Jazz. Nice jazz, but still just jazz. & jazz without even one trumpet.
4 / 10
Certified banger. Mount Rushmore candidate for the rave scene. Heavy, lawless and atomic but never chaotic.
Used to grow up with my Dad, a docile bird-watcher, gently head-banging to this in the car. My Mum told me it was "Smack My Picture" and I believed this for some time.
Trumpet count: None, but synthesizers that wield the power of a brass ensemble
8.5 / 10
Best track/s: Narayan, Smack My Picture, Diesel Power
It's defo got a vibe. There is something missing, and there are better ELO records. But Mr Blue Sky bumps it up a whole star rating. Summer and Lightning and Turn to Stone other highlights for me.
Trumpet Count: None but every other bloody instrument including a FIRE EXTINGUISHER. Cmon Jeff.
5.5 / 10
Obviously Eminem is good at what he does, but I feel like the Slim Shady character was so acclaimed in his time and I listen back and it's just... an angry man. Like it's not that deep, it's just an angry dude. An angry dude who I feel falls into the same category as Homelander from the Boys and Fight Club of "appeals to men who kinda miss the point". Idk I haven't done a deep dive, I've just listened to it.
Trumpet Count: Zero
3.5 / 10
Alright track: Stan (Dido a nice palate cleanser here)
Solid album. First time listening to a Prince album the whole way through, I dig it.
His fans are a bit unhinged though. Saw one comment on YouTube that described this album as so ahead of time it would be worshipped religiously in 2134 on a track that follows the same formula as a thousand other Soul songs from the '60s. Good, but not "ahead of time" in 1987.
Trumpet Count: Yes but underutilized imo
6 / 10
Reckon I'll try this one again at a quieter time. Didn't fully absorb. Enjoyed what I did pay attention to.
Trumpet Count: crying out for some trumpet. Ditch the guitar, pick up the brass
6 / 10
Best track/s: Raised on Robbery, Court and Spark
So many great tracks on this album; Michelle, Girl, Nowhere Man. I'd say this is the Beatles album that showcases their harmonies more than any other.
Trumpet Count: The hunt for decent trumpet goes on
7 / 10
LCD Soundsystem have such a unique vibe. I do feel 'This is Happening' is the better one and I hope it is included in this book, but 'Sounds of Silver' is still pretty sick.
My main issue with LCD is that James Murphy's verse barrages can sometimes be at American Pie level. Sometimes it's great, sometimes it really grates (see North American Scum).
Trumpet count: None but I don't think it's the vibe here. Maybe New York I Love You
7 / 10
All My Friends, Someone Great and Get Innocuous the bigger hitters here, for me.
Was not expecting to like this as much as I did. Really smartly composed music. Doesn't always go where you want it to, but the album has a narrative, operatic feel to it that you are happy to be taken wherever. Think I'm going to get more into the prog-rock entries as this goes on.
Trumpet Count: None but a decent saxophone fills the void
7 / 10
Best tracks: School, If Everyone Was Listening, Crime of the Century
Not exactly pushing boundaries, but when you have a voice like that it doesn't matter how simple the music and lyrics are. I had an alright time listening to this. Actually mad that this won the Grammy though, which is an insane call. The Grammy's have always been trash though to be fair.
Trumpet Count: I feel a trumpet here might blow Norah away. Best left at home.
4.5 / 10
Best track/s: Honestly couldn't differentiate between one track or the other. The one with the piano and singer was alright.
I don't know - I just really didn't like any of this.
Trumpet Count: I don't think so but I did completely tune out halfway through
1.5 / 10
Not bad but simultaneously quite boring
Trumpet Count: Some trumpet sounds going on, but I don't think certified trumpeting. Not a bad effort I guess
4 / 10
This is the first album that I have not been able to finish. Like holy shit that production, like what am I meant to be hearing? It sounds like it was recorded in a crisp packet. Sometimes the music can save shit production, but this is not the case. Whiny bar chords and weak vocals.
But then I started to look up the context behind this, and how they basically hated each other at the time of the album and I think one of them never even listened to it. I do find it interesting listening to an album with that kinda history and seeing if you can find the signs of tension or apathy in the music. I've never heard another Husker Du song, so maybe the shitness of the album is because they did not wanna be in the recording studio together.
Still...
1 / 10
Trumpet Count: Obvs not, couldn't save it anyway
This was lovely. Felt like Air/Moby/Gidge and a lot of trip hop vibes.
7.5 / 10
Best tracks: Poor Leno, A Higher Place, Royksopps (hey that's the name of the band) Night Out
Surprised me. Sneaks up on you as well through the album. Thought it sounded pretty generic at first but surprising poignant. I am on a comedown though, so that could have an impact. Did not expect Neil Young to have that kinda vocal style either. Always knew he was a legend politically, but never bothered to listen to his music. Good shit.
Trumpet Count: Wouldn't gel here. Good call
7.5 / 10
Best track/s: Only Love Can Break Your Heart, When You Dance I Can Really Love
Bjork is such a talented song-writer. Every song she writes is unique in it's own right. So many interesting beats and timbres. Each song creates a different world encapsulating a myriad of instruments. "Come to Me" invents trip hop before it was a thing. "Like Someone In Love" is straight out of a 1960s movie score. "Big Time Sensuality" is an 80s hit. "Violently Happy" is 90s trance. Pretty sure there was a sea shanty in there somewhere, too.
