My 1001 Albums Journey

Album	You	Global	Diff
What's That Noise?	5	2.78	+2.22
Go Girl Crazy	5	2.85	+2.15
Kimono My House	5	3.06	+1.94
Nothing's Shocking	5	3.17	+1.83
Since I Left You	5	3.28	+1.72

Album	You	Global	Diff
Funeral	1	3.57	-2.57
1984	1	3.51	-2.51
Urban Hymns	1	3.35	-2.35
S&M	1	3.26	-2.26
Nighthawks At The Diner	1	3.01	-2.01

Artist	Albums	Avg	Score
Steely Dan	3	5	4
Pink Floyd	3	5	4
Michael Jackson	2	5	3.8
OutKast	2	5	3.8

Artist	Albums	Avg	Score
Arcade Fire	2	1.5	2.4

1984

Van Halen

1/5

Just a genuinely annoying fucking album. I would bet money on every song here being featured prominently in some shlocky Happy Madison production or something of that ilk. Highlights (AKA Things I hated the least) Jump: *** I'll Wait: *** House of Pain: ** 1/2

Thriller

Michael Jackson

5/5

I mean what the fuck else can I rate this? There are several tracks in Bad that I prefer over this but this is a more consistently strong album altogether. A little frontloaded in terms of having some of his biggest hits in the first half. Highlights Thriller: ***** Still feels wrong without the music video accompanying it, still an iconic song nonetheless. I think the Vincent Pryce section might be etched into my brain (apparently he chose a flat sum of money over royalties for the song lmao). Wanna be Startin 'Somethin': ***** Such a groovy fucking opener, immediate confidence from the get-go. Might be one of MJ's catchiest beats. The way it feeds in from the opening is infinitely satisfying Beat It: ***** My favourite of the album. Feels more like something that would be on Bad than the rest of this album. Might be the best guitar work in his music (a tie up between this and Dirty Diana for me)

Can't Buy A Thrill

Steely Dan

5/5

WARNING: This album will complete your metamorphosis into being a middle aged man. I could feel my hairline regressing to around a Norwood 5 by the time 'Reelin in the years' had come on. No wonder I'm more interested in watching sports these days. This Album really has it all, a wonderful track selection with not a single dull track, a groovy vibe, people getting cucked in the lyrics. Hell even the cover art looks like some shit you would see painted on the side of the rides at some shitty fairground (next to some weird painting of Elvis singing a duet with The Incredible Hulk or something). I had only heard maybe 1 or 2 songs on this album beforehand and was surprised at how one of those didn't even cut it for my favourites of this album. Highlights Do it Again, Midnite Cruiser, Reelin in the Years, Change of the Guard

Gunfighter Ballads And Trail Songs

Marty Robbins

4/5

I had so many albums that I needed to do catchup on that I nearly forgot there was 1 or 2 that I missed before I joined the group. Fun listen nonetheless. Obviously best known in my generation for le funny Fallout NV song but there are bangers throughout.

Reggatta De Blanc

The Police

3/5

I was promised WHITE REGGAE. What I got were elements of reggae infused into new wave rock. All while the cunty bartender dad from Lock Stock & Two Smoking Barrels puts on a funny accent and sings over it. I didn't hate this Going in I was already aware of Message in a Bottle. My memory of it wasn't as favorable as I recalled, this song is definitely worthy of its success beyond this album. I liked It's Alright for You and Bring on the Night quite a bit as well. But the big surprise/standout for me was Walking on the Moon. This song as well as Message in a Bottle are the two best instances of Sting's Carribean inflections. I love the opening to this one especially, the echo of the guitar between its very intermittent chords. It feels like this overseeing presence in the song as you are mostly accompanied by the Bass and Drums. I am a real sucker for dreamlike soundscapes in music and this one was really nice. Unfortunately the rest of the album was either very middling in quality or pretty bad. On Any Other Day stuck out to me as being particularly bad, the over-pronunciation of the lyrics in this American accent got on my nerves almost immediately. I could almost see this song being good if they took it in a different direction. The revelation of their son being gay is pretty funny if not for just how it dates the song. Not sure if this one was just a victim of being so early in the rankings that it became a punching bag but I don't see how its worse than a lot of the other music we have gotten so far.

Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not

Arctic Monkeys

3/5

Sometimes you just gotta go with your gut on something. I don't know why I tried listening to this on multiple seperate occasions between one another wondering if my opinion would change. I was initially concerned my contempt for britpop given how commonplace it is on this ranking would affect my enjoyment of this even though the album is more of a modern derivative that essentially paved what would become the new trend for hack british musicians to leech off of. But no, every time I gave it a listen I just came out of it thinking it was just sorta decent, nothing really grabbed out at me as being something I would like to throw in a playlist either. By no means a bad listen though, and each time I appreciated the novelty of the time capsule aspect, this just oozes the mid 2000's

Songs Of Leonard Cohen

Leonard Cohen

4/5

I think I picked the perfect times to listen to this, first in the afternoon after work, then on a slow Friday. These songs were very easy to mellow out with, and I got to appreciate the lyricism here (the real highlight of the album) since I didn't need to focus as much on other things at the time. I am conflicted on how to score this though, these really only just pass as music, rather than poetry readings on audible. Cohen's voice is not unpleasant but you can tell he is not exactly trying to wow anyone with his singing and is letting the writing do the work for him. The only songs where I find he comes to closest to really singing are Teachers and So Long, Marianne (coincidentally, two of the better songs on here 😲) Similarly, the instrumentals are very basic and feel like they are only there to justify all of this being an album. But these simple tunes work because they don't overshadow the draw of the album, Cohen's writing. Highlights Master Song, Sisters of Mercy, So Long Marianne

At Fillmore East

The Allman Brothers Band

5/5

The last but certainly not least of all of the albums I missed when I first joined a group for this list. I'm really of two minds on how much I enjoy this. It's a live album (though much more clearly recorded than some others on this list) and is incredibly long, not just in the total album runtime, but the individual tracks/sequences themselves. It can also feel pretty aimless in terms of how a lot of it is just them going ham on the instruments and not much else. With all that being said god damn I loved listening to this, incredibly groovy and despite being long and feeling aimless as I mentioned, it held my interest on multiple listens. This was one where I absolutely wanted to give it a 2nd shot not just because I enjoyed it on the first go, but to see how it would feel as a repeat listen, since the nature of this album and how it is broken up doesn't really make it an easy one to just pick up and listen to a few bits out of. Thinking about which side of 4 or 5 this lands on is tough. Though I think if it is up your alley and you're looking for something to put on in the background for an hour you won't be disappointed with this

Slippery When Wet

Bon Jovi

3/5

I have not listened to this full album before and my knowledge of it is limited to the 2 or 3 biggest titles (mostly represented at the front of the track list) as well as one song which incites immediate laughter in me due to its connection to an autistic alcoholic stoner who was victim to people trolling him by exposing their genitals to him on skype As for the album itself it really melds into this odd rock opera about a boisterous pervert with hair like Daryl Hannah in Blade Runner, who consumes whatever vices are presented to them (I believe this is what they call hair metal). I can't really speak much to the individual tracks as they felt too similar. It's dumb but has a lot of energy in the performance, I don't really know what else to say

Searching For The Young Soul Rebels

Dexys Midnight Runners

2/5

I did a bit of additional research to further inform my review and noticed that Dexys Midnight Runners are an English band. This came as a surprise to me as none of the lead singers vocals registered as that language in my head. His slurred and overly performative way of singing was a detractor from most of this album and often had me wondering if this man rode the shortbus or if the recording booth reeked of Pale Ale during those jam sessions. The brass on the other hand was a nice change of pace from what I am used to hearing and while a bit obnoxious at times was the highlight of the album (its introduction in the 4th track did jumpscare me though). I feel like the faster paced, more poppy tracks worked better for me than the slower and more sappy ones as they were carried by the energy of the instruments rather than being harbored down by the lead singers moody mimicry of his native tongue (his backup singers thankfully help him seem legible on some tracks). I feel as though track #3 (The teams that meet in Caffs) was my favorite track by proxy of it being a purely instrumental song. The rating ends up meeting itself somewhere in the middle due to the Yin/Yang that is the pleasant instrumentals versus a lead singer with a baffling way that he has chosen to sing There were moments where I was nervous this album was going to devolve completely into Ska music

Guero

Beck

3/5

Tried listening to this a few times over the extended review period and idk, it's just fine??? I don't really have anything witty to say for this one, it's just a little collection of various styles of alt-rock, each track was pretty unique I suppose The first half of this album made me feel like I was listening to the licensed soundtrack to an EA Sports title from 2004-2007

Lady Soul

Aretha Franklin

4/5

Unfortunately this [REALLY GREAT] website seems to have lost everything I had written for todays album, this makes me sad as I had actually written a bit more than I had initially expected for this. To summarize my initial thoughts, this was an unexpected surprise for a genre I think almost everyone is familiar with but is not something most people from our generation would consider themselves 'fans' of. 'A Natural Woman' is the song I am both most familiar with as well as it being by far my favorite track of the album. Lastly I wanted to emphasize how well her vocals complimented the energy of the instruments. Using a comparison with Dexy's Midnight Runners from last week and how I thought the stroke the caught on live mic from the vocalist was a detriment to the rest of the album and did not match. This album was the complete opposite. Despite my positivity though I am not sure where to put this with my final rating, as good as it is I do wonder if this is something I would regularly listen to, as I feel like that should be criteria for giving something a perfect rating.

Forever Changes

Love

2/5

For some reason my original review has messed up once again, this time my saved review was what I had written for Guero, I will try to summarize my thoughts once again I thought this album was going to have something going for it at the start as the first few songs (particularly the first track) were very nice, the album quickly meanders into very plain, almost timid sounding music I am not sure of what the bands usual sound is but this album felt like the equivalent of someone coming on stage to give a big 'rah rah' speech after they had only come up with their opening hook.

Sister

Sonic Youth

2/5

Beauty Lies in the Eye had me waiting for the opening to end, when I looked down at my phone to see the progress bar and seeing that there was only 20 seconds left of the song Stereo Sanctity concludes with multiple shrill shredding riffs to signify the end of the song, when this persisted for another 10 to 15 seconds I was thinking to myself 'okay I get it'. I feel so naive in hindight, not knowing this would be my gripe with pretty much the rest of the album. There are times when the music in this is going really well, and as a whole I feel I should vibe with this kind of experimental rock, but then it will be interrupted by a 30 second outro of the guitarist frotting against either the chords or the whammy bar on his guitar and it just hurts the experience even more.

Merriweather Post Pavilion

Animal Collective

4/5

I sure am glad I didn't write this one off due to its adoration from the music section of a certain Cantonese cave painting forum. This whole thing was a pretty cool trip to be honest. My first listen was a total trippy breeze, a lot of the tracks felt like they naturally segue from one song to another. This felt like a coming of age story in the way things move. Smaller tracks would set the ambiance for different stages of life, bridging the way to the bigger and more bombastic tracks being our fondest memories we hold onto. This was a nice contrast to how many of these albums we have been given so far which feel front-loaded with the best of the album before waning in quality as it goes along. The opening track feels like the beginning of life, especially with the distant fleshy pulsating in the back of the opening, before making its way into the calm but uncertain times of a child. These first 3 tracks gave an odd sinking feeling at times. Summertime Clothes by contrast is this ecstatic burst of joy, an anthem of the good times in life, the feeling continues across the next few tracks but slowly wanes away as the tracks took on a more somber tone. Feeling like either the end of a night of celebration or even the joys of childhood & adolescence being dulled away by the mundane routine of adulthood. Brother Sport brought back the joy of earlier tracks, and as the final song feels like it is the start of something new. On top of finding fun in the albums structure, and I will probably prefer to listen to the full album whenever I put this on again in the future. There are plenty of individual songs in this that were just really good. I definitely meshed better with the psychedelic stylings on this rather than what was presented in 'Forever Changes' a few days ago. If I had to nitpick anything it would be that a few of the last tracks before Brother Sport were not as good, and that some of the line delivery in a few songs where it was purposefully stilted didn't land with me. I'm really glad to have finally found something new in this list that I will definitely come back to in the future. Favourite Tracks - Summertime Clothes - Bluish - In The Flowers

The Queen Is Dead

The Smiths

5/5

Not nearly as bad as I had expected, my biggest prolonged exposure to The Smiths was David Fincher's The Killer and I didn't mind it there but wasn't sure if it was something I would go out of my way to listen to. On my first listen through which I tried to avoid interrupting, I was definitely left with the impression that the album was mostly a sad and mopey affair towards the middle and end of the tracklist. When I was going back through and paying more attention to the individual songs my opinion changed a little and felt that there were definitely some songs that added a bit of levity to an otherwise delicate and moody album. Even with the few songs that did sound like already treaded ground, the songs themselves were not bad. There was also a lot of humour in the album, morbid or otherwise which was fun. That line about the double decker bus was certainly something. Highlights - The Queen is Dead The titular track fucking rocks, felt distinct from the rest of the album with just how traditionally Rock & Roll it felt compared to the rest of the album (Bigmouth is maybe the only song I feel was in line with this track). Why couldn't Sonic Youth have the same restraint this song does with using the whammy bar to close the song out? - Frankly, Mr. Shankly "I want to catch something that I might be ashamed of" Was Morrissey a bug chaser? Goofy fucking song (not derogatory) - I Know It's Over Probably my favourite of the more moody side of this album. Morrissey has an interesting way of singing, he has this voice of a cunty yodeler. The kind of thing you would expect some obnoxious bard you're not supposed to like to have in some fantasy setting. But have to begrudgingly appreciate his talent - Never Had No One Ever Again, kinda getting into familiar territory from this point forward but still a nice song. The part with the whistling was nice and eerie - Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others BBW/Architect Anthem. The Guitar on this song is fantastic and had me jamming out to a track I would probably otherwise just laugh at. I suppose that's not necessarily a bad thing, it was nice to end on a more fun track too.

Bad

Michael Jackson

5/5

Little Michael does it again Bad is aggressively 80's, absurdly catchy and unfortunately, a tad underwhelming with only a FEW select songs. Michael is similar to James Cameron in that they are both extremely talented creators who surround themselves with equally competent staff and crew to help make their productions the most polished pieces they can make. This shine can obfuscate the flaws of a bad film in Cameron's case, but when you are dealing with something as segmented as an album it doesn't quite work. Some of these songs are not necessarily 'Bad', but stick out like a sore thumb while sitting next to some of the most genre defining tracks of the era. This shouldn't take away from how incredible the highs of this album are. It has nearly all of my favourite MJ tracks in one place, each of which lift to the equivalent of a 9/10, but prevent me from being able to say it is perfect album. I don't even know what to discuss about the things I liked in this album (I feel like it is all self-evident). Some of these songs are Michael operating at 100%. A lot of it is similarly in-your-face as Thriller. The amount of synth in this album feels like a very rich meal, where it is so plentiful that you will enjoy it at first but might be a little sick by the end if you don't have the stomach for it (I thankfully did). On top of having some of my favourite MJ tracks in songs like Bad, Smooth Criminal and Dirty Diana (those starfuckers got a crazy ass song after them huh) I feel like each of these work better as songs than Thriller does. Where these are all great songs with equally incredible music videos (the synchronised dance in Smooth Criminal goes unnecessarily hard) I always felt like there was a piece missing when you didn't experience Thriller with the music video included. I don't know what the fuck they were thinking with Speed Demon, I enjoy the instrumentals on this one but feel taken aback by the lyrics. A really dumb song even by pop music standards that feels like it was born from the brain trust of 'badass' Michael Jackson iconography (remember at the end of the Black or White music video where he is screaming in the rain then just animorphs into a panther?) Liberian Girl is a similar situation, where parts of the song individually are really fucking good but I can't see myself wanting to listen to it. Another case where it would be better as just an instrumental track. The backup singers towards the end salvage it a little bit too.

Cypress Hill

3/5

This Album had just the right amount of Scooby Doo representation that I want out of an album without it feeling like pandering. I felt a little numb to the lyrics in these songs and sorta tuned them out after a while. Some of the beats they have are really good though. How I Could Just Kill a Man is a classic and the best part of the first half, I honestly preferred everything in the 2nd half of the album a lot more.

The Healer

John Lee Hooker

3/5

The Healer (of my insomnia lol) Wow this one was a letdown for me, I was excited to finally see some blues on this list but good lord nothing here stood out... ...With the exception of that first song with Carlos Santana holy shit the title song is a legitimate 5/5 track, it's pretty cheesy but I love the atmosphere it sets, the way it just introduces different elements of sound throughout its opening really set this apart and left me hoping this album would have more tracks like this that really sought to stretch what they could do with the genre. Though you could even argue this was a Santana song that Hooker was featured on, given this is the guest track that felt the most heavily influenced from its guest attraction. As it turns out, everything else in this album is just adequate, perfectly listenable but nothing standout and nothing I really think I would go out of my way to listen to again. The last 2 tracks are probably the only other ones I would say I really enjoyed. I was surprised with myself for having such a harsh reaction to this album, and wanted to give myself a bit more of a perspective on it. So I took a bit of a look at the history of this album and listened to some of Hookers other songs. While I couldn't name him off the top of my head I had heard plenty of his songs and he is certaintly a terrific musician. From what I read the accolades this album receives feel more like legacy praise than an apprection of this album in particular. A way to acknowledge someone who was overlooked in the past and compensate for their lack of recognition. A recent example of this would be Jamie Lee Curtis' win as a supporting actress in the 2023 Oscar season. Regrettably it seems that Hookers other albums (like so many others) were cut from this list because the editors were on an Elvis Costello/David Bowie/Morrissey binge, so I will not be able to give praise to the work that I actually enjoyed (I hope I'm mistaken). Standouts The Healer: ***** My Dream: **** No Substitute: **** 1/2

A Date With The Everly Brothers

The Everly Brothers

2/5

Did they have somewhere to be when recording this? Baffling that a 12 song album is just short of 28 minutes long. Reminds me of The Beach Boys. These guys really loved getting bitches didn't they? Not really bad just very boring and repetitive. I don't have much to say about this one unfortunately due to the duration and simplicity of a lot of it. Highlights Love Hurts: ***1/2 Lucille: *** A Change of Heart:***

Paul's Boutique

Beastie Boys

4/5

Probably the most fun listen outside of MJ or Animal Collective so far. The samples used for their beats in this one are a real standout. Their style of yelling out one liners you feed the substitute teacher doesn't really grate on my nerves like it seems to with others but can make the album a bit samey in places. I feel like a lot of my favourite songs from this band come from other albums on this list. Highlights Shake Your Rump: ****1/2 Very bombastic opener, maybe their most underrated song. great lyrics and beat throughout Egg Man: **** Goofy ahh song, very catchy despite using psycho of all things as a sample lmao B-Boy Bouillabaisse: **** What even was this? a 12 minute mashup chopped up? its own mini album? I liked how a lot of it felt less over-produced than a lot of the other songs. It was basically a little demo reel of Beastie Boys. It starts a little slower but really picks up between stop that train and hello brooklyn.

