Better than I remembered. Pocahontas, thrasher, sail away, powder finger all bangers. Sedan delivery not great.
I do like it, and some of the individual songs are amazing. But it is very long and lacking any change in texture. Reality is too good for 3 stars, but good enough for 4.
So fresh and so clean. Speakerboxx hardly ever lets up. Love below is much more experimental. 2 hours+ but flew by.
Middle of the pack Led Zep album. Immigrant song, Since I’ve Been Loving You, That’s the Way are highlights.
Jazzy and experimental. Cool direction for hip hop / rock. Some of the instrumentals were cool. Still too long.
The great Christmas album.
Bland. Poor cover of grapevine. I like other temptations stuff but this wasn’t it
If I’d never heard of Prince or Stevie I would be impressed, but I have and I’m not
Some brilliant bits of songwriting. Very strong
Bonkers. Actually a bit annoying in parts but then also bohemian rhapsody
Not my thing but I can see the merit. Some good party tunes.
Wanted to like this more than I did. It’s just not that interesting
Surprisingly good. Starship trooper was great. The clap kind of sticks out like a sore thumb but it is class so no harm done
Brilliant album. Red Rain was a great opener. Some of the production is a little dated, on Big Time for example. Overall a great listen, somewhere between a 4 and a 5.
Good album. Fades a bit towards the end
Tricky one to rate. I don’t love grime. I find some of the beats repetitive and some of the sound effects obnoxious. But the highs, like Fix Up Look Sharp, Wot U On and Do It are really good.
Love La Grange. The rest of the album was a little bit disappointing. Nice bluesy stuff but all quite samey.
Enchanting rhythms and a beautiful voice. Blew me away the first time I heard it and still love it now.
Light years away from “My Girl”. Funky and earthy 70s offering. I like it
An extraordinary album that feels like a greatest hits package. Side 1 is a cohesive mix of slinky midtempo reggae jams, whilst side 2 is anthem after anthem
I just want to share the comedy podcast Three Bean Salads take on Led Zeppelin:
https://youtu.be/Gj8FihIIaic?si=mAhteZQikrLhVTkT
One of the first albums in this list that I don’t recall hearing before. Really enjoyable Afrobeat stylings from Mr N’Dour
It’s not bad. It’s not good. It’s just fine
I can see what’s good about it but it is incredibly dull
I do have a copy of the book, but I don’t remember this at all. Presumably it only made it into one edition, and it’s not hard to see why
This hasn’t aged well and I didn’t like it when it came out
Rock opera. Springsteen for drama kids. It’s one step up from Grease and as far from punk as you can get. By rights I should hate it. But it is absolutely brilliant
Hard not to compare to Different Class, which is obviously in a different, better class. Feels like it could be a grower and I’ll try to revisit it a few times. For now, it’s a 3
Excellent party rock album
Songs of wonder and beauty from the man with the child in his voice. Won’t be for everyone but it works for me
After 55 years the tapestry is a little worn and faded, but you can still see how well crafted and elegant it is.
Quality album through and through. Brown Sugar to Moonlight Mile via Wild Horses, Can’t You Hear Me Knocking, Bitch and Sister Morphone.
An immensely cool album, led by a frontman dripping with charisma. So good
Chaotic and bi polar, SoaD’s debut album sets the blueprint for their unique sound. It lacks the bizarro-commerciality of Chop Suey but in Suite-Pee, Sugar and Spiders still has some top tier crazy metal tracks. Soul sounds like the first sketch of Aerials, which is no bad thing
From track 1 of his debut album Cohen establishes his unique, sonorous sound. Masterful poetry over arpeggio guitar.
You could be forgiven for thinking this is a Best Of. Half the tracks were released as singles, Heart of Glass chief among them, and the handful that weren’t include fan favourites such as Fade Away and Radiate and Will Anything Happen? For me, there’s a mid-album lull, and I don’t think much of the Buddy Holly cover. But otherwise it’s a cracking album
Abrasive and unrelenting, with many songs running for the close to ten minutes. Highlights include Luau, Super Unison and New Math. This album seems to have been labelled with lots of different genres, from post-rock to emo to math rock. I can see how it may have been influential to each of those, but it’s not really my cup of tea.
Gave this one a second listen to fully get it. A concept album about childhood, it’s great to hear Madness songs away from their greatest hits. New Delhi has not aged well, but then again we do have Our House which is an all time great.
