Aug 16 2024
James Brown Live At The Apollo
James Brown
This is a freight train of energy, as to be expected. Like stepping back in time.
3
Aug 17 2024
Out Of The Blue
Electric Light Orchestra
A barbershop quartet of the future. I hear the beginnings of Daft Punk here, but also vestiges of the Beatles and The Bee Gees. First track starts off strong, a real feast for the ears. After, it slows, and with the exception of some great and evocative sounds, I stopped caring until Summer and Lightning. Overall, it’s a technically strong album that doesn’t quite narratively hold together for me. It’s lacking a bit of soul and it’s all over the place, jumping around in style even within songs. I’d rather listen to similar contemporaries, although I do acknowledge this album’s influence and importance. The Simon-esque spaceship receives a thousand points in my book.
3
Aug 17 2024
Oracular Spectacular
MGMT
This album was recorded over a decade and a half ago now, and although it sounds very of its era, there’s something perpetually new and fresh about it. I’ve heard the singles from this album a million times, but they never get old. Perhaps it’s the liquid youth that emanates from these songs. The lost boy vibe of never wanting to grow up maybe froze time itself within its wax. Or maybe, I hate to say it, music simply hasn’t evolved as dramatically as say it did in the fifteen year gap between 1969 and 1984, so it feels newer in relation to everything else that’s come out since. Thank you Spotify algorithmic market research!
The second half of this album is weaker than the first, but those first five songs are a powerhouse. 5 stars, and I’d give five more.
5
Aug 18 2024
Songs Of Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen
Like a more biblical Bob Dylan when it comes to the surrealist imagery. Otherwise, this album stands out as a unique experience. The vibe is so calming while also somehow tortured. Each moment is so perfectly calculated, even as some lines leave you in perplexity, wondering if the onslaught of images mean anything at all. It’s crazy to think that LC spent months composing some of these tracks. These songs are like manna from heaven, perfect for a rainy day or a candlelit evening.
5
Aug 19 2024
Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots
The Flaming Lips
Back when I was a dopey midwestern kid, completely devoid of culture, who thought the only music out there was what was on the radio, I went to a coffee shop in Cleveland. They were spinning Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots. My mind was blown in myriad ways. First off, you’re going to sing about how she’s taking vitamins to defeat evil-natured robots? I’d never heard anything so goofy set to music. What an observation! But then other lyrics, all we have is now, do you realize, they all opened my little world just a bit. Secondly, it’s never occurred to me that anyone would sit and listen through a whole record in its entirety until that point. It was this record, and perhaps its cohesion, which sent me on my journey to listening through albums, not just the singles, and it was the coolness of that moment in the Cafè that prompted me to buy a record player and start my own collection. Needless to say, this album was pivotal to me.
Returning to it now, it’s hard to be objective. The sound is still big, yoshimi’s shrieks still curdle my blood, and I still hold this album on a pedestal over the other Lips albums. Eventually, I went on to see them in Grant Park at Lollapalooza and was literally rolled over by Wayne Coyne in a bubble. I’ve never seen a show so crazy since. Thank you Yoshimi.
Not to mention, as well, how fitting the theme is in today’s climate of rapid AI production. What is human, what is love, and do we fight when the moment arises?
Fifth album reviewed from this site.
5
Aug 20 2024
Deja Vu
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
A total classic. Young Neil’s Helpless. Our House and Deja Vu are all astounding. There’s a song about a little thing that’d just happened the year before called Woodstock. The harmonies, as always, are impeccable. If an epic like Judy Blue Eyes had been on this, it’d be even more of a monument than it is. That said CSN seem very separate from Y on this. It’s like two bands stuffed onto one album.
A friend left this record at my house like a decade ago and never came back for it. Considering I’ve only spun it once since then, I feel that shows my level of connection to it. As I said, a total classic, but its not quite my vibe, so three stars due to personal taste. Neil would go on to greater things, and CSN have better showings as well.
Sixth album reviewed here.
3
Aug 21 2024
The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter
The Incredible String Band
I was born a generation after ISB’s glory days, but in my twenties I went through a hippie phase. I steeped myself in ISB for a few years, and even preformed some of their songs for friends on occasion (Chinese White at Christmas is a perfect song). Revisiting this album now though, from a sober, critical point of view, I find the first half a little grating. I hate to say it, but I was irritated. Even on the Minotaur’s Song, which I used to think was so fun and interesting, I’m just kind of over it. A Very Cellular Song takes the tactic of those before it on the album of having zero repeating structure, exploring and rambling to the point of incomprehension. My interest simply has nothing to grasp except for a poetic line here or there. I’m left wondering, what’s the point?
The second half delves into very eastern-inspired sessions which reach for spiritual places, so I do feel some redemption there. But overall, I see this album as more of a snapshot of an era than an album I’d turn to for enjoyment. Maybe my opinion will change ten years on, but right now, I feel a bit curmudgeonly, like a parent forced to watch their child’s hour long self-produced play.
I will say that the case of Licorice McKechnie’s disappearance is fascinating, and I’m surprised Netflix hasn’t run a deep-dive investigation documentary on her yet. I hope she’s alive out there, living a very normal life as someone’s very normal grandmother.
2
Aug 22 2024
Dry
PJ Harvey
I’ve never loved PJ Harvey, I’ve never hated PJ Harvey. I didn’t love this album, but I didn’t hate it. It was sufficiently heavy, and she does tear it up. I’m sure she puts on a good show. At the same time, maybe because of how she tends to sing/speak, all of these songs kind of sound the same. This was her debut, and better albums do come along. I probably won’t put this on again, but I wouldn’t be upset if someone else did.
8th review.
2
Aug 23 2024
Fever Ray
Fever Ray
I’d heard favorably of Fever Ray, but mentally conflated them as Sugar Ray (very different), so I never sought their music out. This appeared as my album today, and I was prepared not to care. A few seconds in, I was like, hey, this is pretty cool, definitely not like Sugar Ray. The vocals kicked in and I thought, wow, this band is really influenced by The Knife. Five seconds later, I was like hold-up, this IS The Knife!!!
How did this album slip under my radar for more than a decade? Circa 2009, Silent Shout held a perpetual slot in my car’s cd changer (remember those?). I’ve always held Silent Shout as a perfect album of which I base the quality of all other albums to. My friend even went as far as to say she wanted her eventual funeral to simply be a closed casket listening party of Silent Shout, as these songs could convey to her family and friends everything that she was in life. The Knife albums after Silent Shout have all paled in comparison to me, but suddenly, dropped at my feet, is the true sequel (and equal) to SS. Less dancy and more atmospheric, this achieves everything I would’ve liked in a follow up. Thematically, I even see continuity between songs- think Concrete Walls and From Off to On, both featuring at-home ennui with TVs on at all hours.
After only two listens, I know already that I’m adding this to my mental collection of baseline go-tos, right next to Silent Shout.
9th review here, and so glad to have found something so valuable to me so soon. This is the very reason I started following this list.
5
Aug 24 2024
Live At The Harlem Square Club
Sam Cooke
First thing I notice is the fluid change between Sam’s speaking voice and his singing voice. He really is one of the greatest singers who ever lived, and you can hear it right in that transition upfront. His tone is just awesome. Also, this show, his stage presence, the song list, is all so excellent. He covers most of his hits. I can imagine everyone dancing and doing the twist, not just sitting back and watching this performance. It would have been great to attend, I’m sure.
I find the aside interesting when he asks guys to consider not hitting their girlfriends. He leads in like that would be the most common thing to do in the world for a man who suspected infidelity. Times have improved in some regards, it seems!
3
Aug 25 2024
Led Zeppelin IV
Led Zeppelin
A five before even giving it a relisten. Like a lot of others here, I know this album by heart, and every movement is carved into my soul. Reminds me most of being a teenager, sneaking beer, and shooting pool in my parent’s basement.
Contrary to some others here, I’ll say Battle of Evermore is one of the greatest Zep songs. Could you imagine any other song leading into Stairway? I bet you can’t.
Also five stars to the old man with the lantern on the inside cover. I had him on my favorite tee shirt back in those pool shooting days.
5
Aug 26 2024
Horses
Patti Smith
I first listened to Horses about two years ago. Patti had once worked at the Strand Bookstore in New York, and so had I about twenty years after, so I felt some sort of arbitrary necessity to become familiar with her music based on that tenuous connection alone. I remember being really enthralled by the album, with the raw power and poetry, the transcendence of Birdland, the mashup of her own poetry with rock classics, like in Gloria.
So, I was excited when this came up as my album of the day. Today, though, I must not have been in a receptive mood. What I’d interpreted as transcendence two years ago felt like forced transcendence this time around. Her voice which I’d found interesting last time, grated on me this time. I still enjoyed getting caught up in the surrealistic sweep of Horses (the song), and I understand this album’s place in punk history, but it’s certainly not an album for all occasions. Must the greatest albums be for every mood? No, of course not. But this one involves a patient mind who’s also ready to rock, and I was neither today. Maybe next listen this will be a five? Right now, it’s a three in my book.
3
Aug 27 2024
The Fat Of The Land
The Prodigy
Am I a moron? My whole life, I thought Smack My Bitch Up was Snap My Picture. Suddenly, the track seems so much more aggressive.
Well, The Prodigy aren’t lyrical Wordsworths, but there are some clever play on words moments, like Mindfields, etc. None of this is really about the words though, unless it’s to deliver a brief incendiary message. It’s about mixing metal and edm and raving like it’s 1997. I was only ten when this came out, but I was immediately transported back in time vibe-wise.
When I put this on, my partner was like ‘Ooh! Firestarter!’ And I had no idea what she was talking about. I felt so out of the loop. I’m more in the loop now that I’ve listened to this and read on The Prodigy, but don’t really care to be. If I put this album on again, it’ll be for background music when I want to get hifi.
3
Aug 28 2024
Fisherman's Blues
The Waterboys
2
Aug 29 2024
Roxy Music
Roxy Music
5
Aug 30 2024
Music For The Jilted Generation
The Prodigy
3
Aug 31 2024
Moon Safari
Air
Like a more boring Daft Punk. If you were in the mood for super-chill, this does offer some great textures and bass lines. It’s certainly a vibe. To me, a perfect 3.
