1001 Albums Summary

Not my genre, but very listenable and super catchy, particularly (who discovered) America which also happens to be an excellent allegorical, satirical take on the European colonization of America. Giving Santana with more of a political bent. A good start to this journey and a taste of what’s to come!

Gotta love that Freddie Mercury falsetto and theatricality!

Good punk. Not my genre but informative and edifying to listen to.

Not really my thing but maybe I’d need to listen a couple more times. Well-written though!

Some great songs but a little too classic rock radio for my ears

Edna Million in a drop dead suit, Dutch pink on the downtown train

Defined elementary school for me. Someone like you is the most 2011 song in the world. Set fire to the rain is one of the first songs I ever memorized.

My parents’ music

Didn’t expect to like it so much!!

Good vibes. Persian love and Hollywood especially good

didn’t really get through it, not a fan

My parents’ music but it happens to be super awesome. Sounds amazingly modern despite being from 1978.

So light and deft while also being socially conscious - and interesting mix

Very ahead of its time lyrically. You can tell Loretta means it. Lots of cheating so you know it’s country

Couldn’t listen to the whole thing because it’s not on streaming. They sing with too strong British accents for it to be available in America, I guess. But I liked what I heard.

My parents’ music

I like certain songs on here a lot and they’re very interesting and experimental in many cases but I just can’t get into a lot of it for some reason.

Good disco/dance. I really liked lost in music!

Experimental but not in an appealing way

My parents’ mysic…interesting and good but not for me

atmospheric and british

Contains my favorite song from high school. These guys are good at making songs

so the Red Hot Chili Peppers are actually good…noted

Good jams

Smells like goat to me

Jazz, not much more to say

A good bunch of bops from the beach boy

Life on Mars is one of the greatest songs of all time. Oh you pretty things similar. The rest is good too but doesn’t connect as much with me

Considère me satisfied. Also the clit song 👀👀

The starman’s last album. The greatness is palpable. I really like girl loves me for some reason.

This is a good album - and not just the hits, which have gotten repetitive anyway, but songs like daylight and a rush of blood to the head, which are fresh and original and remind you the hits are no flukes.

Is definitely above other noisy rocky punky albums of its kind. But ultimately not my genre exactly - might require relistens to fully appreciate

I’ll have to listen to more of it but could deserve four stars. Sounds like massive attack instrumentals

Weirdly hadn’t enjoyed this album until now. Banger after banger. Ego tripping at the gates of hell is a perfect song with a perfect title

Not bad. Vocals have a haunting, gothic quality to them that I like. But it just doesn’t really connect with me

A couple good songs but mostly not my thing

Good stuff, but not really my stuff

My parents’ music. Would be a lot more badass if I hadn’t heard it so many times

You can really hear the influence on mcr in the song lullaby. Badass

Calming, pretty, pleasant

Love their voices and cover of I heard it through the grapevine

Listened to it on my drive to New Jersey from Pittsburgh. Not bad driving music or music in general

More of a 3.5 but there a few very cool songs that put it in 4star range for me

Not really for me except the song The Paris Match. Random weird 80s rap song in the middle.

Like a Shakespeare comedy written by the human id

Some of the middle is a little too boring (read: punk meh-lodies) but the rest makes up for it, particularly Alright and the last 5 songs, of which Sofa is my personal fave. 3.5 stars rounding up to 4.

More like a 2.5 stars. Good but not really something I’d see myself listen to a lot. Except when I need to freak out, maybe

Folsky…and gospelly? Definitely not British. I like it.

Beautiful but I don’t think I was in the mood for it - I will come back one day and try it again! Obviously heart of gold is always a banger tho

More of a 3.5 - I really like a couple songs (nocturnal me and the killing moon) but the rest are mostly meh. But it gets rounded up to 4 on the strength of those highlights

Not my normal thing, but it’s good stuff - I’d need to return to it to appreciate it better, but for now this rating will do. I particularly liked whispering pines.

I loved no woman, no cry! The rest wasn’t that exciting to me

Listened to this on the way back from penn state. Real good vibes, my type of dreamy, haunting sounds. Feels ahead of its time.

One really good song (lord can you help me) and a bunch of good-to-meh songs. Not really my thang. But moody, atmospheric, and interesting. Because of the lord, 2.5 stars rounded up to 3.

Does this guy only sing in falsetto or is that his real voice? Either way he’s an incredible vocalist. The songs are vibes and I like the minimalist percussion (is that an intelligent thing to say? Me sais pas).

Good vibes. 3.5 rounded up. Love the international feel of the songs, where the language would be Spanish but the sound would be middle eastern. Also a Tom Waits vibe to certain songs.

The folksy ones! This was pleasant and bucolic. 3.5 rounded.

Have just never been a big fan of joy division. I guess they’re just not melodic enough for me. I did like a couple of these songs (24 hours and the eternal) but not enough to like the album.

Feels like a foundational country album, as well as American album. Beautifully spare with the instruments given room to shine. Blue eyes is my favorite - although I’d heard it before. Crazy that Willie is still alive and smoking weed by the bushel

Yowzah! I loved this album so much, I listened to it on repeat like seven times in one day. It is so beautiful and haunting and gorgeously written - reminds me of Elliott Smith, but this one is from 1969, which is super impressive. My favorites are River Man, Way to Blue, Thoughts of Mary Jane, and Saturday Sun. Also, like all of my favorite things, it has an excellent name. Bellisimo!

Will have to listen again but haunting and interesting.

Obviously great, but I’m personally not super into it and respect it more than love it myself.

Dusty’s got a nice voice. I loved the song Summer is Over; an excellent example of one of my favorite genres of music, last songs of albums.

If I were born in 1965 Britain like my spiritual mother who shall not be named, this would probably be my favorite band. I really like a couple of these songs like spellbound and monitor (especially), but as a whole a little too dated to go all in.

