even if, in large portions, I still have no idea what he's saying. Jus' who he be, y'know?

Vulgar Display Of Power

Pantera

5/5

Y'know what fuckin' rules? Metal music. Like, when I said in my BLACK METAL review/babble that I don't have high standards for metal, let's be clear about what I actually am: I'm a metalhead. I just love the sound of this genre, and there's very little in it that's not going to satisfy enough. Like I said, as long as there's loud riffs, thundering drums and some hard-ass lyrics, I'm a damn happy gal! And me being a metalhead is not something I actually think about too often. Like, to me it's just common knowledge that metal music is fuckin' amazing, so it's weird to me whenever I see that people **don't** like it. I was reading negatives reviews for this album on this website and I had to remind myself, "Oh, yeah, most people don't hear this stuff in the same way I do." Particularly this album and this band: good ol' Pantera. The cowboys from and the lords of groove metal. Whatever "groove metal" is supposed to be. Like, even though at this point now I've heard two complete Pantera albums, I'd be hard-pressed to tell you exactly what makes this subgenre what it is. I know I ain't the only one wondering how exactly this music "grooves." But that's hardly an issue to me, 'coz whatever this music lacks in groovery, it makes up for tenfold in, like, the exact thing that makes me love this album and other people, y'know, not: the brutality. This is some brutal-ass music. So brutal, in fact, that I almost feel the need to spell it "BROOTAL" so you have an idea of how I say it to reflect how brutal I think this is. This guitar tone, this vocal styling, these lyrics about being pissed off and kicking some unspecified ass in the butt... Yeah, that's all brutal as hell, and it's nonstop for a little over 50 minutes. It's amazing. And actually, the fact that I like this so much is a bit surprising to me. See, before now, although I love metal and a bit of brutality every now and then, I didn't consider myself much a fan of Pantera's album before this, COWBOYS FROM HELL. As far as I know, that's the primordial ooze! The origin point of groove metal! At the very least, it's one of the first-ever groove metal albums.And yet, I'unno. Every time I tried it before now, I just wasn't into it. I suppose I could've just been in the wrong frame of mind back then, but if I had to throw an additional guess on top... Well, maybe this album is just a little more refined? A little tighter in its groove metal-ness? Or maybe it's just because this album has "Walk" and the other one doesn't have a hit on that level to pull me in. For sure, I'll hafta give it another shot... However, I should finish this review first before I dive off on **that** tangent. I can't tell you how the rest of my group is gonna rate an album like this, since the last time they got something approaching brutality was ROOTS by Sepultura, and, well, they weren't a big fan of that... And come to think of it, I wasn't, either... Maybe it was a bit **too** brutal... This album, though? Oh, yeah. Ooooh, yeah. This is the **good shit**, 100%. If you ain't a metal fan, well, this probably just isn't going to convince yah... But for a metal gal like me? Fuck yeah. This: love. Goodness.

S.F. Sorrow

The Pretty Things

2/5

I'll be real, I don't know if it was just because I was oddly tired today or this album actually really didn't hit me that well... But, wow, I did not really feel this thing at all. And it's like, I was honestly a little excited for this thing. This is pretty much the first rock opera ever! I love a little bit of story connecting a whole buncha songs together! This shoulda been right up my alley. And yet, I'unno — besides the awful 60's stereo mixing that made me hafta put my phone on mono, I needa remember I'm not very much a "lyrics first" girl anyway, so leaving me with just the music... Yep! That's sure 60's psych rock! Like, please, believe me, I get that I didn't exactly listen to this the "right way," and it's more than possible I was just too tired to appreciate this thing right. Even giving all of those benefits, though, gawd, this thing just washed the hell over me. I just didn't terribly enjoy it too much. I can recognize its historical importance, but... Ah, whatever. I don't care. I'm gonna go take a nap.

Hypnotised

The Undertones

4/5

The last time my group got an album from The Undertones, I wrote exactly 37 words about it and gave 'em a 4. After listening to this, the group's second album, I am **very** tempted to do that again. Like a lot of albums my group has gotten recently, this isn't very complicated music. It's simply just very, **very** good 80's pop punk. I won't tell you it blew my mind, but I can very much imagine how for someone else this (or their last album) might be one of the best records of all time. Certainly, in the lane of bands like The Clash and Buzzcocks, they're up there. I will say, between these two albums, I think I've found myself preferring the first one. It's a bit faster and the guitars are a bit louder, and it's a bit more power pop, and of course that appeals to me, but in the end... Eh, it's honestly comparing apples and apples, I feel like. They're both excellent, with some great tunes and performances. And really, like I've been saying lately, you really hafta appreciate these simpler albums. I mean, heck, a good 4 outta 5 at that. Completely unpretentious music where you don't hafta think too hard about why you like it. It's just... Really good stuff. What more d'y'want me to say about it? Y'want me to comment on the cover that was taken at a Red Lobster? Nah. Just go give it a listen. That's really all y'need.

Dance Mania

Tito Puente

5/5

The first words in my review of/babble about this album will be this: it's nice to be reminded what **real** mambo music is supposed to sound like. All my life, if you were to ask me how I thought this stuff went, I'd've probably launched right into "A LITTLE BIT OF MONICA IN MY LIFE." And I actually really like Lou Bega's stuff, don't get me wrong here. But it's just nice to be face to face with the real stuff, y'know? And as well, it fits nicely into a recurring theme I've had going on-and-off for the last week: "an uncomplicated album can be really nice every now and then." It's like, I'm not unsympathetic to the people who've listened to this and thought that it all sounds the same. That's not an unreasonable complaint there. However, to my ears, I feel like you gotta understand: this is mambo. It's incredibly happy and upbeat Latin dance music. If all the songs sound a little similar, that's not not an issue, but as long as it keeps the energy and the party going strong, I can't find much reason to complain myself. And this is some damn infectious stuff, let me be clear. You think **you're** having a good time? These people are having a better one, and **then some**. Let me say as well, if it ends up that this is the only mambo album on this list... Well, I'm not gonna say they were wrong to pick this one. Besides how infectious it is, this thing is performed **masterfully** all around. Seriously, the marimba on "Hong Kong Mambo"? Gawd, the **chops**. This is the consummate idea of mambo, at its basic and at its absolute best. I could spend forever listening to these rhythms and enjoying those horns and piano. It's just... Ah, it's so good. And like I keep saying, the best part of an uncomplicated album is that you don't have to think too hard about it. It's not advocating listening uncritically, but, I mean, come on. Listen to this. Do I have to explain why it's good? Go into depth on some technical level, or what the lyrics mean when translated? No, I really don't have to. It's just fun as hell dance music. You let yourself go and allow your body to feel out the vibe. Whether it does or doesn't depends on the person, but mine absolutely does. I could be going a bit over-the-top slapping this album with a 5, although at this moment while I'm writing, coming off the high of the album... Yeah, no. It absolutely deserves it. I mean, the last time I had this much fun with a 50's album... Gosh, it was the Louis Prima one? And if I'm thinking of that Louis Prima album while listening to yours, then goodness me, you have **absolutely** done something right. So, yeah. Thumbs up for Tito Puente. I knew I liked "Señor Burns" as much as I did for a reason.

Sunshine Superman

Donovan

3/5

Boy, if there was ever an artist from the 60's... And the same, if there was ever an **album** from the 60's... I mean, yeah, this thing's dated as hell to 1966 exactly. I imagine that to most people that's the big turn-off. But, y'know, whatever about other people. To my ears, there's nothing wrong with getting a slice of the exact sound of a decade every now and then. That's not an issue to me. What more is just that... Oh, goodness, I didn't have much to think about while I was listening to this thing. It's absolutely not bad, but it ends up being one of those records that's so crushingly "fiiiiine" that I can hardly bring myself to care. Y'know, sure I like the sitar, and I'm not someone who recoils at the sound of a harpsichord, but other than that — goodness me... I'll tell you right, my problem with this album is the "renaissance fair folk" of it all. If he wants to write about medieval times, about the King Arthur mythology and all that, sure. It's just that the compositions around them often aren't anything to write home about. Maybe my problem is that I'm too used to my psych music being, y'know, psych music, and rock on top of that, 'coz those songs actually have an energy and feel like they're not hitting the same note over and over again. Honestly, with the way I listen to music, there were times I legit could not tell if I was hearing the first minute of the song or the last. Which is like, hey, some of these instrumentals are actually really pretty, but goodness me, when you don't do **anything else** around it... At least regular singer-songwriter folk, for the most part, keeps their accompaniment spare to focus on the lyrics. With this — I mean, it fits, and I don't find it insincere, but dammit, could you please actually **do something interesting**? I'm not mad at this album. It's just... Not to my tastes, is all. I can hear how it could be, but I don't wanna rate this album for what I wanted to be rather than it is. And it's just fine. Nothing I can get all too excited about. I mean, if you wanna hear the platonic ideal of 60's hippie folk music, here yah go. Me, though... I'unno. I might just go listen to ARE YOU EXPERIENCED.

Automatic For The People

R.E.M.

5/5

While I've long considered myself a fan of R.E.M., it's only just now occured to me how little of them I've actually heard. Before starting this list, it really boiled down to just DOCUMENT, a few spare singles, and Weird Al's pastiche of the group. And even after starting on this journey, my experience with them had only just evolved to "I'd heard their debut a couple of times." I wouldn't say I was lying in calling myself a fan, but surely that would imply I've dived a bit deeper into them than I have, right? I hadn't even heard today's album besides "Everybody Hurts" as a needle drop in ZOOTOPIA. So I finally come to AUTOMATIC FOR THE PEOPLE, which is apparently considered the best album R.E.M. has ever done. Consider, on the 2020 ROLLING STONE 500 list, this album jumped 163 spots from 259 to 96, surpassing MURMUR as the highest-rated R.E.M. album on the list. Meanwhile, DOCUMENT went from 462 to not being on the list at all. I gotta wonder, what is it about this album that gets people hyping it up like this? A brief search told me it was because this is R.E.M.'s "serious album." largely about nostalgia, mortality and grief. Heck, it's largely made up of ballads, with only three songs that could be considered "rockers." And on its face, before listening to this album, I won't lie, there'd be something that'd bother me about that. As if being "big serious" is automatically the key to being considered "THE GREATEST EVER," while something like DOCUMENT gets dismissed for being a little lighter. It's a bit of a petulant reaction, I'll admit, but it's not coming from nowhere. I suppose I do have an issue with "intelligent types" who'll tell you that serious ballads pondering mortality are better than... Well, if not "joyful" music, then music that isn't such a "downer," to use a word like that. I suppose my problem is really just that I don't have much of a place for music like this, and that there's still this reactionary part of me that reacts to disagreements like this with hostility rather than genuine engagement. Despite how much time I've spent on this just now, I don't wanna act like I'm **that** bothered by this, but again, it's something that's been on my mind. Getting back on topic, though, to the point that I don't have a place for music like this... OK, I need one more digression, then I'll talk directly about the album itself, I promise. See, I recently had a revelation about myself and music. I tend to latch on to songs way better if there's some kind of overarching story I can connect them to. It's why I like rock operas and narrative concept albums as much as I do, and why I like jukebox musicals in spite of their many faults. This album was the first where I tried listening to the songs as if they were scenes in a story — multiple stories, if not just one — and listening to the lyrics and understanding them in that light... Y'know, this won't replace DOCUMENT as my favorite R.E.M. album. It's generally more the kind of music I prefer, and, well, I've put too much time into it to just switch up like that. But in the conversation about what R.E.M.'s best album is... Yeah. Yeah, I don't think I can disagree. I'll tell you what it reminds me of: THE SOFT BULLETIN by The Flaming Lips, another album on this list, and another album (arguably serious) largely about mortality. I have a term I use to describe that album, and I'd use it to describe this one as well: "beautiful melancholy." I wouldn't say either of them are happy albums — far from it. You don't have songs like "Feeling Yourself Disintegrate" and "Try Not To Breathe" and get to call yourself happy. But at the same time, they're not downers, or even all **that** sad. They strike a balance like... Like it's a winter night, and you're watching snow fall in the light of a streetlamp. That's the imagery. It's acknowledging the hardest parts of life, but still finding some beauty despite it all. It's not about wallowing about the end; it's about being empathetic about it. "It's happening, and it **will** happen, eventually and it's OK to be sad about it. But you have to keep going." That's my read on things, anyway. "Everybody hurts sometimes — so hold on. You're not alone." (And I also wanna shout out "Ignoreland", too. Way too precinct here in 2025, goodness... And I hafta appreciate a song that tells me that, yeah, vitriol by itself won't solve anything, but damn it, it just feels good to **scream** sometimes.) And that's all fine about the lyrics, but I'm still a "melody first" person, and even in that regard, "beautiful melancholy" would still apply. It's a gorgeous album — not as much as THE SOFT BULLETIN, I don't think, but still. All the props to John Paul Jones (yes, from Led Zeppelin) for the string arrangements. And it's like, even though this album is largely composed of ballads, it's not as much of a boring slog as that would imply? There's still an energy behind them that keeps things going. And also, I was reminded pretty often of the serious songs from the Barenaked Ladies album GORDON, and that's a huge compliment in my book, believe me. I think you can safely call me a stronger R.E.M. fan after this. Now that I have a stronger handle on the empathy and emotion they're capable of... Well, jeez, I should go back and listen to DOCUMENT under this light. And MURMUR, for that matter. Jus'... It's a lovely record, and I'm glad I took the time to understand it and what it's about. And anyway, it's nice to have a thought about "Everybody Hurts" beyond its status as a joke "sad needle drop." Maybe if I were Judy Hopps I'd've kept listening, I'unno...

Back At The Chicken Shack

Jimmy Smith

4/5

This might be another case where I just expected too much. I mean, I look this album up on Wikipedia and I see one of its genres is called "hard bop," I'm preparing myself for some **wild** shit, y'know? Not exactly THE SHAPE OF JAZZ TO COME, but something a little bit more hard hitting than usual. Maybe closer to BITCHES BREW. Something you could Fantasia some crazy imagery to. And yet, when I put it on, the main thing I ended up visualizing in my mind was, like... A swanky casino lounge? One with good taste in music, that didn't go for some chintzy shit, but, like... Is this it? This is hard bop? Oh, it's another album where I hafta corral what I thought I was gonna get so it doesn't affect what I thought of what I actually got... But for real, there is a part of me that can't help but feel a bit underwhelmed. Like, it's not bad by any stretch of the imagination; I'm just not sure if this is something I'd say people should really listen to before they die. That's not even usually something I take into consideration when I'm babbling about an album. Although when you take it into consideration against every other jazz album my group has gotten... And that's unfair, I totally realize that. Like, when you put this up against Miles Davis and Coltrane, of course this is gonna lose. But then I don't think Jimmy was even aiming to make a KIND OF BLUE or GIANT STEPS or whatever... Or maybe even a SUNDAY AT THE VILLAGE VANGUARD. You're probably not supposed to consider it with those same deep "listening for the intricacies and complexities" ears. So thus we circle back to the "casino lounge" imagery I conjured up. Which is probably not the right mental image for this album, honestly; I think maybe a nightclub is more the right visual? 'Coz more than any other jazz album my group has gotten yet, this comes across as the kind of jazz you put on as background ambiance. Something to color the scene and keep things a little livelier than having everything exist in silence. And, hey, I'm down for that sort of thing. "Wallpaper" is far from a bad word in my book; I've praised plenty of albums for being good wallpaper. I had this album on while I was putting away dishes and laundry and doing some writing, and... Well, dang, I'll tell yah, it did real good. I'll credit the album's sound to two things. Like, the whole band's nice and tight, don't get me wrong, but specifically, I wanna shout out the organ and the saxophone. That's just a really nice, warm organ, and it's a tone I really love to hear. But then the sax player, meanwhile — woof, he's on another level. To where it feels like it's the star of the album, while the organ itself (played by, as the album cover calls him, the incredible Jimmy Smith) comes across more as the lighter warm-up and intermission. Still great, of course; just working on a slightly lower plane. And that's the size of it. It's a good enough album for what it is. I could see myself returning to it every now and then to score my day. The worst thing I feel like I can say about it is that I'm not sure if it should be here or not, but then it's like, y'know, if Koffi Olomide's straight-up cruise line commercial music can be on this list, why not some nightclub music? And if this ain't still a million times more interesting than Koffi Olomide's shit, goodness me...

Scott 2

Scott Walker

4/5

Hey, all! SCOTT 2 here. Yeah, I couldn't help myself. Anyway! I'm a couple of days behind on my album reviews right now, so I'll try to keep this a little brief. Off the top, I wanna say this: if I'd gotten this album even just a little while ago, I don't think I would have appreciated this album as much as I did. I mean, this is an album that's all about the lyrics, and I only just recently figured out how to enjoy and appreciate that stuff. I'll tell you for a fact, if you listen to this thing without paying attention to them, it's... Y'know, it's whatever. It's fine, I guess? Maybe a little sub-fine? You get some Disnsy-style orchestration and a guy who reminds me of Engelbert Humperdink, and,y'know... Sure? I had this album on while I was writing something else, and that was a mistake, 'coz not only did I not really have anything to say about the album, I couldn't think of much terribly positive I wanted to say. So giving the first side another listen and keeping in mind the importance of the lyrics... G'woof, goodness, yeah, it hits a lot better. 'Coz y'see, it's all exercises in contrast. It's taking these teen baroque pop orchestral arrangements and pairing them up with words that, well, let's just say they're not exactly sunny. And it's really interesting stuff, honestly. I can dig it. Although that's also why I still can't be all **that** gungho for this thing. After all, I just don't normally have the kind of focus required for a record like this. I mean, it really is all about getting immersed in the words and letting it paint a cinematic scene alongside how they're sung the orchestral arrangement. I can't see myself just putting this thing on casually. It's a "me" problem, absolutely, but it's also why I can see how this thing ended up with as low an average rating as it did. Y'know, I don't wanna assume too much about people, but if I had to guess, it seems mostly people only heard that Engelbert Humperdink voice and nothing else. Still, if you're the kind of person who loves to dig into lyrics and the scenes they can evoke, this is a pretty good one. And heck, even if I'd never do it casually, I could see myself going a little deeper on this thing myself... Just not right now. I got another thing to write.

Hounds Of Love

Kate Bush

5/5

At long, long last, it's time for the Kate Bush album of Kate Bush albums: HOUNDS OF LOVE. Y'know, the one with the STRANGER THINGS song and a bunch of other tracks. But, no, I kid; I knew about this album long before "Running Up That Hill" started running up the charts in 2022. Hell, I've hardly engaged with STRANGER THINGS beyond MAD's parody. But anyway, Kate Bush. I've honestly been really excited to get this one, not just because I've long accepted it as one of **the** seminal pop albums of the 80's. Lately I've come to understand and appreciate Kate Bush a lot more than I used to, thanks in particular to THE DREAMING. Now knowing about her sense and potential for theatricality, well, I figure I'm bound to like this whole package a lot more than I have before. 'Coz, y'know, I actually wanna clarify something: I think I mistyped something back in my THE DREAMING review/ramble. In it, I said that I wasn't too fond of the first side the first time I heard it, and, well, that's bull and baloney. I love the first side; it's great. Not only does it have the big hits like "Running Up That Hill" and "Cloudbursting", but "Mother Stands For Comfort" is nicely eerie; "The Big Sky" might just be my pick for side 1 deep cut for, well, how big it is; and the while the title track might pale a little compared to the rest, it's still first-rate. Like, if this album was just side one, absolutely, it'd deserve its reputation and then some, all by itself. But one-side records aren't really a thing — at least as far as I know. So we hafta move on to side two, which is the side I **actually** had a problem with. Side 2 is a conceptual suite, complete with its own name: "The Ninth Wave." It's about a woman floating in the open sea and the dreams she has, likely her dying ones. And, like, here's the thing off the bat: when I first heard this album, that didn't matter to me. If you thought I had trouble paying attention to lyrics within the last year... Goodness, back when I had this on for the first time, they may as well have been nonexistent. And the thing about this side is that it is a **lot** more ethereal and existential than the flip, so without lyrics to guide me through the soundscapes and vibes... Well, jeez, I was just bored out of my damn skull. Like, over the years since I've occasionally played Side 1 of the record, but until now I'd **never** revisited Side 2 because I just did not remember having a good time with it. But I'm way different now than I was back then. My musical experience has broadened vastly, both in general and in specific regards to Kate Bush's own work (once again I thank THE DREAMING). Not only that, but I'm way better at focusing on and actually understanding lyrics than I was. As such, this time around... OK, so, let's be 100: I still like Side 1 better. For my own tastes in music, that'll always be the side I gravitate towards way more. I mean, come on — it had "The Big Sky". Can you blame me? But, like, there's a member in my group who said in their review that "The Ninth Wave" is where the album truly shines... And I'm pretty well inclined to agree with them? Like, Side 1 of the album is great, but "The Ninth Wave" is something else entirely. Just a fascinating and evocate set of songs, where, legit, I **did** spend a little time afterwards figuring out what my interpretation of it was. Like, is "The Morning Fog" a happy ending where she hits land and finds her life renewed? Or is it just another delusion out in the water? And don't get me started on how I envisioned the last minute or so of "Hello Earth", goodness. And, y'know, you take it all together: the pop mastery of Side 1, and the intriguing conceptuality of Side 2... And, yeah, no, what I said was right. This **is** one of the seminal pop albums of the 1980's, up there with the big boys like THRILLER and PURPLE RAIN. It's just masterfully composed and put together that, like... Goodness, do I even have the words to really express how good it is? I mean, keeping myself level, I would still probably reach for THRILLER and PURPLE RAIN first; I'm not gonna kid myself. But believe me, yeah, HOUNDS OF LOVE deserves every bit of praise it's gotten and then some. And as what's apparently the last Kate Bush album on the list... Couldn't've been a better way to bow out of her work, I don't think. Eleven has some damn good taste, I tell yah.

The Modern Dance

Pere Ubu

2/5

The funny thing to me about starting this album is that it made me realize that I could not remember what DUB HOUSING. And that's relevant because it was the entire reason why I was even worried about getting into this album. I mean, from what I could recall, DUB HOUSING was just a mess. Noisily unlistenable, and absolutely mono in the sense of variation. Even despite the 3 I gave it, it's always been one I've long thought of as "one of the worst my group has gotten," on a different level from stuff like DEVIL WITHOUT A CAUSE or CALENTURE. So that ended up being my expectation going in, and I'll admit, it worried me a little. Like, what if it actually meant I didn't like experimentation? If, deep down, despite the passes I've given to some other albums on the more avant-garde side of things, I'm actually one of those people who really only prefers classic rock? The worry that I'm secretly closed to broadening my musical horizons and that I'm just kidding myself; all that. And, well, I can safely say that that's not the case. I mean, of course; I'm the kind of gal who'll actively vouch for The Residents and KOLLAPS on the basis that they're weird and experimental. There were actually some parts of this album I found rather interesting, much to my surprise. There's a little bit of punk energy in this I could dig. No, my problem isn't with experimentation. My real is with albums that are fucking boring, and that's what THE MODERN DANCE is. Like, yeah, it's stranger than the average album, and it gets its noise on in a lot of parts, and none of it to me is, like... Off-putting. I'm not revulsed. I'm just waiting for it to **DO SOMETHING INTERESTING**. Especially during "Sentimental Journey", where I'm sure there was supposed to be some sort of point about... I don't know. Pulling out of my butt: familial abuse? But I really could not be assed to tell. To me, this album is just a damn snooze fest, where I'm almost tempted to make the accusation I make against a lot of post-punk bands where I think that they think they can be praised to the heavens and back if they make a bunch of uncommercial noise. I'm not gonna claim that level of insincerity, but the vibes are too strong of me to **not** bring up the possibility. So, yeah, it's fucking boring. I mean, what do interesting parts and a small dose of punk energy matter when the whole package can't support them? Like, jeez, I'unno. Early on I wanted to be kind because of those, but nah, man. No quarter. I didn't like this at all. Best I can really say about it is that it's just "boring bad" and not "morally offensive bad" like Kid Rock's album, or the worst of both worlds like Koffi Olomide's. But let's not act like that's a compliment, y'know?

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

4/5

As I'm writing this, it's the end of a small, little marathon I went on to catch up on albums I haven't listened to and reviewed. And lemme tell y'all, after boring-ass post-punk and an hour of French hip hop (even if I **did** like), it's nice to end on something completely uncomplicated. I had no preconceptions going in (I've heard "Free Fallin'" a million times, but I knew it was gonna be irrelevant), and leaving the album all I could really think to say was "That's some good ol' rock n' roll, I tell you." That's what this album is and that's pretty much all it is: 70's rock n' roll. I mean, it's not Grand Funk; it's a little heartland in spots, and a little Elvis Costello in others... And I'm the kind of person where saying "that's pretty much all this is" isn't an insult in this context. Like, honestly, if you're coming into this expecting to have your mind blown, you're gonna be severely disappointed. It does what it does, and it does it extremely well. It gave me what I expected and asked for: what more could I want? And how much more can I repeat myself here? Like, gosh, "American Girl" is a great closer, goodness... Really, in the end, my biggest thought about it is just wondering why this made the cut and not FULL MOON FEVER. And not even because of the hits; I mean, within the last six years that thing made the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame **and** the 2020 Rolling Stone 500 list. We can debate on how much either of them really mean, but where's that kind of acknowledgement for this album? Hell, why does Pere Ubu get two albums but not Tom Petty? But, eh, I'm veering into the territory of complaining I don't like just to fill space. In any case, it's good that Tom Petty is here at all, and this is a perfectly good record. What a nice way to close out my night.

Rapture

Anita Baker

4/5

Y'know, I'm no enemy, exactly, to Quiet Storm — or even softer styles of pop in general, for that matter. As much as I wanna act like I have serious, sophisticated taste in music, sometimes I just want something lighter and maybe a bit chintzy. And, I mean, like, sure, this kind of music might be softened down significantly from what soul in the 70's was, and it might even be a little gentrified depending on how you look at it... But damn it, sometimes you get cravings, and stuff like this can hit that exact spot for me. Seriously, you can hate this kind of production for being dated, but for me, it ain't no thing. I love that kind of 80's soft pop sound — I mean, do you think I like "Versace On The Floor" as much as I do for nothing? And heck, I'd almost argue this is the platonic ideal of it. Honestly now... Like, look, this is the kind of music where you're not supposed to expect too much going into it. Or heck, you're maybe not even supposed to completely listen to it. It's wallpaper for baby-making, and while you could argue that there's better material for it... Well, I'm never gonna have first-hand experience, but I doubt it wouldn't work just fine and dandy. And even outside of that context, it's just nice stuff to vibe and lightly groove to. And if nothing else, Anita Baker **does** have a lovely voice. I'unno if she has a spot on the list of all-time female soul greats, and certainly I don't have the experience to make that kind of call myself, although I wouldn't be surprised if she was on that list. Now, I don't wanna inflate this thing up too much; it's still soft pop, and if you're just not in the frame of mind to just chill to it... Well, I'unno what to tell you. For my money, however, yeah. It didn't rapture me, but I'll still give it my full endorsement. Good stuff. (Shame, by the way, that apparently this full album isn't on Spotify in America? One of the many pluses to being Canadian, I guess — or a minus, depending on how much you like this album. I mean, us having this on Spotify is sure better than us having SPY HARD on Disney+, let me tell you...)

Foxbase Alpha

Saint Etienne

3/5

I spent a fair bit of this album wondering if I actually liked trip hop or not. Which, y'know, I like my fair share of songs from the genre (at least one from Massive Attack, and any Gorillaz have done in that lane), but I couldn't help but wonder throughout the album if those elements were what was dragging the whole thing down for me. Off the bat, I'll grant them that I've heard **far** worse from this genre. It clears MAXINQUAYE, certainly. And, hell, I wouldn't even go so far as to say it's bad. There's a pulse in a lot of these beats that keeps from completely disliking them. And yet... I'unno, you'll get a good, groovy, danceable beat on a song, and the vocals will come in maybe just a bit too light and airy and it'll suck a bit of energy from the track? Take "Girl VII" as an example. When it hopped on that Madonna "Vogue" flow for the second verse of the song, things really picked up and I was getting into it. But then the slower trip hop vocals came back... And you've got a good voice, Sarah, you really do. You really work on stuff like "London Belongs To Me" and "Nothing Can Stop Us". It's just when this album dips into trip hop and dub... Blurrgh, I don't know. It's just not great. And I'm not a fan of the repetition within some of these songs, either. Like, "Wilson" is an interlude barely under two minutes, but I don't think I needed to hear "WOULD YOU LIKE SOME SWEETS, WILLY?" that many times. Or you got something like "Stoned To Say The Least", which, like, gawd, whose idea was it that it needed to be nearly eight minutes? It just gets me thinking about acts like Daft Punk and songs like "Around The World". People can rag on it for repetition, but, y'know, you gotta understand, that's the foundation of music, and dance music particularly. On a song like "Around The World", too, it evolves over time, and morphs into all of these different permutations. It's not the same-ass thing for seven minutes, which is how "Stoned To Say The Least" comes across. I got similar-ish complaints to lob at "Like The Swallow", too, by the way. When the lyrics kick in and the song actually gets started it's good, but I don't know why it needed **three-and-a-half minutes** of atmospheric build-up. And then the outro's nice when it gets to the acoustic guitar, but the, like, nearly two minutes of drumloop and more atmospheric synths before that? You coulda cut that down some, honestly. Like, I'unno, this thing has parts I like. Once more, I'll shout out "London Belongs To Me" and "Nothing Can Stop Us"; they're really the best song here, if you ask me. But the rest is like... I can do without it. Just goes a bit too nowhere for my tastes. And besides, I gotta knock points off of any album that makes me wonder what the point of a genre is. Like, what did it look like when people played trip hop in the club? How did people dance to that? Did they at all? Honestly now...

At Folsom Prison

Johnny Cash

5/5

Hello, I'm Listie Cashdows. Y'know, I've plenty made my case about live albums before now: from capturing a sound that just simply couldn't be produced in the studio, to preverserving what would be a historic moment, to just being a good show. This album is the latter two points, but it also has something that, until now, I don't think has been all too important in any of the live albums my group has gotten so far: the audience and ambience. And it feels a bit silly to say that that hasn't been important, right? After all, the audience's presence is a large part of what makes a live album a live album. In fact, if you wanna talk about the audience being an integral part to the album, just go look at James Brown's LIVE AT THE APOLLO. As a fellow group member said about it, they're practically an instrument unto themselves on that thing. What's different here, though, that I feel the need to even bring it up is, well... Besides literally the other Johnny Cash prison album, none of them have had such an intimate and close connection between artist and audience. You can hear it all over this thing, from the way the crowd cheers loudly at some lines, to something as simple as Cash's asides to them. He's not just performing to any old crowd — he's performing for **them** specifically. And he's performing songs about getting hopped up on coke and shooting that bad bitch down! And they're **fucking loving it**. There's such an energy that happens between Cash and the audience and it's irresistible. I mean, it's clear so much how much he feels for them, and it's great. It's the smaller things as well. I can imagine how someone would groan at the fact that the last three minutes of the last track — over half of it! — is dedicated to the warden making announcements, taking a picture with Cash, and then the PA announcing when everyone can go back to their cells... But that's the other half of it, like I said: the ambience. It makes it sound like you're really there, sitting among all of these convicts and watching this show. And what a show it is, too. Like, believe me, it's not just the audience and ambience that make this live album as legendary as it is: the setlist and performances themselves are just killer. Honestly, it kind of makes me wonder why there's even a second Johnny Cash prison album on this list at all, AT SAN QUENTIN. It's not like it's a bad show, but the song selection there cannot even compare to what you've got here, and that's not even commenting on how they included two back-to-back performances of "San Quentin". On this album, well, of course you've got all-timers like "Folsom Prison Blues" and "Jackson"... But then you've also got stuff like "Cocaine Blues", and that's great. You've got the lighter, comedy-tinted numbers like "25 Minutes To Go", "Dirty Old Egg-Suckin' Dog" and "Flushed From The Bathroom Of Your Heart", and that's all really amusing. And then you've got the more serious numbers, like "The Long Black Veil", "The Wall", "Green, Green Grass Of Home"... And it's such good stuff. It's **so good**. And Cash and his band all pull it off so masterfully. It's just a wonder to listen to. I wanna highlight "Greystone Chapel" specifically, too. That song was actually written by one of the inmates at Folsom, Glen Sherley, and the first time it was performed, Sherley was in the front row and completely unaware that it was going to happen. I can only imagine how much of a thrill it must have been to hear **Johnny fuckin' Cash** of all people perform **your song**. I mean, I'unno how the rest of the cons must've reacted, but if I were Sherley, that would've been the highlight of my life. One that would, unfortunately, be cut off all too soon, when Sherley took his life only ten years after this album dropped, at age 42. With all of this context in mind, I really have a hard time imagining how anyone could hate this album as a live record. I know that plenty of people on this here website ain't much a fan of live albums, and, y'know... Like, if people wanna hate this on the basis of it being a country album, I get it. As popular a genre as country is, I know for damn certain not everyone can tune into it. But as a **live album**? Like, to truly, truly despise it as a live album, given all of the context surrounding it? I cannot fathom it. And being fair, I had to scroll down a **long** way through reviews before I found the ones that weren't just a straight 5/5, and even the one 3/5 I found mixed in was more about people whistling at the violence against women and not the fact that it's a live album itself. So if this is one the one exception to all of the live album hate I see... Well, it's a damn good exception to have. 'Coz really, it's more than just a live album. It's a candid, heartfelt performance, with Johnny Cash singing to the people he truly had his heart out for — and in fact, I really do, truly believe that this is one of the greatest records of all time. It might even be the single greatest live album in this whole book, and that is **saying something** given it exists alongside LIVE AT THE APOLLO, LIVE AT LEEDS and NO SLEEP 'TIL HAMMERSMITH. It's just... Gosh, I don't even know what else I wanna say. Hell, I might have even said a bit too much, 'coz if you put this thing on and hear that "Hello, I'm Johnny Cash" followed by the burst of cheers... Well, either you're sucked in or you're not, and if you ain't, I just don't know what to say to you.

Talvin Singh

3/5

I'll say this: I appreciate what this thing was going for. Combining Indian classical music with electronica? That's interesting, and, from what I understand of both genres, could result in something great if handled right. But, y'know... Well, when the album leans into its Indian classical influence, I like it quite a bit. Of the little of the genre I've engaged with so far, it's far from my favorite, but it does just well. If the whole album were like this, I'd give it a solid nod of approval. Of course, then there's the parts where the album leans into the electronica influence — which it does way more commonly — and when it does... B'oof. Being fair, it's nothing I can be too hard, since, believe me, I **have** heard worse, but... Like, I don't know. It's just not terribly interesting. When you're listening to it it's perfectly fine, but jeez, even as wallpaper there's stuff out there with more to chew on. Really, the album title sums it up pretty well: it's "OK." And this leaves me with one of those disappointed 3's that're never fun to give. Again, I can only imagine how combining Indian classical and electronica could've gone off — when they do happen to intermingle, it's neat stuff. And I don't wanna rate this thing based on what it's not, but jeez, it could've been so much more interesting. Like, if it weren't for the fact that my group's coming up on our 500th album, I probably could've let it sit in the backlog for a week like I did that French hip hop, and I wouldn't have missed anything. Y'know? Bleh, whatever. I'm not gonna pad out the word count any more. I just wish it coulda been more than OK.

Live 1966 (The Royal Albert Hall Concert)

Bob Dylan

3/5

When I started writing this, I wasn't exactly sure how I wanted to rate this album. And it wasn't for a lack of opinions on Bob Dylan and his music, I should make clear. I'd never thought about him enough to call myself a fan, but given how revered he is in music history, it's hard not to think something or other about him. No, it's because... Well, I'd had a bit of a hard time thinking about this as an album. In discussing live albums before, I've mentioned that some of them exist to capture historic moments. Y'know, stuff like Muddy Waters or Duke Ellington's Newport shows, or Johnny Cash's prison concert. But I don't think either of them have captured something as mythological and legendary to music history as this does: Dylan's turn to playing electric music. Now, this isn't the **exact** moment Dylan turned electric. Simply, this is an official release of the most widely bootlegged show from the tour where he did. In fact, from what I read, this might be the most bootlegged show in rock history? Where, somehow, no one realized this show wasn't actually recorded at the Royal Albert Hall, but that's besides the point. Just the fact that we have any release marking this tour is important. I mean, if you care about that sort of thing, anyway. As someone who often plays pretend as a wannabe music historian, of course I do, but if y'don't... Well, why should the average music listener, in 2025, not so interested in music history, care if Dylan started playing with a full band? Unless you were alive and aware of the scene at this specific point in the 60's, to maybe understand why exactly his fans felt so betrayed by the move... And I'm saying this even with a biofilm out there that covers this period in Dylan's life, A COMPLETE UNKNOWN. And it's like, I **do** get why his fans were so incensed by the move. Folk music, to that point, was simple, honest, raw: nothing more than an acoustic guitar, maybe a harmonica, and a voice, speaking truth to power and pointing fingers at those who would do wrong. It was a music of the people, and that was the way they liked it, damn it. But y'know what they might've didn't liked? Rock music. The electric guitar — that's the **establishment**, y'know. **The man**. What they're singing isn't **real**. It's not the people! For the mass populace, more like. So, like, y'get it. Though, of course, y'might not if you don't even see folk music that way to begin with. In fact, you might see folk music as a lot of nonsensical gobbledygook sung by poets who think they're musicians just because they spend eight minutes straight plink-plonking along on their guitar and wailing tunelessly on their harmonica. Hell, y'might even think going electric was an **improvement**, 'coz at least now there's **melody**, despite the lyrics still being faux-deep mush. So once again, why should you care about Dylan's electric turn? And honestly, despite how long I've just gone on, I don't think I have a good answer. After all, once again, I don't even consider myself much of a Bob Dylan fan. I do enjoy pastiches of his sound, like Weird Al's "Bob", but lemme tell you, I watched I'M NOT THERE the other week and you can better your bet I didn't get a single percentage's worth of the deep-cut scholarly Dylan references in there. True, that's a film so dense with references that Bob himself might even be able to get all of them, but still, goodness... And actually, as a matter of fact, I'm not very much a fan of this singer-songwriter folk stuff to begin with. It's the kind of music where you're supposed to sit down, comb through the lyrics and ponder **really hard** about what they're supposed to mean. Y'know, it's poetry. And frankly, I don't have all too much use for that kind of material. More often than not, I tend to fall into the "gobbledygook and plink-plonking side of things." You can call me basic for this, but I tend to come to music for melody and hooks first, over everything else. That's what makes music music, y'know? And it's not that I find lyrics unimportant; there's a reason I don't just listen to strictly instrumental music. If I can attach a story to a song, I'm all the more down for it. It's just infinitely harder to do that with folk music, and specifically the brand of it Dylan is the face of. And that's not even getting into how my auDHD keeps me from understanding deeper poetry in general. And I've tried to be fair with this music, I really have. I don't hate this stuff on its face like I know a lot of people do. I figure, I've got to be able to find **some kind** of merit to it to justify why the old guard reveres it as much as they do. But then I end up thinking back to my complete apathy towards Joni Mitchell's COURT AND SPARK, and the disappointed 2's I have to Leonard Cohen's first two albums... And the two Bob Dylan albums my group's gotten before now, where I've made it clear the stuff I liked about them the most **was** the electric stuff... And I think my worry is that I'm stupid for not getting this stuff, when really, my beef is that I just don't have the time or want to truly "understand it." It's just not my thing. So maybe my reverence for this release and Dylan's electric turn is more just me buying into the legend without questioning it than anything else — "the legend" being another thing propagated by the old guard. And y'know, it's not that I can't see how this turn led to folk rock and caused the genre to evolve beyond simple acoustic guitar strumming, but... I'unno. Generally, singer-songwriter folk music just ain't my genre, man, no matter how much I try to force myself to like it. But that's all speaking generally **around** the album. More than 1,000 words in, I suppose I should actually say something about it directly. Well, off the bat, I'm disappointed it cut out all of the booing and jeering. I mean, that's the whole reason why I'd even want an album like this available for public consumption! There's not even the legendary cry of "Judas!" I mean, if Dylan figured putting focus on the performances was more important than including his audience's dissatisfaction with the change, that's his decision. Throughout the second disc of this album, though, you can hear the **very obvious** cuts they made to jump across the booing, and, like, being hyper-aware that it's **supposed** to be there... Kinda knocks a few points off this thing as a historical record, y'know? But whatever, the focus is on the music performances themselves. And, I mean, like I just said above, I was never gonna like the acoustic set as much as I would the electric one. It's a lot like BRINGING IT ALL HOME, in that regard, with just a little energy thrown in as the result of these being live performances. Heck, for that matter, it's actually a lot like Neil Young's RUST NEVER SLEEPS (group album #7)... And I want you to know, I tried this time. I really, honestly, tried this time to give the lyrics their proper due, and not just pass them up as nonsense. I mean, as of late I've been getting way better at taking in and understanding lyrics, so maybe this time...? Nope. Once more and again, I just don't have the time or patience to "properly understand them" — in quotes because it's not like there's one single "correct way" to get them... And I can't even muster up the energy to wanna figure out my own interpretation, either. And I promise you, I gave an honest attempt at due diligence. I mean, I actually found quite a bit of it **interesting**, and it sure helped keep the first disc from being an endless monotony of guitar plonking and harmonica honking. But in the absence of wanting to put the work in to actually connect to what's being said... Well, dang: I just can't. And as for the electric set on the second disc, well, it's a fine sound. Certainly, I don't hold the attachment to the stuff on the first disc to think too negatively about this stuff. I mean, there's far more going on here to hold my attention. But at the same time... Pff, I'unno. The sonic context provided by the guitars and organs does make me like this collection of material better, but the star of the show is still supposed to be the lyrics... And it's not like this proper rock music, with big riffs or solos or whatever. It's still singer-songwriter folk music, just a little louder. And, sure, I like it louder, but at the end of the day... Like, buying into the legend of this tour as much as I do, it honestly disappoints me that I'm not as up on this release as I feel like I should be. Of course, this thing doesn't deserve a 6 outta 5 just for being historically important, but, like, just consider how much I've written about this album to this point. It's within the range of words I thought I'd only reach with albums that're straight 5's for me (or that inspire me to gimmicks that pad things out — hello, BLACK SABBATH and SPEAKERBOXXX/THE LOVE BELOW). Yet despite all of the time and gravitas I'm willing to allow it... It's still singer-songwriter folk music. And I'm just not a huge fan of this stuff, no matter how much it's supposed to mean. Honestly, I feel like I tend towards Dylan parodies more than Dylan himself because they're open about the fact that they're just nonsense. Weird Al's "Bob", or "Royal Jelly" from WALK HARD — the whole point is that they're just a collection of random words that don't mean anything, so I'm allowed to just enjoy it strictly by composition without having to worry about anything else. Also, they tend to be shorter and not **as** wordy, and that **does* help as well... In the end, I'm not sure if I know why I spent as much time writing about this album as I did. As a historical record, well, it's missing the most important piece of why I think it should exist at all. And as live music, well, as if I even need to say. I don't hate it, I want to be clear. I was more interested in the words than I wasn't, and once more, with feeling, I **do** dig the electric sound. I do feel like the guy who cried "Judas!" was maybe over-exaggerating a little. But... Yeah. I guess I figured out how to rate this after all. And I'll tell you, there's a part of me that's nearly as disappointed about what I came to as I was about those Leonard Cohen albums. I don't wanna lie about my feelings, though, so... Yeah. So hear this, Robert Zimmerman. I like you, I really do. And even despite everything I just said, I can still buy into the myth surrounding this tour whole-heartedly. It makes for a great story in the annals of music history. It's just not much that I would normally listen to, y'know? Historical document or not. But it still inspired me to write nearly 2k words about you, so, hey, take that for as much of a compliment as it's worth. (TL;DR: Yep, that was sure a Bob Dylan live concert.)

White Light / White Heat

The Velvet Underground

3/5

Y'know, I think I respect this album for what it's doing more than I actually enjoy it. That's not saying I dislike it, of course, but as with a lot of artsier, more experimental music my group comes across, I usually don't have much of a use for it outside of listening to it for this Randomizer. And y'know, there's some part of me that thinks it should be irrelevant whether or not I would listen to an album again. After all, there's a lot of great movies I'm probably never gonna watch again, and that's besides having a line-up of favorites I know I'd return to first. Similar goes with music: just because I wouldn't listen to it again doesn't mean it's not good. However, at the same time, I can't act like that sort of thing **isn't** a factor, so... I mean, this is a loud-ass record. Every song on here has some kind of noise going on, and, y'know, I figure most all of it isn't just for the sake of it. There has to be a purpose to it, or at the very least it's something like the 17-minute odyssey "Sister Ray", which was recorded in one take with the mindset of leaving in all of the mistakes. I'm not the kind of person who'd dump on this thing just for being too dang loud. But it's just not interesting to me. After all, I'm someone who enjoys riffs and melodies, so burying it all under a pile of feedback, compression, distortion and an overblown Vox organ... I mean, jeez, I've read this album was a prototype for genres for shoegaze, and I'll tell you, at least something like LOVELESS went hard enough on it to the point of becoming ambient music. And I dig that! With the way it's done here, though... Mm, no. Not my dig. Still, though, again, I don't dislike it. I've heard far worse in terms of noise — PSYCHOCANDY still exists, after all. And again, I can appreciate what they were doing; trying to capture more of their live sound, and taking influence from jazz, particularly saxophonist Ornette Coleman. I mean, I've heard samples of THE SHAPE OF JAZZ TO COME; I can hear it. And besides, I can just respect them going as hard experimental as they did. Seriously, contrast this against their debut, let alone fellow '67 release SGT. PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB (as a group buddy of mine did), and I can't even imagine what people at the time must've thought of it. I know what I thought of this, though, and for those reasons I just mentioned, my unofficial score would probably be a 3.5. As for the official one, though, well... I just can't bring myself to bump it up and over. So, yeah, I'unno. Light's a bit too bright and the heat's a bit too hot, I guess. Not my dig.

Fear and Whiskey

Mekons

4/5

I gotta call this book's genre labels out for giving me the completely wrong impression of this album going in. I mean, you label anything with "post-punk," I'm on edge. Even after learning a bit more how to deal with it thanks to LOVELESS, it's still not exactly something I'm looking forward to. "Great," I'm thinking: "here goes 30 minutes to noise and nonsense pretending to be art." That's a worry that only lasts about as long as it takes me to hit "play" on the album. This is a country album. An alt. country album, sure; it's not George Jones, or even Kacey Musgraves, but the influence is unignorable. Like, damn, you could have labelled this thing as post-punk **and** country and given me a better idea of what this thing is actually like. Well, in lieu of the book giving the people any indication about that, allow me to do so. The brief description I'd give of it is that it's like if a punk band that frequently played pubs decided they wanted to also be a country act. So, it's not as far to the side as to be cowpunk, but it's still a pretty obvious mixture of the two. And a potent one at that — this is some good-ass shit. It can kind of be like The Clash by way of Chumbawamba's folk albums... If they were a bit more "roight, roight" about it, y'get what I mean? And seriously, don't ignore the "frequently played pubs" thing as part of my description. That's a big part of the appeal, 'coz I can totally imagine a room fulla people shouting along to this. S'why I don't mind how the guy isn't even really singing on this thing. I mean, when the hooligans on their fourth pint you're playing for aren't gonna, why should you? I wanna go on, but honestly, I don't even really have much I wanna say about this thing. It's some real solid-ass punk-style country, with some damn good fiddle to boot. I'm not going buck wild for it or anything, but hey, it's a million times better than what I assumed it would be. I mean, hey, if I were post-punk, I wouldn't complain about any boost in its standings, I tell yah...

Group Sex

Circle Jerks

4/5

And in tribute to this album's runtime, starting with the next paragraph I will spend only 15 minutes and 25 seconds writing my review of this record. Alright, here we go... ---{*}--- Look, there's not even really much I wanna say about this album, people. I mean, come on: this is hardcore punk! The playing's loud, the vocals are shouty, the lyrics are probably about being an angry, disaffected youth who wants to have sex, and it's all done real damn fast. That's all you could ever really ask for. And, goodness me, this thing is only 15 minutes long! The longest song isn't even a minute and a half! That's barely any of your time spent! Even the Ramones had a longer album! And honestly, that's pretty great. I tell yah, I'm a champion of simple albums, and, well, you can hardly get any more simple this. What would you hafta lose giving it a chance? Like, sure, of course, there's better punk out in the world. Albums with more thought put into how those three chords are getting played, or have lyrics with a bit more meaning beyond being angry and wanting sex, or have a bit more meat to chew on, or even have a bit more musical variety from song to song... But I think as long as you're not coming in expecting the world and then some from this thing, you'll probably get a kick out of it. I know I did! It's a fun, quick blast of punk energy, and it is what it is. I mean, come on, this isn't The Clash here, people. This is Circle Jerks. Y'think they wanted people to take them seriously with a name like that? Honestly. ---{*}--- Honestly, I'm not even sure if writing a review in 15 minutes is even that impressive. I think I do that on a regular basis anyway... But, that's basically the sum of it. And really, I just think it's a nice treat to get an album so short before my group's middle point: our 500th album! I mean, getting this at any time woulda been neat, but as #499... Yeah, it's a little extra nice. (No Whammies for the big 5-0-0, I hope!)

Tracy Chapman

5/5

I had my worries going into this album. None of them were any concerns that the music would be bad, but just... Well, it's a folk singer-songwriter album that addresses social and political causes. Typically, I haven't had too much luck with those — and of course it always comes down to the lyrics. They're usually always just a bit too flowery and dense for my tastes... And, heck, my general understanding. I know these words all **something**, but heck if I can figure it out. I'm no poetry major, y'know? And I don't come to music to decipher poetry anyway. Which, yeah, is a problem I've faced with every folk singer-songwriter album I've come across, but with this one specifically... Well, it felt like not getting it, and thereby not having anything to say about it, would've just felt wrong. Like I was actively doing the album a disservice by not getting it. And, y'know, it's not like I **have** to "get" every album I hear, nor do I even hold that much reverence for Tracy Chapman beyond "being that woman with the really good song Luke Combs covered." But this just feels to me like one of those big, important albums of all time, y'know? Like I **have** to get it, or else... Y'know. It's just my luck, then, that this album isn't that hard to understand. There's no big, deep cut literary references I wouldn't get unless I was an actual English scholar. No, it's all very direct and to the point. Of course there's some embellishments here and there, but it's not like these are Dylan lyrics, y'know? And to the imaginary people in my head would say they're simple as a result — hey, sometimes it's just nice to have messages and themes stated clearly and directly. Especially if you're AuDHD like me. And let's be clear here: how directly understandable these lyrics are is **why** this album is as good and acclaimed as it is. I don't think "Fast Car" would be as world-renowned as it is if its lyrics were all flowery and complicated. Or, heck, "Talkin' Bout A Revolution" wouldn't be as... Well, in 2025 it's pretty tragic, given that we're nearly 40 years away from this album and it still hasn't happened. But seriously, it's a great thing that you don't need a college thesis in order to "get" any of the songs on this album. That's fantastic. And y'know what else is fantastic? Tracy Chapman doesn't have the greatest voice in the world, but for this kind of "truth to power" material, oh, it hits so well. "Behind The Wall" is the specific highlight here, since it features only her voice, and it carries so well for the, like, quietly harrowing story it tells. Goodness. Then there's the instrumentation that's usually behind her voice. With most singer-songwriter folk albums — and I realize, I'm generalizing about them — I don't expect much variety. Either it's a big "singular acoustic guitar" party, or if there are more instruments on the track, they're usually pretty repetitive to keep all of the focus on the lyrics. And I'm not gonna act like that doesn't pop up on this album at all ("Fast Car" had its repeating riff between lyric chunks), there's still way more variety here than I'd normally figure. Hell, I never would've expected "Mountain O' Things" to have this kind of... Island thing going on with it? That's the biggest swing this album takes, but for real, if you played me a buncha random snippets of songs, I'd be able to tell them apart. I can't say that about most folk singer-songwriter albums. So yeah. It's just as good as I'd assumed it was. Like... Dang, y'know? Honestly one of, if maybe not the best, folk singer-songwriter albums I've heard so far. And, yeah, it **is** because it's uncomplicated to my mind, but after as many of these things as my group has gotten in these last 500 albums... It's just nice, y'know.

Rattus Norvegicus

The Stranglers

5/5

OK, OK, album 501. One tick over the hump. Let's see what the Randomizer decided to grace my group with today... To begin with: is this punk, in every true sense of the word? Doesn't matter to me, honestly. I've made a deal out of genre before, but let's be real: it's not **that** big of a deal. I mean, if there's any word I wanna attach to this, it's not even a genre: it's "pub." This is some pub-ass music, y'know? And **British** music at that, so you know it's the real shit. Then: are there some parts of this album that haven't aged all too well? Lyrically, yeah, but let's not act like some of the conceits on here were OK to begin with. Though, like with genre, and speaking of this thing musically as well, I can't say it matters to me all **that** much. I mean, I doubt I'm supposed to take any of these songs at face value, and that they're unironically baring their souls here. Goodness, they slapped a "IV" on the cover of this thing, their first album, just to mess with people. I'm not gonna tell anyone who takes issue with these lyrics that they're wrong, but to my eyes... Like, there's shit that came out this year that's more worth getting upset about. Finally: let me actually address what I like about the album, instead of the points I vaguely remember some people making in their 2/5 reviews. And, like, gawd: it **all** comes down to that organ and bass. The singing, the drumming, the guitaring... They're all fine and good. But holy shit, the bass and organ are on another level. The bass is just so, like... Thonky and meaty. Normally I don't even pay too close attention to the bass, but here, it's absolutely one of the stars — outshone, of course, by that **organ**. Like, is this a Doors album? Is this some Brit pub Doors album? 'Coz seriously, if there's any reason I can see myself coming back to this album, it's for that organ. Hon-est-ly now! On their own, they're enough to make me overlook any flaws this thing has. And seriously, no disrespect to the other instruments: this is a tight ensemble. Really, the worst thing I can say about this album is that it, like, can kinda drag a bit in the first half? There were spots where I was wondering when the next song was gonna happen. But from "Peaches" straight to the end — yeah, no. This is the good shit. Props to you, Strangers. Rat on, I suppose.

Future Days

Can

4/5

Hol' up now — you're tellin' me that this is the same band that made TAGO MAGO? The same band that boring ass Bran Flakes of an experimental album also made **this**? I'll be damned. Like, seriously, if you played these two albums back-to-back for me... Well, first of all, I'd probably be a bit drained after TAGO MAGO's double-disc runtime, but as well, I'd've never guessed they were from the same group. How do you go from plodding Kraut-funk and aimlessly drawn out "artsty fartsy" experimental tracks to, like... Maybe the vibes-iest album I've maybe heard in a long time outside of ambient music and/or dream pop shoegaze? And, y'know, I don't wanna keep harping on the whole "it's the same band?!" sort of point, but seriously, I am just stunned that it is. I really didn't think they had this in them. Maybe the one guy who did that MOVIES album did, but the whole of them? To create this basically instrumental album, where even the actual sung lyrics don't really matter beyond just being another instrument — y'know, a bit of texture? Wow-wee. N' fer real: this is the best thing I've ever heard from or adjacent to CAN. It's just... Such a damn vibe, y'know? It's one of those albums you can just kick back and relax and Fantasia the heck out to. 'Cept, unlike other Fantasia-type albums, I'unno if you'd really be able to imagine anything other than, like... Sunset colors. And white cliff sides. Really, I feel like I should be watching the sunset to this thing. I mean, I wouldn't call this album "beautiful," by my own tastes, but, like... It comes awful;y close, dunnit? This isn't even a structured review right now. Sure, none of mine are, but at least with my others there's some sense of, y'know... Natural flow? This, though — man, it's just a babble, 'coz all I got are vibes, y'know? Real good vibes. N', I'unno, I ain't got no real formed thoughts. It's just... Pfwoof, what a listen. Y'know, I'll give it the highest compliment I feel I can give one of these albums I've never heard before: I'd probably listen to it again. Put it next to, like, MOON SAFARI or MUSIC FOR AIRPORTS as a record I'd slap on when I want some atmospheric-type wallpaper music. Jus', big thumbs up all around. And I can't tell you the exact reason why I'm not bumping this album from a 4 over into a 5. I suppose it **is** just that I don't find it beautiful. But seriously, it **is** really damn good, and, like... For real, the same band who made TAGO MAGO. Y'ain't ne'er woulda thought. Anyway, that's enough babbling. In short: good shit, check it out.

Hybrid Theory

Linkin Park

5/5

I'll admit: it surprises me that most of the top-rated reviews of this album on this website are so negative. A whole sea of 1's... I mean, I suppose I shouldn't be **too** surprised, but I really thought people have turned around on Linkin Park and this album. I mean, I remember where I was when I was younger... Back when everything I perceived as even remotely "edgy" was a joke. Linkin Park, My Chemical Romance, Evanescence... Heck, any band or artist mentioned in the fanfiction MY IMMORTAL. I'd seen "Crawling" used as a punchline enough times to feel pretty confident in my assessment. That's just the way things were back then, y'know? But then at some point, the tide changed. Even before Chester sadly took his own life, I kept seeing people lighten up on Linkin Park and their ilk. Suddenly, they were no longer just a big edgy joke. And I can't tell you exactly where it happened — for the culture or for me, for that matter. Perhaps in the case of the former, it was people looking back on their nostalgia and giving it an honest second chance... For me, though? I think I just realizied that this band's music is fuckin' awesome, and in fact maybe the best thing nu metal ever produced. Now, why is that? What sets Linkin Park apart from their peers? That I can take them seriously where I can't a band like, say, Limp Bizkit? And I think it just comes down to, like... An earnestness and sincerity in what they're singing. You can call their lyrics cheesy, or juvenile and angsty or whatever, but I never once doubted they weren't putting their all into these songs. Y'know, there was never a whiff they were just playing to angry white boys. While we can laugh at "CRAAAAAWLING IN MY SKIIIIIN" removed from the album's context, when placed within... OK, it's still kinda amusing, but never to the point where I can only treat them as a joke — unlike, say, Limp Bizkit. Besides that, there's also just my knowledge of their evolution. Everything they're doing on here (and I **love** what they're doing here) will be done tenfold better on their follow-up, METEORA. Beyond that, there was their shift into alternative on MINUTES TO MIDNIGHT, which was proof they couldn't be stuck in just this one mode. Contrast that against, say, I'unno, Korn? Whose biggest evolution, as far as I can tell, was a Skrillex production credit on one album, and otherwise they were still singing about the same high school bullies they always were. And beyond that, I just think this music goes hard as fuck. Sure, you can probably point me to a dozen or so "better bands," with more complexities in their music, or that aren't "watered down for parents" or whatever... But at the end of the day, I'm a simple girl. The guitar chugs are loud and awesome. The scratching that's worked in is fantastic. Chester's screams are damn something else. Mike's flows are just, mm, so flow-y. And hooks — hooks, man! Every song has its own memorable little moment. Sure, it's maybe just because I've listened to it so often that they stand out, but seriously. They all have a unique section, or a vocal line, or, jus', whatever. There's a reason why, even though METEORA is overall the better album, HYBRID THEORY is the one that's stayed as iconic as it has. I mean, which album has the "In The End" piano? There yah go. Which is all the more reason why it strikes me as so curious that Limp Bizkit can get a pass for being "fun" where Linkin Park apparently can't. (And to be fair, CHOCOLATE STARFISH **is** rated significantly lower than this album, **and** I'm largely basing this all on a handful of 1's — though highly-rated 1's, so it's not like people are disagreeing with them...) Frankly, the way I see it, it **is** a matter of sincerity. Y'know, Limp Bizkit on CHOCOLATE STARFISH **does** some musical chops, but a lot of it loudly drowned out by how much of an absolute clown Fred Durst is. It brings their sincerity into question, and, therefore, you don't hafta take them as seriously. Contrast against Linkin Park, who have **more** chops, but have frontmen who're clearly very sincere, and, well, if you don't like nu metal all too much... And that's probably another problem of it all: Linkin Park's genre placement. Which makes me all the more disappointed in these negative reviews, 'coz again, I think Linkin Park is the best thing the genre's ever produced. Not another band has had frontmen like Chester and Mike, backed with musicians this tight, and a complete earnestness. Seriously, I'm almost tempted to compare them to Guns N' Roses, who're a glam band I can hardly even view as glam because of how far they succeed in their genre. Like, if nu metal has to be represented on this list at all, there's not a single album that could present it better than HYBRID THEORY. I mean, look, I'm not that angry at those 1's. I'm not even trying to change their minds; I doubt they'll ever even see this review. I just think there are people who aren't giving this album the credit it deserves just because it's "angry, angsty music." As if the only people who could unironically enjoy this are angry, angsty white boys. Well, lookit me: I'm only one of those four things, and I started telling people to use she/they pronouns on me over a year ago. And like I've said, I think album is fucking blast. It's a truly explosive 38 minutes, and... Yeah, heck, I'll say it: it's one of those "entrenched in my soul" albums that I could never bring myself to hate. It's not Linkin Park at their best, but dammit, they never got more enjoyable than they did on this album. And if someone can't tune onto their level and enjoy it as well... I'unno what to say to you, buddy.

The Madcap Laughs

Syd Barrett

4/5

As I'm writing this, it's been a day over a week since my group got this album, and it's only now that I'm finally writing my review of it. Hell, until now, I didn't even bother to listen to the thing. And unlike that French hip hop album from a while ago, believe me, it wasn't a lack of interest that kept me from doing this. No, of course, once more and again (and perhaps for the last time), it's because of my relation to Syd Barrett's life and work. Obviously, this isn't the first time I've discussed Syd. I've previously spent over 2,000 words discussing my thoughts around him, between PIPER AT THE GATES OF DAWN (where I admitted to my lack of interest in his music despite my respect for him) and WISH YOU WERE HERE (where I talked about how and why I still had that respect for him anyway). It's not like it's hard for me. Though, you hafta realize, those were both in the context of what he meant to the band Pink Floyd as a whole, first as its founder and leader, then as an inspiration and tribute figure. This is the first time I've had to talk about him all on his own. There's no Roger Waters or David Gilmour to fall back on, except to discuss their roles in helping produce this album. To me, talking about this album is all about discussing Syd and his mental state, and, like... I'm just worried about not doing it right, y'know? I'll tell you, even as far back as PIPER review, I was already apologizing for this one. 'Coz look, even if I don't hold much interest in his personal, artistic works, the last thing I'd wanna do is disrespect a man who not only meant so much to people I admire, but went through what he did. Which, y'know, I'll say right now, doesn't mean I hafta like this album, as if not liking his work is the same thing as not liking the man, no. But there's a level of grace I feel like I need to have about this album, and, well, it's taken me a hot second to build up the courage to take a stab at having it. (That, and finally getting sick of the daily reminder emails.) Although, at the same time, it's also led me to worry if I'm defining Syd **too much** by his illness. Y'know, to completely ignore him as a man and an artist in favor of seeing him solely as his mental condition and a tragic figure. Is that not also disrespectful? It's such a tight balancing act to perform, and, well... It's only because I care so much about not being a jerk **and** because I overthink things as much as I do that it's an issue for me. Y'know? I tell yah, it's times like these with my dang auDHD brain... But in the end, I need to keep in mind, I'm not here to write an essay about Syd's life. You're probably not here to read one, if you've even made it this far. All I'm here to do is talk about the music and whether or not I like it — and like I said above, how I feel about it should be irrelevant to how I feel about the man himself. It's a mindset I **have** been able to put myself in before: just look at OAR. I had nothing but sympathy for Alexander Spence and his story, but regardless, I still wasn't huge on his album. And, true, that was an album where I didn't have as much connection to the artist **or** the band he'd been in (Moby Grape), but if I can hold no ill will towards him and still be honest about my feelings on his work, then I can do the same for Syd. It's the least I can do. (That OAR review, by the way? Another one where I talked about how hard this MADCAP LAUGHS review was gonna be.) So, finally, around 700 words in, let's finally talk about this album directly. No more beating around the bush. I'll say this to start: on the whole, it's not too far off from what I've heard before from Syd. I can absolutely see the line straight from PIPER to this. It's just on this album it's a lot more, y'know ramshackle. Lo-fi. A lot closer to raw demo recordings than not in quite a few spots. I mean, there's spots on this album where they've left in the producer talking and calling out take numbers. On one song, you can clearly hear Syd turning over his lyric sheet. Heck, "If It's In You" starts with an aborted take that Syd cuts short because he sings one of the opening notes off-key, only for him to start singing **even further** off-key once he goes again. It's stuff like this where I can understand the opinion that this album might be a bit, y'know, exploitative of Syd? I mean, this record was compiled from multiple sessions with multiple producers over the span of the year, and the fact that there are tracks on here with that stuff left in... It reminds me a lot of The Shaggs' PHILOSOPHY OF THE WORLD, actually, which also has a song that leaves in the producer's take call. It can make you wonder just what kinda two-bit production they're running here that they don't even think to snip that off. For my money, though... I'unno, I think it's interesting, honestly. It pulls me in a bit more to be just hyper aware of the recording like this. Y'know, to just push away any illusions of polish and just wonder what it must've been like for Syd at this time. Which, y'know, that might just be the definition of exploitation, but it's not like this is a very normal album, so... I tell you, I don't think it's for nothing that I bring up The Shaggs' PHILOSOPHY OF THE WORLD, 'coz I feel like they both share some appeal between each other. Of course they're both prime examples of "outsider music," but beyond that, I find myself just so charmed by the childish naïveté they give off. Like, The Shaggs couldn't play their instruments for two bits a'shit, but their simple-ass lyrics were so honest and sincere that it's hard not to like them in spite of their musical incompetence. Meanwhile, Syd (someone who can actually play) has lyrics that are just so... Whimsical. Where, yes n' yeah, it's very easy to read into them to see a darker unbelly, but taking them as they are... Yeah, I don't hear any pretensions in this. This isn't "folk psych hippie" bullshit; it's just the words he wanted to sing to reflect himself, and, yeah, they're nice. And I do like that the music surrounding these lyrics is so simple and lo-fi to match. I mean, if they tried to make these songs sound like "See Emily Play", I just don't think it'd work. The fact that they are presented as-is, mistakes and all, only benefits the words. It's honest, y'know? I mean, like a fellow member of my group, I wanna believe that Syd had at least enough capacity to give the sign off on this. I wanna believe that this wasn't just shit out to have something with Syd's name on it, but rather exactly what he wanted to have out there. And frankly, I'll tell you what: I do believe it. Maybe perhaps just for the sake of not having everyone involved look worse for taking advantage of Syd, but I do hold that belief sincerely. So, color me surprised. 'Coz I'll admit, there was a twinge of doubt I had somewhere in the eight days it took for me to wanna write this review. Not so much a worry necessarily, but the thought that, like, y'know, "What if I don't actually like this album?" I'll stress one more time, that would not reflect on how I felt about Syd himself... But still. Would've been a bit of a bummer, right? Imagine that whole near-700 world preamble being a lead-in for, "Eh... Not really feeling it?" Or worse, "This is actively terrible and I **do not like it**." Like, jeez, way to bring down the mood, huh? But, no, no, I really do like this. I'm not a full 5/5 blown-away by what I heard, but it's good stuff. And it gets me wondering, honestly, just what Syd could have been capable of if his condition hadn't worsened the way it did. If he hadn't gotten to that point when he visited his old band during their WISH YOU WERE HERE sessions, where he'd shaved off all of his hair and gained all that weight. Which is like, I know he didn't keep that weight; he **did** slim down towards the end of his life... But seriously, just imagine where he could have gone from here. Imagine if PIPER, this and its follow-up weren't his only musical statements to the world. Oh, what if, what if... Following this album, Syd would only record one more (which, by Wright's admission, was more about helping him in any way possible more than anything else) and give a few sporadic performances. After that, in 1972, he went to Cambridge to live with his mother, and besides a brief return to London, that's where he stayed the rest of his life. From what I heard, he spent his time painting and gardening, living off of the Pink Floyd royalties that David made sure Syd got. And y'know... I bet he was happy. Probably more so than if he tried to keep on in the industry. As much as I wish and wonder what he could've done if he'd kept on... It was probably for the best. So, one last time: for everything you did and helped inspire, I wanna thank you, Roger. Wherever you are, I hope you're shining on.

Dig Your Own Hole

The Chemical Brothers

4/5

At some point during this album I hadda stop and wonder to myself how I actually wanted to review electronic music like this. Which, y'know, is a question that can drift off into "How do I wanna talk about music as a whole?", but let's stay focused. So, like... Electronic dance music. Big beat. Breakbeat. Whatever other genres this is. This is music, first and foremost (at least how I see it), for the clubs. It's for flashing lights and getting all hot and sweaty, losing yourself on the dance floor, and also drugs. More of a possibility than not drugs. Ecstasy, if I hadda guess. Now, I don't go to clubs. I hardly dance. If I get hot and sweaty doing anything, it's taking a walk in mildly warm weather. And I certainly don't take drugs (and even if I did, my cheese intake would still probably get me first). With all that gone, what exactly does the music itself leave me with — y'know, when I listen to the actual music? And to cut this off at the pass, I don't wanna make it seem like clubgoers wouldn't be paying attention to the music, nor that the Chemical Brothers just slapped this album together to be a pace-setting piece of wallpaper. More, it's just that when you take this kind of music out of its natural environment, what are you left with to chew on? For me, I think it comes down to two things: how much I can lock in with and be hypnotized by the beats, and how well (as with a lot of instrumental music) I can Fantasia to it. And to address the latter first — well, in general how one can Fantasia might more come down to how much imagination someone has b/w their ability to think of things on the fly... But I think I can make it work well enough. It's a fine one to imagine some goings-on to. But then we obviously have the more important side of things. And, like... Yeah, I'd say I can, but it's also where I think I had a revelation about myself and my tastes in electronic dance music: Daft Punk has colored a lot of what I expect out of it, specifically thanks to DISCOVERY. And that's not fair to this album, I know. It's an apples and oranges thing, tryna compare French house nu-disco to English breakbeat big beat. But it's not irrelevant, y'know? 'Coz I feel like with Daft Punk, their songs are always evolving. They never stay in one place forever — I mean, just look at "Around The World" from HOMEWORK. People razz on that thing for its repetitiveness, but if you notice, it has a bunch of different sections and it's always changing. It moves around and it keeps your interest. Versus the Chemical Brothers on this album, where, y'know, I'm not gonna say there's not similar evolution, but, like... It's not **as** noticeable? Especially with some of the longer songs, there are times where you'd be hard pressed to figure out how far away you are from the beginning or the end of the song. And they're good songs, don't get me wrong. I like what I heard here. But it can be a **bit** hard to stay focused when you feel like you're stuck going in a circle, y'know? As well, it doesn't strike me that there's as much variety as there would be on a Daft Punk record. Every song on one of those sounds different from each other, while still fitting into a cohesive whole, whereas here... Besides "Block Rockin' Beats" at the front, it all kind of feels pretty similar, like it's vaguely hovering around the same BPM the entire album without ever going too far over or under. Although, with that said... It doesn't feel like **as** much of a problem as it would be on other albums? I know I just made a big three paragraph deal out of it, but I wanna emphasize that I **do** like the songs on here. They may all have a similar psych-breakbeat tone to them, but it's a damn good tone, and one I enjoy hearing. There's an accessible poppiness to this stuff, while still retaining a lot of the harder integrity you'd want out of this kind of music. And seriously, when it all comes together and hits — fuckin' hell, it's great. Of course "Block Rockin' Beats" stands out as the big example, but I also wanna pay special attention to the album closer, "The Private Psychedelic Reel". It's... Just, wow. It's the best track here, bar none. It's this intriguing, great-ass mix of break and Indian-inspired psych rock... And in fact, it sounds like what I wanted OK by Talvin Singh to sound like. I mean, lemme tell yah: another small nitpick of mine about this kind of music is that, as a girl who tends to latch on to melody over everything else... Well, break**beat** and big **beat** don't exactly have a big focus on that. But with this track, and that little sitar lick it has going on throughout... Oof, yeah, yeah, no, yeah. I'm down for this big time. Don't even care that it's nine minutes; it got its hooks in me, and it got them in **deep**. So, yeah. I might have my quarrels with this kind of electronic music, but overall, it's still good stuff. I gotta give my props to Tom and Ed for putting all together. And, sure, I don't think I'd reach for this as soon as I would a Daft Punk album... I can't say I'd never touch this thing ever again, y'know? So I guess I found what I got out of it. "Block rockin' beats" indeed, goodness.

Vincebus Eruptum

Blue Cheer

5/5

Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge

Mudhoney

4/5

This is another one of those albums where I find myself kinda cursing the fact that I can't ever really find the time to give these things more than one play. I mean, just on a first listen, I can tell that if I had time to let this thing grow on me, I'd really love it. On the same level as, say, NEVERMIND or TEN — no, of course not. But the album stays just so consistently good throughout that I'd hard pressed not to dig it even a little. Really, my only problem with it comes down to the fact that this was my first runthrough of the thing. Diving into unfamiliar territory like this is always a bit hard for my auDHD brain, but it's also a matter of not knowing how to spread out the energy. In an album like this, unless it really clicks with you, it can be hard to not just let it out all at once, in a big, "Yeah, yeah, yeah, this shit rocks!" 'Coz after that's gone, you can spend the rest of the album, y'know, kind of zoned out. Y'know, in a state of mind where you're not exactly **ignoring** the music, but you're not really absorbing it either. You can hear it happening, but it doesn't exactly leave an impact — that sort of deal. And it makes an album that's already twice as long as the last thing I heard from them feel **even longer**. Like, yeah, 42 minutes should be no thing, but when you're in that state of mind... And that's a bummer, 'coz, again, I think the stuff here is pretty good. I know I like it a lot. But I feel myself nodding off during the album, and I hafta wonder if I actually find it that boring — and I know I don't! I'm just running on fumes 'cuz I didn't anticipate how to pace myself! And that's not the album's fault, nor is it really even mine. So, y'know, I won't let it affect my overall rating of the thing, 'coz it's not this thing's fault I have other stuff I wanna listen to in a day. (And that's not even touching on the fact that I'm behind on albums by a few days — heck, I was supposed to have this review out yesterday.) So lemme TL;DR this thing back to the top: is it the toppest tier of Seattle grunge? I wouldn't say so — in fact, I feel it's more punk than grunge, though that's besides the point. The album's got an energy and a quality about it that makes it hard not to put it up there, even if I feel like I need more time with it before I can fully appreciate it. Every album deserves more time, &c. It's a big thumbs-up from me.

Tusk

Fleetwood Mac

4/5

I'll admit, for a good chunk of the day I was having trouble tryna think of exactly what my feelings were about this album. Now, it could've been because I kinda zonked out while I was tryna listen to this thing, so I ended up spending a lot of time chewing and not so much actually tasting... But I think I got it down. To me, you can summarize this album just by the difference between its first two songs. (TUSK!) The album opens with "Over & Over", which, yep, standing in for tracks written by McVee or Nicks... Sure sounds like RUMOURS. And that's far from a bad thing, of course; I love RUMOURS. It just... I don't know. It just doesn't hit exactly the same? Maybe it's missing that polish to the point of near-blinding shine that RUMOURS had, I'unno. It's good, but it doesn't stick out to me in the way that any of the best non-singles on RUMOURS. For sure, as an opener, it's no "Second Hand News". (TUSK!) Then we come to "The Ledge", standing in for what Lindsay Buckingham wrote for this album. And where McVee and Nicks were fine crafting more songs in the vein of RUMOURS, Buckingham... Sure wasn't! I heard he was inspired by a lot of post-punk he was listening to, particularly of the Talking Heads variety, and if I view it under that lens... I suppose it **is** the best post-punk I've heard from this list. After all, you still have those incredible Fleetwood Mac vocals, and his experimentation can pull off some neat stuff every now and then, like the title track. However, on the whole, while none of it's bad, ehhh, I'd be lying if I said I wouldn't have been happy with just more stuff like RUMOURS. (TUSK!) And it's like, I'd wanna judge this album on its own, without forcing it to stand in the shadow of its big sibling. And for sure, it could have stood out more — a fellow group member mentioned BAD and IN UTERO in their discussion, and those are absolutely albums that hold up beyond just being follow-ups. But with TUSK, despite its scope and ambition... I mean, I'unno, maybe it wasn't just because I was zonked out that these songs were slipping off me so easily. And I could go into my "maybes" about how I could have been into it more — maybe if so much of this thing's eventual budget hadn't gone towards cocaine; maybe if Buckingham could've been held back from doing more of his post-punk stuff — but, eh, it is what it is, and I'm not one to judge something for what I thought it could have been. (TUSK!) And all the same, I'd refrain from calling it bad. I'm sure if I were in a better state of mind, I'd have far more praise for these tracks beyond calling them "slightly sub-RUMOURS." 'Coz, hey, "sub-RUMOURS" is still adjacent to RUMOURS, and if you're nearing that level of songwriting at any kind of level... Well, it ain't nothing to sneeze at, I'll tell you that much. (TUSK!)

Disraeli Gears

Cream

3/5

OK, let's get this out of the way right at the top: Eric Clapton is a shit. A bit of a fuck, even. He's a racist and (alongside his buddy Van The Man when the pandemic was in full swing) an anti-masker. He's one of those unfortunates in rock history, where it becomes unfortunate that he's had so much impact, influence and legacy on things despite how much of a terrible, awful, no-good person he'd turned out to be. And he's not the focus here. Like, come on, there's two other people in the band, and I think it does them a disservice to ignore them in favor of using your review as an excuse to shit on Clapton, no matter how deserved said shitting is. So, believe me, it has absolutely nothing to do with my thoughts on Clapton as a person when I say that I honestly found this album a little underwhelming. Like, step back as well as you can from how that fuck exists in the modern day. This album is one of those legends of 60's guitar rock. It was the first step in Clapton gaining his reputation as a guitar god, after all. I mean, goodness, it has "Sunshine Of Your Love"! How does it **not** live up? To be frank, besides "Sunshine Of Your Love", I'm just not impressed by the guitar theatrics. I mean, I listen to this album and I'm left wondering if it's because it's influenced so much that's come later that it's left the original boring, or if the original was just never **that** spectacular to begin with. And, well, I've made my case about the former idea a number of times before, so... Like, y'know, I actually spent a lot of this album thinking about what Clapton's contemporary Jimi Hendrix was doing over on his two 1967 albums, ARE YOU EXPERIENCED and AXIS: BOLD AS LOVE... And, yeah, I kinda wish I was just listening to either of those. And, y'know, to actually talk about the other two members, Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker... They're fine. Despite what I said earlier about ignoring them in favor of focusing entirely on Clapton... Well, I **did** say that I view this album primarily as a legend of rock guitar, so... Yeah. But I mean, it's not like I was hearing them doing anything to catch my attention when the guitar wasn't. It's just boringly fine, without even any obvious flaws to narrow in on. And that's really a bummer for those two, 'coz I know how well-respected they are as players. Heck, I mean, it's debated if Bruce actually played on the title track of Frank Zappa's APOSTROPHE (') album or not, but if he did, then I know I really like him as a bass player. So to come here to the biggest album these two were ever on, then, and not really feel it all that much... Beh, I'unno. And I'm actually not sure if I'm even really all that disappointed. I mean, I knew this album's reputation, but it's not like I held its legend in the same regard as, like, I'unno... Black Sabbath's debut birthing metal. And that's obviously a much bigger legend than this one's status as "one of the all-time 60's guitar albums," but still, right? I ju— I don't know. I can't call this album bad: "Sunshine Of Your Love" still rips, and everything else is perfectly fine. But it's like, "Sunshine Of Your Love" casts such a shadow over the rest of the album that nothing else is really able to match up... And, I mean, besides that one song, I don't know if I'd wanna revisit any of it ever again. Still, a 2 would be too harsh, so... I'unno. Middle-of-the-road 3. The kind I just wish I liked better, more than anything else. (And I also wish Clapton wasn't such a shit. I mean, come on, man, you're responsible for "Layla" **and** that rippin' solo on the Beatles' "While My Guitar Gently Weeps", and **this** is who you are? For shaaaame.)

Close To The Edge

Yes

5/5

Well, damn, there it is: the best album Yes would ever make. I mean, let's not even waste any time here. And, y'know, sure, I've yet to peruse the entire Yes discography; I haven't even heard the one with "Owner Of A Lonely Heart", or the one that I've heard everyone loves, UNION. But I don't think I needa dive too deeply to know that in the pantheon of prog rock albums, this is sitting right up there on Mount Olympus alongside stuff like WISH YOU WERE HERE and IN THE COURT OF THE CRIMSON KING. Honestly, I'm not sure if I even have the words to explain why this album is so great. Like, if there's any prog album where I feel like I could just gesture to it and go "Yeh, roight?"... It's, like, this and DARK SIDE OF THE MOON, y'know? I mean, these are just three of the best things this band would ever compose and perform. Melodically, it's so fuckin' good. Jus', ahh. AHH. There's passages in here that are damn **beautiful**. I could listen to them forever, I swear. Particularly the part of the title track that goes "I get up, I get down" and... Y'know, jus', so much of the track "And You And I". That might be the best track on the album, by my measure. Goodness me, I swear. You know what this album is like? If you're not aware, this was originally released in a gatefold vinyl. See, y'might've looked at the cover and gone, "That's it? It's just a green gradient?" Well, that's not all. You're supposed to open this album like a book, and inside you'll find this inner spread illustrated by Roger Dean, depicting this fantastical landscape... This music feels like you're exploring that. Like you're living in that little house you can see, and y'take your boat out on the water, close your eyes, and slowly breathe in the fresh air, at peace with everything around you... Maybe that's a bit hyperbolic, but that's seriously close to how I feel listening to parts of "And You And I", so it's not like I'm bullshitting you here. And I could go on, I really could. But seriously, words can do nothing that just listening to this album wouldn't. I mean, if you're not a fan of prog... Well, I doubt anything was gonna do it for you, so, y'know, sorry about that. For anyone else with a bit more of an open mind for this kind of music... Believe me: it's not just indulgences. It's not just wankery for the sake of showing off technical profession. It's just a simply amazing album, lacking even a single wasted moment. Do yourself a favor: go grab a PNG of the inner spread, put some headphones on, and just explore. You will not be sorry. To all the people whose review of this album is just "No" (so clever, by the way)... Why you gotta be negative? I say, give "yes" a chance! It's a word with a glorious ring! A true universal, utopious thing! Engenders embracing and chasing of blues! The very best word for the whole world to use! In short: great album.

Miriam Makeba

5/5

If there was any reason I felt like being judgy about this album right off the bat, it had nothing to do with Miriam Makeba herself. The day my group got this album, I briefly skimmed her Wikipedia page and she seemed like a wonderful and fascinating individual. I mean, I don't think one would get the nickname "Mama Africa" for nothing, y'know? So I have no beef with her. No, no, no, for me, it all came down to that quote on the cover. Like, question for the cover maker, and it's "Aw, yeah?" Did you really think you needed to pre-emptively sell me this artist with a blurb from TIME on the cover? Is this a book? Or some "Game Of The Year" release? I'm jus'— dang, I ain't never seen nothing like that before. And I wouldn't'a hated the album just because of it, but goodness me. And of course, I didn't. I mean, this is an album babble, right? Not an album **cover** babble. Let's get on point. 'Coz... I mean, the quote isn't wrong. Far from being wrong, actually. Miriam Makeba is a beautiful singer. And it's like, I already knew African-language vocals could be amazing based on the sporadic encounters I've had with it, but being filtered through her voice... Yeah. It's incredible. Her voice is so good, in fact, that it helps distract from the fact that there's not really a whole else going on with this album compositionally. Which, y'know, maybe sparse arrangements like this are just truer to South African music than it's not (I'm certainly a dumb Canadian who wouldn't know), and I'm not blaming the album for choosing to place so much focus on Miriam's voice, but I'unno. If I hadn't been paying as much attention as I had, I think it would've been easy for all of the songs to start running together. I mean, the album plays its full hand of tricks very early on, and besides the laughing on "One More Dance", there's usually not much variety. Heck, the speaker I was listening to this album on, it sounded like nearly the entire thing was a capella. This isn't even that big of a complaint; it's just a little "huh" is all. 'Coz otherwise, yeah, it's real good stuff. And, like... It's just so nice to get another piece of so-labelled "world" music from this list again. I mean, the last time my group got something labelled "world," it was that damn Koffi Olomide album — y'know, an hour straight of music for cruise ship commercials. Between that and the Jah Wobble album my group got early on, "world" has unfairly been placed as one of my bottom three genres. And so, y'know, it's really nice to get an album this good and remind myself that I **do** really like it whenever we get music from outside the usual stops in America and the UK, to focus in on specific cultural sounds like Indian classical and this. So, yeah. An amazing voice singing this language beautifully... Even if I would want a bit more instrumental variety, I can hardly complain too much. It's just great — I hafta agree with the quote. And of course, I do hope Mama Africa's been resting in peace.

The Joshua Tree

5/5

"Where The Streets Have No Name" is one of my favorite album openers of all time. No question about it. I mean, let's just cut to the chase, huh? With that beautiful synth fade-in and the arpeggiated guitar that soon joins it, crashing into the anthemic main portion, over which Bono passionately sings about... Y'know, I don't even know what, but with how he's singing it, and with how huge the band's going... It just sounds like the most important thing in the world, y'know? The most meaningful, inspiring thing in the world. It's just fuckin' amazing. And you follow that up with "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking Far" — a slower burn, but no less huge feeling. It has this soulful vibe to it, to where I'm not surprised that for the live tour (as captured in RATTLE & HUM) they straight up had a gospel choir backing them. And that version is the best, but the original ain't no slouch. Every time the title line hits, I can't help but do this slow groove to it... It's great, I swear. Another winner of a soundscape, I'm tellin' yah. "With Or Without You" comes after, and from the moment that little chime-y keyboard riff starts up, all the way to Bono's big "OOOOH" three minutes in... It's all about the tension, y'know? Building and building and building until you have that final release at the end there. I mean, it doesn't even have a traditional verse-chorus structure; it's just all about mounting tension until it explodes. And it's **glorious**. No wonder it's U2's second-most covered song, huh? And with that little "ooo" close to the end, backed with The Edge's sustained, whining little notes... Swear to goodness, honestly. And right on its heels is "Bullet The Blue Sky", without a doubt the biggest "rocker" on the album — and the song where they got the title for their oh-so-infamous concert film and live album. It's just a hard-ass song, I'm telling you. The drums pound like it ain't nobody's business, the bass grooves like hell, the guitar screeches across the track when it's not filling in the atmosphere, and Bono... Well, he has his little monologue at the end (a Bonologue, if you will), but it does nothing to take away from the track. **Especially** with that little guitar line/solo that plays in-between segments. Then the rest of the album happens, and, uh, it's good stuff. Yeah. Pretty dang good. I like it all well enough. It's just, uh, y'know, that nothing else on the album hits the high those first four songs do. Thus, we come to why I had a paragraph each to the album's first four songs. 'Coz I'll admit, in a way this album feels a bit frontloaded? I mean, those are all just monsters of songs, among the greatest and most famous U2 would ever do. It's like, I realize this structure isn't exactly fair to the songs that come afterwards, like "Trip Through Your Wire" and "One Tree Hill", but I mean, when your album **starts** with "Where The Streets Have No Name"... Y'know, no matter how good the rest of it is, it's still downhill, so matter how slight. Like, if there's anything I've come to realize about myself and this album across this listen, it's that: just how much I define it by those first four songs. I mean, if there aren't times where I just play 'em in reverse order, ignoring everything else. Heck, sometimes I just start on "With Or Without You" and go from there. These songs, and honestly them alone, are **why** I consider this album one of the all-timers of the 80's, among the likes of Michael Jackson's THRILLER and such. Just an absolute cornerstone of popular music in this era — and based solely on a quarter of the album. So allow me to show some respect to the seven other songs on the album, then — and at the same time, I'll explain why this is my favorite U2 album. 'Coz on the one hand, it kind of feels like it shouldn't? I imagine a bigger U2 fan might have this album in their top three or five, but not at the time of the pile. The way I figure it, they'd probably tend more towards WAR, where the band's punkier and more righteously angry. Meanwhile, here on THE JOSHUA TREE, the band's sound is a lot softer thanks to the Americana influence they're pulling from. Believe me, there's no "Sunday Bloody Sunday" or "New Year's Day" here. All the same, though, it's kind of why I like THE JOSHUA TREE as much as I do? Which might make me sound like a **FILTHY CASUAL**, but hear me out. I believe that allowing their sound to soften like this is what allows these songs to sound as grand and, well, anthemic as they do. Not that "Sunday Bloody Sunday" couldn't, but I'unno, the songs on THE JOSHUA TREE just hit different, y'know? With the quietness of "Running To Stand Still", and the swing and harmonica of "Trip Through Your Wires", [&c.]... Again, none of these hit the highs of the first four songs, but they're so consistently strong that it hardly brings the album down. Not to mention, compared to U2's more recent works... Well, there's still an energy to these songs. I mean, if you think **these songs** are soft, go check something off of ALL THAT YOU CAN'T LEAVE BEHIND. That stuff's soft enough as to almost be imperceptible. Take it: I can remember songs like "One Hill Tree" and "Red Hill Mining Town". The outro to the former will always stick out to me. I doubt I could remember any song on ALL THAT YOU CAN'T LEAVE BEHIND, even the moment after they happen. So, yeah, while the majority of the album might live in the shadow of its opening run, let's not get it twisted. This is, without a doubt in my mind, some of the absolute best music U2 would ever make. They didn't do two tours of this album (in 2017 and 2019) for nothing. Like I said, it's an absolute cornerstone of 80's music, as much like Kate Bush and HOUNDS OF LOVE, I can't imagine a better album to exit this group on. In short: well, dang, if I ain't found what **I'm** looking for.

Tarkus

Emerson, Lake & Palmer

4/5

Oh, Emerson, Lake & Palmer. If prog rock ever had whipping boys... Like, believe me, if there's any group in the world that represents the platonic idea of everything the average person would hate about the genre, I think they'd be imagining these three. Y'know, with all the long-ass songs, and the classical music influence, and the how they seem to value showing off their technical playing proficiency over everything else. I mean, goodness, these guys have a live album adapting a classical piano suite, PICTURES AT AN EXHIBITION. All that, and they don't even have the decency to have any big hits to ease themselves onto audiences like Genesis, Yes, King Crimson and Pink Floyd do. If there's any band to point to for why punk rock happened... And, I mean, I don't have the experience with ELP to necessarily defend them against any of that. Before now, I've only heard, like, one album of theirs (BRAIN SALAD SURGERY), and besides that and this album, the only other ones I can name are the Modest Mussorgsky adaptation and stupid LOVE BEACH. I'll admit, as much as I do love myself a bit of prog, their reputation has kept me from wanting to dive too deeply into their catalogue. Y'know, why take a chance on a band routinely clowned on like this, when Pink Floyd and Yes are right there? But still, prog is far from a bad word for me, so I think it'd be worthwhile to give these guys their due. After all, I **did** like BRAIN SALAD SURGERY the one or two times I've heard it — I can't imagine this album falling anywhere too far below that that I'd call it "bad," y'know? What do we have here, then? Well, in the vein of albums like Rush's 2112 and Pink Floyd's ATOM HEART MOTHER, we have a record primarily focused on the title track suite presented on the first side and backed with some random others on the B. Y'know, where Rush have "Something For Nothing" and Pink Floyd have "If", ELP have "Are You Ready Eddy?". It's a set-up that's worked before, so on the onset I couldn't imagine ELP doing anything that terrible within it. Let's take each side as they come. "Tarkus"... Well, it sure is a prog rock suite alright! It's long and has all of the keyboard-based noodling I've come to expect from such things. Listen to Emerson go! He can sure play a lot of notes fast — and in complex time signatures, too, I'm sure! Like, I already sound like I'm underplaying this suite; I'll be clear: I don't dislike it. It comes across as typical prog to my ears, but it's still proggy goodness. I can't say I'm not satisfied by it, even if it doesn't excite on the same level as, like, "Close To The Edge" or any of the songs off of SELLING ENGLAND BY THE POUND. Ultimately one of those "it's not the first thing I'd reach for, but it'd do in a pinch" deals. That'll take us to the B-side of the record, and... Yeah, like I said: it sure has "Are You Ready Eddy?" That's the easiest one to pick on by a margin and half, but, y'know, it's fine, honestly. It's a bit of goofy fun to close the album on, and I don't think I can be that hard on it. And, y'know, "fine" is how I'd describe the rest of the side, too. Nothing's bad; it's just... I'unno. I can't act like I'm too crazy about any of these songs in particular. I will say, though, that it **does** solidify for me how much I enjoy the keyboard focus of the group. I love myself some good keys, and while these ain't the best ones I've ever heard, but they do good. So... Yeah, that's TARKUS, I guess. A very enjoyable prog album, but far from one I'd rave about as an all-timer. Like, I'unno, if you're the kinda person who'd rate "I HATE" on a Pink Floyd shirt, this'll do the opposite of convince you not to. For someone like me who eats it up, though, well, I feel like I could do worse than ELP, and I mean that as the biggest compliment I can.

Ocean Rain

Echo And The Bunnymen

4/5

Y'know, this book really should find itself some more genre labels so that it can stop calling things post-punk. I mean, all it ever does for me is immediately get me to assume the worst about whatever I'm about to hear, no matter what Wikipedia says the album actually contains. I was scarred badly enough by Public Image Ltd.'s METAL BOX that even if I do end up liking the album, I always attribute it to something else besides "post-punk," allowing me to go on assuming the worst the next time a post-punk album shows up. And there have been **way too many** of those, let me tell you... This album's a prime example of that. 'Coz, y'know, honest to goodness, I **did** like it — quite a bit, quite a lot. I wouldn't say enough to give it a full 5 outta 5, but I am happy I heard it — and not 'coz I'd think of this thing as post-punk, no. It's because I'd choose to remember it as symphonic neo-psychedelia. I love symphonic shit so much. Not, like, actual "classical music" symphonic shit, no. But when it plays or backs up rock or pop music... Oh, it can be the best thing ever. S&M ain't one of my top favorite Metallica albums of all time for nothing. So to hear that kind of stuff all over with this album, affording it a level of gravitas I just would not have had the patience to allow this album otherwise... Goodness me, I dig it. Especially those last four tracks. The first record side's worth is fine, but between those last four, and **particularly** those last two... Oof, yeah, no, goodness. Really, the only thing I wanna knock this album for, and why I'd firmly stuck on a 4, is just that... Well, even if I'm more willing to accept the gravitas of the tracks, there's still this air of "**YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO TAKE THIS MUSIC VERY SERIOUSLY**" about it that I just can't gel with. Blame it on the mood of most of these songs, or the way the guy sings 'em... Like, **that's** the most post-punk thing about it, if you ask me. That whole attitude, y'know? And it gets me feeling like I wouldn't be reaching for this first if I wanted a kick of symphonic neo-psychedelia. Maybe the live orchestrated version of THE SOFT BULLETIN? I'unno. But on the whole, yeah, it's a lot better than the post-punk label would've led me to believe. In fact, it's kind of crazy to think that this thing came out in 1984; I mean, I gotta agree with a group mate that this sounds like it should've come out in the 90's, at the earliest. That's another point in its favor, I guess, but overall, yeah, yeah. A thumbs up and a seal of approval from me. Now watch me forget all about this the next time I see the words "post-punk" pop up.

John Prine

5/5

I think if I came into this album with no extra knowledge about it, knowing nothing but this guy's name, I probably still would have liked it. I mean, it's country music, y'know? Sure, yeah, it's a bit folksier than usual, but there's still a pedal steel guitar hangin' around. Just on a sound and aesthetic level, I would've given it a thumbs up. But I ended up reading a quote on the album's Wikipedia page from Bob Dylan, where he said that John Prine was one of his favorite writers. And I'm thinking, "Oh, yeah? He **is** now, is he? Well, just allow me, someone who can barely pay attention to or understand lyrics, be the judge of that!" Like, if he's so good that Dylan is singing his praise, and y'also got Kris Kristofferson saying that he writes like he has 220 years of experience... Well, **is** he **that good**? Yeah, I'd say so. Off the top, I feel like I'd wanna call this guy the "country Bob Dylan." After all, he's certainly got the voice for it, and I don't think his topics are too far off from what Dylan would sing about. But then, here's the big difference between the two of them, and why I honestly like this guy's album a lot more than any Dylan I've heard: I can understand the lyrics. Which, I know, I've gone on before about how I worry about seeming unintelligent or shallow about not getting Dylan's big, important, scholarly poetry — but dammit, like with Tracy Chapman, sometimes it's just nice to get what the words are saying. And while Prine isn't as direct as Chapman; he's still pretty poetic, I can actually get into what he's saying and feeling the words. And I suppose part of that comes from Prine being way more of a country artist than a folk singer-songwriter. The folk singer-songwriter types, they wanna be **deep, man**, so they're often a little obtuse in what they're actually trying to say. Meanwhile, with country — well, at least this older kind of country music, it's all about stories, so on a level they can't be too unclear. And, well, also, as someone who loves a bit of story in their music... So, yeah, y'know, these are just good stories. Great stories, even, that really touch on something. Like, if he's missing the pure poetics of folk singer-songwriters, then for sure, he's still got the sound like what he's singing about is very important. And heck, some of it is even still relevant to this day — I can't begin to think of how many people I think should hear "Your Flag Decal Won't Get You Into Heaven". Jus',goodness. I never woulda guessed how much I would end up liking this album, but damn, does John Prine have a way with words. Put them over some good pedal steel and fiddle, and, damn, if this ain't a real winner and a half. Just makes it all the sadder to find out that he passed away only five years ago, from complications thanks to gawdamm COVID-19. It's clear just from this alone how much of a talent he was, and, dang it, even at 73 he was taken away far too soon. Hope you had a good time when you got to Heaven, Prine.

Chore of Enchantment

Giant Sand

1/5

Off the top of my head, I have a word of advice for Howe Gelb and Giant Sand: you probably shouldn't include the word "chore" anywhere in your album title. You're just asking for people to lob it back at you in reviews if the album doesn't deliver. Hell, it's like you're setting yourself up on a tee and personally handing people the bat. And believe me — I am perfectly willing to swing away. Although, I'll admit up top: this almost wasn't that bad. **Almost**. Instrumentally speaking, there's not too much wrong with this album. It's perfectly passable folk-ish alt. rock adult contemporary whatever. I can imagine if I wasn't paying too close attention to the album, and just taking it off of vibes... Y'know, I wouldn't have rated it too highly, but I still would've come out of it feeling more positive about the whole endeavor than I actually did. Like, I wanna stress that the actual musicians on this thing aren't the problem. No, no, no. The problem with this album is Howe Gelb. If there's any single element that drags nearly every track down into being obnoxiously sleepy and dull, it's him and his "singing." Goodness me, the man's vocals on this album. And, y'know, I get it. I totally get what he was going for here. He's trying some kind of Nick Cave/Leonard Cohen, fried "noir vocals" kind of thing. He's delivering everything in his kind of husked whisper, only barely ever sniffing at actually singing, because, dammit, his lyrics are just **so poetically good and important** that it **deserves** a **serious delivery**. That kind of thing, y'know? I get it. I can see people being into that kind of thing, without any of the sarcastic emphasis I'd put into describing it. And to be 100, I wouldn't say these are the worst vocals I've heard from any album on this list. By technical margins, the likes of Bob Dylan and Neil Young are probably worse. But then, the thing about them is that, even if I have my reservations about singer-songwriters and their "poetry before anything else" style, I can accept that **what** they're saying is more important than how they sound saying it. True, I'll never **understand** what exactly they mean, but I know it has to be (and certainly feels like) **something**. Hell, their voices are certainly unique anyway; you'll never hear another artist who sounds like them. But then we have Howe Gelb. Where, if he **is** saying anything in his flowery-shit lyrics, it certainly isn't enough to overcome his vocal deficiencies. And, y'know, when you pair that together **with** lyrics that sound like they're trying way too hard to be **deep** and **serious** and **meaningful** and **poetic, maaaaaan**... Yeah, no, fukkit, I'll say it: he sounds pretentious. Like a big, pretentious dip. This music plays and I'm supposed to be hearing the deserts of Tucson, Arizona. A city in the middle of nowhere surrounded by sand and sand and sand and maybe a rock but mostly sand. But that's not the image I get in my mind. All **I** end up imagining is what I think Howe Gelb looks like, with a trilby hat and thin-rimmed glasses, and a grey scarf loosely thrown twice around his neck, and a barely grown mustache and facial stubble. I can only imagine him sitting on a high stool with his guitar, leaning so close to the microphone that it looks like he's about to try and fit it in his mouth... And he only barely avoids mumbling out the words, 'coz dammit, he's a **serious artist and a poet**, and **serious artists and poets** delivery their **serious art and poems** in **serious tones of voice**. Give me a fuckin' break. And, y'know, I hate to assume too much about people based on their art. Way back when, I determined I couldn't call the guy from The Gun Club racist just because he chose to use the N-word twice on two songs on FIRE OF LOVE, and believe, in a better world I wouldn't be assuming Howe Gelb was an underground indie hipster dip. But I cannot stress to you the extent to which he's the thing that ruins every song on this album — except, of course, for the ones where he barely features vocally on them. Like, I— I don't wanna be too mean here, 'coz there **are** scattered moments here and there where it... **Almost** works? "No Reply" gets pretty close. And there's some bits of production throughout that are kind of interesting. And again, the band's doing their best. But then Howe Gelb drops down into his whisper again to rattle off some more inane lyrics and gaaaaaaawd. I cannot recall the last time I've wondered this much why an album was placed in this book. Like, what contributions were so gungho about this thing that **this** got placement over a dozen or so other albums that I'd argue are way more worthy of being here. And that's not a prelude to a big "WHERE'S MADVILLAINY?" rant or anything; more, it's just "What was I **supposed** to hear in this? What was supposed to have made this thing worth my time that I **had** to hear it before I died?" Evidently, it couldn't have been much, given that I've heard this thing doesn't even feature in more recent editions. And I am just not disinclined to agree with that removal. Well, that leaves only one thing left to figure out: where exactly at the bottom this thing falls. And, y'know, about a 1. I try to be **incredibly** sparing with those. In over 500 albums, I've only handed out six total — and honestly, I'm not even sure if some of those should even have 1's. 'Coz in my mind, it's something you **really** have to earn. You have to be just so bereft of merit or redeeming value, that there's just no possible justification for listening to it. DEVIL WITHOUT A CAUSE was poser "trailer trash/pimp cowboy" rap metal sung by a rich white boy. HAUT DE GAMME was the soundtrack to commercials for cheap cruises. OUR AIM IS TO SATISFY is the most nothing record I've heard in a long time. PSYCHOCANDY was literally a pain to listen to. And does Giant Sand fall among those ranks? 'Coz again, there **are** moments I dig, even in spite of Howe Gelb's belief that his poetry is just, ugnh, so **big and important**. Am I so cruel as to condemn the entire album just because of that one element? ...Eh, fukkit. Congrats, Giant Sand. You're in some elite company now, y'know — hell, you're only the seventh artist or band to be let into this club. And, sure, maybe someday in the future I'll think back on this review and feel like I was a bit too harsh. I've done as much with CHOCOLATE STARFISH, and that's by far a worse album. But y'know what? I get enjoyment out of CHOCOLATE STARFISH. There's things about that album where I would honestly listen to some of its songs again. That's not the case with your album. There's nothing on here I'd come back to — because, yes, I'll say it since you were begging for it: it is very much a damn chore.

Horses

Patti Smith

3/5

Y'know, I gotta agree with a fellow group member of mine. I would not exactly call this a punk album — at least not by how I would typically define one. Oh, sure, the energy is largely there, and I'm not saying punk music **has** to be "three chords and the truth" like The Clash or the Ramones... But if there's anything I'd feel like I'd define this album as, it's a 70's singer-songwriter album that certainly rocks way harder than most other albums in that lane. And as a 70's singer-songwriter album, it comes with my usual issue: I'm a big dummy who can't understand the lyrics. Whatever Patti Smith's saying here, I can't even begin to parse it out, nor do I really have the interest to sit down and comb through and analyze the lyrics one-by-one. Obviously, this is just a "me" problem and doesn't necessarily reflect back on how well the album is written. I'm just saying, in terms of discussing it from a lyrical standpoint, I'm among the last people you'd wanna ask. I think I'm only slightly above people who just can't read, period. So, I'm left to take this pretty much entirely from a musical perspective, and this is where I'll give it some points above most 70's singer-songwriter albums. Unlike a lot of albums of that ilk, there's actually stuff going on. It's not some acoustic guitar folk plonk-along whatever-the-shit, and it doesn't just go in circles like even the best of Dylan's electric stuff can end up. There's parts, and they move. Once more and again, there's an energy to them. But all the same... I'unno, I just found it a little hard to really gel with these. Maybe it's 'coz I woke up wrong, or 'coz I just spent most of my mental energy writing a different album review before tackling this one... But for most of the album, I just wasn't with it. For "Gloria"? Sure, I'll rock that at least half the day. But something like "Land"? Oh, especially when you have no idea what's supposed to be going on in the lyrics, it just never ends. Like, are we **sure** that was only nine minutes and not **twenty**? Maybe if this was full-on punk instead of this artsier, garage rock thing I'd be more engaged with it... And, tff, I'unno. This is one of those big, heavily influential albums where I feel like I should be more into it, and I'm slightly disappointed that I'm not, but... Eh, wha'cha gonna do? Just wasn't my vibe. I'll give it the benefit that if I **was** more interested in understanding the lyrics I'd probably like it better, but as it stands... Yeah. It's not bad, but these ain't horses I'd wanna run with too often.

