Reviews by uls980

This honestly sounds like if Taylor Swift hadn't went straight pop and kept the country in her music. Complete with the same weird turns of phrases ("I was hiding in doubt 'til you brought me out of my chrysalis") and same tortured metaphors.

All that said though, this is pretty solid pop country. Some good compositions going on in this one (Oh, What A World with its somewhat OK Computer era Radiohead stuff going on, Lonely Weekend).

I'm mostly just whelmed by this, but I am enjoying my time with it.

Out of the whole 1001 project, I think the biggest disappointment for me has been finding out The Police are a singles band for me.

Every Breath You Take is good, but just fine (Overplayed for me at this point) and Synchronicity II is a stone cold classic, but other than that, there's not a ton on this album that I'm really going crazy for.

Reggatta de Blanc was the same way. First half/singles were good, rest were just OK. I'm finding out I like The Police when they go more punk (Message in a Bottle, Roxanne, Next To You) and less when they stray from that.

So yeah. Bummer.

First of the new 2026 Edition listens, and it's a pretty pleasant listen. If I ever get back to listening to it again, probably will playlist a song or two. Definitely giving me some Bon Iver and Sufjan Stevens vibes.

That said, even for as good as it is, this doesn't feel like a good pick for the list, especially when they only allowed themselves 13 new picks, and especially when the influencing artist (Bon Iver) isn't represented on the list.

Neat album, poor pick for the list.

I'm usually very dismissive when it comes to psychedelic rock, but this album is a reminder that it's mainly the psych from the 60's that I pretty much hate (Although not huge on bands like Beach House or Animal Collective). Because this is a damn good album.

Definitely the best psych albums I've heard since Candy Claws' Ceres and Calypso in the Deep Time.

Loops in the Secret Society is what all those shitty 60's psych bands were going for, but that song actually works (Honestly, this whole album is what those shitty 60's psych bands were going for, they just failed... repeatedly).

That said, I'm not sure this album is super essential, so I'm not hugely broken up about it being removed from the latest edition of the book, but sometimes it's good to have some left field picks, because you get to enjoy good music that you otherwise wouldn't have heard before.

Much like Pornography, this album definitely lacks the hooks that I really like from The Cure, but also much like Pornography, The Cure also excel in less hooky, vibe music.

And that's what this album brings.
I think I slightly prefer Pornography over this one (Just slightly) because Smith's vocals are more upfront and pleading, but it's still a fantastic album.
Although listening to this one again after relistening to to the former, I honestly don't know. Both records are just great.

The only thing keeping both albums from getting a perfect score though is that both of them lack big hooks like on Disintegration. There's some real driving songs on both these records though. One Hundred Years on Pornography, and Play for Today and A Forest on Seventeen Seconds, which I appreciate.

Just waiting to get Disintegration where I can really espouse The Cure's genius (Also Songs of a Lost World, which is very good as well).

Having listened to this before, liking it, but only really coming out of it with Deer Stop on my playlists, it's been really fun to come back and listen again. And it's not disappointing. Kinda feels like a mix between the smoky spy film stuff Portishead has going on, mixed with a little bit of Björk (Especially songs like Human). And that's a mix that I am perfectly fine with.

The album does jump back and forth between a few sounds while holding onto the spy film vibes throughout (Got a weird carnival thing going on in Oompah Radar). But overall the whole album hits, and it hits hard (Despite generally being a chill record).

Still, Deer Stop is my favorite song from it (Even if it does use elk vocalizations instead of deer vocalizations. 2/10 would not listen again). But, went in thinking this would be closer to a four, came out giving it full marks. Great stuff.

Also, shoutout to the album art. Also great shit.

Another Rolling Stones album. Another 3.
It does have two of their best songs in Paint it Black and Under My Thumb, but the rest of the tracklist is pretty forgettable IMO.

Kind of an edge case for me. It would hurt losing those two songs on the list, but the Stones I feel have 3 albums too many (Definitely the debut and Hackney Diamonds are unnessesary, so after that, this is the weakest link), and you can't get rid of the incredible run from Beggars Banquet to Exile on Main St.

Overall, perfectly OK aside from two massive singles.

Probably still going to settle on the four for this one, but it has aged quite a bit. Too much 80s funk/metal and 80's production.

But fuck Cult of Personality is an absolute ripper of a song. Honestly more familiar with the Guitar Hero 3 version that they re-recorded to license for the game cheaper. But the original solo rips just as much.

Gotta imagine this album hit like a fucking truck when it came out.

Pretty dated sounding R&B, inspired by Michael Jackson. Its generally fine, just not really my thing.

Fucking hell is this atrocious. Everything I hate about 60s experimentalism and psych all wrapped into one album.

I've already ranted enough on other albums about why I dislike this type of music, so I won't beat a dead horse, but fuck man, this is bad. Bad music, bad singing. I legit don't understand how anyone can enjoy this. Its just straight unpleasant.

It's not an issue on all songs, but for the love of God, I need white English dudes to stop appropriating Indian music for once in their lives. Please. Just once. I'm begging.

