824
Albums Rated
3.05
Average Rating
76%
Complete
265 albums remaining
Submitted Album
Crack the Skye
Mastodon
Rating Distribution
Rating Timeline
Taste Profile
1970
Favorite Decade
Metal
Favorite Genre
other
Top Origin
Balanced
Rater Style ?
157
5-Star Albums
121
1-Star Albums
Breakdown
By Genre
Top Styles
By Decade
By Origin
Albums
You Love More Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Rock Bottom
Robert Wyatt
|
5 | 2.39 | +2.61 |
|
Shleep
Robert Wyatt
|
5 | 2.51 | +2.49 |
|
Pictures At An Exhibition
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
|
5 | 2.64 | +2.36 |
|
Shalimar
Rahul Dev Burman
|
5 | 2.65 | +2.35 |
|
Medúlla
Björk
|
5 | 2.73 | +2.27 |
|
Arise
Sepultura
|
5 | 2.74 | +2.26 |
|
Scream, Dracula, Scream
Rocket From The Crypt
|
5 | 2.76 | +2.24 |
|
Roots
Sepultura
|
5 | 2.78 | +2.22 |
|
Vulnicura
Björk
|
5 | 2.79 | +2.21 |
|
Among The Living
Anthrax
|
5 | 2.86 | +2.14 |
You Love Less Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bad
Michael Jackson
|
1 | 3.81 | -2.81 |
|
Off The Wall
Michael Jackson
|
1 | 3.8 | -2.8 |
|
Graceland
Paul Simon
|
1 | 3.73 | -2.73 |
|
Californication
Red Hot Chili Peppers
|
1 | 3.69 | -2.69 |
|
Getz/Gilberto
Stan Getz
|
1 | 3.66 | -2.66 |
|
good kid, m.A.A.d city
Kendrick Lamar
|
1 | 3.64 | -2.64 |
|
To Pimp A Butterfly
Kendrick Lamar
|
1 | 3.63 | -2.63 |
|
Maggot Brain
Funkadelic
|
1 | 3.6 | -2.6 |
|
Songs For Swingin' Lovers!
Frank Sinatra
|
1 | 3.52 | -2.52 |
|
Bryter Layter
Nick Drake
|
1 | 3.52 | -2.52 |
Artists
Favorites
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Beatles | 6 | 5 |
| Radiohead | 5 | 5 |
| Neil Young | 4 | 5 |
| Pink Floyd | 4 | 4.75 |
| Pixies | 3 | 5 |
| Björk | 3 | 5 |
| The Who | 3 | 5 |
| Creedence Clearwater Revival | 3 | 5 |
| Kraftwerk | 3 | 5 |
| Beastie Boys | 3 | 5 |
| Nirvana | 3 | 5 |
| Tom Waits | 3 | 5 |
| Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds | 3 | 5 |
| Led Zeppelin | 3 | 5 |
| Queen | 3 | 5 |
| Yes | 3 | 5 |
| Black Sabbath | 3 | 5 |
| PJ Harvey | 4 | 4.5 |
| Deep Purple | 3 | 4.67 |
| Genesis | 2 | 5 |
| Robert Wyatt | 2 | 5 |
| Jimi Hendrix | 2 | 5 |
| Oasis | 2 | 5 |
| Supergrass | 2 | 5 |
| The Clash | 2 | 5 |
| The Doors | 2 | 5 |
| King Crimson | 2 | 5 |
| Rush | 2 | 5 |
| Air | 2 | 5 |
| The Prodigy | 2 | 5 |
| Sepultura | 2 | 5 |
| Kate Bush | 2 | 5 |
| R.E.M. | 3 | 4.33 |
| Peter Gabriel | 3 | 4.33 |
| Prince | 3 | 4.33 |
Least Favorites
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Kanye West | 3 | 1 |
| Tim Buckley | 3 | 1 |
| Elvis Presley | 3 | 1.33 |
| Morrissey | 3 | 1.33 |
| Red Hot Chili Peppers | 2 | 1 |
| Cocteau Twins | 2 | 1 |
| Rufus Wainwright | 2 | 1 |
| Frank Sinatra | 2 | 1 |
| Kendrick Lamar | 2 | 1 |
| Ryan Adams | 2 | 1 |
| Kings of Leon | 2 | 1 |
| Michael Jackson | 3 | 1.67 |
| Stan Getz | 2 | 1.5 |
| Nick Drake | 2 | 1.5 |
| The Verve | 2 | 1.5 |
| Dexys Midnight Runners | 2 | 1.5 |
| Everything But The Girl | 2 | 1.5 |
| Paul Simon | 2 | 1.5 |
| Happy Mondays | 2 | 1.5 |
| Barry Adamson | 2 | 1.5 |
| Adele | 2 | 1.5 |
| The Byrds | 5 | 2.2 |
| The Fall | 3 | 2 |
| Steely Dan | 3 | 2 |
| The Smiths | 3 | 2 |
| Arcade Fire | 3 | 2 |
| Joni Mitchell | 3 | 2 |
| Van Morrison | 3 | 2 |
Controversial
| Artist | Ratings |
|---|---|
| Metallica | 2, 5 |
| Elliott Smith | 4, 1 |
| Isaac Hayes | 5, 2 |
| Beck | 5, 4, 2 |
| Marvin Gaye | 5, 2, 3 |
5-Star Albums (157)
View Album Wall
Popular Reviews
Cocteau Twins · 1 likes
1/5
Not just boring music, but almost painful because of the singer's voice and pronounciation. Not my cup of tea, obviously, but this time I have a really hard time getting how anyone else could stand this let alone consider it a classic.
The Mothers Of Invention · 1 likes
4/5
Fascinating album, especially considering it's from 1966. This is funny, original, intelligent and pretty ahead of its time - but also pretty demanding at times.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs · 1 likes
3/5
Fun little pop album, that doesn't excite me very much
Christine and the Queens · 1 likes
1/5
Why make generic 80s synthpop without any interesting new twist in the modern age? Why listen to it? Why include it in a list of essential albums? So many questions...
1-Star Albums (121)
All Ratings
Sly & The Family Stone
4/5
Such a powerful, fun and obviously very influential record! I could do without "Sex machine", which hasn't aged that well, but other than that it is a tight and beautiful record with surprisingly many fragments you know already if you like Hip Hop and Electronic records.
Pixies
5/5
This is a hit record despite being noisy and strange, because at the same time it has great melodies and power. It almost invented 90s Grunge and Alternative Rock, neither Nirvana nor Radiohead would have sounded like they did without this. But most importantly it is just an awesome listen.
Willie Nelson
3/5
Nice and pretty easy listening versions of some classics. Good for relaxing or as a smooth background for some light conversation. This is hardly real country music, I believe, but Willie's voice is familiar and comfortable. I find it a bit baffling, that this is one of his most successful records and considered a classic.
