7/10 - stronger first 2/3s
I’ve known a lot of the songs forever. Great album
Pretty cool, but not my tempo. I’m not a big live album person.
Great album!
3/5. I enjoyed the first 2/3 or so, but felt like it droned on
3.5-4/5. I’ve heard Maps quite a few times. I enjoyed Date with the Night and No No No and Modern Romance.
The combo of the shrieking vocals with the punchier guitar and drums is chaotic and cool at times, but I like the softer songs towards the end.
4.5/5. Very enjoyable especially when you’re driving and want to vibe out instead of thinking of the horrors of the world.
4. I’ve heard Jesus Etc. and Heavy Metal Drummer quite a bit in the past. I enjoyed War on War quite a bit. I Am Trying to Break Your Heart kinda threw me for a loop at first between its almost discord and odd lyrics.
I had this album pegged as a 3 but kept coming back to it.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
So many recognizable songs and the flow and energy is amazing. It’s got the ragers and the slow-ers. A totally different vibe than say Getz/Gilberto, which is a great album in its own right (certainly not a 2).
⭐️⭐️⭐️
I can imagine this was a bigger deal when it came out. Some of the beats sound a lot more fresh than I’d expect for 1989. Without knowing much about these guys, there’s seems to be a lot of passion in the album. I bet they had a blast in the recording studio.
I digged a lot of the production, but I don’t love skit-heavy hip hop albums and this leans heavily into that. The skits are sometimes weaved into the progressions of the songs well enough, but they still halfway took me out.
There are some highlights like Eye Know, Buddy, Me Myself and I, and Ghetto Thang, but some lowlights like the skits and De La Orgee (I don’t wanna listen to that shit ever again).
Without the skits this might be a 4/5 for me.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I had a review typed up but it was somehow lost. I’ve listened to various Talking Heads songs over the years but never a full album.
What a weird ass experience bolstered by the unconventional vocals. I loved it though.
Standouts: The Good Thing, Take Me to the River
⭐️⭐️1/2
Never heard of this dude before. I loved the ambience and some of the bass-heavy tracks, but thought it could’ve used some judicious trimming and fleshing out of some half-baked songs - I’m not generally the biggest fan of shorter form songs in general though.
Loved the sequence from Day & Night to Show You The Way (Michael McDonald with that weirdo voice filter or whatever was a trip) to Walk on By with Kendrick. Absolutely did not expect that feature.
Not the best sound quality, but it doesn’t matter. This is Jimi at his best - sometimes raw, maybe a bit unbridled -and teetering on chaos. Some of the lack of polish adds to the feel of the record in my eyes (or ears?). I always wondered what he would’ve done musically if he was still around.
The album opens with 3 classics and has a few more peppered in as it progresses, but everything else is solid as well and not too off the rails (like his Star Spangled Banner).
⭐️⭐️1/2
I was vibing with the chill sound and then Bad Liquor came out of nowhere and changed everything - that experience was not unlike my 20s. It was hard for me to rally (I’m talking about the album here, not my 20s) and take the rest of the album as seriously.
I felt like the lyrics didn’t necessarily match the level of melancholy / somber the songs were portraying, they almost seemed too shallow. Maybe I need to give this another listen, but I wouldn’t say I’m itching to do so.
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Don’t have a lot to add on this one. I love the ambience of the album and especially like the points when the vocals accompany the tracks. I get this is intentionally more of a jammy vibe with political tones (looking at Wiki), but it didn’t jive with me as much as I’d have thought. I’ll have to revisit this when I’m not zoning out / dissociating.
Feeling a strong ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2 on this one, maybe a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ if I revisit it.
I listened through a couple times. The title track is a bit too drugged out and weird for me, but the back half of the album is full of some good songs. I don’t know if I knew really any of these and I’ve listened to a decent amount of Bowie.
Ok shit this is great album. I’m trying not to dole out too many 5s but I suppose this list is generally a list of amazing albums. I am trying to find reasons not to list it a 5, but I’m coming up short. I could see myself in the future playing this front to back with no skips.
I’m a big rap guy and have never heard of this dude. I read that east coast rap was getting its ass kicked around by the west around the time this was released.
