UM HOLY SHIT??? HE JUST DIED??? this isn't some kind of site-wide memorial thing where everyone gets specifically this album today right??? (edit: I think it was lmfao) anyway I love the beach boys, even if this is only one of them it still has the same youthful vibes and surf/beach lyrics that remind me of my childhood. however it's also a lot proggier, with many songs having distinct parts similar to "good vibrations" (which is also on this album). it's nothing mind-blowing but it is a really nice, rewarding listen. also shout-out to brian (rip) for still having such a good voice at 62. favorite song: "good vibrations" obviously. overall: 8/10

first album i've ever done - I knew of both the artist and album going into it but didn't know that much about them overall. I can say that the first track on the album, let england shake, is something that I swear i've heard somewhere before. this is a strange album to get for the very first listen. it's one of the most british things I think i've ever heard. it's not trying to be mainstream in any way and is oppressively dour and depressing throughout it. that's not a bad thing though - she's very clearly trying to say something, the album has very obvious themes of war and loss of hope in your country. as an american in 2025, that is definitely a familiar feeling. it excellently portrays the themes and the songwriting is incredible, some absolutely heart-wrenching lyrics in this album. this isn't a very summery album - probably more fitting for 8 am on some rainy ass day in march, especially if i'm feeling depressed that day. kinda glad I listened to this late at night tbh. favorite song: "the last living rose" 8/10 (but I definitely know some people who would give this 10/10)

another artist/band I generally know of but don't know that much about. seeing "10 songs - 1 hour 11 minutes" scared me but the thing about post-rock is that you can kind of just tune it out and have it as nice background noise. great music to fall asleep or study to. I don't speak icelandic so I wasn't really able to get anything out of the lyrics though, and it didn't really grab my attention enough to be much more than some nice background noise - even if it does sound really pretty at times. favorite song - staralfur (that melody is really pretty) overall - 6/10

first album I actually know some songs from. I can never remember which creedence song is from which album but looking at the tracklist I was like "oh, holy shit, this has some absolute classics". this is the sort of album in which, despite never listening to it fully before, I already had 8/11 of the songs downloaded from various playlists. coming off of a sigur ros album the 7 minute opening track did scare me a little bit but the rest of the album is a nice blend of relaxing folk rock and energetic jamming that just comes across as charming and fun. this is with the exception of "ooby dooby", some kind of shitty ripoff of little richard's "tutti frutti" that repeats the (very cringy sounding) title an excessive amount of times. some highlights include the tempo change at the very end of "lookin' out my back door", the guitar riff at the beginning of "up around the bend", and the cover of "i heard it through the grapevine" (most famously by marvin gaye), which is an objectively incredible song. (although, does it have to be 11 minutes long?) favorite song - "travelin' band" (I love when he randomly goes UUWAAUAUAUWWW) overall - 8/10

OH HELL YEAH!!!! my dad used to play this all the time when I was a kid, especially the title track "yoshimi battles the pink robots, part 1" - nowadays the nostalgia from that song is palpable. anyway this is a 5, and also my first 5, I am 100% planning on listening to this many more times. the album is basically a cross between sgt pepper's and the steven universe score, having a lot of cool psychedelic elements that just make you feel like you're floating in a sea of clouds. the melodies in this album are absolutely beautiful, and wayne has a really nice voice that works well with this type of music. the lyrics are also a lot more cohesive than I expected - I thought they would be a lot more abstract and stream-of-conciousness, but there's a lot of meaning behind them to me, especially "fight test" and "are you a magician?" favorite song: still "yoshimi battles the pink robots, part 1". although I must also give a shout-out to part 2, an instrumental that I can only imagine soundtracks the actual battle against the robots. overall: 10/10 P.S. someone from my high school's senior quote was "do you realize that you have the most beautiful face". guess they had good taste in music.

