Reviews by tjehl

Pleasantly surprised to find Alvvays here.

On Blue Rev Alvvays dive further into the shoegaze inspiration, pushing their catchy songwriting even further, proving that you need Irish sounding last names to be able to handle the genre properly.

Ela Minus starts off by promising a rather daring album with the ambient "Abrir Monte" - the rest of the album is in doubt if it wants to go full pop or stay on course though.

Diá was altogether a fine listen but really nothing out of the ordinary.

I could sense the Mercury Prize nomination from miles away.

Supernova is an awful piece of work, where Nova Twins juggle with a wide array of genres and catch very few of them.

The 30 minute runtime felt like hours and I couldn't wait for this hyperactive and silly record to be over with.

I remember Mon Rovîa starting to tease "Heavy Foot" on social media some time in 2025, and I just couldn't wait for him to drop the single and subsequent album.

Luckily it didn't disappoint one bit.

The honesty and earnestness of his songwriting is so simple and pure that this 16 song debut, a pretty daring length I might add, just flies by in the blink of an eye.

I'm still surprised that the obvious hit, "Heavy Foot", doesn't really stand out that much. It's just solid songwriting through and through.

It's honestly a surprising addition to the book, but a welcome one for sure.

Poppy is incredibly talented, there's no denying it.
Empty Hands just isn't her best piece of work - which makes this an even weirder inclusion, given there are no other Poppy-albums on this list. Is it really just because it's the newest? I fear that it is.

I feel like Poppy tries to find the right balance between catering to new fans of her pop-oriented metal universe and the harder, more industrial-oriented side. The balance on Empty Hands is just a bit - I'm not really sure Poppy herself actually knows exactly where she's supposed to be heading from here.

That being said, I really enjoyed a lot of the songs - even some of the really polished ones like "Guardian", which was an absolute highlight for me.

There's really no need for Wuthering Heights to be included on this list. At all. It was released just earlier this year; the reviews were good, but I'm yet to find anyone calling it better than Brat. Also, it's essentially a soundtrack. What is it doing here!?

The album itself isn't bad. Especially "House", the opening track featuring the excellent John Cale, is great - the rest of the album is fine but nowhere near that opening. Charli's approach into something darker and more gothic is intriguing, I just believe she can do better.

It's a 3 by its own means, but a 2 if you were to consider it solely as part of this list.

Pleasently surprised that the skits were kept to a tolerable minimum.

I'm a sucker for a good Q-Tip-production, so it's no surprise that I really enjoyed the groundbreaking sound of The Infamous.

There's no time for much fun on Mobb Deep's bleak and harsh depictions of life in the inner cities - but why would there be, when times are this tough?

Brilliant and legendary album that could have slightly benefitted from ditching the longer skits, that don't provide anything the songs are not already bringing to the table.

Had it not already been on here, this would have been my pick. Insane, chaotic and intensely personal. It’s finished before you notice and fun all the way through.

Brat Summer was THE cultural phenomenon back in '24.
Yet somehow I didn't actually listen to Brat until the spring of '25 - guess I wasn't quite brat enough?

I'm as astonished today as I was back then, that the album didn't produce more major singles, when you think about the impact it made on the year.

I guess I'm not as excited as both fans and reviewers were during the brat craze - but I still think that's Brat is a great pop album, fully deserving af spot on this list.

Had it been a lot longer, I might have started to get hyperpop-fatigue (I know it's not pure hyperpop, don't come at me), but it Charli is clever enough to know when she would've overstayed her welcome.

Zevon is a great personal storyteller with his own very distinct twist to his songs.

Even a few minor missteps don’t keep this from being, if not excitable, then very enjoyable.

Great hidden gem from a band I had absolutely no idea existed. Really enjoyed this one.

Obscure, original German krautrock with Latin chanting? Yes please.

It’s easy to dismiss Weezer, but please name another rock star as capable of pulling off a knitted sweater as Rivers Cuomo? I’ll wait.

Also, “Say It Ain’t So” is just so damn good. Great pick, that should have been on the original list, no doubt.

Probably the best 19-piece band on this list and living proof that jazz is all but dead.

Snarky Puppy is a creative force to be reckoned with and while not every decision on We Like It Here is perfect (“Tio Macaco” being the prime example), it’s an excellent record.

Slowdive is MBV’s dreamier cousin.

This and Loveless are the epitome of shoegaze and are equally deserving of a spot on the list.

Is this release too recent to be eligible for inclusion on a list like this? Possibly, but I don’t care.

Masterful comeback album and perfect in every way. Immediately one of the best The Cure records - and there’s plenty to choose from.

This is an Alex Turner solo album and should never have been released under the Arctic Monkeys name.

It feels very long (even at only 40 minutes) and the songs all have the exact same sound and tempo… But the worst part of it all?

The fact that Matt Helders, one of his generation’s most underrated drummers, is being held hostage on this bore of an album. Hell, he isn’t even the drummer on every track!

It’s not quite a 1 in itself, but it’s a disgrace that this is a Monkeys-album.

Go ahead and replace one of the MANY mediocre post-punk records on the original list with this, please and thank you.

I could easily see this finding its way into my vinyl collection in the near future.

I got Ram the day after Yoko Ono’s horrible Fly, and you’re telling me we don’t live in a simulation?

Ram is not the perfect album some retrospectively make it out to be - but it’s a great look into Paul McCartney, the solo artist, and the direction in which he went post-Beatles.

Should have absolutely been on the original list; in such a degree that I actually thought it was.

Some people will literally pretend to like the music of Yoko Ono rather than go to therapy.

I get it, you hated going through the original list - but why take it out on us?