Issue is...
I really don't vibe with her voice or vocal melodies. And if that's not right, then I can't fully get into it, as much as I love the instrumental elements of every song.
Still couldn't put it lower than a 3 for how revolutionary her sound is and I bet this album alone has inspired countless future producers.
5.5 / 10
TLDR; really impressed, probably won't listen to much of it again.
The kinda music you stumble upon during sundown at a small UK festival before the night descends into chaos and debauchery. This is obviously just great.
Trumpet Count: Let me tell you, there is trumpet. Lots of it. And it is GLORIOUS
7.5 / 10
Music for the village green. Not my vibe but I am happy for those who get anything out of this.
Trumpet Count: None but they probably didn't know anyone in the village who could play
4 / 10
This sounded exactly as I expected.
Trumpet Count: Kashmir is obvs iconic and has some very nice trumpet work, but goddamn is it a slog to get through. Led Zeppelin don't deserve brass
1 / 10
Inject it. Love me some Fela Kuti now. This one slaps as well, but I don't think it's musically as strong as Live!
Having said that, the context of this album. I looked it up and it is mental. The Nigerian government literally threw his mum out a window and killed her because he criticised them in music. And then he just kept making critical music! There is a lot of great anti-establishment music in Western art, but we are very privileged that musicians from those parts of the world don't have to worry about severe consequences from free speech, getting banned from a radio station is like the worst outcome . It's like safe mode compared to what artists like Fela Kuti have to endure.
7 / 10
This was gorgeous, and way more inventive than I expected. There are some really nice sounds, and is just consistently a vibe.
Trumpet Count: Surely. Surely? I don't think so though. Needed
7 / 10
Best track/s: That Lady, Summer Breeze
Not sure what to think of it. This is like grunge with ADHD. It's all over the place, both the individual songs and the album as a whole. I get why people like that, but I dunno. Harmony is important guys. The opener was fantastic and the second half of the album is much stronger than the first in general imo.
Trumpet Count: 0. Honestly think it would go really well here - just open up that sonic space a bit more ya now
6 / 10
Best tracks: Cecilia Ann, Dig for Fire, Down to the Well, The Happening
Pulp are one of the best out there. I'll talk a bit more about it when Different Class pops up (which surely it will??). This Is Hardcore doesn't mess with the formula too much, evocative characters, stripped back verses and powerful choruses. I think This Is Hardcore has a better production overall, and some seriously punchy choruses but it also lacks the crowd-pleasing tracks that Different Class has, and some tracks need a bit of time to hit you.
Trumpet Count: This Is Hardcore has trumpet. It is a sample. But it's also amazing.
8 / 10
Best tracks: Like a Friend if it counts (one of my top 10 of all time), Sylvia, This is Hardcore, I'm a Man, Help the Aged
Not my vibe tbf but pleasant
3 / 10
A lotta fun but I didn't get much out of it other than that. Maybe needs a relisten as well.
Trumpet Count: Yes mate. Well used too.
6 / 10
Best track/s: Sex Machine, I Want To Take You Higher
Love the instrumental, dislike the vocals. I feel that that is the case of a lot of post punk and new wave bands for me.
But I get the appeal of this. I think maybe my dad overplayed this kinda music to me as a kid and now I have a kinda negative reaction.
Trumpet Count: None. Can't imagine one in your neighbourhood post-punk band but, did anyone ever even try?
6 / 10
Good tracks: Spellbound, Monitor, Night shift
Not bad, but they have one mode, and it does feel like the same formula over and over.
But still fun. I'd actually be quite into a hypothetical scenario where this is re-recorded with a more indie rock production. With trumpets obvs
5.5 / 10
Good tracks: What do I get, Moving away from the pulsebeat, fiction romance
Just a beautiful album, think this will get even better with more listens. Wicked psychedelic house vibes. Wish I had more to say, but honestly I just know I loved this.
EDIT: It did get better with relistens.
Trumpet Count: Is it any coincidence that the boys from Glasgow tell us we're gonna have a good time, then proceed to drop into some filthy trumpets? No. These boys know what makes a good time and it's brass, baby.
8.5 / 10
Best tracks: Loaded, Come Together, Higher Than the Sun, Don't Fight it, Feel It.
Some great grooves & Tricky is a legend from an amazing city but I really struggled with this in parts. Sometimes the songs are not as good as the individual parts if that makes sense.
Best track/s: Black Steel, Aftermath
5 / 10
Mistakenly listened to Jar of Flies first, which I really loved.
Dirt was also great, but not totally my scene. Can dig a bit of grunge/metal here and there, but a full album is a bit much, I kinda lose my mind.
Objectively tho - very influential, talented musicians, lyrically interesting and good flow to the album.
7 / 10
Best track/s: Rooster, God Smack, Rain When I Die
Catchy, for sure. Still feels a bit tethered to the rock n' roll era, which is a bit of a stale sound now. These guys have a bit of talent though, think they'll go on to do better things.