Kid A

Radiohead

3/5

Wow, the titular 'Kid A' song right near the beginning was bloody dreadful. It felt like I was being waterboarded with the T-1000's liquids. There were some pretty nice songs afterwards though! Everything in its right place grew on me with repeated listens (though some of the weird digitized garble in the back sounds like some annoying pixie trying to get my attention). The National Anthem was a pretty bizarre track which I feel weird about enjoying, definitely a standout for how chaotic it is for a band that is often criticized for droning on too much. Treefingers was probably my favorite song, such a lovely ambiance. Favourite Songs: Treefingers, Optimistic, The National Anthem Least Favourite Song: Kid A

The Good, The Bad & The Queen

2/5

Did someone rip ass into the microphone at the start of Kingdom of Doom? "There's a noise in the sky", No I think one of you needs to check for skidmarks. Man, I don't know if I just wasn't vibing with this one or if my mood was off but I don't think I felt a single thing listening to this. I am aware of a few of the members of this super group and like The Clash and Gorrillaz well enough. It felt technically competent in most places, but also void of any emotional investment. Damon Albarn described it as a mystery play themed around London so perhaps being bland was the intention? If it somehow was it doesn't make for a memorable experience. I listened to this twice and don't think there was a single standout or memorable track. There was also plenty of parts where the supergroup part felt like it might have hurt the production, a too many cooks kind of scenario where people didn't want to compromise on their vision and it just ends up sounding like the induction day for your Grade 1 music class, they even had someone smashing away at the triangle at some point.

Nighthawks At The Diner

Tom Waits

1/5

Imagine Johnny Cash's Live at Folsom/San Quentin albums. Now swap the legitimate and interesting setting of a concert in prison with a fake TV studio-esqe Jazz club set with a small group invited studio audience. Now remember Johnny's little gaffs and jokes he usually has to segue between songs? They are going to take up half the runtime of the album. Also, they aren't going to be funny. Also, instead of Johnny Cash we are going to get some mumbling dolt who is trying his hardest to sound like an old black soul musician, only to end up sounding like the love child of Chris Rock and Randy Newman. Now take that down a point or two from your expectations. The music that you can even make out over Tom's mumbling is perfectly adequate, unfortunately with how much the guy is rambling on you can't even enjoy it as simple background music. I think this was the first time in this list that I was checking to see how much longer I had to listen to this shit.

The La's

2/5

This was mostly serviceable, poppy rock songs that were occasionally hamstrung by an inconsistent lead singer. He has weird nasally octave he hits that was really unpleasant to hear. The one track that was a supposed hit from this album didn't really impress me that much either, honestly the bonuses at the end were my favourite parts of this whole thing. Also, writing a song called 'Timeless Melody' and then just making a generic pop rock song is very funny Highlights Over (Live) I.O.U (Alternate Version)

Superfly

Curtis Mayfield

4/5

Damn, that shit was groovy. No wonder it went on to outshine the movie it spawned from. My biggest (and really only) issue is how frontloaded it feels, with my 3 favourites from the album being the first 3 songs. Everything after it feels more incidental and (as it very much is) backing tracks to set pieces of the movie. I think the biggest downside to these is the either lack or absence from Mayfields vocals. That being said the album has a song called Junkie Chase so what the hell am I even doing complaining about this I was also going to review the movie itself as a little side piece but couldn't find a reliable streaming version of it. Highlights Little Child Running Wild Pusherman Freddies Dead

Machine Head

Deep Purple

4/5

Truly a monumental accomplishment in corny dad rock. As well as being the soundtrack to the new developments in many peoples lives. We all knew that one annoying kid who thought learning the start of Smoke on the Water was the coolest shit ever, and I guarantee Highway Star was involved in a number of fatal road collisions (and one intergalactic space anomaly collision for my beltalowda). I was honestly more interested in the lesser known tracks on this compared to the hits that I am more well versed in. The repeated motifs, mostly lifted from Highway Star were a nice bit that felt like it made the album a more complete piece (though my cynical side wonders if they just wanted to reuse parts from other songs). The biggest surprise on this was Lazy. I liked a few of the other songs that I wasn't familiar with before like Maybe I'm a Leo and Pictures of Home. But Lazy came out of nowhere and might be my favourite song on this thing. I've never considered Deep Purples vocals to be their strong suit, I don't know if it's just the mixing but the vocals always feel like they don't take the command of a song like most others do and feel like they are usually performed in spoken word or at their most emphatic an angsty yell. Lazy doesn't really suffer from this since it practically ignores vocals for about 2 thirds of the song and just jams out, the actual singing feeling aptly lazy. It starts to feel like it takes on a blues feeling too as it moves along. Especially when they whip out the harmonica. This shit is definitely getting added to some playlists.

Tellin’ Stories

The Charlatans

3/5

Probably my favorite piece of British Rock encountered this far on this list. This albums thrilling and intoxicating pop-infused rock tracks definitely sped past my initial expectations, but definitely hit a speed bump or two when it comes to my faults. Songs like How High and Only Teethin' really stood out to me, taking this album to exhilirating new speeds with their guitar riffs and piano/organ performances really breaking past the proverbial sun roof and plunging the album to new heights. This pleasantry comes to a harsh and sudden stop when I notice the lack of said piano in the mix, what happened to that guy? Why was he only in a few tracks. This leads me to my biggest issue which seems to plague 9/10 brit rock bands being the lead singer. This was more of a 'The La's' issue than a Dexy's one. Instead of being consistently irritating, the singer was just kinda just swerving all over the place in quality. The album ends on a very nice instrumental piece titled Rob's Theme. This song is just a good vibe, the kind of thing you put on after a bit of casual daydrinking and want to go for a Sunday drive in your BMW 520i to. The 1 and 2 ratings on this song feel like a real robbery of this bands accomplishments. I hope my modest, yet positive review can serve as a figurative getaway driver from such negativity. Highlights Rob's Theme 🍺🚘🛣️💈💥🚗💀

Live 1966 (The Royal Albert Hall Concert)

Bob Dylan

2/5

I think the novelty of this album is lost on me. Without the story and the legacy attached to this event this is kind of a failure of a live album. I'd say historically I don't mind Bob Dylan, he's got a funny way of singing that is good for a laugh but I don't think I would change stations on the radio if he came on. I can see why people get annoying at the abundance of the harmonica but it never really bothered me. But this really is a piss poor excuse for a live album. I am sure they worked the best magic they could in 1998 to salvage a live recording from 1966 to some extent but the quality is mediocre at best and feels very flippant with what audio is received/how it is balanced. During the acoustic section in the first half his voice is captured at its clearest. But the guitar is much quieter, making it feel insignificant to the performance. Then the harmonica will come in and seemingly top out whatever microphone Bob is blowing it into. If this album is what has frozen a majority of listeners into suffering PTSD from his harmonica I honestly wouldn't blame you. Secondly, on how it feels like a failure of a live album. I don't think this is their best performances. Bob is fine during the first half, but the poor mixing of his guitar and the lack of any other performers other than him make this section feel like one long drag. The electric portion was better on average in my opinion. The addition of new elements sets the songs apart more and his band 'The Hawks' felt like they put a lot of energy into their performance. My biggest gripe with that half is the vocals, I don't know if it is the fault of the recording, or if Bob was exhausted or just pissed off (more on that in a moment) at this point in the show but he was a lot less intelligible in this half. During the final performance with 'Like a Rolling Stone' it almost felt like he was trolling the crowd with how he was dragging out the chorus. Lastly, for a live performance. There isn't really much that is showcased outside of the songs. You get a bit of the crowds reactions between songs in the acoustic section and the jump between songs on the album seems pretty seamless, which I am not sure if it is just an editing thing which this album clearly underwent. Or that the performers were just going through their songs like a shopping list so they could get out of there. That is until the electric section. Where the transition between songs is a lot more abrupt. You will get a small snippet of cheering at the end of a song, before a harsh cut into now crowd noise for their next song. That would be because these geniuses thought they could just carefully edit around the songs to try and hide the fact that the crowd for whatever reason turned against this concert during the electric portion. Reportedly, in the original audio there is a lot of booing and heckling between songs in the 2nd half. Were the audience misled into thinking they were just getting a traditional concert with just Bob? Was this protest against the more rock & roll focused 2nd half in contrast to his more folk music beginnings? Either way it is a bitch made thing to do, especially when trying to present this as a legacy recording of a live event. I was initially considering being more generous and giving this a 3 considering my enjoyment of the 2nd half, but them tampering with one of the live elements of the show (which should be half the justification for why the recording sounds the way it does n the first place) doesn't sit right with me. This also has me wondering how I will enjoy Bob Dylan albums further into this list. Because while I may like him here and there I could see his style getting on my nerves if I have to sit down and listen to it for upwards of an hour.

D.O.A. the Third and Final Report of Throbbing Gristle

Throbbing Gristle

1/5

13 SPOOKY/UNSETTLING AMBIENT CREEPYPASTA SONGS [ROYALTY FREE, LINK IN DESCRIPTION] Every time I have thought about this and how they are definitely capable of creating an atmosphere with their unsettling ambient tracks, I am reminded of how I had to sit around and listen to a whole track with someone wailing hit by a rock and just get annoyed again. And what is with this nonce cover art? Makes you wonder what one of the lead composers was doing when he died in Thailand back in 2010 Highlight: AB/7A

I Should Coco

Supergrass

2/5

Wow, this list has frontloaded us with a lot of British Pop-Rock albums. Surely there must only be a few of them left at this point, right? While I think this album is going to get grilled pretty harshly by our group due to britpop fatigue. I don't think there was any salvaging this one to begin with. Maybe I'm just feeling too cynical as well. But a majority of the songs in this album feel too repetitive. I get that this is a pretty basic criticism that can be applied to pop in general. But a lot of the first half of this album just felt like a selection of 1 minute chorus loops with some basic instrumentals to feed itself together with. More than any I have heard in a while felt really desperate to create a catchy hit song. With most of them just feeling forgettable. In my darkest moments of basic indifference to this music, just as I was hoping for something interesting to happen with the album. The monkeys paw finally curled and gave me the song 'We're not supposed to'. These guys were real innovators I tell you, doing an Alvin and the Chipmunks edit of one of their own songs back in 1995. I also thought it was funny how they tried to do a bit of an artsy flourish by having the instrumentals of Strange Ones fade naturally into the beginning of Sitting up Straight. Because for whatever reason they thought it would be nifty if these two generic britpop songs just melded together my brain even more than they already would have. Sofa of Lethargy was probably the closest thing on this album to something I would put on one of my play lists. That along with a few of the catchier tracks at the start are the only things making me give this a lenient 2 grade. Highlights Lenny Alright Sofa of Lethargy

Getz/Gilberto

Stan Getz

5/5

A welcome change of pace for our list so far. This was some of the easiest listening we have had so far. I felt like the music was going to tell me to sit down and not work so hard during my first listen on the job. The easy nature does make some parts of the album bleed into each other without much to differentiate the tracks. But I would still say there are highlights, particularly any of the tracks including Astrud Gilberto's singing alongside the main male vocalist. I am not sure how to aptly describe it, but everyone here feels like they are giving the appropriate level of effort to this if it makes sense. It's more of a quiet confidence that the album exudes, with all of the individuals involved getting a track where I feel they really shine. This album really reminded me that I should probably make a Jazz/Bossa Nova playlist Highlights Everything (Particularly The Girl from Ipanema, both versions. Corcovado. Vovo Sonhando and So Danco Samba)

Hms Fable

Shack

2/5

Aaaaaand back to our regularly schedule britpop to make us question our reason for doing this list. I don't even want to go into detail on this, it's not something I'll listen to again, nor is it something that has had any sort of longstanding reputation. It didn't chart well on its release and the Wikipedia article basically just says 'yeah, this album exists. Also it placed in a few ranking lists. I'm not even giving this the courtesy of a 1 rating because for all the issues I had with some of the albums I have given a 1 so far, they did not leave me feeling bored or indifferent towards their existence. I don't even want this scarring the bottom of my summary page on the hall of shame. It would simply be better to just forget this and move on.

At San Quentin

Johnny Cash

5/5

This is the kind of thing I want out of a live album. I am glad to have been given two similar albums previously which can be compared to this. Because they both struggled to accomplish what the prison albums from Johnny Cash achieved. Tom Waits' simulated live diner experience was just that. A faux live performance where Waits spent too much time doing shtick without enough actual music. Bob Dylan's Royal Albert Hall album was almost the opposite. Sticking to just the music and minimizing or in some instances censoring the live audience for a live album. When you present this without these parts of the experience, while also being a bootleg album with much poorer sound quality than the studio versions of these songs it feels almost redundant. Today's album on the other hand skips most of these shortcomings at least. Compared to his album from Folsom this is definitely more of a fun, showman style. They emphasize his banter and jokes a lot more and seem to have recorded the live audience a lot better. And you can tell this was a riot for them. The way they pop off in celebration whenever Johnny makes a gag at the expense of the prison or at the system itself. With some bits in there about the recidivism and the prisons failure to reform those it contained. While I like a lot of the more somber songs he uses in the second half of his Folsom album. I can see why they pretty much ditched that for most of this. As not only did this selection of tracks create a more lively atmosphere but this album was also being recorded for a UK broadcast, with them trying to dictate what he should play. He would later in the set famously flip off the crew for this and for getting in the way of the crowd. That being said. I wish the standard version of this album had more to it. It's about 15 minutes shorter than Live at Folsom, contains a lot more banter and one of the songs is a reprise of what was performed just before it. I'm not sure who made this decision but it almost makes the fun feel like it's over before it even begins. I still think the songs chosen and the energy of the live crowd carry this. But I reckon Live at Folsom has a better balance of performance and crowd interaction while also having a bigger and better variety of songs. Highlights A Boy Named Sue, I Walk the Line, San Quentin (Both Performances), Peace in the Valley.

Palo Congo

Sabu

3/5

Really glad to see things like this get some recognition. Especially after feeling like I was being suffocated with moldy beige paint equivalent that was Shack and The La's. I liked the tracks that used all of the elements like El Cumbanchero and Choferito Plena. The more folky tracks felt more like a chant and got a bit repetitive for their duration. even by Pop or Electronica standards I thought these got a bit samey. That being said I think Asabache was my favourite song. They went fucking ham on that conga drum. This album was very easy to appreciate but outside of a few songs I'm not sure if it was something I would come back to outside of this list.

Stankonia

OutKast

5/5

It's genuinely impressive how this album stays so varied given how long it is. 1 Hour and 13 minutes including the interludes and yet I don't think I ever thought to myself that the album was feeling samey at any point. The quality of the beats are pretty top notch throughout. And Andre/Big Boi are incredible throughout. I've already spoken about the variety in this album but it's cool how for how different the style and delivery of the vocals is between songs it's still unmistakably them. Where I have some issues with the album are with some of the feature tracks. There are a lot of them and they range from being pretty good such as the opening Gasoline Dreams or Humble Mumble, to several that started to feel closer to being filler. Which does not feel necessary given the runtime of the album already. The interludes also bite into this a little bit but none ever go on past a minute and they are not baked into the songs so they can be easily skipped. I feel a little more inclined to give this a generous 9/10 or light 5 than push this to a 4 though. Highlights Red Velvet, B.O.B, Ms. Jackson, Gasoline Dreams, Humble Mumble, So Fresh So Clean, Stanklove

Back To Black

Amy Winehouse

4/5

I've got some odd feelings with this one. As nasty as the subject matter is and how it ultimately tied into Amy's fate. This is musically pretty fucking fantastic. But not necessarily something I would go to frequently. It's not that I'm put off by the subject matter or anything. But rather that I think this throwback soul kind of album really became prominent from weaker artists in no small part thanks to the success of Back to Black. I think this has partially made me feel a bit numb to these sorts of melodies in a sense, but I can definitely still appreciate what is on display here. The instrumentation and production feel sincere to the era it is trying to represent and Amy's voice is an incredible fit. In terms of tracks that stood out to me, the album doesn't really feel lopsided but rather like there is padding between each of the good parts. I really like the opening Rehab song, as well as the middle stretch between Back to Black and Tears Dry on their Own. The final song Addicted is also quite nice even if it's not my favourite song to close on, the juxtaposition between the opening and closing songs of course being fairly grim. And foreshadowing what was to come not long after the album. I feel like the rest of the album is good to decent but does not stand out to me as much given my previous reasoning. I find the global rating for this to be quite surprising, my rating is effectively spot on with it but I would say there are better albums than this I have seen so far that have much more middling scores. I would like to imagine this is not just the same issue that people complained about with positive posthumous reviews for Blackstar when that came out. Though I can see why this would be an album that a lot of people can feel strongly sentimentality and relatability with. 7.5 points above the BAC Limit/10 Highlights: Rehab, Back to Black, Love is a Losing Game, Tears Dry on Their Own

Go Girl Crazy

The Dictators

5/5

This was an awesome surprise. I was initially sceptical when I was told this was early punk/protopunk and saw the global rating. I was imagining some swampy gurgling over the top mess performed by people with so many piercings they would cause a national tragedy if they stood too close to an MRI machine. What I got however was a very accessible album with was solid to good all the way through. I don't know why my expectations went the way they did. Hearing the protopunk makes so much sense. It really sounds like a metamorphosis between 60's-70' classic Rock 'n Roll to something with a little more edge to it. The lyrics are all pretty nonsense but it fits with how silly the album feels as a whole. I really liked the lead guitar in this, especially whenever they got a moment to just shred away on their own on songs like Teengenerate and California Sun. I'm kinda surprised with how low the global score is on this one. From what I read it seems like quite a few were from people who were not impressed with the lyrics on songs like Back to Africa and Master Race Rock. Both songs were too goofy for me to find myself offended by but I don't know how I'd feel singing the hooks to some of these songs out loud. Also, last but not least I'd like to shoutout the bands Backup Vocalist/Poster Boy/Self Described 'Secret Weapon' Handsome Dick Manatoba. He was pretty funny in the songs he was in the back of and I liked his pro wrestling style and how he cut little promos before some of the songs he was on like The Next Big Thing and Two Tub Man. I feel like these guys would be pretty cool to see live. So yeah, surprisingly awesome album. I feel like it's just on the cusp of being a 5 for me if it maybe had 1 or 2 super stand-out songs. The only one I wasn't a big fan of was Cars and Girls but while everything else is good I wouldn't say I was completely in awe with them. Great album nonetheless that deserves a bit more recognition for the goofiness on display

What's That Noise?

