Dec 29 2024
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Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
Classic, almost no skips.
5
Dec 29 2024
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Live And Dangerous
Thin Lizzy
Phenomenal live rock album. I’m a huge Thin Lizzy fan so I was already familiar with the album. But this would be the perfect album to get into Thin Lizzy cause it’s a super clean live album with a crazy good tracklist.
5
Dec 30 2024
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Electric Warrior
T. Rex
Great guitar tones, chill choruses. Super underrated classic.
5
Dec 31 2024
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Pearl
Janis Joplin
Great album only lacking in variety of sounds. But the one sound that’s on the album is clearly heavily refined and clean. This was a good introduction to Janis Joplin.
4
Jan 01 2025
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Brilliant Corners
Thelonious Monk
Great jazz album. Jazz isn’t my first pick, and it is definitely not my favorite genre. However I really enjoyed this album. It was really great music to get work done to. I only wish I could give it a score somewhere between a 3-4.
3
Jan 02 2025
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Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music
Ray Charles
I was not familiar with Ray Charles (except for a few massive hits) and I was intrigued by the title. As it turns out, it is NOT a country album(or at least not a modern country album), which is a great turn. And the production on the album is spectacular. Like it basically sounds like an old school movie soundtrack cause the orchestra and instrumentation on this album is like butter on hot pancakes, it is silky smooth. Overall I wasn’t sure what to expect which I think helped the album, but ultimately it is truly a one in a million album even if it’s not chalk full of hit songs. Truly loved relaxing with this album and a nice joint.
4
Jan 03 2025
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This Nation’s Saving Grace
The Fall
This album was interesting. It is a very early British punk album but it sounds so watered down (for lack of a better word). I liked the guitar playing a lot, but some of the songs were painfully repetitive in both lyrics and instrumentation. I really enjoyed L.A. but I didn’t really love the album as a whole.
2
Jan 04 2025
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Aja
Steely Dan
This album is a great yacht rock album. If you like other Steely Dan albums, you will probably love this album. I really like this album and my favorite thing about this album was its length, it’s fairly short so it doesn’t overstay it’s welcome. If someone hadn’t heard of steely dan before and they could not find a best of album, I would recommend this one cause it is very chill.
4
Jan 05 2025
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The Score
Fugees
A hugely influential and impactful jazz-rap/R&B this album is a classic. It’s not my favorite genre but holy shit is this album great. It’s so smooth and catchy, and features a few huge hit songs. This is the album I’d recommend to people who are not familiar with R&B classics, cause there’s no doubt this album is a classic. It does feature a skit that would offend the easily offended, but that’s not an issue for me. Overall a top ten R&B album.
4
Jan 06 2025
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Legalize It
Peter Tosh
So just off the cover I had a pretty good idea of what to expect from this album which I think both helped and hurt it. For example, I knew it was gunna be a groovy reggae album based off the cover and album title, which put me in the right expectations but it also limited the album. Because it is the most stereotypical reggae album out there, the title track is the first song and musically and instrumentally it doesn’t steer very far from that first song, which I liked but after 5-6 songs it started to get tiresome. And by the time I hit the pseudo-religious song I lost all interest in the demos and remixes that were 2/3 of the album. So honestly I really enjoyed it at first and then I got “reggaed” out. I just couldn’t finish the album. I did in my defense listen to all the original tracks, I just turned it off once I got to the demos. Overall this was a forgettable album, but a chill and relaxing forgettable album.
2
Jan 07 2025
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Blackstar
David Bowie
Super powerful album about a man struggling with his mortality and the existential nightmare surrounding him. I fucking loved this album. My only critique is that I preferred the later part of the album despite all the “hits” (⭐️ and Lazarus) being at the front of the album. Girl loves me, Sue, and dollar days being my favorites. Can’t recommend this album enough, definitely check it out if you haven’t.
5
Jan 08 2025
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The Bones Of What You Believe
CHVRCHES
I liked this album. It’s very pop rock, but I liked it cause it has the tinge of indie rock. The singer has a great voice and the music is great. I feel like it was alittle bloated. Like a lot of the songs were a lot of the same, which I makes the album feel longer. I did like that they had two singers, which adds some nice variety, however the female singer was still the stand out star of the album. I would definitely say that I enjoy it, but I wasn’t blown away to the point of looking into their other work. However on the plus side, if I saw this album on sale I’d have a hard time not buying it. Overall a strong 3.
3
Jan 09 2025
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Ogden's Nut Gone Flake
Small Faces
Ok I’m alittle biased because I adore psychedelic rock/metal, those are probably my favorite genres. And while this is a very early psychedelic rock album, it genuinely holds up today. It is not very heavy or dark, but it’s whimsical and free sounding. Obviously with psychedelic rock you get a healthy dose of crazy good instrumentation and that is no different here. Overall I thought the album was a great hidden gem that I had never heard of before and now I have a brand new artist for myself to look into. Idk if there were enough like “hits” on this album to give it a perfect 5 but this is definitely an above average 4.
4
Jan 10 2025
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Armed Forces
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
So I don’t have a lot to say about this one. I like Elvis Costello but I don’t love his voice. So for a pop rock band to have a singer who is just ok makes those songs that are not catchy hit songs even more forgettable. This album just kinda disappointed me, I was excited for what it was gunna sound like cause it has a GREAT album cover. But ultimately I just wasn’t really blown away. Perfectly in the middle not bad and not great just kinda forgettable. Weak 3/5
3
Jan 11 2025
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Hunky Dory
David Bowie
I’m super biased cause I adore David Bowie, but this is probably one of his more mainstream albums. This is a total classic, maybe two skips, but a nearly perfect album all round.
5
Jan 12 2025
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Cut
The Slits
Very surprised by this album. In a vast contrast to the Peter Tosh album, this album sounds nothing like I would’ve expected. It was kinda ska and also punk. It had a lot of forgettable skips, but the 3-4 songs that stood out were great. Really enjoyed the vocals on their songs and my favorite thing was how random and silly the instrumentation is. There’s slide whistles mixed ska guitars, wild stuff. Big fan, definitely gunna check out their other albums.
4
Jan 13 2025
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Merriweather Post Pavilion
Animal Collective
LOVE THIS ALBUM. I was introduced to this band by a former coworker during a secret Santa gift exchange. I played this album on repeat for several weeks after that. This is not a word I use to describe music very often, but this album is truly hypnotizing. It definitely works best in the background while you’re working on something cause it can be super super repetitive if you’re paying too much attention, but it’s infectious. Like it grows on you and gets better and better with every listen. Definitely check this album out, it’s my personal favorite of their whole catalog.
5
Jan 14 2025
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Dummy
Portishead
Wow, talk about being stuck under a rock. I’ve seen this album several times, usually on lists of best/popular albums. And I don’t know why but I never really looked into this album and that was a major mistake this album is great, it’s haunting and beautiful. The instrumentation is wonderful and of its time but in a pleasant way. Honestly I go on and on about this album. Go give it a listen.
5
Jan 15 2025
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Protection
Massive Attack
Very good album. Wasn’t blown away but I did really enjoy it. It’s got some pretty great songs on this album but it definitely has a lot of skips as well. I liked the beats and the production on this album, as well. I looked into some of the bands other singles and this band’s composition really shines. Definitely check them out.
4
Jan 16 2025
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Rapture
Anita Baker
I enjoyed this album. This is not a genre I listen to often, but when I saw that Whitney Houston was a big fan of Anita’s I was definitely excited to listen. I always say how much I love short and well produced albums that are not bloated to pad out run time. And this is a great example of how short albums can make the experience better. If there was ten more song this album would be grading. But overall I really liked this album and while I won’t be able to listen to it on streaming, I enjoyed searching for it and finding it.
3
Jan 17 2025
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Eternally Yours
The Saints
I had never heard of the saints before and I was definitely impressed. This punk/alternative rock band is wonderful. Their instrumentation is super fun and usually pretty upbeat. They have a couple really catchy songs on here. It is a bloated album however with a TON of forgettable songs that all kinda water each other down. But the beginning of the album is super strong and I would definitely recommend. But the album unfortunately overstays its welcome by being WAY too long.
4
Jan 18 2025
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3 + 3
The Isley Brothers
Man what’s there to say, classic r/b album. Velvety smooth instrumentation, and some funky hit songs create a nearly perfect album.
5
Jan 19 2025
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Suzanne Vega
Suzanne Vega
This album is very folksy but despite that I really enjoyed a few songs on the album. There’s plenty of songs that didn’t really make an impression but I really enjoyed the songs that did make an impression.
3
Jan 20 2025
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Technique
New Order
This is a super fun and silly new wave album. Nearly to the point of being comedic. Loved this album, added a lot of songs from this album onto my main playlist. Definitely worth your time.
4
Jan 21 2025
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Disraeli Gears
Cream
I was very excited for this album. I had never listened to the full album, just the huge hit song off the album, so I was excited to find some other gems and I was sadly disappointed. It’s not a terrible album but there’s no variety. You get one core sound throughout the whole album and it gets dry very quickly. I’d still recommend this album to somebody who had never heard of them or “sunshine of your love”, but I wouldn’t buy the album and I did not add any songs off the album to my main playlist. So ultimately, not great, not terrible.
2
Jan 22 2025
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Head Hunters
Herbie Hancock
This album is definitely a “where have you been all my life” album. It’s a psychedelic funk album…. What’s more to say? It’s fucking awesome and your wasting time by not listening to it right now!
5
Jan 23 2025
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The Message
Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five
This album was fun and it was funky, both positives. But for a short album such as this, I expect/hope that the vast majority of songs are great. Sadly this album only had like 2 great songs and the second one was pseudo religious and that’s always a huge turnoff for me personally. So overall I thought the song that worked was great but if an album is being carried by ONE song, it has to be one of the greats, and sadly “it’s nasty” is good but not one of the greats.
2
Jan 24 2025
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People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm
A Tribe Called Quest
This album is great! I love the beats and the production on this album. I was blown away that this was debut album. Genuinely an amazing rap album. You will definitely know the hit off this album “can I kick it?”, but there’s a ton of gems on this album especially “I left my wallet in El Segundo”. If you are a rap fan (especially alt rap) you will love this album.
4
Jan 25 2025
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Rubber Soul
Beatles
This is a super underrated Beatles album. It’s not my favorite but it’s still worth your time. I never liked this one as a kid but it’s aged well and has grown on me. There’s a bunch of good songs on this one even if you don’t like the big hit on this album.
