Reviews by suspiciousnumber

I was super uninspired to listen to this album today, but I was surprised by how many songs I knew off of here. It's all fine, but I have no real idea why it's on this list. This seems like a fairly traditional white boy blues album with the only twist being that the white boy in this case is a woman. It's like putting a Kenny G album on this list. The best compliment that I give to an album shouldn't be that it's inoffensive

3/5

Immigrant song is a hell of a way to start off an album. After that, this becomes a more straight ahead blues album with hard rock layered over it. It works pretty well, and there are plenty of classic songs on this album. One thing that was hard to keep out of my mind while listening to this is that the next three albums that they are going to put out are going to be IV, Houses of the Holy, and Physical Graffiti. This album is not as strong as those, but on its own it's very good. It's clear that this album is previewing where the band is going, but it's not quite there yet

4/5

It's kind of crazy that it's taken me this long to sit down and listen to a Tupac album. His lyrical style really makes this album. The beats are good, but very subdued. His charisma is what makes this album a classic

I'm really enjoying early synthpop as I learn more about it. This album seems really really well formed for the time it was made. The production of the album is excellent. Giorgio Moroder's influence on the album seems like it adds a lot, though I haven't heard the bands earlier works to compare it to. Super fun pop album that has a lot of elements of synth music that will come to prominence in the decades to follow. This album also features what might be my favorite Velvet Underground cover in All Tomorrow's Parties

4/5

Morrissey and Van Morrison on consecutive days. What have I done to be saddled with these two bastions of COVID misinformation in such proximity?

With that being said, this album is pretty fun. He does white guy blues without it being too cringy. Much like the last Van Morrison album that I listened to, Astral Weeks, there are lots of instrumental additions to the composition that are unexpected and well executed.

I may be of the personal opinion that Van Morrison is a twat, but I guess I like his music

4/5

Oh great, another Morrissey album. I wonder if he's still sad all the time.

Okay, it turns out this album is actually pretty fun and not the absolutely crucifying experience I've come to associate with Morrissey. Lots of diversity in the music, and it works well with his voice. Does this mean that I like Morrissey?

4/5

I thought this album was cool. It definitely mirrors a lot of what other alternative rock groups were doing in the 80s, and as a consequence it doesn't stand out as much as some of the other early alt-rock albums I've listened to, like Surfer Rosa. Still, they made a lot of cool choices on this album.

4/5

A super significant album in the history of both hip-hop and drum and bass. This album became something that it was never intended to be because of the desire to repackage existing music into new dance music. That alone would be enough to recommend this album as a historical document. However, the album kicks ass too. Well worth a listen

This album was one that confused me a lot as to its importance until I looked it up. In a lot of ways it sounds like a typical 80s synthpop album. However, it was released in 1981, which puts it way ahead of its time. Reframing it that way helped me contextualize this work. It's not one that particularly grabbed my interest, but it's good and was clearly influential in the decade it helped usher in

There were times when I really enjoyed this album, and there were times when I wondered how I was going to make it through the entire thing. A double album seems like a bit much, as usual, though I understand it more in this case. This album was meant to be a union of two generations of country and bluegrass musicians. Overall it works, though I wish there was less banter between the songs. I don't see myself coming back to this album, nor, for that matter, finishing it (I'm currently on track 7 of 42).

4/5

I want to like this album, but there is not much carrying it other than Tina Turner's incredible voice. The cover of I Can't Stand the Rain is just a worse copy of the original. The Let's Stay Together and Help! covers add nothing to this album. A lot of the musical accompaniment is pretty uninspired. This album could have really been something if better music was matched up with Turner's vocals, but as it is this album is a couple of highlights without much to fill it in

3/5

Two Beck albums on consecutive days, what could be better? This album was one that I loved when I was younger, and it really holds up. The Dust Brothers were the perfect pairing for Beck. Everything on this album just works. There's not a single song that I don't enjoy or that doesn't fit

5/5

Don't have much time to review, but I really liked this album. Beck does bittersweet really well. I like Morning Phase better as an album, but this one serves as a nice companion piece

I've never been a huge Elvis fan, but this album helps me understand his appeal a bit more. His voice is undeniable: rich and powerful, yet smooth as butter. The production on the album is excellent. The backup vocals are always clear without being overpowering. Great harmonies and fun music

4/5

I really like getting to learn more about post-punk and all of the cool stuff that it spawned. I don't have a lot to say about this album, but it was a good listen. A much subtler touch than the Smiths album I got yesterday

4/5

Sometimes I feel like I'm close to liking Morrissey, but he's just so fucking maudlin all the time. He definitely works better with the Smiths than he does as a solo artist, at least from my perspective. Musically, this album is good and did a great job at keeping my interest. The lyrics are...Morrissey. We get it, you're sad and you hate everyone except your girlfriend, who's in a coma. What kills me is that I like his voice. If he would just sing about some other aspect of the human condition, it would be a good album. Instead we get Holden Caufield Sings the Blues. I don't hate it, but it's so close to being really good that it makes me mad

3/5

I want to like Tom Waits, I really do. I put him in the same category as Frank Zappa. They're both artists that I listen to and consistently feel like their music is almost good. Like, every song on this album is almost good, but they're all missing something. It's like cooking without butter or oil. Sure, all of the parts are there, but where's the fucking flavor?

At the same time, what he's trying to do is cool, and I think this album deserves 4/5. It's unquestionably ahead of its time and it influenced a lot of stuff that came after it. Also, it sounds like a throwback somehow too. Nothing makes sense for this album, but it isn't bad, despite the fact that I don't like it that much

4/5

This is my favorite album of all time. It's one that I listen to rarely because I'm worried that if I listen to it too many times, I won't be able to appreciate its stark beauty.

It's sad and sweet one moment, upbeat the next. What makes this album so great is that it is always absolutely painting a mood. You're meant to feel something with every song, and I always feel it. The instrumentation is exquisite. The compositions are sublime. Even the mistakes and imperfections, like the drummer hitting the cymbal a little too hard when Miles comes in on the first track just work.

Put this album on a rocket ship and send it out into space. That way, if it's ever encountered by intelligent life, the aliens will get to see us at our absolute best

5/5

This was one of the first albums I ever bought, which makes it really interesting to return to it after so long to try and fit it into the context of everything I've learned about music since that time. It certainly stands in stark contrast to the gangsta rap movement that was massively popular when this was released. Their use of funk samples in the big hits off of this album works really well. There are some nice harmonies on this album as well, and it would have been nice if they would have made more use of them

4/5

This album was absolutely not what I was expecting, and I thought it was really cool to here. Mixing traditional Irish and Scottish folk music and instruments into a rock n roll sound actually worked really well. After listening to a few albums that didn't feel like anything special, this was a welcome change of pace

4/5