I found it! My first one star album. What an unending snooze fest. An hour of slow piano and whiny male vocals. So boring.

It’s good and well-made and complex and all that, but not really my thing. I did like the random French though. Benefit of Montreal bands.

The great Tina Turner and her incredible voice. Hell yeah.

Deep voice, depressed hearts, can’t lose.

This is the soundtrack to my childhood. My 30 or 40 something parents are working out in the basement on Saturday and I’m trolling around lifting one pound weights like I’m Arnold S. Good stuff. Nothing else matters.

Listen…bongos are great. What an important percussive instrument. But a whole album of bongo music? Rock on, but it’s not getting a rave from moi.

Not really my thang - I did not receive a lot of pleasure from it. An early example of my mom’s music taste, though, which is cool. And these songs are objectively cool as hell. Hence the 3 stars.

This is a 3.5 rounded down to 3. I like the instrumentation and the vibes, and lyrics are obviously genius, but I think I’d need some time to get into it. Also, what’s with the boinging in the background of every song?

Incredible songs, amazing banter with the crowd, a legendary performer giving a legendary performance.

Great lyricism, awesome falsetto

Good clean country fun! Nice to listen to on the six hour drive back to Pittsburgh. “Boxcars” was my favorite.

So much fun! Combines my metal and emo past with current interest in rap. My mom’s fave too. Love the complete lack of irony. I’ve felt this way before…SO INSECURRRRREE

Extremely British (in a good way). I’d have to listen to it a couple times to appreciate it though so a 3er it will be for now.

Genius etc. but unfortunately not my thing really (60s psychedelic rock). Loved the lil documentary at the end - all these extremely British white dudes and Jimi. Cultural hybridity!

Like the Beatles if they had mixed gender vocals. I really liked Got a Feelin’.

A lot of great songs and a real rock spirit and attitude.

Love the rap rock thing. A lot of classic tunes. Big for my mom. Not my personal fave, but good.

Not exactly my thang, a little too traditional soul for me to immediately get all the way into it, but very pleasing to the ears, especially all the instrumentals.

Goated for a reason. Incredible writing, rapping, and mixing. King kunta was the fist real rap song I ever liked. The rest is just as great.

I am not a stranger to this album. I feel it gives you an idea of what it would be like to trip acid with four of the most intensely British men you have ever met. In the end I find it doesn’t excite as much as their deeper, more emotional/literate work (even versus stuff from the early period from relics like biding my time and paintbox).

Great modern psychedelic rock. I liked the pink robots more but this is quite good. “When you got that spider bite on your hand / I thought we’d have to break up the band” - lolz!

Clint Eastwood is one of the best songs of all time. The lyrics effing rule. Probably the only full rap I have memorized and can drop on command. I will say I wasn’t as into the rest of the album. But the gorillaz are rad as hell.

Soundtrack of my childhood, I’m sure. Great metal, I’m sure. But not really my scene.

One of a kind, frankly. Funny, vulnerable, full of pathos. The great Amy Winehouse on full display.

Really liked Lonesome Tears. Quite good album. Didn’t get more than 3 from me because it cleaves a little too closely to the sensitive man with guitar genre that bores me

A couple songs make this more of a 4 - call it a 3.5. But I still just can’t quite get into arcade fire - there’s something about them I find pretentious/boring. Maybe I just require another listen. Til then!

Quite good! Some gnarly prog rock.

Perfect blend of eccentricity and rock genius.

A Rose for Emily felt just a little toooooooo personal. The piano throughout the album reminded me of a lot of hits in the 2000s like bad day and nine in the afternoon. Time of the season remains one of the sexiest goatiest songs ever.

Celtic fun! Not something I’ll be going back to but a good time while it lasted

Socially conscious folksy piano ballads - you know, like all the rest. Kidding! You don’t hear a lot of words like cocaine and the n word in a lot of songs that sound like these. It’s pretty good but I don’t see myself coming back to it much.

Both times I’ve listens to well I wonder I have teared up. That is how achingly beautiful that song is. This album’s most entrancing, haunting moments of beauty come when Morissey’s falsetto suddenly appears to break a song open with no warning. Another example is meat is murder, which I’m sure has had a big life outside this album but that is also just so gorgeous, and the ridiculous lyrics only serve to emphasize its aesthetic qualities.

A good example of its genre. A lot of great instrumentals. I particularly liked a venture. But in the end probably not going to stick for me.

This is the band my mom saw when they were beefing with like axel rose or some hair band jerk. They’re pretty good, interesting, pointed lyrics and unique songs. Not going to become my go-to music but still quite good

I assume this is the best Christmas album ever, because it sounds like it.

Atmospheric

Recognized a couple. Enjoyed a few.

I can see how this would be foundational 60s folk. I found it good but not that exciting.

3.5 rounded down to 3. A clearly very good live act which would have been diminished slightly in a studio album. The whole revolution thing with the emcee was a bit annoying though, but what are you going to do with it being the 60s!

Actually some interesting stuff going on here in a lot of songs despite being, of course, my parents’ music.

From front to back, clearly a masterpiece. Incredible lyricism and creativity, like the song where he’s pretending to rap through a broken jaw. The guy on this album is confident without being arrogant and talks about women in a non-gross way. I.e. he’s likeable. And the album is incredible.

Not bad, but a bit boring. Wilco’s here which I think you can really tell from the first song. My heart wasn’t really in it, maybe because it was a little to traditional for me

Pretty good album, I liked the mix of genres. Locomotive breath and aqualung are both very familiar from rock radio and parents, and are great songs. Perhaps deserves a relisten down the line.

This is obviously a master musician. I am a little bored of this era and genre, though. Perhaps another time, guitar god.

Beth is sooo goated. Also great expectations was real funny and enjoyable. I think you really need the visual element of Kiss to really enjoy them though. Detroit Rock Citay!!!

