My 1001 Albums Journey

Album	You	Global	Diff
Safe As Milk Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band	5	3.01	+1.99
Future Days Can	5	3.02	+1.98
Myths Of The Near Future Klaxons	5	3.06	+1.94
Lost Souls Doves	5	3.16	+1.84
Little Earthquakes Tori Amos	5	3.22	+1.78
The Black Saint And The Sinner Lady Charles Mingus	5	3.33	+1.67
Juju Siouxsie And The Banshees	5	3.33	+1.67
Music for the Masses Depeche Mode	5	3.37	+1.63
Power In Numbers Jurassic 5	5	3.47	+1.53
Chore of Enchantment Giant Sand	4	2.63	+1.37

Album	You	Global	Diff
Brothers In Arms Dire Straits	1	3.74	-2.74
The Gershwin Songbook Ella Fitzgerald	1	3.51	-2.51
From Elvis In Memphis Elvis Presley	1	3.34	-2.34
american dream LCD Soundsystem	1	3.17	-2.17
Nothing's Shocking Jane's Addiction	1	3.17	-2.17
One World John Martyn	1	2.81	-1.81
Pictures At An Exhibition Emerson, Lake & Palmer	1	2.64	-1.64
Head Hunters Herbie Hancock	2	3.55	-1.55
1984 Van Halen	2	3.49	-1.49
Frank Amy Winehouse	2	3.46	-1.46

Arcade Fire

4/5

8/10 Best songs: Ready to Start, Empty Room, Half Light II (No Celebration), Month of May, We Used to Wait The album propels the listener forward with forceful bass and drums. The album is largely medium tempo, and feels a little long. The highs are very high.

Endtroducing.....

DJ Shadow

4/5

Best songs: Building Steam with a Grain of Salt, The Number Song, Stem/Long Stem - Melody, Midnight in a Perfect World Somewhere between instrumental hip hop and trip hop. Very subversive album - I'm not sure what to think of it because it doesn't sound like one thing or another. This is why I started this project. A good album to listen to in the morning.

From Elvis In Memphis

Elvis Presley

1/5

3/10 Best songs: Wearin' That Loved On Look, Power of My Love, Kentucky Rain Late-era Elvis. A little too down-tempo for me - the ballads are almost universally dull. Honestly outstays its welcome.

The Downward Spiral

Nine Inch Nails

3/5

6.5/10 Best songs: Heresy, I Do Not Want This, Piggy, Mr. Self Destruct The kind of album you'd want from this project - so clearly experimental and creative that it transcends time. That being said, it isn't as good as some of Reznor's later albums, and it's lyrically a bit dull/obvious (at least by modern ears). Starts great but fades in strength by the end. It's very much an album for a very specific type of person, and at some points I find that I am that person. On that note, the lyric "I wanna know everything I wanna be everywhere I wanna fuck everyone in the world I wanna do something that matters" speaks to me (sigh). And, for the record, the original version of Hurt is superior to Johnny Cash's version. Sorry.

Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea

PJ Harvey

4/5

8.5/10 Best songs: Big Exit, A Place Called Home, This Mess We're In, This Is Love The first album I actually own/have listened to before. Some of the songs are absolute must-listens (This Mess We're In and This Is Love are both still on my playlists today). A couple of the songs drag a bit (Horses in My Dreams). Overall a really, really solid album.

Debut

Björk

3/5

6/10 Best songs: Human Behaviour, Crying, Violently Happy, Play Dead Another album I listened to before! It's such a breath of fresh air, both compared to contemporary albums and music released today. That being said, I don't think I actually like it that much - the slower songs drag and although Bjork treats her voice like an instrument no different from a drum or a guitar, sometimes it just doesn't work.

Joan Armatrading

3/5

6/10 Best songs: Help Yourself, Join the Boys, Like Fire I'd literally never heard of Joan Armatrading before getting this album today. The album is like if Tracy Chapman met Ani DiFranco - very Lilith Fair, singer/songwriter-with-a-guitar type music. Interestingly, it doesn't feel THAT dated, with the exception of some slightly groovy bass lines and beats. Overall a strong album, just not my kind of album.

Hearts And Bones

Paul Simon

3/5

7/10 Best songs: Allergies, Train in the Distance, Think Too Much (b), The Late Great Johnny Ace (Demo) This album honestly wasn't what I was expecting, but it was pretty good. There were some flashes of brilliance, namely in the occasional brilliant line or harmony, but they were hobbled by some questionable choices (Cars and Cars????). I think that the album never quite took off - it felt a little one-note, lacking any truly climactic songs, although Train in the Distance may be the best song I've heard while doing this project.

Hunting High And Low

a-ha

3/5

6/10 Best songs: Take on Me, Hunting High and Low, Here I Stand and Face the Rain This album has a very healthy sense of drama - so many songs are about the yearning, desperate kind of love that can only be expressed through judicious use of falsetto. Some songs are absolute bangers, while others sort of fail to take off. Perhaps a little short/shallow for what it's trying to accomplish?

A Christmas Gift For You From Phil Spector

Various Artists

3/5

6/10 A perfectly fine 60s Christmas album.

1984

Van Halen

2/5

4/10 Best songs: Panama, I'll Wait Exactly what I expected from an '80s rock album: lots of sex, huge numbers of guitar riffs, and overly long tracks. Not my type of music. How would I fix it? Shorten each song, drop a guitar riff or two, and be more interesting.

Little Earthquakes

Tori Amos

5/5

8.5/10 Best songs: Little Earthquakes, Precious Things, Happy Phantom, Crucify, Leather, Silent All These Years What a coincidence that one of my all-time most-listened-to albums should pop up. Tori was my teenage obsession and I still have a soft-spot for her 25 years later. This is a terrific album and an excellent debut. My only complaint with it is that it loses steam towards the second half (and then the final track, the titular Little Earthquakes, rocks out and proceeds to be one of my top 5 Tori songs...). A great album but not a perfect album.

Guero

Beck

3/5

5/10 Best songs: Girl, Scarecrow, Go It Alone, Farewell Ride A slow- to medium-tempo album the whole way through that relies heavily on (admittedly interesting) beats and less on lyrics or singing. Though the second half is pretty good, I find the album conceptually interesting but just not very appealing. I've never really gotten into Beck, and I think this album is emblematic as to why.

Reggatta De Blanc

The Police

2/5

3/10 Best songs: Bring on the Night, The Bed's Too Big Without You, Contact What's with the Jamaican accent in several of the tracks? Why does On Any Other Day have homophobic lyrics (don't give me that "it's representative of contemporary suburbia BS")? Why is this album so boring? I feel like this album could be really good, but instead it's really one-dimensional.

Throwing Muses

4/5

8/10 Best songs: Green, Vicky's Box, Rabbits Dying Difficult album to find - the full original album is available on YouTube under the title "Throwing Muses First Album 1986 Full." A very rock precursor to woman-led/riot grrl bands of the '90s - I could easily see Sleater-Kinney, Bikini Kill, or Le Tigre finding inspiration in this album. Personally, it's right up my alley. It has that ultra-indie rock-band sound to it; experimental yet derivative (although that may be my own 2025 bias), with some extreme bursts of genius peaking out from behind the chaff. I will definitely be looking into other albums by Throwing Muses, which is exactly what I wanted from this project.

Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge

Mudhoney

3/5

6/10 Best songs: Something So Clear, Broken Hands, Who You Drivin' Now?, Check-Out Time I feel like I've heard of this band, but I know nothing about them and have never listened to them before. This album has a grunge-y rock vibe. I do enjoy it - the guitars are quite brilliant - but the droning singing gets a bit old.

Only By The Night

Kings of Leon

3/5

6/10 Best songs: Sex on Fire, Closer, Use Somebody To my knowledge I'd only ever heard Sex on Fire and Use Somebody before listening to this album. What's interesting is that I knew next to nothing about the band before starting the album, and almost instantly wondered if they were a Christian band (ugh). They aren't, as it turns out; but they are heavily influenced by their pentecostal upbringing (but not in the rah-rah-god kind of way). It's kind of interesting that that influence is so apparent. That being said... Outside of the singles, the album is kind of dull. I like the production and I appreciate that the band was (is?) doing rock music during a period when rock really isn't that popular, but it's just not my thing.

Crosby, Stills & Nash

4/5

7/10 Best songs: Suite: Judy Blue Eyes, You Don't Have to Cry, 49 Bye-Byes I actually really like a lot about this album - the harmonies are excellent and each song has its own identity. However, it does get a bit dull after a while; I'd be interested in seeing what the band would do with a slightly faster tempo. Good stuff though - I'll look into more music by them later.

