How funny is it that the first album that comes up for this challenge is one that changed my perspective on art forever?
I was 14 when I got into Gorillaz, and the self-titled stands out because this was still when Damon Albarn was trying to maintain some anonymity away from Blur. This also explains some of the musical limitations in the album itself, with lots of electronic and trip-hop influences in the songs. For the feelings behind the songs, Albarn and the other musicians behind the project stayed in-character for the Gorillaz crew. This was back when they were attempting to venture into multimedia with a book and tie-in movie that never came. It really sounds like a fully realized *cartoon* band making a soundtrack for a series that doesn't exist.
I still love this band dearly, and all the musicians involved in their recent albums still make it special and unique in the modern industry (seriously, "The Mountain" kicks ass). Yet, the simplistic and almost desolate instrumentals behind this album give me a perfect sense of nostalgia for those rainy morning bus rides to school.
9/10
Favorite track: Tomorrow Comes Today
This one’s cool because the instrumentals are unashamedly Western, just with non-English vocals. They’re definitely bluesy, and each song is actually distinct from one another. That’s something American blues rock bands should take note of.
Their story is really interesting, but it’s hard to find trustworthy lyric translations for their songs. I think the feelings of the music carry through, but I wish I had a little more regarding the lyrics. Again, good background listen and they’d probably kick ass live, but not something I’d jump for again.
6.5/10
Favorite track: Petit Metier
I wasn’t into this one :(
I feel like the instrumentals were too repetitive for the first half. As if it was building up to a climax that never came. I don’t know if it’s just my shitty zoomer attention span or not. As soon as “Whores Hustle” started I literally said out loud “THERE WE GO.” Because I feel like that suits her voice better!
MASSIVE props to her guitar work though. I just wish her vocal style gelled with better instrumental build-ups. I’m definitely willing to give her more chances in the future, just not for this album.
5/10
Favorite track: The Whores Hustle and the Hustlers Whore
Ah, Britpop. What a quaint genre. Everyone knows “Bittersweet Symphony”, but I enjoyed a few other songs on top of that one. The softer vibe of that song carries into some other tracks, but I also got shades of Tonic and Jane’s Addiction at times. This brand of alternative rock is very nostalgic for me. Some songs are more interesting than others. I saw there’s another album from them in here, so I’m looking forward to them popping up again.
7/10
Favorite track: Lucky Man
This RIPSSSS holy shit.
There’s a slight dip in the middle with some of the more “poppy” tracks, but nothing that ruins the whole project. Nothing I wouldn’t expect from a late 70s album like this and nothing that the band can’t make sound good. The keys and guitar on this are stellar.
Extremely solid, fun, powerful album. I need to find this on vinyl!
9/10
Favorite track: One Way or Another (that guitar solo is just too good. And for this one it might be easier to pick my LEAST favorite track)
Yay Beatles!! :3
This is the second band/artist to come up that I’m actually already a fan of. Even then, it’s been a while since I revisited the pre-Rubber Soul era. This was cool though! It’s a great time capsule of where the music industry was in the mid-60s. Technically speaking, it was their personalities that made them stand out. The way John and Paul harmonize and play off each other, Ringo’s playing style, and the very energetic yet “safe” way of going about their music ensured their success. It doesn’t strike me the same way anything Sgt. Pepper onward does, but it’s a very good listen!
7.5/10
Favorite track: All My Loving (remembering this was the song that played in the hospital as John Lennon died was weirdly poetic, especially with it being a Paul song)
What a pleasant surprise this one was! This era of early blues rock/Led Zeppelin ripoffs is interesting to look back on. I had to look these guys up and found out they made "Cum on Feel the Noize" (which tbh I always thought was a Quiet Riot song), and compared to this, I guess they've always been ahead of their time. The bass and drums are especially tight on these songs, and I like the singer's energy.
This album has a little more character compared to some of the other releases of this era. I don't think I'll actively seek it out again, but it's a good background listen.
5.5/10
Favorite track: Look at Last Nite
This one was neat. For the most part I preferred the instrumental tracks, especially the opener and closer. The rap parts (or whatever MC Det is trying to do) and samples kinda ruined the flow for me. The mood of this is really nice, it fits the album cover perfectly. The rest of them didn’t stand out too much.
6/10
Favorite track: Shellback
Good stuff!! I love high, raspy voices in this genre. There’s a lot of great energy and songwriting moments here, especially parts where her voice builds to crescendos. Even “Mercedes Benz” which sounds like an outtake has so much personality to it. I never gave Janis Joplin a chance before and I’m glad I started with this one. It’s sad that she didn’t get to do much in her career, but this is the first time in this album challenge that makes me wanna actively look through more of her discography and collabs with the Holding Company. That definitely means something!
