90
Albums Rated
2.91
Average Rating
8%
Complete
999 albums remaining
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1970s
Favorite Decade
Soul
Favorite Genre
other
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Rater Style ?
11
5-Star Albums
11
1-Star Albums
Breakdown
By Genre
By Decade
By Origin
Albums
You Love More Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
| This Year's Model | 5 | 3.33 | +1.67 |
| Straight Outta Compton | 5 | 3.51 | +1.49 |
| Hard Again | 5 | 3.62 | +1.38 |
| Bayou Country | 5 | 3.66 | +1.34 |
| Boston | 5 | 3.71 | +1.29 |
| Stripped | 4 | 2.87 | +1.13 |
| I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You | 5 | 3.94 | +1.06 |
| Exodus | 5 | 3.94 | +1.06 |
You Love Less Than Most
| Album | You | Global | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dummy | 1 | 3.71 | -2.71 |
| Elvis Presley | 1 | 3.38 | -2.38 |
| Liege And Lief | 1 | 3.1 | -2.1 |
| OK Computer | 2 | 4.1 | -2.1 |
| Kimono My House | 1 | 3.06 | -2.06 |
| Headquarters | 1 | 2.87 | -1.87 |
| Warehouse: Songs And Stories | 1 | 2.86 | -1.86 |
| Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge | 1 | 2.84 | -1.84 |
| Our Aim Is To Satisfy | 1 | 2.74 | -1.74 |
| Electric Prunes | 1 | 2.73 | -1.73 |
Artists
Favorites
| Artist | Albums | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Aretha Franklin | 2 | 5 |
5-Star Albums (11)
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Popular Reviews
Aretha Franklin
5/5
Outstanding. No bad tracks on the album. 26 year old Aretha sounds amazing.
Chains of fools kicks off the album perfectly, Aretha is powerful yet restrained, almost too easy for her. Love this song.
People get ready, grooving, and natural woman other standout.
1 likes
Christina Aguilera
4/5
Christina Aguilera is a treasure. I'm a fan. Sure, it's pop but it's good pop. Ya'll can judge all you want, I'm comfortable with who I am.
1 likes
1-Star Albums (11)
All Ratings
Aretha Franklin
5/5
Outstanding. No bad tracks on the album. 26 year old Aretha sounds amazing.
Chains of fools kicks off the album perfectly, Aretha is powerful yet restrained, almost too easy for her. Love this song.
People get ready, grooving, and natural woman other standout.
The Offspring
4/5
Great energy. One of my favorite albums, 90s punk with a 70s punk feel.
Portishead
1/5
Not for me. Cool background mood music for a movie, but nothing I would listen to on purpose again.
3/5
Kanye West
4/5
Really good. Went in blind, but recognized a couple songs. Surprised how much I liked this, not at all what I expected.
Aretha Franklin
5/5
Arcade Fire
3/5
Jerry Lee Lewis
3/5
Kept waiting for the Fonz to make a cameo.
Fun nostalgic listen.
Van Halen
4/5
Nothing like DLR era Van Halen, big fan.
That said this is my least favorite DLR VH album, so it gets a 3.8, which rounds up to a 4. Not a strong 4 but I can't in conscience give this record anything less.
Amy Winehouse
5/5
Incredible album. The album opens with rehab which is a bit bitter sweet, great song but also a reminder of how we lost such a talent far too soon. Amy shares her soul with us, her heart ache and wanting are prevalent throughout this album. Back to black and tears dry on their own my two favorites. Me and Mr jones, you know I'm no good, and Love is a losing game are other highlights. Nothing but brilliance on this record start to finish.
Amy takes old classic sounds of soul, blues and jazz, adds a modern tone and creates an amazing sound that instantly grabs you.
One of my very favorite albums, an absolutely beautiful piece of work.
Wu-Tang Clan
3/5
Not my go to genre, have to admit this was the first time I listened to the entire album.
The singles off this album have always been favorites, of course C.R.E.A.M. and Method Man. Entire album has a great vibe, really draws you in.
Again, not my favorite genre. Their influence on music is clear, for me even moreso after listening to this album. Really liked the album, but not something I'll listen to again.
Wu-Tang forever....but for me, it's a 3. My apologies to the hip hop universe.
The Velvet Underground
3/5
Iconic album cover, was excited to actually listen to the record and glad I did.
I enjoyed the Lou Reed songs, old school gritty New York City vibe. Very cool, enjoyed it.
The other songs were a bit rough for me. Felt like they listened to hippie era Beatles and decided to give it a go after taking way too many drugs. Pretty terrible.
