Reviews by guggmo

I’m at a 5.

It’s a bit surprising that it took 802 albums to finally get something from The Stooges, but I had pretty strong expectations based on Iggy’s solo stuff. Granted, those expectations were based around assuming this album would be more like his solo stuff. Instead, we’ve gotten an unapologetic taste of what The Stooges were, loud guitar solos (good shit, Ron), manic percussion (good shit, Scott), strange sax solos (good shit, Steve) & flailing vocals and all. I gotta tell you; I fucking loved it.

This album’s slow road from some tightly crafted punk rock before destroying all sense of typical structure, ending on… well, whatever the hell “L.A. Blues” is meant to be is just fascinating to hear. I can’t say there’s a bad track here, with lyrics giving way to vocal structures & guitar / percussive energy as the key enjoyable stuff. The lyrics are there, and they help guide the emotion a little, but they barely matter. This is practically 36 minutes of Iggy Pop vocalizing to some heavier punk rock, especially for 1970. The pacing might be a little slow at times, but this album is practically going at lightspeed compared to other bands of the era. It does feel WAY ahead of pace for 1970, in a way where you can hear practically its entire tree of influence. As far as my favorites go, I’m probably tied between “T.V. Eye” & “1970”, with the latter getting an ever so slight nod for the sax.

Ultimately, while the slight repetition in style might be a turnoff for some people, I just think the album lines up with my sensibilities, & if nothing else, it’s fascinating to hear this style done SO well for 1970. Iggy Pop & friends might be far more innovative than I ever realized, and now that we’ve gotten a taste of the Stooges, I can’t wait to get their other 2 albums on the list. As far as this one goes, it’s a very easy 5.

I’m at a 4.5 that I’ll bump up to a 5.

It’s a little strange to hear a Neil Young album that’s so intentionally rough. Usually, he’s really deliberate about everything, so it’s definitely jarring. Obviously, it’s not super rough, otherwise I’d be way lower than a 4.5, but the intentionality of it sometimes gives way to a more “amateur” feel that just takes me out of the intended vibe of the album, which, to my understanding, appears to be sort of a live funeral for his friends & a bit of an open frustration session for himself. Neil Young’s exhaustion feels noticeable & somewhat palpable, & channeling that exhaustion into a 44 minute album that practically boils down to “shit is tough right now, I need to vent, sorry” is an interesting choice, especially as a commercial release.

There’s only really 3 tracks that don’t quite fit into that frustration; “New Mama”, “Lookout Joe” & “Tired Eyes”, with the first 2 being a sweet interlude about the joy of raising a kid & the very different world a Vietnam vet might have come back to, & the latter being… I dunno, a really sleepy guy’s inability to recall a murder scene? It’s a very blurry track, and probably my weakest one here because of that. The other two are good though. Realistically, I don’t think there’s a bad track here. I’m mostly at a 4.5 because I do think the rawness of this album can feel just a little too amateur at times; obviously, it’s no “The Madcap Laughs” in terms of leaving stuff in that feels intrusive & almost negatively parasocial, but for a Neil Young album where his standards are usually as high as they are, it really does just feel off at times.

I’m obviously bumping it up to a 5, and figuring out exactly why is something that I can only really answer by saying “listen to the album”, but I do think there’s aspects I can point out. I admire the way this album tries to dance around directly complaining for as long as possible; part of it is probably just Neil Young’s self-awareness that even with his own struggles, he’s in a far better spot than most people would be. In the same vein, the way this album chooses to dance around grief while portraying the exhaustion of trying to appear OK is done really well. It’s obviously all there, and it’s done REALLY well on “Tonight’s the Night - Part II” with all the little pauses throughout. At the same time, I can fully acknowledge that a lot of these tracks do end up sounding kinda similar, and even for as much as I liked this album, I found myself zoning out at points. With Neil’s approach putting less importance on everything, it’s very easy to feel less invested, and that does hurt the perception of the album.

Regardless, I think it’s a really interesting take on grief, & I did like practically every track here, save for “Tired Eyes” (& even then, it’s not that bad). I don’t know if it’s an album you can really go back to & play multiple times like that, but I do think it’s worth giving a listen to before you die, even if it’s just once. Something about it feels captivatingly sad. Hence, a 4.5 that I’ll bump up to a 5.

I’m at a 4.5 that I’ll bump up to a 5.

Ultimately, it’s just a less polished version of the soundscape they’d really flesh out by “A Hard Day’s Night”. John & Paul’s songwriting skills are solid, but they aren’t quite there yet, which is totally fair for 1963, so this album relies a lot more on covers. To be fair, they’re pretty good covers, but I don’t think the Beatles can quite pull off the Motown style with the same natural swagger as the original tracks probably did.

I mean, look, this is the earliest one they have on the list. It’s naturally going to be the weakest, even if it’s still good. It might be a bit closer to a 4, but I can’t really find a reason to justify bumping it down to a 4, since I was just kinda charmed by almost every track here. It’s a solid 33 minutes with a good energy throughout, and while they’re still clearly trying to figure out the dynamics of the band & who should sing which track & what instruments work & which ones don’t, it still results in a good album. Not a great album, at least by the historical standards most people remember them by, but a pretty good one for 1963. I liked it, and it’s a 4.5 bumped up to a 5 for me.

I’m at a 10.

Believe me, I’m just as surprised. When we last got our lead singer here, it was for Spacemen 3’s “Playing With Fire”, and that was an album that I gave a 2.5 bumped up to a 3. This is so, so far sonically removed from that album that I can hardly believe this album & its vision came from that band’s ashes, yet somehow, I also don’t find it extremely surprising. For as flawed as “Playing With Fire” is in terms of its execution, its strength comes in managing to find places for the soundscape to settle & find sweet spots for the listener’s ears, even in its most awkward moments. If you take their ability to find those sweet spots & use it on actually sweet, forceful & emotionally driven soundscapes that actually resemble traditional music, then you get an entire album of sweet spots, somehow rooted in the same ever-present chaos that bands like Can used on “Tago Mago”, along with the serenity they found on “Future Days”, yet blended with the shoegaze-y nature of “Playing With Fire”.

