Jan 13 2025
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Paul's Boutique
Beastie Boys
I’ve been listening to this album on a regular basis since the 1990s and I never get tired of it.
5
Jan 14 2025
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Pretzel Logic
Steely Dan
Some absolute bangers, but a couple I would skip on a re-listen.
4
Jan 15 2025
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Blue
Joni Mitchell
I first listened to this album as a teen when I played my parents’ vinyl copy, which sparked a (mild) argument about who bought it - my mum or my dad. I can see why they both wanted to claim credit, because it’s a masterpiece.
5
Jan 18 2025
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Aqualung
Jethro Tull
I wasn't looking forward to this one as I'm not a big prog fan, but it wasn't
a slog to listen to and I liked a couple of the songs. Don't think I would revisit it though.
3
Jan 19 2025
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She's So Unusual
Cyndi Lauper
Some great tunes, but a bit front-loaded.
4
Jan 20 2025
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Back To Black
Amy Winehouse
I bought this album when it was released but hadn’t listened to it in full for a long time. It’s really held up - what a talent and what a loss.
5
Jan 21 2025
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Arrival
ABBA
I’d always thought of Abba as more of a singles band, and this hasn’t entirely changed my mind. Those singles are pop masterpieces though!
4
Jan 22 2025
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Olympia 64
Jacques Brel
I quite enjoyed this, but I do have a soft spot for showtunes, and as a non-French speaker, this was quite musical theatre in feel and delivery. The audience is certainly into it.
3
Jan 23 2025
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Emperor Tomato Ketchup
Stereolab
I had a couple of Stereolab singles in the 1990s, but had never listened to a full album before. I don’t feel like I was missing out - I liked this but nothing really grabbed me like French Disko.
3
Jan 24 2025
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Eternally Yours
The Saints
I’d never heard of them, and at first I thought I’d made a real discovery as I loved the mix of punk and horns. However, by the end of the album I did feel like the songs were all bleeding into each other.
3
Jan 25 2025
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Ramones
Ramones
Yesterday, I marked an album down for being too same-y, and here I am today giving four stars to the Ramones. In my defence, it’s catchy as hell, is too short and snappy to wear out its welcome, and no one said I had to be consistent.
4
Jan 26 2025
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One Nation Under A Groove
Funkadelic
I really enjoyed listening to this (once I found it) but it might have been five stars if some of the tracks didn’t drag on a bit too long. Who says a funk band doesn’t know when to stop? Me, but I say it with love.
4
Jan 27 2025
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Sticky Fingers
The Rolling Stones
I always thought of Exile on Main Street as their classic, undeniable album but I think I’ve been underrating this one. Loved it.
5
Jan 28 2025
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Talking Book
Stevie Wonder
The banger to ballad ratio is maybe better on a couple of his other 70s albums, but still a classic.
4
Jan 29 2025
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Music
Madonna
I’ve always thought that Don’t Tell Me is Madonna’s most underrated single and that American Pie is her worst. The rest of the album is somewhere in the middle - and largely forgettable.
2
Jan 30 2025
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Technique
New Order
I don’t think the generator needed to add a year - everything about this screams 1989. Still, timelessness is overrated and I really enjoyed this.
4
Jan 31 2025
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Bitte Orca
Dirty Projectors
I feel like I should appreciate the ambition and that it wants to be more than just another indie album, but I also don’t really want to listen to it again, so…
2
Feb 01 2025
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Sound of Silver
LCD Soundsystem
I started off loving it, thought it dipped in the middle, but they pulled me back in with the last track. Always good to go out on a high.
4
Feb 02 2025
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Moving Pictures
Rush
Prog and 1980s soft rock aren’t my favourite genres, but put them together and you get… something that’s still not my cup of tea. Good drumming though.
2
Feb 03 2025
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Our Aim Is To Satisfy
Red Snapper
If it was 2000 and a friend invited a few people back to their flat to hang out after the club and put this on in the background, I bet it would sound fantastic. I listened to it in 2025 while cleaning my kitchen, so it probably lost something.
2
Feb 04 2025
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Ready To Die
The Notorious B.I.G.
Some absolute bangers, but it goes on a bit. If he’d wanted to make some edits, cutting out the grim sex skits would have been a good starting point.