Pretty sick beats and the rapping and lyrics are solid. The whole album is tight at 39 min. It’s got a slight bit of goofiness to it (like in You Can’t Stop the Prophet) but still goes hard.
⭐️⭐️1/2
Some songs insist upon themselves but there’s a lot I like, too. Could grow on me over time.
I kept thinking that I was loving the instrumental portions of the tracks despite his voice. Man his voice is grating when he’s going on and on with the same lyric. It crescendos nicely with the instrumental often, though. The back half of the album is not as grating, but maybe the Stockholm Syndrome has fully kicked in at that point.
I don’t have much to say here. Listened to it once. I was ashamed that I thought some songs were bangers. Some of it lasted too long, though. I am not an Aguilera fan, but might have a slight bit more respect for her after this record.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
Some amazing songs in this one. The atmosphere of the album is solid and it is short. I’m digging it.
⭐️⭐️⭐️ maybe ⭐️⭐️1/2
I actually didn’t mind this record, but didn’t find too much that I think I’ll come back to or that’ll get stuck in my head. I’d have guessed this was newer than 1993 as well.
Maybe I’ll revisit it with time, but that just means I’ll have less time to revisit others like Getz / Gilberto.
I know there’s redeeming stuff about this one, but I can’t say I’d ever be excited to listen to again. Lexicon Devil is maybe my favorite of the bunch.
Great vibes. I had no idea what I was getting into with the opening track.
This is a very atmospheric record. I feel like I could easily zone out listening to it or dig deep and listen to the layered sounds more intently.
This one is inseparable from my core memories. I grew up on these guys and have heard some of these songs hundreds and hundreds of times.
I was totally thrown off by this one. I made it a couple songs in and recognized what my untrained ears thought were a jazzy architecture. I was confused by Willie’s direction. I’m used to the hippie outlaw country badass, and that’s what I was looking for here.
I had to look it up. I try not to look up albums before I finish my listening sessions as I think it may influence my rating decision to know the background behind a piece. A lot is lost by not having that context, but I try to have my rating schema be founded upon the work itself and not any geopolitical, cultural, or interpersonal issues that may have been the proverbial kiln in which the piece was baked.
It turns out that this album was composed of old pop songs from decades prior and its direction was a source of contention with Willie’s record company. He was established as a pillar of outlaw country at this point and this was a departure.
Knowing this shook me to my core. I questioned everything about Willie and my rating schema. I started thinking about Willie back in the late 70s and how he has always shirked the direction that the greats of country music paved the way for. Shirking responsibility and finding your own way is in itself one of the tenets of outlaw country. But why am I considering this in my review? According to how I’m undertaking this 1,001+ album challenge, this context shouldn’t matter.
As I progressed further in, I started thinking about what I should rate this record, trying to separate out my sullied knowledge of the background. I was thinking that there was no way I can rate this a 5 given it’s a collection of songs he didn’t write. It’s a bit of a cheat code making an album of pre-written songs, in my mind. But in true Willie fashion, he made them his own with his almost poetic, unconventional delivery over the dreamy ambience set by the accompaniments…
I need to stop blathering on and acting high-and-mighty about a few hundred words that maybe 2 or 3 people will read. But what is the point of publicly reviewing anything at all?
What is a 5 to me? Does it matter? I don’t want to be handing these out Willie-nilly, but this is a 5.
⭐️⭐️
I ain’t much of a live album guy. I like Deep Purple and the guitar solos are interesting, but seeing disc 2 and its run-time for the same songs just took the wind out of my sails.
Not much to say. Kinda ethereal. Will revisit the text here someday.
I gotta give this another listen. It may be a 4 for me!
Will return to this!
There are some bangers in this one but I didn’t give it enough listens to really flesh out my review. Probably a mid/high 3.
I didn’t vibe with this a ton until I listened a few times as I thought it was a bit underbaked / raw / simplistic. I’ve heard the title track quite a bit as Spotify has shoved it in my face over the years.
I like the raw sound he’s got and how it’s seemingly just stripped down to him on this album. It’s incredible how old this record is. Some songs could be from the 90s/00s. Light 4.
This is a weird experience. Mid to high 3.
Review to follow hopefully
Pretty good for a live album! Probably the best I’ve heard.
My reviews suck recently - I gotta get back on the horse.
