1001 Albums Vol. 0001: Melody A.M.
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Introduction: This is my first album on this site. I will be reviewing every album and song given to me in this description section on a 1-10 scale. There are some very rare exception in which I will give a song or album an 11 out of 10, but I expect those situation to be extremely rare. I estimate only around 10-20 albums receiving a score that high by the end of this entire journey. Alongside all of this, I hope that my writing ability increases as I go along this journey. I hope for an better, funnier, tone/personality in my writing by the end of this journey.
This album was released in 2001 by Norwegian duo Röyksopp. From my research, I've deduced that this album's creativity and continued relevancy comes from the genre-blending it achieved. It manages to blend a downtempo beat with the tight instrumentation of electronic to create something unique at the time. This album apparently helped electronic music reach a wider audience as well. This is a duo that I personally have never heard of before up until this point. Despite this, I have high hopes for this album. This hope may originate from the fact that this is my first album on this site, but I still have high hopes nonetheless.
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Track 1: So Easy - This was an extremely nice song to start off with. Firstly, it is an extremely well-produced track, especially for the time. Many of the instruments here sound so tight and precise. That being said, this preciseness is a common trait I see across most electronic songs I have heard. Don't let that fact downplay this song, however. The sublimation of instrumentation and vocals create a very strange, otherworldly feeling that emanates throughout this song. This sublimation creates a song that feels very laid-back, relaxed, yet oddly dramatic at the same time. I am especially a fan of the rising vocals in the "blue on blue" sections. There isn't much variety in terms of lyrics, but that works for this song since it doesn't seem as if lyrics were meant to be the main focus of the song. This song emanates with creativity. It sets itself apart from most other electronic songs I have listened too very well. Overall, this is an extremely well-made, unique song that deserves the critical praise it receives.
So Easy Score: 8/10
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Track 2: Eple - This track manages to be much better than the first. It has the same extremely high quality production as the previous, yet the instrumentation and melody is much more creative and profound in this song. This song manages to blend a strange mix between electronic and psychedelia through its unique instrumentation. The high-pitched piano-like sound that plays throughout the entirety of this song is what brings this psychedelic feeling the most. The amount of small details happening in the background of this tightly executed jam makes this song even better. The strange high and low pitching of the melody during the bridge created a strange sense that the melody was traveling up and down through my headphone's channels. Overall, through a very nice blending of genres, a very creative melody that manages to be extremely memorable, and the overall unique mood that emanates from this song, this song manages to achieve a ten rating from me.
Eple Score: 10/10
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Track 3: Sparks - In my opinion, this song isn't as strong as the two previous. It has the same production value as the previous two, yet there isn't anything that makes this song sound too distinct from the many other electronic beats that I have heard over the years. To me, it sounds like something I would encounter in a relaxed, laid-back game. The melody presented is pretty repetitive and simplistic, this factor being exaggerated over the more than five minute runtime of the song. That being said, this is the first song on the album that contains genuinely complex lyrics that are meant to resonate with the listener. From what I have gathered, this song is meant to convey the feeling of spiraling into grief over a breakup or loss of someone significant. This lyrical meaning blends well with the more monotone melody of the song. This doesn't excuse the music itself from sounding much more generic in terms of electronic, however. On top of the music itself being much more generic, the lyrical meaning too is very generic. The theme of depression after a breakup/death is something that I feel has been explored time and time again in countless songs. Overall, while this song may not be as experimental or as musically complex as the previous two, it still manages to be an influential piece of electronic music. I can hear this effect clearly even on a first listen.
Sparks Score: 7/10
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Track 4: In Space - This song is an instrumental much like Eple. It isn't as strong as Eple, however. Where Eple had a very psychedelic tone to it, this song has a much more pleasant tone. The production here is a bit off too. The drums don't feel as precise and tight as the way they did in the previous three songs. That being said, this works towards the songs favor. This lack of precision in the instrumentation helps this song create the more pleasant atmosphere it was clearly attempting to create. It's melody almost feels like something you would hear in Minecraft or a game of the like. It's a very nice, well-made instrumental. That being said, it isn't without flaws. Firstly, the melody doesn't feel as personally impactful as any instrumental's should. It does flow with creativity, but not as much so as the previous songs. The song itself isn't all that memorable either. It feels like a simple jam included for the sake of filler. That being said, this song doesn't overstay its welcome like the previous did, its runtime being only three and a half minutes long. Overall, while this song is still good, it misses the magic that made the two opening tracks so great.
In Space Score: 7/10
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Track 5: Poor Leno - This is the first song on the album that I would describe as being extremely high energy. This is another song that I would describe as leaning toward a much more typical electronic song. That being said, that fact doesn't make the song bad at all. In fact, I would even say that this song is better than the previous two. The song has a very high and loud energy to it that emanates with the lyrical meaning. The vocals to these lyrics themselves are amazing. The masculine soft, perfect, echoing, masculine voice that delivers these lyrics sound so comforting and are perfect in context to the song. Now, I have heard various interpretations of these lyrics. Some of these theories claim pedophilia, some claim that the song is a game of hide and seek between a father; that being said, the interpretation I like to take is that we are listening to a father lecture his nine-year-old son about love, about the fact that he will always be by his side. He will always find him, he will always know him. In my opinion, his lyrical interpretation makes the most sense in context of the melody of the song. One could argue that the wacky melody could indicate a game of hide and seek, yet I believe that it is meant to indicate the magical happiness felt by unconditional love, especially so since this song is from the perspective of a nine-year-old. Overall, my own interpretation of this song allows me to give it an eight of ten. That being said, if the hide and seek meaning is ever confirmed, that score may drop down to a seven or high six.
Poor Leno Score: 8/10
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Track 6: A Higher Place - This song brings back that strange blend of psychedelia Eple had. It isn't as masterfully executed on this song, however. This song is yet another instrumental...almost. There are a few words spoken during this song's duration, yet I don't consider them significant enough to speak any further on. There is quite a pleasant and progressive tone present in this song, a lot of small elements weaving their way in and out as well. Most of these elements make sense with the melody of the song. There are major, repeating elements that weave their way in as well. That being said, because of how many little things happen in this song, it would take a few listens to recognize these major elements first being weaved into the melody. I consider this to a good thing. There's not really much else to say about this song. It's just a pretty well-made instrumental. If anything, my main critique would be the random moaning sound that the duo decides to sample throughout the song. Other than that unpleasant bit, I have nothing major to criticize about this song.
A Higher Place Score: 8/10
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Track 7: Röyksopp's Night Out - This song felt a bit too ambitious for its own good. It's yet another instrumental that manages to blend sounds of jazz and funk with electronic. That being said, it does so over the course of eight minutes. Like I said, this track feels a bit too ambitious for its own good. That being said, it's not bad at all, yet the melodies being noticeably weaker than previous songs along with its excessive length drag this song down. In my opinion, it is the weakest song on the album so far. There is some great bass work towards the middle of the song, but that's around the extent that I found myself to be really, really enjoying. This song attempts to feel dramatic in a somewhat weird way. Most of the sectioned melodies that we heard in the first seven minutes of the song: screechy horns, weird horns, and bass all come back in the last minute alongside aggressive crescendos to attempt to make a dramatic finish. That being said, this section just comes off as weird. The song didn't really have any impact on me either. Overall, there isn't much to say about this song that I haven't already. It's still good, but the weakest so far.
Röyksopp's Night Out Score: 7/10
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Track 8: Remind Me - This is another song that contains a lyrical meaning. It appears to be sung by the same singer as in Poor Leno. The music compliments the nostalgic tone of the lyrics well. The melody is slow, repetitive, and single-noted in certain aspects in a way the reflects the depressing, longing lyrics well. This is the first song in a bit that doesn't try any form on genre-blending. It solely uses aspects of electronic music to make its melody. This song's lyrical meaning seems to depict a man coming home after a long time away; however, after his arrival home, he finds that most of his life has left him behind. The people in his life have left him behind. He no longer feels important or loved by those around him. This song's lyrics seem to have a connection with the natural human need to feel connected to those around us, the natural need to feel like we belong. As stated before, the melody reflects this depressive tone in a successful way. Overall, this is a nice song that managed to have somewhat of an impact on me.
Remind Me Score: 8/10
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Track 9: She's So - This is yet another song that felt too overbearing for its own good. It's another instrumental as well. The ideas presented on this song feel so loose and as if they weren't explored enough to make something cohesive and logical. It felt as if many different ideas came to the duo and they decided to act on these ideas. This song doesn't really have anything special that we haven't heard before either. If this had been placed earlier in the album, it may have gotten a slightly higher score from me, but I feel inclined to give this uncreative and unmemorable (Albeit still good) piece the lowest score seen yet.
She's So Score: 6/10
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Track 10: 40 Years Back \ Come - Well, it's unfortunate that the duo had to pack the weakest two songs at the end of the album. This song is yet another instrumental, and one that I genuinely consider to be bad at that. The melody in the first half of the song feels so random and unmemorable while the one in the second half feels to unoriginal that literally anyone with a guitar and good enough production could replicate it. There really isn't much to say about this song besides what I've stated above.
40 Years Back \ Come Score: 5/10
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Conclusion: For being my first album, I think it was a pretty good one. Up until this point, most electronic songs I've heard have consisted of simplistic melodies with even simpler lyrics. This album felt complex in almost every song. Even the weakest songs still felt as if they were attempting to flow with creativity, the want to experiment. The constant experimental blending of genres on this album helped propel its creativity and ability to resonate with me to a certain height that just electronic alone wouldn't have done. It's genre-blending felt well-executed in most parts of the album. Lyrically, the album is obviously lacking. Most of the tracks here are instrumentals with a few exceptions here and there; however, this isn't really that big of a drawback in regard to this album. The extremely well-produced and experimental sound alone is enough to have a pretty substantial impact on the listener. When a song does contain lyrics, while the lyrics are typically repeated a lot, they often speak of themes that have a deep meaning to them. They typically dive deep into human emotions such as sadness and love. These songs that contain lyrics are typically complimented well by the melodies too, only propelling the lyrical delivery into even higher regard. The lyrics presented in these songs are just vague enough to be up to multiple interpretations as well. You are allowed to make you ideal version of a song in this album. On a side note, I find the singer's voices on the album to be incredible, especially on Poor Leno. On top of all of this, the production of this album is absolutely incredible as well. Overall, I personally find this album to be an extremely pleasant start to this long journey. The amount of songs that I found myself genuinely enjoying for both casual and artistic purposes is far greater than I estimated. I went into this thinking that I was probably going to initially get a streak of terrible albums followed by one good before jumping back into trash. That did not happen here. I was introduced to an artist that seemed to have genuinely wanted to experiment with genres in an artistic and enjoyable way. I definitely do not think that this will be the best album I listen to on this journey by a long shot, but I do still find this work to be incredibly pleasant. There are a few tracks on here that I could see myself revisiting time to time as well. Great start to this long journey, hopefully I see more stuff like this on my way.
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Melody A.M. Score: 7/10
Song Average: 7.4/10
1001 Albums Vol. 0002: At Fillmore East
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Introduction: Yet another band I have barely heard of and another album I've literally never heard of. From my few minutes of research, I'v deduced that this is a live album (obviously) recorded all the way back in 1971. It served as this band's third overall release and utilized songs from the band's first two albums. I have not and likely will not listen to the original studio releases of these songs, but I have deduced that the versions of the songs present on this album are extremely extended versions of those present on their first two albums. This fact alone somewhat elevates my view of this album already. The fact that there was true time and effort put into extending these songs to such extreme lengths for a live show should really show how much the artist truly cared about their fan base and making the best show possible. One could argue that this is something that almost every artist does. This statement does hold truth to it. Many artists will rewrite sections of their songs to give the performer a chance to speak to/hype up the audience in some way. Some songs will even be rewritten in an attempt to include the audience in the song. One such example of the latter is the bridge section of Creeping Death by Metallica. With that said, the length that the Allman Brothers extended/rewrote these songs are actually crazy. Whipping Post's studio version clocked in at barely over five minutes while this live performance of the same song clocks in at over twenty-three minutes. Nearly twenty minutes of performance was added just to this one song. These extreme extensions are seen throughout many of the album's songs too. Again, this should show just how much care the Allman Brothers gave to making their performance as great as they possibly could. This amount of care brings me hope that this will truly be an incredible live performance to hear in audio form. I likely won't appreciate these songs as much as I would if I were to listen to the studio versions beforehand, yet that wasn't the task given to me. Anyway, with that lengthy introduction out of the way, let's get into this album.
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Track 1: Statesboro Blues - Well, I wouldn't necessarily consider myself to be much of a fan of Southern Rock or Country Rock at all, yet I still found myself interested in this song. Firstly, for a live show recorded back in 1971, this sounds absolutely amazing. To be honest, I wouldn't be surprised if someone were to have absolutely no idea what they were listening to and mistook this for a studio recording of some random song. That's how good the recording quality is. The song itself is pretty interesting as well. I am especially a fan of the guitar present throughout almost the entirety of the song. I especially like the guitar solo segments as well. Other small elements such as the keyboard moving its way in and out with the melody help elevate this song's enjoyability as well. The song is very simplistic, yet the simplistic nature of this song's melodies helps one focus on the depressing lyrics of personal hardships as well. I have done a bit of research into this song, and it's lyrics are meant to be a reflection of one of the band member's lives growing up in Statesboro, Georgia. This personal reflection of this particular member helps to add to the amount of insight that this song gives. Overall, while this song has a very simplistic nature that likely wouldn't be seen in our modern world, I still consider it to be an enjoyable and unique song at the time of its making. It managed to blend classic rock with blues in a way that worked and was likely original at the time of this album's release.
Statesboro Blues Score: 8/10
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Track 2: Done Somebody Wrong - This may be somewhat of a controversial statement, yet I believe that I like this song even more than the first. The production level is the exact same, the guitar work on this song is even better than on the first in my opinion, the vocals work and mix well with the melody, the harmonica on this song was genuinely amazing as well, and so on. This song uses another very simplistic and repetitive melody, yet the length of the harmonica and guitar solo sections help disguise this while listening to the full song. The faster pace helps this song feel more energetic, which is something that is very important when artists are performing live. From what I've gathered, the Allman Brothers reserved this song to be exclusively played during live shows. I am unable to find a studio recording of this song. To me, this fact adds some value to this song. Like I said in the intro, something that makes live shows genuinely great to listen to is the amount of care put into the performance. Reserving a song that is genuinely not bad to a live show helps boost that feeling of care about the overall show. The lyrics themselves are much more simplistic than the last song, the song seemingly referring to someone who has ruined their relationship with someone, yet the fact remains that there was genuine care put into a song that many fans of the band would not ever hear. Overall, I find this song to be genuinely enjoyable while reflecting what makes a live show meaningful at the same time.
Done Somebody Wrong Score: 9/10
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Track 3: Stormy Monday - This is probably my favorite track on the album so far. This song doesn't bring the same high-energy guitar playing throughout its entire length, yet the blues atmosphere more than manages to make up for that. The two guitar and one keyboard solos are a highlight in this song as well. The lyrics seem to speak of the sadness/slog of the weekdays. This is a concept that I myself can relate too along with pretty much everyone else in the entire world. My only real critique about this song is it's length. Most of the song uses the exact same melody throughout. This can obviously get a bit monotonous with a length of over eight minutes. That being said, this one critique doesn't stain my appreciation for this song all too much. I lost my previous description of this track and don't feel like writing anything too in-depth again, so I'm going to leave this song at that.