3
Sep 01 2024
GREY Area
Little Simz
3
Sep 02 2024
(What's The Story) Morning Glory
Oasis
3
Sep 03 2024
Ten
Pearl Jam
3
Sep 04 2024
Sunshine Superman
Donovan
3
Sep 05 2024
Countdown To Ecstasy
Steely Dan
3
Sep 06 2024
Peter Gabriel
Peter Gabriel
This was weirder than I thought it’d be. At first I was tentatively into it. Solsbury Hill is a classic, for instance. Then Excuse Me came on and it might be the worst song I’ve ever heard. Nothing after redeemed the album. I was expecting more of a In Your Eyes experience, and I wish this is what we got.
2
Sep 07 2024
All Things Must Pass
George Harrison
3
Sep 08 2024
Speakerboxxx/The Love Below
OutKast
2
Sep 09 2024
Honky Tonk Masquerade
Joe Ely
2
Sep 10 2024
In Utero
Nirvana
2
Sep 11 2024
Music Has The Right To Children
Boards of Canada
3
Sep 12 2024
Junkyard
The Birthday Party
Wow, this was truly awful. Who would ever listen to this on purpose? Absolutely belongs in a junkyard itself, sorry Nick Cave.
1
Sep 13 2024
Trout Mask Replica
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
This album makes me violently want a Pepsi.
2
Sep 14 2024
Buena Vista Social Club
Buena Vista Social Club
A great relief after getting Junkyard and Trout Mask Replica back to back. It’s been expressed in other reviews, but please someone get me a cocktail. I could listen to this all day! (And I did, on repeat!)
5
Sep 15 2024
Born To Run
Bruce Springsteen
Great poetry and a perfect blend of excitement, emotion, and chill. I feel that amusement park in his memories, I feel that longing for the road, I feel that need for freedom. You can’t fake these things.
4
Sep 16 2024
A Love Supreme
John Coltrane
3
Sep 17 2024
Parachutes
Coldplay
When Coldplay really had their moment twenty years ago or so, they were everywhere. My roommate played them all day long, my good friends played them in their cars. I even remember when Paradise came out years after I thought we were finished with them, and a buddy sat me down and was like ‘listen to this!’ all excited, cranking up the volume.
I will always hate Coldplay. It has nothing to do with the songs themselves, some are really quite good. But it’s that voice. That grating, sickly, whiny voice, and he uses it in the worst way in every song. The only time it ever worked for me was on this album, on the song Yellow, because to me, that’s the color of his voice. His jaundiced, ear-scraping voice. That’s the only song I’ll tolerate from them, and even then, in small doses.
1
Sep 18 2024
Architecture And Morality
Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark
This is an album I’d never heard of (although I swear I’ve listened to Sacred Heart before, either as a sample, a cover, or just out in the wild). But, this is an album I’ll return to. I put it on again immediately after my first listen, which I think really says something.
4
Sep 19 2024
Sometimes I Wish We Were An Eagle
Bill Callahan
2
Sep 20 2024
Paul Simon
Paul Simon
3
Sep 21 2024
What's Going On
Marvin Gaye
This always shows up on greatest albums lists, topping rolling stone’s 500 in one edition. I’ve always thought this album was just okay. I appreciate the vibe, and I like the fluidity, where the first side is basically one continuous song. I like the overall message- like, we’ve got radiation in the ground, wtf people? And, Gaye’s world hasn’t changed much, just as he feared, cops are still out there shooting innocents. But, maybe it’s because I wasn’t born yet when this came out, I just don’t understand why this album is always cited as ‘the best.’ It doesn’t have much to tick against it, but it also doesn’t have much that brings me back to it on my own. I only listen to it when going through lists like these. What am I missing?
4
Sep 22 2024
The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn
Pink Floyd
4
Sep 23 2024
Selling England By The Pound
Genesis
Track one was a banger- I definitely hear guitar sounds that Grizzly Bear would go on to rip-off verbatim. I thought immediately, oh, this one’s a strong 5. Then, despite all the proggy glory and medieval references, it lost me along the way. I gave it a second listen, and felt exactly the same about it. I’d give it a 2.5 for being meh, but I’ll up it 50 cents for how awesome track one would most definitely sound live. Can’t believe I haven’t heard this track before.
3
Sep 24 2024
Chirping Crickets
Buddy Holly & The Crickets
3
Sep 25 2024
Hms Fable
Shack
2
Sep 26 2024
Take Me Apart
Kelela
3
Sep 27 2024
Heroes
David Bowie
4
Sep 28 2024
1999
Prince
4
Sep 29 2024
The Trinity Session
Cowboy Junkies
4
Sep 30 2024
Protection
Massive Attack
3
Oct 01 2024
Beauty And The Beat
The Go-Go's
4
Oct 02 2024
Queen II
Queen
5
Oct 03 2024
Here Are the Sonics
The Sonics
3
Oct 04 2024
Chicago Transit Authority
Chicago
Chicago’s a great town, but their namesake band is no Boston.
There were points on this album where I was into it, but overall, this is overlong and over-indulgent. I also couldn’t get out of my head a documentary I watched about this band a few years ago. They fired one of their longtime members for coming late to a rehearsal. Apparently, they were in the UK and he went to visit a castle with his wife, which made him late. The doc then showed a one on one with each of the band members bashing this guy for going to look at castles, like a loser. Methinks something deeper and unaddressed in the documentary was going on, and they were blaming one event after their storied multigenerational careers for letting this guy, who probably wrote a lot of the music they were rehearsing and could play in his sleep, go. Very fresh, considering their first hit, which is on this album, is literally about not caring what time it is. Really, think about it. You ask a guy for the time because you might be late for an important meeting, and the asswipe is like ‘does anybody really know what time it is, like philosophically, dude?’ I’d punch him in the neck.
Little Nicky has this right. Chicago has a clean facade, but look deeper and you’ll find what’s really up.
2
Oct 05 2024
Superunknown
Soundgarden
4
Oct 06 2024
Country Life
Roxy Music
4
Oct 07 2024
Good Old Boys
Randy Newman
2
Oct 08 2024
Meat Is Murder
The Smiths
3
Oct 09 2024
Logical Progression
LTJ Bukem
3
Oct 10 2024
Brothers In Arms
Dire Straits
3
Oct 11 2024
Space Ritual
Hawkwind
Now this is music!
I went to buy a suit today (very not Hawkwind, I know), and the suit guys plied me down with several glasses of scotch before lunch. I left, feeling like a million drunken bucks, popped in my headphones, and walked around Manhattan for the next two hours, enjoying a glorious autumn day, propelled by Space Ritual. Far fewer ultimate scenarios exist in this life.
5
Oct 12 2024
The Stranger
Billy Joel
4
Oct 13 2024
Wild Gift
X
2
Oct 14 2024
Like A Prayer
Madonna
4
Oct 15 2024
Thriller
Michael Jackson
5
Oct 16 2024
Back to Basics
Christina Aguilera
4
Oct 17 2024
Happy Trails
Quicksilver Messenger Service
3
Oct 18 2024
The Message
Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five
4
Oct 19 2024
Born In The U.S.A.
Bruce Springsteen
4
Oct 20 2024
Connected
Stereo MC's
2
Oct 21 2024
I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight
Richard Thompson
5
Oct 22 2024
The White Album
Beatles
5
Oct 23 2024
Another Green World
Brian Eno
There’s something very incredible about St. Elmo’s Fire. The rest of this, I wish was as enchanting. I really love Eno’s contributions on Bowie’s Warszawa, but other than that his songs are just sort of Eno-land for me.
3
Oct 24 2024
Germfree Adolescents
X-Ray Spex
Wow, that was annoying
2
Oct 25 2024
3 Feet High and Rising
De La Soul
3
Oct 26 2024
Live At The Star Club, Hamburg
Jerry Lee Lewis
Fun to learn this guy was a incestual pedo who wrecked his car into Elvis’s front gate.
2
Oct 27 2024
Swordfishtrombones
Tom Waits
I don’t trust Tom Waits fans.
2
Oct 28 2024
Bridge Over Troubled Water
Simon & Garfunkel
5
Oct 29 2024
Tea for the Tillerman
Cat Stevens
4
Oct 30 2024
Faith
George Michael
3
Oct 31 2024
Whatever
Aimee Mann
The vibe takes me straight back to the 90’s, hanging out in the college town with a cup of Joe in hand.
3
Nov 01 2024
Bluesbreakers
John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers
2
Nov 02 2024
Green Onions
Booker T. & The MG's
Not a bad moment on this. Great for background music.
4
Nov 03 2024
Scum
Napalm Death
2
Nov 04 2024
Teen Dream
Beach House
5
Nov 05 2024
Unknown Pleasures
Joy Division
4
Nov 06 2024
Billion Dollar Babies
Alice Cooper
4
Nov 07 2024
Seventeen Seconds
The Cure
3
Nov 08 2024
Survivor
Destiny's Child
2
Nov 09 2024
The Genius Of Ray Charles
Ray Charles
3
Nov 10 2024
Modern Kosmology
Jane Weaver
Finally, something brilliant.
5
Nov 11 2024
25
Adele
4
Nov 12 2024
Rock 'N Soul
Solomon Burke
5
Nov 13 2024
Tres Hombres
ZZ Top
Tres stars for tres hombres
3
Nov 14 2024
Low-Life
New Order
3
Nov 15 2024
Since I Left You
The Avalanches
4
Nov 16 2024
Frank
Amy Winehouse
3
Nov 17 2024
What's That Noise?
Coldcut
This was a lot of fun!
4
Nov 18 2024
...Baby One More Time
Britney Spears
3
Nov 19 2024
Smash
The Offspring
The Offspring used to shoot a fire hose into the crowds of their shows on hot days, and I remember getting hit point blank by the lead singer when I’d crowd-surfed to the base of the stage. Also, I’m sure I got a majority of my teenage speeding tickets because I drove a lot with this album in the CD changer. Interesting to be reminded that I used to be young and I used to be more of an asshole than I am now.
4
Nov 20 2024
Before And After Science
Brian Eno
3
Nov 21 2024
Music
Madonna
3
Nov 22 2024
The Velvet Underground & Nico
The Velvet Underground
I used to have vinyl parties. This was pretty much a nightly thing. My friends and I would go to Cincinnati’s magnificent Shake It Records, pick up something interesting, and then go spin it. As the night wore on, The Velvet Underground and Nico would inevitably be played. All of us were obsessed with this album. It’s the wildest, most entrancing collection of songs I think I’ve ever heard. An absolute classic.
