Reviews by angrybizkitz

The album that FUELED the Beatles Snob. Strip away the mythology of the band, and you have an adequate album with a few excellent songs, and a lot of weird filler. If any other band had produced this, it would not be half as talked about. The concept on the back half isn't bad, but it gets into noodly-ness because the band was so famous and popular nobody had the balls to tell them no. It's excellent production, and an excellent sendoff for the band, even though it wasn't planned like that. And the album cover isn't all that deep. Quit reading into things. Maybe he just left his shoes at home that day. Or lost them in the studio. God... It's not that special.

My Rating: 4/5

For a pioneering punk album this was really clean. Like, remarkably clean. Approachable even for the people that don't like punk. It's not one I'd come back to, but it works. The guitar work is snarly, the vocals clear. The melodies, while not rich, are decent.

My Rating: 3/5

A lush pop album we should have heard more on the radio. The ban of cymbals was an interesting artistic choice in the studio, and I'm sure made Phil frustrated at first. There are songs that are definitely catchy enough. And then we still have Peter's fascination with African sounds echoed here in "Biko". All in all, a decent spin.

My Rating: 4/5

Bruv, Dizzee kept it bare simple on this one: straight‑up minimal beats, no fancy layers, just that raw East End pulse. Man’s spittin’ real street bars over rhythms that snap clean, innit. If you only know him from the big chart tunes, you’re gonna be like, “Where’s the rest of it?”

Allow it though. Just sit back, vibe, let the energy do its thing. Critics can waffle about whatever deep meaning they reckon they’ve found. I ain’t bothered. I just rate Dizzee, fam.

My Rating: 4/5

Ah yes, yet another soundtrack entry in a list of albums that is not supposed to have any soundtracks. Well, I guess if you're gonna break a rule, this is one to do it with. It's beautifully funky, approachable, and doesn't need the movie to prompt you to remember what's going on with the music. A little dated, but it still holds up. The references to characters in the movie hold back the experience, though. Who are Freddie and Eddie? Why should I care that Freddie is dead? This is why soundtracks shouldn't exist on the list.

My Rating: 3/5

Wonderful hip-hop album. The use of unusual sources for drone loops in the songs is an interesting move, like the Enya loop in "Ready Or Not". The constant skits ruin the experience, though. If I wanted to listen to a one-act play in between songs, I'd go to Broadway. And three remixes of "Fu-Gee-La" is excessive. It's not THAT good of a song.

My Rating: 3/5

This opens up like solid indie/grunge rock, and then meanders off towards the end. It's not bad, but I'm glad "Been Caught Stealing" is more than halfway through. The opening track, "Stop!" was unexpected, having only heard the hits from them. Good album, but not worth coming back for.

My Rating: 3/5

Soulful country songs about love and loss and longing. Today, this paints a bleak picture of a relationship. Even then, it shouldn't have happened. You're all bashing this because you don't like the style of the music, but the themes in the music are no different than pop or brit folk.

My rating: 3/5

A fast, energetic debut that leans on punk momentum but never abandons pop architecture. Even when they get loose, the internal structure keeps everything driving forward. It’s fun, confident, and clearly formative for the band, but not something I’d consider essential beyond its historical moment. Enjoyable, not a keeper.

My Rating: 3/5

This sounded more like knockoff Brit punk than anything else. And if there's one thing I hate now that I've been on this journey, it's Brit punk. Yes, let's semi-rhythmically chant or yell into the mic with an off tune guitar and a drummer with a mediocre sense of rhythm, and then record that shite. And SELL IT. Yeah, that'll make money. Not that we care about money. Down with the man, maaaaan. Get off it, wanker.

My rating: 1/5

This album floats through your mind like a cloud of perfume in the mall. It lingers on your clothes, but doesn't do any damage. The music and the vocals all mush together into a soft mess, and nothing really grabs hold of you. I don't know if this was truly essential. This album wants you to just sit and listen, not do work through it.

My rating: 3/5

This is an excellent album, but the hits overshadow the rest of it. You get tracks like "4th of July" or "Mailman" that are excellent, but are more of a mood than standouts. It's a little sludgier than Badmotorfinger, but most of the other songs kind of bleed together because they all hold very similar tempos. I wish I'd heard more than just the hits when this one came out, because the hits have become classic-rock radio staples.

My rating: 4/5

Lush, beautifully dark trip-hop adjacent with bright vocals. Because of the language gap, the vocals become another instrument in the mix. Some of the tracks would work really well as thinking work background music. This is one of those I wouldn't have searched out, but I'm very glad this one was on the list.

My Rating: 4/5

Look here, you uncultured swine. I dare you to say one bad thing about Dolly. One thing.

Yes, on this album, she fell into the supporting cast mode instead of front lady. And rightfully so, because Linda and Emmylou deserved a chance to shine along with Dolly here. Not that they weren't already stars in their own right. Every song is a masterpiece here, blending and melding these three women's voices like the sweetest of honey. If you can't put aside your genre differences and accept that it's a country album, that's a you problem, not the project's problem.

My Rating: 10/5

A solid, workmanlike slice of early‑60s pop. The band is still in its bar‑band phase, padding the runtime with covers and playing to the room rather than the studio. There’s no grand artistic statement here, no self‑mythologizing, just a tight Merseybeat group doing what they were good at: brisk love songs, a couple respectable rockers, and a whole lot of pre‑ambition charm.

It’s competent, it’s unpretentious, and it moves quickly enough that the lightweight material never overstays its welcome. They haven’t gotten full of themselves yet, which helps, but they’re still The Beatles, so no full marks; they’re not doing everything there is to do in music, just everything a hardworking 1963 pop act needed to get an LP out the door.

My Rating: 4/5

Overindulgent Jungle DnB album. Jungle should never have been made into a symphony vehicle, it should have stayed club music. When you stretch it out too long, it loses it's purpose and ventures into noodling. Tighter music and album decisions would have made this wonderful, but by the end you're just so tired of it you want it to be over. The only saving grace was the two remixes at the end, which showed how good it COULD have been.

My Rating: 2/5

Neil Young, with his quavery voice, running wild over Crazy Horse. At least this one feels more like a collaboration instead of Neil Young the taskmaster.

It was beautiful smooth soulful jazz, but the only song I remember is "Smooth Operator", and that was because it had major radio play in the 80's. The rest was good, but not memorable.

This is what I was hoping I would get coming to this project. It's beautiful African music. I may not come back to it, but I feel like I'm a better person for having heard it.

My rating: 4/5

Take one part 808 State and one part Depeche Mode and what do you get? Hot Chip. But don't take the GOOD parts of either band. And you don't get a good product either. There's no danger. There's no brooding or melancholy. It's bog-average club music that glides right through your brain like it's in a Wesson party. Nothing sticks and nothing bites. If you get caught up in the moment you might bop a little, but once the track ends you're left wanting. Give me a reason to come back. Not influential, not essential.

My Rating: 3/5