Born To Run

Bruce Springsteen

5/5

Way back way, the second album my 1001 Albums group had ever gotten was Bruce Springsteen's DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN. In the 35 word review I wrote for it, I made a point to mention that I preferred BORN TO RUN to it — which was actually a typo. Later on, I clarified in my review/babble of BORN IN THE U.S.A. that I actually preferred, well, BORN IN THE U.S.A.to DARKNESS, and that I'd simply gotten my "borns" backwards. To that point, I hadn't even **heard** BORN TO RUN yet! I'd like to make one more amendment. It turns out I was right the first time: I actually **do** prefer BORN TO RUN to DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN. In fact, I prefer it to BORN IN THE U.S.A., because this... Oh, this. Where do I even begin with this? This is the greatest album Bruce Spriungsteen's ever made. Let me be just absolutely clear and blunt about it. And, yeah, sure, I've still yet to hear everything he'd ever put out. I've never even taken a trip to NEBRASKA. But if you had heard what I'd just heard, you'd be making that confident-ass assessment, too. I don't even know where to begin with specifics. I almost wanna go over this album track by track, gushing about each and every one, and it's only because another member of my group has already done it that I'm refraining. (Wanna keep my take unique among the lot, y'know?) But that's just how good this album is; that every song included, even the closest thing to a dud ("She's The One"), is worth individual consideration. I haven't felt like doing that with an album since David Bowie's HUNKY DORY. In the absence of a song-by-song analysis, then, let me say this: this is the platonic idea of Bruce Springsteen. "Classical Bruce Springsteen," even. Everything you'd expect him to sound like is on this album, and it's the best version of all those sounds. No frills, no fluffs — just the primest cuts. I mean, goodness, even BORN IN THE U.S.A. still had those 80's cheese synths all over them, y'know? And I love those synths, but seriously — **seriously**. The album's composed of all these back-to-back-to-back, larger than life epics of songs, and none more so than "Jungleland". I'll go out on a limb about this, too: best song in Springsteen's career, probably. This is a nine minute song that's just as big as it needs to be to justify a runtime like that, and keep in mind that pretty much a whole third of the track is dedicated to a rippin' sax solo. I'm just floored, honestly. I'm nearly speechless and only barely keeping what gushing I can push out to some kind of structure. It's just... This is the kind of album legends are made from. It might not have been the one to make him a worldwide star, but this, right here, far as I can tell, is where The Boss became The Boss. And if there's any Springsteen albums on this list... Well, dang, I'm gonna have a hard time saying I prefer any of them to this.

Hypocrisy Is The Greatest Luxury

The Disposable Heroes Of Hiphoprisy

2/5

Allow me to be just, like, incredibly blunt to start this review/babble off: this album is **boring**. It's the closest I have come in a **long time** to just straight-up falling asleep during a listening session, no fooling. And believe me, there's only so much I can blame on having a wonky sleep schedule and an AuDHD brain. Which, I'll tell you, none of my complaints have anything to do with the lyrical content. Or not much, at least — see, I like me a bit of fiery, socially conscious hip hop. I dig Public Enemy, and I can jam the fuck out to Rage Against The Machine any day. I love a good lyric taking a black or just generally colored look at the state of the States and tearing them down for everything they're worth — especially these days, goodness. So, y'know, it's not like I'm disagreeing with what the rapper on this is saying. Besides the couple of passages I picked up on that leaned a bit too close to Speech of Arrested Development's preachiness for my taste, I'm all for it. No, no, the problem simply comes down to... Everything else. I mean, let me walk you through my experience with the first three tracks: "Satanic Reverses"? Oh, it's got a fine-ass beat, and this rapper reminds me of, like, Gill-Scott Heron, or a slightly laid-back Chuck D. It's a fine flow and delivery, with quite a few words I like. I'm thinking this could be a good album! "Famous And Dandy (Like Amos And Andy)" — for some reason, the delivery here, particularly on the refrain, reminded me a lot of Godforbid from That Handsome Devil. And, hey, I'm me a fan of THD, so I'm not complaining. It's a catchy little refrain, anyway, so, hey, that's another good track in the bag. I'm thinking this could be a **great** album! Then we hit "Television, The Drug Of The Nation". This was the big single released from the album, so it had a lot to live up to in terms of selling this thing. And for a moment there — yeah, I can jive with it. There's maybe a few lyrics here or there I'm not 100% into, but, y'know, OK... OK... Sure, OK... Yeah... It's still going... It's still going... It's still going... It's still goi— holy fuck, this song is **SIX-AND-A-HALF MINUTES**? And there we come to the big problem: this album's **LENGTH**. Which, OK, sure, it's not like Public Enemy (the main point of comparison here) have always made short albums. One of their masterworks, FEAR OF A BLACK PLANET, is slightly over 50 minutes. But then, that album has a lot of tracks, each one with a unique beat and, of course, Chuck D's militant delivery, backed up by Flava Flav's goofier, hype man thing. Meanwhile, Disposable Heroes is too serious to have a Flava Flav, the rapper sounds like everything he's saying is just **SUPER IMPORTANT, MAAAN**, and besides maybe one or two of the things, I could not tell you one beat from another. Starting with "Television", the album just hits this... Malaise, I guess. In my mind, the rapper's voice sinks deep into the beats and the beats just become noise. They all blend together, all at the same tempo and pulling the same kind of tricks... And seriously, if I have one other problem with the words besides an occasionally preachy bar, goodness me, this man will **NOT STOP REPEATING HIMSELF**. Maybe that's why these songs can go on for as long as they do, and ultimately feel twice as long. At a point, it felt like a chore to keep going with this, and I kept checking my phone to see how much longer it'd be until the end. And if I'm actively looking for when the thing's gonna be over... Yeah, y'might've goofed your album a little. The only song I managed to tune back into, at least a little, was "California Über Alles", and only because I'm such a fan of Dead Kennedys and that song. It was the one track I was looking for to the whole album, 'coz maybe, **just maybe**, Jello Biafara could inject something interesting...? Nooooope. I appreciate the sample and flip and everything, but at that point, I was so past being assed to care... Frankly, nothing could've brought me back, I don't think. Y'know, I did have some hope for this thing, honestly. Again, I like me some Public Enemy, so something in their lane should've been my shit. But it can be and, for me, is an interminably boring album. An endless 90 minutes of this man dictating to you over what sounds like maybe 5 different beats, tops. Quite frankly, this might be one of my least favorite hip hop or rap albums I've heard so far from this list. Only by the virtue of me liking the first two tracks and these guys not being Kid fucking Rock is it not the absolute worst (and also by the fact that I'm pretty sure if I would've liked the lyrics if everything else could've kept me zoned in enough to hear them). It's one I easily could've gone without hearing, and believe me, I probably won't again. Now, if you'll excuse me, "Fight The Power" and the original "California Über Alles" are waiting for me right over there.

The Slim Shady LP

Eminem

4/5

Oh, boy. **This guy**. Y'know, right off the top, I feel like I wanna ask one question: y'all realize he was doing this on purpose, right? Like, y'know, saying all this awful shit just to make you mad? He's pretty obviously playing a character here. I mean, to every review I saw on this website that condemned this thing and gave it a 1 outta 5 for being offensive to women and the LGBTQ+ community... You realize you're playing right into his hand, right? If that's your entire reason for giving it a 1, you may as well be handing him a gold medal and telling him "Good job." Which, I don't say any of that to invalidate people's feelings on this thing's lyrical content, or to give Em an excuse and an out for it. 'Coz, obviously, if you say a lot of awful shit with a wink and a nod, you're still... Y'know, saying a lot of awful shit? It's like Todd In The Shadows demonstrated: if you hit your hand with a hammer "ironically," it still hurts. The whole "he's playing a character" thing can only take him so far to cover his ass for it. And certainly, there area **lot** of white boys out there who either didn't realize this was a character, or plain didn't care. I'll tell you, I've seen enough modern-day trolls in my time... And certainly **these days**. But from my perspective, I don't think you win against a troll by telling them the shit they said is awful and hateful. They know that; they wouldn't be saying any of it if they knew it wouldn't get a reaction out of people. So for me, I'm not gonna rate this album for **what** he's saying — I'm gonna rate it for **how** he said it. Y'know, does any of this shit even still hit? Or, in 2025, does this stuff hardly even register? Well, I gotta be 100 here. As much as I empathize with people who find this material offensive and don't believe him "playing a character" gives him a pass for any of it... I've gotta be real: I can't say I didn't enjoy it. It's like Em has said about this album: it's a horror movie. A slasher flick, really. I mean, I don't watch Jason hack up a bunch of teenagers and think the filmmakers are literally endorsing it, right? I'm not Roger Ebert here. This album just goes so damn far over-the-top with how offensive it is, and with how much of an absolute asshole Slim Shady is, that it wraps around on itself. It's such a cartoon and unserious that, yeah, I do personally find it hard to honestly get mad at it. I think part of it is just, like, time. Like, seriously, my answer to the question "In 2025, does this still hit or does it not register?" is "...Yes?" This material is 26 years old. I don't really have it in me to get too pissed about something that came out when I was 1. And taken in the light of Em's later career, knowing how he'd strip away the character and come to reanalyze it and its legacy in various ways... Well, some of those analyses are better than others (lookin' at you, DEATH OF SLIM SHADY). Here's what I wanna take from it, though: this is still some of the best stuff he's ever rapped. Now, look, this is far from his best album. For me, THE EMINEM SHOW and both THE MARSHALL MATHERS LP and its sequel top this, handily. But in a world where most of Eminem's material these days is overwritten dad jokes, it can be nice to appreciate a time where he was a lot more clever about it. Y'know, it's pretty juvenile a lot of the time, but the way he writes and delivers these darkly absurd lines and stories is just so interesting and engaging. Like, as a rapper, he's done better, but this is still some peak form. When he says he's ill enough to straight-up diss you for no reason... I buy it. And I wanna take an aside here to say that it's not all just absurdities. There's one or two spots where Em lets the mask slip a bit to speak more honestly about his poverty at the time. "Rock Bottom" is frankly one of the best songs on the album because of it. And then you've got a song like "'97 Bonnie & Clyde", where... I mean, if this album is supposed to be a horror movie, that song is where it steps away from being a slasher towards something... Well, a bit more unnerving. Like, honest to goodness, even accepting the unseriousness of this album, it can still get to you. Like, just that he had his actual daughter feature on it... Goodness. (And, y'know, there's a whole conversation you can spin off from "'97 Bonnie & Clyde" about how Em raps about his wife... But then THE MARSHALL MATHERS LP is also on this list, and that has a song directly titled "Kim" and it's like, goodness me, if you think **this** is bad... So, y'know, I'll save my thoughts 'til then. (And jeez, I don't even know if I'm gonna have any time in either of these to bring up how he talked about his **mother**...)) Also, real quick, before the end, I wanna take a little time to finally mention the beats themselves. Yeah, in all the talk about Em's lyrics, it can be easy to ignore the beat work done by the Dust Brothers, Dr. Dre, and even Em himself. And are these the best beats Em's ever had? No. And believe me, in the right scenario the one for "I Just Don't Give A Fuck" would be downright intolerable. But on the whole, they range from good to fine enough. Like, honestly, it kinda peaks with "My Name Is", y'know. THE SLIM SHADY LP isn't an easy album to love. It's crass, it's juvenile, it's offensive... It's Em playing the villain on purpose and repeatedly poking at you to get mad. And people did, just as there were so many white boys ready to take this shit at face value. But if you can somehow put yourself in the right mind to not take any of this seriously at all, and to view it as just entertainment — which I really understand that not everyone can... I mean, it's not Em's first or second most iconic album for nothing. He wouldn't have dedicated an entire album to killing off Slim if it wasn't such a large part of his legacy, y'know? So... Yeah, heck with it. In spite of its lyrical content, and how the song "Guilty Conscious" has gotten such rotten responses, I get a kick out of this album. I just don't give a... Hoot. Y'know.

What's That Noise?

Coldcut

3/5

So, I have this backlog that's been building up since... June, I wanna say? And it's September 3rd as I'm writing this, so you know. I can't remember exactly what album started this, though I'll tell you one thing for sure: I sure thought this album would be the last one I'd cover. Now, it's not, for the record. As I'm writing this, I'll still have 15 left when I'm done. I just figured I'd get to it early because... I mean, I honestly had no hope for this thing. I'd never heard of Coldcut before in my life, and I doubted I'd recognize anything they'd done. Backed with the fact that this thing isn't on streaming... Which, of course, none of this really means it'll be a bad album. Just 'coz I haven't heard of an artist... And, hell, Funkadelic's ONE NATION UNDER A GROOVE isn't on Spotify. But all the same: put it together with the album cover, and I wasn't getting a single good sign. And actually listening to the album itself... Well, it's not "worse case scenario bad," but I sure couldn't give too much of a shit about most of it. Like... There's a small handful of neat tracks here. The opener's fine, and "Stop This Crazy Thing" is fun with all of its samples (especially the manipulated Tarzan yell)... But so much of it just kind of slid off of me. It's like, if I were to imagine the generic sound of electronic dance music, this would probably be it. There are just way too many times where not too much interesting is going on. Especially in the moments where it drops down to just a percussion loop for, like, I'unno, 30 seconds? I guess I'm supposed to be too busy dancing to notice, or getting hyped for the drop back into the other elements returning... Or am I supposed to be engaged with the soundbites? And I do enjoy those; I love me a bit of spoken word samples in music. But for the love of goodness, if there weren't times I felt like I'd turn into Joel watching MANOS: THE HANDS OF FATE and yell, "DO SOMETHING! Gaaahdd..." It was really for it to just kind of fade into the background — and I know, I'm not the kind of person who'll use "background music" as an insult. If it makes the walls more interesting, who should mind a bit of wallpaper? But there's a difference between wallpaper that really enhances the room, and the kind of wallpaper that just kind of fades into everything. Y'know? I'unno. I'm largely just kind of underwhelmed by it. I'm already not the biggest fan of this kind of electronic music, and this sure didn't have any convincing arguments why I should be. Or any arguments at all, for that matter. It just felt like it coulda been so much more, but it wasn't. Really, its biggest benefit is just that it faded into the background and didn't annoy me too much. So... What's that noise? Whatever it is, it sure is there. And I'm gonna move on from it quickly to the next thing on my backlog. Seriously, how did I let this happen? Goodness...

Blood, Sweat & Tears

3/5

I feel like there's a time where I woulda focused this entire review around some incredulity at the fact that this record won Album Of The Year over The Beatles' ABBEY ROAD. "I mean, are you for real? These guys, who're absolute no names these days, got the win instead the **greatest Beatles album**? And my favorite one, too, not to mention!" And to be 100, it's not like after listening to this album I'm any less kinda "Huh?" at that fact, but, y'know, it's the GRAMMYs. They've been making dumb decisions for years, and this is far from being an egregious example of that. It's not even like this album's bad; it's just... Not what I woulda picked! And, yeah, about the album. To be honest, given how much their first album has been propped up by Rolling Stone on their 500 list, I didn't even know they had... Any other albums! But they do, it turns out! And it's... Fine. Fine stuff. It's perfectly good jazzy rock with summa that fine ol' 60's white soul. It's just, for a band whose first album is supposed to be **so great**, I think I may have expected more out of this second one? It's weird. There are some lively as hell tracks on here, and this band can sure as hell play like it ain't nobody's business. This is a tight group. "You've Made Me So Very Happy" is a monster of a blue-eyed soul track. And yet, despite itself, I just can't get myself too excited over any of it. I promise you, it's not the ABBEY ROAD thing getting at me. There's just some mental block I can't get past to enjoy this 100%. Maybe it's just that for as much praise as I can toss on the band performance wise, I'm not really wowed by any of the songs besides "You've Made Me So Very Happy". I guess there's also the opener and closer, for being these nice, peaceful little things, but as for the other songs... Not much doin' for me, I don't think. Especially not "Blues - Part II" — I mean, you call this **blues**? I'm no purist here, but besides a snippet of "Sunshine Of Your Love", I'd hardly recognize any of this as blues. Mostly it's just kinda spacey and boring. I'unno. I feel like it's all a pretty nice sound — again, I hardly think the album's bad — but what they **do** with it... Ehhh. Just wish I could be more into it, honestly. As it stands, though... Yeah, I really can't say why this won over ABBEY ROAD. Maybe it's something to do with "the deeper complexities in the music?" I'unno. Me, I'll just chalk it up to the GRAMMYs being the GRAMMYs again.

Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music

Ray Charles

5/5

It's just such a beautiful sound, isn't it? I have spent trying to and procrastinating on writing this review/babble, because... Well, this is one of **those** albums, where I feel such a deep connection to it that it can hardly be expressed in words. Like, there's so much I could say, but nothing would compare to just actually listening to this thing. Jus', these pretty and amazing as hell soul and big band interpretations of country and Western songs. They're all done up so incredibly that if the album wasn't called "MODERN SOUNDS IN COUNTRY AND WESTERN MUSIC," you might not even know that that's what these songs were originally. They've been made uniquely Ray's, and, like, gawd, doin' this stuff with white people's music in 1962? Incredible. Honestly, I could throw out every other adjective in the thesaurus: astounding, astonishing, awe-inspiring... And I don't mean to overhype it **too** much; I hold a reverence for it, sure, but there's other stuff I'd put over it in my own top albums list... But I really just don't have the words to express what a pretty, soulful album this is. Ray's singing from the bottom of his soul, and it is something else to behold. What else can I even scrape up to say about this album? I guess the choir and strings can sound a little "Disney movie" sometimes — y'know, if you've ever heard a choir singing at the end of, like, PINOCCHIO or whatever... But that's hardly any reason to not consider this honestly one of the greatest albums ever made. It is just... That good, and I have nothing but love and respect for Ray, the composers and conductors, the players... Just, everyone involved with the making of this thing. So, please, if you've somehow stumbled across this review and haven't heard the album yet, what are you waiting for? Go put it on and let Ray sweep you away. Maybe these sounds ain't so modern anymore, but damn if they don't hold up. Goodness.

Armed Forces

Elvis Costello & The Attractions

5/5

Don't ask me why there are six Elvis Costello albums on this list. Now, I like the guy just fine, myself. I'm a huge fan of his first album, MY AIM IS TRUE; I've come around to really liking his second, THIS YEAR'S MODEL; and I've been... Mostly fine on the other two my group has gotten before now, BRUTAL YOUTH and IMPERIAL BEDROOM. And heck, I really love the song that was thrown on at the end as a bonus closer, "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love And Understanding". You've gotta understand, I'm far from these people who'll give a Costello album a 1 on sight because they're just that sick of him. But six albums. **Six**. I feel like at this point in the process I should be able to understand why he's been allowed to have so many (consider: just one under Bob Dylan)... But I'unno, man — I'm still not convinced that he shouldn't have been allowed only, like, maybe three, max. So let's talk about the third I'd include in those three and see if even that's one too many or not. Yes, ARMED FORCES. Alongside MY AIM IS TRUE and THIS YEAR MODEL, I've always considered it one of his big three albums; just the absolute pinnacle of his creative output. Peaked early, y'know? I mean, for sure, in my eyes, they've been the only three I've ever really considered. And do I have this opinion largely just because all of them were on the 2012 ROLLING STONE 500 list? Well... Y'see, I have genuinely loved MY AIM IS TRUE for years, ever since I first picked it up on vinyl. Just a very lovely slice of relaxed, pub-y New Wave that I can and have thrown on at any time. But the other two, though? Eh. They were just... Different in ways I couldn't really articulate at the time, and I didn't have much too much interest in figuring out why. So until I joined a group following this list, I haven't really found an excuse to go back to 'em... And, hey, I've found a new appreciation for THIS YEAR'S MODEL and The Attractions, and how much harder and punkier they are than MY AIM IS TRUE and The Clovers. So, hey, chances are it'll happen with ARMED FORCES, too, and I'll confirm my belief that it's a big three contender — right? Well, yeah. I'd say that, and pretty happily, that it very much did on both fronts. Though, at the same, I wanna give it the caveat that while it **is** big three, it'd for sure be the third out of three, if you know what I mean. ARMED FORCES strikes me as trying to strike the balance between MY AIM IS TRUE and THIS YEAR'S MODEL, and doing so by way of pop. It retains a fair bit of the New Wave power and drive that THIS YEAR'S MODEL, though a fair bit more relaxed, in a vein like MY AIM IS TRUE. There's no "Pump It Up" here, y'know? Just as there's no "Less Than Zero". These are all good and solid tunes, though. The stuff on the back half doesn't do as much for me as the stuff up front does, but all the same. I really love that "Dancing Queen"-inspired piano on "Oliver's Army"; it's a nice little bit. It doesn't distract all that much from the N-word present there as well, but y'know. Like, I'unno. As an attempt to pop out the sound, I appreciate it — I **do** love me a good bit of pop sounds sometimes, let me tell you. It's just that, on the whole, it doesn't compare 100% to how hard THIS YEAR'S MODEL goes or just how nice MY AIM IS TRUE could sound. Still overall makes it the third best Costello album I've heard so far, and after IMPERIAL BEDROOMS it confirms that I can and do like albums outside of his debut. Unless BLOOD AND CHOCOLATE can convince me otherwise, it's probably the most recent Costello album I'd openly recommend to people. Like, I've seen people razz this thing just for being their own fifth Costello album, or maybe their sixth, and if they wanna give a 1 largely on that front... Well, that's their prerogative, but to me, well, they're missin' out a little. Like, realistically, this thing teetering closer to a 4 than it's not, but it's a 5 on the granted benefit that I probably will come to adore side two just as much. So, what's so funny about Elvis Costello having six albums on here? Heck if I can tell, but at least I know that for his first three records, he just couldn't miss. Indeed: his aim was true.

Sail Away

Randy Newman

5/5

Here's a line that won't surprise you: for most of my life, I knew Randy Newman exclusively as the guy who wrote songs and score for early Pixar movies. If you were to try to talk to me at all about Randy Newman and sailing, I'd immediately think of Buzz Lightyear. That's not an uncommon association for someone of my generation and beyond to have. (There's also the more embarrassing fact that I also knew Randy Newman from the Nostalgia Critic's jokes about him, which, from what I later heard, were stolen from FAMILY GUY: "Foxes / They like lookin' at bags / Then they walk away / So their tails are gonna wag / YoupayRandynow.") But of course, there's way more to Randy Newman than writing music for movies about toys. At some point in my life, I'd learned that if you knew Randy Newman at all, you'd know his **real work** was **nothing** like what he did for Pixar. Musically, no; but lyrically? Oh, no. No, no, no. Randy's pen was **way** sharper and satirical than "You've Got A Friend In Me" would give him credit for. I mean, gawd, "Political Science" from this album is about American politicians wanting to nuke every other country on the planet (besides Australia) because none of them like America. "Sail Away", I'm pretty sure, is about the lie white people tried to sell black people in the slave trading days, and I didn't even realize that until the closing seconds. And those are the most extreme examples, sure, but even on a subtler level, on a song like "He Gives Us All His Love" — that's a song about how awful things happen on Earth, and how people pray to God to try to get Him to do something about it, but all He offers is "His love." (It's on such a subtle level, even, that there's people've covered it sincerely and unironically — though if they'd heard "God's Song" at the end...) And this is a lot about the lyrics already, far more than I normally write. I've expressed many times before that, thanks to being AuDHD, I am not a lyrics person. Most lyric-driven albums bounce right off me, leaving more often than not to just kinda shrug about how the backing instrumentation is fine — or, worse case, it's a singer-songwriter folk album and the backing is just a single guitar doodling along in a loop. So, what is it about this album, exactly, then, that got me to pay so close attention? Let's compare this stuff to the average Bob Dylan recording — specifically, the generic idea of a Bob Dylan recording. On a Dylan song, the lyrics are usually dense as hell. Often, they seem to require a literary degree to even come close to understanding them. These aren't lyrics for doing; they're lyrics for sitting down and pondering, and that's why I've always struggled with them. Meanwhile, Randy Newman's lyrics aren't complex. They're poetic, yes, but they never go so deep with the metaphor that they burrow right under me. It's **understandable**. And again: they are **sharp** lyrics, and **very** witty. Well, OK, maybe not **all** the time; "You Can Leave Your Hat On" didn't do much for me. But the songs I mentioned earlier, and something like "Old Man"... Now **those** are lyrics that'll leave an impact on me, way more than any gobblegook Dylan's thrown at me. Seriously, "Old Man" is a kinda track where you gotta take a pause afterwards like "DAMN..." Then there's the other side of things, the one I normally focus on: the music and instrumentation. It's another area where your typical Dylan song has done me wrong: more often than not, it's a single acoustic guitar with **maybe** a harmonica coming in to squank between verses as a break. **Very** not interesting if you respond better to melody. Like, even Dylan's electric stuff, though imbued with more energy and melody than his strictly acoustic stuff, doesn't really hit as well as I'd want it to; it's still just meant as backing for the lyrics. And that's not to say that the stuff on Newman's album isn't just meant to be backing, either; it can be just as sparse as a Dylan song generically is. But I'll say it: I like the piano better. The piano is a more melodic instrument, and Newman plays it beautifully. Plus: the orchestration. Oh, lordy me, the orchestration. I am such a sucker for orchestral music in pop (or whatever you'd call what Newman does), and this hits all the right spots for me. **This shit** elevates the lyrics and then some. Jus'... Ah, if a lot of it just don't leave me in a quiet state of ponderation. Goodness. I suppose I shouldn't be as surprised as I am that I liked this album so much: I think I kind of always figured that I'd find his music as good as this whenever I did check it out. But to the extent that I did like it? Damn. I still wanna say so much more about this album, but I think I've pretty much run out of words... Just dang. In fact, y'know what? I've only given it one listen so far, but honestly: I'd go so far as to say that I love this album. It's just... B'woof, man. If it ain't some of the finest satirical writing I've ever heard, and anything that can get me paying attention enough to the lyric writing to compliment it like that... That deserves so much credit, you don't even know. So, yeah, Newman. Without a doubt, unless I'm forgetting something, this is the best singer-songwriter album from this list. For sure, you've got a friend in me, Newman.

This Is Hardcore

Pulp

3/5

Y'know... I feel like I spent quite a bit of time during this album thinking Nirvana's IN UTERO. That was the album the band put out after NEVERMIND, with the explicit intention of alienating the pop audience they'd gotten. They cranked up the noise rock and Kurt's screaming got much harsher. Sure, it has softer songs like "All Apologies", but for all intents and purposes (and as I've always understood it) it was meant to scare people away. From everything I've read about Pulp's THIS IS HARDCORE, they seemed to be aiming for something similar. After years and years of trying to achieve, they finally got what they wished for their album DIFFERENT CLASS... And it turns out, they (and by "they" I mean the only band member that matters, Jarvis Cocker) didn't like it. They really didn't like it. So, as a response, they made THIS IS HARDCORE — what I've read described as a "cocaine hangover" album. It intends to alienate the audience, but not in the way like IN UTERO where it's loud and noisy and screaming at you. More, this album is just dark and sleazy and brutally, painfully honest... LIke, it's nursing its hangover and it just wants you to go away and stop bothering it. Well, that's what I gathered from the reviews, at least. My own experience with this album tended to be more like, "Uh... OK?" Look, I really tried with this album. I mean, I went through the effort of piecing together reviews to make that paragraph above so I could try and figure out a lens to view this thing through. I wanted to meet it where it was. Failing that, I tried looking at it like a concept like one of my fellow group members did... And neither one really worked for me. I was honestly wondering to myself, "Am I the problem? Is it me? Am I getting too distracted talking with friends about Subway, or trying to find on Google Maps where an Arby's used to be? Is that why I'm not engaging with this material?" Being completely real, I think I just don't jive with this material and this sound. And it's not like I blame Pulp for going in the direction they did. If they really didn't enjoy fame, I don't expect them to just write DIFFERENT CLASS 2. I **get** why this album is the way it is. And, y'know, maybe I'm a jerk for thinking this, but I think I liked Pulp better when they were happy. I relistened to "Common People" from that previous album, and, yeah, I just dug it a whole lot more than I did anything on here. I mean, it took me until the last three songs to get into this album, and the closer just **had** to screw things up by holding a single synth note for nine minutes straight. Funny joke, guys. Maybe **I'm** wrong for having assumed that happiness was Pulp's hook. Not like "happy–slappy ecstasy" kind of shit, but just that they're like... Joyous. They're looking at the shitty situation people are in and they're still finding joy in it. Which I suppose should make the contrast all the more palpable when they spend this album just wallowing, but... It just really failed to grab me in any meaningful way. It's like, where DIFFERENT CLASS made a good case for Pulp as one of the "big 4 of Britpop," this album has me wondering why I'd even really bring them up in the same breath as blur and Oasis. And I don't have a problem with downer or depressing music, honestly. And it's not like this even a fully bad album; there are parts I liked. Plus, again, I **did** really enjoy those last three tracks, the closer's outro aside. I just can't dig its sound, and that's really the worst it gets for me. Still, though: it ain't nothing. So, IN UTERO this ain't. And even putting aside my comparison to that album... Yeah. I might return to a song or two from DIFFERENT CLASS at some point — but this album? I think it's just too hardcore for me.

Cut

The Slits

2/5

It's hardly a good sign for your album when my most recurrent thought about it is simply, "That's it?" Like, I can't tell you exactly what I wanted or expected out of this album, but at the very least, there should be... Something interesting happening. This whole album, I swear, feels like they're vamping on the same punk-ish reggae riff, over and over and over again. There's some variations from song to song, but believe me, none of them are terribly worth remembering. I know it's stock to bring up Bob Marley when talking about a reggae album, but seriously, you listen to any of his and The Wailers' albums after this and you'll really appreciate the variety it has. Like, honestly, if this didn't make me wanna just go listen to EXODUS... But, OK, OK, the instrumentals aren't very complicated. Most reggae isn't that hard, and I'm sure The Slits themselves will tell you they're not even great musicians. I'm not a fan of it, but whatever. The focus must be on the lyrics, right? If those are good enough, I might be able to overlook the instrumentals, even being the "melody first" kind of gal I am. And, y'know, I'm not gonna front here either and act like most reggae I've heard is Bob Marley. They're straight-forward, to the point... A little metaphor every now and then, but they're not dense and hard to understand. But I'unno, there's something about the lyrics on this that just feel... Barebones. Y'know? Like there should be more going on, but at some point early in the writing process they shrugged and decided the couple of phrases they'd put down were fine. I mean, it's reggae! **And** it's punk! **AND** post-punk n' no wave! You don't needa try **that hard** when you're a post-punk no wave punk-style reggae band! Like, OK, I'm being harsh, but seriously, there's direct and to the point, there's being simple, and then there's being just barely not basic. Even "Typical Girl", the song where I got the most message out of it, is like, "Yeah. OK. And? I mean, 'Typical girl is this and that,' I get the point and the commentary. Is there anything more you wanna say?" And that's **still** the best song here. So, what's left then? The vibe? The way I see it, even the worst reggae can probably scrape by if the vibes are alright. But, y'know, it's too **PUNK** for "vibes." That's where you get the dull British accent attitude and the occasional screeeeeeamiiiiing. 'Coz it's in your face, maaaaaan, and it's just wiiiiild. Or, whatever. Like, hey, I'm not saying this should be music to smoke weed to, as some people so often simplify reggae down to, but whatever this thing's going for here, I just can't gel with it. It's, like, punk rawness in all the wrong ways. In fact, there's only one song I heard that really works for me, and it's not even a proper album track. It's their cover of "I Heard It Through The Grapevine", which was included as a bonus track on a 90's reissue, and, goodness, I might actually listen to it again. They pick up the pace and some real punk energy on here, so their reggae doesn't end up as much of a blocky nothing as it does on the main tracks, **and** the attitude and screaming actually **work**. Why couldn't the whole thing have been like this? Why did **this** hafta be the one-off? Like, y'know, I'll level: I've probably been a bit too harsh on and sassy towards this thing. I wasn't actively hating it while it was on and begging for the end, like how I was with HYPOCRISY IS THE GREATEST LUXURY. I'm sure if I got the stick outta my ass I'd've liked it better... But probably not that much?? Like I said, the problem here is that I was just kind of "That's it?" the whole time. I kept waiting for the point where it got good and justified to me why people thought it was worth listening to before I died... But it just never came. And it sort of feels like the band used the fact that punk and reggae aren't terribly complicated genres (musically, anyway) and used it as an excuse to just not do more. I don't wanna say they didn't try... But you could have tried **harder**, y'know? I've heard better reggae — and not just from Jamaicans, but from **other British punks**. "We're punk n' post-punk" can only go so far as an excuse. Jus', bhff, I'unno. It's far from the worst thing I've heard from this list, but it's also just not much of anything, and left me in a weird place where I got sassier and meaner towards it and the band than I thought I'd be. I'm sure when they played this stuff live opening for The Clash it was fine. But I can't give it the benefit, or any quarter. You ask me, the album's title sounds like what happened to it in later editions of the book.

Playing With Fire

Spacemen 3

3/5

Y'know, it's like... I get what they were going for here. This is psychedelic music, but not in the way you'd naturally assume it's supposed to be. It's hardly Jimi Hendrix or, like, The Byrds or whatever. No, this is aiming for psychedelia more in... I suppose you'd call it "the spiritual sense." It's the kind of music you're not really supposed to listen closely to, but more just have on as you sit down cross-legged with your guru and chant "om." Y'know, it's New Age music — that sort of deal. Just with a little more guitar fuzz than... Whatever New Age music normally has. And lemme be clear — y'know, don't get it twisted — I am not the kind of person who'd criticize music for aiming to be wallpaper. It's a valid aim, and I've praised stuff like Brian Eno's MUSIC FOR AIRPORTS and my bloody valentine's LOVELESS for hitting their mark so well. So if Spacemen 3 here wanna do a slightly more rocked-out version of the New Age sound, who am I to judge them? But, mm, I don't know. There was something about the album that was bothering me while it played, and I couldn't quite put my finger on it... Like, what was this doing that I felt like it was actively boring me, versus, say, LOVELESS, where I could just let it fade into the background? I think for me, it was the fact that it too often stayed on one chord for too long. Now, I know a feature of ambient music is that it's not often supposed to be too complex; I don't really expect any of 'em to have complex chord changes or anything. But I think about the best ambient music, and in my head I can hear notes drifting in and out of each other. It moves, it flows... It'd probably be a melody for an actual song if you sped it up enough. I mean, you ever heard that one video that slows down a Justin Bieber song by 800%? That's ambient music. On this album, Spacemen 3 are content to just kinda... Play the same chord over and over again for minutes on end. There are parts where the album feels like it's spinning in place, and willingly at that. I mean, they **can** play something with an interesting line to it; there's a keyboard section in here in particular that I was really into. And, y'know, I also get it: it's supposed to be transcendental. You listen to these singular chords being played endlessly and you ascend into a higher plane of consciousness or whatever. And I'm not even knocking music that plays on a single chord, y'know? But at least those songs have the decency to do stuff **around** that one chord. It's like, jeez, even as wacked out and fuzzed to shit as LOVELESS is, there's still clear chords changes and stuff **happening**. I can jump to any random part of the album, tell what's going on, and get into it. This, though — I doubt I'd be able to, besides maybe some **very** obvious spots. I mean, I don't wanna act like this is all **that** bad. As far as wallpaper goes, there's no doubt uglier varieties out there, for certain. I'unno, this albums just feels like... Beige. Y'know? Plain beige wallpaper covering up white walls. I suppose it's more interesting than just leaving the walls barren, but... It's not exactly all that exciting, now is it? I'll grant this thing a benefit bump because it didn't **offend** me. It'll do the job fine. It's just... You could probably do so much better. Though, hey, this **is** the best album I've ever heard that's called "Playing With Fire." Though it's not like that's a high bar to clear, anyway...

Pet Sounds

The Beach Boys

5/5

Brian Wilson died yesterday. As I'm writing this, it's June 12th, and it's only been a little over 24 hours since the news made its way to me. All I can remember feeling is, just... Disbelief. Completely and utterly shocked and stunned that this man has been taken from us. I didn't know what to do; I just started listening to his 2004 version of SMiLE and The Beach Boys albums he had the biggest influence on — namely, THE BEACH BOYS LOVE YOU and, well, PET SOUNDS. I only stopped listening to them to quickly consider the day's Randomizer pick. And then, some hours later, I found out that today's album is PET SOUNDS. And simply put: this Randomizer could not have landed on a harder day for me to write this review. The only day that would've been worse was the day he died, and, goodness me, I don't know if I would've even **tried** that day. Because now, to me, I'm not just considering this album's legacy and Brian Wilson's legacies — I'm considering this album's legacy **and** what Wilson's is now that he's passed. I'm just... Not sure exactly what I wanna say about this thing. As I'm writing, I've played this album four times back-to-back, and in all that time, I wasn't able to think of a single specific, concrete thing I'd wanna write down. At least nothing that would speak to these legacies as I see them. 'Coz I deeply love this album, and I have nothing but the most immense respect for Brian Wilson and his work. It's only because of the negative connotations surrounding calling Brian a "genius" that I don't refer to him as such myself. It's one of those "deeply entrenched in my soul" albums, to put it in words I've used before. But since I've made it this far into the review, I suppose I may as well try to articulate why I like this thing as much as I do. If you've made it this far, you deserve as much. So... There's this term I have for albums. It's not one I use very often because of how specific it is, but I would have at least two nickels. "Beautiful melancholy." In spite, anything you can find as uniquely beautiful despite the sadness underlining it. Y'know, imagine a lonely street lamp on a snowy winter's night. It's close to midnight, and you're watching the show dance in the light, only briefly existing before passing out of your vision again into the darkness. That's beautiful melancholy, and that's this album — and I don't think it's a coincidence that the only other one I'd tag with such a phrase (THE SOFT BULLETIN by The Flaming Lips) has been described as "the PET SOUNDS of the 90's." This is just a very sad album. No matter how happy any of these songs might sound, there's always this under current that things... Well, could be better, to put it mildly. Just take the opener, "Wouldn't It Be Nice". It's the happiest sounding song besides "Sloop John B", and its central theme is "I wish we were older so we could be in a relationship with each other." There's an impatience in there. Plus, "Sloop John B": literally a song about a shipwreck. You might think it's a little out of place next to all of these other songs about young love, but damn it don't fit the mood anyway. Beyond that... Well, you know the lines: "I'm waiting for the day when you can love again." "How can it be [that] you still believe in me?" "I just wasn't made for these times." "Love is here today and gone tomorrow." Hell, there's the whole of "Caroline, No", and just the fact that "God Only Knows" starts with the line "I may not always love you." It's a real hitter. And when it's not sad lyrically, it is **instrumentally**. Which, y'know, it's an amazingly arranged album, and I have nothing but the highest praises for The Wrecking Crew for pulling all this off. But seriously, just as an example, "That's Not Me" has always come across to me as a sad song. It just has the tone of it in so many parts, y'know? But, no, it's actively a positive song, about the narrator realizing he's better together with his love than off alone. But again, the underlying beautiful melancholy runs just **that strongly** throughout the album, that even the **happy** songs come across as sad. It's nuts. So it's all just a pretty-sounding bummer, then, huh? That's this album's appeal. There's another element to beautiful melancholy I've held off on talking about yet. It's that no matter how sad a work may come across, there's always an element of hope to it. THE SOFT BULLETIN is largely about death and realizing that you **will** die, but I never get the impression that its message is to just give up. Much the same, PET SOUNDS ends with "Caroline, No", without a doubt the saddest song on the whole album... But it's not a total downer. "I know there's an answer," "I came back much more sure than I'm ready," "You never need to doubt it; I'll make you so sure about it..." "Don't Talk (Put Your Head On My Shoulder)" is a comfort — maybe not that things will be alright, but a comfort nonetheless. Even if hope is sparse, it's still there and it matters, y'know? And it's that hope that's so large a part of this album's appeal, without a doubt. (Also, as an aside to this point, we can't forget stuff like the bike horn squeaking on that one song, the bits of studio chatter left in, or the random decision to end the album with a train passing and dogs barking. It's got levity, and it's got stuff that makes this album feel **alive**, y'know?) But besides the mood, the themes, the instrumentation, and the composition (seriously, a good chunk of this album has to land in the top 20 best composed Beach Boys songs), there's one more element I wanna focus on, and that's the vocals. Y'know, the one thing the rest of the band actually gets to do on the album. It's like, y'know, you could debate if PET SOUNDS is a Beach Boys album or not for how littl they contribute besides the vocals — Mike Love certainly wouldn't say so, for that and how it "fucks with the formula." And maybe, maybe. But, y'know, let's not act like Brian wasn't the heart of the band besides their vocals and harmonies, and believe you me, their vocals are strong as **hell** on this thing. Not a bad performance in the lot, from Brian, Carl, or, yes, even Mike. I'd say only two, maybe of their other songs maybe outdo this album in terms of harmonies ("Our Prayer", "I Get Around" and "Don't Worry Baby"), but that's comparing songs to albums, and on the album front... Nothing comes close. Hell, PET SOUNDS is probably the most cohesive album the band ever made. All of their surf albums, you could shuffle those things in any order and they wouldn't matter. THE BEACH BOYS TODAY! still has that interview snippet stinking up the back half, so that just falls short; and Mike Love just hadda leave his stink on SURF'S UP with "Student Demonstration Time". Even SMiLE, the album that was supposed to follow up PET SOUNDS, probably would've been a mess, whatever it would've actually been. I could go on and on. Believe me, I very much could. But I think you get the point by now. PET SOUNDS has been consistently ranked as the second greatest album of all time by ROLLING STONE's "500" lists, and it's very much hard to disagree with them. Even with my thought that I like ABBEY ROAD just that tiny bit more, or the fact that (before today) I've listened to FRIENDS way more frequently... This is just one of the absolute best albums ever made. And I believe that so strongly that I honestly find it kind of hard to look at negative reviews and believe that they're real. I honestly sort of can't imagine anyone hating this thing, even a little. It's too magical for me to consider it like that. Too magical, too incredible, too... Well, I said I'd hold back on using the "genius" word. But don't think I'm not thinking it, y'know? It's the greatest treasure Brian Wilson ever gave to us. And consider everything else he has his name to... That is **saying something**, believe me. And I will find it so hard not to miss him. To not feel just that tiniest bit sadder listening to this album again. But I can't be sad forever, y'know? I'd rather be happy celebrating his life than be sad he's gone. And I'll make you sure about this: I'll celebrate this album the rest of my life. God only knows what we'd be without it.

Sweet Baby James

James Taylor

4/5

Y'know, it came as a small surprise to me to find out that James Taylor had written "Steamroller Blues". Like, "Huh — really? For real?" Until now, I'd only thought of it as strictly a Vegas-era Elvis song, all pumped full of that glitzy cheese he'd grown so fond of. Which, I mean, let me tell you, is exactly why I like it so much. It's one of the best Vegas-era Elvis songs, if you ask me. It really does feel like a steamroller with how powerfully it can plow through. Jus, mm, it's so good. So imagine me finally listening to the original recording and finding out just how... Weak it feels by comparison. And, y'know, it's an unfair comparison, I get that. Putting the way Elvis can belt next to James Taylor's "typical sensitive folk singer-songwriter voice..." By my standards, Taylor could never compare. I'm aware of that. Though, just as well, I can't say like it doesn't represent a way I feel about the album as a whole. Like, look, it's far from a bad album. For one, for having that "typical voice," Taylor does it really well. I'm not gonna knock him on that front. And, y'know, most of the album is this country-tinged folk material, but there is a fair bit of variety to keep things from getting boring. There's "Steamroller Blues", of course (which, by the way, for the record is a parody), but "Oh Baby, Don't You Loose Your Lip On Me" is a nice sub 2-minute, blues-ish interlude, and "Suite For 20 G" is a big, fun album closer. Plus, the lyrics, from what I was able to read and comprehend (AuDHD brain, for those who're reading one of my reviews for the first time) seem pretty nice. However, my problem with this album is that most of it just comes off to me as, like... Soft. Which I don't mean as a completely damning criticism or anything; more just in the sense that, like, nothing on here ever really rose about being just "pleasant." And of course, there's worse things to be than that, but it makes it a little hard for me to hook onto, y'know? Like, you come back around to "Steamroller Blues" and it just doesn't hit as hard as I think it should. Really, the only time the album does get there for me is "Suite For 20 G", and by that time, well... Still, I'unno, I don't feel like being too hard on it just for that — unlike some people around here, y'know. Even if it's a bit too pillowy for me to be fully engaged, the instrumentation is great, it makes sure to vary itself up, and Taylor comes across as a fine singer and songwriter, so... Sure, fine. I'll give it a nod of recommendation and a pass. Just know that, personally, I'll be returning to Elvis's cover of "Steamroller Blues" plenty more times than I will this.

Strange Cargo III

William Orbit

4/5

Y'know, I believe I might be thinking too hard about this album. I've made two attempts so far to try and find a frame through which to discuss this album. FIrst, I tried discussing how this kind of ambient techno is one of those genres I consider generally difficult to talk about, alongside jazz, rap and singer-songwriter folk. Then, I tried making a case where ambient electronica exists in a weird middle pocket between the two halves of its name, where it's hard for it to get any respect as a result. In both cases, I was only able to get so far in (maybe a paragraph or two) before I quickly lost confidence in the direction I was taking and ran out of words. Each time, it was all because of the nagging voice in the back of my head wondering, "Does an album like this really **need** this level of thought?" That might seem like an insulting question on the surface: implying the music on the album is very surface level and doesn't warrant taking the time to consider any deeper thoughts. Y'know, that it'd be a waste of time to try and think of it as any more than what's plainly there to see. "What you see is what you get and all." And, true, there are aspects of this you could probably consider, mostly in regards to where its worldly influences stem from. But, you also have to keep in mind: this is an ambient record. A **very** ambient record. Not to the point where it's music for airports, but I think on some level, it's expected that you're not supposed to think about it that hard. You're supposed to kind of just... Zone out to it. To let it score whatever thoughts happen to drift into your head as you're listening to it. To induce some kind of zen state. And I get why, to a lot of people, that would automatically ding this as a bad record. It's like, as much as jazz, rap and singer-songwriter folk can all be hard to talk about, at least there's complexities inherent in their genres that make them worth thinking and talking about. Meanwhile, I imagine to a lot of people an album like this would either not ambient enough for their tastes, or not electronica enough: it's not danceable enough to be electronica, and there might be too much going on for it to be pure ambient. It seems like a contradiction. But is it? I've seen people compare the music on this album to film scores — mostly in a negative way, to say it sounds like it should be underscoring a scene from a bad 90's techno thriller. But... I don't think thinking of it as a score is inherently the wrong way to go about it? 'Coz if you tell me that this sounds like a film score, then I'm interested in letting the music paint a picture of what this film could possibly look like. Or, y'know, there's video game soundtracks: music meant to accentuate what you're doing, and does have its own unique stuff going on within it, but never means to fully distract you. And that honestly seems about what this album is aiming for. I mean, what's wrong with music that's just meant to make the air around you a little less empty? And, just as well, wants to have a little more going on than just a few tape loops? I am absolutely not the kind of person who's gonna hate on an album for being wallpaper, so... I mean, maybe that's not a convincing argument. And maybe it's too ramble-y to be convincing anyway — I'unno. But it's like, taking a step back and looking at this album from afar, that's honestly what I see. If nothing else, it's music to make your life a little less quiet. And I dig it, honestly — I think it's a good sound, and it makes me curious to hear how this style was applied to pop music over on Madonna's RAY OF LIGHT album. It's chill, it's zen... I don't think I could ask any more of this thing. And certainly, it made the dusting I did while I was listening to it less boring. So, y'know what: it gets a pass from me. It's good. It's not absolutely astounding; I know several other records I'd probably reach for as sound filler before this one. But it'd be a very worthwhile pick if I **did** choose it. And that ain't cargo too strange, I don't think.

Kings Of The Wild Frontier

Adam & The Ants

4/5

This album sounds like a mess and a joke. I mean, even in the presence of the likes of The Residents and Frank Zappa, I don't know if I've ever come across another album on this list that sounds this much like a shitpost. And quite honestly, for that reason, it's amazing. Straight to the point: it's a fun as hell record. They sound like they were having a blast putting it together, and damn if it doesn't come through. Like, I can't recall the last album I've ever heard to take a break for a whole pirate song. Jus', out of nowhere, "We're pirates now; raise the Jolly Roger." That's incredible. And, really, it's an album where I otherwise don't feel like I have too much to say. Just listen to it — it speaks for itself, doesn't it? Especially those drums; they're maybe one of the best parts, goodness. Also, the riff in "Ant Invasion" sounds so similar to a riff I've heard elsewhere... I tried to look up if they quoted another song, but all I got was comments about Beanie Babies or something. But anyway, if I'm gonna highlight any track besides "Jolly Roger", it's that one. Oh, and the title track, just for the lyric "I feel beneath the white, there's a redskin suffering from centuries of taming." Goodness. How does an album this ridiculous have a line that politically brazen? Just another thing that makes it amazing, honestly. So... Yeah. That's a big recommendation from me. Just a real fun bit of off-kilter 80's New Wave. Like, believe me, I can absolutely hear how someone could hate this album... But they're no fun, let me tell you what.

Le Tigre

4/5

Maybe this album caught me on an off day, but I find myself at a surprising lack of things I wanna say about this album. It's not that I didn't like it; for sure, it's miles, leaps and **bounds** better than "I'm With Her", the song I'm sure way too many people first discovered this group through. But I'unno, something about it and the state of mind I was in today kinda caused it to bounce off of me. And I wanna give nothing in these reviews/babbles but my honest reaction to these things, so... Like, yeah, I'unno. It's good, it's fine. On one side, you got stuff that reminded me of Bikini Kill, and I hadda look up "Oh, no, duh, they have the same frontwoman." I like what I've heard from Bikini Kill (aka just "Rebel Girl"), so on that front... Yeah. I mean, I'm surprised hearing those screamed "riot grrrl" vocals didn't bother me as much as I could imagine they would. They're kind of endearing, honestly — not to talk down to and/or underplay Kathleen or any of the other vocalists, I mean, but y'know. Then you have the electropunk side of the equation, and it's also fine. Good stuff, but not in the way I have any specific to say about it. It's... Y'know. Uh, and as for anything else I wanna say about this thing... Well, good they were ahead of the curb on shitting on Rudy Guilliani. Screw that guy,am I right? And that's about all I'm able to pull out about this album, shy of taking another day to give this thing a second listen (and being as behind as I currently am, I'd rather not with **any** album, y'know?). Which does bum me out, given what favorites I imagine this band is in the whole "feminist punk" circle, if that specifically exists. I mean, there has to be a reason why "I'm With Her" had as many people stupefied as it did, and certainly, after hearing this, it's a bit clearer... But yeah. Not one that really inspired me the day I heard it, although still a good one regardless.

Only Built 4 Cuban Linx

Raekwon

3/5

I've gotta wonder if I even like the Wu-Tang style of East coast hip hop. I mean, I'll tell you that in general I find that I prefer West coast hip hop to the East coast stuff. G-funk and all, y'know? STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON and THE CHRONIC and so on. But at the same time, I do like my share of East coast material. I liked Nas's ILLMATIC a lot when my group got it, and I really enjoy Biggie's READY TO DIE despite Diddy refusing to shut the fuck up with his mumbling over everything. It's just... Something about the Wu-Tang specifically I have such a hard time gelling with. Now, for context, this is my group's fourth album from a Wu affiliate — no, we haven't gotten ENTER THE WU-TANG yet. Which is kinda crazy, y'know? That RNGesus decided we'd be just fine listening to LIQUID SWORDS, FISHSCALE, TICAL and now this all without having that debut better in mind. I mean, given what my reactions to these albums have been, I'unno how much it woulda helped, but still, y'know? But yeah, I have been... Pretty lukewarm on most of these albums. I found LIQUID SWORDS outright boring; TICAL didn't really inspire me too much; and I **did** enjoy FISHSCALE, though more for the beats than anything else. Just saying, if it wasn't for FISHSCALE, my average with these things would be a flat 3. So now we come to this — what is, in my mind, as I'm writing this, probably the East coast equivalent of THE CHRONIC? Just in the sense that it's without a doubt the biggest solo album spun-off from the main group, and that, with the features on it, it's practically another guy's album, too. Yeah, just like THE CHRONIC heavily featured Snoop Dogg, this album outright credits Ghostface Killah as a guest star — and just like THE CHRONIC did for Snoop, this album was a massive boost to Ghostface's career and popularity. And it's like, yeah, if any Wu album is gonna show up on a "greatest album of all time" list besides ENTER THE WU-TANG, without fail, it's gonna be this one. I've seen LIQUID SWORDS show up, too, but never in as high of a regard as this thing's been held. That's a lot of expectations for this thing to live up to. So, what — did it? Did this help me crack the code on the Wu-Tang and Shaolin styles? Am I more confident now that I'll actually give a glowing review to ENTER THE WU-TANG? Fffffhhh... Look, I gave it a shot. Honestly, I did. I tried my hardest to tune into the lyrics and get down with what they were saying. But not even halfway through this thing... I just couldn't put in the 100% effort like I wanted to. As with every other Wu album I've reviewed, it's not bad. Even if LIQUID SWORDS and TICAL didn't completely hold my attention, I wouldn't call either of them bad. It's just... The tone of it all can kinda get to me. Like, for a moment I wondered if I just found these mafioso raps to be uninteresting, but really, when you get down to it, they're just slightly classier gangster raps. They're still about selling drugs, killing people and not respecting women — and besides that last thing, I enjoyed hearing about all'a it on THE CHRONIC. On paper, this shouldn't be any different. The difference is, THE CHRONIC is G-funk. It's shit you bump in your car on the way to get blazed with your buddies. It's party music, y'know; it's fun. I'm not saying that ONLY 4 CUBAN LINX... can't be bumped, but it's clearly aiming to be taken way more seriously. The Wu-Tang style — it's rawer, it's grittier... It's more "dirty streets" than Dre's "gangster beach party." And it's less hook-y, too. And being the "melody first" creature of being I am, I just find it so much harder to latch on to something like ONLY 4 CUBAN LINX.... I mean, I'll give the album this: I haven't liked the beats on a Wu-Tang affiliate album this much since FISHSCALE. There's good stuff on here — except for maybe "Verbal Intercourse". I tell yah, the vocal snippet in the sample made it actually kind of hard for me to pay attention to Nas's so acclaimed guest spot. I really did wanna give it a shot, but dang it, I had no idea what the sample was saying and it was driving me mad. Other than that, it's solid across the board. But without a good hook on top of them to reel me in, I just generally can't give the words as much attention as I would otherwise. Like, even a Bad Boy production has hooks, y'know? You can call me shallow for that, for valuing hooks over the flows and wordplay... But I'unno, it's just the way I am. I mean, I know they're good at this stuff, and I wanna give props and credit to Raekwon, Ghostface and all of the other guests on here regardless... But yeah. Just how it is. And I'll tell you, it does leave me worried about how I'll receive ENTER THE WU-TANG — just on reputation alone I hold some reverence for that thing, and I'd hate to be the only one in my group that wasn't 100% for it... Though we'll see about that when we get there. In the meantime, as for ONLY 4 CUBAN LINX...... Yeah. I guess I ain't a Cuban Linx — well, y'know. It's a dime I wish I was more into.

The Trinity Session

Cowboy Junkies

4/5

This is an album that lives and dies on its vibes and atmosphere. If you're not digging both or either of those things, you're probably in for a bad time. Which isn't to say that there's nothing to admire on a deeper level about this thing, particularly on the technical and performance side. Just consider that everything here was recorded live into a single microphone, with no additional mixing, overdubbing or even editing — so claims the sleeve notes, anyway. There was clearly a lot of work they had to put into playing everything correctly and balancing all of the instruments without the luxury of a console to work with later. That **is** something pretty neat to keep in mind while you're listening. But of course, to most people, that'd just be trivia. A big ol' "Did you know?" to dump on 'em after hearing some of the album and go "Oh, that's neat" about. What's still more important here is, of course, the music itself. And, boy howdy, I sure hope you like melancholic country folk songs at chill tempos,'coz that's what you're getting. The album is a mixture of originals and covers, ranging from a Hank Williams tune all the way to one from The Velvet Underground, and to me, honestly, it doesn't matter which track is what. Which is like, I don't wanna come in here and say the lyrics are wholly unimportant, but like I said above, this an album that relies heavily on its vibes and atmosphere to carry it. To my ears, it's more worth considering this thing in a purely instrumental way, like I would a shoegaze or a straight-up ambient album. Y'know: wallpaper, as I've taken to calling it. A sound to fill the air and make everything less boring. And in that sense... Yeah, I rather like it. It's not my favoritest country album, but there's a fair bit about it I rather like. Margo Timmins is a rather lovely singer, for one. There's some great accordion across this thing, and being the Weird Al fan I am, I tell yah, I do appreciate some good accordion. On a similar level, the harmonica, pedal steel and fiddle that pop up are pretty nice as well... And, heck, let me remind you: I do just generally like country music. I'm never terribly picky about it, and although this is folky alt-country and not the regular stuff... Yeah, no, it still has that sound to it that I like to hear. It ain't no George Jones or Shania Twain, but it still does rather nicely. I'm not gonna tell you I'm over the moon for this album or whatever. It's good, though maybe a bit too close to slowcore for me to fully embrace. Regardless, however, it's a nice, chill little time, and I can't say I didn't enjoy it while it was on. Not bad for a buncha Canadians huddled up in a church.

16 Lovers Lane

The Go-Betweens

3/5

I struggle to think of much of anything I wanna say about this album. Like... I guess it's kind of Smiths-y? And a Smiths album where I don't hafta listen to Morrisey is just fine by me. And I guess "Was There Anything I Could Do?" is a pretty good, driving indie song. But other than that... But otherwise, the only real thought I had while listening to this thing was, "These songs sound like some of them should've randomly showed up on the soundtrack for an 80's or 80's-styled teen-age high school drama flick that's highly acclaimed for its great taste in music." None of the stuff on this album is bad, I wouldn't say. It's got a good enough sound about it. It's just... So painfully fine for a late 80's New Wave-ish indie rock album. Really, it's the kind of album that makes me wonder what I'm supposed to get out of it — y'know, why is it here, on this list? What makes it so important to the contributors? And if I'm left asking myself **those questions** about an album... Yeaaaah. And I could (and maybe should) look into it, for the sake of this review if nothing else, but frankly, I don't really care enough about this album to really put in much more work than I'm doing right now. So, I'unno. If you like late 80's indie rock... Suuuuuure. And certainly, when it comes to indie-ish albums my group has gotten out of Australia, it's a step and a half above CALENTURE. But otherwise? Eeeehhhh. "Go-Betweens?" More like... "I could Go-Without." Yeah, got'em. I struggle to think of much of anything I wanna say about this album. Like... I guess it's kind of Smiths-y? And a Smiths album where I don't hafta listen to Morrisey is just fine by me. And I guess "Was There Anything I Could Do?" is a pretty good, driving indie song. But other than that... But otherwise, the only real thought I had while listening to this thing was, "These songs sound like some of them should've randomly showed up on the soundtrack for an 80's or 80's-styled teen-age high school drama flick that's highly acclaimed for its great taste in music." None of the stuff on this album is bad, I wouldn't say. It's got a good enough sound about it. It's just... So painfully fine for a late 80's New Wave-ish indie rock album. Really, it's the kind of album that makes me wonder what I'm supposed to get out of it — y'know, why is it here, on this list? What makes it so important to the contributors? And if I'm left asking myself **those questions** about an album... Yeaaaah. And I could (and maybe should) look into it, for the sake of this review if nothing else, but frankly, I don't really care enough about this album to really put in much more work than I'm doing right now. So, I'unno. If you like late 80's indie rock... Suuuuuure. And certainly, when it comes to indie-ish albums my group has gotten out of Australia, it's a step and a half above CALENTURE. But otherwise? Eeeehhhh. "Go-Betweens?" More like... "I could Go-Without." Yeah, got'em.

American Pie

Don McLean

5/5

Off the bat, before I even listened to it, this album had two issues to deal with: first, the "& Other Great Songs!" problem. Y'know, those albums where the first song is not only the title track, but also its most famous and well-known song? Think of Rush's 2112, or Funkadelic's MAGGOT BRAIN, or... Heck, even think of ELP's TARKUS, if you want. Iron Butterfly's IN-A-GADDA-DA-VIDA almost counts, but the title track comes last — either way, you get it. But yeah, it's albums where the first song is such a behemoth in the popular consciousness, it's like, "How in the world could the rest even compare in the face of those beasts?" I've yet to come across one where the rest just can't (that Iron Butterfly album hasn't shown up), and I'm thankful for that so far, honestly, but I had my wonderings: would this album be it? 'Coz, I mean... Come on. Come on: it's "American Pie". We all know this song, or at least the phrase it coined: The Day The Music Died. That's how popular it is; that we use its wording to refer to the day Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper died. Hell, I know this song twice — Weird Al's "The Saga Begins" might just be the best thing to come out of the first STAR WARS movie. In short: "American Pie" is a towering epic chronicling, at least in one man's words, the transition from the optimistic 60's to the... Well, less hopeful 70's. (Again: one man's words.) How **do** you compete with that? Then we have the issue of this being a singer-songwriter folk album — and, look, for those who've somehow managed to follow my reviews and babbles who ain't been in my group, let me keep this short: I do not have a particularly good relationship with folky singer-songwriter types. Often, to my ears, they come across as poets who think they're musicians just because they can plink-plonk on an acoustic guitar. The only reason I don't say they're up their own asses is because my AuDHD ass has enough of a hard time trying to understand regular lyrics as it is; understanding **these** guys's words enough to figure out if **they're** pretentious is another story entirely. So, already, coming into this thing, I found myself with a bias here: an early 70's singer-songwriter? Oh, no. Outside of the title track... I mean, I already gave that Joni Mitchell album from later in the decade an "I don't give a shit," so I could only imagine what I was gonna think of **this**. There was only one way to find out, though. So I let the title track play, enjoyed it, and set myself up for the worst, and... Can I be real a second? For just a millisecond? This shit is beautiful. Damn beautiful. Oh, my goodness me, I was not prepared at all for how much I'd like this album. Beyond the title track, and besides one or two songs later on, the entire album is made up of these sparsely arranged pieces that focus solely on either piano or guitar. On its face, it seems like something I'd have no patience for: I gave two Leonard Cohen albums 2's mostly for how every track looped the same guitar piddling over and over again (and I felt real bad to do that to a Canadian legend). But here? The arrangements are clearly closer to channeling pop sensibilities than what I'd typically expect out of this kind of music — even from Dylan's electric music. I mean, hell, there may not be any clear hooks, but, damn, there's **melody**. Actually **melody**. And it's so pretty yet melancholic... This is some **good** stuff, goodness. Even the **lyrics** managed to pull me in, and I'll tell you exactly why: they're not complicated. I mean, sure, these aren't Tracy Chapman "simple yet powerful" lyrics; they're still aiming to use poetic language. I mean, I'm sure the title track alone is damn incomprehensible to a lot of people because of the language, y'know? But what I mean is, these aren't Dylan lyrics, where you need a scholarship and bachelor's degree in English literature in order to understand them. You don't hafta sit down and think **really hard** about them, way more than you would about the actual music. They're just comprehensible enough that you can spend just as much time appreciating how gorgeous the backing and playing is. It's like, honestly, the only two songs I feel like I weren't all for were "Everybody Loves Me, Babe" and "Babylon". In the case of the former, it's like, after falling as hard in love with the sparseness as I did, it was a bit of an adjustment to suddenly run into another full band track. I **did** enjoy the lyrics poking at the power dynamics of kings and emperors and all that. As for the latter, meanwhile... Yeah, I gotta agree with a group buddy: it is no closer like "The Grave" shoulda been. Could you imagine this album ending with **that**? What a whopper of an emotional hit **that** woulda been? Instead of, like... I'unno? This short-ass thing with lyrics based on this one Bible verse or something? I can understand wanting to end the album on a lighter note than "The Grave", but seriously, it woulda been **phenomenal**, and shame on 'em for chickening out of that. But other than that (really just the one being kinda misplaced), yeah, no, yeah, it's a great record. Obviously, nothing on here is as iconic as "American Pie", but damn if almost the entire rest of it don't stack up pretty close — especially "Vincent". If I recommend any one cut off of this album, check out "Vincent"; it's the other single and it might be the prettiest song here? But you be the judge of that. As for me right now, all I can do is give this album a big "American-flag painted" thumbs up. (Is that what it looks like when you stick your thumb into an American pie? Like some ultra patriotic Jack Horner? Hm. I'll be.)

Eagles

4/5

I do not hate the fucking Eagles. Fwoo! Nice change of pace to see someone saying that, huh? But seriously, I've never had a problem with the Eagles. I've long enjoyed "Hotel California", and when the randomizer finally gave me an excuse to take in the entire album, I was **very** happy with what I heard. Not to mention, I've recently entered "Desperado" and "Lyin' Eyes" into my regular rotation, and those are both great songs. I even really like this parody I've heard of the group's soft country rock material, "Dead Cicada" by "the Beagles." Check it out; it's good stuff. Here, though, we find the band at the beginning of their career, before the soft country rock and all such. This is the band at their most basic... And it's pretty good! Some very nice early 70's rock, adjacent to the vein of Thin Lizzy and ZZ Top, to crib a note from a fellow group member. Like, it's nothing on the level that I'd proclaim it "classical 70's rock" like I did HOTEL CALIFORNIA, but, yeah, I'unno, I can hardly hear anything that would cause people to hate them — unless you're just **that** hard on "dad rock," I guess. I suppose if there's any issue I take with it, it's that I might miss how much they'd refined their sound on HOTEL CALIFORNIA. Comparing these two albums is hardly fair, of course, and it's not to say one is significantly worse than the other... But there was an air of bliss I remember having around HOTEL CALIFORNIA that I just didn't get from listening to this. Maybe it's just they've yet to really work soft rock into their sound... I'unno. But still, I'm more a dad at my core than I'm not, so this stuff is just great to a gal with tastes like mine. Even in the parts that don't sound as unique to the Eagles as I think they should... And even then, there's still "Earlybird" with that banjo leading the charge to balance things out, sooooo, y'know. I don't even really have too many words to say about it, honestly. I thought I would, but... Nah. It's just a real fine slice of 70's country-adjacent rock. It speaks for itself. I don't think it would convince anyone who **does** actually hate the fucking Eagles to change their mind, and certainly I think they'd go on to do better things later, as a debut album showcasing the band at their most basic... Yeah, it's a damn fine one. So, all y'all: take it easy, I say. It's a good time.

Lam Toro

Baaba Maal

3/5

So, I really can't pretend that this is gonna be a review. Touching on a point I saw someone else make, part of writing a review is being able to place a work's part in the culture and how it relates to surrounding material. Like, sure, it **is** largely "sharing your opinion," but if you don't have an awareness of the larger context surrounding it... And of course, I don't. I don't know the first thing about the Seleganese people, their culture (music or otherwise), their language... So while I can offer my thoughts on how I think it sounds, as for a "review..." Well, short of putting in time to do the actual research (and with how behind I am, I certainly don't have enough time)... Y'know, as much as I feel like it's doing the material a disservice, allow me to take this material as I do most Coheed And Cambria songs: as, for all intents and purposes, instrumentals. And taking this thing on a purely instrumental level, I'd struggle to call it bad. It's a nice vibe; I can picture a Seleganese block party or whatever where this is the stuff the local musicians are playing. For my purposes, it'd probably work decently as audio wallpaper. The problem, though, is that in trying to take it beyond just audio wallpaper... It's not terribly engaging? Don't get me wrong, it's all well played, and I think the language that's being sung is very appealing, but there's this level of repetition that doesn't do the material any favors. It strikes me as an album that could've been whittled down a little –– and I listened to the vinyl track listing that only has 8 out of the 11 songs, so I can only imagine how the uncut experience feels. Honest to goodness, there were points on this album where I was so unengaged, my ears actually stopped listening to it. Not that I paused the music or anything; just that, every now and then, my attention would snap back and I'd go, "Oh, this is still happening?" I wanna stress again, I wouldn't call it bad. As audio wallpaper, sure, it does the job fine. And if you actually have an understanding of Seleganese culture, I bet it hits even better. Heck, in general, I'm happy I got to hear something that wasn't another random UK post-punk album. I'm just left wishing I could be more enthusiastic about it. Maybe it caught me on the wrong day... Who knows? For now, all I can say is that my favorite thing this guy did is still his short appearance in the BBC Music cover of "God Only Knows". Seriously, if you ain't heard that... Goodness.

The Rising

Bruce Springsteen

4/5

There are times where I can find it hard to take 9/11 seriously. Now, let me nip this in the bud right here: I mean nothing but respect for everyone who suffered on 9/11, from the victims to the first responders, to the families of both. I'm too young and too Canadian to have any kind of understanding of what this did to folks and what it still means to them. When I say I find it hard to take the event seriously, I mean nothing ill towards any of those people. It's more, y'know, a lot of what happened as a result of the tragedy that makes it hard, particularly the "war on terror" and the sharp increase in jingoism. Which, of course, being a too-young Canadian, as just mentioned, I lack the scope and insight to really comment on. So, instead, let's just narrow in on the one aspect I do know a thing or two about: the music. When I think of 9/11 music, besides tributes to the victims, I'm usually thinking of one of three things: the innumerous random songs on Clear Channel's memorandum, the spare few songs that commented negatively on Bush's "war on terror", or — and this the largest thing — country music. Goodness me, post-9/11 country music. If there was any sound to define post-9/11 in my mind, it's not even "Where Were You (When The World Stopped Turning)"; it's "N' WE'LL PUT A BOOT IN YER ASS; IT'S THE AMERICAN WAY." Jingoism distilled: all these country guys who were just so fuckin' gung ho to invade Iraq and fuck their shit up for DARIN' TO MESS WITH 'MURICA. FUCK YEAH! Not to mention putting the big silence on anyone who **dared** speak out against Bush in any way — hi, Natalie, Emily and Martie. It was a time, I tell yah. So, yeah, that sucks. Not a great sound to associate with an event like this. But, y'know, there's actually one more thing I think about when it comes to 9/11 music. It's kind of tribute-y, so that's maybe why I didn't include it as one of the big three categories, but... Yeah, it's "My City Of Ruins" and, by extension, the album it comes from, Bruce Springsteen's THE RISING. Y'know, this isn't my group's first album from The Boss. Far from it. In fact, we got one from him just at the top of the month with BORN TO RUN. And where before we've gotten his retrospective claims (DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN), his star maker (BORN IN THE U.S.A.), and his breakthrough (BORN TO RUN), now we've arrived at another step in his career: his comeback. This was his first proper studio album in seven years, his first with the E Street Band in two decades, and his first since TUNNEL OF LOVE to top the charts. It was critically acclaimed, enough so to be nominated for Album Of The Year, though it lost to Norah Jones and her soundtrack for hipster coffee shops. Indeed, this is Springsteen's 12th album. Yes, his twelfth, released nearly 30 years into his career. This is a **late**-period album we've got here. So, I suppose the question rises (pardon): should an album this late into someone's career be here? Does it hold up to the acclaim it got 23 years ago? And, of course, most importantly: how does it fare as Springsteen's reflection on 9/11 and its aftermath — and is it being that the only reason why it's here? I'll start with my biggest ding against the album: the length. This thing is 72 minutes, almost double the length of any Springsteen album we've gotten recently. Which, I mean, unlike some other albums where I've had this length complaint, I wasn't getting exhausted by the end of it — it did actually do a good job of holding my attention... But still, you can't tell me **every** song had to be here. I get having a big album in the face of a big event, but there had to have been some stuff that could've been cut. That's my biggest knock on this album. I suppose my smaller one, then, would just be kind of a squint at the sound of it. We are a ways removed from the Heartland rock he was doing on those earlier albums my group heard. It's not totally indistinguishable — Clarence's sax pops up every now and then — but it still strikes me as pretty modernized. Far from bad, though it's just not what I've come to expect from The Boss. Even his singing, which still roots everything in his sound, is way more understandable than usual. I know he's older than he was, but what is a Springsteen album if he's not singing so hard that he's nearly incomprehensible? (That said about the sound, though, I do appreciate that he had a song on here with a Middle Eastern influence. Given the shit that was about to go down, it's nice to hear that on an album so influenced by reflections on 9/11.) So let's get to those reflections, then. Let's talk about the lyrical content. As is typical of me, my darn AuDHD brain kept me from processing a lot of them — just how I be. Though if there's anything I can get out of what I was able to get into my head... It feels a lot more honest. This is far from an angry album; there's no hungry cry to "[light] up [their] world like the Fourth Of July." It's more about... Well, it's about what it's always been about for Springsteen: the people. It's about grief and loss and sadness in the face of the tragedy, but also about resilience and finding the strength in your community to get through it. "With these hands, I pray for the strength, Lord — come on, rise up!" Even with a few lighter songs in here, like "Mary's Place", that's still the vibe of the album. Honestly, it reminds me a bit of The Flaming Lips' THE SOFT BULLETIN, in that sense — an album about the inevitability of death and how heavy that is, but still finding the love and strength to carry on regardless. And if I'm making a comparison to THE SOFT BULLETIN... Ain't nothing but a good thing, that's all I'm saying. And briefly, I wanna address "My City Of Ruin". It is the best song on the album — no contest. If you ask me, the whole album is a build up to this as a climax. It's maybe my favorite song Springsteen has ever made. A beautiful gospel-hymn of communal hope that... Really, can be applied anywhere. Most people would use that to knock it for vagueness, but consider: this song wasn't even written as a response to 9/11. Originally it was an elegy for Asbury Park, New Jersey, but took on a whole new meaning once the attacks. In the years since, it's been applied to the 2011 Christchurch earthquake, Hurricane Katrina... And so on. It can be reapplied for whatever people need it at the moment. If that's not the sign of an amazing song... I hafta tell you, on the whole, it's not my favorite Springsteen album. It's maybe a little longer than it needs to be, and it doesn't quite reach the highs of BORN TO RUN or IN THE U.S.A. — though I don't think it needed to. It's an album made for the times as they were then, and it more than well served its purpose. And even in the years beyond that, well separated from its original context, it holds up dang well. If nothing else, it gave us "My City Of Ruins", and that's the kind of song that would give an album high marks near regardless of how well the rest turned out. Thus, with these hands, I praise this album — a great latter day work from Springsteen. And seriously, how did Norah Jones beat this **and** THE EMINEM SHOW? Honestly, academy, pick the most boring option, why don't you...

Nilsson Schmilsson

Harry Nilsson

5/5

For a lot of this album, I had a hard time getting a beat on it. In fact, even as I'm writing this, I still might not. I know I liked what I'd heard, and I know I found Harry Nilsson to be a great talent... I just didn't know what to expect coming in, and I had a time trying to figure out the exact label for what I heard. I suppose if I had to try and throw down anything, it'd be... It'd probably be "Beatlesesque," honestly. Which is a term I've thrown around a bit before to describe, like, Electric Light Orchestra and the Bee Gees and whatnot — y'know, on 70's updates on what we imagine The Beatles to sound like on a generic level. But with this album, though, I think this is the first time I mean it to refer to the members' **solo careers**, particularly Paul's. Going back through samples of this album, there were a lot of times where I figured that if you hadn't told me, I honestly would've believed I was listening to a bunch of solo Paul cuts I'd just never heard before. It just has that kind of music hall-adjacent pop I expect out of a 70's McCartney cut — when it's not playing into the side of music that gave him an excuse to belt like a motherfucker, anyway. And it's like, I don't bring up the "Beatlesesque" label to put down what Harry's doing here. I mean, I hardly mind when a band or artist sounds like something else I enjoy, as long as they can bring their own personality to the table — and I think Nilsson very much does. While the songs remind me a lot of Paul's, I don't think any of 'em would 100% fit on any of his albums. Would "Coconut" fit on RAM? I don't think so. And with how many different genres and styles Nilsson tackles on this album, in addition to the Beatles-iness of it all... It's quite a feat, I tell yah. (Word up to the harmonies as well. Those are all him, from what I've read, and, dang, if they don't approach The Beach Boys, I tell yah.) Like, yeah, it's just a really solid and fun album where I don't know why it took me so long to write about it (seriously, I'm publishing this review over 24 hours after I began writing). I hear that one of the most notable things about Nilsson is that he got as big as he did despite the fact that he never toured, and going off of just this one record... Yeah, I can hear why — and why The Beatles were such big fans of him. I give it... Five schmive, I guess.

The Colour Of Spring

Talk Talk

3/5

The thing about "wallpaper albums" that I might have touched on before, although maybe not in specific detail, is that you hafta be in the right mood for them. Now, let me make this clear to begin with: a "wallpaper album" differentiates from an ambient album or anything of the like because a "wallpaper album," for the most part, was never meant to be played in the background. A "wallpaper album" was meant to be considered like any other album: deeply, carefully, considerably. Yet, for the listener, a "wallpaper album" mostly ends up serving the purpose of just making the air around them less boring. I say this to acknowledge that this Talk Talk album clearly has something going for them. There's a talent and a skill about them that, sure, if you wanted to listen closely, you could probably find a lot to love about them. Even I could tell that from the couple of moments I dipped into it. And yet, on the whole, I feel like to me this one would still be a "wallpaper album..." And not one I'm all too excited for, at that. Even albums you'd play to fill space like "wallpaper albums" need to have something interesting going on, and I'unno... I suppose I just wasn't in the mood where any of this would be interesting to me. I just couldn't lose myself in it, 'coz whenever I did happen to tune it, all I could hear was an album spinning its wheels on every song. Y'know, the kind of album where it doesn't matter where you are in a song (the first minute or the last), it doesn't sound like you've actually gone anywhere. Maybe it's supposed to evoke a zen state or something, but to my ears, I was mostly just bored. Every song felt like it went on too long, even the ones that were only three minutes. If there was only a little more variety present... And maybe there was and I was just too zoned out to hear it — which doesn't make the album look any better in my eyes, I should say... Pleh, I'unno. Again, I acknowledge the group's talent, and that keeps me from wanting to be too harsh on this thing — that, and I keep hearing that their next two records are better, so maybe this just suffers from being transitional... But just for my tastes, I'unno. Even among "wallpaper albums," I feel like I've heard more engaging records — and ones I can engage with regardless of the mood I'm in, too. So... Yeah. Just ain't my dig, in short.

The Age Of The Understatement

The Last Shadow Puppets

4/5

There's something I love about grandiosity in pop music, when a song is really pushed over the top into something much larger than itself. This is particularly and especially the cash when a symphony (or orchestra) is involved: my favorite Metallica album **is** S&M, and I am rather fond of those releases where the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra adds new accompaniment to old Elvis and Beach Boys songs. So when I say I like this album, please note that it has nothing to do with the actual lyrics. I tried giving them a chance — honestly, I did. After a while, though, I just couldn't pay attention to them any longer. They're... Fine. A little wordy and capital P "Poetic" like I imagine most indie rock lyrics are (one of the guys from Arctic Monkeys does make up one of the trio that made this album, after all), but I'm not gonna knock it for that. Like I said, after a bit, I barely paid attention. They faded into the background while what I was really here for came to the forefront: the scale. I cannot recall the last album I've listened to that attempted this level of grandiosity and (I know the Internet has diluted the use of this word, but I do truly mean it) epicness. The opening track is straight-up a piece of Spaghetti Western score with modern lyrics laid overtop. It's kind of remarkable to behold. Like... Dang, y'know? I feel like I should be watching a cowboy played by an Italian and dubbed into English streak across the desert; not listening to Alex Turner sing about... Whatever. Something relatable to a young adult, I'm sure. I suppose the only thing I can really knock this album for, given how I listened to it, anyway, is just a true sense of "Why should I specifically listen to this?" With a lot of albums that play on other sounds, I can always pinpoint something about them that makes it unique to the artist. Take Harry Nilsson, for example — a lot of his works sounds Beatlesesque, but with how he jumps between genres and styles, and with his harmonies and witty lyrics, I wouldn't be able to say it's anybody else's work. Meanwhile, I'm sure if I took lyrics into factor I wouldn't be able to say this sounded like anyone else, but given how little I noticed them, it does make me wonder: why **should** I put on this in lieu of the Sergio Leone scores and Scott Walker albums they're imitating? And don't get me wrong, they do it incredibly well — take the album without a year and I don't think you'd be able to guess that it was released in 2008. But ultimately, I don't know; I feel like I could find any number of older albums that did this sound and I'd probably return to them a number of times first before I came back to this. Still, for what it's going for, it does it very well, and I can hardly give it any guff for that. Besides, it deserves at least a little credit that I should probably be listening to more Spaghetti Western scores and pre-psychedelic 60's mod pop. So I can't tell you that it entirely blew me away, nor that I even think it's all that essential for anyone to hear... Yeah, I enjoyed myself, and that's no understatement. (And seriously, this is completely unrelated, my taste for "epic music" is why "I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing" has always been one of my favorite Aerosmith songs. It's so stupid and cheesy and over-the-top... Aaah, it's so good.)

Ananda Shankar

5/5

Well, this is... Far different than I was expecting. And I guess it explains what that mess on the right side of the cover is. See, I was out here expecting this to be another traditional sounding Hindustani classical album, in the same vein as CALL OF THE VALLEY or (to use a very fitting comparison point) THE SOUNDS OF INDIA. And if it **had** been that, I probably woulda been perfectly fine with this album. Given it a pass, though with the acknowledgement that at this point I've heard it before. No, no, no, no, no. That's not what this album is at all. I mean, it is kind of, yeah, but to act like it's just raga sitar music is to ignore what I consider to be the **real** star here: the **Moog synthesizer**. You don't understand how much I love the Moog synthesizer. I am **all** about those records that were put out in the late 60's and early 70's, where they'd have the thing flart out versions of classical compositions, Christmas carols and Beatles songs. They were novelties, and they were incredibly kitschy, but damn it, I love them so much. To my ears, it's just such an irresistibly fun sound. Seriously, go check out The Moog Cookbook when you get the chance; they put out two albums in the 90's putting grunge and classic rock songs through the same ringer. Back on topic, though. So, if you were to tell me that there was an album combining the sitar and Moog synthesizer, I'd already be interested. But on top of that: that they're **also** refracting "Jumpin' Jack Flash" and "Light My Fire" through these things? Oh, I am so very, very, very down for it. It sounds so much like those Moog records I love, and it's **amazing**. And while I'd say the album peaks with the covers, the rest of the record goes along pretty dang well, I gotta say. It's where the thing shifts from MOOG PLAYS THE BEATLES to MOTHER EARTH'S PLANTASIA, and as someone who used to wake up to that album, of course I'd be willing to give this my seal of approval. It's just such an interesting and unique combination, that I can even mostly look past how the 13-minute "Sagar (The Ocean)" kinda stalls out for a while at some point. I'll tell you, this combination is **not** going to be for everyone. Despite Ananda's intentions, it can come across as kitschy and like a novelty, and if you're just not in the headspace for that kinda thing... I get it, honestly. For me, though, as I've made it very clear, I am so in favor of it. Like, all I'm saying is, for combining an old tradition with a modern instrument, it could have gone **way** worse than it did here. S'all I'm thinking.

The Man Machine

Kraftwerk

5/5

Y'know, the easiest reason for me to give why I like this album would just be that it reminds me of Daft Punk. A very primordial, pre-evolved Daft Punk, true, but one where you can very clearly hear the direct line between this and what those robots would eventually kick off with HOMEWORK. Just check those vocoder vocals, huh? Especially the way the one guy rolls his "r" on "robots" in the first song, goodness. But that's not the biggest reason I'd give. Nor would it be the second easiest answer: how much it resembles video game music. There's another person in my group who'd make a bigger deal about it than I would, but honestly, even not being a big video game music connoisseur, there are parts on this album where I couldn't help but be reminded of old 16-bit video game soundtracks. Vocals aside, you can just imagine the tough-hard SEGA Genesis platformer it scores. But if there's anything I'd really wanna hype this album up for... Gosh, it is just so damn pretty in parts. Judging a book by its cover, I'd've never guessed that it'd sound as good as it did in parts. I mean: mechanical German electronic music? With album art directly inspired by an artist who made Russian propaganda posters? Coming right after TRANS EUROPA EXPRESS, too, which is famous as it is specifically for its minimalism... But it's not cold, nor is it unfeeling. Y'know what parts of this thing remind me of, honestly? MOTHER EARTH'S PLANTASIA. It's a 1976 Moog record by Mort Garson, composed specifically for plants to listen to, and yet despite Kraftwerk going for very different things thematically on their album... If there ain't a lot of parts on this album that sound **very** close to some of the stuff on PLANTASIA. It's nuts given how oppressive this album looks, but it's honestly why I dug this album as much as I did. Y'know, this is apparently the last Kraftwerk album my group'll ever get, and I gotta say, it's been an interesting journey: from being bored dull at the minimalism on TRANS EUROPA EXPRESS, to falling hard for the atmosphere on AUTOBAHN, to straight-up finding parts of this album gorgeous. Without a doubt, it's the best Kraftwerk album I've heard, and more than ever, yeah, I get their place in the history of electronic music. Their legacy is entirely warranted. So while this may be "auf wiedersehen" for Kraftwerk in this list, for certain, it should not be from my regular listening. "Das ist wirklich gute Musik, die ihr da gemacht habt, Leute."

Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

Wilco

5/5

For the longest time now I've held reservations about indie rock. Y'know, "Why is a genre that's so acclaimed and beloved by music critics and journalists often some of the most boring music I've ever heard in my life? Are they dumb?" But, no, really, it really is some of the most "eeeehhhh" music I've ever heard in my life. It's like, for as much as I rag on post-punk (the pure stuff, I mean), I at least usually feel something listening to it, even if it **is** mostly offense at the idea that being unpalatable and unfun to listen to automatically deserves praise. Meanwhile, with most pure indie, all I usually wind up feeling is the need to take a nap. It's not exactly something this list has helped me with much, either: just look at how much I didn't enjoy any of the three Arcade Fire albums my group got. Which thus brings up to the subject of this little review/babble: Wilco, another darling of the indie rock scene (so I understand). They're one I actually had a lot of hope for going in thanks to featuring on another soundtrack of my youth, the one for THE SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS MOVIE. Now, like, sure, the song they did ("Just A Kid") wasn't my favorite on the album — it's no "They'll Soon Discover" or "SpongeBob & Patrick Confront The Psychic Wall Of Energy" — but if nothing else, it was a cue from the top that they don't make what I'd think of off the dome as "hipster-ass record store music." Real "RYMcore," y'know? Within the first track, then... I'll admit, doubts were setting in. Something about it on a first listen just didn't gel with me. I suppose (if I hadda guess) I just couldn't square away what the musical monotony of the track was adding to whatever it was about. "I Am Trying To Break Your Heart"... I understand the sentiment, and I can even get a feeling from the lyrics even if I don't 100% "get them," but on a purely melodic level (which is how I normally operate)... Boy, it wasn't a good first impression. Was the rest of the album gonna be like this? Thankfully: no. Oh, dear goodness me, no. Things really started picking up after that song, and by the time I got to the third record side (starting with "Heavy Metal Drummer"), I was all on board. This is real good stuff, and I was the fool from doubting the guys who made "Just A Kid". Way livelier than I'd expected... I mean, I'll tell you this: with the full musical context of the album in mind, I enjoyed "I Am Trying To Break Your Heart" **way better** than I did the first time. Like, damn, y'know? It's just... Y'know, it's here I gotta describe the feeling I had around this album, and it's a... New one for me, I gotta say. 'Coz as I was listening through this album, I got the strangest sensation like I should know it already. That I should vaguely know the words well enough to kind of sing along with it... That I should be hearing instrumentals to songs and getting pumped as hell about them, like "YEAH, THIS ONE..." That I should have deep connections to these songs for the way I've wrapped my character and stories around them... It was so bizarre to feel this familiar with an album I was only hearing for the first time. I couldn't even pin down anything it specifically reminded me of — maybe some of the songs reminded me of the more serious cuts on the Barenaked Ladies' album GORDON, but other than that... Everything just worked for me that well, from the instrumentation and the mental landscapes they evoked, all the way down to, yes, even the lyrics. I've expressed before, being as likely AuDHD as I am, I'm usually never good with lyrics, especially the more poetic ones. They make me feel dumb for not "getting them" and having to look up what they mean... But here, thankfully, it's not poetic to an extreme like Bob Dylan and his ilk are. It's a lot simpler, which doesn't all detract from how... Evocative they are. Seriously, I'unno if I can really describe it, but even when I wasn't fully grasping the lyrics, they still evoked **something** just so well that I could still go along with them anyway. I'unno if you know what I mean, but that's really how it went. Of course, I wanna temper things a bit here and say that it's not like this album changed my brain chemistry or anything. **Maybe** it coulda been cut down by a couple minutes, y'know? It's just, in terms of the hypes and praise I'd always heard this album had... Jeez, yeah, no, yeah, it lives up. And I guess it's as good of a reminder as any that indie rock is a spectrum, not a monolith. Some of it... Boring as damn tar — seriously, I just do **not** get the hype for Arcade Fire. But on the other hand, you got stuff like this, and like with shoegaze and LOVELESS, this should be more the kind of stuff I think of when the genre pops up. So, yeah, good on yah, Wilco. I give this album a very enthusiastic Yankee Echo Sierra.

Justified

Justin Timberlake

4/5

These days I don't think it's particularly easy to stand up for Justin Timberlake. Any popularity he might've had from being a member of *NSYNC, and any coolness he might've gained from this and the follow-up FUTUESEX/LOVESOUND, have all but evaporated in the face of TROLLS movies, being written as the villain in the stories of Britney Spears and Janet Jackson, and his music generally just not being as good as it used to be. Seriously, if I get any enjoyment out of "Filthy" from MAN OF THE WOODS, it comes with an asterisk and the heavy acknowledgement that it **is** a very bad song. And to be honest, it's not like I have great defenses for this album either, which, from the looks of things, mostly rode his *NSYNC membership and breakup with Britney to being as big as it was. But after an initial, if I'm being completely honest here... I'unno, I think it's just fun. Blame the part of my brain that got reminded of Michael Jackson more often than not, I guess, but that don't change the fact that I still got a kick out of this thing. "Señorita", "Rock Your Body", "Like I Love You"... Those are all singles I just named, yeah, but regardless, those are all great songs. And to the MJ comparison, lemme just say that while I **did** pick up on a lot of spots where it sounds Michael **could** have sang it, on the whole the record has such a unique personality to it that, really, only Justin and The Neptunes could've made it. And you could argue that there's maybe a bit too much of Justin's personality in some songs, alongside how you can generally specifically date it to the early 2000's... But that's part of the charm, I feel like, y'know? I mean, I often give a pass to "dated music" because, dang it, sometimes I just like hearing the specific sound of a bygone time, and this is some damn 2000's R&B. (I will say, if there's any spot the personality **does** kinda get to me a little, it's on "Cry Me A River". Now, that's an iconic as hell song, and honestly maybe the best from this album, but it is, like, so clearly and specifically inspired by JT's break-up with Britney... And I think it's most just because I can use the time since release to mostly separate it from its subject matter that this public break-up tabloid drama doesn't bother me more than it would... 'Coz seriously, there's some killer production on this thing, goodness.) N' if I'm getting into spots that bothered me, if there's any one thing that kinda really got at me during this album, it was its length. Which, y'know, in terms of JT albums, I've heard **far** worse — I **like** THE 20/20 EXPERIENCE a lot (the first one, anyway), but goodness me, I don't know why the songs on that thing hadda be so long... But I'unno, you can't tell me there weren't a few spots on this album where it coulda been trimmed and tightened up a little, particularly in the back half. I'd be lying if I said my attention wasn't waning a bit by that point... I mean, I guess it **is** something it has in common with Michael's 2000s album. Still, though, I wouldn't say that by itself is enough to damage my opinion of the album overall. The good stuff's a real good time, and the lesser stuff holds up just well enough. I wouldn't say I think it's entirely "justified" in being on this list (harr-harr — but no seriously, maybe the follow-up would be more worthy), but I'm happy I heard it. I'll probably work a few of these songs into my regular rotation... And, I mean, like a 4 outta 5 will ruin the tour anyway. Y'know? Yeah.

Murder Ballads

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

5/5

So... Yeah, this album was awesome. I'd love to write a whole bunch of big, ramble-y paragraphs like I normally do when I discuss albums, but... Gosh darn and dang, I don't think I can. My enjoyment of the album is just that simple that I won't need too many words to describe it. This album's got... Basically all the kinds of murder ballads I'd wanna hear, and they're all great. You've got the uneasy and disturbing ones with "Song Of Joy"; the oddly beautiful ones with "Where The Wild Roses Grow"; the fun yet messed up ones like "The Curse Of Millhaven"; and even an absolutely badass one with "Stagger Lee". Seriously, that song is **so** badass, goodness me. That's one song, along with a few a few others, where he sounds like Godforbid from That Handsome Devil and I am **so** down for it. Not to mention, this is the third album I've tackled from my backlog with a 14+ minute song and "O'Malley's Bar" is easily my favorite of them. Nick Cave pulls a great performance, and so do The Bad Seeds, and every guest he pulls, including PJ Harvey and Kylie Minogue... And I really can't think of anything more I wanna say. I could pad this out a bit more to hit my average word count, but screw it. This is a great album, fulla great songs about murder, and goodness me, I love it. To death, you might say. Hardee harr.

Pump

Aerosmith

5/5

It's rather something to consider where Aerosmith was at the start of the 80's versus where they were at the end. Aerosmith had been one of the biggest blues-y hard rock bands of the 70's, with monster albums like GET YOUR WINGS, TOYS IN THE ATTIC and the widely acclaimed ROCKS (heck, the latter two are on this list). They were damn near on top of the world. However, in the early 80's Joe Perry had left the band following an argument backstage with Steven Tyler — or Perry was fired, depending on who you ask. Either way, the album that came out following, NIGHT IN THE RUTS, can charitably be considered... Not their best. For that matter, neither was the one put out after that, ROCK IN A HARD PLACE. Not to mention, there were so many drugs flying around that, legit, there was a show where Steven Tyler passed out on stage and didn't wake up for the rest of the set. These were wild times for certain, where the future of the band was uncertain. Fast-forward, then, to the late 80's, and 1989 specifically. Joe Perry had rejoined the band, they'd all gotten sober, the group had become a reliable touring act, and had gained a whole new MTV generation of fans thanks to a collaboration with Run-D.M.C. on a cover of "Walk This Way". On top of all that, they'd proven once again that they were hitmakers. Although their first attempt at a comeback failed (1985's DONE WITH MIRRORS), they struck gold and then some with their second: 1987's PERMANENT VACATION. Y'know, the one with "Dude (Looks Like A Lady)". That album proved that even a decade-and-change into their career, they still had what it takes to hit the top. Though, let's be real about that album: it was a safe shot. After DONE WITH MIRRORS had underperformed, they needed a hit record, so with PERMANENT VACATION they shifted into a pop metal sound and brought in outside songwriters to help with the lyrics (sometimes one word in the case of "Rag Doll"). So while it kept Aerosmith popular, it was a small ways away from the sound they were known for. Thus, we come to 1989's PUMP. And, y'know, that's a lot of historical context for this album I wouldn't otherwise give normally. After all, while history and context **can** be important, I've always valued what the album meant to me more overall. However, in the case of this album, I think it's important to understand where exactly it fits in Aerosmith's discography — I've always liked this thing, but with this new information in mind, I think I like it even more. 'Coz let's be clear: this is the best album they put out in the entire 80's. Not that there was much competition, of course — again, go look at NIGHT IN THE RUTS — but regardless it's because of what they accomplished here that puts it over the top. To quote something I read Stephen Thomas Erlewine say (on Wikipedia), they were able to "revels in [pop concessions] without ever losing sight of [their] dirty hard rock core[.]" That's the trick of it — that's what makes this album so great. It's the most perfect balance between what Aerosmith had become in the late 80's, versus who they were in the 70's. On the one hand, you have the poppier tracks: "Love In An Elevator", "What It Takes", and "Janie's Got A Gun" — and yes, that last one is poppy, despite its subject matter. In fact, let me say right now that it might probably be the best song here. I mean, hell, it won a GRAMMY, for whatever that's worth. It's an experimentation in mood that I can't recall ever hearing from the band before, and yet it pays off in spades. Seriously, the "run away" bridge has to be one of the highlights of the whole record. Then we have "Love In An Elevator", which, true, is 20% verse, 40% chorus and 40% guitarsolo, but, heck, it's a fun song; I've always liked it. The chorus **is** a great chorus, even if they just hit the trick of repeating it forever, and the solo **is** a great solo. Joe Perry can damn **play**, let's not kid ourselves. And, hey, "What It Takes" is a damn good ballad closer. I wouldn't say it's on the exact same level as the ones TOYS and ROCKS have, but, damn, it's up there. Then we've got the hard rock songs: "Young Lust", "F.I.N.E.*", "Monkey On My Back"... All proof that Aerosmith can jam the fuck out without having to worry about a catchy chorus. I mean, I just really do enjoy that PERMANENT VACATION had been such a hit for a band that they were comfortable mixing in more of their old hard rock style, and it hardly feels out of place. I know for a lot of people this kind of music is nothing more than horned-up dad rock, but dammit, I ain't gonna lie to you and say I don't have a dad's music taste at heart sometimes. These songs rock like hell, and at the end of the day, that's all I need. "Gimme a good guitar" and all that. Put 'em all together with a few neat-o intros on a couple of the songs to act as transitions, it's no wonder this thing turned out to be an even bigger hit than PERMANENT VACATION was. Just goes to show, it doesn't need to be all "Dude (Looks Like A Lady)" to be a hit with the general public. And I really do wanna stress how much of a perfect balance this album is by comparing it to their next album, GET A GRIP. Now, there's a number of songs off of GET A GRIP that I enjoy ("Livin' On The Edge", "Cryin'"), but there were way more outside songwriters on that thing than either PERMANENT VACATION or PUMP had. So, as much as I have an affection for that album (despite its "early CD" album bloat), I gotta say: PUMP feels like the last great Aerosmith album. Certainly, the albums they released after GET A GRIP didn't hit as high (NINE LIVES and JUST PUSH PLAY), and I've still never heard a thing from MUSIC FROM ANOTHER DIMENSION. (And who even cares about HONKIN' ON BOBO?) But with all said, yeah, if I were to recommend only three Aerosmith albums, PUMP would be one for sure. It's just a blast, with some of the best tunes of their career. It's proof that just because you're leaning in a poppier direction doesn't mean you hafta give up on the dirty white blues fool you were. And, y'know... Damn, it's just good. I ain't even got any other ways to put it. Just find a copy and pump it the hell up. "Fine" indeed.

Channel Orange

Frank Ocean

5/5

Gawd, this album is, like... Such a vibe, y'know? Such a damn pretty-ass vibe. And I've tried about three or four times to write a review/babble about this album past that thought, and I haven't had much luck in getting too far, 'coz, like... Honestly, this strikes me as one of those albums where words alone would fail to do it justice? Y'know, nothing I say could compare to listening to it yourself and hearing just what exactly it has on offer. The closest point of comparison I have to this album is, like, another one that's heavily themed around orange: Tyler, The Creator's FLOWER BOY (or SCUM FUCK FLOWER BOY, if you're fun). FLOWER BOy evokes a lot of what CHANNEL ORANGE did, and, like... Y'know, I thought I liked FLOWER BOY a lot — not as much as I did IGOR, but either way. But this stuff? CHANNEL ORANGE? Oh, this is another level altogether. This is "float away and drift" music, where you get all in your feelings and such. It's just— every song is so damn pretty. They're all **so good**. There's not a dud in the lot. And, y'know, normally I wanna temper myself when I'm talking about an album; throw in a thing like, "Let's be clear; it's didn't **blow my mind**..." But, no, as I'm writing this review and thinking back on the album, I honestly think it did? Like there had been something missing in my music listening and I didn't even realize it until now? Something that not even, like, Stevie Wonder or Prince or any of the other similar artists you can point to have been able to fill. And, y'know, I'll give this: I'm gonna act like Frank Ocean is the **best** singer. Is he Stevie; is he Prince? No and no. But for what this is doing... Goodness. I just can't remember the last time I've been this positive about an album from the 2010's, where I wanna gush about it but I've been at such a loss for specific words. Maybe DRUNK by Thundercat? THat's the closest I can think of to where I was like, "Damn, where have **you** been?" But even then, this feels like something else entirely. I'm not even sure how well this review — "review," nah; it's a babble — I don't know how well this babble is gonna come across to anyone else. Y'know, it really has not been all too specific. But it's not **about** the specifics, y'know? It's all in the feeling. Just, what you feel listening to this and the color it might spark in your mind. And this is orange as hell music if there's ever been orange music. Even FLOWER BOY couldn't be this orange. So, y'know, take this babble more on its tone than anything else. This is incredibly good, from start to end. I cannot even begin to stress that enough, nor be able to properly express my confusion at the people who'd consider this to be the "degeneration of music and society." It's just... Yeah. Check the hex code #ff8100, that's the last thing I wanna say. That's how the album feels.

The Blueprint

JAY Z

5/5

Y'know, my initial idea for this review/babble was that while I was gonna acknowledge JAY-Z's skills as a rapper, the main thing I would wanna focus on is the beats. But off the top, though, I think it is really worth narrowing in on the fact that JAY-Z is actually a damn good rapper. Like, would I say he's a "GOAT," so-called? No, no, not really; there's others I'd say I like more. But his writing — and I don't mean in terms of quotables and one-liners, but in just painting a picture with his words, I think his writing is very strong. It could always be stronger, of course (Nas famously kicked JAY's ass with "Ether", his response to "Takeover" from this album), though if there's anything that particularly elevates the words here, it's JAY's voice. I mean, you could have anyone rap these lyrics and they'd probably be fine, but I want you to seriously, honestly listen to Hov's voice: the tone, the inflections... Right? He's got a voice that was just made for rapping. I love listening to it flow. It's honestly his greatest strength, I feel like — not that he can't write incredible lyrics (look at "The Story Of O.J." and "4:44"), but honestly, he could be saying whatever and I'd be down for it with his voice. Of course, though, a rapper is nothing without his beats, and good goodness gawdamn me, this thing has some fuckin' **beats**. I've said before, rap albums are some of the hardest for me to talk about because I'm such a "melody first" kinda AuDHD woman, so oftentimes all I'd have to latch onto is the beats, and a lot of times they're just not intresting enough to hold my distracted ass's attention... But here, though? Here? Oh, these are some all-time beats. As much as I wanna acknowledge JAY's skills as a rapper, and he's absolutely a non-zero factor, but let's be real: the beats are probably maybe **the** reason why this album is in this book. It's just stellar work, front to back, from the likes of Just Blaze and (yes) Kanye West. In fact, Kanye's work was so good here, it's what launched his career, practically. And, look, with the connective strings leading to the fuck awful shit he's doing these, we could debate on whether or not that's a good thing, but, y'know, credit where credit is due (and I loathed to give him credit), when he was on top of his game, he was absolutely stunning. Just Blaze still clears, though. While I'll maintain my favorite kind of production is the sampledelic stuff present on PAUL'S BOUTIQUE and FEAR OF A BLACK PLANET, when a good soul sample is flipped right, there can be almost nothing like it. I think my favorite might actually be on "U Don't Know" just for the way the vocal snippet is incorporated into the lyrics; that's real neat. Though, natch, we can't forget about what "Izzo (H.O.V.A.)" did with "I Want You Back" — that's just great. And even the tracks that aren't built on soul samples still hit damn well. Timbaland's work on "Hola' Hovito", with that chorus? Oh, I love that. And Eminem and Luis Resto's beat on "Renegade" cannot go without mention. And seriously, about "Renegade": I'll stress for a third time that JAY's a good rapper, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't kind of agree with Nas that Em showed Hov' up a bit here. Like, Eminem's the only guest rapper on this album, and, damn, what a verse, I tell yeah. I read in a fellow group member's review that this is the only JAY-Z album on this list, and while I wouldn't have assumed that given the love I've heard for THE BLACK ALBUM... Yeah, I feel like if you were only gonna listen to one JAY-Z album, this would be. It's Hov' at the top of his game, no doubt. I mean, at an hour, is it a little long? Maybe, but it's as notable here as it is on some other albums. But for real, I'll tell you, any album that's strong enough to where I can even find the time before the conclusion to mention that this thing came out on **September 11th, 2001**... Look, it's gonna be doing **something** right if that only ends up being unfortunate trivia. And with these beats, and with JAY-Z's voice and writing skills... He's doing something damn right.

...And Justice For All

Metallica

5/5

It's kind of incredible how often Metallica has gotten away with sound mixing that's completely ass. This album, rather infamously, has no audible bass; DEATH MAGNETIC is mixed so loudly people prefer to listen to it through GUITAR HERO; ST. ANGER... Has its defenders. But still, two nickels outta three ain't bad. And ...AND JUSTICE FOR ALL specifically: you hafta feel for Jason Newsted. He had impossibly big shoes to fill being the band's new bassist after the tragic death of CLiff Burton, and on his first album outing with the band, his contribution gets mixed out entirely. James and Lars have said as recently as 2019 that they didn't do it to belittle Jason; that their hearing was simply shot during the mixing process because of touring — and from what I read, the bass parts were mostly just following the rhythm guitar anyway... But either way, sucks to be the new guy and this is the album that ends up sounding like the metal equivalent of "When Doves Cry". Which really just makes it all the more amazing that this album is as good as it is. As much as I have sympathy for Jason (and my following statements won't change that), the bass being missing in action does nothing to detract from how incredible songs like "Blackened", the title track, "One" and "To Live Is To Die" are. This is prime cut Metallica, and the last pure-type thrash thing they did before they started sliding towards more traditional heavy metal on the Black Album (which I also like a lot, but still). I mean, if the goofy-ass viking chant on the one song isn't a detracting factor, nothing can be. And I say "pure-type thrash" because this strikes me as the most prog-ish album they've ever made. Which, it's no Dream Theater, to be clear; it's more the Iron Maiden route of "longer songs" — and even in that lane, this thing's only 11 minutes longer than MASTER OF PUPPETS... But you can still tell they were going for a bit more complexity here with some of these structures and rhythms. There's even a bit more seriousness obviously apparent. It's nothing crazy, but I think it's nice to hear them trying out some new tricks. Though, at the end of the day, look, I'm a very simple girl. I hear a good metal riff, I go buck-ass wild — and I go buck-ass wild for this album. It's as good of a reminder as any that metal can be and is fucking awesome, with chugging riffs, pounding drums and seering solos. Even with the absence of a lower end, it kicks all kinds of ass, and frankly, that's all I'm here for. It's actually a little difficult for me to think of any further words I wanna say about this album as a result, because my enjoyment of this album is really just that wholly uncomplicated. The guitars chugga-chug and go meedly-meedly really fast and I jam the hell out to it — what more can I say? As I'm typing this last paragraph, I'm listening to one of the many fanmade remixes of the album that reinstates Jason's bass back into the mix. I'll admit, it does add a little something to head the gnoning of the bass back there, and if you're one of those people who can't get past its absence in the first place, or that Metallica didn't add it back in the most recent remaster, I say go seek this out. As well, I wanna admit that JUSTICE isn't my favorite Metallica album: the songs on MASTER OF PUPPETS are just that little bit better, and I'm a sucker for the commercial hooks on the Black Album. But seriously, JUSTICE is just a great time. With the mixing working against it, it shouldn't work as well as it does... And yet, it remains one of the greatest Metallica albums ever made. ST. ANGER sure can't make that claim, I'll tell yah that. So, yeah, I'unno why you're still reading me babble on. Go play this album and jam the fuck out. I know I'm gonna.