Stormy Monday Score: 9/10
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Track 4: You Don't Love Me - This entire album just keeps getting better and better. This is the first super-extension song on the album. It clocks in at over nineteen minutes long. That being said, most of what is presented in this song is absolutely not filler. We start out with that I would assume to be the studio version of the song being played before breaking out into around twelve minutes of nonstop guitar solos and methodical instrumentation. There are even segments present in this song of just guitar. These sections are probably the weakest of the entire song, yet the amazing execution of said guitar still make them extremely entertaining to listen too. That being said, some of these segments extend a bit too long. It does take a bit for a complex melody to pick back up after the initial version of the song has ended, yet it feels so good when it does. The payoff from hearing an energetic melody pick back up just felt so unexplainably good to listen too. This feeling is also present by the oddly peaceful melody present at the end of the song. It feels so unusual to hear something like this when I have heard nothing but Southern Rock so far, yet I like it a lot. If this were simply a live version of the studio recording, I likely would have given this song around an eight, yet the jam present propels this song much higher. Before I move on, I will mention the lyrical meaning of this song despite it not being the highlight at all. The song's meaning is pretty simple, it seems to be about a man who's woman doesn't love him anymore. He's going to cry to his mom and dad about it while telling everyone about what girls do to you as well. It's pretty simple yet it doesn't really matter. Overall, I genuinely find this song to be the first masterpiece I have heard on this album. The guitar playing is perfect, the amount of care put into this performance is amazing, and so on. This song scores just shy of a ten; however, due to the fact that it can get somewhat boring around its middle. Other than that, I have absolutely nothing but feelings of appreciation for this song.
You Don't Love Me Score: 9/10
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Track 5: Hot 'Lanta - This is the first instrumental track found on this album. Right away I will say that this track is the weakest I have heard off this album so far. It's not bad at all, yet it doesn't manage to live up to the greatness of its predecessors. The entire jam has a very wacky tone to it that fits very well with what we have heard off the album so far. There are many different elements that the band uses in this jam that make the song still feel fresh after its five minute runtime is up. The keyboard, drum, and guitar solos present here are incredible like always and work well with the main melody. The release-like section at the end of the song is something I especially am a fan of as well. Overall, there isn't much to say about this song that what I have said above. This is hopefully the closest to filler that we will get on this album.
Hot 'Lanta Score: 8/10
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Track 6: In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed - If I had to describe this song in a single sentence, I would write the following: "This song is a thirteen minute instrumental that consists of guitar, keyboard, and drum work that will make make you think "My God" all the way through." This song is the best on the entire album so far. It is also the second extended song on the album. Like I said above, the instrumentation work on this song is absolutely amazing. The slow and groggy melody in the beginning building up to the fast-paced, non-stop solos is absolutely incredible, not to mention the solos themselves are the best we've heard on the entire album so far. The guitar work here is especially incredible. The final few minutes of fast-paced stringing genuinely impressed me to the point where a small look of awe came across my face. I had heard that this song was incredible, yet I wasn't expecting it to be this incredible. The progression of free impression solos with the melodies is extremely impressive as well. Overall, this song is incredible. I can't think of a single thing I would change about it to make it better. This song takes my second ten I've ever given on this site.
In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed Score: 10/10
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Track 7: Whipping Post - I was genuinely in awe for almost the entirety of this song. This song's is the pinnacle of the entire album. The guitar work is at it's peak, the lyrics are at their peak, the vocals are at their peak. This genuinely felt as if it were meant to be a finale to a genuinely great album. I'd say the guitar work here manages to top even the last track's as well. This song is the last on the album. It's also an extended track as well. It clocks in at over twenty-three minutes in length, yet none of that time is filler. From the crazy, fast-paced guitar work during the first ten minutes and the last few before the final section, to the more mundane, slow-paced sections of this track, to the near-minute in length crescendo of almost every instrument heard throughout this album at the end of the track, everything about this track is perfect. I am especially a fan of the buildup section that exits the first mundane portion of this track. These mundane sections are not boring either unlike in You Don't Love Me. The first one has enough going on with the great guitar to keep me entertained all the way through. The second feels like it was made to be an outro to the entire album as a whole. These sections both work very well unlike in the previous song. As I said above, this track is lyrically great as well. It follows someone who has been squeezed by his partner for all he has. It uses a metaphor of being tied to a whipping post to emphasize how this person feels. This lyrical complexity combines well with the way the chorus is delivered by the singer, his voice beginning to roll with a hint of anger as he delivers it. This song literally feels as close to perfection as one could possibly get with this same level of production and same overall feel that this album goes for. I genuinely can't think of anything else that this album could do to make a song better than this and still have it feel like it belongs in this album. This song takes the first eleven I have given out on this site.
Whipping Post Score: 11/10
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Conclusion: This album is good, really good. I can see why this is generally considered to be one of the best live albums ever recorded. Like I said in the intro, it genuinely felt like the band cared about giving the best possible live performance they could. The songwriting varies a little in quality, yet it overall remains very strong in every song across the album. The style this album goes for feels very set while still exploring every possible avenue it could as well. Every song felt different and unique, all killer no filler. The fusion of blues themes with the extremely energetic rock atmosphere is something that works extremely well on this album as well. Lyrically, this album could use a bit of work. Most songs that contain lyrics feel a bit dated in the topics that they choose to cover. The things they have to say have been spoken time and time again in the decades that would follow this album's release. Even at this album's release there were many songwriters already covering similar topics as this band was. That being said, this is just a small issue that didn't really drawback the quality of this album all that much. What didn't drawback the quality at all was the production. The production on this album is absolutely amazing. The guitar, the keyboard, the drums all mix in such a good way. Like I said at some point above, I would not be surprised at all if someone believed they were listening to a studio recording if they had no idea what this album was. In fact, there were times where I actually forgot I was listening to a live album. That statement alone should speak volumes about how good this album's production and quality is. This quality in audio allows the guitar, drum, harmonica, and keyboard solos to sound absolutely amazing throughout each song. Overall, this album is great in pretty much every aspect. It isn't perfect in absolutely every aspect, yet the fact still remains that it is extremely influential, extremely well-produced, and extremely well-written. I am glad to have gotten something of this quality as my second album on this site.
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At Fillmore East Score: 9/10
Song Average: 9.1/10
1001 Albums Vol. 0003: Off The Wall
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Introduction: This is the first album given to me that I have heard a bit of before. I've heard all of the notable hits such as Rock With You, Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough, and a bit of Off The Wall. I've actually at least heard snippets of every song on this album. I can't remember exactly what I heard in those snippets, yet I remember them as sounding pretty good. The same can be said about the songs I've heard in full. The general mass seemed to think this album was pretty great when it first released as well. All three of the songs mentioned above managed to become hits with the masses. Factors such as this helped Michael Jackson achieve mainstream levels of success when this album released in 1979. From my research, this was Jackson's first solo album in which he decided to stray away from his musical roots which he learned during his time as a member of the Jackson Five. There is clear genre blending between pop, funk, disco, rock, and so on as well. I can already say that this blending was masterfully done from the songs I have already heard. With all this said, let's get into what I would assume to be the best album I've heard on this site so far.
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Track 1: Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough - Whenever I start a new album, I need to get into the mood of the genre I'm listening to in order to know whether what I'm listening to is truly good or not. It may be because I've heard this song many times before, but I was instantly captured by the mood this song wanted me to feel. The high energy that emanates from this song is simply incredible. Combine this energy with Jackson's high-energy vocals, the catchiness, and the enjoyability to get a song that is genuinely incredible. The amount of layers this song has is genuinely incredible as well. There are so many instruments and vocals that gently weave their way into the melody that the listener will only notice if they're attempting to listen for everything. The masterful combination of funk, pop, and soulful aspects presented in a simple yet memorable melody help Jackson use his vocals to his fullest potential. The song is not lyrically driven by any means, yet this aspect simply helps highlight the uniqueness and vocals of this song. The mixing between vocals and instrumentation feels perfect on this song as well. I can clearly tell what Jackson is saying when he wants me to understand what he is saying. The production is definitely a highlight on this song as well. The quick horns and quickly changing instrumentation is highlighted in a way in which the listener can clearly hear. The solo on the bridge is definitely a highlight of how good this song's production is as well. The last aspect for me to mention with this song is its lyrical meaning. There are various interpretations of what this song could be saying; obviously, Jackson himself said that the song can mean whatever one wants it to mean. That being said, I personally decide to go with the mass and believe this song is a reference to a sexual experience. The lyrics are simply too suggestive. It seems like too much of a coincidence that almost every line in this song can be related to something sexual in some way to not be about a sexual experience. This basic meaning is normally something that I would have a problem with, yet I will admit that there is enough variety in the lyrics in which someone could interpret the song as something else. If it is about sex, it doesn't throw it directly in your face without you being able to have any other opinion. Going back to the route that this song is about a sexual experience, the way in which the lyrics are delivered in some cases, Jackson occasionally repeating slow and sensually, provide a bit of creativity that I haven't seen in songs with a similar meaning. The melody itself coincides with this lyrical interpretation as well since...well...sexual experiences are something magical, memorable, high-energy, especially if to the extent that is seemingly described in this song. Overall, this is a genuinely great song that still manages to sound unique even to this day. It's one of the best I've heard so far on this site, definitely worthy of the score I have to give.
Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough Score: 11/10
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Track 2: Rock With You - This is yet another amazing song. It was one of the big hits from this album too, and I can definitely see why. It doesn't carry the same high energy the previous did, yet it manages to capture me to the same extent the previous track did. This song's melody is much more mellowed and sensual compared to the high energy of the previous. It feels a lot more dreamy in both its lyrical meaning and melodies. The drums followed by the mellow synths and gentle violin in the intro provide a perfect initial melody to get into the mood of this song. The melodies and instrumentation that follow are equally great as well. Jackson's vocals in this song are much more relaxed in the previous to accommodate for the more relaxed structure as well. The production sounds way ahead of its time too. The genre blending between rock, pop, and soul is masterfully executed on this song as well. The dreamy lyrics perfectly match the melody of this song. The descriptions of love and wanting to rock with someone perfectly match its dreamy tone. Overall, this is another great song. This may have to do with the fact I've heard this song many times before, yet I still believe it to be a masterpiece.
Rock With You Score: 10/10
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Track 3: Workin' Day and Night - This album simply does not stop providing great after great song. Comparing it to the last two, it is somewhat worse, yet it is still incredibly good. It brings a mix of energy between the previous two songs. It's extremely fast-paced while not being nearly as profound as the first track. It sounds much more like the first track than the second, however. It brings the same mix of funk, rock, pop, and soul to the table that we heard before. The drums here (and really on every song so far) provide a clap-like sound with a very quick, funky mix between a bell-like and wood-like sound sublimated in the background. This combined with the quick precision in which it is played managed to capture me instantly. Much like with the previous two songs, Jackson's vocals shine here. He manages to mix his voice with the melodies and chorus perfectly. Lyrically speaking, this song has hints of love in it as well; however, this is actually taken as a negative implication in this song. It implies that a man is dissatisfied with his work schedule and that he isn't able to spend enough time loving his wife. She says that he should continue this work schedule, leading him to conclude that she must be seeing another man. This lyrical meaning is pretty simple, yet the way in which it is conveyed is creative enough to where I enjoy it. It mixes well with the repetitive melodies of the song as well. The occasional breaths of exhaustion presented in this song are a very nice touch as well. My only critique that I have about this song is that it does manage to somewhat wear itself out over its five minute runtime. There isn't too much being added unlike in the other songs too keep it enthrallingly interesting all the way through. Overall, this song isn't quite as good as the previous two, yet I still consider it to be an extremely well-written song.
Workin' Day and Night Score: 9/10
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Track 4: Get on the Floor - This is the first song off of this album that just screams something that you would hear on a disco floor. It mixes a bit of pop in as well, but disco is the clear forefront of this song. As with many disco songs, this song absolutely flows with energy. It's quick paced nature, groovy guitars, familiar horns, and explosive chorus help this song achieve the said flow. Like with everything previous, the production on this song is amazing. The mix between instrumentation and vocals is clear even in the chorus when everything sounds just a bit explosive. This is absolutely no critique, it actually helps with the song's sound if anything. The lyrical context with this disco melody harmonize very well too. The song's most basic (and my own) interpretation is that of someone trying to convince someone else to dance with them on a disco floor, simple as that. This song doesn't need to have a complex meaning for me to like it. Like I said above, this simple meaning fits the fast-paced disco beat perfectly. My only real complaint with this song is that it feels a bit like it wants to make the chorus sound as catchy as possible while neglecting the verses or bridge's appeal. This neglect is clearly present, yet it isn't necessarily a big issue at all. This is still a great, enjoyable song nonetheless.
Get on the Floor Score: 9/10
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Track 5: Off the Wall - Well, here we are, the title track of the album. Right away, this song starts off with a very, very captivating section which builds up to a release into the song's main melody. This part genuinely impressed me. The main melody itself reminds me of the one we heard on Rock With You. It has a more laid-back, magical sound. The vocal harmony present in the chorus is an element of this song that I am a fan of as well. This aspect only aids the overall vibe the song creates. I like the change to a low vocal when "live it off the wall" is sung as well. The production value on this song is of extreme quality as well. Other than what I've mentioned above, there isn't really much else to mention with this song musically. That being said, this song has my favorite lyrical meaning thus far. It encourages listeners to let go of the worries that consume their lives. It encourages the listener to be more carefree while still prioritizing what is important in life. This message coincides well with the album's name. Every song we've heard so far speaks of great joys such as love or encourages one to simply enjoy life. This overall message combined with the magical melody make for a great song. This is a great message to represent the album as a whole as well.
Off the Wall Score: 10/10
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Track 6: Girlfriend - It's unfortunate that Jackson didn't either completely scrap this song or change it to make it more interesting. This is the weakest song on the entire album so far, but that doesn't mean it is bad at all. Everything else has just been so damn good that this feels weird to listen to. This song has the same downtempo pace of the previous, yet it doesn't feel anywhere near as complex as everything we've heard so far. The melodies try to make a magical sound similar to Rock With You or Off the Wall, yet it just falls flat of accomplishing what they did. In fact, this magical melody isn't welcome in this song at all. The lyrics of this song indicate someone in a someone in a relationship with a girl. This sounds fine until you realize that this girl is already dating another man. The song then goes into detail about how the couple will have to tell the boyfriend and how they will be each other's new partners. In some context this may be fine: the girl may be dating a man who is abusive; yet in the culture we live in today, I think that many people will instantly jump to the idea that this song depicts a girl cheating on her partner for her own gratification. I would hope that Jackson wrote this with the intention of the former, yet I can't help but get the latter interpretation. Other than simply not being as complex as previous songs, the chorus simply consisting of "do-do-do-do-do" is something that I do not like either. The song feels a bit too short as well. It didn't really feel like the song explored the potential harmonies and melodies it could have created. Overall, this is definitely the weakest song on the album so far. It is still genuinely good, yet it doesn't compare to what we have heard so far.
Girlfriend Score: 7/10
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Track 7: She's Out of My Life - This song threw a complete curveball into what we have heard so far. This song doesn't speak of one enjoying life, yet rather the exact opposite. It speaks on the pain of losing love, losing someone who cares about you most. The lyrics to this song are incredibly strong in my opinion. They convey what it feels to not only be left by someone who genuinely loves you, yet it conveys the depression that follows from the increased feeling of loneliness and worthlessness it creates. The melody is very simplistic, yet that works in the song's favor here. The song is extremely slow and Jackson's vocals are very somber as well which only add to the atmosphere of the song. The sadness in which you hear in Jackson's voice at the end of the song is genuinely touching too. It genuinely feels like I'm listening to someone's saddened emotional state. Another aspect that I love about the song is the added instrumentation during the section of the song that speaks of learning. The lyrics in this section describe how our character is learning about love from this terrible experience they are currently going through. The soft instrumentation indicating small glimmers of hope in this section is a really nice touch that just adds to the complexity of the song. Overall, while this statement may be a bit controversial, I think that this is genuinely a great song. In my opinion, this is on the same level as tracks three and four.
