276
Albums Rated
3.09
Average Rating
25%
Complete
813 albums remaining
Rating Distribution
Rating Timeline
Taste Profile
1990
Favorite Decade
Metal
Favorite Genre
UK
Top Origin
Wordsmith
Rater Style ?
27
5-Star Albums
19
1-Star Albums
Breakdown
By Genre
Top Styles
By Decade
By Origin
Albums
You Love More Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
|
I Against I
Bad Brains
|
5 | 2.93 | +2.07 |
|
Larks' Tongues In Aspic
King Crimson
|
5 | 2.99 | +2.01 |
|
Queen Of Denmark
John Grant
|
5 | 3.13 | +1.87 |
|
Le Tigre
Le Tigre
|
5 | 3.14 | +1.86 |
|
Melody A.M.
Röyksopp
|
5 | 3.21 | +1.79 |
|
Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)
Eurythmics
|
5 | 3.24 | +1.76 |
|
Daydream Nation
Sonic Youth
|
5 | 3.29 | +1.71 |
|
You've Come a Long Way Baby
Fatboy Slim
|
5 | 3.34 | +1.66 |
|
Hybrid Theory
Linkin Park
|
5 | 3.39 | +1.61 |
|
Blunderbuss
Jack White
|
5 | 3.4 | +1.6 |
You Love Less Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
|
In Rainbows
Radiohead
|
1 | 3.84 | -2.84 |
|
Live At The Regal
B.B. King
|
1 | 3.67 | -2.67 |
|
The Atomic Mr Basie
Count Basie & His Orchestra
|
1 | 3.5 | -2.5 |
|
Fleet Foxes
Fleet Foxes
|
1 | 3.43 | -2.43 |
|
Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
|
1 | 3.38 | -2.38 |
|
Songs Of Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen
|
1 | 3.38 | -2.38 |
|
Seventeen Seconds
The Cure
|
1 | 3.38 | -2.38 |
|
Meat Is Murder
The Smiths
|
1 | 3.33 | -2.33 |
|
Fever To Tell
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
|
1 | 3.29 | -2.29 |
|
Astral Weeks
Van Morrison
|
1 | 3.26 | -2.26 |
Artists
Favorites
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Pixies | 2 | 5 |
| Beatles | 3 | 4.33 |
| Black Sabbath | 3 | 4.33 |
Least Favorites
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| My Bloody Valentine | 2 | 1.5 |
| Leonard Cohen | 4 | 2 |
| The Smiths | 3 | 2 |
Controversial
| Artist | Ratings |
|---|---|
| The Cure | 4, 1 |
| Brian Eno | 1, 4 |
5-Star Albums (27)
View Album Wall
Popular Reviews
The Vines · 3 likes
2/5
The Vines suck. Friend of mine had a bad experience at a Vines convert, and I've disliked them since.
There are many better Australian pub rock bands more deserving of a spot in the list.
Even from roughly the same era, the list is missing Wolfmother's self titled debit, Jet's excellent Get Born, Silverchair's Frogstomp, Neon Ballroom or Diorama, and Powderfinger's Odyssey Number Five . Grinspoon released an album the same year, which was a better album, even Bodyjar, the Living End, Killing Heidi, Waikiki... and yet this tripe makes it.
Ozomatli · 2 likes
2/5
Full album not on Spotify-use YouTube. Even on YouTube can't find the full album.
Saturday Night is good, but album is very hit and miss overall. More miss than hit.
Kanye West · 1 likes
3/5
I was hoping not to like any part of this record... but I just can't dislike it.
We Don't Care is a great song.
All Falls Down is another great bop.
Spaceship? Relatable.
There's also some extra cringe stuff on here like "the new workout plan" and "breathe in, breathe out"
Ending the album with a twelve minute nothing beat is certainly a choice.
Listening to the lyrics here all about the disadvantage and institutional racism etc right throughout this album is kinda confronting, and it's easy to empathize with the themes of the day to day struggle of not having cash despite doing your best and working hard every day etc, but the problem is it all kinda falls flat when you realise where this guy ended up once he finally had the cash and success. Success that he couldn't have ever had without overcoming his early struggles.
There's already a few signs of the impending spiral into being a nutso with Jesus Walks here, too.
Kanye might have gone off the rails but goddamn could he make music.
Nirvana · 1 likes
5/5
Great ol' nostalgia trip. And looking at the dates it released not long after Cobain's death. So this was recorded only a few months before he died. Kinda weird and crazy to think about.
The album itself has most of Nirvana's big hits, with one obvious, glaring omission of a song that I'm sure the band would have been sick of playing. But it would have been a mistake to play it, and I'm sure they knew that. Every song here is clearly carefully considered to work in the format.
But it also has a variety of excellent covers. Their version of Man who Sold the World is brilliant.
I feel a bit weird about greatest hits/live albums on this list but this one is undeniably a classic, and very significant in terms of music history, too.
There's a bunch of cool details about the performance here!
https://www.theringer.com/2018/11/14/music/nirvana-unplugged-oral-history-kurt-cobain
Baaba Maal · 1 likes
3/5
This album is really cool.
1-Star Albums (19)
All Ratings
David Bowie
3/5
Bowie
Bob Marley & The Wailers
4/5
5/5
Pulp
2/5
This album is interesting. It's well put together, aurally interesting, and clever album. It has catchy hooks, and complexity. But somehow I hate it, not sure why exactly it just puts me on edge. 2/10.
Elvis Presley
1/5
dull.
Curtis Mayfield
4/5
Norah Jones
3/5
Wonderful voice. Album is a little dull otherwise.
The Cure
4/5
This album is aurally a little strange, with lots of haunting, echo-y sounds. It's difficult to parse the sound on a first listen, but there are some interesting beats and riffs. Feels like the type of album I'd need to listen to a few times to understand it properly and see if it hooks me, but I'm not sure it has in the first listen.
John Grant
5/5
This album is excellent. I had never heard of John Grant before, but this album was thoroughly enjoyed. Musically complex and varied.
Tim Buckley
1/5
This album sorta just sucks. There's like 30 seconds of guitar in Strange Feelin' that's kind of decent, but the rest is boring.
Depeche Mode
2/5
Didn't make me want to fall asleep, or tear my ears out. But still, boring.
De La Soul
3/5
Love the intro. Feels like a very 90's album, so it's pretty forward thinking for 1989.
Loses a lot of momentum in the second half, but is a decent album overall.
The Yardbirds
4/5
Damn good album. I get the hype around the Yardbirds now. Varied and energetic.
Nine Inch Nails
3/5
I have a weird relationship with NiN. They're a band I should like but often they don't quite hit for whatever reason.
I think some of the lyrics are just straight up cringeworthy.
That said this album has a couple of really great tunes on it. Closer is terrific.
Sarah Vaughan
4/5
Wow, great voice. She has a sense of humour too. Interesting to hear an early live recording where it goes a bit wrong, but still sounds great.
How High the Moon is brilliant.
Count Basie & His Orchestra
1/5
Bored.
Pixies
5/5
Really cool album. Great drum lines. More varied than expected for a punk album, too. Can see why the Pixies are so influential.
Where is my Mind is a classic, but I also love Tony's Theme and Oh My Golly!
Ozomatli
2/5
Full album not on Spotify-use YouTube. Even on YouTube can't find the full album.
Saturday Night is good, but album is very hit and miss overall. More miss than hit.
Fugazi
4/5
Nice little album. Maybe not the most original, but good sound and well put together.
The 13th Floor Elevators
2/5
Not bad. Just a bit generic.
Crosby, Stills & Nash
2/5
Gosh this album is a bore. Not awful, just boring.
Beastie Boys
4/5
What a silly album. Lots of fun!
3/5
Devo have more than one album? Who knew. No "Whip It" on this.
Album is ok.
Leonard Cohen
2/5
Eh.
Cee Lo Green
2/5
There's some interesting moments in this album, and also some terrible stuff. Overall album is fine. Childz Play is notably awful.
Sex Pistols
3/5
Classic album. The highs are very high, overall the album is decent.
The Verve
4/5
Bittersweet Symphony is an all time classic. I hadn't listened to the whole album before, but this is absolutely brilliant! Just wall to wall excellence.
The melancholy, bittersweet vibe pervades the whole album. But the sounds are varied and interesting. Definitely experimental, but it all works. Lucky Man, Sonnet, The Drugs don't Work are other highlights.
Miles Davis
2/5
Nothing mind-blowing. Pretty good for a jazz album.