5
Nov 23 2024
Blue
Joni Mitchell
4
Nov 24 2024
Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire)
The Kinks
Not quite as whimsical (believe it or not) as my go-to Kinks album The Village Green Preservation Society, and not quite as rockin’ as Lola Versus Powerman, Arthur sits squarely in the middle for me. It has bangers like Victoria, Drivin’, Australia, and Shangri-La, but this isn’t an album I listen to straight through like the others bookending this one. I also can’t help but notice how similar Drivin’ sounds to Picture Book on VGPS.
3
Nov 25 2024
E.V.O.L.
Sonic Youth
On a different day, or in a different era of my life, this would’ve been five stars. Nowadays, I can’t find objective access in. They don’t seem to be transmitting much value aside from a ‘we’re weird and different, therefore, we’re cool’ vibe. Although, I don’t doubt they would have been a part of a very vibrant scene and would have been very exciting to see perform. An ex of mine’s mom used to tour with Sonic Youth, and she made it sound like the ultimate. For meetups with the in-laws in those days, we’d go see Lydia Lunch speak, rather than have like a standard brunch with the folks. Jamming was always fun, and usually bled into these noise rock sound collages like heard on Evol. It is all a lifestyle and mindframe. I guess I’ve moved on.
3
Nov 26 2024
Crime Of The Century
Supertramp
3
Nov 27 2024
Selected Ambient Works 85-92
Aphex Twin
2
Nov 28 2024
So Much For The City
The Thrills
Whoa, these Flaming Lips-adjacent vocals are like nails on a chalkboard. The songs themselves are well-played, but somewhat boring. Also, why don’t these guys just move to California already instead of writing ten songs-worth of straight fomo? Cringy.
2
Nov 29 2024
Trans Europe Express
Kraftwerk
5
Nov 30 2024
Urban Hymns
The Verve
If the middle of this album matched the beginning and the end, then it would’ve been truly epic. Instead, they fell asleep.
3
Dec 01 2024
For Your Pleasure
Roxy Music
4
Dec 02 2024
The Next Day
David Bowie
4
Dec 03 2024
Pretzel Logic
Steely Dan
2
Dec 04 2024
Tom Tom Club
Tom Tom Club
5
Dec 05 2024
Time Out Of Mind
Bob Dylan
3
Dec 06 2024
Kings Of The Wild Frontier
Adam & The Ants
3
Dec 07 2024
Sheer Heart Attack
Queen
4
Dec 08 2024
Dirty
Sonic Youth
3
Dec 09 2024
Berlin
Lou Reed
3
Dec 10 2024
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
David Bowie
5
Dec 11 2024
Snivilisation
Orbital
3
Dec 12 2024
Marquee Moon
Television
4
Dec 25 2024
No Other
Gene Clark
5
Dec 26 2024
A Christmas Gift For You From Phil Spector
Various Artists
4
Dec 27 2024
Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)
Eurythmics
4
Dec 28 2024
Vol. 4
Black Sabbath
5
Dec 29 2024
Bummed
Happy Mondays
4
Dec 30 2024
Grace
Jeff Buckley
5
Dec 31 2024
After The Gold Rush
Neil Young
4
Jan 01 2025
Suede
Suede
3
Jan 02 2025
Apple Venus Volume 1
XTC
If you look in my dictionary, you’ll find this album under the word S-U-C-K-S. I’d never heard anything from XTC other than the song Making Plans for Nigel, which bops, even with its weird lyrics. Like, just let Nigel be Nigel. Do something for yourself, dammit. But, with that song in mind, and when initially confronted with this album’s pretty cool cover art, I expected I’d be in for a treat. This is the first album generated for me in 2025, after all, so it should’ve been ceremonious! It seemed like it could be a fresh, new-to-me, gem. What I got was hot shit. Like my dog’s diarrhea squeezed through my fingers, shit. I hated this. There are bad albums on this list, but in a way, they’re a calculated bad. They’re unique. Like Junk Yard, Trout Mask Replica, or that Napalm Death album. This one actually thinks it’s good though, and good for everyone, not just a small niche, which makes it by far the worst album I’ve confronted so far on this site. Through conventionality, it actually seems to have convinced people that it’s good too, which is the weird part. Maybe others already had a deeper context with XTC to work from? Fond memories and such? Since I come from a place of supreme objectivity, I’ll ask anyone who loves this album to defend its quality, which aside from the orchestral moments, is as bad as my friend’s dad’s garage band. I implore you to attempt saying any of these lyrics aloud while keeping a straight face. I urge you to consider the song where he laments about not being able to own a woman, and then halfway through the song, tries to explain what he really means by that (just use a different word than ownership, man). We need to erase this album from the heritage of humankind, because frankly, it’s embarrassing. Future archaeologists will laugh at us.
1
Jan 03 2025
Blue Lines
Massive Attack
3
Jan 04 2025
The Doors
The Doors
5
Jan 05 2025
Tapestry
Carole King
5
Jan 06 2025
Ace of Spades
Motörhead
2
Jan 07 2025
Gorillaz
Gorillaz
3
Jan 08 2025
Machine Head
Deep Purple
When I think of golden age classic rock, this is it.
5
Jan 09 2025
Coat Of Many Colors
Dolly Parton
5
Jan 10 2025
Roger the Engineer
The Yardbirds
4
Jan 11 2025
Boston
Boston
Maybe the first album I ever listened to in full. My dad was a fan, and would often crank the volume to the max whenever we drove anywhere. Later on, I liked to put this on when shooting pool. If not for nostalgia alone, 5 out of 5, and glory to Boston.
5
Jan 12 2025
In The Wee Small Hours
Frank Sinatra
4
Jan 13 2025
The Seldom Seen Kid
Elbow
Made me want to put my elbows in my ears.
2
Jan 14 2025
Joan Armatrading
Joan Armatrading
3
Jan 15 2025
Fishscale
Ghostface Killah
4
Jan 16 2025
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
5
Jan 17 2025
Hypnotised
The Undertones
3
Jan 18 2025
good kid, m.A.A.d city
Kendrick Lamar
1
Jan 19 2025
Zombie
Fela Kuti
When I was younger, I spent a lot of time at a hookah bar in Ohio. The owner played nothing but Fela Kuti, so FK hits a very specific vibe for me. I can’t imagine how incredible this would have been to see live. These songs are each an odyssey, ten minutes of crazy drums and horns, introduce Fela and his back up singers, and rinse and repeat all day long.
4
Jan 20 2025
Walking Wounded
Everything But The Girl
4
Jan 21 2025
Five Leaves Left
Nick Drake
4
Jan 22 2025
Sweetheart Of The Rodeo
The Byrds
4
Jan 23 2025
Lady Soul
Aretha Franklin
3
Jan 24 2025
The Slim Shady LP
Eminem
No
1
Jan 25 2025
Live At Leeds
The Who
2
Jan 26 2025
The Undertones
The Undertones
Used to listen to this all the time but forgot about it. I forgot about it so much, that when this album came up, I was like ‘who are the undertones?’ Then as I played through it, all the songs came back to me. It was like awakening from amnesia. Wow, I love this album.
5
Jan 27 2025
Fulfillingness' First Finale
Stevie Wonder
Cheesy Stevie. I understand this album/ Stevie Wonder stands on a high pedestal in some people’s hearts on here. But, I’m not a spring chicken and I can’t tell you unflinchingly that this is dated, and dated in a bad way. I get SW’s influence on music, but I’m never Jonesing to listen to SW. I can never see an instance where I’d naturally throw on a SW record. And, if I did feel the urge, it wouldn’t be this one.
2
Jan 28 2025
Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness
The Smashing Pumpkins
It’s the 90’s. I’m on campus. I’m full of angst and stupid overwhelming sadness. I need catharsis, but despite all my rage, I’m still just a rat in a cage.
Even if nostalgia wasn’t tied up in this, the music demands reaction. Mellon Collie dredges up all the feels in me.
5
Jan 29 2025
A Northern Soul
The Verve
2
Jan 30 2025
I See You
The xx
2
Jan 31 2025
Modern Life Is Rubbish
Blur
4
Feb 01 2025
Hot Fuss
The Killers
4
Feb 02 2025
Southern Rock Opera
Drive-By Truckers
3
Feb 03 2025
No Sleep 'Til Hammersmith (Live)
Motörhead
3
Feb 04 2025
3 + 3
The Isley Brothers
4
Feb 05 2025
Fear Of Music
Talking Heads
The ravings of a madman
5
Feb 06 2025
She's So Unusual
Cyndi Lauper
I love the eighties
5
Feb 07 2025
The Stooges
The Stooges
2
Feb 08 2025
Blonde On Blonde
Bob Dylan
5
Feb 09 2025
Blood And Chocolate
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
I’m glad I listened to this. Now, I have an escape plan when guests overstay their welcome at my place. I’ll just put this on.
1
Feb 10 2025
Talking Heads 77
Talking Heads
4
Feb 11 2025
Figure 8
Elliott Smith
Great, if you want to fall asleep and have sad dreams
3
Feb 12 2025
D.O.A. the Third and Final Report of Throbbing Gristle
Throbbing Gristle
All these squares giving this album a low rating probably voted for Trump.
Returning to this, it’s easy to see how influential this was to underground music. About ten years ago, I often found myself in a particular warehouse in the old part of town, where I’d see bands from across the US perform music just like this. To me, that was the scene, and everything else was weak or pandering. True industrial.
5
Feb 13 2025
Untitled (Black Is)
SAULT
3
Feb 14 2025
Straight Outta Compton
N.W.A.
3
Feb 15 2025
Aftermath
The Rolling Stones
3
Feb 16 2025
Bayou Country
Creedence Clearwater Revival
3
Feb 17 2025
Mermaid Avenue
Billy Bragg
3
Feb 18 2025
Head Hunters
Herbie Hancock
2
Feb 19 2025
Foxbase Alpha
Saint Etienne
3
Feb 20 2025
Stankonia
OutKast
1
Feb 21 2025
The Suburbs
Arcade Fire
The Arcade Fire album ‘Funeral’ held great significance to me. I was living in the suburbs, going to a community college, seeking culture desperately, but finding none. When I heard the Arcade Fire, I realized I’d found my vibe. There was darkness on that album, there was longing, but ultimately, there was triumph. This album (and the early ep) was in my cd rotation for years, even long after I moved to the city and found my scene. I’ve listened to it thousands of times and it still can bring tears to my eyes. It was the anthem of an era in my life.
Neon Bible came out and I was already in a better place. But that’s not why that album didn’t achieve the same status in my heart. The Arcade Fire had mostly eschewed triumph to heighten the darkness of their sound and lyrics. That album still had some bangers, but despite my high hopes for Neon Bible, I had to press my hopes for future releases and write this one off as an intermediary album.
