Is this the birth of stoner metal? Kyuss and Queens vibes.

It’s the Beatles being very early Beatles. Hella simp. The Things We Said Today might be the highlight of the album. Never was familiar with it!

Listening to this feels so ALIVE. The mistake early on; the authentic crowd reactions, the intro, the banter. This feels like a living, breathing performance captured in a bubble and catapulted through time. This makes me think of every white girl that thinks she’s a jazz singer. This was wildly influential music and now the whole act feels a bit kitsch in the current world. Like a theater company hosting a “jazz night” at a bar as an excuse for the prettiest one to sing and drink too many martinis while the others all wear fedoras. A coin boy’s wet dream. But this album feels like the opposite of that. It sounds smokey, tastes like whiskey and stale beer, and has the glow of the neon outside of the windows. There’s a Cadillac outside waiting to pick up a beautiful woman. The smack was still pure, the pie tasted better, and no one wore a seatbelt.

Kashmir remains one of the greatest songs of all time. Feel like some of these songs meander a bit, I’m not a big fan of them just fading out instead of actually ending. Feels like Zep doing prog rock and it definitely feels a bit more ambitious then even Led Zeppelin IV and houses of the holy.

Suzanne hits like heroin. Father John Misty is just a Leonard Cohen with a beard and better voice. Someone asked the question “what if Lou Reed had a bigger brain and got way more ass?” Then Leonard Cohen came to answer. This dude be yearning like a mf’er This is songwriting on a different level. It feels like poetry put to music. But it’s still music. This feels like he hasn’t hit his stride musically but he knows who he is as a songwriter. That was a rough outro to the album.

Zeppelin beat to start is cool. Two hat store rap albums in a row is rough. I joke about hat store rap but I really have no concept of how important B-Boy culture was. I think it’s a bit like the hippie movement, where you kind of had to be there in the moment to understand it as revolutionary before it became kitsch and silly. There really is an irony to the Boys rapping over Zep riffs that Jimmy Page lifted from black bluesmen. I’m FLuke Wilson and Im hear to say, i be taking chicks every day. Yeah im not shy or meek, Got a new girl every week. Don’t believe me? Just Trudt Me! After the gym my socks are musty! Got a nice girl and she is BUSTY. Teachers hating cuz they’re old and CRUSTY. Holy shit this is easy. I can’t lie though. This is fun. The interplay with these guys is undeniable. Rick Rubin curated some great beats. It’s Hat Store rap that knows it’s silly so it’s able to be really playful. A core memory Of mine is the crazy hop all of my senior prom did when Girls came on. This album is stacked on the back half.

Yo this dude is ugly as hell. This is glimmering honky tonk music. This is from an age when one could slap a waitress on the ass, punch a stranger in the face, line dance and go to sleep knowing you had a night well done. I’m actually a big fan of this album. It was a lot of fun. I knew that movies song. It’s a lot of fun!

“Holy fuck this is a Carol King song?” Is the experience of this album.

This feels like the British Invasion version of Hat Store Rap. This feels like such a slog to get through. Regardless of my personal feelings and drudgery Mick is still undeniable as a force of charisma and the guitar riffs and grooves compliment him so well. 11 minutes of going home makes me want to go home. Maybe I’m just in a shit mood but this has felt like the most difficult album to get through. This feels like The Stones at their most boring. Is this when Keith started using heroin? So my first listen was the UK version which does not have Paint it Black and is ten minutes longer. So I was right on all accounts and they changed a few things. Overall this was unpleasant, pastiche, lame, uninspired, cheap brit rock. Essentially what the Stones lay their hat on but it just didn’t have any of the charm for me. I’m also not a big fan of their of the singles off of this. Compared to songs like Jumpin Jack Flash, can’t you hear me knocking, satisfaction and later hits like Sympathy and Wild Horses, paint it black and Under my thumb feel lame.

I love that first chord hit to open the album. Girls just wanna have fun feels like cheese dick movie soundtrack bullshit but it’s pretty fun in the context of the album. There really does feel like there’s a light innocence to it and a message of “girls will be girls” the same way we say “boys will be boys.” This is prime mall frolicking music. Iron and Wine has a cover of Time After Time that is gorgeous and showcased what brilliant songwriting is at work here. It’s fitting that Napoleon and Deb danced the night away to it. All Through the Night is the birth of synth/glitch pop. Charlie XCX owes a debt. This album was a fuckin blast. A genre I don’t particularly love from a decade I don’t particularly love yet I really love this album. This album makes me think Cyndi was super fun to hang with. Why isn’t Cyndi Lauper used as a measuring stick for pop success? Like if Olivia Rodrigo can experience Lauper level success, then that’s kind of the apex. And good lord she’s got some dynamic vocals. Time after time will still be in play long after I’m dead. At least I certainly hope so.

