Strange dude. It's like an album recorded in a dungeon, with the skeletons keeping rhythm and Tom is in the corner growling about craziness. Percussion stuff was interesting. Quite a singular record, though not something I'll probably listen to again.
Some choice hippie music here. Side A has more known singles, side B is a little more out there. Lots of juxtapositions between sweet-sounding vocal harmonies and anti-war rhetoric. Good times.
It's...okay. She has a great voice, but most of the songs were just boring.
Very good album, and amazing start to his real solo career. Love the funk and disco influence. Basslines are amazing.
I'm sure this is beloved by a large swath of Americans, but...eh. Doesn't do much for me. The title track is soooo boring and monotonous, as are most of the non-single tracks. His voice is pretty grating. I guess I'm just not the target demographic. Some sweet saxophone soloes though.
Oh man, I used to jam this album non-stop back in the day. Very well put together, flawless production. The first half has some genuine chart-topping hits, and deservedly so. The second half is pretty difficult to listen to, lyrics-wise. He was quite an angry fellow back then.
Only knew one song before this. Great album! Seems ahead of its time, I thought this was an 80s release before checking the date. Lots of great tracks, really a good listen all the way through, with serious musicianship throughout, especially guitar and keyboards.
Sledgehammer is great. All the tracks have interesting percussion, solid bass, and varied, engaging synth work. A few tracks go on a bit long and a few are just boring. But overall a fun and interesting listen.
I appreciate the level of artistry involved in this album, even though I find it difficult to enjoy. The sheer volume of layers of samples sometimes makes it sound like 'noise', even when there is a constant backbeat. And not being part of the culture that produced this album makes it hard for me to really get into. However, I can definitely see why it has such a legacy.
I of course knew the singles on the album, but haven't listened to much else by this artist. I enjoyed the whole thing, only a couple tracks were a bit slow, but the rest was high energy and funky. Bass work was super groovy. Overall an enjoyable listen.
Not a big fan of big band or country music. That said, this is a well-made set of albums, and I can see the historical significance. Ray Charles had a great voice and energy. While I get that he was trying to put his own spin on these tracks, and that's why these are all big band arrangements, few of the songs (even in their original versions) actually seem like "country" to me. Perhaps those terms just meant something different back then.
Yep, this is exactly what I expected it to be. Ella has a lovely voice, all the orchestration is superb. And it's all totally boring. Nice for background music I suppose. Just not for me.
I like the more ambient first half, as sort of background music. The "singing" in the second half is just absurd and not pleasant. It feels ahead of its time for 1975, with all the synth work and the sort of punk-ish feel. The drums and bass were pretty repetitive and boring, even in the higher-energy second half. Songs seemed like they just went on for too long, like this was a long jam session that was recorded. Overall, I can see how later artists might have been influenced by this, but I didn't super enjoy it.
Airy and ethereal, every instrument is drenched in flange, phaser, chorus, reverb, or all of the above. Lyrics are impossible to understand for me, as the vocals are just as wet. Of course, after looking them up, they don't make any freaking sense anyway. Overall, pretty pleasant to listen to, but just a bit over-layered, which makes it sound jumbled.
A classic album, though this is the first time I've listened all the way through in one sitting. Beck is a master at smashing together a bewildering array of samples and genres. At times noise rock, country, punk, folk, electronic, it's hard to define. The singles get stuck in my head forever, and even the lesser known tracks are never boring.
Didn't know anything about this artist before listening, only heard a couple of tracks. It's pretty interesting, I enjoy his combination of baroque classical, piano, folk, and pop. His voice is a little whiney and not something I'd typically listen to. Reminds me a bit of Thom Yorke actually. Hard to really classify what genre this is, but enjoyable
Didn't know this artist at all before this. Quite interesting musically, all kinds of different things going on from track to track. The Illinois concept is fun, although I didn't pay too much attention to the lyrics. Pretty good, not something I would typically listen to, but I'm glad I did.
Eh, not bad. Pretty standard blues-rock to my ears. Marc has a unique voice for the genre, the album is decently rocking. Just not much stands out or hooks my attention. Overall it sounds like 70s rock.
Not a fan of Eric Clapton as a person, but I can see how people hold his guitar playing in high regard. Sunshine of Your Love is catchy and gets super stuck in my head. The rest of the tracks are enjoyable as well. Nothing mind-blowing, but a solid blues-rock record.
A foundational album for hard rock and heavy metal for sure. Over-the-top singing, crunchy Hammond organ, monster riffs, it's all there. It's a completely different sound from the usual blues-based rock that many other bands were using at the time. There's no 12-bar progression, no formula, just chunky riffs chugging along with the organ tying it all together. Ritchie Blackmore is amazing.
