270
Albums Rated
3.35
Average Rating
25%
Complete
819 albums remaining
Rating Distribution
Rating Timeline
Taste Profile
2010s
Favorite Decade
Soul
Favorite Genre
UK
Top Origin
Wordsmith
Rater Style ?
26
5-Star Albums
3
1-Star Albums
Breakdown
By Genre
By Decade
By Origin
Albums
You Love More Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Steve McQueen
Prefab Sprout
|
5 | 2.98 | +2.02 |
|
Winter In America
Gil Scott-Heron
|
5 | 3.25 | +1.75 |
|
B-52's
The B-52's
|
5 | 3.3 | +1.7 |
|
xx
The xx
|
5 | 3.37 | +1.63 |
|
Different Class
Pulp
|
5 | 3.42 | +1.58 |
|
Live!
Fela Kuti
|
5 | 3.44 | +1.56 |
|
In The Court Of The Crimson King
King Crimson
|
5 | 3.6 | +1.4 |
|
good kid, m.A.A.d city
Kendrick Lamar
|
5 | 3.61 | +1.39 |
|
To Pimp A Butterfly
Kendrick Lamar
|
5 | 3.62 | +1.38 |
|
Band On The Run
Paul McCartney and Wings
|
5 | 3.66 | +1.34 |
You Love Less Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Welcome to the Afterfuture
Mike Ladd
|
1 | 2.56 | -1.56 |
|
Licensed To Ill
Beastie Boys
|
2 | 3.55 | -1.55 |
|
Parachutes
Coldplay
|
2 | 3.46 | -1.46 |
|
Punishing Kiss
Ute Lemper
|
1 | 2.4 | -1.4 |
|
Hybrid Theory
Linkin Park
|
2 | 3.39 | -1.39 |
|
Darklands
The Jesus And Mary Chain
|
2 | 3.23 | -1.23 |
|
Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo
Devo
|
2 | 3.13 | -1.13 |
|
Porcupine
Echo And The Bunnymen
|
2 | 3.09 | -1.09 |
|
Teenage Head
Flamin' Groovies
|
2 | 3.03 | -1.03 |
|
Talk Talk Talk
The Psychedelic Furs
|
2 | 3.03 | -1.03 |
Artists
Favorites
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Beatles | 2 | 5 |
| Kendrick Lamar | 2 | 5 |
| Stevie Wonder | 3 | 4.33 |
| Radiohead | 3 | 4.33 |
5-Star Albums (26)
View Album Wall
Popular Reviews
Culture Club
4/5
For me, the original release is a 4.5. It's super catchy, it's a fun record that's light but filled with hits. The vocals are excellent, the production is very good and the right mix of 80s pop. The synths work superb and mix well with the horns and the voices. Most of the album is pretty good, but the standouts were "Karma Chameleon", "It's a Miracle", "Black Money" and "Miss Me Blind".
1 likes
Soul II Soul
2/5
Gosh, this one was pretty monotonous. The vibe isn't bad, and when it works it's pretty catchy ("Keep On Movin'"), but it's like listening to the same song many times over, I felt stuck in a loop. Some variations are particularly bad, like "Holdin' On", in which the male vocals are so stale and bland. "Feeling Free" was pretty good, the beat is nice and the change in vibe was very necessary.
1 likes
The Smashing Pumpkins
4/5
A great album, very grungy and mixes very well loud with quieter moments. I loved the dirty, distorted tone of the electric guitars and Corgan's singing, they create such a grungy vibe. The album also works when slowing it down a bit, like "We Only Come Out At Night", a much more mellow track.
This album is packed with amazing songs, I loved: "Zero", "Here Is No Why", "1979", "X.Y.U", "Porcelina Of The Vast Oceans", "Bodies", "Bullet with Butterfly Wings" and "Tonight, Tonight". These were the standouts, but there are many great songs. The whole first half of the first album is just back to back perfection.
That being said, I find double albums are always hard because you have to make a project that's cohesive and interesting throughout the whole duration (2 hours here). In this case, I understand why they did it, with the amount of material they had it's justified for it to be so long. But, it does get overlong, having a couple of fillers and overall not all the songs are that strong. I feel that if they had just picked the absolute best songs, they could've had a 5 star perfect album.
It's still a very good album, and I really liked it, but a more focused version of the album would've been perfect.
1 likes
CHIC
4/5
Rodgers and Edwards are geniuses and the album is just exquisitely well done.
The instrumentation is just heavenly. The guitar playing by Rodgers is perfect for the vibe, and the bass lines are so good, Edwards was a truly amazing bass player. The singing is also just right. And the strings parts are well written and bring the tracks together.
In terms of favourites, the album just starts so strong: "Good Times" is an amazing dance tune, and it's immediately followed by "A Warm Summer Night", which is just a beautiful composition. “What About Me” is also great, just super vibes.
This is probably some of the best disco has to offer, and it's pretty damn good. The record can be a touch repetitive at times (maybe that’s just part of how Disco goes), and doesn’t quite match strength of its opening, but it’s nevertheless a great and cohesive record.
1 likes
Einstürzende Neubauten
1/5
That was certainly an experience. Not my cup of tea though. I thought it sounded like having a bad trip and ending up in a construction site in Berlin in the 80s.
They're certainly bold, angry and uncompromising. There's an argument to be made about the cultural significance of this record, what it represents given it's place and time, and how it upsets certain expectations we've come to develop around what modern music should sound like.
Beyond that, though, there must be something of substance. It might be the language barrier (even though I gave it a quick read to see what the songs were about). But musically this was rough and an almost punishing listen. A lot of it is on purpose, they sound deliberately transgressive. But as a listener, what do you get out of it? The vocal quality is very lacking, melodically it's very poor (given it's minimalist approach) and even though it's heavily percussive and noise-based, it didn't feel as inventive or clever as it could have, particularly for such an experimental record.
I'll give experimental art a try simply to see what it brings to the table, but with this one I don't feel like there's any sort of pay-off at the end of the album. Maybe there's one after successive listens, maybe the lyrics hold deeper meanings that I missed, maybe I'm not such a big fan of industrial/noise and this isn't for me. Or maybe this is just a bunch of distorted construction noise with someone screaming on top of it.
Maybe all of that is true. But in the end, I just didn't like it enough to give it another go.
1 likes
1-Star Albums (3)
All Ratings
Curtis Mayfield
4/5
Funky, bold and simply great music. Excellent.
Pink Floyd
5/5
A beautifully progressive mixture of just enough rock, contemplative atmosphere and striking lyrics.
Aretha Franklin
4/5
Cohesive, soulful and thematically bold. Aretha's voice and her chorus are beyond excellent and the instrumentation complements it perfectly. Starting with a song as powerful as Respect makes it fizzle out a bit after that song. Great closer.
Cocteau Twins
3/5
This album is a mood perfectly distilled into a musical project. Atmospheric and innovative, it can feel monotonous at times.
Bob Dylan
4/5
A landmark record, perfectly weaves stories and concepts into creative lyricism. Never dull and filled with catchy rock-and-roll tracks that complement Dylan's unmistakable voice.
Sam Cooke
3/5
Great vocal work by Cooke, you can feel the rawness of his singing and his ability to connect with the crows. That being said, beyond Cooke's exceptional singing, not much else was a standout.
Derek & The Dominos
4/5
A great Blues Rock album, Clapton's guitar playing is simply amazing and Layla is one of the great rock songs of all time.
The Specials
2/5
I didn't actively dislike it but it just felt very derivative and unpolished at times (although that might be part of the point with Ska). Stereotype is a stand-out, but several other songs could've used some polishing (eg. I can't stand it). Overall, just not my cup of tea.
Beastie Boys
2/5
I love Hip-Hop and this album's influence is undeniable.
It remains an interesting and occasionally hard-hitting blend of Rap Rock,
but it hasn't aged perfectly and has serious gaps.
The obvious example is "Girls", which is lyrically very poor, the production is frankly appalling and it essentially cuts the album in half as some sort of low-quality interlude.
"The new style" and "Posse in effect" remain good, but the rest is just a bit too much "Party Rap", and while it was innovative back then, it hasn't help up that well for me.
Iggy Pop
4/5
A bold, innovative piece of rock that remains interesting and very weird at times. It might be too strange at times, and Iggy's singing, while unmistakable, is also very imperfect. But on the good side, it just works when leaning into rocks weird side, with instrumentation that would clearly influence a lot of the future of the genre. "Mass production" is the standout track for me.
The Jam
3/5
It's a nice album, very fitting of the UK postpunk sound, mixed with some touches of funk. "That's entertainment" is obviously the most popular song, but it also contains a couple of "hidden gems", like "Set the house ablaze" (which would later be sampled by Bloc Party) or "Scrape away", which was my personal favourite. While I found it a good album, it didn't blow me away.
Scritti Politti
2/5
It's 80s pop in a very distilled, focused way. Liked the instrumentation and the vocals, but for me it doesn't stand out from the sea of 80s pop out there.
Beck
3/5
I really liked this album, it has lovely guitar passages, great singing by Beck, and it just feels so personal and vulnerable. I also loved the production, mixing folk with more experimental sounds finding a great balance. "Lost Cause" is the obvious standout.
Digital Underground
4/5
The production is simply amazing, the innovative mix of hip-hop and jazz, the sampling and the small musical moments like the ending of "Freaks of the Industry" are really good. Musically, this album is simply flawless. Shock G is great, charismatic and creates an interesting character in Humpty. The lyrics and flows are also very well crafted, and the group's talent, particularly Shock G's are undeniable.
The biggest flaw I find with the album is the execution of the concept. The concept in itself is interesting enough, and the album cohesively builds around varied commentary about sex. But not all of it has aged too well. While the parody and exaggeration are certainly a big part of the concept, I feel like they miss the mark with the tone in some parts, for example, the women in cages in "Gutfest '89".
There is relevant commentary about safe sex for example, and it's an interesting exploration of sexuality through a concept album, which is far ahead of its time in my opinion. To do this in an album that's musically so good should merit 5 stars. But I can't take away from the fact that what was an forward look on sex in the 80/90s, today just feels outdated in places that are too relevant to ignore.
Mike Ladd
1/5
While Mike Ladd can certainly write good lyrics, and can create very ambitious and moving music (To the moon's contractor), the album wasn't really that enjoyable. I get the experimental spirit, but the production felt lacking to me. The flows of Ladd also weren't my cup of tea, and there slightly off tune singing moments felt so jarring (Takes more than 41) that I just couldn't really get into the album. The best track for me is Airwave Hysteria, with ambitious but tight production, great verses from Ladd and just enough experimentation to push the genre but at the same time create a good song.
EDIT: Over time, I've reflected on my initial review, and frankly, this record is a one star. There's very little that's salvageable here and with time it's just gotten worse. To add insult to injury, I've become aware that while this album is included, "Madvillainy" is not, which feels criminal to say the least. To be honest, off the top of my head I can think of 20 Hip Hop albums better than Mike Ladd's.
I therefore retroactively adhere to the french theory: "Mike Ladd est le fils de Robert Dimery".
Alice In Chains
4/5
Dirt is truly a great album, one of the hallmarks of Grunge and Hard Rock, and has stood the test of time flawlessly. The vocals are crisp, well delivered and hard hitting. Remarkably, the vocal range allows for catchy rock choruses like "Rain when I die" and mellow moments like the beginning of "Down in a hole". The instrumentals are also great, with a powerful guitar with an exquisite distinctive Grunge tone. Drums, bass and the mix work perfectly too.
There are a couple of moments that take away from the album. The singing on the "God Smack" verses doesn't fully stick the landing with that vibrato-y delivery. After that, we get "Untitled", a weirdly placed interlude that feels a bit out of place and mostly breaks the momentum towards the end.
The standout tracks for me are the excellent "Would?" and "Rain When I Die".
Steve Earle
2/5
Country music is not my favourite, and while this record isn't bad, it certainly isn't my favourite. It feels like the soundtrack you'd play wandering around rural United States. It's not too dense and doesn't overstay its welcome, so it's definitely an accessible record. Earle's songwriting isn't bad, and the instrumentals are exactly what you'd expect out of a country record.
In terms of songs, my favourite was "Think It Over", it made me feel like listening to the Fallout New Vegas country radio again. The worst one by far for me was "Little Rock n' Roller", super boring, sappy and overlong.
Roxy Music
3/5
This is a good album, no doubt about it. The instrumentation is great, balancing catchiness and boldness. The sax and keys are very good too. My only drawback, but in occasion a big one, is the singing. I like Ferry's lyrics, but the vibrato-y singing gets a bit too much, in "Strictly Confidential" it's just excessive.
My favourites were "In Every Dream Home a Heartache" and "The Bogus Man", bonus points for being in succession and just for how well they blend calm moments with grandiose instrumentation, the ending of both songs are very well executed. The delays in "For Your Pleasure" are also so well done.
Brian Eno
3/5
Eno is just super talented and his vision for this project is so interesting, particularly the second half. Instrumentally, this album is impeccable. It starts as more upbeat, and slowly transitions towards more laid back and more experimental songs, which is where the album shines the most.
In this second half, I also appreciated much more how Eno's voice worked with the instrumentation. My favourite song was "Julie With", a delicate song where the synthesizers and Eno's voice mix perfectly, with a beautiful guitar towards the end.
Overall, I found it a very good album, specially thanks to it's second half.
Iron Maiden
3/5
While I'm not a super fan of Iron Maiden or this record in specific, I can see why it's one of the most influential albums for Heavy Metal. The songs are well composed and it's a very consistent album. I liked McBrain's drumming, and while Dickinson's singing isn't my favourite, it works very well and remains iconic.
In terms of themes, I liked how varied they are and how much commentary they offer, although they could be connected a bit better between each other. Also, the patronizing take in "22 Acacia Avenue" hasn't aged very well in my opinion, which is kinda sad because the song in itself is very good.
My favourite song was "Run for the hills", which remains a classic, hard-hitting heavy metal with interesting (and critical) lyrics about colonialism.
Prefab Sprout
5/5
This record hit me like a ton of bricks, what a beautiful album. It's my favourite record so far that I've discovered here.
Almost the entirety of the album is just pure pop bliss, the songwriting is so beautiful and their singing and lyrics hit just right. I loved the synths and the mixes too, they set the ambience perfectly.
Honestly, from "Bonny" to "Desire As" is just an unskippable run of great songs. My 2 absolute favourites were "Bonny" and "When Love Breaks Down". My only criticism is that neither the opener nor the closer are as good as the rest of the album, which takes away from it just a bit.
Overall, it's a great album, a criminally underrated pop gem.
David Bowie
3/5
Bowie is a great songwriter, I liked the Rock vibe and how he manages to still keep it experimental even in his 25th record. I didn't find it a landmark record, but it's certainly not a bad one.
The lyrics are bold and interesting takes on varied topic, going from Love to The Fall of the Berlin Wall, passing through School Shootings and War.
My favourites were "How Does The Grass Grow?" and "The Stars (Are Out Tonight)".
Jimi Hendrix
5/5
This album is a masterpiece. It's been said a thousand times before, and it's still true.
The songwriting is great. He touches topics ranging from sex to loneliness, mixed with some mysterious cosmic imagery at times. For all of these, he writes and delivers with a distinctive style that works just great with the instrumentation.
And the most important part, the music. Hendrix's guitar ability is legendary, and it's on full display in this album, gracing the different songs with varied solos, mixing styles and effects, always to great effect. The other instruments are all on par too, excellent drumming and the organ playing is also top-tier.