Lynyrd Skynyrd
5/5
What a great record, all killer, no filler! It invented Southern Rock the way we know it today, but is definitely one of the best Rock albums ever, Southern or not. Free Bird, Simple Man and Tuesdays Gone alone are classics, but the rest is complete up to par.
The Black Keys
5/5
Stan Getz
2/5
American Music Club
2/5
1/5
The Go-Go's
2/5
Jerry Lee Lewis
4/5
Janis Joplin
5/5
Plain and simple: One of the great classics of Rock History - and you can hear why. Everyone should now "Me and Bobby McGee" and "Mercedes Benz", but the rest is just as great. Sweaty, heartfelt blues rock with one of the best and most legendary singers ever.
N.W.A.
2/5
Björk
5/5
Dr. John
4/5
Interesting stuff, doesn't really fit any genre I knew until then. Strange at first, but it grows with every Listen.
Jane Weaver
2/5
Red Hot Chili Peppers
1/5
Some of the music is really good, but lyrics from a sexist, horny preteen inside a grownups body are so damn cringy and on top of that is Kiedis just a really mediocre singer, so this has definitely not aged well.
Eels
5/5
Calexico
2/5
Björk
5/5
The Fall
2/5
Cocteau Twins
1/5
Not just boring music, but almost painful because of the singer's voice and pronounciation. Not my cup of tea, obviously, but this time I have a really hard time getting how anyone else could stand this let alone consider it a classic.
Sabu
1/5
The Who
5/5
Masterpiece and classic. Prototype rock opera, amazing musicianship, great songs, gripping story. What more could you want?
Napalm Death
2/5
Technically impressive, but just too extreme to be enjoyable
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
4/5
Metallica
2/5
First of all, I love Metallica ever since I was a teenager. This was actually the second Metallica release I bought on the first day, after I had discovered to them through "ReLoad" (of all their records, I know) and quickly inhaled the back catalog. I did not like it then and I still cannot bear it now. I do appreciate the experiment and of course there are some really beautiful moments, "Ecstasy of Gold" being played live is one of them. But most of the time it is just too much for me. There is not much "room" left in Metallica's sound, but the orchestra just keeps pushing its way into the songs partly smothering the band. The worst thing for me is that it kills pretty much all of the quieter parts by filling them in instead of letting the songs breathe. This takes away most of the dynamic especially songs like "Master of Puppets" and "Thing that should not be" are supposed to have. I would have liked to see this live, but under my headphones I will always prefer just about any other Metallica live record.
Ministry
2/5
Sugar
1/5
Guided By Voices
2/5
I get that the bad recording quality and unfinished songs are the artistic concept and they are probably done well in that regard. It just doesn't do much for me.
Nas
5/5
Genesis
5/5
Aphex Twin
2/5
Creedence Clearwater Revival
5/5
Dinosaur Jr.
2/5
Sly & The Family Stone
4/5
Neil Young
5/5
The Beach Boys
5/5
KISS
2/5
1/5
Steely Dan
2/5
This sounds all perfect and very tasteful, the musicians are obviously the cream of the crop. Even the songs themselves seem very well-written. And yet the only way this makes me feel is bored and underwhelmed. There is just no passion, no human element and (to me) most important: No real dynamics in terms of speed, loudness and yes, emotion. I never thought that 40 minutes could feel this long...
I couldn't help but think of Steven Wilson, who definitely learned from Fagen and Becker's production perfection, but luckily he also learned from Pink Floyd and others how wo write interesting songs and those are mostly missing here.
Jurassic 5
5/5
Lloyd Cole And The Commotions
2/5
The Last Shadow Puppets
4/5
The Smiths
2/5
Manic Street Preachers
3/5
The Velvet Underground
5/5
Pink Floyd
5/5
Super Furry Animals
4/5
Beach House
2/5
Nice and completely boring
Bob Marley & The Wailers
2/5
R.E.M.
4/5
Pretenders
4/5
Boston
4/5
Bob Dylan
4/5
Gorillaz
3/5
Japan
1/5
Jane's Addiction
4/5
Iron Maiden
5/5
Just epic, one of the best debuts ever. This has everything Maiden's career has been built one maybe aside from Dickinson's air raid siren voice. DiAnno is completely different, but maybe even better. This mixture of a rough, punky sound and proggy epics is unlike anything else and the fact that many of the songs are bona fide classics speaks for itself.
Michael Jackson
3/5
Björk
5/5
Nine Inch Nails
3/5
Kraftwerk
5/5
Ramones
4/5
Simple, loud and fun.
Weather Report
4/5
David Bowie
5/5
Gillian Welch
2/5
I find it hard to see how this record or even artist should be exceptional in any way. She sounds pleasant enough, but also exactly like a thousand other singers in this genre. Lyrics are okay and seem honest, but it also doesn't seem like she has anything important to say. Guitar work sounds good, but doesn't stand out in any way. This is okay background music, but how anyone could sit down and enjoy this as a favorite record beats me.
Steely Dan
2/5
Beastie Boys
5/5
Common
3/5
Common sure is a really good rapper. But his preachy religious lyrics and Kanyes pompous production with lots of R&B just aren't for me.
Hot Chip
2/5
Destiny's Child
1/5
DJ Shadow
4/5
Amy Winehouse
5/5
Elvis Presley
2/5
Neil Young
5/5
Peak Neil Young, plain and simple
Def Leppard
2/5
What an incredible amount of hits you know from the radio, parties, disco or whatever. The sound is almost too big and perfect. Lyrics are mostly stupid and cheesy, but here nobody cares. The record is way too long and the songs are hard to keep apart, so it all blurs into an overproduced mess of sweet pop trying to sound like hard rock. One or two songs are really fun, but the album as a whole is just too much to be enjoyable.
The Byrds
3/5
Sinead O'Connor
5/5
Pink Floyd
5/5
The White Stripes
5/5
Ash
4/5
Eagles
3/5
Absolute classic and I agree that this should be on here. Doesn't mean it's a great record in my book. Aside from the title track and maybe "Life in the fast lane" there is a lot of boring filler tracks and while the musicianship is impressive it is definitely missing some sort of edge to make it interesting instead of just smooth and bland.
Hugh Masekela
4/5
4/5
The Stooges
4/5
The Allman Brothers Band
2/5
Joe Ely
2/5
Generic and kind of awkward
David Holmes
2/5
Van Halen
5/5
Giant Sand
2/5
Robert Wyatt
5/5
Albums like this is what I come here for. Never heard of the artist or the album and at first I found it simply strange, but intriguing. And with every run this keeps getting better and more clear and beautiful. I love music like this, because it can grow on me and I will definitely revisit this.
Frank Ocean
2/5
Jimi Hendrix
5/5
Traffic
4/5
Mott The Hoople
3/5
Van Halen
4/5
Pet Shop Boys
3/5
Stephen Stills
2/5
Oasis
5/5
John Coltrane
2/5
Sam Cooke
2/5
Richard Hawley
2/5
Beatles
5/5
Public Enemy
5/5
TV On The Radio
3/5
The Smiths
2/5
CHIC
2/5
Ray Price
2/5
Elton John
4/5
Radiohead
5/5
Not just a classic, but a true masterpiece. I've known and loved this record ever since I was fascinated with the "Paranoid Android" music video as a teenager when it came out. I keep coming back over the years and with pretty much every run I feel like I am discovering more aspects, sinking in deeper and understanding it more. Great art.