Loved this one - beautiful voice, great lyricism, dark, haunting instrumentation. Appropriately beguiling for an album about England. The first song is an all-timer, an immediate main playlist add.

3.5 rounded down. Pretty good! One of the best rock albums with a sneering, punkish energy from the 60s. Not exactly my kind of music but very good nonetheless

Lovely voice, beautiful songs, the best thing that could be playing when you walk into a coffee shop. What else would you expect from ravi Shankar’s daughter?(!)

A good album. Bob’s lyricism is so literary and poetic that I finally get the Nobel Prize. I found this one a little boring after the middle, but maybe it was my state of mind. Anyway. 3.5.

I listened to this album as a kid but I don’t remember it that well. Obviously Jack White is a rockstar and this album is pure rock divinity. Seven Nation Army is an insane song. However, I’ve had issues connecting with traditional-sounding, pure rock albums like this, and I had the same problem with this one. 3.5 rounded down.

A 4.5 rounded up. I need to listen to it a bunch more to really solidify my opinion, but I found I really liked about half the songs, was transported by 2-3 in that way that Yorke’s falsetto and harmonies do, and found the rest a little less accessible but interesting. Is the rounding up rather than down determined by my respect for Radiohead? Maybe. But this album is still real real good.

This is an obvious masterpiece. Not my first rodeo with Radiohead, and this one is the crown jewel. Has aged incredibly well despite being a product of its era - computer paranoia is here to stay.

This thing has some really dreamy, beautiful songs, which I wouldn’t have expected from its title or name. I will definitely return to this one.

3.5 rounded down. Quite enjoyable as background music; I added tubular bells part 2 to my instrumental playlist. I probably won’t listen to the album in full again, but it’s a great bit of eccentric, experimental orchestral pop.

Meh. I like court of the crimson king but this was pretty meh to me.

What is a great album? Sometimes, it’s when the song list is bop after bop. This is a prime example of that. It’s not super deep or experimental, but each song buries into the deepest folds of your brain and lays a clutch of eggs that, if activated, would turn you into one of those screaming girls from the height of beatlemania. Just a poppy pop masterpiece popping off.

Some of it is just the 60s/70s guitar music I’m just kinda over, but Led Zeppelin was always more than that. Down by the Seaside proves that and elevates the album to something beyond its era and genre.

The dudliest dude rock of the early 2000s. Some of the gnarliest lyrics penned upside down while chugging a keg. Also, there’s a random hit in this that snaps you back to being 15 in a Kohl’s in a very real way.

Great voice, good vibes. It’s a 3 because I respect it and could envision myself putting it on while recovering from pneumonia or childbirth.

Jazz is good. I particularly liked the second one. I’m no jazz connoisseur, though, so this didn’t mean what it was probably supposed to mean to me.

Sam Cooke and a lot of 50s/60s R & B singers came up in clubs with demanding, working class audiences who wanted their hard-earned money to buy them as exciting and high-quality a show as possible. This live album is proof of that pedigree, from the impeccable vocals to the raucous energy to the charismatic banter. No dead air, just R & B and soul mastery.

I like his quiet, late night-sounding rock. So chic, New York, and transgressive. Perfect Day will always remind me of that movie. I really like the last song, a paragon of the genre of last songs. There’s enough in the middle/towards the end that I’m meh about to take it down a star, but plenty to elevate it beyond 3.

Very interesting British rap concept album. Could be a very fun thing to randomly encounter on a rap playlist.

Another amazing 60s R & B, rock & roll live album. This one felt like a Beatles precursor with the screaming girls and screaming pop vocals and tight harmonies (in some songs) - I’m pretty sure they were huge fans and probably heard this record at the time. But he is a legend all of his own. Brown earns his crown here, and more.

Super interesting Indian-flared electronica.

A foundational rock n roller singer with a name and personality to match.

It rocks.

It’s metal. Something my mom would like. But it all kinda sounds the same to me.

I’m probably not going to listen to it over and over. But Elvis had a voice of butter and a musical awareness superior to most. That is clear on this album, and it is a gem.

A pretty important day for me, an important realization, and maybe this album played a part in it. You never know. Either way, it’s a great album made by a prophetic lyrical genius. It made me listen to American Water which is even better, a 6-star album.

The first album I’ve gotten that is in French. Also probably the most stereotypically French “chanson” album I’ve ever heard. I like Edith Piaf and Charles Aznavour better. This guy was good but his lyrics were a little manipulatively depressing.

Not nearly as heavy as I expected! I thought Slipknot were a bunch of depraved devil worshippers based on the album covers from mom’s slipknot collection, but this reminded me of a pure metal version of Lincoln Park. And it was better than Anthrax (which mom said she doesn’t like either, despite what I said in my review).

Ella is one of the greatest singers of all time. These songs are good to have on hand to create a certain mood, the dominant vibes being elegance, nostalgia, romance, and mischievousness.

I really liked a couple songs, like the first one and Black Maria, which hit nicely post-run. There was a certain shrewd, rapscallion sensibility tinged with a hint of misogyny which I found interesting and irritating in equal measure. 3 stars!

Not bad, with some incisive lyrics on spurned love and greed. But just a bit too boring for me.

Great voice and emotion, interesting arrangements. A great example of the genre.

This album asks important questions. Questions like, what if Revolution 9 were shitty and four times longer?

This is objectively a totally fun, entertaining album that is better than average, hence the 4 stars. I will probably not come back to it because it’s not my vibe, but I do enjoy it enough to recognize its quality.

Some of the best rnb songs sung the best they’ve ever been sung

I really like this album, and I’ll call this is a 4.5. Some it sounds a bit too typically Bowie/of its time to be a 5 for me, and some of it is transcendentally beautiful and timeless, like Wild is the Wind. The lyrical content, particularly in that song, is also amazing.