God help you if this was the first album you got
Me, listening and smiling politely
Pleasantly surprised by this one. It doesn’t have the highs of the Color and The Shape but arguably is a more consistent album overall, and it’s a hell or a lot stronger than later life dad rock Foo Fighters. Good album
This is a seriously good album. Dexy’s are criminally underrated. Enjoy the horns and the violins, and whilst Kevin Rowland is not the world’s strongest singer, I believe he has soul. A great discovery
Love it. Have listened to this since I was a child and it never fails to lighten my mood. Louis Prima, Keely Smith and Sam Butera put on a great show
I used to be so intimidated by this album. I knew that Black Flag were hardcore punk pioneers and that Henry Rollins was a maniac, and I figured it would be just too extreme for me. But time tends to soften these things and now, in 2026, this is just a really good punk rock record. Yes, there are intense songs with high octane vocals, particularly in the second half, but then there’s nothing inaccessible in tracks like Rise Above. You can hear how it influenced the next 25 years of rock. There’s even elements of self-satire, with TV Party and Six Pack. And that album cover is kick ass.
Flanked by two eastern-tinged pillars of weird, the inner sanctum of Want Two is full of beauty. From the sophisti-pop of The One You Love to the baroque Little Sister, the stunning ballad The Art Teacher to the elegiac Memphis Skyline, the album is full of gems. Also, shout out to Gay Messiah, which overlays its beautiful music with hilarious biblical imagery
I don’t really get why this is so well received. It’s fine. It’s quite pretty in a uninteresting way, like watching the sunrise from a motorway service station
One of these days people are going to wise up and realise Queen aren’t all that
Ancient and overgrown as an old English forest
I quite like this. It’s a bit like Peter Gabriel but less poppy, a bit like The Blue Nile but less Scottish, a bit like The The but less electronic. It’s good and sounds like it would be a grower
Did I enjoy this? I should coco!
It’s a wonky album! Enjoyed the first couple of tracks, but then the experimental electro of Scorpio was less tolerable. The Stevie wonder tribute was confusing but then we finish with the all timer The Message.
It’s weird and noodley and nonsensical and British jazz-folk but I really like it anyway
Any major dude will tell you this is crap
A cool listen but in truth it’s a little one-dimensional and on some of the tracks it felt like they were going to just jam forever
90s rock break up album sitting squarely in the second stage of grief. Bitter and angry lyrically, supported by cutting guitars and yet somewhat funky beats. A great new discovery
Hate the album artwork and not fond of the initial track. But over 76(!) minutes of eccentric indie rock, this one won me over. It’s a 3.5 for me
I’m not the biggest fan of live albums. The songs never sound quite right and it’s impossible to capture the feeling of actually being in the audience. This is no different, although it admittedly does showcase Van the Man’s deep catalogue and his soulful warble
I love Paul Simon and the title track is an absolute masterpiece. However, why on earth does this album start with a track about allergies?! Its a strange album, with plenty of beauty and introspection but also a fair few throwaway tracks
Second live album in three days but this is much better. Template setting blues rock from Mr Muddy
Emo electronica from Britain’s favourite Hull duo (next to Rod and Emu). Thorn has a singularly excellent voice but I could do without the squiggly 90s trip pop beats
Track 1 is a banger. Unfortunately the rest of the album is a bit nothingy
Where the hell did Family Guy get the idea that Randy Newman just sings about what he sees?
Head and shoulders above everything else in the alternative rock-a-verse.
Forgettable. Cathys clown is a good track
One of the finest albums of the singer-songwriter boom of the 70s. Very cool for Cat.
First challenge: how much of this am I supposed to listen to? Having read the Wikipedia, I’ve decided to just focus on the actual concert recordings and skip the studio ones at the end.
Second challenge: listening to jazz.
(That’s a bit harsh, I did enjoy this)
Short but sweet. I was familiar with the title track but pleasantly surprised with the variety of the rest of the album.
