Reviews by meemesker

I'm not a huge Tim Buckley fan. I like some of his earlier records much more than this one. The singing style here begins to grate on me after awhile. It's like some kind of carnival ride throwing you about this way and that. I find it exhausting. I also find the whole raunchy thing he's got going off-putting.

Seems like what they have up on Spotify doesn't have all the tracks from the original album which is kinda disappointing. Its funny cause I'm reading a book about krautrock right now and there's a whole chapter about the Hamburg red light district scene from this era and the Star Club in particular. Didn't realize such an iconic live album came from their efforts to put out records. I was pretty into all the big Sun Records artists back in high school. Even had a Sun Records t-shirt. Probably liked Jerry Lee the most of all for his unique phrasing and sheer energy. He never seemed to be able to really break out much beyond his initial success like Elvis or Johnny Cash but he really seemed to embody the real spirit of rock and roll more to me. And that is very much in evidence on this recording. Kinda like that it is very simply recorded and retains a sort of rawness that sounds very honest and accurate to the live experience.

Don't really have a lot to say about this. I'm not even sure how I feel about it really. I don't love it but it does make me vaguely nostalgic for the era it was produced in. Not that I was listening to this at that time.

This is what 1001 albums is for. I had only heard the radio hits and kind of written the Pretenders off for some reason. Just never took the time to listen further. This is way edgier than what I was expecting. Like the punk energy with the catchy pop hooks. Chrissie Hynde has instantly shot up into my top female performers of all time list. Had no idea she was the lead songwriter and rhythm guitarist. Love her vocal style. Like some kind of hybrid of Joni Mitchell and Patti Smith. Super impressed. Have to say, though I love Nick Lowe, I'm glad he only produced the one single and not the rest of the album. His track is too thin and bright and kind of sticks out awkwardly in the mix of the album. I think I'll be going through the rest of their catalog now.

Like the sound of this with the combination of live instrumentation and samples. Really natural and organic feel and flow. Also like that it's simply Q Tip as the MC and not bogged down in too many guest MCs. He brings in singers to sing but not to rap. Bonus points with me: he covers/samples Can on "Manwomanboogie"

Read up a bit on this before listening as I hadn't heard of this one. Expected to hate it but on first listen it's alright. Definitely has some catchy pop hooks. Hearing all the influences listed in the descriptions. About 1/3 of the way through it's starting to wear thin for me though. Don't like the songs with string arrangements at all - seems unnecessary. "Kung Fu" is plain dumb. Can't believe it was a hit. Their music is kinda like junk food. It tastes good at first but if you try to make a meal out of it, it'll make you sick.

I listened to this several times. It has a pleasant sound but also a deep sadness.

This album kicks off my favorite period of his career where the more creative instrumentation begins. This sound is equally as distinctive as his iconic voice, his choice of imagery and subject matter, or his tendency to incorporate spoken word into his music. He achieves a sort of timeless sound that is at once nostalgic for a vague sense of the past and yet simultaneously bleeding edge somehow. Always an iconoclast, he doubles down on it here and his play certainly paid off. Although I do appreciate this album as his career turning point, I have deeper personal connections to the albums that followed. I like how the album goes out on an instrumental number.

I generally like this kind of 60s pop but as the album went on it wore thin with me, particularly when they got to "a place in the sun" which I thought was overdone.

Do like their combination of synths and guitars. Not my favorite album by them but their sound in general definitely works for me.

I find this to be an exceptionally bold and daring album for being so late in his career. Perhaps this was partially fueled by his awareness of his own mortality at that point. The album is of course irrevocably tied to his death and one cannot help but hear him grappling with his knowledge of this throughout. I remember when first listening to this album upon it's release, it was quite an emotional experience with that in mind. A rare album where an artist was able to lucidly capture this very real sense of mortality and make it sound somehow fresh and vital. Bowie made his life into art from beginning to end.

I do like the cure but this isn't my favorite album by them. Was interesting to see they talked to Conny Plank about producing but it didn't come to pass. I'd bet if he did produce this album it'd be one of my favorites. Have them go out to Conny's studio in the country and they'd have produced a much different album. Maybe not quite so bleak. Sheesh.

Ahead of it's time, preceding much of the sound of the 90s. Only reference points from that time I can think of are The Meat Puppets and some of the more melodic songs by Sonic Youth where Thurston sings. Both bands also on SST at the time. Odd ending to the album feeling cut off.

It's fine.

They went out on top here.

Not really a fan of the inclusion of these types of later career albums by established artists on this list. Much rather hear any of her first 12 albums than her 21st album. Much rather hear more vital music from artists establishing themselves from this time period than a "return to form" from a well established artist. Do you see any Frank Sinatra or Little Richard albums from the 70s taking up space on here? No. Because if you did it would take the place of much more vital/relevant music from that time period and it wouldn't make any sense. So why do you see so many of these albums that are a good decade or two after these artist's prime on this list as we get towards more recent music? I can only imagine it is a reflection of the average age of the people making the list. Baby boomers doing what they do best and taking up all the space and resources they can for themselves and consequently stifling the opportunities for younger generations to thrive (probably without fully realizing they are doing so). Not a critique of the album but the list itself.

This album is an absolute phenomenon, a supernova for the group. While I do like some of their solo material that came afterwards, I feel they were stronger together. In fact, when I think about it, I personally tend to prefer hip hop groups like this for the dynamics it provides. I feel like this album is largely a result of their creating a home studio and being given complete artistic control. A case where label trust paid off in dividends. I love the atmosphere they captured and cinematic flow throughout. Always been more of a fan of the east coast sound in general. The Fugees are particularly skilled at layering (often brief) overdubs in just the right places to build a very complex sound that isn't overly dense so as to weigh it down. Lauryn Hill is definitely my favorite female rapper and a big part of what makes this album stand out. Another thing that sets this album apart are the covers/adaptations they incorporated and while some may think that may detract from it as a pure hip hop album in some way, I think it's stronger for it musically. In fact, I think this album's greatest strength may be it's depth and range of emotions.

Love the mood throughout. The time signatures are fun.

I remember when this came out it was like a new drug had been introduced. People reacted differently to it of course, but many, myself included, found it very addictive. Such a punchy, high-contrast sound. Expert layering/structuring of samples that keeps the fun and excitement up throughout.

Although I love bass, I also enjoy a duel guitar setup. Lots of fun interplay here. Like a good trio too cause you can hear each element so distinctly. Wish I woulda caught a show back in the day.