Journey in Progress
Discovering music one album at a time
228
Albums Rated
3.07
Avg Rating
23
5-Star Albums
21%
Complete
861 albums remaining
Rating Speed
2.3
Per Week
681
Days Active
Reviews
228
Written
100%
Review Rate
vs Global
-0.23
Avg Diff
3.07
Avg Rating
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How you rate albums
Rating Timeline
Average rating over time
Ratings by Decade
Which era do you prefer?
Activity by Day
When do you listen?
Taste Profile
2010s
Favorite Decade
Metal
Favorite Genre
US
Top Origin
Balanced
Rater Style
14
1-Star Albums
Taste Analysis
Genre Preferences
Ratings by genre
Origin Preferences
Ratings by country
Rating Style
You Love More Than Most
Albums you rated higher than global average
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Introducing The Hardline According To Terence Trent D'Arby | 5 | 2.98 | +2.02 |
| Who Killed...... The Zutons? | 5 | 3.15 | +1.85 |
| American Beauty | 5 | 3.24 | +1.76 |
| The College Dropout | 5 | 3.32 | +1.68 |
| Strangeways, Here We Come | 5 | 3.44 | +1.56 |
| American Gothic | 4 | 2.49 | +1.51 |
| Franz Ferdinand | 5 | 3.57 | +1.43 |
| Black Holes and Revelations | 5 | 3.59 | +1.41 |
| Hotel California | 5 | 3.6 | +1.4 |
| good kid, m.A.A.d city | 5 | 3.61 | +1.39 |
You Love Less Than Most
Albums you rated lower than global average
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heroes | 1 | 3.61 | -2.61 |
| Crooked Rain Crooked Rain | 1 | 3.24 | -2.24 |
| Fetch The Bolt Cutters | 1 | 3.19 | -2.19 |
| Murder Ballads | 1 | 3.08 | -2.08 |
| What's Going On | 2 | 3.94 | -1.94 |
| Millions Now Living Will Never Die | 1 | 2.87 | -1.87 |
| Time Out | 2 | 3.84 | -1.84 |
| Isn't Anything | 1 | 2.74 | -1.74 |
| Songs From The Big Chair | 2 | 3.74 | -1.74 |
| Atomizer | 1 | 2.72 | -1.72 |
Artist Analysis
Favorite Artists
Artists with 2+ albums and high weighted score
| Artist | Albums | Avg | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Creedence Clearwater Revival | 2 | 5 | 3.8 |
| Black Sabbath | 2 | 5 | 3.8 |
Least Favorite Artists
Artists with 2+ albums and low weighted score
| Artist | Albums | Avg | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds | 2 | 1.5 | 2.4 |
5-Star Albums (23)
View Album Wall
Popular Reviews
Fiona Apple
4/5
This album is wayyyy better than “Fetch the Bolt Cutters”. There are actually several good songs on here, Criminal being just one of them, which honestly didn’t stand out to me.
Never is a Promise really stuck out to me for some reason. Lots of switches in and out of dissonance, chest voice and falsetto. Really impressive and beautiful.
I came into this expecting to give 2 stars maximum, but this is a really high quality album.
5 likes
Mekons
1/5
Not a huge fan of this one. Bad singing, weird backing tracks. Just weird.
2 likes
Pink Floyd
4/5
This album was very nice to listen to. A lot of interesting sounds and a lot of creativity throughout.
My only issue is that there isn’t enough singing. I really like things that I can sing along to, and nothing here gave me that feeling.
I do wish I had smoked up before. But it was still very enjoyable.
1 likes
Beastie Boys
2/5
This album was interesting. It was mostly the Beastie Boys scream-rap style that I knew from before, but then also some random funky instrumental songs thrown in. I can’t say that either approach particularly tugged on my heartstrings.
1 likes
Beatles
5/5
I had never heard most of the songs on this album before, but I was really impressed. There are quite a few different styles in here. Enough weirdness to keep my attention, but not so much that it turned me off. Nothing bad to say, other than that “Because” was a bit boring.
1 likes
1-Star Albums (14)
All Ratings
Tom Waits
2/5
I know karate, voodoo too.
“Pitchy” as a feature, not a bug
That one slow song… good to hear some variety.
And then a couple songs that were just jamming. Can’t believe they made the album cut.
Some songs I was really impressed with his singing, and others I just felt were terrible.
Deerhunter
3/5
The first song gave me a bad impression, but I think if I was high it might have been my favorite. They eventually settled into a nice chill vibe which I’m all about. Lots of simple repetitive guitar riffs which are easy to catch onto.
At the same time, nothing really stood out to me as amazing.
Fairport Convention
3/5
I really like the lead singer’s voice, and the musical style is right up my alley. Lots of really beautiful melodies, with light yet rhythmic backing.
Things were different in the 60s - 8-minute songs?? Wild. My only criticism might be my own lack of attention span.
I would definitely listen to this again, though I’m not sure in what context.
I didn’t pay attention to the lyrics, but based on the music I assume they were poetic and meaningful.
Creedence Clearwater Revival
5/5
Lots of attitude from the singer, loving the instrumental solos, especially harmonica. Clearly high-quality improvisers.
Up Around the Bend, Proud Mary - absolute classics. Though it seems Up Around the Bend was not actually on this album. Silly Spotify.
Kept listening to CCR all day after this.
Sister Sledge
2/5
Wow, apparently I never knew who sang “We Are Family” before. Nothing too interesting or surprising here. Slightly boring, and even the main hit (while legendary) didn’t give me enough feels that would put this album above any of the others we’ve listened to so far.
Kate Bush
3/5
I don’t know much about Kate Bush other than that song from Stranger Things, but this is a good album. Every song is weird enough to keep me intrigued, but not so weird that I want to turn it off.
Some of these songs feel like “studio only”. There are a lot of random instruments that wouldn’t be practical to bring on tour, unless you just use a keyboard for them instead. And she also harmonizes with herself a fair bit. Or, they just would sound different live.
Eels
3/5
Never heard of these guys before. It’s a definite vibe - I came in and out of enjoying it, even within one song.
The riff in Susan’s House was sampled by Atmosphere (Yesterday). Never realized that was a sample until now.
Ah, and that song from Shrek “My Beloved Monster” sort of stood out as a different style.
The more I listened to the album, the more I appreciated it. Quite a variety of different styles in the end. Definitely enjoyable overall.
Iggy Pop
2/5
I quite like some songs (Some Weird Sin, The Passenger), but it still isn’t something I would put on regularly.
This album is almost the opposite of the previous Kate Bush one for me. Either the songs were boring and generic, or too weird that it gave me the ick (Turn Blue).
Maybe this influenced a lot of more modern music, but now with modern music already in existence I’m not going to be returning to this album any time soon.
Wu-Tang Clan
4/5
A lot of it is just straight rap with a simple beat behind. It’s refreshing because I don’t listen to too much of that style. I thought it would get old after a few songs, but it actually got better the more I got into the album.
I like the beat for 7th chamber, method man, and forgot to look at the names of the rest of the songs after I started this list. But there were a lot with sick beats/flows.
The Black Keys
4/5
I’ve heard of the Black Keys before and probably know some of their stuff without knowing it was them. Ah yep, I’ve heard Howlin’ for You.