The Disposable Heroes Of Hiphoprisy
3/5
I had never heard of this band or album, but yeah it's real good.
Carole King
5/5
Obviously one of the classic albums. Some absolutely terrific songs on here. Carole King is not the sort of artist I would seek out, but this album is consistently high quality.
4/5
There's not a bad song on this album. There's a reason it's a classic.
Paul Simon
2/5
Not bad, just boring.
PJ Harvey
3/5
I enjoy the sound of this album, although there's no real standout track. Works really well as an album, very chill.
Willie Colón & Rubén Blades
3/5
SALSA! pretty good fun album. Good background music.
Gorillaz
3/5
Absolutely a classic album. There's a few all time hits in here, although the majority of the album is pretty same-y sounding. The songs that change up the beat like Clint Eastwood and 19-2000 are excellent.
All that said, there's not a lot of depth or complexity here.
Dolly Parton
2/5
Country is not my thing, but Dolly is worthy of respect.
Led Zeppelin
4/5
"Don't tell me you never got the Led out!"
Zeppelin have so much talent. Immigrant song is a classic. There's a lot to love in this album, although it's not quite at their top level all the way through.
FKA twigs
2/5
I had never heard of FKA Twigs before.
The overall sound is pretty interesting although not much has really stood out as being a cut above.
Experimental in the soundscape though the lyrics are pretty generic/uninteresting.
Alice Cooper
4/5
Germs
3/5
I had never heard of Germs before.
It seems to just be another punk rock band. I enjoy the punk rock sound but they don't seem remarkable, just another punk rock band.
Seem to be influential on the Grunge scene, which is cool but not very apparent from this album.
I am enjoying the sound of this album all up.
B.B. King
1/5
Dull.
The Kinks
3/5
The Kinks were absolutely prolific, and they have some good songs. But this particular album is far from their best work.
Nanci Griffith
2/5
Not sure what the significance of this album is. Seems like a pretty generic country album. My internet search didn't turn up much either. It isn't an early album either, so i doubt that it's an influential one.
It isn't entirely awful, which is probably high praise for a country album from me.
The Vines
2/5
The Vines suck. Friend of mine had a bad experience at a Vines convert, and I've disliked them since.
There are many better Australian pub rock bands more deserving of a spot in the list.
Even from roughly the same era, the list is missing Wolfmother's self titled debit, Jet's excellent Get Born, Silverchair's Frogstomp, Neon Ballroom or Diorama, and Powderfinger's Odyssey Number Five . Grinspoon released an album the same year, which was a better album, even Bodyjar, the Living End, Killing Heidi, Waikiki... and yet this tripe makes it.
Ice Cube
4/5
Yeah, this album is brilliant. I don't listen to a lot of rap music but goddamn.
Isaac Hayes
2/5
The music that's here.is pretty good, but half the album isn't music.
Johnny Cash
4/5
Not really a country fan, but Cash is clearly passionate and talented.
Album is really excellent.
The Roots
2/5
The first song is garbage.
This album is a mess.
That said there are a couple of decent songs on here. Thought @work is pretty good. Also like Quills But Pussy Galore is painful.
Overall kinda meh? The sort of album I wish I could remove from my Spotify history.
Iggy Pop
3/5
Doom dadoom dum dum!
I enjoy the simple but super clean bass lines.
"Baby" clearly has that Kinks inspiration. Which is fine because that's an awesome bass line.
Overall album is pretty good. Not absolutely mind blowing, but enjoyable.
Marianne Faithfull
3/5
Never heard of Marianne Faithfull.
Has a very 80's sound for a 70's album. Sounds like a movie soundtrack from the mid 80's.
"Working class hero" is great.
Iggy Pop
4/5
I just had Iggy Pop's The Idiot 2 days ago. Well, random is random I guess, and this is a much better album, anyway.
We start off strong with Lust for Life.
The Passenger is a classic.
The Smiths
3/5
Pleasant, inoffensive album. Decent tunes, some interesting melodies. Overall pretty good but nothing mindmelting.
Eurythmics
5/5
What a wonderfully weird sound the Eurythmics have.
I had of course heard Sweet Dreams before, but never listened to the whole album. But the whole thing is really well done.
Weirdly Sweet Dreams was one of my least favourite songs from the album.
Dire Straits
4/5
I WANT MYYYYY
Immediately can see a couple well loved songs on this album
The album starts off with a lot of energy, but halfway through all the energy goes away and becomes a dull, somber affair. Love the first half of the album, the second half is pretty dull. Brothers in Arms does send the album off on a strong point, however.
Leonard Cohen
2/5
Yawn.
Leonard Cohen
1/5
Not again! Pain.
T. Rex
3/5
Cosmic Dancer is good.
Get It On is a well loved classic.
Jeepster is great, too.
Overall sound is pretty catchy.
The Thrills
3/5
Santa Cruz is a strong start.
One Horse Town is great, too.
Pretty enjoyable album overall.
Megadeth
3/5
Going to be honest, their sound is super dated. Has not aged well. And they're just not as good as other bands of their time like Metallica, Slayer, Iron Maiden etc.
I don't mind Metal on occasion, but Megadeth ain't it. Still it's not a bad album technically, and they're clearly very influential.
Love the spine-melty Devils Island!
Rod Stewart
2/5
I r bored. Bored bored bored.
That's all right going into Amazing Grace is super cringe.
Maggie May is actually a pretty good song, though.
Fatboy Slim
5/5
This album is outrageously good. Not usually an EDM fan but this album is wall to wall bangers!
The Rockefeller Skank is an absolute classic, so is Praise You. But there's not a weak song on the whole album.
FBS just has a completely unique style which is unmatched even to this day.
Nick Drake
2/5
Pretty boring album. Only has one sound, and that sound is pretty generic/boring can't see why it's on the list whatsoever.
Sad music for the sake of being sad sucks.
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
2/5
I have zero thoughts or feelings regarding this album.
It isn't bad. It's even almost good. But it doesn't hook me in any way.
The United States Of America
3/5
Unavailable on Spotify, but available in its entirety on YouTube Music.
Having said that, the album is kinda rad! Very forward looking.
AA Milne being the writer of Cloud Song was an unexpected discovery. I wouldn't have thought the Winnie the Pooh author would have written music, too.
Overall enjoyed the album, very odd but pretty interesting.
Stevie Wonder
3/5
Pleasant sounding album.
Boogie On Reggae Woman is really cool
The weird melody in You Haven't Done Nothin' is great, too, though it is very similar to the one in Superstition, which came out two years earlier. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, I guess.
Overall album was enjoyed!
The Temptations
3/5
4/5
Will I enjoy this album?
Maaybeeee
Hot Take: Morning Glory is a better song than Wonderwall.
I don't think I have ever listened to this album in full, but I do know most of the songs already. One of those pervasive albums we've all heard. It's just played absolutely everywhere. An absolute classic, and most of the hate for it I feel is simply because it's so overplayed.
Champagne Supernova is another favourite.
It's a strong album overall, even though I'm sorta sick of hearing half the songs.
Jefferson Airplane
3/5
Somebody to love-great.
My Best Friend-quite good.
Also enjoy 3/5 of a mile.
Drags on towards the end.
Motörhead
4/5
Ace of Spades is a brilliant song, but this is the first time I have listened to the whole album.
The energy remains consistently high throughout. The album is a hour of power!
Live to Win is great, too.
Motorhead knew what they were going for in this album and 100% nailed it.
CHIC
3/5
Disco? Disco.
Has a fun melody but tedium begins to set in quickly by the end of Le Freak. Hopefully the rest of the album doesn't sound the same...
Ok, Savoir Faire does change up the beat a bit. This song is very Love Boat. Very cool song, actually.
Black Sabbath
4/5
I quite enjoy Sabbath, though I will say they have better stuff than this self titled album. Still, much enjoyed.
Joni Mitchell
2/5
I don't necessarily think this album is bad, it's just excruciatingly boring.
There's a couple ok songs towards the end.
Stan Getz
3/5
Good study music. I guess most would associate this with elevator music these days, but an album has to be really good to be pervasive enough to hear it so widely, and to have so many songs that you're familiar with even if you don't quite know where from.
I feel like I've heard about 30 covers of some of the songs off this album.
Girl from Ipanema is a bonafide classic.
Yes
3/5
This is an odd album.
There's some interesting melodies, album is pretty experimental.
Decent but not really grabbing me either.
The KLF
3/5
Only able to find the directors cut which is apparently a different album, with a few different songs.
Don't listen to a lot of EDM but yeah the album is pretty interesting. Madrugada Eterna has a great melody.
