dark and brooding, but also quite energetic and at times frenetic... percussion (or highly rhythmic instrumental lines) and vocals at the forefront... highlights = halo, enjoy the silence, policy of truth, blue dress (a nice chill track),
The bluest of blues. Highlights: "I want to be loved" (because it is short), "Jealous Hearted Man", "I Can't Be Satisfied" (great guitar), "Crosseyed Cat",
Bluesy rock that doesn't take itself too seriously. Fun!
Highlights: "Beer Drinkers and Hell Raisers", "Master of Sparks", "La Grange" (very similar to that famous riff in another song), "Shiek", "Precious and Grace", "Waitin For the Bus",
Masterpiece of blues and soul.
Objectively all the songs are good and well crafted, but it is hard for me to get into it. Maybe there is just a little too much going on--or I just find Byrne's voice grating. Highlights: Girl, Found a Job, Artists Only, Take Me to the River,
Extremely funky jazz. For what it is, it's basically perfect.
Prog rock with a lot of classic rock sounds. It's not really my thing (for some reason the closest thing to prog I can connect to is stuff like Frog Eyes), but I can see how some people might consider it epic.
Immaculate songwriting paired with divine singing.
Lots of songs in 4/6 time. Peak Coldplay. There are a couple of the big hits, but the other songs actually do a good job at establishing a sonically cohesive and very listenable album. It's like what Dave Matthews kind of wished he could be. It is moody, vacillating between slightly cynical and despairing; and self assured to the point of cringe.
A classic. I remember discovering this in that formative, though still naive, period that lasted from Senior year of HS to Freshman year of college alongside albums like What's Going On, Sergeant Pepper, American Water, and The Soft Bulletin.
Great groovy goodness. My highlights are the first three tracks.
Lots of classic rocking tunes. "Sharp Dressed Man" is a famous one that I had not been able to name previously.
It's West Coast lumpen rap--a progenitor of the genre. What more is there to say?
another progenitor album, this time heavy metal, but by today's tastes almost indistinguishable from other genres of rock. It's actually pretty easy to listen to. "Smoke on the Water" ... "Highway Star" ... "Space Truckin"
There's something about this album that I like. I think it makes me understand why some people really latched onto Radiohead. It's got complex things going on, including punky/grungy/whiny stuff, but has a dreamy lofi sonic atmosphere that downplays, masks, or even belies that complexity. Highlights: "Knives Out"; the famous "Pyramid Song";
Some great singing with a variety of backing sounds ranging from orchestral to folk to funky grooviness. Highlights: "Will You Love Me Tomorrow"; "You've Got a Friend"; "Tapestry"... It's a bit reminiscent of Karen Dalton.
It's short and fairly unique. Jazzy prog jam rock with psychedelic sounds and lyrics.
Aesthetically / conventionally puzzling. Maybe it belongs to the same genre-defying genre as Beck, Bill Fay, Captain Beefheart, Frank Zappa...
Reminds me of Ryan. Highlights include: Crazy Love, Free My Mind, Sanctuary.
More sonically consistent perhaps compared to the other one, but goes much bigger and stranger in some places. Harder to identify highlights.
An album that I spent some time with during my final year in Seattle and first year in NYC. Many good tracks!
I want to be adored, bye bye bad man,
I'm not sure if there is any single song that stands above the rest, but really truly very quite rather solid as a whole.
Peak grunge. Lots of keepers on this one! This album shows me that grunge is actually pretty chill and sedated even in its more frenetic and heavy parts.
Compositional elements from different rock genres that peaked in the 90s cobbled together to form something that is epic, silly, irreverent, and earnest all at the same time. Kind of fun, though not particularly pleasant, to listen to.
I had no inkling of who this band was until the track became "Song 2". Highlights: "Death of a Party"; "Look Inside America";
Psychedelic prog rock. It's alright
Many of the songs are a little too whiny and tinny. Highlights despite that: "Home Is Anywhere You Hang Your Head"; "I Want You"; "Blue Chair"; "Crimes of Paris"; "Next Time Round"; "Battered Old Bird";
Shoegazey and mostly pleasant to listen to, although it is hard for me to really grasp onto any particular song. Maybe \"Iceblink Luck\"
Easy A. An important album in my formative (college) years.
Another classic / canonical album. Not something I listen to these days (2024), but I remember being impacted when I first discovered.
Better than I expected and the appearances by Phil Collins and Kate Bush were appreciated. Possible highlights: Intruder, No Self Control, I Don't Remember, Games, Not One of Us.
Another classic of my formative years--via Graeme. Introduced me to different aspects of hip hop.
Seems good. Not really my taste though.
perhaps the hipster in me is predisposed to some skepticism towards albums that are so renowned. nevertheless, I acknowledge that this is quite an enjoyable piece of prog / art / experimental rock, and an album that doubtlessly influenced all popular music that came after it.
"Don't Know", "Come Away", "Shoot the Moon"... sometimes jazzy/bluesy songs and sometimes country... with the breathy voice that was in vogue in the late 90s to mid 00s, like a feminine Coldplay singing jazz club tunes
I don't really like live albums for some reason, but it's good.
Do I really need to listen to this?
