thoughts: guy sounds like dylan w/ a buzzer in his throat, very 60s, liked the first two songs but the rest is background noise from the era other than "and I've seen her" which is a fun beatles-esque short track, honestly VERY ren faire
songs: “are you happy?”, “only dreaming now”, “and I’ve seen her”
rating: 5.2/10
thoughts: good production other than man, that harmonica flies in loud as a MFer. i like the back half of this album a lot more; basically starting at “meet me in the morning” through the end, this is a phenomenal album. i’ll probably like this more on repeated listens
songs: “simple twist of fate”, “meet me in the morning”, “if you see her, say hello”
rating: 7.5/10
thoughts: look. “smooth operator” will always slap but i was not aware of the rest of sade’s game. first four songs are an amazing run; later tracks are good but definitely album cuts. sade’s voice and the band’s sound melt together so well, though, that the vibes are impeccable. “i will be your friend” was a fun little ballad there at the back end. this is just fuckin cool, and effortlessly so
songs: “smooth operator”, “your love is king”, “frankie’s first affair”
rating: 8.2/10
thoughts: somehow both a lot different to what i’m used to from the smiths but still very much their sound. it’s probably the guitar and morrissey’s voice (which i love). this was released several months after the band broke up which honestly tracks with the tone of the album
songs: “i started something i couldn’t finish”, “girlfriend in a coma”, “last night i dreamt that somebody loved me”
rating: 7.9/10
thoughts: speaking of singers whose voice i love, here’s nick drake. this is just so soothing and so confident for a debut album. confident melancholy? is that a thing? sure, let’s go with it
songs: “time has told me”, “day is done”, “saturday sun”
rating: 7.4/10
thoughts: i’m not particularly a “live album” guy, but this kind of music lends itself to the format. great vibes here throughout, very easy to find yourself tapping your toes along with the music. i can see how this has become so influential
songs: “baby, please don’t go”, “tiger in your tank”, “i’ve got my mojo working”
rating: 8.0/10
thoughts: “smack my bitch up” and “breathe” is still an insane (but appropriate) 1-2 punch to open the album. a total time capsule of 1990s UK rave culture but outside of the three singles (and the transition from “narayan” into “firestarter”)…eh, hasn’t aged tremendously
songs: “smack my bitch up”, “breathe”, “firestarter”
rating: 5.4/10
thoughts: you could’ve played this without telling me the musical act and i would’ve known it was the who, easily. this is a fantastic storytelling concept album. also i’m just a fan of those sub-1-minute interludes they love to throw into their albums to bridge between songs. overall, this is an absolute production and it flows extremely well
songs: “overture”, “christmas”, “go to the mirror!”
rating: 9.0/10
thoughts: this is ‘mood whiplash: the album.’ it’s absolutely insane. it’s a trip across america. and it works. i didn’t know what to expect after the first track went so hard, but some of these instrumental tracks show a great level of talent and the ability to transform the band within its own album.
songs: “split myself in two”, “aurora borealis”, “i’m a mindless idiot”
rating: 7.5/10
thoughts: i love the efficiency. get in, kill it for 33 mins, get out. classic record. “sunshine of your love” still absolutely slaps.
songs: “strange brew”, “sunshine of your love”, “outside woman blues”
rating: 7.4/10
thoughts: this feels like what i’d call “sailor music.” defiant storytelling; 5/9 songs have specific names in the title, not even mentioning “brother” as a subject (or the album title!). i feel like david lynch would’ve loved this. really cool production, a couple of very solid tracks, but this album overall probably isn’t for me.
songs: “straight to you”, “when i first came to town”, “loom of the land”
rating: 5.9/10
thoughts: this is such an easy listen but it’s just so much fun. the production is so slick, the samples are perfect, the storytelling is on point. “heart street directions” is the dumbest and funniest minute-long skit on an album i can remember. breaking it up halfway through with a ne-yo feature is so smart. MF DOOM and j dilla can’t miss
songs: “shakey dog”, “9 milli bros”, “R.A.G.U.”