Me Against The World

2Pac

4/5

I remember back in my babble about READY TO DIE, I said I preferred Biggie to 2Pac. I liked both of them well enough, of course, but Biggie's work had just appealed to me a lot more than 2Pac's had. After listening to this, I've come to realize why that is: my first 2Pac album was ALL EYEZ ON ME. Y'know, that's the one with "California Love", so I figured if there's any album of his I'm gonna watch first, it may as well be that one. Only problem with that idea is that ALL EYEZ ON ME is a 2+ hour double album, and if you think I have problems that exceed a single hour... Needless to say, I wasn't too impressed by what I heard — or, more accurately, I ended up being so bored by the whole ordeal that I could barely register most of the songs. You contrast that against the sole album Biggie released in his lifetime, which isn't too much more than 50 minutes **and** has big hits like "Juicy" and "Big Poppa"... You can tell why I ended up gravitating more towards Biggie. Now that I've heard this album, I honestly wish I'd heard it first. There's no big hits to lure me in, and it still pushes past an hour, but as an introduction to 2Pac and his work... Well, to bring up the old East vs West Coast beef one last time, I'd say my "one over the other" preference of Biggie and 2Pac is a **lot** more even than it was before. Even without having heard the rest of 'Pac's discography, I can just tell that this is his masterwork, even if I do have some small gripes with it. Let's begin with the positives, though. For one, 2Pac is indeed a hell of a rapper. His flows are just so damn engaging, the way they ride and bounce over the beats. And his voice? Woof, boy, if I thought JAY-Z had a voice for rapping...! (Also, me being me, I don't have any specific remarks about his lyricism to remark on — damn AuDHD brain — but even despite my handicap in understanding, I can just tell, he's a master wordsmith. All my thumbs up.) As for the beats, then... Woof, I'll say again: there can be almost nothing like West Coast beats. These aren't the usual kind of West Coast beats I'm used to (aka, CHRONIC-style G-funk), but when that synth hits just right... Oh, I am so all the way there for it. Even the best East Coast beat, whether it be chipmunk soul or the kind of stuff that's on READY TO DIE, can't compete (and as an added bonus, there's no producer mumbling over every track — OK, last East Coast/Biggie mention for real, I promise). Each beat is so unique, too; you'd hardly be able to mistake one for any other. Now, my small gripes, which mostly all revolve around the album's length. As great as 'Pac is as a rapper, after an hour of this material (even with the way I was listening to it, split up by record sides) I'd be lying if I said it didn't get a bit stale after a while. Only a bit! Nothing here's bad! But I'unno, after "Dear Mama" (the best track on the album), it all felt a little like the album could have been trimmed just a **smidge**, y'know? Like, for real, a good most of the tracks on here have 'Pac mentioning he wants to be "buried like a G," and I get that death like that was on his mind given what'd just happened in his life (as explained in the album's intro), and it's like, as a result, I'm not faulting him for wanting to rap about it so much... It's just something I couldn't help but notice, y'know? Also, the lyrics right at the top of "Fuck The World" aren't... Great, but at least they're the only ones where I hafta hit 'em with the side-eye. Other than that, though, yeah, this is a **really** good album. I don't know how often I'd go through the whole thing (I get the feeling on most future listens I might stop on "Dear Mama", like how with THE MARSHALL MATHERS LP I rarely ever go further than "Kim"), but it's such an incredibly strong showing of 2Pac's skills on the mic that I can't help but be impressed by it. Certainly, it's the best showcase I've heard yet why 2Pac was the face of the East Coast during the beef. It's the only 'Pac album on the list, and frankly, I'm glad it was this one over ALL EYEZ ON ME. Essential, for sure.

Djam Leelii

Baaba Maal

3/5

I'll be upfront that for a good chunk of the album I . . . kinda didn't listen to it? Don't get me wrong: it was on and I **did** hear it playing! But at the same time I was readin' this book of 'Calvin And Hobbes' comics, and, well . . . yeeeaaaah. You get it. And don't me wrong, as a piece of background music I think it's totally fine. It sure made my listening experience less boring than if I wasn't listening to anything at all. Plus, after the last album I had to deal with from my backlog ('The Holy Bible' by Main Street Preachers) it was nice to have an album I could just kind of . . . chill to, y'know? And goodness knows I needed one after 'The Holy Bible', goodness. But don't fret! Near the end of the album I went and took a bit of a closer listen to this thing, and . . . y'know, I don't normally mean this as a negative, but I think this worked better as wallpaper. Like, my issue with this thing, simply put, is that it can be pretty repetitive. And of course, I don't have a problem with repetition as long as something's done with it. That's why I don't give, say, Daft Punk any shit for it. And I guess what's going on here isn't entirely unsimilar to what Daft Punk does — the songs build up over time. It's not like some albums where they're perfect content to have their songs spin their wheels for minutes on end. Although, it's not like this album doesn't indulge in that sometimes... And I gotta be real, even with the evolution, it kind of doesn't feel like these songs are going anywhere? Maybe it's just the style: I remember describing the last one with a "party feel," but this one is way more stripped back and acoustic. It don't click with me, exactly; there were quite a few moments where I couldn't tell the songs apart from each other. And it wasn't because I was reading, no; early on, when the first song ended and the second began, I legit hadn't noticed. All the same . . . eh, I can't bring myself to dislike it too much. Maybe if I wasn't listening to this at end of a long night, after listening to and reviewing two other albums in some attempt to cut my backlog down, I wouldn't be as "meh" on this thing as I am. And of course, I'm always happy to get some world music. But, pff, I'unno. It made for some fine wallpaper for reading, but I've got better options if I want that sort of thing.

Stephen Stills

3/5

I don't know what exactly I expected from this album, but I don't think it was anything good. The last time I encountered Stephen Stills, he was in a group called Manassas, which I still pronounce "man-ASS-iz," no matter how much I know that's wrong. It might not even be a real band at all, but that's besides the point. MANASSAS was so overwhelmingly fiiiiine that it verged on being boring. Nothing bad at all on the record, just... Bleeeh. So I had to wonder, "Was **this** what I had to look forward to on this album? More crushing fiiiiiine-ness?" Much to my surprise: no, actually. I wouldn't say it was just fiiiiine at all. In fact, I think it's... Pretty good, actually. It doesn't reach much higher than "pretty good," but given what a slog MANASSAS was (72 minutes, too!) I will **gladly** take this. It's not even a very complicated album anyway. It's just some very good 70's guitar rock, whether acoustic or electric, or played by Stills himself or (yes) Jimi Hendrix, who makes a cameo on track 4. Even Eric Clapton, playing his dusty ol' blues licks, does a good job. And when the guitar isn't the focus, there's enough neat organ and piano and stuff to keep me entertained — again: track 4. Seriously, "Good Times Old Times", between the Hendrix guitar and the organ... I love it. Beyond that.... I mean, the guitar and organ **do** very much carry this thing. Certainly, it didn't give me any terribly compelling reason to care about Stephen Stills on his own. Besides his guitar playing, I don't have much to think about his vocals, and as for his lyrics... To be honest, I was too busy focusing on the guitar and organ to figure out what he was actually saying. This is all to say: as a sound, I'm more than fine with this album. I **did** enjoy it. I could honestly see myself occasionally revisiting it whenever I want a taste of this specific sound. But it wouldn't be **that** often, let's be clear. As well, it's not exactly gonna make me wanna dive deeper into Stills's solo discography. Matter of fact, it might just make me wanna listen to that first CSN album. So, yeah: a massive step up over MANASSAS, but only just such.

Ray Of Light

Madonna

3/5

**This** is Madonna's magnum opus? Which, with a question like that, I gotta make clear: I don't think this album is bad at all. Just, I don't know, in a world where her 80's material still exists, I'm not sure if I'd be saying this is the best thing she's ever done, ever. Like, I'll admit my bias with Madonna: I'm primarily someone who understands her music through THE IMMACULATE COLLECTION. "Lucky Star", "Holiday", "Crazy For You", "Like A Prayer", "Like A Virgin", "Like A Papa Don't Preach"... **That's** the Madonna I know and love — y'know, the "Material Girl" material. It's bright, poppy, cheekily provocative... All'a that. I have a great time with it. And I realize, that couldn't have been her forever. Madonna is one of those artists who's famous for reinvention, and this album came out 14 years after LIKE A VIRGIN. She was much older, with kids and a fascination for Kabbalah... It only makes sense her music would mature with her. But just 'coz I understand it, y'know... I mean, to me, "maturity" is going from eating Fruit Loops to eating Raisin Bran — and I would never dare eat Raisin Bran. And this being an electronica album, too, produced by William Orbit and everything. I think I've realized something about how I feel about electronica in relation to pop music. Like, when you take electronica on its own, like on Orbit's STRANGE CARGO III album, I'm all for it. I like the ambience, the atmosphere, the chill vibes... It's good wallpaper music, and I mean that as a big positive. But then you take Orbit's brand of electronica and try to make pop music out of it... It's just that I have different expectations for pop music, and these downtempo, trip hop beats are far from what I expect. Again: they're not **bad**. But outside of the title track and, like, "Frozen", while I can jive with these songs to an extent, I don't find myself particularly excited by them — y'know? Like, at least the title track pumps up the energy and is the most outwardly danceable thing here. Meanwhile, "Frozen" and, sure, "The Power Of Good-Bye" have melodic elements I really gel with... And actually, I wanna throw in "Mer Girl" for being a hell of a closer. Woof, it ends the exact way I wanted Don McLean's AMERICAN PIE too, and I was right: it's a hell of a whopper. (Funny to bring up Madonna and "American Pie" so close together...) Everything else kinda just blended together a bit to me. Like, it absolutely does not help that this is a late 90's album and the thing is an hour long with songs averaging, like, five minutes each or whatever. You can't tell me none of this could've been trimmed, right? As well, I'm left thinking about the music Madonna would make after this album — or the very little I'm aware of, anyway, which basically amounts to AMERICAN LIFE... And, like, let's be 100, AMERICAN LIFE is a bad album. It has Madonna rapping out soy lattes with double shot-ays. The only hit on it is the damn Bond theme, and it's the worst one any of those movies ever had. But I can't lie, I do think I find a bit more appeal in these songs over the ones here? Just because they're leaning more folktronica dance pop than new age trip hop like the songs here are... I mean, maybe my problem is just that I'm actually not that fond of trip hop after all, but either way. So, pffm, I'unno. Maybe I'm dumb for preferring big, stupid pop hits over these subtler songs. 'Coz, y'know, this might be the most serious album Madonna's ever made — again, there's no rapping. It's aiming for a level of serious artistry I don't think any of her other albums have ever tried for, and clearly it worked. It was a commercial hit, and, again, it's referred to as her magnum opus. I can totally hear where that's coming from. But, my tastes, at the end of the day, are my tastes. Maybe I could have been in a better headspace for this, but honestly, I don't know if that would've helped too much. It's far from bad, but it's also a bit out of my reach. Like, come on, THE IMMACULATE COLLECTION's right there.

Chicago Transit Authority

Chicago

5/5

I think it's worth remembering every now and then that Chicago (The Band) were, at one point, not just a soft rock cheese machine. Certainly, I've long been aware of that. I've played 'Rock Band 3'; I know all about "25 Or 6 To 4". Besides that, yeah, I've known about their debut for a while now. It's one album that I honestly did wanna give a shot way, way, **way** back when... But for one reason or another, I just never got around to it. Maybe its runtime scared me off, or... I'unno, me being me, I just got distracted and forgot about it. But either way, I think it's about time I went and gave Chicago (The Band) their due. 'Coz while I don't even **hate** their soft rock stuff (I got a space for "You're The Inspiration", after years of knowing them as one of Todd In The Shadows's mortal enemies... I should probably take a gander at what they **used** to be capable of, before Peter Cetera really mucked things up. And believe me: I'm gandering alright. I am damn admiring and appreciating this album. Goodness me, if you played me any cut from this album out of context (**especially** "Free Form Guitar"), I never would have guessed. This is the same band who went on to make all this MOR music? This is some **good shit**. Jazzy as hell! A whole lotta prog tones and stylings! Listen to those **horns**! The "I Am The Walrus" quote on "South California Purples"! Is it a bit **long**, at 76 minutes? Yes, but, oh... Oh. **Ooooh**, this shit **rules**. This shit rules **so hard**. It's over the top and I **love it**. And especially — especially! The guitar. Goodness me, Terry Kath's guitar work. Love or hate his show-off track "Free Form Guitar" (and let me say: the **TONE** on it), the man can absolutely play. I'm not surprised that Jimi Hendrix was as much of a fan as he was. I mean, I don't know if I'd say Kath was a better guitar player than Hendrix was, like Hendrix himself claimed, but goodness. I'm sure as hell impressed. And it just makes how he died even dumber! Like, I don't wanna kick a dead man for the way he died... But goodness me, Kath. You could have gone on to do so much more. But, like in all cases of death like this, it just makes it all the more worthwhile to appreciate what they were able to give the world. And this is sure as hell a gift. It's a tight as hell band working in complete, full sync, and I could not be any happier with the final result. And, like, damn — you really took a band like **this** and had 'em make soft rock cheese? Just incredible, goodness me. I'unno if this album would convince a Chicago (The Band) hater to change their mind, but as far as I'm concerned, for this kind of material at least... Yeah, I'm on board, right on back to that same ol' place: sweet home Chicago (The Place).

A Wizard, A True Star

Todd Rundgren

5/5

This just might be the greatest album ever made. I don't make such statements lightly. Unless it's SONGS IN THE KEY OF LIFE, or ABBEY ROAD, or ALPOCALYPSE, or some other generally agreed upon masterwork, I wouldn't just come out here and claim something like that. But this. This album. Yeah, no. I'm not gonna mince words. This thing floored me. Just straight amazed me. If I may paraphrase Phelous from his first video, this album takes you around and back again. It's to the point where... I'm not even sure what specifics I'd wanna bring up. There is just so much going on here; so many wonderful musical ideas crammed into this thing... I mean, it's bursting at the seams. It is, point of fact, one of the longest running single LPs ever pressed. The first side alone is 26 minutes — the second is **NEARLY 30**. The second side is very nearly album length **by itself**. The scope of this thing... I could just try and describe it to you, but it's nothing next to putting on a pair of headphones and listening to it for yourself. I've described albums before as odysseys — I'm sure I have. Maybe just journeys, at least. If there's any album where that applies, more than any other (and I say this with some 400 albums left on this list), it's this one. It is seriously an odyssey into the wild mind of Todd Rundgren and just every idea he had knockin' around in there. And, yeah, it's a drug trip, too — he **did** come up with a lot of this stuff while on drugs. But he doesn't sacrifice a single ounce of musicality in the process. It's just as wonderfully composed and arranged as SOMETHING/ANYTHING? was. It's just not nearly as commercial. And I really do admire the guts he had to put out a record like this where he just throws down every idea he has, commercial potential be damned. This is the sound he had in his head: take it or leave. And what's even more surprising is just the fact that this could have been released **today** and it wouldn't have sounded any different. In fact, while this was a critically successful record at the time, I can only imagine how much **more** acclaimed it'd be if it'd dropped now. It sounds like it came from out of time. Like... Goodness. It's not an album I expect everyone to get the first go around. Again, there is just a **lot** to digest, in a package much smaller than something with a similar amount of ideas like SONGS IN THE KEY OF LIFE. Side one alone is like a bizarro (yet still wholly incredible) version of ABBEY ROAD's medley. But unlike something like TROUT MASK REPLICA, I feel like the piece of advice that "you hafta listen to it multiple times before you get it" really should read "give your Stockholm syndrome with this thing," this album has endless treasures to uncover. You might be able to listen to this album for a month straight and still find new things to appreciate about it. If nothing else, this album is a testament. If you have the skills, you do not **need** to make commercially viable music. Sure, yeah, it pays the bills and allows you to make more music, but you don't **need** to. You can just make the sound in your head, the one that makes you happy... And that's all you need. I always held up Zappa as a prime example of doing just that thing, but really, this album is the much better one. I'm not surprised it was apparently such an influence on bedroom pop. I can just imagine all of the people who heard this and got inspired to just let their creativity loose. It sure makes **me** happy imagining all of the wonderful music it must have inspired in its wake. And with skills like this, tunes like these, and a more-than-likely impact like that, how can I not claim it one of the greatest of all time? Even if it exists more on the stranger, somewhat less accessible side of things, it is absolutely not one to be missed. I wish I could write more about this thing, but seriously, you just need to listen to it. By the time you get the triumphant victory lap that is "Just One Victory", you'll believe that if Todd isn't a true star, then at the very least he's a wizard — because this album's truly magic.

Shaka Zulu

Ladysmith Black Mambazo

5/5

Y'know, as much as I'd wanna write a 400+ word review like I normally do, I don't think I'd be able to with an album like this. There's really not much to comment on: it's just South African acapella music and it is damn incredible. Like, I figure some people would hear "acapella music" and figure it's some dumb Pentatonix or PITCH PERFECT nonsense, but no, no, don't worry about that at all. This is a spiritual choir thing, and while it **can** get a little repetitive in some parts, that's hardly an issue. This is music to envelop yourself in, where you just float along and let the vocals and harmonies fill your brain. Get it all in your mind fuzz, y'know? And to someone with an attention span like mine, it **can** cause my mind to wander — and I won't lie, there's some mouth sounds in there that I'm not a huge fan of, even as much as I understand that they're just a part of isicathamiya (the style of singing being done here) — but I'm not gonna dock the album points for that. I already knew this group did good stuff 'coz of their cameo in the credits of Michael Jackson's MOONWALKER singing "The Moon Is Walking", but I never woulda guessed how amazing a full album of their style would be. Jus', mm, dang; it's a huge rec from me, even if I know not everyone's gonna like it. I mean, it's already the best thing I've gotten out of Paul Simon's GRACELAND album, so, y'know.

Don't Come Home A Drinkin' (With Lovin' On Your Mind)

Loretta Lynn

4/5

Oh, boy, is it country album time again? Of all genres on this list, country music albums are by far the easiest for me to review, 'coz, well, y'know — it's country music. I'm not gonna say it **all** sounds the same, since that ignores the more-than-likely subtle differences that **do** exist... But at the same time, if you like one 60's country album, you'll probably like them all — and I **am** rather fond of that 60's country sound. These tempos and rhythms, with these arrangements and the damn pedal steel... Yep, it's right up my alley alright. The version of me that's 70 and sitting out on the porch drinking a warm beer is all up ons this. But if there's anything about this album that makes it unique among country albums, it's Loretta Lynn herself. What a voice this woman has on her, goodness. It's subtle when it wants to be, powerful as hell other times, but never too over-powering... It's great stuff, and obvious to me why Loretta Lynn is one of the greats (and one of the few greats who's a woman, at that). And if there's anything else to talk about, I guess it's the recurring lyrical themes and subject matter of the album. A fellow member of my group called it out for how there's a lot of overlap between songs, plus a streak of hypocrisy that's exemplified by "I Got Caught". And, y'know, he's not wrong about that, of course. But I'll tell you, for my tastes it doesn't bother me all that much because, well, like... Y'know, it's old country music. As I've long thought of it, it's "cheatin' and drinkin' songs" (and I suppose "train and also 'shot a man in Reno just to watch him die'-in' songs," too). That, like the instrumentation, is just what I've come to expect from this genre at this time, and, personally, I'm not gonna knock the album for that. So, yeah. Loretta Lynn has a great voice, but otherwise, yeah, it's a 60's country album pretty much exactly as I expect one to be. If you're someone who absolutely isn't into this sound, I completely get that, though this thing **is** also only, like, 28 minutes, so it ain't like you'd be losing much givin' this a listen anyway.

Music for the Masses

Depeche Mode

5/5

I've come to realize lately that I tend to consider New Wave in pretty much only two ways. On the one end, you have pre-80's New Wave that's all experimental and post-punk-y. Think of bands like Talking Heads and DEVO. Then, we slam right into the other end with 80's New Wave, which itself subdivides into two further categories: radio-friendly MTV music and one-hit wonders. Y'know, Duran Duran in the former, "The Safety Dance" in the latter. Those are the bands I've had in mine whenever I discuss New Wave on this website. However, with this album, it just occurred to me I've missed a style of New Wave altogether. Frankly, it's a little embarrassing that I have, given that it seems to be the main style by which people these days know the genre: "serious New Wave," as I'll call it. The kind of New Wave where the singer typically has a deep-ish voice, and he's backed with these cold, mechanical synthesizers. There's a darkerness to it; they wouldn't dare be caught singing about how they're hungry like wolves or how this woman blinded them with science. That, as far as I can think, is the kind of New Wave you commonly hear whenever someone throws up a quick pastiche of the genre. It's the kind of New Wave I wouldn't think I'd like. I mean, yeah, I'd be judging it by its cover: it does **not** seem as enjoyable as the other genres. Like, come on, pre-80's New Wave is quirky, MTV New Wave is catchy, and one-hit wonder New Wave can be just plain fun. Serious New Wave seems more like the kind of music that mostly Important Rock Critics gas up because, y'know, it's "serious." It's **ART**, dang it! It aims to **say something**, unlike its peers! All'a that same ol' jazz you'd razz rock journalists for. But I'll tell you, MUSIC FOR THE MASSES worked for me. Obviously not as much as something like, say, DEVO's debut, or even RIO, but there is something going on about it that I greatly appreciate: it is very theatrical. The music on this album is just dripping in drama, and every song sounds just so big and important. They sound like they should each be scoring their own big, emotional scene in an indie flick — heck, some of these could work in **thriller scenes** for how dramatically they lean. It's quite the wonder to hear, honestly, and a testament to the compositions and instrumentation. To tell you the truth, I don't know if there's anything I can really rag on the album before. I know I can't touch on the lyrics because of course my AuDHD-rattled brain won't let me, but other than that... I guess I'm not too up on the transition out of "I Want You Now"? The breathing sounds were not my thing. As well, I guess there was the occasional synth choice where it was like... I'll never knock an album for sounding dated; it's often a plus in my book. Dang, though, if there ain't a synth sound or two on here that sound really goofy to my ears when paired with this gothic grandeur. Other than that, gawd, this thing is such a **mood**. And believe me, I **was** kind of looking for some reason to ding this thing a 4 and not a 5. Just this nagging thought in the back of my head that I don't wanna go too gung-ho all at once: maybe I'd find some other New Wave in this vein that'd make me look back at this and go, "Oh, that's not a 5..." Or maybe I'd hear another Depeche Mode album that'd cause me to think, "Yeah, this is good, but they can do so much better..." Or maybe my tastes would go, "As much as I like this, it's not the kind of New Wave I'd gravitate towards first: it ain't no 'Take On Me'..." Or maybe, on a closer look, it just wouldn't have that undefined "wow" factor. I gotta keep those 5's **special**, y'know? But honestly, as I keep listening back to clips... No, I really like the theatricality of it all just that much. It's not as easily poppy or quirky as I typically understand New Wave, but for what it's doing, it really is just that damn enjoyable. I'd for sure give this thing a couple more listens, honestly. I could see myself sitting back and Fantasia-ing this album, tryna picture the scenes these songs would score. It is, by my tastes, worthy of a 5. This is music for them asses whom know just how good a mood can carry things. And if nothing else, it helped remind me of what else New Wave is, and that kind of thing is always worth some good points.

Elephant

The White Stripes

5/5

If you were to ask me what some of the all-time best rock albums ever made were, I don't know if I'd be able to name too many. After all, I haven't listened to even a good percentage of every album ever made; I hardly have enough perspective for that. Besides, what's my authority mean, anyway? Honestly. If nothing else, though, I know I'd be able to name at least one album that, facts, should be on anyone's list: EL3PHANT by The White Stripes. Y'know, I could think of one or two things to say about it... EL3PHANT, from the surface to its core, is an incredibly simple album. It's rock stripped down to its absolute bare essentials: guitar, drums and vocal. There's rarely anything else added to these songs — and there are some songs where there aren't even any drums. It's as primordial as you can get — but it's not basic. Far from it: with just guitar and drums, I swear this winds up being some of the most electrifying and powerful rock n' roll you'd ever hear from the 2000's. For proof of this, you only need to look at "Ball And Biscuit". I don't wanna act like this is what the entire album sounds like: "In The Cold, Cold Night" and "I Just Don't Know What To With Myself" proves otherwise — but, but, but. But. If there is any one song I think of when I think of this album, that is the absolute centerpiece, it is, without any doubt, "Ball And Biscuit". Most people would go focus on "Seven Nation Army" (and, y'know, I can't totally act like "Ball And Biscuit" is some overlooked deep cut, either), but... Seriously, **listen to this**. It is seven straight minutes of kick - fuckin' - ass garage blues. The guitar **screams**. The drums fuckin' **bash**. It is so damn loud and raw and dirty. It is the entire album jacked up to 11 and it's a wonder to behold. And if I'm gonna highlight one more song, I think I would go with "In The Cold, Cold Night". It's another memorable highlight, which is fun because of how lowkey it is. The instrumentation is nothing more than some guitar plucks, organ bass pedals, some light drum hits... And that's it! It's an incredibly atmospheric change of pace, made all the better by Meg White's leading vocal. It was the first one she'd ever taken, and just like her drumming, no one would call it incredible, but for what she's asked to do, it's phenomenal. (I also briefly mention "You've Got Her In Your Pocket", just to highlight how this soft, acoustic song was placed right before "Ball And Biscuit" — an exercise in contrasts, huh?) Really, this gets me thinking about the other White Stripes album my group has gotten, and all of the other garage rock revival acts that've popped up as well. In the case of the former, we got GET BEHIND ME SATAN. That was the duo's penultimate record, and the one where they started incorporating more experimentation. I think it's a fine enough time (I did give it a 4), but honestly, I do think I prefer the pure simplicity present on this album. As for the garage rock revival as a whole... Well, even the best I've heard just can't top what's on here. I'd go so far as to call it garage rock revival perfection. I just can't think of a single thing that tops it — not even The Hives, despite their claim of being my new favorite band. I gotta take my hat off for EL3PHANT. If you dig raw rock music at all, it's worth taking your sweet little time with, for sure. It just... Does not get any better than this. I mean, there **is** one more White Stripes album on this list, so we'll see how that third man stands up, but I can guarantee you, the chances of it passing this one are probably jack.

Heartbreaker

Ryan Adams

4/5

(A NOTE: I am aware of the allegations made against Ryan Adams. He's very shitty for those, and even more if they're true. Nothing I say in this review/babble is intended as an endorsement of him as a person — just as, conversely, the allegations do not factor into my overall review. After all, I review music, not people. Keep that in mind. Thank you.) Uh... Yep! That's country music alright. As I've expressed many times before, I am not particularly about my country music, and this is very much included in that. Sure, it's a bit more modern than the stuff I'm usually talking about, but I'll tell you, it still feels pretty... Y'know, old school and traditional. I'd say all it's missing is the pedal steel and the fiddle — though I guess the harmonica that pops up every now and then makes up for that. I mean, really, I'm finding that I don't even have much that I wanna say about this album. Ryan's a fine enough singer, I like Emmylou popping up for backing vocals, the instrumentation's all fine... I guess it's a bit moodier than I'm used to, though it **is** a break-up album, so I can't be too surprised. Besides, it's not as if country weepies aren't a thing, y'know? Really, I'm just mostly surprised by how breezy this is. I'm writing this review/babble a few couple of days after the Randomizer gave it to my group, and in the time since there have been a **lot** of hour-reaching to hour-plus records that've felt their length, particularly the electronica ones. I was worried this would fall right into that camp, but, nah. Even for as sad and emotional as it is (not that I felt it, which might just be an AuDHD thing, I'unno), I never felt like the thing dragged. That's a definite plus in my book. So... Yeah, that's it already. I don't got anything else I wanna say. It's a fine, moody lil' alt. country album. I think I might prefer his follow-up to this just because of how much that reminded me of the SCRUBS theme, but this isn't bad either. Altogether not awful for a guy who before these albums I'd probably mistake for Bryan Adams — and maybe I still will, I'unno. We'll see.

Second Toughest In The Infants

Underworld

3/5

One of the people in my group listens to video game music a lot. It's pretty common for him to point out that it's why he's so predisposed to liking electronica — it's the soundscapes and all that, y'know? And while I haven't listened to nearly as much as he has (and even then, I mostly only listen to the SONIC HEROES OST), I'll tell you, I can pretty often see where he's coming from. Most of the electronica my group's come across doesn't seem to be asking for much of your attention: there's enough going on to keep some level of engagement, but more often than not, it's not something you're supposed to be focusing too closely on. Y'know, it's supposed to be scoring whatever thing you're doing instead of the singular thing all by itself. It's the same purpose all video game music is supposed to serve, no matter how good it is. So thus we come across this album by Underworld, who, fittingly, has been named by some video game composers as a direct influence. Believe me, I can absolutely hear it. While I was listening to this album I was playing MARIO KART WORLD, but the entire time, I couldn't help but think that I should be playing, like... A puzzle game, y'know? This all sounds like music from a futurism-themed puzzle game, like... I'unno, HEXIC? Or ZUMA, or some releases of TETRIS or BEJEWELED... Those kinds of games, y'know? This is concentratin', thinkin' music, meant for deep focus on what your next move is gonna be. Alternatively, I suppose it could be music for some cyberpunk-style'd PS1 game, but I kept picturing puzzle games more in my mind, so... And I suppose this music would be fine for playing TETRIS DX or whatever to,'coz on its own... Y'know, just like I said, it's really not much of anything. I figure there's someone in the Discord server my group spawned who'd fill me in on all the deep intricacies of Underworld, but to my ears, it... Sure is jus' kinda wallpaper alright. I'll tell you for a fact, opening this album with two songs over 15 minutes is a bold as hell move, though maybe not the one I would have played? This track is only eight tracks long, but runs for over an hour — that's a nine minute average per song. Starting on the two longest songs, back to back, even listened to separately as "record sides" as I did, isn't exactly the best first impression. I mean, from what I did hear as I cruised the intermission routes... Well, I'm lucky I have the video game thing to talk about, because it's not like the actual music is giving me anything. Hard thumping techno with some vocals babbling about Colonel Sanders or something... Yeeeep. Mmffph... Y'know, I feel like I'm able to give most electronica music a pass. Even if it does end up largely being wallpaper (which, so you know, I will never rate an album lowly for), there's usually a couple melodies floating around where I can go, "Yeah, I really dug that part." A good synth line can do a **lot**. However, this album just... Doesn't have anything like that? At all? I'm struggling to even remember how any of it went, besides a general blob of "Yeah, that's some ambient-ass techno alright." It's only by the virtue of viewing this as video game music that I don't feel like being harsher on it. If that's the kind of stuff you're into, like my group buddy, you'd probably enjoy this a lot. Me, though... Well, I'll tell you this about most video game music: I tend to put it on mute so I can listen to other stuff. And this is no exception.

Haunted Dancehall

The Sabres Of Paradise

1/5

OK, alright — is this a joke? Is someone taking the mick? I want answers, dammit. This is another album in the backlog I've been accumulating since June, and like WHAT'S THAT SOUND? before it I figure it'd be one of the last I'd get to. And unlike WHAT'S THAT SOUND?, where I was just judging a book by its poorly drawn cover, this time my hesitation had some more proof backing it up. A fellow group member had reviewed it and given it a 2, calling it an annoying cacophony of bass, drums and bothersome repetition. And this is the group member who's often the kindest to this sort of electronic music! So if it can't even win **them** over... Whooof. And they are not wrong. Within the two tracks I was already sick of this album. Legit, I was, like, five minutes in and I was wondering when the thing was actually going to start. And that's just its problem, front to back! None of these songs ever fuckin' **start**! It's like they found one drum beat they liked, decided "Yeah, that's good enough," and just looped it until they got bored. Sure, they occasionally throw in some stuff on top of it, but it's always so random and there's never any sense of progression. Again, seriously, you could jump into these songs at any point and I promise you you will not have missed a thing. Y'know, I've talked about Daft Punk's HOMEWORK. That's an album i've seen some people rag on for its repetition, but you gotta understand: Daft Punk know what the hell they're doing. They aren't just looping "AROUND THE WORLD" 86 times for the hell of it. There's permutations, changes, variations, movements... It's always keeping itself fresh by adding and removing parts, or switching them up. You can jump around "Around The World", or any song from HOMEWORK, and you'll hear that all of the parts sound different from each other — and, sure, it's rawer than I like from Daft Punk (I prefer the polish on DISCOVERY), but it sure as hell beats the snot out of this. I'm not gonna call this album absolutely incompetent; there's a couple of parts here that sound alright, but this is otherwise complete amateur hour. I haven't felt this bored by an electronic album since we got those couple of drum n' bass albums And I don't think I was as bored by this album as I was by them, but I was certainly more frustrated to make up for it! Not since Red Snapper! There's just such an arrogance I feel coming out of this album. Just this pretension that they think they're **so damn** good at this. "Oh, we're so leftfield and so fuckin' minimalist and we've got such good breaks — the people at the club will just **love** this!" And maybe they did! But I'm not at the club! I'm sitting at home wondering why in the hell this album is **76 minutes**. They really couldn't have cut **anything**? It **all** had to be here? Talk about your 90's CD bloat, oh my goodness. I've seen YouTube videos where people chop down Daft Punk's DISCOVERY, but if **any album** needs it...! Like it'd salvage the project, yeah, but still, it wouldn't have hurt. And, y'know, I feel like I get what they're trying to do here. They're doin' all this stuff to prove that "techno can be more than just bleeps and bloops," as the review on AllMusic put it. But maybe there should have been better message bearers, because these guys just ain't it, man. I started writing this review before I finished listening to the album. That's honestly common practice for most of my reviews — though a bad one, I'll admit. But at least with most every album I've reviewed, I've been able to add stuff once the record's done, and change stuff around once I actually have the full picture in mind. Here, though? Yeah, if I'd let this album finish proper, I doubt I'd have anything more to add. And, yeah, I didn't finish it: I stopped with just three tracks remaining. I tapped out. And that's **really** bad form, I understand. But seriously: what would I honestly have heard in these that I didn't hear from the rest of this slog? You tell me. It's just a frustrating bore of an album. I can see how it would be hypnotic to some, but to me? I mean, this is a **haunted** dancehall, I'd hate to see one that **isn't**! Seriously, it's only for the best I decided to just yeet this one out of my backlog as soon as possible instead of waiting, goodness me...

Bluesbreakers

John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers

3/5

Look, because his name is in the damn album title, let's just get this out of the way real quick: Eric Clapton is a racist piece of shit. Everyone knows that. Personally, I can't look at him without thinking about that one part of Kurt Cobain's journals where he says Clapton plays nothing but "musty old blues riff." I do not like him. But, with that said, I review music, not people. I'm not gonna stick this album with a 1 just because it features a guy I don't like, and features him so hard he's, again, in the damn album title. I mean, let me be 100 here: I will openly admit to liking some stuff he's been involved in. "While My Guitar Gently Weeps"? Amazing guitar solo. "Layla"? I enjoy the coda more, but the first half is damn good, too. "Sunshine Of Your Love"? It's a classic for a reason. Do I wish someone who **wasn't** racist was involved with these songs? Yes, absolutely. But sometimes shitty, awful, horrible people make good music, and, dammit, that's just life. And of course, how much their shitty, awful horribless affects the music varies from person to person, and I am not advocating any incorrect readings of "death of the artist," but if I like something, I'll grit my teeth and bare it. If I can give Kanye a 4, I can give one to Eric Clapton, no matter how much I don't like it. Though I sure won't be giving Clapton one for this album, 'coz, whoo, boy, imagine putting all of that preamble and disclaimer ahead of a review/babble of this white-ass blues album. Now, look, I'm a sucker for a good guitar. I mean, apparently the thing this album is most famous for is its guitar sound, and, well... Yeah, it's a good sound. I'll say I dig it. But look past the guitar sound and, yep, it's English white blues alright. To which, I'll be upfront about that as well: it's not even like I **hate** English white blues. I'm a dad at heart; I love Led Zeppelin, even despite their well-documented history of plagiarism. But at least Led Zeppelin turned their shit **all the way up**. They're not just white blues; they're **proto-metal**. I mean, you ever hear "Dazed And Confused", or "Whole Lotta Love"? Those are some heavy as hell hard rockers, and they kick all kinds of ass. Meanwhile, with John Mayall and crew (with Eric Clapton)... There's nothing unique about how they do the blues. It's just... The blues. Just not as cool because I know it's a buncha pasty English honkies playing. And it's not even like they play badly: far from it. Even Eric Clapton puts in a good performance (though maybe not enough that I'd nickname him "the God"). But honestly, listening to this just makes me wonder, "Why would I listen to these guys over any legit bluesman out there?" Like, B.B. King? Muddy Waters? Howlin' Wolf? Elmore James? Heck, even the record that compiles Jimi Hendrix's blues performances. Why would this album (with Eric Clapton) be the **first** thing I pick? It's not even necessarily a matter of race; it's just, when you put these dorks next to these legends... I mean, right? I just really can't figure on a good answer for why you'd pick this album first unless this was just the first blues album you'd ever heard and you hold a nostalgia for it. I suppose being an introductory point to the genre isn't a bad thing, but if you're still claiming this is one of the best ever made after exposing yourself to more... I mean, different strokes for different folks and all; you do you. I just can't agree at all. It's not terrible, but you could and **should** be doing so, so much better. Just for the "dad" part of my brain, I can't say I really disliked this album, and, again, no one here is doing that bad of a performance — I'd say those are both enough to keep this from fully falling into a 2... But those are both the highest compliments that I feel like I can afford this album. It doesn't surprise me too much that it seems like this thing's biggest legacy is just its guitar sound. It's a sound that deserves much better blues and much less "with Eric Clapton," I tell you.

Vespertine

Björk

5/5

Y'know, I think I've had a pretty good track record with Björk records so far. Between VULNICURA, MEDÚLLA and DEBUT, the only one I can say I couldn't feel was MEDÚLLA — just wasn't 100 on its experimentation. Other than that, I felt like VULNIURA was a beautiful album, and DEBUT oddly ended up being my favorite for not being too much more than a good-ass dance album. Thusly, I think it's only fitting, then, that my group's last Björk album should end up a combo of the two. I will tell you first, it did take me a second to get used to this thing off the top. I'm actually pretty familiar with the album opener "Hidden Place" thanks to this mashup with Jimi Hendrix's take on "Born Under A Bad Sign", and as a result, it just sounded... Odd to me, in its original trip hop context. Following that, "Cocoon" didn't do me many favors either. I've seen this thing's beat described as "fingers tapping across skin," which, y'know, is a weird way to describe a beat to begin with, but I'unno.... To me it sounded way more like a CD skipping and I was not that huge on it. I was starting to wonder, and maybe worry a little, if this was too "artsy electronica" for my tastes. Luckily, things quickly turned up on "It's Not Up To You", and from then on things were just fine. Like... Goodness me, the strings on this thing. Not since VULNICURA have I listened to an album and thought, "Damn, those are some pretty-ass strings." Combine that with the choir vocals and music box stuff that show up... Oh, it is so darn wonderful. With the occasional light beat under it, it can be even better. Highlighting some songs... Well, there's "It's Not Up To You" as I mentioned, but where that mostly just clued me in, "Undo" is where things were confirmed for me. I also like how it ends, dissolving into digital mess. Then you've got "Aurora", which sounds like you're taking a walk in the snow under the Northern Lights — honestly... And "Sun In My Mouth" sounds like Björk's resting on the floor, singin' next to a music box as a string section plays behind her. In fact, speaking of Björk's voice, I wanna bring up "Pagan Poetry" real brief for helping me to finally get a grip on her style of singing. For the most part before now, I was... Fine with it. Not 100% of the time; it's all warbly and wavery, in this cutesy, twee way that can kinda grate if you're in the wrong mood... But for the most part, I accepted it for what it was. Though, at the same time, I couldn't help but wonder if that was the only trick in her toolbox... And nope! Once I heard her put some force behind her voice on "Pagan Poetry", it became clear to me just how much control she's putting on that thing. It does not sound like it if you're paying attention on a surface level, but dig a little deep... Yeah, goodness. Honestly, if there's anything on this album I can say I don't really like... It's probably the more electro-leaning songs? This excludes "Hidden Place" since it's more wack-o trip hop than straight electro, but tracks like "An Echo A Stain" and "Heirloom"... Not my jam, to put it in short. I mean, with the strings and choir absent, it just doesn't hit in the same way. They're kind of boring, honestly... Besides those small songs I just don't jive with, however, this is truly a wonderfully pretty album. In fact, take DEBUT down a spot, this is my new favorite. And ain't it nice the randomizer saved the best for last, huh? Subtract the electro, it's near 50 minutes of gorgeous strings, chilly music boxes, and amazing choir vocals. The gooooood stuff... And neat swan dress y'got there, by the way. I wonder if other people liked it? Eh, they probably did...

Pyromania

Def Leppard

5/5

This is one for my dad. OK, I'm gonna keep this review real short, sweet n' simple, 'coz, frankly, I don't have a whole lot I wanna say about this. How much **could** you say about this album, honestly? It's Def Leppard's PYROMANIA, one of the earliest slices of glam metal cheese — and, oh, such a good slice it is. Like, I hardly have any complaints. It's a whole 45 minutes of pop metal goodness, with big, shout-along choruses and everything. I could straight listen to "Photograph" ten times in a row, no foolin'. I mean, these songs just kick so much fuckin' ass, it's crazy. Nothing but love to all the members and Mutt Lange, my goodness. I suppose my only real knock against the album is that it **is** early glam metal, and clearly not as refined as something like, say, Bon Jovi's SLIPPERY WHEN WET would be. But that's hardly this album's fault, right? It's not its fault other albums would come along and build on the foundation it laid down, up to and including Def Leppard themselves with the monster follow-up HYSTERIA. I could go on and wax poetic and babble on and on about this album — believe me, I could. It's not uncommon for my reviews to exceed 1k words (in fact, my SLIPPERY WHEN WET one was under 200 words why). But, in total, all I wanna say is this, to the people who're giving this thing flat 1's: I'm not asking you to not think. Of course, be critical of the art and such you take in. Sometimes, though, it's perfectly to just lean back and go along with an album that fuckin' rips. And this one sure as shit does. Who cares if it's not "real metal?" "Foolin'" comes in and I'm too busy rockin' to notice. Just light a damn fire, play it fuckin' LOUD and have fun with it. Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got eight more listens of "Photograph" to dance through.

School's Out

Alice Cooper

5/5

On this website there's a review for this album that calls it "Broadway with guitars and snakes," and, y'know, really, I must ask: why does that only earn a 4 outta 5 instead of a full 5? That sounds **amazing**. And it is! Don't let the title track fool you; it's not just a standard hard rock album. Though, I mean, if it was and it all sounded like the title track... Dang, if it wouldn't be a great one. I'm tellin' you, it ain't one of the most iconic Alice Cooper (The Band) songs for nothing — and I'm not just talking about its use in a Staples ad. Like, of the big Alice Cooper (The Band) songs, I'd say only "No More Mr. Nice Guy" beats it? I jus' really dig that "cha-dunka-dah-dun" beat it's got goin' on. But the rest of the album. "Luney Tune" is the other up-front standard-ish hard rock song after the title track, and once you get beyond it... Like, it all comes down to "Gutter Cat vs. The Jets" to me. The last minute of the song is a straight-up cover of the "Jet Song" from WEST SIDE STORY. It's a motif so integral to the album, that the motif is the last thing you hear on the album's closer, which is even styled as and called "Grand Finale". If that's not Broadway, I don't know what is. And it keeps on being theatrical from there. The track following "Gutter Cat vs. The Jets", "Street Fight", is an audio portrait of, well, a street fight... "Blue Turk" is incredibly damn jazzy, with horns and a slick bassline and everything... "My Star" is pretty progressive-sounding with its piano runs and also the bells that come in near the end... "Alma Mater" features rain sounds and a vocal filter that really enhances its mood... And did I not already mention that this thing ends with a "Grand Finale"? It's not even a concept album, but good on 'em for goin' all the way with the theatrics as a closer. The only song here that doesn't fit into my "it's Broadway" thesis is "Public Animal #9", which is the general other "standard-ish hard rock" track goin' on... But it's so lively anyway, with its "HEY HEY HEY" backing vocals, that, dang, if I don't feel like it shouldn't fit in anyway. But even despite that, believe me, the "Broadway" thing is still the biggest reason why this is my favorite of the two Alice Cooper (The Band) albums on this list. As someone who's only recently discovered how much of a fuckin' musical girlie they are, this shit is all the way up my damn alley. Well, OK, I'll admit it doesn't go **as** over-the-top as I'd want it to, but for what the band and Bob Ezrin pulled off here, I'm more than happy. And seriously, I gotta give a lot of props to Bob Ezrin. He's the guy who's also produced stuff like THE WALL and KISS's DESTROYER — and based off of those, I mean, dang, if he don't have a knack for theatrical production... So, yeah, big ol' A+ on the report card. It's a fun as hell album, and incredibly breezy at only 36 minutes. I mean, I sure can't think of a better album to spend a recess period with, let me tell you. And when you're a fan, you're a fan for life. POW!

Vol. 4

Black Sabbath

5/5

Y'know, I say this with no disrespect to this album, or to imply that I think it's bad, but... Why is VOL. 4 here? Before re-listening to this album, that was the question I had to ask myself, 'coz, like... If you were to tell me there were three Black Sabbath albums on this list, I would've been able to correctly call the first two (their debut and PARANOID), but as for the third... I honestly would've assumed it was MASTER OF REALITY? Let me explain quickly. BLACK SABBATH, that's obvious: it's the long accepted birth of metal. It's the first album where you couldn't call it heavy psych or blues or hard rock or anything else — it's just metal. Meanwhile, PARANOID would take the foundation their debut laid down and set the standard, with classic song after classic song. Seriously, side one alone of that album is **stacked**, with "War Pigs", the title track and "Iron Man", all stone cold iconic. It would only seem natural to me, then, that MASTER OF REALITY would come next. On top of further refinement to their sound (as if they needed any), it was the first album where they downtuned their guitars, an important move for many different subgenres of metal. Plus, "Children Of The Grave" is an all-timer, so... But, no. Instead, we jump straight to their fourth album, VOL. 4. And once more, I meant no disrespect to it whatsoever in my pre-listen question; it **is** still a part of their first six albums, which I've always figured was their best run. Frankly, honestly, it's just that it hasn't had the same run of being called "ICONIC" in critical circles that the other three have had. That might sound like a dumb reason to you, I'unno, but it **was** honestly the reason for my question, so... Well, now that I've given this album another listen and dug into it a bit further, I think I understand why VOL. 4 is here. Take it: if BLACK SABBATH was the birth of metal, PARANOID was the solidification, and MASTER OF REALITY was the further refinement, then VOL. 4 was the expansion. VOL. 4 sees Black Sabbath reaching past metal to experiment more than they had on any previous record and incorporate whole new sounds. Just check out the soul-inspired breakdown on "Supernaut": nothing else they'd done to that point sounded like that. There's an orchestra that shows up in the last minute of the cocaine ode "Snowblind" — and orchestra! I love that kind of stuff! And they later appear on the song "Laguna Sunrise", which is this wonderful little neo-classical instrumental. If anything they've ever done sounded like a sunrise... And on the note of "Laguna Beach", this is probably where I should also point out the biggest deviation from the band's usual sound. Everything else, even with the expansion and experimentation, is still firmly rooted in the classic heavy metal tradition. But then there's "Changes". Essentially, it's this album's version of "Planet Caravan" or "Solitude" (y'know, the break between heavier songs, as a change of pace), though with a big difference. Where "Planet Caravan" and "Solitude" lean more into relaxing psychedelia and space rock, "Changes" is straight up tender. It's a piano song! Heck, a **ballad**! You could play it on soft rock stations and no one would guess besides Ozzy singing it. And it's an amazing song, so, y'know, all the credit in the world to Ozzy, Toni and Geezer. And, hey, if you want some classic, untainted metal from Sabbath, that's still here, too. "Wheels Of Tomorrow" is a crazy, heavy track, and a hell of an opener. "Cornucopia" does the job, and I mean that in the best way... And "St. Vitus Dance" has this little Led Zeppelin bounce thing going on, so that's neat. Like, for real, I'd say pretty much all of it works. The only thing I'm not super big on is "FX", which is a goof track anyway... But, yeah, I can totally see why this is here over MASTER OF REALITY. MASTER OF REALITY may be more "traditional" heavy metal, this list already has PARANOID for that. VOL. 4, although not as iconic as MASTER OF REALITY, still has all the heavy as hell riffs, crashing drums and classic Ozzy vocals you'd expect from a Black Sabbath album. The heaviness is here, just paired with some new tricks and sounds that keep things interesting. And on a list like this... I suppose that's ultimately more worthwhile than just another strong album. Still, regardless, none of the first six Black Sabbath albums are to be missed. Like I said, it's the singlest strongest and longest run they'd ever have in their long, long career. And while I wouldn't say this listen through has convinced me to put VOL. 4 over PARANOID and MASTER OF REALITY (maybe their debut), I can say for certain now that it's absolutely not one to miss. [ RIP Ozzy Osbourne ] (1948 — 2015)

Screamadelica

Primal Scream

4/5

I feel like I went into this album with the wrong expectation. Off the top, I'd seen that, among various other genres, it'd been labelled as acid house, alternative dance, dance rock... "OK," I'm thinking: "this is some kind of electronica-type rave album. That's the lens I should be viewing it under." And that's just what I did for about half the album, until after "Come Together" I had to stop and ask myself: "Why **do** I like this so much?" I'll be upfront, me and electronica haven't exactly been the best of friends lately. After getting so many recently, I had to wonder if I actually liked the genre or not. I mean, even the stuff I was in favor of was very... Vibes-y and atmospheric, but not enough to where it could be full-on ambient music. At the same time,though, it didn't feel to me like it had enough going on to feel like full-on dance music either, so I was left in this odd middle ground wondering what kind of people would honestly sit down and listen to this stuff and nothing else. It seemed like this stuff either belonged blasting at a rave, or in the background of some puzzle video game — and I don't go to raves, and I usually mute video games in favor of my own music. So I had to wonder: what **was** it about this album that made me like it so much? Where even the most electronica of electronica tracks on this thing couldn't really pull me off of it. I really couldn't figure it out. I even went back to the William Orbit and Underworld albums my group had gotten and sampled them to try and find out, and it just wasn't clicking with me. Really, it wasn't until I saw this one review on the website where it all started making sense to me: "'Inner Flight' feels like 90s PET SOUNDS [...] with acid house production." Oh. Oh. Ooooooh. That's the problem! I'm thinking of this as an electronica album first, when, really, it's an **indie rock** album with dance- and house-inspired production. Y'know: it's Madchester. Or Baggy, unless there's a difference, I don't know. Either way, that's where it all turned around. Once I started taking this in mind as an indie rock album first, I started enjoying it way more. Now, I'll tell you, I haven't been the biggest fan of indie rock either. I was not able to enjoy any of the **THREE** Arcade Fire albums that were on this list. However, I guess it turns out that once you throw a shuffling dance beat under them, I'm all for it. Like, gawd, **these** are the kind of vibes I'm all in favor of, honest to goodness. I didn't very much like "Inner Flight" the first time I heard it, but, yeah, understanding it as a PET SOUNDS-type instrumental first, it's great. Like, there really is just so much good stuff on here. I particularly wanna highlight "Loaded", which I already knew I liked thanks to the film THE WORLD'S END, but it's such a damn good **groove**... And with that trumpet sample on top? Wowie! And actually, actually, my favorite two songs on here are "Movin' On Up" and the Farley mix of (not the Beatles song) "Come Together". Is it because they're the most pop sensible songs on the entire album? Well, yeah, that's a very good reason (I'm amazed "Movin' On Up" was never a single), but on top of that, gaw**damm** the gospel vocals are **so good**. They're the best part of the entire album, swear to goodness. And... Yeah, I'unno. Takin' it as a whole, it's jus' a good ol' slice of Madchester. Very fun, very groovy, very lively... I wouldn't tell you that I was all **that** blown away by this album, but at the same time, can't think of a thing I wanna complain about... Except for maybe a few spare moments where it gets a bit **too** electronica? Like, 'coz of those couple spots, I'unno if I'd full-on call it a masterpiece, myself? But all the same, I can't deny how much I overall enjoyed this album. In fact, it might've kind of helped me like those William Orbit and Underworld albums just a hair more, so, hey, I gotta give it all the dang props in the world for that. That ain't nuthin'. Soooo, yeah. Solid thumbs up for me. Good show, lads. Now, if you'll excuse me y'got me in the mood to watch THE WORLD'S END again, so...

I Am a Bird Now

Antony and the Johnsons

3/5

I feel bad about this. So ... this is the last album in a backlog that started building up about five months ago. I'unno, I just missed a couple of days, and next thing I know I've gotta find a lot of extra time to play catch-up. And given how long ago this started ... I suppose any more would be worse, but five months is still pretty bad. And on a conscious decision, I decided a while ago that this would be the last one, and for a very simple reason: I wanted the room to take its subject matter seriously. I didn't want to be an asshole. Right? To the best of my abilities, given my AuDHD brain, I wanted to be able to understand this album and be empathetic towards it. This album is basically a diary of trans experiences. I'm debating with my own identity. And I'unno, I ended up just crawling into my own head worrying about if I would end up saying "the wrong thing" or not. Not to sound like a conversative reaction moaning about how "You can't say anything without offending people," but if I was worrying that if I didn't like this album it might come off like I had some kind of problem with the subject matter. And to be completely clear, I don't have any problem with it. This might be the only album out of over 1,000 to tackle such topics, and on that level I'm glad it's here, just to spread some of this experience. "But what if I don't express that correctly?" That's my concern. Probably an unfound one, given I only got it because I got in my own head, but still. Well, I suppose it's lucky for me, then, that I don't have much to say about the lyrics and the subject, besides what I already mentioned. Because I felt like I could barely focus on it next to all of the damn **VIBRATO**. Y'know, earlier today I wrote a review of another that's long been on my backlog, Joan Armatrading's eponymous debut. In there, while talking about her voice, I mentioned there were one or two parts where the "tremolo" (meant vibrato) reminded me of Buffy Sainte-Marie's cover of "The Circle Game". It's a song I discovered from 'Once Upon A Time In Hollywood' that I like to listen to at double speed sometimes, because of how it ends up exaggerating the vibrato in her voice. It ends up sounding like she's trying to hold a note while driving over a **very** bumpy road, or sitting on a washing machine, and it's pretty funny to me. ANOHINI has that kind of vibrato at regular speed. And, y'know, I've seen a lot of reviews harp on it, and I've made it the central complaint of my review, but let's be real for a second here. It's not **all** vibrato. I don't think it pops up as often as these reviews make it out. There are plenty of parts where she sings more normally, and, yeah, it's a little melodramatic, but it's not the worst thing in the world. And I have no room to complain about melodramatics, anyway; I like emo. Hell, the album my group got today was Nick Cave's 'The Boatman's Call', and in my review of that I actively **defended** Cave's dramatics. It's what made it good! But the vibrato, when it pops up ... it gives me the mental image of ANOHINI scrunching up her face because what she's singing is **so important** and and that everything's **so dramatic** and that she's singing it all **so well and soulfully**. It's a little overwrought. It's a little silly. And, unfortunately, it takes away so much of my ability to take this album seriously. Which is a shame! I'm not the uppest on lyrics about the trans experience, but ANOHINI's seem pretty good, all things considered. And I really don't mind the backing instrumentation, either. Heck, I kind of like it! Some people have a problem with it being thread, but I think it's nice. Maybe kind of beautiful, even — if only ANOHINI wasn't vibrating all over the place. It sounds like you're physically shaking your head up and down to get that effect! And in the end, like I said, I feel bad about this. She makes an album about a personal experience of hers, written so strongly into the text that it's hard to ignore ... and I can't take it seriously because she sings it in a way I find goofy. Like, if I could get past it, I absolutely would. And I probably still wouldn't think it's the **greatest** album I'd ever heard, but jeez, at least I'd be able to focus on the **other elements**. ANOHINI, you're a bird girl now, as you've always been — and I couldn't be happier for you. But as far as this part of your music is concerned ... I'unno. I am a-wishin' I could've liked it more. Sorry. At least I'm done with my backlog. Goodness, if I ever let this happen again, someone slap me, honestly...

One World

John Martyn

5/5

Oh, there's another John Martyn album on this list? That's neat. I mean, to be honest, it kind of took me a second to remember that there was even a **first** one, SOLID AIR, so what does that say about **that** album, huh? I mean, OK, OK, let me be fair, SOLID AIR isn't bad, by no means. From what I can recall, of all of the albums I'd stumbled across to that point labelled as "singer-songwriter," it was one of my favorites, specifically for its jazzy bits. However, whenever it leaned into folk, that's when I started cooling on it, and ultimately I only ended up liking the thing instead of loving it. And frankly, I thought that was gonna be the situation here, too. I ended up listening to side one twice, and both times, there was just... A thing about it that kept me from truly loving it. Like, oh, sure, the first two songs on side one were great, but then once I hit up "Smiling Stranger" and "Big Muff", that's when stuff went slightly awry. It's like, the first two tracks are just so... I mean, damn good, y'know? The first one has this irresistible little groove to it, and then the title track is this wonderful slice of spacey stuff. But then with "Smiling Stranger" and "Big Muff"... I'unno, I think they were just too comfy staying on one spot for too long. Neither one really has that much instrumental progression, so after a bit they do honestly get a bit boring. "So, what," I wondered: "would this be another 4 for John?" Side two of this album... Oh, side two of this album ain't a redeemer, I ain't know what is. The album's second side is just so quietly beautiful. There's no showing off here; it just glides along at this wonderfully pretty place. From the acoustic glimmer of "Couldn't Love You More", to the tip-tap movement on "Dancing"... It's just such a good listen. And then there's "Small Hours". Oh, goodness me, "Small Hours". An incredible, largely piece of ambience that is legitmately so damn fuckin' pretty to listen to. It feels like a warm hug, softly comforting you and telling you that everything's alright. Legit, I can imagine putting this on if I'm panicking or stressing the fuck out and letting it calm me down. As I'm typing this part of the review, I'm listening to Spotify's auto-generated sample clip on loop, and even just this small portion of it... Oh, wow. Just, wow. This alone makes me wanna walk up to those 1 outta 5 reviews and tell 'em, "Hey, your thoughts are your thoughts, but you can't tell me this ain't just that good. Honestly now." I mean, I'll be 100, this isn't a mind-blowing album — but then, does every album even need to be? And besides, I enjoyed a majority of this thing enough, especially "Small Hours", to overlook any lingering thoughts of "But did I **need** to hear this before I die?" Whether or not I needed to, I'm happy I did, and ultimately, that's more important. Y'know, I read a piece of history somewhere that this album almost didn't get made because. Apparently, John Matryn was burned out on the music industry for... Well, numerous reasons; take your pick, including the death of Nick Drake. But thanks to an extended sabbatical in Jamaica and getting to socialise with reggae musicians, he refound his passion, and, well, this thing was the result. And lemme say, regardless of the end product, I'm glad he found his spark again — and I'm happy it birthed this album into the world. A good-ass time, for sure, and I couldn't dig it more.

Femi Kuti

5/5

Normally when I listen to albums — for this list or in general — I like to split them up into chunks, by record sides. For longer albums especially I figure it's better to go about things this way than risk getting burned out. I really only make exceptions for albums I can't easily queue up song by song (so really it's mostly the stuff where I'm forced to listen to "full album" uploads on YouTube). I didn't really plan to make an exception for this album also. This thing's a little over 70 minutes, by far the longest album in the little backlog I'd built up. Not to mention, it's streaming on Spotify! Why would I give it an exception? Well, yeah. I looked the thing up on Discogs and, oops! It turns out there was never a vinyl release for this album! Just wonderful. There **was** a cassette release that chopped this album in half, and I could have cut **those** in half to make this into fourths... But then I figured: "eh, screw it." I'd read such good things about this album's groove that I figured there shouldn't be a problem with just letting it run, right? If it was really **that good**... Oh, boy howdy is it ever. I'm frankly incredibly impressed by this. How in the world does someone make a 73 minute album, where nearly every song is nine minutes, and it's not boring? I guess it's like a fellow group member of mine said: like father, like son. Femi's got Fela's skills and then some, goodness. It really is just that it's such a nuts groove. If you find yourself not listening to the lyrics (like I ended up not doing), you'll be more than satisfied getting by on the percussion and the horns and the vocals... It's like your at this really great party where, yeah, there **is** a political reason behind why it's being held, but just as well no one would blame you for just dancing and having a great time. I honestly get the feeling Femi probably could have gone on **even longer** and I don't think I would have had an issue with it. With Afrobeat like this, how could you? I really don't even have any specifics I'd wanna bring up. And that goes for positives **or** negatives! Like, maybe it could have been trimmed down a little... But I don't think I woulda minded either way. I just had it on while reading some shit on the Internet and I was jamming out the whole time. Like another review said, it's one I can absolutely imagine pissing you off if it catches you at the right time... But I guess I found my right time for it? And I am so, so thankful I did. If you wanna thank hard about this album, go ahead, be my guest. It probably deserves it. For me, it was just 73 minutes of fun, and 73 minutes I'd easily return to. Jus', wowie wow.

Hot Buttered Soul

Isaac Hayes

5/5

This is not an album. This is an experience. Every song on the album is a grand journey unto themselves, stretching on for miles — and it's a journey you'd never want to end. Whenever a song fades out, I'm almost disappointed that I hafta leave this place that is so wonderful, until the next song starts up and I'm somewhere else equally fantastical. You'd think I was exaggerating here. Like, no way is this record actually **that good**; you've gotta be pullin' some kind of hyperbole out of your ass. Believe me, though — I am absolutely not. There is no way I can overstate just how truly magical this LP is. If you've ever heard this album's take on "Walk On By", then you know. You just know, deep in your very core. And it's like, I'm yammering here, but I'm honestly kind of speechless. I mean, could probably go on for hours, or at least try to, and it would never compare to just putting on a good pair of headphones, closing your eyes and letting your body rock back and forth with the music. That is a better explanation than words could ever give. I guess if I wanna say anything while I'm here, I'll be honest, standing next to these titans, it's funny that "One Woman" ends up feeling a little out of place. Like, come on — only **five minutes**? The next song on the album is **nineteen**, and it spends your running time and **dollars** in change just **setting itself up**. Like, if I can paraphrase another review: "the longer the song is, the closer you get to God." But it's like, length doesn't matter. Song structure, y'know, whatever, that doesn't matter either. It's all about experiencing these musicians, on some fuckin' higher plane of existence shit, pullin' off tracks these incredible. Even "One Woman" — after all, a journey is a journey, no matter how long it is. Seriously, like I said, I could keep on. But screw it, I'm stopping it here and now. This album is an absolute all-timer. An absolute masterpiece of soul. Don't just take my words for it. Hear it for yourself and, jus'... By the time you get to the end of "By The Time I Get To Phoenix", you'll get it. And I honestly feel bad for those who don't. You don't know what you're missing out on. I don't even have a snappy joke line to end this off on. Jus'... Damn. Magic. Absolute magic. Insanely good stuff for 1969. In short: I can dig it.

Songs The Lord Taught Us

The Cramps

5/5

Here's another one I wanna keep short — or try to, anyway. I mean, I don't need very many words to express why I dig psychobilly as much as I do. You take "leather jacket" 50's rockabilly, mix it together with loud and fast garage and punk sensibilities, and top it all with a layer of B-movie horror cheese... Yeah, no shit this is awesome. It's the kind of music where I can completely overlook any flaws the album might have because I'm having so much fun with it. Is "TV Set" maybe not the best opener given how it differs musically from the rest of the album? Suuuure. And there's a couple of songs in there that might not be the **tightest**... But, heck, on a package that's overall this enjoyable...! Believe me, I'm not being uncritical here. Most of what I brought up here is stuff a fellow group member used to justify giving this thing a 4 — and as such, I can't totally disagree with him. For my tastes, though... I mean, maybe it **is** like a cheesy 50's B-movie. You wouldn't go around saying the whole thing is flawless, but dang it, you can have so much fun with it, it makes itself more than worth the price you paid to get into the drive-in where it's playing. And, well, I've repeated that point of mine with different wording for the third time, so lemme just wrap this up here and now. This shit's a regular ol' psychobilly freakout, and I very much thank The Lord for teaching The Cramps these songs. Goodness me, I gotta go listen to more of this stuff...

The Modern Lovers

4/5

Well, I gotta admit, I'm embarrassed. When my group got this album, it was July 30th. I can't remember what was going on that day, but for whatever reason, I didn't get to it then. Maybe I just didn't feel like it, or maybe I was too busy tryna deal with the dang backlog that'd been burning a hole in me for a while — I'unno. In any case, into the backlog it went, where I promptly forgot about it. It wouldn't be until August 5th, then, long after taking care of that day's 1001 Albums pick, that I'd actually sit down and listen to the album. And once I finally got done with it, I figured, "Well, once I finish reading these few comics, I'm sure I'll form an opinion about it that I can write down." Then I forgot about it. Cut to today: August 19th. Now, sure, there have been other albums in my backlog that've been stinking up the place longer (lookin' at you, Coldcut), but consider: I haven't heard any of those yet. I have heard THE MODERN LOVERS. And yet... I'unno, I just couldn't think of anything specific I really wanna say about them. I suppose I could start with the general statement that I don't think they're bad. I mean, the voice honestly doesn't bother me like I know it has some people. It's not one I haven't heard in punk before, and it's probably because of this album it's popped up often enough elsewhere for me to get used to it. Then there's the Doors-y organ: some people've used it as a means to call these guys "The Doors at home," but, like, come on. I'm not gonna sneeze at good organ, and Doors-y organ is **good** organ. And in general, this album has a lot of good garage and proto-punk material. Re-listening to side one as I type this, I can tell you it's a good time. If I can figure any reason why it took me so long to get around forming an opinion about this album, it might just be a sense of "It reminds me of other stuff I'd wanna listen to first." Like, at some point in the second half of the album I was sinking into such a mood of "It's fine" that I started wishing I could just be listening to The Doors or, I'unno, The Clash instead. Like, as good as this album is, there is a sort of "wow" factor that I feel like is missing from it. And that's not me knocking it for not being complex; there's an appeal in that. I'm just not able to listen to these songs and think of them as anything more than just "good." Y'know? Ultimately, I just can't say I'm too impressed by this. Sure, I enjoyed my time with it more than I didn't, and I'm not gonna knock it down a point just because I wasn't blown outta my seat... But I don't think I can act too surprised that it took me as long as I did to write this review. Like, if it weren't for the framing device it allowed me... Yeah. Well, that's another album off the backlog, anyway. Time to go continue putting off Coldcut.

Hot Rats

Frank Zappa

5/5

Y'know, so far the Frank Zappa albums on this list haven't exactly been a big hit with my group--and I gotta admit, that bums me out a little. I'm a big fan of his; I love albums like SHEIK YERBOUTI, YOU ARE WHAT YOU IS and ZAPPA IN NEW YORK. Even if a few of his lyrics and general opinions have aged pretty poorly, I still hafta marvel at his musicianship and how tightly he ran his bands. Seriously, go listen to any of the numerous Zappa live albums that've been released; you'll be amazed. But then, even as much as it disappoints me that my group hasn't been too warm on Zappa, I gotta admit, I can't act too surprised. After all, none of his work from the 70's is on this list, or even anything he did in the 80's (as much as other fans would tell you it's not as good). No, all of the Zappa material on this list from the **60's**... And take it from my: I would **not** recommend a lot of this stuff to a beginner. Of the 62 albums Zappa released in his lifetime, I often find myself coming back to his 60's albums the least, and for what some might view as a shallow reason: they're often his least accessible. FREAK OUT! and WE'RE ONLY IN IT FOR THE MONEY are by-far some of Zappa's most experimental records, and therefore the hardest to get into for modern ears. Y'know, this "commercial pop" for "NORMIES, MAN"; this is freak out music for all the freaks and weirdos down in Sun Valley. It's the kind of thing you can imagine Big Important Rock Journalists eating up just because it tries so hard to be unappealing to the ear of the average Joe. Though, of course that's not the only reason my group's had issues with Zappa. The other thing is the **lyrics**: the two albums, particularly WE'RE ONLY IN IT FOR THE MONEY, have a lot to say about culture at the exact moment in time they were released, and, well... It's often not great stuff? I remember one fellow group member comparing the satire on these albums to the kind of stuff you'd find on SOUTH PARK--namely, a very cynical, "everything sucks," "douche vs turd" kind of look at the world. It's an attitude that I can understand, but in politics these days especially, I just can't abide by it. (Not to go on a tangent, but anyone who didn't vote Democrat because "Oh, they would've been just as bad"... let's just say I'm not happy with you, to put it in short.) In any case, it's not a fun thing to listen to, especially and particularly not over this kind of "LOOKIT HOW WEIRD AND FREAKY MY MUSIC IS" experimental shit. Now, I still found ways to rate these albums positively. Hell, I was the only person in my group, I'm sure, who gave WE'RE ONLY IN IT FOR THE MONEY a 5--pessimistic "everything sucks" lyrics aside, I still really like it musically, and its broad concept of parodying SGT. PEPPER'S. I promise you, I did not give them good reviews just because I'm a Zappa fan. Or not entirely, anyway. But, yeah, believe me, I get the problems my group has had with him. I mean, hell, I'm not 100% on the guy either: he dedicated the last page of THE REAL FRANK ZAPPA BOOK to underplaying AIDs and saying that it was just the government distracting people from "real issues." If he didn't die in the 90's, he sure would have before 2020, and believe me, either way, I do **not** wanna find out if he would've been an anti-masker or not... But anyway, here we come to the final Frank Zappa album on this list. It's the last album he released in the 60's, and it's his last chance to make a good impression on my fellow group mates. So... Do I think it stands a chance of winning them over? Oh, yeah, definitely. For sure. As far back as their reviews of FREAK OUT!, I knew, if nothing else, they'd like this one at least. 'Coz y'remember how I said I wouldn't recommend a lot of Zappa's 60's stuff to beginners? Well, basically, this is one of the ones I would. This is Zappa's second solo album (technically his first, since he only composed and conducted LUMPY GRAVY) and his first dive into one the many facets of the Zappaverse: jazz fusion. It's for sure his greatest, too. That's not to put down his later stab at things (WAKA/JAWAKA and THE GRAND WAZOO), but let's be 100: he never did it better than he did here. Being jazz, there's naturally a lot to look very closely at if you're the kind who likes to do that sort of thing. There's the composed-through tracks, where you can listen in amazement at how tightly-composed they are. Seriously, they're like a damn Swiss Watch, the way they're composed. On top of that, all of the piano, organ, flute, clarinet and saxes were played by one guy, Ian Underwood. That's just incredible, isn't it? Not to mention the drums from John Guerin, Paul Humphrey and Ron Sellico. Then you have the looser tracks, where you can admire the improvisations Zappa does on guitar, and all the intricacies therein. Like, seriously, the man didn't put out, like, CDs worth of nothing but guitar solos for nothing; the man can damn **play**. Let's not also forget the guys who play violin: Don "Sugarcane" Harris on the looser tracks, and Jean-Luc Ponty on "It Must Be A Camel". I especially wanna point to Sugar for just how hard he goes on "The Gumbo Variations", but Jean-Luc Ponty is no slouch either. Really, they're both great. But let's be real: most people aren't gonna listen that deeply. And, hey, fair if they don't, 'coz there's a lot to enjoy just scratching the surface. I mean, have you **heard** "Peaches En Regalia"? That's a top three Zappa instrumental right there, with great melodies and a neat "octave bass" trick and everything. "Willie The Pimp" might go on too long for some people, but I think it fuckin' jams--big shout-out to Captain Beefheart's cameo as the only vocals on the album! "Son Of Mr. Green Genes" is a great, extended take on a song from UNCLE MEAT, highlighting its own neat-o melody; "Little Umbrellas" is a smooth little track to sip a cocktail to; "The Gumbo Variations" blasts full-force with its own solos... And I might not have anything particular to say about "It Must Be A Camel", but I hear the chord changes are pretty phenomenal! And if you're gonna listen to this thing, do yourself a favor and do it for headphones; I don't use "Peaches En Regalia" to test new pairs for nothing. If there's anything I feel like HOT RATS might mean to my group mates, it's that there's much more to Zappa than those first two albums have shown off. Behind all the cynical-ass lyrics and wacky-for-the-sake-of-it "freak out" experimentation, he's one hell of a composer. The man didn't get the London Symphony Orchestra to play his shit for nothing (and if you ask him, it almost was thanks to the recording process, but that's another story). I mean, some of it can be very different--just look at his later Synclavier work--but you can't deny, when he wants to make something good, he can make something **good**. Seriously, go listen to "Strictly Genteel" from ORCHESTRAL FAVORITES if you don't believe me. Or, heck, just listen to this album. Either way's a good time. Zappa was a weird guy, musically speaking (he never did drugs, y'know). He never aimed to make anything commercially viable: his only audience, as he put it, was himself. And even as a fan, lemme tell you, that can be **incredibly** apparent sometimes. I mean, did anyone really **want** THING-FISH but him? But most of the time... I'm just glad he thought to put his music out there for others to hear and judge for themselves. Whether you liked his stuff or not, hey, it made an otherwise normal musical landscape just that little bit weirder... And I don't think I can fault him for that. And at this point, all I can say is: "the modern day composer never dies," "music is the best," and, please, participate in democracy and register to vote. (This has been Official Review #567.)

They Were Wrong, So We Drowned

Liars

3/5

Oh, boy, and here we go opening August with one of the bottom ten albums on the entire website! Been a hot second since my group's gotten one of these... I think the last one we got was DUCK STAB!/BUSTER & GLEN? Goodness. Well, I guess it's about time we got to take another peek at the albums the people on this website hate by average. Now, look, I get why it's got a 2.1 average, I really do. I mean, I'm not gonna go off on a tangent accusing the users of hating anything that isn't 60's or 70's pop rock, 'coz, like... This is absolutely not for everyone. I mean, frankly, it's for such a small group of people, I'm not surprised that even in critical circles this thing has only gotten a 64/100 average on Metacritic. You introduce this album to the average Joe or Jane, they're not gonna be able to make heads or tales of the noise, freeform beats and unusual, sometimes discordant melodies (if you can even call them "melodies," anyway). I don't blame people for rating this thing so lowly, or I'm not accusing them of "not being able to open their minds" or whatever. Some people are just never gonna gel with this. What about me, though? Did I? Well, I think for my experience, it helped to keep this album's... Y'know, rather loose concept in mind. See, apparently it's about a bunch of witches gathering on a mountain called The Brocken during Walpurgis Night... Or something? I'unno. Basically, I just imagined that I'd accidentally stumbled across a witchcraft ceremony on top of a mountain or in the middle of the woods and that the album is the music they were making as they danced around a fire. Vaguely tribal stuff, I guess? In any case, framing the music in that way did help me understand it and explain a lot of its choices. But does it mean I actually **liked** this album? Well, as long as I kept the image in mind, I didn't... **Hate it**, but... Eh, honestly, I ended up being kind of average on it. I mean, sure, it was a far more interesting listen than any number of random and generic-ass 60's psych or 2000's indie rock albums this list could've given my group, but I'unno. Just because I get what this thing's going for doesn't mean I hafta be too excited about it. Besides a rare few spots, the thing mostly just kinda passed me by. That's the weird thing and most experimental music. I feel like I've got the kind of brain that's particularly attuned to understand this kind of music and hear past a lot of its weirdness to understand what's going on underneath. As a result, however, unless it's particularly egregious (I've sampled that SPY VS. SPY album ahead of time 'coz I was curious, and **oh wow**), more often than not I just end up being kind of bored by it. Like, "Yeah, cool you can do all this weird shit––and? I mean, am I supposed to be impressed by it? I ain't gonna say 'my kid could do that' or anything, largely 'coz I don't have one, but, like... I never understand why I'd listen to this music beyond this list, besides wanting to act like I'm smart because I'm listening to weird music." I mean, don't get me wrong: weird, experimental music has its place. I think it's great that there's people going out there and pushing the boundaries, and I think it's worth listening to. Even if you come out of it absolutely hating it, at least you expanded your horizons. No generic-ass 60's psych album is gonna do that like an album like this will. But on a pure "enjoyment" level, which seems to be how I rate most of these albums... I did more than I didn't, though I doubt I'll ever come back to this. It was something to see the witches dance around on the mountaintop once, and now that I have... I don't need to again. Just what it is.

Dr. Octagonecologyst

Dr. Octagon

1/5

i am so tired Y'know, I somehow expected more from a character that calls itself the "paramedic fetus of the east." Like, I'd heard so much about the shock raps on this thing, I was fully prepared to bring that "There's a difference between Eminem doing it and Bizarre doing it" line from my review of 'The Marshall Mathers LP'. 'Coz I really do not have a problem with "outdated shock raps" as long as they're done in a properly entertaining way, and as long we know we're not supposed to be rooting for the narrator. Eminem, for all the headaches the Slim Shady persona has brought him, has the wordplay and flows to pull it off. Dr. Octagon, on the other hand... Lemme tell you, the first time I was ever introduced to Dr. Octagon, it was through one of Rap Critic's "Worst Lyrics I've Ever Heard (This Month/Year)" videos. There was one where he spotlighted the song "Octagon Octagon", where the lyrical conceit was that everything was an octagon for some reason . . . and based off of that and the aforementioned "paramedic fetus of the east" descriptor, I thought it was just some random nobody using a character to be an edgy little shit. Imagine my surprise, then, when I find out it's actually an alter-ego of **Kool Keith**. Like, that's a name! I know that name! To some people he might be one of the GOATs, for all I know! I mean, I'd never heard any of his work besides a brief cameo on that Jurassic 5 album, but come on. People **like** him. So maybe this Dr. Octagon experiment will actually be better than that one song would make it seem...? Here's the thing. There's a difference between Eminem doing shock raps and Bizarre doing shock raps — and as it turns out, there's a difference between Bizarre doing them and **Dr. Octagon** doing them. Like, I spent the entire album waiting for something that would inspire so many offended reactions, but . . . but there's nothing! Besides maybe the gynecologist skit, there's nothing here even remotely shocking or offensive! Like, he says "doo doo" and "butt crack" a lot — is that it? Is that the shocking part? Where's the rape? Where's the murder? Where's the **anything** to provoke some kind of reaction? But, OK, it's not offensive. For most artists, that's a good thing. What about the rest of the album, then? Is there anything beyond its nonexistent shock value? I'll repeat: there's **nothing**. I mean, I am actually shocked by how overall **boring** this album is. It's to a point where, legitimately, during one of the songs in the back half, I nearly fell asleep. Which doesn't sound too unusual; even on albums I've liked there are times where I find myself wanting to close my eyes during a first listen. That's just a consequence of my AuDHD. But, no, this was different. All those other times, when my eyes closed, I could still focus on the music if I wanted to. With his album, I was legit fighting off conking out entirely. I straight up missed "Wild And Crazy" because I was trying to keep myself awake. The beats . . . gawd, they are so dry and nondescript. I've heard lowkey beats before, but none with as little going on as these. There's not a single memorable one in the lot. Even the one interlude that samples classical music or whatever, which I'd say is the best beat here, isn't particularly notable. Not even any of the scratching on, which I think is very good, can save these beats. Then there's Kool Keith himself as Dr. Octagon. And, like, as I always say with these rap albums, I am not a lyrics person. My brain being the way it is, I struggle to parse out meaning on the fly unless it's really obvious. But, let it never be said I don't make the effort to try anyway. I actively followed along with these lyrics, and lemme tell you, even with my chronic inability to understand metaphor . . . I had no idea what the fuck was going on on this album. In the middle of "No Awareness", I legit had to ask, out loud, "What the fuck are you going on about?" Like, cool you know big technical words — what does any of it mean? And this goes for every song on the album, really. He says a lot of shit, but none of it connects into anything meaningful. I was never able to conjure any specific imagery, or really even figure out what this Dr. Octagon character was supposed to be like beyond being "the paramedic fetus of the east." What was I supposed to take away from any of this? But here's a counter to that question: why should I give a shit about what any of this means when Kool Keith clearly couldn't care about **his own performance**? Y'know, some people just have rap voices; they were born to spit. JAY, Biggie, 2Pac, Eminem, Kendrick, Dre, Wayne . . . and way more. All those kinda guys, they rap, and they sound natural and like they care. Maybe Kool Keith sounds better on other records, but here? Oh, gawd, it sounds like he's just talking. And he happens to be doing it to a rhythm that matches the beat. And it's so **boring**. Like, even if he **was** spitting some 'Slim Shady LP' caliber shock raps, it wouldn't have any impact. He wouldn't be Freddy Kruger, like Slim Shady comes off to me; he's just be . . . **some guy**. Calling himself "the paramedic fetus of the east" for some reason. Seriously, if he was even slightly entertaining in his delivery I might not have had so much trouble trying to stay away. And I just gotta wonder, what is this album even doing here on this list? That question normally has no impact on what I think about an album, but seriously, I have to ask. 'Coz what's so special about what Kool Keith does here that it's something I just **had** to hear it before I died? What makes it a "classic" that I hafta "respect?" What exactly am I missing here? Are we really gonna pretend that this album is on the same level as records like 'The Blueprint', 'Illmatic', 'Born To Die', 'Me Against The World', 'The Chronic', or any other album like those? Does it really deserve to share space with those? And, like, if you wanted to put a Kool Keith album on here, why not just put a Kool Keith album on here? Why you gotta throw it over to his uninteresting OC? Even from the very little I heard of Kool Keith on that Jurassic 5 album, I know he can be a much more engaging MC; there has to be **something** better in his discography. Like, I don't care if this thing was his solo debut; he **has** to have done better, before or after. And if that's the reason why I'm considering checking out the rest of his work, then, well...! Look, I don't even know, man. This thing is largely just plain boring. And unless you're Kid Rock or scum like Kofi Olimede, I often find that I end up disliking those kinds of albums way more than the ones that're just straight "offensive." They're obviously far worse, but, damn, at least you're making me **feel something**. With Dr. Octagon over here — nada. Nothing. Not a damn thing. These sides are neither fantastic or glorious, and these angles sure as hell ain't awesome or stunning. I was honestly trying to figure out something I liked enough about this album to bump up the score — again, the scratching isn't bad, and I did sort of like "Halfaligatorsharkhalfman" and "1977" . . . but, no. No quarter. This felt like a waste of my time. And I really do hope that Kool Keith got better from here, 'coz if this is still representative of his sound . . . well, goodness. So gimme a damn octagon apple, eh? 'Coz I wanna octagon keep this octagon doctor the octagon hell away from me. (And also be octagon thankful I didn't write the whole octagon review like this! I had the octagon thought, believe me! But it wouldn't have been octagon worth it!)

Dry

PJ Harvey

3/5

...I'm gonna be real, I have barely anything I wanna say about this album. I mean, from all of the ingredients I should be into it — the loud guitars, the raw energy, the feminist lyrics... And yet, actually trying to take in the final project, it really just kinda bounced off of me. To the point where I'm not even able to articulate exactly why it did. And believe me, I've given this album more of a chance than I have some other albums that I clicked with way more; I've given this thing 1.5 plays, for goodness sake! But even on my second play of side one, where I felt like I was getting into it slightly more... Pfffh, I'unno. I still wound up with nothing I really wanna say. Maybe my problem is just that I'm not too much into this exact brand of 90's alt. chick rock? I mean, I don't recall being too much into that Sheryl Crow album my group got, or Liz Phair's 'Exile In Guyville'. And, like, dang, if you're not 'Exile In Guyville', I feel like you ain't gonna have much luck with any of these. And I know I like music from women in the 90's; I was pretty into that Skunk Anansie album my group got pretty recently, and, hell, I really dig the Spice Girls — if that's worth anything, putting their name next to PJ Harvey and Liz Phair. I guess maybe the Lilith Fair crowd just wouldn't have been my scene. I'unno. I think I'm just babbling to try and fill space because I legit have nothing I wanna say about this album. I mean, it's not even a bad record at all; it just... The impact it left on me is so nonexistent, I'm surprised I was even able to get **this far**. Y'know, whatever I was able to get out of that later album of hers, 'Songs From The City' or whatever... It just ain't here, I guess. Shame, but wha'cha gonna do? Fingers crossed I can get something out of the other two albums of hers on this list, I guess.

Reign In Blood

Slayer

5/5

Of the big albums from the Big 4 of trash, I don't think any of them are as truly uncomplicated as Slayer's REIGN IN BLOOD. MASTER OF PUPPETS has Cliff Burton's melodic sensibilities, RUST IN PEACE has Dave Mustane's smirking sneer, AMONG THE LIVING has Anthrax's general punk stylings... And then REIGN IN BLOOD? Oh, that shit is just brutal man. It's shit that'll smash your face in if you stand too close. Slayer is only interested in one thing: being as fast, as loud and as absolutely pummeling as they can be. These songs feel like they're only barely holding themselves together with how fast they go. Hell, it can sometimes feel like there's hardly even a steady **beat** with how fast things are going. It sometimes sounds like the drummer sounds like he's just freeform bashing away because he can't keep up and that's all he can do. Heck, if the singer isn't gonna try in those moments... And with how the guitars can just squeal over top, it can all be a lot to take in, even with this thing's short runtime of 28 minutes. I mean, I absolutely get this thing's sub-3 average rating. Luckily for me, I'm already a metal girlie, so to me this shit is just fuckin' awesone. Like, for one, let's not act like it's all just rapid-fire bashing and trashing. Sure, that's **most** of the album, but there are breakdowns where they slip into a slower groove with slower riffs, and, yeah, those kick ass; they're great. As for the rest... I'unno, it's just loud and fast and crushing and it's awesome. I don't have any particularly complex reasons for loving this album. The worst thing I can say about it is that it's not particularly an "all the time" kind of album... But even then, that just means when I **am** in the mood for it, goodness **me**, it goes the fuck off. So, yeah, I'unno what the rest of my group is gonna think; I've a sneaking suspicion they might not be as glowing as me... Although I can't really make a good guess one way. But for me, for our first of the Big 4's Big 4... Fuckin' hell, it's a classical of thrash for a reason. Any album with "Angel Of Death" and "Raining Blood", and the absolute assault of songs sandwiched between them, would be. So, y'know, throw up the horns, man. This album rules.

John Barleycorn Must Die

Traffic

3/5

Steve Winwood — what a guy, huh? I guess. When this album popped up, one of my fellow group members made a point to tell the rest of us that this would be our first encounter with Winwood. Technically speaking, it isn't: he'd shown up previously on tracks on Jimi Hendrix's ELECTRIC LADYLAND and John Martyn's ONE WORLD. But given the fact that I didn't know he was on either of those until I looked up his name to try and figure out why he was so important... Yeaaaah, for all intents and purposes, this is our first Winwood album. Now, Winwood's one of those fun cases I have sometimes where they're a name I **recognize**, but for the damn life of me I can't figure out why I do. I know, deep down, that there has to be **some** reason I saw their name and went, "Oh!" — y'know, clearly they're important enough that this group member would actively point it out. But who the hell are they, actually, even? I suppose he's some kind of gifted instrumentalist, given how much he played on this thing. Hell, there's some songs here where besides maybe the drum, he's a one-man band — y'know, like he's Prince or Stevie Wonder. Honestly, it makes me wonder why this group is even credited as a band, then, because I don't think I'd ever heard of this sort of thing happening before... But there's probably something I'm missing, so I'unno. But, OK, so Winwood plays a lot of instruments, and also apparently he sings good. Fine. But what does that mean in terms of the music on this thing? Uhh, not that great, if I'm being honest. Oh, sure, sure, I wouldn't say it's **bad**. It's nice-enough-sounding jazz fusion-y blues folk rock whatever, and I really dig the organ playing on here (though getting me to like an organ isn't exactly much of a feat). The flute's neat, too. I can absolutely hear why someone would like this. Though, at the same time, the reason I came to for why is also the same reason why I'm not too big on this thing myself — and that's because this album is Steely Dan. Yeah. I mean, jumping into this album, I was actively searching for what this thing brings to the table... And it's Steely Dan. That's honestly the confusion I came to. This is that light kind of jazz and rock where I'm supposed to be just **really** impressed by the technical proficiency on display — probably even more so here because of how much Winwood did all by himself. And, sure, that's cool and all, if you're the kinda person who looks for that thing. But me, though, I'm absolutely the last person you wanna ask about technical proficiency. I mean, I'll recognize that the "Steely Dan" thing isn't a perfect comparison: this thing is **absolutely** not as yacht-y as Steely Dan could be. It might actually be more Jethro Tull than Steely Dan... But all the same, I listen to this album, and it has a lot of nice parts (especially the organ, which shines like hell on the closer), but I can't help but overall feel this creeping malaise of "Like, what, that's it?" I suppose if you want some nice 70's organ vibes, this wouldn't be a bad album to stop off with. As a piece of wallpaper, I can see it working. But actually listening in on it, and taking it as I presume it was supposed to be... Eh, it's fine. If you want it, go ahead and have it — be my guest. As for myself... I guess I'm just indifferent to whether or not I think John Barleycorne should die — and to whether or not Steve Winwood as a name I should jump up at when I recognize.

Pearl

Janis Joplin

5/5

Y'know, I'd love to not make this entire review about Janis Joplin's all-too-young passing. Like a lot of albums where that's the lens I view them through, I think it ultimately does a disservice to the music, as if the only thing that makes it notable is that the artist who made it died. On top of that, it acts like the artist's **death** is what defines them. That's been the case with albums like Dennis Wilson's PACIFIC OCEAN BLUE and Leonard Cohen's IF YOU WANT IT DARKER, and it'll no doubt be the case with David Bowie's ★. Believe me, I'd love **so much** to not think about those albums or this one in that way. In the case of this album specifically, though, there are two songs in particular that make it really hard for me to not see it like that. "Buried Alive In The Blues" comes first on the album, and it's a rocking instrumental that allows the band on this thing to really show off. Seriously, they may not be as loud as Big Brother And The Holding Company, but goodness me, if they ain't just full tilt electric. I especially wanna highlight the organ and piano: I always love me some good key work, and the stuff on here is just so wonderful. They sound exactly the way I'd want 'em to, and, ah, it's so good. Though, hey, let's not ignore the other instruments; they ain't exactly slouching here. You listening to the way that guitar rips? Goodness me. It's awesome shit — though made slightly sad by the fact that it, uh, was never meant to be an instrumental. Janis was supposed to lay a vocal down on top of it, but passed before she could. From what I've read, they considered getting someone else to record a vocal, specifically the song's writer (Nick Gravenites), but ultimately they decided to leave it as an instrumental. And know that **that's** the reason... Goodness. Which brings us to the flip side of the coin: "Mercedes Benz", from side two. It's a strictly a cappella track, and it's a great showcase for Janis's voice. I don't know if I gave any time to it back when I talked about CHEAP THRILLS (I might've been too focused on the whole "live album" angle to get into it), but in case I haven't, let me rectify things here. Janis Joplin might just have one of the best voices of the entire 60's — which is such a feat, y'know? Consider all the music that came out in that decade and how many different voices are on them. But Janis's voice stands out, just for being so... Unique among female singers. Seriously, was there any other woman at the time who sounded like her? At least in regards to white female vocalists. It just has such a range to it: she can fuckin' scream and holler and put such a rough spankin' edge on her voice... But then, she can bring it down to the kind of range where she wouldn't sound all too out of place doing country (just look at her cover of "Me & Bobby McGee" a track or so earlier). It's so dynamic, and either way it's a treat to listen to. With "Mercedes Benz" being purely a cappella, it really allows you the chance to listen to the subtleties of it, and appreciate just how good it is... And what makes **this** sad is that, well, it was the last thing Janis ever recorded. She did it in one take, and, well... Then she never got the chance to do anything else before her time suddenly ran out. Jus'... Crazy, right? And it's just that those two songs are on this album that makes it so hard for me to not think of this thing in terms of her death. Put aside that it's already a posthumous release: you've got one song that highlights the absence of Janis, and another that puts a spotlight directly on her greatest talent. I just can't not think about her passing with those tracks being here. But let's make things clear, even if she hadn't passed, this album and its music would still hold up. You take this electric band, and you take this woman's incredible singing ability, and you put 'em together... It's a hell of a time. Seriously, I had a blast listening to this thing. These people jus' fuckin' jam and boogie the hell out and it's great. A+ shit all around. So, like with a lot of these kinds of albums, I think it's more worthwhile to not feel sad about the fact that this was the last thing these artists would ever make, but rather just celebrate the amazing things they did while they were here. And Janis sure as hell rocked n' rolled with the time she had. An' seein' as how this is the last Janis album on the list (I checked: her first solo album, and the only one to be released while she was alive, with the great title I GOT DEM OL' KOSMIK BLUES AGAIN MAMA!, is absent), lemme take the time now to say, wherever you are, out in the great ocean... I hope you're resting well. Musically, you truly were a pearl.

Suzanne Vega

4/5

Did you know that Suzanne Vega's done more than just "Tom's Diner"? I mean, if I can be blunt and honest: I really didn't. As far as I knew, she did that one song, and it happened to be used as part of the creation of the MP3, and Weird Al and Fall Out Boy both used her "doot doo" hook in different ways, and... Y'know, that's it. That's her entire legacy in my eyes. Before the random had this album pop up, I couldn't even tell you what genre of music she did. I suppose I had my guesses based on how her voice sounded, and "folk singer-songwriter" type **was** my biggest guess, but for all I knew, she coulda been a polka artist normally. So, yeah, she's a singer-songwriter type. As I've expressed numerous times before, I don't usually have much luck with these guys n' gals. The lyrics are typically too dense for me to really engage with, and generally speaking I'm more of a "melody first" girlie anyway. Plus, with an AuDHD brain, it's sometimes kind of hard for me to even pay attention to them in the first place. I really did try here, though — honestly. I had the lyrics up, I was following along, trying to understand them in real time... And I got nothing. For all I know, Suzanne's a lyrical miracle wordsmith, but for the life of me, I just couldn't parse most of the lyrics. Like, there was something about freeze tag and a guy playing Bogart? I have no idea. As with every other singer-songwriter album I've gotten, then, it all comes down to the music backing her to leave an impression on me. And this is usually another area where I struggle with these albums, because usually there's not much going on musically. There's something there, happening, sure, but never too much that it distracts from the lyrics, and that's always my problem. When you don't care about the lyrics, just hearing a single guitar strumming the same chords over and over can get **incredibly** tiresome. Luckily, though, however, this isn't 60's singer-songwriter folk like my group's normally gotten. Heck, it's not even the 70's stuff. No, this is **80's** singer-songwriter folk — 1985, at that! So you end up having more 80's-style production going on in the background, and, yeah, yeah, this is what saves the album for me. It's nothing mindblowing, but I do actually really enjoy the soundscape that's going on here. It's a lot brighter than I would've expected, and the synths that pop up sometimes are, oh, such a delight. Even with no idea what the lyrics are actually saying, I'm happy to just **listen** to this thing, y'know? Plus, there is actually one song where I got the lyrics, and as a result I really liked it: "The Queen And The Soldier". I suppose because it's the only one on the album that's a straight-forward story instead of the "singer-songwriter" poetic whatever that makes up the rest of the album. If I know anything about myself, I do appreciate a good story, and this is a dang good one. A real bummer, too, but, hey at least I was able to connect with it enough to understand it. That's more than I can say about "Marlene On The Wall" or "Freeze Tag", or any other song on this album. I suppose with that, then it bumps up this album from an "I enjoy it sonically but not much else" 3.5 round-down to an "I enjoy it sonically and it has a really good song" 4. If nothing else, hey, it let me know that there was more to Suzanne Vega than just the one song. I don't know if this album convinced me to check out the rest of her discography beyond this, but at this one album stands, it's a good enough listen. Maybe you'll get more out of it, or have gotten more out of it, than I did. As for me, I'll be happy with the two.

Let It Bleed

The Rolling Stones

5/5

I gotta be real: to this point, I don't feel like I've had much luck with The Rolling Stones. Sure, I haven't hated any of the albums of theirs my group has gotten so far, and I know they have a bunch of songs I like — heck, I know I love at least one of their albums, the American version of BETWEEN THE BUTTONS. But you gotta understand, I see the Stones a lot through their legacy. Y'know, as much as I wanna act like outside context like that is just a garnish and the music should stand on its own, sometimes context really can enhance a tune. And in the case of the Stones, well, their context to me is that they're the rival to The Beatles. That's the debate: Stones vs Beatles, which British band is better? And every time, I've always fallen down on the side of The Beatles. I mean, The Beatles have the legacy of being THE GREATEST BAND OF ALL TIME EVER, and, y'know, I own all their albums, plus various compilations and deluxe editions. Meanwhile, with The Stones, I just... Haven't heard anything, even during the course of this list, that's put them on the same level as The Beatles. Hell to me, the debate isn't even "Stones vs Beatles"; it's "Beatles vs Beach Boys." That feels like the more fitting match-up to me, given their respective musical evolutions. The Rolling Stones... Well, in comparison, they're just a British blues band to me. How could they compete? I suppose there is **one** album... The one Stones album I was actively waiting to see pop up, because I was legit excited to finally give the whole thing a spin. In case you somehow couldn't tell, even with the other reviews surrounding this one: it's LET IT BLEED. I mean, come on — come on! It's LET IT BLEED! The one with "Gimme Shelter" and "You Can't Always Get What You Want", without a doubt two of the greatest songs the Stones would ever make! One's a driving rocker with a hell of a gospel singer wailing on it; the other's straight-up a gospel epic, and maybe the closest the Stones have come to sounding like The Beatles (ignoring THEIR SATANIC MAJESTY'S REQUEST, of course). Not to mention, both can easily be read as being about the state of affairs at the end of the 60's: singing about "rape, murder — it's just a shout away" in one, and the admission that "you can't always get what you want" in the other. Lemme tell you, with those in its tracklist, how could this album possibly lose? So... Y'know, before now, I've talked about albums with a "title track" problem. Generally speaking, it's an album where the title track, often the first song, towers so high over the others that it can seem hard for the others to come out of its shadow. Rush's 2112, Funkadelic's MAGGOT BRAIN, Don McLean's AMERICAN PIE, and so on. LET IT BLEED has something similar to go on: the album is bookended by two songs that are such incredible peaks in their career that everything in-between can only feel like a valley, no matter how little of a drop there actually is. Now, don't let me be understood here: these are still great songs. This is the most I've liked a Stones album since STICKY FINGERS, and, in fact, this is probably my favorite Stones album, period. But I can't front, I can only think of most of these songs as being "good for Stones albums tracks," whereas the other two are "incredible for 60's rock in general." Doesn't help that they could have included "Honky Tonk Women" (another Stones great), but for some reason instead chose to have some country version that honestly sounds a little like a joke? Honestly. I think the issue here for me is that the rest of the songs on LET IT BLEED don't reach beyond the Stones' usual style like "Gimme Shelter" and "You Can't Always Get What You Want" do. Those songs find themselves taking heavily from gospel music, whereas the rest is more just straightforward Stones-y blues rock. And, y'know, I get why they are the way they are: this album **was** following on from BEGGARS BANQUET, after all. That record was a concentrated return to their roots after how far they'd lost the plot on stuff like THEIR SATANIC MAJESTIES request. I can imagine that while they were comfortable stretching a little on a follow-up, they still didn't wanna go **too** far back outside their typical sound. They'd have their opener and closer take a big swing for gospel grandeur, but then everything else would be the Stones just as you like 'em. And, y'know, I don't know if the gospel influence would've been sustainable or not across multiple albums or not; it was maybe probably for the best that on STICKY FINGERS they chose to simply just refine their "return to roots" style. I mean, as far as their strictly "return to roots" albums go, STICKY FINGER **is** my favorite (EXILE ON MAIN ST. following just didn't have enough variety for my tastes). But I hear these big, gospel songs and I can't help but wonder what they could've done if they tried playing in this sound a bit more — y'know? But, ah well. I don't like to rate albums based on what we **could have** gotten instead of what we actually **did**. And for what we did get, even if the majority of the album can't really compare to its two highlights, I think it's really damn good. Again: finally hearing it in full, this is my new favorite Stones album. And if I can highlight any album cut in particular to prove that the "in-between" songs are actually pretty good, I think "Monkey Man" stands out. Maybe it's just because I remember it from its appearance in GOODFELLAS, but it is legit, honest. "Midnight Rambler" ain't too bad, either. So, do the Stones match up to The Beatles now? Eh, not really. Given the choice, I'd take LET IT BE a dozen times over LET IT BLEED. But just as well, I shouldn't be comparing them anyway. They're each their own band, doin' different things... And that's good enough, y'know? And even if I wouldn't pick it first, I'd still take LET IT BLEED second. It might not be as consistent as STICKY FINGERS would later be, but just for having a strong set of tracks bookended by two of the best things they'd ever make... Yeah, it ain't considered one of the Stones best for nothing. As the song says: "you can't always get what you want, but if you try sometimes, you might find you get what you need."

Goo

Sonic Youth

4/5

To this day, whenever I read that something is "noise music" in any way, I always jump ahead and assume the worst about it. I suppose it's just lingering memories of how much I absolutely hated PSYCHOCANDY givin' me the willies... Or maybe that I can very well picture how "noise music" would sound in less creative hands, where the people makin' it just wanna be taken **seriously** as **artists**, gosh darn it. Y'know, **that kind** of pretension. Luckily, though, Sonic Youth don't fall into that unfortunate camp. Sure, there are a couple of spots here where they dip their toes into making completely abrasive noise (particularly "Scooter + Jinx", though it's only a minute, so whatever), but for the most part... I'unno, to my ears it just sounds like a slightly more distorted guitar rock album with a few unusual guitar tunings. And, hey, that's all fine and good. I can be incredibly simple sometimes: I hear something that I think rocks, I'm usually all the way down for it. Heck, it was for that exact same reason I liked the last album of theirs my group got, DIRTY. Honestly, if there's any spot where I'm not too 100% on this album, it's in the lyrics — and not because I think they're bad, no. To be frank, I don't have many thoughts about the actual quality of the lyric writing and their meaning or whatever. Rather, I'm more focused on the kind of audience I can imagine going absolutely gaga for this sorta stuff: Gen X hipsters. The people who're "too good" for the radio and stare at the cover wishing they had someone else to wear sunglasses and smoke cigarettes with because it's the coolest thing they've ever seen. The kinda people who'd hear "Kool thing, what're you gonna do to free us girls from white male corporate oppression?" and nod along and have a long discussion with their friends about it, though they won't actually **do** anything because they really only just wanna feel smart for having that thought (and they're also likely all men themselves, so...). Y'know what I mean? Like, I don't wanna dunk too hard on these imaginary, strawman hipsters I randomly thought up, but at the same time, I gotta be real, it's why on the first side of the album I was feelin' I'd hafta keep this thing a bit at arms length. My reason for liking this album isn't cool enough for this cover, y'know? But all the same, like I said, it rocks, so I'm down to give this thing a big thumbs up. Even if there's an aura about it that it probably drinks a few gallons of overpriced coffee a week, it doesn't change that, hey, the guitars are loud and do cool things and riffs, so, y'know, I'm a happy girl. And anyway, it's still a more appealing album than PSYCHOCANDY was — as if that's a high bar, but still.