Michael Jackson
1/5
Bert Jansch
3/5
Elvis Presley
1/5
Elvis Costello
4/5
Bebel Gilberto
2/5
Norah Jones
3/5
Fleet Foxes
3/5
Suzanne Vega
3/5
Fugees
4/5
Massive Attack
5/5
Paul McCartney and Wings
5/5
Anthrax
5/5
The Rolling Stones
4/5
Thin Lizzy
4/5
The 13th Floor Elevators
3/5
Bob Dylan
5/5
5/5
Nirvana
5/5
Gang Of Four
5/5
Creedence Clearwater Revival
5/5
Muddy Waters
2/5
Bee Gees
2/5
Pompous and boring
Tom Waits
5/5
Beautifully weird masterpiece
The Stone Roses
4/5
Supertramp
3/5
Burning Spear
1/5
I'm usually not a Reggae person, but this one annoyed me even more than Bob Marley.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
5/5
One of my favorite Nick Cave albums, and I love all of them.
Dr. Dre
1/5
The Modern Lovers
3/5
My Bloody Valentine
2/5
Supergrass
5/5
A Tribe Called Quest
5/5
Haircut 100
2/5
The Clash
5/5
Motörhead
2/5
This could be a real fun speed rock album, and the title track is bona fide classic. Sadly, the utterly disgusting "Jailbait" ruins it. Different times, sure, but I'm really glad those are over...
The Magnetic Fields
1/5
Simply Red
2/5
Elton John
4/5
Daft Punk
4/5
Bee Gees
2/5
Jethro Tull
5/5
LCD Soundsystem
2/5
Slint
2/5
Charles Mingus
1/5
The Doors
5/5
Iron Butterfly
4/5
The Who
5/5
Depeche Mode
4/5
Kanye West
1/5
FKA twigs
2/5
Garbage
3/5
Led Zeppelin
5/5
This is the first Led Zeppelin album with some filler and quite a few tracks that could have been better by keeping them shorter, but it's still a great record that sounds awesome and inspiring even today.
Moby
4/5
Rufus Wainwright
1/5
Billy Joel
5/5
Genesis
5/5
Sonic Youth
4/5
The Gun Club
4/5
Frank Sinatra
1/5
Radiohead
5/5
Radiohead manages again and again to not only be experimental and progressive, but to produce real beauty that reaches the listener on a deeply emotional level. This is one of their best efforts.
Love
4/5
Booker T. & The MG's
3/5
The Undertones
4/5
Red Snapper
3/5
Germs
2/5
Queen
5/5
An early masterpiece. Queen have not completely evolved yet, but with the BoRap prototype "March of the Black Queen", the glorious "White Queen" and the kind of crazy "Fairy Feller's Master Stroke", which is the soundtrack to a painting, it's all there and with "Seven Seas of Rhye" there's even a first little hit single. One of my favorite records since my childhood!
Peter Gabriel
4/5
Jefferson Airplane
4/5
Arcade Fire
2/5
Tangerine Dream
1/5
Pixies
5/5
The Triffids
2/5
Cyndi Lauper
4/5
Echo And The Bunnymen
2/5
Randy Newman
2/5
Sigur Rós
5/5
Hüsker Dü
2/5
Soft Cell
2/5
OutKast
2/5
Linkin Park
5/5
One of the classics of the "Nu metal" era. This has a lot of pop appeal which probably is most obvious in the classics "Crawling" and "In the end", but there's a whole lot more and a really consistent album here, that has aged really well. Especially the lyrics seem pretty ahead of their time, back then it was not very cool and normal to talk about your psyche like this. But I guess that is one of the reasons why this record is still so relevant and revered even today. RIP Chester!
Motörhead
3/5
The Smiths
2/5
Beatles
5/5
M.I.A.
1/5
Mariah Carey
1/5
Echo And The Bunnymen
4/5
Jeff Buckley
5/5
Todd Rundgren
3/5
Missy Elliott
3/5
Deep Purple
5/5
The Police
5/5
Fela Kuti
5/5
Drive-By Truckers
2/5
Supergrass
5/5
Marilyn Manson
1/5
Donovan
4/5
David Bowie
3/5
The title track is fantastic, of course. The rest of the Bowie tracks is okay, but doesn't really stand out very much. Most of side B is a kind of interesting Eno/Fripp ambient project, not at all what you would expect from a Bowie record. Really strange decision to include this here, reminds me of George Martin's B side to the Beatles' "Yellow Submarine", that I don't ever listen to.
Underworld
3/5
The B-52's
4/5
Blur
4/5
Michael Jackson
1/5
The Kinks
4/5
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
3/5
The Black Crowes
4/5
Emmylou Harris
2/5
Tom Waits
5/5
Dirty Projectors
4/5
MGMT
2/5
Echo And The Bunnymen
2/5
Cream
4/5
"Tales of brave Ulysses" is genius and there are some other classics here, but also some filler.
The Smashing Pumpkins
4/5
So many awesome classics here, such creativity and diversity. For me it's all a bit much, though, and two hours of this tend to get long. Could have been a perfect single album, this way it is still great.
Sarah Vaughan
2/5
Jazmine Sullivan
2/5
Fishbone
4/5
The Zombies
5/5
Pulp
3/5
Spiritualized
2/5
Bruce Springsteen
3/5
Tina Turner
2/5
Goldie
2/5
Justice
3/5
The Flaming Lips
2/5
Shuggie Otis
3/5
Neneh Cherry
3/5
Buddy Holly & The Crickets
4/5
The Mars Volta
5/5
Gotan Project
2/5
King Crimson
5/5
King Crimson
5/5
The Smashing Pumpkins
4/5
Siouxsie And The Banshees
2/5
Nirvana
5/5
The Velvet Underground
3/5
Parliament
4/5
David Gray
2/5
The Rolling Stones
3/5
Nightmares On Wax
2/5
Bonnie Raitt
1/5
Violent Femmes
4/5
Goldfrapp
2/5
Arcade Fire
2/5
The Fall
2/5
Neil Young
5/5
Mylo
1/5
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
5/5
Rush
5/5
Pink Floyd
5/5
Radiohead
5/5
Britney Spears
1/5
Joy Division
3/5
The Disposable Heroes Of Hiphoprisy
2/5
Randy Newman
2/5
Siouxsie And The Banshees
3/5
The Cult
3/5
Nick Drake
2/5
Janet Jackson
2/5
Talking Heads
4/5
The Flaming Lips
3/5
Elvis Presley
1/5
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
4/5
The Who
5/5
One of the first concept albums and it's so much fun, it's creative and it simply rocks.