Revolver

Beatles

4/5

7/10 Best songs: Eleanor Rigby, Got to Get You into My Life, Tomorrow Never Knows Such an interesting album, yet not a particularly good album, if that makes sense? Every song is very different from one another which messes with its cohesiveness, and often makes me feel confused about where it's going (and what it's doing). Although there are a few clunkers, there are some classic tracks here, and Eleanor Rigby is instantly one of my all-time favorite songs. It's funny that people deride TikTok songs for being so short when the Beatles were doing the same thing back in the 60s - so many of these songs are so short that I barely get an impression of them before we're off to the next one. One thing I do really appreciate is the sheer breadth of musical instruments used - someone in this band was very, very interested in trying new sounds, which I can never fault.

Kenza

Khaled

2/5

4/10 Best songs: El Harba Wire, Derwiche Tourneur My first non-English album during this project! My thoughts? Uh, it's fine. It gets very samey at some points (most points), and a lot of the songs drag a little too long for my liking. The cover of Imagine was a choice. I appreciate the mixture of traditional and western instrumentation and styles.

Power In Numbers

Jurassic 5

5/5

9/10 Best songs: Freedom, A Day at the Races, Remember His Name, What's Golden, Thin Line Great storytelling, voices complement each other very nicely. Enthralling. One of the best albums I've listened to during this project. Chali 2na's bass voice is probably the standout for me - it stands out and has this almost businessman-does-rap vibe to it? Idk. The mid-album stretch from A Day st the Races ro Thin Line is just perfection. Homophobic lyrics are not cute, but I guess it's accurate to the sociocultural context of this group, so sure, whatever.

Chore of Enchantment

Giant Sand

4/5

7.5/10 Best songs: (Well) Dusted, Wolfy, Satellite Although I've never heard of this band before (unusual since I'm fairly well-versed in music from this genre and time), apparently they later turned into Calexico, who I AM familiar with. The album has a very toned-down, nearly but not quite acoustic vibe, with heavy country/folk influence. Music and lyrics alike are quite understated. I understand how people could find this album dull - it lacks very many peaks and valleys and overstays its welcome, but I quite like it.

Safe As Milk

Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band

5/5

10/10 Best songs: Sure 'Nuff 'n' Yes, I Do, Zig Zag Wanderer, I'm Glad, Abba Zaba What a fascinating album. It's somewhere between rock, blues, and avant-garde/psychedelica, pushing the boundaries between music and sound at some points (Dropout Boogie, Electricity). Every song is radically different, showing a real grasp of music and an interest in experimentation. This really can't be considered an "easy" album, but in terms of art, it's really, really good. Based on the surprisingly low rating on this site, I'd guess that most listeners aren't very interested in experimental or "weird" music. If you have an open mind, then this album is definitely for you. Personally? I love it.

Gasoline Alley

Rod Stewart

3/5

5/10 Best songs: Gasoline Alley, Cut Across Shorty Some songs are catchy, but I don't think I really like his voice, and I feel like he never pushes the boundaries very much. Like, if he really rocked tf out at the climax of some of the songs, I could see this album being outstanding. As is stands, it's just okay.

Low-Life

New Order

4/5

8.5/10 Best songs: The Perfect Kiss, This Time of Night, Sunrise, Elegia Kind of like a less-depressing and more synth-heavy Depeche Mode. I am VERY into the music - but man, the singer's voice is... not the best. I think the first half of the album (through Elegia) is genius, more than deserving of 5 stars, but I was thinking the last few songs are a bit weak. Overall a great discovery and a band I'll revisit in the future, but not a perfect album.

Electric

The Cult

3/5

5/10 Best songs: Wild Flower, Outlaw A perfectly fine album. Very '80s rock vibes: heavy bass, lots of drums, yelling/forceful singing. There really aren't any standout songs. It's just kind of... average, honestly.

Aladdin Sane

David Bowie

3/5

5/10 Best songs: Panic in Detroit, Cracked Actor Creative, experimental, but like, not really my style of music. I think I like later David Bowie a lot better.

Fear Of A Black Planet

Public Enemy

3/5

5/10 Best songs: Welcome to the Terrordome I always enjoy political rap/hiphop so I'm happy to hear this album. This album is very loud: deep bass, loud drums, shrill whistles, forceful vocals, samples and lyrics that very clearly scream "this album is about the Black experience." It becomes overwhelming, which is honestly the entire point: one can argue that much of the Black experience is tied to anger and fury, and this album makes that very clear. That being said, a little bit goes a long way, and this level of anger for over an hour is waaay too much for me. I also don't really like some of the gender views expressed, but y'know, time and place matters, I guess. I understand the significance of the album, but I think a little tightening (particularly in the second half) would have made it stronger. Overall it's not for me.

Whatever

Aimee Mann

4/5

7/10 Best songs: I Should've Known, Stupid Thing, Say Anything, Jacob Marley's Chains, I Could Hurt You Now A singer-songwriter from slightly before Lilith Fair who I've heard of before but never listened to. Located somewhere between folk, country, and alt rock, but done well - not just guitar, but a great backup band. That being said, the album kind of sounds like every other album from this period, albeit a bit stronger and with some really great moments here and there (harmonies & guitar solo in Say Anything, etc). I wonder if Mann is attributed to be a founding member of this type of music? Hmm. Anyways, I do think this is a very solid debut.

Black Sabbath

4/5

8/10 Best songs: ??? Not the "heavy metal" I was expecting, but I am pleased with what I got. The music is far and away the strongest part of the album. The vocals aren't very good, and the lyrics are honestly really lame, but the musicality of the album (almost?) makes up for it. Interestingly, I've kind of had difficulty identifying a "best song" - not sure why. The songs are all pretty strong, none are offensive to the ear, so why can't I pick out one or two that stand out?

Electric Prunes

The Electric Prunes

4/5

8/10 Best songs: I Had Too Much to Dream (Last Night), Bangles, Train for Tomorrow, Sold to the Highest Bidder, Get Me to the World on Time, Try Me on for Size Mid-60s early psychedelic rock/electric rock - very garage band vibes, but like, a couple generations earlier than the garage bands I grew up with. As one might expect from 60s music, each song is quite short, but the tone and lyrics are unexpectedly dark (melancholic? I'm not sure of the right word). Somewhere in the final third of the album the music shifts from being experimental/psychedelic to almost story-telling/folk, and then back again. It's a weird tonal shift that doesn't seem to fit the rest of the (imo) very strong album. I do really like this album overall and I'm really happy with its place on this list.

Channel Orange

Frank Ocean

4/5

8/10 Best songs: Sweet Life, Super Rich Kids, Crack Rock, Pyramids, Lost A rather melancholic album about youth and the Black experience - or, at least, a very specific portion of it. In general I find the album quite strong (the Crack Rock-Pyramids-Lost stretch is great) but most of the songs are a little too slow for me - feeling kind of like background music.

Fever Ray

3/5

6/10 Best songs: Now's the Only Time I Know, I'm Not Done You know, considering how into indie music I was in the late 2000s, I'm kind of shocked that Fever Ray never came onto my radar - especially considering that singer Karin Dreijer was once part of The Knife (!). That being said, I'm not really sure I understand why this album is on this list. Don't get me wrong: it's not bad by any means, and I enjoy it, but like... What is it doing that The Knife didn't already do? Or Bjork (who very clearly influenced Dreijer's style of singing, which I only realized just now and I'm shocked I didn't notice years ago)? My big criticism of the album is that it's a little too down-tempo for my liking, with a sparse, almost cold musical landscape. Few of the songs ever push the envelope or move out of that same zone, which makes it a bit one-note. That being said, the songs that do are pretty great. I feel like this is a case of an album that critics hyped tf up because of the insane popularity of The Knife and not for its own merits.

Parachutes

Coldplay

3/5

6/10 Best songs: Yellow, Everything's Not Lost My opinion about this album is the same as my opinion about every Coldplay song I've ever heard: well-done music, but waaay too slow and one-note for me. It shouldn't be a surprise that I find songs like Yellow, where harmonies add some interest, to be the strongest on the album.

Can't Buy A Thrill

Steely Dan

3/5

7/10 Best songs: Do It Again, Dirty Work, Kings It's funny that I first discovered this group through a Tori Amos cover of Do It Again. I was obsessed with that cover so I gave the original version a listen... and was summarily disappointed. 20 years later, I actually really enjoy that song, as well as most of this album. The storytelling lyrical style and the diversity of songs (particularly in the first half) make this quite successful. A great use of harmonies and unusually good instrumental solos (for the time) really strengthen this album. I do think it could use a bit of tonal variation - more downbeat songs for example - and the album sort of peters out in the second half (this was very clearly an album where the A Side was head and shoulders above the B Side), but overall it's pretty good.

Africa Brasil

Jorge Ben Jor

4/5

8/10 Best songs: Ponta Da Lança Africana, Meus Filhos, Meu Tesouro, Taj Mahal '70s Brazilian samba meets African beats. As someone who doesn't really listen to any of this (and has little prior experience with it), I'm surprised by how much I like it. It's a good album.