Can't Buy A Thrill

Steely Dan

4/5

Have I been too hard on Steely Dan? That's the main thought I had run through my head as I listened to this album. After all, for years I only knew them for the way George Carlin said their name in a bit completely unrelated to them, except to imply that they're lame music for lame white people. It's not an impression I was able to throw off, either, once I actually did listen to one of their albums (COUNTDOWN TO ECSTASY) and came to the conclusion that they're achingly fine yacht rock that you can only really truly like and enjoy if you're specifically listening for deep music theory nerd shit — and I can't and don't. Looking back on that review, though, I gotta wonder if I was only being harsh on it because I was taking it as an opportunity to try and finally understand Steely Dan. Once I found out and came to the conclusion I wasn't exactly a fan, I took it out on the album. I mean, I'm not someone who hates yacht rock (as I said back then, I've listened to TOTO IV too many times), but I don't exactly have any room for albums where the appeal is seemingly supposed to exist solely in music theory. "So what if the root tonic chord or whatever being used here is, like, a sus 7 B-sharp flat over E-Z? Doesn't matter if the music that chord appears in ain't too terribly interesting if you're not zeroing in on the technique" — that's my line of thought. But, OK, I know what Steely Dan's deal is, and I know it's not for me. Now that I'm not trying to understand them, I can just take the music as it is without using it as a proxy to judge Steely Dan's schtick. Throw out any notions of theory: purely on how my ears take it, how does this stand up as my second Steely Dan album, then? Gawd, it's just such a fuckin' vibe, y'know? Besides the lens I'm understanding this album through, I don't know what's too different about it versus COUNTDOWN TO ECSTASY, but goodness, it's just chill as hell. It's incredibly pleasant stuff, where, like... I'unno, the talent and skill is evident, but it doesn't feel at all like I hafta pay too close attention to it. I feel like you could absolutely put it on and just have it there as accompaniment as you lounge around in the sun. Y'know, prime kinda yacht rock shit. Like, even when this album is rocking its hardest on something like "Do It Again", it's never that un-relaxed, and it's hitting me totally right today. I never wanna advocate for not thinking about what you're listening to, but honestly, deciding to not scrutinize this music was probably the best decision I could have made. Jeez, I don't even have any specific notes about particular songs; I was just taking each record side as a block... And, y'know, true, when you take it this way it's far from mind-blowing, and I wouldn't be able to defend against accusations that it's lame... But again, it just hit right today. It's just peppy enough to be engaging, but still a totally chill listen. So... Yeah, I guess I **was** being too hard on Steely Dan. Maybe if I go back and listen to COUNTDOWN TO ECSTASY with this in mind I'll like it more. But for the time being, though... Yeah, I can only give a big thumbs up to this album. I'm not over the moon for it, but I had a good time with it, and I'd even happily put it on again when the mood hits. It's just good-ass yacht rock, what more could you want? Still probably won't stop thinking of George Carlin when the name comes up, though — too ingrained in my head, y'understand. "Steely Daaaaaaahn."

1989

Taylor Swift

3/5

I am not a fan of Taylor Swift. I do not like thinking or hearing about her or her music. And I feel like I have to explain this every time I say something like that: it's not because I dislike her as a person, or as an artist, or even as a celebrity. Sure, I'll razz her for how much she just loves to use her private plane, but it's not like I have much reason to make a big deal out of it. I would've had one when I was younger, however. When I was younger, I very, very much disliked Taylor Swift. It's possible I even hated her, though I think even then I would've thought "hate" was a strong word. Back in 2014 or whenever, I had the same problems with her that everyone else did: she dated a lot of men and wrote songs about 'em. Somehow, I'd bought into the line that it was somehow a bad thing that she wrote about her relationships — as if musicians haven't been doing exactly that sort of thing for years. It was obviously just a lot of celebrity tabloid nonsense, and back when I was a lot more openly emotional (aka: angry) this kind of stuff somehow mattered to me. At some point not too many years later, I realized none of this mattered and I shouldn't give a shit. That would've been the end of it, too, if Taylor Swift hadn't dropped REPUTATION not too long after and decided that everybody should care a **lot** about her personal life and celebrity tabloid nonsense. And besides a brief period during the COVID lockdown when she recorded her "more" albums, that sort of thing has basically been all she's written about ever since. Between that and the "(Taylor's Version)" re-recordings and the Eras Tour, her brand since REPUTATION has basically been just "ME!" And none of that should matter to me. I don't care about what goes on in the personal lives of celebrities unless it's some real egregious shit; if Taylor Swift wants to have her albums be "lore drops," ala the stuff on THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT, how does that affect me? But that's where we get to the thing that actually causes me to struggle with Taylor. In a word, it's overexposure. When Taylor embarked on her Eras Tour a while back, she quickly became perhaps the single most famous person on Earth. It felt like I couldn't go anywhere without hearing about her or how damn successful the tour was. Every day: "the Eras Tour is a nation unto itself! It's pulled in so much money, it has its own GDP! It's the most successful tour EVER!!" And it bothered me to walk through the Walmart where I worked and see so many damn books and magazines about her and how **just absolutely wonderful** she was. It felt like all of this shit was being forced upon me and it just really turned me off of her and her music. What's funny about that is that, honestly, if it weren't for this extreme level of overexposure, I figure I might honestly listen to her music more. I wouldn't call myself a super fan or anything, but I could see myself working some of her songs into regular rotation (besides Weird Al parodies and DragonForce covers, anyway). Earlier this year, I watched (the super extended edit of) the Eras Tour concert film ahead of a podcast I like covering it, and besides getting burned out by its length, it pretty much confirmed my thought. So, hey, maybe finally listening to an album of hers will further convince me...? Here's the problem off the very top. If we'd gotten the "more" album that's on here, that'd be one thing. If any of her earlier, country albums were on here, that'd be another thing. Heck, if RED was on here... But of course, **OF COURSE** the one we got was 1989. Of course we got the one released at the height of my Taylor Swift hatedom — the one where everything started going wrong for her music, as far as I can tell. The way I've been seeing it 'til now, if she didn't make the full leap to pop on here, and if it weren't for shit like "Shake It Off", REPUTATION wouldn't have happened, and I wouldn't have spent the next near-decade getting so exhausted. I have to admit, I was kind of dreading getting this album (as much as you **can** dread getting an album, anyway). But, I should give this thing a fair chance. After all, I know there's some damn good songs on here ("Style" and "Wildest Dreams"), so it can't be **all** bad. And, hey, maybe after 800-some words of preamble I should finally get the dang album already, eh? So, did it convince me? Uhm... Maybe a little? But not enough to actually go over the cliff and actually incorporate more Taylor into my listening rotation. 1989 is the kind of album where I feel like I can blame any lack of enthusiasm on it for two reasons. First, this thing has probably had a **massive** impact on pop music that I'm just not even aware of because I didn't listen to this thing at the time. For the longest time I assumed this album was on this list solely because it was "the one where Taylor went pop," and I pre-emptively dismissed it for that, but modern pop stars are probably still building on the framework this thing laid down. If I'm going "Eh, is it really that special?", it might probably be just because Chappel Roan and Sabrina Carpenter and so many people between them and this album have been playing from out of this thing's book. And after that, secondly, there's Taylor's **own** building on this sound. You can trace the "generic Taylor Swift sound" (aka Gracie Abrams) to this exact album, with the scattered fast-spoken-kinda-sung parts and everything. It's the kind of sound we'd go on to hear on LOVER and MIDNIGHTS and all of the billion deluxe editions of THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT... And, look, I'm no stranger to loving a band or artist for having one sound. It's exactly why I like bands like AC/DC, the Ramones and Motörhead. But I guess when you put it together with the kind of baggage I have with Taylor, it can be difficult to just enjoy it on its own without thinking of my frustrations. I mean, I do wonder what this music would sound like to me if I had no idea who she was. Listening through this album, I wasn't able to not think she wasn't just thinking about herself, which is a self-indulgence I've grown to loathe on more recent albums. But imagine how this stuff would sound if I didn't hafta understand it through the lens of Taylor "Me" Swift and instead could just take it as a bunch of character songs. Y'know, like how I've heard the "more" albums play out. I think it'd go two ways. For some songs, the outside context really helps things. "Blank Space" is a song that gets a lot of its appeal for being a reaction to the people who accused her of dating too much. It was her first "Yeah, maybe I **am** a bad guy" song, and it plays way better here than any of her attempts to do that on REPUTATION. Heck, I remember even back in 2014 I was listening to Todd In The Shadows reviewing this song and thinking to myself, "Yeah, this is all fair — get their asses!" I don't think it's a spectacular song in total, but, yeah, I can say I enjoyed it. Then there's the other side of the coin, "Shake It Off". This is a song where, for me at least, knowing anything about Taylor Swift makes it utterly obnoxious. Seriously, to this day it's my least favorite song she's ever done, and all because she's **FUCKIN' LYIN'** on this song. "I'm just gonna shake it off?" A song called "Look What You Made Me Do" would say otherwise! So would "You Need To Calm Down" and whatever equivalents MIDNIGHTS and THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT have. It's only gotten worse with age, because it's always felt to me like a big, forced smile and like she's rubbing it in my face how much she **TOTALLY DOESN'T CARE** when she plainly and obviously actually does. You wouldn't make such a point to tell me you didn't care if you did. At least the detached "Damn, it's 7AM" thing "You Need To Calm Down" scans a lot better, even if it has its own issue of "Me! And gay people, I guess — but mostly: me!" To be 100%, I skipped this song on my listen-through. I was willing to put up with "Bad Blood", one of her other worst songs ever, but not "Shake It Off". Consider **that**, eh? Still, combined they both drag this album down a point or so. No great album would have songs like **this**, in my mind. And I wouldn't even say it's that great of an album, anyway. It's absolutely not bad, and most everyone giving this thing a 1 are likely mostly just mad Taylor's on here at all. But, I'unno. The sound of this album can work in places, but it's just not one I'm all too into. I never wished for it to end like I have with some albums, but by the time this thing ended, I felt like the only reaction I could really have was a light "Yep. That's a pop album alright." And that's even with the excuses for this thing I listed above. And I know it's not because I'm a rock supremacist, or (if we wanna jump to a more extreme accusation) that I just don't like female pop stars or anything. I own Lady Gaga's ARTPOP, for goodness sake. It's just... Not my kind of pop. Not the kind I enjoy. My tastes typically skew a lot older or just weirder, and this... Well, just doesn't do it for me too much. "Style" **is** incredible, though. Lemme just take a paragraph out to say that "Style" is the best song on the album, bar none. If I were to work anything I heard here into my regular rotation, it'd be that. So 1989 wasn't as painful as I thought it'd be. It had its highs, and its lows (and even lowers), and in the end... I'm fine with it. It sure as heck hasn't convinced me I need to go listen to her stuff past this point (except maybe the "more" albums; we'll see when EVERMORE pops up), but maybe I might look into the earlier ones? But if nothing else, it proved my thesis at least a little: I **would** like more Taylor Swift music if I wasn't just so overwhelmed by her everything. I mean, give me some time. Let the hype and the Era Tour and the (Taylor's Version)s and everything fade away. Once she's no longer the single most popular artist in the universe... Yeah, I'll probably dig her. In any case, until then, please do not kill me, any Swifties who happen upon this. I am scared to death of you people and I'll fold like a house of cards if you come steppin' to me, so... Just be gentle, OK? Please?

Pieces Of The Sky

Emmylou Harris

5/5

If there's anything metal and country have in common in my mindscape, it's that I'm not particularly discerning about either. Metal is metal, and as long as the riffs are loud it kicks ass. Country is country, and the old soul that rests in me just really broadly enjoys this kind of sound. Sure, there's some shit in either genre that's significantly worse than the rest (nu metal in the former, heavily conservative jingoism in the latter), and it's not like I don't have specific reasons why I'd reach for one album or artist or another... But generally speaking, I'm gonna find it hard to dislike most anything I come across from either genre. Such as it goes here. Indeed, this is old, 70's-style country alright, and I dig that sound. Same as I have most every other 70's country album my group's gotten so far. But what makes this album so unique that I'd reach for specifically instead of any other country album? Like with a lot of country albums, it comes down to the voice. Emmylou Harris just has a really nice one. She sings these songs (mostly covers) just really well. And to the fact that most of these songs are covers — well, dang, she knows how to pick 'em. I really enjoyed hearing her take on "For No One" from The Beatles and "Coat Of Many Colors from Dolly. Plus, hey, a Shel Silverstein lyric! It's always fun to run across one of those. But if there's any song here that deserves the spotlight, it's the one song that Emmylou has a writing credit for: "Boulder To Brimingham". Now, look, I have no real attachment to Gram Parsons. I just haven't felt any of the albums of his I've gotten, whether it's under his own name, or with The Byrds, or with his Flying Burrito Band... Nothing. But if there's any song that would make me wanna look at him differently; any song that makes me clear how much he meant to someone — at least one person... It's this. And I didn't tear up during it, but it hit me in a way that I just knew, if I was in the right mood... Wham-o. Here they come. Not bad at all for a song co-written by the guy responsible for "Afternoon Delight". So, big surprise, I liked an old country album from a female singer. Next I'll be telling you I liked an album from the Big 4 of thrash ("What, me like MASTER OF PUPPETS?"). But don't just lump it in with all the rest; Emmylou's got the kind of voice that makes her worth listening to on her own, and the obvious songwriting chops that she probably could have flexed more. Honestly, it makes me wanna go back to RED DIRT GIRL and see how much more I'd like it. But as for how this album stands, yeah. That's another winner for country. (Honestly kind of weird how I've ended up associating country music and metal like this... But that's just how things fall out, I guess. I mean, with how many metal and rock guys end up making country... I suppose it's not too far of a gap after all. Hm.)

Homework

Daft Punk

4/5

I'm not entirely sure why HOMEWORK is on this list. I mean, right? They put it on here over DISCOVERY. I'd always assumed that was regularly considered Daft Punk's great work. Or at least it was until RANDOM ACCESS MEMORIES, which has also never been included in any newer editions, despite how absolutely phenomenal it is. So what gives? Now, of course, I have my affections for HOMEWORK. "Da Funk" and "Around The World" are undeniable. And I suppose if this list is basing its inclusions off of "what's important" rather than "what's the greatest," I guess this would be the big French House album you'd include (I've yet to hear a full Justice album, so take my guess with a grain if you want). But still, if I'm being completely honest here, I don't think HOMEWORK is the best album to introduce people to Daft Punk with. It all comes down to the overall sound of this thing. When I picture what this album would look like, I imagine dirty streets and dirty clubs. It's raw, it's grungy... It's not filthy, but dang if it don't have some grime on it. This is all a fine aesthetic, sure; I can see the appeal of it over the polish shine they'd put on their later albums. For me, though, I like the shine, and how bright and colorful it sounds. DISCOVERY sounds like the way the group's logo is depicted on the cover: shiny chrome with a world of rainbow underneath. RANDOM ACCESS MEMORIES, meanwhile, is an inviting disco, bathed in the warm tones of 70's film grain — all that kind of flowery, artistic talk, y'know. You get my point, anyway: I like Daft Punk better when they're working with their disco influences then when they're doing pure, uncut French house. Like, I'unno, with these songs I find it a lot harder to know if you're closer to their beginning or their end. Although, to that point, I actually wanna take the time to swoop in and defend this album against a point I've been seeing. To a lot of people, this album is **repetitive**. If you were to ask 'em how this thing plays, they'd probably just say "AROUND THE WORLD" twenty times. And I can't exactly fault them for that sort of thing: dance music **is** based on repetition. Really, all music is, but the stuff you're supposed to dance to more so. After all, they hafta provide a consistent beat that you can boogie on down to. But that's the thing that bothers these people: maybe these songs are a little **too** consistent. Maybe there's no real progression and the songs are just happy to spin the drain forever until they decide they're done. **That's** being repetitive, and that's the issue. I wanna narrow in on "Around The World" as an example. I think to people like these, they can only really hear the voice saying "AROUND THE WORLD" 144 times. That, to them to me, is the entire song. But to focus in so singularly on the one lyric the song repeats is to ignore everything else that's going on. You see, there **is** actually progression going on here — it's just a little subtler than a brain so used to rock or pop would be used to. It's all about theme and variation: you establish what this song sounds like with all the base elements (based, drums, key, vocals), and then you add and remove elements to see how they sound. Drop the bass, change the drums, add a new synth... It keeps things interesting because the song is always evolving and morphing. That goes for every song on the album: "Da Funk", "Burnin'", "Alive"... Songs that **aren't** singles... I totally understand how someone could listen to these songs and not hear the progression, but at the same time, it doesn't even feel like you hafta listen that hard...? And either way, so many of these songs have such incredible grooves... Even if it's not generally the sound I wanna hear from Daft Punk, I can't deny that it's still quality as hell. And you gotta look at it like this: without HOMEWORK, we wouldn't have DISCOVERY and RANDOM ACCESS MEMORIES. If it hadn't hit off as it did, introducing French house to a wider, global audience... Well, jeez, would I wanna live in a world without "Touch"? I don't think so. I gotta respect it for that at least. And lucky for the rest of it, it still holds up. I'd listen to either of those other albums first, or ALIVE 2007, but HOMEWORK is still Daft Punk doin' what they do best. It's hard to sneeze at that, and it's not something I'll get tired of, no matter how many times they say "AROUND THE WORLD."

Diamond Life

Sade

2/5

Look: it's not that I don't get this album. It's "cool music." It's the kind of smooth rhythms, silky voice and soaring sax you're supposed to look over a nighttime balcony and smoke a cigarette to. I can totally picture that, and I get it. Here's my issue: what if I **don't** actually think this is all that cool? What if — and follow me here — I think it's, at best, incidental music for a hip 80's TV show? And at worst, extra-produced elevator muzak? I didn't wanna be too unkind to this album. I mean, Sade Adu herself is obviously not a bad vocalist, not by a long shot. Besides, while I might implicate this album as "background music" to insult it, I'm by no means someone who'll hate an album for being wallpaper. If it fits the room it's put in, how can you complain? But this sound, sophisti-pop: it just glides right by me. It's too smooth, dangerously to the point of almost being plastic. If I'm supposed to feel cool while listening to this, I don't. I feel like this should be hearing this stuff play over a department store PA system. And not a cool department store, either, if those things exist; I mean shit like Zeller's or... I'unno, Big Lots? It just feels like they're trying so hard to come across like they're not trying hard. I can see them playing this stuff on stage, trying **so hard** to make it look like they're effortlessly cool, but it's just not working for me. I mean, I said it before: "sophisti-pop" comes across like a genre of music made by assholes for assholes, who act like they're **so much better** than **regular pop artists**. And like with Everything But The Girl, I don't wanna accuse Sade of being assholes; I'm sure they're nice people... But it's a **lot** harder to **not** think it this time around, y'know? Really, more than anything, it's just a feeling like every song is going on ten times longer than they actually are. This smooth jazz soul thing wears out its welcome **real fast**, and there are still 40 minutes left in the album when it does. I hardly ever actively wish for albums to end, but if I wouldn't have preferred to listen to anything else towards the end of this... Again, I didn't wanna be so unkind to this album. I'm sure, in the right atmosphere, it'd hit a lot better. Hell, even with my complaints I can't say it's a totally bad vibe. It just didn't inspire any stronger emotions in me than, "Yeah, sure, fine — can I move on already?" And I do love me a good sax solo, so the fact that this one couldn't deliver for me says something. I mean, I really wanted to give this thing the benefit and give this thing a 3. Honestly, I did. But when I checked where I was in the album, and I saw I was in the middle of "Sally" and had two songs left, and my legit kneejerk first thought was, "Oh, my gawd, why aren't you **done** yet?" Yeah. Yeeeeaaaahhh. I gave this album a shot. Believe me, I did. Honestly, I get this album and what it was going for. But I also get that this album is **not** for me. I'm gonna get the hell off of this elevator.

Goodbye And Hello

Tim Buckley

4/5

I think it's worth me realizing that I'm probably shallower than I'd like to admit. As I've said before, it's not that I don't think lyrics are unimportant — after all, there's a reason I don't listen to solely instrumental music. Lyrics, and a story I can attach to them, can significantly improve my enjoyment of a song beyond a surface level. But aesthetics are always, **always** the first thing I judge a song for. Y'know: do I like how it **sounds**? Do I like the **melody**? A good **beat** ("Ow, ow, I'm dancin'!")? If I can't get past that, the rest of the song stands no chance. I think I wanna act like I have high standards when I say I'm "melody first," but then here I am openly enjoying songs like Hinder's "Lips Of An Angel" and Pitbull's "Feel This Moment", despite how actively aware I am that those are bad songs, particularly lyrically. But, I'unno, something about the melodies just suck me in, and ultimately to a brain like me, that's more important — which is especially embarrassing in a case like Pitbull's "Feel This Moment", given that **its** melody was lifted wholesale and randomly from "Take On me". And I think that is really the core of my issue with 60's folk singer-songwriters. Besides the fact that I'm generally too AuDHD to be able to parse flowery, poetic lyrics, they just don't pass the aesthetic sniff test. Way too much of the stuff we've gotten so far is incredibly bare and basic — and I understand why, of course; it's to put focus on the lyrics. But what do I care about the lyrics when the actual instrumentation backing them is more often than not just some plonking around on acoustic guitar? It gives the impression to me that they're "capital-P Poets" first and foremost who just pretend to be musicians, and it's not an impression I'm too fond of. I mean, I've tried to be fair to the likes of Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen. Well, maybe not Joni Mitchell (her album caught me on an off-day more than anything), but still. And, unfortunately, I think I hafta face the reality that I simply just can't stand their aesthetic. Professional, important music journalists eat this shit up — I just can't. So, here we come to my group's second Tim Buckley album. When we got HAPPY SAD back in January, I ultimately found it painfully boring, which bummed me out. I mean, the guy passed away when he was only 28 years old. I know I don't hafta like a person's work just because they died tragically young, but it never makes me feel good when I don't. Especially when it's an album called "HAPPY SAD" and I feel like I'm razzing this guy's state of mind. I just didn't think any of its jazz influence or loose-form experimentation was all that interesting — the aesthetic just didn't appeal to me. In the end, I could only hope that I'd be more into the next album we got from him. And y'know what? Yeah, this absolutely passes the aesthetic sniff test. Oh, don't get me wrong, I'm still not particularly keen on figuring out what the lyrics mean. Even a fellow member of my group, who's **way** more into lyrics than I am, thinks that they maybe might be a bit too dense (though in their case it's more for how they affect the flow of the album — but still). However, like them, I'm able to look past any lyrical denseness, and for me, it all comes down to one thing: variety. Like the review on this website that copy-pastes the one from AllMusic says, this was released post-SGT. PEPPER'S, and I can absolutely tell. **This** is the kind of experimentation I'm into. I mean, goodness, there's **melodies**! And ones I can enjoy, at that! And if they're not "melody" melodies, y'know, there's still just a lot of cool stuff I can enjoy. Lookit the keyboard chords and wailing guitar on "Pleasant Street", or the orchestration on the title track, or just how driving "I Never Asked To Be Your Mountain" is. Believe me, I understand the people who hear the non-musical parts on "Carnival Song" and think it sounds bad, but dang it, it's **interesting** at least. It's the kind of album where, if you're not coming to it for the lyrics — and I recognize that most people are not — there's still quite a lot you can get out of it. If there's anything I feel like I'd wanna knock this album for, it might be Tim Buckley's voice? Don't get me wrong, the range he has is phenomenal; I'm not knocking that. There are just times where it... Kinda bumps up against the aesthetics? I mean, there are times where he sounds like that kind of folk singer-songwriter who's just trying **way too hard**. You probably know the kind of singing I'm talking about. If not, have you ever heard Buffy Sainte-Marie's cover of "The Circle Game"? There's parts on there that get at what I'm talking about. I mean, come on, Tim, you have a good voice; you don't need to try so hard. But in total... Yeah, I've not got a Tim Buckley album I can say I like. One where, despite my early proclamation, I might actually try to dig in on its lyrics — that's just how much the aesthetic clicked with me. Now, I won't be doing it any time soon, and I doubt I'll ever really truly "understand" them... But give me enough time with a good aesthetic and I'll wanna dig deeper eventually. And this is a good aesthetic. And I can only cross my fingers and hope the last Buckley album on this list can stack up just as well as this one does.

Beyond Skin

Nitin Sawhney

3/5

I suppose I should begin by saying that I hadn't really been intending to listen to this album that closely. I mean, I remember reading the genres on Wikipedia back when my group first got this thing (yes, this is another backlog fill-in). This is some kind of electronica/Indian classical fusion record. I'm thinking, it must be something like that Talvin Singh album we got, 'OK'. I could probably just listen to this in the background while I read 'Darths & Droids' and judge it based on its vibes. I mean, sure, it says there's samples of Oppenheimer on, but I figured that meant there'd just be some scattered samples here and there to explain the album's concept. No biggie! I can deal with that! Then track one opens with singing. Like, words. Singing words. And suddenly I hafta pay attention. OK, OK, sure. I wasn't prepared for this, but I can switch gears pretty quickly. And I did go all out with this. I followed along with the lyrics, looked them up when Spotify wasn't showing 'em, translated the ones that weren't in English . . . I even went to Discogs to read Nitin's explanation of the album and its themes in the liner notes. If I had to pay attention to this thing, then by goodness, I wanted to make sure I was paying attention **properly**. Which just makes it that much more of a bummer that actively paying attention like I was didn't too much for me. I really did give it my all here, but I'unno. Most of it ended up washing over me like "Fiiiiiine." It's obviously good stuff; I just never heard anything that really made me go "Wow!" and get any kind of excited for it. Even the parts I liked, where either I thought they were pretty or they were just a slice of Indian music that I really appreciated . . . not enough. Maybe the problem was just that I never truly got a grasp on what everything meant in regards to the concept. I know that it starts at the Indian-Pakistan nuclear situation and runs backwards through time to Oppenheimer's famous "Now I am become death" quote — that much I'm clear on. It's an album about nuclear weapons. But it's also about identity? Y'know, there's the part in the liner notes where Nitin says that his identity is "beyond skin," and I hear some of that theme in "Pilgrim" . . . and then, by extent, it's **also** about the Indian diaspora? From the lyrics I translated, that's what "Anthem Without Nation" is about. And what does any of this have to do with nuclear weapons? I mean, maybe it's just a framing device for these other things? A fellow group member says this album can beat you over the head with its themes and message sometimes, but I guess it just missed me entirely, because I honestly had no idea how either of those ideas were supposed to be related. And it wasn't from lack of trying, let me tell you! I'll concede, the problem's probably just with me. I'm a dummy with AuDHD, and unless something's explicitly spelled out for me I can't really "get it," more often than not. And it somewhat makes me feel like a bad listener for not "getting it" like I feel I should — but, eh, y'know, I tried. Can't get on my case for that. And in my failure to fully grasp the concept, that's where the music should come in to save the day, but, y'know, as I said . . . I mean, this is all kind of a big ol' "oops," I guess. In the end, I just kind of don't have many strong feelings about this album. Honestly, I'm not sure if I wouldn't have actually been better off just trying to listen to this thing casually. "Serpents" probably would've still sounded to me like an endless six minute build up to nothing, either way. As I said above, it's far from a bad album, and there are for sure spots I like . . . but I feel like I'm gonna get beyond this album before too long.

Lost In The Dream

The War On Drugs

4/5

I remember reading on the Wikipedia page that among the chief influences for this album were Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty and Bob Dylan, among others. And listening through this album, and not even closely... Yeah, it sure sounds like all of those artists. Like, "Yeah, that sounds like it's comin' offa a spacier version of BORN TO RUN." Or, y'know, "Yeah, the singer sure sounds like Bob Dylan here." It got me wondering if this was one of those kinda bands that got all sorts of critical acclaim just because it reminded the old guard rock journalists of all the old stuff they like. I mean, I can certainly hear how much this material wouldn't really excite the "average listener" who doesn't go as gaga for Springsteen or Dylan like they do. You just gotta look at how long these songs are on average, or how similar to each other they can all feel. But frankly, though? I don't care about any criticism you can lob against this record. I had this thing on while I was building a LEGO set, and y'know what? This was the perfect sorta atmospheric music to go along with that sort of thing. I'm sure if I actually tried to pay closer attention to it, I'd be willing to earnestly spit a lot of the aforementioned criticism against it. But, hey, I am far from the kinda person who'll criticize music for being "wallpaper." You gotta realize, there's a lotta value in adding color to otherwise empty spaces. And in doing that, well, this album worked as dang well as it could have. I'm aware, this isn't the most high-praised endorsement of this album in the world. I'm basically giving it props for being good enough background music. On top of that, I'm completely ignoring this thing's actual lyrics, so how good of a review is this, really? And that's fair, but, I mean, music serves different needs for different people. I can only be honest about what I got out of an album, and, well... Sometimes, you want good wallpaper, and that's exactly what I got. I can't be too hard on it for providing for me like that, even if it wasn't the "correct" way. So maybe I got lost in the dream. And I'm sure the actual lyrics on the album wouldn't be in favor of that sort of thing, from what I skimmed from the Wikipedia page and a group member's review. But for what I was doing at the time, it was a darn fine one to get myself lost in. 43 years after Nixon first introduced it, I guess it was about time we got something good out of the war on drugs.

New York Dolls

5/5

I'm sure if I can really fully grasp the impact this album and this group has had on rock music. I mean, true, they didn't have influence on the scale of The Beatles or anything like that, but you just go and look at the New York Dolls' Wikipedia page and find out for yourself just how many rock bands and artists they influenced. You've got stuff like the Sex Pistols and David Bowie, all the way up to Alice In Chains and Soundgarden. I'd long known the name "New York Dolls," but I never woulda guessed how wide-reaching their influence was. And as it turns out, they're not just influential; they're actually a dang good band, too. I mean, it could have been like that, huh? Influential in its time, but far outclassed by what they've inspired and can't hold up to modern sensibilities? But, nah, this is some electrifyingly good and fun rockin' shit. It makes me even more surprised at the 1 outta 5's I've seen in the reviews. How burned out on 70's rock do you hafta be to hate on **this**? In fact, I don't even wanna write too much more about this album. You'd really get more out of just listening to it than readin' me tryna describe it. And that's not a cop-out; it's just that this album really is just that simple and fun. So, y'know, all the props to the Dolls for pulling off performances that're such a blast that I doubt Todd Rundgren had to do much else to 'em, and for influencing so much music that came out after them.

Off The Wall

Michael Jackson

5/5

(DISCLAIMER: This review will not contain any references to the allegations, nor to whether or not I personally believe them. This is a review of Michael's music strictly, not of the man himself based on claims of what he may or may not have done. I do not review people. Alright? Alright.) There's people out there who'll tell you that the greatest album Michael Jackson ever made was THRILLER. Are they wrong? Well, that's a whole discussion I'm gonna save for a review of that album... But with relevance to this review, I'll say this much: while it may be the contender for his greatest, by no means does it hold any claim to his most important. That will always belong to the one released before: OFF THE WALL. Simply put, there is no other album in Michael's discography that matches the impact that OFF THE WALL would leave. Even with THRILLER breaking sales records on the charts and racial barriers on MTV, it'll never match up to the fact that OFF THE WALL was, for all intents and purposes, his debut album. Now, of course Michael had been recording for many years before OFF THE WALL. He'd been the kid with the golden voice in the Jackson 5 since the late 60's, and he even had some albums out under his own name. But what needs to be understood about those albums are that they're not, well, **his**. They're Motown albums, and if you're gonna know anything about Motown besides how great the music is, it's how little control they let their artists have over their own music. Heck, the albums with Michael's name on them in this era were little more than extensions of the Jackson 5 brand. If you don't believe me, you can go look at GOT TO BE THERE and how the "M" and the "J" in his name are written with the same hearts that Motown had been writing the Jackson 5's with. Him singing "Ben" for the rat horror movie of the same name wasn't his own decision. Thus, we have OFF THE WALL. It was released three years after he and his brothers left Motown for CBS, one year after they finally gained complete creative control over their works, and one after Michael met a man on the set of the film THE WIZ by the name of Quincy Jones... It also released only four weeks after Disco Demolition Night. So, you gotta understand, not only was this album Michael's freedom away from Motown (and his brothers), establishing his own sound... It's also just an achievement and testament to how good the music on this thing was that it managed to become a hit despite coming out at the height of disco backlash. Like, you've gotta admit that's something. Ah, but context, context. How much surrounding context matters to me depends from album to album (and as you can tell, it matters to me here a little — just a smidge), but at the end of the day, it's all about the music. The greatest story in the world couldn't save that Bonnie Raitt album for me. So I suppose this album's got it real good, then, that the music on it is just... Oh, it's some damn good, let me tell you. Now, sure, this album is **just** disco. There's no variety like there'd be on his later albums, especially on THRILLER. Point of fact, it doesn't have the hit factor like his later albums do. From this, you'd probably recognize three, maybe four if you're into vaporwave. And I'm not gonna tell you every song here is a stone cold winner, but... Goodness me, there is no other MJ I love to come back to as much as this one. This record kicks off with "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough", and you better believe, it does **not** stop from there. I could probably highlight all ten songs on this album and point out something I like from each one. Heck, I could spend all day gushing about how much I adore "Rock With You", with a doubt in my mind the greatest thing this album spawned. It's nonstop amazing disco cuts, track after track, for 42 minutes. I suppose the only hiccup you'd come across is "Girlfriend", which was contributed to the album by Paul McCartney, and... Yeah, it's a bit cheesy, but once "She's Out Of My Life" comes on and you're marvelled by how Michael's voice is placed against this sparse as hell production, you'll quickly forgive it. I mean, does it even need to be said that Michael is an amazing singer? I think everyone knows it damn well by this point, but heck, I'll say it again: Michael's an amazing singer. Whether he's doing lead or his own backing, he's always spot on. He's clearly the center of the record, but just as much praise needs to be given to Quincy Jones as well. The thing about the disco on this album and Quincy Jones's production is that it doesn't strike me as being very much like every other disco album. I'm no connoisseur, of course — I haven't even heard a Donna Summers album yet! — but we all know what the typical sound is. On OFF THE WALL, there's clearly a wider pool of influences being pulled from, from R&B and funk to soft rock and Broadway ballads. They're all overlaid on the disco framework and it strikes me as no wonder why this did well during the disco backlash. There's no cheesy string section in sight! It slaps and bops and pops and whatever other adjective you wanna use hard as hell! And seriously, if Michael didn't make his best music under Quincy, I'm telling you... What else do I wanna say beyond just naming the songs I haven't yet? 'Coz I can do that: "Workin' Day & Night", the title track, "Burn This Disco Out", "Get On The Floor"... All A-plus, top of their class. And that's this record in a nutshell, really. Just absolute top-notch material — and honestly, it's my favorite MJ album, even more so than THRILLER. So, hey, I'm not gonna waste any more of your time combing the thesaurus for different ways to say "good." Put this thing on already and go enjoy yourself.

Songs In The Key Of Life

Stevie Wonder

5/5

Good morn' or evenin', friends. Here's your friendly announcer. I have serious news to pass on to everybody... This is the greatest album ever made. I mean, honestly. Is that not just a fact of life? I mean, can **you** think of a single album that's better than this one? Completely and thoroughly? I don't think so. And believe me, I'm the kind of person who wouldn't just unilaterally declare something like that. Besides the fact that there's no accounting for taste, I mean, no album's perfect. There's always little factors about them that would cause even the best candidates to rock-paper-scissor each other and cancel themselves out. Y'know what I mean? You could round debate about them forever, but there'd always be something that'd keep you from coming to a single satisfying conclusion. Except for SONGS IN THE KEY OF LIFE. I can't think of another album that is so singularly beautiful and perfect that whatever minor flaws it may have just plain don't matter. One that, no matter how many times I hear it, I'm just in awe of it. Its scope, its grandeur, the individual strength of every song, and how they all coalesce into a single product... It would be hard, near impossible for anyone to do — and yet Stevie Wonder did it as his **eighteenth album**. And it's not like this album just came out of the blue. This is the final album in a quintology: his Classic Period. This is a series of albums that includes the likes of MUSIC OF MY MIND, TALKING BOOK, INNEVISIONS and FULLFILLINGESS' FIRST FINALE. None of these albums are to be trifled with; they are all very strong contenders for his best album, in their own rights. I mean, come on, take a song from each: MUSIC OF MY MIND has "Superman"; TALKING BOOK, "Superstitions"; INNERVISIONS, "Living In The City"; and FULFILLINGESS' FIRST FINALE, "They Won't Go When I Go". That's damn stacked. You wouldn't think there'd be a way to compete with that; that, by this point — by **this point** in his career — Stevie would be out of tricks. Well, not only is he not out of tricks, he has enough to spread across **two discs**. Hell, **three**, actually. He had so many songs just laying around that there had to be a bonus 7" EP included just to contain them all — and they're literally just "A SOMETHING EXTRA!" And I've said before, in other reviews: double albums are a risk. If you are not at the absolute top of your game, they can come across as exercises in absolute ego. And even with the best double albums, like The White Album or even SIGN "O" THE TIMES, you could make reasonable arguments for them being cut down. Not here, though. You couldn't cut a single song from this album and still have it work. Not even "Ordinary Pain", the one song on here I'd've said at some point in the past I liked the least. (And of course, being the least liked song on SONGS IN THE KEY OF LIFE is still something a half.) This is Stevie working at the absolute peak of his power. He expends so much of it here, and so hard, that nothing he could do afterwards could even match. Not that I think he ever tried to, anyway — I mean, **I** make a SONGS IN THE KEY OF LIFE, I'm not gonna embarrass myself by trying **again**. I'm not stupid. Even if the rest of my career is "Jungle Fever" and "I Just Called To Say I Love You", I've still got this masterwork of masterworks under my belt. Now, this deep in, you've gotta be thinking I'm being a little hyperbolic here. Like, maybe a **little** overly rapturous? I mean, come on, even if this album really is just **that good**, I shouldn't be suckin' it off nearly as hard as I am, right? And, hey, if I am being a little over the top in my praise here — sure, fine. That's fair. But I am not being dishonest. I am not lying when I say I truly, honestly think that SONGS IN THE KEY OF LIFE is the greatest album ever made. Believe me, it has stiff competition. The Beatles' ABBEY ROAD. Pink Floyd's WISH YOU WERE HERE. The Beach Boys' PET SOUNDS. Prince's PURPLE RAIN. Michael Jackson's OFF THE WALL. Daft Punk's RANDOM ACCESS MEMORIES. Weird Al's ALPOCALYPSE — I could go on. But none of them, not even for a second, compare to the honest magic I still feel whenever I listen to this album. I mean, "**if** it's magic?" You're damn sure it is. And at this point in the review, I'm not even 100% sure on any specifics I wanna bring up to try and back my point. And not because I can't think of any, no: more, where do I **start**? This is not an album that's shy on good moments, given how much it's been sampled in hip hop. And, sure, one of those songs was "Wild Wild West", but "I Wish" is undeniable, no matter how you slice it. (Also, I honestly kinda love "Wild Wild West" for how goofy it is, so...) Like... This album starts like I'm getting a radio broadcast sent directly from Heaven. "Love's In Need Of Love Today" — what an opener. One of my absolute favorites off the bat. It **starts like this**. That's how this album **begins**. And it never, ever dips too far below this point. Like, come on, "Have A Talk With God"? "Village Ghetto Land"? "Contusion"? "Sir Duke"? "I Wish"? I mean, I gotta stop myself from naming every song on the album, but I very well could; they're all just that good. Stevie is just a wonder (hah) of a multi-instrumentalist. Every instrument he touches on this album, he stuns on, and every vocal he lays down is amazing. But of course, his keyboard playing is second to none. Magic from those fingertips, honest to goodness. I mean, goodness, those synthesized strings he lays down on "Village Ghetto Land"? They're synthesized, sure, but damn if they're not beautiful in spite of the song's subject matter. And his harmonica playing, oh. It's what got him famous in the first place, and it's no surprise he's still A1 as heck honking on the thing. Just listen to how it wails on "Isn't She Lovely", or how plain calming it is on "Easy Goin' Evening". And this isn't to ignore the absolute cavalcade of other musicians playing on this thing. They still had to pull their own weight, and pull they did. Y'know Michael Sembello, the guy who did "Maniac" for FOOTLOOSE? He played guitar on this album. Herbie Hancock's on here, too, providing his own key stylings. Minnie Ripperton's one of many vocalists who contribute to the "OR-DAH-NARY PAIN" refrain on the song of the same name. And all the horn players, who were able to pull off something like "Sir Duke"? Give 'em a hand. Give 'em a dang ol' hand. And I could keep going with the praise. "Isn't She Lovely" is indeed lovely as hell. "Summer Soft" lives up to its own name. "Pasttime Paradise" sounds wonderfully mysterious and introspective (no wonder Coolio sought to sample it). "Contusion" is an electric instrumental. "Sir Duke" is just a joy. "I Wish" is groovy as all get out. "Anothern Star" is as dramatic a closer as you'd want. All the songs on the A SOMETHING EXTRA just should not be ignored, particularly "Easy Goin' Evening" and "Saturn". And did I mention how gorgeous "Village Ghetto Land" is already — and I know I did, but seriously, it very much is. And "As" is... Just such a truly incredible song. It fights **damn hard** to be the best on the entire album, and Stevie could've titled it something like "Always" or "Until The Day" for commercial appeal, but dang it, he's such a force on this album that he can name it after the first word on the song and, by goodness, he **gets away with it**. You probably well get by this point how great the album is, though. It's truly something to consider that we almost didn't get this album. For real: in 1975, he honestly considered quitting music so he could emigrate to Ghana to help disabled children. A farewell concert to bring the curtain down on his career was being planned and everything. Imagine: Stevie stopping just short before making the single most defining album his career. I don't wanna say that helping children in Ghana would've been a "lesser" option, but could you imagine a world without this album? Heck, a world **deprived** of this album? I can't. Luckily, Stevie changed his mind, and then took so long to make this album that Motown's marketing division was able to take advantage of the delay by makin' shirts with "We're almost finished" on 'em. Is there another album where you could honestly sell shirts that pretty much say "Hey, the damn thing's comin' soon; shut the hell up?" You probably know my answer. And in a review where I've positioned that I might be speaking hyperbolically, and acknowledged that I might be taking my praise over the top, what I'm about to say could be pushing the limits — but heck, if you've read this far, why not, eh? Truthfully, if there's a higher power in the universe, I do believe that they're partly responsible for this music. Not that this is "their music"; these songs are all the results of Stevie's gifts and his collaborators, nothing less. But more just... Well, Stevie probably made up his own mind to make the best of his career and keep going. I'm jus' sayin', I personally wouldn't discount that something up there, out there, knew what a worse place this world would be without this album, and helped give Stevie a nudge. I could keep going. Not only is this only the second 2k word review I've ever written, but it's beaten the one I did for SGT. PEPPER'S by seven words. It's just crazy to me that I've managed to pull out that much to say. In the end, though, no matter how much I babble on, I could never truly express how truly incredible this album is. I could speak until the day becomes the day that is no more and I'd never really come close. And believe me, you just saw me make a **very** good attempt to try and get there. It's just that amazing of a record. I mean, heck, I wouldn't even really say this is an album: it's more like an experience unto itself. I've never stopped being in awe of it, no matter how many times I spin it. I couldn't even begin to imagine how anyone could truly, completely dislike it. And believe me, I've tried to get it. I've sampled some of the reviews on this album: it's a long album, it's a long album, it's a long alb— yeah, most of the negative reviews I came across really harped on the fact that this album was 104 minutes long when you include the A SOMETHING EXTRA EP. And, y'know, that's fair. I've ragged on plenty of albums for their length before, mostly from the 90's when CD bloat was a thing. And beyond that, maybe this album's sound just plain didn't click with them — also fair. I can't tell you I always loved every part of this album. As I said above, until recently I would openly say that "Ordinary Pain" was my least favorite half, and all because I couldn't jive with the second half. So it's not like I haven't tried to find the faults in this album. They do exist, and I can completely understand how, for some people, it would keep them liking the thing, let alone thinking it's one of the greatest albums of all time. But personally... Well, until the day that 8 times 8 times 8 is 4 — until the day the oceans cover the mountains high — until dear Mother Nature says her work is through — until the day that is the day there is no more, I'll always be loving this album. Thank you, Stevie. Truly.

Caetano Veloso

3/5

Y'know, I gotta tell you, there's something I appreciate about this album. I mean, after writing two reviews in a row that exceeded 2,000 words, hey, it's nice to get one I know I won't have too much to say about. That's not really a knock against this album; there just... Isn't too much I really wanna say about it. And I feel like I should be able to, huh? Not only is this my group's first return to Brazil in months, but it's also a look at a movement I wasn't even aware of 'til now: tropicália. Essentially, it's where you take Brazilian rhythms and such and mix 'em together with more American forms, like psychedelic rock and baroque pop. That should be real interesting, shouldn't it? Imagine what they could sound like mashed together. At any rate, it should be more inspiring to write about than if we'd gotten another standard 60's psych rock album. Yet... Y'know, it's a nice sound. I'll say that much: I enjoyed listening to it. As mood music or audial wallpaper, I can totally give this thing a pass and then some. But tryna take it as something I'd actively want to listen to and engage with... I'unno, it's just not that exciting? Like, yeah, this sure is bossa nova by way of psychedelic rock — and? I think it speaks to me that the most interesting parts of this album have nothing to do with the music. For one, the guy's photo on the cover is just... Oh, wow. Try to look more like a sexy serial killer in a TV show, eh? And then despite me listening to the "2006 remaster" of these tracks, some of them still somehow sounded like absolute ass? I'unno if that's just how they always sounded or if they were somehow screwed up in the remaster, but legit, I thought my headphones were dying. That's how distracting they were. But, yeah, that's really all I hafta say about this album. And it's like, I'm always glad to get some more worldly music, of course. Any album we get that doesn't feed into the book editor's absolute love of the British is great. I just wish this album had a bit more to chew on like any of the other Brazilian albums we've gotten. It's for sure no GETZ/GILBERTO or CLUBE DA ESQUINA. And it's probably not a great thing that I'm openly touting how little I had to say about it in comparison to other records I've gotten recently... But that's just how the dice roll sometimes, I guess. I'll still give it my approval, but don't go expecting to have your mind blown or anything. Just remember, it's not your headphones that're messing up.

The Marshall Mathers LP

Eminem

5/5

Y'know, I remember exactly how I felt the first time I heard "Kim"... Well, OK, I feel like that's jumping the gun a bit. I should probably start a little generally on the album before I dive in so specifically like that. It's just... If there was any one song on my mind from the moment I discovered my group'd gotten this album, it was that one. So, let's back up a little here: THE MARSHALL MATHERS LP is the second and final Eminem album on this list, and by far it's my favorite of the two. Like, sure, I have fun with THE SLIM SHADY LP. The Slim Shady character is such an over-the-top cartoonish villain of a rapper, it's not hard for me to enjoy him the same way I would someone like Freddy Kruger. Y'know, he's a bastard, and you're not supposed to root for him, but dang it, if he ain't just so creative about how he does his shit that you can't help but get a kick outta seein' him do his thing anyway. And while a lot of that kind of material still exists over here on THE MARSHALL MATHERS LP, I think what elevates this to another level above SLIM SHADY is that it takes way more time to reflect on the man himself: Marshall Mathers. As much as I enjoy THE SLIM SHADY LP, at the same time, I hafta admit, it **is** kind of the same thing for an hour straight. Now, Eminem's such a creative and talented rapper, he's able to make it all engaging and entertaining, don't get me wrong. But besides a track like "Rock Bottom" letting the mask slip away a little, you're basically trapped in Slim Shady's world for the runtime. THE MARSHALL MATHERS LP, being more about the man himself (as the title indicates), takes quite a lot of time out to take a step back from the impact the first album of his had and go, "Damn... Shit's crazy, isn't it?" And that's way more interesting than if the whole thing had been shock raps. And I love the shock raps, of course; that's part of what you come to Eminem for. But y'gotta admit, mixing that stuff in with his surprise at people taking his music way too seriously or his extreme frustration at some of the shit he'd been blamed for (as on "Who Knew" and "The Way I Am") can be way more interesting. And, actually, I wanna make a quick point on his shock raps. I've compared them to slasher movies before, but I wanna make clear, he's not just saying shit. Anyone can just say shit. You want proof of that? Look at Bizarre's verse on "Amityville". **That** is just saying shit. There's no passion, no energy, no creativity... Just plainly saying things that're supposed to be shocking, but they don't even come across that way because it sounds like Bizarre just flat doesn't give a shit. You really hafta appreciate Em after a verse like that. I mean, come on: the wordplay? The quick punchlines? The flow? The delivery? The way it all gets strung together? There's a reason why he's so entertaining to listen to beyond giggling at him rapping about taboo shit. I'll acknowledge as well: I get it. Em can say all he wants that he's saying this shit just to make people mad (as he does directly on "Criminal"), or revel in the fact that's become so famous exactly **because** of that (the whole "I'm triple-platinum" bar on "Kill You"), but words still mean shit. No matter how much he claims he's not being serious, he'll admit, there are people who'll take him that way (as on "Who Knew" and of course "Stan"). It's why he's spent so much of his career grappling with the Slim Shady character and why, honestly, his recent album THE DEATH OF SLIM SHADY kind of fails at its goal. If he wants to make the point that if Slim Shady tried to do his shit in the 2020s it'd come off as lame and ineffective... I mean, I know there are people who unironically complain about "participation trophies," so... But like I said in my SLIM SHADY LP babble, besides any comparisons to slasher movies, the reason I don't take too much issue with the shit on this album is that, well, it's 25 dang years old. I can understand being surprised that people backthen let him (mostly) get away with sayin' a lot of this shit. But to be honestly, actually upset at it, in 2025? That's not my dig. Now, I just spent a lot of time focusing on the shock raps ("quick point," yeah right), 'coz that's inevitably what most people focus on when talking about Em's early work. But I wanna take the time to quickly spotlight some other aspects of this album I think are just as worth your attention. For one, the guests features are pretty solid across the board. Sure, Bizarre on "Amityville" isn't... Great. Not very much at all. But RBX and Sticky Fingaz turn in incredible verses on "Remember Me?", particularly Sticky Fingaz. Plus, hey, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Nate Dogg and Xzibit make fun appearances on "Bitch Please II", even if that song is kind of out of place on the rest of the album? I mean, it's the song immediately preceding "Kim", and if you know that track... Well, we'll get there. Then there's the beatwork courtesy of the Bass Brothers, Dr. Dre, The 45 King, Mel-Man, and Em himself. The beats on this thing generally feel a lot heavier and more hard hitting than they did on the SLIM SHADY LP, and while, sure, there are spots I feel like they're maybe a little drier and simpler than I'd like... Woof, still, there are some great-ass beats across the board on here. I've particularly always liked how heavy the one for "The Way I Am" is, and how it's immediately followed by how comparatively light "The Real Slim Shady" is. (What a single, by the way. And to think, he was just saying on "The Way I Am" that he wouldn't be able to follow up on "My Name Is". What track placement, eh?) And before I get back to my statement at the top, I suppose I should take some time out to mention some of the things about this album I'm not too fond of. For one, there honestly feels like a small dip in quality after "Marshall Mathers"? Like, before that point, it's just banger after banger after banger — not a single miss in the lot! Then we hit the "Ken Kaniff" skit, which, I'll admit, I haven't heard in over a decade, and that'll probably continue for the next decade. It's just, I really don't care about whatever beef Em was having with the Insane Clown Posse at the time. There's a difference between the quick disses on "Marshall Mathers" and actually listening to ICP suck Ken's balls. I'll pass, thanks. And, like, I'unno, I've never thought much about "Drug Ballad"... "Amityville" is mostly good, but dang Bizarre's verse has to bring shit down with his verse... And even as much as I like "Bitch Please II", I seriously gotta ask: what is it doing here on this album? And while I've come to appreciate the placement of "Under The Influence" on the album, it's still not **that** great. If I can be real, it's because of these songs why I honestly kinda like THE MARSHALL MATHERS LP 2 a bit more, despite its own crop of issues. THE MARSHALL MATHERS LP 1 might have higher heights, but, I'unno, THE MARSHALL MATHERS LP 2 is more consistent — and that's with the acknowledgment that "Stronger Than I Was" exists. But, OK, I think I've talked about the album as a whole enough. I wanna devote some specific time now to talking about two songs that're different sides of the same coin: "Stan" and "Kim". You ask me, if you wanna appreciate Em's artistry, both in the emotional depth present on this album **and** the shock raps, you look at these two songs. There's a review on this website that asks, essentially: with these songs both using basically the same story-telling devices, why do we come out of "Stan" feeling so sympathetic, while "Kim" leaves us feeling so horrified? To me, it comes down to a simple fact: both songs are reflections on the persona Em presented on THE SLIM SHADY LP. "Stan" is Eminem taking an outward look, asking what fans get out of his music, and what a worse case scenario for taking his shit seriously would look like. It's a cautionary tale against this kind of parasocial relationship, which, unfortunately, way too many people have taken as a badge of honor. It all comes down to Em's "damn" at the very end, where he realizes that he could have prevented all of this from happening if he'd just been quicker sending a letter. And it's not like he could have known any of this was happening to be able to get to the letter faster, which just makes the whole situation even more of a tragedy. "Kim", on the other hand... "Kim" is the void. "Kim" is Eminem looking inwardly at every dark, violent, intrusive thought behind his lyrics and laying them bare for everyone to hear. And it's ugly. Incredibly ugly. And unpleasant. There's no Slim Shady smirk to take the edge off of things: it is uncomfortably direct in presenting this murder fantasy. In fact, it's not even so much of a rap song as it is a radio play that happens to rhyme. "Stan" is much like that, too, but not to the same extent that "Kim" is. I mean, "Kim" is just... Intense. I remember the first time I heard it, I legit had to pause the album for a moment to recover from what in the hell I'd just heard. Even listening to it now, it made my jaw tense up so much that I'm sure if you popped me on the chin my teeth would legit shatter. Like, if this song disgusts you and gives you chills over just how intense it is... Yeah, that's the point. More than any other shock rap on this album, this is supposed to disturb you and make you realize that, if he was being as real as people had claimed he was... Yeah. You realize now why a silly, stupid song like "Under The Influence" had to follow it. It's this dichotomy that makes "Kim" either the best or worst song on the album, depending on who you are. Either you appreciate just how hard he was willing to go on this song to show that, no, the intrusive thoughts behind his Slim Shady rap are just not fun... Or you don't care and it's still a six minute song where he screams at his wife and murder her while she screams and begs for her life. And I'm willing to give Em enough of a pass on his artistry that I do think it's one of the best songs the album, and for being such a high point of intensity that I think it honestly could have been an album closer if it weren't for "Criminal" bringing his "Don't take me seriously; I'm saying this shit just to make you mad" shit back around home... But I think there's a dang good reason why the censored version of the album straight-up didn't even make an attempt with this song and replaced it with a different one altogether, "The Kids". So, I am honestly surprised by how much I wrote about this thing. Over 2.2k words just like that, goodness. And I don't even like this thing as much as I do SONGS IN THE KEY OF LIFE, which I consider the greatest album of all time, and as such went out of my way to make my longest review. But in the realm of rap albums... It's not high art like TO PIMP A BUTTERFLY or whatever, obviously. And while it has problems to where I ultimately prefer the sequel, THE MARSHALL MATHERS LP has still earned its spot as Em's best album. I mean, for sure, it's the absolute peak of his skills. He was still very good on THE EMINEM SHOW, of course, but there was a change in his style that still caused it to dip just a bit below this album. Then ENCORE happened and nothing was the same. I mean, nowadays, Em clearly values his technical skill over any actual wordplay, and, y'know, it's hard not to listen to the shit he's put out recently and miss what he used to be capable of. Like, besides "Darkness", I don't know if he has a "Stan" or a "Kim" in him these days. Which is all the more reason to treasure this album, I suppose. And if the amount of shit I just wrote about it is any indication... So, uh, yeah. Flawed record, but I'd still call it one of the greats,truly. And, uh... Yeah. I'm not sure now how to end this review. I'm still kind of just in shock that I leapt over 2.2k words just like that. So... Uh, I'unno. Don't do drugs, I guess. Yeah.

All Directions

The Temptations

3/5

I feel pretty weird about this album. I mean... It's The Temptations! **The** Temptations! They're one of **the** vocal groups — not just from Motown, but of all time! I know I wasn't too big on the other album of theirs on this list (CLOUD NINE, which I gave a 3), but come on. They deserve that kind of praise, don't they? And this album should be an even bigger slam dunk than the last one I got. After all, it's the one with "Papa Was A Rollin' Stone"! That's one of the **songs** of all time! How could I not love this thing? Yet my weirdness about this album starts right at track one. And it has nothing to do with the song itself — to be frank, I hardly have an opinion on it. And if I don't, that's only because the mixing was so bizarrely terrible that I couldn't even begin to focus on it! Now, check it: I hardly mention mixing. It's a really important aspect of music, of course, but I hardly know enough about it to ever make comments. Why waste the time trying, y'know? So if a song has just mixing just **that** uniquely bad... Seriously, I had to check and make sure my headphones hadn't suddenly died on me. That's how bad the mixing on track one was. Following that, "Run Charlie Run" was... A fine kind of nothing, if I can be honest. But then we hit "Papa Was A Rollin' Stone" — here we are! The song of the album! Maybe even the song of The Temptations' career, if you ignore "My Girl". If I'm gonna like — heck, **love** any song from this album, it's gonna be this one. I mean, back when my group got CLOUD NINE, I went and listened to "Papa Was A Rollin' Stone" twice just because I knew what a legendary track it was. Listening to it in the context of the album, though... I'unno, it just didn't hit right this time. Like, seven minutes in, I realized that I'd been waiting for the song to **start** and kick up another level, but it never did. Have you ever heard Isaac Hayes's HOT-BUTTERED SOUL? I think I was expecting it to be like something off of that, and yet it just... Wasn't. It never really resolved the tension it was holding the entire time, and when it faded out, I honestly had to blink like, "That's it?" "Walk On By" faded out, too, and it felt way more conclusive than this did. And maybe the unresolved tension was the point, but I guess I'll never know for sure. And, y'know, I get it. It's an album that's trying to get by on these smooth, soulful vibes, and I get that. I'm not opposed to that whatsoever. I gotta tell you, side 2 generally hits that note a lot better than side one did. But I gotta agree with a fellow group member: if you're gonna rely on vibes this heavily, the instrumentation's gotta be a lot richer. The instrumentation felt like it was operating at a 6 or a 7 instead of a 10, y'know? The vocals are, of course. It just really throws everything off. And this is a Motown record! Why aren't the instruments that rich and lush? Goodness. Which is what leads me to feeling so weird about the album. I really wish I could like it more, truly. I know I shouldn't be holding The Temptations in such high regard for nothing; I should have something to point to besides "My Girl" and an impression of a general consensus. And it's not like me not really feeling this album convinced me otherwise, of course. Ultimately, it's a fine, good enough soul record. I'm not sitting here with my illusions shattered or anything. I might've had my expectations set too high... Or maybe The Temptations are more of a singles group than an albums one, I'unno. Either way, I just wish I coulda gotten a bit more out of this. Ah well.

Pink Flag

Wire

4/5

I'll really never forgive Public Image Ltd.'s METAL BOX for the effect it had on me. If you've been following my reviews— well, first of all, if you're not in my group, y'mind if I ask why? I can't be that insightful. But anyway, I've made my disdain of post-punk no secret. The way I hear it in my head, post-punk is a load of unappealing, artsy-fartsy noise that Big Important Rock Critics™ love to eat the hell up because it's uncommercial and, therefore, Art™. Like, gimme a break. It's a perception that started with METAL BOX (and an essay about it over on The RS500 that read to me as being obnoxiously hipster) and hasn't subsided since. No matter how many albums I've come across that prove to me that "post-punk" is just words and I shouldn't groan every time I see 'em, I always forget the next time. I even predicted as much at the end of my last babble about a post-punk album (Echo And The Bunnymen's OCEAN RAIN) — and whaddya know, here we are. So, let's just cut to the chase here: I like this album, and not because it's "post-punk." Though it's not too far off. See, myself, I'd personally call this a "punk" album. I'm not even sure what's too "post-" about it. Yeah, it's honestly a really simple one to talk about. It's 21 tracks and 36 minutes of non-stop, rip snortin' punk madness. There's not much you hafta end up considering; what you hear is what you get. Even the lyrics probably don't mean much besides providing some kinda guidance for the vocal melody. And, sure, sure, I'll cop: it can all blend together a little. Unless you look, you might not know exactly which track you're on. But take it from someone who likes AC/DC, Motörhead, Ramones and all those kinda "one-trck pony" bands: if the sound kicks ass, and if they're really damn good at making, who cares if there's not that much deviation? And there is some, of course — a little bit more than you might expect — but you get my point. So, damn, there goes another album labelled as "post-punk" that can I slap a seal of approval on. It for sure won't mean I won't groan the next time I come across an album labelled as such, but given that this genre currently has an average of 3.36 in my ratings (my second worst, only 0.06 above shoegaze), I figure it needs all the help it can get. So good on you, Wire. And, uh, go continue to be a 2 outta 5, METAL BOX, I guess.

Adele

5/5

One of the things I've gotten out of doing this list that hasn't really surprised me is that I'm not too big on more modern pop records. Consider: I was bored to tears by Lana Del Ray's CHEMTRAILS OVER THE COUNTRY CLUB. I was really only fine on Lorde's MELODRAMA. Beyoncé's self-titled album didn't really do too much for me. And Taylor Swift's 1989? I surprisingly liked it more than I didn't, but I still wasn't too hot on it thanks to a few big singles I'd always hated and just couldn't get over. And none of this surprised me, not really. I already know: I'm just not too big into too much modern, contemporary music. Besides a few niche bands, the biggest contemporary artist I'm into is Bruno Mars, and it's only because he's such a master of the modernized retro throwback. Heck, if it wasn't for Weird Al (back when he was releasing albums) and a few online music critics I follow, I'm sure I'd hardly keep up with modern music. I'm just way too satisfied by the older stuff; y'know, I've always felt like I've had an "old soul." So of course this is the modern pop album I've liked the most. Oh, Adele. Critical darling, and perhaps the single best-selling artist of the entire 2010's. I mean, the top two best-selling artists of the decade are 21 and this album, in that order. I suppose it'd make all too much sense for someone with old tastes like me to prefer Adele's classical balladry to more forward-thinking pop music like Lorde. Well, yeah, of course — but also, a bit no, too? 'Coz I wouldn't say that this album is strictly not "classical balladry," at least not in the way you could say 21 was. As a fellow group member of mine points out, 25 leans into a lot of the pop production that'd popped up since 21 had come out. As such, that same group member also says, it could be easy to view 25 as a bit of a "sell out record," if you're into using a term like that. I mean, heck, there's a track or two on here with production like Imagine Dragons songs. It's absolutely not as timeless as 21 was, and that's not not a thing, right? Look, I'm the last person who'll complain about over-production. I love it when a song is stuffed with shit to make it bigger and better than it would've been otherwise. And 25, well, it might not be better than 21, but goodness me if I don't dig it all the way and then some. Goodness, I'm the kinda person who likes a few Imagine Dragons songs — and not just the ones from back when they were "respectable"; I mean stuff like "Believer" and "Zero". Maybe not "Thunder", but darn if I couldn't make an argument to myself for it... So, you take that kinda stuff, and put it together with Adele's voice and ballad pop sensibilities... Yeah, no, it's great. It's just great. I really kinda struggle to think of any problems I have with this approach. I mean, the song on here I enjoyed the least with "Send My Love (To Your New Lover)", and that's only because I remember hearing it on the radio maybe one time too many. And even then, it doesn't really get to me the way "Rumour Has It" from the last album can (as I call it: "OOO-MURR Hahzz Ih"). Besides, whatever over-play burnout I might have from "Send My Love (To Your New Lover)" is balanced out by how much I did truly love "When We Were Young". It might be the most "classical balladry"-y song on the entire album, 'coz... I mean, this is just an Elton John song. I can totally hear him singing this, and that is just... Such a compliment to this song. It is incredible, truly. And given that my group isn't gonna get another Elton John album from this list (seriously weird that HONKY CHÂTEAU isn't here), I mean, goodness, it makes hearing this just all that slightly better. So... Yeah. This album might not be as culturally "respected" as an album like MELODRAMA is, but if I'm being 100, stuff like this is just way more up my alley. It's not that I don't wanna like stuff like MELODRAMA; if I could, I would. I feel like I'll get called out for not liking them as much as I know other, more important people do. I'm just kind of... Bored by them, mostly. And that's just a reflection of my tastes. As does how much I like 25: it just never bored me. And I just marvel at the fact that when Adele made this album, she was younger than I am now. She sounds **this mature**, at **25**? Heck, she sounded that mature at **21**. It's nuts. But yeah. It's a feat of timeless ballads like 21 was, but 25 still holds up as a really good album from Adele. And, I mean, anything that proves to me that I can still like pop in the modern era is a positive in my book. I wish I could like more, but, eh, that's just the hand I was dealt, I guess. (But I really did find that Lana Del Ray album just **that** boring. I can absolutely wait to get the other one of hers that's probably on here, goodness...)

You're Living All Over Me

Dinosaur Jr.

5/5

The first time I listened to this album, I honestly left with the thought that, like ... there should have been more? Like, for what I was reading was such an important and "greatest of all time" album in alternative and indie rock, and for what was apparently such an important predecessor to grunge ... I'unno, I just felt like it didn't leave me with much I wanted to comment on. In fact, I didn't even try to write a review the day I heard it. What you're reading is something I'm writing during my **second** listen-through, some days later. And for this album, I honestly think it's a good thing I gave it a second chance. Whereas with my first listen I had such high, lofty expectations, this time ... well, I could appreciate it more for what it is. And what it is is that it's a damn rockin' album. Like, my first time through, I was expecting a lot more abrasiveness. And it certainly does pop up in spots — the noise at the end of "Tarpits" is a little, y'know, "hoo boy." But the rest? I mean, jeez, this thing came out in the 80's? And '87 at that — four years before the 90's started (with the release of the "Smells Like Teen Spirit" single, of course)! This is some grunge-ass grunge for the 80's. With a little twist of R.E.M. in there, too, for good measure? It's not a combination I ever would've thought to hear on this album, but, yeah — it's great! Seriously, nearly my entire second listen I was just bopping my knee along to the music and feeling bad about the fact that I didn't give this album more credit. Seriously, "The Lung"? Oh, "The Lung" fuckin' **rocks**. And so does the song that opens up side two, "Raisans". I can't remember the last album my group's gotten that was tagged as "indie" (and, to be fair, this album is more alternative than indie), but seriously, this has got to be the most I've liked an indie rock album in a while. The guitars are, aaaahh, just so good and metal-adjacent and — woof, the solo on "Raisans" is **tasty**. Good shit! But if you wanna talk about expectations, then I needa quickly bring up the closer, "Poledo". At the same time, it's both closer to what I expected the album would sound like and not something I would've thought I'd hear on here. It's weird, experimental, abrasive at points ... and honestly kind of off-putting? A fellow group member of mine referred to this song as an audio creepypasta, and, yeah, that's exactly the vibe here. It's the track on here I'd say I'm honestly the most impressed by, though absolutely it'd be the one I'd skip on any future re-listens. It's just not something I'd wanna listen to on a regular basis — and I think in this case I mean that as a very good thing in this album's favor. But, yeah: that's this Dinosaur Jr. album. Once again, I'm glad I gave it a second shot, 'coz there really is a lot to love about it — and a pretty good simple reason, too. I guess I should take this album as a lesson in not letting my expectations get the better of me ... but I know I'd probably forget it by the next album I listen to. For the time, I'm just happy to know that this didn't meet mine.

Frank

Amy Winehouse

4/5

One thing I hafta wonder is, "Do I define Amy Winehouse too hard by 'Back To Black'?" Y'know, not just her sound, but everything around it: up to and including, yes, her death. Really, I wonder if I put too much focus on it. I mean, I try to stand up for her ("She was treated so harshly by the media when she was alive, and often for no good reason"), but it always ends up being through the lens that she died ("when she was alive"). There must be more to Amy Winehouse than this one very, very good album. And as it turns out, there is. Point of fact that is that 'Back To Black' isn't Amy Winehouse's only album — it's her **second**. Though, I sort of don't blame myself too much for forgetting that Amy isn't a one-album wonder. I mean, how often do people even bring her debut, "Frank'? That thing doesn't have "Rehab"~! But seriously, Amy Winehouse's debut album. I must admit, it didn't really sound like I'd expected it to. There's some jazzy instrumentation here and there, and of course Amy's belt is as it always was, but overall it winds up sounding pretty contemporary to 2003. There's way more R&B in here than I would've thought — and she don't sound half bad over it, y'know? Now, I can't speak to Amy as a lyricist too much. Her work is often very personal and I'm simply not up on the Winehouse "lore" too much to be able to accurately dissect it. Not that I wanna be, anyway; I ain't much of a fan of when "lore" like that is required. I will say, it does come true to its title. This is an honest album, unafraid of not always presenting herself in the best light. I wind up particularly thinking about the song "What Is It About Men", where she wonders aloud why exactly she is the way she is and why it's so hard for her to change. Or, y'know, there's "I Heard That Love Is Blind", where she's only barely making excuses for cheating on a partner. I've read some reviews on this website that get all **AGHAST** that Amy would dare portray herself this way, but knowing what I know (and I'll admit I should know more), I think it's nice that she's trying to be as truthful as she can on record. That takes some guts, y'know? But back to the sound of this thing: the modernness of it all. Being real, I'm not too hot on it. Sure, it's not **bad** — but 'Back To Black', **that's** the sound I'm into. I took a moment to listen to just the title track after this record, and it held me way better than any song on here could. Generally, I'm just a sucker for that modernized retro shit. And, I mean, I really like knowing that Amy had more range in genre. Heck, "In My Bed" has a sample of "Apache" — goodness, a **sample**. I dig that! But, eh, matters of taste and all, y'know. Plus, I wanna make a quick note about this thing's length. I don't think it **really** needed those two extra tracks after the outro? Y'know, what were originally hidden tracks on the CD release. They're sort of overkill, if you ask me. When I got to them I could suddenly feel the album's length — and it's not even that long! But, I'unno, I could've done without the little extra. Above either of those things, though, I largely find myself just incredibly impressed that this album was made when she was only 19. 19! And she's singing like that? And writing like this? It's a little remarkable to think about. I mean, I always knew she was young and talented, but she wasn't even in her 20s yet when this album was made? That's crazy. Honestly now. What was **I** doing when I was 19? Sure as heck not anything on the quality level of this, no sir. So ... yeah. That's about all I hafta say about 'Frank'. I'm not over the moon for it in the way I was for 'Back To Black', but it's nice to remember that it exists. It's nice to remember that there's more to Amy than just 'Back To Black'. Hopefully I won't forget it as easily as I have before. It'd only be fair to not.

Born To Be With You

Dion

3/5

I'm not sure how much I can talk about Dion here. I mean, until **today** I had no idea he even had an album on this list — or, for that matter, that he did anything beyond the days of "Runaround Sue" and "The Wanderer". Like, if I have any relationship with Dion, it's knowing him as the guy who made those songs and very little else. Maybe that Meghan Trainor made a mockery outta of "Runaround Sue" with "Dear Future Husband", but that's about it. No, if anyone's the star here, it's noted murderer and record producer Phil Spector. Yeah, Philly boy's back again. Haven't seen his ass since my group got that Christmas album he produced. And I gotta be real, I was kind of expecting the worst coming into this album. From what I was reading, Phil way overstepped his hand in producing this, and everything sounded like it was playing at half speed as a result. Dion himself would disown the thing and call it "funeral music." So here I started wondering to myself, "Oh, gawd, what am I getting myself into?" And it's not like I don't know that Phil doesn't always have the golden touch: I despise the cover of "Baby, I Love You" he had the Ramones do essentially at gunpoint, and I've heard a lot of the Leonard Cohen album he produced. Heck, I prefer the "naked" remix of LET IT BE to Spector's version. I just hadda wonder: is this new brand of Spector overreaching with his Wall Of Sound, or...? Here's the thing. It's not something I wanna admit in the face of Spector being a convicted murderer — and seriously, fuck him for that — but, y'know, I can never be anything but honest: when it's done right, I actually really like Spector's production work. And on this album, it's mostly done right. Like, yeah, it can absolutely be overblown sometimes, and there are times where it probably would've been better to keep things more stripped back... But I'm the last person who'll shit on over-production, so it's not like I have too much room to complain. I will say, though, as a result of Spector's production style, Dion himself kind of gets lost in the shuffle. Y'know, if you couldn't tell from how much I've been talking about Spector versus Dion. But on the majority of the album, which Spector produced, it's easy for Dion's voice to become just another brick in the wall, so to say. Like, there is actually a really sharp contrast between these songs and the two that Spector **didn't** produce, "My Own Back Yard" and "New York City Song". They're the only ones that sounded like "Dion" songs, where I could actually take a second to appreciate him and what he brought to the table. Heck, "New York City Song" is probably the best track on the album. The rest, meanwhile, is good, but I wouldn't say it rises too far above a mellow kind of fine. I enjoyed having it on while I was reading, but I'm not too terribly wowed by it. Besides the two non-Spector tracks, there wasn't really anything where I felt the need to listen too closely. Well, except for "(He's Got) The Whole World In His Hands", but only because that's the one song where Spector's production didn't work for me. I mean, with the whirrling, flangerized backing track... I have no idea what he was trying to do here, and it's the closest I'd come to calling any song on here "funeral music." Strange funeral that'd play this song, though. But, ah, yeah, I'unno. This album doesn't really make much of a case for Dion outside of those couple of songs I already liked, and as much as I can dig Spector's production style, it feels pretty "bog standard fine" here. If it weren't for "New York City Song" I'd be feeling a lot cooler on this thing than I am. It's absolutely not something where I understand it's something I **had** to hear before I died... But I can think of worse ways to spend a half hour. Still, it's a better Dion-related project than "Dear Future Husband" was. Now **that** would be a bad way to spend half an hour...

Joan Armatrading

5/5

Y'know, 60's/70's singer-songwriter folkies have never really been my bag. If you've been a part of my group you've probably read me say this a million times before, but it bears repeating. I just don't have an easy time with them whatsoever. Oftentimes, they come across as poets who wanna pretend to be musicians, and that's just not something I can vibe with. Being AuDHD, I struggle with lyrics, so just the mere idea of listening to a whole album where I have try n' dissect flowery poetics, where it's the only thing you really **can** do because the music behind it is often so nonexistent ... it's like, I sometimes wonder if I was too harsh on 'Court And Spark', like maybe I just didn't give it the fair attention it deserved. But it was never gonna be easy for it to win any favors with me, let alone make me actually **like it**. It's a losing battle for most of these 60's/70's folk dealies. Which makes it all the more a plus that this album doesn't sound like it came from the 60's or 70's. Seriously — this album came out in 1976, but if you'd just given me a cut from this thing without any extra context, I never would have been able to tell. To begin with, the lyrics are **not** flowery or poetic. They're not dead simple, but, more importantly, they're not as obtuse as I've come to expect from these sorts of albums. These lyrics are more like ... and, yes, this is the comparison everyone's made: they're like Tracy Chapman. There's a clearness and a directness to them that I really appreciate. Like, it's just nice to be able to hear lyrics and understand what they're saying. I don't hafta bend over backwards and get a literary degree to even begin to get them, no: they're right there. I seriously can't tell you how much I enjoyed this album simply for the fact that I wasn't gonna hafta struggle with the words. But there's more to this album than just the lyrics. There's the music as well, and this is another area where this album feels like it fell through a time warp. Most folkie singer-songwriter albums from around this time (so I've come to picture them) seem to not really care about the music? It's never emphasized and more often than not feels like it's there as a necessity so it's not just poetry and nothing else. Often, they'll learn to play guitar and that's it. Sometimes there's a harmonica for some brief interludes ... ooo, and maybe if they're feeling extra fancy, they'll add in **other instruments**! Just as long as they aren't doing anything interesting. That's distract from the **poetry**, y'know. With Joan's album, though, honestly, if you wanted to listen to this thing on a purely sonic level, you absolutely could. Joan's got herself a great voice, for one. It's a little different than you'd expect, but she uses it wonderfully. I think the worst I can say about it is there's a spot of tremolo or two that sounds like when I speed up Buffy Saint-Marie's cover of "The Circle Game" (you ever try that? The tremolo on the held notes is a riot; it sounds like she's singing on an active washing machine). But besides that, the instrumentation is so far beyond this decade. There's just something incredibly 90's about it; I can't exactly place my finger on it. It just evokes that kind of atmosphere. I mean, goodness, this thing has some country **grooves** sometimes. The end of "Tall In The Saddle" goes off, honestly. And the strings on this album — oh, goodness me, the **strings**. Lovely strings; big fan of them. By themselves they would've been enough to win me over on this album, and good for the rest of the album that everything else keeps up to that snuff. Color me impressed. I really didn't expect to like this album as much as I did. It honestly makes me wonder why people don't talk about this thing more? It feels like it should be named as an inspiration more often, right alongside Joni Mitchell and whoever else. It's crazy how ahead of its time it is — and I guess that's ultimately the secret to get me to like 60's/70's folk albums. Just sound like you came from the 90's! Get some good instrumentation and melodies, don't be so purple prose about your lyrics ... and boom! An instant classic! I mean, is it **that hard** to sound 20 or 30 years ahead of your time? I don't think so. If Joan could do it, why can't you?

Mama's Gun

Erykah Badu

4/5

Y'know, for the longest time, if I knew this album for anything, it was solely for how it used the YELLOW SUBMARINE title font on the cover. I'm aware that the font was used plenty of times before that film, and it's been used in a variety of circumstances afterwards... But dang if it'll ever be anything to me other than the YELLOW SUBMARINE title font. Compare it with this album: now I know it for two or three things. Not only does it use the YELLOW SUBMARINE title font, but it's also a very lovely and vibes-ful soul experience. Seriously, this is an album I can just glide on. I made more of an effort here to listen to the lyrics than usual, but just as well, I was very content to just let the general soundscape carry me through. The actual makeup of the instrumentation may not be very complex, sure, though they're played so wonderfully and Erykah's voice is so lovely that I can hardly find room to complain about it. Seriously, to all the reviews commenting on how Erykah's voice was a basebreaker: it's honestly not that bad. I will cop to one thing, and it does kind of keep me from fully loving this album: the length. Now, look, I'm no stranger to a bit of excess in a soul record. Stevie Wonder's SONGS IN THE KEY OF LIFE is two records **and** an EP's worth of tunes, and I consider that the greatest album ever made. And let's be clear, the songs across the board are strong enough that it's a generally enjoyable experience, especially if you can let yourself float along. And particularly, too, if you do it as I do and break it up by record side — it's not **that** bad. With all that said, though, I can still feel when an album exceeds an hour, and I very much did on here. It's the kind of situation where if I **did** ever return to it, it'd be in chunks and for sure not all at once. Still, as a piece of neo soul, I very much enjoyed my time with it. I don't even really have too much more I wanna say about it, unlike a fellow group member of mine. It's just a nice, vibe-y time, despite feeling its length — and, really, ain't that all I need to know it for?

Peace Sells...But Who's Buying

Megadeth

5/5

I've often wondered what the best Megadeth album is supposed to be. Y'know, every other member of the Big 4 Of Thrash has their obvious picks: for Metallica, it's MASTER OF PUPPETS; Slayer, REIGN IN BLOOD; Anthrax, AMONG THE LIVING. But for some reason, I've just never been able to figure out what Megadeth's was supposed to be. I've long wrestled back and forth between two candidates: RUST IN PEACE and today's album, PEACE SELLS... BUT WHO'S BUYING?. To me, the debate point comes down to this: RUST IN PEACE feels like the "popular" pick. After all, it has "Holy Wars... The Punishment Due", one of their all-time biggest and most well known songs. That alone feels like it should disqualify the album from discussion — and this is acknowledging that the other albums have songs like "Master Of Puppets", "Reign In Blood" and something that isn't a title track, "Indians". PEACE SELLS, meanwhile, has always felt to me like the more "metalhead" pick; the one "real fans" would claim is their best album ever. I guess the more "legit" one. But after listening to PEACE SELLS again, would I still agree with that? First, let me remind you about myself and metal generally: I am not particularly picky. Whatever problems or little issues I may have with this album, it's still metal. I think all that shit kicks ass. As long as it's loud and has heavy, crunching riffs, **I'M A HAPPY GIRL**. But about my question: would I still agree it's Megadeth's best? Well... To begin with, I'm never not taken by Megadeth's technical prowess. Dave and company can fuckin' **play**. There ain't no two ways about it: they're just about the angriest and most snarling of the Big 4. If they're not the fastest, it's only because Slayer put out REIGN IN BLOOD and reached upwards of 200 BPM. It's always a joy to hear 'em do their thing. And if there's anything in particular about Megadeth that makes 'em stand out besides all that, it's Dave's voice. Except for the title track he's yet to really achieve that "grinning goblin" tone I better know him for (y'know: "HELLO, ME, IT'S ME AGAIN"), but still, this high throaty yell he's got on here is pretty distinct, too. It's good shit, and I enjoy hearing it. But then, that's also kind of the thing about the whole album: this is not Megadeth as evolved as they would be later on. You can certainly hear a lot of where they'd end up even just two albums later — and certainly, of their pre-RUST work, this is their best. There's riffs for days on this thing! But it's missing the melodic elements they'd add later, and, well, as much as I enjoy riffage, I won't lie and say that melody isn't exactly missed. All the same, though: it's metal. So what if it's not all that advanced or complex? Or maybe it is and I'm just giving it the credit it deserves, I'unno. Either way: it's still fun as hell. I really think the title track should be well known, 'coz, damn, the **bassline** on the thing. And when it ramps up to speed, goodness, look out. It's not **the** album to show why Megadeth is the second best of the Big 4, but darn if it still don't make a good case anyway. And, yeah, Megadeth is second to Metallica — no duh. But just because you're second don't mean you're bad; being the second best still means you're one of the best. Just like being the second best Megadeth album means you're still one of the best. And, I mean, really, who cares which album is Megadeth's "best," anyway? Or what a metalhead's opinion would be, for that matter. I've seen the opinions of metalheads; I don't gel with 'em a lot of the time. They wanna tell me Bruce Dickinson did nothing worthwhile? Yeah, sure. I'll just enjoy this stuff for what **I** think it's worth. And while it might be less of a 5 than RUST IN PEACE is, there really ain't that much of a gap in 5-ness between 'em. In short: yeah, I'm buying what you're selling, Dave. I'm just thankful this thing obviously doesn't have any of your recent opinions — I hear they ain't great! Goodness.

Follow The Leader

Korn

3/5

Aw, shit, is it nu metal time again? Y'know, nu metal gets a bad rap as a soundtrack for angry white boys getting mad at their parents taking away their Xbox — and it's not an unearned reputation. Besides Linkin Park, I struggle to think of any nu metal band that I could say wouldn't fit that stereotype to at least some degree. It's an angry genre, but it's also an incredibly juvenile genre. And, sure, angry white boys need their music, too, but that doesn't mean everyone else has to like it. Though, with that said... It's still metal. Or metal enough, at least. As I've said many times before, I'm not particularly discerning about metal. You give me loud guitar riffs and some pounding drums, more often than not I'm a happy girlie. Even the shittiest nu metal could probably satisfy me, assuming the guitars were crunchy enough and I could ignore the lyrics. This, I think, is where Korn comes in. Now, I wouldn't call them a shitty band — far from it. In the pantheon of nu metal, I'm pretty sure they're up there in the ranks (if you ignore their Skrillex co-production, anyway). It's just that, for my money, they generally don't do anything to really embarrass themselves and get in the way of the lyrics. There's some exceptions in spots, of course, but if you're coming to this just for some late 90's nu metal, you're probably gonna be more than satisfied. But let's talk about those exceptions. For one, the lyrics, for the most part, are fine. **For the most part** — we'll get there. But it's about what I'd expect from nu metal: a lot of angsty songs complaining about their parents or high school bullies. It's something I'd probably wouldn't mind too much if I wasn't aware that they'd go on to spend the rest of their career complaining about their high school bullies. Like, guys, at a point... You **can** write about other stuff, y'know; there's some songs with darker subject matter mixed in here. You hear "My Gift To You"? Take it as a character song and not Davis singing his literal thoughts and it's some intriguing "Kim" shit. But I guess **I** wouldn't wanna write those songs all the time, **and** the angst sells better, so... Then there's Johnathan Davis as a vocalist. I'm largely fine with him, between his yelling and his somewhat melodic groaning. From what I've sampled, it's pretty unique in nu metal, and I have no issues with it. Except for his scatting. Yes, of course: the scatting. The BOOM DAH BAH UMMM BAH MAH EE MAH and BUUY SUMTHIN AH MAH EE MAH OOOO. I think he's trying to be menacing with his scatting... But it's just goofy as hell. And I kinda love it for that, and I enjoy scatting along, but, like... Goodness me, you're not Limp Bizkit. I am supposed to be taking you seriously, and Davis turning into a cartoon gremlin and bouncing around yelling out nonsense isn't helping. You've got an otherwise respectable-ish-type vocalist! He's not Fred Durst! Speaking of Durst... Look, I wanna take the time here to admit, maybe I was too hard on CHOCOLATE STARFISH in my review of it. Don't get me wrong, it's a **bad** album. It hasn't earned its reputation for nothing. But looking back on it, being painfully aware of the existence of RESULTS MAY VARY and the shit on it like "Eat You Alive"... Like, CHOCOLATE STARFISH is just funny. I gave that thing a 1, but honestly, I shoulda bumped it to a 2, just for how much enjoyment I get out it, between the honestly good instrumentals and just getting a laugh out of Fred Durst shitting things up. Seriously, as if I don't get a kick out of imitating his dumb voice. But then there's Fred Durst's guest appearance on this album. And, y'know, on the features, they're largely fine. Ice Cube is fine — y'know, good enough that I wouldn't introduce him as "the star of WAR OF THE WORLDS '25." Slimkid3 is sure there. And I do enjoy Cheech showing up on the hidden track cover of his and his partner's "Earache My Eye". With "All In The Family", though — y'know, I don't mean to spend so much time focusing on it, 'coz I get what the point of it was supposed to be. It's a song where Davis and Durst shittalk each other back and forth. Y'know, some disses between friends. "Oh, you like Winger and you got dumb rhymes." That kind of shit. I get that But it's just fuckin' lame. Like, seriously lame as fuck If there's anything on this album I'd honestly call embarassing, and honestly drags the whole thing down a point, it's this song. Neither of them have good disses, when they're not just calling each other homophobic slurs, and Fred doesn't even have the funny whine in his voice yet. And then, despite the slurs being flung around, oh ho, the song ends with them changing the "I hate you and you hate me" lyric in the chorus to "I love you and I'll buttfuck you" — harr-harr-harr! So fuckin' funny! Yeah, no wonder Davis would later disown the song and call it the worst thing Korn's ever done. It's a pretty big mark on an album that I otherwise think is perfectly fine, at least by nu metal standards. It's no HYBRID THEORY, but it sure ain't CHOCOLATE STARFISH (as much as I said I'd give that some benefit for entertainment value). Like, I'unno. I don't dislike it by any stretch, but I wouldn't tell you I was wowed by it — especially when a few songs probably coulda been cut (for pacing reasons, I mean; not just for being "All In The Family"). The part of my brain that's an angsty teen-ager enjoyed this, and metal to me is still metal at the end of the day... But, eh, there's metal I'd go to first before following this album's lead. (BAH DOOM BAH DAH OOOOM DAAHM AAH EEE MAH.)

A Walk Across The Rooftops

The Blue Nile

4/5

I do not have a very good relationship with sophisti-pop. Sure, it's not as bad as the one I have with post-punk, where I still revulse every time an album labelled as such pops up... But it has twice led to me remarking that it was "music by assholes for assholes." Which is bad form, I realize. A fellow group member, who did end up liking that second album we got, ended up catching it as a stray. But even if they didn't, it's still horrible form to critique the fans (or at least who I imagined were the fans) instead of the music. Y'know, this is the kind of shit I remember seeing in some of the less-than-stellar Pitchfork reviews, and if there's any reviews **I** don't wanna be like... So I promised myself two things: one, that I wouldn't attack the fans, real or imagined; and, two, that I would give this album a more honest, open shot. Because there has to be **something** I can get out of sophisti-pop. 'Coz, y'see, the problem I've had with the sophisti-pop I've heard so far is that it's just... Too smooth. And, like, rich — in the financial sense, I mean. If a sophisti-pop album is a house, it's a house that's very fancily decorated... But I just can't see why I'm supposed to be impressed by it. So it's all high class furniture — and? It's all still smoothed over to the point where it's not any fun. Like, even the smooth music I **like** has some rough patches to it. It's not smoothed to a shine; it's just smoothed to the point of dullness. And there's just this stink of pretension about it, overall. But does that apply here? Well... There's a review of this album on this website that says, quote: "There is no melody to this song [the title track], just seemingly disparate musical parts. The parts are clearly synced together, but there’s no constant beat. Strangely[,] I like this about the song." And upon listening to it myself... Yeah, I hafta agree with that. That **is** what I like about the song. In fact, it's what I like about the whole album. That's the roughness. Now, let me be clear: nothing else on this album sounds like the title track. Maybe "From Rags To Riches", but otherwise, the title track is alone and unique in itself. But it did help me come to figure out how I wanted to tackle this album, and, as a result, like it. See, vocals aside, I ended up viewing every musical element on this album as a box that could be switched on and off as the mood called for it. There's a synthetic element to them; this **is** halfway into the 80's, with synthpop and all... But it's still ultimately human: someone has to be behind the boxes, flicking the switches. And in fact, you wanna talk about human? Look at "Easter Parade". That song is strictly vocals and piano, with some touches of synth strings in there, and it's easily the best song on the album. I always appreciate a good solo piano number, and believe me, this is a good one. It's here where I really came to like this guy's voice. And then when he starts singing "heatwaaaaaave" on the next track... Woof, goodness. Grade A performance. But really, this makes me wonder if I would've enjoyed those previous sophisti-pop albums my group's gotten if I woulda viewed them this way. Probably now. I mean, that Sade album was way too melodic, and was actively aiming for lush melodies and elegance. To me, it ended up as MIAMI VICE background music, but that's besides the point. On this album, though, being able to take it a purely rhythmic first and then appreciating the melodic elements second... Yeah, no, I really liked this. There's some really good, pretty shit on here, especially on side two. And I gotta thank that review for helping me see this album this way. I never woulda thought to take a pop album on such a rhythmic basis. On a James Brown song, sure; all the instruments on those get treated like percussion. On a rap album, absolutely; they're all about the rhythm and flows. Or, heck, on KOLLAPS, which is industrial experimentation and as far from a commercial pop album as you can get. So, hey, even if I didn't like this album, I'd at least hafta give it credit for a unique listening lens. So, yeah, don't let track one scare you off. It's some really good, really lovely stuff. It's honestly the first sophisti-pop album we've gotten that I can say that I truly like — maybe even **love**, in enough time. And it just feels good that I managed to come across a sophisti-pop album with **something** I could get out of it. I knew there had to be something, and it turns out all I had to do was take a walk across the rooftops to find it. The people who like this: you are absolutely not assholes. Believe you me.

Tapestry

Carole King

5/5

So — this is one of the all-time greats, huh? And I mean, right up there in the upper echelon kinda greats. Last I checked, it's number 25 on the Rolling Stone 500, and you best believe that's a list I put a lot of stock in, for better and for worse. Certainly, if nothing else, it's the only Carole King album I've ever heard. That's gotta be worth something, right? Starting this album, then, I was focused on one thing and one thing solely: "Why?" Y'know, "Why exactly **is** this album as well-regarded as it is?" And I mean that as an honest question; I was legit tryna figure this thing out. I had the lyrics up, and I was following along as best I could... Because from the onset this felt to me like one of those albums where it'd feel... Y'know, wrong if I didn't understand it? This is one of the all-timers, and if I don't like this album and I don't get it right — I mean, I'm not expecting Carole King stans to descend on me like I was worried Swifties would, but it just wouldn't sit 100% with me. And for a good chunk of side one... Well, yeah, it was sitting pretty awkwardly alright. I just wasn't feeling the album for whatever reason. The lyrics I was picking up were kind of whatever, and I wasn't really feeling her voice or the instrumentals... It was such a strange sensation. This is an all-timer! It has at least two songs on here I'm very familiar with, "(You Make Me Feel Like ) A Natural Woman" (thanks to Aretha Franklin) and "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?" (thanks to, of all things, Me First And The Gimme Gimmes). I'm no stranger to not getting albums that're critical darlings, and it's not like I **have** to like an album just because the consensus says it's great, but... I'unno, something was off. Something about the way I was trying to view this album was causing my perception to distort. What was it...? Somewhere into "Way Over Yonder", it quickly occurred to me. I stopped trying to figure out why this was an all-timer. I took a breath — relaxed. And let the music hit me as it is instead of forcing myself to understand its greatness. Big surprise, the album started sounding a lot better. Suddenly, I was able to hear how wonderful of a voice Carol had. I was able to better appreciate how good the arrangements were, and how nicely they were played. I even begun to pick up more lyrics and think to myself, "Dang, that **is** some pretty neat stuff." Big surprise that once I shed expectations, I started liking this thing more. I thought this was something I learned to do back with KID A, but I guess not. But seriously: I wouldn't tell you that my mind was suddenly blown by this album. It didn't reach the levels of "touches my soul" that I usually try to save 5's for. Like, I don't wanna go **that** far out. But as a soft rock kind-of album with a good smattering of notable lyrics... Yeah, it's a really dang good time. Like, the only nudge I'd really wanna give it is that "Smackwater Jack" **does** sound a little out of place... Though that's just because of how much it sounded to me like Elton John, and I love Elton, so I'm hardly complaining. I mean, heck, even the songs I know primarily for being other artists' songs held their own. I wouldn't tell you Carole tops Aretha, not by any means, but she did a dang good job. (And really, I wanna give props again to "Way Over Yonder". Besides being the song where I let my expectations go, it really is just, like, dang good, y'know? Like, if I were to pick one song and one song only as my highlight, it'd be that one. Love that little sax solo in there, goodness.) So — is this album one of **my** all-time greats? Not really. Stiff competition among SONGS IN THE KEY OF LIFE, ABBEY ROAD and ALPOCALYPSE. I don't even think it'd be in my top 25. But do I think it deserves to be one of the all-time greats, generally? Oh, yeah, absolutely. It's not up there on the mount for nothing. And certainly, of all of the albums my group's gotten that've been labelled "singer songwriter," this has been one of the best. So, my hat's off to you, Carole. I really liked your album today, and I might just love it tomorrow. 6/5 cat, by the way. I mean, I'd give all and any cats a 6/5, but still. Very good kitty.

Street Life

The Crusaders

5/5

OK, I wanna know what companies people're calling that this — **this** — is hold music. First I saw people call Miles Davis's IN A SILENT WAY hold music, and now this? Some people, I tell yah. OK, OK, I don't wanna make this whole review a response to one other one I saw. But using that as a jumping off point to talk about this album... Within the first couple of seconds— hell, just listening to samples on Spotify, I could tell: this was something special. This has to be some of the smoothest, grooviest, most "screw up your face and shimmy yer shoulders" kinda jazz funk I've heard in a **while**. And I don't even know how much jazz funk I've ever heard, but this stuff is just phenomenal. Take the title track, for instance: it's eleven minutes, and I honestly wouldn't have minded if it'd gone on longer. It's so irresistible. And every other track on the album stands up just as well as that one does. I'm not even sure if this is an album where I really have too many words to say about it. It really speaks for itself, between the horns and bass and the small snatches of vocals that pop up... Not since HOT RATS have I heard a six-pack jazz album that's this tight and this much fun. Honest to goodness. I'd've much rather listened to this shit on hold than whatever tinny classical music I've actually heard get pumped through. If this is elevator music, hit the button; I'm staying there for an hour. This gets played in a supermarket, the people are gonna be dancin' in the aisles. This is some legit, prime cut, grade-A shit here. I really cannot hear the "muzak" in this that others are. Now, I'm not gonna act like this is jazz on the same level as IN A SILENT WAY was. It's got a lot of disco and R&B and funk in it — enough to where some have called it "jazz for people who don't like jazz." But fuck that. I love jazz, and I love this. This **is** jazz, any way you slice it. And it's fuckin' incredible. Seriously, if you're reading this review and you somehow haven't heard this album, give it a chance. Put it on and get damn **loose** to it. This is a great, fun album, and to anyone who says it isn't... Well, diff'rent strokes and all, but I will actively rebut it. Not to change their mind, but more to say that, yeah, I'd be more than glad to listen to this when I called the bank. Even if, like if they served me IN A SILENT WAY, it'd sound like ass comin' through whatever machine they have it on. (Seriously, why **does** hold music sound so tinny? Honestly now...)

Van Halen

5/5

This is another one of those albums where I find it hard to talk about why I think it's so great, because... Well, it just **is**, isn't it? Why should I hafta explain? It's Van Halen's debut album. You don't need to listen to it for too long to get it and why it's often considered, if not just **the** greatest hard rock album of all time. Certainly the most influential hard rock albums of all time, if nothing else. It really all comes down to Eddie Van Halen's playing. No matter how much his influence has spread, and no matter how many people have stolen his moves, no one can play like he can. Seriously, I don't legit consider "Eruption" to be maybe the most famous Van Halen song of all time for nothing. Sure, there's "Jump" over on 1984, but there's no other song in their entire discography that boils down and distills Van Halen's appeal and influence like that song. But let us absolutely not forget the other members of the band. Sure, the band name is Eddie's (and his brother's) last name, and Eddie's playing would always be incredible, but the band itself just wouldn't be the same without these other guys. I mean, for one David Lee Roth ain't one of the most iconic singers in hard rock for nothing. He's nothing but personality, with his "funtimes/goodtimes" delivery and, jus', like, the random vocal inflections he does — the whole "AAAA-AAAH-HAAAA-YEEAAAA-YEEAAAAAAAH" bit. That kinda shit. It's great. Then of course hafta give credit to the rhythm section: Alex Van Halen on drums, and of course, **of course**, Michael Anthony on bass and backing vocals. Seriously, tight as hell combo to keep up with the shit Ed and Dave are doing. And, y'know, as much as I can glaze and gas up Eddie's guitar and David's lead vocals, we really need to acknowledge what an absolute secret sauce Michael's backing vocals are. They are just as important to the sound as anything else, and they are what for sure make my favorite moment on the album: that part in "Jamie's Cryin'" where there's this big harmony on "than one night STAAAAAA-AAAAAAND." Incredible, amazing, just so good. And these four come together to make some of the greatest Southern-fried boogie-type kinda party rock the 70's would ever hear. And in all different styles! Where it's the slow-ish kinda jam of "Runnin' With The Devil", the 60's pop kinda feel of "Feel Your Love Tonight" and "Jamie's Cryin'", the 50's style swing of"I"m The One", the acoustic-start boogie of "Ice Cream Man", the crash n' bashers like "On Fire" and "Atomic Punk", and the straight-up hardrockers like "You Really Got Me" and "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love". It's a nonstop 35-and-a-half-minute ride of guitar tricks and vocalizations and, gawd, it's just all so awesome and it kicks so much ass. Like, this shit just rocks and is fun as hell. There's really no better way to summarize it than that. And unless you think this shit sounds meatheaded, or you just really hate these kinds of guitar theatrics, I can't imagine how anyone could hate it. It's just that good and iconic. I mean, dang, why have you spent even this long readin' me babble about it? Go listen to it — or listen to it again! If it ain't worth a thousand words and then some by itself, goodness...

Odessa

Bee Gees

4/5

I think it might be hard for some people to accept that the Bee Gees were, at one point, a rock band. Heck, just that they existed **at all** before the SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER soundtrack. The way their legacy is this day, you'd think they poofed into existence specifically for "Stayin' Alive" and that they hadn't been a band since **1965** — singing 14 Barry Gibb songs, no less! Of course **I** know that, thanks in part to the knowledge that Chumbawamba covered their song "New York Mining Disaster 1941", but I wouldn't blame anyone else for getting this album or the other one on the list (TRAFALGAR) and just being... Y'know, baffled. The same guys who made "Night Fever" — they also made **this**? What **is** this, then? Well, if the Bee Gees (pre-disco) were at one point considered a successor to The Beatles (yes, really), then this would be their WHITE ALBUM. Not just for the fact that it's a double album, but also because it caused such internal strife that Robin Gibb temporarily left the band! Yeah, for a whole dang album, he was just gone. And then there's also the fact that this album is a bit of a mess. As much as THE WHITE ALBUM — no, it's not. But it's still a bit all over the place. Just consider, this was originally meant to be a concept album (about what, I couldn't begin to guess). That got scrapped at some point, so we're left with an album that mixes these spacey, more progressive tunes together with the more-standard pop balladry I'd expect from this group. And there's country music, too. Imagine if a fifth of THE WHITE ALBUM sounded like "Don't Pass Me By". Like all double albums, this one suffers from the problem of "But did this **all** need to be here?" Double albums can be a particularly perilous balancing act in filling and justifying all of the added space an extra disc can allot you. If you're not extra careful, you can come off sounding like an egomaniac. And while I don't think the Bee Gees come off that way, I also can't tell you there's probably a better "single disc" version buried in here. (I mean, heck, from what I read, the Bee Gees didn't even **want** to do a double album; their label nudged them into it. So if I wanna point fingers at anyone, a big one would hafta be directed at the label.) I know "Edison" would be on **my** chopping block. And maybe I woulda spread out the two strictly instrumental orchestral tracks on side three so they weren't back to back? I'unno, this is a thought experiment for another day. And all that to say... Y'know, despite its status as a double album, I don't think it's bad? Not at all? Like the worst it gets is just kinda "Fine, but why did it **need** to be here?" Otherwise, there's something about the scope of it I kind of admire. Just that, in being nudged to make an album like this, they just threw shit at the wall and it often came out pretty well. I mean, I'm a sucker for the Bee Gees' brand of pop balladry (if my enjoyment of the parody "Meaningless Songs" ("in very high voi-seh-heh-heh-heh") is anything to go). They sing in falsetto and let those thousand violins soar, I'm more than happy. And the country's not bad, either — the worst one's the square dance deal "Give Your Best" on side three, and that's in part because only two tracks later it's followed by "With All Nations" — apparently, the international anthem of, like... The world, I guess? Who was at the U.N. when they voted to approve the Bee Gees on this? Or is this more like how "Calling Occupants Of Interplanetary Craft" is the recognized anthem of World Contact Day? And even that's probably more official. Still: lovely orchestration. I read that one of the previous titles they were considering for the album was MASTERPIECE. And I must ask the same question I asked Elvis Costello's IMPERIAL BEDROOMS when it was marketed as maybe being one: "is it?" I'd say in the grand scheme of music... No. Not really. I don't even know if I'd say it ranks all **that** highly among all of the 60's albums I've heard. But all the same: is it the masterpiece of the Bee Gees discography? Oh, sure, I'd say so. Maybe one of their single disc albums could clear, if just on being a tighter experience than anything else. However, if I were to judge things based on ambition, and on what I imagine would be the peak and pinnacle of their sound — y'know, before they were shakin' their groove thangs... I have a hard time imagining any of them could really top this. And that's again acknowledging that this thing could still be trimmed down. I mean, no masterpiece is flawless. And then might have more than some others — but it's not exactly unworthy, in the right context. And to bring it around to the top again, I guess I'd have a hard time accepting the Bee Gees as a rock band after all — 'coz they're really more of a pop combo. A soft rock trio at best. Whatever they are, they made a lot of good shit, and ultimately, more than any box you wanna shove 'em all, that's all that really matters.

Let's Get Killed

David Holmes

4/5

If you're going into this album expecting an album experience, you're probably going about this all wrong. Now, I wouldn't blame you for going into this album like that. I would've, too, if I hadn't learned what I'd learned. In fact, I probably woulda... Well, I don't think I would've **hated** it, but I don't think I woulda been too kind to this album. Y'know, as time goes on, I'm realizing more and more that only a specific kind of electronica really gels with me... Daft Punk, Moog music... Stuff like that. But then I was made privy to an important piece of information that really changed the way I'd view this album. Y'see, the guy who made this, David Holmes, isn't any random electronica producer; not some no name who just happened to worm his way on this list. No, David Holmes — pause for impact — is also a film composer. You might have heard his work, if you've seen the 2001 OCEAN'S ELEVEN remake or either of its two sequels. Yeah, the whole trilogy — and I just saw all of those movies pretty recently to when my group got this album. Go figure. So, allow me to propose something, then. Instead of taking this album as you would any random electronica — or, more specifically I suppose, breakbeat album, try this: view it as a soundtrack. This is a film score to a movie that doesn't exist called LET'S GET KILLED. Given where I know Holmes from, it's probably a heist movie. About a **really** dangerous heist! Where one character looks at all the preliminary details and remarks, "Y'know, this all seems a little suicide. They're gonna slaughter us if we try this." And the guy they're talking to, probably the lead, just smirks and remarks, "Well, let's all get killed, then." In short: use this album as a means by which to imagine your own movie. It can be really fun if you do it right and the music really lends itself to it! And when viewed under this light, it **does** work pretty well. I can picture the lead characters meeting (one of 'em is probably named Pete), them discussing the plan in a cafe, scoping the target, recruiting the team, going into action... Everything. I even came up with a thing where the lead character has a thing for people watching and eavesdropping, which explains all of the spoken word soundbites. Again, it's fun stuff, I'm telling you. But if there's any reason why I'm not "over the moon" crazy for this thing... Well, it really comes down to the fact that I'm not much one for film scores. There's a couple lately I've come to dig (mostly notably Alexadre Desplat's work on THE FRENCH DISPATCH and ASTEROID CITY), but for the most part... I'unno, I just don't tend to seek this stuff out on my own time. Like, if I wanna hear this music, I'm probably gonna watch the movie more, so... I'll probably just do that! As a matter of fact, I can't even remember what Holmes's score for **any** of the OCEAN'S movies sounds like. The only one I can recall off the top of my head is, funny enough, OCEAN'S EIGHT — which was scored by Alexandre Desplat. Go figure. So while I got a kick out of imagining my own movie, and while I did enjoy the reworking of the James Bond theme that's on here... And, actually, I gotta agree with a fellow group member; while this album doesn't start badly, it gets way better following the song before the Bond track, "Radio 7"... Yeah, I'unno. It's very good background music, though it's hardly the first stuff I'd reach for. Just how it is. (Also, apparently "Don't Die Just Yet" is a remake of two songs from Serge Gainsbourg's HISTORIE DE MELODY NELSON? What a bizarre way for that album to come back after it was the first one my group got this year. Goodness.)