Then, it finally came. The Suburbs. An album themed around the ennui I felt which immediately drew me to Arcade Fire in the first place. The Suburbs brought Arcade Fire into a new level commercial success and fame. No longer did they have that underground, artsy mystique. In making an album about the homogeny of our capitalist modern world, they embodied the very enemy they wished to portray. Basically all of the triumph from the Funeral days was traded out for misery. There are no fun moments on The Suburbs. The only moment I feel that energy which drew me to them in the first place is at the very end in The Sprawl II, easily the best song on this overlong and monotonous album. This one can make me cry and actually feel that old youthful Arcade Fire spirit, that immense longing to escape normality and enter a realm of unhindered expression.
The Suburbs is where I gave up with the Arcade Fire. They’d grown as a band, but to me, in the wrong direction. That being said, this isn’t a bad album per se. The lyrics are simple and repetitive and actually pretty repetitive across their entire body of work, but at least they’re trying to pinpoint actual concerns that ‘keep people up at night,’ be that (even fifteen years ago) the threat of artificial intelligence, legacy and purpose, and overcoming cultural suppression. To me, it can’t be higher than a three, but it can’t be lower either.
3
Feb 22 2025
Murmur
R.E.M.
2
Feb 23 2025
Very
Pet Shop Boys
2
Feb 24 2025
Queens of the Stone Age
Queens of the Stone Age
2
Feb 25 2025
Paranoid
Black Sabbath
Where’s the 10/5 button?
5
Feb 26 2025
Raw Like Sushi
Neneh Cherry
3
Feb 27 2025
Sea Change
Beck
3
Feb 28 2025
Beyond Skin
Nitin Sawhney
Not as bad as some of the reviews here would make it seem. But, this album’s not great either.
2
Mar 01 2025
Brilliant Corners
Thelonious Monk
4
Mar 02 2025
Vulnicura
Björk
Bjork is more human than all of us. Who could leave Bjork? Who’d want to make Bjork feel all the things she had to transmit on Vulnicura (because this felt more like a cathartic need than an artistic opportunity grab)? This one is sparser than her other material and feels so private and so painful, it doesn’t go down as my favorite Bjork album, and I’m sure returning to this state of mind wouldn’t be her favorite thing to do either. Still, this is a shade of Bjork, and therefore magic is contained within.
4
Mar 03 2025
Ellington at Newport
Duke Ellington
2
Mar 04 2025
Illmatic
Nas
At a cafe while visiting Paris, the waiter asked where I’m from. I said ‘Queens,’ and his response was, ‘Ahh, like Nas!’
What I like about this album is that it’s short and sweet. It isn’t overpacked like a lot of other rap albums. Every moment is iconic.
Go Queensbridge!
4
Mar 05 2025
A Nod Is As Good As A Wink To A Blind Horse
Faces
2
Mar 06 2025
Isn't Anything
My Bloody Valentine
4
Mar 07 2025
In A Silent Way
Miles Davis
4
Mar 08 2025
Abbey Road
Beatles
5
Mar 09 2025
Toys In The Attic
Aerosmith
4
Mar 10 2025
Wish You Were Here
Pink Floyd
5
Mar 11 2025
Disraeli Gears
Cream
4
Mar 12 2025
The Clash
The Clash
3
Mar 13 2025
Mothership Connection
Parliament
T’was a bland and bleak existence. Then came the funk…
5
Mar 14 2025
Soul Mining
The The
2
Mar 15 2025
Dirt
Alice In Chains
4
Mar 16 2025
Tonight's The Night
Neil Young
3
Mar 17 2025
The Colour Of Spring
Talk Talk
Luxury music
4
Mar 18 2025
On The Beach
Neil Young
3
Mar 19 2025
The Sounds Of India
Ravi Shankar
3
Mar 20 2025
Tanto Tempo
Bebel Gilberto
3
Mar 21 2025
Sunday At The Village Vanguard
Bill Evans Trio
3
Mar 22 2025
Green
R.E.M.
4
Mar 23 2025
Arrival
ABBA
4
Mar 24 2025
Like Water For Chocolate
Common
2
Mar 25 2025
Purple Rain
Prince
5
Mar 26 2025
Who Killed...... The Zutons?
The Zutons
2
Mar 27 2025
Queen Of Denmark
John Grant
4
Mar 28 2025
Colour By Numbers
Culture Club
I really like Karma Chameleon, and a little peak into the ‘80s is always fun, but overall, this album feels like being in a musty vintage shop. Some people like shopping vintage. I find the whole ordeal itchy.
3
Mar 29 2025
The Downward Spiral
Nine Inch Nails
This album was one of those moments in music history where everything went from interesting to REALLY interesting.
5
Mar 30 2025
The World is a Ghetto
War
3
Mar 31 2025
The La's
The La's
2
Apr 01 2025
Automatic For The People
R.E.M.
4
Apr 02 2025
Bookends
Simon & Garfunkel
Simon and G-Funk for the win!
5
Apr 03 2025
Dub Housing
Pere Ubu
This is the best album to put on if you want to get laid. Especially the last track.
3
Apr 04 2025
Master Of Puppets
Metallica
Whenever I listen to this album, I wish it was the first time. Totally metal.
5
Apr 05 2025
You Want It Darker
Leonard Cohen
5
Apr 06 2025
Station To Station
David Bowie
The return of the thin white duke… This isn’t my favorite Bowie album, but it’s still better than 99.99999% of all the other albums ever made. The title track retains a position in the top ten of all Bowie songs. What a treat.
5
Apr 07 2025
Rid Of Me
PJ Harvey
2
Apr 08 2025
Ágætis Byrjun
Sigur Rós
I urge you, if you have the means, to one day find a secluded country road, preferably somewhere in the mountains, and wait until the stars are out. Make sure your car has a killer sound system. Crank ‘Viorar vel til Loftarasa’ to the max and drive.
When that bowed guitar hits, be careful that you don’t launch into space. Be careful that if you become space, you stay on the road.
5
Apr 09 2025
Come Away With Me
Norah Jones
A lot of reviews here shitting on Norah Jones for being nothing more than corporate coffeehouse background music. Hey man, I love coffee (and owning Starbucks stock)! More so, I love chill vibes, and NJ delivers that. Her voice is so calming and clear. For the last twenty years, if I’ve wanted to turn off the noise, NJ has been a go-to. Her debut is one of her best albums too. I really enjoyed revisiting this, even though I just listened through her discography again a month or so ago.
5
Apr 10 2025
Heroes to Zeros
The Beta Band
2
Apr 11 2025
Peggy Suicide
Julian Cope
This album mostly sucks. However, if you listen to the two hour long deluxe version, the tripped-out second disc is actually really good. I wasn’t expecting that. In fact, I’d give the actual album a one and I’d give the deluxe bonus material a five. So, this comes to a three.
This really shows how an artist can be either excellent or dull depending on delivery. I truly wasn’t expecting to come around to Julian Cope after the first few songs. The second half is just so dramatically different, and perhaps more to my taste. I’m suspicious about that toy car collection though… I bet this guy’s a real creep.
3
Apr 12 2025
Revolver
Beatles
I mean, this is Revolver. Five immediately.
Having been born long after this album made a splash and revolutionized culture and the possibilities of rock and pop music, I can say from a song by song basis, and feeling how the tracklist flows or doesn’t flow together, I prefer their later work. Abbey Road is the best Beatles album, then White Album, then Peppers. Stop saying Revolver is the best. This album is the launch-pad to the greater state. It is not in itself the greatest state. When I listen to Revolver, it makes me want to listen to the later albums (sans Let it Be). Listening to the later albums doesn’t make me want to listen to Revolver. Discuss.
Still, Revolver is better than 99.9% of all other albums the world has produced. Just take Taxman, for instance. Taxman is supremely badass, and not just because of its witty lyrics about taxing your feet. This is literally The Beatles doing battle against a supertax that would’ve wrung them dry. They didn’t sit back and accept it, especially as the tax in question would be allocated for military use. George, as you can guess from his later ‘Within You, Without You,’ was not so keen on the idea of going bankrupt to fund instruments of death. So he wrote a song about it, risking the group’s massive popularity across party lines, and in the end, won. Sorry Mr. Heath, but you’ll forever be known as an absolute douche. You don’t go up against the Fab Four.
5
Apr 13 2025
Fred Neil
Fred Neil
As mentioned by others here, albums like this is why I started this daily listening project. If I’d heard of Fred Neil before (due to Midnight Cowboy), I’d forgotten about him. His life story is amazing. It sounds like the shape of music as we know it would not become what it was without him. He gave Bob Dylan a shot, influenced Dylan and the scene by apparently writing the first major Greenwich Village protest song. Dylan went on to do his thing, and in turn influence the Beatles, and the rest is history. Nilsson’s version of Everybody’s Talkin at Me is one of my favorites from the era, so to think that song wouldn’t exist without Fred Neil, who I’d never even registered before, is bananas. Then, after, he went on to influence Jefferson Airplane, etc. This guy lived a life.
As for the album itself- super chill and super vibing. Not epic classic status, but I’d definitely put this on again. At first, I thought he was an Elvis copycat, but as the album went on, I felt more of an aura of the era. Truly, he was the king of the Village folk scene.
I think it’s time for a Fred Neil renaissance. Let’s bring this music back into public awareness. Why’s this guy mostly forgotten?
4
Apr 14 2025
Music in Exile
Songhoy Blues
Giddy-up, this is the sort of thing I hoped to find on this list. I probably never would have heard about Songhoy Blues otherwise. Great sound, great story. Yeah, this goes on some playlists.
4
Apr 15 2025
At Newport 1960
Muddy Waters
3
Apr 16 2025
We're Only In It For The Money
The Mothers Of Invention
Like a depraved episode of Scooby Doo.
We are the other people, we are the other people, we hate the Beatle people, we are the Scooby Doo.
(Apologies to scoob and the gang. Hippy hating Zap wouldn’t dare be associated anyway.)
Me, I’d rather listen to real music Mr. Christgau, like say, Sgt. Pepper’s, other than this horse shit. Sure, the Beatles recorded Pepper’s in large part to make money, but hey, that’s capitalism, and the result would not have been what it was if the Beatles didn’t actually care about their product or their legacy. Zappa is a jealous zealot, talented in a less soul-striking way, and uses the accusation that others (like the Beatles) are only in it for the money to, well, try ‘n make some money…
One album (Peppers) stands the test of time and will probably be cherished for centuries. The other has a track called Hot Poop. Which is more worthy of my heart-investment? Fuck Frank Zappa.