It also helps that there’s a loose narrative here around the perils of drug addiction, how it acts as a black hole on your life that gets everyone in its orbit sucked into your troubles & trauma, and how even when you try to make genuine efforts to clean up & get yourself out of it, that black hole will come back to haunt you. Practically every track here is either based around the enjoyment of taking drugs, trying to kick the habit, having to deal with the consequences of it on one’s relationship, finding the mental clarity to free yourself from it long enough to get the people you care about out of its orbit, or in the case of “Cop Shoot Cop…”, being dragged back into that hell, feeling the consequences of it, and being too emotionally drained to recognize there’s no hope left. This album enhances the little things that build up, puts them under a microscope, and makes them feel monumental because of it.

I’d love to gush more & more about the instrumentation here, the brilliance of the pacing & how it tries to emulate the adrenaline rush of shooting some heroin into your system along with the cooldowns that follow once the high wears off, the great punch to the bass & percussion that ties the whole thing’s energy together, the serenity of the orchestra & choir & the horror of the overdriven guitar & the distorted flutes… but it’s just an album that deserves to be heard to capture the full extent of the constant emotional whiplash present here. It is brilliantly performed, especially with headphones in, & for 1997, the mixing job is just remarkable. In closing, I’m just blown away. There are some nitpicks I’d have here & there throughout this album, but they barely affect the visceral nature of the production. It feels like listening to a grand tragedy play out in real time, and for as cheesy as it sounds, I feel like I’m floating in space after having heard it. It’s a 10.

Perhaps miraculously, I’m at a 3.5 that I’ll bump up to a 4, just like their debut album.

Is it weird to say I might’ve liked this one a little more? “Searching For The Young Soul Rebels” entirely survives off of a vibe – Kevin Rowland’s vocals are incomprehensible but endearing, their instrumental energy is good, if a bit reliant on flash, and somehow, all of its flaws don’t sink it too badly, due to a weirdly infectious energy that just makes that album feel nice. As a developed project though, I find this album’s more casual tone & more intimate vibe sort of refreshing, in a way that’s very unique for an era generally defined by flashy music videos & gaudy showmanship.

Granted, much like their debut album, there’s still some flaws here – I think “The Occasional Flicker” kinda falls flat as an opening track, if only because it doesn’t really make its meaning super clear; the burning passion of his past are now nothing more than what the title suggests, but between a dull instrumental that doesn’t pick up too highly & a vocal performance that gets mixed down in a way that lessens the impact (& believe me, THAT is one of the bigger mixing problems here), it just doesn’t set a great opening tone. It’s not a bad track at all, and it does serve as a thematic entry to the whole album (lost passion & lack of self-importance due to the other struggles of the world, namely the ongoing Troubles in Ireland at the time), but as a musical beginning, it does set a bad tone, & one that probably turned a lot of people off.

“This Is What She’s Like” as a 12-minute followup probably shut the door for a lot of people, as on its very surface level, it is just Kevin yapping & blueballing his way out of describing the girl he’s with, but for some fucking reason, at least for my sensibilities, the whole thing reminded me of a Smiling Friends type conversation. You know the ones; Charlie & Pim just go on some weird aside that feels unnatural to a flowing TV show, yet would feel very natural in an actual controlled setting. This track is one of those weird asides, one that feels unnatural to the flow of the album, and yet, as an actual conversation & a loose attempt to describe indescribable love, it just kinda really hooked me in. Somehow, it fills up its 12 minutes well, and it worked for me.

“Knowledge of Beauty” is good. It reminds me a little of “Thousands Are Sailing” from that Pogues album we got a bit ago, if only for the emotional hook led on by love for one’s ancestors. The pacing is a little slow for a 7 minute track, but ultimately, I found myself compelled by what Kevin was talking about, even if his vocal delivery isn’t super compelling. “One of Those Things” is just “Sweet Home Alabama” but with Kevin’s frustrations over similar sounding music & anger at flippant dismissals of Ireland’s ongoing crisis behind it. It’s not a bad track at all, but it just never really hooked me in.

“Reminisce - Pt. 2” is alright. It’s just him doing some reminiscing, & while I question the decision to put a sequel to the B-side of a single from your last album onto the main tracklist of this one, it just feels endearing. “Listen To This” is pretty solid, with the whole regret over never saying “I love you” enough pretty potently expressed. Once again though, they REALLY needed to boost Kevin’s vocals in the mix to give it some of that emotional oomph, as without it, the track feels a lot flatter & not as effective.

“The Waltz” works as a closer; much in the same way that I could barely comprehend him on their debut album, I can barely comprehend the meaning here (apparently, it’s still a protest towards the UK’s involvement in Ireland). Much like their debut album though, Kevin’s vocal delivery sells the track & the sort of righteous anger that boils up throughout it, along with a slow swelling of a still casual (yet important-feeling) instrumental hit just the right nerve for me to enjoy the track. I don’t think it needs to be 8 minutes, but I wasn’t really opposed to it in the moment. It’s a good capper to the whole thing.

All of that said, it’s a 3.5 that I’ll bump up to a 4. I don’t think it’s a super duper underrated gem or anything, but I see what they were going for with this album & I respect it. It’s obviously not the same ball of energy as their debut, and while we haven’t gotten “Too Rye Ay” yet, I imagine that album isn’t like this either. I kinda like that it isn’t though, and sticking out so beigely in a super flashy world & just wanting to speak your own truths to an audience that may or may not have given a shit, even sacrificing commercial success for it, is kind of admirable. I do think it’s a good album if you can allow yourself the patience to hear Kevin Rowland out, and for my tastes & sensibilities, I think it’s worth bumping up to a 4. I’m glad I heard it out, at least, and I’m glad it’s on the list.

Much like Innervisions, I’m somewhere above a 5. Hell, I’m probably at a 10. (Innervisions is also a 10, by the way. Songs in the Key of Life is somewhere off the number scale; another star, if you will.)

