Hipster humanities graduate here. I’d say this is a good hip-hop album for people who don’t usually like hip-hop (like me). It’s quite a soulful album, sonically and in the emotion behind the album. The storytelling and character building is also great on songs like ‘Testify’. Never going to be my favourite album as it’s not my genre, but it’s a good listen.
Having really enjoyed Songs in the Key of Life I had quite high expectations for this, but it didn’t really meet them. It’s a good enough listen, but didn’t hold my attention in the same way that album did.
Not an album I found especially interesting. There was the odd song like ‘Elected’ that was more compelling, but most songs just seemed to meander to nowhere in particular. Maybe this seemed more subversive in the early ‘70s, it sounded like trying too hard in 2026.
A truly terrible album. It’s little wonder that the members of this collective remain anonymous, because nobody would want to be associated with this garbage. Too many bizarre ‘experimental’ aspects to name, but I think many of the vocals sounding like the Gingerbread Man on the Shrek films might just take the biscuit. Hard luck if you got this album today!
This was clearly a very well performed piece of music showcasing an impressive improviser, but it’s not really my thing. The backstory of this concert is fun and makes the performance even more remarkable, but this kind of long form piano music was never going to much for me. Nice as background music.
Not a great album. It sets out to make a more ‘positive’ hip-hop album, but sounds like the kind of rap you’d have brought into a secondary school assembly. It all just feels too safe, and that sound is very similar across the whole album. The group clearly had a bee in their bonnet about how long it took them to get a record deal, but with music this mediocre I’m not sure it was a great injustice.
This album started off with some promise, but the more psychedelic it became the more the quality dropped off. You can definitely tell that the album is based on demos, it needed more refinement to be a great album.
One of the great albums- has so many classics like Sir Duke, Isn’t She Lovely, Pastime Paradise that are complemented by a great range of other songs that give a flavour of 1976 as a musical and historical moment. It’s *long* but well worth your time.
Quite an enjoyable album. At its best the combo of rock, funk, and rap works really well, with Give It Away the iconic example. There are some slower tracks too that give it some variety. There are tracks where it doesn’t blend quite as well though (especially early on) and it’s much too long. Truely a 3.5 or 7/10 if I could give it that.
This was a decent listen. It’s a nice representation of the quality of funk in this period, with a very listenable sound and a fun concept. Some songs definitely do drag on and become a bit repetitive though (there are 6 songs in 38 minutes, to give an idea). Worth a listen, but probably not a spaceship I’ll seek another journey on.
As a big Arctic Monkeys fan I was very happy to get this album today. It’s one I’ve listened to before (and some singles more), but had slightly different if still very positive impressions listening now. I’d previously thought this was quite a departure from AM, a key example of Alex Turner’s famous (or infamous depending on your view) love of mid-century Italian film scores. Listening now I can hear much more similarities to Favourite Worst Nightmare and Humbug, the AM albums that sandwich the project. On songs like the title track, Standing Next to Me, and My Mistakes Were Made for You, the blend of strings and indie comes off really well. My only criticisms would be, for the album, that there are some weaker songs in the latter half, and for the list, why this ahead of another AM album?
A good album, with a nice blend of jazz and rock that comes together in a catchy sound throughout. The only major criticism would be that that sound becomes fairly repetitive- there are little quirks on each song that keep it interesting, but broadly the album is one style done very well.
A good listen for the most part, with a nice 60s rock sound that is a good example of that countercultural moment, and is genuinely funny in places. However, the band discover acid around Track 13, and the rest of the album becomes unlistenable.
This is a solid example of late 1970s British punk, but not much more. It’s a decent listen, but it doesn’t stand out compared to similar bands of the period. As with a lot of albums on this list that seemed subversive at the time of release, they just don’t impact in the same way today.
A fine album, but nothing too special for me. The second half is a bit livelier, but the first half didn’t go anywhere for me, with a lot of long instrumental sections. Solid, but not one to stay long in the memory.
Perhaps the most extreme example of song length inflation in this period. With 4 tracks in over 40 minutes, it’s fair to say the tracks are dragged out! The sound is grand and well composed (you understand why Hayes worked on a film, Shaft, after this), but even classics like Walk on By seem so strung out.
Just did very little for me. Nothing offensively bad about it, but nothing more than background music to my mind. I’d have a hard time remembering any distinctive songs from this album.
Whenever I listen to this album, and Like a Rolling Stone especially, I can’t help but find it funny that some people’s primary reaction in 1965 was ‘I am so angry’.*
A fantastic album that has such power to it from the off, keeping your attention throughout. Like a Rolling Stone and Highway 61 Revisited are probably the iconic tracks, but Tombstone Blues and Ballad of a Thin Man are other great highlights.