Django Django

4/5

So, we all know what a retro throwback is, right? We've probably seen **tons** of them in this day and age — 'coz ain't nuthin' some people love than to appeal to someone's sense of nostalgia with **old things**. I know I've heard my fair share of musical ones. Bruno Mars has done a ton, though always with the ear to still make it contemporary and not just a throwback for the sake of it. They're something I find I have a certain fondness for, even as much as I realize this sort of nostalgia-bait isn't exactly a good thing for art. Now, Django Django's eponymous debut album is not a retro throwback. It certainly **does** evoke a lot of the sounds and feelings I associate with a strand of 60's music, but I wouldn't say it's a throwback to that stuff. More, I'd say it's... Retro futurism. From the future. Which is now the past. You know. It's like... Stop for a second to imagine a world where the 60's were still happening. Someone, culture never moved on from the aesthetics of the 60's — and I do mean just the culture; let's leave any political ramifications out of this discussion because I do **not** have the insight to comment on **that**. Just pretend this is some kind of parallel universe like you'd see in a movie or TV show. This feels like the music they'd have there: very PET SOUNDS Beach Boys, with a lot of psychedelic overtones, but processed through more contemporary (as in 2000's) electronic music. And a little bit of The White Stripes, too, to fully steal the comparisons a fellow group member made. It's a very unique blend of influences I don't think I've ever heard before, and I'm kind of surprised it turned out as good as it did. Like, it's one of those "I'm not WOWIE-WOW-WOW'd by it" albums, but regardless, I'd still say there's not a bad song in the lot. It's all very... Well, to wipe another word from my group member's review, mesmerizing. The kind of stuff where if you don't end up paying too close attention to it, you can almost fall into a trance with the way this thing flows. Just very easy stuff to glide on. Like, I wouldn't call it background music (technically anything can be, let's be real, but that's besides the point). It's just... I think if you wanna jus' kinda turn your brain off to it, but not completely space out... It's a fine one to float on. Yeah, honestly, I didn't come into this album with any expectations beyond "Mm, that's a trippy cover," and I gotta say, I'm pleasantly surprised. It's a good time — good on you for that, Django Django. Throwback or futurism or whatever, that's really all I can ask for.

Tuesday Night Music Club

Sheryl Crow

3/5

Well, as I'm writing this, it's Tuesday night — I guess there's no better time to listen to and discuss this album than now. So. Sheryl Crow. What do I know about her? Uhm... "All I Wanna Do" was covered in a Weird Al polka, so there's that. It was sandwiched between "Sex Type Thing" and "Closer". That's fun, I guess I think she also has a song about Steve McQueen — called "Steve McQueen". Makes sense. I think she did the title song for a James Bond movie... "Tomorrow Never Dies", I'm sure? That was a fun movie; I liked watching Michelle Yeoh... And that's it! That's all I know about her. And that's all I was interested to know up until I hadda write this review. Like, I'unno, Sheryl Crow is a name I've always known (oh, yeah, she was referenced in the "Babe Ruth vs Lance Armstrong" episode of Epic Rap Battles Of History — I guess they dated?), but I guess I just never really felt the urge to discover the music associated with it. And after listening to this album, uh, I can't say I shoulda done it any quicker? Like, OK, OK, OK, let me be fair: it's not a bad album. I know I'm not particularly discerning about albums, but seriously, it's really not. Quite frankly, its biggest sin is that, at the same time, it's not really all that great, either? Sure, there were a couple of songs where I was tapping my foot or kinda nodding along... But on the whole it just didn't excite me too much, or really inspire me to write. I'unno if I'd say I'm underwhelmed, but I'm just like, "Sure. It's fine. I guess." This whole pop rock-y singer-songwriter folk thing she's doing here... It sounds like it should be more exciting than it is. And following along with the lyrics best I could, too, I felt like I should be feeling something. But it just glides on that one level while mostly never doing anything to rise above it. The exceptions, I'd say, are "All I Wanna Do" (which I actually didn't really get the hype behind too much), and "Solidify" and "The Na-Na Song" — though lemme saying, it's not exactly a compliment that the feeling these songs made me feel was "annoyed." Seriously, the worst songs on this album, you ask me. If the rest of this thing was a 5, these would bring it down to a 4, easy. I mean, "Solidify" just has this obnoxiously prickly guitar thing that repeats every couple of seconds and it was super distracting. Meanwhile, "The Na-Na Song" is just like, "Damn, OK, you wanna be 'Subterranean Homesick Blues' — cool. Wanna try being **good** first?" Past talking about those two songs, there's nothing specific I really wanna bring up. Whatever people saw in it at the time, I just can't find it. It's not entirely unenjoyable (I **do** like Crow's voice, even if I spent the entire album tryna figure out what it reminded me of (I couldn't think of it)), but, yeah. I'm not surprised I didn't seek it or her music out sooner. And on top of all that, it's by far the worst Deep Purple album I've ever heard. Nothing on here sounded even remotely like "Smoke On The Water"! I tell yah...

La Revancha Del Tango

Gotan Project

4/5

Y'know, if the randomizer's gonna give my group yet another electronica album (I think our third or fourth this month), then I'm glad it at least had the decency to give us one that isn't **just** another electronica album. No, no: it's also a **tango** album. The first one we've gotten, too, I think. So, hey, that'll provide a different angle to look at this album at than if it was just electronica noodling, right? Eh, a little, but ultimately I'd say it winds up in about the same place most electronica ends up for me. Like, I'll grant it, being a tango album (as well as a little bit of "nu jazz," whatever that is — it's certainly less edgy than nu metal) **does** make it sonically more appealing than if it was straight-up electronica. I like the moods and melodies these songs get across. It's very suave and sensual. Which is surprising for an album with a Frank Zappa cover, but there you go, I guess. Like, the accordion on this thing is just... Great. I'm so used to it being used in Weird Al polkas and that one song from LADY IN THE TRAMP that I forget that it can sound **really nice** when played the right way. Though, all together, at the end of the day, it **does** still reside in the world of electronica, so largely it just winds up being background music to me. Really well played background music, yes, and the kind of wallpaper that provides an excellent mood that'd really enhance the right situations, yes... But still background music. It's not something I'd wanna listen to just to listen to for its own sake, y'know? That being said, actively trying to listen to it... This is where I feel like I hafta shout out David Holmes's LET'S GET KILLED again. After taking the approach of treating it like a film score and trying to imagine the film it underpins, I tried applying that same treatment here... And I tell it, it **does** work. Though not as a film. I can certainly see some scenes of steamy tango, or some scenes of a suave gentleman spy sneaking around a beautiful mountainside villa bathed in these red, pink and orange lights... More so, I ended up imagining a **video game**. One about a gentleman spy who skulks around villas, yeah, but... I'unno, something about this album specifically just evoked "video game" to me. Maybe it's because I think there might be a nighttime level in SONIC UNLEASHED that sounds like this? Y'know, underneath the BLEH DEH DEH DEH BEH DA DEH BLEEEEH battle music. I guess this is the first time I've really understood a fellow group mate of mine who's long engaged with electronica albums in this way. Not a bad way to do it, honestly. So... Yeah. By this framing, I'm all for this album. Not "blown out of the water" kind of enthusiastic or nothing, where I'd shake someone on the street recommending it to them — I mean, I'll tell you one thing: this album didn't need to be **this long**... But, hey, in total, it's good wallpaper. And I'm always up for good wallpaper! And I got to Fantasia up a longplay in my head, too, so that was pretty fun. Once again, I come across an album where I see someone calling it "hold music" and I don't know what they're talking about. (I mean, seriously, do you even know what hold music sounds like? 'Coz it sure as shit ain't this or Miles Davis.) Not bad for a bunch of French guys pretending to be Spanish. So, thank you, Almighty Randomizer, for shakin' it up a little with this slice of electronica. I look forward to being bored as hell by the next one.

Mott

Mott The Hoople

5/5

There are about two or three things I know about Mott The Hoople: the first is that Queen name-dropped them on "Now I'm Here". It's not really relevant to anything, but it's always the first thing that comes to mind whenever I happen to think of this group. Second, there's just how funny I find it that they have an album called MOTT THE HOOPLE, an album called MOTT, and an album called THE HOOPLE. That's just endless amusing, especially as a bookend for their career. The third thing is the most relevant: their place in the "David Bowie extended universe" (DBEU). The story of Mott The Hoople, from what I've heard, is that they weren't a very notable band for most of their career. I think I read in Stephen Thomas Erlewine's review on AllMusic that they were on about the same level as Slade — y'know, the guys who originally recorded "Cum On Feel The Noize". It wasn't until they crossed paths with Bowie that they became particularly notable. Rather famously, not only did he write what's probably their biggest hit ("All The Young Dudes"), he also produced the album it came from (of the same name). It was with this album that they made a big pivot into doing glam rock, and it was with this album that they just took the fuck off. After this, they were certified **STARS**, baby! This album, then, as that same AllMusic review notes, is their response to that chunk of fame they awarded. And I'll tell you: it doesn't sound like they're all too happy with it? That's certainly something you can read into if you dig into the lyrics, and for sure the lens through which I ended up viewing this album. But it's not like Ian Hunter's lyrics are just whining about how hard life on the road is, no. To reference that AllMusic review once again, it's more "wry commentary on rock & roll." To which, I mean, the level to which you buy into that will certainly vary from person to person — I also read Robert Christgeau's piece on this album and he sure didn't believe it. For my own money, y'know, I **did** buy into it enough to see the album that way, so... But I think what makes it a great album isn't just Ian Hunter's lyrics commenting that rock and roll is a "loser's game." In fact, if you weren't actively listening to the lyrics, you'd never know that — this is fuckin' **good-ass** winner glam rock. Jus', goodnes me, it's so good. Even Christgeau could cop to that. It's some of the most 70's glam rock-ass 70's glam rock I've ever heard. And, y'know, I get how that could be a negative to some people: that it's so standard to what you'd expect of this kind of music that it's not even exciting to me. But to me, a gig is a gig is a gig is a gig — and this is a damn gig. Like with metal and country music, I'm not too discerning about my glam rock. As long as it hits the right notes, I'm more than fine. And this sure as heck does! Killer riffs! Enormous swagger! Hoooorns! It's everything I'd want from a glam rock album and then some. It even has... Well, you remember how I said Mott The Hoople were in the DBEU? Well, if I wasn't even vaguely aware of who Ian Hunter was, you sure coulda convinced me that David Bowie didn't just write "All The Young Dudes", but just straight up joined the band. Seriously: Ian Hunter is doing his best possible vocal impression of HUNKY DORY- or ZIGGY STARDUST-era Bowie. It can be a little— jus', a tad bit distracting sometimes. If I have any one nitpick, it's on this point. And it far from ruins the album, I should say; within this context and musical bed, it works just fine. This voice doesn't not belong. But it's not like I can't think about that "We have David Bowie at home" tweet-review I saw and exactly fully disagree with it. Still, like I said, that's my own nitpick. Otherwise, I am mighty impressed with Mott The Hoople here. I'd long been aware of the name for the reasons mentioned above (and "All The Young Dudes" being in GUITAR HERO: AEROSMITH, I almost forgot), but, I'unno, they were just one of those groups I never got around to simply because I was busy with other stuff. Now that I've sampled one of their albums... Shoot, I might just reach for it the next time I'm in a 70's glam rock mood. Like, I know it's very "wannabe Bowie" in the vocals, but consider this: Mott The Hoople doesn't have the mystique or legacy that Bowie does. As such, at least for me, it's much easier to just rock out to this music without having to keep "the importance" in mind. I really don't blame their greatest hits album (released three years later) for having four songs from this record. So, down in the city, just Hoople n' me... Yeah, I think I'll stay around (around, around).

Halcyon Digest

Deerhunter

2/5

Look, I have never really been a fan of indie rock. My group has gotten quite a few albums that've been put under that label, and it's pretty rare that they completely click with me. I mean, even accepting genre as a spectrum and less as something with defined, hard lines, there have been very few YANKEE HOTEL FOXTROTs I can gel with and a whole lotta Arcade Fires that I'm just baffled by. The critics seem to like it — I can't figure it out for the life of me. So, what, is this album gonna end up being some secret cheat code to finally getting it? Nah. Not really. Not at all. No. I mean, this thing had a pretty promising start with the first track, "Earthquake". It made me think this was gonna be a much more sonically interesting album? One where maybe I can discuss "feels bad" music and how, while I do a share of those kinds of songs I like, I just generally don't have too much room in my life for the harder stuff? But then the second track hit and, ah, no, it's just an indie rock album. Maybe there's some kind of lyrical theme that ties it all together. A fellow member of the group I'm in theorized as such: it's something about looking back on a life well lived and then dying at the happiest possible moment. Or something? This theory didn't convince him to bump his score up from a 3 (though he did anyway for the sake of the site), and it's sure not convincing me either. So if this thing had to live and die on the strength of its sonics... Then I guess it just dies. It's like biting into a piece of stale food. It's not offensive in any way, but somehow it's worse than if it actually made me throw up. At least I would be able to tell people about the time I ate something bad enough to vomit on the kitchen floor. Who would want to hear me talk about biting into a stale piece of white bread? Nothing remarkable about it whatsoever, and wholly unengaging. I seriously debated with myself not even finishing the record for just how bored I was by the halfway mark. I didn't, for the record, but I came **very** close. And it **did** take me a few hours to return to it once side one had ended, so... Look, this album is just a bore to me. There's nothing fundamentally wrong with it, and if you're really that deep in love with the whole spectrum of indie rock, you might probably get a kick out of this. There are a few interesting moments here; they are completely keeping this thing from a 1. (Heck, I kind of liked "Helicopter", to be 100.) But on the spectrum of indie rock, yeah, this is leaning closer to Arcade Fire than anything else. And maybe this is more of a reaction to my boredom at indie rock as a whole than to just this album... But probably not. Hey, Randomizer! Next time give me something more interesting to digest, huh?

Time (The Revelator)

Gillian Welch

3/5

Whether or not you love this album is probably gonna depend a lot on how you feel about the closer, "I Dream A Highway". For me, up to that point, the album was fine. Pretty good, even, I'd say. Normally I don't think I'd vibe too much with this spare "one or two guitars and a voice" kind of arrangement, but here... I'unno. It's the kind of album where, like a fellow group member has said, even if you don't understand the lyrics the emotions are clear and obvious enough that they can help carry you through regardless. Overall, it's a pretty chill record (sort of odd to call it "chill" given the themes I assume it has), and Gillan has a nice singing voice. Paired up with the sounds of crickets chirping, like you're sitting on a backyard porch as the day's winding down into night... I can dig it. But then we get to "I Dream A Highway". There are two perspectives I feel like you can take on this song. The first is that it's a meaningful, spiritual experience, and the absolute centerpiece of the album. It's a song about missing your loved ones, and how you can only dream of finding a way back to them — but you can't. Time has passed, and nothing can make the clock go back. Nothing can ever be the same. It's grief for passing and for time itself. And to some people, this song addresses that beautifully over 14 minutes and simple, spare accompaniment. To some, it's an absolute masterwork. But then to others — and this is the second take — it's 14 minutes and boring as gawdamm piss. It's an absolutely endless song about... Whatever the hell, that feels like it's running in place with the neverending loop the guitar is stuck in and the basic lyric format that just repeats over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and... Y'get it. There's no movement whatsoever and always feels like it's still just starting. It's lyrically obtuse in a way that thinks it's clever and deep, and it's sonically lowkey to a point of annoyance. It's the absolute nadir of this album and its sonic aesthetic. Where do I fall, myself? I think... Somewhere close to the middle of the spectrum... Though more leaning towards the second. Like, I don't necessarily hate it... But I think it does absolutely emphasize all of the problems I have with this album. For one, for as much as the spare acoustics **can** be chill and pretty, and there **is** enough variety between songs to make them stand out from one another... I'unno, I just don't think I'm a fan of wholly acoustic albums like this. Or at least this "slow country" style of it. Seriously, I really thought that "I Dream A Highway" would never end. And, second, while even if, again, the emotions on this album are strong enough to carry through if you don't understand the lyrics... It's still maybe a bit too "artsy" for my tastes? I mean, I was only able to understand what this song was about by going on YouTube and reading other people's comments. Like, if the poet's gonna come up to me and expect me to be impressed because their lyrics are **really deep**... All I can do is shrug and go, "Yeah, I get what they mean." I really wanted to give this album a pass, honestly. On vibes alone, it's a nice time. And, again, I think Gillian's a good singer; no matter my issues, I'm not gonna dispute that. But where a fellow group member bumped this album up to a 10 based on how much they loved "I Dream A Highway"... For me, I think my gut instinct looking at its 14 minute runtime was right. I get the emotions of it — honestly, I do — but I can't front: it brings the whole album down for me. To where if I were to ever revisit this album again, it would absolutely not be in full. Maybe just "Everything Is Free"... I don't know. It's kind of a bummer I'm being so down on this album, but, eh, so it goes. If you don't mind, I'm gonna go dream of shorter songs — or at least ones where stuff **happens**, goodness.

Here Come The Warm Jets

Brian Eno

4/5

When it comes to Brian Eno, I don't often tend to think about him outside of the albums he's produced. Y'know, DEVO's debut, a bunch of records by Talking Heads and U2... You've for sure heard something he's had his hands on. Following that, there's the fact that he was involved with David Bowie's Berlin Trilogy, though I could hardly tell you how. I'd thought he'd produced them, but I guess not? Go figure. And past both of those thoughts, if ever I think about an album credited directly and solely to Eno, chances are likely it's gonna be one of his ambient albums, specifically 'Music For Airports.' "That's just what he makes on his own," I figure: "ambient music! And some of the best stuff, too; bless him for it." So imagine my surprise, then, when I got to turn the clock all the way back to his solo debut and find out that it's actually a glam rock record. I mean, this guy — glam rock? Pull the other leg, huh? Nooooo. Yeah, so it turns out that another thing I don't think about when it comes to Brian Eno is his involvement in Roxy Music. That was a band that made (and had a huge influence on) glam rock, though with a bit of a weird edge to it. I think they'd call themselves "avant rock" if you asked them. So I guess it's not surprising that after departing from Roxy Music he'd still be making glam rock. And listen, I am no stranger to glam rock. "Ballroom Blitz"? "Ballroom Blitz". Just recently I gave a glowing review to Mott The Hoople's 'Mott,' and I am a damn big fan of T. Rex's "Ride A White Swan". Don't even kid me with glam rock. So... Unusual glam rock. Should be right up my alley, huh? Oh, for sure. For the glam rock enthusiast, there's quite a bit here to enjoy. It's not as big as I'd want it to be, but not everything can be, y'know? There's some damn nice stuff on here regardless. Lemme tell you, "On Some Faraway Beach" is gorgeous. I think the title track is honestly a great closer. Plus, you also gotta love a jacked Bo Diddley beat on "Blank Frank". I've no real complaints on this front. Now, on the "avant rock" side of things... Well, I have no complaints there either, but I will say one thing. I kinda find myself immune to being too impressed by more experimental rock. My brain's wired in a bit of a weird way where all of that stuff just kind of bounces off me. So, if I'm supposed to be more in love with the artsier elements of this album... Well, I'm really just not. And I think it's what keeps me from being as gung-ho for this album as I'd really wanna be. Still, I very much enjoyed my time with this album. It might not be **the** thing I end up thinking of when it comes to Brian Eno, but for sure, it'll be in there somewhere. A great time all around if you want some more unusual glam rock.

american dream

LCD Soundsystem

3/5

Back when my group got LCD Soundsystem's second album, I spent a fair chunk of my review comparing it to Grape Nuts. Yeah, I'd seen some review calling the album "techno music for grown-ups," and it inspired me to go off on this whole cereal-based metaphor. The short version was, if this was techno for grown-ups, gimme a box of Froot Loops. Froot Loops don't bore me. And it sort of bummed me out. I'm pretty well aware of their legacy, and, I'unno, I felt like I shoulda liked them more than I did. Which, to be clear, I don't **have** to. Just because a band has a legacy doesn't mean they deserve my love or whatever. But I'unno, from what I remember hearing about them, it seemed like I woulda been big on them... And I just wasn't. Before hopping into this album, though, I took another look at "New York, I Love You But You're Bringing Me Down", and I really liked it. Truthfully, it could have been because I was thinking about the mashup with Miles Davis freestyling over it, but still: it's pretty good. Maybe I've grown a bit since this past January; maybe I'm more open to liking LCD Soundsystem now. So here we go with 'american dream,' the band's big comeback album after they'd disbanded five years earlier. Good things never last, eh? But no, seriously, it's their fourth album... And only their fourth? I woulda sworn they'd be more albums deep by this point... But whatever. We're on the other end of this band's career from 'Sounds Of Silver'. As such, I must ask myself: how does it fare? Is this where I come to love LCD Soundsystem? Mmrgh... LCD Soundstem, I wanna love you, but you keep bringing me down. Like, look, it's not **all** bad. "Call The Police" reminded me a lot of U2 and David Bowie — and I'm maybe the only person who'll **compliment** the album for that! Plus, there's scattered moments where I can nod and be like, "Yeah, no, that's not bad at all." On the whole, though... Jeez. Y'wanna talk about Grape Nuts? "Techno for grown-ups?" This has a bit of that stink of "You listen to this to feel smart and like you have good taste," except with a bit of sarcasm that helps take the edge off things. The whole thing largely feels like it's moving at the same mid-tempo pace the entire time. Even when they toss in some different styles, it doesn't really spice things up too much. It's just a whole lot of, "OK... Is that it?" I mean, if I was looking to this album to give me a good reason to love LCD Soundsystem, this just isn't it. I gotta wonder if it was propelled onto this list just because it was LCD Soundsystem's big comeback record. An otherwise fine record gassed up and boosted on "They're back! And they're doin' all the sounds and stylings we love to hear!" Kind of like the suspicions I had about David Bowie's 'The Next Day.' Like, I'm trying to figure out how exactly I'd've wanted this to sound if I'm not such a big fan of how it is now. Well, I suppose for one it would've been shorter overall. Especially that closer — it did **not** need to be twelve minutes, my goodness. But about the sound... Maybe if it'd been dancier? Like, don't tease me by going halfway. I mean, it's **so close**, but it just refuses to make that final push in tempo, and that really, more than anything, is what makes this really feel like "Music to listen to if you wanna feel like you have good taste." Is LCD Soundsystem even a dance band? I always kind of assumed they were based on that one song they did about Daft Punk, but the more I listen to them the less I can imagine actually dancing to any of this. Is this kinda stuff banging on the dance floor? Unless I see it for myself, I wouldn't think so. So... Yeah. Another LCD Soundsystem album, another one leaving me pretty underwhelmed. Like I said, if I was using this album to convince me to like this band... This just ain't it. Though what's funny is that in the middle of writing this review, I went back and listened to a couple of songs from their first two albums to compare — and wouldn't you know it, I actually liked them a lot. Like, goodness, they actually had a bit of actually dance-y energy back then. Placed next to what they were doing on 'american dream'... I mean, I'unno if I'd say if I'd ever listen to one of their albums in full again, but at least on a song by song basis, yeah. Maybe I do like LCD Soundsystem after all. And this album had very little to do with that. Go figure. I suppose the real American dream would've been if this album had been. But I guess the dream is over.

There's No Place Like America Today

Curtis Mayfield

4/5

Y'know, the album my group got right before this one was LCD Soundsystem's 'america dream,' and I had to restrain myself from making any... Topical-as-of-this-writing commentary. "Oh-ho, the American dream? Let me tell you...!" You ain't come here for that. I ain't come here for that. I'll spare both of us. This album hardly has any relevant commentary of its own anyway, far as I can tell. CUT TO: the following night. And what does the Randomizer spit out at us? A lil' record by the name of 'THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE AMERICA TODAY.' If you can't guess what **this** album is about... Like, I'm surprised the Randomizer didn't just flash up a double dog dare for me to get political up in this muhfuh. It's kind of unavoidable if you wanna deal with this album's subject matter — I mean, what, you're gonna try and be apolitical about 'What's Going On' next? Gimme a break. But, y'know, how 'bout this: just for my own sake, I'll avoid any RECENT recent events. Right? Is that fair? Lemme jus' talk about 2025 as a whole if I hafta talk about it all? OK? Good. So anyway, Curtis Mayfield! I presume that this album is to him what HOT BUTTERED SOUL is to Issac Hayes — specifically in that it's the album of theirs on this list that isn't a blackploitation soundtrack. Though unlike Issac Hayes (and I'll admit this up front), I kind of had no idea who Curtis Mayfield was until I saw that he'd also done SUPER FLY? So, it's not a good sign right off the bat, I'd say. But, hey, SUPER FLY is one of the greatest soundtrack albums of all time (and I'm not just parroting the consensus here). So, if he can pull that off, who's to say he can't handle his own 'What's Going On,' huh? I mean, let's be fair and not compare this to 'What's Going On.' Curtis Mayfield is not Marvin Gaye, and this album is sure as heck not 'What's Going On.' That is **not** an album you'd wanna try and compare yourself to. But even if you remove it from your mind all together... I gotta admit, I wish I liked this more than I did? And let me be crystal clear: I liked this album a **lot**. My issue (ultimately a small one) is that... I expected it to be bigger? Like, it's maybe just a bit more relaxed than I thought an album with a title like 'There's No Place Like America Today' would be. Certainly, if anyone in 2025 was gonna make an album with a sarcastic title like that, it'd be big and **pissed**. Like, come on, Curtis — talk to 'em! I know you can use hard language: I've heard you sampled on "Jesus Walks". But maybe I'm spoiled by other 70's soul. Even putting Gaye aside, when I think of 70's soul, I'm bound to think of Issac Hayes and his larger-than-life psychedelic soul, or Stevie Wonder's transcendental funk soul. Certainly, I'm spoiled by Stevie's political tracks. "You Haven't Done Nothin'"? "Village Ghetto Land"? "Living For The City"? What tunes! What commentary! It's still a high as hell standard to hold anyone to. So, lemme more meet Curtis where he is. 'Coz even if the music on this album isn't as big as I'd want it to be, it's still smooth as all get out. Curtis has a great voice, and it pops out over these instrumentals — which are also great, I should say! These instrumentals ain't no Funk Brothers work (maybe they're a bit **too** tight for their own good?), but they do well enough for themselves and then some. Love that chill groove thing they got. The album's a good time all around. In the grand scheme of 70's soul protest album, this one obviously lives in the shadow of the Big One over there. Taken on its own, however, it's far from bad. If you like your protest music silky smooth, this wouldn't be a bad one to stop off at. And either way, you're bound to hear something that's... Sadly still all too relevant today. Boy, you sure do love when nothing fundamentally changes, eh? America: still ain't no place like it. And that's my political commentary for the night, folks! Hope you enjoyed it! I'll be here next week!

Casanova

The Divine Comedy

4/5

Back when my group got our first album from The Divine Comedy ('A Short Album About Love'), I ended up only writing 105 words about it. The further condensed version of that review was, essentially, this: "I like this album quite a bit, though mostly because it reminds me a lot of Sparks in places." Over a year later, now looking at my group's second and final The Divine Comedy album (actually the one released immediately before 'A Short Album About Love'), I feel like I could say the exact same thing. Like, it's both a blessing and a curse that this album reminds me as much as it does of Sparks. On the one hand, it's obviously a compliment. I dearly love Sparks, and the lyric writing on this album largely feels like the kind of sardonic, dry British humor you'd find on one of their records (seriously, if you weren't told, you'd might never guess they were American). It does allow me to look over some of the more... Y'know, questionable lines on the album. That bit that's like, "She resisted / I persisted until she said OK?" If I wasn't assuming that the narrator of this song was supposed to be an asshole... But then we flip it over to how the comparison is a curse. Sparks is a very refined, sophisticated band. Whether they're doing glam rock, dance music, or some minimalist chamber pop, you can tell that despite the sardonic humor in their lyrics, they're not a joke and neither is their music. Similar to They Might Be Giants, which I was also reminded of at some point: they write songs with odd lyrics in a way that feels like it's supposed to be comical, but it's obviously not. It's just, y'know... Hand wiggle from FANTASTIC MR. FOX: different. The Divine Comedy comes off as a joke. The orchestrations on this album can be so over-the-top and so overdone, and the guy singing it can sound so incredibly smarmy... It comes off like this is supposed to be a comedy record. Y'know, it feels like a parody, but you're sure as damn shit not sure **what**. As such, you can't really take the lyrics seriously, which leads you to wonder why in the fuck you'd have a line like the one I listed above — or why in the hell that Barry White impersonation is there on "Charge". Seriously, it sounds like Barry White is trying to speak and burp at the same time. Then Prince shows up outta nowhere for a few seconds—! Like, **are** we supposed to be rooting for the narrators of these songs or not? What in the hell is going on? I can only imagine that if you gave these songs to Sparks and allowed them to rearrange them in their style (and maybe let them rewrite some of the lyrics), you'd have a much stronger overall end product. One that maybe doesn't come off as such a directionless spoof of nothing. But at the same time... Y'know, my favorite album of the 70's — the entire 70's — is Meat Loaf's BAT OUT OF HELL. It's an album that, to any reasonable listener, sounds like a parody. The songs are so over the top in their scale, scope and epicness, it feels like they're trying to take the piss of Springsteen's style of songwriting. This album has a nine minute song about a motorcycle crash that takes **seven minutes** to get to the crash! They must be having a laugh, right? And yet, specifically because of the Wagnerian scope of the album, taking 50's teen-age rock n' roll songs and blowing them up to sound as big as they probably did to the kids back then, I love that album. I do truly love me some over-the-top, epic, near-parodic material sometimes. BAT OUT OF HELL falls into that category — "I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing" does, too, and is my go-to example for my love of over-production — and so does this album as well. I have my faults with it. I do believe it might've been a better record in the hands of other artists. But damn it, I still enjoyed the hell out of my time with this thing. All of the overblown lounge orchestrations — yes, please. Inject it into my veins; gimme that shit all day. It's silly with how big it goes, but damn it, that's the appeal. That's what I'd maybe honestly come **back** to this thing for. It's 51 minutes, and yet I was never not engaged with it — that's a feat, believe you me. I can't give this album a 5 in good faith. There's just a moment too many that holds it back from me claiming it's a "deep in my soul" album or a "damn it, it just deserves it" album. But it still remains a **high** 4. I understand what people's problems with this would be, absolutely. Even **I** had to wonder at some points if it was getting too big for itself. But of course the comedy of it all is that, like I said, I'd still give this thing a revisit, even over albums that are far more restrained and easier to take seriously. I just really dig it. And I doubt I'll be able to convince anyone else to like it like I do... But, eh: so goes life. So, I suppose the short for this review would be "I like this album quite a lot, and not just because it reminds me of Sparks in places." It simply has more to offer me than that. Though it really does remind me of Sparks a lot. Seriously, let Ron Mael sing this album. It'd no doubt be better than this guy's Bublé Bowie sorta thing...

Spy Vs. Spy: The Music Of Ornette Coleman

John Zorn

1/5

uuuurrrrrgghhhh Listen: I don't like to hate on experimental albums. I see all the fact that they're some of the lowest-rated albums and I can't help but give 'em the sideeye. I mean, I get it, I really do: this kind of music absolutely isn't for everyone. I'm not asking people to like these albums. I'm not saying even **I** like all of them! But I read some of these reviews, and I think it'd be worthwhile for some of these people to acknowledge that even if you don't like these albums, they **are** expanding your musical horizons. These are albums trying to expand the definition of what "music" can be, and it's shit you'll never hear on 'Rumours' or 'The Dark Side Of The Moon' or any other highly-rated album from the 60's or 70's. 'Kollaps,' 'Duck Stab!/Buster & Glan,' 'Scum,' 'They Were Wrong, So We Drowned...' I appreciate what they're doing, if nothing else. Which actually leads me to a funny thing about me and experimental music. I've explained this somewhere else before, but when it comes to this kind of material, I sometimes feel like I get it... Y'know, **too much**? Like I have some kind of hidden third ear that can listen through the strangeness and the noise to understand what's going on underneath. And more often than not: I'm bored, actually. 'Trout Mask Replica,' as an example, kind of bores me. I don't mean to sound like one of those "I'M SO CRAZY TO ME WEIRD AL IS JUST NORMAL AL" guys, but seriously: it just doesn't sound that weird to me. Believe me: an album has to actively get up in my craw for me to truly, honestly dislike it — or, using the softest version of this word that I can, hate it. To this point, I've yet to give out more than ten 1's. I've granted exactly eight (and, frankly, it should be seven; I was maybe a bit **too hard** on Limp Bizkit). I'm far from the most positive in my group, but I **always** to try to be fair to an album. You hafta **really** piss me off or bug me or just plain bore the ever-loving shit out of me to get me to hate an album. So, please, do truly believe me: I intended to give this album every fair shot I could. Every benefit of the doubt. Every little scrap of good will it did or did not deserve. Like, maybe, just maybe, I'll see something in it that so many other people ha This is just noise. I do not say that lightly. In fact, I **hate** calling albums noise. But this... I mean, you can give me all the context you want, in regards to this guy's "hardcore miniature" style, or Ornette Coleman's own free jazz work... Any excuse about how this is "jazz for the post-punk generation." This is noise. It's like... You know, I've talked before about this idea, where I assume there are people who will do whatever random, thoughtless shit they want and call it "experimental" or "avant-garde" to get away with it. And believe, there's a difference between "chaos" and "random-ass shit." On no other album have I felt that that's true than this album. From the sound of it, I would honestly believe they're not actually playing a single Ornette Coleman. You could tell me that they spent the whole time improvising and I'd believe it. Hell, you could tell me the horns and the drums were recorded at different times, in different studios, in different countries, on different **continents**, and that neither group ever met up and had no idea what they were recording for, and that this was all haphazardly assembled in post, and I'd damn believe you. Like, yeah, it fits one of my points: I'll never hear **this shit** on 'Abbey Road!' But them, would I **want to**? I mean, I'm pretty sure I could hear this from any random jazz ensemble farting around as a **joke**. I **needed** to hear this? This "deconstruction of jazz" or whatever? If this is deconstruction, then it's in that sort of way where it kind of hates its targets and is just not interested in being kind to it. The "But what if Superman was evil?" of jazz. And, y'know, I see people complaining about albums being or not being on this list. The "review" that's been a thorn in my side for the longest is one for Deep Purple's 'Made In Japan' that's largely just the author whining about how MF DOOM isn't on this list. Like, I try to avoid that sort of thing myself, because I assume that even if I don't like the album, it has to be here for a **reason**. Even if it's just the editor's love for obscure British acts, there has to be **something**. And, I mean, with this album... I mean, let me tell you this: this is the only Ornette Coleman album on this list. Again: **this is the only Ornette Coleman album on this list**. 'The Shape Of Jazz To Come?' The album I'd **assume** you'd put on a list like this, if you were going to include an Ornette Coleman album at all? One of the most controversial, yet influential jazz records of all time? Completely absent from this list. But **this** is here. And I'm not just bringing this up for nothing, I should say. I actually went and sampled some of 'The Shape Of Jazz To Come,' and believe you me — it's not just noise! Sure, it's very freeform, but it never all just blends into each other as two drummers compete to see who can play the loudest. There's far more understandable intention here! It doesn't leave me sitting in my chair, slack-jawed because I just can't believe that I'm supposed to be **impressed** by this. Seriously, maybe John Zorn is better elsewhere, on one of his other albums — I don't wanna judge his whole oeuvre by one album — but it's not like I've been given much incentive to find out, y'know? Experimental music is supposed to push the boundaries of music. Like, everything could be just Top 40 radio hits. Enjoyable? Sure. Pleasant? Sure. But is any of it actually interesting? Mostly not. Experimental musicians are here to tell you that there's a whole wide world out there, where music can be whatever you want. It can be nice and melodic — or it can be strange, or harsh, or atonal, or just plain rough. Some people just **need** that. I mean, would you really wanna live in a world where no one ever pushed boundaries? Where no one had the **freedom** to take music and shape it as they pleased? It'd be a pretty boring world, if you asked me. Even if you dislike it, just **hate it** — you hafta appreciate what it's doing. But I have my limits. And this is a step way too far beyond them. Whatever the audience is for this album — I'm not part of it. And to the people who can hear the secret sauce that makes this one of their favorites: I'm happy for you. I really am. I wish I could hear what you did. But I gave it my all, and I just can't. Thank goodness **this** wasn't the shape jazz to come. Jazz wouldn't have been dead — but damn if it wouldn't have smelled something awful.

Fred Neil

4/5

Off the bat, I took the advice of a fellow group mate and didn't consider this as a folk album. I mean, the labels: folk and singer-songwriter... You read these and you're probably tempted to consider this album in the same way you would Leonard Cohen or Joan Baez or Bob Dylan — especially Dylan. Certainly I'd've done that just looking at the **VERY SERIOUS** monochrome cover. But if you look at this album like that, you're kind of doing it wrong. 'Coz this ain't just folk music: it's folk **rock**. And very bluesy folk rock at that. Really, it's more folksy blues rock. Like, just taking this thing as a vibe like I did... It's good. It's perfectly fine. I really don't have many thoughts about this album as a whole. It's just some good, folksy blues rock. Fred Neil has a nice, deep-ish voice; everything is played perfectly well; it's not particularly lyrical, but the ones that aren't here aren't bad... It's good stuff. And frankly, that might be the album's biggest sin. It's good, but there's nothing particularly daring about it. I mean, OK, yeah, the closer is a seven minute experiment in trying to create a "sitar-like" sound, but other than that, it's pretty safe. And that's not always a bad thing, really. Sometimes you just want an album that just does what it does and does it well and never really aims to swing for the fences. There's a place in this world for base-level fine. It's just that if you wanna try and argue that this is an essential album that you **need** to hear before you do... Unless you're talkin' to someone who's a big fan of 'Midnight Cowboy,' you're probably in for a difficult time. I'unno. It's just not a very easy album to have strong feelings about, one way or the other. If you listen to it I'm sure you might like it... Or not. But if I can guarantee anything, it's not that I'm sure it does have everybody talkin'. And with that song title shoed-in as the conclusion, I bow out. Off the bat, I took the advice of a fellow group mate and didn't consider this as a folk album. I mean, the labels: folk and singer-songwriter... You read these and you're probably tempted to consider this album in the same way you would Leonard Cohen or Joan Baez or Bob Dylan — especially Dylan. Certainly I'd've done that just looking at the **VERY SERIOUS** monochrome cover. But if you look at this album like that, you're kind of doing it wrong. 'Coz this ain't just folk music: it's folk **rock**. And very bluesy folk rock at that. Really, it's more folksy blues rock. Like, just taking this thing as a vibe like I did... It's good. It's perfectly fine. I really don't have many thoughts about this album as a whole. It's just some good, folksy blues rock. Fred Neil has a nice, deep-ish voice; everything is played perfectly well; it's not particularly lyrical, but the ones that aren't here aren't bad... It's good stuff. And frankly, that might be the album's biggest sin. It's good, but there's nothing particularly daring about it. I mean, OK, yeah, the closer is a seven minute experiment in trying to create a "sitar-like" sound, but other than that, it's pretty safe. And that's not always a bad thing, really. Sometimes you just want an album that just does what it does and does it well and never really aims to swing for the fences. There's a place in this world for base-level fine. It's just that if you wanna try and argue that this is an essential album that you **need** to hear before you do... Unless you're talkin' to someone who's a big fan of 'Midnight Cowboy,' you're probably in for a difficult time. I'unno. It's just not a very easy album to have strong feelings about, one way or the other. If you listen to it I'm sure you might like it... Or not. But if I can guarantee anything, it's not that I'm sure it does have everybody talkin'. And with that song title shoed-in as the conclusion, I bow out.

Cross

Justice

5/5

One thought I've had to confront in the course of taking part in this list is, "Man — how much do I even really like electronic music?" And I know I do. I know I like that stuff. But then, most of the stuff my group has gotten that's fallen under that umbrella... I'unno, it just left me cold. There was an honest moment where electronica was one of my bottom three genres because of how I kept being disappointed by it. It really made me wonder, do I even like electronica as a whole, or is it just the stuff that sounds like Daft Punk? So, here we come to Justice. I've long been aware of the name, not just for the stuff I've heard in mashups (check out Wax Audio's "Come Together 2008"), but because I know a lot of people in the Discord server where my group operates **love** Justice. When 'Hyperdrama' dropped last year, the people went nuts for it. And, y'know, given all of the acclaim, I probably should've checked them sooner. I'd always figured I'd like them! And yet, like so much other music, I just found myself too busy and comfortable with my old stuff to try anything new. And also like with so much other music, I dang looooved it. It's like... Y'know what this album is? It's not helping my case is what it is, because if this thing sounds like anything to me, it's amped up Daft Punk. It's like if they decided to go way harder into grittier techno, while still keeping their good sensibility for hooks and building on themselves. It's an album I put on while I was skimming the Internet, and, honestly, I was just grooving hard. It's really another one of those albums where as much as I wanna have a lot to say about it, I really don't. These are just a tight 48 minutes of music that really speak for themselves. From the big hit "D.A.N.C.E", all the way to the horror movie beats of "Stress", it's just... So good. Really thing you gotta hear in full, front to back, no stops. And I guess it really cements for me just how damn good the French are at this stuff. First Daft Punk, then Justice... And even that "electronic tango" album my group got wasn't bad at all. Major props to 'em. I don't even have a big or clever way to tie my review back into its opening like I like to do. Certainly it doesn't disprove that I'm mostly into Daft Punk-adjacent electronica — or, more specifically I suppose, French house music. Ah well. C'est la vie, I suppose. This album is just real good shit, and I tell you, I'd absolutely return to it again. Heck, I'd eagerly check out the rest of their discography: that's how good it is! So, hey, nice job, Justice. Not bad at all for an album where I refuse to refer to it as anything but '†.'

Is This It

The Strokes

4/5

There are some albums where I really feel like you had to "be there" for them to really "get" them. Most albums, they stand the test of time pretty well, and you can listen to them and immediately be like, "OK, **that's** why it's so special." Others... When you lack the context of the specific moment they were released in — and, in fact, you've been living in its influence for many years now — it can be a little more difficult to pinpoint its thing. And I really feel like The Srokes' debut is one of those albums. I mean, look, let's be clear off the top: none of this is bad. It's perfectly good guitar music. Whether or not I can exactly point to "what makes it special," it's an enjoyable little listen. And, like, I get it as well: the band was specifically aiming for a simple sound, with no tricks or gimmicks or significant studio enhancement. I completely get that. But you need to realize: I was a toddler in 2001. And it's now 2025. I have a vague idea of what the state of rock was coming out of the 90's — nü metal and acoustic "adult contemporary" alt. rock — but far from enough to really understand why this album was so revolutionary and such a game changer. I suppose it would be a "bringing rock back to its roots" sort of deal? Y'know, the whole "garage rock revival" of it all. And, y'know, that's fair. But I'unno, when it comes to my taste in garage rock, I've long tended more towards The White Stripes for their volume and distortion. This music is just kind of... A bit too plain for me to really get excited about it. Honestly, if this was the influence, it's not surprising why I don't listen to too much modern rock. If I listen to anything with a heavy focus on guitars, it's more like... I'unno, Coheed And Cambria, or any number of modern glam rock acts that get used in 'Peacemaker.' Like, it's not exactly the greatest endorsement in the world to find out that these guys influenced Kings Of Leon. That's not even to mention how much I've just generally never vibed with "indie rock," so... I'll admit that I might just not "get it." Again, I **do** feel like I lack enough of the proper context to really do so. Perhaps if I was able to I'd be more wowed by this. But even taking context out of the equation, I just can't say I'm all that excited. It's good stuff, undeniably, and it's absolutely a good way to spend 30-some minutes, but that's about as far as I'm willing to go praising it. So... Is this it? Yeah, I guess this is it. And what this is is pretty fiiiiiine.

The Beach Boys Today!

The Beach Boys

5/5

There's a lot you could say about THE BEACH BOYS TODAY! in terms of its place in the band's history. To begin with, it was their first album to step away from singing about hot rods and surfing. Not a single mention of either on the whole record! On top of that, thanks to Brian Wilson quitting touring to work in the studio full time, it was far more musically sophisticated than anything they'd done to that point except for their Christmas record. In tandem with that album, they seemed to be laying the exact groundwork for PET SOUNDS to come out a year later and revolutionize the whole game. For those, there's a good argument to be made that THE BEACH BOYS TODAY! is the first- or second-most important album the band ever recorded — maybe third if you wanna be technical and count SMiLE. However, I don't wanna factor any of that into my review of/babble about this album. After all, I've got no ear for musical complexities; what does it matter to me what specific chords are getting used? I'm sure I can register what's going on on some deeper level, but don't expect me to write a thesis paper about it. On top of that, the lyrics... Well, there are some songs where the lyrics matter more than others, I feel like. There are also some incredibly spare lyrics that've aged worse than others, but instead of making a scene I just choose to blame them on Mike Love and leave it at that. So then why do I still consider THE BEACH BOYS TODAY! to be the second or third best album they've done? For one, it depends on how I'm feeling about SURF'S UP that day (it's number two now). But beyond that, I'd say it honestly is because it exists in-between periods of the band's history. It's the transition point between their surf music and the full-on orchestral stuff PET SOUNDS would have, and it's such an interesting combination. Even if I can't hear the specifics and praise the album for that, it's still intriguing that there's clearly more going on in the instrumentation than in something like... I'unno, "Chug-A-Lug"? And that's even before the unique instruments come in. I mean, I just really truly love the individual halves that're being mushed together here (I don't own ENDLESS SUMMER on vinyl and two CD copies of PET SOUNDS for nothing), so this whole disc is a damn treat. But let's take this album one side at a time. The first is dedicated to all of the uptempo songs, and is where we get "Dance, Dance, Dance" and the original "Help Me, Rhonda". They're all good, fun songs, but I gotta admit, they're all kind of overshadowed by the crown jewel of this side: "When I Grow Up (To Be A Man)". Imagine, in the middle of a record side about dancing and girls, suddenly there's this song where a boy anxiously ponders his adulthood, including if he'll love for the rest of his life the woman he marries. It's a remarkably mature song when put next to "Little Deuce Coupe". It's a wistful song, but backed with the instrumentation I can't help but feel like there's some kind of excitement, too. Like, the boy's worried about growing up, but at the same time, he kinda can't wait to find out what he'll be like? Seriously, this is the most musically advanced thing on the first side, and it's just an absolute wonder to behold. And let me tell you, in light of not only Brian's passing earlier this, but everything that would happen in his life past this post... Goodness. In short, it's an absolute 11/10 song for side one if there ever was one. Now, if side one finds most of itself outweighed by one singularly amazing song, side two's are way more consistent across the board. This is the side with the slower tempo ballads, and, quite frankly, it's the **best** side? Like, The Beach Boys are always amazing with the harmonies, no matter what tempo you're listening to them out. However, I don't think there's anything that can quite beat a ballad Beach Boys harmony, and this is a side full of them. There's really no one specific song I wanna highlight; they all fade into each other as this beautifully lush stream of vocals and instrumentation. Most people would say "fading into each other" is a bad thing, but to me it just highlights how consistent the side is. You can't just listen to one on their own; they all flow into each other like a suite and it paints this gorgeous sound picture in your head. Like, not to the extent of something like PET SOUNDS, or maybe even the last three songs on SURF'S Up, but if there was any side on here I wanted to revisit as soon as possible, it was side two. Just absolutely marvelous stuff. (These are apparently the "crusty brothel sheets" that one review is talking about. Honestly now.) And then there's "Bull Sessions With 'Big Daddy'". ... And that is exactly as much attention as that track deserves. (Seriously, there's nothing wrong with it; it's just an excerpt from a 20 minute interview, but, like... Whyyyy is it here? Do yourself a favor and just close the album on "In The Back Of My Mind"; it works way better that way.) THE BEACH BOYS TODAY!, lemme tell you, is the band's first masterwork. It's not without its flaws, of course, but it was the first album where they weren't just hinting at their potential. It's their most realized project yet, and seriously, side two is **so good**. I mean no shade to side one, of course; it still has "When I Grow Up (To Be A Man)" and a buncha fun songs to dance to, but goodness me, side two is just that great. And if I'm gonna interrupt my closing thoughts to gush like that, well... But yeah: today, yesterday, tomorrow, whenever, this is a great album. Without a doubt, one of the absolute greatest they ever made. And when I grow up, no matter how old I get, I'll always be holdin' it with PET SOUNDS, SURF'S UP and FRIENDS in the back of my mind. (And seriously, all y'all 1's makin' faces at Brian over the lyrics: just blame Mike Love. He's a creep and he's right there; it's not that hard.)

Layla And Other Assorted Love Songs

Derek & The Dominos

4/5

It would be very easy to turn this review into a big Eric Clapton hate-fest. I've made it no secret I don't like him, between mentioning how he shares anti-vaxx views with Van Morrison and, of course, bringing up his racism. Those two things, backed with the line in Kurt Cobain's journals where he says Clapton plays "dusty blues licks..." Yeah. I have no incentive to be kind to him, and I could very easily turn this into "'College Dropout' review 2." And yet... Look. I've said plenty of times before: I do not review people. Certainly, whether I intend to or not, how I view the artists can impact how I view their art. I frankly think you're kidding yourself if you try to critically look at something without considering the artist whatsoever. My goal is just to make sure my views on the artist don't supersede my thoughts on the music. And I haven't been perfect: there's my aforementioned 'The College Dropout' review, where I spent most of it ranting about Kanye instead of discussing the album; and when I reviewed Koffi Olomede's album I gave him no quarter thanks to his crimes. But dang it, I'm not the kind of person to just write "HE'S A RACIST AND AND A RAPIST AND ANTI-VAXX" and give the album a 1. No matter how true all of those things are, I will never rate an album solely on how I feel about an artist. So, with that said, while I am not ignoring Clapton's many, **MANY** lesser points... I will not let them define my thoughts about this album. I may have slipped up in the past on this, between my reviews of Bluesbreakers and Cream albums — and, heck, I might even slip up here — but just know, this attempt is not for his benefit, and is far more than he deserves from me or anyone anyway. At last, then: the album. 'Layla.' Named for the song Clapton put together because he really wanted to bang George Harrison's wife. How is it? Look. It's not a bad album. Not really. I dare to say I even enjoyed it more than I didn't. I just have... One major qualm with it. One simple problem: I don't buy Eric Clapton's blues music. I never did, and it wasn't until I listened to this thing that I finally understood what my deal was. Now, I'm no blues purist. Let me just say that right off the bat. Nor am I gonna make any remarks about how "Oh, he's racist and yet he made a career off of black music?" As I said above... And I think it's clear to me that Clapton loves the blues and he loves playing it. That much is obvious, and I'm not about to suggest otherwise. But when I think of blues music, I often think of the soul and passion that goes into it. Even in the lighter stuff, more often than not, I can feel how much the players are putting themselves into the music. And I emphasize the lighter stuff to make clear, I know it's not all heartbreak and woe and "my baby left me." Blues music **can** be fun. I've heard enough of B.B. King's live albums to know how electric blues music can be. And, y'know what — Led Zeppelin. Zep gets a lot of rightly deserved shit for being white guys who nicked lines and arrangements from other, black artists. But y'know what? I believe in their blues. I can feel them putting their all into it. You wouldn't have Plant wailing like he does or Page tearing it up if they weren't. Or Bonzo playing so hard in live shows his sticks would break and his palms would bleed. No one ever has to go **that** hard, but those guys, Hendrix, Muddy Waters, B.B. King, Howlin' Wolf, Elmore James... Even Robert Johnson, as simple as his stuff was, I completely buy their blues music, 100%. With Eric Clapton, on the other hand, whenever he plays blues music... As much as he loves it, I don't ever really believe he's putting too much of himself into it. Really, to me, it seems like he only cares about blues music in so far as it's a vehicle for him to show off just how **GOOD HE IS AT GUITAR**. Oh, he's **SO GOOD**. Listen to him **PLAY OVER THESE BLUES RIFFS**. Isn't he **GREAT**? ("Waaaaaah!") And I know he's not a bad player! He did "Sunshine Of Your Love"! And the solo on "While My Guitar Gently Weeps"! Heck, even on this album, the riff on the title track is killer! But whenever this album goes hard into its slower blues thing, I really hafta wonder why he was even considered a "guitar god" to begin with. What's so special about **anything** he's doing here that he got this reputation? It's not like there's even anything too special about his brand of blues music. At least Zeppelin, for all their took, was **heavy**. Clapton, meanwhile, sure is fine playing it straight! Straight into boredom. A fellow member of my group has wondered — and he might repeat this over in his review, too — if a lot of these blues tracks would've gone over better if this were a live album. And I can see how that would've made a lot of these tracks more tolerable. I plan to write a full-throated defense of Deep Purple's 'Made In Japan' whenever my group gets it, so I understand what the energy of a live setting can add to jammier performances. If there were a crowd backing "Key To The Highway", sure, I could probably get behind it more. But as a studio jam, I gotta be real, I'm just too interested in hearing Clapton jerk his guitar off for nine minutes. I zoned out whenever the soloing started, honestly. If I could've played record editor on this project, I 100% would've snipped most all of the blues covers. Get 'em outta here! But it's not all bad. The other songs, the ones that're more hard rock than blues, are all pretty enjoyable. Heck, I even enjoy the soloing more on those — I just don't have as high standards for dumb hard rock as I do blues music, y'know? And a lot of these cuts, they honestly remind me of 'All Things Must Pass.' Maybe not "My Sweet Lord" or "What Is Life?", but more if "If Not For You" swapped its country influence for hard rock. (And I actually wanna give a small hand out to the covers of "Little Wing" and "It's Too Late". The former's clearly inferior to the swirling, psychedelic original, but this more straight-forward take on it isn't **that bad**. And while "It's Too Late" would probably be overlooked on a shorter album, I mean, it's the only other blues cover I wasn't totally bored during. It'd be a nice "keep the momentum going" track on a shorter album.) But speaking of 'All Things Must Pass,' a lot of the people who played on that also played here, and, damn, they're just as good. Particular praise of course has to go to Duane Allman for his regular guitar and slide guitar work. Like, I was tempted to give him all of the credit for **all** the guitar parts I liked (half-jokingly, 'coz, y'know, "harr harr, screw Clapton")... But seriously. Tight band and a wonder of the six-string along for the ride. And at this point... I think it's time we finally get to talking about the title track. Yes, in its own dedicated paragraph, all by itself. 'Coz let's be real, this is one of those songs that's so good that, all by itself, it raises the whole album by a point. It's this album's own "Living For The City" or "Life On Mars?", y'know. It is just... So good in a way nothing else on either of these two discs is. From the driving, tense, desperate first section, to the honestly beautiful piano exit where Clapton and Allman improvise over a piano line from Jim Gordon. And while the first half is great, the second half is... Seriously the best 3 and a half minutes on the whole album. Maybe the best 3 and a half minutes Clapton would ever be responsible for. Ever since I first heard it in (yes) 'GoodFellas,' I've hardly been able to get enough of it. It's a great line, and the slide guitar work from Clapton and Allman just make the whole thing even more moving. Like... Any issues I have with this album, or with Clapton, and I have my share, they will have always given me this song. And I can't take that away from them as much as they can't take it away from me. Consensus says that this is the best album Eric Clapton ever made. On his own, with others... Just, in general: the best thing he was ever involved with. I'd hafta agree with that, even not having sampled his entire body of work, or even not thinking that it's all **that** great. Really, it might be an indictment of Clapton that this is his best work and I'm still not all **that** wowed by it. But then, like I said, the hard rock songs are fine, and "Layla" is an absolute all-timer, so... In the end, I can't be too hard on it. Sure, it'd be better if there was less focus on Clapton jerking his guitar off, but taking what we got for what it is... Sure. I can let it pass. Way more than I can let the man himself pass, anyway. Now, if you don't mind, go and cue up that piano exit again and play me out...

Queen II

Queen

5/5

I imagine it's very easy for a lot of people to think of Queen as only being a singles band. After all, I'm pretty sure their best-selling album is their first greatest hits record — and I can't say I entirely blame 'em. I dig that set a lot, and even more so the follow-up containing latter day hits. I don't think I'd blame anyone for not knowing that, way back in the day, Queen was honestly a really good **album** band. And no album better emphasizes that then their only one without hits (unless you live in Japan, I think): 'Queen II.' This, to me, is one of those albums like 'Off The Wall' or 'The Beach Boys Today!,' where while it may not be their **greatest** album, it sure as hell is in the lead for being their most **important**. I mean, you take a look back at their eponymous debut, and it's... Good. Pretty good, all things considered. But it's incredibly primordial. It's Queen back when they weren't terribly much more than a hard rock with some prog and fantasy inclinations. You could honestly discuss them in the same breath as, say, Led Zeppelin, The Who or even, I'unno, Grand Funk Railroad. It's kind of like early Rush, come to think of it. If they'd kept on this route, they might've been remembered for a hit or two, but I don't think anyone would've been clamoring to come back to their full albums. But with album 2, they introduced the secret sauce that caused Queen to graduate to a class all their own. If you were to ask me what makes Queen who they are, it would be, 100%, the theatrics. Queen is a very theatrical band, even at their most hard rock or arena rock pop. Between Freddie's vocals and Brian May's near-symphonic multi-guitar arrangements... This album is where they first lean into it, and would only dive deeper until hitting a climax on their masterwork, 'A Night At The Opera.' It truly needs to be appreciated for that. Even beyond any kind of historical significance, though... Damn, it's just a good as hell album. My go-to stretch of Queen studio albums starts here (and goes all the way to, honestly, 'A Day At The Races'). It's just one incredible tune after another, from the live set favorite "Father To Son", to the beautifully tragic "White Queen (As It Began)", to the crushing "Ogre Battle", and all the way to the album's centerpiece: "The March Of The Black Queen". Bar none, this is the best song on the album. It's practically a prototype "Bohemian Rhapsody", though let's not let any comparisons to **that song** overshadow this one. It's an epic all unto itself — and apparently it was a hit in Japan? So says the 'Greatest Hits In Japan' compilation, anyway. (That comp also has a version of the song without the transition into "Funny How Love Is", if y'ever wanna appreciate it on its own — though seriously, this album is such a strong listen, it's really better if you hear it and every other track in context.) And I'd be remiss to go this whole review without mentioning John Deacon and Roger Taylor, the backbone of the band. Deacon's a real mother on the bass, and Taylor can damn pound his set when he wants to — and his vocals aren't bad either. I could go on, but like my fellow group member said, it's an album that's better heard than described. I'm even surprised I managed to write **this much**, y'know? If you're someone who only knows Queen as a singles band, I really recommend you give this album a listen. And of course the other two that're included on this list, but this one in particular is special. It ain't a cult favorite, y'know? So, hey, you can come along on a trip to the seven seas of Rhye, and you can really appreciate just a little more what made Queen as incredible a band as they were — as they began, and as they always will be.

Post Orgasmic Chill

Skunk Anansie

4/5

At this point in the list, some 630 albums deep, I find it hard not to scoff at an album whenever I look it up on Wikipedia and see: 1) the band who made it is British, and 2) its entire "Legacy" section is just "it was in this book." It's like, I get it, Mr. Dimetry and company. You like British acts that most people on this side of the globe have never heard of before. I mean, if there's anything I know about Serious Music Critics™, it's that they damn **love** British music. After all, why do you think the only "country of origin" makers in this thing are "US," "UK" and "other?" And of course the Brits made a lot of good music — need I mention many more names than The Beatles? But there comes a point where the Randomizer's flashed so many up in your face, seemingly at the expense from more albums from "other," that you really hafta start wondering if the music of merry ol' England is really **that great** or not. Didn't those guys also produce "Fast Food Song" by Fast Food Rockers? Ah, but I shouldn't pre-emptively judge an album just because the band's nationality happens to be a little overrepresented (**two** albums from the "Bitter Sweet Symphony" guys!). That wouldn't exactly be fair, now would it? And I'm really glad I didn't let that happen here, 'coz goodness me, I **really** enjoyed this album. Maybe not on track one; it was a bit too "drum n' bass" and restrained for my taste... But by track two, gawd, this album just fuckin' **floors it**. Let me tell you right here and now: Skin's vocals are the star of this album. They are just... Phenomenal. I've always loved it when women sing over metal guitars, and now that I've heard a **black woman** doing it? Oh, I need to hear this **more**. It's great, honestly. But it's not all metal, no. I was sort of expecting this thing to be akin to Rage Against The Machine, but you've got a couple of tracks in here that lean in way more to hard rock and alt. rock. And y'know what? They're great, too! I was going "OH FUCK YEAH" to these songs as much as I was the metal ones, but goodness if I didn't enjoy them nearly as much. And the strings — the songs with the **strings**. Oh, wowie wow. Can't tell me this band doesn't know their way around a power ballad either, goodness. Really, I feel like if I have any problems with this album, it's that I wish it could've been a **bit** more metal towards the end... Again, the ballads and alt. rock stuff is very good, but damn, I don't think anything topped the high of launching into "On My Hotel TV". Plus, there's a review that states this album might be a **bit** too perfectly produced for its own good, and even not having this group's other albums, I might hafta agree a little? Which, hey, if it gets me curious to check out their other stuff, that ain't a bad thing at all. So, yeah, another day, another British album pretty obscure to most Western audiences. But it's a damn good album nonetheless. Maybe Western audiences should've been a bit more aware of this, and I can only think it's for the best that I am now. Way to go, UK.

Pills 'n' Thrills And Bellyaches

Happy Mondays

4/5

It only just occured to me as I was playing this album how much EMF's "Unbelievable" has messed up my perception of Madchester. When I imagined the genre in my head, I heard big guitars, a running beat, lots of energy... Y'know, jock jam shit. Shit you could put next to 2 Unlimited. So, you can imagine my surprise, then, when I started listening to an actual, foundational Madchester record and it's... Not that. It's not hype at all! That's not to say Madchester, as last as I'm taking it from this album, is slow or anything. It has a clear pulse to it. But I can tell, it's much more inspired by indie rock, acid house and 60's psychedelia and pop. It's way more chill than I would've expected. And I can imagine that a younger me would've been disappointed by this fact. "Y'mean it's **not** as pump-up as this EMF song? That's lame!" But I'unno, listening to it at the age I am, in the state of mind I was in... I dug it. It's just such a fuckin' vibe, man. And a damn groovy, danceable one, too. I mean, the problem I have with a lot of music I imagine is supposed to be dance music is that I can't imagine how anybody **could** dance to it. That's why a lot of electronica falls short in my eyes. But this? Oh, I can imagine absolutely getting loose to it. Hell, even in my chair I was movin' my stuff a little. I hear "Bob's Yer Uncle" is lyrically about a creepy guy — heck if I care, though! The acoustic guitar workin' together with the bongos are too good! And the flute that pops in? Oh, yes, please, I am **down** for this. If I've got any problems with this album... Maaaaybe these songs could have been cut down a liiiittle? I can absolutely jive to these grooves, don't get me wrong, but I'd be lying if I said I couldn't agree with a fellow group member that maybe these outros go on for a little long. Myself, I don't think it's radio DJs; I think it's to keep the energy pumping in the club. But I'm not at the club, nor on MDMA, so... But it's hardly enough to knock it any big points. Regardless, though, consider my interest in this scene fully renewed. I don't know if I'm going as wild for it as British critics were back in the day, but dang, yeah, this is good stuff, and I had a lot of fun listening to it. I guess this is another win for the Gorillaz stamp of quality — I mean, "DARE' in no way prepared me for what this would sound like, but still. I'm pretty happy, y'all Mondays. (And seriously — what was I thinking, defining Madchester by an EMF song? I don't think they're even Madchester to begin with! Maybe they started in there, but do they sound like this? No! And maybe they coulda lasted a little longer if they did. But, eh, somehow I think they'd still be One Hit Wonders b/w an "I'm A Believer" cover for Comic Relief. Ah well. OH!)

Steve McQueen

Prefab Sprout

4/5

OK, which Wikipedia editor listed this as sophisti-pop? 'Coz lemme be the first one to tell 'em, this ain't sophisti-pop. At least not enough that it'd be the first-listed genre! Like, come on; don't scare me like that! I mean, it's altogether a good thing this isn't more sophisti-pop. To make a long story short, it's not a genre I've had a good relationship with, exactly. I don't have active disdain for it like I do post-punk, but I've had to tone down my commentary on it because the people in my group who **do** like it were catching strays, and that's not something I wanna be doing. Like, I'unno, that one Everything But The Girl album, Sade... None of it's worked for me. It's too smooth and "smart"; it just slides right off me and I'm boooored. Meanwhile, you have **this** album. It starts with a dang country jam! Like, woah, woah! What's goin' on here? **This** is how it's starting? Maybe it won't be so bad after all! And while it actually didn't stay that way, I gotta admit, it's not bad at all. Naturally I wanna give most of the credit to producer Thomas Dolby, me being such a fan of "She Blinded Me With Science" and "Hyperactive!", I guess I should split it with the guy who wrote all the songs, Paddy McAloon. As is typical for me I ended up not really paying attention to the lyrics, but just going off of how it sounded sonically... Damn, yeah, it's real good. It's 80's as hell, and while for some people that kind of over-production would be a turn off, for me it's right up my alley. This kind of "thing you picture in my head" sound just really does it for me sometimes — and this is dang well one of 'em. I think if I have any major nitpicks, it's that I hafta agree with a group member that it **probably** should have ended on "Desire As". The following two tracks aren't, but they kind of give the impression like I accidentally queued bonus tracks from a later reissue, y'know? Like it used to stop **here**... But now there's a something extra and we're gonna keep going, I guess. And I think that's about the size of it when it comes to me and this album. I'unno, my feelings just aren't very complicated: I really enjoy the sound of it... And, yeah! I had a good time with it, and that's the bare minimum I could ask for from any album. I guess I might just be glad it didn't turn out like when I watched my first Steve McQueen movie: pretty boring except for a car chase. I gotta give you props, Prefab Sprout. Just can't give you being sophisti-pop. Like, seriously, Wikipedia editor...

If I Could Only Remember My Name

David Crosby

4/5

Y'know, this is something of a milestone for our group, actually. With this album, we've finally listened to the last of the CSNY-adjacent albums on this list! Well, subtracting the "Y" from the equation, anyway; we've still got three more of his albums to get through. But as for the main three, yeah, after this, we're all done with 'em. Did you know there's not a single N solo album on this entire list? S must've taken his spot and that's why he got to have two. But anyway: this guy! Y'know: C! Uuuhh, I mean, I'll be completely open up front: besides Y, I tend not to think about any of the members of the quartet on their own. So, in having any expectations for what C would bring to the table versus either of the S albums we've gotten... Beats the heck outta me. I had to look C up on Wikipedia to even remember that he was a part of The Byrds — or that he died three years ago. Taking this album just for what it is, then, without too much outside context to really push my opinion one way or the other... Did you know this album was panned on release? Yeah, apparently. For one reason or another, critics were just **not** kind to it. Christgeau himself gave the thing a D–. Imagine: the same guy who'd go on to praise Kid Rock's 'Devil Without A Cause' gave **this** a D–. Crazy! This is actually a very lovely album. Whatever I might've thought this thing would have sounded like given it's been described as a "progenitor as freak folk," I certainly wouldn't have guessed this. It's just got a lot of very nicely played, pretty folk stuff. The same paragraph on Wikipedia where I got that "freak folk" thing also mentioned someone comparing this material to the acoustic stuff on Pink Floyd's 'Meddle...' And, y'know, I'll say it: I might like summa this stuff **more** than the acoustic stuff on 'Meddle.' You compare "A Pillow Of Winds" or "Fearless" to the stuff here, yeah, I think C's got the better tone. Jury's out on the Nick Drake comparison, meanwhile, though it might swing in his favor. Really, I'd say the songs that didn't entirely do it for me are the ones that lean in more of a rock direction. "Cowboy Movie" is just kinda long, and "What Are Their Names" feels like it ends right as it's getting started. That's the one where he got the Grateful Dead and Joni Mitchell to appear, and we couldn't have gotten anything more interesting than this? I get the "slow burn/build" thing, but goodness. Meanwhile, my only other complaint is one I share with a fellow group member: the last song **not** being "Song With No Words" is weird. It really would have been a perfect closer to the record, but, no, instead we're treated to "Orleans" and "I'd Swear There Was Somebody Here". And those are both fine experimental "only vocals" tracks — "Orleans" in particular sounds great — but they both feel like... Preludes, right? Like they should be building anticipation for the big closer instead of being the closer all by themselves. It's odd But... Yeah! That's about all I have to say! Y'know, I've read that the Vatican City newspaper named this the second best pop record of all time behind The Beatles' 'Revolver.' And, y'know: second best? I don't think so; **far** from it. But, mm, yeah, it's still a really good record. Probably the best non-Y records of the solo CSNY albums on this list. I could just be forgetting how S's sounded, and maybe N's woulda cleared if he'd gotten one... Chances are good this one would still come out on top. In any case, it's probably the best one of the selection my group coulda bowed out of this sub-category on. Many farewells, C. Hope you remembered your name before you passed.

Hot Shots II

The Beta Band

3/5

We all know it's wrong to judge a book by its cover. Some great books just have really terrible covers, and vice versa. And for sure, if I was gonna base my opinion of this album and the band who made it on this cover, I don't think I'd be very kind to it. The heck is this title lettering? They bejewelled like they're supposed to be on a No Limit Records release. And the explosion in the middle? It's just a mess. I'd figure The Beta Band were just some nobodies who just happened to hit it big with the right Big Important Critics™ — big enough to get two whole albums on this list, apparently! But I wanted to be fair. I actually listened to the album, and... I mean, for one, it sounds nothing like its cover would imply. A fellow group member made an attempt at summarizing it as "proto-Gorillaz with a 60's psych lean." And I'unno how Gorillaz it **really* is, but keeping their debut album in mind... Yeah, yeah, it's a fine sound. Perfectly chill. There's a few legitimately pretty moments in there. I could see having this on as audio wallpaper; it'd work pretty dang well. Here's the thing about it being wallpaper, though. I never mean "wallpaper" as an insult — far from it. Wallpaper is as much art as any other kind, and there'll always be some kind of neat for it. With that said, however, I think this album only works as wallpaper as well as it does because there are so many parts that are... Just not that interesting? I mean, when this thing is good, it's never really **that** good, and when it lulls into "meh" it lulls **hard**. There were far too many moments when I just kind of... Detached from the record. I was trying to listen to it closely, honestly. But I was really never able to before too long — y'know? I can't call this a bad album. It really isn't. At the right time, it could be such a damn mood. And I was nearly there. But... Eh, no cigar. I'unno. I don't really have anything else I wanna say. Just that, I hope their other album is better... And, if nothing else, this is at least a better album than its cover would imply. That's not nothing.

Dear Science

TV On The Radio

4/5

I don't like to judge an album by whether or not it "belongs" on this list, if I can help it. After all, I generally always figure there has to be **some** reason why an album's here, whether I've heard of it or the band or not. What I'm more concerned about in these reviews is simply parsing, largely stream of consciousness, what I got out of them and why. "Should this be here?" is often an irrelevant question that doesn't fit in. It **often** isn't. And **if** I can help it... This might be one album where sampling the reviews beforehand might've impacted me in the wrong way. Not that I'm predisposed to hate it, or that I came in with expectations that're too high. Just that... Why **is** this album here? As much as I wanna avoid that question, I gotta remember, this **is** all being sourced from editions of a book titled '1001 Albums You **Must** Hear Before You Die.' So it's not thing to wonder why **exactly** the editor chose to include it in an edition. Now, before I get into that, I wanna speak about this album generally: it's pretty good. It's far from the hookiest or stickiest thing in the world, but for a bunch of funk- and soul-type songs over largely electronic instrumentation... It's not bad at all. Maybe it's trying a bit too hard to be Bowie in some parts... And maybe it could have been cut down a **bit**... But otherwise I rather enjoyed it, to be completely honest. And if I wanted to leave this review at that, I don't think I would've had much more to say. So that's maybe I'm tackling this angle; just to have more to talk about. But seriously, folks: shouldn't I be asking more from a book like this than something that's just "pretty good?" I already know hundreds of albums that're "pretty good." What makes **this one** so special that it gets to nudge out numerous other candidates? Way back when I talked about Lana Del Ray's 'Chemtrails Over The Country Club,' I mentioned that if I had things my way, no album under five years would be included on a list like this. Albums need time to breathe and prove their worth; they shouldn't just be let in on recency bias or hype over name recognition. And it's not like I play favorites on this, I should say: I gave David Bowie's 'The Next Day' a bit of shit for that, so... Now, to be fair, this album was included in the 2014 edition, six years after its release. So, it should qualify, right? Eh... I mean, when I hear that an album is something I **must** hear before I die, I figure it should leave some lasting impact on culture. Y'know, there should be something I can hear and go, "Right, that's where that started" or "That's where this was taken to the next level." And maybe I'm just listening in the wrong places, but... I don't think I've heard this album's influence anywhere? I mean, certainly I wish indie rock had taken more cues from this thing's soul, funk and Prince influences; maybe I would've been hotter on Arcade Fire. But all in all, it sounds pretty unique to itself. I don't even know if there was anything in 2008 that sounded like it. 'In Rainbows' and 'Tha Carter III' happened in 2008. My point is just that, as I'm writing this, it's 2025. We're closer to this album being **20** years old... And I just can't hear any good reason why it **had** to be in a book like this. I mean, I am damn sure I can safely assume this was one of those "one edition wonders" that got the boot hard for newer hotness. Like, more than anything it must have been residual goodwill from TV On The Radio being a brief indie darling that got this album here. I can't really imagine any other reason. So, if I were rating this on a "Should it be here?" scale, I think I'd end up giving it... Maybe a 2, at most? Eh. But it doesn't deserve that. I enjoyed it too much to rate it that lowly. Like, seriously, "Family Tree" and "Lover's Day" had some stuff goin' on that I **really** liked. And, really, if an album can't be named something people **must** listen to before they die; if they can at least bring someone a little joy if they happen to stumble across it... If I were an album, I think I'd appreciate that more than anything. You could call this ending a cop-out given what I spent the rest of the review hammering on... But, frankly, what I said just the truth, I think. The book's just a gimmick, anyway, like any other list like it. So... Yeah.

Purple Rain

Prince

5/5

So, I can probably figure we've all got those albums out there that you love that you can just talk about forever. I sure have my share. There's Stevie Wonder's 'Songs In The Key Of Life', and The Beach Boys' 'Pet Sounds', and Pink Floyd's 'Wish You Were Here', and Weird Al's 'Alpoclaypse'... So on and so on. Apparently Eminem's 'The Marshall Mathers LP' is one of them, given how long I went on about **that one**. And believe you me, I **love** to go on about things. I'm autistic, after all; info-dumping is as much a part of me as breathing or blinking. If I can babble about something... Hoo, boy! Yet, as much as there are albums I can speak at great length about, there also happens to be ones where... And let me be clear, it's not a matter of me feeling like "What do you **want** me to say? It's all been said before!" Of course it has; what matters is it's coming from you. Y'know? No, with some albums there's just this case of... What do I even **wanna** say about it? I mean, right? And it's not that you haven't thought about why an album's good or your favorite. But how good can words by themselves really be? There are just some albums out there where you can talk forever and ever and ever about them, and it'd never stack up to just playing the dang thing. Where do I even **begin** about it? What foot do I lead off on? And Prince's 'Purple Rain', by all accounts, is one of those albums. Simply put, it's the greatest album Prince would ever make. Which, in a catalog like his, which also contains stuff like 'Dirty Mind' and '1999' before it and 'Sign "O" The Times' and the "love symbol" album afterwards, that's saying a **lot**. And given the regard it's held in to this day (last I checked it was top 10, maybe even top 5, on the last Rolling Stone 500), it can feel a little daunting to try and tackle it. But you didn't come here to read me wring my hands about this. So, hey, I may as well give it the best shot I can. If I can write over 1k about albums I'm not even fond of, I can write about this one. So. DEARLY BELOVED. WE ARE GATHERED HERE TODAY TO DISCUSS A LITTLE THING CALLED 'PURPLE RAIN'. AN ELECTRIC ALBUM, 'PURPLE RAIN'... Let's start at the beginning. Fittingly enough, my first introduction to 'Purple Rain' was through film — and not even the one it's a soundtrack to. I mean, if you get technical my first encounter with the album was Weird Al's "Let's Go Crazy" soundalike "Traffic Jam", but let's keep on track here. The first time I ever heard anything from this album was in the film 'KIngsmen: The Golden Circle.' It's a fun film, but clearly not as good as its predecessor. I mean, 'The Golden Circle' tried many times to match the last one's "Free Bird" sequence, but I don't think any of the attempts ever **really** quite got there? Except for the first one, scored to Prince's "Let's Go Crazy". Now, to this point, in 2018, I was not exactly a Prince fan. For the longest time, when I was younger and gave more of a shit about this kind of thing, I'd held a grudge against him for how he'd denied Weird Al's parody ideas. "How dare he not wanna hear his song turned into 'When Eggs Fry'!" Even after he'd passed in 2016, it's not like I felt too inclined to get into his music. I thought it was a shame he'd passed, and the same year as Bowie no less (who I also wasn't listening to yet), but... Eh, I had enough on my plate. And, in fact, after I watched 'Kingsmen: The Golden Circle,' I wouldn't **really** get into Prince until Summer 2020 (where I fell in love with the love symbol **hard**, and still remains my most-played Prince album by individual song plays). But back to when I heard it in the film. I just remember being blown away by it. The drive, the energy... The whole performance was absolutely electric. And when it got to that big, unaccompanied guitar solo at the end... It felt like a bomb going off. The part that followed it felt like the cloud rushing in to, indeed, "TAKE YOU AWAAAAY!!!!" It quickly entered my regular song rotation, and I jus'... Damn loved it every time I heard it. Fast forward to September 2020. After two years I'd finally gotten into Prince and was more regularly listening to his stuff, and I really loved it. And, hey, look what just got added to Crave (a Canadian streaming service, for y'all who don't know): the film 'Purple Rain'! Well, hey, I like the album a lot: why not finally give the thing it was made for a shot, huh? It would only be fair — especially given how much I'd read the mini parody in 'MAD'. And let me tell you, the film 'Purple Rain' is... Sure the best film Prince would ever make. I mean, when your competition is 'Graffiti Bridge' and 'Under The Cherry Moon', it's not hard. But seriously, folks, 'Purple Rain' is a good enough, low-budget star vehicle. Prince's character is... Kind of an incredible asshole, but I feel like that's really the worst thing I can say about it. Plus, I mean, I hear it's accurate to how he was in real life towards Wendy and Lisa, so... Bit of a dick move to put it on the big screen, my man. But if there's any reason you watch 'Purple Rain', it's not for the actual plot. Why is this woman stripping naked for Prince? Who knows! What you're here for is the **music**. And... Boy howdy, what sweet music it is. If you think it's good now, watch 'Purple Rain' and get a glimpse at Prince and The Revolution playing it on stage. Goodness me. And, yeah, it's finally time to address the music. This has to be, without a doubt, one of the strongest, most tightest packages of songs of the entire 80's. From the moment it begins to the moment it ends, it never stops hitting you with **hits**. I already talked a little about "Let's Go Crazy", but seriously, I need to bring it up again just to tell you how incredible of an opener it is. That whole "DEARLY BELOVED" sermon with the synth organ backing it — already it makes the whole album feel huge. Like you're not just about to listen to an album, but have a whole damn **religious experience**. And then the rest of the band kicks in and, oh, it just goes **off**. Talk about going crazy! The version heard on the album is actually shorter than the one in the film, and it actually had to be cut down (alongside "Computer Blue") in order to fit "Take Me With U" on the album. But I don't mind: it's perfect like this. An absolute blast of energy to kick the party off. And then I really could talk at length about every other song on this album. I mean... Just take "The Beautiful Ones". This is a song my group's already encountered thanks to the cover Mariah Carrey did on 'Butterfly', and believe me, I still think that cover **pales** in comparison. You ask me, "The Beautiful Ones" just ain't "The Beautiful Ones" unless you're screaming in desperation. That "DO YOU WANT HIM??!!? OR DO YOU WANT MEEEE?!!!!?" And then that pause where I can just feel the following line bubbling up inside him: "'COZ I WANT YOOOOU!!!" It's a great show-off of his vocals. Then we got "Computer Blue", which, 'ey, is sure a weird little number, isn't it? And it was damn 12 minutes before "Take Me With U" got added to the running! And I think it's here, with this song I especially, where I wanna point out how good The Revolution is. Now, Prince is an absolute mother of a multi-instrumentalist. If he'd wanted to play this whole album by himself, I'm sure he would have. But it should not go unappreciated the kind of energy a band like this brought to Prince's work. Here on "Computer Blue", with how wild and all over the place it is; or later on the siamese twin songs "I Would Die 4 U" and "Baby I'm A Star"... And, hell, it extends all the way to 'Sign "O" The Times" with "I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man" and "It's Gonna Be A Beautiful Night". I could spend all day gassing up Prince as a musical auteur, but like all those kinda guys, they probably wouldn't be nearly as great without the other people behind the scenes. Especially Wendy and Lisa, goodness. And if I could say a brief word about "Darling Nikki"... Once more, I enjoy his desperate screams... And I very much enjoy its place in music history as "the thing that led to the Parental Advisory sticker." Hi, Mrs. Gore! But anyway, "When Doves Cry". I think most everyone is well aware of this song's trick: that there's no bass. But don't let that little gimmick distract you from the fact that it's still a hell of a song. You'd really never notice there's no bass in the back with the performance Prince is giving. All the various vocal layers, and the guitar solos... I am absolutely not surprised that this became one of the biggest hits off of this album. Like, gawd, it kind of feels like he's showing off here; like "Yeah, I **am** that good, what of it?" In fact, I think it might be the only one on the album where he's the only one playing? So, hey, as I said above... But yeah, it's absolutely my second or third best song on the album, depending on how I'm feeling about "Let's Go Crazy" that thing. Though even as good as those two songs are, neither of them stand a ghost's fart of a chance of dethroning the absolute best song on the album — hell, the absolute best song Prince ever made, as much of a cliché as that is to say. And of course, it's here, with this song, where I return to my problem from the top: what do I even wanna say about "Purple Rain"? What **could** I even say to try and capture such a song? I mean, in mere words? No way. No damn way. If any song on this album truly qualifies as an experience, it's this one. Apocalyptic in its imagery, and absolutely a little melancholic, but soaring nonetheless. The solo on this song... Untouchable. The "HOO-HOOO-HOOO"s at the end... Magical. And, jus'... Jeez, I am actually struggling to think of more I wanna say about this song. But I can't! You just need to hear it, if you somehow haven't already. Bathe yourself in it. Hell, if you've already heard it, do it again. It's never not awe-inspiring, no matter how many times I've heard it. And it's more than enough argument by itself why this album is not only one of Prince's greatest, or one of the 80's, but of all music. You don't make an album with a song like "Purple Rain", and you sure as hell don't **name it** after that song and not make it one of the best to've ever existed. And would you believe I've written this much and haven't **heard** the album yet as I'm typing this sentence? Goodness. What more could you possibly want me to say at this point? I'm sure there's a dozen or so things about this album I'm missing out on, but that doesn't change the fact that, like I said, there's nothing that can really compare to just listening to this album. Even watching the movie isn't the same as putting the album on. If you're looking for any reason why Prince was as beloved a figure as he was, you're bound to find at least several here. Like, just consider this fact: to this day, I'm probably still more a fan of Prince's rival Michael Jackson. Something about MJ's music just appeals to me more. But — save for maybe 'Off The Wall', Michael doesn't have a single album in his discography on the level of 'Purple Rain'. You could debate elsewhere, but here? Even up against 'Thriller', 'Purple Rain' clears. And I love both of those albums dearly. So... Yeah. If 2k words worth of rambling hasn't convinced you to check out this album (if you somehow haven't already)... Just dang do it already. And for real, even if you've already checked this album out, try it again. There's almost nothing quite like it. So, please, close your eyes and let Prince guide you through the purple rain.

Junkyard

The Birthday Party

2/5

I've said it before: I find I have a weird relationship with most experimental music. On the one hand, I get exactly what it's doing, and I have a lot of respect for it. In a world of slickly produced records that're maybe a bit **too** perfect, it's nice to have people out there making weird shit. And not just weird shit, but **ugly** shit. Mean shit. Shit that'll shank you in the back alley, steal your wallet and then piss on your shoes just for kicks. You gotta admire that sometimes, huh? But on the other hand, I get exactly what it's doing, and I'm bored as hell by it. Like, yeah, you're loud, you're noisy, you've got a real mean mug... And? Like, am I supposed to **enjoy** listening to this? Or am I just supposed to shake your hand and give you a medal for purposefully making unappealing music? I get that there's a need and an audience for it, but that doesn't mean I **have** to be impressed. That's sort of where I find myself with this album, the second and final from Nick Cave's pre-Bad Seeds project. Really, if there's anything this album makes me feel, it's just gratitude for the fact that I discovered him through 'Shrek 2'. Could you imagine if "Hamlet (Pow, Pow, Pow)" was the first song of his I'd heard and not "People Ain't No Good"? I'm sure it would've made the other albums of his on this little an **incredibly** pleasant surprise — but I don't think I'd wanna put myself through that just to get there. If I can be 100, I kind of wish it was more abrasive? I'd never **want** to re-listen to John Zorn's 'Spy vs. Spy', but there was at least something there to **react to**. I wrote 1.2k words about that album, for goodness' sake! Meanwhile, this album's production is so lo-fi and muffly. I guess that's another part of the thing's "unappeal," but it just makes everything sound like amateur hour. You're telling me this was rated one of the heaviest albums of all time? Heavy next to **what** — helium? I just can't imagine being the kind of person who'd listen to stuff like this exclusively. I mean, I don't think I'd do it just because I'm an asshole looking for "cool points" for listening to "non-mainstream music..." But would I really wanna throw away records like 'Purple Rain' or 'The Joshua Tree' just to subsist on albums like this? There is a part of me that wonders if it's just because I'm "basic" or whatever, but I feel like someone with "basic" music taste would be horrified and offended by this album — and it would have succeeded in one of its goals. Me, I'm just horribly bored by it — and thus, the album **fails**. Jus', I'unno. Somehow my ears have managed to jump over the uncanny valley where music like this would appeal to me. And as much as I can respect what it's going for, I gotta be honest and admit it's not something I particularly enjoy. I mean, it's like... Y'know, it's honestly like Captain Beefheart's 'Trout Mask Replica' to me. I get it — I get all the little bits and bobs that go into **why** it's so revered by some people. But in the end, all I can hear is just some sort of off-kilter blues and I'd rather go back to the polish of mainstream music. Heck, I'd go back to any other Nick Cave album. I'll tip my hat to the intent, but other than that, if that thing on the cover represents the music, then I wouldn't give it a second look.

Let England Shake

PJ Harvey

3/5

It honestly surprised me to find out that PJ Harvey has four albums on this list. How I'd always thought about her — and I'll admit it was never terribly often — I would've sworn she would've only had... Y'know, two: 'Rid Of Me' and 'Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea'. Those are the only two I ever remember seeing show up on "greatest albums of all time" lists, particularly the various editions of the Rolling Stone 500. And I've got the kind of understanding like, "If it ain't on the RS500..." But obviously I'm willing to give these other two albums a chance, even if they're not on that list. I mean the Rolling Stone 500 is as much an authority on "the greatest albums ever" as this list is on essential albums. It's always more about whether I like an album than whether or not I think Big Important Critics™ should find the thing more notable. Still, though, it **does** leading me to wonder why all of her other albums are excluded from lists like that, and there's not much I can do to help having a line of thought like that. So, I tried to be fair, honest. I get where this thing is: it's an indie folk album about war, primarily through the lens of England's involvement in the first World War, though she also gives the "war on terror" some time as well. PJ Harvey, from what I've read, put in a lot of effort doing research for this thing. I don't think she was looking up the history of conflict and reading testimony from civilians and soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan just for fun, y'know? She spent 2.5 years working on this record. Just as well, actually listening to the final product, I can accept the Björk-y kind of thing she's doing with her vocals. It was a little off-putting at first, but I came around to them. But with all that granted, by the end of the album, I just didn't know. It nearly left with as much a loss for words as I had when I listened to 'Dry'. And, seriously, I did try: I even read along with the lyrics for most of the album! And I am **not** a lyrics person most times! But at some point, I just had to face up to facts and admit I just... Really did not have much interest in this album. Like, I'unno, the actual music on this thing just flew right by me. This whole indie folk thing, it's not my style. I sort of felt like I spent nearly the entire runtime waiting for it to get interesting. There were maybe one or two songs in the back half where it did, but by that point it was far too late. I wasn't even reading along with the lyrics by then. Whatever I'd heard and liked so much on 'Stories From The City'... It's just not here. And it wasn't on 'Dry', either, so... I guess I can see, at least from my perspective, why neither of these showed up on any lists like the Rolling Stone 500. I wouldn't call either of them bad, per se... Just the kind of "whatever" that does do a small number of how much I like PJ Harvey. Her standing with me is a bit shaken, let's say. And if 'Rid Of Me' can't prove **its** placement to me whenever it shows up... Goodness. But for the right now, with this album... I'unno. War. Good God, y'all. What **is** it good for?

For Your Pleasure

Roxy Music

4/5

Y'know, it's strange. I thought I'd have a lot more to say about this album. I mean, it's the band's last with Brian Eno (and therefore their last important one, historically speaking) . . . it expands on the experimentation present on their debut . . . and you may even be able to pick up on creative tensions between Eno and Ferry! There's a few good hooks to go off of to make a really expansive review around. And yet I can't really pursue any of them. I could if I would, but quite frankly, I don't wanna? 'Coz even if there's a lot you **could** go into, that's just not how I ended up listening to the album. For me, it ended up being all about the **energy** — this **is** still glam rock, after all (despite aiming for higher sonic goals than a band like Sweet would). If the energy was present in the instrumental, I'd be well and truly carried through. Well, maybe "carried over" in some cases, but like I wasn't too caught up in the moment to notice. "The Bogus Man" is nine minutes, and I could totally see the argument for it to be cut down, but, damn, the way my leg was bouncing, I say it's fine just the way it is. There are a few things I noticed, though. For one, I think the production shines in quite a few spots. "In Every Dream Home A Heartbreak" is a particular highlight, with how creepy and sinister the first part sounds before slamming into those solos in the second half. Good shit! My natural instinct is to give Eno full props for it, but the entire band is credited with production, so I guess I can't. Then there are Bryan Ferry's vocals, which, uh . . . y'know, I hadn't been able to review this album the day my group had gotten it, so I'm writing this a few days later. The most recent Randomizer pick I've submitted a review for is 'Searching For The Young Soul Rebels', and while they otherwise have nothing in common, I do think it's funny that I ended up having the same big issue with both of them: the vocals. Bryan Ferry isn't incomprehensible like Kevin Rowland, but, y'know, goodness me, the delivery. There are honestly times where it feels like it's straying into parody. I mean, sometimes it comes close to sounding how I do when I try to poke fun of oversinging, dopey voice and all. But, I mean, like with Rowland, it's not the worst thing. With this band's vibes, and with me paying far more attention to the backing instrumentation anyway, it does end up fitting quite a bit. It's just, again, sometimes — b'woof! Tone it down, Ferry! And that's about the size of what I hafta say about this album. It's a shame I couldn't think of more to say. I mean, there's a lot I like about it, of course, what with it being glam rock and all. But with a lot of albums (and this ends up being the case more often than you'd think), it just doesn't blow my mind. At least, it didn't hit me the same way their debut did. And is that really enough to drop the album down a whole point? Probably not, but this is just how I ended up feeling. In any case, if this album was made for my pleasure, well, then I can certainly say I was pleasured.

The Genius Of Ray Charles

Ray Charles

4/5

I remember a few years ago listening to both this and 'Modern Sounds In Country & Western' as preparation before watching the Ray Charles biopic. I'd figured, hey, may as well get a taste of some of his greatest works before diving into his story, huh? Or at least the "musician biopic" version of his story, anyway. Regardless, what I did was revolutionary, I know. And I can tell you for a fact: 'The Genius Of Ray Charles' did **not** stick with me after the biopic. Didn't really stick with me. Heck, halfway through, I was kind of bored of it. Meanwhile, 'Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music', on the other side of things? Oh, absolutely, that stuck with me. It was one of my most listened to albums that month — and for sure, it's a love that's continued to this day. I do **not** listen to it as much as I used to, but I raved about it to the best of my ability back when my group got it. But what **was it** about 'The Genius Of Ray Charles', anyway? Why did it not inspire me in the same way that 'Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music' did? I think it all comes down to the way this album is presented. It aims to show off Ray Charles in two distinct ways: one, as a big band jazz man; and the other, as a balladeer backed by strings. Thus, somewhere in the middle of these two sides, you find the genius. And it is **determined** for you to understand these sides of him as thoroughly as you can — that's why these two styles are separated by sides. One half is all big band, one half is all strings, and never the two shall meet. It's certainly an angle of presentation I can understand — 'The Beach Boys Today!' did a similar sort of thing — but I don't know if it necessarily works to this album's advantage. Let's keep using 'The Beach Boys Today!' as an example. That album separates the upbeat, simpler songs and the slower, more complex songs onto different sides of the record. But neither side feels like it's wearing out its welcome. Each song sounds so unique to each other, and has so much going on under the hood, you're always engaged. I have no problem with **its** stylistic segregation. Meanwhile, with 'The Genius Of Ray Charles'... Well, Ray's clearly a genius in a different way than Brian Wilson was. Brian pulled out a lot of complex musical compositions, even on the simple girls n' surf songs. Ray's genius, meanwhile, clearly lies more in his arrangements — how lush and beautiful the strings are, or how upbeat and punchy the horns are. You add his voice and his piano playing on top of that, and you've got a hell of a combo. But I don't think any of it is as musically complex or as varied as Brian's work, and that's where I think the issue in this presentation arises. For as much as I love Ray Charles, and as much as I do admire his work, and as much as, again, I **get** what this tracklisting was going for, I gotta be real: these songs can kind of blend together a little. And not in a way like how the songs on side 2 of 'The Beach Boys Today!' flowed together, no; they just kind of make you wonder what makes **this** big band song different from **this other** bang band song. What really makes 'Modern Sounds In Country And Western' work as well as it does, besides any commentary about a black artist doing country music, is that it **mixes the styles together**. You get some big band here, some strings there... And you never tire of one sound too quickly. That's why 'Modern Sounds In Country And Western' stuck with me over 'The Genius Of Ray Charles'. Ahh... But still... It **is** Ray Charles. You can't knock his voice, even if it's not as good here as on 'Modern Sounds In Country And Western'. And having a better understanding of this record's presentation, and taking a break between sides instead of playing it all at once like I did back then... Yeah. It does play a **lot** better. And no matter what, like I said, Ray Charles **is** a genius. Maybe the stylistic segregation dun' did him a bit wrong... But the fact remains true, no matter what. And this is still easily a record to check out if you wanna understand why. Certainly it's better than the biopic was, anyway. Seriously, all I remember about that movie is Jamie Foxx launching himself over a table at a guy... And that's it. Funny moment, for sure, but don't speak too well on the quality of the film. I mean, you speak about something that needed some genius, goodness...

The Holy Bible

Manic Street Preachers

5/5

If an album happens in close proximity to an artist's death, and if I can make a connection between the two of them, chances are good I'm gonna like it more. It's a habit of mine I've been aware of for a while. You look at how I've reacted to albums like Dennis Wilson's 'Pacific Ocean Blue', Leonard Cohen's 'If You Want It Darker', Amy Winehouse's 'Back To Black'; Lennon's 'Double Fantasy', for an album outside of this list; and how I'm gonna react to David Bowie's '★' . . . it's not hard to see a trend. Even on albums I'm not terribly fond of, like Skip Spence's 'Oar', an artist's death can play a large factor. Honestly, I think the only artist where I haven't done this is Nick Drake, and that's only because his death in connection to his music is already overmythologized enough as it is. It's not a good habit. I always feel kind of guilty whenever I indulge in it, because, like . . . what am I doing? Honestly, what am I doing when I do this? Is that really all this music means to me? Once they've passed, I can't think about it in any other terms than their death? Gimme a break. They deserve **way** more respect than that. It's sad they're gone, yeah, and it's not **not** a factor when discussing these albums particularly, but let's not act like it's the only frame to see these albums through — or that whatever you can read into it in regards to their death is any good reason to like the stuff more! It's something I wanna try and get away from with these kinds of albums. Y'know, appreciate them for what they've done and provided rather than narrow in so heavily on the fact that they're gone. Which, two long paragraphs in, brings us to this album — and the all-too-sad disappearance and presumed death of Richey Edwards. From everything I've read, 'The Holy Bible' seems like one of those albums where, if you know details like this, you can't **not** address them. According to a guy who wrote an e-zine called 'Freaky Trigger', to write about this album without bringing it up is pointless; like "tracing [Richey Edwards's] outline as you gradually and gingerly tiptoed around it." This kinda talk makes the album sound as if it's a suicide note. It's . . . a lot to parse out, y'know? And I mean nothing but respect for Richey. I didn't really learn of him until this album (the first album my group had gotten from Manic Street Preachers was the first they'd released without him), but . . . and, I mean, just the fact that his mental health is **so important** to this album that there's a whole section on the album's Wikipedia page discussing it — which I suppose isn't **entirely** unwarranted, given he co-wrote all of the lyrics with the drummer... Aaaah. You can tell why I put this album off for a few days, backlog troubles aside. But whatever. I'm here now and I wanna let the music for itself as well as it can. With all of that preamble context . . . how does it stand up? Let's begin with this: this is a dark album. A **very** dark album. Even if you didn't know about Richey's disappearance, there's no getting around how dark it is. But it's dark in a different way than I'd thought it'd be. From all of the reviews, I thought it'd be sad — y'know, the whole "suicide note" thing. But if there's any singular emotion I get from this album — oh, it's anger. You better believe this is an angry, cynical album. **Maybe** frustrated at worst. This album is more a manifesto about the state of the world if anything. And there **is** something in that anger that I enjoy. And it feels really weird to say that,but what I mean is that if this is Britpop, then it's for sure the grungiest and most metal Britpop I've ever heard. The instrumentals are so fuckin' heavy, and they go **off**. Honestly! If there's anything about this album I'd point to first to say why I like it, it's these instrumentals. But then there's the anger in the lyrics. And I know I'm the first person to throw away the lyrics in favor of just jamming out to the music, but seriously? Seriously? You can't do that here. Not very easily, anyway. The lyrics on this thing are just . . . so fuckin' vivid and open and **mad as hell** about every topic it tackles. I mean, you think the **music** is heavy? Try the **words** — they're real heavy, Doc. Like, there are just some songs where . . . oh, my goodness. "4st. 7lb." is so easy to visualize in your mind, as a portrait of a girl going through anorexia, that I was honestly getting unnerved. Y'know, it can just be a lot to take in if you aren't ready for it. Heck, even if you **are** ready for it...! Really, the only qualms I have about the lyrics come on the song "P.C.P." — what a closer, huh? After songs taking aim at right-wing totalitarianism, and immediately following a song inspired by a visit to a concentration camp . . . here's a song complaining about political correctness. And, y'know, I get what this song must've been going for back in 1994: it's worried about the softening of language so that you potentially can't discuss harder subjects without pissing someone off for saying the wrong words. But in 2025, when the only people I see bitching about that sort of shit are conservatives . . . yeeeeaaaahhh. And they were worried about "Archives Of Pain" being too right-wing. To me, it's like the song "Trigger Warning" from the pop punk parody band Sunrise Skater Kids. I know the guy behind it is on the up and up, and I know "Trigger Warning" wasn't supposed to be too much more than jabbing at a brand of social justice warriors . . . but it just don't sit right to me. And in fact, I've never listened to that song since the first time I heard it, so... But putting one unfortunate album closer aside, I am just . . . surprised as hell that this is the same band who made 'Everything Must Go' (the aforementioned first album my group had gotten). I relistened to some of it after I was done with 'The Holy Bible' and it was damn night and day. I just never woulda guessed! Though, I'll say this: I'll probably remember this album a lot more than I have 'Everything Must Go', that's for sure. And . . . yeah. 'The Holy Bible' is a good album, but like I said, it can be a **lot**. It can be pretty abrasive in spots, and I would absolutely not recommend it for the faint of heart. If you know what you're getting into, by all means, check it out; it's really damn good despite its abrasiveness. But if you don't — or, again, maybe even if you do . . . yeah. And as for Richey, I don't know how much anymore I'd view this album in terms of his disappearance. I can tell there isn't **nothing** there in relation, but it's not like I hear this and all I can think about is how he disappeared. Though if there is anything on that front, it's just about how this band lost a truly great songwriter . . . and a friend. So, Richey, wherever you are, I can only hope you're doing alright. I really do.

Hot Fuss

The Killers

4/5

Y'know, there's a crop of albums existing out there where you've just gotta feel bad for the songs on one side of the record. There are songs that just... Dang, don't get any respect 'coz their flipside just soaks up all the attention. Normally when I talk about this sort of thing, it's in regards to those progressive-leaning sort of albums where a side is taken up **entirely** by a single song. You've probably come across one before: Rush's '2112', Iron Butterfly's 'In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida', ELP's 'Tarkus', Pink Floyd's 'Meddle' (as an example where it's **not** a title track)... Heck, even if the side **does** happen to contain other songs, like Funkadelic's 'Maggot Brain' or Don McLean's 'American Pie' — it's **still** the side with **that song**, right? It can be hard for the other one to stand out. So imagine you're Side B on The Killer's 'Hot Fuzz', and you're looking over Side A and you are just **green** with envy. That side of the record has "Mr. Brightside" **and** "Smile Like You Mean It" **and** "Somebody Told Me" **and** (of 'Southland Tales' fame) "All These Things That I've Done". Heck, it even has "Jenny Was A Friend Of Mine" if you remember **that** being a single (it **does** have its own Wikipedia page). This is a stupidly front-stacked album, presenting the listener with hit after hit after hit after **hit**. Being Side B, how could you **not** end up feeling like you should be listed under "and six other songs!" in comparison? Like... Seriously, I don't mean to demean you any further, being Side B and all, but let's not mince words here. Side A is absolutely **incredible**. These are all amazing songs: anthemic and maximalist and... Ahhh, just so good. There's a reason why "Mr. Brightside" has stuck around as a song that gets white people turnt. And I really do love "All These Things That I've Done" — quite frankly, after "Mr. Brightside", it's my favorite tune on the album. When I get to that refrain of "I got soul but I'm not a soldier," I can't help but sing along. I can't think of another band from the early 2000's who's got an album with a run of hit tracks like this. This run is the band's claim to fame, if you ask me. But let's not forget Side B of the album. I mean, it **is** an **album**, after all; not an EP. These songs are important, too! And they're... Y'know... I mean, look: at the end of the day, on an album like this, all I ask of the songs on the flipside is that they don't bring the product as a whole down — at least not **too much**. Just prove to me that you have some merit standing there, even if you're completely in the shadows. And these songs **do** stand up; I wouldn't call any of them bad. The problem is simply just that they are not as big as the songs on Side A. And I don't mean in the sense that they're hits; I mean they just don't feel as big. Side A, to me, feels like an exercise on maximalism. These are huge songs that sound huge with huge choruses and everything. They're larger than dang life itself; they **demand** to be gawked at with a dumbstruck sense of awe. All that jazz! And they live up to that demand! Meanwhile, the songs on Side B feel a lot more restrained. They're not aiming for that same kind of bigness, and, y'know, fair enough. If everything on this album was big, well, everything would look about the same size. You **need** those smaller songs to catch a break on. Now if they just weren't all contained on Side B. Like, yeah, when I say this album is front-loaded it's both its greatest strength **and** its greatest weakness. Side A is exhilarating with its string of hits, but it just leaves Side B feeling so much lesser in comparison. If the tracklisting was shuffled up a bit and the Side B tracks were a bit more sprinkled throughout... Well, you could argue they'd just get lost as the valleys between these peaks, but at least they wouldn't feel **as** separated as they do. Even if you don't listen by record side, there is **such** a noticeable delineation between "the hit section" and "the other shit," and I feel like that could've been dealt with a bit better. I wanna be fairer to Side B. If you take it on its own, it's not bad stuff, I'll say it again. Heck, it's **good stuff**. I can see the argument based on Side A that The Killers are a singles band, but listening to Side B, I wouldn't entirely say so. I **do** enjoy these songs. But I can't just take Side B in isolation; I hafta judge it as one half of a whole. As one half... Again, it does what I want it to do: it doesn't bring Side A down too much. And it sort of feels like I'm being mean, but, hey, that's just how it is. If you wanna throw out a "some killer, some filler" joke, you can — me, I'm just gonna say that while Side A is hot, Side B... Is kinda fuzzy, I guess. It gets my approval either way.

