1001 Albums Summary

I’ve heard SIMBI but never this. Should be good. — This wasn’t SIMBI level and it didn’t have any bangers on the level of Picture Perfect which introduced me to her when I heard it in I May Destroy You, but it’s still really good and I’m largely rating it like this because it’s my first and I’m assuming that I’ll be very discerning with my 4s and 5s, as well as expecting a little more from Simz. It’s also a little discomforting to listen to this album now knowing how things ended up with this producer; but that didn’t impact my rating and would apply to SIMBI too anyway. Glad I checked it out and I’ll definitely be revisiting.

I of course recognize the name of the group, but I know almost nothing about them and nothing about this album. Similarly to Pearl Jam’s Ten, the numbers in the title seem to have no obvious relation to the album’s concept upon glancing at the track list, but perhaps I will prove to be mistaken. — I may never know what the title means, but 3+3 is some good shit and a refreshing listen after the aborted Pearl Jam attempt yesterday. Huzzah. This is the kind of music that I’m not really experienced with enough to pick out things that are particularly special about it. It slips in between the decades that I’m mostly experienced with. (That being the 1960s and when I have been alive.) However, I can definitely say that it does not stop maintaining a consistent mood throughout, and it’s the exact mood you can tell the brothers want you in. Excellent stuff.

Prelisten thoughts: Ah fuck. Here we go… I suppose this is overdue? Maybe? I thought their best albums were other ones and this one was mostly known for the one hit, but I don’t know anything about them really. A theme that’s emerging is that if it isn’t Pink Floyd or Lou Reed or Throbbing Gristle and it’s from the 70s or 80s I’m going to usually be going in blind. — Better than I was fearing. Besides the title track there’s nothing especially compelling, but it all serves as a good way to follow the iconic title track. Not very memorable outside of said track, but they can’t all be winners. Apparently Joe Walsh is largely responsible for the wildly successful new direction they took on this album. I would rather listen to his song Ordinary Average Guy any day over anything off this album, and I can definitely identify how he might have guided them without even being familiar with their older stuff. If I could, I would rate this 2.5. 2 feels a bit too low but I can’t in good conscience put it with the 3-star albums that I might actually return to more than a few times.

Oh fuck yes. This is my good karma for skipping Pearl Jam’s Ten a few days ago. Obviously I’ve heard this before but it’s been a very long time. HERE WE GOOOOOO — What can I really say that hasn’t already been said? My first five stars. Hearing this music as a kid made me start coming up with my own lyrics, not for the first time or anything but still it inspired me to write a few stanzas I don’t remember or have anymore. I think I referenced being willing to do anything to try a quaalude (before seeing the youtube guy saying there was nothing like one. i’m not entirely sure why i knew about them). Anyway, love this album.

Oh boy. I guess it’s high time, but I don’t anticipate liking much beyond the singles. I also wouldn’t be surprised if I was wrong and like a lot of this, though. — My second guess was correct. This is close-ish to rounding up to a 5, maybe a 4.3 or 4.4, but it does not round up in the end. I was somewhat surprised to discover that even today this kind of music is still considered “heavy” metal. This is like, barely one step heavier than Ghost, I’m sorry. I guess maybe I’m not as unable to enjoy the “heavier” stuff as I thought. Possibly the worst aged carelessly jingoistic song title ever, hah. But it’s also a good song. Overall a solid one and despite the ways in which modern metal has surpassed it in heaviness (if I even know what that term means, I’m not sure anymore!) the music standing alone from its genre tag hasn’t aged badly at all. Will definitely be returning, and not like my last 4-star (3+3 by The Isley Brothers) where I’d mostly put it on during sex or dinner or something. If I put this on during sex or a nice dinner party I’m a doppelgänger and you have to kill me. Thanks.