She's Out of My Life Score: 9/10
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Track 8: I Can't Help It - I had heard that this was a pretty front-packed album, and I think I'm starting to agree with that statement. This song yet again attempts to have a more slow, methodical melody and chorus, yet it doesn't accomplish this to the same level as the greats that we've heard before. This song is absolutely better than Girlfriend, yet it is definitely one of the weaker on the album. There isn't really all that much that this song does that we haven't already heard on this album. The soft drumming is nice. The slow addition of instrumentation is nice as well. The chorus's vocals sounds nice too. (Like always) Those are pretty much the only unique things I can think to mention about this song's music. The lyrical meaning is pretty similar to past songs as well. It describes someone who has an overwhelming sense of love for someone else. The lyrics are pretty nice and the verses' lyrics in particular are some of the deepest we've heard on this album so far. Other than that, there isn't really all that much to mention about this song. It's overall just a pretty nice song.
I Can't Help It Score: 8/10
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Track 9: It's the Falling in Love - Like many previous, this song attempts to capture a magical tone. It does so to a greater extent than Girlfriend, yet I would categorize it at around the same quality as that song. It doesn't feel as if it tries anything unique with its melody, the clear overemphasis on the chorus, and the overall duller vocals from Jackson bring this song down to that status for me. This song is still absolutely good, however. There isn't much else to mention about this song's music other than what I've already mentioned, so I'm going to move on to its lyrical meaning. This is a case where the lyrics of the song initially appear to be mismatched with the melody of the song you're listening too, yet closer analysis of the song structure and lyrics indicate a sophisticated level of depth. The song's melody has an almost reluctant tone to it. It still carries that magical tone of previous songs, yet it doesn't do so to the same extent. This perfectly matches the lyrical theme of the song. It describes someone who has felt nothing but hurt in past relationships they've had; however, they feel themselves falling in love with someone yet again. Despite this seemingly good thing, the feeling of love only brings them sadness. This meaning is something that feels genuinely deep for some of the themes explored on this album so far. Overall, though I do find this song to be uncreative compared to some of the songs we've heard so far, I find this to be mostly excusable for its lyrical meaning and how it connects back to the melody. This is yet another good song on a great album.
It's the Falling in Love Score: 8/10
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Track 10: Burn This Disco Out - Like I said before, it feels as if this album is running out of ideas. This was most apparent on the second half of it. This is yet another song that I still consider to be good, yet not as great as some that we have heard before. It brings back the high-energy melodies that we heard throughout some of the album, yet it doesn't do anything creative with them or feel as well-written as previous songs. The energy this song gives off isn't nearly as infectious as it wants to be either. Other than that, there isn't really much to say about this song's music. It's lyrical meaning isn't all that different from some previous songs either. It again conveys the message of being carefree, joining a group on the dancefloor all night. This message was conveyed much better in Off the Wall. Overall, I don't really have much to say about this song besides that. It's still a good song, better than the previous two, yet it's nothing special either.
Burn This Disco Out Score: 8/10
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Conclusion: This album was great, really great. The genre-blending that appeared on some of these songs were masterfully done and the production sounded amazing. The overall message of the album of living carefree is something that I really enjoyed. That overall message fits the genre of disco really well. The addition of some more sad songs to keep this album real was a nice addition too. It felt like it managed to strike a pretty good balance about trying to convey serious topics in life while still encouraging the listener to live more carefree at the same time. Jackson's vocals will always be amazing as well, yet they are extremely amazing on this album. He is one of the only artists that I would instantly be able to recognize if someone were to put him on randomly. Much of the music here still feels incredibly original and unique long after its release. Again, like I mentioned above, this was a really fun album to listen to. That being said, it wasn't perfect in absolutely every regard. For instance, I will be one to agree with the general consensus that this is a very front-packed album. The one seven and all eights that I gave were in the B side of the album. Moving some tracks around may have increased my perception of the album by a bit, or it may have completely ruined the creative flow that poured from the A side, but I do believe that a bit of rearranging could have been done. That being said, even the worst of the worst on this album are still pretty good. Girlfriend is the closest we get to a bad song and it's absolutely not bad at all, just a little confusing. Overall, this is an album that I genuinely appreciate. There are some songs that I will almost definitely be listening to again at some point simply because of how catchy and unique the music is. I will say, however, despite the fact that I have not heard Thriller yet, (and I likely won't for a very, very long time. Might be my next album though, who knows.) I believe that Thriller will be better than Off The Wall...
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Off The Wall Score: 9/10
Song Average: 8.9
1001 Albums Vol. 0004: The Clash
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Introduction: Three albums in a row from the 70's. I'm not complaining though, I think that the greats that I've heard from this decade and amazing. I can't personally speak about this album, however. I have heard of The Clash as a band and have heard some of the most popular songs, yet I had no idea that a self-titled album even existed. I have a pretty broad idea of what this album will sound like based on songs I've heard like Should I Stay or Should I Go or London Calling, however. From my research, I've found that this self-titled album was The Clash's first release. It was released all the way back in 1977. I've found that every song off of this album was recorded in the span of three weeks. For a band that formed not even a year prior, that is pretty dang impressive. This album's main genre seems to be punk rock. This isn't my favorite genre by any means, yet I am someone who is able to enjoy almost every genre is songs are well-written enough. Despite being the band's first album, it also served as their breakthrough into popularity around the United Kingdom. Despite this, the album actually wouldn't be released in the U.S. until two years after it's initial U.K. release. Surprisingly, the track listing on the U.S. version of the album is different from what is presented on the original release. Songs such as Cheat and Deny were replaced. The U.S. version actually seems to have added more tracks than it removed as well. For the sake of this review, I will be listening to and reviewing the original while putting the U.S. version in the background. If I truly feel like it, and I probably won't, I may someday come back and edit my review to include those five tracks, yet I am not doing it right now. I already won't finish my review by the deadline. I'm currently on a busy schedule and have my project paused so I can review this album over the course of a few days. Anyway, with all that said, let's get into our third back-to-back-to-back album from the 1970's.
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Track 1: Janie Jones - This track is vastly different from everything that I've heard so far. The song provides a very quick melody that just screams punk rock. There isn't really any better way to describe the melody other than it screams punk rock, in fact. If I had to, I guess I would say it gives off skater energy as well, yet this is something that I would say about a lot of punk rock. In terms of what has been explored regarding punk rock in the years after this release, this melody sounds extremely, extremely generic. With that said, I won't be too overly critical if this album sounds generic in our modern world since this was released nearly fifty years ago. Of course most albums released this long ago will sound a bit dated in out modern world. I won't be overly lenient if a song sounds generic either; however, as this factor does somewhat play into the creativity of a song. It plays a small part in how the song has aged as well. The generic melody aside, this song still manages to sound unique through one standout factor: the vocals of the singer. I was not expecting a voice like this based off of what I've heard from The Clash before, yet it isn't bad at all. The carefree-like vocals of this song perfectly fit the energetic tone this song gives off. They just generally fit what I imagine someone's voice to sound like if someone described them as a "punk" as well. The vocals of the singer are simply perfect for this genre of music, there isn't really any better way to describe it. The melody along with the voice combine equally well with the meaning of the song. The song speaks of someone who has a very tough work-life. They love when their work hours end since they get to become stoned, live in his carefree rock and roller persona and so on. On top of this, the song served as a commentary on what working in the 1970's Britain allegedly felt like. This commentary is obviously irrelevant nowadays, yet it still adds some extra charm to the song. All of these factors combine into a song that doesn't overstay its welcome by any means at all. In fact, I wouldn't have minded if this song were just a bit longer. Also, like everything I've heard up until this point, the production is pretty damn good. Overall, this song is a great way to start this album off. Hopefully it manages to continue the high-energy while creating diversity in each song over the next thirteen tracks...yeah this one has a lot.
Janie Jones Score: 9/10
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Track 2: Remote Control - For the most part, this song managed to keep up the energy the previous gave off. I would argue that this song leans a bit more towards power pop than punk rock, yet there are clear signatures of punk rock in this song as well. The melody of this song is much slower and more downtempo than the previous. It allows for a more dynamic sound in the song, yet I would argue that this actually isn't a good factor. The slower tempo sounds a bit weird with what we have just come from, a very fast and typical punk song. Variety is absolutely okay in albums, yet like I said above, this song almost sounds like an entirely different genre from the previous. The melody presented here is very basic yet again, yet this isn't entirely a bad thing. It does get a bit repetitive by the end, especially because of how short the verses and choruses are, yet it's not too bad. The melody is still pretty enjoyable. The vocals here are pretty much the same, yet the sound a bit more relaxed than the previous. This minor relaxation matches the power pop sound of the song, so this isn't a bad thing at all. The lyrics on this song aren't the greatest thing in the world. They remind me a lot of something that I would see from The Church. They're a bit too vague and a bit too sporadic for me to really piece anything together with. This may have a small part to do with the fact that I wasn't alive or living in the U.K. at the time of this album's release, but I can't piece much together. I only point this out since there are some clear references to London in this song. Nevertheless, I can pick up that this song is clearly about some form of manipulation or being treated unfairly. I had to look the meaning of this song up. Through this, I found that it was apparently a critique by the band at the music industry and their treatment of artists such as them. This critique seemed to be especially be pointed at their label. This may explain a bit of the song's vagueness, yet I still don't excuse it. This song can also reflect on the control and oppression of governments, businesses, and those in power as well. Overall, despite this song being worse than the first in almost every way, I still like it. There isn't really much more to say than that.
Remote Control Score: 8/10
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Track 3: I'm so Bored with the U.S.A. - This is yet another song that is a bit dated in some of its topics, yet I can relate to it on a more personal level than the previous. We will get back to that later. For now, I guess I'll state that the melody and overall tone of this song jumps back into the zone of punk rock. It gives off a similar skater vibe that the first song does. The chorus has a similar dynamic as the first as well, the many voices of members joining in at one time in an anthem-like way. In fact, I would say that there are many similarities between this song and the first. With that said, there are enough differences to make this song still sound distinct as well. Like I said in the first song, however, I won't be too overly critical if songs sound minimalistic or similar due to two factors: The Clash was one of the first punk albums ever made, and minimalism was a trait of punk rock at the time of this album's release. That said, the songs still sound similar regardless. The vocals are pretty on point with punk in this song as well, much more than the previous song. The song's lyrics are pretty on point as well. They are a bit vague, yet they discuss the boring nature of the U.S. media in the 1970's. This is definitely something that still remains relevant nowadays, maybe a bit less so than in the 70's, yet this is something that is very subjective as well. There are a few lines that I don't like as well such as the line that references Watergate. The song could have felt just a little more timeless had they simply broadened their reference to presidential scandals in that line. This is definitely something relevant in the modern media as well. With that said, this song is still pretty good in many regards.
I'm so Bored with the U.S.A. Score: 8/10
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Track 4: White Riot - Well, this song automatically gains some praise from me after just my first listen. The song sounds very punk-like, has very carefree vocals, all of the stuff we've heard before. It has a very basic, minimalistic melody as well, all of the stuff we have heard before. The melody itself is still pretty appealing while still managing to sound different as well, all of the stuff we've heard before. That being said, where this song shines most is within its lyrics and meaning. The song was meant to be a protest song for the oppression against the Black community in America. This song has nowhere near as much relevancy nowadays, yet that does not matter at all. In my opinion, a song of this nature is still timeless due to the amount of change it was calling for in both the U.S. and around the world. The best way I can describe the timelessness of a song with this sort of message is using Bob Dylan as an example. It would be weird not to call his protest songs timeless despite the clear decline of racism over the years, wouldn't it? This song's lyrics are nowhere near as poetic or effective as Bob Dylan's ten to fifteen years before the release of this album, yet I still massively appreciate them. This is another song where the style of punk and the vocals mix perfectly with the song's meaning. The descriptions of White people joining in with Black people to riot is simply perfect for a song of this nature. Overall, this is another extremely strong song off of this album. I would argue that it is the best so far.
White Riot Score: 9/10
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Track 5: Hate & War - This is the weakest song off of the album so far. It's the first song that I would say feels a bit directionless at times. It feels as if random elements get added to the melody at random times that didn't need to be added at all. The melody itself has a much slower pace than the previous few songs as well. I doesn't border power pop like the second song, however. That being said, much like the second song, the vocals are much weaker and less punk-like. I would say that they sound a bit too soft for the subject matter being described in the song. The slowness of the song contributes to this overall odd feel that the song gives in correlation with its disturbing subject matter. My interpretation of the song is quite literal to its title, it's about someone who is serving for their country and is being taught to hate every other country but theirs. There do seem to be some descriptions of the horrors they have witnessed as well such as a house falling down. That being said, I have done some research and found that this song was apparently supposed to be a representation of the struggles the working class in London faced in the 1970's. I personally see no correlation. This may be because I wasn't alive in London during the time, but I have no idea how this song can possibly mean that. We've already heard a song with the exact same meaning but just...better in pretty much every way. Overall, this is definitely the weakest and most forgettable song off of this album so far. Hopefully this doesn't become a pattern in the album.
Hate & War Score: 7/10
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Track 6: What's My Name - This is another song that I would only describe only as good. It's the shortest song we've heard so far, clocking in at around a minute and a half. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, yet it makes the song feel extremely forgettable. This forgetfulness is only exaggerated by the fact that this song's melody is pretty generic as well. The melody is much less inspiring than some that we've heard before as well. There's simply barely any dynamic to it, and this is honestly saying a lot because of how basic punk was at the time. The chorus is very uninspiring too. The up and down vocals while the word "name" is exaggerated is just unpleasant to listen to. The vocals are absolutely on point here, however. The lyrics are pretty on point to. While the lyrics are a bit vague, it is meant to describe the journey of discovery we all go through in our adolescent years. This journey, of course, comes with a lot of angst and anger with the world. Punk rock is simply a genre that mixes well with the feeling of angst, individuality, strangeness, and so on. This mix may be due to the fact that the genre isn't mainstream, yet the feeling is still present regardless. Overall, despite me having many problems with this song, I still believe it to be pretty good. It is absolutely the weakest we've heard so far, however.
What's My Name Score: 7/10
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Track 7: Deny - This is yet another track that I would consider to be only good. There isn't really anything for me to state about the melody and vocals that I haven't already explained in previous songs. The melody is pretty basic while the vocals are perfectly on point. I can't keep saying this for the second half of the album. Something that I do find a bit interesting is that this song starts with the chorus before the first verse. This is something that songs such a White Riot did as well, yet I still think I should mention it since I really don't have anything else to mention regarding the melody. Anyway, I guess I'll now jump into this song's meaning. The song is a clear reference to someone, probably the main character's girlfriend, who is lying about ceasing her use of drugs. There are some clear themes of denial in this song as well which add a bit of depth to its meaning. Other than that, there isn't really much else to say regarding this song's meaning. The lyrics are pretty well-written and the theme of drugs fits well with the carefree style of punk rock, yet there really isn't anything else to say. We've been on a streak of songs that I would consider simply good at best. I'd argue that this is even more boring than having a bad song in the mix. It feels as if the album is staling out a bit. I do believe this song is a bit better and more complex than the last, yet I don't consider it to be by much. Hopefully this trend doesn't continue throughout the entire rest of the album.
Deny Score: 7/10
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Track 8: London's Burning - This was a pretty good track. It was certainly better than the previous three tracks. The melody of this song is simply more well-written that the previous three. The way the vocals work around it too is just simply better than in the previous three songs. The short guitar solos on this song help elevate my opinion on it as well. The instant scream of "London's Burning!" is another great addition to the song. It managed to instantly capture my attention because of its chaotic tone and the way it was sung. Like almost every other song, the vocals are pretty spot on. The lyrics have a similar meaning to that of I'm so Bored with he U.S.A. They speak of the monotony and repetition of day to day life in London. This theme may tie back into previous songs which complained about the life the working class had. Despite never having been to London myself, I can relate to some of the lines in the song. I can particularly relate to the second verse from the trips I've taken to extremely urban areas of the U.S. Overall, this song was an extremely pleasant and fun listen after the consistent "good" at max quality of the previous three. I'm surprised that this album has still managed to sound unique in pretty much every song despite punk rock being so simple at the time of its release as well. There are still six more tracks left on the album, so hopefully this uniqueness can continue.
