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Thu Jan 04 2024
The Dark Side Of The Moon
Pink Floyd
2.5. Heard ti 20+ years ago. Didn't like it then, liked it more now. Good musicians, see why people like it but it is basically lumpen blues rock which is not for me. Some of the songs really overstayed their welcome and teetered into pomposity.
3
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Fri Jan 05 2024
Guero
Beck
3.75
Big fan of E-Pro but don’t remember listening to this one
Maybe not his most exciting album?
Plenty of dirty bluesy folky rock
Vibes & beats really good, had totally forgotten about the Dust Brothers
Best: E-Pro
4
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Mon Jan 08 2024
Superunknown
Soundgarden
1/10
Really, really not my kind of thing.
Quite samey sounding
Best: Black Hole Sun, I guess
1
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Tue Jan 09 2024
Hail To the Thief
Radiohead
8/10
First one that I am very familiar with!
Excellent album, feels like a bridge between OKC & earlier and Kid A eras, despite where it fits in that timing
Comes across as more of a collection of songs in mixed style than a super-coherent album, so not an elite Radiohead album
But a number of great Radiohead songs are on this, and production is great asas always, lots of anger and ire
Best: 2+2=5, Backdrifts
4
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Wed Jan 10 2024
Fear Of Music
Talking Heads
7/10
First TH album I’ve heard, none of the big tunes so went in blind. Pleasant surprise.
Sounds really fresh for a 70s album
Lyrics and delivery by Byrne excellent and witty
Loved the fact that the rhythms were essentially disco
But in the end maybe a bit musically monotone for me, not a huge range of style
Can totally see the influence this has on jangly art-rock. Lots of stuff still sounds a bit like this
Best: Memories Can’t Wait
3
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Thu Jan 11 2024
The Velvet Underground & Nico
The Velvet Underground
8.5/10
Not listened to this album in ages, I perhaps enjoy it more now than I did 20 years ago. Excellent.
First half is banger after banger, second half a bit more low-key. Last song outstays its welcome
This could have veered into pretentiousness but didn’t, really evokes a sense of time and place
Remembered not living the Nico vocals and have changed my mind, but still prefer the Reed ones
Influence on later bands absolutely clear - Heroin could just straight-up be a Spiritualized song
Best: Sunday Morning, Heroin
4
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Fri Jan 12 2024
Apocalypse Dudes
Turbonegro
2/10
Dumb AF punky metal, but at least it is self-knowingly stupid and not self-serious. Kind of shocking this is considered top 1000 of all time
Really not my thing, 2-3 songs in a row is ok, the whole album caused me a headache…
Chugging riffs and driving drums, sounds metal, but the vocals are more representative of pop punk and emo bands, think Offspring or Green Day. Bit of a clash.
Best: Don’t say Motherfucker, Motherfucker (but just because of the name, didn’t like any of the music)
1
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Mon Jan 15 2024
Neon Bible
Arcade Fire
5.5/10
OK I guess, not one I am likely to come back to though
Indie/alternative rock music turned into a stadium version by good production and arrangements
They should dial down the Springsteen worship a bit
Prefer the music to the vocals
You don’t need to have 50% of the songs striving to be stadium anthems
Best: Intervention
3
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Tue Jan 16 2024
Machine Head
Deep Purple
4/10
This falls right into the “not for me but more interesting than I expected” category
Overall it is plodding hard rock/metal that makes me think of pub bands and old men
Vocal stylings verge towards metal, which doesn’t work for me
But the music was more varied than expected - a lot of (boring) rules rock influence, plus some jazz and even funk
Probably the most impressive aspect was the rhythm, particularly bass
Best: Never Before
2
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Wed Jan 17 2024
Real Life
Magazine
5/10
Too many muso rock albums on this list! But I liked it more than some of the previous ones. Yes, the 70s influences it took were not my favourite - too much noodling and pomposity - but you could definitely hear they knew where the sound was going. Some of the music was excellent and they could really deliver a melody when they wanted to. Bits reminded me of The Stranglers & OMD.
Best: The Light Pours Out Of Me
3
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Thu Jan 18 2024
Your Arsenal
Morrissey
4/10
Really not a fan of the man, gave it a go though
Morrissey without the Smiths ain’t it
His instinct towards harder rock is a bad one
Musically this is often poor
But the boy can sing, sounds unique, says interesting things. Why bury a lot of it under sludgy guitar?
