Reviews by uls980

For my money, Mike Patton is probably the greatest vocalist of all time, and easily top 10 singer of all time. The things he does with his voice are insane, and he's no slouch on this record. From his very Prince-like nasal delivery, to all his inflections and sound effects, dude is the GOAT.

This album is fantastic as well. From the Prince-influenced funk metal tracks (From Out of Nowhere and Falling to Pieces), to the Coroner-esque thrash metal (Surprise! You're Dead!, Zombie Eaters), it's all great. I mention the apparent influences though not to say its derivative because they definitely add their own take on it all, and no other band has ever sounded like this before or after. The title track being a great example of Patton going all out with his voice.

I will say, I'm not the hugest on the Prince-like funk metal stuff, but it's still great.

Some could argue this album helped, unfortunately popularize rap metal/nu metal, and sure, but creatively this album stands heads an tails above pretty much anyone. Even still, we wouldn't have bands like Dillinger Escape Plan (top 5 bands all time for me) in their current form were it not for albums like this.

Perfectly serviceable punk with some classics (Blitzkrieg Bop). Overall for me, old school OG punk is just a bit too simplistic and one note for me to really get into. A lot of the songs sound similar, the singing is very one note throughout. Love how prominent the bass is in the mix though.

Yes, yes Take On Me is one of the greatest songs of all time, and a blast at karaoke. Cool. Whatever (shout out to Reel Big Fish's fantastic cover though. Every classic song could use a good ska cover).

Can we talk about how the rest of this album is nothing but certified bangers? How the hell are they a one hit wonder (and I'm honestly guilty of this)? I know they were huge in Europe, but how come Take On Me was the only thing that really got big in the US? The fact they weren't huge in the US is probably the biggest musical crime in history.

Either way, what I think is propelling this album is the lingering melancholy throughout the whole album. I'm quickly learning that 80's music generally needs some sort of edge of somber to work well. Otherwise you get sickeningly upbeat trash like Scritti Politti (and no I won't give that album a break). And A-Ha have the melancholy down to a science. It's not as down as The Cure, more on the same wavelength as New Order, but it's still there and it's fantastic.

a-ha deserved better.

Feel like I've tried listening to this album previously and not really getting into it, but don't really remember it either. Not recognizing it this time.

Either way, I'm not really getting the hype despite its status as a hipster classic. I think that's mostly the age on this album. This album could only have been made around the time it was. Does not really work for me in the year 2025. Its generally a fun, quirky, happy album, very Beatles influenced, just not doing it for me. Kinda felt the same way about the Beach House album I got early on in this project. Probably would have given it a 4 back in the day, but now, its a 3. Great album art though.

The mastery over sampling continues on this album, same as License to Ill. I will say this album sits in a more vibey spot than License to Ill, which I both like and dislike in comparison. Just comes down to which I prefer at that moment. The vocals aren't bothering me as much as on License though, and its a more varied album. A lot more interesting guitar work and sample usage of guitars on this one.

Feeling like this sits somewhere between a Dr. Octagon, Gorillaz, and a Aesop Rock? All of those being better though. Overall, this is a pretty solid record, the beats/sounds are a tad repetitive/vibey, but the rapping is good. Author really likes his underground rappers though. But his choices are kinda weird, leaving off the aforementioned Aesop Rock but putting on a Lupe Fiasco? Maybe the list could use an El-P project or two. Run the Jewels or something. This pick feels a bit of a stretch, but good pick none the less.

Will say I'm enjoying this more as I'm going on. Usually not huge on vibey hip-hop, but this one's good. Could use a little bit of cutting though. An hour is a bit long.

Tale of two albums on this record. You have the absolutely monumental classics like Livin' On A Prayer, You Give Love A Bad Name, and Wanted Dead Or Alive, then the rest of the album is just lukewarm reheats of songs from bands like Van Halen and Def Leppard, or like if Bruce Springsteen made glam metal.

Good Bon Jovi songs have this specific vibe (It's My Life and Have A Nice Day also have that vibe), and other than the singles I listed, nothing hits that vibe.

Giving it a 3 based on the strength of the hits, but otherwise a pretty tepid record.