Coldcut

5/5

"Are you gonna dance or what?" Sadly I mostly listen to these at work otherwise I would be. Maybe I'll crack off a quite 2-step when nobody's looking though. Just as a quite aside before getting into the album. Doing this list is what motivated me to stop being a broke piece of shit and actually stick to a spotify premium subscription. and yet less than 40 albums in I manage to get an album which isn't even on the platform. And that part's a real shame too, because I really loved this album. The collection of different elements from the synth, drum machines and different vocalists between tracks keep things very fun and fresh. The only song that I think left a bad impression was In Deep, where I was able to enjoy parts of it but was distracted by the drunkard that came in the booth and started sticking his tongue out right into the microphone. Thankfully he got it out of his system and security were able to escort him out of the studio before the next track was being done. I imagine this had to be pretty influential at its time, I recognize a lot of these samples that were used in other electronic music later on (Theme From "Reportage" was sed as the opening for an old Japanese prank show a while ago). I'm glad our first electronic album for this list was something so funky. Now I suppose I'll just have to see if I can still put local files onto my spotfiy somehow.. Highlights People Hold On, My Telephone, Theme from "Reportage", Stop This Crazy Thing, Smoke Dis One

Kimono My House

Sparks

5/5

Practically a 5 for Side A alone. I loved that for how gaudy and eccentric the glam rock style is, it's still very well structured and well made. I was worried after hearing the first track on my discover and enjoying it back then that it would be a bit of a one trick/style over substance album. I was pleasantly surprised to find it exceeding my expectations. I loved the guitar and keyboard in this album. In fact they would be the highlight for me if it weren't for the ridiculous vocals from singer Russel Mael. I was shocked to realize that not only were all of the vocals, both lead and backing lines performed by one person. But that it was a dude? This guy has incredible vocal range. Side B was perhaps not as good as A in my opinion but was still pretty great, with standouts there for me being Hasta Manana, Monisuer and Complaints. I think this will definitely be a very love it or hate it album for most though. In my case however, this was a great find from this list and something I have already included a lot of in my likes/playlists on Spotify Highlights: Amateur Hour, Complaints, Thank God It's not Christmas, This Town Ain't Big Enough for the Both of Us, Hasta Manana Monisuer.

The College Dropout

Kanye West

4/5

Bit of a short review today as Monday has been busier than usual. I think this is album that I respect the creation of more than the product itself, how personal it feels and the years of commitment it took to get it made. Obviously Kanye is a very controversial figure nowadays but I'd like to imagine people can appreciate the success story that this album was. All of that is not to say it's not a good album or anything either. It's such an easy listen with how goofy and fun a lot of it tries to be. I feel like a lot of artists these days use the soundscape of old soul in their hip hop as a form of window dressing. It feels insincere. In this case it was such an early case and still feels more innovative with how it was sampled and altered that it really feels like it set a new direction for rappers to take.

Music From Big Pink

The Band

4/5

With a name like 'The Band', I really expected this to be a lot more up it's own ass than it was. I was only familiar with Weight & Long Black Veil (covered by other artists) before this and seeing the folk/psychedelic genre tags had me feeling like this might not be up my alley similar to a previous album covered on the list. But this surprisingly won me over as it went along. I enjoyed the more psychedelic rock tracks here than the folk ones, not to say those are bad by any means though. On that note, while they have their own distinct sound, I liked that there was some separation between the country/folk music and the rock tracks. Rather than just merging them together for a whole album. Highlights: To Kingdom Come, This Wheels on Fire, I Shall Be Released, The Weight

The Cars

4/5

This had me going for a moment. between the classic rock stylings underneath the synth, a majority of the tracks being about affection towards a girl, and the album speeding by at close to 30 minutes. I thought someone had just dipped The Everly Brothers in a coat of New Wave paint and tried sneaking them back on the list. To be fair, I liked this quite a bit more than that album. Especially on a repeat listen. Highlights: Just What I Need, Moving in Stereo, All Mixed Up

The Soft Bulletin

The Flaming Lips

2/5

Probably the album I tried to give the best chance in recent memory. I was keen to give this a good listen when being introduced to the dreamy/trippy and often melancholic instrumentals. Being released right near the turn of the century feels interesting too, given the change in direction of the indie revival/'landfill' era that would come to follow. When the elements of this album work for me, they work really well. drums and other percussion don't usually come to the forefront for me when listening to music but there was something really attention grabbing about them here. 'The Soft Bulletin' feels like an appropriate title for the guitar in a lot of this, never too overbearing and feeling almost cloudy in the atmosphere they bring. Most of my gripes with this are with the singer. Who takes aspects of other irritating vocal performances I have had issues with previously and blends them together. His performance feels very sincere and is at times tolerable, but will then go into some sequence where he is choosing to either over-accentuate things in an overly American way, or going into this hoarseness in his throat that leaves him sounding scracthier than the Squeaky voiced Teen from The Simpsons. I think it actively made me like the album less on repeat listens the more I tried giving it a chance Highlights: Race for the Prize, The Spark That Bled

The Man Who

Travis

1/5

"The Man Who initially received mixed reviews and sold slowly. Boosted by the success of "Why Does It Always Rain on Me?" and the band's appearance at the 1999 Glastonbury Festival, it eventually spent a total of 11 weeks at number one on the UK Albums Chart and brought the band international recognition. As of 2018, according to Concord Music, The Man Who has sold over 3.5 million copies worldwide. It was among ten albums nominated for the best British album of the previous 30 years by the Brit Awards in 2010, losing to (What's the Story) Morning Glory? by Oasis." - John Wikipedia This statement is probably the biggest indictment of Britpop and its consequences I have seen from this list so far.

On The Beach

Neil Young

3/5

Not great, not terrible. Somehow I feel like that's what the album is comfortable being. It really does feel like a lazy day out. Takes me back to days on the beach where something like this would be playing on some crappy blue portable CD player (it would either be something like this or So Fresh 2003/2004). Alternatively you would probably hear something like this at the 'mancave' of that one distant family friend who's house you only ever went to once for some party. Wish I had a little more to say about the album itself. It's just very easy listening, I suppose I felt more attracted to the instrumentals than the singing. If we have another 7 albums from this guy I sure hope the other ones are as good or better than this. I'd certain take this over derivative britpop with no legacy to it whatsoever.

Superunknown

Soundgarden

4/5

Kind of a bloated album. For 70 minutes you would hope there would be enough to distinguish what's there and keep the music a bit more fresh but there's a few tracks that just felt redundant compared to better and similar tracks on the album. Chris Cornell's excellent vocals on the standout tracks really carry the more middling songs, it feels generous to give this a 4 but would also feel like a disservice to give a 3.

Raw Power

The Stooges

4/5

We already got a taste of proto-punk from 1975 a while ago. And yet here we go getting something which is somehow older and even sleazier than (The Dictators) Go Girls Crazy. I can't imagine the influence this album must have had. I'm also starting to think I enjoy punk a lot more than I had previously given it credit for, this landed in a very similar spot for me as our last punk album. in which pretty much everything included was somewhere ranging from good to great. If I had to compare the two I prefer the goofier nature of the previous punk album to this. But whats on display here is still only slightly below that in my opinion. As far as which version to listen to, I will primarily be rating the version provided by the website which is based on Iggy's mixes rather than those done by David Bowie. I like both of them and think they each have their own merits. Bowie's feels more focused on Iggy's vocal performance and can sometimes feel like it pushes the instrumentals out of focus too much (I mostly felt this on Bowie's version of Search & Destroy). It is still overall a better 'balanced' version. Iggy's really feels like it embodies 'Raw Power' in that it feels more loud and in your face, in some songs I actually preferred this but also found that it could be a bit grating in others. I would give Iggy's version a 7 and Bowie's an 8. Highlights: Search & Destroy, Gimme Danger, Raw Power, Shake Appeal

Odessa

Bee Gees

1/5

Remember that part in the Mr. Bean movie when Willem Dafoe debuts that self-fellating art house movie that nobody enjoys? It wasn't enough for this to be another instance of meandering nyquil-core from the late 60's. Everything about this album just screams insincere and trying too hard to appear artsy. My listening experience was already bad enough and I don't like to think this way about something since it feels anti-art to just dismiss something in such a way but I really cannot shake the douchey vibe this album gave me. 'I Will Laugh in Your Face', that's probably what they were thinking when they saw people giving this crap praise in retrospect since apparently people had the right idea initially and crapped on this album. What is the importance of keeping this on the 1001? So I can know The Bee Gees were dogshit when they weren't making disco tunes?

So

Peter Gabriel

5/5

Beautiful and Bombastic in equal parts. In my opinion the best Peter Gabriel album in terms of having the majority of my favourite tracks of his included. I think anyone could listen to this and come home with one or two new songs for their likes/playlists. Extra kudos to Sledgehammer for having arguably the greatest music video of all time. Highlights: In Your Eyes, Don't Give Up, Big Time, Sledgehammer, Red Rain

Figure 8

Elliott Smith

3/5

Bit of a quick review since I was busy with a few things and missed the time to really flesh anything out for this one. I really liked it initially and definitely enjoy the overall indie vibe that Smith has. Instrumentals are all great and his style of singing won me over by the end. That being said I feel like there is a lot of filler in the middle section of this album that just dragged on for a while. I'm not usually bothered by long/padded out albums but this one particularly felt long to me. Definitely liked the songs that stood out to me and would probably give this a 4 if they had trimmed out maybe 2 or 3 songs. I can definitely see why this would be a 5 for someone though. Highlights: LA, Junk Bond Trader, Better Be Quiet Now, Can't Make A Sound

Iron Maiden

4/5

While this album is pretty rad for a majority of its runtime. I don't see it as the high octane speedball of an album that some reviews are claiming it to be. I'd say it has an interesting mix of much more chill or even psychedelic moments in between the energy. Especially on tracks like Remember Tomorrow and Strange World. That's not to say this is trying to be high in concept or artsy, it's pretty classic Metal and doesn't try to be anything it's not. Really awesome guitars throughout, for this album I like Paul Di'Anno's vocals especially in the previously mentioned 'chill weed vibe' parts. Though I do think I overall prefer Bruce Dickinsons singing, especially for the direction the band would take in the future. Highlights: Prowler, Remember Tomorrow, Phantom of the Opera, Transylvania, Strange World

Kenza

Khaled

2/5

I was prepared to give this a 3 for being something I could appreciate but wouldn't be sure if I would regularly listen to. However holy shit this felt so long. Not just in terms of the total runtime but each track individually felt like it went longer than it needed to. That being said, very thoughtful of him to name this album after his 2nd daughter. You can tell this guy must really love his family

Repeater

Fugazi

3/5

Despite the title of the album I did not feel very inclined to do a repeat listen of this album. I wouldn't really call it bad, there's certainly some elements I don't like but I would say the album is mostly competent. I don't want to make a running gag of it but I would really say my main complaint was that the album really did feel like it was just repeating itself at points. Definitely something where I think I could just pick 1 or 2 songs from the album I enjoyed the most and still get the same feeling I would from the rest of the album with just those 2. Another of my big complaints would be the vocalists who take the lead between songs. They both range from serviceable to getting too much into a shouty tone. At their worst, one of the singers starts to get a bit shortbus-core with his intonations while the other one sounds like if you ordered The Beasties Boys on Temu. Not only did this just not create a strong melody for me with the instrumentals but it ultimately just feels like a distraction. My favourite parts from a lot of this involved the stretches that just featured the instruments.

Otis Blue/Otis Redding Sings Soul

Otis Redding

4/5

Really not sure what was the holdup on me reviewing this since it's not like I really have much to say about it. I really liked it though! I did think It was feeling a little samey by the end, still a very good listen all around

Bringing It All Back Home

Bob Dylan

3/5

More of a fun album than Bob's mean mug would indicate on the cover. As with our previous album covered, I preferred the electric tracks more than the acoustic tracks. Still not sure if I am a fan of Bob Dylan though, this was good but not really something I think I'm gonna be throwing on my playlists Highlights: Outlaw Blues, Subterranean Homesick Blues

Fever To Tell

Yeah Yeah Yeahs

3/5

These Punk albums are having a good track record so far of being fun and having a selection of good but not great tracks. While I would say that sentiment extends to this album, I didn't enjoy it as much as some of our previous Punk albums and my favourite song from it was probably the track that feels the most distinct from the rest of the album (Maps). Instrumentals are perfectly serviceable but didn't really do anything to blow me away. The vocalist is good and the scratchiness to her voice at parts helps the music stand out, but on some songs like Tick it can be a bit much.

Pet Sounds

The Beach Boys

3/5

Probably the most I have felt something was necessary to be on this list while simultaneously not being the biggest fan. I feel like the actual album itself is a bit overhyped for whats there. I don't know if I just wasn't in the right headspace either during this listen but dreamy atmosphere and melody mixed with the melancholic lyrics felt off-putting in a weird way. I want to rate this higher on its significance to the industry as a whole. But I couldn't even confidently say any of the songs on here are a favorite of mine. You could compare its technical accomplishments in its field to Birth of a Nation. Minus the blatant racism and depiction of the Ku Klux Klan as superheroes of their time.

The Rising

Bruce Springsteen

3/5

For something that was mostly a samey hodge-podge of reflections following 9/11. It really didn't have to be song long. I didn't hate the music in here but I did get a bit tired of it by the end, the first half was mostly better and I enjoyed some of the tracks that felt like it was doing something a little different such as Worlds Apart with its mixture of electric and native folk elements. In much the same way as the United States government, I think there were some administrative errors made on this album. Coming out rather quickly after 9/11 (and apparently only being recorded starting in 2002) there was a lot of excess that could have been cut off this in both the amount of tracks and their duration. A lot of songs felt like they went a minute or even two minutes above what I would expect in some cases. Also a special shoutout to Mary's Place for sounding like the extended cut of some theme/outro for a corny 80's SitCom

Metal Box

Public Image Ltd.

1/5

Funny that they are called public image because I would probably have to go into total exile if someone heard this blaring from my headphones

Highway 61 Revisited

Bob Dylan

3/5

Bob continues to be hit or miss for me, where my feeling is that I enjoy whats there and can see the appeal but don't think it is something I would have in my regular routine. Overall I'd say this one was more enjoyable than previous albums. Like a Rolling Stone is of course a big standout. I wish I had a little more to say for what seems to be one of his more popular albums

Eagles

3/5

Come on man, I feel mostly indifferent towards the fuckin Eagles. It's easy to put on in the back and isn't really bad by any means. It just gets bogged down for me with how similar a lot of it sounds, as well as just not really being something I would see myself listening to regularly. Shoutout to the abundance of banjo in this, goofy ass instrument

Is This It

The Strokes

4/5

You will catch me Stroking my shit before you EVER catch me Throbbing my Gristle. This one feels pretty overrated given its global score, I enjoyed it quite a bit but can't really see it at some post-punk, Y2K era masterwork. This feels like something I have spent a solid amount of my life witnessing in the background, usually plastered onto the TV in the waiting area of a Hairdressers or on the idle screens of some Bowling Alley, likely being put on from VH1/MTV/Rage I like the distorted, garage style sound they have going here. Though the way they describe the creative process behind this sound does sound a bit hokey, it works for me. Highlights: Trying Your Luck, Alone Together, Hard to Explain

The Stone Roses

4/5

When it's stuck on one of the more tedious dreamy songs. it is a pretty cruisey and easy listen. When it strays from this it goes pretty hard. That might sound a bit negative but I wouldn't say I disliked the less interesting tracks, I just found them to be an adequate sideshow to the songs on here that I actually liked. Highlights: I Am the Resurrection, Made of Stone, Fools Gold

Nevermind

Nirvana

5/5

To me, this feels like a perfect example of all the correct elements coming together. All the individual elements here are good to great on their own, but together really feel like a perfect blueprint for the genre. Smells like Teen Spirit and the impact of Kurt Cobains death feel like they culturally overshadow the actual accomplishments of the band a lot of the time in my opinion. Especially when there are multiple tracks on here that I prefer over the opener (Come as you Are is definitely my favourite of theirs). It would feel as insincere as a white girl in a Dark Side of the Moon shirt to not give this album the respect it deserves due to its popularity Highlights: Come as you Are, In Bloom, Stay Away

Endtroducing.....

