303
Albums Rated
2.76
Average Rating
28%
Complete
786 albums remaining
Rating Distribution
Rating Timeline
Taste Profile
1950
Favorite Decade
Hip-hop
Favorite Genre
US
Top Origin
Perfectionist
Rater Style ?
15
5-Star Albums
42
1-Star Albums
Breakdown
By Genre
Top Styles
By Decade
By Origin
Albums
You Love More Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Dr. Octagonecologyst
Dr. Octagon
|
5 | 2.69 | +2.31 |
|
Sweetheart Of The Rodeo
The Byrds
|
5 | 2.82 | +2.18 |
|
Nighthawks At The Diner
Tom Waits
|
5 | 3.01 | +1.99 |
|
Oxygène
Jean-Michel Jarre
|
5 | 3.07 | +1.93 |
|
Nothing's Shocking
Jane's Addiction
|
5 | 3.17 | +1.83 |
|
Fever To Tell
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
|
5 | 3.29 | +1.71 |
|
Nebraska
Bruce Springsteen
|
5 | 3.31 | +1.69 |
|
Red Headed Stranger
Willie Nelson
|
5 | 3.34 | +1.66 |
|
...And Justice For All
Metallica
|
5 | 3.43 | +1.57 |
|
Suicide
Suicide
|
4 | 2.46 | +1.54 |
You Love Less Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
|
The Dark Side Of The Moon
Pink Floyd
|
1 | 4.43 | -3.43 |
|
Wish You Were Here
Pink Floyd
|
1 | 4.3 | -3.3 |
|
The Bends
Radiohead
|
1 | 4.01 | -3.01 |
|
Pet Sounds
The Beach Boys
|
1 | 3.93 | -2.93 |
|
In Rainbows
Radiohead
|
1 | 3.85 | -2.85 |
|
Metallica
Metallica
|
1 | 3.78 | -2.78 |
|
American Idiot
Green Day
|
1 | 3.77 | -2.77 |
|
Live At The Harlem Square Club
Sam Cooke
|
1 | 3.76 | -2.76 |
|
The Velvet Underground & Nico
The Velvet Underground
|
1 | 3.61 | -2.61 |
|
Moon Safari
Air
|
1 | 3.57 | -2.57 |
5-Star Albums (15)
View Album Wall
Popular Reviews
Dr. Octagon · 1 likes
5/5
One of my all-time fav hip hop albums. 5 stars.
Madonna · 1 likes
1/5
Seriously!? I just got "Ray of Light" like two days ago!! Eat sh*t, algorithm.
This is the absolute hottest of garbage. 1 star.
Mott The Hoople · 1 likes
2/5
If David Bowie and Bob Dylan were morphed into one person, that would suck. This album sounds like that unholy union, and it sucks too.
Miles Davis · 1 likes
5/5
With this stacked cast of musicians, this could never be anything but 5-star perfection!
PJ Harvey · 1 likes
1/5
Two albums by PJ Harvey in one week!?!? Am I being punished for something?
1-Star Albums (42)
All Ratings
Red Hot Chili Peppers
3/5
My favorite scene in Point Break is where Anthony Kiedis gets shot in the foot. While I appreciate the musical talents of the band, Anthony always seemed like a creep and I have always found his vocals annoying. Given his penchant for dating barely legal girls, I don't think I'll ever be a Red Hot Chili Peppers fan.
Having said that, though, this was my first listen of this album in a long time. Musically, the band is tight. Flea's bass is the driving force for the whole album, but John Frusciante (only 21 at the time of this album's release) holds his own and then some on guitar.
Lyrically, this album is for middle school kids and teenage douchebags. With lines like "Every woman has a piece of Aphrodite. Copulate to create a state of sexual light." it's easy to dismiss the album in it's entirety (not many songs swerve out of the lane of the title track in terms of theme). But, while I've already mentioned my disdain for Kiedis, but I do enjoy the message and can tolerate the vocals on "Power of Equality."
Six stars. Mostly because the musicianship of the band. Anthony Kiedis is gross.
The Verve
2/5
• The Verve is U2 if U2 were somehow more boring and mind numbingly dull.
• This sounds like it's an album the Columbia Record Club would send you if you didn't pick something else and your preferred genre was "Alternative." Nobody wants it, but for some reason everyone has it.
• For the love of all things holy, why is this album 76 minutes long!?
I'm really sort of torn as to whether to give this 1 star or two. It's bad enough to justify a lone star, but I'll give it 2 stars because "Bittersweet Symphony" is actually pretty good and this is on a lot of "all-time top" lists. Maybe I'm just missing something.
Fugees
4/5
This album was EVERYWHERE in ‘96. You couldn’t escape it! MTV had the videos for “Ready or Not” and “Killing Me Softly” heavy rotation. I’m not complaining, though; “The Score” is very near perfection.
I could do without all the skit interludes, but doing that kind of thing was kind of en vogue then, for some reason (there’s a bunch on “The Chronic”, too).
Not every song on this album is a 100% banger, either. “The Beast” and “Cowboys” being the weakest tracks on the album.
Four stars is the rating here but the more accurate score (pun intended) would be 4.5.
Lynyrd Skynyrd
2/5
I have trouble, sometimes, separating a band's music from the band's fan base. In the case of Lynyrd Skynyrd, even at just the mention of the band, what immediately comes to mind are white trash hillbillies festooned in Rebel Flag merch screaming something about their "heritage." It seems that at some point in 2012, the band stopped using Confederate imagery on their album covers, but that's too little too late and it hasn't stopped their mouth breathing fans from rocking the stars and bars.