The bars way too loud but it’s half full and no one seems to notice. A synth glitch duo is playing poorly on the stage. They stand about four inches higher than the audience. The duo can count all four people dancing. They’ll count it as a success. A woman with Doc Marten boots and red sunglasses stands on her toes to talk to her taller male companion. He’s got an acoustic guitar slung over his back so everyone will know he played earlier. “Hey I’m heading out, Brody’s having a thing and he’s right off of 4th. I’ll link up with you later.” “Ok. We’re going to The Saddle after this so maybe see you then?” “Ugh that place sucks. I think Avalon’s bartending tonight though so I’ll come for a martini.” Interior, Brody’s bathroom: *snifffffff* Our heroine adjusts her glasses. “Fuck! Whoo. Cool if i smoke in here?” She lights her cigarette before Brody has a chance to answer. She takes a drag and passes it to her nasal neighbor. “You didn’t miss much. Pete played his usual set which was, well, Pete. Which is good! And I don’t mean that in a ‘he’s my friend so I have to think it’s good’ but ‘he’s objectively talented and his songs are solid even if he’s been playing the same set for the last three years.’ *sniff* A mustachioed figure in a blue paisley shirt wipes his nose and passes back the stogie. His top four buttons are undone to expose a slightly indented sternum. “Well Pete is Pete. Which is great!” A credit card clacks against an unseen mirror. “Yeah he’s great! *sniff* but I had to get out of there before Tesseracrt started rocking too hard.” “O not those two! *sniff* those two are the worst. Good call on leaving. I’m glad you were able to come by! I’m itching to leave but what kind of host would I be if I left my guests? Shit. It’d be like an episode of… god what’s it called… fuckin Step by Family?” “Family matters?” “No not Urkle! Fuck uuhhh Step by Step? Fuck I don’t know. It’s that one ABC show where the guy has the birthday party and is all caught up on having this big party but his best friends planned him a surprise party that he doesn’t go to and like his party is a total hit but he doesn’t care because his best friends aren’t there so he ends up just moping around and then like his crush talks to him and he gets that epinonmysyyss….?” “Epiphany?” “There it is! He has an epiphany and he leaves the party and goes to hang out *knock knock* OCCUPIED! with his friends in like a park or basement or someThing. You know what I’m talking about?” “Yeah I thi—-“ “FUCK man a fuckin park hang sounds so fucking good now. I could really go for some Monkey Bars. I was so good at Monkey Bars back at Clifton. I was like the BEST fourth grader at monkey bars. This place doesn’t even have a fucking basement. Fuck! This world is just so fuckin full of options. Pearls and oysters and all that. Anyway, where are you headed?” “Ugh Pete wants to go to The Saddle but I think I’d rather go to Devin’s Backyard.” “NOW WERE TALKING! A backyard! Devin Townsend or Devon Chang!” “O shit, neither of those. The place is called Devin’s Garage.” “Wait I thought it was Backyard?” “O fuck I don’t remember. Shit I haven’t talked to Chang in a second. Id text him but this phones out of minutes.” Her face briefly glows blue to confirm her minute deficiency. She snaps it shut and puts it back in her tote bag. “That blows! Well let me know how Devin’s Living Room is.” “Garage. Definitely Garage….I think. *snnnnifff* Thanks for having me Brody. Cappuccinos tomorrow?” *SNNNNIFFFF DNIFF SNIFF* “Yeah. Sounds good. She takes a drag off her cigarette and throws it in the open toilet. “There’s a new place on 7th I’ve been wanting to try. Let’s say 10?” “Yeah that works. Later.” She rubs her pinky into her gums and straightens up her red leather jacket. The door swings open and noise comes pouring in. Brody is popular. She narrowly dodges a very large man in a New York Mets jersey coughing his beer out on to a group of onlookers. “FUCK MAN! Sjronkdoj you can’t make me laugh in the middle of it! That’s not fair” “Doesn’t matter Deezee, fuckin pay up.” She’s able to slide her shoulder past the stumbling Deezer and slip out the door. She reaches into her tote bag and pulls out her Sony Walkman. The headphones feel warm against the night chill and she’s grateful. Chipmunks warble in her ears for a few seconds. She clicks the tape player and the streets of Alphabet City are silent for a moment. Click. “WHO TOOK THE BOMP?” - That about sums up this album.