The Stranglers
3/5
Ice Cube
1/5
Leonard Cohen
5/5
Gene Clark
3/5
Thelonious Monk
4/5
Alice In Chains
5/5
A perfect album with no bad songs and one of the great classics of the grunge era
The Cars
4/5
Surprisingly good! I only knew "Drive", but this is different and much more up my alley. Will definitely revisit this!
Sade
2/5
Bruce Springsteen
3/5
The Verve
2/5
Overlong, overblown and for the most part underwhelming
The Style Council
1/5
Alexander 'Skip' Spence
1/5
James Brown
2/5
Bob Dylan
3/5
Not one of his best records and certainly not one that can't be missed. Some good stuff here, but it's too long and sometimes boring to be truly great.
Sheryl Crow
2/5
Black Flag
4/5
Funkadelic
1/5
Roxy Music
1/5
The Cardigans
3/5
The Killers
2/5
Grizzly Bear
2/5
Queen
5/5
Perfect album.
Fats Domino
3/5
Herbie Hancock
5/5
Adam & The Ants
1/5
The Verve
1/5
R.E.M.
5/5
Joni Mitchell
2/5
Christina Aguilera
3/5
Talking Heads
4/5
Elliott Smith
4/5
George Michael
3/5
k.d. lang
3/5
Fiona Apple
4/5
Snoop Dogg
1/5
Marianne Faithfull
4/5
Wu-Tang Clan
4/5
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
4/5
Promising debut, but not as great as "Damn the torpedoes" or "Wildflowers"
Blondie
4/5
Butthole Surfers
1/5
David Bowie
4/5
Really good album, but not up there with his classics, so not really one for this list.
Badly Drawn Boy
2/5
Can
4/5
Venom
4/5
Beck
5/5
Julian Cope
1/5
Scott Walker
4/5
Pearl Jam
2/5
Thundercat
1/5
Sex Pistols
4/5
Elliott Smith
1/5
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
5/5
Megadeth
4/5
Mudhoney
3/5
Beatles
5/5
U2
4/5
Madness
4/5
Elbow
4/5
Stevie Wonder
3/5
Some good songs, even some great. But also some really mediocre and many that are just too long without keeping it interesting lyrically or musically. Like so many double albums this would have benefited from someone who isn't afraid to tell the artist to focus and make an awesome single album instead of keeping everything.
Method Man
2/5
Brian Eno
4/5
Kraftwerk
5/5
Joni Mitchell
2/5
Various Artists
1/5
Marty Robbins
2/5
Arcade Fire
2/5
Holger Czukay
4/5
Aerosmith
3/5
Deep Purple
5/5
Cornershop
2/5
The Louvin Brothers
1/5
Air
5/5
The Isley Brothers
4/5
Air
5/5
Yes
5/5
David Bowie
4/5
The Incredible String Band
1/5
Tortoise
2/5
The United States Of America
4/5
Lou Reed
5/5
U2
4/5
The Associates
1/5
5/5
a-ha
3/5
The Velvet Underground
3/5
Eminem
3/5
Yes
5/5
Arctic Monkeys
5/5
Lightning Bolt
1/5
Ella Fitzgerald
1/5
The Cramps
2/5
New Order
3/5
Big Black
2/5
AC/DC
5/5
4/5
The KLF
3/5
Kendrick Lamar
1/5
Paul McCartney
5/5
Simple Minds
3/5
Dolly Parton
1/5
4/5
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
4/5
The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
2/5
Talking Heads
4/5
Brian Eno
4/5
Guns N' Roses
3/5
Some really great classics here, but also a lot of filler. Many songs and the whole album could have been shorter and tighter to make it less tedious and more enjoyable. That's always been a problem with GNR for me.
Slipknot
2/5
Rush
5/5
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
3/5
The La's
1/5
A one hit wonder with a completely generic album? Not an essential listen in any way.
Earth, Wind & Fire
1/5
Public Enemy
4/5
Bob Marley & The Wailers
2/5
Prince
5/5
Johnny Cash
5/5
The Monks
4/5
John Martyn
2/5
David Bowie
4/5
Beth Orton
3/5
Great voice, nice songs. But definitely not essential.
Django Django
4/5
Dexys Midnight Runners
1/5
Santana
3/5
Serge Gainsbourg
1/5
Mike Ladd
1/5
Dire Straits
3/5
James Taylor
2/5
The Stooges
4/5
Robert Wyatt
5/5
Beatles
5/5
The Adverts
4/5
Teenage Fanclub
4/5
Penguin Cafe Orchestra
3/5
Miles Davis
2/5
The Byrds
3/5
Pulp
4/5
Morrissey
1/5
The Boo Radleys
3/5
Ray Charles
1/5
SAULT
3/5
Some great stuff, but overall to repetitive and sometimes really boring.
The Saints
4/5
PJ Harvey
5/5
Astrud Gilberto
1/5
The Prodigy
5/5
Belle & Sebastian
2/5
N.E.R.D
1/5
The music seems interesting for a few minutes, but then gets boring and repetitive pretty soon. Lyrics are just awful.
Caetano Veloso
4/5
5/5
John Prine
2/5
Silver Jews
2/5
Deerhunter
3/5
Brian Eno
3/5
Portishead
5/5
Mudhoney
4/5
The Pretty Things
5/5
Never heard of this, but it's right up my alley. Very creative, sometimes even kind of progressive and one of those records that keeps getting better with every run. Love it!
The Auteurs
2/5
De La Soul
4/5
The Byrds
2/5
Some good stuff here, but it all sounds the same and gets pretty boring. Also, WAY too many Byrds albums on this list!
John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers
2/5
The Bees
2/5
Eminem
3/5
Hawkwind
2/5
Ms. Dynamite
2/5
The National
3/5
Duran Duran
2/5
Sparks
5/5
Beatles
5/5
Sufjan Stevens
2/5
Morrissey
2/5
Rahul Dev Burman
5/5
David Bowie
3/5
A handful of good songs (one great) and some apparently unfinished ideas padded with some filler ambience do not make a great album in my book.
Jah Wobble's Invaders Of The Heart
3/5
Slade
3/5
My Bloody Valentine
2/5
Missy Elliott
3/5
Lambchop
2/5
Talvin Singh
1/5
The Doors
5/5
Frank Black
5/5
Bill Evans Trio
1/5
Iggy Pop
3/5
The Dandy Warhols
2/5
Stan Getz
1/5
Soft Machine
3/5
Beck
4/5
ABBA
5/5
B.B. King
3/5
The Crusaders
2/5
Rod Stewart
2/5
Milton Nascimento
2/5
The Lemonheads
4/5
The Specials
3/5
The Blue Nile
2/5
Gang Starr
4/5
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
5/5
Simon & Garfunkel
3/5
Pixies
5/5
Fiona Apple
4/5
Mercury Rev
4/5
Beastie Boys
5/5
Dexys Midnight Runners
2/5
Cat Stevens
4/5
Talk Talk
4/5
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
5/5
4/5
The Prodigy
5/5
Fred Neil
2/5
Fatboy Slim
4/5
Eagles
2/5
Faith No More
5/5
Not even my favorite FNM album, but still a masterpiece with Patton's budding genius and one of 90s alternative rock's best rhythm sections.