With that being said, I was shocked to actually enjoy the first half of this album. It's the sound that every southern rock band has tried to emulate but usually fall well short of achieving. "Tuesday's Gone" has been used in so many film soundtracks that it's kind of cliche at this point and I'm fairly certain I've been to a Southern funeral or two at which it's played, but it's honestly a pretty solid tune.
Speaking of cliches, this album ends with "Free Bird." I hate this song. But, if you go to a concert to see any band of any genre anywhere in the world and someone doesn't yell "Play Free Bird" in between songs, did you really go to a concert?
2 stars. I'd almost allow myself to give it 3 for "Tuesday's Gone" and the album's pretty solid first half, but I'm sticking with 2 because their fans can really suck.
Blur
1/5
Great. Another Britpop band...
The British catch a lot of hell for their bland food, but they don't get near enough grief for enjoying bland music. Why do they all have to sound like the unholy marriage of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and Wonderwall!?
I feel a little bad because this album was at least slightly less boring than The Verve's "Urban Hymns" that came up a couple of days ago, but because I'm still not over how awful that was, I'm punishing this one with a one star rating.
Judas Priest
4/5
I've never listened that much to Judas Priest. I was introduced to them by Beavis and Butthead. "Breaking the law! Breaking the law! Yeah. Yeah. Uh-huh-huh."
I always thought the vocals were cheesy and it just sounded too much like the 80's to me. I was right. The music is cheesy, and it is very much rooted in the 80's. But, that's okay.
I'm a pretty big metal fan and it's easy to see the influence Judas Priest had on the genre. As soon as I heard the bridge of "Rapid Fire," the second track on the album, I thought I was listening to "Motorbreath" by Metallica even though their album "Kill 'Em All" didn't come out til 1983.
4 stars for being pioneers of a musical genre that I love and because "Breaking The Law" is a straight up classic.
Jane's Addiction
5/5
Carole King
3/5
The Divine Comedy
1/5
I've been at this for exactly a week now and this is already the THIRD boring Euro-pop band that's come up! Enough with this late 90's crap, too! I hope I'm getting front loaded with all this garbage and the good stuff is coming later. Also, I assume the douchey, pretentious cover is supposed to be an homage to Blue Note Records. Is it an homage, though, if it's a blatant rip-off?
Lyrically, this album is some of the most vapid songwriting I've ever heard: "If you were a dog, I'd feed you scraps from off the table though my wife complains."
Musically, it sounds like a cheap, off-off-Broadway theatrical production, and the lead vocalist wishes he were David Bowie so hard but falls well short of getting the imitation quite right.
If it were possible to give 0 stars, this album would deserve it (or worse). As it is, however, they should find themselves fortunate that I begrudgingly award them 1 star.
Talking Heads
3/5
Radiohead
2/5
Stephen Stills
3/5
Aretha Franklin
5/5
My first perfect 5 award. Soooooooo good. Amazing listen from start to finish. Adding this to my permanent collection and will be revisiting often.
Bob Dylan
2/5
The Associates
3/5
Christine and the Queens
3/5
Sufjan Stevens
3/5
Funkadelic
2/5
I wanted to like this one. The title track is decent. I own a few other George Clinton albums, and they are all way better than this one. I'll give it a few more listens later; perhaps it will grow on me.
Disappointing 2 Stars.
The Byrds
3/5
Beck
4/5
The xx
3/5
PJ Harvey
1/5
I used to think this album sucked. I mean, I still do, but I used to, too.
Curtis Mayfield
4/5
Radiohead
1/5
1001 albums... 786 of which are Radiohead. Yawn. Next.
1 star.
Super Furry Animals
1/5
Seriously, all this UK late-90's/early-00's crap sounds the same. Lots of reverb, whiny vocals... it's boring. Fine. Put one or two on the 1001 list to fill it out, but there's no need for so many. None of them are different; none of them are historically significant. I don't need to hear another one.
1 star because I'm sick of the same bloody sound day-in and day-out.
Dolly Parton
4/5
R.E.M.
5/5
Led Zeppelin
5/5
Depeche Mode
2/5
Perhaps in the right mood, this might click for me. I don’t hate the sound but it didn’t blow me away, either.
2 stars, I think; on a different day, though, maybe 3?
Ray Charles
4/5
Cyndi Lauper
3/5
The Kinks
2/5
Anita Baker
3/5
Talking Heads
3/5
Ian Dury
2/5
Lyrically, this album is quite funny. I actually lol'd several times throughout "If I Were With a Woman." Musically, however, it's dated and not good at all. I would rather this were sold as a collection of dirty limericks in a book.
2 stars.
Dennis Wilson
2/5
The xx
2/5
First two tracks are actually pretty good. The rest of the album is slow and repetitive; I was nearly convinced that they were all the same songs. Sounds like a crappy Coldplay cover band.
Fleetwood Mac
4/5
David Bowie
3/5
Kraftwerk
4/5
Beatles
2/5
There are a few super-solid tracks on this album, but being a double LP, it suffers from serious bloating. The vast majority of the songs are like listening to someone singing a recount of their acid trip to the tune of the Scooby Doo theme song.
2 stars. Just because something is historically significant doesn't mean that it's good.
Barry Adamson
3/5
Very avant- garde. Kinda reminded me of Mr. Bungle.
Björk
2/5
The Triffids
1/5
Why on earth did I need to listen to this before I die!? This is some of the most sterile, lifeless music I’ve ever heard. Most tracks sound like 80’s Contemporary Christian music.
1 star.
Patti Smith
2/5
Underworld
2/5
Boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants and boots and pants... for 73 minutes.
Also, Nine Inch Nails called, they want their album cover back.