I really like the funky bluesy rock style overall. They remind me of the Cold War Kids, though a bit more polished. These Days was a nice soft departure from that style though, showing a bit of range in the album, and was a banging song overall.
Really good album. Super impressed.
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
2/5
Almost cut my hair feels like somebody just got high and wrote down the first things that came to their mind, then they wrote music behind it.
I like the mix between electric guitar solos and folksy wholesome music, but it also made it so I couldn’t figure out the identity of the group. Four-part harmony?
Deja Vu is super catchy. In general I liked the songs, but nothing to set it apart from other decent albums.
Michael Jackson
3/5
Michael’s voice really is beautiful. So much range, both in notes and musical style.
I didn’t listen to the entire album, but I feel like I heard enough to give it 3 stars.
Afrika Bambaataa
2/5
It’s not bad, but it just sounds too cheesy to me. They definitely put effort into the beats, which were groovy, just not what I like to listen to.
I don’t recognize any of the songs, so there isn’t any nostalgia element for me.
Haven’t given a one star yet, but this wasn't thaaat bad.
R.E.M.
4/5
I’m digging this album. Some groovy beats and weird musical choices, then some classic rock sounds, but it kept me on my toes.
This is an album that I can’t believe is 40 years old. It still feels so modern - or could at least be from the 2000s.
The Dave Brubeck Quartet
2/5
I remember when Simon Cowell used “elevator music” as an insult on American Idol. Well, here we have it.
Everybody Jumpin’, while an obvious predecessor to “Jump On It”, just doesn’t have the same energy.
Calming and fine to have in the background, but nothing I’ll be returning to with any measurable amount of excitement.
Cream
4/5
I’ve heard cream a bit before, whose songs are largely based on the singer rocking out and occasionally switching to a soft falsetto with Eric Clapton wailing on the guitar in the background. It’s a definite yes for me.
Sunshine of Your Love - classic.
Outside Women Blues has really weird timing, but I still kinda dig it.
A Mothers Lament reminds me of Monty Python. It’s a weird one to end on, but I’m glad they had this random silly departure from their usual style.
There’s a lot to love on this album.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
1/5
This whole album has such a weird vibe, which was sort of the point I guess, based on the name.
But even if we want to excuse the subject matter, still the music was pretty boring, the lyrics were strange (“I’d crawl over 1000 pussys just to get to one boys juicy butthole” - paraphrased, but not far off), and nothing stuck out in a positive direction.
Not sure if “Death is Not the End” was meant to be uplifting, but for me it was creepy AF.
Queen
4/5
Freddie Mercury’s voice is truly incredible. Some of the rhythms on songs I’ve never heard of are insane, super impressive.
There’s also a huge variety of style in a single album, which I always appreciate, and shows the versatility of all the musicians.
That being said, I did find myself a bit uninterested by a few of the songs, so would be hard-pressed to give it a 5.
Bobby Womack
3/5
Groovy beats about love with great singing as accompaniment. I really like the vibe, but it all just sort of blended together after a while and no specific song stuck out to me.
All good, but nothing great.
Fiona Apple
1/5
Newspaper was very cringey - not enjoyable listening for me. Also “I Want You To Love Me”. And…. the whole album. Nevermind. It’s the whole album.
Some songs were actually fine. But I still wouldn’t put them on over much else.
That being said, I don’t regret listening to the album, because now I know that I shouldn’t ever listen to Fiona Apple again, and can happily judge others for doing so.
The Dictators
3/5
Overall, not great, not bad. Some of the songs gave me ska vibes without the brass, which was interesting. I can’t say there was a huge amount of creativity though, in my opinion.
I Got You Babe made me realize that I forgot to watch Groundhog Day this year. *sad face*
TLC
2/5
Too much is going on in the harmonies (background and singing) to really appreciate them, other than the general vibe. Or maybe just the mixing is bad. Not sure. I do like the general vibe though.
Their voice(s) sounded a lot better and cut through more when the pitch was a bit higher, but for some reason a lot of the songs had them singing low for a significant portion. I do like the bits with rapping though.
“Waterfalls” is played so often in the UK. It’s fine, but not sure why it’s that popular.
David Bowie
1/5
David Bowie’s voice is frustrating. It seems like he intentionally speak-sings which makes his music and voice recognizable, but I would like to know what notes are written at some point.
And then the other half of the album was random ambient sounds.
I feel like I like the idea of David Bowie - purposely making a lot of non-mainstream choices just to subvert expectations. But I don’t actually like David Bowie in reality. If I was really into music I might appreciate it more, but as a casual listener I just want a bit more of easy listening. It seems he is always trying to make some point, but I don’t know what.
Bob Dylan
4/5
I really like Bob Dylan’s style. Every song on this album is one that I would be happy to come up on shuffle. Some I knew before, some I didn’t, but I would happily listen to this album again.
My only criticism is that a lot of the songs sound very similar in style, and listening to the whole album together didn’t give me a whole lot of emotional journey, but rather a blur of one feeling.
Antony and the Johnsons
3/5
My first thought was “Sam Smith vibes”, but it changed as I heard a bit more, and gave some Hozier vibes at some points as well. Regardless I love the voice(s), and I’m glad I know a bit more about Antony/ANOHNI and the Johnsons.
Black Sabbath
5/5
Wheels of Confusion itself takes you on a journey. I kept having to check whether it was the same song still playing, or if I missed the cut somewhere.
Changes was a bit of a stylistic curveball. I had no idea that Black Sabbath originally did that song! Amazing. This is the only song I recognized from the album.
Then WTFX. I don’t understand why several albums have included random stuff like this. Maybe in this case it was to cleanse your palate after changes and get you back in the metal mood? Or maybe that was some new super inventive technique? No idea.
Laguna sunrise also completely different style. So nice.
All in all, a surprisingly diverse album from a band that in my previous mind was one-dimensional. I have heard a lot about Black Sabbath, but never really listened to them. I now understand and appreciate their impact a lot more. If that isn’t worthy of 5 stars, what is?
Cyndi Lauper
3/5
Two all-time classics on a debut album has to give Cyndi some love.
I liked the whole album. All upbeat, catchy songs. Nothing really blew me away, but a positive experience overall.
Elvis Presley
3/5
I know a fair few of Elvis hits, but I can’t say I’ve ever listened to any of his albums. He seems to do a good job of walking the line between more traditional singing (vibrato, slow-ish and “pure”) and rock-style “screaming” and can switch between them at will.
I like the style, there’s some variety, but I can’t say I really loved the album. A lot of the songs were pretty unremarkable. But then again, there were some absolute bangers (Suspicious Minds, Kentucky Rain)
Doves
2/5
I wonder if the lead singer’s name is Ian, because this sounds like a Christian rock album without the Christ.
I sort of liked a few of the songs (the beginning of There Goes the Fear, M62 and NY), but overall I’m not very impressed.
Wow, and then I actually know “Caught by the River”, but I have no idea from where. Another pretty good one, but can’t bump up the whole album.
Arrested Development
4/5
Absolutely loving all of the beats. I also like the rapping style. It’s very conversational and easy to understand, with a chill vibe.
I started to lose some interest toward the end, but still a good album. I’m surprised I haven’t heard much about arrested development before.