rating: 8.1/10
thoughts: hey, another album with some harmonica! this is a lot blues-y than i would’ve expected, but still very much the black sabbath sound i’ve heard in their most famous songs. a lot of doom and gloom here, very methodical pacing
songs: “black sabbath”, “the wizard”, “wicked world”
rating: 6.5/10
houghts: oh yes, time for some nostalgia, wistfulness, and melancholy. i miss old, heartfelt coldplay.
songs: “sparks”, “trouble”, “we never change”
rating: 7.5/10
thoughts: from the start, i could tell the beats were gonna be fantastic. i’m a huge fan of good use of samples, and this was really impressive. i recognized a two-second clip from “you can’t stop the prophet” because dj shadow sampled it on endtroducing, which felt like discovering hidden treasure
songs: “d.original”, “mental stamina”, “come clean”
rating: 7.0/10
thoughts: this opener is beautiful. this album is oasis if they became astronauts. a couple tracks are just “hey do you like noise? because here’s a LOT of it!” but otherwise i think this is a very solid album
songs: “ladies and gentlemen we are floating in space”, “stay with me”, “broken heart”
rating: 7.5/10
thoughts: “my sweet lord” is one of my favorite songs of all time but having heard this all the way through for the first time, this is an amazing record. i’m a sucker for a slide guitar, but i swear it’s not just that!
songs: “my sweet lord”, “let it down”, “art of dying”
rating: 8.6/10
thoughts: a very lonely-sounding album. a few songs really grabbed my attention but overall, more misses than hits for my music brain
songs: “the shining hour”, “the hook”, “soft wolf tread”
rating: 5.7/10
thoughts: the lows are lower than my least favorite tracks on daydream nation, but this is a really solid mix of that album’s vibe and what they were doing in their more primitive work. i can only imagine hearing this in 1990 and wanting more
songs: “tunic (song for karen)”, “disappearer”, “mildred pierce”
rating: 8/10
thoughts: todd rundgren produced this?! fun album, particularly thinking about it for the time it came out. very formative early punk rock, with a very late-60s british rock detour with “lonely planet boy”
songs: “personality crisis”, “looking for a kiss”, “trash”
rating: 6.8/10
thoughts: this opening title track is not what i expected at all, but it’s insanely good. the guitar work in general up and down this record is impeccable. fantastic album, super groovy, no skips.
songs: “maggot brain”, “can you get to that”, “super stupid”
rating: 9.4/10
thoughts: this album flows *really* well. perfect album for lounging by the pool (which i’m coincidentally doing while i listen to this). i enjoyed this a lot
songs: “bongo bong”, “mentira”, “lágrimas de oro”
rating: 8.5/10
thoughts: i mean, come on. one of my favorite albums of all time, my second sonic youth album in five days on this project, and it never gets old. (and yes, we stan “providence” in this house!)
songs: “teen age riot”, “’cross the breeze”, “providence”
rating: 9.6/10
thoughts: it’s glitz! it’s glamour! it’s cocktails by the pool! it’s so painfully 80s and it comes out of the block with the title track and doesn’t really let up until the last two tracks. the production is very well done and there are some deeper cuts here i surprisingly enjoyed, but i think my 80s/new wave sensibilities are elsewhere.
songs: “lonely in your nightmare”, “hold back the rain”, “save a prayer”
rating: 6.8/10
thoughts: i love interludes in albums when done well, and they’re done impeccably here. this is THE janet jackson sound refined over about an hour, she sings the entire way like she’s smiling and/or hopeful, and i get why this was so huge when it came out
songs: “rhythm nation”, “miss you much”, all the interludes
rating: 9.0/10
thoughts: coincidence that i get this the day after ozzy dies? this isn’t my style of music at all but this album kinda hits with me. ozzy’s voice fits so well even in more ballad-y stuff like “changes”, the instrumentation is fantastic. yeah this is really cool.