Miles Davis
2/5
Aretha Franklin
3/5
Madonna
3/5
Black Sabbath
3/5
Fiona Apple
3/5
ZZ Top
3/5
The Prodigy
3/5
It's fantastic for me that this album came up today. You see, I'm working on a screenplay for an action movie. In the film, there's a scene where the protagonist has to investigate some mystery that's led him to a dance club. One of the bad guy's owns the club, and there's gonna be a big shootout. The club is filled with people who are dressed in comical amounts of leather and whose dancing style can only be described as writithing. When the shooting begins, the music is so loud that the idiots dancing don't even know that they're in danger. I think any one of the songs from this album would work perfectly for this scene (it's worked well for every other late 90's film that follows this cliche).
Massive Attack
2/5
Herbie Hancock
2/5
Not my jam. Love the cover art, though.
Miles Davis
5/5
With this stacked cast of musicians, this could never be anything but 5-star perfection!
Joan Baez
2/5
As a lifelong fan of traditional bluegrass music, I have already heard versions of nearly all these songs and I was kind of excited to get this album. I'd never really listened to Joan Baez much; so, this would be a first for me.
Not a fan, though. Should have been titled "Vibrato: The Album." She has to end every note with an obnoxious, ear splitting trill. You know how sometimes, you're trying to sleep in on the weekend but there's a mockingbird outside your window that won't shut up? That's Joan Baez. If Tiny Tim made a folk album, it would've sounded like this.
Kudos to her for bringing these traditional songs to the masses in the 60's, though, and for that reason alone, I'm giving it 2 stars.
Johnny Cash
4/5
2/5
Neil Young
3/5
New Order
2/5
Jurassic 5
4/5
Prince
4/5
The Police
2/5
Sly & The Family Stone
2/5
Reading through the reviews; I feel like I'm missing something. I don't get it, and I don't like it. I thought I would. I'm sorry but this doesn't do it for me at all.
I understand I'm in the minority, but I'm afraid it's a 2 for me.
Queen
3/5
G. Love & Special Sauce
2/5
Beck’s “Loser” except it’s a whole album. Not good
Simon & Garfunkel
3/5
Talking Heads
2/5
Carpenters
2/5
There's a reason this kind of music is often heard in hospitals and doctors' offices: it's bleach white and sterile - which is ironic, given that it made me sick to listen to it.
Rufus Wainwright
1/5
In high school, occasionally the drama kids would randomly stand up in the middle of the cafeteria and loudly sing songs from CATS or some other obnoxious show tunes. They would've loved this album; I do not.
It actually started off kind of okay: the first four or five tracks start out with a decent tempo. The songs are fine even if overly sincere and try-hard; I thought "I'm surprised; this might actually get a 3!" Then, the pacing takes a nose dive off a cliff and the rest of the album is a slow, torturous grind.
Even though the first few songs are tolerable, the sudden and permanent change in tempo for the rest of the album is awful. I was never gonna listen to this again anyway. 1 star.
LCD Soundsystem
2/5
Ok, Dimery; that's quite enough EDM-esque albums. Every time one of these comes up, I feel like the name of the book should be "1001 Albums You'll Hear and Wish You Were Dead."
This album isn't exactly Daft Punk or Skrillex; there's a bit of a rock edge to it that makes it slightly more palatable. There's enough techno influence, though, to make it suck.
Boston
4/5
I thought I was only familiar with the first track, "More Than A Feeling." But as each new song came on, it was "I know this one! Hey, I know this one, too!!" This album alone was hit single after hit single.
Classic rock isn't always my jam, but this album is an easy solid 4 for me.
Curtis Mayfield
4/5
Black Flag
4/5
Ray Charles
4/5
I think that "Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music" is a better album, but this is still a solid 4.
Steve Winwood
2/5
This is the soundtrack to every receptionists' lobby you've waited in for the dentist to drill your teeth or to experience some other painful medical procedure. Easy Listening at it's most basic.
Talvin Singh
2/5
First impression based on cover art: Blech! This looks like some more eurotrash, electronica/techno crap.
After listening: Yep. It is. This album is hot garbage. It’s like Enigma from the 90’s had a child with a PlayStation 1 game soundtrack.
2 stars because the track “Light” actually sounds like pretty good corporate phone hold music.
Throbbing Gristle
2/5
I suppose that Throbbing Gristle had to crawl before bands like Skinny Puppy and even Ministry could run, but this album is just racket. There's no semblance of a tune; no song structure whatsoever.
2 stars for genre historical significance, and that's being incredibly generous. Should honestly be a 1 (or a zero, if that were an option).
Jimi Hendrix
4/5
The Clash
4/5
Gorillaz
2/5
This album is so overrated.
From Wikipedia: "...the album incorporates an eclectic mix of stylistic influences, including trip hop, dub, Latin and punk rock." I can make a casserole out of hot dogs, chocolate chips, sour cream, ranch dressing, green peas, and ice cream, but that doesn't mean that I should or that it'll be good.
2 stars only because of Del Tha Funky Homosapien on "Clint Eastwood."
Deep Purple
3/5
Surprisingly good album that I wasn't expecting. "Pictures of Home" is kinda metal, and I'm into it. "Smoke on the Water" is a classic, of course, and this album is relatively short (love that about 70's rock albums).
This is a case where I wish that there were half star ratings. 4 seems a bit generous but 3 feels too low.
Bebel Gilberto
2/5
The vocals are too breathy. This album would've been better served if the vocal tracks were replaced with instrumentation.
2 stars.
Def Leppard
3/5
When I was in the 8th grade, I began to break away from top 40 pop music and get into the "heavier" stuff. I had Motley Crue's "Dr. Feelgood." My friend let me borrow and record his copy of Poison's "Flesh and Blood." I also saved up a little bit of money and I bought "Hysteria" by Def Leppard on cassette.
