Reviews by k-dot-r

Raw raucous riotous rock & roll, really influential and an important part of the story of so many other bands. And yet, a band I hadn't heard of before! I'm glad to have put that right now, cos they are great.

What a voice! Another very short album, which meant I was able to listen to it a bunch of times - which was good, as I liked it more after a few runs through.

Very old country, far removed from the outlaw version I love. Almost borders on cliché at points, with songs about "borrowed women" and "she left me & I'm sad".
Decent for what it is, but not for me. A worthwhile addition to the list, and one I am happy to have heard, but not an artist I am likely to come back to.

Probably fairer to consider this as a Bowie/Iggy collaboration album, as it is so far from The Stooges and so close to what Bowie was doing. The only issue there would be that I would expect more from Bowie!
It is a good album with plenty of light and shade, and some very odd lyrics, but it just doesn't hit home in the same way as plenty of his other work (both solo and with The Stooges) - so I can't give it full marks. I enjoyed it and found it interesting though, so it came close!

An album of grunge influenced college rock, in a world that was about to become 98.7% nu-metal! Other than sounding out of time, this is a solid album, with a couple of late 90s staples, but it falls just short of full marks for not having an absolute classic, and for being a bit patchy. A solid four 🌟 album

Very polished and over produced, and a band I disliked (a little) even before - for no good reason really. Takes the worst of glam and of hair "metal", and a daft concept and poor songs.
Still significantly better than Nico and anything involving Morisey, but an absolute waste of a place on the list. Only good point is that it is mercifully short.

Very chilled and pleasant, although the spotify link is to a different album. YouTube one works though. Not an album I would ever have listened to without this project, but one I certainly enjoyed. I would probably like it even more after a few listens, but the next album is already waiting for me!

Perfection

Pretty dull at points, but enough hints of Dylan, Springsteen, and some of the better 90s indie, that it didn't annoy me much. I think they were pretty popular with the critics and reviewers at the time, but there's no great evidence for why on this record. In level and (a little) in style, it prompts me to think of what an American Badly Drawn Boy would be like

Terrible

Very odd, with little or no hint of his involvement with some of the biggest bands of the previous decade. I liked it, I think, but it was so weird that I spent most of my first listen through spotting bits that had been sampled (and then trying to work out if it was from this album, or for this album, that the sampling took place!)

Pish, the sound of an indie band trying to make dance music because of a hit remix - the same reason moloko failed after sing it back. A couple of decent songs, and they seem like nice people, but there is absolutely no need for this to be included on the list.

A brilliant fusion of many of the early British and US punk bands, with a clear influence on a bunch of Australian bands since - the likes of You am I, The Living End, Jet, & The Vines owe The Saints a huge debt. I loved it, especially because of its clear sense of both time and place.
A brilliant record (which probably doesn't need the b-sides, rarities and live takes on the linked version)

Not as good as they think it is, but still pretty decent. Overly long, oddly very prog (by 80s standards at least), a few good songs and a whole heap of filler. The most famous song is probably one of the most misunderstood stalker anthems ever.

Must have sounded like it came from the future, but is now so old that it sounds a little dated. A record that has been so influential it sounds like a bunch of other stuff, but it came before pretty much all of it! Not my favourite genre, I prefer analogue instruments and especially value physical drums, but enjoyable and innovative

A couple of decent enough songs, but most of the others sound like poor imitations. Scores OK with its scottish bonus point, but this is actually a 2 🌟 album

Perfect, and yet somehow still not as good as their previous album!

Wonderful and varied, with influences from all sorts of places. Ry Cooder being involved was not something I expected, but was good.

Good, bordering on great. Sounds a lot like early Biffy Clyro - anyone who liked this (and everyone else!) should listen to Blackened Sky, Biffy's first album.
A clear influence on Nirvana as well, but manages to steer clear of the "soundalike" issues some bands run into when their fans become stars.

Delicate and fragile, and a huge influence on pretty much every singer-songwriter since. What happened to him is such a sad story, but he left behind some beautiful songs.