songs: “wheels of confusion”, “changes”, “supernaut”
rating: 8.0/10
thoughts: it’s wild to see how many massive songs are on this album. it’s pure distilled elton john through and through. i love the opener, although i wouldn’t have expected something like that to open an album like this. the title track is an all-time fave of mine. “saturday night’s alright for fighting” showing up late is a nice little shot in the arm
songs: “funeral for a friend/love lies bleeding”, “goodbye yellow brick road”, “all the girls love alice”
rating: 8.3/10
thoughts: i kinda forget how pleasing willie nelson’s voice is. very easy listen, especially for a genre that i’m not super familiar with. "bandera" as an instrumental capper at the end of the album is a really smart move to tie everything together
songs: “time of the preacher”, “blue eyes crying in the rain”, “red headed stranger”
rating: 8.5/10
thoughts: very fun and groovy start to the album with the first couple of songs. glitchy dance-y brit indie rock is a weakness for me and this is hitting that spot. i had no idea what to expect with this but man, this is gonna get some replay
songs: “negative space”, “static resistance”, “opener”
rating: 8.7/10
thoughts: finding out he recorded this when he was *19 years old* blows my mind. this is a time capsule record. some very groovy, some very folksy, some a little mix of both. very well produced. i like donovan’s voice throughout. the back half gets a bit long but nothing to ruin the record or anything.
songs: “sunshine superman”, “bert’s blues”, “the trip”
rating: 7.0/10
thoughts: for what they intended this to be, it’s perfect. they had their sound down from this debut. very fun, very bouncy, very influential. today your love, tomorrow the world, indeed.
songs: "blitzkrieg bop", “judy is a punk”, “i don’t wanna go down to the basement”
rating: 9.1/10
thoughts: at first i figured this would be “american band trying to capitalize on the british invasion” stuff and it kinda is throughout (c’mon, they even made sure to spotlight the phrase “needles and pins” in one of the songs!). some neat instrumental stuff, psychedelia, all that, but it’s probably gonna be one of the more forgettable albums i hear during this project
songs: “bangles”, “onie”, “train for tomorrow”
rating: 5.6/10
houghts: i would have been *all over* an album like this 15-20 years ago when downbeat stuff was all the rage in my music brain. very hit or miss album for me, more misses than hits
songs: “letting go”, “tides”, “nadia”
rating: 4.8/10
thoughts: absolutely no skips. “bonita applebaum” is legit one of the most gorgeous songs. one of the most confident debut albums you’ll ever hear
songs: “luck of lucien”, “footprints,” “bonita applebaum”
rating: 9.6/10
thoughts: i really enjoyed this. obviously the title track is a classic, but i loved the slower songs on the album. marvin gaye’s voice is magic on top of the production. “just to keep you satisfied” is a perfect final track
songs: “please don’t stay (once you go away)”, “if i should die tonight”, “distant lover”
rating: 9.0/10
thoughts: this was fantastic. goes so much deeper than “shining star” (which is great on its own). loved the slower stuff, really got into the celebratory tone of the upbeat tracks. i was very pleasantly surprised by this.
songs: “that’s the way of the world”, “all about love (first impression)”, “africano”
rating: 8.7/10
thoughts: i did enjoy the jazzier back half of the album a lot more but this is honestly pretty disappointing. love joni’s voice as usual but eh, this just didn’t hit the way i thought it could’ve
songs: “don’t interrupt the sorrow”, “harry’s house/centerpiece”, “shadows and light”
rating: 5.8/10
thoughts: an album full of songs i could picture taylor swift doing, but none as well as lorde did here. i didn’t love “handmade dynamite,” but everything else is fantastic. i’m glad she linked “hard feelings/loveless” together too; that’s a great little transition to the back half of the album.
songs: “green light”, “the louvre”, “supercut”
rating: 8.7/10
thoughts: i’ve been familiar with “epic” since i was a kid (and it is still, uh…epic) but yeah, this is a very solid record. the first few songs are the highlights but there are some treats at the back half, particularly the instrumental “woodpecker from mars”
songs: “from out of nowhere”, “epic”, “woodpecker from mars”
rating: 7.2/10
thoughts: maybe i’m not listening as actively as i should, but these songs are kinda all running together and there haven’t been many moments that have grabbed me and made me pay attention. it’s pleasant sounding and all, but unspectacular
songs: “wolfy”, “dirty from the rain”, “satellite”
rating: 4.9/10
thoughts: okay so “ballad of a thin man” has some of the most rudimentary rhyming i’ve ever heard. other than that, i actually enjoyed this a lot more than blood on the tracks. i loved the lyricism and the overall sound. i could see myself listening to this in full a lot
songs: “tombstone blues”, “from a buick 6”, “desolation row”
rating: 9.1/10
thoughts: jfc this slaps so hard. a q-tip feature?? how have i never heard this before? i love the instrumentals on this as well; even without vocals, it’s definitely a beastie boys sound. all the influences coming together on this one makes it brilliant
songs: “sure shot”, “get it together”, “heart attack man”
rating: 9.1/10
thoughts: very prog, very “music my dad listened to as i was growing up,” but honestly this was a very fun album to hear.
