This was the first album that came up for me in the album generator, and I almost skipped it, thinking “Oh, I’ve heard that one before.” My 14/15 year old self had nearly worn out the double CD disks, playing them both over and over when it first came out. Listening to it again in my mid 40’s, after not listening for 20+ years (other than the hits!), I was pleasantly surprised at how much of it came back to me. And how heavy much of it is! Since the “hits” are mostly ballads, I had forgotten how many loud, angry songs peppered the album. And how well they blended and contrasted with the soft, quiet moments. It was an amazing experience revisiting this old favorite. An absolute masterpiece, start to finish. A true classic.
Great album. Feels like something from the 70’s, but still modern. Great guitar parts, and Red Eyes especially is a great song.
Good listen, great background noise for the work commute.
The only thing I had previously heard from War was “Low Rider.” This album was excellent-great mix of funk/soul/jazz/rock/R&B. Very cool and unique.
One of the greatest rap albums of all time. Captures the end of the Obama era, where hope was fading into malaise, and Kendrick seems to almost predict what was coming next by reminding us of our history. Brilliant.
As much music as I’ve consumed in my life, I have never listened to a Bowie album. Life on Mars? is the obvious standout, but each song is great. I was most surprised by the sense of humor he showed in several songs. Great album.
There are some very good songs here, including some tracks like “And I Love Her” and “Things We Said Today” that are early signs of the brave musical experimentation we would later hear on Rubber Soul and Revolver. I can’t help but think that in an alternate universe where the Beatles never changed their sound and just continued writing pop hits, we would probably look back at this album as a nice collection of catchy songs instead of an “important album by the greatest band in the world.” Take away the Beatles name, and this is a solid album with some solid tunes.
Easy 5 star review for me. I’m a big Dylan fan, and this is my favorite Dylan album.
The 9th album generated for me, and the first where I was genuinely puzzled as to why it’s even on this list. I was 14 when this came out, and remember “Scooby Snacks” being played incessantly on alternative radio for a few weeks. Otherwise I have no recollection of anyone calling this a “must listen” at the time, and had forgotten about it until now. I went in thinking “there must be some reason, I’ll give it a shot.” And the first few songs weren’t terrible-the rapping definitely was, but the music had a few different styles and seemed like a decent vibe. Then the album just kept repeating variations of that “vibe” over and over, with god awful rapping/lyrics. Not good.
I had never heard of Jane Weaver prior to this. Very solid album, made me interested in the rest of her discography. I especially liked the songs “Slow Motion” and “The Architect.”
Not the biggest Stones fan, but always appreciated that they bought a little grime to their lyrics vs. the relatively safe lyrics of the Beatles. And this is a great album. “Wild Horses” is one of my favorite songs of all time (The Sundays version is arguably better, but I like Mick’s heartfelt vocal performance here). Good mix of harder rock songs and solid ballads, a couple of which have a country feel.
I didn’t think I liked jazz, but maybe I’ve only heard bad jazz music. I’ve heard of Miles Davis obviously, but never listened assuming it wasn’t my thing. But I really liked this, cool indeed.
I really enjoyed this, it was so much fun to hear early Björk. At times I could have done without the male singer; his parts were either humorous or incredibly annoying with no in between. The music was very fun and unique.
The album is roughly half filled with nice enough ballads, with “The Scientist” being the best of those. The other half consists of the band desperately trying to be Radiohead and failing miserably, with “God Put a Smile Upon Your Face” being the worst of those. Individually the songs are pleasant enough. Like if the songs were playing in the background of a dinner party, I wouldn’t be heading for the exit. But I’m also not clamoring to go listen again either. It just kind of exists; fine but not terribly interesting or exciting.
A good headphones listen, interesting electronic music. The vocals keep this from being higher rated for me. While they were okay on some songs, for the most part the vocals were kind of grating.
The music is good, but the lyrics are cringeworthy.