Neil Young
2/5
Pretty enjoyable. I feel I could sit around a campfire and listen to Neil Young for hours. But everything just blended together. Nothing stuck out at all, and at the end of the album a Bob Dylan song played, and I realized how much more character and charisma Dylan has compared to Young. I’m between a 2 and a 3 here.
Yes
3/5
Some parts of Roundabout seem vaguely familiar. I like the guitar instrumentals and background, but I feel like it’s a bit much.
Random classical music.
There’s a lot of vocal harmony, which is interesting but in my opinion doesn’t really match with the background music. And it’s a lot of “la la la” and “doo doo doo”, which makes sense if you’re singing a capella, but why not just make those sounds with actual instruments if you are using them anyway?
Heart of the Sunrise is amazing.
The album really grew on me as time went on. I have my qualms with it, but pretty good overall.
Bad Company
3/5
It’s fine.
Rush
4/5
Absolute monster of a first “song”. I love it. It varies from sci-fi to hard rock instrumentals, to acoustic, but even within hard rock the rhythms and progressions aren’t very repetitive which keeps it interesting.
The rest of it is pretty good as well, but nothing crazy.
Nine Inch Nails
3/5
Definitely not my style. Can barely understand any of the lyrics, distortion of the backing tracks is way too high. Most of the album sounds like a factory where the parent company would be legally required to tell employees to wear ear plugs. I know it was all intentional, but still.
I’ve definitely heard a few of these songs, but never knew the context.
By the latter half of the album, I really started to appreciate how they put the album together. So many different styles that brought me through a range of emotions. It sort of reminded me of the Nick Cave album, but it was actually well executed.
Some appreciation here, but I still don’t really want to listen to it again.
Fleet Foxes
3/5
This one is very much my style. I’ve heard and forgotten about a lot of these songs. Relaxing but upbeat, with elements of nature thrown in everywhere. I would definitely listen to this again.
But I can’t say anything surprised me or really blew me away.
k.d. lang
2/5
This album was fairly enjoyable but a bit boring. It gave a sort of musical theatre feel, but without a story. Don’t have a whole lot to say about it.
Gene Clark
3/5
Pretty good. Reminiscent of John Denver and the like. I almost dropped it to 2 stars because of the iffy rendition of Stand By Me, but will keep it at 3 because I genuinely enjoyed the rest.
Fiona Apple
4/5
This album is wayyyy better than “Fetch the Bolt Cutters”. There are actually several good songs on here, Criminal being just one of them, which honestly didn’t stand out to me.
Never is a Promise really stuck out to me for some reason. Lots of switches in and out of dissonance, chest voice and falsetto. Really impressive and beautiful.
I came into this expecting to give 2 stars maximum, but this is a really high quality album.
Def Leppard
3/5
I sort of like the style, but I feel like it all blended together and nothing stood out to me. Not bad, not great.
Kanye West
4/5
The feeling I get from this album is that Kanye had quite a few ideas that he really liked and are objectively good, and then sort of filled in the rest with random stuff that would “suffice”.
This is true for lyrics: some lines really had me thinking, while others felt like an 15-year old white boy had written them. For beats as well: Every song had a good beat, but most of the time I didn’t feel like it went anywhere beyond an initial build. And also for collaborations: it seems like he wrote down a list of people he wanted to be on the album and then just threw them together randomly.
Even with all this criticism, I still pretty much liked all the songs. Favorites were Runaway and Blame Game (though the last part was weird and cringe).
Also, lots of random product placement. Wonder if he got paid for that.
Judas Priest
3/5
Classic hard rock sound. The singer has huge variety in his his voice. From the “grungy” rock sound to operatic in some instances, and the more flat (but still good) sounding in songs like “United”.
Nothing stood out a whole lot, but it was all enjoyable.
Marvin Gaye
2/5
Wow, the deluxe edition on YouTube has literally 6 versions of “What’s Going On”. The album is alright, but sort of boring. Not super impressed.
Kanye West
5/5
Where “Dark Twisted Fantasy” was a jerky rollercoaster with its inconsistency, “College Dropout” is a coherent unit with several absolute bangers on it.
Loved all the school spirit skits. Never heard them before.
Whenever a new song started, I felt the new beat might be my favorite of the album. All so fresh.
Grizzly Bear
2/5
Personally, I just don’t really get it. I’m not sure what they are going for. It isn’t bad, despite their best attempts to throw random dissonant chords everywhere, but it’s not something I would listen to again.
The singer is quality though. Vague Simon and Garfunkel vibes through the album, but don’t like the style as much.
Roni Size
2/5
I like it a lot more than I thought it would. I sort feel like there’s a story being told by the music, with changing environments and random characters added in. It would be a good background to a video game, sort of reminding me of Ratchet and Clank.
But it is wayyy too long. Even if it was a normal length, I’m not sure I could have finished it but in reality I made it about 7 songs in and decided I didn’t want that noise in my life all day.
Arctic Monkeys
4/5
A lot of absolute classics on here. Favorites are Fake Tales of San Francisco, Mardy Bum, From the Ritz to the Rubble, A Certain Romance.
I like the style so much that I wanted to give it 5 stars, but several of the songs sound pretty similar and are fairly skippable in my opinion.
Penguin Cafe Orchestra
2/5
I recognize the album art for some reason, but no idea why…
This album has been more enjoyable than any of the other purely instrumental albums we have listened to so far, in my opinion. It has a feeling of light heartedness and whimsy, which takes me away from the problems of the real world.
Oh, I guess there is also singing (From the Colonies), which is very depressing.
I liked the lighthearted parts, but could barely make it through some of the terrible squeaking on string instruments. Just… why?
Fred Neil
3/5
A nice, laid back style. Catchy tunes. No complaints, but not something that I feel I really need to go and show all my friends.
Alice In Chains
3/5
Wow the album starts with no warning at all. I have heard “Them Bones” before, but didn’t realize it started so abruptly.
I like the style. It feels “hard rock”, but is actually relatively slow and accessible most of the time. Some really strange “harmonies” though.
Skunk Anansie
4/5
First impression from the first song (Charlie Big Potato): love it. Never heard of these guys but the singer’s voice goes so well with the hard rock background, both to contract and complement.
Also love Tracy’s Flaw and Lately.
I really like the overall vibe. Tempted to give it 5, but it doesn’t quite reach that level for me.
2/5
I like the vibe, but I didn’t feel myself falling into the music, and was just thinking about other things most of the time.
The Who
4/5
Many songs on the album sound much more “modern” than I thought existed in the 60s. It’s groovy - perfect white people dancing music, and I would absolutely tear it up.
I’ve heard a lot about The Who, but I’m not sure if I’ve ever actually listened to them before. I don’t recognize any of these songs.
Red Hot Chili Peppers
5/5
Absolute Bangers: Scar Tissue, Otherside, Californication
Bangers: Around the World, Easily, Savior, Road Trippin’
Still Really Good: everything else
Love RHCP. So many good guitar and bass riffs. Also love the singing style.
Solange
3/5
Very chill vibes. I like the heavy use of harmony. Favorite song so far was Mad because Lil Wayne added in a bit of diversity in the sound.
Pretty good.
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
4/5
I really like this musical style. Upbeat.
Never knew who sang “Pump It Up” before.