Some of the lyrics and titles (“The National Front Disco”) hit different now that his politics are clear
Best: I Know It’s Gonna Happen Someday
2
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Fri Jan 19 2024
The Beach Boys Today!
The Beach Boys
7.5/10
Thank goodness, was getting a bit tired after slugging through 3 bad rock albums in a row… A group that I love and the first album of their golden period
You can really hear the sound evolving here, both musically and lyrically
Production and vocals as on pint as you’d expect, Brian Wilson really knocking it up a gear on this album
2 completely different vibes in the 2 halves, prefer the second one - foreshadowing Pet Sounds - but the sunshine of side 1 was like a blast of warm air on a snowy Thursday in January
Best: When I Grow Up (To Be a Man)
4
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Mon Jan 22 2024
At Fillmore East
The Allman Brothers Band
3/10
Rough week this, closed off with a jam blues rock album, so very much not appealing to me
2 20-minute jams were pretty difficult stuff
I can hear these are good musicians, crazy that this is live, must have been a total vibe in that room
But honestly I couldn’t stand it & only listened to the original 7-track version. No way I was doing 2 hours+ of that
2
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Tue Jan 23 2024
White Blood Cells
The White Stripes
5.5/10
Man, there is way too much bluesy rock music on this list
Having said that, I enjoyed this more than most so far, thought the sound was fresh
Liked the blending in of other styles like surf rock, the more balladic tracks surprised me
Some of the more riffy stuff just washed over me
Was surprised to find a real Beatles/McCartney influence, especially in the vocal styles
Best: We’re Going to be Friends
3
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Wed Jan 24 2024
New York Dolls
New York Dolls
4.5/10
Shock, this list has another bluesy punky hard rock record on it
Very much an American sounding hard rock album from the 70s, so not really my thing
Production makes it sound like a live performance, lends it a good vibe
Wikipedia says this is campy and humorous but I found it overly earnest and maybe try-hard
Really influenced by the Rolling Stones - the singer should back the Jagger off a bit
Best: Frankenstein
2
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Thu Jan 25 2024
Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite
Maxwell
6.5/10
Actually enjoyed this quite a bit, it has vibes. And the vibe is horny.
Really nice neo soul with edges of funk and R&B
Preferred the funk stuff (slap bass and wah wah guitars!) to the jazz stuff
Great singing voice, nice falsetto
Can still hear plenty of stuff like this today, so it has legs
Best: …Til the cops come knockin’
3
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Fri Jan 26 2024
Pearl
Janis Joplin
7.5/10
Liked this one quite a bit
Could have been boring bluesy rock (again) but was raised up by the gospel influence, her amazing vocals, and absolutely wonderful Hammond organ
Every song could be used as the soundtrack to a montage in a very good film
Best: A Woman Left Lonely
4
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Mon Jan 29 2024
James Brown Live At The Apollo
James Brown
6/10
Decent but honestly a little throwaway. Slightly surprised this is in top 1000 let alone considered to potentially be the best live album ever and top 100 of all time
But it sounded great, tight band and he was driving the crowd feral at times
Great voice, great backing singers
More straight R&R/R&B than I was expecting - not so much funk (too early?)
Best: I Don’t Mind
3
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Tue Jan 30 2024
Madman Across The Water
Elton John
7.5/10
This one really did it for me, lush with good vibes
Surprised to see it classified as prog rock, felt more like fairly standard bluesy rock with orchestral/chamber pop elements
The orchestration was excellent, good use of strings, liked it when a choir popped up
Nice to listen to an album by a famous singles artist with only one song I knew on it!
Best: Indian Sunset
4
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Wed Jan 31 2024
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Elton John
8/10
Two of his albums in a row and … I think I really like Elton John?
For some reason his brand of Americana hits better than the American bluesy rock artists that inspired him
Cracking album, lovely production
First 6 songs are amazing. Grinds to a halt with Jamaica Jerk-Off. A couple of other duds but that’s it.
First half stronger than the second half (which is more straightforward and has country influences)
Best: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
4
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Thu Feb 01 2024
Frank
Amy Winehouse
6/10
Liked this well enough but it really felt like a debut.
Excellent songwriting, Frank is a good title. Insightful & occasionally witty lyrics
Production on the basic side: hip-hop/R&B beat + bass + jazzy instruments. Made it a little monotone at points
The identity of Winehouse was clearly not fully developed, felt like a good set at a jazz club (in fact the outro presents it as that) and maybe had a bit too much filler
Second half stronger
I have a preference for her work with Mark Ronson later on
Best: Fuck Me Pumps
3
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Fri Feb 02 2024
Hard Again
Muddy Waters
1/10
This was a real struggle to get through, one song was just about listenable but an album was torture. Hated it.