Then, midway through the school year, a classmate let me listen to a Metallica album he stole from his older brother. That was it for me. I begged and borrowed it from him, went home and put tape over the two ends of the "Hysteria" cassette, and I recorded over it with Metallica's "And Justice For All." 8th grade me wasn't entirely stupid; good call, kid.
Paul Simon
2/5
I dig Paul Simon but this album is not good. I'm having a hard time understanding why it's even on the list. "Cars are Cars" is one of the dumbest songs I've ever heard. The title track is okay, though; so, I'll grant it 2 stars. Could almost have been 1.
Siouxsie And The Banshees
4/5
Killing Joke
4/5
Cream
1/5
The Allman Brothers Band
3/5
Tom Waits
4/5
Beth Orton
3/5
This is the easiest 3-star review ever; I don't think I've encountered a more middle-of-the-road album yet. Perfectly fine but also perfectly forgettable.
The Smashing Pumpkins
4/5
Fantastic album, and I'm not really a Smashing Pumpkins fan. Would've been 5 stars except for Disarm.
U2
2/5
Vanilla.
Billy Bragg
3/5
Alice In Chains
3/5
I was a freshman in high school when this album came out, and I was the perfect angsty age for grunge. I don't know, then, why Alice in Chains never clicked for me. I used to actively dislike it. Upon this listen, I've softened that stance, but I'm still not a fan. It's solid, though, and I can see why most people vibe with it.
3 stars.
Fats Domino
3/5
Emmylou Harris
3/5
The title track from this album is amazing, but I'm not in love with the rest. I absolutely LOVE Emmylou's album "Cowgirl's Prayer" - it's quite easily in my top 10 favorite albums ever, but "Red Dirt Girl" didn't really do it for me.
David Bowie
3/5
Chicago
3/5
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
2/5
Mott The Hoople
2/5
If David Bowie and Bob Dylan were morphed into one person, that would suck. This album sounds like that unholy union, and it sucks too.
Dexys Midnight Runners
3/5
Coldplay
4/5
Current Coldplay is Imagine Dragons level of awful. "Parachutes" Coldplay was fantastic.
Spiritualized
1/5
Bloated and boring. Thank you, next.
Rahul Dev Burman
4/5
I enjoyed this album waaaay more than I expected to. Fun listen!
Sisters Of Mercy
4/5
Anne Rice, The Soundtrack
Jimi Hendrix
3/5
You can't make a movie about the Vietnam War without a scene shot from a helicopter while "Fortunate Son" by CCR or "All Along The Watchtower" by Jimi Hendrix is playing.
While I appreciate the genius of Hendrix, this is the second album I've gotten by the Jimi Hendrix Experience, and that's about enough hippie-dippie poetry rock for my lifetime.
Astrud Gilberto
3/5
Roxy Music
2/5
Sam Cooke
1/5
Love me some Sam Cooke. DO NOT like this live performance.
Amy Winehouse
2/5
The Lemonheads
4/5
Crosby, Stills & Nash
2/5
I didn't really have an opinion on Crosby, Stills & Nash prior to this project. I do now: I don't like it.
Hippie dippie acid rock/folk. No, thank you.
The Smiths
3/5
Sebadoh
2/5
The Band
2/5
Meh except for “The Weight”.
3/5
Al Green
4/5
Orbital
1/5
Techno? More like heck no.
Fairport Convention
3/5
The Smiths
3/5
Steely Dan
3/5
The Rolling Stones
3/5
Nina Simone
3/5
Slipknot
1/5
Blech. Mall metal. The soundtrack to "It's not a phase, mom!" I'd give it less than 1 star if I could.
Steely Dan
3/5
The Pharcyde
4/5
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
3/5
Ramblin' Jack Elliott
3/5
Arcade Fire
1/5
Yawn. Next album, please.
Air
1/5
With the exception of the first track, this album is nearly indistinguishable from every other 90's electronic dance album on this list.
Red Hot Chili Peppers
2/5
This album features 15 tracks - one for every year that Anthony Kiedis’ girlfriend has been alive.
2 stars. RHCP has some of the most juvenile, vapid lyrics in rock music.
The Notorious B.I.G.
4/5
PJ Harvey
1/5
Pretentious and fart-sniffy. Sounds like a grungy Lana Del Rey. Hard pass. One star.
Kate Bush
4/5
1/5
Two albums by PJ Harvey in one week!?!? Am I being punished for something?
The Libertines
1/5
Geez! What's with all the British Indie lately!? One star for the douchey album cover alone. Upon listening, though? Yeah. This is trash.
Soundgarden
3/5
Chris Cornell was a god-level vocalist, but if I never hear "Black Hole Sun" or "Spoonman" again, it'll be too soon. This album is okay, but Badmotorfinger is better. 3 stars.
2/5
The Beatles exist. There's no need for this bloated, boring record. 2 stars.
Dr. Octagon
5/5
One of my all-time fav hip hop albums. 5 stars.
The Beach Boys
1/5
"This is the worst trip I've ever been on."
-Sloop John B
This album sounds like a Scooby Doo episode.
Kanye West
1/5
I'm not about to give a Nazi more than 1 star. Eat shit, Ye.
Janelle Monáe
3/5
Throwing Muses
4/5
Funkadelic
3/5
Brian Eno
4/5
This was a super pleasant surprise. I had the most meditative, calm commute into work this morning listening to this album. By chance, it's raining today, and the sound of rain on the windshield and the flashing on/flashing off of brake lights all added to the mood set by this album. I can't wait to listen to this again in the car, but at night, with the windows down, with absolutely no where to be and by no particular time.