I like every song individually and would happily listen to them if they came up on shuffle, but having it all at once was a bit too much and made them all sound pretty similar.
Metallica
4/5
Starting hot with Enter Sandman. Metallica is exactly what I think of when I think “metal” rock. There is a bit more diversity in the album than I expected.
A few songs I hadn’t heard before that I liked: The Unforgiven, Through the Never, Nothing Else Matters
Don’t Tread on me has a throwback to west side story.
Overall pretty impressive, but can’t listen to this style for too long.
Einstürzende Neubauten
1/5
Does anybody honesty listen to this for pleasure? I feel like this was something created by the Nazis during the Holocaust to see how much audial torture Jews could withstand. Somehow it escaped from the camps and has lived another day to make us all say “wtf”.
Some parts weren’t as torturous, but still I have nothing good to say about this album.
The Beach Boys
4/5
Wouldn’t it be nice is obviously a banger. I also liked Sloop John B, God Only Knows, I Know There’s an Answer, Here Today, and that’s about it.
I sort of like the overall sound of The Beach Boys. So many catchy bits. Upbeat. The songs are all good but nothing really great in my opinion.
The Velvet Underground
2/5
There’s a lot of stylistic variety here. Some songs were a bit too “strange” for my liking (Venus in Furs, Heroin, European Son), which has docked the score. Might have been 3 or 4 without those songs.
Stephen Stills
3/5
I like the general vibe. They are catchy songs that could be background music in movies from the 70s or 80s. A lot of it blended together for me though, with nothing surprising enough to note.
Frank Ocean
2/5
Fine, I sort of like the vibe but it’s too slow for me. Not really my style.
Peter Gabriel
2/5
The first few songs were good. I could see myself putting this on if I were in the mood for an ultra-80s sound. The second half was a real snoozer, but I did like the finish with In Your Eyes.
Al Green
4/5
I really like the groovy vibe. Every song has enough different elements to it to keep it interesting. I love the interplay between Al and the band, with a lot of relaxed call and response. It feels so balanced.
For all the albums on this list that I wish were shorter, this is one that I wish was longer.
Paul Weller
4/5
I like the style, and there is a lot of variety of sound. Some ROCK, some acoustic, some funk, some parts vaguely country.
Can You Heal Us was a bit repetitive for me. All the Pictures on the Wall - love it. Has my Fire Really Gone Out - loved the ending, meh first half. A lot of mixed feelings, but overall a lot more good than bad.
Sometimes I felt his voice was really good, but other times it felt pretty questionable, like it didn’t quite go with the background, or maybe just wasn’t quite precise enough when I wanted more precision.
I’d never heard of Paul Weller before, but I’m glad I have now.
The Smiths
5/5
I fee the Smiths have a really unique sound. It’s sort of both upbeat and creepy at the same time, but I dig it.
I honesty liked every single song on this album, and would gladly listen to it again.
Paul Simon
4/5
Upbeat, catchy songs. Big fan so far.
Really want to learn how to sing the “Diamonds on the Soles of her Shoes” a capella part. I could listen to that song all day.
You Can Call Me Al - absolute classic.
A really good and enjoyable album.
Public Image Ltd.
1/5
Sometimes the background was pretty cool, but hated the singing.
I originally wrote that sentence about the first song Albatross, but then realized it also applied to the whole album.
This one is a nope for me.
The Who
4/5
With this and the last album, I completely get the hype and following for The Who. There’s so much variety in their sound that I imagine different parts of the album might speak to a person at different points in their life. No single song stuck out, but everything was good. Some humor, some allegory, some rock, some softer bits.
I think Hall of the Mountain King was the theme song for the old Sonic the Hedgehog cartoon? Was not expecting that kind of nostalgia from this album.
Hugh Masekela
2/5
Nice and relaxing, but nothing outstanding. This would be great to listen to in a restaurant or cafe while eating or having a conversation, but I’m not sure why this is an album I need to listen to before I die.
R.E.M.
4/5
I think I just really like REM’s style. Of all the albums we have listened to on this list, it’s the closest to the 90s/2000s pop-punk we used to binge in high school.
“Stand” just reminds me of Parks and Rec.
I’m at about 3.5, but I’ll give it 4 because vibes.
Leonard Cohen
2/5
Not a huge fan of this. The tone is moody, his voice isn’t great, and the lyrics sound “poetic” but not very meaningful in my estimation, at least not in the current day and age.
A few of the songs were decent, but still nothing I would intentionally listen to again.
Stereo MC's
3/5
I like the vibe. Groovy and chill - it’s definitely something I could put on at a party. There’s enough variety within each song and between songs to keep it interesting.
The Teardrop Explodes
2/5
Not bad, but a few cringey parts. Not much to say about it.
5/5
Honestly every song is good. My only complaint is lack of diversity in the sound, but that is also what makes me immediately know that a song is by Oasis, and it is a sound that many other bands have tried to replicate, so I’m not sure if I can take it away from them.
Wonderwall, despite its hate, is replayed so frequently for a reason. Also love Don’t Look Back in Anger, Hey Now, She’s Electric. I think that’s enough for a 5 star.
Portishead
3/5
I like the style. It’s sort of jazzy and mysterious with dubstep randomly creeping in, and I love the sound of the singer’s voice against the background.
I don’t have anything bad to say about it, but also don’t feel I really love it. Happy to give it a try though.
Pretenders
4/5
A real classic rock sound with a “baddie” attitude. I recognize some of the guitar parts (e.g. tattooed love boys) but have no idea from where.
Madonna
3/5
It’s pretty good, but not really my style. I did like some of the lyrics, but for the most part this album was pretty blah for me. I liked the relative curveball of Shanti though.
I think I would prefer to listen to more of her earlier stuff first, because I feel like I don’t have the context for this.
Jeff Buckley
5/5
In every song, I heard some parts that I really liked. Either a guitar riff with an interesting rhythm or melody, or a vocal choice that sounded really cool. But then nearly every song also had some part that got me bored, maybe just because the songs are longer than most modern ones.
Lilac Wine was straight up beautiful.
And there’s Hallelujah. I was wondering why I had heard of Jeff Buckley. Beautiful rendition.
His falsetto is great, and he uses it a lot, but his chest voice is also great in a completely different way.
The Go-Go's
3/5
Upbeat and catchy, so no complaints here. We Got the Beat is obviously a classic, but nothing really stuck out as amazing (or terrible) other than that. A lot of the songs sounded pretty similar, but still distinguishable.
Soundgarden
4/5
I think Soundgarden have done a really good job of being “hard” rock without it being overwhelming. This album is pretty easy and enjoyable to listen to all the way through. Black Hole Sun is a great song and definitely the best on the album, but I also really like Spoonman and several others.
Pink Floyd
4/5
This album was very nice to listen to. A lot of interesting sounds and a lot of creativity throughout.
My only issue is that there isn’t enough singing. I really like things that I can sing along to, and nothing here gave me that feeling.
I do wish I had smoked up before. But it was still very enjoyable.
The Adverts
2/5
I like the sound, but it is very repetitive. Not much variety. That being said, if I grew up with this music I’m sure I would be jamming out to every song.
