Album 1
Top 3 faves off the album: Hot For Teacher, Top Jimmy, I'll Wait
I'm going to try reviewing albums in a way I don't usually do; that is, by yapping about them to the best of my ability. Maybe by the end of this, I'll have something to say!
Van Halen has always been a household name for me, but I haven't gotten around to listening to them in-depth until now. The pacing of this album was well done, stepping off the gas pedal between some of the most driving tunes without losing the energy at the heart of it all. I wish I had something insightful to say about the drumming and guitar, but everything has been said already. They're phenomenal.
Lyrically, I think this one falls on the lower end of middle ground. As far as this project goes, I currently have nothing to compare it to. As an avid music listener in general, though, I've heard far worse, *and* far better. Time will really tell where this one falls in the total ranking, but I doubt it's going to be above the midpoint.
Overall, this was a solid start to the journey, and an enjoyable listening experience!
Album 2
Top 3 favorites off the album: Pulling Teeth, Coming Clean, All By Myself
Every so often, I listen to an album that makes me realize that maybe I'm not as far removed from my angsty teenage self as I think I am. Life runs in cycles, some ages feel closer to others, etc. etc., whatever you want to say about it. Not every song hits the same as when I first came across Green Day, but I was surprised by how many did still resonate in some capacity. Maybe your early 20s aren't so different from your early teens...
Self-reflection aside, a few songs sound quite a lot like each other, not just in a signature band way. It's all Very Green Day, but some songs are Very Green Day in a way that's more similar than other Very Green Day songs. Not necessarily a bad thing; it just makes me go, "oh, this isn't the same song as a minute and a half ago!" I'll always love early Green Day for their energy, though, so none of that bothers me.
Green Day was the first band I decided to like by myself. You know how you grow up listening to your parents' music, and you like some of it and don't like other parts as much, and one day you're digging through their CDs and records and you find a title or a band or some album art that piques your interest, and it's *your* discovery? That was Green Day for me. I was an angsty middle schooler, just about as un-punk as you can get, and I found a copy of American Idiot on the CD rack. I'm almost embarrassed to say that I haven't listened to this album before, so instead I'm just going to be honest: I'd never listened to this album before! It was exceptionally difficult to pick my top 3 favorites! This is an excellent album to drive to! Traffic had nothing on me!
Album 3
Top 3 favorites off the album: Down to Zero, Love and Affection, Save Me
What a voice! Loving this as a different sound from the last couple albums. Reminds me of Tracy Chapman, loving the guitar. Each track has a different sound while still maintaining the warmth and soulful qualities!
I was a little surprised to enjoy the lyrics as much as I did (more on that below). It's not exactly my go-to flavor, but I'm actually a lot less of a hater than I pretend I am. TLDR: I love love.
I feel like I talk a lot about me in these reviews, so much so that it feels like another diary. If you're reading this, that means you're bored or you actually give a crap about what I say. Cheers to both! That said: I. Adored. This. Album. I loved it. I tend to scoff at love songs because obviously I'm above mushy, public declarations/discussions of affection. Deep, deep in the depths of my disillusioned, overly pessimistic heart, though, I love love. This album reminded me that I love love. The way Armatrading writes about it, the ups and downs, lost and found, it's something pretty special.
Album 4
Top 3 favorites off the album: People Get Ready, Good to Me as I Am to You, Groovin'
Oh, Aretha Franklin, my beloved. Is there really anything to be said? A fantastic voice, an album that makes you get up and dance, it's always a treat to listen to her.
In the interest of saying something else, the bass across this album is delicious. If loving lower voices is a crime, lock me up and throw away the key. The horns are also clean as hell. I loved the funk in some of these tracks! I'm used to hearing more of her soul stuff, so that was neat! A very satisfying listening experience.
I always smile when songs just fade out at the end. It's always amused me for some reason, practical though it is. A lot of smiling this album. Anyway, I think my soul ascended. That's all for now, folks!
Album 5
Top 3 favorites off the album: Train Leaves Here This Morning, Peaceful Easy Feeling, Nightingale
Good variety in sound. I can appreciate an album that flows well. Unfortunately, I'm just not that into country rock of this flavor. Things I will give credit:
1. They can do a solid guitar solo.
2. I like the banjo, and there was an acceptable amount of banjo in Earlybird.
3. There are delicious vocal harmonies which make for fun musician listening.
Lyrics for this one sit in the middle for me. Some songs hit, others don't. Maybe I'm just a hater.
