1001 Albums Summary

Rating shamlessly stolen system from George Starostin: Variety: 2 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 3 Uniqueness: 1 Emotionality: 4 B.B. King has more or less been the default "this is blues" sound that's been in my head since I was a kid. Never one to be taken with the genre, I was still exposed to quite a bit of it growing up, mostly via movies and tv. I think King had such an overwhelming influence that most of what I was hearing, if it wasn't actually him, owed him a heavy debt at the very least. This usually amounted, in my mind, to a pleasant, but very samey background noise. One I associate with some cosy chain bbq restaurants I used to frequent to some degree. Unfortunately I also associate the sound with a certain brand of over-kinetic blues rock familiar to anyone who was aware of Bruce Willis, Jim Belushi, and the like that has since become grating when performed this mode. This was a first listen for me, and was pleasantly surprised to find that King doesn't suffer too much from any associations I have with the watered down product mentioned previously. While it did end up mostly being pleasant background noise, my ears did perk up at "How Blue Can You Get" and "Worry, Worry". The banter and the crowd noise made this a pretty chill experience, but far from an essential one. Glad I listened but can't say I'm any more or less a fan of King.

Rating shamlessly stolen system from George Starostin: Variety: 2 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 4 Uniqueness: 3 Emotionality: 2 Been a good 20+ years since I've listened to this one. Never rated it as highly as its reputation, while definitely being able to see where all those critics were coming from. "Brown Eyed Girl" and "Gloria" are more my speed, and Moondance I recall lumping in with stuff like Joe Cocker and The Band which, in my mind, belong to a genre I would classify as perfectly fine wedding reception music. This one I imagine holds a special place in the hearts of elderly uncles everywhere. That being said - wow... "Moondance" is still crazy good, and feels like a classic standard that Morrison must have re-interpreted. Maybe that's the genius on display here that so many Rolling Stone critics adore. "Crazy Love" might even hold up even better though, as I think a brief Youtube search comes back with pages and pages of covers, all the way up to yesterday! Sounds timeless, and easy to see why it's still so popular. While there's no denying Morrison's vocal effort, "Caravan" is where he starts to loose me with his almost lazy sounding delivery and repetitious vocal noodling, reminding me of what I dislike most about him. His voice comes across as less souful and more a calculated imitation of what he thinks "soulful" is. The reputation of "Into the Mystic" as the "stand out track" a lot of people cite baffles me. The song itself is not awful by amy means but just don't get what's so special about it, especially when you've got the above tracks. The simple "Come Running" I think I even prefer over this. For that matter I also don't really understand the love "And It Stoned Me" gets. "These Dreams of You" gets docked points for both excessive sax and the impression that I'd enjoy this way better if Sam Cooke were singing it. Similarly, "Brand New Day" I think is a strong candidate to have been much better if it had been a Joe Cocker song. The backup singers carry this one. "Everyone" hits hardest for me out of all the tracks here. Earworm territory here for sure, and appreciate how it breaks up the samey instrumentation on the rest of the album with the shamelessly twee flute ( is that also a harpsichord?) and baroque sensibility. I'm a sucker for a catchy as hell bit of sugary pop. Feels like it should have been the closer, though "Glad Tidings" as an energetic, if generic feeling of an encore, so I can see it. Ultimately not much here for me to fault aside from my dislike of Morrison's voice and thinking it's three great songs surrounded by competent filler. Tracks to save for a playlist: - "Moondance" - "Crazy Love" - "Everyone"

Variety: 3 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 5 Uniqueness: 3 Emotionality: 3 Never listened to this the whole way through despite some glowing recommendations from trusted sources at the time of release. I think around then is when I began to actively disengage from listening to much of anything new. This one has been on my list forever though, so glad to finally get a listen in. HIGHLIGHTS ( can they still be called highlights when it's mostly highlights?) - "Thinkin Bout You" is one of the few tracks I remember hearing, and holds up exceedingly well. The time has long since passed since I was able to pinpoint the decade of song's release by its sound ( maybe even agree with the theory that music and pop culture in general been frozen in time since the early 2000s with nothing to distinguish it from what came before or after), but to my ears this sounds as fresh and new today as anything recent I've heard. Very strong start out of the gate here. Dig the sparse instrumentation on this and damn... that falsetto... Listened to this track multiple times. - "Sierra Leone" - I also listed to a few times. Wow. No diluting the album with filler tracks yet. Bold move after that first track to drop another great one here. Love the Phil Collins-ish gated drum beat sound here. - "Sweet Life" - Ocean's phrasing here is giving me strong Stevie Wonder vibes, and he's able to get a completely different feel from the prior tracks. Upbeat and bright and dipping briefly into lushness. - "Super Rich Kids" - The Casio keyboard preset beat that gets layered into the "Benny and the Jets" piano hits hard for me. Lyrically probably my favorite track. - "Lost" - Highlight of the back half for me, and possibly the album itself. Going to go out a limb without even checking that this one had to have been a breakout single. Has pop crossover appeal written all over it, and stands out from the R&B-ishness of what's come before. Puts me in mind of a more downbeat, subdued Pharrell Williams. - "Monks" - Strong Parliament-Funkadelic vibes here, and dig those drums. - "Bad Religion" - Prince is all over parts of this one. Organ at the beginning reminded me simultaneously of the opening of "Let's Go Crazy" and Procol Harum's "Whiter Shade of Pale", but then the electronic strings elevate and change it into something completely different. - "Pink Matter" - Andre 3000! ( had to verify) but was the only guest on here I recognized. LOWLIGHTS ( few and far between) - "Pilot Jones" - As close to an inessential track as there gets on this album? In no way bad though. Just felt like a throwaway. Dig the airplane transition though. - "Pyramids" - Never felt toooooooo long to me because of how often it changed up, just not sure the length was justified for what felt like it could have been a couple of smaller, much tighter tracks. Carve out that middle section by itself though... - "Forrest Gump" - Had to look the lyrics up for this one to make sure I was actually hearing what I was hearing. Ok. Interesting choice. Feel like I'm missing something here. Change my mind about what I said about "Pilot Jones". - The interludes I'm not sure I have much to say about other than they ( mostly) didn't feel completely extraneous, and had some interesting elements, "White" might be my choice for the best telephone hold music track ever. Seriously could listen to that on repeat without much frustration. Though "Not Just Money" I think maybe I'd skip on future listens ( spoiler alert: there will most definitely be future listens). - The radio station changing gimmick ( not fully committed to here) didn't bother me that much, though felt it was just as unnecessary as it was on "Songs for the Deaf" by Queens of the Stone Age. Overall, was mighty impressed with this one, and slightly disappointed I waited this long for a full listen. Found myself struggling to pick a favorite track, and the production felt smooth and simple, but never too sparse. Was reminded of Prince in this respect. I never felt assaulted by effects and busyness. The emotional highlights stood out that much more for how subdued a lot of it was and I appreciated how cohesive it felt despite big swings into different sounds. If I had to knock this album for anything it would be length. I wouldn't call it bloated, but the hour and 2 minute run time is a lift to be honest. As many times as I replayed tracks I did have to listen to this in chunks. As listenable and varied as it was throughout, I do also feel that the first half is weighted with the top tier stuff. This is going into regular rotation for me for the time being, and several tracks will be going into the 5-star playlist. Playlist alteratons: - Drop "Pilot Jones" and "Forrest Gump" - Drop the interludes - Find a shorter edit of "Pyramids"

"None more black." Variety: 2 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 5 Uniqueness: 3 Emotionality: 5 Now we're getting into familiar territory. Going into this one it's worth mentioning that The Cure are a top 10 band for me. They are one of the few acts I will seek out live performaces, rarities, B-sides and the like from. While this one has never been my favorite release from them, historically it has gotten a LOT of play. It has been a while though, so let's see how well it holds up. THE TRACKS - "One Hundred Years" - Top Cure track in peak energetic doom and gloom mode. Up there with the best of Bauhaus and Sisters of Mercy as far as danceable misery goes. Works perfectly over top of that upside down video of the bats that makes it look like they are in a goth club. You know the one. - "A Short Term Effect" - Best synthesis of all the aspects of this album all in one track in my opinion, veering into a muted psychedelia at times which adds a weird tone I'm mixed on from moment to moment. - "The Hanging Garden" - Possibly the epitome of a Cure track? Definitely the one I might use as the barometer to tease out someone's openness to the darker side of the band. I feel you either start singing this in a mocking Robert Smith voice ( like my wife did as she passed by my listening post) or you bob your head and barely restrain yourself from doing the shuffling South Park-goth dance. - "Siamese Twins" - Nice slow down. Driving rhythm section is the star here, but the mood... The pure pancake makeup, eyeliner and smeared lipstick experience on full display. "The Figurehead - If "The Hanging Garden" is pure distilled Cure, then this is the low hanging fruit whose seeds have blossomed into a the stereotypical Cure sound. While perfectly fine to my ears, its also nothing special. I could drop this into the middle of a half dozen of their albums and not sure most casual fans would notice it was out of place. Cool, sinister guitar hook surrounded by Robert Smith Mad Libs. "Strange Day" It's... fine. The intensely percussive beat here loses something right after The Figurehead. The wobbly synth hooks me in though. "Cold" - Possibly the most atmospheric track here. Dig that cello-organ-glockenspiel combo. Could easily imagine this one running over the credits to a modern Dracula movie. Sounds like practice for Disintegration. "Pornography" - Never been the biggest fan of opening ( or closing for that matter) noise collagey stuff on a track. That being said, this does at least slowly build OUT of that noise and into something, giving it a steady rising feeling of almost galloping forward out of the muck. "Fight against the Sadness, Artax. Please!" HIGHLIGHTS - "One Hundred Years" - "The Hanging Garden" - "Cold" LOWLIGHTS - Impossible to mine any pure stinkers, but gun to my head and I was forced to trim 6:16 or thereabouts from the running time, "The Figurehead" fits the bill nicely. - Not a knock on the album itself, but also would not recommend this as the intro point to a Cure newbie. - Not the biggest fan of the mix on "Pornography" and much prefer some live versions I've heard where you can actually hear Smith a lot clearer. There's a perfectly good song buried under all that noise. FINAL THOUGHTS There are a lot of bands I love that I still only consider "greatest hits" bands. Meaning I might rate a lot of their songs very highly, but when I listen to them it'll be in playlists of 4-5 star songs culled from their discography. As much as I love Prince as an entity, for example, I rarely find myself listening to a full Prince album front to back in order. The Cure are an exception to this. I've found that looking their discography in aggregate, I much prefer to listen to their stuff via the album experience. I also tend to vaguely classify bands into two camps - vibes bands that ooze atmosphere, but who don't ultimately have much to say or whose lyrics might even be mostly nonsense filler ( The Beatles, Soundgarden, Beck) and acts who are message based, with distinct lyrics that tell a story ( Elvis Costello, The Decemberists, Bob Dylan). The Cure ( as well as Depeche Mode, Alice in Chains, The Kinks) for me fall into that sweet spot in between where we not only get tons of atmosphere, but there's no slouching in the lyrics department either. Should you choose to pay attention to them at all. But it's never required. I can just as easily zone out and take in a Cure album as I can slow down and pay close attention to each track. There is a spectrum however, and Pornography falls just on the vibes side for me. As far as Cure albums go anyways. As much as I like the album as whole, and I can totally see the influence it had on dark melodic rock that came after ( some consider this to be peak Goth), it does not have as many high highs as my favorites from them, and in the end suffers more from the sameyness that in most cases causes me to dismiss stuff from less revered artists. While I'll never take this one out of rotation, it might be a while before I get back around to another full listen. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - No notes. You be you, Pornography.

"Teenage angst has paid off well / Now I'm bored and old" Variety: 3 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 4 Uniqueness: 2 Emotionality: 2 = 3.2 rounded down to a 3 Despite remembering the singles from this being pretty inescapable at the time ( mainly via MTV for me) I never engaged with this as an album experience, and so was really only familiar with the hits. I've listened all the way through maybe once before, but don't recall too much other than what I already knew. I've also been historically averse to the pop punk sound. I'm curious if I've mellowed a bit in that regard. THE TRACKS "Burnout" - If there's anything I can fault Green Day for it's certainly not a lack of energy. This track jumps right in, full bore and is as melodic as expected if a bit lacking in great hooks. The fat bass, speedy yet precise drumming, and that snotty delivery are all on display here. "Having a Blast" - More of the same, but more hooks, some solid but minimal harmonizing, and great driving guitar. It's like they're building up to something. Wet noodle of a chorus though. "Chump" - Bit of a feat to keep the energy up three tracks in, but mission accomplished. Liking this more with each successive track. The chorus here is definitely an improvement and damn that bass breakdown hits. Loved it when the Pete Townsend-ish guitar comes in over top and the song messily peters out and transitions into... "Longview" - Happy to say this is still the god tier melodic ode to boredom and apathy that it always was. That bass line will forever live in the folds of my neocortex. Armstrong at his peak lyrically here as well. "Welcome to Paradise" - Right after "Longview" you'd expect anything else to be disappointing, but holy hell this is a burner. The harmonizing, the sinister breakdown, the HOOKS! While the previous track is maybe my favorite song on here, this is the one we put on the golden record that we shoot off into space for the aliens to understand what Green Day was. "Pulling Teeth" - I had forgotten this little mid-tempo thing. Comes across now as a pop punk take on the 50's Everly Bros/ Buddy Holly mode of relationship song. Would not be surprised to learn that Armstrong was a huge fan of this stuff. A nice little rest before we jump right back into that breakneck pace. "Basket Case" - And here's the blistering sing-a-long right about the mid point. I can't imagine a world where this isn't always the finale at a live Green Day show. Even on an album where the energy level is averaging out at a solid 9.5, this one is still somehow still invigorating. And you know your song is an all time classic when Weird Al includes it i a polka medley. "She" - Well damn, I totally forgot about this one. I came into this fully expecting the four big ones to be the obvious stars here. This was definitely on my radar at the time of release but I think got buried under how massive the other ones were. Dark horse pick for 2nd best song on the album. "Sassafras Roots" - Not much to say about this one other than it pales in comparison to everything around it. "When I Come Around" - Unimpeachable radio staple that I have maybe heard the most off of this. So much so that it feels like less of a crime to skip. I mean, I also love "Under Pressure" but it's also on that list. Do better, Sirius XM DJs. "Coming Clean" - Another one I don't have memories of at all, and not sure I need to. Filler is too harsh a classification, but I doubt this is anyone's favorite. "Emenius Sleepus" - Getting the impression that these last several songs were leftovers or reworked earlier material that they used to pad things out a bit. All short, perfectly competent numbers but nothing too affecting. "In the End" - This included, but at least it's got a kind of weird country western beat going for it. For real. Slow this waaay down, add a fiddle and an upright bass... "F.O.D." - Acoustic opening is a bold choice here,but have to say Armstrong's weaknesses as a vocalist are unprotected in that section. When everything kicks in things improve a good 90%, but that still only puts the song at a 60% for me. Too little too late. The hidden track is a skeevishly charming ( charmingly skeevish?) little Daniel Johnson-ish thing. HIGHLIGHTS - "Longview" ( especially), "Welcome to Paradise", "Basket Case", "When I Come Around"... everything you expect. - "She" - Tight, short songs - Very little fat on this one LOWLIGHTS - "Sassafras Roots" - Weak ending mostly filled up with half-realized nuggets that don't really stick FINAL THOUGHTS I still regularly hear the hits from this on the radio, and I rarely change the channel when I do. That said, this will never hit as hard for me as it did to a 13 year old outsider in 1994. I missed that boat and so the band never got their hooks in me. So much so that I eventually became dismissive of them later and never even bothered to follow up with much of anything else aside from whatever top 10 hit of theirs that would have been unavoidable ( looking at you "Good Riddance"). I even managed to actively avoid their whole American Idiot phase. While it will never be a bit of fondly remembered nostalgia for me, and the entire album will not be in regular rotation or anything, I can't deny the musicianship and energy on display for throughout. Impressive stuff. And hooks for miles. I think the band got a lot of shit for being too mainstream at the time, but seems like the idea of "selling out" has gone the way of the dodo and history looks more kindly on acts like this. If you're going to listen to whiny, post adolescent-moaning, you can do worse than a version that's catchy as hell and funny to boot. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS Drop "Sassafras", "Having a Blast" and everything after "When I Come Around" and you've got yourself a 5-star EP.

"Little Ham 'n Eggs comin' at ya, hold on people hope ya got your griddles!" Variety: 2 Adequacy: 3 Listenability: 2 Uniqueness: 2 Emotionality: 2 = 2.2 rounded down to a 2 This one had me baffled at first. Had I heard of this before? Is this a compilation? The name of the group I was vaguely aware of, but honestly can say, aside from "Back to Life" I don't recognize any of the titles here. Unfamiliar territory for me, but excited to dive in. THE TRACKS "Keep On Movin'" - Ok. Immediately recognized this one. Remember hearing it waaaaaay back when on the radio ( we're talking elementary school days), but at the time never knew who the artist was. This is some very chill head-nodding material, with great vocal performance. "Fairplay" - Bit more energetic here, but more head nodding goodness. Can't imagine that the beat on this has not been since sampled a bunch since ( checking afterwards at least 21 times, and by luch luminaries as Bel Biv Devoe, Boys II Men and Nate Dogg himself). "Holdin' On" - There's no denyin the groove on this one, but not a fan of the lead vocalist at all. The disco strings and the background singers can't save this one either though. I can imagine the dude getting the lyrics seconds before they hit record and he just did his best to read them. "Feeling Free ( Live Rap)" - This is more like it. Nice change up into some laid back funky hip hop style. Parenthetical on this is believably, and captures a live feel well. Crowd vibes of something like "Got to Give It Up" but way more subdued. "African Dance" - Give me flutes as an accent all day long. Even a solo. But this one had me hovering over skip for the first time in this little project. "Dance" - Nicest thing I can say here is that male vocalist is slightly less irritating, and this is a much more responsible use of the flute. Not sure the spoken word/ talk rap thing has ever really worked for me, and this is no exception. "Feel Free" - The pattern maintains. Just barely. Somewhat of a step back up, but the vibrato style on here is ruining the vibe. Where's the original lady? "Happiness" - Right down the middle drum groove and some vocals that did not distract too much. I want the original lady back. "Back to Life" (Accapella) - There she is! Wait... Ok, so this is not the version I'm familiar with, I still dig it, especially after the beat kicks in and it becomes a roller skate jam for about a minute. Going to call an audible here and sub in the alternate version ( technically still part of the album, at least in it's 10th anniversary incarnation) here, and BOOM. Perfection. Close my eyes and I can almost taste the puff paint and feel the lacerations from the slap bracelets. "Jazzie's Groove" - Perfectly fine closer with minimal vocal interruptions. Looking back maybe more horns would have improved some of the previous tracks as well. HIGHLIGHTS - "Back to Life" ( the hit single version) and to a lesser extent "Keep on Movin'" both are well deserving of a spot on any 90s ( yes I know this was released in '89) era dance playlist. - Nonstop grooves throughout - Very chill atmosphere LOWLIGHTS - Most everything else, though "Fairplay" and "Jazzie's Groove" might be issued a reprieve from the trash heap if I'm feeling generous. FINAL THOUGHTS Can't say I'd ever put this one on and pay complete attention to it, but would not be completely terrible to have on in it the background while doing some mind numbing, repetitive task. Not a knock, as those kinds of albums I value. Just nothing about this really grabs me other than the big hit and the opening track. I can easily imagine how this must have hit way harder in '89. And in the UK maybe it even seemed like a revelation of sorts, but the years have not been kind. As far as smooth, atmospheric, chill R&B-tinged stuff goes, I'd rather might seek out some PM Dawn before I'd ever revisit this. Looked up afterward and verified same vocalist on both those standout tracks - Caron Wheeler. Best thing I can say about this album is that it has inspired me to look up her solo work. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Open with "Keep On Movin'" and then "Back to Life" 9 times in a row

"Cause life ain't nothing but a good groove, A good mixtape to put you in the right mood” Variety: 3 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 5 Uniqueness: 3 Emotionality: 3 = 3.8 rounded up to 4 INTRO I saw Massive Attack come up and got a little too excited before I realized this is not the one I thought it was. I didn't jump on the bandwagon until Mezzanine which was, to my complete surprise, a full 7 YEARS LATER! Surely I must have heard some of this before, right? Let's see what Banksy and friends have in store. THE TRACKS "Safe from Harm" - Ok. Fears unfounded. I have at least heard this one before. Awesome opener. Everything about this is what I was hoping the Soul II Soul's Club Classics vol. One was going to be. Take all those criticisms and reverse them. I'm back on board for some late 80s/ early 90s British music collective shenanigans. "One Love" - Steady as she goes. Horace Andy is what you want from a male vocalist on this type of thing. Soulful, and tuneful. He's not just reading off a menu here. That awesome sting is lifted from "Ike's Song" by Isaac Hayes ( had to look it up as I thought it was from a Godzilla (!) soundtrack at first) cements this together for me. Seriously though - do yourself a favor and pull up the Who Sampled Who site while listening to some of these. "Blue Lines" - Not the biggest fan of Banksy's rapping on this. It's not distractingly awful but it veers very close to the talk/ singing stuff I tend to loathe. His flow is , uh... monotone and deliberate if I'm being kind. However, it slots into the chill atmosphere well, so... "Be Thankful for What You've Got" - We get a more than capable, modernized cover of William Devaugn's minor soul classic here ( recognized the song, but had to look up the artist and release date). Enjoyable and a nice change of pace, but does not touch the original by a country mile. I listened to the original while the cover was paused, came back and confirmed this opinion. Bet this killed in their live sets though. "Five Man Army" - I think I could listen to just the drum and bass on this on a loop for hours ( found this after - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3LPGmxpCu4) . The reggae dripping off this is a delight, and maybe my favorite rapping so far (Tricky!) off the whole album. Banksy doesn't even detract from the experience. "Unfinished Sympathy" - I feel like I've heard this drum sample a zillion times, but doesn't lose anything here. The strings over top and the vocals are lovely as well, but both parts seem to be straining against each other. I wish the drum loop was slowed way down so this could feel more chill, but I feel like I'm running to catch up or listening to two separate songs playing over top of each other. This is a flavor I'm not sure of yet. It seems to come together in the end though with the piano. Maybe it could grow on me? "Daydreaming" - Tricky seems to be working at Banksy's pace here for the first part and then gets more confident by the halfway point. Right down the middle though and can't say this one hooks me. Not filler by any means, but the rapping is not what draws me to Massive attack, and it's front and center here. This would be best time to hit the toilet at a concert. "Lately" - I'm fully along for the ride. The groove is in full effect and Shara Nelson kills it with the baby-making vocals. "Hymn of the Big Wheel" - Easily the most surprising track here. To quote They Might Be Giants "No one in the world ever gets what they want / And that is beautiful" - seems to be the vibe here. The electronic bits remind me of Aphex Twin. Not my favorite, but my biggest criticism is that it's the one track that feels out of place. Until the last 45 seconds or so anyways. Paints with such bright colors early on I'm not sure I would have pegged this for a Massive Attack song at all had I heard it out of context. We got some whale song though I guess. HIGHLIGHTS - "Safe from Harm", "Five Man Army", "Lately" if I had to pick standout tracks - Shara Nelson and Horace Andy are the co-MVPs here in my opinion, only enriching things when they show up LOWLIGHTS - Banksy's rapping will never be my favorite - Ends on such a weird note - Another 7 years til we get "Teardrop" :( FINAL THOUGHTS I've heard bits and pieces of this over the years but never thought to go back and give this my full attention. Glad I did. I could make a whole 5 star playlist of just great songs that were sampled for this. It's crazy that this is their debut and they feel so complete and steady already. I can't imagine Mezzanine won't come up on this list at some point though, and gonna go ahead an predict a 5 star for that one. It puts this in perspective though. Very little at all to find fault with, but I know there's better things coming. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Drop "Blue lines" and "Daydreaming". If only there were some way to swap Banksy and Tricky on these. - "Hymn of the Big Wheel" we can maybe pretend never existed. Besides I think ending with some Shara Nelson is appropriate here.