“O god Elliot Smith?” - Me at album drop, will update later I have struggled with Elliot Smith as an artist for years and continue to do so. He’s just never “clicked” for me. He just feels insufferably whiny and annoying to me. I guess maybe his lyrics are good? But the delivery makes me think he would be absolutely brutal to sit next to on a bar stool. I do enjoy some of the instrumental arrangements on this record though. Everything Means Nothing to Me was about to get skipped over until the drums and strings and piano came into save it. It’s clear Elliot has an ear, has direction, has talent, but this album lacks any trace of magnetism or charisma. I find it impossible to connect with him while listening to him. Richard Edward’s come across as an absolute sad sack but his voice texture and sounds invite you into join you. I feel like Elliot is sitting at the edge of the couch with false modesty and needy validation, “here are some songs I wrote, they’re probably so dumb, but I guess I’ll play them, even though their. Well gosh.” Maybe I’m projecting. Maybe I’m a prick bro that expects swagger and any sort of confidence from an artist. I think I’ve got half an album more to go so we will see if this opinion changes. “Pretty Mary Kay” is the first song I’ve genuinely enjoyed any of the experience of. “Bye” is a great song to end on because I’m ready to say Bye to Elliot. I like his songs when Kevin Devine covers them at shows, other than that I’m ok. Listen #2 I think I like Son of Sam but that might be because it reminds me of Sufjan Stevens. Somebody that I used to know has some good guitar work. I’m glad he got some inspiration from Gotye. Junk Bond Trader sounds like a song Kevin Devine would write. Which serves as a reminder that this is one of my favorite songwriter’s favorite songwriter. Fuck there’s some guitar work I really love here. These licks in Everythibg Reminds me of Her are really good…. God damn it I think I like L.A…. Stupidity Tries has this great little chord progression in the verse that is fuckin dope. The arpeggios and harmonized vocals are so simple but add a ton of depth to the sound. It’s this thing I love where it’s a bunch of fairly simple bits add up to a really big change. The Manchester Orchestra approach. Is this a thing where I’ve always hated his voice and literally everything else in the music is more important than the voice? Pretty Mary Kay is no longer my favorite track on this but I feel like im getting more “Beatles” out of this song. The harmonies here remind me of Paul and John interplay. Ok so when I first saw it I was at 0 stars. First listen made it to one star. This is now a pretty solid two stars to me. And I think it even has room to grow from here. It feels like a departure from the other acoustic boo hoo that I didn’t like as much but now I’m even questioning my opinion on that. Fuck is this a 3? Me liking this is as surprising as me hating Afterlife. Mr. Smith I owe you an apology, I was not familiar with your game.

FUCK YES! As much as I claim I love Johnny Cash I don’t think I’ve listened to many of his albums the whole way through, this one included. I saw Walk the Line at the perfect time in my life to have Cash be a musical idol. I like his voice and I like the song but I think I fell in love with the mythos. In a musical world where stars pride themselves on being “outlaw” Johnny has always felt like he carried a different kind of fuck you to everyone. He doesn’t have the approachability of Willie, the boogie of Waylon, the sparkle of Buck, the songwriting of Kris, the madness of Jerry, or the down home feel of Merle. He feels like something of his own, The Man in Black. Fun fact I heard: Merle Haggard was in San Quinten during this concert and he became the most popular dude on the block cuz he knew how to play guitar. I love that his setlist is a bunch of prison songs sang to prisoners. It’s like Akon opening his jail show with “Locked Up” because OF COURSE you open up like that. Johnny feels so comfortable and effortless on stage with these folks. Next time there’s a complaint about modern music being meaningless, I’m going to remind folks of Dirty Old Egg Suckin Dog.

There’s no St Vincent, Ellie Goulding, and a bunch of other artists without the Eurythmics blending electronic music to Annie Lennox crazy vocals. It’s highly influential and undeniably brilliant at some points. That being said, it has a very “generic 80s” feel to it. It’s so imitable that this foundational album feels a bit lost in the wash of the decade. Its good but I probably won’t be visiting again unless I have to.