6.5 / 10
Best track/s: Please Mr Postman, Till There Was You
Sad boy indie music but it’s the 70s. Bit of a slog, couple of nice ballads, 12 was a bit much
Trumpet Count: can you imagine how boring the trumpet would be if there was one? Very boring
3 / 10
Best track/s: Lion In Winter
Love a concept album and a cool concept, like the lyrics. Music is ok but pretty chaotic at times, sounds like it was recorded with one mic. Harder to engage with because of this.
Trumpet Count: Way too much going on here to comprehend brass - would send me over the edge
6.5 / 10
Best track/s: Last of the Steam-Powered Trains, Village Green
Liked this at points, found it tiring for most of it. Sometimes it felt like true improv funk where people knew what they were doing but didn't know how to develop it into something else. Other times it felt borderline schizophrenic.
I only added two songs from the album, which is rare for funk, so it's 4.5 / 10
Best tune/s: Who Says a Funk Band Can't Play Rock
Don't really rate modern R&B. Don't like how every male singer has the same industry manufactured, boyband voice. & I don't like the elevator music backing track. Find it all pretty dull.
This is the closest I've come to liking it though. More of an atmosphere to this than other stuff I've heard. Don't think it's as smart as people think it is though.
4.5 / 10
Best track/s: Pyramid, Super Rich Kids
This was mental. Crazy bass, crazy horns, crazy double kick pedal, crazy genre flips, crazy '70s musical energy and I am here for all of it. Jampacked with mental content but very tight. Just needs better production, particularly on the drums and guitar.
Trumpet Count: Plenty and I'm lovin it
7.5 / 10
Best track/s: Bonin' In The Boneyard, One Day, Ghetto Soundwave
Weird energy but I’m here for it! Listened twice, better on the 2nd run. Better with headphones too, to catch all those crazy sounds.
7.5 / 10
Best track/s: Backwater, Kings Lead Hat, Here He Comes
Influential? maybe. Good? Nah
Later Offspring is better
Trumpet Count: Nope.
3.5 / 10
Best track: Come Out and Play has at least something interesting going on with that riff
Listening to a Hendrix album is like sitting in on your partner's band practice. You're really proud & impressed and it's all very clever but then you realise that it's been going on for quite some time now and you secretly wish they'd play Hey Jude.
6 / 10
Best track/s: All Along The Watchtower obvs, 1983
I liked this. PJ Harvey has got a great voice. But the music is a bit uninspiring - just find guitar a bit boring these days, especially guitars that are bereft of melody. At least throw some trumpets in there, PJ.
The 2nd half was much stronger than the first. "We Float" offering something different and is I swear the only major key on the album?? "Kamikaze" also turning up the heat to spice things up.
Trumpet Count: A little. Not enough imo
6.5 / 10
Best track/s: The Mess We're In, Kamikaze
Enjoyed this more than I thought I would. Listen, it's rock. It's pretty uninspiring but it's fun at times. It's basically AC/DC without the really annoying vocals, and that's alright by me. & I do dig that chugging bass sound.
Trumpet Count: None. Would work well here too.
6 / 10
Best track/s: Peace Dog, Bad Fun
Got to be one of the best album openers of all time. And the closing track, a glimpse of that jammy energy that the Stones do best.
Rest of the album is.. good. It's alright. The Stones do offer much more than your neighbourhood Blues rock band, such a wild mix of timbres, but not *that* much more at this point in their career. Still a very solid album.
6.5 / 10
Best track/s: Paint it Black, Goin' Home, Lady Jane
Ffs I think I like country. I don't really wanna talk about it.
7 / 10
Best track/s: Those Memories Of You, To Know Him Is To Love Him, Wildflower
Yeah, pretty fun, some real nice grooves in here.
Unpopular opinion tho - the iconic titular track is not *that* great. Doesn't fit with the rest of the album, no beat and if I wanted to listen to a 10 minute long fuzzy guitar solo without breaks ... well I just wouldn't ever want to listen to that.
Maybe one to relisten to.
6.5 / 10
Best track/s: Super Stupid, Can You Get To That
You know what, so much of this is not the kindof music I like anymore. 3 piece rock band, guitar centric, not very genre fluid (made that up).
But simultaneously... I never feel safer and happier than when I'm listening to old Green Day, as if I'm kicking back in my bedroom playing PS2 or I'm walking through the school gates dreading my biology class.
They were the soundtrack for teenagers across 3 generations. Everyone can find lyrics to connect to, and the music is not too shabby either! It's scrappy, vocals a bit too quiet, but they do a lot with a little in this album. The breakdowns are fun as fuck, the drums are mental, the bass is mental and even though Billie Joe isn't exactly the best singer in the world, especially in the 90s where he sounds a bit drunk, it really fits the vibe, it's nostalgic and it never grows tiresome like a lot of other pop punk singers do.
I'm think I'm gonna stick on Insomniac next.
8.5 / 10
Best track/s: Welcome to Paradise, Basket Case, She, When I Come Around
Is this the dude from Silo?
Hip Hop not my thing, find constant rapping a bit claustrophobic, but this was well nice. Really cool backing grooves, feels proper New York, vocals decent all around & very very soulful. Did not like the live version - weird choice.