The album is filled with great songs (and some short interludes). My favourite was "Voodoo Chile", a 15-minute masterpiece that displays all of Hendrix's talent, and is also one hell of a song. "1983" and "All Along the Watchtower" are amazing too.
If I had to pick a least favourite, I'd say "Little Miss Strange" wasn't as good as the rest (or maybe it's because it comes right after "Voodoo Chile"). A bit too light, pop-oriented when compared to the rest of the record. Also, I didn't like Redding's singing too much.
Hendrix's style and musicality are just top tier, and this album showcases it throughout the whole record. A testament to Hendrix's talents.
The Jesus And Mary Chain
2/5
I found it a very short and simple record, a very consistent 80s UK indie rock/pop sound, instrumentation and vocals just on par for the genre. It's not bad, but it's certainly not outstanding either.
It's very stripped down, a bit minimal even. My favourite song was probably Darklands.
Rufus Wainwright
2/5
Want One is a bit dramatic and grandiose, it's ambitious and bold, and feels personal too. It does feel a bit too much at times, and at other times, it felt a bit boring.
"Go or Go Ahead" was pretty interesting, a very powerful song about addiction, Wainwright delivers it well with his distinctive singing style and the backing vocals are pretty good, specially during the chorus. "14th street" was nice too.
Linkin Park
2/5
I love Rap and I really like Rock, but Rap Rock has always been a genre I don't really like. With this in mind, I had mostly avoided Linkin Park, as I had already heard a couple of songs by them and never really liked them. This is my first time listening to a Linkin Park record front to back.
I gotta say that I expected worse, but I wasn't converted. The instrumentals aren't bad, they manage to get pretty heavy guitar lines going and the drums aren't bad either. The little electronic touches and the scratching didn't really add much for me.
In terms of the singing, I found Shinoda to be really lacking. His delivery is very flat, and he's repetitive and very simple in his lyricism. I don't think he's good as a singer, a rapper, or a writter (at least in this record). Bennington, on the other hand, while not my favourite vocalist, has a much higher level, more varied delivery, and really brings the songs alive. I liked how open about their struggles the band is throughout the lyrics and topics of the songs, although the lyrics are a bit simple.
I think my favourite song was "Points of Authority", I felt like Shinoda's contribution didn't break up the flow of the songs that much, the chorus is pretty good and the metallic snare during the chorus was a pretty cool detail. Dislike the scratches but they're all over the album so not much to do about that.
While I understand that part of the appeal at the moment was the whole rapping over a metal-ish track, I think that this record would've been much better if they just went full nu-metal with only Bennington as a vocalist. For what it is, I think there are better records I'd rather revisit than this one.
Duke Ellington
3/5
Ellington and Company are simply spectacularly jazzy in this record, the performances and compositions here are excellent. Ellington is obviously great, but many others shine as well in different songs. My favourite was "Festival Junction" and "I Got It Bad" was also excellent, loved the slower vibe and the sax playing by Hodges is perfect, same with "Jeep's Blues". Gonsalves is also excellent in "Diminuendo in Blue". My least favourite moments where when the record gets more "swing-y", like in "Newport Up". It's not bad, just not my favourite.
As an album, it's a bit different than most other records, it's more than 2 hours long, and being a live record, it has a lot of interludes in the form of talking, presentations and crowd interaction. The complete edition also has a fair amount of repetition in the second disc. Having this in mind, I think you have to have at least some taste for jazz and a bit of patience to enjoy the record cover to cover. I also found opening with "The Star Spangled Banner" was a bit too much.
Overall, this is a historic piece of jazz, and justifiably so. But as an album, it still has a bit of room for improvement in terms of flow and removing some of the repetition.
Coldplay
2/5
Looking back, it's hard to grasp the change Coldplay have had, and it's a bit difficult to separate their work from the image they've built over the years (not too loved by music fans, I'm no exception). That being said, I tried to be as objective as possible.
Parachutes is a very 2000s mix of folk, pop and a bit of rock at times. I have to say that I expected to dislike this record more than I did. I feel the record works best when it leans into more simple compositions. Martin has some good vocal performances, especially when he sounds a bit more raw (like in "Shiver" or "We Never Change"). This, coupled with the acoustic guitar, is the strong point of the album for me, when it turns almost into folk, feeling more personal and almost vulnerable.
I think my favourite song was "Shiver", good performance from Martin, good chorus and a nice guitar riff. "Trouble" was good too. Starting with a simple piano ballad, the song remains almost minimalist until we reach the chorus, where it's a bit crammed but still not bad.
"Yellow" is a very difficult song to judge, as it has been overplayed until it developed a life of its own. Within the record, it's one of the most energetic tracks. The chorus is as catchy and memorable as ever, although the lyrics are overly simple for my taste (as in most of the songs, being honest).
Most of the other songs, I didn't particularly care for. I didn't actively dislike them (besides maybe "Spies" and "Everything's Not Lost"), but I found them bland and forgettable.
Overall, it's a pretty tight record, a consistent sort of folk-pop with not too deep lyrics. Besides having pretty big radio hits that remain catchy, I don't think it's a particularly remarkable record, but it's also not as bad as Coldplay's fame would suggest. I think this record, while not spectacular, does suggest Coldplay could've had a life beyond the often overproduced and saccharine pop they chose in later projects.
The Band
3/5
I liked it but I didn't love it. I didn't find it particularly outstanding, but not bad at all. Its a mix of rock/americana, with some interesting choices from time to time.
Looking at it now, it's nothing you haven't heard before. But, I think an important part of the value of this record is its moment in time, in 1968 this was innovative songwriting and composition. Clapton mentions this album as inspiration for "Leila", and several other bands were deeply influenced by it.
By far my favourite song was "This Wheel's on Fire". Great songwriting and storytelling, and the instrumentation is so innovative and ahead of its time, the use of the Rocksichord is so weird and interesting. "The Weight" is also outstanding, a classic track. "Tears of Rage" is also good. I also liked Dylan's influence in the songwriting.
Pulp
5/5
This album is britpop distilled. It feels like a landmark of the genre, and it would clearly influence more recent acts like "Arctic Monkeys" in style and delivery.
I really like Cocker's singing, very distinctive UK britpop style. His whole attitude too is refreshingly brazen, finding a mix of sleazy, insightful and sometimes energetic.
His songwriting and delivery are also super interesting, especially in "I Spy", the mix of singing and whispering displays great range and creativity.
I really liked "Disco 2000","I Spy", "Monday Morning" and "Underwear". "F.E.E.L.I.N.G.C.A.L.L.E.D.L.O.V.E." was also amazing, grandiose and I loved the strings here and in "Something Changed". I actually liked most of the songs.
At first, I thought I'd give this record 4 stars. It doesn't really feel like a "masterpiece" or like a truly cohesive classic album. But I've been listening to this on repeat for the past +24 hours and it turns out I really really like it. To me it feels like an album that might be a bit imperfect but that you like so much you're willing to overlook its flaws.
Don't expect a perfect album, but expect the catchiest and most insightful Britpop has to offer. For me, that's worth 5 stars.
Deep Purple
4/5
I've never been much of a fan of Live albums but I have to say this one is very very good. They really perform the hell out of these songs, the album flows pretty well, and particularly Disc 1 (the original release) is pretty a easy and rewarding listening of hard rock.
What makes this album stand out is how excellent they were live. They work really well together, the solos are absolutely amazing and the vocals are up there as well.
This is something that could only really happen on a Live Record, different solos and performances from the studio version that take it somewhere else. Every song has an extra 2 or 3 minutes that make that specific version unique and interesting.
I listened to the 2014 Deluxe edition, and I felt that maybe three versions of "Black Night" and two of "Speed King" in Disc 2 were a bit too much.
But the original release is probably one of the best live albums ever made, simply because of how powerful the performances are and how good Deep Purple were at that moment.
Paul Revere & The Raiders
3/5
It's not a bad album, very classic rock and roll, sounds a bit Beetle-esque at times. It wasn't great, but it wasn't bad at all. They mix slow ballads with more energetic tracks pretty well, the former being where the record works best for me. They're also not afraid to get a bit weird. They're really innovative, particularly for the 60s.
My favourite was "Ballad of a Useless Man" and "I'm Not Your Stepping Stone". I also loved "All I Really Need Is You", the guitar is pretty weird and the scale they use is quite interesting. Same with "Louie, Go Home".
"Melody for an Unknown Girl" is very pretty, it's also funny with the whole "this songs has no words...".
Primal Scream
4/5
I really liked this album, it's a very interesting mix of progressive/experimental rock and some sort of trip hop/dub. It works really well, the instrumentation and the production (particularly the effects) are excellent. The singing also tends to add an interesting character to the songs.
The most remarkable aspect of the album for me is how innovative they are and how they really push for a niche that works.
I must say that with a name like "Primal Scream" I expected Heavy Metal or something more akin to the name. Also, I didn't really care much for Gillespie's previous work with Jesus And Mary Chain, so it's nice to see a change in style.
My favourites were "Burning Wheel" and "Trainspotting", loved the mixing of the drums on the latter. "Kowalski"'s bassline is also pretty good. "Medication" felt a bit out of place, it was a bit too straightforward when compared to the rest of the album.
Black Sabbath
4/5
This is a great record, Black Sabbath show great range and versatility. They're able to go heavy on tracks like "Under the Sun", but also write these beautiful slow moving pieces like "Laguna Sunrise".
Really liked the lyricism and topics: wealth, religion and apparently a lot of drugs. Osbourne really gets personal at times and it serves the music really well.
My favourites were "Changes", which manages to find the middle ground and also make a catchy classic, and "Under the Sun/Every Day Comes and Goes", which is super heavy.
Ozzy's distinctive voice works well within the tracks. The production and instrumentation are just right, mixing both well for laid-back tracks and making harder tracks hit even harder with great tone for the guitars and the drums. The drumming is also excellent, particularly in "Under the Sun/Every Day Comes and Goes".
Overall, I really liked it, a very complete, versatile and consistent record.
Roxy Music
4/5
I found Country Life to be a much better record than "For Your Pleasure". Here, they lean much more into the rock side of their music. They also manage to keep the record interesting and innovative but accessible at the same time. The first half of the album was the strongest for me.
It does get a bit weird around the middle, but it still works for me. No Brian Eno also means that the weirdness isn't as experimental as before, but this also helps keep the record grounded in Art Rock territory.
One big improvement is Ferry's singing, he manages to complement the music much better, dialing down the excessive vibrato singing heard in "For Your Pleasure".
My favourite track was "Out Of The Blue", and "Prairie Rose" was great too, the guitar work on both tracks is excellent, and the drums are pretty good.
Dr. Dre
4/5
A classic hip-hop record, Dr. Dre's production is the obvious standout, pushing G-Funk to new heights. This aspect of the album is top-tier: fat basslines, sharp drums and Parliament-Funkadelic samples work perfectly to add some funk to the tracks.
Rap-wise, Snoop Dogg plays a major part, and he's in top form here. Dr. Dre, while not particularly remarkable as a rapper, delivers good verses with proper flow that fit the music perfectly.
Content-wise, this is Gangsta Rap at its prime. While not particularly deep, it does capture an image of their life and struggles: the beef with Ruthless Records, the violence they're immersed in, and occasional mentions of the L.A. riots.
Of course, being '90s Hip-Hop, not all of the lyrics have aged well, as the glorification of gun violence and misogyny were a significant feature of the lyrical content. "Bitches Ain't Shit" is the most obvious culprit for the latter, being both a controversial closer and an excessive, almost 5-minute track of degrading women one way or another. It's been discussed a lot over time, and while I think there are more complex takes on the topic (See bell hooks "Sexism and Misogyny: Who Takes the Rap?"), it doesn't take away from this track being a textbook example of misogyny in rap.
It's difficult to pick favourite songs, because it has some classic tracks. "Nuthin but a G Thang" is probably one of the best hip-hop songs in history. Aside from that, I loved "Let Me Ride", especially because of the production and the sample. The "$20 Sack Pyramid" is a great skit. The sex skit, on the other hand, is completely unnecessary.
Overall, it's a great album. It's a classic that pushes hip hop into a new direction, perfectly encapsulating all that G-Funk and Gangsta Rap represent.
Supergrass
3/5
The record is nice, but I didn't find it groundbreaking. I like the vibe, it's an interesting mix of alternative rock and pop punk.
The first half of the record is very energetic, although it feels a bit monotonous. Besides "Alright", the first half doesn't have much variation in terms of sound. The second half mixes more moods, and I feel the record works the best when alternating between more laid-back tracks like "Time To Go", or even "She's So Loose" and the other high energy ones.
The performances are pretty good, some nice drumming and solid guitar playing. The keyboard can be a bit much, like for example in "I'd Like To Know". The vocals are very fitting for the Britpop vibe, and the lyrics are good enough: nothing groundbreaking but not out of place either. I did find it remarkable that Supergrass were very young when they put this record out, yet they were great instrumentally and very cohesive with their sound.
As for favourites, "Alright" is a classic, and deservedly so. But the one I liked the most was "She's So Loose". "Strange Ones" was also good and pretty catchy.
Sepultura
2/5
Being thrash metal, the album is very high-tempo and intense. The performances are very technical, and the album feels relentless in its intensity.
In terms of instrumentation, the drumming is very demanding technically, and it’s very well done. That being said, the constant double-bass drumming gets a bit old after a while. The guitar parts are great, pushing the intensity, while also sounding great. The vocals I didn’t like much; Max Calavera’s growl-ish harsh vocals can be a bit much.
Lyrically, it doesn’t get too complex, but the topics are very grim.
The “Subtraction” and “Altered State” combination back to back was for me the best moment of the album; I liked the bass solo in “Subtraction”, and the tribal drums in “Altered State” were interesting too. I felt like here they varied more their sound.
While I can see its merits, particularly technically, I can’t say I liked it as an album. I might revisit a couple of songs if I’m really in the mood for some heavy thrash metal, but not much more.
Nice having a Brazilian band here. And I hated the cover.
AC/DC
4/5
It's a rock classic, obviously. It encapsulates very well the AC/DC sound, and it's very consistent with it.
The tracks are pretty high energy, good instrumentation and pretty compact and well written. The topics are varied and pretty light, very on par for the genre without getting too deep. Scott's singing is very distinctive and intense, the delivery is good although at times his tone can be a bit much.
My favourite song was probably "Highway to Hell", it's just a classic and it remains as good as ever.
Overall, the album is pretty cohesive and works well, it doesn't outlive its welcome but instead just powers through for the whole lenght.
CHIC
4/5
Rodgers and Edwards are geniuses and the album is just exquisitely well done.
The instrumentation is just heavenly. The guitar playing by Rodgers is perfect for the vibe, and the bass lines are so good, Edwards was a truly amazing bass player. The singing is also just right. And the strings parts are well written and bring the tracks together.
In terms of favourites, the album just starts so strong: "Good Times" is an amazing dance tune, and it's immediately followed by "A Warm Summer Night", which is just a beautiful composition. “What About Me” is also great, just super vibes.
This is probably some of the best disco has to offer, and it's pretty damn good. The record can be a touch repetitive at times (maybe that’s just part of how Disco goes), and doesn’t quite match strength of its opening, but it’s nevertheless a great and cohesive record.
Pixies
4/5
Great album, just pushing the alt rock limits in all sorts of directions. Super bold, great instrumentally, and even though the singer has a distinctive voice it doesn't get annoying.
The record just captures that 90s angst sound so well (even though it's from '89). Just the right mixture of energy and weirdness.
Favourites: "Here Comes Your Man" is a great track, but my absolute favourite was "Hey". The album is packed with great songs. "Silver" was a bit underwhelming on the other hand.