Pretty neutral on this album, starting off extremely strong with The Wall Street Shuffle, which is just a banger of a classic rock song.

After that though, the silly art rock comes out, which to me feels like more "high art" versions of gimmick classic rock songs like Mr. Roboto by Styx or Ocean Man by Ween (I know that was 1997 though). Like if David Bowie wanted to make Ringo Starr type goofy songs.

Good, but not really something I'd go back to.

Haven't gotten it yet on this project, but I've previously listened to Disintegration, and that was an amazing album.

This one (compared to what I remember from Disintegration), is great, but in a different way. Whereas I remember Disintegration being a more sad/melancholic but sweet record, Pornography goes in a darker, harder direction which I really appreciate. Songs across the board are great and Smith's voice adds a great contrast to the darker music despite still having the more melancholic/pleading voice he'd use later on Disintegration.

Great record all around. Will definitely spin this more.

I remember liking Country Life a lot more than I like this record. Music generally is fine on this one. Definitely could be the type to veer into an Iggy Pop/David Bowie post-punk sound that I dislike, but it doesn't.

But the singing and production is what's hurting this record for me. I don't remember the singing being this bad/weird on Country Life, with this one having a lot of wailing and odd choices (I figure the singing inflections are intentional). The production to me also sounds kinda flat to me. Overall just not enjoying this one as much as Country Life.

This is a weird one because it bounces back and forth between great dinner jazz (Ba-Lue Bolivar Ba Lues-Are, Bemsha Swing) and weird, slightly "sour" experimental stuff ( Brilliant Corners, Pannonica). And I both like and dislike the experimental stuff. Feel like I'm gonna settle on a 3, but its an interesting record.

Never been big Van Halen fan. Good album, some classic bangers, but got distracted halfway through, and am not really super interested in continuing. It's fine, just not a huge fan of them.

Avant garde psychedelic music with some slight jazz influences is certainly a mash up. Can't say I'm a fan. Psychedelic music is already a genre I'm not crazy about, but the sloppy avant garde angle isn't helping. Mostly its fine when it's just treading in a mostly psychedelic area, otherwise its a tougher listen. Songs like I Wouldn't Trade My Wooden Wife For You, Sugar, and The American Metaphysical Circus are not great. Stuff like Hard Coming Love and Cloud Song are decent enough. I will say, when it doesn't sound like a clown trying to make psychedelic music, the vibes are some of the most interesting in psychedelic music (Where Is Yesterday).

This record being an hour long is tough though. Not really my thing overall.

Even though The Who are pretty much my favorite classic rock band, I've always passed this record over. Not that I don't like it, and I've definitely listened to it before, just it never really grabbed me like their later records.

Regardless, this is still a massive record from The Who, the one that I feel basically cemented the sound they'd be known for with Keith Moon absolutely destroying the drums and Townsend coming into his own as a writer. It's not quite them at their full power (Their next record, Who's Next, would be them achieving that, with Quadrophenia after being their magnum opus), but Tommy is them coming damn close.

Definitely as a rock opera, I feel this album has some of the same issues that The Wall by Pink Floyd has, mainly that as a listening experience by itself it isn't 100% satisfying as some of the tracks do feel like they need a visual component (It's A Boy, There's A Doctor). I will say though, The Who being more straightforward rock helps to make a lot of these songs listenable on their own, whereas The Wall's prog rock sound kinda forced it into a stage play sound that requires a visual component.

But this album has great tracks like Pinball Wizard, Go To The Mirror, I'm Free, etc.

Overall, an extremely strong record that barely misses the 5 for me, but they'll get there with their next record (also, I'll mention this in every The Who review, but whoever decided Quadrophenia didn't belong on this list needs to be shot).

More blues rock. COUNTRY blues rock, at that. Not that it's actually bad, I'm just burnt out on the genre. Everyone complains about britpop being overrepresented on the list, for me its blues rock.