Led Zeppelin IV

Led Zeppelin

4/5

8/10 Best songs: The Battle of Evermore, Stairway to Heaven, When the Levee Breaks You know, this album does something that I really wish more albums in general do, particularly those from the early 70s: it has peaks and valleys, sometimes in the same song. Instead of stagnating with the same sound, the album goes from screaming, brash, and loud to low-key story songs. I really like that approach because I don't end up bored by the end. Stairway to Heaven is a good example of this encompassed in one song: calm story with almost sn acoustic vibe to the band kicking in to the vocals fading away and heavy metal taking hold to the earlier screaming vocals. Compare that to Four Sticks (also on this album) - one heavy bass line and screaming the whole way through; no variation makes for a very tedious experience. All of that being said, this album annoys me because its highs are extremely high and its lows are in the basement. Not sure how to rate this one. And one last note: man, they really gave anyone a microphone in the 70s, didn't they?

Live At Leeds

The Who

2/5

3/10 Best songs: Shakin' All Over Live albums should never be on an "essentials" list - they are inherently on a different playing field than studio albums, which makes it pointless to compare. I listened only to the 6 original tracks on this album: later versions were expanded to 2x longer than the original. Typical 70s rock music; lots of drums, bass, and guitar, not great vocals. The solos are just excessively long and get quite dull (My Generation, I'm looking at you). I just don't see the point in this album on this list.

A Night At The Opera

Queen

4/5

8/10 Best songs: You're My Best Friend, The Prophet's Song, Bohemian Rhapsody A boundary-pushing, extraordinarily creative album. In some ways I don't quite understand how Bohemian Rhapsody came from this album, in some ways I do (it's even more out there than the rest of the album). I really appreciate all the peaks and valleys - this album never gets mired in the same sound. There are a couple reasons the album misses out on a perfect score. First, the songs leading up to Bohemian Rhapsody are either reheating its nachos (Love of My Life) or just really dull (Good Company). Second, something just doesn't quite click... There's a lack of emotion, maybe? I'm not sure. The album is an almost-but-not-quite kind of situation.

Scream, Dracula, Scream

Rocket From The Crypt

4/5

8/10 Best songs: On a Rope, Ball Lightning An album by a group I've literally never heard of before. It's kind of a mix of rock, punk, and metal, but I saw some definite influences by other genres in there (Used has '60s girl group vibes, of all things). One of my big critiques of the album is that on occasion it feels like the lyrics and vocals are ignored with all the emphasis put on the outstanding music (including harmonies and outstanding guitar/bass/drums). Like, sorry, but "would you like some cheese with your wine?" was just as dumb of a lyric in the 90s as it is today. (Doesn't stop me from loving that song though!) The album also goes a bit too long, with the second half being a bit of a drag. What I find particularly interesting is that the album has a very clear garage rock sound to much of it, which is sort of characteristic of this kind of heavy rock from the 90s - even in music that was not by any means garage rock. Overall it's a really, really good, enjoyable album.

Pictures At An Exhibition

Emerson, Lake & Palmer

1/5

2/10 This album has a lot going against it. First of all, I do not think live albums should be on this list. Second, this is a progressive rock (opera) adaptation of the titular opera by Mussorgsky, and it's... kind of boring? The prog rock aspects are simultaneously barely there and also painful to listen to. The singing (what little there is) is... fine. It just sounds like a midi version of classical music. Not great.

Pet Sounds

The Beach Boys

3/5

5/10 Best songs: Wouldn't It Be Nice, God Only Knows, Here Today I was looking forward to this album based entirely on the enduring strength of God Only Knows and Wouldn't It Be Nice. Unfortunately those are the only songs that I particularly enjoyed. There's nothing egregiously wrong with the album; it's just very typical '60s music, and nothing stands out.

One World

John Martyn

1/5

1/10 Tldr; at its worst this album grates like nails on a chalkboard, at its best it's inoffensive but dull. I really, really don't like his voice - in some points it's too husky and rough, obvious that he's forcing it; at other times he's so restrained that it just doesn't sound good. I understand what he's going for - that Martin Gaye satiny "makin' love" kind of music - but I just don't really like it, but man, at times his voice is like nails on a chalkboard. Also, "Big Muff"? Ugh.

John Barleycorn Must Die

Traffic

2/5

4/10 Best songs: John Barleycorn I have to admit, based on the album title I was expecting something folk or Irish. Instead I got yet another early 70s progressive rock/jazz (rock?) album. It's like... fine. Boring, honestly. Some of the songs are in a minor key which just doesn't work here. It's telling that the strongest song on the album isn't particularly prog rock/jazz.

Vespertine

Björk

4/5

7/10 Best songs: Hidden Place, It's Not Up to You, Undo It's funny how the first repeat musician I encountered in this project is Bjork of all people - and an album I'm (pretty sure) I listened to before. At its best the songs are angelic, beautiful; at its worst its slow, overly quiet, and dull (particularly in the second half of the album). Do I like Bjork's strand of avant garde? Eh... depends on my mood, and the song.

The Clash

3/5

6/10 Best songs: What's My Name, Deny Genre-defining, wildly creative, incredibly influential, but like... honestly... I'm just not a huge fan of punk music. Not a fan of the punk "voice" or the brash music. I do, however, really appreciate how this is ridiculously different from other music from this time.

Superfly

Curtis Mayfield

4/5

7/10 Best songs: Pusherman, Superfly Politically aware 70s music. This album is deceptive: the music is a whole vibe, very chill, very easygoing, yet the lyrics tackle social issues affecting socioeconomically disadvantaged and Black communities. Overall really good stuff.

Sincere

Mj Cole

1/5

1/10 I'm a big fan of electronica/dance music, especially from the late 90s/early 2000s, but let's be real - dance albums never really work, at least not at this time. This is just not a very interesting album - and not particularly good dance music. It's overly long, repetitive, and wasn't all that relevant at the time, let alone now. Why is this on the list?

Nebraska

Bruce Springsteen

4/5

8/10 Best songs: Atlantic City, Johnny 99, State Trooper What I find fascinating about this album is how restrained Springsteen is. He never goes hard with his singing; he never uses obscenities; his music very very rarely reaches a huge, bombastic crescendo. He's quite talented. His music doesn't entirely work for me for this reason - I like my music to have more extremes; because of this, State Trooper is probably the best song on this album because he marries his restraint to something "more." Overall pretty good. I won't make my mom (a Bruce Springsteen fan since the 70s) angry after all!

Myths Of The Near Future

Klaxons

5/5

9/10 Best songs: Two Receivers, Atlantis to Interzone, Golden Skans, Magick, Gravity's Rainbow Man I was OBSESSED with this band circa 2007-2008. The album sounds exactly like the cover (highly unusual, I know) - spacey, futuristic, electronic, energetic, new. It just feels like this typical British indie rock band has new and exciting influences that their contemporaries didn't. Even now, 20 years later, the album feels unexpected and exciting. Just good stuff.

Rain Dogs

Tom Waits

3/5

7/10 Best songs: Clap Hands, Big Black Mariah, Anywhere I Lay My Head I've always been conflicted about my feelings towards Tom Waits. I find half of his music absolutely brilliant, and the other half nigh on unlistenable. And... that's exactly how I feel about this album. It's definitely something that everyone should listen to at least once, but I'm not totally sure they'd like it. I'm of the opinion that the second half (the B side) is a bit of a bore. All of that being said, I do sort of wonder if I'd be able to turn myself into a Tom Waits fanboy if I listened to his stuff on repeat - I could plausibly see myself becoming obsessed with enough listens.

Olympia 64

Jacques Brel

3/5

5/10 Literally the definition of French chanson. Live album (ugh) but it does work better here than on some of the other albums on this list. It feels like the kind of music you'd hear in the background of some movie where they're trying to be all sophisticated and shit. Good but just not my kind of music.

Red Headed Stranger

Willie Nelson

3/5

5/10 When I think of country music, Willie Nelson is the kind of stuff I'm thinking about - not the pop country stuff that pops up on the Billboard 100. That being said... This is good country, but I don't really find it very interesting. Nothing really grabbed me. It's a little too stripped down. His voice is terrific though, pure country. Good for what it is, but not for me.

I Am a Bird Now

Antony and the Johnsons

3/5

5/10 Best songs: Fistful of Love For some reason I always thought this band was much older (from the 80s, which I've never really had an interest in), so I never gave them a listen. The album is much slower/down tempo than I'd expected - for some reason I was thinking it was dance? The constant vibratto in every single song gets a bit old. The lyrics are very, very queer: a desperate yearning for another body, for another self. I don't know if Anohni was aware of her gender at this time, but the lyrics are basically the experience of an "egg," which would be really interesting to study more closely.