I very much liked the Beegees cover and enjoyed his light, vibey soul.

A classic from my adolescence. So much energy in it, sometimes when you’ve just put it on in the background you have to stop what you’re doing and spaz out to a song.

I can definitely recognize a bunch of places where this album was sampled by modern musicians, which is super cool. The whole thing is super cool.

Didn’t really like the first song, but the rest were the essence of Neil Young.

For me, the whole album is Paint it Black (what’s with the unnecessary comma?) and maybe a bit of the last song. Paint it Black is so goated lyrically and musically that it justifies the whole record’s existence. But the rest is meh American pastiche to me

This was a great experience for a number of reasons. First of all, it’s an amazing album, with beats and sounds that still feel fresh and edgy. Second of all, it has connections to multiple albums in this book/generator, and recognizing those connections make this experience even more satisfying. It is obviously basically a companion piece to an album from months ago, Doggystyle by Snoop Dog, AND it samples a song from an album from just TWO days ago, Mothership Connection by Parliament, in the song Let me Ride (which I of course recognized while listening to that album because of the famous Dr. Dre song, although I didn’t know it was his song yet). Five thumbs up!

Some really cool songs, some rather good I would have to return to. 3 as a placeholder, but leaning towards 4.

Surprised to find that this was actually pretty good - most of these 70s rock albums are samey to me, but this one stood out. Rounded up from 3.5.

This album, purportedly his best, confirms what I have long suspected: I simply am not a Bruce Springsteen fan. I find his rootsy folksy jazzy rock boring aside from his voice, which is pretty good, like Paul McCartney on Golden Slumbers. But I tuned out a lot of this album, unfortunately. To me it was on the better side of average but still average.

Like Springsteen, what a great voice! I prefer Stewart’s songs, so call this a 3.5 to Springsteen’s 2.5, but I rounded them the same because I probably won’t relisten to either. But with Stewart it’s more likely.

The great, great Madonna. Not just my lady, but our lady. I will never forget her masterful Super Bowl performance in which she sang the opening song of this album, which was stuck in my head all day after I listened to it on my morning commute. A powerful album against which I have very little.

Did not know that coconut came from this album and artist but it makes sense. This was decent with some memorable moments like the first song which was used prominently in Russian Doll. But all in all not exciting enough to wow me

Not really a jazz head but this album was pleasant. I’m not discerning enough to judge its quality, so I’m just going with a noncommittal 2.

Not my favorite Neil Young album - I prefer On the Beach and Everybody Knows This is Nowhere - but it still has that Neil Young magic and beauty which sets him apart from the rest.

There’s something special in the first song. The rest are good but not as special. Definitely an interesting mix of genres and sounds though.

Jimi Hendrix is obviously legendary, I just can’t get into his music. I just can’t extract pleasure from his lowkey, discursive voice. It just doesn’t do it for me. 2 stars personally upgraded to 3 out of recognition for his greatness (and I can tell the music is very high quality).

Fun and just sub metal. The first German album I’ve gotten, although it got progressively less German throughout

Important to know about historically. Over-the-top rock that is leaning towards metal. My parents’ music. For me, though - good but nothing terribly special. I’d listen to it on the radio.

The pinnacle of soft rock. I could see a soft rock fanatic ascending to the dulcet tunes of Sara or Think About Me. It kinda has the sounds of dream pop but without the exaggerated dreaminess that I love.

Quite good for what it is, but I don’t imagine myself revisiting it. It has some unhinged lyrics, though, that I rather dug, like “A glass of water for me, a banana split for her.” What does that mean??!?

The jazz albums mostly go over my head - I like them, but they all similar to me. This was good but I don’t understand what separates it from the rest.

He got a voice on him, that man. Giving Tom Waits in rain dog but leaning a little more into witch doctor. But it wasn’t really my thang. Accompanied me to and from the Carnegie library though. Merci pour your service.

I totally get why women were obsessed with this man. He is alarmingly beautiful with a voice to match, talented, and in touch with his emotions. Unlike other male artists’ badly disguised sex songs, his is ethereally gorgeous (and actually sexy). I would have been obsessed too, although his music is not my genre or area - it’s a 5 in quality but a 4 for me personally. Love that he was with Elizabeth Fraser btw - wish she had stayed with him instead of her eventually baby daddy shleimazel of a band mate. Anyway…RIP Jeff.

Very enjoyable disco

Kinda reminded me of Silver Jews, but a little more experimental. I will have to reserve a little judgement since I think this one is a relistener. Pretty good though. The way he says “My friend” on My Friend…ugh!!

Yoooooooooooooo so good. Haven’t actually finished it because it’s so long but it’s clearly a masterpiece. Speakerboxx!

Pretty great soundtrack, makes me want to watch the movie. Pusherman was a highlight. 3.5 rounded up.

Vibes! A bit of bossa nova mixed with electronic and alternative. I see myself returning to it.

I was nervous for my informational interview yesterday morning and this was the perfect album to listen to on the way to work. I particularly loved Babe I’m Gonna Leave You with the pounding drums and guitar. An album that rocks.

Not my favorite of the lates 60s rock classics. They were doing such a specific hogwild American blues pastiche à la Rolling Stones that I looked up if they were British and Lo and behold, they are indeed. Good for those chaps. My favorite part of the album was some of the song titles (“Medicated Goo”, “Shanghai Noodle Factory”.)

I’m on the fence with this one because it’s on the border of new wave and gothic rock, and I like both of them, but it’s resisting the hopeless, unashamed emoness of an album like Floodland (which I love and return to constantly), and that is clouding my perceptions of this album. It’s like if the sisters of mercy went on Prozac and started sounding like verve or the goo goo dolls. With Floodland in my mind, I just can’t respect their inability to go all in on the gothic vibes. So it’s a 3.5 or 4 that I’m forced to round down to a 3. I’m sorry.