It's very hit and miss for me. Some great folk rock tunes like Both of Us (Bound to Lose), It Doesn't Matter, and Colorado, but then there's country stuff like Hide It So Deep, Don't Look At My Shadow, or Jesus Gave Love Away For Free or blues tracks like Jet Set (Sigh) that just do nothing do it for me. Really its the country and blues tracks that let this album down for me, the folk rock stuff is great. Once in a while you'll get a song thats a bit too close to Grateful Dead like How Far, but still.

Overall, good album, I'm just burning out on blues rock type stuff.

Initially, thought I'd get past the old-school flows due to the whole frat bro rapping angle, and the magic never fully wore off, but couldn't always suspend the disbelief. Not to say that I dislike that style of rapping, but like all the old school hip hop records I've had previously, it's just not what I'm looking for in hip hop. That said, there are still some absolutely bangers on this record like No Sleep Till Brooklyn and Fight For Your Right.

Additionally, the sample work on this record is top notch, and its insane how they did this back in 1986 and yet artists today struggle to do anything more than the absolute bare minimum of rapping over the original track unchanged.

Still gets a 4 though because the musical ideas on this thing are still miles ahead of a lot of hip hop records today.

Not much more than to say this is just some good fuckin' classic heavy metal. Classics like Photograph, Foolin', Rock of Ages, and Too Late For Love, and the rest of the track listing goes just as hard [although I'm not huge on Rock! Rock! (Till You Drop)]. Comin' Under Fire is a great deep cut.

Don't got much to say other than I'm not a fan. Guitar work is pretty solid, but otherwise it's not impressing me. Singing can get kind of annoying.
A middling cover of I Got You Babe by Sonny and Cher is here, I guess. Some songs that are good like Weekend, but yeah, basically just some passable proto-punk, but just doesn't do anything for me.

I feel like I've tried to listen to this album multiple times in the past and could not get into it. And what's weird is I flat out don't remember it sounding like this. Dunno what it was, but I would have given it a 3 back then and just be done with it.

But what's nice about doing this project is it allows you to revisit stuff and realize albums you didn't get into before are absolute bangers. For some reason, this album is just hitting hard for me. It's fun, bouncy, sunny, happy. Everything you want in a great album. Honestly, I think the reason I'm able to get into it this time is me gaining a deeper appreciation for post-punk through this 1001 album project. Not that this album necessarily sounds like the other post-punk on this list (maybe closest to New Order, which their album Technique is easily my favorite post-punk record I've discovered on this project), but there's just something there that kinda unlocked my appreciation for this record. Great record. Will have to listen to it more to figure out what to playlist.

(Whoever decided the original cover was too risque for the US and made them make a new one needs to be shot, lol)

Up front, this is not doing a ton for me. It's good, but nothing I haven't really heard before (probably due to Billie's influence, honestly). The singing in particular isn't great, but my understanding is this is one of the last things she recorded and by then her voice had lost a lot of it's punch. Additionally, there's not much daylight between the songs, they all sound very similar.

Interesting that this is the only Billie Holiday record on the list, especially with a bunch being higher rated on Rate Your Music. Wouldn't be opposed to getting an earlier Billie album on the list.

Kinda as a non-sequitur, I recently listened to The Caretaker's dementia project albums (An Empty Bliss Beyond This World and Everywhere at the End of Time), and this album kinda reminds me a little of the ballroom music Kirby sampled for those albums. So much in the same way I call music that sounds like it could be used in the Fallout games or show "Fallout-core" (40s/50s jazz/rock), I'm gonna start calling music that'd work for an Everywhere at the End of Time project "Alzheimers-core", lol.

Edit: Went ahead and listened to Lady Sings the Blues to get a feel for her vocals before her alcoholism and heroin use did a number on her voice (although it sounds like the deterioration had already started by this point). Definitely enjoying this more than Lady in Satin, the vocals are livelier and more consistent, and the backing band is more upbeat and interesting. Not to say Lady in Satin isn't good, just Lady Sings the Blues is more my speed. Lady in Satin feels like a record that requires context to enjoy fully (her health issues) whereas the enjoyment of Lady Sings the Blues is more straightforward.

I wouldn't remove Lady in Satin from the list, it's important, but I would definitely add Lady Sings the Blues to give a fuller picture of her life and career.