"Everybody's got a bomb/ We could all die any day, oh/ But before I'll let that happen/ I'll dance my life away, oh" Variety: 2 Adequacy: 3 Listenability: 3 Uniqueness: 2 Emotionality: 1 = 2.2 rounded down to 2.0 I very much associate this one with the beginnings of my iPod listening days. For several years my work day was a constant back and forth between podcasts and playlists, and the hits from this featured quite heavily. This is also maybe one of the first albums I went through and cannibalized for the cream of the crop, dropping the rest. yes, I did my part to kill the album as a format. My old iPod still works (technically - screen is barely visible through all the cracks and it has to constantly stay on the charger) and a look-see reveals that I only saved two songs. We'll see if you can guess which two. THE TRACKS "Time to Pretend" - This one is way more memorable than I recall. Not sure why this one got deleted. Hooky, bit funny, and seems like the perfect mission statement for the album. Fun, danceable energy with some light sarcasm and melancholic "we're fucked, but we might as well have a good time" vibes. The repeated childlike synth melody, the rising near the end and the nostalgia-tinged lyrics give this one a deceptive heft. "Weekend Wars" - Turn into a downbeat indie rock here immediately adds some variety, and brings to mind some later bands who would seem to make this song their whole vibe, with the choral up vocals. "The Youth" - Effects laden, quiet bit of jangly twee is step up from the previous track, but in the same mode. These guys got vocal hooks for miles though. This sounds like they may have listened to Beck's Mutations album and taken some good notes. "Electric Feel" - All time classic. If you don't find yourself tapping toes to this, I'm not sure what to say except... my condolences. No surprise this was a radio hit and continues to get heavy play. It's a bit downbeat despite the catchiness. "Kids"- Wow, two in a row. Definition of an ear-worm. Also digging hard into that "sad content/ bouncy melody" dichotomy. The music video for this one is tied heavily into my memory of this one. I've seen this one live and funny to see a giant crowd chanting and jumping up and down to this weirdly dark song while the band has some sort of bargain bin Flaming Lips-ish style stage stuff happening with dozen people throwing stuff around and dancing. "4th Dimensional Transition" - Ooohhh trippy, maaan. I can't tell if these guys are fans of psychedelia or if this is some sort of send up, but this one runs the gamut of influences from the Doorsy organ, to surf rock ( dig that "Wipeout" beat). And yet it all blends well. But does it amount to much? That strumming ending started to get on my nerves though... "Pieces of What" - Throwaway track here. 60's era Rolling Stones seem to be the target here, and while the sound was somewhat successfully evoked, the feeling was most definitely not. Feels unfinished. "Of Moons, Birds & Monsters" - More 60's pastiche stuff going on here, but harder to pin down what the influences are. Not sure this one knows what it wants to be either. "The Handshake" - More of the same, but even less energy somehow. Phenobarbital Rock. "Future Reflections" - Still on the floor here, but at least it's got a bit of a groove to it, and some dynamics. Weak statement to end on though. HIGHLIGHTS - "Electric Feel" and "Kids" are both all time classics in my opinion, and will forever have a place on my 5 star playlist. - "Time to Pretend" LOWLIGHTS - Latter half of this disappoints in comparison with the energy of the first half - Also lacks the synthy hooks of the first half FINAL THOUGHTS I was 27 when this came out, but I think it's one of the first things I remember listening to that made me feel old. This is also around the time I remember it starting to feel like genres were disappearing and everything, even the good stuff, sounded like a collection of influences from the last several decades, but had no identity in and of itself. This one certainly fits the bill. You got electronic, indie rock, folk, psychedelia, baroque pop, maybe a dozen other microgenres represented here. And while it doesn't feel like a complete mess, at least for the first half, the last half is shambling and not as distinct, and suffers wildly in comparison. I read somewhere a while back that the impetus of this album was a more or less cynical attempt to write something that would be intensely radio-friendly, hence all the hooks and upbeat synth pop stuff here. Several of the songs were originally conceived as parodies of what these dudes thought a hit song was. And the dumb throwaway jokes became their biggest hits. Right after they veered far away into more experimental, difficult material. I do distinctly not enjoying the follow up. Mission accomplished I guess, but wish they had further developed in the direction this album points. Seems like maybe a ton of other artists took the ball and ran with it though. Guess my initial thoughts on this one did not change too much. Was hoping this would be a whole album built around the energetic synth pop jams, but those just seem like anomalies dispersed amongst the other tracks. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Drop everything but "Electric Feel", "Kids", and "Time to Pretend"

"Cool wind in my hair/ Warm smell of colitis/ Rising up through the air" Variety: 3 Adequacy: 4 Listenability: 4 Uniqueness: 1 Emotionality: 1 = 2.6 rounded up to a 3.0 INTRO Yikes. First double album. This one has been on list to tackle forever, so let's go. Will say that while I'm positive I've listened to Stills's self titled solo album way back, I remember little to nothing of it. This kind of stuff is always going to be a unique challenge to me. Most of it I've heard has been inoffensive enough and even listenable - but it's just that... listenable and not much more. In my experience these genres eschew the highs and lows that make most music stand out to me in a memorable way. Most music for me lives or dies by the hooks. And failing that, great atmosphere. In my own personal tortured metaphor I see the songs as the unique and varied furniture decorating the room that is the album. In most blues/ country/ jam rock the songs just end up being the carpet or wallpaper. It might be damn fine carpet/ wallpaper, but you just don't ever notice it. THE TRACKS Side One - The Raven (ughh...) "Song of Love" - Off and running with some very capable, very smooth stuff here. While I might not be able to pick it out of a line up of similar material, this was a good start. These guys at least know what they're doing. This feels like the music playing in the part of the movie where the protagonist is driving along the Pacific Coast Highway with the convertable top down as the helicopter shot zooms out just before the credits role. "Rock & Roll Crazies/ Cuban Bluegrass" - Different enough especially with the Latin rhythms near the end, but Santana this is not. I can feel that thick shag carpet beneath my feet, and least it's comfortable, but that weed smell is never going to come out though. "Jet Set (Sigh)" - Generic blues rocker is nothing special, but a fine enough specimen of the type. Stills's voice has got a bit more oomph to it than I expected. Was never really sure what part he played in the CSN dynamic, but by comparison seems he's got range enough to pull this off well. He's no Jack Bruce, but few are. "Anyway" - More of the same. Light one up, pop open a few tallboys, open the garage and head out to the driveway. That Camaro ain't gonna wash itself. "Both of Us (Bound to Lose)" - Some recycled CSN material here? Will there be any more? Getting notes of America as well. Did not come here expecting bongos, but I'm down. Side two – The Wilderness "Fallen Eagle" - Huh. Good call waiting til side two of disc one to pull out the bluegrass stylings. More shades of CSN with the harmonies here. Foot tapping away, I barely noticed how short this was. Reminds me that my favorite Grateful Dead adjacent project also happens to be bluegrass - Old & in the Way. Seriously, check this (https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1cKK20CwQk1pd6vTinxCMx?si=b49f28942f2f4609) out. In fact I might just after this. "Jesus Gave Love Away for Free" - Was not expecting this degree of variety for sure. Some steel guitar filled country gospel stylings don't feel out of place, and work to further differentiate side two. The upon first glance groanworthy side titles are making more sense now. "Colorado" - Hmm... this sounds soooooo familiar. I can't quite place it though. Oh well. Solid stuff. This is what I imagine Bob Seger would be doing had he been a country boy. "So Begins the Task" - Entering some more traditional folky territory here, and have to say I like it as a contrast. Guessing there's going to be a decent CSN ( minus the C&N) album's worth of tracks to gather from this when all is said and done. Memorable chorus here is making this one rise above the noise a bit. "Hide It So Deep" - More bluegrass here, perfect for some sleepy slow dancing, beer in one hand, just before closing time at your favorite honky tonk. "Don't Look at My Shadow" - Flashback to earlier in the night at the same honky tonk. Being honest, if I want something like this I'll just throw on "East Bound and Down" by Jerry Reed Side three – Consider "It Doesn't Matter" - Downbeat America/ Poco vibes. Not quite Now That's What I Call Smooth Hits of the 70s material, but heading in that direction. "Johnny's Garden" - Maybe the first real stinker for me. Hippy garden party nonsense. "Bound to Fall" - Another cut for the CSN redux. Sounds pretty but goes nowhere. "How Far" - This is what I would expect to hear from a Stills solo album. Nothing special, but fine enough. "Move Around" - Less passing the Dutchie 'pon the left hand side here and more be sure to wear some flowers in your hair. I'm not down for the gentle flower power sound, but at least there's some atmospheric stuff going on. In a world where people didn't have to look up what this album even was, I bet it would have been covered a zillion times by early 2000s neo-folk duos. "The Love Gangster" - Trying to get a little funky on this one and I'm not buying what he's selling. Ballsy title. Give this to Joe Walsh and I bet it would be a lot more fun. Side four – Rock & Roll Is Here to Stay "What to Do" - Back to the country and western stuff. Strong return to what works. Could see either Joe Cocker or Rod Stewart (minus the fiddle) doing a version of this. "Right Now" - Fairly straight ahead energetic rocker gets the job done, but could have been on half a dozen albums by just as many artists of the era. "The Treasure (Take One)" - Vocals on this one are weirdly unintelligible. Too low in the mix or maybe version I'm listening to is just crappy. Didn't really affect the experience though. Wah wah pedal was uncalled for on this, but I liked the piano. Listened to this one twice and liked it better the second time. At least the first half. The second half switches into a sub-"Truckin'" jam which I didn't hate. "Blues Man" - Surprised at how capable Stills's blues vocals are here. Liked this much more than I thought I would based on what I figured was coming. Stripped down acoustic here. Still though, I want to hear what Ry Cooder would do with this. HIGHLIGHTS - "Fallen Eagle" - "So Begins the Task" - "Hide It So Deep" - "What to Do" - "Blues Man" LOWLIGHTS "Johnny's Garden" especially and most of side three. FINAL THOUGHTS If the Eagles are country coke-rock, Stills is the country weed-rock alternative. I think given a choice early ZZ Top are much more my speed as far as western-tinged blues rock. In the other direction, The Grateful Dead are maybe also more interesting a country-folk jam outfit. This album seems smack dab in the middle as far as being perfectly listenable version of either of those. A forgettable piece of pleasing, professionally made material. Despite the prospect of a double album making me a bit nervous, the songs don't overstay their welcome. Did not come out a superfan by any means, but I'm not above revisiting some more of Stills's stuff. That is if it happens to be set in front of me. The worst I can say about this album is that I found myself wanting to listen to other artists throughout. Old & in the Way, or ZZ Top, or even Poco. If this lacks anything it's personality. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - I might "Consider" dropping side three in its entirety, and make this a much more straight ahead country/ blues infused thing

"It sounds like someone else's song/ From a long time ago" Variety: 5 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 5 Uniqueness: 2 Emotionality: 3 = 4.0 INTRO Two double albums in a row. Ok. Surprised to see this rather than Yankee Hotel Foxtrot though. Wilco I've always been lukewarm on, never connecting much with the albums despite liking them very much in some live appearances I've seen on tv. And Tweedy seems like an interesting dude. His numerous appearances on various late nights shows as both a guest and a performer seem to have earned him some goodwill. For a while I even followed the charming home project he did with his kids where would post live performances of cover songs they would do. Still have never sought out any of his work. Anytime I've heard it it has been by accident or at the recommendation of someone else. In fact, I think maybe one of the reasons I've avoided Wilco in general is because of how hard it seemed to get pressed by critics at their peak. There's sometimes nothing worse to motivate you to do something than someone repeatedly insisting that you do that thing. THE TRACKS Disc One ( at least they had the good taste not to name the sides here :) ) "Misunderstood" - The discordant opening is gives me the impression of an orchestra warming up and contrasts nicely with the quietness on display. Guessing the song itself is warm up of sorts. Lazy, distorted vocals over the church-like organ and the piano, with the slow build are all putting me on alert for a huge jump in volume and intensity. And there it is. Notes of Like what if the Replacements had been way into John Cale? "Far, Far Away" - Right into a sleepy, charming little country and western thing with some steel pedal guitar ( I think?) providing the a lonesome atmosphere. Neat trick not feeling too out of place after that opener. I'm aware of the alt-country sound Tweedy's various projects indulge in and this was an appreciated light touch. "Monday" - Well into some Matthew Sweet-ish territory now. Little looser, and lighter on the hooks than I usually prefer in my power pop, but solid. Was NOT expecting the horns, but I'm in for it. Looking back at the musical landscape of 1996, knowing what I know now, this must have seemed of a piece with the brighter sounding post-grunge stuff floating around then. Weezer and Pavement, and Beck , Eels were right there as well, so wonder why this one slipped past me. Maybe the alt-country label? "Outtasite (Outta Mind)" - Not much to say here other than we're continuing down this nice little path into power pop land. Would most definitely slot this in amongst the Matthew Sweet/ Susannah Hoffs stuff that I think comes slightly later. "Forget the Flowers" - Back to the twang and country beat. Perfect driving music. Some catchy stuff here. "Red-Eyed and Blue" - This one was driving me crazy as the opening reminded me SOOO much of some old 70s soft rock classic. Dug around and found this - "Steal Away" by Robbie Dupree (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1uA_Zw7zAk) . One of those songs I heard a zillion times as a kid but had no idea who it was, so probably attributed it to Hall and Oates or ELO or something. Some people also apparently hear "As the World Falls Down" by Davd Bowie off the Labyrinth soundtrack in there. Me less so, but sure, why not. I'm also hearing someJohn Lennon influence here, but I'm fully onboard. Beautiful stuff. And I loooooove me some whistling. "I Got You (At the End of the Century)" - A return to the power pop well is a little bit glammier, and has not gotten stale yet. Tremolo and the bluesy refrains make this one stand out a bit. "What's the World Got in Store" - Catchy little ditty starts off as something out of the Elliott Smith playbook and morphs into something a bit more optimistic and poppy. "Hotel Arizona" - Tweedy wearing some Tom Petty influences o his sleeve here? "Say You Miss Me" - Bringing the energy way back down for the first disc closer. Possibly the most basic thing I've heard so far, but still a pleasant listen. The little bit of background vocals and the sharp chord changes that don't come quite where you expect still makes this sound different from similar folk rock material by other artists. Disc two "Sunken Treasure" - We open disc two with some not quite-garden variety acoustic indie fare. I can easily imagine this is where teh cigarette lighters come out at the concert. As close as we'll get to a slow jam on this? The electric guitar coming in halfway through is a welcome addition, and the way it builds, crests and smashs against the main sturcture of the song reminds me of Radiohead's "Electioneering". "Someday Soon" - If Lennon came to mind on "Red Eyed and Blue" then this catch number has got some McCartney DNA in it, espcecially from his early post-Beatles country-pop stuff. "Outta Mind (Outta Sight)" - Am I crazy or is this just straight up Sesame Street theme here in the opening? Ok. I could not put it better than the first commnet I read when looking this up - "Sesame Street is owed some royalties." Other than this distracting bit, a perfectly... ok indie rock thing. I just can't stop hearing it. I thought it would just be in the opening. Has to be on purpose, right? "Someone Else's Song" - Very pretty bit of folk country here. Would not be out of place on a prime Kris Kristoferson album. "Kingpin" - More Tom Petty vibes here, especially "You Don't Know How it Feels". But not so much that it overpowers anything. Turns a but funky near the end with the (Hammond?) organ. "(Was I) In Your Dreams" - Randy Newman on quaaludes. I like Randy Newman, so that's fine. "Why Would You Wanna Live" - Seems like every song on this reminds me of some other specific artist, and that is how my brain works in general with most artforms - I just can't help seeing the influences and connections, and I live coming across them. Even when it may be a ghost of something not really there or no one else hears it, I find it comforting somehow. This one at times reminds me of Elliott Smith, Andrew Bird, and even Amy Mann. All positive comparisons, and not any kind of straight lifting I can identify. Entirely possible ( probable even) that these people are all drawing on the same influences. Anyway - damn fine track "The Lonely 1" - The sparseness here works as a great contrast to the stripped down , but dreamy chamber pop elements. Makes me want to revisit Hour of Bewilderbeast by Badly Drawn Boy. "Dreamer in My Dreams" - Comes in like a reprise of some earlier song we actually never heard. Though the tone and speed of this is perfect, can't help but wonder what a more bombastic, faster version would sound like. This one reminds me of that time john Lennon and Chuck Berry jammed on "Memphis Tennessee" ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y40Yw9Lz2y4) but without the Yoko Ono backing vocals. Not sure this would have fit anywhere else on the album but here. HIGHLIGHTS - "Far, Far Away" - "Forget the Flowers" - "Someday Soon" - "Why Would You Wanna Live" LOWLIGHTS - Struggling to find much to complain about here at all - I don't hate it, but "Outta Mind (Outta Sight)" is pretty hard to listen to on its own merits FINAL THOUGHTS This was much more eclectic than I thought it would be. I was expecting a more or less straight alt-country thing with very little to distinguish the songs from one another. A lot of varied influences are all over this. Country and western, power pop, jangle pop, singer songwritery yacht rock accents here and there. But even though so many specific artists came to mind while listening to this, I never felt it was overwhelmingly derivative of any of them. Everything blends well, and often goes off in original sounding tangents that end up far from the source ( "Hotel Arizona" for example). Ultimately, I can't really knock this for unoriginality. It seems to wear the influences pretty openly, and synthesizes them all pretty well ( save that Sesame Street riff...) Supremely catchy and at turns both mellow and uplifting, I can honestly say I'd be happy to keep this one around. First half I slightly prefer. Looking forward to hearing more Wilco. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Maybe drop "Outta Mind (Outta Sight)" for crimes against muppet-kind

"(Let's dance) To the song they're playing on the radio" Variety: 2 Adequacy: 4 Listenability: 3 Uniqueness: 2 Emotionality: 3 = 2.8 rounded up to a 3 INTRO I expect amongst my group that I have a bit of a higher tolerance for some of the campier 80s pop and new wave material, and that assumption is about to be challenged I guess. ABC is not a band that was ever on my radar growing up, and never remember hearing it on the radio. I came to it fairly recently with via satellite radio and only really through the hits. While catchy enough to sing a long to, I have yet to be driven to seek the full album out. Let's see how wrong I was to wait. THE TRACKS "Show Me" - Nothing like getting slapped in the face by a bit of disco at 7:30 AM. And I've heard this one. Bracing as it is, what immediately stands out is the catchy mix of that disco feel with the shamelessly emotional vocals I've come to expect from the likes of Kajagoogoo or Dead or Alive or other early 80s UK dance pop acts. Instrumentally I'm picking up some Duran Duran, vocally this is more lounge lizardy Bryan Ferry. "Poison Arrow" - This is the one I've heard the most and imagine must have been the biggest hit. Bass and drums are the star here, but this is some overall well-crafted dance pop. Having noticed that David Bowie had a very heavy influence on a whole generation of male UK vocalists, I can say this one is no different. "Many Happy Returns" - Bit more basic here, and a slow down but that bass is tying it all together so far. Not a fan of the falsetto-led breakdown just past the middle section. "Tears Are Not Enough" - This is more my speed. They've turned up the funk about 60% or so here. And dig that guitar scratch. We almost got ourselves a roller skate jam! Remove the vocals and this doesn't sound a million miles away from something that Talking Heads would have been playing like a year later. Very least could have been a Tom Tom Club deep cut. Can you hear it? "Valentine's Day" - Slight step down here, but still full of hooks and keeps the funky groove up. "The Look of Love" (part one) - Another radio hit for these guys, and I think the most obvious entry point for anyone coming to this group fresh. Damn the hooks are on display aren't they? Catchy as all get out, and my favorite vocals of the album so far. Looked it up and not only was Fry a HUGE Bowie fan, apparently the man himself visited the studio and hung around with the band while they recorded this one, even offering some advice. "Date Stamp" - No real change of pace here, but an interesting dynamic with the female vocalist offering a counterpoint to Fry's domination of the proceedings. Can't say it works completely though. This one doesn't hit for me though like all the rest. Also the cash register sound effects.... ugh. "All of My Heart" - Another one I've heard. We're firmly in Avalon-era Roxy Music territory here. Possibly the slickest, most mainstream sounding of anything I've heard yet. Dark horse track of the album for me. Not as flashy or bombastic as the other big ones, but possible better crafted. "4 Ever 2 Gether" - Lacks the fun dance vibes of what's come before, and poorer for it. Possibly the most unmemorable track so far. The drum breakdown by far the best thing about it. Prefer Fry when he doesn't sound so exasperated. "The Look of Love" (part four) - Ok, but why remind us now that there were much better songs earlier on? Useless appendage here, and not worthy of inclusion as an actual track in my opinion. HIGHLIGHTS - "Show Me" - "Poison Arrow" - "Tears Are Not Enough" - "The Look of Love" - "All of My Heart" LOWLIGHTS - "Many Happy Returns" - "Date Stamp" - "4 Ever 2 Gether" - "The Look of Love" (part four) FINAL THOUGHTS This leaned way further into the funk and dance sounds than I expected, and was surprised at how, well not restrained... but maybe appropriately unrestrained the vocals were? I think this type of musical gesture requires something big, and Martin Fry proves up for the job. I would solidly recommend this to fans of Let's Dance-era Bowie or latter day Roxy Music and David Ferry solo stuff. I'd slot this into the "Sophisti-pop" label for sure. An acquired taste, to be sure. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Drop the four lowlights, and add in some Bowie, Roxy Music, and the like and just put it on shuffle.

Variety: 2 Adequacy: 4 Listenability: 4 Uniqueness: 1 Emotionality: 2 = 2.6 rounded up to a 3 "Oh on and on and on and on/ Goddammit, I'ma sing my song" Amy Winehouse is another artist I actively avoided, mainly because I very much disliked "Rehab" which was pretty unavoidable. From what little I've heard, I can't deny the talent on display. She most definitely had the voice. And in theory I should be very receptive to the whole neo-soul/ R&B aesthetic that's going on around that voice. Not sure I'm familiar with any of these tracks though, and I don't see "Rehab" in there so maybe this won't be so bad. I'll be using the UK release here. THE TRACKS "Intro"/"Stronger Than Me" - Instantly reminded of Erykah Badu here. Modern jazz vocals over top of a hip hop beat. This is good. Horns coming in at the end tie it together nicely. I can't tell if intentional or a shitty file I'm listening to, but there is some fuzz to the overall sound which isn't distracting, but feels off somehow. "You Sent Me Flying"/"Cherry" - Did she ever play a 40s nightclub singer in a video or tv or film role? Maybe she should have based on this. Very easy to picture hearing these vocals over top of the piano. She puts just the tiniest too much stank on some of the inflections here for my liking, but the overall net effect if negligible. When the beat comes in it smooths out and becomes a good headnodder. Transition into the little bossa nova works well, and would not have minded this being its own full track. Serves well as some contrast though. "Know You Now" - Can't help but think of the opening of "Message in a Bottle" by the Police when the drum kicks right in. More Erykah Baduizms here, and I don't hate it. Still not totally sold on her delivery though. Her voice hits me much harder when the inflections are toned down. "Fuck Me Pumps" - Winehouse's version of a dis track here? Pretty straight forward stuff here and almost wholly dependent on her vocals which are rightfully carrying the load so far. A bit slight. "I Heard Love Is Blind" Winehouse - More of the lounge chanteuse here and I'm here for it. I think a full album of this kind of stuff might be nice, but I wonder if it would get repetitive without the R&Bish upbeat stuff mixed in. Again though wish this could have been longer. "Moody's Mood for Love"/"Teo Licks" - Echoey trip hop beat over top of the interpretation of a jazz standard doesn't really work for me. This would have been 90% better with more traditional instrumentation. The bit at the end felt like incongruous filler. "(There Is) No Greater Love" - This is more like it. It's a shame that Winehouse never got to do a slew of straight forward jazz standards ( that I am aware of anyway). More of this please. "In My Bed" - A lot going on here from the Fugees vibe, to the hip hop beat, the Portisheadish spy guitar accents, and even some flute. Winehouse ties it all together and gels incredibly well. Much as I've gone on about the jazz standards, this is my favorite so far. Lush and vibrant. "Take the Box" - Jazzy piano ballad break up song. Very basic compared to what's gone before. This type of thing never really ever hits for me and this one is no different. The background vocals save it from being a complete bore. "October Song" - Man, Badu is all over this album. Could easily imagine a version of this being on Baduizm. Solid and breezy. "What Is It About Men" - Another solid entry here, but more downbeat and a lazier delivery here along with the guitar leans into the funk. "Help Yourself" - Read that this oe was not included on the U.S. release which is a shame, as this is a bright spot near the end and is catchy enough. Regretful beach lounging music. This would have been a fine place to end. "Amy Amy Amy"/"Outro"/"Brother" (hidden track)/"Mr Magic (Through the Smoke)" (hidden track) - Weird suite of disconnected aounding leftover pieces serve as a bonus here. "Amy/ Amy / Amy" comes across as some sort of self-referential parody that doesn't work for me. We get some nameless MC closing down the festivities. "Brother" and "Mr. Magic" ( especially) both would have been fine as regular tracks, so not sure what the thinking was here. HIGHLIGHTS - "You Sent Me Flying"/"Cherry" - "I Heard Love Is Blind" - "(There Is) No Greater Love" - "In My Bed" - "October Song" LOWLIGHTS - "Fuck Me Pumps" - "Moody's Mood for Love"/"Teo Licks" - "Take the Box" FINAL THOUGHTS This album has whole chunks that feel a little undercooked. While Winehouse's voice shines on this I did find some ger delivery to be annoying in spots, and teh album as a whole can't help but suffer in comparison to Baduizm, which is going to win out everytime over this if I have to choose to listen to something in this mode. Overall a solid album though and the good outweighs the bad by a good bit. I do now plan on looking to see if maybe there are enough extant tracks of her performing more striaght forward jazz numbers to make a playlist of that PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS Drop - "Fuck Me Pumps", "Moody's Mood for Love"/"Teo Licks", "Take the Box" Find some carved out versions of "Brother" and "Mr. Magic" and include them somewhere in the middle as standalone tracks.