Tracy Chapman
4/5
Album is quality from start to finish. Not normally my style but definitely a solid album. At times sounds almost like a 2010-ish indie rock era album, which is impressive for an album from 1988.
AC/DC
5/5
Holy hell. An absolute banger of a classic album.
The Cure
1/5
One song almost got this album out of "aggressively dull" and into "dull as dishwater." Boring.
Baaba Maal
3/5
This album is really cool.
CHIC
2/5
It's fine.
Lauryn Hill
3/5
Lauryn Hill is one of the artists I completely missed growing up.
Lost Ones is great.
To Zion is pretty cool too.
Doo Wop is one I had heard even if I didn't realise I knew it.
The first part of this album is excellent, the middle part doesn't quite hot the same high, but then you get to Every Ghetto, Every City and it picks up again.
Nina Simone
3/5
Bop bop.
Not really my style but there's a few nice melodies.
3/5
Album is really neat. Every song has a different sound.
I love the variety of different instruments being played in different songs
Mr Skin is a tune.
Street Worm and Space Child are great too.
Jeff Beck
3/5
Beck is clearly a talented guitarist.
Beatles
4/5
"half of what I say is meaningless"-sums up the Beatles lyrics well.
They are entertaining though. Melodies are varied and you can really hear how heavily they have influenced other bands.
The highs on this album are high, but the double album is overlong.
Bruce Springsteen
3/5
Many words spoken about Springsteen. He's ok.
Couple good songs, a couple painful ones.
The Doors
5/5
The Doors are fantastic.
No Riders on the Storm here makes me a little sad.
Roadhouse Blues is amazing! The bassline is simple but solid and rolls along. Throwing in a bit of harmonica makes for great gap fills.
I also enjoy the various piano parts. The different variety of instruments throughout really give them a variety that keeps the album from getting dull.
Sabu
3/5
This album is kinda cool. Not super amazing but at least interesting. Enjoyed a couple of the songs.
Funkadelic
3/5
I'd rather not drown in my own shit.
The first song, Maggot Brain, is fantastic.
Overall album is solid. Some strange stuff but some cool guitar and melody, too. Nice to get a mostly instrumental album.
Joan Armatrading
2/5
There's a few nice songs here, but overall the album is a little dull.
The Who
3/5
Yeah it's the Who. But live. They do all the classics. Nothing too out there honestly, just solid tunes.
Supertramp
4/5
Supertramp have a lot of songs I know and enjoy, though they seem to be spread among albums.
The intro to School is pretty great.
Dreamer is a classic. Bloody Well Right is fun! Good to hear some Sax. The electronic vibes throughout add a different dimension to their music, too.
Album is very good.
Killing Joke
4/5
Enjoyed Wardance. The Opening of Tomorrow's World is great too.
Bloodsport is another great tune.
They kinda sound like an early Rage against the Machine, cool sound.
Wish I had discovered these guys sooner. Definitely think this album is better than some other metal bands of the era.
Love
1/5
Sending me to sleep at work. Yawwnnn.
Annoyed me enough I reflexively quit listening.
"Oh, whew. One song left. What do you mean 18 minutes?"
Syd Barrett
1/5
David Bowie
2/5
Common
3/5
The Corner is a nice song.
Not my usual genre of listen but gotta admit, album is full of catchy rhythms.
A few of the lyrics are a little strange, but I guess that's par for the course for the genre.
White Denim
2/5
1970 called, they want their album back.
There are some good times here, just a bit unremarkable.
Soft Machine
3/5
An hour plus for for songs!?
Sounds like the theme to every 70's cop show
Nice, chill background tunes.
Bonnie "Prince" Billy
1/5
Not on Spotify. Use YT Music.
Album is pure torture. Cringe lyrics. Dull music. Just absolute shite. Very "edgy 12 year old"
It's almost a parody of itself, except it has zero self awareness.
May trigger miasma.
Led Zeppelin
5/5
Got a whole lotta love for this album.
Lemon song is outrageous.
Heartbreaker? A classic.
Ramble on? Incredible.
Nobody should be a talented as Jimmy Page, it's hardly fair!
Radiohead
3/5
I like the few Radiohead songs I've heard before, but never listened to their full albums really, besides Pablo Honey.
But this album is really varied and interesting. A bit experimental, but sound is really unique and varied.
Falls off in the second half.
Jack White
5/5
Oh, I bought this album on release. Fantastic album. Nearly as good as Elephant.
Missing Pieces? Great
Sixteen saltines? Also great.
Freedom at 21? Great melody
Love Interuption? Sweet.
Every song is unique, Jack White is supremely talented
Even the weaker songs on this album swing.
There's also a story here. Our singer starts the album angry, becomes morose through the middle and so forth.
Easy 5* album.
Fats Domino
4/5
Blueberry Hill and Honey Chile are great.
Also enjoy Blue Monday and What's the Reason I'm not Pleasing You.
Album is quite short but high quality. That said it does feel weird to include a compilation album. Why not include Fats Domino Swings instead? Would have made a lot more sense.
10cc
4/5
This album is excellent. Hadn't heard any of it before, though I have heard some of 10CC's other stuff like Rubber Bullets, Dreadlock Holiday. This album is very much 10CC as expected, and has a nice variety of instruments and sweet melodies.
Goodbye friends. There's no more goodies in the pipeline.
Beatles
5/5
This album is outrageous. I'm not really a Beatles superfan, and I find some of their stuff a bit dated, but man, listening to this album it's sorta crazy how often you catch a song, or a bit of a song, and realise that such and such band took that part of a song, extrapolated it, and made an entire career for themselves out of that one part. The influence of this one album has shaped the entire modern western music industry.
Not only that, it has the absolutely joyful "Here comes the Sun" on it, perhaps the Beatles best track in my opinion.
Absolutely deserving of the hype.
Simon & Garfunkel
3/5
Mrs Robinson redeems an otherwise dull album. What a classic!
Hazy Shade of Winter is good, too. And At the Zoo.
Really picks up near the end of the album.
The Icarus Line
2/5
Never heard of this band before. Album not on Spotify. Not on YT Music, either.
Don't appear to be a popular band so curious to see what makes them worthy of a list spot.
I am enjoying the first couple songs after finding a YouTube playlist of them.
Noisy, unpolished, grungy, but surprisingly original too. Not quite sure exactly what I'm listening to, but clearly there's some passion in this band.
I mean the album is garbage, but it's beautiful garbage.
The Beach Boys
3/5
I don't mind the Beach Boys but they really only had one sound their whole career, didn't they?
This album has Help me Rhonda which is a song I quite like. But it's not the one with California Dreaming, Kokomo, Good Vibrations, Barbara Ann, or even Surfing USA. So I think the Beach Boys have better albums than this one.
I guess they released like 30 albums, so most of them only have 1-2 of their well known hits at most.
Still, their one trick is a pretty good trick, and it results in a bunch of catchy tunes. And this album is overall an enjoyable listen.
Robbie Williams
1/5
Robbie Williams at his best is the most boring, generic pop ever. At his worst, excruciating.
"Let Me entertain you"? If only you were capable of such a feat, Robbie!
This "pop by committee" bollocks can fuck right off. It even has ads in it. Can't think why else there'd be a song about Mr Sheen.
Kate Bush
3/5
Pretty decent 80's pop. Running up that hill has become a classic. Also liked Cloudbusting.
Van Halen
3/5
Really liked VH as a teen/young adult, and Eddie Van Halen is super talented as a guitarist. But even the classics like Jump feel dated to me now. Panama is still a great vibe, but Hot for teacher is a bit cringe despite the fabulous guitar work.
I'll Wait feels dated as well, but Top Jimmy is good. There's a huge difference between the good and bad parts of this album.
Power guitar shines through the whole album.
Pink Floyd
5/5
43 minutes for 5 songs is quite a length.
Lots of hype around Pink Floyd I've heard some of their stuff before including the titular track, but never listened to this whole album.
First part of Shine On is kinda haunting.
Welcome to the Machine is interesting and experimental.
Have a Cigar is great.
Weirdly, the well known title track is probably the weakest song on the album for me.
Overall, an excellent listen.
Radiohead
3/5
Ah, Radiohead. I have listened to a few of their tracks before, of course, but not really their whole albums.
First couple songs are good, but not really earth shattering or anything.
For a band that's supposed to be experimental, I find Radiohead to be very consistent, polished. High and Dry is a great tune, and again, polished. But it's not really breaking new ground, either.
The Beach Boys
3/5
RIP Brian.
