339
Albums Rated
3.52
Average Rating
31%
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750 albums remaining
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1960s
Favorite Decade
Samba
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Top Origin
Wordsmith
Rater Style ?
30
5-Star Albums
10
1-Star Albums
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You Love More Than Most
Albums you rated higher than global average
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Third/Sister Lovers | 5 | 2.79 | +2.21 |
| Djam Leelii | 5 | 2.79 | +2.21 |
| Fuzzy | 5 | 3.01 | +1.99 |
| Exile In Guyville | 5 | 3.02 | +1.98 |
| Fishscale | 5 | 3.06 | +1.94 |
| Before And After Science | 5 | 3.09 | +1.91 |
| I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got | 5 | 3.25 | +1.75 |
| The College Dropout | 5 | 3.31 | +1.69 |
| Africa Brasil | 5 | 3.37 | +1.63 |
| Sincere | 4 | 2.38 | +1.62 |
You Love Less Than Most
Albums you rated lower than global average
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Metallica | 1 | 3.79 | -2.79 |
| So | 1 | 3.55 | -2.55 |
| ...And Justice For All | 1 | 3.43 | -2.43 |
| British Steel | 1 | 3.3 | -2.3 |
| The Specials | 1 | 3.3 | -2.3 |
| S&M | 1 | 3.26 | -2.26 |
| Rage Against The Machine | 2 | 4 | -2 |
| Searching For The Young Soul Rebels | 1 | 3 | -2 |
| Truth And Soul | 1 | 2.97 | -1.97 |
| Reign In Blood | 1 | 2.96 | -1.96 |
Artist Analysis
Favorite Artists
Artists with 2+ albums
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Simon & Garfunkel | 2 | 5 |
| Beatles | 4 | 4.25 |
| Radiohead | 3 | 4.33 |
| Bob Dylan | 3 | 4.33 |
Least Favorite Artists
Artists with 2+ albums
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Metallica | 4 | 1.25 |
| Dexys Midnight Runners | 2 | 1.5 |
| The Specials | 2 | 1.5 |
5-Star Albums (30)
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Popular Reviews
Bebel Gilberto
4/5
I loved this!!! it’s not hard to sell me on bossa nova but I’ve never heard anything of that genre from as recent as 2000 so this was a nice spin on the classic sound. There was a lot of variety that reflected the genres that had developed since bossa nova’s 60s boom, like funk and contemporary smooth jazz sounds which was interesting too, although I still gravitated towards the more classic sounds.
Fav tracks: Samba Da Bencao, August Day Song, Tanto Tempo, Samba E Amor, Close Your Eyes
2 likes
Stan Getz
4/5
I love bossa nova and Stan Getz so this wasn’t a hard sell for me. Don’t really have any more thoughts besides that. Just really easy and pleasant listening without being boring. I would love to be somewhere with this playing live in the venue like a classy restaurant or bar.
1 likes
Elton John
3/5
I think I’m discovering elton john is not meant to be listened to in a full album probably ever. he has bangers and they are great on their own or next to other artists’ tracks but it’s really too much all together in a row. It’s just too theatrical for me. It’s similar to how I feel about queen — great at making these cinematic pieces, but if every song is A Lot then none of them feel like anything. So I think each of these songs is fine on their own and well constructed, but put them all back to back and you lose the intrigue of each one’s drama.
1 likes
Jeff Buckley
5/5
This was SO GOOD!!!! I think I liked almost every song. There’s such a range on here of quiet and loud songs and his voice lends itself beautifully to all of them. His version of Hallelujah did make me cry. I’ve obviously heard that one before but it felt different in the context of the other lyrics on the album about his relationships. Admittedly I missed a lot as someone who can’t process lyrics when I listen so I think I might benefit from reading them later. I’m sure that will only enhance my appreciation of this album.
*fav tracks: Last Goodbye; Hallelujah; Lover, You Should Come Over; Eternal Life*
1 likes
Beatles
4/5
there's so much going on (famously) so where to start...
most of the songs are pretty good and i do like the transitions between some that feel pretty different from each other which prevents it from feeling outright jarring (especially Back in The USSR to Dear Prudence, and I'm So Tired to Blackbird). The variety definitely keeps it interesting because you truly have no idea what is coming next (if you're me and don't listen to this album in full very much). But it still feels more like a beatles playlist than an album. I kept thinking how much this sounds like a battle of the bands between john and paul, because most of the john songs are SO john and likewise for the paul ones, and this often felt so noticeable when their rival tracks were back to back (Glass Onion to Ob-La-Di; Happiness Is A Warm Gun into Martha My Dear, and particularly emblematic of beatles' styles if I'm also considering While My Guitar Gently Weeps preceding both). it felt like each beatle was going "okay my turn now". i know i am hardly the first one to make that observation but it's just VERY hard for it not to overshadow the rest of the listening experience (especially when the other beatles albums i listen to more often feel much more cohesive which leaves the focus on the music/lyrics). but of course so many of the tracks on here are so inventive that despite it's shortcomings as an album as a whole, it's still a great listen.
*Fav tracks: While My Guitar Gently Weeps; Happiness is a Warm Gun; Dear Prudence; I Will (always been one of my favorites and actually sounds more like an early Beatles track now that I think about it, which is kinda cute); Savoy Truffle*
*New faves: Mother Nature's Son; Long, Long, Long; Good Night (not necessarily as a song itself but as a fitting cinematic closer to a long and tumultuous album)*
1 likes
1-Star Albums (10)
All Ratings
Earth, Wind & Fire
5/5
I admittedly did not listen to this as thoroughly as I would’ve liked but I really enjoyed it and would definitely return to it. I like that I can hear the influence of jazz here; I know that jazz obviously was a precursor to R&B but I feel like on this album I can really Hear it in a way I haven’t been able to hear it before (specifically on “Yearnin’ Learnin’” and “Africano”).
Billy Joel
4/5
This album is nostalgic to me because I used to listen to it when I was a kid a lottttt, it was one of my go-tos once my parents taught me how to use their record player. It holds up pretty well and I still really enjoyed it! I feel like a lot of his songs come really close to being great and then have one element that isn’t as good which prevents it from being truly great, but I still had fun. I definitely like the songs on the first half a bit better than the last few, although I am a sucker for the end of the album reprising the beginning so that was a redeeming quality of the last track for me.
Favorite tracks: Movin' Out, The Stranger, Vienna
Depeche Mode
4/5
These are so technically well-made and I felt like the first ~half of the album was super compelling, but then it started to feel like the songs went on a little too long for me. I think an hour is a bit long for an electronic album for ME...but it was good music for the background while working. A lot of the songs were super interesting and I can see why this is such a seminal album for the history of electronic music for sure and overall I would say I definitely enjoyed it.
3/5
I liked it! I don’t have a lot of thoughts about it tbh and don’t really feel strongly about most of the songs. However the song about how amazing is was so funny what’s the deal with that were they being sponsored by Australia’s travel bureau or something
Favorites: Brainwashed, Shangri-La
Jimi Hendrix
5/5
I love when someone that's been built up as such a legend actually lives up to the hype. This album had a lot more variety among the songs than I remembered and I really enjoyed the whole thing. I can't imagine what it would've been like to hear music like this when the record came out.
Favorite tracks: Fire, May This Be Love, Stone Free
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
4/5
I was hoping that on another listen through, different songs would stand out to me than the last time I heard it, but that didn't quite happen. The same songs that I got hooked on last time were the standouts again, and all on the first ~1/2 of the album. I think the album gets pretty repetitive by the end, and even the songs themselves are a bit repetitive by the end of their runtime. Though it was a bit tedious by the end when listening to it together as a complete body of work, I think that most of these songs would stand out to me as fun and interesting if they were mixed in with other artists' songs, so I still really enjoy this album overall.
Ghostface Killah
5/5
That was reeeeally good. I usually don't like albums longer than an hour but this felt so quick because of how much variety in the songs there is. The samples and features were great, the skits were entertaining even if a little ridiculous sometimes, and just overall really enjoyable.
Ash
2/5
this was pretty boring to me. it wasn't technically bad I guess...it just felt like a pastiche of other bands that do it better and this didn't really bring anything interesting or new to it.
Elvis Costello
3/5
I really wasn't into this album and about half way through I was actually going to call it quits because I just couldn't foresee the remainder being good enough to redeem it for me. I didn't really like the reggae/ska (?) elements and it felt hokie. This is already the second Elvis Costello album we've gotten despite only being on our ninth album in this challenge and while I enjoyed the other one we listened to, I wasn't sure if I was really getting why he was considered such a big deal.
I was researching on his Wikipedia and saw this: "Costello's debut album, My Aim Is True, is widely considered one of the best debut albums in the history of rock music." I read on about how it influenced so much of punk rock and new wave, and read excerpts from a variety of artists across genres (and other professions within entertainment) who have been influenced by him. Suzanne Vega has said that he's one of the "melodic geniuses" whose music she listens to in order to "stretch [her] sense of melody". This shifted how I listened to the rest of the album; I appreciated the melodies and compositions a lot more, and I could see why this is technically a good, well-made album.
I still don't think it's for me and I far prefer "This Year's Model", but I can see now why this has been influential and can recognize when something is good but not my taste.
MGMT
3/5
I had no idea this was considered such an important album in music history but sure. It's hard to hear this for what it is since it's so strongly associated with a very specific Vibe from being a tween/teen during the time following its release but I can totally see how Music Appreciators could've found this to be a really interesting and pioneering album. I've listened to a lot of 60s psychedelic rock lately for one of my other ~listening challenges~ (specifically Jefferson Airplane, Love, 13th Floor Elevators, etc.) and hearing this album after those definitely makes me appreciate the evolution (or maybe even reinvention) of that sound for the digital age, and for a totally different audience.
None of the non-singles particularly stood out to me. I think that's partially because it's hard to truly assess those songs when they're up against ones with which I have such a strong familiarity, but I also think the singles just had that oomph factor that made them so iconic that the others, despite being interesting, didn't quite have.
Fav tracks: kids, electric feel
Shivkumar Sharma
4/5
This album was really beautiful. I don't know a lot about Indian music, or what the Western cultural landscape was in relation to Indian music at that time so I don't know if I can fully appreciate this for its impact or craft, but I appreciated it nonetheless. It's wikipedia page explains "Conceived as a suite, the instrumental album follows a day in the life of an Indian shepherd from Kashmir, using ragas associated with various times of the day to advance the dramatic narrative". This reminded me a lot of how my piano teacher used to explain the storytelling in classical music I was learning, and now to understand an unfolding narrative in a purely instrumental body of work.
Fishbone
1/5
horrible. some fine political messaging but it doesn't matter because i can't listen to that
The Who
2/5
Ughhhh i don’t wanna listen to this I don’t care about these guys at all. I listened to half of it but it’s not my fault their albums are so long
Chicago
3/5
I actually really enjoyed this. I like the band-like groovy sound with all the horns. I'm not sure it's something I'd return to as a whole album, and the songs were a bit long to throw into a playlist, but there were a few tracks I really liked.
Fav tracks: Introduction, South California Purples
Brian Eno
5/5
I reeeeally enjoyed this. The descent from the more energetic songs at the beginning into the meditative ones at the end was really impressive; I feel like I didn't notice a jarring shift while listening and then all the sudden I was at the last song and listening to something completely different from where I started. By This River is probably one of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard also.
Fav tracks: No One Receiving, By This River
Sarah Vaughan
4/5
This was so beautiful; she sounds so effortless when she sings. I love the moments where she's interacting with the crowd and worked self-deprecating lyrics into the song when she messed up -- an extremely natural performer and I'm sure seeing her live would've been so cool.
Pink Floyd
4/5
yeah that was good. not much else to say
i haven't listened to this probably since high school but it still hits
The Stooges
2/5
this wasn’t for me. I’m not really into punk music so i feel like I can’t really judge this one because I don’t have a frame of reference or appreciation for it. but I can see why people would be been into this I guess
Fleet Foxes
3/5
This is another one that just isn’t really my style, and exposure to this album didn’t really pique my interest in the band/genre.
It sounds to me like a lot of the other indie folk that I’ve heard (through no effort of my own) throughout the last ~15 years and I’m not necessarily saying this to write off the album; I’m assuming it’s very possible that since this is considered one of the best albums of the 2000s / best debut albums of all time that it’s a trendsetter, and that so many things sound similar to it because of how influential it was. However it’s not something I’d ever reach for other than two songs at the end that particularly stood out to me as more unique sounding than the rest and very beautiful.
Fav tracks: Meadowlarks, Blue Ridge Mountains
R.E.M.
3/5
That was fine but not that special for me. I don’t think there was even one song I saved or wanted to add to a playlist but it wasn’t like actively bad.
Michael Kiwanuka
4/5
This was so great!! Enjoyed basically every song. I’m not sure which part specifically to even say worked well because the whole thing just felt really well made and interesting.
Rahul Dev Burman
4/5
Loved it
Peter Gabriel
1/5
I really didn’t want to listen to that. I think I only listened to the first 2/3. Even a Kate bush feature couldnt save this
Johnny Cash
2/5
The first song was pretty. I wish the bridge over troubled water cover was just Fiona Apple and not Johnny cash with her in the background. The in my life cover would’ve been charming to me if someone’s old granddad or uncle sang it at a family gathering or something. I stopped listening after that song :/
Abdullah Ibrahim
4/5
Very beautiful!
Arcade Fire
3/5
I actually didn’t mind this too much. It felt a little too long which is maybe saying something because the album is less than 50 mins. It sounded a little dated to me but I did like the overall vibe of most of the songs - they felt kind of melancholic but uplifting like they’re from the part of a movie soundtrack where something poignant is happening which I do love… definitely won’t listen to this again though.
Fav tracks: Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)
Metallica
1/5
Sorry I only listened to one song
Animal Collective
3/5
That was really cool. I don't know a lot of Animal Collective but their music is super interesting and I think I'd probably appreciate this album even more if I had been paying more attention for the first half (I was doing laundry and walking in and out of the room). This feels like an in-the-background album for me personally because I don't foresee a situation where I'd listen to any of the songs individually / out of context of the album, but I think it would be really good and stimulating music for focusing on another task because of the different sounds / ambient style of a lot of the tracks.
Pavement
4/5
I think this is one of those times where I realize that there's some music that just isn't for me because I'm not someone who really listens to lyrics much. I was getting the vibe that it had good lyricism in the way that someone who doesn't know a lot of technical info about music might hear something complex and be like yes hmm sounds very impressive even if I don't know why... I know this is odd because I do in fact speak English and should be able to understand the level of intellect of lyrics in English but alas. I do feel like this is one of those cases where I’m close to being able to connect with the lyrics so maybe upon a relisten it would strike me more, and the last song was really great especially!! A really perfect album ending actually.
The music itself was good although I struggled to adjust to how his voice sounds at the beginning. But by the end I didn't mind it as much and I was just happy he was expressing himself with what God gave him <3 so thank you mr. pavement that was overall a pretty enjoyable experience.
Devendra Banhart
3/5
i'm sorry i just can't handle any more indie folk than what i've heard thus far in my life. im not demure enough for this
Ramones
3/5
all the songs really sounded the same to me...maybe it's my untrained ear because I don't know much about playing electric guitar but it really did sound like the same kind of playing/accompaniment in almost every song. sometimes a new song came on and it literally sounded like the song that just ended. but i do think this would've been cool to see back in the day live. i can picture the crowd jumping around to it and going crazy just based on how the music sounds and i do think that counts for something.