Better Living Through Chemistry

Fatboy Slim

4/5

'You've Come A Long Way, Baby' is a definitive big beat album — maybe **the** definitive one, if you ask me. Almost nothing can top it, in terms of tone, tempo, energy, sampling... In terms of anything. Even in length, despite my thought that not **everything** needed to be 5+ minutes. It's an album I've loved dearly since I first heard "Praise You", and it continues to this day. That's basically how my review of 'You've Come A Long Way, Baby' went back when my group got it, in slightly more-or-less words. And I stand by this opinion greatly. I've listened to it quite a bit since then, and I never get tired of "Gangster Trippin" or "Right Here, Right Now" or, of course, "Fucking In Heaven". Of every electronica-related album my group's gotten thus far, this one easily takes a spot in the top five — heck, put it in top three. Yet, despite my love for 'You've Come A Long Way, Baby', I've rarely ventured into Norman Cook's further discography. There's been a visit or two to the Attack Hamster edit of "Weapon Of Choice" and that's about it. So imagine my surprise, then, when the Randomizer throws out that there's actually a **second** Fatboy Slim album on this list — and it's his **debut**, no less. I mean, I'd seen this cover before, but I'd somehow never put it together that... Heck, that it was even a Fatboy Slim album. The words at the top just somehow always managed to pass me by. So, hey, wow, I finally get to adventure into another Fatboy Slim album! About time I finally got around to one, eh? Looks like I'm bound for more of the same great stuff I've heard on the follow-up! Well... Let me explain. First, let me throw out an old, classic qualifier: "it's not bad." Fatboy Slim knows what's doing as a DJ and I appreciate it very much. There was just... Something about this album that doesn't sit right with me for most of it. Like, it was very recognizably Fatboy, and it's very much the kind of music he makes, but... It was just slightly different enough in a way that it's a little off-putting. I ended up putting it this way to myself: the stank. Fatboy Slim, as I typically enjoy him, has a bit of a stank to his music. Y'know, **attitude**. Even the more "serious sounding" songs on 'You've Come A Long Way, Baby' have some stank to 'em. And of course: "Fucking In Heaven". Now **that** is some **stank**. I ended my 'You've Come A Long Way, Baby' review with the challenge to name another album with that song (or, I'll say now, at least one **like it**), and I think I can say pretty certainly that this album doesn't. There are just some tracks that sound oddly typical, like it could have come from any electronic or big beat DJ at the time. And I get it: it's his debut. He doesn't exactly have the stank figured out yet. But then there are others where, even if you'd presented them to me with the name filed off, I'd **very easily** be able to tell that it's him ("Going Out Of My Head" especially). So... Y'know, it flips. And I kinda just wish it'd just flip over and get stuck on the side that sounds like proto-'You've Come A Long Way, Baby'. I realize as well, I'm largely talking about this thing for what I'd **want** it to be rather than what it **is**. Nothing exists in a vacuum, so it's not entirely**unfair** to compare this to 'You've Come A Long Way, Baby', but to the extent which I've done so far... Yeah, maybe a little. I mean, this is a "pre-evolved" Fatboy Slim, so to speak. I can't expect the same stuff from him that I've gotten from his older self. Heck, from an opinion I've read, this is more a compilation than a proper album. I gotta meet this thing where it is. But even then... It was a little hard to get to the end of this thing and **not** want to just hop over to some cuts from this album's big brother. I suppose if you have a problem with the stank Fatboy Slim would spin on his later albums, this is the one for you. And it's not like there's nothing to enjoy here if you **do** like that stank — "Going Out Of My Head" is the best for that, and "Give The Po' Man A Break" don't do too bad neither. Throw in the bonus cut "Michael Jackson" as well; I enjoyed it quite a bit. But, yeah. 'You've Come A Long Way, Baby' continues to remain definitive. This album didn't do too much to change that. Still, if nothing helps, it helps me appreciate just how far Fatboy Slim **did** come once he got around to making his second album. So, I guess my conclusion is this: while it may not be Fatboy's best, I think it's still worth a listen anyway; it's a good time. And, hey, better living through this than certain other kinds of chemistry, eh?

Triangle

The Beau Brummels

3/5

Y'know, I try pretty hard not to be too harsh on bands or artists just because I don't know who they are. For that matter, I try pretty hard not so shit on 'em just because they happen to be 60's psych rock. Just because I don't know 'em, or just because their genre or scene happens to be over-represented — or both, for that matter... That means **nothing** with regards to the actual quality of the music. I know there are some people on here who will immediately judge an album for either or both of those things, and I strive, as hard as I can, to not be one of them. If just out of fairness, if nothing else. So, whatever I ended up feeling about this album, just know that it's all centered, squarely and singularly, on just the music. Which is a lot of prelude to build up the fact that I just didn't really care for this. I mean— look, I don't mean this in a way to immediately contradict myself, but I just did **not** see why this album or this group had to be here. I know their first single, "Laugh, Laugh", is apparently significant because it predates The Byrds' cover of "Mr. Tamborine Man"... But I listened to it as well, and just on a purely musical level, I didn't get it. But that song's probably one of those "you had to be there" or "you **really** need to understand the historical significance around it" to truly appreciate it, so whatever. Meanwhile, with this album, I don't know if it has **any** real significance. At least beyond "critics liked it at the time, and a few now still do." And, yeah, impact and "historical significance" — that's another thing that never **really** factors into my reviews (at least not consciously), but still, it the overall lack of it in regards to **this book** doesn't **help**, right? I mean, a critic wants to tell me this thing has aged more gracefully than 'Sgt. Pepper's' of all things — **has it**? Like, down to brass tacks, my opinion on the music: it just sounds like 60's, San Francisco psych rock. With a bit more of a country rock edge, and with a Bob Dylan soundin' guy singing it, sure, but place it next to a billion other psych rock albums on this list and I'd barely be able to tell the difference. I'm just not impressed and I was kind of bored by it — I've heard **better**, y'know? And I really did **try** with this thing, to the point of actively following along with the lyrics, despite my being more a "melody first" girlie. But like the last time I tried that this month, eventually I hadda stop once I realized it wasn't helping. And I'm willing to admit — y'know, maybe I'm the problem. Maybe it's me. Maybe in trying **so hard** to give this thing a fair shake despite the "Who the fuck are these guys?" factor and the "yet another 60's psych rock band" element, I ended up not opening myself to it in the right way. Maybe if I'd just relaxed more and let it come to me as it is I'd be feeling more positive about it. I know a group member of mine was able to, and he loved it. But I can spend all day on "maybe"s. In the end, I can only report on how this first listen struck me, and it alone... And I just left this album not really feeling much of anything. Heck, it left me with so little, I didn't start writing this review until over 24 hours after this album was revealed, when the **next one** already had been. Like, I'm willing to give this band the benefit that I was the issue here, and overall it's far from being unlistenable psych rock if you enjoy this kind of stuff... But as for me, I think that this album might be a lesson that maybe next time I should try, y'know, not to try as hard. Cool you guys were on an episode of 'The Flintstones', though, Beau Brummels. And you were in 'Village Of The Giants'! I'm gonna be watchin' the 'MST3k' presentation of it soon this month! Good show, what a good show...

Bone Machine

Tom Waits

4/5

Over the course of this album, I've come to realize that if there's anything I truly do appreciate about Tom Waits, it's his overwhelming sense of . . . honesty. Like, he's never bullshitting me. Whenever he performs, he's always striving to just be himself, as much as he can. And . . . yeah, I'unno, I just really appreciate it. I mean, there are a lot of bands that do weird music, right? Tom Waits isn't alone in that front. Just on this list alone, my group's come across a lot of people making strange, unusual sounds on record. And as well they should! After all, music would be **real** boring if it were just the shit you heard on the radio, eh? But then, at the same time, I've long felt like I've had this hidden third ear where I listen to this material, and, well, I don't find myself terribly impressed. I feel like I can hear through all of the layers of weirdness to understand what they're doing underneath, and oftentimes I'm just like "Yeah . . . and?" Like, weirdness for weirdness' sake is entirely valid, but I'm not gonna give you a standing ovation **just** because you're weird. This is where I've come to realize Tom Waits is different. And I don't wanna accuse any of these artists of **not** having this kind of stuff in their music, but at the core of Tom's music I often find such heart and honesty. And it really carries me through where a lot of other "weird music" just wouldn't be able to. Like, the music sounds like **this** and Tom is singing like **that**, and yet I felt myself tearing up hearing "Who Are You" and "A Little Rain" for the first time. They got to me! For real! Jus', I'unno, the emotion he was putting into the "gawd, eat a **lozenge**" way he was singing . . . it just hit me in the right spot. And lemme tell you, on an album as much about death and the way people deal with it, I wouldn't want any less than heart and honesty. Of course, let's keep things a little grounded: there **are** a few picklings here and there. For as much as I talk about heart, for one, let's not act like every song on here is "A Little Rain" — "All Stripped Down" and "Goin' Out West" exist, after all. And besides that, well, the mixing overall is a little . . . different. Not to even mention the instrumentation choices, too. It's by far the most "out there" Tom Waits album I've heard so far. I mean, on something like 'Swordfishtrombones', I could easily imagine him as someone singing in a little bar to the patrons — a real "manna da people." Meanwhile, there are times on this album where he honestly sounds like a gremlin in an alleyway banging on some trash cans. And this gremlin does a good job bangin' 'em, but honestly now. Plus, 53 minutes — I could hear it being a **little** shorter. I gotta admit, when this album popped up I was surprised to find out that Tom Waits had **another** album on this list — and two more after this! I mean, as much as I liked 'Swordfishtrombones' and 'Rain Dogs', I couldn't imagine what I'd get from three more albums from him. And yet, after this, I can safely say I'm very much looking forward to them. While I may not rank this album as highly as the first two my group got, I can still say it's the one that officially turned me into a Tom Waits fan. I jus' really dig the shit he does, y'know? And once again, it's proof of the 'Shrek 2' soundtrack seal of approval. I haven't listened to any other Dashboard Confessional song yet, so it ain't failed me this far!

Siembra

Willie Colón & Rubén Blades

4/5

Did you know that there are only two salsa albums on this entire list? No, really. And on top of that, I think they're the only genre that gets only two albums. I don't know how many rock n' roll albums there are, but I know my group's gotten four, at least. So, according to the list, the entirety of salsa music you need to hear is one Tito Puente record and this. Though I suppose they're not bad picks, if you had to pick only two. Sure, I assume there's more to salsa than just these two albums can demonstrate (and that's true of all genres), but, I mean, from what I've read, this **is** apparently the greatest salsa album of all time. And how could you say "no" to listening to the greatest? And is it? Well, given that my exposure before now has been that one Tito Puente album and "Señor Burns", of course I wouldn't be able to say for sure. But did I like it enough to believe that it is? Yeah, sure. To me, salsa seems like a very "groove" based genre. As long as the music has a great one and you can lock right into it, you're bound to have a good time. It **is** why I liked 'Dance Mania!' as much I did: it's a nonstop, consistent party groove, and it's a great time. You can say it gets old because it never stops running on that energy, but, hey, again, if you lock in... That sort of groove is present on this album, too, but it's less "party" focused. From the translated lyrics I've read, it seems it's trying to be a bit more serious — and good on it for that, of course. But if I can be 100, the exact words and seriousness of it doesn't entirely matter to me? I'm not gonna let them go unacknowledged, but one more time: the **groove**. It's here in spades, with some R&B flavoring thrown in on top for good measure. And it's just a fun listen; it's really not anymore complicated than that. Some songs may drag on a bit long, and like a fellow group I do think this thing could've stood to have a bit more 'Dance Mania!' energy, but those are really my only complaints. If you like salsa . . . well, this is apparently the best there's ever been, so I can't see any reason why you wouldn't enjoy it. The same basic principle goes for if you don't like salsa — and lucky for me, I do. Nothing on here exactly gets me bounding out of my seat, but I had a real good time, and that's all I could reasonably ask for. And while I still think it's weird that there are only two salsa albums on this list, I guess I can confirm that they did make some solid picks. Can't front on 'em for that.

Double Nickels On The Dime

Minutemen

4/5

Y'know, there are some albums on this list that have a **lot** of dang songs. Some I was expecting, like '69 Love Songs' and The White Album; others I was completely blind-sided, like that Ella Fitzgerald one... And then there's the one I'd completely forgotten about until it showed up: 'Double Nickels On The Dime'. 46 songs and 81 minutes. Or 43 songs and 74 minutes if you're listening to anything but the original vinyl! While it's neither the most songs we've gotten from an album, and while it's certainly **far** from the longest . . . that's still a lot to ask of anyone's attention span. I mean, with that much material, how does anything stand out? And this album is **not** a '69 Love Songs' or a White Album, let me tell you. It's far closer to that Ella Fitzgerald one, where if you don't dig the style, then this thing is gonna be **interminable**. And this thing is only half as long as that Ella Fitzgerald album was! Lucky for me, then, I **do** dig this style. It's some good, hardcore-adjacent-style punk. There's really not much for me to diss, one way or the other. Or at least there wouldn't be as much if this album was under 50 minutes. Like, let me just tell you how I took this album. If you wanna try taking the approach of considering each song, one by one, then go ahead. Michael T. Fournier would be right there with you. And there's not nothing to get any individual song — but that's just not how I went about it. Me, I clapped my hands together and went, "Screw it — gimme the rush!" I still broke the album up by record side, but otherwise, I just let the music hit me. And it can be a **very** thrilling burst of energy. There's a new song, like, every minute or two, and it's all hardcore-adjacent-style punk, so it's just . . . b'woof! It's goin' off! Though I won't lie to you, it **can** get a little tiring. Exactly where you get tired can depend on your tolerance and attention, but for me, I think it was somewhere on side 4. Like, if there was anywhere that cuts could have been made, it's there. I mean, they literally titled the thing "chaff." If they weren't beholden to filling up all **four** record sides...! And, y'know, it's not even like this is an album where I think the regular critique of double albums normally applies — y'know, "if you do it wrong, it can come across like a supreme bout of ego." 'Coz I don't sense any ego coming off of this album. It's just an unfortunate case where the medium standards at the time forced them to include the leftovers. I bet you if this thing were released nowadays side four would've had an etching or something. But like I said, where you tire out could come at any point. Heck, it could be in the middle of side one. That's kind of the thing about this album; it **can** come off as a big test of your attention span. And obviously not everyone's gonna pass. But, me? With my horrible AuDHD ass? I think this is one where I pass, for the most part. Like, I'unno. My original plan for this review was to write 50 songs about every song — as a goof, y'know. And, again, if you wanna take this thing song-by-song, you certainly can. But to me, the appeal of 'Double Nickels' is . . . y'know, again, it's the rush. It's driving double nickels down a long (and thankfully uncrowded) stretch of city highway and letting the wind hit you in the face. For some, they'll be asking themselves "Are we **there** yet?" But to me, it's all about the drive. Taking in the sights and just not worrying about each specific mile you drive. Just cruisin', y'know? And while I don't know if I'm exactly thrilled enough with the ride to give it a perfect score . . . still, I could see myself making it again.

Modern Kosmology

Jane Weaver

4/5

Let's get out of the way, right at the top: this is one of those "indie darling" picks, isn't it? You know what I mean — it's one of those smaller albums that Joe Public listening to Top 40 radio would **absolutely** not know about that got praised up, in and out the butt by just the right Big Important Critics™. Then, when time came to compile a more recent edition of this here book, the album retained **just** enough clout to make it in as a token "indie" pick that maybe reflects a few underrepresented genres, but sure hasn't had any lasting cultural legacy — which is what I'd've **thought** this book was about cataloging... Ah, but what does that matter, ultimately? I'm not here to be the ultimate arbiter of what I think should or shouldn't be here (unless I wanna be, but sssshhhh). Ultimately, I'm only here to relate whether or not I liked the music — and I'd very well say that I do. This is a total vibes album. If you wanna take it casually and just let it soundtrack whatever you're doing, like I did, you ain't gonna have a bad time. There's a lot of nice ethereal-sounding soundscapes. Just a lot of good shit to lean back and float to. Heck, while I had the thing on I both watched a TAS of the Nintendo 64 'Spider-Man' game **and** I wrote this whole review! And I darn had a good time the whole way, let me tell you. I guess if you wanna look closer at the lyrics there might be some stuff in there about . . . I'unno, math or something? I'm going off of what a group member said in their review, where they make just the same point as I do: they don't really matter. Like, go ahead if you wanna look deeper into it; I don't think the Big Important Critics™ were gassing this up over nothing. But as for me... Eh, as I said: vibes. And slightly more interesting synth-y vibes than I normally get from electronica-type albums at that. Synths! I dig 'em! Yeah, there's really not a lot for me to comment on. It was just a real nice album to have on and vibe out to at, like, 5:30 in the morning. And for sure, it was a nice unwind from the album I had played before this one: 'Atomizer' by Big Black. That's actually the album my group got **following** this one, and, man, what a vibe shift, huh? So, yeah — whether it "belongs" on this list or not . . . I can't say I care too much. It didn't wow me, but I'm happy I spent time with it. And in the end, at the most basic level, that's really all you can ask of any album.

Atomizer

Big Black

3/5

If I could describe Big Black and their music in two words, I think I'd go with "fuck you." I mean, to begin with, their music is a big "fuck you" — punk ain't agressive enough! Metal ain't heavy enough! Even hardcore punk is childish! What their doin' is some **real loud, intense shit**. Their guitars are damn **drills**, they can be so metallic! Hell, they're usin' a drum machine and they ain't gonna hide that fact 'coz, hey, fuck you, **they don't give a shit**! I know their **lyrics** are sure a big ol' "fuck you." They're only there because people like words, so of course they filled them up with stories of rape, racism, mysoginy, child abuse, arson and anything else dwelling in dark side of the American psyche. It's shit to make you squirm in your seat — to **think about**, let alone actually **hear someone sing**. It's the kind of shit where they're so open and brazen about it, and where they obviously hold such disdain for the monsters they're singing about, that to criticize them makes **you** look like the uppity puritan! They're a punk band! What're **you** gettin' on 'em for? Big Black is a lot, in short. Industrial noise punk absolutely **not** for the feint of heart. And I gotta tell you, there **is** something to hearing music that's just so . . . balls to the wall like this. It's actively fighting against mainstream taste, both musically **and** lyrically. Or maybe it's not even fighting — it's just over here making big ol' mess 'coz, fuck you, this is just what it wants to do. You want a piece of this? Tough shit, fucko; it ain't gonna be easy. This is an album you hafta take entirely on energy and intensity. Any other way, you're doing it wrong. I mean, let's be fuckin' real here: the lyrics don't matter. They're filled with a lot of pitch-black dark shit, but they matter about as much as the words on Frank Zappa's 'Uncle Meat', or on any Coheed And Cambria album. They're all instrumentals, pretty much. Though with how hard they push themselves, they can sometimes come across as just balls of energy. For how metallic the guitars are, it's remarkably primal music. And it's really not something I could see myself listening to all the time. I'm sure I'd tire myself straight out if I listened to it twice too close together! Like, not even the hardest of hardcore punk that I'm into is this intense. Dead Kennedys, "Deadfall" by Snot — neither comes close. And while I can certainly marvel at their efforts and give them props for just not giving a fuuuuuuck . . . yeah, it's generally just not the kind of punk I'd reach for first. Gimme the Ramones or The Clash or Green Day . . . hell, maybe even a little Sex Pistols on an odd day. In comparison to all of those bands, Big Black comes across as often a bit too abrasive for my usual, most-all-of-the-time tastes. And I'm sure they'd hear all that and wouldn't even give it a reply. Just an unspoken "fuck you" before going on their way. And, I mean, "fuck you" back, I guess? I'm sure it's the kind of reaction they'd want. I just don't think I'd give it back as enthusiastically as they'd want me to. Ah well. If I could describe Big Black and their music in two words, I think I'd go with "fuck you." I mean, to begin with, their music is a big "fuck you" — punk ain't agressive enough! Metal ain't heavy enough! Even hardcore punk is childish! What their doin' is some **real loud, intense shit**. Their guitars are damn **drills**, they can be so metallic! Hell, they're usin' a drum machine and they ain't gonna hide that fact 'coz, hey, fuck you, **they don't give a shit**! I know their **lyrics** are sure a big ol' "fuck you." They're only there because people like words, so of course they filled them up with stories of rape, racism, mysoginy, child abuse, arson and anything else dwelling in dark side of the American psyche. It's shit to make you squirm in your seat — to **think about**, let alone actually **hear someone sing**. It's the kind of shit where they're so open and brazen about it, and where they obviously hold such disdain for the monsters they're singing about, that to criticize them makes **you** look like the uppity puritan! They're a punk band! What're **you** gettin' on 'em for? Big Black is a lot, in short. Industrial noise punk absolutely **not** for the feint of heart. And I gotta tell you, there **is** something to hearing music that's just so . . . balls to the wall like this. It's actively fighting against mainstream taste, both musically **and** lyrically. Or maybe it's not even fighting — it's just over here making big ol' mess 'coz, fuck you, this is just what it wants to do. You want a piece of this? Tough shit, fucko; it ain't gonna be easy. This is an album you hafta take entirely on energy and intensity. Any other way, you're doing it wrong. I mean, let's be fuckin' real here: the lyrics don't matter. They're filled with a lot of pitch-black dark shit, but they matter about as much as the words on Frank Zappa's 'Uncle Meat', or on any Coheed And Cambria album. They're all instrumentals, pretty much. Though with how hard they push themselves, they can sometimes come across as just balls of energy. For how metallic the guitars are, it's remarkably primal music. And it's really not something I could see myself listening to all the time. I'm sure I'd tire myself straight out if I listened to it twice too close together! Like, not even the hardest of hardcore punk that I'm into is this intense. Dead Kennedys, "Deadfall" by Snot — neither comes close. And while I can certainly marvel at their efforts and give them props for just not giving a fuuuuuuck . . . yeah, it's generally just not the kind of punk I'd reach for first. Gimme the Ramones or The Clash or Green Day . . . hell, maybe even a little Sex Pistols on an odd day. In comparison to all of those bands, Big Black comes across as often a bit too abrasive for my usual, most-all-of-the-time tastes. And I'm sure they'd hear all that and wouldn't even give it a reply. Just an unspoken "fuck you" before going on their way. And, I mean, "fuck you" back, I guess? I'm sure it's the kind of reaction they'd want. I just don't think I'd give it back as enthusiastically as they'd want me to. Ah well.

Remain In Light

Talking Heads

5/5

Brothers! Sisters! Siblings of all persuasions! Listen! You may find yourself having to talk about Talking Heads' 'Remain In Light'! You may find yourself listening to the album and grooving the hell along with it! You may find yourself staring at a blank document, tryna figure out the words to summarize what is no doubt their greatest album! And you may ask yourself, "Well, how did I get here?" For me, that's an easy question: I didn't realize I didn't hafta join this 1001 Albums group to see what albums they were getting. I could have spared myself having to write some 300k+ words current-total of album reviews if I'd just thought of that. But, no, seriously, let's ask this question in a different way. How did I get to calling 'Remain In Light' the band's greatest album? It can't just be parroting the consensus like I'd done prior to taking part in this project. There has something else — where **is** that beautiful reason? And to me, it's a simple matter of asking myself, "Well, how did **they** get here? The band, I mean." If all you know from Talking Heads is "Once In A Lifetime", their first two albums would probably sound pretty strange to you. I mean their funk is just so . . . **stiff**. And **white**. Y'know, they were art geeks back then. 'Talking Heads: 77' and its follow-up, 'More Songs About Buildings & Food', are pretty firmly rooted in the artsy post-punk and burgeoning weird-o new wave sounds of the time. "Psycho Killer" is recognizably **them**, but you'd never guess the grooves they'd be capable of in the future. Even with how they loosened up slightly on 'More Songs'. That's where 'Fear Of Music' enters the picture. It's where the band would gain the biggest thing they were missing to that point: dance influence. Seriously, 'Fear Of Music' is where I'd say I go from just liking the band to truly being a fan of them. Like, sure, sure, let's not pretend they're making hard-hitting dance grooves here; they're still artsy geeks making weirdo white funk. But a song like "Life During Wartime" — oh, it's amazing. As I said back in my review of the album, they can claim that it ain't no party, and that it ain't no disco, but it sure **feels** like it. And where does that highway go? Well, straight to 'Remain In Light'. With the added polyrhythms and African influence, 'Remain In Light' feels like the culmination of their sound. **This** is Talking Heads as you know and love them. And not just because it has the hit single! Like, gawd, the first side of this album is absolute pandemonium, but it's **so fun**. David Byrnes's stream-of-consciousness lyrics probably mean something, but if I can be frank, I don't really care. I'm too busy shimming in my seat and having a blast to look into them. If you wanna, be my guest, but for at least these first three songs, it doesn't really matter. The grooves are just so strong . . . like, my Gawd, what have they done? And yet, despite my proclamation that this is the band's greatest album, I don't think I'd say it's my favorite. Yeah, it's another one of those "I prefer 'Off The Wall' to 'Thriller' because of its signifiance" dealies. I have a lot of fun with 'Remain In Light', of course. It's crazy, polyrhythmic dance funk. How can I not enjoy myself? But it's not like the entire album's that. After "Once In A Lifetime", the mood on side two begins to slide lower and lower on each song. By the time you get to the closer, it honestly feels a little doom-y. Maybe I'm missing something in the lyrics, but for an album called 'Remain In Light', it sure kind of feels like it ends out of the light. You can't even dance to it! Not with my **attitude**, anyway. It's where I think 'Fear Of Music' emerges as my favorite Talking Heads album. It's just far more consistently dance-y. And maybe that's a shallow reason to prefer this album over 'Remain In Light', but the dance-y-ness **is** what I've come to be a fan of the band for. I mean, goodness, if we're gonna allow live albums into the conversation, 'Stop Making Sense' runs the hell away as both as their greatest **and** my favorite. It's such a shot of energy that nothing they did in the studio could even compare to — not 'Fear Of Music' or 'Remain In Light', and certainly not their earlier works. And I guess, to me anyway, 'Fear Of Music' just comes the closest to what I enjoy so much about that album. But we're splitting hairs here, really. 'Remain In Light' is still very much worth your time, and then some. I wanna stress again how much of a rush the first side and "Once In A Lifetime" are. And I bemoan the other songs slowing things down, but I'm not gonna pretend they're not great as well. Jus', y'know, my dang taste gets in the way sometimes. It's still Byrnes and company doin' what they do best, and doin' the best they'd ever do it. So what if I prefer one to another? It's water at the bottom of the ocean, and I'm letting the days go by. Jus' . . . damn, it's a good fuckin' album, in short. And all the amens to that.

Midnight Ride

Paul Revere & The Raiders

4/5

Y'know, there's no reason why I should take it easy on Paul Revere & The Raiders. Although I've never let it affect my end rating too much, I've never exactly **not** groaned whenever a random 60's psych album or an obscure British album pops up. I see where the people who rate 'em so lowly come from. So my group gets an album from a random 60's bubblegum group — it'd only stand to reason I groan at 'em all the same, huh? I mean, what makes **them** so special, huh? Why should I treat 'em any differently than, I'unno, The Beau Brummels? Simple, sis: because I enjoyed them. I'm sure I'm not the only one who knows about Paul Revere & The Raiders thanks to 'Once Upon A Time In Hollywood'. The movie includes three songs from the group, and I tell yah, they're good tunes. Especially "Good Thing"! It's always sounded to me like a KISS song, and, dang, if that don't make the tune that much better to me. Heck, I even went and once listened to the album it came from, 'The Spirit Of '67'. Shame it's not on here, because, again, seriously "Good Thing" **is** a good thing. So is "Hungry", which I think is their bigger hit. And that enjoyment carries over well here. Sure, in the grand scheme of things, besides one song, this music isn't anything very special, or maybe even particularly notable. And that one song might only be notable because a bigger band covered it the following year: The Monkees. But, look, when music is fun, it's damn fun. I don't care how particularly unique it is in their field. Sure, Paul Revere & His Raiders may be one of a dozen or so garage bands that sprung up in the wake of The Beatles, but dang it, they're a **good** garage band. A damn fine piece of Juicy Fruit to chew on, y'know? I mean, honestly, what's wrong with liking bubblegum music? I'm all for "Sugar, Sugar", let me tell you. Not everything has to be "greatest of all time" material. So they ain't actually The Beatles — so what? They sing catchy songs and have a bit of that raw garage energy. I'm completely satisfied. And, y'know, like with similar tangents I've gone on, I'm not advocating to not think about what you listen to. By all means, be critical and dig into the weeds about it. But as far as I'm concerned, if it's fun, that's really all that matters in the end. And 'Midnight Ride' is absolutely fun. Maybe more 60's psych should take a page out of Paul & The Raiders' book. All that Summer Of Love seriousness... Maybe trade your LSD for some Double Bubble! Maybe then I wouldn't groan so much whenever you guys show up. And seriously, reader, go listen to "Good Thing" and "Hungry". Fun stuff, lemme tell you.

Searching For The Young Soul Rebels

Dexys Midnight Runners

4/5

In another timeline I probably would've been very confused by this album's presence here in the book — and, in fact, that **all three** of this band's albums are here. Like, come on: these guys? The "Come On Eileen" guys? They're one hit wonders! Why do they deserve **one** album on this list, let alone **three**? Luckily, I'd gotten the scoop years ago thanks to a Todd In The Shadows video. See, if you don't already know, Dexys is one of those bands where while they might be a one hit wonder on this side of the globe, over across the pond . . . oh, they were a **big** deal. They weren't constant hitmakers, no (in fact, I think they're only a **two** hit wonder over in merry ol' Eng'lund), but they had their fans, and still do. And of course the critics loved them. Yes, yes, this could easily be spun as yet another "British album that Big Important Critics™ lose their shit over," but I'll have you know! It actually rules. For me, it all comes down to a simple fact. I've seen this album get labelled as New Wave, both on this website and over ol' reliable Wikipedia. Myself, I can't hear where they're coming from. I guess I might just be stuck in thinking of "New Wave" as either DEVO or Duran Duran, but still. Blue eyed soul, I can buy that one way more — but if there's any genre I was thinking about listening to this, it was ska. As I've said before, I **love** ska (mostly 90's stuff, like the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, and Smash Mouth's first album), so it was exciting to me to hear how much this thing sounded like that stuff. Now, of course, this material is **not** ska. Not exactly, anyway. I don't think you'd hear this stuff and mistake it for The Specials. But the band, and specifically the horns, have such a punk energy to them it's hard **not** to draw the comparison. Even on the slower songs, I still hear that electricity bubbling underneath and powering everything. It was the main thing that drew me through this album — and seriously, the cover of "Seven Days Too Long" on here? Incredible. It's the album's single most ska thing, and I 100% see it joining my current rotation of songs. Easily my favorite song here. And, y'know, it's a good thing this album has such delicious ska flavoring, 'coz when you get to the other big point about this album, frontman Kevin Rowland . . . oh, boy. As I said above, I've seen the Todd In The Shadows video about this band and their one American hit. Since then, I've listened to "Come On Eileen" a fair amount over the years, on and off. This ain't my first tango with Kevin Rowland. I've had plenty of time to get used to his . . . eccentricities as a vocalist. Namely and primarily the fact that you can't understand him. Like, sure, once you know what he's saying you've got it, but actually **getting** to that point is a whole feat in and of itself. I saw one review say he's not so much "singing" the lyrics as he is "sobbing" them, and, y'know, maybe. To me, though, his delivery and word pronunciation often sounds like when I try to play a confused caveman, kinda just randomly moving my mouth into different shapes and letting my tongue flap about while I'm yelling. It's really not **that far off**. And, look, on the one hand I don't have **too much** of a problem with his vocals. I think they kinda work with the ska vibes this album gives off. I mean, it makes sense given his history in the punk scene before forming Dexys. Y'know, if he was singing on some kind of Sex Pistols instrumental instead of tryna sing soul music I don't think people would have as much of an issue with his voice. But then, he **is** trying to sing soul — or at least attempting to, so... And I've read reviews pointing out what a lyricist Kevin Rowland is, and, like, I guess? But how can you even understand what he's saying with his mush mouth? And believe me, I **tried**. I really did! But unlike other albums where I make this attempt despite my "melody first" brain, I didn't stop following the words because I realized they weren't helping. No, I just couldn't find the complete words! Like, Genius, AZLyrics, whatever DuckDuckGo pulled up — none of them had the complete words! So I ended up spending a lot of time trying to parse Rowland's delivery so I could understand where in the hell I was supposed to be... And it wasn't the most fun thing in the world, in short. Honestly, when I decided to completely forgo the lyrics and treat the entire album as an instrumental, with Rowland's voice being just another instrument, it worked a lot better for me. Again: it's ska, and Rowland has a punk-ish flavor to it, so . . . it just works. And I wanna be fair, too: from the lyrics I **did** end up following along with, I think Rowland's a fine lyricist. I particularly like the last song, "There, There, My Dear", which is an "open letter to a dishonest music scene." I kind of take it as a mission statement against who or whatever it was directed towards, particularly with the album ending on the words "Everything I do gon' be funky from now on" (taken from the chorus of a Lee Dorsey song). This was my first Dexys Midnight Runners album (somehow, all those plays of "Come On Eileen" never convinced me to at least listen to its home album, 'Too-Rye-Ay'). And my impression coming out of it is . . . I liked it a lot, though I'unno if it would convince me to 100% get aboard the Dexys train. Rowland's vocals **do** sort of hold it back from being truly incredible — and with songs like "Geno" and "Seven Days Too Long", it really should be. I think it'll be up to the following two albums to make a better case for these vocals. If they fail . . . well, I'll always have respect for the level of critical praise they were able to garner. And, hey, I'll have a couple new songs to play besides "Come On Eileen". It ain't nothing.

In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida

Iron Butterfly

4/5

Y'know, there's a lot of albums out there that suffer from a little thing I like to think of as the "title track issue." It's those albums where the title track is not only the first song, and not only the longest song, but the best and most well-remembered song on the entire record. Think of Rush's 2112, Funkadleic's MAGGOT BRAIN, Don McLean's AMERICAN PIE... So on. Looking from the outside in, they're albums where it can feel like everything else doesn't really matter. You could probably just slap a "& Other Great Songs!" on the cover and that's just how they'd be remembered. Luckily, though, the rest of the lot had always managed to pull through, and I'd yet to've found an album that truly fell victim to this issue. Note the tense of that last sentence. I'd long had my suspicions about Iron Butterfly being here on this list. If you somehow stumbled across this review on this website and don't know who they are, to put it in short, they're a 60's heavy psych band and also (yes, as well, indeed) a one-hit wonder. If you were to ask anyone about this band, they might not recognize the name, but hum the title track's riff and, oh, boy, they'll get it. Now, I wanna say, it's not because they're a one-hit wonder I was suspicious of them — or at least, not strictly. After all, they're not the only band or artist on this list who could be classified as such. Dexys Midnight Runners, for instance, has **two** albums on this list. But here's the thing about bringing a band like Dexys up into this conversation: Dexys has the clout. While to the general public they're only recognized for "Come On Eileen", if you're in the know, you know what a big deal they are. They're a similar case to, say, Chumbawamba — or, if you're German, Falco. Iron Butterfly, conversely, does not have that clout. Sure, I've seen this album get good reviews, and given that it's on this list **someone** is repping for them... But the honest question you hafta ask is, "Is Iron Butterfly even worth listening to outside of 'In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida'?" For a moment, let's recognize what an ask that is. "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" isn't as famous as it is for nothing. The original idea for the song was just a simple love tune, but somewhere in the band jamming out on the thing, it got inflated into a seven-minute epic filled with cool organ, neat guitar trickery, the drum solo to end all drum solos, and a monster riff. Seriously, **the** riff of the 60's, let's not be dishonest here. In total, the song is a journey that sounds like the acid death of the 60's death. That's a massively tall order to follow up on, even if, y'know, I'll be real, it's not a **perfect** song? I adore the scope of it, of course, and that's what keeps me coming back... But, boy howdy, I've never been one for drum solos. If I may reference Todd In The Shadows, maybe this thing **should have** ended the drum solo. But that's enough about "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida". Peek behind the curtain, I didn't even listen to it for this review; I was just going off of memory. The only thing I listened to was side one, because that's truly where I wanna place my attention. We all know how incredible that song is — does the rest hold its own? You'll remember my sentence tense from earlier. Like, mm, ah, gosh, believe me, I was rooting for Iron Butterfly here. Honestly, seriously I was; I think their one big hit proves they do have some good chops. They could very easily be applied to a whole record side's worth of equally worthy songs. Certainly, for heavy psych, I don't think they did too badly at all. Across the board, the organ still rips, and Doug Ingle's voice is incredibly distinct. The ingredients are all here, if they could just mix them together in the right way... Mm, no. No, not really. They got **so close**, 'coz I really did like these songs. It's just, did I like them on the scale of "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida"? No, I wouldn't say so. They didn't do too badly for heavy psych, that's true, but... Yeah, it's just heavy psych. There's no big hook that pulls me in, like, say, "Something For Nothing" on Rush's 2112 does. If you mixed these songs in with a dozen or so other psych bands from the same year, I don't think I'd be able to tell the difference besides Doug's voice. Though, at the same time, I'd also hafta admit that I'd probably enjoy Iron Butterfly's songs a click more than the others they'd be mixed in with? Maybe I'm contradicting myself here, I'unno. There might not be any big hooks, but they're still good enough songs, like... I'unno. The problem might just be that they're stuck in the shadow of a giant, so it's hard to really compare. If these things were on a different album, without the title track, I might be singing a different tune. So, I suppose in the end the ultimate answer to my question is... "Maybe?" If you really wanna dig into side one, you'll probably find some stuff you'll like if you dig Vox organ. It's **far** from bad stuff. All the same, however, I don't feel like you'd be missing too much if you only listened to side two and the big hit. Iron Butterfly don't strike me as an like, say, Chumbawamba, The Proclaimers or Scatman John where I'm just **dying** to dig into their back catalog. Discovering the other half of this album is good is a nice surprise, but I doubt I'd return to it as often as the title track. Jus' how it ended up being. If nothing else, no matter how I ended up feeling about side one, "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" is still an achievement unto itself. If I were Iron Butterfly, I'd feel pretty proud about that. Don'cha know that I love it...

Bayou Country

Creedence Clearwater Revival

4/5

For the longest time when I was a youngling I'd thought "Proud Mary" was a traditional black spiritual. Honest to goodness truth, I did! In a similar way to how kid me had thought that Ween's "Ocean Man" was sung by a fat black guy! This ain't shit I'm makin' up! I mean, when I was young, I wasn't even aware of Creedence Clearwater as a concept, let alone the skin color of the guy who wrote it. I was too busy playin' 'Super Mario Galaxy' or something! And I know it didn't help that my first exposure to this song was via Tina Turner's cover — yeah, at the end of 'Flushed Away'. Until I saw people getting horny about the two leads, that song was all I remembered about the movie for years. And, like, I'unno. It just . . . sounded like a spiritual to me? Even taking into account that Turner's arrangement is wildly different, the lyrics: "Big wheels keep on turnnin' / Proud Mary, keep on burnin' / Rollin', rollin' down the river..." If I'd never found out what a Creedence was (and given the omnipresence of "Fortunate Son" in war scenes in movies it'd be a feat if I didn't), I'd probably still be believing what I did as a kid. But, thankfully, I've been aware for years now: "Proud Mary" is a Creedence song. (Sure spared myself the embarrassment, huh?) It's the second-to-last track and only single from 'Bayou Country', their first album of 1969. Of three. Absolute workhorse band in their day, lemme tell you. And I can safely tell you that they did not sacrifice quality with their speed, 'coz, mm, goodness. I'm very aware of Creedence these days, just as I'm aware of how much I damn dig 'em. It is not very hard at all to love Creedence. I mean, they're not really a complicated band! All I've ever come to Creedence for is rippin' swamp rock, complete with John Fogerty hollerin' over top, and I've always been very well provided. In my head, for the majority of their career, I kind of compare them to AC/DC and Motörhead for how consistent they are in doin' what they do and doin' it **good** — just without the "every song sounds the same" accusation you could lob at either of those other bands. There really isn't a bad song across this whole album. I think the worst it gets is "Graveyard Train", just for the fact that it's eight minutes and never really feels like it's going anywhere . . . but even then, I enjoy how slinky it is. A real "pop your fingers to the beat" kind of tune. Besides that, it's nothing but swamp rock goodness and nothing you hafta think too hard about. I mean, how hard do you really hafta ponder a song with "chooglin'" in the title? And did you hear that cover of "Good Golly, Miss Molly"? Talk about a barn burner! And "Proud Mary" . . . yeah, it's the best song here, easily. As if it was ever a competition. Listening to it again, I will say that I think I like the Turner arrangement of the song a bit better . . . I mean, it's surprisingly way more lowkey than I'd remembered . . . but all said, it's still "Proud Mary". I hate to ask "What more do you want me to say?", but seriously, honestly. I feel like I'd be hard-pressed to pass it up. But, yeah, that's Creedence fer yah. Never a complicated band, but a good-ass one nonetheless. Spoiling myself by looking ahead, I'm disappointed we're not gonna get my favorite album of theirs, 'Willy & The Poor Boys' (home of "Down On The Corner" and, yes, "Fortunate Son") . . . but Creedence is Creedence is Creedence. You pick any of 'em, you're hardly gonna go wrong — unless you pick 'Mardi Gras'. And if you do, well, that's just, like, your opinion, man. But seriously, a fun album with a great song by a great band. Now y'all go choogle on down and listen to this thing, honestly.

Kenya

Machito

5/5

I don't think an album has ever won me over as quickly as this one did. Like, besides albums I already know and love, this is absolutely the fastest I've ever decided an album was a 5. And normally I'd never wanna jump to a conclusion just like that. I wanna give these albums their time! Give 'em space to breathe and let them present themselves. After all, an album can have a promising start but waver significantly in the back half — or vice versa. Or maybe it's bookended by bad, but in the middle there's a shining nugget of something truly wonderful — or vice versa. In short, unless you hear the full thing, you'll never **truly** get a sense of it. And I know I've betrayed that thinking on some occasions. I ain't claiming to be perfect. But generally, I wanna reserve judgement until I've gotten right to the end (unless you're Kid Rock, and then I was always gonna toss you out on your ass). But this album — wooooohhh, boy. Talk about making an entrance! From the first second — BLAM! It socks you right in the face with lord horn and congas! It's exhilarating! It's a rush! It's maybe one of the best damn parties you've ever been to! And this thing **just started**! It's like a young Brando, woo! I mean, seriously. I might sound like I'm exaggerating here, but I am not. This is such an amazingly fun album. It's a nonstop rush of horns and congas — oh, the **congas**! The horns and soloists are all great,but goodness me, the **congas**. They're the secret sauce! And, see, I couldn't even get through that sentence back there without stopping to gush about some part of this album! I just can't get over how much I enjoyed this thing. Why didn't anyone tell me 50's Afro-Cuban jazz was such a rush? And, look, to be fair, I'll grant you: I can absolutely hear how this would be tiring to someone. Not every song is at the same frenetic tempo of the first one — it's not Tito Puente's 'Dance Mania!', y'know — but if you don't jive with that first song . . . maybe the slower tunes'll do it for you? Otherwise, I can't even imagine you how'd hear this. All I know is, you'd be missing out. I wanna keep going on this, I really do. I wanna write at least a good 1k words about how much I dug this album — but I can't. You really just need to hear it for yourself, if somehow you've stumbled across this review on this website and haven't already. Heck, if you have, listen to it again! It's just awesome! And you owe it to yourself, y'know? Jus' . . . wow, that's it, I'm done. I'm outta words. So lemme just close here by agreeing with the liner notes on the back of the record: indeed, I **did** find 'Kenya' to be a highly exciting and provocative listening pleasure. A pleasure for sure!

All Hail the Queen

Queen Latifah

3/5

There were two things I tried to keep in mind while listening to this album. First, Queen Latifah was only 19 when she made this album. Now, of course I know there are some people who've made incredible works at that age or younger (Nas started writing 'Illmatic' when he was only 16), but let's not act like that's the rule here, y'know? It's not a "get out of jail free" excuse; it's just a reasonable level of expectations to have. Which pairs well with the second thing: this album was released in 1988. Rap was obviously a ways away from its simpler origins, where the rappers were largely just party M.C.'s there to keep people dancing, though there was clearly still a gap from where it'd end up in the 90's. No one in 1989 was going to make an 'Illmatic', no matter how strong they were by the day's standards. And that's not a knock against golden age hip hop; it can be fun stuff. Again, it's just a case of keeping expectations from getting too unreasonable. And with those expectations in mind . . . well, I didn't **hate** it. Let's start with the technical side of things. On that level, there's nothing wrong with the album. Some beats are flatter and more boring than others, but on the whole I'd say DJ Mark The 45 King and the other producers that show up do a fine job. At worst, this kind of 80's beat work is just not exactly my thing. After that, all of the rappers on here do a good enough job. I don't think anyone in particular blows me away (except maybe Monie Long — absolutely a highlight feature), but their flows and some of their wordplay are strong enough to, y'know, keep y'all dancin'. I don't exactly have any complaints on this front either. But then we get to this album's biggest flaw — though, as a fellow group member said, it might not even be a flaw so much as it is just a consistent annoyance. And that's that Queen Latifah has one topic: she's a badass and a great rapper. Did you know? Did you know that Queen Latifah is a badass and a great rapper? She can kick your ass and flow on these Mark beats better than you can. She'll knock you out and write rhymes that're edible. She can tangle with the best and win and her rhymes are so good that you can eat them. She's Queen Latifah! Did you know that? She's Queen Latifah, and she's a queen, and L-A-T-I-F-A-H, and also she's Queen Latifah and she writes rhymes better than you and she can kick your ass. Besides a few tracks, it really never ends. On every song, she introduces herself and brags about her prowess. And she says it in a lot of different ways, sure, but never enough that it doesn't feel like you're not listening to minor variations of the same song over and over again. And I get why it's like this, I do; it goes back to keeping in mind that this thing dropped in 1989. Back then, as far as I'm aware, a lot of rap music was about bragging that you're the best. That was just the standard at the time. No doubt there were songs that tackled deeper issues, but as far as I know, they were kind of exceptions. At least compared to how much bragging took up most rap songs. And it's not like bragging that you're better than all of these other sucks MCs ever stopped, but, I'unno, on this album it jus' kinda gets old real fast if you're tryna pay attention to the lyrics — and this is **rap**, so why **wouldn't you be**? Even if it **is** "ordering you to dance for her" (which is another oft repeated topic on this album, I should say). And it's not that Queen Latifah **can't** rap about anything else. "Ladies First", "Evil That Men Do" — she clearly has the chops to write about more, even at 19. And I figure on subsequent albums she must have expanded her range into other topics. But on this album, unfortunately, songs like those are in the minority next to all of the "I'll punch your nose if you step to me and I'll eat your nouns." You ask me, I think the best way to enjoy this album would be to take these songs individually. Taken entirely on their own, independent of each other, they're pretty fine 80's rap joints. Sumthin' to keep y'all dancin' — unless you're Public Enemy, I don't typically expect much else from rap in the 80's. Once you take the album as a whole, though, that's when it all starts to blend together, and . . . yeah, it's not the worst experience in the world, but I can't like it doesn't get a bit tiresome. So, yeah. I tried, Queen. I gave this album every benefit I could think of and I guess it still wasn't enough. And honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if by tomorrow I forgot about this album entirely and went back to knowing you solely for your role in the 'Ice Age' movies. Which, hey, there are worse things to be known for — but there's always better. Sorry 'bout that.

Done By The Forces Of Nature

Jungle Brothers

5/5

Normally when one of those old golden age hip hop asks me to dance I'm not really inspired to. Maybe the beat's a little flat, maybe the flow ain't all that good, maybe the lyrics ain't up to snuff ... or, I'unno, maybe they're only askin' me 'coz everyone in this era is askin' me to dance? And most times, they ain't special. They ain't gettin' a foot tap out of me, let alone a single shimmy. Get outta here. So you gotta know an album's doin' something right when it gets both a tap **and** a shimmy out of me. Whoo, lookit 'em go. 'Done By The Forces Of Nature' — I mean, let's just cut to the chase: this is a fun as hell album. Straight Tribe kinda golden age shit. Front to back, there wasn't a single I wasn't enjoying myself.. And I didn't think I would with an album that's **60 minutes**, but, goodness me, these Jungle Brothers: they know how to do it. It starts with the beats, the parts I always focus on with hip hop albums. I can't help it; I'm a "melody first" sort of person, y'know? These are some fine as hell beats. Like ... goodness me, I didn't think I'd hear another rap album from the 80's with beats this good. I thought it'd be just 'It Takes A Nation' of 'Paul's Boutique', but damn do the Jungle Brothers and Kool DJ Red Alert have the chops. They boom, they bap, they lock you into a nonstop groove ... oh, and goodness me, the sample work. It's nothing as crazy as what's present on those two albums I just mentioned, but dang n' darn. That "Fly Like An Eagle" sample on "J. Beez Comin' Through" goes crazy. And the whole instrumental track, "Good Newz Comin'"... honestly, when that "Hooked On A Feeling" hook hit, I went nuts. Seriously. Then there's the flows and lyrics. I'm the kind of person who struggle with lyrics, so normally I'd only be able to recognize the flows. And the JB's do got themselves a great flow across the album. But I gotta tell you, the lyrics on here are just as good. They're cleverly written, and, honestly, I just find myself engaged with what they had to say. Part of this review was written while I had a few cuts on the album playing, and I kept getting distracted looking over at the lyrics. And it's real positive stuff, y'know? Tribe Called Quest kinda shit. And I'm not the kind of person who'd demand positive lyrics, but they're just so nice, goodness. But they can take things seriously sometimes, too: "Black Woman" is the prime example, but there's also a part on "Sunshine" where I was honestly like, "Damn." Jus', ooo, goodness. I realize I'm kinda rambling here, without a real structure to speak of. But that's only because I just really do like this album that much. It might really be one of my favorite rap albums I've come across through this list. Certainly it's one of the best I've heard from the 80's. And again, just the fact that they can make 60 minutes feel like nothing, with their beats and their lyrics and ... dang, I didn't even mention their range of topics. This thing is 16 tracks, and it never sounds like they're repeating themselves. That's impressive! And when you hit that monster of a posse cut at the end, "Doin' Our Own Dang", with De La Soul and Queen Latifah ... I'll say it again: goodness! So, yeah, I got nothing I wanna say. It's something 2 dance 2 and it's damn good at it. This ain't one of my better reviews/babbles, but whatever. I'm jus' gonna keep on shimmyin'. Good shit.

Rock Bottom

Robert Wyatt

5/5

If you wanna know my first reaction to seeing this album pop up, I'll be blunt — it was something along the lines of, "Uuuuugh. Lookit this **cover**. Lookit this **genre tag** on Wikipedia: 'Canterbury scene?' That sounds like some folksy nonsense. Like, lemme guess: this is some folksy nonsense that Big Important Rock Critics™ lost their minds over at the time because ... well, of course they would. **And** it's English! Goodness!" OK, I might be exaggerating my reaction a little. But when you put aside the vitriol, it's not **that** far off from what I was thinking. Like, seriously: "Canterbury scene." Does that **none** sound like it'd be some kind of willowy, pastoral folk? And with the relationship **I've** had with folk music this far...! I did not have the highest of expectations for this thing. Initially, anyway. Y'see, I didn't listen to this thing right away; I just didn't have the time to when my group got it. So it flew into my backlog, alongside 'I Am A Bird Now' and other random records. And in the interim, that gave me the opportunity to read up on Robert Wyatt. 'Coz coming up to this, I figured that maybe there was something I could gather from historical context. Music doesn't exist solely in a vacuum, so perhaps if I had some kind of story to go along with it...? And indeed I got one: the story of Robert Wyatt becoming paraplegic and yet still persisting in recording this album anyway. Not that being a wheelchair could stop anyone from recording music, but y'know what I mean. And to cut this off, I didn't decide I was gonna be all positive on this album just because he lost the use of his legs. I'd maybe feel like a jerk if I was negative, but if I did, well, that would just be how I felt. But it did get me thinking, maybe I should challenge my preconception — like, actively challenge them. 'Coz using this as another excuse to rail against Big Important Critics™ wouldn't be fair to Robert Wyatt or his music. So, take those preconceptions, push 'em up against a wall and ask 'em, "Do you hold up?" Pff! Of course they don't! I mean, for one, this isn't even folksy nonsense! "Canterbury scene" might've scared me into thinking it was, but it seems I forget that genre labels like that don't mean jack or shit. No, this album is more light prog rock with some jazzy tones. And .... y'know, I'm not gonna act like hearing about those jazzy tones wouldn't have had me worried either. Unless it's the real stuff like Miles or Coltrane, whenever an artist adds in "jazz influence" it always seems to end up meaning "light, mushy nonsense because they're too busy focusing on the chords." And while this music is light, like I said, I wouldn't call it mushy, or even nonsense. It's ... strange. Y'know? And not in a big avant-garde way like The Residents. It's just a little unconventional — even for prog rock. And it's in this I sort of get why this album has such a low average rating. It's light and strange, and I imagine for most people there's just not a lot to latch onto. I mean, these songs can kind of feel like they're not going anywhere, even despite the claims that it uses the song-form structure of rock or folk. Roberty Wyatt said he had a problem with noodling, and **this** is what he came up with? I can see where the issue would lie, and it's not that I can't agree with it to some extent... But overall, I'd say I was absolutely captivated by this album. There was a point where I was thinking of saying that it gets by on "vibes," but as I got closer to the end the more I realized that wasn't accurate at all. I mean, "vibes" implies you don't need to listen that closely and you can just float along on the music. With this album, I think the more appropriate descriptor I'd use is that it's one of those "journey" records. The kind you put on and **have** to listen to from start to end, **with** headphones on. Either you experience it in full, or you don't bother. Honestly, it might be one of "Fantasiaing" records where you let the music dictate your imagination — and I do adore me a good "Fantasiaing" record every now and then. Now, where does this journey go? Obviously, it depends from person to person. But for my own experience with the album, keeping in mind Robert Wyatt's situation and how much of a catharsis this album might've been for him ... I can only imagine it as a journey to rock bottom. One where you might think it's inevitable; there's no escaping this destination. And as you walk, you reflect on everything that came before the moment you set off, and all of the happy memories you're leaving behind. And you approach the edge, ready to remain trapped down in rock bottom — when, suddenly, another way presents itself. A way that leads into the setting sun and a better future. And without missing a beat, that's the way you choose. And as you roll along to this better place, you know it'll always be stuck in the back of your mind that you almost chose the abyss over this, possibly without ever knowing it existed — but you can only laugh at it, because dang it, you didn't choose it. My preconceptions never would've guessed I'd come up with all that. In the end, I can't deny that this isn't a weird little album. Between the lightness, and, heck, Robert's vocals (which I haven't even mentioned to this point), I can understand why this album has such a low average rating. But I gotta agree with a fellow group member: you've just gotta be able to open yourself to what it's doing. I did, and I found a lot of pretty moments to enjoy. And if someone just can't open themselves, that's fair. It's just one of those situations where, honestly, I feel like they're missing out a little. Good shit, Robert. I hope your other album on this list holds up as well.

Daydream Nation

Sonic Youth

4/5

How important to me are the lyrics in a Sonic Youth song? Honestly now. I mean, of course they're important in general; they wouldn't be here if they weren't. People just like having words in their music, y'know? But to me, specifically: how much do they matter? I've often said I'm melody first over lyrics. Mostly it's just a result of my being AuDHD and having a hard time deciphering some of the more complex lyrics out there, but at the same time ... isn't melody what most people come to music for? And I stress "most people"; I know hip hop has never been a terribly melodic genre, and there's always been a place in the world for the more atonal experimental material. For the average person, though, among which I count myself, melody should be important. Otherwise, it's just poetry with some pretty sounds underneath. Some folks would dig that — I wouldn't. And in Sonic Youth's case, there's an additional factor to consider: **their** genre, shoegaze. It's one I remember struggling with early on with My Bloody Valentine's 'm b v', but this deep in the list, I think I get it. It's ambient music. Heavy, guitar driven, noise drenched ambient music. It's vibes shit. It ain't purely instrumental, like most ambient music is, but the vibes are strong nonetheless. And as ambient music goes, I'd prefer the electronic stuff, but this "rock version" ain't all too bad. With this framework in mind I absolutely loved 'loveless' back when my group got it. That album is **the** name in shoegaze, and if I like that, hey, I could probably maybe like any of it. Honestly, it occurs to me I might not've liked the last two Sonic Youth albums my group has gotten **because** I wasn't using this framework. So that's what I tried to do here with 'Daydream Nation', rival to 'Goo' for **the** Sonic Youth album. And a long one, too — 76 minutes! I've heard longer, but goodness, a double dose of shoegaze? A slightly younger me would've revlused at the idea. But maybe this current me, wiser in their ways nearly 700 albums deep into this list, would like it more? Maybe? Does it work if you take it on vibes and energy? I'd say it works more than it doesn't, and in the spots where it doesn't it's more down to my tastes than anything. I'll tell you, for me the vibes peaked within the first three songs. "Teen Age Riot" is often considered one of the greatest album openers of all time (so I've heard), and I think it lived up. The intro section especially was incredible. I maybe could actually listen to it for an hour. Then you have the closing section of "The Sprawl", which is pretty much exactly what I wanted from this album. It's this mesmerizing guitar line that repeats into disintegration. In an attempt to fit with the album cover I tried to stare at a video of a candle the entire time — unfortunately, I kept getting distracted. But listening to the outro of "The Sprawl" and staring at this candle, that was probably my favorite experience of the entire album. Afterwards, the albums get significantly less ambient. Sort of disappointed, but whatever. Do the vibes still hold up? Well, it's here where it starts wavering and where my tastes start coming more into play. See, a lot of this album strikes me as ... stressed. And more than a little peeved. So there's quite a few songs and sections that come off to me as a little tense and unnerving. And if I were taking the lyrics in mind like most people would've, I imagined it'd fit quite well. But as a vibe — strictly as a **vibe** — it's not much my flow. Unless I'm imagining some scene with my OCs where it calls for tense music, I don't often tend to seek it out. Frankly, I'm much more of a fan of the disaffected ambience. **That's** the good shit. At the very least the soundscape carried me well enough that I never really cared that this thing stretches over two discs. That ain't nothing. Even if it ain't one of the more "justified" double albums I've ever heard; I know one of 'em was on a writing spree when this album was getting made, but you really couldn't have cut **that much**? Not that I could think of anything to cut, anyway; as a "vibes album" it all sort of mushed together to me after side 1. Which, y'know, that's not a bad thing as far as "vibes" are concerned, but I'm just saying: if I didn't mind it being long, I don't think I would've minded it being a little shorter either. But in the end, my question: how important are lyrics to me when it comes to Sonic Youth? I think they are a little. The mood of some of these things just ain't my thing, and they'd probably need the lyrics to justify them. All the same, it was probably for the best anyway. I remember my sore spot with 'Goo' was the lyrics: not even that I disliked them, but because I could just imagine the audience who'd love them, and they weren't people I'd wanna be friends with. So maybe I'd like 'Goo' better as a vibe? I'unno. But I did like 'Daydream Nation' more this way than I didn't. And if nothing else, "Teen Age Riot" and "The Sprawl" are worth the price of admission. And that's a ... pretty kool thing, y'know. (Wrong album, I know.)

1999

Prince

5/5

Alright, so I was maybe dreaming a little when I wrote this, so, like, forgive me if I go astray. 'K? When I talk about double albums there's this line I love to bring up: "if y'don't do it right it can come across like a supreme ego trip." You're tellin' me you had just **too many good ideas** for **one disc**? You had to toss in a second one to hold 'em all? Well, you must be firing on **all cylinders** to justify that decision. And thankfully, I've only rarely come across one that doesn't and falls into the "ego" pit. It might just be a credit to this album's selection of double albums more than anything, but either way. Here's a question, though: can an album come across like an ego trip and **still** come out as a good album? Oh, yeah, absolutely. And '1999' is the proof of that. If '1999' is anything to me, it's Prince walking into the room, telling everybody "Fuck you, I **am** that good at music" and then having sex right on the open floor with the hottest woman in his presence. And damn it, he's right — he **is** just that good. If he was even a hint less he wouldn't have been able to get away with songs like "D.M.S.R." and "Automatic" being as long as they are. This is 11 straight tracks of amazing synth-pop and electronic funk. It's obviously a little primordial to how layered the follow-up would be ('Purple Rain', of course), but let's not act like that fact takes away from any of these songs. Sure, "Let's Pretend We're Married" doesn't have as much going on as a song like "Take Me With U" or, goodness, "Computer Blue" — it's still a captivating, engaging, and overall just plain **fun** listen. I get a kick out of every "ooo-wee-shaa-shaa-koo-koo-yeah." "Fun" — that's probably the best way to describe this album. Well, alongside "horny." But it's like, however long a song is, and there are some **long bois** on this thing, they're never not fun. And that's what carries them through. It's why while I do get the impression that some stuff **maybe** could have been cut, I know I certainly wouldn't do it. Believe me, I get why someone would hate "D.M.S.R." for how long it is despite how repetitive it is. But, like, come on — it's a dance floor sex jam. On those terms, it's amazing! I totally catch myself shuffling my shoulders to it and clapping on the 4. Believe me, any long song that can hold onto my AuDHD attention span is an achievement in and of itself. And it's not like there aren't parts I consider less fun than others, of course; I've never been 100% on "Automatic" . . . but all the same, I really wouldn't wanna lose a moment of it either. Why would I want **less** '1999'? Honestly. And he did all of this by himself! Besides some backing and co-lead vocals, it seems the only instrumentals he didn't play were some cymbals on one track and a guitar solo on "Little Red Corvette". And that's just something to marvel at, isn't it? He's not the only one-man band deal I've come across, but just to consider that he constructed that groove on "D.M.S.R." all by himself (to bring that song up again). No one else played on that! It was just him, and it came out with such an air-tight and rock-solid groove as it did. (And what a groove it is!) I mean, **goodness**, the ride is so smooth — are we sure this album ain't a limousine? Now, for all my praise, I will admit that I do still prefer 'Purple Rain' to this. Besides 'Purple Rain' being a shorter, single disc album, which I naturally tend to gravitate towards . . . well, a fellow group member mentioned that there were parts of this album that sounded like Kraftwerk-style electronic, and . . . I mean, I've liked the Kraftwerk I've heard, don't get me wrong. But I'm into stuff like 'Autobahn', and this album feels way more 'Trans Europa Express'. In other words: I prefer 'Purple Rain''s largeness over '1999''s sparseness. And, yeah, Prince is obviously a talented enough musician to make the sparseness work insanely well . . . but I am what I am, and damn, gimme an album with "Let's Go Crazy", eh? And with **that** said, it's also funny to just think about Prince's history with multi-disc albums. His first couple were the likes of '1999' and 'Sign "O" The TImes', and they came out damn swinging. They have their issues in places, unavoidably, but they wind up some of the strongest and tightest albums in Prince's entire discography — and it's a large body of work! And then you flash forward to something like the triple-disc set 'Emancipation', where it's like, "I get it, you were holding a lot of songs from Warner Bros.." Heck, just in general you gotta compare this era of Prince, when the albums felt more purposefully put together, to what started with 'Emancipation', when his albums start to feel like, "And here's a buncha songs I threw together last week." And they're all good songs, but still, goodness. This is a tangent, though, so let's get back on track. '1999', from what I remember reading, was made with the express intention of showing off. He could play a billion instruments, and he could write a hell of a tune — so fuck you, here's two discs worth of tunes. And it's no wonder this album, along with its singles ("Little Red Corvette" and the title track), ended up being the first spark in his career. His own 'Off The Wall', to compare him to his rival. I mean, I've listened to the stuff Prince put out before this, and while it's all clearly good (particularly 'Dirty Mind'), nothing was quite on the level of this album. And, sure, this is a case where I prefer 'Thriller' to 'Off The Wall', Prince's talent here is undeniable. He only wanted us to have some fun and party like the world was about to end, and by gawd, I and everyone else sure did. '1999' easily earns its spot as one of Prince's best albums — and if this album feels like Prince having sex with you, then it's a shag well worth engaging with.

Bummed

Happy Mondays

4/5

Question number one I had to answer listening to this album: why does it sound like that? It's not a question that has anything to do with the songwriting, or the instrumentation, or the vocals. It's just . . . the reverb. The all-encompasing reverb. The reverb that was enough to cause a fellow group member to knock this whole album down to a 3! What **is** the deal with it? From what I've read (from one review on The Guardian), it seems to all come back to the film 'Performance'. The album, so I've gathered, owes a lot to this film, naming a song after one of its characters, and then another song after the film itself. It's a film I've long been aware of for its reputation (it has Mick Jagger and is apparently one of the 500 Greatest Films ever made, so 'Empire'), but it's not one I've ever exactly felt the need to watch. I mean, it's a 70's drama, so even with some crime elements and Mick Jagger hanging around I doubt it'd be able to hold my attention for too long. In other words, besides the 'Guardian' review I've read, I wouldn't be able to tell what this album has to do with it, even if I **had** seen it. But from what the 'Guardian' review says: the song named after one of the characters? It's "Mad Cyril", who's one of the violent gangsters who invades Jagger's character's home. And the song named after the film is told from the perspective of another member of this group. So . . . y'know. The way the 'Guardian' reviews put it, the reverb isn't meant to represent some blissed-out, E-fueled "second summer of love" haze. No, it's more supposed to be "the queasy, disorienting claustrophobia or overindulgence," with the way everything can blur together. And also the fact that the band gave the producer a shitton of ecstasy to take to keep himself from drinking, but that's besides the point. There **is** (at least as that review reads into it, anyway) a reason behind the reverb. And honestly, listening to the album with this additional context . . . it certainly does sound better than if I'd gone in clueless, that's for sure. I think it also helps me like this album just a smidge more than the follow-up? Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed 'Pills N' Thrills And Bellyaches' when my group got it. As a first introduction to Madchester (that wasn't EMF's jock jam shit), I enjoyed what I heard. But all the same, thinking back on it, it was maaaaybe a bit chiller than I would've liked? Whole lotta influence from indie rock and acid house and all that. And at the time I was fine appreciating it solely on vibes. Now that I've taken this album in, however, with the edge it gets from an underlying sense of unease . . . yeah, I really dug it. And I'm glad I came to understand the reverb so it wouldn't distract me from these songs. It's an album I can ride on **grooves and energy**, which believe me, both mean a lot more to me than vibes, any day of the week. And I really am surprised I came out of this album liking it as much as I did. From the way that fellow group member talked about this thing, I was truly expecting the reverb to be overwhelming and destroy anything I could've liked about this album — maybe I was thinking it'd be a slightly-more restrained 'Psychocandy'? And I **do** get how it could be a problem, believe me; this album is utterly **drenched** in the stuff. But, I'unno. I mean, I sort of doubt I made a strong argument for this album. It just hit the right spot for me, though — what can I say? And if it left me feeling anything, it sure wasn't bummed. That's for sure. Now, the second question I had to ask myself: I didn't prepare one. Uhm... I mean, "Are you sure that was the best album cover you could've picked?" I guess?

Southern Rock Opera

Drive-By Truckers

3/5

Y'know ... the funny thing is that, at one point in time, I was looking forward to this album. Yeah, this is one I've known about for a while, actually. I can't remember exactly where or when I first heard about it, but ... I'unno. A rock opera in two acts about Lynyrd Skynyrd, culminating in the plane crash that nearly ended the band? A **Southern** rock opera, at that? Despite the fact that the whole package is 93 minutes, it doesn't sound too bad at all. And I'm quite the sucker for rock operas; I loved 'The Wall' and 'Tommy' and 'Joe's Garage' ... all of those albums How could I go wrong with this? Of course, I didn't get to find out back then (whenever it was). 'Southern Rock Opera' ended up being another one of those albums I'd randomly stumble across, read about, think would be cool, and then just never got around to listening to. It's not an unusual story for me; this must be one of hundreds of examples. But what makes this one in particular a strange case is, well ... most times, when I finally get around to an album, I don't recoil in dread re-reading their Wikipedia pages. And certainly I haven't recoiled as hard as I did reading **this one's**. "'Southern Rock Opera' is [...] a double album covering an ambitious range of subject matter [including] the politics of race[, filtered] through the context of [...] Lynyrd Skynyrd." Oh ... oh, boy. That sounds... I mean, the last time I heard someone try to discuss race by way of Lynyrd Skynyrd— it just didn't go over too well for Brad Paisley, let's just say. So the idea of sitting through 93 minutes of ... **that**? 93 minutes of "Accidental Racist"? Oh, lordie me — I'd wanted the randomizer to pick a scary record for my group's 666th pull, and it sure as hell delivered. So ... let's just get into this, huh? And I'll try to keep this as brief as possible — goodness knows **considering** all of this was exhausting enough as it is; I can't imagine how it would feel to **read about it**. I wanna begin with this: I get what these guys were tryna say on this album. Honestly, I do. And I really did take the time to listen to these lyrics. I mean, with a concept like this, I think it would've and **has** been really easy for people to just kind of balk at this concept and slap the whole thing with a low rating. You don't hafta look at it too hard to feel like they're repeating "Well, **I'm** not racist!" for 11 tracks. And I'll be honest, there **was** a part of me that really wanted to take that easy way out and save myself from the exhaustion of considering all of this. But I have never been the kind of person who goes "UH-OH, PROBLEMATIC!" at things like this. I mean, if it's openly conservative and reactionary — sure, yeah, it doesn't deserve the thought. But, for some reason going in, these guys didn't strike me that way. They deserved some fair consideration, at least. See, Act 1 is about "the Southern thing," as they call it. It's about how Alabama has this legacy as being an incredibly racist place, and how, in the eyes of DBT, it doesn't deserve to be judged so quickly as being **just** that. "Yes, this shit **happened** — and it's awful. But it's not like we're not **trying** to reckon with it. It's a hard thing to try and love where you live while constantly being told you and everyone else there is a redneck, racist piece of shit. There's more sides to Alabama than most people would think." And, y'know, it's not a position I'd be able to understand in the way that they would. I grew up pretty dang north of Alabama — in Canada, even. That makes it pretty hard to live in a red state and get to know some of the people who **don't** follow the kind of stereotypes the people who exist outside would imagine. But it's a position I **can** feel sort of sympathetic towards — and it helps that this is coming from a band in 2000, rather than some modern day Jason Aldean "Try That In A Small Town" nonsense. This album is coming from a world of politics I can't even imagine in 2025. So, y'know, they're not trying to pull some "Am I The Only One?" or "Rich Men North Of Richmond" shit on here at least. But then, that's also the problem, isn't it? It's not 2000; it's 2025. And the shit I've seen in the time in-between, let me tell you what ... I mean, I can't help but judge older art by modern standards; that's just the perspective and bias I'm coming in with, whether I'm conscious of it or not. And what **is** a review like this if not just judging older art by modern standards? So, as much as I'm sympathetic to these guys's position ... it can kind of be **really** taxing for me to hear them try and make their points? Like, I couldn't even believe their claim that Neil Young **liked** "Sweet Home Alabama" until I looked it up and confirmed it was true. That just **sounds** like some kind of defensive shit someone would say, right? Especially given what "Sweet Home Alabama" was written in **response** to. And lines like "I've seen white and black folks alike getting treated just like sin" and "[My grandfather] didn't believe in slavery, thought that all men should be free / But who are these soldiers marching through this land?" Like, y'man still fought for the Confederacy... This issue can all be summarized all within how they talk about George Wallace. They do not, whatsoever, deny that Wallace was a racist, and they make a point (and an entire song) to say that he's burning in Hell. But **not**, as they clarify, for his racism. To them, he's down there for being an opportunist. See, they explain that Wallace was **actually** a very progressive lawyer and judge back at the start of his career, with a nice humanitarian track record. It was only when they failed to win him an election that he became a segregationist and started spewing racist bullshit. And it **did** help him way — for a while. Until it didn't. And at that point, he made an attempt to redeem himself from his old, racist ways. From what the band says, he was successful enough to win with 90% of the black vote: thus, the "duality of the Southern thing." So, there was clearly more to George Wallace than just being a racist, and to the band it's a shame that more people don't remember his progressiveness at the beginning of his career and his redemption at the end. And, look. I'm not religious, but I believe in redemption. If someone truly wants to redeem themselves, then let them. And if what DBT says about George Wallace's redemption is true — fine. But, and I do not mean to speak about all of Alabama when I say this, there's a reason people only remember the racist middle part of Wallace's career. You can't shake the Devil's hand and say you're only kidding — even **if** the Devil is a Southerner. And I think it's a shame the discussion of racial politics took up so much of my thoughts about this album (so much for keeping things short, eh?). I gotta tell you, on a purely musical level, I actually kind of **liked** this disc. Put some of the more privileged lyrics and redder flags aside, it's still some cool Southern rock. It's nothing too incredible, but, hey, I like Skynyrd, and I like the Allman Brothers Band and that one really hard song from 'Rock Band'. I dig this sound! But I think it says something to me that my favorite song from this disc was "72 (This Highway's Mean)" — the first track on here that doesn't explicitly talk about racism. Or Skynyrd, for that matter. Speaking of Skynyrd, I think it's about time we get to Disc/Act 2 of this album. This is where the fact that I spent so long yapping about Act 1 even funnier. 'Coz, see, while Act 1 provided me with a position to chew on and sort of look within myself to judge how I react to art such as this ... Act 2 gives me basically nothing in comparison. In fact, if Act 1 was the album all by itself, I don't think I would've missed this act. And **this** is the one that actually fulfills not only what I'd originally read on Wikipedia, but the actual **original idea** for this whole mess. Goodness, right? Act 2 of this album is made up of semi-autobiographical songs about living in the South and ends with the plane crash that nearly destroyed Lynyrd Skynyrd. Now, it's a sort of a bummer to me that it's not **all** about Skynyrd, but ... y'know, it's something. I can see how this concept could be interesting. It's just a shame the songs hafta go and fuck it up by mostly failing to grab me in any meaningful way and largely just being fiiiiiiine. Like, seriously, besides "Plastic Flowers On The Highway" (a tribute to a friend who died in a car crash), I can't think of a single thing I really wanna say about any of these songs. I mean, what the hell is "Road Cases" doing here? What does it have to do with anything? Where does this fall in the story? **Is there** a story? I don't deny these guys' ambitions, but is this even a rock opera? I mean, if Skynyrd is such an important part of things, you'd think you'd wanna introduce them **first** with "Life In A Factory" instead of waiting 'till the **last four tracks**. I can see how they could have bookended this act with Skynyrd, but I guess they didn't wanna! And even when they **do** get to talking Skynyrd, besides a cool solo in "Greenville To Baton Rouge", there is just ... nothing I really wanna talk about! If there's **anything** I wanna bring up, it's simply the fact that nothing on this album sounds like Kid Rock. Not whatsoever. And anyone who makes that claim is probably just ... mad, honestly. And maybe they're not entirely unjustified in mad given some of the shit said on this album, but ... y'know, still. So, that's 'Southern Rock Opera'. It is far from what I expected it would've been, and I am far from loving it like I thought I would've. I do honestly I could hear past some of the more questionable shit on the first album, 'coz, musically speaking, it's when the album's at its best. It's **certainly** no Skynyrd, but for dumb Southern rock, it can hit the spot. And yet, like I said, there are just some things about my perspective I can't look past. And it's not like I can't if I really want to; I love 'The Incredibles' despite how Randian it ultimately is. But I guess, ultimately, I just don't want to. And it's not like the second disc makes up for the first anyway, so... I sort of wish I had a more positive note to leave things on, but frankly, I'm just kind of bummed. And a little tired. I really tried to be fair to you guys, DBT, given how much I was into the pitch originally. Really now. Maybe if I'd heard it all the way back then ... but we'll never know, I guess. And that's just how things go sometimes. "Train rolls on," as they say. Bye-bye, Tuesday...

Vanishing Point

Primal Scream

3/5

There's a bit on this album's Wikipedia page that mentions that this album is named after and inspired by the 1971 action film 'Vanishing Point'. Apparently it'd been a favorite of the band's, and this album came about as an attempt to provide an "alternate soundtrack." The actual movie was filled with a bunch of "hippy music", so they called it, so they figured, why not record something that "really reflects the mood of the film"? And, hey, if that's how they came to make this thing, that's how I should treat it. Though maybe not as an alternate soundtrack to 'Vanishing Point' specifically, 'coz I've never seen that movie. (And I've come to think, it's possible that they were only referring to "Kowalski", which directly samples the film and is named after its lead character.) I read the synopsis (a guy on speed tries to deliver a car to California and escape the police), and I largely kept it in mind, though it ended up being more of a guide than a blueprint. So, let's just say: it's the soundtrack to an imaginary car chase action movie. Think of it like I did that album from the guy who'd also happened to score the 'Ocean's' trilogy. That'd gone pretty well for me — why shouldn't this, too? I think my issue with this album laid, first and foremost, in the fact that I'd ended up considering a different era of car chase action films than 'Vanishing Point'. Me, if I think of one of these things, I'm gonna think about 'Ambulance'. It's not **nonstop** action, front to back, but being a Michael Bay film it **does** sort of play out like a roller coaster. It's exhilarating, especially with the footage that'd been shot using a drone. You compare that against — well, let's just say action in the 1970s in general. I haven't seen too many, but just from the couple I've sampled thanks to reading 'Cinema Speculation' ... boy, people back then didn't need as much to go off of. Like, the car chases themselves can be exciting ('Bullit', 'The French Connection'), but a lot of the stuff surrounding it ... woof. My attention span. Essentially, for me the songs on this album break down into two camps: the car chase songs, and the rest of the movie. The car chase songs are obviously the most uptempo and exciting ones — think, I'unno, "Medication", or the cover of "Motörhead". Stuff to which I can really imagine a muscle car whipping around an American highway while being chased by coppers. Good shit. Then you have the songs that occupy the rest of the movie. I guess you consider these dialogue scenes, or the suspenseful parts, or just the periods of rest between the action. They're the necessary parts, of course, though (and I hate to admit it) my attention span can struggle with them sometimes. Especially in "gritty, realistic" 70's cinema. On this album, these are the songs that're largely inspired by dub, krautrock and ambient music, and they're ... fine, but they hardly kept my attention. Really, they had me thinking, "Is this actually the same band who made 'Screamdelica'?" 'Coz while I don't think that album managed to keep my attention 100% focused, I remember it did more interesting things. At the very least this album doesn't have a song like "Loaded". These songs just kind of ... happened, I guess. And unfortunately, they seem to take up more of the album than the car chase songs. Real 'Bullitt' kind of move here. Really, the only one of these songs that stuck out to me was the closer, and only because it fit within the framework of my imaginary car chase movie. 'Vanishing Point' had a downer ending where (spoiler) Kowalski crashes into a bulldozer the police had set up and he and the car blow up. Only fitting that this album should end on a downer kind of song, too. I ain't gonna fault it for that. But, yeah, I'unno. If we're talking about this album in terms of film, it's not bad, and there's a couple of good parts, but on the whole I think I'd've rather watched something else. If it weren't for the fact that it was in this book ... so, heck, it's a lot like my experience with 'Bullitt', actually. If I was supposed to live off of how "cool" Steve McQueen was, well, I didn't and I couldn't. This album ends up striking me in a very similar way. And I'm probably only gonna remember it for its car chase

If I Should Fall From Grace With God

The Pogues

5/5

497 days. That's how long it's been since this randomizer last gave my group a Pogues album. And y'know? I'm gonna say it, and you can't stop me: that's a crime. A nearly 500 day gap? I get giving us a break between albums — you got to too many parties in a row you're bound to get worn out! — but nearly 500 days? Inexcusable! I mean, come on, did you **hear** 'Rum, Sodomy And The Lash'? If I were the randomizer, I'd wanna give folks a second helping as soon as possible! And believe me, I have every right to be mad at the randomizer over this. This is a fun as hell album. I knew it would be going in, and I was proven right by a significant amount. This album is jus' a big ol' Irish pub singalong. I get how that could get tiring for some people, but, goodness, I ate up every minute of it. What a joy! What makes this album great, though, isn't just its singalong quality alone, no. There's also the number of times they shake up the style on this album. Yeah, for the most part it's the Celtic punk you'd expect from them. But then you have a track like "Turkish Song Of The Damned", which, true to its name, has a lot of influence from Turkish music. "Fiesta", meanwhile, has a lot of inspiration from the music of Spain. They're both standout tracks for this reason, and I say they handle these worldly influences and inspirations well. Then there are the lyrics. I'm typically not the kind of person to follow along with lyrics, but for this album, I made my most successful attempt yet. I sort of fell off during the last few songs (through no fault of the album), but from all of the stuff I was able to listen ... goodness me, these are some **good** lyrics. I particularly wanna praise on "Thousands Are Sailing". It's the only song on the album written by guitarist Phil Chevron, and it's such a wonderful set of words about Irish emigration. It's no wonder it became one of their most popular songs, despite never being a single. And I must give credit to the rest of the band as well, alongside Shane MacGowan's vocals. I've read enough reviews to know his vocals are a turn off for some people, but, like come on — this is Celtic punk. Would you expect him to sound like anything else? And when you back him with the hooligan choir, goodness me, it's a right ol' party. And the rest of the band kicks so much ass— gawd, as I'm writing this I already wanna go and listen to it again. It's such a fun time. Speaking of time, I wanna take a second to address this thing's length. Not that I have a complaint about it, I should say; I just wanna push back against this one review saying the thing was nearly an hour long. Here's a fact: it's not. And before I walked into this album I thought it was! Wikipedia told me it was 51 minutes! As it turns out, however, that's only if you include the two bonus tracks from the CD issue. Take those out and follow the vinyl running order, then the thing's only 44 minutes — much more manageable! Like, if this thing was actually 51 minutes I could cop to its length being a problem: I mean, every party's gotta run out of steam eventually. "Life is just a party and parties weren't meant to last," to quote Prince. Since it ain't, though ... nah, it's the perfect party length. Party on! Honestly, of everything present on this album, I feel like the only thing I'd complain about is the closer, "Worms". It's just ... y'know, a **little** odd and out of place? And certainly a strange way to close the album. I mean, after all of this Celtic punk and singalong fun, you suddenly end on this Primus-ass song about worms eating a decaying body? And I know these lyrics were taken from a children's song that was made popular during World War I, but ... again, it's just weird, is all. And not in a way I'm particularly fond of. And I'm the kinda gal who goes "Primus sucks," so...! But let's finally get to the centerpiece of the album. And I don't wanna act like this album **is** this song; that's absolutely not fair to every other one on here. Y'know, let's not forget about "Thousands Are Sailing". But if I were to point to one song that emphasized everything great about this album ... yeah, of course it's "Fairytale Of New York". The waltz balladry, the story and imagery evoked in the lyrics, the duet vocals with Kristy MacColl ... I mean, this is almost legit one of those "What do you want me to say?" kind of songs. You might've no doubt long heard about how this is one of, if not **the** greatest Christmas song ever written. I know I have! And I'll be blunt that there was some part of me going in that wanted to refute that! Maybe it **don't** live up to the hype, actually! And yet there I was, coming up the final chorus, and by goodness, I was on the verge of tears. I never flowed over, but just the fact **alone** I came so close ... yeah. I'm willing to agree it's one of the greats — largely for how non-traditional it is, but still. And it's absolutely one of those songs that elevates the album its on by a whole point, on the level of Stevie Wonder's "Living For The City" or David Bowie's "Life On Mars?". Now if only we'd gotten it **after** Halloween ... though it would have meant waiting **long** for this album, so... In conclusion, I gotta admit, I'm surprised I had this much to say about this album. I mean, when you get down to it, my enjoyment of this album is so simple: it's Irish pub singalongs. Songs that can and often **are** about important shit, but that're nonetheless fun to drunkenly sing with your friends as you let your worries go, even for a little while. It's not somewhere you're supposed to **stay** — again, my comment about parties — but as a brief reprieve from a hard world, where you can drown it all out with some good whiskey and friends ... how can you hate that? Honestly. And I would be more than willing to go another round — and it more than likely won't take me another 497 days to do it.

Stripped

Christina Aguilera

4/5

Looking back, I feel like I was maybe a little harsh on Christina's 'Back To Basics'. Was it really as bad as I made it seem? Probably not. Besides two tracks in the middle where she strokes her ego about how she's an awesome singer who's gonna be popular forever (she says on the album before the one that killed her momentum), I think I mostly just chaffed about how I felt like it failed to live up to its promise. The whole point of the album is that it was supposed to be a modernized take on old school jazz and soul, and she went so far as to make an alter ego for the album ... and yet besides a few shout-outs on one track to people like Etta James, I just didn't hear it. And with it being a needlessly long double album, too ... I'unno, at the time the whole ordeal just got under my skin. Contrast all of that with this album, the one before 'Back To Basics'. As far as I was aware, there were no promises coming in. At least no lofty ones about being "modernized retro" or whatever. Like, sure, sure, there's this undercurrent about Christina shedding her bubblegum image to make deeper, more mature and personal music (she even made another alter ego! "Xtina"). It's part of the reason why she's topless on the cover — I think it's supposed to represent her being more emotionally open. And more sexual, too, I guess. In this way I think she ended up laying the groundwork for a lot of other teen artists' "I'm an ADULT now!" records — but anyway... There's all of that to consider, sure. It's not **not** important. But if I'm keeping things completely honest, at the end of the day, it doesn't really matter to me. This is a pop album, and that by itself is how I listened to this thing. I mean, if someone else wants to be a poptimist and dive into the layers, they're more than welcome to it. Me, I just wanted to listen to this like any rock album — that being, if the tracks are fun to listen to, then it's probably a good record. And y'know what? It's a perfectly good record. I do have a complaint or two, but, I mean, come on, what album is totally sinless? Maybe 'Alpocalypse', but that's besides the point. Let's start with what I liked about this thing. For one, I do appreciate the variety of styles that get tried on here. There's some hip hop-inspired tracks, a funky one, some jazzy/soulful piano ballads ... heck, there's even a rocker, with a neat lil' guitar solo in there. I think I would've expected this album to be just straightforward pop through and through, so it's nice to hear Christian and company tried out some other sounds. Then there's Christian's voice. Now, normally I'm not a **big** fan of it. I think that while she clearly **does** have chops, she seems pretty taken with always wanting to show it off, always belting and going for vocal theatrics. I've read her say she only does them for fun, but I feel it often leaves her feeling pretty hollow as a vocalist. Here, though, she made a conscious effort to pull back on the theatrics, and, y'know, it's nice to hear a bit more range in her voice. It's something else I very much appreciate. And those are the things I liked! I know there's not a lot, but, again, I **was** only listening to this as a pop album. As far as those things go, I say it did pretty good for itself. But let's get to the complaint or two. Let me start by saying that all of the songs on here are, bare minimum, fine. Some of them are good, and at worst they're fine. I don't take issue with any of them on their own. But, however, when your album is twenty tracks and nearly 80 minutes ... yeah, there's a slight problem. Suddenly the fine tracks start to blend with each other a bit more, and you really hafta wonder, honestly, did it **need** to be this long? Which is a thoughtline best exemplified by the closing three tracks. A fellow group member of mine called them a "1-2-3 punch," but to me it was more like, "OK, the album's over now ... oh, there's another song? OK, I guess, I guess it's ended again ... and now there's **another one**? And it's ending **again**? On this breakbeat, of all things?" You can't tell me every song needed to be. We're a few years off from prime CD bloat, but honestly now, it does sort of feel like it. This sort of length thing wasn't an issue for that fellow group member, and, y'know, it's not like it should really be for me anyway. I listened to this thing in chunks, by record side, instead of taking it all at once. And like I said, on an individual level, every song is fine at worst. But I hafta look at the whole picture, and, yeah, it's enough for me to think slightly less of the thing. Still, I easily liked this album a lot better than 'Back To Basics'. I don't think it necessarily made a fan of Christinia, and I'unno if I'd reach for this album first over ones by the likes of Britney Spears or whoever ... but, hey, it didn't get me off ranting like 'Back To Basics' did, and that alone is a major improvement and earns it my seal of approval. Which I know you weren't aiming for whatsoever, Xtina, but still.

Warehouse: Songs And Stories

Hüsker Dü

4/5

The moment this album started it occurred to me that, until just now, I had the completely wrong idea what these guys would sound like. I mean, you look at this name: Hüsker Dü. Vaguely German? Double umalauts? To be quite honest, I'd gotten the impression they were some kind of experimental group — based entirely on how their name read to me, yeah, but still. So when I pressed "play" on this album and was met with ... dang, R.E.M.-type punk music? Oh, I was just delighted. Suddenly I'm thinking the next 68 minutes weren't going to be so bad after all. And absolutely they weren't bad at all. Going just off of the energy I got from these songs, I had quite the fun time. Now, I'd absolutely meant to listen to the lyrics; I pulled them up alongside every song. But then, I ended up listening to this in largely the same way I did Minutemen's 'Double Nickels On The Dime': kinda jus' letting the energy in these songs propel me and carry me forward. If there were any problems in the lyrics, they sure didn't matter to me. Heck, if the vocals weren't all that great, I sure as heck didn't mind. Just another instrument to keep things rolling along. Though, I will say: I don't think this is **as good* as 'Double Nickels On The Dime'? And in general, while I enjoyed my time with this record, I don't think it should have been a double album, honestly? And all for the simple fact that I don't think this album really "justified" being a double album. Now, when I talk about length in regards to double albums, I'm often referring to whether or not they come across as "egotistical," or whether some kind of "hubris" has been breached. That's not the case here; I don't feel any ego or hubris coming off of this record. It's more just a matter of ... the songs are good, but collectively I don't think they're **that good**? Immediately my mind heads over to such albums like Prince's 'Sign "O" The Times' or The Beatles' White Album, and those aren't very fair comparisons. I mean, those albums are famous for their variety, something this one clearly wasn't aiming for. How am I gonna compare an album that has "Revolution 9" and "Good Night" next to each other to a double record that's happy to be R.E.M.-style punk the whole way through, y'know? The more apt comparison is of course to 'Double Nickels On The Dime', but even then it doesn't feel 100. I think of 'Double Nickels On The Dime' as less a collection of songs and more a series of bursts of punk electricity. You don't **have** to think about songs on an individual level, and you don't **need to** — that's the strength of 'Double Nickels'. Whereas, here on 'Warehouse', it **does** feel like you need that consideration ... and it just doesn't rate as strongly. And when you're losing to an album that has a side titled "Chaff"...! Maybe this album would be better off as one of those double album games where you pick a single album out of it? Y'know, like people have done with The White Album, or I've seen people do with Guns N' Roses' 'Use Your Illusion'. I think you could get something out of it. But then that just leads me to the thought that this album probably should've gotten the "White and Whiter Album" treatment — two separate releases, y'know? But explicitly separate releases; not something like 'Use Your Illusion I' and 'II' or Metallica's 'Load' and 'Reload' releases. I'm just saying, an album where I don't get spooked by the single chord fakeout at the end of "Ice Cold Ice" would be nice. And while we're splitting this album into two distinct releases, you may as well take the opportunity to trim some of these songs down a bit. As much as I enjoyed the energy of these songs, I could still tell that some of them were maybe going on a hair longer than they should have? For sure some of those outros could've been condensed. It still would've been a joy, in my eyes; I don't think you would've been losing much. One more thing: I've said I was unaware for the longest time that Hüsker Dü sounded like this. Honestly, I kind of wish I knew earlier, but that's besides the point. If I knew any one thing about Hüsker Dü, for absolute certain, it's that this ... is not the album I would have picked. From everything I'd read and taken in, I would've thought that 'New Day Rising' would've been here. That's the one on the Rolling Stone 500. Heck, I've seen people talk about this band's debut, 'Zen Arcade' — maybe that could've been here? Heck, it's the album that inspired the recording of 'Double Nickels On The Dime', so it would've been fitting given all of the comparisons I've made here. And besides the acclaim I've heard elsewhere, these are both single disc albums, so, y'know, maybe a little... I'unno. Despite my harping and going on, I still had a good time with this record. It could have been shortened a **little**, but in the end I didn't mind all that much until I got near the end. If nothing else, as a crash course on what this band actually sounds like, I'm more than satisfied. I might even hafta check out those two other albums at some point — who knows? For the time being, though, 'Warehouse' gets my approval. And I still like your double umlauts — that's just cool metal shit.

D.O.A. the Third and Final Report of Throbbing Gristle

Throbbing Gristle

3/5

Well — it had to happen at some point. Finally and at last, the Randomizer has hit my group with what is, as I'm writing this (and as I'm sure it has been long before and will be long after), the lowest rated album on the entire website. A 1.88. Only one of two albums with a sub-2 average, and 'Kollaps' is way more on the verge of being a straight 2 than this thing is. And if I may borrow some vibes from this album, just for a moment: I think y'all are cowards. Now, that's more antagonistic than I normally like to be, number one. On top of that, it's not like it's exactly news to me that the people who rate albums on this website are not fans of experimental music — besides Kid Rock, I think every album in the bottom 15 or 20 is heavily experimental in some way. And it's not like I begrudge them or even don't understand why these are rated the way they are; I'm not even here to tell you I'm that over the moon about Throbbing Gristle here. I just can't help but be struck by the thought that it seems most people refuse to give these albums a chance. They put them on, hear something abrasive or weird or just something they're not used to, and they call the albums "noise" and refuse to engage with it any further. Not that they don't have to if they don't want to, but if you're going to review it, you should probably give it more of an honest chance. For me, it just comes back to the "noise" descriptor. Describing this album as "noise" would imply that it's thoughtless; that it's just a collection of random sounds that had an "experimental" label slapped on to justify it. Believe me, I've done the same thing myself: if you wanna hear **real** noise, go check out John Zorn's 'Spy vs. Spy' album (if you dare!). But let me be the first to tell you: this music is not thoughtless. Can it be a little loose? Yes, absolutely. In some spots ("Hometime"), it might be even a little too easy to replicate. But there's no spot in this album where I'm listening to it and I'm thinking they weren't thinking about what they were doing. And I suppose the problem with what they're doing is that it's antagonistically abrasive and weird, but, I'unno, if you can meet it on the grounds it's coming on... Of course, I might just have weird ears. As I've explained in other reviews of/babbles about experimental albums, I feel like I have the kind of ears that can ... hear past the weirdness? And, y'know, get to the core of what they're trying to do underneath. And as a result, oftentimes I'm sort of left ... unimpressed by experimental albums, if I can be honest. I might be the only person on this website who, if they have a negative reaction towards an experimental album, it's because they're bored than because they're actively repulsed. I mean, I'll tell you that I agree with a group member of mine that some of these songs could've probably been cut down by a minute or two... But at least when I say I'm bored by this album, it's because I actively tried to engage with it, instead of shutting myself off the moment I heard something too abrasive for my sensibilities. And I'm not gonna act like I've always been 100% perfect about engagement, but goodness me. Like, I'm trying to be fair to all these people giving this thing 1's, because, again, I **get it**. But I really don't think this album deserves it, honestly. I mean, when Kid Rock's on this same list with his collection of insultingly trash wannabe pimp cowboy raps, or when you have something like 'Haut de gamme''s horrifically inspired cruise commercial music, I don't get why an album that actively tries to do something and challenge you should be rated worse. So, like ... look, to actually speak about the album directly, without relating it back to the other point I've been trying to make, it's fiiiiiine. There's some kind of interesting stuff on here, some stuff that maybe goes on a bit too long ... and there's honestly a really pretty moment with the track "AB/7A". But on the whole, with my weird ears, I can't say I'm terribly over the moon about any of this. It is what it is, and while overall I'm happier to have heard something unique like this than another boilerplate 60's psych album or random "popular with critics" British album, it's absolutely not my cup of tea, and I can't imagine putting it on for casual listening, y'know. So, yeah. Honestly, this review ended up a bit more of a babble about other people's reviews than actually being a discussion about the album ... and you could maybe say I'm being kinder to this than I otherwise would solely as a means to push that point ... but I wanna think that even if I hadn't seen these reviews or the average score I would have felt the same way about this album. It's by no means for everyone, but it is absolutely not the worst album on this list. "Fight the real enemy," I say: bland, boring music that doesn't aim to challenge you. Throbbing Gristly, despite my not being terribly impressed by them, at least tried to do that much. And I have to give them credit for it, if nothing else.

Spiderland

Slint

2/5

Y'know, I was actually interested to listen to this album. Honestly, I was. I read on Wikipedia that this was gonna be some math rock (among other things), and, y'know, I've had some experience with that before. Sure, that experience was a parody where the refrain went "I'm smarterrrrr than yoooou," but still. It'd be neat to get some real experience. It could be cool. And I had a good idea what I was getting into, so it wasn't like I was gonna be jumpscared by anything. I was gonna have a good time. And yet what I **actually** got was ... jeez, a heckuva lot less. On a purely musical level, I think this is one of the most nothing albums I've ever received. Both in terms of shit actually happening and in terms of ... y'know, leaving me with any feeling. I'm not even sure what I was **supposed** to get out of this. Maybe a light sense of melancholy? I wish I could've gotten something even remotely close to that, goodness. It's funny. This feels like one of the first albums in a while where I've actually gotten more out of the **lyrics** than I've gotten out of the music. And it's not like the lyrics do much for me anyway; I couldn't exactly sort out what they were supposed to mean. But I was interested in their narrative style. The way they were spoken sometimes didn't do it for me 100%, but, y'know, it was different, and I appreciate that. There's clearly something **here**. I just wish the music could have been more interesting to support that. And it's not even like the music is all bad. There are a couple of releases that make the endless build-up worth it. But largely, that's all this music sounds like to be: endless build-up. It's a kind of sound where, if I had to assign it a color, it'd be ... grey. With maybe a slight gradient that goes off to black and white at the edges, though it's largely a dull, blurry grey. I mean, maybe if I was more into music theory I could pick out exactly what was going on in these instrumentals and get something out of 'em, but since I got myself a pretty tin ear... I'unno. I'm a little surprised I even managed to pull this much out to say about it. It's just a largely dull album, though on the cusp of being something more interesting, and I think that's ultimately what disappoints me about it most of all. Like, as much as I wanna give it additional props for almost being something ... eh. I just can't. To the people who gave this thing a cult following, I'm glad you can hear something in it that I don't. Myself ... I think I'm just gonna go listen to that math rock parody again. At least stuff is happening on that. ""I'm smarterrrrr than yoooou..."

Tanto Tempo

Bebel Gilberto

4/5

Is every bossa nova album on this list from a Gilberto? There's 'Getz/Gilberto', the most famous one from the most famous Gilberto, João ... then you have 'Beach Samba', an album from Astrud, who was João's wife at the time ... and now we have 'Tanto Tempo' from Bebel, who's the daughter of João and his second wife. That's three Gilbertos on this list right there. And I guess the honest question, did there **need** be three? From what I remember, 'Beach Samba' was kind of a "no." If you wanted to hear Astrud's voice, 'Getz/Gilberto' and "The Girl From Ipanema" were right there. So what about Bebel, then? Does she **need** to be here? Is this a lil' bit of a nepo baby case, hm? Well, strictly in terms of it **needing** to be here ... that's entirely subjective, but to me I don't **really** think so? And as for Bebel being a nepo baby ... for one, unless it's someone like Gracie Abrams, being a "nepo baby" doesn't really matter to me. If they have the chops, they have the chops; I don't care if one or both of their parents are a blue link on Wikipedia or not. And to be quite honest, I think Bebel has the chops — enough of 'em, at least. I mean, look, this is not a complicated album whatsoever. It's just vibes, y'know? And good-ass vibes at that. I don't know what bossa nova is generally "supposed" to be for, but at least in the case of this album, it seems like a very good one to put on and just kind of relax to. I really dug the way Bebel and producer Scuba (RIP) put this thing together. Now, of course, if you try listening to this thing a little closer ... that can maybe be where it starts to fall apart a little? I can see someone listening to this album and wishing there was maybe a **little** more going on. I know there were parts where I kind of spaced out and was then surprised to hear a song end. It might've looped some of its parts a **wee bit** too much for its own good, y'know? And, like, yeah, generally I wouldn't say any of these songs blew me away — and even in the realm of relaxing "vibes" music I **do** feel like I've heard better, even if I don't know **exactly** how you'd judge compare albums ... but, eh, I'unno. They're notable enough for me to bring up, but in the end they don't bother me **that** much. It's more a case where I don't think the albums highs are high enough versus thinking its lows are particularly low. In any case ... I mean, I'm kind of out of words, honestly. It's just a good "vibe-y" record to throw on if you need some vibes. If you want something you can actively engage with, you're probably better looking somewhere else. But I'll tell you this much: as my group's third album from a Gilberto, it's easily the second best. That ain't nothing. Also, for the record, the answer to my question that started this review/babbe is actually "no": Getz has a second album, with Charlie Byrd, and there's other stuff from artists like Caetano Veloso. Still: three outta seven, my goodness...

1984

Van Halen

5/5

The problem with discussing Van Halen's '1984' is that my group's already gotten the band's debut. Nearly everything I'd wanna say about Van Halen I already said there: Eddie plays like a motherfucker, David Lee Roth is one of the **the** frontmen of all time, Michael Anthony and Alex are one hell of a rhythm combo, and Van Halen wouldn't be the band they are without Michael's backing vocals. All of that applies here and then some. What else could you need, and what else would you want me to say? Well ... I suppose I **can** comment on the synths. Lemme start with this: did you know that both David Lee Roth and producer Ted Templeman didn't want the band to record "Jump"? Eddie was **all** for it, but Dave and Ted both balked at the idea of including **keyboards** in the band's sound — and having Eddie play them, no less! He was already a guitar hero! One of the best of his day, and any other from then on! Now he wanted to be a multi-instrumentalist? Come on, come on — who wants to see Eddie play a **keyboard**? Well, apparently Eddie had long held an interest in keys. When he was growing up both he and his brother Alex were taught to play classical piano — though neither of them were big fans. They took to rock n' roll way better. But the ivories would never exactly leave Eddie's life. In fact, according to Paul Stanley, Eddie was so blown away stumbling across KISS recording "Creatures Of The Night" that he wanted to start playing synthesizers. Paul Stanley, like Dave and Ted, didn't understand why Eddie would wanna do such a thing. And it's not like synths were ever completely absent from Van Halen albums before now. They were just ... never the focus, y'know? Like, did you know that "...And The Cradle Will Rock" has a Wurlitzer on it? I sure didn't until I decided to research Eddie's history with keys! And I probably didn't notice because the thing was processed heavily to sound like Eddie's guitar — and **that** was probably the only reason he got away with including it. After that, I think he might've been allowed to record an interlude for their 'Diver Down' album on a Minimoog ... and that was about it until '1984' rolled around. And it's not like I don't get where Dave and Ted are coming from in their opposition to Eddie's synths. I mean, what did Van Halen **need them** for? Both in the sense that they were already one of the hottest hard rock bands around, and, well, that they were a hard rock band. What place would a synthesizer have in a song like "Runnin' With The Devil"? It's not like they needed synths to give them pop appeal; Van Halen was already great at that thanks to Dave's sensibilities. On this album alone you have a single like "Panama", which is an AC/DC-inspired piece of hard glam and it's great! Elsewhere you have "Hot For Teacher", which opens with a monster of a double-bass drum solo, and the craziness doesn't stop until the song ends. Seriously, you gotta give credit for "Hot For Teacher" as one of Van Halen's best songs, on this album and in general. I never get tired of the wild energy it has. Then you've got the rest of the album, with "Drop Dead Legs", "Top Jimmy", "Girl Gone Bad", "House Of Pain" ... none of them exactly all **that special** in the grand scheme of Van Halen's discography, but incredibly fun slices of heavy party rock nonetheless, and you'd miss 'em if even one was cut. But despite Dave and Ted's fair protestation, the very first thing you hear on this album is synths, on the opening title track. And while it ain't much more than a minute, it's some wonderful synth work, and I do truly love it. Elsewhere on the album you've got "I'll Wait", which, of the two synth songs on this album is certainly the lesser ... and maybe strays a **bit** too far away from Van Halen's strengths than you'd like ... like, damn, if it ain't the most synth-poppy synth-pop song the band ever made ... I mean, it's still a good tune. Eddie plays a good line, I love Alex's drumming on this, Dave still puts in a great performance ... I can't really complain about it. Especially not when Eddie pulls out a cool little solo over these synths. And this, then, with no other songs left to address, brings us to **the** song of the album, and the single biggest hit of Van Halen's career, in any iteration: "Jump". Now, I've long held the belief that Van Halen's signature song is something like "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love" or "Running With The Devil". I'd wanna say it's "Eruption", but that wouldn't be fair to every non-Eddie member of the band. And even on this album, if I had to choose my favorite song, it'd be "Hot For Teacher", like I said. But let's not put down "Jump". You might be sick of it from overplay, but, y'know, heck. It more than deserves its spot as one of Van Halen's greatest songs. Very simply, it is just one of the absolute finest pieces of pop metal this band would ever provide. The way Eddie's synths drive the song is just phenomenal. And that synth solo he pulls out after the guitar solo? Goodness, I guess he hadn't forgotten too much of his classical pianist training. And it's just one of the most simple fun songs the band would ever make. I mean, I love the metal and hard rock stuff they do, obviously, but ain't nothing wrong with a simple pop song every now and then. And I can only imagine what a joy it must've been for Eddie to finally go all out on the synths on these songs, even if they only make up a third of the album. After '1984', as you probably very well know, David Lee Roth was kicked out of the band. His replacement, Sammy Hagar, seemed to be kinder to keys and synths than Dave was, given that they show up prominently on hits such as "Right Now". And until this writing I'd never heard "Right Now" in full, but it's a good tune, with some good keys. And then Gary Cherone was brought on after Sammy got the boot and Eddie decided to try his best Roger Waters impersonation at the end of 'Van Halen III' ... but let's not dwell on that, eh? As David Lee Roth's last album with Van Halen (until 'A Different Kind Of Truth' in 2012, which would end up being the band's final record), I can't think of a better note to've gone out on than '1984'. It's got all the good stuff you'd want from Van Halen and then some. Sure, the songs aren't as consistently tight as the ones on their debut, but it's still Dave Lee Roth-era Van Halen. That's nothing to sneeze at, lemme tell you. And as a realization of Eddie's longstanding desire to play keys, '1984' is just a joy. Sure, even with the success of "Jump" it didn't cause Eddie to be remembered as a keyboard warrior (if you wanna use that term) as well as he is a guitar hero ... but damn if he wasn't good at it while he was playing it. And I can't help but think that he must've helped convince a few people to pick up keys themselves. If Eddie, a meedly-meedly tapper, can tickle some form of ivories, why can't they? And even if they didn't, they still had one of the all-time greatest synth-led rock songs to jam out to. And that is just doubleplusgood.

evermore

Taylor Swift

4/5

Of every period of Taylor's career, I get the feeling the '-ore' duology might be the weirdest to look back on, because ... well, I have to wonder, honestly: was any of this ever real? Like, did she ever truly mean it? And this is something I've been thinking of for a while now — long before 'The Life Of A Showgirl' was plopped out, even. Believe me, songs like the one where she fulfills the joke about how she'd call her boyfriend's dick a redwood tree don't help anything, but I think I've been having these thoughts ... as far back as 'Midnights', I'm sure? When news of The Eras Tour was going crazy and she **really** started getting over-exposed. And at some point, the thought occurred to me: I really thought she'd still be making albums like the '-ore' ones. I mean, consider the arc her career's had. She started in country music, making light, teen-age country songs. As time went on, she moved more and more into pop music until she finally dove straight into the straight-up shit on '1989' — and it blew up. The **hell** up. It made her one of the biggest artists on the planet! Just in time for her to crawl almost completely up her ass with 'reputation'! An album where, if you didn't give as much of a shit about personal drama as she did ... hoo-boy. It wasn't too well received by the public (so I remember). She tried to course correct with 'Lover', and she **did** achieve some mild success with it. I just don't think it was enough. Cut to 2020, then: the pandemic's hit and she's released her first album of indie folk tunes, 'folklore', to be shortly followed by 'evermore' later that same year. And I really think it was those two being released so close together that gave me the impression that this was going to be her direction from now on. Sure, it might've just been that she was bored during lockdown and, like everyone, couldn't tour, so she popped out two albums to keep her momentum up ... but again, consider that she started as a teenager in country music. To me, her making indie folk felt like she'd come full circle and became an adult. And she wasn't writing exclusively about herself anymore! She was writing stories about characters! Like, she tried diving deep into her "lore" with those last two albums, and it was a **litle** embarrassing (especially on 'reputation'), so now that she's got that experiment out of her system ... y'know? Now can she spend the rest of her career making this kind of music. That'll be just fine. Nope. The '(Taylor's Versions)' re-recordings happened. The Eras Tour happened. 'Midnights' happened. And not only was she done with indie folk, she made clear that she'd be happy to keep hammering on one topic for the rest of her career: her lore and herself. To the point where I've seen shit like 'The Tortured Poets Department' called "lore drops" way too often to not mean anything. This is what I'm talking about: did she ever **really** want to be an indie folk artist? Is this truly where her heart was? Or was latching onto the cottagecore aesthetic just convenient because COVID was rampaging and people maybe weren't in the mood for 'Lover 2: reputation Part III'? I know this much: she **does** seem like she wants to be talked about in the same breath as indie artists. It seems that's why 'evermore' and later 'The Tortured Poets Department' would feature so many. But given her retreat into "let's talk about ME!" pop music, I hafta wonder how much she really wanted to do that here, in indie folk. Now, I'll tell you: it's not like it really matters to me whether or not she was 100% truthful about this folk pivot. This isn't something like "Shake It Off", where she's so clearly lying through her teeth (and grinning so hard through her anger that her teeth might shatter) that the whole thing pisses me off. Besides, I'm not enough into her music anyway to be invested in whether or not this sound was actually a reality or not. To be quite honest, of the two albums she has on this list, this is the one I was looking forward to **way more**. Even if '1989' has songs like "Style" and "Wildest Dreams", it **doesn't** have shit like "Shake It Off" or "Bad Blood". As I've been saying: it's indie folk! Where she sings about other people! I can handle that just fine! It's just, having lived through so much complete Taylor overload and overexposure ... it's hard **not** to wonder, y'know? I mean, I'll give her this much at least: as far as indie folk goes, this album is perfectly pleasant. Y'know. I'm not head-over in love with it. But it's a pretty nice hour of stories. I'll admit, when she's not trying to diss Charli xcx, she has a bit of a way with a pen. "marjorie" is the one I'm particularly drawn to, given how it was written during the pandemic. Goodness. And her voice is good, too, over these folky instrumentals. I mean, I never thought she had a bad voice, but it plays much better here than over, say, whatever the hell "...Ready For It?" was. The guests do good jobs, too — Bon Iver on the title track is particularly neat. And ... that's about the size of my commentary on the actual album itself! One paragraph buried deep under a lot of babble about exterior context. I really should have more to say about the music itself, but it really didn't inspire me to write too much. At least not as much as its historical context did. I mean, if that ain't the Taylor Swift experience for me, eh? Where it seems like the context and "lore" are more important than the actual music is. And I'll emphasize again, this is particularly good music from her; I really **did** like a number of songs on here. Jus', eh — what it is, y'know. So, whether or not she was being truthful with this indie folk swing ... I guess it really doesn't matter too much. Even if it **was** a lit, she still produced some good tunes. And ultimately, that's more important. I'm not enough of a "hater" that I can't give her kudos for that. Seriously, I wish she was still writing stuff like this and not shit like "CANCELLED!". Honest to goodness, I know your lore pays the big bucks, but seriously...