Choo Choo.
Kanye West
3/5
I was hoping not to like any part of this record... but I just can't dislike it.
We Don't Care is a great song.
All Falls Down is another great bop.
Spaceship? Relatable.
There's also some extra cringe stuff on here like "the new workout plan" and "breathe in, breathe out"
Ending the album with a twelve minute nothing beat is certainly a choice.
Listening to the lyrics here all about the disadvantage and institutional racism etc right throughout this album is kinda confronting, and it's easy to empathize with the themes of the day to day struggle of not having cash despite doing your best and working hard every day etc, but the problem is it all kinda falls flat when you realise where this guy ended up once he finally had the cash and success. Success that he couldn't have ever had without overcoming his early struggles.
There's already a few signs of the impending spiral into being a nutso with Jesus Walks here, too.
Kanye might have gone off the rails but goddamn could he make music.
Iron Maiden
5/5
This album may be dated, but it's weirdly comfy, too. Yeah yeah it's loud, but it's so... familiar. Couple of absolute classics, one sound right through, and just 45 minutes of power.
An absolutely iconic album. And it maintains the quality right throughout, in a way many albums, even classic albums, do not.
Good stuff!
The La's
2/5
Sounds like an 80's rock band except in 1990. Not bad, but unremarkable.
There she Goes the standout.
Also enjoy Feelin'
Brian Eno
1/5
Album is weird. Some experiments should never run. Sounds like a yowling cat. Horrendous.
T. Rex
4/5
Was previously familiar with some of their work (Bang a Gong, Children of the Revolution), but I don't think I'd heard anything from this album before.
Metal Guru is a great tune.
Also enjoyed Rock On and The Slider.
They definitely sound like a kind of progenitor for hair metal.
I can hear a lot of Jack White in here too.
Overall album is very good.
Radiohead
1/5
Awful. Take themselves way too seriously, and then deliver boredom.
OutKast
3/5
Wow, a lengthy double album. But does not have my favourite Outkast song, in Ms Jackson.
Most of The classics are on here. Outkast know how to write a good melody, and they're filled with catchy hooks.
Album is enjoyable, the highs are pretty high, but there's also a lot of "eh" on here.
If this was a one hour album with all the chaff cut out it would probably be a 5 star album. Outkast could use a good editor. Unfortunately it's overlong and bloated.
For me Roses and The Way you Move are the star songs. I also enjoyed Vibrate and My Favourite Things. Hey Ya is polished but holy God am I sick of that song.
Nirvana
5/5
Great ol' nostalgia trip. And looking at the dates it released not long after Cobain's death. So this was recorded only a few months before he died. Kinda weird and crazy to think about.
The album itself has most of Nirvana's big hits, with one obvious, glaring omission of a song that I'm sure the band would have been sick of playing. But it would have been a mistake to play it, and I'm sure they knew that. Every song here is clearly carefully considered to work in the format.
But it also has a variety of excellent covers. Their version of Man who Sold the World is brilliant.
I feel a bit weird about greatest hits/live albums on this list but this one is undeniably a classic, and very significant in terms of music history, too.
There's a bunch of cool details about the performance here!
https://www.theringer.com/2018/11/14/music/nirvana-unplugged-oral-history-kurt-cobain
Christina Aguilera
2/5
Catchy but shallow is my first impression of the first couple songs.
"Gonna rewind to when the innovators were alive"- well, she failed here. There's nothing innovative here.
Yeah, bored. 4 songs in and I'm snoring.
This album is pretty awful.. I'm not convinced it's Aguilera's best, let alone worthy of a must listen. I think both her self titled debut and Stripped are probably better albums. None of which I'd go and willingly listen seek out to listen to, honestly, besides one or two songs.
In fact the best melody on the first half of the album is the one borrowed from her debut album song, Genie in a Bottle, which is used in Thank You.
Candyman is fun at least. Album would probably be better if it was half the length. Definitely think disc 2 is better than the first disc.
Culture Club
2/5
First off, Karma Chameleon is one of the greatest single pop songs ever. I've never heard much else from Culture Club before.
They are definitely the epitome of 80's pop. It's a Miracle is vaguely familiar to me as well.
An album that sounds like nostalgia and regret. The tunes are repetitive, but when they hit, they really hit. The results is a very mixed bag of catchy melodies and headache inducing skullpiercers.
Nirvana
4/5
Nirvana is a band I really enjoyed as a teen/young adult, and have spun this album up many times. It's a great album, although it sounds a bit dated today.
All apologies is still a great tune. There's also a few others, heart shaped box, Rape me, pennyroyal tea.
Oasis
2/5
Oasis is a band I grew up with. MAAYBEEE I'll like this album, let's see.
Rock 'n' Roll Star is OK.
Shaker maker is kinda dull.
Live Forever is another MAYBEEE. Oasis really like that word, don't they?
Best song on album is probably Supersonic.
Somehow, even the guitars whine.
Overall Oasis aren't bad, they do come across as a bit generic, though. This album is not a strong defence against those allegations.
They're probably the epitome of a band I'm unlikely to skip but I'm never going to seek them out to listen to. But that means the algorithms on Spotify or YouTube Music will probably keep delivering them thinking they're a favourite when they aren't.
This is probably an album that feels like I should like it, but I just don't. It's not that it's bad, it's just that it does nothing interesting. And that makes it interminably dull.
I'm gonna Slide Away from this album and never think about it again.
Madonna
2/5
Boring for the most part.
Cherish is peppy.
Dear Jessie is very Antiques Roadshow.
I've always felt Madonna was an artist who starred when releasing a single more than a full album.
Röyksopp
5/5
Great to get an album mostly devoid of vocals, there's not many on the list.
Epie is damn amazing.
Sparks is beautiful. I can almost feel my anxiety melting away listening to Sparks.
In Space is an adventure, hopeful.
Poor Leno bops along at great pace.
I'm enjoying A Higher Place, too
This album is a masterpiece.
Japan
3/5
Never heard of this band before.
First impression? Sounds like the background track to every early 80's B action/buddy cop movie.
Not a bad album, just... inoffensive.
I did really enjoy In Vogue. Great tune!
Also enjoyed "a foreign place."
David Bowie
3/5
A weaker Bowie album is still a Bowie album 🤷
Red Hot Chili Peppers
4/5
I don't listen to RHCP too much any more, but Iistened a lot as a young fella. I guess I tried of them as they were played on the radio a LOT.
They really do have an interesting and u issue sound.
Power of Equality is one I'm not so familiar with, good time though.
Some of the classics are on here-Breaking the Girl, Suck my Kiss, Give it away, Under the Bridge.
Love the blend of weird funk and rock. Funky Monks is another bop.
Sometimes a band comes along that's so good they get played until they irritate everyone. RHCP is one of those bands.
I know some of the lyrics are a bit cringe at times but the power of the melodies is undeniable.
R.E.M.
3/5
Album is OK, but it's the epitome of generic dad rock. I feel like REM have better albums.
Talk about the Passion is a nice song.
Also like Moral Kiosk.
The B-52's
3/5
I didn't realise the B-52's had more than one album. Heard the classics before, but Love Shack and Roam are on another album. This one does have Rock Lobster.
Weird, eclectic, upbeat. Those are the main descriptors I'd use for the B-52's.
I love the backup vocal harmonies!
They are a bit silly but that's part of the charm.
Jungle Brothers
4/5
Never heard of this band before.
Beyond this World is great!
Also love Feelin' Alright!
This album really is a force of nature. Tune after tune!
Album is a happy, upbeat type album. Very catchy.
Buddy Holly & The Crickets
4/5
Look this album may be dated but it still has a certain charm to.it.
They're very upbeat and sort of roll along, which is great.
The Smashing Pumpkins
4/5
The album has a few of their classics on it- Disarm, Today, Cherub rock. Hummer and Soma are also really great. The album just sorta creeps up on you then clobbers you over the head.
Probably enjoyed this album more than I expected.
Bob Marley & The Wailers
3/5
Hey look it's reggae!
Enjoyable, chill, but not overly exciting.
Baby, We've Got a Date is the pick.
The Fall
4/5
I've never listened to The Fall before this album showed up.
I found the album mostly pretty pleasant.
Particularly liked "lost in music"' "I'm going to Spain" and "league moon monkey mix"
Hard to believe these guys have released 31 albums and that having released that many times I've still barely heard of them. They're pretty good, though!
I've gone on and listened to more of their stuff after the album finished, so yeah a good discovery!