Third

Portishead

4/5

7/10 Best songs: We Carry On, Magic Doors, Threads There is a lot to like about this album, but one thing that I have a lot of issues with is the fact that as an album it isn't particularly successful. You have these really vibey songs that have a terrific, ever-onward-pushing beat, and then... they abruptly end, and a new song begins. The whiplash just doesn't work for me. This is an album that very much should have been connected through short interstitial tracks, or by rearranging songs to match beats or instruments. But yeah, I do actually enjoy the album overall; the beats and music are excellent, and I appreciate the singer's ethereal voice (although it definitely worked better on Dummy than here). Where the band was doing trip hop during the 90s, in the 00s they shifted to a heavy bass/drum/house/almost industrial kind of feel (sort of Skinny Puppy/pre-Skrillex vibes). Does this album belong on this list? Ehhhh, probably not, but I like it so sure, why not.

The Man Machine

Kraftwerk

2/5

4/10 I appreciate how ahead-of-the-times this album is - very electronic, futuristic, industrial. I just don't particularly have an interest in it. I'm sick and have a headache so I may not be in the right head space for this album, so I'll give it a relisten at a later time.

Paul Simon

4/5

8/10 Best songs: Me and Julio Down by the School Yard, Peace Like a River, Paranoid Blues Second Paul Simon album I've come across on this list, and I like it even more than the other. It's funny that the first time I ever came across his music was a remake? adaptation? of Me and Julio Down by the School Yard by Chk Chk Chk from the early 2000s called "Me and Giuliani Down by the School Yard (A True Story)." I like this album, it's very chill folk.

Selected Ambient Works 85-92

Aphex Twin

4/5

7/10 Best songs: Xtal, Ptolemy This is a timeless, extremely vibey electronica album. No lyrics, just pleasant beats that make you nod your head and melodies with a futuristic sound. I find it really impressive that this album sounds so modern for being from this time period - Aphex Twin is a tremendous producer. I will say this however: this is very much a "background music" kind of album. You can turn it on in the background and it won't mess with your concentration, and much of it could easily have a vocal track added and nothing would change.

Sunshine Superman

Donovan

4/5

8/10 Best songs: Sunshine Superman, Bert's Blues, Season of the Witch This album is sort of schizophrenic - some songs have such a mid-60s groovy vibe that is kind of psychedelic, kind of singer-songwriter; other songs are folk songs with medieval themes that don't really seem to belong in the same realm as songs with lyrics about "trans-love airways." I definitely like the psychedelic tracks more than the rest, but it's all pretty good. I'd like to hear more by this musician; I appreciate experimental acts.

Unknown Pleasures

Joy Division

3/5

7/10 Best songs: New Dawn Fades Somewhere between rock and punk (leaning more rock). Pretty good album, I just think the vocals let it down a bit.

Djam Leelii

Baaba Maal

4/5

7/10 Best songs: Muudo Hormo A timeless Senegalese album. It avoids a lot of the tropes inherent to western music, starting with the need to have short, focused tracks with a climax. In this case it's not a bad thing: each song is different from one another and I find them all quite compelling, almost hypnotic in their focus on beats and seemingly improvised (but probably not) variations of the same melodies. I enjoyed this album as pleasant background music.

Wild Is The Wind

Nina Simone

5/5

9/10 Best songs: I Love Your Lovin' Ways, Four Women Now THIS is what I call an album. At times fun, affective, passionate, socially conscious - just good stuff. This isn't ordinarily my type of music but it's genuinely just good, from the very beginning.

Sticky Fingers

The Rolling Stones

4/5

8/10 My mother has been a Rolling Stones fan since the 70s, so I would forever shame her if I didn't like this album. Luckily I do. It's among the strongest of the 70s rock albums I've heard; every song is distinct, with rising action and appropriate climaxes; and nowhere do they fall prey to hubris by focusing too much on guitar solos or the music over vocals or what-have-you. It even flows nicely, working well as an album. My only complaint is that I don't think there's really a stand-out track - everything is on the same (strong) level, but there isn't anything I particularly want to relisten to. I'm curious about whether other albums by this band are any better (by my standards). Luckily this list likely has 57 albums by the band, so I'm sure I'll find out in a few hundred albums...

Fleet Foxes

4/5

8/10 Best songs: Sun It Rises, White Winter Hymnal, Your Protector Someone in another review states it quite nicely: "mainstream Appalachian affectation." The album is choral folk music - lots of vocal harmonies, country influence, sounds like it could be played by a group of camp counselors around the campfire. That's not to say that I don't like this album - because I do, it's great. I never listened to Fleet Foxes at the time, despite being very into indie music, but they've stood the test of time.

Roger the Engineer

The Yardbirds

2/5

5/10 No real standout tracks, no strong opinions about the album - it just kind of happened. Bland 60s music. The definition of average.

Another Music In A Different Kitchen

Buzzcocks

3/5

6/10 Pretty good early punk (??). I have no strong feelings about the album, but it doesn't repel me as much as punk usually does, so that's a plus, I guess.

Songs In The Key Of Life

Stevie Wonder

3/5

5/10 Best songs: Pastime Paradise, As There is a very specific easy listening genre from the 90s that I find excruciatingly dull. This album absolutely fits into that genre, with the caveat that it was released 20 years prior. I guess the album is quite ahead of its time in that regard. Unfortunately I just find it pretty boring. I appreciate that he touches on social issues, and there are no stand out bad songs, but it's so average.

1977

Ash

2/5

4/10 Best songs: Innocent Smile Very typical rock for this time period. Sometimes the vocals are not the most pleasing to the ear, and by the end it gets dull. I feel as if the reason this album was included on the list is because Ash is a Northern Irish band releasing music during the Troubles. Which - don't get me wrong - is interesting, but that seems like a pretty weak reason to include the album on this list, particularly since they don't even sing about anything political.

Cafe Bleu

The Style Council

3/5

5/10 Best songs: A Gospel, Strength Of Your Nature This is such a confusing album. It starts as sort of jazzy easy listening - mainly instrumentals with a few random vocals. Then suddenly A Gospel comes on and it's early rap/hip hop; then you have typical synth-y 80s music... It's a sort of schizophrenic album. Some parts are good, some are bad, some are dull... I'm not sure what to think about it honestly, but I like how experimental it is.

A Hard Day's Night

Beatles

3/5

6/10 Best songs: A Hard Day's Night, Can't Buy Me Love This album takes me back to those halcyon days of youth in the 60s: riding bicycles on sidewalks under clear blue skies, fathers going to work to have affairs with their secretaries while mothers day-drank to stave off their existential angst and depression. Now, I never said that was my youth, ofc. This album is the exact music that has played in the background of period pieces for decades now. It's very much of the time, building the archetype of 60s rock music, but as a whole it's kinda boring. Sorry, but like, not really.

Back to Basics

Christina Aguilera

4/5

7/10 Best songs: Back in the Day, Ain't No Other Man, Welcome (after the weird beginning), Nasty Naughty Boy, I Got Trouble, Hurt There is no denying that Christina Aguilera has a fantastic voice. The album is meant to go "back to basics" by drawing on musicians like Etta James and Otis Redding, but also by referencing songs from her own archives, either lyrically or musically. I find the former interesting but sometimes the 2000s pop vibes overwhelm it (the burlesque Nasty Naughty Boy and the bluesy I Got Trouble are probably the strongest in this genre, and the second disc is far and away the stronger of the two in this regard), whereas the latter is sort of meh (I find self-referencing kind of tacky tbh). One criticism I have is that this album frankly lacks nuance. I know that's not the point of this style of pop music, but singing "he took it out on her face" is very... low-level-of-entry kind of lyrics, you know? That being said, it's actually a pretty interesting album overall, but at times it's not very successful, and it never should have been more than one disc - they seriously needed to cut the wheat from the chaff. Worth listening to. Also, having looked at other reviews... Good lord you people are a bunch of misogynists.

Rust In Peace

Megadeth

2/5

5/10 This is not exactly a bad album. Strong music (heavy guitars, overwhelming bass and drums), varied vocals, sort of lame lyrics but whatever. It's just not my kind of music. I was bored the whole way through. How do I rate something like this?

Bat Out Of Hell

Meat Loaf

2/5

5/10 This is not a bad album, but it's really, really, really not my kind of music. Every song is twice as long as it should be; for as elaborate and over-the-top each song is, they're all pretty dull; and I just don't like it tbqh.

The Stone Roses

4/5

8/10 Outside of this project I am very into indie music, and I have been for a couple decades now. I'm shocked that I've never listened to this band before - they are very solid indie rock. They're a few years before my listening prime so I guess that's a reason why. You know the theme song to the original Boy Meets World TV show? Like half of these songs sound exactly like that, which is not a bad thing by any means. It's not my favorite version of indie (this is sort of garage rock), but there is no denying that every song is its own thing, and the album itself flows terrifically. Good stuff.