4
Feb 05 2025
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Darkness on the Edge of Town
Bruce Springsteen
It’s Springsteen at his most Springsteen-esque (there are songs about cars! And factories! And the chorus of The Promised Land sounds like someone doing a Springsteen impression!), so it’s unlikely to convert a non-believer. I’m fully on board with the Boss though, so it’s five stars from me.
5
Feb 06 2025
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Dry
PJ Harvey
I discovered PJ Harvey at the right time - she definitely spoke to me as a teenager. But even without the angst, this is such a great debut from an artist who arrived fully formed. I also don’t think she gets enough credit for the tunes - Sheela-na-gig is straight up catchy.
5
Feb 07 2025
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Gris Gris
Dr. John
It’s very atmospheric - my office briefly felt like a spooky Louisiana swamp. And Walk on Guilded Splinters is such a tune.
4
Feb 08 2025
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Violent Femmes
Violent Femmes
I knew Blister in the Sun, but because for me that song walks the very fine line that separates amazing from annoying, I never tried listening to anything else by the Violent Femmes. Turns out they can walk that line for an entire album - I really enjoyed this.
4
Feb 09 2025
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Beggars Banquet
The Rolling Stones
I’m only 25 albums in but this is my second by the Stones. The first was Sticky Fingers, and although I liked this one, it suffered a bit by comparison.
4
Feb 10 2025
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Your New Favourite Band
The Hives
I bought this album in 2001 on the strength of Hate To Say I Told You So, but would have struggled to name another track on it. After re-listening to it in full for the first time in years, I quite enjoyed it but I think that’s still the only song I’m likely to keep playing.
3
Feb 11 2025
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My Generation
The Who
Just when you’re thinking this could be by any generic 1960s British band, along comes a track that makes you realise why The Who were exciting.
3
Feb 12 2025
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Astral Weeks
Van Morrison
By all accounts, Van Morrison is a deeply unpleasant person and he sings (as a review I once read put it) like a man trying to attract your attention across a crowded pub. But music works in mysterious ways and this album is a thing of beauty.
5
Feb 13 2025
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3 Years, 5 Months And 2 Days In The Life Of...
Arrested Development
In the 1990s, I mentally filed Arrested Development under “rap for people who don’t really like rap”, but after listening to this album, I can see that was unfair - there’s some good stuff on here. I still think Mr Wendall is patronising though.
3
Feb 14 2025
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L'Eau Rouge
The Young Gods
This is why I signed up for the generator. I’d never heard of The Young Gods before and based on the reviews, I would never have sought this out (even the good ones didn’t make it sound like my cup of tea) but I really enjoyed it. Who knew I liked Swiss industrial rock with a dash of the theatrical? Not me.
4
Feb 15 2025
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Queen II
Queen
I prefer pop Queen to prog Queen.
2
Feb 16 2025
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Juju
Siouxsie And The Banshees
Started strong but tapered off. I really enjoyed that start though.
4
Feb 17 2025
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Two Dancers
Wild Beasts
This just completely washed over me - not unpleasant but nothing stood out.
2
Feb 18 2025
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Bridge Over Troubled Water
Simon & Garfunkel
I’ve known this album since I was a kid, it has some absolutely undeniable songs, and I always think of it as a classic. However, it’s been a long, long time since I’ve listened to Bridge Over Troubled Water all the way through because it just never crosses my mind to play it, and while I enjoyed revisiting it, I’m not sure that will change. Maybe that’s the difference between a four-star and a five-star album?
4
Feb 19 2025
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Let England Shake
PJ Harvey
I’m only 36 albums in and this is my second by PJ Harvey. That’s not a complaint because I love her and this is one of her best. Bonus points for quoting Summertime Blues (“take my problem to the United Nations”) in the context of a song about war crimes.
5
Feb 20 2025
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Wild Gift
X
Punk energy and pop smarts - a winning combination.
4
Feb 21 2025
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A Love Supreme
John Coltrane
I was excited to get this one as, if I’m honest, I’ve never really given jazz a chance. What if it turns out I love it and didn’t know? Based on this, I probably won’t be buying a load of black polo necks and taking up smoking just yet, but I did enjoy it.
4
Feb 22 2025
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Synchronicity
The Police
I thought this would be bland, but fair play - Mother is unhinged. Otherwise, some decent tunes and I can hear they are playing around with different genres/ideas, but somehow it just doesn’t grab my attention.
