Reviews by houlio_51

Meh. Not bad, but feels a lot like a 90's version of ABBA.

Interesting, but just not my jam.

Good takes on classsics. Not sure I would call them country and western at this point, but it was a great list of standards and Ray does them justice. Not groundbreaking, but solid.

If I hadn't been in my alt-goth 80s emo phase, I may never had heard of them and this would just be an interesting synth pop throw back to the 60s... but I was and so it has a least a little more value to me. 3.

Early British Punk. Classic, but not my favorite.

Listenable. Not groundbreaking to my ear, but some early trip hop and pretty great Dj breaks. 3.

Pretty classic but newer Joni here. I enjoyed it and it had a lot to say. It feels disorganized at times, but her voice and melodies are still remarkable. 3+

I want to like WILCO more than I do. They are raw and simple musically while still being good. They are honest but almost overly so and feels sometimes like it's ironic. 3.

It's no debaser. Interesting and a couple good songs, but not their best. 2+

Just inklings of what they were going to be. Seems odd that there were so many covers, but the arrangements really were great and added to the Beatles folklore. 3+

So good. It's gotten better with age and just the list of people and bands that they influenced from Queensryche to INXS, and more. Effectively and beautifully combining keyboards and guitar to create a real rock sound that isn't overly heavy or experimental. 4+

Might be my favorite Beck album. All the influences. All the styles. All the vibes. 4+

I mean, I appreciate the Beach Boys for what they were... fun pop stylized to appeal to the masses. I'd take the more experimentation in Pet Sounds any day, but this is still worthy of a 3.

Different, but kinda the same as the dance music that had been floating around LA and New York for a decade prior. Good solid beats brought to the masses! 3

That era of punk/post punk/alternative is really great. Listening to this you could hear the past (Ramones/Clash), the present (Dead Kennedys/Black Flag) and the future (Dead Milkmen/Fugazi) and even some pop influences. Just right on the edge of being great and the edge of being total crap. I love it for this! 4.

Probably better than I remembered. IM has it's place and should be respected for longevity and some influence if not musicianship. I was expecting not to want to ever listen to another, but that's not the case. I'd see what the rest of their stuff was about before saying never. 2+

Man. Some of this album is really great. Like nearly life-changing great. The focus on jazz... influence from americana and country... throw in the appropriate and fitting use of really good synthesizers and the unmatched vocal energy of Mr. Morrison and it's just solid. The few where the effort or the experimentation just didn't fly are the only things holding it back for me. 4+

Excellent. Rocking with some punk and post punk influences. It stands on it's own even without being one of the best women's rock albums. It's definitely on my list of recurring listens! 4.

The anthems of a generation. The precursor to grunge. The best parts of hair band rock. Interesting arrangements and musicianship. Easily more than half of these songs are legitimately great and a front to back listen is required. 5

I mean, the music is probably better than the Take That bullshit, but the dude is just SO fucking full of himself I can't stand it. No thanks. 1+