DJ Shadow

4/5

Definitely not beating the lo-fi chill weed vibe allegations here. This whole album just feels easy to unwind to or have on in the back during a quiet/lazy day of work. I can see where someone could find this monotonous but this whole thing just flows together so easily. if I had to pick a specific part that stood out to me as a favourite it would be Midnight in a Perfect World

Hounds Of Love

Kate Bush

4/5

Hokey 80's theatre kid pop (Complimentary) The Lavender/Violet colour palette of the cover really matches the feeling this album gives, I know Kate Bush to be a bit out there in terms of pop artists which is not something I am against at face value but I was a bit concerned for if I would like all of this going in. Thankfully I was able to really relax and get invested in most of it, some of the songs in the 2nd half felt a bit redundant and like they were lacking something for their duration. I'm glad I am almost completely culturally oblivous to Stranger Things so I can just enjoy Running Up That Hill on its own without any baggage. Highlights: Running Up That Hill, Hounds of Love, And Dream of Sheep, The Morning Fog

Me Against The World

2Pac

4/5

Another case where I think an artists one and only inclusion on this list was credited to an album which has some historical significance. In this case being the album released during his incarceration. As opposed to one of their best accomplishments. There's a handful of good songs here but a lot felt pretty standard fare. I should probably give this a 3 but my disappointment at the lack of other 2pac albums on here and my bewilderment at some of the negative reviews for this push it to a 4 for me. Highlights: If I Die 2nite, Dear Mama, Young Niggaz

I’ve Got a Tiger By the Tail

Buck Owens

3/5

Truly an album made for the modern man. Reflecting the existential terror that rears its ugly head at the greatest threat we all face: Alimony Payments

Superfuzz Bigmuff

Mudhoney

2/5

Look, I get if you think Nirvana are pretty overrated. But getting this album just a few days after Nevermind really puts things into perspective and shows how much of an upgrade they are over this AliExpress type proto-grunge. The album really only shifts between being boring and irritating. The singer sounds like he's only just getting over puberty and the instrumentation feels like it is pulling some sort of prank where they are trying to repeat the same shit in a song and seeing how long they can get away with it for a full track. I wasn't sure which of these songs was in the original release so I just stuck this on until I tapped out, I got around 9 songs in before I got to the one with the corny cold open with the royalty free monologue from somewhere Highlights: Hitting the pause button and backing out to something else

If I Should Fall From Grace With God

The Pogues

3/5

I really loved the instrumentals on this one . I gotta say I wish I knew what the singer was waffling on about for most of the album. I'm sure this is mostly just me but I couldn't really gel with his singing since I often found myself pondering 'I THINK that's what he said???' The fun tunes that accompany it would be enough for a 4, probably the best folk styled music I have heard so far since it is given a bit more flavour by the punkier elements of the band. I did feel that the novelty of the style did wear out as the album got longer, stretching just above an hour.

Hotel California

Eagles

4/5

Front-loaded to a comical degree. I don't think I am going to ruffle anyones feathers saying that the first few songs were probably my favourite. It's also not to say that the latter half of this is bad. In fact songs like The Last Resort and Pretty Maids are still really good. Just a bit more standard. Especially when compared to how much the first half of the tracks here blew up in popularity. It's more comparable to hitting consecutive home runs back to back, then spending the rest of the time taking walks. Instead of striking out after a few initial successes. idk man, I had a rough night, and I still feel mostly indifferent towards the Eagles. Great album at the end of the day

First Band On The Moon

The Cardigans

5/5

For something that was definitely more in the one hit wonder camp (I didn't even realise this was the Lovefool band at first despite still hearing it regularly). I was surprised with how much of the album I enjoyed. The first few songs were alright and had me expecting this would be sitting at roughly a 3. But the album was surprisingly middle loaded and really got me hooked in the stretch between Never Recover and Losers. The last few songs (Iron Man - Choke) are all still good and I prefer them over the first few tracks, but the middle of this album does a lot of heavy lifting. I really liked the indie style on a lot of this. A really cool surprise of an album honestly

L.A. Woman

The Doors

2/5

Funny how this was a posthumous release because I was also looking for an early exit on this one. It was already feeling pretty slow but I wanted to tap out just a few songs in once he started yelping towards the end of Car Hiss by my Window.

Henry's Dream

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

3/5

This feels like a weird one to rate. I did not have the best first impressions going in, especially with how much of a wanker Nick Cave comes off as. His singing voice is definitely a bit different but works for the songs and the overall tone of the band. I would say that is my biggest point of praise in general, the instrumentation is pretty good throughout but I was impressed with how they maintained a very strong atmosphere throughout the entire album. With all that being said though, I did find the tone and lyrics to be a bit much. They REALLY want to be edgy and out there in a way that started to get old towards the end of the album. I would say Jack The Ripper (also my least favourite song on the album) was the one that really took me out of it. Possibly an odd complaint, but I also thought they leave very little room for the instrumentals to breathe through. About 85% of the runtime I think that Nicks voice is booming over the rest of the song. Obviously the lyricism of these songs is a highlight to a lot of reviewers but I would have appreciated giving some moments for the rest of the band to come through. So yeah, a pretty competent album that I was initially ready to dislike but found myself appreciating some of its craft. Not sure if it is something I'll be returning to anytime soon but I wouldn't say it was a bad time by any means.

Sheer Heart Attack

Queen

3/5

Queen has this habit of coming across either really catchy or really annoying. I don't even think it's entirely their fault, I think a lot of negativity towards the band comes from their overexposure. I wouldn't be surprised if every marketing and advertising firm on the planet had a copy of their greatest hits on standby. That being said this album was fairly front-loaded and hit or miss throughout. Killer Queen was the highlight for me, I'm sure some people would prefer something like Stone Cold Crazy or Brighton Rock but the latter of which is tainted by the stupidity of the final act of Baby Driver's plot for me (See? another instance where negativity comes from overexposure). The latter half of the album is also filled with some incredibly short segments that would almost feel more like interludes than their own tracks on a different album. I'm not sure about their inclusion as they sound more like the concepts for a song rather than one in their own right. On a more positive note, Bring Back That Leroy Brown reminded me of Norm Macdonalds 'Meaner than a concentration camp dog' bit. Highlights: Killer Queen, Stone Cold Crazy

Purple Rain

Prince

5/5

There was a particular review on this site for Prince that really nailed on the head what makes Prince work so well, it specifically goes into how for all the different types of sound layered into each track. It does not come across as over the type or too rich/studio sounding. While Prince and MJ were both magnificent artists and entertainers. I would say Prince leaned more into the artist side than MJ. While the big hits of the album, such as When Doves Cry, Let's Go Crazy (possibly my favourite song in the album and a contender for GOAT opening track of an album) and of course the titular Purple Rain are the obvious highlights, the less popular tracks in between holds their own. Solid contender for my favourite album on the 1001 so far. And I sure as shit don't see it being dethroned as the greatest Original Soundtrack on this list. 💜💜💜💜💜/💜💜💜💜💜

Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)

Wu-Tang Clan

5/5

Still goes really hard. While I've always liked the style and mood that their music sets I felt like I was really taken in more by their beats and samples than I have been listening to them in the past. The groups rhymes as a whole are all really good but the way they construct their beats and of course their usage of cheesy old martial arts dubbing gives it a sound that is both indistinguishably Wu Tang, while also giving room for different tempos and feelings. Which can range from more energetic and intense to you can really just lay back and unwind to. Probably the only negative thing I could even suggest is that (at least for the spotify version) the interludes are not segmented into their own parts on the album Highlights: Protect Ya Neck, Bring Da Ruckus, Wu-Tang Clan Ain't Nuthing ta F' wit

Elephant Mountain

The Youngbloods

3/5

I expected something really dull from the genres listed. Was pleasantly surprised with how varied it ended up being. reminded me a little bit of The Band/Music From Big Pink. Though I would say I liked that album more

The Hour Of Bewilderbeast

Badly Drawn Boy

2/5

You could bottle this album and sell it at Chemist Warehouse as sleeping medicine. In terms of the instrumentation it's not the worst thing ever, definitely leans towards rock more than the pop side from what genre labels are attributed to this. In spite of what I would have to imagine is a mostly independent and very passionate project from the creator, he sounds like he is checking his watch throughout a majority of the very stretched runtime. Coming in at 1 hour there are some albums which have taken more of my time but this one was definitely up there in terms of feeling long just from the monotony of it all.

Synchronicity

The Police

3/5

Starting to feel convinced that this group is a psyop to bury a single incredible song in an album where every other song is some stupid bullshit sung by a white dude in a reggae falsetto. Luckily for me, my tolerance for stupid bullshit is strong enough that I was able to enjoy some of this. That being said. I was almost ready to let that stupid 'Mother' song tank my rating for this album holy shit what the fuck happened there? Without it I would be comfortable giving this album a light 4, but its inclusion really has me considering giving this a 2. Regatta De Blanc didn't have anything this bad on it but I did prefer some of the chaff, non-hit songs on this a little more so I think it evens out to the same rating for me, how damning that the biggest Police apologist in my group is only willing to give this a 3. Highlights: Every Breath You Take, Synchronicity II, O My God, Wrapped Around Your Finger, Mother (NOT IN A GOOD WAY)

Grace

Jeff Buckley

4/5

Bit of a tricky one honestly. I think this is something that I can appreciate and acknowledge the talent on display while not feeling that it is something I would want to listen to regularly. Jeff is obviously the highlight with his delivery and the way he is able to change tone in his vocals so frequently and smoothly. I found the band surrounding him to be pretty solid but without too many parts that stood out to me. I suppose it at least accentuates Jeffs talents as a singer, I just wish there was a bit more to latch onto instrumentally for me. Some songs in the later half dip into this a bit at the very least. Highlights: Lover You Should've Come Over, Dream Brother, Forget Her

Exile On Main Street

The Rolling Stones

2/5

Man, for something lauded as their 'best work' and 'a culmination of a string of the band's highly critically successful albums', I was hoping for a little more than what ended up feeling like a demoralizingly long and repetitive set of British folks getting through a country blues binge. Not the worst performances from them or anything but I felt like I had heard all there was to hear less than halfway through. It really started to bother me by the end

Deja Vu

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young

3/5

Seeing both the genres tagged for this as well as this lists current run of 'supergroups'. I was dreading that the albums name was going to be an omen for what's to come. I was pleased to find that while there is definitely a consistent throughline in the songs on this album, and you could absolutely manually look through certain songs on the tracklist and find them samey. The way they were presented in their correct order kept me satisfied. Though I can't really say it was something that was particularly entertaining. A lot of songs that were just pretty good. Highlights: Our House, 4+20, Country Girl

For Your Pleasure

Roxy Music

3/5

While the instrumental elements were a big highlight and bring a groovy but seedy vibe indicated by the album art. I could not fucking stand Bryan Ferry in a lot of this. The eccentric flourishes to his vocal delivery on a lot of tracks remind me of Russel Mael. The issue I found was that Ferry does not have the correct range for this kind of singing nor the commitment. he wants to hit notes like a diva but is seemingly too afraid to commit to the bit. Beauty Queen was probably the best song from his part given it has his best and most straightforward vocal delivery. Would probably be a 1 or a 2 if I was not a fan of the rest of the work done on this album. The sex doll song was pretty funny too. Highlights: Beauty Queen, In Every Dream Home a Heartache

Dookie

Green Day

3/5

My initial impressions were that Billy Joe Armstrong's singing voice has an uncanny way of making nearly every Green Day song sound the same. And while it can definitely get into retreading the same sounds, I think the bigger culprit here is the instrumentation on this album. It feels more like an early concept that is more interested in one specific sound/vision before trying to expand its horizons in future albums. Leaving the shuffle play on for a little bit after finishing the album and hearing some of their future albums solidified this for me. Not bad, just VERY samey.

The Bends

Radiohead

4/5

Yeah maybe it's not as experimental as Kid A but holy shit I'll take this any day of the week over that opening track that just makes me think I'm being moneyshot with mercury. Also one of the better songs on this is called 'Just' and I find that funny. Highlights: Fake Plastic Trees, Just, The Bends

In Our Heads

Hot Chip

2/5

For the first time in a while I seem to have lost my review. I didn't have a lot written so it's not a big loss. It feels apt that this is from a group called Hot Chip given how much it cools off and gets kinda stale over time. I suppose this one is lost on me in terms of both a majority of its songs as well as its significance & cultural impact. A majority of the wikipedia summary for this thing talks more about the ways it was distributed more than anything. Highlights: Don't Deny Your Heart

Suicide

1/5

SHOUTOUT TO THIS WEBSITE FOR JUST FORGETTING THE MULTIPLE PARAGRAPHS I HAD WRITTEN AND CLICKED 'SAVE' ON MULTIPLE TIMES HONESTLY, IM GLAD IN A WAY IT FORGOT, THIS ALBUM DOESN'T DESERVE IT. THIS STUPID ANGSTY ALBUM WITH THE PHONE SEX RAMBLINGS IN 'GIRL' AND THE 10 MINUTE WAGESLAVE DRAMA THAT IS 'FRANKIE TEARDROP', EACH SET TO A SERIES OF 5 SECOND LOOPS ALL PULLED FROM MK ULTRA'S GREATEST HITS. I THOUGHT THEY USED TO BULLY PEOPLE FOR THIS KIND OF BEHAVIOUR IN THE 70S

Legalize It

Peter Tosh

3/5

Legalize it - Peter Tosh (1976) Kinda perfect to get this on a lazy friday. Not sure I would have enjoyed it if I was working a busy schedule. As I suspected for Reggae I started to find it getting pretty repetitive. I can't even call it frontloaded or anything, the quality is pretty consistent throughout. Said quality however is not something that meshed with me beyond a pretty basic enjoyment, not sure if I cold see this being regular listening material. I did get a bit excited when Johnny B Goode came on, only to realise that it wasn't in the album and Spotify was just shuffling into Tosh's other music. In the words of Snoop Dogg (Formerly Snoop Lion; Bob Marley Reincarnated) "I don't even like Reggae"

Meat Is Murder

The Smiths

4/5

Meat is Murder - The Smiths (1985) Not sure if I like this one as much as The Queen is Dead (an album I have grown to like a lot more following my review of it). I would say it has a comparable number of standout tracks that I liked, maybe not to the extent as those other songs but the quality is consistently high. Morriseys sad bitch boy antics that sorta snap you back out of what you're listening to continues here, though not quite as funny as it is in There is a Light That Never Goes Out. I guess that's what troubles me about rating this is feeling how it compares to the previous album. I still enjoyed this a ton but if I had to choose one over the other I would have to pick the previous album. Highlights: The Headmaster Ritual, That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore, Barbarism Begins at Home, What She Said

Tres Hombres

ZZ Top

3/5

Tres Hombres - ZZ Top (1973) Occupies a similar position to me as something like Machine Head, where I am having a tough time really attributing different praise to the album for its really strong elements because they are just a given. this is another album that feels like it is not trying to impress me but just put on some good tunes and have a fun time. Compared to similar albums in this space though I am not sure where to place it. I like a few of these songs quite a bit, but there's not a lot of songs to this album and the non-hits really do feel like they are there to just occupy the space to qualify this as an album. It feels harsh to critique it this way as the songs I like would be a highlight on any album. But the lesser known stuff does not fill this album out too well for me. Highlights: Ride The Bus, Master of Sparks, La Grange

Logical Progression

LTJ Bukem

4/5

Logical Progression - LTJ Bukem (1996) If I listened to both mixes of this thing and somehow still missed something I'm gonna be fucking pissed That said, a very nice little DnB album. I love this simpler and more laid back style from this time period. reminds me of a lot of soundtracks from the PS1 era of gaming. Hard to really rate each song individually since I just had the full mix on with Spotify, though I will say I preferred the vocals version over the instrumental.

The Beach Boys Today!

The Beach Boys

3/5

The Beach Boys Today! - The Beach Boys (shocker) (1965) I really don't have too much for to say for what feels similar in runtime and message to a previous Everly Brothers album. I suppose I could say I would wanna dance with The Beach Boys much more than I would want something slipped in my drink on A Date With the Everly Brothers Highlights: Do you wanna Dance?, Help Me Rhonda

More Songs About Buildings And Food

Talking Heads

4/5

More Songs About Buildings And Food - Talking Heads (1978) If David Byrne was born a millenial, do you think he would be making minecraft parody songs? Maybe not their best album, I would probably consider this a pretty mediocre or average album if not for how great all the guitar work is throughout. Not that great instrumentals are not the norm for them. But just that I think they do some heavy lifting to make some of these songs really pop. To look at these complains from a positive perspective, I think it actually helps highlights the strength of the band as a group. Highlights: With Our Love, I'm Not In Love, Take Me To The River

The Joshua Tree

U2

2/5

The Joshua Tree - U2 (1987) Oh dear, this is what passes for one of their better albums about 80% of this feels like the same hazy/up in the air vibe that you would hear in an insurance ad where the guy in the ad is doing some job at sea or rescuing a koala or some other bullshit. From my previous exposure to this band that seems to be their winning formula to landing 4 albums on this list somehow. The other 20% is pretty bad though, seriously what the fuck was that bit in Bullet the Blue Sky where he just starts yapping about putting your chips down and whatnot. As with most albums where I find the music too samey I will just go with the song I didn't mind the most and just discard the rest. Highlight: With or Without You

Metallica

5/5

Metallica - Metallica (1991) I wonder if there is a method to the madness of musicians when it comes to deciding where and when they will simply do their self-titled album? Is it an unmistakable mission statement of the band and its style? Does it come later on in a career when a group wants to return to its roots? When you want to make a cheeky Beatles reference? Or do you save it for a rainy day when you can't be stuffed thinking of a cool name for your album? Coming out of listening to this, I wasn't any closer to understanding the answer to the previous question. But I certainly had a good time with what I heard. I'm not really a Metallica fan, I hadn't grown up with them. My exposure to them was usually through their big hits, as well as pop culture and cultural osmosis. While some of the tried old bits about them being bland or safe metal felt a bit appropriate at times while listening to this. I don't think I can really diss an album where the most negative feeling I had coming out of one of its songs was 'eh, that was kinda good'. There are some really awesome tracks on here, with all of my highlights having some segments (particularly with the guitars) that I just loved. If I had any real negatives to say it would be that my least favourite song was also the closing song of the album. Not exactly the best to wrap up with in my opinion but at least I can always just ignore it on repeated listens. I also can't hold that against the rest of the albums quality. Highlights: The Unforgiven, Nothing Else Matters, Enter Sandman, The God That Failed

Lost Souls

Doves

3/5

I was let down after the first track. it set a good mood and made for some really nice background listening. It might sound weird but having vocals going forward put me off in the sense that it made listening to it feel more active/involved. The vocal performance wasn't even particularly bad or anything it just made the experience feel more boring Highlight: Firesuite

...The Dandy Warhols Come Down

The Dandy Warhols

2/5

Pretty laid back listening which I think was hindered early on by irritating me with the stupid over-pronunciation of things in Minnesoter (they even wrote it that way the bastards)

Eliminator

ZZ Top

2/5

Oh boy, I've got a bit of work to do catching up so I figured why not start with some low hanging fruit? My hopes were that I could at least find something surprisingly standout here, but no, it's the same story as Tres Hombres, it honestly kind of annoys me how forgettably average this band is outside of a standout song or two. This is like the britpop equivalent for guys who probably have a punisher skull as their facebook banner Highlight: Sharp Dressed Man

Hail To the Thief

Radiohead

2/5

There were parts of this that I did not hate, dare I say there were moments that I found myself actually enjoying some of the composition on display Then I'm reminded of what I'm listening to when inundated by irritating sappiness and political musings from someone who folded almost immediately after being heckled by an Australian. Less about this annoyed me compared to the lowest lows on Kid A but this was a bit more of a blase album by comparison

3 Feet High and Rising

De La Soul

3/5

It's probably already been said but I liked the similarities here to A Tribe Called Quest, the laid back style was enjoyable with a few tracks that were really nice. That being said I would say it started to drag for me with its length vs how many tracks I would want to add to any playlists.