Until today, the only track I’d ever heard from this album was “They Won’t Go When I Go” – maybe I’d heard a few other tracks in passing over the years, but I only ever added that one to my playlist. I still think it’s the tour de force of the album, and one of my favorite tracks of all time, but the entire package here is a real delight. I gotta tell you, it’s great to hear “new” Stevie Wonder music to my ears.

It does take a little bit to get into this album’s more spiritual / grounded vibe, but once you accept that this isn’t generally gonna have the big showstopping numbers like Innervisions or Songs in the Key of Life does (though “You Haven’t Done Nothing” is practically just Superstition 2), its sense of intimacy feels uniquely qualified from all the Stevie Wonder albums on the list. In a way, Stevie’s speaking to his own soul here, & we’re just along for the ride. It’s a ride that’s definitely worth taking.

“Smile Please” is just really uplifting, especially in a time where it feels especially hard to find the strength to smile through… well, all of this shit. It’s no “Love’s In Need of Love Today”, but it’s still a great opener.

“Heaven Is 10 Zillion Light Years Away” is Stevie’s gospel side coming through in an even more potent way than “Have A Talk With God” did 2 years later, and I’d argue it’s an even better track. Something about his delivery on “we’ve got so far to come” just feels great. It’s probably my second favorite track on the album.

“Too Shy to Say” is a good one, but I do think it’s the weakest track here. It just feels more like it was written for a movie than it does Stevie talking to his soul, and that disconnect makes it stick out from the rest of the package. I still like it, but it needed a little more of a wistful bite to it, and it’s a bite Stevie definitely gets later in the album.

“Boogie On Reggae Woman” is just a good love track, & Stevie’s ever so slightly horny side peeking out with this track is a surprise. Perhaps a little long for what it is, but the funky production is what makes it, especially with the harmonica solo near the end. I enjoyed it.

“Creepin’” feels like a Michael McDonald track, in a really good way. It’s got that wistful bite I was hoping “Too Shy to Say” would have, yet delivered in a way that still feels like it’s romantically driven towards Stevie’s soul. Minnie Riperton’s backing vocals really glide with Stevie’s, and their harmonies along with the synth work just make the track feel smooth as silk.

“You Haven’t Done Nothing” is… well, like I said, it’s Superstition 2, & apparently, a track directed towards Richard Nixon. It does feel like a track more so directed at the people who only make promises & never do actual action, and it’s one that feels especially relevant in a world where online activism gets more engagement than real community activism. The Jackson 5 do a great job with their backing vocals, and while I wish they would’ve had something of their own to say (though I can’t imagine a 16-year-old MJ would have that much wisdom in his words), the entire track works. I really liked it.

“It Ain’t No Use” once again has the extra wistful bite that I wish “Too Shy to Say” had, and it’s driven by an amicable breakup (or at least, an attempt at one). The backing bass & choir really add to the atmosphere, and Stevie’s ad-libs for the entire outro just made me enter a zen state that I haven’t gone into in a while. It’s a really nice track, especially once Stevie gets a bit more grit in his voice.

“They Won’t Go When I Go” is fantastic. If any musician on the planet can brag about their faith & so boldly & confidently claim that he’ll be looking down at them from Heaven, it’s Stevie Wonder. His conviction & delivery makes the track, and it’s impossible not to feel the bubbling righteous anger that comes out of him. George Michael’s cover is great, but Stevie’s version is incredible, & it’s one of my favorite tracks of all time.

“Bird of Beauty” is a really energetic lift back up, and the Brazilian rhythms that drive the track feel like a direct foreshadowing of what would come by “Another Star”. Structurally, it feels close to “Golden Lady” from Innervisions, though without the same consistent lift at the end. It’s just a track about finding a natural high from simply seeing the beauty the world has to offer, and while that’s ironic coming from a blind man, it’s still advice worth taking. It’s a fun track.

“Please Don’t Go” really works as an album closer; obviously, I might’ve ended on “They Won’t Go When I Go”, but just look at the titles of each track. It thematically fits really well for the man who was so confident about the world he’d leave behind to feel shattered at the prospect of someone leaving that world. That wistful bite I keep talking about really hits an apex here, and just makes “Too Shy to Say” really feel like the weak link. The way Stevie glides, lifts & elevates on the piano, the passion in his vocal runs, the way the choir compliments him, & the funk of the bass & shaker percussion all come together in a more gospel-y driven way to end the album. It’s a great closer.

It really is a fantastic package, and I’m glad that this album got its due on the list. I might’ve listened to it in full someday, but that might’ve been a lot longer, & I was already overdue to hear the rest of it, based on the strength of “They Won’t Go When I Go”. Stevie Wonder is the GOAT, and I’m glad he took us on this trip through his soul. This is an easy 10. Save for a singular weak link, it’s just as good as Innervisions, and I can’t wait to get Talking Book down the line for our 4th & final Stevie album on the list. Stellar, stellar stuff.

Would you believe I’m at a 10?

It’s been 555 days since we last got Elvis Presley, which is crazy to say. I remember his debut decently well, & given the 13-year gap here between albums, I was hoping his musicianship would’ve jumped leaps & bounds. For as much media as there is out there about Elvis, trying to create the definitive narrative around his life, I’ve just never really engaged with it. To my mind, he did some pelvic thrusts that made teenagers swoon & made parents furious, he parlayed it into a big movie career, and then he lost control of himself before dying in 1977. Roughly, I think that’s how most people know Elvis.

I didn’t know this album though, and my goodness, it’s a real delight to hear Elvis with what could sincerely be called “modern” production for the time. Sure, it’s no “Abbey Road” or anything, but the Memphis soundscape & the percussive grooves that underline this album & guide Elvis’s vocals along the way certainly feel far better to listen to than the stuff from 1956. Elvis himself just delivers these tracks like he wrote them all along, & while there’s not a single thing he penned here, he’s taken ownership over all of them. It also helps that, for the most part, he’s covering white artists on this album. My earliest nitpicks here were simply that tracks were fading out, but I got more used to it as the album went along. There are some tracks that I think might service themselves better with a definitive ending (especially so on “After Loving You”), but it’s a nitpick. My other one is that “I’ll Hold You in My Heart” is a little long, but it’s whatever.