Would really like to know if that child achieved his goal of being a duck
7 / 10
Best track/s: Faithful, It's Your World Part 1 & 2, They Say
There's an important place for this kinda music in society. Not personally in my life, though.
3.5 / 10
Alright track: Super Unison
Loved this. What an incredible voice. But also don't take anything away from the composition behind the track. Such a cool, eclectic, Parisian mix of timbres. Any day you hear an accordion is a good day.
This album kinda reminds me of another album from the '90s from a guy whose name rhymes with Chef Muckley. The same forlorn, lovestruck music, solo singer-songwriter with a haunting voice and strong ties with folk music. And if Grace is like Spring, then Ingenue is very Autumnal. On the second listen I'm kinda 80% sure this album is sung from the perspective of a vampire in Paris. I really want that to be true.
I think this is going to be my first 5* to a completely new album.
Trumpet Count: None but honestly this has a very decent spread of timbres so it gets a pass
8.5 / 10
Best track/s: Season of Hollow Soul, Miss Chatelaine, Still Thrives This Love, So It Shall Be
I don't think it's Radiohead's fault that they have become synonymous with pretentiousness - but surely there is no better example in popular music than Kid A.
This is mid music. It's not terrible, but it's certainly not great and it doesn't have much to say. Fuck all the critics and fans who are so obsessed with being the ones who "get it" that they forget to be authentic to themselves. There's nothing *to* get. It's experimental electronic. it's alright but it's also fucking weird and mopey
I like Radiohead, love them at times, but Kid A is mid
Trumpet Count: The National Anthem has trumpets, & is the best track. Coincidence? I think not
5.5 / 10
Best track/s: How to Disappear Completely, The National Anthem
Obviously this is just awesome. Also - how did I not realise that Dusty in British?! It's such an American sound. Loved all of this.
Trumpet Count: Listen, Soul knows how to use brass. Beautiful trumpeting throughout, especially Don't Forget About Me
8.5 / 10
Best track/s: Don't Forget About Me, Son of a Preacher Man, The Windmills of your Mind
The drums are cool. Everything else I did not like. Not into post punk
4 / 10
It's not clever & it's not pretty but it does what it says on the tin. A whole album of effectively the same song. But like, that one song is alright. You can listen to it. I think a lot of Oasis’ clout nowadays is fuelled by nostalgia
Trumpet Count: Obvs not. Gallaghers don't even know what one is the fucking geese
6 / 10
Best track/s Supersonic, Live Forever
After possibly the worst produced album openers I've ever heard, with a guitar line that Rod Stewart had to shout to be heard over, this album really redeemed itself. Some real jams in here. Does high energy very well (It's All Over Now, Cut Across Shorty), with the scrappy drums and crazy instrument solos, but the low energy tracks are very nice too. Definitely an album that feels immersed in the culture of its time, showing the back alleys of 1960s Britain in a light that only those who were there could fully appreciate.
On the other hand - the production isn't great, the band is sloppy at times and Rod Stewart voice is an... acquired taste. And the first and last song are absolute trash. So 6 / 10 feels fair to me.
Best track/s: It’s All Over Now, Country Comfort
I don't know care that its named like a Linkin Park album, or that the lyrics are so horny, because goddamn this is a jam. The Rolling Stones, if nothing else, are tight. And just great musicians. Not a dud note in sight.
Trumpet Count: Hell yeah. Rolling Stones know how to layer a band
7.5 / 10
Best track/s: Gimme Shelter, Midnight Rambler (that little speed up must have blown people's minds in 1969), You Can't Always Get What You Want...
This is like the music equivalent of being stuck with the guy at a party who brags about himself nonstop and no one really gives a shit.
Nah idk it's not awful, I just think it should be like half the length and lean more on the more melodic stuff towards the end of the record
4.5 / 10
Best track/s: 6 Minutes of Pleasure, Mama Said Knock You Out
Much preferred this to Physical Graffiti. Still not really my jam, but I get why people like it - some of these tracks have got such a colossal, operatic presence to them.
Trumpet Count: What is it with these freaks and not knowing how to UTILIZE A FUCKING BRASS SECTION. As if it wouldn't make things a thousand times better
6.5 / 10
Best track/s: Babe I'm Gonna Leave You, Good Times Bad Times
Hard to believe this guy was depressed. What a wholesome, joyful album
Trumpet Count: I think trumpets would have made Ian a little happier. RIP
6.5 / 10
Best track/s: Disorder, Shadowplay
Listened to this while cooking and honestly I got so mad. I dont know if it was because the music was trash or what but it was just so stressful. could not finish. no disrespect to those who like it, but I hope u dont beat your wives
1.5 / 10
Never listened to this one the whole way through (I am shamefully a Bowie greatest hits fan), so I think I need to sit with it a few mores times. I really liked it, but the really unusual harmonic patterns are quite jarring on some of the unfamiliar tracks. Also the production is generally very good but the opening track is the bad apple - does anyone else really struggle to hear Bowie or is that just my tinnitus?