Wow. Teenager me would be happy for Muse. Adult me is wondering why the fuck this is here and if any of the earlier Muse albums got shafted for this mass appeal move. I don’t think I even considered this a great album when I was a teenager either, I just really enjoyed the catchy songs and it introduced me to their actually solid back catalog (back when the entire back catalog was mostly solid) when my music tastes were much more underdeveloped. Predicting a 3/5 max, which I probably would have even given it in 2009. Don’t be surprised if it’s worse. (Well, I guess you can’t be since you’ll see the score first.) I do realize that this album was pretty massive (pun sadly unintended) and it serves the purposes of the book to include it, but sheesh. — Going in, I really wanted to rate this a 2/5 when I was done. How could I not? This was the first step of Matt Bellamy and co’s decline in pure commercialized soullessness. It felt like it would be cathartic if I could justify it, since I knew a 1/5 wasn’t happening. And after the first listen, multitasking since I’d heard the thing before, I thought I might be able to get away with it. Nothing really stood out anew, and the old familiars were as catchy and superficial as ever. But then I started it playing the second time, and I was actually paying attention when we reached the second track, Starlight. Regrettably, I became sentimental and started thinking about how this was one of the first tracks to introduce me to the unexpected epic title drop, and how it was my first all time most played song on last.fm, and so on. After that I think my brain was hijacked, otherwise this would be a 2/5. It’s barely above the 2.5 required to round up, at least. But I’m glad I had a reason to revisit it, I guess. I fucking GUESS. Whateeeever, man.

Oh hell yes. I’m not sure if I’ve actually listened to this particular album all the way through, so this is a great reason to do so. — I mean, I can’t say I like it as much as Pink Moon, but I can’t point to a single flaw or reason for that either. What an enchanting and rapturous series of tunes. Time to go tell my mom I finally heard this album.

The first album that I have not only not heard of, but never heard of the artist/s either. Guess we’ll see what I think. As usual, my first listen will be as blind as can be, so this will be my first opinion formed in this project without knowing what other people think whatsoever! Exciting. Let’s go! — Ah, the “orange man bad” of 1981. Well then. I happen to be of the opinion that when you’re listening to a political album from the past, you need to be familiar with the politics of the time it was released in to accurately judge it. You can guess my opinion of most of these reviews cluttering this album page as a result. This album is solid. Certainly, perhaps they wouldn’t have referenced the Democrats so kindly in the opening track if they had been able to see ahead to what Clinton, Obama and Biden were going to bring the US, but you have to realize that in 1981 Reagan was doing unprecedented things that would lead to unprecedented consequences and nobody could’ve foreseen how the parties would transform. Certainly, perhaps challenging the still-prevailing-in-1981 narrative that the US was entirely justified in dropping the nukes during WW2 feels less audacious now that we live in a world where it’s… still the prevailing narrative, but you won’t get in as much trouble for challenging it? I guess? Yes, the production makes it a little obvious they were having maybe too much fun exploring a new genre, but the instrumentals are hardly the primary focus of this album. I could go on for a while about everything I like about this album, and I haven’t added favorite songs to an entry before this, but I think I should do it for an album this underrated. Very glad I found this little time capsule. If LCD Soundsystem is covering your song about Reagan from 1981 in 2018 and changing the lyrics to be about Trump, I think that means you made it. Congrats, guys. Even if the plebs on this site mostly don’t get it. Favorites: Penthouse and Pavement, seemingly about the life of a sympathetic and politically active member of the petit bourgeoisie working against their ostensible priorities for the good of humanity. While this is a cliched character study at this point, I doubt it was then. Geisha Boys and Temple Girls, about the sexualization of children in mass media, or something along those lines. Let’s All Make A Bomb, commentary on the Cold War, Nagasaki, Hiroshima, and the theorized internal monologues of the psychopaths doing it all. We’re Going to Live for a Very Long Time, possibly the best aged song on the whole album even if it’s not my favorite. This song could be about a lot of things, including the rise of “AI”/LLMs and the plot of Pluribus and so many things happening or being related right now.

Oh, cool. I wonder if we’ll manage my third 5 or if it’ll be a 4 and my friend will hate me for underrating it. — Okay, so it turns out that my girlfriend also adores this album and considers it an all time favorite. Great. No pressure. Look, here’s what we’re gonna do. It’s 9:17 pm the next day (pun on a later Bowie album title with a cover that referenced “Heroes” actually somehow unintended) and I still don’t know what to do with this. I want to be discerning with my fives, and this hasn’t earned it for me yet, but I can tell there’s so much more to explore. If this review still looks like this, it means I’m still listening to and considering Heroes and will eventually give a better review. And possibly 5 stars. Sorry.