His voice and tone were excellent
Musically it was repetitive and boring, felt like a jam session with a tight band who could just do this all day (and it felt like they did)
Didn’t feel any of the craft of creating an album, just a series of repetitive blues jams with a “this will do” attitude
This is obviously not my genre so I could be way off here
The harmonica was especially grating, just endless tuneless wailing
Sounded like a 1-hour version of the 80s theme tune to Roseanne. To be clear: that is a bad thing.
Least favourite album so far in this project
1
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Mon Feb 05 2024
Abraxas
Santana
6.5/10
Pleasant surprise, not really like I expected. This is the best of the 70s classic rock albums I have heard in this project so far.
Rock, latin, psych, jazz. Melting pot
Great vibes, really feels like a warm summer evening in California
Keyboard/organ particularly good
Best: Oye Como Va
3
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Tue Feb 06 2024
Doolittle
Pixies
6.5/10
Having heard only a few of the key Pixies songs, this was a surprise - much more skipping through genres than expected. Yes, it was punky hard-ish rock, but overall it was more what I might call indie rock with both a pop and punk sensibility
Rhythm drives the music excellently - especially the bass, which really stood out
Really liked when the male and female vocals interplayed
Best: Monkey Gone to Heaven
3
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Wed Feb 07 2024
Gentlemen
The Afghan Whigs
4.5/10
Mid grungy alt rock. Starting to think that the author of this list is really basic with a huge bias towards bland, competent guitar rock
Musically fine but the rhythm (especially drums) are just “there” not really doing much beyond chugging basics
Works better as a consistent album than individual songs
Not a fan of the male vocals nor the lyrics, feels like a spurned guy formed a band with his friends and now play pubs
Best: My Curse
2
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Thu Feb 08 2024
Pink Moon
Nick Drake
7.5/10
First Nick Drake I’ve ever knowingly heard, aware of his reputation
Really nice this - spare production, good guitar, excellent voice
This is how you do an album that does not hugely vary in style - make it good, short, and don’t outstay your welcome
Really sets a mood, liked it quite a bit
Best: Parasite
4
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Fri Feb 09 2024
The Village Green Preservation Society
The Kinks
7.5/10
First Nick Drake I’ve ever knowingly heard, aware of his reputation
Really nice this - spare production, good guitar, excellent voice
This is how you do an album that does not hugely vary in style - make it good, short, and don’t outstay your welcome
Really sets a mood, liked it quite a bit
Best: Parasite
4
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Mon Feb 12 2024
Disintegration
The Cure
8/10
Real good one this
Knew the greatest hits but this is the first album I’ve heard
No pop bangers, not a bad thing as it has a coherent style and vibe, dark alternative goth rock
Extremely well produced, big filling sound and the synth added a lot to it
Best: Pictures of
4
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Tue Feb 13 2024
Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters
4.5/10
Really wasn’t a fan of FF before, still am not but this was better than expected
More musical variation than I thought there would be, although still dominated by riffy grungey punky rock
He really knows his way around round a melody, and major respect for playing pretty much everything on the album
The mix was very strange on this: often the instruments merged into sludge, and his vocals were a bit lower than the lyrics should be, disappearing a bit (was he nervous about his vocals on the first album?)
Best: Big Me
2
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Wed Feb 14 2024
Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness
The Smashing Pumpkins
6.5/10
Really liked a lot of this, Corgan’s voice in particular was amazing, hypnotic, lovely.
