Reviews by scribeben

Underrated record of theirs. I’m pleasantly surprised it’s on here.

I might have seen these guys at Woodstock ‘99. In any case, the hook from “Baby’s Got Sauce” has occasionally popped into my head over the years. There’s some decent jazzy grooving here, but the vocals are rather obnoxious.

A throbbing good time

This guy was clearly a profound influence on Mark Lanegan. Check out Lanegan’s cover of “Ba-Di-Da”. I like the expressive guitars here even more than the singing which itself is quite good. Some tracks are more engaging than others. “Sweet Cocaine” is crazy.

Another gorgeous, sonically inventive record from Björk. Arguably her overall best.

Chill, creative hip hop, though I got a bit bored in the middle.

I don’t like this as much as her other record on here but it’s improvisational energy is definitely something, especially after the first few tracks which I wasn’t digging as much.

Wanted to hate this as a racist appropriation of Black culture, but some of it is kinda cool, and it definitely had an influence on Tom Waits, which, sadly makes me rethink Waits himself a little…

Too many amazing songs on this not to give it five stars. Sure there are some wacky tracks, but they add to the charming madcap pastiche of the thing.

I enjoyed this record when it came out a couple of years ago but less than some of her earlier work such as Massseduction. I feel like a lot of the more recent additions to this list are playing catch up for artists Dimery missed in previous ones, Lana Del Rey’s Chemtrails Over the Country Club being another example. I’m half-expecting Fear Inoculum to pop up next. However, upon revisiting, this album really is quite badass, blending influences such as Bowie, NIN, Byrne, U2 and more into a unique vision that kind of feels like a love letter to the 90s encounter between glam and industrial but with its own 2020s perspective, and might be her best record, after all.

Gorgeous and brilliant but I’d be lying if I didn’t admit it gets a bit tedious.

A uniquely eccentric, lovely band of fun.

Wow they really put all the Wu Tang solo records on this list. This one stands out for its hooks and especially creative sampling.

Desert Blues has been hands down my favorite genre discovery on this list! More Ali Farka Touré is extremely welcome!

Yes they’re overplayed but what other record starts with three back to back perennial hits that are no bubblegum pop tracks, but are well-crafted songs with depth of composition, passionately delivered? The rest of the tracks are all good to great. “Bullet The Blue Sky” is a banger that anticipates Rage Against The Machine. “Red Hill Mining Town” and “In God’s Country” are overlooked gems. Nonetheless, despite it being perhaps their most consistent, it’s somehow my least favorite of U2’s classic records. Would’ve loved to see Unforgettable Fire here instead but I figured this one would have to show up eventually.

More Aerosmith. I guess this one is another as good as the others. Fewer standout hits but some cool studio flourishes here and there.

Sexually expressive, confessional R&B. Definitely not bad and an interesting listen from a psychosocial point of view, but not really remarkable musically compared to other examples from the genre.

Better than another record of Wilco playing their own songs. I enjoyed the Bragg fronted ones. The Wilco singer trying his best Guthrie impression was somewhat comical though.

Forerunner of all the tepid, gutless pop rock that would dominate the airwaves later in the decade.

This one is a surprise as I was never a big fan of Slipknot and totally stopped paying attention to them after their second record so had never heard of this one before. While this version of the band has some elements (the groove-based riffs and big melodic hooks) that I like, the overall impression is way less distinctive than their earlier stuff and feels very commercial and empty. The chorus vocals are largely full of a disingenuous emotive quality that really turns me off. I dig some tracks more than others. “This Cold Black” and “All Hope is Gone” have some of the old Slipknot blustery fire. The brooding “Gehenna” has some charm to it. I had heard “Psychosocial” before. It’s not terrible as 2000s metal anthems go.