Once this album hits “I’m Movin’ On”, and the extent of the Memphis soundscape starts to REALLY integrate itself into the album, it never once looks back. It was already pretty good before that point, but afterwards, it just absolutely soars to the finish. Elvis’s charisma & charm just elevates as high as the instrumentation takes him, & with every track being really well-written, the overall musicianship just feels like listening to a guy at his peak, & “In The Ghetto” feels like a perfect closer to the whole package. Even though this album doesn’t technically include “Suspicious Minds”, I’d be remiss to not talk about it – it only takes one listen to hear the acclaim on that track, and while I’d never paid closer attention to it until now, something about Elvis’s delivery throughout just oozes confidence, even on a track centered around the pain of doubt. It’s a great track, and the fact that it’s not even part of the main track list here just kinda proves how good the album is overall.

Hence, a 10. I’m surprised I’m at a 10, but there’s really not a single miss here & I enjoyed the hell out of the whole thing. Sure, others might dismiss it as cheap country fare that occasionally gets a cool drum beat behind it, but for my tastes, it just feels like Elvis modernizing his sound in a way that feels natural. At the very least, it’s probably an attempt to prove he can still hang in there even while four dudes in England were revolutionizing the world, and I think he hung in there pretty damn well. Sure, it’s no “Abbey Road”, but it’s not trying to be. It’s just Elvis in Memphis, and he sounds great. It’s a 10.

I’m at a 2.5 that I’ll bump down to a 2.

I mean, look, it’s not BAD. It’s just boring as hell. So many of these tracks are culturally specific, so without the inroads of understanding why these tracks are so important (think Ravi Shankar’s ‘tutorials’ during “The Sounds of India”), a lot of them just feel very, very similar. Since the lyrics aren’t really online for a lot of these, it’s up to the vibes, and sadly, the vibes just aren’t really there. I don’t know if the style this album is going for directly forbids horns from being involved (it certainly seems to love & rely on the bongos / conga drums), but they felt DESPERATELY needed on a lot of these tracks. Past that… christ, they’re just too long. So many of these tracks could be finished after 2 or 3 minutes, but they all just go on for too long in a way that doesn’t work together as an album experience.

Hence, a 2, though it could bump up to a 3 in the future if even just one more track clicks a little better. I just wasn’t that impressed, & ironically, the most compelling tracks here are the ones without any vocals to begin with, so maybe the instrumental approach would’ve worked better? It certainly worked for “Kenya”, which was released the very same year as this, and felt like a bolt of lightning compared to this. There’s just nothing here to hook onto meaningfully, and while it’s really not that bad, I can’t in good faith say it’s an album you need to listen to before you die.

I’m at a 3.5 that I’ll bump down to a 3, though I'd prefer to stay at a 3.5.

I mean, it’s definitely not a bad album. I don’t even know if it necessarily has a bad track. I just don’t think it’s the most compelling album in terms of buying into what Tim Buckley is selling here; the wit of his folksier stuff is gone, euphemism is dead, & frankly, it’s just kind of a horny album. One’s enjoyment of this album will center around how willing you are to buy into it, and I…

I don’t know, I guess I rented it? A lot of these tracks set their soundscapes in stone really early, and don’t progress too much afterward – something like “Sweet Surrender” seems like a prime example. It’s a 7 minute track, but it kinda settles into itself about 3 minutes in & just stays around that vibe, never building up too much higher. If you’re not sold on that track by then, you’re just kinda stuck for the ride. A totally fine ride, and one that’ll get you to your destination without bothering you, but it’s not one you’d glowingly recommend. That’s my experience with it, but I can understand people loving that one. On the flipside of it, you have a track like “Hong Kong Bar” which literally never lifts past its acoustically driven start, but for my tastes, I bought into it even though I thought the pacing was slow & the instrumentation could use a little more to it. It’s just solid storytelling.

All of those rentals leave me with an album that I kinda like, but not one that has me convinced to truly spread the word on it. I don’t think it’s as clever as his folksier stuff, and while I like the energy on a lot of these tracks, his vocals are prominent enough that the horniness of lyrics does directly impact that energy, in ways that both bring it up & down throughout the album. I don’t think there’s a bad track here, but there’s never a consistently strong throughpoint to keep the album as compelling as it wants to be & as it tries to make itself sound. Hence, a 3.5 that I’ll bump down to a 3. It’s probably my weakest Tim Buckley album here, which is a shame given how much I liked his other 2 albums on the list, but I really don’t think it’s that bad. It just didn’t click as much for me personally, and if anyone wants to go for a 4 or a 5, I wouldn’t blame them at all. For me though, just a 3.

I’m at a 5 if we’re talking about just the first 10 tracks. I’m at a 4.5 bumped down to a 4 if we’re including the final 3 tracks, which were originally included as a bonus EP. I’ll split the difference and say it’s a 4.5 that I’ll bump up to a 5.

Yeah, that’s confusing, but it feels like the most fair way to split it; out of the first 10 tracks here, I really enjoyed all of them, with the exception of “25%” as a slightly dull instrumental. I think the socio-political lyricism fits really well, the integration of all the synths & effects do a good job of keeping the progression of each track up, and they’re all engaging tracks that both say what they want to say & have a really smooth reggae groove to them. If we’re going by just the first 10 tracks, it’s a really tight 44 minutes that shows why UB40 got on the map really quickly. It’s a genuinely great album.