Arcade Fire
3/5
It's a good record, a very artsy variation of indie rock, they're not afraid to mix different instruments and they build very beautiful musical pieces, specially with the strings sections they include. It also encapsulates a sort of nostalgia with the music and lyrics. The whole concept from the first part is interesting enough.
That being said, while I appreciate the album, I didn't really connect with it that much. The best song for me was the very well known "Wake Up". "Neighborhood #3 Power Out" was also pretty good, with a higher intensity than the other tracks.
Pixies
3/5
I liked the record but I didn't find it groundbreaking or particularly interesting, it's a nice Alt Rock album, doesn't overstay its welcome and doesn't really push too far away.
It's very difficult not to compare it to Doolittle, which I liked much more as they were bolder and the music was overall more interesting.
Despite this, it's not at all bad, a bit more laid back and straight forward than Doolittle.
My favourite song was "Hang Wire".
Neil Young
4/5
This was a great listen, loved the mix of folk and blues, it feels like nostalgic or melancholic, Young's voice delivers that emotion even stronger. I really liked it, it felt really cohesive (although his lyrics are a bit amnbiguous at times).
I felt the second half worked particularly well, it encapsulates the vibe really well, with songs that are a bit more fleshed out. The last 3 songs back to back are great, beautiful and moving. It's very difficult to pick a faovurite out of the 3.
The Smashing Pumpkins
4/5
A great album, very grungy and mixes very well loud with quieter moments. I loved the dirty, distorted tone of the electric guitars and Corgan's singing, they create such a grungy vibe. The album also works when slowing it down a bit, like "We Only Come Out At Night", a much more mellow track.
This album is packed with amazing songs, I loved: "Zero", "Here Is No Why", "1979", "X.Y.U", "Porcelina Of The Vast Oceans", "Bodies", "Bullet with Butterfly Wings" and "Tonight, Tonight". These were the standouts, but there are many great songs. The whole first half of the first album is just back to back perfection.
That being said, I find double albums are always hard because you have to make a project that's cohesive and interesting throughout the whole duration (2 hours here). In this case, I understand why they did it, with the amount of material they had it's justified for it to be so long. But, it does get overlong, having a couple of fillers and overall not all the songs are that strong. I feel that if they had just picked the absolute best songs, they could've had a 5 star perfect album.
It's still a very good album, and I really liked it, but a more focused version of the album would've been perfect.
Neil Young
3/5
Compared to "On The Beach", this record have the same impact, and it didn't feel as polished. I felt it didn't stand out as much, although there are some good songs. My favourites were "Mellow My Mind" and "New Mama". While it was an easy listen and it's very on par for Young's work at the time, I wouldn't call it his best work.
Tricky
3/5
I really like Triphop, but this album didn't feel particularly groundbreaking for me. It's very moody, experimental and weird at times, which is good and works, but there aren't many moments that truly standout for me.
The best songs for me where "Hell Is Around The Corner", which is pretty good but it's also difficult not to compare it to "Glory Box" by Portishead, which uses the same sample (and is arguably better). The other song I found really interesting was "Strugglin'".
In terms of performances, the production as I said gets pretty weird and interesting. The vocal performance by Tricky are good, but Marlina Topley-Bird is the absolute highlight, her voice and delivery are flawless and fit the Triphop vibe perfectly.
Bob Marley & The Wailers
3/5
This is a pretty chill record, very much a classic Reggae record. It's an easy listen, the sound is pretty consistent but Marley and co. manage to keep it interesting enough for the entire duration of the record.
The themes are mostly about love, politics and some sort of life-philosophy stuff. It doesn't take away from the record, but at points Marley's views come across as very classic/conservative (e.g., "Every man needs a woman"). Given that it was the '70s, it's not surprising, but of course it hasn't aged that well.
It's also interesting to note Marley's voice, which I find was a bit more developed in later records, here he sounds a bit more rough but not worse at all.
My favourite songs were probably the classic "No Woman No Cry" and "Natty Dread", the chorus was pretty catchy.
Overall, I'd say it's a pretty easy-listening, a cool record, but it didn't stand out much in my opinion.
Ray Charles
3/5
It's a very good record, I loved the big arrangements and how stylish they sound. It's interesting though that even though Charles' went in a more "swing" direction with this record, he manages to blend it with soul and his more R&B sound.
Charles' voice is crazy good, his delivery is so powerful and stylish.
The opening track, "Let the Good Times Roll", is so good, big and very energetic. The string arrangements on "Don't Let the Sun Catch You Cryin'" are beautiful too, same for "Am I Blue".
Overall, it was pretty good, easy listening, soulful and energetic at the same time.
Blondie
3/5
I really like Blondie, their hits are absolutely fantastic. This album is super energetic pop rock. While it's not too pop, it does lean heavily into making catchy songs while using some fast paced rock instrumentation.
I really liked the guitar lines, they work very well and set the mood for the songs. The standout of the band is obviously Harry's singing, she has a great, powerful voice which allows her to both work in the pop choruses and raise the energy when the record is more power-pop. On the other hand, the male backing vocals could really use some work, I didn't like the tone or the delivery at all.
My favourite songs were the obvious classics "One Way or Another" and "Heart of Glass", which are truly great and clearly stand out. Aside from that, my favourite was "Will Anything Happen". Besides these though, I found there was a gap in quality between the best and the rest, some songs being pretty forgettable.
This album has very high highs, but its lows feel pretty standard and unremarkable. While they're not bad, it's certainly not a consistent record, particularly around the middle of the record. It hurts me to say it, because I really like Blondie, but I don't feel this album is as good as its best songs.
King Crimson
5/5
This album is a masterpiece of Progressive Rock. It's particularly ahead of its time, it sounds great for a 1969 album.
The performances are absolutely amazing, the drumming is excellent, the guitar sections are super interesting, the saxophone work is exceptional and the vocals are also perfect for the genre. I loved the saturated vocals on "21st Century Schizoid Man". The production is also fantastic, the effects work so well and are so well done. The composition is also one of the strongest parts of the album, each song is a long, well constructed piece.
My favourite song I think is "21st Century Schizoid Man", because it's a masterpiece of a song. But really, all the songs are excellent on their own, "The Court Of The Crimson King" is also super good, "Moonchild" is great. Honestly, they're all excellent, even the songs from the expanded version.
The best thing about the album for me is how cohesive it is though, just 5 very long songs that share a similar sound and style, but also work on their own. The mix of rock, jazz at times and the negative space of the quiet moments make this record a great experience.
Ananda Shankar
2/5
I didn't like this record. I feel like it's technically interesting, and I have no doubts the Sitar playing is pretty good. But it fails to be an entertaining record beyond that, it's monotonous and it felt a bit gimmicky. I didn't enjoy listening to it, and I don't think I'll come back to it.
Magazine
3/5
Real Life was a pretty interesting record, I really liked the post-punk blend with art rock, and there's some pretty interesting ideas in it too. I feel they manage to capture that English post-punk vibe really well, while also keeping the album interesting and mixing ideas.
It did feel a bit too long, and there were a couple of forgettable songs. My favourites were "Shot by Both Sides" and "Parade".
Dolly Parton
3/5
While I'm not much of a fan of country, I have to commend Parton's storytelling. Her lyrics paint interesting stories and make the songs interesting enough to keep going. The album itself is pretty short, and all the songs pass pretty fast too. All in all, it's a pretty easy listen. If you don't like country, this record likely won't be for you, as it leans very heavily on the classic country sound, as trademark as it gets for the genre. Parton's singing and songwriting make the record worth listening to, even if I won't be coming back to it any time soon. The standout track was "Coat Of Many Colors", as it tells a moving story about her and her mother. "Traveling Man" was also nice.
Fela Kuti
5/5
This was an spectacular album, a great hour of Afrobeat. Fela Kuti was a great talent, and he's in top form here, combining jazz and funk while also composing a record that feels original and authentic. All the performances are great, Baker's drumming is on point and Kuti's voice is super powerful. This album perfectly achieves what it aims to do, showing an excellent live version of Kuti and company, and the recording is so good it barely feels like a live album.
Ali Farka Touré
3/5
I found it a pretty calm listen, very consistent and unique sound. It's a mix of folk with some blues. I found it a bit long, as it's almost an hour and the songs are pretty similar between each other. There were a couple of interesting songs, but I found that it wasn't anything to write home about, or not something I'm too likely to revisit. "Soukora" was my favourite, it found it a bit livelier and more interesting than the rest. Not bad, but definitely not a stand out for me.
The Doors
4/5
It's a very good album, the sound is a very interesting and quite unique mix of hard rock, blues and psychedelic rock. Morrison's voice works great for the style, the guitar playing is great and the organ work is a standout, complementing most of the songs. I also like how weird they get at times.
The album flows well, mixing calm moments and powerful hard rock tracks without feeling jarring. It did feel a bit long, maybe a couple of songs could've been cut.
In terms of favourites, this album has many tracks that have become classics, as "Light My Fire", "Break On Through" and "The End". "Twentieth Century Fox" was interesting too, and I liked how weird "End of the Night" sounds too.
David Bowie
4/5
Blackstar is a monumental album. Bowie was infinitely innovative, and this record is a great showcase of this, being a blend of experimental/jazz rock, where he mixes different styles and concepts.
It's all used in the service of a very deep, moving concept: Bowie's impending death. It's a profound artistic choice, and it's even more remarkable how well Bowie manages to execute the concept. He delivers a thoughtful, innovative and often eerie album.
The performances are great, the drumming and sax are standouts, and Bowie's vocals capture perfectly the concept.
My favourite song was "Lazarus", but I feel that the record works much better as whole than as songs by themselves.
Genesis
4/5
Instrumentally it's a great album, amazing performances by everyone involved, I particularly liked Banks' solos, like the final one in "The Cinema Show". Gabriel's and Collins' vocals are very good too, and the drumming by Collins is of course excellent as well.
As a record, I found it pretty consistent and easy to listen to, even though several songs are quite long, they don't feel uninteresting. Thematically and lyrically it's interesting too.
The main feature of the record though is how good of an example of Progressive Rock it is, the songs evolve in such an interesting way, keeping your attention and showcasing the group's technical ability and inspiration. My favourite was "The Cinema Show", but most of the songs are pretty strong.
The Fall
3/5
It's a nice post-punk record. While an easy listen, it also gets weird at times, and the lyrics are very poignant and eerie at times. Its sound is also very trademark UK post-punk, Smith's singing nails it perfectly. The sound is pretty consistent, which makes for a cohesive record but also a bit repetitive at times.
Instrumentally it's pretty interesting, I liked the drumming and how weird the guitar lines get at points, for example at the end of "I Am Damo Suzuki" (which is also one of the weirdest tracks). The way they play with the effects is also nice. I didn't quite like the female vocals, I felt they didn't fit that well.
My favourite track was "Couldn't Get Ahead", which brings the energy up and is one of the catchiest of the album.
The Beach Boys
3/5
I liked this one, it's very accessible but at the same time, feels well crafted. I liked how diverse the songs are, but at the same time, they feel consistent. It's also a bit more elaborate pop, more progressive and more insightful.
I liked how they mix topics, specially how political they get for "Student Demonstration Time", particularly for a pop record.
The vocals are excellent, and the instrumentals work well to complement them. The production was pretty interesting ("Take A Load Off Your Feet" is excellent), mixing some innovative sounds. That being said, the mixes feel a bit lacking.
My favourites were "Long Promised Road" and "'Till I Die" which has absolutely stellar vocals". "Disney Girls" was very pretty too.
The Dave Brubeck Quartet
4/5
It's a very good cool jazz album, very compact and very well composed. A very easy listen, very smooth but still interesting.
I liked how even though it's a pretty relaxed record, they manage to innovate and compose interesting songs with different time signatures and nice passages.
I think that having classic tracks such as "Blue Rondo a la Turk" and "Take Five" make it a classic record. Aside from that, my favourites were "Kathy's Waltz" and "Strange Meadow Lark".
Beach House
4/5
I really liked this album, it's the perfect dream/shoegaze vibe. It's super cohesive but still has some standout tracks, and it doesn't feel overlong.
Even though it's a genre that can be a bit "boring", I felt they managed to make a nice, interesting record although there's a slight slump in the middle.
The vocals are excellent, super atmospheric. The production is very good too, the effects also work very well to set the tone of the album.
"Silver Soul" is a classic track by now, but aside from that, I really liked "Zebra" and "Take Care", loved the vocals on both.
Erykah Badu
4/5
I'm an absolute fan of everything Soulquarian, and this record is no exception. Badu is excellent, and the production team are in top form. The record is an excellent sample of the soulful, organic sound crafted by the collective at that time.
The production is stellar, Poyser and J Dilla created gems in which Badu just shines, her exceptional vocals fit perfectly with the tracks. She has great range, she flows well and she's so soulful. Lyrically the tracks are interesting too, she discusses her life philosophy, politics and relationships. "A.D. 2000" is a touching tribute.
The first half is full of great tracks, my favourite is "Didn't Cha Know", which showcases J Dilla's amazing production and Badu's singing is excellent, it's a catchy track and it works so well. Aside from that, "...&On" is also excellent.
On the downside, the record can be a bit overlong on the second half, as some parts aren't as catchy or interesting, but still always sounds very good.
Overall though, it's a landmark Neosoul record that perfectly represents the Soulquarian sound.
Blur
3/5
I really like Albarn's work, and Blur's britpop is pretty good. That being said, I expected more from this record.
It's a pretty good album, they have a very distinctive and innovative take on britpop and they're not afraid to mix different sounds and ideas.
The first half of the album is the best for me, starting with the great and by now classic "Girls and Boys", followed by "Tracy Jacks" and "End of a Century" which were both really good too. I found "Parklife" really funny even though it's a bit weird. After this though, I felt the record lacked the same punch.
I really liked the production and Albarn's distinctive voice, but beyond that I just didn't find anything particularly polished or technically noteworthy.
The B-52's
5/5
I loved this album, it's so energetic, weird and fun. They nailed the whole kitsch trick perfectly, and they deliver such a consistent and fun record.
The instrumentation works perfect for what they do, fast and hard-hitting. I loved the mix of punk and surf rock. The bass-lines are excellent, the guitar riffs carry the energy and the vocals are perfect. I loved the chemistry between both singers, and the call-and-response they often do. My favourite part is how weird they get at times, like at the end of "Rock Lobster" or during "Lava".
My favourite songs were "Rock Lobster" which is an absolute banger, "Dance This Mess Around" and "Lava" were great too.
For what it is, it's incredibly consistent, and easy listen and doesn't feel repetitive at all. I can't think of anything that'd make the record better.
Super Furry Animals
2/5
I found it good but nothing spectacular. I liked the punk-ish sound, mixed with some glam/indie rock and britpop at times. But it just doesn't quite standout from all the other records.
They sound pretty well, I liked the mix of the drums and the overall production, how they play with effects and experiment with different sounds. The vocals are nice, but I felt they could've been better, sometimes sound just enough in tune not to be off but it could be better. I felt that the production and experimentation was the strongest part of the record.
My favourite by far was "Long Gone". "If You Don't Want Me to Destroy You" was pretty good too.
Muddy Waters
3/5
I'm not much of a fan of blues, or live records. That being said, I can appreciate this one for what it is, particularly because it's from 1960 and was apparently a pretty landmark record.
Waters and Co. can definitely play well and they sound excellent in the recording. The record doesn't feel overlong at all, and the storytelling by Waters is pretty interesting.
My favourite was "I'm Your Hoochie Coochie Man".