Leonard Cohen
2/5
I guess some people really like the gruff voice. I think the songwriting for this album is good, and I respect Cohen for continuing to record music so late into his life, but I reckon if somebody else sang it I would have enjoyed this a lot more.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
2/5
Musically, this album is pretty good. It’s stylistically consistent, but still some variety. It seems that Nick Cave likes to tell a story in his songs, but still some weird/gruesome/cringe lyrics which I’m not really a fan of, and none of the stories spoke to me or really “meant” anything. Never thought I would hear “I put my hand down your panties” in a song. Maybe the trick is just to laugh at the weird stuff and enjoy the rest.
Favorite song: Breathless.
Eagles
5/5
Banger after banger.
I really like the Eagles style. Soft rock, but still with some shredding guitar now and then. Good singing, good music, some variety. No complaints from me.
Christina Aguilera
4/5
The album has a lot of energy, and Aguilera’s voice and personality is always entertaining. I liked the switch to the “old style” tunes starting with Enter the Circus, and Candyman is classic. My only complaint is that the album is too long - I got tired of the vibe of the first half of the album, but that’s why the vibe switch was good.
Scritti Politti
2/5
A bit boring, not really my style, but not terrible.
AC/DC
3/5
Highway to Hell is a definite classic, and I do like the sound of AC/DC, but every song did sort of sound the same. They were good at one thing, and they did that thing.
Machito
3/5
A nice vibe to the music. Something I like to have in the background, but I can’t listen to it every day.
Elis Regina
4/5
At first I was apprehensive, but I really like the style. Some songs are very upbeat and feel like dancing music, others are slow and sexy.
More than her voice, I really like the “background” music but her voice complements it well and is pretty good as a standalone.
Radiohead
3/5
I like radioheads vibe for the most part. Unapologetic soft rock through and through. I liked every song in isolation, but nothing stuck out as either great or terrible to me. I did like the frequent use of falsetto and large jumps in pitch in an instant. But there wasn’t enough variety for me to give it above a 3.
The Police
2/5
Very interesting vibe here. “Mother” is wtf. I liked “Synchronicity II” and “Every Breath You Take”. The album got better after “Synchronicity II”, but still not that great overall.
Creedence Clearwater Revival
5/5
Just so much energy and charisma. I would have loved to go to a CCR concert. So many classics on this album: Ooby Dooby, Lookin’ Out My Backdoor, Up Around the Bend, Heard it Through the Grapevine (which I never realized was CCR). I loved the few times where they drastically change the tempo in the middle of a couple of songs.
Crowded House
4/5
Never heard of these guys, but I love the style. I’ve heard “Fall at Your Feet” only as a part of the 4-chord song by Axis of Awesome. The lyrics are a bit weird in some places, but good weird, not Nick Cave weird.
Overall, I’m a fan of this but it didn’t quite give me enough feels for a 5 star.
The Jam
3/5
Pretty good. Sort of typical soft rock sound. The songs don’t really have choruses (or at least they aren’t clearly distinguishable from the rest of the song), which is kind of cool but also makes it more forgettable.
I like a lot of the guitar parts.
Overall, it’s okay.
MGMT
3/5
I thought I had never heard of these guys, but there were several super famous absolute bangers on here. There was some variety which was good, but some of the songs were kind of snoozers.
Maxwell
2/5
The music isn’t bad, but also nothing at all stuck out to me positively. “Till the cops come knocking” made me think about p Diddy. So….
Michael Jackson
3/5
I like all of the hits on this album (Thriller, Beat It, Billie Jean, PYT), but the remaining songs were pretty blah. Not sure why they started the album with the 3 weakest songs. Maybe it’s because I already know those songs so well that the surprise factor is gone, but overall I wasn’t super impressed with this album. Still enjoyable though.
Dexys Midnight Runners
4/5
I like the upbeat nature of the music and the incorporation of brass instruments. The singing is weird - the words are largely unintelligible - but I feel it goes really well with the vibe of the music. This feels like a precursor to ska, which I liked back in the day.
Ella Fitzgerald
3/5
I like the style - brings me back to my musical theatre days. The songs are cute and witty, and her voice is great and captivating. It all started to sound similar by about the middle of the album though. 3 stars for Ella.
Janis Joplin
4/5
Upbeat and groovy. For some reason, I had the impression Joplin was completely “rock” style, but there is quite a lot of variety here, some blues, some country(ish), some rock.
I had no idea she wrote Mercedes-Benz.
Sly & The Family Stone
2/5
The instrumentals are clearly meant to be the highlight for Sly, and they are good in some parts, but I can’t say I’ll be returning to this album again.
Madonna
1/5
There were a couple of songs that I kinda liked (Don’t Tell Me, What It Feels Like for a Girl, Gone), but overall this album was pretty boring and unremarkable. If it wasn’t by Madonna, there’s no way it would be on the list.
I hate the adaptation of American Pie. So much.
Nick Drake
3/5
Nick Drake’s style is okay, but it’s a little bit gloomy and slow for me. That being said I liked some of the melodies, and the lyrics seem poetic and meaningful.
There is also a lot of “orchestral” music (violin etc.) to back up the guitar and his singing. I’m wondering whether he wrote and played all of this himself as well.
Jean-Michel Jarre
2/5
This album is just a single song of classic ambient sounds (i.e. space lasers). I get why some people might like it, but I don’t particularly.
Dr. Dre
4/5
Dr. Dre! I can’t say I’ve listened to Dre much before, but I do like the general vibe. Some of the lyrics feel outdated, but I think in high school I would have given this 5 stars. Still really enjoyable.
Bitches Ain’t Shit just reminds me of Ben Folds.
Prince
3/5
I like the vibe, but the songs are too long for me, as is the album in general.
Johnny Cash
3/5
After the first song, I was worried that the whole album would be “speak-singing”, but luckily the brilliant Hurt brought it back straightaway.
This is an interesting one, because nearly every song is a cover but they were very much converted to Cash’s style, and come from a broad range of previous artists. It isn’t the most exciting album, but still very nice to listen to.
Fela Kuti
2/5
It’s fine and all, but I’m just not one of those guys that really likes listening to 16 minute long drum solos.
The Rolling Stones
3/5
The music is enjoyable, but I can’t say anything stuck out as amazing. I didn’t realize The Rolling Stones had such a folksy tilt.
Daft Punk
2/5
Not really my style, but fine.
ZZ Top
3/5
La Grange is a classic. I love the style of these guys, but everything sort of just sounded the same. Still it’s something I won’t ever get tired of.
Tracy Chapman
5/5
During the recent resurgence of Fast Car, I thought it was overrated. On a fresh listen, that is a damn good song. I didn’t pay too much attention to its lyrics before, but she can really paint a picture with her words, in this song and others.
Love the style overall, but there’s a decent amount of variety as well. Loved Mountains O’ Things, She’s Got Her Ticket, and many others.
Metallica
4/5
Metallica being Metallica. I was working out while listening to this so it really hit the spot. A bit of variety sprinkled throughout the album, but in general the raw ROCK sound is phenomenal.
The only reason I’m not giving 5 is because it may be a bit too “full-on” for me. I like melodic singing, and this has very little of it.
ZZ Top
3/5
This felt very similar to “Tres Hombres” to me. One undeniable hit in “Sharp Dressed Man”, and the rest is good. Very easy to listen to and I like the style, but there wasn’t enough variety or “wow” factor for me to bump it up to a 4.