This was such a fun listen. Got me all funked up for sure.
I was really looking forward to this one, since I’ve seen it on so many favorite albums lists that people/critics make, and I’ve never heard any of it. The first song (21st Century Schizoid Man) is incredible. I wasn’t so sure about the rest of the album on the first listen, but on the second listen I feel like I “got it.” The only thing keeping it from a 5 star album for me is that some of the tracks go on too long, seemingly so the band can show how awesome they are instead of serving the song (“Moonchild” especially). But otherwise an awesome listen.
Pros: She has a beautiful voice and performs these songs well.
Cons: As a full album experience, it is incredibly dull. Nearly every song has basically the same tempo and energy, making it feel like you’re listening to the same song on repeat.
#20. My first KISS experience, and my first one star review. I only know the band by reputation and the few songs I’ve previously heard on the radio. I thought this would at least be a fun listen, and I was genuinely shocked at how terrible it was. “God of Thunder” and “Great Expectations” were especially bad, almost bordering on parody. Good for KISS for being trailblazers in the rock showmanship department, and making a ton of money doing so, because if it was based solely on their music they would have been long forgotten.
First time listening. Fantastic, start to finish. I can see why this is often ranked as one of the top albums of all time, well deserved. I will be for sure revisiting this one regularly.
Enjoyed it. Solid country songs (and one Beatles song) sung beautifully and performed well. Made me interested in listening to more Emmylou Harris, even if I likely won’t revisit this particular album again.
I liked it, solid album. I enjoyed the ballads more than the jazz/blues/rock songs. Jersey Girl is a fantastic song.
I enjoyed it, very solid album. I have a feeling in 1996 this would have felt more like a 4 or 5 star album, but there have been so many similar indie pop bands (influenced by this band of course) that have come along since then that have surpassed this sound that it feels a bit passe. Enjoyable nonetheless, and sounded better/fuller in headphones than in my car on the work commute.
Great album. Common’s flow and Kanye’s production are a great combo.
The lyrics and singing is definitely divisive. Okay on some tracks, terrible on others. But the music was excellent. Probably would have been more enjoyable as an instrumental record.
The skits get a 1 star because they are gross and cringeworthy. That and the juvenile lyrics about poop rockets and gynecology keep this from being higher rated, because the music/rapping were otherwise excellent.
Wow, I really enjoyed this. It will definitely be added to my regular rotation.
I am really glad albums like this are on the list, given that they are exactly the sort of thing that wouldn’t be on my radar to listen to otherwise. And the songs are beautifully sung and performed. That being said, every song started sounding very similar as the tracks went on, and by the end it just got kind of boring to listen to.
It feels like there is a 4 or 5 star album there, but the singer seems completely unable to match the energy of the songs. It’s a strange listen because of this, like some guy is singing karaoke along to a good album.
Great album, every song is strong.
My favorite album by my favorite band, easy 5 star. I understand why people prefer Nevermind, it’s way more approachable and radio friendly. But I connect more with the dissonance/heaviness of this album. I always wonder what avenue Kurt would have taken next had he lived; sad we’ll never know.
My second Stones album so far, Sticky Fingers being the other. Great album, lots of great songs. It feels needlessly long, which leads to all the blues riffs feeling a bit repetitive. I know this is usually considered the Stones best album, but I liked Sticky Fingers a bit more.
Great album overall. There are a couple forgettable songs here, but the “highs” are so high that it more than makes up for those.
I hadn’t listened to this album in awhile, and had forgotten how incredible it is. It has been overshadowed over the years by the OK Computer, Kid A, In Rainbows triumvirate, but it great in its own right. I’ve been adding a song or two from (nearly) every album that I’ve heard in this project to a playlist, and I had a hard time picking which songs are my favorites from this one since each song is great. Classic.
Solid, I generally enjoyed it but didn’t love it. The only track that kind of stood out was “Australia.”