Beatles
5/5
A truly masterful album, Beatles in top form. The record is consistent and packed with great songs back to back and barely any weak spots.
The songwriting is outstanding, I loved how innovative they were here, mixing genres and ideas while making some of the catchiest rock songs ever. The performances are excellent too: guitars, bass, drumming, it's all there. The vocals are superb too, I loved the backing vocals.
It's very hard to pick favourite songs, but if I had to pick one, I'd say "In My Life", in my opinion it's one of the best songs of all time. Other great songs are "Drive My Car", "Norwegian Wood", "I'm Looking Through You", "Michelle", etc. In terms of weaker tracks, maybe "The Word" isn't as good.
It's important to mention just how poorly "Run For Your Life"'s lyrics have aged. I wouldn't say that back then they were particularly noteworthy, but nowadays it's pretty crazy to hear a song so overtly toxic and misogynistic. It's a shame because the song in itself is pretty catchy, but message wise this is a fail.
Overall, this record is a masterpiece and showcases the great songwriting the Beatles were capable of. I knew this record almost by heart before I had to listen to it here, so I was definitely biased, but giving it 4 or 5 more listens to rate it here reminded me how good it is and confirmed its legendary status.
Stereo MC's
4/5
I loved this record, it sounds super fresh and fun. It definitely feels ahead of it's time, I originally thought it was from the 2000s, and I feel like even if it was released now it would be great (maybe with a cleaner mix).
It's more of a triphop record than anything else, it feels very chill but also funky and danceable. I also liked the jazz-y moments they have. The vocals are excellent, but the highlight is the excellent production. It's super groovy and well crafted.
The rap is interesting enough, but they're definitely not the best MCs out there. I don't feel it's necessary though, they serve the songs very well and for this record I feel that's perfect.
My only criticism is that it feels a bit uniform, like all the songs sound a bit the same. Even though they're great, some sonic or tone variation would've been great.
Most of the tracks were excellent, but my favourites were "Connected" and "Pressure".
Overall, it's an excellent vibe, super groovy and well made record. This one feels like a 9 to me, missing that last point only because I'd love it to have a bit of more variety. But maybe if I keep coming back to it I'll edit the review and give it 5 stars. It's 4 for now.
Echo And The Bunnymen
2/5
I didn't like this one, it didn't really capture my attention at any point.
The instrumentals felt pretty on par for the post-punk UK wave of the 80s, the singing wasn't too noteworthy either. They get weird at times, but it didn't feel effective or too interesting.
I feel like there are much more interesting records in the same space and I wouldn't really pick this one over them. It wasn't bad, it was just average for me. If I had to pick a song, I'd pick "Heads Will Roll".
Loved the cover art though, great photo.
Metallica
3/5
It's a very well crafted and produced album, they achieved a very specific and consistent sound. Their sound here makes their brand of metal more accessible and mainstream.
The production and the mixes are excellent, they sound very crisp and it lets the performances shine. Instrumentally they're great too, really liked the drumming and the guitar solos. Hetfield's vocal tone is very characteristic and well known by now, and it works great for their sound. I liked how heavy they sound at times, specially towards the end of the album.
Thematically it's a bit dark but it's good that they get personal. The topics are questionable for me, "Of Wolf And Man" is a bit much, and "Don't Tread On Me" not only hasn't aged well, but the whole patriotic spirit isn't for me at all. I also disliked the opening riff.
My favourite track was "My Friend Of Misery". The classic tracks are pretty good too.
Overall it's a pretty well crafted and cohesive record. But I also feel it works better if you focus on the music and ignore the content of the lyrics.
Stevie Wonder
4/5
Stevie Wonder is an exceptionally talented musician, and this record certainly showcases his musical talent.
His compositions are excellent, and the performances as well. He sings very well, plays the drums and gets the best out of the Rhodes and even more so the Moog.
My favourite songs were "Boogie On Reggae Woman" which was super catchy and fun, and "You Haven't Done Nothin'". The latter is particularly noteworthy for its subject matter, criticizing the president with the Jackson 5 doing background vocals feels like an achievement in itself. That being said, the song is VERY similar to "Superstition".
"They Won't Go When I Go" on the other hand, I found the composition noteworthy, but the tone and subject matter were pretty depressing.
Having said all that, while I found the record musically excellent, I felt like it could've been a bit catchier, more dynamic and less drawn out. I like the idea of progressive soul and commend Wonder's execution, but I feel like it could've been tightened up a bit.
Super Furry Animals
3/5
It's a nice record. I found it better than "Fuzzy Logic", more polished and they show a more developed sound. Again, the most remarkable aspect of their work is how experimental and bold they are when mixing styles and how they take tracks far into weird territory (see the ending of "Receptacle for the Respectable"). The second half of the album is much stronger than the first.
Same as the previous record, my main criticism is the singing, while it has improved, Rhys' tone and delivery are not my cup of tea. They can also be a touch too derivative.
My favourite track (and the first one I like from the band) was "[A] Touch Sensitive", I loved the heavy beat and the weird synth, it's a dark trip-hop beat and it works so well. I would've loved to hear more of this. "Shoot Doris Day" and "Presidential Suite" were also good.
Overall, the record is nice but not that noteworthy for me.
Nirvana
5/5
This is a raw, bold and heavy record. They achieve an abrasive and unique grunge sound. The album feels focused and well crafted, a classic for Grunge and Rock in general.
In terms or performances, Cobain is the obvious standout, his vocal quality and delivery are excellent, and his guitar playing is perfect for their sound, I love the harsh tone they achieved for the guitar. Grohl's drumming is also superb, super heavy and powerful, driving a lot of the energy of the tracks. Novoselic gets the most subdued role, but still fills a key role and does it well.I really liked the bassline on "Serve the Servants".
Cobain's lyricism is noteworthy as well, his writing is playful but heavy. It's a dark record at times, even more when considering the allusions to suicide. Nevertheless, his writing feels personal, bold and works great for the sound they deliver here.
In terms of favourites, it has many great tracks so it's difficult to choose. "Serve the Servants" is great, "All Apologies" is excellent and a classic by now, same with "Rape Me" and "Heart-Shaped Box". My least favourite was probably "Scentless Apprentice", it leans a bit too much on the noise side, but it's still a very good song and doesn't take away from the album.
Beastie Boys
3/5
The clear highlight of this record is the production, the Dust Brothers managed to create a really interesting and polished sampled-based arrange of beats that carry the whole project.
While I love HipHop, the Beastie Boys' subject matter and delivery has never been my favourite, and this record is no exception. This doesn't take away from the fact that it's a good album, and that it was certainly influential in its moment. It's still a clever and fun album, but for me Hip Hop as a genre has so much more to offer than just this.
In this record, they find a more balanced spot, not as "frat" as in "Licensed to Ill", which makes it a better listen for me. There are also no awful tracks (no "Girls" here), and it's a much more easy listen.
In terms of favourite tracks, "Shardrach" and "Looking Down The Barrel Of A Gun" were the best. I also loved "B-Boy Bouillabaisse: A Year and A Day" sharing the sample (and pretty much the beat) with Kendrick Lamar's "i".
Lucinda Williams
2/5
Not being a fan of country, it's a bit too twangy for me, too much Americana. In spite of that, I feel like this is a more accessible country record that others in this list, like Steve Earle's Guitar Town (who is a producer here). The record also feels a bit flat, like it never really turns the energy up from the slow Americana ballad.
Her songwriting is very good though, she's a good storyteller. Her lyrics feel personal and her singing makes it feel more emotional. "Lake Charles" is the best example of this, as Williams sings about the death of her ex.
Musically, the best for me was "Still I Long For Your Kiss", which was a bit more lively and has a fun guitar solo.
Klaxons
4/5
I loved the energy and the weirdness of it, they push the indie rock/post-punk sound far into new territory (new rave?). I really liked how innovative they are and how fresh the album sounds, they throw a bunch of new ideas into every new song and for the most part it works great.
I loved the production, most of the songs are very layered and complex. They have big arrangements, the mixes are excellent to keep this complexity without sounding saturated most of the time (the chorus of "As Above So Below" was indeed too saturated for my taste).
The pacing of the record is excellent too, it's super upbeat and once it starts it never lets go, even when they go a bit slower.
The weaker song for me was "Isle Of Her" as it's a bit too simple and slow, but it wasn't too bad, the hidden track was also very bland. Everything else was pretty good, I loved "Atlantis To Interzone", "Golden Skans", "Magick" and "It's Not Over Yet".
Also I disliked very much the cover art, this album deserved better.
Eminem
3/5
A hugely influential record and the beginning of Eminem's mainstream presence. This record is funny, over the top, and grim.
Eminem is an excellent rapper when it comes to writing ability and delivery, his technical ability is in full display here. He's also very funny and surprisingly vulnerable for his approach to the record. Even though he approaches it in a very ironic and satirical way, he touches on his relationships (and hate) towards his mother, Kim, his former bullies, the industry, etc. He's willing to go way too far in his lyrics, which makes him stand out, while also leaving him open to valid criticism for being misogynistic and too violent. To me part of what makes the record good is how self-aware he is and how able he is to address this criticism in his trademark ironic fashion, like he does in "Role Model". Tracks like "If I Had" and "Rock Bottom" also serve to give an emotional dimension to his frustration with society and poverty.
The production is also excellent, Bass Brothers and Dr.Dre deliver polished, well-crafted beats that compliment Eminem's voice and drive most songs.
As good as Eminem can be, there's notable flaws in this record for me. First, the over-the-top, wackiness can be too much at times. "'97 Bonnie & Clyde" is such a grim track, not only is it misogynistic but it's disturbing to feature your own daughter in a track imagining the murder of her mother. In other tracks, the wackiness takes away from how good the song could be. "Cum On Everybody" has such a groovy beat and great backing vocals, it could've been a great track, but it's a touch too wacky to realize that potential. In that same vein, "My Fault" is such an absurd and silly track, it's really funny but it's also so dumb it's difficult to listen to it unironically. Finally, I think there's a broader discussion that relates to the misogyny and glorification of violence in this album. Even though Eminem's verses are so over-the-top they're arguably so excessive they're obviously ironic, I don't believe this is enough to provide effective criticism. He reserves his most caustic criticisms to people in his life, but never really manages to truly question the nature of the violence nor the consequences of it.
In terms of my favourite tracks, "My Name Is" is a classic track by now, super catchy and funny. "Brain Damage" is also excellent, and "Just Don't Give a Fuck" is also very good.
Overall, it's a fun record that can be very dark and insightful. Even though a couple of not-so-good songs and a couple of skits can make it feel overlong, it's still a landmark record for rap, and showcases the irreverence that made Eminem such an influential figure.
Kings of Leon
2/5
It's a rough, raw and pretty concise album. They're pretty fun, and a couple of songs are kinda melancholic, but overall it's a nice garage rock record.
Instrumentally they're pretty average for the genre, the arrangements are nice, but the biggest highlight for me was Caleb Followill's singing. His delivery is super raw and he breathes life into most tracks, although he could use a bit of polishing in that department.
The best songs for me were "Milk", "Day Old Blues" and "Soft" (which is pretty funny too).
LCD Soundsystem
4/5
Excellent album, the compositions are outstanding and Murphy nails an precise balance between ambitious experimentation and catchiness. He writes complex songs that spawn several minutes, passing through different motifs and ideas. It flows very well and is very cohesive, yet every track has its own distinctive sound and idea. The songwriting is also great, it feels personal but also relatable. The singing is maybe the least noteworthy, as it's obvious he isn't a super gifted singer, but he delivers well in all the songs. The backing vocals are good too.
"Get Innocuous!" is excellent, I loved "Someone Great" too, it felt very personal. "Us v Them" and "Watch the Tapes" are very good too, super energetic and catchy.
This record felt like a 9, but I'll leave it at 4 stars for now just because I'm not 100% convinced to give it 5.
Bill Callahan
4/5
It's a beautiful, delicate and intimate record.
Musically, I loved how stripped down the arrangements are, they leave a lot of room for Callahan's deep, expressive voice, which drives the songs. I also loved the string parts, they are absolutely gorgeous.
Callahan's writing for me was the highlight of the album. It feels poetic, clever and personal, and some moments are very touching.
Most songs are very good, the odd one out is "Invocation of Ratiocination" which is pretty short and weird, but I feel like it plays a role in the album in complementing the sound palette. "Eid Ma Clack Shaw" is super funny and it's a great song. "Rococo Zephyr" is melancholic and beautifully written. His raspy singing in "My Friend" is also excellent. "All Thoughts Are Prey To Some Beast" is conceptually very interesting, the strings are very pretty, and it's overall an excellent song.
For me this is a 9, and I'm torn between 4 and 5. For the slow, intimate vibe and compared to other Folk records, it feels a clear 5 star. But as an overall album, it isn't such an easy listen or so accessible, nor it has catchy hits. I'll give it 4 for now and think about it for a week or so.
John Coltrane
4/5
It's a jazz classic, very cohesive and the performances are excellent. Coltrane on the saxophone is amazing, his improvisation is top tier and he manages to make the sax sound so alive. "Psalm" is the standout in this sense, his "recitation" is so interesting. Aside from that, "Resolution" is great, I loved the main motif. Overall, it's a pretty influential jazz record and the quality of the performances by Coltrane and company both justify its presence in the list and its status as a classic.
2/5
Ok so this record is certainly...unique. It's also very inaccessible and a hard listen in all honesty. Maybe for the avant-garde/experimental jazz crowd it's a must listen, but at least for me, it was too much.
The performances are technically good, they can certainly play well. The saxos are very much alive, and the drumming is on point while also very aggressive.
But, the listening experience is pretty grueling, particularly the first half. It's super intense and feels disorganized, even though there is a structure behind, it's difficult to grasp. This makes it exhausting to listen to after a while. The first 15 minutes are particularly harsh, almost cacophonous.
Around the middle, it gets a bit more "listenable", finding more stable grooves and adding the experimental sections a bit more sparsely.
If the record had started from "C.&D." I feel it would've been much better, as it's much more understandable and the arrangements, improvisations are more discernible, without compromising on the ambitious nature of the project.
I'm sure that for some people, this is probably a masterpiece. There is certainly ambition behind it, and skillful players. But Zorn fails to create an even remotely accessible album, and for me that's it's biggest sin. The way this record is sequenced fails to make it compelling and I feel it could've worked better with a different order. That being said, while I see the goal of the experiment, and where it pushes jazz towards, for me it still isn't such a great record.
Julian Cope
2/5
It's a pretty easy listen, I found it to be kinda average art rock. Not bad by any means, but not noteworthy for me. It was also way too long for my taste.
Instrumentally it has nice moments, some nice solos and some interesting compositional ideas. Cope's vocals weren't my favourite, I found him a bit underwhelming. Some instrument selections were really underwhelming too, like the "trumpet" synth on "Beautiful Love", which I found way too cartoon-ish and honestly it sounded awful.
Lyrically, Cope delves into several different themes and isn't afraid to get political, but honestly, none of it really struck me or I found particularly memorable.
In terms of specific songs, I have to commend "Safesurfer" because it's pretty interesting musically, a nice epic composition even though I didn't like much the chorus and the singing. "Leperskin" was nice too. I also really liked "Hang Up And Hanging Out To Dry", has a nice drum beat and I liked the production, maybe also because it was mostly an instrumental?
David Bowie
4/5
A remarkable record, Bowie displays his creativity and musicality throughout this record. It's ambitious, innovative yet cohesive.
