Great record. These guys are like the sex pistols if the sex pistols were less political, more horny (love battery, goddamn), and way more musically talented. Punchy, surprising guitar riffs and phenomenal drums

Hypnotic, stunning, eerie. Really opens up in a beautiful way when you listen closely to the subtleties. Especially liked sixtyten, roygbiv, Aquarius. As good of a headphones album as this is, it would be at its peak piped through the speakers of a dead mall

To my shame I'd never heard of the sonics. Some great classic rock and roll, I hear a direct line to The Stooges at the very least, can definitely see the protopunk vibe. Reminds me of "with the Beatles" but with sharper edges

Billy corgans voice is an acquired taste that I can't seem to acquire

Another childhood favorite. Some great songs on here (starlight, assassin, knights of cydonia) but too often overwrought/forgettable/both to make this more than 3 stars

One dimensional and annoying

Favorite Dylan, and one of the best of all time

Rapist scum

Some catchy stuff on here (title track, soda pop), but too much filler/dull ballads to get over the two star mark

Not my jam but interesting, can see how this influenced artists like Bowie and Leonard Cohen

Important album in the history of punk and rock, some absolute bangers and way ahead of it's time

Forgettable at best, cringy and fake deep at worst

We do not get Nebraska without this shit. That being said, I do understand why they got their asses beat on stage. Imagine hearing Frankie teardrop live

Pleasurable listen, a bit tiresome at times. Title track rules. Would be a good one to have on vinyl

Fun album, had never really gotten beyond schools out with Alice Cooper. Elected especially stood out as an absolute banger

Felt like Johnny Lawrence listening to this.. fun in small doses but unbelievably overwrought and corny. Photograph is a fantastic song though

So many cool albums and even artists probably could not exist without this one. Drums and bass are killer. RIP Ian Curtis

Pretty glorious at its heights, especially enjoyed repeater and greed.

Simultaneously the quintessential 60s album and ahead of its time. Sounds like the best elements of diverse contemporaries like the zombies, Fairport convention, flying burrito brothers, all rolled into one brilliant record. All killer no filler

Favorite pink Floyd and not even really close. Five stars for five masterful, cohesive, terrific songs

Great record. These guys are like the sex pistols if the sex pistols were less political, more horny (love battery, goddamn), and way more musically talented. Punchy, surprising guitar riffs and phenomenal drums

Impossible to be unbiased since Wilco has been my favorite band for years. One of four albums of theirs that's worthy of 5 stars, in my opinion. Some absolutely classic wilco tracks, from misunderstood' to 'outtasite' to 'Monday'. Some of Tweedy's most poignant lyrics ever. Some excellent deeper cuts, like 'forget the flowers' and 'what's the world got in store'. They could've maybe cut out a few tracks towards the end of the record that drag a bit and made them bonus tracks but, nonetheless, an amazing album. Early enough in the band's career, but more than any other album, feels like the perfect crossroads between where they were coming from and where they were headed.

Mixed feelings on this. Some cool tracks and experimentation but all together, pretty forgettable. Rounding up to 3 stars but probably a 2.5 for me. Not super familiar with The Fall but from what I've heard by them, this seems pretty far from their creative peak

Hell yeah. Great classic jazz album. Take Five is definitely the soaring masterpiece of the record but the whole thing is silky smooth, love strange meadow lark and kathy's waltz. Vince Guaraldi, Bill Evans, and Brubeck are the holy trinity of pretty-fly-for-a-white-guy jazz (sorry Chet Baker, please don't haunt me, your ghost would be terrifying)

A stark, often beautiful, sometimes plodding acoustic album from the man, the myth, the legend. First three tracks are stellar and some of the best songwriting in Cave's discography. It does drag somewhat in the middle for me, but ends strong with "Far From Me" and channeling Tom Waits on "Green Eyes." Overall, I do prefer nick cave when he's freaking the fuck out, but there are some gems here.

Any major dude will tell you that this is a pretty solid, entertaining, and musically impressive 70s rock record. Kudos to the hell of a gong player (gongist?) on "East St Louis Toodle-Oo"

Wanted to love this since it is undeniably groundbreaking and Ray Charles is an indisputable legend. Some lovely arrangements and beautiful vocals, especially on "Born to Lose" and "Worried Mind." Also love the rearrangements of some classic country tunes like "Your Cheatin' Heart." But this thing is so damn long, and to my ears it gets very samey, with the big band vocals growing reaally tiresome. Pleasant enough but probably an overrated record.