A Seat at the Table

Solange

2/5

I have listened to some samey sounding albums in this list so far but holy shit there were genuinely tracks in this that I thought were one in the same until I checked my phone and saw the progress bar of whatever I was listening to. The repetitiveness is really what kills this for me. it's completely competent otherwise with some well produced instrumentals in the back, which probably provided any variety this album had going for it

Manassas

Stephen Stills

3/5

thoroughly disappointed by the lack of man asses in this album, only slightly alleviated by some decent music

Introducing The Hardline According To Terence Trent D'Arby

Terence Trent D'Arby

4/5

Introducing The Hardline According to Terrence Trent D'arby - Terrence Trent D'arby (1987) Certainly very verbose in terms of both its album and track titles, I feel like if I were to reference the full titles for some of this I would be stuck writing war and peace. I had some initial worries that I wasn't gonna have the best reaction to this album after the songs that followed the opening (Surprisingly, they are some of the most popular on the album, am I a contrarian or just retarded?). But no this album was mostly consistent with its quality output. I definitely had more of an inclination towards the funkier sides of the album. But even the more sombre tracks were awesome. A very nice surprise Highlights: If You All Get to Heaven, I'll Never Turn My Back on You, Dance Little Sister, Seven More Days, Sign Your Name

Led Zeppelin II

Led Zeppelin

3/5

Led Zeppelin II - Led Zeppelin (1969) That's it? That's your critically acclaimed, 16th highest rated album on this website? That was just the vocalizations of sex provided by Robert Plant over some otherwise ok rock instrumentals. I can somewhat appreciate the fact that this is neat as a product of the late 60's. But I just don't understand why some people look at this band with an almost mystical whimsy. Wow you made songs about nerdy shit, big whoop. We have an entire generation of autistic youth who grew up on Minecraft music videos but I don't think they are being lauded as the best thing since sliced bread. Oh and it doesn't justify the pedophilia either

At Mister Kelly's

Sarah Vaughan

4/5

I finally got what I wanted out of a live Jazz album on this list rather than that hokey performative slop that was Tom Waits' larp as a Black Soul performer talking about what he had for breakfast. Feels very well produced too, they mention how there were a lot of microphones used during the introduction but the actual recording of the performance itself feels almost like a studio. Very impressive stuff

In Rainbows

Radiohead

4/5

Thom Yorke might not have it in him to criticize Israel but him and his quintet of not-so merry men sure can very sporadically make good music

A Christmas Gift For You From Phil Spector

Various Artists

3/5

Frankly I don't think I would want to get a gift from Phil Spector given his track record

Step In The Arena

Gang Starr

4/5

Really cool laid back style, it kinda hindered my listening on both go arounds because I just let it sorta roll in the background and while I could appreciate that there were plenty of different elements scattered through the album, it was all a bit of a long 40-50 minute haze

Blood Sugar Sex Magik

Red Hot Chili Peppers

2/5

Pretty dreadful fucking vocals propped up by some talented performers on instruments. Was considering giving this a 3 for how they balance out but it started really getting on my nerves with how long this album was

Never Mind The Bollocks, Here’s The Sex Pistols

Sex Pistols

2/5

I'm nearly impressed by Johnny Rotten's ability to somehow become more obnoxiously incomprehensible as the song goes on (though maybe the album was just rotting my brain from the inside, I think something did leak out between my earbuds at one point), it makes me want to apologise for any comments I have made in regards to Eddie Vedder's style of singing I actually mean it when it comes to this album. Also a completely bitch made move to hide the track where you say 'faggot' all the way at the back of the album, they don't have the balls to front load it like Dire Straits. Some tough guy punks you all turned out to be

Rattus Norvegicus

The Stranglers

3/5

At least I can take solace that there is some decent stuff in this deep dive of shit I put off over the holidays. Not sure if the organ in this is a prevalent thing for the band or if it was just available in the recording studio and someone was just itching to implement it somehow. Pretty inoffensive with some nice individual tracks but mostly just felt decent

Giant Steps

The Boo Radleys

2/5

Apparently this is one of the more 'britpop' sounding releases from this group and I must say what a shame. The more distorted shoegaze elements gave this some flavour that it desperately needed to not feel like completely boring filler. I dunno if I would be able to pick it out of a lineup of indie crap that would come later in the decade and spill into the 2000's but props for being a bit earlier to the party. While I did like the more surreal sound of this I do think the audio mixing does a bit of a disservice when the singer decides to go quiet for moments in some songs. The mood it wants to establish doesn't really work for me when I genuinely can't hear what he is saying. Lastly I think it also overstayed itself a bit too long unfortunately.

Nothing's Shocking

Jane's Addiction

5/5

wowzer is that... le ex military opening!?!?!? im feeling a light 8 to a strong 7 on this one bros... (heh, just a bit of music enjoyer humor..) Naa this album was pretty sweet. I wasn't really sure what to expect from an album for which my knowledge was they were sampled by Death Grips but I didn't expect it to be as much of a pure, practically dumb fun experience as this. I was a bit mixed initially on where to grade this for some of the parts where it reared into its neighbouring Hair/Glam metal territory in some of the ways that annoy me for that genre, but something this consistently enjoyable deserves praise

Led Zeppelin

3/5

I have another 2 of these to go and my tolerance for hearing Robert Plant screech 'baby' repeatedly has already reached a critical low point How many more times is an accurate representation of my own psyche as I wonder how many more songs I am going to hear with Robert talking about his (certainly of age) 'girl'

Paranoid

Black Sabbath

5/5

It feels kinda stupid to write something about a universally loved album that I don't really have any issues with. What the fuck do you want me to say 'ooohhh the melody is so rich' yeah we all know the album is cool I guess my take away is start feeding the kids in the music industry today some live bats and see if we can activate the same kind of shit that caused these guys to drop Paranoid and their Self Titled Album in the same year

Live At The Harlem Square Club

Sam Cooke

4/5

Having the guy who got shot and killed in self-defense during a kidnapping singing about 'Girl don't fight it' right at the beginning is the kind of foreshadowing that people would mock

New York Dolls

3/5

I think the swig of water I had that went down a bit funny was more eventful than this album. It's all competently performed but felt incredibly formulaic. No doubt a result of getting to the scene a bit early, I would have to imagine this albums inclusion would be at least somewhat historically motivated. Thankfully it was not a super long album although a lot of the songs with a singular theme/hook like Trash and Frankenstein started to make this feel like more of a drag than it should have

Beach Samba

Astrud Gilberto

4/5

A bit conflicted on how to judge this one. The album is comprised of a lot of really short songs, with the original release containing 12 songs despite clocking in at just short of 28 minutes. While I am not typically one who is bothered by silly or otherwise nonsensical lyrics there were some songs where I was almost left scratching my head at how goofy the lyrics were (the parade song being the worst offender). All that being said though, I still listened to the entire extended piece on both listens due to how easy and relaxing it was. Astrud continues to have a great singing voice and the impressive swathe of performers involved in this all do a terrific job. So while I do question some aspects of the album, I also have to appreciate how well it accomplishes its easy listening aspects.

Hot Fuss

The Killers

2/5

Yeah I'd cheat on this dude if I had to hear his douchey mid 2000's VH1 vocals daily Kinda baffled at how polarizing this one is in the global ratings, it's kinda hard to have that strong of an opinion on it

The Genius Of Ray Charles

Ray Charles

4/5

What does it say about an artist when something as beautiful can exist and it's not considered one of their best albums? Maybe not his most memorable tracks but still a wonderful time nonetheless. The 2nd half has an immense bittersweet feel to it

Brothers In Arms

Dire Straits

4/5

Who gives a shit if it's crazy front loaded, the 'weaker' songs in the latter end are still nice and I would say are better for calmer easy listening during the long stretches of instrumentals on some songs

A Wizard, A True Star

Todd Rundgren

4/5

A really nice surprise, especially after seeing the global score and some of those genres tagged. While the genres attributed to this are accurate, I would say it is only to the extent of specific tracks with how much this likes to hop genres. It jumps from some slower and more dreamy tracks, to more traditional rock tunes. Some tracks just go completely chaotic and throw everything together. Certainly not for everyone but I'm glad it's on this list

Idlewild

Everything But The Girl

2/5

Idlemild - Anything But Strong Feelings (for this album) Seriously what the fuck is this lovey dovey/ballad demo disc for 80's romances doing on this list?

(What's The Story) Morning Glory

Oasis

2/5

If this is supposed to be the face of this obnoxious, bowl cut laden genre then I just don't think it is for me

Low

David Bowie

5/5

Really good and understandably considered the standout of the Berlin trilogy. I would say it's a bit 'overrated' when compared to its peers but that's not really a knock against it given it keeps some good company

Club Classics Vol. One

Soul II Soul

3/5

This was a nice laid back listen but I genuinely forgot to review it when I was done listening which should show much of an impact I felt it left

Lam Toro

Baaba Maal

3/5

Not sure what bro was saying but it sounded like he was spitting some fucking heat in a few parts there. Really not too much to say, I suppose the global score feels kinda harsh

Sulk

The Associates

2/5

I miss the blissful ignorance I had in the first few minutes of this album when I thought it was going to be an instrumental album. I thought my tolerance for tacky New Wave was pretty high but it was not enough to stomach the vocals on display here. Like this goes beyond the usual 'ohhh this guy sings annoying' mentality that bad vocals usually drag an album down with, I don't know if I can say with confidence that these guys actually know how to sing

Speakerboxxx/The Love Below

OutKast

5/5

As a 2 and a quarter hour long double album this one is more of a colossal task compared to a lot of albums on this list. Thank goodness Nintendo never got into the record label scene because they’d be splitting this shit in half and selling it off as two like a Pokemon game. That double-sided nature does make this a bit harder to grade, while you could argue it is weighed down in length and by some of its less than stellar tracks you could just as easily say that the amount of quality and quantity here is what solidifies itself as an incredible album in spite of its feature film runtime. I would say for the sake of this review that I lean more towards the latter side of thinking. Speakerboxx is definitely the more traditional hip hop album half with a more cohesive sound while The Love Below is the more experimental (and much hornier, though I guess that comes with the premise) 2nd half which had me worried was going to start missing more than it hit around halfway into its runtime before landing back on its feet near the end. I enjoy both sides for different reasons

Electric Ladyland

Jimi Hendrix

3/5

While I wouldn't call it a slog to get through, you can definitely tell the highlights 'AKA the last two tracks' really carry this album for people. It stands so far and above everything else before it

Nilsson Schmilsson

Harry Nilsson

4/5

the part where the coconut song in Alan Wake showed up was epic

Groovin'

The Young Rascals

2/5

The hit title on this was just as boring as the rest of the album.

Phaedra

Tangerine Dream

4/5

Quite a departure in tone from what I have heard from them in other media. I'm kinda conflicted on how to rate this, I can admire this a lot more than a certain similarly dark and ambient album I have been given by this site in the past, but that is also not something I could see myself listening to regularly.

Frank

Amy Winehouse

3/5

I guess you could characterize this as a bit of a 'safer' album than Back to Black as I wouldn't classify it as having as much downside as Back to Black, but this kinda makes it feel less memorable as a result. I imagine this might be part of why the album was removed from later editions of the 1001.

A Girl Called Dusty

Dusty Springfield

3/5

A lot better than its other 60's contemporaries on this list. it was very refreshing going from a bunch of guys singing songs about hot girls they want to date to a girl singing songs about how she wants to date guys. Maybe it's just a perspective thing but it's hard to be too critical of these 60's albums, a lot of them aren't the greatest things on this list but it doesn't feel like they demand the same level of scrutiny, they're just staying in their lane. It's like the musical equivalent of bullying some kid with a funny little propellor hat

The Suburbs

Arcade Fire

2/5

The Suburbs is an apt title, as much like the suburbs this albums a cruisey enough listening experience with all the nearby essentials you could want at the expense of incredibly homogenised standards and some irritating sounding people. About 5 tracks in I started just checking some of the songs ahead of me to see if anything different or more musically interesting was in store and was left not only disappointed but dreading the rest of this radio filler album.

Imperial Bedroom

Elvis Costello & The Attractions

4/5

Of all the albums I am coming to review from by backlog, this is probably the one that will benefit from it the most given I have recently had an odd ‘reawakening’ of sorts to Costello (AKA I played too much Call of Duty with a friend while listening to some of his music until it grew from being somewhat grating to genuinely enjoyable). It’s a trait I have mentioned previously with Costello on here that really reinforces my feeling of giving something more than a single listen to give it a fairer assessment.

Django Django

2/5

Apparently there are two songs on here that were included in GTA V and I don’t recognise either of them. I’m really at odds with how compelling I really find this album, sure there are many aspects that feel fresh and enjoyable (I enjoyed the opener and quite a few songs towards the middle) but there is also something very bland and formulaic to them as well. For me I feel it’s the vocalist, only feels comfortable singing in a very limited vocal range (it’s a weird distinction from not having extra range but one I feel the need to make)

Africa Brasil

Jorge Ben Jor

5/5

One I had actually listened to quite a while ago but never got around to writing a review for it, I definitely can’t complain coming back to this one for a revisit before writing some thoughts. While I can’t exactly comment on its lyricism or any other aspects that the cultural divide bars me from, but I can absolutely vouch for just how groovy this album is from head to toe. Seriously I would only say there was only one song on here that stood out to me as not being that great (funny enough it was sat between my two favourites on the album Taj Mahal and A Historia De Jorge so it really stood out). An awesome album either for active or background listening which demonstrates just how universal an enjoyable song can be

Wish You Were Here

Pink Floyd

5/5

I get that on a 1001 albums list you are going to get some critically acclaimed and universally beloved albums but it always feels weird when it comes time to writing stuff for it. I really don't know what to say. banger fucking album

Hysteria

Def Leppard

2/5

Given how much of their biggest tracks are on here this almost feels like a compilation album (you can feel that in the runtime as well). Unfortunately I just wasn't crazy over this one. So many of the hits in this one just blended together in a way that I didn't feel a similar album like Slippery When Wet did. Maybe I shouldn't be looking into it like this though, given the mission statement for this genre was just 'we want to make a shitload of money and fuck groupies who all conveniently tell us they're 18'

New Boots And Panties

Ian Dury

1/5

"Widely considered to be the best album of Ian Dury's career" In that case I hope this is the last time he shows up on this list

Exodus

Bob Marley & The Wailers

4/5

mi tink dis wan bring di Chill Weed Vibes™ to a lazy day werkin fer da man. real easy to cruise wit trough the day

Morrison Hotel

The Doors

3/5

Doesn't really have any of their big hits that would usually land something on this list (does Peace Frog count?) but was also absent of any of the really irritating shit from our last Doors album (L.A Woman), kinda balances itself out to be a nicer listening experience than the latter, but not something I think I would listen to again outside of Waiting for the Sun

Urban Hymns

The Verve

1/5

Holy shit I was literally just writing about how 1 popular song can apparently land you on this list

Survivor

Destiny's Child

3/5

Survivor And Other Assorted Girlboss Songs I think the inclusion of this on the list is the novelty more than the album itself. The overall style and presentation is definitely very cheesy & gaudy but can't really be taken too seriously given the genre. A lot of samey tracks once it is done with its more front loaded first half. Also I get that it's pop music so it's inherently going to be more commercialized than some of stuff on this list but the Charlies Angels tie-in stuff really made this feel like more of a product than anything I think I've listened to on here so far. That being said it also made it pretty funny

Darkness on the Edge of Town

Bruce Springsteen

4/5

If the energy of albums like Born to Run or Born in the USA (or god forbid the weirdness of The Rising) hook you on the idea of an absurd sense of patriotism, Darkness on the Edge of town feels more like a gritty reminder of what that ‘dream’ really entails. In a way an album feels more comforting, I feel as though instead of opting towards the ‘eat your vitamins and say your prayers like a good hulkamaniac’ this comes from a much more understanding mindset of knowing that the road ahead in life will be tough but worthwhile in the end. While I can agree Springsteens most enjoyable songs come from his more poppier albums, I wouldn’t have minded if he had a few more albums that were congruent with this one.