1
Apr 17 2025
The Soft Bulletin
The Flaming Lips
Long ago, long enough ago that I had a camcorder and not an iPhone, some friends met at my place to collectively ingest some sort of now-forgotten psychoactive drug. As the effects began to kick in, we sat in the living room, I turned on the camcorder, and someone popped The Soft Bulletin on the vinyl player. When Wayne sang ‘Lifted up the suuuuuun,’ my friend flailed his arm like a windshield wiper, erasing the real world and revealing the rainbow-soaked cartoon world behind everything. At one point, a cow riding a bicycle collided into me. I felt it gently on my cheek.
Years later, I found that camcorder and replayed that video, and saw mostly a bunch of giggling kids. No miniature cows on bikes, sadly. This album encapsulates that experience to me. It reminds me of a time in my life where I was young and the world was vast and full of imagination and opportunity. At the same time, I was old enough to know that the way one imagines the world does not actually reflect the world at large, as it is. You can internally feel this psychedelic wonderland, but looking at it later with objectivity, you’d feel silly noticing the discrepancy between what was firing off in your mind as opposed to the actual reality of sitting on a couch at home. And this album seems to know this, as it begins with whimsical high-energy love songs and descends into steadily darker places. The beginning tracks against the second half becomes an understated conflict against forces- the free-form will against what’s actually possible with our frail human frame, happiness vs depression, existence against nonexistence. But, even with that gash in your leg, Wayne says you have to power on. (By the way, ‘The Gash’ was my profile name for a lot of websites at this time, so I’ll admit to being a fan.)
I can see why people might not get this album. It has a song about bugs crashing into windshields (which is excellent). It is childish in its sound. But its subject matter is crushingly heavy. Not even Superman can lift it. That freaks some people out. But to me, The Lips are simply real. These guys get it. And they’ve made some killer art by shucking off all fear, be that of rejection or infinity. It seemed to have caused a chain reaction…
Long live The Soft Bulletin!
5
Apr 18 2025
Rocks
Aerosmith
I find it interesting to see what the album generator gives you on milestone days. I got Scum by Napalm Death on my wedding day, so that was a fail. But, yesterday was my birthday, and I got Rocks. Back in the Saddle Again is not a bad song to blare first thing in the morning on your birthday.
This album does Rock with a capital R. We get no prolonged soft moment of reflection. It’s just, keep rocking and don’t stop. I respect that.
I’ve heard Rocks before, but always choose Toys. I think my unfamiliarity with the songs after the first track contributed to this blowing past me. I’ll put this on again later, and perhaps my opinion will change. For now, I’ll say it’s a solid rock album without many standouts after Back in the Saddle.
3
Apr 19 2025
Darkness on the Edge of Town
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce doing as Bruce does.
3
Apr 20 2025
Sticky Fingers
The Rolling Stones
3
Apr 21 2025
Tommy
The Who
I appreciate the recurring musical themes, but I’ve always felt like this album was way too long. I’m glad they did it, Tommy created the rock opera after all, but I don’t need to hear a song about a bully or a kiddie fiddler. I don’t care about Tommy as a character in the least bit, so in that way, they really failed. Basically, the Who take us on a journey where this boy becomes a cult leader. We don’t need all of that, or at least I don’t. It’s too much. Show us one thing that’s real and be done with it.
Points for the song Pinball Wizard, an absolute classic if not slightly unclimactic. l also liked the Christmas song, beyond all logic. The overture and underture were nice. The rest, meh. This rock opera has very few rock-out moments.
3
Apr 22 2025
Kind Of Blue
Miles Davis
Always transports me to a particular state of mind. I can feel its age, or at least its place in time, but it’s also still feels fresh seventy years on. Great to have a coffee with, while watching the rain from a cafe window.
4
Apr 23 2025
Halcyon Digest
Deerhunter
Started off slow, but I really got into this after the fourth track or so. The complexity and beauty creeps up on you. I’m surprised such a subtle album was noticed enough to make this list.
4
Apr 24 2025
So
Peter Gabriel
5
Apr 25 2025
Different Class
Pulp
3
Apr 26 2025
The Number Of The Beast
Iron Maiden
3
Apr 27 2025
Get Rich Or Die Tryin'
50 Cent
Maybe I just don’t like good rap? Maybe I really love bad rap? I don’t know. This seems to be an unpopular album with rap junkies, but I loved the vibe. I had a good time. Even though this is an hour, I was still into it by the end of the runtime. With most really lauded rap albums that people say I absolutely need to hear, which win tons of awards and are lifted up on this pedestal (looking at you Kendrick and Kanye) I just don’t give a damn. Give me a 50 cent bag of chips over nutritious veggies any day!
4
Apr 28 2025
Let England Shake
PJ Harvey
This is my favorite from PJ Harvey so far. It’s focused, unique, and powerful. I’ll put this on again, whereas I don’t know if I’ll revisit the other albums I’ve heard from her.
4
Apr 29 2025
Abraxas
Santana
3
Apr 30 2025
All Directions
The Temptations
3
May 01 2025
I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got
Sinead O'Connor
Somehow both not as good as I expected and better than how I thought it’d be. I’d only heard Nothing Compares 2 U, and that song gives me flashbacks to a blur of a trip to Manila where for some reason it seemed to be playing everywhere.
That last track, I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got, taught me that just because you don’t have a drum kit with you, or a piano, or a guitar, that doesn’t mean that I don’t want it. Sure, her voice is beautiful, and this track is almost a study for how long a good voice can sustain interest. But since there’s little complexity and pretty stupid/bad lyrics, I found myself getting so impatient. Even angry. So I was glad when the song was over. That’s not a good place to be.
3
May 02 2025
Supa Dupa Fly
Missy Elliott
With the exception of the slightly annoying Busta Rhymes intro, there is little to fault on this album. It’s smooth, it vibes, and is of its time in the best way. Made me want to drop back in to ‘97.
4
May 03 2025
Doolittle
Pixies
Growing up in Ohio, one of the rare joys was the occasional sighting of a Deal sister. A friend of mine has a story involving them dancing on a pool table, but me, I only caught them as they stopped in local Dayton or Cincinnati bars to catch a fledgling act or two. Kim and Kelley were both super nice, super down to Earth. Listening to the Pixies, I sometimes get frustrated at Black Francis for being such a jerk to Kim. On Surfer Rosa (the better album, in my opinion) BF even goes as far as to tell Kim she should die. Whether that’s innocent banter or not, you can tell by BF’s general energy and lyrical content that he was probably not the most stable individual to join up in a band with. Still, you can’t doubt, there is an energy to Doolittle (and Surfer Rosa). Whenever I listen to either album, I find myself wishing that all music was this cool. The early Pixies have always been a go-to for me, and they always will be. I mean, Monkey Gone to Heaven, Here Comes Your Man, Hey- there are so many underrated classics here. You hear Pixies songs everywhere, they percolate within you, then you listen to a full album and it’s like ‘hey, I know all these songs.’ If you released a greatest hits album, it would just be Doolittle and Surfer Rosa stacked together.
5
May 04 2025
Let Love Rule
Lenny Kravitz
2
May 05 2025
The Köln Concert
Keith Jarrett
A very pleasant background to work this morning. Despite reading that most of this was improvised, I’m not sure what separates this from other general piano music though.
4
May 06 2025
The Dark Side Of The Moon
Pink Floyd
I mean, it’s dark side…
5
May 07 2025
Electric
The Cult
Interesting to see that this came out the week I was born. Things have changed in the music industry!
Aside from some interesting guitar moments, this was pretty forgettable and stereotypical classic rock.
2
May 08 2025
Only By The Night
Kings of Leon
I remember when this came out, and my mom played Sex on Fire, and I thought both ‘Wow, why does my mom know who Kings of Leon are?’ and ‘Wow, it’s really unpleasant listening to a guy shout ‘your sex is on fire’ while in the car with your mom.’ Seriously, who thought those lyrics were cool, or well, sexy? I’ve never told a woman ‘your sex is (fill in the blank)’ because no matter what you say, you’re going to sound like a damned fool.
I understand now that Kings of Leon needed to make this move in order to escape the fate of the typical early aughts indie band, that is, to be forever lost to time. And frankly, though mostly bland, this album is truly well produced. Caleb Followill has a unique and very good voice. This whole album is pleasant.
Still, it also, to me, sort of harolded the end of underground rock. You can hear the transition here, especially on track 5, of the dawn of the music streaming algorithms feeding market research to bands to help them churn out the least offensive, most familiar sounds possible, so as to appeal to the largest audience. Therefore, there is wide appeal here and this album did meet success. But will it stand the test of time? I think it already fails to do so. It’s a soulless compilation with two tracks that will remain in the public zeitgeist and nine songs which won’t.
2
May 09 2025
You've Come a Long Way Baby
Fatboy Slim
Isn’t this the most 90’s album to ever 90?
3
May 10 2025
Never Mind The Bollocks, Here’s The Sex Pistols
Sex Pistols
Of all the albums to get the morning you have a headache…
3
May 11 2025
En-Tact
The Shamen
Omega Amigo was pretty good. The rest of it didn’t quite appeal.
2
May 12 2025
Pills 'n' Thrills And Bellyaches
Happy Mondays
I thought this was pretty great. My first listen, and I’ll definitely revisit Madchester again.
4
May 13 2025
If You Can Believe Your Eyes & Ears
The Mamas & The Papas
4
May 14 2025
Hunting High And Low
a-ha
What an ‘A-Ha’ moment!
Despite the really cringy tracks ‘Living a Boy’s Adventure Tale’ and ‘And You Tell Me,’ this album is quite sophisticated. It’s deliciously eighties, but in a way that made me wish the eighties style never left. Re-listening to bands of a similar style and era, like Culture Club, have lately made me feel like I’m in a musty thrift shop. But, listening to A-ha felt both of its time and timeless. I’d only heard the first track (which, like everyone, I’ve heard a million times). I never thought to dive further into their catalog. I’m glad I did. This music is like the sound of my early childhood, which is basically an eighties synth wonderland. I’ll definitely be putting this on again.
5
May 15 2025
Pyromania
Def Leppard
3
May 16 2025
Wild Wood
Paul Weller
Definitely not my thing. The best parts are the instrumentals, when he’s not singing. What’s weird is that his voice is pretty good, so I’m confused. I sense a lack of spirit, perhaps?
