3.5★. A boisterous 22-minutes. Feels longer than it is, which I say as a good thing (mostly). A little samey (like all early, loud rock-and-roll) but rather fun and energetic.
Much more country than I was expecting. I like Take It Easy, love Witchy Woman, and Take the Devil and Earlybird are good from the backhalf, but many of the songs are also bland.
What a fabulous album—mellow and beautiful.
I just can't get into the stilted, stuffy, self-serious vocals…
1 full listen. Simple lyrics, poppy rock, energetic vocals/instrumentals. Great for superficial (intense if you're drunk or in an indie film) emotions and thrills. Peaks with the first five tracks, but tracks like Midnight Show are good too. Everything Will Be Alright is great switch of tempo in this context, and probably the note that the album should have ended on.
Scant history with Bowie: I've listened to Ziggy Stardust a couple of times, been exposed to some of his biggest hits here and there throughout the years (of which I've listened to Space Oddity quite a bit, out of my own volition), and listened to The Man Who Sold The World (the song) an endless amount of times. Outside of the latter song, I've not quite been smitten, and remain relatively cool about the artist even after this album. 1 listen (plus some repeats on the standouts). Best songs: Young Americans and Fascination. (The album's Disco-Funk-Gospel fusion is arguably at its best with Fascination, though I probably prefer Young Americans. On the other hand, I don't think that the overt funkiness of Fame vibes well with the contents of the lyrics at all.) Right is good but a little anticlimactic. Otherwise, despite how busy the album's soundscape is, that busyness is relatively "same-y" across the board. Not a big fan of Bowie's strenuous vocals here; his rendition of Across the Universe, with the overwrought vocal inflections - particularly the "sonorous" parts - feels a bit comical in particular. And on the aforementioned best songs he is outmatched by the backing vocals. Admittedly not entirely in tune with his usual themes, so lacking that context probably doesn't help.
I was initially underwhelmed when I got unduly excited by the opening track which the rest of the album never quite matched or even came close to. Listened casually a couple of times thereafter and one final closer inspection and found myself in love with it. Carry On + Teach Your Children + Helpless (Look Down From The Bridge by Mazzy Star much??) + Woodstock + Our House (though the chorus and the la-la-las are a bit too childish even for that song) are all good-to-great-to-fantanstic. Tapers off just a bit in the second half but even there most of the songs are growing on me.
This is very enjoyable but not quite as gripping as the more dramatic Jazz stuff that I've heard from Davis (Sketches in Spain) or more trippy/psychedelic stuff that I've enjoyed in general (Journey in Satchidanada), though I'm no Jazz aficionado by any means. Growing on me though... it's very infectious and fun. Move in particular is fantastic.
The vocals throughout… ugh. Only on some emotional songs - Perfect Day; Walk on the Wildside - do they sound anything substantially more than amateurish and awkward; otherwisw they just sound perfunctory. And then from just glancing at the lyrics the writing is hardly a strength. Some fun instrumentation throughout, and outside of the two aforementioned songs Satellite of Love is pretty good, and Vicious grew on me a bit (even though it is exemplary of my issues with his vocals), but otherwise this isn’t quite it. (Though New York Telephone Conversation is some childish and stupid fun.)
3.5★ What a banging album. There’s one value in listmaking and it’s to discover material that you otherwise wouldn’t have come across or given a spin, which is very much the case with me and this album. Not sure how much the lyrics have to do with the titular theme but I do feel that understanding them would probably help the resonance, as opposed to the songs sounding like similar variations of the same thing. Nonetheless I really liked it. Favorites: tracks 1-5 (Soubour, Iraganda, Al Hassidi Terei, Sekuo Oumarou, Nick) + Wayei + Petit Metier (this plus the opener probably being the favorites among the favorites). No obvious skips on the first few listens, though the last two tracks are notably weaker.
Some interesting/fun instrumentation that is let down by the continually screechy or otherwise infantine vocals and, indeed, the occasional lyrics that are "dumb like a linoleum floor” (not really, but I couldn't pass up on the opportunity; that said, they are mostly unexceptional). Deceptacon and The The Empty grew on me the most (funnily enough the two tracks most exemplary of the "screechy" vocals), and along the unexpectidely soft/vulnerable Eau d'bedroom Dancing (my favorite among the bunch) are good/great. (Phanta is decent as well, and I wish that "Slideshow at Free University" was not an interlude/had actual lyrics/verses; it sounds like something that MF Doom would use to great effect.)
”Bar Rock” indeed. Sounds mostly like inoffensive pop and lyrics to be tolerated only as bland backgrounds. Monotone. And there’s Almost no energy to this thing—it’s downright soporific for a ”rock” album. She Talks To Angels the only notable track, and the ending of stare it cold I guess.
