Having known the band without ever hearing a single album, it's interesting that the first album to pop up on this challenge from them is a live one. I'm generally not a fan of live albums, or of live albums appearing on such lists - they need to be exceptional or have some exceptional story behind them for me to agree they should be included, rather than the usual 'important band released live album' shtick. Having now listened to this album, my review can be summed up in two words - 'mad bastards'

Puts you in the sort of daze you may find yourself in during a funeral. Musically limited, yet inexplicably alluring, the weight and wit of the lyrics and the tone carry what would be forgettable songs if brought to existence by anyone else.

Before starting this challenge, I had only heard A Royal Scam. The songs here are shorter and surprisingly commercial, albeit with a zany funk and jazz fusion. I imagine this could get up to four stars for me with repeated listens, but based on first impressions it's a three.

Having heard a couple of Simon & Garfunkel albums and not been wowed, loved a few singles, but rank that 'Call Me Al' song as one of humanity's worst atrocities, I didn't have high hopes going in. This is a collection of songs, not all that different from what I expected. Some are nice. Fairy forgettable after a single listen. I can't tell if I'd like it more, or less, with more listens.

One of my favourite albums of all time and the first which, as a child, I obsessed over. One of the few albums I have multiple versions of.

I'm writing this intro before starting the album - I could name several albums by Arcade Fire but have, to my knowledge, ever heard a single note of a single song by the band. Surprising as they came up in a time when I was making my own music with people who were huge fans. For whatever reason - the way people spoke and wrote about them, the state of rock music at the time - I assumed they were some posey hipster shite and avoided them. Now that I have listened to this album, there are definitely things I didn't care for and actively disliked. There are some of the more twee moments of Noughties rock which shoves it into the hipster sphere and away from the sense of rebellion and individuality that the genre thrives on, but I was mostly pleasantly surprised that I didn't hate the thing. The caveat with this review, and all my of first time listens, is that I've only listened to the thing once. As we all know, impressions of music change with re-listens and with time. It's rare for me that an album is an immediate love. I don't get the impression that I'll ever love this, but there are definitely a few songs I'll add to my car playlist, and that will lead to a deeper dive into the lyrics and my own feelings on those songs. All in all, I don't know if this is a three or a four star. It could go up or down in my estimation with more listens. I get the sense that this is one of those point in time albums - you had to be there, immersed in the sound and have it accompanying your journey at that time. Naturally you could say that about any album, but I don't think this is distinct enough that it'll transcend time and generations like the best albums do.

There is absolutely no reason why I should dislike Stevie Wonder, and I don't. But this album, and the only other Stevie albums I've heard before (FFF) were underwhelming, for lack of a better term. The guy can play, sing, but I struggle to connect with the music on a personal level. Nobody's fault. This feels like nice, inoffensive music that will never be more than a momentary blip on my radar.

I was looking forward to this one as I already knew a few of the songs and that some of my favourite artists held Nilsson in high regard. In total though, this is too kitsch for my liking, with too many of the songs veering into camp experimentation and playfulness which feels of its time. No doubting the creativity and songwriting skills. Elsewhere, a small number of the songs show a heightened prowess and great vocals but this is dampened by some less than impressive vocal moments in other tracks. It's surprisingly inconsistent.

Simplistic and repetitive - musically and lyrically - this packs a punch. It's fun, angry, juvenile, and energetic. Each member is connected to their instrument in a symbiotic fashion, but it's a young love, hand-holding relationship rather than anything more mature. Ladies were understandably pissed off in the 90s, but where is that righteous anger today, where it is really needed? Where are the true standout songs on this album? Does it matter?

Going in, I had no idea what this was or who these guys were. Incredibly dated production, sound, and a very innocent vibe. Even the explicit lyrics feel tame, like a Carry On movie. I imagine for Hip Hop fans this is akin to a modern day hardcore Metal fan listening to rock music from the 50s. The recognisable elements are there, and yet it sounds alien and distant. A good metaphor for evolution for any science-denying God boys out there. This reminded me of watching Fresh Prince and Sister, Sister - those hallmarks of boundary blurring TV for white folks. Lyrics are funny in places, and I assume tongue in cheek rather than misogynistic. Most songs are at least a minute too long and the album has at least two songs more than it should. By the end the entertaining groove becomes monotonous, and the repetitive nature inherent in the genre becomes painful.