Wrote all this ^ halfway through the record - the second half redeems a lot of the problems in the first half. Giving this a tentative 7 / 10 for now, but probably go higher with relistens
Best track/s: I've always felt that Bowie does emotion better than fun. The upbeat glam tracks are still very decent and round out the album, but they have nothing on the proper expressive, closing-credits level power of Time, The Prettiest Star, Lady Grinning Soul etc.
National treasures. Such an influential band and arguably the most British band of all time, singing about roast dinners, misbehaving and the Post Office. UK music festivals would not be the same if Madness hadn't existed. Without the Ska revival, all the awesome sax and brass players would have picked up guitar lessons instead and joined a rock band. Ugh.
Madness have been better than this, but none of the other albums have Our House, a song you can put with Blue Monday, Praise You and Bohemian Rhapsody on the Mount Rushmore of British singles.
Trumpet Count: Mate if you want world class trumpet, Madness are your first stop. Pioneers of the mouthpiece
7 / 10
Best track/s: Our House, Madness (It's All In The Mind), Rise and Fall
Really nice but just ended up drifting away from it. Similar experience to Khruangbin, nice, background vibes.
6 / 10
Best track/s: Which Will, Pink Moon
Reggae is not really my bag. & I really tried. You get a lot of that down Cornwall, they love it there. They love to sing Bob Marley hits around a campfire or a festival or a lock in, or when the sun rises after a mini rave on the beach. There was a lotta love. And they are genuinely quite beautiful moments .. for everyone else but me.
I felt like Mark Corrigan at rainbow rhythms trying my hardest to love it cos I fancied one of my hippie friends. "For fuck sake they're doing Three Little Birds again". I am one depressing fuck.
Fair play to the reggae fans, you're a lot cooler than me.
5 / 10
Best track/s: Bend Down Low has a cool little harpsichord (?) tbf, I do quite like it.
Never heard an album that encapsulates nostalgia more than this. Actually can't believe how much I loved this compared with the last S&G album. The flow is so nice, the harmonies are beautiful & it is immensely sentimental. I'd say half of these tracks are closing credits songs, not just Mrs Robinson. The kindof album you expect from someone in their twilight years, but this was one of their earlier ones? Wild.
Trumpet Count: They sprinkle a little here and there, and when they do it's a little reminder that the world is a beautiful place after all.
9 / 10
Best track/s: Bookends Reprise, Fakin' It, Old Friends, A Hazy Shade of Winter
Yeah, obvs a great album but I swear I'm getting Rolling Stones fatigue now. There is more to life than blues. If I was writing this list I would enforce a strict 2 per artist cap.
7 / 10
Best track/s: Bitch, Dead Flowers, Wild Horses
Existentialism never sounded so hopeful. Don't let the awkward first track put you off; the rest is non-stop energy.
Trumpet Count: You'd better believe it
8.5 / 10
Best track/s: No Cars Go, Intervention, Ocean of Noise
Don't like REM. Just don't. I've tried a few times. I feel absolutely nothing listening to this. But at least it's somewhat close to something I might listen to. It's like a good meal but everything's undercooked
Trumpet Count: Fuckin dorks wouldn't know a trumpet it it enveloped them in it's bell
4 / 10
Fuck yeah - gimme shoegaze and dream pop any day of the week. Yeah, you could argue every song follows a similar format, but what a format. The crescendos here are beautiful. Production is beautiful. Vocals are beautiful. Listen to this, sit down and look at the stars and tell me you don't feel even a little bit better.
Trumpet Count: Time and a place. You gotta understand when to back off, and when trumpets would just not have a good time. Dream pop is like that
8 / 10
Best track/s: Walk In The Park, Better Times, Zebra
Yeah this was sick. It's a pretty mad feat for one record to be such an influence on modern indie, pop and punk. Respect to them. This was class.
Trumpet Count: A little, could be more but I'm not complaining here.
8.5 / 10
Best track/s: Dull Life, Zero, Runaway, Soft Shock
As if the absolute hell of recording Rumours wasn't enough, they decided they were gonna go back to do it all again but DOUBLE the length. The coke must have been well nice.
This album is just way way way too long. Some of the tracks are very nice, but half of them are so forgettable that their inclusion makes no sense. It's a solid album with a bunch of B-Sides.
Also they were trying not to do a Rumours 2 but something more experimental?? This sounds like Rumours 2 lol.
Trumpet Count: You wait an hour to hear a little bit of brass and they unleash the maddest horn arrangement that I've ever laid my ears upon in Tusk. Fair play - they did that one right.
6.5 / 10
Best track/s: Sara, Tusk, Sisters of the Moon
Sorry this just fully put me to sleep..
4 / 10
Lyrically sound and important
Musically like two teenagers with a casio and are really proud of finishing each other's sentences.
I get that minimalism is the aim, but it's not for me
Trumpet Count: There are like two sounds in this album and neither are brass
4.5 / 10
Best track: It's Like That
I totally get it why most people hate it, like it's a hot MESS and hasn’t aged well, but honestly I thought this was kindof a jam lol. & the happy mondays are hilarious, man, twats, but hilarious. Thank you for giving us rave culture
7 / 10
Best track/s: Wrote For Luck, Mad Cyril
Just cool. Effortlessly cool. Bit of a slow burn at times, especially in the middle, and requires a lyrical deep dive to fully comprehend, but yeah overall just very cool.
