1001 Albums Summary

This is a FIFA menu distilled and flattened into an album. A time capsule of indie Brit-pop sensibilities that seeped into every corner of British culture in the mid 2000s. This album is a flashbang for any millenial born in the 90s, you'll know over half of these songs from just how prevalent and unavoidable this was as a movement. Not my taste but I cannot deny the cultural relevance of Franz Ferdinand and their contemporaries.

Timeless seminal rock album, Dewey Finn and his School of Rock using Immigrant Song to teach the fundamentals of the genre was no accident. I think it can get pretty one note after a while with the length of the tracks and lack of variety in the riffs, but it's still an enjoyable rock rollercoaster that is enjoyable as it is educational.

What is there to say really, an all-timer of an album. Not a single miss, musical perfection from top to bottom.

Too grunge, too monotone, not for me.

Holy vocals, Aretha can belt a hell of a tune. This was a delightful dabble into old soul music, I thoroughly enjoyed this album from top to bottom.

Can't deny the cultural impact of a few of these songs, but the rest is just a little too smoking-room-in-New-York for my liking. Interesting to dabble in, and surprisingly contemporary social topics, but not something I'd seek out or listen to in my own time.

A sprawling masterpiece of a double album. Eclectic, diverse and never sticking to one genre, Songs in the Key of Life is an adventurous listen that is almost impossible to believe was Stevie's 18th studio album with how defining and sampled nearly every track is. A truly fantastic album and one that has permeated my life from my early years thanks to continuous play from my Mom. A worthy benchmark and one that will be hard to top on this 1001 album journey.

The anthem of my shared university kitchen, Channel Orange is far better when properly listened to instead of as the soundtrack to cheap spagbol cooking and cheap beer sessions. An eclectic, escalating album that zigs and zags between every track, never happy to settle into one genre. I think on a few relistens, this will elevate to a 5, but on initial pass it's a really solid 4.