The Fall
4/5
I really enjoyed this!!! Just a really interesting sound with a lot going on throughout the album.
The Zutons
3/5
To me this sounds like a combo of British Invasion music and 2000s alternative rock like Franz Ferdinand or something...maybe I'm talking out of my ass but it reminded me of both (and I liked it!) I don't know if I get why this would be on a list of albums you need to hear before you die because it just feels like a very good iteration of the style I just described, rather than anything really revolutionary or shapeshifting or innovative. I still enjoyed listening to it, however the last song was so bad that it kind of spoiled it for me so I'm trying to channel how I felt during the rest of it up until that point in order to write this review.
James Brown
4/5
I feel like I could really hear the source of so much rock music in this album. People often talk about the impact of soul and black artists on rock n' roll and I feel like this performance really made me understand that connection deeper.
The live albums we've heard so far have a really palpable energy between the performer and audience that I really appreciate too. I like how even through a recording, you can feel that they were feeding off of each other.
Milton Nascimento
4/5
This was really cool. I especially liked the second half; it didn't feel as old as the 70s, but maybe that's because a lot of modern music is reminiscent of this and that's why it's sounding modern to me. I also just think it has kind of a classic sound that doesn't go out of style so that's probably it too.
Slayer
1/5
i just couldn't do it i listened for maybe 30 seconds
4/5
this was really interesting! it made me focus on the thing i'd had trouble focusing on all day so i feel like it must have some effective hypnotic quality so that's cool.
Yes
3/5
i guess it wasn't NOT enjoyable but it wasn't that interesting to me and i didn't really care about that at all...it's no thoughts head empty for me. bye
Jefferson Airplane
5/5
i like this album more and more each time i hear it! just so groovy and fun and beautiful, and has so many different kinds of songs while still maintaining such a distinct and cohesive style.
XTC
2/5
though not technically bad it was too hokie for me...kind of like joke music
Tracy Chapman
5/5
WOWWWW that was so beautiful. i am not someone that typically pays attention to lyrics but i was very moved by the lyricism of this album, particularly Behind the Wall, Across the Lines, and Baby Can I Hold You. The political themes are unfortunately pretty timeless and universally applicable, and the music itself doesn't sound dated or trite -- it feels really fresh and different than anything else I've listened to -- so I see why this album is considered such a classic.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
3/5
that was good but I wasn't like blown away or anything. although that last song was KILLER so it's leaving me with a good taste in my mouth.
2/5
girl what the hell. i guess i don’t really know the “use case” (for lack of a better/less-nerdy term) for this kind of music. is this something people are listening to just to chill in their house or is it oriented around industrious live performances? it feels too sprawling to be the former but not interesting enough to be the latter. i really don’t want anymore Yes albums… pleek….pleek…….…
Faust
4/5
that was awesome. and it was also crazy…
Steely Dan
3/5
I didn't listen to the whole album but I listened to most and feel like I got the gist of it. It's easy listening and peasant enough but not super interesting to me.
Dusty Springfield
3/5
hmmm I didn't really love this so much. it wasn't bad but I just got kind of bored because the songs blended together pretty quickly to me. I've enjoyed other Dusty albums so maybe this one just isn't for me.
Dire Straits
3/5
i liked it but i don't really have any strong feelings about it. i love the song sultans of swing and was hoping something would give it a run for its money but none of these were as good :(
The Smiths
4/5
I really liked this too! I think I liked the other smiths album better but really enjoyed both. it’s a little late for my “you guys should check out the smiths they’re really good” phase because i’m not fifteen but alas here we are.
Drive Like Jehu
2/5
yeah it’s gonna be a no from me dawg…on the first track when he’s screaming “rome plows” i really thought he was saying “bob ross” so that was fun for a minute. but then i didn’t really like anything else
The Smiths
4/5
awwww I really like this album. i don't know a lot of the smiths but this is the only one I've heard before and I do think it's very pretty and melancholic and evokes a really specific kind feeling that i can't describe....
Japan
3/5
I liked this! I think it started off really strong and then got a little stagnant throughout but I really enjoyed their sound and it ended on a high note with a really beautiful final track.
fav tracks: Quiet Life, A Foreign Place
Black Sabbath
3/5
That was fine; definitely not as bad I was expecting. It didn’t feel as “metal” as I expected and leaned more towards hard rock. It definitely reminded me a bit of Led Zeppelin so I can’t really say I didn’t like this without being a hypocrite…I still think some of the theatrics of this kind of music are a bit silly but I don’t think this music is bad or anything.
Tito Puente
4/5
i enjoyed it! i don't know a lot of latin jazz besides bossa nova which feels more like jazz that has latin influence rather than this, which is more latin music that has a jazz influence. i basically think this kind of music is really hard for me not to like because i'm never going to think it's bad. yay!
10cc
3/5
i have zero thoughts on this actually. the only actual real thought is that it sounded a lot like Queen. i don't think i needed to hear this before i died
Jimmy Smith
3/5
very lovely! i can't say it's something i'd really return to but it was really pleasant listening while i was working. i like the organ/clavinet/???? that was on a lot of songs, which definitely did make it kind of sound elevator-music-y but not in a bad way, just in a soothing way i guess.
Sugar
3/5
I got the gist after a few songs. Not for me but it’s fine
Joni Mitchell
5/5
obviously amazing. there is just SOMETHING in the music that even without hearing the lyrics makes me cry...to the point that when some songs start i get choked up even though NOTHING HAS EVEN HAPPENED YET but i know what's coming and i'm emotional just from the anticipation of it.
that being said this is one of the rare cases where i do care a lot about the lyrics, and like any of the artists that penetrate my typical inability to hear lyrics, it makes them all the more special to me. there's something about the way the words roll off her tongue that feels so inextricable from the melody itself, like the words are begging to be sung a certain way rather than her writing lyrics to fit a tune. But also the inflections in her voice feel so natural and effortless that it's hard to tell which she came up with first, or if it was even a conscious process at all rather than an organic outpouring of emotion. it really is as good as everyone says it is.
Nirvana
3/5
This is not really for me but I can tell why people like it. There’s something about it that just isn’t very….interesting? to me? I feel like there’s a lot of music that I tend to find uninteresting to me despite it having a lot of raw energy and being very stimulating and I’m not sure how else to describe it or why it is I feel that way. Maybe I just don’t like listening to men sing…
Rage Against The Machine
2/5
I honestly didn't hate that. But I also didn't like it. I thought some of the music was catchy and kind of groovy even (Take the Power Back) but unfortunately the lyric delivery is a bit too silly sounding for me to take it seriously. It's like the silliness of beastie boys’ delivery but with the self seriousness of metal. I understand metal as a vehicle for political music because they want the energy and abrasiveness of the music to match their rage (ha ha...) expressed in the lyrics. Personally that isn't a necessity for me to connect with political music but I get the instinct. Unfortunately I think their style of singing/rapping feels too goofy and only works in a context where they aren't taking themselves so seriously which is not what's happening here.
Jimi Hendrix
4/5
loved ittttt. just very groovy and cool and catchy and interesting.
there were some moments that made it feel like a precursor to Pink Floyd (1983…(A Merman I Should Turn To Be)) and it’s always fun to feel like I’m putting the pieces together to understand the broader context that famous music came out of, and to hear the sound evolve over time throughout movements/bands.
fav tracks: Crosstown Traffic, Burning of the Midnight Lamp, All Along the Watchtower
Dire Straits
3/5
me at the start of the other dire straits album: i don't want to listen to diuh stwaits.
me at the end of this album (wearing dad jeans and a hawaiian-style tourist shirt and aviators): i think i'm stawting to like diuh stwaits...
Massive Attack
4/5
i loved that. i've listened to tricky's solo music before but haven't heard massive attack so it was cool to hear the precursor to it. just very cool and fun....will definitely be coming back to a lot of these songs
Pere Ubu
3/5
sorry i have no opinion on this so i guess it was fine. historically im kind of no thots head empty about pere ubu but maybe i should google why they are included in this list
Madonna
3/5
that was cute and fun. it sounds a bit dated to me though. it had a lot of leftover stylings of her 90s music but with some of the sort of early 2000s techno flourishes on it which made it really sound like a time capsule of that era in a way that i think did not age super well. i think that's typical of pop and it doesn't make it bad music, it just doesn't sound fresh in the way that some of her (even older) music still does.
fav tracks: Runaway Lover, Gone, Impressive Instant
ABBA
4/5
This one is really hard to listen to for what it is because it's so iconic and I've heard so many of these songs a million times, and even the songs I don't know have a really distinct ABBA sound that is so familiar. Regardless of the rest of my opinion on the album, ABBA is technically indirectly responsible for the grip that Swedish production has had on American pop music for the last ~30 years so it's totally logical to me that they have albums on this list.
I think their music is actually quite well made even if it doesn't sound like the most interesting pop music to 2024 ears. There's something they tend to do with the chords, where they follow a super over the top, positive, happy-sounding section with a melancholic twist, which I love. This is also what I've always loved about Max Martin's early work as well, which I'm sure is no coincidence given that Sweden was inadvertently turned into a hub for pop music production because of ABBA's success. I remember in the episode about Stockholm in the docuseries "This Is Pop", they talked about the isolation of Sweden/Swedish people (they didn't really go into why, other than their physical distance from much of the continent), which is responsible for this melancholic twinge in a lot of otherwise upbeat Swedish music. I think regardless of dopey lyrics, that musical twinge is always going to get me; it just scratches an itch in my brain and it feels so good to listen to. The layers of accompaniment also create a fullness in a lot of their music that feels really robust, with a lot of fun bass lines balanced with twinkly flourishes. I appreciate that it borrows some of the successful aspects of disco music and turns it into something different (even if I still think disco as a genre is better).
By the second half of the album I was getting a little tired of their voices (one of the women has pretty annoying vibrato if you listen for too long), but that's okay because I think this kind of music isn't meant to be consumed as a full body of work. Some music is just for having fun and dancing which is totally fine, and this definitely does a good job of that. Even though I started this by saying it's hard to separate the familiarity from the music itself, there's something to be said for a song like Dancing Queen having such strong cultural ubiquity that we're not even paying attention to the song but rather how it makes us feel! (Which is that it makes us want to dance! And I can't be mad at that!)
David Bowie
4/5
I enjoyed how cinematic this was, especially the instrumental tracks. I don't foresee returning to any individual songs from this because they feel really connected to the album as a whole; it doesn't feel like these were meant to be listened to separately. I think it's cool that he changed his sound so much throughout his career and I enjoyed learning about this kind of experimental ambient moment he had that I didn't know about.
Fav tracks: What in the World, Speed of Life
3/5
I don't really have a lot of thoughts about this. I did like some of it and I felt neutrally about the rest. It somewhat reminded me of Led Zeppelin I think, but I'd probably just listen to them over this. But I don't think this was bad at all.
Big Black
3/5
no thoughts head empty on this one. i didn't mind it but it was a little harder sound than i usually go for
Amy Winehouse
5/5
UGHHHHHHHH!!!! (in a good way)
every time i hear this album it's even better than i remember...just so many interesting things happening here. right off the bat opening with a song that says "are you gay?" and then calling him a ladyboy...and of course fuck me pumps is theee internalized misogyny anthem of all time ("without girls like you, there's no nightlife / all those men just go home to their wives" YEOWCH). like what a crash entrance into music for this to be the first thing people ever hear from you!!
but also just musically there's so many interesting production choices -- In My Bed and What Is It About Men have such a sleek (hip hop inspired maybe?) 90s sound which is sooo different than the classic jazz sound of Amy Amy Amy or You Sent Me Flying. so many tender moments too (No Greater Love, Cherry, I Heard Love Is Blind)...like the range is just crazy on this album. every listen gives me new favorites and new thing to notice. I LOVE YOU AMY <33333
Eurythmics
3/5
Idk that just wasn’t hitting for me. Kinda monotonous and not as interesting as I’d expected. Sometimes there’s only one big song from an album for a reason….
G. Love & Special Sauce
3/5
sure
The Smashing Pumpkins
2/5
"Emptiness is loneliness, and loneliness is cleanliness / And cleanliness is godliness, and God is empty / Just like me" oh shut the fuck UP!!!
honestly the more metal songs were much more listenable to me than the indie whiny ones. emilia recommended putting myself in the mindset of a teenage boy when listening to this which i think is apt as i cannot take this seriously as an adult and/or beautiful woman...
Ray Charles
4/5
I don't have too many thoughts about this I guess. I listened to it while I was working and it made me productive. It was also really pretty :D
The Byrds
4/5
I really like this album! Just kind of a weird but still very pleasant sound…I don’t know enough about production to describe what it is but it almost sounds like I’m listening to a band play in a very open warehouse or something. It had an airy/clangy sound to it?
I already had about half these songs saved and I added more this time around. It’s the perfect length and has good variety. It also made for great background music to walk outside on a crisp autumn day so thanks for that you guys.
Fav tracks: What’s Happening?; Hey Joe (Where You Gonna Go); I See You
Rod Stewart
2/5
so he was trying to be bob dylan or…?
Aretha Franklin
4/5
LOVE!! Love Chain of Fools, absolutely one of the best songs ever....it's still definitely my favorite even after hearing the rest of the album (which I did like though). Not many thoughts about this I guess other than It's Very Good
2/5
Okay I wasn’t hating it as much as Emilia when I started listening, like it was a bit theatrical for me but not completely offensive. Then I got to “Your Dictionary” where he says “H A T E, is that how you spell love in your dictionary?” and I was like ohhh okay. ”F U C K, is that how you spell friend in your dictionary?” sounds like something you’d repost from a generic meme page on facebook in 2012 to subtweet your friend you were fighting with. The music isn’t completely awful, but this was very difficult to enjoy.
The Replacements
4/5
I don’t usually like punk but I enjoyed this. I’m not sure I can describe what it was that was different about this that made me like it. I guess I thought it was catchier? And the catchiness out-weighed the grating/repetitive aspects of punk that I usually don’t like? I didn’t love his voice at a lot of points; it reminded me of the scratchy kind of voices I don’t love in grunge music, but again the music was interesting enough to me that I didn’t mind it toooo much.
*Fav tracks: I Will Dare, Androgynous, Answering Machine*
Beatles
4/5
as paul says, "it's great, it's sold, it's the bloody beatles!"
Love this album always. My top favorites will always be Drive My Car and I'm Looking Through You, but I really enjoyed Think for Yourself, Wait, and If I Needed Someone more than I remembered. Like REALLY enjoyed If I Needed Someone, like whoa have I been sleeping on that one for awhile (#don’t forget about GEROGE!).
I love when you have period phases being obsessed with an album, and each time you get hooked on different songs, and over time you end up having had a Moment with every song on there. I feel like this listen was the final round for me that made that true of this album. Previously, I felt like there were some gaps between the real standouts where the album lags a bit for me, but those songs were the ones that got me this time??? So I guess the cycle is complete….
Fav tracks: Drive My Car, I’m Looking Through You, If I Needed Someone, Norwegian Wood, I’m actually going to stop myself because I can feel that I’m just about to list every song. (besides What Goes On…sorry Ringo)
Actually no. I am going to instead rank the songs by category for an album like this that I know too well because I can’t bear the thought of not sharing my full opinions….