London's Burning Score: 8/10
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Track 9: Career Opportunities - This song is quite a weird one. As of currently, I am in between giving it a seven or an eight. This song is definitely better than anything the streak of sevens had to give, yet it still feels around the general quality of them. The song has a pretty fun and simplistic melody. The vocals are on point as well. There's a unique segment during the song's bridge in which the song utilizes a fading echo effect for the singer's voice. I've listened to this over the course of three days, so if I can remember correctly, this is the first song to utilize this sort of effect. This is something that may have been done before, yet I know for a fact would be used in many punk rock anthems in the years to come after this song. Besides that, there isn't much else to say about this song musically. Lyrically, this song is pretty good as well. It speaks of career opportunities, obviously, yet it speaks of them in a negative light instead of positive. Many songs on this album were written to represent a problem either the U.K. or the U.S. were currently facing. This song is no different. It tries to convey the idea that so many job opportunities being presented to those in the U.K. was actually a negative thing. It tries to convey that useless opportunities, such as a coffee worker at the BBC, were being offered simply to hold off protests. This is something that is somewhat relevant nowadays, yet its relevancy has decreased significantly. This decrease in relevancy obviously originates from the current rise of A.I. There are so many employers who will limit job opportunities as much as possible so that they can shove as much money as possible into their pockets. Sad but true, while extremely selfish, this is simple human nature. Overall, after reflecting more on this song, I've decided to give it an eight. It's definitely the weakest eight I've given on any song I've heard from this site so far, yet it's still barely worthy of it.
Career Opportunities Score: 8/10
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Track 10: Cheat - This track is absolutely inexcusable. Its melody is decent and its vocals are absolutely on point, yet its meaning is absolutely garbage. Any listener of this album should be smart enough not to listen to this message, yet it is still absolutely garbage. It straight up tells the listener that cheating in life is the solution to one's problems. One could argue that this is simply the lyrics mixing with the carefree and rebellious nature of punk rock's sound, yet this doesn't excuse that the message is absolutely trash. If anything, listening to this song's message will cause even more problems for you when you're in jail and having God knows what done to you by your mates. This is an example of a message that mixes well with the genre of music but for all the wrong reasons. The song also tries this weird air-flow-like effect that would be heard in something like arena rock in the 80's. This song is just weird. I can definitely see why it was cut from the U.S. release of this album.
Cheat Score: 6/10
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Track 11: Protex Blue - Where the last song had a straight up bad message, this one has a straight up meaningless one. This entire song is meant to a reference to condoms and their use. That's literally the entire point of the song. Does this kind of message fit with the overall edgy and quick sound of this album? Yes, it somewhat does. That doesn't mean that it's good at all, however. I really don't like this song's lyrics either. Quality wise, The lyrics are about on the same level as other serious songs. To me, this feels a bit stupid considering the theme of the song. I feel that the band should have went all in if they were going to make a song this crude. I understand that it was 1977 and the world was much more censored back then, yet that doesn't excuse this song in the slightest. I seriously don't understand why this wasn't just an outtake. The quality of the music itself is slightly worse as well. The beginning of the song has a few seconds of nothing, the vocals are a bit too fast to hear, especially if you don't have lyrics right in front of you, and the melody itself is pretty weak as well. It borders something that one would hear for an action scene in a children's show at certain points. This was another song that was cut for the American release of the album. I can definitely see why. This is definitely the weakest off the album so far.
Protex Blue Score 5/10
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Track 12: Police & Thieves - This song was an extremely nice listen after the previous two. In fact, I would say that it's one of the best on the album so far. Musically, I find it to be the most well-written song so far. The bass is extremely loud, groovy, well-played, and mixes well with the other instrumentation presented in the song. It especially works well with the slower tone of the music this song has. There is some extremely nice production on this song as well. The vocals being layered to the back towards the end of the song, the overlapping guitars during the song's bridge, the first guitar solo, all of it is extremely nice and well-recorded. Despite a much different pace with the song, the vocals are pretty much exactly the same, if you're not considering the "Oh Yeahs" throughout the song. This is a small detail throughout the entire song which add to the groovy feel that it goes for a lot. Fortunately, the lyrics actually have a serious meaning behind them in this song. When I initially listened, I believed this song to simply be about violence between police and criminal groups, yet the song is actually comparing police forces to criminal groups. This comparison was originally made by a singer known as Junior Marvin. Yes, this is a cover song. Marvin made this comparison for a variety of reasons. Corruption, overuse of lethal force, violence, and so on motivated him to write this song. This is something that definitely still holds true now, yet I'm not the best person to speak on it by a long shot. I'm the kind of person going on Youtube looking for good cops getting bullied by Karens, not the exact opposite. Despite this, I still believe this to be a genuinely great and complex song by The Clash.
Police & Thieves Score: 9/10
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Track 13: 48 Hours - This is yet another song that I really don't have all that much to say about. The melody is extremely simplistic, the vocals are on point, yeah, yeah, yeah. The lyrical meaning is pretty simplistic too. It simply talks about the rush of the weekend and trying to experience as many thrills as possible in that short time frame. This is something that The Allman Brothers spoke about in Stormy Monday, yet their lyrics were so much more relatable and well-thought in that song. The melody of that song was just better too. I personally don't thrill-seek during my weekends, so this song isn't relatable to me. I do understand why they had to put such a theme into the song however. The concept of thrill-seeking simply fits the genre of punk rock really well. That being said, this song still isn't that great. I've said this many times: punk rock was pretty simplistic at the time of this album's release; however, this song feels as if it does nothing new. It feels exactly like filler, that's the best way I can describe it.
48 Hours Score: 6/10
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Track 14: Garageland - This is a weird track, and I mean that in a good way. The melody is pretty similar, yet some of the instrumentation in this song is weird. There's a harmonica that plays halfway through the verses which completely threw me off when I first heard it. On top of this, the verses are delivered by the singer in a much more natural, regular voice. While a bit weird, these two factors add a bit of uniqueness of the song, so I'm not complaining. Other than those two aspects, this song sounds pretty much the exact same as everything else we've heard so far. Lyrically, this song is pretty good as well. To me, it sounds as if The Clash are acknowledging their basic sound by constantly calling themselves a cheap garage band. That being said, they're also stating that they know their worth something within the music industry, they know that they are something. That's just my interpretation though. I looked it up, and apparently this song was meant to be a jab at some reviewer who called them a garage band. Both meanings are fine for me since they both kind of say that The Clash acknowledge their worth. Anyway, this song is on the weaker side. Not worthy of a six, though.
Garageland Score: 7/10
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Conclusion: Christ! This was one of the shorter albums that I've gotten so far, yet I have spent more time reviewing it than any other album. This obviously stems from the fact that it has fourteen tracks, yet it also stems from the fact that I reviewed it over the course of five damn days. Anyway, enough about me. This album is a bit weird. There are some great tracks on it, yet the majority of tracks I listened to I consider to be a seven or below. I'll put that aside for now, however. For 1977, the production on this album is pretty good. This production value especially shines on one of the album's best songs, Police & Thieves. I consider the vocals of this album to sound pretty dang bad, yet extremely great given the genre that The Clash was going for. Like I said in my review of the first song, the vocals just scream someone who you would associate the word "punk" with. Musically, this album is absolutely not the greatest. This shouldn't come as a surprise; however, because of the general simplicity of punk rock, especially at the time of this album's release. That being said, despite the album lacking the greatest melodies, I would still consider every song's melody to be pretty unique and distinct from one another. It doesn't simply sound as if I'm listening to the same song over and over with a different title. Where this album absolutely shines, however, it with its lyrics. Most songs on here have a pretty bold and brash meaning that target big companies and challenge the norms of day-to-day life. There are a few songs which I consider to have terrible meanings, yet they still at least have the vibe and the kind of message you would hear in a punk rock song. Overall, while this is not something that I would really ever see myself revisiting, I still appreciate it. I acknowledge that it sounded much ahead of its time in 1977 simply because of how new punk rock was, I acknowledge that part of punk rock is being as simplistic and D.I.Y. as possible, and I acknowledge that this album is a bit dated too. It's not perfect by any means, yet its still something that I acknowledge to be good. While I know for a fact that I will hear some punk albums that I consider to be better way down the line, this one was a pretty good listen.
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The Clash Score: 7/10
Song Average: 7.4/10
1001 Albums Vol. 0005: Disintegration
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Introduction: My God! Getting Off The Wall as my third album and this as my fifth album is absolutely crazy. I know for a damn fact that this album is great. I haven't heard it in full before, yet the songs that I have heard are easily some of my absolute favorites. I'm already 99% sure what score this album will get, yet I'm here to review every track regardless. I really shouldn't have to give this album anymore of an introduction than simply stating how good it is, yet I guess I will anyway. Disintegration is the eighth studio album released by The Cure in 1989. It manages to blend...I really couldn't even say how many genres together to make one great production all the way through. At its core, this album is defined as rock, specifically gothic rock. I've heard some songs in full and some songs in snippets, and I can say for a fact that there is absolutely no filler on this album. Critical and even casual reception for this album went absolutely crazy at the time of its release and is still crazy now. Many consider it to be one of the greatest releases of all time. Today, this album still sounds extremely distinct and unique through a combination of vocals, genre-blending, and extremely strong songwriting. Obviously, many consider this to be the absolute peak of The Cure's entire career. They simply never achieved this level of greatness again. This is objectively a bad thing, yet it would be almost inhuman to imagine that The Cure would be able to create something better than their best release by a long shot. That inhuman ability is only gifted to specific artists and bands which I know we will be seeing later down the line. (If you know, you probably know. The two bands and one artist I'm thinking of should instantly come to your mind when you think of the best albums of all time from a critical standpoint.) With all that said, let's get into what I imagine will be one of my highest rated albums when I'm done with this journey.
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Track 1: Plainsong - This is such a great way to open an album. The melody, the grandiose sound, the vocals, all on amazing display in this song. The way the song opens manages to instantly capture my attention as well. It may be because I've heard songs like 21st Century Schizoid man, but hearing the chimes in the intro made me feel as if I were about to hear a grandiose release into a great song at any second. The song itself is great too. The grandiose, atmospheric, depressive, magical, orchestral, dark, psychedelic sound of this song manages to sound absolutely amazing all the way through. The grand yet contained drums, the occasional chimes which become more frequent later in the song, the amazing guitar work, literally everything about this song is perfect and manages to get me into the mood of what I'm about to listen to perfectly. It may be partially because I've heard this album before, but I already felt in the mood this song wanted me to be in before even a minute had passed. Again, this should either communicate how extremely powerful this song is or how much I've listened to some songs off of this album. I briefly mentioned this just a few sentences ago, but the guitar work on this song is absolutely amazing. The drawn out tones create sounds which are gothic, magical, dark, and unique to this album all at the same time. Much like everything else with this song, it's unbelievably great. This album's singer is absolutely amazing too. We don't get to hear him on full display yet, however, due to echoes when he sings, sublimed vocals, and a more quiet voice. Anyone who has heard him before absolutely knows what I'm talking about though. The more sublimed and echoing vocals on this track are not bad at all. They add to the song's overall feeling and depth in a meaningful way which reflect the melody. The lyrics themselves reflect this tone as well. While highly interpretable, it's pretty clear that The Cure is trying to communicate a dark, depressing message with this song. I personally interpret it as being a message for someone's inner pain, yet one can make whatever they want out of it. Nevertheless, the lyrics are literally perfect in every way regarding the feeling the song was going for. In fact, this song is pretty much perfect in every way. There is not a single thing that I would do to change it. There is not a single instrument that I can possibly think of that I could add or get rid of to make this song sound better in any way. It is simply sublime, magical, perfect. This is the third eleven I've given on this site, and yet this I personally find a few of the songs I've already heard to be better than this. Like I said in the intro, this is one of the best albums of all time.
Plainsong Score: 11/10
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Track 2: Pictures of You - Well, I'm sure everybody knows what score I'm going to end up giving this song. I'm still going to make comments about it nonetheless. This song is absolutely fantastic, I'd say that it's the best I've heard off of this site so far. The melody is simply magical. The occasional dazzling sound that strums across both channels instantly kicking off the song should instantly capture one's attention into the amazing melody that follows. Said melody may last over seven minutes, yet there are plenty of small elements being woven into the melody to keep it fresh throughout the entirety of the song. The drums carry over the same foreboding tone, the guitars are played at a faster pace, yet the way their strumming is exaggerated lets them retain the dark feel, this song is just musically perfect. This slowness combines to make the song sound both oddly mature and dramatic yet magical and free-spirited at the same time. It's truly bizarre if you don't know what I'm talking about. Nearly every verse ending with the same dazzling effect heard at the beginning of the song is just perfect as well. Like I said, this song is just musically perfect. The vocals are absolutely perfect too. Like I said previously, the singer's voice is absolutely amazing and iconic. His high pitched yet mature voice is something that I really can't describe. If I had to, I would describe his voice as having a slight British tone, high in pitch, yet having a strange sense of edge to it as well. It's one of those rare voices that is so distinct that one would easily be able to know which artist they are listening to simply based off the singer's voice alone. As for the lyrics...they're absolutely beautiful. I would go as far to say that they near the point of being just poetry. They're just vague enough that small details of the song are up to interpretation, yet the big picture of it is still present. In general, the song is clearly about longing for a lost love. However, the descriptions of this lost love are just beautiful. The line about only using the right words is especially beautiful. The song seemingly goes into detail about how our character copes with this lost love as well. It seems that they may have either stored mental images in their memory of their time with their partner or had physical pictures of them as a coping mechanism. It seems that out character may have either lost or broken these pictures of their lost partner. These pictures could be a metaphorical representation for love as well. Like I said, a lot of this song is up for debate. Even so, the descriptions that this song provide are just vivid and depressing. This combined with the extremely great vocals and the dark, magical, yet mature mood of the song all form into something that is just beyond perfect. I would go so far as to say that this is genuinely one of the greatest songs of all time. I can name a lot of songs off the top of my head that are better, yet if I were simply asked by someone to name some of the greatest songs of all time, Pictures of You would probably come out of my mouth. Unbelievably good, definitely the best song I've heard on this site so far. I know for a fact that I will eventually hear better, yet as long as I don't get Dark Side Of The Moon or something of similar quality as my next album, this one will hail king for a while.
Pictures of You Score: 11/10
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Track 3: Closedown - Going into this album, I had heard that this song was the weakest out of everything. That doesn't mean that this song is weak at all, yet it is noticeably worse than the previous two songs. Musically, the song is still creative and different than the previous two. It relies much more on echoing synths and consistent drumming for its melody. Musically, its still extremely great and manages to capture the mature, dark atmosphere that the entire album has presented so far. The guitars present on this song as well have that drawn out magic in each pluck of their string that add to the gothic rock style. Like with the two previous songs, the guitars are great. The vocals and lyrics, while brief, are on point as well. The vocals sound almost the exact same as in the previous song, yet I would describe them as a bit more nuanced. It sounds as if the singer knows that this song won't be as successful or magical as the last. That being said, they're still absolutely amazing and this vocal tone actually fits with the melody of the song too. Like the others, this song is extremely vague and up to interpretation with its lyrics. To me, it describes the unstoppable passage of time and the want to feel eternal, the want to experience as much as possible before you run out of time. While not as beautifully written as the previous track, the lyrics here are still well-written and leave out just enough for deviation. Overall, while I can't give this album an eleven simply for the fact that it isn't as overwhelmingly great as the previous two, I can still absolutely give it a well-deserved ten. It's another great song, yet it's probably going to be the weakest off of this album by the end of it. That should say a lot.