Afrika Bambaataa
1/5
Minor Threat
3/5
The Divine Comedy
3/5
Q-Tip
4/5
Astor Piazzolla
3/5
The Divine Comedy
2/5
Tom Waits
5/5
Quicksilver Messenger Service
1/5
Marvin Gaye
5/5
The Jam
4/5
Rufus Wainwright
1/5
Lorde
1/5
Stevie Wonder
2/5
Elis Regina
2/5
The Police
4/5
The Jesus And Mary Chain
3/5
Madonna
2/5
Can
4/5
Flamin' Groovies
2/5
Ryan Adams
1/5
Maxwell
1/5
Shack
2/5
PJ Harvey
4/5
The Beach Boys
3/5
3/5
The Sugarcubes
5/5
Elastica
2/5
Iggy Pop
3/5
Bruce Springsteen
3/5
Aimee Mann
1/5
Jungle Brothers
4/5
Morrissey
1/5
Even separating art and artist - they both suck.
Sepultura
5/5
Joy Division
3/5
Black Sabbath
5/5
The Offspring
4/5
Carpenters
3/5
Nirvana
5/5
Soul II Soul
2/5
808 State
1/5
Peter Gabriel
4/5
Pink Floyd
4/5
A rather curious debut album considering what Pink Floyd would become in later years. Some great stuff here, but also a few duds. All in all it's a decent psychedelic record, but not up there with the greats like the Zombies' "Odyssey and Oracle", the Beach Boys' "Pet Sounds" or the Beatles' "Sgt. Pepper".
The Sabres Of Paradise
1/5
The Jam
4/5
Belle & Sebastian
2/5
David Crosby
2/5
Tim Buckley
1/5
Harry Nilsson
3/5
Stevie Wonder
3/5
Van Morrison
2/5
The Afghan Whigs
2/5
Van Morrison
2/5
Everything But The Girl
1/5
Buffalo Springfield
3/5
The Fall
2/5
Cocteau Twins
1/5
PJ Harvey
4/5
The Icarus Line
2/5
The Pharcyde
2/5
Gene Clark
2/5
Metallica
5/5
Sleater-Kinney
5/5
Curtis Mayfield
2/5
The Byrds
2/5
Singles are okay, the rest is boring middle of the road folk pop and sounds like everything else from the valley, which this list has way too much of.
Black Sabbath
5/5
The first metal album, and still one of the best. A perfect masterpiece. RIP Ozzy!
1/5
XTC
4/5
White Denim
3/5
Rocket From The Crypt
5/5
Dusty Springfield
4/5
New York Dolls
3/5
The Dictators
2/5
Primal Scream
2/5
Bill Callahan
4/5
Living Colour
4/5
The Hives
4/5
Not sure if this is really essential. But it's a lot of fun! Strange choice, of course, including a compilation instead of e.g. "Veni, Vedi, Vicious"
Lauryn Hill
2/5
Marvin Gaye
2/5
Tori Amos
5/5
Lucinda Williams
1/5
Patti Smith
3/5
Peter Gabriel
5/5
Marvin Gaye
3/5
Faust
4/5
Bad Company
2/5
The Chemical Brothers
5/5
Dolly Parton
3/5
The Darkness
2/5
Richard Thompson
2/5
MC Solaar
3/5
Killing Joke
4/5
Everything But The Girl
2/5
Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five
3/5
The Good, The Bad & The Queen
2/5
UB40
2/5
Saint Etienne
1/5
Paul Simon
1/5
Tim Buckley
1/5
Run-D.M.C.
4/5
Creedence Clearwater Revival
5/5
Dr. Octagon
1/5
Screaming Trees
4/5
Baaba Maal
2/5
Happy Mondays
1/5
Stephen Stills
2/5
The The
3/5
Donald Fagen
1/5
William Orbit
2/5
Pere Ubu
4/5
The Mothers Of Invention
4/5
50 Cent
2/5
Le Tigre
4/5
Devendra Banhart
2/5
5/5
Les Rythmes Digitales
3/5
Strange one. Some really great dance tracks and some really lame and repetitive pop songs. Has been done much better, especially around its time.
Jimi Hendrix
5/5
The The
3/5
Ravi Shankar
3/5
Mekons
4/5
Laibach
4/5
Isaac Hayes
5/5
Absolute masterpiece
Aerosmith
3/5
Absolute masterpiece
Kraftwerk
5/5
Absolute masterpiece
Cypress Hill
3/5
Don McLean
2/5
Prince
3/5
The Rolling Stones
3/5
Jamiroquai
3/5
Cheap Trick
2/5
Boring songs, awful sound. Beats me how this could ever be a hit or considered an essential classic.
Jeru The Damaja
3/5
Funkadelic
3/5
New Order
2/5
SZA
2/5
The Pogues
4/5
Throwing Muses
3/5
The War On Drugs
2/5
Drive Like Jehu
3/5
Wire
3/5
Barry Adamson
2/5
Tim Buckley
1/5
Deep Purple
4/5
Electric Light Orchestra
5/5
k.d. lang
1/5
Kate Bush
5/5
Eric Clapton
1/5
fIREHOSE
2/5
Perfectly fine, but I fail to see how this would be essential in any way or why I should listen to this again instead of something really interesting
The Cure
4/5
The Beau Brummels
3/5
Einstürzende Neubauten
4/5
The Byrds
1/5
Solomon Burke
3/5
Solid Atlantic soul record with all the usual strengths and flaws like uneven songwriting and lyrics full of cliché. It's a fun listen, even if it doesn't surpass its peers in my book.
Billy Bragg
4/5
The Mamas & The Papas
4/5
Doves
1/5
Spiritualized
3/5
Louis Prima
3/5
Ride
2/5
Barry Adamson
1/5
Coldplay
3/5
Coldplay's last good album with at least some edge and diversity and a few really great tracks. It is also too long and gets tedious pretty soon. All in all a seriously overrated band.
Ananda Shankar
3/5
Alice Cooper
4/5
Scritti Politti
1/5
Culture Club
2/5
Queen
5/5
Stereolab
3/5
Turbonegro
5/5
Koffi Olomide
1/5
Billy Bragg
2/5
Van Morrison
2/5
Buck Owens
1/5
The Temptations
3/5
The title track is great, but most of the rest falls short and is pretty generic, even though the musicianship and voices are top notch.