Some fun, funky jazz. Fun progressions throughout, and the instrumentals seem to be in dialogue with each other, whether harmonious or bickering; "a movie for your ears" indeed. (Peaches En Regalia practically sounds like a precursor to many videogame tracks.) Have listened to this a couple of times now and it's grown on me quite a bit. Every song seems to have its intrigue (whereas initially the first two tracks seemed to stand out), though The Gumbo Variations sort of peters out towards the end (it'd probably be better as 9 minutes, rather than 12), and It Must Be A Camel is weak as a stand-alone (but functions fine as a more laidback Coda).
Listened to the English half/version. Inoffensive, bland, with little (sonic, lyrical, tempo or tonal) variance throughout. A pop record that never pops, too constipated to dance or cry.
Took a couple of listens to grow on me. Thoroughly enjoyable Vibes but nothing mindblowing or incredibly hypnotizing. Opening track (Ponta de Lanca Africano) + Taj Mahal are the standouts; Xica Da Silva + Camisa 10 Da Gavea (and, to a lesser degree, Hermes Trismegisto Escreveu) are nice too.
Only Love Can Break Your Heart + Carnt Sleep are good, and Like the Swallow is incredible (though it feels incredibly short despite being 7-minute, mostly due to the fact that the short verse is preceded and followed by minimalistic instrumental work), but otherwise not much here grabbed my attention.
Some fun, soulful tracks. Opener is comfortably my favorite.
Starts strong with Ice Cube’s ferocious energy but said energy becomes numbingly monotone with how uniform it is throughout the album. More laid back storytelling is applied in e.g. Once Upon a Time In The Projects and A Gangsta’s Paradise, offering some nice variation, but for the most part the album just devolves into these for some reason increasingly mysogynistic digressions and stories that take up the forefront.
1 full listen (+ some casual repeats of a couple of songs). Sounds mostly fluffy to me. Like if The Killers’ Hot Fuss (which I assume was inspired by this/the band) was robbed of its infectous energy. Not sure if the distorted vocals are a feature or a fault but they don’t exactly help its case, in any case. Some decent songs (The Modern Age, Barely Legal) but overall just so monotone—lyrically, vocally, sonically.
3.5★ Not exactly 2 hours of nonstop Greatness but there is indeed lots to like and at times even love about this. Certainly easy to admire the sonic eclecticism, though I personally prefer the poppier/dreamer/rockier stuff to the more metallic songs (Tales of a Scorched Earth in particular is quite woeful, though X.Y.U is decent). My biggest reservation lies in the vocals, vocals which are often unable to hit high enough registers when trying to be emotional and sound rather Billy-from-across-the-street type of unexceptional in the heavier material, though not without their moments. Lyrics aren't always a strength either. Too many songs liked to list but the ones that really knocked my socks off are Tonight, Tonight, To Forgive (this one in particular hit me hard), and Thirty-Three.
I suppose that the restraint, song lengths (shortest being 4:27, with an average song length of over 5 minutes), and the general production style (Middle Eastern sounds, and the general electronic instrumentations, etc.) served as some sort of Artistic Statement™ for Madonna, at the height of her popularity. I can only shrug at this though, because the restraint mostly results in a flatness, and, consequently, in the feeling that the songs are overlong, given that they never build up towards any sort of cathartic climax or culmination (individually or collectively). I like Frozen and The Power of Good-Bye well enough (particularly Frozen) but for the most part the album just sounds like it's doing a variation on the same boring song that it starts out with.
3.5★ Thoroughly fun. The production is the MVP, and Snoop's flow is inexhaustible. The features are weak/nothing to write home about, and the content/lyrics are unfortunately fairly fluffy/vapid so I doubt it can sustain many relistens before growing stale, even though I like most of the songs here. Still, very enjoyable.
Can barely even remember anything about this, just a few hours later. Decent instrumentals I guess but weak vocals and empty lyrics* and an overall sound that resembles that of teenage rock aspirations (I guess you have to pad this 1001 albums list with some of these, every now and again, though surely not if you expanded beyond a very basic UK-US and Rock demographics). *What I assumed to be an exception: the phrase "A Web of Sound", only to discover that it is the name of a 60s Psychedelic Rock album by the Seeds. So much for good writing!
Some cool moments on the A side and in Cavalry, but the most part this is just an album of sound and fury signifying not much of anything, with lots of (improvisational, from the sound of it) instrumentalization that goes nowhere in particular.