* I get that there were historical and political reasons for that emotion, yada yada
This is a decent album, that shows a band now able to construct some catchy songs while maintaining a punk-influenced sounds. Ultimately though I think it does suffer from some of the common pitfalls of pop-punk: the sound becoming quite repetitive, the vocals having an annoying style (though less true for Armstrong than others in the genre), and themes that come across as a bit whiny, at least for me. Probably best enjoyed at about age 17!
It’s just fine. Having only heard Elvis Costello’s most famous songs I was expecting something with a bit more ‘pep’. Certainly not a bad listen, but didn’t grab me either.
A good album, though one you probably need to be in the right mood for. ‘Into My Arms’ is probably one of Cave’s best, and the start of the album is especially strong. Not all of the songs are downcast, but they are all piano ballads, to give you an idea of the tone. If that’s what you’re after it does a great job, if not it might not impact in the same way.
I had fairly high expectations for this one having listened to some of O’Connor’s most famous songs. This album didn’t quite meet them but is still worth a listen. The middle of the album is probably strongest, featuring the iconic ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’, but also the strong tracks ‘Black Boys on Mopeds’ and ‘Jump in the River’. There’s less variation on other tracks, but still has a great emotional depth to it. Probably a 3.5, but I’ll lean to a 4 this time.
Pink Floyd are just one of those bands that I don’t ‘get’ at all. I just find this album so slow that it never captures my attention- for the most part listening to this I was simply bored. The title track is good, but nothing else here that stood out to me.
What an uninteresting album. The hard rock sound is fine, but it is basically a variation on a theme the whole way through. It sounds like something you’d hear on in the background of a Hard Rock Cafe and not really think about twice.
It’s fitting that most of the Wikipedia page for this band and album are taken up by adverts that it’s featured in, since this is that kind of generic, inoffensive music. It’s pretty symptomatic of the dire state of British indie music in the first years of the 2000s that this is apparently one of the best in those years. I assume they added elements of reggae and doo-wop to try and escape from Britpop, but the end result is a bland mush that is far worse.
A decent listen, but probably not that much to stick in your head. You’ll recognise the title track, and there are tunes that you’ll recognise as staples of music in this period dotted throughout the album. It’s well performed, but the fact that it is mostly covers does detract from its significance, for me.
Perhaps a definitional album of ‘easy listening’. The gentleness of it does make this appealing on one level (fitting with the genre it’s an easy listen!), but it also makes the album fairly uninteresting. This is music with the flavour taken out. Not awful, but not one that leaves a great impression either.
Such a samey album. The orchestral pop sound is fine, but it’s essentially that for 40 minutes or so. Not especially interesting.
A solid listen, with some catchy songs (Space Cowboy, Slow Burn). But I can’t help escape the feeling with this brand of ‘relatable’ pop that everything feels as if it’s been produced by a focus group, with all the small hints at different genres a little bit of targeted marketing. The pop culture references (‘horses’, ‘John Wayne’, ‘Elvis’, ‘cowboys’), all feel quite cliched ways to say ‘I’m southern!’. Listen to Waxahatchee or MJ Lenderman for some more complex and authentic indie/country crossover
A very good album that is clearly formative in the post-punk genre (maybe the first of its kind?). It’s very well composed, but maybe one I’d have to be in the right mood for to give 5*.
An album that I’m not totally sure of my thoughts about. The combination of French pop vocals (that seemed to take some inspiration from 60s music from that country) and electronic sound was one I enjoyed more than I expected. But it did drag after a while, becoming a bit samey after the first handful of songs, not helped by the length and repetitive nature of many songs.
What an absolute mess of an album. At various points it offers some good blues rock, and as a historian I enjoyed the references to the 1968 Democratic convention on ‘Someday’. But basically every song is twice as long as it needs to be, and some really drag- Free Form Guitar is a genuinely offensive listen. A real mixed bag, even within songs.
A decent enough listen, but I don’t enjoy blues enough to give this more than 3. It’s a good performance(s) given by a great voice, and it being a live album gives a nice flavour of the atmosphere around 1965. But beyond that, didn’t make a huge impression.
Aged like fine milk. Livin’ on a Prayer and You Give Love A Bad Name are good songs, but have been played to death since 1986. The rest is the most generic 80s rock you can find, complete with endless ‘woh-oh’ choruses and power guitar. Very generic overall.
Appropriately, it’s solid. I liked it more by the end, as the songs had a bit more force to them that made them more compelling. Earlier songs are still a good listen, but can fall into too much ‘man mumbles over acoustic guitar’.