Fun, but I didn’t pay super close attention to it.

Of all the parent-favored albums, this one is possibly the best. Really great staticky early metal with the perfectly placed “Planet Caravan” giving a little space to let your mind wander.

Great voice and masterful storytelling. Particularly Fast Car. Also, a social justice thread throughout which gives it shape and meaning.

A real cool band that wears its influences on its sleeve. I enjoyed a couple of these songs very much, like On my Mind and the Heatwave cover.

Such an iconic album, with iconic lyrics and an iconic voice of all time. The biting snarl of her voice on You Oughta Know cannot be replicated. I can’t believe that song in general - it would be just as shocking nowadays. The unadulterated hatred!! If I were David coulier I’d have gone into witness protection. Also Head over Feet made me nostalgic for the 2000s.

The Cure rocks!! The best goth/early emo for miles. Their lyrics and production stand out.

Listen, am I ever going to be obsessed with Malian blues singing? Probably not. Was this a good, enjoyable album of Malian blue singing? Yes, I’d say so. I have no point of comparison but I found it interesting and stimulating. Now to look up its significance…

Not surprised this lady did cabaret. This album shows off a theatricality mixed with an impressive vocal ability. So much of it is hilarious and raunchy. Not sure why this one in particular was chosen out of Ute’s repertoire, but it’s good.

This is a pretty great album, with cheeky lines, constantly sky-high energy, and clever social commentary. There’s a slight tinge of the Fountains of Wayne, but British. Common People is not only a pop anthem but also an insightful take on class and privilege. Thumbs from me.

Quite enjoyed it! Kinda giving a more melodious and sentimental Strokes. Fully thought after the first song the two guys on the cover were gay for each other but I guess 2004 was too early for that. The Brits do the best garage rock because they get a little deeper. The Strokes rule but they’re a little too cool for school for me, a softy at heart, to fully connect. Anyway, this album has multiple standouts, and my favorite lines (that I actually hear while listening to them lol) are, “But since you said goodbye / the polka dots fill the skies / and I don’t know why.” Amen brother!

One of the easiest 5s I’ll ever give. It’s technically mainstream rap but so chill and spare and unique it feels alternative. Missy has so much personality and vision but has the skill and restraint not to go over the top. This is my favorite album to drive to and also one of my favorite albums.

Not a huge fan of electronic punk rap done in British voices, I guess. It was an interesting episode of 60 songs but just not my thing.

Maybe an inspiration for Tyler the Creator? At least, that’s what it made me think of. Pretty good, but boring to me down the back half. The I luv u song was my favorite.

My parents showed me Wonderwall and Champagne Supernova when I was like 8, and I’ve loved them ever since. This is the first I’ve listened to this album in full, though, and I’m glad I did. The whole thing is rad. I love that whichever Gallagher brother is singing always pronounces “do” and “to” as “dew” and “tew.” And I love their chord changes and melodies - is that something I can say as a total musical ignoramus? Too late, I fear.

This was great! I think it was the guitars and sick vibes that sets this album apart. Also, I was listening to I Am Yours when I got to work yesterday, which is why I was crying at 8:26 AM. There’s emotion and radness combined in this album, which is why I really liked it and plan to come back to it.

I mean, two fist pumps way up. Perfect 70s rock. Not necessarily my entire thing but pretty good

Interesting stuff. Why is the first song called Kinky Afros when it’s sung by an all-white British band? Let’s not linger on that. It’s a decent album, a good vibe for my hour-long drive to my incredibly mediocre 5k performance in Black Lick, PA. Will probably not return, but good for a ride. A one-night bandstand. A one-night band. Whatever makes the best pun. See ya!

Djam Leelii is so good. That was the clear highlight of this album for me, which was better than I expected; more accessible than the Mali album from a couple weeks ago.

This was quite good! Those end-of-the-world, androgynous rock vocals of the late 70s are really starting to grow on me. My favorite song was The Twilight Zone because it ruled. The whole thing was pretty sci fi in a way that ruled. I’m keeping it at 3 but it’s really a 3.5.

Really good! I’ve had boys better stuck in my head since I woke up this morning. This is a great mix of my favorite vibes with some clever lyrics thrown in for good measure. Finally, a good American rock band. 🦅

Now I can tell this is an above average country blues album. Not really my thang though, although I don’t hate country (anymore). Drunken Angel was my favorite song, I will say - great, introspective lyrics.

Hellllll yeah. Courtney Love is such a good lyrical writer. I can’t help but spaz out when I get to, “I want it again, but violent, more violence / Yeah, I’m the one with no soul / ONE ABOVE AND ONE BELOW!!!!” Ugh, this may be my favorite heroin addict of all time, barring maybe her husband. Doll Parts is also obviously goated similarly, but softer. The contrast between the hard and soft elements in this album is part of what makes it so good.

One of the easier 5s I will ever give. An operatic space odyssey of epic proportions. It’s personally offensive how much the song “Time” is currently my life. I remember listening to it ten years ago and it affecting me, and ten years later all that’s changed is that the “ten years” line is literally accurate now. Anyway, this album so effectively describes the human experience I doubt anyone could listen to it without relating to it intensely. I had a good day yesterday, though. The album is just telling me to live as if I have a purpose, and I will try my best to obey.

Orchestral, softer, folksier side of rock without going completely Simon & Garfunkel. Great lyrics, too: “I think that people are the greatest fun.” Very fitting for their band name and the time period.

I guess it’s Garfunkel I like, because without him Paul Simon is rather boring.

It was reminding me of Kanye West and then he started talking about chi-town and Kanye started rapping, so I guess Chicago rap is a thing. This album was pretty good, but I preferred Kanye’s debut to this.

Interesting. Pink Floyd vocals.