7.5 / 10
Best track/s: On The Level, You Want It Darker
These guys really just recorded every single thought they'd ever had.
Good vibes though, some very cool grooves, genuinely funny, bit long tho.
Trumpet Count: I mean these guys sample everything in the known universe, so you better believe there's a bit of the ol' trumpet to sink your teeth into
7 / 10
Best track/s: Say No Go, (3 Is) The Magic Number, Tread Water
Pretty fun. Not massively impressed tho. Sounds a lot like the Stones but worse and the best tracks were covers. Maybe influential at the time I dunno.
6.5 / 10
Best track/s: Shakin' All Over, Whisky Woman, Louie Louie
actually didn't hate this. actually kinda had fun.
cheesy af and so American that I suddenly want to steal my neighbours olive oil, but boy does this guy know how to build energy
6.5 / 10
Best track/s: Worlds Apart, Into The Fire
Already heard a bunch of albums from this list that sound like this, all of them from earlier - so I don't really get how this sound, already dated in 1977, is a "must-listen"?? Elvis Costelno.
Trumpet Count: Honestly do not give a shit
2 / 10
Fast, frantic and to the point. You just know they are having fun. Love the band, love the production, especially that iconic bass sound.
And yeah, this album gave birth to one of the best songs ever written
7 / 10
Best track/s: Where Is My Mind, Vamos, Gigantic
theremin-y good
loved every thereminute because theremin lies the truth
I tried showing it to my girlfriend, but I couldn't get theremin-to it
spent most of the time coming up with these puns cos I was honestly kinda bored. like give us a BEAT, Alison.
I don't get Dimery's obsession with debut albums, like just pick the artist's best work, it's not difficult. There's already plenty of great trip hop acts in this list, Goldfrapp are better known for the vibrant, synthy indie-pop stuff they do later on in the 00s.
6 / 10
Best track/s: Human Head, Utopia
Better albums by Goldfrapp: Black Cherry, Supernature
What in the Rocky Horror Picture Show is going on here then
Pretty sensational, to be fair to the bloke
Trumpet Count: Fuck yes. A wild and wicked use of brass
8 / 10
Best track/s: Gang Bang, The Last of the Teenage Idols, Giddy Up A Ding Dong
Very nice. Feel like I want more energy tho, like this just makes me wanna listen to vampire weekend.
EDIT: Upgraded this to 5 stars are listening to this again when the sun finally came out in the UK. Actually did not give it the credit it deserves, this is a phenomenal album in the right time and place.
8.5 / 10
Best track/s: Graceland, Crazy Love Part II, Diamonds on the Sole of Her Shoes, You Can Call Me Al
went into this thinking I was gonna hate it, but by the end I actually kinda liked it - just like a q tip
6.5 / 10
Best track/s: You, Life Is Better
Very fun, tight, full of energy and sick musicians, especially the drummer. Some mental breakdowns. Well produced.
Would be a 5* if the vocals didn't have that post punk taint where the frontman sings like they've got someone's fist up their ass.
Trumpet Count: Honestly think they could really benefit from some trumpet here. Would really open up those pores
7.5 / 10
Best track/s: Sloppy, Gut Feeling, Jocko Homo
Firstly, let's talk that production. Alot of the album, especially the first half, this sounds MIDI programmed, which I guess is also a testament to the rhythm section but still not nice to listen to.
Secondly, these are genuinely very cool songs and some great song-writing and performance - but this album, & I guess this genre, is just constant electric guitar. And between those guitars, not a massive range of timbres/effects. It was a relief when "Strange World" came on and offered something different. If guitar's are your thing then this is an essential, but for me it feels quite sonically limited.
Trumpet Count: These guys are terrified of anything that isn't a guitar. Don't know what they have to fear. It's like FDR once said, the only thing we have to fear is no trumpets.
6 / 10
Best track/s: Strange World
the soundtrack of every film and tv show set in the '80s. Love the varied energy across the album - the slow tracks are beautiful (especially the always relevant We Do What We're Told), the more classic 80s pop hits are bops too. Very well composed. It's a bit TOO 80s which I am a bit disconnected from, but one of the best albums I've heard from that decade. The drumming in "That Voice Again" is amazing, I'm pretty sure it's not programmed in that one.
7.5 / 10
Best track/s: Sledgehammer, We Do What We're Told, In Your Eyes
Very decent. Cheesy af and so dated now but I constantly try to remind myself that many of the albums here of the 20th century were truly working off a blank canvas, coming up with a new and innovative sound. I don't know if Boston specifically was that band who were instrumental in this cheesy, jammy, energetic but measured style of rock, but I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt.
Specifically what I love about this album is that this a band who GET dynamics. Similar to Rolling Stones, how they jammed around ideas for long periods without ever feeling boring because people know when to drop down, when to drop out, when to drop in, when to drop a fucking slick ass organ solo.
Album tapers off towards end, last couple tracks aren't so great.