1
May 17 2025
Green River
Creedence Clearwater Revival
3
May 18 2025
Homework
Daft Punk
Daft Punk would eventually come to rule my heart, but the Homework era has always seemed like proto-daft punk to me. There are some bangers. Everyone knows Around the World. And I’m sure that this opened a lot of new doors when it came out. But, it’s better suited as background music due to its persistent repetition. Wake me up when it’s time to listen to Discovery.
3
May 19 2025
Maverick A Strike
Finley Quaye
My friend asked me, what are the worst albums you’ve had to listen to through that 1001 generator? And, I mentioned a few that came to mind, but as we discussed, I could see an argument for why they were on this list. They either sold a ridiculous amount of records (Kid Rock) or they changed the shape of music in some way. I finally came to the conclusion that I like music, I’m here to expand my knowledge of music, and I’m not as picky or particular as some others using this site. I don’t really fancy myself a critic. I’m willing to personally not like certain choices on this list. Then, the generator heard me, said hold my beer, and gave me this album the very next day.
Maverick A Strike has absolutely no business being remembered or honored. What a stupid waste of my time from a violent non-Jamaican imposter. Let’s, as a society, forget this was ever made, please.
1
May 20 2025
My Generation
The Who
A-side, although classic, is a Beatles knock off.
B-side, where they really showed the world who they are.
4
May 21 2025
Tigermilk
Belle & Sebastian
I used to listen to Belle & Sebastian all the time. In the Stone Age, back when I used iTunes, I’d literally filter the Belle & Sebastian discography every evening and just let it play all night. The output of this band is such a vibe, and going back to Tigermilk brought back so many memories. It’s impossible for me to rate objectively, and for that, I’m blessed.
5
May 22 2025
Antichrist Superstar
Marilyn Manson
I understand why this is on the list. It was a cultural phenomenon of a sort, or at least Marilyn Manson was. I’d never actually listened to any of their music before, so for the sake of education, sure. But, despite loving Halloween and heavy metal, there simply wasn’t much for me to grab onto here. The hour of fuzz and screaming eventually just made me feel nauseated. I guess that was the point? Well, that sucks. Big no from me.
1
May 23 2025
Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters
Growing up, everyone liked the Foo Fighters, but nobody listened to the Foo Fighters. My punk friends never had a Foo Fighters CD in their disorganized piles of music covering the floor. My goth friends just didn’t think Grohl was dark enough, despite playing the devil in Tenacious D. My preppy friends serenaded girls by playing Everlong on their acoustic guitars, but otherwise only rocked out to Dave Matthew’s. I knew the core Foo Fighters songs from the radio, but I always wondered, who is this for? Who’s listening to this? Yet, here we are, thirty years on, and these guys are still selling out shows, playing SNL, spitting out records. Who’d have guessed it?
This debut album is impressive considering it was composed solely by Grohl in a state of grieving. I always marveled at how different the Foo Fighters were from Nirvana, how cheerful, triumphant, and poppy. This album is sort of like the missing link from how we got from Nirvana-state to Foo-state. Glad I listened to it for that bit of education, but doubtful I’ll put it on again.
3
May 24 2025
Strangeways, Here We Come
The Smiths
As has been stated here in myriad ways, Morrissey sucks. His politics are extreme, his racism is unforgivable, and even his lyrics here cause many an eye-roll (he really wishes you just the worst freaking birthday). But, this album, like all Smiths albums, is such a vibe. Luxury music. If you knew nothing of Morrissey, how would you rank this? I’d say at least a four. So, four it is!
4
May 25 2025
Cheap Thrills
Big Brother & The Holding Company
Janis gets her earned accolades as one of the greatest voices in rock. You can hear an entire generation of imitators on these tracks. But, I want to point out how ahead of the time the guitar playing is on here. I mean, the tones are always incredible. The solos can only be described as ‘sick nasty.’ This is hardly an underrated or overlooked album, but the actual band themselves are often overlooked.
3
May 26 2025
Safe As Milk
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
About halfway through, my sole thought was, gee, this is a lotta beefheart.
2
May 27 2025
Californication
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Many years ago, a new restaurant opened down the street from me, and it was the talk of the town. Despite my proximity, I missed out on the opening weeks, then I forgot about it, and even though the restaurant opened with great fanfare and media coverage, had great reviews, and I heard multiple word of mouth ravings, eventually I stopped hearing about it. Then, a year-on I heard the place was going to close shop. Feeling tremendous fomo, like I’d missed out on a vital cultural event, I made a reservation during its last few death-throw days. I had trouble finding people who wanted to come with me (and although that could be because I’m a wretched, hated individual, I’m going to blame the restaurant). The service was abysmal, but the food semi-decent. Still, the decor was top notch, and overall I couldn’t find too much wrong with it. I asked myself, why is this place closing so soon? What brought about its failure?
Then, I noticed the music in the background. They only played Red Hot Chili Peppers. Songs repeated, sometimes back to back. It all became clear.
In all seriousness, Californication isn’t the worst album of all time or anything. I actually saw the Chili Peppers in my youth at Lollapalooza, and it was fairly epic. I crowd-surfed the distance of like three football fields and wound up dumped in a tight mosh-pit of sweating naked bodies. Really, it was a Dante-esque experience. But, I’ve heard these songs so many times under so many horrible contexts with so many horrible people, it’s hard to listen to this objectively. My point of reference will be the songs I didn’t know so well on this album. They were actually pretty good. So, a four for the songs I didn’t know, and a two for the associations with the songs I knew too well. I’ll give it an even Steven three.
3
May 28 2025
Rust Never Sleeps
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
There was an era where I listened to this album every day. I don’t remember much about that time in my life. Other than Hey, Hey and Powderfinger, I also didn’t remember much about the songs on this album!
4
May 29 2025
Locust Abortion Technician
Butthole Surfers
Like listening to hell’s circus.
1
May 30 2025
The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway
Genesis
Haven’t listened to a lot of Genesis. It’s time I change that.
5
May 31 2025
Catch A Fire
Bob Marley & The Wailers
I’ve always loved that bass-line in Stir it Up. Some decent jams here. Actually sounds more sad than you’d expect from reggae. Overall, it’s deec.
3
Jun 01 2025
The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators
The 13th Floor Elevators
Like unironic Austin Powers jams.
3
Jun 02 2025
Lust For Life
Iggy Pop
I’d never heard this album somehow. Glad it’s now on my radar for those Bowie Berlin binges I find myself on from time to time.
4
Jun 03 2025
Aqualung
Jethro Tull
My dad loves Jethro Tull (he says they were his first concert), so I recently listened to Aqualung to celebrate his retirement. Strange I got it on the generator so soon after!
The flute is a choice for a prog band, but JT went hard at it. Also, the lyrics on the tracks about the homeless- what the hell were they thinking? How odd! ‘Hey pedo-masterbating crippled hobo, don’t worry, it’s just me!’ Still, overall a pretty great listen, especially on the later tracks. It’s like the English folk/heavy metal bridge.
4
Jun 04 2025
Hail To the Thief
Radiohead
I’ve always felt that Radiohead are far darker, far more sinister, and cast an aura of evil and doom at a stronger, more authentic register than your typical ‘dark’ bands. There’s something about Thom Yorke’s voice that feels like it can spread cancer like a virus. Goth, metal, and the like are all in league with the lord of darkness, but Hail to the Thief-era Radiohead are satan’s heart incarnate. Case in point, there’s a song on this album where Yorke says he’ll eat you alive over and over and over. And even if this is a commentary on the war on terror, a big part of me does believe that Yorke sucks young blood.
Hail to the Thief is rarely cited as anyone’s favorite Radiohead album, but if it weren’t for The Bends, Kid A, or In Rainbows, this sure would be. In other words, this is a damned fine album that’s often overlooked among their repertoire. When I listen to this, I sometimes wonder if this is the most personality-defining album by Radiohead. The upheaval of Kid A and Amnesiac have settled, but they hadn’t quite matured to the point of In Rainbows. HttT is an entity in between, while also still offering its own worlds, its own distinct style. When I listen to HttT, I usually find myself wondering if it’s my favorite Radiohead album. It may not be the best one, but yeah, it may be my favorite. The jury is still deliberating.
5
Jun 05 2025
Definitely Maybe
Oasis
3
Jun 06 2025
Chocolate Starfish And The Hot Dog Flavored Water
Limp Bizkit
Overall, without a doubt, this album is a huge waste of time. When this came out, I was in the eighth grade, and everyone was listening to nu metal and hip hop, spiking their hair with like a tube of gel a day. But, there were the kids who knew Limp Bizkit were stupid, and there were the kids who thought Limp Bizkit were the coolest shits in the world. I belonged to the group who thought they were stupid, and some of my best friends praised them. This division literally tore my eighth grade friend group apart. For a while, I was adrift, without friends, because I couldn’t limp with the Bizkit. All of those in the LB fan group however had a lot of trouble ‘launching’ after high school, so… funny how that worked out.
I can admit that this album is pretty hilarious sometimes, and there are head-bangable moments. Just like, that’s maybe two minutes out of the hour or so run time. Stay in school kids, and don’t listen to the limpy biscuits.
1
Jun 07 2025
Hot Buttered Soul
Isaac Hayes
Walk on By is excellent. Then, it’s some buttery soul. When we get to Phoenix, I’m not sure if the structure is brilliant or simply way too much for its own good.
4
Jun 08 2025
Groovin'
The Young Rascals
Pretty great stuff. How Can I Be Sure was one of my favorite songs as a kid, but I’d only hear it when my dad played the classic rock station. I’d forgotten completely about it! Then Groovin’ came on, and I understood immediately how this album got a slot on this list. A lot of people here have shrugged this off as a forgettable Beatles imitation. I think there’s more here than that. If anything, it was good to hear a band I didn’t know about, who surprised me with two hits that sent me back to childhood.
4
Jun 09 2025
I Should Coco
Supergrass
This is Alright and not much else.
2
Jun 10 2025
Odessey And Oracle
The Zombies
Hard to rate this objectively because I’ve always loved The Zombies. Ah, what the hell, it’s the time of the season to dish out a fiver.
5
Jun 11 2025
The Modern Lovers
The Modern Lovers
Proto-emo masshole jams.
3
Jun 12 2025
Songs From The Big Chair
Tears For Fears
One of the most epic of the epic. Immediate five.