In the gangster rap musical system, the people are represented by two separate yet equally important groups: the rappers, who make music about crime; and the reviewers, who aggregate the offenders. These are their stories. In the gangsta rap musical system, the career are represented by two separate yet equally important phases: the street, who make music about being gangster; and the couch, who act in easy to watch movies and TV shows. These are there stories. DUN DUN

Bruce makes me wish my Dad worked in a coal mine in a dead end town and expected the same from me. I would drive late at night dreaming of a future that might be mine. I’d pull over at the outskirts of town and I’d blast Born to Run and feel like Bruce were running for the both of us. Bruce has stood these past 50 years as a pillar to rock music and powerful songwriting. Personally, he has the widest gap between how much I listen and how much I love. That is to say I’ve listened to a lot of other artists WAY more and have WAY deeper knowledge but I’ll still rank Bruce above them. I think what sets him apart is conviction. Whenever I hear Bruce I believe him, and believe in him. I think he’s a guy who is playing into a mythos of his own creation and I believe what he believes in. I talk about charisma a lot when it comes to the rock singers. Part of it is that I’m really searching for connection and an invitation into the music. Bruce feels like he puts an arm around you, hands you a beer, thanks you for coming, then jumps on stage and performs specifically for you. I love how big the sound is. It’s got Phil Spektor wall of sound type of feel without the layer of cheese and glitz. The song Born to Run is in my top 10 favorite songs that exist. I think there is legitimate magic in that song. It’s like he bottled yearning ambition, love, and power into 4 and a half minutes. Again, it makes me believe. In what? Who the fuck knows. But I’m ready to fall in love and run off into the sunset even if the world is trying to hold us back. I think the presence of this song makes it 5 stars. Whatever they payed the sax player isn’t enough. There’s a whole other rant I could go on about how Bruce represents a the “greatness” of American working class and all that stuff but I’ll focus on the fact that this album fucking rips.

I’m catching up and the group chat ripped this album apart. I low key dig the intro song tho. This feels like a band all the members of The Doors like and I’m hearing some Morrison-esque stuff here. I actually dig this. They’re well treaded covers but they feel quite a bit more rough and rock. This feels like songs Quonten Tarrantino writes whole movies for. This feels like music dudes with pompadours listen to when they get slicked up. These songs feel like they’d be featured on a PBS 10 disc compilation of “Sounds from the Sixties, when peace, love, and fun, was a way of life.” The most annoying person you’ve ever met will claim this is one of their favorite bands. All that being said, this might be my preferred version for a few of these songs. I like the vocals, I like how messy it is, I like the lofi feel. It really feels like it paved the way for the garage rock of the 2000s. The Strokes don’t exist without The Sonics.

National Anthem by Radiohead from the record Amnesiac has arguably the greatest outro of any Radiohead song and therefore arguably the greatest outro of all songs. It’s a crescendo of cacophony and controlled chaos. For every sound you hear there is another sounds waiting to be discovered. It’s beautiful and I will listen to the whole record just to reach that moment. This album is not that. BUT. I feel like Beefheart would listen to it while painting and tip his cap to it.

There’s a real argument that the punk movement is the singularity that opened up music to the masses. Like folk music before it, its ethos is that music is for the people and should be in the hands of the people. But it takes it a step further by asserting one does not need to be a musician to produce music. Punk frees its creators from the shackles of melody and meter by being an onslaught of mood. I view it a lot like finger painting. It’s a lot of fun to do, it’s where we all start, and it commends the creation regardless of quality. I don’t typically like spending my days staring at finger paintings. Ok on to Black Flag. I know these dudes are pioneers for hardcore punk, I respect the hell out of it. Henry Rollins is an institution and has put over many other artists on his various tv shows, radio shows, and other platforms. I feel like the guy is a raging cunt and I think that’s the point when you’re listening to it. The lead guitarist plays like a dude that wanted to be in a thrash metal band but all the metal guys were like, “dude get better at playing guitar.” And he was like, “fuck that I’m just a punk rocker I guess.” Which I can identify with to an extent. As for songs I actually enjoyed start to finish, I think it was only Damaged 1. I liked the slow down, sludge of it. It felt like the first time the band all knew what was supposed to happen. And I think I was excited for the album to be over. A one feels to low. A three feels to high. Punk is a genre where I generally feel ill equipped and ill informed to have a well thought out opinion. So I feel ok settling on a two.