A performance from a band at the peak of their powers that’s probably a great one for fans, but didn’t feel significant enough for more than 3* as someone less familiar. The band are very affable during the gig, adding some great colour to the performance, and everything is well performed. But the wider importance probably goes over my head- I read that this is a slightly rockier style than their recorded output of the time, but as someone less familiar with the band that was lost on me. Similarly, long versions of some songs might be a unique plus for a fan, but lost my interest after a while.
Probably one I’d give 3.5* to if I could, but I’ll lean generously today. Franklin is obviously one of the great voices, and songs like Respect set the standard for R&B going forward. A lot of the middle album isn’t quite as impactful, and a lot of it being covers detracts slightly too (though it was the style at the time).
I was very into the Smashing Pumpkins at one point, so I was intrigued to see what I thought a few years removed. I still enjoyed it, but probably dragged a bit this time. The start is great, with Cherub Rock, Today, and Disarm the highlights. But by the end, it’s dragging on, with songs overly long or repetitive style. A 40-45 minute version might have been closer to 5*.
A good listen from one of this era’s best folk artists. Time Has Told Me and ‘Cello Song are especially well crafted, with a quiet sound but not one that passes you by. Some songs later on aren’t quite as memorable, and perhaps fall into the folk trap of meandering for too long. Enjoyable overall though.
A pretty good listen, though only so much that Jazz can do for me. The band clearly deliver a high quality performance that captures the audience, and from what I read this is a big moment in reviving Ellington’s career. It is very long though, so as a non-Jazz fan it was probably more than I’d like. The rather drawn out emcee interludes didn’t help!
Like Joy Division, if Joy Division weren’t as good as Joy Division. The sound is definitely an attempt to emulate them, sometimes giving a decent imitation. Songs like Kick in the Eye give it a bit more range, but overall this is quite derivative and uninteresting.
An alright pop album. Two incredibly well known songs in Girls Just Want to Have Fun and Time After Time feature here, and while good they have been completely played to death. The overall sound is slightly more interesting than the average 80s pop album on account of Lauper’s New Wave background, but it still doesn’t do much for me.
Did you know these guys can play guitar? They certainly seem on a mission to show that as much as possible on this album. Songs really drag on with self-indulgent solos- the overall sound is ok, but just didn’t do anything interesting for me.
Not one that made a great impression on me. The overall sound is fine, especially in the first half. But there’s just too much that goes along far too long. Yes, I know you can play the guitar, yes I know you have a synthesiser, we don’t need a ten minute song to show it! An example of what I don’t enjoy about prog rock.
A very good album that has a smattering of classics in God Only Knows, Snoop John B, and Wouldn’t It Be Nice. We see Brian Wilson’s intricate production come through throughout to make a complex and compelling sound. Some songs do pass me by though, especially the slow songs that proceed at a glacial pace.
A great album, definitely one of the best of its genre. If you’ve seen Good Will Hunting you’ll know that many of these songs form part of the great soundtrack to that film, with Angeles and Say Yes especially memorable from the film and album. It’s not a cheery album of course, but it avoids becoming dreary in doing so. It’s being tuneful while having that depressed emotion is its real strength.
A great album that really shows Harrison’s individual talent. It’s remarkable that he could put this album together so soon after the end of The Beatles, and the sound is a combination of some of their style with some influence from Bob Dylan and The Band, who I read Harrison had befriended in the run up to making this. Disc 1 is full of classics, headlined by My Sweet Lord and Wah-Wah, but there’s nothing bad on that side. The second half tails off by the end, but still has some good songs, notably the title track. Might have been a 4.5 on account of that, but I’ll round generously.
A strange album. If this was the sound track to a film about the Wars of the Roses I might appreciate it more, but as a piece of modern music the style just feels so incongruous. I’m sure these instruments are played and arranged well, but they probably should have been left in a previous century,
A very good album that sees some interesting expansion of Smith’s sound, with this probably his most tuneful. Son of Sam and Junk Bond Trader are the highlights of a strong first half that combine his emotional style with a more lively sound, with some folkier numbers still present. It gets a bit weaker towards the end, but still an excellent listen.
A decent listen that has a nice sound, and some genuinely funny lyrics in the first few songs (‘Who Says a Funk Band Can’t Play Rock’ a highlight). But too much of this really drags on, with some songs meandering towards ten minutes. Lots of them are instrumental later on and although the musicianship is good, there was nothing that stuck in my mind.
I’m not sure that this is PE’s finest work, but still good. It’s a slightly broader style on this album, shown in lead songs ‘Can’t Truss It’ and ‘Shut It Down’ being a bit different from the ‘Wall of Noise’ approach of previous albums. As with PE always though, they offer a great historical record of key concerns in black politics (eg continued resistance to MLK Day on ‘By the Time I Get to Arizona’ and black alcoholism on ‘One Million Bottlebags’). Overall though, I don’t think it’s quite as compelling as their previous efforts. A lot of the early album is self-referential, so it perhaps doesn’t have the same feeling of originality. While still well put together, I think I prefer the more manic sound of earlier efforts. Nonetheless, a good listen.