Time Out Of Mind

Bob Dylan

5/5

Ahead of me there are two men named Bob. I approach the older one. ~~{*}~~ If I've said it once, I've said it a million times: I don't get Bob Dylan lyrics. And chances are, frankly, that I never will. It's sure not for lack of trying on my part, believe me; I've put in the effort to try and understand just what he's going on about. Well, effort short of going and getting a literary degree. But there are times, and plenty of them at that, where it feels like that's the only way I'm going to understand just what in the hell he's blabbering about. I'm AuDHD. Like other people as lucky as me, I have a hard time understanding poetry. I'm the kind of person who needs shit explained to me. Now, I'm not dumb, of course; I **can** get meaning. Just not as easily as other people can. I mean, if I can pull just as much meaning from any random Bob Dylan song as I can the parodies by Weird Al and from the movie 'Walk Hard' ... y'know? It's such a weird little spot to find myself in. Because despite my failure to understand Dylan's lyrics, I **have** bought into the history, myth and legacy that've been built up around him. It just comes with the territory of being the kind of person who treats the 2012 Rolling Stone 500 as a definitive list. I mean, if I can buy the hype around The Beatles — and believe me, I do ... I understand, completely, what he meant to the 60's. I understand why his "finger pointin'" songs were so important. I understand how he influenced so many other artists of his generation. I understand why his turn to electric was so controversial. I get how **that** influenced a bunch of people, too. And I understand why an artist like him would have **seven album** on this list. (By pure solo albums he's tied with Neil Young and only surpassed by David Bowie, who has two more.) Whether or not you like his music, as a songwriter, he is **incredibly** important to the history of Western music. I understand all of that. I just can't make heads or tails of his actual **words**. And if you can't understand his words ... well, like with a lot of other 60's folk singer-songwriters, if you can't parse, you may as well give up and go listen to The Monkees. And I've enjoyed a lot of Monkees songs. The way I understand Bob Dylan's career is that it didn't immediately keel over once the 60's ended. Oh, sure, he seemingly tried to kill it off himself with 'Self Portrait', though it 'twas not be. I doubt he was as big in the 70's as he was in the 60's, but he managed to hang in there. Hell, he put out one of his acclaimed albums come 1975, 'Blood On The Tracks'. He couldn't have been doing **too** badly. Not until the 80's came, anyway. And I don't think I'd have look too deeply into how his 80's went to figure it probably wasn't a very good decade for him. Bob Dylan, in the MTV era? No way. And it seemed like he was done for good once 1990 rolled around and he released what could have been his final album of original material, 'Under The Red Sky'. I've never heard it, but just knowing that it starts off with a song called "Wiggle Wiggle" is not a good sign. After that, it seems he didn't put out much. Two albums of folk covers, a live album culled from 'MTV Unplugged' ... this could have been it for Dylan. He'd been the voice of a generation back in the 60's and had somehow managed to ride that out for nearly three decades. Maybe it was time for this voice to take a rest. And he did. Until 1997. And, suddenly, he's back on top. It was the biggest comeback he'd ever had and exactly the one he needed. It earned him swathes of critical acclaim, and he even beat out Radiohead and 'OK Computer' for Album Of The Year. And 28 years later, he's still going. Dylan owes his latter day career to this album. So I suppose this deep into this review it's about time I finally actually bring up my thoughts about this album. And I'll tell you, from the onset I wasn't looking forward to it. "A 71 minute Dylan album? Oh, no thank you! That's 71 minutes of poetry I can't understand! I would rather not take that long a chunk out of my life just to be confused by ol' Bobby D." Ah, but unless I wanna give up on this project over 600 albums, there was nothing I could do but rip the bandage off and actually give it a shot. So ... how 'bout it, then? What do I think of 'Time Out Of Mind'? Y'know what my favorite part about this album is? Honestly? The words. This is, bar none, the most I've ever loved the words on a Bob Dylan. And **of course** it's when they're at their simplest. This ain't no "Desolation Row" shit, where you need a bachelor's degree in the studies of Dylan to even begin to come up with a thesis, no. These are remarkably straight forward lyrics. And as a result, I am able to get **way** more into these stories he's telling. Maybe it means I'm dumb because I get these and not the songs with big words — but who cares, honestly? Let me have this. It just feels so nice to understand the **emotion** of what he's saying. It's more like I'm reading a novel than trying to decipher poetry, and I **like** that. Shout out to "Not Dark Yet" as a particular highlight. Besides that, the actual music supporting these songs is very good, too. Very bluesy, very melancholy ... it's stuff I would have enjoyed even if I hadn't understood the words, but, surprise, because I do, they both get elevated. The music supports the words, the words support the music ... is this what I've been missing this whole time? Would the endless guitar plonking on those old 60's albums actually sound better if I could parse the lyrics? Though I'd probably still heavily prefer the stuff on here. Seriously, some **good** electric blues stuff. I should bring up Dylan's voice as well. A fellow member of my group compared it to Tom Waits and his raspy growl, and I can see where it's coming from. It's like if Dyan was trying to do a Tom Waits impersonation ... but obviously, he's not. It's just thirty years of age settling on his voice. And it's not the classic kind of nasal warble we know him for, but dang if it don't work for this material. With all of these songs about heartbreak, it's only fitting that Dylan sounds as worldweary as he does. This is a man who's seen some shit in his day, let 'em you. My fellow group member brought up Tom Waits in the context of his album 'Swordfishtrombone', and that's the vibe I get here — though while Waits is up on stage singing songs for and about the people, Dylan's at the bar, telling stories to anyone who'll listen. All in all, I hardly end up noticing the fact that this album is over 70 minutes long. Even the songs that exceed seven minutes, they're gripping enough stories that the time slips away. The only song that didn't really grab me as well as it could have was the closer, "Highlands". It is, in fact, 16 and a half minutes long. It was, additionally, the longest song of his career until "Murder Most Fowl" five years ago (and it only beat "Highlands" by seconds). And, y'know, it's not like there isn't something strangely captivating about this song. There's a lot of "useless conversation" in this thing, which I've always found strangely attracted to; it's one of my favorite things to write in my free time. But after everything else on this album, this song can't help but feel less like Dylan's telling you a story and more like he's going on about how he had to buy himself a new shoe heel one time, so he took a ferry to Morganville (which is what they called Shelbyville in those days). So he tied an onion to his belt, which was the style at the time ... I mean, y'get it. In close, I am actually kind of surprised I liked this album as much as I did. After how much I struggled with his earlier albums (looking back on them in retrospect), I thought a Dylan album would never truly strike a chord with me. Heck, with how much I struggle with fokies of his ilk in general ... and yet, it turns out all I really needed from Dylan was some age, some simpler words, and some time out of mind. And there I am, happily enjoying some Dylan. It's easily my favorite album from him yet. And while I can't tell you it's made me a Dylan superfan yet ... I'm getting there.

Home Is Where The Music Is

Hugh Masekela

3/5

It's sort of funny how often I mention that "I'm music first." "Lyrics aren't not important to me", I always say, "but I come to music for the **music**, y'know?" And that's well and fine and all; who **doesn't** come to music for the music? But it's just the thought that if that were really true that I am "music first" I'd maybe have something more to say about instrumental music like this — and I really don't. It's largely been my problem with talking about jazz, in any form. I **need** some kind of hook to go off and jazz often doesn't provide me with any. Sure, sure, there's discussing it on a compositional level, but I mean I need a hook that **I** can talk about. An album like 'Hot Rats' can provide me one with where it fits in Frank Zappa's discography ... 'In A Silent Way' had one provided for it, where I could defend it against the claim that it's elevator music ... but this? I'm not sure what the hook is supposed to be here. And I **did** look; I read up on Hugh Masekela and he sounds like a pretty upstanding guy. Largely in the same way Miriam Makeba did (and it makes total sense to me that they were married). I mean, this man has been called the father of African jazz; I should be able to pull out **something** to say about his music. And yet... But, yeah, yeah, we all know that talking about music is like dancing about architecture. I'll stop complaining and try to actually write something down. 'Home Is Where The Music Is' is ... good background music. When your ears train on it to listen to it, it's good stuff — good **structured** stuff, at that. But with these songs being as long as they are, and as generally pleasant as they are, I didn't feel the need to try and stay locked onto them for too long. Instead, I used it as an excuse to finish the book I was reading ('The Running Man', ahead of the new movie). In those terms, it's really pretty good. I sort of doubt this music was composed with the idea of it being audio wallpaper (I can't imagine any music being made that way besides ambient), but, 'ey, that's what I got out of it. And I never mean "background music" as an insult anyway. And ... that's it! Really now. And, like, sure, maybe I was distracted by my book and that's why I couldn't come up with too much to say. I can accept that. But I get the impression I'd've come out the other side with just as much to say about this music anyway. Maybe I'd have a comment to make about its length (76 minutes, goodness!), but ... yeah. I'unno. It's good stuff; just not anything that inspires me to wanna write too much. At least I was able to hit my average word count, so that's something...

Cosmo's Factory

Creedence Clearwater Revival

5/5

Y'wanna know what's crazy about Creedence? This was their fifth album in two years. Yeah — the pace Creedence was at at their height was **crazy**. I mean, as I remember John Fogerty saying once, "Every three months there's a new Creedence single." With this album, we're six months out from 'Wily & The Poor Boys', which was their **third** album of 1969. Heck, we're a year and change out from the first album my group got from these guys, 'Bayou Country', which was their **first** album of '69. It's like, the only band who's since managed to have a crazier rate of output was King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, who'd managed to put out multiple albums in single years **multiple years**. And they managed to **double** Creedence's output the **first** year they did that! And what's particularly remarkable about both of these bands is that while their releases were generous, they **never** skimped on the quality. Obviously Gizz's track record is more impressive given the range of styles they attempt on each album, but Creedence is sure no slouch. Sure, it's largely all hard livin' swamp rock, though you'd imagine after putting out five albums in two years they'd've run out of songs and tricks. I mean, come on, no one can put out five records of material without running out of steam, right? Not only is Creedence still running at full steam on this album, I think they're better here than they were five albums ago. Like, Creedence is truly a funny kind of band where their albums get worse the longer they take to make (y'want proof of that, go check out 'Mari Gras'and the rashomon shitshow that was **its** creation). But seriously, I think back to 'Bayou Country', and while I do like it a lot, I can't help but think it sounds so ... primordial in the face of this album? I mean, 'Bayou Country' is largely just swamp rock — **good** swamp rock, but nonetheless. Whereas this album, suddenly there's whole new worlds of sonic variety they're adding in. There's R&B and country and soul and psychedelia ... whereas on 'Bayou Country' there were songs I could take or leave, there's not a single one on 'Cosmo's Factory' I can imagine going without. Do you want an album without "Ramble Tamble"? Yeah, right. You wanna see the real comparison point between these albums, you just compare the longest song from 'Bayou Country' ("Graveyard Train") to the longest one here, their jammed out cover of "I Heard It Through The Grapevine". And, y'know, I really don't dislike "Graveyard Train"; as I've said, it's a slinky lil' number that you can pop yer fingers to. Hoh-cha! But at the same time, you'd be crazy not to acknowledge how comfortable the song is just sitting and spinning its wheels for a lot of its runtime. Like, jeez, can this train **go somewhere** already? Meanwhile, you'd think a jam track like "Grapevine" cover would get boring long before it hits ten minutes, but, dang, I'unno. I found it captivating the whole time. These guys can jus' really **play** — and not just Fogerty, but the other three guys as well: Stu, Doug and the other Fogerty, Tom. I can hear a lil' why radio stations were playing this thing in full way back when. But it's even in the smaller songs. As much as I love "Proud Mary", there are songs here it can only just hold a candle to. "Up Around The Bend", for one? Goodness. "Run Through The Jungle"? Incredible song for it only being one chord. "Lookin' Out My Back Door"? A fun little ditty about relaxing (love them "doo doo doo"s). "Long As I Can See The Light"? Just a wonderfully hopefully little closer. And just to think, they're considered a singles band, in the same kind of way Elvis was a singles artist — y'know, where they'd have a great hit single and then slap an album of other shit around it, usually covers. I suppose it helps that this album is made out of three great single (A- **and** B-sides), but come on, everything else they've put on here to fill the spaces is great as well. "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" is one of them. "Ooby Dooby" is stupid enough that I can't help but love it. Their take on "My Baby Left Me" is a bit more "That's Alright Mama" than the original, but damn if it still ain't a good take. And might I bring it up again: "Ramble Tamble". Another long song that succeeds in holding your interest where "Graveyard Train" can't. Goodness! Honestly, I'm kind of surprised I ended up writing this much about ... well, not just this album, but a Creedence album in general. I really don't ever ask too much of these things besides some good, rockin' tunes and to hear John Fogerty hollerin'. This album provides that in spades, and I really expected the length of my review to match my expectations. But dammit, if this ain't one of **the** finest albums in Creedence's discography. For my money I think I still might prefer their previous release, 'Willy & The Poor Boys' (that's the one with "Fortunate Son", and it's a shame the album's not on this list), but 'Cosmo's Factory' is nothing to sneeze at. Creedence was a damn hit machine at their height, and this was one of the highest highs that machine ever produced. Goodness me.

Punishing Kiss

Ute Lemper

4/5

How much am I **really** supposed to care about Ute Lemper? That's a mean sort of question, I realize — and the first time I asked it, to my peers, it was a **lot** meaner. It **is** legit, though, the one I asked myself when I first saw this album. I mean, judging a book entirely by its cover, I had to wonder if this album was even on here for her at all. Look at how it proudly boasts that it features songs from Nick Cave, Tom Waits, Elvis Costello, The Divine Comedy ... all the favorite artists of the people who use this website! It did sort of give me the feeling that the editors of the book saw all of these names, spooged their pants and slapped it in here without a second thought. And I can figure that kind of reaction was the one Ute was hoping for. From the little I've glimpsed at her discography, it seems she'd mostly been doing covers of songs from musicals. That must be a fine gig, but I can't imagine it'd get you too much critical respect unless you were just **that** good at it. Maybe, I imagine, she figured this would be her "serious album." She'd bring in all of these serious, critically beloved songwriters, alongside The Divine Comedy to provide instrumentals, and maybe on their combined strengths she'd finally get some real, serious praise. That's all mere speculation, of course. The real story might just be that Ute and the guy from The Divine Comedy wanted to work together. I mean, one hole in my "desiring critical respect" story is that ... well, alongside how she still covers a couple of songs from musicals (though more serious ones, written by Philip Glass and whatnot), none of the songs on here are exactly ... cohesive together. Frankly, all of the songs on this album might as well be covers for how they all sound like they come from different shows. There's no real through-line here. And when you take all of that together with how Ute herself didn't write a single word on this album ... well, what am I supposed to take away from all of this? Who even **is** she? And why should I care? Well, here's one answer: Ute Lemper, as it turns out, is an actress. A stage actress, even, who's won awards for appearing in productions of 'Cabaret' and 'Chicago.' She's got some bonafides — and, well, it certainly explains some of her earlier albums. Just as it also happens to explain what exactly is going on here on this album. No. You're not supposed to care about **who** Ute Lemper is. Because that's not the point here and that's not her job. Simply put, Ute is here to be an actress, and be the vocal catalyst that brings these songs to life. And I understand, this can be kind of a hard concept to grasp. These days, who an artist is and the details of their real life often play **huge** roles in this music. Hell, on some albums the "lore" of an artist is the only thing that matters (T-Swizzle). And besides, I'm the kind of person who often thinks context matters; nothing exists in a vacuum, and knowing the details behind some songs can often make them better. But there are some exceptions. There are some songs and albums where, hey, you **don't** hafta know all the details in order to appreciate them. They could help you deepen your appreciation, but it's perfectly valid to take them on a surface level for what they are. And that, to me, applies pretty well to this album. I think it'd help, honestly, to think of this album less as an album and more as a cabaret show. A singer's gonna come out and sing some good songs — and it could be anybody singing these. It's the songs, ultimately, that matter over everything. Not that the performer is **entirely** unimportant, let's be clear here. A good performer could heavily elevate the material, just as well as a bad one could bring it down. Luckily, I think Ute is a good performer (what with her stage bonafides and all). I don't ever find her **that** incredible, to be frank, but as far as doing her job goes, I think she did pretty dang well. It's a nice voice, honestly. As for how the songs themselves go ... well, it's a bit mixed, although I ultimately lean towards being more positive than not. There are some songs with some dark, James Bond-style instrumentation, and I dig it all the way and then some. There are some that're just ... fine, and I can't really give a hoot about them one way or the other. There's the two Tom Waits wrote, which, yep, from their first seconds sure sound like Tom Waits songs. And then there's the one Scott Walker wrote as a closer, which, I mean, is strange and I just wasn't able to get into as much as I would've wanted to. I'd've maybe've liked the album to've ended on the previous track, I'unno. But, yeah, that's the size of the album. Even if I can't say it made me any more interested in who Ute Lemper is as a person, I feel I can safely say that this album isn't just here for the names on the cover. Sure, they help, obviously — but I think it's more here as a credit to Ute's skills as an actress than anything else. Sure, I wouldn't exactly say it's anything I'd be dying to come back to. As a show I get to see one time, however ... it's a nice show worth taking in. By far the least punishing kiss I've ever been given.

Sunshine Hit Me

The Bees

4/5

"UK and wussy annoying hipster pop. I could FEEL the cynicism coming through the speakers. It felt like it wanted to be clever, but it was just painful. I outright hated it." I don't like to respond to other reviews. I feel like it's a waste of time, since it's always one-sided, and I doubt anyone comes here to read responses anyway. But taking a glance down through these reviews after having read this album myself ... come on now, people. What are **actually** getting mad at here? Believe me, I understand knocking this book for its love of British albums (all Big Important Critics™ **love** the UK), and I understand getting on its case for including yet another boring indie album. But I feel like getting mad at this album of all albums would be a waste of energy. It doesn't deserve it — 'coz it's really not bad at all. Like, I mean, come on: this is just lo-fi music. It's the sound of relaxing on a late summer evening, curled up with a good book in the last viable natural reading light. You wanna tell me that this is **cynical**? It's a delight! I mean, sure, maybe if you look too hard at the lyrics you can spot some of that "wannabe cleverness" — but I didn't. In fact, I **did** actually curl up with a book as I was reading this. And I had myself a darn fine time. Even with my mind largely taken up by my book, I could pick up on all of this album's influences: reggae, 60's psychedelia, trip hop ... believe me, under the right circumstances I could see myself being **mighty annoyed** by this album. But I wasn't; it really is a nice blend of influences in a lo-fi setting. As long as you don't ask too much from this album (and as long as you're not immediately predisposed to hating all British music thanks to this book), you'll find a nice little vibe to settle into. Seriously, read a book while it's on, like I did; you might find yourself really appreciating it. And that's really all I have to say about it. For sure, it's absolutely not one of **the** albums you have to listen to before you die. If we're reviewing albums on that front, I can absolutely understand rating this a 1. But I wanna think (or hope) we're all talking about the music strictly. And while I know, it takes diff'rent strokes to move the world and all such, I just really cannot agree with this thing being a 1. It's a 3, at bare minimum. Honestly, this thing makes me wish it really **was** summer when my group got this, instead of mid-November. I can only imagine how it'd sound on an actual summer evening. But even with the temperature growing colder and snow on the way (I hope), it brought me some sunshine. I can't be mad at it for that. And I don't think you should either.

At Mister Kelly's

Sarah Vaughan

5/5

On the back of the record sleeve, there's a part of the blurb that mentions how, when you listen to this thing, you're taken "there" — "'there' being an intimate supper club", to use the exact wording. And that gave me an idea. Before I put on this album, I stood up, took my phone somewhere across the room (yet not too far away) ... and returned to my seat without it as the album began. And while it was playing, I occupied myself on my iPad with other matters, mostly keeping my focus there. This might sound like I was ignoring the album. And in spots, I probably was. But this was **not** my intention whatsoever, no. See, I figured, if this album was supposed to take me to a supper club, why not try and act like I was actually at one? Like,in no means was I trying to disrespect Ms. Vaughan here; I was simply only trying to experience her the way the audience who was there when this was recorded might have. Only without the supper or being able to see her. At least I didn't have to pay the cover fee. And I'll tell you this: I can only imagine how much more I'd like this thing if I **had** listened to it through headphones. Even with this material playing out of a little iPhone speaker, I absolutely **loved** what I heard. Sarah Vaughan has a lovely voice. I didn't catch a word of what she was saying, but I really don't think it matters. She could've been singing absolute gibberish the entire time and I still would've loved hearing it. It's absolutely, for sure, this album's charm point and the reason why you'd listen to it. "The warmth of an angel", as the owner of Mister Kelly put it. Which isn't to completely sideline the trio behind her; they're important as well. I mean, who ever heard of unaccompanied vocal jazz? Just ain't a thing. Jimmy Jones's piano playing is a particular highlight to me. It's just, come on — Sarah Vaughan is a presence all by herself, your attention can't be drawn directly to her. Well, it's that, and also the master of the release I listened to was ... a little eh? I know this album is from 1958, but I swear I've heard releases that're even older that sound better. And I'm not just saying this because I was listening on my phone; I sampled some tracks with headphones later and there was just something about it that didn't sound 100%. It's no indictment on the music itself, of course — jus', goodness. Maybe it sounds better on the expanded edition? The one Wikipedia seems to think was the only edition ever released. And honestly, given how much I liked this album, maybe I **could have** listened to it. I don't think I would've minded another 40 minutes of this... And that's about the size of it. There's really not much to it; it's just a wonderful slice of vocal jazz sung by a very pretty singer. It's something I'd absolutely put on again whenever I'm in the mood for that sort of thing (and I figured I've heard Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga's 'Cheek To Cheek' enough). Whether you're listening to it on headphones, or you're playing it score your own little supper club, you're gonna have a nicely intimate time either way.

The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan

5/5

Ahead of me there are two men named Bob. I approach the younger one. ~~{*}~~ I remember there was a time where I'd be excited to get a Bob Dylan album. Y'know, back when I started this project, and I was so fresh-faced and innocent, a Bob Dylan album would pop up and I'd go, "Wow!" Because why shouldn't I? It's Bobby D! Ol' Robert Zimmerman! He's one of the greatest artists of all time (so I'd been told, so I'd accepted)! So many of his albums had shown up on the Rolling Stone 500! Why would I've had any reason to assume I wouldn't love these albums? And maybe in the beginning I did. I'm not saying I was lying to myself to reinforce the legends I'd been told about Dylan — but at a point, I had to start admitting things to myself. To begin with, I couldn't even begin to understand the lyrics. It seemed to me as if Big Important Critics™ called them some of the greatest of all time because they were so meaninglessly obtuse that you could apply any meaning to them, if you squinted at them hard enough. And with my AuDHD, I couldn't even **begin** to squint. And if you're not into the lyrics, the music itself wasn't going to do anything for you. Before he went electric, it was a lot of acoustic strumming and harmonica honking — nothing particularly interesting. Even when he went electric the music was still only there to support the lyrics, without many hooks. For my kind of brain, it just didn't do it for me. Eventually I had to break and put it all in words, which I did in my babble about the "Royal Albert Hall" concert. It's not like I'd had much luck outside of Dylan, either. I mean, if I can handle Dylan, what made me think I was gonna be able to tolerate Joni Mitchell? Or Leonard Cohen? These 60's folk singer-songwriters — pretty soon they all sounded like poets who thought they could pretend to be musicians just because they could play a few chords. And I did not come to music very often for poetry. Just the kind of person I am. So when the Randomizer™ pulled up 'The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan', there was a part of me that kind of groaned. Another Bob Dylan album — another collection of songs I wouldn't even begin to be able to parse. Another album where my review where I'll say the same shit as I have for 'Court & Spark' or 'Songs Of Leonard Cohen', except with a side of tryna grapple with how I've bought into the legend of Dylan despite never clicking with his music. Here we go again. And yet ... the strangest thing happened. When I put this album on, and once I got past its biggest hit ("Blowin' In The Wind"), I ... kind of felt like I was getting it, actually? I listened to a song like "Girl From North Country" and I actually got what Dylan was saying. It's written somewhat poetically, as I expected, but I can parse it out! This is incredible! This is amazing! But, wait, wait. I had to recognize: "Girl From North Country" is a love song. Of course I could understand it; love songs are never too difficult to decipher. I was sure that once I hit one of Dylan's "finger pointin' songs," "Masters Of War", I'd be right back to square one not understanding. Much to my amazement, though: I **did** get it! I got what he was talking about! And it felt **relevant**! Relevant to shit that was still happening all the way here in 2025! I could nod along to his words and go, "Damn, you're right." And it kept going like that! Song after song, I was actually making heads and tails of them. And every time I did, the music underneath them kept getting better, even if it was just acoustic strumming and harmonica honking. Surprisingly, when you get the words, the music can actually support and elevate them, and vice versa. I had to wonder, what was even going on here? What was **this album** doing that all of the others didn't? It's real simple, sis: this is Bob Dylan's second album. This was his first album of largely original material; his self-titled debut only had **two** written by him. As this is so early in his career, he's yet to grow into those more "incomprehensible purple prose-listic" tendencies that would go on to define his body of work. So while he **is** writingly poetically on this songs, it's not to the one where you'd need an English degree and a few thesis to even begin to parse them out. I suppose it helps as well that this album **was** from Dylan's "finger pointin'" song days, which, by their nature **need** to be a little direct. I think the ones my group had gotten previously had all come from after he'd stopped doing those. And it really is something to be so engaged with Dylan's words. I can tell you for sure that if I wasn't, if I'd had the reaction to this album I'd assumed I would, I would not have even had time for shit like "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall" or "Talkin' World War III Blues". Long songs about whatever the hell he's goin' on about ... I wouldn't've been able to stand it! But since his writing's a bit more direct, I can appreciate what each song is going for. Y'know, "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall" is about how the narrator's seen, heard and met so much awful in the world, yet he's still gonna go singin' his songs, even before he knows them. It can come across as repetitive across seven minutes, but I appreciate its build. And then in "Talkin' World War III Blues", I was just really taken by this concept where everyone is dreaming about being the only one to survive World War III, and being the last person left alive and all alone. And, jus', the part at the end where Dylan says, essentially, "I'll be in your dream if you be in mine" ... in the whole context, it got me. I'unno. (I wanna shout out the end of "I Shall Be Free", too. Like, it's just funny that the entire album concludes on, essentially, "I'm gonna make love to Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton's gonna be **pissed** at me." Also, there was something about dinosaurs before that? Good stuff.) It's nice, too, to be able to consider what a good player Dylan is. Sure, I don't think anyone would say he's a top 10 guitarist (or even harmonica blower), but ... I mean, I've gotta realize that I always **did** kind of like this sparse guitar-and-harmonica arrangement stuff. It gets me thinking that maybe the reason why I liked the parody "Royal Jelly" from the film 'Walk Hard' so much is because it allowed me to enjoy this sound without having to worry about the words "meant." (And it's still a good parody either way, but still.) I know I've said that speaking in terms of Dylan parodies I'd always reach for Weird Al's "Bob" first ... but maybe I'm actually more equal on the two than I'd thought. And you know an album's good when it's getting me to reconsider my opinions this hard. Now, I don't know what my enjoyment of this album will mean for the rest of Dylan's discography. Maybe it'll mean I'd enjoy 'Bringing It All Back Home' more, or maybe I'd understand its words even less. Similar goes for artists like Joni Mitchell or Leonard Cohen. I can't tell you. Those answers are off blowin' in the wind. But for at least this moment, here and now, it just feels good to truly like a Bob Dylan album — and one of his early ones at that. Here this, Robert Zimmerman: this is the third time I've made this reference, and the first time I've truly liked one of your strummin' and honkin' records, no strings attached. And, I'unno — it just makes me happy.

Buena Vista Social Club

5/5

"Not in English." Y'know, I was always gonna hate that review — and I mean truly despise it. Even before I knew it was real! I honestly thought it was something the top-rated review had made up, but nope! There it is! And highly rated itself! And if I can be perfectly blunt, a "review" like that honestly sort of disgusts me. If you're gonna give an album 1 (any album, not just this one) solely for the fact that it's in a different language with yours ... well, look in the mirror: you've found someone with an opinion not worth listening to. And that dislike of my review only deepened the further I got into the album. I mean, I'll admit that at the top I was expecting to tire of this thing rather quickly. It's 60 minutes of Cuban music, and I'd decided to take it all in one shot. No matter how good the music would be, I figured I'd tire myself out on it before too long, and I'd have to write a review admitting as such. I tell you: I put this on when I started doing dishes, and it surprised me to sit down after I was done and discover that I was only three songs in. And I had 11 left to go! Goodness. That's likely how it would have gone — if, on a lark, I hadn't looked up the album on Discogs. I guess I was curious to see what all of the art surrounding the album looked like ... and that's when I discovered that the liner notes were scanned in full. This is where things really started to get interesting for me, because the liner notes contained write-ups for each and every song, briefly going over their histories **and** providing a little background on the various artists that perform on this thing. That's pretty! But only that, it also has the lyrics for each song — with an accompanying English translation right next to them! And footnotes to explain some of the cultural references that a dumb Canadian like me wouldn't get! Hey, "not in English" guy, maybe if you'd known about this...! 'Coz I gotta tell you, while I think I always would've liked this album, reading the write-ups and translations alongside each song **heavily** elevated the experience. Before, I would've just been a tourist, admiring on a surface level how pretty Cuba looks. But with these liner notes ... I'm still a tourist, sure, but dang it, I get to **appreciate** a bit better what's going on here! It helped the time fly by as I got to take in each and every song on a level I would not have been able to otherwise, and I never **once** got tired of it. I suppose it shouldn't be too surprising to learn that actually knowing a bit or two of the cultural context would help, and even if I could never probably understand it the way Cubans do ... dang it, I understand it enough to love it. It's just a fun as hell album, with great performances all around. Great singers, great guitars, great pianos, great horns ... great everything, honestly. When it ended, I was honestly a little sad. Like, what do you **mean** the party's over? I could keep going! And I maybe just might will. I just can't recall the last time I loved a piece of world music as much as this, but goodness, I do. And I could go on, but I think it's an experience you just need to have for yourself. Go find the liner notes, put this thing on, and just have a good ol' time. As a crash course in Cuban music, I don't think you could find anything better. And to the people of the world who would throw this stuff in the trash because it's not in English — I don't exactly feel sorry that we who **can** appreciate it don't have to share it with you losers. Sucks to be y'all!

The Only Ones

3/5

So — I'd heard tell that the singer in this band wasn't great. The top-rated review says as much, and a fellow group member had made a point to mention something to that effect. But it's no way the singer is **that bad**, right? How would an album with a singer that bad even get on an album like this? (And let's not talk about Dylan here; he's not bad, he's just incredibly unique.) And, well ... see, I wouldn't even say that this singer's bad so much as they're... Allow me to quickly walk through the experience starting this album. Track one kicks off, and I'm honestly taken by the instrumentation. It's catchy, exciting, very well played ... and it holds true throughout the entire album, but specifically when it hits you at the front of the album it's like, "Damn — I'm in for some good power pop!" And then the singer shows up. And it's not that he's bad, again. It's just that ... he is so obviously the weakest link here. His voice is flat, sort of nasally, and ... jeez, it barely ever modulates. It hardly matters what song it is, and it sure doesn't matter what part of the song it is: he never changes from that dull nasal warble. And it's not like he **can't** sound any better than this; on what's clearly the single reason why this album is on this list, "Another Girl, Another Planet", he doesn't sound bad at all! And then the next song happens and he's back to his nasal moan. It just never stops, and he honestly brings down every song just by his presence. The instrumental could be and often is great, and then he opens his mouth and you end up wondering if **no one else** was capable of taking the mic. It gets even more obvious when the woman in the group takes up backing vocals; she's clearly on another level from him and it just makes it all the more obvious what a weak singer he is. Maybe this kind of singing was just the style at the time (I can sure imagine seeing Big Important Critics™ and the book defending it as "unique"), but, I'unno. To me (and I know I'm not one of the only ones, harr-harr), it's an incredibly distracting detraction. And it really is a shame. Again, the band is **great**. If I could focus more on the instrumentals, I'd probably be feeling a lot more positive about this album. Maybe I wouldn't be claiming it as one of the best of all time, but for sure it'd be one of the stronger power pop albums of the late 70's I've heard. At the very least, they **did** produce a good song in "Another Girl, Another Planet". But as a whole experience, it's not the worst or even unbearable, but it obviously could be so much better than it is. If only the singer were stronger. Sorry, guys.

Maverick A Strike

Finley Quaye

2/5

Y'know, it's not even like this album starts off too badly. The first couple of tracks? Yeah, I was kinda digging them. Sure, it's not reggae on the level of, say, to name an obvious name, Bob Marley — but what could? Even the one song with a Bob Marley writing credit couldn't hope to. Besides, it's not like I have high expectations for reggae, anyway. I'm the kind of person who enjoys "Rude" by MAGIC! and "Informer" by Snow; my standards can't be any lower. As long as it has that kind of reggae groove, I'm more than happy — and this album has it. In its first four tracks, anyway. Once we get past them, trouble starts to set in. There starts to be some deviation, and other influences incorporated — and that's not bad! A little variety and experimentation can't hurt, as long as it's done well! And this stuff ... hoo boy. I mean — I don't know. I wanna tell you more about how the album played from this point on, but if I'm completely honest, I was too busy tryna keep it from making my ass fall asleep to really concentrate on the actual music itself. Seriously, at a point (and it's a **sudden** point) this album gets **really boring**. The sleepy kind of boring, at that. I honestly could have used to nod off for the night: that's how uninteresting it suddenly gets. Jus', whatever it was doing in the first stretch that managed to engage me so much, this album completely drops. It loses me and it's never able to grab on to me again. And, y'know, other such ways of saying that I found it **completely dull**. Y'know what this is, to me, honestly? Imitation brand reggae. Oh, sure, it looks like reggae — and maybe if you're desperate for the real stuff this might do in a pinch. But when you know what the **real** stuff tastes like, this bland-ass shit, with its bland instrumentals and way-too-present voice, could never compare. Seriously: cod reggae is realer reggae than the shit this guy made. And how in the world do you lose a "reggae realness" competition to a bunch of Canadians? If "Informer" of all things clears you... And, yeah, that's really all I hafta say about that. This album is just hopelessly dull. There is so much better reggae out there (including acts like Toot & The Maytalls, who, last I heard, weren't even **on** this list), and this can't even begin to compare. I can't begin to imagine why this got a spot here, if I'm being completely honest. It's not even like it's that bad; it has its spots early on, certainly. It's jus', like ... I'unno. I ain't got nuthin' else. I jus' needa go listen to 'Exodus' again or something else before I **completely** nod off.

Boston

5/5

I like to pride myself on being able to spin a yarn on these reviews. To be able to ramble about any ol' album for ... oh, let's say, 486 words, minimum? I think that's my current average. I mean, that's just the kind of person I am, besides my general despise for quippy "tweet reviews" (y'know, the kind you see all over Letterboxd). If you have something to say, say it — and I just like to say it in as many words as my mind will allow. But I don't think I'll be able to write all **too much** about this album. Like, come on: it's Boston's self-titled debut. The one with "More Than A Feeling". You want me to pull out a 1,000 word essay about this album? I don't think so. It's just an incredibly fun album. Cheesy? Sure, but that's part of the enjoyment factor; anyone who gives this thing a 2 or 1 for that reason alone ain't no friend of mine. Take it from someone who's eaten a **lot** of cheese (literal) in her life. Dad rock? Yeah, but who ever said dads have bad taste in music? This shit rocks, and I like it just as much as any dad would. Is it over-played? I mean ... if that's your beef with it, I guess I can't really argue against it. Seems a shame to me throw the **entire** album under the bus just because a few songs were played maybe one time too often, but I get it. I guess it's just lucky for me, then, that I've never been exposed to any kind of over-play. I hear "More Than A Feeling" come on, I get so. So true when I hear "Foreplay/Long Time", or any other cut on this thing. Am I gonna tell you this is one of the greatest albums **ever**? No, I don't think so. But to my ears, it's simple, rockin' fun, and that's all I'd ever ask for it to be. On that front, dang, I couldn't give it any lower than a 5. And it's only fitting, then, that my review be simple to match. Lemme jus' close my eyes and drift away...

I Should Coco

Supergrass

5/5

You wanna talk about being won over in the first second? I know I'm not the only one who didn't know what to expect coming into this album. I mean, lookit those faces on the cover — the hell is that wojak in the middle? And the whole thing being stylized like some old sort of 50's record? The heck **is** this thing? I hadn't a Scooby-Doo. I know we ain't supposed to judge a book by its cover, but goodness me — what a cover. But even if I didn't have any expectations, I know I had my guess. "This is another 'British album,' innit?" Y'know what I'm talking about: the albums from the UK that you've never heard of in your life, but just because some Big Important Critics™ happened to go nuts over it back in the day, it's suddenly something you're "supposed" to listen to. It's a perspective I **try** to refrain from, since I often find myself annoyed by reviews that just go "GRRR BRITISH" and give a 1 ... though it's not like there aren't times where I can't help myself. And going by the cover, I was preparing myself from some real "I don't give a shit" shit — just in case. Which is what made the first second of this album even more of a surprise. This book labels this album as rock, indie and Britpop. But y'know what it **doesn't** list this album as, that I think it should? **Punk**. This is some youthful, energetic as hell Britpop punk. Seriously, I can't tell you how taken aback I was by how hard that first second hit, and in the best way possible. It's ... oh, it was so good. Sort of incredible, honestly. This is the kind of album that hits the floor **absolutely sprinting** and refuses to hold the energy down. I mean, right after the album starts like **that**, suddenly it throws **those keys** in your face? Oh, **that** is a good key sound! And you're giving it to me on **track one**? You're too generous! And I'll mention, it's not like **every** song on this album is punk, by "classical definition." There's actually a nice switch up of styles between songs, I think particularly on the back half. But it's the **energy** that's what's real important here. The youthful punk energy. It makes every song just as enjoyable as the last. There wasn't a single moment where I wasn't having a good time. Maybe some of the pitched-up bookending "We're Not Supposed To" wasn't exactly my thing, but the song in the middle sure as hell made up for it. And then it's followed up by "Time"? And "Sofa (Of My Lethargy)"? With **more** keys? Oh, stop spoiling me! Y'know, I don't tend to blame myself too hard for whenever I wince seeing a British album pop up. For one, I'm geographically north of being a dumb septic. Even though we shared a queen, of course I was way more up on the American music scene that anything goin' on in jolly ol' England. And besides, second, it sometimes feels like these albums are being included at the expense of literally anything else from anywhere else in the world. Seriously, when your only three "origin" labels are "US", "UK" and, seriously, "other"... But I gotta give it to Supergrass, they're one British album that absolutely deserves to be here. People should actually listen to this one; I think it's too energetic and fun not to. Maybe it won't win **you** over in the first second like it did me — but give it a shot. If the first second doesn't work, maybe the second will. Or the third. Or however many after that. All I know is, to me at least it's worth every one. And I hope you can come to coco as well.

Music in Exile

Songhoy Blues

4/5

I find when it comes to having additional context for music I'm only bothered in cases where it feels like it's a requirement. When it's albums where you can't just enjoy them on their own merits; you need to be up and aware of the artist's "lore" or whatever to fully engage with them. This sounds like I'm complaining about Taylor Swift again, but I gave a similar kind of guff to Marvin Gaye for 'Here, My Dear' as well. Normally, I **love** finding out the story behind a work; you can discover meaning and attachments you never would've found before. But it should never feel like the context is homework — that's my thing. And what's good about this album is that you don't need context in order to enjoy it. Taking it on its face, it's a very nice collection of Mali blues. A lot of good guitar playing and very nice vocals. Obviously, you won't understand a word of it unless you know the language, though it hardly matters. The material here, just on a sonic level, is strong enough that it transcends the language barrier. I wouldn't say I'm **wild** about it, but overall it's a very nice 39 minutes. Under typical circumstances, that would've been my opinion, in short. Far from an invalid one. Without reading other reviews, I just know there are plenty of other people who've taken this thing strictly on the music. That would've been that. But then, much like 'Buena Vista Social Club', I discovered that the album's liner notes were available to read on Discogs via scans. And I figured, "Hey, why not; let's see what they hafta say." And just like with 'Buena Vista Social Club', nearly my entire opinion on the album changed because of those liner notes. The music stayed the same — but the **meaning** behind it ... **that's** where this album elevated. See, here's the context: 'Music In Exile' isn't just a title. They meant it. The band was formed under civil conflict that forced them, separate at the time, to flee their homes and go down south. They were escaping the imposition of Sharia law by a jihadist group that banned cigarettes, alcohol ... and music. I'll say it again: music was banned in the north of Mali. It's something I'd read Frank Zappa speculate about in the liner notes of 'Joe's Garage', but it's not something I could imagine actually happening. Banning music? Because it's "haram" — a "sin"? How could anyone do that? If I may paraphrase one of the band members, a world without music would be a prison. So, I guess it only seemed right for these guys to form a band. Y'know, not for themselves, as a lark, but for all of the northern people who were refugees just like them. "To recreate that lost ambience of the north." And that's just ... a damn nice thing to do. I mean, sure it won't get them back home. But a world without music ... and if it can help remind them of home, and maybe just for a little while get their minds off of their troubles ... it can only be a good thing. Like I said above, the music hasn't changed. For my ears, it's good, but I'm not terribly excited by it. I could take it or leave it. But listening to this album under that context I talked about, I don't simply hear Mali blues. I can't hear it as just that anymore. I hear music of the people, by the people ... it's not music for the sake of it, nor even music as an act of rebellion. It's music for the people who needed it the most. And in my book — in my heart, that's more important. And if you don't think it is, fair, fine. Not everyone cares about context in the same way. Again, I think if it's absolutely required, it's a nuisance. You can still take this album for what it is and have a good time. I just think it's worth keeping this in mind while this record's spinning. But if you really don't care about the extra context ... well, allow me to close this review/babble with a quote from the liner notes: "The story of Songhoy Blues, and of the blues of the Songoy people, is deep, centuries old. You can try [and] read up on it and understand it. It'll take a bit of time and repay the effort. But then again, you can just listen to these tracks and let the music paint you a picture, of four sharp young guys from West Africa, who grew up by the river where the blues were born, who belong to a people that once ruled an empire, and whose home has been torn apart in recent years by conflict, arrogance, puritanism and hatred." Good stuff, you guys. Good stuff.

Make Yourself

Incubus

3/5

I'm sorry — this is metal? And, y'know, I didn't even wanna ask that question. Ultimately, it's not that important; I'm not enough of a "metal purist" to where that sort of thing matters to me. I mean, genre labels can be bullshit anyway, and I've read that Incubus weren't even trying to make metal, let alone aim for any other specific genre. But: this being labelled as metal. And nu metal at that. I can hear why it would be labeled as such. There are some heavy guitars throughout this thing. Real kinda "chug chug" distortion kind stuff. Plus, in terms of this being nu metal, the vocals and lyrics sure fit. Goodness, some of the stuff that gets said during "When It Comes"? That's some nu metal angst for sure alright. Also: turntables! I didn't expect to hear 'em, so I sure got my shit slapped when they popped up on the first song. I'm not just not sure it's all **enough**, is my problem. Sure, the guitars are heavy, but are we gonna act like that's all metal is? Heavy guitars? I'm no metal head, but I feel I've heard enough to know there's more to the genre. This album just feels like it doesn't go as hard into metal as it could have — if it'd **wanted** to be metal, anyway. Actually, y'know what this album **really** is, to me? Like, if it ain't metal it has to be **something**, and I can tell you just what: this is rock radio shit. This is the kind of stuff where, if you'd clicked on rock radio in the early 2000's, this is what you'd hear. This is material hard enough to "rock" while also being light enough so as to not scare too many people off. Like, yeah, you've got the guitars, but they're not as loud as they'd be on a typical metal song — and most of these songs are lighter alt. rock anyway. I mean, goodness, the band said they were inspired by ambient music as they were making this thing, and I can hear it. And is it a bad thing? Y'know, being an album of rock radio fodder? I'll tell you that at the very least I'm not about to start crowing about how Incubus "sold out." You wanna talk about concepts that matter to me as much as a hill of beans ... but seriously, for being stuff you'd hear on rock radio, it's not bad. Not at all. I'm sure this album killed it. But, I'unno. For my tastes, I'd rather listen to straight-up rock or straight-up metal. This middle-ground thing it's doing ain't the worst, but it ain't doin' too much either. I'd even take Limp Bizkit over this; at least they're metal through and through. You hear that bassline on "Nookie", by the way? Crazy shit. I'm not sure why I **needed** to listen to this. What did I honestly gain from this that I didn't have before? That this is the kinda shit that plays on rock radio? I already know what Theory Of A Deadman sounds like. But seriously. There were probably worse ways to spend 48 minutes — but there were much better ways, too. Jus' how it is.

The Boatman's Call

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

5/5

And at last, I come full circle. I'm sure I'm not the only one who discovered Nick Cave because of 'Shrek 2'. It's a great movie and a great soundtrack, even putting aside how I grew up with them. Nothing but straight classics, front to back ... and "People Ain't No Good" was one of them. One of the big ones, as a matter of fact. I may not have played it as much as "Accidentally In Love", the cover of "Changes", or the film's big take on "Holding Out For A Hero", but I've never quite felt the same for any song in the film as I had for this one. It's by far the most melancholic song on the soundtrack, and by goodness, it always just ... got to me. Y'know? Like, every time I heard it, I'd hafta sit quietly and stare off with a stone expression on my face. Just really take in the words and the atmosphere it evokes. I was so drawn in by Nick Cave's voice, and I loved the piano ... it's an incredible tune, plain and simple; a cut and a half above everything else on that soundtrack. I truly do love it, and although I never did until this list, it made me want to listen to Nick Cave, just to see if I could find more songs like this. Which is what made actually going through some of his early catalog via this Randomizer so weird. If I had to make assumptions, I really would've thought he was a sad piano guy. Not this guy who made over-the-top, cinematic tunes like he did on 'Henry's Dream', or someone who could pull out something as badass as "Stagger Lee" like he did on 'Murder Ballads'. Or, for that matter, someone who could be involved in an album like The Birthday Party's 'Junkyard'. Jus' — post-punk. Nick Cave, for a good chunk of his early career, worked in **post-punk**. And he was good at it! (I mean, I think the point of 'Junkyard' is that people are supposed to dislike it, so I can't rag on 'em too hard.) Like, damn, he's got **range** on 'em. It's particularly evident on 'Murder Ballads', where he whizes through a bunch of styles, including sad piano songs. I know most people on this website hate Nick Cave's guts for how many of his albums are on this list, but I gotta say, I appreciated the chance to widen my respect for him before getting to **the big one**. Yes, at last — we're finally here. 'The Boatman's Call'. The one with "People Ain't No Good". And, y'know, I never really expected or wanted too much from this album. As long as there were songs that could live up to the decades-long admiration I'd had for "People Ain't No Good", I'd be perfectly satisfied. That ain't much, right? Given his skills elsewhere, it shouldn't be that difficult. And indeed — it isn't. He's **good** at this. Oh, he is **so good** at this, and I'm **so happy**. Y'know, despite it being such a melancholic record, anyway. I've seen some reviews on this website remarking that Nick Cave comes across as overdramatic. Y'know, he's "the kid who wanted the lead in every play, but he's less suited for Hamlet and more for Rosencrantz." But to me, it's like ... that's what makes this so good? That there **is** a level of overdramatics to this album? I mean, if you were to ask me where this album takes place, it's the same place where you hear "People Ain't No Good" in 'Shrek 2': a tavern. Or I guess in my mind it's more specifically a piano bar, but either way. It's the kind of place, maybe a little dirty, where you can go drink your troubles away, while someone at the piano sings a sad song. And I'd maybe want him to be a little dramatic — it's more interesting than if he tried to undersell the melancholy, anyway. And as a collection of melancholy ... I am sort of amazed that I reacted the same way to these songs the way I've done to "People Ain't No Good" all these years. It's the same sort of stone faced contemplation, soaking in each and every word. There are even a number of parts where I feel moved to sing along with him, just like with "People Ain't No Good". It's truly sort of remarkable. And I think it truly is a testament to Nick Cave as a writer, player **and** singer that he can pull this off over 50 minutes. There's nearly never a moment where I'm not feeling it. If I'm not, it's only because it's hard for anyone to sustain that melancholy if you're not really down in it. Jeez, though, imagine being down there and listening to this thing. Must be a hell of a trip... Honestly, this might be one of my favorite albums I've heard in a **long** while. I really can't think of the last one that hit me and impressed me as hard as this one did. And I know I came in with the bias of loving "People Ain't No Good", but that was no guarantee. I could've thought this didn't live up! And yet, it did, and then some. I mean, what can I say? I'm a sucker for a sad piano song sometimes. So, there it is. My full circle moment with Nick Cave. It'd be a better one if there weren't still two more albums after this (one of them is an ambient pop record? Huh?), but I won't let that spoil the moment. Without having heard either of the ones that're left, or having listened to his full discography, yet having heard both 'Henry's Dream' and 'Murder Ballads', I can safely say that this is his best album. Bar none. It's a tall order to top, and I'm not gonna blame any of the rest of his work for not being able to. I've heard some good things about 'The Skeleton Tree', so maybe...? But it doesn't have the 'Shrek 2' seal of approval. And believe me, that matters.

Let's Get It On

Marvin Gaye

5/5

Sometimes I feel bad for the title track. It's a truly great tune; without a doubt one of the best Marvin Gaye would ever make. Smooth, sensual, soulful ... I mean, goodness, those strings, those horns, those **vocals** ... it's a real masterclass in baby making music. Hell, you could probably get pregnant just listening to it. I don't think it really even has a structure; it's just one of the best pieces of mood music I done ever heard. And you can't take the first ten seconds seriously. How often have you heard this song used as a joke? Specifically that opening guitar lick and the following "I'VE BEEN REALLY TRYYYYYYYIN', BABY / TRYNA HOLD BACK THIS FEELING". I swear, it's nearly up there with "Bad To The Bone" as needle drops I don't even recognize as real songs; they may as well have been shipped straight to stock music libraries. It's like how sometimes there's a piece of media with such a strong meme that when you see it in context it feels like it's edited in. And it really is a shame that this is the kind of reaction I've grown to have to these opening seconds, 'coz although I haven't heard every song he's ever recorded, I do truly believe it's one of his best, bar none. As for the rest of the album ... well, let's admit that there's not much to say about it, really. Do you like the title track? D'y'think it's good mood music? Well, there's seven other tracks just like it. As an album experience it's obviously not as varied and as strong as his last record — y'know, a little thing called 'What's Goin' On'. I don't think I'd be able to blame someone for getting tired of this album quickly, even if it is only 31 minutes. Jus', this much love making in such a short period of time? Most people, understandably, wouldn't be able to keep up. But myself, I'm not gonna act like this is a bad thing. Even though nothing else on the album is as strong, individually, as the title track, it still succeeds in carrying through **the mood**. You've gotta acknowledge, this is an incredibly **consistent** album in that regard. And that's ultimately what's important here. So it doesn't change things up as 'What's Goin' On' did — this album still ended up making Marvin Gaye a sex symbol. That's what really mattered. And, hey, y'know, you ask me, it's probably better to have a full 31 minutes of love makin' music than only one song. (I also wanna point out, too, before I get to my conclusion, how much I love that Side 1 opens with "Let's Get It On" and closes with "Keep Gettin' It On". That's just great, honestly.) So, yeah, that's all I gotta say about 'Let's Get It On'. There's probably more I could've pulled out, given that I heard Gaye included some themes of spiritual healing in the lyrics — but let's be real, the lyrics are absolutely not the most important thing here. As I keep saying, it's all about the mood, and while I can see how it could be easy to get sick of it real quick ... dammit, Marvin Gaye just does it so well. I can't fault him. I'll tell you this: I listened to this twice in a row, and over the course of the hour I only sort of got tired of it by the end. But that's just 'coz I tried to do it again too quickly. If I'd waited to recover a little, I'm sure ... but yeah. At any rate, it felt like a better hour than the one I spent with 'Here, My Dear', goodness. In the end, I'm very happy and satisfied that I got it on with Marvin Gaye. 10/10 lay.

Heavy Weather

Weather Report

4/5

Oh, yeah, this album cover. I've seen it before. I can't remember exactly where (maybe in this book of album covers I have, I'unno), but I know this is not the first time I've laid eyes on it. Though it **is** only the first time I've ever found out what genre this thing was — and if you were to ask me to judge a book by its cover, I don't think I ever would have guessed **jazz fusion**. Like, huh — so it is. I find myself not terribly a stranger to jazz fusion. After all, I've heard Frank Zappa's three contributions to the genre ('Hot Rats', 'Waka/Jawaka' and 'The Grand Wazoo'), and I've enjoyed them immensively. If I can handle those, I can take on anything this genre can throw at me. Like, come on — what could this thing possibly do to knock me off my axis, huh? The keys. Goodness me, the keys — and the **synths**. Like ... oh, wowie me, there were times on here I honestly had to step back and remind myself that I was supposed to be listening to jazz. The synths and keys on here are nuts. I mean, don't get me wrong, they're not **that** overpowering; you still get a lot of room for the bass and the horns. I just didn't expect them to sound as ... well, cheesy as they did? And even acknowledging that there are cheesier out there, goodness me, this is some **cheese**, for sure. Which, let me clear — I **like** that they're cheesy. With as much cheese as I've eaten, it'd be weird if I **didn't** like how cheesy they were. It really made me enjoy the album a whole lot more, and I already liked it a whole lot. There's such a pep and a brightness to the whole thing, that, ah, even taking it as background music (which is never a bad thing, in my eyes), I found it so undeniable. I mean, I'll say that I don't think it gets much better than the first track. Every other song here is pretty good, but track one exists on a whole 'nother level. Scale-wise, it feels so much bigger than everything else here. Heck, it was big enough that it was the one song on here that I couldn't let it fall into the background. It's legit! No foolin'! Especially the bass, if I hadda single out one instrument besides the keys. That is some **good-ass** bass, goodness. I hear this guy was called the Eddie Van Halen of bass? Mm, I guess I can hear a good reason or so why. And, yeah, that's about the size of my thoughts on this album. Real good jazz fusion where I didn't expect to hear it. I don't have any real complaints other than the fact that "Rumba Mania"'s recording quality sounds a little weird ... but, yeah, I'unno. I give it a hearty recommendation for any jazz fusion fan. Or fans of cheesy synths — 90% chance of **those** in the forecast, goodness.

In The Wee Small Hours

Frank Sinatra

5/5

Imagine, if you will, an empty city street, bathed in the cool blue glow of the moon. The street is slightly wet (it'd been raining not too long ago), reflecting the moon's own light back at it. The smell of damp concrete lingers in the air. The street is silent, without sound — that is, except, for a solitary man in a trenchcoat, slowly shuffling up the sidewalk. He's been out walking for a while, who knows how long. Everyone else has long gone to sleep hours ago. Except for him. He hopes every step he takes will get his mind further and further off of her ... but to no avail. He comes to lean against a lamppost. He takes a drag of his cigarette and blows it out into the cool night sky. If only memories could be blown away like that... That, if you'll forgive some poetic license, is the sound of this album. In short: one of the earliest "feels bad, man" albums ever made. 50 minutes of hoping you could still hold her ... but it's far too late for that now. And all you're left with are the memories and thoughts. But, OK, I'll talk straight and direct and reach a hand to the other side of the aisle. You could very easily find this album to be, mm, maybe a **little** one note? I mean, jeez, like I said: this thing is around 50 minutes. That's maybe a bit of a long time to wallow in misery and self-pity. Like, jeez, at some point you've just got to get over this girl, right? Then the next song starts and, oh, boy, here he goes again! For me, though, this thematic repetition doesn't matter for a very simple reason: the mood. If my scene description at the top didn't indicate that, the album projects such a strong, honestly beautiful sort of melancholic mood that I really don't mind spending so much time in it. The arrangements are all just wonderfully, and Sinatra ... y'know, I don't know how often I think of Ol' Blue Eyes as an incredible singer, but over this sort of material, oh, boy, he couldn't be any better. I wouldn't want anyone else singing this stuff. It lends an air of class and, honestly, further emotion. I could totally picture myself wandering the streets and contemplating love and life with Sinatra's voice serenading me. It's all that, and, well ... I remember one time being in a chat with a friend who'd been staying with his girlfriend. He was leaving to go home that day, and he was telling us about how ... empty it was making him feel. Like there was a hole in his heart; he missed her so much already. And as he was telling the chat about this, I happened to be playing this album at the same time. Pure coincidence, I swear; it'd already been playing by the time he started. And although this album is more about heartbreak and your lover leaving you ... the way this music enhanced the atmosphere and the mood of what my friend was saying, I'll never forget it. It'll probably always be what I think of when I think of this album. And how could I have any real negative thoughts when **this** is what this album reminds me of? Again, I get it. If you're not in the right headspace for this album, you'll be bound to get sick of it awful fast. I don't blame anyone who can't put up with all 50 minutes of this. But if you are feeling those kind of feelings where you can wander down the street, trying to forget him, her, them, or whoever ... I can't think of any better music to do it. The man pushes himself off the streetlamp and continues on his way. One step after another, maybe he'll eventually forget about her. Or at least not feel so bad when he thinks about her. Maybe...

Germs

4/5

Y'know, it's not like I can't understand why this album has a sub-3 average rating. To the untrained ear, this must be absolutely incomprehensible. "If you can call **this noise** music...!" That sort of deal. Heck, listening to a couple of quick snippets before diving into the album proper, I was worried that might actually be noise — a 38-minute collection of random yelling, strumming and drum bashing that Big Important Critics™ somehow drool themselves silly over. Somehow, there'd be something in the noise I just couldn't hear. It wouldn't pair too well with how I heard that this album was the group as a "world-class rock ensemble," where before this point their live shows were famous for always nearly becoming riots. Wouldn't have been great! But then I hear the album in full and ... I mean, come on, guys. This: noise? Again, I suppose if your ears aren't trained or tuned to hear this kind of material as anything other than noise, sure, I guess. But as far as my ears are concerned: this is hardcore punk. And sure as heck not bad hardcore punk at that. I mean, all I'd ever want out of a hardcore punk album, energy, is chaotic energy, and Germs here provide that in spades. Over 16 tracks, most of which are barely over a minute, they never let up. It's to the point where, while there's a line on their Wikipedia page talking about the "lyrical brilliance" of one of their members, I honestly couldn't care less about the lyrics. It ends up such a rush; a straight forward slap-to-the-face burst of punk electricity, the singer could be singing literally gibberish and I'd still be bouncing in my seat over it. And lemme tell y'all, I haven't heard too many hardcore punk albums, but of the ones I have heard, this ain't even close to the hardcorest shit out there. You ever hear 'Get Some' by Snot? Heck, even just "Deadfall" from that album? Hardcore shit. And, actually, I wanna make a brief aside here to talk about the production. Of all people, Joan Jett was this album's producer — which catches me as a surprise mostly because I didn't know she produced? I knew she was a badass who sang "Bad Reputation' n' shit, but she did production as well? Dang. And she's good at it! It's remarkably clean for a **punk album**. It feels like no matter how chaotic it gets, I'm still able to pick everything out. Y'know, it's not Duran Duran, but it's interesting, y'know? And I suppose when you have a guy with a singing style like **this** you **need** the production to be as clean as punk'll allow it. But actually, if I can circle back to the lyrics for a second ... as much as they don't **really** matter to be in the grand scheme of things, at the same time I'd be lying if I told you that the fact that I can't really make heads or tails of them isn't a bit of a detriment. This shit ain't Bob Dylan, but for most of these songs I have no idea what this guy's trying to say or why it's so supposedly "brilliant." It's why I think I'd still prefer Dead Kennedys over 'em. Y'know, they hit hard as a truck **and** I can understand what Jello's tryin' to say in the words. I'll say, in the places where I **could** eek out something, I suppose I can **sort of** see something in there ... but I guess it just ain't enough for me to really go all "WOW!" over. Regardless, in the end, if you're not up on your hardcore punk, I don't blame you. I'm not exactly gonna call you a "snob" for hearing what you hear and not liking it. A 2.58 average seems pretty unfair to me, but, eh, I can get it. It should be higher, though — for the one album Germs would give us for the unfortunate sucide of singer Darby Crash, they did themselves a damn fine job unleashing hardcore punk onto the world. I can't knock 'em for that at all.

Hejira

Joni Mitchell

2/5

Sometimes I wonder if I was too unfair towards Joni Mitchell and 'Court & Spark', the first album of hers my group got. I mean, I'm very certain I didn't engage with it **at all**, so, yeah, I probably was. But I still hafta wonder: why? Did it just catch me on a bad day? Was I just not in the mood for it? Would I've liked this record even if I had been in the mood? Would it have mattered at all? And in the meantime Joni's name has become one of **the** ones I bring up when I express my issues with 60's/70's folkie singer songwriters. I don't even bring up Bob Dylan's name anymore, and he's most people's poster child for it. So here I am, then, with the second Joni Mitchell album on this list — my second chance to try and be fair to her. I know for a fact I'm in a much better mood than I was the last time, for one. And while I haven't gotten **that** much better at deciphering poetic lyrics (my AuDHD strikes again), I've come to realize, it's not about getting the "exact" meaning. As long as I can pull some kind of feeling out of what's being said, that's all that matters. (Though, just in case, I **did** look up all the song meanings ahead of time anyway.) I'm much better equipped to deal with Joni's music this time. This album, as I've read, is Joni's "therapeutic road record." Apparently she'd been travelling a lot prior to recording, and so these songs basically amount to a scattered travelog of where she'd been and all of the feelings she'd been feeling. Y'know, jus' gettin' it all down and out on record. So, y'know, it's a little bit of a "lore drop" album, and I've found lately I'm not too much a fan of those ... but this thing came out in the 70's, so it's not like we're supposed to listen to this like 'The Tortured Poets Department', huh? And I think it's fitting that this is Joni's "roadtrip record," 'coz I ended up feeling the same way about this record like I do most roadtrips: namely, they're long and boring and, gawd, I wish we'd get there already. Look, I really tried here, but I found this album to be such an absolute slog. I read along with the lyrics, and there is just something about the way Joni writes them that puts me to sleep. Like, sure, there are one or two neat turns of phrases here and then — I'll grant her that much. For the most part, however, they're verbose in a way I simply don't enjoy. If I hadn't read what these songs meant, I doubt I'd be able to parse them. Seriously, if you didn't know, what would **you** think "Amelia" is about? And even putting aside "understanding" the lyrics and trying to pull a feeling, I didn't get anything from 'em either. I don't wanna ask her to write simpler because I'm a big dummy who doesn't get it, but seriously now. The actual music on this thing sure didn't help. The big point I always make when I express my issue with 60's/70's folkie singer-songwriters is that the music is only there as a necessity. They don't wanna just be poets, so they toss together **just** enough of a backing so it can count as music and they can count as songwriters. I've never felt that more than here on this album. There's a lot more going on than the simple acoustic guitar plink-plonking you'd expect from these kind of people, but it only amounts to a whole lotta gawdamm **nothing**. Sure, sure, there's blues and jazz influences, and that's cool and all, but I don't **care**. It's atmospheric and spacey and structureless in a way where I just can't even begin to care about it. While listening to this album I tried to get into the mood by putting on some footage of someone driving from Calgary to Edmonton. It'd been filmed on a particularly grey and cloudy day. And, y'know, it'd be one thing if it was raining, at least. You'd at least get to enjoy the water droplets bouncing off the windshield and the rhythmic swish of the wipers. Nope — it was just grey. And boring. And long. And unlike a regular roadtrip, I don't even have the music I actually enjoy to keep me company. That's about how this album turned out for me, in short. "Prisoner of the white lines" indeed. And I'll say it again: I **really tried** here. I don't want it to come across like I just don't get what she's doing. I do, I absolutely do — and that's the issue. Because I **don't** like what she's doing. I mean, for sure, I've heard worse, and I **want** to give her some kind of benefit. But ... I'unno. I just wouldn't be too surprised if by the time I finish another one of her albums suddenly I'm not as inclined to be kind. For your sake, Joni, I'm hoping that's not the case ... this road trip with you could be a whole heck of a lot better, though. Just sayin'.

The Idiot

Iggy Pop

4/5

Y'know, I don't wanna come out here and undermine Iggy Pop — after all, this is his album, with his name on the front. He's not one of those artists where you can say, "Yeah, but someone else **really** deserves all of the credit here." He **did** write all of these songs, after all. But at the same time, I listen to this and what I come out mostly thinking is, "So — Bowie's Berlin trilogy, huh?" I'm very familiar with Bowie's Berlin trilogy as, like ... a piece of history, though not so much as actual albums. I mean, to this point I've only heard two of them, 'Low' and '"Heroes"'. But I don't think anyone's told me that there was a secret fourth part to it. To the point where I've seen some people opine that **this** is actually a main part of the trilogy, and that something like 'Lodger' is more of an epilogue. That's not nothing, you ask me. I mean, honestly, listening to this album, I hear Bowie all over it. Of course he produced it, but I swear there's just something in the melodies that screams **BOWIE**. Even Iggy Pop's vocals sort of sound like him in places. If you'd given this album to me without telling me who it was by, I think it'd take me a while to have my suspicions that it was anyone else. I mean, jeez, Bowie on later albums Bowie would even rewrite "Nightclubbing" and re-record "China Girl". And seriously, it's not just me and a couple of Iggy Pop fans thinking this; even Bowie himself has said he felt bad for using Pop as a "guinea pig" for this sound. And none of this is to even say that this is necessarily a bad thing, by the way. Of course it sucks for Iggy, I'm not denying that, but, again, this record still ended up being considered an unofficial part of the Berlin trilogy. That is absolutely nothing to sneeze at. And it's good stuff, too! Like, honestly, Bowie's Berlin sound is a good sound. Plus, there is one thing Iggy Pop adds to this that Bowie couldn't have on his own: his punk sensibilities. It's been a while since I've heard 'Low' or '"Heroes"', but I don't recall either of them sounding as punk as this one does. And not even that it sounds like a Sex Pistols record or whatever; there's just a looseness and a bit of an energy here that I don't recall hearing anywhere else. And I gotta tell you, it's quite the nice addition. Makes the album worthy of being an experience by itself, rather than just a tangent to the trilogy. So ... yeah, I ain't got much of a conclusion here. Sure, this album might lean more in favor of one of its collaborators over the other, but it's still a good listen. Besides, if I want some true Iggy Pop action, my group's still got all three Stooges albums to get through. And, goodness me, y'wanna talk about raw power? I can tell you about raw power...

Bright Flight

Silver Jews

3/5

Coming into an album like this I'm gonna have an immediate question: "Why is this here?" Y'know, it's never something I find all too important to my overall opinion, but I still think it's worth asking nonetheless. I mean, in a book that proclaims to have 1,001 albums you **must** hear before you die ... you as well find out if it's true for you or not. It's not exactly a unique question. But you have an album like this — from a group you've never heard of before in your life, that was released in 2001, and that's labelled as "indie rock" both in this book and on Wikipedia ... well, I find I'm gonna have certain biases. Like, early 2000's indie rock is one of the banes of this book. Next to New Wave, 60's psych rock and nearly anything that comes from the UK ... it's one of those categories of albums you get and you jus' kinda hafta groan at. "Another one??" And, y'know, I try to not let this sort of mentality affect me — I really do. I keep telling myself, "Every album is here for a reason, whether **I** can see it or not." They all hafta have one. Though, I'll admit I'd be lying if I said that with albums like this I wasn't sort of looking for a reason to say they **didn't** belong here — y'know? And I can't think of the last album that's given me so many reasons right off the bat. The first side of this album ... I mean, sonically, it's fine, but, holy shit, this guy's voice. I spent a lot of these first five tracks wracking my brain to come up with what he sounded like, and all I could ever come up with was that it sounded like he wasn't trying. I got this impression that he felt he could get away with halfassing his vocals and never really trying to sing that well because, hey, it's lo-fi indie rock, and that's just what the singers on this shit sound like. Especially if they're trying to sound **deep, meaningful and important**. But he never does. He just sounded uninterested, which by extent made the music completely uninteresting. I mean, I read one review saying that the singer has "a wry, world-weary drawl", and that "it’s like listening to a guy at the end of the bar tell stories that are equal parts poetic, absurd, and devastating", and ... I guess? And if that's the case, I'd rather take Nick Cave or Tom Waits over this guy. They at least care enough to put **some kinda** spunk on their vocals. So I was all ready to write off this album. I just couldn't think of a single reason why I needed to listen to this album before I died. And I'm not gonna say the second side made me do a complete 180º on my opinion of this album's "must hear" factor, but ... jeez, it did make the first side look all the worse. Like, I **really** don't know why'd hafta hear **that side** especially. Here's the thing. All throughout the first side, you can make out a lot of country music seasoning. There's some pedal steel in there ... y'know. But it sort of gets lost next to how hard this album clearly wants to be **meaningful** lo-fi indie. However, by the second side, it seems like the band decided to completely give up on that, because they suddenly lean **way more** into country and the album practically **immediately** gets a **lot** better. It's sort of crazy how hard this album shifts on the second side. "Transylvania Blues" is already a marked improvement, but then once you hit "Let's Not And Say We Did", it's like you're not even listening to the same album anymore. The singer's vocals fit a **lot** better over this more straight-forward country shit, and as a result the instrumentals start to sound a lot better as well. It's crazy. Even "Tennessee" hits, despite the (probably intentionally) corny line "You're the only ten **I** see." And ... y'know, it leaves me with a more important question than whether or not this album belongs here: why didn't the **whole album** sound like this second side? They're clearly a lot better at this indie country thing than they are at this indie lo-fi shit, so why did it take them half the dang record to lean in? I'm just saying, it'd been a country album or longer, I wouldn't have found as much reason to dismiss this thing out of hand. My standards for country music are not very high; they could have gotten more of a pass from me. As it stands, though, looking at it for what it is than what it could've been ... it's pretty good indie country that's unfortunately brought down by an indie lo-fi first half. If you wanted to listen to this thing, I'd honestly tell you to just skip to back five songs. Whether or not they're anything you **must** hear, believe me, you'll give more out of them than the **first five**. Goodness...

The xx

3/5

From what I can remember about 2009, that was the first year where popular music started to get real big, loud and dumb. Y'know, the party club era. A time where artists like Katy Perry and the Black Eyed Peas could shine, providing maximally produced hits for the people to jus' go fuckin' **off** to. Heck, the highest placed single on Billboard's Year-End in 2009 was "Boom Boom Pow", which is an utter cacophony of ideas and fragments. And after this, we'd get shit like "Like A G6" and "Sexy And I Know It" ... jus', a whole lotta big, loud, dumb tunes until, eventually, gradually the hangover started in the mid-late 2010's. And if that hangover had any forebearer, I'd say it was this album I'm talking about here: 'xx' by The xx. Seriously, in the middle of a year like 2009, I can only imagine what a fresh of breath air a record like this would've been. Next to Pitbull and Flo Rida and "Single Ladies", here you have an album which aspires to do, y'know, less. Minimalism! Music as defined by the empty space between the notes as it is the actual notes itself. Songs largely taken up by a sparse electronic beat, vocals, some bass, and a little atmospheric guitar work. When you compare it to its pop contemporaries, I can see why Big Important Critics™ would eat this shit up and eventually hand it that year's Mercury Award. It's an exercise in restraint in a period of time where basically no one had any. And its influence had stretched out for years: I mean, later pop hits like The Chainsmokers' "Don't Let Me Down" and Shawn Mendes's "Stitches" are clearly biting some of this thing's guitar styles. You can hear a lot of where pop would end up even now in this album. Which is all fine and good and all. But the thing is: I don't really find myself liking a lot of modern pop. I don't particularly like "Stitches", and I sure as heck don't enjoy "Don't Let Me Down". And as for 'xx' itself... One thing you need to know about me is that I am sort of a big fan of overproduction. When you take a song and jus' damn go over the top with it, giving it anything and everything you can. Oasis's "All Around The World" is one of the most overproduced singles of all time, and I have a soft as hell spot for it because of that. It's why I do enjoy a lot of pop music from this time: specifically **because** it's big, dumb and loud. I'm not gonna tell you all of its good, but I got the kinda brain that, when it hears a fun hook, I am all damn there. "Poker Face", the number two song of the year? Yes, please! And that's not to say that I don't have room in my life for sparser music. Sometimes you just need some quieter shit to calm down and not wear yourself out. I mean, I have such a fondness for Linkin Park's "One More Light", off the top of my head. But minimalism, such as what this album is doing ... in what this thing's aiming for, I think it did it well, but goodness is it not for me. I feel like I spent a lot of this album just ... waiting for something more to happen. And I knew it wouldn't, so it's not like I got my hopes up or anything. Darn it, though, if I didn't wish something more **could** have happened. I know it's just an issue of my attention span. It's not like I always need everything to be big and flashy to hold my attention, but in music that's so defined by empty space, it's gonna feel like there's just not as much to latch on to. Subtly is not often my friend, y'know? It's really not the album's fault. But, at the same time, it's not like I wanna lie and rave about how incredible the album's minimalism was when, in actuality, I just wasn't feeling it. And not even in a way where I'm like "Oh, this is so **intolerable boring**." I'm just like, "That's it?" And that's really the size of it. I get what this album's doing — I promise you, I do, and that's why I'm not being as hard on it as I could be ... but I can't front. Like, dang, I get why it was a big deal to people back then, but gimme the Black Eyed Peas over this any day. Even "Boom Boom Pow". Like, in terms of its influence, 'xx' might be so 3008, but I guess I'd rather be 2000-and-late. Or something — you try to work this song into a meaningful conclusion, goodness.

Slipknot

4/5

How much do I even wanna say about this album? Heck, how much would anyone **need** to say? It's the kind of metal you don't think about, you feel. And if you feel it, well, damn, you're in for a good time. But if you don't ... well, I guess you might never will. But whether or not you feel it really depends on how much you're willing to buy into what these songs are about, at their core. Now, for the most part I think the lyrics don't entirely matter. The energy and anger are so palpable you'd be completely fine taking the album on those alone, forsaking the lyrics entirely. But it's where that comes from, as detailed in the lyrics, that might make things difficult for some. This **is** nu metal, after all. And what is nu metal to most people but a lot of whining and complaining about how your life is just **awful**. "Let me tell y'all what it's like being male, middle class and white! It's a bitch!" That sort of thing. I can absolutely see people listening to this album, hearing all of the screamed "FUCK YOU!!!"s and just thinking, "Gawd ... get over yourself already!" I don't think I'd go that far, myself. Sure, I doubt they're 100% telling the truth here — most performers aren't. And these guys are up here wearing "scary masks," so how much do you think they're being nothing but genuine? But putting that aside, I wanna think that a lot of this is coming from a real enough place. They had to tap into some sort of pain to get some of these songs across. "Scissors" in particular — unless you're a real piece of shit, I don't think you'd write a song where you scream "I WANNA DIE" ten times in a row without somewhat meaning it. And I wanna think I'm empathetic enough that I can understand where they're coming from at least a little. Though, with that said, I did end up mostly taking this album just on its energy, like I said. And just on its energy, this is some fuckin' brutal shit. I'unno the last album on this list that was as brutal as this one was. 'Reign In Blood'? 'Vulgar Display Of Power'? This is shit that'll kick your head in. And, y'know, as such it **can** get a **little** tiring towards the end (most people wouldn't be able to be **that angry** for nearly an hour) ... but when it's goes off, it goes off **hard**. As far as nu metal goes, I wouldn't put it up there with the best of the best, such as Linkin Park — though Slipknot seem to be in the upper echelon nonetheless. And in the general realm of brutal, crushing metal, it's a damn good time. They heartily have my approval. I mean, I'd never ask anyone to completely turn off their brain and not think about what they're listening to, but as long as you can gel with the energy and the anger, I think you'll have a good time. You have my word for it. (And I won't hold it against this album that it did, by some degrees of separation, lead to Corey Taylor appearing in that gawdawful Nostalgia Critic 'The Wall' video. Ain't its fault! But darn if I didn't spend a moment considering it anyway.)

Red Headed Stranger

Willie Nelson

5/5

The way I understand country music, it's always been at its best when it's telling stories. It's not like there's much terribly wrong with it when it's not (I've listened to too many songs from the 90's and early 2000's to say otherwise), but the good shit has always been when the singer is also a storyteller. What makes this album in particular special is that Willie Nelson isn't telling a selection of stories here — he's only telling one. And that's sort of wild to me, y'know? I know that concept albums exist in country music (I'm pretty sure they do in nearly every genre), but until now I don't think I've come across a narrative concept album. Until now, I've only ever been aware of **thematic** concepts. Like, I know Johnny Cash has done one or two albums all about train songs. So it's interesting to consider a country album that has to live or die off of how exactly well it tells one, single story. It's also something to consider that this album could have been a single song. In fact, I think it **was** a single song before it got fleshed out to album length. Basically, it's about a preacher who discovers his wife cheating on him with another man. He kills them both in a fit of rage and passion and feels so guilty about it he skips town. He stops over in Denver where he meets another woman, with whom he spends the rest of his life happily married. It's not exactly a complex story. And yet, with the way Willie tells it over these 15 songs, it never feels padded. Like, this isn't just stretching out the material for the sake of it; it's truly expanded upon. There's time given out to dive deeper into the mindset of the preacher and get a bit more into how this is all affecting him. And it works! It works real damn well! Heck, even the purely instrumental tracks don't feel like throwaways; their place in the narrative is clear. There's never a moment where I don't feel some sort of sense of progression. And when you can do that even on the slowest songs on the album, that's really damn impressive. That's alongside how sparsely arranged this album is. For real, it's not just the story that's simple; the album's arrangement is very stripped down. From what I read, there was originally going to be more going on, but Willie wasn't exactly satisfied with what was being recorded. So he pairs the whole thing down to just his guitar and vocal, with some additional instruments sprinkled around for flavor. You might think this would get old and boring real quick, but leave it to Willie Nelson to make an arrangement that's this sparse engaging. And real sort of pretty in spots, too. I think a couple of singer-songwriters could've taken a lesson or two from this album, honestly. In spite of how overall simple the album is, it all ends up feeling so cinematic. It hardly surprises me that this album eventually got adapted into a movie, with Willie Nelson himself in the lead role. I hear it's not ... **great**, exactly, but it's a damn good testament to this album all the same — and to Willie's skills as a performer and a storyteller. I mean, I hafta give major props to Willie Nelson for pulling this off with as little as he did. There's no flashy tricks: it's just him and the story, and that's all you need. And while I, myself, wouldn't call this the best country album ever, it's sure as hell up there. Along with that Marty Roberts record, I'd say it's a very good example of what country music is best at. Not any of this list shit, or bro country, or those conservative country songs that chart on Billboard for exactly one week — **this** is country music. And I do. (And what I do is quote Brad Paisley songs, I guess. But if I can close this album out with any quote, let it be this memorable chestnut from 'Game Of Thrones': "There is nothing in the world more powerful than a good story." And when it's told well, like Willie does — damn.)

Ghosteen

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

3/5

Just when I thought I had Nick Cave locked down, he goes and throws me for another curveball. First, based on "People Ain't No Good" alone, I assume he's all a sad piano man. Years after that, I came to partake in this list and discover both his talent towards cinematic grandeur ('Henry's Dream') and a general variety of styles ('Murder Ballads'). I also found out he was once in a band that sounded like they recorded out of a metal trash can ('Junkyard' by The Birthday Party), but, uh, I wasn't too up on that, so... But by the time I came around to 'The Boatman's Call' and "People Ain't No Good" again, I had a greater appreciation for his talents as a songwriter and a performer. I also figured this was about where his sound stopped. I mean, I'd heard that 2016's 'Skeleton Tree' was a damn depressing album, so I'unno why I figure he wasn't still a sad piano man. Well, here we are in the future of 2019, and one thing is for sure: he's still a sad man. But he ain't stuck behind a piano anymore. No, this album is based in ambient electronica. Huh. I never would've guessed it, but given what this album is about I suppose it makes sense. This album ... well, during the production of 'Skeleton Tree', Nick Cave's son Arthur died. He was only 15. And it'd be very easy to assume, as a lot of people did at the time, that with how bleak and depressing that album is, it's about Arthur's death and Nick's grief. It isn't. In fact, besides some amendments Nick made afterwards, pretty much the whole thing was written by the time Arthur passed. I can only imagine what impact a tragedy like that would have on someone's art, but by all I can tell, 'Skeleton Tree' is not about that. 'Ghosteen', meanwhile, from what I can tell, is. 'Ghosteen' is an album that touches on grief and existentialism, while never losing itself in hopelessness. If I were to use any sort of imagery to describe this album, it's "that moment of darkness that comes right as the sun starts to rise." You're still in that dark place; you're not quite out yet — but the future's coming on, and it hardly looks as bleak. That's the impression I get from songs like "Waiting For You" and "Ghosteen Speaks", particularly the latter, which has the deceased (a friend, a lover, family, whoever) reminding the listener that they're beside them; they just need to look for them. And this is why the music is the way it is. I mean, here's some trivia for you: there was a full drum track recorded for this album. It ended up getting scrapped because, well, in Nick Cave's words, it grounded the songs too much. These songs (some of which are built on loops) are meant to float as you sit there in that heartbreaking, melancholic feeling. And I'll tell you, it does work and can be pretty effective. Sometimes. OK, so here's where I play my hand. What I described up there, that's how this album sounds if you're able to fully give yourself into the soundscape and the themes. If the emotions resonate with you, it's a haunting, darkly beautiful album about grief. If you **don't** like this album, meanwhile, it is **slow**. Just this absolute slog where nothing happens in any of these songs and Nick Cave can't even be bothered to sing, instead just kind of mumbling in his gravely monotone. Whatever he's supposed to be making you feel on this album — and this isn't to discredit his feelings, but whatever you're supposed to feel, it's just not working. Regretfully, I find myself more leaning towards the latter opinion. Believe me, given what this album is about, I **wanted** to like it more, but ... I just had a hard time connecting with it. The less introspective reason (which is completely a "me" problem) is just that in the years since 'The Boatman's Call' Nick Cave decided to focus less on narrative in his lyrics. His explanation was that life doesn't happen in a straight line, so it was ridiculous to write about it that. This method, which is far more abstract and poetic, felt more authentic to him. And that's fair, but for my money ... look, I've made my difficulty with abstract, poetic lyrics no secret. I am just not good at deciphering meaning on the fly. And, look, this album isn't as bad as something like Bob Dylan's mid-late 60's work or how I tend to see most Joni Mitchell albums, but there are still some spots where I just have no idea what he's **supposed** to be saying. Heck, even accepting that it's more supposed to be about what you personally get from these words and not so much what **the one and true meaning is**, I've still got nothing. And in those moments, suddenly the whole project falls apart and I can feel how slow moving a lot of these songs are — especially when you hit the two songs over ten minutes on the second disc, goodness. But the more introspective reason, if you'll forgive me for indulging a bit here, is that ... I don't know if I've ever experienced grief. Personally, I mean; I can imagine what it feels like for others and empathize. But as far as my own feelings go ... well, as I've said elsewhere, I'm AuDHD. And a lot of people like me can have trouble with their emotions. And I'm not that bad about them, but when it comes to grief in particular, I don't know if I've ever felt it. A couple of years ago, my grandmother died, and of course I was sad about it; I loved that woman. But even during her funeral I can't remember ever feeling grief. I don't even know how often I miss her, and I know I should. And what all of this means is that while I can listen to this album and **mostly** understand what Nick Cave is expressing and empathize, it just doesn't resonate with me. I **want** it to, believe you me. I just can't get there. And it's another "me" problem, and not so much a criticism of the album, but it's not irrelevant to my experience, y'know? In the end, I just find myself disappointed. I was ready for Nick Cave to knock me out again as he had with his past couple of albums (besides 'Junkyard', anyway), and yet ... and especially on album with themes like **this** ... I mean, I'm not obligated to like an album just because it has sad themes and is based on and reflecting on personal tragedy, but in some small way it makes **me** feel like the jerk. Like, "Wow, you don't like the album about grief and his dead son because **you** couldn't resonate with it? Yeah, OK." I can only promise you, it's nothing like that. You might've not even been thinking that. But ... yeah. I wanna like it more, but as I sit here writing this review, thinking back on how endless those two songs on the second disc felt ... I can never be anything other than honest. But in the moments where it **does** work, it **works**. Look at "Waiting For You" and "Ghosteen Speaks". They're wonderfully heartbreaking, and I can't take that away from this album, nor would I want to. And I can only hope, going forward, that they're the parts I end up remembering, more than the others. And I really hope that some day I might be able to better resonate with this thing. I really do.

Woodface

Crowded House

4/5

Y'know, normally I don't like to write reviews as responses to other reviews. It's as I've said before: it's ultimately one-sided, and I doubt anybody comes to these reviews to read rebuttals like this. But, oh, there are some reviews where, dang it, I just can't help it. And this review is specifically addressed to the person who compared this album to the banality of evil. Specifically, that listening to this album is (and let me get the quote correct here) "akin to witnessing a little old lady being mugged and quickstepping [...] away because you don't want to get involved". Look. Buddy, pal, friend of mine. Shall we be serious for a second? Would you mind? Just for a moment? You are absolutely over-exaggerating. This album is not that bad (or even really bad at all). You're better off saving your unreadable ALL CAPS rants for an album that's actually worth it, and not this slice of pretty fine 90's pop rock. Let's be real here: Crowded House does have some songwriting chops. Are they Lennon-McCartney, like I've seen someone write down on Wikipedia? I don't think so, but for the standards of pop rock, I think they're as darn good as they could be. The melodies can be pretty, the harmonies are often fantastic, the instrumentation is nicely varied ... not a lot of it makes me jump out of my seat screaming "**THIS IS ONE OF THE BEST ALBUMS OF THE 90'S**," but if I'd discovered this album at a younger, more impressionable age, I could absolutely see myself gushing and then some about this group. Heck, from some opinions I've seen, this isn't even their best album (and I might hafta check that out, honestly). If I have any criticisms, they're relatively minor. There are some songs that just ... I'unno, aren't as good as some of the others? And it's not that this album needs to be chopped down; in an era of CD bloat it's a miracle this thing is only 48 minutes long. But I think it could've stood to be just that **little bit** tighter. And maybe that could've pushed me over the edge into absolutely loving it, I'unno. Really, I can't hear any reason why anyone would be **that hard** on this thing. Maybe if you just really, and I am absolutely **despise** the bands that got played on hip 90's sitcoms. I can see it: they sort of sound like the kind of band that'd get added to a sitcom soundtrack for some indie cred, where upon they'd proceed to get overplayed to death by the show's fans. But if they were included somewhere, I guess I'm glad I missed that show. I mean, look, I wouldn't tell you this album's terribly special. But if you're in the mood for some good tunes with some good melodies, hey, go right ahead. I enjoyed my time with it, and I bet you would as well. It gets my hearty seal of approval. Call it the "not-quite-banality of being-pretty-darn-alright," I guess.

Paranoid

Black Sabbath

5/5

Y'know, I spend a lot of time gassing up Black Sabbath's debut album as the start of heavy metal. The legendary record birthed straight from the fires of Hell to deliver crashing drums and crunching riffs unto the world... That sort of thing, y'know. I mean, heck, that record excited me so much, I spent half of my 1.5k review on prose adapting the first song 'coz I felt that was the only way to really get across how I felt about it. Whether or not that was a waste of space is up to you, but you can't say it didn't inspire me. For much as I pile hype on BLACK SABBATH, though, I think it's also worth taking some time to acknowledge that it's still **very** early metal — "primordial metal," as I think of it. Like, as much as it is the very first album where you couldn't get away with calling it anything else (hard rock, heavy psych, etc.), there is still a **lot** of blues influence evident to my ears. Just go listen to how much harmonica there is on that thing past the title track. Obviously, it's not enough to disqualify BLACK SABBATH from its claim to fame; you can never take away from it. I'm just saying, where BLACK SABBATH birthed metal, it's with PARANOID that genre was perfected and solidified. Let's not mince words: PARAOID is, without a doubt, one of the greatest metal albums ever made. Absolutely a top five contender in my book, if not top three. Hell, if MASTER OF PUPPETS didn't exist, I'm pretty sure I could argue my way to it being **number one**. It takes everything the band's debut had going for it, and pumps it all up to a whole new level. BLACK SABBATH set the foundation, but PARANOID set the standard, believe you me. I mean, I could go track by track here to prove it to you — honestly now. In fact... "War Pigs" is a monster of an opener, introducing war as one of the most common topics in metal songs. I use "epic" to describe a lot of songs, but believe you me, Black Sabbath have no other song that's as much of an epic as "War Pigs" is. The solo in this thing is so famous and classic, guitarist Tony Iommi has never changed the way he plays it in live shows. And that circling riff at the end? Oh, so incredible. Then you got the title track, which is a protopunk-type, "Communication Breakdown"-stye ripper. It was literally written as an afterthought, to fill up an empty three minutes, and yet it goes off **so hard**. Like, it's the most straightforward and uncomplicated thing on the album: just a kick-ass rocker. Following, you have a bit of a break in the track "Planet Caravan". It's the only song on the album that's 100% not metal, instead being this lowkey psychedelic space rock track. Tony Iommi even plays a flute on it! And yet, I feel like this sort of pace changing break track would become a standard on future heavy metal albums — or it should have. You can't go to 11 all the dang time, y'know? It's a very nice, relaxing track between iconic songs, feeling like you're floating through space and quietly taking in the expanse... And if nothing else, it's a good demonstration of their range. Side one then closes with maybe the single most iconic song from the entire album: "Iron Man". Everyone knows this song, or at least the part Ozzy sings "I AM IRON MAN" through a fan followed by the riff kicking it. It's such a good riff: don't let how many times you might've heard it convince you otherwise. Besides, the part in there where the tempo switches up to a faster beat? Oh, that's great. And I gotta pause for a second here to point out how many iconic, classic and, hell, signature songs are on this album's first side alone. That's three outta four — and it should be dang four outta four! (Give "Planet Caravan" some love.) Even their debut couldn't manage that many, and it started by inventing doom metal. This is just straight-up quality, y'know? How could you even complain about this? In fact, this side is so good, it... Honestly can kind of overshadow side two a little? But let's not act like it's any weaker; it's still strong as hell. I mean, side two opens with a riff like "Electric Funeral"'s. It's one of the best riffs on the entire album, on an album stacked with riffs. It's slow, sludgey, and, ah, incredibly memorable. And then **this song** has a tempo switch-up, too — and it's here I wanna highlight the bass sound on this album. It's very, like... "Gadong-gadong," if I can try and make a word out of how it sounds, but seriously, let us not pass Geezer Butler by. A metal album is nothing without a good bass line (well, ...AND JUSTICE FOR ALL got by, though it really shouldn't have), and Geezer has some damn good ones. "Hand Of Doom" is one of the very first songs in metal about how drugs are bad, and, oh, they could not have done it any better on an early go around. When they put "doom" in the title, they mean it: this is the doomiest song on the album, with this dark, foreboding atmosphere about it... Until the tempo switches up, which, hey, we're three for three! But heck if I care if they pull this trick three times in a row; it's always amazing whenever they pull it off, and each one is unique from each other, so... Yeah, good shit. The riffin' nearly 4 minutes in is killer, too. Continuing on from there, we come to the closest thing this album has to a miss, I feel like, in "Rat Salad". It's this album's "Moby Dick" — the drum solo track — and... Y'know, I've never been the biggest on drum solos? I mean, I love percussion just fine when it's working in tandem with other instruments, laying down a beat... But on its own? I've just never been as big into it as I have any other instrument. But all said, hey, Bill Ward is still a real good drummer, and this ain't a bad solo at all. I mean, heck, even if it's riff ain't as iconic as the one on "Moby Dick", I think I'd still take this over "Moby Dick", and not just 'coz it's shorter (and either way, apologies, Bonzo). Finally, the album ends with "Fairies With Boots", a song about... Something? I'unno, and I don't think anyone else does either. I've seen a few explanations, but the best one I've heard is that it's basically about a guy tripping the shit out on drugs on the way home and seein' a whole lotta weird shit. And for a song about **that** of all things, it's a fantastic closer. May not be "Into The Void" from their next album, but I'unno, it just works super well. Get another good-ass riff, more bashin' drums, gathunkin' bass, and of course Ozzy doin' his thing... Can't think'a no better ending for an album as classic as this. And yeah, to this point I haven't mentioned Ozzy's vocals yet... And legit, what do you want me to say about them? He was one of the best metal vocalists to've ever lived, and his performance across this whole album is spectacular. There's no one particular song I can choose to highlight it, 'coz whether he's singing softly on "Planet Caravan" or going full force (or doin' that one voice where he goes "'LEC-TRIC FYUN-RAAL"), it's just that consistently strong. Goodness me. So, yeah, put it all together, take this album as a whole... It's just so fuckin' classic, and I can't think of a single other album that compares to it. Sure, other albums would be harder, and heavier, and faster, and more brutal, and more crushing, and all'a that... But this album is just no nonsense, pure, clean and uncut heavy metal. Honestly maybe the best you'll ever hear with no gimmicks attached. I mean, if you don't like metal, I don't think it's gonna change your mind too much... But I'unno even know what else to say that isn't just me using the word "good" for the millionth time. If you're reading this, you might have already listened to this album, but please, go do it again. It's just that... Well, you know.

Ingenue

k.d. lang

3/5

Y'know, for a moment there I was honestly wondering why I couldn't engage with this album like I wanted to. And it wasn't because it was 4 in the morning when I listened to it; I'm normally fine right before I go to bed. No, there was something else that just wasn't clicking with me... Which just felt weird to me, because for all intents and purposes I should have been into this. k.d. lang remains a very pretty singer, for one. The exact words don't matter; she could be singing absolute gibberish and I'd love listening to her. So it wasn't that I had an issue with her voice. Nor was it that I had any problems with the instrumentation. It's this sort of midground between country and big band balladry, and I could see how some people could find this boring ... heck, I'm not gonna say I was excited by it 100% of the time either ... but again, it's pretty shit. Just taking this all on a purely sonic level, I should've been all for this album. And yet, I found myself struggling to pay attention. What was the deal? It occurred to me at some point near the end. See, I'd read on this album's Wikipedia page that the album was cabaret-influenced — and I should dig that. At least from the adjacent stuff I've taken in (aka the film adaptation of 'Chicago') I should **love** cabaret. But, y'see, the kind of cabaret I enjoy is ... y'know, it's over the top. A bit out there. **Theatrical** and all that. It's the kind of thing why I grew to enjoy Ute Lemper's album for the most part, back when my group got that. And it's not that k.d. isn't aiming for any kind of theatricality here. It's just that, the way she's doing it ... I'd call it "sizzle." Y'know: "sizzle." It's when the theatricality and dramatics aren't immediately obvious; you needa lay back and simmer in the shit first. Think of it like any movie that relies heavily on its atmosphere and nuanced performances. It's stuff you can get incredibly invested in, if you're willing and able to go along with it. And I was willing, of course. I don't partake in this randomizer for 700 days just to give up on the 702nd or whatever. But "able"? That's a different story. I've expressed before that I have AuDHD. I **can** focus in heavily shit, but it really depends on how well it appeals to the way my mind works. Otherwise, I can have a pretty weak attention span that I often hafta fight to keep on track. And it wasn't like I had to do too much fighting with this album, but ... I mean, it's like any movie that relies heavily on its atmosphere and nuanced performances. My brain just often doesn't have the patience for the sizzle and I find myself getting distracted easily — or I just fall asleep. Usually it's the latter. And, like, that's just my personal issue with this album. It's very pretty all around, but besides a few songs it's also way more subdued than my mind can really handle. Like, if this album was straight-up country music, rhat'd be one thing ... or if went further into big band cabaret shit. But this transitionary middle ground just didn't do it for me. Like, either go all the way with or don't, y'know? I mean, I'll stress, I don't think it's bad at all. Once more and again, it's very pretty, so just sonically, perhaps as background music, I can give it a pass (and I'm not the kind of person who thinks calling something background music is an insult). But as some I know I'm probably supposed to pay attention to ... it's just a personal issue, but I can't act like it won't affect my rating, y'know? Sorry, k.d. — I liked the other album my group got from you, at least. And I guess I can only hope I find your next one a tad more interesting.

Cypress Hill

4/5

There's something to be said about the importance of lyrics in hip hop ... I mean, maybe not a whole lot, 'coz it's a real "no shit" kind of topic ... but there's something, nonetheless. What **is** hip hop if not the lyrics? I know in the past I've tried to look at this stuff without much focus on 'em, and I'll tell you in short that it didn't go over too well. But let's back up for a second and give a word to a larger topic: subject matter. Of course the exact words are the most important things, but what about what these songs are generally about? And the variety of topics? It's not something I often think about when it comes to rap albums, but with this album it ended up being more on my mind than not. Cypress Hill, on the album 'Cypress Hill', seem to cycle through three or four different topics: "we don't like cops", "we can kill you", "we're hot shit", and "weed". And in the back half, it's mostly "weed". That's not really exactly a lot of variety, huh? I mean, heck, there's the thought that they don't even talk about this stuff in a lot of different ways. This is a problem, innit? Well ... see, I don't wanna say there are some albums where lyrics don't matter. Y'know, to excuse a rap song just because it can get by on vibes or hype or whatever, that feels like ... well, an excuse. "Don't focus on the fact that the lyrics are a bit shit and that they're not really saying anything; just live off the hype." I know there's a lot of stuff, especially these days, that gets a pass for that exact excuse. And I'm pretty sure I'm not exactly innocent of this either, y'know? But I wanna pretend that at the very least I have enough respect for the artform that, even being someone who's melody first, I'd never say that the lyrics are **that** unimportant. And it's not like the lyrics are **that** bad on this album. For what they're rapping about, I think they do a pretty fine job. But being completely honest with myself here, I think 'Cypress Hill' is a rap album where most of the appeal comes in everything that isn't the lyrics. The flow, for one. I'll be real, there was a good chunk of this album where their flow reminded me of Insane Clown Posse, though I'll put that up to the idea that ICP got it from these guys. And either way, it's a fun flow, particularly with the one guy's nasally voice. I think they could've rapped about anything in that flow and I would've been enjoying myself; it's just that sort of charismatic, y'know? Then you've got the beats. I don't know if this is my favorite production of the 90's (certainly I prefer beats that go harder), but damn, does DJ Mugg put on a good show. Every sample flip on here is done very well, and when a beat goes off, goodness me, it goes off. I can see how some people might think it gets a little same-y after a while, but when you're just groovin', damn, it don't even matter. And I was groovin' all over this thing, I swear. I mean, I just think about it all like this: I gave Dr. Dre's 'The Chronic' full marks despite it having less and, honestly, **worse** subject matter. I'm not someone who gets all up in arms because a 30 year-old album is **so misogynistic**, but all the same. If I can let that album slide by on flow and beats, I don't see why an album like this can't. I don't like it as much as 'The Chronic', but that's 'coz this could never compare to G-funk. And all this to say: of course the words are important on rap albums. But I think sometimes (though not all the time) it's alright to just let it take you on vibes. And 'Cypress Hill' is one of those albums where it's absolutely alright.

Music For The Jilted Generation

The Prodigy

3/5

Sometimes I wonder how often I hafta keep in mind when an album was "made for." I mean, most times that sort of thing isn't very important at all; most albums are largely just collections of tunes. Maybe they have a central theme running through a song, but that's different than considering what they were "made for." An ambient album, for example, is made for empty spaces — something to keep the walls from being just plain white, y'know? And that's important to keep in mind, or else you'd listen to it and wonder why it's not going anywhere. Then you have albums like, that're made for clubs — or, more specifically, raves. This album, as it happens, was made as a response to the UK government at the time criminalizing raves ("their laws," as one song on the album refers to it). It's a piece of context that's ... not unimportant, though I'unno how much it matters to me? Like, the thing about this kind of music is that it's made to dance to, obviously. There are musical elements and a ton of thought put into this material, but you're not supposed to listen all **that** closely to it. You're supposed to hear this shit at the club and lose yourself to dance. And I get that, entirely. But that's not exactly how I like to listen to music, y'know? At least not for this Randomizer. I mean, sure, sure, there are plenty of albums I put on the energy and the beats; that's just a side effect of being as "melody first" as I am. With most of the albums I get from this Randomizer, I try (or I make some sort of effort, anyway) to actively focus on it. I want to take it seriously and figure out what I do or don't like about it. (And this is all putting aside the fact that I've never been to a club in my life.) This album was not made for focused listening. Not really. There's stuff going on, but nothing that's very engaging. And every song feels like it could have a full minute or two chopped out of it and nothing would be missing. Seriously, some songs have intros that could've been, like, ten minutes and instead run 30. It's crazy. It's not even that any of them are all that bad, necessarily, but .... jeez, they could stand to do a bit more, y'know? It makes me think back to 'The Fat Of The Land', which was the follow-up to this album but the one my group got first. On 'The Fat Of The Land', it doesn't feel like there's a second wasted. The songs are aggro as hell and bursting with energy. And they're interesting! I can still remember how a number of the songs go, even if the ones that jump straight into my head are the big singles. Compared to 'Music For The Jilted Generation', where when one ended it left my mind entirely. I mean, it just says something to me that 'The Fat Of The Land' is a full 22 minutes shorter than 'Music For The Jilted Generation' and is a much tighter album. And, y'know, 'The Fat Of The Land' was made for the same crowd as 'Music For The Jilted Generation'. Certainly it wasn't made for broader appeal, given that 'The Fat Of The Land' opens with a song titled "Smack My Bitch Up" (I don't mind; I know others do, a **lot**). But whatever it was or wasn't made for, the improvement in their craft is so obvious. 'Music For The Jilted Generation' wasn't the Prodigy's first rodeo, but in comparison it sure feels like it. It really does make me appreciate 'The Fat Of The Land' a lot more than I did, which both is and isn't exactly the best compliment for 'Music For The Jilted Generation'. But I've spent enough time going on about 'The Fat Of The Land'. Putting it aside, 'Music For The Jilted Generation' is ... fine. It's perfectly fine breakbeat dance music. It's just nothing I have the attention span for. It feels like a whole album of extended DJ mixes, and that's not really my jive. And this whole general brand of dance music isn't either, for that matter. My preferred shit is stuff like Daft Punk, Justice and (if he counts) Fatboy Slim, so ... maybe I'm not the best to judge this album. But, I'unno. If you're into the kind of dance music that uses the "Amen break," this should be right up your alley. You could maybe even hear it in a club or dance to it, like it was made for. But me ... eh. This ain't music for **my** generation.