If we’re throwing in those last 3 tracks though… yeah, I just didn’t vibe with them as much. “Madam Medusa” is fine, but it doesn’t need to be 13 minutes, with the entire back half of the song spinning more wheels than Pat Sajak ever did. It just doesn’t go anywhere meaningful after it’s said what it wants to say, so it feels like a bit of a drag. The “Strange Fruit” cover is fine, but I just wasn’t pulled into it or as captivated by it as I was hoping to be, and while it tries to match a lot of the Billie Holiday’s version vocal style, the instrumental choices take away a lot of that atmosphere. “Reefer Madness” is good, but the sense of progression there just isn’t as strong as the other instrumental tracks on the main album. Overall, it’s a solid enough EP, but if we’re including them as part of the main tracklist, it does pull the album down for me.

So, with that split in mind, I think a 4.5 bumped up to a 5 is the safest call here. The floor, at the very least, is a 3. These guys aren’t necessarily Bob Marley or anything, but this is probably the best non-Marley Reggae album we’ve gotten on the list, and they’ve captured the spirit of the genre well. At the very least, it’s a marked improvement over “Maverick A Strike”, my goodness. I’m glad this wasn’t just “Red Red Wine” 13 times over – it’s a really fun cover, don’t get me wrong, but it’s very cheap reggae. I’m happy it’s on the list, and I think it’s a very safe bump up to a 5.

I’m at a 4.5 that I’ll bump up to a 5.

It’s not quite the dazzlingly human experience of “Either/Or”, but it’s a pretty good album regardless. Part of it is the length; this album is 16 minutes longer, and I’ll be the first to tell you that it’s too long. I don’t think there’s a bad track here, but I do think there’s some tracks that feel unnecessary, adding a little bit of bloat to an album that’s already kinda hard to parse at times, and one that usually leans towards the downbeat & the dismal. I wouldn’t necessarily classify it as a sad album, but it never gets that happy. That’s the other part of it; I just don’t think it’s quite as lyrically tight as “Either/Or” was, or at the very least, it feels like it only reveals its themes closer to the end of tracks, making it a little bit harder to connect emotionally to what Elliott’s going for here.

All of that said, I still think it’s got that humanity to it, but it’s rooted in much more self-doubt. A lot of these tracks seem to touch on the black hole of fame; an inability to really reconcile with being known by so many, yet unknown by the people that he lets in the closest to his life. Whether it’s about his mother, an ex-girlfriend, closer friends, his music label, or just any of the other shit on his plate, this album feels like it’s most directly a plea to be seen by those people, made for the world to hear, yet only for THEM to listen. Unlike “Either/Or”, there’s not as many moments here that reaffirm that it’s OK to go through this stuff, but just sort of an acknowledgement that it’s happened, and just a hope that the right people will reach out to comfort him. It is human. It’s just not as palatably hopeful, nor is it a mirror to the public. It’s a mirror towards himself. That’s partially why this album just feels a little harder to digest, and why I started to sort of drift away from it around tracks 11-13. They’re not bad, but they’re steeped in metaphor that feels tougher to touch on. Thankfully, the final 2 real tracks of the album are both lovely, and really redeem this thing back up to a 5. “I Better Be Quiet Now” is probably my favorite one here.

Hence, a 4.5 that I’ll bump up to a 5. I don’t think I can really go track by track here in good faith, since I don’t think I quite got each track, but it’s worth trying to perceive them & come to some kind of reading about what they’re about. Elliott Smith’s imagery in its finest moments still shines here, and while the soundscapes are a bit more fleshed out than “Either/Or” in a way that takes away some of that intimacy, it still sounds pretty damn good throughout. I really liked the album, bloat & all. I’m glad it’s on the list. Rest in peace, Elliott.

I’m at a 3.5, & I’m going to barely bump it up to a 4 despite my desire to keep it at a 3.5 & this album very nearly crashing itself down to a 3 out of boredom.

This album comes out of the gates really, really nicely through its first 6 tracks; only “Jam-Master Jay” didn’t really click with me like that, and while I did think “It’s Like That” got a bit repetitive near the end, I was digging everything about it. They were both flowing, the pacing was great, the verses were hitting, and for 1984, it felt like the sort of super important rap album people generally call it.

The final 3 tracks here really fucking killed the vibe for me, man. It’s not that they’re bad tracks, but my god, the pacing of the album crawls to a gargantuan halt. You can see it in the Spotify plays here too – people willingly do not listen to these tracks. “Wake Up” is good in its messaging, and I did like it, but it has more break time between verses than it does actual time listening to people rapping, which is antithetical to the whole genre at this time, I think. “30 Days” is kinda fun, but the soundscape between verses is just synthetic & hollow, with nothing to fill out the soundscape in the same way the guitar did on “Rock Box”, and it just kinda drags on because of it. “Jay’s Game” ups that synthetic level even higher, acting as… I mean, it’s something. It didn’t bother me that much, but it’s a structureless attempt at a dance track that barely keeps a consistent rhythm, and goes on way longer than it needs to.

If it weren’t for the strength of the first 6 tracks, I’d be far more inclined to fully bump this down to a 3, and honestly, if you had caught me on a different day that wasn’t right after we got “Planet Rock: The Album”, I might’ve done it. However, I feel like I owe Run-D.M.C. just a little bit of grace for not giving “Raising Hell” a bit more attention, given that it was the 6th album we got. I at least owe it a relisten, because I don't remember it ever getting as dire as the last 3 tracks here did. Hence, a 3.5 that I’ll barely bump up to a 4; a 66% hit rate normally doesn’t earn that, but both “Rock Box” & the Krush-Groove beats just kinda rock hard enough where I feel fine doing so.

Edit: Yes, a rare usage of the edit feature here to say that I have relistened to "Raising Hell" only to discover that it does, in fact, get that dire around the halfway mark. Between that, and giving this album one more relisten to see if the pacing is still a nightmare (and yes, it is), I feel like I genuinely need to edit this to rectify it. I'm sorry; it just isn't that strongly structured of an album. Those tracks I mentioned are still good, but as an album experience, it's worth bumping down from a 3.5 to a 3.

I’m at a 3.5 that I’d like to keep there, but I’ll bump down to a 3, though I do think it could get up to a 4 if it hits a little nicer on another day.