Ugh. Having a hard time coming up with anything redeeming about this. I guess the whole psychobilly schtick is interesting, but man is it unpleasant to listen to. Vocals are impossible to understand, the guitars sound like they were recorded over AM radio with a broken speaker. Just not for me at all.
Yep, sounds like Oasis. Not as familiar with this album as their next. It's fine, all the Oasis stuff is there, just nothing pops out at me. His voice is a bit whiney. Solid, but forgettable.
What the fuck was that!? I'm clearly not the target market for whatever this is. Creepy weirdo talk-singing about nonsense while cheesy 80s synth-pop plays in background is not my cup of tea.
I mean...I guess some people like listening to garage ramblings of drunken 20-year-olds. There's maybe a certain charm to it, in an outsider-music kind of way. But I feel like I could have lived my life without ever hearing this and I wouldn't have missed anything. Guitars are out of tune, drums are off beat, it just sounds like a bunch of dudes who have no idea how to put together a cohesive song.
I enjoyed the overall flow of the album, and the bass work was exquisite. That said, it's not for me. I just don't relate to it, and that's fine, I'm not the target market.
An absolute masterpiece. Sure, I've listened to this albums hundreds of times, but every single time it just gives me chills. Gilmour's guitar work is just achingly beautiful, the lush sonic soundscapes of Wright's keyboards transport the soul to another plane. The lyrics are imminently relatable, melancholy and timeless. I could go on forever.
Sampling is on-point here. The construction is quite coherent, varied, and interesting. The boys seem like hilarious people to hang out with, the lyrics falling dangerously close to parody. Enjoyable, but not something I'd really choose to listen to. The voices get pretty grating at times, like they're shouting at me the whole time.
Strange dude. It's like an album recorded in a dungeon, with the skeletons keeping rhythm and Tom is in the corner growling about craziness. Percussion stuff was interesting. Quite a singular record, though not something I'll probably listen to again.
A classic album. Listened many times in high school, but then they got "too popular" and it wasn't cool to like them anymore. Still, I can sing every word of Basket Case. A very energetic, in your face album for the most part. I particularly enjoy some of the bass lines, there's a lot more going on than you might think.
Just a monster of an album. Crazy talent from all three musicians. I've seen most of this album performed live, and it's just unbelievable that this much sound can come from only three dudes. I find myself humming one of the tracks from this album quite frequently. Some people are going to hate on Geddy's voice, and I get it, but...it just wouldn't be Rush without it. One of the best albums of all time, period.
Not too shabby. She does a lot of genre exploration on this album, tracks are all over the place. Kind of lacks coherency because of that, although it is interesting to hear her try out many different sounds. It's all _very_ produced though, clean and sparkly. I'm not particularly enamored with pop music, so this doesn't really speak to me, but it is a solid effort, and I respect her decision to maintain tighter creative control and explore.
Never heard of this artist. I dig the drum n bass/jungle groove, and the instrumentation on top of the beat is quite varied and interesting. Some really nice piano parts scattered throughout as well. It makes good background music. There sure were a lot of seagull noises though.
Pretty good all in all. Love Running Up That Hill obviously, and the rest of the album is enjoyable. Her voice reminds me a lot of Tori Amos. The Irish jig on the second half was unexpected and fun. Definitely need to listen to more of her stuff.
I couldn't get through listening to this. I'm sure the political messages resonate with people, and that's great. But it was just not pleasant for me to listen to. I didn't like the vocals, I didn't like the music, I didn't like the drums. It sounded like something that a bunch of kids would put together from random instruments laying around the house.
One of the formative albums of my youth. I had a tshirt with this album cover on it back in junior high. And what an album it is. Front to back, just pure thrash metal goodness. Yes, it's dumb that the bass is turned so low it's practically gone. But other than that everything is stellar. The lyrics are thought-provoking, the guitars are pure metal bliss.
Eh, it's alright. Better than the last Cohen album I heard. It just doesn't resonate with me the way it seems like all the critics seem to think it should. Not a fan of his vocal technique, it just sounds like lazy half-singing. There is a bit of inspired guitar playing which I was surprised to hear. He just sort of comes across as a haughty, elitist douchbag, whose girlfriends keep leaving him and he's all "It's not me, they're all the crazy ones!"
Some nice ambient electronic soundscapes. It's hard to believe this sort of thing existed in the 70s. The Moog synth was really a game changer. I enjoyed the album as background music.
I maybe recognized "Alison", but other than that, didn't know this artist beforehand. Pleasantly surprised. It's just a really good straight up rock n roll album, calling back to 50s era rock while infusing it with some more modern elements. His voice is energetic and ever-so-slightly over-the-top, but never grating. There's elements of rock, blues, folk, even reggae present. Will definitely be looking forward to another album by this artist.