I love Either/Or, so I was excited for this one. I will say that I didn’t enjoy it as much as Either/Or, but I also didn’t focus on it enough while I was listening to it, and I think I’ll relisten a couple times to help. I did like Son of Sam, Stupidity Tries, and others - just need to go back to really get familiar with the album.

The Beach Boys were not done in 1969! This is such an interesting inversion of their public image while still sticking with their bread and butter musically. It really embodies the emotional arc of the optimistic 60s (of which their music was emblematic) to the pessimistic, cynical 70s after the Manson murders (in which they were tangentially involved). I know this wasn’t a commercial success but to me it is an artistic one. Jams galore, great writing, profound lyrics, thoughts that stick with you.

I liked the satirical streak in this one, which gave it an extra dimension compared to other albums of its genre. I thought it sounded like a more cynical Beatles album - in the opening song it sounds just like Paul McCartney’s vocals on Golden Slumbers. Anyway, this is a 3.5 rounded down to 3 - for now.

According to Apple Music, this is one of the most original bands of 70s British new wave. That may well be, and the sax is an unexpected touch. But it just didn’t really excite any of my neurons, so my rating is forced to reflect that.

The punkishness is rad, and obviously I love Where is my Mind. But the rest was rather ho-hum for me.

Strangely boring for an album of my preferred genre. Maybe it was the orchestral bent, which made me think of owl city. All in all, a 2.5 rounded down.

Bittersweet Symphony is an unmitigated banger of epic proportions (all the cliches, in a good way). The rest of the album is great too, and I’ll keep it in my listening playlist for a bit, although I think it trails off by the end, hence only 3 stars. Rip britpop!

The vibes of this lady are great - punkish, rebellious, discordant. But it didn’t really connect with me - maybe it was a bit too dry.

They have the energy and charisma that makes me understand their success, but I just don’t enjoy the music (apart from Sympathy for the Devil) - maybe it’s the exaggerated parody of American southern music that just feels a bit ridiculous. I think the best part of the album is Mick Jagger’s snarling, slightly discordant voice, but the music just generally doesn’t connect with me.

I will get through this album (one day, probably soon - it’s playing right now). But I don’t need to finish it before I rate it because it just so perfectly fits the mold of a mediocre 1001 albums album. It’s okay, and it’s different - but it really goes through one of my ears and out the other.

I liked this one better than Beggar’s Banquet, but I still cannot believe how much these British dudes were just parodying Southern/black American music - not a bad thing, just like, woah. The Beatles did it but introduced enough other influences that you didn’t notice as much and it felt more global, but these Brits are purists! None of us American could sing or write as well as Jagger? Anyway, I know where I stand in the Beatles vs Rolling Stones debate.

This one feels like a lost Brit pop/rock album, and the band look like a cross between the Beatles and Oasis. Definitely sound like it too. I actually quite liked it, especially the first song. I’d call this a 3.5 rounded down.

Felt rather mid to me. I mean, it’s good but nothing extraordinary.

This was pretty good, especially Paper and Heaven. Unfortunately this day kinda sucked because my favorite person at work quit and the vibes were awful. So maybe another day this would’ve been a 4. That’s life.

Obviously iconic, and Debbie Harry’s voice is so awesome. But who did the mixing on these songs? I feel like I’m constantly straining to hear them. Is there a remastering I should be listening to?

Do I add or subtract points based on the fact that I got into my first car accident while listening to this album on the way back from a dinner at the Plutkos, specifically the platinum track You Give Love a Bad Name, as the only NJ car in a 4-car PA accident? I don’t know, but this album is equal parts cliched and rad.

I’m no jazz impresario, and most jazz sounds roughly the same to me above a certain quality level. This is definitely above that quality level. It feels like an auditory collage that reaches to the heavens and the innermost recesses of your brain at the same time. Bitches brew (perfect name) feels like the soundtrack to the coolest noir/horror move ever.

On of those ones I really started to like on the second listen, and I noticed his sharp, powerful, angular voice reminded me of Neil Young and other folk rock dudes I love. His lyrics are incredible and the instrumentation recalls Nick Drake - a high compliment. Beside Me was my favorite of the songs.

Brenden Flowers’ voice is just so phenomenal. It has this edge to it that lends itself to “Glamorous Indie Rock n Roll.” Somebody Told Me is a masterpiece I’d put above even Mr. Brightside.

Pretty boring. The lead singer has a good voice, a bit like if the “Bueller” teacher from Ferris Bueller could sing, but the album has the personality to match. Obviously I love Losing my Religion, but they haven’t found that groove here. Anyway, I won’t give up on REM - but I’m close.

Planet Claire has so much attitude and lyrical sharpness to it. I don’t like a lot of punky sounding stuff but this stuff is so good I can’t deny it.

Pretty good live album, especially the blues material. Love to hear a great band jamming!

Well well well…if it isn’t my old basement companion. Working out to this (via my abs last night) brought back the mems- specifically Run for Your Life. The others were mostly just a generally nostalgic vibe. Anyway, it’s lovely and melodramatic and a bit fantastical, like gothic metal. Thumbs up!

A pre-Portishead trip hop vibe with a more pop, disco feel. I particularly liked Flipside, had a nice chill atmosphere.

Prince is good. He has attitude and charisma bursting out the seams, he has musical talent also bursting out the same seams, I don’t know how he keeps his clothes on with all this overflowing talent. Maybe that explains the assless chaps. Sadly, however, I don’t really love the music itself - maybe it’s just not my genre, maybe I just wasn’t of that generation, but either way, it just doesn’t land for me. I think 3 stars is fair, considering all that.

Doesn’t contain any of their famous, overly memed material, so that’s a plus. My dad had a couple of these songs on a cassette when I was a kid so I know a couple of them, like el condor and Cecilia. I particularly liked, in addition to those, their trademark soft, airy songs like the frank Lloyd wright one. This is a 3.5 rounded down because I just don’t love enough of the rest of it to give an all-around higher rating.