Not bad, but nothing that struck me as that remarkable. It’s a good example of early post-punk, including the first version of China Girl (who knew?). But overall it didn’t make that big an impression on me, songs by the end especially really seemed to drag.
Well, he certainly was bad… but this album is ok. I prefer this to a lot of the other Jackson material I’ve heard, since it has a lot more force to it that gives the album energy throughout. And there are of course some classics on the album, led by the title track and Smooth Criminal. I do still think it sounds a little dated though, something I find 80s music suffers from most. And there is of course the matter of his incessant ‘hee-hees’ and ‘owwws’, which definitely grate after a while.
A good listen, with some nice tuneful 60s rock. Early songs especially are quite compelling, with a balance between good hooks and forceful energy typical of the best of this era. But overall, I’m not sure it feels like much more than a nice example of the genre. A good listen, but probably without the distinctive or unique qualities that might make it a more notable album.
A nice listen, with a bluesy rock sound with hints of African music laced throughout. Even more extraordinary that this record exists given what its members had gone through to make it! It probably washed over me after a while though. It all had a good sound, but faded into the background as songs became a bit similar.
Neil Tennant says that he isn’t good at being boring on this album, but he gives it a pretty good go. This feels a bit Pet Shop Boys-by-numbers, with lots of low key synths that meander along. There are better and livelier moments like How Can You Expect To Be Taken Seriously, but not enough to rate this especially highly.
A very good album that helps to lift British music out of its early 2000s doldrums. Some of the more negative reviews of this have half a point when they define this as part of the ‘indie landfill’ of these years, because the sound isn’t completely different from that (it isn’t as unique as say Whatever People Say I Am). But it definitely is a perfecting of that style, with Take Me Out and The Dark of the Matinee still guitar heavy but able to construct great hooks. Unlike a lot of ‘indie’ artists in this era, they don’t overthink it or try to be too clever- they just find a good formula and execute well.
It’s fine. I preferred it to the previous Traffic album generated for me, John Barleycorn Must Die, but it’s nothing amazing. It’s the kind of thing I always seem to hear when my parents have ‘Sounds of the ‘70s’ on in the car (I know this is from 1968, but it’s the same sound)- you won’t complain about it being on, but you won’t think too much about it either.
An album that shows some of Led Zeppelin’s good qualities, but also what I dislike about them. It’s all very well performed, and they show their knack for making a great, dramatic song on Kashmir and a shorter, punchier song on Houses of the Holy. But I feel like individual songs and the album overall drag on too long. On a great song like Kashmir a longer run time is fine, but on less special tracks it feels a bit self-indulgent.
This is a nice listen, but probably no more than background music. You’d think ‘this is perfect’ if you heard it on the soundtrack of a film set in 70s Rio or the opening titles to the 2014 World Cup. A nice laidback, jazzy sound, but probably not enough differentiation to go higher.
A good listen, with a blues-influenced style that carries some emotional punch. It has a real energy to it though despite being on the surface quite a downcast album- the opening tracks headlined by Cry Baby are probably the highlights. Though Joplin clearly has a great voice, you do get the sense that she’d been through it by the time of recording this. The result is a gravelly voice that has some impact, but I personally found a bit strangled and irritating as the album went on.
Musically, a good (if one of many examples of this) 60s rock album with psychedelic influences. The first half rattles along nicely. The second half is made bizarre by a series of narrations about ‘Happiness Stan’, which sound like the kind of thing Gen Z pay Nigel Farage to read on cameo. I found them so odd that I couldn’t really focus on the music!
A very good album, probably America’s best contribution to punk. Let’s Lynch the Landlord, California Uber Alles, and Holiday in Cambodia are fantastic standouts with a smart and funny satire. I think it’s just held back from being a 5 by just how quickly the first half especially progresses. Even by punk standards it moves at lightning pace, so it’s a bit harder to appreciate some songs individually. Still, a very good album.
A trip down memory lane for me as I really liked this album and Muse in general as a teenager. The start holds up, with the first four tracks very strong and still stirring that sense of injustice that they did when they were used as ‘I’m right and nobody else is’ songs back then (perhaps helped by the political climate as I write). It doesn’t quite hold up throughout the album, with later songs a bit blander or variations on a theme. I remember really liking Knights of Cynodia, but didn’t hit quite as much now. The start is strong enough to hold on for 4 though.