"Lyin' there and staring at the ceiling/ Waiting for a sleepy feeling" Variety: 2 Adequacy: 4 Listenability: 3 Uniqueness: 2 Emotionality: 1 = 2.4 rounded down to a 2 Can't say I've ever heard of this guy, or if I did it was a passing reference in some other music review or book I read, and he was quickly forgotten. From a brief bit info I skimmed over it looks like this will be some early 90s electronica, so there's going to be some stuff competition between Aphex Twin, The Orb, The Prodigy, Underworld, and Orbital ( that's a popular name with these guys, huh?). The cover art is conjuring some sort of world music inspired thing, but maybe he just thought it looked cool. This might be a rough go for me as I tend to treat this kind of music as background noise, and even with artists I really like I don't differentiate too much between tracks. The overall mood seems to be more important. THE TRACKS "Water from a Vine Leaf" (vocals: Beth Orton) - Very atmospheric from the start which is to be expected on this sort of thing, and VERY early 90s beat that comes in over the electronic chatter. Reminds me a bit of what the rhythm section of U2 was doing on Achutung Baby. Saw there were vocals from Beth Orton on this and was looking forward to those, but then we get the worst sort of "vocals" where someone comes in and reads some awful poetry off some index cards in a monotone voice. BUt wait! We do get a nice little chanty bit from Orton that ties the final 4th of the song together before ending with some NIN-ish syth melody before fading out. This is definitely of it's time, and would not be too out of place alongside that track with the chanting monks that was al over those compilations. You know the one. Maybe a bit cooler though. "Into the Paradise" (vocals: Baby B) - This one we get some vocals right off the bat. Bit more sinister and danceable. Can imagine Neo and Trinity entering slow motion into a club where this is playing right before some shit goes down. Much more effective for my money, and holds up better as well. By the time the thudding bass kicks in just under halfway through you might be able to feel your drug of choice start to kick in. Things remain relatively chill though. We're still in the slow motion phase. One other thing I read about this guy is he was heavily involved with Madonna's Ray of Light album. Can totally see the through line from here. Vocals from Baby B (?) tie things together once again. Seems like a lot of these tracks are going to be a variation on this formula. This was a solid one though. "Time to get Wize" (vocals: Divine Bashim) - Bit of a change up here as we get a make vocalist and more of an echoey triphoppy beat, with some energetic piano over top. More talk singing here. Ugh... Instrumental part at least was pleasant enough, but nothing special. "Harry Flowers" - Telephone hold music for the yoga retreat. "A Touch of the Night" (vocals: Cleo Torres) - Bit spookier opening here that I'm liking. Did the composer for the Alias tv show base his whole thing off this one track? Could also imagine Tom Cruise and company doing some spy montage stuff set to this. It's fine, but nothing comes to the foreground for me. Vocals are used as an effect more than anything. "The Story of Light" (vocals: Baby B) - This is more my speed with the ambient opening and the ghostly vocals dropping into an energetic little number that has a driving beat. The variance in tempo and dropping in and out of the beat works really well. Lots of atmosphere and while I wouldn't call it danceable, it certainly hangs with some similar upbeat chill tracks that came much later from some more well known artists. Standout track so far. "Gringatcho Demento" (vocals: Cleo Torres) - Points for the interesting title here, but the radio static opening, meh... A triangle or finger cymbals or something add a bit of an interesting dynamic and then it morphs into something more interesting when the beat drops in. We're in Trip Hop territory again. Also not a fan of the guitar noodling on top. I'm sure this sounded very cool in 1993, but I'm just getting Tomb Raider soundtrack vibes now. And this isn't even a good part. It's a montage of Lara croft buying an airplane ticket and zipping across the map to Cambodia or wherever she was in that first movie. But then maybe this is the track that proves this guy's genius as it forms a sound that's being cannibalized by mainstream action movies circa 2001? "A Hazy Shade of Random" - This one's got an interesting conga drum beat to it that keeps my attention, and aside from the piano sounds a bit more modern to the ears compared to some of the other stuff. I bet Moby listened to this one on repeat at some point. "Best Friend, Paranoia" (vocals: Cleo Torres) - This one's all mood, and all filler. The late arriving funky beat can't salvage this one. "The Monkey King" (vocals: Laurie Mayer) - Inspired by the ambience of the first half of the last track, this one is all of that stretched for 5 minutes. I like me some ambient noise but it helps to have some dynamics mixed in. "Deus Ex Machina" - Better. You got your ambient drone, but also layered in are some echoey synths, and eerie effects that give strong horror movie score vibes. Perfect track for exploring some caverns populated by some cannibalistic humanoid underground dwellers. There's even a dialogue sample from what sounds like a couple horror movies. ( later verified this was from Yougblood, a crime drama from 1978, which is very confusing as Orbit did the score for a completely unrelated movie called Youngblood from 1986 that is a sports drama... Sure, ok.) "Water Babies" - Odd wobbly synth line here works well as the base to this with a couple more elements dipping in and out as needed to keep things interesting. There's no real build to anything, so feels a bit like running in place. Odd note to end things on, but decent enough. HIGHLIGHTS - "Into the Paradise" - "The Story of Light" - "A Hazy Shade of Random" LOWLIGHTS - "Time to get Wize" - "Harry Flowers" - "The Monkey King" FINAL THOUGHTS I don't consider myself as having much of a rock-bias, but I find it very difficult to find much to write about on stuff like this that doesn't just devolve into me describing the track elements. I wonder if this is the nature of the genre or if other albums will give me more to expound upon. Orbit here is very capable, and there's no knocks on professionalism or anything, but overall it just wasn't as engaging as other similar stuff I've heard from the same era. I see he was active since the 80s, so maybe part of his reputation ( and this album's) rests on him being a pioneer of some sorts in this genre? I do know that of the Orbit-named acts from this period, he is starting out lowest on the list for me. Overall, this is very inoffensive stuff, but nothing stood out as very memorable. Very dreamy with a lot of ambient effects, this would not be a terrible listen to try and induce some sleepiness. Can't see myself ever wanting to specifically revisit this, at least not in album form, but didn't hate it. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Drop the lowlights and shuffle the rest into a giant 90s electronica list

"The time is gone, the song is over/ Thought I'd something more to say" Variety: 1 Adequacy: 2 Listenability: 1 Uniqueness: 1 Emotionality: 1 = 1.2 rounded down to 1 Morrissey has always been very hit or miss for me. Lots of great material with The Smiths, but also lots of insta-skips. One of my issues, especially with his solo stuff as it's often lacking the catchiness inherent in a lot of Smiths work, so it's VERY reliant on the lyrics alone. I guess I'll be playing closer attention here than on most, but I'll be trying to avoid falling into the trap of ascribing any personal intent to the content. As I would try to do with most artists. The only time I think that can be useful is if you're looking at pure protests songs or something. And this is all about entertainment in my opinion. Plus, Morrissey's too smart for that and using a literary voice is part of his game anyway, even if he might be fully just stating his honest opinion. THE TRACKS "America Is Not the World" - Musically this is fine. The sentiment, while on its face is pretty hilarious as a concept ( imagine this as a letter being written to an old friend the author is on the rocks with) is also in that nebulous area where I find myself questioning if it's SUPPOSED to be funny. Let's give him the benefit of the doubt though, as he's proven himself no slouch in that department in the past. A knee-slapper it is not though, and from the start here we seem to be leaning into the musically unfriendly. Immediately upon finishing this I couldn't even begin to try and hum it. "Irish Blood, English Heart" - Once again the music seems secondary to the message. No matter how much I might agree with he sentiment, I'm feeling a bit sorry for the session musicians as it seems like they have nothing to do. "I Have Forgiven Jesus" - Bit more musically dynamic here with the organ, but once again nothing special. And still not getting what I think is intended to be some sort of humor. "Come Back to Camden" - Sounds like a schmaltzy, slow motion imitation of something Pulp could have done much better. "I'm Not Sorry" - Wow. The instrumentation on this sounds like something that would be included in a music library package. The World Is Full of Crashing Bores" - The title is by far the most interesting part of this one. "How Can Anybody Possibly Know How I Feel?" - Finally something halfway decent. Not amazing by any means, but has he finally hit his stride here? "First of the Gang to Die" - I guess not. I really can't get over how generic this sounds. And how dated. 2004? Really? This sound firmly in the realm of 1996 at the latest to my ears. "Let Me Kiss You" - And this one even older maybe. 1991? Are these songs he sat on for a decade? This is proving to be a bit of a chore to get through. "All the Lazy Dykes" - Again I guess the humor is lost on me. Is this a takedown or a celebration or both? Neither? "I Like You" - Something approaching a catchy chorus here, but it's lost beneath the generi-rock sound. "You Know I Couldn't Last" - Dear lord. This sounds like the 11 O' clock number in an awful musical about the evils of corporate rock that was written by someone not very familiar with actual rock music. At least it's over. I hope no one decided to subject themselves to the deluxe edition (I audibly groaned when I thought for a few seconds this was a double album and I had mistakenly clicked on the wrong version). HIGHLIGHTS - "How Can Anybody Possibly Know How I Feel?" ( quite the feat for a 3 star song) LOWLIGHTS - Everything else. FINAL THOUGHTS Why not just switch to writing books of "humorous" essays at some point? I'll admit there have been a handful of solo Morrissey songs I've listened to and enjoyed, most everything has paled in comparison to his stuff with Marr. By any measure of financial and critical success I don't think most would say he peaked too early, but there's a bit of that in my opinion. He's certainly no Sting in that respect, at least as far as mainstream popular solo careers go. This whole thing felt like he was on autopilot. I found myself defaulting so many times during this to "oh, that's supposed to be a clever turn of phrase I guess" with the instrumentation becoming the unnoticed wallpaper in the room where Morrissey attempts to impress us with his scathing takedowns and occasional self deprecation. While I don't think he slips into unintentional self-parody on this, I also don't think he's got much of anything to say that's interesting enough to overcome the lack of engaging hooks, memorable riffs, or anything of the sort that would make this an enjoyable listen for me. This felt like being talked at by the most boring person at a boring party. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - You get nothing! You lose! Good day, sir!

"Oh, when they beat upon a broken guitar/ And all the streets, they reek of tropical charms" Variety: 2 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 5 Uniqueness: 2 Emotionality: 2 = 3.2 rounded down to 3 We're back in my comfort zone a here as I'm already familiar with Getz and Byrd ( moreso Getz) a bit via several compilations and a couple of full istens a LONG time a go, but can't say for sure if this was one of them. Getz/ Gilberto is the only one I know by name I've for sure heard and remember liking that quite a bit. Also bit familiar with this album's reputation as being the big one that brought the bossa nova craze to the U.S. Before I even start it up my mind is conjuring up all the space age bachelor pad cliches. Let's see if this holds up as more than just a marker of the time and can give me anything more than just an urge to try once again to watch Mad Men. THE TRACKS SIDE ONE "Desafinado" (Antônio Carlos Jobim, Newton Mendonça) - The very definition of the chill atmosphere I was expecting. I've most definitely heard this before in some movies or tv shows and on some compilations. I can taste the old fashioned and cigarette smoke. Byrd's guitar here is understated to almost an extreme, and works to accent the Getz's sax line throughout. Classy but not staid. We're not yet into the overdone Austin Powers era of the movement yet. "Samba Dees Days" (Charlie Byrd) - Little but more upbeat number here to change things up. Also both guys still integrating well, though I would say this does put the sax front and center. "O Pato" (Jayme Silva, Neuza Teixeira) - More variety here despite sticking to the mission statement of what I guess was meant to be a primer of sorts. Nothing too flashy, we don't want to freak out the squares. Rather abrupt ending though. "Samba Triste" (Baden Powell, Billy Blanco) - Downbeat sad number here that has a highlights the classical guitar. Damn solid stuff. There's a through line from this to some of the stuff on Sade's Dimaond Life album. Favorite track so far. SIDE TWO "Samba de Uma Nota Só" (Antônio Carlos Jobim, Newton Mendonça) - This one also sounds very familiar. Guessing if I haven't heard the original, then one of a dozen or more covers that I'm sure exist. This one has a weird vibe of hesitancy to it. Seems like more an even split here between the two guys, or two songs sharing the same beat. Kind of wish they had mixed together a bit more. Still an easy listen, and can imagine this playing from the speakers at any number of beach resort lounges. "É Luxo Só" (Ary Barroso) - This is veering more into the stereotypical sound I associate with this type of music. I think Byrd's guitar reigns it in though and saves it from straying too far into the elevator music mode. We're still miles from the likes of Chuck Mangione. Not light years though. "Bahia" (aka 'Baia') (Ary Barroso) - Perfect soundtrack to a candlelit dinner for two at a secluded table in your favorite restaurant. HIGHLIGHTS - "Samba Triste" LOWLIGHTS - None to speak of, though "É Luxo Só"comes closest. FINAL THOUGHTS This was a much needed palette cleanser after the chore that was the last album, and I can see this one getting a revisit in the future. Pleasant, relaxing treat of an album that didn't feel slight despite the associations it immediately conjured as the soundtrack of upper middle class white business professionals from 1960s America. It makes me want to revisit the Getz/ Gilberto album and compare, and has inspired me to dive a little deeper into his sources. I'm not aware of Getz ever being called the "Elvis of Bossa Nova", but I'm curious what the general historical critical take on this is now. Is he viewed as some sort of cultural raider, a respected popularizer, or someone ultimate responsible for the watering down of the sound? Either way, it's very easy to see why this caught on and lit some fires under some asses at the time. It never strays too far into too dark or too bright territory, but feels very warm and cozy throughout. Not exactly earthshattering, or even challenging, though I expect that was the intention here, and I'd happily listen to more of the same. It's the later more orchestrated and dense sound I associated with the aforementioned Austin Powers-ish type stuff I'm wary of. I suspect if I can find some of the influences for this ( see the original composers in the parentheticals for each track for those curious to do their own investigation) I might like that even more. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Fine as is

"The drugs, they say, are made in California/ We love your face, we'd really like to sell you" Variety: 2 Adequacy: 4 Listenability: 5 Uniqueness: 1 Emotionality: 3 = 3.0 INTRO This was not the Hole album I thought I'd be seeing. Have most definitely heard this all the way through a few times, but it's been a while. I recall liking Live Through This a lot more, as this was a bit poppy for me at the time. but tastes change, so we'll see. I've known that Billy Corgan had his hands in the mix on this one with co-writing credits on a good portion, so curious to see how light the touch is here. I don't recall this sounding like Smashing Pumpkins at all, so ... THE TRACKS "Celebrity Skin" - Strong opener here, and I'm guessing the biggest hit from the album. Steering well away from the gruge sound and in some weird power pop, post-grunge but still squarely alternative sort of genre here. Hell of a kevel set for the album, and I recall at the time some people complaining about how mainstream this sounded. But is this that far from some of the radio friendly stuff Foo Fighters were doing around the same time? A more than solid earworm, and we're in and out in under 3:00. "Awful" - This sounds like a slow motion Blink 182 song to my ears now. Not necessarily a bad thing as that band knew their way around a hook. In case you were unclear on how poppy this was going to be based on the first track this one drives the nail in. I can't deny it's very catchy. Really only a bit in the last forth for a few seconds where we sort of travel back in time to the old sound, and then right back in to end strong. "Hit So Hard" - Pretty generic, yet pleasant enough one here with another drop in the middle that sounds like them reverting to their old sound, but briefly. This one's not making many playlists I think, but accomplished the task of keeping the ship steady. In another world I could imagine the Bangles having a much longer run and eventually doing something like this. "Malibu" - Remember this one being the best track. Down beat rocker uses the quiet/ loud dynamic between verse and chorus here pretty expertly. This is top tier power pop with hooks galore. I stand by my previous call. "Reasons to Be Beautiful" - A bit harder, and appears Hole has not shed its previous sound completely yet. Notably do not see Corgan's name on this one. Love's scratchy caterwauling is put to great use. A little more than halfway through and despite the harder tone, this is still catchy enough. Not quite a Live Through This outtake, but maybe a reminder that not all the rough edges have been sanded off yet. "Dying" - Slowing things WAY down here for this one. Starts quietly and builds to a mid tempo thing that hangs with the previous tracks, but just barely. Most generic sounding one of these so far, and could imagine this as filler on a Pumpkins album with some changes. "Use Once & Destroy" - This one is lacking the Corgan writing credit, but the instrumentation sounds the most like a pumpkins song to my ears. On the chorus the band briefly gets its own identity back. Still nothing terrible going on here, but I can feel the momentum from those earlier tracks slipping away. "Northern Star" - An Acoustic opening that picks up with some strings and very martial sounding drumming that come in later to try and give this a sort of epic feel. Doesn't quite work for me though. One of only two tracks credited soley to the lead guitarist. Interesting swing, but doesn't quite connect with everything else, and leans a bit too hard into the ponderous for my tastes. I can imagine late-period James Hetfield coming up with these lyrics. "Boys on the Radio" - Even more of a Bangle vibe here with an ear-friendly but of mid-tempo jangle pop. Close your eyes and imagine if Susanna Hoffs maybe had a 2 pack a day growl, and was way more into distortion pedals. "Heaven Tonight" - Even harder lean into that jangle pop sound on this one. Doesn't sound anything like the Cheap Trick song of the same name, but this would not be out of place as a middling track on an actual early Cheap Trick album. This one hits for me, even the electronic tremelo effect that comes in late I'm down for. Purest bit of power pop on the album so far. "Playing Your Song" - Then we dip back into a bit of rougher, older sounding material. Nice contrast to what came before, but find myself wanting more of that sugary ear candy. Fine enough. "Petals" - Solid downbeat closer that splits the difference between the downbeat rockers and the wispy, jangly tracks. HIGHLIGHTS - "Celebrity Skin" - "Malibu" - "Reasons to Be Beautiful" - "Heaven Tonight" LOWLIGHTS - "Dying" - "Use Once & Destroy" - "Northern Star" FINAL THOUGHTS Overall we get a slick, (mostly) polished version of the band which seems laser-focused on courting the charts, and which seems to have been pretty largely successful. A real radio friendly unit shifter even. I find it pretty wild that this didn't get a follow up until 2010. And was that really just a solo album branded as a Hole album? The equivalent of these touring cassette-era acts where there's one lone band member left using the name? I don't think it could be argued that this wasn't a professionally produced, cohesive sounding collection of hummable alt-rock. And the hits on this are still radio mainstays. I do feel like I might still agree with my old self that Live Through This is the superior album though. If we get to it. Surely that's got to be on this list, right? PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Drop "Dying", "Use Once & Destroy", "Northern Star"

"You've lost that lovin' feelin'/ Now it's gone, gone, gone, whoa-oh-oh-oh" Variety: 1 Adequacy: 2 Listenability: 1 Uniqueness: 1 Emotionality: 2 = 1.4 rounded down to a 1 INTRO Looking at these albums has been a bit of a rollercoaster. Sometimes I'll wake up and see something like Hole or Stan Getz and be pleasantly surprised. Sometimes I'll see something like Morrisey or Soul II Soul and dread the next hour. This morning the rollercoaster has stopped mid-loop, and we're all hanging upside down waiting to be rescued. The only thing I can offer up as a reaction to seeing Dion in the queue ( Dion? Really? The "Wanderer" guy?!!) is sheer bafflement. Absolutely zero clue what to expect here. I think we here in the U.S. might sometimes get thrown for a loop by a list made my someone across the pond. It's completely understandable that some stuff hits at differently to people given the vagaries of time and circumstances, geographical location, local tastes, history, etc... But Dion? Frankie Valli had a weird 70s comeback run over here though, so... THE TRACKS Side One "Born to Be with You" - Not what I was expecting AT ALL. This is like some sort of weird thing where you get to 70s Beach Boys and are thrown by the disconnect between their popular material and what you are actually getting. The sleepy, soulful performance and the slow motion orchestral bits give the impression of floating underwater. This is more Lou Reed and less Doo-Wop. Though, to be fair there is some crossover between those two, so maybe this makes more sense than I think it does. "Make the Woman Love Me" - Schmaltzy early 70s pop fodder gets a bit of a lift from Dion's voice and the production, but not enough to make this anything special. Eric Carmen meets Van Morrison. "Your Own Back Yard" - Inoffensive, capable little country-tinged thing. Forgotten as soon as it was over. "(He's Got) The Whole World in His Hands" - Nothing much going on here aside form the crazy muffled production sound. Side two "Only You Know" - Another Lou Reed-ish number here. At least it starts that way. Then it takes a sharp turn down soft rock alley and we get lost in the maudlin slush. "New York City Song" - Huh? What's that? I think Spector must have recorded this one in an a open manhole. "In and Out of the Shadows" - More slow motion soul, but a poor imitation of the feel of that first track. "Good Lovin' Man" - Some real energy, bluesy guitar work and game for it background singers can't save this muddy sounding mess. I honestly searched around for alternate versions of this to make sure my laptop speakers just weren't flitching out on me, but no. I'm wondering if Spector's famous "Wall of Sound" by this point just meant he took the master tapes and let them soak in some dirty dishwater before running them over a couple times with a truck. Lo-fi I don't have issues with generally, but this is not the sort of thing suited for that approach in my opinion. HIGHLIGHTS - "Born to Be with You" - Dion's vocals are the loose stitching barely holding this thing together - The runtime LOWLIGHTS - "Make the Woman Love Me" - "(He's Got) The Whole World in His Hands" - "Only You Know" - "New York City Song" - The general production of this is very unappealing. FINAL THOUGHTS Poor Dion, looking like Warren Zevon's meek uncle on that cover. I still remain a bit baffled by this choice, but I can see it. Just. It was totally not what I expected, and based on some reading after, it apparently wasn't what Dion expected either. He didn't seem to happy with the outcome, and seems like this was largely a Phil Spector production with a lot of outside writers and would call it an album in search of a voice. Say what you will about the man, Spector at one time seemed to make inspired choices, and Dion I guess was one of them. But while I can appreciate the circumstances, and even be a bit impressed with how Mr. DiMucci handles himself here, it's still so full of that early to mid-70s soft rock feel that puts me in mind of Bread, Air Supply and that ilk. A touch more soulful because of Dion's strong vocals, but the atmosphere so undynamic that I felt more drained than relaxed by any of it. If I want a lushly orchestrated, odd take on pop balladry I'd much rather hunt down some Scott Walker. At least he's interesting. And this even fails as a Phil Spector project in my mind as a good portion of it sounded awfully mixed. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - "Born to Be with You" alone gets rescued from the burning dumpster but still doesn't make the playlist

"All music is folk music: I ain't never heard no horse sing a song" Variety: 2 Adequacy: 4 Listenability: 3 Uniqueness: 2 Emotionality: 2 = 2.6 rounded up to a 3 INTRO Man, what I expect to be another rough one. Tull is one of those bands I can definitely see the appeal of. Interesting is not something I could accuse them of. Their approach seemed more rock oriented than some of their progressive peers, but I also remember them being just as self-serious. The title track used to be a radio staple ( or at least an edited version of it maybe?). And while admirable enough to justify it's place in the radio-worthy canon, man did it get overplayed. Even by the time I was listening to the radio a good 1 years after it came out. Enough to overstay its welcome anyway. I braved this album a good 20 plus years ago and do not remember it too kindly, but also don't remember absolutely hating it. Let's see once more if age has tempered my view. THE TRACKS Side one: Aqualung "Aqualung" - Been a hot minute, but it all came rushing back. Undeniablly solid stuff, and one of the all-time memorable riffs. This one definitely has benefitted from some time in the closet. That being said, I'm good for another 10 years or more. "Cross-Eyed Mary" - Electric prog folk? This one hits better than I recall. Lyrical, uh... content aside here, this one has a lot of good stuff going on musically. "Cheap Day Return" - Pretty little acoustic interlude here reminds me of Cat Stevens or something Zeppelin would have in between some harder bits on later albums. "Mother Goose" - I find myself much more amenable to this sort of thing which I might have dismissed as "folky nonsense" 20 years ago. But find myself admiring how damn catchy it is. Since then though I've come to love stuff from acts like Fairport Convention and the like, and this seems of a piece with all of that. Anderson's vocals here are not as overcooked as they are in my memory, though I suspect that "Aqualung" can be blamed for that, looming as large as it does in the memory of this. "Wond'ring Aloud" - Another nice little interlude here. Maybe a bit string heavy. "Up to Me" - And the flute comes back in strong here. Electric prog folk.... funk? There's a LOT going on here, and not sure it all works. Still not awful though, and there's a bit of vibe that keeps interest going along with that repeated flute line. Side two: My God "My God" - Think between the two modes I've heard thus far, the more acoustic, folky ones are my preference. This one spits the difference opening with a dark, sinister bit that would not be out of place in the soundtrack for the old animated Rankin and Bass Hobbit movie. But then the electric guitar kicks in and we get some actual noodling. But maaaaan that flute solo. I just could not help but picture Ron Burgundy going to town during this. This was on track to go on the highlights, but you just had to double down and add some chanting background vocals to the flute. This becomes a bit of a slog after that. I think stuff like this is where Tull gets the reputation as a pompous, over earnest group. "Hymn 43" - This one fades in like a coda to the previous track, and but you've got the piano and guitar chugging along so it's got some good dynamic contrast. As bluesy as anything we've heard on here, but to my ear sounds more like a rejected track from Jesus Christ Superstar. Not necessarily a knock on it, but feels slightly out of place. "Slipstream" - I might want to hear a whole album of these little acoustic interludes. With less strings though. "Locomotive Breath" - Ignoring the night club piano opening, this one comes in strong and feels like Aqualung pt. II. But now I can't shake the Jesus Christ Superstar comparisons out of my mind. This also has strong 70s rock opera vibes. "Wind-Up" - Anderson's voice sit somewhere in the middle and neither greatly offend or amaze me, but seems like they are the focus here. Dig that guitar tone when it comes in though. Dang there's a killer .38 Special deep cut buried under all those vocal gymnastics. Feels like an appropriate final statement for the album. HIGHLIGHTS - "Mother Goose" - The purely acoustic stuff - The general dark vibe - The guitar work on "Wind-Up" LOWLIGHTS - "My God" - Anytime strings pop up FINAL THOUGHTS The flute on this was not nearly as excessive as I recall, and the album feels very cohesive aside from some minor quibbles. While it's not something any but the most hardened ren fair devotee might ever try and dance to, it's got some fine grooves throughout, and could see this being a once a couple of decades listen. The flower children and the hard rockers can meet halfway here, in the magical grove where the bongwater flows and the mushrooms grow. If you can ignore the bleak lyrical content, this could provide some nice background music for your D&D game. I don't think I'll ever be a big Tull fan ( though Thick as a Brick is awesome) this was listenable, and interesting throughout. Just too serious to take seriously, and in need of a remix to remove those damn strings. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - "Mother Goose" and "Cross-eyed Mary" can stick around. I think I've had my fill of the title track for this lifetime, as good as it is. - Find me the isolated guitar track from "Wind-up" that I can play on repeat

