Reviews by autro

"Supergrass? The one hit wonder? Yeah I like that song I guess I might enjoy it." I have never been more surprised or amused listening to any album ever than when I turned this on. The opening track immediately sets the record up perfectly to show the energy, the goofiness, and the angst that this album spews. Supergrass are unironically some great songwriters that manage to tug my brain back and forth between chaos and emotion on every single track. I strangely like the vocals more than I thought, due to this style being very much and obnoxious. Every song is so fun and consistent, I only wish each one was longer. The entire ride is such a banger, with my favorite aspect being the lyric material. Apart from the goofy nonsense, the content perfectly captures the experiences of teenagers; something not many songwriters can achieve with the balances of charm, humor, and emotion. I love the list because it introduces me to things that I would never do a double take when someone mentioned it. After all, just a one hit wonder right?

This album is gorgeous. Nick Drake's vocals are like a warm candle on top of the rest of the instrumentation, which is already phenomenal. This is definitely his fullest sounding album, with the strings and sax adding an amazing atmosphere. A good way to describe Drake would be to call him the Elliot Smith of the 70s. And his lyrics are extremely striking, considering how yes, folk music is based around the lyrics, but I've never heard such personal poetry from the time period- it's hauntingly refreshing. Every song's instrumentation is also very impressive, with the highlights seen in the piano, bass, and guitar playing, which you know, when it comes to folk that's not too surprising. Drake's album covers also really resonate with me, which just adds to the record's personality. In some areas the mixing can be a tad sharp on the ears due to the treble-y raised acoustic guitar, but I blame it on the time period. The instrumentals are absolutely amazing too. This record also has John Cale performing some orchestration, so you know that's just another pro to this album. Beautiful stuff here.

This is a timeless debut to say the least. The peaks on this record are some of Britpop's finest for sure. However when it comes to consistency, it's not the best. The guitar and bass parts are absolutely killer on every single track, but sometimes the psychedelic nature gets a little out of hand and the songs tend to stray/get too repetitive. But I absolutely love this album's sound. The influence this record had on bands like Ride, The London Suede, Oasis, and many more is undeniable. I'd give this a 5, but I really don't get why Fool's gold even exists. Britpop masterpiece very high 4.

I'm really not a fan of the vocalist, and the songs are just so bland and basic. There's just nothing really interesting anywhere, and it gets really annoying after ten minutes. The bassist is playing some nice things for sure, but every song has the same train beat with folky garage guitars. The grating vocals just get more insufferable throughout the listen and the pros start to deteriorate. The guitar is just egregious and makes me wonder why they thought this sounded remotely good. There's just so many other great albums that could be on this list instead of this crap.

Blue is a beautiful folk album by the legendary Joni Mitchell. Her ability to portray stories on every instrument whether it's guitar or piano just pleases my ears. The main thing I love about this album is the singing. Her technique of jumping high and low while tackling these vivid lyrics is very amusing; it's simply astounding to hear. A great folk album is all it is.

I could write this entire review on Silver alone, as it's my favorite song of all time. However, Ocean Rain is a Gothic masterpiece that needs to be discussed. On every track, Ian McCulloch delivers some of the best lyrics on any album I've ever heard. Each song portrays a perfect soundscape that immerses you in the identically matching cover sleeve, which I also love. What really makes this album though is the staggeringly brilliant orchestra that's featured on every song. The strings bring this record to life, and reciprocate Ian's melodies perfectly. This album is just simply gorgeous, and the breathtaking opening track and ravishing closing bring this masterpiece full circle.

Autumn has just begun, haystack bales are being constructed into a maze, and the breeze is making the air smell crisp and cool. The piano sounds like it's being played in a farmhouse living room with the doors propped open. Harvest hit me right where it needed to and i'm sure if I listened to it any other day I wouldn't give it a 5. However the melodies, lyrics, and warm acoustic guitars paint a beautiful album from start to finish and keep it interesting by incorporating female vocals, orchestras, pianos, the whole lot every other track. Brilliant simple folk.

These records aren't really for me, but I always find a way to enjoy them. The album features a variety of time signatures, which was unexpected for the genre. Pop records like these are very lyric oriented with the instrumentation not being too unique, but it manages to stay interesting almost the whole listen. That being said, the lyrics are also great, and they kept me quite engaged. Thom Yorke also appears on two similar tracks, which I obviously like. Unfortunately PJ's vocals are a little inconsistent, and on some songs I straight up think they're bad. However the majority of the album has pretty good deliveries. There's just nothing crazy special about anything here, and it's a high 3 rather than a low 4.

I gave this album a couple extra tries, and it definitely needed a few listens to appreciate. The first critique I have is the inconsistency of the vocal quality. On some tracks I love the performance given, but on others it sounds simply unpleasant. This seems like an album my Sophomore English teacher would know. Some of the lyrics are pretty bad, but it was a smaller problem than I thought after the first few songs. Gentlemen certainly leans more into the alternative sound of the 90s as an opposition to the grunge movement that was smack dab in the middle of its peak when this album dropped. Each song is equally unique as the other, with some great riffs and progressions varying throughout the whole record. Sure a few skips were here and there, but the closing track is absolutely gorgeous, and it definitely made the whole experience conclude on a perfect note.