Funnily enough, my mom was just listening to The Eagles in the kitchen. One of my middle school friends loved them. I never got into them. Can't say this album has changed my mind, but I enjoyed Train Leaves Here This Morning enough that this was a decent experience. Probably won't come back to this one, though.
Album 6
Top 3 favorites off the album: Metropolis, Neon Lights, The Robots
Kraftwerk has been recommended to me by friends before this, and I did give them a listen before now. I liked the song recommendation from then, and thoroughly enjoyed listening all the way through this album. It's excellent for late night public transportation vibes.
This isn't something I'd normally seek out for myself. As far as electronic music goes, I'm gonna say this is my favorite type I've encountered! Maybe that will change! For now, I like how... bouncy the album is. That sounds like a juvenile description, but deal with it. It's bouncy. And smooth. It's all of the above. It's like contemporary art. There are doohickeys and whatchamacallits and gloopy sounds and growls, and it's all very exciting for me. Thank you. I particularly enjoyed Metropolis for the siren quality of some of the synths. Some of Neon Lights reminded me of Bob Hund. Does it make sense? Not even a little. Can I tell you what song or why? Maybe. Something off Omslag: Martin Kann. Possibly "Reinkarnerad exakt som förut." Might be owing to the tempo and pronunciation of "lights" and the like. Other than that, no similarity. But here we are.
I liked this one a lot! I've been saying that a lot! I'll keep doing it!
Album 7
Top 3 favorites off the album: Tears Dry On Their Own, Back to Black, He Can Only Hold Her
I remember thinking the first time I heard something off this album that Amy Winehouse was from a whole lot earlier than she was. 50s, 60s. I was surprised that I was old enough to remember hearing she had died.
I think the album has a good sound. I like the saxophone. Winehouse has that gravelly vocal quality and lower range that I dig. I guess I had the album built up in my head, and everything inevitably falls flat when you do that. It's not one specific thing over another, which may seem unfair.
This is unusually short for an entry. I don't have much else to say. Definitely a good album, and makes me wish I could rate in half stars as well.
Album 8
Top 3 favorites off the album: Tango Till They're Sore, Time, Clap Hands
My first thought was, "bizarre," and then I listened to the whole album and really, really enjoyed it. It *is* bizarre. Waits doesn't spoon feed you meaning; I had to think about this one. Still thinking about it, really.
Sonically and texturally, this album is unlike anything I have ever listened to. There's a gritty feeling to the whole thing, but often something lighter in sound floating over top.
Another short one for today, but only because this is one I have to revisit when I'm not at work. There's a lot going on, and I'm intrigued.
Album 9
Top 3 favorites off the album: Minor Chant, When I Grow Too Old To Dream, On The Sunny Side Of The Street
Un-shrimped my posture at my desk when I heard Chopin quoted in Minor Chant. It seems silly to do 3 favorite tracks because it's 5 tracks long, but what the hell, right?
This was good background music. That Chopin really did catch me. I was grooving. It was nice! I love how smooth the album was as a whole, huge fan of guitar in jazz, and this album had a nice warmth to it. I was in a good mood listening to it. I think I will also go back to the chicken shack for another listen.
Album 10
Top 3 favorites off the album: A Case of You, All I Want, The Last Time I Saw Richard
Mitchell is an excellent storyteller. The vulnerability and humanity of the lyrics with the spare instrumentation make for a deeply personal album. There's a hand to hold there. Also, ouch! At 9 a.m. on a Tuesday!
I've been reading a poem every morning from Devotions by Mary Oliver, and I initially thought this album and Oliver's work lived in similar spaces. Both, in my opinion, have a lot to say about the experiences of love and loss. There's joy and sorrow, but there's joy again after sorrow, and so on. After some reflection, I think Mitchell's work leans more into the sadness/loss whereas Oliver embraces the entirety of human experience. Both give me a feeling of being held, though.
I can see this album being one that takes on a different meaning throughout life. I think I understand it well now, but maybe with more life I'll find new things.