More variety in genres than expected
Some really great tunes
But a few major caveats
No studio album should be over 2 hours long, a bit of editing could have improved this greatly
Case in point: it stayed on concept, but the lullaby final quarter was weird and unsuccessful for me
Wasn’t in love with the harder/metal stuff
Best: 1979
3
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Thu Feb 15 2024
A Girl Called Dusty
Dusty Springfield
8/10
Classy album, full of bangers
Singing voice amazing, some of the arrangements are pure great 60s
Genuine classics on here
A few throwaway tracks though
Best: Twenty-Four Hours From Tulsa
4
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Fri Feb 16 2024
Songs Of Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen
8/10
Excellent. Lovely songs, great delivery
Voice reminds me of Lou Reed
Mostly sparse production, love the songs that have hints of instrumentation
Best: Master Song
4
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Mon Feb 19 2024
Deep Purple In Rock
Deep Purple
4.5/10
Second DP album, liked this more than the last
But this was another hard rock 70s album in a list that seems stacked with them
Competent but boring
Best: Speed King
2
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Tue Feb 20 2024
Heroes
David Bowie
6.5/10
Drugs, lots of drugs
Bowie is at his most “sounds like someone doing an impression of Bowie” here
All of the music is impeccable here, such a quality tight group
Much prefer the electronic second half
Best: V-2 Schneider
3
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Mon Feb 26 2024
The Bends
Radiohead
9/10
Held up way better than I expected, this has forced me to slightly reevaluate my opinion on the album
A band finding their place as one of the best in the world, confident and brash
Much more interesting than the concurrent grunge sound
The first half is so stacked that the second half can’t help but suffer a bit
Takes me straight back to school lunchtime hanging with friends
Best: Fake Plastic Trees/Street Spirit
4
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Tue Feb 27 2024
If You Can Believe Your Eyes & Ears
The Mamas & The Papas
6.5/10
Impeccable 60s vibe
Clearly influenced by Beatles and Beach Boys
Excellent vocals throughout
Musically quite split: either uptempo, propulsive, excellent, or somewhat dreary and maybe boring
Best: Go Where You Wanna
3
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Wed Feb 28 2024
The Scream
Siouxsie And The Banshees
6/10
Initially might have called it boring, but it grew on me as it went on
Consistent in style & vibe
Music ok, vocals excellent
Best: Hong Kong Garden
3
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Thu Feb 29 2024
Green
R.E.M.
6/10
Not too much to say - another basic-ish choice on this list!
Decent but not outstanding pop-rock
Songs were either fun, uptempo or less fun, ballad
It struck me that Stipe’s voice has a much heavier accent and is more country than I remember
Best: World Leader Pretend
3
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Mon Mar 04 2024
The Genius Of Ray Charles
Ray Charles
8/10
Liked this one - really well sequenced and produced
First half: uptempo, more playful, brass loaded
Then the brass is just outstaying its welcome and boom
Second half: strings, introspective, brilliant
Amazing voice, amazing emotion in second half
4
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Tue Mar 05 2024
Led Zeppelin III
Led Zeppelin
7/10
Only heard the big LZ songs before, not much of a fan
So this surprised me - much less hard rock than I expected. Actually liked it
Musically I get it now - I can hear the quality and influence they had. I can hear aspects in groups that I like
But the vocals don’t do it for me at all. Do t like that style, don’t like a guy from the Midlands singing like a Deep South blues guy
So despite this having 2 of my least liked things - hard rock vocals and bluesy American rock style - this was decent
Best: Gallows Pole
4
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Wed Mar 06 2024
Apple Venus Volume 1
XTC
3/10
What a confounding album. Genuinely baffling that this is anywhere near a top 1000 list, but one of the most I retesting so far
Well accomplished musically, big Beatles, Kinks, even ELO influences
Interesting how little electric bass/guitar and drums there were
String arrangements excellent, but they were Mike Batt
But the lyrics and vocals ruined this completely
Maybe half the songs were almost comedically bad lyrically, you’d give a 13yo a funny look if they wrote “your dictionary”
Lyrics are a bizarre mix of twee nonsense and pagan/folk
Didn’t like the vocals very much either
This is musically quite interesting but is a bad album
Best: I Can’t Own Her
1
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Thu Mar 07 2024
The Predator
Ice Cube
9/10 Excellent
Amazing historical document that captures the early 90s in America
A gangsta rap album about gangsta rap, media criticism, the events around the LA riots, and Ice Cube himself
Deeply true and insightful, the interludes are so strong
Excellent instrumentals, Ice Cube style and flow is outstanding
Flies by, it is propulsive and engaging
Best: Check Yo Self
5
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Fri Mar 08 2024
Mask
Bauhaus
5/10
It was fine. Gothy alternative rock.
Didn’t hugely stand out from other stuff out around this time
Could clearly hear influences like Clash, Bowie etc
Vocals not amazing
Production a little sludgy - some songs the instruments somewhat merged into one
Preferred the songs where they had more funk/propulsion in the rhythm. Second half better.
Best: In Fear of Fear
3
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Mon Mar 11 2024
Meat Is Murder
The Smiths
6/10
Fine, I guess, but another one that is very surprising to find on a top 1000 list
Nothing truly outstanding, nothing terrible
It all rests on how you feel about Morrissey - and he doesn’t do if tor me. Better than the solo album that I listened to though.