4
Jan 26 2025
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Ingenue
k.d. lang
This album is hard for me. The singing is excellent, the production is crystal clean and inspired, the instrumentation is creative. But despite all these things I just love this album. It’s too slow for me which is more an indictment of myself than the album. I liked the last song on the album and also the first song. But ultimately I just wasn’t a huge fan of the album as a whole.
2
Jan 27 2025
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Gold
Ryan Adams
Just not for me. I hated the sound of the production almost immediately. It’s just so radio friendly and boring and it basically put me to sleep. The only thing stopping this from getting a “1 star” is the one hit song on this album is ok. But honestly the whole thing is easily forgettable.
2
Jan 28 2025
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I Should Coco
Supergrass
I liked this album. Fun and punky, the first half of the album is better than the second half but I enjoyed it, overall a good album that’s just a little bloated with too many forgettable songs. Just good enough to not be a 2 star.
3
Jan 29 2025
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The Cars
The Cars
LOVE THIS ALBUM!!! It has something really special about it. It was technically released in the seventies but it sounds quintessentially “80s” which says a lot about how influential the album was at the time. It’s wildly catchy and fun. The production is excellent, and it’s definitely dated but in the best possible way. Nearly everything on the album is a “hit” song. This is probably The Cars best album (the two following this one are both great) so definitely worth your time. Oh and it’s like the perfect length, does not overstay it’s welcome at all, not bloated just to pad the run time. Perfect album!
5
Jan 30 2025
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Chirping Crickets
Buddy Holly & The Crickets
If you like classic “rock n roll” then this album is definitely for you. I grew up listening to Elvis Presley a lot as a kid so this type of music is super nostalgic. I wasn’t blown away by the album necessarily but I saved a few songs off the album. Overall a good rock n roll album with a few hits.
3
Jan 31 2025
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The Rising
Bruce Springsteen
Ok wow. So this is the first album I’ve gotten, after 34 straight albums, where I actually hated it. The songwriting is so boring and cliched, the production is clearly well done but his voice is not mindblowing and it’s not horrible, it’s just completely unremarkable. Honestly I had alittle hope a few songs in cause I like the instrumentation of “worlds apart” but that quickly falls apart cause once you get to the self-righteous lyrics and boring vocals the song just fades away into the repetitive mess that the rest of the album contains. I’m just so disappointed by this album. It’s also super long with 15 songs that make for a nearly hour and a half snore-fest. Honestly if you remember how bad radio music/rock was in the early 2000s, this is just more of that. Just skip this album, it’ll save you an hour of your life.
1
Feb 01 2025
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Highway 61 Revisited
Bob Dylan
I’m not much of a Bob Dylan fan, but i definitely enjoyed this album. The production is great, Dylan is a great musician which really shines in this album. His voice is still pretty grading, but enjoyed a lot of the album. Definitely worth checking out, this album has most of his biggest hits so it’s a good jumping off point into the rest of his career.
3
Feb 02 2025
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Buffalo Springfield Again
Buffalo Springfield
I was not familiar with Buffalo Springs as a band until today. I had heard a few of their largest hits before however (one of which is on this album). But I really enjoyed this album. It has a lot of variety for an album from the sixties. The song “good time boy” was a super refreshing diversion from the rest of the albums sound and is probably my favorite song on the album either next to or behind “Mr.soul” which is also an amazing song. The album really screams the 60s for better or for worse, but I’d still definitely recommend it to someone who likes softer psychedelic albums.
4
Feb 03 2025
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The Fat Of The Land
The Prodigy
This album is fucking tits! It is so good and I had heard of prodigy before but i definitely regret only discovering them now. Wow this album is so much fun and it’s fast. Super fun dance album but also like a perfect 90s hacker movie score. I wish I had a better way of describing how great this album is, but trust me if you like electronic music or dance music, you will adore this album!
5
Feb 04 2025
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The Man Machine
Kraftwerk
What’s not to say about Kraftwerk?! This legendary band does NOT disappoint. They have one of the most original sounds of all time and nearly 50years later, no one sounds like them. Yes they sound alittle stereotypical for electronic music but that because they literally created the genre. And this album is probably their most popular album. Super atmospheric and entrancing, this album will have your brain going on a sci-fi adventure across the future with robots and huge neon cities. This is not my favorite album by them but it’s definitely the most accessible. And we are all thinking it so I’ll just say it. Anyone who doesn’t enjoy this album doesn’t know how to have fun.
5
Feb 05 2025
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Os Mutantes
Os Mutantes
Well, considering this is a French album. It kind of limits how much I can process. Like I have no idea what any of the songs are about. Literally the only thing I can even critique/comment on is the music and instrumentation. Thankfully psychedelic rock has a long history of being performed by wildly talented musicians and that is no different here. The music is engaging and creative without being silly necessarily. There’s variety, not a lot, but definitely a lot of variety for its time. Honestly this album ages super well and it’s because the music and instrumentation is so good. Just a few songs in and you think you might have a good idea of what this album has to offer and then you realize don’t when you get to “Adeus Maria Fulô” which I can only describe as jungle-rock. It’s so fun and enjoyable, I’d highly recommend this album to somebody with tolerance for not understanding the actual lyrics/message and an interest in psychedelic music.
4
Feb 06 2025
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Fulfillingness' First Finale
Stevie Wonder
The album is actually pretty slow for me. I always struggle with slower songs. But the upbeat songs like “boogie on reggae woman” are great, those were by far my favorite tracks on the album. Even the songs I don’t love have great production and sounds. Overall this album is jammed pack with funk, r/b, and soul. But sadly half the album was alittle too slow for me personally. (Small side note: GREAT album cover!)
3
Feb 07 2025
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Le Tigre
Le Tigre
Wow this album is great!!! Definitely not for everyone, but this album is why I started following this list. This album is an all time great for me now and yesterday I had no idea who they were. If you like things that are weird and different you will like this. My only complaint is I can’t give this album a 6 out of five.
5
Feb 08 2025
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The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
This is my second Bob Dylan album that I’ve actually listened to front to back. And it wasn’t as grading as I thought it would be, but it also didn’t blow me away. Like I can appreciate the political commentary being made on the album but sonically the album is a lot of the same. The tone changes throughout the album but the sound doesn’t. My favorite song on the album is the biggest departure in sound out of the whole album, honey just allow me one more chance. I really liked how this song seemed whimsical and silly while the rest of the album was somber and pointed. This seemed to be the only song that was almost aimless, and I appreciate that. Sadly I can’t rate the album off of one song alone.
3
Feb 09 2025
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Hysteria
Def Leppard
If you like hair metal, this is as good as it gets. The album is chock full of hits. This is Def Leppard at the absolute height of their popularity and power. Great album with catchy lyrics and music. Honestly this is what I listened to when I was a kid so it’s kinda hard to rate cause I’ve definitely outgrown it but I still appreciate it.
4
Feb 10 2025
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The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway
Genesis
So I was pleasantly surprised at first, not because I dislike Genesis (I actually LOVE the invisible touch album) but because I didn’t expect this album to be so psychedelic and progressive. I really liked the first like 6ish songs but like most albums this long (23 songs!) it’s just bloated and too long. Like it really overstayed its welcome. I had to try and listen to the second half of the album twice cause I thought maybe I was being too critical but the later part of this album doesn’t really add anything substantial, where I. Contrast the beginning of the album is great. Honestly had this album been edited down to just like 12-14 songs that would’ve pushed the album to a four.
3
Feb 11 2025
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In Utero
Nirvana
This album is one of the all time greats! Almost every track on the album is hugely popular and influential. The production on this album is shockingly clean, and the lyrics are as raw as it gets. Genuinely one of the best albums ever, if you haven’t heard this album go listen to it.
5
Feb 12 2025
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British Steel
Judas Priest
Absolute classic. This album has two of Judas Priest’s biggest hit songs and the other songs on the album are good but not great. They kinda feel like filler unfortunately. That’s what makes this album really hard to review, it has music that I grew up listening to and loving a lot, but the album as whole is not perfect. It gets alittle stagnant after “living after midnight” but honestly I’d still recommend it.
5
Feb 13 2025
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Eagles
Eagles
This album is chock full of hits. For a debut album, this album is stellar. The problem is I can’t review this album unbiasedly, because this is one of those albums where it contains songs that were played over and over throughout my life. So despite how catchy and memorable the songs on this album are, I am just sick to death of them. I can appreciate how solid this album is and I found a few songs on it that I didn’t know and I liked. However this album is really hurt by the radio effect, so many of these songs are just so over exposed that it makes the album tiresome.
3
Feb 14 2025
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Bluesbreakers
John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers
this album is stacked with talent. From one of the greatest guitar players of his generation (Clapton) to Ray fucking Charles this album is bursting at the seams with talent. And there’s a bunch of catchy songs on this album, but really this album shines in the instrumentation. The guitar playing is so remarkable you could cut out all the other instruments and singers and this album would still be amazing. Seriously if you like old school rock n roll, this album is for you.
4
Feb 15 2025
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You've Come a Long Way Baby
Fatboy Slim
This is why I follow this list. This album is awesome! And even though I’m familiar with a few songs idk if I ever would’ve listened to the full album in its entirety. And this album is amazing, it’s fun and silly and really creative. Honestly this album is just a no skip experience. Go listen to it.
5
Feb 16 2025
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Who's Next
The Who
No doubt this album is a rock classic. Super influential album with a lot of fans, however I may not be one. My favorite songs are the first track and then the last 3 tracks. All 4 of those songs are awesome and super memorable. That’s the problem, the meat of this album the middle three albums are just so meh. Sadly forgettable, I do think this album is worth listening to in its entirety. I just don’t think I personally care for anything other than those few songs.
3
Feb 17 2025
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Bat Out Of Hell
Meat Loaf
This album is one of the greatest rock operas of all time. Every song is memorable and epic in scale and tone. The instrumentation is insane, there’s a whole orchestra essentially on this album. As always I struggled with the slower ballads cause I don't typically latch onto slower music, but not a single song is worth skipping. This is basically white people gospel music.
5
Feb 18 2025
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Stand!
Sly & The Family Stone
I was not very familiar with Sly & The Family Stone, like I had heard of them but I never heard their music. Well this album is a great jumping off point cause it’s super funky and powerful. There’s some songs in this album with VERY powerful lyrics and topics. But the thing that grabbed my attention the most was the music. The music is so good I would’ve been cool with the second half of the album being instrumental versions of all the songs on the album. Even though it wasn’t like a perfect 5, I’d still recommend this album to someone unfamiliar with it.