Five Years makes me feel like Bowie was ripping rails listening to Lou Reed Montage Day Dream fuckin rips. Is this album Bowie doing Elton or had Elton been doing Ziggy? There’s something about Bowie that feels so effortless but so meticulous. It’s crisp and thoughtful rock and roll jams but it also feels like he just walked in and started rambling on the mic, I mean that in the best way. Maybe I mean it feels so organic and genuine for Bowie and he’s such a charismatic auteur that it feels like he was born to do this. Hang on to Yourself sounds like the Violent Femmes heard it and decided to make an entire band based on it. The title track rips so hard man. In fact the second half of the album feels so fuckin dope. It’s straight up rock n roll romp. This one feels hard to star. It feels a bit too strong to be a five but it’s a smidge to big for a four.

O this lady has a pretty voice. Good lord this is getting annoying. This album makes me want to go to sleep and not in a good way.

Is this The Mars Volta?! I LOVE how the title track starts and then settles in. This is some solid squiggly prog rock. I feel like it meanders at times to its detriment but overall I really enjoyed this.

This is some high quality Motown. Back when Simpin was just good natured Yearning.

This album pretty much invented heavy metal and you can hear it. You’ve got some absolutely rock standards on this record. Everyone knows Paranoid and Iron man of course. I feel like War Pigs is really getting its flowers this last decade or so (wonder why?). Electric Funeral is so damn fun and crazy. Feels like an era where the drugs were pure. This feels like a band innovating and straight up inventing sounds. The way Led Zeppelin 1 is inventing arena rock in real time, Paranoid is inventing its harder, scarier cousin. RIP Ozzy!

Hardcore. Hardcore. Hardcore. I like the intro setting the tone for what’s coming. Secret 77 has a great groove. I don’t know a ton about Bad Brains. I just know they’re one of those “your favorite band’s favorite band.” I know Flea is a massive fan. Is this DC area hardcore punk? Turnstille is one of the biggest rock acts right now and I think they’d admit a huge influence from Bad Brains. I say that based on zero factual evidence just having been inundated with Turnstille this week, I Against I sounds like the foundation. It’s hardcore, it’s punk, but it’s also rhythmic. The vocals are inviting. This doesn’t feel like a band that’s spitting on the crowd (looking at you Black Flag). Some of these jams on Hired Gun get almost ethereal. This might be a two listen album. So I’ve listened to this album twice and I was going for a third when Laura said, “again?” Right now I’m feeling a hard 3.5. I’m excited To listen to this more.

Welcome everyone. As many of you know, I was one of Kanye’s biggest fans and a close follower of his career when he was with us. Looking around this room I think a lot of us have some feelings about Kanye that are complex. But within the complexity is a great deal of adoration and admiration for an artist that created some truly transcendent music. I’d just like to take a few minutes to share some of these feelings. I was in college when I first got close with Kanye. He was my first favorite hip hop artist. I had My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy on my iPod. It was my sound track to drives to Santa Barbara, hype music when playing pick up basketball, and one of the few things that helped me feel good during a down year in my life. Kanye reminded me that the ultimate super power one could have was an ultimate belief in oneself and I think that’s encapsulated in this album. Preceding MBDTF Kanye had the trilogy of College Dropout, Late Registration, and Graduation that were an absolute paradigm shift in the rap landscape. In an era of dime store gangster rap, baggy clothes, and crunk beats Kanye was a breath of fresh air. His follow up, 808’s and Heartbreak saw Ye leave behind all of his innovations and reinvent his sound. He found liberation in the limitation of an 808 drum machine and his vocoder, auto tuned vocals to color an album of ballads. When one is constantly reinventing the wheel, where do they go next? At the VMA’s a drunken Kanye found himself on stage interrupting Taylor Swift in an attempt to champion his peer. He went to Hawaii and back into the laboratory. In his exile he made an album from his view on top of the rap game. Kanye brought new life into hip hop that I didn’t think was possible. He made anmaximal sound and created rap that could fill the entirety of an arena. Kanye brought string quartets, ballerina, and Aphex Twin into his world. He told us what it was like to have Power and let us feel that power in our beings though his instrumentals. We felt All of the Lights shine down on upon us. Kanye showed us his genius. He took a small motif of a melody and created a wall of sound to smack all of us So Apalled brought us into the middle of a cypher with some of the greatest in the game. Monster launched a career that opened up the genre to the other half of the population. Devil in a New Dress brought back soul sample ye. He brought an important piece of black prose and invited all of us into participate. He created an anthem for the douchebags, the ass holes, the scumbags. Every one of them that we know. He challenged us all to Runaway. Look at you. He took a break from vocals and created a soundscape to get lost in. Time and again in this album he took simple concepts and created an entire world for us. Kanye did something in this album that we can’t entirely understand now. Kanye made bold decisions and every single decision he made was the right decision. This album flawed. Its perspective is damaged. But it’s also ambitious. It’s bold. It’s transformative in a way that cannot be understood in a way retrospect. Music is art but it doesn’t always feel artistic. Kanye made hip hop feel like an artistic venture. He made a sound that could be featured in the Philharmonic. He made an aesthetic that could be feature in the Louvre. He broke through a glass ceiling that people never saw until they watched the shards fall. Kanye spoke a truth that could be blinding. He conveyed in ways that helped us all to see. That light ended up being his undoing. Prometheus perished on his rock and we watched the Vultures feast. Harvey Dent once said, “you either die a hero or you live long enough to become the villain.” He was the ultimate underdog, the unlikely ultimate, the industrious innovator, the populous paragon. We watched him fall, but I’m always going to remember how he helped me fly.