3.5★ Grew on me immensely just within the same day. Was initially put off by Fine Time and became somewhat resistant to the Synths-gone-wild/haywire (mostly in Fine Time, but still; I became almost instantly allergic to the idea of Synth as a result of that), and the strangely alternating sounds, e.g the contrast between the more laid-back rock of Love Less vs. Round and Round's more electric elements and bass emphasis, and as a result didn't really end up feeling strongly about any song except Vanishing Point (more on that one below). To a certain degree, this is still stronger to me when the synths and electric instrumentals are more subdued, when it is less disco-y; nonetheless, outside of the opener, which I'm still somewhat iffy on, pretty much every song here grew on me, with each revisit casting off the initial reflexive disdain/disinclination. And it also happens to be one of the rare albums that arguably gets better as it goes on, peaking with Vanishing Point, a multifarious track that’s somehow simultaneously deeply depressing, hopeful, and dance-inducing—a stunning song, in essence, and certainly far-and-away the highlight here, leagues ahead of the rest; I'm no expert of Joy Division, but from what little I've heard this song seems to me to contain that deep sense of pessimism and Doom that characterized that band's songs that I've heard (even though the lyrics to Vanishing Point offer a sort of lifeline). Still, lots of other great songs to enjoy here; Love Less and particularly Round and Round, Guilty Partner and Dream Attack are great.
3.5★ Sensuous, seductive, somber, sober, subtle—suave and sophisticated even its most emotional—but also a little humdrum, both with the somewhat repetitive lyrics and the sonic flatline. I wish it was just a little darker—it would go a long way.
Hard to care for an album when half the runtime consists of an overlong song with banal storytelling and bland sounds. The second side has some strong songs outside of that - though this seems to run contrary to the consensus - mainly The Twilight Zone, Tears and Something for Nothing.
Fantastic. Tapers a bit in the tail-end but it's such a great break-up album on the whole.
Drunk on Funk. (That said, "Promentalshitbackwashpsychosis Enema Squad (The Doo Doo Chasers)", fitting with its prolix title and lyrics references to shit and bowels, is basically just psychedelic verbal diarrhea.)
Wowowow. Such maximalist production. Classical influences and Broadway-y vocal performances give the album a great deal of variance, and it covers a gamut of dramatic qualities that range from Operatic to Cinematic to Theatrical. Full-throttle Pasodoble (Jackie), Flamenco sounds (Next), a touch of fairytale (Plastic Palace People), sorrowful laments (Window of the World, The Bridge), more traditional crooning (Come Next Spring)—multivaried songs, in essence, and marvelously so. Even the worst song, the mindlessly chauvinistic The Girls and The Dogs, is musically galvanizing. It’s fitting that the album cover is that of the artist in the pose of a conductor, because thie album and songs flow like a wonderful, dramatic symphony. Great great stuff.
Decent mesh of indie/shoegaze-y/metally*/grungy rock, but never quite coheres or builds up to a satisfying point, with the aggressive, abrasive Noiseness being more earshattering than galvanizing. *Or whatever the hell Don’t is. Transition from said song to Keep the Glove is also Beatles-esque, namely reminiscent of the transition from the heavy, abstract, lyrically sparse I Want You (she’s so heavy) to Here’s Comes the Sun.
Enjoyable but very few moments that stand out as particularly extraordinary. Though I do love I Shall be Released. Checked out the Dylan version after I found out he originally wrote it, and, to my suprise, found myself prefering the cover* over the Dylan version, which I rarely do. *(Though their version was recorded earlier, so…) The Last Waltz’s live version with Dylan co-singing might be even better though… might actually check out that album and finally get to watching the Scorsese movie just for that moment alone.
Four Cornered Room, The World is a Ghetto, and, to a lesser degree, Beetles in the Bog, are great. The Cisco Kid is a decent banger, though repetitious and lacking in the narrative department of the usual Western/Cowboy songs. But "City, Country, City" lacks much emphasis and just aimlessly goes on and on and is therefore rather longwinded at 13 minutes; and Where Was You At is bland and forgettable.
Suprisingly decent. Tracks #1-5 in particular are really good. Don’t care much for the other half though.
And the award of Most-Black-Woman-Sounding-White-Guy goes to… *checks ”singer of Jamiroquai”*… Jason Kay! Anyhow, this starts out strong enough but becomes rather wearisome in its incessantly pop and nondescriptly fluffy politics. Lots of lyrics that don’t actually mean much, e.g. empty calls for revolution, or laughable revelations, like the fact that White getting two while Black gets five years apparently took the singer a while to ”suss out”, etc.
Liked many of the songs and the sound in general but holy fuck there is not anything remotely fun or dense enough here to justify the double album length. Lots of repeating choruses and even verses. And the frivilous far outweighs the poignant (Breaking the Girl, I could have Lied, Under the bridge) which I assume is the band’s forté. The rapping is not exactly standout either, though decent.
Probably 3.5★? Enjoyed this a lot, but less so on relistens.
I wasn’t expecting a single Coldplay album in this list, much less encountering two within a week(!). I definitely liked this one is much less—just lots of uninspired writing and sappy vocals that is better served as bland background noise than closely examined music, too inoffensive to even hate.
Loved the first two tracks.
Pablum. Blues without much soul. Sounds like the soundtrack to mediocre TV. Not terrible, but fluffy and overlong.