5
Jun 13 2025
Surf's Up
The Beach Boys
Jesus, (maybe-not-so-random) 1001 albums generator. The day after the death of the legendary Brian Wilson, you give me a Beach Boys album I’m entirely unfamiliar with, which contains a Brian Wilson track called ‘Til I Die. You have devastated me, and I gently applaud your sneaky reverence. About half way through Surf’s Up, I had to stop everything (all the urgent emails and work Teams chats be damned), and read the lyrics to this album as they were sung. This album is super dense, and without concentration, the whole beauty and magnitude will blow by you. Now I’m going to have to listen to the entire Beach Boys discography. Despite having loved them since childhood, I’ve pretty much only listened to the Endless Summer compilation, Pet Sounds, and Smiley Smile. Surf’s Up has shown me at even deeper level than Pet Sounds, where they were willing to take their artistry. Well done album generator. Well done Beach Boys.
5
Jun 14 2025
Blur
Blur
I only knew the second track, which is the one everyone knows. I had it on a mix CD I made in high school, so it was one of my cruising the neighborhood rock out tunes. In the back of my mind, I always thought I should listen to the full album, so I was happy to see this prompt. The rest of the album lacks the energy of Song 2, however, so I was disappointed. The vibe really settles in on the last few tracks, and there are some good vibes and sounds, but for the most part, uneventful.
3
Jun 15 2025
Double Nickels On The Dime
Minutemen
It’s happened several times lately, like within this month, where I’d think about an artist or a particular artist (not even google them) and then the random album generator prompts me to listen to that group or album the next day. Get out of my head, album generator!
In this case, I assumed Double Nickels was on the list, but I want 100% certain, and I thought to myself that I should really make some time to finally listen to it. Lo and behold, the generator said ‘now you must listen. Do not put it off. This is your homework!’ So, I was happy and shocked to see it come up. The timing was also perfect because what had deterred me from ever getting past the first few songs was the length of the album. Yesterday, I’d decided I was going to make gumbo, which meant I’d be whisking a roux for 45 minutes or more. Why not spend that time with the Minutemen? At one point, they even ask ‘what are you making?’ And even though I missed the context and they could’ve meant anything, I thought, wow, perfect gumbo making music.
A good friend of mine loves punk and ska and has recommended this album for years. I could never get past the vocals or the feeling that it was too unpunk to be punk. I’m really used to the aggressive Black Flag and Clash style of punk, or even the poppy radio hit Green Day/Blink 182 era. The Minutemen are so different from either, they’re practically their own branch of the genre. I have to say, I did enjoy it once I got on board. However, not much stuck with me. I may need to revisit this to really let it sink in. For now, my assessment will be, on first impression, a more positively intentioned than bland, 3/5.
3
Jun 16 2025
Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
About fifteen years ago, a crew would consistently come by my place for vinyl parties. Those were the days in my life where I look back already and say ‘those were the days.’ People would bring their new vinyls, but we’d also spin a lot of classics. ‘Everybody Knows This is Nowhere’ was a constant. If ever I felt critical of its jammy nature, I’d just keep nursing the joint and the instrumental sections suddenly seemed too short. That melody from Cowgirl in the Sand still floats around in my mind at random times. Truly just an incredible album. I never understood why he shot his baby when she could drag him over the rainbow, but he sure turned the trauma into an epic song. Way to go, Neil.
5
Jun 17 2025
Live And Dangerous
Thin Lizzy
2
Jun 18 2025
Talking With the Taxman About Poetry
Billy Bragg
One can only endure so many songs about unions from a brambly singer songwriter before one starts wishing they’d shut up. This album is like an hour long, and to what effect? There’s very little variation. Some of the melodies are straight lifts from Dylan and Nico, which, sure, pay homage, but like with the cover on this, it made me wish I was listening to the originals.
2
Jun 19 2025
Crossing the Red Sea With the Adverts
The Adverts
I’d never heard of this band. Was glad to stop in and have a listen. Probably won’t come back to them, but through no fault of their own. This is just someone else’s thing.
3
Jun 20 2025
Felt Mountain
Goldfrapp
Like the ghost of Jessica Rabbit post-suicide.
4
Jun 21 2025
Red Headed Stranger
Willie Nelson
Classic Willie
5
Jun 22 2025
Don't Come Home A Drinkin' (With Lovin' On Your Mind)
Loretta Lynn
I feel like I’m the man Loretta’s always singing about. I’m guilty of everything she’s frustrated or upset about in all of these songs. Mostly, this album just reminded me of how much of a dick I am.
2
Jun 23 2025
Wild Is The Wind
Nina Simone
The community here really loves this album. What am I missing, David Bowie???
2
Jun 24 2025
Hunky Dory
David Bowie
I’ve listened to Hunky Dory more than any other album. I’ve probably listened to Hunky Dory more than any other human who’s ever lived. There may be better albums, but this album is my childhood, my twenties, and my now. It’s never grown old. It’s at times silly and at times deeply philosophical. It always bops. It always makes me feel a certain way. It’s simply magic.
5
Jun 25 2025
The Gilded Palace Of Sin
The Flying Burrito Brothers
Bleh, basic cowpoke music posing as hip.
1
Jun 26 2025
Bubble And Scrape
Sebadoh
The music I’d been listening to (as well as the music recommended to me here), I just realized, has all been from the sixties or earlier for like a month. I really love music from the sixties. But I was feeling music fatigue. This is something nobody should ever feel! I was bored of music!
Finally, the generator decided to lift me from my rut by throwing me headfirst into the 90’s indie scene. Thank god. This was such a balm, such a remedy. I’d never listened to Sebadoh before, but I was immediately into it. Bubble and Scrape, I will be back!
4
Jun 27 2025
Public Image: First Issue
Public Image Ltd.
3
Jun 28 2025
Let It Bleed
The Rolling Stones
3
Jun 29 2025
Gentlemen
The Afghan Whigs
Growing up in Cincinnati, one hears about The Afghan Whigs. I’m actually from the lead singer’s hometown, although I just found this out via Wikipedia. There isn’t a plaque or anything. People in Hamilton, outside of the guitar store, have no clue this band exists. And, I think that tracks, because even though, as I said, Cincinnati cares, few in Cincy actually listen to or discuss The Afghan Whigs. All the years I lived there, you’d hear there was this moderately famous band in the nineties, and after that, The Heartless Bastards, and then unless you count 98 Degrees or the band Why?, nobody. So, people respect that someone from our little city succeeded in some capacity, but there aren’t like Afghan Whig parties. The music isn’t celebrated. Listening now, I understand why that is. I don’t mean Gentlemen is bad or anything. The instrumentation is great. The music’s just kinda meh. It lacks dancability and sing-alongability. Anger glazes over and there are some head bang rock out moments, but otherwise, angst.
I did have a friend record at the home studio of one of the Whigs, which sounds like a cool time. And, giving AW my first listen, I can certainly hear a strand of influence to the future (current) Cincinnati sound. Those minor scale bass lines driving you deeper into misery, that r&b/rock crossover, that self loathing lyrical strain, that’s all still there. So, it’s interesting to finally stop by an AW album. Not quite my thing, but cool to pay reverence to a local ‘somewhat’ hero.
3
Jun 30 2025
Crocodiles
Echo And The Bunnymen
100% my thing.
5
Jul 01 2025
(Pronounced 'Leh-'Nérd 'Skin-'Nérd)
Lynyrd Skynyrd
Was perfect to get this in the summer, because is there any better grill out music in existence? Naturally, Tuesday’s Gone is best suited for playing golf with a hockey stick, and Freebird’s good no matter the season or setting.
5
Jul 02 2025
Risque
CHIC
I was so overjoyed in hearing rapper’s delight at the beginning of this album (that I’d never heard of), that at after work drinks, I exclaimed, “guess what album was on my album generator this morning?!” I then promptly started singing the bass line. When nobody knew what I was doing, I then started singing the vocal part as well as I could, which was abysmal. The crowd of work colleagues looked at me like “shut up, drunk man!” and now that overjoyed delight I felt in the morning has been turned to shame, a shame that will return to me in the quiet moments before I fall asleep for the rest of my life. I’m sure this album has inspired many such similar situations in others.
4
Jul 03 2025
Beautiful Freak
Eels
Back in the early 2000’s, everyone used iTunes. It was a flex in the college dorms to have an extensive iTunes library. I therefore stole (as did everyone) the libraries of my friends. This was great because I ended up stacked with tons of artists I’d never heard of before.
Someone I stole from had everything the Eels had ever produced, so my Eels game was wicked. I even remember my friend’s brother saying, as he scrolled through my tunes, ‘wow, you really love the Eels. Nobody loves the Eels this much.’
The fact is, I was intrigued by this giant block of Eels in my list of music, but I was also intimidated. I sampled a few songs here and there, and never really liked anything I heard, so I never ventured further. Time went on, iTunes made way for Spotify, and I forgot all about the Eels. Until now! What wonders was I missing from that giant block of iTunes albums???
My feeling is, after finally delving into Beautiful Freak, the Eels are definitely not my thing. They sound like if the Flaming Lips lost all color. But, because of iTunes, this album did make me remember those days of having sex in a dorm room while my roommate was trying to study. Beautiful Freak reminded me of the endless beer pong matches, of getting bong-ripped to better appreciate the twirls and transformations of the milkdrop visualizer until six the next morning, of laughing at buddies who blacked out and pissed their pants. Beautiful Freak reminded me of the time some neighbors down the hall cooked a human turd in the microwave, and of the smell that never really left the halls for the rest of the year.
Thank you, Beautiful Freak, for these memories. Thank you Eels, for being so inaccessible, that I never listened to you and developed further associations. Music really is a Time Machine.
1
Jul 04 2025
Stand!
Sly & The Family Stone
3
Jul 05 2025
Back In Black
AC/DC
I got Back in Black on the 4th of July. These Australians made the most American freakin’ album of all time. No more appropriate album exists for this day.
4
Jul 06 2025
Youth And Young Manhood
Kings of Leon
3
Jul 07 2025
Blunderbuss
Jack White
Jack White has always been meh to me. Some of the White Stripes hits are classics, yes, but I usually change the song if one pops up randomly. Guess I just don’t care/ get the fuss. This album is pure Jack White, so… meh
2
Jul 08 2025
Tusk
Fleetwood Mac
Crazy that they spent an almost gilded age level of money on this. Where did the cash go? I’ve heard more cohesive, better sounding albums recorded at people’s homes.