Iconic Warhol cover and Lou Reed carry the record and bring this to a 3.
Paul Simon
4/5
Classic album, always liked the African influence and vibe.
The highllights on the is album are amazing Call Me Al, Graceland, Diamonds on the Soles of her Shoes are the three must listen to songs. Rest of the album solid.
I still throw this album on every now and again, always a great listen. Full transparency i didnt listen yesterday, but I know this album well.
Boston
5/5
Perfect soundtrack for cruising in your camero with the T tops off...glorious mullet flowing in the wind.
We all know the songs, we all sing along to the chorus. Perfect example of 70s classic rock.
Mudhoney
1/5
This one brought me back to my highschool days when we would go to the battle of the bands and rocked out! Great times! Lots of Metallica, Guns n Roses, and Iron Maiden covers. The rare Rush song the brave kids who had crazy chops would give a go, i remember my friend doing Tom Sawyer, he rocked it! Well, maybe not rocked it, but Neil Peart would have approved of the effort for sure, looking back I'm still crazy impressed ...anyway... of course there were also the original songs, teenage angst expressed through poorly conceived riffs and even worse lyrics. Some weren't terrible, none were very good, but back in they day each was freaking rad as hell to 15 year old me.
Mudhoney brought me back to those good old days, and as bad as my buddies were, Mudhoney is worse.
They may have influenced the birth of one of my favorite genres, and I thank them for that, but there is nothing good on this album. The writing is barely on par with the average high-school kid and in that spirit I give this album a gold star! A single, yet very special, gold star they can display on their refrigerator along with the cover art for this record.
U2
4/5
Like most, Sunday Bloody Sunday was my introduction to U2. The marching rhythm of the snare drum, heavy bass line, Bono shouting his message on stage waving that huge white flag in the video. 10 year old me was too young to understand any of this, but damn it he had my attention. I was in from the first tap of that snare. This is the type of song you feel, U2 was delivering their message and demanded your attention. You feel a little bit of a punk soul on this track.
I really like the beginning of the album Seconds keeps the heart of Sunday Bloody Sunday and introduces a bit of rhythm, then New Year's day gives us a beautiful soaring chorus, Like a song returns us back to Bonos angsty vocals but this time kick drum takes the lead. Really nicely composed set of songs.
Rest of the album is really good as well, I was happy to be reminded how great a song Two Hearts is.
Is Bono a pretentious douchebag? Yes, he is. Is U2 insufferable, yes, they are.
I'm not a U2 fan for the most part, I like them fine. But they can write a hell of a song, and in this case they wrote a great album.
Peter Frampton
3/5
I like this album. Few cool songs, great live recording, and best of all that funky mouth organ thing. 70s technology at its finest.
This is pop rock, nothing deep. Have a couple of edibles, sit back, and enjoy the show.
The Electric Prunes
1/5
The Electric Prunes, love the band name, but it's crappy 60s psychedelic rock. It's awful.
Soooooo.....Ya.....that's pretty much it on this one.
Fairport Convention
1/5
I learned it pays to read the wiki, the original album is only 8 songs, the rest of the songs on spotify were bonus tracks on the cd reissue. Why does this matter.....I couldn't do it anymore... I needed to stop but didn't want to quit. It was like the 25th mile of a marathon, and I was out of gas. What a relief to learn I was actually 3 songs past the finish line and could turn it off. Phew!
Cheesy Renaissance Fair music. Not for me.
Steely Dan
2/5
I like Steely Dan. Smooth jazz mixed with prog rock, very enjoyable. They are the kind of band I never really liked well enough to delve into the catolouge, but always enjoyed on the radio. For that reason I was happy to give this album a listen.
Strong start Rikki Don't Lose That Number, great song, and the only song on the album I'd heard before. Night by Night, I liked alot, feels like I'm in for a banger of an album.
Then it drops off into the realm of "meh". Very talented players, but feels like they are trying too hard to be hip and cool. Part of that is their white guy groove, they try so hard to sneak a funky groove into their songs, but they are so damn white. It's fine, doesn't ruin the songs, but gives them a musak feel.
Only other songs on the album worth note are the title track Pretzel Logic, which is very good, and East St Louis Toodle which is awful. Sounds like something they had fun with in the studio and decided to share with the world, should have stayed on the cutting room floor.
Overall the album was dissappointing but not bad. This is a very strong 2.
Christina Aguilera
4/5
Christina Aguilera is a treasure. I'm a fan. Sure, it's pop but it's good pop. Ya'll can judge all you want, I'm comfortable with who I am.
Nico
1/5
This record kept me entitely entertained as it reminded me of two great movies.