TOP FAVORITES (historically): Drive My Car, Norwegian Wood, I’m Looking Through You
Also awesome to me right now: If I Needed Someone, Think For Yourself
Also awesome to me (historically): Michelle, Nowhere Man
Middle category: In My Life, You Won’t See Me, Wait, Girl
Meh: Run For Your Life, The Word
No: What Goes On (sorry ringo again)
Queen
3/5
i feel like if everything is special then nothing is special. this album feels like that because every song is so theatrical and bombastic that it all just feels like nothing. obviously as musicians they're very talented, and Freddie Mercury has one of the most impressive voices of all time. But it's just way too much to listen to all of this as one album.
Peter Gabriel
3/5
This was fine. I didn’t mind having it on but probably wouldn’t reach for it. I liked it better than the other Peter Gabriel album we had so far because it was less corny and didn’t have that shmaltzy 80s gloss over it.
William Orbit
4/5
nice background focus music. reminds me a bit of chemical brothers but probably a precursor to that because of the amount of instrumentation and global influences involved here. i don't really have too many specific thoughts though...the songs with vocalists were nice too but i'm not sure i would return to any of it per se.
Willie Nelson
3/5
that was nice. very pretty
2/5
nahh i couldn't do it sorry im sure (well maybe not SURE) there's a smart explanation for what they're doing here and maybe there's a function for this kind of music but it's not for me
Burning Spear
4/5
I enjoyed this! I had a heightened listening experience because I told two middle-aged white men at the co-op that this was my album today and they got soooo excited saying how it was such a classic and started singing "do you remember the days of slavery" so by comparison this album sounded much better than that. and also it was just good in general.
50 Cent
3/5
no strong feelings. it sounds very Of Its Time and a little dated but i didn't think it was bad. I think it's harder for me to judge the (small percentage of) albums that are from a time period where i remember music / have an association with that time so to me this just sounds very early 2000s and i can't separate the art from the 2000s-ness of it if that makes sense...
The Temptations
4/5
I listened to this while I organized my storage and it was kinda perfect for it because of how energetic it is. I loooove papa was a rolling stone and how long and drawn out it is….the beginning build up is so great and overall just loved the rhythms in the whole album.
Can
4/5
that was really cool! i really enjoyed the sprawling instrumentals in a way that I usually don't on some of these other albums that have that (like the prog rock ones). this sounds like the kind of experimental music that was probably really cool to see live too.
Iron Maiden
2/5
that wasn't so bad. not as bad as other metal on the list. it was just not that interesting to me. there's something about the timbre of the guitars in metal music that is really ugly to me; it's different than the sound of a cool electric guitar riff in other music that i like and i can't pinpoint what it is that isn't as satisfying or interesting to me. but it makes up so much of the music that it's hard to look past even if the music itself isn't that unpleasant.
John Lennon
5/5
ummm john lennon is actually kinda good…..
I’m realizing that I’ve never actually listened to a full solo album of any of the Beatles besides All Things Must Pass until now. It’s so interesting because this does not sound like another Beatles album at all of course, but it has such a distinct Beatles influence. Every song on here was beautiful or groovy or cutting (How Do You Sleep is straight up diabolical…) and it ended with such a beautiful ode to Yoko. I love that he talks about her so much despite being released during peak “yoko broke up the beatles” era.
And Imagine IS A GOOD SONG. It’s so overplayed so in most contexts it’s hard to actually hear it for what it is, but it IS really beautiful. And in this context, I think it’s quite an effective opener for an album full of tender ballads and political messaging because it’s sort of a balance of both and sets the tone well.
Fav tracks: I Don’t Wanna Be A Soldier Mama, How Do You Sleep?, Oh My Love
Destiny's Child
4/5
beyonce after several songs of nasty comments: you take my kindness for weakness :)
this is soooo fun and really does feel like a time capsule. the production is very very 2000 and the anger at their former groupmates is palpable.... but also you can sense the affection the three of them have for each other throughout the album and how much fun they're having together. I love that despite coming in HOT for the first half of the album, it evolves into a very loving and thankful sentiment by the end; the outro with them telling each other how blessed they are to be in one another's lives is so sweet.
i don't know enough about r&b history to appreciate where this might fall on the normal/daring spectrum, but there were definitely some moments that were unexpected in this kind of album; the techno/laser sounds in the outro, the circus riff/motif throughout Independent Woman Pt II, and (this part isn't unexpected because obviously it's insanely famous so I guess I'm changing it to UNUSUAL) the stevie nicks sample in Bootylicious that works so well with the r&b beat. (also shoutout the random beatles reference in the outro <3 michelle ma belle <3 )
Trying to really hear the extremely familiar and ubiquitous songs on this album is really a challenge, but I do think my appreciation of the composition of the first three tracks has grown from this listen through. they really are masterpieces!!
Fav tracks: Independent Woman Pt I, Survivor, Bootylicious, Apple Pie A La Mode
Moby Grape
3/5
that was fine. not as exciting as some other 60s san fran psychedelic music i've heard but i generally find that genre pretty interesting by default so it would be hard for the music to be bad/boring to me. but i wouldn't say this exceptionally got my attention or anything.
Laibach
1/5
no…..
The Doors
2/5
Vinyls getting longer happened at the wrong time because it meant that the Doors could finally make a near-hour record of sludge. He reuses the same melody over and over, the lyrics are stupid, and most obviously he has a horribly unpleasant voice. He somehow drains blues of its signature emotion and rhythm and turns it into a dull slog. Really horrible stuff. I think if one or two of those things from the aforementioned trifecta (bad melodies, bad lyrics, bad voice) were decent then this could be good, so it has potential. I imagine there are probably a lot of great and colorful covers of these songs so the band gets credit for building music with strong bones but unfortunately in its original recorded form, it just sounds like a bunch of guys experimenting with what they thought was really innovative instrumentation but ends up as a cacophony with a drunk guy screaming over it.
Frank Sinatra
3/5
I didn’t really love this. I love bossa nova but I think Frank Sinatra’s voice is too smooth for it; I think the richness and steadiness of his voice makes his vocal style go well with his usual big-band genre because the vocals function as another of the instruments, but in bossa nova I feel like there needs to be a little more texture or else it sounds like muzak. (Not that the vocals need to be edgy or crazy per se; I’m thinking of Astrud Gilberto’s voice for example, which is obviously still beautiful but it’s less flat/even-toned and provides a little more….intrigue to the music I guess.) The few moments where Jobim sang proved this theory for me, so I wish there was more of his singing on here.
Gotan Project
4/5
Very cool and slick. Added it to the list of albums to put on when I’m milling about my house like a sim (complimentary).
Cream
3/5
I like the general sound of this album. It feels like the kind of music that would be playing in the background of a retro movie where some cool dudes are hanging out at a bar…maybe they’re playing pool…and smoking 😎
I absolutely LOVE Strange Brew and was hoping that on this relisten I’d find some other gems on here that I like even half as much as that one but unfortunately I did not. It gets a little samey for me after a few songs and I felt like I was listening to the same songs over and over (with the exception of the final track, Mother’s Lament, which was functional in that it reminded me he’s British which I for some reason always forget). Outside Woman Blues had such a similar groove as Strange Brew and it’s kind of weird those are on the same album (and I always thought the beginning of the riff from Sunshine of Your Love sounded so much like that of Cocaine, the latter of which I knew first as a kid and then was confused when I heard what sounded so similar years later in the former, but at least those are on different albums). I guess that’s just a signature rhythm and chord progression of the blues style but I do think there are artists who manage to have that distinct style without it all sounding like repeats of each other. It all ends up just sounding like Eric Clapton Flavored Sounds, which is not a horrible vibe to curate as I mentioned at the beginning, but the songs on their own aren’t distinct enough for me to care about as songs in their own right.
*Best tracks: Strange Brew*
Radiohead
5/5
Radiohead is unfortunately one of those bands where all the annoying people who insist that they’re geniuses are actually right. You hear about how they’re soooo amazing and revolutionary and genre-defying and genre-defining and you figure there’s no way they’re actually worth the hype and then one day you finally listen to them and you’re like Oh.
However I’m happy to admit to the mistake of having not listened sooner because a) I would’ve been the most unbearable person on earth if I’d gotten into them as a teenager, and b) I get to benefit from hearing this beautiful eerie music whose complexity and detail always kind of blow my mind as if it’s the first time I’ve ever heard music. But like seriously how did they come up with all that though…
*Best tracks: 15 Step, Weird Fishes / Arpeggi, Faust Arp, Reckoner, Jigsaw Falling Into Place*
Jane's Addiction
2/5
I listened to about half / 2/3s of this and intended to come back to it but I don’t feel like it. It wasn’t horrible and not as bad as I expected considering it’s metal from the 80s but I still don’t really care for it.
Throwing Muses
3/5
I enjoyed this but it didn’t really catch my attention so much. I remember really liking their 1995 album when I listened so I thought I’d like this more than I did, but I guess a decade makes quite a difference in their sound. I didn’t NOT like it, I just don’t really have any strong feelings about it, and also had to listen on Youtube because it’s not on Spotify so I don’t actually know the names of the songs I did like.
Nick Drake
5/5
I really really loved that. It was so beautiful and did not feel sixty years old at all; if someone sent me this and said it was from sometime in the last ten years I would believe them. I liked that there was some variety in the instrumentation too; after the first few songs of arrangements predominantly featuring acoustic guitar, I was surprised to hear an orchestral piece next. I liked the continued use of other orchestra instruments over the acoustic guitar throughout the rest of the album, and the final piano-heavy song really got me…I’m a sucker for that kind of arrangement and it felt like a nice endcap to an album with such rich instrumentation. I wish I could see this album performed live. I have never listened to him until now but I definitely want to relisten to this and hear his other albums now.
Fav tracks: Time Has Told Me, River Man, Man In A Shed, Saturday Sun
King Crimson
4/5
I liked thaaaaaat. I feel like prog rock is very hit or miss for me (see: Pink Floyd 😀 vs Yes 😐) but this was cool and experimental and interesting, and ultimately not too drawn out. The songs were long but they didn’t feel long because the different movements/”suites” within each one felt dramatic and necessary rather than overkill. The sound of this album has an edge to it that I really enjoyed. But at the end of the day I’m still biased and will choose the Kanye sample as my favorite track because I do think that stands out compared to the rest, even though the album ended really well.
*Best tracks: 21st Century Schizoid Man*
The Strokes
3/5
This sound is so nostalgic because I looooved Someday in high school and their sound really is pretty distinct and associated with a certain period of my music taste, so it’s hard to hear this for what it is but I did try. I enjoyed the first half a lot but it did get kind of monotonous by the end because that distinctive sound took over and was all I could hear; it was like the whole album was painted over with a Strokes-colored wash. I think these songs would be great next to ones by other bands but all together they kind of blend together.
*Best tracks: Someday, Last Nite, Hard to Explain*
Led Zeppelin
4/5
That was cool but I’m bummed I didn’t find any tracks on here that I love as much as Immigrant Song. I think this skewed a little too folk/blues for me and I kind of like their usual harder sound actually, but I did enjoy hearing those influences in their music because it felt like connecting the dots between blues and rock and roll in a way I don’t usually hear.
Fav tracks: Immigrant Song, Tangerine
Traffic
4/5
Honestly I was procrastinating this one because I wasn’t excited for more 70s rock. But this was different from some of the other stuff we’ve had to listen to and I really enjoyed it. I particularly liked the opening, and some of the more pensive songs later in the album reminded me a little of Zeppelin. Probably won’t return to this besides that first song which was pretty *groovy* to me.
*Best tracks: Glad*
Stan Getz
4/5
I love bossa nova and Stan Getz so this wasn’t a hard sell for me. Don’t really have any more thoughts besides that. Just really easy and pleasant listening without being boring. I would love to be somewhere with this playing live in the venue like a classy restaurant or bar.
Simon & Garfunkel
5/5
Yaaaaaasss. And also slay….
This was so beautiful and fresh. A lot of the songs from here do not feel like they’re from as long ago as the sixties (that’s the second time I’ve said that in a review this week…maybe they were onto something back then). Specifically “Save the Life of My Child” and “Fakin’ It” felt much more recent, maybe because of the production or non-instrument effects. I love the interlude in the middle, and I imagine back then that was less common and would’ve been a really special thing to hear in the middle of a record. Truly the original SZA’s grandma on Ctrl. I think I’ll have to relisten to this again to really process the life stages narrative and pay more attention to the lyrics; I’m sure my appreciation for it will only grow because I already enjoyed which lyrics I was able to catch. “No good times, no bad times / there’s no times at all, just the New York Times” probably went crazy in 1969.
Side note: I love that “Punkie’s Dilemma” provided another addition to the already vast Paul Simon Wishing He Was An Inanimate Object cinematic universe. I need someone to make a no-context super cut of him saying stuff like that. “Wish I was an English muffin” “I’d rather be a hammer than a nail” “Wish I was a Kellogg’s cornflake” literally this man is always wishing he was a little object. Paul I think you should just be yourself <3
Best tracks: Save the Life of My Child, Fakin’ It, Overs
Elvis Presley
4/5
Pleasantly surprised by how many of these songs I really liked. The gospel and blues influences here are verrryyyy strong (I’m Movin’ On is really fun to me because it basically feels like it could be an Aretha Franklin song). However, it is far too long for this kind of music. I didn’t even know they were making 50 minute albums in the 60s — it’s too much. But a lot of these songs were very beautiful and fun and had a really infectious energy so I can get the appeal.
Fav tracks: I’m Movin’ On, In The Ghetto, Suspicious Minds
Bonnie "Prince" Billy
3/5
That was really pretty! Honestly none of the songs stuck out to me until the last one, but they were all still good. Not something I can picture myself reaching for but I wouldn’t be upset if someone put this on again.
Fav tracks: Raining In Darling
Elliott Smith
4/5
Really really beautiful. It was so short though! I could’ve had more of this, which I never say. It’s definitely interesting to hear what is the inspiration for so much indie rock/folk from my lifetime, because it’s not a genre I typically like but I really like this version of it.
Fav tracks: Speed Trials, Alameda, 2:45 AM
Johnny Cash
3/5
I actually really enjoyed this. I liked hearing his interactions with the audience and the songs were charming to me.
Soft Cell
3/5
The chorus of “Seedy Films” is sooo funny to me it sounds like an SNL bit making fun of the genre…the tongue twister “sleazy city sleepy people” is just a perfect opportunity for his sibilant S to be on full display (not complaining). But overall yeah very strange vibe to me but I’m sure this was great for its intended purpose and not for laying on my couch formatting documents on my computer for the Financial Times as I am doing right now.
*Best tracks: Tainted Love*
Derek & The Dominos
3/5
that was enjoyable enough. nothing really stood out to me except the titular track which i obviously already knew....so i guess i didn't really get much out of this full album listen through. it wasn't bad though.
The Crusaders
2/5
Obviously very technically impressive but just not really for me. This kind of jazz is too shmaltzy for me and feels like elevator music, and the saxophone is just way too in your face for me.
Nas
4/5
I was reminded of a conversation I had with my professor in college who was an old white gay man that said he didn’t like rap (classic), and when all the students of course were trying to clock him on his old white guy bias and ask him why he didn’t like it, he said the music that resonated with him was more oriented towards lyric melody than lyric rhythm. While that is, to this day, the closest thing I’ve heard to a valid justification for anti-rap bias, it did actually help me articulate what it is that draws me in about a lot of rap, particularly the era of *Illmatic* (and a lot of east coast hip hop).