Tortoise
1/5
Not terrible, but pretty boring. A few times they did something that threw me off, which I appreciated. But most of the time I was just wondering when it would be over so I could listen to something I actually like.
My Bloody Valentine
1/5
Just very generic rock sounds with muffled mumbling to replace singing. I can’t say in good conscience that this is better than some other albums I’ve given 1 star to. Maybe it’s more interesting live.
Ice Cube
3/5
Nice, chill, accessible rap with political commentary folded throughout. It isn’t the most musically exciting album, but it was enjoyable and I am glad I listened to it.
Nirvana
4/5
I would give 5 stars to about half of the songs on this album. A few low-lights for me (though still not bad) were Breed, Stay Away, and On a Plain. I liked how Something in the Way cooled things off for a bit, but I wish it had just ended there. The worst song is Endless, Nameless. Unless you’re into that stuff. Which I’m not. I was debating a 5-star before that, but now I’m debating a 3. I’ll give a 4 because I really enjoyed everything else.
Ian Dury
3/5
The songs are fun, but his voice is… iffy. I appreciate how unapologetically British it is, and I work near Billericay (my colleague who lives there told me about Billericay Dickey a few weeks ago!). I would definitely listen to it again just to get a chuckle.
Sigur Rós
4/5
I like the vibes. It feels like the soundtrack to a a fantastic movie filled with nature, love, tragedy. There were a lot of moments that surprised me with their beauty. I don’t feel it deserves a 5-star, but I’m finding it hard to justify anything worse than a 4.
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
3/5
I love me some bluegrass, but I don’t know it well enough to understand why this is any better or worse than other bluegrass. Enjoyable throughout, but too long.
Duke Ellington
2/5
I’m not a big jazz guy, but this was pleasant. It isn’t something I would intentionally put on, but it’s fine to have in the background.
Billy Joel
5/5
Damn, I love Billy Joel. Upbeat and catchy. I actually hadn’t heard a lot of these songs, but every single one is good. There’s a common thread in the style, but there is still so much variety of tone and sound. Favorite which I knew before: Only the Good Die Young. Favorite which I didn’t know before: Scenes from an Italian Restaurant. Least Favorite: N/A
Sinead O'Connor
3/5
The first two songs were pretty meh, but it started growing on me after that. I didn’t quite finish the album, but was leaning toward 3 most of the way through.
Talking Heads
3/5
I like the style overall and appreciate the variety of tones throughout the album, but I can’t say anything really stuck out as amazing. My favorite song was Once In a Lifetime, which was catchy but not mind-blowing. Overall it’s an enjoyable listen though.
Os Mutantes
2/5
Very weird, but I like weird. There were some moments in songs that I thought were really shockingly cool or beautiful, and then a moment right afterward which was just wtf. Overall I enjoyed this album, but maybe a bit too much wtf to be higher than a 2.
Yes
4/5
Wow, this album is really enjoyable. I really liked all of the long songs because they went through different phases but were still very clearly a single unit, and also weren’t so long that they were overwhelming. I can feel a lot of musical creativity in the songwriting.
Aimee Mann
3/5
I like the general style. Upbeat soft rock with pretty good lyrics in a lot of places. Nothing stuck out that really blew me away, and I got a bit bored toward the end of the album.
Carole King
5/5
I recognize so many of these songs and have no idea from where - definitely some by other artists. So much beauty in this album, but also catchiness. Really good all the way through. I would definitely listen to this again, and did not realize how influential Carole King was.
Red Hot Chili Peppers
4/5
Obviously love the style of RHCP. Every song on this album is good (4 stars), but the only really great one in my opinion is Under the Bridge, partly because it was a stylistic departure from most of the other songs. Still a very solid album, but don’t feel like it quite reaches 5 stars for me.
Count Basie & His Orchestra
2/5
Fine to have on in the background, but not particularly exciting.
Van Halen
3/5
Every song is pretty good. I think Jump is the only song I knew before, and is the most memorable. I definitely enjoyed this album but for some reason it didn’t draw me in as much as I would like.
David Ackles
4/5
This album is really interesting. It reminds me of musical theatre. There’s a story to most of the songs, though they seem largely independent of each other. I felt like some of the stories written by David were very personal to himself, while others were random and imaginative, but still captivating. I really liked this and would listen again.
The Stooges
2/5
Generally okay, but I don’t know why “We Will Fall” was included in the album, and I don’t know why it had to be 10 minutes long.
Arcade Fire
2/5
Generally okay, but I don’t know why “We Will Fall” was included in the album, and I don’t know why it had to be 10 minutes long.
Jungle Brothers
4/5
This album was enjoyable throughout. Chill good beats, intelligent lyrics, and little bits of random musical creativity everywhere. My only issue is that the album is too long - I lost focus around the 40-minute mark.
The Last Shadow Puppets
3/5
It started out sounding mostly like the arctic monkeys, but with some other more orchestral elements. As the album progressed, the orchestral elements started taking more. It sort of works, but not well enough that I prefer it just to straight arctic monkeys. Interesting anyway.
The Doors
4/5
It’s all pleasant listening, with quite a bit of variety. It has now been a while since I listened to it, but I was impressed overall.
AC/DC
5/5
So good. So many classics on here. AC/DC definitely have their style, but every song has its own guitar hook and the rest of the song just flows from there. Not the most complicated of albums, but super enjoyable.
Supergrass
3/5
I like the style of these guys. Lots of catchiness. “Alright” is on a ton of commercials in the UK. Loved the piano intro to “Sitting Up Straight”. It did start to drag on in the second half, but a positive experience nonetheless.
The Doors
3/5
I like the general style, and I recognized a few of the songs from movies or TV series. But nothing came out of the album that would make me give it higher than a 3.
Pavement
1/5
I couldn't get into it. Some of the songs were fine, but there were far too many moments where I wondered "is this album over yet?". It wasn't even a long album.
Minutemen
2/5
I like the general idea of having a bunch of very short songs on an album. But a lot of the songs just blended together, and the album was still too long.
Fleetwood Mac
5/5
I did not realize how many amazing songs were on this single album. And even the songs that I had never heard before were really impressive and enjoyable. Might be the easiest 5-star on the list so far.
Massive Attack
4/5
I really liked the style. Massive Attack mixed together a lot of different styles, but somehow the album still felt like a cohesive unit. So creative.
Alice Cooper
4/5
Not knowing Alice Cooper very well, I was expecting everything to be ROCK and sounds somewhat similar to “School’s Out”. But no - there’s a huge amount of variety here, from musical theatre (“The Jets”) to jazz. A lot of creativity and talent here.
Turbonegro
3/5
I like the general style, but it got old after a while. Sort of between a 2 and 3 stars, but I’m feeling kind today.
The Smiths
3/5
Some good songs, some meh songs, but nothing great or terrible. Classing 3 star in my opinion. I also feel a bit conflicted now that the queen actually is dead.
Dusty Springfield
4/5
Pleasing to listen to. “Son of a Preacher Man” is obviously a banger. I originally thought the rest was a bit boring, but started really liking the album by the end, and ended up listening twice.