The titular track is great. But I’m sure John came away from this album saying, “this is the best work I’ve ever done. Better than The Beatles!” He would be wrong. I know that’s unfair but I just didn’t enjoy this album much. There are some solid moments but overall I just found it rather boring.

Tokyo Storm Warning rips. I want to thank this album for Napoleon Dynamite. Elvis Costello seems like the guy who was super lame through most of school but because the coolest guy after school and is super stoked to rub it in everyone’s faces. This album feels very interesting and I feel like I’m really close to “getting it.” But I don’t know if I have what it takes to truly connect with it. There’s some really fantastic stuff here. There’s some lyrics here that are compelling, some sounds that feel innovative, and a concept that seems enthralling to those who care. It’s like driving past a car meet where in like “o shit that looks neat” and I imagine what it would be like to know anything about cars except instead of cars it’s smoking cigarettes and arguing about Roy Orbinsin vs Kraftwerk.

Hello, my name is Matt and I think Fast Car is annoying. I think it insists upon itself. I think Tracy Chapman voice is annoying. I don’t think the lyrics are that good. I feel nothing when I listen to it. There’s dozens of us! I considered passing on this entirely but I want to listen to it all the way through just to be justified when I give it one star. I’m starting now, and we will see if I change my mind. This album has a lot to say about stuff. I respect the hell out of it for the messaging here especially for 1988. This kind of social commentary in the Regan era is bad ass. Why? Really does have some great stuff here. For My Lover is a really good song. The best part of this album is when Spotify auto played Give Me One Reason after it ended. I can honestly say I did not enjoy this album. But I do respect it.

This album is a total slog. I couldn’t finish it but I feel like I put enough time in to give it a rating. I think I get the whole trip hop/jazzy thing it’s going for but good lord is it boring.

Butt rock in the streets, shoegaze in the sheets I wanted to like this so much more than I actually do. It makes me want to dive deeper but I’m just not finding what I want here. It’s solid stuff. It feels like Silversun Pickups meets Lit which should make me squeal but not quite there. It’s like Built to Spill with all the levity of Alice In Chains. Ok so I LOVE the last track. This is fuckin brilliant.

This is “hot dog, hot diggity dog” ass music. Not Fade Away! It’s great that these guys are so inspired by Grateful Dead. A lot of folks say Buddy Hollys death was the day the music died. It’s wild to think this album is the Rosetta Stone that led to “LET THE BODIES HIT THE FLOOR! LET THE BODIES HIT THE FLOOR!” This is the kind of music that’s playing when you buy a dame a Coke at the soda shop. This is music from when apple pie was an acceptable dinner. Tho is the type of song that plays during the grizzliest murder of a Tarantino film. I think this sounds so boring because the entire era of rock music was derived from this, Chuck Berry, and Little Richard. The Beatles made their fame doing their music. This feels like one of those albums where I need an oral history of how all these rock n roll guys borrowed and competed with each other. I respect the hell out of this for being some of Jack Rabbits Slims’ finest songs.