One of the easiest five stars I'll give.

Ah yes. It was only a matter of time when I got my first 'on the list for cultural importance rather than quality'. Syd Barrett undoubtedly had an influence on 20th Century music and beyond. What that influence is though, is less than tangible. We know he was a founding member of Pink Floyd, and that his spectre hung over the band long after he left. But when you think of Floyd's best albums - even their less than great albums - Barrett is not directly involved. The Madcap Laughs is very typical of the sort of late 60s zany freak-outs which you saw from the likes of Frank Zappa. It was a new and exciting scene, but while it accentuated freedom and inspiration, musical and melodic ability was something of an after thought. Hence the end result of this album being a curio rather than something your average person is going to choose to listen to. In essence, there's very little stopping you or I or anyone going into a studio today and making a 'better' album than this, assuming you had the money and backing. What this album does showcase is the evolution and descent of Barrett. It's not clear where his songwriting would have gone if things had turned out differently. Many songs sound like they could have been lifted from Piper, and many have a similar vibe. Whimsy is the word you'll see most often when people with half a brain talk about this album. Some of the songs are fine, but the repetitive rhythm and the recurring cadence and limited melodic tics of Barrett mean that you can listen to any two or three songs and understand/avoid everything else. Three stars for being a historical record of a man who could have been a genius, or could have been exposed as a fraud. Two stars for the music.

Having known the band without ever hearing a single album, it's interesting that the first album to pop up on this challenge from them is a live one. I'm generally not a fan of live albums, or of live albums appearing on such lists - they need to be exceptional or have some exceptional story behind them for me to agree they should be included, rather than the usual 'important band released live album' shtick. Having now listened to this album, my review can be summed up in two words - 'mad bastards'

Definitely needs more listens, but good enough that a couple of songs have been added to my playlist. My first full Peter Gabriel album.

Having heard a few Dylan albums previously, including this one, I long ago concluded that he's not for me. What he has going for him are his lyrics. His vocals rarely are better than grating and more than half the time his musical choices are dull. The best compliment I can possibly give him are that his best songs are only enjoyable when performed by someone else. He has plenty of those - but that is the bare minimum when you've had as many releases as he has. Blood On The Tracks is one of the more tolerable albums I've heard. There are a few songs here than I could just about stomach listening to again via his original recordings, but aside from the lyrics and their content, I find it mostly musically uninspired, the constant harmonica is like what crucifixion must feel like, and the whole thing drones on longer than it should. I don't doubt its cultural importance - generally the most important criteria for inclusion in lists such as these (rightly or wrongly) - so I must give it 3 stars. It's a low to mid-range 2 for me personally.

Ha, so the algorithm is trolling me now. I bemoaned the travesty of Dylan's vocals in the last album, so they hit me up with Slayer. I'm not going to say that Araya is the greatest singer in the world - he's certainly far from that - and I will happily admit that he's not pleasing to listen to. However, Slayer is not supposed to be pleasant, while Dylan is. Slayer, and this album in particular, are meant to sound like the end of the world. The box is smashed to pieces rather than ticked. I have a love/hate relationship with Slayer. They are a very samey band - you could listen to any song off any of their first, say, six albums and be unable to distinguish them. No musical growth, no discernable progress. But that's not what they're about. They want to pummel you in the face over and over again. What sets this album apart from previous ones is that it does have a handful of standout songs. Songs that actually have an intro and are more than just punk shouting, speed, and thrash playing. The title track and Angel Of Death are as top tier Metal as it's possible to get. Having been a DJ in Metal clubs, I wouldn't get through a night without playing, or being asked to play, at least one of those. To conclude, I fully understand any 1 star reviews this must receive, but in terms of pure Metal fury and pushing the needle forwards for other bands, as well as helping to piss off religious cultists, it's undoubtedly a five star album.

I never listened to this at the time - another which had struck me as a hipster critical darling. I got it in my head that it was some sort of direct from Africa tribal collective. No, it's the sort of rap I like - not just songs about money, guns, women, and coming from the streets. A few tracks could use some trimmings.