Beastie Boys
2/5
This album was interesting. It was mostly the Beastie Boys scream-rap style that I knew from before, but then also some random funky instrumental songs thrown in. I can’t say that either approach particularly tugged on my heartstrings.
The Zutons
5/5
More than half of the songs were shockingly good for a band that I’ve never heard of. Love the style - upbeat and catchy, sort of retro. But there is also a lot of variety and creativity. Honesty nothing bad to say about it. Really impressive.
Hawkwind
2/5
It was fine to have on in the background, but way too long and not interesting enough for me to finish the entire album.
Dagmar Krause
1/5
I appreciate the album, but can’t say I really enjoyed listening to it. Wouldn’t return except in some very unique circumstances.
The Rolling Stones
3/5
I didn’t realize The Rolling Stones were this old. Paint It Black is a classic. I got some multi-whiplash in the first few songs, but then sort of began to understand their style a bit more, which was quite varied, arguably dipping into country-western more than rock. Still, I enjoyed the album but nothing very stand-out.
James Brown
2/5
It’s so hard to judge old music because I really have no understanding of the context. This album was enjoyable, and I get why James Brown was famous 60 years ago, but I got a little bored at some points - there’s no reason “Lost Someone” needed to be 11 minutes long on the album. If it’s live, no problem, but it’s just too repetitive to listen to in isolation.
That being said, I wish there was generally more time on this album, as long as there was enough unique content to fill it.
Supergrass
3/5
[insert standard 90’s Brit rock review]
Talking Heads
2/5
It was alright. Sometimes I was thinking “this is weird - not a fan” and other times I was thinking “this is weird - awesome”, and never really landed anywhere definite. Not quite enough for a 3-star for me.
Brian Eno
3/5
I like the overall style and really appreciate the simple guitar solos. This is easy listening with a decent amount of variety. “Driving Me Backward” was painful, which sort of soured the rest of the album for me. Still it was interesting and mostly enjoyable.
Björk
3/5
I like the a capella / pop style in general. Some of the stuff was too weird for me but Triumph of a Heart is an absolute banger.
The Temptations
3/5
Good pleasant listening
Radiohead
3/5
I like Radiohead’s style. Most of the songs on this album were “good”, but nothing special. A couple stuck out to me: “I Will”, and “A Wolf at the Door”. Still not quite enough to break above 3 stars.
Rush
4/5
YYZ brought me back to the days of Guitar Hero. Other than that, I don’t think I knew any songs but they were all really good. My only reason to not giving 5 stars is that I wish the singing was more present and impressive. It wasn’t bad, but just sounded like another instrument at best.
Beck
4/5
I like Beck’s style overall and loved the first few songs, but the album hit a low around “Missing” and “Black Tambourine”. I also loved “Broken Drum” as a tribute to Elliot Smith and the album finished strong. I’m between a 3 and a 4, but I’m feeling generous.
Franz Ferdinand
5/5
Every song on this album is good. A lot of interesting mid-song changes in tempo and/or style. “Take Me Out” is an absolute banger. Definite 5-star for me.
Arcade Fire
3/5
It wasn’t bad, but a lot of it was just washed out sound in my opinion. Not enough variety for me to give above a 3.
Snoop Dogg
4/5
I really liked the style here. Every song was good, but nothing particularly blew my mind. I totally get why Snoop got big after this start.
Public Enemy
2/5
Not as fun/entertaining as Doggystyle. Not bad, but a little bit boring as it kept going on, and also just too long.
D'Angelo
3/5
All groovy songs - a good vibe throughout and D’Angelo definitely has a lot of talent. “Cruisin’” is such a good song - I didn’t even realize until after it was more than 6 minutes long. Overall I wasn’t blown away by the album, but it’s still good.
Blue Cheer
3/5
Pretty good. A classic rock sound, and the album was short and sweet. More context might have helped here because I had no idea this type of music existed in the 60s, but without the context I’ll stick with 3 stars.
Michael Kiwanuka
3/5
I really like the overall vibe of the album. I felt like I recognized several songs, but only in the way that I had heard clips in commercials, or that the sounds were generic enough to sound recognizable even if I hadn’t actually heard it before. A nice enjoyable album, but nothing that blew me away.
Funkadelic
3/5
The first song was really chill and good for just being 10 minutes of guitar. There was a lot of intentional weirdness in the singing and sounds, which made the album really unique. But sometimes the weirdness also took away from actually good sounds, so it was pretty much a wash.
Doves
3/5
A pretty chill and melancholy vibe, which really matched the mood as our bus drove through the rainy mountains of Sanqing. Still, nothing really stuck out to me.
The Divine Comedy
3/5
The music is alright. Some of the lyrics are sort of cute and funny, but others are a bit cringe. Lots of references to things that are UK-specific (NHS, GCSE, etc.). I liked “Middle-Class Heroes”, “Frog Princess” and a few other random ones. A lot of mixed feelings on this one, but it’s definitely an interesting album for me.
Sarah Vaughan
3/5
Pretty good. I like the jazzy voice and old-school style. Nothing really stuck out though.
Jane's Addiction
2/5
The general style is fine, but I wasn’t a huge fan of the singing and I felt a little bored part way through the album. Not so great for me.
Nas
4/5
It was good. I like Nas’s flow, the beats are pretty easy to grasp and the whole album is “smooth”. Nothing really bad to say about it, but it didn’t blow me out of the water.
Ryan Adams
4/5
What started as a standard country feel (which I love) molded into rock and slow ballads. I came into this not expecting much, but it really delivered. The only song I think I’ve heard before is “Gonna Make You Love Me”, which is a banger. My only point off of a 5 is because of length. Some songs could have been a lot shorter, and the album as a whole was also just too long.
Pink Floyd
5/5
My only complaints about Dark Side of the Moon were that there wasn’t enough singing and catchiness. The Wall delivered on both fronts, while still maintaining some of the “flowiness”.
“We Don’t Need No Education” - I didn’t realize this motif was from The Wall, but on this listen it sent me into a lot of deep thoughts about how people have been educated throughout history, and how technology (the internet and social media) have drastically changed this in recent years. Now, people tend to get most of their information from completely unregulated online sources. Education is no longer a part of a single wall, or government “thought control”, but it’s probably worse.
Anyway, great album. 5 stars.
Bob Dylan
2/5
I’ve always liked Bob Dylan’s general style, but this one was a bit boring to me. I couldn’t get into it.
Kendrick Lamar
5/5
I haven’t listened too much to Kendrick and have even called him overrated before. I now feel ignorant and get the hype. Every single song is good, and a few are absolute bangers (backseat freestyle, money trees, swimming pools), and there aren’t really any “cringe” moments that pop up in a lot of older rap.
The Beach Boys
3/5
The music is pleasant, but nothing too outstanding. I was surprised by the “social awareness” of the lyrics, but it felt a bit forced.
The Kinks
2/5
It was alright, but nothing really stood out to me. Can’t remember it so well.
The White Stripes
2/5
I liked some of the White Stripes stuff growing up, but this album was pretty disappointing to me. I like the first song and the last song, but the rest was “meh” at best.
Raekwon
4/5
Really good, enjoyable album. I wasn’t listening very intently during the commute, but this album had the ability to continually pull me away from my other thoughts just to think “Damn, that’s awesome”.