Lost Souls

Doves

5/5

9/10 Best songs: Here It Comes, Rise, Catch the Sun, The Man Who Told Everything I'm trying to figure out if I've ever listened to any music by Doves before. I've definitely heard of them - I was a very avid indie music connoisseur starting in the mid-late 2000s l - but I can't remember if I ever got around to listening to them. If not: shame on me! This is an EXCELLENT album. Indie rock at its finest. Distorted guitars, terrific swelling melodies, great beats - it's everything I want in my indie music.

Abbey Road

Beatles

4/5

7/10 Best songs: Oh! Darling, I Want You (She's So Heavy), Polythene Pam My third Beatles album in less than 75 albums, and my second in a week. Figures that'd happen to someone who's not a particularly big fan. I understand how insanely influential the band is, and some of their songs are absolute bops, but I just don't find their albums especially interesting. It says something that my favorite songs from this album are the ones that aren't popular and where the singing/music is a little more out there. Much of this album oscillates between being overly low key and overly quirky (like "hurdy gurdy I'm a goofy circus performer"). While better than their other albums I've heard, and while it has some flashes of brilliance, and while it's highly influential... it's not amazing by any means.

Get Behind Me Satan

The White Stripes

4/5

8/10 Best songs: The Denial Twist, Little Ghost While this album probably never should have been on this list (it was later dropped, and the first two White Stripes albums are certainly better than this), it's good rock. Nothing really stands out, but it's solid all around.

Lady Soul

Aretha Franklin

4/5

8/10 Best songs: Chain of Fools, People Get Ready Not much to say - Aretha is a great singer, these are sort of pre-Motown/jazzy/blues-y songs, and it's just a very chill, cohesive album. Good stuff.

A Rush Of Blood To The Head

Coldplay

3/5

5/10 Best songs: Clocks I've never been a fan of Coldplay, and this album does nothing to change my mind. Their music is so incredibly dull. With one or two exceptions (generally but not always their singles), it's background music at best. Well done background music, sure, but it's something you'd hear in the background of an episode of some TV show or a coffee shop. And that's fine - clearly this type of music has its fans - but I like music that's actually interesting. Oh, and proof of my point: once the album finished, Spotify played several other Coldplay songs before I realized the album was over. It's all literally variations on a theme. Background music.

Frank

Amy Winehouse

2/5

4/10 Casual homophobia in the first song? Ugh. Instant turnoff. I don't particularly enjoy Amy's singing on this album, and I'm not a huge fan of her voice - it sounds like a teenager singing. Also not really into the lyrics - like the voice, they sound so immature. This is very clearly a debut album by someone who hasn't grown into their abilities yet.

Will The Circle Be Unbroken

Nitty Gritty Dirt Band

3/5

6/10 Best songs: Nashville Blues, Tennessee Stud Bluegrass/country music from the early 70s. It's exactly what I think of when I think of this genre: banjos, yearning for lost loves, trucks, horses, and dogs. I do find that it drags a bit too long - 2 hours is too much for this, and somewhere in there it gets dull. That being said, I like it overall.

OK Computer

Radiohead

3/5

7/10 Best songs: Paranoid Android, Electioneering, Climbing Up the Walls I have tried many times over the past 25 years to like Radiohead, but it just never stuck. Some complaints from this listen: Thom Yorke lacks anything even resembling enunciation skills, which in one way works since it turns his voice into a background instrument, but also doesn't work since I like listening to vocals and understanding lyrics; many of the tracks are far too long; it's a little one-note; there's a dreary sort of melancholy/apathy that permeates every track. That being said, some of the songs really hit for me, and when they aren't preoccupied with being ridiculously droning and dull, they are top tier. So yeah. Sorry, Radiohead fanboys: I am not one of you.

Forever Changes

Love

4/5

7/10 Best songs: Alone Again Or, Live and Let Live I really enjoy this album - psychedelic rock has been my big revelation since starting this project. The songs that really embrace the LSD of it all are definitely my favorites, but there is nothing on here that I dislike.

Mr. Tambourine Man

The Byrds

4/5

8/10 Best songs: I'll Feel A Whole Lot Better, It's No Use This album is pretty good overall, but the absolute standout is It's No Use, which is probably the best song I've heard in the last 15-20 albums. That alone gets this album 4 stars.

Wonderful Rainbow

Lightning Bolt

1/5

2/10 Do I consider this music rather than a random assortment of discordant sounds? It's heavy on the avant garde spectrum, but yes. Do I find this appealing music? Not even remotely. There's barely anything here to grasp on to or to draw me in - no real hooks or nice beats or anything. What I find interesting, however, is that the band so deliberately pushes the boundaries of what is music that it makes it clear that they know what they're doing, and they made this album intentionally, indicating that they could make something sonically appealing if they really wanted. Unfortunately, for me and how I listen to music this album is just not that great.

Music for the Masses

Depeche Mode

5/5

10/10 Best songs: Never Let Me Down Again, Strangelove, Sacred, Little 15, Behind The Wheel I am a big Depeche Mode fan, and this album contains (starts off with) what I consider to be their all-time best song: Never Let Me Down Again. Beyond that, the album is full of absolute bops. The 80s synths, terrific pacing, goth vibes, and Dave Gahan's distinctive voice make this a fantastic album.

Beyond Skin

Nitin Sawhney

4/5

7/10 Best songs: Homelands, Immigrant A musician I've heard of but never listened to before. Interesting, vibey trip hop with an Indian flair. It is a very good album that kind of oscillates between trip hop and a more experimental singer-songwriter kind of sound (but not really). Its stated objectives are to discuss nuclear atomic weapons and identity, but I think the album is a bit more successful at examining the latter than the former.

Rock 'N Soul

Solomon Burke

4/5

7/10 Really good album of early-60s rock... and soul... yes I am just repeating the title of the album, so what? It's genuinely true. I will say that there are no real stand-out tracks, though it never gets too repetitive (well, mostly). As an album it doesn't necessarily work super well, but I'm finding that to be true of most 60s albums - they tend to be collections of singles and songs, with the only throughline being some repetition of music or beats. Anyways, good album, glad I got put on to it.

Back To Black

Amy Winehouse

4/5

8/10 Best songs: Back to Black It's crazy that I listened to her debut album the other day and got this one today - what are the odds? This time around she certainly grew into her voice, and it's an interesting experience hearing these ultra-modern lyrics paired with Motown/60s-influenced music. Overall it's worlds better than her debut. I do find that at various points she loses herself in the aesthetic styling of her voice, which results in a loss of enunciation, and thd mixing is occasionally entirely off (seriously, in several of the songs I can barely understand her due to both of these reasons). Frankly, I've never particularly enjoyed her music, and I have always found her celebrity inextricably tied to her tragic life which I find rather reprehensible, but this album is better than I expected.

Fuzzy Logic

Super Furry Animals

3/5

5/10 Best songs: Something 4 the Weekend, If You Don't Want Me to Destroy You This is a wildly inconsistent album. Sometimes it's brilliant, sometimes it's barely listenable. This occurs both song to song and also, in some cases, in the same song. I think it works best when it's rockier, dancier, more forceful. When it slows down and the lead singer's frankly weak voice takes center stage it gets pretty awful. But again - one of the songs I find the best musically I also find the worst due to the vocals (If You Don't Want Me to Destroy You).

A Seat at the Table

Solange

2/5

4/10 Best songs: F.U.B.U., Scales As the album very clearly states: "this shit is for us." I, unfortunately, am not part of "us," which makes me conflicted about whether or not I should even be reviewing this album. Anyways! I don't really like the album (it's too downbeat, repetitive, and some parts just bash you over the head because they are oh-so meaningful, which makes me irrationally annoyed), but I do think the production is great and I wouldn't be surprised at all if people find it important and meaningful. I just find it a bit dull and obvious, too lowkey and unemotional, with pointless interludes. Not my favorite.

Night Life

Ray Price

2/5

4/10 I enjoy country music, but this is that old style honky tonk stuff, where there's not much of interest happening in either the music or the vocals. It's very much all the same thing, again and again. It works as a background album but it's not interesting enough to seek out of its own merits. What stands out, however, are the extraordinarily gay lyrics - I kid, but like, not really. Take, for instance, the following: "the glamour of the gay night life has lured you / to the places where the wine and liquor flow / where you wait to be anybody's baby /and forget the truest love you'll ever know." Okay, yes, I am reading into these lyrics tremendously, but as a gay I find them hilarious. Anyways, do I like this album? No. But at least a couple parts made me laugh.

Beauty And The Beat

The Go-Go's

4/5

8/10 Best songs: Our Lips Are Sealed, Tonite, We Got the Beat This album surprised me - it's really good start to end, with interesting songs and great beats. It quickly became obvious to me that the Go-Go's are incredibly influential among punk/rock girl groups later on (seriously, Veruca Salt, Slater-Kinney, and Le Tigre - some of my faves - owe a world of gratitude to them), and for good reason. Just good music.