Musically it's excellent, full of ambitious compositions and bold ideas, the instrumental run from "V-2 Schneider" to "Neuköln" is Bowie and company at their boldest, building atmospheric and very expressive landscapes. Fripps' guitar playing is excellent, Eno's synths are super rich and the rest of the band are on point too. Bowie is of course the most remarkable here, his vocal quality and delivery are as great and excentric as ever, and he's also the driving force musically, with great sax lines, keys and other instruments, including a koto. Lyrically it's very diverse and quite ambiguous, but Bowie still delivers powerful and alive vocals.
In terms of songs, it's difficult to pick because they're all excellent in their own way. "Heroes" is the obvious standout as it's by now one of Bowie's most renowned songs. "Beauty And The Beast" is super catchy and fun too, and a great opener. From the instrumentals, "Moss Garden" was the most remarkable for me, the koto that Bowie plays along with the synths make it such an eerie and atmospherically rich track. Finally, "The Secret Life of Arabia" is a superb closer, more rock oriented and more lively.
Overall, it's a superb album. While it takes some processing mostly due to how innovative it is, and it's certainly not your average Pop album, it's a very rewarding project after a couple of listens, and showcases Bowie's talents, particularly his creativity.
2Pac
4/5
An excellent album and a great display of what's great about rap and what made 2Pac so remarkable.
The production is excellent, they crafted a cohesive and funky G-Funk record. It's not as polished as Dr.Dre's production, but this works in it's favor as time, as it sounds a bit more grimy, which fits the darker vibe of this album, while being as catchy and vibey as the best G-Funk out there.
The most remarkable aspect of the album is, of course, 2Pac. His writing is impeccable and his delivery is top tier, he's passionate and flows effortlessly throughout the entire project.
Even more remarkable for me is the subject matter and his approach to rap. Here he's introspective, poetic and socially conscious. He manages to blend his troubled mindset at the time and his rebellious attitude with an ambition to deliver art and an important message. For me, this elevates the album over other G-Funk, as it feels personal and relevant.
The context regarding what was going on with 2Pac at the time is relevant, as he had been shot and was on trial at the time. He often sounds troubled, discussing his paranoia and his perception regarding his impending death. While he manages to offer a conscious message, it's a difficult balance, as it stems from his troubled path. For me this also opens up a different debate, does his troubled past taint or influence his message? I think that 2Pac does his best to reflect on his issues and turn them into a relevant message for his community, but that doesn't exempt him from his responsibility. Nevertheless, the powerful messages he delivers were a big reason in making him such an influential figure for West Coast Rap.
In terms of best tracks, it's a very high quality and consistent record, so most songs are very good. My favourites were "Me Against The World", "So Many Tears" and I loved his homage to rap history on "Old School".
Overall, this is a classic rap album, and might be the best G-Funk has to offer. It's conscious, personal and sounds great. It also clearly shows who 2Pac was and where his influence to rap stems from.
Foo Fighters
3/5
It's a good album, but not a landmark record. The post-grunge feel is there, you can hear the influence of Grohl's work with Nirvana and he delivers well on the heavy/soft technique too. But for me, it's a lighter record, it lacks the edge and raw aggression of better Grunge albums. The songs themselves also aren't as catchy.
The context of the record adds more nuance and makes it a more worthy listen, as Grohl wrote and performed almost the whole album by himself when he was trying to get back to making music after Cobain's suicide. It's remarkable that he wrote and performed a pretty consistent and good rock album all by himself. The album could've used a bit more polishing in the songwriting department, but since he didn't even mean for it to be such a big project, it makes sense.
Overall, it's a good listen, he delivers high quality rock and it's also the beginning of what would later be Foo Fighters as a band.
Fishbone
2/5
I think that musically this record is a 3, but I really didn't like the composition and the decisions they made when choosing where to go with the songs. The musicianship is there, they can perform really well and at specific moments, the rock/fusion works superb, but then they make a left turn and the song turns into a weird, mediocre version of what it could've been.
I took a star away because of the missed potential, they can sing well, the basslines are funky, the brass sections are good. But, the songs end up being too weird, kinda dorky and cartoonish. "Subliminal Fascism" is the prime example for this, there's moments where the aggression and composition match the lyrics and the vibe, but others feel so disconnected, like the organ playing a line more fitting for the circus than a criticism of fascism.
Their cover of "Freddie's Dead" is good, "Ma and Pa" and "Pouring Rain" were pretty good too.
There's so much missed potential here I'm mostly annoyed they didn't deliver a better record when it sounds like clearly they could've.
R.E.M.
3/5
Being honest, I thought this one would be better. It's not bad by any means, they can certainly write good music, but it feels a bit average, particularly the first half.
The run from "It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)" to "Lightning Hopkins" is by far the best part of the record, but besides that, I found the other tracks a bit bland.
Instrumentally, they sound good but it's not my cup of tea, it isn't heavy enough to be rock outright, and isn't soft enough to be post-punk or alt-rock or something else. Maybe jangle pop isn't for me?
The best songs here are the biggest hits, both "ITEOTWAWKI(AIFF)" and "The One I Love" are classic and very good tracks, super catchy each in its own way. The two tracks that come after are pretty good too, but don't reach that level. Everything else didn't really catch my attention.
Thelonious Monk
4/5
Excellent jazz record, I loved their funkier version of jazz, they sound excellent together and it's a pretty tight album.
Monk's compositions are excellent, his piano performances are unique and very good too. Sonny Rollins is such a good sax player he steals the show a couple of times. The bass and drums are just right, they sound super tight and groovy.
The album overall is super consistent and a nice listen, wasn't boring at any moment. "Brilliant Corners" and "Bimsha Swing" were my favourite tracks, but "I Surrender, Dear" is also superb.
The Go-Betweens
3/5
It's a very chill alternative rock album from Australia, very laid back vibes, feels very nostalgic. Honestly it's a pretty harmless album, an easy listen but not much remarkable besides a couple of tracks.
The singing is pretty good, some parts could improve but it fits the indie vibe they have. The instrumentals are pretty simple, acoustic guitars, soft drums and something else depending on the track.
"Streets of your town" is by far the stand-out track, nails the nostalgic but happy vibe, the chorus is pretty catchy and their voices sound excellent together in it.
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
3/5
I've known about Nick Cave's popularity for a while, and I had been meaning to listen to one of his albums. While I can see why some people like his work so much, I'm not joining the cult for now.
This is a pretty good album, and Cave is an excellent songwriter, his lyricism is very good and his voice is very distinctive, giving him a very stylish delivery. It can be a bit overly theatrical at times, but he manages the balance well throughout the record.
The composition is great too, I particularly liked Abattoir Blues' sound, the gothic/gospel rock combination is super ambitious but works so well, the chorus backing voices along with Cave's voice mix superbly.
My main issue with the album is that, being a double album, it feels pretty long, and while it's good, the low energy moments can be a bit dull. This happened more on the second disk, which is more delicate and less energetic.
The beginning of Abattoir Blues is the highlight for me, from "Get Ready For Love" to "Hiding All Away" is the best the album has to offer for me, super high energy, hard hitting and catchy. Aside from that, "Let The Bells Ring", "Fable of the Brown Ape" were good too from the first disk. From the second, "The Lyre of Orpheus" was superb, loved the lyrics and "O Children" is very good too.
Ute Lemper
1/5
This isn't a good record. It starts pretty decent, but goes down in quality very quickly. It's overlong, way too dramatic, the lyrics are occasionally awful and cringey, and her overly dramatic singing gets old very fast.
The production is decent, there are some good songs but others are a mess. "Punishing Kiss" sounds cartoonish around the middle, and "Scope J" was absolutely awful, an attempt at a 10-minute grandiose anthem that falls flat in its face.
A note apart for Ute Lemper's singings, which is so exaggerated and overly dramatic it ends up being annoying. She can definitely sing, but she should've definitely toned it down a bit. The lyrics can be awful too, the whole "sex olympics" line from "The Case Continues" is so bad it's funny.
Overall, I'd only keep "Little Water Song", which is delicate and has a beautiful string section. I wish the album had been more like this. "Tango Ballad" is absolutely awful, the singing is unbearable. The singing on "Split" is also pretty bad too, particularly Lemper towards the end. And again, "Scope J" was awful.
Overall, this feels like it'd be the soundtrack to a bad musical. When I started listening to it I was pretty surprised by the low rating it had here, since the opener was pretty decent. But I was wrong. I'd give it 2 stars for the effort, but honestly I disliked it strongly and don't feel like Lemper's singing deserves an extra star, so 1 it is.
George Harrison
5/5
I loved this album. Harrison manages to mix influences from his work with the Beatles, from Dylan, and also his own style to make a record that feels personal but relatable. He's also an outstanding songwriter.
The biggest highlight of the album for me is Harrison's versatility, he sings great, he's an amazing guitarist, he's a great songwriter and he can mix different styles and compositions. His collaborators sound great too, Spector's production makes some songs sound huge and the occasional appearance of Clapton playing the guitar is excellent too.
Thematically I loved this album too: it's personal, spiritual and reflective. Even though I'm not religious, there's a lot of life philosophy from some of the songs here that I found relevant and relatable. I also really liked that it offers a peek into The Beatles breakup and how Harrison took it.
In terms of specific songs, there's so much to like here: the classic "My Sweet Lord", "Wah-Wah" is outstanding and super catchy. The rock sound of "Art of Dying" is great too, and "Let It Down" is a superb song too. The folk songs, like "Apple Scruffs", "Behind That Locked Door" and his cover of "If Not for You" are beautiful too. The only song that wasn't as good as the rest was maybe "I Dig Love", which is kinda silly and fun, I feel like it serves a purpose but it's still not as good as the rest.
Queen
5/5
A superb album. I grew up listening to this record front-to-back on repeat, so I'm probably a bit biased. But I was very curious to re-listen to this one, since it had been a long while since I listened to it, and I wanted to give it a critical listen.
It was better than I remembered. Mercury has such a powerful and expressive voice he breathes life into all the tracks he's on. May is a ridiculously good guitarist, his solos here are amazing and he also plays the occasional odd instrument like the harp, which gives the compositions a lot of extra width and character. Taylor also serves the songs really well with his drumming, loved some of the fills ("The Prophet's Song").
Song-wise, it's just back-to-back bangers. The only song I feel is inferior in quality is "Sweet Lady", which feels a bit average and cuts the momentum a bit. But aside from that it's all just very high quality. "Death On Two Legs" is a great track, super emotional and powerful, a great opener. I love "I'm In Love With My Car", it's a great hard rock song, it's super heavy and Taylor is outstanding here. "The Prophet's Song" is a huge epic, they sound great and it's a super interesting journey. "'39" is a beautiful little folk ballad that's super catchy and nice.
So far the album is stacked with great songs, and that's without mentioning the 3 biggest hits. Not much new can be said about them, but they remain as great as ever. "Bohemian Rhapsody" is a prog rock classic, one of the best songs ever. Even if it's been overplayed like hell, it remains a masterpiece.
Count Basie & His Orchestra
4/5
Great listen, they combine very well the compositions to make it an accessible and easy listen, but at the same time keep it ambitious and interesting. I imagine that back in 1958 this was a much more groundbreaking record than it is today, but it remains an excellent jazz record, with great arrangements, very good performances and a cohesive project.
The songs are all pretty good, and I liked how they ordered the album to combine upbeat and more calm tracks. If I had to pick, I'd say my favourites were "The Kid from Red Bank", "Flight of the Foo Birds" and "Midnite Blue". "Splanky" and "Whirly-Bird" were also great.
Radiohead
5/5
It's an eerie and deep album. It's excellent, but it's also kind of exhausting.
Musically, it's top tier. The compositions are ambitious and experimental and the production is perfect. It's a more modern take on progressive rock, they're still alternative rock but they mix and experiment with many different techniques to get a very specific and forward sound. They're very versatile too, mixing heavier tracks like "Lucky" with the almost-lullaby "No Surprises".
Thematically, it's a deep, haunting album that reflects on society, loneliness and technology. For me this is what made it a bit exhausting, as even though Yorke's lyrics are kind of abstract, they're still pretty heavy to process. The compositions match the themes perfectly, making very cohesive and complete songs.
For specific songs, "Karma Police" and "No Surprises" are tremendously popular as stand-alone tracks, but within the album they work even better. "Paranoid Android" is a modern prog rock epic, and it's outstanding. My other favourites were "Climbing Up The Walls", in which I loved the production and the chorus, and "The Tourist" which is the perfect closer, letting loose the tension and ending on a lighter note. I found that there were no worse songs in the project though, they all serve their purpose perfectly in the album.
Judas Priest
4/5
Excellent record, super powerful and energetic Heavy Metal.
Halford's voice is super powerful, he nails the mix of operatic but heavy hitting. The guitars riffs and solos are great, and the drumming is on point, super powerful. The mix is very well done too, they sound super crisp.
Lyrically, I liked that they have some social commentary, almost punk message in some tracks. When they do fiction, they don't over do it to the point of being corny or too much.
For favourite tracks, the classic "Breaking the Law" is a banger, "Grinder" and "The Rage" are superb too. A weak point would maybe be the lifeless chorus of "Metal Gods" (although I think it's on purpose) and maybe the chorus on "United" felt a bit too glam rock for my taste but it was still really catchy. I didn't consider "Red, White & Blue" as it wasn't part of the original release (and I didn't like it much).
Janet Jackson
3/5
I'm a bit conflicted on this one. On the one side, it sounds great. But on the other, I'm not quite convinced by the execution of the concept.
The production here is excellent, they nail the new jack swing sound perfectly, and the mixes are super clean and well done. Janet's voice is also excellent, she carries the songs with her delivery. The result is that a lot of the songs sound very good pop: catchy, funky and fun to listen to.
The execution of the concept was a bit of a let down for me though. First, I applaud Janet's intention to release a socially conscious album and to have a relevant message regarding the issues she considered relevant. But I felt a bit of a cognitive dissonance between the lyrics and the production. "State Of The World" is a great example of this, as it feels a bit weird to have such a great dance track while singing about crime spreading and people not having enough to eat. I'd say this applies to most of the first half of the album. I think she could've handled the balance between pop and socially conscious a bit better.
Nevertheless, there are great songs here. "Rhythm Nation", "State Of The World", "The Knowledge", "Love Will Never Do", "Escapade", and "Alright" were very good tracks. She can definitely deliver pop of the highest quality. But some of the other songs felt worse, and there are a lot of interludes too. I ended up feeling the album was a bit overlong because of this.
Black Sabbath
5/5
I got this record the day Ozzy died, rest in peace. A foundational metal record, and an excellent one.
Ozzy's singing here is perfect, he strikes the perfect balance between strength, expressiveness and a haunting tone. Iommi's work on guitar is epic and the solos are absolutely amazing. The bass is great too, particularly the solo in "N.I.B". And the drumming is excellent too, the fills are superb. They sound excellent in this album, a hell of a debut and I loved how you can listen the inception of heavy metal, the combination of rock, blues and the dark ambience that would become signature for Black Sabbath.
The lyrics are a mix of different themes in varying degrees of darkness: Death, Haunting, Satan, Gandalf, etc. They all work pretty well though, the writting is excellent as they don't overdo it.
This album has some epic classics: "N.I.B" is a monumental, heavy and super catchy song about Satan falling in love, and it's super fun. "Warning" is a super powerful closer (for the original release) being a 10 minute epic with some of the best metal instrumental passages. Finally, "Black Sabbath" is the perfect opener and one of the best metal songs ever, it's creepy, haunting and they deliver it perfectly, they sound superb here. The other songs are really good too, maybe "Sleeping Village" is the least good one, but still pretty great. "Wicked World" definitely didn't sound as good, as the mix is a bit too distorted and it feels a bit disjointed from the album, but it wasn't part of the original release so maybe it doesn't really count.