Is it me, or does Nico spound like a lot like Lili Van Shtupp? I couldn't help but picture her on stage in a campy burlesque outfit with thirsty cowboys howling at her. Hysterical.
When I tried to take the album seriously I listened to it as a historical point in time piece. Pop art 60"s Warhol parties, this is what I picture they listened to. Which brought me to Men in Black 3, where Bill Hader plays Andy Warhol who is actually an undercover MIB agent making up a bunch of nonsense and passing it off as art. Can you imagine those people at a Warhol party going deep into the meanings of these songs. I nearly drove off the road, this album had me belly laughing.
I knew I was in trouble going in, Nico was the part i hated about the Velvet Undergroud album. No surprises here.
The Verve
2/5
Bittersweet Symphony is a classic, banger to kick off the album. Regrettably thats the only highlight.
Tough to put my finger on this one, nothing stood out I think because they have too many songs on the album and many sound similar to eachother.
I'm conflicted on this one. Didnt hate it, but didnt like it. I'm not mad at the album, I'm dissappointed in it. Would I recommend it? No. So it gets a 2, but could have snuck into a 3 if I were in a different mood.
Emmylou Harris
3/5
I expected to hate this, old time county music is not high on my list of things to listen to. Immideiately started preparing snarky comments about pick up trucks, whisky, and abusive partners.
But right from the start my outlook brightened, Emmylous voice is beautiful. I listened with an open mind and actually enjoyed most of this album quite a bit.
Sure some songs are what I expected, didn't much care for those. But there are a few really good songs on this album. I enjoyed Bluebird song, For no one, and Boulder to Birmingham most. Hell i even liked The Bottle let me down, slide guitar and all.
Pleasant surprise, this was a very enjoyable album.
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
4/5
I've always liked Elvis Costello. A knew a few songs on the album going in, the rest lived up to expectations.
Machito
2/5
Sounds like big band music visited the Caribbean and found some flare. Decent upbeat background music i suppose.
It's fine. Not a genre I'm inspired to explore further, but nice to have been exposed to it.
Elvis Costello & The Attractions
5/5
I'm definately not mad we got another Elvis Costello. I liked this album MUCH better than Armed Forces, and I liked Armes Forces alot.
This album is bit edgier and Elvis's voice feels like it's got bit extra punch and snark. Radio Radio of course is the highlight of the album, great song and iconic SNL moment.
Love the vibe of this album, I'll be digging through the racks for a copy.
The Jesus And Mary Chain
2/5
All the gripes about two banging Elvis Costelo albums has brought the wrath of the 1001 album gods upon us. I feel like the one guy in Sodom that was reading a book in the corner when the fire and brimstone started raining down.
Not a fan of depressing, err I mean introspective, goth. Some of the more palatable songs sounded like the Romones on Prozac with guitar feedback, which I think they added just to jar people awake.
Don't like the album, but respect the impact they had on the genre.
Elvis Presley
1/5
Not a fan of Elvis, came in with very low expectations but was pleasantly surprised with the energy in Blue Suede Shoes. I enjoyed it and was ready to listen with an open mind. But that is the one and only track on this album I liked. The rest of the album was terrible. Lowest of the low was tutti frutti, shockingly bad.
I don't get the Elvis thing, with few exceptions he produced mostly bad songs and worse movies.
Muddy Waters
5/5
Funny how the Blues can provide so much joy. There is absolutely nothing wrong with this album. Muddy's soaring vocals and soulful guitar of course lead the way, but the band behind him absolutely shreds and rounds out the sound.
I listened to this album 3 times today, a new favorite.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
4/5
Totally dig this sound. Interesting band. I read, meet me in the bathroom, not too long ago and the yeah yeah yeah were a big part of the book. I gave them a listen then so i was a bit familiar going in.
They were part of the same early 2000s New York City scene as the Strokes then later Kings of Leon ,The Killers, and White Stripes. They are one of the OGs in the garage rock resurgence of that era.
This checks all the boxes for me. Powerful vocals, booming drums, driving guitar. Enough Punk attitude to frighten off the "normal" folks. They get a bit too experimental in spots, but fits the fearless nature of their music and makes it uniquely theirs.
This is straight up in your face no apologies rock and I'm a fan.
The Stooges
3/5
Listening to this album feels like being a fly on the wall as the Stooges piece together Punk Rock. Heavy metal had been introduced to the world by bands like iron butterfly and black sabbath, the Stooges brought us punk rock.
Decent album, can definitely see how they influenced future bands, but this was just okay for me.