Head Hunters

Herbie Hancock

2/5

3/10 When I first saw that this album was 40-minutes long and had only 4 songs I was alarmed. Upon listening, I feel extremely indifferent. It's fusion jazz from the 70s. Every song is overly long, lacks vocals and a climax. Not things that work for me. Overall I find the album to be background music, but like, the kind of background music I wouldn't even realize is playing because it's so dull. Don't get me wrong: the album is perfectly fine, and nothing is actively bad. I just don't think it's good.

Figure 8

Elliott Smith

4/5

8/10 Best songs: Son of Sam, Junk Bond Trader, L.A., Can't Make a Sound I started getting into music right around the time of Elliot Smith's death, so I've always been aware of him but I never really dived into his oeuvre. Overall the album is a bit more rock than I was expecting, with some nice beats, but the emphasis is very clearly on his voice, lyrics, and guitar. There are absolute moments of genius on this album (the rising tension and climax of Can't Make a Sound are phenomenal, for instance), but some songs land a bit flat in comparison. Still, an excellent album, and one I see myself returning to in the future.

The Black Saint And The Sinner Lady

Charles Mingus

5/5

9/10 You know, it's funny: just the other day I got my first entirely jazz album, and I was not even remotely a fan. I've never been a jazz fan to begin with, but that album confirmed my general apathy towards the genre. Then I got this album - a decade earlier than the other, with a lower rating to boot, and I... really enjoyed myself. It's great background music, but I never found myself bored or frustrated by the length of the songs. I will admit that I'm skeptical about giving it 5 stars - I only realized that I wanted to do so in the last few minutes of the final track - but I really can't think of anything wrong with the album, or that could be better. I could see myself putting it on while cleaning or doing chores in the future. I'm happy to finally get another 5-star album!

All Mod Cons

The Jam

2/5

5/10 (2) Best songs: Billy Hunt British new-wave band I've never heard of. Verdict? Um... well, it happened. The music is nice enough, a bit muted, never really "goes there" if you know what I mean. The vocals and lyrics are... fine. The album is kind of dull, with a few nice beats here and there. I don't actively dislike it, but I don't think it's particularly good or memorable, either. (Fun discovery post-listen: on the US release they switched out Billy Hunt with The Butterfly Collector, which was later covered by my favorite band Garbage in the 90s. That cover is one of my favorites of all time. So... that's interesting anyways.)

Morrison Hotel

The Doors

3/5

6/10 Best songs: Ship of Fools, Land Ho!, Maggie Ma'gill Not sure why the exact middle album by this band is on the list, especially when it has no big hits (and literally nothing I or my parents have even heard of), I guess because it charted highest in the UK? idk. Some of the songs have good beats, some are dull, the lyrics are whatever. The big standout for me is actually the terrific bass lines in many of the songs - Land Ho!, for example, has a pulsating, forward-driving bass that is irresistible. Overall pretty good, with the music itself being a standout.

I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got

Sinead O'Connor

4/5

8/10 Best songs: Feels So Different, Black Boys on Mopeds, Nothing Compares 2 U, Jump in the River, Last Day of Our Acquaintance When the songs on this album hit, they hit HARD. When they don't hit, they're... fine. Never bad, but maybe occasionally dull. The album is comprised of largely ballads, revolving around Sinead's lovely voice, compelling lyrics, and orchestra backing music (along with guitars and drums of course). The album takes the occasional foray into heavier beats or not-so-timeless 80s and 90s pop music aesthetic, which is never bad but rarely amazing. Overall it's a really impressive album (minus a few clunkers) by a musician who should have been far bigger than she was.

Dirt

Alice In Chains

2/5

4/10 Best songs: Down in a Hole This is a heavy metal/grunge album whose music, surprisingly, I don't particularly dislike. My big issue with the album is that every. single. song. never. ends. They drone on and on and on with the same-sounding instruments, vocals/vocal techniques, and lyrics. It gets boring. There are few to no stand out tracks (mainly because I kept anxiously waiting for each song to end).

Ogden's Nut Gone Flake

Small Faces

4/5

8/10 Best songs: Rene, Song of a Baker, Rollin' Over, Mad John If there's one thing I've learned since I started this project, it's that I have a serious soft spot for '60s psychedelic rock. Side one of this album is an excellent, rather emblematic example of the genre. It's 60s down to its bones, with glorious guitar solos, quirky lyrics and vocals, and all-around enjoyable vibes. Side two embraces the batshit crazy, aiming for somewhere between twee and too-high-to-function. The songs themselves work for me, but the ongoing narration by Stanley Unwin, while interesting, slows onward progression tremendously. That being said, I do like this side as well - the songs are no worse than those of the first side. I'm left wondering: does the narrative framing ruin the album or not? I'm not sure.

Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1

George Michael

2/5

3/10 Best songs: Freedom '90, Soul Free With the exception of Freedom '90 and Soul Free, this album is nothing but ballads. None of these songs are actively bad, but they are treacly sweet and painfully boring to boot. Not my cup of tea.

Oracular Spectacular

MGMT

4/5

8/10 Best songs: Electric Feel, Kids, 4th Dimensional Transition, Of Moons, Birds & Monsters, The Handshake, Future Reflections The second this album popped up I just knew it was going to be a banger - I listened to the singles (especially Electric Feel) on repeat for years, and I knew it was unlikely the album would be bad. That being said, I find this to be an album that shifts between incredible innovation and incredible mediocrity. When the album is good, it's very, very good. When it's not, it's... fine. It's never actively bad. I do think the brilliance outweighs the dullness, hence the rating, but I was half-thinking this was going to be one of my favorite albums off this list. Oh well.

american dream

LCD Soundsystem

1/5

2/10 This album is endless dirge after dirge, droning on and on and on. It's like dance music at a funeral, but like, you can't dance to this stuff. It's not interesting, it's not fun, it's just a complete drag. I get why their earlier work might be on this list, but the presence of this album indicates that the writer made no effort to explore new music after roughly the year 2010, and has no taste to boot.

You've Come a Long Way Baby

Fatboy Slim

3/5

5/10 Best songs: Right Here, Right Now, The Rockafeller Skank, Praise You I have always found it interesting that this album found so much success. Its singles were literally EVERYWHERE in the late 90s, and they were not anything like what was popular at the time. This album is much the same: dancey electronica music, with a lot of repetitive elements. When the album is good, it's very, very good; when it's bad, it's just dull. I don't think this is the type of album anyone is going to turn on as background music - it's very much the kind of thing you might hear at a club (er, a few decades ago). Not bad, but not great.

This Year's Model

Elvis Costello & The Attractions

3/5

5/10 Best songs: You Belong to Me, Lip Service, Lipstick Vogue First time listening to Elvis Costello and my big takeaway is that his vocal affectation and pared back music give big pop-punk vibes, albeit 20 years too early. I'm of the opinion that this would be a good album if it were sung by someone else (who didn't do the specific pretentious affectation Elvis does). It's not exactly bad, and a few songs are pretty good, but I sure don't think I'll ever willingly listen to this album again.

Sunday At The Village Vanguard

Bill Evans Trio

2/5

4/10 I'm not a big fan of jazz, but an album I got last week (Charles Mingus) was making me rethink that opinion. Unfortunately, this album does nothing to ameliorate my feelings towards the genre. Boring, boring, boring. Elevator music.

All Things Must Pass

George Harrison

3/5

5/10 Best songs: Wah-Wah, What Is Life, Let It Down, Art of Dying Why is this album over two hours long? Why is George Harrison singing "hare Krishna" in My Sweet Lord? The album has some absolute bangers - better than anything the Beatles ever released, sorry not sorry - but it is bloated with a lot of dreck and frankly mediocre songs. Some serious editing could have made this a good album, but what's here is just... not.

Shaft

Isaac Hayes

2/5

2/10 I'm not totally averse to this list having soundtracks, but this is certainly not the kind of soundtrack that should be on it. Boring, boring, boring, not iconic (at least not 50 years later), and not interesting in the slightest. Saturday Night Fever, Grease, Romeo + Juliet, and Great Expectations would all be terrific soundtracks for this list. Shaft? Nah.

Rage Against The Machine

3/5

5/10 My feelings towards this album are a bit conflicted. I love political music, and this RATM is very vocal about their politics here. The music itself is quite strong. But I don't really like the repetition of lyrics and the screaming vocals. This is yet another album where I'm left wondering how to rate something that is objectively good but I don't actually enjoy.

Vulgar Display Of Power

Pantera

2/5

3/10 I'm sure someone out there likes this, but I don't. Screaming, poorly enunciated vocals and loud, brash music are not my thing. The disappointing thing is that when they slow down it's really great - the final track, Hollow, is terrific.

Run-D.M.C.

2/5

4/10 Best songs: Rock Box As a historical artifact, this is very interesting - this is an unparalleled snapshot of early rap/hip-hop. But the other reviews are not lying: this album is very dated, with some really dumb, corny lyrics and not-so-great rhymes. I do find it charming, with a few interesting/appealing songs, but whether it's good or not is debatable. Even though my rating is low, I think it definitely belongs on this list.