Here, My Dear

Marvin Gaye

4/5

You know how people still make that joke about getting a speeding ticket while listening to Metal/EDM/etc? I wonder if anyone's ever gotten themselves forced into a HR meeting because they got too saucy listening to Marvin Gaye Yeah, I got the memo for this one pretty quickly but still had a really good time with it nonetheless. Despite being over an hour long and treading very similar ground through its runtime I was never bored. That being said I was a little on edge given the subject and that cover art. With how lovesick he is I had to double check that Marble Marvin over there didn't creep out of Spotify and start lighting a few scented candles or some shit

Fear Of Music

Talking Heads

5/5

Enjoyed more on average than Songs about Buildings and Food, also includes one of my favourite songs from the group. Really not sure what to say. I feel that the band is just going to be a love it/hate it deal for most people that mostly comes down to your feelings on David Byrne's vocal style & delivery

Back At The Chicken Shack

Jimmy Smith

4/5

In what I can only assume is a result of not really having a lot to talk about with the album. the Wikipedia summary for this album mentions how Jimmy Smith wears the same red shirt for both this and his previous album on both covers. I mention this because I am in a similar position or really not having much to say. It's really easy listening and all well made. I just don't think the passive nature of the album really lends itself to much discussion. I fuck with the album name a lot though

Konnichiwa

Skepta

3/5

Perhaps its just a lack of exposure to the genre that had me feeling a bit refreshed with this album, but I quite enjoyed a majority of it. A bit of a tough album to rate, I was thinking about which side of 3 or 4 I would land on but I think some of the weaker tracks towards the middle let it down for me.

The Hissing Of Summer Lawns

Joni Mitchell

4/5

A lot more chaotic sounding to start with than I was expecting, this really feels like it wants to go in both extreme directions of Folk and Rock. Thankfully this does calm down a bit after the first two tracks. It is pretty smooth sailing from there, all very easy listening. But there is better tracks to come

Venus Luxure No. 1 Baby

Girls Against Boys

2/5

This was like the music equivalent of drinking from a plastic water bottle that had been left out in the sun for a bit. For how bland and unmemorable as it is you can probably still think of things that were equally dull but were at least more appetizing. I'd be grasping at straws to say anything particularly standout about this album

Layla And Other Assorted Love Songs

Derek & The Dominos

4/5

Genuinely annoyed that I kinda enjoyed this because a lot of the awful, distasteful and mean spirited jokes I wanted to make about Conor Clapton hinged on me writing a negative review 7 Coke Fueled Racist Tirades / 10, might have been a 4 if it didn't meander so much in the middle plus Layla (especially the latter half) is incredible in spite of how genuinely evil the songs inception was

Out Of The Blue

Electric Light Orchestra

4/5

Feels like being mean to a kind-hearted animal to rag on this, but for a group whos production style could be described as 'a bit much', stretching that out to an hour and 20 minutes can really feel like it takes that to too much. Feels like it would be appreciated more in smaller chunks rather than raw dogging the whole thing but the more laid back instrumentals towards the latter half were a nice 'coming down' of sorts.

The Bones Of What You Believe

CHVRCHES

4/5

Given the pretty standard white girl vocals that permeate a majority of the run time, I did not expect that this was a Scottish group. While the final track which was fairly sparse for vocals in general may have been a favourite, I preferred the female vocalist who thankfully covers a majority of this album. Maybe it's a little juvenille but I felt like the swearing felt a little bit at odds with the tone that the album was going for? Either way I enjoyed a good chunk of this though did feel like some tracks were a bit too samey around the middle

Document

R.E.M.

2/5

Having an irritating sounding singer who over-enunciates his american twang constantly and loading all of your decent stuff at the very end is not a good way to build goodwill with me as a listener. The accent thing really irks me, I wasn’t a fan of it with The Flaming Lips vocals and I certainly didn’t like it on that one Regatta De Blanc song

One World

John Martyn

3/5

One of the positives you could argue for digital/streaming services is that they offer a form of digital preservation for albums like this, which would otherwise only have a life inexplicably on the shelves of hokey tourist shops, somewhere between the sunglasses carousel with eyewear which hasn't been in vogue since the early 2000's and roughly 2-5 animated kids movies like 'Space Chimps' and 'Mars Needs Moms'. The only entertainment I got from this was the admittedly really nice instrumentals and listening to the lead singer keep slipping in and out of his black soul musician voice in the first few tracks. It momentarily felt like Steven Seagal was back in the studio following his greatest gift to humanity 'Want the Punani'

Green Onions

Booker T. & The MG's

5/5

A very charming little album that is perfect for idle/background listening. An incredibly worthwhile listen even beyond its iconic opening/title track. The way the organ is used to essentially fill in for the absence of vocals is a real delight. Pretty crazy that he somehow went on to become a pro wrestler like 35 years after this album came out

Rubber Soul

Beatles

5/5

Once again I am really stuck for what else can be said for an album like this. I suppose I could say it's definitely the folk-adjacent thing I have enjoyed the most by quite a margin, though I think the rock half of the folk rock is what was really doing that for me. I'd also say it was the easiest listen we have had in a while. with its quality and pretty short run time I ended up listening to this about 3 times in a row initially

Heartbreaker

Ryan Adams

2/5

Very dull alternative country that I don’t see myself wanting to listen to again. Not my cup of tea whatsoever. Knowing this site more people were probably upset by the intro referencing Morrissey than the knowledge of this guy being a rapist

Hot Buttered Soul

Isaac Hayes

5/5

45 minutes for 4 songs sure is a flex (especially when one of them clocks in at just under 19 minutes) I'm actually kinda shocked at how much I loved this. the production for these songs has a genuinely timeless feel, which is a statement I think gets thrown around about a lot of albums but if you gave this to someone who somehow had no clue who Isaac Hayes is I think they would have a tough time piecing together when this was made, let alone the fact that it's more than 50 years old. I imagine a lot of people would be put off by the duration of each song, especially the opening of 'By The Time I Get to Phoenix' which is essentially just a 8 minute monologue with some light instrumentals along the way. But if you have the patience for a much slower burn than normal there is plenty to love in both the cool stretches of calm and the bombastic climaxes of each track

S&M

Metallica

1/5

Pretty painful listen I won’t lie. The steep hurdle of a runtime would not be a problem if it wasn’t for the fact the whole performance feels like it loses all of its energy about 30 minutes in. They definitely thought this was going to be way more ‘epic’ than it turned out. Whenever the orchestra’s sound isn’t being overwhelmed by the band (Hetfields vocals are especially at odds) it always feels like a tacky inclusion to whatever song is currently playing, if we lived in some alternate universe where Pierce Brosnan got a 5th James Bond movie, I could see the studios getting inspired by Limp Bizkits involvement in Mission Impossible II and shitting out something like this for its soundtrack. (Tragically, Michael Kamen, who had the unfortunate task of conducting the orchestra half of this birth defect of a concert, was actually responsible for one of my favourite James Bond soundtracks)

Highway to Hell

AC/DC

4/5

I may be a little biased in my liking for this album given I come from a country where this bands lyrics could be used in dictation tests, hell I wouldn't be shocked if giving this less than a 5 will have me flagged by ASIO. I have heard this emanating like an aura from most if not all construction sites. I have seen actual religious iconography used of Bon Scott beyond the Let There Be Rock music video. Aside from the title track there are a few other standouts, some of which may or may not bring back memories of my family members playing these songs on full blast with their copy of AC/DC Live: Rock Band for the Wii. I'm also of the camp that thinks Touch Too Much is better than the title song.

Heaven Or Las Vegas

Cocteau Twins

5/5

Wow, not a band I am really familiar with but this was an awesome little trip of an album. The ethereal, dream pop style really just works for me. You could maybe knock the style for being inherently a bit 'samey' but when the resulting quality is this good I can't complain. Big ups to Scotland for doing some heavy lifting while your counterparts fail to keep the British end up with their continuous output of the most irritating music known to man

Blood And Chocolate

Elvis Costello & The Attractions

3/5

Nothing very exciting but nothing too offensive either, maybe the most milquetoast album in a while. It's sorta catchy but I really don't know if there is much from this album that I would want to save to a playlist. Costello has a voice that feels like it would get annoying at first but is actually pretty easy to get used to, I'm looking forward to getting more of his well received albums

Queen Of Denmark

John Grant

3/5

The quirkier and often edgy lyrics really feel like they are gonna open this album up to a lot of hate and normally I would be inclined to feel the same. A few songs in however I began to really appreciate Grant's vocal style. The more eccentric style started to feel a lot more sincere than one might initially believe. I'm sure he is also going to lose some points from a lot of people for the amount of different vulgarities used across 'JC hates Faggots'. Surprisingly varied and enjoyable. Though you can tell this guy could probably spare to go to therapy a little more often

Pink Flag

Wire

3/5

Another album that I just couldn't find myself really loving as much as others. The type of energy in this performance just does not resonate with me as much as more aggressive punk artists we have had previously. It's something I didn't mind putting on a couple of times (the short run time helped with that) but there just wasn't anything that I felt myself really gelling with this time around

Rio

Duran Duran

5/5

I think the Nagel artwork on the front should be considered a warning for how bombastically 80's synth this album is gonna be. I previously was not a big fan of the title track but it won me over on this listen (I think it's because it partially sounds like a news bulletin that keeps trying to start). The Saxophone on Rio really popped off for me this time. I have similarly positive thoughts for the rest of the album. Given some of the new wavey similarities here and there you could maybe find some of the stronger tracks make others obsolete but I think there's more than enough standouts on here to make this album a standout regardless

A Love Supreme

John Coltrane

4/5

A love supreme sounds like a shitty overpriced deal you would get from a local burger joint. Jazz is a pretty easy winner for me on this list and this album is no different. it's maybe a bit too eager on the piano but this was still an awesome listen

Rapture

Anita Baker

4/5

It feels harsh to disgregard this album as not being very ambitious, as a lot of the tracks can feel quite similar. That being said I can't say I wasn't enjoying any bit of this. Baker's soothing & soulful vocals and the 80's, almost city pop style of the instrumentals brings a vibe that really compliments a laid back night/afternoon.

Slanted And Enchanted

Pavement

2/5

Some of the most unimpressive noisy indie rock I've heard performed by guys with the same level of enthusiasm as someone being walked in front of a firing squad.

Kala

M.I.A.

3/5

Given the pretty rough first impression I got from the start of this album I didn't expect to end up enjoying it as much as I did. It's certainly not my usual preference when it comes to electronic music but even in the tracks that were more of a miss I at least found them to be fun and danceable. Obviously Paper Planes is the standout here but there was still more to like the deeper into the album I got. I'm not sure if I would call the album rear loaded or if my appreciation for it just grew that much over the course of the thing. I am conflicted on giving this too high of a score as I do think this album had a fair few songs that were just quite average. But I also really want to applaud how much of this album feels unique and fresh in a fun way. I feel as though experimental albums like this get a bad rep because of ego stroking artists who are either trying too hard to reinvent the wheel or trying to make up for their lack of contemporary talent.

Disintegration

The Cure

5/5

This one's a real beauty in spite of the mopey nature. On top of just being a good listen this album really exceeds in pulling you into its gloomy atmosphere and manages to feel fairly varied in the arrangement of its tracks. Given how much I like to rag on certain vocalists as I feel a good/bad singer can make or break album. I do feel a least slightly hypocritical or biased in liking of Robert Smiths vocals. Some of the imperfections and cracks that come through here and there sell the earnestness and contributes to the groups vibe.

2112

Rush

4/5

Given a majority of this album hinges on one 'song' it's understandable that this is a bit of a contentious album. The remainder of the album is solid but outside of maybe Something or Nothing I wouldn't say they would rank among my favourite tracks from the band. 2112 itself on the other hand is a different beast. Being about as long if not longer than my commute to work it's comparatively a more committal song to listen to, but I'll be damned if I don't love how the lengthy ebb and flow of the different instrumental sections makes this track feel like a journey in of itself. Geddy Lee's mousey voice usually leaves him doing more 'talky singing' but he goes all out in multiple parts of this song. A hard album to judge with how it is weighed. I will sit with a 4 given some of the baggage the album comes with and the fact that a few of the non-2112 tracks here are not favorites of mine.

The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway

Genesis

2/5

I don't think the chaotic development of this album did it any favors, it has elements of quality but I think each track suffers from some unpleasant or dated oddities.

Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music

Ray Charles

5/5

11 - Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music (Ray Charles) ***** Not to glaze too hard but cover album or otherwise I feel like there is just a heavenly feeling to Ray’s music that has a relieving effect on the soul.

The Contino Sessions

Death In Vegas

3/5

A lot of this shit feels like something you would hear in one of the early-mid 2000's Hitman games. I was pretty captivated with this in spite of how boring a lot of it was. I think I'm just a sucker the grittiness on display here, especially with the psychadelic edge it has in a few places

Songs From The Big Chair

Tears For Fears

5/5

I tend to be a bit biased when it comes to New Wave and the 80's synth sound but I really don't know who could dislike this. between multiple legitimate classics to a few more 'deep cut' tracks which were honestly just as solid as their bigger hits you can't really say this album is loaded in any direction. Just consistently great and varied tracks. Possibly the only thing I could even argue as a downside is while Listen is a nice and dreamy track to end on. It does go a bit long and I would have loved having Head over Heels as the end track, though I don't know where that would leave Listen

Ágætis Byrjun

Sigur Rós

4/5

A solid start with an incredible set of tracks towards the middle before losing a bit of steam towards the end. The strong ambience in some tracks reminded me of Phaedra though not nearly as otherworldly or sci-fi adjacent. The singing could be hit or miss for me, not necessarily due to an issue with the vocalist themselves but rather that in some spots the instrumentals were so good that I think they could speak for themselves. Also while Hjartað hamast was my favourite track on here I have to ask what the fuck was up with the ear rape at the end?

Armed Forces

Elvis Costello & The Attractions

3/5

Starting to feel like these Costello albums are akin to different bottles of flavored water.

Songs From A Room

Leonard Cohen

3/5

Maybe chalk it up to a difference in the listening experience but this one just did not gel for me as much as its predecessor (which was one of the first albums I got on this list). It has a similar issue where the instrumentals prepared for each track feel like an afterthought to Cohen's writing (I know at least The Partisan is a cover, not sure about the rest). While his vocal performance still gives the impression that he only wants to put about as much effort into it to be considered singing rather than a poetry reading, I think it still matches the tone that it is going for. Which in the case of this album is a bit bleaker than I remember from Songs of Leonard Cohen, perhaps that too bummed me out on my first impressions.

Hybrid Theory

Linkin Park

2/5

Any initial novelty that comes with the edgy nu-metal vibe started to dissipate within the first few songs. Perhaps any chance at me enjoying this kind of music was whipped out of me by the Triple M propaganda wing but I just found most of this annoying. In the end gets a pass though

The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan

3/5

I was hoping this would be the Bob Dylan album that finally clicks with me. Sadly, I would say it misses that mark. I am always left feeling the same 'distant admiration' for Dylan that I get with a majority of the Elvis Costello albums on here, I can recognize that they are a talented artist and can see why some people might laud them to the degree they are held to but just can't see myself putting any of this music into my rotation.

Let It Bleed

The Rolling Stones

3/5

Man, the more of these Stones deep cuts I hear the more I really see these guys as greatest hits merchants. A lot of this is just very dull and derivative faux blues/honky tonk bullshit, I don't know why their albums are littered with this and then sprinkled with a few of their breakout tracks. the opening and closing tracks are definite highlights for me and save this from a negative rating in spite of the fact that hearing Jack Nicholson may have tainted my listening experience of Gimme Shelter. As for the rest of this album though, if I paid to see this live and ended up getting fatally stabbed by some Hells Angels meathead, dying would probably only be the 2nd worst thing that happened to me that night

Strange Cargo III

William Orbit

4/5

Some Strange Cargo indeed, not sure what I was expecting from the cover or the wikipedia summary but it was still a incredibly laid back and enjoyable hour of music. It may be a bit too passive or for the lack of a better term 'video gamey' for some (there were some tracks where I was expecting to start hearing the UNATCO theme or some shit) but this was definitely something I see myself coming back to in the future

Emperor Tomato Ketchup

Stereolab

4/5

An Album I honestly would never have expected to be considering my thoughts on as much as I did, but took me a while to decide how I felt about. For something labeled as indie rock it is not exactly what I had in mind on my first listen but I had high hopes, my first listen had me a bit uncertain at first but with a pretty positive final impression with the last few tracks. subsequent listens really had me growing in appreciation for this one with a better understand of what to expect. Definitely not perfect and one that I would imagine leaves a pretty strong positive or negative reaction. I would say the middle chunk is the weakest seciton of the album

Dog Man Star

Suede

3/5

Even when britpop has a bit more glam and trippiness to it which is usually up my alley it still finds a way to sour on me with how mundane the end product usually becomes. I was actually enjoying a few of the tracks towards the beginning, particularly Heroine, but then after that daddy's speeding song everything started poetically going a bit downhill in terms of my enjoyment. I get it dude you have a lovely David Bowie impression now please turn the reverb down a little even I have my limit for that stuff

The Wall

Pink Floyd

5/5

12 - The Wall (Pink Floyd) ***** It would feel quite wrong if after reviewing 3 albums of this band that I was left with little to say given the quality is fairly prima facie and self-evident. Given this album seems a bit more controversial and with how much primarily Waters is putting of himself on this album, I feel this would be an appropriate place to give a few more thoughts on one of their albums other than just saying it is really good. With how introspective the plot and thematic relevance this rock opera gets, it’s impossible to shed or avoid labels of sap or pretentiousness. But even if these were elements that did irritate someone, I don’t see how you couldn’t look past it when it is handled and presented with this level of artistry. The stylings of a hazy reminiscence of ones life throughout the whole album feel tangible and structurally sound. While I wouldn’t say there are any songs on here that are bad or even mediocre, it’s clear to see they knew what the standouts tracks are, and the surrounding tracks stretch from one to another to form its act structure (I wouldn’t dare to consider it a 3 act structure as there are more than 3 standout songs on here). I would say disc 2 is stronger overall (the stretch of songs from Comfortably Numb to Waiting for the Worms is literally perfect). Waters can get a bit of flack for his vocal components on here, but I can’t see anyone but him performing these parts, from the subject matter being deeply personal to the way he gradually adjusts his performance, feeling in a way like a time lapse showing Pink at their different stages gives a really raw sentimentality which I am sure has endeared this album to so many people, myself included. Putting any kind of artsy fartsy critique lens aside for a final moment, this is probably the coolest I have heard a guitar sound in a single album? Michael Mann (a creator whose films are all very introspective to their main characters) chose to have a rip-off of Comfortably Numb in two of his movies and they both fucking slap

Elephant

The White Stripes

4/5

13 - Elephant (The White Stripes) **** It feels really mean to say since I liked this album a lot but it felt as though the two of them are REALLY good at the basics/fundamental stuff but just don’t deviate too far into stuff that would produce much ‘wow factor’. Ironically, the bluesy parts of this album which were arguably the safest stuff on the album were also my favourite. While I felt that the ‘controlled chaos’ garage vibe of the 2nd track Black Math was very full on at first, I do wish it was maybe a bit more prevalent in the remainder of the album. God I really feel like a jerk for complaining this much about an album that I enjoyed from head to toe with tracks coming in at a ‘good’ at the bare minimum with plenty of diversity in its sound. It’s just a bit harder to highlight the standout elements here aside from the tremendous technical talent on display. To many another cinematic comparison as I have in the past, this reminds me of a lot of Christopher Nolan films of the late 2000’s - 2010’s where his movies are all created with such technical competence that it just feels wrong to not applaud it.