A very good album that shows a band getting into its stride. Sympathy for the Devil and Street Fighting Man are the best known songs for a reason, and Stray Cat Blues sounds great (though the lyrics make you want to report Mick Jagger to the police). There aren’t any bad songs on the album, though probably not strong enough on the whole for 5.
A great album that leads the way in a strong time for working-class British rock in the mid ‘90s. This is an album with a noisy energy, sound, and ambition, showcased best of all on Rock ‘n’ Roll Star, Live Forever, and Supersonic. Stick around until the end though, as my favourite songs probably are the final two, Slide Away and Married with Children. We don’t really see the variety that Oasis are (sometimes) capable of later on in their careers on this album, but I’ll let its force of sound keep it hanging onto a 5.
A good album from one of the 1980s’ best. Probably strongest in the middle with Girlfriend in a Coma and Stop Me If You Think You’ve Heard This One Before, which are great examples of their perfecting of the ‘80s indie sound and creative lyricism. The band make an effort to evolve their sound (a somewhat odd priority given that they knew this was their last album, but there you go), and I’m not sure they fully pull it off. A good listen, but maybe not their best.
What if hip-hop went to space? After listening to this, you’ll realise it’s a question nobody should have asked. I suppose we can praise the creativity of Ladd’s concept, but ultimately this sounds quite basic in the beat behind it and the rapping. It’s average lo-fi music paired with average hip-hop, so the result is predictably underwhelming. It wasn’t actively bad, so I’ll keep it at 2.
A pretty good album, headlined by two excellent songs to open in Band on the Run and Jet that provide some great energetic and dramatic rock. The rest is fine-to-good, with nothing I’d describe as bad but nothing that blew me away either. Mrs. Vanderbilt probably my highlight of those.
This is slightly more interesting than you might expect from ABBA. It’s much more downbeat than their typical hits (you’ll probably only know One of Us), which shows of their range a bit more. The other slide of the coin is that there is the absence of any earworms to stick in your head. It all becomes quite samey, and that becomes even more evident on a longer album.
A great way for Bowie to bow out with an immensely creative album blending a range of styles led by art rock and jazz. The title track and Lazarus especially are wonderfully epic songs. The middle is slightly weaker, and probably *just* keeps this from a 5.
Probably one of the better pop albums of the ‘80s. Its grandiose blending of so many instruments and sounds makes this a well crafted album, producing some of Prince’s best known songs in Purple Rain and When Doves Cry. It does suffer from the classic ‘80s disease of addiction to synth though, and drags a bit on the less remarkable tracks. Enough to hang on for 4 though.
A very good album, probably one of the most influential over modern indie rock. The sound is a kind of proto-grunge, with noisy, guitar-heavy songs throughout. It’s something of an oasis in the desert away from the typical manufactured sound of ‘80s music! Highlights are Kissability, Teen Age Riot, and Silver Rocket, probably some of Sonic Youth’s best. It’s probably too long for an album without much variety, but a good 4.
I liked this more than other Zeppelin material I’ve heard. It has a more stripped back and acoustic sound, which makes it a bit of a full-on listen than other albums. Since I’ve Been Loving You probably the highlight in that style, and Immigrant Song of course a classic in a more conventional Zeppelin style, I’m not sure I like Plant’s vocal style enough to give it more than 4, but a good listen.
The list continues to affirm that I’m not much of a jazz enjoyer. I’m sure if you’re a jazz fan this is a great work, but it didn’t do much for me. The piano-heavy sections were more enjoyable, but the sections where it became more overcrowded with instruments tempted me to channel my inner Homer asking Lisa to ‘knock off that infernal racket’.
Yet another late ‘60s/early ‘70s psychedelic-influenced folk album on this list. It probably felt especially unremarkable to me because of that similarity, but it’s not a bad album by any means. It’s a perfectly fine listen, but nothing that stuck in my mind. One of the most 3y 3s you’ll ever find.
A fitting name, since this is one of those albums that tries too hard to be provocative. I’m sure Tipper Gore was horrified to see naked women on the cover, but it feels so tacky and cringe today. It fits the vibe of an unimpressive album, which is some derivative ‘hard rock’, with lots of over-the-top screeching guitar. A poundshop Led Zeppelin.
Possibly Britpop’s best album. The best known tracks here are of course Common People and Disco 2000, which are maybe teetering towards being played out but are so well written as satires and laments, respectively, that I’ll forgive them. Besides, there’s plenty on this album that more than makes up for the hits being too familiar. Misshapes, Something Changed, and Sorted for Es and Whizz are all classics in their own right that showcase the ability of Pulp at their best to successfully blend rock and pop with a wide variety of styles (disco and orchestral amongst them here). A classic showcase of a great moment for working-class British bands.