Sabbath's early records, before the drugs took over and the creative spark faded, were special. They created a genre, taking much from what had come before, and before that new genre took off they went and created a couple of off-shoots. No content with creating Heavy Metal, this album saw them move further from Doom Metal and into sludge territory. People forget, or may not be aware just how great the musicians in this group were, effortlessly flowing from jazz to heavy rock to funk in their own demented way.

Like a Led Zep 3 era Pakistani cover band, but with less sex and more songs about fictional deities.

It's Metallica hitting the big time. I wish they'd continued this trajectory and had a mid-90s album before the wank of Load/Reload. This is an album of anthems and while not all hit the mark it's an example of one of the few times an 80s metal band changed successfully with the times.

I'm not generally a fan of live albums appearing on lists such as these. But for Nirvana, I'll allow it.

I simply cannot fathom why this is here. Sure there are some good songs and it's consistent, but it's nothing more than merely fine. It wasn't influential, it wasn't a critical darling, it wasn't a smash hit, it doesn't have much cultural significance. It also sounds out of time from what was going on... no edge like punk, no prog, less power than garage rock, less bombast than Zep. It feels like The Stones, but several years too late. So why is it here?

My first Julian Cope album and, while it was a tad elongated, it was fine. A mess of styles, yet it works.

The thing with this type of experimental music is that any twat can make it. I should know, I've done it myself. It takes zero talent, zero ability, zero creativity. I'll concede that there's effort involved on the production side of things, but to take something like this and make it interesting, make it worthwhile, make it anything more than a bit of a joke for the person making it - that's the tricky part. This fails in that regard, in most regards, utterly.

I remember this being a huge smash, I remember her name and the album name, but I either must have made it through those years without hearing a single song, or if I did hear one it went in one ear and out the other. Today I had to listen to the whole thing, and it absolutely did go in one ear and out the other. It's just... Nothing. Nothing music. Music for people who don't like music. Unacceptably meh. It would be utterly bewildering that this sold so many copies of I didn't already know that there are a lot of very silly people out there. But what do I know. People can like what they like. But for me this was a genuinely torrid experience. It should be nowhere near a list such as this, but the fact that it was so excruciatingly successful means I must give it two stars instead of the one it deserves, and concede that its popularity earns its spot here.

Growing up a grunge and rock and metal boy, I was fully aware of The Smashing Pumpkins, but until today I had never listened to a single one of their albums. Was it Corgan's voice, was it the shitty video of that Tonight song? Was it some bias I felt due to them being so successful in the US while my beloved, clearly and vastly superior Manic Street Preachers, were not? Don't know, something kept me at bay. This is an album which I imagine I would have liked if I'd heard it at the time. I'd probably like it now with more listens. But I only have time for a single listen and so - first half, they sound like shit Nirvana, second half much more unique and interesting.

It's all weird and fucked up. It's quite repetitive and dull too, but points for being weird.

The Greatest outtakes album ever.

Outside of this challenge I've been running my own challenges for a number of years. One of those was finishing the Bowie discography. I came to the conclusion that I'm a fan of the idea of Bowie rather than the reality. His supposed ability to shift like a chameleon didn't ring true, and many of his albums felt indistinct. I couldn't love his vocals. I didn't like the glam stuff. He seemed like he had only two types of song. But, it's Bowie, I get his importance. Nothing against him, but the music does little for me. Having said that, this one includes my favourite Bowie song, one I'd loved before I ever heard the album (Quicksand). My personal take is three stars, but the Bowie importance bumps it to 4.