Joan Baez
2/5
Ice T
3/5
Bob Dylan
4/5
Bonnie "Prince" Billy
4/5
Country Joe & The Fish
2/5
Tom Tom Club
2/5
Kings of Leon
1/5
Grant Lee Buffalo
2/5
Leftfield
2/5
The Human League
2/5
Buzzcocks
3/5
Hole
4/5
Carole King
4/5
Peter Frampton
2/5
Curtis Mayfield
4/5
Gary Numan
3/5
Johnny Cash
4/5
2/5
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
4/5
Kendrick Lamar
1/5
Queen Latifah
4/5
Scott Walker
3/5
The Birthday Party
4/5
X-Ray Spex
4/5
Kings of Leon
1/5
The Everly Brothers
3/5
Neil Young
5/5
Prefab Sprout
1/5
The Beach Boys
3/5
Title track is pretty good, the rest is very uneven. Not all bad, but surely not a classic.
Led Zeppelin
5/5
Title track is pretty good, the rest is very uneven. Not all bad, but surely not a classic.
Meat Puppets
4/5
The Cure
4/5
Spacemen 3
2/5
Johnny Cash
3/5
This is a special record, of course, with some really great covers that improve on the originals. It's also too long and monotonous with very little variation, so I was kind of glad when it was over.
Aerosmith
4/5
Red Hot Chili Peppers
1/5
Kanye West
1/5
Kid Rock
1/5
The Damned
4/5
Sonic Youth
4/5
D'Angelo
2/5
Abdullah Ibrahim
3/5
Derek & The Dominos
1/5
Eurythmics
3/5
Chicago
3/5
Fleetwood Mac
1/5
What a borefest. Self indulgent and overlong with hardly any real song ideas. I'm not a big fan of Rumours, but this is just way worse. I can see why the band kind of needed this record, of course. Why the public and especially us should have to endure it, I have no idea.
CHIC
2/5
Great sound and a few real classics. I'm sure it works really well on the dance floor. As an album it gets tedious being very repetitive and pretty much every song is much too long.
John Martyn
2/5
Moderately interesting music, awful singer
Lou Reed
4/5
Dizzee Rascal
1/5
Travis
1/5
Painfully inoffensive. This can only be on this list as an example of the worst aspects of the brit pop hype.
LCD Soundsystem
3/5
Good sounds, but very repetitive and very little dynamics. Feels tedious to me.
Black Sabbath
5/5
Ryan Adams
1/5
2Pac
2/5
The raps and lyrics are okay, I guess. But the lightweight production and the Will Smith Choruses are really not my style, I don't get the hype.
Alice Cooper
4/5
Surprisingly diverse. Not everything is great, but I appreciate what they're trying to do and all in all it turned out really entertaining. Next year's Billion Dollar Babies got even better, but this is lots of fun.
Beatles
5/5
Dennis Wilson
3/5
Pleasant enough, but very much of its time and hardly very original. Also sounds a lot like the collection of sketches it is rather than a cohesive album.
Emmylou Harris
2/5
She has a good voice and the production seems competently done, but it's still full of Country cliché, lyrically and musically. Not my cup of tea at all.
Beastie Boys
5/5
Perfect album, one of my all time favourites. Jazzy, experimental and yet full of hits.
CHVRCHES
2/5
Interesting sound, but it gets old pretty fast and the positive mood doesn't convince me. Too plastic fake for this list.
Pantera
5/5
Kanye West
1/5
Brian Eno
4/5
Avantgarde stuff that gets more enjoyable with every spin, but it really demands attention. I'm glad to have heard it, but I'm not sure how often I'll return to it.
Magazine
4/5
Radiohead
5/5
Their first perfect album with several more to come.
JAY Z
1/5
Just awful. Boasting lyrics delivered with that monotonous voice over pompous pop beats - no thank you.
Miles Davis
3/5
Neu!
4/5
Really good stuff between Kraftwerk and Punk with powerful drum grooves that sometimes remind me of Can. Never heard this before, but I will definitely return to it!
Jean-Michel Jarre
4/5
Aretha Franklin
3/5
Super Furry Animals
5/5
What an absolute joy to listen to this! Experimental pop that never loses sight of the song and ends up sounding like some sort of happy Radiohead. I will definitely return to this and maybe dive deeper into their discography.
Girls Against Boys
2/5
Listenable, but completely unoriginal
Beck
2/5
Who would have thought that Beck could be this conventional and boring?
Robbie Williams
3/5
Impressive amount of hits, but also a lot of filler. All in all this is a fun little lightweight pop record, but I fail to see how this would be essential in any way being a very mediocre example of a mostly mediocre era of British pop.
Nitin Sawhney
1/5
Generic, repetitive and boring. More British mediocrity.
The Monkees
1/5
The only justification for having this in the list is a reminder that empty and generic casting bands aren't such a recent invention.
Sonic Youth
3/5
Not bad, actually. But the noise gets old after a while. I've had two of their albums and kind of liked them, but it's starting to get old. And five albums on this list are way too much. I get that they're Important, but so many other classics are missing...
The Sonics
2/5
These guys seem to be a lot more fun than they promise on the cover. In the end they just seem to be an okay, but pretty amateurish cover band with very few songs of their own, though.
Happy Mondays
2/5
The sound may be influential and new for the time. The songs are mostly boring, though. Not one of the better examples of brit pop.
Simon & Garfunkel
3/5
Some really great stuff like the title track, the Boxer and Song for the Asking. But it's a bit uneven with "stinkers" like Bye Bye Love and the truly awful El Condor Pasa. This remains a duo I'd rather listen to on compilations than their albums.
3/5
Am interesting historical document, sure. Doesn't make it a very enjoyable listen. The sound quality varies, the music is monotonous, even in the band section.
Sisters Of Mercy
4/5
Very enjoyable and of course very much of its time. I like the tongue in cheek darkness, the beautiful melodies and the heavy beats. This Corrosion is an epic classic, I hadn't heard that in far too long.
Leonard Cohen
4/5
Beautiful poetry, quiet music, classic Cohen. Maybe not as perfect as other albums of that period, still very enjoyable.
Fugazi
4/5
Great energy, great and very varied music for such a punk adjacent band. I knew of them, but hadn't actually heard their music and I like it a lot!
Paul Simon
2/5
This is only mildly interesting, because it was supposed to be another album with Garfunkel. You can see why he left the project, if not for personal reasons. The songs are uninspired and boring, Simon's lyrics are awkward and sometimes even ridiculously bad. Inoffensive background music, hardly good enough so anyone should have heard it.
Joan Armatrading
3/5
Good voice, well produced music and you can tell how influential this was, not just for Tracy Chapman. Doesn't really compell me to listen again, though.
LTJ Bukem
1/5
Just awful. Every track sounds the same and goes on way too long. This might work on the dancefloor or as background music in some kind of party or lounge context. As an album it just doesn't capture interest or provides any kind of development.
Incredible Bongo Band
3/5
Apache is great, of course, and the overall sound is good fun. Some cool grooves, many of which you recognize from hip hop and break beat classics.
Minutemen
2/5
Musically an interesting mix of punk rock, funk and jazz, that's nice. Lyrics are good, but the vocal delivery is very tiring to me. Also this sounds like a bunch of very short demo snippets rather than finished songs.
David Ackles
1/5
I'm not a fan of musicals in general, but this one sucks even more than most.