songs: “yours is no disgrace”, “starship trooper”, “i’ve seen all good people”
rating: 8.6/10
thoughts: so i didn’t love henry’s dream but holy shit, this is absolutely beautiful. this got me emotional very early in a way that i usually don’t get with albums (not because i don’t appreciate the emotion; i’m just not really wired that way). “night raid” is like nick cave singing over something from the brian eno ambient series. i meant to do a little work while i listened to this but…i just couldn’t. this is one of the best albums i’ve ever heard and it’s gonna sit with me for a long time
songs: “bright horses”, “night raid”, “galleon ship” — but really, all of this as a complete work
rating: 10/10
thoughts: i kinda forgot how great his flow is as a rapper, but it’s really obvious here. the self-referential nature — both positive and negative — really comes through. the “steve berman” interlude is hilarious. “marshall mathers” 100% dates this as early 2000s; woof, that doesn’t age well. but overall yeah, this is a really good, cohesive record
songs: “stan”, “the way i am”, “remember me?”
rating: 8.1/10
thoughts: everything about this sounds so cathartic, almost in a tongue-in-cheek manner. a lot of booms and bangs and percussion. despite all the accolades, i hadn’t heard this until now. i don’t know if i’ve ever heard anything like this before but i’d listen to it again
songs: “fetch the bolt cutters”, “under the table”, “cosmonauts”
rating: 8.2/10
thoughts: a bit all over the place genre-wise but unmistakably U2 in both intent and execution. the two big hits are still standouts four decades later, but even little groovy tracks like “the refugee” and the sincerity of “40” work in the context of the album
songs: “sunday bloody sunday”, “the refugee”, “40”
rating: 8.2/10
thoughts: this feels like a weird missing link, a bridge between 90s eurodance and 00s indie electronica. it isn’t really great at either, but there are things about each they do okay with. actually, the parts where they go further back into more cold synth-y 80s vibes might be the best stuff on this album.
songs: “music makes you lose control”, “hypnotise”, “about funk”
rating: 5.7/10
thoughts: NO SKIPS. i’m more into the ghostface style but these guys are so different in their flow and their approach that this never gets old. i’m a huge fan of sample-based/instrumental hip hop and man, this scratches that itch. the production of “C.R.E.A.M.” with that sample is unbeatable. it’s a perfect album.
songs: “bring da ruckus”, “can it be all so simple/intermission”, “C.R.E.A.M.”
rating: 10/10
thoughts: delightfully weird and crazy talented, as this album is every time i hear it. the big hits are the big hits for a reason, but even songs like “and dream of sheep” and “hello earth” allow her the space to show her range in more ballad-y, sweeping manners. i’ll always love this one
songs: “running up that hill (a deal with god)”, “the big sky”, “cloudbusting”
rating: 9.5/10
thoughts: that was a *very* easy listen. i don’t know that i’d ever heard vaughan before but her voice was fantastic. i loved the little ad-libs here and there across the recording. this again affirms my taste in live albums (jazz ones are almost always great; other genres are a lot more miss than hit)
songs: “willow weep for me”, “just one of those things”, “stairway to the stars”
rating: 8.7/10
thoughts: i’ve heard almost all of these songs on their own but together? it’s rock, it’s gospel, it’s r&b, it’s funk, it’s jazz, it’s sex, it’s everything. even the dichotomy of “i would die 4 u” and “baby i’m a star” being so alive, then throwing us into the melancholy brilliance of the title track is such a crazy good track layout. it’s a perfect record.
songs: “darling nikki”, “i would die 4 u”, “purple rain”
rating: 10/10
thoughts: i don’t know how well this holds up, especially compared to other rap albums from the era, but the highlights are still really really good. i will continue to stand on the “’21 questions’ is 50 cent’s best song” hill; it’s so smooth and so well produced. “in da club” is still the absolute monolith it was when it came out. it’s a very high-ceiling/low-floor album at this point, though.