This is a great album in a genre that isn’t my very favorite but I still like. I think I will need to come back to it to really appreciate it, but the hooks and grooves are undeniable. 3+3 gets a 4!

Solange’s voice is angelic. The production is amazing. Not really “for me” in terms of genre but clearly a great album.

I effing love Massive Attack! The industrial, urban quality of the sound, the lyricism, the unique personality of each vocalist. I rank this up there with their Mezzanine and Blue Lines, although I probably prefer blue lines at the end of the day. Still getting a fiver from me though!

One of my dad’s favorite albums. And I see why. The instruments and vocals are designed for maximum pique and noir flavor. Other than the obvious, which my dad showed me at a young age, I really liked six blade knife. Some songs made me think of Tom Waits and his growlier songs, which is a high compliment.

I can’t believe this is from 1988. It sounds like it was made in a Brooklyn apartment or some teen’s suburban basement in 2008. Clearly a blueprint for a lot of modern indie rock and pop. “Don’t” is an obvious highlight and such an awesome song for multiple reasons, and also is evidently an early emo/screamo song with the combined irony and earnestness that the genre would embody.

Gets a tad boring after a while (despite the first song’s claims). But it has a soft, new wave smoothness to it that makes it enjoyable. Just not revolutionary.

This album is smooth as butter, delicately and deliciously fashioned, from the vocals to the lyrics to the production, all of which are noteworthy. One to keep on board for the right mood. Outside my typical genre sphere, but with that chill vibe and creativity that characterizes my favorite music.

Big, staggering, echoey vocals. Iconic songs of epic proportions. The 80s at its very best.

I actually really liked this album. I loved the cheeky lyrics, the bombastic instruments of the opening song, all the vignettes of the later songs. I was reminded a bit of queen.

This sex is on firrrrrrreeee! That’s a good song, but the rest is just lesser versions of that.

I’m going to rate this 3 for now but I’m keeping it in my listening playlist because I did like it but it was mostly just playing in the background and I didn’t get a chance to really listen to it. What I heard I liked though.

There are 3 songs that elevate this one - the first two and small black flowers. The rest are pretty boring. I think that was the case with their other album too.

Not much to say - interesting vibes but nothing that will stick for me.

I associate the name Sleater-Kinney with the artier, more intellectual set of alt teens of the 90s and 2000s, so I was expecting/hoping I’d like this album, but to be honest it may have gone over my head. There’s not much of a melody in any of it, which matters to me maybe more than attitude, which it does have the right amount of. I like punky alt stuff that also has a soul/some emotion - maybe I’m just not cool enough, and wouldn’t have been a member of that crowd. Oh well.

Doesn’t have as much bite as their earlier stuff, but still very enjoyable and satisfying.

Noisy yet boring.

Is it a rule that all songs about spiders are the best emo songs ever? (Im thinking of Lullaby by the Cure and I Miss You by blink 182). Yes, there’s an emo streak in this album that I unsurprisingly very much dig.

Lovely dreamy electronic pop stuff. Obviously the famous first two songs are great, but I found the female vocal songs to be excellent as well.

Some of the long discursive songs are cool!

Discordant alternative that makes you want to be a mysterious punk.

Talking Heads is a little too Kraftwerk for me, but I must admit there’s absolutely nothing like them.

Wow, this Canadian sounds country. This album is actually really decent. I like the bluesy songs the best, like Busy being Blue - k.d.’s voice lends itself really well to those vocal slides.

Interesting, but nothing super special.

These dudes have a hard-on for rock and roll! Call that cock and roll. Hahaha. Anyway, this is just endless 104.3 core - in one ear, out the other.

I’m no connoisseur of Afro-beat jazz music, so I’ll just keep my mouth shut on this one. Rating reflects my personal level of enjoyment.

Has a bit of that something, that weird thing that elevates it above a 3.

Neat Anglo vibes!

As with basically all jazz, I must rate this according to how much I enjoyed it on its own with no real frame of reference. I don’t know if I can situate this among other albums of intimate live jazz club sets, but I liked it.

Very pleasant vibes on this album. Totally dig it. Keeping it at a 3 but it doesn’t surprise me enough.

This was pretty good. I’ll have to listen to it again to really know where it stands, but I love the vocals and the lyrics.

It’s worth it to lock in for the lyrics, because they’re pretty good. The best part, I would say.

Punkish with enough heart to charm me. I particularly liked here comes your man and la la love you.

Nice indie rock rather lo-fi sound, very much up my alley. A bit ahead of its time in 1991? Favorites were For Dinner… and Washer. Last “song” a bit of a non sequitur but interesting nonetheless.

Indie rock like this does tend to push my buttons and this is no exception. A 3.5 rounded down.

Any album with black hole sun on it automatically gets at least one more star than it would otherwise have. Also, coincidence I got this on the 4th of July with a song called the 4th of July on it? Survey says no idea, but fun either way.

A bit too suburban mall for me, but there are some good tunes on this. I can’t help but think of that one guy on 60 songs who trashed nightswimming because he thought it was obnoxiously self-indulgent nostalgia. I kinda get that. Although I also identify with it a bit too. lol.

Voice like Nico, atmosphere and sensibility like Air. Also reminiscent of Cortex. Uncoincidental that all are French except Nico (German). This is a difficult rating because I dig the psychedelic dream pop vibes but the musical motifs in the songs are a little too flat and repetitive for my tastes, so it’s a 3.5 rounded down.

I’ve had moondance stuck in my head all day. This is another great van morrison experience.

So many incredible lines, all delivered in that way and that attitude she had. “What kind of fuckery is this…” “Nowadays you don’t mean dick to me” “You like blow and I love puff.” Wish the album itself didn’t point so knowingly to what happened to her, and to us because we lost her.