Pretty decent. Although it probably sounds a little too much like the Beatles/Dylan/Bowie for its own good at various points, and offers few singular qualities that make it worthwhile to revisit.
Pretty good, though a little too straightforwardly country for my tastes.
Too same-y, content wise, and not much sticks out as extraordinary, but it is thoroughly decent.
3.5★. Grew on my immensely on a second listen. Assassins/Dracula Mountain/2 Towers is peak.
Whatever redeemable music and lyrics might be found (and there definitely seems to be some instrumental skill here) are utterly drowned by E. Smith's incongruous, drawling, rambly, perfunctory nonsinging. I mean seriously, what the fuck is he on about?
Not heads over heels over it, as most others seem to be, but it is enjoyable. Hey is great.
More consistent than Young Americans but the latter has the better - or rather more - highs. (Heroes is great but Fascination is on par with it and Young American + Right >> everything else on here.) Not enthused with either Bowie album encountered so far, in any case, and, outside of a few favorite songs (Deranged + The Man Who Sold The World, plus some of the mentioned songs) I remain lukewarm to the artist in general; remain mostly cold to his narrative style and theatrical vocals.
Easily the most forgettable project I've come across on this list so far (for context: I've listened and rated 43 albums before this one), and the vocals in particular are painfully mediocre. Forgot about it as fast as it was "over" (I didn't even finish it was so bland, which makes a first DNF for this list).
Great. Sounds like the fantastic soundtrack to a great noir film that unfortunately doesn't exist. Tin Tin Deo is out of this world. Really makes you wish you could be in a 40s/50s Jazz bar listening to a live band.
Ah, now that's a familiar one. If I’m being honest it's probably a little too indiscriminate for its own good, as if every Beatle became infected with Paul’s frivolous songwriting spirit. At the same time however, there is scarcely a single moment that I don't enjoy or vibe to on at least a superficial level, Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da/ Piggies/Rocky Raccoon and all. (Though this applies more strongly to Disc 1. That said, even Revolution 9 has its interesting spots.) And then of course you have the highs of Back in the U.S.S.R, Dear Prudence (a previous blindspot), While My Guitar Gently Weeps, Happiness is a Warm Gun, I'm So Tired, Blackbird, Yer Blues, Long, Long, Long (which was my favorite Beatles song for a long, long, long time). The diversity is a big strength, and the album is a rather delectable cornucopia, for the most part.
The mid ’60s seems rather late for Whams and Bams
Decent enough, but nothing stands out to me outside of Atlantic City. Springsteen sings about everything from hardened killers to family troubles to typical country ballads about how hard it is to find a job (applies to Atlantic City, ironically enough) with the same lugubrious tone.
Why does every song sound nearly identical? Sometime it’s a little faster, sometimes slower, but it sounds like the same song over and over again with little variation. Maybe it’s a blues thing… maybe it ain’t an album friendly genre.
Two very cursory listens. Sounded good based on those, but no song jumped out as exceptional. Will definitely revisit... someday.
Starts really strong with Dirge’s buildup but everything else is just boring noise for the most part, something to put on the background than actively listen too.
Nothing that I’d care to revisit—though polished, it just sounds unexceptional.
4.5★. Practically perfect outside of that dull dull section in Moonchild. The unmatched energy of the opener; the serene, elusive I Talk to the Wind; the dystopian, disarrayed augury of Epitaph ("Confusion will be my epitaph"); the fairy-tale quality of the first part of Moonchild; the combination of the rich storytelling, ritualistic bridges and galvanizing instrumentation of The Court of the Crimson King; it's all just so god damn great.
None of this sticks for me, but I have a strange respect for the ugliness, and, in a very general way, enjoy it somewhat.
Lots of fun music laced with immature lyrics/content. (At least three of the song-titles - and their lyrics - refer to penises and sex, but I guess that kind of puerile joke is someone’s idea of fun.) The Faith Healer is quite good. His rendintion of Scott Walker’s Next, not so much.
Really don’t care for these talking-for-singing vocals.
Mostly enjoyable.
3.5★. Scott (2) Walker-lite (bordering on rip-off), so I enjoyed it quite a bit. (Baroque pop ftw I guess!) particularly liked: Something for the Weekend, Becoming More Life Alfie, Songs of Love, The Frog Princess, and A Woman of the World.
4.5★. Not the most musically interesting among Cohen's discography, but the stripped-down production only adds to the dirge-like quality. No skips as far as I'm concerned but Traveling Light is a particular favorite*; "Traveling light, it's au revoir / My once so bright, my fallen star / I'm running late, they'll close the bar / I used to play one mean guitar" ... "Traveling light, like we used to do / I'm traveling light" When it's time to go, we all do. *Though I do looove the violin on Steer Your Way, plus: "And say your mea culpa, which you gradually forgot / Year by year, month by month, day by day / Thought by thought"
What a change of pace from the not-so-successfully somber (i.e. lugubrious) Nebraska. Sometimes the blue-collarism (Factory) and wild-life masculinity (Racing in the Street) can feel like phony affectations, but for the most part this is full of wall-to-wall bangers, with the exception of maybe Candy's Room.