Album 11
Top 3 favorites off the album: Dance Indra, Light My Fire, Metamorphosis
Fusion for the win! I'm a fan of the sitar, so this was a treat. The mixture of original music and covers made the album an interesting listen. Not necessarily an album I'm always in the mood to listen to, but it was not unpleasant. I'm on the more neutral end of positive, if that makes sense. I like the pieces individually, and the album is good, but the pieces that make up the whole are better than the whole. That sounds like nonsense.
I'm slacking today. I have little else to say. Sitar fusion, yum. Good listen.
I wish I could go back to my world music class and write another paper about musical fusion. Manifesting acceptance into the master's program I applied for + funding so I can snatch an ethnomusicology degree.
Album 12
Top 3 "favorites" off the album: A Rush of Blood to the Head, Green Eyes, The Scientist
I get The Scientist stuck in my head sometimes, not even the lyrics, just the melody. That said, I cannot believe you are making me listen to Coldplay. In fact, I was so disinclined to do so that I put it off a whole two days. Maybe I'm just one of those attention span-lacking numbskulls, doomed to spend the remaining 50-55-ish years of my life scrolling endlessly through Instagram reels that will all be AI slop that's become so short we can gain nothing from them but 0.2 seconds of relief from the man-made horrors well within our comprehension. All I'm saying is 54 minutes of Coldplay in 2026 feels like so much more Coldplay than I ever signed up for.
Really, this is going to be an unfair review. 8 a.m. is not the time to listen to this album. I'm not going to go back and do it again, though, and if I don't get past this one, I'll hit a total stop. I should just call it mid and move on, but I won't.
Guitar beating eighths in 4/4 time. Drums 1, & of 2, and 4. Some piano noodling. Some Chris Martin going into falsetto. The occasional cymbal... tap. Not crash. Never too much. Lyrics that exist. A slow build to a mezzo-anything, a stripping back of instrumentation, then the sudden re-entrance of everything all at once. Repetition of one or two lines for the last 45 seconds of the song. Formulaic. To say something requiring more brain power, the album has a dark quality to me. Dark and cool. It should be a relief to listen to. Instead, the rush of blood to my head inspires a headache behind my eyes and a despair unlike anything I've felt during this project thus far. Long may I remain as unbothered as I was before.
I want to feel something about this. It's my general shoulder shrug of neutrality that really gets me. I almost don't have the energy to hate it, which makes me hate it. Nonsense, yeah. But true. I just keep rolling my eyes. I guess I'm just too old to be listening to this flavor of love song now. I try to put myself in my angsty teenage shoes, or even my younger young adult ones, and I just can't really romanticize lines like "And honey, you should know/That I could never go on without you" anymore. Now, don't misunderstand: I can absolutely get behind the sentiment when it's said in a way that's more flowery. I can be as sappy as the next person. I swear. This album feels more like being beaten over the head with a hammer.
Why didn't we put A Rush of Blood to the Head at the end?? I really think it was a better choice for a final tune. I was glad to hear it, but then there was one more song, and it was slow and quiet, followed by a sudden 50 SECOND INCREASE IN VOLUME straight back down into the same quiet. It belonged earlier in the album. Imagine Dragons did Amsterdam better, I fear. Crazy thing to say? Maybe. But as an avid former Dragons listener, I'm pretty qualified to judge.
Sigh.
Album 13
Top 3 favorites off the album: Silent Sorrow in Empty Boats, In the Cage Here Comes the Spiritual Anaesthetist
It was hard to pick 3 favorites because the album flows song into song into song so seamlessly. It's been so long since I've listened to an album like this. It's one of those where I want to say something new and meaningful, but I'm not convinced I can. Maybe it's enough to just enjoy it.
I did more reading about this album than I have about any other album thus far. Also, I have decided that I am not going to resist my natural inclination towards enjoying slower, quieter songs anymore. I always tell myself that I should pick more upbeat, loud, bright songs. I do enjoy some. But you know what? More than anything else, I enjoyed Silent Sorrow in Empty Boats! I did!
The variety of directions this goes sonically could have made this feel unapproachable, but it was so carefully constructed that it didn't feel jarring. There was humor. There was meditation on the human condition. There were sounds in The Colony of Slippermen that scratched my brain. There were funky time signatures. What a listen. This is one that you have to sit down and really pay attention to, not listen while doing other things.