Dead Kennedys
4/5
Raekwon
4/5
R.E.M.
4/5
The Yardbirds
2/5
The Everly Brothers
3/5
I got a cavity from listening to this album.
The Flying Burrito Brothers
3/5
Oasis
2/5
Britpop sucks. 2 stars.
The Sensational Alex Harvey Band
4/5
Booker T. & The MG's
3/5
Hugh Masekela
3/5
Yes
2/5
I just don't get prog rock at all. I want to like it; while I appreciate the musicianship, it just doesn't click for me.
Bruce Springsteen
3/5
I've always loved Springsteen's solo, acoustic albums - "Nebraska" is one of my favorite albums ever - but I have never really vibed with the output made with the E-Street band. It's not awful, but it doesn't click for me, either. This one is no exception. "Promise Land" and "Factory" are a couple of standouts, but this one is largely a miss for me.
Three stars.
Can
1/5
This album sounds like the Ross Geller Experience meets Pink Floyd, and it sucks. This is the worst album that I've rec'd so far, and I've already had Throbbing Gristle.
1 lousy star and I'd give it way less if I could.
The White Stripes
2/5
Knock-knock.
Who's there?
Meg White's most complex drum beat.
------------------------------------------------------------
Seriously, though, I don't get the hype around Jack White or the White Stripes. This is music for car commercials about modest sedans that want you to think they're sporty and fun to drive.
"We're Going to Be Friends" is a decent tune, however,but I like Jack Johnson's cover of it better, though.
2 Stars.
Eurythmics
3/5
This album drug on a little too long. I don't mind Annie Lennox in small doses; this was a large dose of Lennox.
3 stars.
Billie Holiday
4/5
There will never be another Billie Holiday.
The Stone Roses
3/5
Positively unremarkable. If this were a restaurant, it'd be O'Charleys or some other casual fine dining chain. It's no one's first choice or favorite, but no one's gonna hate it, either.
A perfectly average 3 stars.
Pink Floyd
1/5
Pink Floyd is the audio equivalent of a black light poster.
1 star.
The Sabres Of Paradise
3/5
Honestly, this wasn't nearly as bad as the other reviews would have me believe. There really were several tracks that were just noise, but there were a few surprise tracks that I really enjoyed as ambient/atmospheric electronica.
Not a great album by any stretch, but not the stinker I was led to believe it would be. 3 stars.
Buzzcocks
4/5
The Last Shadow Puppets
2/5
It's giving FIFA 10 character creation menu. Boring.
2 stars.
Metallica
1/5
My truck is normal sized and it doesn't have a Gadsden flag license plate on it. I don't have any tribal tattoos on my biceps, either. Is it still okay if I listen to this album?
Seriously, how Metallica went from the technical thrash metal of "...And Justice For All" to the dumbed-down, super-simple butt-rock sound on this album still confounds me.
Music for douchebags by douchebags.
1 star.
The Mars Volta
2/5
Van Morrison
3/5
Started out kinda strong and I thought, "Cool! I'm gonna dig this one." It went on for far too long, though, and it was hard to differentiate one song from another as each track kinda blended together. The vocals, which I found charming and quirky at first, became grating and irritating.
I'll give it 3 stars, I guess, but it could just as easily be 2.
Led Zeppelin
4/5
Bruce Springsteen
3/5
Bruce Springsteen is an undeniable master storyteller, but it's always been his presentation that's failed to connect with me. The boomer nostalgia rock-and-roll sound with the saxophone and piano just doesn't work for me. I much prefer "Nebraska" which is just Bruce's gravelly voice, his wonderfully poetic lyrics, and an accoustic guitar.
3 stars.
Caetano Veloso
2/5
60's psychadelic music sucks in English; it's not any better in Spanish.
Dos estrellas.
Iron Maiden
4/5
The structure of what Iron Maiden would become is there, but this album is maybe a bit raw for what I want my IM to sound like. Super solid debut album, though!
4 stars.
ZZ Top
4/5
Supertramp
3/5
Bob Dylan
4/5
I liked this more than I thought I would; it fit a Monday vibe. I'm not a Dylan fan at all. In fact, I'd generally say I don't really like his music at all. Maybe it was just the right day and the right mood, but this clicked for me.
Air
3/5
It's whatever. It's fine. I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it. Prob won't listen to it again, though; it's just not that interesting.
I gotta wonder, though: If we're doing film scores on this list, how is this boring (yet harmless) album here and nothing by John Williams, Hans Zimmer, Alan Sylvestri, or any number of other notable film score composers who have done way better work?
3 plain vanilla stars. Yawn.
The Cure
4/5
Not my favorite album by The Cure, but still an easy 4 stars for me.
Madonna
2/5
This self-indulgent project sounds like hack karaoke performed to the SSX Tricky soundtrack.
1.5 stars rounded up - It's not completely irredeemable, but it's pretty effing bad.
Foo Fighters
4/5
Pink Floyd
2/5
I cannot think of a more over-rated band that has maintained the same level of hype as long as Pink Floyd. It's just boring stoner rock.
I'm tempted to give 1 star because I dislike Pink Floyd that much, but I'll graciously grant 2 stars because "Another Brick in the Wall" isn't complete trash.
David Holmes
1/5
EDM, techno, electronica... whatever you want to call this crap. It's just disco with a new name. It's cheesy, it's overproduced, and it all sounds like menu selection music from fifth gen video games. AND THERE'S SO MUCH OF IT ON THIS LIST!
1 star.