Fun shanty tunes.
Each song is an enjoyable enough 3★ but this is a case of diminishing returns with how identical all the songs are.
Don’t care much for any of the songs here except Penetration (and I Need Somebody, to a lesser degree).
3.5★. Tapers after the first three tracks but it’s consistent good, though rarely superlative.
Quirky, humorous, jazzy. Enjoyable, but I wish Wyatt's took the sounds further, as parts of the second half can be dormant.
3.5★. This thing is trying to make me a Springsteen fan, and, despite the rough first impression he made on me with Nebraska, it's kind of working... This one's not quite on the level of Darkness on the Edge of Town, but it's a thoroughly good album with some great highlights. Love the saxophones.
Was more or less unfamiliar with this album outside The Boxer (though I think I might have heard Cecilia while checking out the aforementioned song). Expected to like this a whole lot more based on my experiences with some of the duo's other songs, but was relatively underwhelmed instead. El Condo Pasa (If I Could) is an amazing revelation though (easily my favorite track here), and although a little melodramatic, Bridge Over Trouble Water is quite good as well. And of course The Boxer. Enjoyed this, but was not blown away by any means.
That cover and Album name is certainly a choice for this music... Anyhow, it's fine, if not rather exhausting.
3.5★. Some nice harmonies, and of course Karen's voice is quite heavenly—without being in love with its own beauty, crucially.
So many intriguing sounds but so little focused tension or release throughout the album.
Boring poppy rock.
Love this album—great storytelling and Marty Robbins is able to get emotional without being sentimental. Particular favorites include Big Iron, They’re Hanging Me Tonight, The Master’s Call, and I generally don’t skip any tracks whenever I’m in the mood for it.
Aimless, boring progressions (or lack thereof).
Short and sweet tracks but everything so fleeting that nothing sticks.
Captain’s Table is the only song that I cared for.
Grew on me on relistens, but still not crazy about it. Vocals are never a highpoint and at times the its sense of nonconfirmity can feel a bit childish. More interesting than not, though, though never as interesting as its cover is cool.
4.5★. A bit like the Beatles' White album in that it’s not the greatest collection of songs necessarily but it is a thoroughly enjoyable ride for me nonetheless. Moreover, this one happens to be one of my favorite favorite soundscapes in general. And besides the many fun songs you have the unimpeachable Vision of Johanna + Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again + Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands. (The latter two especially are some of my favorite songs of all time, with their swirling, dizzying, hypnotic repetition that just goes on and on and on in a wonderful crescendo.)
What a banging set of tunes.
Fun instruments, somewhat bland vocals.
Baaarely three stars though. Adele got a tremendous voice (duh) and I like several of the songs, but holy hell does it get weary with how repetitive and melodramatic it is on the subject of love and about aging (from a 25-year-old!).
Interesting instrumentals and not so interesting wacky lyrics/narratives, as is often the case in this list.
Fun radio-show.
Not A Hard Day’s Night or anything, but it’s a fun piece of early british rock-pop, though with dminishing returns.
3.5★. A boisterous 22-minutes. Feels longer than it is, which I say as a good thing (mostly). A little samey (like all early, loud rock-and-roll) but rather fun and energetic.
Much more country than I was expecting. I like Take It Easy, love Witchy Woman, and Take the Devil and Earlybird are good from the backhalf, but many of the songs are also bland.
Starts strong with Lost Women and to a lesser degree Over Under Sideways Down but devolves into a long list of most "ok" and aimless songs thereafter.
4.5★. It took 88 albums (including non-new albums) but I finally got to a new-listen 5-star. I had previously heard and loved several songs from OutKast, both on their own and partly sampling some of their albums, including Ms. Jackson and So Fresh, So Clean. Still, I wasn't expecting a 73-minutes of practically wall-to-wall bangers album, with no skips to speak of (not counting interludes obviously, which are short enough to never be a bother anyway).
What a fabulous album—mellow and beautiful.
Not exactly the most varied bubblegum pop, though it is fun. The fact that 18-year-old Britney (17 at the time of recording?) was likely inexperienced in any matters of adult relationship also comes across in the shallow/nondescript lyrics, but again, this is catchy and fun and she has some great performances and I’m feeling generous because HIT ME BABY ONE MORE TIME
Can’t tell if the title is an ironic deflection or just an unintendedly ironic. Either way, it fits, though from what I’ve heard of them (My Generation, which I enjoyed well enough) The Who were never exactly the most boundry-pushing band to begin with. This gets a little better in the second half, but for the most it sounds like tepid background music—decent enough as that but not particulary captivating.