Immigrés

Youssou N'Dour

4/5

8/10 Best songs: Pitche Mi Finally, interesting music! Youssou N'Dour is a Senegalese drummer and, while his drumming serves as the centerpiece of the album, it is by no means the only thing of note. The guitar and bass are excellent, with lovely horns and strings occasionally punctuating yet never overwhelming the songs. The vocals (sung in Wolof) are a great accompaniment - acting more like a minor instrument than the most significant thing. I'm glad this album is on the list.

Deep Purple In Rock

Deep Purple

3/5

5/10 Best songs: Child in Time Just another 70s heavy rock band. I have no strong feelings about this album. It's repetitive, not much stands out, but it's not actively bad. It is very clear that this was a big influence on later metal bands, which is cool.

Nothing's Shocking

Jane's Addiction

1/5

3/10 I appreciate that this album was significant at the time (it definitely doesn't sound like other rock from the late 80s), but I just can't get past the incredibly immature lyrics and overdone instrumentals. It sounds like music made by and for a teenage boy. Not great.

If You're Feeling Sinister

Belle & Sebastian

4/5

7/10 Best songs: Me and the Major, If You're Feeling Sinister Bdlle and Sebastian are a group I've heard of for decades, listened to once or twice, and decided "ehh not really my thing." My opinion is largely the same after listening to this album. I'm a big fan of this kind of vibey, low key indie music, but the reason it doesn't quite work for me is the lead singer's voice: he sings in such an incredibly relaxed, apathetic way, like he gives so few shits about the meaning of the songs that he doesn't even want to tense his jaw or stay in tune. The non-caring affect is very stereotypical indie hipster, in music form. That being said... I do consider the album really good overall. In a lot of ways it's the platonic ideal of an indie pop/rock album. I just can't stand his voice.

Juju

Siouxsie And The Banshees

5/5

9/10 Best songs: Spellbound, Arabian Night, Halloween, Night Shift, Voodoo Dolly Siouxsie and the Banshees is a revelation. I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised: I am a huge fan of later bands who cite Siouxsie as an influence, after all. But I'm not a particularly big fan of punk, but I do like some goth rock, so whether I'd like this album was always going to be up in the air. Turns out I really like it: it's a terrifically atmospheric, dark, and heavy album, with Siouxsie's piercing wails sailing above the music. Great music, great lyrics, just great stuff. So glad to hear a (distrrssingly rare) female-led band on this list, too.

Hail To the Thief

Radiohead

3/5

5/10 Best songs: 2 + 2 = 5, There, There, Myxomatosis No matter how much I've tried, I am not a Radiohead fan, mainly because I hate Thom Yorke's voice and singing style. The music also bugs: it's often in a minor key, which, while unique (particularly when they manage to get their ways out of it), is off-putting to the extreme. Both voice and music are at their best when the song reaches a climax, emphasizing intensity, or the culmination of a rising period of building tension. The problem is that half the songs don't have this, which, again, is off-putting. I appreciate that the band is doing something unique - they are breaking the rules of what music "should" be - but man, it just doesn't sound very good to me.

Brothers In Arms

Dire Straits

1/5

I've somehow managed to never hear any of these songs before, and man, I miss the me that I used to be. This album is boring as hell. Each song is at least 3 minutes too long. There's unnecessary homophobic language in Money for Nothing (and no, I don't care if they're writing from the POV of a character; in this time and place it fed into society-wide homophobic tropes, particularly considering the AIDS epidemic, so it was unnecessary). That's not to say it's all bad: I do like the saxophone in Your Latest Trick. But the rest is pretty dreadful - very trite, cloying, wannabe-meaningful trash. If you like the easy listening genre; overly long, meandering songs; or defending regressive attitudes, then this might be your cup of tea. If not, then you actually have good taste.

The Rise & Fall

Madness

3/5

6/10 Best songs: Our House Warning: what is listed on Spotify is NOT the actual album. Search on YouTube for the full album. (Ask me how long it took me to figure this out...) Interesting album. I wasn't sure what to expect when I saw it described (in reviews) as "ska," but it's much more rock/new wave than anything else, with a bent towards the experimental. There's nothing too offensively unpleasant here, but also not a lot of standouts either. The album goes a bit long and the final few tracks weren't needed, but overall... not bad.

Parallel Lines

Blondie

3/5

7/10 Best songs: Hanging On The Telephone, Heart of Glass, I'm Gonna Love You Too Good rock music. Diverse yet cohesive album. But... I'm not really feeling it for some reason. It just doesn't go there enough for me.

Funeral

Arcade Fire

4/5

8/10 Best songs: Neighborhood #2 (Laika), Neighborhood #3 (Power Out), Wake Up, Rebellion (Lies) My first album in this project was Arcade Fire, and now, over 120 albums later, I'm getting another one of their albums. I find this rather interesting. Anyways, I have been listening to various songs by Arcade Fire for decades now. When they're good, they're very, very good; but sometimes the songs just fall into a mire of pretention and dull repetition, and that gets old fast. This album is much the same - some absolute bops (there's a reason Wake Up has been on my playlists for over 20 years now), some incredibly average songs. Overall quite good though.

Soul Mining

The The

4/5

8/10 Best songs: I've Been Waiting for Tomorrow, Soul Mining, Giant What an interesting album. This is a new-wave/post-punk/quite experimental album that doesn't sound like anything else I've heard from this time period. In general the lyrics are terrific ("I'm just a symptom of moral decay" is amazing), but the music is 50/50 - half the time it doesn't really work/suit the vocals, but the other half the time it's engrossing to the extreme. This is sooo close to a 5 star album but a couple of the songs don't quite work for me... I may adjust the score upon relistening later.

The Gershwin Songbook

Ella Fitzgerald

1/5

2/10 Of course I get the longest album of the entire project on an insanely busy day. Listen, Ella Fitzgerald is an amazing singer and the songs are, generally speaking, mediocre to good. But I think similarly about this album as I do about all the live albums on this list - especially the earliest ones: this should not be on this list. This album is simply not comparable to the vast majority of the albums on this list. This is a compilation. It is not an album. Being over 3 hours long is another big ding against it - no album needs to be this long (and it is because, of course, it is not an album). The songs get incredibly repetitive and dull after a while, and as a result I started to treat it like background music. There's definitely a good album somewhere in there, but you need to omit a good 90% of the songs to get there. Objectively speaking, this album deserves a 2; but I'm writing this as I'm finishing up Disc 5 (of 6), about 3 hours in, and I can't be objective anymore. This is PAINFUL. Sorry, Ella, but I just can't give you a 2. Or higher.

Be

Common

3/5

5/10 As a Humanities PhD (well, in a few months), I find this to be a perfectly adequate album. The music is far better than the lyrics, although the non-stop midtempo beats so prominent in R&B/rap of the 2000sis a bit dull. Honestly, there's nothing wrong with this album, but I don't think it's particularly good either. It's perfectly fine.

D.O.A. the Third and Final Report of Throbbing Gristle

Throbbing Gristle

2/5

3/10 Good grief, this week I've been getting all of the controversial albums - with this one by Throbbing Gristle being the lowest rated on the entire site. To reiterate my thoughts on similar albums that push the boundaries between "noise" and "music": Do I consider this music rather than a random assortment of sounds? It's heavy on the avant garde spectrum, but yeah, sure, why not - especially since the band itself calls this music. Do I find this music appealing? Eh... There's not much here to grasp on to or to draw me in - no real hooks or nice beats or anything. It's extraordinarily abstract. Then again, it IS listenable, and I kind of enjoy some of the sounds, so I don't think it deserves 1 star.

E.V.O.L.

Sonic Youth

3/5

5/10 Best songs: Starpower, In the Kingdom #19 My first of the 5 Sonic Youth albums, EVOL sounds very garage rock in that sort of unformed, glimpses of brilliance but not quite there kind of way. Ultimately it probably doesn't belong on this list, but I do think it's interesting but not amazing.

In Rainbows

Radiohead

3/5

6/10 Best songs: 15 Step, Bodysnatchers, Reckoner, Jigsaw Falling Into Place I've listened to less than 130 albums so far and I'm already on my third Radiohead album - and the second in about a week. I don't particularly think more than one of their albums should even be on this list. Why? Two reasons: I don't like Thom Yorke's slightly off-tune, perpetually apathetic, poorly enunciated vocals; and I don't like their music, which is always either in a minor key or just slightly off from sounding good. That being said... Radiohead is at its best when they go for a faster, or more conventionally poppy vibe - Bodysnatchers is far and away the best song I've ever heard by them, for example, and Reckoner's music is lovely. The slower songs tend to fall more into their typical pretentious wheelhouse, and I find them incredibly annoying to listen to. Anyways, I like this album more than the others I've heard by them, but I don't think it's particularly amazing. Sorry, but like, not really.