The Zombies
3/5
I really liked this album. LIght and fun, very enjoyable listen. Feels like this was the bubble gum pop of the hippie era.
MGMT
2/5
What did i just listen to? Honestly, what the hell was that?!
I heard the songs they released as singles and those are fine, a bit longer than they need to be, but not bad. The rest of the songs, just no. Absolute nonsense.
Hüsker Dü
1/5
Listening to this album is like listening to my mother telling a story. Goes on and on and on and on and on. Doesn't really say anything, just talks. Eventually your eyes glaze over and it all turns into background noise. Every now and then there is a pause, and you get excited...phew it's over...but nope they pick right back up and continue to ramble on until mercifuly it's over.
Initially I thought this album was a weak 3/strong 2. It was generic rock, pretty mundane but not bad, but after 30 minutes it actually got annoying. I asked myself, is there not one person in this band that realizes every song sounds exactly the same?!?! Rating moved to a 2...leaning towards a weak 2.
After 45 minutes I started getting upset. It felt like being at the golden coral. They know the food is bad, you know the food is bad but you go because its all you can eat and cheap. Music is terrible, but you bought the album so you're getting value. Rating is weak 2, moving towards a strong 1
After an hour I was legit mad, convinced I'm being punked. The album is a test to see how many times they can feed you the same damn song until you turn it off. Rating is a low 1, and a long winded review that doesn't really say anything about the music other than it's terrible.
Bob Marley & The Wailers
5/5
Music can truly lift your soul. After a long exhausting weekend this is exactly what I needed. I couldn't have chosed a better album to enjoy this evening.
Nirvana
5/5
I remember seeing the video for smells like teen spirit for the first time and was simultaneously blown away and confused. Blown away by the power and energy. A great mix of metal and punk which was rare. Metal covers of punk songs just sounded metal in the past. For example Megadeths cover of Anarchy in the UK is great, but it lost all the punk in the translation, so this was very different and had my full attention. I was also confused, Nirvana didnt look like metal, or punk, or pop metal (aka hair metal). Who the hell are these guys?!? I had to know and raced to buy nevermind.
I feel very fortunate to have listened to Nevermind knowing only smells like teen spirit and next to nothing about the band. I went in with no expectations. They were just a new band whose song i liked, I had no idea what i was in for and what I found is absolute treasure.
This is one of my favorite albums, yet oddly enough isn't even my favorite Nirvana album. This is a point in time for me, and the world. Music changed, style changed, sensibilities changed. Gen X ushered in a whole new outlook and Nirvana was the band playing on the radio. Others bands followed, some were actually better, but Nevermind is special. Nevermind got our attention, it challenged us and welcomed us to a new world.
Nirvana didn't change the world, but they were there at exactly the right time to inspire us to look at everything around us through a different lens.
Metallica
4/5
My first job was at foodmart, this was one of my go to cassettes when collecting shopping carts in the parking lot. And I'll tell you what, been a bit since I've listened to this one, but holds up nicely. Title track is even more relevant today.
I know, where's the bass? Yes, it sucks that they buried it, and it sucks even more how dirty they did Jason Newstead. But thats a different conversation. Justice gives us peak Metallica, they mastered the genre. Plenty of great thrash metal bands, but Metallica had soul and melody, I know...eyes are rolling, but when you look back at the genre it was all very riff heavy, 4:4, fast tempo , band your head throw up the devil horns stuff. Metallica gave all that but they gave us so much more to consider in their music. They weren't guys playing really fast, they were great musicians playing great music fast and heavy
Justice will get nothing but love from me. Many great memories and truly a killer album. Some, myself included, consider this their swan song. Metallica evolved after this album, reached amazing heights, and good on them, but this is the last true Metallica album.
Happy Mondays
3/5
Never heard of these guys. I liked it quite a bit, great grooves. Great energy throughout the album, feel like they would be loads of fun to see live.
I will say I don't much care for the vocals. Not a bad voice, just doesnt fit the music for me. But good album.
Iggy Pop
2/5
This didn't work. It has the feel for what it appearently was, two drug addicts embarking on a project in an effort to get clean. I really disliked this, I think mostly because I wanted so much more from these two.
Television
2/5
I went in optimistic based on the wiki summary, late 1970s NYC punk is right up my alley. I was initially not disappointed, but it fell off quite a bit as I listened.
Half is very good, a mix of punk and new wave, essentially punk with melody. See no Evil, Friction, Prove It, and Marquee Moon are the standouts here, each different and interesting.
The rest of the album isn't for me. It feels like an uninspired jam band with players not quite skilled enough to be in a jam band in the first place. Which is a bummer, I enjoyed the good songs. Bit of a downer to have long boring songs drag down the experience.