songs: “what up gangsta”, “in da club”, “21 questions”
rating: 6.7/10
thoughts: the “i only have eyes for you” sample in “zealots” is SO GOOD (i had no idea this was a thing until now!). this is a tour de force for sure. all three members of the group get their own distinctive style and their own spotlight. the “killing me softly” cover stands on its own two feet almost 30 years later, sounding as fresh as it did when it was released. there are a couple of tracks that are just kinda there but otherwise, this is incredible stuff
songs: “zealots”, “the beast”, “killing me softly with his song”
rating: 9.5/10
thoughts: another album where the hit songs are very strong and the others are…fine? both title tracks are absolutely brilliant to me but ehhh, that run from “o my god” through “miss gradenko” isn’t doing it for me. the strong definitely outweighs the weak here, though.
songs: “synchronicity I”, “synchronicity II”, “king of pain”
rating: 7.5/10
thoughts: listening to some of the deeper cuts makes me think… is this where pop punk started? (probably not but it’s gotta be one of the first truly prominent albums to showcase the sound.) one of the catchier albums i’ve heard so far in this exercise; the hooks and the vocals are catchy as hell but even more so, they’re so obviously talented that they’re earning the earworms.
songs: “how much more”, “we got the beat”, “fading fast”
rating: 9.5/10
thoughts: this will be the 1991 north american release but as a huge fan of the group, this has been an album i’ve listened to many times over, and god damn if it doesn’t hit every time i hear it. i’ve never heard anything like it to this day, and i don’t think anyone but the KLF could do something like this. there’s a hubris to it (and a hubris in constantly tinkering with the genres, yanking the catalog from the public, putting it back up as something almost wholly different). i love their album chill out and hearing the callbacks on the reworked version of this album is great. i can talk about this all day (and i feel like i am here, hah).
songs: “what time is love (live at trancentral)”, “3 a.m. eternal (live at the s.s.l)”, “last train to trancentral”
rating: 8.7/10
thoughts: the opening track feels very “shoegaze vocals over a 90s RPG soundtrack” (complimentary). there are a lot of panda bear-y, beach house-ish vibes through this but with some more conventional song structures. (they even jumped on the saxophone-in-indie-music trend in the back half!) i’m really surprised this album didn’t fall into my early 2010s music view because i’d have been all over it
songs: “earthquake”, “memory boy”, “he would have laughed”
rating: 8.1/10
thoughts: “money for nothing” just hits a million times better with that sting intro, my god. it’s wild to me how we went from that song to the…smooth jazz?…of “your latest trick” in the span of two songs. (not complaining though; the latter song grew on me quick.) i’ve learned through 59 days of this project that 80s musical acts love dipping their toes into world music-ish things, and the middle of this album is no different. the guitar is great, knopfler’s vocals are very fitting and yeah, this is good stuff.
songs: “so far away”, “money for nothing” (album version!), “your latest trick”
rating: 7.0/10
thoughts: that’s prog rock for ya! honestly i didn’t come into this expecting to like it, but i really enjoyed it. great use of contrasts, building tracks slowly from soft to loud and back again
songs: “larks’ tongues in aspic (part I)”, “book of saturday”, “the talking drum”
rating: 7.7/10
thoughts: i can definitely see this as a record that set the table for what was to come for the cure. the soundscapes are good enough, robert smith is putting in the work, but they had a lot better yet to come (even when it comes to this style of music and not the “more accessible” stuff)
songs: “play for today”, “a forest”, “at night”
rating: 6.7/10
thoughts: (this is for the US version.) maybe this project will change my mind but even with the accolades and all, i’m just not a rolling stones guy. i do love “paint it black” and honestly i really enjoyed “going home” but otherwise, it’s… fine. the more bluesy stuff was cool but otherwise, it came and went and it’s just not for me.
songs: “paint it black”, “doncha bother me”, “going home”
rating: 6.1/10
thoughts: another album on this list where the big hits were huge for a reason, but i did enjoy some of the deeper cuts as well. overall a very good album with good lyrics and obviously her voice is a powerhouse
songs: “send my love (to your new lover)”, “i miss you”, “all i ask”
rating: 7.8/10
