Reviews by mattrickpow

Overall: 8/10

I love this early version of R.E.M., it's very energetic and mysterious. After not loving Green, I kind of assumed they were one of those bands that I would only like the radii hits but this album changes my opinion on that. Pretty much every song is enjoyable.

I think it all comes down to the guitars for me. I don't normally love that "jangly" sound but it's utilized to perfection here (mostly). I also love Michael Stipe's voice even if I don't understand most of his lyrics. Great album, so glad I gave it a fair shot.

Fav Song: Radio Free Europe
Least Fav Song: Shaking Through

Overall: 9/10

Rush is one of my all time favourite bands. This isn't their best album in my opinion, but the title track is so epic and worth listening to on it's own. The second half of the album has some bangers as well, though they almost seem like an afterthought.

It's insane that the (possibly) greatest drummer of all time was in the same band as the (possibly) greatest bassist of all time, it makes it hard to focus on just one of them! Geddy's vocals also sound awesome on this album, I know his voice can turn some people off but I love it. Alex is also no slouch on the guitar, his solos are a huge highlight for me.

I'm sad that I never got to see these guys live. RIP Neal Peart.

Fav Song: 2112
Least Fav Song: Lessons

Overall: 10/10

As I was relistening to this for the 5000th time this morning, I was thinking about how much this album has meant to me over the last 10+ years since I first heard it. It's quite possible that this album has shaped my taste in music more than any other and for that reason I'm pretty confident in saying it's a top 3 album of all time for me.

It's rock music, but it's so original and creative and brings in influences from so many different sources. It sounds like it's trying it's best to be a 50's rock n roll album made by an inmate serving 25 to life.

Black Francis is one of the most unhinged vocalists to ever exist. Kim Deal may not be the most technical bassist out there but her basslines are so hypnotic and engaging, and I love her backing vocals so much (big fan of The Breeders as well). The guitar work from Joey Santiago came from the dark recesses of his brain, it's really the only way to explain it. David Lovering....OH MY GOD he's the secret weapon, not too flashy but you find yourself air drumming some of his parts, not realizing how impactful it was to a song.

I genuinely think every single musician on the planet should listen to this album. It reshaped my brain and made me able to enjoy a wider variety of music than anything I'd heard before it. Also, sometimes I find a song that makes me cry because of how good it is, and I'm pretty sure Hey was the first song that made me cry for that reason.

Fav Song: Hey
Least Fav Song: Silver

Overall: 6/10

This was incredibly okay! Sort of country, sort of folk, sort of rock. There were moments of greatness but for the most part, it wasn't anything that usually catches my attention.

Fav Song: With Tomorrow
Least Fav Song: The Virgin

Overall: 4/10

This isn't bad, but no matter how hard I try to give it a fair chance, it just ends up being background noise for the most part. I don't really like Cee-Lo's voice that much and I don't think he's a great rapper. There were definitely moments that caught my attention but they were few and far between.

Fav Song: My Kind of People
Least Fav Song: Scrap Metal

Overall: 7/10

I mostly knew Yeah Yeah Yeahs from the songs Maps and Heads Will Roll (which is on this album) and Karen O's work on the Her soundtrack. I like the sound of this album, it has a very disco inspired feel while retaining a punk sound that I'm sure fans of their early work would appreciate. Almost every song makes me want to dance.

Fav Song: Dull Life
Least Fav Song: Skeletons

Overall: 6/10

I liked this a lot more than I expected. I already got the other Aguilera album on the list before this (does she really need 2???) and wasn't a huge fan but this one caught me off guard. There's quite a bit of variety, and I enjoyed the latin vibes. Christina has such an incredible voice and the songs on here are a great showcase for her talent. I personally wouldn't have included it in this list but compared to some of the other garbage that the listmakers added, this isn't a bad addition.

Fav Song: Fighter
Least Fav Song: I'm OK

Overall: 6/10

I've never knowingly listened to an Emmylou Harris song before today and I find her to be an impressive songwriter. I find her lyrics poetic and her vocals very beautiful. I also love that this album seems to be a departure from the traditional country sound (and let's be real, any departure from country tradition is a good one). I could personally do without the religious imagery in some songs but it doesn't affect my rating at all.

Fav Song: J'ai fait tout
Least Fav Song: Red Dirt Girl

Overall: 7/10

If this was the first time listening to this album it would have gotten a lower rating, but I've grown to really enjoy it. Obviously Clapton sucks as a person, but I love his guitar playing here. Jack Bruce also has an underrated voice and Ginger is THE drummer of the 60s. The first half is much better than the second half, it seems they saved the worst for last. I don't know if psychedelics would make this album more enjoyable quite honestly.

Fav Song: Sunshine of Your Love
Least Fav Song: Mother's Lament

Overall: 1/10

I feel this could only be enjoyable when you're under the influence of many illegal drugs.

Fav Song: Not even gonna bother, man

Overall: 7/10

The guitar work is obviously great but I want to give a shout out to the rhythm section, those guys killed it! I respect this kind of latin music and there were a few tracks here that I liked but this generally isn't the type of stuff I listen to. If anything, I just kept thinking about the film A Serious Man instead which was really distracting lol pretty enjoyable overall though, I may listen to this a bit more in the future.

Fav Song: Mother's Daughter
Least Fav Song: Incident at Neshabur

Overall: 8/10

I've enjoyed most of Brian Eno's work as a producer in the past so I've been excited and anxious for one of his albums to pop up and the day has finally come. What a strange, fun, experimental and cool album!