Closedown Score: 10/10
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Track 4: Lovesong - I haven't heard much of The Cure besides this album, yet from what I can tell, this song sounds much more like classic The Cure than most others off of this album. The production on this song sounds much more clear and less atmospheric than in the previous three songs. This is not a bad thing at all, it only allows the album to explore more unique melodies if anything. The overall tone of this song is much less dreamy and more gothic than the previous three. Again, this is not a bad thing at all. Melody wise, the drums have a much more clear and less sublimed tone, the guitars have a much more clear and less dreamy tone, and the bass is much more audible. These elements all combine into a tone in which I can only describe as more gothic than the previous three songs. This is the first song off the album that has a normal song structure as well. Where the three previous somewhat bounced around melodies and vocals, this one has a clear verse and chorus dynamic that 95% of songs contain. I really shouldn't need to explain that aspect of the song any further, literally everybody knows what I'm talking about. Anyway, the vocals are extremely on point as well. The singer accommodates for this less dreamy tone by subduing the loudness and pitch of his voice by just a bit. It's noticeable, yet it's not noticeable by much. Lyrically, this song is absolutely beautiful as well. The verses are particularly beautiful, their descriptions containing themes of one feeling basic human wants and needs fulfilled when they're with their significant other. It's genuinely beautiful. Seriously, this entire album's lyrics have been nothing but beautiful so far. In my opinion, it's rare to find love songs or breakup songs that aren't just basic garbage or cringe worthy. Lyrically, most breakup songs feel as if the singer is just wallowing in their own misery while most love songs feel as if the singer is too hyper focused on describing how perfect the person they love is. This song having genuinely depressing descriptions of how much love affects them, the singer, makes this song genuinely great and touching. Really, everything about this song is just perfect. I wouldn't call it as great as Pictures of You, yet I would certainly say its up there. Musically, while more basic, it's undeniably perfect and instantly catchy. The vocals are undeniably great and mix perfectly with the more beautiful and reflective tone of the song as well. And, like I just described, the lyrics are perfect as well. There is just so much greatness with this album. This song is the second best I've heard on this site so far.
Lovesong Score: 11/10
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Track 5: Lullaby - This is an extremely weird song. It has such a different vibe to everything presented so far, yet its vibe it not bad at all. Musically, it is much more simplistic than much of what we've heard so far, yet that actually isn't a bad thing considering the context and meaning of the song. There's also an odd instrument used in this song that plays what I can only describe as a quick tap of a fiddle. I have no idea if this is actually what the instrument is, however. As I stated earlier, this song is pretty weird musically. What I just described is combined with some very soft instrumentation to create a lullaby-like sound. There is still clearly a gothic rock melody under the instrumentation and vocals in the foreground though. The melody is pretty unchanging for most of the song. It only really adds extra layers of instrumentation at the end. This isn't a bad thing considering that is a short song, yet it still adds to the weird vibe of the song. Vocally, the song is very weird as well. Robert (I'm done calling him the singer) whispers every word delivered in a creepy tone. This creepy delivery coincides with the lyrical meaning of the song. Compared to other songs we've heard so far, this one has a pretty simplistic meaning. It's not as poetic as others that we've heard either. It speaks about a little boy being devoured by a creature known as the Spiderman while he is in his bed. It's simple yet sweet. This experience was apparently based on Robert's childhood beliefs. Allegedly, he actually believed in something similar to what this song presented. If you ask me, that's extremely damn relatable. Now, I just can't bring myself to give this song an eleven. I'm all for experimenting within an album and stuff, yet this song just felt oddly out of place. It wasn't as emotionally impactful or surprising as the elevens I've already given out as well. I am still giving it a ten, yet I feel that The Cure was entirely capable of putting another song here that I would have considered to be worthy of an eleven. It's fine, this album is still non-stop greats.
Lullaby Score: 10/10
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Track 6: Fascination Street - This song kicks us back into the more dreamy style of the album that we heard in the initial three tracks. The echoes are much more profound and the vocals are back to their original, scream-like state. Musically, this song is extremely good. This time around, the bass is meant to be the main leading force of the song's melody. It provides the song with a weird sense of edge and energy within all the dreaminess. Other than that, there isn't really much else to say about this song's melody that I haven't already explained in other songs. Everything is simply on point while still giving off a different vibe than everything we've heard so far. I've already said this, but the vocals have returned to the state that they were songs like Closedown and Pictures of You. They sound a bit more energetic and edgy, which literally mixes perfectly with the melody this song provides. There isn't much else to say about this song's vocals besides that. The lyrics are extremely on point too. Like most other songs, this song's lyrics are just vague enough that they leave some of the song up to interpretation while still giving a general outline of what the song is about. I only say this after having had to look up this song's meaning, however. Maybe I'm just not as intellectually gifted as others, yet I could barely make sense of this song at all. I really don't ever take off points for that, because like I said that may just be a me problem. Anyway, this song is allegedly referencing the thrill that one seeks out of exploring a city at nighttime. It also allegedly references the overall emptiness and lack of fulfillment that this experience provides. I personally can't relate to this song's meaning at all. That may have been a contributing factor as to why I didn't get this song at all. I don't know. Overall, still an extremely strong song. Not as strong as some of the others we've heard so far, however.
Fascination Street Score: 10/10
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Track 7: Prayers for Rain - This album just does not give up. It does not give up at all. This is yet another song that I consider to be perfect. Musically, while less creative and magical than some previous tracks, is still extremely sophisticated and well-written. The backmasked effects in the intro and outro that slowly persist throughout the song, the use of the piano, the great drum rhythm, amazing guitar work, and more are all combined here to make the mature sound that we have come to know throughout this entire album. I'm just going to stop mentioning vocals past this point unless there is genuinely a significant or interesting change in the vocal delivery. It's on point here. Lyrically, this song seems to reference the basic human want of escaping and redeeming themselves in an overwhelming sense of sadness. It does't really provide many lines that could be interpreted as an action that the character on this song has done which led to them feeling this despair. It kind of just talks about it. I'm still all here for that. Like everything so far, the lyrics are essentially poetry. They leave so much up for interpretation while providing the key outlines. The use of waiting for rain is a great metaphor for the want to escape the sense of overwhelming despair as well. Other than that, there isn't really all that much to say about this song. It normally gets like this when I get late into an album, however. That isn't necessarily a bad thing at all if I don't really have much to say about a song, it just means that I yapped a bit too much in the first few songs. Yeah, I definitely did on Pictures of You. Anyway, this song is perfect. Great melody, great voice, great lyrics, great everything.
Prayers for Rain Score: 10/10
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Track 8: The Same Deep Water as You - This track is just beautiful in the most depressing way possible. The song starting out with slow building static, made to sound like flowing water, before jumping into the main melody is just an amazing design choice. This static stays with us throughout the entirely of the song buried in the foreground as well. It only adds to the song's atmospheric nature. Speaking of which, this song has a very atmospheric nature much like the first and second off of this album. It reminds me very much of the first song, yet instruments are more subdued and sound just a bit more dreamy because of the constant static flow in the background. On top of this, the melody just has a very depressing yet mature theme. This fits perfectly with the song's meaning of drowning in emotional turmoil. Like with every other song, this song's lyrics are just beautifully written. Their written in the same style in which it gives you the main outline yet leaves a lot up for debate, you've heard it all before. One aspect of this song that I personally find very touching is the third verse. It speaks of one fading away and seeing one's smile in their eyes before they finally go. I personally interpret this as one's suicide, which is absolutely tragic in the most beautiful way given the many beautiful lyrics in this song. This song genuinely made me sad. It genuinely made me feel bad for whoever the listener interprets the character in this song to be. It's genuinely an amazingly sad song. The extremely slow outro with instrumentation being slowly taken out of the melody is extremely nice as well. This all culminating in forty seconds of just water-flow at the end of the song...it's great. This may be somewhat of a controversial score I give the song, as I know it is considered one of the weaker off the album, but I think this one genuinely deserves another eleven. I may come back later and change my score like I did with Lullaby, but I believe this is genuinely deserving of the greatest score I can give as of currently.
The Same Deep Water as You Score: 11/10
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Track 9: Disintegration - This song is just perfect. It almost feels as if the album should have ended here. There's still one more track to go, however. Literally everything off of this album that we've heard feels like is all accumulates here to make one of the dramatic songs I've ever heard. I mean this in nothing but a good way. The melody is very quick paced while still having that atmospheric tone to it. The constant, quick-paced drumming and bass combined with the slow, drawn out guitars create a very strange feeling that I can only describe as a feeling of ascension. This feeling of ascension may come from the added instrumentation as well, but I digress. Despite this song being over eight minutes long, there was not a single segment where I found myself bored. Like I said, it felt as if everything we've heard so far came back here to form the magnum opus of the album. I do consider other songs like Lovesong and Pictures of You to be better, but this is definitely the third greatest off of this album. The rise in vocal pitch and profoundness throughout the song helps with this progressive sense of ascension as well. Of any song on this album, this is where Robert Smith's vocals shine the absolute most. I mean, for around one and a half minutes from the four minute mark we hear some of the best and most profound singing I have ever heard. This song is literally perfect. The lyrics are simply sublime as well. It has the same feature that others have that allows for plenty of interpretation while giving the big outline, yet I personally believe this song to be about the end of...literally everything? The universe, the earth, it feels almost like it's meant to be the final thoughts of somebody. It's hard to say because of how many beautifully written metaphors are scattered across this song, yet this is the best explanation for this song's lyrics I can give. If this is the case, then the dramatic, magnum opus vibe the song gives off would be perfectly fitting for such a topic. This entire song is literally just perfect. This is definitely the third best song I've heard on this site so far.
Disintegration Score: 11/10
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Track 10: Untitled - Well, we've finally made it to the last track on this masterpiece. Like with every other track on this album, this one is essentially perfect. Musically, it is much more laid back than the previous track. It felt almost as if this track were here to wish a mellow goodbye to the listener. Other than that, there isn't really much else to say about this song musically that I haven't already said in previous songs. The guitars sound gothic and dark, the drums have a nice beat to them, and the dreamy atmospheric vibe is still present. The inclusion of an accordion (or odd sounding organ I can't tell) at the beginning and end of the track is a nice addition that made me feel sad that the album was ending. I mean, this is a masterpiece. This is probably the greatest thing I'm going to hear on this site for a very long time. Anyway, vocally, Robert has a much more laid back tone that he has for pretty much the entirety of the album. His voice is still distinct and recognizable, yet it's the least profound it has been on the entire album other than Lullaby. That being said, this isn't a bad thing at all as it mixes well with the more mellow tone of the song well. Lyrically, the song seems to actually be the most hopeful song that we've heard on the entire album. That being said, it seems as if the world around our character is barren and hopeless. This is honestly an extremely real message to close the album on. To many people, it will likely be the most relatable song on the album. Of course, the lyrics are absolute poetry as well. Other than that, there isn't much else to say about this song. It's somber, saddening, yet oddly real at the same time. It's one of the weakest off the album, yet that doesn't really say anything at all. It's still perfect.
Untitled Score: 10/10
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Conclusion: Well, here I am. I've made it through one of the absolute greatest albums of all time. I know I've used the word "perfect" so many times in my descriptions of songs above, yet there really isn't any better word to describe the quality of this album. It is truly perfect in pretty much every aspect. Musically, it is genuinely one of the most creative and unique sounding albums that I have ever heard. The sublime production allows for the album to create a unique blend of dark, gothic, dreamy, atmospheric, whimsical, magical, yet depressing sounds which I am still yet to see ever be recreated to the same extent in another album. The level of production on the instrumentation of this album is simply sublime as well. The drums have a dark and gothic tone to them which allows for more atmospheric elements to take over, the guitars sound dark, exaggerated yet magical all at the same time, the atmospheric elements generally tend to be subdued perfectly in the background to still be obvious yet allow more important instrumentation to take the foreground of the song, all of it is genuinely perfect. The way in which the music mixes with the vocals is genuinely perfect as well. There is never a single point on this album where it feels like one is drowning out the other unless that is the song's intention. Speaking of the vocals, they are absolutely sublime as well. I've said this somewhere above, but I'll go ahead and restate that Robert Smith is one of the greatest singers that I have ever heard. His voice is so distinct, recognizable, profound, yet able to be changed depending on the mood of the song. Songs such as Lullaby, Untitled, and Plainsong show Robert's much more relaxed yet instantly recognizable vocal tone. Robert truly shines in more energetic and whimsical songs, yet even when more subdued he still sounds amazing. Like I said, he shines in high-energy songs such as Pictures of You, Fascination Street, Disintegration, and so on. Seriously, these songs contain some of the best singing I have ever heard. His voice is seriously so distinct, profound, angelic, and recognizable that I would be able to tell that I was listening to The Cure even if I were listening to nothing but Robert's voice. Much like this entire album, Robert's voice is truly perfect. Lyrically, this album is absolutely perfect as well. I've compared its lyrics to beautifully written poetry many times above, yet there really isn't any better way to describe its lyrics. They truly are some of the most beautifully written words I have ever heard from songs. All of these aspects, the vocals, music, and lyrics mix together to create one of the greatest albums ever created. Like I said in the intro, I was almost certain about the score that I was going to give this album, and I was entirely right. As a side not, I will probably come back and add Homesick and Last Dance to this review eventually. I didn't add them because I went way off the deep end with my description of every song and decided to write essay long reviews. Sorry about that. Anyway, yeah, this album is just perfect in absolutely every aspect. There is not a single song I would remove.There is not a single thing I would change about it. It truly is perfect in every aspect. I would go so far as to call it beyond perfect. Which is why, despite this being my fifth album on this site, I am going to give this album the honor of not a perfect score, but a beyond perfect score. It truly deserves it.
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Disintegration Score: 11/10
Song Average 10.5/10
1001 Albums Vol. 0006: The Village Green Preservation Society
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Introduction: Alright, I've got to start keeping these reviews more brief. It's taking me around quadruple the time it should to listen to these albums because of how much I'm writing. My last review had the excuse of being one of the best albums of all time, yet I don't think that this one will have the same. I wouldn't know though because I've literally never heard of it before. This is my first album from the 1960's. I've heard of The Kinks before, yet I have not heard a single song by them. From my research, I've been able to deduce that this album, released in November of 1968, manages to mix a variety of pop genres together. It particularly seems to focus heavily on baroque pop and folk pop. At the time, this was something that I believe that bigger acts like the Beatles had already done, yet I believe that the Beatles had moved onto a more psychedelic style at this time. I wouldn't know though since I haven't heard a single album of theirs in full yet. Anyway, this album did not sell well at the time of its release, yet it heavily praised by critics. It has been praised even more in the years following its release for being heavily influential, helping inspire many artists for years to come. It apparently inspired bands such as Green Day as well which sounds pretty surprising considering that this album is apparently big on folk pop. This album has sold over 100,000 records now, yet it was still a flop at the time of its release. Anyway, with that hopefully shorter introduction out of the way, let's get into my first album from the 1960's.
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Track 1: The Village Green Preservation Society - Starting off the album with the self-titled track. Well, I will say, this song is really, really good. I have heard a little of the Beatles, and I will say that this song gave off a really similar vibe that they give. Musically, there's a very overwhelming happy-go-lucky style to this song. The happy keyboard, the initial joining of voices, the clearly dated production, the "ooooo" of backup singers, the acoustic guitar being in the forefront of everything else besides the vocals, everything just screams happy-go-lucky. Like I mentioned, the production is very clearly dated, but I feel as if that only adds to the song in a weird way. I may find this level of production to be a good thing because of how similar this song sounds to Like A Rolling Stone, however. Nevertheless, I still like it. The added instrumentation, such as the keyboard kicking in full time at the beginning of the second verse, is extremely nice and keeps the entire song feeling fresh as well. As for the vocals, there isn't too much to write home about them. They're pretty generic all things considered. I can't name anyone off the top of my head, yet I feel as if I've probably heard a singer with an extremely similar voice before. The voice is still absolutely pleasant to listen to nonetheless. Lyrically, the song speaks of...a lot. Most lines in the verses simply name concepts, objects, characters, and ideas that were prominent in English life both before and during the 1960's. The chorus of the song seems to indicate a want to preserve the old elements of English life while welcoming the new ones as well. It has a very positive message that fits with the happy-go-lucky vibe of the song. It's an overall pretty positive and unique experience that just screams something you would hear out of rock in the 60's. That previous sentence couldn't describe this song any better.