I know three Reggae Artists: Rebelution Slightly Stoopid And Bob Marley This is a genre I’ve just never connected with. I don’t like it. I don’t necessarily hate it. It might as well be German polka or Mongolian Throat Singing. I am impressed at the musicianship, I’m aware that it carries with it a rich cultural history, I respect the artists that make it however I’ve always felt like irs not for me. I’ll stop and listen to a reggae band if they’re playing live and I’m passing by or if I’ve got spare time at a music festival. But I’ve very seldom not been blown away or taken somewhere by listening to reggae (especially not since the age of 24). That being said Three Little Birds, No Woman no Cry, Redemption Song and Jammin are some of the most beautiful songs I’ve ever heard. I was prepared to write an opus on how I don’t care for reggae and I’m on So Jah S’eh and I’m absolutely hooked and blown away. I’m a listener that only knows the hits and this song is amazing. It is so deeply steeped in faith and hope. I always think of the genre as “mmm chicka mmm chicka” but there’s some incredible guitar work, layers of sounds adding to an absolute sonic wall of color at some parts. In my own myopic view Bob Marley is the genre. Every other act is paying tribute to him. Not in the figurative “every metal band is Black Sabbath at different speeds” but in a very literal sense. Bob Marley is the perfect embodiment of the genre. I don’t think the genre has anyone who does it better or who has innovated meaningfully since him. That’s not meant to be pejorative to the other artists either it’s just to say that Bob is the Mozart of his style. Maybe I don’t connect with reggae, but I believe in Bob. And maybe that’s what matters.

I’ve actually been saving this record because I love it so much. I only knew War on Drugs by name really when I got tickets to see them play the Bowl. I was a fan of a few of the songs I’d heard but had never dove in all the way. I knew it was music I’d dig and it’d be a good soundtrack for a few cold ones. I was blown away. The songwriting is sincere without being saccharine. The musicianship is impressive without being alienating. It’s nostalgic without being kitsch. It feels like an album I’ve known my entire life without being able to recite the words. It feels like the soundtrack to moments in my life that I haven’t lived yet. There’s a warmth hear that feels like the hearth of a childhood home that has long been ashes. The way space is used in here is incredible. As a fan of The Mars Volta and The Grateful Dead, I really love interludes of ambient music that enhance the scene. Like a long sustained shot panning over the environment in the middle of a scene. Under the pressure feels like the perfect opener. The outro feels like the draw of the band so Red Eyes can slingshot you into indie soft rock nirvana.

Hello. (I am excited to say good bye.) Adele is an undeniable talent. I’ve spent the majority of my life being a dirtbag and Adele makes me well aware of the times she’s been sang along with in lamentation of my name. Send my love is a nice bop. I like the tune and really love the harmonies. Semi related: I like the concept Adele has running with her albums. Titles that reflect her age, close pictures of her face, to accompany these songs do make it feel like we are up close and personal with her. In an industry that fetishizes infantile sexualization of young women it feels like an act of rebellion to make a firm decleration of age and womanhood. If she continues this into her 40s and 50s it’s gonna be out right punk rock. A 25 year old singing about “when we were young” and life “a million years ago” feels kinda goofy listening at 36. But I’m saying that with hindsight. I suppose it encapsulates the feeling of arriving to adulthood. It’s an age where you feel firmly I feel like we need to bring back “adult contemporary” as a genre for music. I want this album to be over so badly. Amy Winehouse is Adele’s Wario. This music is objectively not for me. I don’t mean that in a pejorative way at all. It is good though. That lady sings good. Sweetest devotion is a good song. FinallySomeGoodFood.jpg I think Adele is just a female Michael Buble with producers that have more of a pop sensibility.

This album reminds me of staying up late and seeing infomercials for CDs: *Smooth Voice* The sound of the 60’s. It was an era of change, reflection, and love. And now it’s all in one CD collection. Yes all the sounds of the 60s on one CD and for 4 easy payments of $19.64.

It feels like a cop out but I feel like this is a very good Stevie Wonder album. Stevie’s voice is incredible on this, to say the least. I feel like this is the peak of his vocals (during this specific run). I love the songwriting but I feel like I need another dozen or so listens to fully understand it. This feels like Stevie’s “Hail to the Thief” or “Yeezus.” It’s an album where he’s working on perfecting his skill set and exploring some new tools and addressing any holes in his game. It’s like when Freiza is laying waste to Namek and folks are like “dang this dude is strong. But I’m sure Vegeta handle it.” And then Frieza drops the whole “this isn’t even my final form.” Type of deal. I’m tainted by what comes next for Stevie. I think one issue with this album, (I say issue like it’s a stray lemon seed in my Water at a Michelin starred restaurant) is the lack of a radio hit that I have a history with. Given, it’s still amazing. But I don’t have Higher Groind to keep me grounded. And that’s just fine.