Bad Brains
5/5
Bad Brains are a punk rock band I've heard of, but completely missed until now.
Album has a sick intro!
I against I is absolutely filthy. Fantastic tune.
Instant addition to my punk playlists.
This album makes my inner teen proud
Elliott Smith
2/5
Not my cuppa tea. 2*
R.E.M.
3/5
Stand is a classic. Orange Crush is too. But otherwise most of the album is just OK.
I did enjoy a few other songs on here. World Leader Pretend is good.
There's also a lot of dull shit on the album, too. Like Hairshirt and I Remember California.
The good is very good, but the bad is torturous.
Traffic
3/5
Never heard of this before.
Honestly that was pretty good. Better than I expected.
Black Sabbath
4/5
RIP Ozzy. One of the great pioneers of music.
Sabbath are known for the heavy stuff, but honestly even their less heavy stuff like Changes are still excellent.
There's definitely an element of experimentation in this album. FX is literally just sound effects.
Saint Etienne
4/5
Never listened to St Ettienne before.
"Only love can break your heart" is ponderous.
'Carnt Sleep' (sic) is like elevator music tier music.
'Girl VII' is enjoyable. 'spring' too.
There's a few hiccups along the way, but overall I am definitely enjoying this album.
Adele
2/5
Technically Adele has a gorgeous voice and well made music, I just can't get into her tunes at all.
Solomon Burke
2/5
TV On The Radio
3/5
Decent.
Except the bonus track. Ew.
Jimi Hendrix
4/5
What an insane talent. Such a shame he became part of the now infamous 27 club. One of the great guitarists.
I had heard a lot of the well tread classics such as Purple Haze and Foxey Lady many times before, but the whole album is a treat. I especially enjoyed Highway Chile.
Neil Young
4/5
Not really an album I'd seek out, but it is very good. I have always liked the song Old Man. And the Harmonica notes in a few of the songs are pretty different and done well.
Definitely understand why people like Neil Young, even if this is not usually something I'd listen to.
A Tribe Called Quest
2/5
Dull as fuck. I can see where it might be influential but fuck me.
OutKast
4/5
Outkast get a lot of hate but this album has a few bangers.
Ms Jackson is hands down Outkast' best single release.
Gasoline Dreams is biting.
BOB is great, too.
Outkast are the king of pop hooks in hip hop.
Pixies
5/5
What a ridiculously good album. Starts strong with Debaser. Then goes into Wave of Mutilation and I Bleed before banging out Here Comes Your Man. Plus it then has the timeless Monkey Gone to Heaven.
There's other stuff I enjoyed here too. Mr Grieves, Dead etc. I don't think there's a weak song in the whole album.
I had heard Pixies before but I never listened to this album in full. It might be one of my new favourites.
An absolute alt rock classic.
ABBA
2/5
Objectively? Excellent album. How many bands release an album that becomes a de facto best of? And that also soundtrack so many movies?
I still groaned when it popped up though. Very much an overplayed album. Still listened, I hope it doesn't pollute my algorithms.
Marvin Gaye
4/5
Never been super familiar with Marvin Gaye before listening to this.
What's Going on is not exactly the song I thought it would be. More energy than I expected!
There's no real standout songs on this albums but everything flows together beautifully and on the whole makes for a cohesive, well put together album.
Peter Gabriel
2/5
The best part of this album was Kate Bush's backup vocals.
Booker T. & The MG's
5/5
First, the song Green Onions is one of my favourite instrumental pieces. So I'm excited to listen to the rest of the album too.
Rinky Dink sounds like every sitcom theme song from the late 60's and 70's.
This album is fantastic. To me, this album is THE soundtrack of the 60's.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
1/5
Boring, generic pop.punk. I am fan of pop punk, but these guys are just completely dull. Over-produced sellout garbage. They're not innovative, or influential, or interesting in any way.
I just don't get it. This is a band that, on paper, should be right up my alley. They tick just about every box for my tastes. But they're terrible. Not going to apologise for it, they don't deserve a spot on this list.
If I have to pick a best song, it's probably Y Control. But I'm not exactly excited to come back and listen again.
Poor Song is aptly named.
Hugh Masekela
3/5
This album isnybad, it's just my uncultured brain doesn't know how to distinguish a good blues/jazz instrumental record from a dull one.
Is this album the one that inspired an entire genre? Or just another album in a sea of Jazz? I have no clue. Either way, Masekala is talented.
Also Wikipedia says Masekala was basically an anti-apartheid activist and that that comes through in his music. I couldn't tell any of that just from listening
Peter Tosh
3/5
A political album for a message who's fight has since been mostly won.
Otherwise yeah I dunno. It's a reggae album. It's peaceful enough.
Pretty varied for a Reggae album.
A shame he was murdered.
Red Hot Chili Peppers
4/5
Classic 90's rock.
Lots of the RHCP hits are on here, and there's a reason those songs have been played to hell and back. That having been said, they never quite were the top tier of music for me. And the album has quite a lot of filler, too. And I think they have better albums than Californication.
Oh and I'm just realising the pun in the name may not be what I always thought it was. I always thought it was California and Vacation, but there's another word that fits with California that seems to fit better...
Still, I have enjoyed them a lot over the years. Which means that here we have an album that is hard to rate. An album which I recognise is a good album, and that once I would have said I loved it. But in 2025 I have well and truly outgrown this album, too. But does that mean it's a good album that no longer fits me? Or does it just means it's mediocre?
Either way this is probably the most polished album they've produced.
George Harrison
2/5
This album is decent, it has some good tunes, but why the fuck does it need to be two discs, two hours with multiple versions of the same songs over and over?
This is just utter wankery. Typical of post-Breakup Beatles. Harrison is a good musician, but the entitlement here is fucking breathtaking.
Album just has waayyy too much filler.
Le Tigre
5/5
Never heard of Le Tigre before.
Deceptacon starts strong!
Album is very interesting. Like a halfway point between New Wave and Hyperpop.
You can tell they have had an impact on modern pop. They remind me a lot of bands like Wet Leg. They sound a lot more modern than 1999 to me.
This album is way better than I expected it to be. And to be honest I don't think there's a bad song on it. Just a super tight album with no filler.
And from doing a little research it appears they are linked to other bands I enjoy like Bikini Kill, so it's surprising I am just discovering them now.
Ravi Shankar
4/5
I really appreciate the "intro to indian music" being included here. It really helps to get your mind into listening to a style of music which doesn't fit the usual pop or rock music beats.
It's pretty amazing how many different ways you can get sound siut of the same instrument. It's pretty impressive honestly. And the improvisational style keeps is from becoming boring or repetitive.
It's probably not something I'll come back to, it at least seldomly, but it has given me a new appreciation for a different style of music.
Merle Haggard
2/5
It's OK as far as a country album, but twangy banjo and cliched whinge-fest lyrics just don't do it for me. I try to keep an open mind but this is such an unoriginal, boring album. At least it's short.
If I have to pick one track, I guess it's "if you want to be my woman", at least that has some energy. Oh and Skid Row is actually a pretty good song, too. Almost redeems the whole album.
Metallica
3/5
Album is definitely influential, but Metallica have better. Honestly this album is sorta dull.
Miles Davis
3/5
Two song. 40 minutes. What?
I'm not really a huge Jazz guy but this is definitely one of the better jazz albums I've heard.
Alice In Chains
4/5
Album.is very good. Has not dated as badly as some other Grunge albums have.
Kelela
2/5
Never heard of this artist, so I have no expectations.
This album is fine. Not really something I'm keen to come back to. Better is a decent song.
Supergrass
3/5
This album is pretty good, though it hasn't really captured me either. Maybe one to come back to?
This is definitely a music nerd album. But I just wanna bop.
Does drag on a bit.
Jimmy Smith
4/5
Never heard of Jimmy Smith before.
I wasn't expecting a jazz album from the title and cover.
But that having been said, album is quite cool!
3/5
This is a nice follow up to Jimmy Smith. Really cool instrumental album. Especially enjoyed City, Country, City.
Grateful Dead
3/5
This album is interesting but also strange. Why is Feedback a song? Not sure, but I kinda like it. Somehow.
Side note, I have had 3 mostly instrumental albums in a row. Not quite sure how that happened, but it's interesting anyway. The other two being Jimmy Smith and War.
Michael Kiwanuka
3/5
Aretha Franklin
4/5
RESPECT gets me every time. Aretha has such an amazing voice. Absolute Queen energy.
Great album overall!
The Rolling Stones
3/5
Yeah it's a layered and complex album, I just found it a bit dull. Not bad, but the Stones have better.
