Reviews by callimar

“Hotel California” by the Eagles is, without a doubt, a true legend. The title track is one of the best songs ever written, and one of the songs that inspired me to pick up the guitar myself. That’s why I know it’s also a ton of fun to play it on stage.
What about the other tracks? I’m not sure - I still have “Hotel California” on repeat. No, seriously: they’re not bad, but of course they can’t hold a candle to it. Does anyone even care?

Tori Amos’ debut album bears the apt title “Little Earthquakes,” though it remains unclear whether the emphasis is on “little” or on “earthquakes.” As far as I can remember, the songs were played over and over on the radio back then, but they didn’t really stick with me. The tracks are undoubtedly clever and varied, and Tori Amos’s voice is pleasant, but nothing about it strikes me as absolutely top-notch. Still, it’s worth noting that “Little Earthquakes” sounds both mature and natural, which I find quite remarkable for a debut.
In summary, it’s a good, piano-based singer-songwriter album and truly deserves a solid 3.5.

“Bossanova” by the Pixies is one of the most cohesive albums I've ever heard, and it's far better than any of the individual songs on it. That's why it makes perfect sense to listen to it as a whole, from start to finish.
The band’s sound is fantastic and creates a dark post-punk atmosphere thanks to the largely uniform drum and bass grooves. Yet the songs are varied, achieved through strong dynamics and perfectly contrasted by Black Francis’s equally versatile vocals.
A truly powerful album - and all with the simplest of means!

Tom Waits is simply a fantastic singer, and he demonstrates this much more impressively on “Heartattack And Vine” than on “Bone Machine,” which I had reviewed some time ago with a rather disappointed assessment.
Back to the topic at hand: the title track alone makes it clear right from the start where this is headed - uncompromisingly raw blues rock with a dominant piano and, of course, Tom Waits’ unique voice.
There’s not really much more to say about it. The album could have used a few really strong songs. As it is, it unfortunately doesn’t come close to “Small Change" (which, for some inexplicable reason, isn’t even on the list!). Still, those were 44 entertaining minutes!

A while back, I’d heard a few songs by The Beach Boys and found them only moderately interesting. I mean, how good can a band with that name really be...
In another review, someone wrote “Teemu Beatles,” and that’s actually what it sounds like - though the comparison is completely off the mark, because the American band spared no expense and hired half an orchestra for “Pet Sounds.” That may have been revolutionary at the time, but the elaborate production didn’t do the recording any favors: everything is uniformly smooth, and you’ll search in vain for any rough edges.
According to Jimi Hendrix, rock music means first simplifying everything and then exaggerating it. As you can see with the Beach Boys, though, it really depends on where you exaggerate. This is noteworthy in that many albums on this list could have used a bit more care in production. This naturally raises the question of whether such a mainstream-polished album should even be considered a milestone.

I only recently learned from Shuggie Otis that there’s a music genre called “psychedelic soul.” Michael Kiwanuka sounds only vaguely similar, which means his songs are psychedelic in a different way: While Otis uses classic soul songs as a canvas for extended improvisations, Kiwanuka’s songs are less accessible from the start, giving the overall sound a darker edge.
I’m not sure if that’s a cool approach or just a bit too slow of a soul-pop sound. But in fact, most of the songs go far beyond pop standards, which makes this album a great chill-out record. I like it.

One more very brief review due to holidays: the X-Ray Specs are another early New Wave / Post Punk group. Their debut album ""Germfree Adolescents" is not as annoying as the B-52's but still far from good.
Do we really need more of this? I don't think so.

I didn't have enough time to carefully listen to the whole album but from the first songs it's pretty clear that Cee-Lo Green's "Soul Machine" is not my cup of tea: hip hop injected pop with a funny main voice. Not really bad either, so a clear 2/5

Interesting! My first impression was that it was New Wave pop, but even more boring. In fact, though, the arrangements aren't nearly as trivial as they seem at first glance, and Tracey Thorn's voice is truly special. So Everything But The Girl probably could have made really good music if... well, if they'd had compelling song material to work with. But they didn't.

This is now the fifth David Bowie album that’s been recommended to me, and this one doesn’t quite win me over either. However, it’s clear to hear that the New Wave movement would later draw heavily on the sound of his album *Station to Station*. While that’s interesting, the album itself is, above all, quite monotonous. The title track, in particular, is primarily just long—it actually has enough time for a change in mood, but it only really opens up a little over the course of its 10 minutes. The following three songs stay in the same vein before something finally happens: “Stay” actually sounds unique, and “Wild Is The Wind” does indeed hint at where the Berlin Trilogy would go next.
Fair enough, but I’m still waiting for reasons as to why no fewer than nine Bowie albums are included on the list. The explanation is likely as convincing as it is trivial: Robert Dimery is simply a huge Bowie fan. I still am not; for me, this is an influential but by no means outstanding recording.

New Order is another New Wave band that, in hindsight, can only be described as overrated. Not quite as annoying as the B-52's, which I listened to yesterday, but by no means good.
I'll spare you the long explanation and wrap this up with two stars.