7 / 10
Best track/s: More Than A Feeling, Foreplay / Long Time
Feel catfished by this one; hoping to finally get a bit of disco, and instead got some smooth soul and funk. I’m still pretty content
Trumpet Count: Yes mate, you can always count on these guys for a cheeky lil brass section
7 / 10
Best track/s: That’s the way of the world, Happy Feelin’
can't tell where the samba stops and my skin begins. my resting heart rate is astounding, doctor says I can come off my medication. my tinnitus has gone. my family want to reconcile. apparently the ice caps are no longer melting and everyone's stopped killing each other. what a perfect world, all thanks to samba.
a solo album which was written, produced, performed by everyone except Nico. She just turned up to sing
Actually such a shame cos some of the music is really nice but it's wasted on an unpleasant racist who can't sing. Why is this in the list??
Trumpet Count: Nico sounds like a fucking french horn as is
4 / 10
Best track: Little Sister because of the Velvet Underground documentary
Not bad. Mid. I don't like the production from 60s rock bands like Kinks and Who, bit too scrappy, gives me a bit of a headache. Good song-writing. Wicked drumming.
6 / 10
Best track/s: Holiday In Waikiki, Sunny Afternoon
Feels boring to bring it back to Blur vs Oasis, but I honestly think this album more than any other proves that Blur were better because they were daring to try new styles, to have a vision and to pull it off. Some of the musicianship and lyrics across this album and the following “13” is astonishing. The sounds that come out of it are so eclectic but gel together so well
Oasis, and this is proven in their respective solo careers, never found their way out of writing arena rock football chants. Appealing to many football fans, but ultimately boring as fuck.
This is Blur at their best, and that’s saying something.
Trumpet Count: None but honestly I'm not even mad. They do so much with guitar and keys here that all is forgiven
9 / 10
Best track/s: Beetlebum, On Your Own, Death of a Party, Movin On
Would like to see RHCP live, but not fussed by listening to an album the whole way through, especially one as long and repetitive as this one. Lyrically saying some good stuff but so on the nose. There are some very cool breakdowns, but few and far between, too much Kiedis overall. Gave up with last couple songs, was a bit too much - hopefully I didn't miss their samba era
Trumpet Count: RHCP take the best thing out of funk and then genuinely believe they're doing a good job? No brass, no party
6 / 10
Best track/s: Under the Bridge, Mellowship Slinky
Silky smooth. Found a genre of jazz I can get behind thanks to this list
7 / 10
What more can be said about this that hasn’t already been said a thousand times. It’s one of the best.
9 / 10
Best track/s: Moonage Daydream, Ziggy Stardust, Five Years, Starman
Meh, pretty boring. Really don’t get why this is so hyped, it’s like GTA music
3 / 10
Alright track: Runaway
Terrible track I never want to hear again as long as I live: Blame Game
In 2024, a bunch of my mates went to Glasto. These are DnB heads, metal freaks and ravers. They don't like, or at least admit to, liking Coldplay. Yet they all said the best thing they saw all weekend was Coldplay.
I feel that sums up their place in the public eye. They're actually a very good alternative rock band who accidentally became too big for their boots thanks to a handful of cheesy, kinda annoying number ones. If they were as big as say, stereophonics, they would not attract the same level of bitterness , mostly from stubborn middle aged blokes with iron maiden/oasis shirts.
Well, the world's depressing enough as is and I don’t wanna grow up to become a cynical, grumpy fuck. This is very good music, as is every other album I've heard by them.
8.5 / 10
Best track/s: Shiver, Yellow, Don’t Panic
Nice vibes but not totally my scene. Great beats. Have enjoyed the Common albums but not tooo much ya know. Like the random scenes . Bit long and repetitive at times
6 / 10
best track/s: Geto Heaven, Payback is a Grandmother, Time Travelin'
So of it’s time that it’s kinda like listening to a film score rather than an album. it's very visceral, but it’s too much for me.
Trumpet Count: I feel like I've truly bitten off more than I can chew, cos this is just... TOO much trumpet. I feel nauseous that I even said that, I'm so sorry
4 / 10
I enjoy soul I enjoy this it’s evocative, but like I also couldn’t tell you one song from the other. Feels like a compilation of Soul classics you buy your gran.
Trumpet Count: Okay nice, we're back on track. This is some good trumpetage.
6 / 10
Best track/s: They were all … nice
Album number 100 and it's another Kinks album. Hooray... I guess? Needless to say I went into this pretty cynical, but by Australia I realise that this is defo the Kinks album that should be in the list. Tighter. More exciting. Same arena as Rolling Stones but more politically charged.
I am slightly concerned I haven't heard Lola, You Really Got Me, All Day and other big hitters, which means there is even more Kinks to come... and yet not one single Chumbawumba album.
6.5 / 10
The hardest thing about this list is giving a fair rating to unfamiliar albums after one shake, and some albums really need a few listens, a deeper dive. This has so much going on like I was never bored, but I reckon it'd work better when more familiar cos of the unusual structures and harmonies. Case in point, I used to dislike Juxtaposed With You - after a few accidental listens, it's now one of my faves
TLDR; revisiting this one for sure
7.5 / 10
Best track/s: Juxtaposed With You, Run! Christian Run!, No Sympathy
Fuck yeah. Saw Sister Sledge at Boomtown, & they were genuinely so sick. My mate grabbed me by the shoulders insisting “this is it, this is as good as it gets”. Sure he had a key hanging out his nose but who am I to disagree. Maybe there is nothing better than thousands in a field dancing to disco
The poor sods who don’t like this are the same plant pots who stand still at concerts. Disco fucking rocks.