7.5/10
Favorite track: Trust Me
A compilation, huh? That explains a lot. Almost all these songs sound and feel exactly the same. And before you punks come in here like “tHats PaRt of tHe GeNRE” I KNOW ITS JUST NOT FOR ME.
It wasn’t bad to listen to at all, just boring. Which is almost worse than being flat-out bad.
It sounded fine for sure, the production was good and the band itself was tight, but it’s the most generic punk revival sound you could imagine. I can give them a pass because this is basically just a sampler for them and their label to introduce themselves to new audiences. This means the “weird” stuff (aka the good stuff) is hidden in their studio albums. It got more interesting in the second half at least. The instrumental outro was fun.
4.5/10
Favorite track: Here We Go Again
Before this, I only knew of Bobby Womack in his old age through Gorillaz. I’ve always liked his voice, so getting to hear him in his prime is fun. This is a very tight album, the keys and bass are great (naturally), and I love how emotive his voice can get. The arrangements are cool, and I like the storytelling in the lyrics, but it’s a very straightforward album of love songs. It’s a great listen, but not much to dissect beyond that.
6.5/10
Favorite track: So Many Sides of You
Mmm, early ska. It's interesting to see the genre before it was more or less fully co-opted by all-white psychedelic rock and emo bands. I think it's neat, especially the more reggae-style songs, and I like the storytelling in some of the lyrics. I see how different performers from different genres came together to build this album up to something new, but stylistically, it's just not for me.
5/10
Favorite track: Stereotype/Stereotype Pt. 2
Oof, I was dreading this one. I heard bits of this album in passing, but wasn’t sure what to expect. I’m very glad I was proven wrong.
This album came out just a year after the one and only Sex Pistols album, just as the 70s punk/new wave merge was starting. Sex Pistols’ influence on the industry is contested nowadays, but they definitely at least set a standard.
Johnny Rotten has always been a controversial figure (and still is) but is at least consistent in his role as a contrarian. He does have a great delivery on the album whether he’s pleading for death on the first track to making fun of disco music on the last one. These off-the-cuff riffings have always been part of the punk genre, but the dedication to making them work as a whole performance, regardless of how “stripped down” it is is very fun.
The instrumental work on this is ELITE. I can see how Levene, Walker, and Wobble rubbed off on future post punk musicians for decades to come.
8/10
Favorite track: Public Image
I definitely get how this was groundbreaking for the time, and the use of samples and remixes is pretty cool. I liked the Charles Wright and Beastie Boys incorporations specifically.
And yet, between the different rappers coming in and out on the songs, they all have the same flow and lyrical style. The lyrics themselves were a product of their time, at least accounting for the "edgy" "humor" surrounding women and the LGBT community. Nothing I wouldn't expect from an album of this era, though. The messages of the first few songs still hit hard.
6/10
Favorite track: Gangsta Gangsta (this fucking hook has been stuck in my head for days)
I haven't listened to Flaming Lips in a while, and even then I only knew the stuff off of Yoshimi. I think Wayne Coyne has a cool voice, and it works well for the emotional performance, but at times I feel like he doesn't sit completely right with the music. This doesn't really detract from the project as a whole, though. There are some interesting creative choices regarding Wayne's delivery that are mediated by the fantastic psychedelic instrumentals. I think that sort of "whiny" vulnerability really helps out these gorgeous lyrics, too.
It's so sad, but so lovely and hopeful at the same time. I knew the backstory of The Spiderbite Song going in and it was such a nice payoff, emotionally. It's the type of album that makes me wanna know more, not just for the songs themselves, but the rest of their work.
7.5/10
Favorite track: Feeling Yourself Disintegrate
Anohni!! What a talent. I already really like “Hopelessness” and “My Back Was A Bridge…”, so going back to earlier in her career is cool. The first song took a minute to get going, but WOW what an outro. I also respect her vocal abilities, but the vibrato can be a little much, especially on the opener (she reminded me of Tiny Tim on that one, lol). The atmosphere with the piano was really pretty. And I loved hearing the different singers coming in as features.
I love her unique musical style, and as usual, there’s some solid storytelling on here. She definitely evolved in a good way since this album, but even here she has such a powerful vision. If you’re reading this and on the fence about her, please listen to her more recent work. It’s worth it.
8.5/10