Overall, it's an epic debut album and a great record front to back, particularly the original release. I initially felt like giving it 4 stars, but being honest I can't find a justification for not giving it 5 stars. I've been playing it on repeat for the past 5 days, and I've only liked it more, so 5 stars it is.
The Kinks
3/5
It's a pretty accessible folk/rock pop album, but I didn't find it that noteworthy. I believe it has more of an historic role, being considered by some the first concept album, and being pretty ahead of its time back when it was released. By now though, while an easy listen, they don't sound particularly different or innovative. This doesn't mean it's a bad record by any means, I just didn't find it to be a landmark record. Maybe it deserves an extra star when listened in more detail?
The singing it pretty good, the backing vocals were particularly interesting and well delivered. They sound pretty good, they mix songs that are catchy and energetic with more slow folk ones. This works well, specially because the album isn't that long, so it's a easy and quick listen.
Thematically, they approach it with a sort of nostalgic take on English culture, mixed with some satire to make it more interesting. It's mostly about what they miss about small village life and how modernity changes these things. Also love, their friends, and a cat. It works mostly, and he writes some interesting songs that remain somewhat relevant today.
In terms of songs, I liked how experimental they get in "Sitting By The Riverside", "Animal Farm" was pretty nice too, and "The Village Green Preservation Society" is a good opener, though a bit over the top. Also, "Phenomenal Cat", because it's about a cat, and because it's so weird and whimsical it's nice they decided to go there. I also found "People Take Pictures of Each Other" pretty funny, even more so because I'm a photographer.
Kate Bush
4/5
Kate Bush is an excellent songwriter and a great artist, I loved how ambitious this album is and how weird she gets, it's a very sophisti-pop record. Being a self-produced album, you can hear her vision very clearly throughout the whole album, and she's bold and uncompromising.
The sound here is very 80s, her Fairlight and the synthesized drums give it a super distinctive sound. I particularly liked the atmospheric sounds she gets out of her synth. She can sing really well and does great backing vocals.
In terms of songs, the obvious standout is "Running Up That Hill", which has been overplayed like hell thanks to Netflix and TikTok, but remains an excellent track and very catchy, specially the chorus. The first half of the record is very 80s pop, back to back catchy songs. "Hounds Of Love" and "The Big Sky" were great. "Mother Stands For Comfort" is a more laid back track, but I love the weird production. The second half feels more experimental, being a mini concept album. It has like "Waking The Witch" and "Watching You Without Me", with varied vocal tricks and intricate production. The best one here for me was "Jig Of Life", a grandiose track made around traditional Irish music and big, spacious drums. It's a very ambitious track, even the more impressive being self-produced.
Love
3/5
It's a mix of garage/psychedelic rock, some protopunk and occasional jazzy moments. It's super varied, but most of what they try works pretty well.
The singer is pretty average, but has some great moments, like the "Come On!" from "Stephanie Knows Who". The singing on "Orange Skies" is pretty good too, very laid back. He's also excellent in "Seven and Seven Is", super energetic and powerful singing. The sax and flutes are very good, Cantrelli adds a lot to the tracks with jazzy passages that sound beautiful. The rest is pretty average, though the occasional harpsichord is a nice contribution, and the guitar shines from time to time, particularly during "Revelation".
The good of the album is how they can move between genres and nail the sound pretty well, "Stephanie Knows Who", "Orange Skies" and "Seven and Seven Is" were by far the best songs here. I didn't like "!Que Vida!" (weird typo in the track name btw) or "The Castle". "Revelation" is nice, but a 19 minute track feels a bit self indulgent, even more so when the performances aren't THAT good here to justify the length.
Miles Davis
4/5
Great jazz (fusion) album. Even though it's just 2 pretty long tracks, it works very well. It's an easy listen, can serve pretty well as background music, but if you pay attention it's very rewarding, the way they move around and explore Davis' compositions is so interesting.
The band here is a mythical lineup, they're all amazing musicians and they all bring their best. I loved Davis' trumpet playing and the electric piano as well.
Fleetwood Mac
3/5
There's a lot of good music here, but I also felt it had a lot of filler. Again, as it happens often with double albums, it feels overlong and like it would've benefited from cutting some material and making it flow better. This, because it also feels disjointed at times, it feels like the songwriters weren't really sharing a vision. I think this mostly comes down to Buckingham trying to do something different than the rest of the band, and it ends up sounding a bit disconnected.
McVie, Nicks and Buckingham are still very talented, great singers and ambitious songwriters. My favourite one here is Stevie Nicks, I really like her voice and her songwriting is superb, her songs are by far my favourites from the album.
The tracks that I liked were "The Ledge", "Save Me a Place", "Sara", "Sisters Of The Moon", "Tusk" and "Never Forget". "Tusk" was the best for me, I loved the brass, the drums and their voices sound superb together. From the rest, I felt there were a lot of just average songs, and I disliked "Not That Funny".
The Beau Brummels
2/5
A pretty simple folk rock album, it's a pretty quick and easy listen, but nothing too noteworthy or too intricate. This one feels like it probably was more relevant in the 60s than it is now. It's a bit too twangy for me, but nothing too bad.
Musically it's all pretty straightforward, Sol Valentino's voice is pretty unique, he can sing well and does that country/folk singer vibe very well. The rest of the instrumentals are very on par for country, the mix is a bit thin for my taste. "Only Dreaming Now" has a more interesting composition with more instruments and more rich textures. Aside from that, "Nine Pound Hammer" was pretty good, and "The Wolf Of Velvet Fortune" was nice too, which is a more fleshed out song.
Laura Nyro
4/5
What a spectacular voice Laura Nyro has! She carries the record almost by herself, she's a great songwriter and an amazing singer. The instrumentals are great too, the mix of jazz, blues and some pop. It's a pretty good blue-eyed soul record. I feel like you can hear the influence this record would have on a lot of artists.
All the songs of the first half of the record are great. My favourites were "Lu" and "Eli's Comin", which are both excellent. "December's Boudoir" is very good too, a bit slower and more intimate.
Cyndi Lauper
3/5
It's a pop classic, no doubts. Half of the album are 80s bops, super catchy and ultra famous by now. Powered by Lauper's voice and a very synth-centric production, they turned a bunch of songs into some of the biggest pop hits.
Lauper is a great singer, she's charismatic, has a powerful voice and she's the life of the record. The production serves her very well, same as the backing voices.
It's interesting that several of the songs (most of the hits) were "covers", as they had been written before by different bands. So no songwriting credits for Cyndi here. But if you take the time to listen to the originals, Lauper's versions are far superior (with the exception of Prince's "When You Were Mine").
"Money Changes Everything", "Girls Just Want to Have Fun", "Time After Time", "She Bop" and "All Through The Night" are so good, super catchy and fun songs. The rest was pretty mid, Prince's cover isn't that good, "He's So Unusual" is awful, and overall the second half is kind of mediocre. But the hits carry this record, and them being half the album, it's not bad at all.
Lou Reed
4/5
I liked it, it's a pretty laidback record that keeps a bit of an edge to it. Reed is a very good songwriter, his songs are catchy and fun, but don't feel shallow.
Reed's singing is nice and unique, he's not an spectacular vocalist but nonetheless he sings good. The guitar lines are good, though nothing to write home about. The highlight is Reed's songwriting. It feels super personal, vulnerable but with an attitude. It's complex and he's great at it.
The best songs are of course, the classics: "Perfect Day" and "Walk On The Wild Side". "Vicious", "Andy's Chest" and "Satellite Of Love" were pretty good too.
I feel like this record was a 3.5 for me. I can see why it's so influential, and why a lot of people love it. I can't deny Reed's talent or the quality of the record. But being honest, I didn't click with it that much, and it lost me a couple of times when listening to it (and I listened to it like 5 times). I'll give it a 4, but that extra half star is just because it's Lou Reed.
The Cardigans
3/5
It's a good record, but don't really see it as being an essential or that big a deal honestly. It's a fun indie/pop rock record, with one big hit, but it wasn't really that much more for me.
There's some nice bass lines, and Nina Persson's voice is great. The rest works pretty well too, the strings are good too. But overall, it's nothing to write home about being honest. The Black Sabbath nods are a nice touch but not much else.
In terms of songs, "Lovefool" is the obvious standout. It's a banger. Besides that, "Your New Cuckoo" and "Been It" had a nice vibe.
Brian Wilson
3/5
Wilson was an excellent singer, a great songwriter and such an influential figure for pop and music in general. This record is a collection of a lot of work over the years, and it's a mythical piece of work that seemed lost for many years. Beyond the mysticism surrounding it and the legendary status of Wilson, the record ends up being a good pop album, driven by Wilson's vocals but not much more than that.
Again, the singing here is the standout. The backing vocal melodies are as beautiful as ever. The songwriting is pretty good and fun too. One of my favourite aspects of Wilson/Beach Boys are the bridges, they manage to deliver these spectacular variations, that are very moving and expand the songs so much. But given Wilson's history, I expected this record to go further and present more interesting ideas. I feel like the fact that it's essentially revisiting an album from the late 60s, it feels like the ideas are well executed but not as innovative as they would've been back then.
"Heroes and Villains" is an excellent song and "Roll Plymouth Rock" was pretty good and catchy too. "Surf's Up" and "Good Vibrations" present interesting versions of songs that were part of the Beach Boys catalog. My favourite song was "Child Is Father of the Man", which is more ambitious sonically and I loved the place it goes to, particularly with how it flows into "Surf's Up". I would've liked the album to work more in this space.
Radiohead
4/5
I loved how innovative and bold this record is. The production is outstanding, the string sections by Greenwood, and Yorke's vocals remain as emotional as ever. This time around, they mix their alternative rock with some jazz and electronica at times, getting a very interesting and particular sound. The record flows very well, it feels very cohesive.
It's an excellent album, I only gave it 4 because it doesn't have songs that are that good on their own, but maybe that's just in comparison to their other work.
The standout tracks for me were "Packt Like Sardines In A Crushd Tin Box", "Knives Out" and "You And Whose Army?", but most of the songs were excellent, particularly in the first half.
Jack White
3/5
I like Jack White's work with the White Stripes, but here it doesn't feel as powerful or raw, a bit dull in comparison. It also lacks the powerful hymn-like tracks White's capable of producing. While it's a fun listen, if this was my intro to Jack White, I'd just find it average.
My favourite tracks were "Freedom At 21" and "Love Interruption", I found the lyrics of the latter particularly well written.
White's an excellent songwriter in general, but I felt like here he just didn't strike that high level he has had elsewhere.
50 Cent
3/5
Back in its day, this record had a huge cultural impact, 50 Cent was one of the most prominent rappers of the 2000s and this is the record that represents all that made 50 Cent so popular. I loved this album back in the day (particularly the singles), but giving it a critical listen there's things that didn't hold up that well.
Beyond its influence and looking just at the music, the record isn't as good as its reputation suggests. It's overlong, some of the tracks are not up to the level of the singles, and thematically it feels a bit monotonous.
The production is for the most part very sharp and hard hitting, but some tracks could've really used some work. "Heat", "Blood Hound" and "Poor Lil' Rich" could've used better beats. Some others, like "Like My Style" and "High All The Time" have some pretty 2000s generic beats. The singles have some of the best production ever, so it balances out, but it wasn't the strongest aspect of the album by any means.
50 Cent's flow and delivery is pretty distinctive, but again, gets a bit repetitive as the record advances. I think more variation here could've been very useful to give some variety to the album. Nate Dogg and Eminem as features were excellent though.
The best tracks are by far the "classics": "Many Men", "In Da Club", "P.I.M.P" and "21 Questions" are some of the best rap songs of the 2000s and stay catchy as ever.
I feel like this record could've used a lot of editing and polishing, the best tracks are superb, but the lows are just very far from the quality of the best tracks.
Its core idea, 50's powerful persona and the superb singles made it a hallmark of the 2000s rap scene, but in my opinion it had a lot of room for improvement.
Einstürzende Neubauten
1/5
That was certainly an experience. Not my cup of tea though. I thought it sounded like having a bad trip and ending up in a construction site in Berlin in the 80s.
They're certainly bold, angry and uncompromising. There's an argument to be made about the cultural significance of this record, what it represents given it's place and time, and how it upsets certain expectations we've come to develop around what modern music should sound like.
Beyond that, though, there must be something of substance. It might be the language barrier (even though I gave it a quick read to see what the songs were about). But musically this was rough and an almost punishing listen. A lot of it is on purpose, they sound deliberately transgressive. But as a listener, what do you get out of it? The vocal quality is very lacking, melodically it's very poor (given it's minimalist approach) and even though it's heavily percussive and noise-based, it didn't feel as inventive or clever as it could have, particularly for such an experimental record.
I'll give experimental art a try simply to see what it brings to the table, but with this one I don't feel like there's any sort of pay-off at the end of the album. Maybe there's one after successive listens, maybe the lyrics hold deeper meanings that I missed, maybe I'm not such a big fan of industrial/noise and this isn't for me. Or maybe this is just a bunch of distorted construction noise with someone screaming on top of it.
Maybe all of that is true. But in the end, I just didn't like it enough to give it another go.
Stevie Wonder
5/5
This record showcases Wonder's outstanding ability as a musician and songwriter, he can practically do any genre and idea, and here he just does it all pretty much flawlessly. Even though it's a pretty long album, it's just packed with excellent tracks so there aren't really any low points.
Wonder's compositions are magnificent, he delivers outstanding vocals to bring them to life, and his involvement in the project makes it a cohesive project, with a clear sound and vision for it.
There are absolute classics here, like "Sir Duke", "Isn't She Lovely" and "Pastime Paradise", which are masterpieces. But other lesser known tracks are as good, maybe even better. My favourites were "Knocks Me Off My Feet", "Ordinary Pain", "Another Star" and "Black Man".
This album is just a masterpiece. It's Stevie Wonder showing he can do it all, and do it really well, and it works.
The Only Ones
2/5
It's a pretty average record, a light punk-ish vibe, very UK. It left a pretty fleeting memory for me though, I forgot it very quickly as I didn't find it quite remarkable. Not bad, not great.
I liked the record the most when they find a pocket that lives in a sort of moody rock/blues space. But several times in the album they land in a sort of generic pop/rock sound that could've been made by 100 other UK bands.
My favourite track was "Breaking Down", I liked the blues-y middle part, the vocals weren't that good but it worked pretty good. Everything else was pretty average.
The Beach Boys
5/5
A masterful chamber pop album, Brian Wilson was a genius and this is proof of his songwriting ability and vocal quality. The album is very consistent, a very distinctive sound with no bad songs, and it just breezes by.
The vocals are excellent, as always with the beach boys, the instrumentals are just right and the songwriting is very well done, the right mix of emotional and funny.
There are no bad songs, but my favourites were "You Still Believe In Me" and "Don't Talk (Put Your Head On My Shoulder)" and "I Just Wasn't Made For These Times". The composition is so well done, I particularly love their bridges, they take the songs to such beautiful places. The classic songs are also excellent: "Wouldn't It Be Nice" and "God Only Knows" are super catchy.
Overall, it's a fundamental pop album, I didn't find one bad song, and I loved listening to it.
Adele
4/5
In 21 Adele finds a great balance between soul and pop, being mostly driven by her powerful and emotional vocals. It's a melancholic and often sad album, and it delivers very well that vibe.
The understated and minimalist production compliments Adele's voice very well, giving her a lot of space to shine and carry the project.