The Rolling Stones
3/5
Exile in Main Street yesterday, sticky fingers today.
What is it with the stones and songs about "brown sugar"? Exile had "sweet black angel" too. Bunch of old weirdos.
Still the music is pretty decent. Idk. The stones are fine. Definitely influential but also pretty dated. And not just because of Jagger's wrinkles.
Anyway. Brown Sugar is a song everyone knows. Can't you Hear me Knocking is 7 minutes of fire.
Brian Eno
4/5
Elevator music. Dull by design.i t succeeds in that goal.
Even though it's kinda dull, it's also quite a powerful album.
Sonic Youth
5/5
Going in I know a couple Sonic Youth songs, but not a band I've ever done into deeper.
Teen Age Riot is a great tune
Silver Rocket makes interesting use of distortion.
Cross the Breeze is a great tune, too.
Also enjoying Eric's Trip.
Total Trash goes hard, too
Rain King is another one
Banging album!
Sisters Of Mercy
3/5
Decent album. Didn't pick a standout song
N.W.A.
3/5
Clearly this is an influential album. Has the absolute Gangsta Rap classics in Express Yourself and Fuck tha Police. And it's not a bad album, I just find it... Dated? The lyrics are very much in the edgy teen zone, too.
That said, Express Yourself drags the whole album up on its own.
Metallica
4/5
Old school Metallica fans may kill me for this, but those guys are militant weirdos so I'll say it: This album is better than Master of Puppets. One is a classic.
Metallica fans really do get weirdly aggressive about which are the best Metallica albums, don't they?
Anyway, good album. Four stars!
Elliott Smith
2/5
Eh.
GZA
4/5
That intro to "Liquid Swords" is creepy AF.
Album is definitely an angry one. But I like the anger. Good beats
Arcade Fire
3/5
Talking Heads
2/5
Eh. 3/7
Sam Cooke
4/5
This album bops.
I think I'd rather listen to Cooke than Elvis. Don't tell my Aunty.
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
3/5
Breakdown sounds like a rip-off of Moondance by Van Morrison.
Album is solid and polished, but derivative.
The Zutons
4/5
2004 alt rock is something that should be right up m hitting zone but I missed the Zutons at the time.
I enjoy the opener "Zuton Fever"
Actually enjoying quite a few songs of this album. A hidden gem for sure! Remember Me is another highlight. Dirty Dancehall too.
Moby
4/5
Moby is clearly an influential EDM artist. I am not a huge EDM guy but Porcelain is an outright classic.
Album takes a bit to get going but then it goes from banger to banger after Porcelain.
Also enjoyed "why does my heart feels so bad?", "south side" "body rock" "natural blues"
"Run on" is another classic.
Loses momentum again towards the end. But overall really cool album!
Dusty Springfield
4/5
When I saw Dusty come up, I internally cringed a bit. Great, I though, a country girl from the deep south. But I have to apologise to Dusty-she is not who I thought. And I ended up enjoying the album, too.
So yeah, that was unexpected, but this album is really good.
Fleet Foxes
1/5
Wannabe Beatles but 40 years too late
This is just the most boring, generic album I have heard in a long time. Zzzz.
I felt actual relief when this album finally finished.
Kraftwerk
4/5
The namesake song goes for more than 20 minutes. Holy shit is it glorious!
Frank Black
2/5
This album is... competent? But nothing outstanding. Probably would have loved it if I discovered it as a 10 YO. Instead, I found The Offspring.
The Streets
4/5
I had heard some Streets stuff before but never listened to a full album.
"It was supposed to be easy" is pretty silly.
"Not addicted" is sorta wild too.
They are kinda chill and pretty relatable. They don't take themselves too seriously but still manage to make their tunes interesting. I can see why people might find them gimmicky or annoying but it hits the right spot for me.
It's not this masterpiece album, but it is fun to listen to.
The Smiths
2/5
Boring.
The Stooges
3/5
There's a few versions of this album. I didn't want to listen to the whole two hour 50th anniversary edition so I listened to the 2023 remaster of the Iggy mix. And there's also a Bowie mix!? Crazy.
This is definitely an influential album. And it should be something I'd enjoy. But something about it hasn't quite hit.
Willie Nelson
2/5
Why is a Country album of basically covers on the list? Spew. Many of these songs have better versions elsewhere.
Georgia on my mind has Ella Fitzgerald version, for example. Hell she also did Someone to Watch Over Me. Ella better be on this damned list of Nelson is.
Marilyn Manson
3/5
Enjoyed this more than expected despite the cringy edgelord lyrics.
The drum lines are terrific and the guitar might be abrasive but it works for what Manson is going for.
Def Leppard
4/5
I note before listening this album has a number of Radio classics.
Speaking of which, Animal is a fantastic tune.
Pour some Sugar on me is... well worn.
Linkin Park
5/5
Oh shit. This was one of the first few albums I owned as a kid!
It's an album that I hadn't listened to in a long time. I ayed it to death as a teen, and felt I had outgrown it. And yeah, the album still uses a lot of pretty juvenile themes. But I don't think there's an album that better encapsulates that teenage anxiety we all felt at one stage in our lives.
And there's not a weak track here, either. The whole album is high quality, hit after hit. Was really cool to get this huge nostalgia bomb and find that actually, yeah, Hybrid Theory does hold up. I was worried relistening might taint my nostalgia for this work, but it has reinforced it if anything.
Keith Jarrett
2/5
Reading a bit about this album on Wikipedia, I understand why it's on the list. But this album is just not for me.
Van Morrison
1/5
Outright garbage. No voice, no melody, no talent. 3 chords for a whole fucking album! Utter boredom.
Prefab Sprout
2/5
Never heard of Prefab Sprouts before.
Some interesting melodies but gosh the lyrics are boring.
They sound like a band that would make theme songs for awful generic romantic sitcoms.
Overall I'll say Meh.
Barry Adamson
4/5
Never heard of Barry Adamson or Oedipus Shmoedipus. Zero clue what to expect.
Liking "something wicked this way comes"
This album is very odd but very cool. "it's business as usual" is definitely something.
Gosh this is a strange album. I swear "achieved in the valley of dolls" even seems to have used a Nokia ringtone in it! It's like a mix of 90's and 70's/60's. Can't say I dislike it, though! It's definitely something unique and interesting.
"Vermilion Kisses" definitely gave me a giggle
Sufjan Stevens
4/5
Sufjan Stevens is an artist I have heard good things about but never listened to personally.
What are these song names? Those sure are something.
Not usually into singer/songwriter stuff but this album is pretty nice.
There is just such a wide variety of styles and instruments throughout this album. Each track is a new experience. And the lyrics are well thought through too. The kind of album that will take a few listens to fully appreciate.
"The man of metropolis steals our hearts" is my pick.
The Strokes
3/5
I like the Strokes. And this album has Last Nite and Someday.
Good album if a little uninspiring. Obviously there's a few really great songs on here, the album is just lacking innovation.
The Stone Roses
4/5
I have heard a bit of the stone Roses before but never paid too much attention to them.
For an album released in 1989 it sounds an awful.lot like an album from the early 2000's. Clearly they're very influential, but it's also like their influence skipped a generation of edgy grunge kids.
Overall this was a pleasant listen. A few absolutely brilliant songs and most of the rest is inoffensive.
The Rolling Stones
3/5
Album is clearly influential but idk. Just a bit dated maybe? Definitely one of the great albums if its time just not really holding up in 2025.
Sympathy for the Devil is still a banger, though.
My Bloody Valentine
1/5
Didn't like the first group of songs.
New You is almost ok.
But overall this album is garbage. Just completely boring. The use of distortion for so-called "dramatic effect" is just cheesy and irritating. And it doesn't sound good, either.
The thematic tomes of "everything sucks! It's like a rainy day!" followed by one mildy hopeful song in "new you" just feels immature
I'm sorry, but being dark and broody doesn't make you cool..
Led Zeppelin
3/5
Real good quality album. Should be 4/5 but Black Mountain Side is actually garbage. Can't believe that made the cut.
Nas
3/5
This is obviously a famous album that I have never listened to, and would never have thought to try if it weren't for this project.
This is definitely a highly influential album. You can hear how the bones of songs like "the world is yours" have been taken by more modern musicians and improved on.
Overall pretty good album.
New Order
3/5
Never really listened to New Order.
Love Vigilantes has a strong opener.
Overall this album is pretty rad! Nothing too groundbreaking but pleasant to listen to.