Bruce Springsteen
5/5
The minimalist approach from Springsteen works for me. This is one of my top 10 fav albums across all genres. Raw, sincere, well written stories from the rough side of life.
5 stars.
Jungle Brothers
3/5
I was really excited to get the Jungle Brothers today. Somehow, I'd never heard of these guys before, but I was a bit disappointed by this album. It's not bad, and it's refreshing to have wholesome lyrics with positive messages. To be honest, though, it's kind of boring. There's no single track that really stands out musically, and the group's lyrical delivery has one foot planted firmly in influence by The Sugarhill Gang.
I didn't hate it, but I see no reason to revisit it ever again. 3 very plain, beige stars.
Jean-Michel Jarre
5/5
I'm discovering, via this list, that I am really into ambient music. I've already gotten Brian Eno's "Music for Airports" and was really into it.
I really love this album, too. Makes me want to seek out more by Jarre. 5 stars!
Madonna
1/5
Seriously!? I just got "Ray of Light" like two days ago!! Eat sh*t, algorithm.
This is the absolute hottest of garbage. 1 star.
Blondie
4/5
2/5
Cool concept, but nearly unbearable to listen to.
2 stars.
The Who
2/5
I rec'd this album on the heels of another high concept album: "They Were Wrong, So We Drowned" by the Liars. While a way easier listen than that, "Tommy" is way so bloated and over-the-top. A concept that should have remained a concept. One of those ideas that stoners come up with, except this time they had the celebrity and the cash to execute the bad idea.
2 stars.
The Who
2/5
Not from my g-g-g-g-generation, and I d-d-d-d-don't vibe with it. It's from the 60's and it sounds like it.
2 stars.
Willie Nelson
5/5
The algorithm has been weird this week giving me 3 concept albums, Red Headed Stranger being the third. This is without question the one that nailed and executed the concept perfectly.
I wish I could speak more eloquently about music so that I could convey how much I enjoyed this album. On the surface level, it's just a nice sound that makes you feel like you're sitting around a campfire with an old friend. Focusing on the lyrics, you get a wonderful story told by a master storyteller.
Easily the best album I've rec'd in a while. 5 stars.
Talk Talk
2/5
My iPod tells me that I just listened to 8 individual tracks, but my ears tell me that I just listened to the same song 8 times. The vocalist sounds like if Kermit the Frog were British. I didn't hate this enough to give it one star, but it's friggin' close.
2 stars.
Country Joe & The Fish
1/5
"Hey, man, is that Freedom Rock!?"
"Yeah, man!"
"Well turn it OFF, man!"
I've had three Hendrix albums; this album is entirely unecessary.
1 star.
The War On Drugs
3/5
Beastie Boys
4/5
Neil Young
3/5
Creedence Clearwater Revival
4/5
The United States Of America
3/5
Hard to believe this came out the same year as The Beatles' "White Album" and Van Morisson's "Astral Weeks". This sounds way ahead of its time.
I got Country Joe's "Electric Music for the Mind and Body" a few days ago, and I'd MUCH rather listen to The United States of Ameria.
That said, I prob won't be listening to this again any time soon. It's a little too difficult for a casual listen.
3 stars.
David Crosby
2/5
Songhoy Blues
4/5
This is the kind of thing that I was hoping to be exposed to while doing this project; instead, it's been mostly 70's folk rock.
I cannot understand any of the words, but I can feel the emotion behind them. More of this please, algorithm; less Radiohead and less Crosby, Still, Nash, and Young.
4 stars.
Radiohead
1/5
I'm a simple man. I get Radiohead; I give one star.
Miles Davis
3/5
If I recall correctly, "Kind of Blue" was my first 5 star I gave for this project. I do not like jazz fusion, though. At all.
As background music played softly, this is tolerable. As a focused listen, however, I really just cannot. 3 stars.
2/5
Thanks to receiving this album, I've started vaping, huffing aerosol cans, and driving a beat-up Honda Civic with no muffler.
I was very relieved to find that "My Way" and "My Generation" were not cover songs. Don't get me wrong these songs and the rest of the album are straight trash, but I thought it was gonna be much worse.
I did literally laugh out loud at several points of this album. It's so edge-lord cringy, and it's hard to be intimidated by someone whose voice cracks so much.
2 stars and thanks for the laughs, Fred.
Marty Robbins
4/5
Quintessential classic country. 4 stars.
Haircut 100
3/5
The first half of this album sounded less like early 80's British New Wave and more like mid-70's Japanese City Pop, and I really enjoyed that part. The second half featured more vocals and traditional verse-chorus-verse-chorus song structure; I liked this half much less. All in all, however, it was a solid listen - especially as a background soundtrack while doing something else.
A solid 3 stars that easily could have been bumped up to 4 if it weren't for the somewhat less-than-stellar second half.
The Chemical Brothers
2/5
"Mister Anderson."
"My name is Neo."
You can call it techno. You can call it EDM. I call it trash.
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
2/5
Sleepy tunes.
2 stars.
Sex Pistols
2/5
The "punk" equivalent of a manufactured boy band. Influential? Probably. But about as punk as The Monkees or New Kids on the Block.
Everything But The Girl
4/5
Easy listening. It kinda hit the spot today, and I enjoyed this album quite a bit. Surprised me because I thought, based off the album artwork, that this was going to be some Morrissey-esque sounding music.
An unexpected 4-stars.
The Good, The Bad & The Queen
2/5
Went into this completely blind not knowing who this group was or what it was going to sound like. Got 4 songs in and thought, "This sucks."
Then I read that the band is a "supergroup" made up of members from Blur and the Gorillaz and so I thought, "Yeah, that tracks."
2 stars because the first song wasn't just the worst.