I mean, cmon. Gotta be one of the best classic rock records ever, almost on the strength of the first three tracks alone. "Money For Nothing" is a certified banger and the keys in "Walk of Life" give it a shiny nostaglic feel. Mark Knopfler is a terrific songwriter and even better guitarist, just such a fun listen every time. "Why Worry?" is an underrated song. The title track makes me want to rewatch The Americans

This one's got everything: smash hits, poignant stories about working class despair, smash hits with poignant stories about working class despair. Yet, like most of Bruce's discography, theres always an unshakeable sense of optimism threaded through. Times are tough and getting tougher but Born in the USA makes things better for 45 minutes every time. Favorite songs this time around: cover me, Darlington county, my hometown.

Hypnotic, stunning, eerie. Really opens up in a beautiful way when you listen closely to the subtleties. Especially liked sixtyten, roygbiv, Aquarius. As good of a headphones album as this is, it would be at its peak piped through the speakers of a dead mall

This album fuckin roooockkks. Favorite Rush record by far. Play it loud

I really enjoyed this. Interesting lyrics from someone whos clearly seen some shit, genre bending tracks, and a really cool john Lennon cover. Love how the last track just keeps going. Had only vaguely heard of Marianne Faithfull but I'll definitely listen to this again and check out more of her stuff

Feel pretty neutral about this. Some interesting percussion, impressive vocals, cool jazz guitar. Would probably not seek this out, but it was a decent listen

Not a big fan of the old Pulp. As far as britpop bands go, I put them squarely under Blur and somewhat under Oasis and Supergrass (don't know enough Suede to add them to the rankings - why do all Britpop bands have one word names?) I will admit that common people is an incredible song and maybe the Britpop anthem. Something about Jarvis Cocker and his Robert Smith-esque, whiny and precious delivery, really grates on me though. Some pretty cringy lyrics too. Outside of common people, disco 2000, and the last track, not one I care too much for

Iron Maiden meets Black Flag. Love the face melting solos, driving drums, intense bass and rhythm guitar. Vocals and lyrics are occasionally goofy but still technically impressive, appreciate the Stephen king references too. Surprised how much I enjoyed this

Great 70s pop album. Already knew the big hits, and a couple of their best are on this (Knowing Me, Knowing You and Fernando.) Enjoyed the deep cuts, like Dum Dum Diddle and Tiger, and the super random celtic vibes of the title track are great. Still will probably just throw on ABBA Gold if I'm in the mood for ABBA, but this was fun

Thought Michael Franti was just a one hit wonder with that awful song from like 2007, so this was compelling. Overall I liked this. As much as I agree with the politics here, it does come across as sanctimonious sometimes, but at its best there's some great socially conscious lyrics. It's too damn long, but I did enjoy that Dead Kennedys tribute/remix. Altogether a cool 90s hip hop project I'm glad to have heard, depressing that the US is way more fucking bleak than described in 1992

Great classic rock here. Houses of the holy - trampled - kashmir is an elite run. It does drag for me towards the end and the last side is really weak. But overall, awesome listen, sits below Led Zeppelin IV for me but still one of the band's best. Will round up from 3.5 to 4

Love some T Rex. Experts at toeing the line between Bowie-esque glam and classic rock n roll a la Elvis and Chuck Berry. Gets a bit samey but this has the best songs they ever did

Big meh. Not much here is noteworthy, it's perfectly listenable, very 2002, overproduced. Some decent songs, some snoozers, nothing that's outright bad, all pretty forgettable. Overall just an aggressively dull listening experience

Soo edgy and hateful for no reason. It's a shame because Marshall Mathers was a generational talent but in his prime he loved to waste it on trying to be as shocking as possible, to often really embarrassing results. A soundtrack for an angry suburban white kid who hates his mom and is weird about women. Give me the real slim shady and Stan and the rest can go fuck its mother, as Eminem circa 2000 would probably say. He also sounds like Linda Belcher when he sings on the godawful Kim

Had never heard any UB40 beyond Red Red Wine. I'm all for some good reggae, but goddamn this thing bored me to tears. Appreciate the lyrical content, but about as interesting as elevator music. Only exceptions are the title track, which is a cool reggae soundscape, and burden of shame.

Sweet 60s soul record. What a voice she had, really phenomenal. Nothing negative to say about this one, stone cold classic and will seek it out to own on vinyl.