Very well produced and engineered
Good, occasionally excellent music
Bass & drums particularly stood out
Liked the Nile Rodgers pastiche on Barbarism…
Best: That Joke Isn’t Funny Anymore
3
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Tue Mar 12 2024
So
Peter Gabriel
7.5/10
Another pleasant surprise, expected world music got progressive pop rock
Excellent production throughout, high values and the electronic/synth elements were combined perfectly
Guests were well deployed and stood out. Copeland, Bush, Rodgers in particular.
Extremely 80s sound, but the production is so good that it stands above the crowd.
Best: Sledgehammer
4
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Wed Mar 13 2024
The Blueprint
JAY Z
9.5/10
Wonderful. Banger after banger, almost half of this could be on a greatest hits
Jay-Z in his pomp, all the producers in their pomp
Kanye stuff just amazing
Flow and lyrics brilliant, so much wordplay, double meaning, and dense references
Basically no features, one perfect one. No skits. So much confidence there
Best: Never Change
5
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Thu Mar 14 2024
Beyond Skin
Nitin Sawhney
7.5/10
Nice album
Excellent musicianship and production
Lush instrumentation
Loads of the songs are 75% of the way to brilliant
But the album lacks a top gear that it can shift into and become brilliant
The breakbeats stuff was the best
So ultimately it is more of a background than foreground album
Best: Nadia
4
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Fri Mar 15 2024
Public Image: First Issue
Public Image Ltd.
3.5/10
Not great, this
Lydon’s voice is annoying, his lyrics are childish and embarrassing, his attitude is bad
Religion & Fodderstompf are toe-curling bad
Music is competent but not my style
Production is good, bass is excellent and these bump it up a bit
Couple of decent tunes when they actually try
Another one that should be nowhere near a top 1000
Best: Annalisa
2
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Mon Mar 18 2024
On The Beach
Neil Young
7/10
Don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t a gentle, vibey, country-tinged folk rock album
Liked it though
Gentle but not outstanding music with an excellent and distinctive voice on top
Best: See the Sky About to Rain
3
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Tue Mar 19 2024
Wild Is The Wind
Nina Simone
8/10
A force of nature
What a voice, this album is mesmerising despite containing none of the big songs I know her for
Nina + piano + microphone is pure magic, so those more simple arrangements are absolutely perfect
The more uptempo/showy songs are more mixed in their success
Lyrically there is some of the depth I expected, but a bunch of it is basically “I might as well be dead if you left”
Best: Lilac Wine
4
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Wed Mar 20 2024
Skylarking
XTC
6/10
Way better than the embarrassing mess that was the other XTC album I’ve heard on this list
As a Blur fan I have found an obvious influence on the earlier part of their career
Psychy chamber pop, very well produced with a nice mix of live and synth/electronic instrumentation
Some nice harmonies and melodies
Vibes of Beatles, Pink Floyd, Beach Boys
But I can’t get past the vocals and lyrics, I just straight up don’t like them
I think I just don’t much like what Partridge does
Best: Another Satellite
3
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Thu Mar 21 2024
B-52's
The B-52's
6/10
Is this earth-shattering? No. Is it super quality music? No. But is it fun, interesting, and waaaay less serious than some of the other US rock and punk from this time? 100%
Probably punkier in spirit than some of the punk I’ve had on this list
Unmistakable vocals and style
But the flip side of fun and kitsch is wafer thin with no depth
Pretty monotone in sound
Another basic choice for this list, a running theme, hard to see this as a genuinely great album
Best: Rock Lobster
3
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Fri Mar 22 2024
The United States Of America
The United States Of America
8/10
Excerpt what this list should be for - interesting and good albums that have passed me by
Never heard of them (kudos for the un-googleable name) and really liked it
Sounds like a current band doing a pastiche of a 60s psychedelic album, a tribute to the production sounding way ahead of its time
Elements of older/traditional, 60s contemporaries like the Beatles, Kinks, Beach Boys, and sample/electronic elements
Really interesting and varied sounds
Definitely drugs involved
Reminded me of acts like Stereolab
Best: Stranded in time
4
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Mon Mar 25 2024
Back At The Chicken Shack
Jimmy Smith
4/10
I’m sure it is good, simply just not my thing
I found it boring
Bluesy saxophone jazz aint it for me
2
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Tue Mar 26 2024
At Folsom Prison
Johnny Cash
9/10
About as good as live albums get, can’t think of a better one
The band and him are so tight, so slick, he is so at ease that he can just mess around at points without screwing it up. In lesser bands the in-song banter could wreck it
Don’t care if it is a character or facade, he plays the outlaw so well
Such energy in the delivery, he sounds almost unhinged at times
The announcements for the prisoners, the speech at the end. Makes it feel like you’re there
“Hello, I’m Johnny Cash”. Iconic
Best: Folsom Prison Blues
5
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Wed Mar 27 2024
The ArchAndroid
Janelle Monáe
9/10
I’ve listened to Dirty Computer much more than this, so after a while this was a bit of a revelation. Superb.