Big Star
2/5
Pretty middle of the road power pop folk rock whatever with a really weak singer and songs that often sound unfinished.
Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark
3/5
Beautiful melodies and a pretty organic sound for synths. A bit monotonous, though, and not really for me.
ZZ Top
5/5
Probably the perfect blues rock album and definitely a career highlight for the three beards.
Throbbing Gristle
1/5
This makes me kind of philosophical. At what point do you call random noises "music"? I don't have the answer, but I suspect this doesn't always reach that point. It may have been influential, but I'm not sure I want to hear the results.
Orbital
2/5
Boring and repetitive, even if it does have some interesting sounds, that probably were innovative at the time.
Ozomatli
4/5
Never heard of this band, but it's a lot of fun! The wild mix of styles feels organic and never forced and the songs are catchy without feeling cheap. I will probably return to this.
Rod Stewart
3/5
Typical 70s rock with a little sexism and racism that seems to have been necessary for a real guy in those years. Musically inoffensive, if you can stand his raspy voice over a whole album.
Deee-Lite
3/5
"Groove is in the Heart" is truly awesome and nothing on this record comes close to it, sadly. There is a lot of good stuff, though. Much of it sounds pretty dated, but some still hold up.
Steely Dan
2/5
More perfect boredom. Ridiculous to have four albums by these guys on here...
Digital Underground
2/5
Musically these guys are competent, if not very original. The lyrics are juvenile, but sometimes fun.
Led Zeppelin
5/5
Masterpiece including the greatest song in the world
Brian Wilson
3/5
I'm happy for Brian that he got to finish his Magnum Opus. It isn't the next Pet Sounds or maybe even better, though. A handful of songs show that it might have been, but all in all there are too many sketches instead of polished songs and the whole thing just flows by impressing the listener more with its lavish production than with songs for eternity. Happy to have heard this, but I will stick with the singles in the band version.
Alanis Morissette
5/5
Great album full of very diverse songs, that can be funny, angry, loving, aggressive or sad. Not one song seems unnecessary and although the production is pretty dated in part I still like the album as much as when I heard it first as a teen. Maybe even more, because now I get most of the lyrics.
Miriam Makeba
3/5
Interesting album because of the African elements, of course. Miriam has a great voice and certainly charisma. Most songs seem to be tailored to a Western, especially American taste, though. The "naughty little flea" reminds me of the similarly silly "how much is that doggy in the window" for example. All in all it's not for me, although I certainly appreciate the opportunity to have listened to it.
Death In Vegas
3/5
I like the sound of this electronic jam rock, especially the drums. There are some really good melodies and grooves, but most of the songs kind of flow by without leaving much of an impression.
Kate Bush
5/5
Just as great as Hounds of Love, feels maybe a bit more human to me.
Bobby Womack
3/5
Very smooth, very perfect, very catchy - and a bit boring
Green Day
5/5
A real modern rock opera going far beyond the boundaries of their earlier punk rock stuff. Masterfully composed and played with lots of sixties pop influences it is also great fun to listen to. Their Magnum Opus in my opinion.
Massive Attack
4/5
Really good album, but sandwiched in between Blue Lines and Mezzanine (which should be on this list instead) it's very obvious that in comparison this has far weaker songs and often drags on a bit.
The Dave Brubeck Quartet
5/5
Great classic combining technical excellency with a relaxed and positive mood that's just a joy to listen to
Al Green
2/5
Title track is good and I know it from Pulp Fiction. The band seems competent enough, but the singing seems kind of whiny to me and the monothematic lyrics actually made me angrier with every song. May have just been that day, but I have no desire to listen to this again.
Klaxons
3/5
The comparison with Franz Ferdinand and Bloc Party is not totally off. The difference is that those bands are able to write absolutely compelling songs while they experiment with futuristic sounds. This record sure has its moments, but it often feels like they are trying too hard to be enjoyable.
Jacques Brel
3/5
He sounds very enthusiastic and the music seems pretty good for the chanson era. I don't understand a word, though, and it's just not for me, I guess.
The Libertines
2/5
Another average overhyped brit rock band. Has a few good moments that show what AM would do later and much better, but other than that it is very forgettable.
The Notorious B.I.G.
1/5
Great rapper, no doubt. The lyrical content is explicit and usually violent and sexist and you might excuse that with the genre and a realistic image of the times and the scene he describes. What I really can't abide is "Just playing (Dreams)". That's absolutely disgusting misogyny and in no way excusable as being just a joke or whatever. F* this toxic sh*!
Merle Haggard
2/5
Yeah, it's a classic. Simple, repetitive music and cliché lyrics about god, america and women, that's country music for ya. It's probably a great representative of its genre, but pretty boring to me.
Television
4/5
Sounds like NYC 1977, alright. Reminds me a lot of Patti Smith without the lyrical urgency. Good guitar and drum work, really enjoyable.
10cc
2/5
I only knew them for "Deadlock holiday" and never really liked that. This is completely different and more like a Dad joke rock musical. Too many interesting ideas crammed into the songs for any of them to catch me. I felt like on a roller-coaster, and not in a good way. I love good prog rock and also Queen and the Sparks, so I don't mind funny lyrics, a certain pomp or complex song structures. This just seems to want too much and in the end achieve hardly anything.
Pet Shop Boys
3/5
Even after several plays I mainly like the singles and find the rest pretty forgettable, and I am not a mainstream radio guy. The music is alright and so are the lyrics, but it all seems a bit cold and sterile lacking the emotional depth of Depeche Mode, for example.
Nick Drake
1/5
Overproduced and boring, his voice doesn't do anything for me.
Frank Sinatra
1/5
Awful, it's the same whiny song over and over again. Couldn't stand to finish this.
Khaled
3/5
As much as I appreciate the offer of some music with a less western background this is way too poppy and shallow for my taste. Also way too long.
Malcolm McLaren
1/5
Cultural exploitation - the album. Didn't even like it, too confusing for my taste. And the way this guy just puts his name on other people's work is disgusting.
Radiohead
5/5
When this came out I thought Radiohead was over, because I didn't get it. They were actually just beginning! Absolute masterpiece.
The Mothers Of Invention
4/5
Fascinating album, especially considering it's from 1966. This is funny, original, intelligent and pretty ahead of its time - but also pretty demanding at times.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
3/5
Fun little pop album, that doesn't excite me very much
Joni Mitchell
2/5
She's a legend, but I can't stand her voice. Also, I have heard way too much folk from the Laurel Canyon on this list and it's just not for me.
Blue Cheer
4/5
Great sound, a major influence on many of my favorite bands. A bit lacking in substantial songs, though.
Dion
1/5
Remarkably unremarkable.
Blood, Sweat & Tears
4/5
Very tight band, great rhythm section, awesome brass and good vocals. Many hits, sometimes a little over indulgent.
Prince
5/5
I was skeptical, but it really is that good
Anita Baker
1/5
That awful glossy production drowns any hint of an interesting sound or song regardless of how good her voice or any of the musicians are. At least I learned about the quiet storm, but I will stay far away from it.