East coast classic. Some great boom bap, creative samples and a nice flow throughout. Maybe hasn't aged as well as stuff from his contemporaries like Tribe and Public Enemy, and occasionally cringy lyrics, but still a fun listen and a highlight of the golden age of hip hop. Title track is an all time great

God this shit is boring. Just absolutely drags. Clapton: a confessed rapist, a loudmouth racist who made millions off of distinctly black music, a phenom guitarist, and a severely overrated artist. Harder to separate the art from the artist when the art is also mostly dull and soulless, and his guitar chops don't make up for it. First couple songs and layla are alright (not great), the rest makes for a sleepy listen. An hour and fifteen mins, could you love yourself any more? Boomer through and through.

Masterful guitar work from Slash, impressive vocals from Axl Rose. Brilliant hard rock album. First half is perfect, a couple stinkers in the second but mostly consistent. Icy and unrelenting, a snarling sonic kick in the teeth

Poetry, plain and simple. Evocative and eerie and beautiful. One of Cohen's best for sure, and on every listen I pick up on a new thing to love about it in the lyrics and arrangements. People may trash his vocals but I've always found his voice soothing, and the backing singers are exquisite. A stirring record with no skips

Could hardly believe this is a live album, the band sounds so tight. Enjoyed the hell out of this, especially loved Tiger in your tank and I've got my mojo working. There's a reason Muddy Waters is considered a blues legend, and just this alone can tell you why

Had never heard of this guy before. Given the year this came out I wonder if it was overshadowed by Dylan going electric. Just a man and his guitar, a pretty cool acoustic bluesy folk album. Nothing super special lyrically or vocally, but I love this guy's style of fingerpicking, really enjoyed the instrumental tracks especially. Might have to try to learn to play a few of these myself, although most of them are completely beyond me. Crisp and lovely acoustic guitar

I love Tom Petty, one of the best rock vocalists ever, and this is a great debut album. Starts super strong, a few forgettable tracks in the middle, but American Girl is a phenomenal finale, an amazing song. Petty was also a brilliant songwriter and that shines through on here. Only complaint is I wish some of the songs were longer, would love an instrumental freakout on Breakdown. A legend, gone too soon

This is that beep boop beep music. Only track I actually stopped and thought, 'this is cool', was philosophy by numbers. For the rest, might as well have been listening to white noise. I guess I prefer more ambient electronic stuff and less ravey. But to be fair to Orbital, my living room at 9 AM is neither the time nor place for this kinda music

Aw hell yeah. I'm convinced Jack White would rise to the top in any era of rock music. One of the best guitarists ever and I love his strange, warbly vocals. I also dont stand for Meg White slander, her percussion is perfect on this, and her lead performance on the atmospheric "In the cold cold night" is a highlight. They created an international anthem that's still chanted in stadiums around the world with Seven Nation Army and that's not even the peak of the album. Ball and Biscuit into Hardest Button goes incredibly hard. I also really enjoyed the deep cuts like Little Acorns. I think White Blood Cells is still my favorite White Stripes release, but this is probably their all-around best

Beck is a man who can't pick a lane, to glorious results on this one. Love that I can hear the influence of both The Beastie Boys and Hank Williams on this, mixing country and hip hop before it was cool. He hasn't made an album I've cared about in over a decade, but this is prime Beck and its a lot of fun.

Man, this is such a hard one to rate. Biggie Smalls was, or at least presented himself, as a misogynistic, violent bully, and that makes a lot of this a bleak and difficult listen. But, Ready To Die has top tier production and beats, and Biggie was fantastic at what he did. On a bunch of these songs, you're right there looking over his shoulder. He was a master of the craft, a storyteller, and his flow and technical skill is basically unmatched. Where Eminem is edgy for the sake of outrage, Biggie was at least honest, laying out his nihilistic and hateful worldview and seeming to mean every word. To be fair he grew up working class in 80s NYC, height of the crack epidemic, and that could darken anyone's perspective. As cringy as One More Chance and Me and my Bitch are, songs like Machine Gun Funk, Juicy, and Who Shot Ya are all time rap greats. He lived by the gun and died by it far too young, and I dont know how anyone could've been shocked if they'd heard this heavy, cold, cruel gangsta rap classic.

Was looking forward to this one, I love Everybody's talkin but had never heard much else from Nilsson. Way more Beatleesque than I expected. Serious shades of McCartney especially on Down and Jump into the Fire (fantastic tune), which were by far my favorites. Was taken aback by the schmaltz of Without You and the irritating Coconut, so that knocks it down a few pegs for me. Overall, a pleasant and tasteful 70s record, but dont think everything on here is essential.