"Let them leave you up in the air/ Let them brush your rock and roll hair/ Let the good times roll" Variety: 3 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 5 Uniqueness: 3 Emotionality: 2 = 3.6 rounded up to a 4 INTRO I think this is the first one of these where I can say the review was written in my head before I even pressed play on track one. For people of a certain age, no matter your musical proclivities, this here represents your childhood. Yes it came out in 1976, but this was EVERYWHERE, or a LONG time. Without even looking it up I can tell you this must have sta yed on the charts for years. No matter what phases I went through, or what new challenging music I discovered along the way, this has always been comfort food music to me. Even when I really didn't want it to be. Even deep into grunge and metal there was no denying the epic hooks and big sound. Even Kurt Cobain could not escape the gravity well of that massive sound ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvmuVvb_zO4). This will largely be going through the motions, but I can't say it'll be a chore in the slightest. THE TRACKS Side One "More Than a Feeling" - The legend goes that this guy recorded the whole thing ( aside from vocals) in his dingy, tiny basement, which cost a few grand at most while the record companywere paying through the nose for a professional studio he never used. I hope he got to pocket all of that dough, cause he deserves it. Wracking my brain right now to think of a better opening track to an album of this era, and maybe I'm forgetting some obvious ones, but this is pure gold. Enough has been written about how great this sounds prodiction so I won't add my two cents other than to just wholeheartedly nod away while it fades out. When you start at such a high note, the only possibly direction you could go is down, right? Right? "Peace of Mind" - Well, ok. It's not "MOre Than a Feeling" but it's close. And probably heard it almost as much on the radio growing up. Constant. Radio. Play. And still never get sick of it. And feels like such a continuation. And so many bands tried to imitate this sound, some more successful than others. I think even that Rush in their 80s pop mode even tried to capitalize on this sound. Listen to that "take a look ahead" section breakdown and tell me that didn't launch a thousand mediocre 80s arerna rock bands. "Foreplay/Long Time - This was always the weird one for me. As proggy as this album gets maybe with that opening. I can imagine the Alan Parsons Project furiously scribbling notes for their Eye in the Sky album just based on those first two and a half minutes. Then the guitar kicks in and we're sailing on that distant... uh, highway? Ok whatever, nobody is here for the deep lyrics of Boston. This stuff is platitudes and "Hang in There" poster-level material at best. We're here for when the acoustic section drops so we can start clapping and then cheer when it gets loud again. If you're not tapping your fingers on the desk or steering wheel when the drums and vocals drop out, I'm not sure there's much that be done for you. If I had one criticism of this it would be the guitar nonsense at around 6:00. But blink and we're back in it. I should also note that this point that I generally don't care for fade outs in rock songs, but three in a row here and can't say I'm bothered. Side two "Rock & Roll Band" - This is as close as this album comes to an inessential track. I can't find too much fault here other than it's NOT one of the prior three songs. Also, Rush's "Spirit of the Radio" is just this but better, down to the cheesy piped in crowd noises. "Smokin'" - And it then drops a groove that hangs pretty dang well with your 70s southern rock bands as well. Can't tell if this is a pastiche of that stuff or not, but it reminds me of the generic Deep Purple meets Allman Bros sound that so many bands from the mid 70s but in a good way. The organ here goes a little sideways, but can't say I'm not down for that all-time boogie rock guitar line. "Hitch a Ride" - The weed has kicked in and now it's time to ride that mellow vibe. But not too mellow. Dark horse pick for best guitar work on the album. Not as iconic as some of the other stuff, but especially from around 3:00 in... beautiful. "Something About You" - Feels like a reprise to everything that's come before. Says something that even one of the lesser known tracks here is prime arena sing-a-long material. I can imagine the thunderous crowd at the end of this. "Let Me Take You Home Tonight" - They only real attempt at a "love song" we get on here, and probably the most cliched souding one as well. This one has probably aged the worst, and instead of sounding like the far off future of ... 1982, this instead fits squarely in the 1976-1978 of "Afternoon Delight", "Reminiscing", and "Dance With Me". Though to be fair the end rocks out a bit more than any of those. HIGHLIGHTS - An album full of them - Hooks, hooks, and more hooks - "Smokin'" is the clear highlight of side two though LOWLIGHTS - Huh? What are you talking about? I guess if I HAVE to pick some stuff... - "Rock & Roll Band" - "Let Me Take You Home Tonight" FINAL THOUGHTS This guy pretty much invented how the 80s sound in my brain. While the album remains a perennial great, I still can't claim that it's a favorite or that there aren't 100 albums ahead if it at anytime in the queue. If I hear a track form this, I'm usually not gonna change the channel. I might even sit in the parking spot and wait out the end of the song before going inside to buy groceries. The worst thing I can say about it is it's a grilled cheese and tomato soup meal for me. Will never get old, and it's highly comforting. But it's no steak dinner. I hope to see plenty of those on the list. Also, while the whole thing feels tightly glued together, that second half suffers the tiniest bit in comparison of the blisteringly great the first half. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - "Rock & Roll Band" will always remain my least favorite track. Eh, sure, we can leave this off. - "Let Me Take You Home Tonight" would be no great loss either. Still not gonna skip it if it comes on the radio though.

"Don't worry about a thing/ 'Cause every little thing gonna be alright" Variety: 4 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 5 Uniqueness: 5 Emotionality: 5 = 4.8 rounded up to a 5 We finally made it! Not to make any promises before listening ( it has been a while after all), but I'm pretty confident this will be a guaranteed 5 star for me. This one is absolutely loaded with great songs, and not a dud among them. Heard a lot of this as a kid on terrestrial radio, but wasn't til maybe my 20s (?) that I gave the album a full listen to all the way through. When I got rid of most of my LPs a few years ago Stevie's bunch of albums were among the last to go, and I had to reconsider more than once. Really looking forward to this one. THE TRACKS Side one "You Are the Sunshine of My Life" - What an opener. As joyful a song as any I can think of and it transcends any sort of sappiness with the killer instrumentation. Not even the Minutemaid Orange Juice commercials I remember as I kid could kill this song's greatness. "Maybe Your Baby" - Damn... The funk coming off this one is powerful. That synth organ that sounds almost like it's underwater, and when the female vocals drop in, the song hits another level. It even peters out with style. "You and I (We Can Conquer the World)" - There is not much media that effects me emotionally. This is one of them ( not the last one either from Mr. Wonder, or even the last one from this album ). What a deceptively simple song. Wonder goes less is better on this one, and pulls off the trick of getting your full attention after the musical display of those first two tracks. And despite the positive lyrics, the music itself has a somber, thoughtful quality. "Tuesday Heartbreak" - Even his throwaway tracks would be the best song on anyone else's album. A quality he shares with a very few elite ( future collaborator Paul McCartney comes to mind). Four love songs in a row and this doesn't feel stale at all. "You've Got It Bad Girl" - The ascending and descending vocal hooks on this one remain a pleasure. Stevie gets a lottle more serious on this one, and we end side one with a damn fine closer, that prepares us for the less lovery dovey side two. Side two "Superstition" - Man. A contender for a place in the top 10 songs of the 20th century in my opinion. Every part of this song is gold, but the horns are key for me. I could listen to this one on repeat for an hour and no get bored. "Big Brother" - Stevie gets political here and loses nothing in the musicality. The almost plaintive sounding harmonica (?) almost serves as a counter vocal. My favorite percussion on the album. And those lyrics still hit hard - "I don't even have to do nothin' to you /You'll cause your own country to fall". Damn... "Blame It on the Sun" - Can we even call this a deep cut? Does this album have any? "Lookin' for Another Pure Love" - Has there ever been a more chill breakup song? "I Believe (When I Fall in Love It Will Be Forever)" - This one gets me to. When those drums kick in the clouds open up and the sunlight shines down. Even if just briefly. Hope How many times has this been covered. I'm betting a lot. Another stone cold classic, and an all time great album closer. HIGHLIGHTS - All of it LOWLIGHTS - None of it FINAL THOUGHTS One of the hardest thing for any of these albums to overcome is how difficult it is to sound unique in any way. To stand out even among all the amazing music from this decade is no small feat and no one - NO ONE - sounded like Wonder. I can only imagine what this must have been like to hear at the time on the radio, especially for people more familiar with his earlier stuff. Also going to guess that this guy should have gotten a piece of the action on all the synth sales that were no doubt driven by musicians hearing this and wanting to copy its sound. Without this stuff do we get all the amazing P-Funk stuff later on? PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - None

"Lay down all thoughts, surrender to the void" Variety: 1 Adequacy: 3 Listenability: 3 Uniqueness: 1 Emotionality: 0 = 1.6 rounded up to a 2 INTRO I'm always a little bit wary when something like this pops up that I remember really liking, but which is so chick full of samples and interpolations. While a lot of it really hits and gets stuck in my head, It makes me wonder how much of what I'm listening to is just a very clever sound collage. I have no issues listening to the stuff, like I'm not objecting on some moral ground to sampling, but it does make the standard a bit higher for me when rating something like this. I won't be calling them all out but the info is out there for anyone curious ) https://www.whosampled.com/album/The-Chemical-Brothers/Dig-Your-Own-Hole/). My own memories of this album are vague, and the two big hits are the only ones I can identify by name. And they were pretty huge for a small time. THE TRACKS "Block Rockin' Beats" (Rowlands, Simons, Jesse Weaver) - If this is any indication, then I think any worries I may have had about how well this stuff would stand up might have been unwarranted. Great opening track. Built solidly around a bass line from a Crusaders song, and mixed with a pot of other ingrediants cherry picked from at least nine other songs, the energy on this is undeniably great. The soundtrack of that late 90s breakdance nostalgia. "Dig Your Own Hole" - This one I have no memory of whatsoever. This one is more straight forward and feels much more tied to 1997. Lots of "Firestarter" energy here. Probably fine background music to get dehydrated to at your favorite club, but not my thing. "Elektrobank" - Echoey electronic drum beat with some unintelligible chatter over top. This feels even more ancient to me. Hate this sort of thing now as much as I did then. It picks up again but then feels like maybe a 3rd or 5th attempt to recapture the magic of that first track. Will we be seeing many more of these Temu "Block Rockin' Beats"? "Piku" - Change of pace here with an airy opening that fades out into a nice electronic beat that would not be completely out of place on a more modern track. This one had surprising staying power. "Setting Sun" - While I'm sure these guys went WELL out of their way to avoid sampling the Beatles as even back then that would have proved very, very expensive. But if they did steal any exact bits from "Tomorrow Never Knows" it certainly stole that song's "essence" to paraphrase a once popular comedian. What they did with it though is quite impressive. That doubled siren noise over top is almost as important to the effect though. The last minute of this song I have absolutely no memory of. Maybe the music video ended way before? "It Doesn't Matter" - I love a good hi-hat beat. The distorted radio chatter-like voice no so much. This feels very dated as well, mainly from the effects. More is needed than just the "boots and cats" beat to save this one from the trash pile. Very self aware title. "Don't Stop the Rock" - PEW PEW! Bit repetitive, but this is more like it. This feels like the track where the foam drops. "Get Up on It Like This" - This one felt very generic, and points lost for that abrasively annoying ending. "Lost in the K-Hole" - Worse than generic, this one felt boring to me. I think by this time the sameyness is setting in, and feeling more exhasusted than interested. "Where Do I Begin" - This is the most anomalous track on the album. Nods to the electronic stuff that has come before with some effects, but largely an indie pop thing with some pleasant Beth Orton vocals. Honestly sounds like it belongs on one of her albums for the first half, then morphs into more of what I expected. A bit brighter and lighter. Wish it had returned to the Orton part instead of the awful dental drill we get for the last fourth. "The Private Psychedelic Reel" - Great tone built up here from the beginning. Not so much dark as introspective psychedelic naval gazey stuff. The energy kicks in relatively quickly though and then we stay in this unchanging section for another 7 minutes! Fine enough by comparison to some, but at some point one imagines someone pushed a button on the console to create a loop so they could go have a good long shit. HIGHLIGHTS - "Block Rockin' Beats" - "Piku" - "Setting Sun" ( gonna give that last minute a pass) MIDLIGHTS - "Dig Your Own Hole" - "Don't Stop the Rock" - "Where Do I Begin" - "The Private Psychedelic Reel" LOWLIGHTS - "Elektrobank" - "It Doesn't Matter" - "Get Up on It Like This" - "Lost in the K-Hole" - "Where Do I Begin" FINAL THOUGHTS As with much of this music, I almost always find myself picturing frenetically edited shootouts with people in cool looking coats and / or sunglasses. I was never a clubgoer, so none of this is much associated in my mind with dancing in any way. A lot of this electronic stuff from the period can also feel kind of samey. This one is not immune. It also gelt like these guys would tale a really cool idea and beat the living hell out of it or immediately drop it and go off into these kind of purposefully grating tangents ( Where Do I Begin maybe teh worst offender), so more than half the album ends up feeling like a bunch of lost opportunities. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Save "Block Rockin' Beats", "Piku", "Setting Sun" ( sub it for a radio edit that drops that last minute though) and delete the rest

"Got a hold on you/ A new sensation, a new sensation/ Right now, it's gonna take you over/ A new sensation, a new sensation" Variety: 2 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 5 Uniqueness: 3 Emotionality: 3 = 3.6 rounded up to a 4 This is one I remember very well, having listened to the cassette a zillion times in middle school. It was on constant rotation with the Prince Batman soundtrack, Depeche Mode's Violator, and Enya's Shepherd Moons (all of which I obtained from Columbia House in a very legit, totally not illegal manner). At the time I had heard what was on the radio so was aware of "New Year's Day" and whatever tracks off of Joshua Tree that had music videos. This one is no longer my favorite after going back much later and listening to their earlier stuff in full, but at the time I really dug it. It's been a good 30 years now since I've listened all the way through, but I suspect this one may have started to show its age by now. There only two of these I hear with any regularity on the radio anymore, which makes me wonder about its staying power. THE TRACKS "Zoo Station" - Starting off with a bit of industrial influenced noise I think is them sending a message. It doesn't last long and we get right into a more friendly sounding rock song, but that trashcan lid percussion sticks around and we get some heavily distorted vocals. Can imagine long time fans at the time being very confused by this. There's a bit of Berlin-era Bowie DNA in here, and the sleazier, rougher sound is contrasted well with the spacey guitar. Good stuff. "Even Better Than the Real Thing" - There's that guitar effect we'll hear again on future material to start us off with. This one I'm hearing a lot of INXS influence on, maybe some Rolling Stones from the drums, and it doesn't disappoint. Hutchence and company would have killed for a song this good at that point I think. "One" - Every time this comes on I expect the depressing, sentimental nature of the thing to drive my finger to the change the channel, but it's just too damn effective and catchy. Bono's just at the edge of full on whine here, but keeps it tasteful and understated despite the lyrics. This one must have gotten the lighters out at concerts. "Until the End of the World" - Very middle of the road with the only the vocal melody at the end of the refrain standing out much to me. World music touches here are stronger than we've seen thus far, but more to come I think. "Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses" - Speaking of Radiohead, this opening of this one before the vocals start would fit snugly right in between The Bends and OK Computer. BUt then there's also a weird Springsteen in slow motion vibe to the thing. Maybe its the tambourine. Then it morphs into a a sort of Echo and the Bunnymen-ish chorus. And on the other side of things this sort of thing is a clear predecessor to stuff like Coldplay. Solid post-punk pop. "So Cruel" - The piano and heartbeat percussion push us further out into unknown territory here. This almost sounds like the band was wondering what it would sound like if one of those chanting monk songs has some more traditional rock lyrics and chord changes. It's interesting enough that I'm down for it. The strings and the plaintive falsetto tie this one up in a nice bow. "The Fly" - This is where it gets weird. I think people talk about Zooropa as U2 going full on glam, but that maybe starts here? This is also got a lot f INXS in it, and Bono might as well be doing a Hutchence impersonation for part of it. While I wouldn't call it danceable, I can at least picture people swaying to it. The Edge goes whole hog here and we get as close to noodling as we ever really do with him. But still identifiably U2. This one might as well just morph right into the next considering what all's going on at the end of this. "Mysterious Ways" - This song has lost none of it's appeal. The funky guitar riff, the world music beat, and Bono at his laziest, most relaxed. The contrast between the loud and more quiet parts makes this one. A classic for a reason, that has lost none of its edge. The bizarre electronic breakdown that sound like the orchestra hit on a an 80s Casio keyboard even works. It gets messy and crowded at the end and that chaos drops out to end on a perfect note with the drums. "Tryin' to Throw Your Arms Around the World" - And where can you go from there? You're not gonna one-up "Mysterious Ways". You go bare bones basic with a beautiful, light piece of candy. This isn't quite "The Sweetest Thing" but would make a great pairing. They dip into some talk singing but only briefly enough for the worry to evaporate when the song proper comes back. "Ultraviolet (Light My Way)" - Some wobbliness here, but they are doing an admirable job of staying on message. Maybe the most uninspired chorus on the album so far, but nothing too offensive going on here. Listenable enough but nothing special. "Acrobat" - The circular guitar line is the star here. This might be the darkest, most emo the band gets on the album. It's ok, but not very memorable. "Love Is Blindness" - Solemn organ to get s started and right into some more world beat influences. If the last song was emo U2, then we get gothier here. Shades of the Cure, if maybe Robert Smith was more of a crooner. The guitar screeches here while they accomplish the goal of a dark mood, feel like some kind of alien was told about the blues secondhand, and tried its best to recreate it here. And what we end up with is a very Johnny Greenwood-ish sound. Kind of a dark spot to leave on. on an album of experimentation, this might be the most experimental. HIGHLIGHTS - "Zoo Station" - "Even Better Than the Real Thing" - "One" - "Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses" - "So Cruel" - "Mysterious Ways" - "Tryin' to Throw Your Arms Around the World" MIDLIGHTS - "Until the End of the World" - "The Fly" - "Ultraviolet (Light My Way)" - "Acrobat" - "Love Is Blindness" LOWLIGHTS - Not much to criticize FINAL THOUGHTS U2 will always remain one of the monster acts of the 80s. At the time no one else sounded like this ( at least that's what I thought until I did a deep dive into the post-punk era much later in life), and they were the only act I can think of that equally straddled the alternative rock and mainstream arena world, though I think they suffered quite a bit of blowback from both over time. R.E.M. is the other big one I can think of and they weathered that storm with much more aplomb I think, coming out the other side with their indie cred still mostly intact. I try to avoid going much into personality of the artists on these things, but in some cases it can't be ignored, especially when the image or reputation is so tied into the music. Bono has been dragged pretty constantly for well on 40 years at this point, and that parody of him has almost become accepted fact. The band has proven that they have a sense of humor about themselves a few times I think, but that self-serious attitude informs so much of the music. At least they were trying something different here though. The stuff in between this and Joshua Tree - the Rattle and Hum period where they did the documentary, and started performing with Van Morrison and Bob Dylan, got really into American roots stuff, became way more political, etc... is probably the worse that ever got, and a shorter time period than I think people remember it to be. Achtung Baby seemed like an adjustment and reaction to that backlash and I think as an experiment it works over all. This album seems way more music focused and is filled with a lot of solid deep cut material. If at the time it seemed like a weird, possibly desperate outlier, now it seems like it was just more forward looking. Incorporation of dance and electronic textures into rock I think validates this as more than a grab for relevance and makes the band look like prophets of the next 20 years. Aside form being highly influential in its sound, I think it probably made a lot of bands less afraid to try similar stuff. Without this do we get prime Radiohead, for example? A more than solid outing, and while tempting to give it a higher rating being as influential as it was, I think ultimately it's missing just a little something in order get those numbers. There's U2 albums I like a lot more, and there's certainly ones I like less. This is up in the top quarter for sure though. The highs are high as hell, and there are no lows to speak of, but there's a tad too much sag around the waist. Overall, it held up WAY better than I expected. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Drop everything other than those highlights and we have ourselves another 5 star EP!

Variety: 4 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 5 Uniqueness: 4 Emotionality: 4.6 = rounded up to a 5 "Comin' to you on a dusty road/ Good lovin', I got a truckload/ And when you get it, you got something/ So don't worry, 'cause I'm coming" Think I can say I've never listened to a complete Otis Redding album. I've heard plenty, and loved plenty, but it's always been in the context of a compilation or radio hits. Looking forward to this as we haven't really had any pure soul yet. I read that is one is largely made up of cover songs and that "he was backed by the Stax house band Booker T. & the M.G.'s, a horn section featuring members of the Mar-Keys and the Memphis Horns, and pianist Isaac Hayes". Holy cow... THE TRACKS Side One "Ole Man Trouble" - Listened to this twice in a row. This is a very good sign, folks. You come into an Otis Redding album expecting his voice to be the star attraction on every track ( and he delivers here) but the instrumentation on this one with the dip into that dark guitar bit ( does that dip into a minor key?) and then the restrained use of the horns as an accent. Damn fine stuff. "Respect" - I think it's a shame, though an understandable one, that this one is probably not remembered very much as the original. Great as it it, I don't think Mr. Redding himself would deny that the Aretha Franklin version is leaps and bounds better. Great short bit of business. "Change Gonna Come" - Cover of a protest song by Sam Cooke that Redding pours so much emotion into, it's almost hard to appreciate the steady hand of the players on this. Almost. Just a perfect showcase for the man and his masterful delivery. "Down in the Valley" - A Solomon Burke original that Redding owns and makes his own. More uptempo and less serious material here, provides great contrast to the previous track. It drives forward with a purposeful groove allowing Redding to cut loose with the vocals. "I've Been Loving You Too Long" - An we close side two with a soulful love ballad. My favorite vocal performance on the album so far. Sad and plaintive, and maybe the sound of a man deluding himself, but those swelling horns that crescendo near the end make it hard not to root for the guy. Side two "Shake" - I normally am not a fan of the "dance instruction" song. The endless takes on "The Twist" are many and almost uniformally awful. The presumption that we all must absolutely MUST know these secret moves is just such a silly conceit. However, the energy on this one and the "Honey" in the lyrics makes this feel less like a guy explaining to a bunch of teens in a tv studio how to do a dance craze, and more like a private conversation with someone who, uh.. is going to "shake it like a bowl of soup". Oh my, Mr. Redding. "My Girl" - I'm not sure anyone could ever touch the Temptations original, but holy hell does Redding try. As much as I love the original it becomes a rougher, less sterile version here. If you didn't know better, his performance feels almost tossed off, but that makes it feel more immediate and less calculated, more full of life. Solid version, and different enough. "Wonderful World" - Another rougher take on a classic. This lacks the smoothness of a Sam Cooke, but benefits greatly again from the emotion Redding brings. "Rock Me Baby" - Redding proves he can ang with the best of the blues guys here. I think the B.B. King version is the one I'm more familiar with, but this one is taking its place going forward. The vibe here is certainly grittier and nastier ( in that good way) than the King version. "Satisfaction" - Turn about is fair play as I'm pretty sure the Stones recorded a coupe of Redding songs. This one has been covered SO MANY times it almost feels like background static at this point. The only ones that stand out to me as unique in anyway are the Devo version, and this one. This one feels reworked enough that it works completely as a soul song, and if one were completely ignorant of the original, would not sound out of place. "You Don't Miss Your Water" - And we end on a softer note with this slow number. Regret and sorrow in slow motion. Second place behind "I've Been Loving You Too Long" as my favorite vocals. Redding answers the question - can you slow dance to despair? - with a strong affirmative. HIGHLIGHTS - The whole damn thing MIDLIGHTS - Nope. Ok, if you "twist" my arm I might throw "Shake" in there. But it's still a bit of dumb fun. LOWLIGHTS - Ha! FINAL THOUGHTS Thirty-two minutes. That's all we get. That's a LOT of emotion crammed into such a small package, so I never felt any sort of burnout or flailing around. High and tight, so to speak. I think I would enjoy Redding singing pretty much anything. Top 10 vocal performer for me, and hard to think of too many more who could pour it on like him and still sound wholly authentic. Never one moment on here where the spell of the performance was broken, and while in it you can't help but believe the man when he tells you how he feels. I was worried this would feel like those early "albums" that were really just a collection of singles with no real cohesion, but I think even though this is largely made up of covers it's extremely well thought out and has pitch perfect arrangement and pacing. This totally felt conceived as a piece to me, and not just a way to burn a bunch of hits in a compilation. And Redding puts enough of a spin on the covers that they can't be called anything other than unique. That's no small feat. Countless other legends have tried the same trick and failed miserably. While I hadn't heard some of these ( at least not the Redding version) I was surprised to recognize more than a few by the covers other artists did later. Not sure how anyone who enjoys soul music could not absolutely love this. I think I might just leave it on repeat for the rest of the day. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - No notes