3
Feb 19 2025
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Timeless
Goldie
So to preface, I am not very familiar with drum and bass music. When I was a kid exploring music on newgrounds, the drum and bass music section always seemed repetitive and boring. So ever since then I’ve never taken time to listen to any professional/established d’n’b artist, until I got to this album. And I really enjoyed the first song. It’s TWENTY ONE MINUTES LONG, but it somehow manages to not over stay its welcome. It has a multitude of beat switches and tone changes, and it keeps finding ways to maintain your attention. Genuinely a great song. I also liked the third and twelfth song, but this is where the problem comes in. In-between those 3 songs are just a mess of the same sound. Like it’s not nails on a chalkboard offensive to the ears, but it’s so atmospheric that nothing stands out about the other tracks. They all blend together to create an hour and 18min long loading music for the 35mins of music that’s truly remarkable. Strangely however, I don’t hate this album, it’s very relaxing and “sound-scapey”, it’s grand and epic in tone. I just think that the atmospheric background music just overstays its welcome. Like if the album was 6 songs and just under an hour long, I think this album could’ve been a 4 or even a 5. But I think this album is definitely worth your time if you already are a big fan of drum and bass or if you have never really listened to it before. Goldie is probably the way to go for an entry into the genre.
3
Feb 20 2025
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Cupid & Psyche 85
Scritti Politti
Ok I’m alittle biased cause I LOVE 80s new wave, like there’s just something about it that scratches an itch for me. My biggest problem with this album is I don’t LOVE the singers voice, it’s perfectly fine, but not like memorable or remarkable. This album is ALL about the instruments! I would buy a record of this with just instrumentals and I would probably enjoy that better. But regardless of the singer, the music is awesome! Super funky and of it’s time, I can’t believe I’ve never heard of this band before. (Just looked it up, they were huge in the UK, that explains that). But seriously if you like new wave, this album is for you.
5
Feb 21 2025
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Dusty In Memphis
Dusty Springfield
I had never heard of Dusty Springfield before, so I was not sure what to expect. I didn’t have anyone in my life that was a big enough fan to show her to me, but she is wonderful. Her voice is so pleasant and soothing without being showy or dramatic. Genuinely love this album from start to finish there was almost no skips at all. Plus the production on this album is insane, it sounds so heavenly and also mildly psychedelic at moments. Also I had actually heard one of her songs before, the song called “son of a preacher man” is actually super popular and you might have heard it before it’s very old school but that works in its favor. Definitely check this album out, it made me a big Dusty fan.
5
Feb 22 2025
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It's Blitz!
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
I was stoked for this album originally cause I got “the yeah yeah yeahs” confused with “the gimmie gimmie gimmies” (which you should look into if you like female singer rock bands). But despite the mild confusion, I loved the first 3 songs. It kinda fell off after that. But it’s still a solid modern rock album. The singers voice is great, really liked what she brought to the songs and I also liked the instrumentals. Really my only complaint is the album as a whole is kinda forgettable. Love the album artwork as well but ultimately this is a solid 3.
3
Feb 23 2025
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The Healer
John Lee Hooker
Going into this album I was not familiar with John Lee Hooker at all. I had never heard his music before so I had no idea what I was in for. And I really enjoyed the music. The instruments are all so sharp and clean. You can hear everything it’s so clean. And the production and number of musical celebrity guests is crazy! Bonnie Raitt, Santana, George Thorogood, just to name a small few. My only problem with this album (and it’s a big one) I don’t really like John’s voice. He doesn’t have a voice with a great presence and there’s not a lot of diversity to his vocals. Honestly this album is worth your time and if you are a blues fan, this is an essential album. But honestly the guests and instrumentation wasn’t enough to make up for the lack of vocal charisma.
3
Feb 24 2025
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En-Tact
The Shamen
So right off the back I really liked this album. It starts really high with by far the best song on the album and everything after that is downhill. I actually counted how many songs I liked enough to add them to a playlist I listen to, and how many were like nails on a chalkboard repetitive, and 2/3rds of the hour long album were not just forgettable and skippable, but they were actually grading to listen to. It’s really a shame because based off of the first two songs I thought this album would be a “dancey” new wave album. It is not really new wave sounding after the first two songs (maybe the last one too, that song has a new wave vibe to it). But ultimately if it weren’t for the 5songs I did like this album would be my second album to get a one star review.
2
Feb 25 2025
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Catch A Fire
Bob Marley & The Wailers
I wasn’t really blown away with this album. I guess you could say when I saw it was a Bob Marley album I was excited cause I don’t listen to him and I’m not familiar with very many songs. And I found a couple songs on this album I liked to its credit. But the problem I have with this album is sonically it’s very one note. There’s not a lot of variation of sounds on this album, and that always hurts an album for me personally. Along with the other type of songs I struggle with, slow songs. There’s a lot of slow songs on this album. So I feel like despite everything this album had going against it, I still found a few songs that I liked. I’m not sure if I would recommend this album however.
2
Feb 26 2025
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Fever To Tell
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Wow this album is great! I have gotten a yeah yeah yeahs album already through this list (it’s Blitz!), and I liked it but I felt like most of the album was forgettable and didn’t stand out. With this album is entirely unique and intriguing. I love the singers voice, they work so well with the modern rock instrumentals. But that doesn’t take away from the music, which is stellar. My favorite thing about this album is the variety! That’s probably the most important thing to me (which is also why my favorite band is ween) but this album has plenty of variety while also not losing its identity. This album honestly is a nearly no skip album. It’s also a great length at 12 songs for 36mins. I love short but sweet albums.
5
Feb 27 2025
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The Predator
Ice Cube
This is probably one of ice cube’s best solo albums. The samples are powerful and entertaining. The beats are super chill, and the rapping is super memorable and almost catchy. Not to mention this album contains one of his biggest hits “it was a good day” which is also my personal favorite song of his. My only complaint about this album is it is not a no skip album. Despite how much I like the samples, they take the place of interludes in this album and a lot of them overstay their welcome. Near the end of the album I started to think “should I find a playlist of this album that excludes the inserts?” Which was only because I wanted to give this album a higher score. But that wouldn’t make sense cause it’s a core part of the vibe of the album. Overall I think even if this album didn’t have the inserts (or just less of them) it’s still as close to a 5 as you can get without actually being a 5 star.
4
Feb 28 2025
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Talking With the Taxman About Poetry
Billy Bragg
So I had never heard of Billy Bragg before, and honestly I had mixed opinions. I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of variety on this album. There’s some rock, country, slower ballads, etc. my only real complaint is that his accent is so distracting. Genuinely I had to listen to this album twice cause I felt like the first listen I was being unfairly harsh cause I was so distracted by how thick his British accent is. But on a second listen I started to enjoy it more. Really the star of this album is how great the guitar and piano playing is. I think if you are looking for something alittle different and slightly challenging, this is the album for you. Very interesting album.
3
Mar 02 2025
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Foxbase Alpha
Saint Etienne
This album was great. Super chill and atmospheric. This is an ideal album to put on while working or cleaning cause it’s super relaxing. It’s not a perfect album. It doesn’t have a lot of variety and sonically it’s very specific and doesn’t deviate from its sound. Also there’s a few skips so not a perfect give unfortunately. I think if it had a little more variety or if it had one really adventurous, out of the box song that really deviated from the norm it n this album it could’ve easily been a five. But I think this album is totally worth your time, and I’ll be on the lookout for this album on vinyl.
4
Mar 03 2025
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Fleet Foxes
Fleet Foxes
Nails on a chalk board. Obviously reviewing music is subjective, like I could listen to this album maybe on another day when I’m in a better mood (for the record I’m not in a bad mood I’m just not in a jubilant mood) and maybe I’d be more open minded about grading folk rock. But I hated it, I played it twice in one day and then I waited a few days before reviewing it so I could listen to it once more to see if I truly did hate this album as much as I thought. But at the end of the day this is an edgeless album. It’s just fluff and sorbitol, no natural sugar. I really mean that, this whole album is boring and melodramatic. It reminds me of people who are narcissistic sociopaths who don’t realize how shallow and vain they are. The most accurate description of this album that I could give to convey both the music and the whole vibe around it would be: “you remember the character from animal house that’s sitting on the steps of the fraternity trying to swoon college girls with his acoustic guitar before Bluto uncontrollably smashes it to pieces. Yah imagine if bluto never saved the day and that same guy got a full studio to make an album. That’s this album.
1
Mar 04 2025
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Foo Fighters
Foo Fighters
This is actually kinda embarrassing, I had no idea that the Foo Fighters had a self titled debut album. For some reason I genuinely thought the colour and the shape was their debut album. So I was excited to learn there was FF music I hadn’t heard yet. But like all wildly successful radio rock bands, I actually was already familiar with a few songs on the album. “Big me” is an all time classic rock song. I love that track as well as floaty and watershed. However I thought as a whole the album was underwhelming. It definitely peaked 3 songs into the album and only just recovered with 2 more songs of note. They do sound like they are trying to discover themselves which is fascinating to listen to, and they definitely have a strong garage rock sound on this album. My biggest complaint is there wasn’t enough variety on the album, which made some of the songs forgettable. But I still think, despite this not being one of FF best albums, that this is a solid modern rock album.
3
Mar 05 2025
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Run-D.M.C.
Run-D.M.C.
One time while I was working a minimum wage job in college I had an argument with a coworker over the beastie boys. His problem was that he thought the beastie boys were slow and terrible rappers who weren’t musically gifted. This is obviously a terrible take but I always assumed it’s just because to him, someone who grew up listening to modern rap music since he was in grade school, he saw the fundamentals of what the BB did in their music done faster in the music he liked. Like how when you hear the original blues version of a classic rock n roll song and it just sounds slower and “less fun”. That’s how I felt about this Run-D.M.C. Album. You can so clearly see the building blocks in this album that will get used to nauseam by other artists. It’s genuinely fascinating in that sense cause you can hear the history and imagine how the other artists discovered this music and then basically sampled it to death. But that’s sort of the problem. I can’t see past that or imagine myself in a world where this music hasn’t been sampled and borrowed from to death. The album came across as exhausting and boring. I’m sure this album was revolutionary for its time, being one of the first actual rap albums but sadly this grape did not age into a fine wine but into a box of raisins that are warm from being left in the car. If you love rap and rap history, this album is for you. If you love modern rap music and what that sounds like today, skip this album. TLDR: the album is dated AF.