A lot of early New Wave bands are a bit boring to listen to. Not so with the B-52’s - they’re a real pain. I’d already given this band a cursory listen before and found their later work rather exhausting. Of course, I was familiar with bits and pieces of “Rock Lobster,” but I’d never had to subject myself to the whole thing before. It gets even worse when you listen to the whole album, though: it actually becomes unbearable after three songs at the latest.
Based on my memory, I hadn’t expected it to be that bad, but “The B-52’s” really isn’t good enough for two stars.

That was interesting, because of course I’m familiar with Meat Loaf - from “Bat Out of Hell 2", “Dead Ringer for Love", and various other collaborations, and of course from “Wayne’s World". The original “Bat Out of Hell” was more of a legend from days gone by; I knew a few songs from it, but I’d never listened to the whole album.

I’m glad I’ve finally caught up on it, and as expected, this album fully deserves the legendary status it’s been given. In the context of the 300 albums I’ve listened to so far, Meat Loaf and Jim Steinman’s greatest achievement is probably that they each stuck to what they do best. I have no idea if Meat Loaf would ever have become famous with his own songs. Nor do I know how those songs would have worked with Jim Steinman’s voice. But one thing is certain: Jim Steinman’s songs with Meat Loaf’s voice are world-class.

As I’ve often mentioned when discussing outstanding albums: it can be that simple!

Their Spotify profile states that XTC didn’t achieve commercial success because they were always behind the times. If that’s true, I wonder in which era “Apple Venus Volume 1” was actually in step with the times. It’s not as if this music couldn’t have existed in different decades: to me, it sounds like a combination of ’60s songwriting and ’70s sound. I just don’t think they would have been more successful at any other time. The band is technically excellent and the production is professional, but each of the songs seems to be waiting for its full potential to unfold - but that moment never comes. In that sense, the “Art Rock” label once again seems to stand for combining styles that, in the end, probably don’t mesh very well. That’s a shame, because given the band’s skills and ideas, this could have been an outstanding album.

For some reason, I wasn’t familiar with Jimmy Smith. That’s a shame, because to me, “Back At The Chicken Sack” is an almost perfect jazz album (which, for me, apparently means hard bop). From today’s perspective, his organ playing forms such a natural bridge between the rhythm section and the soloists that one is almost tempted to ask how jazz was even played before him. For me, the balance between melodies and improvisation is just right, and I really can’t recommend listening to this album enough before you die.

This review isn't very difficult: at first, I wasn't sure what “psychedelic soul” or “psychedelic funk” was supposed to be, but it actually turns out to be self-explanatory: “Inspiration Information” by Shuggie Otis is a largely entertaining album, with most songs starting out soulful/funky and then transitioning to varying degrees into… well, psychedelic improvisations (or planned escapades - it’s hard to say for sure). It’s a great listen, but of course, the parts that give the album its name don’t really stick in your head.
Shuggie Otis finds himself in a bit of a bind here, because it’s unlikely that either the funk/soul community or fans of extended improvisation will feel completely satisfied by it. Still, I actually like it. It’s not absolutely amazing, but it’s nice in a positive way.

Joy Division are still considered the godfathers of the wave and gothic movements, and *Unknown Pleasures* is the legendary album that comes to mind in this context. In that sense, it’s one of the most influential recordings of the past 50 years, and it rightfully belongs on this list. The question is: is it actually good?
As always, that’s a matter of taste and individual preference. Personally, I’m impressed by what these four guys managed to achieve with such a minimalist production; I like the dark atmosphere and think many of the song ideas are great. So, is it yet another legendary, iconic album? Not quite - the songs are too monotonous for that. Honestly, it’s only worth four stars. But out of sympathy for the Wave & Gothic scene, I’ll add half a point and round it up to five ;)

Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s “Shaka Zulu” isn’t really comparable to most of the other albums on this list. It’s an absolutely excellent - but also exceptionally mellow - a cappella album, and the harmonies, which are based on fourths rather than thirds, create a sound that feels unusually open to me as a European.
Otherwise, I don’t have much to say here; the production is absolutely professional, and I find the songs generally too quiet. There simply need to be more comparable albums suggested to allow for a meaningful evaluation.

I was familiar with the name Killing Joke, but I’m not entirely sure if I’d ever heard them before. In any case, their debut album is exactly what you’d expect based on the description: innovative sounds with plenty of energy, but immature arrangements and very mediocre production. Some might say, “It’s just post-punk,” and they wouldn’t be wrong.
As for my rating, I’m as indifferent as this text sounds. Three stars, and on to the next one.

Like all live albums, I find Sam Cooke’s “Live At The Harlem Square Club” difficult to evaluate. While it’s very clear how much fun his concerts must have been, his biggest hits are missing - from that perspective, it was a mistake on the editor’s part to choose this particular recording. On top of that, the recording quality is anything but convincing.
All in all, I’m torn between rating Sam Cooke’s life’s work (5/5, of course) and this particular album (maybe 3/5). That comes to a total of four stars, which somehow doesn’t feel like what the only Sam Cooke album on the list deserves.