But yeah. Besides that, this album can be kinda annoying, like with the synths on If They Move, Kill 'Em. When it's decent, it's basically this meme:

Kid: "MOM, I WANT A MASSIVE ATTACK CD"
Mom: "Honey, we have a Massive Attack CD at home" *Holds up Vanishing Point*

And then a random britpop song aping the Rolling Stones in Medication. It's average at best.

So yeah, just not a good record. Appropriative, unoriginal, and boring.

Pretty solid offering from Paul Weller here. Not as good as The Jam, but better than Style Council. Definitely liking the folkier, darker tracks like Wild Wood and Foot of the Mountain over the more bluesy and rootsier tracks.

Sometimes verges a little too much on Huey Lewis and the News type stuff, especially in the vocals. Sometimes a little psychedelic in a way I don't like either.

So yeah. Solid album here. Not blowing me away though.

This is definitely a weird one that I kinda like. A lot of really quick little nothing tracks that kinda drag it down for me, but when it settles down into a song and allows it to breathe, it's fun.

It's definitely reminding me of another band, but I can't for the life of me place it.

Still though, think it's gonna get the "Good, but I don't think I really want to listen to it again after this" 3.

God this is rough. I don't think I've run into worse singing on the entire list, and that's fucking impressing when Pere Ubu exists (At least with Pere Ubu, the intent was experimentalism).

But yeah. Pretty quickly I found it boiled down to bog standard 2000's garage rock (By way of The Who and maybe a little Rolling Stones, two bands who absolutely do not deserve KoL shitting on their sound) with just the shittiest singing ever.

But the singing just kept getting worse. At first it sounded like he was drunk and slurring his words. Was preparing to give it a 2 and just be done with it, but Jesus, this is rancid.

So yeah. Think I'm honestly leaning towards the 1. Don't hand those out often, but fuck man. Pitchfork was being LENIENT with that 4.2/10 (Looked at their score after listening).

It will forever confuse me why this is considered better than Protection? It's definitely more dated sounding, and I'm not really digging Horace Andy's vocals on this one (Although he doesn't really bother me on Mezzanine much).

A little too much 90's R&B vibes, not enough of the darker trip hop vibes that were on Protection or Mezzanine.

Decent album, just not really for me.

Coulda sworn I loved this album the first time I listened to it earlier this year. Still really good, but not hitting me quite as much.

Love the goth rock leanings, but this album is landing a little more on the jammy side of things for Sonic Youth, so I'm not loving it quite as much as I remembered.

Unlike Daydream Nation, Sister, and Dirty, no particular tracks are standing out to me, but everything is pretty consistent in quality.

Still a good record, and Sonic Youth are the GOATS, but yeah.

Perfectly fine Indian music with some blues rock influences. Doesn't really do anything for me though.

Celtic/folk punk is always a good time. Really enjoyed this one, especially with its more adventurous sounds compared to Rum Sodomy & the Lash (Although I do think Rum is a more consistent albums).

Just sad I won't be getting more Pogues from the generator in the future.

Man, I'm not even a Springsteen fan, even dislike him at times, and I'm still disappointed by this album.

It was kinda sold to me as darker, more stripped down, and all around folkier, which I think I could have enjoyed. And at times, yeah it is kinda like that (Especially with Atlantic City which is probably the only actually good song from Springsteen that I've ever heard - Playlisted that). But overall, it does fall into the Springsteen-isms I dislike (He fucking sucks at singing. Why is he allowed to get away with that? I always hear Dylan is a terrible singer, but Springsteen 75% of the time sounds like he's trying to swallow his own tongue).

And even stripped back, some of the songs do still have that bombast from him that I dislike, but at least it doesn't have the sax and piano.

Overall, one great song, a bunch of fine songs, and a couple stinkers. Good for a middling score. Good news, I only have one more Springsteen album left to listen to on the list. Bad news is it's his 2000's album. Almost there though.

All this is telling me though is I need to stick to Bob Seger. The better heartland rock artist.

The second this album popped up on the generator for today, I knew I was going to have a good day. Dummy is my second favorite album of all time (Isis' Oceanic being #1), and easy the best album on the entire list.

This is just an absolutely amazing album. Especially during this time of year. Portishead has always kinda felt vaguely autumn/Halloween-y in sound (Dummy had Mysterons which is peak Halloween vibes). The self-titled album is also much darker (Although a little too consistent in sound, weirdly enough. Still amazing though).

But this album is just hitting right now. The opening to Hunter is amazing.
The Rip with it's more folk vibes developing into a kinda Tron-like electronic synth portion. Plastic also has some Halloween-y vibes as well.

We Carry On with it's militaristic beat yet also kinda feeling like the song could explode into insanity at any time. And of course Machine Gun with it's John Carpenter worship.

Obviously the rest of the album is absolutely amazing as well, but yeah. Before getting this (It's been a long time since I've listened to this album) I was thinking it could be a 4/5, but no. Two songs into this album, and I knew in my heart it would be a perfect score.

Portishead are easily one of the best bands of all time. Just wish they would make more music and tour. I've never got to see them live. Might have to settle for just seeing Beth Gibbons live if she ever tours.

Also, apropos of nothing, gotta imagine this album was a huge influence on Chelsea Wolfe.