Mj Cole
1/5
Really just not my style at all, and a bit annoying. Every once in a while I had to remind myself why I was listening to this music, and ended up switching to a podcast before finishing.
Curtis Mayfield
4/5
Such good vibes. I really liked it. Love the style, love the singing. But a bit glad that it was pretty short because I could see myself getting bored with it if I carried on for too long.
Keith Jarrett
3/5
This was pleasant listening, but I can’t understand why it is particularly interesting. For some reason, it did lead me to put on the Final Fantasy X soundtrack after, which is amazing.
R.E.M.
4/5
I quite like REM’s style and sound, so most songs on the album were 3 stars for me. I had no idea that “Everybody Hurts” was by REM, and it really stuck out as a departure from their usual sound, highlighting that the singer is more versatile than I thought. That, together with “Man on the Moon” as one of the catchiest fucking songs on the planet, bump the album up to 4 stars for me.
Big Black
1/5
This one was bad. Not excruciating, but I didn’t like anything about it, or really even find it interesting. Bad singing, bad style, bad everything.
Beatles
5/5
I had never heard most of the songs on this album before, but I was really impressed. There are quite a few different styles in here. Enough weirdness to keep my attention, but not so much that it turned me off. Nothing bad to say, other than that “Because” was a bit boring.
Fela Kuti
2/5
This was alright, but a bit boring and a bit too short for me to properly get into its groove.
Green Day
3/5
I like this style and wish there was more pop punk on the list. But a lot of the songs just sounded the same - I’d like a bit more variety. The songs from this album that became hits make sense (basically just Basket Case and When I Come Around). The others were a bit blah. Still enjoyable though.
LCD Soundsystem
3/5
This isn’t typically my style of music, but for some reason I really got into the vibe for a while. I’m surprised this is classified as “rock” (feels more like modern funk). Some of the songs did drag on for far too long and by the end of the album I found my mind drifting away again, but it was very nice while it lasted.
KISS
3/5
Good overall , but now thinking back I can’t remember anything that particularly stuck out.
Traffic
2/5
I don’t have anything specifically bad to say about this album other than most of the songs were long and a bit boring. I just didn’t really get it, but not terrible.
5/5
I thought I didn’t really know Muse, but I recognised all of the first 3 songs, which are absolute bangers. I love the singer’s voice, the way he slides into and out of notes while maintaining a pure sound. Very impressive and beautiful. And I really like the overall style. No complaints here.
Tears For Fears
2/5
Pretty boring. The songs were too long, with too much time for uninteresting instrumentals. Even the two famous songs from the album (Shout and Everybody wants to Rule the World) don’t have quite enough spice for me.
David Bowie
3/5
I went in with very low expectations based on some previous Bowie albums, but this one was actually pleasant. Still a little weird at some points though, and nothing blew me away as amazing.
Little Simz
4/5
I really like the style. Chill vibe/beats with fast rap. I like London rap in general, though I had never heard of Little Simz before. I’m between a 3 and 4, but feeling generous.
Black Sabbath
5/5
A lot of classics on this album. The guitar is clearly the shining star, but Ozzy’s singing was perfect in its role. The timing of getting this album the day after Ozzy’s death, along with the quality of the album, makes it difficult to give anything but a 5.
Joni Mitchell
3/5
A bit boring for most of the album, but pretty good. The last 3 songs got my attention more than anything else, to the point that I was disappointed that the album ended when it did. I wish those songs had been earlier in the album.
Stereolab
3/5
I liked the style. It wasn’t what I expected at all, but was a chill vibe while still maintaining a good amount of energy. I would listen again, but not with much urgency.
Mekons
1/5
Not a huge fan of this one. Bad singing, weird backing tracks. Just weird.
Badly Drawn Boy
2/5
Sometimes, the music was pretty good. But also sometimes, the singing was horrendous. Too long and not interesting or good enough.
Tom Tom Club
2/5
They have some creative samples and an interesting style, but it really just isn’t for me. I got bored after a few songs.
Gang Starr
3/5
I think every song in here was good, but nothing jumped out as great. An enjoyable album overall.
Pere Ubu
1/5
Some of the background music was alright, but the singing was unintelligible and there was too much weird randomness for me to enjoy it.
The Fall
2/5
Too weird, but some cool beats/riffs
Queens of the Stone Age
4/5
This album is sort of in my wheelhouse in terms of style. Every song was good and there was enough variety to keep me interested. I’m between a 3 and 4 here, but I think I’ll give it a 4 just because it was a solid piece of work and I could definitely see myself listening to it again.
David Crosby
3/5
The album was pretty good - some parts were beautiful, others were just boring. I think that evens out to an unremarkable 3.
I really liked this one. Rod Stewart has a lot of personality in his voice, and it’s a great classic rock sound from the rest of the band.
Suzanne Vega
2/5
I hate the speak singing in the first and last songs. Other than that, the album sort of grew on me as I continued listening to it. It still isn’t anything very special though, and the speak singing drops it a star for me.
Ryan Adams
4/5
I liked this one a lot more than I thought I would. Sweet Carolina made me miss home, and Come Pick Me Up was beautiful. Some variety, but slightly cheesy at some points. Still I would listen to it again.
Lambchop
2/5
It was alright, but honestly a bit boring. I liked some songs or parts of songs, but I don’t know why this is an album I must listen to.
Grateful Dead
5/5
I’ve never listened to The Grateful Dead before, but I really like their style. Every song was good - upbeat, with a good tune and solid singing.
Pentangle
3/5
I really like the folk-rock style. I felt this album was creative and I enjoyed listening to it, but there wasn’t anything in it that blew me away.
The Blue Nile
2/5
I sort of like the style, but it is a bit too slow and gloomy for me. If I listened to any individual song I would think it was good, but a full album was a bit too much for me.
Country Joe & The Fish
4/5
I really loved the vibe of this album. Based on the name I thought it would be some hillbilly shit (which I also like), but it was more smooth and groovy. Definitely a nice one.
The Allman Brothers Band
3/5
I like the general sound and vibe, but I’m really not a huge fan of long improvisational songs. If I can see it, it’s a lot more impressive. But just listening isn’t particularly interesting.
The Undertones
4/5
I thoroughly enjoyed this album. I can’t say that every song was good, but the overall style was great and most of the songs had cool musical ideas in them that kept the album interesting.
Sheryl Crow
2/5
It was alright. I liked some songs, didn’t like others. “All I Wanna Do” obviously has a banging chorus, but the song as a whole is pretty clunky. A little bit disappointed with this one.
Blur
2/5
I like Song 2 and a couple others, but for the most part this album was unremarkable.
Joni Mitchell
3/5
I liked what I heard, but it didn’t hold my attention and I ended up only making it about halfway through.
Cypress Hill
4/5
I really like the general style and especially the Latin rap that appeared in the last few songs.
The Triffids
3/5
I like the style for the most part - it almost reminded me of the Avett Brothers, but not the best the Avett Brothers songs. Nothing special, but still enjoyable.
Terence Trent D'Arby
5/5
I had never heard of Terence before, but damn his voice is amazing. I kept subconsciously comparing him to Michael Jackson while listening, which says a lot in itself. I know nothing about the rest of TTD’s career, but the album was great.