Trumpet Count? No need. Strings playing a perfect game
8.5 / 10
Best track/s: Lost In Music, Thinking of You, We Are Family
fine. just fine. I feel nothing really but annoyance for the guy for trying to take money off starving Ethiopians and give it to American farmers.
4.5 / 10
Alright track: Ballad of a Thin Man
well nice. just gives me v positive vibes, music for a sunny day
7 / 10
Best tunes: Soukara, Lasidan, Ai Du
you gotta remember that these guys came about and did something that no one had even thought about before
revolutionising music
changing the scene forever
bringing new meaning to sonic spaces
lower case song titles.
what u think it was that billie eilish? your precious Taylor swift?? You dumb zoomers no it was the bois & girls from Dublin & you best remember it
7 / 10
best track/s: when you sleep, soon
I didn't spend my 20s off my tits at every festival in the country, forgetting my name in psycare, getting piledrived in a hundred mosh pits, cradling box wine in a field in wiltshire, texting damon albarn that I love him, learning how to DJ, realising I'm shit at DJing, losing my clothes to a dance battle, losing my shoes in a mud pit, losing my tent in a storm, losing my mind every August, throwing shapes at chemical brothers, underworld, orbital, groove armada, the prodigy, utah saints, the orb and I think basement jaxx at some point just to end up liking frank fucking sinatra. No thank u, not now not yet.
Don’t really like swing, or big band, or ballads, so this was a miss. Like the occasional tune but having Sinatra and Ray Charles back to back has been rough
Trumpet count: i bet the horn community talk about swing being the golden age of the Trumpet, & sure there was a lot of good work available. But I think it’s all a bit too uptight and homogenised. Some of us who don’t play trumpet or like jazz or really know anything about swing music will know that trumpets have so much more to offer.
4.5 / 10
Alright track: Alexander’s Ragtime blues
Well produced, Madonna and William Orbit defo have had an influence on modern house. I like Madonna but I just think a pop album, more than any other genre, need bops. It needs catchy riffs and tricks. I enjoyed this but very little stayed with me, except for the titular track.
6.5 / 10
Best track/s: Paradise, Amazing, Music
Now I like the original crash bandicoot soundtrack as much as the next guy, but I’m not sure about the guy trying to freestyle over the top, he’s very loud.
4 / 10
Best track: obvs Tainted love
Anticipation has the habit to set you up.
Not with this high octane absolute worldie of a record tho. This was THE album for Brits, and has aged like fine wine. Banger after banger, vivid social commentary & never repetitive, all in 40 minutes
Change my mind, but Arctic Monkeys were the last big rock band, coming out of the ashes after Pete Doherty went off the rails, and a lot of trust was put on them to spearhead the scene for years to come. & they did for a while. But rock has since fizzled and is honestly more of a fringe genre as the charts are more saturated with pop & hip hop. Arctic Monkeys do their own thing now, have done for a while, and this pissed off those that put their faith in them.
But those first 2 albums? Perfection. Them headling Glasto for the first time was the last big cultural moment in rock music, other than those fueled by nostalgia.
9.5 / 10
Best track/s: A Certain Romance, From the Ritz, Fake Tales, Still Take You Home, Dancefloor
Better albums by Arctic Monkeys: Favourite Worst Nightmare, Humbug
not a chorus in sight - just kings living in the moment
7.5 / 10
Best track/s: Bohemian Rhapsody, The Prophet, '39
Suede are fucking good aren’t they. This is no Dog Man Star but it is an excellent debut, and really cemented their unique style.
8 / 10
Best track/s: Animal Lover, So Young, Animal Nitrate
Enjoyed this. Gentle ride, some cool instrumentation and timbres, great voice, mix of genres/influences. Did taper a bit for the 2nd half tho
7 / 10
Best track/s: Central Reservation, Stolen Car, Couldn't Cause Me Harm
Decent enough. & I think I get why this is the highest rated album:
* Enough bangers that everyone recognises
* Artist hasn't done anything to piss the public off
* Good story behind it
* Very inoffensive rock music
But honestly, a few of the songs on here are actually pretty mid. And it's certainly not the best album on the this list, just an easy 5 for a lot of people.
7.5 / 10
Best track/s: The Chain, Dreams, Don't Stop
not bad. bit more going on than other jazz I've heard on this list. I actually feel like this is not as tight as it should be though - dunno if it's the drummer, or issues following the drummer but it just sounds a bit off throughout, except for that sick little build up in Sly.
5.5 / 10
still better than Metallica
3 / 10
probably edges into a 3 but I gotta get my country average down as it's embarassing
5 / 10
Best track/s: Ooh Las Vegas
I don’t hate Ash but I don’t think this should be in the list. It’s pretty generic
6 / 10
Best track/s: Girl From Mars, Angel Interceptor