Off the gate, I’d be remiss to not mention Afrika Bambaataa’s sexual abuse allegations; they suck, he REALLY sucks, & the whole thing is sad & deeply disappointing. That said, I’m judging the music & not the man, and for as much as he sucks, this does feel like it probably introduced a lot of production tricks into hip-hop that would permeate & evolve throughout the decade & beyond, so as a piece of musical history of sorts, I can’t in good faith just slap this with a 1 because of one guy’s horrific stuff. Besides, he’s one of just 5 people on the album, so I’m willing to give the other 4 their due instead of him.

As far as the album itself goes, this is sort of a time-traveling journey from 1982 to 1986 with the tracks that are on here, and a genuinely cool look at how production in the genre shifted over such a short time. If you listen to “Planet Rock”, for 1982, it’s probably kinda revolutionary. However, it feels very tame by modern standards, with party vibe lyrics, a solid drum beat & some 808s involved. There’s some really empty segments in there where the soundscape is JUST the percussion, and those moments of emptiness stick out when so much of rap is about filling the soundscape at all times. As the tracks move forward in time, those production quirks start to fill out & feel more modern, and by “Go-Go Pop”, there’s genuinely early elements of New Jack Swing being integrated into the mix. It’s just really cool to listen to.

It’s also just not as compelling as I’m making it out to be; the novelty of the tracks here comes in hearing the production shift over time, and while there are some good tracks here (I think most of the first 5 tracks are pretty good, save for “Frantic Situation”), they overstay their welcome in ways where you’re kinda just left stranded with the beat & a sort of loop to the flow with a different flavor in the lyrics & vocals. They don’t really bother me, but the 5-7 minute runtimes on a lot of these tracks feel unnecessary, made to pad out the album. Obviously, I get it; I don’t think these were made for radio consumption if being played on a cassette or vinyl or a CD. They’re made for actually partying to, and that means making these the extended versions to fill time & fill the air. I do think it suffers as an album experience because of it, though.

Hence, the bump down to a 3 – it’s really not a bad album, and for as much as I’m giving it, I do think it’s worth listening to just to hear some fun production shifts over time. I can understand people going as high as a 5 here, and while I don’t think I’ll get there, there’s a decent chance this album could hit a 4 for me someday if some of the later tracks click a bit more nicely.

Oh, easy, easy, EASY 5. Hell, maybe a 10.

That shit just rocks, man. Yeah, the top review here says everything after the opener feels like “a lesser tier of Huey Lewis”, but the joke is on them; I like Huey Lewis already, so that’s just a positive to me. This album feels like a mix of just about everything you can think of, executed to a really, really strong degree. Hell, just look at the Wikipedia article for it: “hard rock, heavy metal, funk metal, alternative metal, & funk rock with elements of soul, jazz, pop, rap, arena rock, punk & avant-garde jazz”. That is practically all of known music to that point, so you may as well just call this album’s genre whatever the fuck you want. No matter what, the answer is that it fucking rocks.

It’s also a distinctly black album, no matter how much Corey Glover starts to sound exactly like Phil Collins in the back half. A lot of these songs are implicitly written from a black perspective, with tracks like “Open Letter (To a Landlord)”, “Funny Vibe”, & “Which Way To America?” standing out as the most consciously aware ones. I think it’s fair to say that the heavy metal / glam rock era of the ‘80s didn’t have a lot of Black voices behind it, so this is a really welcome change of pace. It also helps that they can fucking rock out with the best of them; Vernon Reid put himself into history the moment he ripped that second, insane guitar solo on “Cult of Personality”, and every single solo & riff after that point is the equivalent of LeBron currently making himself uncatchable on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. His guitar work defines this album’s musical direction, with the bass & percussion (also insanely good) following the path he lays out. They work in an incredible musical harmony here, and while it’s easy to compare them to some bands at points (again, Genesis & RHCP come to the forefront of my mind, with a touch of Megadeth in there at points), I can’t possibly think of many other bands in the ‘80s doing it like this at such a highly blended level. No, Huey Lewis & The News were not ripping it like this either.

Ultimately, I think you just have to hear it to get it, and I just liked every single track here – “Glamour Boys” might be the only one where it feels a touch ‘basic’ by the end of it, but I still liked it, & they’re all ranging from good to great to fucking fantastic (Cult of Personality is an all-timer, & that’s not just the wrestling fan in me talking). I’m annoyed at myself for never hearing anything past the opening track. I need to hear even more of Living Colour. I’m very glad this was on the list, and I think I’m at a 10 here; it’s just something that hits with all my musical sensibilities, and I’m adding everything here to my big playlists. That was rad.

I’m at a 5.

Once again, a Mercury Prize nominee has come through for me on the list. One of the earliest notes I wrote down while listening to “Lights On” was “maximalist Vespertine” – when you listen to the production on that album, it’s full of microscopic precisions to fill out the soundscape. This album just zooms in on that microscope more to make those precisions feel bigger, elevating this just a bit past the trap-driven electronica that would come to define R&B during the back half of the 2010s. For 2014, I’m not sure if this is SUPER innovative (The Weeknd, for example, already had his Trilogy out by this point), but it feels like it’s doing something to progress the style further. Normally, I would say other people refined it better, but I’m not necessarily sure that’s true with this album. Sure, you can point to an album like “ANTI” by Rihanna & say that it integrates trap into her soundscape in a really fruitful way, but that’s not the same as “refining” it. That’s just adjusting it well to her style. This almost feels like a blueprint that others chose to follow.

FKA twigs has a *wonderful* voice here, & while it’s certainly filtered at points, the natural tones of her voice still manage to break through that. This album is defined by glitchier production, with occasional skips, some loose effects at the ends of lines, some fuzzier bass & synth work, but it all stays within a really consistent rhythm. FKA twigs uses the production of this album as a pathway for her own vocal confidence to shine through and steal the show whilst working hand-in-hand with it. It’s hard to describe exactly what this is – I keep calling it trap, but it’s almost like trying to box in Prince as just an R&B artist. It’s rooted there, for sure, with occasional elements of everyone from Bjork to Prince to, oddly, Justin Timberlake at points, but there’s something more to it that you can only really grasp if you hear it. At the very least, it’s rhythmically hypnotic, in a way where you can zone out & not even realize it.