2
Feb 23 2025
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Blackstar
David Bowie
It’s impossible to separate this album from David Bowie’s death. But if you could take it out of the equation and judge Blackstar on its own merits, how many artists make an album this good and interesting 50 years into their career?
4
Feb 24 2025
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Exile On Main Street
The Rolling Stones
A little bit sleazy, a little bit sloppy, and some fantastic tunes. I love it.
5
Feb 25 2025
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The Suburbs
Arcade Fire
Up to and including City With No Children, I’m thinking “this is a five-star album, why is it so long since I last listened to it?” Then it starts to sag… They claw it back to four stars with Sprawl II though.
4
Feb 26 2025
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LP1
FKA twigs
I wanted to like this more, but I feel like the production is often more interesting than the actual songs.
2
Feb 27 2025
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Heartattack And Vine
Tom Waits
I can completely understand why some people can't get past Tom Waits' voice - it veers from 'a drunk doing Springsteen on karaoke' to 'a drunk who's about to cough up something gross into a dirty handkerchief' - but I really enjoyed this. The songs are good, and whenever the production on the ballads threatens to gets too syrupy, here comes that disconcertingly wet rasp to give it some edge.
4
Feb 28 2025
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Rum Sodomy & The Lash
The Pogues
Tom Waits yesterday, The Pogues today - the generator clearly won't be happy until I'm swigging whisky in the gutter. I preferred Waits, but this did prove the Pogues aren’t just for Christmas.
3
Mar 01 2025
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Franz Ferdinand
Franz Ferdinand
I was relieved to find this had held up - Franz Ferdinand were always a bit too smart and angular to get lumped in with the British 'indie landfill' of the 2000s.
4
Mar 02 2025
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Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1
George Michael
I prefer funny, poppy, making-videos-to-troll-the-LAPD George Michael to this version that’s trying a bit too hard to be a serious artist. He can’t totally suppress those pop instincts though, so Freedom 90 is a banger.
3
Mar 03 2025
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Life's Too Good
The Sugarcubes
I was aware of the Sugarcubes, but thought of them as just a footnote in Bjork’s career. Turns out I was wrong - I really enjoyed this.
4
Mar 04 2025
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Moon Safari
Air
At university in the late 1990s, I had a CD player with a timer function, and I used Moon Safari as my alarm - the first track fades in with rain noises so it’s good for waking up gently. Hearing it again made me feel like I was late for a lecture, but also reminded me why I liked it so much in the first place, and not just because it’s perfect for snoozing when you’re a student who struggles to drag her lazy arse out of bed.
5
Mar 05 2025
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Berlin
Lou Reed
I knew this by reputation as a 'difficult' album, so I went in expecting something borderline unlistenable, and instead was surprised by how much I liked it. Don't get me wrong, the lyrics are beyond bleak but it definitely has tunes. Darkly compelling.
4
Mar 06 2025
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The Contino Sessions
Death In Vegas
The first track is called Dirge, but I actually liked that one - the real dirges come later. My main issue with this album though is that it’s trying a bit too hard to be a very 1990s idea of cool, and has aged like milk as a result.
2
Mar 07 2025
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Live!
Fela Kuti
When I saw one of the tracks was a 16-minute drum solo, my heart sank. That did test my patience, but it turns out it's a bonus track and therefore, under my personal project rules, it doesn't have to taint the rest of this joyous, groove-filled album.
4
Mar 08 2025
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With The Beatles
Beatles
People who say the Beatles are overrated are obviously the most annoying, but people who say they didn’t really get good until Rubber Soul/Revolver aren’t far behind. Five stars.
5
Mar 09 2025
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Hypocrisy Is The Greatest Luxury
The Disposable Heroes Of Hiphoprisy
Listening to this gave me a new appreciation for Flavor Flav. It’s Public Enemy without the fun.
2
Mar 10 2025
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Odessa
Bee Gees
A reminder that the Bee Gees were a much weirder band than their Saturday Night Fever-era bangers suggest. I’m glad I heard this overlong, sometimes beautiful and deeply odd album.
4
Mar 11 2025
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Californication
Red Hot Chili Peppers
I’ve always been lukewarm on RHCP’s singles, and the album tracks all sounded like worse versions of those singles, so this was never going to be a winner for me. The last third was a real slog.