I don’t really have the language to describe what is so satisfying about the delivery on this album, other than he is obviously extremely skilled at rapping over a beat *on beat* (a low bar I realize, but a feat that many rappers nowadays cannot achieve), and his flow and the songs’ hooks are insanely catchy. I also am a sucker for any album about New York (he’s from Crown Heights 😎), especially with such vivid storytelling (even if some of the language has not aged well). It’s a time capsule without sounding corny and dated; even the songs that didn’t pop out to me as favorites are all still interesting and feel part of a cohesive body of work with no lulls.
Fav tracks: N.Y. State of Mind, The World Is Yours, One Love (feat. Q-Tip), Represent
Queens of the Stone Age
2/5
I started this a few times and then gave up sorry. It wasn’t horrible I just didn’t feel like listening to that
Dexys Midnight Runners
2/5
I do not like how his voice bleats.
Wilco
4/5
I tend to find a lot of alt/indie rock kind of samey but I think that’s probably in large part due to the influence of bands like Wilco on everyone else’s sound, so I can’t really judge Wilco for that because it’s not their fault they’ve got Sons trying to be them.
The sort of alternative/casual vibe of not hitting the exact pitch of the notes took some getting used to at the beginning, but I noticed it less as we went on. I also think pitch precision would make this kind of music a little bland and personality-less so I get the stylistic choice. A lot of these were so so beautiful (”Radio Cure”, “Poor Places”), and the more energetic ones quite catchy (”I’m the Man Who Loves You”, “Heavy Metal Drummer”). Many of these will be deposited into my new Autumn playlist. That’s a category that’s been kind of growing on me lately due in part to this listening list — cozy, relaxing but not sleepy, acoustic(ish). It’s a good blend and this album does it really well while also having some interesting production flourishes.
Fav tracks: Jesus, etc.; Heavy Metal Drummer; I’m the Man Who Loves You; Poor Places
Crosby, Stills & Nash
4/5
Oops I forgot to write my review and give it a rating when I actually listened to it and now I forgot. But I remember enjoying it very much and finding it very pretty.
Fav tracks: Guinnevere, Pre-Road Downs, Everybody’s Talkin’, Teach Your Children
Cee Lo Green
4/5
This was cool but it was way too long for me. There were a lot of really great songs that I think would've stood out to me more in a different context because it was just a bit too hard to stay tuned in, but there was definitely a lot of variety of sound on here.
Barry Adamson
4/5
That was really interesting. I wasn’t paying such close attention to the spoken parts so I’m sure I missed some of the concept but I did enjoyed the variety of kinds of music on here and how well it all flowed together. I don’t always like more experimental tracks but they felt well-placed in here. I also loved the opener and reprise as a the closer. I was cleaning while this was on and I feel like that was kind of the perfect way of listening to it and I can see myself putting this on again while doing stuff around my house.
Fav tracks: Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Pelvis (feat. Jarvis Cocker), Miles
Beatles
5/5
**Laura:**
I love this album obviously and it’s still shocking to me how fresh so much of it sounds and they truly were ahead of their time. I think if I were trying to convince someone the Beatles were worth listening to and worth the hype, I’d show them this album. Taxman, Love You To, and Tomorrow Never Knows are really just on a different level to me in terms of pushing their sound / the culture’s sound forward. There’s so many traces of modern music in this album and not to be dramatic but it feels like everything would have been different if this album hadn’t been released…
There are a few songs that don’t really do anything for me but they’re pleasant enough and probably would grow on me if I paid attention to them more as most Beatles songs do. They’re not bad but they feel kind of generic Beatles album filler to me (Dr. Robert, I Want to Tell You).
Obligatory mention of how much of a tanker Yellow Submarine is. I love you Ringo but that should not have been allowed.
Fav tracks: Taxman; Here, There, Everywhere; Tomorrow Never Knows
Mj Cole
4/5
I listened to about half of this and was really enjoying it! It’s helping me focus on my work for sure and I like the incorporation of real instrumental sounds (even if they were fake, they’re at least emulating real instruments) in club tracks. I only stopped because I’m falling way behind on the albums I was supposed to listen to the last week and I do feel like I got the gist of this from the first half. But I’ll definitely return to this while I’m cooking, or to put on in the background when I’m hosting people for a dinner party or something.
The Saints
3/5
I actually was enjoying this a lot but then I got really tired of it partway through. I feel that way about most of the punk I’ve heard though so this wasn’t exceptionally unappealing to me or anything.
*Fav tracks: Know Your Product, Memories Are Made of This*
Arcade Fire
3/5
I’ve enjoyed the Arcade Fire albums we’ve listened to so far. I never thought much about them until now and I do see the appeal and think their music is interesting. I just think a lot of it blends together for me but maybe that would change if I relistened. There were a few songs on here that I thought were exceptionally beautiful but other than that it was mainly just pretty, consistent-sounding background music.
*Fav tracks: Ocean of Noise, My Body Is A Cage*
Dexys Midnight Runners
1/5
I really didn’t like this and stopped about halfway through because I got the gist. I usually love the incorporation of horns into most kinds of music, but these are so artificial sounding and also don’t have any added dynamics to make them interesting. It sounds like someone playing with consistent strong force on a keyboard set to the “horns” sound effect. It reminds me a lot of the style of accompaniment that was playing at my Hasidic friend’s wedding.
Various Artists
3/5
I mean it’s Christmas music.
Kings of Leon
4/5
wait a minute…..that was really good…
Admittedly the only thing I knew of Kings of Leon was that they had really annoying radio hits when I was in middle school. But I didn’t know they were actually good before that. I really appreciated the 60s influences here and the album ended with a really beautiful song that fit in with the album but was still pretty different from what else was on there. sorry kings of leon I wasn’t familiar with your game…
*Best tracks: Red Morning Light, Talihina Sky*
Beastie Boys
4/5
This was really fun and has some cool global influences on some of the songs. I enjoyed the instrumental tracks too and was surprised to hear those on there given my (limited) knowledge of Beastie Boys. I like when their delivery is more rhythmic and funky than when they’re kind of just screaming, but even the screaming isn’t so bad because it’s kind of funny. It just always sounds like they’re being silly together so I don’t mind the goofy sounding rap in this context even if it’s not my favorite style.
*Fav tracks: Sabotage, Do It, The Scoop*
Al Green
4/5
This is really cool because you can hear really clearly the gospel influences that preceded this genre as well as the bones of future R&B. I’m not sure it was super compelling to listen to as a full album, but all these songs on their own were really great!!
Jungle Brothers
4/5
That was fun! A bit long and some of it is kind of corny, but I do really love their delivery style.
Two lyrics I loved:
“Shake your butt but don’t break your back” (how thoughtful of them)
“It’s easier for a camel to walk through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the gates of heaven”
Best tracks: Good Newz Comin’, Tribe Vibes
Little Richard
3/5
I think a lot of blues of this era kinda just sounds the same to me. So it was pleasant listening to have on in the background but I don't have a lot of strong feelings about it.
Rufus Wainwright
4/5
This was really beautiful! I like how cinematic they are. They’re ethereal without skewing into woo-woo ambient music territory. It also passed by way faster than I thought it would for an hour-long album because there was a lot of variety actually.
*Fav tracks: I Don’t Know What It Is, Movies Of Myself, Go Or Go Ahead*
Jeff Buckley
5/5
This was SO GOOD!!!! I think I liked almost every song. There’s such a range on here of quiet and loud songs and his voice lends itself beautifully to all of them. His version of Hallelujah did make me cry. I’ve obviously heard that one before but it felt different in the context of the other lyrics on the album about his relationships. Admittedly I missed a lot as someone who can’t process lyrics when I listen so I think I might benefit from reading them later. I’m sure that will only enhance my appreciation of this album.
*fav tracks: Last Goodbye; Hallelujah; Lover, You Should Come Over; Eternal Life*
Raekwon
4/5
This album is really good and has a lot of compelling storytelling and gorgeous tracks. It’s not the kind of music I would seek out on its own, as in I can’t see myself returning to this often just because I don’t really listen to story albums like this so much and I can’t picture adding these songs to playlists. That being said I still think it’s pretty good and I like hearing him say places in New York :)
Steely Dan
2/5
god this is so boringgggg. so shmaltzy and hokey. appropriating elements of jazz in a really corny way that makes this sound like muzak
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
3/5
some cool and groovy guitar and bass stuff happening. i don't have strong feelings about this otherwise
The Birthday Party
3/5
hmmm so i did not like that at all. but i tend not to like punk / post-punk so it's probably me and not the album. but i'm wondering what the case is for people who really like this music. live performance appeal? just cathartic because it's screaming? fair enough but it's not for me.
Public Enemy
3/5
I see how this was influential but personally it doesn’t really hold my attention. I’m not super into the accompaniment but their delivery does make it more interesting.
The Beta Band
4/5
Okay that was cool! I enjoyed that. Not many thoughts.
Fav tracks: Space, Easy, Space Beatle
Kraftwerk
4/5
interesting and cool but I don’t really like the vocal parts. but it helped me focus and get through one of the hardest work days ever lol
The The
4/5
i loved this a lot!! i don't really have an explanation. sometimes music is just awesome
The Doors
3/5
whatever
Donovan
4/5
COOL!!!! it's like if you took the eastern-influenced part of the Beatles' music and turned it into its own whole developed sound. the most famous song from this album is the worst one though.
Eminem
3/5
I rolled my eyes at having to listen to this in full (again — it was once my college homework to do so), and my coworkers said I might be surprised by how much I enjoyed it. And they were right….it definitely had its moments. He is a pretty good storyteller (even if I don’t always care for the way he talks about women in the stories he’s telling, but obviously I knew to expect that going in). “Stan” is still really insane and I do think that’s a kind of timeless song, especially as the conversation about parasocial fan-celeb relationships rages on. I still find him really irritating in his delivery and vocal style but admittedly he is good and some of these beats are catchy.
The main barrier to getting fully into his music even from his peak, is that he just sounds like a loser to me. Idk I just don’t find him cool or compelling as a person in basically any regard. And that is a major obstacle for me when listening to rap considering they are literally talking to you. And maybe I’m discriminating against #loserrights and that makes me small minded about the genre but whatever. The moments I liked were all *despite* his voice, delivery, and personality — basically all the things that draw other people to his work — so I don’t think I’ll ever really be able to consider myself a fan.
*Fav tracks: Stan (feat. Dido), The Way I Am*
Neil Young
4/5
i really enjoyed that! very pretty and soulful. sounds like he had a lot going on at the time
Machito
4/5
LOVE. love latin jazz. thank you latin people for inventing that <3
Deerhunter
4/5
very beautiful!! I really enjoyed that. Idk why I'm at such a loss for words with my reviews lately but whatever. i'm just vibing out to everything with no comprehensive thoughts for some reason...
Fav tracks: Don't Cry, Basement Scene, Helicopter
Van Morrison
3/5
it's so nothing. don't really care either way it's just kind of boring but not bad. except i do find his voice annoying
Kanye West
5/5
aaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAHHHH!!!
Well it’s very good. And it makes me kinda sad because it’s too bad that he’s taken the trajectory that he has because he really was a pioneer with such an identifiable impact on music as foreshadowed by this record. I maintain that if something tragic and shocking had happened like ~8 years ago to him and caused him to d*e he would’ve been immortalized as a misunderstood, cutting edge genius. I think he still will, but obviously his legacy has gotten pretty complicated especially considering the lyrical themes earlier in his career.
I think besides the later skits skewing a bit too “we live in a society” for me, the messaging on the album is so well executed. His egotism is balanced out by a thoughtfulness about his surroundings that on paper sound contradictory of each other, but end up creating a complicated and compelling narrator, which kept me engaged in the lyrics basically the whole time. This is the first time I think I’ve actually listened to this all the way through despite recognizing several songs and lyrics, so it was great to see how it all comes together.
The music itself is so interesting on this too, and he really did have to be kind of a crazy genius to think of combining ideas the way he did on some of these songs. “Jesus Walks” in particular has so much going on with the various choral parts, and even songs like “Slow Jamz” whose foundation is a more classic soul sound, has a twist because of the production and then is topped with iconic but ridiculous lyrics like the Michael Jackson line.
Despite his impact of having mainstreamed hip hop / hip hop influences into pop music, a lot of this still sounds pretty unlike anything else I’ve heard. There’s so much variety and complexity on here, and despite its length, it never lags and kept me on my toes. It was genuinely very exciting to listen to.
*Fav tracks: Jesus Walks, All Falls Down, Never Let Me Down, Through the Wire*
Miles Davis
3/5
I love jazz so it’s hard to make it unlistenable for me but I did find the trumpet super shrill at a lot of points which I did not love. This definitely wasn’t my favorite jazz I’ve heard.
Elton John
3/5
He’s obviously very talented and I’ve been listening to his music in some capacity since I was a little kid but there’s a lot of Elton John flavored filler songs on here. There are a few bangers and his piano playing is INCREDIBLE but it wasn’t enough to sustain my interest for a whole hour and sixteen minutes.
Iron Maiden
2/5
these guys are obviously good at guitar so it’s too bad they couldn’t make it sound good
Kendrick Lamar
4/5
it's goooood. a lot of really beautiful songs where once again I'm sure if I could register lyrics, would be even better. "Swimming Pools" is the only one that sounds really of its time to me, but other than that it feels like it could come out today. Which is possibly why I'm not so blown away...it doesn't sound that unique to 2025 ears but I guess that's because it was ahead of its time and stood out when it was released.
Minor Threat
3/5
Fine idk I don’t care about this kind of music
DJ Shadow
4/5
Prettyyyyyy good. I like the jazzy parts mixed with the electronic sound. Relaxing but still energetic.
Sly & The Family Stone
4/5
this was pretty interesting. very funky and lively. I'm not sure I would choose this over any of the other soul we've heard so far (some of it reminded me of James Brown and I kinda wished I was just listening to James Brown). but this definitely has a different kind of melodic flair that I did enjoy.
Fav tracks: Everyday People, My Brain (Zig-Zag)
Bill Evans Trio
4/5
Exactly the kind of jazz I like to listen to. I want to find sheet music for this so I can play it on the piano :)
The Divine Comedy
3/5
There were some good songs on here but some of them were just a little ridiculous sounding to me and idk how else to describe it. "Charge" became unlistenable and tedious halfway through in particular. I was charmed by the speaking section at the end of the album though and overall enjoyed this but it's definitely not something I could listen to for more than a brief period...
Electric Light Orchestra
4/5
Defying all odds I really liked this album. It has all the theatrical, over-saturated elements of the ones I really didn’t care for — Elton John, Queen, XTC — but for some reason it really worked in this context and I can’t figure out why…but I had fun. I found a lot of the songs insanely catchy and the hint of electronic elements in the little flourishes on some of the songs really worked for me. It’s a little too long still but Mr. Blue Sky falling towards the end of the album revived my interest.
*Fav tracks: It’s Over, Sweet Talkin’ Woman, Mr. Blue Sky*
My Bloody Valentine
3/5
I like the vibe of this album. There weren’t too many individual songs that stood out but it was pleasant listening.
Fav tracks: in another way
Björk
3/5
really interesting and weird obviously. i respect bjork's work but the super weird songs are not usually the ones i gravitate towards -- i think i enjoy bjork when she's more "accessible" to the untrained ear...but i still enjoyed listening to this a lot.