The kind of conscious-rap that could easily feel dorky and cringe but this is assuredly not that. Pretty amazing in fact. Neither the production or performances are showy or gaudy but they are so consistently great. Many great songs (though the last few don’t do much for me, unfortunately) but Thin Line takes the top spot in the first few listens.
Half-interesting sounds that go nowhere interesting.
Decent pop-rock, though nothing I’d care to revisit based the first impression (or lack thereof) tbh, and that includes the individual songs. (So maybe it should be 2 stars instead.)
3.5★. Third Bowie prompt on this list so far (The other two being Young Americans and Heroes) and it's easily my favorite of the small bunch. Not a revelation by any means though as I've listened to it a couple of times before. It's not an album that admittedly moves me deeply like it undoubtedly does many Bowie fans (and it's easy to see why, Cohen's last album does the same thing for me) but it's an album I enjoy/admire a lot, and I love how dire and grave it sounds.
A fun album but nothing major. I’ve given it a handful of listens throughout the years but I can never fully get onboard with the vision, which seems to me split between the psychedelic, childlike, and astronomical, elements that don’t combine in reverberating ways.
A squid eating dough in a Polyethylene bag Is fast and bulbous, got me?
Peters out in the middle (I don't care for the Moder Love-Excuse Me-Humdrum run) and it’s not exactly the most cohesive of albums, but pretty decent overall with some standouts (Solsburry Hill in particular).
Nothing particularly exciting.
Only listened to a couple of songs, having been turned off by the lazy vocal work and mixing.
3.5★. Wears its heart on its sleeves but I’m admittedly partial to it in this case.
But like two stars if we're judging based on its ability to captivate and hold one's attention, a criterion which it is too dormant and too genteel to meet. Pleasantly tingling and sophisticated background music otherwise.
Beep boop
Sounds fine - good even - but there's something adolescent about grunge rage that I just can't get into.
A little one-note but decent. The hidden track is one of the best.
Not much that stands outside of Waitin’ for the Bus.
Most of this sounds like ponderous nothingness
POV: you're a hippie taking a roadtrip throughout the US in the late 60s/early 70s. Favorites: California Dreams and Spanish Harlem. Monday, monday is good too.
Whole lot more gooey daddy/baby singing than one would expect or hope for from Simone. Some good songs here but it’s also a somewhat disparate collection.
Toothless.
A little soporific. Tries out some different sounds but does justice to few of them (though Latin Simone was a pleasant suprise).
Some decent enough songs but nothing stands out.
Populist rock; empty energy.
3.5★. Eclectic and pretty rad.
Enjoyable as a whole, though I'm not crazy about any of the individual songs outside of the opener.
3.5★. Now that's a club one would have liked to have visited. (Apparently Wim Wenders has a documentary on the group from around the same time, so some sort of visit is possible!)
A mighty tool (Redding’s voice) used for less worthy material (frivolous lyrics), not too different than the case of Nina Simone and Wild Is The Wind (which I got not too long ago), though in both cases the material is nonetheless elevated by the artists.
Better when the vocals are off though...
Vapid energy - lacks any artful contrast or dramatic tension
Always found this one a little on the sappier side, especially compared to their later output which is infinitely more interesting from a musical, lyrical and vocal standpoint. This still contains several good song though and Street Spirit (Fade Out) remains an S-tier Radiohead song.
Decent Electric Jazz
The songs on the electronic albums that pop up on this list tend to be hit or miss (miss in the sense of indifference) for the most part; but man, when they hit, they tend to hit hard. Lush 3-1 and Halcyon and On and On hit hard. (The rest is fine too, as background noise, with rare moments stealing your attention.)
A little frontloaded for me, and the baroque elements are a bit monotone.
Listened to two songs before I grew tired of the screeching vocals. Totally melodramatic.
Some enjoyable tracks here but the project is predicated on being an one-man anthem and there is not enough soul here to counteract the impersonal production.
Decent, if not a bit too monntone and lowkey
Fun.
I could not get into Pet Sounds when I tried years ago, so a discount Beach Boys album is obviously not going to be epiphanic. (Though I remain slightly hopeful for when the former inevitably shows up for me on this list.)
3.5★. Liked this a lot, and more than Orbital 2. A little too repetitive to be actively listened to in its entirety, but at the same with enough flashes to steal your attention at intervals.
4.5★. I mean, it's Abbey Road... Harrison is still getting the short-shrift here with only two songs, but they proved to be the two biggest hits (though I guess Come Together could also lay a claim to a spot) so there's that. Meanwhile, McCartney's talents seem to be applied to their ideal state in that endless medley of songs (his vocals on the initial section of You Never Give Me Your Money are enough to make me cry, even though the lyrics are so insignificant). And John is John. Because is wonderfully elusive, and a masterpiece of harmonies. And I Want You (She's So Heavy) is not only the greatest love song ever made but maybe the greatest song. And while the transition from that to Here Comes the Sun is more notable, the transition from the lighthearted instrumentals of Octopus's Garden to the heavy Bass of I Want You has an equally transformative effect on me. In essence: it's alright.