Speaking of Prince, I feel like I have to point out that this is probably the most objectively horny album we’ve gotten since “1999”, though with a much more modern & complicated lens to the whole thing than Prince was providing 45 years ago. It’s an album centered around sex & intimacy, but the act itself takes a backseat to the emotional complications surrounding it & how much it truly correlates to a healthy relationship. I suppose it’s only fair that the whole album ends with her getting her own “kicks” and finding comfort in herself.

Ultimately, I do think the act of listening to this will be far more fruitful than trying to describe it – the production work is truly hypnotic here if you can allow yourself to get into it, and what emerges from it is a really tight 40 minutes that only ever really feels “cookie-cutter”-ish near the end (“Give Up”). Once the beats pull you in, her voice will carry the tracks the rest of the way, and she’s got enough emotional range to really sell these tracks well. If, however, the first track sets a bad tone (it is a little harshly mixed & feels a bit out of tune with the rest of the album), then I can understand bouncing off of this a little bit. It took until midway through “Lights On” for me to really vibe with the album’s direction, and it never stopped from there. Personally, I’m at a 5 – I just kinda fuck with this style a lot, and I really enjoyed it. I feel like I’ve been missing out for 12 years.

I’m above a 5 again, though not quite a 10. It might get there someday though; that’s my favorite (favourite?) Pet Shop Boys album we’ve gotten.

I mean, that’s just a wonderful way to send off ‘80s drum machines & ring in the start of the ‘90s, huh? You can literally hear it over the course of the album – early on, it feels very driven by that drum sound, and from track to track, more & more of the MIDI instruments & House vibes that would come to define “Very” work their way into the soundscape. Ironically, for as cheerful & danceable as a lot of these tracks are, lyrically, it might be their strongest & most somber work, and that just enhances this album even further for me. “Being Boring” immediately sets the tone as a track about the AIDS epidemic & Neil Tennant losing so many of his friends to the disease, yet it’s backed behind a catchy, layered beat that feels almost as rhythmic as Depeche Mode (yes, “Violator” was an inspiration for this album, & they DO get as rhythmic as Depeche Mode at points).

That somber tone is there throughout the whole album, and it comes across more effectively than “Actually” did to my ears nearly 700 days ago; “Actually” is still a great album, but their songwriting skills weren’t as sharp as they are here. Neil Tennant’s vocal delivery on a lot of these tracks feels more potent too, adding some extra weight to the instrumentals. Hearing this album, it makes it more clear that “Very” was a direct pivot to go full UK House mode & create the more upbeat album that they wanted to make with this one – I still love “Very”, but I think I prefer the variety this album has. “Very” feels poppy & vibrant on every track with Sonic CD orchestra hits throughout, but this album can go from the Sade-inspired sounds of “To Face the Truth” to the Bobby Brown vibes of “How Can You Expect to Be Taken Seriously?” without missing a beat, before practically just doing “Vogue” on a track like “The End of the World”.

I truly can’t understand the 3.08 on the site; unless people just have a deep disdain for the very tail end of ‘80s production, it feels lower than it should be. I’m not saying this is as good as “Violator”, but it feels like it’s close to the realm of conversation, and that album has a 3.7 on the site. I know “Policy of Truth” fucks (& the lead synth on that track is used on this album a lot), but still. My best guess is the other Pet Shop Boys albums not clicking as well & creating a predetermined disdain towards this (either that, or the really loose Phil Collins-era Genesis vibes that permeate a lot of this album), and that’s unfortunate if so. For my tastes, I think it’s the best album out of the 3 they’ve got on the list, and I can safely say I’m a fan of them. It’s a very easy 5 for me, and a bit higher. Maybe even a 10 someday. I need to seek out more of their stuff.

I’m above a 5. Not a 10, but… wow.

I mean, look, I’ll admit; I’m as lost lyrically as everyone else. I do think I have slightly more of a sense of what these tracks are all about, with some family / relationship dynamics in play, explored with the flowery language of an early 20th century poet describing things with a mind’s eye that feels lost in the modern day, or at least, something that feels more innately human at its core as opposed to such recent wordsmithery as “Spongebob Big Guy Pants OK”.

The lyrics do help, to a point, but they help in the same way that reading a Shakespeare play will only help you understand the meaning – a true Shakespearian performance is just that: the performance. The lines mean something, but the actor’s delivery, body language & clearly shown passion for the role they’re playing has to tell the story most effectively, and Joanna Newson’s approach to this album lies in the same range. Sure, her vocals can feel shrill at times, sort of like Bjork with an Amy Winehouse twang, but after the first track showcases the ‘worst’ of it (which is simply her out of the rhythmic structure), it becomes far easier to fall in love with her delivery, as she hits these lines & rides on the instrumentals with the precision of someone doing Hamlet.

I do think one’s enjoyment of this album will come in the tolerance of that – this is an album that requires patience, for the stories told within to build up and slowly reach the climax she wants, yet without the instrumentals always matching that same sense of climax. The catharsis is not the same as a big beat drop (though there are some moments where the instrumental intensity picks up in similar ways), but rather, just little releases of tension that guide the album from section to section. The longer it goes, the more your ears will feel used to the pace & language she’s speaking with, so if you can get past the earliest bumps of “feeling out” the album, then I think it’s well worth it. If you don’t have the patience for longer tracks, or for storytelling that takes this much time, or the tone of her vocals or the looser “medieval” feel to the instrumentation, then you will probably bounce off of this album. I wouldn’t say bouncing off of it means you have to give it a 1, but it is what it is.