I wish they allowed half stars, this would be a 2.5, but the good songs weren't good enough to carry the album so need to go with 2.
The Everly Brothers
2/5
The opening track legit felt like I was getting "the talk" from dad, interesting start to the album. The entire album felt like a Leave it to Beaver episode.
This isn't nostalgic for me, this is so old you can hear the inspiration for the bands that inspired the bands that I listened to.
Not for me, antiquated and uninteresting.
The Kinks
3/5
Not what I expected from the Kinks. I understand how this was their first commercial miss, songs are all over the place in sound and theme. With context it's clever, without it's a mess. Thankfully the wiki page includes a short write up on each song that helped better understand the album and made the listen quite interesting.
That said, an album shouldn't need each song explained...l usually listen to music to avoid reading! ....but I'll give a pass on this one since I did end up enjoying it. In short the album is the kinks poking fun at various things while pining for a quiet life on the countyside.
The Black Keys
4/5
Bluesy indy garage rock, done very well by two players, which is pretty impressive. Album has a minimalist feel that doesnt require much from the listener. Not much to overthink here. Sit back, let the drums lead the way as the riffs entertain you.
Gang Of Four
4/5
Ladies and gentlemen, Mr David Allen! Absolutely ripping bass bringing this album to another level. Sadly I just learned he passed away in April. Just as sadly I just learned who he was 10 minutes ago.
Really enjoyed this. Entertainment! Is my introduction to gang of four, this was my first listen but it felt very familiar. You can feel and hear future bands like fugazi and the offspring. Mostly i heard a lot of early Chili Peppers (pre-Mothers Milk).
The Brits really do this genre well, very happy to have discovered this.
Robbie Williams
2/5
Generic pop. It was fine, it didnt offend my senses or get me all riled up about the state of the music industry or anything like that. I don't mind how they take a few good looking kids and put them in a boy band, then when they get a bit older they pick the most attractive and least offensive one and give them a solo career singing banal songs with no soul. Nothing off putting about that at all. One of my favorite new albums, ground breaking and awe-inspiring talent this Robbie Williams guy is.
Easy 5 star rating, unless I fat thumb it (accidently of course). Ooops
Tori Amos
3/5
Beautiful album. First time listening to the entire album, but I've had heard most of the songs before. Happy to experience start to finish.
Tori"s voice beautiful. Her songs have a subdued confidence to them, she's not flaunting her talent she is simply using it to create beautifully composed work.
Derek & The Dominos
4/5
I've always loved the Blues, which is interesting since I've listened to very few actual Blues artists in my lifetime. I suppose I've always actually enjoyed a Blues feel to music. Blues mixed with rock being my clear favorite and who better than Clapton in that category.
Layla is an absolute classic, in my book an all time classic song. The first half of the song is gold, the second half is unnecessary and a bit obnoxious. Much like Clapton himself, he has produced amazing music early in his career, but has lacked in his later years. Not unlike most I suppose.
Anyway, lots to love on this album, Layla, bell bottom blues, down and out, tell the truth lead the way. Always happy to throw this album on and settle in for a listen.
Sparks
1/5
Trash
Jefferson Airplane
3/5
Great album with hits that have stood the test of time. Grace Slicks voice is the highlight, soulful and powerful, her songs are on another level.
The album is a few songs too long, but nothing terribly out of place. Overall a good listen, I enjoyed experiencing the full album.
Creedence Clearwater Revival
5/5
Damn fine album. Fits any mood. Can be enjoyed in a dark smelly bar with a shot and beer. Or top down cruising down the highway on a beautiful day. You know nearly every song on the album, and even the couple you dont know have you singing along to the chorus by the end.
Rewriting this last bit. Initially I was lamenting going with a 4 rather than a 5. I couldn't do it. For me this is genre defining, influential, timeless, and so much fun to listen to.
A damn fine album.
Radiohead
2/5
I don't understand the intense love for Radiohead. Undeniably brilliant say their fans. Revolutionary say the critics.
Radiohead wrote two great songs, only one of which is on OK Computer. The rest teeters between fine and kinda bad. This is an insanely overrated album consisting mostly of self indulgent nonsense.
Khaled
3/5
Never thought I'd listen to an Arabic album, let alone actually enjoy it....yet here i sit.
This was great, many of the songs felt like they had a Latin vibe with middle Eastern flair. Very different (to me), and very cool. Coolest of all is the great version of Imagine, fitting rendition of a song about a world where we all live in harmony.