Variety: 2 Adequacy: 2 Listenability: 1 Uniqueness: 2 Emotionality: 0 = 1.4 rounded down to 1 "Wanna hear the most annoying sound in the world?" Well. This is going to be an interesting one. The idea of a fake soundtrack for a movie that never existed is actually the sort of thing that's right up my alley. I enjoyed some of the Mike Pattinson stuff where he pulled a similar gimmick quite a bit. I'm curious what sources this guys is going to be drawing form though as "English gangster film" ( Get Carter maybe?) doesn't conjure much of a series of tropes that could be easily mined for some winking, referential instrumentation. Before even hitting play, the listener is being asked to do a lot of the heavy lifting here. While this feels a little like having the rug pulled out from under me as I understood this list to be mostly rock, R&B, and soul music, I'll try and keep an open mind. However, I think I'm going to have to switch up my format a little to accommodate this. Even the best film scores can't help but sound samey and fade into the background. A breakdown by acts might be in order, seeing that the composer chose to demarcate things that way. THE ACTS ACT ONE - 'The Ring's the Thing' Right away I'm getting WAY heavier horror vibes than crime drama with the whispering female voices and the heeled steps that seem to be trying to escape someone or some thing. The screeching and twangy sting do nothing to dispel this. The dialogue clips are putting this less in mind of a film score and more into a sample-heavy version of stuff that JG Thirlwell ( aka Steroid Maximus, aka Foetus, aka Manorexia aka... a bunch of other names of The Venture Bros and Archer fame) does a lot of. This one has a very late 60s/ early 70s. Thirlwell does it much better though. We barely touch upon the crime theme here with some more faux movie dialogue and staticy chatter mixed with some jazzy inflections, but it really does not seem to be going anywhere. ACT TWO - 'Real Deep Cool' We seem to be in the sci-fi realm in parts now. The energy I'm digging much more right away, and could maybe imagine this in some so awful it's good Italian mockbuster from the early 80s. The jazzy saxophone meets industrial beat comes across as a parody of something David Lynch might have included on the Lost Highway soundtrack. At one point we seem to enter into a jazz club in our imaginary movie, but then it peters out and is over in a few blinks before going right into some schmaltzy piano balladry that ends in some Eraserhead buzz. Along the way there are brief stops into takes on Anton Karas's zither-heavy Third Man score, as well as some swingin' 60s spy guitar. I can't say any of it was effective enough for me to call it anything other than ill-conceived pastiche. ACT THREE - 'The Final Irony' This one seems to want to dive into 80s action thriller territory before quickly settling into more clanky horror. "Intensive Care" is the only track I'll call out here as it worked for me as a nice bit of creepy ambience. Then things wind down into a weird 80s thriller meets Danny Elfman section before quickly turning back to the horror realm to wrap up Act Three. ACT FOUR -'For Your Ears Only' A drunken, doppler effected clavichord ( ?) cover of the Alfred Hitchcock Presents tv show theme opens this last act and feels more akin to something you might hear in a pirate movie than ( what I think) the intended crime/ mystery/ suspense vibes. "Chocolate Milkshake" gives us a dip into what sounds like a depressed, minor chord version of a 3rd tier Mario character spin-off game theme ( does Birdo have a game yet?). And we end with an industrialized cover of Elmer Bernstein's "The Man With the Golden Arm", a track which I can't imagine anyone describing as iconic enough to warrant the treatment. HIGHLIGHTS - *crickets* MIDLIGHTS - "Intensive Care" LOWLIGHTS - Everything else FINAL THOUGHTS I remain baffled by the inclusion of this based on what's come before, but maybe we'll see more stuff like it later? I have to say this is very much a case of false advertising as this in no way resembles an film score. Experimental, industrial sound collage heavily inspired by genre films? Sure. As the imagined score for a vintage English crime movie I have to say it's a complete failure. I'm not against this sort of thing in principle. Thirlwell and Pattinson have both played around in the same sandbox, but have been much more successful in my opinion. Clearer goals, a cohesive throughline, and some more memorable material are severely lacking here. Track by track there was stuff to find interesting, but I'm wondering if this is another album that may have been chosen for its long term influence rather than its immediate impact. Barry Adamson seems very much like an experimental avant-garde industrial musician's avant-garde industrial musician. It's a shame as I genuinely find a lot of stuff in this realm to be interesting. I wouldn't call much of this a pleasurable listening experience, nor one I would recommend to most anyone else I know, lest my taste become suspect. This pales even i comparison with the more accomplished stuff by similar artists that I've heard. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - All bound for the recycle bin

Variety: 2 Adequacy: 4 Listenability: 3 Uniqueness: 2 Emotionality: 2 = 2.6 rounded up to a 3 "Teenage angst has paid off well / Now I'm bored and old" This is one I have fond memories of from high school. I was a million miles away from the California punk scene, and had likely never heard Dead Kennedys ( unless by accident on MTV) or the like, so this was foreign material. It's obvious radio-friendliness being at odds with the punk ethos and idea of "pop-punk" in general was also a concept way above my head. Going back and listening though I think a lot of the original punk bands doth have protested too much and were very clearly making music they wanted people to like. Offspring, Green Day et al were just more transparent and canny about the process. The hits off this ( and there were more than I think I recall) are going to be the obvious standouts I think, but I do recall it having quality deep cuts as well. Freshman me certainly had much shallower well do draw from when comparing music, so curious how much of this, if any, is going to have ne rolling my eyes. Music designed in a lab for 14 year old boys just might hit different to the middle-aged dude with back problems. THE TRACKS "Nitro [Youth Energy]" - After the introduction we get a solid high energy opener tells us exactly what we're in for. "Bad Habit" - Would have to go back and find some interviews, but wonder if these guys were heavily influenced by Minutemen. That omnivorous blend of influences I'm hearing on here. The cowpunk beat, the chainsaw guitar, the "yeah" chants all come together into what feels like a tighter, shorter song than it is. Good stuff. "Gotta Get Away" - And we're into the hits two songs in. Catchy as anything on the radio back then, but I recall paying closer attention to the lyrics in most of their songs compared to other bands. Not that they were that deep or anything, but I think they were very direct and unabashedly targeted to that disaffected youth demo. Holland's voice I know turns a lot of people off who might otherwise admit how damn catchy their stuff is, but it works for me. It's not quite a growl, and yet it's gruff enough that he gets away with some very emo stuff without sounding "emo". "Genocide" (Followed by spoken word) - Not bad but hopefully as far as the band strays into generic cynicism. In my mind this band was funnier. The energy is still pretty high. "Something to Believe In" - "The more cynical you become/ The better off you'll be". Ok, maybe not...lol. I swear I didn't peak ahead at the lyrics there. Starting to get into some sameyness here. The isolated bass/ vocals section and the build back up saves this one from complete mediocrity. What we could really use at this point are a couple of undeniable great in a row... "Come Out and Play" - Well what do you know. Despite the serious subject matter here, this song has always felt a little bit satirical to me. Maybe that's what I'm thinking of when i think of this band as being "funny". Maybe it's also the goofy tone of the delivery of the title line. "Self Esteem" - Self pity as never been so sarcastic and catchy. We have the laziest of choruses here ( that many bands have resorted to) with the non-lyrical "YEAAAAAH" belted out, but the melody and the emotion in the delivery sells it, which is a feat. "It'll Be a Long Time" - Ad the energy levels get ramped way back up. More of the same though, without too much to separate this from the other stuff. "Killboy Powerhead" (Didjits cover) - Never heard the original, but then I never got very far into 80s American punk. The relative briefness of this one works in it's favor and puts it a step ahead of some of the other stuff. "What Happened to You?" - We get a welcome bit of ska flavor here, with a nice little guitar solo, and even some background vocals. Would like to have heard a it more like this to break things up a bit. "So Alone" - And we come to the audience participation section with some chants. This is what I imagine their earlier, less radio friendly stuff would have sounded like, and I'm down for it. Surely they had a mid-80s punk journeyman phase, right? "Not the One" - This one was pretty forgettable. In fact I became momentarily distracted and hadn't noticed we moved on to the final track. Went back for a re-listen, and not anything awful, but nothing to mark it as anything special either. "Smash" - Decent enough closer and can easily seeing this being the live show closer as it lends itself very well to a sing-a-long. The extended silence with the middle eastern flavored refrain from "Come Out and Play" feels like the bartender flipping the lights off and on and I can see the audience filing out to the parking lot. Kind of a wet fart of an ending. HIGHLIGHTS - "Bad Habit" - "Gotta Get Away" - "Come Out and Play" - "Self Esteem" - "What Happened to You?" - "So Alone" MIDLIGHTS - "Nitro [Youth Energy]" - "Genocide" - "Something to Believe In" - "It'll Be a Long Time" - "Killboy Powerhead" LOWLIGHTS - "Not the One" - "Smash" FINAL THOUGHTS Find myself appreciating this much more than I thought I would having not heard it all the way through in a good 25+ years, but it's definitely trapped in the amber of high school for me, and the sameyness ( which comes with the territory with this kind of music in my opinion) hurts it more than anything. Aside from the two tracks that were called out, the only other big complaints I have are that I'm not sure this one would hit the same in any other era, and Holland's voice is such an acquired taste. I quickly moved on to the poppier, power pop inspired stuff like Weezer and the like, and so never investigated further into the scene that spawned The Offspring. I can't say that I'm that regretful about it either. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - I'd be fine with the radio hits and letting the rest fade into the mists of 1994, though I wouldn't change the channel if they popped up - I'd throw in their cover of The Damned's "Smash it Up" though off the Batman Forever soundtrack for good measure :)

Variety: 1 Adequacy: 4 Listenability: 2 Uniqueness: 1 Emotionality: 2 = 2.0 "Tell me, who are you? (Who are you? Who, who, who, who?)" I know next to nothing about Common's music career and am only slightly more familiar with him as an actor and personality. Wide open on this one so let's get to it. THE TRACKS "Be (Intro)" - Pleasant enough, short little thing with an interesting mix of electronic beep boops and what I assume is a sample. Think I always assumed Common was an actor-turned-rapper, and not the other way around, so surprised he has a decent enough flow. A little slow, a little stuttering, but fine. "The Corner" (featuring Umar Bin Hassan of the Last Poets) - Nice beat here. Can't say I was impressed with the vocal performances on this. "Go!" (featuring John Mayer and Kanye West) - More interesting stuff here with the catchier repetition over top the airy keyboards. Goes on far too long though with no variation. Did this warrant bringing the big guns on for it? "Faithful" - I enjoy a bit of pitch shifted vocals. And Common, while not being too adventurous, sounds way more comfortable here. Great instrumentation underneath. The background vocalists here add some texture as well. Solid stuff. "Testify" - Another good beat. I still am not digging Common's delivery though. He's ... competent is the best I can say about him. Nothing makes him stand out and can easily imagine him reading off a lyric sheet while performing this. "Love Is…" - This starts off well. I think I might like to hear Common sing a bit more. His flow works much better with this beat as well. Kind of a lazy, off/in between the beat sort of thing. Still no flashiness, but it works here with all the background stuff going on. "Chi-City" - Best instrumentation so far, with what sounds like a classic soul sample underneath. Common's energy is up here as well, and he brings a bit more attitude to the proceedings. Where has this guy been? "The Food" (live) - Decent live performance, just wondering why no studio track ( went and found the studio version). Ok, after listening I can see it. Live version is unsurprisingly more, uh.. full of life? I get it. Still doesn't wow me or anything. "Real People" - Some heavy soul vibes here. But Common is back to his somewhat stiff delivery. Is there a backing track only version of this available? "They Say" (featuring Kanye West and John Legend) - Have never been much of a Kanye or Legend fan, and they don't really make this stand out more than anything else on the album. "It's Your World (Part 1 & 2)" (featuring "the Kids") - Maybe the beat, but this sounds like a throwback 90s track to me. Common's energy is WAY back up, and he ends strong. If this is more what Common's previous stuff sounded like, I might be interested in checking more out. I also found a live tv performance of this and liked it even more. Maybe Common is a betetr live act? HIGHLIGHTS - "Faithful" - "Love Is…" - "Chi-City" - "It's Your World (Part 1 & 2)" MIDLIGHTS - "Be (Intro)" - "The Food" (live) LOWLIGHTS - "The Corner" - "Go!" - "Testify" - "Real People" - "They Say" FINAL THOUGHTS As competent and professional as this sounds, I can't say that much of any of it worked all that well for me. Have just heard so much similar stuff done much better by others. The live version of "It's Your World" I looked up had me much more intrigued than anything I heard here. Glad I finally heard some of his music though, and have some context to the man's career. Also worth noting, this had some of the least effective guest spots I can recall on any hip hop album I can think of though. Still I guess that's better than modern albums where it seems like 90% of the content is from guests? PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Maybe cobble together an all live version of this ( with no guest spots).

Variety: 2 Adequacy: 4 Listenability: 4 Uniqueness: 2 Emotionality: 5 = 3.4 rounded down to 3 "Full of broken thoughts/ I cannot repair" INTRO I was certainly aware of Linkin Park through the radio, but the band came around at a time I was retreating from new popular music. And while I've never considered myself to be particularly snobby, I did mostly avoid anyone with the "stink" of nu-metal/ rap-metal on them ( though I had enjoyed some stuff before like Korn). Knowing next to nothing about the band other than they were often lumped in with Limp Bizkit ( who I did not care for) brought my interest levels to less than zero. Over the years I've continued to hear the few radio hits replayed, and very recently have found myself listening to them quite a bit as I now have a middle-schooler who is a big fan. Have to say while they will likely never make it closer to my top 10, I have a new found appreciation for them at least, having heard a few of the deep cuts that seem to stand up with the radio hits. Looking forward to this one. THE TRACKS "Papercut" - What strikes me immediately with the opener is how much more atmospheric and musical they seem when compared to an act like Limp Bizkit. Less bombastic, and far more introspective. The quiet-loud-quiet dynamics along with the vocal gymnastics sell this one for me. Solid, contemplative angst as opposed to its more confrontational cousin. Makes you not so much want to break some stuff as maybe fume silently on the couch and play some Vice City with this blasting just loud enough to annoy your parents. "One Step Closer" - This is the one I remember hearing the most when it came out. It was striking even back then, but I would have just shaken my head and been like "That's probably their only interesting song." I find myself making more comparisons with a band like Rage Against the Machine here than Limp Bizkit, especially with the "SHUT UP!" with the scratching underneath, but also in that like the former band, Linkin Park seems a bit more serious. I might even go so far as to say they are to mental health and self-analysis what Rage was to politics. Simple and direct enough for a teenager to engage in, while remaining catchy and musically dynamic in all the right ways. Easy to see why this one has endured long enough for my 13 year-old to find it and dig it. "With You" - This is reminding me a bit too much of Limp Bizkit in the beginning and the following verses, but then veers into Korn territory for the chorus. Didn't hit for me like the first two, and felt more dated than either. "Points of Authority" - The dynamic between the delicate and screaming vocals save this one, but otherwise a little uninteresting musically. "Crawling" - This is the other track I remember hearing a lot. Very distinctive opening, and right into the epic sounding scream singing. The electronic beat, the tight modulated vocals and the anthemic loud sections work really well here. His voice never takes the complete turn into whiny emo, which is much appreciated. "Runaway" - More solid stuff here, and some great dips into the deeper range here with some more Korn-ish bass breakdowns. "By Myself" - The talk-rap over the soft section here doesn't gel as well when everything gets big here, like it has in earlier songs. Feeling a bit of whiplash, and there's not a lot to hook me as far as melody goes. Low point of the album so far for me. "In the End" - One that I regularly still hear on the radio. And easy to see why. Great balance of the rap elements and supremely catchy vocal melody. I certainly prefer one part over the other, but they each build off the other and provide plenty of emotion in the transition. We're FAR into mopey territory here, but it never rigs false, which helps sell this as legit. "A Place for My Head"- Bit of a change up here instrumental-wise with a distinctive guitar line behind the verses. Aside from the previous track, maybe the best contrast between Bennington's singing and Shinoda's ( best of the album so far) rapping. This flows right into... "Forgotten" ... where we get a little more of the same, but a lighter touch. Chorus here does not work for me though, and this feels as generic as anything I've heard on here yet. "Cure for the Itch" - Heavy emphasis on the DJ effects starting off on this one. The most hip-hop vibe of anything else, and after the opening it settles into a relatively chill beat and demonstration of Joe Han's ( I assume) turntable skills. The Ringo track. "Pushing Me Away" - Solid closer, but nothing amazing going on here. Seems to stay a little more in the emotional pocket with not as much of the dynamics present throughout the rest of the album. Can't see this being anyone's favorite though. HIGHLIGHTS - "Papercut" - "One Step Closer" - "Crawling" - "Runaway" - "In the End" MIDLIGHTS - "Points of Authority" - "A Place for My Head" - "Cure for the Itch" - "Pushing Me Away" LOWLIGHTS - "With You" - "By Myself" - "Forgotten" FINAL THOUGHTS Overall a very cohesive album, with some above average musicianship and non-abrasive vocals that make me wonder why exactly I avoided listening to this for so long. Lots to like and much more melodic than I expected. That being said, this has never, and will never be my favorite kind of music. Aside from having aged out of the target demographic for it, it's a bit too emotionally raw for me as well. I can see the appeal though, and am open to listening to more to see how/ if they evolve. And would ot rule out revisiting this either. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Probably just hang onto the highlights for now

Variety: 0 Adequacy: 3 Listenability: 1 Uniqueness: 1 Emotionality: 0 = 1.0 "Hear the voices in my head/ I swear to God it sounds like they're snoring" INTRO This is another one I probably heard some of this on MTV and maybe some compilations or playlists, but could not name you one track. Part of the problem I guess with having a largely faceless media presence I guess. Also the first time an act has gotten a second album int the list for us to look at. Seeing as I gave their most popular ( I think?) album a measley 2 stars, I don't have much hope for this one. THE TRACKS "Leave Home" - First track does not ring ay bells for me. I can see that this came out before Dig Your Own Hole, but to my ears it doesn't sound as dated as some of the stuff on that, while still being squarely in the 90s. Maybe it's the relative simplicity of the thing. Didn't do much for me. It blends right into... "In Dust We Trust" ... which starts off with more of the same, bass register electronic rumble underneath some possibly sampled beats. This one has a lot more effects and quirky bits mixed in, some muffled yelling, along with those wet sounding electronic high hat beats. We find ourselves once again very much in the late 90s action movie realm. I can picture the frenetically edited hacking scene now. Can't imagine anyone throwing this on to either relax to or dance to. So who is it for then? "Song to the Siren" - Grating opening to this track sets the mood perfectly, and hey look at that it continues to repeat under the bog standard beat for a good minute. After that it settles into something a bit more listenable, but just feels like I'm waiting for someone's awful vintage cell phone ring tone to go off the whole time. "Three Little Birdies Down Beats" - And we flow once again into the next track. Can't say the one continuous album length track gimmick is going to earn them any points as it feels more like a tactic to exhaust and confuse to my old man ears than some sort of call to "keep dancing y'all!". Maybe this is a hell of s lot more interesting with some mind altering chemicals flowing through your brain. The inly thing I'm feeling is impatience. "Fuck Up Beats" - This one became pure background noise and I didn't even notice it was over. "Chemical Beats" - This isn't going to get any more interesting is it? How many tracks are left? Jesus... "Chico's Groove" - Some variation finally. Way more chill, and not so aggressively generic. Nothing great but it's different at least. "One Too Many Mornings" - Staying in chill mode here for another unoffensive track. Little too new agey for me though. "Life Is Sweet" - This is promising. Solid building beat that develops into something approaching Dig Your Own Hole era material. Then the vocals drop in and it loses me. Decent bit of variation as well, but wears out its welcome after about 4 minutes in. "Playground for a Wedgeless Firm" - By far the most interesting track so far. The stuttering electronic bit doesn't last long enough to be grating, and the beat is hypnotic in a non-terrible way. "Alive Alone" - Only example of successful vocals on the album. Beth Orton rarely fails to be anything less than interesting, and she performs an admirable job of rescuing this one. HIGHLIGHTS MIDLIGHTS - "Chico's Groove" - "One Too Many Mornings" - "Life Is Sweet" - "Playground for a Wedgeless Firm" - "Alive Alone" LOWLIGHTS - "Leave Home" - "In Dust We Trust" - "Song to the Siren" - "Three Little Birdies Down Beats" - "Fuck Up Beats" - "Chemical Beats" FINAL THOUGHTS Very boring stuff for me this go around. This one didn't even have a "Block Rockin Beats" or "Setting Sun" to give it a little life and interrupt the sameyness. I can't imagine a world where I'd want to hear any of these tracks again. At least something like Barry Adamson's "Moss Side Story" ( which I also gave a low rating to) has some variety, and attempted to interest the listener. Maybe that's the purpose of this record though - mindless noise, for mindless dehydrated zombies to grind their teeth too whist flopping around in an epileptic's nightmare of flashing lights and being splashed with the sweat of strangers ( if you can't tell I'm not a very big fan of clubbing). If the hole thing had shown the variation of the last 4th, this thing could have maybe pulled a 2.4. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Happy to forget this one altogether

Variety: 4 Adequacy: 4 Listenability: 4 Uniqueness: 3 Emotionality: 2 = 3.4 rounded down to a 3 "If you can hear a piano fall/ You can hear me coming down the hall" INTRO I was White Stripes fan. For a while. Discovered them at the same time as most everyone else, when they got huge from the hits on White Blood Cells. I eventually went back and listened to the earlier stuff, and I remember thinking this is... ok. None of it stuck with me though I think because that lightning in a bottle magic of those amazing hooks was missing. That and Elephant were a huge one-two punch but by Get Behind Me Satan, the magic had worn off. When I heard White had a solo album I was pretty uninterested, assuming it would just be more of the same, as the way I understood it, White Strips were essentially a solo act anyway. I think I must have heard a coupe of these once or twice if they got heavy play as singles, but none of it rings a bell. THE TRACKS "Missing Pieces" - This was ok. Musically interesting, a bit catchy. Considered variation of elements. White's warbly vocals the weakest part of an interesting opener. "Sixteen Saltines" - This is more of what I was expecting. White's vocals work way better with an energetic rocker like this one, though it sounds strangely muffled. Decent, but feels incomplete, like a White Stripes leftover. "Freedom at 21" - Here we go. Very interesting beat and an odd, but interesting vocal performance. I admit I was nervous at first and though "... is he going to try rapping. Dear god..." We don't quite get there. The discordant guitar noodling and the yelping, I'm all here for. "Love Interruption" - Another interesting opening, with an electric organ and some backing vocals. This is it. This is the sort of change up I'm into. Short breezy, catchy. "Blunderbuss" Another swerve into a beautiful little acoustic piano-driven, country-twinged thing that manages to sound both regretful and wistful. Damn good stuff. "Hypocritical Kiss" - Interesting juxtoposition with the meandering piano on top of the driving beat, and dips into some showy flourishes. Feels not a zillion miles from Beck territory here, though not as playful and at ease as that guy might handle it. "Weep Themselves to Sleep" - We get some Keith Moonish drums to get the energy back up, but a repeat of the trick of the dainty piano lines over top of an incongruous beat. Little bit of a Frankenstein effect and fails where the previous track more or less succeeded. When the guitar scratch comes in at the end it feels like a hail mary to try and salvage things, but also ends up feeling out of place. "I'm Shakin'" - Decent, fun cover, but can't hold a candle to the Little Willie John original. Seriously, check it out ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCzOXw2iiLI) . "Trash Tongue Talker" - Here's where White generally loses me. This is supposed to be some sort of barn burning bluesy jam, but just feels like him complaining with the echo preset turned all the way up to Lennon. Feels sapped of any real energy and has none of the live sound that I think is intended. Imagine a band like Wilco would have a lot more fun with this. "Hip (Eponymous) Poor Boy" - There's a LOT going on here, and it works. Puts me in mind of Cat Stevens or possibly Emitt Rhodes. Is that a clavichord? I think by this time it should be clear that I prefer the prettier, quieter stuff from White, but I know he's not going to stick around in that mode for a whole album. More of this would be nice though. "I Guess I Should Go to Sleep" - Jazzy opening that swerves right into some country pop, and back again into the jazzy piano line. This shouldn't work. Bit I find myself thinking of the little throwaway bits like the later Beatles medley material. Light and insubstantially pleasant. "On and On and On" - The most atmospheric we've got yet, with the airy electronic drone and piano over a very lazy, quiet bass line. When the brief choral vocals hit it's very effective and highlights the dynamism White does so well. The funky melody comes out of nowhere though and throws me off a bit. Doesn't overpower the vibe though and we quickly get back to what works. "Take Me with You When You Go" - Bit of a lazy spin on Dave Brubeck's "Take Five" here unless I'm crazy. So you hear it? Takes a HARD left turn though a little more than halfway through and we get some distorted guitar noodling. Listenable as it is, feels a little too disjointed for me and kind of wish it had stayed in that jazzy mode the entire time. Bit of a weak ending. HIGHLIGHTS - "Freedom at 21" - "Love Interruption" - "Blunderbuss" - "Hip (Eponymous) Poor Boy" - "I Guess I Should Go to Sleep" - "On and On and On" MIDLIGHTS - "Missing Pieces" - "Sixteen Saltines" - "Hypocritical Kiss" - "I'm Shakin'" - "Take Me with You When You Go" LOWLIGHTS - "Weep Themselves to Sleep" - "Trash Tongue Talker" FINAL THOUGHTS There's more than enough on here to like, and not too much that offends enough to completely dismiss it. There was no lack of variety here, and some really pretty melodies, but nothing that reached up and slapped me like a "Seven Nation Army" or "We're Going to Be Friends" ( I want a whole album of this kind of super catchy twee stuff, please). I've definitely heard enough to want to try the next one. White's persona is one that vacillates between pretentious asshat, and genuinely funny, so I think maybe that has colored by reaction in the past when I see he has a new project. I'll see if I can bottle up that urge to roll my eyes going forward , and allow the man a little grace to be a performative weirdo. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Drop the lowlights. Would be willing to reappraise some of the less unsuccessful tracks, bit no time soon