I can't pick out any real stand outs. Maybe Sub-culture.
Stevie Wonder
3/5
The first half of this album is kinda uninspiring live songs with a couple nice melodies. Then you hit Superstition and it's an all time classic! Still a great tune after all this time.
After that you get Big Brother which is another terrific song.
Unfortunately after that the album devolves back into mediocre love songs.
Still those excellent melodies persist throughout.
Black Sabbath
5/5
Well the first half of the album is three stone cold classics plus Planet Caravan. That song is also pretty damn tasty.
Then Electric Funeral keeps up the typical Sabbath energy.
Hand of Doom and Rat Salad are pretty good times too. And then Jack the Stripper.
Terrific album! A seminal work. Insane to think of the influence this album had. And it's 1970! It's like 15 years ahead of its time!
Big Brother & The Holding Company
2/5
That sure is an album cover holy shit.
Never heard of this band before but I am slightly familiar with Janis Joplin.
The album itself is pretty boring. Haven't heard much that has inspired me.
Ella Fitzgerald
4/5
oh my god it goes for three and a half hours.
Even though it is really ong, I found I could just put it on in the background and go about my day. Makes a great background tracking album. Easy to listen to and absorb.
And it's high quality too. Ella has an incredible voice, and the jazz compositions are complex enough melodies to capture your attention without being too demanding. And yet it's also pretty easy to get swept away by it.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
4/5
Enjoyed "hiding all away"
"Messiah Ward" is kinda interesting.
Overall the album has a decent sound, although I am finding the songs a bit repetitive. The first few all kinda sound alike. And there are some enjoyable songs, but there's also a few absolute stinkers/filler choices.
I enjoyed the title track "the lyre of Orpheus"
"Breathless" feels like the sellout song written merely to sell the album to record execs.
That said the album is beautifully produced. Well polished etc.
Quicksilver Messenger Service
2/5
Most of this album is pretty dull, but I almost enjoyed the 13 minute "Calvary"
Sigur Rós
4/5
This is a beautiful chillout album.
Duran Duran
2/5
The YT music link goes to the collectors edition. I couldn't find the non collectors edition on YT music however the first 9 songs are the two discs on the original release, so I listened to those only. The rest are just remixes etc anyway.
As to the album itself, aside from the one big hit single, the album is kinda meh. I think Duran Duran have better.
Janelle Monáe
4/5
This is a tightly produced pop album. The open with "suite 2 overture" is a great way to start an album. There's a few decent if unmemorable tunes, and then you get thrown into Cold War which is an absolute banger.
Then Tightrope happens which isn't that amazing but does hit all the typical notes of a typical 2010's pop song.
After that we get back to Neon Gumbo which is more pleasant, tightly produced but unmemorable pop.
Oh Maker was another enjoyable song. Come Alive has great energy as well.
Then Mushrooms and Roses is another great tune.
I'm not usually one for these types of pop albums, but this album is way more enjoyable than I expected.
Goldfrapp
2/5
This album makes me want to like it, and there are a couple.songs here I do enjoy. But there's also parts if the album I just find grating.
Not a bad album, I just find parts of it annoying.
Tom Waits
1/5
I went into this not really knowing Waits but thinking I might enjoy the album.
Well, the first few songs are hot garbage. The lyrics are cringeworthy and the music barely has a melody. And even the melody that is there sounds awful.
I find my toe kinda taps, but my brain is confused as to whether this counts as music or not. And I can't help but wonder what the fuck I am listening to?
Overall, this album is making me try to work harder so I can ignore it. So that's a sign that it stinks to high heaven.
I was genuinely relieved when this album finally finished.
Excuse me, I think I might go bleach my ears.
Deep Purple
3/5
It's a deep purple album but no Smoke on the Water or Highway Star.
Speed King is giving me Back to the Future flashbacks. The organ is an interesting choice between the power rock segments. Very Jim Morrison vibes.
The good on this album is really good, but there are also sections that just sound dated.
Still Deep Purple are clearly a very influential and talented band.
Personal favourites are Speed King and Flight of the Rat.
Sly & The Family Stone
2/5
Yeah this is ok I suppose.
Elvis Costello
3/5
This album is an easy listen but pretty uninspiring. It's a boring, made for radio album.
If someone told me Costello was their favourite artist, I'd think they have bland taste in music.
I will say "watching the detectives" does salvage the album somewhat.
King Crimson
5/5
Wow. Album is amazing. I love that there's sections of almost mellow, and then suddenly BAM you get hit with something absolutely sublime and otherworldly. Each track builds and builds until they become monumental.
King Crimson buck a lot of the trends in modern music. There are no tightly produced 3 minute pop jingles here. This is closer to a symphony. They are clearly very inspired by classical music.
This album is absolutely beautiful. I really hope to get In the Court of the Crimson King at some point, too.
I particularly liked Exiles and The Talking Drum.
The Rolling Stones
4/5
Paint it Black is my favourite Stones song! Cool to get this album!
Paint it black still amazing.
Stupid girl bops along, though the lyrics, woof
Honestly the whole album is terrific melodies and beats with problematic lyrics. The Stones are clearly one of the GOAT bands,they have range, talent and a sound that is honestly still.pretty unique. But they're also a product of their time. Then being a bunch of "old weirdos" as I noted in a previous review doesn't change the fact they're extremely talented musicians.
I think this is the fourth stones album I have had so far? And so far my favourite, this and Beggars Banquet.
Eels
3/5
"Life is hard, and so am I." Words to live by.
Dr. Dre
2/5
The whole album seems to repeat basically six lines that are just callbacks to previous records.
It's not awful, but I straight up don't understand the appeal. Like why are Dre and Snoop shitting on Easy E? Makes no sense to me.
I guess I just think people should leave the petty drama at home. Airing your dirty laundry on a whole album like this is childish.
Guns N' Roses
5/5
What an album this is. I mean, Paradise City, Welcome to the Jungle, Sweet Child o Mine, Mr Brownstone, Rocket Queen... This album is almost like a greatest hits album for GnR except actually every song is actually just on one album.
This is an album that doesn't elicit much feeling in me, but that's mostly because I've heard every song so many damn times that I've grown... detached from the experience. There's a reason you might be sick to death of hearing this album, it's pervasive. It's everywhere. And it has invaded just about every facet of pop culture.
GnR just hit the perfect sweet spot with this album. It's heavy, but not so heavy it's unpalatable for the masses. It's not super deep, but neither is is entirely dull. It's like the McDonald's of hard rock. GnR is probably not your favourite rock band, but if they come up in a playlist you're probably going to rock out anyway.
Axel Rose and Slash are absolute icons.
My pick: Paradise City.
The Allman Brothers Band
2/5
7 songs. 78 minutes. 😅
Well, the first song is Statesborough Blues which is a classic bluesy sound. Generic, but it bops.
Stormy Monday is mellower, but still rooted in the Blues.
When they are playing proper tunes they're interesting, but some of the solos are just odd. The longer songs have these sections that just are a bit pretentious.
Plock plock plock...shut the fuck up. Jazz Wankery.
Astor Piazzolla
2/5
I don't see what's "new" about this.
Stevie Wonder
5/5
Lot of hype surrounding this album. 1 hr 40 is quite long.
Enjoyed Contusion. Enjoyed Sir Duke. I Wish is great, too. Isn't she Lovely is a classic as well.
There is a lot of variety here. There's also a ton of songs that have been sampled-like Pastime Paradise.
This album really does live up to the hype.
Cream
4/5
I've been waiting so long
To be getting this album
On the thousand album liiiiiiissssttt!
Television
4/5
A new discovery for me, never heard of this Television.
See No Evil is like a cross between The Who and early 90's indie rock like Violent Femmes. Much enjoyed.
Venus is a decent follow up.
The title.track is great, too. I love the "deedelldeedleedeedleedee" guitar parts.
Elevation has nice guitar work too, definitely an influential sound.
Kanye West
1/5
Rhyming "Benz" with "parkinsons." Classy.
On sight has a garbage melody, too.
Black Skinhead has a nice beat, but is totally unrelatable.
This album is like the full crazy terrible parts of College Dropout without the relatibility. Kanye's ego is out of control. College dropout had redeeming features beyond the melodies, Yeezus does not.
Yeah fuck this album.
Muddy Waters
4/5
Don't always like live albums but this one is pretty good.
The longer it goes on the more I am enjoying this album. You could say it makes me Feel So Good.
The Encore of Mojo was brilliant as well!
Tiger in your Tank and Baby Please don't Go the highlights, as well as Mojo Working.