Will I ever listen to this again? Maybe, good background music, but likely not. Nevertheless I enjoyed this quite a bit.
The Lemonheads
3/5
It's a shame about the lack of any creativity on this album. Every song was bland, nothing to like or dislike. Except the Mrs Robinson cover, that was great.
Fleetwood Mac
5/5
Amazing album, not top of the heap amazing, but I really do love this album. You can hear the internal strife the band was experiencing as well as soke beautiful tender songs. Brilliantly composed album.
Songbird was the highlight of yesterday's listen for me, I forget that song exists, it hits me by surprise everytime, McVies voice is amazing. The rest of the songs are bangers as well, not a dud on the album.
Joni Mitchell
4/5
Outstanding album. I've never listened to Joni Mitchell, perhaps knew one or two of her songs, never thought much of them but turns out I was missing out. Lovely voice, the fusion of jazz and folk is unique and interesting, really enjoyed the entire album. Looking forward exploring more of her music.
Kendrick Lamar
3/5
I've never been a big fan of rap and over time I've become less and less of a fan. After my first listen I was disappointed, I've heard some Kendrick Lamar songs and enjoyed them, but the album as a whole was a tough listen.
After learning some of the nuance to the music I gave the album a second, more focused, listen. I did get a better appreciation for the writing, this is indeed modern poetry. I now understand all the accolades Kendrick recieves and why this album makes the list, but I still don't understand the album.
I like some of the songs, Kendricks voice and cadence are unique and the beats are great. Unfortunately, the album went over my head,
The Prodigy
2/5
Brings back memories of Doug recovering on the couch from the previous nights rave rambling on about "yellow world". Still pretty funny.
Other than the nostalgic chuckle not much here for me.
Blur
2/5
The Brits have given us many great bands, Blur doesn't appear to be one of them.
I was looking forward to this one, but was left dissappointed and scratching my head. First the upside, I learned who sings boys & girls, that annoying song that worked its way into countless movie soundtracks. Not the greatest start, but mystery solved.
The title track Parklife epitomizes this album for me. Lots i like about the song, good backbeat groove, snarky spoken word lyrics that flow nicely into sung chorus, and a good bit of attitude. I should love this song, but I don't. It doesnt come together for me, for everything they did right there is something wrong. It's missing something, actually, it's missing a few things but I cant put my finger on what they are. I didn't like or dislike anything about this album. It just seemed off.
I was hoping this would be a great find, but it's not. It's okay at best. The Brits love Blur so I'm certain there will be another album, fingers crossed that will be better.
Joan Baez
2/5
Joan Baez, I'm certain, has a voice that appeals to her many fans, but it's not for me. Not going to make any snarky remarks, she's a legend, but damn.
Voice aside, it's typicle folk music. It's fine. Boring. But fine.
Curtis Mayfield
4/5
This is great, so beautifully composed. All the instruments blend perfectly to create some groovy soul. An unexpected no skip album, with a few songs peaked my curiosity about the movie.
Great album that had me saying "oooooohhhh yaaa" more than I care to admit.
Queen
3/5
Queen is one of those bands that can write an amazing song, but can't seem to put together a great album. This is not one of their best. They have plenty of ideas but don't quite deliver on any.
The upside is they gave us three great songs on this one, Stone Cold Crazy, Now I'm Here, and Killer Queen. The rest of the album is average at best and pretty forgettable.
JAY Z
2/5
I like Jay Z well enough but not a huge fan. To be fair not a big fan of hip hop in general, so no shade on Jay Z specifically.
This album fell flat for me. Nothing special, nothing interesting.
The Monkees
1/5
This is the Monkeys third album, but the first in which they wrote their own songs and played their own instruments. I wonder if they regret their decision.
Norah Jones
2/5
Common phrases heard as this music plays include:
"....yes please, another glass of wine will be great, thank you "
"Dessert menu? Of course, and may I have a double expresso..."
*glancing at the bill* "Whoa...did I break a window?" (Laughter).
Norah Jones has a beautiful voice, but this is little more than background music for your favorite restaurant. The bits you catch between conversation are great, but nothing you'd go out of your way to actually sit down and listen to.
Skunk Anansie
2/5
A minute into the album I thought Skunk Anansie was going to be a knock off version of Evanescence. Unfortunately that wasnt the case, Temu Evanescence would have been more enjoyable.
Not a single compelling riff on the entire album and singer that has a decent voice but screeches for most of the album. It felt like they were experimenting with new ideas and sounds but none landed. Like a fart in the wind, this is very forgettable which is fortunate since it's pretty bad.