At Fillmore East

The Allman Brothers Band

5/5

Well, here it is — the greatest live album ever made. I did not think I'd be saying this walking out of this album. I knew it was one of the all-time greats, but then I know so many others that can vouch to be one as well. James Brown's 'Live At The Apollo', The Who's 'Live At Leeds', KISS's 'Alive!', Johnny Cash's 'At Folsom Prison', Cheap Trick's 'At Budokan', Peter Frampton's 'Frampton Comes Alive!', Motörhead's 'No Sleep 'Till Hammersmith' ... and I could go on and on and on. There's some pretty stiff competition for "the absolute best," in short. How could The Allman Brothers Band stand out? It's actually rather simple. And to talk about this, I'm going to focus exclusively on one song: the closer, "Whipping Post". Without a doubt the most famous song here, and for good reason, It's 23 minutes of maybe the most incredible live performance I've ever heard. Y'know, I wanna lay out some of my credentials, first of all, so y'alls can understand where I'm coming from. I'm a pretty good fan of progressive rock. I don't listen to **everything**, but I've taken in a lot of the best stuff: Pink Floyd, Genesis, Yes, King Crimson ... is Dream Theater some of the best stuff? Anyway, I like all of these bands a lot, and in particular I like their **long songs**. "Close To The Edge", "Octvarium", "Echoes", you name it. You think they'd be poison to someone with an AuDHD attention span like mine, but what makes them work is, simply, the fact that they're in sections. They're not just noodling about and doing whatever; there are clearly defined movements that keep things on track. And all of this is relevant because this performance of "Whipping Post" actually got a lot of plays on progressive rock radio stations — and why shouldn't it? It's not that far off, when you really think about it. It's not as clearly divided into sections as those other songs, but it shares a lot of that DNA. There are a **lot** of different parts in this song, and they're split up by the occasional vocal section. But that's not all! I think the other thing it shares with progressive rock is, well ... there is some part of me that could believe that none of this was improvised. I know it was, given that this wasn't the only performance of "Whipping Post" captured that night, but it just **feels** like it very well could be. And that's the magic of it, I think. This is a band that is **inhumanly** locked into one another. I've seen people discuss jazz albums where they talk about the psychic connection the members have between each other, but I've never felt that myself until right here. Like, they just pulled this out of thin air? This whole 23 minute composition, built out of a smaller, 5 minute song? They just **did that**? Without saying a **word** to each other? It floors me. It absolutely knocks me out. (And this, by the way, is the difference between 'At Fillmore East' and the Grateful Dead's 'Live/Dead'. The Grateful Dead, at least on that recording, seek to get by on pure vibes alone — that "undefinable X factor" I've seen people talk about. I don't wanna say the Dead are untalented musicians, but it's clear to me at least that the Allman Brothers Band are on a whole 'nother level. I mean, jeez, they ain't aiming just for vibes. It also stands a sharp contrast to something like, say, Led Zeppelin's 30 minute performance of "Dazed And Confused" on 'The Song Remains The Same'. Zep, I love yah, but there's only so much of Page's guitar improvs I can take before I zone out.) This is all why I vouch as hard as I do for live albums, rebelling against the complaints I often see. The live album can often be one of the most important releases in a band or artists' discography. And this album does both of the things I commonly say they do. This captures the band in a live setting, the way they never could in a studio. It's just a different energy when you're on stage, in front of an audience and burning lights, knowing that you have to be at the peak of your performance or else everything could go wrong. It pulls out shit like this! Which is the other reason live albums are important: capturing moments. Imagine they **didn't** record this night, and this performance of "Whipping Post" was lost like tears in rain. Maybe it could've been salvaged by a bootleg, and I don't wanna act like recording quality is everything, but could you imagine listening to this recorded from a fuzzy cassette deck in the fifth row? Goodness. It deserves the recording quality it got here, and then some. And it deserves to be heard in full, uninterrupted, headphones on and everything. To all of the reviews I've seen say something to the effect of "It's too looooong; I ain't got time for this!" — well, make some time! I know, it's a long album, with long songs stretching upwards of 10 to 20 minutes. That's a lot for some people to handle. But, I'unno: you could take it in chunks? Go by record side, or, heck, even by song. They don't fade into each other, so you'd be fine to go one at a time. Whatever means you wanna tackle this thing by, do it. I was never much of an Allman Brothers Band fan before now outside of "Ramblin' Man" and "Jessica", but boy if this hasn't convinced me otherwise. And I kinda hope it will for you, too. And if it doesn't ... well, I guess there's nothing you can do about it at that point. I could feel a bit sorry for you that you don't or can't get it, but that won't help any. Ah well. Either way, I jus' feel there ain't no such thing as dyin'. And I know this album sure as heck never will.

Catch A Fire

Bob Marley & The Wailers

5/5

I think there are two things about Bob Marley & The Wailers that're often forgotten in the public consciousness. And they're both things I think this album particularly highlights if you listen closely to it. For one, Bob Marley is a lot more political than you'd think. Y'know, a lot of the perception of Marley has been covered by the 'Legend' compilation, that was by design. As good a compilation as that album was (and I do enjoy it very much), it sanded off a lot of Marley's edge in order to sell him to suburban white kids. Nearly overnight, Marley became known mostly for love songs and for being synonymous with weed. The most political that this version of him would ever get was "Get Up, Stand Up" and that's it. This Bob would never sing about burning down churches. That doesn't appear on this album, but he **does** sing about burning slave drivers — it's where the album title comes from ("catch a fire"). There's a lot said on this album about political injustice. But it's not all politics. Even within singing about such hard topics, there's still a joy to be found. It's this kind of hope that acknowledges that, yeah, shit's been hard (for 400 years, even!), but they'll get through it and everyone else will as well. Just because shit's bad doesn't mean you hafta feel bad, y'know? At least not all the time. It's something that can be hard to feel in 2025, but for me at least it's really appreciated. And if it's not joy in the music, it's joy in general — this **is** the album where "Stir It Up" comes from. And it's a song to point out that while Marley's political side deserves more recognition, one isn't necessarily more important than the other. Whatever he's singing about, it's good shit. It's here that I should probably switch tracks. I've spent a lot of time up until now talking about Bob, but let's remember that it's him **and** The Wailers. They're just as crucial to this album's goodness. I mean, heck, this album is one of a few that was originally released as solely a Wailers album before Bob got his name slapped in front. Bob doesn't even write or sing all of the songs on this album; Peter Tosh (yes, that Peter Tosh) wrote "400 Years" and "Stop That Train" and at least sung the former (I can't tell if it's him on the latter or not). And the rest of the band? Oh, lordy me — what a **band**. What makes this one of the greatest reggae albums ever made is that these people are absolutely **locked in** and **rock steady**. There isn't a single missed beat on this entire record; it is consistently smooth and jamming the whole time. It's quite the marvel. I wanna particularly shout-out Aston and Carlton Barrett on bass and drums respectively, and Robbie Shapespeare, who played bass on "Stir It Up" and "Concrete Jungle". Once more: good shit. This is all why while 'Catch A Fire' might not be my favorite Marley n' Wailers album ('Exodus' clears by having bigger hits), it's for, as I said, one of the all-time greatest. I mean, if I were to point to any album to be like "if you really wanna understand Bob Marley & The Wailers, and particularly The Wailers", it'd be this one. Jus' ... aw, heck, three times now: goooood shit.

Roger the Engineer

The Yardbirds

3/5

I mean, I'unno. It's like ... I've got these two problems that're keeping me from enjoying this album as much as I should. And they're both more personal problems than anything having to do directly with the album. For one, I hafta wonder if I've been spoiled by all of the 60's music I've heard before now. I've grown up ingesting shit like The Beatles and The Beach Boys and Jimi Hendrix ... y'know? Some of the absolute best of the absolute best out there. And I guess when you spend so long taking in stuff of that magnitude and quality, it can be a little difficult to appreciate anything that's even a notch lower. Like, this 60's psych blues thing this album is doing: I get it, and I can even understand why it's sort of important. If you argued at me that this laid the groundwork for albums like 'Are You Experienced', I'd understand it entirely. But then, I kinda like 'Are You Experienced' better? Like, I'm not even trying to put this thing up against shit like 'Revolver' and 'Pet Sounds', necessarily, 'coz that's obviously not what it's aiming for. But, I'unno, I still kind of hear and think to myself, "Yeah, it's fine, but why exactly **is it** so special when stacked up against others of its ilk?" Then there's the other thing, which might play into why I can't hear it as being so special. It seems to me that the appeal of The Yardbirds is that, at various points, it's had three of the most legendary guitarists in history: Eric Clapton (ewwww), Jimmy Page (**I** like him, but I know others go "ewwwww"), and Jeff Beck. And it seems to me that whichever one of these guitarists you like best, that's the incarnation of The Yardbirds that you're gonna gravitate towards. This album is the Jeff Beck show, and, like ... it's listening to this album that I realize I have no opinions on Jeff Beck. Like, whatsoever. It's not like with Clapton, where (racism aside) I can comment on his "dusty blues licks," or with Jimmy Page, where I could probably find some way to tie things back to Led Zeppelin. No, Jeff Beck is like ... a name I know, for sure. I might've even seen one of his album covers at one point? But I don't know if I've ever heard a single song that he's on. Really, there's Spinal Tap's "Break Like The Wind" and that's it (if that's even the one he's on, and not "Short And Sweet"). So, you have an album which seems to have gotten its legacy off of Jeff Beck as a guitar player ... and, sure, he's a good guitar player. He does stuff on this where I'm like, "Damn, this came out **when** in the 60's?" But on the whole, due to my lack of awareness about Beck, I find it sort of hard to get engaged. And even putting aside all of that ... like I said, it's mostly just fine psych blues. It's far from bad, but just as well it's far from anything I'm all too "WOW"ed by. It just never does anything that reaches above that level for me, y'know? Honestly kinda jus' came and went. Maybe one day, when I better familiarize myself with Jeff Beck I might enjoy this album more ... or maybe one of these songs'll catch me on a better day and I'll go, "Damn, I should rated it higher." But as of right now ... yeah. Wasn't exactly a rave-up to me.

Music

Madonna

4/5

Finally! After 709 days of partaking in this randomizer, it's about damn time that, at long last, it's decided to give my group 'Music'! I mean, I'unno what we were listening to those past 709 days if none of **that** was music~! And what sweet, sweet ... erm, largely dated music we got. Yeah, let's get to the point: this is some pretty dated dance-pop electronica from Madonna. Put a blindfold on me and ask when this album came out, and I'm sure I'd be able to nail it down to 2000 exactly. To which, I don't wanna act like that's all a bad thing to me. Sometimes I like me a bit of dated music. Y'know, sometimes it's fun to be able to pinpoint exactly when a song or album came out. Heck, sometimes you just want that specific year or decade sound. I don't think there's anything wrong with that, and for good swathes of this album it was dated in a way I really enjoyed. Certainly, I feel like I enjoyed this thing largely more than I did 'Ray Of Light'. It might be blasphemy to diss on 'Ray Of Light', but I gotta be real, I did not dig the "yogacore" ambient trip-hop thing it was doing. I'm a simple gal: I want my pop music poppy, y'know? And where 'Ray Of Light' largely didn't provide that, 'Music' was able to, and I appreciate that. But not every song on this album is good-times music, no. Some of them are ... y'know, lesser than others. And I can name you the exact culprit behind this. So, there's, like, three or four different producer pairings across this album. William Orbit returns from 'Ray Of Light', and he has a pretty great showing on his tracks (minus one, but it's not an official part of the album). There's some other names I don't recognize on "What It Feels Like To Be A Girl", and I think they did a darn good job. These guys, without a doubt, produced the highlights of the album. Then there's the other guy, Mirwais. He did not produce any highlights. In fact, I'd say it's not a coincidence that the best songs on the album don't feature him at all. Here's the thing about Mirwais. I've read somewhere that people consider this to be a bit of an "experimental" album (at least by the standards of Madonna and her variety of pop music), and if it gets that from anything, it's Mirwais's production. He **loves** to slather tracks in robotic vocal filters and stuttery start-stop glitch nonsense ... I can just imagine a Big Important Critic™ at the time hearing this stuff and having his socks knocked off. "Wow! Listen to how far out there this production is! This is amazing!" Meanwhile, I'm just sitting here and understanding more and more why 'American Life' is the disaster it was. Mirwais comes across to me like a guy who has this big bag of tricks that he just **loves** to reach into — by gawd, he can't help but dig into it on every song he produces. "Let's chop the guitar up with abrupt cuts to silence!" "Let's do robot voices!" "Let's turn the autotune up to 11 like you're T-Pain or on Cher's 'Believe'!" I'm sure all of this sounded cool at the time, but in 2025 it's just a little ... much, y'know? Like, my guy, you don't hafta try so hard. You can tone back on the production! I mean, seriously, finding out he co-produced every song on 'American Life' really helps explain why that album sounds as bad as it does. Like, this shit's dated, but less in a "charming of-its-time" kind of way and more in a really goofy way. Like, Madonna's big robot voice at the top of the album asking me if I like to boogie-woogie, as if I'm gawdamm Cool Cat. And to the idea that this album is experimental — I don't really buy it? Mirwais is just throwing all of his favorite glitchy effects at the wall over top some 2000's Britney/Christina-style dance-pop. Like, it would've been just fine on its own, and either way it's hardly experimental. 'Ray Of Light' felt like the bigger experiment. I mean, jeez, I didn't care for its ambient trip-hop shit, but I can at least appreciate the swing it took, and I can give a nod of acknowledgement to how well it worked for others. Mirwais — I'unno. I don't wanna make it sound like his production's unlistenable or anything, but if I were Madonna, I would not have let him co-produce an entire album with me. At the very least, I would've traded him in for someone who wouldn't have let me do **two raps**. (Seriously: we all know 'American Life' isn't a great album, but goodness.) There's also the "American Pie" cover. As I said in my allusion to it above, it's not a part of the main album; it was only included on international releases and the 2016 vinyl ... but, hey, it's here, and I'd always heard it was a trainwreck, so I figured I may as well give it a shot. And I gotta admit, I'm sort of underwhelmed? I guess I'd always assumed it'd be more obviously awful. Most of the feeling I get from it is just ... why? Y'know? Why did you do this? Who asked for this? Who wanted "American Pie" to sound like this? And have so many of its lyrics chopped out? I don't think it's worth the particularly terrible Madonna movie it's attached to. And if you wanna count it as part of this album, well, it's the one non-Mirwais black mark this thing has, so ... points in Mirwais favor, I guess? Y'know, 'Music' is not a bad album, not at all. It can be pretty darn enjoyable in spots. Even the Mirwais tracks had their moments. I just wish he could've shown some restraint and didn't stick out like a big sore thumb as a result. But ultimately, yeah, it's pretty good. Believe me, when it comes to music, I've heard far worse than this. Like 'American Life'! Ha! Ha! Ha! Yeah, I'll stop now.

Savane

Ali Farka Touré

4/5

To be clear to start, I didn't have the lyrics with me as I listened to this album. And that's bad form, I know, I know. Even as someone who's as "melody first" as I claim to be, I should have found 'em — and translated, too, I should say. But, I'unno, the day I got around to this album I figured I wanted to take it just on its vibes. I'd seen so much talk about it (including describing it as a Louisiana barbecue — which is a few thousand miles off point from its original, but I get it), I guess I wanted to see what I got out of it as I worked on some other stuff at the same time. And I'll tell you, on vibes alone it is certainly not a bad album. Not at all. It's a very different sort of blues than I'm used to, to begin with. I don't have any reference for what African blues should sound like, let alone why Ali is the "king of the desert blues singers," but at least going off of this I can tell you it's pretty good stuff. It's heavily focused around guitar work, to the point where I don't think there's any percussion at all. Instead, the bass and the other guitar hafta pick up the work. It's interesting; it reminds a lot of how some very early rock n' roll records wouldn't have any drums, instead relying on the slap click of the bass. It also **does** feel a lot like a barbecue, like your older relatives decided to bust out their old guitars and jam on some blues for everyone. I can see eating a nice, juicy hot dog to this music — covered in crispy burn marks and drenched with two or three lines of ketchup. Mmm. Though, with that said, it's not exactly ... terribly engaging? At least not to me. Like, I can see why I've seen it described as background music: while it **is** good, there's not a whole about it I'd say is all that gripping. Which isn't a bad thing to me, of course; I'm the first person to stand up for and argue in favor of background music. But I can tell, if I'd tried to listen to this closely I would've lost interest very fast. Perhaps even if I had pulled up the lyrics. Heck, even not giving it 100% of my attention I could very easily notice that there didn't seem to be a lot of progression in these songs. There were times, honestly, where my ears would tune back in and I'd think to myself, "Damn, this song is still going?" And I'm thinking this sort of thing about songs that're only 3 to 5 minutes long. I even accidentally skipped the seven-forty long title track, so I can only imagine how that one would feel. Which all isn't to say I didn't enjoy my time with this album. As a representative for African blues (Mali blues specifically), I can get enough of an idea why some people would be really into it. I can understand well enough why Martin Scorsese would call it the "D.N.A. of the blues." But for my own tastes, eh. I don't think I need to be dazzled by every album I listen to, but I would've appreciated a bit more of that "wow!" factor, y'know? Maybe if I'd gotten the lyrics, or followed along with the explanations in the liner notes. But as it stands, I think I'd recommend it, just to see if you'd get more out of it than I did. And I hope you do, honestly.

Amnesiac

Radiohead

4/5

Traffic

3/5

It occurs to me, my group probably didn't get the best introduction to Traffic. Or, what I really mean, the most accurate. For all intents and purposes, from everything I've read and seen, 'John Barleycorn Must Die' is essentially a Steve Winwood solo album that just so happens to feature the rest of the band. It's kind of like 'The Final Cut', which is basically Roger Waters's solo debut though credited to Pink Floyd. And either of those is better than what happened to Tony Iommi's 'Seventh Star', but I'm getting off track. The point is, this is the album that I imagine better reflects who Traffic was. Going by 'John Barleycorn', it seemed that Traffic really wanted to be Steely Dan. Y'know, a lot of soft jazz rock that's **really complex** if you dig into far enough but just comes off boring to most people. I find myself among them. It's not that I wouldn't go digging if I could — it's that I just can't. I don't have the ear for it. So it feels like this album should be more up my alley. Being led by Dave Mason instead of Winwood, it's a lot more 60's folk rock. There's some light jazz touches sprinkled in there, but this self-titled is clearly aiming for more of an accessible audience than 'John Barleycorne' was. And maybe it's my dumb "no music theory" brain talking, but dang it, I like it sometimes when you can just appreciate a song for what it is without having to dig too deep. That said, however, I'm not sure I like these songs terribly much. I don't **dislike** them, not at all, but generally these songs are just ... fine. Y'know? They're fine. Some of 'em are tryna be The Beatles, and they get more of the way there than they don't. Some of 'em are really light and have a lot of flute, and they kind of breezed past me, but I'm not gonna rag on 'em for that; they're good enough. And "Vagabond Virgin" is ... y'know, there's a lot of songs that sing about underage teen-age girls, and a lot of times I wanna give 'em the benefit that the narrator is also a teen-ager. Like, when Ringo sings "You're Sixteen" on his album, I doubt you're supposed to imagine 33 year-old Ringo creepin' and peepin' on a 16 year-old. "Vagabond Virgin", though — yeah, there's no getting around it. Especially when Dave seems to be singing about a 16 year-old sex worker? Like, Dave, my man, I saw 'Taxi Driver' recently, and lemme tell you... But that's the worst the album gets, really. On a musical level, it's like every other song here: jus' kinda fine. Like, I'unno, it all circles back to the question I asked a few reviews, where I wondered if I was spoiled for 60's music. Y'know, you grow up on a diet of The Beatles, how could these guys compare? But even aside from them, I just can't point to any particular element that grips me. So, yeah, while it's a better introduction to who Traffic were than 'John Barleycorn Must Die' was, it's not iike it makes me wanna go out and listen to more of their music. It's just ... fine. All around fine. I imagine if you're someone who just absolutely **loves** 60's rock outside of the big names you could get a kick and a half out of this. Me, though? I just can't dig it.

Isn't Anything

My Bloody Valentine

4/5

I've said it before and I'll say it again: it's so weird to find out that my bloody valentine has released three albums. Like — only three? At the same time, it feels like they should have released more **and** less. On the one hand, the size of their impact makes it feel like they should have released more albums. Like, when I was younger and reading about 'loveless', I kind of always assumed there were plenty of others I just never heard about, but I'm sure the hardcore fans knew well. But then on the other side, it **does** sort of feel like they just dropped 'loveless' and then disappeared into the void. They invented shoegaze, and once that was accomplished they simply ceased to exist. Before 'm b v' it **was** the only one I'd ever heard about, so it wouldn't have surprised me to find out they were a one-album wonder. And I suppose in many regards they still are, but they don't have just one album to their name. And I feel like I can accept that 'm b v' exists. Y'know, the legendary shoegaze band reunites decades later to grace the world with one more record. To be clear, they **had** released a few EPs after 'loveless', but as for big projects, there was nothing until 'm b v'. And I can get behind it as a "legacy album," y'know? Comin' back to prove they still got it. That makes total sense to me, and if their discography stopped at just these two albums I'd fully accept it. But they don't have only two. They have three. And for a second, it was just sort of hard for me to accept that 'loveless' was **not** their first album. I mean, you hardly think about what happened before the Big Bang, right? But then I guess even **that** had to come from **something**, so... I'll tell you up front, the strangest thing about 'isn't anything' (at least to me) is how ... normal it is? In comparison to 'loveless' and what shoegaze is, anyway. This album feels a lot more typical of how alternative rock probably sounded back in the late 1980's. I'm very certain that if I was given this album without being told it was by my bloody valentine, I would've had a bit of a hard time guessing it was them, even with 'loveless' in mind. Which isn't to say you can't hear any of 'loveless' in this album. There are quite a few spots where the guitars fuzz out and the singer gets a bit drowned out by the noise and I go, "Yeah, no, this is that same band." It's just clearly a primordial version of what they'd eventually go on to achieve. And that's not a bad thing, I wanna stress. I realize that it's kind of unfair to keep comparing it to 'loveless'. It's such a towering record in the world of un-mainstream music, there's really no way you could escape its shadow. How could I rag this album for being in 'loveless''s shadow when 'isn't anything' could run for miles and still be in the dark? And I don't think I have been ragging it, but still. It's just ... way more conventional than I've come to expect from this group, and it took me a second to adjust. But once I did, I'll tell you, for what this album is, it's pretty good. It won't blow your mind the same way something like 'loveless' would, but as far as late 80's alternative rock goes, I liked it a fair bit. Mostly on a vibes level, I should say; I figured it'd be a fool's errand to try and pay attention to the lyrics, so I took the album entirely on its soundscape. There's a few spots where it drags a little, but on the whole, yeah, it's a good time. I'd say if you're not into how hard 'loveless' goes, you might enjoy how much more traditionally alternative this thing is. And that does it for the trilogy of my bloody valentine albums. If there's any takeaway I have from finally dealing with this album, I guess it'd be that while I'm not surprised 'loveless' is pretty much the only one people remember, I think there's some merit to be found in the other two albums. For sure, it's absolutely an acquired taste; I'm not recommending these to the feint of heart or feint of butt. However, if you can gel with 'loveless', you'll probably find a lot to enjoy about these records. I sort of doubt I'll ever come back to 'em, but at the very least I can say I appreciate 'em. By far, too, they've made some of the best shoegaze I've heard from this list — and that isn't anything to spit at. (Now if only I could figure out how the '87 'My Bloody Valentine' film and its 2009 remake fit into things~...)

AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted

Ice Cube

3/5

Y'know, the last time I engaged with Ice Cube, he was starring in the cinematic disasterpiece that is 'War Of The Worlds'. You've probably heard plenty about it — the screenlife movie where Ice Cube spends the entire time acting like he's one of those reaction YouTubers? It's a great laugh; I honestly recommend it, as one of the new all-time stinker flicks. But did you know: he's also a rapper? And not just in N.W.A., where he made a name as one of the star performers, no. He also had a solo career, and this was his debut. As Ice Cube's first step on his own ... well, it's complicated, to say the least. Because, on the one hand (and I suppose we should get this out of the way to start), Ice Cube doesn't seem to have a particularly great attitude towards women? This mostly comes up on the song "You Can't Fade Me", where, when faced with a woman saying she's having his baby, Ice Cube's first thought is to "kick her in the tummy." Woof. Then, months later, when the kid's almost due, he's racing to find a wire clothes hanger. Like, my man, putting aside the obvious shit here, it's a little late for this **now**, don't you think? Now, myself, I'm not the kind of person who gets aghast when lyrics like these pop up on a rap record (it was, unfortunately, the style at the time), but at the same time ... goodness me, Cube. Was any of this necessary? Some part of me figures he's supposed to be playing a character here, amping up so many of his negative traits. After all, he's supposed to be "AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted" — the guy you love to hate, y'know? But I feel like that sort of can only carry you so far. I mean, he's not Eminem playing Slim Shady, where it's so cartoonishly over-the-top you can't even begin to take it seriously. Heck, it's not even like Dre and friends on 'The Chronic', where, yeah, it has its own share of misogynistic lyrics, but the G-funk party vibes are so strong it kind of smooths things over enough for me to enjoy it. Here, Ice Cube seems to want to be taken pretty seriously, with all of his socio-political and reality raps. So, if he's a character playing up the sexism, is he playing it up on those other songs, too? Where's the delineation here? I mean, he's a better actor here than in something like 'War Of The Worlds', but that's not exactly a high bar to cross. And this whole album seems to hinge on how much you buy into this character he might or might not be playing (and I might not), so... At least he gets a good chunk of what's coming to him on "It's A Man's World" with Yo-Yo. That's a great track. To put it in short, a lot of this is a product of its time. I don't say that to excuse anything he said here, but more just ... to better frame this album, y'know? There's nothing you can do to change what it is; you can only deal with what's there. And there's a part of me that thinks Cube had to go and muck things up with these lyrics, 'coz otherwise there's a lot I like about this album. The beat work from the Bomb Squad is fantastic as always; I love hearing how they flip and play around with samples. And as a rapper, I've always had a spot for Ice Cube. He's got a great voice for this stuff, and his flows are dead classic. Like, there's a reason he was a stand-out in N.W.A.. It's, y'know, not great that he chose to bring some of his worse traits over to this album, but still, I can't completely deny the talent. I think it's a good album, though undeniably dogged by some real rough spots. I can't say I totally blame the people whose reviews are essentially just a 1 and "MYSOGINIST!". For my money, I think it's enjoyable, but you'd absolutely hafta toss a song or two from the tracklist if you wanna play the thing in full. So, Cube, I'm glad to know you were doing better things in your youth than 'War Of The Worlds' — but maybe you still coulda done a **bit** better? Y'know? And every time I try to think of this album's title, I always think of "America's Most Blunted" first. Every time, without fail. Goodness.

Blood And Chocolate

Elvis Costello & The Attractions

4/5

When I started this list, I could safely say I was a fan of Elvis Costello. Of course, I'd only really heard 'My Aim Is True' (plus "Radio, Radio", "(What's So Funny About) Peace, Love And Understanding?" and Weird Al's pastiche "I'm So Sick Of You"), but what else did I really need? I mean, right? As far as I knew, this was all he sounded like — and I liked that sound a lot! Heck, I can claim 'My Aim Is True' as one of those "in my soul" records because of how much I've listened to it. So I didn't look into his discography any further. But now that I've taken this deeper look, with five extra albums of his under my belt, I think I can safely say this: when I say I'm a fan of Elvis Costello, what I really mean is that I'm a fan of his first three albums. 'My Aim Is True', 'This Year's Model', 'Armed Forces' — **that's** the stuff I love, when he leans hard into New Wave and pub punk. He could be singing about anything; I just love that **sound**. Especially the keys he uses on 'em, goodness! It's when he seriously strays away from that sound, as he does on 'Brutal Youth' and 'Imperial Bedrooms', that I start to check out. Neither of those albums are bad (far from it!), but I just don't enjoy their sound as much. I think it puts me a hair out of step from Robert Dimetry and all of the people who contributed to this book. From what I can tell, Costello is mostly on here for his skills as a songwriter — which mostly means "his lyrics." And it's not that I don't care **at all** about Costello's lyrics; for the albums I care about, I do really enjoy a lot of what he writes. But on those other two albums, that seems to be the main draw, and ... I'unno, I've never been much of a lyrics person. In music outside of rap and country, I'm never gonna pay attention to them as much as I know I do the general sound, and if the sound can't pull me in, what chance do the lyrics have? It's really led to me wondering, like a lot of other people, why exactly Costello needed to have six albums on this list. (Though at least I don't just leave a "1" and move on.) Me, I would've been just fine with only half of that. That half, of course, would not include this album. I'll tell you, I did like it quite a bit, but if this album means anything to me, it's just as the one of the six that really cemented my opinion on Costello. After the failure of his previous record, it was a deliberate attempt to recapture the sound of 'This Year's Model' and 'Armed Forces', and ... yeah, **of course** I'd like that. Costello even got Nick Lowe back to produce it! That's neat! And, yeah, if you're someone who **did** like 'This Year's Model' and 'Armed Forces' and wanted more of it, this is your stop. It rocks, it rolls, it's lively ... it doesn't have that 70's keyboard sound I love so much, but pretty much everything else is just as I want it to be. Heck, it even got me to pay attention to the lyrics on some of these songs, and they can be pretty good stuff, too. But, y'know, this is all **if** you want more of that sound. Honestly, if you've already got 'This Year's Model' and 'Armed Forces', I'm not 100% sure why you'd also need Elvis Costello trying a decade late to recapture that sound? And he does it pretty well, all things considered, but it's clearly a step below those old albums, even if it's just a little. There are also the few songs that stray from the sound, and, I mean, I don't wanna come across like any deviation from the sound **I** like is suddenly the end of the world ... but I can't tell you I enjoy them as much as I do the 'Model'/'Forces' stuff. Take "I Want You", for example. I keep seeing that touted as a highlight for how unsettling it is, and how bluntly honest Costello's lyrics are, and it's like ... yeah, I get it. I appreciate it. But next to how hard "Tokyo Storm Warning" goes, I have a hard time really getting into this. It's just a bit too lowkey for my tastes, y'know? (And come to think of it, "Tokyo Storm Warning" might actually go on a hair too long.) And it's like ... for real, I have no issue with Costello deviating from the sound of his first three albums. He wants to go off in all kinds of weird directions and make classical music or jazz, he's free to do that. That's his prerogative, and I am absolutely not criticizing him for it. It is simply just a matter of taste. And I guess I just don't have much of a taste for much outside of his first three albums. And something about this discussion feels unfair to 'Blood & Chocolate', too. It's bad enough it has to compare itself next to 'Model' and 'Forces', but it can't even exist on its own without being used as a conversation piece for the wider Costello discography and how many of his albums are on this list. It's got good tunes, honestly; I did enjoy my time with it. I guess it's just the result of this being the last Costello album my group is ever gonna get — I'm in a bit of a reminiscent mood, y'know? For what this album is worth by itself, I think it's a good time. It's Costello returning to the sound I think he was at his best in, and he does it well. You might be bound to find a song or two like it, even if you've never heard 'This Year's Model' or 'Armed Forces'. I guess if you're one of those people who're so sick of Costello you give every one of his albums a 1 on sight ... well, I sort of doubt you're gonna listen to it anyway. But as for me, who is, by all technicalities, a Costello fan, I think it's pretty dynamite.

Emperor Tomato Ketchup

Stereolab

4/5

I saw a review on this website that referred to this album as "twee Krautrock." What else do you want me to say? That sums up the entire album right there. I mean, OK, the Krautrock side of things. From what I've read, instead of riffs, this album was built largely out of loops. And that's really interesting to me. I mean, that's just breaking down music to the essentials, isn't it? After all, what is a standard rock or pop song but a lot of repeated segments and motifs? So cut out the middle man and just actually compose it with loops. That's interesting. And from the first track, I thought I was gonna be able to compare it directly to electronic artists like Daft Punk. I thought this album was gonna have more morphing and transforming the loops with every repetition, adding in elements and taking them away and combining them in all sorts of interesting manners. But, no, after the first song the album largely settles into being very Kraut-ish indie pop rock. Which is all fine, of course, but goodness me, that first track set my expectations so well... Still, there's a lot of hooks to go around. Sure, of course for me it peaked with that first track, but the rest is no slouch. I mean, I guess when you build your album out of loops you're bound to run into a few dozen or so musical elements that'll just sink right in there. As an overall soundscape, it's just very nice, lively stuff. I suppose fitting for an album cover with such sunset colors. But we need to get to the other half of that descriptor: the tweeness. Stereolab is an English-French band, and boy howdy, you listen to this album, you'll be **very** familiar with the latter half. The singers are French, most of the lyrics are in French, and their **voices** ... OK, so I don't mean this as an insult (at least not entirely), promise. But if anything their voices remind me of right up front, it's those commercials where, oh, something quirky's happening! And it's soundtrack with a French woman singing! Look, in this commercial for the Scene Rewards program they're paying for everything with carrots! That's sort of thing, especially when they sing "la-la-la." I mean, have you ever seen the poster for 'Amélie'? Y'know, that face? It's like if that poster was a Krautrock album. In short: these are very "cute-type" vocals. You can see these women sitting on stools and kicking their feet as they record them, looking up at the ceiling and shimmying their shoulders with every "ooo-ooo-ooo." When they're not singing I'm sure they're part-time Manic Pixie Dream Girls. You get the point by now. Is it a bad thing, though? For my money, no, but there are times where they push it a little. They never get full on "owo" cutesy, thankfully; there are just moments where it gets **painfully** twee. Seriously, they're about to manifest a ukulele any second. Luckily, there's not too many of them, and there are quite a number of songs where they don't even **approach** twee. There's the opener, for one (yes, that track again), and there's also one like "Monstre Sacre". The title track doesn't even **have** vocals. But as a whole, I think the vocals fit well for the kind of music they're making. So, yeah, "twee Krautrock." I can't say I hate it. In fact, I rather like it. Sure, I wish more songs on this had been like the opener, but for what's here, I'm very pleasantly surprised. You wouldn't think I'd like an experimental pop album so much, but there yah go. Good on yah, Stereolab. Maybe now I won't mix you up with Stereogum every time I see your name. (And maybe I'll watch 'Amiéle', too. For the longest time, I didn't even know that that was a movie; I thought it was just a poster with a woman with an annoyingly quirky grin. Did **you** know it was a movie? Honestly now.)

Suede

4/5

Even this late into the list, I can't tell you I know too much about Britpop. Sure, of course I'm very familiar with the biggest names (Oasis, blur), and as of now I can at least name some of the other acts (Pulp, Manic Street Preachers). But I still don't know how well I can really judge any random Britpop album that gets thrown my way. Y'know, what makes any album in particular special besides the fact that it comes from a different name (This is, by the way, excluding the groups aforementioned.) So an album like this gets tossed my way, by Suede — or The London Suede, I guess — I can't even begin to imagine what I'm supposed to think about it. Certainly I wouldn't have ever guessed that this is often cited as one of the first Britpop albums. Yeeeaaaahhh, I kinda wish I'd known that going in. Like, jeez, one of the first Britpop albums? Maybe even **the** first! That's notable! That's worthwhile! That's worth consideration! And I ended up jus' kinda having this album on while I played more 'Wario World' (and in world 3 no less! That ain't a good spot for concentrating on **anything else**). I should say, I **did** listen with headphones, so it wasn't like I was entirely zoning out on it ... but, yeah, I kinda didn't give this thing the attention it could have gotten. Whoops. But, whatever. I made my bed and now I hafta live with it. Without that piece of knowledge, how did I end up taming (The London) Suede's first album? Well, to begin with, I see where the Bowie comparison comes from. This guy is trying his damnedest to sound like a young, slightly pitched David Bowie. And I don't think he did too badly?I think I would've preferred him to sound more like himself than Bowie, but I suppose he could've been worse. (I've also heard that this group sounds a lot like The Smiths, too, although it's been a while since I've heard 'em myself, so I wouldn't be able to say if that's true or not. If it is, well, I guess you've got one better option to listen to if you just can't **stand** Morrissey.) Given the way I was listening to this thing I wasn't able to take in too much of the lyrics, naturally. But the music? Oh, the music. It doesn't go as big as I like my Britpop to go (they ain't no Oasis!), but there are spots where it nearly gets there, and goodness me. And in general, these are just ... neat lil' tunes, y'know? Maybe even great, even. Like, I'unno, the whole soundscape these songs got, they really appealed to me. And even on the more downer tracks, they still have a hook in there where I hear 'em and I'm like, "Dang, that's a good little thing you did there." I'unno. That's about all of the words I can pull out about this album; I really did try. I mean, without being to frame this album as "one of the first Britpop records," it's good, and I enjoyed it a lot, but it never hit that intangible "wow" factor with me. It just never went over the cliff into "DAMN, THAT'S SOME GOOD SHIT RIGHT THERE," y'know? Not really being able to separate it too much from a lot of the other Britpop albums my group's gotten ... yeah. But still, I'd give it a thumbs up and good recommendation. Heck, I might even give it a second listen to find out what I missed my first go around. Like, I'm sorry I wasn't able to give you your due, Suede. Too, this probably isn't the best review I've ever given. But I guess I can only hope I give 'Dog Man Star' more of my attention and, as a result, a better review. Until then, then, though ... I'unno. Ooga-chaka? Yeah, this is a mess, goodness...

E.V.O.L.

Sonic Youth

4/5

Goodness, there are quite a few Sonic Youth albums on this list, aren't there? I mean, from how I've always understood about their legacy, I would've thought they'd've had only two: 'Goo' and 'Daydream Nation'. Those seem to be the only two that "matter," in the grand sense of thing. They're the only two I've seen show up on the Rolling Stone 500, anyway. But, no, there's five — and this is my group's fourth. So, OK. What does this have to offer that the others didn't? It occurred to me listening to this album that I haven't really been paying too much attention to the tones of these albums. Like, on 'Dirty' I was still tryna get over how 'Psychocandy' scared me on noise rock; with 'Goo' I largely focused on how it sounded like an album people would listen to for "cool guy" points; and when we got 'Daydream Nation' I took it solely as a "metal ambient" album. In all the time I've been talking about Sonic Youth, I've yet to actually discuss the tone these albums are tryna get across. From what I've gathered from the lyrics, 'EVOL' seems to be an album looking at love backwards — if you couldn't tell from the title, anyway. But seriously, it looks that it's a collection of unnerving stories that all somehow relate back to love in some kind of reversed, unusual way. It makes all the sense in the world, then, that the music itself takes on this dissonant, unnerving tone to match. And I don't know what it was about when I listened to this album, but I found I was surprisingly into it? Like, I couldn't recall the last time I dug a Sonic Youth album this much. Even if the songs are all supposed to be a little messed up in one way or another, I honestly thought they rocked a little. Ain't no typical rock or light metal or whatever, but it did the job in a lot of places. If I could've been more into it ... well, for one, the lyrics didn't do too much for me. And I know, I'm never good with lyrics, so it should never be too much of a factor, but I'unno. There were just a lot of times where I had no idea what they were trying to get across. Like, I'll say at least that the first track is as worse as it gets for that sort of thing, but goodness me, what a first impression. And beyond the lyrics, I'unno. It just didn't have that undefinable "wow" factor I seem to be bringing up more and more. As much as I **was** into it, and as much as I **did** feel like I was in the right headspace for it, I guess I still could've been **more** in the right place? I'unno, I just never had that moment of "Damn, this is some **good shit**!" Mostly, I think I was just pleasantly surprised at how much I was enjoying it. So, y'know, I suppose I can't say I really "evol" this album. But "gud dna ekil yllaer"? Yeah, that seems more fitting. It **did** provide me with something I didn't get out of the other **three** Sonic Youth albums we've gotten, so if nothing else I can't knock it for that. At this point, I'm just hoping the final one of five can prove itself worthy of being here. But in the meantime, yeah, I wouldn't call this one essential, but if you wanna give it your time, as long as you can meet it where it is, you'll have a good time. You'll "yojne" it, I guess. I'unno.

Paris 1919

John Cale

4/5

There are times where I am honestly kind of glad I don't often understand lyrics. Which isn't to say that I can never understand them, or that I just refuse to engage with them, no. They **are** important; I don't find myself listening to instrumental music too often, after all. It's just that, when I listen to music, I tend to value that actual sound first and foremost. Y'know, the sound, the energy, the tone, the vibes ... the music itself, in other words. Sometimes I worry it's not a "legitimate" way to listen to music. Especially when I've been doing these reviews for this website, shouldn't I wanna pay as much attention to the words as possible? But, eh, all I can ever do is try and relate my experience as best as I can. So if my experience involved not really paying the lyrics any mind, well, then so be it. And this is one album where I really ended up not paying the lyrics too much mind. This is an album from John Cale, who was a member of The Velvet Underground and a composer for films such as 'American Psycho'. I didn't know either of these things when I listened to this album. And certainly, I don't think I ever would've pinned him as a guy from The Velvet Underground. You're telling me the same guy who made an album as experimental and noisy as 'White Heat/White Light' also made all of these orchestral, baroque pop songs? Inspired by the likes of Brian Wilson and the Bee Gees, no less. It's crazy to consider it now, as I'm writing this. What music it is, though! In my head I don't think it quite matches up to Brian Wilson's work or the best I've heard from the Bee Gees, but all the same, I am such a sucker for this kind of stuff. You take a song like "Hank Panky Nohow": if I may quote a fellow group member, it "sounds like how a soft chocolate melts in your mouth, in the most savory way." I listen to it, and all I can do is let out a contented sigh and sink back into my seat; it's truly lovely. John Cale may have never gone on to compose for big films (besides 'American Psycho'), although judging just by this album, I can tell he's got quite the skill for composition. Lyrics, on the other hand, are a different matter. I'm sure he's trying to say something about his childhood, or world events, or ... I'unno, cocaine. But I can't even begin to parse out how these lyrics relate back to those topics. And they're not like Dylan lyrics, where they're incredibly flowery and poetic and dripping purple, no. These words are just not strung together in a way where I can understand them. And I **did** truly make an effort; I read a good chunk of them alongside the album. Though once I realized I wasn't getting anywhere with them ... yeah, I gave up. And I'll tell you, the album did improve tenfold once I stopped trying to understand the words. I relistened to the first half of the album while I wrote this review, and it was a lot easier for me to admire how good the music is, and how nice of a singer John Cale can actually be. So, yeah. Purely as a sound, this album gets a big thumbs-up from me. Maybe I'd wish it was a little more ... ELO, but, ah, I gotta take the music as it is — and for what it is, I have no complaints. As for the words — well, if you can understand them, then I wish I had what you do. But since I don't, I can leave the words. And that's just fine. John Cale, you still made a dang fine album. Jus', maybe try a little harder next time to be more understandable? A please and a thanks.

Buffalo Springfield Again

Buffalo Springfield

4/5

(Ah, dang — Buffalo Springfield **again**? Well, alright, lemme see what I can say about 'em **this time**...) "Expecting To Fly" is a funny song to me, 'cuz all by itself it seems to represent the legacy of Buffalo Springfield and its importance to history. Y'know: they're "the band Neil Young was in." Stephen Stills is there, too, sure — and I guess some other guys are as well — and maybe I'm underplaying their importance to folk rock — but let's face it. In 2025, I'm sure the most important thing about this album to most people is the presence of Neil Young. And I don't want to undermine the other band members, I really don't. They obviously pulled their own weight on this album. I mean, I never wanna ignore the other people in any band that happens to feature one person who goes on to be **really** successful solo. Beyoncé wasn't the only member of Destiny's Child, y'know? And I wish I could give the other members their flowers here, truly, but ... jeez, "Expected To Fly" literally doesn't feature a single one of them besides Neil. If he can pull that shit, recording an entire track by himself with members of the Wrecking Crew, and still call it a Buffalo Springfield song, it kind of gives the game away, doesn't it? It's by far more egregious than, to use Beatles examples, "Yesterday" or "Within You Without You". But the funny thing is that I think Neil Young get away with it simply because, as far as the songwriting goes, he **is** clearly the star player here. There is really no competition here. I mean, start at the bottom of the ranking with Richie Furay. You for sure don't know who he is. Apparently he was pretty influential to country rock, and later on he was a pastor for, like, 30 years. But going by this album, I sure wasn't given a reason to dig into his work any deeper. It's not like any of it's bad, really, bit ... gawd, it just kinda blew off of me. There's really nothing to them; once they ended, they may as well have not existed. The only one that stood out was "Good Boy", and that's only because of how out-of-place it sounded. Suddenly, this close to the end of the album, Richie Furay wants to write some wannabe Motown? Sure, OK, why not. Above him is Stephen Stills, who I don't think does anything **that** amazing on here on average, though in general his stuff's a lot better than Furay's. Y'know, I think I'd take "Everydays" over "A Child's Claim To Fame". But there is one song of his I'd call great, and that's "Bluebird". It's a very good rocker, where Stills and Young get to trade electric and acoustic guitar lines back and forth. It's fun stuff, honestly, and more than makes up for how "'yes, I guess it's good' at best" the rest of his stuff is. And then there's Young. Alongside Furay he only gets three songs, but, boy, does he make the most of them. "Mr. Soul" might be the weakest of the three, though I'd mostly chalk that up to how I spent a majority of the song just trying to parse out what it's about. For the record, it's about an incident where he had an epileptic seizure on stage and had to be rushed off to the hospital. And inspired by that, he wrote the second-best rocker on the album, only a hair a bit behind "Bluebird". Really turned lemons into lemonade, y'know? Following that he has "Expecting To Fly", and, y'know, I can make fun of it for how Neil's the only member of the band on the song ... but I'll be danged if it ain't a darn good song. I wanna give a particular nod to Jack Nitzsche, who provided the orchestral arrangement. He'd actually go on to do a fair bit of work with Young, being on both 'After The Gold Rush' and 'Harvest'. So, hey, it's neat to hear their first collaboration. And all the good luck that it's a very pretty song to boot. I honestly feel like, if there's any song I'd come back to from this album (besides "Bluebird" — I'll bring it up again again; it's that good!), it'd be this one. Finally, we have the album closer, "Broken Arrow". It's the longest song on the album, and clearly the one Young put the most work into. I mean, goodness, this thing is in **sections**, including a jazz breakdown and a reprise of "Mr. Soul". Young produced this track himself, and I can only imagine him goin' wild constructing this thing. I wouldn't return to it before "Expecting To Fly", but it's by far the most interesting song here. Richie Furay's couldn't even compare! Heck of a closer, lemme tell you, goodness. Putting it all together, 'Buffalo Springfield Again' comes off as an uneven album. I really couldn't give a hoot about 60% of it. They're all fine songs, but that's the bare minimum. But the other 40%, that's what you come here for: for Young's songs and "Bluebird". They're strong enough tracks by themselves that, yeah, they **do** lift this thing high up out of being middling. Of course, they're not enough to slam into "5 outta 5" territory, but, hey, if I were this album I wouldn't complain about where I was. So, my apologies to Richie Furay and the rest of the band — honestly. Coming into this, I didn't intend to push you all aside in favor of the one guy who happened to go on to write ... I'unno what the bad Neil Young album is supposed to be. Is it still 'Trans'? Or have people turned around on that one? Anyway, I wanna say none of this music would exist without you ... but then "Expecting To Fly" exists, so clearly it could. But if I can say anything in your favor, Neil still chose to make the rest of this album with y'all. That's gotta count for something.

The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter

The Incredible String Band

5/5

Y'know, looking down at the bottom 10 worst rated albums on this website, there's a few elements you can very easily pick up on. They're all largely experimental albums, which all make no attempts whatsoever at accessibility. They're loud, they're dissonant, they're atonal, they're tuneless, they're noisy, they're random — and they're just plain weird. It's the kind of music that would send the average music listener running, screaming, for the hills. Unless you have the kind of ears that can attune to something like 'Kollaps' or 'D.o.A' or 'Duck Stab!' (which I seem to have), how could you possibly parse it out? How could anyone **like it**? How is this **music**? The only exception is 'Devil Without A Cause', and that's by Kid Rock, so, y'know, fuck him. He didn't even have the decency to make 'Graduation'! Or, well, I thought that was the only exception. 'Cause just scanning across this band's name and this album's title, I had no reason to think it wouldn't fall in line with 'Scum' or 'Trout Mask Replica' whatever. Y'know, I figured this was just another obscure experimental album I'd never heard of that some Big Important Critics™ think is **high art**, though I'd probably find it just really boring. But, no, it's **not** an experimental record — not entirely, anyway. This is a **folk** record. Or an acid folk record, but still. And ... y'know, I knew a lot people on this website aren't keen on folk music (goodness knows I've had **my issues**), but ... what could **this** have done to've earned such a low score? As I'm writing this, it's only 0.01 points lower than 'Junkyard' by The Birthday Party, which I didn't find myself terribly fond of. Heck, this album's 0.07 points lower than John Zorn's 'Spy vs. Spy', which I absolutely hated; it's one of the few albums down in the bottom 10 where I think it **deserves** its spot. I just couldn't fathom this thing's crimes. What did it do to piss so many people off? Well ... I'll offer this concession up front: it **is** ... strange in parts. Very strange. I mean, there are times where it plays so hard into its Renaissance Faire folk thing that it toes right up to the edge of being parody. Heck, in points, it crosses the line entirely. It's by no means an easy album to "get." Either you do, or, well, you're ready to slap this thing with another 1. Me, though? I think I did. And I'm gonna say the nice version of this: I think y'all're completely over-reacting. I get it, of course. This is all a matter of taste, and it takes diff'rent strokes to move the world, and all that. I wouldn't knock anyone for not gelling with this thing; heck, there were times where I fell off-board with it. Occasionally, I'd hafta wonder, "What even is this? Why is this still going? Goodness me!" But when I'm into it and this thing is on point ... goodness. I can't remember the last time an album from this list gave me this kind of front-to-back experience. I think the key to this album is that ... well, I don't think you're supposed to think too hard about it. And, y'know, I'm never an advocate for not thinking about what you're listening to. You should be critical about what you listen to, of course. But this is one of those times where ... gosh, you just gotta feel it through. Close your eyes, take the step, and deal with it as it comes. Simple as that. And as far as **I** dealt with it ... I don't wanna say it's "trancendental"; that might be a bit of an exaggeration. But it **is** incredibly gripping. There's just this strange energy coming off of it. I mean, with how hard it can dive into its strangeness and Renaissance Faire folk ... if you're willing and able to just let it take you, it can be utterly magnetic. There were only rare moments where I got snapped out of it and wondered "What am I **listening to**?" and "Gosh, is it **still going**?" And thankfully, they were truly rare. I'll tell you, these moments were contained strictly to side two. I'unno, the energy was still strange, but all the same it felt ... different. As if sides one and two were written by different people entirely. And I'd say it's "The Water Song" and "Three Is A Green Crown" particularly that broke the spell for me for a bit. Something about the water sounds on "The Water Song" just weren't right, and I did find myself a little critical on how "Three Is A Green Crown" handled its Indian raga thing. But then, as I took a breath and kept listening, I slipped right back in. Suddenly, "Three Is A Green Crown" didn't sound so off anymore. Looking back, it's kind of weird that that happened. I can't recall another album where I just became uncritical of a song in the middle of it and didn't even notice. That's just the power this album can have if you let it, I suppose. Heck, even the times it sounded like parody didn't bother me too much. I guess just because I figured I wasn't supposed to take them too seriously. I mean, come on, you can't have something like "The Minotaur Song" or the multiple false endings on "A Very Cellular Song" and expect me to think they wanted me to be stone-faced serious. For most of it, sure, but as if they can't be a little goofy sometimes. "A Very Cellular Song" has kazoo on it, for goodness sake. And I know one review pointed to that as if it was the end of the world, but let's be real here. I mean, if I can let Pink Floyd get away with it on "Corporal Clegg", I can lend The Incredible String Band the same grace. Like, I just kind of marvel at the influence and ambition on this. I mean, if you were to tell me a bunch of Scots made acid folk, I wouldn't even know what to expect. Bagpipes, maybe? But then you have all of this medieval folk and Indian raga and takes at spiritualism and all of these instruments ... I am impressed, frankly. For real, I gotta give these guys props. I'unno how professionally rehearsed these guys were or weren't, but I wouldn't have been able to tell if they weren't (and like it mattered in the moment, anyway). And seriously, Robin Williamson has a lovely voice. Mike Heron's, meanwhile, isn't quite up to the same snuff, but it's honestly pretty minor. Speaking of things that're pretty minor, if I could have one true complaint about this album, looking at it from outside its energy, it's that I do think this could have been cut down a little. Mostly on side 2, of course. This thing's nearly 50 minutes, and that **is** pushing it a little. Even as entranced as I was by it, I couldn't help but notice that it was **still** going. But it's something that I imagine I could learn to deal with on subsequent re-listens. Yeah, honestly, I would consider relistening to this thing; I truly did like it a lot. It's one of the most unique albums I've heard on this list, and certainly one of the most unique folk albums. In its bizarreness, it is **certainly** not for everyone, but for those lucky few who can tune in to it ... yeah, goodness. And in either case, it absolutely does **not** deserve to be one of the bottom 10 rated albums on this website. Frankly, this is the kind rating that makes me wonder about a chunk of the userbase: like, is this really the bar for a bottom 10? Something that's just a little more strange than usual? It's hardly fair to this album, and iIt deserves far better than what it's gotten here. I mean, we're really putting this in spitting distance of Kid Rock? I don't think so. So, Incredible String Band, at least you have one more defender on your side. And I'd be happy, any day, to sing your praises. You are truly the exception down here — and I say keep shining through the darkness. Incredible indeed.

Appetite For Destruction

Guns N' Roses

5/5

It's kinda of funny, but I've never really considered Guns N' Roses a hair metal band. I know, genre labels can be pretty arbitrary, but I'unno. They just never felt like they belonged, y'know? For one, they all have long hair, but they never did it up like any of the other big hair metal bands of the time. They sure as heck didn't wear any make-up or tight leather, either. And beyond aesthetics, hair metal tends to largely be pretty poppy. I mean, you go listen to Poison's "Unskinny Bop", right? I like that song a lot, but there's no teeth to it; you take away the guitars and replace 'em with synths and no one would guess otherwise. They never truly had any edge — unlike Guns N' Roses. Guns N' Roses, going by this album anyway, come off like a band of street toughs. The way they play and sing about life in the city and sex and drugs, you'd swear they'd kick your ass seven ways to Sunday if you looked at 'em a little weird. And that's even **with** the poppier songs that're on here, like "Sweet Child O' Mine" and "Think About You". That's just their power — put against their contemporaries, they feel like they're a different genre entirely. But, indeed, they **are** hair metal. And lemme tell you, this is some of **the** best hair metal ever made. Maybe not **the** best ever, period; in regards to the traditional stuff I'd still tip the hat to Bon Jovi's 'Slippery When Wet'. As far as hard and heavy music goes, however, Guns N' Roses are right up there with the absolute best. Seriously, 'Appetite For Destruction' just does not **stop**. From the moment it kicks off on "Welcome To The Jungle", all the way to the end of "Rocket Queen", there isn't a single second wasted. And given that that's a stretch of 54 minutes, that's impressive as hell. Off the top of my head, I can't really think of another band who could've rocked this hard and long besides this combo of Axl, Slash, Izzy, Duff and Steven I feel like I could write a 2k word review about this album, like I've done for 'Sgt. Pepper's' and 'Songs In The Key Of Life'. That is truly how much I enjoy this thing and how much it excites me. I could go deep describing every little thing I love about Axl's unique vocal style, or Slash's simple-yet-effective-as-hell guitar playing, or how damn good Izzy, Duff and Steven do filling out the sound. I could honestly go track-by-track like I did with 'Purple Rain' and point out every moment I love, like the "FUCK OFF" on "It's So Easy", or Axl's flow on "Mr. Brownstone", or how the riff for "Sweet Child O' Mine" was originally just an exercise, or just the entire back half of "Rocket Queen", which is truly my favorite part of the entire album. I don't think I really need to, though. And I don't mean for that to be a cop-out on actually going into detail; it's just that my love for this album is that simple and doesn't require a million words. Like, all I really need to do is just say that despite how much I've heard "Welcome To The Jungle" and "Sweet Child O' Mine" in my life, I'm not sick of them. Not even close. I still love to hear them, wherever and whenever they show up. And if I'm the kind of person who can get past the hurdle of overplay, you can only imagine the affection I have for the rest of the album. Frankly, the only complaint I really have about this album is that there's a couple of songs on the back half that aren't **quite** up the same snuff as the songs up front? "Anything Goes", "You're Crazy" ... I get my kicks out of them, but they've never felt as special as songs like "Nightrain" and "Rocket Queen". They're the "minor rockers" on this album, for sure. But I'm gonna act like they're **too far** below everything else — it's more a case where everything surrounding them is so incredible and iconic that songs that're merely damn good fun can't help but pale a little in comparison. 'Appetite For Destruction' is an absolute blast, simple as that. Maybe a little cheesy, sure, but given how much cheese I've eaten in my life ... goodness, why stop now? It's one of the best hard rockers and debut albums I've ever heard. And despite how much I've already said about it, I'm not gonna force myself to drag it out any longer. Truly, I think the electricity, energy and excitement speak for themselves. If hair metal died not too long after this album came out, I can't think of a better album for the genre to go out on. Guns N' fuckin' Roses, man. I tell yah.

I’ve Got a Tiger By the Tail

Buck Owens

4/5

The best part about getting a country album is always that I don't ever really hafta think too hard about it. I'm really never too particular about my country music. Is there pedal steel? Yep! Is there fiddlin'? Yep! Is there singin' about heartbreak? Yep! And it's not that I can't ever have deeper thoughts about country music; that last Willie Nelson album my group got proved as much. But typically, as long as it has it the stuff I said "Yep!" to above, I'm pretty darn happy. And I gotta say, I'm pretty darn happy about this album. To me, country music (at least this kind of old country music) is a genre that all comes down to the singer. Most of the songs sound the same from album to album, and more often than not they're written by other people. This is the kind of shit that people wind up hating country music for. Me, I just enjoy the consistency. But the singer's where it's truly make or break — 'coz if you can't believe their performance telling these stories, then the music doesn't stand a chance. I think Buck Owens is a good singer, but I'd say I'm more amused by his performance than I'd say I actively believe in it. Buck Owens reminds me a lot of the lighter, "funny" country singers out there. Like, he's not on the same level of comedy as Cledus T. Judd or Ray Stevens, but his voice would fit right in. In fact, the first time I ever heard Buck Owens was on a Cledus T. Judd song, "First Redneck On The Internet". His voice just has this wink and a smirk to it on the more upbeat tracks; there were a lot of spots where I heard John C. Reilly singing as Dewey Cox in 'Walk Hard'. And it's this voice in particular I can tell people took a lot of inspiration and influence from. The more downbeat songs, the ones about heartbreak, his voice is good on those, though not too different from others I've heard. And it really is that that I like about this album. Even if he's never explicitly singing comedy tracks, it adds an air of levity that I really enjoy. I can tell, if he'd been a more typical singer, I still would've had a good time with this album — but not nearly as much. (And so I won't have spent this entire time focusing solely on Buck, I wanna take a second to give his Buckaroos their flowers, too. "A Maiden's Prayer" is purely instrumental, and it's a truly lovely track. Like, damn, I could seriously listen to these guys play all by themselves and I'd be just as into it.) Honestly, I think the only thing I really wanna knock this album for is the mixing. It's your very typical sort of early/close-to-mid 60's mix, which, y'know, I'm not sure if it was recorded on a two-track machine or not, but it sure sounds like it. Y'know, it's the kind of recording that's just fine when it's mixed for mono, but stereo? The only option you really have there is to slap one track in one ear and the other in the other, so you'd better enjoy only hearing the vocals in your left ear. I've seen at least one review on this website pull the whole album down to a 2 over this mixing, but let me tell you: I've heard worse. It's more of a soft 60's mix, where it's more evenly balanced, than they'd typically expect. Y'know, it's not as bad as some Beatles stereo mixes I've heard, lemme tell you that much. So, yeah: it's a country album as a country album does. It's just got that little extra Buck Owens flair that helps it stand out from all of the others my group's heard. Which is absolutely not nothing, let me tell you. But, yeah: I'm a simple gal with simple taste in country music, and this more than satisfied me. You've sure as heck got me by the tail, Mr. Owens. Indeed, as Cledus T. Judd once said: "You **are** the man."

Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)

Wu-Tang Clan

4/5

For the longest time there I wondered if I even liked West Coast hip hop. My group's gotten quite a few of 'em, and to this point I've been largely lukewarm on them, at best. And it's not just that I struggle with focusing on lyrics first and foremost, which is what has always tripped me up about hip hop. No, there's something else about West Coast hip hop that's never clicked with me, and for a while the exact reason eluded me. Sure, I knew why I preferred East Coast hip hop (G-funk, baby!) — but for why West Coast shit never did it for me, I couldn't say. So, we come to this album. The album that, thanks to one Mic The Snare, has existed in my head as **the** representative of East Coast hip hop. This would have to be where I figured out if I actually liked this stuff, and the exact reason why I don't if it turned out I didn't. Any other album, that'd feel like a lot to put on its shoulders — but this is 'Enter The' gawddamn 'Wu-Tang'. If any album's gonna have the strength to carry me to an answer, it's this one and its Wu-Tang style. And I was all prepared to listen to this album in that way. But then, shortly before I put it on, a thought suddenly occurred to me: I don't think my problem is with East Coast hip hop. I've liked quite a few albums from New York-based rappers: Biggie's 'Ready To Die', JAY-Z's 'The Blueprint', and of course Nas's 'Illmatic'. Hell, if there's any album you'd use as a Rosetta stone for New York rap, it should be 'Illmatic'. No, I came to realize, my beef is actually with **the Wu-Tang Clan**. Which feels even worse than not getting East Coast hip hop as a whole? Before getting this album, the Randomizer™ has treated my group to literally every album on this list from a Clan affiliate. And that's just ass backwards, innit? Why in the world would you listen to 'Tical' or 'Liquid Swords' before 'Enter The' fuckin' 'Wu-Tang'? And I'll tell you for sure, it wasn't exactly a good thing for me, 'coz I did not feel any of those albums. 'Liquid Swords', just an example, was an absolute snoozefest to me: way too lowkey for my tastes. Not even 'Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...', the most famous Wu affiliate album, could do much for me. And I feel bad about not liking these albums because, like, it's the gawdamm Wu-Tang Clan. Without listening to a single one of their albums, I've always bought into the hype surrounding them. And why not? The Wu just **feel** like a group who've deserved their legacy, whether you've heard them or not. Hell, I know they sure think they do, given the whole 'Once Upon A Time In Shaolin' thing. Every name in the Clan is famous as hell, each in their own right, from RZA to Method Man to the motherfuckin' Ol' Dirty Bastard. If I don't like the music they make, why did I spend so much time hyping them up to myself? Did I really do it based on nothing more than an impression of their legacy? Ultimately, I don't think I did? But at the same time... Y'know, let me just talk it out. With this spin of the album, I've finally come to realize what the appeal of the Wu-Tang is, at least on this album: they are **tough boys**. The way they spit is so hard, I am absolutely certain they could kick my ass if I tried to fuck wit 'em. Even in the moments where I lost track of what exactly they were saying, the delivery was enough to keep me going. And everyone was so unique from one another, which is amazing to me given how many people were in this group. You hear one of 'em rap, and you know exactly who it is. That's incredible. I mean, damn, this shit banged, y'know? And the beats, too! Now that I understand the rapping, I was finally able to get a handle in the beats as well. Before now, I'd always thought they were maybe a little too dry for my tastes? But, no, they bang too! They're hard as fuck! No wonder these guys present their work as martial arts movies and their rapping as fighting styles. I do believe the Wu-Tang style could win most fights it's used in. On this front, I absolutely think this album and the Clan have earned their place in history. But how much did I actually like it? If my previous statements weren't any indication, I did, a lot. If you're a hip hop fan and you've somehow passed it up, you owe it yourself to listen to this thing. But as for my own personal tastes ... it comes back to the East Coast/West Coast divide — and, specifically, the album Mic The Snare used to represent the other coast: 'The Chronic'. I like me a hard beat and some hard rhymes about real living on the street. It'd feel weird to like rap and **not** like any of that. But I am what I am, and what I am is someone who enjoys hooks. That's not to say 'Enter The Wu-Tang' is devoid of them; there were a few choruses I could shout along to. But, like, come on: G-funk. The synths. The vibes. The deliveries. The **Snoop Dogg**. I realize I come off shallow coming down on 'Enter The Wu-Tang' (exactly how much is up to you), but I can't lie. The Wu-Tang's hardcore hip hop just can't pull me back like the hooks on 'The Chronic' can. Heck, the hooks are a big reason why I enjoyed 'Ready To Die' as much as I did, even in spite of the Diddy of it all. So ... yeah. If any opinion is gonna represent my tendency towards sound and mood over lyrics and meaning, that'd do it. But like I said, the Wu do truly deserve the spot they've gotten in the pantheon of music. Even I can recognize that. Frankly, it makes me wish I liked hardcore hip hop more so I could rate this thing the way I feel like I should. But regardless of that ... yeah, man. With this new knowledge in mind, maybe I'd like some of those other Wu affiliate albums a bit more now. Or maybe not! Who can say? If nothing else, their first album sure as shit brought da motherfuckin' ruckus, and that's what truly matters. Wu forever.

Antichrist Superstar

Marilyn Manson

2/5

"['Antichrist Superstar' is] about me growing up and wanting to become something that people would adore, instead I grew up and became something that people hated." - Marilyn Manson I've said it once, twice and many more times, and I'll keep saying it: I review music, not people. Sure, sure, how you feel about an artist will no doubt impact how you feel about their work, but I try not to turn these reviews into "GRRRR, I HATE THIS PERSON SO MUCH" rants. It's not something I've been perfect about (see my "review" of 'The College Dropout'), but dang it, I try. Marilyn Manson (the man, not the band) would be such an easy guy to do this with. I don't know all of the details, except that he's a creep and an abuser — and, frankly, those alone should be enough to write him off entirely. Y'know, whatever sort of impact he may have had back in the day, is it really worth keeping him around? And I'm not even exactly sure **what** his impact was, besides being blamed for the Columbine massacre. I guess he might've brought shock rock to a new generation, but Alice Cooper he sure ain't! (Musically, anyway; Alice Cooper ain't an abuser, but I haven't heard many other good things about him lately.) All the same, though, Alice Cooper still made "School's Out" and a lot of other great hard rock. There's a reason people keep his work around. And, I mean, that's the thing, right? Bad and awful people have made great art that's worth keeping around. It's an unfortunate fact of life, but a fact nonetheless. It's like, even Kanye West, who's a black shit awful human being, made 'Graduation'. I can see keeping some of his work around, even if the man himself should be left to infamy and obscurity. Marilyn, though? I mean, what's his art? 'Antichrist Superstar'? Is that album worth it? Speaking strictly about the album itself, as best as I can: nah. I don't think it is. The thing about 'Antichrist Superstar' is that I can tell how hard it's trying. It is trying **so hard** to be threatening and creepy and disturbing and scary and, y'know, **cool**. "Lookit me! I'm calling my album '**Antichrist** Superstar'! I'm quoting Nietzsche! I'm being so cynical about humanity! Aren't I just **cool**?" And it's like, no. No. You are not as cool as you think you are. I mean, maybe I would've bought into all of this if I was 15 and this was 1996, but I'm not and it isn't, so quite frankly ... y'know. Part of my frustration here lies in the fact that this is supposed to be a concept album and a rock opera. And I just feel like, when you're telling a story, you need to be clear about what's going on — or at least, you need to leave enough hints that the audience can get it. Lookit something like 'The Wall', or even 'Tommy'. I get what's happening in those, even if there is some stuff, particularly in 'Tommy', that's pretty vague. Here, though? I had to jump to a fan wiki to find out what the plot was supposed to be, and even then I still had to make large leaps to cover up the holes. It just wasn't worth it to me. It's like ... y'know, there's a difference between Green Day's '21st Century Breakdown' and this album. In both cases, they're supposed to be rock operas, but I'ven't the faintest idea what's supposed to be happening in either. Fanmade summaries only do so much to help. But '21st Century Breakdown' at least has the musical chops to make up for any weakness in its "plot." 'Antichrist Superstar' doesn't. (And to say as well: when Billie Joe Armstrong uses the "N"-word on '21st Century Breakdown', I don't like it and I'd've rather he didn't and I am not defending it whatsoever, but I can **sort of** rationalize it based on the surrounding context. On 'Antichrist Superstar', it sounds like edgy white boy shit, plain and simple. And "edgy white boy shit" feels like how I'd describe a lot of the lyrics on this thing.) But the music, though. I figured I should like this well enough. Y'know, industrial has never exactly been my thing, but, hey, as long as it strikes the right chord ... I mean, I have always liked "The Beautiful People", so as long as it holds up to that standard, everything should be fine, right? Nope. Honestly, it makes me wish I'd listened better to 'The Downward Spiral'. Like, the music is obviously the best part about this album, and even that can't save. Sure, it's good to start, yeah. But as I would further and further down this 71 minute album, I began to tune it further and further out. It just wasn't consistently interesting enough to grip me. This clearly is **not** Trent Reznor on his A-game, my goodness. Maybe more his B- or, heck, C-game. And you put it together with the lyrics, and the "cool groaning and moaning" way Marilyn sings it all ... urrrrgghhh. Yeah, in the end, even if I was somehow able to put aside the fact that Marilyn Manson is an abuser, I still wouldn't have enjoyed this album too much. It's too long and it's trying too hard, despite the fact that it can't muster up enough interesting shit to cover its ambitions. I just picture Marilyn smirking in the studio, thinking about how **blown away** everyone is going to be by his **cool concept album** and how **scary and shocking** it is. But, me, I'm just left here stone-faced. And I think the worst thing here is that there **is** something I honestly could've connected with. From what I've read, there's a big theme about facism being apparent in conservative America and the Christian right, and ... I mean, yeah. Yeah. It's 2025, and it's not just apparent; it's a fact. If there's any time this album should be resonating, it's not. And yet, do I really wanna hear it from **THIS FUCKIN' GUY??** I don't think so. Well, you **did** become something people hated, Marilyn. You sure got that right.

Joan Baez

3/5

Wow, another 60's singer-songwriter folkie! Is it time again for me to complain about how I don't understand their lyrics? Thankfully, no — and thank goodness for that. This is an album made up entirely of traditional tunes. Baez only arranged these songs (except for, like, two or three), so luckily I don't hafta worry about parsing out what any of these songs "mean" and try to judge Baez's songwriting. But I'll tell you: it **is** sort of strange that this is Joan's debut and yet she didn't write a single song on it. Now one! I mean, it's not that odd that it's made up of folk standards; Bob Dylan's two years later was largely standards as well. But then, Dylan somehow managed to sneak two of his own originals on there, so... Whatever, though. This album clearly wants more to show off Baez's skills as a performer. That's fine, that's fair; I probably would've focused largely on the performance even if there were some of her own songs. And, I mean, this thing lives and dies on its performance; for the whole runtime there's only Joan and her guitar. There ain't even a harmonia to break up the pace. So, if you're not into her performance, I can't imagine what a slog these 40 minutes would feel like. Is it a slog to me? Well ... here's the thing: I can tell that Joan is a very nice guitar player and a very nice singer. Normally I don't have much tolerance for this kind of "plonking along on a guitar" sort of thing, but I think Joan plays pretty enough that I can look past it. Her voice is really nice, too. When she sings lightly and softly, I can completely understand that one person I saw who called her voice "haunting." No doubt, I think I'd get a little tired of a whole album of just this and nothing else, but I think it'd happen pretty slowly if Joan kept this up. If she did. I wish she did, but, no — you've also gotta put up with her **vibrato**. This isn't the first folk album I've come across with a vibrato album, and maybe it's not the worst, but goodness me. It just builds, the entire length of the thing. Every time Joan holds a note, it suddenly sounds like she's in a car on a bumpy road, or like someone's started shaking her by the shoulders. I really can't understand why so many folk singers decided they want to sing like that. I'unno if they think it's more soulful or real or whatever than just holding the note straight, but goodness me. If you ever hear Buffy Saint-Marie's cover of "The Circle Game" at double speed like I have, you'll never take vibrato seriously ever again. And that's not even the only issue I take with her voice. There are also times where she puts some volume in her voice, and goodness me, they don't sound great. Whenever it happens, it sounds like the song's bricking. Her singing seriously just gets that loud and overpowering in comparison to her everything else, and it is seriously not pleasant. I know this album was recorded in 1960, but there wasn't **anything** they could have done about this? Jeez, at least tell her to lean back from the microphone; she's a moment away from putting it in her mouth. It's a shame I take such issue with these two elements of her voice. I can clearly tell that she's supposed to have the voice of an angel, but then these two flaws ... well, they keep it from truly ascending, y'know. I do wish I could be more into it, but, just how things go sometimes. At least I was able to write a folk singer-songwriter review without bringing up the lyrics, for once. Goodness.

Led Zeppelin III

Led Zeppelin

5/5

I only just today remembered that 'Led Zeppelin III' is my most-played Led Zeppelin. If it were going to be any album from the tetralogy, I would've guessed it would be 'II' or 'IV'. Heck, outside of the initial four, I would've sworn that 'Houses Of The Holy' would've been it. But 'Led Zeppelin III'. And it's not that it's a bad album, I should say — more just because, looking at the entire Led Zeppelin oeuvre as a whole, it kind of feels like ... one of the lesser albums? I mean, heck, among all of these albums (plus 'Physical Graffitti'), it's the only one not on the 2012 Rolling Stone 500 — and that means something to me, believe me. I guess it's not really 'III''s fault. If you were slotted in the shadows between 'Led Zeppelin II' and 'IV', you wouldn't feel very big either. And if nothing else, I'd say it stands out more than either 'Presence' or 'In Through The Out Door' do. But what is it, specifically, about 'III' that causes it to fall between those other albums? And why have I listened to it so much in spite of that? I guess the most obvious thing to begin with is that 'III' doesn't have the songs like any of their other albums' Their debut has "Good Times Bad Times" and "Communication Breakdown"; 'II' has "Whole Lotta Love" and "Heartbreaker"; 'IV' has ... well, take your pick. 'III', meanwhile, seems to only have one song: "Immigrant Song". And it's exactly the kind of thing you'd expect from the group: it rocks hard and it feels like it's endlessly pushing forward, with that galloping riff. It's by far the most badass song on the album. And it's also the only song on the entire album that sounds like this. Of Led Zeppelin's entire discography, 'III' feels the most experimental to me. Sure, they could still rock like absolute mothers, and they could kick an incredible blues burn (see "Since I've Been Loving You"), but they were also starting to work in a lot more acoustic and folk influence. You wouldn't have heard a song like "That's The Way" on either of the previous albums — or on any of their later ones, I don't think. Certainly not on 'IV', where they've refined their folk and acoustic leanings with tunes like "The Battle Of Evermore" and "Going To California". Those are in a different league to "That's The Way", which is pretty in a way I never really found either of those. Similar goes for "Tangerine" right before it. And then you've just got all of the weird turns. "Friends" and "Celebration Day" are both odd as hell tracks when you get down to it, right down to how they abruptly transition into each other. I know that transition was entirely the result of them losing some tracks, but goodness, if it don't add to their oddness. I mean, goodness, "Celebration Day" is a barely-contained frenzy. Over on "Out On The Tiles" (which is one of my favorites from the album), the harmonies in the chorus feel like they're barely holding themselves together. Y'know, Led Zeppelin were never The Beach Boys or Queen, but there's a looseness to these vocals that I've always appreciated. And after that you've got "Gallows Pole", which is a piece of levity and gallows humour that I can't imagine any of their other albums having. The closest I can come to thinking of another "funny" Led Zeppelin track is "The Crunge", which was a piss-take attempt at James Brown and is often considered their worst song (though I've always had a soft spot for it). And then there's "Hats Off To (Roy) Harper". If there's any song I can point to to prove my "experimental" theory, it's this song. I mean, in one ear you have this wild acoustic strumming that's **heavy** on the slides, juxtaposed against Plant's vocal in the other, which is blown-out and running through a myriad of unrelated blues lyrics. It's easily the worst song on the album, and also the most fascinating. Like, how in the hell did they even come up with this? And why? It feels like they were jus' throwin' shit at the wall and figured this stuck well enough to put it on — as the closer, no less! And a hell of a closer it is! Like it's bringing blues back to the bare essentials (a vocal and a guitar) and turning the whole thing up to the point where it goes absolutely crazy. Absolutely, it's nothing I'd listen to on its own, no way. But in the context of this album — woof, I'm utterly captivated. And I think that's why I've listened to 'Led Zeppelin III' the most: it's the most fascinating of their albums. Of course, I love 'I' and 'II' for their rawness, and 'IV' for its classical refinement, and 'Houses Of The Holy' for its variety — but there's truly no other album of theirs that sounds like 'Led Zeppelin III'. And there's no other album of theirs that rewards as much repeat listening. It's like, I can't tell you it's as **good** as any of those other albums, no way. But for sheer interest, it can't be beat. It's Led Zeppelin expanding their sound beyond blues and proto-metal, without having yet reached the peak of that expansion. And as far as transition albums go, dang, you'd be surprised how well it holds up. So while it can be easy to dismiss 'Led Zeppelin III', with how it sits in the shadows of the albums surrounding it, I implore you to give it another chance. It's not my most-listened-to Zeppelin album for nothing — and, heck, I think it deserves it. To me, that's the way it oughta be.

Blackstar

David Bowie

5/5

A while ago I came to notice that if I can tie an album directly to an artist's death, I tend to like it more than I would've otherwise. Sure, the material itself can be very good, and often it is; those ties often aren't the only reason. But I won't lie and tell you that they're not a big reason. It's happened over and over again. I would've loved Dennis Wilson's 'Pacific Ocean Blue' either way, but because I was able to make so many ties to his passing 16 years later, I fell even more for it. It's a similar story for Amy Winehouse's 'Back To Black', who died 5 years after the album came out. Heck, the only Leonard Cohen album on this list that I've liked is 'You Want It Darker', and he died only a little over two weeks later. And I've had to wonder, time after time, "Is this a bad thing?" Am I doing these artists a disservice by only viewing their last work through the lens of their death? As if Amy Winehouse only means anything because she died at 27, and because she was hounded by the media in the meantime. Dennis Wilson had a decade and a half plus a year left following his one solo album, and he still made a lot of good shit with The Beach Boys in the meantime. Their deaths are tragic, yeah, absolutely, and they're not **not** relevant. But it often feels like it's the only thing I focus on — and that's the problem here. Surely there's more I can pull from these albums than that, right? Well ... this isn't exactly the best album to answer that question with. '★' was originally released on David Bowie's 69th birthday, January 8th, 2016. As I'm writing this review, and listening to this album, it's the album's 10th anniversary. In two days, it'll be ten years since David Bowie died. That's crazy, right? Just, absolutely insane? All of the other artists I mentioned, they at least got between a decade and a half and two weeks after their final albums. Bowie only got **two days**. It only could've been worse if he'd died on the 8th — and, frankly, he may as well have. Seriously, only two days; that's **nothing**. At the time of his passing, I wasn't a fan of his. Sure, I liked a lot of the hits I'd heard, and I absolutely recognized his importance, but I know I wasn't as broken up about it as I can figure others were. Heck, as I should have been. Bowie ended up being another case, like Robin Williams before him and Prince shortly after, where I didn't grow to appreciate his work until some time after their passing. And when I did — dang. I still haven't taken in his whole catalog (heck, this was my first time ever listening to '★'), but even from what I have, I can recognize even better than I did back then just what a truly phenomenal talent we lost. And it's not just about how quickly he died after this album came out, I should say. The whole album sounds like ... y'know, he knew. Somehow, during the recording of this album, he came to realize he was going to pass, and so he specifically designed this album as his last word. It's nothing I'd be able to confirm or deny, obviously; I wasn't there. But given how much of this album is sung from the point of view of the dead or dying, and given that last track especially ... jus', wow. If that was the intention, I don't know if he could have given a better final word or not. I mean, you put aside all of the connections you can make to his death, and it is still a very wonderful album. I remember my problem with his previous release, 'The Next Day', was that it sounded like he'd decided not to try anything new. He was jus' gonna recreate a lot of his old glam rock sounds, and dang it, we were gonna be happy about it. But I wasn't. Besides dueting with Butterfly Boucher for the 'Shrek 2' soundtrack, it turned out I didn't want David Bowie to try and repeat things he'd done years before. Thankfully, on this album, he didn't. He instead pulled out a lot of arty, jazzy influence, with particular nicks from both Death Grips and Kendrick Lamar's 'To Pimp A Butterfly'. Admittedly, it's a little bit all over the place; there are some songs that feel a little disconnected from the rest. But on the whole, goodness, this is just a plain interesting album, and I liked that about it a lot. But in the end, no, I'm not able to separate this album from Bowie's death. They're just too closely tied, by time and themes, for me to. Though, in this instance, I don't think I feel too bad about it. In fact, I don't think I'm supposed to be able to. On the day this album dropped, no one except for very few people could've known that this would be his last message to the world, and it was truly a tragedy to discover that it was. Like I said, however, as far as final messages go, and as far as securing his legacy, I don't think he could have done any better. And not many people are allowed the opportunity to secure something like that; the most recent thing I can think of is Ozzy Osbourne and the charity event that was his final concert. So ... yeah. My group isn't done with your albums quite yet, but there'll be no better time than now to say ... well, I miss yah, starman.

Rust In Peace

Megadeth

5/5

Bug

Dinosaur Jr.

4/5

Wild Is The Wind

Nina Simone

5/5

American Gothic

David Ackles

5/5

Franz Ferdinand

5/5

White Denim

4/5

Face to Face

The Kinks

4/5

Bongo Rock

Incredible Bongo Band

5/5

Nixon

Lambchop

2/5

For a lot of this album, I was thinking about this quote I read on Wikipedia that some critics had called this album the "'Pet Sounds' of the 2000's." And I should say, that's not an assertion I take lightly. 'Pet Sounds' is one of the most beautifully orchestrated albums I've ever heard! So if people are gonna go and compare you to that record ... woof, you've got some expectations to live up to. And not just that, actually; I'll probably also have 'The Soft Bulletin' in mind — the "'Pet Sounds' of the 90's." Now that's an album that more than lives up to that label! And about halfway through, I came to the obvious conclusion that this wasn't exactly fair to the music. How could it be? I'm comparing it to albums I already love and have accepted as two of the best albums ever made. Nothing could compete unless it was immediately as amazing, straight from the jump. No doubt, it was having an impact on how much I was enjoying this thing. I felt like I could've been enjoying it more, and this was obviously the reason. So, take that "'Pet Sounds' of the 2000's" line, toss it away, take this album on its own merits. And once I do that, I should be enjoying this album a lot more than I was. I should be. I should've been. I didn't. 'Coz I gotta be real: with or without that comparison, this is the most disappointed in an album I've been in a **long** time. I wanna start with the positive: the orchestrations on this thing can honestly, actually be beautiful. You take the strings in a track like "The Book I Haven't Read", and, like, damn, is that not legit? It's stuff like this that can honestly make me understand that comparison. In moments like this, it's so close to matching that atmosphere of beautiful melancholy that I love 'Pet Sounds' and 'The Soft Bulletin' for. If this album could've consistently maintained this atmosphere, I honestly would've put it up there with those other two. Yet, it doesn't, for some simple reason: this guy's gawdamm voice. If there's anything one element that kills this album, it's this singer. Oh, I can just tell he thinks he's so good, what with how he keeps hitting that falsetto in songs. But I would've been the first tell him, he does **not** have a good falsetto. I don't even have exactly the words to describe how it's so bad; it's just ... incredibly distracting in how bad it is. Seriously, there are 13 people in this band, and no one could've told him he wasn't good at this? And it's not like his regular singing voice is much better. Hell, it only succeeds in how nondescript it is. Like, I seriously couldn't even begin to be assed to follow along with these lyrics, 'coz, goodness, I couldn't listen to either of these voices. But if a fellow group member was anything to believe, I wasn't missing anything except a buncha nonsense anyway! It's such a jarring clash of tones. These beautifully thought-out strings, next to these truly awful awful vocals... I legit spent a lot of this album tryna figure out why I wasn't jiving with this thing. 'Coz it's not like it's even a **bad** album. I'll say it again: those strings an' shit are legit. Frankly, if this had been a purely instrumental album, I think it legit would've been a lot better. But because they insisted on having these vocals... Feankly, they make the whole project feel like hipster shit. Between these "OOO I'M SUCH GOOD AT SOUL" vocals and this album cover and that gawdamm title. "'Nixon'." Goodness. What the hell does it even mean? Do they even know? Honestly now. Like, I guess in total it's not the **worst** thing I've ever seen the Nixon name attached to — the man himself still clears by a mile. But, oh, this could have been so much better. This vocalist is not a crook ... but damn. He sure feels like one.

Coat Of Many Colors

Dolly Parton

5/5

Inspiration Information

Shuggie Otis

5/5

Oracular Spectacular

MGMT

5/5

The Who Sell Out

The Who

4/5

New Gold Dream (81/82/83/84)

Simple Minds

4/5

Electric

The Cult

4/5

I can see why my dad liked this album so much. I mean, OK, I don't think I'd say any of this is particularly **great** 80's hard rock; I wouldn't lie and tell you that there **aren't** a few of songs on here that're a bit samey. Even at 39 minutes, there comes a point where it feels like you could be listening to something with a bit more variety in its sound. AC/DC they are not. But all the same, it's like cheap pizza: it doesn't hafta be great to still satisfy. And I think 'Electric' does, despite its faults. I can't say I'd ingest the whole thing all at once again, but on a slice-by-slice basis I'd get a kick out of it. And if I were more like my dad, I'd maybe even love the thing. And if nothing else, I know I enjoyed this album more than I would've any of their previous, "post-punk goth rock" material. It's not a high bar to clear, sure, I'm aware, but the point still stands; it's a better introduction than the alternative would've been.

Honky Tonk Masquerade

Joe Ely

4/5

Crocodiles

Echo And The Bunnymen

3/5

The Dark Side Of The Moon

Pink Floyd

5/5

Good Old Boys

Randy Newman

4/5

São Paulo Confessions

Suba

2/5

I realize it's more than a little silly to listen to a downtempo/lo-fi album and take issue with the fact that "not a lot happened." Albums like these aren't meant to have 100% of your attention, and for that I'm willing to grant it some leniency. All the same, though, I can't lie: I **do** wish more had happened. After all, the Brazilian influences on here **do** interest me. But on the whole, I'm just not very big on its whole "dark 'Blade Runner' soundscape" thing. Fittingly, I also had trouble staying awake when I finally watched 'Blade Runner'.

Private Dancer

Tina Turner

4/5

Crime Of The Century

Supertramp

4/5

Go Girl Crazy

The Dictators

4/5

Toys In The Attic

Aerosmith

5/5

I think the question any good Aerosmith has to ask themselves at some point is "What's better: 'Toys In The Attic' or 'Rocks'?" Which isn't a question meant to put down either album, I should say; they're both great. Hell, of the two, 'Rocks' might have the better claim to being the better one, just for living up to its title — and so consistently, at that! But as good as 'Rocks' is, for my money, my favorite Aerosmith album has to be 'Toys In The Attic'. I've come to two reasons for this. For one, let's be real, 'Toys In The Attic' has more hits. I worry that comes across as shallow, but I can't tell you it's **not** a reason. I mean, sure, 'Rocks' has "Back In The Saddle", and that's the better opener between the two. But 'Toys' has "Walk This Way". 'Toys' has "Sweet Emotion". It has "Uncle Salty" and "Adam's Apple" and "You See Me Crying" and, goodness, "Big Ten Inch Record". So many iconic Aerosmith songs live on this record. They're all ones I'd easily want to return to, time and time again, before most of the ones on 'Rocks'. And this is all for the second reason I've come to: variety. That's not to say 'Rocks' is a one-note record, of course; look at "Home Tonight" and "Nobody's Fault". It's not even to say that either of their previous records didn't have anything going for them, either ("Dream On" is on their debut). But 'Toys', more importantly, is where Aerosmith started to stretch their wings beyond just being a hard rock and blues rock band. Just the fact alone that this album has space on it for a song like "Big Ten Inch Record" is testament enough. Even if they're all identifably 70's hard rock, "Walk This Way" isn't "Sweet Emotion", and neither are "No More No More" or "You See Me Crying". Some people might not hear it, but for a mind like mine, each song has just enough of their own feel to keep me satisfied. It reminds me a lot of all the new stuff that Led Zeppelin was trying out on their second album — and what a coincidence, 'Zeppelin II' happens to be my favorite Led Zeppelin album for that reason. But above all, it's just simple fun 70's hard rock. I don't think you could ever ask Aerosmith for anything more in this decade, and besides 'Rocks', they'd never do it better anywhere else. Certainly, among other 70's hard rockers, Aerosmith and 'Toys' come out pretty far on top. What can I say? I'm a sucker for a good guitar and some wild, shouty vocals. So, that's about the size of feelings on 'Toys In The Attic'. Hardly complicated stuff, just like the album itself. I mean, what more could I really say about it? Heck, instead of saying anything more, I'm jus' gonna go put it on again. That by itself is the best answer you probably could've given to my question. Wings up and peace out.

Broken English

Marianne Faithfull

4/5

Permission to Land

The Darkness

5/5

Rocks

Aerosmith

5/5

461 Ocean Boulevard

Eric Clapton

2/5

Y'know, there are a lot of good reasons to dislike Eric Clapton — chief among them, of course, being his racism and anti-vaxx nonsense. For most people, those alone are enough to disqualify him and his music from any kind of consideration. And that's fair: if you're really that abhorred by an artist's views and beliefs, you should have to engage with their art. No one should force you to. But as for myself ... I'unno. I can't just leave it at that. After all, as I've said many times before before now, I don't review people; I review music. And a lot of times, bad people have made great music. It's an unfortunate fact of life. And there's a number of things Clapton's had a hand in that I just can't easily toss away. The guitar solo in "While My Guitar Gently Weeps"? Phenomonal. "Sunshine Of Your Love"? A classic. "Layla"? Oh, that's the best gawdamm song he's ever made, and I wouldn't give it up for anything. But I've got to realize, with all of that stuff, he's been surrounded by others. "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" is a Beatles song that George Harrison wrote. "Sunshine Of Your Love" is a Cream song, and Clapton didn't even compose its most iconic part, the bass lick. And while I love all of "Layla", Clapton isn't even responsible for the coda, which is by far my favorite part. Frankly, when I consider Clapton on his own, either as the only notable member of 'Bluesbreakers' or on a lot of 'Layla''s other songs ... he kind of comes across to me as very self-satisfied with his guitar playing. "Oh, lookit me — I can play the blues **so good**. Look at **how well** I can play the blues! Aren't you **impressed* by how good I am?" And, no, Mr. Clapton. I'm not. I'm especially not impressed with this album of yours, the only one in this book that's credited solely to you. And, y'know, although you don't deserve it, I'll try to be somewhat fair. It's not **entirely** bad. There's a couple of songs on here where I can nod and go, "Yeah, that's a nice sound." There are songs that are **good**, honestly. I'll grant you that much. But then, that's the problem. It's a nice sound for those few songs. It's not a nice sound for **this entire album**. This is an incredibly same-y record. Nearly every song on here is performed in a similar, sleepy, soft blues rock manner, and although this thing is only 40 minutes, it gets old quick. There were moments where I legit didn't know where I was on this album because it all sounded so alike. Hell, when it ended I was caught entirely off-guard, 'coz it sure as hell didn't **sound like** it should be the ending. I can't even pick out a song to narrow in on as a specific example. Well, except for the most obvious one: the cover of "I Shot The Sheriff". And this is it? This is Eric Clapton's famous Bob Marley cover? This was a big deal? Surprisingly, Eric Clapton doesn't do reggae that well — and it's actually surprising to know that Clapton himself would agree with me, but Marley wouldn't. Bob, man, I love you, but seriously, why would anyone pick this over the original? It tries to rock harder, but somehow ends up sounding limp. I don't know how they managed that! I'unno, I guess if you can dig the vibe, it's not that bad. But then it happens that the vibe ends up being an afternoon fast asleep on a lawn chair after getting blitzed on cheap margaritas, and I don't think it's one I gel with. At least I can respect country music's "an evening on the front porch with a cold beer." And I can respect it a lot more than I can Eric Clapton, that's for sure. It turns out that even when you strip away his racism and anti-vaxx shit, there's still not a lot there for me to enjoy. I'll happy listen to "Layla" again, but otherwise, take your dusty ol' blues licks and go home, man.

Pretzel Logic

Steely Dan

3/5

The New Tango

Astor Piazzolla

5/5

Odelay

Beck

5/5

Vivid

Living Colour

5/5

Run-D.M.C.

3/5

Run–D.M.C. are very simple rhymers. And, y'know, I don't blame 'em for that. In the era of hip-hop they debuted in, I doubt **anyone** was a super spirtual lyrical miracle. Heck, next to their contemporaries, they were probably among the hardest MC's out there — if not **the** hardest. Who was gonna compete? The Sugarhill Gang? I don't think so. And it's not like their simple style can't be enjoyable; just take a look at songs like "It's Tricky", "Peter Piper", "Kings Of Rock" and this album's own "Rock Box". But ultimately, Run–D.M.C. are victims of being so primordial. Living in 2026, in a world that's had rappers Kendrick Lamar, JAY-Z, Biggie Smalls, MF DOOM, 2Pac, the Wu-Tang Clan, and so many others, it's very hard to be impressed by what Run–D.M.C. have done. Especially here, on their debut album. If I thought 'Raising Hell' could be basic, hoo boy! I ain't heard nuthin' yet! I feel like the best thing Run–D.M.C. have always had going for them is their delivery. The way they shout the lyrics, and the way they finish each others' lines so frequently is such a joy. They could almost be rapping anything and I'd get a kick out of it. Which is just as well, 'coz I don't think they're saying much anyway. And they're not even saying any of it in a particularly clever way. I mean, I really get the impression that I like these guys the best when they happen to be rapping over guitar — somehow, it adds a level to their rapping that they just can't get to on their own. 'Coz when they're over spare drums and claps, or those fantastic electro hip hop synth horns... Yeah, it's just not the same. It's a little funny to read Ice-T crediting Run–D.M.C. for allowing hip-hop to evolve from singles and dance floors to full-on albums. I don't disbelieve him, and I'm not tryna knock the group's impact and legacy here; I have nothing but respect for what they've done for the genre. But between 'Raising Hell' and this album, I think I'd be better off enjoying these guys for their singles than anything else. I mean, do I needa hear "30 Days" again? I don't think so. I guess if you're really into early hip-hop (like, not exactly Golden Age hip hop, but a little later than that), you'll probably get a kick out of this. For me: eh. I've got less simple options.

Figure 8

Elliott Smith

5/5

Greetings From L.A.

Tim Buckley

3/5

Tim Buckley's been all over the place for me. With the first album of his I got, 'Happy Sad', I was not very impressed by it. In fact, I was kind of bored to shit. It's one of those albums where how much you enjoy it likely depends on you value technical skill and music theory, and as time's worn on I've come to realize that that stuff's just not really my bag. 'Goodbye & Hello' was way more up my alley. When I got that one, I was growing to realize just how much I valued aesthetic and sound (as shallow as I worry that comes across), and I think that album very much passed the sniff test. I can't remember being too wowed by it, but it did confirm that there was something for me to like about Tim Buckley. And then there's this album. Tim Buckley's ... sex funk/R&B album. OK, sure. I mean, look, just because **I** know the guy best for dying young at 28 doesn't mean everything he's made has to be sad in some way. If he wanted to make a dumb lil' horny album and have some fun, fine. I'm not against that in any way. It's just ... I'm not exactly sure why this album was included? Like, even acknowledging how arbitrary this list can be, and that it's by no means a "greatest of all time" list ... I don't understand this one. Most of the songs album this album range from "fine" to "yeah, sure." Which wouldn't be an issue, except for the fact that out of seven tracks, four of them are over six minutes, with one or two even approaching **seven**. As a fellow group member said, if you're not sold on these songs in the first minute, you're stuck with this shit for a long time. And Tim does not make these songs an easy sell sometimes, no. And this isn't about the lyrics, by the way. I've read reviews calling this album sexist and racist, but I ended up hardly paying attention to the words. No, my thing is that ... I mean, it's his vocals. There are so many times where I had to stop and ask myself, "Why does he **sound like that**? Does he really think he's pulling this sexy funk/R&B thing off with **these kinds of vocals**?" Once I noticed them in the second track, I spent the rest of the album judging Tim's vocals to hear if they ever got that bad again. And I don't think they do; for sure, the second half of this album is better than the first. But the second half is also where the thought of "Gawd, how long are these songs?" really starts to set in. Look, I wanna cut Tim some benefit and err on the side of positivty here. On a purely instrumental level, it's good stuff. For sure, there's better stuff funk/R&B you could be listening to — even white funk/R&B — but I didn't dislike anything that was happening instrumentally on this album. But with Tim's vocals sometimes and the horniness, its inclusion of this list feels like it's a goof that someone took way too seriously. And I can't act like that doesn't make the album come off slightly worse than it would have otherwise. Unlike his other two albums, even 'Happy Sad', I don't think this is something you **need** to hear before you die. All in all, just a weird way to close the book on Tim, given that this is the last his three albums on here. Well, fingers crossed I like Jeff album's a lot better than I did yours on average, Tim.

From Elvis In Memphis

Elvis Presley

5/5

[The following review was written October 2024, after I finished reading the 33⅓ book on this album. Some turns of phrase may have been taken from it. Otherwise, it's all my own thoughts. Only minor modifications have been made to this review, the day it was published.] 'From Elvis In Memphis' is freedom and potential. What I mean is, you hafta imagine Elvis recording this. He'd spent nearly a decade trapped in purgatory, having his dream of becoming a movie star cruelly perverted. He'd dreamed of becoming a serious, respected actor like James Dean — and, sure, early on, he **did** get to flex his chops. However, by the time '68 rolled around, it was a seemingly never-ending nightmare of making basically the same shitty, cash grab musical romcom over and over again. Sure, every now and then there was a 'Viva Las Vegas', but that was more the exception to something like, I'unno, 'Spinout' being the rule. Over and over again, the same tired, campy formula, like an Escher staircase down to Hell — and for what? Just so his label could sell shitty, cash grab soundtrack albums. It's so simple: the films promote the albums, the albums promote the films. You couldn't get a better deal than that. Too bad Elvis had to suffer through the ordeal of actually making them. All the while, the 60's were happening. The British Invasion. The folk movement. Psychedelia. Vietnam. Woodstock. JFK's assassination. Any other 60's touchpoint you can think of. To quote the movie 'Walk Hard': "The 60's are an important and exciting time!" So much was going on in America, let alone the world — and what was Elvis doing? Sitting in the back of a truck and singing "Old MacDonald" for the camera. Having to star in all of these terrible movies was bad enough, but combined with missing a time like this, and you probably couldn't drive him any further off the edge. Besides the occasional bonus track, the only creative reprieve he managed to get during this period was a single gospel album — the music he loved that comforted him so much, which actually won him a Grammy — and then it was right back to singing to a bull to convince him to be fertile. Something had to change. Elvis couldn't be shackled here forever. In 1967, The Colonel proposed a Christmas special to NBC. Originally, it was planned to be a very formal affair where Elvis would sing shit like "Here Comes Santa Claus". However, very quickly, thanks to Bob Finkel and Steve Binder, it grew into something more — much more. After nearly a decade of stagnation, this would be a chance to remind everyone why Elvis was called The King in the first place. He'd get to play all his old hits, jam with his old band, dress in leather, sing gospel, do kung-fu... The whole works. One great, big show to pull Elvis out of the rut he'd been in. But there **was** a tinge of doubt. He **had** been away for a pretty long time. He hadn't performed live at **all* during his Hollywood days, and in the meantime he'd been stuck with material like "No Room To Rhumba In A Sports Car". Would he be able to recapture magic? Was it even still there anymore? It was Oh, lordy, it most certainly was. There's a reason, after all, why everyone remembers this as the '68 Comeback Special and not 'Singer Presents... Elvis'. It's coming off of that where we find Elvis, recording in American Sound in Memphis (despite The Colonel having booked him for RCA). This was actually the first time since his Sun days in the '50's that he'd recorded in his hometown — and on top of that, it was the first time in forever that Elvis had gotten to choose his own material. Backing him was The Memphis Boys, who'd played on all sorts of hits, such as Dusty Springfield's "Son Of A Preacher Man". And with a producer like Chip Morman willing to push them all, Elvis especially, to do the best they could do... Simply put: Elvis recorded the single greatest album of his career. Elvis had never been an album artist. That's not his fault, really; it was more a result of how rock n' roll albums were generally built in the 50's. You'd have a hit single or two, and then you'd have a buncha shit thrown around it. This wasn't serious music for adults like classical and jazz, and teen-agers were more interested in the 45s anyway, so who cares? Like, as good and as important to music as his debut is, I find it hard to recommend to people as a complete album experience. Even the albums released in his name after this in the 70's were thrown together in much the same way as his 50's discs. There's maybe only one exception to this, 'Elvis Country', where I wouldn't be surprised if whoever built the album stumbled on the cohesion by accident. On both ends, I really feel like you'd be better off with compilations of his work, especially for the 50's. And I'm not saying that 'From Elvis In Memphis' wasn't somewhat thrown together, either; between what was put on here, on the singles, and on 'Back In Memphis', **anything** could have ended up in this track listing. That's just how Elvis rolled. But I'm so grateful these songs in particular did, 'coz, ahh, seriously, again, Elvis never made better music than he did at American Sound, I swear. "Wearin' That Loved On Look" is such a great opener. Even if it wasn't written specifically for him (like nearly everything else he sang), I can't help but read it as an "I'm back, bitch" kind of song, announcing his return — as if the Special hadn't already done that. "Long Black Limousine" is a powerful bit of tragic soul, and I've always loved how it builds. "I'll Hold You In My Heart" was an impromptu, live-in-the-studio performance, and it demonstrates so well how good this band and how good Elvis gelled with them. "Power Of My Love" promises to shake you, among other things, and by goodness it **does**. As the only blues rocker on the album, it lives up to the "power" in its title, even decades before Jack White went and did his own distortion-filled take on it. "Gentle On My Mind" is an incredibly lovely slice of country goings-on. "Any Day Now" absolutely **soars**, even before Elvis begs his beautiful bird not to not fly away. And "In The Ghetto", so unique in his catalog for being a specific, pointed protest song, unlike "If I Can Dream" (and that's one of my top 5 Elvis songs, so don't get it twisted)... Gosh. I don't even know where to begin with that one. Like, it's not my favorite-favorite on this album, but it's up there, believe you me. Just an incredible song to end an incredible album. Elvis's voice never sounded better than it did right here. Sure, there's never a period where I don't love Elvis's voice, from his youthful Sun days, to even his schmaltzy, bloated Vegas days right before he croaked. It's just that good. But here, on these songs, with the **power** he can throw behind some of these lines... Oh, wow. **Wow**. Just check out that "YOU KNOW THEY SHINE" on "I'll Hold You In My heart". Or the "DON'T FLY AWAY" on "Any Day Now". Or the... Shoot, everything about "Long Black Limousine". Seriously, that's the best song here by a longshot, and it's not even close, my goodness. The only way it could have been beaten is if "Suspicious" gawddamn "Minds" had been included, and even then... And it's just amazing that Elvis had chosen to return to the 60's on his own terms. Like, he didn't try to chase any trends he'd missed out on; he simply just recorded the music he wanted to do. And like I said about "Wearin' That Loved On Look", even if a majority of these songs are covers, done long after The Beatles caused people to expect musicians to perform their own self-written music, he still manages to imbue them with so much unique meaning simply by him being himself. Like, it's absolutely never been a problem to me that Elvis has the Sinatra approach to things. Elvis being Elvis is enough. (Also, 'coz I didn't find the place to mention this before, I love how Elvis sings "BOY" on "Only The Strong Survive". That's another blue-eyed album highlight, and I really love its chorus, but it always stands out in my mind just for that "BOY". Seriously, the way he says it, I should be spelling it "BWOY," goodness.) After this album, of course, Elvis began his stay in Vegas and, ultimately, the long, slow road to his death. The International Hotel would be his Rock Of Eternity: forever trapped inside with no hope of escape. You can only wonder what could've happened if The Colonel had allowed Elvis to tour the world — or, heck, what could've happened if Elvis had just kept recording at American Sound, with this band and this producer. He'd even tried to take the band with him to Vegas, but it wasn't meant to be. So, when I say this album is potential, it's more like... Missed potential. The first step towards a future that, ultimately, wouldn't come to pass. But I'm not sad about it. For one, I actually like a lot of the stuff Elvis recorded in his Vegas days — just listen to "Hurt", my goodness. And even if this album isn't entirely potential, it's still freedom. As best as I can tell, this album was the last time he'd managed to get out from under The Colonel and be free. It was the last time he was able to escape one of his many cages, spread his wings, and simply soar. A bird, streaking across the sky to the air it knew best. It'd never known how long any of this would last — and of course, it didn't: not just this flight, but its time on this Earth in general. But for one moment, this final moment... It was absolutely beautiful. And I'll always treasure that moment.

Fulfillingness' First Finale

Stevie Wonder

5/5

Don't Stand Me Down

Dexys Midnight Runners

4/5

Ladies And Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space

Spiritualized

5/5

With The Beatles

Beatles

5/5