Sep 25 2024
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Parsley, Sage, Rosemary And Thyme
Simon & Garfunkel
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.
4
Sep 26 2024
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Dusty In Memphis
Dusty Springfield
It's...okay. She has a great voice, but most of the songs were just boring.
2
Sep 27 2024
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Off The Wall
Michael Jackson
Very good album, and amazing start to his real solo career. Love the funk and disco influence. Basslines are amazing.
4
Sep 28 2024
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Born In The U.S.A.
Bruce Springsteen
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.
3
Sep 29 2024
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The Marshall Mathers LP
Eminem
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.
4
Sep 30 2024
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The Cars
The Cars
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.
4
Oct 01 2024
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So
Peter Gabriel
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.
4
Oct 02 2024
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Fear Of A Black Planet
Public Enemy
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.
3
Oct 03 2024
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We Are Family
Sister Sledge
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.
4
Oct 04 2024
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Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music
Ray Charles
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.
2
Oct 05 2024
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The Gershwin Songbook
Ella Fitzgerald
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.
2
Oct 06 2024
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NEU! 75
Neu!
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.
2
Oct 07 2024
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Heaven Or Las Vegas
Cocteau Twins
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.
3
Oct 08 2024
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Odelay
Beck
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.
5
Oct 09 2024
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Want Two
Rufus Wainwright
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
3
Oct 10 2024
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Illinois
Sufjan Stevens
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.
4
Oct 11 2024
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The Slider
T. Rex
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.
3
Oct 12 2024
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Disraeli Gears
Cream
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.
3
Oct 13 2024
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Deep Purple In Rock
Deep Purple
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.
5
Oct 14 2024
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Songs The Lord Taught Us
The Cramps
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.
1
Oct 15 2024
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Definitely Maybe
Oasis
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.
3
Oct 16 2024
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I'm Your Man
Leonard Cohen
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.
1
Oct 17 2024
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Alien Lanes
Guided By Voices
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.
1
Oct 18 2024
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To Pimp A Butterfly
Kendrick Lamar
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.
3
Oct 19 2024
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The Dark Side Of The Moon
Pink Floyd
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.
5
Oct 20 2024
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Paul's Boutique
Beastie Boys
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.
3
Oct 21 2024
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Bone Machine
Tom Waits
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.
2
Oct 22 2024
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Dookie
Green Day
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.
5
Oct 23 2024
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Moving Pictures
Rush
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.
5
Oct 24 2024
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Stripped
Christina Aguilera
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.
3
Oct 25 2024
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Timeless
Goldie
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.
3
Oct 26 2024
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Hounds Of Love
Kate Bush
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.
4
Oct 27 2024
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Le Tigre
Le Tigre
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.
1
Oct 28 2024
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...And Justice For All
Metallica
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.
5
Oct 29 2024
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Songs Of Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen
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!"
2
Oct 30 2024
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Phaedra
Tangerine Dream
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.
3