Sepultura
3/5
A lot to unpack on this one. I don't care for the gutteral vocals, not my thing and in this case it really takes away from the music...which is a shame because it's actually really good. They do a great job mixing death metal and nu metal to get a really cool sound and feel.
I've always loved heavy metal drumming, no exception here and the bass is ripping on top of it. Killer guitar riffs round out the feel. Really tight solid sound, they could have ridden that alone, but they go farther and really do some interesting things. Throwing in Brazilian tribal chants, unique rythms, and just crazy sounds they shifted the mood of the album on a dime. Kept me both on my heels trying to figure out what the hell was happening and on the edge of my seat for what was coming next. Enjoyed the ride.
I've always known of Sepultura, but this was my first true listen (vocals always turned me off pretty quick in the past) This album has some single worthy songs, but I think it's best consumed as a whole. Regrettably the gutteral screaming vocals hold this back in my opinion.
Without bad vocals it's a strong 3, with bad vocals it's a weak 3. I say that to say the album is a solid three.
Hole
3/5
Easy to roll your eyes when it comes to Courtney Love, afterall she is batshit crazy. Like, legit crazy to this day, but why is that bad? Lots of Rockstar's are batshit crazy, who cares. I didn't listen very closely this morning so I decided to listen to this album a second time (don't judge, i was traveling with more than a little time on my hands). This second listen with no prejudice toward Courtney and I ended up liking Celebrity Skin far more than I expected to. Not a great album, but there are certainly some very high points, and the lows are not the worse you'll hear. It's imperfect, but this isn't American Idol, it's okay to be a bit pitchy dog, or flat, as is the case here. I say big fat hairy deal to that, the passion is there and that matters most. This is good grunge, and that's enough for me.
U2
3/5
This album is all over the place and difficult to rate.
One is a beautiful song. All time classic, something i can listen to a million times and still love.
Zoo Station i absolutely hate. I hated the whole goofy Zoo TV nonsense they did.
Then you have everything else which ranges from pretty good to entirely forgettable.
Take the song One out of the equation and this is a weak 3, however, One is so good I'm tempted to do 4 BUT we are rating albums, not songs. Much of the lift One gives the album is negated by the Zoo station nonsense.
So album is a 3, but for the record the song One is a very strong 5.
Eagles
2/5
I don't care for the Eagles, this album did not change my mind.
Take it Easy is an okay song, the rest of the album is not good. More country than rock, not my thing.
Peter Tosh
2/5
A reggae album and getting high.
N.W.A.
5/5
When Straight Outta Compton dropped in 1988 it was the CNN of the hood. Today it feels like a documentary. This is an important album, a glimpse into life on the streets of L.A in the late 80s. Raw, ugly, and unflinchingly honest. Shocking lyrics about cops mistteating black people proved accurate when the Rodney King video surfaced. A realization came over us that NWA wasn't making this stuff up, this was their world and when the riots occurred we better understood the rage that ignited the fires we watched burn from our living rooms.
Most importantly, the music is damn good. The message was heard because the beats were dope, bass thumping, and Eazy Es delivery was on point. It's quite an accomplishment to create music that has you bopping your head while shouting Fuck Tha Police!
I've seen some reviews turned off by the mysonogistic/homophobic lyrics, and they are right, a lot of ugly images painted. I'm not one to dismiss those feelings. I'll just say I think it's the cost of creating something honest. Sometimes the truth is ugly, and NWAs world was indeed ugly. To portray that world any differently would have been wrong.
Fun Lovin' Criminals
3/5
I remember Scooby Snacks and The Fun Loving Criminal, but this was my first listen to the entire album. I like it. Smooth flow, laid back vocals, and overall chill vibe are all very cool and enjoyable. Unfortunately most songs sound pretty much the same. They rely on samples and quirky lyrics to keep things interesting, which I suppose kinda works.
I wouldn't go so far as calling the album good, but I like it.
The Police
3/5
I've always been a very big fan of the Police, hooked from the moment i saw the video for Don't Stand So Close To Me on MTV way back in the day. So there is strong bias here.
Stewart Copeland is a monster behind the kit, I've always loved the rhythm of his drumming which pairs perfectly with Sting's bass. Andy Summers guitar dancing around their rhythm completes the trios sound perfectly. They each shine as players without tripping over eachother flexing their chops. A joy to listen to.
I'm listening while writing and the hi hat on Walking on the Moon literally stopped me in my tracks. This is what I love about the Police, their greatness is subtle. I mean it's a frickin hi hat, but Copeland makes it a star on this track. Love it.