An interesting, if choppy in quality, album. There are some nice moments of lively indie folk on the album, headlined by Everybody’s Stalking and Another Pearl. Elliot Smith’s Figure 8 is a good comparison. However, I think the album goes on too long so that the quality declines. There’s also the random short interlude tracks, which add nothing. A strong 3 but too inconsistent for anything higher.
A good album, certainly a cut above some of the average rock of this period I’ve had on this list (Traffic, The Youngbloods, The Mothers of Invention). The album has an enjoyable, bluesy sound, but overall nothing stuck in my head that strongly. A good 3, but not quite memorable enough for more.
A great album, of remarkable quality for a debut by a 19-year old. It would be too sweeping to say that this is the ‘light’ Amy album and Back to Black is the dark and depressed one (there’s some downbeat moments here and the latter isn’t completely free of humour), but I do enjoy that we get to see a funnier and livelier side to a great artist. It’s probably at its best in the opening five tracks, which show a pop/RnB influenced sound- all are some of Winehouse’s best. The rest is probably slightly too long, but still has some standouts (‘In my Bed’), and some showcasing of her jazz background (‘No Greater Love’). As some of the reviews point out, some of the lyrics aren’t exactly ‘The Feminine Mystique’. But given Winehouse’s youth and experiences of relationships, don’t come to this for well-thought out social commentary. Instead, appreciate the genius of a generational, but tortured, artist.
One to file under ‘combinations that shouldn’t have been tried’. In this case it’s a strange mix of punk and country, which for the most part congeals into an unenjoyable sound paired with unimpressive vocals. It does pick up from the low bar set early on though, so it’s not 1* bad. Don’t fear if you get this album, but you could probably use some whiskey to get you through it.
What a remarkably dull album. You’ll recognise Two Weeks as a well sampled bit of music, but there really isn’t anything else of note here. The rest is just a meandering low key sound that would be fine as filler for a track or two on a good album, but 50 minutes of it really drags.
This album gets absolutely shredded in the most popular comments, but I’d say it’s just fine. The sound is ‘The Beatles with a side order of Funk’, which makes it quite derivative but a pretty listenable. The lyrics are pretty basic, but it does at least have some inkling of a social conscience. Nothing special, but enough for 3*.
A good album, but one that washed over me a bit. A more downbeat funk is interesting, and certainly responds to the context of the U.S. in 1971. Family Affair is of course a classic, but it became a bit too samey for me. With a livelier sound that would have detracted less, but when there’s less vitality to the album it did impact my enjoyment more. Worth a listen, but didn’t grip me.
I’d only heard the odd song by Suede, so was intrigued to hear this, and was pleased to find it a good listen. The album seems to alternate between livelier guitar-heavy songs and downtempo, slower songs. I preferred the former usually, with Animal Nitrate and Metal Mickey probably the best. It would be too harsh to say the slower tracks were bad, but they felt a bit less unique (maybe a bit downstream of The Smiths?). A nice addition to the Britpop canon, even if there might be better examples of the genre.
An interesting, but slightly bloated, follow up to Rumours. I like the generally soft rock sound that the album has, with Sara and Sisters of the Moon, but most of the more experimental numbers also come off. The title track, complete with USC marching band, is mad, but I like it. It is too long though- whereas Rumours channelled the band’s tensions into a tight and gripping album, Tusk is sprawling, feeling like each member had to have a few songs to keep them satisfied. A very good album, but would have benefited from being more concise.
An interesting one on the punkier end of Britpop. Songs in the first half especially have a lively sound that captures your attention, I’d Like to Know and Caught by the Fuzz my highlights. Alright is the most known song, but to me it’s a title that matches the description. It’s a good listen, but the album overall probably doesn’t hit the heights of the opening songs.
This was a trip down memory lane for me, as this was the first album that I really got to know inside out as a teenager. Although it’s no longer my favourite Manics album, it’s still a powerful album. The lyrics are dark and nihilistic, a product of the tortured state of Richey Edwards’ mind at the time of production, discussing topics including the death penalty, American imperialism, and sexual exploitation. The disturbing quality is cemented by the samples that feature throughout, from creepy pimps to John Hurt in 1984. But despite that intensity, it’s not an abrasive listen. Songs like Faster, Yes, and She is Suffering show a great variety of sound that contrast with the darkness of the lyrics. I think my familiarity with it made this an easy 5, but it still has a great power even for a new listener.
A good album, but probably also one that represents what I’m less keen on in Wonder’s work (Songs in the Key of Life aside). Superstition is of course a catchy classic, but nothing else on the album quite hits those heights. Although the rest couldn’t be described as bad, it basically consists of saccharine ballads. They’re nice enough songs, but probably better in doses smaller than this album provides.
