Reviews by deepee

For music that theoretically is supposed to make you move, most of these songs are very static. Boy George Is mostly locked into soulful white boy vocal mode, with minimal dynamics.
I know the Culture Club radio hits, and based on those I expected better from this album.

This album has an awful opening riff. I thought for sure it was going to be a struggle to get through the album. Happily, it switched up after about 90 seconds, and the rest of the album was enjoyable and interesting. The music is multi-layered, has energy. Unfortunately the band is no more, due to alleged abusive behavior by the lead singer. I had never heard of them before today and now there is no future for them. But I am happy to know this album.

Just straight up guitar-based blues rock. All of it sounds pretty much the same. Not much vocal melody, plenty of straight-up 4 beat guitar.

This one is a bit of a mish-mash of different styles. I guess Paul was just working out what he wanted to do without the rest of the band. Overall very inconsistent. It includes the masterpiece “Maybe I’m Amazed”, then some short little ditties, a bluesy instrumental number, etc.
Feels more like an insight into him just trying things out at home than an actual album.

I saw it was Wilco and thought, “I bet this will be a three star album”. You can count on them to give you some straightforward earnest music. Always pleasant, uncomplicated, never awe-inspiring. They’re Wilco, they’re fine.

Where did Janis come from? This planet was certainly not her home.
Then behind her, the musicianship is excellent, although some of the instrumentals went on a bit long for my taste. When you have Janis, focus on Janis!

Way to get an extra star out of me: have an album cover that makes me expect screaming post-punk, and then don’t be that.
Against all expectations I enjoyed most of this one. I guess it might be called jazz? But then there are tracks that are trance. At its low-point,for me, it approaches easy-listening. It’s very varied, and there are a couple of clunkers, but one consistency is that most of the melodies seem middle-eastern inspired. I’m not even sure how to explain any of this. I just know that it was unexpected, and unpredictable and very much kept my interest.

Wow. Spinning Wheel is ok on is own, I guess, but it is not enough to lift this bloated ponderous mess into anything I ever want to listen to again. Cheesy vocals, often sounds self-important. Then turns to instrumental jazz at the end. It’s a mish mash of styles and sounds I enjoy. Part of me feels like they deserve two stars because there is clearly good musicianship on here. But I really suffered through it, and it was long dragged out enough at the end to annoy me to the point of only giving it one star.

This is a top find for me from this project. Can’t believe I’ve never heard it before. I’m a sucker for ambient synth music. My favorite album of this genre is still Jean-Michel Jarre’s Equinoxe.( If you like this album, especially the second track, check that one out.)

This album is definitely one that you want to give your full attention. Under a starry sky let yourself sink into it. It is expansive and meditative. I can’t wait to listen to it on my next camping outing and let my mind relax and follow this music.

This song makes me smile from start to finish! Of course I spent hours dancing to it as a teenager, so I’m biased.
It holds up though! All these years later! Other albums have disappointed me by not aging well, but this still has me moving. It’s actually better than I remember! Peppy beat, good production, fun lyrics. The Go-Go’s are a great fun vibe.

My Old School is the big hit on this album, but many if the other tracks are just as enjoyable. Show Biz Kids and King of the World bring it down a little bit for me. So not quite five stars but still an enjoyable album.

Straightforward blues rock. Compared to The Rolling Stones genre-wise, but lacking any of the Stones’ edginess. These guys are more like a litter of puppies while the Stones are a pride of panthers.

So much beauty in this album. I feel like Welcome to the Machine drags it down just enough to miss out on five stars. But not to worry Pink Floyd will reach that summit.

It’s all right. Kinda Mellow rock with alot of organ. Is this considered prog rock? I don’t care for prog rock so maybe that’s why, although I can appreciate the talent, I’m just not feeling this. The music kind of meanders. Prog rock to me is music that goes on for too long without really getting anywhere.

Wow. This dude picked a lane and STUCK. WITH. IT.
Do not listen to this while driving late at night. It’s pretty but so so monotonous.

Kate Bush is an artist whose name I’ve heard for decades but whose music I never searched out. But this was good! She loses me a bit on the second half of the album, which follows a bit of a more experimental concept theme. It feels a bit more inconsistent than side A- but also more ambitious.
I’m glad I got to hear this!

Not sure why there needed to be two Depeche Mode albums on the list. They are very similar. Not meant to be a criticism of the band, I enjoy their mood at times and certainly danced to them plenty. There is just so much variety out there to explore, and Depeche Mode is a very specific sound that doesn’t ever seem to stray far.

What a smooth voice. This music seems so simple now, it’s easy to forget that it was groundbreaking at the time. Elvis was a direct copy.
Spotify recommended Fats Domino Swings (1959) based on this, and that one was more enjoyable to me, but this one is a good start.

Ouch. Not sure why anybody would find this enjoyable. And it doesn’t even feel all that aggressive for angry types. Just annoying. The vocals on the last track did catch the attention of my cats. I think they thought one of their own had been injured.

I know that many people worship this album. Back in the day, this was always held up as the best REM album before they went “too commercial”. But I’m thinking that adding some melody and a an occasional burst of energy was not a bad thing for them to learn.
This album is a mood. And a tone. Just one. For 44 minutes. Great start, because they had found their own sound, and that in itself is very important, but not their best in my opinion.