3.5★. I was unfamiliar with this album outside of Highlands, which I've listened to many times. (In fact, outside of Blood on the Tracks I'm completely unfamiliar with post-'60s Bob Dylan albums.) I was pleasantly surprised. These are obviously not his greatest lyrics but they are fittingly pared down to fit the moody atmosphere. This feels like a great complement to BOTT, a darker and more hopeless resignation compared to the more energetic, half-sneering tones of the earlier album. This is a break-up with no new roads in sight. Standing in the Doorway and Love Sick are the standouts on the first few hasty listens (outside of the aforementioned Highlands).
Annoying vocal/conversational style...
Dug this a lot. Listened to the first couple of songs a long while ago but never got around to listening to the whole album, so I'm glad it showed up on this list. It never quite stays on the same track for too long which is nice as it keeps you on your toes.
Not enough stands out for the lengths... still some decent stuff though.
Thought it was an automatic 5-star when it popped up but landed on 4 instead. Can’t tell if I’m just a too used by it to be amazed or what… I will say that some of the placements are weak. Compton in particular (Real is the real closer) but also Poetic Justice, which while a good song, never actually fits the album space, and is ill-fitting after the hopeless day-dreaming of Money Trees. Plus I’ve never too big a fan of the reliance of interludes (baked into the songs in this case) as a storytelling device. Otherwise this is still full of bangers, obviously, with Money Trees, the two title songs (good kid is by far the most underrated song) and SAMIDOT hitting the hardest. Still probably a weaker 4.5★.
3.5★. First half starts out strong with songs like Changes, Oh! You Pretty Things, Life on Mars? and Quicksand, but the second doesn't maintain that level of, uh, fascination. But then the album closes with The Bewlay Brothers, a superstellar closer with a mysterious power that redeems the entire thing (WE WERE SO TURNED ON... by your lack of conclusions...!!!)
Decent, but not much stood out
Why is this French dude whispering indistinctly into my ears? Don't care about it enough to give it 1 star but it might be the empties thing I've come across on this list so far (137ish albums in).
Must be some pretty dull clubs. Backhalf has sole decent moments that incorperate female vocals. But mostly it’s just vaporous.
Sounds so poppy, pander-y, borderline childish. What little I've heard of his later (post-2018) output sounds much better.
Hey I think somebody is smuggling in music in this standup special! (Not that I cared for the music.)
How to ruin some otherwise decent music with some terrible vocals 101. It's no surprise then that the instrumental-heavy second half is better than the first half.
Some Good Times indeed. Some of the tracks are so long and repetitive that it's kind of a miracle that they don't particularly feel it.
Lives up to the hype, though I will need to relisten and dive deeper to fully appreciate.
Glad I gave this another full listen. Pretty fantastic record, particularly when Prince pushes his vocal cords to the extreme. The Beautiful Ones is my favorite, but there are several songs that I’m fond of.
Decent.
Pretty great. Wasn't the biggest fan of the vocals at the start but they employ a different style as it goes on (if not a different vocalist altogether). Some beautiful, busy music, in any case. Dreams Burn Down is fantastic.
3.5★. A seminal album partly because it's one of the earlier concept albums... except of course there is no overarching thematic or sonic ideas here, the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band framing device being employed only to open and close the show (and not even that, given that A Day in The Life is the actual closer). Anyhow, this is probably the most overrated Beatles album; I haven't listened to Let It Be sufficiently but this seems comfortably to be the worst collection of McCartney song, and he seems to be disproportionately represented here compared to the other albums. She's Leaving Home is the only songs of his that I like, and that lonely exception isn't exactly a career or album defining song. Nonetheless, an overrated Beatles album is still a pretty good one. With A Little Help From My Friends is a lovely song (and credit where credit due, McCartney was the primary writer); Within You Without You is one of the most singular and wonderfully out-there Beatles songs; and when all else fails, Lennon is at the rescue, creating carnivalesque psychedelia (Being For The Benefit of Mr. Kite!) and everyday surrealism (the inimitable A Day In The Life) from, we are told, newspaper clippings. No one will ever convince me that they were comparable songwriters, whatever else musical talents Paul might have (had). (Which isn't to say that he isn't a great songwriter in his own right, there's just levels to it.)
Even regarded as only a fraction of its reputation it’s still pretty damn good.
Like a pleasant, comforting coda played at the end of the line. The irony of the title (and the album's intent, I suppose) is that no airport would actually play this eerily calm music (though parts of e.g. 2/1 are more ”active” and heightened, for lack of better words); Eno's sounds are meant for a far stranger terminal, a transitional limbo to an alien country.