The first Talking Heads album I’ve had on this list and it comfortably fits the bill for what you’d want from them. This is fun, lively, and creative art rock that shows why they are the leading band out of New York in these years. Thank You for Sending Me an Angel a standout to start the album, and although Take Me to the River is a cover, they really make it their own. Probably didn’t quite enjoy it enough for 5, but there’s nothing I disliked about it.
A bad punk album that encapsulates some of the weaknesses of the genre in its repetitive sound, whiny vocals, and vapid lyrics. Feels like a cynical attempt to muscle in on the hype of Nirvana and Green Day. That means that the sound is fine enough to hang on for 2*, but this isn’t worth your while.
I’m not a prog rock fan so this was never going to be a massive hit with me, but I found it more listenable than other albums in the genre. It definitely has more of a pop sensibility, which makes it more accessible than others in the genre. But it did still suffer from songs being too long and trying to do too much.
A fairly unremarkable album, largely a collection of covers. It’s pretty egregious that at the same time Clapton was cheerleading for Enoch Powell he was using the songs of black musicians to build his career. Whilst these covers are fine, they don’t strike me that remarkable.
I wavered a bit on this between a 4 and a 5, but in the end had to see that this really does deserve the hype. Sunday Morning and I’m Waiting for the Man are fantastic openers, and set the tone for creative and fast paced songs throughout. Nico’s occasional vocals have a slightly strange quality to them, but fit well with the eerie sound of songs like I’ll be Your Mirror. It’s experimental, but unlike most albums with that on this list, is still a brilliant and gripping listen (the final two songs aside).
A pretty average album. There are a couple of decent songs in Sacrifice and The Seed, but the rest is fairly unremarkable rap to me. It tries to blend in influences from rock and jazz, but in the end becomes a bit everything and nothing.
I don’t know why this isn’t available on many streaming services, but I assume it’s some kind of public health measure to protect people from the toxins this garbage produces. This isn’t music, it’s just noise. I read that this was meant to have a bluesy sound, which could be true if it was blues performed whilst drunk at a karaoke party. But don’t let that get the instrumentation off the hook, which is even worse- I’ve never heard professional musicians perform so badly. In all, there’s nothing here that is even a cohesive song (‘Moonlight on Vermont’ probably as close as we get).
It absolutely baffles me that so many ‘experts’ rated this as some kind of great artistic statement. The claim of some that this takes *6-7* listens to appreciate is probably more a sunk-cost fallacy than evidence of any deeper greatness to be found.
This isn’t the worst album I’ve had on this list, but it’s a strong contender for the most boring. Every song is the same bland neo-soul/R&B mix that sounds like the things Tom would sing on Parks & Recreation. I know it’s a cliche to say every song sounded the same, but I really couldn’t explain the differences between any of the tracks.
A really good album by a guitarist at the top of his game. This is a quintessential late ‘60s sound, with a classic blues rock sound updated with psychedelic and hard rock influences. The cover of ‘All Along the Watchtower’ is of course the classic, but there’s high-quality tracks throughout, headlined by Crosstown Traffic for me. It’s just held back from a 5 by being too long, both in two tracks pushing 15 minutes, and an overall runtime of c. 1hr 15 that is probably too much given that the middle is slightly weaker. Still, a great listen.
One of the interesting things about Nixon is that despite his reputation as a reactionary conservative, a lot of his first term really built on what the Great Society had already achieved. Efforts like OSHA, the EPA, affirmative action, and support for the ERA continued in a pattern of federal intervention to uphold rights. He even declared that he was ‘now a Keynesian in economics’ after ending the Bretton Woods system, and his efforts in detente went far beyond what Democrats had been willing to consider. Perhaps this reflected the influence of his adviser Daniel Patrick Moynihan (himself a Johnson administration veteran) who argued that ‘Tory men and Whig measures’ were what changed history.
Sorry, I realise this is meant to be about Nixon, the Lambchop album, but there really is nothing interesting about it, so had to fill the space somehow.
An album that demonstrates the borderline between a fun album and a silly album. It has a sort of classic rap sound, though a bit imitation, with opening track The Humpty Dance giving hope that this could be not a classic but ok. However, it gradually loses the plot into long, meandering songs with awful lyricism that makes the album off putting. Making a concept album about some kind of pharmaceutical attempt to create sexual satisfaction in a pill is certainly *bold* for a debut album, and the way it’s handled makes it come across as crude, instead of with deftness and humour.