2
Mar 06 2025
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E.V.O.L.
Sonic Youth
Big fan of sonic youth. Great band but I’m not super familiar with their discography outside of goo. But clearly I’ve been missing out cause this album is great. Shockingly haunting for a punk album but that’s really more of an accomplishment than a deterrent. Seriously if you are not familiar with SY I’d highly recommend them, but I would not recommend starting with this album. This felt like a more challenging album than others. It had a lot to offer to the listen as far as variety and creativity. But it’s still not the most accessible album to new fans. Really the only criticism is that I felt the middle of the album sort of meandered. Honestly though, this album is worth your time, super different.
3
Mar 08 2025
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Either Or
Elliott Smith
So I had a lot of conflicting feelings about this album. For example, I appreciate that for a folk album, there was a lot of different instruments and the music was very melodic. But the main singer uses a filter on his voice for most of the album and I hated that. In fact,I specifically hated the way the instruments sounded with this fake sounding voice tone. And as always I struggle with songs that are slow, and a good majority of these songs are slower. The biggest positive of this album is the guitar playing. It’s so smooth and flowing but also pointed when it needs to be.
2
Mar 09 2025
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Only Built 4 Cuban Linx
Raekwon
I think this album deserves more time to get a review. It has only been one full day since I listened to this album but it feels like a lot of this albums charm and appeal comes from really getting to know it. Like all my favorite rap are my favorite because I know them so well. Knowing the bars and keeping up mentally is like the whole appeal of rap music. So when it’s brand new, it’s never gunna hit as hard as it does when you have been listening to it for years. I guess what I’m saying is I like the beats, I like the lyrics that I understood, but I just need more time with this album for it to sink in. I can’t find any fault with it other than it didn’t completely blow me away.
3
Mar 10 2025
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The Dreaming
Kate Bush
Ok wow, I need to start listening to Kate Bush cause this album is crazy. Like sonically it sounds like someone made this album high on adhd meds cause it’s wild. It’s kinda silly at parts, and at other parts it’s very brooding and emotional. And what Kate does with her voice on this album is super unique I’ve never heard an album that sounds like this and I ADORE it!
5
Mar 11 2025
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Moving Pictures
Rush
Classic progressive rock album. No skip album. A lot of people may claim bias, but honestly I never grew up with rush. But if you like progressive rock, this album has it all. It’s got my two of my most important aspects of an album, it’s relatively short, and most importantly, it’s got variety. If someone had never heard of rush or progressive music, this would be the album I would give them.
5
Mar 12 2025
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Live!
Fela Kuti
I was replay blown away by the first two tracks. I’ve never heard afrobeat music before so I was blown away by the horns and the drums. My biggest problem with this album is that it’s a lot of filler. Everything after the first two songs were alittle over repetitive and forgettable. But I loved the energy of the album.
3
Mar 13 2025
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Car Wheels On A Gravel Road
Lucinda Williams
First off, great album cover, I really love how wholesome and nostalgic this cover is even though I’ve never been there. But with that out of the way the album didn’t blow me away, but I was super interested in the artist herself. It inspired me to look deeper into her as an artist as a whole and she seems like a super cool cat. My favorite songs on the album are drunken angel, 2 kool 2 be 4-gotten, and can’t let go. Honestly this album would probably be higher on my list if I could tolerate country for long periods of time. But this album was nearly a full hour long and that’s just a lot of country for me.
3
Mar 14 2025
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Live Through This
Hole
I had very mixed opinions going in the same way I have mixed opinions about Courtney Love. And that’s sorta the sad thing is that she is such an infamous person that her personality/controversies dominate all the music. That aside, I really liked this album. I was expecting cringy vanity project or clear copy cat of the more prominent grunge bands. And I was pleasantly surprised to learn that I was wrong. Right off the bat it has my two favorite things, it has a respectable amount of variety in sound, they might not be trying to write a ween album but for a Seminole 90s grunge album is does have a lot of variety. The second thing this album has is it’s short but not too short. This album kinda flew by but on the second listen it seemed like the perfect amount of time before I wanted to listen to something else. Once again I have mixed feelings about Courtney, but I actually kinda love this album.
4
Mar 15 2025
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The ArchAndroid
Janelle Monáe
I’m amazed I’ve never heard of Janelle Monáe. This woman is wildly talented. There’s so much going on in this album. Genuinely there are so many things to address in this album. The biggest and most important thing to me when it comes to an album is variety. It doesn’t have to be nonstop changes in genre like a ween album, it can be as simple as a punk band throwing in a ballad or trying their hand at a ska song. Just something to change the tone from time to time. And this album EXCELS at that. Sometimes not even for the better, but it doesn’t matter how little interest I have in 57821 because I appreciate the risk involved in making “weird” songs. There’s so many on here that are noteworthy, for instance it starts with an interlude that leads into a fast bombastic dance song with squeaky clean production that could clean your dishes, then there’s like a “Latin rock song” (for lack of a better word) called “come alive” that’s wildly different than everything else on the album, and it even ends on a sharp turn when “BaBopByeYa” comes on and becomes a spy thriller opening number. All the weird stuff is what I fell instantly in love with, however the actual “hit” songs on this album are what’s going to interest most people cause they are legitimately catchy pop songs that have been all over the charts. And while those songs didn’t really blow me away I could appreciate that these are the songs that actually sell the album. But seriously this is a super underrated album. Its clearly part of the vision behind the album from artwork from the gatefold to the actual cover, but it honestly sounds like an amazing and epic soundtrack to a movie that doesn’t exist. It’s got alittle something for everyone.
5
Mar 16 2025
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Parachutes
Coldplay
If you’re struggling to sleep. Here’s your solution. Exhaustingly droning vocals surrounded by edgeless and uninspiring instrumentals. Honestly I feel like I went into this album with a good attitude. I was excited to hear their debut album, but my god thiw album is so shallow and boring. Seriously a great sleep aid if you need one though.
1
Mar 17 2025
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Step In The Arena
Gang Starr
This album is super old school. I love early 90s rap cause there’s this intense nostalgia for it. Even in the case such as this where I’ve never heard this album before but it still somehow reminds me of THPS soundtracks and Sonic adventure soundtracks. That being said this album is not faultless. When I say it’s old school I mean OLD school. When you compare this to modern rap music, the biggest difference is just the tempo and speed. This album almost feels like crawling it’s so slow. While I enjoy the slower pace I could see how younger people could see this as just “boring”. Honestly that’s really the biggest takeaway, if you like old school simpler rap music then this album is for you. If you prefer modern huge production rap, sadly I don’t think this album is for you.
4
Mar 18 2025
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The Slim Shady LP
Eminem
So as most know, this album comes out with a bang! Like that’s first song isn’t just the best song on the album, it’s also one of Eminem’s best. Great super catchy rap song and along with most of the album the humor still holds up. It thankfully hasn’t become like cringey and uncomfortable. The production on this album is also really extraordinary. It’s so crystal clear and sharp. My only complaint about this album is I feel it slowly burns out as opposed to an explosion. I feel another aspect holding this album back is the tone. There’s some pretty dramatic changes in serious and comical moments. That’s not necessarily a negative though, it just shows that this album is a rollercoaster. It doesn’t have a lot of variety but that’s to be expected on most rap albums of this time. Seriously though this album is an all time great.
4
Mar 19 2025
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Sheet Music
10cc
I was very impressed with this album. It has two of my favorite things: it has a lot of variety and it has a reasonable runtime. I wasn’t blown away by every track and there was like a few tracks that weren’t as strong as others. But this made me look deeper into this band and they are definitely interesting. That being said by the next day I had forgotten most of the songs on this album. Still enjoyed it but wasn’t life changing.
3
Mar 20 2025
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Mask
Bauhaus
I didn’t immediately love this album. I had to listen to it in full like 2-3 times. I saved a few songs off the album but what I really appreciate is how far ahead of its time this album is. A goth album in ‘81? That’s kinda crazy to think about. My biggest problem with this album is the ambition of it surprisingly. This album is the definition of style over substance. They have a very specific vision of what they want to sound like and they put all their eggs in that basket. They didn’t try and right like a catchy song or a “hit” punk song. Like had they just added alittle variety I think that would make me happier but I’m positive that would have compromised their vision so what do I know. At the end of the day I’d only recommend this album to people who were already fans of goth punk and wanted to see where it all came from.
3
Mar 21 2025
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Stankonia
OutKast
This album is unbelievable. It’s a nearly no skip album and it has a ton of tracks. It also has a ton of interludes and they are not all super memorable, but I really loved this album. It’s crazy funky and that’s pretty consistent throughout the album. The album also has a couple underrated gems like “snappin & trappin”, “gansta sh*t”, and “red velvet”. This is a must listen album for sure.
5
Mar 22 2025
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Power In Numbers
Jurassic 5
I felt like I had heard of Jurassic 5 before but wasn’t sure where, but then when I went to put on the album I noticed I already had a song saved from this album (A day at the races) and I knew I’d be in for a treat. I really loved this album. The sampling and the beats are amazing. As with all my rap album reviews I really feel like you need more time to fully digest them, like with a catchy pop song, your brain is fully digesting it on the first listen cause it’s simple and catchy. However rap music takes more time to fully process. I don’t really have any major complaints, just needed more time for these songs to become iconic.
4
Mar 23 2025
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Back To Black
Amy Winehouse
Wow I had the wrong impression of Amy Winehouse. I never really heard any of her music, I only knew girls who were obsessed with her and let’s just say those women are not the most endearing representation of Winehouse. Based off my wrong impressions I kinda thought she was a low effort, low talent, singer who manifested a specific image cause I thought it was just an image. But I was clearly wrong, she is wildly talented. Her voice is incredible and she clearly likes to show some range cause there’s a shocking amount of variety in this album. It’s almost a perfect album, I do feel there’s a few skips on this album so it can’t be 5 but this album is as close as you can get to perfect album.
4
Mar 24 2025
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Slipknot
Slipknot
I’ve never been a huge Slipknot fan but I’ve always been a massive metal fan since I was a kid. So I’m very nostalgic for a bunch of their singles like “duality”, “before I forget”, “psychosocial”, etc. But here’s my biggest critique of them as a band: they are not great at making an engaging full length album. They tend to jam their albums full of filler and songs that sound like more walls of sound. However, their self titled album is the exception to this rule. It’s the most complete package. It feels like it had real direction and creativity as opposed to the later albums where it feels like they are trying to regurgitate themselves. It reminds me of KISS in the sense that a lot of their music is trying so hard to keep their established fan base happy that they box themselves into specific ideas for what the band is supposed to sound like and how far their sound can grow in any direction. This album is a nice view of what this band was like before the “box” was in play. It’s not a perfect album however. For example there’s plenty of skips and filler on even their best album, but it’s still a solid staple and foundational pillar in the metal community and for good reason.