My parents love Genesis, and I am a Peter Gabriel enjoyer. Perhaps this wasn't the best album to start with. That's not to say it was an unpleasant experience; now I know I can handle an hour and a half of Genesis! It was just... much.
This is the first full rock opera I've listened to. Andrew Lloyd Webber, I'm coming for you next.
Album 14
Top 3 favorites off the album: Leaving the Table, String Reprise/Treaty, Traveling Light
Good day to have never gotten over anything ever! And the album right after I decided to let myself enjoy the music I enjoy, too!
The opening of the album gave me goosebumps. The choir and cantor were exceptional. I've always liked Cohen's Sprechgesang; it lends an even more personal touch to what's already bare and vulnerable. Hello, strings! Did you say, "sit down and practice later"? As a sucker for gravelly voices, too, this was a good listen.
This is a deeply introspective album. It stays fairly sparsely orchestrated and down tempo, but that doesn't take away from the variety Cohen is able to explore. There are tunes to dance alone in the kitchen to (yes, from experience. Mind your own business), there are tunes to make you sit on the floor and stare at the wall (your own business, I said), and in every thread there is love that doesn't blame, resent, or make excuses. The romantic part of me wants to believe that it's most people's goal to find and embody a love like that, and preferably well before the end of their lives. I don't think this album treats it as a matter of perfection, either. It's honest.
I'm looking forward to exploring the rest of Cohen's discography. I'm absolutely kicking myself for not having done so sooner. Better late than never.
Album 15
Top 3 "favorites" off the album: Bubblegum, Madonna, Sean, and Me; Shadow of a Doubt
In an honest attempt to be fair, I'll keep this short.
It was noisy in a way that was grating. It felt long even at 39 minutes. I put off listening to my next album to listen to some of my favorites instead because I didn't enjoy this one.
I did like In the Kingdom #19. Very visceral and interesting. I also liked Bubblegum because it was the end of the album.
I tried to appreciate this. At least it isn't Coldplay. Won't be coming back to this one.
Album 16
Top 3 favorites off the album: Rent, Heart, What Have I Done to Deserve This?
SaLTbuRn ReFerEnCE???!??!?!?! (I initially hesitated to see it, but the number of times I've seen it now is... many. And I'll do it again.)
It was pop. It was danceable. I'd probably be a lot more likely to hit the club if this were what they were playing. If you know of a club that is playing this, please find a way to let me know. We can go together. It'll be great. I'm neutral leaning enjoying. I was bopping at my desk. Lyrically pretty simple, but it still slaps. Cheers!
Album 17
Top 3 favorites off the album: Bring It on Home, Moby Dick, Heartbreaker
First, it is beyond important to say this: I accidentally listened to Led Zeppelin III instead of II because somehow my autocorrect got III and my eyes did not process it. I was going to start this review with, "alright folks. This is the album that changed my mind," when actually it was Led Zeppelin *III* that did that. Maybe it was divine intervention because—hand to God—I did not like what I had heard of Zeppelin before III. I didn't. Not at all. Crucify me, draw and quarter me, pear of anguish, whatever. I'm not taking it back. It was true. You'll just have to believe that my mind has been slightly changed.
Had I begun with this album, that might not have been the case. I like what's going on melodically. I like the drumming. I don't feel much of anything about the lyrics. They're there. Really, I think I'd enjoy this more without lyrics. The singing itself is fine. I think we've figured out through this project that I'm not much of a rock and roll enjoyer for the lyrical content. Maybe one day I'll turn off the part of my brain that rolls its eyes. That day isn't today.
In a shocking departure from my usual preferences, I don't care much for the slower, quieter stuff (that part of What Is and What Should Never Be). Surprise, everyone!!!
I probably won't come back to this one because I much prefer III. This wasn't a bad listen, though, and hasn't made me swing fully back to being an avowed Zeppelin avoider. That's progress, yeah?
Album 18
Top 3 favorites off the album: New Intro, Hand Over Fist, Here Come the Rome Plows
I balked at the run time on this one. I'm no stranger to long albums, but I made the choice to look at the reviews of this one before beginning it. "Loud," "noisy," "too much screaming," and so on and so forth. I was nervous.