One of the most male pieces of art I have ever beheld, but definitely entertaining. Some of the most amazing song titles too. “Rendezvous with Anus” is so perfect only a Norwegian could have come up with it. 2.5 rounded up because of the song titles.

The Party is like an alt Tik Tok, goes very hard. Loved that Stress came on right as I hit a huge wall of traffic driving home in Old Bridge. The electronic songs don’t move me as much as the ones with vocals. A 3.5 rounded up.

I love those soft, dimly lit songs that truly justify that name Velvet Underground. The first four songs on this album are the definition of that. Nico’s voice may not carry a melody so much as a blank space on which to imagine one, but it is beautiful in what it represents beneath and holds within, like Hemingway’s writing. My favorite Velvet Underground song is still Candy Says, but this album might overall be my favorite one.

There’s a really interesting strain of music peaking out this time from Stipe’s monotone voice. I particularly liked Perfect Circle (shades of nightswimming, especially once you know the inspiration) and Shaking Through. I’ll call this 3.5 rounded down to 3.

Was kinda hoping the artist would be the two lovely ladies on the cover, but I guess 1974 would’ve been a little early for that. Quite liked a couple songs, like Out of the Blue and Triptych. It’s got an edge to it that elevates it above just good straightforward rock and roll. Call it 3.5 rounded down.

A sweeter, more earnest version of early Dylan. Nice songs with a melancholy undertone. A relistener for sure. 3.5 rounded down.

Hospital is an amazing song. The lyrics are incredible and very romantic to me because they describe the feeling of being so deeply in love with someone that you want to see the world through their eyes. For example: “Now your world it is beautiful / I’ll take the subway to your suburb sometime / I’ll seek out the things that must have been magic / To your little girl mind.” Duuuuuddddeeee…. There’s a good mix of punk carelessness and suburban sentimentality in this album and the lyrics do an excellent job tying it all together.

I listened to this album on Spotify and liked it a lot. It’s punkish, caustic, and often funny. To the Kill is my favorite song. A good one for my blood buzz playlist.

She has a wonderful voice and excellent way of conveying emotions. These songs aren’t it for though. I should say though that Constant Craving was one of the more stomachable songs they used to play at ShopRite.

Feels like a movie soundtrack. Really enjoyed sound and vision and subterraneans.

Listened to this while driving to Montclair in the worst rush hour traffic I have ever experienced. Lost years of my life while listening to Super Rich Kids and Monks - both good songs, but this album was middle of the pack for me, maybe because I was too stressed to pay attention to the lyrics. 2.5 rounded up.

This is an uncomplicated 5. One of my favorite albums. An amazingly good nostalgic yearning album, a beautiful paean and love letter to those we lost to evil forces in the world. “We’re just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl.” Lyrical genius and feeling in one breath. Sublime.

Most of these songs felt like they’d be playing at an upscale but mostly casual downtown eatery. Fine but nothing too special. 2.5 rounded up.

One of our newest albums and also, interestingly, from Mali! I found this good but not amazing. Maybe if I understood the political climate and lyrical content of the songs it would mean more to me.

The title track is awesome, and the rest is pretty good too - feels like an alternate history type rock n roll album.

Elite level Halloween music. The cover fits the music perfectly. I particularly liked She’s Hit.

The vastness of 2000s/2010s pop songs with lyrics involving the stars and the sky and the celestial metaphors that this album inspired is mind-boggling. You can’t blame them for it, though. This is a good album. I especially liked Spies. 3.5 rounded down for excessive radio play.

Rather samey 90s alt rock to moi…ok as background music. Couldn’t pick out any particular song.

Very good sitar music, a good album to include in the story of popular music because of how influential the instrument was to the development of 60s rock and roll blah blah blah. I did quite enjoy the Light my Fire cover.

First song is one of my on/off workout songs - utilized if my workout reaches 30 min or more as the last, fastest song. It works because of the unbridled, raucous energy of Mudhoney. The songs are a bit repetitive but the energy is infectious, so I’ll call this 3.5 rounded down.

Very very good album cover, one of the best. The music is a bit of a hodgepodge but mostly decent prog rock - it mostly bores me though. 2.5 rounded up.

Now this is jazz I get. The personality, the intimacy of the setting, the beauty of the sound. All great! It’s a bit too summery right now to fully enjoy this so I will return to it in the fall/winter.

Sexy, tortured, industrial. “Closer” is insane on many levels. “Hurt” sounds like a wounded animal. I was piqued by the album’s tending towards emo/metal vibes and vocals. All that said, is this for me? In some moods, yes. I’ll call this 3.5 down to 3.

Chill, romantic, lovely. Marvin Gaye never lets you down.

First song is really really cool and is the peak, but the whole album is nice and dark and interesting. I dig the last song and love its name.

A nice album to have on in the background, a pleasant mind-stimulating but not overwhelming thing.

As with previous Bruce albums, this just isn’t my thing. Maybe I’m not country boy enough. Obviously there is some great lyricism and storytelling in this - born in the USA being a prime example. I really like I’m on fire, I think it’s sexy, although I also think that the chromatics version is way better - but he gets credit for writing it, so. 2.5 rounded up.

Sorry, but sadly this is Starbucks music. The lead vocals are pretty good but the radio has prevented me from ever being able to hear these songs as they’re meant to be heard. I did like some of the less played songs but not enough to change my overall opinion.

Obviously genius, obviously rare and amazing. Ever since I saw queer with that scene of Daniel Craig walking down the streets of that Mexican city to Come as You Are that has become probably my favorite song on the album - one of the great city walking soundtracks apart from supa dupa fly.

I’m not as keen on this one as I was on five leaves left, but it has that wind whistling through the branches quality to it that I love about Nick drake. I’ll call this 3.5 rounded up.