Sorry I got distracted by a hi hat and strayed from the review....anyway....This is a great album, but not perfect, few misses. But that's more than okay, I like it warts and all.
There will be more Police on this list, and I'm already looking forward to more!
The Byrds
2/5
Interesting album. I appreciate when bands experiment with new sounds, but the nuance of the new toys they used here is lost on me.
It kinda sounds like folk version of the Beach Boys, and I'm not a huge fan of the Beach Boys to begin with so I'm less of a fan of this.
Not for me
3/5
This album is like a Saltine. Good but pretty plain and uninspired. They need something. Dab of jam, slice of cheese, maybe some chicken soup to dunk them in....saltines need something extra to add character.
That's how I feel about Oasis, good but they are missing character, this is good Brit-Pop but it just feels empty.
And why on earth is Champaine Supernova over seven minutes long?!?!
Not my favorite, I'll grab a box of buttery Ritz instead.
Faith No More
3/5
This is underbaked and immature. Epic and Falling to Pieces were the singles I knew going in and are the highlights. The rest was mostly good, with a couple really bad misses and a rad cover of War Pigs.
They were going for rap metal/nu metal before it was a thing, so points for what is actually a really good effort. I'm curious to hear how they matured and may give a later album of theirs a listen. Although they were a bit off the mark here I dont hate this.
Miriam Makeba
2/5
Not the least bit enjoyable. Oddly enough I enjoyed the songs sung in english the least. This was a rough one for me, not good.
Common
3/5
I've never listened to a Common album before, this was really good. Old school rap cadence paired with smooth jazz beats. Has a hipster coffee house feel.
I liked it. But not something I'll revisit.
Happy Mondays
3/5
I didn't like bummed quite as much as much as Pills N Thrills and Bellyaches. Different energy on this album, not quite as bright but still a cool unique sound that's fun to listen to.
Sonic Youth
3/5
It's rare to find an album that's great from start to finish, but Sonic Youth struggled to write a song that's great from start to finish. I like parts of most of these songs, but there was always something that took me out of the moment and killed it. Felt like they wanted to incorporate a bit of a grunge sound into their music but missed the mark and ended up ruining what could have been great songs. And the common mistake of too much, you dont need 15 songs on an album.
Overall this missed the mark, but not by much. Still mostly enjoyable.
Coldplay
2/5
Musically Coldplay is one of the blandest bands of the past century. Dull and boring. Lyricly they resemble a romance novel.
This is awful.
The Smiths
2/5
Saturday morning as I write this, slept well last night and woke up to a bit of snow falling, just a light snow enough to make the world look beautiful, but not enough that it takes any effort to remove, that perfect amount of fresh white snow. Made myself a delicious egg sandwich for breakfast, nice hot cup of coffee and settle in for some premiership, Villa v Arsenal, nice!
Yesterday got away from me and I didn't have a chance to listen to the Smiths, no worries, mute the game and listen. Something I do often. Morning is shaping up nicely.
Then the music starts, eh...not too bad. Then Morrissey begins singing, oh ya I remember him, I think I like him but dont remember much by him. Well I'm quickly reminded he has the most depressing voice on the planet. My amazing start to the day takes a dark turn and sadness envelopes me. I learned that Morrissey can mar the greatest of mornings. Thankfully the album is over now and all is right with the world again.
This is pretty terrible.
Red Snapper
1/5
Pointless nonsense
The Cult
3/5
Happy to see The Cult on the list, always liked them, although never liked them enough to buy the cassette. Instead, they were the cassette I'd borrow from a friend to dub a copy of.
Couple of classic bangers on here, Wild Flower and Love Removal Machine. Rest of the album is solid 80s hard rock, good stuff.
I question why this album and not either Love, which has their biggest hit, or Sonic Temple which has loads of bangers and is far better than Electric. Not sure if we'll have another Cult album, but doubt we'll get two more so including Electric isn't my favorite choice.
Solid album regardless, enjoyed listening.
The Smashing Pumpkins
4/5
More than any album on the list thus far this is one you experience moreso than listen to. A true sonic journey with Billy's voice as our guide, the music punctuating his words on beautifully written songs.
Beck
2/5
No need for an entire album this sad. Felt like county music without the southern drawl.
Orbital
1/5
I have never hated an album more.
Lambchop
2/5
Chamberpop? Countrypolitan? Have I lost my grip? They made those genres up, right?
This felt more like a pop art piece than actual music. Sherri Lewis on Peyote.
Run-D.M.C.
4/5
Raining Hell is dated as hell, but I love it. If I'm honest this may have been the first time I actually listened to the entire album, glad I finally did, thoroughly enjoyed listening.