Sex Pistols
3/5
i'm really not into punk it all just sounds the same to me sorry. i did laugh when the album ended on a fart noise.
Talking Heads
3/5
definitely not my favorite talking heads album tbh....there's a specific element to the bounciness of the beat in a lot of these songs that almost sounds like it could be a reggae (??) influence or something, i'm not really sure what it is but for some reason i just don't love it in this context. I think it might actually be a funk-inspired rhythm but idk. i don't HATE it but it just sounds a little dopey to me and usually i find the bounciness of talking heads songs somehow does not make it sound dopey in the way it would if another artist attempted that sound. But sometimes that style does still work for me here -- I love it in "Don't Worry About the Government" and "First Week / Last Week... Carefree". so idk. and I love "Psycho Killer" obviously. maybe a little more time with this one would make me appreciate it but my gut instinct upon listening to the whole thing for the first time in awhile is that i didn't like it as much as i remembered.
The Soft Boys
4/5
That was pretty fun actually! I enjoyed it
The Psychedelic Furs
3/5
At many points I was like oh this was inspo for Green Day. And at other points I was like these guys definitely really liked Bowie. Those are all my thoughts
Jorge Ben Jor
5/5
AWESOME!!! i looooved that. i like the funk elements here a lot and they mixed really well with the other brazilian style of his music
Public Enemy
4/5
I actually really enjoyed that. I say “actually” because I was pretty neutral on the last Public Enemy album we were assigned on this list. But the three years between this album and the last one shows….I really just cannot get into rap from the 80s and couldn’t connect with the last one, and the fact that this album was from the start of the 90s makes all the difference. The beats were super catchy and I found the political messaging really compelling (and unfortunately relevant).
Fav tracks: I Don’t Wanna Be Called Yo N***, By The Time I Get To Arizona
Stereo MC's
4/5
i feel like i've been listening to a lot more trip hop than usual lately so this album came at a great time. i really enjoyed this!
Incredible Bongo Band
4/5
this is cool. i kept thinking damn they really used bongos on every single song and then i was like Oh yeah.
i wish i had listened to this while going on some kind of quest or errand around the city because it would make me feel like i was in a movie probably. i guess i'll have to take it out for a spin another time
The Rolling Stones
3/5
Paint It Black is still one of my favorite songs and Lady Jane is also great, so between the two of those in the beginning of the album, I thought maybe I'd like this a lot. But I found a lot of the songs way too repetitive to the point it became grating (Under My Thumb) or they used Mick Jagger's voice in a way that sounded grating to me (High And Dry). I do appreciate the mix of influences and styles on here and I think if it were someone else singing them then maybe I'd enjoy it more. But I realize the appeal of the Rolling Stones for a lot of people is the presence of the titular Rolling Stones so I think they're just not for me.
Funkadelic
4/5
this is so fun and such a great culmination of the genres that preceded it. the funk + psychedelic is such a great combo. the ones that leaned more into smooth jazz were less compelling to me but i didn't dislike them. i liked hearing the periodic record scratches that foreshadow the way the genres will evolve into hip hop in the coming decades. really enjoyed this!!
Fav tracks: Hit It and Quit It, (Not Just) Knee Deep
JAY Z
4/5
Despite lots of its lyrics not aging super well I really enjoyed this. I loved the samples and the way they were integrated into the song, and it was fun to recognize samples in the wild since so many people afterwards have sampled these.
I feel like this album helped me understand why people like Jay Z so much and I can see why his lyricism and storytelling resonates with people. I obviously always like hearing about nyc/bk, but even without that bias it's still interesting to hear him process the juxtaposition between his upbringing and the lifestyle he's living at the time this was released. Wish I could've been in nyc the day this dropped so that i cou--oh wait--
Caetano Veloso
4/5
that was very lovely! feels like bossa nova's cousin. there were a few songs in the middle that got a little too repetitive for me but overall really pretty and enjoyable.
Black Flag
3/5
that was fine. this kind of music always sounds all the same to me
Blur
4/5
I feel like I always overlook this album because despite having listened through the album multiple times, not many of the songs are ones I tend to go back to. BUT the ones I do go back to from this album are like my favorite Blur songs so they get points for that. Hearing all of them in context after listening to them independently for awhile was so crazy because it’s really such a roller coaster….the energy is constantly going between somber and goofy and at times was a little jarring. But I don’t necessarily hate it because it kept it interesting — no two back-to-back songs felt similar at all so at any given point I did not know what was coming next.
I think the more indie rock-leaning songs were not my favorites (”Movin’ On”, “M.O.R.”). I know that this album famously has Pavement influences and tbh that’s not really my kind of music (SORRY EMILIA) so that’s probably why those don’t resonate with me as much. I do love the kind of sinister sound on a lot of tracks (”Death of a Party”, “I’m Just a Killer for your Love”, “Essex Dogs”) and definitely gravitate towards those. I like that they both sound like real instruments but also pretty unnatural, as if they’ve been warped or messed with to a point of sounding kind of otherworldly and foreboding (or even kind of industrial??) And then “Beetlebum” and “You’re So Great” are just two of the most beautiful songs EVER to me. All in all it’s pretty good.
Fav tracks: Beetlebum, You’re So Great, Death of a Party
Simon & Garfunkel
5/5
sooo good. i feel like it went by so fast....TOO fast. but i enjoyed it a lot. I listened to this before bed because i thought it would be good simmer down mellow music but then was caught off guard by how energetic it was. I liked the sort of echo-y (?) sound that a lot of the songs had (particularly noticeable in "The Boxer" and "The Only Living Boy In New York"). it feels very grand and cinematic, more so than a lot of their earlier music. just overall so so beautiful kind of still punches me in the gut even though i've heard a lot of these song so many times.
Fav tracks: El Condor Pasa; So Long, Frank Lloyd Wright
Cyndi Lauper
3/5
I flip flopped my opinion as this as I was listening to it so many times. I kept going between getting won over by how weird and interesting the songs were, and hating her voice so much that it was too grating to enjoy the redeemable aspects. For every interesting detail I appreciated, there was one I disliked. I was going to say that many of these less pleasant details sounded like bad renditions of Prince or Michael Jackson's most notable mannerisms, but then thought about when this album came out and that sort of didn't make sense. So maybe she actually foreshadowed those aspects of their iconic style by debuting drafts of them, which they perfected. It ends with a bang ("Yeah Yeah") but I still don't think it won me over fully. But I do respect her artistry for sure.
Fav tracks: Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, Time After Time, All Through the Night, Yeah Yeah
Happy Mondays
4/5
i really liked this!! it reminded me a bit of the fall album which i also really liked. idk this was just kinda weird and catchy and fun. i listened while i did a puzzle and it was amazing
The Cramps
3/5
meh
Garbage
4/5
I like this album a lot. Some of the songs I didn’t know as well started to blend together but I get the sense that relistening enough times would make that go away.
Fav tracks: Trip My Wire, Only Happy When It Rains, Milk, Queer, A Stroke of Luck
Stevie Wonder
4/5
whoaaaa that was so good. i feel like you can hear in this album the transition from soul to contemporary r&b as he's often credited with. i don't love when he gets into his growl-y voice just because it is so jarring compared to how smooth his regular singing voice is, but other than that i really really enjoyed this.
Elastica
4/5
yasssss (and also slay)
i think the post-punk-ness of this is balanced by the pop-ness of it which makes it more tolerable genre to me than just post-punk. There are definitely moments that I hear the punk influences more (which normally isn't my fave) but they're complemented by a pop sound, and softened by the vocals which are relatively "pretty" (?) for the genre, so I'm able to enjoy this album even when the tracks lean more into genres that I normally don't love (such as the aforementioned post-punk, as well as the grunge-influenced "S.O.F.T.").
fav tracks: Stutter, Hold Me Now, Connection, Annie, S.O.F.T.
The Stooges
4/5
i actually enjoyed this more than i expected! i didn't love the last stooges album we had but i thought these songs were more interesting to me, although some of them went on for longer than i would've liked (ironically not the ten-minute one, which induced a kind of trance that i enjoyed).
Beck
3/5
very beautiful but not that interesting to me really. i guess I don’t really look to beck for “beautiful” songs so it didn’t have the appeal that his other work does.
Marty Robbins
3/5
That was actually pretty cute. But here’s something about this kind of voice that makes all the songs sound the same to me, like almost too smooth and neutral, and it feels like the whole thing has been painted over with the same wash if that makes sense….like going over a painting with a single shade….i am so tired right now and don’t know if my paint analogy is making sense…
Beck
4/5
that was amazingggg I really liked that. had a lot more of the weirdness I enjoy compared to the other beck album we had this week. he does so many weird things with his arrangements and the chords often feel kind of unexpected, like it's subverting where my ear thinks the sound is going which makes it very exciting.
Fela Kuti
5/5
talented, brilliant, incredible, amazing, show stopping, spectacular, never the same, totally unique, completely not ever been done before, unafraid to reference or not reference, put it in a blender, shit on it, vomit on it, eat it, give birth to it.
The Youngbloods
4/5
This actually was super interesting and had so many different kinds of songs that at various points I thought that Spotify had gone to radio and I was shocked to find it was still the album.
Adele
4/5
A lot of these songs are super beautiful and she is one of the most beautiful singers of our time obviouslyyyyy. But it's so hard to hear this and not feel like it's "of it's time" because these songs feel so associated with a certain period of music. But when I actually think about it, songs like "Water Under the Bridge" and "Hello" are not actually "what music sounded like in 2015" because there wasn't really anything else like that at the time, it's just that the songs were so ubiquitous that it felt like it was the universal sound. Unfortunately that took away from my enjoyment of the album overall because it made it sound dated to me WHICH I KNOW ISN'T FAIR...but I just couldn't fully get into it for that reason. But the songs that are good are soooo good so I was really trying to hear them for what they were. I don't think this is actually her strongest album though because it lags for me in the second half and the songs start to sound a bit too similar for me.
The Smiths
4/5
Very beautiful but nothing that stood out to me particularly from the other Smiths albums I’ve heard. I feel like whenever I listen to a whole album of theirs I don’t get much of a distinction between songs until I go back and relisten to individual ones. The main standout for me was “There Is A Light That Never Goes Out” which I already knew. It’s still good though, they have such a distinct melancholic sound that I always really like.
Fav tracks: There Is A Light That Never Goes Out; Frankly, Mr. Shankly
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
3/5
that’s quite enough of neil young for me
Neil Young
4/5
that was actually pretty good. neil young i apologize
David Holmes
4/5
that was so fun. feels like movie montage music for walking around nyc so i will definitely be listening to this as i do exactly that.
Supertramp
4/5
did not like this. theater kid ass music. i didn’t have high expectations but i do like “goodbye stranger” so i went in hoping there would be at least something enjoyable on here but everything was too shmaltzy (especially the saxophone-heavy songs) and just not that interesting.
Metallica
2/5
i can't believe the titular song has ONE BILLION streams....who are you?? one seventh of the planet is listening to this song?? SHOW YOURSELVES
Frank Zappa
4/5
this was pretty cool!!! so interesting and impressive. it feels like all the insane guitar riffs and energy that i didn’t like about yesterday’s metallica album is channeled in a good way here. i just like that this sounds like a bunch of talented musicians going crazy together.
Jane Weaver
4/5
that was really good
Dolly Parton
3/5
This was cute but they mostly sounded the same to me, or sounded like other dolly songs. There were two towards the end I really liked that stood out, particularly “Here I Am” which kinda had some Janis Joplin vibes which surprised me. But yeah it was nice background music and I’m sure the lyrics are thoughtful and sweet but as we all know that isn’t usually enough to win me over anyway.
*Best tracks: Here I Am, Early Morning Breeze*
Metallica
1/5
i love orchestral music but instead of the orchestra improving the sound of metallica, the sound of metallica ruined the orchestra for me. i don’t know how they managed to make a full orchestra sound cheap and basic to me. NO MORE METALLICA!
Bruce Springsteen
4/5
So good! So many of the songs feel so 80s but I didn't mind how specific to its era it sounded because of how beautiful they were and the amazing lyrics. Even as someone who doesn't register lyrics these were pretty hard to ignore (which makes it all the more insane that a vast majority of America has misunderstood the message of the titular track lol). I definitely liked the songs that had a more explicitly sorrowful and/or dark sonic style ("Cover Me", "I'm On Fire", "Downbound Train") over the ones that leaned more into rockabilly (?) ("Darlington County", "Bobby Jean") but there weren't any that I truly disliked.
Stevie Wonder
4/5
i enjoyed that! the middle all kind of blended together to me but there were a few songs throughout the album i really liked. i think with stevie wonder’s music i just can’t usually do a whole album of it because it’s too smooth and chill and starts to feel like background music.
fav tracks: Heaven Is 10 Zillion Light Years Away, You Haven’t Done Nothin’, Please Don’t Go
Eels
4/5
i really enjoyed that!! it was very beautiful and interesting although the lyrics weren't always my favorite. but i liked the blend of styles and at times it reminded me a bit of Garbage which I liked.
fav tracks: novocaine for the soul, my beloved monster, flower
Lloyd Cole And The Commotions
4/5
I really enjoyed that! His voice is just weird enough for it to be interesting but not weird enough to be grating. A lot of the songs were really beautiful and the album is the perfect length for this type of music.
Fav tracks: Forest Fire, Charlotte Street, 2cv, Patience, Perfect Skin
Bebel Gilberto
4/5
I loved this!!! it’s not hard to sell me on bossa nova but I’ve never heard anything of that genre from as recent as 2000 so this was a nice spin on the classic sound. There was a lot of variety that reflected the genres that had developed since bossa nova’s 60s boom, like funk and contemporary smooth jazz sounds which was interesting too, although I still gravitated towards the more classic sounds.
Fav tracks: Samba Da Bencao, August Day Song, Tanto Tempo, Samba E Amor, Close Your Eyes
Fleetwood Mac
4/5
CHRISTINE MCVIE SUPREMACY!!!!
that is crazy they open the album with Over & Over. they were like welcome to the album named for our marching band banger but would you like to start off by crying.
i can’t remember the last time i listened to this all the way through but i did not recall it being over an hour long. i think it’s a bit too long and some of the songs on here are (as i like to say) generic fleetwood-mac-flavored tracks. like yes that is what fleetwood mac sounds like but it is not necessarily a memorable version of its kind of song. and that genericness is really emphasized by the fact that this album has so many of their heavy-hitters that are so intense and beautiful and evocative (”Sara”, “Sisters of the Moon”, “Storms”). There is also such a jarring difference between the aforementioned songs that represent the classic Stevie Nicks woo-woo Fleetwood Mac sound, and the more soft-rock, heartbreaking and often plucky, but quintessentially Fleetwood Mac style of Christine McVie’s tracks (”Think About Me”, “Over & Over”, “Honey Hi”). I love both but they are just both at their extremes on this album so it doesn’t feel cohesive even if the songs themselves are good. There are maybe one or two tracks that seem to blend these styles (”Angel” feels like a Christine track sung by Stevie, and “Brown Eyes” feels like the reverse). and then there’s lindsey buckingham stomping around doing whatever it is he does. i unfortunately do have a strong affection for him because my brain was exposed to him at an early age so his goofier songs are nostalgic and fun to me still even if they are not nearly as thoughtful or beautiful as the women-led ones (”What Makes You Think You’re the One”, “Not That Funny”). it feels like this is kind of their white album — you can feel the band fracturing which results in chunks of songs distinctly in one band member’s style or another, rather than a cohesive body of work that functions as the sum of their parts.
overall i still had a good time listening to this album but if i didn’t have such a strong emotional attachment to these songs i would think these people were kind of insane for putting the album together this way. which i still do but i love them for it.