I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the opening. After that, the album became a little grating in how repetitive some tracks were (4 songs in). The guitar became a little too gritty for me, and the screaming wasn't the kind I enjoy. I don't think Super Unison needed to be *that* long, but I willingly listened to Rundgang Um Die Transzendetal Saule Der Singularitat (girl where are all the umlauts and proper capitalization at?), so it's probably just a matter of, "I don't like this song very much so it feels longer than it is."
Unfortunately, that was how I felt about most of the album. No beef with it, just not my thing. I've heard worse, I've heard better, this wasn't a bad experience. Also, that one review that says, "I think I love my parents too much to fuck with this album" is phenomenal. Short and sweet.
Album 19
Top 3 favorites off the album: The Court of the Crimson King, Moonchild, I Talk To The Wind
I'm feeling uninspired today, so another uncharacteristically short one.
This was a good album. I like the blend of jazz and rock and such, and liked the variety in instrumental breaks. I think most tracks were the appropriate length, though a few came close to feeling almost excessively long (looking at you, Moonchild). Despite that, I found myself enjoying all the ground covered in those longer tracks. Overall, a good listen, and one I might occasionally come back to.
Album 20
Top 3 favorites off the album: 666 Edit, Progen 91, Lightspan
Having hit the club... once? Twice? Thrice, perchance? I cannot really speak to whether I would enjoy this in the club over what they play at the club I've been to. I think... maybe some of it? I'm going track by track now on whether I would get down to this at the club. Enjoy.
Move Any Mountain - yes, good groove Human NRG - no, not so much
Possible Worlds - for a minute or two, only after a healthy amount of making fun of the lyrics
Omega Amigo - no
Evil is Even - no, but I'd dance by candlelight in a circle like a crustacean at the next girls' night function
Hyperreal Orbit - no, and it got on my nerves
Lightspan - weirdly enough, yeah. Sure
Make It Mine - yes
Oxygen Restriction - no
Hear Me - no
666 Edit - no, but it goes reeeeeally hard
Make It Minimal - no
Hyperreal Selector - no, and this is the second use of "hyperreal" in a title this album... why?
Lightspan Soundwave - yes, even though it goes on forever
Progen 91 - over Move Any Mountain? Maybe. On its own? Sure
Some certified booty shakers for sure, but overall not my jam.
Album 21
Top 3 favorites off the album: Georgia On My Mind, All of Me, Moonlight in Vermont
This is a bit of a rambling review (which ones aren't, though?), so bear with me.
A pleasant listen, as usual. It was fun to listen to a full cover album! I don't do much of that! Everything was fairly relaxed as far as tempo, and Nelson's reimagining of these songs gave them a different life. I especially enjoyed All of Me; while I'm not always a country enjoyer, I have to give it credit for being a genre that is fairly adaptable and has been pretty good as a vehicle for a lot of different types of fusion. I *am* an avid jazz enjoyer, and happily give it credit for the same. Put those two together, and this take on All of Me is just phenomenal.
Don't Get Around Much Anymore reminds me of music at the Stardrop Saloon in Stardew Valley.
I am a casual Willie Nelson enjoyer, and he's an artist my brother and I have in common. He also reminds me of a gift from my best friend. Yay Stardust! Yay good music!
Album 22
Top 3 favorites off the album: Red Eyes, Disappearing, An Ocean In Between The Waves
I will begin by saying that I love it when neither the name of an album nor the band whose album it is gives me an idea of what style to expect. This was one of those albums and bands.
This style falls under some of my usual tastes. It's fairly cool, consistently smooth, the kind of thing I enjoy listening to at night. I'd put it on a playlist with Cigarettes After Sex, maybe. One of those albums that's distinctly That Band in a repetitive way. I think it's probably a combination of... the everything. We've got very similar drumming for entire tracks, a sort of wall of sound without much adding or dialing back of instruments across tracks or the album as a whole, not much variation in vocal technique or even volume, a consistent few drones on synths and guitar in some cases, all of it contributing to that smoothness/consistency but taking away from the overall musical interest. The most interesting tracks came around the halfway point to the latter half of the album, especially those that felt more country (?). Eyes To The Wind had a slightly different sound that I enjoyed. The lyrics aren't bad (I've been really bad about giving them all the attention they deserve these past few albums... oops). Very summer night vibes, very background music. I don't hate it, but I don't love it. Really, truly neutral on this one.