The Village Green Preservation Society Score: 10/10
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Track 2: Do You Remember Walter? - Firstly, I'll go ahead and say that this song is weaker than the first. Where the first felt very layered and grandiose, this song feels as if it relies a bit too much on a repetitive piano pattern to create the same happy-go-lucky feeling. Speaking of which, musically, this song gives off a very similar vibe as the last. Like I said, unlike the last song, this one relies much more on a repetitive and precise piano to create the same vibe. This isn't bad at all, it's good that an artist isn't trying to use the exact same instrumentation to create the same feeling, yet it does feel a bit lazy. It feels as if something a bit more inspiring could have been done. There is an echoing keyboard being played in the background of the repetitive piano, so it's not solely relying on a single instrument at least. The piano does kick off and many instruments play during the chorus as well. Nevertheless, I'm getting into a bit too much detail. This is only a small complaint I have with this song. This song has a much more fast tempo than than the previous. This is nice, there really isn't that much else to say about it. Vocally, the song is pretty much the same, yet the vocals don't sound as profound as on the previous. It almost sounded as if multiple people were singing at the same time on the previous while just the lead is singing on this one. Not bad at all though, just a bit of a missed opportunity. Lyrically, this song has a pretty simple meaning. It's given from the perspective of someone who has a friend named Walter. It seems as if our character is remembering the great times they had with this friend and is dreaming about what their friend is doing now as well. It seems as if Walter may have been a childhood friend as well given how ridiculous some of our character's memories are with them as well.This is honestly a pretty relatable message. I do find myself sometimes wondering what my friends from over a decade ago are doing now, where they are in the world now. I also like to imagine what they would look like now. This song has an exact line related to that idea too. This song covers pretty much everything I like to think of my lost friends. It's great.
Do You Remember Walter? Score: 9/10
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Track 3: Picture Book - This is another great song. It tries less to create the nostalgic, happy-go-lucky feeling of the previous, and goes for what sounded like a more typical rock melody at the time of this album's release. Musically, it's not all that complex. I mean, the drums are nice and the guitar and bass in between lines is pretty groovy. I would go so far to say that the guitar and bass create an almost country-like sound in this song. The building of instrumentation from the release of the chorus back into the verses is pretty good too. Other than that, there isn't really much else to say about this songs music. The vocals are much similar to that of the first song. They have a very profound and pleasant tone to them. The backup singer's delivery of Picture Book in the chorus is nice too. Lyrically, the song has a pretty simple yet effective meaning. It describes the many memories that can be found in an picture book. There are memories that you might not even be aware of or were alive for in there. It's an extremely good concept that ties into the album's overall theme of time, cultural progression, and the want to return to a simpler lifestyle. It's a great song. It's enjoyable and is a really nice listen.
Picture Book Score: 9/10
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Track 4: Johnny Thunder - This is another pretty good track. I consider it to be the weakest we've heard so far, yet it is still extremely enjoyable. Musically, it is pretty similar to the other songs we've heard so far. It has a pretty simple melody which consists of an acoustic guitar, electric guitar, subdued drums, and so on. Speaking of which, the only other notable thing about this song's melody is its pretty clever use of instrumentation to mask any drumming. I'm 90% sure there's drumming in this song, yet it's done in just a way that the crescendo of other instruments masks it in both the chorus and the verses. Pretty nice. Vocally, this song sees the return of the more subdued style of the second track. The vocals feel a bit different than the first three tracks, however. They have a slightly rebellious tone tot them if that makes any sense. Lyrically, this song is pretty good. It describes someone by the assumed name of Johnny Thunder. This person constantly lives against society's norms. There isn't really much else to say besides that. One critique that I do have with this song's lyrics is the very generic ba ba ba ba of the chorus. There is a very smooth guitar to go along with the ba ba ba, yet it is still very uninspired. Other than that small complaint, I find this song to be extremely good.
Johnny Thunder Score: 9/10
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Track 5: Last of the Steam-Powered Trains - Dang, this song just screams rock out of the late 60's in pretty much every aspect. The combination of vocals at the chorus, the kick-ass drums, the kick-ass guitars, the groovy bass, the combination of the electric guitar with the harmonicas. Yeah, this song is musically great and very catchy. It has a very progressive melody as well that feels like it is constantly having some element added to it. The buildup of every element of this song at its bridge which progresses into a faster and faster pace is amazing as well. The vocals on this song remind me a lot of Bob Dylan. They have a very rough edge to them that feels oddly intentional. I mean, that pretty much perfectly sums up what Bob Dylan sounds like as well, right? They definitely do sound a bit better than Dylan's vocals, yet I could honestly see someone thinking that this is Dylan singing this song if they were to not have listened to anything from his electric era for awhile. Anyway, this song's weakest point in my opinion is its lyrics. They have the same overarching theme as the previous songs, yet that theme is compared to the idea of a steam-powered train, specifically the idea that there is one steam train left in the world. Yes, I know that a steam-powered train is a very old concept, so it fits well with theme of the passage of time and societal changes, yet it just feels a bit too old. I mean, the last few songs, despite sounding extremely old, still felt a bit timeless in the topics they covered. This song's lyrics alone just make the song itself feel old. I know it is quite literally pushing sixty years, yet that's beside my point. Anyway, this meaning combines well with the song's sound, yet I still consider it to be the weakest off of the album. It's still a kick-ass rock song, so of course I'm going to give it a respectable score
Last of the Steam-Powered Trains Score: 8/10
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Track 6: Big Sky - Well, I'm not entirely sure how to feel about this song. I know that many consider it to be one of the best off the album, but I just don't see it. I still absolutely consider it to be good and well-written, but I would actually go as far as to call it the weakest off the album so far. Musically, it doesn't really introduce anything new at all. I will say, however, the quick switch between verses, transition, and chorus is an extremely nice dynamic the song has. The vocals on this song are pretty decent as well. Like with many songs off this album, the backup singers are present in some way to add either "oo" or "aa" to add to the happy nature of the song. I don't know if this will be a controversial statement or not, but I honestly don't ever like when a singer vocalizes the way the singer did during the verses of this song. Basically, I'm not really a fan of the lyrics being delivered in a more spoken word tone than actually working around the melody. This isn't all that bad, yet it is something that I genuinely do not find to be great or really contribute to the song at all. Lyrically, this song is pretty good. It speaks of themes such as depression and sadness while personifying the sky as an entity that people with said depression scream up to. It turns the big sky into a character that feels bad for these people, yet they are too big and busy to show any sympathy for them. I genuinely like this message, it feels as if it wants to create a sense of connection between those suffering from sadness and depression. That said, I do still find this song to be the weakest I've heard off this album so far.
Big Sky Score: 8/10
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Track 7: Sitting by the Riverside - This track is just plain weird. The best way that I can describe it is almost circus-like in its melody. The quick piano, the accordion or weird guitar in the background, the backup singers, and the keyboard all culminate in a way that just makes this song feel like something I would hear at a circus. The weird instrumentation during the bridge and outro only add to this weird feeling as well. This is absolutely not a bad thing, however. I'm simply trying to make a comparison. The vocals are very on point in this song as well. They're extremely profound and exaggerated. They sound almost like something that you would hear out of a psychedelic song released at the same time as this album. This only adds to the overall sense of weirdness this song gives off. Lyrically, this song has a pretty simple meaning. It's about feeling content while with someone you love by a riverside. It's extremely simple, yet the lyrics are extremely well-written and actually somewhat touching, so it really doesn't matter. I lost my original review for this song due to my time expiring with this album, so I'm going to keep it at that.
Sitting by the Riverside Score: 8/10
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Track 8: Animal Farm - This is the best song we've heard off of this album for a bit. It has a much more folk-like tone than anything we've heard so far. It manages to blend this style of folk with pop to create something unique. Musically, this song manages to be the most relaxed and dreamy yet most dramatic song we've heard so far at the same time. This may simply be due to the presence of a violin in the song, but I digress. Vocally, there isn't really all that much to say either. The singer sound extremely similar to Bob Dylan again. The intentionally bad style of vocals is back again. This may just be the 60's production but I digress. This song truly shines in its lyrics. It was meant to be a jab at the modern society of the 1960's. It implies that someone has grown tired of this society and wants to go back to the simple life they used to live on their farm. I could argue that the band is comparing society to an animal farm as well, but I believe the former explanation to hold more truth to it. Anyway, I originally wrote a bit more to my review of this song, yet I somehow managed to lose it again like I did with the previous song. I'm done here. This is one of the best songs we've heard off this album so far no doubt.
Animal Farm Score: 9/10
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Track 9: Village Green - Well, this was quite a change in pace from the previous songs. This song has a much more tale-like tone to it. The instrumentation of this song provides the vibe of someone reciting a tale from their childhood to you. There's a few wood-wind instruments, soft drums, a chiming tune, and a very soft acoustic guitar as well. All of it combines to create a vibe of a fairy-tale. It's not a bad thing at all, the song's lyrics are very tale-like as well. Vocally, there really isn't anything to say about this song. The backup singers do provide a few interesting "la la la la la" sounds in the background to further the vibe of a fairy-tale, however. Lyrically, this song has a really depressing meaning that ties perfectly into this album's theme of progression and longing. It tells the tale of someone who longs for the past in their town which I presume is named Village Green. This town has apparently become a shell of its former self in the years that our character left it to pursue fame. He now dreams of the things and people he met there. It's pretty sad, pretty well-written as well. This entire song is just really well-written. It's definitely the second best off this album so far.
Village Green Score: 10/10
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Track 10: Starstruck - This is an extremely pleasant song. Musically, it's much more atmospheric and alien sounding than the rest. It may be the title, it may be the fact that there's some extremely cool production, or it may be the very charming vocals, but I just get a weird feel that this song sounds otherworldly. It's weird to describe and I'm sure that a lot of other people don't get that vibe from this song. Nonetheless, it's still extremely pleasant. Instrumentation such as violins and more persistent vocals being added later in the song is nice as well. Vocally, there is actually a bit to say about this song. The lead singer's voice sounds extremely pleasant and charming. That being said, the backup singers managed to get the most awe out of me. Like I said, there's a bit of weird production in this song. I was referring to the chorus and outro where the backup singer's voices are projected from left channel to right channel if you're listening with earbuds or headphones. This is honestly pretty insane attention to detail from a song made in 1968. That said, this song has some pretty good lyrics too. It seems to be about a man trying to convince his lover that alcohol has a negative impact on her. It more largely just seems to be about the negative and addictive impacts alcohol can have on someone; however, I thought I'd just explain the story perspective of it first. Either way, this is another great song.
Starstruck Score: 9/10
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Track 11: Phenomenal Cat - Well, there is quite a lot to say about this song. Firstly, this is the absolute weirdest song off the album so far. Musically, it is so much different from everything we've heard so far. Firstly, the song uses a flute...well, it uses just a flute and drums in the first verse. A guitar gets added in the chorus and second verse, yet the instrumentation of this song just screams something from an ancient and peaceful time. Vocally, there's a lot to say as well. The vocals of this song feel very precise and edited in a way to sound peaceful and ancient. I mean, it genuinely sounds as if this song came from a different land. The high-pitched voice in the chorus helps add to this overall feel as well. Lyrically, this song is pretty creative. It quite literally tells the tale of a magical cat who used to live a normal life; however, they now travel the world with countless luxuries. They have gone from skinny to fat as well. This story is meant to be a critique at the upper class at the time of this album's release. It criticized the luxurious lifestyle they lived, those less privileged forced to slave away. It's a pretty damn good song with a metaphorical and literal meaning that I like.
Phenomenal Cat Score: 8/10
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Track 12: All of My Friends Were There - Well, this is the weakest song off of the album so far. If I had to describe it musically in one word, I would say that it sounds like circus music. Unlike before, I don't necessarily mean that in a good way, however. The versus sound like something that would be played when a clown is juggling on a unicycle. Besides that, I find the chorus to be pretty interesting. It's much slower and has a more content tone than the versus, yet this contrast isn't the greatest thing. It creates a weird feeling within the song. The complete vocal change from chorus to verse is something that feels a bit weird and almost overbearing as well. Lyrically, the song seems a bit vague. It tells the story of a man who has embarrassed himself on stage in front of his friends. He then tries to hide himself and act as if he doesn't care. He ultimately goes on stage again, everything goes well, and everyone forgets the embarrassing incident he had while originally on stage. Apparently, this song was written after a real experience Ray Davies had in 1967 while on stage. He was ill yet decided to perform anyway. There isn't much information on what took place on stage, yet I would assume that Davies simply vomited or something considering the details we do have. Anyway, weird song, yet still good.
All My Friends Were There Score: 7/10
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Track 13: Wicked Annabella - This is yet another weird song off of an album that was pretty consistent up until these last few songs. This song has a pretty spooky tone to it. It sounds as if it were going for the vibe of a song that was meant to be played during Halloween. For the most part, it succeeds at this concept. The guitars are made to sound in such a way that almost sounds like a thump, there are various sound effects such as cackles at the end, and the drums have a very heavy tone to them. These aspects all add to the overall spooky vibe. The vocals are subdued with a filter that only adds to the spooky vibe as well. I normally consider filters such as these to be bad, but this filter allows some genuine moments of greatness, so I find it to be a positive thing. Lyrically, there isn't really much to say about this song. The song is literally about an evil woman named Annabella who creates brews, uses dark magic, and has an army of demons to capture children who roam in the dark. There really isn't much else to say about this song besides that. It's good no doubt, but I would still say it's one of the weakest we've heard so far.
Wicked Annabella Score: 8/10
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Track 14: Monica - Alright, this song is genuinely the weirdest off of this album. The last few songs of this album have been all over the place. We heard one that sounds almost ancient and peaceful, wicked and spooky, and now this one just sounds tropical. I can't describe it in any other way than that. The soft drumming, the smooth and quick guitars, the subdued and quick vocals all just make this song sound tropical. Other than that, this song is actually meant to be kinda...funny? Well, yeah. It kinda is. You see, this album was obviously released back in 1968. The Kinks wanted to include a more comedic song in their serious album, so...they decided to write a song about a man singing his praises to a prostitute named Monica. Yeah, I'm not going to lie, I actually thought that this song was just about a man being overprotective with his woman. I Googled the song meaning and I understood the song's more mature themes after another listen. Yeah, this is a pretty interesting song to say the least. Nevertheless, it is also the worst off of this album so far. It's a shame that the weakest songs are all being packed in the back. Hopefully the last song can give this album the conclusion it deserves.
Monica Score: 7/10
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Track 15: People Take Pictures of Each Other - Well, this song brought back the general vibe this album gave off in its first ten tracks. It's much more generic than some of the songs that we've heard before, yet I still consider it to be pretty good. Musically, there isn't really much to say at all. The song has a very happy-go-lucky feel to it. It doesn't have that feel to the extent that the first few songs did, yet it's still present. Vocally, there is literally nothing to say. It sounds the exact same as most of the songs we've heard before this point. The singer doesn't apply any weird effect to his voice. Lyrically, this song pretty much wraps up the entire concept of this album perfectly. As the name suggests, the song speaks about people taking pictures of each other. It goes into details of these pictures and why people take them. It's a simple meaning that previous songs did to a much greater effect, yet that's fine. This is still a good song and a good way to close an album of this magnitude.