Ultimately, if you can find the grace for it, or if you just have a fun penchant for this sort of soundscape / overall style, what emerges out of it is a delightfully strong album. I do think it’s a bit too cryptic to really warrant a 10 like that, & any album that feels like it needs a Genius caption for every single line might be just a little too flowery for its own good. However, I’m certainly above a 5 with this – I think it’s a lovely, lovely album, & even in its most flowery & confusing moments, I found myself just mesmerized by it, with a sort of pageantry that I can’t explain. I’m glad it’s on the list, and even if you bounce off of it, it’s certainly worth giving a try before you die.

I'm pissed this isn't on Spotify.

I’m at a 4.5 that I’ll bump up to a 5.

I didn’t really know what to expect going into this, other than some early synthpop efforts, but color me surprised at how effectively atmospheric this album comes across as, at least with the technology available to these guys in 1981. It’s definitely dated to those early efforts, and bands like Depeche Mode & Eurythmics would take the general blueprint this album provides and run with it to really high highs, but for such an early shot, they set a REALLY strong blueprint up. There’s parts here that feel like Cocteau Twins as much as they feel like Kraftwerk. Sure, the percussion doesn’t feel as effective as later punchier gated reverb drums would be, but it does its job of setting a good tone. The keyboard & synth work really enhances that tone further – lots of deeper held notes give each track an anticipation that keeps the progression from ever feeling super stale, and while it does get a little self-indulgent at times with some longer sections, I never found it to be super distracting. The same goes for the vocals; lots of loose imagery with these lyrics that don’t feel super complete by themselves, but the delivery gives each track the final step for the emotional pull to really come through.

So, why a 4.5 instead of a flat 5? I just think the pacing of the album could use a bit of work. Yes, those longer sections aren’t super distracting, but when they build up multiple times over the course of the album, you start to feel them a bit more, with “Sealand”’s extended segments being the biggest ‘offenders’ (loosely used) here. Those longer sections also lead to my other small issue with the album; a lot of these tracks are kinda cramped, never quite giving the listener some moments to breathe & digest in some of the songs. I chalk both of those up to early synthpop efforts & this being from 1981. I really can’t say there’s a bad track here, and while the production being so dated to that era might be the catalyst for a very fair 3, it just doesn’t bother me like that. I sort of wish I could keep it at a 4.5, but I do think it’s worth bumping up to a 5; I just really enjoyed it, and I’m glad it’s on the list.

I’m at a 5.

Not that much to say; that shit just kinda rocked. I’m really stunned that’s from 1990, honestly. It felt like a complete snapshot of everything in the decade to come in the rock / grunge space, and I can hear everyone it might’ve influenced within it (and it seems like that’s a lot of people). The bass work in particular feels way, way ahead of schedule, the transitions are on point, & some tracks have an angst to them that makes them feel like they’re from the back half of the decade, in a good way. The percussion brings in a ridiculous energy on a lot of these tracks with some really fun fills, the vocals are strong enough to carry melodies without ever feeling like they’re in the way of the instrumentals, and overall, I really can’t find a single flaw with this album. I guess I could nitpick and say “Two Beats Off” goes a little long, but besides that, it’s a really satisfying 35 minutes.

Lyrically, I do think it could be just a bit tighter; that’s not really a flaw, just a personal thing. The anti-capitalist / anti-consumerism sentiments are welcomed here, but they do touch on that well a lot without really saying anything too differently from track to track. It is still pretty relevant, though. Overall, I think it’s a really good 5; certainly surprised me for a genre name that feels as loose as "post-hardcore", but maybe I'll need to find more of this stuff. I’m very glad it’s on the list.

I’m at a 5.

Who even is Beck, anyway? I thought “Sea Change” was depressingly lovely when we got it 630 days ago, but it’s clearly far, far different from the guy’s more standard fare if this album is anything to go by. I knew “Loser” was sort of a loose rap track with some acoustic flair behind it, but somehow, my brain never parlayed that into it being his whole shtick, with some wild genrebending in between, including some plunderphonics / sampling throughout that feels reminiscent of the Beastie Boys. It’s a shtick that I like a lot, and one that feels innovative for ‘96, at least in terms of reaching the mainstream.

I also find myself struck by how the lyrics come across; a lot of this feels like total nonsense with a tight structure, and the confidence of the delivery & flow somehow makes them feel compelling all the same. There’s a review on the site that compares his style to Anthony Kiedis, and I honestly hear it. The Red Hot Chili Peppers can cover it up with great grooves, and Beck does a lot of the same. Yes, the Peppers are a bit catchier & a bit easier to sing along to (and at least, on this album, I can’t say there’s a catchy chorus like “Loser” has), but something about Beck’s up & down approach clicks really well. “Where It’s At” does the filter trick where Beck is practically screaming into a mic layered at the end of the chorus, and that dichotomy between being really chill & being kinda manic just keeps this whole album on its toes, in a really positive way.

That said, I can’t help but wonder if the album could’ve ended at a much safer spot on “Where It’s At” – I like every track here, but it does feel like diminishing returns start to come in immediately afterwards, with “Minus” feeling a bit plain afterward, “Sissyneck” being a little goofy (in a good way), “Readymade” being cool in concept but a little safe in execution, and with “High 5” being a little bit of a proto-Limp Bizkit in a fun but strange way. No complaints about “Ramshackle” though; that’s a great track. The last 5 tracks didn’t wear me down or anything, but they don’t exactly keep the album gliding with the same momentum it had through the first 8 tracks. If that’s enough to bump this album down to a 4 for some people, I think that’s valid. If “Computer Rock” did it though, that’s just petty.

Ultimately, I think it’s still a pretty strong 5 for my tastes. I can’t tell you half of what Beck was talking about, but I can tell you how cool the production work is & how charismatic Beck comes across, even in his sort of lackadaisical way. I just think it’s a fun album, and while it could’ve been a SUPER tight 33 minutes (or 38 minutes if you want to add “Ramshackle”), I think there’s no shame in the full 52 minutes here. It’s pretty enjoyable throughout, and I feel like I have a way better sense of who Beck is as an artist compared to “Sea Change”, which was already pretty good. I really hope we get “Guero” soon, just because I’m very intrigued to see what he does with 2005 tech. For this album though, it’s a pretty strong 5.