Album 23
Top 3 favorites off the album: Pharaoh's Dance, Spanish Key, Miles Runs The Voodoo Down
If it's a crime to be this biased, once again, lock me up and throw away the key. You can't stop me, I won't stop me, there is nothing that can stand between me and this album. I'm not normal about this one. I'm not even going to pretend to be. It's albums like these that make me wish I had taken up a "jazz instrument," and then I remember that I could simply: a. do that, or b. become a jazz musician on the cello and join a musical tradition that is so diverse and vibrant that there's absolutely space for me in it. New 2026 resolution?
How can you get bored of tracks even at 20+ minutes long? There's just so much going on as the track flows. We've got solos that take us way up into the stratosphere and tumble back down, solos that dive way down into the depths and slither back up, dizzy circular figures, smooth sailing, growls, shrieks, harmonics, it's bright and then dark, smooth, jagged, bold and brassy, spare and resonant, hot, cool, EVERYTHING!!! This album is EXCITING!!! And that's just the first track!!!!!!! Bitches Brew itself is ominous and chaotic in the best way. In the interest of time, I won't go into everything else, but WOW.
Easiest 5 I've ever given. This album is something special.
Album 24
Top 3 "favorites" off the album: Flight of the Rat, Into the Fire, Living Wreck
Another neutral leaning dislike, unfortunately. I'm not super inspired by this one either, so another short review.
I don't mind screaming, really, but this one just got on my nerves. I didn't even realize it had ended and moved on to another album. Whoops. Suffice to say, the vocals were not my favorite. It's like a bad imitation of rock 'n' roll screaming, but not intentionally. I liked the guitar, some of the organ, and the drumming.
Album 25
Top 3 favorites off the album: When We Get By; Shit, Damn, Motherfucker; Me And Those Dreamin' Eyes Of Mine
This was a smooth listen, kind of to the point of being boring. I'm not super well-versed in R&B, but I've always liked the warmth that the harmonies bring. D'Angelo has a good voice. The album as a whole flowed into one looooooong track in my head, only really broken up by the first two of my three favorites. Lyrically, some things hit, others didn't. It's a matter of personal preference, and a lot of this just wasn't mine. I'd still rather consume all these lyrics in this genre than in a lot of other ones, though. Points for that!
This is good background music for me. I will come back to this one, just not all the time!
Album 26
Top 3 favorites off the album: Silas Stingy, Tattoo, Heinz Baked Beans
For a good minute and a half, I seriously considered consuming the super deluxe edition of this for shits and giggles. 5 hours and 41 minutes of The Who? All in one sitting? I chickened out, and just tackled the expanded edition instead.
This was interesting to listen to. I grew up listening to more of their later stuff (late 70s into the 80s), so the difference in sound felt pretty big. I like the radio broadcast and ad style of some tracks. I also appreciate bangers of track titles like Heinz Baked Beans. I like that some of these songs tell a story! I don't often get to listen to albums with many tracks that do.
Thinking musically, most of what's on here is pretty light. Not a lot of distortion on most tracks, drums stay on the quieter side, tempos are middle-of-the-road, lighter on the vocal side of things, etc. For maybe the second time in my career with this project, I find myself wishing for something with a little more weight and forward motion. Nothing so heavy that it gets bogged down, just something to generate a little more momentum here and there.
Whenever I ask my dad, "who is this?" to a song on the radio, he responds, "this is NOT The Who!" Whenever he is browsing the radio and asks me, "who's this!?" to a band I don't know, the answer he is looking for is most often The Who. It is simultaneously one of my favorite and least favorite routines. It is funny most of the time. It is less funny when I actually want to know who an artist is before the song ends. Long may the game continue. This has absolutely nothing to do with the review. Maybe you find it entertaining, maybe not. Doesn't matter. It's MY public diary and I'll write what I want to.
Album 27
Top 3 favorites off the album: The O-Men, Human Cannonball, Kuntz
On today's episode of, "WHAT IN THE ALBUM TITLE?!" : this.