4
Mar 25 2025
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Paul's Boutique
Beastie Boys
Genuinely a masterpiece. From start to finish it is fully original and authentic. The beats are amazing and the sampling is super creative. Basically a perfect rap album. I don’t know that it’s my favorite beastie boys album, but it’s definitely in the running.
5
Mar 26 2025
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Swordfishtrombones
Tom Waits
I like Tom Waits even though I’m not familiar with his whole catalog, just a few songs here and there. However, I can tell that even for him, this album is a real hard left turn. It’s sonically super weird and different. I can’t pretend like it’s catchy or get stuck in your head, but it’s genuinely fascinating and intriguing. Because of the bold music choices, this album has a ton of great variety. Despite only saving a few songs from the album, I’d say the album as a whole was a great listening experience. I’d definitely recommend this album to people who want something super weird and different.
4
Mar 27 2025
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(Pronounced 'Leh-'Nérd 'Skin-'Nérd)
Lynyrd Skynyrd
Now this is a hard album to review. It’s very polarizing to me. It’s an album chock full of huge hit songs that are timeless classics. However I’m super biased and I hate Lynard Skynard. I band members are douchebags, their unapologetic love for the south is a huge turnoff, and most of all they have the most overrated lead singer of all time. But despite all of that, this album is a genuine classic and the songs on this album are classic and super nostalgic for millions of people. I’m even guilty of being super nostalgic for tuesdays gone because of Happy Gilmore. But regardless of your reasons, this is probably one of the greatest debut rock albums of all time.
3
Mar 28 2025
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Are You Experienced
Jimi Hendrix
I’ve been spoiled lately cause I’ve gotten a lot of album I’m already a fan of, this one included. It’s got a lot of influential psychedelic rock and the guitar tones and solos are earth shattering. The thing this album doesn’t get enough credit for is how good the band is, like the drumming and bass playing are stellar and probably way ahead of their time. Honestly this album has a few too many skips, but I still love this album.
4
Mar 29 2025
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White Blood Cells
The White Stripes
Absolute classic. Tons of hits. One of the white stripes top 3 albums easily. It still is super bloated and long however. But still a must listen, and most likely you already have.
4
Mar 30 2025
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Buena Vista Social Club
Buena Vista Social Club
The album was a pleasant surprise. I had no idea what to expect with this album. It’s fun and loud and also emotional and moving. It’s instrumentally perfect, the music is like drinking water it’s so smooth. Honestly I don’t have the vocabulary to fully describe what makes this album special outside of being an amazing Cuban band that plays Latin music. Seriously though, if you are not normally a Latin music person I still think you should listen to the album, it’s honestly a lot of fun and I think that aspect of this album is universal.
5
Mar 31 2025
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The Good, The Bad & The Queen
The Good, The Bad & The Queen
I’m not sure what to say about this album. Sometimes I feel like I don’t have the vocabulary to fully explain why something doesn’t work. It’s much easier to describe why something is good as opposed to finding fault with it. So here’s the positives, this band is a super group you might have never heard of before but it features the lead singer from The Gorillaz. Which is great cause he brings a great vocal performance. But that’s where the positives drop off. I actually spent two days listening to this cause I disliked it so much on first listen I thought I should give it one more chance in case maybe I was just in a bad mood for listening to new music. However I found the music to be grating and sonically I didn’t find the it original or interesting. I didn’t think this album was garbage. But I genuinely never plan to listen to it again.
2
Apr 01 2025
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Machine Head
Deep Purple
This is an absolute classic. If you like hard rock and early metal you will love this. It starts with one of the greatest rock songs of all time highway star. And then it also contains the most played chords of all time with smoke on the water. I’m pretty positive that what like 80% of people learn on guitar first. Great album, they got a lot to offer other than the two massive hits. Don’t sleep on this classic.
4
Apr 02 2025
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Different Class
Pulp
I really liked the music and instrumentals. But I wasn’t really blown away by anything. I also wasn’t really into the singers voice and I didn’t connect with the lyrics. This is a hard album to review cause I don’t have very strong opinions on it one way or another. It’s not great but it’s also not terrible. I find albums like this very difficult to review when I either haven’t added any songs off this album, but also didn’t hate it. I feel like 1s and 2s are for albums I either don’t like or I can find objective faults with it. This album doesn’t fall into those categories. But this album is super forgettable.
3
Apr 03 2025
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The Scream
Siouxsie And The Banshees
So I wasnt familiar with Sioxsie and The Banshees outside of one song I had saved to my phone (“Monitor” off Juju). But I always thought that song was super ahead of its time. And that applies to their debut album as it turns out as well. It’s not a no skip album, in fact a lot of the songs sonically sound very similar to each other. But the songs on this album that do stand out feel like they could’ve been written last year. They legitimately sound like modern alt-rock, which is wildly impressive. I feel like this is an incredible debut album but not a perfect album. This album is a great jumping off point though cause now I want to go listen to their other albums in full. Definitely check this band and album out totally worth your time.
3
Apr 04 2025
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Moby Grape
Moby Grape
I had never heard of Moby Grape before but I had an idea of it might be and not surprisingly it’s an early psychedelic rock band. The stuff I liked I really loved but some of the other parts were just ok. Honestly I thought it wasn’t a perfect album but I really enjoyed a lot of it. I haven’t had enough time with it so go in depth but I’m sure an album like this would really grow on me over time. We will see.
3
Apr 05 2025
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Seventeen Seconds
The Cure
So I had a very strange experience listening to this album. I know for a fact that I’ve never listened to The Cure before, mainly because I have a family member who loves them but I never took the time to listen to them. Frankly it’s because they are a teenage girl and the image of the band is clearly angsty, so that kinda put me off for a long time. But this album taught me once again that you should never judge a book by its pre-teen cover. This album is musically just butter slowly melting on a burner barely turned on. It moody and emotional but it’s so smooth and effortless sounding. This is kinda cliche but it sounds like beings ready to take a nap and a nice heavy dose of rain starts coming in, but instead of being at home in your bed, you are in an open well lit abandoned screw factory with lots of gothic light pillars coming in from the windows. Honestly this album is so easy to get lost in. The vocals might not be for everyone but that’s just personal preference. A lot of albums I feel tend to lose me in the interludes but all the interludes meshed so perfectly with the music so well and was still distinct enough to keep my attention which is really saying something. The most shocking thing about this album is the fact that it is actually a no skip album.
5
Apr 06 2025
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Pictures At An Exhibition
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
Well this is why people hate jam music. It’s just way way way too much. I liked the jamming on “The Old Castle” and some of “Blues Variation” and the real highlight for me was “The Curse Of Baba Yaga”, but it doesn’t all work but for people who don’t like jam music this like having a stroke. My biggest critique outside of it just being too jammy is that if you are just gunna jam for 38 straight minutes, you have to put in severe tonal shifts. This album is just way too much of the same crap over and over and over again. By promenade pt3 I was vomiting into my lap and asking the ride operator if I could get off please?!? The only reason bands like Ween and KGLW get away with so much jamming is that have such a vast wheelhouse of sounds. They both have really heavy songs both emotionally and in the metal sense, but then they also have country songs and other wild genres so that they can mix it up. Honestly I didn’t go into this album with any kind of prejudice towards EL&P, honestly this is the first and only album that I have heard of theirs and I wouldn’t be opposed to hearing more, but I know I won’t be listing to this album anytime soon.
2
Apr 07 2025
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Djam Leelii
Baaba Maal
This album is awesome. It sounds like it comes from an alien planet but not in like a silly cartoony way, it’s more like there’s nothing to compare it to so it may as well be alien. The magic of this album is it is made by a traditional African musician who recorded this album in Paris with electronic music weaved in. Honestly it’s so pleasant and atmospheric. I obviously can’t comment on the lyrics cause I can’t understand them obviously but the instrumentation is what makes this album really special. It’s not a no skip album and some of the vocals can be grating and uncomfortable. However I still really enjoyed this album and I’m already recommending this album to people I know who have a very open mind musically.
4
Apr 08 2025
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Time Out
The Dave Brubeck Quartet
Great jazz album. Love the cover design and the artwork. Lots of great musical talent on this album. The song that really grabbed my attention the most was “Take Five”. That song is everything that’s right with jazz. It’s smooth and sophisticated, it is pleasant and atmospheric. It hits like a nice drag of a joint after sipping from a glass of whiskey, that perfect cradle of warmth. The song is actually super popular, I knew the song instantly even though I had no idea what the name of the song was or where I heard it. The album also display the worst about jazz, which is the fact that it can kinda be just a mess of sound that’s not really memorable. But it does give off a very casual and relaxed vibe. This would be a great album to listen to when you just get home from work and you are going through your routine to unwind. But there in lies the problem, cause that one song really carries the whole album. So it’s almost like I’m reviewing the album based entirely off that song but then I have to take away points to account for all the other songs that don’t get literally stuck in your head. So while I think that the “take five” song coincidentally is a five, I think the album as whole is more of a weak 3. The other tracks do continue the pleasant casual vibe but they don’t do anything to add to it or elevate it. If you like jazz though this is probably a pillar of the genre, I wouldn’t know. Go listen.
3
Apr 09 2025
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Unknown Pleasures
Joy Division
I really loved this album. I was only familiar with one Joy Division song prior to this album (Warsaw from substances). But I was completely misunderstood about what they sounded like cause Warsaw is more of a traditional punk song and the rest of their music, especially this album, is more post-punk and is more emotional and dramatic. The other big difference is that the music is more electronic and melancholy than what punk music was at the time. This album is way ahead of its time to the point where it almost sounds modern, almost. Seriously though I loved this album, I think with time I’ll grow to like this album more and more over time.