Antichrist Superstar

Marilyn Manson

2/5

5/10 Best songs: Cryptorchild, Mister Superstar Honestly? This album is better than I was expecting. It's cohesive, has some interesting songs, and the screaming is not as overwhelming as I'd expected. That being said, I think a lot of these songs could have been significantly improved if sung in a different way, or with different music. I suppose I'm thinking of this a little strangely - I've been listening to Rasputina's cover of Tourniquet for decades now, and their approach is far more mellow, less metal, and thus (?) much more interesting. By comparison, the Marilyn Manson version has instruments that overwhelm the vocals, and the screaming detracts from the meaning of the song. I feel like this is representative of much of the album - there's something there, but the musical choices let it down. I would also be remiss not to mention that several of the songs contain slurs. While the performative hate (towards others as well as himself) is Manson's whole shtick, I always deduct a star or two for slurs. I suppose it's "less bad" in this context because, well, we expect that kind of thing from Marilyn fuckin' Manson, but I just can't support that kind of thing. (Also, Manson is a trash human, so he doesn't deserve a rating higher than this.)

Tarkus

Emerson, Lake & Palmer

2/5

4/10 Best songs: Are You Ready Eddy? There's something really good about this album, but you kind of have to dig for it - it's hidden behind the frequent atonality, discordant instrumentals, and lack of hooks/interesting lyrics at all. I think I'd like it a lot more if it had been made in the last 20 (or even 30) years - I feel like they would've been amazing with a few dance beats or the use of any computers at all. As it stands, the music just doesn't quite work for me... With the exception of the final track, which is a complete tonal shift and sounds like it's coming from a different band all together.

Violent Femmes

4/5

8/10 Best songs: Blister in the Sun, Add It Up, Prove My Love, Gone Daddy Gone Another band I'd heard of but never listened to. As it turns out, this is a really great album. Heavily influenced by punk but with a less rock-y bent, it sounds kind of like grunge or acoustic indie rock (think garage band vibes) from the 90s or even 2000s. I'm conflicted about whether to give this a 4 or a 5 - I may just be relieved to break my string of absolute trash albums recently, but this is quite good. I may come back in the future to adjust my rating.

Quiet Life

Japan

3/5

5/10 Best songs: Quiet Life Kind of new wave meets electronica meets goth. Gives Depeche Mode vibes at various points. Each song is its own individual package, not flowing particularly well into the next, which makes this a fairly unsuccessful album in my book. Also, these songs are waaay too long. But it is listenable and I like what the album is trying to achieve (although it's never quite successful), so it gets credit for that.

Tidal

Fiona Apple

4/5

8/10 Best songs: Sleep to Dream, Criminal, The First Taste, Never Is A Promise, Carrion There was something in the water in the 90s that led to a huge number of astonishingly talented women singer-songwriters getting big (often at a young age), and Fiona Apple is undeniably a standout. As far as I'm concerned, she deserves the Nobel Prize just as much as Bob Dylan did - her lyrics (poetry) are some of the best in the business. That being said, I often find the instrumentals/music to not be to my liking; they can be a bit too low-key. Generally I think that when she sings in a more forceful tone, with slightly more intense music, her music is in "best song of (year)" territory.

Sulk

The Associates

3/5

5/10 I've been going through a streak of... less than great albums recently, so I was worried when I saw this was on the bottom 20 list. Interestingly, I don't think it's that bad. It is EXTREMELY new-wave, with the synths and exaggerated singing to show for it. I think the album is perfectly fine - not a standout for being good or bad. Other reviews criticize the singer's voice, but like I said, he just sounds like a typical new-wave vocalist to me. This should receive 2.5 stars, but I'll give it 3 since I didn't have a bad time listening to it.

Lust For Life

Iggy Pop

3/5

5/10 Best songs: Neighborhood Threat, Fall In Love With Me Some pretty good songs, good beats, and generally good vibes. The issues: Sixteen did NOT age well (like, in the problematic "you should be looking for someone your age" kind of way), and Turn Blue is so godawful that it basically makes me want to give the album 1 star. I'll settle for a 3.

White Light / White Heat

The Velvet Underground

3/5

6/10 As I've come to discover over the course of this project, I am a big fan of psychedelic rock. That being said, even though this album is definitely that, I struggled a bit with it. Each song individually is generally quite good, with one or two parts I wasn't particularly keen on; but when put together as an album, they don't really work. The flow is all off: some songs are too long; The Gift makes absolutely no sense surrounded by songs with actual vocals; and on occasion certain choices were made that interrupt what is actually happening in a song. This album is clearly bursting with creativity and is influential to boot, but song/album structure was put to the wayside in its development, to its detriment.

Future Days

Can

5/5

9/10 I'd never heard of Can before it popped up today, and man, was I missing out. This album is such a vibe. At times it's abstract, ambient, and intense; it feels like you're floating through clouds, only sometimes interacting with the real world. Even though it's 55 years old, it doesn't sound dated in the slightest. As what ultimately amounts to instrumental rock music, it sounds like it'd fit perfectly into the post-rock genre today (Mogwai, Red Sparowes vibes). But really, someone in another review stated it perfectly: it still sounds like the future. Such an amazing album.

All Directions

The Temptations

3/5

6/10 Kind of like if funk and psychedelic rock had a baby named Motown. Some tracks are extremely groovy; others go in the opposite direction and drag on and on. I definitely prefer the first couple of tracks (the long psychedelic ones) more than the rest (ballads).

Headquarters

The Monkees

3/5

6/10 Best songs: Randy Scouse Git Nothing wrong with this album. Though people like saying it's a Beatles ripoff, I'd argue it shares more in common with the Beach Boys. There are no real standouts (except for Randy Scouse Git); every song sounds perfectly fine. Personally I don't mind the manufactured band aspect - it's just an early version of Backstreet Boys or any K-pop band. We live in a capitalist hellscape, so we just gotta deal with music made for profits.

KIWANUKA

Michael Kiwanuka

5/5

9/10 Best songs: You Ain't the Problem, Rolling, I've Been Dazed, Hero, Solid Ground, Light I've only heard a couple of songs by Michael Kiwanuka before - around the time he won BBC's Sound of... in 2012 - and wasn't super impressed. Today's listen has dramatically shifted my opinion. This album is a revelation. Michael Kiwanuka has his own, genre-bending style, mixing together funk, soul, 60s rock, and half a dozen other genres into something wholly its own. The album is both timeless yet of the moment, tied together by his silky smooth (yet at times gravel-rough) voice. It's so good. I do find a couple of tracks to be a bit dull, but the album is so overwhelmingly unique that it doesn't even matter. This is one album that absolutely should NOT be removed from the book in future editions.

Peter Gabriel

3/5

5/10 Best songs: Waiting for the Big One, Down the Dolce Vita He sounds like the male version of Kate Bush on this album, but like, worse. The first half is not that good, but it improves tremendously towards the end. Overall not bad, not great.

Lost In The Dream

The War On Drugs

2/5

4/10 I've heard a few songs by this band but never delved too deep until now. My opinion: the band's name is far too interesting for such milquetoast music. This is the least adventurous, most derivative rock I've heard in a minute. Every song has a 3+ minute instrumental close, which is fine on occasion but painful when it's every single track. Ultimately this is coffeeshop background music, but like, the type that is so dull you don't even bother looking it up to see who originally sung it. I'm somewhere between offended that it's on the list and appalled that people actually think it's good enough to rate higher than a 2 or 3. That being said, there is nothing - absolutely nothing - wrong with this album. It's just painfully boring, and that, I'd argue, is worth a low rating.

I Against I

Bad Brains

3/5

5/10 Best songs: Let Me Help Honestly, what you'd expect from a post-punk act: heavy guitars, bass, and drum; snarling vocals that are frequently so poorly enunciated that I didn't understand what the vocalist was saying; kind of poor production that definitely doesn't stand the test of time. That being said, it's not awful. I'm not a particularly big fan of punk to begin with, but this isn't too bad, so I left the album satisfied (more or less).

Strange Cargo III

William Orbit

3/5

90s electronic/ambient music. Very chill background music vibes. Some parts are a bit dated (there's an oboe?? kind of instrumentation in Harry Flowers that is straight off a 90s midi file, fot example), but in some ways the album sounds almost timeless. Not bad, not great.

Songs For Swingin' Lovers!

Frank Sinatra

3/5

A typical 50s album - very sentimental, most songs sound extremely similar, and it clearly would work best in a dance hall setting. Unfortunately, I find it painfully dull and repetitive. It feels like half the songs have the same hook; I literally had to double check multiple times that Spotify wasn't malfunctioning. Clearly plenty of people like this stuff, but I am very much not the audience. Score subject to change (to a 2) in the future - for now I find it boring but not overtly bad.

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