It clicked this time that the album is basically a 70s rock concept album but with soul vibes and modern production & delivery
Both halves excellent, the more uptempo/futurist first half has more of the bangers but I think the more downtempo rock/R&B second half plays better to me
Some of the guitar stuff is wonderful
Not a no skip album - the Of Montreal track would be straight-up bad if not for the excellent production.
Best: Tightrope
5
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Thu Mar 28 2024
Moss Side Story
Barry Adamson
2/10
This is bad, wild that it is near a top 1000 list. Nether artist nor album are significant
If you’re making a soundtrack for an imaginary film, you’ve got to get across the concept clearly. This doesn’t, unless the film is supposed to be a made-for-tv noir pastiche with some sub-bond action sequences
Musically this sounds amateur, clearly bound by the keyboards and synthesisers of the time.
5 or so years later and this could have turned into a decent trip hop or early Warp album
A couple of flashes of decent music but, jeez, bad
Best: Intensive Care
1
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Fri Mar 29 2024
Fear Of A Black Planet
Public Enemy
7.5/10
Angry, urgent, propulsive, still sounding relevant today
A lot of excellent verses & rapping
Production is dense, intense. Maybe a little much, overwhelming, and doesn’t move much outside the rails
Love Chuck D voice, Flava Flav not so much
Best: Fight the Power
4
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Mon Apr 01 2024
Sticky Fingers
The Rolling Stones
7/10
I was dreading a Stones album, so this was a hugely pleasant surprise. Liked it quite a bit, good album.
Excellent musicianship, layered sound, vocals didn’t grate in the way I expected them to.
Maintained a cohesive blues rock style whilst hopping around genres.
Some of the blues jam sections were overlong and aimless.
some of the positives actually ended up as negatives - hearing posh boys from Richmond do delta blues or country rock (including Jagger doing pastiche accents) felt hugely inauthentic at best, cynical and exploitative at worst.
Overall this didn’t grab my own soul but I can see why it is considered a great album by a top band
Best: Wild Horses
4
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Tue Apr 02 2024
Zombie
Fela Kuti
5/10
Nice vibes, good musicianship, good background mood music
But this is basically a world jazz album and leans heavily into the improv/jam style
This means that it feels interesting but ultimately rudderless and a bit empty to me
Having read the wikipedia after listening, it seems that this is on the list for the political and societal issues surrounding it, rather than for its musical quality
Best: Mistake
2
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Wed Apr 03 2024
Fulfillingness' First Finale
Stevie Wonder
7/10
More contemplative and downtempo than full of bangers
Excellent vibes
Really good musically, keyboard lines great
Voice perfect obvs
Couple of hints of gospel
Best: Heaven Is 10 Zillion Light Years Away
4
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Thu Apr 04 2024
I Against I
Bad Brains
4/10
I would ask what this is doing anywhere near this list, but it has clearly been influential on a lot of stuff (that I happen to not enjoy very much…)
Vocals really don’t do it for me at all, make it almost unlistenable at points
Musically the purer punk metal stuff is weak, the broader/more 80s style ones work better
Not great
Best: Secret 77
2
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Fri Apr 05 2024
Ys
Joanna Newsom
8/10
For some reason I had chosen to let her pass me by. Wrong decision, this was excellent
Very much in the same spirit as Bjork
Idiosyncratic, unique, melodic harp-led folk pop
Excellent orchestration
Lovely voice and delivery. Lyrics slightly impenetrable and poetic so I let them wash over me
Best: Monkey & Bear
4
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Mon Apr 08 2024
Get Behind Me Satan
The White Stripes
7.5/10
That’s 2 WS albums now, and they have pleasantly surprised me
These are genres that I typically don’t enjoy so much, but the songs are so well-written and all seem to put a slight modern twist on them
Excellent production and vocals
Best: The Nurse
4
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Tue Apr 09 2024
C'est Chic
CHIC
6.5/10
Good vibes, good tunes
Nile Rodgers guitar and production are extremely good
An excellent groove to have in the background
But this album is dominated by sketches, ideas, hooks that have been stretched out into full songs - and lots of them don’t have enough content for 4 mins so are quite a bit too long
The album is therefore all groove with very little depth both lyrically and song-wise
The harmonised vocals are all excellent, some of the rest not so much
Best: I Want Your Love
3
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Wed Apr 10 2024
Hejira
Joni Mitchell
6/10
One of those "I can see that it is a very good, maybe even great" albums, but not for me personally
Jazzy folk rock, not a lot of melody or hooks - which are important to me - and more focused on poetic, long, storytelling-style lyrics
Great voice and guitar work, although the music does all blur into one
Best: Song for Sharon
3
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Thu Apr 11 2024
Speakerboxxx/The Love Below
OutKast
7.5/10
No excuse for an album being 2+ hours, it is inevitable that the score will go down due to there being more filler/fat. If it is 2 solo albums, release them as such!