4
Apr 10 2025
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New Wave
The Auteurs
Just have to bring attention to this first, when I started the album, that first song has a hard cutoff. Like opening riff it just fades out real fast and abrupt. Which comically made me lean over to see the notification/text I must’ve gotten on my phone only for the music to cut back in the second I saw that the music had tricked me. So there’s that, this album can trick phone monkeys into thinking they got a msg which is kinda funny. Outside of that I was super bored with this album to be frank. The vocals are the biggest turnoff cause they feel average/unremarkable but that’s in stark contrast to the guitar playing and overall production. Honestly the music is truly original and interesting, the only thing watering that down is the vocal performance. There’s probably a big following for this album but sadly it’s not for me.
2
Apr 11 2025
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Eli And The Thirteenth Confession
Laura Nyro
For an artist I had not heard of before, she really has a great voice. Obviously when a music group/artist goes by the lead singer’s name, they are trying to bring as much attention to the singer as possible. That’s clearly the smart choice hear cause her voice is incredible. It’s very loud and charismatic while also being subtle when it needs to be. The album also showcase a light range of music for her voice to shine on as well. Sadly they can’t all be “Eli’s Comin’”, which is a stone cold classic, but there are other songs on this album that will grow on you and leave an impression. That being said I don’t think the album was perfect. For example they could’ve expanded that range of music further and added more dynamic tone changes. Honestly even though I only saved a few songs off the album, I really enjoyed it and the album just flew by. Definitely listen to this one.
3
Apr 12 2025
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Automatic For The People
R.E.M.
This is definitely my second favorite R.E.M. album and that’s not a knock against it, it’s truly a great album. It’s super poignant and methodical. This is definitely a love or hate band though. Like I could easily see why people don’t like their sound. They have a very specific and original sound that’s wholly their own and that can be very decisive for people. Totally great album, just not literally their best.
4
Apr 13 2025
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Fever Ray
Fever Ray
So this is embarrassing. I’m casually familiar with Fever Ray. I have a few of her bigger hit songs saved in my phone and I’m a big fan of those songs. This is the embarrassing part, one of the few times I went to look into her other stuff I saw the album cover for her debut album and I hated it and came to the conclusion that it would be clunky and rough. Well I was clearly wrong cause this is an amazing album. The production and completely unique and original sound are the biggest stand outs but the songs themselves are just intoxicating. I adore this album, it’s a no skip album.
5
Apr 14 2025
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Ghosteen
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
I’ve never heard anything from Nick Cave but I’ve only ever heard good things. And when it came to Nick Cave’s voice I was not disappointed, his voice is spectacular and full of nuance and subtlety. That being said I have nothing positive to say about this album outside of Nick’s vocal talent, well that’s not true I can tell that the band is wildly talented as well. The problem is I just hate the direction of the album. I don’t like the cover, I don’t like the production decisions and I hate the sound of the album. It actually made me go through his other work briefly cause I was stunned at how much I hated this album. Needless to say he has a lot of other sounds that I ended up liking more and some I liked less. It is also clear that the band has a clear intention to always try to do something different which I can deeply appreciate. But ultimately that just makes me more comfortable saying how much I hate this album. If you’re interested in Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds just try sampling alittle of each album and you should find something you like. For instance I liked the “Let Love In” album the best personally. So ultimately this album might be for you, but I’d still recommend skipping it.
1
Apr 15 2025
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Straight Outta Compton
N.W.A.
Good album with great lyrics. One of the greatest rap albums of all time. Great beats and stellar samples (even though they are few). I don’t think every member of NWA carries their weight. I think some members are more talented than others. And for a rap album, there’s a good amount of variety. This is a must listen to album.
4
Apr 16 2025
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Street Life
The Crusaders
After listening to the worst Nick Cave album, this album was like drinking a cold glass of water, completely refreshing. The instrumentation is amazing and the vibe and grooves are great. I really loved the first song, it really carries the whole album. By that is sorta the problem, after that first song it’s constantly downhill. Not drastically downhill, like falling off a mountain into boring noise. It’s more like they had one absolute banger in that first song and then didn’t bother putting as much effort into the other songs. They all just feel like a let down after that first song. Honestly though, this album is insanely short and I love that. Definitely worth your time, it won’t take much of it and it’s a great lounge around the house kinda album. Just put it on, jam to the first song then kinda just bop to the rest and forget that it’s even on.
3
Apr 17 2025
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A Walk Across The Rooftops
The Blue Nile
Wow I really fell in love with the first two songs immediately. I love how weird and challenging they are. The production choices are bizarre but have a sense of profound creativity. Honestly after those two songs the album fell off hard. None of the other songs stood out the same way, and none of them felt like they were trying to achieve that same vibe or that same creative vision. I honestly think this could’ve been an easy 5 if they had just gotten wilder and crazier and more experimental as the album went on, but either way I felt the first two songs carried the whole album. Ultimately a full day later, those two songs are the only ones I remember which I think says a lot.
3
Apr 18 2025
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Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
I truly enjoyed this album. It’s sweet and relaxing. It starts with the best song on the album and probably the song you will recognize the most. But it doesn’t overstay its welcome, and it’s definitely not too long. The only real problem is several days later after listening to it, the only song I vividly remember is that first song. But that doesn’t mean the other songs are bad or boring, they just don’t have that catchy factor. I think the strongest aspect of this album is that over time I can inly see this album becoming more endearing over time and really growing on me.
4
Apr 19 2025
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Band On The Run
Paul McCartney and Wings
I really enjoyed this album. I think it’s becoming more and more clear to me that McCartney might be my personal favorite Beatle cause he has the most variety in his career. He’s got great solo albums AND he has other projects like this one that’s genuinely an all time rockband even if The Beatles didn’t exist. But that being said this album is like a rollercoaster of opinions to me. For example I think album starts off REALLY strong. The first 5 songs were all really great until the 6th song “mamunia”. I HATED this song, and the other songs felt lost in the shadow of that monstrosity. But I can say the album had one more bright spot before it ended, “Helen Wheels” is a great song and probably should’ve been the last song of the album cause I don’t care for “Country Dreamer” either. Honestly the stuff on this album that doesn’t work ends up being nearly horrible, while the stuff that does work could easily be in a “best of classic rock” playlist without controversy. Definitely worth your time.
4
Apr 20 2025
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Ramones
Ramones
This is a hard album to rate as an adult. It’s actually kind of devastating to listen to something you haven’t really listened to since before high-school and realize that it’s not really what you remember. The “hits” on this album both do and don’t age well. They are radio classics, but if you are my age or older I’m sure you are sick to death of these songs being absolutely everywhere. Amusement parks, fairs, malls, sporting events, grocery stores, literally anywhere they play music in public you are gunna hear this music. Which doesn’t help the album at all because the songs that are not like massive punk classics are just blatant filler tracks. Songs that even the members of the band don’t care about or remember. That being said, the filler songs and the whole album it self is incredibly short. So even if you don’t love this album, it won’t waste your time. And for those rare few people out there who have never heard The Ramones before, this album is actually great and will probably really win you over.
3
Apr 21 2025
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So Much For The City
The Thrills
While I was listening to the album I had moment I enjoyed and a few I didn’t enjoy, but the whole time I was really blown away by their sound as a whole. I wasn’t sure how I was going to describe it cause it does very from song to song but for the most part they are truly original sonically. However, by the time I got to the end of “One Horse Town” I think I came up with a good comparison or explanation as to what they sound like. Imagine if the bands Pavement and Jet had an Irish baby… that’s The Thrills. The guy kinda sounds like the singer of Pavement but sonically they sound like a softer more artsy version of a pop rock band from the early 2000s (like Jet). Seriously though, despite my silly analogy, I highly recommend this album if you are looking for something truly original. They even squeeze in a rockabilly song, yes an Irish easy rockabilly track, that’s guaranteed to be something you haven’t heard before.
3
Apr 22 2025
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Frank
Amy Winehouse
So the last time a Winehouse album appeared on my list I admitted that I had the wrong impression of her and I was shocked at the amount of variety on the album (Back to Black). It wasn’t a perfect “5” but it was genuinely very good and I was super won over. So maybe I went into this album with too high hopes which were kinda shattered when the very first song’s message rubbed me the wrong way. There were songs on this album I liked, but I really disliked a lot of this album. I appreciate what this album is trying to do, but I don’t think this album accomplishes that. Coincidentally I think what this album is attempting is perfected on “Back to Black”. I think, based on how this album sounds, that a lot of love for this album comes from the blending of rnb and jazz, which is like peanut butter and jelly, however this is also about as original as peanut butter and jelly. So despite not having an original sound, you hear that Amy is trying to carry the album on her vocal skills. Whether or not she does carry the album is up for debate, but ultimately I think the album starts on the wrong foot and doesn’t recover.
2
Apr 23 2025
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Darkness on the Edge of Town
Bruce Springsteen
Right off the bat, I can say this project is way better than the last Bruce Springsteen album that this list gave me (The Rising). Plus, musically I enjoyed it but once again I come to the same problem with Bruce. This is an entirely personal and subjective opinion, but I don’t care for his voice at all and I find the man to be incredibly preachy. The good news for this album is that it’s not quite as preachy as his other work. And as always I appreciate that his point of view on a lot of these songs are not what they appear to be. Much like how dumb republicans think “Born in the USA” glorifies America, I could easily see those same people listening to “Factory” and thinking to themselves “yah factory jobs! That’s what we need, bring those back!” So I can appreciate the album for that, but honestly it’s just not for me. Politically, Bruce seems like an intelligent and compassionate person, but I just don’t really like his music. To be fair I tried.
2
Apr 24 2025
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I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight
Richard Thompson
The album starts with three great songs that really give you a clear sense of what kind of music is on the rest of the album cause like most country albums this album has almost no variety in sounds. Which is always a big problem for me personally, as well as the songs just being slow which I always struggle with. But the craftsmanship that went into this album is very evident and I honestly had a lot of love for the title track. Oh and I almost forgot, I think this was very eye opening for me, I didn’t like the production on the album. It’s way way way too clean for this music. That’s just a personal opinion obviously but I realized it when I got to the end of the album. There are three live recordings. One for a song that must have been a hit or a cover cause it’s not on the album, and two songs from the album. And those two songs are infinitely better live. While it’s a super clean and sharp live recording, you really hear how this music (country in general honestly) only works live. I don’t think I ever would’ve liked or come around to country if it weren’t for hearing country music live. It still pales in comparison to almost all other music, but I think live country has a little charm that you can only get live and it obviously exposes those who are not really gifted musically. But with my country music rant aside, the middle of this album, all the songs between the first three and the last three is not for me. It felt meandering and boring, edgeless. Honestly had this just been a short EP with the live tracks as the b-sides this could’ve been a near 5, not a perfect five but a strong 4.