So has everything.. gigantic pop hooks on Sledgehammer and Big Time, evocative lyrics, percussion and vocals from Brazil to West Africa, Kate Bush. Pretty easy 5 stars, sound is very 80s but in the best way

I'd never really given much UK hip hop or grime a chance for some reason, but wow, this is great. Propulsive beats, clever samples (queens of the stone age, nice), high energy delivery. Perfect soundtrack for my run. I even enjoyed some of the little skits which I rarely do on rap albums, the one with the American gamer edgelord was kinda funny. The two track run of Man into Shutdown made me a Skepta fan, goes hard. Wish it went a little deeper lyrically, a bit heavy on the bravado, and theres one or two flops, especially Ladies Hit Squad, but he's clearly a serious talent

Holy shit. What the hell is this? Had only ever heard Pet Sounds, and while I think its a great record, always felt like it was a bit overrated. But this is something else. They go full psychadelic on this, and I love it. Listening to this felt like watching a David Lynch movie, with the sunny, clean cut American pop veneer and layers of gloom and darkness underneath. The juxtaposition of the amazing album cover with a title like Surfs Up really sums that up. Definitely planning on repeat listens. RIP to the original king of pop

This has superstition on it, so basically an automatic five stars. One of the best songs of all time, and the best sesame street performance of all time (look it up, its awesome.) First half is great, but I absolutely love the second half of Talking Book, every song is essential. I would put Innervisions and Songs in the Key of Life ahead of this one personally, but its a super strong beginning to a triumphant decade for Stevie Wonder

I liked this, but honestly thought it would be more interesting. Family affair is a great tune, love some of the instrumentals like the bass line on brave & strong, enjoyed the experimental funk country of spaced cowboy, but a good few of these songs kind of meander to nowhere rather than build into something special. Does get better in the second half, maybe needs more listens for better appreciation

Starting with the positives - kudos to the bassist, some really great, creative basslines throughout the whole thing. I also enjoyed the punky, offkilter drums. But oh my God, john lydon wailing rubbish like an alleycat made this damn near unlistenable at times. The prick couldn't hold a note with a gun to his head, and it just grates. If they had a different vocalist and written more interesting lyrics, would probably have really enjoyed this, but was a fairly insufferable Sunday afternoon soundtrack thanks to johnny rotten. Best tracks are graveyard, socialist, and radio 4 because he doesn't utter a word

Tribe is one of my favorite hip hop acts ever, and easily my favorite hip hop group, so was psyched to get this one. I always have listened to Low End Theory and Midnight Maurauders more, but this is an insane debut. These guys just loved listening to music and making music, and its all so vibrant. The joy of creating this record shines through. The witty lyricism of Q Tip, unique flow of Phife Dawg, and production skills of Shaheed are on full display. Fun samples throughout the whole thing. Even on the goofier tracks like El Segundo and Ham N Eggs, the precision and skill is unmatched. Foundational album right here

The stuff I can remember people saying and writing about Courtney Love is just unhinged misogyny. Any male punk/alt artist with bad behavior is glorified, but I've seen her name dragged through the mud way too often. Hole is a great band, and this is a great, pop-tinged grungy rock album. Some songs are kinda samey, but plenty of cool stuff. Liked Malibu and Boys on the radio especially, pure 90s alternative

Exceedingly rare for an artist to continue to make such compelling, inventive music at the end of their career. Doesn't reach the heights of Blackstar but some really good tracks here, I even liked it more than some 80s Bowie albums (and of course more than all the 90s stuff). Love is Lost is a standout track

Fun at times but cringey, annoying, and unlistenable more often Yo yo yo yo yo yo no

Very pleasant on the ears. I had only heard girl from Ipanema, so most was new to me. Bossa nova is soothing as hell, and I can appreciate this, but I struggled to really distinguish between songs at times, didn't find it super interesting. Would not go so far as to dismiss it as muzak though.

Very sonically interesting in a subtle way, definitely warrants more than one listen. Had only heard individual songs by Lambchop and liked them, so great to listen through an album. Pretty cool stuff, hooked by the various instruments and strange directions the songs would take that I barely could focus on any lyrics, but the ones I caught were weird and intriguing

Love this. You can just hear how great the band's chemistry is on almost every song. Kind of confused why Brass in pocket is considered one of their best songs, its alright but far from my favorite here. Think the energy they bring on songs like tattooed love Boys and the wait is brilliant

This is fine. Whirly-bird is a cool track. Can picture a guy born in like 1930 listening to this on an old timey phonograph, telling me they dont make music like they used to, snapping his fingers along to the beat and hollering "Hot damn these cats are cookin". Nothing against it, I guess I just prefer other forms of jazz to big band/swing, so I'm glad I listened to at least realise that.