For years, I have failed to actually listen to the Butthole Surfers. Every time I hit my favorite record store at home, I see the section for their music and I have a good snicker. Today is my day. Let me say this: I cannot wait to make my exclusively country-loving brother listen to this by adding it to the playlist I am constructing for him. I swear to God, I don't know if he will ever let me recommend music again. It will be so, so worth it.
I've gotta be honest: I'm not sure I'll ever let me recommend music again, either. I'm torn between giving this a low rating because my ears kind of hurt, and giving it a middle rating because it's something different that I wouldn't call enjoyable but I appreciated it for what it was. And then Human Cannonball came on. That was basically the whole listening experience: tracks that made me question it all, punctuated by one banger that renewed my will to carry on listening. It's the music equivalent of watching Bottoms, except Bottoms sucked. What the hell was going on with The O-Men? I couldn't stop listening. I actually had fun!
This was a noisy album, and I'm not mad about it. I'm surprised to be giving this the rating I am. Weirdly enough, I actually will listen to this again, and am adding songs to my playlist to ward off The Horrors as we speak... write.
Album 28
Top 3 favorites off the album: Hotel Yorba, The Same Boy You've Always Known, We're Going To Be Friends
This one was the right amount of heavy! Or maybe I'm just in the mood to listen to it today... jury's still out on that one. I forgot they did We're Going To Be Friends, so feeling nostalgic. Happy to say that the rest of the album was enjoyable, too.
This is criminally short, blame it on... I don't know what, inability to form a real thought. Once again for myself, it's my public diary, so it doesn't matter!
Album 29
Top 3 favorites off the album: Caravan Girl, Clowns, Happiness
I had no expectations going in. It was an interesting blend of soothing and charged without ever getting too hot. It didn't feel cold, but there was something cooler about it. Good mix of acoustic leaning folksy with electronic. Different vocal quality than a lot of what I normally listen to (not a bad thing), some of this album reminded me of Kate Bush. It was a combination of instrumentation, form, and vocals. I haven't listened to enough Kate Bush to say for sure, but there were bits here and there.
Album 30
Top 3 favorites off the album: Oxygène, Pt. 5; Oxygène, Pt. 6; Oxygène, Pt. 1
Okay, this one started and I immediately thought of the Nintendo DS homescreen music. Holy nostalgia, Batman!
This album has a cool sound (temperature-wise). Part of pt. 1 has sounds like guinea pigs. I'm consistently surprised by how much I've enjoyed the electronic music on here. I'm not mad about it. Just not something I expected to occur.
This was funny to me to review because it's in parts, so I get to rearrange the numbers how I want. It's not *funny* funny, it's really only funny to me. 5 is 1, 1 is 3, it's like a big electronic music salad. Yum.
Album 31
Top 3 favorites off the album: Willow Weep For Me, How High The Moon, Be Anything But Darling Be Mine
I'm sorry I haven't heard of Sarah Vaughan before. What a warm voice! I don't often listen to live albums, so the background noise and stage commentary were fun. I particularly love the end of Willow Weep For Me. They're musicians and people who knock things over and make mistakes and laugh about it with each other and the audience.
I love jazz!
Album 32
Top 3 favorites off the album: Adam's Apple, Big Ten Inch Record, Sweet Emotion
I liked this one more than expected. I figured I'd be meh on the lyrics, I was largely correct, but not so much that it took away from my general enjoyment of the album. There's a good drive to the album that isn't exhausting or repetitive. It feels fresh across the whole work.
Album 33
Top 3 favorites off the album: Proud Mary, Bootleg, Born On The Bayou
Another name I've kept forgetting to listen to. Unfortunately, ended up being a little disappointed with this one. It's not that it's bad, it's just not my thing. The album had a good groove for the most part, though I really started getting antsy with the longer tracks. Keep On Chooglin' had a really strong start, for example, but it lost me for the last 2-3 minutes. Oh well.
Album 34
Top 3 favorites off the album: House of Suffering, Re-Ignition, Hired Gun
I need to stop doing this at work, really, but the time after work isn't much of an option, so here we are.
Another one I was a little apprehensive about reading reviews (another thing I need to stop doing). I'm still figuring out what *exactly* it is that I don't like about some albums that is my jam with others. This one is hard. Literally. It's in the genre name. Usually, albums that sound Like This are not my thing. But where I haven't enjoyed others, I enjoyed this one. Why? Beats me.