Most of the tracks are very good, there's of course very well known tracks like "Rolling In The Deep", "Set Fire To The Rain" and "Someone Like You", which remain as hard hitting and catchy as when they released. I particularly liked the lesser known ones from the second half like "He Won't Go", "Take It All" and "I'll Be Waiting", the latter bringing a much needed dose of higher energy. I didn't like much the country-influenced "Don't You Remember"and while I liked the "Lovesong" cover, I felt like it didn't quite match the level of the original.
Overall it's a great album. My only drawbacks are the couple of songs mentioned before, and the tone can be a bit one-dimensional (and sad).
Rahul Dev Burman
2/5
I'll admit I'm not a fan of Bollywood, but I wanted to give it a listen and see if it could change my mind. The first track surprised me positively, but it was pretty downhill from there.
The good track for me was "Title Music (Shalimar)", it's a pretty ambitious composition, mixing to great effect different styles, the wind and horns sections are outstanding, it's jazzy and bold, and it works so good.
After the opener though, I found it to be not only very different from the first track, but to be pretty monotonous. It's a one-trick pony, and I didn't like the trick. It's just pretty mediocre all over. Admittedly, I didn't understand the lyrics, but I doubt they'd be so good they'd fix what's lacking musically.
I feel like Madlib would have a field day sampling this, but for a regular listen it gave me almost nothing.
4/5
I really liked how they mix styles, finding a place that's jazzy, psychedelic and soulful. I also liked how political and directed it feels with its lyrics and message.
The lyrics are good, the performances are excellent and it's an engaging listen. The basslines were particularly good, and the vocals are great too.
My favourite part of the album was the second half, as they flesh out the songs more and they turn into soulful epics. The best songs for me were "City, Country, City", "Four Cornered Room" and "The World Is A Ghetto".
Faith No More
3/5
I like alternative metal, but this particular type not that much. It's not bad, but not great.
I didn't like Patton's vocals much here, I feel like they work better in songs like "Evidence". Here, the rap-ish delivery doesn't do much for me, it feels a bit awkward and exaggerated. The basslines and guitars are interesting, but don't carry the record much. I particularly disliked the synths, they feel a bit too thin and canned.
There are some heavy moments and some catchy choruses, but most of it was pretty average. "Epic" is pretty good, it's one of their most popular songs for a reason. "Surprise! You're Dead!" is also pretty good, they go pretty hard. I disliked their cover of "War Pigs", it doesn't go anywhere near the original and it was a huge risk to even try it. The other songs I didn't care much for.
It's all a bit too rap-rock for me. It's around 2.5 stars.
The White Stripes
4/5
Beyond being the album with "Seven Nation Army" in it, it's a very good alt/garage rock record. They sound heavy, raw and they consistently deliver high energy rock tracks.
Jack's vocals are excellent, he strikes a great balance between operatic and raw. His guitar playing is also very good, the tone is super powerful and his solos are great. The drumming and vocals by Meg are pretty great too.
The best songs (beyond the obvious "Seven Nation Army") were "Black Math", "The Hardest Button To Button" and "I Want To Be The Boy...".
It's a pretty fun record, rocks hard and has its fair share of memorable tracks.
The Electric Prunes
3/5
This one is pretty weird, and I feel like that's its strongest point. For 1967 specially, they feel particularly forward thinking. It's also a pretty short record, so it's just a quick early psychedelic rock listen. It's nothing to write home about, but it wasn't awful by any means, just a bit monotonous at times.
The best songs for me were "I Had Too Much To Dream (Last Night)", "Onie", "Train for Tomorrow" and "Sold Me To The Highest Bidder". They just get very weird with it at times and it's fun to listen to, although not that catchy or memorable.
Sonic Youth
4/5
An excellent album, it's super atmospheric and moody, and I really liked the ambience it creates. It's a bit long, but I kinda got lost in it as the songs, solos and spacious feedbacks mix together as the album goes on and on.
For being noise rock, they make it work very well, creating these beautiful moments of reverb. They're just dissonant and repetitive enough. Their singing works great for the genre, and they use it sparingly enough to add to the song without taking away from the atmospheric quality of their music.
My favourite songs were "The Sprawl", "Teen Age Riot" and "Hey Joni". I felt like the best songs were the 7-minute plus ones, as they flesh them out a lot. The only drawback of the album is it can be a bit too harsh at times, and it's a bit too long so you can get lost in it (as the track are a bit similar between them).
Dusty Springfield
3/5
Pretty straightforward 60s soulful pop. By now it's not the most popular type of pop, but it's not bad at all.
She can sing pretty well, and the instrumental are quite nice. The mixes are a bit mediocre and flat, but it's to be expected given the age of the recording.
The best songs were "You Don't Own Me", "Anyone Who Had A Heart" and "When The Love Starts Shining Through His Eyes'". The rest aren't bad, just kind of generic.
Van Halen
3/5
A very 80s glam rock record powered by synthesizers and guitar solos. It's not bad and it's very much a trademark sound of 80s rock.
Roth's singing voice is super distinctive and works well for this type of rock. Eddie Van Halen does the heavylifting here, both with great guitar lines and interesting synthesizer work. Everything else is pretty standard in my opinion.
There are 2 great songs, the classic "Jump" and the very catchy "Panama". Everything else is kind of average, nothing that good but not bad either.
Flamin' Groovies
2/5
I don't really see why this one is a fundamental listen, it's pretty straightforward rock and roll. I didn't find it too good, just average.
The instrumentals are on par for 70s garage rock, nothing really stood out. I liked 2 songs, the most popular ones: "Yesterday's Numbers" and "Whiskey Woman".
Edit: The wiki page says this record was praised by Mick Jagger as supposedly being a "better take" than Sticky Fingers on blues/rock n roll. By luck, the next album I got was Sticky Fingers, and I'm sorry but there is no way Teenage Head is anywhere near Sticky Fingers. I'm sure Jagger was just being nice to them, but anyone who isn't deaf can see Sticky Fingers is a far superior album.
The Rolling Stones
4/5
It's a great record, they're an excellent rock band, and in this record they're elevated by Bobby Keys' outstanding sax work. The record feels cohesive but still has a diverse sound palette. It might be a bit rough at some points, but that contributes to the style they were going for.
Jagger's singing is unique and very distinctive of their sound. The guitars here are also excellent, they drive the songs a lot. As I said, my favourite aspect of the album is how the sax is incorporated, giving it some jazzy notes, extending some of the songs into improvisation that makes them great.
There were many great songs, but my favourites were the classic "Wild Horses", which is a more toned down and emotional track, I also loved "Dead Flowers" and "Brown Sugar". Between "Bitch" and "I Got The Blues" was my least favourite part of the album.
T. Rex
3/5
I liked the vibe of the record and the direction they take with their music. It's groovy, innovative and sounds good.
The singing is pretty good, gentle but with attitude. The instrumentals are nice, but my favourite part of it were the effects and innovations. The string sections are a great addition, and the reversed sounds and weird effects work superb.
My favourite songs were "Mambo Sun", "Monolith", "Get It On" and "The Motivator".
Also, the cover art is excellent.
Beth Orton
3/5
I didn't like this one too much, it's a bit too bland for my taste. It's a mix of folk with some sort of stripped down trip-hop/electronica, but it never really got going for me. It's also a bit overlong at almost 1 hour. I felt like the second half was better as there's more of a folk vibe that works well.
I feel like Orton has a good voice and isn't a bad songwriter, but the album never really clicked for me. Not to be that guy, but it feels similar to Dido, only less catchy.
"Pass In Time" and "Love Like Laughter" were pretty nice. Many songs felt very similar to each other though.
The Byrds
3/5
It's some nice psychedelic rock, nothing too big. You can hear the British Invasion influences, but the weird parts and jazzy moments make it a bit more interesting than just generic rock and roll. Even so, it's not that good an album.
The performances are pretty good, the singing is pretty nice and the backup vocals work really well. My favourite part were, as I said, the more experimental moments where they add new instruments and techniques to make the songs more interesting. The mix was a bit too thin, which might be because it was recorded a while ago.
My favourite songs were "Ming Gardens" and "Renaissance Fair".
The Police
3/5
This one was a bit of a mixed bag for me. Besides "Synchronicity" I and II, I disliked the first side. Some songs are kind of bland, and the other ones like "Mother" and "Miss Gradenko" didn't stick the landing for me. The second half gets much much better.
Sting's voice is great and super distinctive, there are some pretty nice basslines, and I like the tone of the guitar with the effects, particularly the atmospheric delay they put in some songs.
My favourite songs were "Synchronicity I", "Wrapped Around Your Finger" and "Murder By Numbers". I disliked "Mother". I'm all for weird/experimental music, but I felt this one was all over the place and just didn't work, the manic singing and the weird melody are too on the nose and overall I didn't like it. "Miss Gradenko" wasn't good either, kind of bland, the vocals are a bit too thin and I didn't like the bassline either.
I feel like this one could've been easily a 4 or a 5 with better sequencing, working some songs better or taking them out. "Murder By Numbers" which is excellent, was just a bonus track, and I felt it was a better closer than "Tea In The Sahara". I've read a lot about this album being great, and while I see where it comes from, I feel it has room for improvement. This is like a 3.5 for me.
Sonic Youth
4/5
I really like Sonic Youth's work, and here I felt they found a more polished and streamlined version of some of their earlier work. I really liked "Teenage Daydream" for it's progressive, experimental ending to several songs. Here, that element features less, but it surprisingly didn't take that much away from their music.
I really appreciate how well executed their "noise rock" is, as they walk the balance very well between a coarse, transgressive sound and more melodic and structured compositions. I felt the album also had an additional emotional dimension given by their friend's death and how it inspired several songs.
My favourite songs here were "Sugar Kane" and "Youth Against Fascism".
The Psychedelic Furs
2/5
I've seen several people mention in the 1001 albums project how they feel it's overloaded with generic UK rock and britpop. With several records I disagree, but here I agree completely.
There's nothing that really stands out from this record, I felt it could've been done by countless other bands, and probably has been, to be honest.
If I had to pick one song, I'd pick "Pretty In Pink", being the biggest hit. But honestly, I forgot about this record pretty fast after listening to it.
Minor Threat
4/5
Great album, it has a relevant place in punk rock history, but it also still rocks. They have attitude, they play hard and they sound great. It's catchy, powerful and cohesive.
I feel like MacKaye's voice and delivery are the archetype of punk singing. It's rough and in your face. The distorted guitar, the heavy drums, it's all there.
In terms of songs, my favourite was "Cashing In". The chorus is super catchy, it's a fun song, and it's punk as fuck.
Lorde
4/5
An outstanding pop record, Lorde crafts a more nuanced and a bit less catchy album that Pure Heroine, but in turn gains a lot in introspection and gets to showcase her writing abilities accompanied by great production.
The highlight of this project is Lorde's songwriting and execution. She's an excellent lyricist, painting vivid images with lyrics that are also catchy. She's also a great singer, delivering different tones and inflexions for different moments. The production is really polished and accompanies her very well. My favourite production was the more pop oriented. I'm not much of a fan of Antonoff's work, but here it works pretty well, complimenting the more stripped down and emotional tracks.
My absolute favourite here is "Homemade Dynamite", it's a bop and one of Lorde's best songs. "Green Light" is also great, and I really liked "Supercut" too.
Ice Cube
3/5
I have mixed feelings about this record. I love hip hop and Ice Cube is a super influential figure. This record represents a good part of what made Ice Cube such a renowned figure: great storyteller, excellent flow and a huge presence. But it also hasn't aged well thematically, it's a bit overlong and feels monotonous and repetitive.
Ice Cube's presence on the mic and storytelling skills are of course the driver of the record. He's charismatic, funny but also an imposing presence. The production is very late 80s, and while some of it is good, it's so repetitive. It feels like different iterations of the same beat over and over again. There's also some songs that are similar thematically, so I felt the album could've used some cutting.
My favourite tracks were "AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted" and "Who's The Mack". On the other hand, once again we have to address the obvious issue of misogyny in rap. "You Can't Fade Me" might be a funny track, but it's also yet another chapter in hip hop's long history of misogyny. There might've been an angle from which this made sense once, but honestly it's just dumb and tonedeaf by now. "It's a Man's World" is an attempted criticism at patriarchy, but I feel like it falls flat not only because of the obvious hypocrisy of having both tracks on the same album, but because neither of the tracks is nuanced enough to provided valid criticism. Maybe in the early 90s it was more powerful, but by now it's just aged and misses the mark.
My Bloody Valentine
3/5
A very experimental record, it's very early noise pop. It feels innovative, while also a bit rough and disorganized at times. It feels like the soundtrack to a very weird dream.
On the good side, I feel like they definitely were able to capture a clear and unique vibe and sound here. The bad side is that the performances feel all over the place at times, barely synchronized with each other. I think that this album's redeeming quality are the overall tone and feeling it evoques, much more so than the instrumental performances. They're very much aided by the production, adding effects and feedback that make for much richer textures.
The tracks sort of blend together a lot, but I think that the best is "Lose My Breath", with that catchy vocal melody. "Cupid Come" was also good.
3/5
It's a good album, PJ Harvey can write good, interesting songs and shows this throughout the album,I specially liked the second half.
I liked her singing style, sort of laidback but still expressive. Instrumentally it's pretty straightforward.
My favourite tracks were "A Place Called Home" and "This Mess We're In".
U2
3/5
I didn't like it too much, but I have to recognize there's some quality work here.
They managed to create some nice, catchy alt rock songs, a couple of them would become very well known. Bono's voice is also pretty iconic, although I'm not much of a fan. I don't like his delivery because it feels a bit exaggerated at times, but he definitely gives the songs a distinctive identity. Instrumentally it feels a bit repetitive at times, but there's some nice tunes.
The best ones for me here were "Ultra Violet (Light My Way)" and "Mysterious Ways", they're more upbeat and fun tracks. "One" I don't like much. "Love Is Blindness" I disliked, it felt too overly dramatic and honestly boring.
Blood, Sweat & Tears
3/5
The jazz-rock mix isn't my cup of tea, but they can certainly play well. The second half of the record was much better, with the best songs in it ("Spinning Wheel" and "You've Made Me So Very Happy").
I didn't like the singing much, and the best moments for me were the most "jazzy" ones, like the end of "God Bless the Child". I also found the Satie opener to be a bit gimicky and didn't like it much.
The Temptations
4/5
A good album, very cohesive and tight, it was a breeze to listen to. The standout song is obviously "Papa Was A Rollin' Stone", as it's very popular and has been sampled a lot. But other songs like "Love Woke Me Up This Morning" and "Funky Music Sho Nuff Turns Me On" were pretty good too. The vocals are excellent, the instrumentals are soulful and funky and very fun to listen to.
Kendrick Lamar
5/5
Some of the best hip-hop has to offer.
Kendrick manages to deliver in all fronts: excellent production, powerful lyricism and catchy songs, while also executing an interesting concept.
The lyrics are top-tier here, as he manages to paint vivid pictures, show us around his neighborhood and his culture and deliver sharp criticisms of gang culture and other aspects of the culture. "Sing About Me, I'm Dying Of Thirst" is the absolute standout here, a 12-minute song composed of deeply personal, intimate verses telling different stories of people around him and their influence in him. It's also noteworthy that the catchiest songs like "Swimming Pools" and "Money Trees" are driven by rich social commentary.
The production here is amazing too, he enlists some of the best producers in hip-hop who definitely deliver. "Money Trees" and "Backseat Freestyle" are outstanding beats.