Variety: 4 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 5 Uniqueness: 4 Emotionality: 5 = 4.6 rounded up to a 5 "I'd listen to the words he'd say/ But in his voice I heard decay" One of the first albums I remember being aware of and anticipating well before it was released. I never got too emotionally invested in the music I listened to, and especially not with the bands or personalities themselves, but there was an undeniably sad aura around this album, and I think it's still hard to listen to without associating it very closely with the real world events that came after. While this one ranks 3rd behind Nevermind and Unplugged for me ( no spoilers as to which of those I rank higher :) ) it's a very close race. And it is the one that has grown on me most. THE TRACKS "Serve the Servants" - The opener makes it clear this is the band purposefully playing things a little looser, and rougher. Even so, the craft is very apparent here and the hooks are not gone. While no one's favorite, this is a very good opening statement. "Scentless Apprentice"- This is much more of a fuck you to the "self-appointed judges" of the first track. The ascending, grinding guitar riff, the painful sounding screeches on this one I imagine scaring some people off. But this is hardly some sort of unorganized noise rock experiment. It's table setting. "Heart-Shaped Box" - And the contrast we get when this one opens pays off in spades. An all-time classic that is just as much an ear-worm as anything you'll find in the 90s. The coarseness is surface only and this only demonstrates that Cobain has sacrificed none of his urge to write beautiful, catchy as hell melodies. As good as anything on Nevermind. "Rape Me" - Much of the same could be said for this one. Another all-time great. Contrast between the lyrics and the music are kind of the point I think. The emotion in this one, especially at the ending is very effective. "Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge on Seattle" - Not one of the more well-loved songs, but still solidly full of plenty of memorable hooks. The only thing that makes something like this recede into the background is the sheer high highs of the radio hits. "Dumb" - I do much prefer the Unplugged version of this one, but still hits damn hard. The ragged, low key vocals on this really sell the thing I think, and the cello is just punctuation. "Very Ape" - This one has grown to become a favorite over the years. The frenetic guitar line repeated give this an energy that can hardly be matched by anything else on here. "Milk It" - Maybe the hardest song on the album, and one I can imagine being a leftover from early days, though buy all accounts it was new to the album. This flirts with a bit of a post-rock sound to my ears in the quiet sections. "Pennyroyal Tea" - Another that I prefer the Unplugged version for, but still pretty flawless example of this dude's ear for melodies. "Radio Friendly Unit Shifter" - Terribly underrated. One that probably gets referenced way more for the title than on its merits as a song. The forward chugging momentum carries this along nicely. The relative lack of dynamics compared to the other stuff on here I think hurts it a bit. "Tourette's" - There's an alternate universe out there where Cobain decided to never court mainstream audiences and we got maybe a few albums full of stuff like this. Interesting stuff, but probably makes them a cult band that never strikes it big. And maybe he would have been a happier dude. Who knows. This is the only track on here that doesn't work for me. At least not completely. It's hardly a black eye though as it still feels like a sincere expression of panic. But its placement right before the next track makes it feel like the halfhearted bark of a dog that is already resigned to jumping up in your lap. "All Apologies" - Yet another I prefer the Unplugged version of though. A candidate for their prettiest song. But what a great ender. To the album and the band itself. HIGHLIGHTS - "Serve the Servants" - "Heart-Shaped Box" - "Rape Me" - "Dumb" - "Very Ape" - "Milk It" - "Pennyroyal Tea" - "Radio Friendly Unit Shifter" MIDLIGHTS - "Scentless Apprentice" - "Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge on Seattle" - "Tourette's" LOWLIGHTS - None FINAL THOUGHTS At the time I didn't get all the digs about it sounding "unpolished" or rough or whatever compared to Nevermind, but I can see it more now. But not even in the actual production so much as the intent. To me this feels just as well-crafted, it just has a different purpose. Fpr sheer listenability and catchiness, Nevermind is going to always come up a bit ahead, but this makes up for that in personality and raw energy, and feels much more like a cohesive album, where the former, amazing as it is, feels almost like a greatest hits compilation. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Wouldn't change a thing

Variety: 1 Adequacy: 3 Listenability: 3 Uniqueness: 1 Emotionality: 1 = 1.8 rounded down up to a 2 "Twiddle my thumbs just for a bit/ I'm sick of all the same old shit" I'm largely unfamiliar with 50 Cent aside from whatever tracks got radio play or were unescapable pop culture nuggets. I may have caught a stray track or two at the mall. Who knows. I was more familiar with his reputation and his public feuds with other rappers, and by this time I had mostly stopped listening to much of anything new, much less anything deemed "gangsta rap". The Nate Doggs ( spoiler alert - he's present here), Ice Cubes, and Dres of the world seem to have their best work behind them, and Eminem ( spoiler alert - his presence looms large over this album), despite obviously talented, annoyed the hell out of me. THE TRACKS "What Up Gangsta" - Catchy opener here. As with my other eviews, I'm going to largely ignore the lyrics, but I will say that 50 Cent's flow is respectable on most everything I've heard him on, but nothing pf special note. This holds up well as a vibe. Hip-hop production from this era in general is a high point of the genre in my opnion, and with Dre at the helm we're unlikely to get any less than solid beats. "Patiently Waiting" (featuring Eminem) - The electronic strings and the stumbling flow here give this one a good sense of forward, breathless momentum. Eminem features prominantly, and we get lots of nice bleeps and boops which add some variety. "Many Men (Wish Death)" - Not a fan of the vocals on this, though the hook works. And sound effects are never going to endear me to a track, especially of this sort. Feels like the most throwbacky bit so far. This one overstays its welcome pretty quickly. "In da Club" - And we get to the (first?) all-time banger on the album. Lyrical content aside, it's easy to see why this was a hit. The whole thing is just hooks. Energetic, and even acrobatic flow here has me reassessing my opinion of his mic skills. "High All the Time" - This one was pretty boring. It did remind me that the sampled songs by The Delfonics ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hE4bIrQP8-8) and Bobby Bland ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TMVCu79oazE) exist though. "Heat" - More gangsta posturing here in the lyrics, and repetitive gunshot effects don't help me enjoy the music. I think maybe the only successful attempt at this I've heard is M.I.A.'s "Paper Planes". "If I Can't" - Another Dre produced track, and catchy as all get out from second one. 50 ups his mic game back up again here, moving dexterously through that great piano beat. By the time the horns come in near the end, it feels like this could have went on for double the length and I would have been fine with it. "Blood Hound" (featuring Young Buck) - More bleep bloops. I love me some bleep bloops on a hip-hop track, This doesn't reach Timbaland levels of virtuosity, but good enough for 50 Cent. Young Buck kind of steals the heat here though, showing a lot more personality. "Back Down" - Oof, this did not age well, huh? I guess as good a time as any to mention 50's homophobic reputation, which to be fair, he seems to have very publicly tried to back away from in recent years, so ... growth I guess is never a bad thing. But the old early 90s feel in both sound and content hear put me in mind of nothing much better than a Dre throwaway track. This was a hard listen for a few reasons. I was tangentially aware of his feuds, but this seems like the most overt bit of that so far. Wonder if him and Ja Rule ever made up... ;) "P.I.M.P." - The steel drum and beat make this one. Not surprised I've heard this one before, and as catchy as it is, goes on a bit too long with no dynamics. "Like My Style" (featuring Tony Yayo) - This one seems pretty middle of the road, though the stuttering beat, and effect of the track speeding up is an interesting touch, and gives an otherwise forgettable track something to hold on to. "Poor Lil Rich" - Again we find a musical hook on which to hang an entire song. Boring vocals here over top of a pretty sick electronic beat. It sounds like little else on the album, and stands out in that respect, but substandard performance from 50. "21 Questions" (featuring Nate Dogg) - "I love you like a fat kid love cake". Despite that great line, still by far the classiest track on here. The steady hand of Nate Dogg guides us capably through with the melodic hook and 50 puts his boots on here and delivers with the vocals. Closest 50 gets to a love song? Appropriate that Barry White is the chief sample here ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxoEo-q7cpk). Where's the 50 Cent album of nothing but slow jams? "Don't Push Me" (featuring Lloyd Banks and Eminem) - This sounds like Heat part II to mem but barely more interesting. Warmed over "Lose Yourself" here in the music, which is no surprise given that Eminem is producing. "Gotta Make It to Heaven" - It's mostly about the beat here as the lyrics are repetitive as hell. Even on an album where this has seemed like an insurmountable issue. Worst chorus of the album hands down. It's "I'm Henry the VIII, I Am" levels of annoying. Can we get an instrumental only version of this? HIGHLIGHTS - "Patiently Waiting" - "In da Club" - "If I Can't" - "Blood Hound" - "21 Questions" MIDLIGHTS - "What Up Gangsta" - "P.I.M.P." - "Like My Style" - "Gotta Make It to Heaven" LOWLIGHTS - "Many Men (Wish Death)" - "High All the Time" - "Heat" - "Back Down" - "Poor Lil Rich" - "Don't Push Me" FINAL THOUGHTS Overall a very mixed bag for me. There are a few tracks on here I certainly would not mind hearing again, but not much I'd ever purposefully seek out. This is party music through and through. Not for everyone to be sure, especially content wise. As fun as parts of it were, I found myself wincing at how poorly a lot of it has aged. Middle of the road for me, but just shy of that 3. Maybe next time, if he pops back up. I did however make a killer playlist of songs sampled for this one so there's that. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Highlights only are sticking around

Variety: 3 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 4 Uniqueness: 3 Emotionality: 2 = 3.4 rounded down to a 3 "I enjoy stealin', it's just as simple as that/ Oh well, it's just a simple fact/ When I want something, man, I don't wanna pay for it" INTRO Big Pavement fan. But I can tell you now this is not my favorite by them, and pretty sure I went backwards to this from Wowee Zowee, through Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain, so to hear them get less melodic and more inaccessible didn't help. THE TRACKS "Summer Babe (Winter Version)" - This one still has a place in my 5 star list, and always will. In some ways the prototypical Pavment song. There's the lazy delivery to match the lazy guitar, the dedication to melody, the fuzziness, low-fi production that gives this a faux-live feel that works well. Who needs deep lyrics when you can stun them with hooks? Pavement even more than some bands I tend to see their influences. This one had a very Guided by Voices meets power pop feel. "Trigger Cut / Wounded-Kite at: 17" - Another solid track. Not as catchy, but full of dynamic hooks, and enough variation and energy to keep me interested. The contrast between the vocals and the guitar are the attraction hear with Malkmus zigging just when you think he's going to zag. "No Life Singed Her" - Here I think the Sonic Youth influence comes to the forefront. We get some nonsensical yelling, fuzzed out guitars, a driving mechanical beat, and even the seemingly discordant, downbeat melodies lines that course correct mid-line. You can still hum it though. Pavement aren't going to go too far into the raggedness of something like In Utero though, and the pop sensibilities still creep through. "In the Mouth a Desert" - As catchy as most anything on Weezer's Blue Album, and share's a lot of the same DNA with a lot of stuff on there. Nadasurf would later make a whole album that sounded like it was spun from this. "Conduit for Sale!" - Speaking of Nadasurf - can't hep but imagine this loomed large over their hit "Popular" wit the frantic spoken word bit. This is also I think a prime example of where Pavement gets accused of stealing from The Fall ( most vocally from Mark E. Smith himself I think) - you be the judge: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1DXBR3oxlr0 . I can definitely hear it, especially in this song, but I think overall too much is made of the comparison. I'm sure they were an influence, but they went WAAAY farther into power pop material later. "Zurich Is Stained" - Slow this down by half and doesn't sound too far from the similarly warbly guitar stuff Beck would have been doing a bit after this. Short and ok, but inessential. "Chesley's Little Wrists" - If they are being purposefully grating on any of the songs here, this is the best example. Some Pixies-warming-up vibes here. Not sure how'd I'd be able to sell anyone on this. "Loretta's Scars" - Weird affect here where we get some Sonic Youthy guitar work over what sounds like the vocals from a completely different song sung to a different beat until the chorus, such as it is. Not enough to hook me here. "Here" - Back in my comfort zone here with a fairly straight forward low-key, Guided by Voices in slow motion sound and some Velvet Underground mechanical drumming. "Two States" - An opening that wouldn't be out of place on a either a Joan Jett or alternately a Gang of Four or The Fall album, but veers sharply into the latter two with what almost sounds like a vocal impression that would be right at home on any number of UK post punk albums. "Perfume-V" - More Sonic Youth meets Velvet Underground vibes here. Alright, but doesn't make that much of a mark. "Fame Throwa" - Back in The Fall territory here. Malkmus's delivery here stands apart, but I'm seeing the argument more and more. This goes off into some electronic territory I don't normally associate with Pavement, so interesting to hear them trying something different. Doesn't quite come together for me. The talk-singing which I am far less forgiving of from other bands, is a bit too much here. Too many ingredients in the pot this time around. "Jackals, False Grails: The Lonesome Era" - Bit jammier than most, with some swirling psychedelic guitar peppered in for good measure. What if the Grateful Dead were way into NY underground noise rock. "Our Singer" - Shambling vocals over a bare bones little number that sounds like an inspiration for stuff like Grandaddy would be doing several years later in a more candy coated way. HIGHLIGHTS - "Summer Babe (Winter Version)" - "Trigger Cut / Wounded-Kite at: 17" - "No Life Singed Her" - "In the Mouth a Desert" - "Conduit for Sale!" - "Here" - "Two States" - "Jackals, False Grails: The Lonesome Era" - "Our Singer" MIDLIGHTS - "Zurich Is Stained" - "Perfume-V" LOWLIGHTS - "Chesley's Little Wrists" - "Loretta's Scars" - "Fame Throwa" FINAL THOUGHTS I think there is a general consensus that Pavement's detached, often nonsensical lyrics, low-fi sloppy sound and general lack of showmanship leave them at a disadvantage to anyone who likes their music to have meaning of some sort. I don't really see this emotional void though because I'm imagining that it does take a lot of effort and a sort of uncool amount of dedication to the craft to put together tight, melodic rock that sounds lazy and disaffected on the surface. The lack of showmanship is their form of showmanship maybe is what I'm trying to say? The emotional comes through in the instrumentation for me I guess is what I mean. I compared them a few times in this to Sonic Youth and Guided by Voices, and the Velvet Undergound, and I think Pavement slots very neatly between those in the Venn diagram of and you get this sort of synthesis of low-fi, noise rock, and hooky melodic pop. Replace two of those three other bands with The Cars and Kiss, and you get Weezer, who I often see as the flip side of the coin. Weezer got seen as the more polished, more emotional version of this sort of thing, and even developed a bit of a try-hard reputation. But I think Pavement is trying just as hard here, they just don't want you to realize it. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Keep the highlights only FURTHER RESEARCH - The Blue Album by Weezer - High/ Low by Nadasurf - Alien Lanes by Guided by Voices - Grotesque by The Fall - Goo by Sonic Youth - Under the Western Freeway by Grandaddy

Variety: 4 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 5 Uniqueness: 4 Emotionality: 4 = 4.4 rounded down to a 4 "This is the story of how we begin to remember/ This is the powerful pulsing of love in the vein" "You Can Call Me Al" is one of the earliest music videos I remember seeing, and the song has been a favorite since. Heard of couple of others growing up, likely never tying them together other than they were Paul Simon songs. Wasn't until early college era that I gave this a complete listen, and have to say it quickly became a staple, and one of the few albums I would play the whole way through. I think it's only gotten better over the years, and it's crazy how forward looking it remains, despite being 100% identifiable as a mid-80s artifact. THE TRACKS Side One "The Boy in the Bubble" - Solid opener. Catchy and a great little preview of a lot of what we're going to hear. "Graceland" - One of the other hits off this that I would have heard, though not as often as the one with the Chevy Chase video. You know the one. This is one of those few songs that is able to get a bit of an emotional reaction from me. It hits very hard in that lovely bittersweet spot where the bouncy bits contrast so well with the sad, wistful parts. This one's a rollercoaster of unsureness, hope, and resignation, and I'm always down for the ride. "I Know What I Know" (with General MD Shirinda and the Gaza Sisters) - This one I think has grown to be a favorite despite never hearing it in that period as a child when stuff would just burn into your brain and never leave. The lightness, the meandering playful guitar, and my favorite lyrics on the album. Simon is one of those guys that can be funny in his material and never seem to be slumming it. A delightful short story, and man what a vocal accompaniment. "Gumboots" (with the Boyoyo Boys) - The Brightest spot on this album I think. Little up tempo number with another funny/ sad story. Amazed at how he can make such a breezy, catchy song sound like it was just a throwaway ditty. Something he has in common with McCartney and few others. "Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes" (with Ladysmith Black Mambazo) - Ladysmith Black Mambazo steal the opening, and the ending of this one and Simon pays it low and subdued to take advantage of this. The song itself feels a little low energy, but it works as feels like a winddown for the first side. Side two "You Can Call Me Al" - God tier hit for me that has permanently claimed real estate in my mind. Candidate for best B-side opener of all time imo. Up there with "Back in Black", "Money", and "Here Comes the Sun" in that respect. We get a hard energy reset here. There are plenty of songs out there that better represent the decade, but this is the sound of MY 80s. Going to be hard to not play this one on repeat a few times. This one's on the funnier side, and the bass line on this is the musical highlight for me here despite the fierce competition from the horns and the flute. If you can't find a spot for this song in your heart, I pity you. "Under African Skies" - Simon brings it way back down again and goes into a more contemplative mode. Beautiful stuff. Seems like this is Simon's most focused attempt at examining the HEAVY African influence on every bit of this album. "Homeless" (with Ladysmith Black Mambazo) - Another great showcase for LBM. The impressive range and pretty harmonies on display here make this one feel the most spiritual on the album, both in the unadorned presentation giving some church choir vibes, and in the content of the lyrics, of which there is a translation available online. "Crazy Love, Vol. II" (with Stimela) - Steering us away just ever so slightly into more lighthearted territory with what sees like the slightest song on the album so far. The chorus on this, by no means terrible, is the one part of the album that completely fails to work for me. Just tonally seems imported in from another song, from a far less polished, and more traditional album. "That Was Your Mother" (with Good Rockin' Dopsie and the Twisters) - More zydeco! Fine as this one is, I think it feels way more like Simon slipping into a bit of stereotypical cultural appropriation than most anything else on here. This one's almost like an assignment where he has to check off anything that screams "New Orleans!". I still like it enough though. "All Around the World or the Myth of Fingerprints" (with Los Lobos) - "People are all the same" seems like one of those sayings that can swing hard into either cynicism or optimism. I think this is supposed to be the latter, but it still comes across a bit sad to me. Wish this one was lacking that electronic drum beat though. Not the best ender. HIGHLIGHTS - "The Boy in the Bubble" - "Graceland" - "I Know What I Know" - "Gumboots" - "Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes" - "You Can Call Me Al" - "Under African Skies" - "Homeless" MIDLIGHTS - "Crazy Love, Vol. II" - "That Was Your Mother" - "All Around the World or the Myth of Fingerprints" LOWLIGHTS - Huh? FINAL THOUGHTS On a re-listen - it has been somewhile - I was disappointed to find more on here to criticize than I thought. That said, they are pretty nit-picky and don't really effect my opinion enough to rate it much lower than I already would have. While I certainly don't mind those three middling tracks, they do feel more out of place with the rest than I remember. But they are perfectly placed at the end so it doesn't feel like TOO much of a loss if you want to pretend the album is over after "Homeless". I can totally see how this could be a very divisive album. Where I might hear the delightful melodies, superb backing vocals, and inventive instrumentation, someone could easily dismiss this as a bunch of lightweight, unoriginal material buoyed by a couple of very catchy, but dated hit singles. And I can't argue with that pov. All I can say is that it works for me. This was a refreshing splash of green on the dull gray wall that was my workday. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Repacking this for someone else I would have no issue dropping those last three, but they can stick around otherwise. FURTHER LISTENING - Shaka Zulu by Ladysmith Black Mambazo - Vampire Weekend by Vampire Weekend - Remain in Light by Talking Heads - Zombie by Fela Kuti / The Africa '70 - Let's Have A Party by Geraldo Pino And The Heart Beats

Variety: 5 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 5 Uniqueness: 5 Emotionality: 3 = 4.6 rounded up to a 5 "A game of chess is like a swordfight: You must think first before you move. Toad style is immensely strong And immune to nearly any weapon." INTRO When this album came out it was not on my radar. I doubt I heard much at all unless it was by accident on MTV. I was aware of the Wu-Tang as an entity, and as the individual members went on to do other stuff I would catch bits and pieces. I never listened all the way through this until maybe late in high school. I remember thinking, yeah ok... and? I'm wondering if hearing it 5 or so years after it came out left me unimpressed with some of its innovations. It has grown on me though with every listen though. It has been several years, so let's see how it holds up. THE TRACKS "Bring da Ruckus" We get our first old school Kung-Fu movie sample, and right before a damn solid message of intent. Here we are, this is what we do. Very basic message. The deceptively spartan soundscape here must have sounded so fresh given production at the time. Not quite low-fi, but close enough. "Shame on a Nigga" - Awesome groove on this one and our introduction to ODB and Method Man. ODB's "Drunken Master" flow is on display here, and if the first track was a map, this one was a blueprint for the virtuosity we'll see form everyone on here. "Clan in da Front" - The off kilter piano is the hook for me here, but RZA and GZA both deliver the goods. This one feels like it's going to stumble all over itself the whole time, but never does. "Wu-Tang: 7th Chamber" I am not as enamored of the skits on this as a lot of people, but they do provide some elbow room in between tracks and the flavor is appropriate to the atmosphere. Four tracks in and we get our showcase track. Most everyone gets the spotlight here, and it's pretty great. With a catchy as hell beat underneath to booth. "Can It Be All So Simple" "Intermission" - We get a welcome slow down dip in the energy here. Focus on Ghostface Killah and Raekwon doesn't feel slight, but more like a reset. And As opposed to two guy over off doing their own completely separate thing, this just feels like a small aside at the same party that we've been at. Two or three more guys are bound to wonder in and start a new conversational tangent anytime now... "Da Mystery of Chessboxin'" - And the energy shoots WAY back up. ODB verse on this ends with the best intro on the album to Ghostface. This just feels like the group surrounded an enemy and passing the mic around at a breakneck pace as they close in for the kill. "Wu-Tang Clan Ain't Nuthing ta F' Wit" - Sickest beat we've heard so far. That and the fizzed out melodic line under the vocals carry this one along. Not much going on lyrically however. This must be the audience participation song in love shows, right? "C.R.E.A.M." - Here's the one you've heard if you haven't heard anything else on here. All-time classic and deserves a place in even the most casual rap fan's 5 star playlist. Everyone shines on this, though I think Reakwon delivers the best verse. That piano line will be stuck in my head for a week. "Method Man" - Some real Human Centipede stuff going on here at the beginning. Method Man is the star here, and he doesn't disappoint. Some of the sillier rhymes, but it never comes across as lough out loud funny so much as a bit winking. "Protect Ya Neck" - Another showcase track, and in my opinion, the better one. But only just as it gets to the point faster, and stays in longer. "Tearz" - Of I had to pick an album MVP, I guess I could do worse than Ghostface Killah. His fingerprints are everywhere on this, moreso than anyone else besides RZA, at least in the tracks themselves. Dig that weird organ. "Wu-Tang: 7th Chamber - Part II" "Conclusion" - And they don't drop the ball on the closer either. That bass rumble over the beat and the skeezy sax add a textured grimy layer to an already grimy feeling production. And ODB delivers my favorite verse on the album. All-star stuff. HIGHLIGHTS - The HUGE amount of variety amongst the voices here, but sounds almost impossibly cohesive - "Bring da Ruckus" - "Shame on a Nigga" - "Clan in da Front" - "Wu-Tang: 7th Chamber" - "Can It Be All So Simple" - "Da Mystery of Chessboxin'" - "C.R.E.A.M." - "Method Man" - "Protect Ya Neck" - "Tearz" - "Wu-Tang: 7th Chamber - Part II" MIDLIGHTS - "Wu-Tang Clan Ain't Nuthing ta F' Wit" - Some of the skits were meh... LOWLIGHTS - Not really much to complain about here FINAL THOUGHTS Glad I relistened to this one, but not exactly surprised my opinion has not changed much. Having listened to much more rap and hip-hop in the subsequent years, I can much better appreciate how different this must have sounded when it came out. I think I've seen this album called the Nevermind of rap, for how imitated and influential it was. I'd go so far and maybe even compare it more the the whole Seattle Grunge scene rather than one album though, give the size of the group, and how they split off and morphed into smaller groups and solo efforts. No matter how much I like it when I'm in it though, this will never be a go-to album to grab for me, so it's got to remain just out of reach of that S-tier spot. 5 stars, with reservations. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Probably an unpopular opinion, but I think this would work just as well without the skits and movie clips FURTHER LISTENING - Only Built 4 Cuban Linx… — Raekwon - Liquid Swords — GZA - Supreme Clientele — Ghostface Killah - Tical — Method Man - Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version - ODB - Ready to Die - The Notorious B.I.G. - Illmatic - Nas

Variety: 2 Adequacy: 3 Listenability: 2 Uniqueness: 2 Emotionality: 1 = 2.0 "Boy, that escalated quickly... I mean, that really got out of hand fast. " In a bit of a change up, I not only have never heard any of this before, I'm fairly certain I've never heard of the band. The relative newness of the album ( my god... 17 years?) is not helping as my pop cultural knowledge, especially music, enters a steep decline after 2005 or so. Not sure what to expect, but plan on going in with an open mind. THE TRACKS "The Fun Powder Plot" - Nice subdued opening with some worldbeat rhythms going on I think we're going to be ok, I ... oh no. Hmm.. The vocals here are not working for me. Very melodramatic delivery that I can see is maybe influenced by some Thom Yorke or Muse, but with no roof. Wow. Let's see if this was a one off. "Hooting & Howling" - Ok. So I think this is going to be an issue. I genuinely am digging some of the instrumentation here, though this is pretty basic stuff. The falsetto vocals seem like they are meant to be doing a lot of the heavy lifting and just not working for me. "All the King's Men" - This works a bit better for me. The dips into the falsetto are used to much better effect here, and we get a more dynamic feel. Still pretty unenergetic though. Like a slowed down, simplified Doves song "When I'm Sleepy" - This could be a bit funkier but solid instrumentation. I'll try and refrain from mentioning the vocals going forward unless there's some notable change in quality. "We Still Got the Taste Dancin' on Our Tongues" - Still getting some notes of Doves in the instrumentation. But also some Coldplay vibes. "Two Dancers (i)" - the ambient guitar notes here put me in mind of some Sigur Ros, but then the distortion, drums, and non-falsetto vocals kick in and we get more of an Interpol feel. "Two Dancers (ii)" - Another pleasant, but forgettable side trip. "This Is Our Lot" - And back again. The vocals are used much better here though, and there at least seems to be a discernable melody in between the warbles. This guy is no Jimmy Somerville or Andy Bell. Just sayin. "Underbelly" - Here we go. This is what you use this weapon in your arsenal for. Build the instrumentation AROUND the vocals. This was way too short. Perfect balance achieved. Too bad it's almost over. "Empty Nest" - Easily the most interesting instrumentation so far. Some Coldplay-ish vocals here don't distract too much and feel like they're in an interesting wrestling match with the music. Took them a while to warm up I guess. "Through the Iron Gate" (iTunes bonus track) – Sounds like they were going for something epic here, but it stays in the build up teh whole time and ultimately goes nowhere special. HIGHLIGHTS - "Underbelly" - "Empty Nest" MIDLIGHTS - "All the King's Men" - "Two Dancers (i)" - "Two Dancers (ii)" LOWLIGHTS - "The Fun Powder Plot" - "Hooting & Howling" - "When I'm Sleepy" - "We Still Got the Taste Dancin' on Our Tongues" - "This Is Our Lot" - "Through the Iron Gate" FINAL THOUGHTS Vocals aside, there is some solid playing on this, and even a few bright spots where I could see a whole more interesting version of this album. Just overall the vocals did not work for me and I think were at odds with the music for the majority of the tracks. It should have been used more sparingly and as accents. See "Underbelly". If the whole thing had been a sort of back and forth with variations on those two highlighted songs, I still don't think this would have risen above a 3 for me. There are a few bands I was reminded of on here who do similar stuff, much better, and I think my time would be better spent giving those bands a listen. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Not sure I ever need to revisit any of this, and can't say the band has got me excited about other albums either. FURTHER LISTENING - Some Cities by Doves - Turn on the Bright Lights by Interpol - The Warning by Hot Chip