There are so many moments that reminded me of all the groups he wound up producing for in the future and I had to keep reminding myself that this came first! I hope it's not too much to suggest that the new wave blueprint came from Eno himself.

This is an essential work with intentionally disjointed and fun instrumental work (those guitars blow me away). Not all of the songs hit hard but the ones that do are masterpieces. This won't be for everyone but if you keep an open mind then you're bound to find something you enjoy here.

Fav Song: Dead Finks Don't Talk
Least Fav Song: Driving Me Backwards

Overall: 5/10

So, I'm laid off from work this week. Apparently that's a blessing in disguise because I can listen to this goliath throughout the day instead of devoting 3 hours straight to one album.

It didn't help. This is good music, and Ella Fitzgerald had an incredibly smooth voice that's soothing and exciting all at once. That album length though....you get fatigued pretty quickly then check how many songs are left and start to groan. If you want to listen to this much of one thing in one sitting then that's your perogative, but I prefer short doses of perfection and I didn't enjoy this enough to excuse the runtime.

Fav Song: N/A
Least Fav Song: N/A (hard to choose when it all kind of blended together)

Overall: 9/10

YEAH STEELY DAN WOOHOO STEELY DAN GIMME DAT STEELY DAN WOOHOO YEAH

My love of the Dan kind of started out as a joke cause all my friends would laugh whenever I would play them and constantly yell STEELY DAN, but after a while the joke turned into a full on obsession. Now I listen to them pretty much every day.

I love all of their albums but I think this is the one they really hit their stride. There's more emphasis on the jazzier elements compared to the first 2 albums and Donald Fagen sounds more confident than ever.

I think I slightly prefer Aja but this is a close second for me. I wish Gaucho was in the list but it's not like it's going anywhere lol

Fav Song: Rikki Don't Lost That Number
Least Fav Song: Through With Buzz

Overall: 6/10

This generator seems to want to get all the Neil Young out of the way early lol I enjoyed this one but it was definitely my least favourite of his albums I've heard so far. The music is pretty chill for the most part while the lyrics are depressing as hell. It's a good contrast actually. If I'm being honest, there were times I felt myself dozing off due to the vibes. It's not his best work but it's enjoyable.

Fav Song: See the Sky About to Rain
Least Fav Song: For the Turnstiles

Overall: 10/10

Already one of my all time favourites. Just a perfect pop rock album with a punk attitude. Costello is a lyrical genius in my opinion and these songs still blow me away every time I hear them. I honestly don't have much else to say, it's just stellar in every way.

Fav Song: Living in Paradise
Least Fav Song: Hand in Hand

Overall: 8/10

I'm obviously not the first person to mention this but this album is very reminiscent of Pet Sounds/Smile era Beach Boys. Lush orchestration and beautiful harmonies dominate and I love it so much. We need more modern music like this in my opinion. I've never listened to XTC before but they definitely have a new fan. It's a shame this isn't on Spotify cause I want to add so many of these songs to my playlists.

Fav Song: I'd Like That
Least Fav Song: I Can't Own Her

Overall: 9/10

This is my kind of hip hop. It's three incredible MCs putting their skills together to rap about something meaningful. There isn't a second wasted on this thing.

I don't live under a rock, so obviously I knew about the endless critical acclaim this album has received. Still, I avoided it for so long cause I was afraid it wouldn't live up to the hype. What a dummy. Like many people, I have a soft spot for Lauryn Hill's voice, and I found myself loving everything 10 times more whenever she started rapping.

The other two guys are great rappers as well and get their chances to shine. I can't consider this my all time favourite hip hop album (I'll talk about that one day as it's in the list) but it's amazing and I'll be listening to it nonstop for a while.

Fav Song: How Many Mics
Least Fav Song: The Beast

Overall: 6/10

This album's biggest sin is that it comes right after THAT album. It's second biggest sin is Lindsey Buckingham.

That's a bit of a joke but there's some truth to it. While the rest of the band decided to keep up the same sound they perfected on Rumours, Mr. Buckingham went for a more experimental approach. I'm not positive about this but I'm pretty sure his songs are mixed differently because I could tell which songs were his before his voice even came in.

The songs from Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie are pretty good for the most part. They both have beautiful voices (obviously) and seem to understand what made Rumours such a special album. Sadly, all the different sounds make for a very inconsistent album.

It's rare for a band to follow up a mega hit with something that lives up to the same quality, and that's why I'm not being more harsh on this one. It's not an amazing album but there's some good tunes on here that any Fleetwood Mac fan would be happy to add to their playlists.

Fav Song: Sara
Least Fav Song: That's All for Everyone

Overall: 8/10

Man, this album brings back so many memories despite the fact that I don't think I've ever listened to it in it's entirety? The first 5 tracks are not only bangers but I still know so many people who can belt out every single lyric from them. I was actually shocked that all of those songs came from the same album.

It's honestly just really good, creative pop rock. It's hard to talk about the individual elements cause I feel on their own they wouldn't be noteworthy but together they create a great mood. The one thing I can pinpoint for sure is that Brendan Flowers is an incredible vocalist with a lot of power and personality in his voice. He's the reason every white person on the planet has to stop what they're doing and sing whenever Mr. Brightside comes on.

Would have gotten a 5 from me but the second half loses a bit of steam.

Fav Song: Mr. Brightside
Least Fav Song: Everything Will Be Alright