Not the greatest or many people’s go-to FM record, but still of its era, and a nice background listen.
3
Jul 09 2025
Heaux Tales
Jazmine Sullivan
2
Jul 10 2025
Fire Of Love
The Gun Club
2
Jul 11 2025
Warehouse: Songs And Stories
Hüsker Dü
Without the Du, there’d be no Foo.
Don’t care what you say, they inspired Green Day.
Like flora to fauna, Husker Du fed Nirvana.
A harder REM? Listen back to an arcade that’s zen.
Weirdly, I was listening through the Husker Du discography, and I was about to put on Warehouse when the generator dredged it up. HD are pretty incredible if you’re open to the tone and the lack of convention. Warehouse is the perfect length and energy to put on during a weightlifting sesh. I’ll definitely be returning to the full discography again, wishing all the while I’d seen them in Minneapolis before I was born.
5
Jul 12 2025
A Rush Of Blood To The Head
Coldplay
This transported me back to the early 2000’s, a magical time where I had to listen to this shite everywhere I went- the background music at stores, my friend’s cars… Coldplay is what made me stop listening to the radio. There was literally no escape, no reprieve.
More like no-ldplay, moldplay, or coldstop.
1
Jul 13 2025
Liquid Swords
GZA
How can you not be a fan of the Wu?
4
Jul 14 2025
Melodrama
Lorde
I wonder how random this generator is… I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again!
I wrapped up watching the show just last night (‘Too Much’) which details the breakup of Lena Dunham and Jack Antonoff. Great speculation is that the girl who steals Lena’s hubby is supposed to represent Lorde, as Lorde actually lived with the couple in their Brooklyn apartment as they made this album! Melodramatic indeed. Jack and Lorde swear their relationship was always platonic, where Lorde was actually into Jack and not the other way around, but having been a young dude cohabiting with select women in my time, I’ll politely turn my head and cough the word ‘bullshit.’
The show is not something I’d recommend. My wife made me watch it. Melodrama, though, is something I might suggest if someone was unfamiliar and for some reason trying to immerse themselves in the sounds of the last decade (which honestly haven’t evolved so much- thank you algorithms). I’d heard most of Melodrama before, also thanks to my wife. She might rate this a five. I think it’s more three-ish.
3
Jul 15 2025
Birth Of The Cool
Miles Davis
2
Jul 16 2025
Moss Side Story
Barry Adamson
The idea is interesting, and it’s executed well enough (although I wish it told more of a story, in a sense). With the exception of the Alfred Hitchcock track though, I didn’t find it interesting to listen to. Really, who is this for? Hollywood producers, apparently? I mean, I’m a huge film buff. I love crime movies and film noirs too. The fact that I thought this was self indulgent and for no actual listener, and I’m the prime target for this sort of thing, says a lot about how it should probably just be swept into the dustbin of history.
1
Jul 17 2025
Suzanne Vega
Suzanne Vega
Woof. These are the types of songs that you write as a young twenty-something, thinking they’re immensely profound, and then years later you look back on them with a degree of shame so pronounced that you want to hurl yourself over a bridge in embarrassment. There’s a reason I’ve never heard of Suzanne Vega, I guess.
1
Jul 18 2025
Songs From A Room
Leonard Cohen
2
Jul 19 2025
Pet Sounds
The Beach Boys
After the death of Brian Wilson, I decided to make the summer of 2025, my summer of Beach Boys and listen through the discography. I’ve always revered their style, and their songs have had an enormous impact on my appreciation of music in general. The earliest memory I have of intentionally listening to music of any kind was of sitting in front of my dad’s enormous sound system and popping in the Endless Summer compilation CD. Still, I’ve listened through the discographies of The Beatles and Dylan, but why not The Beach Boys? I thought this could be a project that could take me All Summer Long (see what I did there?).
I’d just listened through their Christmas album (in July, no less) when the album generator gave me Pet Sounds for homework. Being somewhat ocd, I decided to power through The Beach Boys Today, Summer Days, and Beach Boys Party before turning on Pet Sounds, even though I’ve already heard Pet Sounds a million times. What I got was a tremendous dose of chronological Beach Boys all at once. For the first time, I really saw what a treasure and a breakthrough Pet Sounds was (is). This is The Beach Boys at their most mature to this point, and was the apex of their career. I mean, God Only Knows, Sloop John B, I Know There’s An Answer…
I couldn’t stop there, and moved on to Smiley Smile, the Smile Sessions, and Brian Wilson presents Smile. They’re all great, but each leave you with a heavy feeling of defeat, or of what might have been if only. Mostly, you get a sense of what the enormous pressure, coupled with the drugs and fame and expectations, had on Wilson. You see a genius crack like an egg under the system, under social demand. It’s a tragedy really. Not that Wild Honey or Surfs Up or the later albums are bad, they just, you know, aren’t the same. They lack that special feeling that was captured best in Pet Sounds.
Man, what a thing.
5
Jul 20 2025
Pump
Aerosmith
Sometimes grating and cringe and I want to give it less than a one. Other times, I admit, I get swept up in it and find myself rocking out. It has two undeniable classics and some interesting transitions between songs. But it also has a lot of harmonica and ugly trucks on the cover. Was this the beginning of the end for rock? Hard to say. Going middle of the road on this one.
3
Jul 21 2025
Bongo Rock
Incredible Bongo Band
I usually like a little funk in my coffee. But this hour-plus instrumental odyssey driven by bongos just really didn’t do it for me. Despite some of these covers being of excellent songs, and despite an addition by the Grandmaster himself, I just couldn’t get excited about this. Out of all the albums I’ve heard so far from this list, this (THIS!) was the first one I had to stretch out over five days or so. My body rejected this music. It was a literal chore to sit through.
1
Jul 22 2025
Rio
Duran Duran
Holy eighties Batman! This is what I call luxury music!
I once had a friend named Ken who would, with a fake, but passable, Scottish accent, introduce himself to new people as Darren. If they happened to ask him for his last name, he would tell them Darren. They would inevitably then say to this random Scottish dude in America, ‘so your name is Darren Darren?’ After which he would say ‘yes,’ and leave it at that.
5
Jul 23 2025
Heavy Weather
Weather Report
In college, I had some friends who were really into this era of jazz. We’d sit around listening to farty bass sounds all day, smoking joints and playing go. Hearing Weather Report or Mahavishnu Orchestra, I immediately am primed to want coffee, like a whole pot’s worth. But, even though I indulged my jazz loving friends, I never took to this. It’s crazy stuff, and Jaco revolutionized how the bass was played (we’d have no modern Metallica without this, believe it or not), but I just really can’t. Not only is it SO dated, there’s literally nothing for me to grasp onto here. I can appreciate that they played a lot of difficult chords quickly, I guess. I can appreciate that the musicians made some choices… they just weren’t the right choices for, you know, pleasing my ears.
1
Jul 24 2025
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath
Absolute classic. The Wizard? N.I.B? The actual Black Sabbath, itself? This was the beginning of it all. I’d say RIP Ozzy, but we all know you’ll rise again to reap your vengeance.
Years spent in torment, buried in a nameless grave.
Now he has risen. Miracles would have to save,
Those that the beast is looking for…
5
Jul 25 2025
A Seat at the Table
Solange
My first thought was, wow, great voice, excellent production… how have I never heard this before? This is beautiful. Well, I’m really out of the loop, so the second I read Solange is Beyoncé’s sister, I was like, ahh crap. She must be riding the coattails. But, to Solange’s benefit, even though there aren’t many bangers on here, I think I’d rather listen to this in full than any of Beyoncé’s albums, and that’s saying a lot! A major criticism I see about ‘A Seat at the Table’ is that it’s flat, and all the songs are too similar. I’d argue that it makes for a super chill and consistent listen. The interludes start to come off as preachy, but they hold together the overall theme and style. It’s an overall vibe, and it’s very unlike her sister’s.
5
Jul 26 2025
Doggystyle
Snoop Dogg
A classic- funnier than I remember. Laiiid back…
4
Jul 27 2025
War
U2
4
Jul 28 2025
Band On The Run
Paul McCartney and Wings
Sir Paul rarely disappoints. I’ve had Band on the Run in my vinyl collection for years, but listening now, I realize I’m very unfamiliar with the album after the first two tracks wrap. ‘Let Me Roll It’ is a stand-out to me, as are ‘Picasso’s Last Words.’ Overall, these songs feel good to be in.
It’s interesting to me, because I have extreme familiarity with the Beatles and the member’s solo albums. So, coming to Band on the Run without much context is like a free extra solo album to get to know!
4
Jul 29 2025
Can't Buy A Thrill
Steely Dan
I was never a Steely Dan fan, even against all there is to them that makes them excellent. They’re profoundly skilled musicians, who sing on profound themes. Whenever they come on the radio though, I feel this invisible synesthesia tighten around my stomach. They have a vibe that I simply don’t dig. Still, not even a naysayer like I can dog this hit-packed debut. This is Steely Dan at their steeliest. Track after track, it’s banger after banger, classic after classic.
4
Jul 30 2025
This Is Fats Domino
Fats Domino
3
Jul 31 2025
If I Could Only Remember My Name
David Crosby
Despite obviously knowing CSN and CSNY, and having listened to pretty much all of Neil’s solo albums, I’d never listened any of the solo Crosby, Stills, or Nash albums. ‘If I Could Only Remember My Name’ struck me as so excellent, I couldn’t believe I hadn’t dug into Crosby’s solo work. This is take drugs by the campfire music. It sounds of its time, but I would argue it doesn’t feel dated. This is the sort of jammy music my friends and I will play on long nights in the woods, feeling spiritual, but probably sounding somewhat incoherent to onlookers. Coherency doesn’t matter to me here. Beyond lyrics, vocal delivery, and technical prowess, music is nothing more than a vibe, and this vibe resonates with mine.
I also went on to listen to the high-profile post- Deja vu Stills and Nash solos. Steven Stills definitely had the most commercial appeal, but aside from the opening track, which was enough of a hit that I knew it, that album feels a little much to me. It lacks soul. Nash’s first solo is excellent, however, although it lacks the pure experimentation of If I Could Only Remember My Name. Aside from Neil, I think Crosby’s the winner for me! I’ll be sure to return to this and expand on his discography.
5
Aug 01 2025
Kick Out The Jams (Live)
MC5
I would have loved to have been in this band. That last track was definitely not what I was expecting, but I was totally on board the starship!
4
Aug 02 2025
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
Ja basic
2