Röyksopp
4/5
Really nice, didn't know any of this, but I really enjoyed it. Chilled and groovy, Wall of Sound really had a lot of great stuff back in the day.
R.E.M.
4/5
Classic REM with a lot of good songs, maybe a little bit repetitive. The mandoline is a nice touch and gives a very folky feeling to their sound.
Lana Del Rey
2/5
The constant mumbling seems completely uninterested and doesn't catch me in any way. I don't get its significance, but maybe it's just not for me.
George Jones
1/5
I'm not a country guy, but this is especially awful. Whiny heartbreak stuff and everything sounds the same. At least it's not long...
Adele
2/5
Music for people with no interest in music. Yes, her voice is impressive, but I find it very intense and lacking variation. The songs touch a lot of genres musically, but always stay kind of vague and never demand too much of the listener. And the lyrics? Wow, finally someone does an album about heartbreak, that's what the world was waiting for!
I recommend Amy Winehouse or Lola Young if you want something in a similar vein, but WAY better and more interesting.
Run-D.M.C.
3/5
Fun album with a surprisingly elaborated sound for a debut. A little lacking in variety, maybe.
Count Basie & His Orchestra
4/5
Very high energy big band album, that swings well enough to make me tap my feet or sometimes even dance a little.
Laura Nyro
3/5
I like the way she explores and blends several genres of music, but her voice gets annoying over the long running time and the songs don't really click with me.
Little Simz
4/5
Great voice and rap style, mostly mellow and petty organic beats and no autotune party anthems, but she really has something to say. This is modern rap I can get into!
Ali Farka Touré
2/5
Ry Cooder is the master of pretty boredom. As nice as it is to have some African elements here, this just makes me feel sleepy. Too much repetition, too little dynamics, it just lulls you in and...
Small Faces
3/5
A handful of great singles (Afterglow, Lazy Sunday, Rolling over) with some filler and a pretty much failed attempt at turning this into a concept album. I like the fact that they use humor and don't seem to take themselves too seriously.
Taylor Swift
1/5
A constructed "perfect pop record" that sounds completely dead, cold and hollow to me. Lyrics may be based on personal experience, but they still sound generic and repetitive to me. The music is pseudo retro 80s, which sure fits the title. It still feels cheap, generic, and simplistic without any kind of edge that could make it interesting. Just awful.
Adele
1/5
I know this is well executed for what it tries to be, but I can't stand this kind of whiny, bombastic pop that wants to be so heartfelt and emotional, but feels as deep as a puddle to me while sounding like the calculated chart success it logically had to become.
Christine and the Queens
1/5
Why make generic 80s synthpop without any interesting new twist in the modern age? Why listen to it? Why include it in a list of essential albums? So many questions...
The Clash
5/5
One of the great classics of the punk rock era with a surprising variability and musicality. All killer, no filler.
T. Rex
3/5
Most of the record feels like swaying bubble gum pop with fuzz guitars instead of real rock. Not actually bad, but not very exciting either.
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
1/5
Two hours of bad covers and studio improvisation? It almost doesn't matter that this is country which I'm not a big fan of, it's just not a great album, it's debatable if you should even call it an album.
Dinosaur Jr.
2/5
On another day this might have been a three, but today all the dissonance just rubbed me the wrong way. Too much mumbling and shrieking, too little good songs.
Madonna
2/5
William Orbit's production was innovative and still sounds pretty fresh today. Like many albums of the time it is too long as a whole and also most songs go on too long. "Frozen" is great and probably one of Madonna's all time greats, but other than that the songs are pretty boring and forgettable.
Isaac Hayes
2/5
The few songs with vocals are really good, the rest meanders between elevator music and decent instrumental soul or jazz. It's probably good as a soundtrack, but as an album on its own it's too long and uninteresting.
Public Enemy
3/5
Great raps and lyrics like usual, but PE's sonic assault is just too much for me
Basement Jaxx
1/5
Unoriginal, uninteresting dancefloor background music that doesn't work as an album.
4/5
This is really fun, a good example of synth use to enhance the rock game that's already going strong. Good set of songs and weird lyrics.
Mike Oldfield
4/5
I actually never heard this classic in full. The first time it all seems kind of random, but with every other run structures and complex melodies appear out of the mist, I really like it!
Not sure I like what he is saying about Richard Branson in that Klingon section on Part two.
The Band
2/5
I'm sure they could've been fun as a live band in your neighborhood pub. But how anyone can get excited about this mediocre stuff on an album beats me.
Arrested Development
3/5
Pretty relaxed and positive hip hop, I like that in general. I actually knew "People everyday" before Sly Stone's original and found it great. It's much too long, though, and the lyrics are too preachy and religious for my taste. Still like it way better than anything by Kanye, Biggie or all the other mysoginist guys.
Sonic Youth
2/5
It sure has its moments, but doesn't manage to really interest me
Muddy Waters
3/5
A really energetic live performance. The songs seem overplayed, but they are the originals that too many people have covered, often way worse. It doesn't excite me very much, but I appreciate its importance.
The Undertones
5/5
A perfect pop punk record, all killer, no filler.
ABBA
3/5
Very lightweight disco pop, that's not trying to be anything else. Perfectly done without a doubt it still gets tedious after a while, for me at least. I like the darker "Visitors" better where I feel that they have something to say.
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
3/5
There's way too much mediocre folk from Laurel Canyon on this list, but Neil Young's contribution makes this one of the better examples. It has "Helpless" and "Woodstock", which are great, but also stinkers like "Our house". Well...
Nanci Griffith
1/5
Awful cliché country pop music with awful cliché lyrics.
Willie Colón & Rubén Blades
4/5
Timeless salsa music that puts me in a good mood, like a younger, fresh version of Buena Vista Social Club. Love the bass and brass. I will return to this!
Beyoncé
1/5
More a product than actual music. And that goes for Beyoncé herself, too, because her image, her "art" and her private life are so perfectly staged that I can't even believe the "personal" lyrics with their feminism and empowerment. This is supposed to be modern soul music, but to me it feels completely soulless and dead.
Pentangle
3/5
Curious album that sounds out of its time, but then again fits the late sixties very well. Good vocals, good playing, but it all gets old pretty soon.
Gil Scott-Heron
3/5
Interesting Jazz slash proto rap, that sometimes feels more like a spoken word record with an improvising backing bad. The socially conscious lyrics are very interesting and surprisingly relevant today, but as a music album it doesn't do very much for me.
Jorge Ben Jor
4/5
Really diverse and fun and pretty timeless. Might even get back to this.
Sepultura
5/5
Perfect thrash metal record, just as great as "Master of Puppets" or "Reign in Blood".
Sister Sledge
2/5
Another perfectly produced Nile Rodgers record that sounds completely sterile and dead. There are a few good melodies, of course, but pretty much every song drags on WAY too long for the amount of ideas it contains, they just go on and on and on...