Blur
1/5
Going through this project is just listening to a battle between Radiohead and Blur, and they're trying to figure out who can make the most drab sounding crap. I'm not sure who's winning, but I'm definitely on the losing end.
1 star.
Bonnie Raitt
4/5
The Byrds
5/5
Reading through the reviews for this album make me sad. 5 stars to every whiny Radiohead album that comes along. Heaps of praise for every Brit (Shit) Pop artist featured on this list. But, all anyone can muster for this classic is "Yee haw!" and a one star review!?
Mariah Carey
3/5
Electric Light Orchestra
4/5
Laura Nyro
2/5
The music and the tunes were great; kinda gave me Carol King vibes. Too bad shrill vocals kept getting in the way.
Röyksopp
3/5
This didn't suck as bad as most of the Dance/Electronic offerings from "1001 Albums..." Decent background music for working/multi-tasking. I might actually revisit this one from time to time.
3 stars.
The Beach Boys
1/5
More like The Blech Boys.
Seriously. What am I missing? Critics and listeners alike seem to adore the Beach Boys; I don't get it. Their early stuff is just "Waaah-waaah-waaah" saccharine surf shit, and the rest is electric, psychadelic racket. I absolutely hate it.
1 star though I'd give it much less if possible.
k.d. lang
3/5
Buena Vista Social Club
4/5
I don't understand Spanish, but I didn't need to in order to feel the spirit of the music. That's been my favorite thing about this project: listening to albums that are in languages other than mine but understanding completely via the universal language of music.
4 stars.
Scott Walker
2/5
A little too dark and abstract for me. Maybe in a better/different mood this would hit differently.
2 stars.
The Rolling Stones
4/5
My fav Rolling Stones album by far.
The Beta Band
2/5
If the Gorillaz sucked worse.
The Zombies
3/5
Better than 99.9% of all the other psychedelic rock that came out around this time, but this genre doesn't do it for me.
3 stars for fantastic recording quality and sound engineering.
Thelonious Monk
4/5
Solid classic jazz album. Still waiting on Tabitha Soren to let me know who "the lonliest monk" is, though.
4 stars.
Joni Mitchell
1/5
TBH, the music on this record is really good; would have been 100 times better as an instrumental album.
1 star, Joni, because I just heard about the follow up to this album and your blackface stunts. Also, your vocals and stream-of-consciousness lyrics border on gibberish and nonsense.
David Bowie
2/5
I want to enjoy David Bowie; I really do. I feel the same way about Rush. There's something there; I know it. I'm just not hearing it or I'm missing it for some reason.
2 stars? IDK. That feels too low, but 3 seems too generous for how it didn't click with me.
Bruce Springsteen
3/5
At least this wasn't a Toby Keith post-9/11 album.
Honestly, this isn't bad but it isn't great, either. Just middle-of-the-road, early 2000's rock from a legendary singer/songwriter who is capable of much more and much better.
3 stars.
Fleetwood Mac
2/5
Simon & Garfunkel
3/5
Suicide
4/5
OutKast
3/5
Didn't love it - didn't hate it. I think I don't get it.
Nick Drake
5/5
Never even heard of Nick Drake before today. This album is positively amazing. So tranquil and beautiful. Will be listening to this again and again.
Manu Chao
2/5
As with the Buena Vista Social Club album I rec'd earlier in this project, I don't understand a word of this, and that's fine. However, counter to being able to feel the passion and the emotion behind the music despite the language barrier on the BVSC recording; this is completely devoid of any of that.
2 stars.
The Dictators
2/5
Punk rock? More like punk schlock.
Elliott Smith
3/5
If Paul Simon and Sufjan Stevens had a baby.
Brian Eno
2/5
I thought I would enjoy this; I've really enjoyed the other Brian Eno albums this project has given me. This, being a collab with David Byrne, was a bit too out there for me.
Marilyn Manson
1/5
I'm sure this album helped sell black Jnco jeans, eye makeup, and chain wallets back in the day, but this edgelord, mall-metal sh*t sucks.
The artist is a sexual predator, too. Take this off the list.
1 star.
Neil Young
3/5
Neil Young is hit or miss with me. This album's tracks are also hit or miss. The good songs are pretty good; the rest... meh.
Calexico
4/5
Cocteau Twins
3/5
Even the reverb had reverb.
3 stars.
3/5
This is the 4th Bowie album I've had. Someone please tell me what I'm missing. I don't get it. None of these have clicked; I feel like I'm supposed to dig David Bowie but I really don't.
None of the 4 albums have been terrible, but I haven't been blown away by any of them, either.
3 stars.
Creedence Clearwater Revival
4/5
Gil Scott-Heron
3/5
Siouxsie And The Banshees
3/5
Black Sabbath
4/5
4 Stars for self-titled song alone.
Big Brother & The Holding Company
2/5
I had a girlfriend once who thought she could sing like Janis Joplin; she couldn't.
And I can't with this album.
2 stars
Jeff Buckley
2/5
Music for crying and writing crappy poetry to.
This is the soundtrack to a 90's movie about a guy who is sad about his breakup with the manic pixie dream girl.
I don't know anything about his life and although from context clues, I'm gathering it's a bit of a tragic story, I really don't care to look into it.
I can sort of see why there's hype around this album because it doesn't sound like much else that was coming out at the time, but it's unjustified hype and there's a reason nothing else sounds like it. It isn't very good.
2 stars.
John Lennon
2/5
Radiohead
1/5
Puke.
New Order
4/5
Peter Tosh
2/5
Arcade Fire
2/5
Blech.
2 stars.
Ladysmith Black Mambazo
4/5
Tom Waits
5/5
One of my all time fav albums. 5 stars.