I enjoyed the sound design and the general feel of most of the music. Certainly a subwoofer-fest on most tracks. She has a lovely voice as well. However, nothing really stuck out to me or blew me away. Several songs felt overly long. Clearly I'm not the target demographic.
Phenomenal album. It's hard to believe it was their last one, with all the good tracks on here. I enjoy the slightly less "folk-y" approach, with drums and horns and such, it gives the tracks more presence.
It's a difficult listen, but rewarding in some ways. The odd instrumental lineup (I think they have like 2 bassists and 3 drummers) takes some getting used to, and the fact that almost none of the tracks have any sort of normal musical arrangement is likewise strange. The 20+ min opener is more like 5-10 short semi-musical interludes connected by rhythmic noise. A few tracks have some genuinely interesting grooves in them, and I appreciate the constantly changing odd time signatures. Not something I would probably listen to again, but intriguing.
It's hard to imagine just how big of an impact Nirvana had on music in the 90s. To the point that I genuinely got tired of hearing All Apologies multiple times every day for years. That said, it's still an enduring part of the American music landscape, as is Heart-Shaped Box, and to a lesser extent, Dumb and Pennyroyal Tea. The rest of the tracks on the album are, well, not quite as memorable or as enjoyable. But on the whole, the album is as genuine an experience as you can have.
It's alright, but nothing really stands out to me. The second half of the album has some more interesting stuff (Thom Yorke collabs, some odd time signatures). But ultimately it was pretty forgettable.
Man, this is the most early-90s sounding album I've heard in a long time. Her voice is a mixture of apathy and angst, like April Ludgate singing about how much she doesn't care about love. The guitar is almost completely clean+chorus+reverb throughout. While a nice, nostalgic time capsule, it fails to really grab my attention, and her voice gets old.
There's a couple of good tracks, Breakdown and American Girl are classics. Most of the rest didn't do too much for me.
Wow, what a great album. I wasn't much into Elton John when I was younger, but the more I listen to his 60s-70s albums, the more I understand what a musical genius he is. So many great tracks on here, from the singles that everybody knows, to some of the longer, more instrumental pieces. And a couple of just flat out goofy ones. The whole thing is enjoyable front to back.
I did actually know a couple tracks on this album, although I'd never heard of this artist before. It's pretty good, kinda psychedelic, more sitar sprinkled throughout than I would have thought.
It started off pop and veered into country pretty fast. Eh, doesn't do much for me. Her voice is kind of grating and drunk sounding. I do enjoy some of the guitar work.
Man, Eddie Van Halen is a monster. There are guitar sounds on this album that I still have no idea how he made. And all the other musicians are great as well, just a very cohesive, fun album. Truly a seismic shift for rock music.
Really interesting. I wasn't expecting so much orchestration from a rock band, but it was really well done. There were moments when the whole song would dissolve into a cacophony of noise only to resolve back into a coherent song again. It has a psychedelic vibe to it, but markedly different from the earlier 60s-70s era. Good times.
Not too shabby. It's funny, if I didn't already know Alice Cooper's schtick, I wouldn't have picked up on it from this album, except for maybe a couple of tracks. It just sounds like a good 70s rock album. I enjoyed it, but probably wouldn't add it to my playlist.
Wow, this was pretty good. I really dig the combination of electronic and acoustic instruments, and several of the songs were very catchy. Will definitely be checking out other stuff from this artist.
Classic album. Just such a nice groovy background music. The bass and rhythm work is great, and Al's voice is pure honey.
A lot of different genres all shoehorned in here, but it works. We've got rock, reggae, country, a bit of psychedelic freakout, all swirled around together. I dig it.
Wow, that was a trip. It's jazz through and through, with all the various instruments weaving their melodies together in a chaotic swirl of sounds. You can definitely hear the funk influence in the bass and punchy drum parts. If you like jazz-fusion, this should be right up your alley. Personally, while I found it interesting, I probably wouldn't seek it out to listen again, though the musicianship is undeniable.
Not a bad song on this whole album, and almost every one is a complete classic. Billy Joel is an incredibly talented songwriter, every track is just beautiful. And of course his piano playing is amazing, just effortlessly cool. The band he put together is great as well. All in all, highly recommended.
Eh...he's a very talented piano player and accomplished improvisor. I just...don't want to listen to two hours of piano wankery.
I know every bit of this album by heart. Crazy that this was their debut, it absolutely rocks from front to back. Eddie Vedder's vocal stylings might not be for everyone, but I wouldn't have it any other way.