"ah yes, the 'every breath you take' album", said many people - can you blame them? the song currently has 38 times as many spotify streams as the second biggest song on the album - maybe one of the worst cases of this from a non one hit wonder? anyway, i've never been too big on the police. sting very often uses a fake-ass jamaican accent that screams cultural appropriation, and when they aren't making shitty cod reggae, they're just really boring. (also their band name did not age the best considering modern day issues.) i've realized that "every breath you take" is actually very out of place in their catalog, it sounds nothing like all the cheeseball new wave / reggae fusion on the rest of the album. there's also tracks like "mother", in which he sounds like he's having a fucking mental breakdown. I wanted to like this, but sadly it didn't impress me at all. favorite song: every breath you take. I know it's a cop-out, but it's an objectively great pop song that's as well known as it is for a reason. sure it's creepy, but that just makes it more interesting. overall: 4/10

so this is one of those albums (artists, really) that can't decide what genre it wants to be and kinda just throws in a little bit of everything. which means it's honestly kind of impressive how something so stylistically eclectic still kinda just blends together. I mean, there are standouts - "devil's haircut", "lord only knows", "novacane", but by the end it all kinda just starts to sound the same to me. I should also take note of the album's most famous song, "where it's at", a radio hit with a catchy but repetitive chorus. I remember hearing this a lot as a kid and was surprised to learn it was by beck. it's alright tbh favorite song: "lord only knows". I like how it starts with "AAAUGGHAGHHDCEIUDVYUFBUIE" and then the rest is just a relaxing country/blues kinda thing overall: 6/10

UM HOLY SHIT??? HE JUST DIED??? this isn't some kind of site-wide memorial thing where everyone gets specifically this album today right??? (edit: I think it was lmfao) anyway I love the beach boys, even if this is only one of them it still has the same youthful vibes and surf/beach lyrics that remind me of my childhood. however it's also a lot proggier, with many songs having distinct parts similar to "good vibrations" (which is also on this album). it's nothing mind-blowing but it is a really nice, rewarding listen. also shout-out to brian (rip) for still having such a good voice at 62. favorite song: "good vibrations" obviously. overall: 8/10

a bunch of covers of old classic pop songs, so while I know that it isn't going to be bad or anything, I also don't have anything to say about the lyrical content or melody or anything since he's not the one who wrote it. generally not much to say except that it's gorgeous and soothing, even if a little boring. willie nelson is a cool dude. favorite song: "unchained melody" overall: 7/10

there is some beauty in the abrasiveness, even if it does get a bit samey-sounding. i'm kinda just happy this isn't what I think of when I hear "noise rock" (usually something akin to a broken radiator) even if I would rather be listening to the pixies, there's still a lot I can get out of this. favorite song: "pacific coast highway" overall: 7/10?

I grew up listening to bruce springsteen, but generally his older stuff - I was surprised to see an album so late into his career get enough attention to end up on this list. I shouldn't have doubted him though - this album is full of wistfulness and melancholically hopeful bangers. feels like daydreaming looking out the window - today is a rainy day which just made it fit the vibe even more. I know springsteen isn't for everyone - most of the top reviews for this are 1-3 - but this hit me right today. favorite song: "waitin' on a sunny day" totally a vibe overall: 9/10

apparently this is post-hardcore but it sounds more industrial to me? sounds a lot more like nine inch nails or fear factory than fugazi or something but idk lmao i'm probably wrong. anyway I have no idea what this is but it's kinda mid. favorite song: "bullet proof cupid" overall: 5/10

damn, I didn't expect the very first rap album I reviewed to be such an iconic one. I mean, this is the album with "fight the power" on it, which rolling stone once called the second-best song literally ever made, not to mention everything else on it. the whole album bashes institutional racism and the failure of the police, and just like most of this era of hip-hop, it absolutely slaps - it has a lot of energy and the flows are catchy and satisfying. also a lot of the songs have heavy metal guitars layered under the rapping which is a really nice touch. favorite song: "911 is a joke" absolutely slaps overall: 9/10

this album is weird because it's objectively very good but it just doesn't really make me feel anything. maybe it's because, while this was insanely ahead of its time when it was released, in the current day i've heard so much similar music that it doesn't really give me anything new. it's also a bit too robotic for my tastes. however, I do have to respect it for being as objectively excellent as it is. just not my personal taste. beep boop blorp favorite song: "spacelab" simply due to how catchy that synth riff is overall: 6/10. one point for every song (this is basically an EP lmao)

literally just absolute fire. firing on every possible cylinder. their flows are insane. one of the guys is named rizz or something. favorite song: "wu-tang: 7th chamber: overall: 10/10

ok first of all that album cover kinda jumpscared me. anyway this is just a bunch of instrumental loops with random samples repetitively played over them for over an hour. i'm sure this would go hard if I was at a club, however i'm currently in my bedroom at 2 am so this kind of vibe isn't too easily applicable to my current surroundings. favorite song: speedway overall: 5/10