Speakerboxxx: more straight-up hip hop. Nice. Frenetic, energetic, lots of energy. Great features from Killer Mike in particular. Keeps up the pace, if you don't like a song then another will be along shortly. Best: GhettoMusick
The Love Below: a swerve mostly away from Hip Hop towards funk, pop, Jazz. He clearly listened to Prince, and Childish Gambino clearly listened to this. Production on this half of the allbum is spot on. A breakbeats version of "These are a few of my favorite things"?! Hey Ya, with time apart, remains a banger.
Best: Prototype
4
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Fri Apr 12 2024
Born To Run
Bruce Springsteen
8/10
Really liked this, street stories told with passion
He meant this
Excellent wall of sound style production with prominent sax and frequent glock. So distinctive
Lots of anthems then a surprise jazzy ballad - nice. Strong finish to the album
Best: Born To Run
4
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Mon Apr 15 2024
Abattoir Blues / The Lyre of Orpheus
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
8.5/10
I was dreading this one and put it off all day. Expected doom, gloom, self regarding
Totally wrong, this was excellent. Surprisingly mainstream rock sound with lots of interesting twists to make it alternative, bluesy, folk, even gospel
Thought Cave might be humourless, but there were definite flashes of funny on here
Rocky, propulsive first half, more mellow and folky second
Absolutely loved the drums on both sides
Best: Fable of the Brown Ape
4
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Tue Apr 16 2024
Talking Heads 77
Talking Heads
7.5/10
Second TH album so far and preferred this one.
Alt rock with lots of afrobeat, world, funk influence
Catchy tunes, well delivered
I can see how influential they are, lots of it sounds like 90s indie music in the UK. The guitar in particular
Best: Pycho Killer
4
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Wed Apr 17 2024
The Sounds Of India
Ravi Shankar
3/10
Strange one this. Clearly excellent, maybe genius level, musicianship, but I didn’t like it very much.
It’s barely an album - more an introduction to Indian music styles with some demonstrations
Shankar (slightly dismissively) says that it might sound without melody and harmony to Western ears. Well I happen to like both of those…
As a result I found it pretty boring although it had some moments and sections that were engaging and listenable
Not for me
2
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Thu Apr 18 2024
The Hour Of Bewilderbeast
Badly Drawn Boy
8.5/10
This took me back - saw BDB in the new bands tent at Glastonbury just before this came out. As a 90s indie kid I was familiar with a chunk of this
Is it excellent, genre hopping evidence of a great songwriter, or a really good album frustrated by having too many fragments and incomplete songs?
Maybe both
This is genuinely excellent, but a fragmented early portion and a couple of instrumentals (Bewliderbeast!) screaming out for vocals
Yes there is some influence of his northern contemporaries, but the album looks backward in a good way to the 60s and 70s in particular.
