Reviews by ellesnayr

I guess I never really listened to this album all the way through. I was aware it was controversial, and I’ve definitely heard some of the songs, I think I listened to this all the way through years ago. That being said, I didn’t realize how sexist this album is. I would say it’s of its time but I’m pretty sure this wasn’t acceptable even for the 80s. No, I think they were doing it for shock value, and if that’s the case it still didn’t age well. I still like some of the stuff on here, Express Yourself is low key the best song on the album. That and the hits are all solid, even though I can’t stand Eazy E. His voice just irks me. But this one def takes a hit for how poorly some of the songs aged. However, one song has definitely stood the test of time, and unfortunately its message still holds true today. This country really needs to take a deep look into the rampant racism in policing.

Moving PicturesRush

Rated 8/10

This was almost a perfect album. The last two songs don’t fit the rest. It throws off the flow of the album. It would have made for a very short album, but if you cut Witch Hunt and Vital Signs it would be flawless. I feel like they were tacked on to fill out the album.

Disraeli GearsCream

Rated 6/10

The first third of this album I like. It’s got some chill groovy songs, then there’s Blue Condition which I didn’t like. Ulysses brought it back but the rest of the album didn’t thrill me. Mostly just boring bar blues rock and one novelty song at the end. It’s between a two and a three for me, but I’ll give it a three cause I liked almost half of it.

FrankAmy Winehouse

Rated 4/10

She has a good voice, but I found this tedious to listen to. The songs did not grab me, I was bored. Give me Norah Jones every time over this.

Real LifeMagazine

Rated 8/10

There’s a lot to unpack here. I’ve only listened to this album once so I feel like I can’t fairly rate it. There’s a lot of good stuff, again after just one listen I don’t think I’ve taken the time to fully appreciate it. It’s definitely one I’ll have to get back to.

DrunkThundercat

Rated 6/10

This was strange. I didn’t mind it but I don’t know that I’ll return to it. I’ve been aware of Thundercat for a while now, he seemed to blow up out of nowhere a few years ago. I know he is an accomplished musician, but the songs on here just didn’t really excite me. It would almost make good background music but it’s just a little too weird for that. I mean that in a good way. I like that he’s making the music he wants to make and is not compromising to get a hit.

GreenR.E.M.

Rated 8/10

This was really good. I’ve never done a deep dive on REM, but this is the second album I’ve gotten from this list and this one was even better than the first (Murmur). I didn’t realize they put out 5 albums in 5 years until I was looking this one up. This is I think the 5th album. That’s a crazy output, and for the fifth one to be this good, these guys were just oozing with songs.

BeCommon

Rated 6/10

I feel # #this is a slow burn. It’d probably take a few listens to really appreciate it. That being said, I listened to it once and have some initial reactions. This definitely feels dated, I didn’t look up when it came out but I’d guess around 2004. It’s definitely backpack rap, that’s not a bad thing, but that style just gets old after a while. It can be a bit preachy, focusing more on the message than the music. And that message oriented music across an entire album can be exhausting. Plus sometimes it veered into corniness. The beasts were pretty solid, some songs sounded like they were produced by Kanye, or a copycat, but this was definitely a Chicago album so I’d be willing to bet Kanye worked on it. Overall an enjoyable album that I won’t be throwing on all that often.

I listened to From Elvis in Memphis earlier this week and I was not impressed. I’m not a fan of later Elvis. This is the Elvis I like, he’s still hungry and trying to prove himself. Not every song is great but there’s good energy throughout. A solid debut album.

This was a real mixed bag. None of it was all that good though. The musicianship is top notch, but it felt like Elvis was just given a bunch of random songs to sing. Is it a country album? Is it gospel? Is it soul? Nobody knows. Also most of the songs were boring, suspicious minds was good. He butchered Gentle on my mind.

I really got into the stooges a while back. I read the biography, I immersed myself in their music. I was really into it. That being said I always felt like this was their weakest album. Search and Destroy is amazing, but the rest of the album does nothing for me. For the record, I listened to the 2023 50th anniversary remaster this time. I feel that it is the best mix of this album.

The IdiotIggy Pop

Rated 4/10

Never cared much for solo Iggy. The stooges were great because the music complimented his voice. Iggy Pop does not have a good singing voice, it works for garage rock/punk, but o don’t want to hear him singing slow songs and ballads.

half the songs on here were fantastic, the other half were forgettable. Sex Machine is the standout on the album. Everyday People is short and sweet. Stand! was a solid opener. I wanna take you higher was also a good one. I do not see myself revisiting this album or any of the songs. I listened to this years ago and felt the same way I do now. I understand its importance and can appreciate the musicianship but the songs just don’t do it for me.

I was unimpressed by this. Nothing about it stood out. It was just an ok album that I got bored of after two songs.

This album was better than I remembered it being. I liked the singles when this came out so I listened to the rest and wasn’t all that impressed. I guess my tastes have evolved since then because I was mostly impressed with this album aside from a couple of duds. The singles are still good, electric feel is still the best song on there. Weekend wars and pieces are the two duds in my opinion. Otherwise the non-singles while not as catchy are really cool.

This did not resonate with me. I don’t care for Kate Bush’s voice, I find it irritating, I can’t put my finger on why that is. There was some cool instrumentation on the album, but as a whole I didn’t like the songs. I know this album has a ton of accolades, I guess it’s just not for me.

All killer no filler! Lynyrd Skynyrd brings it with there debut. It took me a long time to really dig into skynyrd, I knew the hits but never sat down and listened to the albums. It was probably a few years ago that i finally dug in and man these guys rule.

This one definitely has its moments, but it drags a lot too. Some killer but too much filler. Oh what a world was an amazing opening track.