the title makes it sound like a live album for some reason? (it isn't.) what it is is very good though. dusty springfield has an excellent voice and you can tell she's just pouring out all of her emotions into this album. it's a really cathartic listen. while it does sometimes lean into 60's cheese, I don't really mind. favorite song: "i don't want to hear it anymore" overall: 8/10

extremely relaxing and fun. never knew much about this group but I did know their most popular song "insane in the brain", which has some weird samples and a beat that feels like a train about to fall off the tracks (if that makes any sense?) most of these songs have the same elements, which I appreciate a lot. I also like the psychedelic elements they included. vibes favorite song: "real estate"? overall: 8/10

I love the talking heads so I knew that even half of them would at least be pretty decent. first song is unlistenable but the rest is really pleasant and you can tell it's 50% of the talking heads. rather listen to the full band but it's nice to hear them play around a little and have fun. favorite song: "genius of love" overall: 7/10

nice old classic blues (as well as I believe the first live album I've reviewed) and it has some surprisingly funny lyrics. "I bought you a ten dollar dinner, and you said 'thanks for the snack'" favorite song: "how blue can you get?" overall: 7/10

i've only been doing this album challenge thing for about 6 weeks and I feel like i've already listened to way too many alt-rock/noise rock/lo-fi albums that just sound like they were recorded by a bunch of 16 year olds in a garage. like the others, this straddles a line between endearing and annoying and I really can't tell what side it ends up on. i'd say endearing since some tracks remind me of early weezer, especially with some of the random lyrical non-sequitors. favorite song: "stop breathin" overall: 6/10

for some reason I always thought dinosaur jr as a sort of primus-esque funk metal band and I have no clue why. there's a lot of interesting guitar tones/effects throughout the album, especially in "no bones" where it sounds like a lightsaber for some reason. sadly, there isn't much else that's interesting about this album - it kinda just languishes in its own midness for a while. favorite song: "no bones" overall: 6/10

first metal album i've reviewed and this is definitely a good pick. i'm not a full metalhead but I do have a lot of appreciation for the genre. and like, it's IRON MAIDEN. the album art is a bit terrifying but even outside of my personal love for the genre I have to appreciate the guitar solos and some really nice tempo changes thrown in, both elements making the album a lot more interesting to listen to. favorite song: "iron maiden", by the band iron maiden, from the album "iron maiden" overall: 9/10

i love their name. as opposed to what, perfectly average bongo band? and yes, this album does indeed have many a bongo in it. it's seriously catchy and fun as hell, there's some great covers on here. i especially enjoyed their take on "wipe out" and "i can't get no satisfaction". favorite song: "i can't get no satisfaction" overall: 8/10

more live blues, nothing mind-blowing but i love how much energy there is in his performance. also one of the songs mentions april 12, 1951 and I can't find any info on what of importance happened that day. favorite song: "i've got my mojo working" overall: 7/10

some nice, standard prog rock. I have never had any idea as to what a "jethro tull" is and at this point I kinda don't want to find out at all. but it wouldn't be prog rock without some really cool musical ideas, and I love the combination of harder guitars with flutes in "up to me" in particular favorite song: "locomotive breath" overall: 8/10

great music for CEOs cheating on their wives. in all seriousness, a lot of people seem to hate this kind of emotional, piano driven soft rock (post-britpop?) but it really works for me for whatever reason. I generally prefer keane, but this album is a surprisingly nice listen from a band I find way overhated. favorite song: "the scientist" overall: 9/10

some of it is relaxing but there's other parts that are just kind of... noise. it's clearly trying to sound faraway and mysterious but that doesn't always work the best when combined with walls of guitars. some of this is really good and then other parts are kinda meh. favorite song: "cut dead" overall: 7/10

not the worst thing ever, it sounds mid, but I don't exactly think this is one of the most important albums of all time. i put off listening to this for days and now have a giant backlog of other albums I need to review. best song: "with tomorrow" overall: 4/10

probably the most 90s album from the 80s, a lot of it seems very sarcastic and tongue-in-cheek. not really sure what it is with this book's obsession with albums that sound like a bunch of teenagers fooling around in their garage, but at least this time it's at least somewhat intentional. favorite song: "blister in the sun" overall: 6/10