Variety: 3 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 5 Uniqueness: 3 Emotionality: 2 = 3.6 rounded up to a 4 "I’m a little bit country/ And I’m a little bit rock 'n roll/ I’m a little bit of Memphis and Nashville/ With a little bit of Motown in my soul" While I like a lot of work that could be considered such, I've never been that into Americana/ Roots stuff. It feels too much of a non-genre like Post-punk, where there are so many bands doing such vastly different things it seems like an unwieldy and ultimately meaningless label. I've tried this album before a few times and it hasn't stuck. Yet. Maybe this is lucky number three... four? THE TRACKS Side One "Tears of Rage" - I find Richard Manuel to be the most soulful of the singers in this group, and this holds up really well. A shambling and slow motion, but ill-defined lament. Dylan co-writes here and we get plenty of lyrical ambiguity, which I'm fine with. I don't think there is much of anything deep to find here aside form the emotional quality of Manuel's voice and the great accompaniment. Solid start. "To Kingdom Come" - A generic bit of bluesy rambling. Nothing special. "In a Station" - A bit of orchestral pop to open this one. This stands out as possibly having some late-period Beach Boys vibes. Dreamy and a bit folky. I dig it. Unfortunately not much more like this on here if memory serves. "Caledonia Mission" - This doesn't sound too far from what Crosby, Stills and Nash were doing. Robertson has a bit of a whiney stutter to his voice that I'm not the biggest fan of. Fine. "The Weight" - Classic rock radio staple for a reason. Pulls the trick of sounding like an truly excellent live recording. All the ingredients are here for the formula I guess. Allman Brothers, Skynyrd I think follow from this. Maybe the Eagles as well. Side Two "We Can Talk" - How do you follow up the previous side after that ending? With a pleasantly throwaway bit of guitar and organ I guess. This makes me wish Manuel had done a soul album of some sort. "Long Black Veil" - This one feels like a countrified cover of traditional murder ballad ( looked it up and yep, pretty much). Also not a fan of Rick Danko's vocals either. Just let Helms and Manuel sing everything and I might up my rating of this thing a tiny bit. "Chest Fever" - Some almost priggish organ opens this one, which outs it in stark contrast. Deep Purple underwater and in slow motion? The organ here is the star, by a mile, but we also get swings into some funkiness as well as a Randy Newman-ish detour into New Orleans at one point. Love the variety on this one. "Lonesome Suzie" - The emotional longing in Manuel's voice carries this one. This is how you successfully integrate the high registers into your songs ( pay attention Wild Beasts). "This Wheel's on Fire" - Some of the more interesting instrumentation opening this one, but then it quickly settles into some genericness with forays into Dylan world, mainly apparent on the verses. Danko screws the pooch on this in my opinion though with his vocals. A messy hodge podge. "I Shall Be Released" - Most everything about this works for me aside form the martial drumming bits. Just like a big old curly hair floating in your soup. Nitpicky I guess, but it just puts me in mind of schmaltzy garbage like "Billy Don't Be a Hero". HIGHLIGHTS - Manuel's vocals - Loved how basic the instrumentation was on this. Did not feel overproduced - "Tears of Rage" - "In a Station" - "The Weight" - "Chest Fever" - "Lonesome Suzie" MIDLIGHTS - "To Kingdom Come" - "Long Black Veil" - "I Shall Be Released" LOWLIGHTS - "Caledonia Mission" - "This Wheel's on Fire" FINAL THOUGHTS This album is often mentioned in the same breath as Sgt. Pepper's or Never Mind the Bollocks as it supposedly influenced a whole generation to pick up their acoustic guitars and add some country twang to their rock. And I can see it. The artists themselves can be quoted - everyone from Elton John, to George Harrison, to Dylan himself - so I believe it. I guess I just don't understand the reverence. One of those things you had to be there for I guess. I am always surprised whenever I see this was 1968 though. In my brain this sort of thing is early 70s at the earliest, but I maybe that's proof of the influence. Even so, this will never be a favorite of mine. Aside from hearing "The Weight" once a week if I flip through the classic rock stations, I don't think I feel the need to revisit this one again. The production, the musicianship, and the overall vibe is great. It just next to nothing for me emotionally. I feel no connection to most of it. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Keep "The Weight" and "Chest Fever" FURTHER LISTENING - Tumbleweed Connection by Elton John - Workingman’s Dead - Grateful Dead - Old & In the Way by Old & In the Way - Liege and Leaf by Fairport Convention - Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs by Derek and the Dominoes - All Things Must Pass - by George Harrison

Variety: 1 Adequacy: 1 Listenability: 1 Uniqueness: 1 Emotionality: 0 .8 rounded up to a 1 "Ever get the feeling you've been cheated?" I have listened to this once before, a couple if decades or more ago as it was on a similar list of recommended albums. The fact that I remember absolutely nothing about it other than being irritated that it was so well reviewed, does not bode well for this review. McLaren is a gold certified P.O.S. of the music world, and not sure many would argue with that take. Will try and keep the man separate from the music though, as this does seem to have some historic importance to all the groups that sampled it over the years. So out of respect to De La Soul and Missy Elliott I guess, here goes. I will, however , give most of the credit here to superproducer Trevor Horn and company ( of Yes, The Art of Noise, The Buggles, producer of hits by ABC, Grace Jones, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, and countless others). Unfortunely not sure any of the musicians sampled were credited. THE TRACKS Side One "Obatala" - This was nice mix of some African beats over a dreamy synth. More restrained and tasteful than I recall. "Buffalo Gals" - Some ok old school stuff from The World's Famous Supreme Team here, but depends on your patience for all the stuff layered overtop and around it, which I have very little of. "Double Dutch" - Bright uptempo stuff here that would improve 1000% if McLaren's awful voice could be isolated and removed. Yes, Malcom, describe a thing to us... I guess? The disco strings and the muted watery production also don't endear me much either. "Merengue" - Ugh... this one felt uncomfortably awful. Like maybe they just played some stock music at double speed while McLaren read off some hastily scrawled lyrics. Good track to play maybe if you wat to induce an anxiety attack? Awful. "Punk It Up" - This starts off pleasantly enough, reminding me of the bouncy stuff Paul Simon would incorporate into Graceland, but it very quickly wears out its welcome with repetition and what I can only assume is McLaren again being awful over top of actual professional musicians' work. This guy must have been exhausting to be around. Horn sneaks some Art of Noise weirdness in at the end which adds nothing. Side Two "Legba" - I'm intrigued. Can we make it through this one on vibes and music alone? Maybe.... maybe. Nothing special, but least there was no extraneous dumb sample added to the en - - - Oh, nevermind. "Jive My Baby" - "Punk It Up" part II. Interesting bouncy, pleasant groove and background vocals, but the we get McLaren doing some sounding like Gollum and Smeagol having an argument. Jesus... This is entering Morrisey territory for how antagonistic I am feeling towards the creators. "Song for Chango" - Easily the most atmospheric thing on here, though not much work seems to have went into integrating the chants with the ambient noise. "Soweto" - Mclaren doing a piss-poor John Lydon PiL-era impersonation here I think ruins what might have been another ok song. "World's Famous" - Betting a good portion of the samples taken from this were generated by this track. Most interesting soundscape on the album, and largely a showcase for The World's Famous Supreme Team, but very slight and pretty forgettable "Duck for the Oyster" - McLaren can even find a way to make a kindergarten-level square dancing number worse. Embarrassing and terrible. HIGHLIGHTS - "Obatala" MIDLIGHTS - "Legba" - "Song for Chango" LOWLIGHTS - "Buffalo Gals" - "Double Dutch" - "Merengue" - "Punk It Up" - "Jive My Baby" - "Soweto" - "World's Famous" - "Duck for the Oyster" FINAL THOUGHTS I guess a lot of the reputation of this one lies on how much it has been sampled. Can't even really call it very innovative in it's scavenging as Byrne and Eno got there a couple of years earlier with My life in the bush of Ghosts, and did it far better. Was not expecting much of anything from McLaren, but hoped at least I would find something to like about the original artists and the production, but I thought that was not even an adequate draw. The production was muddy, and everything felt too cut to pieces. The nicest thing i can say about it is that I would not be apposed to seeking out something from the original African musicians, if I can find some credits... PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Happy to never revisit any of this again FURTHER LISTENING - My Life in the Bush of Ghosts - David Byrne and Brian Eno - Remain in Light - by Talking Heads - Graceland by Paul Simon - Metalbox by Public Image Ltd.

Variety: 2 Adequacy: 4 Listenability: 5 Uniqueness: 2 Emotionality: 2 = 3.0 "It's all about sex supreme/ We likes to cream jeans" Love me some Stranglers, but a bit annoyed this was the album they chose as their sole representative. That being said, I always think of them as a great singles band, and hard to think of an album from them that completely works for me. I have not heard this one in a very long time though, so maybe that opinion has changed. THE TRACKS Side A "Sometimes" - Can't help comparing this to the Doors given the bluesy melodic drive of the keyboards. Hugh Cornwell is a bit rougher than Morrison though. Solid opening track and already musically ahead of most of their punk contemporaries. Or at least not afraid to court pop like most. Seems like they started with one foot firmly already in what would become "post-punk". "Goodbye Toulouse" - More hard leaning into that pop sound here with the vocal harmonies, though the chuggy guitar work tries hard to disguise it. This was ok. One thig the band is great at is getting in and out at the right time. "London Lady" - A bit closer to that generic punk sound, but they can't help throwing weird hooky bits in to stir things up. The combined vocal/ guitar line is the major hook here. Lacks the energy of similar stuff that The Damned were doing around the same time. "Princess of the Streets" - Some of that trademark Stranglers humor ( or is it?) on display here with Burnel delivering a parody of the dark crooner Jim Morrison type. Even a bit of "People are Strange" in the bass line melody at one point. Solid. "Hanging Around" - Starts strong and only gets better. More Question Mark and the Mysterions than The Doors on this one, and feels like an early stab at their later more radio-friendly stuff. A great showcase of most everything the band does well, and a good closer for side one. Side B "Peaches" - One of the all-time great bass lines. Sleazy, skeevy, just as intended. Not sure how anyone could see this as anything but parodic of the gross macho stereotype, but I guess that's always a danger. While not as baldly a piece of comedy as the stuff Tenacious D did, eve their fanbase eventually swelled with a certain type of guy that would also take this at face value and be ready with a "Hell yeah!" and a high five at the thought of celebrating exactly what these lyrics are poking fun at. Anyway... the music - supremely hooky and 100% deserves a spot on their greatest hits comp. "(Get A) Grip (On Yourself)" - Very good stuff here. Forward driving momentum after the languid, lazy sun-dolloped sludginess of "Peaches". The organ dances all over the place here but falls right in line with the core melodic line. "Ugly" - More roadhousey Doors stuff here, and maybe the most pub rock sounding thing on here. Not the biggest fan of Burnel vocals and while capable on the harder tracks especially, feel more or less the same here. "Down in the Sewer" - A band could do worse with their leftovers than this. Ultimately feels like a collection of lines they dropped from other songs but couldn't find the courage to toss away. Veer into Mark E. Smith talk-singing territory very briefly before descending into an extended jam. Not terrible by any means, but feels a bit listless until the end when it gallops at full speed to the finish line, and ( conceivably) makes it out of the sewer back into the welcoming arms of mother nature. HIGHLIGHTS - "Sometimes" - "Princess of the Streets" - "Hanging Around" - "Peaches" - "(Get A) Grip (On Yourself)" MIDLIGHTS - "Goodbye Toulouse" - "London Lady" - "Ugly" - "Down in the Sewer" LOWLIGHTS - Clean bill of health here FINAL THOUGHTS This will never be my favorite Stranglers album, but then do I even have one? Looking back at my old iPod playlists, what I have of the Stranglers seems to be a core of what is largely represented on their greatest hits compilation plus another 2-3 songs per album. Still, this was a more than solid outing and a fine debut. All the pieces were there from the beginning and their later stuff doesn't seem to cone out of nowhere. They just get more and more melodic as time goes by. Would say you are in pretty good hands with them at least all the way up through Dreamtime, which is the Hugh Cornwell's penultimate album with the band. I can't vouch for anything after that, but given that Cornwell was creative force behind their best songs, I'm guessing they limp on as a legacy band. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - All the highlights will remain FURTHER LISTENING - Damned Damned Damned by The Damned - Greatest Hits 1977–1990 - by The Stranglers - Down by the Jetty by Dr. Feelgood - Real Life by Magazine - Love Bites by Buzzcocks

Variety: 4 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 5 Uniqueness: 4 Emotionality: 2 = 4.0 "The song's a year long and had been playing for months/ When he walked into the place" I knew this was waiting for me when I woke up, and I woke up with "One More Time" stuck in my head. Wrong album, but whatever. These guys were a big part of the latter 90s for me. Remember playing the hell out of this one, but like with a lot of stuff I've heard before it has been a while. The big hits still get plenty of radio play, so Daft Punk is never far out of mind. Really looking forward to this one. THE TRACKS "Daftendirekt" - I didn't recognize this title. Then the repeating ( notice I didn't say repetitive!) vocal starts and I'm back in 1997. Perfectly paced layers build this up so that vocal bit doesn't get tiring, and then you blink and it's over. Set dressing more than a real song, but this does the job of setting up that this will be an album experience I think, rather than a collection of tried and true stuff they worked out in the clubs and then burned for a first release. "WDPK 83.7 FM" - The faux radio station gimmick is... it's fine. I'm not the biggest fan, but this was only 28 seconds, and leads right into the bit at the beginning of the next song. I'm willing to forgive a lot of this since I know we're in good hands ( I feel similarly about Songs for the Dead by Queens of the Stone Age as well). Some groups rely on this as a crutch rather than flavor. "Revolution 909" - Never one that was in constant rotation, this is still more than solid bit of toe-tapping goodness. The electronic hi-hat carries us through and we get some good dynamics. And once again, we're out before things get stale. "Da Funk" - There it is. The music video of the dog guy walking around with his boombox is burned into my brain, so I can never remember if the street noises are as prevalent on the album itself. Listening to the album cut and I don't think they are. Anyway... shit - what an effectively bold opening right into your melodic hook. I could listen to this on a loop all day long and not get tire, but the guys know when you've had a too much of a good thing and a little less than halfway through the zipper electronic line comes in and stays around. Layers! It's all about the layers! Aerobics music for robots, and I couldn't be more into it. All time 5 star track. And I'm pretty sure that won't be the only one off of this. "Phoenix" - On every track so far I've been like "oh yeah..." despite mostly not remembering the names. I could see this one in particular being a tricky proposition. Similar stuff by other groups I've found grating, but I think mostly because of the intense 90s of it all. So much of Chemical Bros and the like is couched in style and feels like them trying to be cool, where this is so unmannered , dorky, and referential to earlier eras it doesn't feel so tied down. The boots and cats beat here is supplemented by more than a few hooky bits and feels varied enough for what it is. I love the parts where everything muffles like you went into the bathroom momentarily and then came right back into the welcoming crowd. ( though not really - I hate clubs. I just imagine that's the intended effect) "Fresh" - And now we're on a beach somewhere listening to the tropical vibes carry over the sand dunes form the killer party a ways off. Not their best stuff here, but works well enough. Feels slight despite being over 4:00. "Around the World" - More proof that repetition does not have to be repetitive. This song is constantly changing and morphing. Just when you start to wonder how many times you nodded your head a new element comes in and ups the ante. Another unforgettable music video that perfectly illustrates their top tier layering. This belongs on every "greatest dance hits" compilation that comes out. The funky bass line that plays under compliments the robotic vocals and my favorite bit is about halfway in when the beat drops out momentarily and then comes back, only to build up and up and up 'til the home stretch. A true perfectly mindless groove. S-tier ear candy. "Rollin' & Scratchin'" - This is where i can see some people bowing out and the patience wearing thin. Not me though. Against all odds this does not bug me in the least. Where someone else might hear a bag full of dozens of cell phones all going off at the same time while an electric tea kettle boils over, I hear only the sick beats. This what I might put on to clean to, or compile Excel sheets or whatever mindless task you can think of. "Teachers" - Love a good roller skate jam, and this might be closest we get here. Daft Punk unembarrassingly calling out their influences here. Also as inessential as we get on here, songwise. "High Fidelity" - The skipping record immediately jumps into a clean beat that they continue to empty the contents of the kitchen sink onto for the remainder. A little too chaotic for me and less cohesive than everything else we've seen. Up until around 2:06 when it finally settles into a groove. "Rock'n Roll" - Like "Rollin' and Scratchin" before it, I can see this one grating on the casual listener. This is really as purposefully difficult as they get though, and is this noise any more abrasive than a siren or a horn you might hear in a more generic track of this type? Well, maybe, sure. But it works for me. I still might keep this track in mind though if I ever want to clear out a party. "Oh Yeah" - Their finniest track? And also their sexiest track? Over before you can even figure out what's going on though. Real disaffected Waitresses-like vibes here. "Burnin'" - Is that a "Baba O'Reilly" sample? Or an interpolation? Funky stuff, and possible the most joyfully danceable thing on here, which is saying something. "Indo Silver Club" - The music fades in as we walk through the doors of the club and we're right into it, and no reamp up necessary as we're treated to the weirdly bumblebee-ish electronic buzz over the groove. We don't stick around too long though ( maybe to grab a quick drink) as the world of the streets outside open up and we walk 50 feet to the next where there's a similar vibe, but only just so. We don't stick around here for long either though, and the night ends abruptly. "Alive" - Most abrasive beats so far on the album. This one builds though, and from the almost industrial clatter of the beat we eventually get to some forward momentum when the synth line slowly rises up to meet it. That hard beat softens and fades before coming back in what feels like a more energized variation, and we ride it out to the end. "Funk Ad" - We end things on a very brief remix of "Da Funk" that's from Bizarro land that doesn't add much to teh proceedings but which does signal the wind down. Still counts as more of a real track than the radio station thing. HIGHLIGHTS - "Revolution 909" - "Da Funk" - "Phoenix" - "Around the World" - "Rollin' & Scratchin'" - "Rock'n Roll" - "Burnin'" - "Indo Silver Club" MIDLIGHTS - "Daftendirekt" - "Fresh" - "Teachers" - "High Fidelity" - "Oh Yeah" - "Alive" - "Funk Ad" LOWLIGHTS - Not here FINAL THOUGHTS At times here I was reminded of everything from disco, to Kool and the Gang to early Madonna, which I think goes to show these guys were not just jumping on the bandwagon but were drawing from what, at the time, would have been a very uncool era. This is at times funky, bright, energetic and joyful where I see a lot more self-seriousness in their electronic contemporaries that doesn't hold up nearly as well. My biggest complaint here is that there are some tracks that feel a little fatty ( "Fresh"), but to remove them would mess with the pacing too much I think. But even their mid material is very listenable and polished. They were all their influence right on the sleeve and there's a refreshing lack of shame in anything here that makes me happy to revisit this era or music when the grunge hangover has mostly worn off and fun, airy shit was viable again. For good or bad, I think Daft Punk was one of the driving forces behind the evolution of pop music into the stew of countless influences from all eras that it is now. Nowadays I could not pinpoint where a song from the last 20 years came from, where before this it is absurdly easy to do. I also wish it had ended on a stronger note, though it does feel ocmplete and wrapped up in a nice bow at the end. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Trim that fat if you want a true 5-star experience. The highlights alone are 45 minutes - Alternately, just let the vibe overtake you and sit in the experience. - I'll be keeping all this, but I reserve the right to skip around as I see fit :) FURTHER LISTENING - Discovery by Daft punk - You've Come a Long Way, Baby - by Fatboy Slim - Madonna by Madonna - Something Special by Kool & the Gang - Computer Games by George Clinton

Variety: 3 Adequacy: 4 Listenability: 4 Uniqueness: 3 Emotionality: 3 = 3.4 rounded down to a 3 "Take me out tonight/ Where there's music and there's people/ And they're young and alive" I'm cheating on this one and including "How Soon is Now" as per the old American release. I generally like The Smiths, but after hitting a truly awful Morrisey album so early on, I feel they might need a leg up. It's been some time since I listened to this, but I remember it being pretty solid, though not my favorite by the band. I think generally we're in safe waters with any of their releases that might pop up. They're in that group along with The Police and U2 I'd label as a safe bet, meaning I'd given anything they recorded a chance. THE TRACKS "The Headmaster Ritual" - Easy to see how The Smiths could have bee lumped in ( at least over here) with the Paisely Underground scene bands with the jangly guitars but the vocals I can't imagine sounded much like anything else. I imagine they must have had some similar inspirations. Solid melodic stuff here "Rusholme Ruffians" - Bit of a rockabilly beat here does a lot to add some flavor, and while I admit the contrast with the vocals is interesting, I might rather here a more traditional singer take on the same material. "I Want the One I Can't Have" - The jangle continues, but Morrisey seems to own the , uh... melody such as it is. Not terrible by any means, but feels like they are rushing through this to get whatever's next. The dreamy twang that comes in every now and then is great - why not build the song around that? Chris Isaak was doing rockabilly influenced stuff around same time ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxaEENRxUvw), and I think is much more successful. Start Cats even earlier I think? "What She Said" - Much more raw and successful take on the rockabilly influences. Getting notes of The Damned on this one musically. Morrissey doesn't have much vocally to compare to though, and here the contrast is dynamic and cohesive. Some of there stuff feels more like him laying down the vocal track well after and with a different energy, but maybe the echo they throw on there helps integrate it more. "That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore" - We continue with the influence, but the band is bending that galloping beat towards their own purposes here. This leans way into the feel I remember from the later stuff, and feels much more crafted, with the vocals complementing the music instead of being at odds. Have not mentioned him by name yet, but by all accounts Marr was just as if not more so the creative driver behind the scenes and he owns this one. Side two "How Soon is Now" - Saved this one for last as a sort of compromise on taking the original release at face value. There's not too much to say about this one ( though watch me try) other than it will likely forever remain the shiniest gem in their crown. The swirling guitars, the precisely timed to perfection tremelo effects, the beautifully ambiguous lyrics, and teh best of Morrisey's vocal affects taking stage. Another S-tier classic. Is there something above S-tier? I might even put it there. This one will never get old and will be played on the radio for however long humans have such a thing. Belongs up there in the rock n' roll firmament with "JOhnny B. Goode", "Hey Jude", "Bohemian Raphsody", "Stairway to Heaven", etc... "Nowhere Fast" - 0-60 in a second flat. Driving forward with boundless energy. I don't think the rhythm section gets enough credit due to being outshined by Marr and Morrissey, but Andy Rourke on bass, and especially Mike Joyce on drums are doing a lot of heavy lifting on the more energetic tracks especially. Good stuff. "Well I Wonder" - We slow things way down here for a nice bit of variation. Morrissey doesn't really have a happy mode, I think teh brightest he gets is when he's being sarcastic, but the music effectively gives the illusion that he has, in fact, take things down to a more miserable level, and so it somehow comes together. "Barbarism Begins at Home" - We start with a bit of a different, maybe more traditionally mid-80s guitar sound, and an almost slow motion disco beat. Morrisey even toes down his Morrisey-isms so much so that if I heard this in loud club space, and didn't know any better, I might be like - "who is this interesting post-punk?". Clearly built around the funky guitar line that dances throughout. Morrisey becomes more identifiable about halfway through with his unintelligible moaning, and mumbling, but I don't hate it as he's at least moaning along with a melody that compliments the guitar. As danceable as the band gets, just don't pay attention to the lyrics while you're getting down. "Meat Is Murder" - Some opening sound effects that are very on the nose, but once that nonsense fades away we get the band in as close to dirge-mode as I think we ever see. Marr's guitar is too bright and bouncy, and the rhythm section too energetic to ever veer to close to anything I'd ever call gothy. The sentiment, though an admirable one I think is a bit too pushy and insistent. And oh yeah, the animal noises some back in. "And the turkey you festively slice/ Is murder". Years ago when The Exorcist got a theatrical re-release, (with the infamous spider-walk scene put back in), I remember being astounded at all the young people in the audience cracking up laughing at all the scary bits. I was confused at the time, and a little pissed off, but I could see the same thing happening here if you gave this to a bunch of "under-20's" to listen too. And I think I might be more understanding this go around. HIGHLIGHTS - "The Headmaster Ritual" - "What She Said" - "That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore" - "Nowhere Fast" - "How Soon is Now" * MIDLIGHTS - "I Want the One I Can't Have" - "Rusholme Ruffians" - "Well I Wonder" - "Barbarism Begins at Home" LOWLIGHTS - "Meat Is Murder" FINAL THOUGHTS Even at the short run time, this did not feel to slight and I think we got a good variety of stuff. A solid showcase of what the band could do, as well as of it's weaknesses ( cohesiveness between music and vocals being the main offender). While the musicianship is undeniable on this album, I think what is going to scare most close-minded people away is 100% always going to be those unique vocals. I think a lot of people heard "How Soon is Now" on the radio or a movie or as the opening credits of their favorite tv show, and could not help but be disappointed when they didn't get more of that. I personally think they acquit themselves quite well here, and never once shit the bed. I think when introducing the band ( specially to Americans) Hatful of Hollow ( maaaaybe The Queen is Dead based on how well I know this person's taste) would be my choice as the beginner. I'm not sure it qualifies to be on here as it's a compilation, but I think it would also work better than the other two I'm fairly certain we'll be seeing. While Morrisey's You Are the Quarry will remain an unflushed turd ( it comes up a LOT in my group's discussions) in the toilet bowl of 1-star rated albums, I don't think it's going to color my opinion of the Smiths in general ( or even some of his earlier solo stuff) too much. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - While I don't hate anything on here, the highlights would definitely get the most play FURTHER LISTENING - Hatful of Hollow by the Smiths - Silvertone by Chris Isaak - Ocean Rain by Echo & the Bunnymen - The La's by The La's - The Stone Roses by The Stone Roses - Liberty Belle and the Black Diamond Express by the Go-Betweens