So it's like The Doors, but awful. The vocals are my first complaint. Whenever the singer isn't doing an obvious impression of Jim Morrison, he performs these boring one or two note melodies in a very distasteful tone. I simply don't like the way he sounds. When the guitar isn't mindlessly shrieking, it plays the most boring one dimensional riff or progression you can think of. I just wonder how the musicians don't get restless when playing, it cannot be fun to play more than 2 seconds of this garbage. And then to honor the source material they so obviously steal from, there's a 10 minute track that completely genre shifts into this murky psychedelic cave of chants. It's also the third track in the album like what is up with the placement. They change styles entirely for one song and then just continue on with the previous garbage like nothing happened. It's like they heard The End and were like "guys let's do exactly this." I lowkey like it but it's just so obviously copying The Doors. I like "Ann" too, but god everything about this album is really bad.

Directly transported into a midsummer teenage love, this album instantly swept me off my feet. The classic 80s production combined with the great lyrics and deliveries just makes me adore every song. The songwriting also manages to stay fresh and engaging throughout the whole album, never boring me by coming too formulaic, which record from this era tended to do to fill the singles out. All the albums the list has introduced me to that I find being my favorites are surprisingly these luscious britpop records from the 80s. Music like this will just put a grin on my face from start to finish, and while it's nothing miles ahead, it's still great music throughout the entire album.

I hate post punk so much make it stop. Starting off terribly, the screeching guitar and god awful vocals mesh horribly with the bass and drum groove. I don't understand how someone can actually like this it's like the band is trying to make you want to kill yourself. There is zero variety here it's just the same putrid drone for TEN MINUTES?? The next track is a little better, because the band sounds completely different with now better guitar tones and singing styles. I actually like that one a little. It stays pretty good for a couple songs, with the bass massively carrying them to make up for the terrible vocals. Then the singer is finally silenced as the two groovy instrumentals screech for a few minutes, which aren't too bad. Now we're back to another creepy drone song, which just leaves me bored and upset. No Birds was pretty good, Chant was terrible, but the closing track was actually pretty beautiful. The bass playing was definitely the best part of the listen, making every track decent enough to give this album a 2.

This is the most British sounding American band I've ever heard. Talking Heads 77 has a lot of good and a lot of empty rambling. The main problem when listening to this record is that some tracks feel like they're missing instruments. I don't know how to explain it, but the songs feel unfinished sometimes. However, the tracks that bang, certainly do bang. The latter half of the album is surprisingly better than the front, which is the opposite for most records. It's fun music, but sometimes David Byrne is just blabbering about straight nothing. I guess it's fitting cause they're the Talking Heads. Safe to say it was an enjoyable experience overall.

I'd heard of Elvis Costello before, but had no idea what genre I was getting into. This was such a pleasant surprise. I can't name a single skip on this record, and I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. It's accessible pop rock from the late 70s with good variety all throughout it supported by the fitting instrumentation skills. I mean it's not the most genius thing I've ever heard, nor were there any songs that made my ears perk up (although the middle stretch was outstanding), but this was a great listen.

Who doesn't love some ABBA. I came in expecting fun nice 80s grand pop. I was rocketed out with some insane, symphonic, conceptual art. The singles were amazing as expected, the deep cuts were honestly better and had an unexplored magic in each one. Very high 4, definitely returning.

First trip-hop album ever, and my expectations were completely exceeded. The record kicks off with an infectious bass groove that skews throughout the whole track. For the time this album is actually insane, at least a decade before it should've been. Every vocal part is incredibly enticing. The talent of every singer on here is incredibly chosen. The tracks are on the borderline of being too repetitive, but manage to mostly keep it different and engaging just before parts go stale. Each instrumental is so brain-tingling to me; the keyboard sounds Massive Attack achieves is just something else. The strings are emotional, the drums are tight, every song just flows and immerses you in a sensory chamber. If I had another critique it'd be the album cover. This rarely happens where my visual interpretation of music doesn't match the cover art, so it's a shame that it doesn't fit. The closing track is also beautifully chosen and written. Cool record miles ahead of its time.

The debut of the greatest band of all time. The album starts off with a double bang to get your attention, and perfectly encapsulates what Zeppelin's about to rock. Every single song has incredible musicianship and make sure you know that every member is the best in their field. Yeah the lyrics are one-dimensional, but the vocal performance behind it backs it up. A lot of people slander this one cause of what they stole, but that still makes it the greatest cover album of all time. The level they took these blues standards to is just crazy work. Not a singular dud either. Purist 45 minutes of blues you can hear in the world. I've listened to this record a thousand times, and I still will till the day I die. It's a blues masterpiece, it's a psychedelic masterpiece, and it's a hard rock masterpiece.

Did I need to listen to this before I died? No, but it was net positive experience. The sounds that this style produces is absolutely wonderful for starters, but it falls short for the fact that it tends to get very repetitive for every track being 6+ minutes. The tone of the guitar is luscious, and how it combines with the melodic percussion ends up outstanding. Mansour Seck is a phenomenal guitarist, and his style was a joy to hear. The vocals are also exquisite, and were very fun throughout the whole record. I just think songs could explore more complex structures instead of staying on these 1-2 chord jams. However, the title track strays from a this and the closing song is a banger too.

I despite Kurt Cobain so much and in turn hated on this album saying it was overrated. I always loved every individual track in the back of my head, and started getting back into it more recently. I absolutely love this record, and every song is just so good. This album has an undeniable impact on music. For what it made the music scene for the next decade is completely there. Are the angsty "get away" songs a little too repetitive? Yes, but the 3 of them all have individual things that make them awesome. No duds, great album.

Yeah this is pretty bad. The singing seems kind of brainless and everything feels so purposefully stupid in a non-Devo way. Overall, I find the mixing the worst part with the left and right panned silverware clanging and machinery whirs. The bass and drumming is pretty great though, so at least I can sometimes lock in on that. That being said, it was dreading to get through this.