This is the foundational album in Heavy Metal, but despite that I quite enjoyed it. There’s real force behind the sound, coming through best in perhaps Sabbath’s best known songs War Pigs, Iron Man, and the title track. It’s clear to see how it was so influential, including beyond Metal (listen to War Pigs and Arabella by Arctic Monkeys side by side). It does however suffer from the disease of rock in this period of excess, with some long solos and tracks that drag on a bit. Overall, a good listen though.
I was completely unfamiliar with this, but liked it on the whole. It has a nice country rock sound, with the title track and I Lost It standouts in giving a more forceful sound to a genre that can become a bit sleepy. The middle section did lose my interest a bit, but still good enough for 4*.
Maybe this album sounded good whilst high on a Friday night in a club in 1990. It didn’t sound good whilst eating my Weetabix on a Wednesday morning in the kitchen in 2026.
Some decent jangle pop, with a somewhat more downcast tone to much of the genre. The first half probably has the best of it, with the title track and Perfect Skin well crafted. But on the whole, it doesn’t have the unique touches as the best of this genre, it just felt a bit generic overall. A decent listen, but didn’t blow me away.
I dithered between a 4 and a 5 on this, just because the three most well-known songs (Wonderwall, Don’t Look Back in Anger, and Champagne Supernova) are so played out, to the extent that Wonderwall is basically a punch line now. But it’s still sufficiently brilliant for 5. We see a natural evolution from Definitely Maybe, with still some loud songs like Roll with It and Some Might Say but also some signs of broadening. A favourite of mine is She’s Electric, a jangly song that probably represents the best straightforwardly Britpop song Oasis made. Although that ‘big 3’ is played out now, I’d have to concede the power they must have had in 1995. Even with the fading of time, a classic.
A remarkable leaving note from Leonard Cohen, with a haunting quality appropriate to a musician making his final statement. The title track gets it off to a brilliant start, and Treaty is a beautiful follow up showcasing Cohen’s poetic lyrics. It’s held back from a 5 by the sound not really evolving beyond that for the rest of the album, but still an arrestingly good set of songs.
This is better than other 90s rap groups I’ve had so far (Arrested Development, The Roots), but didn’t find this that compelling even so. It’s a decently put together hip-hop sound occasionally throwing in other influences, and since I wrote about Jesse Jackson for my PhD I’ll give it points for the references in ‘I am Somebody’. Overall though, I still found it quite bland. Fine and well made, but not one I’ll return to.
Now I’ll admit that, being my contrarian self, I was quite open to the idea of not giving the very trendy album at the top of the ranking charts on this site 5*. However, it just is a brilliant album isn’t it?
The well known discord behind its making runs through the whole album, shaping every song in some way but most prominently Go Your Own Way and You Make Loving Fun. Unlike sprawling successor Tusk, that fractious atmosphere is channelled into a tight and well-crafted 40 minutes of music, quite the achievement. And finally, I’m sure any British F1 fans of the right age will be taken back to a favourite race or season by The Chain (2009 for me, Clive).
Do you like random sounds that go nowhere for over an hour? Then Soft Machine have the album for you.
The only thing that’s Out-Bloody-Rageous about this album is that I had to waste my time listening to it. As clear a 1* as you’ll find.
A very enjoyable album, blending South African sounds with pop rock. It’s no surprise that this was so appreciated at the time of release as a very listenable and innovative sound quite different to the fake electronic sounds of much ‘80s music. As a Vampire Weekend fan, the resemblance is remarkably clear!
However, I don’t think I quite enjoyed it enough for 5, and the circumstances of its creation did sully it somewhat. For one, Simon broke the global boycott of apartheid South Africa to record there. I get that most black South African musicians of the time welcomed him, but he didn’t really need to undermine global solidarity (given that most came to New York anyway). Simon defends it by saying that he showed the power of interracial cooperation and brought African music to the world, but those things don’t mean that it made any positive contribution to the end of apartheid. He also basically stole the idea from Heidi Berg, apparently.
Anyway, nice album overall.
A fairly engaging rap album, with a pretty listenable classic rap sound. It makes that sound grander though, giving it an almost cinematic quality at times. On the whole though, I can’t say that I found this especially interesting. I read that the samples are taken from a Samurai film that formed the basis of much of the themes and design of the album. To be slightly harsh, is that interesting enough to be the basis of a whole album? I can’t say I was persuaded.
An album that encapsulates my thoughts on the Foo Fighters- they have some very good songs, but probably more filler on balance. This starts off well, with the first few songs not exactly breaking new musical ground but representing a high quality example of the sounds of mid-90s American rock. It’s fairly similar to Nirvana’s hard edge, but does show some signs of evolution. Unfortunately, I think some of that evolution is towards some fairly cookie-cutter rock that had lost my attention by the end. A mixed bag.