Have had some false starts with this prior but never been able to get into it... this time (or rather times) I was quite taken. I like many of the songs but I like the album even more as a one giant orchestral piece with many movements. It's just so luscious and multilayered, like a harmonic trip for the ears. And all this for what? For aw-shucks Americana, simple boy-meets-girl (or boy-pines-after-girl) mawkishness. Quite funny. (Pretty incredible that I almost got this, Sgt. Pepper's, and Rumours in a row, interrupted only by Eno's Music For Airports. Would it be blasphemous to say that I like Eno's ambiance album as much as the others? Well, that's the case anyhow.)
Man, getting Sgt Pepper's, Rumours, Eno's Music For Airports, and Pet Sounds in a row (not to mention Prince's Purple Rain and Nas' Illmatic the previous week) spoilt me and made me forget how mediocre most of the list actually is. This is not totally irredeemable - I enjoyed it for its first two tracks - but the combination of the nasal voice and juvenile love lyrics just sounds stupid after a while, though in a ho-hum rather than offensive way.
Decent first song and nothing else
Decent music, mediocre lyrics, bad vocals.
Battery is great, the rest is decent, give or take. This type of metal tends to have dimishing returns for me.
Listened only to 5 songs here (i.e. a third) before dipping to spare myself from the boredom.
3.5★. Consistently good, but that praise is double-edged and might serve as an indictment given that its consistency also amounts to a monotonousness. (Still really good though.)
I just can't get into the stilted, stuffy, self-serious vocals…
3.5★. A bit of a hit-and-miss. The good stuff (Get Innocuous, Someone Great, All My Friends, New York, I Love You but You're Bringing Me Down) is great but I don’t care much for the rest.
That was pretty great.
3.5★. Hey, why does Paul McCartney have writing credit on this song? (Sweet Thing) *Dude starts singing Blackbird out of nowhere* Oh. Fisherman's Blues and When Will We Be Married slap. Something about We Will Not Be Lovers just hits deeply (it's probably my favorite song of the bunch). And The Stolen Child is powerfully suggestive and elusive.
Will need to revisit but for now I enjoy this and nothing more. The middle parts of the second track drags with little progression and the 9-minute preamble to 18-minute By The Time I Get To Phoenix (so that's where Injury Reserve got their album title from) doesn't exactly endear it in my eyes. So really the opening track is doing a lot of the heavy lifting here.
3.5★. A little long and soft but still lots to like here.
Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music transformed into Love Songs to Slow Dance To. Too respectable and inoffensive to fully embrace at such a length, especially given the lack of variation. The backing choir on I can’t Stop Loving You sound incredible though.
I've listened to Glory Box and Roads many many times now but only listened to this album for the first time a few months ago (and didn't revisit it much either, knowing that it'd eventually pop up here anyways). It's pretty much the epitome of embodying a mood and sound, with the doomed, dark romance thoroughly permeating the entire thing. "Give me a reason to love you Give me a reason to be a woman I just wanna be a woman"
"Surprisingly good" is what'd I say if Blackstar didn't literally come out after this but this does surprisingly sound very close to his earlier materials - I guess the Blackstar voice was more affected than premused. Similarity with his early material is not a guarantee of success or resonance with me but in this case I enjoyed the album as a whole, even if there weren't too many standouts.
Decent/fine/whatever-lukewarmly-positive-adjective-you-wanna-use.
Sleepy and bland vocals.
Having only listened to Harder Than You Think (which is an incredible banger) and Fight The Power, I was excited to finally check out some more Public Enemy. Unfortunately I didn't end up liking this; I found it unvarying in its raps and flows, which makes the length feel even more interminable.
Many interesting and pleasant sounds here but Mitchell's vocals isn't one of them. Edith and the Kingpin is a great track.
Barely three stars just for Sam Cooke's energy, though I was not crazy about the songs themselves. More importantly, live albums are just an awkward middle ground that I find hard to appreciate since the thing that makes live performances special is actually being there (says the man who has never gone to a concert!).
Ah, it’s been a couple of years since I listened to this, so pleasant to encounter it here. Never understood all the Radiohead comparisons but it seems more obvious now, though most of the similarities seem to me in the vocals rather than the music. In any case, this album has plenty of lovable bangers, and I don’t recall finding Take a Bow to be one of my favorites, but now it definitely is.
Strangely restrained for being so funky, which I found really interesting even if I couldn’t get into the album fullt. Need to give this some more closer listens as I didn’t give it the best of circumstances to impress even if I listened to it twice though. Still liked it.
Sounds like R.E.M., which is not a good thing in my case… though I probably actually prefer this - which is far more energetic/less self-serious - to R.E.M.
Sorry but I don’t care about your sad songs about a robot-fighting anime girl or whatever.
3.5★. Very enjoyable (though a bit same-y) and nothing more.
3.5★. Really enjoyed this.