The Jam
3/5
This album has some cool moments. Nothing especially noteworthy, but easy to listen to as well.
My picks: Pretty Green and Music for the last couple.
Ok. So I wrote the above review a few hours ago while listening. And right now it's clear this album made almost zero impact on me. I've basically forgotten the whole thing already. So it's clear to me it's nothing special.
Boston
5/5
Well this album starts with More than a Feeling-one of the greatest single pop/rock songs the US has ever produced.
Foreplay/Long Time is a belter of a tune as well.
Hitch a Ride and Something About You are great as well.
Love the drum fills throughout this album, has all the catchy pop hooks too. One of the absolute best albums ever released.
Let me take this album home tonight!
Neil Young
2/5
Not the worst country album I have ever heard. Still a country album though. Not breaking the mould at all.
"Don't let it bring you down" the one highlight, and MAYBE Birds.
Fred Neil
2/5
Better than Leonard Cohen. Still dull folk music though.
Technically this is a pretty good album, just not for me.
Suede
3/5
90's radio special.
So Young.is decent but not amazing. Ditto for Animal Nitrate.
I did much enjoy The Drowners.
Metal Mickey another good one.
The Beach Boys
2/5
This album is proof there are too many beach boys albums on the list.
Oh ok, there's only three. But maybe they're the wrong three.
I dunno. I feel like this album is a mess. It sounds all out of tune and not in an Interesting way. It isn't bad exactly, but it's hard to listen to.
Electric Light Orchestra
5/5
Outstanding album. Has a couple of their classics in Mr Blue Sky and Sweet 🦜 Ng Woman, and the album is high quality from beginning to end.
Jungle, Turn to Stone and Standin' in the rain are my picks.
Neil Young
2/5
I can see why people like this, and I enjoyed a couple of the songs, but for the most part I found this pretty boring.
On the Beach (the song) drags on forever.
I have come to the conclusion that American folk music is unrelatable to me. Idk why exactly, but when folk music relies so much on relatibility, that makes most of the genre a pretty tough listen. I like other forms of folk music, there's some great Aussie folk music out there, and Irish folk music, but US folk sucks.
I think it might be because a lot of US folk music has this self importance to it that makes me just wanna throw up.
MGMT
4/5
Starts out strong with Time to Pretend.
Then heads to Weekend Wars.which is also good.
The Youth is simple melodies but easy to groove to.
Then you get Electric Feel and Kids, two huge hits. These two have been a part of my rotation for years.
Also enjoying Of Moons, Birds and monsters
Album peter's off in quality after Kids but starting off with 5 bangers in a row is pretty insane.
Sepultura
4/5
Not really a Metalhead, but I do listen to metal sometimes. Didn't really turn this one up but still have it a good listen.
Arise, Dead Embryonic Cells and Desperate Cry is a brilliant start to this album.
You can immediately hear how influential Sepultura's sound is through listening to the first few songs.
Altered State is a other good one, the quality of music remains pretty high throughput the whole album. There's some nice experimental-ish sections, too.
Honestly this album is better than many Iron Maiden or Slayer albums.
Heaven 17
3/5
Fascist Groove Thing was repetitive and annoying.
But Penthouse and Pavement (song) was very enjoyable.
Despite a few of the songs being a bit repetitive there are also some cool melodies here.
Let's all make a Bomb is catchy. Height of Fighting is not bad, either.
Song with No Name is a catchy melody, too.
They have a very 80's synth sound. Puts me in mind of Axel F.
Beastie Boys
2/5
I'm Surprised how different this album sounds from Licensed to Ill. Sounds like Tough Guy are short but show a different side to the Beastie Boys.
That being said it's nowhere near as good an album as Licensed to Ill.
The Band
3/5
Album is pretty well constructed. I don't know that I'll come back to it, though.
There was one of two nice songs and nothing I actively disliked.
Rush
3/5
2112: overture is exceptionally geeky. Sounds great though!
It keeps going and going. Interesting to hear a song that is essentially an entire story on its own with multiple phases.
You can hear multiple influences throughout. From Iron Maiden to The Who.
While the album is pretty well done it is all a bit same-y and has a generic sound despite the experimentation with structure.
Megadeth
3/5
Technically this album is impressive. It's fast, loud and melodically dense.
But they ain't got no rizz.
Various Artists
3/5
This is really the quintessential Christmas album. Christmas time has a lot of weird issues, but ultimately it does bring people together and make them happy. And I appreciate that this album avoids most of the a weirdness that can come with Christmas for those of us entrenched in the traditions but not the religious side of it.
I dunno if this is my favourite Christmas album ever, but it is definitely clear that these version of the classical folky Christmas songs are the ones that appear everywhere. Either these or the Sinatra versions.
Sleigh Ride is probably my pick from this album.
Jurassic 5
4/5
Album is well produced and sounds great but nothing groundbreaking. Thin Line, What's Golden and I am somebody are my picks.
Dusty Springfield
2/5
Has Son of a Preacher Man. Already a good start.
Dusty has a great voice, but the songs are pretty generic. Not too super interesting.
Bob Dylan
2/5
Dylan just doesn't hit for me. Talented but boring.
King Crimson
4/5
10/10 album cover.
Album is an all time classic, although I think I enjoyed Lark's Tongue in Aspic more.
King Crimson are incredible!
Mudhoney
4/5
These guys are like not as good Nirvana. I suppose the Grunge movement was huge in 1991 but there are plenty of bands that did this sound but better.
That being said it's a decent enough album. And it warms up a lot in the second half. Took me a bit to warm up to this album, but by the end I was much enjoying it a lot.
Who you Drivin' Now?, Fuzz Gun '91 and Pokin' Around are my picks.
The singles from this album are among the weaker tracks, which is an interesting quirk.
Talking Heads
3/5
This is a kinda OK album but with one absolutely brilliant song on it in Once in a Lifetime. The rest of the album is listenable but mostly not too interesting.
Also enjoyed Houses in Motion.
Santana
4/5
Santana is clearly a ridiculously talented guitarist. I like the addition of other rhythm instruments then just drums, too.
Black Magic Woman is a classic. Oye Como Va is very enjoyable too.
Samba pa ti is a relaxing vibe
Hope.your Feeling Better has a great opening riff that keeps going.
fIREHOSE
3/5
I have never heard of this band before.
Album is fine. Sounds good but not really hooked.
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
2/5
This album is ok. But even the best songs here have better cover versions.
John Martyn
3/5
Never heard of John Martyn before.
There's some interesting and unique sounds on this album, and a bunch of weirdness, too. What the heck is Big Muff!?
Honestly though this is a pretty good chillout album.
My picks: Couldn't love you more, Certain Surprise
Kendrick Lamar
4/5
Heard a few of the hits off this like "This is America" but never sat and listened properly.
Already enjoyed Wesley's Theory and King Kunta.
These Walls has a sick beat.
U is despairing.
How much a dollar cost is great, too.
This album is sweet
Adele
4/5
I pretend I am too cool to like pulp pop like Adele, but let's be honest, Rolling in the Deep is a modern classic. And the overall album 21 is pretty damn good, too.
My Bloody Valentine
2/5
It's not just a phase, mum!
Music for emos but came 15 years too soon.
Scritti Politti
2/5
Album is not very good, but Perfect Way has a melody that sounds like it's out of a Mario game.
The Notorious B.I.G.
3/5
Biggie definitely has talent as far as gangster rap is concerned, but it's still pretty much the same old gangster rap. A few of the songs here have decent melodies but I can't count how many times I cringed at the lyrics.
The Band
2/5
This album is fine. There's a couple good songs but I'm not exactly enthralled.
Radiohead
3/5
Way better than In Rainbows. But I am coming to the conclusion I am quite simply not a Radiohead fan.
Fairport Convention
4/5
Never heard of Fairport Convention before.
Genesis Hall is pleasant sounding.
Not really a folk music person, but this album is surprisingly enjoyable. Sounds nice and upbeat, and is pretty relatable.
Leonard Cohen
3/5
Definitely a cut above the other Leonard Cohen albums I had had from the list so far. I kinda enjoyed a couple of the songs before finally losing interest!
Magazine
4/5
Never heard of Magazine before. But post punk sounds good.
The first half of this album absolutely bangs!
Motorcade especially stands out to me.
Really enjoyable album overall.
The Smiths
1/5
Dull as dishwater, this is the album you trot out when you want to pretend you listen to something different and cool while actually wanting to listen to the same generic poprock most people do.
Plenty of bands doing it better by 1985.