people in the early 80s were really obsessed with Japan (and Asia in general.) however this was actually released in 1979, so this is basically one of those albums that doesn't sound interesting or special because it originated a style that a bunch of people copied. while I recognize that, it still doesn't impress me and all these songs sound the same. favorite song: "in vogue" overall: 6/10

expected this to be like a movie score but 1) it isn't and 2) holy fuck this is absolutely overflowing with emotion. the title track "superfly" is the most popular but it's honestly kind of comparatively weak favorite song: "freddie's dead" overall: 8/10

an album from 2017? god I wish this was a lot more interesting. the first song was really good and then the rest of it is just, meh. there's some catchy hooks but I kept forgetting there was music playing in the first place. favorite song: "dangerous" overall: 5/10

even separating the art from the artist i've never been that much into arcade fire, the only songs i've really liked that much from them being "wake up" and that one about the snow tunnels or whatever. this album didn't really make me a huge fan, but it was a pretty nice listen. there are moments in songs such as "intervention" and "no cars go" that are pretty similar to what I liked about "wake up" - specifically the huge, booming, anthemic sound. favorite song: "intervention" overall: 7/10 (p.s. go to 2:03 in the song "ocean of noise" heehee)

celtic punk is such a cool genre. I love it when people fuse two completely unrelated genres together, especially if it ends up sounding as awesome as this. this album also happens to have "fairytale of new york" on it, which I believe is the most played christmas song in the UK. a rare instance of a christmas song on a non-christmas album as well. there's a few features by the dubliners (an irish folk band) later into the album. the whole thing is a ton of fun. favorite song: "fairytale of new york". yeah it has a slur, yeah it's weird to be listening to this in the middle of july, but this song is lowkey beautiful. overall: 9/10

despite never listening to this album before (why THIS beach boys album???) for some reason I have every single song downloaded? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ anyway there's some weird mixing and a lot of vocals are directly in my right ear and it just doesn't seem like i'm listening to the beach boys a lot of the time? favorite song: "feel flows" overall: 4/10 (sorry y'all)

this album is just a ray of sunshine. had never heard of this group and had no clue what to expect but it greatly exceeded my expectations. left a big smile on my face lmao favorite song: "freedom" overall: 9/10

not exactly "intelligent" music but ac/dc is one of the easiest ways to cure depression (for me at least.) leaves a big goofy smile on my face. yeah, their songs all sound the same, but at least that sound is really good. they're popular for a reason. favorite song: "touch too much" overall: 9/10

i have no idea why but oasis has always been one of those bands that i just absolutely love no matter what they do. maybe combining loud, kickass instrumentals with really pretty beatles-esque melodies is a better combination than i'd think. and yeah, there are obvious flaws - "live forever" is a weird hybrid of "wonderwall" and candlebox's "far behind" and has 3 identical verses, "cigarettes & alcohol" is a very obvious ripoff of "bang a gong" by t. rex - but my two braincells seem to love this all the same. favorite song: slide away (absolutely gorgeous) overall: 10/10

i was surprised to learn that r.e.m. is from athens, georgia because like a lot of alternative rock before the mid 90s or so, it reminds me a lot of the pacific northwest (or really anywhere up north). the whole album sounds really mysterious and haunted, like walking through a landscape similar to the forest on the album cover. even this early on, r.e.m. were setting themselves up to be one of the greatest alternative rock bands of all time. the whole album is surprisingly accessible; this is only "alternative" because of how different it sounded from journey or def leppard or other big rock bands at the time. the hook on "radio free europe" gives me life. favorite song: "mortal kiosk" overall: 9/10 (i have been getting a lot of really solid albums lately, starting to worry that might end soon)

some chill acoustic stuff with a few electric elements and some nice backup vocals in some songs. one of those albums that didn't blow me away but was still a pleasant listen. she's clearly a very talented singer I guess favorite song: "somebody who loves you" overall: 6/10 (but like a high 6)

pretty much singlehandedly started one of the most popular music genres of all time lmao favorite song: "black sabbath" overall: 10/10

ykw I expected this to be a bunch of random pretentious cluttered nonsense, because while i do know songs on here, I had never listened to all of them together, and while it very much is what I expected, i'll give it this - it's some surprisingly pleasant cluttered nonsense. random assorted thoughts: - this has weirdly few plays on spotify for such a well known album - cover art is horrifying - ahead of its time (which seems to be what music nerds like.) the fact that this is the 60s is wild favorite song: "i talk to the wind" overall: 6/10 (sorry rym)