The Notorious Byrd Brothers

The Byrds

4/5

I used to know a guy who was really big into The Byrds/Flying Burrito Brothers who ended up being a performative/tradlarper dickhead so I was kinda hoping this would be ass so I would feel validated in some form. Unfortunately for me what I got was a really fun listen which was likely the best psychadelic/folk music from the 60's that I'm gonna hear on this list. The final few tracks did feel a bit weak compared to the first two thirds but were still solid enough to where I didn't even realize I had burned through the whole album and was listening to the extras at some point.

Queen II

Queen

3/5

14 - Queen II (Queen) *** Pop Culture and Hollywood has fucking ruined my perception of this band, hard to really appreciate but I can’t knock it as being dull or irritating either, just an enjoyable enough cut of some of their less well known music.

Rings Around The World

Super Furry Animals

4/5

15 - Rings Around the World (Super Furry Animals) **** I like the idea of the authors tearfully crossing off different potential Bob Dylan/Neil Young deep cut albums so they can make space for more britpop on this list. This album gave me the same vibes as overly eccentric IPA brands you see at liquor stores called like ‘Kaiju Luchador’ or some other pricey bullshit. Much like those I’d have to say I enjoyed this a lot more than I would have originally cared to admit. It certainly has a lot more of an identity/sound to it than most other britpop on this list.

Heroes

David Bowie

4/5

As a whole yeah, it's not as good as Low. But god damn I love the titular song, I think it may be my most listened to song on Spotify. I don't think the rest of the album is bad but Heroes is definitely doing a lot of heavy lifting here

Aja

Steely Dan

5/5

The Dans of Steel return with another practically perfect album. A much more laid back and jazzy affair than Can't Buy a Thrill, but one that I found myself enjoying just as much. I legitimately can't understand how someone could hate this album or not at least appreciate the talent on display, either as active or background listening this shit is as easy to listen to as drinking water I'm not one who usually is too attentive or appreciative of drums in music but some of the tracks in this (especially early on) really catch your ear. A set of great songs at the start which leads into a section of practically perfect songs from Deacon Blues onwards

The Köln Concert

Keith Jarrett

4/5

'Legendary Crash Outs' has been a bit of a trend on twitter the last few days so seeing this and reading about the circumstances behind his performance really did improve my appreciation for it. As pleasant as it was however, it does sort of dip a bit into jam session territory for me where after listening to more or less the same instrument for an hour it started slipping into the background for me a bit.

Live At Leeds

The Who

3/5

Not a bad performance, a lot of it just blended together and I can't tell how much of that is because of the Live performance structure and how much of that is just The Who's sound. I'm really not a fan of these live albums that don't really capture the atmosphere of the event. Maybe they might have some appreciation from hard-core fans of a performer or people who are into music history but most live albums that follow this trend just feel like poorly recorded iterations of their studio verions

Third

Portishead

3/5

I couldn't tell a lot of the time if this album wanted me to relax or keep me on edge, the vocal segments are really nice and tend to be complemented by more pleasant background tunes, though some of the instrumental stretches feel like they are trying to induce some sort of panic or unease in how odd they are. A down the middle score for something which aptly left me feeling the same way

Brothers

The Black Keys

3/5

Some real car commercial-core tracks on here that really started to meander into one another while just being 'pretty good' I was enjoying it for the most part for half an hour but was feeling pretty numb to it as it reached its close at nearly an hour. I don't know why this was the album chosen for this band

C'est Chic

CHIC

3/5

A fun inclusion today but something that feels more suited to being a dance track than something for your everyday playlists. That nature also made the album feel pretty repetitive over its kinda long runtime

I’m a Lonesome Fugitive

Merle Haggard

4/5

Criminally low global score (not supposed to be a Fugitive joke). Just pleasant and inoffensive classic Country. Haggard has an incredible voice that is an incredible match for the more somber tunes on this Album

Chore of Enchantment

Giant Sand

2/5

Yup, that was a fucking chore alright

Fragile

Yes

3/5

Has a few really good songs (particularly the opening Roundabout) but is kinda lopsided with a few pieces that are mostly these instrumental bits that lean into more folk stylings. While I'm not a bit fan of Folk these songs just like they would have been better as full-bodied songs at best or unfinished jam sessions at worst. Seriously Roundabout does a lot of heavy lifting 『TO BE CONTINUED』

21

Adele

4/5

It's hard to have too strong of an opinion on Adele which confuses me as to why some of the reviews here are so polarizing. It's very competently made albeit pretty sterile pop with a few smatterings of soulful slowness. Very easy to listen to just not really much to consider a favourite

Either Or

Elliott Smith

4/5

A mostly more consistent album than Figure 8. Similar that former album though I felt like the middle was a bit of a lull compared to the strength of its opening tracks as well as landing on its feet with some great ones to close on too. His music (especially in its quieter parts) reminds me more of a jam session/stream of consciousness performed from ones dorm room. An oddly warm feeling for someone who obviously went through a lot of coldness in his life

Pictures At An Exhibition

Emerson, Lake & Palmer

2/5

I could feel my enjoyment for Prog Rock being tested for a good majority of this albums runtime. Every time I could feel myself coming around to enjoying something on this album it would start to overindulge in some way that left me scampering, only for it to lull me back into enjoyment later down the line. The potential ratings I was tossing around in my mind initially were very mixed, but I was considering being a bit generous with my score until around the middle/later portions of Blues Variation where it started to just feel a little too gratuitous, The Baba Yaga stretch towards the end did win me back a bit but good god those synthesizers really are a fucking blight on a lot of this album. Promenade and The Sage was my favourite stretch of the whole thing overall though. Still probably never listening to this again, I'm also really starting to fucking loathe any album I see on here that is credited to a super group

Since I Left You

The Avalanches

5/5

I feel like electronic albums from around the turn of the century are often the coolest, They often feel as though they are looking to create something that has come from the future. Even in cases such as this where everything has actually come from the past. Genuinely the only time I had concerns about this album not landing for me was right at the beginning, the opening track was nice but hearing that some of the samples had bled into the next track had me worried that these samples were going to be frankensteined together for another hour. Thankfully I was just overreacting and it was instead another reason I appreciated this album. the way everything blends from one track to the next seamlessly makes this feel so comprehensive as a full album experience. This isn't to say that the individual tracks are weak either, they're all incredibly varied and satisfying listens, constantly shifting the tone of the album in fresh ways. The seamless transitions actually help each track stand out more in my opinion, as the natural shift from one track to the next really highlights the differences in one another, and having them dynamically adjust while you're listening almost makes it feel like you are window shopping different attractions, each with their own theme or style. 10 pending copyright lawsuits / 10. This list seems to do a lot better at picking their electronic albums than with some genres, where it feels as though they'll include any british wanker with a guitar and a set of drums in his garage

Talking Book

Stevie Wonder

5/5

The negative reviews on this one have me bewildered, not only are the non-superstition tracks on here not that extreme of a departure from the hit song of this album, They're not even worse than said song. Just incredibly smooth listening throughout without a dip in quality anywhere to be seen.

Live At The Regal

B.B. King

5/5

In terms of the music itself I was leaning closer to a 4 but given how much I have ragged on a lot of live albums on this list for their poor quality and feeling antithetical to the point of a live recording by cutting out certain parts. I have to applaud this album for doing basically everything I have asked for from other live albums. How the fuck did they get it so right back in the 60s but we still have dolts messing this stuff up from albums listed here from the 90s

Rock 'N Soul

Solomon Burke

4/5

Perhaps listening to this in a vacuum after two soul albums that I gave a 5 had left me feeling a bit harsh here, but I just thought this was consistently a good album, nothing that really blew me away but a quick and easy listen that I wouldn't mind listening to again in the future

Channel Orange

Frank Ocean

3/5

In a bit of a perplexed spot for this album. It sounds fairly good but was also just very dull, I found myself let it wander off from what I was focusing on quite a bit. Some of the really outspoken reviews for this would have you think Frank Ocean shot their dog, I can't see myself getting that worked up over this album one way or another. Chalk it up to me being a socially stunted weirdo but the strongest reaction I had to this whole thing was wondering why the fuck someone would play Street Fighter II on the PS1

Tarkus

Emerson, Lake & Palmer

4/5

Wow, who would have thought I could enjoy ELP when they don't muddy their tracks by having the synthesizer blow out the rest of the audio with ridiculous space invader noises. Structurally similar to 2112 as an album, though I think the areas I appreciate the two vary from one another. I liked a majority of the title song here and was able to vibe a lot more with the absurdity on display compared to our previous ELP album. I'd say that definitely puts me in the camp of actually enjoying this stuff. That part referencing the holocaust was a bit out there

Pieces Of The Sky

Emmylou Harris

4/5

A really great singing voice that really elevated what I feel would otherwise be a fairly straightforward album consisting mostly of different cover songs

Fear Of A Black Planet

Public Enemy

4/5

While I think there are a few odd or repetitive tracks on here that drag the overall rating down a tad for me, on the tracks where everything comes together it has to be one of my favourite combinations of style and skill. plenty of grit but also not afraid to be cheeky

Harvest

Neil Young

4/5

I think Neil Young might be the best artist on this list so far who I just don't get too much out of their music on a personal level. I don't find him irritating or overrated in any way. And can certainly see why people love his work if they do. But I just can't see myself listening to him outside of obligations to this list

California

American Music Club

2/5

I'm starting to think that while writing this list the author must have committed some horrible atrocity and the only witnesses he could bribe were a convention next door for incredibly boring and mediocre artists. At least we know their appreciation for the mundane stretches from the United Kingdom to the United States now

Foo Fighters

3/5

Another album where the backstory and production are more interesting than the music itself. Grohl pretty much single-handedly creating this is very impressive and admirable on a technical level even if I find most of the music quite dull and it was the inception behind what would eventually become an incredibly overplayed and only occasionally entertaining music group. I think that's another tough part, it's really hard to have too much of a strong reaction to something like the Foo Fighters other than exhaustion with how much air time they get. While this was only 45 minutes I felt like it stretched every last second out of that runtime, with a fairly monotonous style of sound permeating the whole album. Alongside some very repetitive lyrics to compliment it.

The Seldom Seen Kid

Elbow

2/5

I initially wanted to make a joke about the 'seldom seen' part of this albums title to be quite apt but apparently there are over a million people who were miserable enough to tune into this sleeping aid of a band monthly? I can only assume this albums inclusion was once again born from the desire to shove as much British drollery onto a list already bursting at the seams with it. I'm not a huge radiohead fan but Elbows style is so derivative of the parts I dislike about Radiohead the most that I was really just wanting to go put something from In Rainbows on instead.

Blood On The Tracks

Bob Dylan

4/5

I think I sorta 'get' that I will never fully enjoy Dylan but this album got pretty close, the genre itself is just not something I think lends itself to my musical interests or how I like to listen to music, but it might actually be my favourite album of Dylan's acoustic work. I once again didn't have much of a problem with the notorious Harmonica here either

The Clash

4/5

Really good album, though being their debut feels really formative and like a lead up to bigger and better albums to come in the future

Here Come The Warm Jets

Brian Eno

3/5

Despite multiple listens I feel like I'm back to where I was on my first listen in terms of impressions. Perhaps it speaks to his work as a producer but I found myself enjoying a lot of the interesting musical flourishes here and there through the album but found most of the songs to be not that enjoyable as a whole. It was also fairly novel to feel some of the flair in his music that would accompany other artists that he worked with. On Some Faraway Beach was really good though, definitely the best track on here

Machine Gun Etiquette

The Damned

4/5

I’m assuming it was the weapon/combat association that tripped me up but when I first saw the title for this one I mistakenly mixed it up with Combat Rock from The Clash. Silly mistake aside I still really enjoyed this, it has a lot of the energy that I think The Clash’s self titled album was missing while maybe not feeling as distinct. Still quintessential sounding Punk that absolutely flies by at only 36 minutes. You’re doing a disservice not listening to this a few times. I was happy skipping past that These Hands, the fairground nonsense with the laughing reminded me too much of some trippy shit Jim Morrisson would try to pull

In The Wee Small Hours

Frank Sinatra

4/5

A very easy listen while also being quite repetitive. Sinatra's vocals and the instrumentals are of the same quality here that you could expect elsewhere so I can't really say much for them other than that I really enjoyed them. I get it is the focus of the album but I wish it wasn't so bogged in melancholic relationship woes, it really makes a lot of these songs hard to differentiate from one another. I do get a laugh out of the album art though, Frank's giving a real edgy loner 'beat it toots' kinda vibe

Doggystyle

Snoop Dogg

3/5

Felt like way too many bits of shtick/skits given how many average tracks were on here

The Dark Side Of The Moon

Pink Floyd

5/5

Yet another universally acclaimed Pink Floyd album where I am stuck at a loss for what to even add, I liked the first half a bit more I guess? That being said any album would be blessed with either side of this.

Southern Rock Opera

Drive-By Truckers

1/5

When you open with an obnoxious track it sets low expectations When you meander from there into mostly forgettable rock, I'm not gonna be offended but don't expect a great review When you keep referencing other music you're gonna start making me want to listen to something else When you make it 90 minutes long I eventually can't stomach this shit any longer and move on

The Last Broadcast

Doves

2/5

I had to give myself a refresher on what Doves sounded like when I got this since I remembered the name but not their music, not off to a good start at that. Unfortunately I'd say this was another dull affair from a group that I think I would've been able to enjoy more if they focused their talents in a different genre. That first song from their other album Firesuite is still the only thing that really stands out to me. If this truly is the last broadcast for Doves on this ranking then I can't say I'll miss them when they're gone

Smile

Brian Wilson

3/5

Well, I'm sure quite a few people will be visiting this one today. It certainly lives up to the name in terms of the upbeat nature and tone which permeates through each track. If that goofy picture of the dog with the propellor hat and lollipop had a spotify playlist, you could guarantee a good chunk of this album would be there. Where I have problems as a listener is more or less the same that I had with Pet Sounds, I can recognize the production talent on display but can't say it gels with me stylistically. RIP Brian Wilson, I may not find a lot of your tracks to be something I could listen to regularly, but to downplay the joy you have brought to others and the influence your talents had on the music industry would be impossible.

Moving Pictures

Rush

5/5

4 of Rushs best tracks back to back followed by a few other solid tracks, calling this front loaded would be an understatement. While they certainly have songs on a few other albums that are favourites of mine, it would feel silly to claim anything other than Moving Pictures to be the groups finest hour

Tea for the Tillerman

Cat Stevens

5/5

Definitely going to be a bit biased by nostalgia on this one from years of listening to the former Stevens/Islam in the backseat as a kid. Funny enough, this wasn’t one of my favourites growing up because I always felt it was a bit dated/dry compared to some of the music my parents would put on but nowadays (especially when trawling through certain sections of this list) good lord is this fresh. Automatically better than 90% of his singer/songwriter contemporaries for making the accompanying instruments to his lyricism not feel like an afterthought. Even if you were to completely forego listening to the lyrics on a lot of these songs they would still just be incredibly pleasing to the ears.

Pretzel Logic

Steely Dan

5/5

Despite feeling like the most ‘going through the motions’ Steely Dan album on the list and almost not feeling weighty enough to be an album by comparison to their other tracks, their style of production and jazzy rock composition (perhaps not to the same degree as Aja, I’d say this is a middleground between that and Can’t Buy a Thrill) is still an unbeatable sound. While this may be my least favourite album I have heard from them and definitely on the verge of being a 4, the consistently incredible output from this group has cemented them as a heavyweight of this list and certainly a new all time favourite of mine.

Want Two

Rufus Wainwright

3/5

As much as this one was a surprise on how much I didn’t hate it, I’m glad I slept on what to rate this so I didn’t overhype myself on the surprise. The vocal comparisons to Thom Yorke are very apparent after the opener, as much as it lends itself to looking a bit egotistical, I think that the more folky/baroque instrumentals actually work with that style of singing well. As a package it’s not something I can find too many faults with other than it just not being my favourite kind of music. The album duration may not be helping things but I did also feel that the moany style of singing did start to drag by the end

16 Lovers Lane

The Go-Betweens

4/5

Coming in with more quick & easy albums during my latest round of album catch-up. A lot of this reminded me of the Smiths, with maybe a few trace elements of some other brit groups like U2? I would say the resulting sample pool of sound is a mostly enjoyable experience if a bit plain. It’s decidedly very basic and avoids being too flashy or overproduced which for this group definitely fits. In the same way you can enjoy a meal from your local pub despite knowing it isn’t the best cooking around, the fundamentals and familiar go a long way in making an admittedly simple album such a nice listen

Cloud Nine

The Temptations

3/5

Perhaps due to some really strong competition in the soul genre on this list, I just didn’t find myself getting as engrossed in this one as I have with others. I wanted to find something that I really engaged with here and was gutted when I got to a track that I was enjoying more than the rest only to find that the album had actually finished this album and Spotify had moved me on to different songs from the band

Fulfillingness' First Finale

Stevie Wonder

3/5

A very cruisy and listenable music that unfortunately really feels like it is just going through the motions, compared to other soul albums on this list it is just fairly mediocre, when comparing to previous stevie wonder albums it’s disappointing.