People Take Pictures of Each Other Score: 8/10
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Conclusion: Man, I have seriously been getting lucky with my albums. I literally had no idea of this album's existence before rolling it on this site, yet I'm now adding it to the list of genuinely great albums. It's not without its flaws, I'll get to that later, yet it's still genuinely great. Firstly, and especially for 1968, the music off of this album is amazing and extremely varied as well. A lot of the album has a very folk rock style to it, yet you may suddenly be thrown into a song that contains much heavier guitars and is clearly meant to be played at a Halloween party in between these folk songs. You may be thrown into a kick-ass rock song about a steam train. Basically, the variety on this song is extremely nice. That being said, there are points on this album where the songs feel a bit too varied. It feels as if the album is trying to take on too much at once at certain points. This is just a small issue I have, however. Vocally, there really isn't much to say and there is a lot to say at the same time. I'll go ahead and say, the singer's voice is not all that unique. That being said, his voice is still great because of how adaptable it is. You may be listening to a slower song like Starstruck and then get thrown into a certain song about a steam train...yes I'm using that song as an example again. It's really adaptable and just sounds good. There's not much else to say about the lead singer's voice besides that. The backup singers are extremely nice as well. They are present on almost every song and honestly add a lot to every song they're on. Now, I will not lie, this album does not have the best lyrics of all time. In fact, the lyrics are written in such a direct way that they alone have almost no impact on me; however, the concepts that they explore are extremely touching and relatable to me. As I've said many times before, this album explores themes such as time and societal progression. The certain themes that the band covers varies, yet most songs relate back to this central theme in some way. Most songs have a very relatable message that are meant to inspire you or make you sad. Either way, they're effective. This entire album is just effective at being touching. I will admit, I don't think I'll ever find myself casually listening to some of the last tracks off of it, yet that's alright. It's still a great album. As a side note, I do genuinely find it weird how this album never gained much commercial recognition when it first released. There were a lot of songs on here that seem as if they would have appealed to the general public. Well, history is history. The public was missing out anyway.
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The Village Green Preservation Society Score: 9/10
Song Average: 8.5/10
1001 Albums Vol. 0007: Electric Ladyland
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Introduction: From this point on, I'm going to stop with extremely lengthy reviews of every single track off of an album. I will still give a few sentences or a paragraph for each song, but my main focus will now be on the introduction and conclusion segments.
Jesus Christ, I'm sure I'm going to have a lot of positive things to say about this album. I've heard some Jimi Hendrix songs in the past, yet I don't believe I've ever heard anything off of this album. The Hendrix songs I have heard have all been amazing though, especially the guitar work. So, with the knowledge that many acclaim this as Hendrix's best work, I'm sure that I'm going to have absolutely nothing but positive to say about it. I'm sure nobody needs it, yet I'm still going to give a small introduction to this album anyway. Electric Ladyland was Jimi Hendrix's final work before his unfortunate death in 1970. Like I said above, many consider it to be his absolute best work. Furthermore, it is generally considered to be one of the best albums of all time by casual listeners and critics alike. Now, this appraisal may come from the fact that Hendrix probably perfected every track off this album as much as possible to his standard of perfect. What I mean by this is that Hendrix himself is credited as both a performer (obviously) and producer for this album. Right away, without even hearing the album, this is something that I find incredibly impressive. I know that a few songs off of this album are often cited as some of the greatest songs of all time, and I also know that this album continues to be extremely influential for certain rock movements even to this day, so I'm expecting nothing but absolutely sublime songs from this album. Anyway, as I said, Hendrix himself was the producer of this album, so he was allowed as much creative freedom as he wanted for these songs. I mean, he was the writer of these songs anyway but you know what I mean. Like I said above, Hendrix being the producer allowed him to be as experimental and perfect the songs as much as he wanted as well. From the few songs from Jimi Hendrix that I've heard, allowing Hendrix as much creative expression as he wants is an extremely good thing. Even before this point he was creating songs that were so unique and otherworldly compared to what was being released at the time. Like I said, despite not hearing a single song off this album before, I already expect it to be one of my highest rated albums by the end of my journey through this site. Anyway, with that all said, let's get into the legendary Electric Ladyland by Jimi Hendrix
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Track 1: ...And the Gods Made Love - This song has a lot of weird production and no real melody. It's pretty unpleasant to listen to, but for 1968 it sounds pretty damn cool. It's pretty short and doesn't overstay its welcome. It's just the right length to get the listener into the vibe it wants to.
...And the Gods Made Love Score: 7/10
Track 2: Have You Ever Been (To Electric Ladyland) - This and the last track serve as two good opening tracks that get the listener into the general vibe of the album. There's a pretty disorganized feeling here, but that adds to the psychedelic vibe of the song. Hendrix's voice is extremely pleasant as well. Production on this song such as the guitar that alternates between channels is extremely nice as well. Very dreamy lyrics here as well which add to the psychedelic feel. Very ahead of its time. Took a few listens for me to truly understand and really like, but this song is really great.
Have You Ever Been (To Electric Ladyland) Score: 9/10
Track 3: Crosstown Traffic - Well, this song has a much more kick-ass vibe to it than the last two. It's really, really catchy as well. I'm not going to lie, I'm still kinda in shock because of one of the instruments used in this song. A freaking kazoo is used in tandem with Hendrix's guitar to make a very kick-ass riff heard during the intro and chorus. Hendrix made some home modifications to this kazoo as well. Really freaking cool. The production on this song is nice. Voices alternate from left to right and reverse. The intro and kazoo guitar moves across channels as well. Really good stuff. Hendrix's voice is much more aggressive and sounds really nice as well. Very aggressive and deeply metaphorical lyrics here about a relationship being compared to crosstown traffic. It's extremely clever and I honestly wouldn't have picked up on this metaphorical meaning had I not looked it up. Really, really great song.
Crosstown Traffic Score: 10/10
Track 4: Voodoo Chile - This song is absolutely amazing. I may be a bit bias to jam songs, because I really found myself liking At Fillmore East as well, but I freaking love this song. There's weirdly good production, amazing guitar, drum, bass, and keyboard work. This all cultivates into a fifteen minute song that is just amazing. The use of crowd effects to encapsulate the feel of listening to a live recording is a very nice and artistic touch by Hendrix as well. Hendrix's voice is spot on and fits the blues jam theme of the song really well. They lyrics are very dreamy and the supernatural theme fits perfectly for the mood the song was trying to encapsulate. They have a nice connection to the general concepts blues songs would speak of at the time. From beginning to end, this song is just great and kept my attention all the way through. There wasn't a single section or time where I was bored.
Voodoo Chile Score: 11/10
Track 5: Little Miss Strange - This song is nowhere near as good as the last. There isn't much weird production here. It's just a much more typical psychedelic rock song. The musical work on this song is absolutely amazing though, especially the outro. I do have a bit of a problem with the vocals. Hendrix clearly is not the one singing, and I wouldn't care all that much if they singer of this song didn't sound objectively worse than Hendrix. I guess their voice fits a little bit better with the faster pace of this song though. Lyrically, this song speaks about Hendrix's complicated relationships. It has good lyrics, but that's it. It's a great song.
Little Miss Strange Score: 8/10
Track 6: Long Hot Summer Night - This song feels pretty directionless at times. It may take me a few more listens to truly get used to this song, but it feels a bit directionless for now. This isn't really a bad thing with this song since it adds to the psychedelic feel. The production is good, the guitars are good, and Hendrix is singing again. The backup singer's voices sound extremely nice as well. The song's lyrics are extremely well-written and speak of the joy one feels when their lover returns to them. This can reflect back on Hendrix himself due to him complicated relationships. This is a pretty good song, better than the last.
Long Hot Summer Night Score: 8/10
Track 7: Come On (Let the Good Times Roll) - This is another song that just screams kick-ass rock in the 60's. The production, especially the guitar-work in the bridge, is amazing. Hendrix's voice sounds just as good as before. The song's lyrics are good as well. It speaks of one's desires to continue having fun with their loved one. I guess one could interpret the song as having a sexual meaning as well, but this is a bit more far-fetched. Either way, this song is great and maintains the psychedelic feel while feeling a bit more focused than the last song.
Come On (Let the Good Times Roll) Score: 9/10
Track 8: Gypsy Eyes - There is some seriously great production on this song. There are segments, particularly in the intro, where the guitars straight up sound like a laser. The segment in the bridge where Hendrix's voice sounds oddly centered between channels is extremely well-produced as well. There is just so much amazing about this song. Hendrix's vocals have an odd subdued sound to them which add to the song's psychedelic feel. The lyrics are pretty depressing and genuinely kinda touching as well. This entire song is just great, one of the best so far.
Gypsy Eyes Score: 10/10
Track 9: Burning of the Midnight Lamp - I've not said this so far, but it is genuinely kinda hard to get a grasp on most of these tracks. This isn't a bad thing. Every song just has such a deeply psychedelic and otherworldly feel to it that getting a grasp of it is genuinely difficult. That being said, every song manages to feel contained and not lose itself in random sounds and guitar screeches that make no sense. This song is no exception. It would take a lot of listens for me to truly grasp each song. Anyway, this song is great. It has a dramatic tone to it while being excellently produced at the same time. Hendrix's vocals have a nice subdued tone to them as well. The lyrics have a pretty nice depiction of loneliness as well. This fits well with the grandiose tone of the song. It's great.
Burning of the Midnight Lamp Score: 10/10
Track 10: Rainy Day, Dream Away - This song is very two-sided. The first half of the song feels as if we're listening to someone's thoughts about relaxing on a rainy day. The second half feels like someone is describing the factors of rainy day alongside the fact that they can relax. This song's lyrics are pretty simple. There is some extremely good production here, especially the circling guitar during the outro and the groovy intro. Hendrix's vocals are pretty normal on this song. This song was apparently meant to be a reflection from Hendrix on the cancellation of a festival he was supposed to play in. It's a great song, yet still one of the weakest.
Rainy Day, Dream Away Score: 9/10
Track 11: 1983...(A Merman I Should Turn to Be) - This is the second and final extremely long song off on this album. It's insanely good. The music seemingly contributing to the overall narrative that this song goes for is extremely nice. The production is extremely nice, the lyrics are extremely well-written and depressing, Hendrix's voice is spot on as well. Everything off of this song is great. The song speaks of a man and his lover turning into creatures that have the ability to breathe underwater. They do this to escape the constant war on the surface. The depressing nature of the song up until the final few minutes, which speak of happiness in Atlantis, is genuinely great. The nine minute wait you have to go through before hearing the first happy lines of the song are genuinely great and make for a great buildup. This entire song is just perfect.
1983...(A Merman I Should Turn to Be) Score: 11/10
Track 12: Moon, Turn the Tides...Gently Gently Away - This is another song which is simply pointless ambiance. It's more pleasant to listen to than the first song, and one could argue that it has a connection to the previous song, yet it's still something I wouldn't choose to listen to on a re-listen of this album. It doesn't overstay its welcome, however. The song has a pretty peaceful tone and almost sounds like waves crashing down on a beach. It's fine, but still not something I consider good.
Moon, Turn the Tides...Gently Gently Away Score: 7/10
Track 13: Still Raining, Still Dreaming - This song has the same subject matter and extremely similar lyrics to the previous song with a similar name. That being said, this song simply has better production and is more musically enjoyable. The pristine guitar-work is present in the entirety of this song, that alone helps elevate this song. There is an especially pristine section of guitar in the middle of this song. There really isn't all that much to say. This song is amazing.
Still Raining, Still Dreaming Score: 10/10
Track 14: House Burning Down - This album simply does not stop. There isn't much to say about this song that hasn't already been said, but that's completely fine. It has a less intense psychedelic feel than the previous few songs, and I assume that it has a deeply metaphorical meaning about exploration of the world, yet it doesn't do too much we haven't heard before. It's lyrics are nice and it feels a bit weird to get a song that tells a cohesive story that's not too vague. We haven't gotten one like this in awhile. I know 1983 had a cohesive story...I mean a story that wouldn't take multiple listens to understand.
House Burning Down Score: 9/10
Track 15: All Along the Watchtower - This is the one song from this album that everybody knows. It's truly as good as everybody says it is. I would go so far as to call it the best song I've heard off this site so far by a long shot. It feels as if this song is the perfect mix between the hard psychedelic and contained nature of previous songs from this album. I mean, it's legitimately perfect in every way. I would go so far as to say that everything that has made this album great is at its absolute peak in this song. The melody is great, the guitar-work is great, the vocals are just right, the drumming is great, the lyrics, while not written by Hendrix, are perfect, literally everything is perfect. I expect this to be my favorite song from this site for a very long while.
All Along the Watchtower Score: 11/10
Track 16: Voodoo Child (Slight Return) - This song isn't as good as the last, yet I consider it to be the second best I've heard off of this site so far. It manages to take the fifteen minute song we heard way earlier in the album and transform it into a heavy, fast-paced, psychedelic rock masterpiece that sounds absolutely insane for something released way back in 1968. Lyrically, it seems to cover the exact same themes as the first version of the song. I do find its meaning to mix a bit better with the more heavy version of the song, however. I mean, the guitar work is so freaking incredible that I thought I was listening to a bass for most of the song. It's perfect in every way. It's weird to find an artist that puts the best two songs of their album at the end, yet here we are with the artistic Hendrix doing just that.
Voodoo Child (Slight Return) Score: 11/10
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Conclusion: I am literally blown away by this album. This is seriously unbelievable for 1968. Like I said, I had heard a few Hendrix songs in the past, and they sounded pretty damn unique compared to most other songs being produced at the time, yet this album was on another level compared to those few songs. Again, like I said, this is Hendrix's most true artistic vision in this album due to the fact that he was the producer of it. Speaking of which, the production in this album is simply sublime in almost every aspect. I couldn't even list how much I find to sound amazing off of this album, yet a highlight is obviously the guitar-work. This is what Hendrix is most known for, it it not? The guitar-work is simply sublime and sounds so unbelievably good in every song. Another factor that I love is the use of channeling effects throughout the entire album. There are some moments where channeling is used that can be described as nothing short of genius. It's just so good. Hendrix's vocals are extremely nice too and are extremely adaptable to fit the general mood a specific song is going for. Besides that one song where Hendrix isn't the singer, I love the vocals on every track of this album. Even the track where Hendrix wasn't the singer still sounds great, but the singer's voice just sounds a bit...nasally I guess....Anyway, cool production is not just limited to the various instruments used throughout the album. It's applied countless times to Hendrix's voice and backup singer's voices as well. Of course, every scenario for it just adds to the overall vibe of a specific song or is just genius. As for the various lyrics that can be found throughout the album, they're great as well. They have a depth to them that isn't seen in many artists. The themes this album covers are very nice too. I specifically am a fan of both the commentary and story provided by 1983. It's just touching, relevant, and well-written. Now, how could one possibly talk about and review this album without mentioning its highlight. I shouldn't even have to name the song I'm going to talk briefly about, but it's All Along the Watchtower just in case. Oh my God! This genuinely has to be one of the greatest songs ever made. It sounds great today, so I can only imagine how great it sounded back in 1968. I mean, everything I said above is present here in a way that literally can't be changed for the better. The innovative guitar work of this song, Hendrix's additions to the song, the production, literally everything about this song is perfect. And I feel that this song should honestly speak for the entirely of the album. I mean, there are a few songs that may be a bit weak, but you're generally going to hear some of the absolute top tier stuff that you can possibly hear off of this album. I'll be honest, it's not an album that I consider beyond perfect, yet it comes damn near close to that point. I feel as if there are very small critiques that I could make throughout the album, and there are certain songs that don't really have much of an impact on me at all. Despite this, this album is still genuinely one of the best I have every heard. It truly, truly does deserve all of the praise it gets.