2
Apr 25 2025
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Giant Steps
The Boo Radleys
Right off the bat I was excited for this album for two main reasons: First, I had no idea who this band was, never heard of them. And second, I adore the album cover. It feels psychedelic but not like in a fun, colorful way. It is colorful, but it’s like dower muddled colors and it feels depressing. Which I was all very interested in. And aside from the cover my biggest praise of the album is that the production decisions and the overall sound of the album is wholly unique and intriguing. The problem, however, is that out of the 17 songs making up over an hour of music, I only liked 4 songs enough to save them (Lazarus, take the Time Around, Wish I Was Skinny, and my favorite track, Rodney King - Song for Lenny Bruce). Overall I find it hard to dislike this album despite so much of it is forgettable and skippable. It’s just so creative and most importantly DIFFERENT. Nothing sounds like this album and I can really appreciate that a lot. That being said I’m not going to remember this album until I stumble upon it in a record store, and that is IF I stumble upon it in a record store.
3
Apr 26 2025
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American IV: The Man Comes Around
Johnny Cash
This is probably Johnny Cash’s most popular and well rounded album. It’s filled with covers that are tastefully done and respectful of the original work but also has its own personality. I think the only real problem with the album (and this definitely won’t be a problem for everybody) is that the vocal delivery is the same thing for every song. I know that’s a big part of Cash’s unique vocal delivery is his signature. But I think in the terms of an hour long album, I’d appreciate some variety with like a guest singer for a song or even a duet woulda been a nice curve to throw in. But honestly this is his most approachable album and it’s a great jumping off point for his original music. Definitely a must listen.
4
Apr 27 2025
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Beautiful Freak
Eels
The best way I could describe this album is it is the most gentle grunge album I’ve ever heard. It’s so easy on the ears and it’s quiet and soft. It’s actually kinda fascinating cause grunge is usually associated with deep emotional wailing and screaming a lot of the time. But this album is an exercise in the opposite, it’s gentle and fragile. It kinda makes me think of Pavement which is obviously a huge complement. The only thing I struggled with is I didn’t immediately love the lead singer. It took like a full day and a half for his voice to start to win me over. To be frank, on my first listen, I don’t think I got the album. I didn’t really enjoy it that first play through. But by the next day I started to really mesh with it. It might not be for everyone but it’s definitely the soundtrack for gentle moshing. Joking aside, look into this album if you are a Pavement fan, kinda similar.
4
Apr 28 2025
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Paul Simon
Paul Simon
This is an amazing album. I knew the big hit off this album very well. So I wasn’t expecting a lot other than that one hit carrying the rest of the album (like a lot of albums on this list) but I was pleasantly surprised. The album is incredibly short which is always a positive for me. There’s a good amount of variety. Honestly I really love this album and I had no idea this album was so solid. I don’t say this lightly, but this is also a no skip album, which is extremely rare but even the demos and unreleased music that was included in the version of this album I listened to were no skips. In fact the unreleased version of Paranoia Blues is my favorite version of that song. Seriously go find a hammock on a nice day with some shade and put this album on. Maybe sip a whiskey sour with it, just a suggestion.
5
Apr 29 2025
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Strangeways, Here We Come
The Smiths
I really liked this album. I wasn’t sure what to expect other than that Morissey being the lead singer of the band. I never really loved anything I heard from him but I almost always like the production. And that’s no different here, his unique vocal delivery totally works for me, and on top of that they really make the most of his voice by making it sound like the music revolves around him and not the other way around. Sonically I loved how “80s” sounding it is which the synths and the production style. If you like that “80s” sound then this album is right up your alley. And if you are from The US then chances are this band is completely new to you (The Smiths are way bigger in the UK but I can clearly see why, they are great).
4
Apr 30 2025
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Sound of Silver
LCD Soundsystem
Im incredibly biased on this review. I’m a huge LCD Soundsystem fan. This is probably my second favorite of their albums. But to be fair I’ll start with all the criticisms I could see. The first and biggest is that the music tends to be fairly long and repetitive but that’s just sort of the nature of dance music in general, and make no mistake, this is a band that (as far as I know) invented the dance-punk genre. So yes the album as a whole is pretty repetitive, and maybe somebody out there doesn’t like cool synth shit. Idk, I honestly can’t find anything else to complain about this album is fucking awesome. If you like punk music and you are interested in something that’s totally different and entirely honest and true to itself, listen to any LCD Soundsytem album (preferably this one, this is happening, or debut self titled, you can’t go wrong).
5
May 01 2025
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Supa Dupa Fly
Missy Elliott
I wasn’t blown away by this album but I didn’t hate it. The few songs that I saved off the album were not especially memorable. But the big highlight is the music and production on this album are buttery smooth. If you like r/b, this is a must.
3
May 02 2025
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The Marshall Mathers LP
Eminem
Probably Eminem’s magnum opus. If I was only give one album from all of his collection that I could take with me to deserted island it would probably be “The Eminem Show”. Joking aside, this is album is great. My only real complaint about the album is that in the later half it gets alittle dated because it starts showing signs of homophobia. Despite that being rampant in the rap scene up to this point, it still doesn’t really age well. It does however kind of become funny when you realize how often he’s telling the listener through the album to suck his dick when a good majority of his fans are men. Make of that what you will, but seriously this is probably Eminem’s best or second best album um. Totally worth your time.
4
May 03 2025
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Fear Of Music
Talking Heads
I’m incredibly biased on this album cause I am a huge Talking Heads fan and a huge David Byrne fan. This is probably in the top 5 Talking Heads album. It’s not as iconic as Remain in Light, ‘77, or Speaking in Tongues. However it is probably the most under appreciated album in their catalogue. You could make the argument that the most underrated is More Songs About Buildings and Food which I could see cause it definitely doesn’t get the love it deserves, but Fear of Music I like better personally. Seriously if you have never heard the Talking Heads you should check out this album as well as the other 4 I mentioned and then go watch True Stories, that movies really crazy and really funny.
5
May 04 2025
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L.A. Woman
The Doors
This is another case of “how much can a few songs carry a whole album”. This may be a controversial opinion but I think the vast majority of this album is filler. There’s like 3-4 songs on this album that are good. Two of those 3-4 songs are spectacular, but ultimately I feel like this album is a slog to get through. It pays you for getting to the end with the best song, but you do have to earn it. Sadly this album was kind of a let down.
3
May 05 2025
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Celebrity Skin
Hole
I was excited about this album cause I was surprised by “live through this” which I didn’t expect to be so good. And I knew the song Malibu which is definitely my favorite song by hole. But the problem is not a lot in this album stood out other than Malibu and a few other tracks like dying, and awful. But the rest of the album I found to be forgettable and on the second listen I found a lot of the songs to be skippable. Idk it feels weird to give this album sort of a underwhelming review when one of the tracks on the album I think is their best. But yah if I’m being honest about the album as a whole (no pun intended) I’d say this album is pretty forgettable. Just listen to those 3 songs I listed and then put on Live Through This.
3
May 06 2025
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Pornography
The Cure
I really wasn’t expecting to like The Cure so much. I had never listened to them before starting this list and I have to say they are one of the bands that I’m the most won over by. There’s so much good music on this list that a lot of the bands that only have one album on the list kinda get lost in the shuffle when you are listening to a full length album everyday. But both of The Cure’s albums that have popped up for me have been stunning. Like production and music is haunting and emotional. The whole sound of the band is so original and uniquely them, even though I could see someone criticizing it for sounding very contemporary for the time (it does have that inherent “80s” sound) but it works so well juxtaposed against how bright and colorful people seem to remember the 80s being. Honestly I really struggled with what to rate this cause I almost never seem to be in the mood for sour and sad music. But if that’s what you’re in the mood for this album hits like heroine.
5
May 07 2025
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Pacific Ocean Blue
Dennis Wilson
I’m a pretty big fan of The Beach Boys so I was fairly excited when I learned about this album. But the problem is that this album doesn’t really have a gem to me. I can hear the craftsmanship and talent that went into this album, however nothing really stood out as super memorable. It wasn’t bad though that’s what’s hard to get across. This album is not offensive to the ears, or patronizing, or disingenuous, it’s just completely forgettable. Not bad, nor great, not memorable. Definitely a huge disappointment though.
2
May 08 2025
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If You're Feeling Sinister
Belle & Sebastian
I was alittle underwhelmed by this album. I had a few songs by this artist saved already, and after I listened to the album I went and listened to those songs again and I felt like those individual songs were better than this album as a whole. I didn’t hate it, it wasn’t bad, it just kind of never really grabbed me UNTIL “Judy and the Dream of Horses”. That’s the stand out of this album. It totally made the whole album worth my time. In fact I ADORE that song! The only thing that bothers me is that the only other song that I remember is “Me and the Major” which I also liked but the album as a whole is a little forgettable. Seriously though if your curious just listen to those two songs, they are so good I’d actually buy this album just for those songs.
3
May 09 2025
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Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not
Arctic Monkeys
It took me a LONG time to review this album. I’m usually good about listening to an album in a day and maybe listening to it again in the morning before making the review. But this album really had me stumped. I sincerely couldn’t decide how I felt about the album. So I guess I’ll just list my pros and cons. Pro, they have a really great refined clean garage rock sound that I don’t think I’ve ever heard from them outside this album which I appreciate. Con, I don’t really love the singers voice, it’s not like grating but it’s very sonically the same from one song to the next. Which kinda ties into another con which is there’s not a lot of variety on this album. It’s pretty much just that garage rock sound all the way through which for some is not a negative but I like alittle mix of different flavors. Pro, this album has a raw element to it (probably from being a debut album) which I find very endearing. Honestly the biggest con is that a week later from listening to the album, I had to relisten to the album for probably the 13th time cause I couldn’t remember the individual songs, just how I felt about them as a whole. I know this sounds like a mostly negative review but it’s not. This album gave me a new appreciation for Arctic Monkeys, I always saw them as that super catchy chick band that my sister and gf love. But this album doesn’t fall into that assumption of them. This album shows a real energy that I haven’t seen or heard from them on other more memorably catchy albums. Seriously though if you like them and haven’t heard this album you are missing out. This is probably their “Pinkerton” album, which I know only makes sense if you are a die hard Weezer fan but that’s the best way to describe it. Also go listen to Pinkerton which is a much better album, but I digress. This is a stellar modern rock album that definitely doesn’t get enough love.