2
Mar 12 2025
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Made In Japan
Deep Purple
Fifty-seven albums in, and what I'm learning from this project is that I have limited patience when it comes to solos. Deep Purple were clearly amazing musicians, but I don't think it's a coincidence that the two tracks I found the most enjoyable (Highway Star and Smoke On the Water) are also the shortest. At one point, I checked to see if Space Truckin' was nearly over, and there were still 14 minutes left.
2
Mar 13 2025
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Cut
The Slits
I liked this spindly, ramshackle mix of punk and reggae a lot more than I thought I would. I’m not sure the Slits would take this as a compliment, but I found it oddly charming.
4
Mar 14 2025
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Legalize It
Peter Tosh
“It’s good for asthma… goats love to play with it.” You can’t argue with that. You also can’t argue with the tunes.
4
Mar 15 2025
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The Köln Concert
Keith Jarrett
Another jazz album I enjoyed a lot more than I thought I would. Maybe I just like jazz. If in 50 albums time, I decide I actually like prog too then this project will have been truly life-changing.
4
Mar 16 2025
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1977
Ash
Well, this transported me back to being a teenager in the summer of 1996. I could practically taste the cider. I think it could stand to lose a couple of tracks but I don’t think it’s just the nostalgia talking when I say I enjoyed this.
4
Mar 17 2025
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Never Mind The Bollocks, Here’s The Sex Pistols
Sex Pistols
Were the Sex Pistols anti-abortion? For me, that was the biggest shocker on the album. The rest of it was fun, although I don’t think it can ever have the impact it evidently had in 1977.
4
Mar 18 2025
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Talking Heads 77
Talking Heads
What an incredible debut. I considered giving it four stars because I know there are even better albums by them to come, but it seems unfair to grade them on a curve.
5
Mar 19 2025
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The Madcap Laughs
Syd Barrett
Do people genuinely love this album
or have they just romanticised the idea of the troubled genius? I’m not convinced that anyone hearing this without knowing who Syd Barrett was would understand what the fuss was about.
2
Mar 20 2025
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McCartney
Paul McCartney
I have such a soft spot for this album, but (maybe) I’m amazed that it made the cut above Ram. I think Ram takes the same charmingly lo-fi, playful approach but applies it to a more consistent set of songs. Still the best songs here (Junk, Every Night, Maybe I’m Amazed) are gorgeous.
4
Mar 21 2025
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Chemtrails Over The Country Club
Lana Del Rey
I really like Lana Del Rey but was initially surprised this album made the cut over Norman Fucking Rockwell. However, it was better than I remembered - I like the slight country twist she puts on her usual schtick - so now I just think they both should have been included.
5
Mar 22 2025
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Music for the Masses
Depeche Mode
I've been meaning to listen to more Depeche Mode since they were unexpectedly one of my highlights at a festival a couple of years ago - it made me realise how many of their singles I like. Over a whole album it gets a little same-y, but I did enjoy it.
4
Mar 23 2025
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Cee-Lo Green... Is The Soul Machine
Cee Lo Green
I liked the soul/hip-hop sound but I am not sure that any of the tracks really stood out to me apart from My Kind of People and that’s because I was trying to work out where I’d heard the melody before . (Eventually realised it was Pass the Dutchie.)
3
Mar 24 2025
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Destroyer
KISS
I like the concept of Kiss - I’m all for embracing the dumb, fun, theatrical side of rock - but I find their music oddly underpowered. Great Expectations in particular sounds like watered-down Meat Loaf. Was the image covering for a lack of chops, or did they need a Jim Steinman to push them over the top into the gloriously ridiculous?
2
Mar 25 2025
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Moondance
Van Morrison
Say what you like about Van Morrison, but at his peak he made some truly beautiful music. My least favourite song on this is actually the title track, which I find grating, but there are some real moments of loveliness on here. Also, why didn’t he sing in his Crazy Love voice more often? (Probably because he thought people might like it, the awkward bastard.)
4
Mar 26 2025
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Isn't Anything
My Bloody Valentine
Based on the opening track, I thought this would be my first one-star review, but I did quite like a couple of the other songs. That's kind of disappointing, as I feel like this album was meant to be something you either love or hate, not something you give two stars out of five.
2
Mar 27 2025
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Orbital 2
Orbital
I’m 72 albums in and this is the first one where I seriously considered not seeing it through to the bitter end. It just bored me.
1
Mar 28 2025
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Beach Samba
Astrud Gilberto
I listened to this at work, and it drifted by pleasantly enough (apart from You Didn't Have to Be So Nice, which is a bit sugary for my tastes). However, I think the optimal conditions for listening to this would be in a 1960s New York bachelorette pad while mixing a cocktail. I bet it would sound terrific.