Fav tracks: Storms, Sisters of the Moon, Honey Hi, Tusk, Sara, Brown Eyes, Think About Me
Pixies
4/5
I enjoyed that a lot! really interesting sound and held my attention the whole time. the sound is strong but also beautiful a lot of the time and I appreciate that they achieved that balance.
Fav tracks: Velouria, Dig for Fire, Down to the Well, Havalina
The Adverts
4/5
I actually found that really fun and not as one-note (or one-chord…ha ha…) as I normally do with punk. Maybe punk is growing on me…
Fav tracks: Gary Gilmore’s Eyes; One Chord Wonders
The Only Ones
4/5
music just sounds good today i guess because i’m liking everything. this was fun and a lot of beautiful moments too.
Fav tracks: Another Girl, Another Planet; The Beast; Peter and the Pets
Grant Lee Buffalo
5/5
i really loved this. the lyrics are poignant and the songs were really gorgeous too. i can definitely see myself returning to this album
fav tracks: Fuzzy; Wish You Well; Soft Wolf Tread; Stars n' Stripes; Dixie Drug Store; America Snoring
Bob Dylan
5/5
i like his lyrics.
Fav tracks: Like A Rolling Stone, Tombstone Blues, Ballad of A Thin Man, Highway 61 Revisited, Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues
Coldplay
3/5
yeah whatever that was fine. pleasant enough but not that interesting.
Mercury Rev
4/5
i liked that a lot! really weird and beautiful
Gillian Welch
4/5
It was fine, not really my kind of music and a lot of it sounded the same. But it was pretty.
Metallica
1/5
im not listening to that
Depeche Mode
3/5
idgaf sorry guys. it was fine but nothing interesting and i was expecting more from them
4/5
i enjoyed it! i didnt realize when it ended so i feel like i cant fully comment on how it felt as an album lol i accidentally listened to the radio for like five songs afterwards. but i did really like the first few songs in particular when i was paying better attention.
The Isley Brothers
4/5
really good. don’t really have much to say other than they’re good. just very catchy and smooth and fun and interesting.
Fleetwood Mac
5/5
literally a perfect album. no skips and it's cohesive yet all-encompassing of the best and most diverse parts of their sound. the only track I don't super love is Don't Stop because I find it kind of dopey, but I don't think it bogs down the flow of the album and serves as a tonal liaison between its adjacent tracks (Never Going Back Again and Go Your Own Way respecitvely) which otherwise would've probably been jarring. the flow of this album works so well to hype you up and settle you down and make you pensive and make you feel at all the right moments, and then it ends with a bang. it would've been amazing to see them play this all the way through live.
fav tracks: dreams, never going back again, go your own way, songbird, the chain, you make loving fun, oh daddy, gold dust woman
Aimee Mann
4/5
really enjoyed that! i don't think these songs packed as much of a punch emotionally for me as some of her other songs from later albums but this is a lovely debut album that previews that type of wit and melodiousness that comes through even more in her later work.
Muddy Waters
3/5
very pleasant, i kinda couldn't tell the different songs apart but there wasn't anything i disliked. i feel like it would be fun to hang out in a bar or saloon with this music.
4/5
The songs that are good are gooooood. But I don’t love the run from Getting better all the way through when I’m sixty four (besides within you without you #george) so that is a sizeable chunk of the album that just doesn’t resonate with me. I do love hearing the experimentation here with reprises and storytelling throughout, and it does feel pretty cohesive.
Fav tracks: Lucy in the sky with diamonds, within you without you, a day in the life
Air
4/5
this was very coollll it felt very late 90s/early 2000s in a good way. it also reminded me a lot of Pink Floyd because of the prog rock element so i liked that combination of influences.
Fav tracks: Playground Love, Bathroom Girl, The Word Hurricane
Todd Rundgren
3/5
alright that was fine i guess. not that interesting to me and some of the experimental stuff was like whatever so idk no strong feelings
Roni Size
3/5
fine, not one of my favorites of the electronic albums we've heard. i did identify a tinashe sample in the wild though which is fun.
Pearl Jam
3/5
i just don't really like grunge
Lynyrd Skynyrd
2/5
I started to listen to it but then i didn’t feel like it. it’s just kind of noise idk it doesn’t connect with me at all.
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
4/5
that was really beautiful even though it looks like some of the songs are not available on spotify (and I didn't look for them elsewhere). I was excited to recognize "Allah Hoo Allah Hoo" as the same tune and similar phonetics to the Jewish prayer "Hallelu", identifying the similar musical origins in both cultures. I did not look up the translation of the lyrics for every song, but I chose "Yaad-E-Nabi Gulshan Mehka" to look into because that one was my favorite. Google Translate didn't do it justice so I found a translation with a few lines from the song that were much more poetic:
‘Remembrance of the Prophet feels like a fragrant garden / How sweet the name of Muhammad feels
Beloved Prophet / remembering you feels beautiful to us’.
Fav tracks: Yaad-e-Nabi Gulshan Mehka
Big Star
5/5
there were so many moments where I felt like i was listening to one of the most beautiful songs i had heard ever. i remember enjoying this album the last time i listened but don’t remember being quite as moved by it as i was this time!
*Fav tracks: Jesus Christ, Thank You Friends, Blue Moon, Take Care*
Frank Sinatra
3/5
idk i didn't really care. too overly smooth for me it actually starts to annoy me after awhile.
Bruce Springsteen
4/5
the only other time i've listened to this all the way through was during covid and i sobbed the entire time. i think that set really high expectations for this listen because i was in a better mental this time and i didn't find it to be nearly as emotional for me, but i still really enjoyed it. i think some of the saxophone makes it feel dated and shmaltzy at times, but the songs were still beautiful and i think i'd pick up on the lyrics better if i spent more time with it.
Sade
4/5
i love this album. even though listening through it for the first time in awhile i realized it gets very repetitive after a few songs. however it almost kinda works because it put me in a trance because of how soothing it was, so maybe not necessarily a bad thing. but really only a few songs that i'd return to (and it's the same ones as i had going into this relisten).
Baaba Maal
5/5
This was soooo good. The guitar was so beautiful and I love the melismas in their vocal melodies.
Fav tracks: Lam Tooro, Maacina Tooro
The Byrds
4/5
i enjoyed it! i don't find this as interesting or varied as the other byrds album we heard but maybe that's just because the other one is more familiar to me. but this was fun still.
The Beach Boys
3/5
i hate being that person but i just don't GET the beach boys. like on paper i can understand the reasoning for their importance and i know they altered the trajectory of like all of music forever because of their revolutionary production techniques and i really was trying to focus on and hear that in pet sounds. but the music itself has just never resonated for me, it sounds like children's music. (maybe that's the point? the contrast between the music and the lyrical themes? okay fine...but i still don't want to listen to that.) it's pleasant enough so i'm not unhappy listening to it, but it's just not something i would ever put on.
Talking Heads
4/5
i love this album yayyy i don't have any intelligent thoughts about it. it's super cohesive but has a lot of variety on it. as weird and fun as i remembered!
Boston
3/5
boston band members writing music while at MIT <<<<< magdalena bay members writing music while at Northeastern
i think it’s not totally offensive but it’s very bland to me. arena rock in addition to metal just feels like a lot of noise in a way that feels like it’s probably cathartic to the people playing it but not very texturally interesting to me as a listener.
Massive Attack
4/5
This was good background music but honestly not really as exciting to me as their debut that we heard earlier. This definitely feels like a different use of trip hop; this feels like it could mostly run in full as accompaniment in some public environment (maybe not an actual rave because most of the songs I think are too chill for that), whereas blue lines had specific songs I could latch onto that felt self-contained and could be heard in many contexts, so it’s harder for me to connect with an album like this. But I can certainly see the appeal and the sounds are layered and interesting. also that was a very cool live cover of light my fire at the end—leave it to tricky to figure out how to make that song bearable.
The Damned
3/5
i got the gist after a few songs
Judas Priest
1/5
i don't know what else to say in these heavy metal album reviews. it's not good.
De La Soul
4/5
very fun!! loved that. love the old school hip hop rhythms and the game show concept too.
Fav tracks: Jenifa Taught Me; Ghetto Thang; Eye Know; Say No Go
Elton John
3/5
I think I’m discovering elton john is not meant to be listened to in a full album probably ever. he has bangers and they are great on their own or next to other artists’ tracks but it’s really too much all together in a row. It’s just too theatrical for me. It’s similar to how I feel about queen — great at making these cinematic pieces, but if every song is A Lot then none of them feel like anything. So I think each of these songs is fine on their own and well constructed, but put them all back to back and you lose the intrigue of each one’s drama.
Tim Buckley
4/5
This was really pretty and I was struck by how different his voice sounded at differnet parts of the album. I had to check that I was still listening to the album because at times I thought it was someone else singing. I like how beautiful the mellower songs are while still being able to convey a pretty strong sense of power on the more intense songs.
Fav tracks: No Man Can Find The War; Pleasant Street; Once I Was
Lambchop
3/5
at first I was really enjoying this and found it beautiful and I really liked the lead singer's voice. but then it just took a turn and got really grating to me for some reason. i'm really not sure what it was, maybe my mood just changed or something. but the smoothness of it suddenly became very irritating, but up until that point I was enjoying it very much and can see myself adding some of these songs individually to a playlist of other songs.
Fav tracks: The Old Gold Shoe, Grumpus
New Order
4/5
LOVED!!! I think it’s so easy for synth-y music like this to feel long and samey but this did not feel like that at all. The lyrics are deeper than your typical synth/dance music I think, probably due to the post-punk nature of it, and the sounds are textured and evocative compositions which is really cool that they could use electronic sounds to do that. I can see why this band is oft cited in subsequent generations of electronic music.
Fav tracks: The Perfect Kiss, This Time of Night, Sub-culture
The Rolling Stones
3/5
not as unenjoyable as i expected based on my past experiences with RS albums. I still think some of these songs are a bit drawn out; I think one or two songs per album with a long instrumental section adds drama, but too many makes it feel bloated. but the music itself was very pretty and i did enjoy it.
Fav tracks: Can't You Hear Me Knocking, I Got The Blues
Afrika Bambaataa
4/5
this was super fun. there's something really robotic and less syncopated about old school hip hop that usually doesn't work for me but the experimental outer-space-y sounds of this made it fun to listen to.
Fav tracks: Looking for the Perfect Beat
Paul Simon
4/5
i actually really enjoyed that. (i say "actually" like it's a surprise I’d like a paul simon album as if i haven't been in paul simon lockdown mode for the last two weeks.) there were a lot of beautiful songs on here that had his signature poignant lyrics and guitar playing while having a little flair of other cultural/genre influences to make it feel new (Allergies, Think Too Much, Hearts and Bones), or at least had one or the other. But there were also two songs are frankly quite stupid and seem to have neither of those redeemable qualities, and it interrupted the flow and tone that the other songs had established (When Numbers Get Serious, Cars Are Cars). I honestly think if it weren't for those two songs then this album would be almost perfect.
Also when he said "New Mexico" in "Hearts and Bones" it made me realize he has a very specific pronunciation of "Mexico" (also see: Only Living Boy In New York). anyway that's not that relevant I just like the paul simon dialect that seems to exist across his discography.
Fav tracks: Allergies, Think Too Much (a), Train in the Distance, Rene and Georgette Magritte with Their Dog After the War
Killing Joke
3/5
This was more pleasant than I was expecting and I didn’t mind having this on at all. But I am getting a bit tired of all the late 70s/early 80s British punk because for the most part they don’t really sound that distinct from each other to me.
The Verve
4/5
they're like if oasis was good??
the album was too long but that's my only gripe.
Bob Dylan
4/5
this definitely sounds a lot more produced and polished than what i've heard from him so far. it sounds less like a guy sitting around playing guitar telling a story and more like bob dylan on a bigger budget. which by the mid-70s is i'm sure exactly what was happening. but it still manages to keep the essence of his earlier music with his detailed storytelling and acoustic feel despite the obvious changes which i appreciated.
Beatles
4/5
there's so much going on (famously) so where to start...
most of the songs are pretty good and i do like the transitions between some that feel pretty different from each other which prevents it from feeling outright jarring (especially Back in The USSR to Dear Prudence, and I'm So Tired to Blackbird). The variety definitely keeps it interesting because you truly have no idea what is coming next (if you're me and don't listen to this album in full very much). But it still feels more like a beatles playlist than an album. I kept thinking how much this sounds like a battle of the bands between john and paul, because most of the john songs are SO john and likewise for the paul ones, and this often felt so noticeable when their rival tracks were back to back (Glass Onion to Ob-La-Di; Happiness Is A Warm Gun into Martha My Dear, and particularly emblematic of beatles' styles if I'm also considering While My Guitar Gently Weeps preceding both). it felt like each beatle was going "okay my turn now". i know i am hardly the first one to make that observation but it's just VERY hard for it not to overshadow the rest of the listening experience (especially when the other beatles albums i listen to more often feel much more cohesive which leaves the focus on the music/lyrics). but of course so many of the tracks on here are so inventive that despite it's shortcomings as an album as a whole, it's still a great listen.
*Fav tracks: While My Guitar Gently Weeps; Happiness is a Warm Gun; Dear Prudence; I Will (always been one of my favorites and actually sounds more like an early Beatles track now that I think about it, which is kinda cute); Savoy Truffle*
*New faves: Mother Nature's Son; Long, Long, Long; Good Night (not necessarily as a song itself but as a fitting cinematic closer to a long and tumultuous album)*
Blood, Sweat & Tears
3/5
i just hated that for no reason
2.5
Portishead
4/5
i have no thoughts. it was really interesting and i enjoyed it a lot
Parliament
4/5
so fun!! kind of short actually, i could've listened for longer. i love all the different voices that are used and how weird the whole thing is while still being very interesting and good musically. I like hearing this older example of afrofuturism in music that paved the way for some other weird music from more “recent” black artists that i love who also explored space and technology in their work (OutKast, Janelle Monae, etc).
*Fav tracks: Unfunky UFO, Handcuffs, Give up the Funk*
Bob Dylan
4/5
I really enjoyed that. The acoustic second half really spoke to me more than I would’ve expected considering I do like his electric sound and generally gravitate more towards that kind of music. But the lyrics in the second half just caught my attention more — Gates of Eden and It’s Alright, Ma (I’m Only Bleeding) in particular.
Fun Lovin' Criminals
2/5
okay i dont need to listen to much of this to know it's not my style. it reminds me of the kind of rock from the 90s/early 2000s i really don't love and topped with pretty dumb lyrics and some guys with no swag
The Clash
4/5
i had fun with this! i feel like because joe strummer kinda has a naturally yell-y voice he actually doesn't really have to actively yell much like in other punk. it was short enough that it didn't lose my attention but i can't say there was a particular song that caught my attention besides "I'm so Bored with the USA" but I enjoyed having it on the whole time.
The Slits
4/5
ok that was kind of crazy but i like them. not necessarily something i'd reach for but there's something infectious and likable about their energy.