I think I like the idea of being a guy that likes Elvis Costello more than I like the music of Elvis Costello

Nick Cave seems like he’s be friends with Henry Dean Stanton. Nick Cave seems like he unironically wears sunglasses inside. There’s some real anguish on this album. The chorus of People Ain’t no good sounds like Nick is singing at specific instances of his own life. Maybe even to himself. The drums here are so fantastically complimentary. Like a good plate, they’re The fucking Casio beat on Brompton Oratory is fucking so good. I like that There is a Kingdom opens up the palette that is being worked with. Prior to this song it was pretty limited instruments and this opens up the sound a lot. West country girl feels like a great Mointain Goats song that John never wrote. Steeped in metaphor and crazy imagery. He feels like Leonard Cohen leaned more into brooding. Every open mic artist with a melodica and lyrics about a woman is imagining they sound like Nick Cave. My only experience with Nick Cave was Red Right Hand. I really enjoyed this album. Solid 3.5 star experience. Will probably get another listen during these cold months.

This is some good heartland country rock. I feel like this is the sound track to that fictional America people have in their heads when they talk about how things used to be. But this album is mostly about how fucked up thay place is.

Tidal by Fiona Apple I’ve spent a lot of my life thinking Fiona Apple and Rilo Kiley were the same. Shadow boxer is a bop. Criminal is a song I know! Slow like Honey feels like it could be playing in the bar scene of a 1950’s noir movie. Peak jazz singing. The First Taste sound like a white lady’s take on making Sade’s music We followed this up with some of her more contemporary material. I do feel like her later stuff is more fleshed out, a bit more unique, and she does find “her” sound. But this album felt like she was trying on a lot of different hats in search of that sound. I really liked all the variation and the fun that came with that.

Sometimes on Saturdays it’s fun to go on a drive and just kind of blow into wherever looks interesting. On the best days you walk into a bar and grill with $3 coors light. You sit down and order some snacks. You see a band setting up. They start playing around the time your second beer arrives. Most of the tunes are new to you but quite a few other folks in the bar seem to know the jams. You end up ordering a third beer and some dinner to spend some extra time til you’re ready to drive. The band takes a break for their second set and it lines up with your time to go. You exchange pleasantries with the dudes on your way out and go home. It was a great band and the playlist to a great afternoon. But gun to my head and I had to name the band or a single song they played, then my brains all painting the side walk. That’s what this album is like. I really wanted it to end sooner. With that being said, this seems like they’d put on one of the greatest concert experiences ever.

The second half of this album has a specific feel: You’re on the one vacation you take a year. It took six months to afford this weekend. You lost most of your gambling money in 45 minutes the night before. You only managed to get one watered down gin and tonic before the bankroll petered out. You spent the first 28 minutes at the pool looking for somewhere to sit. All the chairs are $225 a day or have a sagging bronze heap occupying it. You spent $12 on a Michelob Ultra because it was the cheapest. It got warm in 8 minutes. You swam in the pool. Every stroke past a group of people sends you into a cloud all enveloping warmth. You spit out some mixture and try not to think about it too much. You go back to your seat to find your book missing and one flip flop. A blast of cool sends shivers into your trunks as the scorching concrete yields to cool linoleum. There’s three blisters on your left foot. You wait for the elevator next to two kids and a dad that’s spent 9 years in TRT. The elevator dings. The kids hit every button after they get off on the second floor. Jim Rogan laughs, “sorry brother.” You want to give him a tracheotomy with his kids snorkel. You’re glad it’s filled with piss. I Can’t Stand It by The Specials comes on. You remember sweating out $6 pitchers of Bud Light in skank pits and bumming cigarettes between sets. You stay the whole elevator ride and shake your hips for a sec. Your key card doesn’t work. You pound on the door. One of the six of them will wake up. It takes three rounds of pounds. “Fuck fuck ok…. Shit sorry man…. Fuck. How was the pool?” “Meh. It was fine.”