Modern Kosmology

Jane Weaver

4/5

Between the artists name sounding fairly similar to a certain parish council worker and one of my favourite tracks on here simply being titles ‘The Architect’, I certainly felt like some cosmic entity was out there taking the piss out of my preferences for brain rot type humor. This felt like a more folk-inspired spin on a more entrancing electronic album such as The Avalanches, especially with how each track leads in and out of one another dynamically. I’m always a fan of that. Just a really well put together bit of psychedelic electronica, not bad for an album which needed to be linked to the artists wikipedia page (since I’m assuming no such page exists for the album itself)

Among The Living

Anthrax

3/5

The recording and production for this album really feel like they left everything sounding really flat (odd given Eddie Kramer supposedly helped produce this, perhaps it was a bit of a styles clash?). Very disappointing that no matter what I listened to this through I could practically hear the energy being filtered out. It doesn’t look like there are any listings of this marked as a remaster from what I could see on Spotify either. A pretty decent if repetitive album if I put my feelings towards the production aside.

The Blueprint

JAY Z

2/5

Tragically it has been brought to my attention that someone has already made a 9/11 joke about this album, the displeasure I had at learning this news was roughly about the same feeling I had while listening to The Blueprint.

Rust Never Sleeps

Neil Young & Crazy Horse

3/5

I can tolerate Neil Young as a singer but I feel like he would be so fucking annoying if he was nagging me about something with that voice

Graceland

Paul Simon

2/5

In spite of doing some heavy lifting, not even the highlight that is You Can Call Me Al can really help me move past how indifferent I felt to a majority of this album. I’m not a prude when it comes to the appropriation aspects of this album but to me it did feel hollow and like Simon was a bit vain to take this angle for the purposes of his own reinvention. Whether his intentions of popularizing African music in states/the west as a whole were genuine or not, it did not matter when I just feel bored by most of this.

Halcyon Digest

Deerhunter

3/5

Listening to this to wind down on a work afternoon was probably the right spot to listen to this one, I imagine it would have been a little dull otherwise. I dig the vibe this was going for but it was perhaps a bit too aimless for my tastes, I couldn’t name a single track on this one off the top of my head even after a relisten.

Who's Next

The Who

4/5

Finally, some good fucking food. The food in question being a bit of an inverted sandwich. All the tastiest parts of this album come on the front and back ends of the runtime, and while you’re not going to be put off by anything in there. It’s also just plain white bread at the end of the day. Always nice to hear this version of Behind Blue Eyes, I feel as though the Limp Bizkit one is all I hear in public anymore. The 2nd stretch with the harmony in the back is too good

Wild Is The Wind

Nina Simone

4/5

Wow, such a powerful and soulful voice. With the intonations and vocal range used she really treats her own voice as an instrument more than most singers on this list. Far and above the highlight of this album for me, I could only wish some of the other elements were a little stronger to elevate my rating higher, the structure for a lot of these songs get into a monotony that feels like a disservice to the vocal delivery of Simone. I can’t stress enough how much she carrys this album on her back

Jagged Little Pill

Alanis Morissette

5/5

This has to be one of the most consistently high quality albums on the list for sure, the grungier elements might date this album to some but give it such an identity while also creating a fond, nostalgic sound. Her vocal performance was also fairly unique and while I had a few spots where I was worried she might get into a bit of over-enunciating which I find irritating. It’s something that is easy to look past after a song or two into the album.

Born To Run

Bruce Springsteen

5/5

Listening to Born to Run (the song) and crying about how this same guy was responsible for The Rising, damn I know 9/11 really buck broke the people of the US but these two are really night and day. Bruce gets a lot of flack for his 7-beers deep tone of singing while he tries to capture the deeper vocal stylings of Roy Orbison but I think it fits the bands

Midnight Ride

Paul Revere & The Raiders

3/5

Probably went hard as fuck back in the day, reminds me of that one picture of Mike Love looking deranged at a Beach Boys performance to the degree where people wonder what the fuck in The Beach Boys discography requires them to go that hard. The Beach Boys are a pretty good metric for comparison as their styles are fairly similar yet this album feels quite a bit more dated in comparison. Songs like Kicks and I’m not your stepping stone stick out a bit more for me to the rest of this as a result of their more aggressive edge.

Deserter's Songs

Mercury Rev

2/5

Fun Fact: My daily album prior to this was Midnight Ride by Paul Revere & The Raiders, one of the standout tracks on this album is a rockin little tune called ‘Get it On’. During this song lead singer of the song Phil Volk sings “Don’t listen to them chatter, you’ve gotta use your own grey matter”. This is clever foreshadowing to how I wanted to stop listening to Mercury Rev’s boring murmurys and paint the walls of my workplace with my own grey matter from a boredom induced state of dread.

Duck Stab/Buster & Glen

The Residents

1/5

The third lowest rated album on this site with only 45.3k monthly spotify listeners and it fucking shows. Grating from the first few seconds. If I have to give this props for anything I would say that there are a few tracks on here which work well enough as unnerving/anxiety inducing background audio (I will give them the benefit of the doubt and assume this was the goal for a lot of this). But with the purposefully out of tune singing and instrumentation this is bound to be as much of an acquired taste as motor oil. Not the worst album on this list by proxy of being more musically inclined than Throbbing Gristle. As for which side I preferred? Fucked if I know, I don’t want to put too much more thought into this album.

The Downward Spiral

Nine Inch Nails

5/5

Abrasive and gritty in a way that actually manages to work. I have had a number of albums so far which try to handle heavy industrial elements in a song to varying degrees of success. But none to the same degree of mastery of Trent Reznor, from start to finish this albums sound is tonally congruent with the aggression and self-destructive themes while remaining perfectly melodic, it makes perfect sense why Reznor would have worked in sound design given how he has an ear for making so many of these sounds work. Perhaps I am just looking for more things to glaze this album over but as always, bonus points for an album structure that enhances the experience of a full listen rather than just singles. While the whole thing is certainly contains a fairly dreary mood throughout I would say the faster thrills of the beginning of the album really do give way to a downward spiral in self-destruction, capping off beautifully with Hurt.

Cosmo's Factory

Creedence Clearwater Revival

5/5

A real ‘holy shit how many hits are on this album’ entry, I can’t even say this is an all-encompassing one either given how there are two other CCR albums on this list that are also pretty stacked. It’s a real testament to just how good they are, hearing these good old boys pluck away really soothes the soul. Sadly this album cover lacks the goofy ‘kid fucking around with different camera filters’ effects over it but I still appreciate the vibes, they wouldn’t look out of place wearing some pinwheel hats for sure.

Back In Black

AC/DC

4/5

AC/DC’s first album following the death of Bon Scott and in my opinion, is the groups best showcase in their style of exhilaratingly stupid Hard Rock which has blessed the speakers of Makita bluetooth site radios across Australia for over 4 decades. I would say my biggest fault with the album isn’t it being front or back loaded, the first two thirds of the album are actually pretty well spread out. but rather that the last few songs just aren’t up to snuff with the rest of the album, outside of review purposes I don’t think I’d be too interested in listening past you shook me all night long.

Catch A Fire

Bob Marley & The Wailers

3/5

Maybe it’s just not a good fit for me but good lord so much of this sounds the same. It’s not even bad, just so similar to one another. That goes for previous reggae albums as well.

John Barleycorn Must Die

Traffic

4/5

Oh thank goodness, from the cover I was expecting some drearily boring as sin country or folk music so dipping my toes in and hearing how funky this was right off the bat really hit like crack. I have similar feelings on this to Green Onions, a pretty short and sweet little album that lets the instrumental talent speak for itself (though this time we do actually have some vocals and they’re pretty great!). Never judge a book by its cover I suppose

Funeral

Arcade Fire

1/5

More painfully bland music, perhaps I am just predisposed to not liking these guys but I feel like the singers voice is more irritating than last time I heard them. The only entertainment value that could have been derived from this would be if this album was a commercial bomb that killed any possible career for this group, at least the title would be more fitting

In The Court Of The Crimson King

King Crimson

5/5

I don’t think it would be hyperbole to call 21st Century Schizoid man the most iconic prog rock song of all time. Hell, just that opening chord feels so iconic that I feel as though most would have heard elements of this song in one way or another. I see some critics of this album saying this song does a lot of heavy lifting for the album but I think that couldn’t be further from the truth. I love the willingness to pivot so freely in styles and weave genres together, it’s a lot cruisier of an album than the intense opener would lead most to believe. Epitaph might be my hidden contender for the highlight. Greg Lake’s singing works perfectly with the almost dream-like quality of the instrumentals on here are of the same ilk as what I have praised previously from his work on Tarkus. A fantastic album with more than one amazing song.

Casanova

The Divine Comedy

2/5

Afraid to say I wasn’t fully head over heels for this Casanova. Very meandering and repetitive which is rough for an almost hour long album. The goofy perverted lyrics were not that funny to me but I was charmed a bit with the attempt. Funny to see some reviews taking this album seriously

Vol. 4

Black Sabbath

4/5

Perhaps given the prescience of Ozzy’s recent passing, the opening of Wheels of Confusion felt like it had an eerie sense of finality to it. It does give way into your standard Black Sabbath fair afterward though with some pleasantly lengthy tracks. Nothing on here that I would say tops Paranoid but that’s a fucking mount everest of a hurdle to leap frankly. I love how without making anything overly intricate, Sabbath were able to culturally shape the sound of darkness and evil that is still present to this day. RIP Ozzy, even before I had properly listened to your music and only knew you through your cameo in Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged me I could tell you were a real one

A Rush Of Blood To The Head

Coldplay

3/5

Competent but mostly milquetoast music that I can’t really bring myself to feel too strong about. Really not much else to say, it’s pretty natural that music this commercially safe is going to be widespread on the radio

From Elvis In Memphis

Elvis Presley

4/5

Definitely feels more like a going through the motions album from an Elvis who by this time was getting into the later stages of his career. Not a lot of stand out tracks but still a really nice listen if you are a fan. Gets better the deeper you get into the track list, peaking around 3 quarters in with In The Ghetto back to back into Suspicious Minds The amount of 1 ratings on this one is a bit egregious

Mothership Connection

Parliament

5/5

Not too much to say about this one other than I listened to it about 6 times before it was time to give a rating. Should be pretty self-evident that I loved it. A little fruity, very funky and absolutely a good time

When I Was Born For The 7th Time

Cornershop

1/5

54 Minutes of this. You truly have to admire the cultural exchange at play here, as the exotic instrumentation of the Tamboura plucking away from India attempts to breath life into the musical equivalent of stale bread that is Britpop. Another painfully boring album really exacerbated by its runtime. Would have been a lot funnier if this was just a bunch of white dudes who got really into India

Night Life

Ray Price

3/5

Whoops forgot to post my review (and seemingly lost what I had written, not that it was war and peace or anything). A charming little honky tonk album that maintains a very similar pace throughout its runtime. Wasn't offended by anything I heard in fact the vocalist was really great. I just don't think anything stood out to me as particularly memorable.

Kilimanjaro

The Teardrop Explodes

2/5

If I had a nickel for every British album I got with only 1 hit in it this week, I'd have two nickels. At least this one was a bit more up my alley with the new wave edge to it rather than the irritating perverted Indian exoticism of Cornerslop

Blonde On Blonde

Bob Dylan

3/5

More Bob Dylan, this time I finally tapped out momentarily to his Harmonica, that shit mixed with a bad headache is a recipe for disaster. I think I’ve listened to enough of Dylan at this point to say he just isn’t for me, I’m not going to argue about the quality of his music or writing, just that it isn’t really what I care to throw on my playlists. Probably my 3rd favourite on this list of his, falling behind Highway 63 and Blood on the Tracks

Unknown Pleasures

Joy Division

4/5

Finally had the pleasure to listen to the poser t-shirt album art band! And what a pleasure it was, definitely a lot more on the slower and moodier side. I do feel like I am not seeing some of what others are here though, This felt pretty par for the course when it comes to british crywank material in terms of lyricism. Even the instrumental tone is not as overbearing as some have described, the slower tempo lends to a more understated feel. Perhaps listening to too much NIN where the angst funneled through industrial noise can feel like an angle grinder against your ear. Incredibly consistent album that felt like it was just getting better the further I went. Being short too was a boon, very easy to listen to once again.

We Are Family

Sister Sledge

4/5

Between getting this in my daily review rotation and listening to Rappers delight the other day, I’m starting to think these Chic guys are following me from track to track like a vengeful spirit. Given I gave them a fairly mediocre score last time I heard them. Perhaps I treated them too harshly, the instrumentals on this album were awesome and definitely saves this album from feeling like it is occasionally going through the motions

Honky Tonk Masquerade

Joe Ely

4/5

A little dry and samey in the vocals but really propped up by some diverse and fantastic instrumentals. A definite surprise among this list

Faust IV

Faust

3/5

My expectations were definitely played with going into this. From initially seeing a fairly low global rating, to being taken back and enjoying the 11 minute opening track, to back to being a bit disappointed that a remainder of the album did not maintain this same energy. If the change in direction on the tracks following Krautrock is what people were upset by back in the day, I can understand. It does find shades of that opener on side B but not enough to entirely win me back.

The Number Of The Beast

Iron Maiden

5/5

A lot better than something with this much mention of rape/molestation has any right to be. Really kicks into gear for the last two thirds (from the title track onward) and closing out brilliantly with Hallowed be thy name. Bruce Dickinson has a stronger energy in his vocal performance than Paul Di'Anno (RIP) had and is better suited to this direction the band took from their first album

All Directions

The Temptations

3/5

Similar output to their previous album which I liked but didn't love. Unfortunately had some audio trouble with the copies I tried listening to which may have also affected my experience

Live And Dangerous

Thin Lizzy

4/5

I wasn't aware of these guys from their name initially and I felt quite foolish realizing who they were as I listened. Sure this may not be the most original act out there but who gives a crap when you can riff that well on the guitar. The funky edge to a lot of this really gels with me too, combine that with a really stellar live recording and you have an easy hit for me.

Pornography

The Cure

4/5

Certainly not an album I want to have the title of showing up on my work computer so I'll keep it short and sweet. An album coming from the more dark and brooding end of the groups catalog, while it may not pack as many memorable hits as albums like Disintegration it is a very tonally strong and consistent set of tracks. Not their best works individually but great as a whole album package.

Ritual De Lo Habitual

Jane's Addiction

4/5

Hard to write too much about this one, a very enjoyable listen that just felt like a little more commercial and going through the motions than Nothing's Shocking.

One Nation Under A Groove

Funkadelic

4/5

The only thing more frustrating than an album not being available for streaming? Having it only be very partially available for streaming. Checking the Spotify album for this and seeing only 3 tracks (one of which being an instrumental) despite an alleged 1hr+ runtime is always fun! I can't let this affect my enjoyment of the album itself though (other than wishing more of this was available on spotify). Another great groovy pick for this list with some magically psychadelic rock riffs (and not in the boring way that a lot of beatles wannabes acted in the 60s). We need to return to a time where the peak of lyrical witticism was having some whimsically danceable beat playing with one of the singers saying some goofy shit like 'You are receiving an international call from; THE FUNK, do you wish to accept the charges?'

Bat Out Of Hell

Meat Loaf

3/5

More like Fat and out of Health

My Aim Is True

Elvis Costello

3/5

>get this album over the weekend >decide to listen on Monday morning >Mr Costello wishes me a welcome to the working week What a polite man, I wish I was a little more into this one as it starts off pretty strong. Unfortunately this front loading fades away and it becomes pretty standard and familiar ground with other Costello albums I've listened to. Not sure if this one really is as good as I'm saying or if regular exposure is starting to make me actually like this guy

Kollaps

Einstürzende Neubauten

3/5

78 - Kollaps (Einsturzende Neubuaten) *** I feel insane for rating this so high but the absurd amount of entertainment I got out of this has to be worth something. Sounding like something between your work foreman screaming at you on a drill site in Dresden (wouldn’t be the only reports of drilling in that city according to this website) and what you would get ordering a vinyl of The Downward Spiral off of Aliexpress. Kollaps’ usage of industrial sound to its rawest extent was for me, enjoyable experimental. Between all of the screaming and ‘instruments’ at play here there is what feels like an imitation or semblance of music amidst the sharp edges of it all, something which I think had to be an inspiration to some more traditionally informed but open-minded artists to work with (Pretty Hate Machine came out just shy of a decade after this). The chaos on display is not going to be something I’ll ever slot into a playlist any time soon, but it’s also something I can’t see myself forgetting about and certainly a welcome distraction from a lot of the downright boring and mediocre albums that paraded their way onto this list. Track #3 Negativ Nein was my favourite because it reminded me of the toilet music in Cruelty Squad

You Are The Quarry

Morrissey

4/5

My first solo Morrissey Album on this list and a revival album at that, being made 7 years after Maladjusted. There are several degrees of separation here from what I am used to but Morrissey's lyricism still has the angst of a teenage social media user and the subtlety of a hydrogen bomb. He's really quite a twat but I think part of that endears me towards his music a little. For the music itself, Morrissey's voice has matured quite a bit in the near 2 decades between this album and his work with The Smiths and I reckon he sounds better here. The instrumentation feels right at place with the early 2000's in terms of pop rock which will date it to some but as someone who grew up around the time I quite enjoyed it and thought it complimented Morrissey quite well. I think a lack of truly standout songs is the only thing holding me back from giving this a 5. I loved 'The First of the Gang to Die' and think it may be one of my new favourites from Moz but there aren't enough tracks here that reach that height.

Disraeli Gears

Cream

4/5

Always feels a little odd to give an Eric Clapton effort considering he treats being a shit person like an Olympic sport but I'll be damned if he can't carry a tune. Fairly all killer and no filler here which partly comes down to a slim runtime of 33 minutes. I guess some artists just really want people to feel they got their moneys worth back when you pretty much had to buy everything on physical media

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