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Electric Ladyland Score: 10/10
Song Average: 9.4/10
1001 Albums Vol. 0008: Clube Da Esquina
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Introduction: This is an album that I've literally never heard of before. I've not seen anyone talk about it online, no critical reviews of it, and so on up until this moment. Hell, I still don't even know that much about it. I get most of my information from the small Wikipedia snippet that the website decides to take, yet that doesn't even tell me all that much besides the story of the cover. I generally don't like to look all that deep into albums before I listen to them as I want to go in forming my own opinion and being genuinely surprised by what I hear, and I'm going to stick to that this time. I would absolutely never check a critical review or critic website pertaining to the album I'm supposed to be listening to. If I've heard a review in the past, however, then I obviously can't do anything about that. I do still like to have some context going into an album, yet I like that context to be vague and preferably only include details as to why the album was made and what events lead up to its creation. Anyway, with that said, this is actually my first album which is not going to be in English. I use Spotify, so I'll be able to translate the lyrics on the fly, however. This album was released way back in 1972. It was actually a collaborative effort between two Brazilian artists. Now, Spotify does credit some songs to one specific artist at times, so I'm not entirely sure if each song was collaboratively written or if these two artists wrote songs solo. I don't know. Either way, I have heard that this album was extremely influential for Brazilian music at the time of its release and even now. Now, apparently the genre it helped push forward in known as MPB. I have literally never heard of this genre of music before, so I have absolutely no idea what to expect. I think that should just sum up my feelings about this album perfectly. I just have no idea what I'm getting into. This album was apparently influential, and I tend to automatically associate influential albums with being so unbelievably good, yet there are plenty of artists that have had influential releases which absolutely sucked. Nevertheless, I can do nothing but get into this album.
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Track 1: Tudo O Você Podia Ser Score: 11/10
Track 2: Cais Score: 9/10
Track 3: O Trem Azul Score: 10/10
Track 4: Saídas E Bandeiras Nº 1 Score: 8/10
Track 5: Nuvem Cigana Score: 9/10
Track 6: Cravo E Canela Score: 9/10
Track 7: Dos Cruces Score: 9/10
Track 8: Um Girassol Da Cor Do Seu Cabelo Score: 11/10
Track 9: San Vicente Score: 9/10
Track 10: Estrelas Score: 8/10
Track 11: Clube Da Esquina Nº 2 Score: 10/10
Track 12: Paisagem Da Janela Score: 10/10
Track 13: Me Deixa Em Paz Score: 9/10
Track 14: Os Povos Score: 9/10
Track 15: Saídas E Bandeiras Nº 2 Score: 8/10
Track 16: Um Gosto De Sol Score: 9/10
Track 17: Pelo Amor De Dues Score: 8/10
Track 18: Lilla Score: 9/10
Track 19: Trem De Doido Score: 10/10
Track 20: Nada Será Como Antes Score: 9/10
Track 21: Ao Que Vai Nascer Score: 8/10
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Conclusion: I came in having absolutely no idea what to expect, and I came out feeling absolutely moved, surprised, and shocked at what I had just heard. This album is a gem. It's a masterpiece. It's honestly a shame that this album is so vaguely know about nowadays. I did some additional research after listening to the album, and I discovered that it apparently sold pretty well back in the day. Hell, it even made its way all the way to U.S. record stores. That should honestly say something. I don't even know where to begin with this album. I mean, I guess I'll start by talking about just how varied every single track off this album is. There is so, so, so much genre-blending across this album that I honestly couldn't even name every genre I heard during my listen. Most of the time, this much variety would be a bad thing as it would make the album feel a bit disorganized, yet it honestly couldn't be a better thing here. It's a bit weird to describe, yet every song off this album, despite having different genres, all feel as they belong in the same album. This may be due to the fact that most songs use similar core instrumentation, it may be because of the amazing vocals, or it may be because of something that I don't even really notice. I don't know. Now, like I just said, this album has a crap-ton of variety spread throughout it. You may be listening to a traditional folk song one minute and then be thrown into a psychedelic rock song the next with a kick-as guitar. Point is, this album is very musically varied. I would honestly have to do a track-by-track analysis of every song to describe fully the musical tone of this album. I've done that a few times in the past and really don't feel like doing it anymore, so I'm not. Now, I will say, all of these tracks do feel musically united by a weird tropical sense spread throughout most songs. It's really not all that tropical, yet it's the best way I can describe it. I'm sure someone more familiar with MPB could do a better job at describing what I'm trying to. Nevertheless, this album's music is masterfully written. The arrangements are perfect for each song, the amount of uniqueness never leaves me bored, the instrumentation for each genre fits perfectly, the production of the instrumentation is wonderful, and many more things that I just can't say because of how long it would take. Like I just mentioned, the production off of this album is absolutely amazing as well, especially for the early 70's. I mean, this is the same year Ziggy Stardust released and this album sounds miles better than it production wise. I mean, the amount of variety here lets you have practically every great aspect of production you can think of. Subdued and heavy guitars in a psychedelic rock track, an echoing voice in a plain psychedelic track, vibrant sounds in a sunshine pop track, and so on. There was so much that went into producing every track, and the same tricks for a singular track couldn't be applied to the next because of how different every song is. Again, this album is freaking amazing. Now, the vocals are simply sublime. Despite what I said in the intro, people who add the lyrics to Spotify have to manually edit the translations in, so I actually had no idea what the singer was saying most of the album; however, that honestly didn't matter in a way. I mean, his voice is so freaking good that it alone manages to carry an emotional weight with it just by sound alone. The best way I can describe his voice is almost like something you would hear out of a church or from certain tribes. Of course, the variety of genres on here forces the singer to mildly adapt his voice for certain situations as well, yet they sound flawless in every one. Like I said, I am barely able to understand anything off of this album, yet I was able to translate some songs. I did look up some translations of songs as well, and I can say that this album has some lyrical genius in it as well. While the lyrics definitely sound better in the language they were intended to be heard in, they're still very poetic and artistic even in a different language. That's all I'm really going to touch on with the album's lyrics since I feel as if I can't truly grasp the nature of them. I can still say they're great nonetheless. In fact, I can say that about this album as a whole. It's perfect and so, so beyond its time. I mean, there were points where I felt I was genuinely listening to something from another world. There were moments where I forgot I was listening to an album made in the 70's as well. Honestly, one of the main reasons I even started this extremely lengthy challenge was to find an album exactly like this. I wanted to find a truly hidden masterpiece which many had not heard before. I think I've found exactly that. It's albums like this that motivate me to continue through this journey. It's perfect. There are no better words to describe this album other than that. I will definitely be re-listening to many songs off of this album.
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Clube Da Esquina Score: 10/10
Song Average: 9.1/10
1001 Albums Vol. 0009: Blue
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Introduction: What the hell even is this lineup of albums that I've gotten. It started with Disintegration and the greats have just kept rolling since. Now, as for this album, I'm not entirely sure what to feel about it. I've heard countless great things about it, yet I'm going to admit that I'm not really that big of a fan of folk. I mean, I appreciate folk songs for their bigger focus on lyrics and telling a story compared to other genres of music, yet I wouldn't consider much of the folk albums Bob Dylan made to be some of the greatest of all time. I did really like Dylan's second release, so who the hell knows. Anyway, like I said, this album's general genre is folk. Now, the instrumentation is minimalistic, yet there is apparently instrument variety across each song. One song may use a piano while another may use an acoustic guitar, that kinda thing. This album was released way back in 1971 by Joni Mitchell. Apparently, many of the songs on hear pertain to relationships in some way. If the album cover and title say anything, I would imagine that this album isn't going to cover the happiness these relationships bring. If this is true, then I will admit that I kinda like the concept due to how much of an effect sadness as an emotion has on me. Anyway, like I said, I've heard many, many great things about this album. I've literally never decided to listen to it before, yet I've heard so many great things about it. I've heard that it was extremely influential, extremely unique, considered one of the best albums of all time, those kinda things. Again, I find it pretty crazy that back-to-back I've been getting albums that critics consider to be some of the greatest releases ever. I mean, it's nice to get greats now, yet that just leaves the trash for later. And yes, I am aware that there is some absolute trash on this site. Anyway, we'll cross that bridge when we come into it. Until then, let's hopefully keep the streak of greatness going with Blue by Joni Mitchell.
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Track 1: All I Want Score: 11/10
Track 2: My Old Man Score: 10/10
Track 3: Little Green Score: 10/10
Track 4: Carey Score: 10/10
Track 5: Blue Score: 9/10
Track 6: California Score: 9/10
Track 7: This Flight Tonight Score: 9/10
Track 8: River Score: 10/10
Track 9: A Case of You Score: 9/10
Track 10: The Last Time I Saw Richard Score: 9/10
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Conclusion: Wow, just wow. Like I said, I've never been the biggest fan of folk, yet I will admit that there is so much greatness packed into this album. I would go so far as to call every song off of this album great. Why? Well, like I expected, there is so much pain packed into this album. Not just any pain, one of the greatest pains that one can feel: the pain of love. There is a song on here about missing home and one about genuinely one of the saddest things I have heard as well, yet most pertain to the theme of love. While this album does have a very painful and cohesive theme, the specific topics each song covers varies. One song may speak about missing someone, another may speak about being so focused on the positives in a relationship that you don't realize how miserable you are, and one may simply speak about regretting leaving someone. There's a song on here that I'm sure we all can relate to in some capacity. The lyrics used to describe these scenarios are absolutely brilliant as well. The chorus of River is an especially beautiful metaphor for the feeling brought upon with the end of a good relationship. Now, there are two songs on here that pertain to a different topic than love. California simply talks about the feeling of missing home. That being said, Little Green's meaning is absolutely heart-wrenching. The lyrics are based on a true event in Joni Mitchell's life in which she gave up her own daughter to an adoption center because she believed that she would be better off with a family who could actually take care of her. Mitchell was in an extremely poor financial situation when she made this decision back in 1965. The amount of strength needed to write this song, perfect the lyrics, and perform it as well is just tremendous. Like I said, it's genuinely one of the saddest stories I've ever heard a song present to me. As a side note, Mitchell and her daughter would reunite in the 90's, so hooray for that. Anyway, this album isn't necessarily my musical cup of tea. As far as folk goes, some of these arrangements are amazing, yet I really don't find myself thinking all too much about them. Nevertheless, I am still able to appreciate their uniqueness and influential nature. That being said, an aspect of this album that I both genuinely like from a casual perspective and find genuinely interesting from a critical perspective is Mitchell's amazing voice. I can't quite describe it in a way that would do it justice. It simply sounds so loose yet tight and powerful at the same time. Her voice simply sounds like what many modern pop artists should want to sound like. There were a few moments on this album where I could hear a bit of a modern pop voice as well, so I guess you could describe Mitchell's voice as influential on top of being amazing. Though, like I just said, even though there were occasional moments where I head a modern pop voice, Mitchell's overall delivery is seriously on another level. The way Mitchell can so flawlessly flow from a high to low pitch simply sounds angelic. Overall, this album is just amazing. I mean, folk is generally such an uninteresting genre of music for me, and I still found myself deeply effected by some songs. Through genuinely great production, a very talented singer, wonderfully tragic lyrics, and a genuine complexity in many melodies despite the objective simple arrangements, this album manages to be genuinely great. It's weird that I've been getting so many masterpieces back-to-back, yet I'm not going to complain until I get the exact opposite, getting nothing but trash back-to-back since I've already listened to everything great. That will likely happen eventually, but the streak of greats continued today.
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Blue Score: 10/10
Song Average: 9.6/10
1001 Albums Vol. 0010: Kid A
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Introduction: Right before I rated my previous album, I legitimately stopped and thought something along the lines of "I'm probably going to get OK Computer next." Well, I didn't get it, but I sure as hell got one of the greatest albums ever made. Not quite as good, but by the same artist that I thought I would get. How? I seriously don't even know what to say to this streak of albums I've gotten anymore. In fact, I'm not going to. It's genuinely amazing how many 10/10 albums I've gotten back-to-back. I'll leave it at that. I really doubt that anyone will need an introduction to this album, but I'll still give one nonetheless. Kid A is a studio album released in 2000 by one of the greatest bands of all time. The band in question being Radiohead. Up until 2000, Radiohead had been known for their works relating to alternative rock; however, this album took a complete left turn. This album kept a few aspects of rock, yet it incorporated more elements of electronic, ambient, and so on. Like I said, this was a dramatic shift from what Radiohead was known for up until this point. Obviously, a major shift in sound caused controversy among fans and critics alike. Some loved the album while some thought it was too ambitious and redundant. Many of these criticisms came from the new sound Radiohead decided to take on. The entire situation could honestly be compared to when Bob Dylan decided to change his focus from pure folk to electronic music. The album initially received poor reviews, yet it has gone on to not only be called a masterpiece, but one of the greatest albums of all time in the years since its release. I'm going to be honest, I've already heard this album in its entirely, and I kinda agree with that statement. Do I believe Radiohead released a something that is somehow even better just a few years before this? Yes, I do. Nevertheless, I'm a fan of both 90's and modern Radiohead. I'm already pretty positive about the score I'm going to give this album, yet I'll re-listen to it in its entirety nonetheless. With that said, let's get into one of the greatest albums on this site: Kid A by Radiohead.
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Track 1: Everything In Its Right Place Score: 11/10
Track 2: Kid A Score: 10/10
Track 3: The National Anthem Score: 11/10
Track 4: How to Disappear Completely Score: 11/10
Track 5: Treefingers Score: 10/10
Track 6: Optimistic Score: 10/10
Track 7: In Limbo Score: 11/10
Track 8: Idioteque Score: 11/10
Track 9: Morning Bell Score: 10/10
Track 10: Motion Picture Soundtrack Score: 11/10
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Conclusion: Well, there's another one of the greatest albums of all time done. I really don't know what to say about this album that hasn't been said already. Everything about it is simply perfect. It just flows with so much creativity from the first second all the way to the end. There is not a single moment I would call bad or even just alright off of this album. It's genuinely perfect. Musically, this album manages to be one of the most innovative, dramatic, depressing, beautiful, and alienating things I have ever heard. I mean, I seriously couldn't describe this album's music better other than it sounds like it comes straight from the future. That's a crazy thing to say about an album released twenty-five years ago. One quarter of a century ago and I still envision this to be the soundtrack of the future. This, in part, comes from the amazing production off of each song. I mean, there isn't a single moment off of this album where I would say the production sounds aged. If Radiohead wanted to do something with a song, they would get their producer to do it with no questions asked. I would go so far as to say that some of the best production and musical choices I have ever heard come off of this album. The synths and overlapping voices in the first track, the hauntingly beautiful minutes of How To Disappear Completely, the aggressive beat on Idioteque, and so many more that would take too long to list. Speaking of which, How To Disappear Completely is officially my new number one song I've heard off this site. Jimi Hendrix wasn't even on top for a week. With that said, there isn't really anything else that I can say about this album's music. It's simply perfect. Another perfect aspect of this album is its lyrics. Now, I will admit, I can see why one could possibly dislike Radiohead's lyrics. They are admittedly extremely vague and seem almost senseless and too metaphorical at times, yet this only adds to the replay value of the album in my opinion. It may take a lot of listens, but a theme that makes just enough sense may come together throughout each song. On the topic of meanings, this album does seem to be a concept album. It doesn't seem to have a narrative to follow, yet it seems to be set in the future in some way. There are so many themes off of this album that speak of alienation, destruction, depression, and so on that seem to hint at an extremely dark future. For example, Idioteque, while up to interpretation, is a song that seems to be about humanity's downfall at their own hands. An example of depression is Morning Bell, a song that is widely interpreted to talk about divorce. As a side note, Morning Bell is apparently about an experience Thom Yorke had with a ghost in a house he used to live in. I personally don't see it, yet I digress. Point is, lyrics and meaning are extremely well-thought and well-written. I'd say that they're perfect. Now, Thom's voice is freaking sublime as well. I really don't feel like I have to go into detail about it, because who hasn't heard Thom Yorke sing before? All I'll say is that it's one of the most distinct and interesting voices I have ever heard. I mean that in a good way. It's perfect and perfectly matches with the unique and creative vibe every song gives off. With all that said, Kid A is yet another perfect album. I just can't stop getting them. I would go so far as to call it one of my favorite releases off all time. Everything I just described should perfectly summarize my feelings about this album. It's perfect. It's beyond perfect. It's only been five albums, yet another one of my favorite releases of all time, Disintegration, has been overthrown. Kid A is my new absolute uncontested favorite from this site. I seriously can barely think of anything that is better than this album, so I expect it to rule supreme for awhile. I'll just have to wait and see.
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Kid A Score: 11/10
Song Average: 10.6/10