You know, I’ve always liked Anarchy in the UK from my Guitar Hero days. An album worth of this guy’s vocals is a bit much for me, though.
I don’t think I’ll be coming back. I listened while doing a daycare run with Arch and felt disturbed by the depravity of man that had been channeled into a collection of tunes.
Mid 1
That was pretty dang enjoyable. Didn’t know what to expect from the album cover, but thought I’d be getting folk. I didn’t know I’d get some electronic / folk / whatever in the hell blend that worked rather nicely. I’ve never heard of this artist before.
Pairs well with a cruise into town to the local Menards.
Light to mid 4
It was decent. VM still loves repeating words which can be aggravating to me, but I get his appeal more as I’m forced to listen to more and more of him (this is Stockholm syndrome talking).
I actually got this one just before we started this as a group. I loved it. It’s an absolute vibe.
4.5
I’ve heard this album quite a few times over the years. I know the Lorde fan base loves it, but I still think Pure Heroine is overall better, although this one may have higher highs.
Her vocals are slightly aggravating to me on some songs, but I can’t fault her little stylistic twist.
Mid 4
I used to listen to Taylor’s albums more - this being about where I fell off. I actually like this album and especially the sneak The National feature. This is a pretty good one, but not Taylor at her absolute best. She’s never been a strong lyricist, but at least has the ambience down.
Light 4
I listened twice through and I liked the general vibe, but didn’t have much I’d deem memorable. I liked the instrumental Elegia halfway through for some reason.
Light 3
High 3. Not much to report here. I liked it. I only gave this one one or two spacey listens.
I’m an admitted Van Halen disrespecter. I have never really liked their music and often sought to avoid it whenever possible. I was at an impasse here - it’s clearly a pivotal album in music history (or at least according to some consortium of folks whose opinions I should value).
Eruption is still over-hyped for me, as sacrilegious as that may be to say to some camps. However, the album as a whole contains a lot of Van Halen classics that I’ve been sonically assaulted by over the years, and they all work together here.
Hell, I even started to reverse my opinion on the band by the time I made it through this the first time. By the second time, I forgot I even had unfounded beef with them.
Mid to high 4
I don’t know if I really get this album. I really wanted to like it, though.
Mid 2
I mentioned in our group chat of many, many participants of this daily album generator that this reminds me of a stripped down OK Computer by Radiohead, an album I absolutely love. Well, I still get that vibe listening to it, but I can’t say I’m overly excited to listen to it through again.
Maybe it falls off halfway through, maybe it lulls on, or maybe social media has ruined my attention span... I don’t know if I’ll return to any of these songs.
High 2, almost a 3.
I highly recommend blasting this in the car wash while your toddler is in the back seat. The existential dreariness and themes of religion and dimming the flame of the world pair well with a child’s fear of the unknown - in this case that’d be the pre-tri-color-foam high pressure soak.
This was a wild listen. Poetic and dreary. I liked it, but I can’t say I’m gonna throw it on for any parties - not any I’d like to frequent, anyway.
For me, typically 4+ is reserved for albums I think I’ll come back to from time to time, but I can’t say I have a desire to do so with this one after two listens. But then again, the gritty vocals keep drawing me in and I keep finding myself intrigued by the first half in particular.
Low 4
I’m not an AC/DC guy, that was more like me in high school for select songs. A whole album of these guys drones on, but I can’t deny they can rock.
Mid 3
Ripper of an album. I only got two listens in during a spastic cleaning session of the house, but it supercharged me. I’ll come back to this!
Low 4
This may in fact be the greatest country and western album. I’d probably put Purgatory by Tyler Childers in that same rare air, but with not much company.
It is full of classics like Big Iron and El Paso, but I’ve also always loved Saddle Tramp and The Master’s Call.
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
High 3. Enjoyable. I’d peg this for an 80s album, so it sounds a bit fresher than its age. I don’t think I’ve ever listened to any Elvis Costello really, so this was a nice intro.
Not much I liked about this one. High 2.
Can’t say I totally get why this is such a great album, but I find myself liking it more than yesterday’s by a hair. High 2
I don’t know how to describe Steely Dan sometimes. They can be rocky, jazzy, sometimes almost funky in a way, but without going too far. They’re always a fun listen, though. I had no idea “Rikki” was spelled that way… mind blown.