Spacemen 3
3/5
Adele
3/5
Not really my thing but Adele's got undeniable talent.
Scritti Politti
1/5
Bargain bin 80's.
David Bowie
3/5
Lou Reed
2/5
Metallica
5/5
In our high school, the walk way from the main building to the science building was lined with 4 columns. I recall watching one day as a kid who wore the same black concert t-shirt went to each one with a magic marker. On the first one, he wrote M-E. On the second, he wrote T-A. Then the third, L-L. When he came to the fourth, he realized that he'd miscalculated and the symmetry would be off. Dejected but committed, he had no choice but to finish on the last column with I-C-A.
I thought of that guy today as I listened to this album. "...And Justice For All" was my gateway into better, heavier music. I have a special fondness for this record. I wish there was a little less Lars and a little more Newstead in the mix, but I'm giving it a perfect 5 stars anyway.
Traffic
1/5
I definitely could have died a perfectly content man having never listened to this album.
1 star.
Rage Against The Machine
4/5
I hate how much more relevant this album is today than it was when I first heard it.
Green Day
1/5
God I hate Green Day. Watered-down, overproduced, pop-punk trash.
Neneh Cherry
2/5
Richard Thompson
2/5
Arctic Monkeys
2/5
Musically, I'm digging it. The vocals, though... hate 'em.
The Afghan Whigs
1/5
Suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuucks. This sounds like the opening band at shows in the 90's. It's awful, and you wish they'd shut up and get off stage so you can see the headliner.
Willie Nelson
3/5
This one didn't hit for me like "Red Headed Stranger" did.
Quicksilver Messenger Service
1/5
Enough with the psychadelic jam bands on this list! The hippies are all aging and dying off; let their crappy music die with them.
1 star.
Pixies
4/5
I prefer "Surfer Rosa" but it's the Pixies. That's almost always gonna be 4 stars at least.
Portishead
3/5
Terence Trent D'Arby
2/5
Radiohead
1/5
Puke.
T. Rex
2/5
Charles Mingus
2/5
Love some of Mingus' earlier works, but this sounds like the 60's. Rambling without any seeming purpose. I appreciate the experimentation, but it's not easy on the ears. 2 stars.
The Specials
4/5
Aerosmith
1/5
"Walk This Way" and "Sweet Emotions" are legit good songs; the rest is meh at best. Steven Tyler is a pedophile and I've always thought Aerosmith were terribly overrated. This album deserves a 2 or 3, but this is rated too high by everyone else. I'm giving it a 1 to try to bring that back down.
John Coltrane
4/5
It's John Coltrane. An easy 4 stars. I'd nearly give 5 if it weren't for the brief vocal chanting during "Acknowledgement."
Beastie Boys
4/5
I love it when an album that I'm completely familiar with comes up. I feel like I've been given a day off or something.
I know this album so well that there was no need to listen to it again, but I did. Happily.
4 stars.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
5/5
This was a surprise for me; I had honestly never heard of them and judging a book by it's cover, I was pretty sure I was going to hate it. I didn't at all. I actually liked it a lot.
The sound and the vocals are raw, for the most part, and I dig the high energy of the first half. Strangely enough, "Maps" is the song everyone else seems to dig and being one of the more polished numbers, it's my least favorite track on the album.
A super-shocked 5 stars; this album effing rules!
Leonard Cohen
2/5
ICE agents shot a woman in MN, and a fat, facist f*ck is the president of the US. There's talk of invading Greenland for some stupid reason; and regime change wars continue. Groceries are getting near unaffordable, and the homeless population continues to rise.
The world is pretty effing bleak on it's own without an accompanying soundtrack.
2 stars.
Black Sabbath
4/5
TV On The Radio
2/5
Could have possibly gotten as high as a 3 if it weren't for the vocals. The music isn't bad and I actually like parts of it; so, it's not worth a single star, either.
2-ish stars.
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
3/5
Leonard Cohen
1/5
Dustin Hoffman saying, "I'm not mad; I'm just disappointed." on the album cover is a bold choice.
Seriously, though, what's wrong with you Leonard? This is all so bleak and depressing. I can't listen to you any more.
The Velvet Underground
1/5
While I get the influence this album has had on countless artists that followed, this isn't for me.
Jah Wobble's Invaders Of The Heart
1/5
What in beans on toast is this British horse sh*t!?
Manic Street Preachers
2/5
Richey Edwards has an interesting and sad story, which in no way helps in making this album any more palatable.
The instrumentation is fine, although the sound dates itself firmly as being mid-90's with half the songs sounding like pale imitations of Nirvana's "Nevermind" from 3 years prior, but the vocals are whiny and not even kind of pleasant to listen to.
2 stars but only barely.
Elliott Smith
3/5
Suede
3/5
I see this is sitting at 3, which is exactly where this middle-of-the-road, as-meh-as-it-gets album deserves to be.
Pink Floyd
1/5
I don't own a black light poster and I don't like Pink Floyd.
Eagles
2/5
Overproduced schlock and roll.
Roxy Music
2/5
Johnny Cash
4/5
Nightmares On Wax
2/5
"Thank you for the calling Generic Corporation customer service hotline. All of our operators are assisting other customers. Please stay on the line, and a representative will be with you shortly. Your call is very important to us."
The album cover did not prepare me for listening to over an hour of hold music. 2 boring, inoffensive, non-intrusive stars.
Queen
3/5
Grateful Dead
3/5
Tom Tom Club
4/5
Wu-Tang Clan
5/5
One of, if not the best hip-hop albums of all time. 5 stars. No question.
Public Image Ltd.
2/5
Do I hate this? Jah. I do.