Young Neil Young hits his straps with a dazzling sophomore album. 4 of the 7 tracks are all time greats from the Canadian king
Had to pause the first listen as the first minutes are a bit difficult. On second attempt though it calmed down and I even low-key enjoyed some of the noodling. Ultimately it’s unlikely to be any more than background music for me
Soulful and serious from the boy from Wham! Beyond Freedom this album was largely new to me and I must admit I’m impressed by it. It’s 48 minutes of well crafted pop balladry and downbeat anthems. My wife asked me to give him an extra star from her
Strong debut offering from the heavy metal pioneers. Sans Bruce Dickinson and with some longer experimental tunes, the album betrays some 70s prog rock influences and is all the more enjoyable for it
I grew up with this album and always thought of it as incredibly important to the dance genre. The four or five singles are absolute bangers. That said, on relisten, it’s fucking obnoxious. What’s with that extended drone noise? Sometimes it feels like Norman Cook is trolling us
One of the all time great Latin albums and the tropical samba would seem perfectly aligned to my first day of holiday. Unfortunately it’s gale force winds and chucking it down outside, but at least the album is helping to keep spirits up
Good time classic rock and roll. Blueberry Hill, Honey Chile and Blue Monday and are all bangers. A bit of a dip in quality is all that prevents this getting the full marks
Perfectly pleasant background music
A classic. Chocolate cake has perhaps aged poorly but once that has been devoured this album really is wonderful. I’ve always enjoyed the back half, which has fewer hits but the arguably the more beautiful songs
Decent punk record. Sounds like it might reward repeat listens
The best album by the best band
Wow. What an incredible listen. Starts with an orchestral suite, ends (almost) with an excerpt from Clare de Lune. And in between is some of the funkiest, most alive, R&B recorded. Great stuff
Respect to Jeff Lynne and co for having a vision and sticking with it. ELO manage to wear all their influences on their sleeve and yet have their own distinct sound. When it works, it really is good (Turn to Stone, Sweet Talkin Woman, Summer and Lightning), but it’s easy to imagine the cheesy sound and vocoder vocals grate on some. Could it have worked as a single rather than a double album? I don’t know, but it sure felt ELOngated
An album so bad it not only makes me hate this one, it makes me question other stuff I thought I liked by Zappa
First time listen through and really enjoyable politicised but accessible reggae
Surprised by how much I like this one. And acid house in general. I was familiar with Pacific State, and am well aware with Primal Scream’s take on the genre on Screamadelica, but I didn’t imagine how inventive and listenable it would be. Good discovery
The one where Kurt covers Lead Belly. A great live album, and the final chapter for Nirvana. Hard to be objective given that I’ve listened to this album so many times. Their own material is great (the superior versions of Pennyroyal Tea and All Apologies) but the covers are exceptional. The Vaselines, Bowie, Meat Puppets and Lead Belly songs all get five star renditions.
Excellent album from the Aussie indie icons.
Tom Verlaine has a goofy voice and Television sound nothing like the rest of the CGBG crowd. Other than that, this is a crazy good record.
Hard to believe these guys would go on to Build This City
For some reason I had always thought of Buffalo Springfield as a Neil Young project, I guess because I was familiar with Expecting to Fly and Broken Arrow (for what it’s worth, I do know For What It’s Worth). Listening to this, it’s clear that they are the exceptions, and they sit comfortably in the late 60s folk rock era. Nice stuff but unremarkable
Q-Tip of the hat, this is good stuff.
Ps if anyone else was enjoying the bassline from ManWomanBoogie, it’s from the 1979 Can track, A Spectacle
I like Kraftwerk and everything but I’m just not that into them. That’s my lukewarm take
Look, I know U2 aren’t cool (not sure if they’ve ever been), but this really is the tits. Even ignoring the first three tracks (all top tier), the rest of the album is really solid. Red Hill Mining Town is an anthem
It feels like ZZ Top were more of a singles band. Nothing new here worth listening to beyond the stuff we already know.
There’s something enchanting about Cohen’s late career growl, and whilst the synth-heavy albums of the 80s and 90s are easy to date, the sparse backing here is timeless. The opener threatens a menacing half hour, but the following tracks retain a surprising lightness, even if Cohen was by this point contemplating his final days on Earth.
Enjoyed it, but has no place in this list. Can imagine discovering it at the time and considering it a hidden gem. Hearing it now amongst these classics, it’s forgettable
Huge respect for the ambition, especially after reading how they funded it. 90 minutes on the deep south was a bit much for me to take in one listen, but I wouldn’t rule out going back and giving this another whirl at some point. 3 stars feels harsh, 4 stars feels high
The jangly power pop prototype that begat much of my favourite music. The Byrds, Big Star, R.E.M., The Smiths, The Replacements; you can hear their origins here.
An evocative blend of Stevie, Marvin, Prince and 2010s R&B
Boasting one of the best pairings of album opener and closer in music history, this one is practically guaranteed a high rating. Unfortunately, there’s just too much country tonk inbetween
I’ve already admitted to being a U2 apologist. This album I’m not so familiar with, besides Sunday Bloody Sunday, New Years Day and 40. The rest of the album, whilst not up to the lofty standards of those three, seems to be perfectly enjoyable. Will probably listen again to cement my thoughts
Can really hear the roots of Spiritualized in this one.
We are the Village Green Preservation Society
God save Picture Book, Monica and Big Sky-ity
We are the Ray Davies Appreciation Society
God save alt-rock and Merry England anxieties
Didn’t quite knock me out but LL floats like a butterfly, stings like a bee with the skill of a seasoned pro
I’m a fan of Gabriel’s Genesis, especially the two albums before this one. The highs on this album arguably surpass anything on those previous efforts. Unfortunately, they’re buried within a dense and confusing 90 minute concept story arc. The second half in particular is a slog to get through. Trim the fat and halve the length, this would be close to five stars
White Stripe highlights: Fell in Love With a Girl, We’re Gonna Be Friends, Hotel Yorba, Dead Leaves and Dirty Ground
The rest of the album isn’t quite as strong but it’s still a good album and more precise than some of their later works