Indie, folk, alt, country, funk are all here. I can hear things like Nick Drake & Simon and Garfunkel
Great harmonies, lovely tunes
A great example of what could have been a massive album, but wasn’t for some reason. Other people doing stuff in the same area, but not as well, managed to make it big whilst BDB didn’t
Best: Pissing in the Wind
4
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Fri Apr 19 2024
Mothership Connection
Parliament
8/10
I was always going to like this, excellent funky music that continues to be influential and heard in current music
Total vibe, great rhythm and squelchy synth
Some of it sounded almost jazz-like and improvised, some of it was tight as hell
The flip side of the more freeform stuff was the lyrics were minimal or shallow
Best: Unfunky UFO
4
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Mon Apr 22 2024
...And Justice For All
Metallica
2/10
An intersection of my least favourite things: hard metal and self-serious music
One of the rare times I didn’t bother finishing, first half was enough
Really, really not for me. Hated this
1
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Tue Apr 23 2024
Five Leaves Left
Nick Drake
7/10
Second ND album, liked both and get why he’s influential
Brilliant voice, lovely tone, album conveys mood very well
Folky gentle music, really kicks in when some of the orchestration joins
But this is fairly consistent or monotone in style, so is held back from excellence as it didn’t thrill me
Best: River Man
4
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Wed Apr 24 2024
Francis Albert Sinatra & Antonio Carlos Jobim
Frank Sinatra
6/10
A Bossa Nova Sinatra album? Ok.
So laid back it’s horizontal, gives real “bang it out in an afternoon” vibes
Sinatra’s voice is excellent, but he really never seems to enter top gear or commit to this
An enjoyable but extremely slight entry into the list
Best: The Girl From Ipanema
3
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Thu Apr 25 2024
I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight
Richard Thompson
9/10
Liked this one a lot, completely new to me
Great idea, well executed: do a Celtic folk album with aspects of the contemporary 70s rock, country, even prog
Very good production, loved the choices and deployment of the traditional instruments, great musicianship throughout
Vocals were at their best when both were singing
Preferred the uptempo stuff to the ballads
This is the first album in a while from a genre I don’t know that was an obvious classic
Best: I Want to see the bright lights tonight
5
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Fri Apr 26 2024
Raw Like Sushi
Neneh Cherry
8/10
As someone who was just discovering music around this time, this one is pandering to me. Still really good though
British pop music made by people who love early hip hop
80s production is spot on, the drum programming is excellent
Start of super strong with Buffalo Stance and Manchild
She knows her way around a hook and chorus
Some of the verses and lyrics aren’t exactly deep, but there is no pretension here
Best: Buffalo Stance
4
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Mon Apr 29 2024
L.A. Woman
The Doors
3/10
Not for me this one, a combination of 2 things that I don’t like: bluesy rock and self-serious prevention
Marked it up slightly because a lot of the music was pretty good, if often generic, boring, and maybe too long
Not much of a fan of the vocals or lyrics
Rolled my eyes more than once
Best: Hyacinth House
2
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Tue Apr 30 2024
Band On The Run
Paul McCartney and Wings
9/10
One I knew already - great album
Fantastic that one of the greats just do his thing. Songwriting, melody, harmony all perfect
A bunch of killer tunes, takes a breather in the middle then finishes strong
Best: Jet
5
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Wed May 01 2024
The Velvet Underground
The Velvet Underground
6/10
VU&N is a great album, near the top of the albums I’ve listened to so for. This was a pretty major disappointment and I’m not sure it is worthy of the list
Love Lou Reed’s voice, vibe is good, this is a very nice sounding album
But it is very basic in composition, feels mannered to the point of being boring at points, and lacks all the drive, energy, excitement of VU&N. Like it’s a different band or one who can’t be bothered
Doesn’t stand out from its contemporary music to me
Best: I’m Set Free
3
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Thu May 02 2024
Spiderland
Slint
6/10
Another band I’ve heard of but not knowingly heard
Early post rock, clearly influential on a lot of stuff I have listened to in the past - big Arab Strap and Mogwai vibes
Well played and layered production
I wish the vocals were higher in the mix
The shouty poetry doesn’t always work
Major long-haired serious sad university guitar boy vibes here
Best: Good Morning, Captain
3
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Fri May 03 2024
The Coral
The Coral
6.5/10
Liked this, but a strange one. No way it is in the top 1000 albums, but it is so different to other stuff that I can see why it is in 1000 albums to listen to
Tonight they were indie rock. Anything but: rock, folk, gypsy, blues amongst others
At its best when they are giving it 100% in vocals and throwing all the instruments at it
Best: Dreaming of you
3
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Mon May 06 2024
At Mister Kelly's
Sarah Vaughan
5/10
Old school smooth jazz
Extremely well delivered and sung beautifully. She and her voice sound full of character
At points you feel like you’re in the room, the recording quality is superb
But overall, it is a relatively samey vocal jazz album. Excellent in a bar, less essential as an album tbh
Hated the last track
Best: Willow Weep for Me
2