The Smashing Pumpkins
3/5
This is the kind of music that would be on at a dive bar where it fits the vibe but I’d complain that I want to go to a different bar with better music. This wasn’t as bad as Mellon collie.
Cat Stevens
5/5
so so beautiful. the perfect length for something so densely packed with emotion, ending with one of the most heartbreaking songs of all time to me and a bittersweet coda final track. i love the texture of his voice, the way it sounds like a mentor telling stories and giving advice even as a young man. i just checked his exact age and he was TWENTY-TWO when this came out? some people just have a perspective and writing ability that is so innate that it blows my mind to hear what they're capable of writing at such a young age.
Dizzee Rascal
3/5
god i really don't like british rap. maybe it's not fair but i cannot take that seriously
Black Sabbath
4/5
hey that was pretty good. idk this worked for me more than other heavy metal, i guess because i liked his delivery better and felt like the music ebbed and flowed in a way that felt more interesting and varied to me than just pure consistent volume (which is how a lot of other metal sounds to me).
Radiohead
4/5
i liked it. this feels like the kind of album i wouldn't pick songs from to listen to in different contexts, which is fine because the whole thing itself feels like it belongs together.
Fav tracks: There, There;
Radiohead
4/5
britney could do lucky by radiohead but thom yorke couldn't do lucky by britney spears. jk this is a really good album i just wanted to make that joke.
at first i had written that i didn't add any more songs to my liked songs than what i had already, but then i relistened to half the album and a lot more grew on me. i feel like there's so much happening on here that it's sort of hard to process in one go. i remember being really blown away the last time i listened to this in full maybe a year ago, so i think that also set me up to be underwhelmed today on my first listen. I also think because I’ve seen Paranoid Android’s composition and structure analyzed in so many different music theory videos, that makes me appreciate its complexity in a way I haven’t been given the opportunity to do for other tracks/albums.
Fav tracks: Paranoid Android, No Surprises
Norah Jones
4/5
Very easy and pretty listening. It had some variety on it that I enjoyed -- the flamenco-inspired "I've Got To See You Again", the more traditional jazz, bass-heavy "Cold Cold Heart", and country influenced "Lonestar" -- but by the end I felt like I wasn't really distinguishing between the songs so much. But I think this album is the kind of thing I'd put on in full to create a certain atmosphere and it certainly delivers on that front. I would love to learn a lot of these on piano though; I'm sure that would change my opinion on the distinctiveness of each track to see it broken down in that way.
Fav tracks: Don't Know Why, Cold Cold Heart, I've Got To See You Again, Come Away With Me
Mylo
3/5
I liked this a lot, these felt a bit less ambient than other electronic albums we've heard so far, almost like lyricless versions of songs I would've heard on the radio when I was younger (Calvin Harris/David Guetta era pop) so it felt kind of nostalgic in that way.
Fav tracks: Destroy Rock & Roll, Otto's Journey
Cornershop
4/5
I enjoyed! I had heard their cover of Norwegian Wood but not the rest of the album. I like the combination of influences here but there weren't too many songs in particular that stood out to me but that probably has more to do with what I'm doing at the same time and I'm sure on a relisten would find some more I liked on their own.
Fav tracks: Funky Days Are Back Again, Norwegian Wood
4/5
i think this album isn't as good as my rating reflects. but i had fun.
i'm not sure I would think this album was worth being on the list if i didn't already know it well, but i do think it's kind of emblematic of the nascent britpop moment of the time so i guess it's representative of that part of music history. it's just a bit one note compared to their later albums; it's a lot of songs that are all kind of doing a similar thing, and some of the songs do that thing better than others.
Fav tracks: For Tomorrow, Chemical World, Blue Jeans
3/5
I really didn’t have strong feelings about this. I thought I might dislike it but it’s markedly better than the work they were putting out when I was aware of them (early 2010s). I feel like here I heard influences of Radiohead, Queen, The Strokes, and maybe a touch of Black Sabbath, which results in it being a sort of weird combination of metal and theater kid elements that just don’t work together for me and makes it feel goofy. Supermassive black hole is catchy though and Soldier’s Poem is very pretty.
David Bowie
4/5
there was a time in my life where this music felt like the most interesting and weird thing I'd ever heard so I will always care about it for that reason. however I did not feel that way this time. but it is a good album.
Fav tracks: Queen Bitch, Changes
PJ Harvey
4/5
This one has always been a hit or miss for me depending on my mood. Today it was a hit! Although I can't say any of the songs that weren't already my faves stood out to me, because I think the harder sound earlier on just doesn't resonate with me as much as her mid/later stuff that has some really gut-punching melodies balancing out that edge. By nature this style is less melodic, but I think it's in service of the overall emotional tone she's trying to convey here so it definitely works even if it's not my personal preference; it especially works for me on "Rub 'Till It Bleeds" and I imagine that how I feel when listening to that song is how others feel about this whole album.
Fav tracks: Rub 'Till It Bleeds, 50ft Queenie, Ecstasy
The Darkness
2/5
bad
Dagmar Krause
3/5
ok so that was kind of nuts...it wasn't bad but it was a bit too theatrical for me initially. once i let go of the expectation of it being a regular album and treated it like i was listening to a musical theater soundtrack, i was less irritated than at the start. certainly she is a talented vocalist and conveys a lot of emotion, but the only time i really registered the lyrics was when she was singing about germany and hitler in "song of a german mother". i'm sure most of this went over my head in terms of its cold war / german nationalist references besides the aforementioned explicit one. i think i just don't have the cultural knowledge to understand the significance of this album. betellied had bassoon in it and i liked that though.
4/5
That was very fun! I noticed the Beatles' influence on their sound much more than in the past, which I enjoyed hearing because I like how the Beatles sound although I can't imagine putting on a whole album of this instead of just listening to the Beatles in that case.
I can imagine this being great in a large stadium. I don't think it's anything much deeper than that. It's a bit odd at times to hear such simple and often stupid-sounding, fake-deep lyrics ("All your dreams are made when you're chained to the mirror and the razor blade") paired with this kind of music. But I know that Oasis kind of didn't really care about creating poignant lyrics so they're just meant as a vehicle for the songs' earworminess.
On that note, they are great at writing a catchy hook. Actually letting "Wonderwall" play all the way through, rather than rolling my eyes that I have to hear that overplayed song again, made me hear it for what it is: a fun and catchy pop song with actually kind of strange and interesting chord choices at times and an infectious bass line.
I didn't really come across any songs that I didn't already like ("Don't Look Back In Anger", "Champagne Supernova", "She's Electric"), except for "Cast No Shadow" (which kind of just sounded like a blur song to me), and "Morning Glory" (the epitome of what I've described this album to be -- probably great on a large scale live but with stupid lyrics). There were also many times that I felt I'd enjoy it more if I liked the vocals more but I can cope.
Fav tracks: Don't Look Back In Anger, Champagne Supernova, She's Electric, Cast No Shadow
Stan Getz
5/5
Amazing as always; the platonic ideal of bossa nova. Most other bossa nova pales in comparison to this to me. Astrud Gilberto’s voice is just one of my favorites of all time. The songs don’t feel particularly distinct but the album is short enough that it gets away with it.
Fav tracks: The Girl From Ipanema; Para Machuchar Meu Coracao; Corcovado (Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars)
The Specials
2/5
I was admittedly imagining ska-punk when I initially reacted poorly to today's album description, forgetting that ska used to be much more obviously a reggae offshoot. I still didn't like this and it got annoying to me after a few songs, but it wasn't as goofy as I was expecting.
Underworld
4/5
that was awesome i had the most productive hour of my life. exactly the vibes i’m looking for from an electronic album.
Brian Wilson
3/5
I felt similarly about this as I do to all other Beach Boys albums I've heard -- extremely impressive technically, harmoniously, compositionally, etc, but not sonically something I find exciting to listen to. Hearing the purely instrumental tracks, through its isolation of Brian Wilson's work, make obvious his prowess as a producer however, so I did enjoy hearing that.
Pixies
4/5
This was awesome. The epitome of the kind of 90s alt rock that everyone has been trying to replicate for the last thirty years. It's visceral and emotional and they just sound cool.
Muddy Waters
4/5
Very pleasant - he sounds great and there’s a lot of palpable energy in the live performances. There seemed to be more variation in the style of music than in the later studio album of his that we heard already on this list, so I enjoyed that too.
Jack White
3/5
It’s fine, I don’t have any strong thoughts. It was interesting to hear his modern incorporation of blues principles into this alt rock style, but also it kind of skewed too goofy for me. I think it’s hard for me to hear music like this without it feeling dated because it feels so of its time, but also when I usually say that of an album it’s because the album/artist was influential in that scene and that’s why a lot of other stuff from that time sounds like it, so whatever.
Sinead O'Connor
5/5
She doesn't want what she hasn't got...but what she has got she would die for. This album is steeped in devotion, evident in her voice, lyrics, and accompaniment: the promises in her rendition of "I Am Stretched on Your Grave" ("If your hands were in mind I'd be sure we'd not sever"), the disillusionment with the world in "Black Boys on Mopeds" ("I love my boy and thats why I'm leaving / I don't want him to be aware that there's any such thing as grieving"), and her dedication to a lover in "Jump in the River" ("If you said 'Jump in the river' I would), and of course the pleading in her soul-baring version of "Nothing Compares 2 U".
It's borderline religious, the devotion with which she paints these stories using her voice and melodies. The final and titular track evokes the sounds of prayer, as she takes her time drawing out each syllable, letting each a cappella note ring and resonate like it would in a church. It's moving to hear her reclaim these aesthetics of an institution with which she had such a tenuous relationship, using them to create a sense of sacredness not out of blind devotion, but from a palpable desire to reckon with her place in the world.
I was pleasantly surprised by which songs stood out to me on this listen, because they were completely different than in the past. Among others, "I Am Stretched on Your Grave" with its Golden Age hip hop-style percussion over the 17th-century poem, is a new favorite. My reigning favorite, "Last Day of Our Acquaintance", is still a stand out, and I think that will always be true since I've permanently bound it to an unfortunate period of my life because this helped get me through it (iykyk). Every single track resonated for me though, and I look forward to which ones will stick in future relistens because I suspect over time it will end up being every single one.
Fav tracks: Last Day of Our Acquaintance; Nothing Compares 2 U; I Am Stretched on Your Grave; Jump in the River
American Music Club
4/5
I actually really liked this! I enjoyed his voice and how beautiful the guitar was. It felt a lot newer than nearly 40 years old.
Favorite tracks: Lonely, Highway 5, Last Harbor
Joan Armatrading
4/5
I really enjoyed this one. I like how lush and full all the songs sounded. I think there are certain parts of her vocal range that I don't love because the vibrato style skews a bit bleating (not sure if there's a more technical term for that style) but most of the time I didn't mind it so much. The chord progressions in a lot of the songs have that sort of heartbreaking, emotional cadence to them that I always love when I hear it. It's particularly noticeable in "Down To Zero", which kind of reminded me of George Harrison (in addition to its slide guitar). I thought the funk influences were also kind of unexpected but still went with the overall tone of the album because of the way they were incorporated ("Join The Boys", "People"). It's just a really good mix of genres that blend together so well and sound beautiful.
Fav tracks: Down To Zero; Love And Affection; Tall In The Saddle
The Who
2/5
Their sound was much harder and more metal-adjacent than I remembered? Maybe I just never heard it because I'd never heard this live album or a live performance. I guess I see in that sense how they're influential on future music movements and they've very talented instrumentalists. However I enjoyed it even less than I thought I would (which is saying something).
Julian Cope
3/5
It was fine and catchy and pleasant but too long, even without the bonus side.
Fav tracks: Hanging Out And Hung Up On The Line
The Incredible String Band
3/5
this felt like the audio representation of someone reading an old storybook full of folk tales or something. i was kind of indifferent to it being on and wouldn’t say that I was necessarily “enjoying” it that much but i wasn’t mad at it. i can’t say i’d return to it but they were certainly doing something interesting.
Cocteau Twins
4/5
A lot more industrial than what I’ve heard from them on Heaven or Las Vegas. I really liked it! It felt more atmospheric and dark. I of course have no idea what they’re saying but that’s okay because the sounds are so interesting that I can’t see myself listening to this for anything but that.
Fav tracks:
Fav tracks: Persephone; Domino; Pandora (for Cindy)
Fela Kuti
4/5
AWESOME!
The Specials
1/5
this is literally horrible
Big Star
4/5
I enjoyed that! I don’t like it as much as *Third*; a lot of these songs skew more classic rock than my personal taste overall. “Watch the Sunrise”, “Give Me Another Chance”, and “Thirteen” are really the only ones that make me feel the way I feel when listening to *Third* because of their gentleness. The rest of the songs are fine, but highlight a part of the lead singer’s vocal range that I find less pleasant.
Also I always forget that the theme song from That 70’s Show is a Big Star song so it’s kind of fun to keep forgetting that fact and then keep learning it like once a year.
Tortoise
4/5
this was very lovely. perfect kind of ambient music — just interesting enough that it doesn’t get tedious, but not distracting.
System Of A Down
2/5
I tried to listen to this in good faith because I know their political messaging has resonated with a lot of people but I still really just don’t like metal. It is ugly. They make some good points in their songs but it just sounds ugly to me. But for this one more than some other metal albums, I can kind of understand the appeal. Some of the songs had a catchy element (that for me was undermined by the rest of the composition) that enabled me to at least see the potential for this kind of music to be cathartic or thrilling to listen to.
Funkadelic
5/5
Amazinggggg. One of those albums I keep meaning to listen to but somehow haven't. There's really never a dull moment, between the combination of instruments and variety of voices, and it has a really interesting combination of distinctly 60s guitar/psychedelic influences but with a really fun twist.
The Who
4/5
This was actually fine. The first few songs really had my attention and over time my interest waned but it was pleasant.
*Fav tracks: Baba O’Riley, Bargain*
Echo And The Bunnymen
4/5
This was pleasant and I had a nice time but nothing super stuck out to me. I like the dark sound to it but there's something about it that just didn't really catch my attention so much. The first time I was actually excited about a song I was listening to was when the album ended and a song from one of their other albums came on...
The Prodigy
4/5
I actually LOVED this. It’s probably my favorite of the electronic albums we’ve had so far. I loved the energy and the diversity of music genres in the samples. The hip hop percussion in “Poison” was fun, and even the (gasp) metal-sounding track ”Their Law” was enjoyable to me.
*Fav tracks: Break & Enter; Poison*
Carole King
5/5
It’s hard to rate this objectively so of course I’m giving it 5 stars. The album just means so much to me so I can’t even pretend I’m assessing this in any real way LOL. Maybe I’ll come back later and write some real thoughts.
Okay I’m back. I think what I really noticed on this listen was how much her R&B songwriting roots shine through. She knows how to use syncopation in a way that makes a lot of the tracks really catchy and satisfying even when they’re mellow (”Way Over Yonder”), and there’s something about the way she writes melodies that feels like it would lend itself well to a more sprawling, powerhouse style vocal performance.
Carole has said she doesn’t think of herself as much of a singer; she’s primarily a songwriter, who has a good enough voice to function as a vehicle for the writing. I don’t entirely disagree with her (hence why I will never reach for this album’s version of “Natural Woman” despite how beautiful it is, because ultimately the song soars if there’s a voice like Aretha’s to deliver it and there’s just no returning to the original after hearing a version like that). However, there’s something about her voice that I do like for this album, and I think gives these smooth and easy songs a bit more texture, elevating it beyond the “easy listening” category it so often gets assigned.