Look, I've never heard a Beyonce album before. I've heard a lot of her music on the radio, both solo and with Destiny's Child, and have almost without exception, hated it. She can sing, but I can't stand her voice. All the shite about being independent - that's cool for one song, but becomes grating and increasingly like a calculated marketing move rather than a lyric with any personal truth behind it once it appears in single after single. But I'll listen to this and see if I've missed anything. I want to love as much music as possible. I can't love this. I tried. Open mind and all that. But this is just garbage. And not even fun, throwaway garbage. It's a needlessly hyped star having so much money thrown at creating a product but forgetting the ideas, the soul, the music. Ludicrously over-produced and yet feels cheap. No restraint in any aspect. The vocals are unnecessarily over the top to the detriment of the songs that might otherwise be listenable. Most songs would not be listenable even if you had an interesting voice doing their best work. If you strip everything back to melody and message, most songs wouldn't work. Satan bless her, she's a trier. Tryer? Who knows. I'm not saying she's not talented, but that's the absolute bottom of the barrel bare minimum you would expect of someone who has been a cog in the hit industry for decades. But there's just nothing here. Every note and word rings hollow. It's as erotic as a drunken, diseased, and decrepit grandmother forcing her dusty loins upon you. It's as smart as a MAGA podcaster. For a pop album, it's alarmingly free of melody. Most songs are some barren beat and nothing else. There are irritating sound bites. It's too long. This is an easy one star in my mind... It people love her and her music for some reason, and I get that this was likely influential.

Any group which inspired G'n'R is good in my books. This is too glam for my tastes, and you know if a song has any type of horn you can almost guarantee it'll be garbage. This has a few of those, but on the whole it's tongue in cheek, silly fun. It's lacking any killer tunes, its not serious enough for punk, not heavy or technically proficient enough to be Metal. That's the harbinger of much of the shite we'd see in the 80s - a chaotic mix of genres with a focus on image and ability over songwriting chops.

Well, here it is. You all know it. Not the first punk album, but THE punk album. A culture shifter. Violent, sneering, methodic. Admittedly limited, but served its purpose tenfold.

Rights, lads, remember when we promised there would be no Ayahuasca in the studio? Lads? Lads!?

My first full Snoop album, having heard many of his singles and collabs. It's exactly as I expected, lyrically and musically. I probably would have listened to this at the time had it been big where I was, but it wasn't, so I didn't.

Country music is generally abhorrent to me, having had it forced upon me from an early age. This wouldn't have been so bad of they music wasn't, without exception, shit. This album isn't the worst collection I've ever heard. At least it doesn't have any Irish moments. I won't pretend the band can't play, but I also won't deny the fact that slide guitar in country music gives me a violent, vomit reaction. You've heard one Country album, you've heard them all. Thankfully this one is free from the rampant racism, stupidity, religion, and fascism hidden under the guise of Patriotism which is the genre's modern hallmark.

Living on the red, white, and blue side of Ireland's order in the 80s and 90s, I was not allowed to listen to U2. They were from the other side, and we're the bad guys. Nonsense of course, but a true story nonetheless. As such, even as a rabid music fan, most of their music passed me by. I've always known they are one of my musical black spots, and as much as I've loved their singles and many of the bands and albums inspired by them, I never got around to listening to any of their albums. I think today is the first time I've heard a U2 album in full - deffo this one. Naturally that opening bombast of singles is great. I know them by heart,and they're flawless. Maybe it's familiarity or maybe it's quality, but nothing else here loves up to that opening. There are some other food songs, songs I'll likely enjoy more with further listens, but there also appears to be a fairer amount of middle of the road dross on the second half. Dross is too harsh. Average. Nothing that made me feel anything. Taking out the songs I knew, this is a three star album, it with those bangers it's a four.

I was worried this was going to be 80% Country music and 20% zany 60s shenanigans. Thankfully it's mostly 60s rock with a side of zany and a smattering of Country.

My sphincter closes in upon itself any time I'm recommended an artist I've never heard of and see that the album contains 16 songs. Luckily, most are around the 2-3 minute mark, so relax down there. The whole thing reeks of New York Hipster. It's almost certain the guy has copious facial hair. It's sparse to the point of boredom, dull, repetitive, but without any hypnotic quality. This is America begging for another Dylan. But it's just some guy with a guitar, like you will find in any street on any town in the US. It's like if Woody Allen was a folk singer instead of a pedo.

This was a cert for a four star score after that banger of an opening track. But none of the next batch of songs come close to that one, pulling us down to a three.

An album of weird bangers. I'm more of a Tori fan, but this is Kate's best.

Surprisingly dull. Even more surprisingly monotone. If each song was three minutes long this would be a 3 star album.