3
May 10 2025
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Illmatic
Nas
Wow, definitely should’ve listened to this already. I’ve seen this album get lots of praise but never got around to listening to it. But this is an all time rap album. Literally one of the greatest ever. It’s a no skip album easily. Also very short which is always a winning strategy for me.
4
May 11 2025
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Bringing It All Back Home
Bob Dylan
While I do feel like Dylan is growing on me I do still find his voice to be grating during the full length of an album. Like I’m always on board at first and then I slowly start to get bored of his delivery. That being said just like his other albums I’ve reviewed so far, this album’s strength really is the instrumentation. It’s just so clean and beautiful music. I always wondered how much popular Dylan might be if he had gone the “Burt Bacharach way” and had more guest singers on his albums. For me personally I think that would’ve helped me with giving alittle more variety in sound. But regardless of that “Maggie’s Farm” is probably my favorite Dylan song I’ve heard so far.
3
May 12 2025
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New Gold Dream (81/82/83/84)
Simple Minds
So I’m always biased towards 80s bands cause I really enjoy the cartoony synths they use a lot in 80s music. And this album has a very interesting sound, very of its time which I think dates it and maybe will turn some people off, but I enjoyed it. Definitely not for everyone but if you like “Dead or Alive” type sounds, then this album will be a goldmine.
3
May 13 2025
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Aqualung
Jethro Tull
This is a tough album to review because I do really love progressive rock and psychedelic rock but this album is both all the good things and all the bad aspects of those two genres. First off this album has a lot to like, for instance it starts with the best track on the whole album and that’s not even debatable, it’s just objectively the best song. Plus, I liked “Cross Eyed Mary” and I liked “Up to Me”. And all three of those songs are classics, but the rest of the album is so annoying and forgettable. A couple things I have massive problems with, that flute over stays its welcome real fast. I thought it was kinda interesting at first, different sound for sure, but it got old really fast cause it’s in almost every single song. It would’ve been more effective to just pepper it into a few songs lightly but this is way way too much flute. Which kinda leads into my next major problem with this album, why did they feel the need to put the same song on the album twice, WITH NO WAY TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THEM. Like is one supposed to be a live recording? How am I supposed to remember which is the boring version and which is the silly dog barking version? Is it supposed to be a different interpretation of the song? Does this add literally anything new or interesting to the album? And sadly I only have an answer for the last question, no. That being said It is hard to review this album cause it is another case of the whole album being held up but only a few tracks. Sadly in the case for this album, I think if I’m reviewing the album as a whole, the grading tracks on this album really really pull this down a whole number from where it probably should be. So sadly, it’s gunna be a 2 for me dawg.
2
May 14 2025
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Remain In Light
Talking Heads
If you have seen my reviews, you know that I love Talking Heads, and that I’m very biased towards them. This album is no exception. This is probably my favorite or second favorite album by them. There’s a lot of variety as always. And the only skip on the whole album is the very last song that’s mostly just ambient anyways. Seriously if you haven’t heard of Talking Heads, this is a great entry point.
5
May 15 2025
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Horses
Patti Smith
Ok so I went into this album with admittedly the wrong attitude. I knew this was a big “artsy fartsy” punk album so I felt an immediate disconnect with the album but I listened to it and a couple of the songs I really liked, and I LOVED the live cover of My Generation live at The Agora. And that cover made me want to listen to the album a second and third time before I left a review and I gotta say it’s already starting to grow on me. I like the tone and the instrumentals. There’s a few slower songs that I couldn’t connect to, but the songs that work are some of the all time greatest punk songs. If you are an open minded punk music fan, this should be required material.
4
May 16 2025
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John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band
John Lennon
This was not for me. It was way too slow as a whole but honestly it felt like wildly short in a bad way. It also only had one song that interested me and it felt wildly repetitive so even the song I liked I had problems with. Honestly I’m a fan of The Beatles and I like a lot of their individual solo projects, but this is a definite skip from me. The only thing stoping this album from being a 1 is that I enjoyed the guitar playing throughout the whole album even on songs I didn’t like, it really shows how wildly talented Lennon is instrumentally, but this album is a huge miss for me.
2
May 17 2025
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Brothers In Arms
Dire Straits
Funny misconception I had, the song “Walk of Life” I would’ve bet money l that it was written by a early 2000s band akin to like “send me on my way” by Rusted Roots. I know that doesn’t matter as far as the review goes but it felt weird learning the song I thought was 20 yrs old is actually 50yrs old. But that aside, this album has aged very well. It’s nearly a no skip album. Lots of variety and talent on this album. This is just a personal thing but I don’t love the lead singers voice but the instrumentation totally makes up for that and then some. It’s a definite must if you like classic rock. (In hindsight, the fact that I thought one of the songs was only 20 yrs old shows how well specific songs have aged).
4
May 18 2025
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Smokers Delight
Nightmares On Wax
This is another case of an album being super long and really testing my patience. For example, there is a song (“What I’m Feeling”) that just sounds like a 2 and half minute long ringtone. I’m not being mean or exaggerating, it has like a constant ringing noise that makes it sound EXACTLY like a ringtone. It’s one of the most painful songs I’ve ever heard. Genuinely, I hated that song. But then the first two tracks are absolutely stellar and I also really liked “Bless My Soul” and “Rise”. (Small side note, I so appreciate the fact that “Rise (reprise)” is labeled with “reprise” cause after listening to Aqualung just a few days ago I got so annoyed they have two tracks with the same name but no way to distinguish them, but I digress). Honestly there’s so much to like about this album like it’s incredible artwork and it’s super chill vibe. The only problem is that there wasn’t enough for me to grab onto to really have a strong emotional attachment to this album, and that is not a knock against it being an instrumental album, I think there just wasn’t enough to keep me invested when there’s actual trash to sift through on this album. Still I can’t say I hated it or that I didn’t enjoy the experience of hearing the album for the first time. Sadly that will definitely be the last time I listen to it in its entirety, but I did save a song or two from the album that I liked, but definitely can’t recommend this.
2
May 19 2025
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Tubular Bells
Mike Oldfield
I was very surprised by this album. First off, part one of tubular bells is like a fever trip. It’s wildly challenging at first, just in how repetitive it is at the beginning. But as the song goes past the exorcist theme you realize that it’s just bouncing off the walls if different ideas and constant changes. I guess I didn’t realize going into it that it was going to develop into a progressive rock album and that was a pleasant surprise. Where the album really wins me over though is in part 2. It starts softer and feels significantly less like a nightmare (I don’t mean that in a negative way). It still super progressive and leads into some guitar solos that are fun. It even gets alittle silly near the end (which I’m always a huge fan of when bands don’t take themselves too seriously). The only reason this album isn’t a 5 is because the last two really short tracks just feel like nothing, and I don’t mean they are not long enough. I just mean they have so much less to offer and are pretty forgettable, frankly. But those first two OVER TWENTY MINUTE LONG songs are great and super fun and interesting. If you have a lot of free time to listen to incredibly long progressive rock music, this is like an early gem of the genre.
4
May 20 2025
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Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Elton John
This is MOMCORE at its best. Joking aside, this album is flawless from start to finish. There’s no skips and every other song is a massive hit song. And the ones that are not massive hits are not skips, they are actually really good and add a lot of variety to the album like “Jamaican Jerk-Off”, “Grey Seal”, “Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding”, etc. Honestly this album is amazing and has aged really well. Please give it an honest chance and try not to associate this song with your mom.
5
May 21 2025
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Cheap Thrills
Big Brother & The Holding Company
This is a great well rounded psychedelic rock album. Sometimes they can be alittle heavy handed and dramatic and this album has those moments but I think they are well balanced with a variety of other sounds. Honestly I was really impressed by this album. My only real problem is I find Janie can be a lot, like her vocal delivery is very distracting from time to time. I’d say this is probably my favorite of her albums. Her self titled would be just under this album just cause this album has more to offer.
4
May 22 2025
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Miriam Makeba
Miriam Makeba
Wow this album really grew on me in just a day and a half. I went from not really vibing with it to thinking it’s the cutest and most adorable album I’ve heard in a while because it’s so honest and sincere. The slower songs lost me alittle cause I always struggle with slower songs. But there were so many songs that I saved off this album cause it’s just so charming in every way. The highlight for me being “The Naughty Little Flea”. The whole album has Disney soundtrack levels of production and cleanliness to it, it just sounds so welcoming. Honestly this album is just so endearing, I’m already looking for a copy on discogs.
4
May 23 2025
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If You Can Believe Your Eyes & Ears
The Mamas & The Papas
So I discovered The Mamas & The Papas, like many people my age did, through the Jackass tv show. That was the first time I heard California Dreamin, which is definitely their best song. So when I listened to this album I was excited cause I knew that song was on this album. And I had two takeaways, the first being the album isn’t really as heavy I thought it would be. The second thing I realized is that this album not really being a heavy psychedelic rock is totally fine cause they are so talented and gifted singers that they can compensate for how formulaic the music is. The album as a whole had some skips but they were perfectly spaced throughout the album to not lose my interest. After every song I didn’t care for there was usually another song I did like either immediately after or after one other song. So the pacing of the album is on point for someone like me who was expecting more of something else. The only other negative thing I have to say is that the “Mamas” are more gifted singers than the “Papas” but that only hurts like 2-3 songs where the boys take the lead. Honestly if you don’t like harmonic singing or late 60s music you are gunna struggle with this album, but you won’t struggle with “California Dreaming” cause that song is untouchably good.
4
May 25 2025
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Feast of Wire
Calexico
Ok sim I’ll get the negative stuff out of the way first. To start I think this might be one of the worst album covers I’ve ever seen. I just hate the cover it’s ugly and boring and doesn’t give you anything to be excited about or curious about. The other main problem I have is ai don’t love the singer. I appreciate his subtly delivery but his actual voice is underwhelming and not soft and powerful. Those things being said, this album is very inter and unique musically. There’s a lot of genre blending, like I loved and appreciated the instrumentals so much that I gave this album several “relistens”. There’s a lot of blues rock and a lot of Latin rock. I leaned towards liking the Latin sounding songs the most. I didn’t care for the first several songs, I was really turned off by the beginning of the album but then they really started to show their talent and more importantly there was more instrumentals which I personally liked way more than the songs with lyrics. As whole I can’t rate the album very highly but I can say that the three songs I saved from the album (close behind, attack el robot! Attack!, and güero canelo) I really loved. Like those three songs on a single would be a must have for me. But sadly the other songs really weighted down my opinion of the album as a whole.
2