3
Mar 29 2025
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Machine Head
Deep Purple
I've already had Deep Purple's live album, Made in Japan, which took some decent tunes and stretched them out to breaking point with endless solos. This still has a bit too much noodling for my personal taste, but it keeps it to more acceptable levels.
3
Mar 30 2025
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Let It Be
The Replacements
I liked this - it’s now my second favourite album called Let It Be.
4
Mar 31 2025
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Roger the Engineer
The Yardbirds
Eric Clapton left the Yardbirds because he thought they were getting too commercial, but who wants to be on Clapton’s side in any argument? I’d rather listen to proto-psychedelic pop rock than a load of white English blokes doing blues covers, and this was so much more fun than I was expecting.
4
Apr 01 2025
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Unknown Pleasures
Joy Division
This is one of those albums I always felt like I should have listened to, but somehow never did. I wish I’d got round to it sooner.
5
Apr 02 2025
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Survivor
Destiny's Child
Talk about front-loaded - it begins with three all-time bangers, but then gets a bit patchier (and surprisingly slut-shamey).
3
Apr 03 2025
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Call of the Valley
Shivkumar Sharma
Of all the albums I’ve listened to so far, this is the one I had the least frame of reference for. I found it a soothing listen though.
3
Apr 04 2025
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m b v
My Bloody Valentine
I’m in a group chat where the other members are excited about My Bloody Valentine touring for the first time in a decade. This is my second MBV album and while I liked it more than Isn’t Anything, it’s confirmed my hunch that I won’t have FOMO if they all go without me.
2
Apr 05 2025
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Remain In Light
Talking Heads
I always thought Talking Heads didn’t sound like anyone else, but I stand corrected - The Overload sounds like Joy Division covering Tomorrow Never Knows. Still Revolver and Unknown Pleasures are both five-star albums and so is this.
5
Apr 06 2025
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Aladdin Sane
David Bowie
I get the argument that this is a lesser version of Ziggy Stardust, but if you’d never heard another Bowie album, wouldn’t you think this was all killer, no filler?
5
Apr 07 2025
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Seventeen Seconds
The Cure
It kind of washed over me, but in a good way. It’s very atmospheric.
4
Apr 08 2025
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Music From Big Pink
The Band
I love The Weight so I expected to love this, but the killer to filler ratio was a bit off. It probably didn’t help that what I’d always assumed was a comedy “crazy Chester” voice in The Weight might just be how Rick Danko sings?
3
Apr 09 2025
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A Night At The Opera
Queen
When the generator gave me Queen II, I thought it would at least be fun, but instead found it a bit dull. This is more what I had in mind - it’s all over the place, but I can’t say it bored me.
4
Apr 10 2025
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From Elvis In Memphis
Elvis Presley
Elvis had the voice, the looks and the charisma so it would probably feel unfair if he’d also been blessed with a great sense of quality control. This album veers all the way from the sublime to borderline self-parody.
3
Apr 11 2025
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Brilliant Corners
Thelonious Monk
I started this project because I was in a bit of a musical rut (my Spotify Wrapped felt like an intervention) and wanted to expand my horizons. And so far it's working, because I'm enjoying the jazz albums a lot more than I thought I would. I really liked this.
4
Apr 12 2025
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Tea for the Tillerman
Cat Stevens
I used to think Father and Son was twee, but listening to it today, I found it surprisingly moving. It could be the peri-menopause or maybe I just had to hear it in the context of this rather lovely album.
4
Apr 13 2025
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American Idiot
Green Day
Jesus of Suburbia started and I thought “oooh, I really like this” followed by “is this song still going?” That basically encapsulates my experience of this album- some really strong tunes but a shade too long.
4
Apr 14 2025
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Miriam Makeba
Miriam Makeba
I don’t know much about Miriam Makeba but I have to assume that a black South African woman who managed to carve out an international career in 1960 was a total badass. She also has a great voice.
4
Apr 15 2025
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Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots
The Flaming Lips
Three days after the generator gave me Tea for the Tillerman by Cat Stevens, it gives me an album that begins with a rip-off of Father and Son. To be fair though, this album also proves that Flaming Lips have some great tunes of their own (although I do prefer The Soft Bulletin).
4