The stories in the songs feel so colorful too; I feel like she paints such a vivid picture and I can see it playing out in my mind in a way I don’t experience with a lot of music. Songs like ”Tapestry” and “Smackwater Jack” feel far out in their folktale nature, while “So Far Away” and “Home Again” evoke the opposite, a feeling of home and comfort. I think this is just one of those albums that will always have something new for me to discover no matter how many times I listen.
Fav tracks: It’s Too Late; So Far Away; Way Over Yonder; Home Again
Frank Sinatra
3/5
fine...i'm never THAT excited for frank sinatra but there's also never anything objectionable about it. to me his music is the lowest common denominator in that it's generically pleasant enough that no one's going to be mad if it's on. it's hard to appreciate this for anything other than background music you'd hear at an italian restaurant which is not his fault necessarily...but it's also not particularly thrilling to me in 2025.
A Tribe Called Quest
5/5
My favorite era or rap…just so effortless and relaxed and cool but still energetic and sooo catchy. The bass throughout this (literally, a jazz upright bass in many cases) made it feel so robust even when there weren’t a lot of different kinds of sounds happening at once. Apparently on this album, Q-Tip layered multiple drum sounds on top of each other to create a single sound; this reminds me a lot of Spector’s Wall of Sound method, and likely also accounts for the album’s fullness.
And also Busta Rhymes’ verses at the end of “Scenario” are just an amazing way to end the album.
*Fav tracks: Verses from the Abstract, Scenario, What?, Buggin’ Out*
Liz Phair
5/5
I think I didn’t appreciate this album as much when I was younger and I’m glad I revisited. There’s a lot more variety in the sounds of these songs than I remember and they range from emphatic, energetic earworms (“Never Said”, “Divorce Song”) to hypnotic meditations (“Shatter”, “Flower”). (The latter actually remind me a bit of the Velvet Underground for their drone-like single-chord construction.) Her lyrics a delivery are arresting in their straightforwardness which makes it very engaging. There’s something familiar and relatable about the way this album feels, while simultaneously sounding unlike anything else.
Pulp
4/5
i love the sound of this album and how his voice enhances how dark and atmospheric it feels. i can't say there are so many songs on it that i can see myself returning to outside the context of the full album, but i really enjoyed myself while listening.
Siouxsie And The Banshees
4/5
I like her sound a lot! She cultivates such a specific feeling and aura with her experimental singing style and production.
Thelonious Monk
4/5
very lovely!
Marvin Gaye
4/5
it all flows together perfectly like a big orchestral piece and feels more like a meditation on the thesis of the album as defined by the opening titular track, than it does an album with many distinct songs. for that reason many of them blended together and i couldn't always tell that the song had ended and changed to a new one, but once i let go of the expectation that it would be a conventional album like that, then i really enjoyed it and appreciated it as a whole. this definitely has to be listened to in full and in order.
Fav tracks: What's Going On, Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)
Sepultura
2/5
Burst out laughing when I heard the first song. I really can’t listen to songs like this for more than a few seconds.
However they do randomly have a beautiful guitar song towards the end (“Jasco”) which is followed by another pretty nice song with (what I’m assuming to be) cultural rhythmic chants. So I guess these two songs make up the section of the album that’s the most explicit manifestation of the titular “roots” concept before returning to the thrash metal style for the remainder. It’s interesting that they brought forward that influence since it sounds like a foundational part of the composition of the whole album, but I can’t say that I personally hear the common thread between their guitar and thrash metal styles.
Can
4/5
this is really cool! i don't have much to say but it was very pleasant.
Harry Nilsson
4/5
I actually really enjoyed this. Harry nilsson I’m sorry I wasn’t familiar with your game…
“Without you” ruined permanently by how hard it got outdone by Mariah but these songs were very beautiful and kind of an interesting spin on the classic 70s sound I associated him with.
Public Enemy
4/5
I enjoyed this more than the other Public Enemy albums I’ve heard. I felt like there was more variation/musicality in their delivery and backing tracks than the usual somewhat robotic style of late-80s rap.
Fav tracks: Burn Hollywood Burn; Who Stole the Soul?
Led Zeppelin
4/5
I enjoyed this a lot. I always like how much I can hear the blues influence on rock and roll in Led Zeppelin’s music; I feel like it’s an education on where the genre came from because you can so clearly hear the lineage (the rhythms of the main riffs in “Custard Pie” and “Boogie with Stu” in particular). I found this really engaging the whole time despite it being pretty long.
Fav tracks: Custard Pie, Trampled Under Foot, Bron-Yr-Aur, Ten Years Gone
The Velvet Underground
4/5
I'm just going to steal what I said in my own texts to Emilia when I finished.
I purposely waited to start listening until I knew I'd have enough time to do it uninterrupted and I'm glad I did. It's meditative in a sense; it's very repetitive and feels like you have to let it put you in a trance. It's interspersed with cool guitar solos and unconventional avant-garde noises that keeps it interesting.
Soul II Soul
4/5
Another one of the British clubby entries on this list whose importance I’m sure is more obvious there than it is here, but I enjoyed this very much.
Fav tracks: African Dance; Back To Life; Jazzie’s Groove
Goldfrapp
3/5
I really wasn’t a fan of this. I guess there’s nothing objectively wrong with it but it just wasn’t my style. It was a little too cabaret-like for me, and too much like it was from a movie, which is weird because usually I like when something feels cinematic, but in this case I didn’t. It sounded like James Bond music to me. I found some of the songs too repetitive and irritating although she has a gorgeous voice that I might enjoy better in a theater setting.
LCD Soundsystem
4/5
This feels like the kind of stuff I want to dance to, while at the same time can recognize is actually very well made and a bit deeper than the average mindless dance music. It feels like a party until the end when the party catches up with you in “New York, I Love You but You’re Bringing Me Down”. I like how dynamic it is in that sense.
Fav tracks: North American Scum; Someone Great; New York, I Love You…
The Cure
4/5
very atmospheric and interesting. i liked it
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
4/5
This was really beautiful! I like how dark and relaxing it was but still sounded pretty different than other music I’ve heard that could, on its surface, be described similarly to it. The jazz influences in this context were very interesting; I almost feel like this weirdly has some overlap with early Fiona Apple to me and that's why I like it? But don't quote me on that...
Fav tracks: There Is A Kingdom, Idiot Prayer, Lime Tree Arbour
Mekons
3/5
this is so weird bc some of the songs are cacophonous in a way that feels experimental and cool and some of them are just cacophonous. so i'm averaging out my experience with a 3.5.
Fav tracks: Psycho Cupid - Danceband On the Edge of Time
Pink Floyd
4/5
I like how grand and dramatic everything feels. I weirdly see why I was really into this music around the same time I found Lana Del Rey and Arctic Monkeys — it’s moody and dark and sort of fitting for a teenage taste. I don’t mean that as an insult necessarily because I think this album has held up, but there’s a certain appeal that this has for someone who has never gotten to hear music like this before.
Having listened to more prog rock (mostly against my will) in the time since my introduction to this album, I can hear the common thread through all of it more than I used to. As a Pink Floyd enjoyer, I’d like to convince myself that this kind of music is a totally different thing than say, Yes, or the more excessive, indulgent parts of 70s classic rock, but I have to admit I can hear on this record more than I remembered. Despite this, and despite the fact that I’d say this isn’t even the most compelling or daring Pink Floyd album to me, I definitely feel absorbed in this sound and think it’s worth listening to from time to time (no pun intended).
Fav tracks: Time; Us and Them
Air
4/5
This was so cool, I enjoyed this a lot. It was ambient while still being really engaging.
Fav tracks: Sexy Boy, Ce matin-la, Le voyage de Penelope
Beastie Boys
3/5
They are so fun and there's a really exciting combination of hard rock and 80s rap in here in a way that makes me wish I enjoyed the sound of it more. This sounds like the kind of music that would be really fun to jump around and scream to if I was really drunk.
Fav tracks: Fight For Your Right; No Sleep Till Brooklyn; Paul Revere
Joni Mitchell
4/5
I love the darker, maybe more highly produced sound to this album compared to earlier ones like Blue. The traces of songs from that album are evident in tracks like "Coyote" and "Song for Sharon", but with added elements like the strong bass with its noticeable electric sound. There's almost a glossiness on all of these songs (it kind of reminds me of the type of guitar sound or production method of something that Fleetwood Mac used around this time which is maybe why I like it so much). I can't quite put my finger on exactly what it is that she's doing but I really love how cohesive it makes the whole album feel. It almost sounds a little 80s to me for some reason? I might be wrong on that but I was surprised to see how old this is. Maybe she was just ahead of her time or maybe I don't know what I'm saying. Both are equally likely.
Fav tracks: Song for Sharon; Blue Motel Room; Coyote
Tom Waits
4/5
this is so weird but in a good way. barring the songs that skewed a little too circus-y for me I thought this was very inventive and interesting.
Fav tracks: Clap Hands; Hang Down Your Head; Gun Street Girl
Amy Winehouse
4/5
So enjoyable of course, but this is still not up there with Frank for me. I think her adoption of Motown-era R&B influences made this album more commercially and universally appealing to people but doesn’t have as much variation or experimentation as her debut. However, I don’t think the album suffers too much from this because of how short it is. There’s also something fun about hearing contemporary lyrics superimposed onto a classic mid-century sound; “What kind of fuckery is this, you made me miss the Slick Rick gig” over a doo wop track in “Me & Mr. Jones” is pretty iconic. It’s a fun listen chock full of solid bangers and honest lyrics even if not the most inventive sonically.
Fav tracks: You Know I’m No Good, Love is a Losing Game
Jurassic 5
4/5
This was pretty catchy and cool. I loooove one guy’s voice and it was very mesmerizing whenever he had a verse. I enjoy this kind of alternative 90s hip hop sound and the incorporation of so many instruments so this was a good listen.
*Fav tracks: A Day At The Races; Thin Line*
Linkin Park
3/5
i listened to half of it and got the gist, it's not my kind of music but i thought it was catchier than the other metal we've heard actually. more commercial/poppy i think.
Coldplay
3/5
Well that was nice. It was fine and pleasant and I enjoyed having it on but I don't think it's anything super special. Reminds me of Keane and at times Mazzy Star and Oasis...and of course Radiohead. I'm not mad at it though.
Fav tracks: In My Place
The Rolling Stones
3/5
I just don't really love them. Occasionally I come across one of their songs that really grabs my attention -- on this album it's "I Just Want to See His Face" and "Let It Loose", the first of which feels inventive in its subdued delivery, the second is just plain beautiful -- but mostly it just feels like background noise.
3/5
Not as bad as I remembered but still not really for me. The first song and many others sound like the royalty free music you’d hear in a corporate HR training video. “Bullet The Blue Sky” is the only song that really stood out to me and that one I think is really great actually. But the rest just don’t really catch my attention or feel that special even if they’re not bad.
Big Brother & The Holding Company
4/5
Her voice is so special and really brings such a personality to the music -- which otherwise doesn't sound so different to me than any other psychedelic rock -- that makes it unique. I'm glad that I already heard a few Muddy Waters and Led Zeppelin albums before this one because they feel like different pieces of the same section of blues/rock music history and it's cool to see this band's role in that evolution.
Donald Fagen
2/5
Damn that kinda sucked. Just shmaltzy and stupid sounding.
Kate Bush
3/5
It was pretty but it’s not something I’d reach for probably. Not as gut wrenching as some of her other stuff because of the 80s-ish gloss over it. It was kind of leaning too Peter Gabriel for me but she gives a great vocal performance.
Dinosaur Jr.
4/5
This was pleasant and I can see more now than the first time I listened how it rubbed off on future acts. I feel like I can hear pre-Pavement and Strokes in here, probably among others. I can’t say I’d return to many of these but I did enjoy it.
Fav track: Kracked
The Beach Boys
4/5
I actually really enjoyed this. A lot more psychedelic rock oriented than the other beach boys I’ve heard which felt much more pop. My gripe is usually that the music sounds too childish for me to ever choose to listen to it but this didn’t have that feeling at all really.
Meat Loaf
3/5
I don’t like his voice, I don’t like his singing style. A lot of these songs reminded me of the worst parts of *Born to Run*. This album kinda feels like Bruce Springsteen for straight people. I realize for most of society Bruce Springsteen is Bruce Springsteen for straight people…but that’s neither here nor there…
There wete a few songs that I could see being pleasant if performed by someone else and produced in a less indulgent and shmaltzy way (Tori Amos cover of “Heaven Can Wait” when??). But as is, the songs are somehow simultaneously too much and also too boring. “Paradise by the Dashboard Light” was a high school favorite and I must admit if I were drunk enough at a karaoke bar I might do something frightening, but from a normal listening perspective, the songs didn't do anything for me.
The Young Gods
2/5
I did not like this at all it was so goofy and also unpleasant. Kind of sounded like Tom Waits if he was French, and I’m not sure that kind of voice needs any additional elements working against it (like being French).
Michael Jackson
4/5
This album feels like the point where Michael Jackson achieved his most Michael Jackson-ness, like it’s his final form. *Bad* is what you’d get if you took all of the elements of *Thriller* that distinguished it from contemporary 70s disco/pop and made an entire album of it and only it. Every part feels so drenched in his style and mannerisms and ad libs that at times it’s hard to hear the music for what it is as opposed to hearing it as simply a Michael Jackson song. When people impersonate or spoof him, the results likely sound like this album.
I’ll start off by saying there’s not a single song on here that is outright bad (ha ha). The closest to bad is “Man in the Mirror” for its corniness, but even that one is musically complicated and features a good vocal performances. The album’s music overall is pretty interesting albeit extremely 80s; for that reason it doesn’t all age super well but I guess it doesn’t matter if the songs are still good. It’s the epitome of that harsh, late-80s new jack swing style that feels really industrial but also somehow clinically clean and precise. There’s so much detail that when paying attention closely, there’s a decent amount of variation among the songs, but otherwise the overall sound of each could certainly come across as homogenous and repetitive.
I don’t think the less famous songs add much to his discography that the mega hits don’t already bring, and a lot of them sound like a combination of the most distinct elements of the other songs. I think it was a strange choice to position something as intense and over the top as “Smooth Criminal” as the penultimate track, only to follow it with the unmemorable, anomalously autobiographical “Leave Me Alone”, which just sounds like an amalgamation of the rest of the songs.
For these reasons my reigning favorite from this album (and probably my favorite MJ song) is “Dirty Diana” and this relisten only reaffirmed that; it stands out to me as an innovation on the distinct style that makes those other songs blend together. Its understated intensity is much more compelling to me than its louder, WOO- and grunt-filled counterparts. “Liberian Girl” also stood out to me on this relisten for its integration of African rhythms with his signature style. Where he’s innovating his iconic sound and creating an infectious and energetic new sound is where this album excels, but unfortunately sets up the rest to feel underwhelming.
Best tracks: Dirty Diana, Bad, Liberian Girl
The Kinks
4/5
I like these guys.
Fav tracks: The Village Green Preservation Society; Last of the Steam-Powered Trains; Village Green
The Flaming Lips
4/5
I liked it! I wasn’t paying full attention to which songs I liked but I liked the overall tone. I really liked the opening track and its Cat Stevens sample specifically.