The execution of the concept and how well the album flows is one of its strongest points too, as it's very easy to listen to, the skits and the mix of styles means its never dull. Maybe "Real" and "Compton" aren't as strong as the other tracks, but it doesn't take away at all from the album.
As an overall project it's very focused and deliberate, and the execution is perfect too. This record showcases the power of hip hop as storytelling and as a tool for social criticism, and Kendrick delivers with style and a clear vision.
Incredible Bongo Band
3/5
It's a weird record, at first I thought it'd be just a gimmick with not much of interest, but it's very listenable. It works well as background music, and some of the covers are interesting ("In A Gadda Da Vida"), as they're pretty funky and fun versions of the songs. I won't talk about it's value as samples because it wasn't really the point of the album. But it's an interesting listen and it's better than I expected it to be.
Talking Heads
4/5
An excellent album. It's very cool to hear what Brian Eno and David Byrne came up with working together. It's all very fresh and innovative, very forward-thinking while remaining catchy. It's also funky, upbeat and overall pretty interesting.
The instrumentals are the highlight of the album, as they are very rich mixes of different sounds and styles, effects and ideas. Byrne's singing works for the most part, it's a bit stale at some points but not a big deal. The absolute standout track for me was "The Great Curve", the drums and horns are super interesting, and the chorus is super catchy.
Arcade Fire
3/5
It's a nice concept album, although it's a bit bland at times. The first half was definitely the best for me, it starts strong with "The Suburbs", and I also liked "Ready To Start" too. As it progresses it gets diluted a bit, but it's a nice listen anyways.
I saw them perform this album live, and in that case, it's a 5 star. Their live performance is so raw and powerful and energetic it gives the album and songs a new meaning, they're also absolutely amazing live. This rating goes to the album version only.
Motörhead
3/5
I'm not a fan of live albums, but this one isn't bad at all. They sound excellent live, very similar to the studio version but with like a raw edge, they sound huge and their versions here mostly add to the original tracks. "Ace Of Spades" is a classic track, "Iron Horse/Born To Lose" is excellent too here, and "Motorhead" is great.
Fugees
5/5
Amazing album. It's all very well done, and it amounts to one of the best hip hop records ever.
Rap wise, they're all excellent here, interesting verses, stylish delivery and top-tier flows. Pras is arguably the most underrated, but he's always consistent and adds interesting flows to the group. Wyclef is great, he has a distinctive voice and writes very good verses. But the absolute standout here is Lauryn Hill. She's a remarkable rapper, her verses are very well written, she has so much style in her delivery, and she's such a good singer too. She definitely carries a big part of what makes The Fugees so good.
The production is superb, the sampling is top-notch and the DJ/live parts make the album flow very well. The skits were pretty funny too.
The best songs were "Ready Or Not", "Killing Me Softly", "How Many Mics" and "Family Business". The only song I didn't think was up to par was "No Woman, No Cry", as it isn't as good as the original, nor as good as the other songs in the album.
Willie Nelson
3/5
This isn't at all my favourite style, but Nelson delivers pretty nice covers of these songs. I liked that he doesn't lean that hard into the country side, but has a pretty consistent and specific style to his work, and he showcases it very well here.
They're very stripped down, laid-back versions, and most of them work pretty well. "Georgia On My Mind" is a classic and he delivers well, "Unchained Melody" was pretty well done too. "Someone To Watch Over Me" was also good.
Coldplay
3/5
I'm not a fan of Coldplay, but I can't deny that the first half of this album is good.
Back when they wrote this record, they were pretty good at writing radio-friendly pop-rock hits. The first half is packed with back to back catchy songs, Martin's voice works very well to carry the hits, and the instrumentals are very good too, with simple but interesting and memorable melodies. The second half drags on a bit and gets pretty boring, I think it could've used some cutting to make it tighter.
The run from "In My Place" to "Clocks" is very good and represents the some of the best material from Coldplay. Aside from that, I disliked "Politik" as an opener. Everything else was pretty average.
Dr. Octagon
2/5
This was pretty bad. I only gave it 2 stars because the production is pretty good.
The rapping here is all over the place. I found the concept of the album pretty childish and honestly dumb. The delivery does nothing to help here, the flow is pretty off and mediocre, he's often off beat in an annoying way. The verses are also pretty mediocre, repetitive, simple and just not good. The concept again does little favors to help the writing.
The production on the other hand is great, most of the beats go super hard. Good sample selection, raw drums and excellent scratches. There are some beats that aren't as good as the others (the "Blue Flowers" one was pretty annoying), but it works pretty good most of the time. If this had been an instrumental album, I might've given it 3 or 4 stars.
The best tracks was "3000". "Girl Let Me Touch You" was pretty bad, kinda creepy and the chorus is so bad. "Halfsharkalligatorhalfman" was also so dumb conceptually, I couldn't take it seriously, but wasn't good enough to be funny either. The skits are also all over the place.
Q-Tip
3/5
Q-Tip is a great producer, he has nice flows and he's overall a really good artist. Here, though, I felt like even though his talents shine, I didn't find it a noteworthy record.
The production is obviously the highlight, it's soulful, tasteful and polished. Q-Tip can also rap pretty well, his flow is super smooth and fits right with the songs.
"Gettin Up" was great, "Life Is Better" is also excellent (Norah Jones' vocals are heavenly) and D'Angelo's feature is also nice, although I expected a bit more from a D'Angelo track.
While everything works pretty well, I felt the record was kind of forgettable, no much stood out to me.
Santana
4/5
The Monks
3/5
It's nice that it's such an early record and such a proto-everything project, you can definitely hear the influence they'd have in later works. On the other hand though, I didn't find it a good or interesting listen? They're not bad by any means, they're definitely innovative and not afraid to get weird, they find interesting moments in which they go far out and it works, but in many other moments, it doesn't work. And after the midpoint it kind of drags on. I think it could've definitely benefited from being like half an hour long. I thought the best one was "Oh, How To Do Now", but "Boys are Boys and Girls are Choice" was also interesting. It's like a 2.5 for me.
Johnny Cash
4/5
Hüsker Dü
3/5
3.5 good but too long
Hugh Masekela
3/5
Ozomatli
2/5
boring and performative, feels like it inspired the worst of Lin-Manuel Miranda.
3/5
3.5 the good tracks are great, sometimes it feels almost like a radiohead cover band (hoodoo)
Stevie Wonder
4/5
Red Snapper
4/5
Kendrick Lamar
5/5
Finley Quaye
3/5
A bit of a mixed bag, the reggae parts were my least favourites ("Ultra Stimulation"), but the more mellow tracks like "Even After All" or "Your Love Gets Sweeter" were great. I felt his delivery also worked best when it was more laid back, not leaning so hard into the reggae side. The triphop ones were also pretty nice. I felt the record got better as it advanced, the second half was much better than the beginning.
AC/DC
3/5
It's a fun hard rock record, they're super energetic and upbeat, which is pretty much the AC/DC trademark sound. Lyrically it isn't too complex or dark, pretty straightforward. The downside for me is that it's pretty monotonous, there's not much variation or different ideas. If you like the biggest songs ("You Shook Me All Night Long" and "Back In Black"), you'll like the album. It's a good rock project, just nothing too innovative or noteworthy beyond the hits.
Alexander 'Skip' Spence
2/5
This one is pretty weird and intense, but also kind of boring. I struggled to get through it. The backstory is kind of interesting and pretty crazy, but musically it just doesn't work too much for me. I found it interesting that it sort of devolves and gets weirder as the record advances, and towards the end was the most interesting ideas (even though I didn't like them that much). I thought the best songs were "Weighted Down (The Prison Song)" and "Grey/Afro" was also interesting, a pretty weird and experimental track.
Can
4/5
ZZ Top
3/5
It's a nice record, pretty energetic and a fun listen, although honestly it won't be going into my hard rock favourites. I thought the use of synths was pretty nice, and it embodies a very specific 80s sound. The best track by far was "Legs" for me, "Sharp Dressed Man" was pretty good too. "TV Dinner" is pretty tongue in cheek and funny, but it also has pretty low replay value for me given its subject matter.
Barry Adamson
3/5
Very weird record, very Lynch-like (he actually used a track from this). It's a bit overlong, and it's point of interest is how off-putting and disturbing it can be (in like a non-traditional horror kinda way). They can also be pretty groovy, too, not bad at all in terms of instrumental and groove. Don't know if I'll listen to it again but it's definitely an experience.
Fatboy Slim
3/5
tbr
Joni Mitchell
4/5
Arctic Monkeys
4/5
Hanoi Rocks
3/5
The 13th Floor Elevators
2/5
The Strokes
4/5
Culture Club
4/5
For me, the original release is a 4.5. It's super catchy, it's a fun record that's light but filled with hits. The vocals are excellent, the production is very good and the right mix of 80s pop. The synths work superb and mix well with the horns and the voices. Most of the album is pretty good, but the standouts were "Karma Chameleon", "It's a Miracle", "Black Money" and "Miss Me Blind".
R.E.M.
3/5
I'm not too big a fan of R.E.M, beyond their big hits they bore me a bit. This record isn't the exception. The good songs are excellent: "Everybody Hurts" is a classic and "Man on the Moon" is one of their best and catchiest songs. "Drive", "The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonight" and "Nightswimming" were pretty good too. The rest I didn't really care for. Beyond the specific songs though, their specific brand of folk rock/pop just doesn't resonate with me and even though I can listen to them, I don't see this as one of the best albums ever.
2/5
Gosh, here I just don't see what makes it so good. It sure is transgressive and innovative, but beyond the new ideas I didn't feel it brought much to the table. I love Bowie's and Eno's work, but here it feels disjointed, chaotic and all over the place, and while there's certainly merit to its brand of post punk, I didn't really like it.
If I had to pick one, I'd say "Mongoloid" was the best. "Uncontrollable Urge" wasn't bad either. The "Satisfaction" cover was pretty bad on the other hand.
Blur
3/5
It's pretty good, energetic and engaging but at the same time the sort of experimental, too cool for you vibes that they bring, special Albarn, make the record. While the obvious standout is "Song 2", I really liked the second half of the album, which has a more laidback vibe with songs like "Look Inside America" or "Strange News from Another Star".
XTC
4/5
Tom Waits
3/5
Waits is super funny, he has a ton of personality and carries the record very well. The instrumentation is great too, I particularly liked the piano.
I felt the fake jazz club vibe worked really well, it didn't feel forced to me, it's a great vehicle for Waits' spoken word parts.
I found the album to be a bit overlong and at some points a bit boring though, around the halfway point (around "Better Off Without A Wife").
The best were "Warm Beer and Cold Women", "Emotional Weather Report" and "On A Foggy Night".
Radiohead
4/5
The Byrds
2/5
Not my cup of tea, the first half was fine but then I found it a bit repetitive, and I just don't like Country. I'm sure that for country music fans this is good, but I just wasn't feeling it.
Leonard Cohen
3/5
Cohen is an interesting songwriter, very sophistipop, and some songs are very good, but the overall project wasn't that interesting for me. I liked the jazzy mix with synth-pop, felt very 80s.
Cohen's voice and delivery is also very unique and is what makes the record when it works. He can be a bit too dry at times, but I think it's part of the whole persona.
I thought the best song was "First We Take Manhattan". "Jazz Police" wasn't bad, but it was pretty odd and didn't really like it much.
Pere Ubu
2/5
3/5
The Charlatans
3/5
Teenage Fanclub
4/5
This was so good!
Michael Kiwanuka
5/5
I've loved this record since it came out, Kiwanuka is a master at creating these intimate, vulnerable and incredibly soulful moments. It's very hard to pick favourites, but I think "You Ain't The Problem", "Solid Ground" and "Piano Joint (This Kind Of Love)" are the best of a very very good record. I can't think of a way to improve this one honestly.
The Clash
5/5
The Rolling Stones
3/5
Simon & Garfunkel
4/5
Bruce Springsteen
3/5
Willie Nelson
3/5
Soul II Soul
2/5
Gosh, this one was pretty monotonous. The vibe isn't bad, and when it works it's pretty catchy ("Keep On Movin'"), but it's like listening to the same song many times over, I felt stuck in a loop. Some variations are particularly bad, like "Holdin' On", in which the male vocals are so stale and bland. "Feeling Free" was pretty good, the beat is nice and the change in vibe was very necessary.
Metallica
3/5
Jerry Lee Lewis
3/5
Randy Newman
2/5
Spiritualized
3/5
The Velvet Underground
3/5
The Last Shadow Puppets
3/5
The Velvet Underground
3/5
De La Soul
4/5
Can
2/5
Lambchop
2/5
The xx
5/5
Isaac Hayes
4/5
Astor Piazzolla
3/5
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
2/5
Rush
4/5
Skunk Anansie
3/5
TV On The Radio
3/5
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
3/5
Sarah Vaughan
4/5
fIREHOSE
3/5
Ministry
2/5
John Lennon
3/5
The Vines
3/5
The KLF
3/5
Joy Division
3/5
Eagles
3/5
3.5
Khaled
3/5
At this point my criticism goes toward Dimery and his curation rather than Khaled. How is it possible this was the best he could include? It’s a 75-minute mishmash of different variations of what counts as “world music”.
For Khaled, it’s perfectly fine: there’s some good material here, especially for sampling. It's nothing to write home about though.
So why is this classified as a “must listen”? How did this make the cut, when there's so many glaring omissions across the different editions? Its inclusion really only shows Dimery’s limited knowledge of “world music,” which is also evident from several other "world music" picks that feel stereotypical or even performative in how "diverse" they are (see Ananda Shankar, Shalimar, etc.), often including subpar covers of Western hits. I feel that Dimery’s selections imply this is the best the “rest of the world” has to offer, yet it would be easy to pick 10 records that are not only better than this, but also that represent much better the diversity of cultures and sounds that exist beyond the UK/US music scene.
Regarding the album, E’dir E’sseba and Gouloulha-Dji were great. The Imagine cover wasn’t good. The rest is a mixed bag, sometimes interesting but most of the songs tend to be overlong and repetitive. The funky moments are what worked best for me. It's upbeat and kinda fun, but way too long.
Dire Straits
4/5
Tears For Fears
4/5
Jah Wobble's Invaders Of The Heart
3/5
Billy Bragg
3/5
The Crusaders
4/5
Paul McCartney and Wings
5/5
Beatles
5/5
Alice Cooper
3/5
3.5
The Doors
4/5
Run-D.M.C.
3/5
3 and only because of its historic relevance, because honestly it sounds pretty dated.
Steely Dan
4/5
4/5
Jeff Buckley
5/5
X-Ray Spex
3/5
The Bees
3/5
Rush
4/5
Has a 20-minute epic, no bad songs and "Lessons" and "Tears" are excellent.
Travis
3/5
Love
3/5
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
3/5
The Who
4/5
The Teardrop Explodes
3/5
Portishead
3/5
Fela Kuti
4/5
Gil Scott-Heron
5/5
TLC
3/5
Tom Waits
3/5
Bill Evans Trio
4/5
Jazmine Sullivan
4/5
The Adverts
3/5
Johnny Cash
3/5
The Mamas & The Papas
3/5
Orange Juice
3/5
Various Artists
3/5
The Who
4/5
Rod Stewart
3/5
A Tribe Called Quest
5/5
Nick Drake
4/5
Pulp
4/5
Garbage
4/5
Jefferson Airplane
3/5
Bruce Springsteen
3/5
Iron Maiden
3/5
Elvis Presley
4/5
Boston
3/5
Massive Attack
4/5
The Undertones
3/5
Elliott Smith
3/5