Variety: 3 Adequacy: 4 Listenability: 3 Uniqueness: 2 Emotionality: 2 = 2.8 rounded up to a 3 "Cowabunga, dude!" This is yet another I've heard before, but it's been so log I barely have any memories of it. It couldn't have amazed me like Smile did. Not enough to leave any permanent marks on my brain like that one did. From what little I know Brian Wilson was not very enthusiastically involved with the band at this point, and may have even recorded his stuff completely separately? I know it has been positively reappraised in recent the last 20 years or so. Aside from Pet Sounds and Smile, Wilson and the boys have been more or less a singles band for me. A childhood radio staple, they seem to have all but disappeared from pop culture in the last couple of decades. THE TRACKS Side one "Don't Go Near the Water" - Getting strong Harry Nilsson and Boulders-era Roy Wood vibes here. Which I guess makes sense as those guys both seem influenced in turn by Wilson and company. Easy to see why weirdo indie musicians would have started championing this near the turn of the century. The oddly charming instrumentation, and harmonies make this an easy pill to swallow, and remove some of the trepidation I had diving in. "Long Promised Road" - This one reminds me again of Nilsson but also of some artists from the 2010s who seemed to embrace the whole psychedelic pop angle, like Dent May ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baXby3gOmXU). The production on this one sounds too fuzzy for me, which ages it too much I think. "Take a Load Off Your Feet" - This song is so dumb. I like it. Only Wilson and a few others can take what would be considered children's music if performed by another group, and give it some weight. The plucked strings, the clanks sell this for me and wish it had not been so brief. "Disney Girls (1957)" - Ugh... we get the "Ringo" track here, but like with most cases none of these pity tracks hold a candle to Ringo's ability to make sing-songy goofiness work. This is pure schmaltzy dreck, with only the watery guitar effects giving it any character. Bruce Johnston wrote the Barry Manilow hit "I Write the Songs." That checks out. I've called out several tracks as being S-tier, all time classics, etc... This is Z-Tier. Lowly of the lowliest. And this is from someone who has multiple yacht rock playlists that he regularly listens to, and who rates Christopher Cross higher than most. "Student Demonstration Time" - Why? No, Beach Boys - NO!! Bad Beach Boys! The Beatles can barely get away with playing the blues. I am embarrassed for Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller. I blame Mike Love fully for this one. Side two "Feel Flows" - Nice little bit of self examination type song with some cool vocal effects, some not-over used flute, and a crunchy guitar that weaves in and out before the synth line brings us back in. But Carl carries this. The best singer in a group of great singers. "Lookin' at Tomorrow (A Welfare Song)" - Unfortunately there's more than one Ringo in this group, so we get some more scraps from Al. He's better at this than Bruce though. "A Day in the Life of a Tree" - Here we go. A pretty little number from Brian accompanied by a an organ that starts off as a sort of hymn and evolves into twee etherealness just before the end. "'Til I Die" - More Brian but this time in a more traditional mode. The downbeat tone brings the interest up though, and it gets suitably dreamier near the end. Too little, too late though. "Surf's Up" - An ok closer, even if it's a little tame. The beautiful vocal melodies and harmonies do a lot of heavy lifting as the song itself is barely there. I read that "Pitchfork later included the song in separate rankings of the 200 finest songs of the 1960s and 1970s, and in 2011, Mojo staff members voted it the greatest Beach Boys song." *Cut to the gif of J.K. Simmons cracking up in Spider-Man*. That's some truly heroic levels of contrarianism, even for those two organizations. Sure, Mojo. "God Only Knows" was just an overhyped deep cut or something... HIGHLIGHTS - "Don't Go Near the Water" - "Take a Load Off Your Feet" - "Feel Flows" - "A Day in the Life of a Tree" MIDLIGHTS - "Long Promised Road" - "'Til I Die" LOWLIGHTS - "Disney Girls (1957)" - "Student Demonstration Time" - "Lookin' at Tomorrow (A Welfare Song)" FINAL THOUGHTS I think I might know why this one didn't leave much of an impression now. The high highs were dragged way back down by the lows to kind of even out and leave me with a sort of ... ok experience. The weirder, twee stuff worked best for me, the more traditional stuff did not. Overall I can see how this must have seemed WAY stranger to the public at the time, but it can't help but suffer compared to the 50 pus years of stuff that has since put it in the dust. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - I'll hang on to the highlights - If they hadn't already been deleted from my ancient iPod, I would proceed to do so FURTHER LISTENING - Smile by Brian Wilson - Boulders by Roy Wood - The Point by Harry Nilsson - Across the Multiverse by Dent May

Variety: 4 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 5 Uniqueness: 4 Emotionality: 4 = 4.4 rounded down to a 4 "I ain't a-saying you treated me unkind/ You could've done better but I don't mind/ You just kinda wasted my precious time/ But don't think twice, it's all right" - Bob Dylan "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right" Though I have a general appreciation of most Costello stuff I've heard, I'm always a bit hesitant to try anything I have not heard before because I think it's going to be a lot of self-indulgent claptrap. But it hardly ever is. Despite what anyone thinks of his public persona, the man seems well intent on making very listenable material, and not challenging people as much as one might think. He's always very pop minded, and even the albums I've went into that don't have any giant hits ( he really had way less than you think anyway) seem like they were at least MEANT to be radio-friendly. Part of this I think comes from his adoration by a certain type of critic who would gush over anything he released, and over time he got filed away with Springsteen and Van Morrison, and latter day Bob Dylan as "Rolling Stone favorites" - which in my mind meant largely well produced, inoffensive, but toothless old man rock. I think Costello himself would be fine to be considered in that company and pretty sure he's performed with all those dudes mentioned. I'm not sure how fair it is to lump him in though. THE TRACKS Side one: Flanko Uno "Uncomplicated" - Big beefy beat opens this one, and it's kept pretty simple with an organ brewing under the surface and bubbling up occasionally to add some heat to the pot. Basic but very effective. "I Hope You're Happy Now" - I read that Nick Lowe produced this and man is it obvious. His fingerprints are all over this. His band of 60s inspired melodic power poppy new wave is on display and sounds great. Would not call the production in polished by any means, but they are definitely going for some sort of rougher faux live band sound. Strong Beatles/ Merseybeat vibes on this one, and love the vocal inflections on the title line. "Tokyo Storm Warning" - Costello's voice I know is a breaking point for some. I know one person who thinks he sounds snotty and sneering no matter what mode he's in. I can hear it more when he's going the extra mile like on this one, but it doesn't really bother me. Mostly comes across as enthusiasm, and his voice cracking at one point hammer this point down. Little bit of a mix of Revolver-era Beatles and Bringing it All Back Home-era Dylan influence here I think. Solid. "Home Is Anywhere You Hang Your Head" - Costello brings it way down and slips effortlessly into regretful, doubtful mode. More Dylan on display here, but the poppy hooks are still abundant. Favorite lyrics thus far. This could have been a Lowe or Rockpile song. Getting that strong, bright Lowe acoustic guitar sound I love that shares some overlap with some Jeff Lynne stuff that often bleeds over into stuff they produced for other artists ( Costello, Travelling Willburys, Tom Petty, etc...) "I Want You" - And we end side one on an unabashed love song... or is it? Unlike someone like Tom Waits, Costello can't seem to ever go FULL sincere. This very quickly becomes a much darker, obsessive, and even vengeful take on the subject matter. The music drops and stays in that jealous darkness for the remainder as well. A blackhearted torch song that puts a spotlight on just how versatile Costello's voice is. Side two: Flanko Du "Honey, Are You Straight or Are You Blind?" - Costello falls right into some garage rock sounds ( though any of those bands never sounded so clean). Still I think Eric Burden or the Troggs would have been quite happy to have written this one. "Blue Chair" - Bit of blue-eyed soul influence on here I think. Van Morrison vibes. Though not too much as it very quickly settles back into pop rock territory. Musically not as much going on though, with the vocals doing most of the melodic work. "Battered Old Bird" - If you had told me this had come out a decade later I would not have blinked. Sparse instrumentation indicates nothing about the mid-80s to me. Despite being interesting for that reason, this one doesn't hit me too hard and seems a little too message for me. I prefer Costello in sarcastic mode. "Crimes of Paris" - A return to the beautiful pop hooks and instrumentation. Easy enough to shake the prior three songs off and settle back in when this is what you get. Makes me wish there had been more background vocals throughout though. This is something I can imagine Sussana Hoffs and Matthew Sweet doing one of their cover albums. "Poor Napoleon" - Another very pretty vintagey number with a touch of an edge. We even get a MOtown nod here I think with the tambourine, which makes the dizzying swirling guitars underneath contrast even better. "Next Time Round" - Classic Costello here, as I think this would not have sounded out of place on his first few albums. But maybe with a bit more jingle jangle. HIGHLIGHTS - "Uncomplicated" - "I Hope You're Happy Now" - "Tokyo Storm Warning" - "Home Is Anywhere You Hang Your Head" - "I Want You" - "Crimes of Paris" - "Poor Napoleon" - "Next Time Round" MIDLIGHTS - "Honey, Are You Straight or Are You Blind?" - "Blue Chair" - "Battered Old Bird" LOWLIGHTS - Nothing even close FINAL THOUGHTS Am I aging into Rolling Stone old man tastes? I don't think so ( or so I'll keep telling myself), I just think this album has aged incredibly well for 1986. The traditional retro-tinged sound and the avoidance of the "hip and cool" stuff going on at the time gives it a timeless feel that I think would make it very hard for anyone who was not very familiar with his discography to tie it down to even a particular decade. All that said, the album slips out of the groove established in the first half for me and the first half of side two loses me, but only just. Solid contruction and sound, but no hooks again feel like a bit of a desert compared to everything around it. But even the midlights on here are fine specimens. This falls just short of a classic for me, but would happily listen to the whole thing again. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS FURTHER LISTENING - Seconds of Pleasure by Rockpile - Labour of Lust by Rockpile - 100% Fun by Matthew Sweet - Under the Cover v.1-3 by Sussana Hoffs and Matthew Sweet - When Did We Do That? by Letters to Cleo

Variety: 1 Adequacy: 4 Listenability: 4 Uniqueness: 4 Emotionality: 4 = 3.4 rounded down to a 3 “Woop-woop! That's the sound of da beast” I remember this album being pretty mind blowing when I first heard it. It sounded like nothing else to my ears. I think maybe the only Faith No More I’d heard was “Epic” at this point. And the Chili Peppers were already well into their softer more melodic era by this point. A middle school friend had the uncensored version and it was clear this was going to be some heavy shit just based on the cover. It was probably the first album I actively took in any political message from. Maybe aside form the various big charity songs of the 80s. This was different though in that it felt dangerous. I think the recent few years have shown that the band still has relevance and I'm fully expecting this to hold up light years better than a lot of its contemporaries THE TRACKS "Bombtrack" - Right out of the gate we get that familiar mix of funk, hard rock, and furious messaging. Very solid opener. "Killing in the Name" - This one still gets a lot of radio play. A LOT. I hear it several times a week on satellite radio. And it has lost none of it's effect. I'm guessing it may have blown up again partly in response to the rise of fascism in the U.S. I’ve definitely seen it used in at least one hugely viral video ( thank you for your service Portland Freedom Frog). “Some of those that work forces/ Are the same that burn crosses” unfortunately is still a very topical lyric. Zack de la Rocha’s vocals and Tom Morello’s unique guitar work have never sounded so inspirational. That last minute. Damn... "Take the Power Back" - Leaning heavier into the funk here. Zack de la Rocha’s spoken word delivery is one of the few times I’ll make an exception to that sort of thing, and he’s fine here. This just felt too mellow for me. And that’s really only i comparison to everything around it. Also not a fan of the more traditional guitar part around 2:44. Possibly the thing that ages this the most. "Settle for Nothing" - Quiet opening of this is the grungiest they get I think. The beginner’s poetry slam stylings quickly dissipate though and we get thrown into a HEAVY section before fiving back in to the morose, Musically there’s an echo of Slint. When it gets loud though de la Rocha’s voice get’s ragged. We get some more post-rock beats, and Morello noodling. I’m torn on this. I dig the contrast, but the content not so much. Rage is known more for in your face effective lyrics as opposed to anything deep, but this feels a bit shallow. "Bullet in the Head" - Weird one here full of squealing guitar affects, and some we get led down some almost Primus-y paths. All this serves more to distract from the message I think rather than to highlight it. Unconventional guitar work I’m fine with, but this is just a little goofy. The section from 3:10 on though... that’s what we came for. C+ turns into an A+ by the end. "Know Your Enemy" - Another slow start but it gets into the groove way faster than the last one, and stays on target for the duration. De la Rocha at his most fluid here I think. Some rare backing vocals, provided by one Maynard James Kennan ( who I would not be familiar with for another year maybe?). "Wake Up" - I guess Morello is a Zeppelin fan. Another solid number. But they’ve done it way better, many other times. "Fistful of Steel" - Getting some Helmet or even Tool vibes here from the guitar in the opening, but then Morello Morello’s it up and turns his piece into a siren briefly before chug-chugging back into that awesome heavy sound. The contrast works wonders here, and de la Rocha gets into a more sing songy flow. "Township Rebellion" - Another good but not great track. This one makes me wonder what a de la Rocha rap album would have sounded like as gets into nice flow here. It doesn’t last though. And then we get a weirdly conventional guitar bit just before the halfway point that feels teleported in from some other, lamer group. This one changes speed one too many times and feels like a Frankenstein of a track. "Freedom" - What a closer. Rightfully feels like a sum of everything we’ve heard before it. They eve give Pearl Jam a run for their money with some layered guitars that any arena rock band would have been proud of. This is the song I think of when I think of de la Rocha’s, and the band’s intensity. That last minute + is pure gold. HIGHLIGHTS - "Bombtrack" - "Killing in the Name" - "Know Your Enemy" - "Fistful of Steel" - "Freedom" MIDLIGHTS - "Take the Power Back" - "Settle for Nothing" - "Bullet in the Head" - "Wake Up" - "Township Rebellion" LOWLIGHTS FINAL THOUGHTS As much as I like Rage as an entity, and dig their messaging, musically I’ll always consider them a singles band. A VERY strong singles band. But I think over their handful of albums I could pick and choose to make a killer compilation. Still, even the worst material here is very listenable and feels cohesive as all get out. In fact, I bet if you mixed all their albums together, most people would not notice anything out of sorts. They are also a band I have to be in a certain mood to listen to. One does not casually throw on a Rage album to listen to as background noise while doing some paperwork or getting some cleaning done. Or maybe some do. Just not me. More than anything, Rage is one of the more reliable bands from this era. We’ll see if more of their stuff pops up on the list, but I would be very surprised if any track form them ended up in the lowlights. My only other complaint here, other than some sameyness that creeps in, is that the production feels far too polished in parts. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Just scrape those highlights off and mix them in with the ones from the next two albums FURTHER LISTENING - The Real Thing by Faith No More - One Hot Minute by Red Hot Chili Peppers - Undertow - by Tool - Toxicity by System of a Down - Meantime by Helmet

Variety: 2 Adequacy: 4 Listenability: 3 Uniqueness: 2 Emotionality: 3 = 2.8 rounded up to a 3 "Now when your girl is gone and you're broke in two/ You need a little bit o' soul to see you through" Burke is a guy I had never heard of until I did a deep dive into 60s R&B and Soul around 15 or more years back. His name kept popping up, and I got the impression he was a "soul musician's soul musician" so to speak. In other words, very influential, but semi-forgotten (though he sold millions of records at his height) among the giant names from that era who had blockbuster hits, and who were maybe more willing to play ball than Burke, who by some accounts was a bit of a pill, and given to whims and antics that made him a bit of a hard sell. But the modern reappraisal of him seems to take all of this into account as a big man, with a big personality who did things his way, seemingly unconcerned with what people thought. I've liked most stuff I've heard, but most of it was on compilations, so likely the cream of the crop. I have never listened to any of his albums all the way through. Looking forward to this one. THE TRACKS "Goodbye Baby (Baby Goodbye)" - What a voice. The gospel leanings definitely come through here. Solid opener but nothing amazing. I think the echoey production might throw some people off, but I tend to love this early 60s recording style where the vocals can sometimes get into registers where you can tell the equipment can't handle it. "Cry to Me" (Bert Russell) - Little bit more going on here musically to support Burke in this midtempo number. The stops and the judicious use of the piano and background vocals all give this one a distinct flavor. "Won't You Give Him (One More Chance)" - Very unique instrumentation here with a sort of loosely strung acoustic guitar it sounds like. Much more like something you'd here on a Beatles record or at the very least something by Harry Belafonte, rather than a traditional soul record, and contrasts really well with the vocals. "If You Need Me" - Back into a more traditional mode here with piano, electric guitar and some bare bones percussion. Closer to the kind of thing you might expect from Sam Cooke. Background vocals are a little too much on this one I think, but they don't overpower Burke by any means. "Hard, Ain't It Hard" - Energy gets back up here with some more of that acoustic guitar that almost sounds a bit country fried. Checked and Woody Guthrie wrote this so I guess that makes a sort of sense. Interesting stuff, but doesn't really grab me. "Can't Nobody Love You" - More acoustic, bit a lot bluesier on this one. Instrumentation and background vocals once again find a great balance with Burke, and there's some great counter melodies going on that give this a really cool dynamic. "Just Out of Reach" - Ugh... I hate the Country and Western feel of this one. Sounds like something that would have been in an Elvis cowboy movie. Burke's great at this, is just not something I want to hear from him. "You're Good for Me" - And we're back in it. Almost too traditional though. Am I crazy or are Burke's vocals doubled up here? Not bad by any means, but this was as generic as anything on here. "You Can't Love Them All" - This was boring. The horns and the background vocals on this were playing at a level way below Burke. I can see a much better version of this that was less clattered maybe. "Someone to Love Me" - Loved this one. Everything is in balance here. Perfect use of the background singers, teh guitarist is on point with the bluey accents. Burke delivers the goods as usual, and tied up nicely in a tight 2:59. "Beautiful Brown Eyes" - Perfectly fine, standard stuff, but nothing special. Move along... "He'll Have to Go" - Low, low energy for our closer. Otherwise fine, but did not care for the strings on this one. HIGHLIGHTS - "Cry to Me" - "Won't You Give Him (One More Chance)" - "Can't Nobody Love You" - "Someone to Love Me" MIDLIGHTS - "Goodbye Baby (Baby Goodbye)" - "If You Need Me" - "Hard, Ain't It Hard" - "You're Good for Me" - "Beautiful Brown Eyes" - "He'll Have to Go" LOWLIGHTS - "Just Out of Reach" - "You Can't Love Them All" FINAL THOUGHTS With the one exception that felt really out of place, Burke shines on every track. Unfortunately I can't say the same for the instrumentation and quality of the material he's working with. There's a deficiency of memorable hooks throughout, and the background singers seem to alternate between very capable and well used ("Someone to love Me") , to overblown and all over the place ( "Of You Need Me"). Was overall disappointed that this one didn't wow me as much as I hoped. Definitely was not expecting all the country influences here, and have to say that stuff worked least for me. This sort of thing failed for me where it works on something like Ray Charles's Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music. I guess maybe Burke paved the way for Charles to be able to that. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - Just keeping the highlights here FURTHER LISTENING - Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music - Ray Charles - Sam Cooke by Sam Cooke - Seven Letters by Ben E. King

Variety: 5 Adequacy: 5 Listenability: 5 Uniqueness: 2 Emotionality: 4 = 4.2 rounded down to a 4 "Who are you? I'm the enchanting wizard of rhythm Why did you come here? I came here to tell you about the rhythms of the universe" A band I've heard of, but bever heard. At least that I'm aware of. Going in completely blind to this one. A little reading tells me that they won the Mercury Prize, which seems like it might guarantee you a spot on the list, but they also got a nod from Rolling Stone and were featured on some GTA game soundtracks. Is that a good or bad thing though? I guess it speaks well for their mass appeal. THE TRACKS "Introduction" - Ooh, very epic, atmospheric opening here. It doesn't ultimately go anywhere, but I'm down for whatever's next. It sort of flows right into the next track so, not sure it was necessary to separate this out, but possibly some canny thoughtfulness towards radio as Hail Bop probably would have been a trickier sell with this attached. Gonna count these as one track, modern playlist formatting be damned. "Hail Bop" - I'm liking what I'm hearing so far. We get some very full, yet emotionless, harmonized vocals over top of music that could feel very busy, but doesn't to my ears. This has a wonderful groove to it, and all the effects and layers with the catchy vocal melody put me in mind of something like if Badly Drawn Boy got really into electronic folk . "Default" - Here we get a bit down and dirty with some garage rock guitar over top of some folky tambourines and spacey electronic whatsits. This reminds me a lot of The Beta Band, and that's a good thing. "Firewater" - Little bit of a T.Rex groove to start this one off. Starting to wonder what these guys can't do. We get good harmonies, hooks for days, solid blend of folk, psychedelia, electronic, and garage in what feels like a danceable mix where one part doesn't overwhelm or clash with the other. That's a feat that few artists can pull off well. Beck and Beta Band (once again) come to mind immediately. "Waveforms" - Leaning way heavier into the electronic right off over top of some driving worldbeat drum patterns. The layers start stacking with the vocals, more synths, and we just build and build. And some beautifully delivered breakdowns were the harmonies become the focus. Instead of petering out we just go in reverse, peeling the layers off until - - -. Top Notch stuff. "Zumm Zumm" - Some PS2 Crash Bandicoot menu load music vibes here, but man am I down for it. Simple as can be, especially compared to what else we've seen from these guys, but effective still. We still get some more complex breakdowns though when the music drops out for the vocal highlight. Bit of a repeat of last track's trick, but way goofier. I'm not complaining. "Hand of Man" - A largely acoustic number that reminds of Beck once again, but more of his Mutations-era stuff. This is a nice slowdown. I love me some claps in a song. Short, effective palette cleanser. "Love's Dart" - Spaghetti Western vibes open this track, with a galloping beat underneath some more languid vocals and a twangy acoustic guitar. Keeps the same driving pace up the whole run time, and it's quite effective "Wor" - Some acrobatics here as we go from an underwater Dick Dale guitar line that morphs into an dark, reverby rockabilly sound. Perfect soundtrack for driving through the desert at night with the top down on the way to do some crimes. Are these assholes gonna force me into a 5-star review for a band I've never heard before in their first try? It's looking that way... "Storm" - Some almost Motowny drums start us off, and we immediately get some stellar vocal hooks. The building layers/ reset/ build again trick is a bit exposed at this point, but damn if it doesn't keep working. But I'm the type of person who doesn't have a magic trick ruined for him by having it explained. so... "Life's a Beach" - The title doesn't lie as we jump in with some crunchy surf rock guitar and beat. The beach party vibes turn a bit dark though. The Ventures have wandered into some sort of ... Twilight Zone where they've suddenly been forced to sing. "Skies Over Cairo" - Sort of big band beat on electronic bongos? We're not quite back in Crash Bandicoot territory here though. Well maybe, if some of those crates he broke open were full of hash. The Middle Eastern pastiche works well as a break from vocals, and provides some contrast. "Silver Rays" - Man. This was by no means bad, but as middling a track as any on here, and the sole black ( gray?) mark against them as it felt a bit of a plain, and abrupt ending to the epic feel of the rest of the thing. just wasn't expecting them to walk calmly through the finish line of this marathon when they ran 99% of it. HIGHLIGHTS - "Introduction"/ "Hail Bop" - "Default" - "Firewater" - "Waveforms" - "Zumm Zumm" - "Hand of Man" - "Love's Dart" - "Wor" - "Storm" - "Life's a Beach" - "Skies Over Cairo" MIDLIGHTS - "Silver Rays" LOWLIGHTS - Look elsewhere! FINAL THOUGHTS If I could find anything to knock this for it would be that the somewhat flat, affectless nature the vocals are delivered in would lose them points from the "Emotionality" criterion. But it actually doesn't all that much, because the music itself makes up for that deficiency. If you can even call it that. I like plenty of singers who have that sort of deadpan delivery - Beck, Lou reed... it's a long list. I would even argue that the music itself does so much of the heavy lifting that it was pretty damn effectively emotive. You might even say, "but didn't Beck and Beta Band get there first, and do it better?" First sure, but these guys can hang, and that's the important part. That being said - if you played this for me and made me guess who it was "Beta Band!" would have been quick out if my mouth. That's a criterion I feel way more comfortable docking them on. And to be fair, at this point it's got to be nigh impossible for a band to not wear their influence on their sleeve. Overall I was wowed by this. And it's got me wanting to dive deep into the band's discography. I could see this developing into a 5-star very easily on repeat listens. PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - No notes FURTHER LISTENING - The Beta Band by The Beta Band - Three E.P.'s by The Beta Band - Modern Guilt by Beck - The Man-Machine by kraftwerk