High 3
Oh man. I’ve heard this album countless times.
This is a high 4, almost 5. It’s a little too heavy on the skits and I’ve gone on record to say how I don’t like them even though they were a staple of hip hop albums before 2010 or so. It also contains some of Kanye’s best in Family Business and Through the Wire and Last Call.
There’s a fun fact that you can hear in his lyrics in Through the Wire: he had been in a car crash and his jaw is wired shut while rapping on that song in particular. I’ve always loved the multiple meanings behind that track’s title and composition and everything.
This is a lot of Kanye fans’ favorite album but it’s maybe 3rd for me. Early Kanye was pretty clever. Back then, he was proving himself as a rapper and he hadn’t succumbed to the mind rot and turned into a bipolar Nazi - but now he’s walking back from that as well, so how much of that is him now taking his meds and just trying to be controversial? Who the hell knows with this guy. It shouldn’t really matter anyway when you’ve shown yourself as a douche
He is extremely hard to separate from his art given his extreme personality, but then I hear his genius production on his early stuff and for a minute I forget all his bullshit.
I’m not an Aerosmith guy. It was OK
This is almost a 4. I need to devote more time to it.
La Grange is, of course, the GOAT ZZ Top track.
It was OK. I caught wind that the legendary Kylee Fernholz has been reading our reviews and now my mind is at a total loss for what to put here. High 2
Some pretty solid and well-known songs in here. I was all about that 90s rock after the week of mostly meh that this had put us through.
I’ve heard this one a few times and it’s pretty damn solid. This is a high 4, maybe a 5 upon re-listen.
Highs: War Pigs, Paranoid, Iron Man
Lows: Planet Caravan
I never loved the Stones growing up. I still am more on the Beatles side of things, but this is a good album. They have their sound figured out here. I’ve always loved the choir intro of You Can’t Always Get What You Want - so different and cool from your typical rock. That song bookended with Gimme Shelter is quite the pairing.
Mid to high 3
Highs: You Can’t Always Get What You Want, Gimme Shelter
Lows: the rest is more or less a filler, but might grow on me
I wanted to like it a lot more than I eventually did. Maybe it started strong and petered out or maybe I just got distracted. I threw this on while mowing and at times it was a fun ride, but at times I started keying in on the chore I was performing. When I mow, I like to be mindless. Low/mid 3
Highs: Mr. Wendal, People Everyday
Lows: the run-time when I found myself bored
It was another meh album for me. I need to give this another listen because it actually sounded quite a bit more new than its year, but I can’t say I was inspired.
Almost a 4. This is my 3rd Stones album in just over 50 albums - let me branch out already!
The Stones at their best are incredible and the rest is inedible. A bit hyperbole, but I loved the first half of the album and lost my steam by the middle before gaining it back by the end.
Highs: Wild Horses, Can’t You Hear Me Knocking
Lows: Bitch
I love me some Earth, Wind, and Fire. I need to listen to this again to form some more thoughts, but my first thought is it’s a flat 4.
Again, I need to listen to this one again. I’m going off feels here and the feels are telling me this is a square 4.
I’ve actually heard this album a few times in the past. Something in my gut tells me not to like Bad Company out of some unknown principle, but I don’t know what it is. I still like it, though. High 3
Again, I wanted to like this one more than I did. I could see it being one that grows on me with time. At least we got out of our general trend of rock for something different.
I wasn’t able to devote much time to the lyricism but it is obviously charged from what I did hear and the track titles. It got better towards the middle third of the run, whereas I didn’t love the beginning.
Pretty good. Flat 4
What a great time. Listened through about 3 times and loved it. I can’t say I understand musical progressions or music theory or anything that might make this that much more enjoyable, but I had a fun time listening.
Mid to high 4
Highs: Sly, the album artwork, the song name Vein Melter
Lows: none
I’ve always loved the title track off this one. I’ve got a fond memory of driving in Moorhead during an icy day with Beth with this song playing. It was building towards the “Did you write the book of love…” part and I got a bit distracted, then flew onto the median sideways by RDO in her car. Whoops, at least it wasn’t my truck.
The rest of this is good, maybe not great in my eyes. I liked Winterwood.
High 3
